The entire floor was a battlefield. Toys scattered everywhere. And in the center of it all stood Zayn, happily pulling feathers out of a poor, defeated cushion.
"Zayn!" Sara's voice echoed through the living room. "What is this mess? Why did you do this? You're getting naughtier every single day!"
Zayn fliched and then looked up at her with those wide green eyes, internally scared of her anger. But then, came the smile. The one he knew melted her defenses.
"Don't," she warned immediately, pointing at him. "I am not falling for that."
His smile slowly faded. He understood. The charm had failed. And now he is really scared of her glares... and then, suddenly...
"Dadaaa!" he shouted at full volume.
Sara blinked, confused by his sudden move. "Why are you calling him?" she asked.
"Dada! Save me! Mumma is scolding me!" he yelled again dramatically, jumping to his feet like a tiny misunderstood victim.
Sara stared at him, stunned. "What? I haven't even started—"
"Dadaaa!" he shouted again, already sprinting his father's office room on his tiny, determined legs.
"Mumma is hitting me!" he added for extra tragedy.
Sara's eyes widened in horror. "What?! Stop right there, you little actor! Since when did you start lying?!"
She chased after him, but he was fast. Too fast for someone with legs that small.
He reached Kairo's office, pushed the door open with full urgency, and ran straight inside.
"Dadaaa!"
Kairo turned his head from his desk, confused. He was in the middle of a meeting, the laptop web camera still on.
Before he could react, Zayn climbed straight onto his lap and wrapped his arms tightly around his neck.
Kairo instinctively held him. "What happened?"
On the other side of the screen, the client froze mid sentence, watching the scene unfold.
Kairo blinked once. Then twice.
The client awkwardly cleared his throat.
And Kairo, trying very hard to remain professional, gently patted his son's back while staring straight into the camera.
Kairo smiled politely at the screen, excused himself, and muted the mic and turned off the camera briefly.
Then he looked down at the little creature clinging to him like a koala in crisis.
"What happened, baby?" he asked softly, brushing Zayn's hair back. "Why are you scared?"
Right on cue, Sara appeared at the doorway, slightly out of breath, glaring at her son.
Zayn buried his face into Kairo's shoulder dramatically, whispering, "Dada… Mumma is scary."
"Come here, Zayn," she ordered firmly.
Zayn immediately buried his face deeper into Kairo's shoulder and shook his head hard.
Kairo frowned slightly. "What happened, baby? Why is he scared? And why are you chasing him?"
"He turned the living room into pure chaos," Sara said, crossing her arms. "Toys everywhere. Cushion destroyed. He's becoming a little brat these days. Come here, Zayn."
But Zayn tightened his grip even more, small fingers clutching his father's shirt like it was life saving equipment.
"Don't scold my child," Kairo said mildly to Sara before looking back at his son. His tone softened again. "Zayn, baby… Dada has work to finish. Let me complete it, okay?"
"No!" Zayn protested dramatically. "Mumma will beat me!"
Sara's eyes widened. "Excuse me?!"
Kairo bit back a smile. "No, baby. Mumma won't hit you."
But Zayn shook his head stubbornly, refusing to move.
Kairo glanced up at Sara with mock accusation. "Why did you scare him, Soda Glass? Look at him. He's terrified of you now."
Sara squinted her eyes. "Me? Scaring that brat? He's putting on an act. Go and see the mess he made. Zayn, come here. Stop disturbing your dad."
"See?" Kairo said dramatically. "Your voice alone is scary. How will he not be afraid? What did he even do? Just a small, childish mess. Spare him, baby. You're behaving like a lady don."
Sara raised one eyebrow slowly. Then without saying another word, she turned, stepped out, and shut the door behind her with a loud thud.
Kairo blinked. Then he smiled, already knowing he had officially annoyed his wife. and now he is also on the radar of her anger along his tiny creature.
He looked down at Zayn, who was still glued to him. "Mumma is really angry, my son," he whispered conspiratorially. "Let's not go near her until she cools down."
Zayn nodded very seriously.
Kairo chuckled. "Stay here. Don't move until Dada finishes the meeting, okay?"
Another firm nod.
Kairo kissed the top of his head and let him cling there for a moment before unmuting his microphone and turning on the wencam.
With a professional smile, he said, "Apologies for the interruption. Let's continue."
The lady on the other side of the screen smiled warmly. "Is that your child?"
"Yes," Kairo replied, pride softening his tone. "My son."
"He's adorable," she said. "What happened? He's holding onto you like that?"
Kairo gave a light laugh. "Just regular family chaos. My wife chased him down for a very childish crime, and he ran to me for rescue."
The lady laughed out loud.
"I'm sorry for the disturbance," Kairo added smoothly. "He won't interrupt again. We can continue."
"Alright," she said with a smile. "Let's continue."
The meeting resumed smoothly. Zayn stayed glued to Kairo the entire time, silent now, occasionally peeking at the screen as if he, too, were evaluating the deal.
Finally, the lady concluded, "We'll inform you about our decision by this week."
Kairo nodded politely. "Thank you, ma'am. It was a pleasure meeting with you."
"Likewise," she replied warmly. "I hope we build a strong business relationship going forward."
Kairo smiled. "So do I."
The call ended. Silence returned to the room.
Kairo let out a slow breath and looked down at the little koala wrapped around him. Zayn slowly loosened his grip and faced his father with wide, guilty eyes.
Kairo raised an eyebrow gently. "Now tell me, my son… why was Mumma angry? What did you do?"
Zayn looked down at his tiny hands. "I liked the feathers inside the cushion," he admitted in a small voice. "So I played with them. Mumma scolded me and chased me here."
Kairo pressed his lips together, trying not to laugh. "Oh, God… this Soda Glass," he muttered under his breath.
Then he softened, brushing Zayn's hair back. "You shouldn't make a mess like that, right? It's not good to dirty the house for no reason."
Zayn nodded, eyes still lowered. "I'm sorry, Dada. I just liked playing with them."
Kairo smiled and kissed his nose. "Apologize to Mumma, not me. She looked very serious."
Zayn looked up at him his lips trembling. "I'm scared."
Kairo's expression melted instantly. "Oh my little angel," he said gently kissing his forehead. "Okay. We'll apologize together. Dada will also come with you. Mumma won't stay angry for long."
Zayn thought about it carefully, then nodded. "Okay… but promise you'll protect me if Mumma is still angry."
Kairo chuckled, standing up and lifting him into his arms. "Of course, my baby. Dada will protect you."
"Come on," he said softly. "Let's go make peace with our angry mommy." He adjusted Zayn comfortably against his chest, lifting him and walked toward the door.