|| Philophobia || Baek Kyung

Chapter - 13 Little kicked puppy (that's actually baek kyung)

The next morning hit Yeona like a freight train - a chaos-fueled explosion that made her wonder how exactly she had signed up to be a caregiver to three unruly "babies." And no, not just her pets Shrimp and Millie, but Baek Kyung himself-the biggest baby of them all.

At least the pets listened when she called them, slinking obediently to their bowls and happily munching whatever she put down. Baek Kyung, on the other hand? That little twat was a master of getting under her skin in ways only a true pain in the ass could. She had to remind herself, multiple times, not to accidentally stab him with the kitchen knife she was wielding as she cooked breakfast.

Where did this sudden temper control come from? Because honestly, until yesterday, anyone who annoyed Yeona would've met her full wrath - fiery, loud, and utterly unfiltered. Now? She found herself biting her tongue more often than not. Was this what they called "growth"?

She'd taken the day off work. The school had called some random, unexplained holiday (classic writer's move), but Yeona wasn't complaining. A day to deal with this living nightmare and her three furry dependents was better than nothing.

Helping Baek Kyung clean the shallow wounds on his arms was easy enough-disinfect, bandage, repeat. But living with his nonstop idiocy? Exhausting in a way she couldn't even put into words.

Breakfast was its own kind of torture. Baek Kyung, who'd taken some etiquette classes-an accomplishment she secretly found hilarious-couldn't keep his mouth shut about her eating habits.

"Why are these pancakes so fluffy?" he asked, poking one with a fork like it was some kind of alien creature, testing its resilience.

"Because they're pan-cakes, you dumbass," she shot back, annoyed, swallowing half of her food in one greedy gulp.

Baek Kyung wasn't done. He proceeded to lecture her on how to eat "properly," poking and prodding with that insufferable tone of mock concern that she'd learned to loathe.

"You ungrateful little provocative swine, why don't you just go back to your house if you miss it so fucking much?" she finally snapped, unable to take the nagging anymore.

For once, it worked. Baek Kyung's whining died down, and he sulked into his food, cheeks puffed in a perfect little pout that would've been cute if it weren't so damn annoying.

The house was quieter after that - the kind of silence that was almost eerie. She wasn't used to it, not in the last few hours at least. She almost missed his incessant talking, and that realization made her heart twist in a way she wasn't ready to admit.

"Was I that rude?" she wondered, glancing at Baek Kyung, whose pout was still in full effect.

Wait. Pout? Pretty face? Did she just think that? Her eyes widened like she'd been caught thinking something forbidden, and she snapped her gaze back to the sulking figure on the couch.

The softness in her eyes returned, mixing with an unspoken need to fix the tension she'd caused. He looked like a kicked puppy, and maybe for the first time, Yeona actually felt a pang of guilt.

"Get up," she commanded, hands firmly on her hips, "We're going shopping."

Baek Kyung groaned, dragging himself flat onto the couch like a corpse trying to play dead.

"I don't want to go," he mumbled, voice muffled into the cushion.

"You will go. My house, my rules," she said, wielding her ultimate weapon: the house card.

"Ugh, sucks to live in your house," he whined, voice thick with mock misery.

"Sucks to be you," she shot back with a smirk, flipping him off before storming off to change.

When they finally made it to the store, Baek Kyung looked like a kid let loose in a candy shop for the first time in his life. His eyes darted around the aisles, mesmerized by everything, and despite his poker face, she could tell he was secretly trying to be careful with her wallet.

Yeona found herself quietly approving. She was doing him a favor-keeping him under her roof and apologizing for being a raging bitch. Not exactly her style, but hey, people change.

The calm, almost peaceful mood that settled over the aisle shattered like glass when a shrill, unmistakable voice sliced through the air:

"What are you both doing together?!"

Yeona and Baek Kyung turned sharply, eyes locking on the source.

Dan Oh stood there, arms crossed, eyes blazing with the fury of a thousand suns, as if she'd just caught them both committing the crime of the century.