Chapter Text
Sunghoon ran off… again.
Sunoo was starting to get annoyed. After every class they had together Sunghoon would practically run out of the room, never giving him a solid answer as to why.
Now, Sunoo is nosy. Usually, even if he wants to know something, he won’t bother because he knows it’s not his business, but at this point it was his business.
They have a group project to work on but they never have time to do it because his partner turns into Usain Bolt as soon as the teacher dismisses them.
And today Sunoo had even planned to wait at the door to catch him, but Sunghoon completely disregarded him, again.
With an annoyed huff, he turned on his heels, going to the cafeteria to meet his friends.
The two were already talking, being interrupted by Sunoo dragging his feet into the group.
Jungwon took one look at him and chuckled. “What’s got you so grumpy?”
Niki scoffed, amused. “Sunghoon probably ran away from him again.”
Sunoo shot Niki a glare.
Jungwon shrugged, taking a bit of his rice. “He might not like you.”
Niki nodded. “Or he might just be scared of you “
Sunoo made a noise of displeasure. “What! Why would he be scared of me?” Niki reached over and took Sunoo’s cookie, Sunoo was confused and mildly offended at the points his friends were making. “You may be small but you're kind of scary when you're irritated.”
“It’s not like he doesn’t have any friends to hang out with, they’re literally sitting over there.” Niki pointed to Sunghoons friends who were sitting at a table not too far from them.
“I can go ask Jay if you want?” The only reason they knew Sunghoon was friends with them was because Jungwon was somewhat acquainted with Jay.
Sunoo immediately shook his head. “No it’s fine, I’ll figure it out.” Kim Sunoo does not give up. He will find a way, he always does.
—————
Sunoo shared a couple of other classes with him during the week and he had been absent in all of them so he wasn’t surprised he wasn’t here today.
Their class they were working together on was on Friday, but he had a couple other classes with Sunghoon throughout the week.
Some he walked out with his friends, but others he ran - as he did today with their Friday class. He decided to give Sunghoon another week before truly bothering him. Which ended up being a mistake as he hasn’t been in class since Tuesday.
His plan to confront Sunghoon at the door was foiled once again so he finally decided to bite the bullet and text him using the number he got from Jungwon.
sunoo
hi
this is sunoo
sunghoon
okay
Just okay? That was kind of rude but Sunoo continued anyway.
sunoo
we have to start our group project but you always run off after class
when do u want to work on it
sunghoon
oh
can u come over today
Sunoo was going to suggest the library but he wanted this to happen so he was ready to accept anything.
sunoo
sure that works
can I come in a couple hours?
sunghoon
yes
Sunoo silently cheered, walking to get lunch before going to work on his project.
After wasting time eating and walking around campus, Sunoo walked up to a small townhouse, knocking on the front door.
After a while the door opened, and Sunoo was met with a distressed Sunghoon. The thing is, his disheveled appearance wasn’t what shocked him, it was the fact that he had a kid in his arms.
“Oh fuck.” That was all Sunghoon had to say as Sunoo stood there speechless. “You… have a kid!?”
The loud tone of Sunoo’s voice caused a wave of pain through Sunghoon’s already throbbing head. “Come.” He turned around, Sunoo following him with a stunned expression on his face. “Stay.”
The one word answers were freaking Sunoo out but he stayed regardless. As he sat on the couch he saw Sunghoon retreat to what he assumed was the child’s room.
Sunghoon wasn’t in there for too long. Ten, maybe fifteen minutes later he walked out of the room, dragging his feet towards Sunoo. He remained silent as he went to grab water in the kitchen.
Before even thinking, he blurted the first thing that came to mind. “Where is her mom?”
Sunghoons back was still turned, meaning Sunoo couldn’t see the bitter expression that crossed his face. “She’s not with us anymore.”
Sunoo’s hands flew over his mouth, shocked by the tragic incident. “Oh my god she died?”
Sunghoon scoffed under his breath. “I wish.” Sunoo froze as Sunghoon realized what left his mouth.
He turned around. “No, oh my god no.” He shook his head frantically, making his silver hair even more disheveled. “I’m sorry that was mean. I’m sleep deprived and frustrated and so so worried.”
Sunoo was about to open his mouth but cries from another room stopped him.
He swore he saw Sunghoons eyes tear up as his face fell. “I just got her to fall asleep.” His hands went to hit his face aggressively, probably trying to wake himself up.
Sunoos eyebrows furrowed in concern as he quickly went to stop Sunghoon from hitting himself. “What are you doing?! What is wrong?”
Sunghoon let out a desperate huff. “She’s been crying for hours and I can’t get it to stop.” His daughter had been sick for a couple days. If you already couldn’t tell it had been hell. “I’ve tried every herbal remedy and suggestions in those stupid baby tutorial books and mommy websites and nothing helped!”
Sunoo didn’t know what was going on. The man in front of him looked like he was completely falling apart.
He looked at Sunoo with an incredulous look. “Sunoo. I tried using a crystal my sister gave me to try to get my daughter to stop crying. Does that not tell you that I’ve lost it!”
Sunoo put a hand on his shoulder, trying to stop him from fidgeting. “Okay Sunghoon, calm down.”
His eyes darted around before rubbing his face with his hands. “What if she’s not okay? Oh my god I don’t know what I’d do.” Sunghoon genuinely looked like he was about to deteriorate into the ground.
“I will go calm her down okay?” He took Sunghoon’s shoulders, turning him around, slowly bringing him to the couch. “Please lay down, you're actually starting to worry me.” Sunoo was not friends with Sunghoon, they were acquaintances at best, but he felt so bad for him. He couldn’t just leave.
He could see the hesitation in Sunghoon’s eyes. “I’ve looked after my baby cousins many times, your daughter will be okay.” Sunghoons tired eyes darted from Sunoo to the bedroom door before he gave a slight nod, lying down on the couch.
—————
Eventually Sunoo returned.
Sunghoon glanced at him, still half asleep. “Let me go get my computer so we can start working.” He stood up, stumbling slightly.
Sunoo quickly shook his head, guiding Sunghoon to sit back down next to him. “No. Absolutely not.”
Sunghoon tried to shake his hands off but he wasn’t going to budge. “Sunghoon, you look absolutely terrible.” He gave a scoff. “Wow, thank you.”
Sunghoon rolled his eyes, but Sunoo could see he was grateful to be able to get more rest.
After a minute of silence, Sunoo looked towards Sunghoon. “I don’t mean to pry… but why haven’t you called anyone?” Sunghoon shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. “My mom is out of town and I didn’t want to bother my friends.”
Sunoo slowly nodded. “And before you ask again, her mother is gone.” He rolled his eyes, mumbling under his breath. “God knows where she is, probably hooking up with a guy in another city.”
Sunoo was confused and very curious, but he guessed that now wasn’t the right time to ask why he was so bitter about his child’s mom.
“Okay well regardless, the project can wait. You can’t work like this.” Sunghoon didn’t try to protest, sinking right into the couch. “I swear I’ll get something done soon to send to you. I don’t want you to think I’m some sort of freeloader.”
Sunghoons voice stayed flat, looking completely disengaged from the conversation. Most people would find this rude, but Sunoo was positive this was from his obvious lack of sleep.
“I think you’re the furthest from it. You’re literally taking care of a child, I think that’s a pretty good excuse.”
Sunghoon abruptly let out a small breath, crossing his arms almost glaring at Sunoo. “Why aren’t you asking me questions?”
Sunoo backed up a bit on the couch, startled by the sudden confrontation. “Um what?”
“Most people would jump at the fact that a 22 year old has a 3 year old, let alone a man at that.” There was a reason Sunghoon didn’t go around flaunting his daughter. He obviously wasn’t ashamed of her, that was far from the truth, he just hated dealing with the judging glares and endless questions that came along with it.
“Well…” Sunoo rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “I am very curious, but I figured now was not the best time to ask considering the state you’re in.”
Sunghoon was kind of taken aback. The shock must’ve shown on his face as Sunoo giggled. “What? I may be nosy but it’s always about surface level things, this is very personal.”
He squinted his eyes at Sunoo before looking away apprehensively. “Thank you.”
“It’s the least I can do. I wouldn’t want to cause you more stress. You look awful.”
Sunghoon rolled his eyes. “Okay I get it. I look ran through.” Sunoo’s lips perked up at his choice of words. “You try looking after a screaming child for 4 days straight.”
Sunoo just shook his head, then fell into a comfortable silence. Sunghoon slowly closed his eyes, his breathing slowing down.
Sunoo didn’t have much else to do today and he was in a good mood, so he decided on a plan of action to wake Sunghoon up from the dead.
“I’ve got an idea.” Sunghoon just nodded, keeping his eyes closed. “How about you go into your bedroom and sleep, and I watch your kid for a while.”
It was interesting that Sunghoon’s consciousness seemed to come back whenever his daughter was brought up. It was almost endearing that he cared for her so much even if she brought him extreme suffering at times like these.
“I don’t know Sunoo…”His hesitation was evident and Sunoo tried to reason with him. “You’ll be right in the other room and I promise I will get you if I think somethings wrong. And jokes aside, you genuinely need sleep.” Sunghoon knew he couldn’t argue with that, slowly giving in. “Okay but you come get me if anything is wrong okay?”
“Yes sir.”
—————
“Sunoo?” Sunoo kept his eyes closed, lightly brushing the delicate hand off his shoulder. “You should get up now.”
The voice was soft. Whoever was talking had a really pretty voice. “I made breakfast, come and eat.”
At the mention of food and another tap on his shoulder, he reluctantly opened his tired eyes just to be met with the face of Sunghoon. He sat up quickly on the couch, only now realizing he fell asleep at Sunghoons house. His shocked face quickly turned apologetic. “Oh my god I’m so sorry! I must’ve fallen asleep.”
Sunghoons head shook. “Don’t apologize. You got Yeongie to calm down and let me sleep. Honestly I should be the one thanking you.”
Sunghoon turned and walked to the table, sunoo flowing after he stood and smoothed out his clothes.
Sunghoon had simply cooked waffles. “Sorry about the shapes,” He rubbed his neck sheepishly. “I bought a special waffle maker for Yeongja.” The waffles were in the shapes of flowers and dinosaurs but Sunoo found it absolutely adorable. “It’s ok, they’re so cute.”
Sunghoon gave him a gentle smile as he sat down. He didn’t look completely back to normal, but he didn’t look like a walking zombie anymore. Sunoo considered that a win.
“How is she doing? I haven’t heard her cry in a while.”
“I checked on her and her fever seems to have gone down. She’s probably hungry but I’m going to let her get as much sleep as she can, she’s probably exhausted.”
Sunghoon then sighed out of nowhere, glancing dejectedly at his plate. “My poor girl, she probably felt terrible. If only I could’ve made her better quicker.” Sunoo could see him beating himself up. “Hey, don’t say that. You did your best. And she feels better now, you’re a great dad.”
Sunoo’s comforting words seemed to shift Sunghoon’s mood as he mumbled a thank you, taking a bite of his dinosaur pancake.
They remained in a quiet silence as they ate. Sunoo loved to talk and wasn’t quite fond of silence but it looked like Sunghoon was relishing in the cry free household.
They had finished and Sunoo was helping him clean up even though Sunghoon heavily protested.
As Sunghoon was washing the dishes, Sunoo scanned the whole house with a subtle smile on his face. There were Barbies on the floor and random stuffed animals on different chairs with little pieces of Lego and cars scattered on tables and counters. He could see the array of silly cups and spill free bowls on the corner tables and the kitchen counter top. The house was a bit of a mess, but it looked like a home. This wasn’t some stupid minimalist cream and white house, it actually looked lived in and it brought a lot of happiness and comfort.
You could tell, just by the house, that Sunghoon acted and loved this girl to the ends of the earth.
“How old is Yeongja?” Sunghoon finished, sitting down in front of Sunoo. “She’s four, she recently started preschool. Some days they close early so I have to rush from class.” Oh. So that’s where he goes. “But she loves it there so I make it work.” His face brightens as he talks about his daughter. Sunoo finds it nothing short of endearing.
They talked for a bit more before Sunoo glanced at his phone. “I should probably get going, I planned to meet up with some friends later.”
“Yeah, I should go wake up Yeongja to feed her. She’s only three but wow does she get hangry.”
Sunoo chuckled, putting his shoes on. “Let me know when you’re free, okay? You can bring Yeongja, I don’t mind.” Sunoo knew that this would open a lot more time on Sunghoon’s schedule. He appears to be right as Sunghoon’s shoulders relaxed. “Great… I’ll talk to you later?”
He nodded. “Of course, just please take care of yourself. I don’t need my group partner dying on me, that would mean I’d have to do all the work.”
Sunghoon let out a surprised breath but laughed nonetheless. “Got it.”
Sunoo walked out and Sunghoon closed the door, both carrying out the rest of the day with big smiles on their faces.