Saehyun woke up the next morning (in her own designated room) feeling rather exhausted and demanded for more rest. She then recalled back yesterday night’s event and got freshened up out of the blue. Tossing her purple blanket over, Saehyun moved towards the bathroom to wash her face but, without breaking the intense stare she had on her index finger.

Exactly after she got into her room last night, the first thing Saehyun clumsily done was to get her index finger cleaned. And it wasn’t because of the dough (even when she convinced herself so) but because of that certain someone’s saliva (and an awfully awkward tragedy) that made Saehyun washed her finger thoroughly with three different soaps available in the bathroom and even shampoo. She kept on rubbing hygienic products on that particular finger, even though Saehyun assured it was completely cleaned and most probably 99.9% free from germs but due to her utmost mortification she kept on doing that until she could feel the awkwardness had somehow faded off along with the dough.  

The cold tiles of the kitchen floor reminded her about it again. Saehyun tried to shrug it off her mind and moved onto what she was about to do, that was making breakfast. The clock hanged next to the fridge showed it was 7.34 in the morning once she finished preparing a cup of coffee, a glass of warm milk plus two bowls of cereal she had bought yesterday. Saehyun was glad that it was early, which mean she could avoid herself from meeting Baekhyun and rushed back upstairs closing the door to her room after.

“Mama Saehyun, why don’t you eat with us?” Hyemi stood outside Saehyun’s room, leaning close to the door waiting for any respond from her aunt inside. “Uh em, I’m sorry, honey but I’m having a…crucial stomach ache right now and I really need to stay closer to the toilet. You should eat your breakfast with your Daddy now or you’ll be late for school, baby,” she said in a loud tone from the inside while she was actually lying down on her bed, and of course, healthily. Saehyun felt a tad guilty for telling lies towards the little girl outside but, she really, really didn’t want to see Baekhyun at least for the time moment. “Oh and don’t forget your muffins.”

“Okay…” feeling disappointed, Hyemi walked her way down to the kitchen and did as she was told to.

Baekhyun who was eating his cereal silently in the dining room located next to the kitchen watched Hyemi’s crestfallen look as she came in and decided not to ask because he obviously knew what was going on.

“Stop playing your food, Hyemi.” He spoke once he sipped on his coffee, looking at her daughter who still, had not engulfed even a spoon of her favourite meal. “It’s no fun to eat without mama,” she replied back, with a weak voice.

“If you don’t eat now, you’ll go to school with an empty stomach.”

∆

Tomorrow would be the day she’d officially enrol herself in a new workplace. It would be an obvious lie if Saehyun said that she wasn’t nervous but well, being an independent woman she ever been, it wasn’t that nervous. Maybe her heart palpitated a bit whenever she thought about the day (like how she was currently) nonetheless Saehyun regarded it as a small matter to sooth herself.  

Yuhan looked cuter in his baby blue shirt and identical pants as Saehyun hold him and strolled around the house. Since Baekhyun was after all, had a good job (which pay a good sum of money) he could afford expensive things and his house was one of the instances. The bungalow he bought before he married Saerom was rather big and had an expanse area of lawn and Saehyun soon realised (as she strolled outside the house) that the flower garden at this poor-maintained house was abandoned. Not really badly but still abandoned.  The soft feminine heart of hers felt pity for the garden which would look gorgeous she believed, if it was maintain or if only Saerom was her because she loved flowers.

The sun was far from setting and it was not too bright and hot for her to work outside the roof so, she changed into more suitable wear, put on a gardening hat she found in the store and placed Yuhan in the living room with toys and baby safety fences surrounding him, also setting the curtains on the windows to be pulled sideways so she could see him clearly from the outside; then Saehyun started on her mission to save the garden.

Luckily even though the lawn was vast surrounding the house in the centre, the only flower garden that needed care was on the front part of the area (still quite large in size) but Saehyun convinced that the task would be done before the sun sets. 

Saehyun began and continued by doing ordinary tasks like pulling off the weeds, cutting off the wilted flowers and leaves, feeding those beautiful plants with fertilisers and in deep concentration with her job until a honking sound was heard once she halted to wipe her sweats on her forehead with her sleeves. Saehyun peeped beneath the bushes, seeing Hyemi demarked from the minivan and waved merrily at her companions inside before watching the van goes.

At the same time, the neighbour house located at the right side from Baekhyun’s—which Saehyun thought was vacant, also came a MPV which stopped in front of its gate before a middle-aged woman alighting from the passenger seat to unlock it and she saw the woman greeted Hyemi along the way. The little girl bowed back in respect.

.

Saehyun watched Hyemi’s moves towards their house while she was crouching and realised that the little girl didn’t notice her existence there. Chuckling softly, Saehyun scooted behind the bushes of flowers to hide and decided to surprise her for fun. Unfortunately, her niece also didn’t notice the oddity at the garden so Saehyun had to shake the bushes to attract her attention. As so she shook.

Hyemi eventually perceived the oddly moving bushes and spotted her adored aunt before the latter managed to surprise her. “Mama!” she shouted and padded to Saehyun’s direction immediately. Saehyun laughed and fell on her as Hyemi leaped on top of her. “You can’t scare the princess!”

The lady was uncontrollably laughing as she lied on the green grass, completely lost to the little girl on top of her who was tickling her like an insane machine, giggling in victory. Little did they know, their neighbour heard the noises and went to look over the medium height fences separating their respective houses.

“Hyemi-ah! Who are you playing with?” the older woman asked from where she stood. She couldn’t properly see Saehyun due to the bushes and the latter was lying down after all. Hyemi halted and turned to look at the source of voice. She smiled innocently and said, “Mama!”

Saehyun impulsively rose herself from the ground with her elbows and grinned towards the dumbfounded lady across the lawn. It was one enormous mistake.

She didn’t know why but the neighbour gasped in shock and dropped down unconscious on the spot. Her husband, Saehyun believed, who was just slamming the boot of their vehicle with luggage in his hands, quickly went to her side and his face blanched once he set her eyes on Saehyun.

Without wasting more times (and Saehyun felt like it was all her fault even when she really was oblivious of what just happened), she moved Hyemi from her body and ran to the opposite house. Hyemi trailed after her.

∆

“So you’re her twin? Oh God, I was really scared,” the man snorted, lines appeared at the corner of his eyes. “Omo, I was really shock! I almost thought Saerom just woke up from dead!” her wife added, laughing. The older lady fainted beforehand due to her ultimate jolt upon seeing Saehyun as she predicted, and fortunately had recovered after her husband sprinkled some water on her face a while ago. “I’m really sorry, sir, ma’am.” Saehyun bite her lower lips and blushed. They were sitting in the living room; Saehyun and Hyemi sat in a brown loveseat ahead of the couple who were sitting in ivory coloured sofa.

“It’s okay. Just call me Hwayeon eonnie. Saerom used to call me that,” the woman-Hwayeon uttered, still looking a bit pale but she was beaming so it relieved Saehyun and the latter then nodded obediently. “I’m Oh Sehyuk but you can call me Mr Oh because Saerom used to call me that too,” her husband added.

Upon mentioning Mr Oh’s name—which was Oh Sehyuk, it rang a bell in her head. What a coincidence, Saehyun thought as she connected it with the name of the apartment’s owner. She was about to excuse herself and Hyemi after she dumbly introduced her name for the second time on reflex, receiving back a good laugh from the couple and her niece next to her. But suddenly a hoarse voice echoed throughout the house. “Mom, Dad? You guys are back?”

“Oh that’s our son, Sehun. Maybe you’ve seen him before, Saehyun because he didn’t go to the vacation with us and stay here to take care of the house,” Hwayeon explained without being asked to. A single ‘oh’ was what Saehyun replied. However, the truth was she never encountered their son (which means the boy was never home) and almost scoffed when Hwayeon said that he was the one who take care of the house once they were away. She assumed that Sehun was just like any other teenage boys who bluff their parents to look like a saint while the fact was vice versa.

“Uh, I think we have to go home now, Hwayeon eonnie because Yuhan is unattended.” Hwayeon nodded at Saehyun and invited her for a tea someday. Saehyun grinned, standing up along with Hyemi and turned to walk out of the house. She didn’t expect that their son was still there, at the doorstep but he was there, probably just done untied his sneakers.

But it wasn’t because the boy was still there that made her eyes widened and her jaws gapped in shock. “You!” Familiarity dawned upon her. Hyemi startled when Saehyun yelled, as well as the Oh couple behind her.

“You piece of ! Don’t you dare to move Baron Oh imposter!”