୧ ׅ꒷ ۫ rich hearts ⋄ 𓍯

ꗃ ⋆ ࣪ . chapter 3 ; . ‹

       I fiddled with the colorful beads and thin long strings.

" Hmm..?"

       I had so very few blues! Yes they were a popular color with kids but seriously.. I suddenly felt a big rumble, quickly putting my arms protectively around the beads. I watched as a group of the kids ran past me, playing tag. I was volunteering at the daycare again. My mother- both moms always found it distracting and disgusting. I could see why with how it doesn't really boost my background nor help with anything money related but I didn't care.

       When I was little, my aunt and her son- a toddler, would always come over when my parents were fighting. They would pick me up and take me to the daycare that my aunt's son stayed at. She was a caretaker there so she was always there with her son. The kids were chaotic but cute. I stared at a small girl playing dolls by herself before a boy came over and joined in. Kids were- are innocent. Sometimes mean but many had soft souls. I was so deep in thought, I didn't notice one of the troublemaker's drawings on the walls again.

"H- hey! Drop it!" I shouted, scrambling up to stop the child.

       Suddenly a ring was heard at the door. Not a great time! I quickly picked up the boy before a couple of kids started playing with my jewelry set.

" Ah! Put it down!! Gi- give me a second!"

       I struggled to deal with all the messy and chaotic children for a full minute before I took out a bag of peppermints.

" Everyone clean up this mess and get free peppermints!" I grinned as they stopped abruptly and cleaned up their mess. I let out an exhausted sigh. Kids. I then heard a loud cough. Crap!

" H- hello.." A soft voice spoke.

       I turned around, expecting one of the mom's here to pick up their child. I was taken off guard when I saw a teenager at the front door. I'm guessing he's probably around my age being 19. He gave a shy grin, noticeably trying to seem friendly. He was Asian- Korean to be specific. There weren't lots of Asian people where I lived so I found it endearing and comforting.

" hwan-yeong!! What do you need?" I glanced at the hiring sign on the window.

" Are you here to sign up for the job?"

" Y- yes! Just got out of highschool and wa- wanted to find a job.. So..? May I take it? I notice that you- you seem to be struggling a lot with these kids." He noted, looking around at the now behaving kids. I giggled and nodded.

" Sure! The manager isn't here right now, it's just me right now but you can help me out and I can show you around and teach you a little of the basics."

       He offered a small smile. Sweet. Suddenly, a loud squeal was heard behind. The kids were fighting over which toys to put away. I let out a sigh and helped the chaotic kids out.

It was about 4pm, the end of my shift and closing time. I chatted with the newcomer for a while as we cleaned up the place. I realized I didn't know his name.

" Hey, so what's your uhm- name?" I asked as I arranged the boxes of toys.

" Cho, Cho Davis!" He exclaimed.

       I was surprised by his last name. Maybe he wasn't fully Asian? I was guessing he might've been mixed with Korean and White but he really didn't look like it. I shrugged it off.

" That's a nice name. If you didn't notice-" I glanced at my nametag. " Name's Nari Kim."

" Oh! That's a pretty name!" He is really sweet.

       We finished cleaning a few minutes after and I closed up the daycare. I put on a warm fluffy coat as the Winter of Michigan was shivering against my pale thin skin. I watched as Cho wore a thin jacket. I felt a pang of sympathy for him. I hope he wasn't low with money or anything. We walked together, heading home the same way. I liked chatting with him. He was shy but very sweet and kind. Not pretending at all.

      Suddenly my phone went off. It was daddy. I put a finger up for a moment and answered the call.

" 아빠! 뭐가 필요하세요?"

" 왜 집에 걸어가는거야!? 얼마나 위험한지 알잖아. 한 블록 떨어진 곳에 차가 기다리고 있어요." Bing!

       I sighed as my father had hung up. I looked back at Cho and bowed in respect.

" Sorry but I must go, my father is a safe guy and-" "It's fine, I can relate with my siblings." He laughed it off.

       I smiled at her warmly and gave him a tight hug before running off. I can't be late!

       I groaned as my father continued on and on about safety and random stupid stuff I didn't care about. I knew I sounded like a child sometimes but it definitely is reasonable. Of course in this situation. Since I was an only child, my father was very much a helicopter parent. I couldn't blame him though, his ex wife and me being able to buy anything I wanted! I quickly got that thought out of mind. I am not trying to turn into a selfish whiny bitch.

       My father was- is a kind and generous person and that's what I wanted to be. Of course with no mother figure, he was my only choice. I was blessed enough to not have to inherit his alcohol company; being replaced by my stepbrother. Speak of the devil, he was calling me. I let out a loud sigh before answering.

" My little cousin-" " What do you want?" I snapped.

       I was guessing he was calling about to flex off his 'new promotion'. He is going to take the role as CEO real soon so I guessed it was something that he was definitely excited about. I heard a sigh through the phone.

" Well.. Actually I need help.." He mumbled at the end.

       My eyes widened. My brother- half brother- asking for help!?

" L- look.. I need to talk to you face to face. Next Monday at-.. 8:00. Meet me at that coffee place you always used to whine about. Bye."

" What!?"

hi :|>