Chapter Text
"I can take you there if you want, it's just a quick drive."
War straightened his suit then fixed the bow on his daughter's hair, pinching her chubby cheeks before standing up to talk to his fretting elder brother. "B, I already called a car to come get us. Besides, you have that date today and you've been talking about him nonstop, you can't be late."
"It's just a date. I have time to get you there and myself back here with time to get ready."
"Still, you've taken care of me and Melody since she was born. And when you're not, you get wrapped up in work. You rarely get some time to yourself so - " War grabs a box from the counter and hands it to his brother. "Enjoy your night and don't worry about us. We'll be fine."
"What's this?"
"A gift from me and Melody, it will look nice with the outfit you picked out for tonight."
Melody nodded her head cutely in agreement. "Papa said I had to pick something out that will suit you. But I think uncle looks pretty in everything."
"My niece is so sweet." The elder gushed, squishing her cheeks gently. "Thank you."
"Now can we go?" War pressed, hoisting his daughter up in his arms and looking at his brother with pleading eyes. "We'll be fine. If we need anything, I promise I will call you."
"You haven't been home for more than half a decade Wo."
"Trust me, I know this place like the back of my hand."
His brother sighed, already being swayed by his words. "Okay, but you promise to call me?"
"I'll even send you pictures of the wedding."
"Please, the last thing I need is seeing someone way younger than me get married first." Baekhyun replied dramatically, laughing when his brother only looked unamused. "But send me pictures of you and Melody."
"I will."
"And please, don't talk to strangers."
"What am I? A child? It's just a wedding B, what could possibly go wrong?"
With the way his brother's expression changed, War knew almost immediately that he said something wrong. His brother's next words proved him right.
"One word - Melody."
---
"Are you excited baby?"
Melody nodded happily, sitting up so she could look out the window. "Papa, people get married because they love each other?"
"How did you know that?" He asked, looking at her curiously.
"I asked uncle about it. Is that okay?"
"Of course baby, you can always ask papa and uncle anything."
She seemed happy with what he said, sitting closer to him so that she could wrap her small hands around his waist. "Papa and uncle doesn't love anyone?"
"Oh-" Truly, those were not the words he was expecting to hear from his six-year old daughter. But he really shouldn't be surprised, she was a lot more perceptive than he gave her credit for. "It's not that we don't love anyone."
"But you're not married?"
Sometimes raising a curious little girl aged him more than he'd like, especially since there were questions that he had no answers to - this one in particular. It was also a very inopportune moment to make eye contact with their driver, who looked like he was already feeling sorry for him.
"There are many types of love." He began, hugging her to him and kissing the top of her head. "For example, Papa will always love you. No matter how old you are, you will always be my Melody. There are different types of love that I've found in different things but Papa hasn't quite found all of them."
"I understand." She replied, pursing her lips in thought before smiling brightly. "I hope Papa finds the other kinds of love too."
Her words bring back memories - memories of the night he'd thought he found that love. One look across the altar and some more exchanged over drinks culminated to a night that he would never forget. A night that brought Melody to his life.
And contrary to what others might think, he would never regret what happened that night. It might not have given him a fairytale ending, but it gave him so much more.
"The one I have right here is more than enough."
---
The wedding was beautiful and it wasn't hard to get wrapped up in the energy of the wedding party, especially since the grooms looked as in love as when he had left them all those years ago. They'd kept in touch but he's never told them about the little girl that was currently vibrating with happiness as she roamed her eyes around the decorated hall. Not when there's always a risk and certainly not at the beginning when he first found out.
Maybe he was just a little nervous.
"I didn't think Prom would get the courage to confess, much less ask you to marry him." His cheeky greeting was met with the shocked faces of the grooms, both immediately crowding him. "Did you miss me?"
"I didn't think you could come!"
"Well, here I am."
"I need to get Bonz, this is a miracle."
"Don't get too excited. I'll go find him on my own later." War laughed, accepting the hugs from his friends. "The wedding was beautiful. And you two - still quite a couple."
"We'll take that as a compliment." Prom replied with a gracious bow, looping his hands around Mark's waist. "Wow, I think this is a Christmas miracle."
Melody was standing behind him and Mark was the first of the two to notice his plus one, the latter tapping Prom's arm and pointing to the little girl peeking at them from behind her Papa. War was a little apprehensive but he's decided before coming here that it was time to tell his friends why he had to be away for so long.
"And who's this with you?" Mark asked, crouching down so he could talk to Melody. "Hello, I'm Mark."
"Hi. Papa told me about you - and him too." She points to Prom, smiling at both of them. "My name is Melody."
"Papa-?" Prom mouths to War, crouching next to his husband to talk to the young girl. "Hi Melody, it's nice to meet you."
"Hello, Papa says I can call you Uncle Dino and that I can meet Uncle Bunny today too." She waved her small hands in greeting, not noticing how the two were eyeing her father. "I like meeting Papa's friends."
"We're happy to meet you too." Mark said, squeezing Prom's arm as a warning after correctly deducing that this was something War would like to talk about when they were no longer surrounded by a lot of people. "How old are you Melody?"
"Six!" Melody excitedly said, showing them six fingers.
"Six-" Prom echoed, looking at War who had an apologetic look on his face.
"War Wanarat in the flesh." Bonnadol chose that moment to appear, taking in the weird energy around his friends. "What's going on here - oh." His eyes finally land on the little girl holding War's hand, mind reeling at the thought the she was the spitting image of someone else he knew.
"I can explain."
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