It’s a different kind of comfort the moment they step into the front door. Irene is the last to go inside, spending a moment or two by the doorway and ushering all of her kids inside.

She never stayed here for more than a day. But somehow she felt the warmth in the house her husband used to call home.

Irene spends half of the afternoon with her mother-in-law. If there was anyone more devastated than Irene, it was his mother, the woman who had never ever thought about witnessing her own son’s passing. She tugs at Irene’s hand for her to move impossibly closer as they sit in the garden swing that’s witness to their sorrow and endless stream of tears.

Mina eyes the swing from the porch, ready to step down the last step and onto the grass. But before she could run and join the women in the garden, her grandfather picks her up and hands her a chocolate egg with a mystery toy inside. The little girl giggles as he sits her on the couch in the living room.

“It’s daddy!”

Mina jumps off the couch and points at the TV. Her father smiles back at her from the screen, a picture of him as a bachelor, fit and smug and dashing in a simple shirt and jeans.

The slideshow continues, all containing pictures of Sehun – as a child, as a schoolboy, as a teenager, as a boyfriend, as a husband, as…

“Daddy!”

Minhyuk shakes his head, tired of his sister’s shrieks – the mere sound in the room. Their uncle smiles fondly at his niece’s reaction while another picture flashes on the screen.

It’s a snapshot of a three-year old Minhyuk frowning at the sleeping newborn in Sehun’s arms. The best part of the picture is the teary-eyed and grinning face of a loving father who just had another child.

“It’s Minhyuk and... Mina!”

Uncle Suho shakes his head.

The youngest looks at her brother in confusion, and Minhyuk promptly answers, “It’s Yeri.”

For the first time in a long while, Yeri is as quiet as a mouse.

---

It’s not surprising to find Jisoo sitting on the steps with her diary and pen in hand as she writes her feelings down into words and doodles. She finds it comforting especially in times of melancholy.

In these moments, with her long hair cascading to the sides and eyes trained on the page, she resembles Irene the most. But her father had always reminded her, jokingly; that despite being the spiting image of her mother, her friendly and warm personality comes from him. A secret they kept to avoid mom’s chagrin.

Minhyuk passes by Jisoo as he walks up the stairs towards his father’s old bedroom. He hears his grandparents’ voices at the back of his mind saying how much he resembles his father. Not in looks, the Bae genes are just too strong, but in his ways, character, and charisma. He wishes it so, aspires to be as good a son and person his father was.

His father had always looked like a superhero to him – strong, outgoing, and reliable. Meanwhile, he is reserved and quiet and introverted. But today he found out that they had something in common. He used to think that being caring and reserved is a sign of weakness for a man. Besides, he always cared too much. His grandmother lovingly held his cheeks earlier to look at his eyes as she prides in the kind heart and caring soul he innately had.

He lies down on the cold bed. He is trying to be strong, to comfort his devastated mother, to be a role model for his younger sisters, now that he’s gone. But in the comforts of his father’s room where he used to lie at the same age, he admits he misses him. He misses him a lot.

---

“Er-“ Jisoo looks up at the owner of the ragged voice. He coughs before smiling shyly.

“Um- hi?” The boy says while waving his hand by his shoulder. She recognizes him as her classmate in classic literature.

“Oh. Jinyoung right? Hi.” Jisoo answers back, confused at the interruption. She briefly glances down to close her journal with the page filled halfway. It only has a few pages left and she makes a mental note to go buy another on her way home.

She is interrupted by a present wrapped in pink paper and a black ribbon. Jisoo is somehow amused at the choice of color. She has always had a knack for pretty but unusual things.

“What’s this?” Jisoo is surprised at the gentleness of her own voice. She’s not used to boys – or anyone really – approaching her and more so giving her gifts. If only her best friend Jennie were here and not in soccer practice, she would know how to deal with such situations.

“I – uh – I notice you write a lot. And… go ahead. Open it.” The cute-faced boy stammers one more. Jisoo notices his eyes squint in worry as she unfolds the packaging. It takes her a little more time because of all the tape around it. It’s not wrapped as neatly as she would have done, but it was obvious he tried his best to make it as presentable.

Jinyoung seems to panic when Jisoo gasps. She runs her hand on the embossed glittery clouds on the purple leather cover.

“I’m not stalking you or anything. I’m not sure if you’ve noticed but I sit across you in class and I noticed yesterday that you were running out of pages. And I thought – “

“Thank you.” Jisoo looks up at him then back at the notebook. She’s happy, but she’s not sure if it’s because of the item in her hands or the close attention.

“Maybe we can go somewhere sometime? Atthelibrary-orabookshopor-atthecafe. Anywhere. Wherever you would like?”

His words get jumbled together in his haste to say the words. Jisoo unconsciously chuckles.

“Okay. A café then.”

Jisoo walks home almost ignoring her younger brother, who glares at her suspiciously. She doesn't care. Something interesting had happened to her that day and it kept her spirits up.

But she did not expect him to text as soon. She feels her phone vibrate in her pocket during dinner, earning her a frown when she quickly fishes it out of her pocket.

“Phone rule, honey.” Irene reminded her and Jisoo bowed in apology.

“I’ll just turn off the ringer.”

Luckily, her mother doesn’t notice an impatient Jisoo kicking Yeri u