Chapter Text
Sunoo’s alarm screeched like it had personally been hired to ruin his life. He groaned, slamming the snooze button so hard for it practically begging for his mercy.
“ugh… five more minutes…”
“…”
Maybe ten.
“…”
Okay probably fifteen—FINE, he’d be late, sue him.
Who decided 4 a.m. was humanly acceptable for Music Bank roll call anyway? Clearly someone who had never experienced the exquisite agony of being Kim Sunoo.
And now he had to wake up at ‘ungodly o’clock’ for that.
Thanks a lot, man.
Sunoo rolled over, hugging his pillow like it was a life line, whispering ‘please save me from today’s schedule.’ His blanket was warm and cozy, if only it could shield him from all the promotions, photoshoots, and fans expecting him to shine like a caffeinated morning fairy at the crack of dawn. Ugh…why.
Dragging himself upright, he muttered to the ceiling,
“Another day, another… can someone just cancel the morning for real?”
As he tossed and turned trying to find the will to break up with his beloved bed, a knock on his door yanked him back to reality.
“Sunoo-hyung, are you awake? We need to leave early this morning.”
Jungwon. Enyphen’s poor, ever-responsible leader.
Sunoo’s respect for Jungwon hadn’t wavered since day one, despite the endless teasing and definitely-not-anger-inducing menaces from the younger. As a good older brother, of course he do not want to make things harder for the leader.
“Yes, I’m up! Rising and grinding! ” he shouted. “… and I hate it,” he muttered under his breath.
“Make sure you out on time and gather in the living room in 20 minutes. Manager hyung-nim said he’ll come straight after picking up coffee” Jungwon chirped.
“Okay ~,” he replied groggily, shoving his blanket off as he swore he heard it whisper, you have responsibilities.
“…what a traitor,” he muttered, glaring at it. “You knew I love you! And yet you…you betrayed me!”
The blanket, of course, stayed silent. Typical.
As he shuffled towards the living room, his thought went rogue. Early morning schedule really had him questioning all his life choices.
Kim Sunoo was absolutely certain he had been stupid eight months ago.
Or maybe just too emotional to think clearly—He agreed to renew his contract.
Well.
They all agreed to renew the contract. Yay!
“Ooh, let’s look professional, sign this paper, and make Engene happy” he had said.
Really? To become a productive member of the society at 4 a.m. in the morning?
He was supposed to be enjoying mint choco ice-cream in his dream right now.
He was supposed to be wrapped in his blanket like a warm burrito.
He was supposed to be sleeping–
Damn his idol status.
Years of idol life had taught Sunoo many things, but loving early mornings wasn’t one of them. No amount of sunlight or chirpy morning birds can convince him otherwise.
Big mood.
The members had already gathered in the living room—well, the “living room” of their floor, anyway.
Jungwon, ever bright-eyed, chirping cheerily with Jay hyung about … well, any topic anyone can think of at the crack of dawn. Someone clearly had injected him with a magical energy booster because he was talking faster than anyone could process at this hour.
How do humans even function like this at 4 a.m.? Sunoo could never.
Not everyone had made it yet.
Heeseung hyung was nowhere to be found.
Classic.
Either still fighting his personal demons (aka stubbornly refusing to wake up every. single. time.) or deliberately late, as usual.
Ni-ki sprawled on the floor, still in deep slumber. Of course. He and Heeseung hyung had probably been gaming until God knows when last night, so this was their natural state.
Meanwhile… Jake- no, Jake hyung- was quietly napping on the couch, head down, looking annoyingly cute. Ugh.
Why do you have to make sleeping look more appetizing than it already is?
Stop. Now Sunoo want to sleep too.
Sunghoon hyung?
He was sitting on nearest stool beside the television, looking absolutely handsome even with his bare face. He stared blankly into nothing, like a gorgeous Greek statue—No, like a literal statue. Not moving an inch. Not even remotely aware of reality.
Just… there. Existing.
Sunoo was pretty sure he was dissociating.
Well. At least Sunoo wasn’t entirely alone in feeling like he’d been dragged into morning purgatory.
Ha.ha.
“Morning Sunoo-ya~” Jay called, sounding far too alive for someone who had also been wrenched awake at ungodly hour.
“Morning hyung…” he replied weakly.
Well, you can’t blame him. His soul hadn’t fully loaded yet. It was probably still buffering somewhere between dreamland and reality.
Sunoo shuffled over and slumped onto the couch beside Jake. The sudden shift of weight startling the older boy awake.
“You good?” Jake blinked at him, eyes soft, barely open.
Even half-asleep, Jake somehow managed to be as sweet and caring as ever. Unfairly caring for 4 a.m.
“No.”
“-hyung.” Sunoo quickly added, almost as an afterthought.
Because if he didn’t? Jake would absolutely remember.
And pout. And sulk. And bring it up later in that soft, betrayed tone like, ‘You didn’t even call me hyung this morning…’
And Sunoo was definitely not in the mood to deal with that.
Hope Jake hadn’t notice the brief pause.
Jake blinked once more, processing.
“Valid.” Jake nodded slowly, apparently satisfied with the answer.
Sunoo sighed slowly.
Crisis averted.
See? I’m respectful. I’m polite. I’m suffering but respectfully.
He leaned back into the couch, staring at the ceiling. Why am I like this? Why am I alive before 8 a.m?
He bet his future self also has no answer to that.
At some point—Sunoo wasn’t entirely sure when—his eyes drifted close.
Just for a second, he told himself.
---
Sunoo jolted awake at the sound of familiar voice cutting through the room.
“Hey boys, are you guys ready?”
Yuki hyung.
Sunoo blinked rapidly, sitting up straighter like he hadn’t just fallen asleep sitting upright while his neck protested.
Great. Now I look unstable.
He wasn’t sure how long he’d been out, but judging by the fact that the sky still annoyingly dark and the members were still in various stages of malfunction, it couldn’t have been that long.
Sunghoon hyung, who had been frozen in standby mode earlier, suddenly inhale sharply like his system had just rebooted and asked,
“…is the mic on?”
The room went silent.
Then Jay hyung burst out laughing.
“Hyung,” Jungwon turned to him amused, “Welcome back to earth.”
Sunghoon blinked slowly, “…Oh.”
Ni-ki was now sitting up on the floor, hair messy, eyes half-lidded, scowling at absolutely nothing. Or maybe everything. It was hard to tell.
Sunoo squinted at him.
Is he mad? Or is he just having an identity crisis at dawn?
Honestly, relatable. Sunoo was not in better condition either.
“Where’s Heeseung?” Yuki hyung asked, holding up a tray of coffees like a piece of offering.
Jungwon answered immediately. “I woke him earlier and definitely saw him going into the shower. That’s the last time I saw him.”
“Pray that he didn’t fell asleep in there.” Jay hyung snorted.
He definitely fell asleep in there.
There was absolutely no way in the universe that man didn’t close his eyes whenever he get the chance to. Well, honestly? It was a reasonable life choice. If Sunoo had that option right now, he would’ve taken it too.
Yuki hyung sighed, already knowing. Years of being Enhypen’s manager, he’d seen enough drama of Heeseung and morning schedules.
“I’ll go look for him. You guys go down first. Minjae already waiting in the car.” he said while handing the coffee to Jake.
Minjae hyung.
Enhypen’s another manager, who joined the company two years ago. Although he wasn’t much older than Heeseung hyung, he somehow carried himself like someone who had seen things. Schedule things. Crisis things. Quiet, but reliable. The type to double-check seatbelts and remind them to eat.
The type to scold gently but meant it.
Without Minjae hyung, Sunoo was certain that Yuki hyung would be walking around with dark circles darker than their comeback concept, trying to carry the entire group’s schedules alone.
Around Sunoo, the members began shuffling toward the doors in various state of consciousness. Shoes half-worn. Jackets half-zipped. Ni-ki still half-awake.
Sunoo adjusted his hoodie and followed behind them.
Just another morning.
Just another schedule.
Just another day that felt completely, painfully normal.
But somehow, something felt…off.
He paused briefly, glancing back at the living room—the messy couch, the abandon jacket, the random things left scattered around, the faint warmth still clinging to the space.
Weird.
Like there’s a small, almost invisible tug settled in his chest. Not fear. Not panic.
Just… something.
The hallway lights flickered for a second.
Or maybe he imagined it.
Sunoo shook his head.
It’s 4 a.m. Stop. Being. Dramatic. Kim. Sunoo.
He stepped out and pulled the door shut behind him.
The latch clicked softly.
And with it, Sunoo’s ordinary morning quietly began.
The car was quiet.
Not the chaotic, pre-stage kind of quiet. Not the tense, staff-is-listening kind of quiet.
Just… sleepy quiet.
Ni-ki was knocked out beside the window, head titled awkwardly against the glass, mouth slightly open. Every few minutes the car hit a bump and his forehead lightly thunked against the window, but somehow he stayed asleep.
Jake hyung sat next to him, scrolling through his phone with the brightness suspiciously low—like that would fool anyone. His eyes were half-lidded, blinking slower and slower, thumb moving out of pure muscle memory. One more blink and he would be gone too.
Sunghoon hyung, on the other hand, sat straight-backed in his seat, hands folded neatly on his lap. Calm. Composed. Unbothered.
He looked extra fine with those horn-rimmed glass on, staring ahead like a beautiful statue that had somehow learned how to breathe. Sharp jawline. Clean posture.
Unfair.
Maybe because it was too early in the morning that Sunghoon hyung is quiet. Or maybe he was conserving energy.
Because if he wasn’t quiet, he would definitely be on his toes already—teasing.
No. Picking a fight with Sunoo is a better term for that.
Well, let’s just enjoy this moment as long as it last.
The other members were in another car with Yuki hyung. Minjae hyung was driving this one.
And of course—because Minjae hyung had taste—he chose classical music.
Soft piano filled the van. Slow. Gentle. Suspiciously lullaby-like.
Great choice, hyung. Truly.
Trying to send us back to sleep before we even reach the station?
Sunoo leaned his head lightly against the seat and stared out the window.
Dark.
Pitch-dark.
Of course. The world still asleep. It wasn’t even properly 4.30 a.m yet. And the sky hadn’t decided what color it wanted to be.
Sunoo squinted, trying to make out the buildings, sighs, anything.
But nothing can be seen.
Just darkness and reflections of himself in the glass. Well at least he looks good.
With a small sigh, he reached for his phone. Sunoo wanted to check his Weverse—read the comments under the post he uploaded last night.
Monitoring, he called it.
He turned the screen on.
A chubby-cheeked baby filled his vision.
Big eyes.
Tiny nose.
Almost-smiling lips.
And—unfairly—looking a lot like him.
Sunoo’s expression softened instantly.
“My tiny sunshine…” he muttered under his breath.
His nephew’s photo shone brightly as his wallpaper. Sunoo had changed it the day his baby nephew learned how to flip himself over for the first time.
How fast time flies. He never expected to become an uncle one day.
He still remembered—almost three years ago—when his older sister called him.
---
“Sunoo-ya, are you free this weekend? Let’s eat together.”
He had said yes without thinking much about it. She was his only sibling and only few years older than him. They were close—very close. He figured maybe she missed him. Or maybe she just wanted to complain about work again.
He did not expect—
“I’m getting married.”
He blinked at her across the table.
“…What?”
“I’m getting married,” she repeated, smiling nervously.
Sunoo swore his brain short-circuited.
“You’re joking.”
“I’m not.”
“No. You’re joking—“
“Seon-Woo ya.”
He went quiet.
Very quiet.
For an entire week, he didn’t answer her calls.
Petty? Yes.
Did he care? No.
He genuinely thought she had betrayed him. How.dare.she.
How dare she find a man before asking him for permission.
Until… his parents called.
“Stop being dramatic and come home,” his father had said.
“At least meet him first.” His mother added gently.
So Sunoo took a day off and went back.
They decided to meet for lunch at a restaurant near their house. His parents. His sister.
And the man.
The so-called villain.
Sunoo had imagined him as suspicious. Manipulative. Possibly evil.
Instead, he was… annoyingly decent. Polite. Calm. Soft-spoken.
“Nice to finally meet you,” the man said, bowing slightly. “She talks about you a lot.”
Sunoo narrowed his eyes. Suspicious.
“Only good things, I hope.” He retaliated, refused to back down.
His sister rolled her eyes. ”Ignore him.”
During lunch, he watch carefully. The way that man refilled her water without being asked. The way he listened when she spoke. The way he didn’t interrupt.
Ah.
Sunoo felt something settle in his chest.
He’s serious. He’s good to her.
Later that day, back at home, he ended up crying in front of his sister.
“I missed so much time,” he sniffed, wiping his face angrily. “You’re supposed to wait for me.”
She laughed, but Sunoo could see her eyes were wet too.
“You’re still my little brother.”
“Obviously! But you’re becoming someone’s wife soon. I didn’t get to spend much time with you already. Imagine when you’re married!” he protested.
“Ya! I’m still your older sister! I’d still be there for you,”
“I love you noona. Always” He hugged her tightly.
Being an idol had already taken so much time from him-- late nights, overseas schedules, endless promotions. He barely saw his family as it was. And now another man was ‘taking her away.’
Sunoo had to let her go.
Let her be happy.
Then, the wedding came.
And just like that, her surname was no longer Kim.
Obviously, Sunoo cried like it was the end of the world that day. He was pretty sure Sunghoon hyung had been laughing at him while secretly recording a video for his so-called ‘Personal Collection of Kim Sunoo’s Embarassing Moments’.
He needed to delete that. Immediately. For legal reasons.
That was the first heart-attack-inducing announcement from his sister.
The second came months later.
---
He was in the dorm when she called.
“Sunoo-ya.”
“Yes?”
“I have something to tell you.”
Hmm... That sounded serious.
“Why are you talking like that? Is it serious? Are you getting divorce already? Should I sit down?”
She burst out laughing.
“What—no. You’re going to be an uncle.”
“… What?”
“You’re going to be an uncle.”
And then—
A scream came.
A high-pitched, dolphin-level scream. Sunoo had screeched.
Within seconds, his doors burst open.
“What happened?!” Jungwon yelled.
“Are you okay?!” Jake rushed in.
Heeseung hyung quietly peeked from behind Jake, looking genuinely concerned.
Ni-ki looked ready to throw hands.
Sunoo, teary-eyed and shaking, pointed at his phone.
“I’M GOING TO BE AN UNCLE!”
The room froze.
Then—chaos.
Congratulations. Back slaps. Someone almost tripped over the rug. Ni-ki shouting, “You’re old now hyung!” Heeseung hyung clapping slowly like it was a formal ceremony.
Sunoo barely registered any of it. He was already jumping up and down, calling his sister again and again just to confirm it was real.
“Say it again!” he demanded.
“You’re a going to be an uncle.”
Another scream.
Somewhere in the building, a neighbor probably reconsidered their life choices.
---
When the baby was finally born, he wasn’t there. He was overseas for a schedule. He saw him for the first time through a video call.
A tiny, wrinkled face wrapped in pink.
Kinda ugly, Sunoo thought.
“Say hi to your uncle,” his sister whispered through the screen.
Sunoo had smile, but later that night in the hotel room, he cried quietly. God knew how much he wanted to be there.
When he finally returned to Korea, he begged management for a day off.
Begged.
Two weeks after he was born, Sunoo finally held him.
The first time Sunoo held baby Woojun, the world went strangely quiet.
No screaming.
No dramatic flailing.
No dolphin noises.
Just silence.
Woojun was impossibly small.
Sunoo sat carefully on the edge of his sister’s bed, arms stiff and awkward—as if someone had handed him the most fragile, priceless artifact in existence.
“Support the head,” his sister whispered gently.
“I am supporting the head!” Sunoo whisper-yelled back, panicking anyway.
Woojun blinked up at him.
Eyes big. Curious. Completely unaware that he had just restructured Kim Sunoo’s entire emotional system.
“…He looks like me,” he whispered.
His sister laughed. “Narcissist.”
Sunoo ignored her.
Sunoo stared down at Woojun—at Junie—at this tiny human with a face like morning sunlight.
“I’ll protect you, okay?” he whispered softly. “From everything. Even from your own father if necessary.”
“Kim SeonWoo.”
“I’m just saying.” He muttered in defense.
Sunoo knew his brother in-law was an angel—a kind, responsible man with every good-husband quality imaginable.
But who can predict the future, right?
Woojun yawned, unimpressed.
Sunoo laughed weakly, blinking back tears.
"He’s perfect.”
“I know.” His sister added.
And for the first time in a long while, schedules didn’t matter. The dorm didn’t matter. The world didn’t matter.
All that mattered was the tiny hand still gripping his finger like he already knew—
Uncle.
The car hit a small bump. Sunoo blinked, pulled back to the present.
Classical piano still playing softly.
Ni-ki still asleep.
Jake still scrolling.
Sunghoon hyung? Still handsomely existing. Sunoo narrowed his eyes slightly at the side profile.
Too peaceful.
As if sensing the stare, Sunghoon slowly turned his head.
Their eyes met.
“… What?” Sunghoon asked calmly.
Sunoo immediately looked away. “Nothing.”
“You were staring.”
“I was not.”
“You were—“
“Sleep.” Sunoo cut quickly.
Sunghoon hummed, adjusting his glass slightly. “You’re the one who looks sleepy.”
From the corner, Jake mumbled without looking up, “You both are noisy for people who slept three hours.”
Ni-ki snored in agreement.
The car continued moving.
Schedules waited.
But for a few quiet, drowsy minutes, it was just them—half-asleep, slightly grumpy and exactly where they were supposed to be.
And somehow—
Sunoo felt weird.