The Nanny- Bangchan

CHAPTER 16

"Chan..." He heard Jihye's soft voice as he sat on the edge of their bed, his back to her. He turned to find her standing in the doorway.

"I'm sorry about last night," she sighed and he nodded his head, thinking back to the fight they had.

"I know... I know I've said this so many times... I know it doesn't mean much to you anymore, but as soon as this workload lightens, I'll be here," she said, walking over to him quickly to sit with him on the bed.

"I need you here now," Chan said, his voice cracking. His emotions were heightened so much in the past twenty-four hours.

"I know, baby. I know," she said, wrapping her arms around him. He didn't move. He didn't acknowledge her feeble attempt of comforting.

"Chan," she breathed, placing her hand on his far cheek, aligning their vision. He looked into her eyes with a blank stare and waited.

"I know I've created this gap between us..." She started. It was less of a gap and more of a canyon.

"But I want to make it right and for that to happen, I need you to forgive me and give me a chance to try to make it right," she told him.

A part of him wanted to scream in her face that he'd given her chance after chance to make it right. But the more dominant part of him completely folded with her words. Words he needed to hear for so long – she was willing to put in an effort to make their marriage work.

Chan nodded as the emotions he felt wedged a lump in his throat, threatening to really cause him to break down. He let her kiss his lips and fully pull him into her arms in a tight hug that felt so good after a year's worth of denial from her.

"I love you, Chan," she breathed in his ear.

"I love you too, Jihye," he said, his words muffled against her collarbone.

"Daddy..." Chan heard Areum's tiny little voice, breaking his attention away from his wife. He pulled away from Jihye, immediately focusing on his daughter.

"Yeah, baby," he said, pushing back his emotion.

"I can't find Mr. Snuffles," she said with a little pout on her lips.

"Oh, no," he said dramatically to show Areum it was just as important to him as it was to her.

Even though that damn stuff dog always went missing. Chan didn't know how she lost it so much. But they always seemed to find it, so he was never too entirely worried. Although he knew Areum would absolutely lose her mind if they really couldn't find it.

"When's the last time you saw it, baby?" Jihye asked her as Areum walked deeper in the room toward her parents.

"I don't know," she said, looking up at her mother.

"That's okay. We'll... we'll find him. Won't we, daddy?" Jihye told her, looking at Chan hopefully.

"Of course we will, baby angel," Chan said, looking over at Areum.

It caught him off guard when he used Aera's nickname for Areum. He felt his cheeks blush because of it, almost feeling like Jihye might notice his slip-up, even though he knew deep down she wouldn't.

"Come on. Mommy and Daddy will help you. Maybe we can even get Jaehyun to help," Jihye offered, standing up from the bed holding out her hand for Areum.

"And Uncle Felix," Chan chimed in as he too got up from the bed.

"And Aera and Minhee?" Areum asked as the three of them walked out of the bedroom.

"Even Aera and Minhee if they're around," Jihye assured her with a nod.

It was an odd thing to hear Aera's name slide so easily off of Jihye's tongue. If she knew what was really going on, things would be completely different.