7

Amber was fast asleep on her couch when her phone suddenly rang. She groggily fumbled for the elusive device before answering the call. “H-Hello?” It was midnight and she had not expected her schedule to start so early.

“Amber!” Hyoyeon’s perky voice resounded from the other line, much to her surprise. The Taiwanese-American’s eyes widened upon the loud greeting. She opened her eyes to double check the name and number appearing on her mobile before she pressed her phone against her ear once more.

“Hyoyeon-unnie?”

“Hey, I’m at your door. Can you open it? Baby Goo and I need some help on something.”

“What?”

“I can’t disturb Tiffany and Sunny from their slumber so I had to find another place to crash with Baby Goo and since I don’t have anywhere to go, you’re my last option, kiddo.”

Amber almost fell from her couch at the revelation of her senior. She groggily trudged through the foyer and opened the door for Hyoyeon and a wide awake Baby Goo. Scratching her head, Amber sheepishly welcomed her friend into her apartment. “Uh, make yourself at home, unnie.”

Hyoyeon gave her a once over before passing through the threshold. “You haven’t changed into your bedtime clothes…” The older lady pointed out. Amber smiled as she closed the door, “I’m sorry about that. I was so tired that I fell asleep as soon as I landed on my couch.” She settled beside her senior before taking a quick look at the curious child in Hyoyeon’s baby carrier. “So, what’s with Baby Goo? She’s looking pretty lively at this hour.”

“The kid was being loud that I can’t seem to cheer her up except for giving her a late night ride and bringing her somewhere. Tiffany has a schedule and Sunny was pretty tired when she arrived at the dorm. I can’t risk having two or more grumpy kids in the dorm.”

“And you chose to disturb me instead?” Amber teased.

“Sorry about that, Am. But I have nowhere else close by to hang. My apartment’s too far for the next baby sitter to pick the kid up.”

“When will Taeyeon-unnie come back? Isn’t the baby supposed to be her responsibility?”

Hyoyeon recalled how she almost spilled on the true nature of the baby and kept in mind that she was supposed to make up a lie about Baby Goo. “Well, that old woman is not coming back any time soon. Baby Goo’s parents are also out of town which leaves us, members, to take turns on watching over this kid.”

Baby Goo just stared at Amber intently as she led on her pacifier. Amber found the baby’s curious eyes on her and so, she tried to entertain the baby. “Hello there, baby!” The baby responded by hold out her arms, silently begging Amber to take her. The young adult complied and took Baby Goo from Hyoyeon’s arms. “You’re so cute!” Amber remarked as she played with the baby, much to Hyoyeon’s amusement.

“You should know that the kid’s nickname is Menace!” Hyoyeon grudgingly mused, making Amber curious as to why she would give such a bad name to the child.

“Aww, why would you say that to this cutie?” Amber asked, holding Baby Goo in her arms, raising and lowering the baby, much to the infant’s happiness.

Hyoyeon crossed her arms over her chest, clearly not amused with Baby Goo’s feigning innocence in Amber’s presence. “You’ll know once you get to know more about her…”

Baby Goo only giggled as Amber playfully tickled her in her lap, not paying attention to her real babysitter.

+++

Inside the Jung estate, Krystal was already fast asleep with Baby Yeon. The two had taken a bubble bath together and Krystal had changed Baby Yeon’s diapers and had fed her before they retired for the night. The infant was tucked securely in her sibling’s arms and was wrapped in warm blankets. Baby Yeon snuggled close to the comforting warmth of her big younger sister, reveling in the body heat and love being exuded by her beloved sibling.

She tucked her petite head beneath Krystal’s chin, inhaling in the sweet and familiar musk which prompted her to slip deeper into dreamland. Baby Yeon had never felt this comfortable ever since she had been transformed into an infant. A faint smile appeared on her lips as she slept soundly in her sister’s embrace.

Meanwhile, Krystal felt more at ease after having her sister with her without any interruptions to their alone time. Even though Jessica was now infant-sized, it still felt better to have her closest confidant and mentor around. Krystal turned to her side, bringing Baby Yeon along with her. She felt the little bundle snuggle closer to her body, feeling her miniature-sized sister’s warm breaths against her chest. Despite her fatigue, a dream chanced upon Krystal.

+++

“Hey, Juhyun.” Yoona greeted the maknae. “Are you visiting the dorm?”

“I’m on my way to pick up some stuff before I run off to my schedule. Are you headed there, too?”

“Yep. I’m planning on pranking our unnies.” A sly grin was on the second youngest one’s face. Seohyun, who has been influenced by Yoona’s antics, smiled at the thought of pranking their members. “What shall it be this time, unnie?” Seohyun asked, eyes twinkling with mischief. The older one leaned in and shared her plan as they both strode towards their destination. The youngest chuckled at the plan and gave Yoona thumbs up.

“We should buy a few bottles of water for the potions!” Seohyun suggested as they stopped by the convenience store along the way. Yoona nodded and bought two bottles of water. They then proceeded to the dormitory and were welcomed by silence. “Wow. This is like a ghost town.” Yoona remarked as her eyes surveyed the scene. Their foyer was void of life but the two noticed a pair of shoes on the rack. They recognized it as Jessica and Sooyoung’s. A sly grin appeared on the two maknaes’ faces as they ventured into the kitchen and mixed up the bottles in the fridge. Yoona placed the water bottles containing the baby potions in the freezer, making the unfortunate soul suffer through the hassles of getting the water to thaw before they get a taste of the drink. Then, Seohyun proceeded to hide the other bottles of water in one of the cupboards so that their unnies would be fighting over those two bottles. It was a sinister plan and probably the biggest prank that they would play on everyone.

Just when Yoona was about to close the door of the fridge, the front door creaked open, alerting the maknaes of the incoming people. “That was tiring!” Taeyeon groaned as she headed for the couch, body pummeling into the furniture with abandon. Tiffany and Yuri slumped on the remaining seats, bodies tired from their work out. “I’m never doing those again, Yuri!” Taeyeon grunted as she slowly pushed her body up and headed for the kitchen where she found the two troublemakers innocently sitting at the table, munching on a few apple slices. Taeyeon arched a brow at the suspicious duo before opening the fridge in search of a cool beverage.

A frown appeared on her face upon noticing the absence of any fluid within the confines of the cooler. She turned