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My temple begins to throb in time with the pounding on my door, pulling me from my slumber.

Rosy streaks of orange and yellow wink out at me through the blinds. A quick glance at my newly-fixed phone only serves to spark a flame of irritation - it's almost seven thirty in the morning; a time when I should most definitely still be dead asleep.

Kneading a fist into my eye socket I reluctantly kick off my duvet. In my haste, my knee bangs against the bed post and it's all I can do to swallow a frustrated groan.

The knocking only grows more persistant as I hobble my way through the dim space, still unfamiliar with my room. By the time my hand is twisting the handle open, the banging is so loud that I fear it'll break the door itself.

Hugging my knee to my chest, I hop on one leg as I fling the door open. "What?"

The onslaught of light dazzles me and I stumble back, shielding my eyes in order to distinguish the tall figure before me.

With tuffs of hair sticking up at odd angles and lavender eyes, Jeongguk looks like he just crawled through hell and back. Toothbrush jutting from his mouth and tie hanging undone around his neck, he hurries to button up his white long sleeve, missing several holes along the way.

Upon seeing me he freezes, taking in my flimsy pyjamas with wide, innocent doe eyes. He's quick to wipe the expression, and though his cheeks are flushed a brilliant red, his glare turns dark, almost deadly - albeit it's now fixed somewhere behind my head.

"Why the hell aren't you dressed?"

I blink the film of sleep from my eyes. "I'm sorry?"

"Are you kidding me?" He yanks the toothbrush from his mouth. The prominence of his jaw tells me he's absolutely livid. "We have to go."

I scratch my head, struggling to wrap my sleep-laden mind around the situation. "Um, where exactly?"

Bracing his arms against the doorframe he leans in, close enough for me to see the flecks of gold in his eyes and feel his minty breath caress my face. "How on earth do you think the boys are supposed to get to school, hm? A rocket ship?"

School?

Oh.

My alarm. It's Monday morning and I forgot to set my alarm.

Jeongguk barks out a laugh but there's no humour in it. "We had a deal, Taehee."

Before I can think to defend myself, a loud crash sounds from somewhere downstairs. It's chased by a plethora of childish shouts and cries.

Jeongguk curses. With one last bitter look he's pushing away and racing down the hallway, just barely avoiding a mess of Lego that litters the hardwood along the way. Then he turns the corner and disappears.

Shit, shit, shit.

We're going to be late.

I throw myself back into the room with a whirlwind of commotion. Locating my uniform from my suitcase is easy enough but putting it on is a whole other story - a mouthful of toothpaste slops down the front of my blazer and my stockings rip up to my thigh in my haste to put them on. Papers scatter everywhere as I shove various folders into my bag. My toes pinch painfully as I jam my feet into my black slacks - and it's just my luck that I force on the wrong shoe per foot.

Then I'm flying out the door, hair elastic between my teeth and hands buried in my hair as I try to bring some order to my appearance.

Dashing through the ornately decorated hallways, I sprint towards the source of commotion.

But I skid to a stop as I round the corner to the kitchen, jaw floored as I slowly take in the sight before me.

The kitchen is absolute mayhem.

Iseul is sitting at the island, fingers knotted in his hair as he moans about his unfinished homework. Behind him the twins practically dissolve into chaos. Akin to a corpse, Sejun lies sprawled on the floor in a puddle of juice, crying softly as Chul frantically tries to mop up the mess with the sleeve of his blazer.

I feel like I may be a witness to a crime.

Contents of the fridge have spilled onto the floor and it's beeping from being left open too long. A blender filled with pink is whirling on the counter, unattended and shaking with a concerning amount of enthusiasm. The thick, sharp smell of something burning filters from the stove, and not even seconds later the fire alarm is set off, blaring loudly throughout the manor.

Which only sets the twins off again.

And Jeongguk, dutiful as always, is running around trying to fix it all.

"Are you just going to stand there?" he gasps at me before yanking a pan of something out of the stove, clattering it on the countertop and batting the thick smoke away with his hands.

Oh. Right.

I kickstart into action.

My arms overflow with paper towel as I rush towards the twins to help soak up the mess. My knees are soaked within seconds but it's nothing compared to Sejun - he's practically stained orange, lying flat on his back and staring blankly at the ceiling through his tears. Chul's arm is sopping wet and he too looks on the verge of a breakdown.

I didn't mean it, Chul signs, lower lip quivering. It was an accident, honest! I reached for the cereal and-

"I know," I soothe as I scramble to wipe the floor. A bead of juice drips down the front of my tunic. "It's okay. It's not your fault. Let's get you two cleaned up, yeah?"

Chul nods solemnly before slipping to his feet, arms splayed outwards to keep himself balanced. I gingerly scoop an unmoving Sejun into my arms, gasping as his sodden form presses flush against me. His braids left in from yesterday tickle my throat as he curls into my chest with a dejected whimper of, "my hair."

My shoes stick to the fruity floor as I race to throw the soiled paper towel in the waste, almost running smack into Jeongguk. He's finally managed to stop the fire alarm and is now raiding the fridge to throw together makeshift lunches for the boys.

"Taehee, quick!" Iseul calls, spinning to face me in his seat at the island. "What's two hundred and thirty seven divided by three?"

"I'm not a human calculator, Iseul!" I grit through my teeth, shifting Sejun in my arms as I move towards the kitchen's exit. "But it's seventy nine."

"I'm not a human calculator, Iseul," the boy in question mimicks, voice high pitched and mocking as he writes down my answer nonetheless. "Also, when's breakfast gonna be ready?"

Jeongguk and I both spin, fixing him with a death glare.

"Harsh crowd," he mutters, but his smile is devious.

Brat.

I move as fast as I dare, racing Sejun upstairs to the bathroom with Chul trailing behind us, his fingers pinching my blazer like a puppy following it's owner. Sejun's sobs echo around the vast, marble space as I carefully set him down on the toilet before turning on the shower.

"Quick like a bunny, let's go," I usher them, snatching up their clothes as they discard them and throwing them in the sink to soak.

"What about my hair?" Sejun whines, hands holding his head. Fat tears stream down his cheeks. "It's going to be ruined!"

"Don't worry," I console, swiping at the tears before gently pushing him towards the shower. "I can redo it anytime you'd like. But right now we have to move fast or we're going to be late for school!"

Late? Chul signs frantically, eyes wide. We can't be late! I have my show and tell today!

"Then we'd better be quick!"

Sejun, having already gloomily stepped into the shower, suddenly lets out an ear-piercing shriek, his arms flailing around him. My head whips up in time to watch the shower head fall, landing at such an angle that the spray of icy water hits me full on.

It's only an instant that Sejun lost control but the damage is already done. The cold robs me of my breath and warmth, soaking me to the bone. Beads of ice drip down my face, chin, neck, back and into my shoes. I stand rigid, frozen from the top of my head to the tips of my toes.

The water may be cold but this is so not cool.

"I'm sorry," Sejun blubbers, damn near looking like he's going to cry again. "The water was really cold and I dropped it. I didn't mean it!"

"It's okay," I say swiftly through chattering teeth, coaxing as much softness into my voice as possible. The last thing I need is another meltdown from one of the twins. "Don't worry. Just- please be quick."

I leave the boys in the bathroom alone, praying that no other disasters will occur in my absence (however unlikely that may be). Back in my room, I hunt for a change in uniform, strewing clothes haphazardly in my wake. I emerge semi-successful with a too-small blazer that pinches my armpits and a pair of scuffed black heels.

I guess it'll have to do.

With the twins cleaned up and dressed in fresh uniforms we charge downstairs again, met at the front door by Iseul, who carries his own bag, and Jeongguk - his white shirt blotched pink - who carries three.

He frowns upon seeing my soaked appearance. "What happened to you?"

"What happened to you?"

"Death by strawberry smoothie."

"Shower gone wrong."

"You're right to panic. Nothing gets water out."

I bite my tongue.

We file out the door in a stream of shouts and worried cries, bolting for one of the two cars. I yank open the side door and lift Chul into the carseat before strapping him in. On the other side of the car Jeongguk follows suit with Sejun while Iseul worms his way into the very back, muttering a string of incoherence that sounds suspiciously like I thought you guys were supposed to be the responsible ones.

When Jeongguk's finished with the buckles he braces his hands against the roof of the car and leans in, his frantic gaze meeting my own.

"Did you lock the door?"

"No. Did you?"

In a flash he's fishing a wad of keys from his pocket and slinging them over the car. I somehow manage to catch them and race back up the steps to lock the door, wobbling slightly in my heels. It takes me a while to find the right key amid the mess of metal. I can almost feel Jeongguk's glower piercing daggers through my head as I struggle to turn the right key.

The sleek cherry Lexus purrs to life as I slide back into the passenger seat, my backpack crashing against my side. Before I can even close the door Jeongguk's reversing out of the circular driveway and onto the street, his arm thrown across my headrest, teeth set.

A quick glance at the dashboard tells me we have barely twenty minutes to get the boys to school on time plus an additional ten for Jeongguk and I. But with Bighit Elementary Private School being on the other side of town, Jeongguk and I need a stroke of dumb luck to get us to school before first period Biology with Mr. Bang starts.

Because everyone knows his favourite hobby is watching the life drain from student's eyes as he sentences them to detention.

Oh, how I'd love to give him a Bighit in the head.

The atmosphere in the car is tense. While the boys chatter mindlessly in the back, Jeongguk and I sit in suffocating silence, broken only by the bubblegum pop song that bleeds quietly through the speakers, mocking us with it's sugary-sweet happiness. His hands grip the wheel, fingertips drumming against leather as he expertly navigates the roads.

I can't help but feel this mess is all my fault.

Swallowing a tide of guilt, I shrink back in my seat and focus instead on the passing sights - however slow they may be passing. We've reached morning traffic, and the car crawls forward at the pace of a snail. At this rate, we'll never beat the bell.

"Gukkie," Sejun suddenly grumbles from his seat. I watch through the rear-view mirror as the brunette pats his belly earnestly. "We're hungry."

Yeah, Chul agrees, pushing his glasses up his nose. Is there any food?

Jeongguk and I share a panicked glance.

Breakfast.

We forgot breakfast.

"Don't look at me," Iseul calls from the back, eyes trained on his still unfinished homework. "I'm the one who asked about breakfast in the first place."

I flatten my lips at that. We can't afford to stop - not now when we're barely halfway there. Instead, I heave my bag onto my lap and delve into the swamp of papers, searching for any sort of sustenance that will hopefully tide the boys over until lunch.

I emerge with a half eaten bag of candy and a packet of dried fruit.

"Here," I say, reaching my arm back to distribute the makeshift breakfast to the boys. "Breakfast is served."

Sejun looks like he just won the lottery. "Candy!"

Taehee, you're the best! Chul signs before shoving a fistful of gummies in his mouth.

Iseul snatches a handful of dried fruit from Sejun. "Told you she was!"

My chest swells. It's a small victory in the great scheme of things but meaningful nonetheless. At least the boys are happy and, for the meanwhile, somewhat fed.

Jeongguk shakes his head, grinding his teeth. "Really, Taehee?" he scolds, low enough so that only I can hear him. "Candy for breakfast?"

"Now's not the time to be a food critic," I snap, voice equally hushed. "Unless you have a better idea?"

"I do, actually." He spares me a look. "How about next time you screw your beauty sleep and actually wake up on time."

I bristle, resisting the urge to hurl something at him. My heel, or maybe my phone. Perhaps even my whole bag.

Our babysitting contract suddenly comes to mind and it takes every fibre in my being to resist from engaging. In his mind I already broke rule number two - equal time and effort with the boys. As much as I want to verbally annihilate him, I know it might not be in my best interests. I don't need two strikes beside my name.

"Okay fine," I mumble, cheeks burning. "I'm sorry. My alarm didn't go off. That's why I slept in."

He scoffs. "Right."

A muscle in my jaw jumps. "I'm sorry. It wont happen again. It's just that I forgot to set it yesterday night and-"

"What's three hundred divided by four?" Iseul pipes from the back.

"Seventy five!" Jeongguk and I snap at the same time.

"Thanks!"

I don't bother to continue after Iseul's outburst and Jeongguk doesn't ask me to.

The rest of the ride is drenched in silence. We make it to Bighit Elementary School just in the nick of time, and the boys manage squeeze through the front doors just before they close. Then Jeongguk and I are turning the car around and racing against time once again.

Six minutes.

We have six minutes to make it to school.

It takes us ten.

Once safely parked, Jeongguk and I bolt for the tall brick building before us. He's much faster then I am - especially in these damn heels - and he effortlessly leaves me in the dust.

By the time I've reached Mr. Bang's classroom, he's already taken his designated seat in the back, looking winded but otherwise expressionless.

"Ah, Ms. Kim." Mr. Bang turns away from the chalkboard and peers at me through his round spectacles. "How thoughtful of you to join us today."

"I'm sorry, Sir," I gasp, fighting to keep my voice level. "Traffic was bad this morning."

"Curious." He clasps his hands behind his back. "That's exactly what Mr. Jeon said."

A smattering of whispers and chuckles hums from my classmates, growing in volume like a swarm of bees taking flight. They're instantly silenced with a harsh glare from Mr. Bang.

He then spins towards me, a sharp gleam in his eye.

"You will be joining Mr. Jeon this afternoon in detention."

My face falls. "But Sir-"

He cuts me off with a wave of his pudgy hand. "I don't want to hear it. You'll do well to remember that tardiness is inexcusable in my class."

Despite the pit of unease growing in my gut I surrender, bowing my head. "Yes, Sir. Sorry, Sir."

"Find your seat quickly please. You've already disrupted my lesson enough as it is."

Red splotches my cheeks as I bow once more before hurrying to the nearest empty seat. It's hard, but I do my best to ignore the stares and smirks from my classmates. Slinking down in the chair, I let a curtain of my still-damp hair fall over my shoulders to shield me from their curiosity.

As Mr. Bang returns to his lesson on photosynthesis, a terrible thought plagues my mind. It bubbles into worry, simmering much like a hot volcano ready to explode.

Once sure that my teacher's attention is focused solely on the streaks of chalk on the board, I twist in my seat, hunting for Jeongguk.

With his arms crossed over his rose-stained chest, he lounges back in his chair, foot tapping absentmindedly beneath his desk. It takes a moment before he notices my desperate stare.

What are we going to do?

Upon reading my hands he cocks a brow, looking annoyingly bored.

Well we can't both serve the detention now can we? I fight to keep my nerves at bay. One of us has to pick up the boys after school.

The effect of my message is gradual - slowly but surely, Jeongguk comes to the same horrible realization I have. His face sags, lips parting to form an adorably dumbstruck 'O'.

We can't be in two places at once.

Which means the boys are going to be stranded at school.

Alone.

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oof this was not one of my best but i still hope you enjoyed nonetheless!!

hugs and kisses,
sunny ☼