Chapter Text
Chan is a growing boy.
And, as it applies to all children, growing and learning and getting curious by the day is no issue.
At six years of age, and advanced by one year into his education, Chan is well aware that he comes from a different background, compared to his classmates and peers.
He drags his small feet with heavy steps, trodding from his room to the kitchen (and the heavenly scent of pancakes) after he's awaken by his Papa.
"Up and at 'em, Channie-ya," Chan hears him say, before feeling him gently rub his face, in the affectionate way he always did to wake him up. "Freshen up. It's a big day."
Head down on their small dining table, Chan mumbles, "I'm nervous."
His Papa pulls out the chair, sitting beside him. "You'll do great, Channie. Don't think so much! I'm sure the other kids would like to talk to you."
"Maybe," he mumbles. "Where's Daddy?"
"You know your Daddy," his Papa laughs. "Tired from sleeping late. Like always. Don't worry, though, I'll wake him up, then we can eat together, and we'll take you to school!" he brightly cheers. Chan looks up to match his smile, and his Papa messes with his hair. "Come on, let's wake him up," he offers, getting up, taking Chan's hand.
"Jihoonie," Chan hears his Papa call gently when they enter his parents’ room. "Jihoon-ah."
Chan goes to sit on their bed, slightly bouncing up and down. "Daddy, let's get up. Papa already made food! Pancakes, pancakes~" he sings.
His Daddy rolls around under the covers, stretching his limbs slightly. "Good morning, you two," he mumbles in a deep, sleep-coated voice, before holding up an open hand. "Five more minutes?"
"No!" Chan protests. "We have to wake up and eat breakfast together," he says, tugging on the sleeves of the man's grey pajamas. "Please, Daddy?"
His Papa chuckles, before sitting down on the bed too, kissing them both on the forehead. "Sometimes, I feel like I'm raising two kids."
Chan giggles at this, seeing his Daddy's lips break out into a small smile. "That's a lot coming from you, Soon," Daddy chuckles.
Papa reaches out to hold Daddy's hands, linking their fingers together. He brings Daddy to sit up, before Papa rubs his face in the same way, too. Chan sits cross-legged from the other side of the bed, watching his Daddy lean into his Papa's touch, before he lets Daddy rest his forehead on his chest, eyes closed, as if about to doze off again.
It's times like these— his Papa smiling lovingly down at his Daddy, combing hands through his hair, Daddy bringing up his hands to wrap his arms around Papa's torso— that Chan is aware. He is aware that he lives differently.
Papa turns to look at Chan, and he gestures for him to come over and join in their cuddling. Chan brightens up immediately, going to his Daddy, and hugging him from behind.
"Channie," his Daddy calls. "You're my favorite child."
Chan tilts his head in confusion. "But I'm your only child, Daddy!"
He laughs. "Soonyoung is also a child. An overgrown one," he says, before turning to take Chan in his lap, sitting upright.
His Papa pouts at them both. "Jihoonie is so mean. Let's go, Channie," he feigns hurt, tugging on his son's hand.
"Channie, the evil dinosaur is out to take you!" his Daddy exclaims, pulling his son closer to his chest. "Don't let it eat you!"
"Yah!" his Papa whines, pulling Chan towards him. "Channie, that man is a big liar. I'm your Papa!"
The father holding him sticks his tongue out at the other. "Channie will not go with you! He enjoys laying in bed with me more than he wants to be with you!"
His Papa gently pulls him towards him, and before Chan knows it, he's being yanked playfully by both sides.
"Yah," he whines. "I'll be late for school if you guys don't stop fooling around."
His parents stare at each other in awe, respective holds still on their child. Chan wiggles out of their grasps, before standing in front of them with his arms crossed, a pout on his small mouth. "Are we going to eat or not?"
His Papa blinks, before laughing sheepishly. "You go on first, Channie. Daddy and I have to talk."
Chan furrows his eyebrows in curiosity, but leaves anyway to go and wash his face and hands.
("Why are you looking at me like that?" Jihoon asks accusingly, arms crossed as well.
Soonyoung just smiles at him dumbly, sitting down next to him on the bed. Jihoon just gapes back. "Yah, what's with that?"
The taller messes with his hair. "He gets too much of his mannerisms from you," he comments, shaking his head. "That kid."
"Of course, I'm his Dad," Jihoon huffs.
"So am I, but alright, alright," Soonyoung dismisses, before leaning forward to kiss him on the cheek. "Good morning."
Jihoon's own mumble of a "...Good morning," comes out strained when he feels his husband's nose nuzzle his neck, breathing warm against his collarbones, hand resting on top of his own hand on his thigh.
Jihoon clears his throat. "S-Soonyoung."
He hums. "Why?"
"Get off me," he barks, pushing Soonyoung's head away, before getting up to leave. "It won't work on me. Channie is waiting."
"It won't work on you yet."
Jihoon gives him the look, and Soonyoung laughs, shaking his head. "I love you, yeah?"
"Mm. Love you, too, dork.")
Chan lets out a deep breath once the two of them have settled down and joined them on the breakfast table, finally.
He is busying himself with pouring a nice pattern on his pancake with chocolate syrup when his Daddy asks, "How are you feeling today, Chan-ah?"
Chan puts the bottle of syrup down, before digging his fork into the pancake. "Very... nervous. I don't know. I'm not sure."
He starts to eat, and really, he isn't that oblivious for his age. He's even advanced by one year. He watches his parents share a look from the corner of his eyes. "Why? Is it... normal?" he asks timidly.
His Papa looks at him with a small smile. "It is. Can you tell us why you feel nervous?"
"Well," Chan mumbles, playing with his fork. "Maybe they won't want to talk to me. Or maybe they'll treat me differently because I'm younger than all of them. I'm... I'm not sure I know how to make friends," he smiles sheepishly.
Soonyoung blinks. "Channie, don't fret so much."
His Daddy laughs this time. "I agree. You're thinking too much for your age. It'll be alright. Just... just think about Papa and Daddy. You'll feel better," he says, with a warm smile, before taking a sip from his cup of too-hot coffee (he flinches at the heat), and Chan giggles.
They sit in moderate silence for the rest of the meal, his parents sharing occasional boring office chit chat and a few jokes every now and then, and his Papa asks "Hoonie, what time is it?" when Chan finishes the rest of his glass of milk.
"Um," his Daddy mutters, looking at his phone. "It's nearly 8. We have to take Chan to school in thirty, right?"
"Yeah, right," Soonyoung says, immediately getting up and walking towards their son. "Uh, babe?"
"Who's 'babe?'" Jihoon says from the table, and Soonyoung can practically hear the glare in his voice.
"Baby, Jihoonie, sweetie, love," his Papa sings. "Will you please take care of the dishes for me? Please, please? Channie and I will take a bath, hm?"
"You do know you don't have to use those nicknames on me for me to do the dishes, right, Youngie?" he clicks his tongue.
His Papa is already pulling Chan's pajama top above his head by the bathroom, so he calls out to answer. "Yeah, so much for calling me 'Youngie.'"
Chan can hear the clang of glass and steel, and the water running. "It's my turn today, though. Don't worry. It'll be my turn for a while, I guess. I've been too busy and I've missed all my turns."
He watches his Papa's fond expression. "Hm. You've worked hard, Jihoonie!" he calls, before he's ushered into the bathroom.
Chan always wonders how come his Papa always takes showers so quickly. He once tried imitating how Papa would run shampoo through his hair in one hand, and at the same time brush his teeth with the other. It confused him, to say the least, and his Papa just said he didn't need to bathe the same way.
Soonyoung squeezes out just the right amount of shampoo for him, letting him do the rest by himself, smiling at his child all the while with a toothbrush stuck in his mouth.
Baths with his Papa, Chan notices, is often quick. He messes with Chan's soapy hair and plays with him sometimes. Chan thinks his Papa doesn't waste time bathing so he himself won't end up staying too long under the showers when he grows up. (And conserving water! It seems to be important.)
But bathing with his Daddy, Chan enjoys more. Since his Papa was more fond of bathroom duty than his Daddy was, he didn't get to experience it often. He and his Daddy would sometimes reenact dramatic scenes from TV shows under the 'rain' of the showers, or sometimes he would let Chan use their 'grown-up' shampoo, or they would simply just play around with soap suds.
(His Papa just really cares about the water bills.)
For one thing, Chan thinks he's good at observing. He notices a lot of things.
Chan notices that his Daddy is grumpy before he gets to drink that odd brown (sometimes black!) drink (coffee, he later learns). His Daddy eats the most food between the three of them, and is alsogrumpy when he's hungry. His Daddy, despite being grumpy most of the time, honestly has his sweet and soft sides.
Chan notices that his Papa, on the other hand, is very... convincing. If Chan is told to do something, there's something about his Papa's tone and words that make it hard for him to disobey. It's the same for his stubborn Daddy, too, Chan notices— once his Papa tells him to take a break from working to rest— then, take a break from working to rest it is.
Of course— Chan notices the same stares they get when his Papa and Daddy take him out, notices the same whispers and the same pointing. Notices that he's different from other children— most especially those who have a mother, and one father.
But even with his two fathers, both unrelated to him by blood, yet still loving him with all they have— Chan's young mind thinks he couldn't possibly want his family to be any other way.
Chan never fails to miss how obvious it is that his Daddy and Papa love each other a lot, too. He doesn't miss the way his Papa smiles when he sees Chan's brand new uniform already set out on his bed, either.
His Papa gets dressed in a flash before finishing drying Chan's body off, messing with his damp hair using the towel, before guiding him to wear his uniform properly. His Daddy's head peeps through the door after a few moments, and he smiles at them.
His Daddy chuckles. "Handsome."
"You called for me?"
"Not you, dumbass," his Daddy playfully rolls his eyes. "Handsome Channie!"
"Language, Jihoon-ah!"
"Thank you, Daddy," Chan smiles, and his Daddy pats him on the head.
"Me too, me too, Jihoonie!" his Papa whines from the floor, legs crossed, pouting. "Where is my head pat?"
His Daddy glares, flicking Soonyoung on the forehead instead, before kneeling down to fix the buttons on Chan's top. His Papa holds back a small yelp, clutching his forehead, and Chan can't help but giggle.
"Soonyoung-ah, I won't work today," his Daddy says, while putting Chan's socks on him. "Reservation tonight still on?"
His Papa immediately blinks repeatedly, perking up. "Yes! Of course! Ah, you're the best, Jihoonie," he cries, flopping down completely onto the floor to hug Jihoon (see: wrap arms around Jihoon's torso while the rest of his body is dragged down).
Chan watches his feet being tucked securely into his shoes. "Daddy, what's a reservation?"
His Papa sits back up properly. "It's when somebody asks—"
"—He didn't ask you, Soonyoung," his Daddy shoots at an apologetic Soonyoung, before turning back to Chan. "Sweetie, it's like when you save a certain place for someone. For example, you're guarding something— like, a seat— because you're waiting for somebody else to use it, because they asked you to save a seat for them. So, you reserved that chair for them."
Chan nods his head. "Ah, I get it."
His Daddy chuckles, messing with his hair, and Chan whines, not wanting his hair all mussed. "Go brush your teeth," he says, and Chan runs off to the bathroom, his Papa following not long after when Jihoon nods at him to go.
Chan props himself up on the stool (he's still too short to reach the sink), watching his Papa watch him brush his teeth. "Why arr ya wotchin' me, Pa?"
"Nothing," he laughs, before going over to comb his child's hair. "You still nervous?"
"A ritol," he mumbles, looking at his Papa through their reflection in the mirror. "Wha should I do?"
"Just do what you want to do, Channie. Behave well, as Daddy and I have taught you to. Just remember that we are always cheering you on, okay?"
"...Okay."
"Good," his Papa replies, before deciding he's fixed Chan's hair enough. "Your things all ready now?"
Chan nods, and his Papa smiles. "Alright. I'll prepare your food, then go wait for Daddy and I to get ready."
Chan finishes tending to his teeth, sitting down on their small sofa— which fits both his Papa and Daddy perfectly, with him sat on their laps, in the middle— and he kicks his legs up to the tune of the pop song he hums under his breath.
He thinks carefully about the many ways today could possibly go. What happens in first meetings? Introduction, right?
Huh, right. Well, he's practiced greeting people for a long time now. His Papa says that it's necessary to introduce yourself, especially to people you want to befriend. His Daddy, however, says that it is also very important to mention Papa’s and Daddy’s names, and know their home address, as a way to ask help from a security guard, or a 'dependable-looking adult' (he doesn't know what that means), if ever he finds himself lost.
Chan clears his throat. "Good morning, teacher! Good morning, classmates! My name is Lee Chan. Today, I am very nervous, but I am happy to be here. I hope we can all be good friends!" all manage to flow out straight from his brain, but he's not really sure if it sounds alright.
"Hm, will that do?" he mumbles to himself. "Is that all I should say? What about 'nice to meet you?' Or 'I am Lee Chan' instead of 'My name is Lee Chan'?"
He rehearses his greeting again— maybe it's the fourth or fifth time, he doesn't really know— when he notices that his parents are secretly watching him from behind the wall.
"...Were you listening?"
The two heads of dark brown move, but one shakes, and the other nods. “No!” his Papa exclaims, but “Yeah,” comes from his Daddy— at the same time.
His parents blink at each other, and Soonyoung gives a sheepish smile down at Jihoon in contrast with the latter’s annoyed expression.
Chan shakes his head. “I don’t mind. Can you help me think of what I should say when I’m asked to introduce myself?”
His Daddy walks over to sit beside him, patting his shoulder. “We’ll help you on the way to school. We need to get going first,” he smiles warmly, and Chan nods, getting up, both of them waiting for his Papa to finish ‘quadruple-checking’ all of his stuff.
(“Soonyoung, I don’t want our kid late on the first day!”
“I’m just making sure, okay? I’m excited, Hoonie.”
“Pa, Dad, it’s my first day in elementary. You don’t have to fuss— I’ve been to kindergarten.”)
The short walk to the bus stop is crowded like the usual rush-hour mornings, and Chan walks in between his Daddy and Papa, holding both his hands to guide him, making sure he doesn’t fall behind or stumble and get lost in the crowd. They were nearly lucky enough— they find one last seat in the stuffy bus, and Jihoon insists that Soonyoung should sit, with Chan on his lap.
“Ji, I am not going to let you stand up and get crushed between all these people.”
“Watch me,” Jihoon says, gripping the hanging handle. “No sweat, Soonyoung.”
“Jihoon.”
The bus lurches forward at an abrupt halt, and Jihoon yelps, inching away from the man sticking a bit too close to him as he tries to regain balance. “Jihoon,” Soonyoung repeats, in a sharp tone, putting Chan down and getting up while the bus isn’t moving yet.
Jihoon admits defeat, and he switches places with Soonyoung, now placing Chan on his lap. He pouts, but Soonyoung only shakes his head and smiles.
Once they’ve reached their stop in front of the school, Chan leads a little ahead of them, sighing because his Papa and Daddy are holding hands again with no space for him.
“Channie, slow down.”
He exhales in annoyance. “Let’s go,” he says, pulling them both by their shirts.
“Do you still need help with your introduction?” his Daddy asks when they arrive outside his classroom. “I don’t think it’ll start for a while, some seats are still empty.”
“It’s alright,” Chan replies. “If they ask me what I like to do, or about my family, then I’ll answer, right? That… I like to dance!” he says enthusiastically, and the two adults can practically see the sparkles in his eyes. “And in my house, I have a Papa and Daddy— two of them!”
Soonyoung lightly nudges Jihoon, only to find the latter already looking at him— their gazes meeting, no words needed to be uttered— both already understanding what the other is trying to say.
His Papa crouches down to pinch his cheeks, and he chuckles. “We’re really proud of you, Channie-ya. You’re the best kid ever.”
“But I’m your only kid~”
“I’m joking, joking,” he laughs, before looking up at his partner, grabbing his hand. “Thank you for loving Daddy and I. We’re the luckiest in this whooole world, just having you. We’re always cheering you on!” he says, fistbumping the air.
Chan smiles, bumping his small fists against his Papa’s. “Fighting?”
“Fighting!” all three of them cheer, but Chan frowns afterwards. “Daddy, don’t you have anything to say?”
Jihoon perks up, sniffling. “I… I’m not very good with this kind of thing, Channie.”
Soonyoung nudges his leg, before turning to Chan. “Your Daddy can get emotional! Don’t force him. He may not say as much things as I do, but he loves you as just as much! He always shows it. Right, Jihoonie?”
“Right,” he mumbles, ruffling Chan’s hair. “You should get inside now. We’ll pick you up later, okay? Don’t forget to enjoy and make friends!”
“Got it! Bye-bye!” he calls, entering the room. “I love you!”
Jihoon squeezes Soonyoung’s hand tightly, and they respond at the same time. “We love you too!”
(“Ah, I’m so happy. Thank you, Jihoonie.”
“Y-You’re welcome?”
Soonyoung laughs, hitting his arm lightly. “What are you saying?”
“Well, what are you saying?”
“I mean, just— thank you. For everything. For being here! For Channie. For loving us! For the date tonight!”
“Don’t talk so loud, idiot!” he scolds, looking around. “Come on, you’re gonna be late for work.”
The taller smiles mischievously. “Who said I was going to work today? Can’t I be at home with you?” he asks, leaning down to leave a peck on Jihoon’s cheek.
Jihoon blinks, flushing slightly. “Even after all this time, you’re still so unpredictable.”
Soonyoung just smiles brightly in response, swaying their intertwined hands around as they walk side by side.)