Joohyun arched her brows when she found the key of her cupboard hanging there by the knob. It had been inserted and something had surely been taken out of the cupboard. Just that the key was left wherever it was, carelessly. Her heart started to race. She ran towards the cupboard and pulled open the doors.

She dug through her clothes, panicking as she did, her heart ringing in her ears. She could hear her uneven breathing. Confusion struck her when she could not find it.

"What are you looking for?"

Sehun's steely voice cut through the thick air around her. She spared him no glance, her eyes morphing into glares, "Did you take it?" She asked.

Sehun did not answer her. Joohyun went towards him, grabbing him by the elbow. Sehun stopped in his track, looking over his shoulder with no expression at all. "Did you take it?" Joohyun asked, slowly but with her aggression. Sehun remained still, not answering her.

"The paper," Joohyun said, in a little whisper.

Sehun smirked. "I burnt it."

Sarang checked herself in the mirror. Her shoulders were sagged, her face a little dull. Swelled eyes and red nose. Carefully bending over, she pulled the drawers of her dresser open, looking for her makeup. The nail polish bottles lined the long glass chamber on her left, mere show pieces now of so many different colors. She barely touched them. Some might even be missing from her collection, courtesy of her fashionable cousins who did not even spare her socks.

The breakfast laid on the nightstand, untouched. Sarang would have to force that food into , she would do it for the little person growing inside her. Even if she vomitted later and threw up all the food she had swallowed, she would eat them now. The maternity books were piled up on the glass table, almost blocking the view of the television. Sarang did not see a point of having to read so many but Jaehyun insisted.

Sarang was not good at putting makeup on her face. Her fingers shook and she panicked way too much for this. But she had to cover the red blotches of her eyes somehow. As if on cue, there was a knock on the door, making Sarang swiftly turn around which in turn, messed up the eyeliner she was trying to put on. Wendy smiled back at her, waving her hand. Sarang sighed, passing the girl a smile of her own.

"Putting makeup on, are we?" Wendy said, placing the shopping bags on the couch. "Do you want me to help?"

Sarang noded, "But what are those?"

Wendy looked back at the bags, smiling to herself, "Gifts."

Sarang let her take over the eyeliner tube from her hand. Wendy pushed her back on the bed, "Any progress?"

Sarang shook her head, "I check every morning. It is the same," she said placing a hand on her tummy. "Maybe I am not eating enough so the baby isn't growing," she continued while Wendy placed her pointer under her chin and lifted her face. "Are you sure--"

"Shut your mouth," Wendy muttered, making Sarang giggle. Wendy could not even scold properly.

"Are they from you?" Sarang said, moving her lips the least possible with her eyes closed. Wendy must have shook her head, "Who is it from then?"

"What if I say Sehun?" Wendy answered, but with a question.

Sarang sighed, "I wish."

Wendy cupped her cheek, momentarily stopping. Sarang opened her eyes, slowly, scared the eyeliner would scatter. Wendy passed her a gentle look, as if she was looking at a child. "It is true."

"He asked you to hang in there," she continued, "A little more."

"How could he possibly know?" Sarang's eyes lit up with surprise, and confusion. Perhaps even fear because theyWendy had discovered she was worried Joohyun would not sit still once she will know about the baby. Sarang shook her by the arm, "Was it you?"

"I did tell him," Wendy nodded, "He deserves to know, Sarang. He is the father."

"You should not have," Sarang sighed, "Do you know what that means? Joohyun will be coming for me--"

"Calm down, everything will be alright," Wendy smiled, "I know you have got enough books for now, but Sehun insisted. He wished to come this morning after dropping them off at school but I just thought that would be too risky. So I brought these to you. He had his phone taken."

Sarang almost laughed at the idea, "I thought Joohyun did not affect him as much but he let her take his phone."

Wendy sighed, "You know he is weak. He would just do anything if it means Joohyun would keep away from you."

She looked into Sarang's glassy eyes. Sarang looked a decade older than her actual age, like a mother who had been separated from her very own family. She looked hopeless, like something was consistently pulling her down and she saw no spark of hope ahead. A person should not live like that. Wendy left that day with a heavy heart.

Sehun brushed the dust off the red roses that already laid beside the cross. He placed his own flowers beside it, smiling like a fool. Sarang had been here. He wondered if Sarang ever spoke about him to her parents. It was like a part of his routine now, to sit by her parents for at least half an hour and talk to them. It felt wonderful to have no one listen to you as you spoke your heart away, pretending to be speaking to someone. 

There were so many things he wished for. However, right now he could only smile at the thought that he had watched those papers burn. It felt like he was burning the steel bars that kept him locked, it felt like he was burning down the walls that caged him. He felt like he could run across green meadows and scream because he was just so happy.

"Dad, I got these," He heard Minhye, yelling at him with a smile on her face. Sehun dusted his pants as he got up and caught her in his arms. Minhye showed him the two lollipops. "Father Benjamin gave me these. One for Minju."

"Where's mine?" He asked, fixing her pigtails.

Minhye smiled, "Father Benjamin said Mommy left these for us just today." Sehun's grin widened. "And he said that if we come early, we can catched her sometimes."

Sehun shook his head, "We are going to Mommy soon. What's with the hurry? We will catch her anyway."

"You burnt the right papers, Dad? You did not screw up, did you?" Minhye asked, sitting down on the grass and pulling him down by the hand. "You know we are doomed if you did."

"Why are you talking like my grandma?" Sehun chuckled, "I read the papers and then burnt them, so don't you worry. And I have another fantastic news for you. Guess what?"

"We are getting a puppy?" Minhye said, eyes widening. Sehun shook his head, making Minhye's smile dissolve. But she would not give up. She knew just the right cards to play to convince her father. "You know Mommy always said she wanted one, she wants a white puppy. Dad, please, let's get one and surprise her when we see her."

"Stop playing the Mommy card," Sehun laughed at her attempts, "It is bigger than that."

"We are finally getting rid of Bae Joohyun," Minhye said.

"And?"

"And we are getting Mommy back."

"Well, to be honest, you used to want Bae Joohyun a lot back then--"

"That is because I never thought she was going to send us to boarding schools," Minhye argued, "Dad, you can't hold that against me. I really can't trust people and for some time I cou