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Little Taehyung walked quickly side by side with his father, his short legs trying to keep up with the larger man. He'd long gotten over with the fact that four year olds were too old to sit in the trolley and now it was Jungkook's turn for the next few years. In fact he grinned widely at the two year old who wouldn't stop babbling nonsense to their dad.
"Lion?" Namjoon spared some extra attention to the older child to help him feel involved and not jealous. "Colourful, exciting tissues or white, boring tissues?"
"Colourful, Dad! The ones that- the ones which keep changing, blue, pink, blue, pink, blue, pink!"
"Ah, right. Pretty sure these are the ones you're talking about." He picked a box off the shelf.
"Yeah, yeah! Appa picks those ones, they're in the living room." Taehyung grabbed onto the hem of Namjoon's shirt excitedly.
"You've got great memory, TaeTae. Good job." He grinned down at the happy boy and ruffled his messy hair before looking back at Jungkook who was now calling for attention.
Taehyung beamed at the small amount of attention he'd been privileged with, turning his focus to the shelves around him as he followed his father into another aisle, keeping a loose grip on the man's shirt. "Daddy?"
"TaeTae?"
"Can I have- have a ice cream?" He asked with wide eyes.
Namjoon gave him a small, unimpressed look as he put a loaf of bread into the trolley. "What did your Appa say before we left home? - Kookie, please don't touch that."
Taehyung's shoulders sagged and he let out a little huff, "no sweets this time."
"No sweets this time, when Appa goes shopping next week then he'll get all of you ice cream. Besides, there's some at home."
"But it's not the right one!"
"Then what is the right one?"
"The- the one with the sprinkles that- that are chocolate but the ice cream part is white and there's little fudge bits on the top too." Taehyung struggled to explain.
"Ah," Namjoon nodded, recognising that description. "I like that one too, we'll just have to let Appa know that next week. Till then, you'll need to finish the vanilla and chocolate ice cream in the freezer."
Taehyung was generally a good boy, he knew when to throw a tantrum and was well aware that his parents greatly disapproved when any of the kids started yelling in public. So he pouted, convincing himself that the ice cream at home wasn't that bad. He felt his Dad distractedly pat his head while he focused on Jungkook but Taehyung ignored the gesture, mildly upset at the lack of ice cream in their shopping cart.
Namjoon skipped an aisle, pushing the trolley into the next one where the milk would be. He didn't notice when Taehyung let go of his loose grip on Namjoon's shirt, as the father was paying more to his youngest son and was searching for the location of the milk bottles at that moment.
Taehyung kept his hold on Namjoon's shirt and peeked into the aisle they were skipping, realising at the last moment that there was a shelf of eggs at the far end of the aisle. Appa had specifically told Dad not to forget a box of eggs because they ran out this morning at breakfast. Dad was forgetting, but Taehyung remembered!
He let go of the man's shirt, not realising that Namjoon had gone forward. Taehyung hesitantly stepped into the aisle, dodging a few adults as he quickly made his way towards the shelf that held a box of eggs, the design on the cardboard was familiar to the ones at home. They were a bit too high for him, but that's okay, he could manage.
Standing on his tiptoes, Taehyung reached up towards the box. He groaned at the stretch, especially when his nails barely brushed against the cardboard. He relaxed for a moment before trying again, determined to do this for his dad. After another failed effort he stood back a step and thought his choices through.
He could always go and call dad but that would defeat the purpose of his personal mission. He could also ask someone to pass it to him, but he couldn't talk to strangers.
Taehyung watched as someone came and casually grabbed a box of eggs with ease before moving on with their life. Frustration blooming, he thought of a third choice.
Standing as close to the shelf as possible, Taehyung prepared himself. Counting himself down from three, he kept his eyes on his prey: the box closest to the edge. Crouching down, he sprung up, jumping high with his hands raised, exclaiming in victory as he momentarily caught one side of the box of eggs. However, he lost his grip on it almost immediately and came back down to the floor, landing on his bum.
He wasn't the only thing to fall. The box of eggs came down with him as it toppled haphazardly over the edge; the lid, half open, couldn't hold a few of the eggs as they flew out, cracking loudly as Taehyung watched in horror when they smashed against the cold floor.
"Uh oh," he sat himself up to his knees, staring in horror at the yolk spilling out of the shells. "Uh oh."
Taehyung yelped when a hand suddenly grasped onto his arm and turned his head, expecting to meet his father and not an angry stranger.
"What did you do?"
Taehyung blinked, his lip started wobbling and his throat started to close. "I...I was..."
He was so scared by the stranger glaring down at him that his voice left him. Taehyung wasn't able to yell out when he was shaken wildly for a moment, the man trying to get the words out of him. But the four year old could only place a small hand on the man's large one, trying to push it off weakly. The man shook him once more, making Taehyung whine loudly in distress, tears now forming in his eyes.
"Where's your eomma? Huh? Huh? Do you know how much trouble you're in, you brat?" He spat intimidatingly.
The little boy choked out a sob and shook his head, "Da- Dada." He managed to stutter, the fright was regressing his mind.
"You're dad? Where is he then? Huh? What's your name?" He raised his voice.
Taehyung could only whimper, shaking his head more in frustration when he still unable to answer him.
"I asked-"
A hand much larger than the scary man's clamped onto the stranger's wrist, making the man yell out, the tight grip on the stranger began to create bruises as it started to mercilessly break the blood vessels under the skin.
"Let. Go."
"Alright, alright! Ow!"
The man released Taehyung's wrist immediately, allowing the small boy to drop back down to the ground and cry pitifully. The hand on the stranger's wrist refused to release it until he had completely let go of Taehyung.
Namjoon let his hands fall to the side, moving forward confidently to make the shop employee back away further from his son so that Namjoon could stand between both of them, the corner of his eye watching Jungkook sitting securely in the shopping cart.
"I'm giving you one minute to explain yourself." Namjoon stated lowly. His hands were clenching and unclenching, anger raging through this body.
"Sir, are you the father?" The employee asked, his voice now more socially acceptable.
Namjoon was definitely a foot taller than him and used it to his advantage, broadening his shoulders as the man backed away a little more. "45 seconds."
He gulped, "Sir, look at what your child has done, he broke four of our eggs. Now you'll have to waste your money to pay for them, he doesn't understand the value of food and he made a mess."
"What my son made was a mistake, he understands the value of food perfectly well and it is not a waste of money because if I have to pay 2,000 Won on a few goddamn eggs then that's not a freaking problem. The problem is you harassing my son who did nothing wrong but you went and physically hurt him and scared him. I gave you a minute to explain why I shouldn't call the police but you've failed to provide me with one."
The employee panicked, raising his hands in defence. "Sir, Sir, please understand, I sincerely apologise. In fact, you don't have to pay for the eggs at all! You can also take a new box for free, Sir please, I'm very sorry."
Namjoon simply glared at him, breathing heavily in anger and the image of breaking the shaking man in front of him wasn't satisfying enough. "Don't apologise to me. Apologise to my son."
Namjoon stepped to the side, turning around to see Taehyung sitting with his face buried in his knees, still crying softly. Namjoon's face dropped and his body slumped at the sight.
"I'm sorry, little boy, I-"
"That's enough." Namjoon gritted out as Taehyung was obviously too dazed to understand his surroundings. Reaching into his pocket, Namjoon drew out a few thousand won and threw it at the employees feet. "Those are for the eggs. You're lucky my children are here otherwise you would not be walking, I promise you that."
Not waiting for his reply Namjoon bent down to Taehyung, hesitating before reaching forward slowly to stroke his fluffy hair as to not startle him, but he still failed when he made the child jump at the sudden contact.
"Sorry, TaeTae." He apologised softly when the child's face rose from his knees, his face red and covered in tears and snot. Namjoon's heart hurt because this had been completely his fault; he'd forgotten the eggs, he didn't realise it when his son separated from him until Jungkook pointed it out and he let Taehyung get scared by the bastard employee.
Reaching down he picked his son up, then stood and rested him on his hip. Taehyung grasped onto Namjoon's shirt, burying his face into the junction between his father's neck and shoulder. He was shaking slightly and wetting the man's skin with tears. Namjoon allowed it, not bothered by his baby as he walked past the stuttering employee and towards the cart, smiling softly at Jungkook as he pushed forward, leaving the aisle behind.
"TaeTae good?" Jungkook asked, concerned as he tried to gain Taehyung's attention by patting the older's foot.
Namjoon gently stopped him, "yeah, your hyung will be good." He looked down at Taehyung's arm, narrowing his eyes at the fading redness. He bent his head down to place a light kiss on it. Next thing he knew, Jungkook reached up to leave his own kiss on the redness.
"That's very sweet of you, Kookie." Namjoon's heart swelled at the gesture.
"TaeTae better?"
"Soon," Namjoon pecked his youngest's nose. Rocking himself as he pushed the cart forward in an attempt to soothe Taehyung down.
He stopped moving and pulled Taehyung away from him, smiling at the boy's teary face. "Here, Tae, pick the ice cream you wanted."
He sniffed, looking at Namjoon in confusion. "B-but Appa said..."
"Appa will understand, go on, which one was it?" He encouraged.
Shyly, Taehyung pointed to the ice cream he had described earlier before pushing his face back into Namjoon for the comfort the closeness provided. He heard his father hum and the sound of the ice cream tub falling into the trolley.
Next thing Taehyung knew, he was being buckled into his car seat. The child whined, reaching out to his father who was biting his lip at his son's reaction. Namjoon held onto Taehyung's reaching hands, "it's only for a little bit, Lion. I'll be right in front of you and you can kick my seat all you want. I need you to be very brave for a few minutes, okay? You can hold Kookie's hand so he can be brave too."
The last bit of advice did it for Taehyung and he reached for his little brother who was already buckled into his seat, the youngest gladly took it, not having any reason to mind being away from his father for the five minutes drive.
Namjoon sighed in relief at the diverted crisis and hurried to fill the car with bags and drove away as quickly as possible. He made sure to keep talking about literally nothing, entertaining both children in the backseat although the only response was from the youngest while Taehyung occasionally kicked the back of Namjoon's seat, an act he'd usually get scolded for.
The silence from Taehyung didn't last for long before the boy started whining, ignoring Namjoon's attempts to calm him and began crying loudly. It startled Jungkook who reached to comfort him but Taehyung only pulled away, curling into himself and sobbing loudly. Namjoon was at a loss, conflicted in between stopping the car or driving on just for two more minutes. The last thing he needed was for Jungkook to start crying along with Taehyung; but thankfully, Namjoon was quickly able to save the day by asking the two year old to stay strong for his older brother.
As soon as he badly parked in their driveway due to the rush; Namjoon jumped out of the car, opening the door Taehyung was closest to. "Shh, Tae, look we're home now, it's okay." He unbuckled his son and reached to pull the sobbing child out before realising the reason for Taehyung's tears.
The four year old had regressed so much from the scare at the grocery store that he'd wet himself in the car. Namjoon realised it was only a temporary and normal regression and he wasn't upset in any way whatsoever at the normal accident. Hell, he even knew adults who had toilet accidents now and then.
"No, no, TaeTae- no, it's okay, it was an accident." Pretty much used to these kind of events from raising three children, Namjoon carried Taehyung into his arms without hesitation, letting his son cling to his body despite ruining his clothes. Single handedly he unbuckled Jungkook and set him on the ground, holding his hand as they walked to the front door. He struggled a little in unlocking the door but eventually managed, telling Jungkook to go play.
Namjoon's oldest son, Jimin, came rushing towards the front door to greet them. "Appa! Dad's hom... T-Tae?"
His father smiled kindly at his oldest child's concern as Jimin reached out to Taehyung. "Dad, is Taehyungie hurt?"
"Sort of, but he'll be okay. Go bring some of the groceries in and then lock the car, alright?" Namjoon saved Taehyung from he embarrassment by hiding the accident, ruffling Jimin's hair and handing him the car keys before carrying his sniffling son up the stairs and towards the bathroom.
He sat Taehyung down on the closed toilet, kneeling in front of it and pulling the boy's hands away from his face to reveal red and puffy eyes. Namjoon played with Taehyung's hands a bit, smiling wide and leaning forward so that their foreheads touched. "Guess who's going to have a big bubbly bath all to himself, a really huge dinner, then his favourite ice cream for desert and finally a nice, long bed time story? Hm?"
Taehyung sniffed, blinking his eyes as the sting of the tears remained. "Me?"
"Yeah! Who else other than you, my Little Lion?" Namjoon rubbed their noses together playfully.
"Can Hyungie and K-Kookie s-share?" He hiccuped.
Namjoon smiled lovingly at the selflessness of his baby and nodded, "of course, TaeTae. Whatever you want." He knew he was spoiling Taehyung too much but at the moment he didn't care, he'd give Taehyung all of his love for the rest of the day cause the kid deserved it more than anyone else right now.
By the time Namjoon ran the water for the bath, undressed Taehyung and wiped him down, Seokjin rushed in through the open doorway. Consciously slowing down at the sight of Taehyung. "Jimin said Taehyung was crying." He explained himself in short pants, having obviously run up the stairs. Seokjin kneeled down in front of Taehyung, frowning at his child's sniffling and puffy eyes. "Aw, Sweetheart, what happened?"
"Appa," Taehyung whined instead of offering an explanation and made grabby hands for his father who swooped him up into his arms, unconcerned of the boy's nakedness. "Appa."
"Aww, Appa's here, Tae Baby. What happened?"
The child stayed quiet, only sniffling occasionally, Seokjin turned to Namjoon who had just poured the bubble solution into the water. "Joonie?"
"Taehyung had a little accident in the car." Namjoon explained for the time being. "I'll tell you everything a bit later, kay?"
"What? Why?" Seokjin grip tightened on his son and looked to his husband in wide eyes. "What happened?"
Namjoon leaned in to leave a quick kiss on Seokjin's lips and pulled Taehyung away from him, placing the child into the warm, bubbly water. "I'll explain later, Jagi."
Seokjin was annoyed at the answer and crossed his arms, he noticed the wet patch on his husbands shirt and offered to help Taehyung bathe while Namjoon changed into something else. Seokjin played with his child, not worrying about the puddles forming on the tiled floor, he knew how Taehyung cried if something like an accident happened which is why he knew there was something more behind his baby's tears.
He'd gotten Taehyung to laugh a little by the time the bath was over but it still wasn't enough for Seokjin to be satisfied. He put the kid into his fluffy pyjamas and blow dried his hair into little waves, constantly talking to him the whole time; and to distress Seokjin even further, Taehyung didn't react as much as he usually did. Even though he wanted to ask him why he didn't tell his father when he needed the toilet, Seokjin couldn't bring himself to make Taehyung feel even more embarrassed for the honest mistake so he didn't mention it.
When Seokjin went downstairs holding Taehyung's hand he was met with Jimin helping Namjoon set the table while Jungkook entertained himself in the connected living room with his bunny and other stuffed toys.
"Hey, Tae!" Namjoon smiled widely, now wearing fresh and more comfortable clothes. "Come help us."
Before Namjoon could hand Taehyung a few plastic plates, Jimin enveloped his brother in his small arms and squeezed tight enough to lift Taehyung off the floor. Taehyung squealed and hugged him to prevent both boys from falling over, not relaxing until his feet were safely on the ground again.
"No more crying anymore! Hyung is here!" Jimin yelled and hugged him tightly once more.
"Hyungie, I can't breathe!"
Seokjin and Namjoon glanced at each other over their children's heads, smiles covering both of their faces.
"Minnie! Taeee!"
"Uh oh, you're baby brother's getting a bit jealous, boys." Seokjin ruffled their hair, "go hug him too."
"We love you too, Kookie!"
"Yeah, see!"
"Don't suffocate him!" Seokjin yelled behind them as they ran over to the living room. He cooed at the sight for a moment before moving to put away the groceries. Putting away any frozen items he faltered slightly at the ice cream he'd specifically told Namjoon not to buy. "Joonie, I thought I-"
"I know," he said softly and wrapped his arms around his husbands waist, placing his chin lightly on Seokjin's broad shoulder and leaving a fleeting kiss on the elder's neck. "I'm sorry, but Tae had a hard time today, he more than deserved the ice cream."
Seokjin sighed deeply and leaned back into Namjoon, fluttering his eyes close and turning his head to bury his nose into his cheek, "if you bought it then I guess you had a good enough reason, I just wish you'd tell me what it was."
"I'm sorry love, I'll tell you as soon as the babies are asleep."
"Hm," Seokjin breathed in Namjoon for a second, just filling his mind with the existence of his lover. "Our oldest is six years old, we can't keep calling them our babies."
"Babies."
"Joon-"
"Babies."
Seokjin just chuckled, pulling away from Namjoon to continue to put away the groceries, "there're no eggs."
"That's part of the story."
"This'll sure be a fun story."
Namjoon made a face, "I wish. The lesson of the story though is that we're never shopping there again, an extra five minute drive to the other supermarket's not gonna kill anyone."
His husband glanced back a Namjoon with an unimpressed look, "I do hope there's a good reason, love." Seokjin moved away from the kitchen counter to quickly kiss Namjoon. "I don't really care about the ice cream, eggs or the supermarket. I just want to know why my baby was crying so much cause it definitely wasn't over an accident. And why did he even have an accident in the first place when he hasn't had one in ages?"
Namjoon rubbed their noses together, "you just called him a baby too."
"I said we should stop calling Jimin a baby, not-"
"Babies."
"Why am I even married to you?"
"Babies."
Taehyung and Jimin came back in to the kitchen, both holding each of Jungkook's hands as the youngest toddled in between them. "Appa, Kookie's smelly." Jimin announced.
"Aw, c'mon sweetie, you can help me change him." Seokjin said and lifted the youngest up. Namjoon yelled out 'babies' one more time to Seokjin's back as he left the room.
Now alone with a composed Taehyung, Namjoon felt the need to set things straight one last time to avoid any misunderstandings. Suddenly picking him up from his armpits, Namjoon carried the squealing boy and plopped him playfully onto the kitchen counter.
"How's my brave Little Lion?" Namjoon tickled his neck.
Taehyung shrieked and pulled away, giggling uncontrollably with sparkling eyes; the contrast from earlier warmed his father's heart. "I'm kay-kay!"
"Yeah?" He brought his child closer to him and wrapped his arms around the boy, linking his fingers behind Taehyung's back to secure him in place. "That's good. And I want to make sure that you knew you were very brave today."
Taehyung's smile faltered a bit and he looked down at his fingers, picking at the hem of pyjama shirt. "I'm sorry, Daddy."
Namjoon sighed, knowing that the boy was apologising for the wrong thing. "What are you sorry for, Lion?"
"For breaking the eggs." Taehyung whispered beneath his breath.
Namjoon tutted softly, "that was okay, that was an accident which you don't have to be sorry for. Understand? And wetting yourself in the car was an accident too because we both know that you didn't mean to do it. It was a mistake. The only thing you did wrong was leaving me at the store. Do you understand? Appa and Daddy always tell you to stick with us so that bad things like today don't happen. You needed to tell me that I was silly enough to forget the eggs. Get it?"
Taehyung nodded, looking up to meet his father's eyes this time. "I'm sorry for leaving you in the store, Dad." Taehyung played with the soft sleeve of Namjoon's shirt. "Am I in trouble now?"
Namjoon pecked the boy's nose, holding in a bit of laughter when Taehyung went cross-eyed. "I think you already learned your lesson."
He picked up Taehyung and put him back on the floor, handing him the plates he'd asked the boy to lay out earlier. "You're a very good boy, Taehyung. Promise me to remember that?"
Taehyung grinned wide, his mouth forming the adorable rectangular shape that Namjoon adored and cherished so much, nostalgia throwing him back to when he saw his baby smile like that for the first time and cause him to be attacked with such pure, endearing emotions.
"I promise, Dad!"