“Yah, can I just tell him now?”

Jiwon anxiously watched her friend fix his hair in front of the mirror. “Sis, the only people who know about me is my two sisters and you right now. I don’t want you coming out to anyone on behalf of me, not right now. Especially not to my ultimate crush. I’m not ready to tell him about my womanhood.” Ryan fake-cried. Jiwon rolled her eyes and turned the screen of her phone to his direction. “He’s messaging me non-stop. I swear to god, Ryan if you just don’t let me tell him about your uality, he’s going to take the first flight to Jeju. I’m not even kidding, it’s Byun Baekhyun we’re talking about.” She pointed out.

“Just. . . just tell him there’s nothing to worry about. We’re just friends.”

Knowing that kind of reason won’t work, Jiwon shook her head immediately. “Nope, he ain’t taking that bull no matter what, even if it’s not actually a bull, it’s bull in his ears.” She confidently replied, she knows her own husband very well. “Look what he just texted me, ‘Get another room or I will get it for you myself.’ Oh god, he’s so mad right now.” She read Baekhyun’s last text. “Do you want to be labelled that spoiled brat newbie in Arirang? Correspondent Yura did a similar thing during our trainee days and she was the talk of the town for a while.” Ryan casually informed her.

Jiwon didn’t have any problem with staying in a motel – not at all – but this situation with her husband is what’s worrying her. “Sis, this is your fault anyway. It was so easy NOT to tell him about the room arrangement.” He added while flipping her non-existent long hair. “It slipped out of my tongue, he’s my husband, I’m not that good in hiding anything from him. And I’ve been really good on keeping your uality from him, okay?” Jiwon proudly mocked while folding her arms on her chest.

“He’ll get over it, just relax.” Ryan shrugged it off in the end and jumped on his bed just beside Jiwon’s.

Jiwon blankly shook her head. “No, he is not going to get over it, I swear.”

Different from his original plan, Baekhyun just went straight home with the twins after grocery shopping. Both Hansol and Hana are taking a nap right now while he makes lunch – or partially making lunch while staring at his phone.

“Friends? Just friends? That’s why it’s so easy to sleep in the same room as he is? Tch, the last time you had a guy friend, you ended up dating him.”

Baekhyun walked back and forth in front of the stove as he waits for the water in the saucepan to boil and at the same time, waiting for Jiwon to answer his call. Images of Jiwon doing it with Ryan started surfacing in his mind as he waited. He trusts Jiwon but not Ryan, not any guy. He basically just hates any guy who goes near Jiwon. Pretty possessive but he once lost Jiwon before, he can’t imagine it happening again.

“Hello?”

Baekhyun’s body stiffened when a male voice answered the phone. “Y-yah, Ryan? This is Ryan? Yah, where’s my wife?” He burst right away. He heard a light gasp coming from the guy upon how he welcomed him. “S-she’s just taking a shower, Baekhyun-ssi. We’re about to leave soon for the broadcast.” Ryan managed to answer with a light stutter. With his fists clenched to his sides, Baekhyun cleared his throat to make up a much nicer tone. “S-shower—and you’re in the room, still? Answering a phone call that’s not even yours. This is why I don’t trust you. Since the first day I met you I know something’s off already. You’re interested in my wife, right?” he asked.

“Oh, no that’s not true, Baekhyun-ssi. We’re just friends. We’re comfortable with each other, l-like siblings.”

Baekhyun rolled his eyes and slammed his hand on the counter—only it was actually right into the saucepan with boiling water. “Ahhh!” He dropped his phone to the floor upon feeling the burning sensation on his hand. The saucepan fell and the water spilled right on his feet, making everything worse. He winced in pain while rushing to the faucet. “Ho—hot—oh god, aw!” He yelped while washing his hands with cold water and hopping at the same time since his feet were affected as well. Ignoring the pain for a while, he rushed to the phone on the floor. It was slightly affected as well with some water stains on the screen.

“Ugh.” He wiped it off on his side before calling again, the line got cut off. He walked back and forth while flapping his hand eagerly to ease the burning pain.

He didn’t even notice the twins waking up.

They stood up and started walking into the kitchen, that’s when Baekhyun saw them. “Oh—wait, stay right there.” He didn’t have a choice but to hung up again to clean up the water on the floor. He rushed to the sink to get a cloth and the twins took this chance to walk over to the spilled hot water. They both squatted down the floor and touched it with their bare little hands. “Ahh—no!” Baekhyun yelled but he was too late. They both slumped down the floor crying upon feeling the hot sensation of the water on their palms. “Uhh—I told you not to touch it guys.” Baekhyun yelped in guilt before lifting both toddlers up in his arms.

“Ssh, it’s okay. . .” He went out of the kitchen and put the twins down the couch. “Let me see, hm? It’s okay. You’re both fine.” He checked their hands. Fortunately, the water isn’t as hot as it was anymore although it still felt hot for the twins. “Stop crying. Appa’s here, it’s gunna go away soon. Don’t worry, hm?” Baekhyun wiped their tears with both his burnt hands, ignoring it for a while. There’s too much going on in his head already that he felt so anxious and worn-out at the same time. He leaned down to their hands, putting them together into his and started kissing the pain away. “Kiss kiss kiss~ Pain is gone, oh? Kiss kiss kiss~” He chanted excitedly making the twins stop crying.

Smiles started forming on their lips easing half of the pain and anxiety Baekhyun was feeling.

It’s like an instant band-aid for him.

“That was a quick nap you guys had. Or did Appa wake you up with the noise in the kitchen? I’m sorry.” He pouted and kissed them on their cheeks. Attempting to put the twins back to sleep, he lied down beside them on the foam bed right in front of the couch. Laying himself down sideways, he patted their bums gently while humming a random song. He closed his eyes tightly whenever the painful tingle in his burnt hands would come. Hansol who was closest to his chest moved even closer and snuggled on him making him smile. Hana on the other hand already fell asleep while on her thumb.

Baekhyun sneakily reached for her pacifier beside her and put it on instead. “I’ll be back. . .” He whispered softly before standing up. Hansol eventually fell back to sleep as well. The smile came back to Baekhyun’s lips just by watching them sleep peacefully.

Just in time, Jiwon finally called back. The big lump in his throat formed once again as he pressed the answer button.

“Hello.”

He heard his wife clear on the other line. “What happened? Ryan said the line got cut off when you were talking?” She asked with concern. “Oh, so we’ll just go straight to that? How about explain about all this room sharing and him answering your phone call instead because you’re in the shower?” Baekhyun argued but maintained a very gentle voice to refrain from waking the twins up again. “Look, I’ve explained myself about the rooms. This job is important to me, babe, and it’s not easy to just act all mighty and get my own room with my own money, that’s not a good image for Arirang. You need to trust me, there’s nothing going on between me and Ryan. There’s two beds in the room as well.” Jiwon explained.

“Tch, yea two beds that are two centimeters apart? Yup, that makes me feel better.”

His blood starts boiling deep inside again as he stomped his feet to the kitchen, not wanting to whisper anymore. “Can you not be so sarcastic? Do you not trust me? Do I look like I’ll ever cheat on you?” Jiwon hissed back. “Hun, I do trust you. I don’t trust the guy, okay? Do you not get it? You’re so naïve when it comes to guys. Yeah, you like being friends with them but do you really know their motive? No.” Baekhyun fought back while flapping his burnt hand again to ease the pain. “I said there’s nothing to worry about Ryan. He’s good, he’s not interested in me, I swear. I guarantee you, he doesn’t like me at all.” Jiwon confidently replied.

“Oh yea? Prove it. How can you be so sure? It’s so easy for him to lie about it—ahh!”

Not being able to finish his sentence, Baekhyun slipped right on the wet floor that he had forgotten to clean, landing first and creating a thud on the floor. “What happened?!” Jiwon asked full of worry. Baekhyun covered his mouth quickly while glancing out to the living room to check if the twins woke up again. Fortunately, this time, they remained asleep. He quietly winced in pain while pulling himself up. “This day has been so ty for me and it hasn’t even been a day since you left, okay? Can you just do what I want you to do and get another room? Kim Jiwon, please, for my peace of mind.” He grunted while rubbing his tailbone.

“Okay, fine. . . I’ll do it later tonight, after the broadcast. We’re going to leave soon.”

Finally, Baekhyun’s chest was at ease after getting that answer from her.

“WHAT?! How can a motel be fully-booked?”

Jiwon scr