Namjoon had had to take three days of work off to take care of his kids. He'd called Mark and had him cover his shift, which Mark had been more than happy to do, having been through similar situations himself.

So Namjoon had played the good parent and tucked his kids into bed, made them soup, gave them medicine, and spoiled the living hell out of them.

He'd even let Yoongi stay home from school as well, mainly because he couldn't risk driving Yoongi and leaving the others home alone.

What if something happens and they can't call me?

What if there's an emergency?

What if they forget my phone number?

What if-

So Namjoon gave Yoongi a pass, to which Yoongi happily accepted without complaint.

Namjoon ran around, making sure they were all as comfortable as could be, that they were resting, that they had food to eat whenever they had appetites. He never fully slept, instead opting to take light naps on the couch so whenever one of his angels said, "Daddy? I need you," he could bolt up and run to their room and see what the problem was.

He changed their sheets and pillowcases every night, washing them to get rid of the germs, and made sure they had clean ones.

He checked temperatures four times a day, after breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack. He recorded them every time, comparing them to see if his kids were getting better.

Finally, after 3 days, all of them had made full recoveries and were itching to go back to school.

"They might be worried about me," Yoongi mused quietly to himself.

"Who, Suga?" The name had sort of stuck after the lunch bag incident.

"Kihyun and Wonho. They've probably noticed my absence and wondered where I was," Yoongi said, looking awfully pleased with himself.

Namjoon smiled tiredly. "That's nice, sweetie. Are they your friends?"

Yoongi paused before nodding. "Yes."

"Well then I'm sure they missed you," Namjoon said. He tried to inject energy into his voice but he was just so exhausted. Maybe I should start hiring a babysitter...give myself some time off...

But then Namjoon felt guilty. Ever since his wife had left, he'd been trying to handle everything, mostly out of necessity, but some part of him wanted to stick it to her.

We don't need you.

You left? We hadn't even noticed.

Don't bother coming back. We've got it all covered.

But hiring someone else to look after his kids was like admitting defeat. He didn't want to hand over his kids to anyone, and he certainly didn't want to let his wife - ex-wife - win.

He knew that was the wrong way to think about it, but he couldn't help it. He felt stubborn, like he had to prove her wrong by being the best fucking dad he could be.

Even when that meant never sleeping and checking temperatures four times a day and doing a hundred loads of laundry.

"Daddy?"

Namjoon jolted upright. Did I just fall asleep? "Sorry baby, what's up?" he asked, blinking and trying to orient himself.

"We have to leave for school, Daddy. Or we'll be late," Jin said, seeming very mature, as though he had realized just how much Namjoon had needed a rest.

Namjoon rubbed his eyes. When was I last awake? Was that last night? He swallowed. "When did I fall asleep?" he asked Jin, trusting the oldest boy to give him an answer.

"Last night," Jin said. "While you were talking to Yoongi. But don't worry, Daddy. I made sure everyone took their medicine and brushed their teeth." He hesitated, giving a sheepish smile. "I tried to change the sheets but I couldn't make them work, so I left them. Sorry, Daddy."

Namjoon just stared at Jin, amazed. "That's fine, baby. Um, did...did you all eat breakfast yet?"

Jin nodded. "I got the cereal out and Yoongi got the bowls and Hobi got the spoons and Jimin got the milk and Tae and Jungkook...well they didn't really do anything. Except, they put the bowls and spoons in the sink, so I guess they kind of did. Oh! But we didn't have time to wash them. I can wash them when I get home from school, Daddy, okay? I promise."

Namjoon just nodded slowly. When did Jin grow up so much? Namjoon sighed. "Jin?"

Jin flinched, looking down. "Did I do something wrong, Daddy? I'm sorry..."

"Jin, look up."

Jin brought his head up to meet Namjoon's eyes.

"Come here," Namjoon instructed, and Jin walked over into Namjoon's arms, which wrapped around him tightly. "I love you so, so, so much, Jin. Thank you, sweetie."

Jin smiled but squirmed in Namjoon's arms. "Okay, Daddy. But we don't have time to hug. It's already 7:25. We can hug later though, okay, Daddy?" Then Jin slipped out of Namjoon's arms and ran off to put his shoes and coat on.

Namjoon just sighed and stood up, stretching. "No time for hugs," he mumbled grumpily before getting in the car and dropping all of his kids off at their various schools. Then he went back home.

Time to get some decent sleep, he thought to himself before he sneezed.

No.

Nope.

Nopity nope nope.

Then he coughed.

Gosh dang it.

He went to the kitchen and opened the medicine cabinet, searching for whatever the kids had been using, only to find it empty.

Damn it.

He sighed. Well, it's fine. I've had colds before. I just have to tough it out.

And so Namjoon went to his bedroom and laid down in his bed, only there was no one to ask him if he wanted soup or take his temperature or buy him a box of the special lotion-infused tissues. He was sick, and he was alone.

He felt his eyes shutting of their own according just as he remembered something. He reached for his phone even as his eyes were closing.

Oh, shit. I have to...

His hand fell limp on the sheets as he settled into a deep sleep.

Set my alarm.