The Girl by the Sea (Countryhumans AU)

My Joy

Written: March 1, 2024

Joseon Empire POV:

As I watched my husband cradle our newborn daughter in his arms, a pang of mixed emotions surged within me. On one hand, I couldn't deny the beauty of our little girl, her delicate features and rosy cheeks a miracle of creation. Yet, beneath the facade of paternal affection, I couldn't shake the lingering dread that gnawed at my heart.

My husband's words, though seemingly tender, held a veiled menace that sent shivers down my spine. The softness in his gaze belied the darkness that lurked within, a darkness that I had become all too familiar with over the years of our tumultuous marriage.

"She's beautiful," he whispered, his voice laced with a deceptive sweetness that made my skin crawl. "Her little red sun, that soft hair... I love her already."

I forced a smile, nodding in agreement, though every fiber of my being recoiled at his words. Behind closed doors, my husband's love was conditional, his affection a weapon he wielded to maintain control over me and our family.

As he turned his attention back to our daughter, cradling her with a tenderness that seemed almost genuine, I couldn't help but feel a sense of unease settle over me like a suffocating shroud. In his eyes, I saw not the love of a father, but the possessiveness of a tyrant, a man who saw our daughter not as a precious gift, but as an extension of his own ego and ambition.

And as I stood by silently, a silent witness to the facade of familial bliss that unfolded before me, I couldn't shake the feeling that beneath the surface, darkness lurked, threatening to consume us all in its insatiable grasp.

"Nippon, what are we going to name her?" I spoke softly, my words tinged with a cautious reverence as I addressed my husband, hoping to avoid stirring the volatile temper that simmered beneath his composed facade. Despite the apprehension that gnawed at my insides, I forced myself to maintain a semblance of composure, knowing that any sign of defiance could provoke a swift and merciless reprisal.

My husband's gaze flickered briefly towards me, his expression inscrutable as he considered my question. For a moment, the silence hung heavy between us, pregnant with the weight of unspoken tensions and unfulfilled expectations.

Finally, he spoke, his voice tinged with an air of authority that brooked no dissent. "Her name shall be Japan," he declared, his words carrying the weight of finality as he bestowed upon our daughter a name that would bind her to his legacy, his ambitions, and his dreams of conquest.

I nodded silently, my heart heavy with resignation as I accepted the fate that had been ordained for our daughter. In that moment, I knew that her name was not merely a reflection of her identity, but a symbol of the forces that sought to shape her destiny – forces that I could neither defy nor escape.

And as I looked upon my husband cradling our newborn daughter in his arms, I couldn't help but wonder what future awaited her in a world where her name carried the weight of empires and the burden of what is to come.

"You did well," Nippon said flatly. "You know how much I wanted a daughter." He smiled softly at Japan, supporting her head. "My little princess." He kissed the sleeping baby's forehead with a tenderness that I couldn't help but be envious of.

As Nippon's gaze lingered upon our daughter, a shadow of uncertainty flickered across his features, betraying the facade of confidence he often projected. It was as if, in that fleeting moment of vulnerability, I caught a glimpse of the man beneath the mask – a man burdened by the weight of his own expectations, haunted by the specter of his past, and driven by a relentless pursuit of power and control.