Mark glanced at the sky before the car entered the driveaway. it looked stormy than usual, and he predicted it would rain soon.
he looked at his baby as she slept peacefully in Haechan's arms. the younger carried her up to her room, her tiny body remaining still even when they gently placed her in her bed.
"make sure you switch the night light on," Mark reminded him, seeing him finished tucking Daeun into her princess bed.
they left her sleeping peacefully and made their way to their own beds. it was nearly 1 am, and they were all exhausted, needing rest before resuming their schedules tomorrow.
the boys all climbed into bed and slept deeply, despite the thunder that started to rumble as time went by.
-
few hours after, they were all woken up by the same sound of a frantic little girl. "appa! -paaaa! appaaa!" Daeun wailed as she ran up the empty hallway in a tizzy, waking up almost everyone.
she crashed into Haechan, who was the first one out of his room, his eyes were barely open, and he blinked slowly, trying to clear the sleep from them. "what's the matter, hm? you scared?" he asked, his voice was raspy from being woken up.
he crouched down to her as she went over to hug him, seeking comfort from the loud clap of thunder echoed through the building. Haechan ran his fingers on her hair, whispering comforting words as an attempt to calm her down.
the light sleeper, Renjun was next out of his room. he yawned widely, rubbing his eyes as if trying to wake up faster. he whispered to Haechan who was hugging her "the thunder, isn't it?", earning a nod from him.
Renjun was about to explain that she didn't need to be scared before she threw herself into his arms as another flash lit up the hallway, followed by a monstrous rumble that seemed to shake the entire building.
not long after, all six men were huddled in their lounge bottoms on the landing, trying to decide the best course of action as their little one cried over the cacophony of noise.
"i know," Haechan said with a small smile in his sleepy state, despite being the earliest to wake up. "everyone get your pillows and duvets and meet me in the living space."
they nodded without questioning him, too sleepy to process anything. Renjun managed to drag his duvet and kick his pillows down to the living space, with Daeun still in his arms, refusing to get down now that she felt safer in his grasp.
Haechan was moving furniture around when Renjun voiced out. "Lee Haechan, now isn't the time to rearrange the living room."
" it's not that. i'm making space for a den, just stay and watch," he grinned as Daeun slipped out of Renjun's arms to go to him. she liked the idea of this den.
shortly, all six topless, sleep-deprived dreamies were swaying and shuffling around the room, pinning blankets and duvets to various objects as a den started to form. Daeun clung to Haechan, following him here and there until it was done.
they all crawled into the plush fort, covered in pillows. it was darker than she wanted. she tugged on Haechan's arm. "light?" she whispered.
he nodded and kissed her forehead before crawling out and returning with a torch covered in a pink piece of fabric. "okay, now it's pink and won't be as bright. now we can all go back to sleep," he yawned, attaching the torchlight to the top of the den. they all lay down and curled up together, with Daeun in the middle.
she curled up with plushies in her arms, Mark on one side, Haechan on the other, Renjun by her feet, and Jaemin by her head. it took a long time for her to settle, as she jumped every time the thunder clapped. but she felt safe at the end of the day, bathed in pink light, in a cozy den made for her by her appas.
who wouldn't feel safe surrounded by all six peaceful dads while they slept? the last thing she remembered was Mark smiling while stroking her hair and the sound of her appas breathing and moving around as the thunder raged outside.
her eyes finally gave up, and she drifted off to sleep, feeling completely protected.
