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It had been Jake’s idea, of course.
“I’m telling you, this place is therapy,” he’d said earlier that week over video call, waving his phone around to show a sleeping corgi curled against his lap. “Puppies. Lattes. Chaos. Everything you love, but without any responsibility.”
Now, standing at the entrance of the dog café, Jungwon looked around like he was preparing for battle. Jay was already wrangling Haru out of his jacket, and Haerin was practically vibrating in place.
Jake met them with open arms—and a fluffy white Pomeranian nestled in his hoodie like a furry kangaroo baby.
“Look who I smuggled in!” he said dramatically, crouching to Haerin’s level.
She gasped. “UNCLE JAKE YOU GOT A DOG?!”
“Nah,” Jake said, straightening up with a grin. “But he likes me more than anyone else here, obviously.”
“You say that about every dog,” Jay said.
“Because it’s always true.”
Once they were all settled inside, and the kids were seated on the padded floor, the chaos began almost instantly.
A golden retriever flopped into Jungwon’s lap, tongue lolling as it tried to settle in. A beagle immediately latched onto Haru’s loose shoelaces, yanking gently but persistently. Haerin squealed as a dachshund began licking her face with no hesitation at all.
Jake, as expected, was in his element. He sprawled in the corner, one leg stretched out, surrounded by at least four dogs, holding a pup in each arm like a proud parent at a graduation ceremony. Every so often, he cooed at one, scratched another behind the ears, and muttered, “Yes, you’re perfect, yes you are,” in a tone that made Jay roll his eyes.
“Are you gonna help us supervise them or just live your best life?” Jungwon asked, trying to stop Haru from attempting to feed the beagle an entire muffin.
“I am helping. This is me creating joy,” Jake replied with a smug grin. “Look how happy Haerin is.”
Haerin was, indeed, trying to teach the golden retriever to high-five, clapping her hands in triumph when it actually pawed her once.
Meanwhile, Jay was balancing Haru on one hip while trying to sip iced coffee with the other hand. Every time he thought he had a moment of calm, a dog jumped, snuffled, or barked, forcing him to shift, steady, or duck.
“This would be more relaxing if we didn’t have to parent in the middle of a petting zoo,” he muttered.
“That’s what makes it fun!” Jake replied. “Danger. Puppies. Toddlers. Adrenaline.”
Jungwon scoffed but didn’t argue. Instead, he gently lifted Haerin into his lap as she showed him a drawing of “Me and My Dog” — a giant fluffy creature named Marshmallow with a tongue that seemed almost too long. Jungwon smiled softly, pretending to critique the artistic proportions, which Haerin loved.
Jay finally convinced Haru to sit down and offered him a treat to give one of the calmer dogs, which the toddler did with a hesitant, wobbly hand. The beagle immediately sniffed it out and gobbled it, tail wagging so hard it knocked over a small cup.
“You see that?” Jake nudged Jay’s side. “Haru’s warming up. You’re welcome.”
Jay narrowed his eyes. “You just want me to admit this was a good idea.”
“It was a good idea,” Jungwon muttered, patting Haerin’s back. “In a borderline exhausting way.”
“That’s my brand,” Jake said cheerfully. “Now everyone shut up and let me take a photo for your family slideshow.”
He snapped a picture of the kids half-buried in dogs, Jungwon smiling quietly, and Jay with his head tipped against Jungwon’s shoulder.
“Okay,” Jake said dramatically. “That one is for when you win ‘Parents of the Year.’ Or just to blackmail you at birthdays.”
Haerin eventually made her way over to Jake’s lap, curling against him as a big retriever sprawled at their feet.
“Uncle Jake, can we please get a dog? Appa said maybe, but Appa Jay says we already have poop and barking at home.”
Jake looked at Jay with mock offense. “Wow. Rude. You can’t block puppy dreams like that in front of a child.”
Jay held up a hand. “You’re not the one cleaning it up when dreams get diarrhea.”
“Haerin,” Jake whispered, leaning in conspiratorially, “if they say no, you and I will just start a dog rescue in the backyard. We’ll call it Paw-radise.”
“YES!” she whispered back, eyes sparkling with glee.
Jungwon looked down at where Haru had fallen asleep against his chest. “You’re not allowed to teach them puns if it leads to property destruction.”
“Uncle’s job,” Jake said with a wink.
The café began to quiet down as some patrons left, and the dogs started to settle, sprawled over laps, cushions, and even, in one case, a table no one had noticed. Jay helped clean sticky fingers, Jungwon tucked Haru’s tiny hand into his hoodie, and Haerin carefully patted the corgi she had claimed as hers.
Jake sighed contentedly. “Okay. This was the best idea I’ve had since introducing them to bubble tea.”
Jay side-eyed him. “You mean when they both got stomachaches because they drank too fast and blamed the tapioca balls for fighting each other in their bellies?”
Jake shrugged. “Character-building.”
As the sky outside darkened and the kids began to slow down, Jay and Jungwon gathered their things. Haru was already half-asleep in Jungwon’s arms, and Haerin had taken to gently patting one last corgi goodbye.
Jake handed them the kids’ jackets and quietly placed a small stuffed dog in Haerin’s hand. “For when you need a cuddle at home.”
Haerin beamed.
Jay smiled. “You spoil them.”
“That’s my job too.”
As they stepped out into the cool air, Jake shoved his hands into his pockets and grinned. “Alright. Next time: cat café?”
“Nope,” Jungwon said.
Jay snorted. “You’re banned from suggesting outings for a month.”
Jake winked. “So, see you next week?”