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“You scared?” Seokjin asked and softly squeezed Jeongguk’s side. There was a mischievous glint in his eyes but Jeongguk knew it was still a genuine question.
He leaned into Seokjin’s embrace and smiled at him. “Not at all,” he replied truthfully. He was still glad that his partner had asked though. Today was a big day for both of them.
It was the first Friday of the month which meant a family dinner at Seokjin’s house. His brother and all three of Seokjin’s children and their families were coming over to spend an evening together like they did every month and tonight was the first time Jeongguk and his daughter were joining them. So maybe he did have a good reason to be scared or nervous. But he had met them all before individually, even if it was just on the phone. He was rather excited to spend more time with them.
Seokjin and Jeongguk were quite a unique pair and they knew it. Of all places, the couple met at an elementary school where Jeongguk’s daughter was part of a small theater production that the school was running and even though she was portraying just a sheep, he was more than happy to attend her performance. Seokjin was seated next to him and they clicked instantly when he offered to share the sour gummies he brought. There was only a short moment of disbelief when Jeongguk found out that Seokjin wasn’t there to cheer on his kids but his grandkids instead. It was Seokjin then who couldn’t believe it when Jeongguk ended up asking him out.
They took things slow since neither of them wanted to rush into a relationship. After a few months of going on dates, they made things official. Now, they were partners for four months already, though it was starting to feel like they’d known each other forever. These days Jeongguk was thinking about suggesting to move in together since it would make a lot of things easier for them. Nevertheless, he didn’t think he was the one who should bring it up since Jeongguk wouldn’t just move into Seokjin’s house but the house that he had shared with his late wife. Maybe it was a silly thing to be self conscious about but he just needed Seokjin to give him permission to talk about it.
The front door opened and clicked shut again, ripping Jeongguk out of his train of thoughts. A minute later, Seokjin‘s brother Yoongi shuffled into the kitchen with two big Tupperware containers in his arms. He immediately plopped them down on the kitchen island. When he saw Jeongguk’s wide eyed look, Yoongi smiled and pointed at the containers. “Self made Kimchi and Japchae.”
“Yoongi always brings Japchae, it’s the only thing the twins will eat these days,” Seokjin said as Yoongi walked over to give Jeongguk a tight hug. Over the last few months, they had already met a bunch of times. Jeongguk felt incredibly comfortable around Seokjin’s brother, since he was nothing but nice from the start.
“I’m so happy you’re finally joining us for dinner, I’ve been bugging hyung for weeks about it, actually.” He gently rubbed Jeongguk’s back, before dodging Seokjin’s hand reaching out to pinch him. “He kept making up excuses.”
Seokjin let out a huff and turned to take care of the stew on the stove. “I was just worried he’d get overwhelmed by the,” he made a vague gesture to their surroundings, “Kim-ness of it all.”
Jeongguk could only laugh and wrapped his arms around Seokjin from behind. “I love all of the Kim-ness. I’m here for the Kim-ness.” He nuzzled his face between Seokjin’s shoulders as Yoongi continued to watch them with a fond smile. “Frankly, I’m always asking for more Kim-ness in my life.”
The Kim-ness levels rose abruptly when Seokjin’s youngest, Jihyo, arrived, arms full with a toddler, a hand bag and a diaper bag. Before she could even step fully into the room, Jeongguk hurried over to grab Soobin. “Thank you,” she sighed in relief. “Appa, your favourite child has arrived.” With a grin, she draped herself first over her uncle and then her father.
Seokjin kissed her cheek and rolled his eyes. “The jury’s still out on that one. At least, your brothers don’t steal all of the food in my pantry. How was your day?”
“Stressful, I had vomit on my clothes thrice and only once it was Soobin’s.” Jihyo worked as a nurse just like her mother had. How she juggled her long shifts and parenting a toddler, Jeongguk couldn’t imagine. The hospital she worked at had a day care thankfully but even that didn’t solve everything.
Soobin continued inspecting Jeongguk’s earlobe, not paying attention to his name getting mentioned. His first birthday was just a few weeks earlier and he was the youngest of Seokjin’s grandchildren. Safe to say, he had won Jeongguk’s heart within seconds.
“Didn’t you say Sana would join us tonight?” Seokjin asked, his hand absentmindedly finding the small of Jeongguk’s back as his partner walked up to him to let Soobin say hi to his grandpa as well.
Jihyo pursed her lips at the mention of her roommate-turned-semi-co-parent. “Yeah, I think she will. She’s been working overtime but I’m sure she won’t miss out on a home cooked meal.” When Jeongguk told Seokjin that he suspected Jihyo and Sana would probably end up dating one day, his partner had smiled knowingly. It turned out the whole family was just waiting for the two of them to make things official after obliviously pining ever since they became friends as teens. And now with Soobin, they have already morphed into a small family.
As Seokjin and Yoongi finished preparing dinner, Jeongguk happily entertained Soobin in the living room, batting away Jihyo’s hands when she tried to take her son back. “No, no, you sit back and relax. You said your day was super stressful. I’ll keep an eye on my little guy.”
“Ugh, I just don’t wanna-” Jihyo grumbled into a throw pillow as she sank deeper into the sofa. She watched her son play with him for a few moments, before speaking up again. “You’re so good with him. You sure you don’t wanna have another kid?”
Jeongguk giggled. “Please, can you imagine your Appa with another baby? He’s way too old to pull all-nighters again. He can’t even stay up past nine.”
Jihyo expertly ignored Seokjin’s “Ya, I heard that!” coming from the kitchen and hummed. “I guess, you’re right.” They had this conversation before so she knew it was something Seokjin and Jeongguk talked about before.
It was a topic during their first date actually. Even though they wanted to take it slow and not rush into anything, they agreed there was no point in starting anything if their long-time goals didn’t align. Seokjin was the first to bring up that he wasn’t open to having any more children.
“My youngest is twenty-three and I’m still recovering from her teenage years,” he said with a chuckle. “Another baby would probably end me.”
Jeongguk was almost twenty years younger than Seokjin but he agreed just the same. When he was younger he imagined himself with a big family and many children but now he couldn’t imagine having another baby. Not because Chaewon was difficult to raise, but because he realized that right now he was able to be a good parent - and he wasn’t sure whether that would be the case if there were two or more kids.
Just as he was starting to miss his daughter, they could hear a car pulling up on the driveway, followed by loud laughter. Chaewon and Yeonjun were still giggling around with Hoseok as they walked through the door but it only took another moment before his daughter jumped on the sofa, wrapping herself around Jeongguk and Soobin.
She nuzzled her head into the side of his neck, the way she had always done ever since she was a little toddler. He kissed her head. “Hello, Won-ah. How were school and ballet?”
“Good,” she mumbled, breaking out into a smile when Soobin’s hands started grabbing at her sweater. “Are many people here yet?”
Ah. So that was why she was more timid than usual. She was usually good around children she didn’t know but a big group of adults was always a little intimidating. “Well, Hoseokie brought you here with Yeonjun, and Jihyo and Soobin are here as well.” He motioned over to where Jihyo was sending Chaewon a small smile. “Seokjin is in the kitchen with his brother. If you want I can introduce you two. Would that be less scary?” Chaewon nodded quickly.
Jeongguk handed Soobin over to his mother and led his daughter into the kitchen where Seokjin and Yoongi were arguing about how much to season the stew. Hoseok, Seokjin’s middle child, was watching with an amused face as he was setting the table with his son, Yeonjun.
“Yoongi hyung?” Gently, Jeongguk placed his hands on Chaewon’s shoulders. “There’s someone I’d like to introduce you to.”
Yoongi looked up from where he was taste-testing yet another spoon of the stew. He quickly came over to them with a big smile. “Hi, you must be Chaewon-ah, right? Your Appa has told so many stories about you.” He went down in a squat so they were a little more face-to-face.
“Hi,” Chaewon said, her hands nervously clenching into fists at her side. She did a small bow. “It’s very nice to meet you.”
“Ah, no need to be so formal.” He smiled and gave her a wink. “You can call me Yoongi samchon if you’d like. Or just Yoongi, I don’t really care about that kind of stuff.”
Chaewon giggled and nodded along. “Can I give you a hug, samchon?”
When Yoongi opened his arms, Chaewon rushed to embrace him, giggling even louder as Yoongi tickled her sides a little. Jeongguk had honestly expected his daughter to be timid a little longer but he definitely couldn’t blame her for opening her heart to Yoongi so fast.
Yoongi didn’t have a partner or any children, nothing like that - by choice, as he had told Jeongguk from the very start. He used to want all that until he realized all he really needed was what he already had: a loving family, a small apartment to call his own, and a fulfilling job that brought him joy. He loved his niece, nephews, and great-nephews with all of his heart. It was amazing to see that maybe one day, he’d love Chaewon just as much.
Seokjin’s oldest, Namjoon, was the last to arrive - with his husband Chan and the kids in tow. The twins were calm as they slipped off their coats and shoes but as soon as they stepped into the kitchen, the whirlwind started. There was screeching and laughter as they ran around the dining table. Namjoon and Chan tried to say hi to everyone but ended up having to dodge the twins or save them from running into chairs.
When Seokjin had told Jeongguk about those two, he had assumed they were toddlers at first, but no, they were ten years old and had more energy than the rest of the family members combined.
Once they noticed Chaewon, who was back to being plastered in front of Jeongguk, they slowed down and hurried over to her. “Hi,” they said excitedly - thankfully not in creepy unison. Now that they had actually stopped running, telling them apart became easy for Jeongguk. They weren’t identical but they still looked very alike. Taehyung’s hair was a little longer, curling around his chin, and Jimin was a little smaller with a rounder face. Seokjin had a whole wall of pictures of his grandchildren and there were many of Jimin and Taehyung in matching costumes.
While Yeonjun and Chaewon went to the same school, Chaewon hadn’t met the twins before since they lived with their parents just outside of Seoul.
“Hi,” Chaewon said back, already grinning ear to ear. She was clearly elated by the arrival of more children. “I’m Chaewon. My Appa is dating your Haraboji.”
“I’m Jimin, this is Tae.” Jimin smiled cutely, his hands folded behind his back. “Doesn’t that make you our aunt?”
Chaewon shrugged and Jeongguk couldn’t help but laugh into his fist. “I guess, it does.”
Thankfully the boys didn’t mind playing with their new aunt and pulled her away, bringing Yeonjun along as they went. It was only then that Jeongguk noticed Seokjin talking to Namjoon and Chan. He joined them, bumping his and Seokjin’s hips together. “Hey, you guys.”
“Jeongguk, hi,” Namjoon said with a big smile, leaning over to hug him tightly. They had only ever spoken on the phone before and Jeongguk hadn’t expected Seokjin’s son to be so tall. Chan, who gave him a hug as well, was a little closer to his height. “We’re so happy to finally meet you in person.”
Jeongguk smiled. Out of all of Seokjin’s kids, he had felt the most nervous about meeting Namjoon. He was only two years older than Namjoon and while he knew he and Seokjin were mature enough to work with their age difference, he also understood not everyone would be understanding. Thankfully, Seokjin’s entire family had been the absolute sweetest, and that included Namjoon and his husband.
“Wait, did the twins say hi to you?” Chan asked, already craning his neck to check where the kids ran off to. “They didn’t, right? I’m gonna-”
“No, no, it’s fine!” Jeongguk said quickly. He let out an airy laugh, when both Namjoon and Chan grimaced. He couldn’t imagine what it was like to parent twins, who were both absolute angels and menaces at the same time. “They only had eyes for Chaewon, I understand. I’m sure they’ll be more polite with full stomachs.”
They shared a look, making it obvious that was probably not gonna be the case.
•·················•·················•
“I’m trying to wash dishes, hyung,” Jeongguk mumbled, when he felt Seokjin’s arms around him, tucking his chin over his shoulder. He couldn’t help but melt into Seokjin’s embrace anyway. He didn’t care that his fingers got all wrinkly where they were still resting in the sink.
Seokjin hummed and pressed a kiss to his neck. “You don’t need to, I have a dishwasher.”
“Well, I wanna make sure Yoongi hyung can take his tupperware back home clean, so…” He shrugged. He didn’t really know why he wanted to wash the dishes so bad. Maybe he needed something to occupy his hands. He wasn’t even the official host of the evening and yet, he felt a little restless. Namjoon, Chan and the twins had left soon after dinner, since their way home was the longest but everyone else was still huddled together in the living room. Yoongi probably was already nursing a new glass of wine and watching Chaewon and Yeonjun playing on one of Seokjin’s many gaming consoles. Every once in a while Jeongguk could hear them screeching in delight at the tv.
Throughout dinner, Jeongguk’s heart had swelled every time Yoongi placed more food on his plate; every time Sana and Jihyo ended up in their own little bubble as they talked to Soobin in the highchair between them; every time Yeonjun made Chaewon giggle so hard that she almost spit her food out. They were a family. For the first time Jeongguk truly felt like part of a big family.
He didn’t have that growing up. He grew up with a transphobic single mom who turned her back on him, the second she realised that he was not only a single parent as well now but that she also wasn’t allowed to call him her ‘pretty baby girl’ anymore. It was more complicated than that of course but it was how Jeongguk ended up having no one but Chaewon.
He had a few boyfriends here and there, most he didn’t even introduce to his daughter. They were all nice and kind but none of them made him feel the way Seokjin did after they first met. Seokjin made him feel safe. He wasn’t just a guy he could see himself date for a couple of months. He was the man he wanted to come home to after a long day at work, the man he trusted to treat his daughter with respect and kindness.
“Earth to Jeongguk-ah.” Seokjin gently pinched his side. “What are you thinking about?”
“Just… how much I love you,” Jeongguk replied with a small smile, knowing full well he was being cheesy. He rinsed the tupperware out one last time, put it on the drying rack and dried his hands on a kitchen towel. “How much I love your family.”
“They weren’t too much? Too overwhelming?”
Jeongguk hummed and turned around in Seokjin’s arms, leaning his back against the counter. “A little overwhelming but in a good way.” His hands moved up to rest on Seokjin’s chest. “I’m really happy that… I’m just happy.”
“Yeah?” Seokjin smiled and leaned in to press a sweet kiss to Jeongguk’s lips. “I’m happy you’re happy.”
For a few moments, they stayed like that. Jeongguk rested his head on Seokjin’s chest, listened to the beating of his heart, feeling the warmth of his body. He knew that soon he would have to check up on Chaewon and find out whether she wanted to go home and sleep. Maybe after everyone left and Chaewon was in bed, Seokjin would come over and stay the night.
Hands ran over his back, drawing circles on his skin. “You know, I’ve been thinking,” Seokjin mumbled into his hair, “I know this is a big step, so take your time thinking about it, but… I would love to have you live here with me. You and Chaewon. Permanently, I mean.”
Jeongguk smiled into Seokjin’s sweater, feeling a wave of love rush through his body. “Okay, I’ll ask Chaewon about it.” He looked up at his partner, holding him tightly. “But I’d love nothing more than that.”