Cityscapes (Jumin Han x OC)

Chapter 5

In skating over thin ice our safety is in our speed.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

~

"Lotte World! Lotte World! Lotte World!" The children chanted. Except Seong of course. Except him. I ended up dropping him off at the library. I understand needing to study for those exams. I'm sure I studied as much as him, but I'm not sure I was as rude as him. Although, I must admit, I may have been. Trying to get into a SKY University is a long and ardous process. The National Exams were a moment I would not like to repeat. The nerves I felt. My mother tried to remind me that if my scores didn't get me into a SKY, they would get me into an American university or a less prestigious school, but I couldn't listen to that. Seoul was my home, and still is. I was too devoted to the idea of attending Seoul. I'm sure Seong has plenty of pressure on him to go simply because Mr. Park went. Well, I'm glad he's focused.

As soon as the children and I got there, they dragged me to Treeble's Hopper, an attraction that for me, was excellent. A degree of seperation betweem me and the children. Oh. And it's over. Soon it was the tea cup ride, then a haunted houuse like thing. And so many other blinding things. Next thing I knew, I was in a bumper car with Da-Bin, as the others drove alone. This was...nauseating. I could barely focus.

I was excited when Sook-Ja said she wanted to go ice skating. A break it seemed like. All of the children could ice skate, thankfully, so I could just stay close to them. I slipped on my own skates, and followed them around closely. Suddenly, I noticed my phone was vibrating. God. Mr. Han. Again!

"Hello, Mr. Han," I said.

"Miss Bae. This is my 6th time calling you. Just last night I asked you to make yourself available- where in God's name are you right now?" He asked, so incredibly angry, I nearly took my eyes off the children. 1, 2, 3, 4, I counted each of them.

"My apologies, Mr. Han," I said.

"You don't listen. Where are you?"

"I'm at the skating rink," I said. It wasn't a lie.

"...and why is it so noisy?"

Uh...hmm. "I'm...at...Lotte World."

"You do know that if that's a hobby of yours there are other ice rinks, right?"

"Yes...I'm just...I felt like I needed a change of pace?"

"Says the woman who didn't even want to be at a party?"

"Mr. Han, what are you calling for?"

"You really are quite strange. I'm calling to ask that you be present at a photoshoot for Elizabeth the 3rd this Thursday. I've arranged for Mr. Park to have his day relatively simple so that you can miss part of the day," he explained.

"Sure, Mr. Han," I responded. I was quite tired of this already.

"I'll see you tomorrow then, Miss Bae."

And he was gone. Perhaps, for the day? Perhaps, until Thursday? A girl can wish. Although, I suppose I don't mind it that much. These children are just an added stress, so I feel a greater sense of annoyance by Mr. Han. I am already annoyed with the children, Mr. Han just doesn't take any away. 1, 2, 3, 4. Thank God. After about 20 minutes, I skated towards them and corralled them one by one. I was thankful that the children, while hyperactive at times, did not wander off. Although, being at Lotte World, I felt nerves. Like, I had to keep my eyes on them. I had them all hold hands as we wandered round Lotte World. I took them to different rides, and well, I was thankful that at about 6pm, they were extremely tired. I had not thought that through though.

Da-Bin and Hyun were so tired, I had to carry them in my arms. Which meant I had no free hands to hold hands with Sook-Ja and Tae-ho. The only two who I was truly worried about running off. So, I did the one thing my mother told me to do with children. Trust them.

I asked them to walk in front of me, and hold hands. I asked them to walk in front of me, and slowly...but it did not take them long to get distracted with candy. Alright...we have a situation. Da-Bin was sleep but Hyun was barely awake. I couldn't go about making him walk, so what could've taken 30 minutes, took an hour. I never want to be a parent.

I got them in the car, and took a deep breath. How miraculous. I couldn't believe we actually got out of there. I went and picked up Seong from the library, and took them back to the hotel. 5 children. At 7pm. In the same place. I collapsed on my bed, only to remember that I hadn't bathed them, or told them to brush their teeth. I spent the next few hours giving them baths. I then ordered room service because...I'm an idiot and hadn't given them a real dinner that wasn't Lotte World food. I then had them brush their teeth. The best moment of the night, was seeing Seong walk past my door, and go into his bedroom. It wasn't even midnight yet. I laid down, and no calls from Mr. Han. I took a deep breath, and fell asleep.

~

I had to wake up at 4 am to take Seong to school at 5 am, which the young ones weren't happy about, as they didn't have to get there until 8:00. I took them back to my apartment, let them sleep for another hour while I showered and got ready for work. I quickly filled out the expense report and totalled up the staggering amount. I emailed it to myself so I could print it. I then had them changed, their teeth brushed, hair done, and out the door. Except...it took me far too long to realize that Da-Bin's uniform was too large. Because Da-Bin didn't even go to school yet. Nor did Sook-Ja. Both of them were wearing the extra set of their brothers' uniforms. I must've been so tired. I changed them out and put them in their normal clothes. I drove Tae-Ho and Hyun to school, and waved them off.

I realized that I would be meeting Mr. and Mrs. Park outside of the building. That seemed...bold. I walked them down to the building praying that I would not run into Mr. Han. Thankfully, I didn't, and met Mrs. Park outside of the building. She was entirely excited to see her daughters, and gave me a hug.

And...it was over.