“Mom, just a moment.”

Yu Min let go of Seol Ah’s hand and ran towards Jin Cheol, who was turning to leave.

“Uncle, uncle!”

“Huh, what?”

“Uncle, what are you doing now? You were supposed to give that to mom.”

He had thought of something cool to say while giving the bouquet. You’re prettier than the flowers. He had even practiced with Yu Min.

“I’m sorry, I can’t do it.”

Jin Cheol shook his head.

“You’ll understand when you grow up. Mom’s waiting. Go on now.”

Jin Cheol turned and walked away.

“Yu Min, what’s wrong? Did something happen with uncle?”

As Seol Ah approached, Yu Min let out a quiet sigh.

If he revealed all the secrets here, the conspiracy with Jin Cheol would be exposed. Yu Min bit his lip.

“It’s nothing, mom. But doesn’t uncle look really handsome today?”

Seol Ah gently stroked Yu Min’s head as he spoke with a wink.

“Yes, he’s dressed up nicely because he’s going on a date. I wonder when our Yu Min will grow up and go on dates.”

Yu Min looked at Seol Ah with disappointed eyes and shook his head as she said something completely irrelevant.

*

“Alright, today we’re drawing animal friends, ugh.”

The Sun Class teacher had trouble conducting class properly due to an upset stomach since morning. With a pale face, the teacher looked at the children while clutching her stomach tightly.

“Play for a bit. I’ll be right back! Absolutely do not go outside!”

Yu Min, who was taking out crayons by type to prepare for drawing, watched worriedly as the teacher left.

“She must have bacterial gastroenteritis.”

“Bacterial gastroenteritis? What’s that?”

Yoon Sung asked as he picked up a gray crayon to draw an elephant.

“It’s gastroenteritis caused by bacteria. They say you get it from eating something bad.”

Just then, the rest of the children except for the two of them suddenly cheered and gathered in one place. Looking over there, Yoon Sung and Yu Min saw Shin Young showing off a toy she had just taken out.

“Look at this, I bought it yesterday!”

“Let me touch it just once.”

“No. It’s mine. You can’t touch it.”

Originally, it wasn’t allowed to bring toys from home to kindergarten. However, Shin Young had broken that rule several times.

Yu Min hated breaking rules more than anything. He went over to where Shin Young was.

“Shin Young.”

When Yu Min opened his eyes wide, the atmosphere changed noticeably from before. Though it’s hard to say it was intimidating, a heavy air settled enough to make the children cower for a moment.

“The teacher said not to bring toys to kindergarten.”

As he spoke with a scary face and wide eyes, the children retreated hesitantly. However, Shin Young, seemingly angrier, raised the toy robot and shouted.

“Who are you to say that! Are you the teacher? Why are you butting in!”

“It’s a rule we all have to follow. If she said so, we should follow it, it’s the teacher’s words!”

Just as Yu Min raised his voice as well.

Shin Young threw the toy she was holding at Yu Min. Since they were standing so close, without time to dodge, the sharp part of the toy scratched Yu Min’s forehead and fell down.

“Aah!”

Yu Min screamed, and red blood dripped onto the floor.

The teacher, who had just returned to the classroom, turned pale upon seeing the situation that had unfolded.

Originally, she shouldn’t have left her seat without another teacher present, but being in such a hurry, she had left briefly, which led to this situation.

“What happened, Yu Min, are you okay?”

“Shin Young threw a toy,” said Yoon Sung, who was standing nearby. Yu Min was gritting his teeth, trying to hold back tears that were about to fall. He felt like crying here would be like losing.

“Shin Young did? Shin Young, this is a toy we don’t have in our kindergarten.”

The teacher made a troubled expression.

Shin Young was one of those difficult to deal with, both the child and the mother. Shin Young didn’t listen well and often caused trouble, and her mother always said the kindergarten was the problem.

“No! Yu Min hit me first, Yu Min hit me first!”

Shin Young shouted and burst into tears. The teacher looked back and forth between Yu Min and Shin Young with a troubled expression.

Just then, the director who was passing by the classroom realized something had happened and came in. After hearing the whole story, the director’s face became serious.

“First, contact Yu Min’s mother. Yu Min might have a scar. It would be best to go to the hospital right away.”

*

Seol Ah was already in a state where her mind was half gone due to the evaluation.

While she was busy working, she received a call from the director.

[Yu Min got a little hurt. It looks like his forehead is cut. I’m going to take him to the hospital first. It would be good if you could come when you have time.]

The center had asked parents to write down nearby hospitals they could go to urgently if their child got hurt. Seol Ah had written it down, but she never thought she would actually need to go to that hospital.

Yu Min had good athletic ability and was careful, so he didn’t get hurt as often as other children. Until now, the times he got hurt could be counted on one hand.

But his forehead was cut?

“Director, I.”

Director Kang raised his bloodshot eyes to look at Seol Ah. It wasn’t because he was working hard like Seol Ah. It was because he had been drinking heavily yesterday too.

“What?”

His mouth still reeked of alcohol. Seol Ah held back her frown and bowed her head.

“They said my child got hurt. If you could allow me to step out briefly.”

“What did you say?”

Director Kang slammed his palm on the desk.

He had a family too, but childcare wasn’t his role. He was the type to put his children on the back burner even on weekends because he was busy drinking.

“This is why mothers can’t do it. Do you know the evaluation is right around the corner, or not? Are you in your right mind?”

Director Kang shouted while repeatedly hitting the desk.

Everyone’s eyes turned towards them, but since it was a common occurrence, people focused on their own work without much concern.

“I’m sorry.”

Seol Ah bowed her head deeply.

She wanted to go quickly and see that Yu Min was okay. For that, she didn’t care how she was treated.

“Please, I beg you. I’ll work through the night if I have to. So.”

“Hah, do as you please. But make sure you do your work properly. If we fail the evaluation, know that it’s all your fault!”

After being scolded several times, Seol Ah quickly packed her bag and got up. She left the company and immediately took a taxi.

Of all times, there was an accident on the road and the traffic was heavy. Moreover, as if everything was going wrong, the taxi driver kept getting lost.

“It’s not this way. We need to go that way.”

“No, this is a shortcut.”

“That’s a one-way street.”

Seol Ah, who arrived after more than an hour on a journey that should have taken thirty minutes, rushed into the hospital.

Yu Min was sleeping on a bed in the emergency room, and the director was sitting next to him.

There was a foam band stuck on Yu Min’s forehead.

“You’re here, mother. Fortunately, they say it’s not serious enough to need stitches. They said the child seems very shocked, so he’s resting for a bit before we go.”

Seol Ah let out a sigh of relief at the director’s words.

Even though it didn’t need stitches, it still pained her heart to see the red mark on Yu Min’s forehead.

“Thank you. And I’m sorry. For troubling you with our child when you’re busy.”

“No. This is my job. You must be upset, mother.”

Seol Ah couldn’t really deny the director’s words. As she stroked the sleeping Yu Min’s face, Yu Min grabbed Seol Ah’s hand as if he sensed his mother’s touch even in his dream.

Seeing this, Seol Ah’s eyes reddened.

“By the way, how did this happen? What happened?”

To Seol Ah’s question, the director answered with a troubled expression.

“Well, Shin Young threw a toy.”

“Shin Young did?”

Seol Ah’s eyes widened.

Of all people, it had to be her again. She had hoped there wouldn’t be any more entanglements after the last incident.

The director let out a quiet sigh.

“Yes. There seems to have been a bit of an argument. All children are like this, but Shin Young has some difficulty controlling her emotions. So we keep talking about it, but it’s not easy to fix all at once.”

Seol Ah thought for a moment before answering.

“That’s right. Yu Min also has trouble controlling his emotions sometimes and throws tantrums. But no matter what, violence is dangerous, so we should say something to Shin Young’s mother.”

“We want to do that too. But Shin Young’s mother is quite stubborn. And I heard there was an incident before where Yu Min hit Shin Young.”

At the director’s words, Seol Ah felt like her insides were turning over for a moment.

How could that incident be the same as this one?

Besides, didn’t Shin Young hurt Yu Min first by bringing up his father’s absence?

“Shin Young’s mother was extremely angry about that incident. She said not to let Yu Min be near Shin Young.”

“Hah, that incident was.”

Seol Ah started to explain but then closed her mouth.

It upset her to have to explain the situation in detail. The director shook her head as if there was no need to say more.

“I know. That incident and this one are different. Yu Min isn’t the type of child to go around hitting others for no reason. But Shin Young’s mother is a bit difficult for us to deal with too. Please understand.”

Shin Young’s mother was also the apartment complex representative. And she was also responsible for bringing many students to this kindergarten.

So if Shin Young’s mother moved her child to another center, other students might follow suit.

Even knowing this situation, Seol Ah felt bitter.

“Mom.”

Just then, Yu Min who had been sleeping woke up.

“Mom, when did you come? How did you come?”

Seol Ah’s heart ached at his words as he opened his eyes wide in surprise.

“I came because I missed Yu Min.”

“Then can I stay with mom all the time?”

As if in answer to Yu Min’s question, Seol Ah’s phone rang. It was Director Kang.

[Where are you that you’re not coming? Hah, really, don’t you see how busy the company is right now?]

The other person’s voice was so loud that Seol Ah quickly moved away. When she returned after ending the call, both the director and Yu Min were standing up, seeming to understand the situation.

“Don’t worry and go. I’ll take Yu Min back to the center.”

The director said while holding Yu Min’s shoulder.

She wanted to take Yu Min, who had been through a rough time since morning, home with her. But it pained her heart that she couldn’t do so in reality.

“I’m sorry. Please take care of him.”

Right, I’m in a position where I have to bow my head and ask for favors. And Shin Young’s mother is in a position where she can complain to the kindergarten with her head held high. Our situations are different.

What right do I have to complain?

“Mom, take care. Come home early today.”

Unable to even answer that she would to Yu Min’s words, Seol Ah left the hospital.

The cold wind stung her eyes. Seol Ah ran while covering her eyes with one hand. Her hand had become damp without her realizing it.