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"hwa! hwa! hwa! wa'e up! wa'e up, p'ease!"
seonghwa groans out loud at the weight of hongjoong sitting on top of him. he always wakes the younger up gently, why can't he get that in return? he grumbled under his breath.
but looking up and seeing the bright, almost blinding smile on the kitten is enough for seonghwa to endure the loud awakening...for today.
hongjoong either wakes up in a good mood or in one of his grumpy moods- so to see him overly excited makes seonghwa feel a little better.
he helps the kitten off his lap, gently placing him next to side on the bed. "well, good morning, my sweet sunshine"
hongjoong giggles at the nickname, purring not a moment later. he tucks his thumb into his palm as he waves to greet the older- another habit he's seen the kitten obtain.
"what's gotten my little baby in a good mood this morning, hm?" he beckons for hongjoong to come closer, and when he does, he cards his fingers through his wavy hair.
hongjoong closes his eyes for a moment, keen on the motion of his hwa's fingers through his hair. when he opens them, he happily points a finger towards their bedroom window.
"ou'si'e is happy, hwa!" the younger exclaims rather softly, compared to the loud awakening he endured mere minutes ago.
seonghwa follows the direction of the small finger and notices the warm sun shining into the bedroom, casting a warm glow onto the walls. he hears the occasional birds chirping along with the neighborhood dogs barking happily.
'hongjoong is right' seonghwa thinks 'outside is happy'
surely this a day that should not be wasted inside. he has been discussing with his friends that he wants to take a mini-day vacation with the younger; to let him explore new places and see new things. and what better day than today!
"you're so smart, hongjoong. outside is happy, huh?" hongjoong nods proudly at the question. he loves to receive compliments from the older, because he knows deep down that seonghwa is saying it from the heart.
hongjoong watches as seonghwa stands up from the bed, going through the dresser for his clothes. the younger jumps out of bed to do the same.
seonghwa bought him his own mini dresser- simply because he loves to buy clothes, the closet was becoming a little too cramped. so with the help of his hwa and hyungs, hongjoong proudly owns his own dresser.
he opens the drawers that he sees seonghwa opening and closes it when he sees the older do the same. he loves to do everything that seonghwa is doing- it gives him a sense of independence.
once the pair finished getting dressed, seonghwa began to pack a few necessities into the younger's backpack. said owner of the backpack was sitting on the edge of bed with a cat's curiosity.
"'joong, go put your sweater in the backpack for me? hwa has to get his stuff ready, too" hongjoong hopped off the bed with a newfound excitement, always willing to help his hwa; although he's not sure why they're packing some of their everyday items in there.
"hwa, where we go?" hongjoong asks
seonghwa smiles a little to himself "I think it's time for a little day vacation, just you and me, bubba. we're going to be gone all day so hwa is making sure we have everything that we will need."
hongjoong nods along, but not fully processing what seonghwa told him. "hwa... an' joon'ie... go bay'catun?"
the older once again shows his warm smile "vacation, baby. it's just gonna be you and me, love. are you all ready to go?"
hongjoong returns the smile, already jumping in place as he pulls on the older's hand. "hwa, hurry, p'ease!"
-
seonghwa holds onto the younger's hand, rather a little too tightly with the way hongjoong whined faintly. he didn't tell him that they would be taking the train to their first stop.
he also feels a little nervous as this will be hongjoong's first time on a train, and although it's rather empty as it's still early, he can't help but feel on edge. what if he turns around and sees hongjoong isn't by his side? what if hongjoong gets lost?
he highly doubts that'll happen, hongjoong is always glued to his side- especially in public- but he just can't help but overthink all the possible scenarios.
hongjoong's eyes grow big in curiosity as him and hwa stand on the platform and wait for the train. he feels so excited! he's never been on a train before! while buying their tickets, his hwa did warn him that trains can be loud, but the younger momentarily forgets; he helps hwa push the buttons on the screen and proudly grabs the tickets from the machine.
he can tell that his hwa is a little nervous with the way he's holding onto his hand, which he tried to let go but hwa gave him a look- a look that pretty much said "don't even think about letting go" without a word being spoken.
when the train arrived, hongjoong whimpered as he turned his head into hwa's shoulder. he was told it was going to be loud- but he didn't know it was going to be this loud.
seonghwa pressed a kiss onto the top of his head "it's okay, baby remember that we have to jump onto the train, okay?"
hongjoong faintly nods, mood decreasing a little from the loud whistle of the train but follows along as hwa pulls him from the platform onto the train. (he felt like such a big boy when he had to jump, his face was practically glowing.)
"now, this ride is going to take a while, but hwa packed some of your toys if you feel ansty." he made sure hongjoong was sitting securely before the few people waiting were boarded and off they went.
the younger gasped at how fast they were moving- the trees were whizzing by that if he blinked, he would have missed it. his tail was moving almost like an overly excited puppy as his face was smushed against the glass.
unbeknownst to the kitten, seonghwa snuck a few pictures and sent them to his friends. he smiled at all their reactions, more importantly happy that hongjoong is enjoying his first train ride.
the nice weather combined with the excitement of the ride made hongjoong feel so overwhelmingly happy that he greeted every passenger that boarded the train.
(seonghwa is just relieved that everyone was happy and welcoming of the greeting.)
-
"alright, baby, this is our stop, are you ready to go?" seonghwa made sure anything he took out was secured in the backpack, even going the mile of triple checking just to be safe.
he held out his hand for hongjoong as he stood up. hongjoong's eyes widened with curiosity as he gripped onto his hwa's hand, fitting like a glove.
"hwa?" hongjoong questions as he follows seonghwa off the platform. there isn't many people where they are, but hongjoong grips the olders hand so tight, it's practically white.
"yes, baby?" seonghwa's footsteps slow down a little, feeling definitely more relaxed than how he felt an hour ago.
"where we go, hwa?" hongjoong asked, eyes circling around the area with a cat's curiosity.
at first seonghwa doesn't answer him, which makes hongjoong inconsistently keep tugging on his shirt sleeve and asking where they are.
even when they're waiting in a line, and seonghwa goes to pay for something, hongjoong still hasn't stopped the tugging of his shirt sleeve. the small whimper he hears makes the older turn around with a warm smile on his face.
"do you remember a long time ago when hwa and your hyungies took you to the aquarium?"
hongjoong gasps as he nods "saw fi'tshies!"
he earns himself a kiss to the forehead as a small reward "well...hwa wanted to take you to the zoo but it was a little too cold to go that day....sooooo, we're going today! we're going to see all types of animals, big and small. are you ready?"
hongjoong jumps in place as he tugs lightly on the older's hand. the way he was jumping reminded him of what bunnies do, smiling to himself as he lets the younger continue to tug. hongjoong was so overly excited that he wanted to lead the way but he figures he'll let hwa do that- he knows where they need to go anyway.
"okay, okay" seonghwa let's go of the kitten's hand to cup his face- to let him focus on hwa. "okay, now listen carefully, joong. there will probably be a lot of people here, but I also don't want you to feel uncomfortable. so you have to let me know if you feel scared or nervous, alright?"
hongjoong responded with light nuzzling against the palm of the older's hand. "I p'yomise, hwa."
seonghwa pinched his cheeks as he placed a soft kiss onto his temple. "you're my good boy, don't ever forget that."
-
the first few exhibits they visited were of the small animals- like the rabbits, snakes, and even some chickens; all of which the younger seemed to really enjoy. he wasn't a fan of the snakes and the other reptiles but was intrigued by the bunnies and almost- almost- gave hwa a hard time when they had to leave.
going out for the day also meant that hongjoong had to eat out in a restaurant- which is something he's done before but doesn't really like.
he doesn't eat fast food, doesn't eat chips or candy or drink soda, really prefers homemade food- and seonghwa thinks a restaurant is a runner up from that.
even though the restaurant was a little busy, hongjoong was too focused on the animals and the continuous nice weather to even worry about how many people he was near.
he even tried to drink out of the cups that were on the table, of course with a straw, seonghwa already knows if the younger spilled water on his shirt, it would no doubt bring his mood down.
the pair sat contently eating their food, hongjoong staring out the window in awe at the scenery in front of him- of course the older snuck more pictures and also some of his french fries when the younger wasn't looking.
-
"do you know what animal we're gonna go see next?" seonghwa asked, holding hongjoong's hand once again. he knew from the look on his face that the excitement was dwindling down, his eyes blinking slowly.
he knew the kitten was getting a little sleepy; knowing that this is around the time that hongjoong takes his mid-day nap. he tries his best to keep him awake and interested.
"we're gonna go see the lions, joongie! don't go to sleep just yet" he earns a small whine as he rubs his eyes.
he's seen what lions look like from books and t.v shows, but to see one in person...hongjoong's eyes definitely grew wide, any ounce of sleep shaking out of his body.
he gasped as he stood closer to the glass. he was so enamored by seeing the big lion, he let out a mewl of excitement, gently pawing at the glass.
there were a few lions behind the glass, along with a few people watching in awe as some of the younger children cautiously approaching to where the kitten is standing.
seonghwa, after sneaking in more pictures, quietly walks up to the kitten. he keeps one hand on his elbow, hongjoong's eyes practically twinkling.
"hwa..." he whispers "bi' kitty"
"yeah, you're right...it is a big kitty." he leans over to place a quick peck onto his cheek. "just like how you're big and strong...so are the lions."
however, when one of the lions saunter over, hongjoong shook his head as he began to whimper. seonghwa didn't want the kitten to feel scared or overwhelmed, so he guided him back away from the glass.
"you okay, baby?" seonghwa asks, fixing the younger's hair away from his eyes. he recieved a shake of the head as the younger turns around, shyly holding his arms up.
hongjoong is then lifted and placed onto seonghwa's hip. "don't be afraid, my love, hwa is right here. the lion isn't going to hurt you."
hongjoong sniffles at the response, slowly lifting his head up as he looks at the lions once more. he barely feels the tug on his shirt sleeve and the small "hwa, wan' go." due to the overpowering sound of the lions roaring.
seonghwa himself was captivated by the sound that he didn't notice how scared hongjoong became. the poor kitten was mewling, softly kneading his hands onto seonghwa's shirt.
"h-hwa..." he blubbers almost in a pleading tone.
by now, the crowd that was near the exhibit have left, some lingering around. seonghwa's heart broke as he looked down and saw the younger visibly distressed. "oh, baby, what happened?"
the younger covers his ears "y'ion...s'ary"
seonghwa rocks him in his arms, kissing his forehead. "hongjoong, sweetheart, don't be afraid. I got you, baby."
it didn't take long to soothe the younger, only a few kisses and reassuring hugs made him feel a little bit better. seonghwa was brought out of his little bubble when he felt a small tug on his jeans.
"'scuse me mister, why is he sad?"
seonghwa looks down to see a little boy looking up at him with kind eyes. he looks concerned to see hongjoong so upset.
seonghwa kneels down, maneuvering hongjoong to sit on his lap; squeezing his arm for comfort when he hears a small whine escape his lips.
"he's a little sad because the lion roaring scared him." seonghwa explains to the little boy.
said boy holds his hand out for the younger to take; which, with a definite amount of encouragement, hongjoong cautiously placed his hand on top of the child's.
"you have kitty ears and a tail! you are like a big lion! can you roar like one, too?!" the child exclaims, becoming giddy over his own question.
hongjoong wiped his tears as he let out a shy smile, leaning into seonghwa for comfort.
"you can do it, baby, you're hwa's strong boy" seonghwa whispered in his ear.
with newfound courage, hongjoong lets out the loudest roaring sound he has ever done- with the help of the little boy as well.
he's earned multiple kisses on the top of his head from seonghwa, many multiple kisses that the younger shyly hid in seonghwa's neck.
not a few moments later, a woman approached them apologizing for if her child has caused them any disruptions; to which seonghwa genuinely thanked her son for helping his son calm down.
the older stood up, once again holding hongjoong's hand as he absentmindedly swings their hands back and forth.
"are you ready to go, bubba? hwa wants to take you somewhere else that I know you'll enjoy."
hongjoong shows his warm smile once again as he nods. while the pair are walking back to the entrance, hongjoong exclaims the whole time "hwa! joon'ie is a y'ion! I roared li'e y'ion!" to the point that he kept intimidating the sound of said animal; knees bent a little as he curled his hands in.
seonghwa smiled proudly at the younger "you were very brave looking at the big lions, today, joong. you must feel very proud of yourself."
hongjoong shyly nodded as he stretched on his tippy toes to place a soft kiss onto hwa's cheek.
after all the fun and excitement, the pair exit the zoo- of course not without stopping by the gift shop, hongjoong's eyes sparkle with joy as he finds a stuffed toy of a lion. and who is hwa to tell him no?
they make their way to their next location, hongjoong's arms slightly heavier with a plush lion toy.
-
"hwa! tha' bi' bunny!" hongjoong proudly points to an animal that clearly isn't a bunny, but he understands the resemblance.
hongjoong stands close by the fence, bouncing on the balls of his feet as he looks in wonder. he's never seen this animal before so he calls it by the closest name to an animal that he knows of.
this is hongjoong's first time going to a farm, which seonghwa feels like this is more at hongjoong's level with all the farm animals he's seen in books or on the shows that he watches.
"that's a sheep, baby. they are fluffy like bunnies, though" seonghwa appears by his side with a small handful of food to offer the sheeps.
"hold your hand out, bubba" he instructed the kitten to do so to place a little bit of the food to offer the sheep's.
what seonghwa found somewhat amusing was hongjoong was so amazed at all the animals he's seen but the minute they approach closer to him, he gets a little scared and backs far away. kind of like what's happening now.
"h-hwa..." hongjoong whimpers out lowly, definitely not liking that the big fluffy animal is walking towards him.
seonghwa is behind him in a second, keeping his hand under the hand that has food in it, while the other is placed on his hip. "don't worry baby, hwa is here...look! the sheep is eating from your hand!"
hongjoong blinks his tears away for not even a second later, he's giggling jumping in excitement as more sheep begin to crowd around.
luckily there are a few other people who join in on feeding the sheep, seonghwa with a motherly voice instructing the younger to keep his hands up as they need to wash them before they can look at the other animals.
with a quick bathroom break and rearranging items in hongjoong's backpack to retrieve their sweaters, the duo continue to circle around the farm.
seonghwa, feeling bold and risky, decides to buy a small ice cream for the both of them to share; hongjoong's first time having ice cream.
while seonghwa would rather get his favorite minty flavor, he figures to order just plain vanilla for the younger's sake. within the first scoop, the younger's eyes grow wide as small purrs emitted from his lips.
he has to refrain hongjoong from kitten licking from the plastic container and instructed him to use his spoon- and the younger is absolutely over the moon for the frozen treat.
he tips the cup over like he's drinking it, kitten licking any droplets that fall out. he keeps tipping the cup over to the point where he almost fell off his chair, seonghwa of course catching him as he began to lean back.
he reaches over into his backpack for the small pack of wipes and goes to wipe his hands and cheeks. "you enjoyed that ice cream, huh, joongie?"
the kitten nods happily, showing off his empty cup. he giggles loudly as seonghwa begins to make airplane noises while cleaning his face- but not before booping his nose.
"let's throw this all out and then we can keep looking at more animals. sounds like a plan?"
hongjoong nods as he holds his hand out for hwa. he tries to hide his yawn, he doesn't want to leave just yet. there's still so many animals he hasn't seen or petted yet!
"look, joongie! look at the piggies!" hongjoong gasped at the amount of pink pigs he saw. a few were rolling around in the mud, making hongjoong squat down as he leaned his head on his crosses arms.
he was amazed at the animal right in front of him, that he was a little taken back when one of them came up to the fence, sticking their head out.
seonghwa was expecting to do a little damage control, hongjoong tending to get startled whenever the animals came close to him; but he was surprised to see hongjoong gently petting the pig with a big smile on his face.
"hwa!" hongjoong exclaims, turning around to face hwa "hwa! I pe' piggy! oin' oin', piggy!"
before seonghwa can praise him, hongjoong gasps but not before standing up up running past the older. almost getting whiplash, he was going to pull on the younger's arm to stop him.
he stops in his tracks when he sees the younger not even 2 feet away from him, trying to peak over the fence.
"hwa, wan' see horsie!" he lifts his arms up in excitement. before picking him up, seonghwa takes his backpack off and places it over his shoulder, proceeding to place hongjoong onto his hip.
"look, the baby horse is with his mommy" hwa's voice is gentle in hongjoong's ear. the pair watch in silence at the mother horse nuzzling against her baby.
not a moment later, hongjoong copies the actions he witnessed; nuzzling into seonghwa's neck. "hwa mama an' joon'ie 'aby"
the older presses his lips onto the kitten's forehead, keeping his lips rested for a second. "don't ever forget that, my honeybear. I love you very very much."
hongjoong continues nuzzling, a big yawn escapes his lips. "bubba, you tired? don't go to sleep just yet...there's one more animal I want you to see before we leave."
the younger rubs his eyes as hwa carries him away from the horses to another section. he's a little confused when hwa puts him down on the ground in a little circled gate.
he whines a little as he lifts his arms up again, hwa kneels next to him over the gate, keeping his arm over his shoulder. "look, baby"
hongjoong turns around, gasping in shock at the animal that one of the employee's placed into the gate.
"bunnie! hwa, bunnie!" hongjoong definitely wakes up a little more as the few bunnies begin to hop onto the kitten's legs.
seonghwa hears purrs a second later, hongjoong giggling as he pets the bunnies with the utmost care. the older enjoys watching hongjoong treat the bunnies like how he treats the younger.
hongjoong blushes when the worker herself even compliments how gentle and caring the younger is with the bunnies, even the older rabbits that she placed in the gate.
the kitten is in his own little world as he does his best to pet each of the rabbits and the younger ones.
but that sleepy feeling once again graces over him. he turns around to lift his arms up, whimpering behind his breath.
a few comforting shushes is given to him, hongjoong doing his best to say thank you to the lady and goodnight to the bunnies.
-
back on the train like this morning, seonghwa chooses a seat near the back. during this time, there's only a few people on board, but seonghwa chose to sit near the back due to one little problem:
hongjoong didn't take a nap this afternoon, now resulting in trying to comfort a cranky and overtired kitten.
seonghwa wrapped the younger in his blanket, placing his stuffed lion plushie in his arms. he wraps his arms around him securely. the train ride is pretty long, so seonghwa tries to soothe his baby into getting a little bit of sleep before they return home.
"it's alright, my baby, you're safe and hwa is right here with you. close your eyes and try to rest for me, hm?" seonghwa gently pleads, but is only met with small whines.
hongjoong grips tightly onto the older's shirt, shaking his head slightly. even though he is protected in hwa's arms, he feels uncomfortable with falling asleep in a public place.
a small lone tear falls down his cheek, making seonghwa wipe it before it even reaches his chin. "no tears, baby, we're almost home." a quick peck is placed onto his cheek. "did you have fun today, joongie? we had a long day, huh?"
hongjoong nods, absentmindedly playing with seonghwa's fingers as he tries to re-tell the events of today- and seonghwa loves to hear anything from hongjoong's perspective.
little does the younger know that having him explain how much fun he had during the day was a tactic to distract him as they made their way back home.
-
"there you go, joongie bear, all nice and warm." seonghwa hands the younger his plush lion, the younger babbling as he nuzzles against the soft fur.
once he's ready himself, the older joins the kitten in bed. hongjoong jumps into his infamous favorite place- in seonghwa's arms.
"hwa?"
"yes, baby?"
"than' you....y'ove my hwa"
seonghwa definitely feels warmth in his chest when he feels hongjoong place a kiss on his cheek.
"I love you, too, my baby. we had a long day today, let's get some sleep so we can tell your hyungs about all the animals you saw today" hongjoong nods, but is interrupted by a big yawn he let out.
"saw y'ion an' pe' bun..." his sentence was slurred, for not even a second later, his eyes are closed and his breath evens.
the older himself feels his eyes close, falling asleep not long after hongjoong did.
today was a great day.