âno! i donât wanna!â
sanaâs voice carries through jeongyeonâs apartment as she stands in front of the couch. her cheeks are pink from how frustrated sheâs been for the past half hour, and nothing that jeongyeon has said has been able to change her mind.
âsweetie, if we donât go to sleep now, then weâll be super tired tomorrow and maybe even a little grumpy.â
sanaâs pout deepens as she crosses her arms over her chest. she huffs and turns her head away, clearly uninterested in what jeongyeon knows is true. âmo gets to stay up and i donât.â
jeongyeon sighs softly and leans back into the couch. she runs a tired hand through her hair and nods. âthatâs true, but thatâs because momoâs a big girl, sweetie. and she has to stay up anyway to let her doggies out.â
âiâm a big girl, too,â sana argues back, âand- and i help take the doggies out.â
âi know. you do such a good job with peanut and yuki, but you still need to sleep, love bug.â jeongyeon pushes herself off the couch and stands in front of sana. she places a hand on her waist, knowing the effect the nickname has on the little.
instead of more pouting and argument like jeongyeonâs expecting, sana slouches and gets quiet. she rests her head against jeongyeonâs chest and shakes her head. âdonât wanna.â
jeongyeonâs gentle as she wraps her arms around sana. she holds her just tight enough to let her know that sheâs there but if she wants to take a step back, then she can. âi know youâre upset that you have to sleep, but i can also tell thereâs something else thatâs making you want to stay up, bug.â
sanaâs quiet as she slouches in jeongyeonâs embrace. she rubs her face against jeongyeonâs shirt, the scent of warm bread and vanilla calming her a bit. â âm scared.â
âwhatâs got you so scared?â jeongyeon asks, her voice a mere whisper as she rubs sanaâs back.
âdonât wanna be alone. i-itâs dark too.â
jeongyeonâs heart aches at the vulnerability in sanaâs voice. when her tantrum started, she figured that sana didnât want to go to bed because she wanted to watch more tv. once tv was out as an option for staying up, she guessed that sana was upset that she couldnât stay up late like the rest of the girls. never in a million years would she have guessed that sana was scared to go to sleep.
â âm a big girl, but-but itâs dark and scary.â
jeongyeon nods and kisses the side of sanaâs head, continuing to gently rub her back. âeven big girls get scared, love bug. itâs okay. iâm sorry that you get scared. do you think that having peanut and yuki sleep with you would help?â
sana thinks for a moment but shakes her head. she takes a shaky breath in and buries her face deeper against jeongyeonâs shirt, a muffled, âwanna sleep with you,â leaving her as she frowns.
âokay, love bug. iâll protect you.â jeongyeon would be lying if she said that sana wanting to sleep with her didnât make her feel important and needed. sheâd be lying if she said that sana wanting to have her to protect her from the dark made didnât make her feel good as a caregiver.
itâs a slow process to get sana ready for bed. she takes her time even more than usual, but sheâs not as talkative. she brushes her teeth extra slowly, has jeongyeon help her put her jammies on extra slowly, and even goes potty extra slowly just to stall going to bed.
once sanaâs under the covers, jeongyeon sliding in beside her, the same fear that led to her tantrum just an hour earlier, hits her again. she clings to jeongyeonâs side, fists balled into the fabric of her shirt. âdonât leave me,â she mumbles as she tucks her face against jeongyeonâs neck.
jeongyeon reaches across her body, her hand gently resting on sanaâs cheek. âi wonât, love bug. iâm right here. i love you so much.â
it takes a while for sana to finally fall asleep. once she does, once her grip on jeongyeonâs shirt relaxes, jeongyeon keeps her close. she gently turns sana around, her body close to sanaâs as she spoons her. jeongyeon keeps an arm wrapped around sanaâs waist, her hand on her hip.
jeongyeonâs eyes start to close, sleep finally washing over her. just before she succumbs to a well-deserved rest, she hears the faintest mumble from sana.