Work Text:
Their baby boy is growing up.
They have been holding on to a monthly birthday tradition since Nash’s first month, getting a mini cake and blowing out a number candle to celebrate each milestone.
Buck suggested it, getting the idea from all those TikTok videos with parents recording their babies growing up in cute and creative ways.
“You have to do it! I’ll even bake the cake every time.”
Maddie and Chimney glanced at each other smiling, because this is what choosing joy is all about, now, they celebrate being present a little more.
“All right, Uncle Buck. Don’t forget the sprinkles.”
Of course Jee was delighted at the promise of a monthly supply of cake, enjoying being a big sister even more.
“You gotta put lots of sprinkles! And I get to eat the cake because Nash doesn’t have teeth yet!” Jee squealed.
“Yes you will Jee, and…It looks like Nash loves that idea too.” Chimney commented, taking then 2-week old Nash from Maddie’s arms to change the baby’s diaper.
…
Now, Nash at ten and a half months old has taken his first wobbly steps and is an expert crawler, mastering how to navigate every corner of their house vertically now too, as long as he has something to hold on and keep him steady.
He’s a bubbly and chatty baby, that which Chimney proudly claims his son as a true yapper just like him. Naturally, “Dada” was his first word, and Chimney bragged about the honor like a trophy.
Maddie protested, saying that babies just find it easier to babble the duh sound and that it doesn’t mean he’s his favorite. Sure enough, Nash called out for Mama three days later, and Maddie cried tears of joy.
“Oh my God, Chim.” Maddie suddenly gasped as she was reading Brown Bear, What Do You See? to Nash as he feeds from his bottle. Chimney was helping Jee set up her dollhouse in the playpen.
“Yeah, honey?” Chimney got up from the floor and sat beside Maddie on the sofa.
“Nash’s 1st birthday is in six weeks.” Maddie replied, matter-of-factly.
“I know, right? I remember when our little guy can fit in just my one arm, now I have trouble catching up to him with two arms.” Chimney chuckled endearingly.
“No, Chim…We don’t have anything planned for his birthday party!” Maddie huffed, her brow furrowed.
“Ohh shhh—shoot. How did we forget it?” Chimney shook his head.
They have both been incredibly busy with new leadership roles, and the days just flew by. All of their extra time has been carefully spent with the kids, sneaking in little dates for themselves or just taking time to rest and breathe.
It would be their first 1st birthday party, an experience they missed with Jee-Yun. They were excited to do all the fun stuff and celebrate the family they fought for with all the people they love.
Haunting memories of Boston come to mind - with Chimney celebrating Jee’s 1st birthday alone with a cupcake somewhere midwest, far from Maddie and their entire family.
Maddie was in the loop with a bittersweet video update sent by email by Chimney, along with all the other milestones she missed during those six months.
But she wasn’t there with her baby.
Chimney could see Maddie stressing out already and he was quick to reassure her.
“Maddie, don’t you worry. Six weeks is plenty enough of time to plan the best party ever.” He kissed the top of her head.
Nash just finished drinking his milk, crawled to his dad, and now playfully squeezing Chimney’s nose. “Dada!”
“A party! Can we have a princess party?!” Jee beamed, following her dad.
“Good idea, baby, a royal party theme. We’re putting it on the list.” Maddie praised.
“Dada, can we play now? We haven’t finished the second floor.” Jee said, pulling her father’s hand to stand up.
“Duty calls.” Chimney tickled Nash’s feet, earning sweet baby giggles before handing him back to Maddie.
Jee adored her baby brother, but sharing the attention of her parents of course brought some adjustments, and a little bit of sibling jealousy to the little girl’s life.
Since Maddie and Chimney had been encouraging Nash to call them Mama and Dada, Jee wanted to join in and eventually reverted back to her toddler ways of calling her parents the same.
Maddie and Chimney loved it, cherishing the chance for their baby girl to stay little as long as they can.
Later, with both kids asleep, Maddie and Chimney started planning the party over a bottle of wine.
“We’re almost out of wine and the only thing we finalized is that we’re getting a 2-tiered cake and the 118 on our guest list.” Maddie complained.
They were meticulously searching for ideas on Pinterest, debating whether they can pull off a dragons and dinosaurs on a speed race in space mash-up theme.
“Well, it’s good wine. Are you sure you don’t want a firehouse themed party, or Paw Patrol? or I know we can rent a playground, a bouncy castle? ” Chimney rested his chin on Maddie’s shoulder snuggling his wife from behind, more focused on nuzzling her neck than the task they’re on.
“Too many activities - high risk, you know that captain. And I realized Chim, I don’t want a big party, we can do it at home. I just want all the people we care about there to celebrate with us.”
“Good thinking. Hmm.” Chimney looked around their house, now filled with all of Nash’s baby stuff from a stroller to a high chair, his large playpen, plus Jee’s doubled collection of toys and activity area. A couple of their work stuff got in the mix of the space too.
Maddie noticed. “I know, we have to clear out space for the party. But we can do this, right?”
“Oh, absolutely.”
“Chim.”
“Yeah?” Chim whispered as he’s tracing circles over Maddie’s chest now.
“Take me to bed?” Maddie grabbed his hand as Chimney nodded eagerly.
…
The next day, Maddie went to work two hours earlier than Chimney so he’s the one who brought the kids over to the Lees.
“Howie, have some coffee first. You still have an hour before your shift.” Anne insisted.
“Thank you, Grandma Lee.” Chimney obliged, usually, he would rush early to get some paperwork done but he can’t say no to his kids’ honorary grandma.
“So, how are you and Maddie? I heard she’s taken over the supervisor job at dispatch recently?” Anne inquired.
“Yes she did, and I’m very proud of her. Sue picked her to hold the fort as she recovers. It’s been very hectic on our schedules but we manage.” Chimney replied.
They looked over to Jee and Nash who were with John in the living room. Grandpa Lee watched as Jee held Nash’s arms up steady to help her little brother toddle around.
“Look at him, I can’t believe he’s walking already.” Anne remarked with awe.
“Almost a year old. We just started planning his party, which seems pretty late, but better late than never.”
“Have you considered a traditional party?” Anne said excitedly.
“We definitely want to keep tradition, the smash cake is already a go.”
“No silly, a doljanchi! It’s a traditional Korean first birthday ceremony. The highlight is the doljabi ritual. Look it up, and think about it.” Anne said with a grin.
“That definitely helps and I will do. Thanks, Anne!” He picked up Nash for a snuggle, telling the wiggly baby to be good for Grandma and Grandpa Lee.
“Come on Jee, time for preschool!” Jee was on her last week of preschool. She’ll be in Kindergarten next school year. Their baby girl is growing up and he knows he’ll be bawling like a baby on Jee’s graduation day.
“See you later!” The five year old waved goodbye to the Lees.
Chimney dropped Jee off and after a quick “Love you, Dada!”, he was finally on the way to his shift.
Honey, new party idea just dropped. Anne suggested we do a doljabi.
He texted Maddie.
It took a few minutes for Maddie to reply, who was already doing her research.
I love it. It has such a significant meaning, Chim. I wish we could have done it with Jee…
Anyway, I’m game. We’ll have one for Nash. Let’s do it!
Maddie replied back.
See, we’re halfway there.
Wait, where do we get the hanbok outfit?
Maddie messaged again.
Calling Anne now.
“You’re on a good mood, Captain.” Hen noted, with Chimney smiling on his phone.
“Always happy when I’m texting my wife. Anyway, just glad to have progress on baby Nash’s 1st birthday party.” Chimney gushed.
“Right. He’s a whole year old?!”
“Technically, he’s ten months and three weeks. We’re gonna go shopping with the Lees for a traditional ceremony. “
“Exciting. If you need any help at all, you got Auntie Hen and Karen at your service.” Hen offered.
“Maybe a venue? We want to do the party at home, actually. Probably gonna need help organizing the house.”
“Done. Just tell us when. We can order the food and party stuff too.”
“Thanks, Hen.”
…
Few weeks passed by, and the party was finally taking shape. Buck is making the smash cake, while the candle cake is ordered from their favorite bakery, the same one that gave them the pink one. Chimney promised he’s gonna take a good long look at the receipt this time.
Then comes the tradition. Chimney took a trip down memory lane through his old baby pictures, which were safely kept by his mother. Sure enough, he found a picture of him as a baby at his own dol ceremony.
“Oh my gosh, You were so cute!” Maddie remarked in amusement.
“Ahh. I was born with it.” He picked up another photo of him this time with his mom holding him, and he can’t stop himself from crying.
Oh, how he wishes the older Jee-Yun were here today, teaching him herself how to honor their heritage.
Maddie hugged him tight and kissed him through his tears, whispering “I love you.”
Because that’s all Chim needs, no words - just for her to hold him close.
“Who’s the baby?” Jee asked joining them, hugging her dad too when she noticed his teary eyes.
“That handsome little baby is me, Jee-jee.” Chimney smiled.
“That’s right, it’s Daddy.” Maddie confirmed.
“What?! You kinda look like Nash, Dada.” Jee replied with wonder.
“He sure does.” Maddie got reminded of how her genes barely fought back with their babies. No real complaints, because she loves having three variants of Chim in her beautiful life.
“Oh, that looks like the costume we picked at the shop!” Jee exclaimed. Maddie and Chimney made sure that Jee had something to contribute so they had her pick out the colors for her brother’s hanbok.
“Yes, and thanks to you big sister Jee, baby Nash is ready to look like a baby prince on his birthday.”
“Princess party!”
….
The much awaited day has arrived.
Thanks to everyone’s help, the Han household transformed to the perfect venue for their thirty special guests. The food is served, the drinks are flowing, and the bets are piling.
Robert Nash Han is officially 1 year old and ready to conquer his destiny.
Now all he needs is to choose it.
Hence, the bets. No real money is involved though, just a cute little gift prize to those who’ll get it right.
The doljanchi party is about celebrating the baby’s health and longevity which Maddie and Chimney willingly followed gratefully. The highlight is the doljabi ritual, where the newly 1 year old gets to pick an item or two from a couple objects seen to represent certain fortune, a life or a career path.
“Alright, everybody, gather round!" Chimney called out, tapping a spoon against a glass. "It's time to see the future!"
The crowd naturally formed a semi-circle around the low table in the courtyard. Chimney and Maddie sat cross-legged behind it, placing Nash gently in the center. The baby blinked up at the sudden audience, letting out a happy, bubbling squeal.
Arranged in front of him were several symbolic items, carefully curated by Maddie and Chimney with guidance from the Lees.
They prepared the following items: a stethoscope represent a career in healthcare or medicine, a traditional bundle of string for a long healthy life, a crisp hundred-dollar bill for wealth, a book for academic success, a basketball for sports and athletics, and the traditional gavel for law and justice.
And finally, for good measure of a personal touch, they included a polished LAFD captain's badge, and a dispatch standard headset because in Chimney’s words:
“He might join the family business after all. We hold a reputation of legacy hiring, Maddie.”
"Okay, buddy," Chimney said softly, his voice thick with emotion. "Whatever you grab, we're proud of you. But, you know, no pressure."
Nash seemed to be listening intently, looking his dad right in the eyes.
Maddie rested her head against Chimney’s shoulder, her eyes shining as she watched her son. "Go ahead, Nash."
“You can do it Nashy!” Jee cheered.
The entire house hushed into fond silence.
Nash wobbled forward on his hands and knees, eyeing the colorful array. He reached a chubby hand toward the string, paused, and then shifted his attention.
He babbled, slapping his palm flat against the mat, before lunging forward.
His little fingers hovered around the polished silver of the LAFD badge, but diverted once more. Nash paused and sat for a while looking at all the items, seemingly planning his strategy.
Sure enough, he picked two items at the same time: the string and the one hundred dollar bill. Health and wealth - a wise choice beyond his year(s).
A collective cheer went up from the crowd. Chimney laughed, a watery sound, as he scooped his son up, pressing a kiss to his cheek.
But wait, it wasn’t over. Nash was wiggling out and reaching for the table once more, so Chimney put him down.
Nash went straight for the LAFD badge, the one with HAN engraved on it - Chimney’s very own. He clung onto it along with the two he already picked. He babbled towards Maddie this time, asking to be picked up by Mama.
Maddie looked up and caught Athena's eye through the cheering crowd. Athena offered a soft, radiant smile, pressing a hand to her heart.
Los Angeles may someday see Robert Nash Han working at the Robert Nash firehouse.
“Oh our little adventurer, already got his plot twists.” Chimney joked.
They took a couple of family photos. Nash was already getting fussy since he usually went for a nap at the current time.
It was time for the smash cake.
Baby Nash was dressed down to a matching T-shirt and shorts set, and placed in his high chair.
Uncle Buck proudly marched out of the kitchen carrying his creation of a small, beautifully frosted blue-and-white vanilla banana cake, setting it directly on the tray in front of his nephew.
"Alright," Maddie announced, phone already recording. "Let the destruction begin.”
“Your first sugar rush, buddy!" Chimney shouted.
Nash stared at the confection for a long moment. He poked it with one cautious finger. He looked at the frosting, stuck it in his mouth, and his eyes went wide.
Realizing the entire object was an enjoyable treat, Nash didn't hold back. He plunged both hands directly into the center of the cake, ripping out a massive chunk of vanilla sponge, and happily shoved fistfuls of cake into his mouth, letting out delighted, muffled giggles.
"That's my boy!" Chimney cheered, dodging a flying piece of cake that sailed past his shoulder.
"He's certainly got your appetite, Howie," Mrs. Lee noted with a warm laugh, handing Maddie a massive stack of wet wipes.
“I want to eat cake too!” Jee announced, grabbing a spoon and joining her brother in scooping out frosting.
Maddie leaned back against Chimney, watching her chaotic, beautiful family.
It had been a year of unimaginable loss, but as Nash sat there - covered in frosting, holding a piece of cake in one hand and Jee’s hand on the other, Maddie knew they were exactly where they were supposed to be.