Wendy enjoyed the car ride to Irene's home. Yeri was a very excitable child-- it reminded Wendy of the rare times Irene let her facade slip.

As Wendy took her small suitcase out of the trunk, she felt Yeri tug on her pants.

"Yeri wants to help!" The small girl grins and Wendy covers as she laughs. Hauling the suitcase out, she lets the girl pull the suitcase into the house. The sight was adorable, and Wendy could feel Irene watching them. 

The warmth she feels from Irene's affectionate gaze is indescribable-- something that she wanted to cherish for many years to come. The warmth that she felt when she was anywhere near Irene... No, all she needed to do was think of Irene to have this immense feeling wash over her. She welcomed it and even craved it at times. It was only now that Wendy had begun to take more notice of the effects Irene had on her.

Irene held her hand out to Wendy and the latter grabbed it with a small smile. Yeri immediately rushed into the house and gave a huff of  victory when she managed to lift the suitcase up the small set of stairs. Wendy giggled; the suitcase only held enough clothes for her stay and her toothbrush and toothpaste. 

"Here you go, Wendy unnie." Yeri adorably took Wendy's hand and rested it on the suitcase while grinning.

Wendy gently pats the child's head gently before taking her suitcase and rolling it to wherever Irene was leading her. Irene glanced back to check on Wendy and Yeri and smiled at the sight of Yeri playfully surrounding Wendy and giggling. Wendy smiled at the girl and felt herself relax.

Her tense shoulders eased up and her mind that was always so full of thoughts had slowed down to focus on only Irene and Yeri. She wouldn't let anything or anyone ruin the time she had with these two. It was only hours after their kiss and special confession, but Wendy felt like she had been with Irene and Yeri since the beginning of time.

She felt her stomach twist and knot and the thought of being together with Irene and Yeri from then and beyond. 

"Yeri-ah, can you go feed Bubbles?" Irene asked and Yeri nodded before speeding off.

"Bubbles?" Wendy asked with an amused tone. Irene rolled her eyes and opened a door.

"Yeri wanted to name the fish bubbles, and honestly I wasn't going to name it anything better." Irene's cheeks turned a light pink and Wendy felt herself become bolder.

She let go of her suitcase and pulled Irene into a backhug. Irene let out a small squeal but did nothing to get out of the hug.

"And what did you want to name the fish?" Wendy asked teasingly and kissed Irene's cheek.

Irene was stubborn. She shook her head and blushed even harder but whether it was because of the question or the kiss, Wendy couldn't tell. Wendy did have to admit that having Irene in her arms felt oddly right. She reluctantly and slowly let go of Irene. The latter let out a semi-discreet sigh and Wendy arched an eyebrow but let the older woman recover.

"Hope you don't mind sharing a room and bed with me." Irene mumbled and Wendy felt her cheeks heat up.

"I don't mind." Wendy timidly replied, her boldness from moments ago dissolving into thin air.

They both turned their attention to the little girl running at them.

"Umma, Bubbles is fed and ready to go to bed!" Yeri giggled and looked at the two adults with a grin, "that rhymed."

Wendy burst into a fit of giggles and brought her hand up to cover . Yeri's grin grew even more if possible and Irene rolled her eyes with a small smile surfacing her face.

--------------

Wendy sat down next to Irene as Yeri went over to the cabinet and picked out a movie. The girl was hyperactive but she definitely had manners. 

Wendy felt Irene intertwine their fingers and she smiled.

The care and shyness that Irene was showing her was endearing. Compared to when they first met, Irene was much more comfortable with being touchy with her. It was something that Wendy noticed; Irene was very distant to everyone, even her friends. She offered curt replies and greetings over exaggerated ones, and kept touching to a minimum.

Unless she was around those that she really cared about. 

In this case, Wendy, Yeri and Seulgi were the exception. 

Wendy felt Irene slowly let go of her hand to help Yeri put the movie in and Wendy smiled at the way Irene dealt with Yeri. She was a natural with the child and although she's had a few years with Yeri already, many first time mothers had difficulty adjusting to their child's needs as they grew up. Either Irene was really good at what she did or she taught Yeri extremely well. Whatever the case was, Wendy admired the older woman for being able to raise a small child so well, and alone as well.

That did bring a question up: who was Yeri's father?

When she felt the couch shift, Wendy immediately snapped out of her thoughts and smiled at the smaller girl snuggling into Wendy. Irene pouted and gave Yeri a look of betrayal.

"You don't want to come cuddle with your umma?" Irene wiped an imaginary tear and gave Wendy a playful look.

"I think Yeri likes her unnie more than her umma tonight." Wendy teased and stuck her tongue out.

Yeri giggled and stuck her tongue out at Irene as well, giggling even more when Irene's jaw dropped in disbelief.

"Traitor! Don't come and ask me for pudding ever again!" Irene accused and Wendy burst out laughing. Yeri started laughing and squealing when Irene tried to grab her and tickle her but Wendy grabbed the child, protecting her from Irene.

"Get your own cuddle buddy." Wendy playfully chided and Irene pouted before crossing her arms and looking back at the movie. 

Wendy smiled and put Yeri down gently before settling herself into Irene. When she felt Irene's arms circle her waist, she beckoned Yeri over and the girl immediately obliged.

"Big cuddle party!" Yeri exclaimed and the two adults merely smiled and looked back to the movie.

Wendy did have to admit that the position that they were in was extremely comfortable. Irene's arms were wrapped securely around Wendy, casually and unconsciously caressing Wendy's stomach. The latter's shirt was pulled up a bit when Yeri excitedly joined the cuddle fest. Wendy's arms were loosely holding Yeri, making sure the child was secure in the case that she fell asleep. Wendy's head rested in the crook of Irene's neck and she saw goosebumps rise when she let out a small breath. A small smile grew on her face and she kissed Irene's jaw before looking back at the movie.

Yeri had quietly dozed off after her excitement toned down and Wendy's eyelids were fluttering in an attempt to keep them open, but to no avail, she slowly let sleep take her.

Just before she fell asleep, she heard Irene's quiet voice murmur a goodnight and felt the older woman gently plant a kiss on her forehead.

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When Wendy woke up, she found herself in a tight but comfortable embrace. She looked down and saw Yeri still fast asleep before she carefully turned her head to see that Irene was still asleep as well. She felt her heart swell at the thought of being one of the people to see Irene so vulnerable and peaceful. 

The sleeping woman's face was truly relaxed; her usually furrowed eyebrows were settled into a more natural position and her lips were parted just a bit. Wendy held back a giggle when she saw Irene's lips quirk up before going back to the neutral position they were in for the majority of the night.

The movie had long been finished, and only a dim black screen was left on the TV. Wendy carefully lifted Yeri up, settling her down in Irene's embrace and she smiled softly when she saw Irene's arms wrap around Yeri's figure. Yeri immediately snuggled into her mother's body and Wendy felt her heart clench at the sight. Their mother-daughter relationship moved past the barriers of sleep.

Wendy recalled the location of Irene's room and silently walked there. As she stepped, she took in the mellow sights.

Irene must love the fine arts. Paintings hung on the walls-- there were a lot, but not too many as to crowd the space. She had shelves upon shelves of books, something that she shared in common with Wendy. Photographs were set on some tables and drawers, and when Wendy passed by some of them, she felt a tug on her heart. There were so many pictures of Irene and Yeri, and in some of them, Seulgi was present and so were Irene's parents. Not one of the framed pictures include Yeri's father, leaving Wendy curious to the situation.

She knew of course that Irene was single-- well, single before last night. Irene wore no ring and she definitely would not have confessed to Wendy if she was taken.

Wendy shook her head when she felt jealousy rise in the pit of her stomach. What matters is that she is with Irene now, and that Yeri enjoyed her presence.

She quickly grabbed a blanket from Irene's room and walked back to the sleeping pair. She placed the blanket over the two and kissed their foreheads before turning around to turn the TV off. When she placed the remote back on the coffee table, she felt a hand grab her wrist gently.

"Come back and sleep," Irene's hoarse and quiet voice said.

Wendy watched as Irene pulled the blanket off of her and moved to one side, making space for Wendy. She did all of that while making sure that Yeri was still asleep, not wanting to rouse the younger girl from her sleep. Wendy quietly sat back down and curled up next to Irene. The blanket was brought around her and she breathed out softly, humming when Irene kissed her forehead.

"It's still early. Get some sleep," Irene whispered and Wendy kissed the former's cheek before closing her eyes.

She was starting to feel whole again and it was something that Wendy hoped to keep forever.

She slowly drifted off to sleep again with the thoughts of Irene and Yeri lulling her into a peaceful slumber.

AN: AAAAAH ITS BEEN SO LONG!! i honestly was facing writer's block a bit after the family incident and it took so long but finally, here is an update! i've also gotten back into reading a copious amount of fanfictions for different fandoms which may or may not have led me to staying up past 5 am >>>> but anyway, i hope you've enjoyed this chapter, and look forward to the next update! with love, jan :^)