Meant To Be || Ppotoz

CHAPTER 4

NO ONE POV

As soon as the final bell rang, Yooyeon’s hard question still echoed in Hyerin’s mind. She sighed, brushing it off for now, and packed up her things. Instead of heading straight home like she usually did, she decided to stop by the kindergarten to help her sister, Seoyeon.

The familiar sound of children's laughter greeted her as she stepped inside the building. Hyerin’s eyes immediately found Seoyeon in the middle of the play area, surrounded by a group of kids who were giggling at something she had said. A small smile tugged at Hyerin’s lips as she watched her older sister, effortlessly blending in with the children’s joy.

Seoyeon noticed her approach and waved, “Hey! How was school?”

“Fine,” Hyerin replied casually, dropping her bag on a nearby chair. She walked over, ready to help Seoyeon manage the group. But before she could even roll up her sleeves, a new face caught her eye. A little girl sat alone in the corner, her wide eyes scanning the room nervously.

“Who’s that?” Hyerin asked, nodding toward the child.

Seoyeon glanced over. “Oh, that’s Suhyeon. Her family just moved here. She’s still getting used to everything.”

Seoyeon beckoned the girl over, who hesitated at first but then slowly approached. “Suhyeon, this is my sister, Hyerin. You can introduce yourself.”

Suhyeon glanced up at Hyerin, her small body trembling slightly as she peeked at her with wide, fearful eyes. Hyerin was tall and had a sharp gaze, which often intimidated people who didn’t know her well. And for Suhyeon, Hyerin must have looked terrifying.

Hyerin immediately noticed the fear in Suhyeon’s eyes and softened her expression. A gentle smile spread across her face as she crouched down to Suhyeon’s level. “Hey, you don’t have to be scared. I promise I’m not scary,” she said warmly.

Suhyeon’s wide eyes blinked a few times before she nodded, her fear melting away just a little. The small smile Hyerin offered seemed to work wonders.

"Nice to meet you," Suhyeon finally whispered, still a bit shy but no longer frozen in fear.

Seoyeon chuckled softly from the side, watching her sister's gentle approach. “See, Hyerin’s really nice once you get to know her.”

Hyerin gave Seoyeon a quick side-eye but couldn’t help but smile back. She turned to Suhyeon again. "You wanna play with us?"

Suhyeon nodded more confidently this time, and Hyerin led her back to the group, where the kids were already welcoming her into their game.

Seoyeon caught Hyerin’s eye, and the two exchanged a look of understanding, the warmth of family and care filling the room.

•••

The sky was darkening, and the playground was finally quiet. All the parents had come and taken their children home—except for one. Hyerin glanced at Suhyeon, who was sitting quietly by the door, her small legs swinging back and forth.

“She’s still here?” Hyerin asked, walking over to where Seoyeon was cleaning up the play area.

“Yeah, her parents are busy,” Seoyeon replied, stacking some toys in a bin. “They’ll probably be late. You can go ahead and do your thing while I finish up here.”

Hyerin nodded absentmindedly, her thoughts already drifting back to Miss Kim’s question. It had been bothering her since class ended, and she still hadn’t solved it. She pulled out her notebook and pencil, determined to figure it out.

Sitting at one of the small tables, she stared at the problem again. She tried one solution—wrong. She erased her work and tried another—still wrong. Each failure stung a bit more, but she wasn’t the type to give up easily. On her tenth attempt, her frustration began to bubble over.

While she was deeply focused, a soft voice startled her. “My mom is a math teacher.”

Hyerin looked up and saw Suhyeon standing beside her, staring curiously at the notebook.

Hyerin blinked, then let out a small laugh. “That’s cool, but I don’t think your mom can help me right now.”

Suhyeon giggled, but before Hyerin could turn back to her problem, a different voice cut through the air.

“You’re doing that wrong.”

Hyerin turned, surprised to see Seoyeon standing next to her, peering down at the notebook.

“Huh?” Hyerin frowned. “What do you mean?”

Seoyeon slid into the chair next to her, grabbed the pencil from Hyerin’s hand, and started working on the problem. “You’re going about it the wrong way. Look, you need to think about it like this.”

As Seoyeon explained the steps, effortlessly working through the complex equation, Hyerin could only stare. The solution flowed from Seoyeon’s hand like it was second nature to her.

“There you go,” Seoyeon said, finishing with a flourish. “That should be it.”

Hyerin was stunned. She couldn’t wrap her head around the fact that Seoyeon—her carefree, playful sister—had just solved a problem that she’d been stuck on all day.

“How do you… how do you know this?” Hyerin finally asked, still in disbelief.

Seoyeon shrugged, like it was no big deal. “I just remember stuff from high school, I guess. It’s not that hard once you know how to look at it.”

Hyerin’s mouth fell open slightly. “You remember this from high school?”

“Yup. It’s just like riding a bike,” Seoyeon grinned, handing the pencil back.

Hyerin couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “I had no idea you were so good at math.”

Seoyeon laughed. “I’m good at a lot of things, Hyerin. You just never asked.”

Hyerin shook her head, impressed but also a little annoyed that her older sister had just solved the problem so easily.

“Thanks,” Hyerin muttered, still processing.

“No problem. Anytime you need a math genius, you know where to find me,” Seoyeon teased, ruffling Hyerin’s hair before standing up to finish cleaning.

As Hyerin watched her go, she stared down at the now-solved equation, feeling a sense of relief wash over her. She didn’t know how she’d managed to forget Seoyeon had a sharp mind beneath her carefree attitude. And now, with the answer in front of her, Hyerin knew she’d impress Miss Kim.

But deep down, she also knew she had her sister to thank for it.