The backyard was your family’s wilderness: tall grass, two apple trees, a shed filled with mysterious “treasures,” and a swing that had definitely lived past its lifespan.

A sharp SNAP echoed across the yard.

Then— “MY SWIIIIING!” Hyunjin cried, dramatically sprawled in the grass like a fallen fairytale prince.

Chan knelt beside the broken rope. “It’s been holding on by pure hope.”

Hyunjin gasped. “And that hope BETRAYED ME.”

Seungmin looked unimpressed. “Gravity betrayed you. The swing had nothing to do with it.”

Hyunjin clutched his heart.

At lunch, Chan stood on a chair like a general.

“Troops! We begin Operation Backyard Revival!”

Minho didn’t look up from his cereal. “By troops, you mean us, right?”

“Yes.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

Han leaned close to you and whispered, “This is literally how kingdoms fall.”

But Chan was unstoppable.

“Today,” he declared, pointing outside dramatically, “we transform that backyard… into a KINGDOM.”

Felix gasped so loudly that even Minho looked up.

Somehow, everyone ended up outside.

Changbin hammered nails like he was forging legendary armor. Felix drew dragons, stars, and tiny smiley faces on cardboard shields. Han tried to invent a “royal anthem” using two spoons and a tin can. Jeongin attempted friendship with a squirrel again. Minho reorganized tools alphabetically because, “chaos slows productivity.” Seungmin filmed everything like a nature documentary: “Observe: a wild Hyunjin pretending to be useful.”

You found two giant branches and held them up high.

“THE ROYAL STAFFS OF THE BACKYARD!”

Hyunjin immediately struck a dramatic pose with one. Felix grabbed the other and ran in circles chanting, “Magic! Magic! Magic!”

The chaos was inevitable.

Changbin swung the hammer too hard, hit a metal bucket, and launched it straight into Han’s side.

Han dropped to the ground. “THIS IS IT— TELL MY STORY— oh wait, no, I’m fine.”

Meanwhile, you and Felix were building a cardboard watchtower. It collapsed instantly.

Felix, master of positivity, declared, “It adds rustic charm!”

Jeongin pointed at it. “It adds sadness.”

Hyunjin gasped. “HOW DARE YOU MOCK THE CASTLE OF OUR FUTURE!”

Chan rubbed his forehead. “Please don’t start another war.”

By late afternoon, the backyard looked incredible in a homemade, slightly chaotic way.

The swing was fixed—stronger than before. Cardboard “castle walls” circled the apple trees. A flag made from an old pillowcase fluttered from a wooden stick.

Chan stepped onto a tree stump.

“Citizens of the Backyard Kingdom, we gather to crown our ruler.”

Everyone looked around.

Then Chan pointed at you.

“{{user}}. Our monarch.”

Your jaw dropped. “Me??”

“Yep,” Minho said. “You caused the least destruction.”

Changbin hid the hammer behind him. Han hid two lemons. Jeongin hid the squirrel food.

Hyunjin placed a daisy crown on your head with royal seriousness.

“ALL HAIL QUEEN (or KING) {{user}}!”

Felix hugged you so tightly you squeaked. Seungmin clapped three times—exactly. Han bowed dramatically. Jeongin tripped while bowing but recovered like a pro.

That evening, everyone lounged around the “castle,” munching apple slices and watching fireflies float through the fading light.

“Do you think we’ll still do this when we’re older?” you asked softly.

Felix leaned his head on your shoulder. “I hope so. I really, really hope so.”

Changbin raised his apple slice. “We’ll just make BIGGER kingdoms.”

Hyunjin nodded. “And build swings that won’t betray me.”

Minho smirked. “Unlikely.”

Chan wrapped an arm around your shoulders.

“You’ll always have eight knights behind you,” he said. “No matter how old we get.”

Felix lifted his apple slice like a toast. “To the Backyard Kingdom!”

Everyone echoed it, voices overlapping, warm and loud.

And sitting among your chaos-filled, loyal, ridiculous siblings, you felt like royalty—not because of the crown, but because of them.