❝Happiness isn't about places, it's about people who feel like home❞ - Lankan Nathawat

∞

10:12 am 

The starting month of October had arrived, welcoming the autumn season with the red and yellow leaves glowing around the area, leaving the traces of the rain drops on the grass of their home which happened a while ago yet it brought a pleasant feeling around. 

And the hustle bustle of the members kept going on since the time they had woken up to get ready to leave for Gongju as it was finally the week of their once in every year trip as Gayoung and Seojun were already excited about it with Baekhyun and Areum were left with a curiosity yet a bubbling excitement ran through them. 

Baekhyun closed the trunk after putting all the stuff before his phone rang which he checked to see it was from Sung-min as a smile crept on his lips to press the phone against his ear. "Yes Dodo, we're leaving in a few minutes." 

"Okay, we're also leaving so let's meet there!" 

"Yes!" 

Baekhyun cut the phone to shove it back in his jeans pocket while dusting off his black denim jacket with a plain white shirt tucked in, before checking the time on his wrist watch to look at the front door of the house where Areum and Seojun were walking out with an excitement on their faces with Mongryong walking alongside them where his eyes looked behind them to find his wife's figure but there was no sight of her. 

"Gayoung, we're getting late!" 

"Okay, okay, I'm here!" 

Gayoung exclaimed, as walking out of the house in her casual striped shirt paired up with the blue denim jacket and jeans while her braided styled hair placed on her one shoulder before looking over to the owner of the shout she heard to find her husband leaning against the car with his folded arms while brushing his fingers through his hair softly and Gayoung couldn't help but admire his look with his hair down just the way she likes. 

Baekhyun tilted his head with a look. "We were supposed to go by 9 and it's past ten now." 

"Yeah, so?" Gayoung shrugged, walking up to him as he opened the door for her where she sat to roll down the window glass to look at him. "Things get hectic when you pack with excitement and do stuff so it's natural to get late." 

Baekhyun nodded, knocking his fist against her forehead softly. "That's why you even woke up late and almost tripped." 

"You saw it?" Gayoung scrunched her nose before attempting to do the same but Baekhyun was fast enough to dodge it by backing away with a smirk to walk around as he sat inside to start the engine as the car rounded toward the destination. 

Gongju. 

However, Baekhyun was setting their destination on the navigation where Gayoung frowned. "I told you I know the way so you don't have to do this." 

"Just in case you fall asleep." He muttered, before looking at her to find her giving him a look. "I won't." 

Baekhyun just nodded, continuing driving. "Okay." 

Gayoung just made a grumpy face before looking outside with Areum and Seojun chit-chats going on about how it's fun in Gongju while Gayoung also joining them while Baekhyun listening attentively to take part in the conversation a little since he had to focus on driving and as half an hour passed, the voices of the chatterbox went low as Baekhyun took a glance back through the rear view mirror to find the kids dozing off with Mongryong on Areum's lap peacefully. 

As he took a glance at his wife, he didn't seem to be surprised to find her dozing off as well where her earlier words of leading the way crossed his mind making him shake his head with his elbow against the window as he brushed his hair back with a smile. "Yeah, right." 

Looking back at her with a smile, his brows knitted to find her strands of hair falling over her face which looked bothersome where biting his lip, he reached out threading his fingers through her hair to tuck away but to his surprise, she immediately leaned onto his touch to lean her head on his hand with Baekhyun staying still for a moment to just give in as he palmed her head while continuing driving with his one hand. 

It felt uncomfortable yet he didn't let it go because her being comfortable seemed to be more important to him. 

The ride continued with silence until the car seemed to be giving up as it slowed down with Baekhyun frowning to check only to find no gas sign greeting and before he could even react to it, the car stopped with his eyes averting to his sleeping wife beside him with a done look but he couldn't even get upset as he watched her sleeping to lean her head back on the headrest as he pulled away his hands with a sigh. "I shouldn't have let her take the car yesterday." 

The trio of mother and the kids didn't seem to be waking up but the new member did as Mongryong was quick to lift up his head with his puppy eyes looking at Baekhyun who looked back at him with a pout but quickly shook his head as he was about to bark but all in vain, when he did that exactly. 

Baekhyun closed his eyes where the next second Gayoung woke up with a gasp to look around. "What happened?! Are we getting robbed?!" 

"I should definitely make this as an alarm ringtone." Baekhyun muttered, before massaging his temple to think about what to do next while Gayoung turned to him with a confused look. "Why did we stop?" 

"Someone seemed to be leading the way but they surely slept well." Baekhyun gave her a sarcastic smile while trying to start the car again but no movement while Gayoung bit her lip with a sheepish look. "Sorry, I didn't know I would fall asleep." 

"Don't worry because I knew." 

Gayoung just made a face before looking at him confusingly. "But why did we stop?" 

Baekhyun leaned back with his head against the headrest while his eyes were staring at her. "Because the car stopped." 

"Why?" 

"Because someone happened to take my yesterday." 

"And that someone is me, so?" 

"So you didn't tell me that you empty the fuel tank and now we're out of gas." 

"I-" Gayoung opened to argue but closed the moment she realized she was at fault but of course she was Gayoung for a reason as she crossed her arms with a confident look. "The tank was full yesterday and I drove to home and then back to home so technically it's not my fault but your car needs to be changed." 

Somehow she felt impressed by the way she spoke about it but her husband wasn't as he tilted his head with a look. "Done?" 

"No." 

"Okay, we'll continue this later but let me check first." Baekhyun said, getting out of the car with Gayoung pouting but followed suit as she stood beside him while he was busy checking though and open bonnet to see if there was some other problem but as he found nothing, he closed the bonnet only to greet Gayoung's patient look on her face by his side as he raised his eyebrows. "What are you doing?" 

Gayoung imitated his expression. "I don't know, checking out?" 

His eyes turned into an amused one with Gayoung blinking a couple of times nervously with her cheeks heating up. "Not you." 

"I never mentioned myself though." His lips curved in a smirk as he bored his eyes into hers while dusting off his hands where she looked away before looking back at him with a frown. "Because you gave me the look." 

"Look?" He tilted his head. "What look, Gayoung?" 

"This look," She pointed her index finger toward his face. "Like you're about to tease me, Baekhyun." 

"Oh, do I?" He linked his index through hers with a playful grin and Gayoung chuckled. "Seriously, stop." 

"Okay, but you should sit in the car because this area," Baekhyun trailed off, roaming his eyes around the road which seemed too silent and too reckless to stand around alone here before looking back at her. "Doesn't seem too good to enjoy standing here, professor." 

"Applies to you as well, doctor." Gayoung stated, crossing her arms over her chest and Baekhyun leaned his back against the bonnet while imitating her posture as he stared at her seriously. "So you won't listen to me?" 

Gayoung leaned against the bonnet beside him while shaking her head. "Nope." 

Baekhyun let out a hum. "Think about it, there might be a dangerous animal around and-" 

"Excuse me?" Gayoung cut him off with an amused look on her face. "Are you seriously trying to scare me when I have been going back and forth through this road since I was-" 

"Little adorable six?" He gave her a teasing smile and Gayoung scrunched her nose with a whine as she nudged him away with her shoulder to let out a giggle. "Stop with that!" 

Baekhyun giggled back but stopped when he realized that they were having fun by their broke down car instead of calling a mechanic or someone from their family and the next second, he fished out his phone to call Yixing who picked up the after a few rings while Gayoung leaned a little closer to Baekhyun to hear the conversation with Baekhyun reciprocating in reflex. 

"Oh, but we are already close to the house, and others might have already reached since they left before us." 

Yixing spoke after the couple explained their current situation where he looked at the three people, Yoora, Ji-hu and Soo-Ah who was sitting beside him on the passenger's side holding the phone for him since he was driving while exchanging the awkward eye locks throughout the whole ride with the duo behind wanting to reach quickly to get out of the suffocating awkward position. 

Baekhyun let out a sigh. "Oh, okay, we'll figure out something then." 

"Okay, we'll do something if we can as well." 

The call was cut off with Gayoung sighing. "What do we do now?" 

"One thing is for sure that you are not taking my car again." Baekhyun spoke with a nod to himself but got a slap in return on his back as he hissed to find Gayoung glaring at him. "You're meanie." 

"Dad, what happened?" 

Seojun looked out from the window rubbing his eyes as being the light sleeper like his dad woke him up from the faint noises of his parents being the kids before Baekhyun standing up to walk to him, not before holding his wife's hand grasped in his hand who didn't resist still being in her grumpy mood toward his husband. 

Baekhyun leaned over, kissing his forehead to explain to him their situation with Seojun's eyes rounding in confusion. "Then are we not going now?" 

"We will, don't worry." Gayoung smiled, ruffling his hair before her eyes went towards Areum sleeping peacefully as her heart beamed softly to awe. "Doesn't she look so adorable just like me?" 

Baekhyun looked at her confusingly. "You?" 

"Yeah when I was-" 

"Little-" 

She immediately palmed his mouth with a squint of his eyes while his eyes just stared at her playfully with Seojun looking back and forth through his parents with a confused look to lean back against his seat as he began to play with Mongryong. 

Gayoung and Baekhyun leaned against the car beside each other with a sigh leaving her lips. "Should we just book a cab?" 

"That would be good but it'll take a while to get here," He trailed off, caressing his chin with his index finger before looking at her. "Why don't we take a lift then?" 

"Hmm," Gayoung nodded, giving him an approving look. "Why don't you do it, since you like to flaunt your good looks?" 

"Why don't you do the honors then?" Baekhyun tilted his head with a teasing look in his eyes as he shoved his hands into his pockets to lean his shoulder against the car as he faced her as Gayoung stared back at him with the exact look in her eyes. "Okay, but what if he falls for my beauty?" 

Baekhyun stared at her blankly before it turned into a done look. "Who's bragging now?" 

Gayoung shrugged. "Still a fact."

Baekhyun imitated her. "Still an exaggeration." 

She rolled her eyes before a car stopped by them, making Gayoung let out an excited gasp. "My beauty flex worked!" 

Baekhyun was quick to frown as he stood straight to step forward while holding Gayoung's hand to make her stand behind him since he wasn't sure about the person in the car but a man got out of car who looked at the same age as Baekhyun's as he stood in front of him and he looked familiar to him as well. 

"I thought I was seeing things but it's really you, Byun Baekhyun." He chuckled, and Baekhyun's frown deepened at the confusion as he stared at him for a moment to widen his eyes the next second. "Kim Woo-Sung?" 

"Your memory is still sharp as usual!" He exclaimed, with a wide smile and Baekhyun chuckled back before both of the males hugged each other. "It's been a long time!" 

Gayoung just stood there peering between the two of them silently, yet confusingly before Baekhyun glanced at her to place his palm on her back with a smile. "Meet my wife, Gayoung." 

And somehow it got her taken aback by the way he introduced her, as it wasn't that she didn't like it because it was the opposite but it felt different yet pleasant to the point she felt her heart beaming with warmth. 

She slightly bowed to the male with a polite smile. "Hello." 

He reciprocated her greeting before the important chit-chat continued with Gayoung knowing about that the male was Baekhyun's high school classmate, and was living in a farmhouse with his wife which was just a ten minute drive from where they were stuck and being the generous person, he offered his help to fix their car till then they can rest at their farmhouse. 

Baekhyun and Gayoung wouldn't have bothered him but their kids' safety and well-being was their priority at the moment, so they followed along with him as they were currently on their way to his farmhouse. 

And exactly after ten minutes of driving, they were standing by the door which Woo-Sung opened as he led them inside with a smile where as they entered inside, Areum and Seojun were quick to awe at the place since it was small yet cozy enough to make it seem like a warm place to live at, and the kids probably liked it with Mongryong as well as he went further inside. 

Seojun walked behind him to stop him but got bumped onto a woman who walked out of the kitchen as she immediately let out a shriek where another woman, who had a baby bump walked out of the kitchen as well by the noise to look at the sight confusingly while her eyes stopped at her husband, Woo-Sung. 

"Oh, babe." He smiled at her before pointing toward Baekhyun. "He's my classmate, Byun Baekhyun and his wife, Gayoung." He looked back at the couple standing awkward for some reason. "And she's my wife, Jaehi." 

They exchanged the greeting with an awkward atmosphere before Woo-Sung explained everything to her as she nodded to look down at Seojun who blinked at her innocently to bow as he greeted her with Jaehi smiling at him to pat his head gently with Areum greeting her as well. 

"I must say, your kids are so adorable and so well-mannered." She smiled at them, with Baekhyun and Gayoung looking at each other with a proud smile before she smiled at Gayoung. "And you're really beautiful." 

Gayoung beamed with a smile. "You too." 

"I would love to compliment you but Woo-Sung has a habit of whining so…" She giggled, scrunching her nose with Woo-Sung giving her a whiny look. "Babe." 

"See?" She laughed, and everyone ended up in a chuckle with Gayoung nodding. "I can relate to the whining as well." 

Baekhyun tilted his head towards her with a look. "Why would you relate to it?" 

"Don't you do it as well?" She gave him a look back as well and Baekhyun raised his eyebrows. "I think that's your specialty." 

"Gosh, they are so cute." Jaehi giggled, causing the couple to look at her as Woo-Sung just smiled at them awkwardly. "Sorry, my wife likes to talk a lot." 

"I can feel you." Baekhyun nodded, but flinched the moment Gayoung poked his waist as he looked at her to find her narrowed eyes on him as she leaned towards him. "You're not any better." 

He smirked. "Less than you though." 

Gayoung just rolled her eyes before the couple began with the chit-chats of the other couple in front of them while kids were having their own time with Mongryong in the living room whilst Jaehi and Gayoung getting along well with each other as they were in the kitchen since Gayoung wanted to help out but Baekhyun can hear her soft laugh from the kitchen which brought his lips into a smile as well. 

"You know," Woo-Sung said, taking Baekhyun's attention as he looked at him with a confused look to which the latter pointed towards the kitchen. "I'm kind of thankful for your wife because Jaehi is going to give birth soon so she was worried and scared about the things, even though she wouldn't show it but I know, and right now seeing her so carefree after so many days just made me happy which is also because of your wife."

Baekhyun heard him attentively as he couldn't help but smile as his eyes averted to the kitchen. "Yeah, my wife is good at making people smile." 

"Like you?" 

"Huh?" 

"What? You were literally the moodmaker of the classroom!" He exclaimed and Baekhyun chuckled, remembering those days. "Right, I was." 

"Was? Are you not now?" 

"I don't know." 

"Well," Woo-Sung pointed at the kitchen before looking back at Baekhyun with a serious expression. "Your wife seems happy so I'm sure you still are and you look happy as well." 

Baekhyun just stared at him blankly. "Do I?" 

Woo-Sung just nodded, and Baekhyun's eyes averted back to the kitchen as he pondered over it and he probably is happy, as he couldn't find any reason to deny it because he could agree to it as well. 

Back in the kitchen, Gayoung and Jaehi were chatting about the topic of having kids, with another woman who was actually a caretaker in the house named Bora.

"Well, taking care of the kids seems hard sometimes but you will still find yourself smiling at it." Gayoung said, tucking her hair behind her ear as she smiled toward Jaehi, settled on the dining table. "And it brings joy when you see them happy so it's all worth it and it's even more good if there's someone who can be by your side." 

"Hmm." Jaehi nodded. "Like your husband." 

Gayoung stared at her blankly with Jaehi smiling at her. "You both just seem happy and your kids as well so it looks like he's always by your side." 

Did she look happy? She didn't know but she couldn't bring herself to deny it as well and somehow the moments of her raising Seojun alone didn't cross her mind but her moments with Areum and Seojun along with Baekhyun did, and her lips curved upwards in a smile as she nodded. "Yeah, like my husband." 

"Gayoung." 

She turned back to Baekhyun who was standing by the kitchen as she walked towards him. "What happened?" 

"Woo-Sung talked to the mechanic and he's probably heading to the place where we left our car so I'm going with him," He said before looking at Areum and Seojun who were beaming with a smile and he couldn't help but smile lightly as he looked back at her. "They are coming with me because they enjoyed the drive." 

Gayoung frowned. "Who do they take after?" 

"Who do you think?" Baekhyun chuckled, ruffling her bangs as she scrunched her nose, fixing it back. "Not me, obviously." 

"I'll be back." He said, and Gayoung nodded. "Be safe." 

Baekhyun walked out with the kids waving bye cutely leaving Woo-Sung who left after waving at Jaehi as she reciprocated with Gayoung turning toward her only to find her smiling at her as Gayoung stared at her confusingly. "What happened?" 

"You guys are adorable!" She giggled, and Gayoung giggled back. "You look more adorable." 

"I do, right?" 

"Definitely." 

Both of them ended up laughing together while continuing their task of making some coffee which Gayoung did with Jaehi and Bora stopping her but she didn't while the three women were chatting about their things. 

Half an hour had passed, and the ladies talks didn't stop like usual as they were in the living room of theirs but something unusual was happening as Jaehi kept having a sudden pain in a minute or so with Gayoung and Bora getting worried but she kept dodging saying that it happens since it was close to her delivery days as it was her ninth month and her delivery was after a week. 

She felt a sudden pain again which made her flinch enough to hold her baby bump but surprisingly it didn't go away and got even worse as a whimper left her lips with Gayoung and Bora rushing to her immediately with a scared yet worried face. 

"It's… It hurts…. It hurts a lot."

She gasped, as she broke out crying with Bora and Gayoung looking at each other as Gayoung understood that it was time but she was panicking as the males weren't even home so her mind went blank for a moment to see her hurting which made her panic even more. 

Her hands were shaking and the first person her mind could even think of, was Baekhyun as the next minute, she had pressed her phone against her ear whereas Baekhyun, who was about to sit in the car as it was repaired with Woo-Sung doing the same but stopped by Gayoung's call. 

He pressed the phone against his ear. "Hel-" 

"What do I do? Jaehi is having a labor pain and she's crying so much-" 

"Gayoung, calm down." Baekhyun cut her off as he got worried by her panic tone. "What happened?" 

Gayoung took a deep breath. "Jaehi is having labor pain but I don't know if there's a hospital here or not and it's hurting her too much to even get up." 

Baekhyun bit his lip with a worried feeling as he brushed his hair back while looking at Woo-Sung with a look which he understood as he got out of the car with a panicked look where Baekhyun sighed. "Gayoung, you have to take her to the hospital as soon as possible, and I saw it on the map-" 

"I… I can't do it, she's having a hard time right now and she can't even get up and I know how it feels, but what if I hurt her-" 

"Gayoung." Baekhyun uttered her name softly in a firm tone which made her silent as she heard his next words. "You are more capable than you think and I believe you won't hurt her so believe in yourself too, and I'm coming okay?" 

His words grasped her in a way she found herself nodding the next second. "Okay." 

"Is Jaehi okay?" Woo-Sung questioned, and Baekhyun patted his shoulder. "She will be, my wife will try everything to make sure of it." 

Gayoung looked at Bora. "We have to take her to the hospital, is there any hospital around here?" 

Bora nodded. "Yes, it's not a huge one but it will be fine." 

"Okay," Gayoung leaned over towards Jaehi who was whimpering in pain with her hold on her baby bump as Gayoung caressed her arm. "Jaehi, we have to get up now." 

"I can't- it hurts- and I'm scared." She shook her head with tears rolling down her cheeks with Gayoung taking a hold of her hand. "I know but think about your baby, and yourself and I know you can do it, please?" 

Jaehi stared at her for a moment before slowly nodding with Gayoung and Bora helping her standing up which was kind of hard since they didn't want to hurt her in any way but the woman made herself strong enough to go for it as the next moment they found themselves in the cab which was hailed by Bora after several attempts with Gayoung talking to Yoora on the phone just in case which actually helped Jaehi. 

The hospital was not a huge one as Bora told, but it was enough to go through the emergency right now as Jaehi was being carried in the room but dragged