“Seoyul!”

Seoyul feels like she’s cursed when she turns around to meet Baekhyun’s innocent smiling face.

To make it worse, she’s in Disneyland where Jongin and Haebit is present with her.

“Ah, sunbae,” Seoyul flashes Baekhyun her business smile, and she doesn’t miss the way Jongin’s eyebrows twitches in confusion—it’s unlikely for him to meet anyone from Seoyul’s life that he doesn’t already know. Baekhyun walks over towards the family of three shamelessly, the stupid smile still on his face.

“I’m Byun Baekhyun,” he immediately offers Jongin his hand, and Jongin shakes it reluctantly, disliking the fact that there exists a man in his wife’s life that he’s never heard the story of.

“And who is this little one!” Baekhyun crouches to meet Haebit’s eye level, and Haebit hides behind Jongin’s legs shyly. Jongin nudges his daughter despite the dislike for the man crouching in front of his daughter, and tells her how it’s impolite to hide from someone talking to her, so Haebit introduces herself timidly. Baekhyun immediately tells her a joke afterwards, one that makes Haebit burst into laughter.

This renders both Jongin and Seoyul speechless, because Haebit isn’t one to be friendly with a stranger she just met.

“I didn’t know you had a daughter,” Baekhyun tells Seoyul casually. “How old is she?”

Seoyul hates how he’s acting like they didn’t just fight the first time they met again after seven years, how the mischievous glint in his eye that usually means something bad irks her. Baekhyun shouldn’t have an effect on her.

“She’s seven,” Jongin answers, and something about the tone of his voice sounds defensive. Seoyul is confused on why Jongin might be, but the amused look on Baekhyun’s face makes her feel more anxious.

“Seven years… that doesn’t make sense,” he replies. The atmosphere suddenly turns into a more intense one, and Jongin now has his hand tightened  around Seoyul’s waist. It’s nothing new for the both of them, but this time it feels different for Seoyul. She flushes the ridiculous thoughts from her mind immediately.

“What—”

“When she’s this short!” Baekhyun crouches again to send Haebit a blinding grin, “Are you sure you’re not two or something?”

His teasing makes Haebit shriek in delight, and it makes Seoyul taste copper inside of . She decides that she hates Baekhyun. How can she like him when all of the words he chooses to say somehow translates as a jab towards her marriage with Jongin?

“Why are you here, sunbae? Disneyland isn’t exactly a place for people like you,” Seoyul finds herself saying, and the hostility in her words surprises Jongin and Baekhyun both. Seoyul’s words are based on facts, though, she tells herself—Disneyland isn’t cheap and is usually deemed a trip the rich family can afford for their children. Baekhyun isn’t exactly part of the upper class, the class that has what it takes to enjoy leisure times in Disneyland like this.

Baekhyun’s face shows a look of hurt for a split of second, but he quickly masks it with a nonchalant laugh.

“Whoops—I may be a literary major, but that doesn’t mean I can’t work in Disneyland,” Baekhyun says, eyeing Haebit as he does. Seoyul realizes that Baekhyun is replying her in a way that assures Haebit that her mother isn’t some stuck-up monster, and her heart deflates realizing that she’d said those words in a whim forgetting that Haebit is there.

“I actually sing here for a gig from time to time. It’s pretty fun,” Baekhyun smiles.

“You do?” Haebit responds, and Seoyul can practically see the stars in her eyes—Haebit loves to sing. It’s a trait she’s picked up from her biological mother, Jongin had told Seoyul once. Jongin’s grip on her waist tightens, pulling her closer to him.

“Uh-huh,” Baekhyun nods, “actually, I have a fast-pass ticket for a Donald duck musical I’ll be performing tonight! Do you want to come and see?”

Haebit practically bursts in glee, but surprisingly to Seoyul, Jongin is the first to pop his daughter’s bubble of happiness.

“It’s getting late, sweetheart. Maybe next time, hm?” he tells Haebit, and Seoyul can hear the sound of Haebit’s heart cracking. It’s shocking to see Jongin deny Haebit’s request so vocally, when he’s such a fool for Haebit and would do anything for her every other day. Something is wrong, but Seoyul can’t pinpoint why.

Why, out of all the shows, it’s Donald duck that Baekhyun has to star in, though? It’s Haebit’s favorite ever since she was a baby.

“Next time, okay? I promise. You have school tomorrow, and uncle Baekhyun is probably going to get into trouble for getting us in—you wouldn’t want that, would you?” Seoyul tries to coax Haebit into going home, and albeit sadly, Haebit nods.

Baekhyun sends her an unreadable look, and Jongin wastes no time in taking Haebit’s hand in his so that they can leave immediately.

“Bye uncle Baek,” Haebit pouts, tears threatening to fall from her face.

“Aw, don’t cry, Haebit-ah! There’s always next time, right? Your mom told you that you have school tomorrow, so you should listen to her, okay?” Baekhyun crouches.

Haebit nods regretfully.

“See you soon!”

Baekhyun doesn’t get to say another word because Jongin is already hoisting his daughter into his embrace, and Seoyul already has her back turned against him. The family walks away without saying any goodbyes.

***

The silence that ensues after putting a tearful Haebit to bed doesn’t feel right.

Jongin and Seoyul are both sitting at the opposite ends of their bed. Jongin is focused on his phone and Seoyul is busy painting her nails. The silence is usually comfortable, but it isn’t tonight, so Seoyul turns the TV on for some background noise.

“If you’re not going to watch it, you should just turn it off,” Jongin comments gruffly.

“It’s not like you’ve never done it either,” Seoyul brushes him off, annoyed, the grip on her nail polish’s brush getting tighter.

“I’m the one who’s paying the electricity bills so it’s justifiable. Turn it off.” Jongin retorts harshly. It shocks Seoyul that he would say that, but she does anyway, throwing the glass control pane—people from the past calls it a remote—away in anger. It bounces off the bed and onto the floor angrily, and the glass cracks.

“What is wrong with you!” Jongin complains, quickly picking up the ruined control pane from the floor, glaring at Seoyul as he does.

“What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with you! I haven’t done anything wrong yet you’re chastising me like I’m your child or something. Mind you, it was written in our contract by you that I don’t have to work a day in my life. Would you rather have me work and pitch to pay for my own bills each month? I’ll start looking for jobs tomorrow, then,” Seoyul doesn’t know what came over her and why she can’t stop herself from saying the words she said.

“Ever since Seojin’s wedding you’ve been different—so angry at everything,” Jongi