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“God.” Shinwon and Hwitaek look up from their phones. Hyunggu scowls. “Some parents are just so...bad at being parents.”
“What’s bringing this on?” Hwitaek asks, sitting back in his seat.
“Look!” Hyunggu points behind them and they turn to observe the only other people at the park. Two children are sitting on a blanket with their parents, attempting to converse. The adults are unresponsive, only looking up from their screens long enough to reprimand them for bickering with each other. “Those kids want to hang out with their parents, not watch them scroll on their phones.”
Shinwon turns around and slides his own phone into his pocket. “Is that you being passive aggressive? I can’t tell.”
“What? No, I–” Hyunggu shakes his head. “I’m just saying, if I had my own kid, I would make the most of our time together.”
“What kind of stuff would we do to make the most of our time, then?”
Hyunggu gives Hwitaek a strange look. “Are we sharing this child?” Hwitaek smiles. “Alright. Well, it depends on what they’d grow to like as they got older. We could take them swimming, or on bike rides, or to museums. There are so many things to do with your kids that don’t involve phones.”
“You need your phone to take pictures,” Shinwon interrupts.
“No, you need a camera,” Hyunggu says, and looks back at Hwitaek. “We could collect disposable cameras! And when they graduate we can print them all out for people to see. When they bring someone home for the first time...imagine how embarrassed they’d be.”
Shinwon hums. He’s laying on his stomach now, his chin resting in his hands. “What do we name them?”
“So all three of us are parenting this child now?” Hyunggu asks. Hwitaek settles down beside Shinwon, copying his pose. “God bless this child. I’ve always liked Bobby for a name. It’s pretty gender neutral and I think it’ll only get more endearing as time passes and they get older.”
“Bobby is sweet.” Shinwon says.
“You’ve thought a lot about this, haven’t you?” Hwitaek asks, a soft smile on his face. Hyunggu nods and the smile grows. “So, where do Shinwon and I fit in here?”
Hyunggu feels something stir in his stomach as he thinks. “Well, I don’t know. I’d always kind of imagined myself raising this kid by myself. Throwing two extra dads into the mix makes it a little hard to shuffle things around.”
“How about this,” Shinwon begins, sitting up and leaning close to Hyunggu. He has half a mind to scooch back, but he stays where he is. “Hwitaek is the clean freak, so he can handle picking up any messes Bobby leaves in their wake. You’re the better cook, so you can handle our meals.”
“And what about you, wise guy?” Hwitaek butts in.
“Me?” Shinwon leans back on his hands with a smile. “I’m the fun dad. I’ll be in charge of the games and helping our kid make the messes.”
Hyunggu punches him. “I’ll kick you out of this family before you even have a chance to be in it.”
Shinwon pouts. “Fine. I’ll be in charge of punishment.”
“That sounds dangerous.”
“Shut up, Hwitaek.” Another punch. “Listen! Baby, you’re too soft. Bobby would give you one pitiful look and you’d let them loose with a kiss on the head. Hyunggu, you’d make the kid cry.”
“What the hell, I would not!”
“I’m gonna have to agree with Shinwon on this one, sweetheart,” Hwitaek begins. “I’m sorry, but I don’t think you realise how scary you can be. I remember a few years ago I ate someone else’s leftovers and your reaction planted shame in me for like, four days.”
“How?”
“When you’re disappointed or upset with someone, your entire energy changes. Everyone can feel it. You’re calm when you’re angry, but god, it’s terrifying.”
Hyunggu scowls at them both. “Alright, whatever. How are you going to be better at punishment than us?”
“Think about how I handle it when the two of you fight,” Shinwon says, pointing between them. “I can be calm and collected, but I know when I need to call you out on your shit if you’ve done something stupid. Think about how that could translate into parenting.”
“I think it makes sense,” Hwitaek bumps Shinwon’s shoulder.
“Okay, fine, whatever. But that can’t be your only task as a parent. You need to do something else.”
Shinwon hums, thinking. “I will wash and fold and put away all of our laundry.”
“God, I hate laundry,” Hyunggu flops onto his back. “Load the dishwasher after we eat and you’ve got yourself a deal.”
“That’s Hwitaek’s job.”
One more blow, this time to his stomach. He curls over himself with a groan. “Ko Shinwon, I am going to be mopping piss off of the bathroom floors. You can load the dishwasher once or twice a day.”
Hyunggu laughs and checks the time. “I need to go. I open tomorrow morning.”
Hwitaek stands. “Let us walk you home?” Shinwon looks up at him expectantly, a silent plea to agree.
It feels out of character. “You live in the opposite direction.”
“I guess you’re right,” Shinwon hums. “If we get too scared, will you let us stay with you?”
Hyunggu rolls his eyes and ignores the funny feeling that creeps back up into his stomach as he turns and begins walking. The two of them catch up to him and Shinwon slings an over Hyunggu’s shoulder. Hyunggu sneaks a glance at Hwitaek. He smiles up at him.
“So,” Shinwon starts. “We’ve split up household chores. We need to set curfews.”
“Oh, I’ve already got this one figured out,” Hyunggu says. “Ten o’clock curfew until they’re sixteen. After that, they’ve got midnight on school nights and two on weekends.”
Hwitaek hums. “That sounds like a good deal to me, honestly. I’ll agree with you on that one.”
“What, were you expecting me to be way too strict or something?”
“Kind of, yeah.”
Hyunggu pouts. “My parents sheltered me a lot when I was a kid. That’s one thing I feel pretty strongly about, giving my kids more freedom than I got.”
Shinwon laughs beside him. “Man, you’re gonna be such a great dad.”
Hyunggu’s face feels warm when he smiles. “Thanks.”
They’re coming close to his apartment now, and even though it’s getting late and Hyunggu is beginning to feel tired, they slow their pace until it feels like Hyunggu will never get home. Hwitaek has looped his arm through his, taking his hand and holding it in his jacket pocket. Hyunggu feels warm in his chest and in his stomach and in his cheeks, and a part of him thinks that maybe he should just ask the two of them to stay the night. Something doesn’t sound so bad about going into work on no sleep just to stay up with them.
When they reach his apartment, they climb the steps to the door slowly. Hyunggu pulls away from them to face them both, and his offer to let them stay gets stuck in his throat. Shinwon looks like he wants to say something, but he’s waiting for someone else to speak first. Hyunggu takes a deep breath.
“So why is Bobby getting three dads all of a sudden?”
Hwitaek and Shinwon look confused. “What?”
Hyunggu’s cheeks burn. “Well, it’s like I said at the park. I’ve been by myself the whole time I’ve fantasized about this. Suddenly I’m bringing two more adults into the picture. It changes things around a bit.”
“Hyunggu, you’re joking, right?” Hwitaek asks, frowning.
“No? You have to understand my confusion right now–”
“Hyunggu,” Hwitaek interrupts, stepping closer.
Suddenly, Hyunggu’s heart feels like it’s going to beat out of his chest. His eyes flicker between Hwitaek and Shinwon before Hwitaek crowds his vision completely. When he kisses him, Hyunggu is so shocked that he hardly remembers to breathe, and he doesn’t move until he’s gathered the strength to push Hwitaek back. He wipes his mouth on the back of his hand, eyes wide and face in flames.
“What the fuck?” He exclaims. “You can’t just do that! You literally have a boyfriend, and he’s right there , did you ever stop to think about how he might feel about you doing that?”
Shinwon doesn’t even let Hyunggu take a moment to catch his breath before he pulls him forward by the strap of his bag and presses their lips together. Hyunggu is so hopelessly confused, and all he can do when Shinwon steps back is blink up at him.
“I’m confused.”
“What are you confused about, sweetheart?” Hwitaek asks.
“You’re dating.” They both nod. “But you just kissed me.” They nod again. “Do you want to sleep with me?”
Shinwon laughs and it plants the smallest seed of embarrassment in Hyunggu’s stomach. “We like you, Hyunggu.”
“Really?”
“Yes.” Hwitaek comes close again, slower and more careful. “Why else would we butt ourselves into your plans like that? It doesn’t feel like something people who just want to sleep with you would do, does it?” Hyunggu shakes his head and swallows thickly. Hwitaek frowns. “Is that okay with you?”
Hyunggu stays quiet and looks between them for a moment. They’re looking at him anxiously. He thinks about the way his heart is pounding, his palms are sweating, and his stomach is swirling. Under a different circumstance, he would deem the situation as dangerous and attempt to flee, but there’s an underlying giddiness that stops him.
“I think it’s good.”
Shinwon breaks into a smile and scoops Hyunggu up, kissing him again as he spins them around. It’s dizzying in almost every way, and Hyunggu laughs into Shinwon’s mouth. When he sets him down, his face is red and he can hardly look Hwitaek in the eye when he comes forward and takes his hands.
“Are you gonna push me away this time?”
Hyunggu almost laughs, but he shakes his head with a smile. “I don’t think so.”
Hwitaek’s kiss is fleeting, and so gentle that it leaves Hyunggu chasing his lips when it’s over. Hwitaek looks up at him with a smile and squeezes at his fingers. A dog barks somewhere nearby, and Hyunggu is reminded that they’re still very much in public. He flushes more, and he’s sure the colour of his cheeks must be unflattering at this point. But Shinwon and Hwitaek are looking at him like he’s the most fascinating thing they’ve ever seen. It makes him squirm.
He takes a deep breath and gathers the courage to speak. “Do you guys want to come in?” He asks, his tongue feeling heavy in his mouth.
Shinwon grins and shares a look with Hwitaek. Hyunggu wants to kiss them one more time. “We thought you’d never ask.”