“Alright,” Seungcheol muttered to himself as he got up from Hansol’s bed gently and tucked the little boy in. He pressed a soft kiss to Hansol’s forehead and ran his fingers through soft locks of brown hair before exiting the room, leaving a crack in the door as always. Seungcheol sighed as he made his way down the hall, digging his phone out of his sweats and unlocking it with hopes that he somehow missed a notification from Jihyo—he didn’t. She still hasn’t texted him and it was getting late.

It’s a bit later than most Kindergartens do it, but the children get out at nearly four in the afternoon. Jihyo had arrived late, and then they still stayed to talk a bit which meant they had both left at five. It was currently seven and the sun had long since retired; Seungcheol managed to go through his entire afternoon routine with Hansol—after school play time, dinner, bath time, and then story time—without a single text of confirmation from the single mother. Too often had Seungcheol began to wonder if he should text or call her to make sure that she was alright, but he was met with disappointment every time he realized that he only gave her his number without getting one in return.

“Maybe I should contact Ms. Lee…? Or would that be weird? I never contact her, especially this late, so it might be a little weird. More for me than for her, I bet…” Seungcheol rambled as he sunk down onto the living room couch, turning on the television to distract himself. He flipped channels mindlessly until he landed on a drama that he liked enough and allowed himself to get immersed into the plot despite all of his worrying. Halfway into the episode, a bag of chips, and a slight emotional breakdown later, Seungcheol finally gets a text.

unknown number: Hey, it’s me, Jihyo (Tzuyu’s mom)! Sorry it took so long for me to contact you, but we’re home safely!

Seungcheol let out a sigh of relief, and before he could reply, Jihyo sent another text. This time, it was with a picture attached; they were in front of what appeared to be the door to their home, Tzuyu was comfortably curled into Jihyo’s neck, sound asleep, and Jihyo was smiling as wide as ever. She looked tired, though, and Seungcheol’s mood deflated a bit. She quickly saved Jihyo’s number before replying.

Jihyo: [sent an attachment]

Seungcheol: Glad to see you home safely, but it’s really late. I promise I’ll be able to drop you off next time.

Seungcheol: And no, it’s not a bother, don’t worry about it lol :)

Seungcheol sent that last text quickly, already being able to hear Jihyo’s refusal in his head despite having just met. Jihyo’s reply took a while, which Seungcheol assumed she was taking care of Tzuyu, the little girl needed dinner and a bath before she headed off to sleep for good, after all. So, Seungcheol placed his phone to the side and tried to refocus on the drama, diving back into his near empty bag of chips and steeled himself from having another slight emotional breakdown (second-lead syndrome always got to him, and he refused to get into why exactly that is).

After the drama went off and Seungcheol was out of chips (and tears, which he couldn’t help), the man turned everything off and made sure everything was in order before grabbing phone and heading to his room. He sighed peacefully as he slipped under the covers, the soft bedding never failing to make him feel instantly relaxed—he’s glad that Jeonghan convinced him once upon a time that if he were going to splurge on anything, it should be a good bed. Before he got too comfortable, though, Seungcheol received another text.

Jihyo: Alright, sorry about that, just had to tend to Tzuyu

Jihyo: And, I know you said don’t worry about it, but I really am sorry for being a nuisance. Thank you for all of the worry and help, though. I appreciate it more than anything.

Jihyo: Hope you have a good night! :)

Seungcheol: No problem, hope you sleep well tonight, too

And with that, Seungcheol was hooking up his phone to charge and snuggling under the covers even more. As usual, he went over the day he had in his head, making note of the projects he finished and the projects he still had to get done next time. He checked his bedside calendar by the light of his cellphone and reminded himself that tomorrow was indeed Saturday. The last thing he thought of before drifting off to sleep was how he needed to stop by the mall tomorrow to get another car seat and how he could possibly bribe Hansol into agreeing to the idea.