November 3, 2018 [Dahyun: 3 years; Chaeyoung: 2 years; Tzuyu: 2 years]

Nayeon woke to the light pattering of small feet in the hallway. She sat up in the dark and sighed softly. To her left, the bedside alarm clock glowed softly; 2:07 a.m. Nayeon groaned and turned her gaze back towards the ceiling. She listened to the footsteps for a few moments longer before they stopped in front of her bedroom door.

“Eomma?” Nayeon heard the quiet high pitched voice of one of her children through the closed door. There was a shuffling of feet. “Eomma.”

Nayeon sighed again, shoved back the covers and swiveled to place her feet on the floor. She turned back to the other two occupants of the bed and nudged their sleeping frames.

“Momo baby, Jeongie,” Nayeon said, loud enough for them to wake slightly. Momo, face down in her pillow whined while Jeongyeon let out a low groan. Nayeon smirked. “Put some clothes on. We’re going to have a visitor.”

Nayeon quickly slipped on a random shirt and pair of shorts she found strewn on the floor, which she was pretty sure were Jeongyeon’s. Nayeon could hear the little girl becoming impatient in the hallway as she called out for one of her eommas.

“I’m coming baby.” Nayeon said, mostly to herself as she walked briskly over to the door and cracked it open. She looked down to see the wide awake face of Chaeyoung, illuminated by the hallway night light. The onesie she was wearing was wrinkled as if she was tossing and turning. She carried her penguin plushie, Minani, in one hand, the plushie’s backend dragging on the floor.

Nayeon opened the door slightly more and squeezed out before shutting it quietly behind her. The last thing she needed was for Chaeyoung to bolt into the room and jump on the bed containing her sleeping eommas. Squatting down in front of the toddler, Nayeon gently combed Chaeyoung’s hair out of her face.

“Can’t sleep baby girl?” Nayeon asked. This happened occasionally. Chaeyoung would wake in the middle of the night, sometimes due to her sensitive tummy getting upset. She wouldn’t be able to fall back asleep because of her fear of the dark. When this would happen, Chaeyoung would usually cry in her room until one of her eommas came to comfort her.

Nayeon tried to ignore thinking about how the toddler managed to climb out of her crib. She lifted her daughter underneath her armpits and hoisted her into her arms with Minani in tow.

“Does your tummy hurt, Chaengie?” Nayeon asked. Chaeyoung shook her head at her eomma, wide awake as ever. Nayeon sighed and kissed her cheek. What was with this kid?

“Come on baby, let’s go to the kitchen.” Nayeon carried Chaeyoung, who was playing with her necklace with one of her chubby hands. Balancing her daughter in one arm, Nayeon flipped on the kitchen light, the brightness blinding her for a few seconds. Nayeon groaned and walked over to the cabinets, reaching into the top for Chaeyoung’s sippy cup. Nayeon hummed lowly, making Chaeyoung giggle slightly in her arms as Nayeon began preparing a warm cup of milk, which always helped her fall asleep.

Nayeon shook herself awake as she accidently almost poured Chaeyoung a cup of regular milk instead of her soy milk. If Chaeyoung didn’t have tummy problems now, she would if Nayeon gave her regular milk. Chaeyoung had a sensitive stomach and couldn’t handle too much dairy. The doctor said she’d eventually build a tolerance but for now to only use dairy free products, which led to a grumpy Chaeyoung when her siblings wanted ice cream.

After making sure she poured the right milk into a glass, Nayeon set it in the microwave to heat for a bit. Chaeyoung giggled and continued toying with Nayeon’s necklace, making her eomma smile down at her. When the microwave dinged, Nayeon removed the glass of milk and sipped it to make sure the temperature was alright before pouring it into Chaeyoung’s sippy cup.

The toddler noticed her purple sippy cup and made grabby hands, dropping Minani on the floor. Nayeon laughed at Chaeyoung’s eagerness and bent to pick up the dropped plushie while Chaeyoung busied herself with the sippy cup. Nayeon walked into the living room with Chaeyoung in her arms and sank into the leather recliner.

The little girl shifted in Nayeon’s hold to rest her head against her chest, grabbing a fistfull of Nayeon’s t-shirt in her unoccupied hand. Chaeyoung gulped down the milk so greedily and quickly, Nayeon wasn’t even sure she was tasting it. The sippy cup precariously bobbed in Chaeyoung’s one-handed grasp. Nayeon swiftly swept the cup from Chaeyoung’s grip and continued feeding her. Nayeon’s heart clenched, reminiscing the days she bottle fed Chaeyoung every meal. She was growing up too fast for Nayeon’s liking; she just wanted her to stay small forever.

Chaeyoung finished the milk with a small burp, giggling at the noise. She dropped Nayeon’s shirt from her grasp, leaving it wrinkled. Chaeyoung wiggled and sat up on her mother’s lap, hugging her penguin plushie close. Nayeon placed the sippy cup on the coffee table and sighed. This girl needed to sleep. She brushed her hand through Chaeyoung’s