“Wake up baby…wake up…” Chen cooed softly as he started tugging at the sheets covering her body. “Come on, we’re going to be late.”

“Just 5 more minutes please…” she grunted.

“You’ve been requesting ‘5 more minutes’ for the last 20 minutes, young lady. Get up now.” Hyemin entered the room, and at that instant, Chen let his wife handle the whole thing. If he can’t wake their kid up, then Hyemin will do whatever it takes. “Dahye~ I made your favorite~” She bribed.

“Chocolate chip pancakes?” Dahye groggily poke her head out of the blanket, gaining interest when her mother mentioned her favorite food.

“Yes, there’s also mangoes and strawberries…anything else that you want?”

“Well, that’s fine. I’ll be out in fifteen minutes…make it ten!” Their daughter exclaimed as she gathered her toiletries and ran to the bathroom in a frantic mode.

“My work here is done!” Hyemin clapped her hands and grinned while his husband watched her in awe.

“You know, you’re spoiling our daughter.”

“Chen, it’s not like I offer sweets for breakfast every day. Besides, you’re the one who’s spoiled.” She kissed his cheek while on their way to the kitchen. “And you know there’s another reason why I bribed that little girl.”

Chen grunted and took his seat on the dining table, reading his usual morning paper. His eyes were reading the paper but then words are floating in front of his eyes and his mind was wandering off somewhere else.

“Would you like some pancakes too?” his wife lovingly asked, holding a plate in front of him.

“That would be nice.” He sighed and Hyemin quickly put three pieces on his plate.

“What’s wrong?” Hyemin asked and instead of taking a seat, she went behind him and started massaging his nape.

“Nothing, I’m just a little stressed.” He stopped her and pulled her gently so she was already sitting on his lap. “I miss you.”

“What? You see me every day, how can you miss me? I even take care of you so well that you actually gained weight.”

“I just do and we really can’t have time for each other you know…”

“Stop being so cheesy.”

“How can I not? I still can’t believe you’re the one I married even if it was already more than ten years ago.” He kissed her lips and she did not question nor hesitate his actions.

“Twelve to be exact.” She murmured against his lips and kissed him deeper. “I love you.”

“I love you.” He brushed their noses together and at the same time, running footsteps were heard coming out of their daughter’s room. She quickly scrambled out of her position and took her usual place at the table before Dahye could see them getting intimate.

“What’s with the sudden treatment? I don’t remember any of us celebrating birthdays, not even your anniversary.” Dahye suddenly became an investigator and both parents know they can’t hide anything from her. She was all prepared to go to school and seemed to have been excited for her food rather than her classes.

“You see, our company is slowly crumbling into pieces, especially the one in Korea. I really need to handle that one before we, along with the thousands of employees we have, live in the streets.” Chen explained briefly for their daughter to understand.

“I don’t want to leave though. Can’t you just stay work here? I’m pretty sure you can do it.”

“It’s alright if you want to stay, but all I want to say is, I really have to go back there.”

“Dahye, we both know Dad can do it, but do you really want him to leave? Can you stand not being with him?” Hyemin tried to make her daughter guilty and Dahye shook her head. “If you’re worrying about your friends, then we can visit them. It’s hard to adjust, I know, but then, life in Korea wouldn’t be so bad.”

“So, how many months do we have left before we go back to Korea?” Dahye mumbled quietly and reached for a piece of strawberry. The parents sighed in relief and smiled. “Can we have sleepovers?”

“We still have until the end of your school year. For the sleepovers we’ll talk about it some other time, you’re going to be late. Hurry up~” Hyemin urged her family and they quickly stuffed their mouth with food.

For 12 years, the couple has succeeded to keep their family together. Their bond got stronger when they have received the news about Hyemin’s pregnancy, treasuring their family even more. Their little bundle of joy really brought happiness to their lives and even if it was hard for them to raise her on their own, without the help of their parents, they would actually love to repeat that phase over and over again. The couple tried everything they can just to make their family as intact as they can.

“I’m done!” Dahye exclaimed and grinned upon finishing her breakfast. “Mom, are there still more? I’d like to bri