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For the umpteenth time Mira gave serious consideration towards buying a child harness and leash. Because when she had finally made a choice between two bushels of apples and deigned to look back down she found a notable lack of the three year old who had been standing there not ten seconds ago.
“Su-jin...” she grumbled under her breath, looking around. The only reason she wasn’t immediately panicking is because of the years of practice she’d attained with her daughter’s mother; undoubtedly the source of the habit of wandering off whenever Mira took her eyes off of either of them.
Rumi, at least, had eventually been trained to stay within eyesight of Mira and had the decency to be tall enough to be seen over the stands of the store’s produce section. The woman in question was standing over by the leafy greens right at this moment, but a quick glance at the floor around her showed no signs of any toddler.
Putting shopping on hold, Mira resignedly began pushing the cart around, eyes peeled for her wayward daughter. She wondered what color the harnesses came in and which one would pair with the most outfits.
One loop around the produce section yield no results and the redhead mentally dug her heel into the bubble of worry she could feel starting to bubble up inside herself.
It hasn’t been that long, she silently assured herself as she widened her search radius to the next section of the store, She couldn’t have gone very far. We’re in a store and she knows not to leave without either of us.
Just like she knows not to wander off.
Mira was about to call out Su-jin’s name, propriety be damned, when she passed in front of an aisle and movement at the far end caught her eye. A breath she hadn’t even realized she’d been holding fell out of her like it’d been overtaken by gravity when she clocked the light pink of the oversized hoodie Su-jin had demanded to wear to the store; the hood pulled up and making her look like a stubby little starfish from the back as she stood. As annoyed as Mira was that Su-jin had left her side, she was relieved she at least had enough sense to stay by Rumi’s side. She was even holding onto the sleeve of Rumi’s jacket, just like she did whenever they crossed the street.
...
-Wait.
Mira twisted her head around and- yup, that was definitely Rumi heading her way from where she’d previously seen her. Her wife smiled when she caught Mira’s eye from underneath their matching bucket hats, with a bag of something green folded over the arm of the frankly hideous jacket that Rumi refused to get rid of on the grounds that it was ‘super comfy’. Which would be fine if she didn’t also insist on wearing it outside of the house when they were trying to be inconspicuous. But that is what happens when one asks a three old what she should wear for the day and then taking her suggestion seriously.
Mira would have smiled back if she wasn’t busy trying to figure out how her wife was in two places at once.
Turning back to her daughter and the figure right next to her, Mira squinted her eyes and made them focus on something besides her family.
They were adult-sized, at least in comparison to Su-jin, and Mira forgave herself for mixing the stranger up with Rumi when she realized they were not only wearing the exact same jacket— a green monstrosity with a wide variety of turtles printed on it Su-jin had gleefully picked out for Rumi the last time they’d visited the aquarium’s gift shop —but they were also both wearing yellow bucket hats, though the stranger’s had a fuzzy texture to it.
She— at least Mira thought she was a ‘she’ —was looking down at Su-jin as the toddler began tugging on her jacket sleeve, the half of her face that wasn’t obscured by her hat looking somewhere between confused and amused at the toddler’s actions. Straining her ears, Mira could just make out the words her daughter was saying over the dull din of the store.
“Bad Mama!” Su-jin scolded the stranger, heels digging into the tiled floor as she tried to tug her down the aisle, “Eomma says no wander! Go this way!”
Oh. Oh! Mira slapped a hand over her mouth but a snrk of amusement slipped through her fingers anyway.
Her daughter— her precious little bean —had made the exact same mistake Mira had and thought this random stranger was her Mama; moseying away from them like Mira was always complaining about. And her solution to said wandering was to go and try and bring her ‘Mama’ back.
It was too cute!
“Mir? Where’s Su-jin?” Rumi asked when she reached her and inevitably clocked that their baby girl was not with either of them.
Mira used the hand that wasn’t covering her mouth to point down the aisle. Rumi looked down it just as the stranger gave in and allowed Su-jin to tow her along towards them.
“Don’t say anything!” Mira begged quietly when she saw Rumi open her mouth, undoubtedly to call out to their daughter. “I wanna see how long it takes her to notice.”
Rumi looked worried for a moment— she probably hadn’t clocked how the stranger was wearing the same fit as her and only saw their daughter with a stranger —but closed her mouth anyway. Thankfully a hint of amusement started to show in her eyes as they watched a toddler, who didn’t even touch a meter in height while wearing shoes, drag an adult by the sleeve and berate them for ‘wandering off’.
All things considered, said adult was handling the situation like a champ. She kept her gaze on Su-jin as they ‘walked’ along, bending over just enough to keep Su-jin from straining herself too much while she pulled. Taking an even closer look, Mira thought the bend may actually have been unnecessary; the woman looked like even if she stood up straight Su-jin would still have had no trouble holding her sleeve. She looked like she was barely taller than a meter and a half, if that. Perhaps she was trying to account for the weight of the grocery basket hanging from her other hand, packed full of items as it was.
“Eomma!” Su-jin called happily once she noticed her standing at the opening of the aisle with the cart, “I found Mama!”
“Did you?” Mira replied with a grin. Said grin only widened when the stranger looked up and Mira finally got a good look at her face.
It was a cute face; college aged, if she wasn’t mistaken. With twin dark locks of hair that framed cheeks smattered with freckles beneath two big brown eyes that got even bigger when she clocked Mira looking at her. The smile on her own face must have reassured her, because Mira watched her face rapidly shift from confused to shock to an amused ‘well isn’t this a funny situation I’m in’ all within less than a second.
“Yeah!” Su-jin chirped, finally reaching her moms. Mira shifted her focus from the stranger to her daughter and watched as her happy little grin flattened slightly when she noticed that Rumi, her Mama, was standing right next to her Eomma. Brow furrowing in a way that reminded her so much of Rumi that it made her want to coo in adoration every time, the toddler pushed her hood back a bit and looked up at the woman whose sleeve she was still holding hostage in one hand.
“Hi~” the woman smiled, wiggling the fingers of her basket holding hand.
All three adults watched as the girl looked at the woman, then back at Rumi, then back at the woman again, little mind whirring audibly as she tried to work out what had happened.
The low music of the store and the distant squeaking of shopping carts was sharply cut through by Su-jin’s mouth splitting into the biggest grin as she shrieked-
“THREE MAMAS?!”
Mira lost it.
All the strength in her spine went to keep her laughter in her lungs and as a result her body folded over the handle bars of the cart like a wet noodle, shoulders shaking with every squeak of air that managed to escape her grasp.
“Honey, no,” Rumi chided softly, her words warmed by her own smile, “That’s not how that works.”
Mira croaked out “You have Mamas at home” at the exact same time the stranger giggled, “Yeah, they should offer to buy me dinner first.”
Mira snorted so hard it hurt. Over the sound she still managed to catch Rumi making a delightfully confused squeak.
“-Wait- I mean- That’s not- I mean, I wouldn’t say no, you’re both, like, super hot- What am I saying?!” the woman rambled, sounding more distressed by the syllable and when Mira finally pulled her head back up it was to see that she had freed her hand from Su-jin only to pull her own hat down over her face. “«Holy shit, Zoey, calm your tits!»” she grumbled, switching out of Korean and into English, “«You’re acting like you’ve never met milfs before!»”
Mira blinked before she broke down again, letting out a full on cackle.
“«Oh my god, we are milfs!»”
“«Please don’t teach Su-jin what that means,»” Rumi sighed.
‘Zoey’ made something of a gurgling sound upon hearing both of them speak English and Mira decided she’d show a little mercy on the poor soul.
Only because she called both of them ‘super hot’; girl clearly had good taste.
Choice of jackets aside, that is.
“Let’s try this again,” she started when it became clear the new woman wasn’t going to be making any coherent sentences any time soon, “I’m Mira, this is my wife, Rumi-”
“Hello,” Rumi waved politely, the dorky smile Mira loved making a surprise appearance.
“-and the munchkin who was holding your sleeve is Su-jin.”
“Hi~!”
“’M Zoey,” the woman mumbled through her hat before pushing it back where it belonged, “Nice to meet all of you.”
“I have to ask, just where did you get that jacket?” Mira asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.
“Hm? Oh! I got this from work! I just transferred to an aquarium here last month and they give us discounts for the gift shop! Isn’t it cute! They got so many details right on the turtles and it’s super comfy!”
“Ha!” Rumi barked, pointing a vindicated finger at Mira.
“I never disagreed about the comfiness! I disagreed with the fact that it’s so hard to pair with anything and not look like a poster in a middle school science lab! ...No offense.”
“None taken, that actually sounds dope,” Zoey replied, waving her words off with a smile that Mira was beginning to suspect was her default expression, “Do you think there’s a jacket out there with that diagram showing all the different kinds of geological features?! ‘Cause if there is, I want one!”
“Ooh, yes!” Rumi agreed, because of course she did, “Do you think it’d be better with or without the labels?”
“Oof, tough call.”
“Oh god, there’s two of them,” Mira moaned lightly, rubbing one temple absentmindedly.
“I like turtles!” Su-jin popped up; evidently tired of being ignored.
Zoey gasped and somehow smiled even brighter than before.
“So do I! They’re super cool right? Like this guy right here?” she plopped her basket on the ground and pointed to one of the turtles on her sleeve with a bunch of highly contrasting patterns on its shell.
“This is a Eretmochelys imbricata, or a Hawksbill sea turtle. They’re one of my favorites cause the markings on their shell remind me of little fireworks!”
“Pretty,” Su-jin agreed, nodding along sagely. She pointed to a different turtle, one with a pale body and a brown shell, “Wha’s this one?”
“This is a Caretta caretta; better known as a loggerhead sea turtle,” Zoey happily explained, “Can you say ‘loggerhead’?”
“Loggerhead!”
“Awesome job!” she beamed, and Mira found herself smiling right along with her. It wasn’t often that Su-jin willingly talked to anyone besides people she already knew, but Zoey had somehow managed in only a few sentences.
“-They live in waters alllll over the world except where it’s really, really cold!”
“Really?” Su-jin said, eyes wide as she leaned in for a close look.
“Uh huh! They’re big too! The adults are longer than you are and weigh on average around three hundred pounds!”
“Whoa!”
“Yeah! Oh, wait- Shoot, what is that in kilos?” her face scrunched up adorably; trying to make the conversion in her head if Mira was to take a guess.
“One hundred and thirty five,” Rumi answered easily, her smile matching the one Mira felt on her own face.
“Nerd,” Mira smirked, earning a shoulder smack for her troubles. “Ow~ Su-jin, Mama hit me!”
“Mama, no hit!” Su-jin said, pouting as fiercely as she could as she glared up at Rumi. Zoey snickered behind a hand.
Rumi threw Mira a light glare— which she retaliated against by sticking her tongue out in a very mature fashion —before crouching down in front of their daughter.
“You’re right, I shouldn’t have done that. But she also shouldn’t have called me names~” She emphasized the point by digging her fingers into the girl’s belly, making her giggle.
“It was said with affection!” Mira argued around a smile.
“So was the slap!”
“At any rate, we are sorry our munchkin lowkey kidnapped you while you were shopping.”
“Oh no, it’s okay! I mean I was very confused at first when she popped up out of nowhere and started calling me ‘Mama’— I do not have kids the last time I checked —but in hindsight it was pretty funny. Besides I was almost done shopping anyway!” she beamed and nudged the side of her basket with her foot.
Mira stared at her basket; specifically at the contents almost spilling out of it. It was full of instant...everything, from the looks of it. Along with a case of Monster and several different kinds of candy.
She felt her brow furrow.
“Were you planning on getting any real food?”
“Mira!” Rumi scolded.
“This is real food!” Zoey argued, cheeks flushing.
“Real snacks, maybe. Where are your veggies? Your fruits? Do you have any actual protein hidden under there and no, flavors don’t count.”
“Mira, be nice! You weren’t exactly a ‘five star chef’ when we first met, either.”
“I still knew how to cook something, even if it was only eggs.”
“I can cook!” Zoey proclaimed with a huff.
Mira raised one eyebrow, “Can you do it without using the microwave?”
“...”
“Mhm. That’s what I thought.”
“I just moved here!” she whined, looking almost a second away from stomping her foot, “The stove is wonky and I haven’t had time to get it fixed yet!”
“Your rice cooker works at least, right?” Rumi interjected, standing back up.
Zoey pursed her lips and very pointedly looked away from them, suddenly finding the nearby shelves very interesting.
“You have a rice cooker, right?”
“...Not exactly?”
“You will in five minutes,” Mira stated, already pushing her cart forward with authority.
“I think appliances are aisle three?” Rumi offered helpfully, hoisting Su-jin up onto her hip and following along behind her. Mira heard more than saw Zoey gaping after them, and when her wife reached her side she saw Rumi had also managed to snag the other woman’s basket in her free hand.
“Wait- What? No no, you guys don’t have to do that-” Zoey protested, popping up on Rumi’s other side and trying to retrieve her basket. Rumi deftly avoided her attempt, swinging the basket up and into a free space in their cart without missing a single step.
“Too late,” Mira interrupted, “Already decided. And the more you argue the more expensive the model I buy is gonna be.”
“Wha-”
“She’s not bluffing,” Rumi warned with a smile, “Do you have a kettle?”
“...If I say ‘no’ are you going to buy me one?”
“Yes.”
“Then yes, I already have a kettle.”
“You can never have too many, though.”
“Mhm,” Mira nodded to her wife’s wise words, “Good to always have a clean one ready to use.”
“Oh my god, you two are insane,” Zoey said in disbelief, but Mira caught the laughter threaded through the words.
“Maybe; but you’re getting a free rice cooker out of it, so I wouldn’t complain too much.”
Zoey was quiet for a minute, her gaze falling down to the scuffed tile floor before repeating quietly, “You guys really don’t have to.”
“No,” Rumi agreed, “But we want to.”
“...Why? You literally just met me?” She sounded so...sad that Mira had half a mind to wrap her up in a hug.
Instead she caught her eye and gave a casual shrug.
“My kid likes you; that’s good enough for me.”
“Same here,” Rumi added softly.
“Pretty jacket!” Su-jin added, making all three of them laugh.
“Alright fine, you can buy me a rice cooker,” she finally acquiesced, “But I will pay you back somehow!”
“Deal,” Mira nodded, “You can start by letting me teach you how to use the darn thing.”
“That doesn’t feel like payback?!”
“It is when I can rest assured that you’re not eating like a broke college student.”
“Hey! I am not a broke college student! I am a broke Marine Biologist!”
Rumi cringed. “...That’s not better. You understand how that’s not better, right?”
“New Mama broke?” Su-jin asked, head tilted like a puppy, “She hurted?”
Zoey shook her head. “No, sweetie. Broke means I don’t have a lot of mo- What do you mean ‘New Mama’?!”
Mira and Rumi cackled as they carried on through the store, Zoey right on her heels while she tried to explain to the three year old that no she was not her new mama, and, once again, she would like to be asked to dinner first.
Mira idly wondered if teaching the young woman how to cook counted. Glancing at her wife’s bright eyes and playfully smirk, she didn’t think she was the only one wondering either.