Sunja has not said a word and I know that she hasn't had any wink of sleep. Even if a day has passed and it’s already nighttime, the rain still has not stopped. It was only a few hours ago when we received word that we’re in a low-pressure area and it might be raining until tomorrow. 

We did not allow the kids to go out of the building for the whole day to ensure that they stay safe. Thus, all of the activities were done inside, especially playtime. This brings me to sitting beside Sunja on the patio where it’s dark out. The wind is not as strong as it was last night but it still brings the cool breeze from the sea to where we’re seated. We swing gently on the hammock, its opposite ends tied to two sturdy poles. Sunja got into a fight, well, specifically started a fight with one of the kids when it was playtime. Sometimes everyone is not fond of the concept of “sharing”, especially when new toys arrive a few days before.

Mrs. Oh asked me to talk with Sunja about the fight that happened between her and one of the other girls, Mina, in the playroom. I’m sure Sunja knows why I called to be with her tonight. Though, I also knew that she would not be sleeping early like the rest. 

I gently swing the hammock as I plant my feet on the ground to push against it a bit for the hammock to move. Sunja’s short legs are folded as she hugs them toward her, and leans her chin on top of her knees. A blanket, my blanket, is wrapped around her small frame. She has a far-off expression on her face and I know that she’s thinking about a lot of things, especially what happened today. 

I don’t want to scold her, but I still have to be firm in some way. Yet I’m sure that she is affected by it. 

I sigh under my breath and close my eyes before taking a deep breath. “Do you smell that?” I ask her in a hushed voice. 

“Smell what, Miss?”

My eyes flutter open and I cock my head to the side as I look at her. “The smell of the rain. It’s called petrichor. It reminds me of the fresh dewdrops left on the leaves of the plants in my garden back in the city.” I then urge her softly, “How about you try to smell it? Close your eyes and take one long whiff.” She looks before her and follows me by closing her eyes. In our shared silence and the pitter-patter of the rain falling on the roof above our heads, we both breathe in the smell of the rain. “Do you smell it?” I ask after a few moments of silence.

“Yes,” she replies.

“What does it smell like for you?”

“It smells like...like a new blanket when it’s laundry day.” She snuggles up more in the blanket I lent her. 

I break off into a soft giggle, clearly amused with her answer. “I love that answer, Sunja. Now that you mentioned it, the smell makes me also remember the fresh sheets we have during laundry day.”

She shyly smiles at me and I grin back at her. I reach over to wrap my arm around her shoulders and bring her closer to me. "...Do you feel a bit better now?"

"A bit," she answers.

"What happened today, Sunja? Why were you in an argument with Mina in the first place?"

Her shoulders heave as she sighs heavily. Frowning deeply, she starts to pick at her toes.

"Sunja?" I call out softly, waiting for her answer.

"I did not want to give her the toys,” she mumbles.

“And why did you not want to give her the toys?”

“I was having so much fun with them, Miss Ari!” She explains, “They are new and the colors on them are so pretty and they move so fast, better than the other old toys we have in the playroom.”

I continue to rub circles on her back. “But, Sunja, dearie, you knew that it was Mina’s turn already, right?”

She bites her bottom lip and nods in defeat. 

“It was right to give them to her since it was her turn to play, not yours.”

“But-”

“No buts, missy,” I cut her off, raising a stern eyebrow at her. 

She pouts her lips at me then huffs, “I really wanted to play with the toys. Mina could wait.”

“Mina did wait,” I emphasize. “When your turn to play was finished, it was you who had to be patient already. Sunja, we have to be patient since there are a lot of kids around you who want to play with the new toys and we don’t have enough for everyone. Being patient is being kind to one another.”

“But you're not patient with Mister Jun.”

Her statement catches me off-guard. I freeze in place and the words I wanted to continue saying die in my throat. Sometimes she’s too smart for her own good. I need to catch up with her at times. “I-I mean, I-uh…” I stammer with what I’m trying to say, but I can’t seem to get my words out. 

“Why are you not patient with Mister Jun when you said that being patient is being kind? You treat him like he’s not a nice man. I like to think he’s a nice man.”

"Why would you say he's a nice man?"

“Hmmm, today he played with us in the morning.”

I furrow my eyebrows. “He did?” I ask instantly. I wouldn’t have known that because I was busy with administration affairs in the morning.

She nods, “Mhm! He played with all of us and he did kiss your boo-boo, so I know that you should forgive him. Mister Jun is a nice man, Miss Ari. You don’t have to be always mad at him.”

This young girl has a very good point. It makes me question if I’ve been teaching her too many things. No, I’m merely teaching her the right things even if I’m not the best person in the world. 

Jun has been quote-unquote “kind” to me, though. He did take care of the wound on my forehead, which, in fact, is healing fast. And even if he almost suffocated me to death, he did not mean it. Maybe I have been a bit too harsh on him. It’s my damn pride that’s choosing my decisions and pushing my actions when I’m around him.

I bite my bottom lip and let out a heavy sigh. “...I should also be saying sorry to him, then, shouldn’t I?”

She nods. “If you say sorry to him, then I’ll say sorry to Mina.”

I stop her from creating a deal in her favor, “Ah, no, no, it does not work that way. I will say sorry to him after you say sorry to Mina and learn to share the new toys. Have I made myself clear?”

She giggles softly. “That’s going to be easy for me. It’s not going to take time for me to say sorry to her. When the sun comes up, I’m going to say sorry and we are going to be friends again.”

I ruffle her hair which causes her to giggle a bit louder. “That’s easy for you because you’re a hundred times nicer than me, Sunja...and I want you to stay that way, okay?” I lean down to press a soft kiss on her hair. “You’re an amazing kid and you still have a lot of good things to learn.”

Suddenly her short arms move to wrap them around my waist. She leans on my side to rest her head by my shoulder. “Thank you, Miss Ari,” she whispers. 

“You’re always welcome, Sunja.” I rub her back, helping to lull her to sleep. Whenever she starts to lean on me, I know that’s when she’s sleepy. There are nights when we talk here on the patio and she always falls asleep beside me. She’s still small and light which makes it easier for me to carry her sleeping body when I take her back to her room. 

I sit in silence, basking in the cool breeze brought by the soft wind and the rain. The floodlights scattered around the area give enough illumination for me to see the waves kiss the shore for a second before going back to the sea. They kiss the shore again and then retreat. It is getting a bit cold now, but I don’t want to move that much yet. I’ll wait until Sunja is in a deep sleep. 

“You look cold,” a deep voice from behind me whispers and I almost jump in place. The person then walks to stand beside me. Only then do I see the person’s face. 

It’s Jun. Of course, it had to be him. Fate always loves to mess around and play with me when I'm not ready. 

“What are you doing here?” I whisper back. 

He replies in a soft voice, clutching a folded blanket with him, “I overheard you talking with Sunja.”

And of course, he had to hear what I had to say about him. I bet he even knows what Sunja told me. The urge to slap myself in the face is very strong, but I keep my cool...well, try to keep my cool. 

“Oh,” is the only word I could muster to utter. Come on, Ari! You have to at least say something else! I continue to stare at him and I’m sure that he’s starting to feel conscious about it. Should I start acting nice around him already? I thought I had tonight as a break for me. Where do I start? His voice? His hair? His clothes? “You...uh, you got nice pajamas.”

He looks down at the clothes on him and chuckles softly. “I’m wearing an old shirt and a pair of sweatpants from Hyunwoo.” He looks back up at me. “There’s nothing fancy with what I’m wearing to sleep,” he continues.

“I mean...you look cozy which is good because one should feel that way when they are going to sleep, right?” Oh, God, I really do want to slap myself in the face! Why am I making this awkward for the both of us?!

He breaks off into a small grin which came as a shock for me. He then starts to unfold the blanket in his arms. “Sometimes, you talk too much, Miss Ari.” As the blanket is fully unfolded, he walks toward me and drapes the blanket over my shoulders. I don’t move as he does it, but my eyes are on him the whole time. “I just wanted to give you this. Good night,” he finishes in a gentle voice before walking back inside the building. 

Did...did he just--?

For once, I am rendered speechless. 

That is the reason why he came out here? He simply wanted to leave a blanket with me?

I turned around just a bit for me to see the door where he entered to go back inside the building. He’s not standing there by the doorway and I don’t see if he’s standing anywhere else nearby. I turn back around and cock my head to see Sunja still sleeping deeply beside me. 

This young girl may be right. Maybe Mister Jun, in some way or another, really is a nice man.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

AHHHHH I live for interactions like these 😭😭 you gotta start somewhere, right? Hahahaha

I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

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