Sehun nearly sprains his ankles flying down the stairs five at a time. He wastes no time in locating Jongin’s cubicle at the end of the hallway, all while a faint commotion grows louder by the second.

It’s not until Sehun gets closer that he makes out Jongin cowering on the floor with Chanyeol's gangly self hovering above him like a hawk. Every thought in his head seems to come to a stop as he flies forward and yanks Chanyeol backwards before he can grab a fistful of Jongin’s hair.

”What the is going on here,” Sehun hisses, doing his best to keep his voice down since their boss is probably not far away.

Chanyeol rolls his eyes as he runs his tongue across his split lip. He grumbles something about barely even laying a finger on anybody when Jungah rushes over to Jongin. Upon closer inspection, Sehun is relieved to see that Jongin doesn’t actually seem all that scratched up, save for his hair being tousled and tie wrinkled. His desk chair is lying face down on the carpet, which Sehun figures must have gotten tossed aside at one point during the commotion. It’s not until Jungah goes on to attack Chanyeol’s torso with her tiny, yet overly strong fists that Sehun motions for her to stand by him. Thankfully, Chanyeol merely grumbles something under his breath before storming back into the hallway.

Sehun wastes no time in rushing forward and helping Jongin to his feet. He makes sure to keep a tight grasp on Jongin’s arms when he stumbles ever so slightly.

”Are you alright? What did he do to you?” Sehun breathes while Jungah struggles to lift up the heavy desk chair by herself.

Jongin winces when he runs a hand through his brown locks. He says something about being thankful that Chanyeol merely concentrated his blows to his scalp region, which brings Sehun little comfort no matter how many times Jongin assures Jungah that he isn’t, in fact, at risk of dying. A second later, Minseok walks by whilst whistling a joyful tune to himself, and Sehun is torn between feeling relief and a seething irritation at how oblivious everybody is around here.

”I’m fine, I promise,” Jongin sighs, although Sehun quickly picks up on his voice trembling as he bends down and embraces Jungah in a tight hug.

”Are you sure?” Jungah asks with wide eyes. ”I mean, you told him to hit you again instead of me, remember?” 

Sehun doesn’t realize that he's gritting his teeth with rage until Jongin’s dress shirt rides up when he gets to his feet, revealing the yellowing bruise spread out across his abdominal area for a split second. However, that split second is all Sehun needs to open his mouth to speak.

”Look, I had an idea,” Sehun blurts out after he hears a faucet being in the distance. ”I was thinking we could all go out for some ramen later if that’s alright with you both.”

Jungah inevitably beams after Jongin sinks back down in his chair. Her temple grazes Jongin’s jawline when she crawls into his lap, and Sehun pretends to not notice Jongin physically recoiling in discomfort.

”I love ramen!" she squees. "Can we? Can we please?”

Jongin’s low hum of approval fills the air. Sehun can only watch as Jungah subsequently tells Jongin to choose a colored marker, seconds before they both proceed to add even more flowers to their drawing. 

Luhan loudly berates Minseok for stealing three chocolate muffins meant for Sunny just as Sehun speaks.

”We’ll go in just a bit, I promise,” he says, at which Jungah hums in approval. ”There’s something I need to do first.”

___

Sehun hopes he doesn't pass out from vertigo as he storms down the hallway and past the smoke room. The sound of water running grows louder after he rounds the corner and approaches the ajar bathroom door.

Thankfully, all five cubicles are dead empty, and Sehun’s eyes quickly land on Chanyeol hunched over one of the sinks while washing his face. 

Chanyeol shoots up like a bullet when the door is slammed closed with a deafening bang. Something briefly flashes in his eyes when they land on Sehun, but he simply resumes cleaning the bright red cut on his lip less than a fraction of a second later.

”Beating somebody to a pulp in front of your own daughter,” Sehun says after leaning against the doorframe. The heat surging through his veins nearly explodes when Chanyeol visibly stills. ”Takes some nerve, huh?”

Turning off the faucet, Chanyeol growls low in his throat. ”Stop talking like you know 24/7,” he says with a few wet locks of hair sticking to his forehead. "Didn't know his blandness was rubbing off on everyone, let alone you." 

Sehun is glad that being nearly as tall as Chanyeol puts him at an advantage as he grabs Chanyeol’s collar and promptly shoves him inside the nearest cubicle. It happens so fast that he barely gets a chance to process it himself, but Sehun forgets all about it while he watches Chanyeol’s gangly self stumble backwards before he hits the floor with a thud.

”What the is this,” Chanyeol grumbles before Sehun can blink. Despite the rage in his eyes, he quickly gives up on moving due to being wedged between the toilet seat and cubicle wall.

As much as Sehun wants to watch Chanyeol suffer until five o’clock rolls around, he forces himself to dismiss it when he remembers that Jongin and Jungah are waiting for him down the hallway. Despite being a quarter of an inch shorter, Sehun is surprised that Chanyeol cowers ever so slightly when he takes a step forward.

”We've both got places to be, so I'll make it bloody short,” Chanyeol growls, words muffled as he runs his tongue across his torn lip. "That boy is nothing but a goddamn mistake, he ruined ing everything for me and he'll do the same to you, too, don't you see that? Don't you get that--"

”Then I'll make it even shorter,” Sehun says after he bends down so that. their faces are mere inches apart. ”If you do so much as lay a finger on any of them again, you'll be ing praying.”

Chanyeol makes a feeble attempt at getting to his feet, but his tall frame makes it nearly impossible for him to do so. He looks up at Sehun through his damp bangs. ”You’re bloody mad if you think I want anything to do with that ,” he spits, half a second before he’s once again grabbed by the collar and to his feet.

Sehun can physically feel his mind blanking out as he slams Chanyeol against the wall with so much force that the floor beneath him trembles. He knows that somebody, not to mention his boss, must have picked up on the deafening noise, but he shoves the thought aside when he hears Chanyeol’s low groan of pain. All that fills Sehun's head is the deep bruises scattered all over Jongin’s torso, as well as the frightened glint in Jungah’s eyes when she ran to him, and the next thing he knows, he’s shoving Chanyeol back down to the floor.

Sehun wastes no time in pressing his razor sharp heel against Chanyeol’s chest. The tip of Sehun’s tie grazes Chanyeol’s flushed cheeks when he leans in even closer. 

”I can make it even shorter, if you'd like,” Sehun says, yanking on Chanyeol’s hair until they’re looking at each other. ”You stay the away from either of them, or else.” He tightens his grip when Chanyeol doesn’t respond. ”Have I made myself clear?”

Chanyeol merely mutters something under his breath, but it’s not until Sehun’s eyes physically tremble with rage that he cowers. ”Fine, I get it, I ing get it,” he chokes.

Sehun tries not to pass out from vertigo when he gets to his feet. While he's got enough adrenaline in his system to bring Chanyeol to his knees while begging for mercy, all it takes is one look at Chanyeol coughing up a lung from his spot on the floor for Sehun to turn on his heel and head out the door.

____

Jongin has to ask Jungah to get off his lap when his thighs feel like they’re about to shatter. He finishes filling in his five hundredth purple flower, which he managed to squeeze in amid the hundreds of other doodles everywhere. At this point, the whole paper is filled to the brim with colorful flowers, and he kisses Jungah’s soft hair when she goes on to scribble out a perfectly circular sun in the top right corner of the page.

”Now it’s finished,” Jungah sing-songs, capping the yellow marker. ”Isn’t this the prettiest garden you’ve ever seen?”

Massaging his numb thighs, Jongin nods. He tries not to comment on the handful of roses hovering among the clouds in the sky - a last minute placement due to running out of space mere minutes after they first started drawing. 

”It almost looks like another world,” Jongin hums and rests his head on his hand when Jungah says something about how she would want to live in such a pretty garden forever if it existed in real life.

Jungah nods. ”When you and Sehun get married like a mother and father, we could find a place like this to live,” she says dreamily, and Jongin doesn’t get a chance to cover before there’s a knock on the wall.

”Sorry to interrupt,” Luhan says, ”but I made the thing.” He inches into the room while holding a folded piece of pink paper that Jongin can only assume is the result of the paper crane Jungah asked him to craft an hour ago.

Jungah’s eyes trail over the crane, which is a whole lot better than Jongin’s first attempt four years ago. ”It’s pretty since it's pink,” she says and puts her hands on her hips. ”But it needs a lot of work since they don’t normally look like that! It almost looks like it got run over by a-"

”Jungah,” Jongin interjects, ”don’t be-”

”It’s alright, y’should’ve seen Minseok’s,” Luhan interrupts with a snicker. ”He hated it so much he threw it right out before he could even show y’all.” He eyes the drawing on the table. ”I didn’t know you were raising a little artist,” he adds and winks at Jungah.

Jungah picks it up and practically shoves it in Luhan’s face. ”I call this 'The Garden of Love'! Isn't it beautiful? Dad drew the weird, squiggly flowers and I drew the pink ones!" 

Luhan blinks. ”Love?” he echoes, squinting. ”Child, I may not be wearing my glasses, but I sure don’t see any hearts anywhere.”

”There aren't supposed to be any,” Jungah scoffs. ”It’s because it's going to be our second home when Dad and Sehun get married!” she says while Jongin buries his face in his hands.

Luhan snorts. ”Guess Jongdae was spot-on, then,” he chuckles and thumps Jongin on the back. ”Don’tcha worry, we all knew,” he adds even though it brings Jongin absolutely zero ounces of comfort.

Jongin fights the urge to slam his head on his desk when Luhan goes on to show Jungah photos of his son, all while she squeals in adoration. One thought leads to another, and Jongin is suddenly struck with the thought of where on Earth Sehun might be. Come to think of it, he doesn’t think he’s caught a glimpse of him ever since he walked off ten minutes ago. Jongin tries focusing on the video Luhan took during his son's fifth birthday party last week, only to fail miserably. He fights the urge to shiver when the temperature in the small cubicle seems to drop by ten degrees. All he wants is for Sehun to return and keep them company before he can crawl under his desk and burst into a fit of ugly sobs.

Footsteps walk up behind them, and Jongin doesn’t even need to turn around when he catches a whiff of Marc Jacobs perfume strong enough to make his eyes water.

”Minseok said you brought your daughter,” Taeyeon says, eyes glimmering when she lays her eyes on Jungah. 

Jungah beams when Taeyeon proceeds to compliment her skirt, hair and drawing skills, and Jongin has to force himself to stop smiling when a dull pain spreads across his jaw.

”Where’s your mommy, sweetie?” Taeyeon coos after bending down and helping Jungah doodle a chubby, blue cat. ”Is she an office worker like us?”

Jungah grabs the pink marker. ”I don’t have a mother,” she says and uncaps it. ”Dad gave birth to me when he was eighteen and he’s never had a wife since then.” She pouts. ”He complained about it a lot before, but he’s happier now!”

Taeyeon automatically looks at Jongin, who only presses his lips together. ”Alrighty, then,” she says. ”That's good, isn't it?”

Jungah sits back down in Jongin’s warm lap, and it’s not until he looks down that he realizes that she’s doodling pink love hearts all over his hand and dangerously close to his watch. Taeyeon's talkative self subsequently bombards Jungah with more questions, which has Jungah going off on a five minute tangent every now and then. Jongin is just glad that his arm is no longer at risk of turning into a children's coloring book.

Suddenly, Jungah’s whole face lights up. ”Actually, I do have a mother now,” she says and Jongin sort of regrets not covering when Luhan raises a curious eyebrow.

”You have a mother now?” Luhan asks in confusion.

”That's what I said,” Jungah sing-songs before pointing to the doorway. ”There! See?”

Jongin knows that if his legs weren’t stiff as cardboard, he would jump out of his chair and nuzzle his face in Sehun’s neck when he spots Sehun smiling at them from the doorway. Jungah points to Sehun again to prove her point, which has Taeyeon emitting an amused, albeit puzzled chuckle.

”Some mommy,” Luhan murmurs and nearly shoots through the ceiling when Taeyeon stomps on his toes.

Sehun runs a hand through Jungah’s ponytail after she scrambles off of Jongin’s lap and rushes towards him. 

”He’s a boy, but it feels better to say that he’s my mother since he takes care of Dad and makes him happy," Jungah says, cheeks flushing with joy when Taeyeon does her best to stifle a giggle. 

Luhan rolls his eyes in Jongin's direction. ”I wish my little one was like yours,” he mutters. ”The nicest thing he’s ever done for me is pull my pants down at the bus stop in front of my friends and wife.”

”He’s five, it makes sense,” Taeyeon chuckles and Jongin is dangerously close to telling them to shut up before they give Jungah any ideas.

Jongin wants to die when a spark flashes in Jungah’s eyes. ”One time, Dad got scared of one of the big goats at the petting zoo and it chased him around the pen for five minutes,” she says, nuzzling her face in Sehun’s stomach. ”It got so angry that Dad tried climbing over the fence to get away.”

Luhan nearly suffocates from laughing so hard. ”Well, did it work?”

"Jungah," Jongin sighs, even though he knows it's useless. "Lay off already, nobody wants to-"

”Kinda,” Jungah interrupts. ”He got over to the other side, but a part of the gate broke and he fell into a huge puddle of mud on the ground.” She walks over to Taeyeon. ”The bus driver almost wouldn’t let us get on since Dad was so dirty.”

Luhan erupts in an indiscreet smirk. "Now that's one photo I wouldn't bother seeing," he mutters.

Jungah's eyes flash. "I did take a photo," she says. "You'll find it really funny since he looks like one of those giant mud monsters you see on TV!" 

Jongin mentally launches Luhan into outer space when the latter practically collapses on the floor in a fit of ugly guffaws. Sehun chuckling along with Taeyeon does little to help, to say the least, but Jongin manages to dismiss it when Sehun walks over and attacks his temple with kisses. However, it’s not until Jungah proceeds to retrieve her camera from her backpack that Jongin wants to sink through the floor in embarrassment.

”I was thinking the three of us could break for lunch, if that’s alright with everybody else,” Sehun interjects when Jungah is about to turn her camera on.

Jungah looks up at the mention of food, and she forgets all about her camera when she claps her hands. ”Ramen!” she squeals, all while Luhan pouts in disappointment over not being able to view the photo.

Jongin is out of his chair and sliding his coat on less than a fraction of a second later. He needs some fresh air, and fast.  

Minseok peeks his head in the door while Jungah admires Taeyeon’s acrylic nails with stars in her eyes. His gaze is ice cold as he scans the room for a particular face.

”Did you do it?” Minseok deadpans after his eyes land on Luhan.

Luhan tries, and fails, to hold in a snicker. ”Do what?”

”I nearly sat on it, Luhan, you goddamn bloody asswipe,” Minseok scowls, holding up a thumbtack. To Jongin’s amusement, Taeyeon immediately covers Jungah’s ears.

”Calm it, Minnie, I made sure to cut the sharp part off,” Luhan says. ”Besides, nobody got hurt,” he adds, to which Minseok responds by sending him the deadliest glare Jongin has ever seen on a human being. ”…Not yet, anyway.”

Jongin helps Jungah slide her backpack during Luhan's rant about deciding to prank Minseok as a way to get back at him for essentially stealing his wife’s muffins. The thought of food is enough to make Jongin usher Jungah out of the cubicle. She is seemingly too hungry to wait for him as she skips off to join Sehun over by the elevators.