Winter Sunrise

by DiamondWings

Summary:

Being the single father of an extremely extroverted child has gotten Seonghwa into a bunch of trouble before. Nothing major, but enough to leave him just a little bit weary. Never has it flipped his life on its head as much as the one time his daughter decides to actually compliment the pretty neighbour's bow-tying skills, however. And maybe, just maybe, being flipped on its head is just what Seonghwa's life needed.

or

The one where two single dads who never got to love before meet, get to know each other, and discover what love means to them together.

Notes:

I'm going to /try/ and keep up with the daily chapters until Christmas, blame my boss for making me work on the clock if I don't manage to keep up.

 

Part of the #8tzember challenge on twitter

Chapter 1: Bow

“Mister, your bow is very pretty!”

Startled by the child’s voice, Hongjoong looked up from the stack of letters he’d just taken out of his mailbox. He found a little girl standing a few paces away from him, hands clasped behind her back, shoulders squared, head held high as she looked directly at him. Still, Hongjoong proceeded to look around himself, wondering if perhaps there might be someone else she was talking to.

“I mean you, Mister. There’s only you and my dad around, and he doesn’t have a bow,” the girl clarified.

Hongjoong cleared his throat, accepting the fact that a random child had just come up to him to compliment his wardrobe choices.

“Uh, thank you?” he didn’t know why he was making it a question.

“Did you tie it yourself?” the child further inquired, obviously still talking about the bow holding the neckline of his coat together

It was a coat he’d designed and tailored himself, and given it a special kind of clasp to tie into elaborate bows instead of a traditional top button. It was the theme of his current designs, bows of different kinds decorating every piece in some way or fashion.

“I did,” he answered the child’s question, a little belated.

“That looks hard. I can tie my shoes already, but the bows never come out that pretty. I can’t even make the bunny’s ears even yet. I need to ask my dad to fix them if I want them to look the same. But I don’t think my dad can tie bows as pretty as that one, either,” she pointed at him again, right at the bow, the moment another man rounded the corner of the building’s lobby, lugging several heavy looking grocery bags with him.

“Aurora, what did I tell you about wandering off on your own?!” he sounded exasperated, panting a little under the weight of the grocery bags. Despite the exertion coloring his face, sweat dampening his brow and causing several strands of his windswept hair to stick to his skin, and a frown marring his features, the man was gorgeous, and Hongjoong found his breath stolen right out of his lungs.

The child turned around to the man, who must be her father.

“Not to. But I didn’t! I’m still in the same room!” she argued, lightning quick.

“I didn’t just tell you to stay in the same room. Where else should you always be while we’re in public?”

“Where you can see me. But we’re already at home!”

“That- that’s not- Home is only once we get upstairs!”

Hongjoong bit his lips subtly, trying not to smile at the argument between father and daughter, not wanting to undermine the father’s authority. The kid couldn’t be more than six or seven years old, and she sure loved to argue. Judging by the father’s expression, it was a common occurrence.

“Also, no pointing at people like that. That’s rude. I’m so sorry if she bothered you,” the last bit was clearly directed at Hongjoong, and Hongjoong flustered at being addressed by the beautiful man.

He hurried to answer, all too aware of the shape of his tongue in his mouth and suddenly terrified of stumbling over the words he was trying to say. “Oh, no, she didn’t. She- She was complimenting me, in fact!” he stumbled out, despite his best efforts.

Surprise widened the father’s eyes at Hongjoong’s claim, but before either could say anything more, the child chimed in.

“I was saying nice things to the mister with the pretty bow. He says he tied it himself! You can’t tie bows that pretty!” And just like that, the father was catching strays, and Hongjoong was trying not to laugh, again.

“That’s- I could! I could learn to,” the father defended himself.

“Why haven’t you? You’re already old, you should know how to tie the really pretty bows already!”

This time, Hongjoong couldn’t help the little laugh he let out. The child was ruthless, in a delightful way.

“I’m sorry,” he quickly apologized when both father and daughter looked up at him, raising his hands placatingly. The father didn’t look offended, though; just tired. He was clearly more than used to his daughter’s… observations. Hongjoong could relate all too well, and he was intent on saving this beautiful man’s pride.

“In your dad’s defense, no one can tie this bow into just any kind of string. You need a special shaped piece of cloth to make it look like this. And there aren’t many of it in the world just yet.”

“Really?” the girl asked, bright eyed and curious. “Why not?” 

“Because I invented the shape - and it’s a secret,” he answered, the last words in a conspiratory stage whisper.

“Oooh!” the girl responded, appropriately - and genuinely - amazed. “Can you tell my dad the secret so he can tie bows like that for me, too?”

“Aurora! We can’t go around asking people to tell us secrets. They are secrets for a reason!” the father groaned, giving Hongjoong another apologetic look. Hongjoong waved it off good-naturedly.

“I could. But then you and your dad would have to keep the secret, at least for a while.”

“Why? Do you want to be the only one who can wear pretty bows? That’s not very nice. My dad says we should share when we have nice things that other people want, too, and it doesn’t hurt us to share. It wouldn’t hurt you to share how to make the pretty bows, right? You won’t forget how to make the bows if you told my dad.”

Astounding logic there, but as a father of a way too smart six-year-old himself, Hongjoong expected nothing less. Still, he doubted this child would comprehend the intricacies of trademarks and patents, no matter how well he explained it.

“I wouldn’t forget, no,” he laughed, “but I’ll get in trouble for telling the secret. I have to keep it for a while longer before I can tell anyone. Sorry.”

“Ah…” the child made a face, but didn’t argue further, clearly understanding why getting into trouble, no matter what that entailed, was not worth telling a secret over. She sighed exaggeratedly and promptly lost interest in Hongjoong, toddling over to the elevators and staircase to play on the railing instead.

“Sorry about that,” the father sighed. He’d put down the grocery bags and was opening his own mailbox, close to Hongjoong’s but on the row below his. “She’s very… forward. And I don’t necessarily want to discourage that in her, but we’re still trying to find the balance here.”

“It’s alright. It’s charming! She did come to deliver a compliment, after all,” Hongjoong quickly reassured the father again.

“...this time,” came the answer in a long-suffering sigh. “We’re also still working on not judging people for no good reason.”

Hongjoong felt that one to his core.

“Oh boy… I can only wish you good luck there. My son hardly ever talks to other adults, but when he does, he has a penchant for calling people stupid to their face, without actually saying the words. It’s a talent, and the bane of my existence.”

“At least yours doesn’t say the words… Aurora will use the words, and then some, if she sees fit,” the father groaned. Then, looking at where his kid had wandered off to (again) while the adults talked, he determined she was out of earshot and whispered conspiratorially, only for Hongjoong to hear: “It doesn’t help that she’s usually spot-on, but obviously I can’t let her know that.”

Hongjoong laughed, but commiserated with the father. His own child was much the same in that regard, too. 

“Daaaaaad! Let’s go hoooome!” Aurora called across the lobby of their building, hanging dramatically off the railing from the stairs.

“I’m coming, sweetie,” her father called back, quickly finishing up stowing away his mail and going about gathering his various grocery bags. Hongjoong debated for a moment too long if he should offer his help carrying those, or if that would be creepy. By the time he’d made up his mind, the man was done, however, and started to head off after his daughter. 

“Well, you see, I gotta go! Nice meeting you, have a good day!” he still politely inclined his head in departure, but was already on the way by the time Hongjoong managed a “Likewise. You, too,” in response.

Only after father and daughter had squeezed into the elevator and the doors closed did Hongjoong realize that he’d never even learned the beautiful man’s name.

***

Unexpectedly (though, after learning that they lived in the same building, there was no reason why Hongjoong shouldn’t have expected it), Hongjoong got another chance to learn the beautiful man’s name just a few days later.

“Pretty-Bow-Man!” a small but loud voice hollered through the lobby just as Hongjoong was about to enter the elevators. He stopped and turned around, and sure enough, found the child from the other day hurtling towards him. 

 She skidded to a halt a few paces away from him and gave him a once-over.

“No pretty bows today?” she asked, tilting her head expectantly. Hongjoong laughed, shifting the satchel on his back to his side and showed her the back of his coat. It wasn’t a tied bow, but the design of a bow was still worked into the shape of the fabric there.

“Ooooh!! That’s pretty!” the girl gasped, but when Hongjoong turned back around to face her, she frowned. “But that’s cheating! It’s pretty, but it’s no real bow!”

“Hello to you, too,” Hongjoong laughed again, shaking his head. “What do you mean, cheating! It’s a bow!”

“It’s not a real bow, though! It’s just the back of your coat! And I won’t believe you if you say you tied it yourself this time!”

“Well…” Hongjoong started, but was momentarily distracted when the girl’s father rounded the corner as well and caught up to his daughter.

“Don’t bother lying to me, Mister!” the child stemmed her little hands into her hips and puffed her chest out with a glare.

“Aurora! You’re being rude! We don’t go around accusing people of lying just like that. Apologize, now!” the man scolded, scandalized and mortified.

“I wasn’t saying he was lying, I was saying he should not lie!” Aurora protested; Hongjoong had already half expected her to.

“It is still rude of you to assume he would. Apologize!”

Aurora rolled her eyes, but turned to Hongjoong regardless. “Sorry, Pretty-Bow-man,” she sighed, before stomping off to play on the railing of the stairs once more.

“I’m so sorry about her. It’s like she’s decided to be difficult on purpose today. Her favourite classmate - I’m not allowed to call him her friend, because they’ve apparently never even talked to each other - didn’t come to school today and it ruined her day; her words, not mine,” the kid’s father explained.

“That’s rough,” Hongjoong agreed, “My son didn’t even go to school today because apparently everything was just wrong from the moment he woke up. And, shoot me, but some days, it’s just not worth the fight. Not like it would have done him any good if I’d forced him to go, anyway.”

The beautiful stranger sighed, glancing at his daughter.

“Aurora normally loves going to school… Who knows if the reason she gave me is even the real reason she’s so testy today… Anyway,” he shook himself out of his musing, “thank you for understanding. I would hate for her to ruin your day with her loud mouth.”

“Oh, she didn’t!” Hongjoong quickly reassured “It is rather flattering to be called ‘Pretty-Bow-Man’, after all.”

The father actually face-palmed. “Right! I’m sorry about the random nicknaming, too. I’m getting too used to her doing that. I’m Seonghwa, by the way.”

“Hongjoong. And again, I don’t mind it. As long as it’s not Ugly-Bow-Man; now that would be humbling!”

Seonghwa laughed, then quickly slapped a hand in front of his mouth, cutting himself off. “I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to laugh!”

Hongjoong found himself grinning back, though.

“It’s alright if you did. It was a joke, after all!”

“Daaaaaad!” 

“Right!” Seonghwa quickly looked back to where his daughter was calling out for him. “Sorry, I gotta-”

“Oh, absolutely, I need to get going as well. Nice, uh, formally meeting you?”

“Yeah, you, too! Bye, Hongjoong!” Seonghwa waved, then hurried off after his daughter. 

Hongjoong was all too aware they were heading in the same direction, however, and how awkward would that be? Oh no, absolutely not! And so, he went back to his mail slot, checking the empty box a second time after already having emptied it out just moments before Seonghwa and his daughter had showed up. 

He heard the two enter the elevator, and the door close. As soon as it did, he shut his empty mailbox once more, and let his head thump against the flat surface. Eyes closed, he groaned to himself.

He was being pathetic. What was that little display-for-no-one he’d just done? What was wrong with just sharing the elevator with Seonghwa and his daughter? He wanted to blame Seonghwa, somehow, but he couldn’t. This was on him, all Seonghwa had done was exist, and it was apparently enough to make him malfunction. How they had managed to carry even as short a conversation as they had with Hongjoong being the mess he was, was nothing short of a miracle. He had to get his act together if he wanted Seonghwa to hopefully keep talking to him whenever they bumped into each other!

***

Running into Seonghwa and his daughter on his way home became somewhat of a regular occurrence. It didn’t happen every day, but often enough for him to start looking forward to hearing the bright kid’s voice calling him “Pretty-Bow-Man” across the lobby of their apartment building, weary father in tow berating her for not using his actual name. 

Hongjoong didn’t mind the nickname at all, seeing it was the reason he found an excuse to talk to Seonghwa as often as he did. He managed to get his act together enough to ride the elevator up together with Seonghwa and Aurora the next time they met, too, thus extending the time he had to talk to them by a few precious minutes.

During one of those elevator rides up, a couple of weeks after first meeting the pair, he taught Aurora how to tie a simple yet pretty bow into a piece of ribbon he’d found in his coat pocket on the way home. He allowed the child to keep it, of course, and the next day, she excitedly ran up to him once more while he was checking his mail to show him how her father had helped her fashion the bow into a keychain she proudly wore on her backpack.

From then on, Seonghwa guaranteed Hongjoong that he had become one of Aurora’s bestest of friends, in her book. Hongjoong felt honored; truly, he did. Aurora was a lovely child, even if ruthless in her assessments and still trying to find the balance between ruthless honesty and polite silence. But a small but very pesky and insistent voice in the back of his mind wailed about how he wished that Seonghwa would count him among the bestest of his friends, instead. Unfortunately, Hongjoong felt as useless as ever when confronted with Seonghwa to help make that a reality, already counting it as a win if he managed to uphold five minutes of conversation with the man without making a fool of himself.

At least he could always count on Aurora to prompt them into conversation, he thought. Therefore, he was surprised when one day, it wasn’t the child calling out to him through the lobby, but Seonghwa himself. 

Hongjoong had thought himself alone, figuring it was one of the days he wouldn’t cross paths with the father and daughter duo when no one called out to him as he stalled at the mailbox, and therefore, his heart did a silly little leap when he heard Seonghwa call his name to ask for him to not let the elevator leave.

Hongjoong turned to find Seonghwa carrying his daughter in his arms, her own little arms wrapped so tightly around her father’s neck that Hongjoong wondered how the other was even breathing. Seonghwa hurried over to where Hongjoong was holding the doors of the elevator open as fast as he could with the weight in his arms; little did he know Hongjoong would have been happy to stand there holding the doors open for Seonghwa all day long if he had to.

“Thank you,” Seonghwa panted when he stumbled into the elevator, leaning heavily against the wall for support.

Hongjoong merely nodded in acknowledgement, worry creasing his forehead when Aurora had yet to look up from where she was hiding her face in Seonghwa’s neck.

Seonghwa saw his look, and the silent question therein, and sighed quietly.

“She’s not hurt, just sad. She-” he started to explain, just to be cut off by a wail from his daughter and a tightening of her arms around his neck that had him looking a little blue from lack of oxygen. With a bit of a struggle, he managed to get her to let him breathe again, at least. Gently, Seonghwa consoled her with quiet shushes. Once she had settled down again, he caught Hongjoong’s gaze and gestured at her backpack slung over his arm. 

Hongjoong followed the gesture with his gaze, but couldn’t see anything amiss at first. His eyes met Seonghwa’s again, inquisitively, and Seonghwa mouthed one word: bow. 

Hongjoong looked at the backpack again, and lo and behold, the bow keychain was missing.

His mouth opened in a little oh of understanding.

The elevator stopped and the door opened, signalling Seonghwa and Aurora’s stop. 

“See you, Hongjoong,” Seonghwa bid Hongjoong goodbye. Aurora, who normally made sure to bid Hongjoong goodbye as well, didn’t look up at all.

Hongjoong couldn’t help but keep thinking about how devastated the little girl clearly was by the loss of the bow throughout the rest of the day, as well as the next. He was debating making a new one to give her, but he wasn’t sure how she’d accept that. How much emotional value had the kid put in the first bow? He knew his son would berate him if he tried to give him a replacement for a lost or broken item he felt attached to; would Aurora feel similarly?

He was still mulling about the lost bow when he was once more getting the mail and Seonghwa and Aurora arrived as well. 

For the second time ever since he’d first met the pair, Aurora didn’t call out to him in greeting, instead hiding her face in her father’s coat when Seonghwa walked up to Hongjoong and his own mailbox.

“Hi, Hongjoong,” Seonghwa greeted Hongjoong with a warm smile.

“Hi, Seonghwa. Hi, Aurora,” Hongjoong made sure to greet both new arrivals, but Aurora had yet to emerge from the folds of Seonghwa’s coat.

Seonghwa reached down to place a comforting hand on his daughter’s shoulder.

“She’s feeling a little shy right now. Didn’t you want to tell Hongjoong something, love?”

Aurora shook her head, face still hidden in her father’s coat.

Seonghwa and Hongjoong shared a look, both shrugging. It was up to Aurora to decide if she wanted to tell something or not; nothing they could do about it.

“Did you see that building admin announced maintenance work on the central heating?” Seonghwa asked, aiming for small talk. Hongjoong nodded.

“With how cold it’s getting, I hope that’ll be a quick affair. Ridiculous, that they only thought of that now. Couldn’t they have gotten that done in the summer?”

Seonghwa agreed, and back and forth they went with the usual, meaningless small talk they often exchanged during their short encounters whenever Aurora didn’t steer the conversation.

Normally, Hongjoong didn’t care much for small talk and meaningless back and forth. With Seonghwa, however, he didn’t mind it at all. Anything Seonghwa had to say, he loved to listen to. He strongly suspected Seonghwa could be reading him a groceries list and he would still be listening with rapt attention.

With how focused he was on Seonghwa, he only noticed Aurora had decided she wanted his attention as well when she tugged on his coat, after they’d entered the elevator.

“Oh, hi there!” Hongjoong smiled openly at the little girl, who was looking sheepishly up at him.

“Hi, Joong,” she answered in just a whisper, a volume he hadn’t known was possible from the normally loud and boisterous kid. And for the first time, she used his name, or an abbreviation of it, rather than the nickname she’d assigned to him. “I have to tell you something.”

“Oh?” Hongjoong asked, lowering himself to his haunches to be at eye level with the child. “You do?”

She nodded seriously.

“It’s a… a… confession,” she admitted, looking up at her dad to confirm she was using the right word. Seonghwa smiled mildly, giving her an encouraging nod.

“A confession? So, it’s serious?” Hongjoong widened his eyes, doing his best to appear serious as well. He had an idea where this might be going, but if it was that serious to the kid, he would treat the confession with the seriousness and respect it deserved.

Aurora nodded again, and her bottom lip trembled a little.

“Yes. It is. And very sad. And I’m very sorry.” Her bottom lip wobbled harder.

“I can tell,” Hongjoong cooed softly. “You look very upset. And scared. Are you scared I might get upset at what you’re going to tell me, too?”

Aurora bit her lips in apprehension, looking away, before nodding her head silently.

“Ah, I see. But, you don’t have to be scared. I won’t get upset, I promise.”

Aurora didn’t look like she believed him. “How can you promise? You don’t know yet if it’ll make you upset.”

“I can,” Hongjoong retorted, however. “Nothing you could tell me would make me get upset with you.”

“Even if I did something bad?” the kid asked with wide eyes. At that moment, the elevator stopped and the doors opened. Seonghwa made no move to get out, however, merely wedging a foot in the door so it would stay open.

“Did you do something bad?” Hongjoong asked, making his voice sound as disbelieving as he could.

“Maybe…” she hedged, but added nothing more.

“Well… Whatever you did, did you do it on purpose?”

Aurora shook her head violently, a pained look on her face as if the mere idea was abhorrent to her.

“Ok. And do you think that what happened, wouldn’t have happened if you had done anything differently?”

Here, the child paused for a moment, before shaking her head tentatively with a deeply furrowed brow.

“No. I don’t know. I don’t know what I could have done to not make it happen…” she whispered.

“Well then, no matter what, I am sure that what happened wasn’t your fault, so there is no reason for me to be upset with you.”

The child’s jaw dropped with a soft gasp as the logic clearly made sense to her, and she stood up a little taller.

“It’s… I lost the bow you gave me…” she admitted in a rush, reaching blindly for her father’s coat to hold on to it for comfort.

It was just what Hongjoong had suspected the confession would be about.

“Ah, I see. That’s upsetting indeed; you really liked that bow, didn’t you?”

Aurora nodded, and a suspiciously misty sheen filled her eyes.

“Do you know where you lost it? Was it at school?”

The child shrugged forcibly. “I don’t know. I just know I looked at my bag at one point and it wasn’t there. And I looked everywhere for it and couldn’t find it. It’s g-gone,” her voice broke on the last word, and tears were just about to spill down her face.

“Well, that’s a bummer, for sure,” Hongjoong agreed, not about to invalidate the child’s feelings even though all this was just about a bow he’d made on the fly. “But, first of all, I’m not upset with you because of it.”

“You’re not?” she still had to ask, voice full of hope.

“Absolutely not,” Hongjoong reassured her. “I’m just sorry that you are feeling so sad. But these things happen, unfortunately, and there isn’t much we can do about it.”

Hongjoong had barely finished talking before he found himself with an armfull of child, almost knocking him back flat on his ass with the way he was crouching.

“Ah- Oh. There, there…” He loosely hugged the kid back, glancing uncertainly up at Seonghwa to gauge if this was ok. Seonghwa was just smiling down at them, however, a silent, if perhaps a little surprised, observer.

“Thank you! I’m so happy! I thought you wouldn’t want to be my friend anymore because I lost your gift…!” Aurora confessed, the words muffled by Hongjoong’s scarf.

“Oh, sweetie, no… No, never, not ever because of something like that!” Hongjoong exclaimed, hugging the child a little tighter as his heart clenched at her words. “That would be a very weak friendship, if I let it fall apart because of something that wasn’t even your fault.” 

Once Aurora let go, she bounced back and was almost back to the vibrant and happy child Hongjoong had first met. Almost. But then again, she was still upset about losing the bow in the first place. With one of her worries now resolved, however, Hongjoong was sure she would soon be back to her old self.

Finally, Seonghwa moved to get out of the elevator, and Aurora hopped out with a spring in her step as well. Before the doors could close, however, Seonghwa reached back inside, placing a hand on Hongjoong’s arm and squeezing lightly, before whispering a heartfelt “Thank you. Seriously. This means a lot to her,” to Hongjoong. 

Hongjoong felt himself blushing, his arm prickling and heating up where Seonghwa had touched him despite several layers of clothing separating their skin, and it continued long after Seonghwa had let go of him again, after the elevator doors had closed, and even after his own front door had opened and shut behind him.

Hongjoong closed his eyes, leaning back against the door, and took a deep breath, grounding himself before he would have to act normal around his son and friends.

Get it together, old boy. You’re not a teenager anymore. Stop acting like a fool just because a pretty stranger gave you the time of day.

But then again, was Seonghwa a stranger anymore at this point?

 

Chapter 2: Letters

Aurora had long since gone to sleep, and finally, Seonghwa was done picking up the apartment and sank onto his couch for a long-deserved break. It had been a long day; but then again, every day was, being a single father. And yet, he wouldn’t trade having Aurora for the world, and if having her meant having to do everything on his own, well, so be it.

Of course, it would have been nice if he didn’t have to do everything alone. And, well, he wasn’t technically alone; he had friends who helped him out a lot! And his parents, despite living on the opposite side of the country, did what they could, as well. But, still…

It was useless wishful thinking, but Seonghwa was but a mere human being with dreams and wishes and needs, too. He couldn’t help himself when he sank into the corner of his couch and wished it was someone’s shoulder he could rest his head on rather than a mere cushion. He couldn’t help himself when he dreamed of having someone to share these moments of silence after Aurora had gone to sleep with. Someone who would be content with the silence, but who Seonghwa might not even want to be silent with. Someone with whom he could share all the mundane little things that had happened throughout his day, and who’d be happy to share their day with him. Someone else to keep him company who wasn’t seven years old. Someone to love, who didn’t depend on him; but who could depend on him if need be, and who he could depend on as well. Someone… Just someone to chase away the loneliness he felt in the corners of his heart that ached despite Aurora’s best efforts to command all of his attention.

Recently, and despite Seonghwa’s best efforts, there was a face taking shape whenever he imagined that someone. And today was no exception. 

Seonghwa sighed, shaking his head at himself as he pressed his face into one of the throw pillows, squeezing his eyes shut as if that would erase the image of the face his mind had conjured up. But after today, he feared that would be harder than ever.

One thing about Aurora, was that she loved people - but conditionally. She loved talking to people of all ages. She loved being a little smartass, above all, but beyond that, she just loved to talk to anyone and everyone. What she didn’t do, however, was touch people. He was the glaring exception, and he was beyond grateful for that. But even his best friends, his parents, or his brother, who had all been part of Aurora’s life since she’d been born, were very rarely granted the honor of a hug, or even just a touch. And that was after years of knowing and interacting with her. 

And yet, there was that beautiful stranger from the floor above, whom Aurora had deemed worthy of a hug just a few weeks after first meeting him and talking to him a few minutes three times a week. And it hadn’t been a loose hug, either, but a full bear hug with snuggles - the kind Seonghwa had thought he was the sole recipient of, ever. 

It wasn’t that he was jealous, no; he couldn’t be further from that if he put his mind to it.

No, the image wouldn’t leave his mind for a whole different reason.

One of the main reasons he was alone, single, without a companion in his life, was of course his daughter. She took precedence over everything else, and his own wishes and dreams were no exception. That meant that it would never even cross his mind to bring someone into his life that she didn’t approve of wholeheartedly. Now, her voluntarily bestowing the honor of a hug upon the gorgeous neighbour was one hell of a big step in her book of accepting people…

Seonghwa groaned audibly, though muffled by the pillow that he pressed even harder against his face.

Wishful thinking, that was all. Wishful, and foolish. The one time a good looking stranger gave him the time of day, and Seonghwa was making a big deal out of it.

He knew nothing about Hongjoong, apart from his name. Well, and that he worked in something related to fashion, as far as he’d gathered from his conversations with Aurora. And, most importantly, that he had a child of his own; one Seonghwa had yet to ever see, which meant that the kid was clearly with someone else whenever he and Hongjoong ran into each other down in the lobby of their building. Which, if Seonghwa let his two brain cells rub together to create a spark of thought, he had to realize most likely meant the kid was with their other parent; that was how traditional families worked, after all.

Seonghwa couldn’t help but feel pathetic. Hongjoong talking to him and Aurora meant nothing. He wouldn’t even be talking to them in the first place if it wasn’t for Aurora’s forwardness. He had a family at home, and all he was doing was humoring him and his daughter. 

Well, maybe that was a bit harsh on Seonghwa’s part. He didn’t actually believe that someone who was just humoring them would be as nice as Hongjoong was to Aurora. Or as engaging in his short conversations with Seonghwa as he was. Maybe he did aim for something like a friendship. Maybe he was hoping that their kids would eventually become friends down the line, too; he had mentioned that his son struggled to make friends of his own once. Maybe… 

Maybe Seonghwa was overthinking everything, as he was wont to do in these lonely hours of the night. Maybe Seonghwa was simply overly tired, and emotional.

The time leading up to Christmas was always an emotional one for Seonghwa. He always wanted to make Christmas special for his daughter, and always felt he was lacking, even though Aurora never showed any signs that he wasn’t making it the best time of the year for her. Still, he couldn’t help but want to give her more. And in his mind, more meant… 

What did more mean?

Seonghwa emerged from the pillow, and scoffed at himself.

More meant a proper family, to him. More meant more people who would love her unconditionally, a mom - Seonghwa cringed internally. 

While he didn’t regret - could never regret! - being involved in bringing Aurora into being, it had only happened because he’d tried to convince himself he was straight at the time. That fathering Aurora had worked at all was nothing short of a miracle. He and her mother had never loved each other, he hadn’t even been attracted to her, and had only agreed to that one night stand to prove himself that he could make it work with a woman.

What had ended up happening was that he had no shadow of a doubt afterwards that he was definitely not into women and that he didn’t want a repeat performance of whatever that night had been, no thank you. And five months later, well, he’d learned of Aurora’s existence. Her mother hadn’t wanted an abortion, but also didn’t want to keep the child. Seonghwa, on the other hand, had fallen in love with the child the moment she was born. And thus, had sealed his fate.

A fate of being a gay single father who would stay single for the rest of his life - or until Aurora grew up and moved out and became independent enough to no longer rely solely on him. And that was a time he didn’t even want to think about for a long time, no matter what potential benefits such a time could bring to himself.

Oh, if only Hongjoong was single, too! And gay. And free to date. And into Seonghwa, most importantly!

But life was not a rom-com where one met the love of their life in the lobby of their apartment building because one’s daughter liked to chat up strangers about their wardrobe choices, Seonghwa thought bitterly, and got up to get himself a glass of wine. He deserved at least that much to drown his sorrows; one glass, and no more. Not on a week night. And not when there was no one else around Aurora could depend on in an emergency.

Two, at most, if the night was as rough on Seonghwa as it was tonight, and that was the hard limit.

Except, Seonghwa was a bit of a lightweight, and two glasses of wine were plenty enough to lead him to questionable life choices. Such as the decision to make sure Hongjoong knew how much it meant to him that he was as patient and kind to Aurora as he had been so far. Of course, he couldn’t say all that to Hongjoong’s face, especially not with Aurora around; even tipsy Seonghwa still realized that much. 

And so, the writing paper came out. And Seonghwa set to writing. It took him a few attempts, but eventually, he managed to string something together that he was happy with. And before he could change his mind about it, he neatly folded the piece of paper, put it in an envelope, and hurried downstairs to the lobby to shove it into Hongjoong’s mail box; he knew the one as well as he knew his own at this point.

Content with his endeavour, and at this point laden down heavily with tiredness, Seonghwa washed up and went to bed, not sparing a second thought to the letter waiting for Hongjoong to find it downstairs.

***

Dear Hongjoong,

It’s been a while since I’ve written a letter, so I am unsure of what a good alternative opener to a letter would be. ‘Dear Hongjoong’ seems fitting enough, though, because that’s what you’ve become to me, and Aurora. 

I wanted to write these lines because I feel the need to thank you, but I didn’t want to say everything I have to say with Aurora around. She might feel awkward. But I do need you to know how much I appreciate you, especially with the way you comforted Aurora today. You know firsthand by now that she has no qualms going up to people to strike up conversation, but you can consider yourself special for being on the receiving end of one of her hugs.

I’m sorry if that made you feel uncomfortable, by the way. Aurora isn’t normally one for touching other people, never mind hugging, out of her own volition, so I hadn’t deemed it necessary yet to caution her into asking for consent for either. Regardless, for the way you reacted and the kind words you found for her, I want to thank you. You soothed a big fear of hers and made her feel so much better after the loss of her bow. Thank you, too, for understanding that even though it’s “just a bow”, it meant a lot to her. Small things like that can mean so much to small humans like her. 

Thank you for reassuring her that you still want to be her friend after this, too. You have been upgraded from “pretty bow man” to “pretty bow friend” in her vocabulary whenever she talks about you; which has been quite a bit, especially today. You have reassured me you don’t mind the previous nickname; I hope the upgrade is acceptable as well, and that you’ll forgive the occasional “Joongie” she might call you, as well, though I am trying to make her understand why that might be too familiar a name to call you yet. (That is going about as well as you can probably imagine, with a child who - by all means - should be a lawyer, with how quick she is to counter-argue.)

To make a long letter short, thank you for being as kind as you have been, and for letting Aurora call you her friend; and here is to hoping I may earn the same right one day, too.

Seonghwa

***

Seonghwa barely remembered what exactly he had written in his letter to Hongjoong the next morning, and could only hope it hadn’t been anything too embarrassing. But what was done was done, and between everything that made up the whirlwind that was his day, he didn’t find the time to worry about it, anyway. He only remembered again when he and Aurora stepped into the lobby of their building at the end of the day and Aurora darted around the corner to see if Hongjoong was still at the mail box. From the way he saw her shoulders slumping, that was not the case. Unwittingly, Seonghwa breathed a sigh of relief.

For as much as he told himself that what was done was done, he didn’t want to be present when Hongjoong opened his mail box and found a letter from him inside it.

“Joongie is not here..” Aurora pouted, confirming what her body language had already told Seonghwa.

“He might be tomorrow. And it’s Hongjoong, love,” he reminded her as he went to check his own mail box. He didn’t expect anything to be in there, except maybe some random flyers, so he was surprised to find an off-white envelope with his name on it inside; one that had been deposited there directly, clearly without going through the postal services. 

His heart sped up, high in his throat, and he had to remind himself of Aurora’s presence so he didn’t simply open it right then and there to read whatever was inside, no matter how much he wanted to. Carefully, he stowed the envelope away in his bag before following his daughter to the elevators. Still, the whole way up, the envelope seemed to burn through the bag and against his hip, calling to him. And it didn’t stop calling to him for the rest of the day, but he would only find time for it much later, once Aurora was fast asleep again and Seonghwa was done with his daily chores.

***

Dear Seonghwa,

If anything, the opener you used flatters me – and has, quite frankly, made my day. As has your letter, and I am beyond grateful that I noticed it poking out of my mail box on the way out this morning, before anyone could pry it out or it could otherwise get lost. You and Aurora both have become quite dear to me, as well, over these past weeks. I find myself looking forward and hoping to see you at the end of the day, if only just to exchange a few words, if that is all we have time for.

I already know today will unfortunately not be a day we will run into each other by the mailboxes. My friend, who usually picks my son up from school and keeps him company until I get home, has to leave early, so I’ll have to adapt my routine accordingly. I still didn’t want to leave you without an answer, though, hence why I’m writing this letter.

Your kindness and appreciation for what I consider such a small gesture - to be kind to a child - is moving. I don’t do it out of any sense of obligation; I do believe every child deserves kindness. But I will say, it does help that Aurora is such a joy to be around – as are you!

I will remember the honor it was to be the recipient of one of Aurora’s hugs for what it was, and certainly not take it for granted. And no, it did not make me uncomfortable, even though I worried in the moment that you might be uncomfortable with me reciprocating the hug. As for the bow, I had been thinking about ways to help her heal the ache of that loss; I understand very well how much small things like that can mean to our small humans. Joonie easily finds attachment to small things that come to mean the world, as well. I’m happy to read that my words and actions brought Aurora comfort; that is everything I could hope for.

Being upgraded to “pretty bow friend” is also an honor – and far be it from me to undermine your parenting, but I personally don’t mind her calling me Joongie. It beats using my full government name any day! Still, I wish you good luck and quick wits to keep up with her undoubtedly stellar counterarguments; just, don’t feel obligated to fight this losing battle on my behalf.

Finally, thank you for allowing Aurora the freedom to talk to whomever she wishes to, and in this case, me, and thus making it possible for us to meet. As far as I am concerned, you have every right to call me your friend already, not just Aurora. But, if it aligns with your interests, I also wouldn’t be opposed to deepening this budding friendship between us; beyond barely-not-strangers-who-meet-at-the-mail-box.

Hope to run into you at the mailbox soon,

Hongjoong

***

Seonghwa didn’t dare breathe until he reached the end of the letter, and as soon as he did, he had to start over and read it again.

He couldn’t quite believe what his eyes were seeing; he - and Aurora -  were already dear to Hongjoong as well? Surely, he wouldn’t just say that without meaning it! And the part about his friend picking up his son and looking after him – not a spouse, not a partner; could it mean that Hongjoong, too, was a single dad? 

Seonghwa quickly forced himself to move on from that little tidbit and not dwell on it. Nothing good would come out of him lingering on dangerous thoughts that would lead him nowhere, anyway.

Hongjoong considered him a joy to be around. Not just his daughter, who, objectively, obviously was the star of every show; but Hongjoong had made sure to include Seonghwa in his appreciation, even though the statement would have been perfectly fine if he hadn’t added Seonghwa to it. 

Oh, how sweet Hongjoong was with his words! Seonghwa found himself melting, until his eyes alighted upon the nicknames Aurora had chosen for Hongjoong. No, no; definitely not! He couldn’t let Aurora continue to call Hongjoong ‘Joongie’; if only because that would be dangerous for him at this point! It was too familiar a nickname, and he could easily see himself wishing to be allowed to use that name, too. And he really, desperately, needed to reign himself in. They were, after all, at this point only still just barely-not-strangers-who-meet-at-the-mailbox – even if Hongjoong was open to changing that. 

But was Seonghwa open to changing that?

The sheet of paper he scrambled to get out and pen he rustled up at record speed to pen a reply to the letter he’d just finished rereading pointed strongly towards a clear “Yes!”.

***

Dear Hongjoong,

For a while, I was worried my late-night decision of writing that first letter might have been a poor one, but reading that it brought you joy has certainly put that worry to rest. And I will admit, I, too, look forward to running into you in the lobby on the way home; and I feel it goes without saying that Aurora does, as well, since she is quite vocal and up-front about that whenever we are so lucky as to still find you by the mailboxes when we arrive.

However unfortunate it was that we couldn’t meet today, I don’t know I could have faced you after sending that first letter and before reading your reply. So, thank you, sincerely, for taking the time to write that letter; now I can happily return to looking forward to meeting you by the mailboxes on the way home, too.

You sure flatter me by including me among those you consider a joy to be around; I am, of course, used to Aurora outshining me in that regard on the regular and I can’t even begin to resent her for that, but it does do wonders for my self-esteem to be contemplated from time to time, regardless. And I can only return the sentiment!

Aurora woke up while I was writing this letter and I forgot what else I was going to write in reply. She’s falling asleep on me now, but when I told her what it was I was doing, she asked that I include this drawing she drew in school today for you. She had been hoping to give it to you in person today, but loved the idea of mailing it to you instead, as well. I had to promise her to put the letter in your mailbox tonight, still, which I’ll do as soon as she’s fast asleep again. 

I can’t reach your letter where it lies on the table right now to use it as a guideline as I finish writing this, so I might forget some points, but I do want to say, I, too, would love to deepen this budding friendship beyond what we have now. Barely-not-strangers is such a mouthful, even on its own; friend would sound much better. 

I know you’ll probably only find this letter in the afternoon, as I certainly will make sure to place it properly and all the way in your mailbox this time, but in case you do find it in the morning, I would hope it brightens your day again.

Either way, hope to meet you again soon, as well,

Seonghwa

***

Seonghwa made good on his promise and hurried down to the lobby to deposit the letter that same night, after putting Aurora to bed again. He spent the next day only slightly overthinking what he’d written, especially towards the end, where he was writing over Aurora’s sleeping form on his lap and with tiredness starting to weigh down his own eyelids as well.

But what was done, was done; what was written was written, and since he Had made sure the letter was properly placed in Hongjoong’s mail box this time, there was no way for him to get it back now, so no need to dwell on what ifs, either.

As his luck - or lack thereof - would have it, he and Aurora missed Hongjoong again that afternoon. He didn’t count on there already being a reply from Hongjoong when he opened his mail box, either, but was pleasantly surprised when he found one regardless.

“Did Joongie write back?” Aurora asked as she watched Seonghwa take the letter out of the small compartment, bouncing on her feet to peer at it.

“He did,” Seonghwa answered, turning it so she could see the front of it, where his own and Aurora’s names were written in Hongjoong’s neat penmanship.

“To me, too? What does it say?!” she asked excitedly, her bouncing turning to jumping in place.

“Upstairs, love. We’re not opening the letter down here. Let’s get home first,” Seonghwa cautioned, prompting Aurora to sprint off to the elevator. Truth be told, if he’d been alone and not with his daughter, he very much would have opened the letter immediately and read it in the elevator up to their floor. He couldn’t very well do that with Aurora next to him, though.

A little selfishly, he also wished he didn’t have to share the letter with Aurora; and that was definitely a new feeling, and one he didn’t know how to feel about. 

Once upstairs and in their home, out of their thick outerwear, in slippers and with snacks ready, Seonghwa finally opened the letter from Hongjoong – with Aurora hanging from his arm all the while, bouncing on the couch next to him. 

He’s perfect, Seonghwa couldn’t help but think, when out of the envelope fell two pieces of paper, one addressed to each of them.

“What does it say?” Aurora asked again, when Seonghwa handed her hers, and before she had even unfolded it.

“I don’t know, love. You’ll have to read it yourself,” Seonghwa shrugged, making a show of focusing on his own letter. He had faint hopes that receiving a letter would encourage Aurora to want to read, but was surprised when it actually worked and she focused on the page.

Seonghwa doubted it would be long before she’d either ask for help or finish reading, but he couldn’t wait to read his own letter, either, and just hoped she’d be entertained long enough for him to read it.

***

Dear Seonghwa,

I, for one, am glad you made that late night decision the other day. Your letters have brightened my days twice in a row now. You are right in assuming that I would normally only check for the mail in the afternoon, but something made me check in the morning again today; though I might not have wanted to admit it to myself before, I can only accept it now that your words have put a stupid smile on my face that I was hoping for a reply from you. 

Unfortunately, we will have to miss each other again today. My friend got sick and can’t look after Joonie today, either, and with him and his partner both out of commission, I have no one else who could pick him up and keep him company in the afternoon. Granted, his school offers extracurriculars that would keep him at school until the usual time I get off work, but he struggles with the loud and busy environment that school is as is, and I’d rather he didn’t have to put up with any more than he can handle. The meltdowns coming out of pushing him too far are no fun for anyone. 

But as much as I regret that all this means we’ll keep missing each other in the lobby for however long it’ll be until my friend can step in and do Joonie’s pick-ups again, I’m glad we at least have taken up this way to stay in contact in the meantime. It’s been forever since I’ve last exchanged letters with anyone, and this is quite fun; romantic, almost.

Texting would of course be far more convenient, especially to figure out a time and place to meet up for longer than a handful of minutes and get to know each other better. But compared to these letters, texts feel almost too impersonal; wouldn’t you say? Still, I’ll leave my number at the bottom of this letter, and you decide what to do with it, when or not to use it. But I would love to continue exchanging letters like this, regardless. 

It was sweet, to read about how Aurora interrupted your writing and you had to finish writing your letter over her sleeping form. I could picture it vividly, and it was a heartwarming image. She is such a sweet girl, though I am sure she commands your attention and keeps you busy at all times of the day and night - as children are wont to do. I enjoyed the picture she drew for me, too. I’m sure you’ve seen it when you included it in the letter, but I have to say, I am genuinely impressed with how much detail she put in that picture, and how well she captured all three of our likenesses. Does she get that talent from you? I decided to write her a separate letter thanking her for the gift, too, since I couldn’t do it in person, even though I am not sure she can read it herself yet. 

Hope you have a lovely evening,

Hongjoong

P.S.: A star does not stop shining when the northern lights dance; a star is the reason they get to delight us in the first place.

xxx-xxxxxx

Chapter 3: Mistletoe

Seonghwa didn’t stop sending Hongjoong letters even after he got his number, and Hongjoong couldn’t have been happier about it. He treasured each and every single one of the letters Seonghwa sent him, regularly rereading them in order. It was interesting, and quite encouraging, to see how Seonghwa became bolder, and more familiar, with every one of them. And that even though they didn’t get to see each other for a while.

Yunho was sick for over a week, and as soon as he felt better, Mingi got sick as well. For two whole weeks, Hongjoong was out of a babysitter. Thankfully, his job allowed him a flexible schedule and by managing his time smartly, he was able to arrange his schedule in a way that left him with only work he could do from home for the afternoons after he’d picked Joonie up from school. 

His son preferred total silence and to be left alone for a while after he got home, anyway, which worked just right in Hongjoong’s favor. That was not to say he didn’t require company and supervision, and an adult around, just in case. He was, after all, just a six year old child, still. 

Thus, Hongjoong found himself confined to his home in the afternoons, missing two whole weeks of meeting Seonghwa and Aurora. And yet, throughout the whole two weeks, the letters Seonghwa sent often included little gifts from Aurora in the form of drawings, an attempt at a letter of her own, a paper bow, and a dried leaf. Hongjoong was genuinely touched that the girl didn’t just not forget him, but also didn’t lose her interest in talking to him. 

Of course, at this point, what he was mostly looking forward to were Seonghwa’s responses to his own letters, but he was also keenly aware that it was thanks to Aurora that he got to meet and start talking to Seonghwa in the first place, and that the continuation of their friendship - or any interaction at all - strongly hinged on her approval.

In his letters, Seonghwa often let him know that he still had Aurora’s approval as well. Most recently, he informed him of her plans and attempts to invent a bow shape that he hadn’t discovered yet. Apparently, that had resulted in an entire roll of ribbon getting helplessly tangled, cut up, crinkled, knotted and torn on one hand, but also, Aurora accepting she needed to have the basic shape down pat first, and practicing so hard on doing up her shoelaces that she now did them perfectly on the first try most times.

Hongjoong loved reading the little anecdotes about Aurora Seonghwa shared with him, and he could only hope Seonghwa read the ones he shared about his own son with as much interest, despite never having met the child. 

Of course, Hongjoong wrote fondly about the boy whenever it fit. He told Seonghwa about his child’s need for peace and quiet to unwind from the hustle and bustle that was school when explaining how he managed to get work done at home with a small child around, but also about his love for Lego when Seonghwa mentioned his own interest in the matter. He lamented how limited their dinner options had become between his own measly cooking skills and what little of the foods he actually knew how to successfully make his son ate, without Mingi’s cooking to save them both. He revealed how Joonie’s desire to raise axolotl clashed with the kid’s own belief that they were certainly happier out in the wild rather than an aquarium at home, and how that had been the reasoning behind why they hadn’t ended up getting most of the pets his son expressed an interest in - not including snow leopards, wooly mammoths and deep sea sponges, for a variety of other, obvious reasons.

He usually hesitated talking about his kid to others who didn’t already know him, especially other parents; mostly for fear of being judged for his parenting of the boy, or worse yet, untoward remarks about his son himself. But with Seonghwa, it was easy to open up about Joonie. Seonghwa never made him feel inadequate, even when he suggested solutions for problems Hongjoong admitted running into, and the only thing that ever had Hongjoong’s heart in his throat when it came to his replies regarding Joonie himself, was the expression of his looking forward to eventually meeting the child.

Of course, that would be inevitable with the progression of their friendship. And it wasn’t that Hongjoong was trying to hide the kid from Seonghwa, or prevent them from ever meeting. But still, he was nervous about whenever the day should come.

Joonie was the most important and most precious person in his life, he was his top priority and every decision rose and fell with him.

At least Hongjoong knew Seonghwa would understand and respect that, for he was much the same with Aurora.

Near the end of the second week that Hongjoong went home early with his kid, Seonghwa eventually picked up the phone and sent him a text to figure out a hang-out. From the get-go, he announced that Aurora would have to be part of it, because none of his friends were free until the evening to look after her any time soon. He suggested meeting at the playground in the park behind their building. It was a nice one, even with winter knocking on the door and late Fall covering everything in frost.

Hongjoong of course had no problem with that, and yet he hesitated to include Joonie as well. Not without hearing his opinion, at least.

“Joonie, do you know how I've been making a new friend?” Hongjoong casually mentioned during dinner.

His son looked up from his pasta.

“The neighbour you’ve been writing letters to?”

Of course, Joonie would make the correct assumption immediately.

“Ah, yes, him,” Hongjoong confirmed, and his son tilted his head in contemplation.

“Friend?” he asked, confusing Hongjoong.

“Yes, yes. We’re… becoming friends.” Because what else could there be at this stage?

The tilted head was joined by narrowed eyes and a piercing look.

“Friends…” Joonie repeated, then shrugged and sat up, returning to his pasta. “I thought you were dating already.”

Hongjoong, who’d forced himself to continue eating to keep up the illusion of casual conversation, regretted that very same choice as he choked on his own pasta.

Joonie observed him with worry as Hongjoong hacked up a lung, shoulders slumping with relief once the coughing subsided.

“Please don’t die,” he requested, expression dead serious, before going back to his food.

“I don’t plan to,” Hongjoong wheezed. “But you can help me with that by not saying those kinds of things when I have my mouth full of food.”

Again, the head tilt came back.

“What kind of things?”

Hongjoong felt himself blushing, and made a vague hand gesture.

“Oh, you know, like, like just now!”

“I didn’t think I said anything wrong. You come home all blushing and smiling when you meet him, you’ve been writing each other love letters for weeks now, you-”

“They’re not love letters!” Hongjoong interrupted the child, who gave him a deadpan look.

“Then why do you hide them? And become all blushy and smiling and giggling when you read them? And write at least five different letters when you reply, before you decide on which to give him?”

“I- That’s not- It’s- they are just letters! There’s nothing more to them! Just letters!” Hongjoong spluttered defensively.

His son hummed with a pensive pout for a moment.

“But you want them to be love letters.”

“I-...” Hongjoong didn’t know what to say to that. Did he? Well… He wasn’t exactly opposed- but, did his son need to know that?

Hongjoong kept gaping like a fish for a moment too long; long enough for Joonie to finish his pasta, slide off his seat, walk over to Hongjoong and pat his head.

“You can tell me the truth. I approve of him,” his son reassured Hongjoong, and effectively had him snap out of his gaping daze.

“You appro- you don’t even know him!” he exclaimed. Joonie shrugged in response, giving Hongjoong another no-nonsense stare.

“He writes you letters. Even though you both have phones. And he makes you smile more than I’ve ever seen in my whole life, even when he’s not there. He can’t be bad if he does that.”

At this point, all Hongjoong could do was accept defeat.

“He does make me smile a lot, doesn’t he…” he admitted with a long but fond sigh, a faint smile playing around his lips again as if to prove his words true.

Joonie nodded, before pushing Hongjoong’s arm out of the way to climb onto his lap instead. Hongjoong acquiesced, though not without a protest.

“Joonie, I’m still eating!”

“Your food is cold by now, and you don’t like this food cold,” the child observed, correctly. “Are you going to get up and put it in the microwave?” 

 Hongjoong grimaced at the thought, not fancying reheated pasta right now, and shook his head.

“No. No, I don’t think so,” he admitted, letting Joonie snuggle up to him and putting an arm around him so he wouldn’t fall.

“Why did you want to talk to me about your not-boyfriend-friend?” the child asked when he was done getting comfortable, and Hongjoong felt his ears burn at the nickname Joonie had found for Seonghwa.

“It’s- I- well. He really isn’t my boyfriend, and we are friends, but we still don’t know each other very well. And we’ve been thinking about hanging out sometime to change that. Perhaps, sometime soon, in the playground behind the house, so his daughter can go play and it won’t be boring for her while we… talk. And I was wondering, if you would like to come as well?”

Joonie gave him a long, contemplative look, as if gauging the veracity of his words, before he eventually shrugged and rested his head back against Hongjoong’s chest, snuggling in for their usual after dinner cuddles. “Sure,” he answered nonchalantly, surprising Hongjoong again.

“Really?” Hongjoong truly couldn’t quite believe it.

“Yeah,” Joonie yawned. “You’re going to want me to meet him at some point, anyway. How old is his daughter?”

Now, there was a good question, one Hongjoong - surprisingly enough - didn’t know the exact answer to.

“Around your age. Maybe a little older,” was the best guess he could come up with.

Joonie wrinkled his nose. 

“Children my age are babies!” he protested, unimpressed.

“You are a baby, too, Joonie. And she is actually really smart, too.”

Joonie didn’t look like he quite believed him, but shrugged in a mere ‘we’ll see’ motion, and let it go. For the moment.

***

They decided to meet up on a sunny Sunday afternoon. The skies were clear, but a biting cold held the world in a firm grip and wouldn’t let the frost thaw from the branches, fences, and everything else it clung to, lighting the world up in startling whites and icy greys.

Hongjoong and Joonie were first at the playground, and not by accident. Parks and playgrounds were not part of their usual haunts, both usually far too populated and loud for Joonie to have a good time. Now, however, with the frost coating everything, they found themselves to be the only ones around, save for a few squirrels on quick supply runs and birds rustling through dry leaves and nearly empty trash cans.

“We should have brought something to feed the birds, while we’re here anyway…” Hongjoong mused, while burrowing his face deeper into his scarf against the cold.

“It’s not good to feed the birds. They’ll just fill their crops with stuff they can’t digest and don’t think they are hungry anymore and eat nothing else and then starve,” Joonie lectured him immediately. 

Hongjoong groaned good-naturedly, more than used to his son’s lectures, and bumped him lightly with his side.

“That’s when you feed them with bread. I never said anything about bread - you’ve told me before that that’s bad. Who’s to say I didn’t mean we should have brought birdseed, hm?”

Joonie looked up at him with a hard stare. “We don’t have birdseed at home.”

“No, we don’t. But we could have bought some,” Hongjoong argued back. 

“... you would have bought some, just to feed the birds today? We don’t normally go to parks…” Joonie was skeptical.

“Yeah, well, I was just putting the idea out there. Maybe we’ll start to come here more often.”

Joonie grimaced. “But it’s not nice here when there are lots of people.”

“We can come when there aren’t lots of people. There aren’t many birds around when there are many people, anyway.”

With every word he was saying, Joonie looked more skeptically at Hongjoong.

“Why do you suddenly want to feed the birds so bad?”

Hongjoong shrugged. “We can do that, instead of raising a pet upstairs. That way, the animals can live happily out here in the wild, but we still get to spend time with them and make friends with them. Did you know crows will form real friendships with people who feed them and are nice to them?”

“Of course, I know! I taught you that!” Joonie huffed in indignation, and Hongjoong was quick to apologize.

“Right, you did. My bad!”

“Joongie!!” A loud call sounded across the frosted playground, and Hongjoong and Joonie both turned to where it had come from; Hongjoong because he recognized the voice immediately, Joonie because he misheard the call for his own name.

“Aurora!” Hongjoong greeted the child that was bolting towards him happily. She did not give any indication that she was stopping any time soon, and Hongjoong almost realized too late. He managed to catch her just in time as she launched herself at him.

“Whoa there! Where are you going so fast?” He laughed as she hugged him fiercely. “Ok, I see breathing is conditional today?”

Aurora giggled, only letting go slightly of him to pout instead.

“I missed you! You’ve been gone for a million years!”

“It’s been two weeks. That’s a little less than a million years.” 

Aurora shook her head. “A million years, and two weeks!” she insisted.

“Huh. My calendar must be broken, then. I could have sworn it wasn’t quite that long.” Hongjoong acquiesced. Aurora wriggled in his hold, and he set her back down on the ground. Immediately, she started digging inside a little purse she had slung across her body.

“I have a gift for you! We were making chestnut people in school, and I made one for dad, and one for you. Here-” she broke off in the middle of extending her hand with a chestnut-person to Hongjoong when she caught sight of Joonie, half hidden behind Hongjoong.

“Yu-yujoon? What are you doing here?”

The kid stepped out from behind Hongjoong, making himself taller. 

“I live here. And that-” he pointed at Hongjoong, “-is my dad. What are you doing here?”

Aurora gaped for a moment, eyes wandering between Hongjoong and Joonie, before she snapped her mouth shut and nodded resolutely, as if she’d just figured out something important.

“That makes sense.”

“What, exactly, makes sense?” Seonghwa asked, having reached them only just now, since he’d been walking at a much more sedate pace. “Hi, Hongjoong. And you’re… Joonie?”

“Dad, Hongjoong is Yujoon’s dad! It makes so much sense, because of course Yujoon would be as cool as he is if Hongjoong is his dad!” Aurora interrupted before anyone could answer.

Hongjoong exchanged looks with Seonghwa, and was relieved to see the other looked as lost as he felt.

“You, uh, you two know each other?” he asked the obvious, but he felt like he had to make sure he understood everything from the beginning.

“She’s in my class,” Joonie clarified with a nod, and Hongjoong felt his heart drop. Joonie had never mentioned Aurora specifically, but he sure did mention that he didn’t like a lot of kids in his class. Or any of the other classes. The most he told Hongjoong about any classmates was that they were loud, and rude, and dumb, and more than once Joonie’s vents about his classmates’ behaviours, especially toward him, had had Hongjoong contacting the school and ask that the teachers do a better job at identifying and putting a stop to the bullying he was clearly subjected to.

“Aurora is… one of your classmates?” Hongjoong felt a little foolish repeating what Joonie had just confirmed, but he wasn’t sure how exactly he should ask to figure out if Aurora had been among those who strived to make his life hell in school. 

“That’s what I just-” Joonie started, then caught Hongjoong’s look, and stopped. “Oh… No, not one of those classmates.”

Hongjoong felt a ton of bricks fall off his chest. Two tons, in fact; one at the relief it was that Joonie had actually caught the meaning of what he was trying to ask, and another at Aurora not being one of his tormentors. If she had been… he didn’t know how he would have handled that. He couldn’t be friends with one of his son’s bullies, after all, nor their parents! But he would have been devastated if it had turned out that that was who he had befriended. For Joonie’s sake, and his own.

“Oh, yeah, some of our classmates are assholes-” Aurora picked up on the underlying meaning of their words, too, and she evidently agreed with Hongjoong and Joonie. But she couldn’t get to finish what she had to say, before Seonghwa cut in sharply at the utterance of the insult.

“Aurora!” The girl cut herself off, drawing up short.

“Sorry!” she quickly apologized, but then thought better of it. “But, well, they are…!”

“Aurora, no! We don’t call people that! You say that again, and you’re going to be in a lot of trouble!” Seonghwa scolded, and Aurora looked like she was actually going to relent.

“She’s right, though. They are.” Joonie chose that moment to cut in, coming in her defense. At this rate, Hongjoong was going to get whiplash, going from the fear that Aurora was one of Joonie’s bullies to witnessing his son step up for her instead in the span of,  what - less than a minute?

“Kim Yujoon…” Hongjoong called his son’s name, a warning heavy in his tone, but he was sure it would go right over his kid’s head, anyway. It wasn’t like he disagreed with the children, and Joonie knew that, as well. 

“I won’t say it again, but we all know it’s true, anyway. Wanna go on the swings with me?” Aurora breezed past the topic with an effortlessness that was to be envied, and jumped right into the next with her invitation to Joonie.

“I don’t- I don’t want to push you,” Joonie declined, however.

“You don’t need to; I can push myself,” Aurora reassured him nonchalantly. Joonie’s reply was ripe with skepticism, however.

“You- How?”

“Oh, you don’t believe me?” Aurora picked up on the silent challenge in Joonie’s words, but took no offense to it. On the contrary! “I can show you! And then you can learn, too! It’s a lot of fun!”

Joonie wasn’t able to shake off the skepticism, however, and looked to Hongjoong for guidance.

“It’s up to you if you want to go, but Aurora’s right; it is a lot of fun! Do you want me to come with you?”

Those magical words had Joonie straightening up immediately, puffing his little chest out.

“I’m not a baby!” he protested, before turning to stomp off to the swing set. Aurora was instantly on his heels, chattering away at a mile a minute.

Next to Hongjoong, Seonghwa let out a long suffering sigh. 

“Felt that one…” Hongjoong mumbled, agreeing with him.

“Don’t judge me, but I can’t even begin to tell you how often I feel like I’m in over my head with this one…” Seonghwa admitted. Hongjoong felt that sentiment to his core, as well.

“No judgement whatsoever. It’s unwise to throw stones while sitting in a glass house, anyway.” 

Glancing over, Hongjoong saw Seonghwa already looking at him, and he couldn’t help but smile.

“So, Aurora has picked up some colourful language, too, huh…”

Seonghwa groaned again. “I blame the assholes she has in her class for that one.”

Hongjoong laughed, and Seonghwa smiled as well, shaking his head at the  ridiculousness of the situation.

“It so doesn’t help that she’s right, and knows that she’s right, and that we all know she’s right, too. How am I meant to parent that? I can’t very well tell her those kids aren’t assholes and then turn around and try to tell her lying is bad!”

“I wish I knew the answer to that, as well. But I’m in an even worse position than you: to my shame, I have to admit that Joonie learned every last insult he knows for those crotch goblins in their class from me!”

Seonghwa burst out laughing, just to quickly apologize and try to contain his laughter. Hongjoong shook his head with a broad smile, too, however. 

“It’s alright. I mean, it’s technically not, but I am aware of the ridiculousness of the situation. You are allowed to laugh; I won’t take offense.”

Seonghwa still reigned himself in, clearing his throat once he managed.

“Well… Now I’m curious. How did that come to happen?”

Hongjoong raised an eyebrow at Seonghwa, cocking his head. “Looking for ammunition to hold over my head? Well, here goes: I failed point three of Parenting for Dummies: make sure your kid is really asleep when they are meant to be sleeping. I was venting to a friend about the rotten brats late at night after Joonie came home with the zipper of his backpack glued shut. A brand new backpack, that he was so proud of and loved so, so much! I went off about those snot-nosed half stacks on the phone with Yunho; all while Joonie was listening, instead of sleeping. He learned a lot more than I ever wanted to that night.”

Seonghwa snorted quietly in amusement. “Well, I can certainly tell you do know a few  colourful choice insults for the brats. Had more than your fair share of instances to come up with new ones for them, did you?”

Hongjoong’s mood dipped towards a lot more serious.

“Unfortunately. Those dimwits have decided Joonie is prime target material, because he’s the youngest and smallest in their year.”

Seonghwa sobered as well. “Kim Yujoon… Aurora has told me about him before, actually. A lot of times, in fact. Remember right at the beginning, one of the first times we met, and she was all over the place because her favorite classmate didn’t come to school that day?”

Hongjoong vaguely recalled, and his eyes widened. “That’s- Joonie?”

Seonghwa nodded.

“Ever since school started again, Aurora has been telling me about this kid in her class who is so smart he skipped a year, and who she really wanted to be friends with but didn’t want to ask because she feared he wouldn't want to be her friend in turn. That yours?”

Hongjoong let out a small, incredulous chuckle, gaze wandering across the playground where Aurora was teaching Joonie how to push himself on this swingset.

“Yeah, that sounds familiar… And her fear isn’t completely unfounded. Joonie is… not picky, but guarded. He doesn’t easily let anyone new in, past his walls.”

Seonghwa hummed in understanding. “Makes sense, if he’s been bullied before. Aurora must have realized that, too, because I swear, that child has never hesitated to talk to anyone ever before.”

“They seem to be talking just fine now, though…” Hongjoong observed, his heart warming as he watched Aurora applaud and cheer when Joonie managed to create momentum on his swing by himself, a joyous smile blossoming on the boy’s face, too.

“They do…” Seonghwa agreed, smiling fondly at the kids.

“She might swear at her asshole classmates, but you’ve got a good kid there, Seonghwa,” Hongjoong ribbed lightly, without malice, and got treated to seeing a light blush appear on Seonghwa’s face, which the other quickly hid behind a hand, and distracted Hongjoong with a gentle elbow-nudge to his ribs.

“What was that about throwing stones while sitting in a glass house again?”

***

The first outing to the playground behind the house was followed by more of the same kind. The kids played together, and not just on the swing set but all over the grounds, once Aurora had managed to unlock Joonie’s curiosity and convince him to join her. 

If Hongjoong would have said he appreciated Aurora before, if asked, now he would confidently say he loved her, for the way she coaxed Joonie out of his shell and boosted his confidence in unfamiliar territory. 

It was only their fourth outing of this kind, but already Hongjoong could see a whole new side to Joonie that he’d never seen before as he and Aurora chased each other around playground equipment with loud squeals, dug for worms for the birds under rotting leaves, tested the ice in puddles for its resistance to their weight, and whatever other games the two managed to come up with.

In the meantime, Hongjoong and Seonghwa took to wandering around the edge of the playground as they talked about what felt like every imaginable topic under the sun, keeping up the movement to not freeze to their spot in the cold winter air.

“Blue hair? Seriously? No, actually, I can see it. What did your parents say?”

“I’d be lying if I said they were enthusiastic about it, but at that point, they had pretty much resigned themselves into accepting that I was always going to be doing my own thing no matter what.”

“Little Rebel-joong… I seriously can’t picture you being a total brat, though.”

“Oh, I wasn’t! Rebel, yes, but not in the rude way. I was doing my own thing, but the only way I could get away with it was by charming my parents into letting me. They would never have tolerated me walking all over them. I know it doesn’t sound believable, but if you ask my mom, she’ll tremble in her boots at the memory of all the things she let me get away with after falling for my cuteness. I used to have absolutely diabolical kicked-puppy-eyes, I tell you! And the worst part? Joonie has them, too. And I totally get my mom’s exasperation now.”

Seonghwa laughed, and Hongjoong smiled along, watching the way the other’s eyes crinkled up when he laughed like that. The way the low hanging winter sun illuminated his golden skin, making it shine as if with a light of its own. The way a few frost flakes that had come loose from the trees underneath which they were walking had landed on his ebony black hair and glittered like diamonds on the silky tresses, using their beauty to enhance Seonghwa’s own, innate one. 

Seonghwa stopped laughing after a moment, eyes opening again, and he caught the way Hongjoong was looking at him, which… well. Hongjoong didn’t want to imagine how dopey he must be looking. But he couldn’t shake himself out of it either. Not when he was this entranced by the way Seonghwa’s eyes widened into their full, round boba shape, and his lips parted into a soft ‘oh’... Fuck, how could any one human being be this beautiful?

“Dad!” “Dad!” 

A pair of calls out of children’s throats was what had Hongjoong and Seonghwa both snapping out of their moment - did it count as a moment? - and their attention focusing on their children, who were excitedly running up to them.

“Look! Look!” they pointed up above into the branches of the trees under which Hongjoong and Seonghwa had stopped.

The branches were barren, but for something that looked like a mess of green twigs, looking somewhat out of place on the barren tree.

“There’s mistletoe up there!”

“And you stopped under it!” 

“Which means you have to kiss now!” The kids took turns informing them, and Hongjoong hated to admit, even to himself, the way his stomach swooped at the mere mention of a possibility of kissing Seonghwa.

“What do you mean- who told you something like that?” Seonghwa gathered his wits before Hongjoong, questioning the children.

“That’s just common knowledge!”

“Yeah, everyone knows that!”

“If you stop under a mistletoe together, you have to kiss!”

“Yes! You have to kiss!”

“Do we, now,” Seonghwa asked, stemming his hands in his hips as he looked down at the two pipsqueaks currently at fault for the minor crisis Hongjoong was battling internally. 

“Yes!” The kids chorused, their cheeks decorated with bright red flecks, both from the cold and excitement. 

“Well, that’s interesting. Because, guess who else has stopped under this mistletoe!” Seonghwa prompted, leading to both kids looking around in befuddlement, trying to see if they had missed something. The momentary distraction was enough for Seonghwa to catch them both, and while he only held Joonie in a loose hug, he peppered Aurora’s face with kisses. Aurora squealed, both in laughter and protest.

“Daaad! That doesn’t count!” 

“Oh? It doesn’t? And why is that?” Seonghwa asked, all while making a kissy face and pushing against Aurora’s hands pushing him away.

“Because it doesn’t count! You’re my dad! You’re supposed to kiss someone who is old like you!” she laughed when Seonghwa now tickled her.

“Old like me, huh!” Seonghwa shook his head in mock offense. “That’s rich! How about you kiss someone who is old like you!”

Aurora and Joonie both squealed in protest.

“That’s not how it works!”

“You have to kiss someone you like!”

“Someone you like? Do you mean to say you two don’t like each other?” Seonghwa deflected - for that was what he was doing - again.

“Not like that!”

“You have to at least be friends first!”

“Yes! And we can’t be friends yet!”

Seonghwa sat back on his haunches, eyes wide with the same confusion Hongjoong felt, but amplified for show.

“Oh? You can’t? Why is that?”

“Because… because you have to meet and talk with each other at least… at least ten times before you can be friends!” Aurora reasoned.

“And you have to make each other laugh on at least half those times,” Joonie added.

“And then, when you’re already friends, you have to look each other in the eyes to see if you like each other!”

“And then you kiss when you stand under the mistletoe!”

Seonghwa hummed in understanding after listening to the kids.

“Hmm, I see. That sounds awfully complicated. And I don’t even know if Hongjoong and I even made each other laugh that often… I forgot to count!”

“Pah-lease!” Aurora rolled her eyes, throwing her hands up dramatically for show. “You make each other laugh all the time!”

“Yes. Even when you’re not together. My dad is always smiling because of your letters at home,” Joonie ratted Hongjoong out, and Hongjoong could do little more than splutter in protest.

“Oh, yes! My dad does that, too!” Aurora clapped her hands excitedly as she let Joonie in on that tidbit of information. “So, even if you didn’t count, it doesn’t matter!” she concluded.

“Well, that only means that Hongjoong and I are friends now. But, even between friends, there is something really important to consider before you can kiss each other.”

The kids perked up, listening closely to what Seonghwa had to say, and Hongjoong found himself holding his breath in anticipation, too.

“What? What is it?!” Aurora couldn’t quite hold her excitement in when Seonghwa took a little too long to come out with it.

“It’s whether you both want to kiss each other,” Seonghwa stated simply. “And I don’t know if Hongjoong would want that. Nor does Hongjoong know if I want to.” Seonghwa glanced up at Hongjoong before quickly looking back at the kids. Hongjoong might be mistaken, but he believed Seonghwa’s ears to be reddening more than just from the cold now. “And even if we both wanted to kiss each other, we might not want to right now. I, for one, am shy. Do you think it’s a good idea for someone who is shy to be kissing in the middle of a park?”

The kids looked around with pensive expressions.

“But, there’s no one here…”

“But someone could come. And I don’t want to be kissing someone for the first time in front of just anyone,” Seonghwa’s tone remained gentle, but bore a firmness that allowed no room for further argument.

Hongjoong wouldn’t have expected it, but the children actually accepted Seonghwa’s reasoning without further argument, and were rather quickly distracted by something else.

Seonghwa stood back up, exhaling a relieved breath.

“Little rascals…” he shook his head fondly as he watched the pair chase off after something or other.

“You…” Hongjoong had to break off to clear his throat. “You handled that amazingly.”

Seonghwa smiled, though a little wryly. “Well… there was only room for one deer in the headlights,” he quipped, but the gentle shove he gave Hongjoong reassured him he was just joking.

“Uh, yeah, I- I’m sorry, I’m…really not great with these kinds of situations. Especially-” he broke off, catching himself before he could say- well. He didn’t even know what he was going to say.

“I noticed,” Seonghwa smiled, bumping into Hongjoong again. “But I’ve got you.”

Hongjoong let out a relieved sigh. “Thank you-”

“Would you say yes if I asked you on a date?”

Hongjoong froze. Had he just- Had Seonghwa- Had he just heard that right?!

“I- You- wha- Did-? Yes?! Absolutely?! I mean-”

Hongjoong was saved from his stuttering by Seonghwa’s quiet giggle.

“Cute,” the other cooed, and Hongjoong didn’t know if he was closer to shrinking and hiding in a crack of the sidewalk for the rest of eternity, mortified, or inflate like a balloon and float off into space in elation.

 

Chapter 4: Red

Seonghwa didn’t know what had come over him the other day when he’d asked Hongjoong out for a date, even now, as the time for the date approached and he was waiting for Hongjoong to show up. He’d successfully feigned confidence in the moment when the words came blurting out of him, on the tail end of his quest to dissuade the kids from continuing to pester them about kissing. Hongjoong had looked extremely cute with how flustered he was, and he certainly hadn’t missed the dopey look he’d been regarding Seonghwa with before the kids had interrupted. 

At that point, Seonghwa had known for a fact already that Hongjoong was single, and every indicator he could find - save for asking him directly - pointed towards him returning Seonghwa’s interest. So, in a spur of the moment, Seonghwa had decided to ask - even though claiming he’d had any conscious input in that decision was generous.

Hongjoong’s stuttered but eager acceptance of his proposal for a date had been a just reward for how sudden Seonghwa’s sprung the question on him, and it further confirmed that the attraction Seonghwa felt for the other was not one-sided, at all. And it was more than enough to dissuade any fears Seonghwa had that he might have been stood up as the time they had decided to meet up at, came and went without Hongjoong showing up.

Seonghwa was about to check his phone once more, for the time and to see if Hongjoong had texted him whether he’d be late, or something, when a text from Hongjoong arrived.

I’m here, but I can’t see you

Where have all these people come from???

Seonghwa looked around, hoping to see Hongjoong again, and realized the other was right. Seonghwa had suggested a stroll through the Christmas market that had been set up not too far from where they lived to kick off their date, and Hongjoong had loved the idea. Both of them had to find babysitters for their kids for the afternoon, and while Hongjoong had someone who would stay with Joonie at his place, Seonghwa had to take Aurora over to his friends’ place, hence why they arrived separately.

Now, he realized, it would certainly not be easy for Hongjoong to find him in this crowd. The average person was taller than the other, and with everyone - including Seonghwa - bundled up in thick winter clothes, it made distinction hard.

Where are you?

I’ll come find you

Seonghwa sent, standing on his tiptoes to survey the crowd for a mop of blond hair. He wished he’d thought to wear something that stood out in a crowd to make it easier to be found, but then again, his winter wardrobe consisted of mostly dark colours. It was too late for that now, but he decided he would definitely buy at least a colourful scarf or something like that today, so they wouldn’t be in this predicament again.

By the wish-fountain

Wearing a red coat, if that helps

See, that was why Seonghwa loved Hongjoong- well. That was perhaps a bit forward. But that was certainly something Seonghwa appreciated about Hongjoong; his forethought, and unafraidness to be bold when it came to his wardrobe choices.

It helps

Stay there, I’ll come to you

Seonghwa pocketed his phone again and started pushing his way through the crowd over to where he could see the top of the fountain poking out from between the people.

It was pretty soon that he spotted Hongjoong, even from behind. Dark red coat and blond hair; truly, unmistakable in this monochrome crowd.

He tapped his shoulder, and he whipped around - only, it wasn’t Hongjoong.

“Oh, sorry, I-” Seonghwa broke off when his breath caught in his throat upon recognizing the familiar face. The other person took a moment longer to recognize him in turn, but the moment they did was unmistakably written on their face.

“Seonghwa?! Now, this is a surprise!”

Surprise, indeed.

“Ah, yeah. Sorry, mistook you for someone else. Have a nice day.” Seonghwa had absolutely no intentions to continue talking to this person, but she didn't seem to get the hint - or simply ignored any and all hints, which seemed more likely. 

“In such a rush? Ah, where’s-” 

“With her uncles. Sorry, I gotta go,” he interrupted her, intent on putting a stop to this conversation as soon as at all possible. 

“Meeting someone, huh? Didn't think you'd have the time, with a kid and all…”

“I manage. Thanks for your concern-”

“Seonghwa!” 

Hongjoong’s call of his name sounded like angelsong to Seonghwa in that moment, and he gratefully turned towards where he had heard it coming from. Hongjoong was pushing through the crowd towards him, this time truly unmistakable in his bright red coat. As soon as Seonghwa spotted him, he felt tension bleed out of his posture, overwhelming relief flooding him instead.

“There you are! Let’s go!” he breathed out as soon as Hongjoong was within hearing distance, taking him by the arm and heading back in the direction Hongjoong had come from.

Hongjoong threw a confused glance over his shoulder, back at the woman that had been talking to Seonghwa.

“Weren’t you talking to someone? You don’t have to- I can wait-”

“No, no… I’d rather not- You showed up just in time. I really didn’t want to talk to her. I-” Seonghwa didn’t really know what he was saying, nor where he was going. And suddenly, he felt Hongjoong pry his hand off where he was holding on to Hongjoong’s arm. Before his heart could sink, though, Hongjoong interlaced their fingers and started pulling him along instead, out of the throng of people and off to the side of the road, until they reached a spot where they could stop without acting as a roadblock and nuisance to other passers-by.

“Seonghwa… Can you tell me where you were leading me?” Hongjoong asked, tone the kind of gentle you’d expect someone to use with a startled animal.

Seonghwa looked around, not recognizing where they were. He didn’t say as much, but Hongjoong clearly read it on his face.

“It’s ok if you don’t. Are you alright? We don’t have to go to the Christmas Market if you’re not feeling well. We can go another time if you’d rather go back home…” he trailed off with his suggestion when Seonghwa shook his head, though.

“No, no. I’m- I’ll be ok. I just-... I wasn’t expecting to see that person. It shook me up. But, I’m ok. I want to go see the Market with you,” he hastily tried to reassure Hongjoong. “It’s not every day we manage to find a babysitter at the same time; we have to make the most of it.”

Hongjoong smiled at him, weighing his head in contemplation. 

“Good point. But I’d be just as happy walking through the park, or sitting in a quiet café, or even on the couch at home for our date. Just laying out the options here…”

Seonghwa tightened his hold on Hongjoong’s hand, and was able to muster a small smile. “Keep sweet-talking me like that and you’ll land yourself a second date before we even properly start the first!”

Hongjoong noticeably relaxed, seeing the return of Seonghwa’s smile, and appeared happy to just let everything he’d seen go without further question, if that was what Seonghwa chose. But Seonghwa didn’t feel like he could. Sure, this was their first actual date, but they had been getting to know each other and building their friendship for a while now. Hongjoong was already privy to so many aspects of his life and knew more about him than most other people. And if they were to deepen their relationship, be that just as friends or even more, this was something that would come up eventually. Seonghwa just wanted it out of the way; and he felt like Hongjoong deserved an explanation for his outsized reaction.

“That woman…” he breathed out sharply, before steeling himself with another deep breath. “She’s Aurora’s… mother. Not like she deserves that title, because there’s nothing motherly about her.”

“Oh…” Hongjoong became serious again once more, concern written across his features. “So, I take it she’s not in Aurora’s life, at all?” he questioned carefully, absentmindedly stroking the back of Seonghwa’s hand with his thumb, and providing more comfort with the tiny gesture than Seonghwa would ever have dreamed something so small could give. It gave him the courage he needed to expose the rest that was bubbling under the surface of his tacit disclosure, too.

“No. And I want to keep it that way. You see, she actually told me, to my face, that when she found out she was pregnant, she decided to keep the baby with the sole purpose of pushing them onto me, and, in her words: ‘ruin my life’. And after she did just that, when she saw me and Aurora thriving and my life not ruined like she’d hoped, she started on a crusade to get my baby taken from me and put in the adoption system instead. It didn't work, obviously, and she eventually left us alone, but… it did mess with me..”

“She… what?” Hongjoong breathed, voice toneless with disbelief.

“Not anymore!” he could at least reassure Hongjoong, but the other still looked conflicted.

“Still. I can’t even imagine that, holy shit… How could anyone- that’s so messed up - I’m so sorry!” Hongjoong stammered, at a loss for how to comfort Seonghwa. Seonghwa wasn’t vying for comfort, though, even if the way Hongjoong was holding his hand, stroking the back of it with his thumb, and subconsciously pulling him closer as if to shield him from the world with his own body did heal a tiny part inside of him.

“I didn’t tell you this to garner your sympathy or something like that,” Seonghwa felt the need to clarify, hoping to brush past the topic now that it was out of the way, and move on. “Just… it would eventually have come up anyway, sooner or later, and… I’d rather just have this revelation out of the way, than let it ruin the mood again sometime later. I won’t pretend running into her didn’t shake me up just now; you saw that for yourself, anyway. But… now you know.”

Hongjoong looked at him contemplatively, clearly seeing what he was trying to do and debating if he should let it go as easily as Seonghwa wanted it to. Seonghwa silently prayed he would.

“Now, I know…” Hongjoong eventually agreed. “But I want you to know, that you don’t have to be strong for my sake. You’re allowed to feel your feelings and show them, too. You don’t need to pretend you’re fine when you’re not. It doesn’t matter if we’re on a date; I’m not a fair-weather friend, and I won’t be a fair-weather boyfriend, either, if that is where we’re headed.”

Seonghwa needed Hongjoong to stop, or he would really start to cry in public; and that would seriously ruin what was left of the mood of this date.

“I will be,” he reassured Hongjoong, intent on salvaging what there was to salvage. “I just need to take my mind off of her. She’s already caused enough distress and tears in my life years back; she deserves no more from me. I just want to see the Christmas Market with you now. Eat Christmas street food. Maybe have a glass of mulled wine, if we’re feeling fancy. And buy something for the kids and a fun scarf for myself somewhere.”

A smile tugged on the corners of Hongjoong’s lips, and the fond look in his eyes nearly took Seonghwa’s breath away. Was Hongjoong at all aware of the way he was looking at him? He somehow doubted it. But either way, Seonghwa himself had to look away, unable to withstand the look. He was certain at the very least his ears were glowing a flaming red under Hongjoong’s gaze, and if he was completely out of luck, the red would soon spread to his face, as well.

“It sounds like we have a mission. Several missions, in fact. Shall we get on with them, then?” Hongjoong luckily prompted, redirecting Seonghwa’s focus once more.

“Let’s,” he agreed, and even though his tone lacked strength, it was enough for Hongjoong.

Interlacing their fingers properly so they wouldn’t lose each other in the crowd, Hongjoong took charge and led the way to the arch of woven pine branches framing the entrance to the market.

While the streets were decorated with lights and figurines all over the city, stepping into the market felt like stepping into a whole other world. Seonghwa’s mind was blown, and the memory of his run-in with Aurora’s mother was pushed to the back of his mind in record time.

“Wow…” Hongjoong breathed next to him, and Seonghwa could only agree.

The flow of the crowd forced them to move at first, but it soon dispersed among the stalls and they were able to properly take in the wares and decorations laid out by the vendors.

“They’re actually making candles over there, look!” Hongjoong pointed out at some point. “And you can choose what you want in yours!”

What followed was each of them choosing a candle, watching it be put together and poured into a mold, to be picked up before they’d leave at the end of the day. 

“I want to try those skewers I see people eating everywhere. Let’s find where they sell them!” Seonghwa asked a while later, giving Hongjoong his best rendition of puppy eyes while his stomach growled. Hongjoong folded immediately, losing all interest in the stall selling clockwork figurines in favor of finding the stall Seonghwa was referring to. Seonghwa felt bad, and quietly vowed to himself to make sure they’d pass the clockwork stall again on their way back.

They found the skewer stall in the far back of the market, nestled among several other food stalls, each with long lines of people waiting in front of them. 

“Should we split up and get different things?” Seonghwa suggested worriedly, but Hongjoong shook his head.

“No. I’d rather wait with you. We can always eat while waiting in another line, anyway.”

And that’s what they did, tasting their way through a bunch of different food stalls. Hongjoong had clearly had his fill after the second stall, but Seonghwa only noticed as much while they were ordering at the fifth.

“You’re not really hungry anymore, are you? I’m so sorry, I’ve been making you wait in line-” Seonghwa cut himself off when Hongjoong held the small wooden skewer bearing a couple of mini pancakes covered in strawberry sauce and powdered sugar they had just bought up to his lips. Seonghwa hesitated for only a second before he allowed Hongjoong to feed him the - quite frankly, delicious - pastry treat.

“I have nothing else planned for the entire rest of the day, Seonghwa. If that’s what you want, I am more than happy waiting in every single line on this market for any and all of the food you might want to try,” Hongjoong reassured him while he was chewing on his mouthful of mini pancakes, before stealing a single one for himself. “Oooh, these are good!” 

“I… I read online that there is a stall that sells deep-fried fruit, and people have been saying it’s the best thing ever,” Seonghwa suggested shyly, and Hongjoong beamed at him.

“Off to the deep-fried-fruit stall we go!”

Hongjoong actually skipped - skipped! - ahead, leaving Seonghwa to follow in his wake. The crowd was by no means so thick anymore that they needed to hold hands so as not to lose each other in the throngs of people - though Seonghwa certainly wasn’t going to be caught complaining about having to hold hands with Hongjoong - but he was still grateful for Hongjoong’s bright red coat that allowed him to easily keep track of him between the other market goers.

Hongjoong was already waiting in line at the stall when Seonghwa caught up to him, smiling happily at him. Their eyes met, but Hongjoong was quickly distracted, his gaze falling down to-

“You’ve got something on your lips- Can- can I-?” he asked uncertainly. Seonghwa subconsciously licked his lips, but nodded at Hongjoong to go ahead, anyway. 

Hongjoong quickly found a packet of tissues in his pocket, and stepped into Seonghwa’s space to dab at the corner of his lips with one. Only after being done, did he seem to realize just how close together they were standing.

“I- you- there was something red- the strawberry sauce. Some of it was still stuck to your-” Hongjoong tried to explain himself - not that he needed to, not for Seonghwa’s sake. 

Despite the need he felt to explain his actions and their sudden proximity, Hongjoong wasn’t stepping out of Seonghwa’s space, and Seonghwa took the chance the closeness provided to reach up and swipe a thumb across Hongjoong’s cheek, as well. Whatever Hongjoong had been saying about strawberry sauce and Seonghwa’s lips, the words died on his tongue at the contact.

“There was icing sugar on your cheek,” Seonghwa justified his action, as well, and Hongjoong’s ears burned up in a shade of red so dark, it put his coat to shame. The sight brought a sense of satisfaction to Seonghwa that he hadn’t expected, but wasn’t about to question, either.

“Th-thank you. For, uh-” Hongjoong mumbled, not finishing his sentence and instead gesturing up at his face. 

Seonghwa nodded his welcome. “Likewise.” 

Before the day was out and both had enough of the market, that song and game repeated more times than either of them bothered to count, in ever changing yet similar iterations. Most notable, probably, was when Seonghwa announced he wanted to look for a nice scarf for himself. A fun scarf. Something more colourful, something to liven up his otherwise rather monochrome winter wardrobe.

The quest lit a spark in Hongjoong, and he took it upon himself to find the perfect scarf for Seonghwa - or so he claimed.

Many a scarf was suggested. Long scarves, short scarves, narrow and wide scarves, made of wool, synthetic fiber and silk, fuzzy, smooth, thick, thin, about every and any kind possible and imaginable, in what must surely have been every colour under the sun. 

Seonghwa didn’t know why he could never make up his mind about any of them, however. It wasn’t that he truly disliked most of them - sure, a few were among the selection that he found simply hideous - but for the most part? Any one of them would have been fine.

But maybe, maybe he simply wanted Hongjoong to continue his little quest, presenting him with scarf after scarf, draping them around his shoulders and tucking them around his neck, tying them into neat bows and artfully uneven loops. Anything was fair, as long as Hongjoong kept finding himself back in Seonghwa’s personal space. 

It was a game with unspoken rules that they both understood perfectly without ever having played it before or discussed said rules with each other. A game of playful push and pull, without a victor or a loser, played purely for playing’s sake. 

Night had fallen, illuminated by the myriads of colourful lights of the market, long before Seonghwa and Hongjoong grew weary of their game.

“What about this one?” Hongjoong presented Seonghwa with another scarf, like so many others before.

Something was different about this one, though. Maybe it was the way Hongjoong presented it. Maybe it was the softer tone of his voice as he slowly became more tired, a pleasant kind of worn out as the day wound towards its end. Maybe it was the texture, thick and fluffy and yet light, or the almost ridiculous length that had Seonghwa picturing two people sharing the same scarf. Or maybe it was the colour, the shade a perfect match to Hongjoong’s coat, that had his heart make the decision for him and his tongue blurting a “Yes” before his mind could process the suggestion.

“This one?!” Hongjoong asked, just to confirm, and Seonghwa nodded.

Hongjoong turned back to the vendor, and within less than a minute, the scarf was back around Seonghwa’s neck, now without a price tag.

“You- you didn’t have to-”

“I wanted to,” Hongjoong interrupted Seonghwa. “As a thank you. For this wonderful day.”

Seonghwa felt colour rising directly to his cheeks, and he hid the bottom of his face in the newly acquired scarf.

“You really didn’t have to… but thank you, really,” he mumbled with a hidden, shy smile, though just loud enough for Hongjoong to hear.

Hongjoong smiled back, inclining his head in welcome. 

And that was that.

With their little game coming to a satisfactory end, exhaustion took over, and they began retracing their steps towards the exit of the market. They lingered shortly at the stall with the clockwork figurines, and made sure to pick up their now hardened candles on the way out. 

And yet, even with the archway of interwoven pine branches behind them once more, both were reluctant to let the end of their visit to the Christmas Market spell the end of their date. 

Chapter 5: Shooting Star

The noise of the market faded into the distance, replaced by the usual noises of the city in the late evening, and even those grew quieter, fading into the distance, as Seonghwa and Hongjoong walked down the path through the park down by the river. It was a clear night, the moon a mere sickle, allowing the stars to shine all the brighter despite the city’s light pollution. It was cold, and the morning would surely bring another layer of frost, even down by the river.

Right then, it was perfect, though; despite the cold, despite the light pollution, despite the late hour.

They walked in silence, but it was a tranquil one, comfortable and undemanding. Neither felt the need to break it, to fill the air with meaningless chatter. And neither wanted their walk to end, to return to the bustle of the city or even their neighbourhood and, consequently, their own lives, just yet. 

Seonghwa had linked their arms at some point, and Hongjoong was more than happy with that. Holding hands in this cold was uncomfortable, unpractical, but with their arms linked came a sort of almost-cuddle, their sides inevitably brushing together near constantly. Hongjoong was pretty sure their points of contact were his main source of warmth at the moment. And the funniest part about this, at least to him, was that he wasn’t even much of a fan of cuddles - his son not-withstanding, of course - but he really didn’t want this moment to end. He felt like, if Seonghwa pulled away now, he would probably never feel warm again.

Next to him, Seonghwa slowed to a stop, and Hongjoong followed his lead.

“There is a bench down by the water just over there,” he indicated a spot just slightly off the path.

“Let's go.”

It wasn't even a question for Hongjoong. If Seonghwa wanted to go, he would go with him. 

The bench was freezing cold; of course it was. But the biting cold that crawled through his pants and chilled the back of his legs was actually welcome, in a way.

“It's beautiful down here… I've never been here at night,” Hongjoong observed, letting his eyes wander over the vast dark expanse of the river glittering in the starlight. 

“Hmm… I used to come here a lot before… before Aurora,” Seonghwa mused quietly, a smile in his voice. “My friends used to joke and ask me if I was trying to get murdered down here, but I’ve always found this spot peaceful. It’s easy to get lost in the sight of the moon reflecting off the water and the sound of the waves…”

Hongjoong smiled as well, and it only widened when Seonghwa leaned against his side a little more.

“You sound like someone who grew up by the ocean,” he observed quietly.

“I did,” Seonghwa confirmed. “Down south.”

Hongjoong hummed in understanding. He’d expected as much. “And you miss it?”

Seonghwa took a moment to answer.

“Yeah. I make sure to visit my parents in my hometown as often as I can; for Aurora’s sake, too. It’s beautiful. But I like it here, too. Life is easier here, as well. But, back there… it’s nice to go back to slow down for a while. When I was still in Uni, I would come here to do that, at least for a few hours every now and then. It’s not the ocean, but it’s close enough.”

Hongjoong understood that sentiment well, even though he hadn’t grown up by the ocean. The night sky on a rooftop with cicadas chirping away in the trees had been his ocean growing up.

“Have you brought Aurora here during the day?” he wondered after a while.

Seonghwa chuckled quietly in answer. “Yeah. She said it was boring.” There was an amused tone in Seonghwa’s voice, telling Hongjoong Seonghwa took no offense in his daughter’s opinion.

“I can see why it would be, for a child,” Hongjoong nodded understandingly. “But one day, she’ll learn to appreciate boring for how healing it can be.”

“That little whirlwind? I wouldn’t hold my breath,” Seonghwa laughed fondly. “I can see her growing up into a jetsetter. Or at least someone who’s always on the move, always needs to be doing something. I can’t imagine her just sitting idly without at least singing to herself and doing something or other with her hands. It’s like she abhors silence, too…” he sighed, but not in exasperation. It was fond, if somewhat disbelieving. “Sometimes, I wonder how she managed to turn out so different from me. But I guess she does get part of her genes from someone else.” 

Hongjoong hummed pensively, not entirely agreeing with Seonghwa; and strangely - or perhaps not - not wanting any credit for any of Aurora’s adorable traits to fall on someone other than the father who busted his ass to raise her.

“I wouldn’t say she’s that different. Just… young, still. Overflowing with energy. And, I mean… like, when you build your Lego sets, do you sit in complete silence? Or do you listen to music, sing along quietly…? And you would be doing something with your hands there, too.”

“True,” Seonghwa admitted, conceding the point. “But Rory doesn’t have the patience for things like Lego. She rarely even finds the patience for console games!”

“What kind of console games?” Hongjoong asked innocently, but with how long Seonghwa took to answer, maybe the question wasn't as innocent as he’d thought.

“...maybe the wrong ones,” he admitted after a moment with a small laugh. “Perhaps Animal Crossing just isn't really her speed.”

Hongjoong chuckled as well. “Try getting her into Mario Kart. If any game is to keep her entertained, I’m sure that one will.”

“You are most likely right,” Seonghwa readily admitted. “I’ll try that. It’s been ages since I last played, as well. It would be fun to play with her, too.”

“She’ll drive laps around you in no time,” Hongjoong stated confidently, and Seonghwa laughed again. That small, soft and incredibly fond laugh of Seonghwa’s was very quickly becoming one of Hongjoong’s favorite sounds. He wished he could bottle it and keep it close forever; he was pretty positive he would never have a sad moment again in his life, as long as he could listen to the sound of Seonghwa’s laugh.

“Oh, no doubt. She’s a competitive one, for sure!” Seonghwa agreed, then tacked on:. “What about Joonie? Do you play any games with him?”

Hongjoong huffed quietly in answer. “If by ‘play games’ you meant to ask if I get absolutely obliterated in anything we touch, then yes.” There was more pride than anything in Hongjoong’s tone, despite the choice of words.

“I’m not sure if what you’re trying to tell me is that he is that good at games, or you absolutely suck,” Seonghwa ribbed gently, and Hongjoong found that he didn’t even feel a trace of offense at the jab.

“I wouldn’t say I suck, per se. I’m not the worst kind of player. But he… the kid is something else.”

Seonghwa hummed contemplatively. “So, I take it there is no point in asking how good he is at losing?”

“I honestly wouldn’t know. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him lose,” Hongjoong had to admit.  “Why?”

“Just wondering. Aurora is the sorest of all losers. Having them play anything against each other is probably not the best idea, then…”

Hongjoong shrugged, not discarding the idea just yet. “Who knows… Joonie is not one to gloat about his victories. He would sooner analyze what his opponent did wrong and teach them how to fix it, in hopes they actually present a challenge to him in the next round.”

“That’s so… kind,” Seonghwa mused, sounding fond, as well. “He gets that from you, doesn’t he…”

Hongjoong recognized the compliment for what it was, and it landed with a soft, warm thud in his chest, somewhere near his heart.

“I would love to take all the credit for that. But I reckon he takes after all his uncles and grandparents in that way, too,” he admitted. “For what he lacks in same-age friends, he does have a lot of amazing adult role models in his life, thankfully.”

“That, too, goes back to reflect on you, though. The choice of company you keep,” Seonghwa reminded him.

Hongjoong chuckled bashfully, but wasn’t content with just basking in the praise.

“I’d like to believe I have an eye for the good eggs. I picked you up, as well, after all!” he grinned, and got an exaggerated noise of protest out of it for his efforts.

“You picked me up?! Nah; if anything, Aurora chose you! She-” Seonghwa started, but Hongjoong suddenly grabbed Seonghwa’s arm, pointing out over the river with his other hand.

“Look!”

Seonghwa cut himself off, following where Hongjoong was pointing with his gaze.

It was easy to see what Hongjoong meant.

A bright, glowing shooting star was painting a fiery arch across the sky. Not just a small little trace, but a long, lingering streak of blue, green and white light.

Seonghwa gasped in quiet amazement, holding on to Hongjoong’s hand on his arm as his eyes remained fixed on the sky, even after the streak burned out and vanished against the dark backdrop of space once more.

“Whoa…!” Hongjoong breathed in quiet amazement, just as Seonghwa nudged him softly.

“Make a wish. With a star that big, it has to come true…!”

Hongjoong didn’t think he could grow any fonder of someone on a first date, but Seonghwa was apparently determined to prove him wrong.

“Hmm, if you say so,” he hummed with an indulgent smile, closing his eyes and clasping his hands as he turned his face skywards. “In that case: I wish that you would go on a second date with me!”

Next to him, Seonghwa squawked in alarm, clasping Hongjoong’s arm. “You’re not supposed to say your wish out loud! It’s supposed to be a secret!”

“Oh?” Hongjoong feigned ignorance, amused at Seonghwa’s indignation. “But that makes no sense. If no one knows what I wished for, how is it supposed to come true?”

“The star will know!” Seonghwa declared, dead serious. “And it’ll make it come true. But only if you keep it a secret!”

“Hm. That’s a bummer…” Hongjoong sighed dramatically. “Today was so much fun; I was really hoping for that second date with you…”

“O-of course I want to go on a second date with you!” Seonghwa protested, and Hongjoong could barely contain the smile threatening to split his face in half.

“You do?!” he asked, giving Seonghwa his absolutely best puppy-dog eyes - even though he didn’t think they’d do much, probably barely visible in the residual light of the far-away street lamps.

“Oh my god, yes! Absolutely!” Seonghwa reassured Hongjoong urgently, though - regardless of whether he was actually able to see the kicked-puppy-look or not. Hongjoong lost the battle against his smile, then, letting it take over.

“Even though I didn’t keep my wish a secret, just for the star to know?”

“I- oh, you!” Seonghwa shoved Hongjoong playfully, and Hongjoong laughed. “You’re impossible!” There was no heat behind Seonghwa’s words, only barely contained laughter, as well. “Fine, you win. In this case, revealing your wish made it come true. But I won’t tell you mine until it is fulfilled - and I’m certain the star will make it come true!”

“I will take your word for it,” Hongjoong easily gave in, leaning back against Seonghwa’s side as he turned his attention to the waters of the river and the vast night sky spanning above them once more. “You are the resident expert on stars, anyway.”

Silently, just to himself  - and perhaps the star that had just fallen, as well, for good measure - Hongjoong wished that eventually, he would get to become the resident expert on at least one star. A star with wide, round boba eyes that reflected the night sky, and with a soft, warm laugh that put angelsong to shame and felt like both a cozy blanket and the first warm days of spring. 

Chapter 6: Promise

Joonie is still sick

I hate to have to ask this again, but we’re going to have to reschedule

Seonghwa frowned as he read Hongjoong’s texts as they came in. Poor Joonie, he was really going through it. 

Of course

Let me know if you need anything

I’m planning on running by the groceries store once I drop Aurora off 

There were some undeniable perks to working a flexible schedule, and not needing to be at work until 10 most days was one of them.

Wet wipes

Vaseline

Any chance you’re passing by a pharmacy?

Hongjoong’s answers came rolling in quickly.

I am now

What do you need?

It took mere seconds before Seonghwa’s phone rang with a call instead of the text buzzing that had been coming from it before. It was Hongjoong, and Seonghwa picked up without second thought.

“Hey,” he greeted.

“Good morning,” Hongjoong answered, already sounding as if the morning was anything but for him.

“You managing?”

Hongjoong answered with a weary hum, and a noise that sounded as if he was rubbing at his face. “Yeah… His fever broke early last night, but his nose is raw from blowing it and his cough seems to have gotten worse…” As if to prove his words true, Joonie’s cough could be heard coming from the background, and Seonghwa waited for Hongjoong to come back after checking on him patiently, his phone wedged between his shoulder and ear as he finished packing Aurora’s lunch box.

“I’m back,” Hongjoong announced after a while, and Seonghwa noted gratefully that he wasn’t apologizing yet again. He’d made Hongjoong promise to stop apologizing for needing to check on his child days ago. “Joonie won’t even let me clean his nose anymore at this point. I’m at my wits’ end; it’s never been this bad. Do you know if there’s anything else besides vaseline that could help?”

“I’ll ask at the pharmacy,” Seonghwa promised. “What  did you want me to pick up there?”

“I used up the last of the suppositories I had for the fever last night. I’m worried I won’t have any should it come back. I’ll text you a pic of the packaging. And also, something for his cough that isn’t a syrup.”

“Hmm,” Seonghwa hummed as he committed the requests to memory. “Joonie not good with syrups?”

“They make him throw up. That’s the one thing he hasn’t done yet this time around; and I really don’t want to have to check that box off, too,” Hongjoong sounded pained, and Seonghwa winced in sympathy, as well.

“Yeah, no. Let’s not. Anything else? Have you eaten?” 

The silence that came over the line was answer enough.

“I’m getting you something,” Seonghwa made the executive decision.

“You don’t have to…” Hongjoong answered sheepishly, but Seonghwa pretended he hadn’t even heard him. “What about Joonie? Is he eating? Should I get something for him? What about those fruit pouches; those are easy to eat.”

Hongjoong made a negative sound on the other side of the call.  “No, not those. He doesn’t eat anything that’s, like… gloopy,” he sighed deeply. “But it’s not like he’s too keen on anything solid right now, either…”

“Noted. I’m sure I can figure something out. What was that, love?” Seonghwa interrupted himself when he heard Aurora ask something, but not what it was.

“I was saying, can I take both Mr Bear and Mr Dobs to school today?”

Seonghwa sighed, sensing an argument coming from a mile away with the way Aurora was already pouting.

“No, sweetie. Only one toy a day. You can take Mr Bear today, and Mr Dobs tomorrow.”

Aurora’s bottom lip wobbled. “But I want to take both! They’re going to miss each other if I only take one of them!”

“If they are going to miss each other that bad, you might want to leave them both here and take someone else with you. How about Bom-bom-bunny? You haven’t taken her in a while! I’m sure she’d love to come with you!” Seonghwa was silently praying that Aurora would just take the suggestion, but of course, she couldn’t make it that easy for him.

“Bom-bom-bunny is boring! I want Mr Bear and Mr Dobs!”

“Well, your teachers don’t want both of them there, though.”

“But why?!” Aurora wailed, frustrated tears already clinging to her lashline.

“Because it’s already a lot of work for them to keep track of all of you kids, without also having to keep track of all of your toys,” Seonghwa reasoned, despite already knowing that Aurora would argue back regardless.

“But it’s not that many toys! It’s just two!”

“Two of yours. Imagine if all of your classmates also took two of their toys. And then the next day three, and then more, and more, however many they wanted. Soon, there wouldn’t be any room for any people in your classrooms anymore between all the toys.”

“That won’t even happen!” Aurora protested loudly, though. “Seori was allowed to bring two of her dolls yesterday! And it was fine!”

“I’m sure it wasn’t fine, and both she and her mom got scolded for it at the end of the day when she came to pick her up.”

“I don’t care if I get scolded! Let them! I want Mr Bear and Mr Dobs with me!” Aurora stomped her foot, crossing her arms defiantly, her voice peaking on the verge of a screech, too.

“Well, I care if both you and I get scolded!” Seonghwa stated with finality. “The rule is one toy per student every day, and for good reason. So, you can either choose which one you want to bring, or they are both staying at home. I am not going to be helping you break the rules and get us both in trouble!”

“You’re mean!” Aurora yelled, stomping her foot again, a few tears now spilling down her face. 

“The meanest,” Seonghwa agreed, pretending it didn’t sting when Aurora called him mean. “Apple or peach gummies?” he still asked, hoping that letting Aurora have any input would somehow redirect her attention and throw her enough off her game to prevent a full blown tantrum.

“I don’t care!” she shouted, though, and Seonghwa shrugged, choosing the peach gummies before closing up her lunch box.

“Fine by me. You can be mad at me for not wanting to get you into trouble all you want, but you’re going to do it quietly. No one else has wronged you this morning, so no one else needs to have you yelling in their ears, either. Where is your backpack?”

“I don’t know!” Aurora spat defiantly, again, but she did lower her volume. Seonghwa counted that as a small victory, at least

“Can you go look if it’s in your room, please?”

She didn’t answer, but turned and stomped down the hallway to her room, anyway. Only once she was out of sight did Seonghwa remember that he’d been on call with Hongjoong. Fuck. He picked his phone up from where he’d absentmindedly set it down on the counter at some point, and found the call still connected. He grimaced, but put it up to his ear, anyway.

“Hongjoong?” he tried, wondering if the other would still be on the other end, or if he’d set his phone down and forgotten about it at some point as well. It wouldn’t have been the first time it happened to either of them, especially these past weeks in between Aurora getting sick, then Seonghwa himself, and now Joonie. 

Faint sounds of scrabbling sounded from the other side, and then Hongjoong’s voice came through the speaker again. 

“Still here. Sorry, I didn’t want to hang up just like that.”

“It’s fine,” Seonghwa sighed quietly. “You heard all that, huh…”

“Hmm,” Hongjoong hummed in assent. “Big feelings about toys today.”

Seonghwa groaned. “I have a feeling this isn’t even about the toys. She knows the rules and isn’t one to try to break them. And she very much does care about getting scolded. But I have yet to figure out what it actually is that’s got her acting up.”

“I’m sure you’ll find out soon. She loves you and trusts you; she’ll tell you eventually,” Hongjoong reassured Seonghwa kindly, and the reminder actually did help to soothe the earlier sting Aurora had dealt to his heart.

“You’re right…” Seonghwa admitted quietly. “I just have to deal with… well, whatever she throws at me, first.”

“You’ve got this,” Hongjoong cheered him on again. “And I better let you get to it.”

“Thank you. I’ll call you once- well, later,” Seonghwa amended what he’d been about to say when he heard Aurora coming back down the hallway from her room. “Before I get to the store. Text me anything you need in the meantime.”

“Ok, I will. Thank you, Seonghwa. Seriously.”

“You would do the same for me. You did do the same for me!” Seonghwa reminded Hongjoong, fondness blooming in his heart again as he remembered how hesitant and shy and yet at the same time gently insistent Hongjoong had been when he asked Seonghwa if he could do anything to help him when he’d fallen sick right after Aurora. Seonghwa had given in when he’d eventually felt so miserable he could barely open his eyes, never mind drive his car, and had asked Hongjoong if he could take Aurora to school, too, when he was dropping off Joonie. 

Of course, Hongjoong hadn’t said no, and Aurora had absolutely loved getting to ride in Hongjoong’s fancy car - in her own words.

“I am still grateful. Tell Aurora hi from me when she’s willing to listen again!”

“Will do. Bye!” 

“Bye!” Hongjoong hung up at the same time Aurora dropped her backpack on the counter next to Seonghwa.

“Thank you,” Seonghwa thanked her, even as he had to catch the backpack to keep it from falling off again because of the haphazard way she’d delivered it.

“Was that Hongjoong you were talking to?” she asked, still glowering at him.

“It was. He asked me to pick some things up for him at the store,” Seonghwa answered neutrally; and yet, his answer seemed to bring the tears back to Aurora’s eyes, if the renewed wobbling of her lip was any indication.

“Is Joonie still sick?” she asked, and her voice took on a whole new tone now. It was quiet, barely more than a whimper, and Seonghwa stood at attention immediately.

“He’s getting better, but he’s not coming to school again just yet today,” he answered carefully. Of course, Aurora didn’t need to know the full extent of how poorly Joonie was still doing.

“But he’s been sick for so long already…!” she sniffled, and this time, her tears were the kind that betrayed real hurt. Seonghwa set the backpack down and crouched in front of Aurora instead, bringing himself to her level. 

“He’s been sick longer than you were, true. But he will be fine again soon,” he reassured her, and she let him wipe at her tears and cradle her face in his hand.

“But- but- Some of the older kids said that if people are sick for a long time, they die,” her little voice broke at the last word, and more tears fell from her eyes. “I don’t want Joonie to die!”

“Oh, baby,” Seonghwa cooed, his heart aching for his daughter. “Joonie won’t die. It’s just a little cold, and he’s already getting better. He just needs a little longer than you did to get better because he’s still younger than you. He will be fine again in no time.”

A painful sounding sob broke free from Aurora, and Seonghwa opened his arms for her. She let herself fall into his embrace immediately, nearly choking Seonghwa with how tightly she wound her arms around his neck as she cried. Seonghwa held her, rubbing her back and gently shushing her as she let all her emotions out into the collar of his shirt. He would have to get changed before they left the house, but that was a problem for later him.

“You promise?” Aurora eventually asked, after such a long time that Seonghwa barely remembered what she was really asking about.

“Hm?”

“You promise he won’t die?”

“Oh. Yes. Yes, I promise.”

At those words, Aurora finally surfaced from where she’d hidden in Seonghwa’s neck, rubbing hard at her eyes. Seonghwa stepped in, wiping her face free of tears a lot more gently, before rummaging in his pockets for a tissue for her to blow her nose. 

“You’ve been really worried about Joonie, haven’t you,” Seonghwa cooed when she was done, and he wiped the last stray tears from her face.

Aurora nodded fiercely.

“I miss him. He’s my bestest friend, and I was really scared he would- he would-”

“Well, he won’t,” Seonghwa interrupted gently, saving her from having to say the words again. “Hongjoong would not let something like that happen, and I won’t, either. So, while you are in school, I’m going to go to the shops and get some nice foods for Joonie and Hongjoong, and some medicine from the pharmacy so that Joonie gets better even more quickly.”

Aurora listened intently as Seonghwa was talking, still clinging on to his shirt with her hands, however.

“You have to make chicken soup for Joonie. He says Hongjoong can’t cook well, and you always say ‘you need to eat chicken soup to get better when you’re sick’. Are you going to make chicken soup for Joonie?”

Seonghwa felt a smile tug at his lips as he listened to Aurora imitate his words, and laughed softly.

“I will ask Hongjoong if someone has made chicken soup yet, and if he hasn’t, then yes, I might make some chicken soup for Joonie.”

“You promise?” Aurora asked again, and Seonghwa shook his head fondly.

“Yes, baby, I promise.”

Those magic words seemed to take a heavy weight off Aurora’s chest, and she visibly relaxed. She let go of his shirt, but leaned into him again, pressing her forehead against Seonghwa’s collarbones. 

“Can I still only take one toy to school today?” she asked in a whisper, as if it was a secret.

It was then that it clicked for Seonghwa.

“Ah, so that is what this is about…” he mused, more to himself than to Aurora, even as he stroked the back of her head as he held her. “Did you want to take another toy to school with you because you feared Joonie wouldn’t be there again?”

Aurora hesitated, then nodded slowly.

“I don’t like how empty his desk looks when he’s not there, but I don’t want to put my toy there and then have no one I can hold anymore.”

“Hmm, I see,” Seonghwa hummed in understanding. “I understand what you were trying to do, now. And I think I have an idea what we can do. Without getting you into trouble for taking two toys to school when you are only allowed one.”

Aurora stood up again, looking at Seonghwa out of wide eyes. “Still only one?” she asked meekly.

“Still only one, love,” Seonghwa confirmed. “You’re already upset enough without getting scolded by your teachers. Tell you what, you can take both with you in the car, at least. And then, while you’re in school, one of them is coming with me while I go buy the food and medicine for Joonie and go see if he needs chicken soup. And it will come with me to come pick you up again after school, ok?”

Aurora thought about it for a moment, then nodded. “You can take Mr Bear. He’s strong and can help you. But you have to promise me that you really let him help!”

“I promise. I’ll even take pictures of him while he’s helping me!” Seonghwa promised again, silently wondering where all that need for promises was suddenly coming from today.

“But you can’t make him do all the work!” Aurora quickly pulled him out of his silent wondering.

“I promise,” Seonghwa answered, chuckling quietly at himself and how quickly he’d been conditioned by his daughter this fine morning. “But if I am to get everything done this morning, we need to get going now! You’re almost late for school, too!”

Aurora squeaked in alarm, and ran off to get her jacket. Seonghwa finished packing her backpack, stepping into the hallway just in time to see Aurora quickly tie her shoes. 

Only after dropping Aurora off at school did Seonghwa realize he’d never changed into a clean shirt.

***

The first thing Seonghwa noticed when Hongjoong opened the door for him, were the eyebags. The second, a very suspiciously smelling stain on his rumpled hoodie sleeve. Before he had even time to greet him, Seonghwa winced in sympathy.

“I know, I look just about ready to hit the runway,” Hongjoong sighed, his evident exhaustion taking the bite out of his sarcasm. Still, he stepped out of the way to let Seonghwa inside. “I’m sorry, it’s a total mess. I haven’t really been bothering to pick up the place with everything going on.”

Seonghwa shook his head softly. “You sound as if you fear I’d judge you for prioritizing your son.” 

His words gave Hongjoong pause, and he let his shoulders slump even further than they already were.

“I spoke too soon, earlier. Just after we hung up when you left the pharmacy, he started throwing up. I- I don’t even know anymore. I called his pediatrician, and she said it still sounds just like the bug that’s been going around, and that he just needs to sweat it out. To just keep doing what I already have been doing. But-” Hongjoong broke off, eyes squeezed shut, and Seonghwa realized he was trying to hold back tears. 

Quietly, he set the groceries bags he’d been carrying down and reached out to pull Hongjoong into a hug. Slowly, carefully monitoring Hongjoong’s body language to figure out if this was ok. 

He needn’t have worried, for Hongjoong practically fell into his embrace - not unlike Aurora had, earlier. Contrary to Aurora, however, Hongjoong thankfully didn’t strangle him. He didn’t even hold on to him in turn, just let Seonghwa hold up his weight as he hid his face in Seonghwa’s shoulder, not making a sound.

“I know…” Seonghwa murmured quietly, understanding. “You’re doing everything you can, and it still feels like it’s not enough. It never feels enough when we see our babies suffering and seemingly not getting better no matter what we do.”

Hongjoong said nothing at first, but Seonghwa could feel him swallow thickly against his chest.

“I just feel like such a failure when I see him like this…” Hongjoong eventually quietly admitted, slowly pulling out of Seonghwa’s embrace. Seonghwa let him, even as he still sought to reassure him with words.

“You’re not. You’re doing everything you can possibly do.”

“Then why isn’t it enough? Look at you, for example! You got sick, too, while Aurora was still sick, and you didn’t let your house get to this state!” He made a sweeping gesture encompassing all of the living room they were standing in. Seonghwa glanced around quickly, taking it in. It was definitely not clean, by his standards, but it also wasn’t terrible. There were some piles of laundry, some washed but not yet folded, some dirty, and a few dirty dishes, as well. But that was mostly it. The worst mess in all of this, was Hongjoong himself.

“Aurora was only sick for three days, and I only caught it on her last day. Any longer, and my place would have looked the same. Joonie has been sick for a week, Hongjoong.”

“Please, I don’t need the reminder,” Hongjoong choked out. “That’s just another thing working against me.”

“You’re being unfair to yourself,” Seonghwa chided gently. “Not all children are the same, and not all children react to all the bugs going around the same. That’s not your fault. It’s not anyone’s fault.”

“No, it isn’t. But how come it’s always Joonie? I’m not saying some other child should get sick instead!” Hongjoong quickly clarified, realizing how he must have sounded. “But why does Joonie always have to get affected so badly? It’s like life itself has decided to make him its punching bag. It’s just… really, really not fair!” 

“It isn’t,” Seonghwa agreed. “But for how unfair it is, you’re still doing enough despite the hand you were dealt.”

“I’m being pathetic, is what I am,” Hongjoong spat quietly, and Seonghwa couldn’t even begrudge him the little self-pity party he was throwing himself. Hongjoong really looked rough, and he was all too aware that just days ago, he must have looked similarly miserable whenever Hongjoong had picked Aurora up to drive her to school.

“You’re tired, which is only natural. When was the last time you slept?”

Hongjoong blinked blearily at Seonghwa, which in itself was already not a great answer. “I don’t know,” he finally admitted, which really didn’t make it better. 

“And the last time you ate?” Seonghwa cocked his head, and again, Hongjoong took too long to answer.

“I don’t know…” was the defeated answer Seonghwa eventually got, again.

“Hmm… Tell you what,” Seonghwa took a step closer and held Hongjoong by the shoulders, prompting him to meet his gaze. When he did, Seonghwa felt his heart clench in sympathy again. Hongjoong might only be a few centimeters shorter than him, but in that moment, he did look infinitely tinier, fragile, breakable. Seonghwa made a conscious effort to soften his tone even further than he already would have when he continued: “how about you go take a shower, while I put these away,” he gestured at the bags of groceries he’d bought, “and whip up something to eat. You take as long as you want to. If Joonie needs something, I’ll be here; don’t worry about him.”

The look in Hongjoong’s eyes told Seonghwa that he likely thought of the offer as too good to be true.

“You need to go to work, though…” he protested weakly, as if the thought of Seonghwa leaving and the proposal he’d made going up in smoke physically pained him.

“I’ll call in. I have plenty of overtime hours left to use up, anyway. It’ll be fine,” Seonghwa reassured him, but Hongjoong shook his head, eyes closed once more.

“I can’t ask that of you…”

“You’re not asking. I’m offering,” Seonghwa was adamant, however. “Let me help you, Hongjoong. So that you can help Joonie.”

It was a low blow, to use Joonie to convince Hongjoong, Seonghwa was aware of that. But Hongjoong had done much the same just days prior, using Aurora against him in the same argument, so it was only fair in Seonghwa’s book. And Seonghwa needed Hongjoong to give in, for his own sake. 

“You’re playing dirty, Park Seonghwa,” Hongjoong winced, as expected, but he’d clearly already lost the fight.

“I learned from you, Kim Hongjoong,” Seonghwa reminded him with an indulgent smile, and Hongjoong all but deflated.

“Fine. I’ll be quick, though; I promise!”

“I hope you don’t, actually,” Seonghwa quipped. “Just, take your time. I’ve got your back.”

Hoongjoong didn’t bother protesting again, just showed Seonghwa roughly where things went in his kitchen, and left.

Seonghwa took a moment to situate himself, and went to work.

He needed room to work, was his reasoning as he cleaned up the countertops. And might as well get the dishwasher going while he was at it. Of course, after putting away the remaining clean dishes that were still in there, first. And since he was filling it anyway, might as well fill it with all the dirty dishes he could find around the place. Since he was already going back and forth, anyway, he could just as well take whatever obvious trash he found with him and dispose of it. 

Then came the food. Chicken soup, per Aurora’s request. Hongjoong wasn’t fond of vegetables? Too bad. Joonie ate them - if they weren’t gloopy, apparently. And what was good enough for the son, would be good enough for the dad. 

Hongjoong was evidently taking Seonghwa’s advice, and extending his shower, Seonghwa realized once he had the soup ready to be left alone on the stove to bubble away, and Hongjoong had yet to emerge from the bathroom. The water was still running, too.

Good, Seonghwa thought. He doubted he’d be able to convince Hongjoong to take a nap, so he was glad he was at least taking whatever relaxation he could in the shower.

With nothing else to do for the moment, Seonghwa wandered back to the living room. His hands itched to make a dent in the piles of laundry on the couch, and he didn’t try to resist for long. It was all simple t-shirts and mostly sweatpants, aside from Joonie’s clothes. Nothing fancy, nothing that needed ironing or special care. Just folding and stacking, into an organized, neat pile, where three messy piles had sat before. As for the dirty laundry he found strewn about, well… 

While - from what he’d seen in the couple of times he’d been up to Hongjoong’s place in the time since they’d gotten to know each other -  the layout should be much the same as his own apartment, he didn’t feel confident enough yet to look for the laundry room to get a load going just yet. So, all that had to sit wrapped in a towel in the opening of the hallway.

At some point while Seonghwa had busied himself - nearly leaving the place spotless save for whipping out the vacuum - the water of the shower had finally shut off, and a short while later, Hongjoong stepped out of the room. He hesitated before he did, and Seonghwa quickly realized why, when he stepped out wrapped only in a towel.

In naught-point-two seconds flat, all the moisture Seonghwa had ever thought he’d ever had in his mouth evaporated to nothing as he was unexpectedly treated to the sight of a whole lot more of Hongjoong’s physique than he thought he would get for a while yet!

“I- sorry, I forgot to take clothes with me…” Hongjoong apologized sheepishly, before he took in the room, eyes widening. “Holy- how? Did you-? I wasn’t even-” 

While Hongjoong was still trying to find words, Seonghwa shook himself out of his thirst-induced daze and quickly selected a handful of clothes - pants, shirt, hoodie - to hand Hongjoong.

“Ah- thank you!” Hongjoong bowed - actually bowed! - as he took the clothes from Seonghwa. Then he, too, realized what he was doing, and a becoming shade of pink crept up his ears and adorned his neck, all visible to Seonghwa’s attentive eyes. Seonghwa knew the polite thing to do was avert his gaze, but he was but a mere mortal, and he could have sworn Hongjoong had been shaped by some sort of god, designed to appeal to Seonghwa specifically. He couldn’t look away to save his life, and when his eyes caught the black lines of tattoos adorning parts of the vast expanses of skin exposed to his gaze, he felt the moisture that had previously vacated his mouth in an instant return just as fast, mouth watering at the sight.

The spell was broken when Hongjoong hurried back into the bathroom with the bundle Seonghwa had handed him, and the door closed behind him.

Seconds later, all thoughts about Hongjoong and his gorgeous body and enticing tattoos were wiped from Seonghwa’s mind altogether when he heard the weak coughing of a child, and a rasped “Dad?”

He only debated for a second whether he should go check on Joonie, since Hongjoong was done with his shower now. But no, he was still getting dressed, still drying himself off, might still take a while, and Seonghwa had promised that he would look after the child while Hongjoong took a moment to look after himself.

He knew where the kid’s room was, since he’d picked Aurora up from there before, and he hurried over.

The door was slightly ajar, and Seonghwa knocked softly before pushing it further open. 

Inside, Joonie was sat up in his bed, blankets strewn around him, already facing the door. Despite Seonghwa clearly not being the dad he had called for, Joonie didn’t seem at all surprised to see him.

“Hey, Joonie. Your dad is still in the bathroom. Can I help you?”

Joonie nodded once, pointing at an empty glass on his nightstand. 

“I’m thirsty, and dad said not to get out of bed and call him instead,” the child rasped. Seonghwa winced internally at the tone that sounded so wrong coming from the small child.

“Ok, I’ll get you some water. You did well, calling instead of getting up yourself,” he made sure to praise the child, even as he was in and already half back out of the room with the glass in his hand. In no time, he was back and handed Joonie a new glass of water.

The kid took small sips, until he was satisfied and placed the glass back on his nightstand. He tried to lie down, but immediately sat back up again, glaring at the bed in frustration.

“What’s wrong, love?” Seonghwa asked, and Joonie huffed.

“There are too many blankets, and they are all tangled. And I don’t like the green one touching me.”

Seonghwa had to concede the point to the child - there really were too many blankets, and they were hopelessly tangled. 

“Right. Is it ok if I help you with them?” Seonghwa asked, not having high hopes that the child would agree. Joonie was normally skittish, and even though he’d known Seonghwa for a while now, he only ever really interacted with him when Aurora was present to take the lead. The fact he was talking to him at all right now was already surprising enough to Seonghwa. But today was apparently full of surprises, because Joonie nodded.

“Yes, please,” he asked, kicking the mess of blankets further from himself.

Seonghwa approached the bed with measured steps, telegraphing his movements to give Joonie time to anticipate where he would reach. Joonie followed his movements closely, but didn’t shy away from them and even asked Seonghwa to help him spread the untangled blankets back out on the bed and over himself; not all of them, just enough to feel comfortable. The remaining ones, Seonghwa folded up and placed on his desk chair, at Joonie’s behest. Except for the green one; that one was apparently evil. Still, Seonghwa thought it was probably wise to not follow Joonie’s request to “burn it”, and just take it with him when he left to put on the laundry pile instead.

“Better now?” Seonghwa finally asked, when Joonie snuggled into his freshly fluffed up pillow, practically melting under the now neat blankets.

Joonie nodded with a content sigh, momentarily closing his eyes.

“Thank you for helping me. And my dad.” He mumbled quietly, though still clearly enough to easily be heard.

“How did you-” Seonghwa started, before deciding that it wasn’t important, and there was no reason to question the child.

“The shower,” Joonie yawned, though, already having heard enough to piece the rest of Seonghwa’s question together. “Dad wouldn’t be showering if no one else was here when I’m like this. And I heard dishes clanking while he was in the shower. And Aurora told me you don’t like messes and always clean them up, and our kitchen is always a little messy. You did clean it, didn’t you?” he opened his eyes again as he asked Seonghwa, and Seonghwa could only nod.

“Y-yeah, I did. I like cleaning,” he tried to justify himself.

Joonie was still looking intently at him, not meeting his gaze, and yet Seonghwa felt as if the kid was looking right through him and down to his soul.

“And you like my dad,” he stated after a moment.

Seonghwa’s heart stuttered for a second, but he decided to be honest with the child.

“Yes, I do,” he admitted, therefore.

Joonie nodded solemnly - or as solemnly as one could, with their head bedded on a pillow and blankets piled on top of one. His gaze became pleading, though, and he did look up to meet Seonghwa’s gaze, too.

“Please don’t stop liking my dad because of the messes in our house. He really likes you, too, and he’d be really sad if you stopped liking him.”

Seonghwa couldn’t help the amused chuckle, even as his heart did somersaults at ‘he really likes you, too’. 

“I won’t stop liking your dad because of any messes in your house; I promise. They are not bad messes, anyway!” He quickly reassured the child.

Joonie shrugged a little under his covers.

“Some of them are,” he admitted, then paused. “It’s not dad who’s cooking, right?”

Seonghwa shook his head. “No. I’m making chicken soup. Would you like some?”

Joonie pondered over the question for a while, then shrugged again. 

“Later, maybe,” he decided, and his eyes fell shut again.

He didn’t say anything else, and Seonghwa rightly deduced that that was the end of their conversation, for now.

“Sleep well, Joonie,” Seonghwa whispered into the room before leaving, and maybe he’d imagined it, but maybe Joonie had smiled a little just before Seonghwa left, too.

***

Hongjoong nearly cried again when he eventually stepped out of the bathroom, hair dry, clean clothes on, and looking a whole lot more refreshed, despite the bags still prominent under his eyes. The reason, this time, was the sight he found in the kitchen, apparently. They clean kitchen, where a pot of lovely smelling soup was simmering on the lowest heat, waiting to be consumed.

“I can never make it up to you, ever, Seonghwa,” he mumbled through a tight throat. “You really didn’t have to-”

“Nonsense,” Seonghwa cut him off, and gently bullied him into sitting in one of the chairs around the table, before ladling a helping of the soup into a bowl and setting it down in front of him.

“I’m just helping you in the way I can help best; the same you did for me before,” he stated firmly. Then, softer: “You should really eat something, too. At least the meat and the broth, if you really can’t stomach the vegetables. You need to keep up your strength.”

Hongjoong responded by taking up the spoon, and going straight for a piece of carrot that swam in the clear broth. He didn’t look happy at the taste, but the way he was trying to keep a neutral expression was funny enough to Seonghwa to laugh quietly.  

“You have a child’s tastebuds,” he teased lightly, but grew serious again quickly. “Just leave them, really. I won’t take offense.”

It was as if Hongjoong didn’t hear him, though, and he finished the whole bowl, leaving nothing behind.

“I think I must have dreamed you up, because there is no way you are real. You even manage to make vegetables taste-... tolerable.” 

Seonghwa laughed at Hongjoong’s quickly amended  - for sincerity’s sake - compliment.

“I guarantee you, I am quite real,” Seonghwa reassured him, still chuckling. “You were probably just really hungry.”

“I was. But the soup was really good, too. I wonder if I can convince Joonie to have some of it. At least the broth.”

“He said he might want to try some. Later.”

“You talked to him? He was asleep when I went to check…”

Seonghwa nodded, recounting their little encounter. And while he did leave out how his heart had done somersaults, he did tell Hongjoong about how his son had outed him for liking Seonghwa.

Hongjoong smiled fondly. “Well. I won’t deny it. I wouldn’t be desperate to finally get to take you on that date I asked you for if I didn’t like you. But,” he paused for emphasis, “what’s perhaps more surprising here - definitely remarkable - is that Joonie clearly likes you. He would not be encouraging us like this if he didn’t!”

“I got the same feeling,” Seonghwa agreed. “I don’t know what I did to deserve his approval, but I’m very grateful for it.”

“You raised your kid right,” Hongjoong stated through a yawn. “Sorry. I was saying, you raised your kid right. It’s thanks to her that we started talking. And it’s thanks to how she treats Joonie, even before she knew he is my kid, that Joonie approves of her, and you by extension.”

Seonghwa’s heart warmed with pride for his child, and gratitude for Hongjoong and his kind words. 

“Flattery will get you everywhere with me,” he admitted, despite the shy feeling he felt at Hongjoong’s praise. 

“It’s not flattery-” Hongjoong cut himself off with another yawn - “it’s the truth.”

Seonghwa felt flattered nonetheless. Perhaps more importantly, and definitely more prominently, he felt concern for Hongjoong, though.

“You should take a nap, Hongjoong,” he declared seriously. “You are barely keeping awake.”

Hongjoong quickly shook his head, sitting himself up straight.

“No, no… I just need a coffee, or two. I can’t- I need to be awake, in case Joonie needs me.”

“I fear you are way past the point where coffee will do much, judging by how many mugs I’ve found,” Seonghwa pursed his lips slightly in disapproval. “Just sleep, Hongjoong. I already took the day off; I can stick around, no problem. And if Joonie needs anything from you, specifically, I can always wake you then.”

“You shouldn’t have to…” Hongjoong protested, but it was weak to begin with. Now that he was showered, clean, fed and watered, his body was demanding he take care of the next urgent thing on the list of its priorities: rest. 

“I don’t have to, I want to. Listen,” Seonghwa started to reason, “what is you staying awake even going to accomplish right now? You are clearly exhausted, you can barely keep your eyes open. So, what, you’re going to make another coffee, send me home, and then most likely fall asleep anyway, coffee or no coffee. And then? Who’s going to answer when Joonie calls, then?”

Hongjoong didn’t answer for a good while, until he eventually grumbled: “I don’t know whether Aurora gets her talent for arguing from you, or whether you honed your skills through arguing with her.” He let out a deep, defeated sigh. “Fine, I’ll go to sleep. But just a nap! Just until… Until you have to go pick up Aurora, at the latest!”

“Hmm, we’ll see. You nap first, and we’ll see about the rest later,” Seonghwa gave a non-answer, already mentally going through the schedules of his friends and immediately available family to see who he would ask first if they could pick up Aurora from school for him. He didn’t tell Hongjoong as much, merely following him to the couch where he intended to nap and sitting down where Hongjoong invited him to take a seat while he got comfortable on the plush furniture as well.

It took no time whatsoever for Hongjoong to fall asleep, and Seonghwa settled in to watch over for what would hopefully be a long and invigorating nap for Hongjoong. Which… in a way, he found crazy to think about; here they were, and they hadn’t even gone on their second date yet.

Seonghwa couldn’t help but feel like they were doing everything out of order; and yet, he couldn’t bring himself to feel like any of it felt wrong, in any way. Everything felt just right; and as long as it felt right, what was wrong about continuing just as they were?

Chapter 7: Mittens

After waking up from his nap way later than he'd hoped for, but not as late as he feared, somehow snuggled up to Seonghwa’s thigh and with Seonghwa’s hand in his hair, Hongjoong had felt more energized than he’d had in days - which was not much of a feat, since he'd been running on no energy whatsoever for days already, at that point. 

It had been enough energy to keep him going through the rest of Joonie’s cold, however. Granted, he was no longer completely on his own in looking after his kid, with Seonghwa doing the groceries shopping and stopping by at least once a day with a home cooked meal for both him and Joonie, and occasionally rescuing them from the unfortunate fate of living in the messiest hell of a place imaginable - at least that was what Hongjoong suspected Seonghwa must see their place as, when compared to the pristine but comfortable haven that was Seonghwa’s own apartment.

Of course, Seonghwa never gave any indication whatsoever that that was how he felt about Hongjoong’s apartment. He was much too kind to ever lose a negative word about the place, quietly - and somehow imperceptibly, because Hongjoong could literally be talking to Seonghwa the whole time, focus on him the whole time, and still he managed to do it without him noticing - picking up after Hongjoong.

“Please, you really don’t have to clean up after me. I know it’s messy, but… It’s my fault it’s messy, I should be the one cleaning up,” Hongjoong had protested weakly once. Seonghwa had given him a deadpan stare. 

“Are you asking me to stop because you don’t feel comfortable with me touching your things, or because you feel bad that I’m doing any work?” he’d asked after a moment.

“The latter. I don’t mind you touching my stuff, at all,” Hongjoong had had to confess.

“Then don’t worry about the rest. I told you, I like cleaning! And it’s not even that messy; just enough to be overwhelming when you don’t know where to start and your mind is elsewhere, anyway,” Seonghwa had reassured him, before gently turning him around and pushing him back towards his home office, where he’d been trying to get some work done. “Now, go! You have a deadline, remember?”

Hongjoong would rather not have remembered, but Seonghwa was right. With the faint noises of Seonghwa puttering about his place, and the muffled sounds of him talking to Joonie from time to time as background music, Hongjoong had been able to lock in, as if he’d forgotten his worries on the living room floor for Seonghwa to sweep up and toss away, rather than take them with him. A couple of hours later, Seonghwa had found him with a steaming plate of food, and Hongjoong had accepted it gratefully. Once he’d emerged from his home office another while later, he’d found the entire rest of the apartment near spotless. Meanwhile, Seonghwa looked as happy as ever and as if he’d never lifted a finger, listening intently to Joonie telling him all there was to know about lunar moth caterpillars. 

Hongjoong gave up on trying to get Seonghwa to stop helping him out with keeping his place clean, him and Joonie fed, and Joonie happy, while he was stuck working twice as hard as he would have had to had he been able to go to the company to work. He vowed to Seonghwa that he would make it up to him, but Seonghwa waved him off time and time again. 

Joonie got better, fully back to his old, healthy self, after ten days of ups and downs. Hongjoong and Joonie both agreed it was probably all because of Seonghwa’s care for them, and where they’d agreed they liked him before, they now agreed that Seonghwa was an angel sent from heaven.

Seonghwa called them silly, shaking his head at both of them and shoving Hongjoong playfully, ears reddening under his hair.

He didn’t stop coming by as soon as Joonie was healthy again, though; and just as often, Hongjoong would find himself at Seonghwa’s apartment in turn, with Joonie by his side.

Ever since they’d helped each other out in their moments of peril, their lives had started merging more and more together. Now, Hongjoong would take both kids to school in the morning on his way to  work most days, while Seonghwa would run errands for both himself and Hongjoong. In the afternoons, Seonghwa would more often than not pick up both kids on his way home from work, in turn, since Joonie had decided he wanted to try some of the extracurriculars the school offered, after all, and actually found some he enjoyed. 

Three days out of five, Seonghwa took the kids home, and on the remaining two, Hongjoong would take the kids out to play outside - though, more often than not, Seonghwa joined them, too. It was still Hongjoong who coloured himself responsible for providing snacks, drinks, spare gloves, scarves, hats, socks, shoes, hand warmers, tissues, wet wipes, and whatever else a child might need when adventuring outside during the winter. 

The tradition had started when Seonghwa had come home with a headache from hell one day, and really didn’t have the energy or patience even for his own child. Hongjoong had stepped in and taken both kids to get their excess energy out of their system, returning them only hours later, already dined and ready to be tucked into bed after a quick wash-up.

They’d had so much fun, the kids now begged to play outside with Hongjoong near daily; which of course wasn’t feasible. So, the compromise was found that Hongjoong would take them outside only on days Joonie was home early and they didn’t get to play together after school.

And while Seonghwa still sat out on some days, enjoying some well-deserved time for himself, he joined the fun on almost just as many others, as well.

Finally, the first snow fell, and even though it wasn’t a designated going-out day, there was nothing that could have kept the kids happy inside. Hongjoong had been absolutely defeated by their insistent begging, and so he’d relented and taken them outside. 

Seonghwa, too, didn’t want to miss out on the fun of the first snow; even though he had a little different opinion on what he considered fun than the kids. While Hongjoong was embroiled in an all-out snow ball fight with the two little terrors, Seonghwa stayed off to the side, creating a veritable army of snow ducklings in neat little rows. 

Once tuckered out from their arduous fight but nowhere near ready to go back inside just yet, the kids had come looking at what Seonghwa was doing, but deemed his entertainment of choice boring. Hongjoong had then managed to convince the kids to try and build a giant snow duckling, which they had found a lot more to their liking.

The sun was already touching the horizon by the time the giant duckling was complete, with Seonghwa having to sacrifice a vast majority of his army of small ducklings so there was enough snow for the head of the duckling; of course, in their quest to make the body as large as possible, no one had thought to leave enough to make a proportionate head for the unfortunate snow bird.

Seonghwa was watching Hongjoong and the kids finish up the sculpture, taking pictures of the trio where Hongjoong was adjusting the head according to Aurora and Joonie’s directions, when Joonie eventually broke off to come over to Seonghwa instead.

“H-hwa, I’m c-c-cold,” he chattered miserably, and Seonghwa immediately turned all of his focus on the child in front of him instead.

“You’re cold? Ah, let me see what we can do. Are your mittens wet?”

Joonie nodded, holding out his hands for Seonghwa to see. The mittens weren’t wet; they were completely and utterly soaked.

“Oh no, that won’t do. Here, let me take them off,” Seonghwa tutted, holding out his own hands for Joonie to place his. Once Joonie let him, he made short work of his mittens. 

“I’m going to find you another pair, but you can’t go back to playing with the snow once you put them on, alright? They’ll get wet again, and then I won’t have another pair for you. Hold on, here,” he rummaged in the pockets of his own coat and pulled out two hand warmers that he deposited in each of the kid’s coat pockets instead. “Put your hands in your pockets until I find you some new mittens.”

Joonie followed Seonghwa’s instructions obediently, and Seonghwa started rummaging in the large bag Hongjoong had brought and left with Seonghwa when he went off to play with the kids.

“My feet are cold, too. And my arms. My sleeves are wet,” Joonie complained quietly, while Seonghwa took note of everything he needed to find in the bag to get Joonie set up. 

Hongjoong had thought of everything, and he lined all the items he needed up on the flap of the bag. First came the hat, which wasn’t too bad but still damp enough for Seonghwa to decide it needed replacing. The same went for the scarf. He decided to let Joonie warm his hands on the pocket warmers for a while longer, instead aiming to get him changed out of his cold and wet shoes and socks.

“Joonie, we need to get you out of those shoes. Are you ok to sit on my lap while I help you? I don’t want you sitting directly on the cold bench…” he inquired somewhat hesitantly, wondering if the child would tolerate that much proximity. To his surprise, his worries revealed themselves to be unfounded, as Joonie came up to him to climb onto his lap without hesitation. And so, Seonghwa quickly hid his surprise and instead helped Joonie up and to get settled. He had to take his own mittens off to untie the tangled mess that the kid’s laces had become, and he wanted nothing more than to hurry through the process. It really was cold without the full protective gear, and he worried for the children in their damp clothes.

At least Hongjoong had thought of everything and he was able to get Joonie into dry socks and shoes, as well as secure his pant legs in a way none of the damp parts of the pants he wore under his outer snow-gear touched his skin.

When he moved on to the kid’s hands, however, he paused. 

“Your hands are still so cold, Joonie…!” His hands were still freezing, even though he’d already been warming them on the pocket warmers for a while. “Are the pocket warmers not warm enough?”

The kid shook his head miserably.

“Hold on, I’ll find you a new pair-” Seonghwa started, but Joonie held on to his hand instead.

“Your hands are warm…”

Again, Seonghwa paused, before slowly enclosing the child’s hands between his own, rubbing them gently. Joonie hummed contentedly, adjusting his position on Seonghwa’s lap so he was leaning with his back against his chest and could easily watch what Hongjoong and Aurora were up to, while Seonghwa wrapped his arms around him and warmed his hands in his lap.

“Dad, look!” Aurora eventually called, and Seonghwa looked up to see her and Hongjoong presenting the finished duckling.

“Good job, love!” Seonghwa hollered back, after making sure to cover Joonie’s ears before he did, and then promptly returned to offering up his hands for Joonie to take once more and warm his own.

Aurora came running over, beaming as she gesticulated back at the giant duckling. “Look! We even made eyes for it! And gave it wings!”

“You did?” Seonghwa squinted at the duckling, though with the quickly waning daylight, the details became harder to see. “Very nice. It does look amazing!” he gave the praise anyway.

“It was Joongie’s idea. He also put some of your baby ducklings on the big duckling’s back. We didn’t make all of them into the big head,” Aurora announced proudly,and it was then Seonghwa realized Aurora was also chattering with cold, but trying to hide it valiantly.

“Rory, do you want to change mittens and shoes?” Hongjoong redirected her focus once he reached the bench Seonghwa and Joonie were sitting on.

“Yes, please!” Aurora answered sweetly, and Hongjoong reached for the bag Seonghwa had fished Joonie’s dry clothing out of. 

“I already sorted it out. Change her hat and scarf, too, please,” Seonghwa indicated as Hongjoong fished out the bundle Seonghwa had set aside for Aurora while he’d been looking for Joonie’s things.

Hongjoong mirrored Seonghwa’s earlier actions, though with an a lot more fidgetty child on his lap.

“-and I bet if our duck could fly for real, I could ride on its back!” Aurora continued telling her make-belief scenarios even as Hongjoong was putting on dry socks and shoes for her, gesticulating wildly and even swinging her feet. Hongjoong merely caught the limb he needed to change, one at a time, and let her do whatever she wanted with the remaining three.

“Sure it would, love. Please, make sure you don’t kick Hongjoong,” Seonghwa reminded her, but Aurora rolled her eyes at him.

“I’m not going to kick him! I’m careful!” Of course, she had to argue back.

“I’m not saying you aren’t, I’m just reminding you to be, anyway. Because sometimes, you forget,” Seonghwa pushed back, and for once, Aurora conceded the point. Maybe it had more to do with Hongjoong finishing up with her shoes, and activating a pair of pocketwarmers for her, too, however. 

As soon as Aurora was all set, she hopped off Hongjoong’s lap once again, ready to continue playing.

“Aurora!” Seonghwa called after her urgently. “You’ve played with enough snow for the day! Leave it be, or you’ll get those mittens wet as well and then we won’t have any to replace them with and your hands will stay cold!”

Aurora deflated slightly, groaning exaggeratedly. 

“But if I can’t play with the snow, what else am I meant to play with?!”

“We’re done playing here for today, Rory,” Hongjoong stepped in, as well. “We’re going to find somewhere warm to eat something delicious, and then going home afterwards. It’s getting late.”

Aurora pouted, but the prospect of food sounded good enough to her growling stomach that she didn’t argue back.

Hongjoong, already child-free, was quick to pack the bag up again, getting them ready  to leave. In the meantime, Joonie gave no indication that he wanted to leave Seonghwa’s lap anytime soon.

“There is a place about a five minute walk from here, it’s usually quiet even though it’s family friendly, and they have delicious options. And large, single stall bathrooms where we can change the kids,” Hongjoong informed Seonghwa, who liked the sound of all that.

“Can I have fries again?” Aurora butted into the conversation, insisting to be heard. “I want the fries again! Can I?”

“We'll have to see what they have on the menu when we get there, sweety,” Hongjoong answered, though he sounded distracted as he checked the bag again for something, and then again, before evidently giving up and zipping it up before slinging it over his shoulders. 

Aurora sighed dramatically once more, but then shrugged her worries about fries off for the time being in favour of a new game, which she promptly proposed to Joonie. “I bet you I can run all the way over to that lamp post while holding my breath!” 

Joonie gave her a skeptical look. “That's very far. And it's extra hard to breathe while running.”

“I can still do it!! Can you?”

Joonie took a moment to take the bite. Eventually, he did, and wriggled to slide off Seonghwa’s lap. Without a visible starting signal, the kids took a deep breath and started running.

Hongjoong shook his head with a sigh, looking after them worriedly. 

“What’s this about running without breathing all of a sudden, now?” he mumbled.

“They’ll soon realize how dumb it is; just let them figure it out for themselves,” Seonghwa chuckled, fondly exasperated with the kids, as well.

Hongjoong was still looking after them with worry. “They’ll make themselves sick…”

“Probably, yes,” Seonghwa conceded, brushing snow off his coat when he stood up. “Which is when they’ll realize it was a bad idea and come up with a different game.” He nudged Hongjoong lightly, getting his attention. “Hey. They’ll be fine. A little dizziness won’t hurt them, and they know not too push things too far; they’re both smart.”

Hongjoong shook himself out of his spell and sighed again. “I hope you’re right. I’ve dealt with enough throw-up for a while now…” he shuddered, likely at the memory of the tail end of Joonie’s cold. Seonghwa was already focussed on something else, though.

“Where are your gloves?” he asked when he noticed Hongjoong adjust the bag he was carrying with bare hands. 

“Completely and utterly soaked. And apparently, I didn’t bring a spare pair for myself. I brought two for each of the kids, just in case, but none for me or you. I’m sorry,” he apologized, giving Hongjoong a look from under his lashes that was designed to move even the coldest of hearts. Seonghwa’s heart was far from being the coldest, and so he stood absolutely no chance.

“How can you be so good at taking care of our kids, but so distracted when it comes to yourself, hm?” he asked fondly, even as he was starting to take off his own mittens.

“W-wait! What are you doing?” Hongjoong stammered, alarmed, but didn’t resist when Seonghwa reached for his hand. “Seonghwa, you can’t-”

“Hush,” Seonghwa shushed him, and Hongjoong’s mouth, already open for more protesting, snapped shut instantly. Seonghwa smiled to himself, both amused and pleased with the reaction, while he pulled one of his gloves onto Hongjoong’s hand. 

“T-thank you,” Hongjoong stammered, still bewildered. “You didn’t have to-”

“I know,” Seonghwa quipped, amused, while he beckoned Hongjoong to give him his other hand. He took his icy cold limb and intertwined the fingers of his own bare hand with Hongjoong’s, before stuffing both into his own coat pocket, where a warmer resided.

Hongjoong was blushing fire hydrant red, struck mute by Seonghwa’s actions, but he did not complain or attempt to pull away. 

“Shall we go?” 

Hongjoong nodded, still speechless, and Seonghwa led them after the children, who had already given up on their running-without-breathing game and were now busying themselves with something else.

Joonie was the first to notice them approaching, and nudged Aurora to let her know. As soon as the girl did, her eyes widened.

“You’re holding hands!” she observed excitedly.

“Yes, I know,” Seonghwa deadpanned.

“Does that mean you’re going to kiss?” she asked, even as she was starting to walk with them; backwards, though, so she could look at them while she was talking.

The question gave Seonghwa whiplash, but knowing his daughter, it really shouldn’t have. Hongjoong, too, was taken aback by it and spluttered next to Seonghwa; Seonghwa expected no help from him.

“It means we are holding hands. And you, pay attention to where you’re going. If you run into something and fall, you’ll be stuck holding my hand as well before we reach the end of this park,” Seonghwa redirected her attention, and Aurora whipped around to face where she was going – not without giving Seonghwa a look that promised she wasn’t done with her line of questioning, however.

Seonghwa sighed quietly, already dreading when she would be picking the topic back up again. At least he had time to prepare for it, now. 

Just as he thought them in the clear, Seonghwa heard Joonie’s voice from Hongjoong’s other side, however. “Did you run into something and fall?”

Seonghwa barely managed to suppress a laugh. For how smart Joonie was, sometimes he really was still the most innocent of little children.

“No, sweetie,” Hongjoong got out after clearing his throat. “I-... forgot to bring spare mittens for myself  and Seonghwa is helping me warm my hands back up.”

It was the truth, technically, packaged in a way it would make sense to the child. Seonghwa was well aware that to Hongjoong - much as to himself - there was absolutely more to it, however. 

“Ah…” Joonie nodded slowly in understanding. “He’s good at that. Hwa has really warm hands! He warmed my hands up again, as well!” He held up his once again mitten-covered hands as if to show how warm they were.

“Yes, he is,” Hongjoong agreed, though his voice sounded a little choked, and again, Seonghwa suppressed a laugh.

Thankfully, Joonie lost interest in the topic and took a few running steps to catch up with Aurora walking ahead of them again.

Seonghwa gave Hongjoong’s hand a tug, pulling him closer to his side, and Hongjoong followed easily. 

“They have it out for me today,” Hongjoong lamented quietly, and this time, Seonghwa did laugh, if only loud enough for Hongjoong to hear. 

“It’s cute, how easily you get flustered by their questions.”

Hongjoong made a pained noise. “It’s not! I become a bumbling idiot when they put me on the spot like that! Them, and you!”

“Again, it’s cute,” Seonghwa cooed, and Hongjoong groaned in defeat, but made no move to pull away from Seonghwa or even put a single millimeter more space between them.

They walked in comfortable silence until almost the exit of the park before Hongjoong spoke again, a quiet but serious request.

“Please, be patient with me…”

Seonghwa’s heart fluttered warmly, and he gave Hongjoong’s hand in his own a gentle squeeze.

“I’m in no rush,” he reassured him, just as seriously.

Hongjoong let out a sigh of relief, squeezing Seonghwa’s hand back, before they had to focus on their children once more, calling them to their sides as they came upon the exit.

If Hongjoong really minded Seonghwa’s gentle ribbing and the poking and prodding of the children was yet to be decided, however. Fact of the matter was, somehow, he kept forgetting to pack spare mittens for himself on every single one of the outings to the park Seonghwa joined them for.

Chapter 8: Cozy

Notes:

I've already fallen a day behind orz I'm sorry, life happened. Let's hope I can catch up again at some point!

Despite the odds that appeared monumentally stacked against them, Seonghwa and Hongjoong eventually did manage to go on their second date. With Hongjoong’s brother in town, Joonie was excited to spend time with his uncle, and Hongjoong was free for the afternoon; and luck would have it that some of Seonghwa’s friends had already offered to take Aurora to go ice-skating that same day.

To say that Hongjoong was nervous for their date was an understatement. He’d planned a whole bunch of dates already, all of which had been cancelled because of some emergency or other at the last minute, making him wary and not even believe this one would go ahead until it was actually happening.

Christmas was just around the corner, meaning that in a way, there were loads of cute options for dates opening up - and yet, at the same time, he felt his options limited, because he was sure tons of couples were thinking the same thing, and all the cute dating spots and events were sure to be overcrowded. 

He’d made his choice eventually, making all the necessary plans and reservations, and nervously counted down the days, hours, and eventually minutes until the time of their date arrived and he knocked on Seonghwa’s door to pick him up.

Seonghwa opened the door breathlessly, ushering Hongjoong inside.

“Two minutes! I still need to dry my hair!” Seonghwa rushed out, bidding Hongjoong to get comfortable while he rushed back to the bathroom, calling over his shoulder as he went: “Wooyoung and San were late picking Aurora up; nothing major, just a few minutes. But they were wearing matching clothes, and Aurora decided she needed to match her outfit to theirs, too, and that threw all my own plans right out the window.”

Hongjoong shook his head fondly as he sat on the couch, in the same spot he’d sat on dozens of times by now. He could relate to Aurora; he, too, was fussy about his outfits. 

He heard the hair dryer going and then shut off, but Seonghwa did not yet appear again. Not that Hongjoong minded; Seonghwa could take as long as he needed, he would wait.

Eventually, Seonghwa emerged from the bathroom, hair styled and a lovely touch of make-up enhancing his already gorgeous features. 

“Almost done!” he promised, as he rushed past Hongjoong and into his bedroom, startling Hongjoong with his sudden appearance.

Silence settled over the apartment again, so unlike what Hongjoong was used to from the space, until Seonghwa returned, startling Hongjoong again!

“Ok, I’m good to go,” Seonghwa announced his presence, which was what startled Hongjoong in the first place. “You’re jumpy today. Is everything ok?” Seonghwa remarked, frowning a little.

Hongjoong got up from the couch, quickly smoothing down his own clothes from where they might have rumpled a little from being seated. 

“Yeah, no, everything is fine. I’m just- I can’t believe we finally actually get to go on this date,” he confessed, a little bashful. Seonghwa’s frown melted away into a smile.

“Right? I’m so excited! Can I know what you have planned now?” he asked, turning pleading eyes to Hongjoong, whose knees nearly buckled under the force of that look.

“It’s still a surprise,” he somehow managed to keep his resolve, but it was under fire again when Seonghwa pouted.

“Can I at least know if I’m dressed appropriately for the occasion?”

“Absolutely. You look gorgeous!” Hongjoong wasn’t exaggerating at all, and made good use of the chance to check him out Seonghwa was giving him. Still, Seonghwa narrowed his eyes at him.

“Why do I feel like you would be saying that even if I was dressed in rags?”

“Because it would be true then, too,” Hongjoong didn’t miss a beat to reply. “But don’t worry; you know I don’t play about fashion. Your outfit looks amazing on you, too.”

Seonghwa sighed in fond exasperation. “Smooth-talker,” he grumbled under his breath, though without any heat.

With their coats and shoes on, Seonghwa locked his door behind them and linked his arm with Hongjoong’s.

“Alright then; show me what you have in store for us!”

***

“I still can’t believe you got us tickets for a Star Wars Christmas musical! That’s so-” Seonghwa gestured helplessly in his overflowing excitement, practically bouncing up and down next to Hongjoong. The latter almost feared he would be floating off into space if it weren’t for their linked hands keeping him on the ground. “How did you even get tickets for this? They were sold out months ago!”

“One of my noonas at the company worked on the wardrobe design team for the production and managed to pull some strings,” Hongjoong admitted, and Seonghwa squealed in excitement.

“Those gorgeous costumes were her designs? Do you know which ones? Oooh, please send her my thanks; both for the tickets and her amazing work!”

Hongjoong nodded obediently. “Will do,” he promised. Finally, the nervous fluttering in his stomach was subsiding, now reassured that Seonghwa had enjoyed his pick for their date.

“I didn’t think it was possible to make Star Wars into a Christmas musical, and even though I really wanted to go - because it’s Star Wars; hello?! - I was still skeptical from the moment it was announced. But not anymore! That was so good! And the music! I had no idea they were doing such a big live orchestra, as well! They absolutely knocked it out of the ballpark!” Seonghwa kept gushing and quickly spiralled into a detailed review, as if Hongjoong hadn’t been there to witness it all himself, as well.

Hongjoong didn’t mind at all, however, listening closely and providing input where needed. He loved listening to Seonghwa talk, even more so when he was excited about something. And so, while Seonghwa was still reviewing the experience, Hongjoong took the lead, guiding Seonghwa through the streets to a nice restaurant he’d made reservations at, as well.

“Hongjoong!” Seonghwa gasped, stopping in his tracks as he gaped at the name adorning the façade of the building. “You didn’t!”

“You said you wanted to try it yourself,” Hongjoong noted. “Multiple times. And I happen to be good friends with the owner’s son.”

Seonghwa did an excited little hop, squeezing Hongjoong’s hand and pulling him closer before stopping him with a pointer finger to his chest and narrowing his eyes at him.

“You, my man, have an awful lot of connections to all the right places. You are going to tempt me into abusing that knowledge!” he accused, mock sternly.

For a split second, Hongjoong had actually been worried, but that worry quickly melted away when he realized Seonghwa was not serious. Instead, his heart somersaulted for a different reason, still stuck on the words ‘my man’ being directed at him from Seonghwa’s own lips. 

“I would hope you do,” he answered genuinely. “What else are connections good for if you don’t actually use them?”

“Careful what you wish for,” Seonghwa warned, even as Hongjoong led him up to the doors of the restaurant. “You might lose those connections once they see how much I can eat!”

Hongjoong scoffed, amused.

“Mingi’s mom is going to take that as a challenge. You eat as much as you want, and you’re going to make her a very happy woman.”

“And a rich one…” Seonghwa winced self-deprecatingly.

“That’s not for you to worry about,” Hongjoong reassured him with a short tightening of his hold on Seonghwa’s hand, before letting go and holding the door open with his other one for Seonghwa to pass through.

Seonghwa stopped to look around in awe once inside. The interior of the restaurant was cozy, homely, yet also pristine. It was the perfect mix between mildly fancy and comfortable; not unlike how Seonghwa styled his own life. 

A waiter hurried over once they saw them and recognized Hongjoong, seating them without having to wait.

“You’re going to spoil me rotten!” Seonghwa hissed at Hongjoong when he helped him out of his coat, already at their table.

“I thought that was the entire point? To make you happy. Unless…” Here, Hongjoong trailed off, giving Seonghwa an uncertain look, suddenly worried he was overstepping. 

“Oh, no, no!” Seonghwa quickly protested, cupping Hongjoong’s face for a second before catching himself and letting his hand fall away once more. “It’s perfect! Everything’s perfect; you’re perfect!”

Hongjoong was sorely tempted to start a no, you! war, but refrained - for now. He was much too addled by Seonghwa’s touch to form much of a coherent thought for a significant amount of time, anyway.

Once seated, Seonghwa reached across the table to catch Hongjoong’s hand in his own, finding and holding his gaze before speaking.

“Seriously, though. You’re really treating me so well today. I feel like the date I took you on was silly in comparison.”

Hongjoong felt his heart sink, and he quickly sat forward, holding Seonghwa’s hand in turn as he shook his head.

“No, Hwa- Seonghwa! It was not silly! It was perfect! It was so much fun, we did and saw so many things, had so much delicious food, and I loved sitting by the river with you and the rest of the walk. It was amazing, and everything I could ever dream of for a first date!”

“But…” Seonghwa looked slightly pained, “but you managed to tailor this date so much to my specific taste, and I-... I just took a shot in the dark.”

Hongjoong’s heart ached with fondness for Seonghwa, and the need to knock those silly thoughts right out of Seonghwa’s head.

“That was our first date. We were only just getting to know each other!”

“And this is our second date…!” Seonghwa protested, however, and Hongjoong could really see where Aurora got it from.

“Real date; official, one-on-one date! But so much has changed between us since that first date – wouldn’t you say? How many times have we been to each other’s places since then? And all up in each other’s lives? How often have we been out with the kids? How often have we gone to restaurants and the park and just hung out together in our homes, since then?”

Seonghwa sighed, but his frown eased up. “I suppose you’re right…”

“I know I’m right. It would be weirder if at this point, I didn’t know what you like!”

Their little argument was cut short by the arrival of the waiter, and they didn’t pick it up again after they left with their order of starters.

“How come you ended up being friends with the son of the owner of one of the city’s top trending restaurants?” Seonghwa asked once they were alone, again.

“Oh, easy. We went to school together for a while, before-... before I had to take a break when I got Joonie,” Hongjoong answered, a wistful feeling taking hold of his heart. It was not as easy a time to remember as he made it out to be, but there were many parts he remembered fondly from that time, too. “But we stayed friends even outside of school, and he’s still together with my best friend, to this day. And I’ve inclusively waited tables here for a while when Joonie was little; way before this place got popular.”

“You used to work here?!” Seonghwa’s eyes widened, incredulity and fascination in his tone in equal measure. 

Hongjoong nodded, warmth filling his heart at the fond memories he had of that time. 

“I did. I’d leave Joonie with Mingi’s grandma upstairs and work the lunch rush, and then wash plates for the evening shift until Mingi and Yunho got here. Mingi would work the floor in the evening, while Yunho and I went upstairs to take turns watching Joonie and studying. I might as well have lived here for a good two years, with how much time I used to spend here.”

“Kim Hongjoong. It sounds like you didn’t just work here or are just friends with the owner’s son. You are full on part of the family!” Seonghwa exclaimed, and Hongjoong hastily shushed him.

“Psst! If Mingi’s mom realizes I’m here, she is definitely crashing this date!”

Seonghwa narrowed his eyes at him. “And if you don’t let her know you stopped by…?” he prompted, way too perceptive. Hongjoong cleared his throat, shifting uncomfortably.

“She might skin and quarter me the next time she manages to catch me. But only if she finds out!”

Seonghwa gave him a long, contemplative look, and Hongjoong sighed before leaning further over the table and whispering urgently: “Please, let’s not let her know I’m here. I want to actually pay for this date!”

Seonghwa snorted softly, but decided to play along. 

By the end of the dinner, Seonghwa informed Hongjoong that he fully understood the hype around the restaurant now.

“I can see all the food here becoming my comfort foods. I might have to abuse your connections, after all…” Seonghwa groaned, patting his belly after zipping up his jacket and looking thoroughly satisfied.

Hongjoong felt similarly satisfied to what Seonghwa looked like, even though Seonghwa had easily eaten three times as much as he had. 

“I’ll make sure to remember that,” Hongjoong promised, and he meant it. He was taking thorough mental notes, and had been all throughout dinner as Seonghwa tasted his way through four different main courses. He wanted to remember what Seonghwa liked, and especially what he liked best, for future reference.

Seonghwa hung back while Hongjoong went to pay, and when Hongjoong got to the register, he was more than glad for it.

“Boss sends her regards, and says to tell you you’re on the naughty list for this Christmas. And she wants the boxes back,” the girl at the register informed Hongjoong with a smirk, before passing a bag over the counter and all but forcing Hongjoong to take it.

“Ugh… Which one of you tattled?” he groaned, but took the bag.

The girl snorted quietly. “You should really be asking which ones of us you owe for saving your date.” Then, she leaned over the counter and whispered conspiratorially: “I love the new collection, by the way. And I could really use a new purse! Yanli is more of a shoes kinda gal, though; if you catch my drift…”

Hongjoong narrowed his eyes at her, swiping his card aggressively.

“All of you, collectively, are the worst!”

“Boss…!” she raised her voice just slightly, and Hongjoong hastily shushed her.

“Purse, got it! And shoes. Are you warm enough these days? New coat?”

A saccharine smile answered him. 

“Ah, our Joongie. He grew up so well!” For a moment, Hongjoong feared that she would reach out and pinch his cheeks, but she thankfully refrained. “You’ve always had a good eye for your noonas’ tastes.” Then, she leaned further over the counter again, lowering her voice.

“You snatched up a real cutie there. Hopefully, you didn’t bring him here for your first date?”

Hongjoong shook his head, catching Seonghwa approaching out of the corner of his eye.

“No. Second official one, but… it’s a whole lot more complex than that.”

His noona’s eyes widened in shock, but she smoothed her expression over quickly when she, too, noticed Seonghwa approaching.

“I’m so going to grill Mingi for details on this… Enjoy your snacks and have a pleasant evening!” she went from definitely evil intent to pleasant customer service voice in an instant when Seonghwa stepped into hearing range; it was actually, genuinely spooky.

“You, too, noona,” Hongjoong replied weakly, just as Seonghwa joined him at the counter.

“You got us snacks?” he asked innocently, though with an excitement in his eyes at the prospect of more food that Hongjoong found honestly adorable.

“I heavily suspect this is Mingi’s mom’s equivalent of a ransom letter, actually,” Hongjoong sighed, and caught his noona’s eyes widening again in surprise in the corner of his vision. She had definitely not expected them to be at this level of familiarity yet. “I’m definitely getting at least skinned the next time I walk through this door.”

Seonghwa inhaled sharply, shaking his head in mock seriousness. 

“We can’t have that. You think she can be reasoned with?”

“Not unless you want to indulge her and disclose your entire life story to her so she can analyze it to see if you are good enough for me - or if I am good enough for you, depending on her mood that day.”

Seonghwa hummed pensively. “Do you think sending Joongie in as a distraction might work?”

“Like a charm,” Hongjoong conceded, changing the bag of snacks to his other hand so he could hold the door open for Seonghwa on the way out. 

Once outside, Seonghwa looped his arm through Hongjoong’s, and they started leisurely walking to Hongjoong’s car.

“It smells like snow again,” Seonghwa commented after a couple of minutes. “And with how cold it is, if it actually snows, it might stay until Christmas this time.”

“A white Christmas, huh… That would be romantic…” Hongjoong mused, and Seonghwa hummed happily. 

“It would... How are you going to spend your Christmas?” he asked innocently, but Hongjoong felt a stab of pain through his chest regardless. He was saved from having to answer by the ring of his phone; the ringtone he had saved for his brother, no less.

***

“They can’t be serious,” Hongjoong was still not over the shock when they had already reached the car and were about to pull out of the parking spot. “They can’t. If it’s going to snow tonight-… how are we meant to, just-... It’s going to be way too cold! And they didn’t even have the decency to tell us! There’s no hotel who’s gonna take us this short notice and at this hour, anymore, either!”

Hongjoong still couldn’t believe the news he’d heard from Bumjoong just minutes ago. Apparently, his older brother had been taking Joonie home and let himself into Hongjoong’s apartment, just to find the whole place freezing cold; the heating was broken. And after some short investigation, he’d found out it was everywhere in the building from Hongjoon’s floor up. The lower floors were fine, Seonghwa’s floor was fine. Hongjoong’s, however, was the first one that was fucked. 

On the verge of frantic, he pulled his phone out to open his weather app, just to find what Seonghwa had already predicted: it was going to snow that night. And quite heavily, too.

“I can’t drive us out to my parents’ place if it’s going to snow like this! It’s going to be too dangerous!”

“-joong!” 

The tail end of his name being called finally registered through Hongjoong’s panicked frenzy, and he turned to look at Seonghwa. 

“Sorry…” he forced himself to take a deep breath, though it did little to calm him. “You were saying?”

“I was saying, it’s going to be ok. We’re going to find a solution,” Seonghwa repeated, probably not for the first time.

“What kind of solution?” Hongjoong pressed out, not seeing what Seonghwa meant just yet, not believing there was an easy, readily available solution, and in his building distress, unable to share Seonghwa’s optimism. In his mind’s eye, he was already foreseeing himself and Joonie shivering in the cold apartment, with Joonie crying in discomfort and himself unable to do anything about it. 

“The easiest one,” Seonghwa smiled softly, reaching over the center console to take Hongjoong’s hand in his and give it a comforting squeeze. “If my floor is still fine, you and Joongie are simply having a sleepover.”

It sounded too simple to be true, too good to be true.

“Seonghwa, I- We can't just- It's so late, though. You're tired, Aurora is tired. I can't just expect you to break up your whole routine for us-”

“You and Joonie are tired, too. And in quite the predicament. Mine and Aurora's routines really don't matter here,” Seonghwa argued back, tone firm, and Hongjoong felt a shiver go through his body that had him sit up straighter. There was just something about assertive Seonghwa that made his body react in all the wrong ways for the situation at hand. 

“Aurora is most likely already bathed and in her pyjamas, anyway. Maybe even fast asleep, already,” Seonghwa remarked. “And where is Joonie right now?”

“Upstairs, in our apartment, with my brother.”

“Tell your brother to go downstairs to my place. I'll let Wooyoung and San know they are coming, and that we're on our way.”

Hongjoong could only stare at Seonghwa for long seconds, lost for… everything. Words. Actions. The ability to process spoken words and discern their meaning. And then act accordingly.

Seonghwa was not real, he couldn't be. Just when he thought Seonghwa couldn't surprise him any more, he unfailingly did. Just when he thought he had uncovered the last layer of Seonghwa's kindness, he would without fail reveal a new one underneath. 

Suddenly, Seonghwa cupped his face again, trailing his thumb under Hongjoong's eye to wipe at a wet trail, and Hongjoong realized it was a tear.

“You didn't really think I would let you and Joonie struggle on your own and not do something about it, did you?” Seonghwa cooed, not unkindly, even though Hongjoong felt scolded nonetheless.

“N-no…” Hongjoong stuttered. “But I also didn't expect- I didn't think- It didn't cross my mind that you'd offer to help like this.”

“And that’s one of the things I like about you,” Seonghwa readily admitted. “Now, let’s go. Before it actually starts snowing.”

***

Aurora was, in fact, not yet sleeping when they got to Seonghwa’s apartment. With so many people there, there was no chance that she would allow herself to miss a single thing that was going on. Joonie, on the other hand, was heavily listing on the couch, uncaring or unaware of the hubbub going on around him. Someone had wrapped him in one of Seonghwa’s deliciously cozy blankets, and it was only adding to his sleepiness.

“You’re here!” Wooyoung greeted them, relieved, once they stepped through the door, beelining to hug Seonghwa. “How was the date? Wait, no, you can’t tell me in front of him! But you’ll have to tell me everything later!” he demanded, sending a wink Hongjoong’s way.

Hongjoong rolled his eyes, begrudgingly amused at Wooyoung’s antics. They’d met on several occasions before, since he and San were frequently found at Seonghwa’s place. In fact, they went in and out of it as if they co-owned it. Seonghwa didn’t mind at all, and Hongjoong could see why. It was hard to deny Wooyoung anything; he was just all around loveable, and made one want to give him the world. 

“Thank you for taking Aurora today,” Seonghwa completely breezed past Wooyoung’s demands, hugging the younger man and steering him back into the apartment. “Hi, Sanie. Hey, love!” he crouched to hug Aurora, who only hugged him back for a split second.

“Dad, come! You have to meet Joonie’s uncle! He lives on the other side of the whole world!” Aurora nearly tripped over her words, then paused, staring at Hongjoong. “You two look the same!” she gasped, in awe.

“Not quite, bug,” Hongjoong laughed and crouched to be at her level so she could hug him, too. He felt another layer of anxiety fall off him just by being in the mere presence of people he cared for, loved, even, and the all around homely, inviting atmosphere of Seonghwa’s apartment. “But he is my brother, so it’s normal that we would look a bit alike.”

Aurora made a pensive face, then took Hongjoong’s face in hers and turned it this way and that. 

“No, if you squint, and look at you like this, you are the same!” she insisted, squeezing her eyes shut..

“You rascal; you have your eyes closed all the way!” Hongjoong laughed again, attacking her with a short bout of tickles that had her squealing and laughing in delight. She caught herself quickly, though, growing serious again and holding on to Hongjoong’s shoulders.

“Joong, your apartment is broken. You and Joonie have to stay here tonight,” she informed him seriously, and despite the gravity of the situation, Hongjoong felt himself smiling fondly at the way she informed him of the matter.

“I know, love. Your dad says we’re going to have a sleepover. How do you feel about that?”

Aurora thought seriously about the matter for a few seconds before she had her answer ready.

“It would have been more fun if you had been here a lot earlier, because Joonie is already sleeping, and a sleepover is only fun if you don’t sleep right away.”

She did have a good point there.

“You’re right. But this is an emergency sleepover.”

“We can still make it fun! And with everyone here! I think… we have soooo many blankets, there are enough for everyone! Right, dad?” She turned to look for Seonghwa, who was talking to Bumjoong, Wooyoung and San.

Seonghwa turned around, lost only for a second before he processed what Aurora was saying.

“Ah, well-”

“We have to go back home, Rory. We'll do a sleepover another time,” San quickly interjected.

“And I have to leave, too. I have a flight to catch,” Bumjoong added, and Aurora deflated a bit.

“Oh...” Her shoulders sagged, and her smile dropped. She looked back up at Hongjoong with pleading eyes, and Hongjoong felt his heart ache. 

“We're staying, sweetie,” he promised. “I just need to go upstairs real quick to get our pyjamas and clothes for tomorrow, and then we can settle in.”

“But you won't be away long?”

“I won't. Will you look after Joonie while I'm gone?”

Aurora turned again to look at where Joonie was sitting, slumped against Bumjoong’s side.

“He’s almost asleep already…”

“He is. He hasn't even noticed Seonghwa and I got home yet,” Hongjoong cooed, so incredibly fond of his son. “I'll be quick. Let me just say bye to my brother and I'll be off and back again in no time!”

In a flurry of hellos followed by quick goodbyes, the apartment cleared out, until it was just the two children, Seonghwa and Hongjoong left. 

Like he'd promised Aurora, Hongjoong was quick to head up to his apartment and gather a few essentials for him and Joonie, and return downstairs.

He let himself in, to find Seonghwa sat on the couch with Joonie in his arms and Aurora fluttering around them. As soon as she heard the door open, she darted towards Hongjoong to update him on what he'd apparently missed.

“Joonie woke up and didn't know where he was so he started crying and then he thought my dad was you and wanted a hug but he's already stopped crying now!” She rushed out before Hongjoong even had the time to think to ask what was going on. 

“Ah, really?” Hongjoong placed the overnight bag he’d been carrying by the door and walked over to the couch, sitting down next to Seonghwa and Joonie. “I’m here now, darling,” he cooed at the kid.

“I didn’t,” Joonie protested quietly against Seonghwa’s neck, but didn’t let go of Seonghwa yet. “I was just calling for you, but I know Hwa is Hwa!”

“Yes, you do. It’s ok, love,” Seonghwa soothed him gently, rubbing the kid’s back in soothing circles. “You got a scare, which can happen to anyone. Even me and your dad.”

Joonie nodded against Seonghwa’s shoulder as if to agree with the statement. It still took a while until he eventually, slowly, let go of Seonghwa to look for Hongjoong. 

“You want to go over to your dad?” Seonghwa asked, but Joonie didn’t answer. He just turned his head in Hongjoong’s direction and laid it back against Seonghwa’s shoulder, looking at Hongjoong from his new position and reaching out a hand for him. Hongjoong reached back to hold his hand, but Joonie protested wordlessly, pulling at Hongjoong to get him to come closer. And closer still, until Hongjoong was practically pressed against Seonghwa’s side and Joonie could fist his hand in the front of his jumper. Only then was the kid satisfied and closed his eyes again.

“Joonie, you can’t sleep like this. We have to wash up and change into pyjamas first,” Hongjoong reminded him

Joonie grumbled something unintelligible in response, finishing with a question: “Why?”

“Because your clothes are all dirty from playing outside with Bumjoong all day, and you got all sweaty and dirty, too. And you’re going to feel all gross and uncomfortable tomorrow if you sleep like this.”

Joonie opened his eyes again and gave Hongjoong a glare, but sat up in Seonghwa’s lap nonetheless.

“Go ahead and wash up, and I’ll have your bed for the night ready right here, love. Promise,” Seonghwa reassured him, and Joonie turned his piercing gaze to him.

“Right here,” he repeated, pointing at the couch.

“Right here,” Seonghwa reiterated seriously.

Hongjoong was aware he had clearly missed some conversation the two had had before, but he trusted Seonghwa to have their sleeping arrangements figured out and didn’t ask questions. Instead, he took herded Joonie to the bathroom when he was ready to go, to get their nightly routine taken care of.

As soon as he was done, Joonie hurried out of the bathroom to confirm that Seonghwa had really made his bed where he’d said he would, and happily climbed between the sheets when he found the couch made into a bed for him. By the time Hongjoong got there, too, he’d already snuggled deep into the makeshift bed and pulled the blankets up to his nose.

“You’re going to sleep right here, buddy?” Hongjoong asked fondly, sitting down on the edge of the couch next to him, and Joonie nodded. “It looks very cozy. Are the blankets nice?”

Again, Joonie nodded, pushing his head up into Hongjoong’s hand as he stroked his hair. Then, he wriggled his arms out from under the blankets and reached for Hongjoong for a hug.

“Sleep now,” he mumbled when Hongjoong gave him his usually good-night hug and forehead kiss.

“Ok. We’ll be quiet so you can sleep now,” Hongjoong promised, but Joonie was not quite satisfied just yet.

“Hwa?” he asked, eyes wide and pleading.

“Hwa?” Hongjoong repeated, looking around. “Seonghwa is-”

“Here,” Seonghwa announced, coming from Aurora’s room. “Rory is asking for you.”

Hongjoong’s heart warmed and his lips tugged into a soft smile. “Joonie is asking for you, too.”

Seonghwa mirrored his smile, and they swapped places.

Seonghwa had left Aurora«s door ajar, but Hongjoong still knocked before peeking inside.

“Hey, bug,” he smiled. “Not ready to go to sleep yet?”

Aurora was sitting up in bed, her room faintly illuminated by a really cute cat shaped nightlight she was holding, and pouted at him in response. “Dad said it’s time to go to sleep. But we haven’t done any sleepover things yet!”

“We’re going to do the sleeping part of the sleepover first this time around, sweetie. It’s so late already, none of the normal sleepover things would be fun anymore,” Hongjoong tried to reason, sitting down on the edge of the bed, next to her.. Of course, Aurora argued back.

“But it’s not a real sleepover if we don’t do anything!”

“Remember, it’s an emergency sleepover. And we can still do the morning parts of the sleepover things tomorrow!”

Aurora settled down slightly, but was still pouting. “So we’re really not doing any of the fun parts today?”

“What kind of fun parts, would you want to still do today?” Hongjoong decided to humor her, if just to see if there was anything feasible to appease her.

“I don’t know. Like, watch a movie?”

“Joonie is already asleep, though. And you would fall asleep ten minutes in, too. And honestly, me too,” Hongjoong reasoned.

“What about a pillow fort, then?”

“We’d have to move furniture for that, and that would be loud. The neighbours already want to sleep, too.”

Aurora huffed, defeated. “Why does everyone always have to sleep so much?!”

Hongjoong laughed quietly. “So they grow up big and tall and strong and healthy, and have all the energy to do all the fun things throughout the day!” he reasoned, booping her nose.

Aurora wrinkled her nose in response, and let herself sag against Hongjoong. For a while she said nothing, but was clearly still thinking about Hongjoong’s argument.

“Did you not sleep a lot while you were a kid?” she asked out of the blue, after a while.

“Hmm?” Hongjoong hummed inquisitively, and Aurora explained.

“You’re not very tall. Is it because you didn’t sleep a lot when you were a child?”

Hongjoong laughed again, clutching his chest.

“Ouch! Are you calling me short?”

“You are! At least as short as my uncle Wooyoung. He can’t reach the top shelves in the kitchen, either, but he looks taller. You don’t look tall, and I saw you can only reach as far as Wooyoung can, the other day. So, is it because you didn’t sleep much?”

Hongjoong had to digest the burn, but since it came without malice, he let it slide. He decided to try and at least turn it into a teaching moment.

“Well, probably, now that I think about it. I really liked to stay up super late as a child, anyway. And I really am not the tallest around here, aren’t I?”

Aurora shook her head. “No. For an adult, you’re small. But I like you small. You still do all the big people things, but you make me feel tall. But I want to be as tall as my dad when I grow up!”

Hongjoong couldn’t possibly take offense in Aurora’s innocent comments, and it wasn’t like he was that self-conscious about his height, anyway.

“Well, if you want to grow as tall as your dad, you have to get plenty of sleep!”

Aurora sighed, but sat up from where she’d been slumped against Hongjoong’s side and instead snuggled under her blankets. Hongjoong took the nightlight from her and set it on her bedside table, helped tuck her in, and brushed a lock of her bangs out of her forehead. 

“We can still make pancakes tomorrow morning, right? Every sleepover has to have pancakes in the morning - even emergency sleepovers!” she insisted, and Hongjoong chuckled fondly.

“We’ll see what your dad has in his kitchen and if we have all the ingredients, we can make pancakes, yes,” he conceded.

“And we don’t have to go to school tomorrow!”

“No, love. It’s a Saturday. You don’t have to go to school on the weekend.”

“And can we build a pillow fort in the morning?”

“How about we see to that in the morning, hm? And you sleep now, and dream of exactly what kind of pillow fort you would like to build.”

“Ok!” Aurora agreed, and Hongjoong almost sighed in relief. “Can I have a goodnight hug?”

“Absolutely!” Hongjoong agreed, hugging the child back when she hugged him tightly.

“I’m really happy you’re sleeping over, even if it’s an emergency sleepover and we aren’t doing any sleepover things,” she whispered in his ear before letting go and snuggling back under the blankets.

“I’m happy that we can sleep over, too. And we’ll see about doing a real sleepover eventually, ok? But now: sleep part of the sleepover!” he added, absolutely serious, and Aurora nodded, understanding that play time was over.

“Good night, Joongie,” she whispered sweetly.

“Good night, bug. Sleep well.”

***

Hongjoong found Seonghwa in the kitchen once he’d left Aurora’s room, a pair of steaming mugs of tea sitting on the table in front of him. Seonghwa looked up when Hongjoon entered, a tired smile on his lips.

“Let me guess: she tried to convince you to still do ‘sleepover things’ tonight?” he asked wearily.

Hongjoong nodded. “Watch a movie and build a pillow fort. I might have promised to look if we have ingredients for pancakes for a post-sleepover breakfast, as a compromise.”

Seonghwa weighed his head in contemplation. 

“That’s not too terrible. She could have asked for worse.”

“Right? I thought so, too.” Hongjoong pulled the chair kitty-corner with Seonghwa’s out and sat at the table, as well, just as Seonghwa yawned and pushed the mug of tea closer to him.

“I made you tea, as well, in case you want some. I would offer you wine, but I don’t have any in the house right now.”

“Tea is perfect. Thank you,” Hongjoong smiled, taking the mug and blowing gently on the surface to cool it down a little before taking a sip.

They sat in comfortable silence for a while, until Seonghwa nodded at the window across from him.

“It’s starting to snow.”

And really, a few big flurries were dancing in the air outside, flashing into existence in the lights of Seonghwa’s kitchen before melting against the glass pane of his window. They watched the snowfall for a while, slowly sipping their tea.

“It looks like it’s picking up quite a bit, already,” Hongjoong noted, and got up after a while to stand by the window. From his vantage point, he could see a lot more of the snowfall outside, illuminated by the street lights below.

Seonghwa joined him by the window, watching the spectacle as well.

“It looks so beautiful from up here… But it’s a good thing we got home before this started. I hope your brother and San and Wooyoung are no longer on the road.”

“I’m sure they’ve all arrived where they need to be by now,” Hongjoong reassured him, before they lapsed into silence again.

“I’m sorry our date ended like this. I wanted it to be perfect for you,” Hongjoong eventually apologized, giving voice to what was weighing on his heart right now. Seonghwa turned to him with a small, bewildered frown.

“First of all, it has absolutely been perfect, to me,” he reassured Hongjoong, and then a small, mischievous glint entered his eyes. “And second, who said anything about it having ended already? Personally, I would consider any date that results in a sleepover a success!” he quipped, nudging Hongjoong lightly with his hips. Hongjoong couldn’t help himself, and was unable to hold on to his dour mood when Seonghwa put it like that. He chuckled softly.

Neither of them moved away to put any space between them again, standing closely side by side at the window and looking at the snowfall together.

“About the sleeping part of the sleepover…” Seonghwa eventually started, and Hongjoong looked up at him, waiting for him to continue. “I have a pullout couch in my home office, but the ratty old thing is uncomfortable as hell. Since Joonie is taking the couch, the only other real option is my bed. It’s definitely big enough for two, if you are comfortable with that.”

Hongjoong smirked up at Seonghwa, nudging his hip with his own back. “That eager to get me into your bed, huh?” he teased.

“Oh, always,” Seonghwa teased right back. “I always try to get a cute guy to sleep with me after the second date.”

Hongjoong laughed, and Seonghwa joined in.

“If you really don’t mind, either, I’d like to take a spot in the bed. I don’t want to ruin my back any further than it already is, if I can help it,” Hongjoong answered seriously when their little bout of laughter died down.

“I wouldn’t be offering if I didn’t mind. Now, two things, though; one: do you typically sleep on the left or right side of the bed?”

“Left.”

“Score!” Seonghwa did a little victory fistpump. “I take the right one. We have everything lined up to be a match made in heaven!”

Hongjoong’s heart fluttered almost painfully, absolutely loving the easy, comfortable way Seonghwa claimed him.

“Ok, and the second thing: there is a non-zero chance that I might cuddle you throughout the night. I’ve been told I’m a sleep-cuddler, and anyone I can get my grabby little hands on while I’m sleeping might get locked in an octopus hug until morning.”

“Oh nooo, the horror~!” Hongjoong gasped, fake scandalized. “A really hot guy wants to cuddle me in his sleep? Call the police!”

Seonghwa sputtered in laughter, shaking his head at him, and Hongjoong joined him in his amusement.

 

“Haa, I feel like we’re definitely getting silly now,” Seonghwa eventually yawned, stretching his arms over his head, and wrapping one around Hongjoong’s waist on the way down.

“I see what you did there. Real smooth! I give it a seven point five out of ten,” Hongjoong commented, even as he threaded his fingers through Seonghwa’s on his waist.

“Yeah? How about this, then?” Seonghwa asked, stepping behind Hongjoong and giving his hip a tug so he lost his balance slightly and leaned back against Seonghwa’s chest.

“Oh!” Hongjoong was genuinely surprised, but pleasantly so. The sudden proximity to Seonghwa flustered him a little, but he found he quite enjoyed it, when it was just the two of them.. “I was not familiar with this one! Solid nine out of ten.”

“All that tells me is that I need to step up my game, you know?” Seonghwa murmured near his ear, and it sent a pleasant shiver through Hongjoong.

“Does it, now? Well, then, go ahead. But can I show you one of my moves, first?” he asked, and Seonghwa hummed in interest. 

“Sure! Go ahead!”

Hongjoong didn’t wait to do so, holding on tighter to Seonghwa’s hand and turning into his hold. The tug unbalanced Seonghwa, and he took a stumbling step forward. The momentum of Hongjoong’s turn had him turn as well, though, until he was pressed with his back to the window and boxed in by Hongjoong.

“Oh..!” he panted, suddenly breathless, flustered as well. “Oh, wow. I liked that one. Ten out of ten; no notes!”

Hongjoong smiled up at him in triumph, but he would be lying if he said that Seonghwa’s flustered state left him unaffected.

“God, you’re gorgeous…” he murmured, his eyes roaming over Seonghwa’s face until the landed on his slightly parted lips. “And I really want to kiss you. Can I kiss you, Seonghwa?”

“Yes!” 

Hongjoong’s question had barely finished leaving his lips when Seonghwa already answered. With how eager Seonghwa was, Hongjoong didn’t waste any more time, either. He had to go a little on his tiptoes to reach a comfortable height, but his lips found Seonghwa’s unerringly.

Seonghwa tasted like raspberry and lemon, the tea they had just had and whose mugs stood abandoned on a nearby sideboard now. But the flavor was more intense from Seonghwa’s lips than it had been in the tea, and Hongjoong chased it hungrily. Seonghwa met him in kind, angling his head down to help Hongjoong bridge the height gap, and simultaneously pulling him in and up by his hips.

Hongjoong’s hands landed on Seonghwa’s shoulders at first, but wandered in to cup the back of his neck and his jaw as their kiss deepened. 

There were no fireworks or a monumental spinning of the world around them, no narrowing of the world until only Seonghwa existed or a violent, revelatory surge of feelings, either.

But kissing Seonghwa was still probably the best thing Hongjoong had ever felt. It felt like coming home. It felt cozy despite being new, comfortable and safe and… loving.

“Oooh, you are addictive,” Seonghwa sighed against Hongjoong’s lips eventually as he pulled just so out of the kiss and leaned their foreheads together. “Who allowed you to be this attractive, hm?”

“I’d like to ask you the same thing, actually,” Hongjoong murmured, stealing another short kiss from Seonghwa’s lips before standing on his whole two feet again and putting at least a little distance between them. “We probably shouldn’t take this further right now…” he lamented, however, with a look at the door to the living room.

“You’re right, we shouldn’t,” Seonghwa agreed, but still pecked Hongjoong’s lips again, and Hongjoong chased after him when he pulled away once more. “But I do want to devour you.”

“Same, actually,” Hongjoong made sure Seonghwa knew they were on the same page. Seonghwa smiled at him, cupping Hongjoong’s face as well, and the smile turned soft.

“Remember the wishes we made on the shooting star on our first date?” he asked softly, and Hongjoong nodded. “You just fulfilled mine.”

“I did? How-”

“I wished that you would ask to kiss me. And you did,” Seonghwa revealed, while gently playing with a strand of Hongjoong’s bangs. 

“You’ve wanted me to kiss you since our first date?”

“Longer still,” Seonghwa admitted, and Hongjoong felt his stomach swoop. He really loved when Seonghwa was unabashed about his attraction to him.

“So all I had to do was ask, this whole time?”

“That’s how it usually works, yes,” Seonghwa hummed, with an uptick to his lips into a small smirk.

“And here you were telling me that I wasn’t supposed to tell my wishes to the shooting star out loud… And left me to find out for myself that this particular star likes to be asked!”

Seonghwa smiled at Hongjoong’s exasperation, and Hongjoong found himself unable to keep up the pretense.

“It was my wish to the shooting star that you would ask without being told to ask.”

Hongjoong sighed, once again way more fond than the exasperation he was trying for.

“Then ask I shall. Countless times a day; as many as you want!” Hongjoong promised him. “Can I kiss you again?”

Seonghwa answered by kissing Hongjoong first; and Hongjoong, for his part, was perfectly fine with this line of communication.

Chapter 9: Fire

Notes:

...bold of me to assume I would be able to keep up the daily chapters with the life I have going...
All I can promise now is that I WILL finish this! Maybe not in time (PROBABLY not in time) but hopefully before the end of the year, at least!

Seonghwa woke up feeling warmer than usual, and - as he was becoming more aware of himself and more aware of his surroundings - more restricted than usual. There was a weight across his chest, anchored on his left side. Before he even opened his eyes, there was already a smile on his face as he knew exactly what that weight was.

Him and Hongjoong had gone to sleep each on their own side of the bed, heavily suspecting that if they started out cuddling, there was a good chance sleep wouldn’t be something they would be doing for a while - and with two kids sleeping just down the hallway with all doors ajar, any activity they might have sorely wanted to engage in was definitely out of the question. But at some point during the night, Seonghwa had woken up and realized he was wrapped around Hongjoong like an octopus with particularly pronounced separation anxiety, and had sought to relieve Hongjoong of the burden he posed. But Hongjoong had not let him go far, chasing after him without ever waking up and holding on to him instead.

Seonghwa didn’t mind being the little spoon one bit, even less so when it was Hongjoong snuggling up to his back and later draping himself across his chest. And here Seonhwa had thought he was the clingier sleeper! Turned out, Hongjoong could easily give him a run for his money.

Even though it was definitely morning already, Seonghwa decided that if not today, then when was there ever a more perfect occasion to just have a good old lie-in? Well, as long as Aurora would let him, anyway. But for now, he heard no other noises coming from the rest of the apartment, so he let himself drift back off into a light slumber. It was easy, encased in Hongjoong’s warm hold and the sound of his slow, even breaths lulling him in.

The next time he woke up was a far less gentle awakening. A heavy weight dropped across his own chest and threatened to spill over to his other side. Seonghwa jolted awake and caught what could only be Aurora jumping on top of him, before she could wake Hongjoong with a knee to the face. 

“Good morning!” she chirped happily, taking Seonghwa catching her for a hug and hugging him back. “Can we make pancakes now?”

Seonghwa was still trying to shake off the heavy hold sleep still had on his mind, processing her question at snail-speed.

“W-ha…?” he blinked heavily, holding her securely in his hold, before dropping his head back on the pillows when the meaning finally registered. 

“Park Aurora, it is so early…!” he groaned quietly. “Please…”

“It’s almost nineee~!” she whined, poking and prodding at his cheeks to get him to wake up faster. Seonghwa caught one of her hands, holding it still.

“Shh, Rory. Please, quiet. Hongjoong is still sleeping,” he tried to shush her in a vain attempt.

Aurora paused, looking for Hongjoong, when the blankets next to Seonghwa shifted and something wiggled between Seonghwa and Aurora’s chests. It was Hongjoong trying to free his arm as he emerged from where he’d somehow hidden completely from view, disheveled mop of blonde hair emerging from under the blankets.

“‘Mmwake…” he mumbled, definitely not yet awake, before plopping back down into the pillows. His face instantly buried against Seonghwa’s side again, shielding his eyes from the mid morning light.

Aurora exchanged a look with Seonghwa and giggled, and reached over to pet Hongjoong’s mess of disheveled hair.

“It’s morning, Joongie…!” she twittered sweetly, and Hongjoong mumbled something unintelligible into Seonghwa’s pyjamas. “We have pancakes to make!”

“Let him wake up first, love,” Seonghwa sighed, ruffling Aurora’s hair. “Is Joonie still asleep?”

Aurora shook her head, sitting up on her knees.

“No. He’s looking for ingredients for pancakes!”

That shocked Hongjoong out of his sleep-daze, and he propped himself up hastily, blinking against the brightness in the room.

“He’s what?!”

“You said we can make pancakes if we have all the ingredients, so Joonie is looking for ingredients while I’ve come to wake you up!” she declared proudly.

Hongjoong looked at Seonghwa with a mix of shock, dread, apology and probably a mix of other things as well. Seonghwa could imagine why, but there was really no need for all that.

“Why don’t you go help him look, baby? You know the kitchen better than him. Hongjoong and I will be there in a moment, ok?” he encouraged her softly, and Aurora hopped off the bed quickly. “But wait for us before you mix anything or use the stove!” he called after her urgently.

“Of course, dad!” Aurora rolled her eyes, but gave him a sweet smile before darting out of the room.

“I am so sorry…!” Hongjoong started as soon as she was out of earshot, but Seonghwa waved him off while sitting up, as well. 

“She's right when she says sleepovers need pancakes in the morning, even emergency sleepovers. You didn’t enable her; she would have done the exact same and roped Joonie into it if you hadn’t said anything.”

Hongjoong still frowned. “But Joonie-...”

“Is following his very bossy mini-hosts orders,” Seonghwa interrupted him, putting a gentling hand on Hongjoong’s arm. “It’s fine, Hongjoong. They’re fine.”

Hongjoong exhaled slowly, tension bleeding out of his posture, and he looked two seconds from falling back into the pillows and going back to sleep.

“We should probably still hurry and join them before they run out of patience and good sense…” His words directly contrasted the way he looked. Seonghwa laughed, but couldn’t help but agree.

They clambered out of bed, and Seonghwa didn’t miss the wistful look Hongjoong gave the sheets once he left them. It made him feel extra soft, his heart fluttering with adoration and happiness after having shared a bed and cuddled with Hongjoong through the night. Even though they had done nothing else, it still felt momentous; perhaps even more momentous than if they actually had gone any further than exchanging kisses and a few soft, longing touches.

“Did you sleep well?” he asked Hongjoong while he turned down the sheets to air them out.

“I did. Probably the best sleep I’ve gotten in… ages,” he admitted, appearing surprised by the fact himself.

“You did?” Seonghwa felt oddly proud for some reason.

“Yeah,” Hongjoong yawned with a small smile. “And I could probably have slept for at least another hour or two.” His smile waned slowly and he became more serious once more. “I normally sleep like shit, to be honest. Fall asleep super late, wake up countless times, and find it hard to fall asleep again. But I don’t think I woke up a single time last night.”

“Could be that you were actually in a coma,” Seonghwa teased, but upon seeing Hongjoong’s confusion, he explained. “I woke up and was just about strangling you at some point. But when I pulled away, you followed after me; so maybe not a coma, after all. I didn’t get the feeling that you were aware of anything, though.”

“I wasn’t,” Hongjoong confirmed. “Sorry, if that-”

“No!” Seonghwa interrupted him. “I… really liked it, actually.” He could feel himself blush at the admission, even though he didn’t actually feel embarrassed or flustered or anything. “And I really liked waking up with you cuddled up to me, too.”

“We’re going to have to do this again so I can wake up cuddled up to you and actually feel what that’s like, before having the fear of god put into me thinking that the children are setting the kitchen on fire,” Hongjoong pouted, and Seonghwa laughed. He very much liked the idea of doing this again, even just sleeping next to Hongjoong. But at the same time, there was a niggling thought in the back of his mind that quickly put him at unease.

“I would like that, too. But… Are we moving too fast?” he asked, uncertain. Hongjoong paused.

“Do you feel like we’re moving too fast?” he asked worriedly.

Seonghwa shook his head.

“No. To me, it feels right. I was just worrying-...”

“You don’t have to,” Hongjoong took up when Seonghwa trailed off, taking a step closer and cupping Seonghwa’s face in one hand. “We don’t have to adhere to some made-up societal rules about at what points we should do what. As long as we are both comfortable and it feels right to us, we’re doing fine. And trust me, if at any point I felt like we were moving too fast or I wasn’t happy with anything we’re doing, I would let you know. If I don’t say anything, then it means I am right where I want to be.”

The adoration that had steadily been growing in Seonghwa’s chest as the morning progressed flared, and he nuzzled into Hongjoong’s hand, turning his head to kiss his palm after a moment.

“I am right where I want to be, too,” he whispered his confession. “I couldn’t be happier with the pace we’re going at. And with how well our children are taking our pace, too, and are accepting-... us. Everything.”

“We’re lucky,” Hongjoong hummed in agreement. “That they get along with each other, too-”

“Daaaaad!” Aurora’s yell sounded all the way through the apartment, interrupting their moment and whatever Hongjoong was about to say next.

Hongjoong chuckled, letting his hand and head drop at the same time, just for his forehead to land against Seonghwa’s chest. Seonghwa’s arms came around him in a warm hug automatically.

“They will definitely take the kitchen apart if we don’t hurry,” he observed with a small laugh, but still felt no urgency to let go of Hongjoong. In fact, he would be content to stay right there, in that exact position, holding Hongjoong, all day long.

“Dad!” the child’s voice was much closer now; as in, in the room with them, closer. “Ugh! You had all night to cuddle! We are hungry!” Aurora protested, pushing at both their hips. Laughing, Hongjoong and Seonghwa broke apart.

“Alright, alright!” Seonghwa surrendered. “I’m coming! Hongjoong, if you want to take a shower-”

“No! Both of you! We need both of you! Go, now!” Aurora bossed, shoving at both Seonghwa and Hongjoong to herd them to the door.

“Aurora! Let-”

“I guess pyjama party pancakes it is,” Hongjoong interrupted Seonghwa’s protests, sending him a wink when he looked back at him that signalled that he was more than fine with the turn the morning was taking.

Seonghwa sighed in both defeat and relief, and let Aurora boss him to the kitchen.

The kids had really found and gathered all the ingredients and tools already, neatly lining them up on the kitchen table. 

Despite how organized it started out, what followed next was nothing short of chaotic. Seonghwa had known - from Joonie’s many quips - that Hongjoong was not exactly a great cook. What he failed to mention was that Hongjoong was actually a bit of a disaster in the kitchen, and at times, Seonghwa felt like he was herding three children through the process of making pancakes. He would even go as far as to say Joonie was a better cook than Hongjoong.

“You can’t turn the heat all the way up!” Seonghwa scolded gently, patiently, turning down the hob to just about medium, “That’s why your pancakes are burning. And with this kind, you just wait until they are just barely dry on the surface, and then you flip them. Don’t go trying to flip them by throwing them up if you don’t have experience with that; we need food, not practice, this morning! Like this.”

Standing just behind Hongjoong, his hand over Hongjoong’s, Seonghwa guided him through how to use the silicon spatula to artfully flip the pancakes in one go without breaking them.

Hongjoong tried, he really did – Seonghwa could tell. So it wasn’t a matter of not wanting to learn. But the kitchen gods did not smile upon him. Thankfully, Seonghwa was patient, and while he was also directing the children through cleaning up the kitchen after a bag of flour had exploded while they were making the batter – or that’s what it looked like, at least – he also kept supervising Hongjoong at the stove. He’d offered to just take over, but Hongjoong was stubborn. He wanted to learn, wanted to get this right, and he insisted on continuing with the task and see it through, until a sizeable stack of pancakes – some a little darker than others, some broken down the middle – and a bowl full of absolutely destroyed debris that were hopefully still edible despite coming in no discernible form, were ready.

The children did not care that the pancakes weren’t perfect. They could hardly see them, anyway, with the amount of toppings they buried them under.

Despite usually being a bit more strict about eating healthily, for once, Seonghwa was happy to let the kids overindulge a little. It was a special occasion, after all, and they did have to make up for the lack of sleepover activities the night before.

And he was also far too distracted by, just, Hongjoong, to pay too much attention to the kids’ toppings shenanigans, he had to begrudgingly admit to himself. But could anyone blame him? Really?

Hongjoong, still in his pyjamas and with a bedhead that was now so artfully ruffled by him running his hands through the strands that it looked purposeful, moving through his kitchen as if he belonged there – and if anyone asked Seonghwa, yes, he might as well! – it just… it did things to Seonghwa’s heart that he needed a majority of his mental capacities to even try to process. 

If it wasn’t for the kids’ presence, Seonghwa wondered how often he would have ended up pressed against a countertop and kissed this morning; or ended up pressing Hongjoong against a countertop and kissed him instead. He wondered if their hands would have stayed as chaste on each other as they had the night before, or if they’d have wandered. He wondered, in general, how much of a casual kisser Hongjoong was, how much of a cuddler, how much one for casual affection.

He had hopes, of course. There had been a lot of hand holding on their dates, and in between. A lot of sides brushing, of sitting and walking close to each other, of existing within each other’s personal bubble. A lot of longing looks he had found himself giving Hongjoong and a lot of looks of the same kind he’d caught from the other, as well.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by a foot nudging him gently under the table, and snapped into himself to look at Hongjoong, who was giving him a worried look.

“Everything alright?” he whispered – mouthed, more, actually.

Seonghwa nodded quickly. “Yeah, yeah. Just… later, ok?” he whispered back with a head tilt at the kids.

Hongjoong didn’t look convinced, but he let it go for the time being.

***

Later became much later. 

After breakfast came a flurry of cleaning the kitchen, getting the kids dressed for the day, and Hongjoong taking off to talk to building management because of the broken heating in his apartment; only, he wasn’t the only one, and news were slow to trickle out. When he finally got news, it was that the company doing maintenance on the heating wasn’t working during the weekend, and there would be no solution until at least Monday.

Hongjoong had only a minor meltdown because of it, before turning his anger into something productive and figuring out a temporary solution that would help him on the spot. Seonghwa honestly admired Hongjoong’s resourcefulness and ability to deal with the situation under stress. 

After that, Hongjoong was gone for a while to check out the place he’d managed to secure for himself and Joonie for the remainder of the weekend, and Seonghwa was just about to start moping (which he would never admit, not even to himself!) about them not staying with him and Aurora, instead, when Hongjoong called him.

“This place is incredible, Seonghwa! You have to see this! I- would you and Aurora like to come over?” he asked excitedly, officially catching Seonghwa off guard. 

“Come… over?” he asked, dumbly.

“Yeah! It’s so big, and there’s even a fireplace! And a massive kitchen and living room! Me and Joonie were thinking – how about we make it a real sleepover, over here?”

The proposal gave Seonghwa pause, but he was not uninclined.

“You won’t get in trouble for bringing in more people?”

“No,” Hongjoong answered immediately. “The place belongs to Yunho’s cousin, he frequently rents it out for houseparties and the likes. I can pretty much do what I want as long as we don’t trash the place. I just have to hand it over to the cleaning crew by Monday at noon.”

There was some shuffling on the other side, and a low click, before Hongjoong whispered in a rather urgent tone: “If you don’t want to come, that’s fine; there is no pressure here. While I do want you here – really want you here! – I completely understand if that doesn’t fit in your weekend plans and you’d rather not. I was mostly asking because of Joonie; I think the place freaks him out a bit, and he’s been asking for you.”

Seonghwa’s heart seized and warmed at the same time. 

“For me?”

“Mhmm,” Hongjoong hummed affirmatively, and Seonghwa could hear the smile in his voice even through the phone. “You really bonded, apparently, when he was sick. Now he wants you around all the time. You make him feel safe.” Hongjoong’s voice became incredibly soft when he added the last bit, and Seonghwa felt tears well in his eyes.

“I’m going to pack mine and Rory’s overnight bags now. Send me the location,” he managed to choke out past the lump in his throat.

“Hwa- Seonghwa…” Hongjoong corrected himself quickly, even as his tone stayed soft, “You don’t have to if you don’t want to-...”

“I have to, because I want to,” Seonghwa interrupted him. “And, Hongjoong?”

“Yes?”

“You can call me Hwa. And whatever other endearments you feel like.”

Silence answered him for a moment, before Hongjoong answered with a question of his own.

“Will you start using nicknames for me, too?”

“If you’ll let me,” Seonghwa answered without needing to pause to think. He was aching to call Hongjoong by every endearment he could think of.

“...please do,” Hongjoong answered, his voice small but filled with both hesitation and longing.

Seonghwa’s heart somersaulted.

“I’ll see you in a bit, Joong.”

Fourty-five minutes later saw Seonghwa and Aurora walk into an ample living room in what could only be described as a small villa in the suburbs. Hongjoong hadn’t been exaggerating about the vastness of the space, and Aurora awed loudly at the extravagant building.

“This place is huge! I bet an elephant could dance in here!”

Seonghwa and Hongjoong exchanged a glance and laughed in unison at the odd example.

“Perhaps not quite..:” Seonghwa ventured, but Hongjoong counter-argued: “Depends on the dance.”

“A ballroom dance!” Aurora insisted, twirling into the room.

“That one might be a little bit of a stretch,” even Hongjoong had to admit. Not that Aurora cared, dancing through the room until she reached the couch where Joonie was sitting, paging through a book, headphones on.

“What are you doing?” she asked curiously, flopping onto the couch next to him.

The jostling pulled Joonie out of his focus and he looked up, deep frown on his face until he saw it was Aurora who had jostled him. His face lit up, and he quickly placed the book in her lap and took the headphones off.

“I found a book about moths! Did you know some hawk moths can hover like a colibri?”

Aurora looked at him as if he was speaking an entire different language, but Joonie just tapped the book. “It says right here!” And then he left her to read up on the moths herself, sliding off the couch and beelining straight for Seonghwa.

“You came! Dad said you might be busy and not make it,” the last of his words were muffled by Seonghwa’s sweater as the child hugged Seonghwa tightly around the middle and buried his face against his stomach.

Seonghwa hugged the child back.

“I was a little busy earlier, but not anymore. And your dad said there was a fireplace and a big kitchen and that we could do a real sleepover today, so of course Aurora and I had to come!”

Joonie pulled out of the hug, looking up at Seonghwa with wide eyes.

“Are we going to light the fireplace?”

“What good is it to be in a place with a fireplace if we don’t light it?” Seonghwa asked back. “I say we do it!”

Joonie clapped excitedly. “Can I light it? Can I?!” he looked between both Seonghwa and Hongjoong, eyes round and pleading.

“That’s something your dad will have to decide. But I’d say, either way, not on your own! Fire is not a toy!”

“Oh, definitely not on your own!” Hongjoong agreed, “And not until later, in the evening. We have some preparations to make for a proper sleepover!”

Those words summoned Aurora faster than anything else could have and she practically materialized next to them.

“We need blankets! And pizza! And hot chocolate! And cookies, and popcorn, and movies, and fairy lights, and-”

“Aaand, for you to breathe, young lady!” Hongjoong laughed. “But we do need to go shopping for groceries, for today, and tomorrow. And maybe pick up a few other things, as well.”

“Can we bake cookies?!” 

Hongjoong and Aurora both turned to Seonghwa at that question, putting him on the spot.

“Maybe we should pump the brakes here a little bit,” Seonghwa felt the need to caution. “I’d say we have more than enough things to do for today, with the grocery shopping and setting the rooms up and making the living room cozy and lighting the fire and watching movies and all that. But… maybe tomorrow,” he tacked on when he saw twin pouts appear on both Aurora and Hongjoong’s faces. Instantly, both faces lit up again at his concession, and Seonghwa wondered briefly how it was possible for those two to be so similar in so many things, down to the looks in their eyes and the shape of their pouts. If he didn’t know any better, down to DNA proof, that Aurora was his own, he wouldn’t have questioned it in the slightest if it turned out Hongjoong was her actual biological father.

“Do we all have to go grocery shopping?” Joonie piped up with a small voice, and a pout that was also a carbon copy of Hongjoong’s.

“Yes!” Aurora answered instantly, completely missing Joonie’s reluctance.

“Ah… How about…” Seonghwa started to suggest, but sought for Hongjoong’s input before suggesting the compromise he was thinking of. He didn’t want to suggest something that gave the child false hope, just for his father not to agree.

“You don’t want to go grocery shopping, Joonie?” Hongjoong asked, and Joonie shook his head without hesitation. Hongjoong looked up at Seonghwa, a question in his eyes that was the answer Seonghwa had been looking for.

“I’d also rather stay here and settle in, instead.”

Hongjoong nodded in understanding.

“Then if everyone agrees, Hwa and Joonie stay home and get a headstart on making everything cozy, and Rory and I hit the shops?” he asked, and instantly, Joonie latched on to Seonghwa’s waist.

“Yes!” he answered with Aurora’s earlier enthusiasm. Aurora herself looked a little conflicted, until Hongjoong crouched down next to her.

“They stay here and surprise us with how they are going to set everything up, and we go out and get some things to surprise them, too; how about that? That way, we can get to the most fun stuff sooner, too!”

Aurora nodded slowly, but she still had something to argue about. “But we are going to get things to make cookies tomorrow, too; just in case.”

“Absolutely,” Hongjoong conceded with no hesitation. “And so many other things!” Then, he leaned in and whispered something in her ear that Seonghwa couldn’t hear, but again, it was enough to light the whole child up.

“Yes!” she shouted, jumping a little, before leaning in as well and whispering something in Hongjoong’s ear in turn.

“Alright, you two. You can discuss your secrets in the car without needing to whisper,” Seonghwa cut in, then. To Hongjoong, he said: “I do trust you know what you want to get, but I might text you a few things I’ll think of while you’re gone,” and, directed at his daughter, “And you, don’t torment Hongjoong too much!”

Aurora clasped her hands behind her back, chest pushed out, while she swayed back and forth with the most innocent smile on her face. “Nope! Just a little!”

Seonghwa groaned, while Hongjoong laughed, already picking up both Aurora’s and his own coats. He helped Aurora get dressed, zipping the coat up for her, and while she was putting on her shoes, turned to Joonie.

“You’ll be fine alone here with Hwa?” he asked seriously, crouching in front of his child. Joonie nodded, and Hongjoong cupped his face, petting his cheek gently. 

“My big, brave boy,” he cooed proudly. “But if you do start to not feel fine, go find Seonghwa and ask him to call me. And if you want to, I’ll be coming right back, ok?”

Joonie nodded again, leaning into Hongjoong’s touch. His words contrasted his search for closeness, however.

“We need you to get food, though, and I don’t want to have to go to the grocery store and I don’t want Hwa to leave again. So just go buy everything and then come back here,” he ordered, and Hongjoong saluted, even where he was crouching.

“Aye, Captain!”

Joonie rolled his eyes, leaning against Seonghwa’s legs. “You’re being silly.”

“Joooong, let’s gooo!” Aurora called from the door, shoes put on. “I want to choose the popcorn flavor!”

Seonghwa merely groaned, recognizing the futility in cautioning Aurora to be patient when Hongjoong saluted her, too, and hurried to put on his shoes, grab his wallet and keys, and off they were.

The instant the door fell shut behind the duo, the house was blanketed by silence, and Joonie shuddered against Seonghwa’s leg.

“This house is very quiet without those two around, isn’t it,” Seonghwa observed, and Joonie nodded, shuffling even closer to Seonghwa.

“Should we put on some music so it’s not as quiet anymore?”

“On the TV,” Joonie nodded. “Or something else to listen to that has pretty pictures.”

Seonghwa nodded along, and let Joonie guide him to the coffee table where he handed Seonghwa a remorse. He turned the TV on and chose a streaming service. Joonie gasped next to him. “The one with the whales!” he exclaimed, pointing at a documentary that popped up in the suggestions on the first page. “I already watched it, but I want to listen to it again!”

Seonghwa had absolutely zero objections, as long as the child was happy. 

And that he was. And he apparently had just as precise, pre-formed opinions on what a sleepover needed as Aurora did, and was not afraid to voice them and coach Seonghwa through putting them into practice.

Seonghwa and Hongjoong exchanged a few texts while Hongjoong was out. Mainly Hongjoong asking if there was a difference in what kind of butter they should buy for cookies (yes, there was), and Seonghwa checking what kind of pizza Hongjoong preferred before he placed their order for a specific time. There was also a mirror selfie of Aurora trying on a Christmas sweater that reached all the way to the floor on her, with Hongjoong standing behind her in a matching sweater that reached almost down to his knees. Seonghwa sent a short video back, of Joonie imitating the singing of the whales on the TV and asking Seonghwa if he knew what he’d just said. Seonghwa answered he didn’t, and Joonie nodded sagely. “That’s because I said nothing. I don’t speak whale.”

Hongjoong and Aurora eventually burst through the door, laden with groceries, just after Seonghwa and Joonie finished setting up the fireplace, ready to be lit.

Seonghwa watched in dismay as Hongjoong went back and forth four more times, carrying in bags.

“Did you plan on staying here for a whole month?!” he eventually couldn’t help but ask. Hongjoong grinned sheepishly.

“Not… exactly. But… how do you manage to say ‘no’ to Aurora?”

Seonghwa groaned, and facepalmed for good measure.

“For… duck’s sake, Joong…” he sighed. “So you just bought the whole store?”

“At least half of it was Joongie’s idea! I just said yes!” Aurora defended herself good-naturedly where she was balancing in the arm rest of one of the couches. “And the other half were my ideas and Joongie said yes! We are a great team!”

“A team of enablers, yes,” Seonghwa shook his head again. “How much of this needs to go in the fridge?”

Thankfully, Hongjoong had packed the bags smartly, and putting everything away was easier and faster done than Seonghwa had suspected. Then again, there were also, suspiciously, a good chunk of the bags missing from the kitchen.

“Where’s the rest?” he asked, making sure to use a tone that let everyone know there was no use playing dumb with him.

“Ah… the rest? The rest… Right, the rest. The rest is-”

“A surprise!” Aurora crowed, jumping off the backrest of the couch onto the seating surface. One single look from Seonghwa was enough to tell her not to dare do that again.

“A surprise,” Seonghwa repeated. “For when?”

“Now!” Aurora answered in Hongjoong’s stead, and Hongjoong merely shrugged.

“Now, apparently,” he agreed, while Aurora dug through the half out of view bags to choose one specific one.

“We got everyone matching pyjamas!” she crowed, promptly spoiling the surprise, while she tugged said pyjamas out of the bag.

Seonghwa’s eyes widened, but he said nothing when she shoved one into his hands. 

“Hongjoongie chose for you and Joonie, and I chose for me and Hongjoong! Feel, they are really soft!”

Seonghwa had to agree, the pyjamas were really soft. And cute. His own was dark blue with silver stars and two pink bunnies curled up in sleep on his chest, with more pink bunnies and silver stars littering the pants. 

The other sets followed the same theme, in different colours and with different animals. Hongjoong’s had squirrels, Joonie’s seals, and Aurora’s… Seonghwa squinted, tilting his head as she showed it off. 

“They are sloths!” she stage whispered excitedly.

“These are nice,” Seonghwa conceded, smiling. It was a cute idea, he would admit. He liked the pyjamas. But it didn’t explain the at least five other bags still waiting to reveal their contents. 

Aurora noticed Seonghwa’s distraction and hopped back over to the bags.

“We also bought candles. But the electric ones, because Hongjoong said the real ones are too dangerous and we are already going to have fire in the fireplace. But they still have a nice smell! Here, dad, smell!” she rambled, while shoving a candle in Seonghwa’s face. Seonghwa caught her hand before she could knock the LED candle into his teeth.

“I smell it,” he reassured her. “Apples and cinnamon. Very nice.”

“There’s also a strawberry ice cream one, and a butter cookie one, and a snow one, and a- I don’t know what this is, and a blue one, and a raspberry one, and a… what is this? Potato?”

Seonghwa and Hongjoong burst out laughing at that.

“Truffle, love,” Hongjoong corrected her. “You chose that one!”

“It smells good, but the picture looks like potatoes,” she defended herself, before she proceeded to list way too many other candle scents. Seonghwa gave Hongjoong a look that had him shrugging his shoulders sheepishly, and Seonghwa could only shake his head at him. He decided then and there to just give up, and take what there was coming as it was coming. Not like he could change anything about it now anymore, anyway.

And that was a good thing, as matching slippers to go with the pyjamas followed. And hairbands. And more candles, lots of snacks (in addition to the ones he and Hongjoong had already stored away in the kitchen), two board games and a card game, fuzzy socks, and a star projector night-light. 

Hongjoong had all but sheepishly disappeared in a crack of the couch next to Seonghwa by the end, and Seonghwa couldn’t help but regard him with amusement as he presented him with a formidable set of puppy eyes.

“I’m not upset; you’ve made some excellent choices,” Seonghwa reassured him. “But you are going to have to learn how to say ‘no’ to Aurora eventually. You will be going bankrupt before the new year rolls in, otherwise.”

Hongjoong looked around as if to confirm no one else could hear him before he answered in a whisper.

“It is so hard! I don’t know how you do it! I can say no to Joonie, but Aurora… She could convince a tiger to go vegan with her arguments! If she says we need a snow candle because we need to find out if it really smells like snow, how am I to argue that?”

Seonghwa chuckled, shaking his head in fond exasperation, and patted Hongjoong’s thigh comfortingly.

“We’ll work on it. In the meantime, just tell her I said no if she insists and you’ll both be in trouble if you go against my word.”

Hongjoong frowned at that.

“But then it looks like you’re the bad guy who spoils all the fun all the time…!” he protested, but Seonghwa shrugged it off.

“That’s who I am, anyway. It just is how it is.”

Hongjoong still looked conflicted, but gave in after thinking it over. “I’ll try my best not to let it come to that. Blaming it on you should never be anything more than my last resort!”

Their quiet conversation came to a forced end when the children insisted it was time to let the sleepover activities commence, as night was already falling outside; at barely five in the afternoon.

Day clothes were swapped for matching pyjamas – with Seonghwa gritting his teeth at the notion of changing into sleep clothes without washing up properly first. But there was no point to wash up yet, not really, because the day was far from over yet. It was simply how things went during a sleepover, he tried to comfort himself.

After changing, and everyone being assigned their accessories, it was time to place the candles everywhere; Seonghwa thought he would be surprised if they managed to find all the candles again while packing up their stuff in the end, and not forget half of them in the nooks and crannies they ended up in.

Hongjoong and the kids lit the fireplace; that was to say, Joonie explained exactly  what to do and why, while Hongjoong followed directions, and Aurora hovered nearly on top of them, giving advice and commentary that was more on the dangerous side than on the helpful one.

The first movie was started once the fire got going, paused when pizza arrived, and restarted after they were done eating. Then came the first board game, a long affair that Joonie was really getting into, while Aurora barely managed to stay focused until the end; even though she won, if only by a narrow margin.

A second movie followed after a short bathroom break, accompanied by snacks and hot chocolate.

The children barely made it to the end, beyond exhausted to the point they didn’t even argue about it being time for bed. 

The kids were sharing a room that came with two beds and where Hongjoong set up the star projector nightlight while Seonghwa supervised the kids through washing up at least a little before bed and brush their teeth.

It was getting late even for Seonghwa’s standards when the kids were finally tucked in and sleeping, but he was really, really looking forward to some quality alone time with Hongjoong in front of the fireplace. 

He was not alone in that, as he saw Hongjoong tend to the fire when he came out of the kids’ room and joined the living area once again. For a moment, he just watched, until Hongjoong looked up at him. That was when  Seonghwa pushed himself off the wall at the entrance of the hallway, finally entering the room proper.

“Tea?” he asked, and Hongjoong smiled gratefully.

“Please,” he answered softly. 

Seonghwa went to take care of it, and used the time it took for the water to boil and the tea to steep to pick up whatever was left to clean in the kitchen. It was a pleasant surprise, when he rejoined Hongjoong in the living room, to find that Hongjoong had done the same with that room in the meantime. All the blankets and pillows were back in their places, snack wrappers, packaging, spills and leftovers thrown out or gathered to be stored away, and the place simply just looked… lovely. Inviting… Romantic. 

Seonghwa sat the tea-tray down carefully and sat down directly in front of the fire. The flames warmed his face gently as he let his gaze get lost in their flicker and dance over the logs. He wasn’t alone in his spot for long, instead soon joined by Hongjoong with a platter of leftover snacks.

“The yield is not exactly plentiful, but would you accept my humble offering?” he murmured, inclining his head in deference, and Seonghwa couldn’t help but chuckled at his silly antics. He took the platter from Hongjoong and set it down in his lap.

“Grab us the big gray blanket, and I will consider your offering sufficient,” he played along, and Hongjoong hurried to oblige. He even went as far as to artfully drape the blanket over Seonghwa, leaving enough for himself to crawl under next to him, before doing exactly that.

Once seated, Hongjoong practically melted into both the couch and Seonghwa’s side, head falling back and eyes closing.

“Today was at least two months long…” he groaned, letting his head roll until it rested against Seonghwa’s shoulder.

Seonghwa’s heart sped up, singing in quiet triumph over being on the receiving end of more of Hongjoong’s casual shows of affection.

“It has been rather long, yes,” Seonghwa hummed in agreement. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Hongjoong blinking his eyes open again and looking up at him.

“I haven’t even gotten around to thanking you for coming, yet,” Hongjoong pouted. “But I am really, really grateful that you decided to come and stay the night here with us. You and Aurora. Joonie was not having a good time before you two arrived.”

Seonghwa shifted slightly, accommodating Hongjoong’s weight against his side by adjusting their position so it was both more comfortable and he had an easier time meeting Hongjoong’s gaze as they talked.

“He’s not much one for sudden changes in routine and environment, is he…” Seonghwa observed, and Hongjoong confirmed it.

“Not at all. I believe he was able to stomach staying  the night at your place pretty well because he’d been there before, and because he trusts both you and Aurora. But here?” he shook his head. “A place he’s never been to, a place he doesn’t know the owners of, or even just the neighbourhood…”

“If I’m honest, it’s hard to picture, because he seemed perfectly fine from the moment we got here,” Seonghwa admitted, even though doubting the veracity of Hongjoong’s words was the last thing on his mind.

“That’s because he was. I swear I could hear the weight crashing off his chest the moment he saw you two.”

“And you’re sure none of that was part of the weight on your own chest?”Seonghwa teased gently, but Hongjoong shook his head with a small grin.

“No. Mine fell off the moment you said you were packing your and Aurora’s bags to come here on the phone,” he admitted easily. He grew serious again, though, his words heavy with genuinity: “I know it’s still early, Hwa, but… You have honestly brought such a lightness to my life just by existing. So much happiness. Not just because of Joonie and how much he likes you, but to me. I totally get why he likes you, and if what he feels is even just a fraction of how happy you make me, he ought to be the happiest kid alive.”

Seonghwa’s breath caught, and he felt his eyes well with tears. “Joong…”

Hongjoong reached up and cupped Seonghwa’s face in his hands, swiping his thumb under one of his eyes when one tear escaped, the look in his eyes slightly panicked.

“What- did I say something wrong?”

Seonghwa, instead of answering right away, wrapped his arms around Hongjoong in a hug and pulled him closer. Hongjoong was forced to let go of Seonghwa’s face and hugged him back instead.

“No. You just said all the right things. I’m just being emotional. I don’t think anyone has ever told me I make them happy,” he clarified, sniffling slightly.

“Oh, Hwa…” Hongjoong cooed, rubbing Seonghwa’s back softly. “I will happily remind you every single day, if you’ll let me. I’d write songs for you if you promise not to make fun of me! Then again, as long as you’re happy, even being made fun of would be acceptable…”

“I would never make fun of you for something like that!” Seonghwa sounded scandalized, and he pulled out of the hug just slightly. Just until they were still snuggled close together, resting comfortably on the couch in front of the fireplace, arms around each other and legs on the verge of entangling, but far enough apart to look at each other as they talked. 

“I might make fun of you for getting flour in your hair while making pancakes, but never for expressing your feelings.”

Hongjoong laughed quietly. “I still don’t know how I managed to get flour in my hair there… And why does it feel like that happened weeks ago rather than just this morning?”

“Because today has been one ride of a day. And I fear tomorrow won’t be much easier.”

Hongjoong hummed pensively, getting lost in his thoughts for a while. Seonghwa didn’t mind one bit, way too focused instead on the way Hongjoong was playing with his hand in his own, absentmindedly and slowly intertwining and untangling their fingers over and over again, as if testing all the ways in which their hands fit together. 

“What are your plans for tomorrow?” Hongjoong eventually asked quietly, tentatively, almost.

“That depends,” Seonghwa answered just as quietly, but definitely more sure of his answer.

“On?”

“On what your plans are.”

Hongjoong looked up at him, eyes wide. “You mean that?”

Seonghwa hummed affirmatively in answer. “I had no other plans for this weekend, beyond asking what you were up to and if we could spend time together. Us and the kids, just us, just the kids… And then take it from there.”

Hongjoong laughed into a disbelieving sigh. “That-... huh!” 

“So…?” Seonghwa prodded after a moment, catching Hongjoong’s hand that was playing with his between his fingers and holding it, and seemingly for the first time making Hongjoong aware of what he’d been doing.

“S-so?” Hongjoong stuttered, caught off guard.

“So, what are your plans?”

“If possible, never to get up from this couch and stay here with you until the end of time,” he answered, immediately and clearly without thought.

Seonghwa laughed. “That sounds extremely cozy, but might come with a few problems.”

Hongjoong let out a long-suffering sigh. “Why does reality have to be a thing…”

“Too bad, isn’t it…” Seonghwa agreed. “But if it helps any, I wouldn’t mind finding myself here again tomorrow evening.”

“I would love that!” Hongjoong admitted easily, even though it apparently did nothing to help his ears lose the colour that was apparently trying to rival the embers of the fire across from them.

“As for the day… I’m all yours. Do you need to sort anything else because of the heating in your apartment?”

Hongjoong shook his head. “Nothing to be done there until at least Monday. Fuck, I hope they manage to fix everything on Monday; they can’t be for real, letting half a building full of people go without heating, without warm water, for days on end, in the middle of winter!”

Seonghwa agreed with a hum. “It’s unconscionable. But just know, if it does take longer for them to fix it, you and Joonie are always welcome at my place. For as long as it takes.”

Hongjoong frowned. “I- we- we couldn’t, Hwa… I know you mean well, but… we’d be a burden sooner or later, and I could never-”

“Let me rephrase,” Seonghwa interrupted him. “I would love to have you over. For as long as it takes to get everything fixed up again, or as long as you want to stay. You’re not a burden, Joong,” he added on softly, but urgently. “Not you, and not Joonie, either. I make you happy? Well, you make me happy, as well! You bring so much joy into mine and Aurora’s lives!”

It was Hongjoong’s turn for his breath to catch and be lost for words, but the look in his eyes was worth thousands of words.

“Can I kiss you?” were the words he eventually settled on, and Seonghwa couldn’t imagine any combination of words that would have made him happier.

In lieu of an answer, Seonghwa leaned in, and actions did the talking instead.

It was not the fire’s doing that the heat rose between kisses and murmured nothings that meant the world, though it did wonders for the ambiance.

Always mindful of the two little ones who’d gone to bed not too long ago and could pop up out of nowhere at any moment, things still remained relatively chaste, even though Seonghwa’s hand did rest on bare skin under Hongjoong’s pyjama top when they decided not to go further, and there was definite proof of interest from Hongjoong’s crotch area pressed against Seonghwa’s hip; and if Hongjoong moved the leg he’d thrown over Seonghwa’s any further, he’d find the same from his end there.

But that was as far as they would go that night. Instead, they opted to let the day run out by remaining cuddled up on the couch, watching the fire in the fireplace burn down to ashes, while the one between them gentled to a low simmer for the time being.