Junior Alex
The next morning stretched lazily as Carrie pried her eyes open, squinting at the soft almost invisible sunlight spilling through the curtains. She groped around for her phone, and the screen's brightness hit her like a flashbang.
"11 a.m.!?" she yelped, springing up so fast that gravity itself seemed momentarily confused. She stumbled into her robe, the sleeves trailing behind her like wizard robes as she barreled downstairs.
In the kitchen, Jaewook stood at the counter, calm as a Sunday morning, serenely brewing coffee. He moved with the precision of a barista in a zen garden.
"You're still here? Do you even know what time it is?" Carrie panted, clutching the doorframe for stability.
Jaewook, as if on a different timeline, extended a steaming cup to her.
"Coffee," he said, as if this explained the mysteries of the universe.
"Thank you, but please—answer me!" She took the cup, inhaling its life-giving aroma.
"I took the day off," he said, sipping his coffee with the grace of a 19th-century noble. "I realized I needed a break. You too."
"So... what's the plan? Netflix and existential dread?" Carrie asked, half-hopeful.
"Nope. We're visiting someone special."
Carrie raised an eyebrow.
"Since when do you have someone special who isn't Leo?"
Jaewook gave her a look so dry it could have dehydrated fruit.
"You can dress as Carrie. No disguise today." He turned and disappeared into his room.
"Someone special, huh?" Carrie mused, sipping the coffee. "Wow, this is so good... If the FBI ever questioned me, I'd probably spill everything for this."
---
Carrie reappeared downstairs, a vision of effortless chic. She wore a burnt-orange cardigan that looked like a pumpkin spice latte in clothing form, paired with beige trousers that swayed like they were on a gentle autumn breeze. Her hair was in a scattered bun, with artful strands framing her face.
Jaewook looked up and gave her a once-over.
"Who are you today?" he asked, as if she'd shown up in a Halloween costume.
"What's wrong with my outfit?" she asked, her voice laced with the dangerous calm of a woman on the verge of judgment.
"It's giving autumn," he said. "But it's winter. Aren't you going to be cold?"
Carrie rolled her eyes and pulled a brown coat from the rack.
"I'm ready. I'll just layer my bad decisions."
"Let's go," Jaewook said, spinning the car keys around his finger.
"What about Mr. Jin?"
"Day off. I'm driving. Pray if you must."
---
The ride to their mystery destination was so calm Carrie almost believed Jaewook had a "normal human" setting. He pulled over in front of a quaint florist store.
"A florist?" Carrie asked, peering at the pastel-colored shop.
"Can't visit someone special without flowers."
"Is she sick?" Carrie asked, her concern poking through.
Jaewook smirked.
"You just assumed it's a she."
Carrie shot him a look.
"Okay, Freud. Let's get the flowers."
Inside, the florist greeted them with a smile so genuine it could have been on a toothpaste commercial.
"Welcome! How can I help you today?"
"A bouquet with daisies, roses, purple orchids, and daffodils," Jaewook said, like he was ordering his usual at a coffee shop.
The florist chuckled.
"You know your flowers. I'm impressed."
Carrie leaned in.
"How do you know so much about flowers? Are you secretly 80 years old?"
Jaewook straightened his collar.
"I told you, I'm good at everything."
"Except tying a tie." Carrie said, popping his bubble with the accuracy of a dart champion.
The florist returned with the bouquet, the colors so vibrant it was like a rainbow had decided to take up residence in their arms.
"Congratulations! You're our 100th customer today, so the bouquet is free!"
Jaewook blinked.
"100th? It's barely noon. What are people doing, proposing on their lunch breaks?"
Carrie grinned.
"Not everyone is as anti-romantic as you. Some of us enjoy human feelings. Thank you so much sir"
"The pleasure is all mine" he said giving out a small gentle bow.
---
Back in the car, Carrie cradled the bouquet, marveling at its beauty.
"We can get you your own bouquet if you like flowers that much," Jaewook said.
"No, I'm just amazed at how well these flowers go together. I didn't know mixing them would look this good."
Jaewook turned to her with a smirk.
"There's a lot of similarities between you and those flowers. I almost thought you were a bouquet back there."
Carrie's mouth opened, then closed. A rare, precious moment of speechlessness.
Jaewook pulled into a hospital parking lot.
"We're here."
Carrie's mind scrambled to keep up.
"A hospital? Someone special, huh..."
They walked in, and three men in suits approached, each holding shopping bags.
"Mr. Alex, here are the items you requested," one of them said, bowing slightly.
Carrie squinted at the bags.
"What's all this?"
"Baby clothes," Jaewook said, casually as if he were talking about the weather.
"Baby clothes?!" Carrie's voice did an impressive high note.
"Of course. How can I visit my baby without gifts?"
Carrie froze, her brain buffering.
"Your... baby?"
"What?" Jaewook chuckled. "You think I can't have a child? Don't underestimate my versatility."
Carrie muttered under her breath,
"A baby... How did I miss that plot twist?"
---
They entered a room where a young woman lay on a hospital bed, her face lighting up when she saw Jaewook.
"You came!" she beamed.
"Did you think I wouldn't?" Jaewook approached her, setting the bags down.
Carrie watched, her mind running a marathon.
"This is Carrie," Jaewook introduced. "Carrie, this is Hanuel."
Carrie smiled, setting the flowers down.
"Congratulations! Your baby is adorable."
Hanuel's face glowed.
"Thank you! He has his father's eyes."
Carrie's brain did a backflip.
"His... father?" The baby's eyes suddenly looking like Jaewook's.
Just then, a doctor entered. His white coat gave him an air of authority, while his radiant smile was straight out of a K-drama.
"Ah, Jaewook!" he greeted warmly.
Carrie extended her hand.
"Good morning, Doctor...?"
"Dr. Alex," Jaewook said, his voice dripping with amusement.
"So, how does it feel to deliver your own baby, Dr. Alex?"
The puzzle pieces fell into place, and Carrie exhaled a breath she didn't know she was holding. Her grin widened as the relief washed over her.
"Oh my God. You're the father!" she said aloud, a giggle escaping her.
Jaewook shot her a sideways look.
"What? You thought it was me?"
Carrie didn't miss a beat, her expression as firm. "Nothing proved that you weren't," she said, her voice cool and measured, the kind of tone that could freeze a tropical beach.
Jaewook opened his mouth to retort, but Carrie had already turned her attention to Dr. Alex. Her shift was so sharp it felt like a scene change in a drama.
"Mr. Alex, he really does have your eyes. What a beautiful beginning," she said, her voice slipping into a honeyed professionalism that only made Jaewook's eye twitch.
Dr. Alex beamed, his joy as bright as the white of his lab coat.
"Thank you, Ms. Evans. We're so grateful to have such good friends here today."
Jaewook crossed his arms, his jaw setting with mock offense."Did you just ignore me?"
Carrie turned to him slowly, the kind of slow that made villains nervous in movies. She offered him a smile so polite it might as well have been a blade wrapped in velvet.
"I'm sorry, were you saying something? I thought I heard the wind rustling."
Hanuel let out a genuine chuckle. "You two are really something."
Carrie shot Jaewook a side-eye followed by a sigh.
"He's just really annoying," she quipped, her tone as smooth as silk but with an edge that could slice.
Her words landed like a punchline, and Dr. Alex and Hanuel dissolved into laughter. Even the baby in the crib cooed, as if sensing the shift in the room's energy.