The timer on the oven beeped: once, twice, three times. Lori couldn’t stop it right away. She was still prepping the broth for the mandu (dumplings). She stirred the broth once more before removing the anchovies and onions. The timer continued to beep: eleven, twelve, thirteen times. The sound began to irritate her, so she reached over the stove to turn it off. As she did, a spurt of hot grease escaped the pan that she was using to fry the mandu. She pulled her arm back and noticed a red splotch where the grease had landed. She went to the sink and ran cold water over the area. She sighed as the chilling liquid soothed the burn. Himchan was coming home today after a long two weeks away. Lori had used her vacation time to stay home with the kids while Himchan and B.A.P toured in Europe. It had been hectic. Between the yelling, the cleaning, and nights of little sleep, Lori felt as though she was reaching her breaking point. The sleepless nights were only partially credited to her three children. The rest were from her work. She had three blueprints due next Wednesday for a new library that was being built in Incheon. It was difficult to work on them during the day. The kids kept her way too busy for that. She could only work on the blueprints once all the kids were in bed, and getting them to bed was no small feat. 

Lori grabbed a paper towel and patted her arm dry. That dang timer still beeped: twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three times. Lesson learned, Lori used a long wooden spoon to reach over the stove and press the button to shut off the timer. The most beautiful silence followed. Lori removed the mandu from the frying pan and placed it into the anchovy broth. She placed a lid on the pot and turned the fire down before stepping outside to check on the grill. Bulgolgi and mandu guk; two of Himchan’s favorite dishes. Lori hoped he would appreciate the welcome back dinner. 

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Half an hour later, Lori was mixing the batter for chocolate cake when she heard a loud sob followed by an “oh no”. She stopped the mixer and followed the sound to her daughter’s bedroom. She opened the door, and what she saw horrified her. Her two-year old son was sitting on the floor with blood dripping down his chin. Lori rushed to him to get a better look.

“What happened!!??” She shrieked.

Between the sniffling, it was hard to understand her daughter’s explanation. “We we-were playing *sniff* and, and Ji-woon fell *sniff* and bumped his chin on the edge of the bed.” April mumbled the rest as tears began to drip continuously down her face. 

Lori lifted her youngest son’s chin to get a closer look. The gash was long, and Lori was unsure of how deep it was. 

“Get your shoes on. We’re going to take Ji-woon to the hospital.”

Lori left and got a cloth from the linen closet. When she returned, she used it to stem the flow of blood. She kissed her son and picked him up before carrying him into the living room. She sat him down and then went searching for Dong-chan.

“DC? Where are you sweetie?”

“I’m in the bathroom.”

Lori walked to the bathroom and knocked. “Are you almost done? We have to go to the hospital. Ji-woon hurt his chin, and he might need stitches.”

“Oh no! He broke his chin? Should we call the ambulance? Should I call Daddy?”

“It’s not broken. He’ll be fine. Hurry up though. We need to get going.”

“I’ll be out right away, in like five minutes!”

Satisfied with his answer, Lori returned to the living room and helped Ji-woon put on his jacket and shoes. When she was finished, she picked him up again, still holding the cloth in place, and walked to April’s room. The girl had put her shoes on the wrong feet and had only half-buttoned her jacket. Lori realized that her slow progress was due to the fact that she was still crying. 

“April, honey, Mommy knows that you didn’t mean to hurt Ji-woon. He’s okay. The doctors will make it better. Look, he’s not crying much anymore.” Ji-woon’s eyes were still watery, but his sobs had quieted to soft hiccups. 

April stared down at the floor when she spoke. “I’m sorry Mommy and I’m sorry Ji-woon. I won’t play with him anymore. I’m a bad big sister. He’ll be safe if you keep him away from me.” She turned to face the wall and hugged herself.

Her daughter could be dramatic, but Lori’s heart still ached for her baby girl. She kneeled in front of April with Ji-woon still attached to her hip. “April, you’re not a bad sister. You do a good job of taking care of Ji-woon. You help make him snacks, you tell him stories, and you give him kisses every morning. You’re a great big sister. Isn’t that right Ji-woon?”

He nodded while rubbing his wet eyes. He then reached out and grabbed one of April’s fingers as if in affirmation of Lori’s statement. Lori saw a faint smile settle on her daughter’s lips and she felt as though one crisis had been averted. “See April, Ji-woon still loves you. He knows it was a mistake, and that you take care of him.” April nodded and smiled broadly. “Now, put your shoes on the right feet and head to the living room, okay?”

April wiped her tears and began switching her shoes. With that problem resolved, Lori went to check on Dong-chan. With Ji-woon still on her hip, she headed to the boys’ room. When she saw that no one was there, she let out an exasperated sigh.

“DC, where are you!!!???”

“I’m still in the bathroom.”

“Why are you still in there!!?? What happened to, ‘I’ll be out in five minutes!?” Lori said as she pounded on the door. 

“My tummy hurts a little. I think I ate something bad at Han-jae’s house.”

Lori could feel her patience waning. She had a bleeding baby and tummy-aching kid. What else could go wrong!? She would have to call Mrs. Choi later to figure out what Dong-chan ate. Right now, she needed to get Ji-woon to the hospital. 

“Make one last poop and then get out of there. We need to go now!”

“I’ll hurry. I’ll poop real quick.”

Lori returned to the living room, grateful to see April sitting on the couch, ready to go. She sat Ji-woon next to her and went to shut the stove off before grabbing her keys and Himchan's hoodie from the bedroom. When she came back, she saw Dong-chan standing next to April. The poor kid looked so uncomfortable. Lori grabbed a bottle of Tums off the end table and stashed them in her purse. Soon, she and the kids were out the door.