ACT XI | SCENE LIII

❝FAVOUR❞

LUNE CORP FELT particularly energetic today, yoongi noticed. he could only ascribe it to the fact that not only was it a friday but the daisy deal had been successful. he, on the other hand, was still as busy as ever, working on the new project on his own. it was going to require a lot of research and networking to make it what he imagined.

he was making lists and scribbling notes. soon, he'd be making a lot of calls and having lots of meetings before he could even begin coding and creating the app and its design. polaris was certainly different from his usual work, nonetheless, it was his baby.

he bookmarked another page for later reference before closing the open tabs on his browser. scribbling another name on his growing list, he pursed his lips in thought. eventually, he was going to have to narrow it down.

his phone buzzed on the desk, breaking him out of his thoughts. he glanced at the screen and then quickly at the clock, a small smile forming on his lips. he picked up the phone, swiping the answer button.

"hello, miss... rian?"

"mr min? i mean yoongi." the voice on the other end definitely didn't sound as cheery as he'd expected. she sounded disoriented and desperate. a frown etched its way between his brows. "what's wrong? why do you sound like that?"

"um, i need a huge favour. i know you're super busy and you're probably still at the office. but i don't know who else to call. taehyung is a mess; chanmi and i can't leave before our shift is over; hoseok isn't answering his calls and is probably stuck in a meeting or with a client. and i just realised i really need to make more friends. you're the only one i can turn to right now."

"slow down and take a deep breath." he urged her softly. she stopped and took a deep breath like he told her to. "now, tell me what happened." he continued in his soft voice, hiding his concern behind a practical tone.

"well, um... ha, today sucks, really." rian muttered under her breath. "jeongyeon called me because she had a family emergency on her way to pick up haneul from school. she had to turn back because her brother had another seizure and their mum is out of town right now."

she took another steadying breath. "i can't go because my shift isn't over. chanmi can't either. there's no one available to pick haneul up, right now. and her school hours have been over for a while, now. she must be waiting. i know you must be busy and you probably have a lot on your plate and i'm so sorry. but please, can you help me go pick her up? please? i'll owe you one."

yoongi was already on his feet and reaching for his coat. "you don't need to say any of that. i'm on my way." he shuffled into the thick, black coat. "thank you so much, mr yoongi." her voice was full of relief. "don't mention it. i'll call you when i pick her up."

jeongguk jumped on his feet with wide eyes when he saw yoongi hurry out of his office. "president?" he asked, blinking in confusion. "jeongguk, let's go." yoongi said, already heading out. "a-ah, yes." jeongguk stumbled over himself, hurriedly picking up his things and following the older man.

once in the parking lot, yoongi unlocked the car and got in the driver's seat. he dumped his things on the lap of a confused jeongguk who had belatedly shuffled into the passenger's seat. "shouldn't i drive?" he asked with uncertainty. "you don't know the way." yoongi responded, revving up the engine and driving out of the office building.

he had no problem recalling the route to haneul's school even after being there only once. for some reason, things like that stayed in his head quite easily. it wasn't that he had a particularly eidetic memory, he was just oddly good with directions. and he had never been more grateful for it.

"hyung, where are we going?" jeongguk inquired, organising the mess of personal effects sitting on his lap. "to pick haneul up from school." yoongi answered, making an expert turn. "hm? what about miss rian?"

"stuck at the hospital."

"oh, okay."

it was mostly silent for the rest of the ride. when they arrived at the school, yoongi put the car in park and tossed the keys to jeongguk. he slipped into the building and wove his way through the hallways, finding haneul's class with ease.

the teacher looked up as he stepped in, eyes squinting in both recognition and confusion. "hello." she bowed. "who are you here for?" she asked with a courteous smile. "ah, choi haneul." he pointed to the girl who had her nose buried in a book and had yet to notice his presence. "i see. i'll have to call her guardian, if you don't mind."

"that's fine." he nodded, gaze shifting to the girl who was so invested in the book she was reading, she still hadn't looked up. a good amount of the students had already gone, more empty seats than not.

"hello? good afternoon, miss son. i'm calling about haneul." the teacher said into the phone. yoongi glanced at her but shifted his attention back to the little girl who was still very much into her story book. "—yes, there's a..." the woman looked at him with uncertainty. it was almost as though she didn't want to believe he was who she thought he was. "min yoongi." he supplied and her reaction confirmed his suspicions. she knew who he was. "...min yoongi here to pick her up."

"he's already there?" yoongi picked up rian's relieved yet surprised voice through the phone. "ah, yes. alright. since you've confirmed him as a guardian—"

"daddy!" haneul had finally lifted her head from the book she'd been reading. abandoning it at her desk, she barrelled towards him, wrapping her arms around his legs. "hey, little one. did you wait long?" his smile was soft and instant. bending over, he lifted the girl into his arms. "mm-mm," beaming, she shook her head.

he dandled her in his arms, brushing stray strands of her hair back. he looked at the teacher as she ended the phone call. she met his gaze with poorly concealed astonishment. "you may take her with you." she said. "thank you." he nodded. "go get your stuff and let's go." he said as he carefully placed her back on her feet.

jeongguk showed up then, peeking into the class to check if he was finally in the right one. a small smile curved his lips when he saw yoongi standing there. "hyung." he called, stepping inside.

"oh, you're here." the older man turned to him. "yes." jeongguk answered. he turned to the teacher and bowed his head in greeting. the woman did the same. "uncle gukkie!" haneul waddled over with her yellow backpack, bright smile painted across her lips. "hi, haneulie!" jeongguk replied with equal fervour, grinning as he took her backpack from her.

"bye, miss byun!" the little girl waved to her teacher. "bye, haneul," the woman smiled, waving back. haneul turned towards yoongi and slipped her hand into his much larger one.

"did you have a good day?" he asked as they left the class. "mhm! i had fun today. we learnt new words." she answered. "really? sounds fun. do you remember any?" he asked. "i remember all of them." she replied smugly. yoongi chuckled at her expression. "of course, you do. you're a smart little sunflower." he remarked, patting her hair with his free hand.

"i'll buy you a carrot cake for being such a good student." he told her. she looked up at him with wide eyes. "really?!" she gasped. "of course. i promised before, didn't i?" he responded. she seemed to think for a moment before nodding. "i'll just call rian and let her know, then we'll go, okay?"

"okay!"

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hi butterflies! hope y'all are doing okay. please, take care of yourselves and stay safe. see you soon! 💛