Krystal hears the doorbell ring and places her phone down on the kitchen counter. She makes her way to the front of the house and pulls open the door, a smile spreading across her face when she recognises the two people standing in front of her.

“Soojung-unnie!” Taeyeon says, squirming around in her mother’s arms as she tries to reach for her favourite teacher.

“Hello, cutie,” Krystal says, laughing when Taeyeon turns around and shoots her mother a pout.

“Taeyeonnie wants to play with Soojung-unnie and Sooyeonnie!”

“Yes, yes. I need to tell Soojung some things first,” Her mother says, rolling her eyes at Krystal when Taeyeon huffs and puffs in her arms. Krystal tries her best to stifle her laughter as she pokes Taeyeon’s chubby cheeks, squealing when Taeyeon makes a motion to bite her finger.

“Thank you so much for looking after this little rascal,” Taeyeon’s mother says, nudging Taeyeon with her nose. Taeyeon looks up at her and offers her another pout.

“Taeyeonnie is the cutest!” She says, her eyes b with tears as she waves her arms around in the air.

Her mother nods and presses a soft kiss to her temple.

“Of course you are, my little rascal,” She says, shrugging and pulling a face when Krystal bites her lip to hold back her laughter. She allows Krystal to take Taeyeon into her arms and smooths out her daughter’s hair.

“I’ve packed Taeyeon’s necessities into her bag and there’s some snacks and treats for you and the girls. I think you were trying to teach the kids how to share and Taeyeon came home wanting to give you all her candy.”

Krystal chuckles and slings Taeyeon’s bag onto her back.

“I remember that lesson very well, don’t you Taeyeonnie?” Krystal says, kissing Taeyeon’s cheek to get her attention.

Taeyeon looks up at her with her goofy smile and bounces happily in her arms. Krystal giggles and shakes her head at how silly Taeyeon is acting. She smiles warmly at her mother, who wraps her arms around Krystal in a tight embrace.

“Thank you again,” Taeyeon’s mother says.

“You are always welcome here and I’m happy to help out in whatever capacity I can,” Krystal replies. She nudges Taeyeon with her nose, who looks up at her again before switching her gaze to her mother.

“Bye bye Umma!” Taeyeon says, burying her face into Krystal’s neck. Her mother and Krystal laugh at her words.

Krystal watches as Taeyeon wraps her arms around her mother’s neck and plants a big wet kiss on her cheek before clambering back into her arms. Her mother kisses her again and waves as she enters her car and reverses out of the driveway.

Krystal and Taeyeon wave until her car disappears into the distance. Krystal looks down at the child in her arms and smiles widely when Taeyeon raises her head and grins in delight.

“Shall we go play?” Krystal says, giggling when Taeyeon squeals excitedly. She places Taeyeon on the ground, throwing her head back to release a hearty laugh when Taeyeon dashes inside the house and calls for her to follow.

Krystal sighs and closes the door as she tries to find where Taeyeon has run away to.

When Krystal hears soft murmuring coming from upstairs, she slowly makes her way up the steps and pokes her head inside Jessica’s bedroom.

“Unnie!” Jessica says, wrapping her arms around Taeyeon in a protective manner.

Krystal arches her eyebrows at the action but bends down and squats in front of the two girls.

“What are you two up to?” She asks, her eyes narrowing when Jessica turns her head to look at Taeyeon but Taeyeon beams widely and shakes her head.

“Nothing!” Taeyeon says, running out of Jessica’s arms and dashing out of her bedroom.

Krystal blinks in surprise and turns her head to look at Jessica, who pouts and shrugs.

“Taengoo said she was going to get something from her bag. I think she’s going to try on her Halloween outfits but she doesn’t want me to see them yet!” Jessica says, her smile never wavering even when Krystal frowns and pokes her cheek.

She stands up and opens up Jessica’s wardrobe, taking out a beautiful blue and yellow dress. She drapes it on Jessica’s bed and plays with her sister’s hair.

“Since we’re going to decide on costumes, why don’t you try this one on for me while I check on Taeyeon?”

Jessica nods and begins to change into the Snow White costume. Krystal watches her fondly and spins around to make her way back down the stairs.

Krystal leans against the wall and watches as Taeyeon huddles around the couch and hides an object from her view. She steps closer and ruffles her hair, smiling gently when Taeyeon looks up and pouts while rubbing the top of her head.

“What are you doing?” Krystal says, crouching down and arching her eyebrows in amusement when Taeyeon’s pout is quickly replaced by the widest and proudest grin she’s ever seen her wear.

It’s even wider than the time she received her Toothless plush doll from Boa for her birthday.

“Taeyeonnie and Sooyeon are choosing what to wear for Hall-o-ween!” Taeyeon says, bouncing up and down as she points at the costumes strewn across the couch. 

“It’s Halloween, Taeyeon,” Krystal says, laughing when Taeyeon nods giddily and holds up her costumes in her tiny fists.

“Soojung-unnie help Taeyeonnie choose!” She says excitedly, laying down her outfits on the couch again and tugging on Krystal’s hand.

Krystal’s mouth curves into a wide grin as she watches Taeyeon’s head turn back and forth as she stares at her costumes. She runs her fingers through Taeyeon’s hair and smooths out her tangles, chuckling when Taeyeon places a chubby finger underneath her chin and frowns in concentration. She presses a soft kiss to Taeyeon’s temple and pats her shoulder, pinching her cheek when Taeyeon looks at her with bright eyes.

“How about you try this one on first?” Krystal asks, pointing towards the dragon onesie on the side.

Taeyeon squeals happily and nods as she grabs the costume and dashes out of the room to change.

Krystal sighs and covers her face as she leans her back against the couch. She hears soft footsteps padding towards her and opens her eyes, grinning when Jessica picks at the frills of her Snow White costume.  

“I don’t like this!” Jessica says, pouting as she stares down at the yellow bottom half of her dress.

Krystal resists the urge to burst into a fit of giggles as she adjusts her sister’s dress.

“I think you suit Snow White very well. You sleep most of the time and you’re most awake when the person you like is around. That means you’re most awake when Taeyeon’s around,” She says, pressing a light kiss to Jessica’s forehead.

“You’re teasing me!” Jessica says, jutting out her bottom lip in protest.

Krystal giggles and ruffles her sister’s hair.

Oh she definitely knows what she’s doing.

“If you don’t like Snow White, then maybe try the Elsa dress?” Krystal says encouragingly, nodding when Jessica looks at her with a nervous expression. She watches as Jessica disappears around the corner and raises her eyebrows when she hears a loud gasp of surprise in the hallway.

“Woah! Sooyeonnie is Snow White?” Taeyeon says, her voice unusually higher than usual.

Krystal rises from the floor and pokes her head around the corner, a wide grin working its way onto her face when Jessica nods and flushes red. She tries her best not to squeal when Jessica leaps up the stairs to change into a different dress and Taeyeon looks on with an adorable pout on her face.

“Taeyeonnie,” Krystal calls out, holding her hand out for Taeyeon to take as she looks her up and down and tries to figure out where she’s seen this particular costume.

Taeyeon holds her hand and beams widely as she looks up at her with hopeful, expectant eyes.

“Toothless?” Krystal guesses, jumping when Taeyeon squeals in glee and claps her hands together enthusiastically. 

“Toothy!” Taeyeon says, running around in a circle with her little tail swishing about in the air.

Krystal falls down laughing at the endearing sight of Dragon Taeyeon running around her. She reaches her hands out and stops the tiny whirl of excitement, pulling Taeyeon into her arms and giving her a big wet smooch on the cheek.

“How can you be so charming and silly?” Krystal says, giggling softly when Taeyeon leans her cheek in for another kiss.

“Taeyeonnie’s going to change now!” She says, hopping out of Krystal’s arms and bolting out of the room.

It’s a few minutes later when Jessica bashfully peeks her head inside the living room. Krystal smiles encouragingly and holds her arms out, biting down on her lip in anticipation when Jessica steps inside the room and slips her hand into hers.

“Hello my gorgeous Elsa,” Krystal says, pinching Jessica’s cheek when she shyly ducks her gaze.

“Am I pretty, Unnie?”

Krystal nods and pats her cheek.

“The prettiest. I like this one too.”

Jessica nods in satisfaction and skips out of the room to change into her next dress.

Krystal exhales and closes her eyes as she takes a quick rest before one of the girls comes back wearing a new costume.

Kids are so amusing these days.

Krystal scrolls through her phone, glancing up from the device when a shadow looms over her. curls into a smirk when she looks into the eyes of a tiny ghost whose brown eyes curiously stare back at her.

“Boo!”

Krystal lifts the edge of the white cloth and peers inside the costume.

“Hi cutie,” She says, giggling when Taeyeon squeals in delight and falls back onto her bottom.

“Boo!” Taeyeon says, clapping her hands together when Krystal ruffles her hair through her costume.

“I’m so scared,” Krystal says, deciding to play along with Taeyeon’s antics by placing a hand on her chest and closing her eyes out of mock fright.

Taeyeon giggles and climbs into her lap as she waves her arms around excitedly in the air.

“Taeyeonnie is a ghosty!”

Krystal’s shoulders shake as she laughs loudly at Taeyeon’s words.

“I think you like being a ghost.”

Taeyeon’s head bobs up and down as she nods in agreement. She climbs off Krystal’s lap and begins to walk towards the entrance to the living room.

“Where’s Sooyeon? Ghosty wants to see Sooyeon!” Taeyeon says, running behind Krystal to hide when she begins to hear soft footsteps approaching the room.

Krystal’s mouth curves into the widest beam she can give when her little sister enters the room wearing a beautiful blue dress and a sparkling tiara on her head.

“Taengoo?”

“Boo!” Taeyeon says, jumping out from behind Krystal’s legs to scare her friend.

Krystal’s eyes widen in surprise and mirth when instead of Jessica flinching out of fright, it’s Taeyeon who falls down onto her bottom and gasps loudly.

“Oh! Sooyeon is Princess Cinderella! Princess Sooyeon!” Taeyeon says, kneeling down on one knee and pressing a light kiss to Jessica’s hand through her ghost costume.

Krystal sniggers when Jessica’s cheeks immediately turn red and she slips her arms around her friend when Taeyeon stands upright. Taeyeon doesn’t seem to mind, not when she wraps her arms tightly around Jessica and returns her hug.

Krystal notes the equally red blush on Taeyeon’s cheeks and tries her best not to burst into laughter at the adorable sight of her two favourite girls embracing each other in her living room.

Oh, Halloween’s definitely going to be fun.

Krystal just manages to have a few minutes to breath when she hears a cry of pain on the back deck of her house. She steps outside, her eyes widening in shock when she spots Taeyeon lying face down and Jessica beginning to tear up as she tries to pull her friend to her feet.

Krystal scoops Taeyeon into her arms and carries her into the house. She gently places Taeyeon down on a chair and reaches inside the cupboards for her first aid kit. When she turns to face Taeyeon, she smiles at Taeyeon’s glistening eyes and leans down to press a soft kiss to her forehead.

“So tell me how this happened again?” Krystal says gently, shaking her head when Taeyeon peers up at her through her eyelashes and blinks back tears.

“Sooyeonnie was – hic – going to fall so – hic – Taeyeonnie caught Sooyeonnie!” Taeyeon says, her bottom lip trembling as she twists the hem of her shirt in her tiny chubby hands.

“I’m sorry,” Jessica says, wrapping her arms around Taeyeon when the girl begins to blubber loudly.

“Taeyeonnie thought Sooyeonnie was going to die!”

“No one’s going to die dear,” Krystal says softly, smiling gently when Taeyeon hiccups.

Krystal tries her best not to burst into laughter at how silly Taeyeon is acting and decides to busy herself with attending to her grazes. She washes her hands and squats down to rinse Taeyeon’s palms, patting her hands dry with a clean cloth. Satisfied that the areas of injury are clean, Krystal covers the wounds with Band-Aids and leans forward to press a kiss onto Taeyeon’s forehead.

“It’s not so bad now, right Taeyeonnie?” She says, grinning widely when Taeyeon nods vigorously and swivels around on the bench to show Jessica her covered hands.

“It’s okay Sooyeonnie!” Taeyeon chirps, swinging her legs back and forth.

Jessica nods and tenderly holds onto Taeyeon’s wrists, rubbing soothing circles on her skin. Krystal notices the action and the ever growing blush on her cheeks. She decides to help her sister out like the great person she is.

“What do we do when someone gets hurt?” Krystal says, nodding encouragingly when Jessica glances up at her with a confused look until the realisation dawns on her.

Jessica holds up Taeyeon’s hands and kisses the Band-Aids on her palms. Taeyeon beams widely but gasps when Jessica leans forward and lands a big wet smooch on her cheeks.

“We kiss them to make them feel better!” Jessica says happily, beaming widely when Taeyeon’s jaw drops open and she lifts her hands to cover her rosy cheeks.

Krystal just stares at the two with a shocked expression on her face. Jessica’s actions are definitely not what she had taught her sister to do when someone gets hurt.

“Who taught you that?” She says, her eyes narrowing when Jessica giggles and wraps her arms around Taeyeon’s waist protectively.

“Taengoo did!”

Taeyeon leans back and gasps in horror, her eyes widening comically as she stares at Jessica with a look of betrayal.

“Sooyeonnie! It was supposed to be our little secret!”

Krystal can’t help but release a soft noise as she switches her gaze back and forth between a sulking Taeyeon and a pouting Jessica. She reaches for Jessica, smiling gently when her sister wraps her arms around her and releases a soft whimper.

“It’s okay, you silly girl. I don’t think Taeyeon is that upset at you.”

Jessica shakes her head and rubs her eyes with her closed fists.

“Taengoo and I promised not to say anything because it’s our little secret but I broke the promise,” Jessica says sadly, staring down at her feet as she plays with her fingers.

Krystal presses a gentle kiss to Jessica’s forehead and her hair.

“Come on, let’s talk to Taeyeon,” Krystal says encouragingly, holding her sister’s hand as she guides her over to her friend. She kisses the top of Taeyeon’s head to get her attention, grinning widely when Taeyeon looks up at her with her bottom lip jutting out into a pout.

Taeyeon spots Jessica standing shyly behind Krystal and holds her tiny hand out in the air.

“Sooyeonnie,” Taeyeon says, tugging on Jessica’s hands and pulling her into her body.

Jessica squeals as Taeyeon wraps her small arms around her body and hugs her. She looks up at Krystal, who nods and beams widely when her sister returns the embrace. They break apart a few seconds later, with Taeyeon staring at Jessica and causing a pink blush to appear on her face.

“Taeyeonnie is sorry for being mean,” Taeyeon says, swinging their arms from side to side as she waits for Jessica to reply.

“It’s okay Taengoo. I’m sorry for spilling our little secret.”

Jessica looks back up at Krystal, who crouches down and ruffles both their heads.

“You two are so silly. Can we all be friends again?” She says, laughing when Jessica and Taeyeon nod and embrace each other again.

Krystal brings her two favourite girls into her arms and kisses the top of their heads.

She laughs when Jessica and Taeyeon plant big, wet kisses on her cheek.