A few days later, April and I exit my Mercedes that remains parked beside North Adelaide kindergarten. I figured I'd bring her along to show her where Jiho's school is, and so that Jiho can feel more comfortable meeting her with me by his side.

Mrs. Honey soon exits the double doors with her hand securing Jiho's, urging me to lean forward with open arms.

"Hi baby! How was your day?"

"Nice." His cheeks chub up when he hugs me tight, causing his Mrs. Honey to beam.

"Jiho made fingerpaintings today. He did very well."

"Is that so? I'll have to hang them up when we get home," I peck his forehead. "Jiho honey, this is April. She'll be your new nanny. Mrs. Honey, I'd like to give authorization for April to drop off and pick up Jiho from school."

"That's no problem. Let me just find the form for you to sign with your contact details."

Once Mrs. Honey leaves, April kneels down and greets Jiho with a friendly smile.

"It's nice to meet you Jiho. You're even cuter than I imagined."

Jiho's lip pouts when turning his cheek away and shyly knotting his fingers, the small action prompting April to chuckle.

"He's adorable. I see the resemblance."

"Oh no trust me, he's a spitting image of his Dad. As if I'm not the one who carried him for 9 months." My eyes roll. "The audacity. Would you like to come back to the house? I can show you around and run you through more details of the job."

"Sure, I'd love that."

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➽────LATER────➤
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An echo ripples through the foyer when the three of us return to our spacious and slightly more decorated home. Now our couch sports cushions, some woven and some fleece, while house plants detail our neutral interior with subtle green accents.

"And this is our humble abode. Jiho baby, go play."

"Wow... You must have the most gorgeous house in all of Australia."

"Thank you. It would be more gorgeous if we didn't get giant lizards in the garden but hey. We've still got some renovating to do however I'll give you a tour anyway. But first, care for some coffee?"

"Sure. Although I'm quite new to coffee so I don't know the names or what tastes best."

"Oh, well I usually have a Blonde vanilla latte. Some steamed milk, a shot of espresso, vanilla syrup, and boom. Super tasty and easy to make."

"Really? I'll have one of those then."

I don't have to be told twice before circling the kitchen island for my espresso machine. After a few minutes, I place a steamy mug between April's palms until the two of us are strolling through the arched corridors of our home.

"Just so that you're fully aware of the role, I'll give another rundown of what it pertains. My husband and I start work right before Jiho needs to leave the house for school. We'll need you to pick him up in the mornings, drive him for about 20 minutes, bring him back home in the afternoons, and watch him until my husband or I return home. That includes making him a quick meal or tidying up his messes."

"Got it."

"Also, as I mentioned in the job description, Jiho's a very sensitive child. He hates loud noises, intensity, or being near crowds so it's important that you refrain from those things when he's in your care."

"I completely understand. He sounds precious."

"He is. That little boy is my entire life and I promised him the best nanny ever. No pressure."

We both chuckle when making our way up the carpeted stairs. Like gold to a pirate's eye, April suddenly pauses and smiles whilst pointing at the wall. "Is that your husband?"

I follow her finger and replicate her smile when admiring the framed photograph of Hoseok and I, taken at the altar on our wedding day. I was wearing the most stunning ivory Nicole Milano gown with my hair pinned up and a veil delicately topping my gaze. Hoseok looks amazing too, smiling euphorically in a fitted chestnut suit that matches the vintage chapel surrounding us.

"Yeah, that's Hobi. Sorry, Hoseok. I call him Hobi."

"I can tell how in love you are by your eyes. That must feel so wonderful." She smiles, "When did you get married?"

"About 2 months ago so pretty recently. We got married in my hometown, Florence, then flew to Sicily for our honeymoon."

"That's so magical! And how did you both meet?"

"So I was staying in Florence when Hobi happened to be vacationing there. He was wearing the loudest tourist outfit ever and I couldn't help but snort. He noticed me laughing and asked if I wanted to fight, but by fight I suppose he meant dance battle because he started aggressively arm-waving on the spot. I don't know, it was dorky but sorta cute. We hit it off from there."

"Honestly, it was meant to happen. The two of you certainly look great together."

"Thank you. Well we should probably continue our tour. Down here is our second bathroom so anytime Jiho needs a stool for the sink, there should be one in there..."

I ramble on obliviously as April stands still and stares at our wedding picture a little longer before eventually following my lead down the hall.

But just then—

"Honeyyy I'm home!"

We both look over the indoor balcony when Hoseok's voice ripples through the foyer. I hook my hands around the railing before excitedly signaling April to follow me back downstairs. "That's him. Come with me, I'll introduce you guys."

"Hey baby. I'm guessing you had an early day at work?" Hoseok pecks my lips with a carefree nature that just brightens the room instantly. As he pulls away however, his eyes hover over my shoulder with a confused smile.

"And hello... Lady I don't know."

"Hobi, this is April. She'll be Jiho's new nanny."

"You found someone already? You really mean business. My apologies, it's a pleasure to meet you April."

"Likewise." A blush tops her cheeks when she accepts his handshake.

"Well I'm gonna change out of this monkey suit. I'll see you ladies in a moment."

I protrude my lips when he kisses them and heads upstairs. With a polite smile and her hands locked together, April watches him over her shoulder like a distancing star before turning to me.

"He seems sweet."

"The sweetest. I love how he just brightens up my day no matter what, and how he never leaves the room without a kiss."

"I swear you have the best life. You're gorgeous, wealthy, living in this dream house, mother to the cutest son, perfect marriage... I mean If I had a husband like that? Mm mm, I wouldn't know what to do."

With a chuckle a little more awkward than the last, I face forward and begin strolling.

"I guess hard work pays off. Let's get back to the tour, shall we?"

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➽──────❥──────➤
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Besides setting up a payment plan, not much more happened yesterday. The following morning's sun glazes our bedroom as I blend my serum with some Dior foundation in a full-body mirror. Today I'm going back to work and honestly, I'm pretty excited.

Like the rest of our home, Hoseok and I's bedroom is full of cream tones. Some books adorn our shelves while the carpet cushions my every footstep and a pair of wooden clothing racks correspond accordingly; one hosting Hoseok's designer cashmeres while the other holds my various trench coats and knitwear. It's almost as if every garment we own ranges in a satisfying ombré of nudes and browns.

It doesn't take me long to crack open a neutral eyeshadow palette and blend out the cinnamon with my fingertip when—

Dammit, I left my eyeliner downstairs.

With that, I head downstairs in a beige tweed skirt set, layered over a white collared blouse that's embellished with Pearl buttons. Back in school, I always figured Psychologists had to wear lab coats and huge glasses, but thankfully I'm still able to dress in my usual preppy attire.

Hoseok fixes his button-up shirt in the mirror before I kiss his cheek from behind, making his reflection grin.

"Back to work, are we?"

"Yep. I've missed my office. Where's Jiho?"

"He's here! All ready to go." After tying his shoelaces, April stands with a straight posture while Jiho watches morning cartoons from the comfort of the couch. I can't help but scoff in amazement.

"This is so easy! I mean we take turns getting Jiho ready each morning, get ourselves ready, April picks him up and we all make our separate journeys."

"And since it was my idea to hire a nanny... You're welcome."

"Do you see the lies I have to put up with?" I turn to April with one hand on my hip. "Whatever, I need to finish my makeup."

I lean forward when applying some eyeliner along my outer corner to create a subtle wing... Though I can't help but notice April watching me from behind in my peripheral vision.

"Where'd you get that?"

"This?" I angle my eyeliner pen. "It's from MAC. I'm terrible with those super inky liquid liners so these pens are pretty handy."

"How interesting. Sorry, I probably sound so clueless. I don't wear makeup so this is all new to me."

"Oh. Well, here, you can practice with this one. I've only used it this once so it's like new." I hand April the miniature black tube. She immediately holds it to her chest with a grateful smile.

"Thank you, May."

"Mayana, I'm leaving!"

"Coming! Bye April. Byeee Jiho." My lips mark his when I softly bring his baby-soft cheeks towards mine. April smiles and waves by the door before shutting it after our exit.

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➽─SOME HOURS LATER─➤
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"So, I take it you found a nanny." My favorite colleague, Dana, leans against the counter in my office with a cappuccino in hand and a knitted cardigan to warm her frame. The natural lighting outside brings out the taupe interior, even highlighting it's clean, calm and simplistic nature...

I drop a dash of vanilla into my latte whilst showing her a nod.

"Yeah, we found her pretty quickly actually. Not that there was much competition."

"Tell me about her. What' she look like?"

"Well her name's April. She's 25 so about three years younger than us, blonde, my height and weight... Dresses quite sporty I guess."

"And how is she with Jiho?"

"Very understanding. She caught onto the rules quite easily and he seems pretty calm around her. I will say though, I think she has the googly eyes for Hobi." I laugh.

"Well obviously. Have you seen your man? Even I had a little crush on him at first."

"...You what—?"

"Not important." Dana touches my hand, "My point is, you struck the husband jackpot. Cheery, kind, and smart? Of course women are gonna want your man."

Dana's comment causes me to choke on my drink.

"I never said April wanted him. I just said that I think she finds him sorta attractive. But I mean, who wouldn't? It's not a big deal."

"I don't know... I saw a movie once where the couple hired this gardener and she turned out to be some crazy stalker murderer."

"And you're telling me this why?" I yawn.

"Just some food for thought." Dana sips once more, to which I playfully roll my eyes.

"You watch too many movies. Speaking of Hobi though, I really miss our honeymoon."

"Oh yeah! How was Sicily?"

"Ugh, Stupefacente. I just wish it could've lasted forever. It felt like being close to home without actually being home, you know? But after a trip as magical as that, I'm worried that our romance could dwindle from here."

"Well married life doesn't have to be the stale, boring journey you and Hoseok are trying to make it into. No offense. Why don't the two of you have a date night tonight? You can tuck Jiho into bed, cook some tasty Italian food, set a candlelight table and dine from home. Heck, hire an orchestra while you're at it. Your house has the space."

"...That's actually a really good idea. I'm gonna do that."

"And then you can get jiggy after the dinner. If you know what I mean."

"Jiggy? Is that what we're saying now? God we're getting old..."

*Knock knock knock.*

"That's my next client. We'll pick this up another time."

Dana quickly places her empty mug in the sink before opening the door and stepping aside, allowing my client to enter as she leaves the office. I proceed to shake hands with the young man before gesturing him towards the chair opposite of my desk.

"Good morning Eddie, it's lovely to meet you."

"And you." The nerdy looking student smiles nervously when taking a seat. "Sorry uh, I'm a bit nervous."

Most patients are nervous for their first session, and are used smiling or laughing as a defense mechanism to appear less vulnerable to those that they're meeting for the first time. The mindset that a person can only be truly depressed if they can't smile anymore is an unfortunate and detrimental stereotype...

"That's totally understandable, it's common in these environments. But I can assure you, this is a safe space. I want to thank you for filling out our consent form. This basically just gives me consent to liaise with your GP and psychiatrist over the course of our session, so we may go through that a little bit later. But first, I'd like to start with introductions. My name is Dr. Jung, I am a licensed psychologist registrar at this clinic with a PhD in clinical psychology. I know it's been a couple of months since you called to our clinic so I wanted to ask, do you have any questions for me?"

The shake of his head fuels me to nod.

"Well by the end of our first session, I'd love to get an understanding of why you're here today and to sort of have a plan for us going forward. So if that's alright with you, I'd like to begin..."

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➽───4'OCLOCK───➤
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"Here you go Cutie." April hands Jiho a nutritious snack consisting of animal crackers and veggies. The infant chews innocently as she watches with a tilted smile of admiration, only to break out of her trance when the front door opens by my entrance.

"May! Welcome home."

"Hi April, there was a power cut at the office so we all finished early... Oh! I like your eye makeup." I point at her subtle winged liner.

"Oh this? Yeah I tried the pen you gave me and it works great! Eyeliner just may be my new thing."

"Well you look lovely. How's Jiho been?"

"An absolute angel." April's smile spreads as I approach Jiho with a warm embrace that he immediately returns.

"Missed you mamma."

"I missed you too baby. Thank you once again for watching him, April. I'll see you tomorrow?"

At that, April suddenly frowns.

"Oh, is that it? I-I can watch him until my usual time if you want."

"Ah, there's no need since I'm home now. I've got some cooking to do. Plus we need mommy and Jiho time, don't we baby?" I coo at my smiling son before kissing his cheek rapidly.

April's smile mismatches her slanted brows and subtle twitching eye. Nevertheless, she quickly shakes her head free of thoughts and nods.

"Well okay then. I'll see you tomorrow."

I wave goodbye as the friendly nanny closes the door following her exit. Now, time to cook a sexy dinner...

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➽───10 O'CLOCK───➤
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An enticing savory aroma fills the kitchen as I finalize two steamy dishes before me. Hoseok'll be home from work any minute now, and with Jiho already put to bed, I decided to cook some Butter-Basted fillet steak with parsley, garlic and pepper. Topping it all off, I drizzle the steaming meat with a rich Italian red wine before lowering both plates onto our dining table.

Dinner, check. Candles, check. Lingerie...

Rapid clacks tread the floor when I goofily skip towards the foyer mirror and admire the chocolate slip dress that trims my bust with lace, followed by a matching satin robe that slips from my arms. 28 isn't old or anything, but I'm very much over the days of harnesses and thongs. It's too much effort and he'll just rip it off anyway. But this... Hoseok's gonna go crazy for this.

It's that very moment when our doorbell chimes through the house. I hurry over to the door before gathering my hair over one shoulder and slowly opening it to reveal my unbeknownst husband.

"Hello hon... Whoa."

"Welcome home, Baby." I lead him inside with a seductive smirk. His focus doesn't break from my body as I pull him towards our candlelit table...

"What's all this about?" He smiles.

"Well since Jiho's asleep and we have some time to kill, I thought it would be nice to recreate a romantic honeymoon meal."

"I see. Well as impressed as I am by this food... Is it bad that I want a taste of something else?"

I bite my lip as Hoseok brings my waist forward and locks his lips with mine. My nails trace his jaw while I feel his fingers grace the satin against my hips... Until suddenly, the doorbell rings again.

Hoseok sighs to himself when I approach the door with furrowed brows...

"...April?"

"Hi!" The eager nanny smiles with two hands behind her back. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything at this late hour. I was gonna leave something on your porch but I didn't want them to get stolen or attract bees."

"I see." The nightly breeze has me scrunching my satin robe tighter, "What is it?"

"You see I'm just so grateful that you guys hired me that I wanted to bring you this mixed bouquet! I hope you like them."

The bouquet before me hosts at least 15 types of wildflowers, yet blends to create the most vibrantly pleasant collage of petals I'd ever seen. I'd be lying if I said the gift didn't win me over.

"Aww that's really kind of you, they're absolutely beautiful—"

"Mayana wait those have Amaranths!!"

"AH!!" I instantly retract my hands before Hoseok pulls me back by the waist. April's eyebrows slant in confusion.

"Is something wrong??"

"Mayana's allergic to Amaranths."

"L-Like, CRAZY allergic! My eyes swell shut and I get rashes all over my body and I can't breathe and ugh, it basically feels like dying."

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry! I-I had no idea, I thought they just looked pretty! I'm really really sorry May."

"I-It's fine, you didn't know."

"It's not fine! I interrupted your evening to bring flowers that could've killed you?! This is what I do... I screw everything up. Stupid stupid stupid!"

Hoseok steps forward with a concerned frown.

"April, calm down it's okay, really—"

"I'm gonna go. I'm really sorry." On that note, April speeds off with the bouquet cone to shield her tears. I slowly turn to Hoseok with wide eyes.

"What just happened?" He asks.

"I-I don't know. I didn't mean to insult her gift or make her feel bad, I-I was just explaining my allergy... Do you think I was offensive?"

"Not at all. You let her know something very critical. I doubt she'll wanna speak tonight so we'll contact her in the morning. But until then... Where were we?" Extending his finger beneath my chin, Hoseok lifts my gaze to meet his and leans in seductively, pressing his smirk against my waiting lips.