Chapter Sixteen (1/1)
Midnight rolls by and Jeonghan hears the front door being unlocked. He rubbed his eyes and moved from the kitchen to make sure it's Seungcheol coming in. The man walked into the apartment and locked eyes with Jeonghan. This is the latest Seungcheol has ever come home. Yes, Seungcheol has missed dinner multiple times before. But he's never been so late to not even say goodnight to Joshua. The kid likes to stay up late. Jeonghan watched Seungcheol take off his blazer. He stayed silent while putting his hands together and watching. "Good morning," Seungcheol jokes, making Jeonghan smile a bit, "I told you you should go to bed." He said as he approached Jeonghan. "I had some things to do," Jeonghan said, "Josh helped pack his things.. he's a bit upset that we'll be moving." He continued. Seungcheol bit his lip and held Jeonghan's hips. "Should we not move then?" He asked seriously. Jeonghan looked into those big eyes. Seungcheol's eyes are full of stress yet concern. His skin around his eyes is red and puffy like he'd been crying earlier. However, his stare told him he would be strong enough to listen to Jeonghan's worries. Jeonghan shook his head. "No, let's do it. He got happy again when I said he'd be going to the same school. He's made some friends there and asked if he could bring them over to play in the field one day." Jeonghan said, brushing Seungcheol's bangs back "Okay.." Seungcheol whispered, keeping his hands firmly on Jeonghan's hips. "I contacted the landowner during dinner, and he said that he can sign off the land starting tomorrow." Jeonghan casually sat Seungcheol down. "Already? I would think that the weekend-" "His flight is Saturday." Seungcheol interrupted. "So.. I want you to go to the property and check it out. Make sure you like it and if you do," Seungcheol paused with a smile, "go ahead and sign for it." Jeonghan's eyes widened. "Me? But-" "I'll cosign it later, Love." He kissed Jeonghan's hand. "But if you don't want to, I understand." He said seriously. Jeonghan looked around and nodded. "I'll do it, Cheol.. I want what's best for them." He whispered and leaned in. Their kiss was short, but love was put all in it. Jeonghan yawned heavily and Seungcheol couldn't help but laugh a bit. "Go to bed, Love." He kissed Jeonghan's forehead before hooking his arms under Jeonghan's body. Jeonghan was a bit surprised, but held onto Seungcheol's neck as he was walked into their bedroom. Being laid down, Seungcheol kisses him once more. "I'm going to shower to get the day off, and then I'm going to hug you and bring you so close to me, Jeonghan." He whispered. "I hope you don't mind." "Go and come back quickly." Jeonghan said, pushing the male away before he has a chance to change his mind. Seungcheol hurried to go to the bathroom and tried to be silent so that the kids wouldn't be too disturbed. He came back not too long later and kissed Junhui and Hoshi good night before crawling into the bed to hold Jeonghan. "I'll be here to tell Joshua good morning," He whispered against Jeonghan's neck. "Thank you," Jeonghan said back, holding the arms that are around his stomach, "I love you, Cheol." "I love you so much," Seungcheol said, kissing Jeonghan's neck and bringing him closer, "get some sleep, Jeonghan."
Jeonghan closed his eyes and he instantly fell asleep. Seungcheol could tell due to the other fully relaxing. He smiled and fell asleep quickly too.
*** Jeonghan took a bus to the property. It wasn't fully to the land, he had to walk the rest of the way. But Seungcheol wasn't kidding that the land was farther away. He walked up to the house and rang the doorbell. He looked around the porch, seeing that the pictures have been honest so far. There's a wide open field and a beautiful house. His attention was then taken by the door opening. "Good morning," Jeonghan bowed, "you're Mr. Kim?" He asked. "Yes, I'm Kim Taehyung." He bowed back. "You must be Jeonghan, Seungcheol said you would be coming by to check the place out." Jeonghan nodded in confirmation. "Would it be okay to have more than three children in the house?" He stepped inside and took his shoes off. "You might want to build onto the house if you're looking to have a lot more," Taehyung walked Jeonghan through the kitchen, "but there are five bedrooms so far. Two on the first floor and three on the second floor." He explained.
Jeonghan nodded and looked at the kitchen island. "And the house was made to have construction on it?" He asked, feeling the counter tops and looking at the window. "Originally, my family wanted to make this like a kingdom." Taehyung started. "They wanted to add so much to the land and hand it through generations." He explained with a smile. Jeonghan smiled along. "That would be so beautiful." He said. "I'm so sorry that their dream isn't coming true." "No.. it was an unrealistic thing. We'll set up our kingdom in a different place." He laughed. "Oh, we also have an attic, let me show you the other rooms too." He said, leading the way. Jeonghan looked at each room. The master bedroom wasn't too grand, but definitely could be edited in the future. There was a bathroom in that room followed by one bathroom between the other two rooms and one downstairs. The attic was built for storage and the garage could fit two cars along with the heater. The washing machine and dryer were also in there. "I must say, this place is really great. Your pictures are true too. I've seen a lot of fakes in my day." Jeonghan folded his arms with a smirk. Taehyung bowed. "Thank you, Mr. Yoon." He said. "I know you and Seungcheol need some time, but please do consider this place when you can." Jeonghan walked with the other male to the kitchen and looked around once more. "I really think the kids will like it here," He said as he clasped his hands together, "Seungcheol gave me permission to make a decision for us." Taehyung looked at him with shocked eyes. "Really?" Jeonghan nodded. "He makes the money and provides for us, so I consider him to be the final authority." He said with a smile. "He told me if I liked this place, that I could sign the papers for it." He continued. Taehyung smiled excitedly. "Does that.. mean..?" The older male nodded. "I would like to purchase this house and this land at this time, Mr. Kim." He said seriously but with a smile. "R-right, thank you so much." He held Jeonghan's hands. "Please give me a moment, I need to get the documents." He bowed before running out of the house.
Jeonghan smiled and took out his phone. He opened the text window and let his thumb hover over the keyboard. He typed something simple. Jeonghan (10:45am)<3 He'll get that when he's on lunch break. He thought with a determined nod. The younger male rushed back into the building and had a folder close to his chest. Taehyung opens a chair at the dining table and shows it to Jeonghan. "Please have a seat," He bowed before sitting on a chair across the table. Jeonghan sat down and watched Taehyung take the pages out of the folder. "These are the details of the house and property that are on the website. I printed them out this morning." He showed the date. "The cost for utilities and furnishings are included." He pointed out. Jeonghan read over the documents presented. "I have the conversation I had with Seungcheol printed out as well, so all of what I'm showing you is what he saw in the last two weeks he's been interested in the property." Taehyung confirmed with the documents.
The older read each text thoroughly and nodded. "Alright," He picked up the pen that Taehyung put on the table. He breathed in and out as he saw the space for him to sign and then the co-sign next to it. 'If you think moving is best, then it's worth a shot.' His mother's words echoed in his mind. Joshua will love it.. and the other kids and the future kids too.. He convinced himself. His trembling hand steadied and he began writing his name in the space. He completed it before putting the date on the next space. "Thank you," Taehyung bowed, "you can move in at your convenience." He said with a bow. "I'll copy the form and send you a copy before filing it." Jeonghan nodded. "Thank you." He smiled and stood up with Taehyung. "Can you fax the copy to my husband's office? I'd like him to sign it as soon as possible." He requested. "Sure, can I have his fax number?" He asked as he took out a note pad along with his pen. Jeonghan recited the number he memorized and went to the entryway. "Thank you again, Mr. Yoon. I hope you'll enjoy your life in this house." Taehyung bowed. "We'll surely do our best." Jeonghan bowed too and walked out of the house. Time to walk home.. He nodded and walked down the path to the gate. The property isn't too large, but enough that it would probably annoy an intruder to walk or drive so far. He turned back to look at the small house. He envisioned it to have sections like a castle and banners and torches outside of it. He then imagined horses with carriages along with guards. He chuckled and shook his head. Unrealistic, but that would be fun. He turned around and walked away from the gate.
*** Seungcheol saves the last file on his computer before turning it off. He stretched his wings and looked at the time. He sighed as it's already past midnight. He looked at the document on his fax machine. He picked it up and smiled at Jeonghan's signature. Picking up his pen, he writes his name on it. I'm glad you like it too. Seungcheol smiled as he sent the document through the machine once more. He cracked his neck and picked up his jacket. He looked at his cubicle and smiled at the picture he had posted on the faux wall. Joshua drew a small family photo. They were stick figure characters, but each one was unique. His character had big, smiling lips and eyelashes coming off the side. Jeonghan had a small smile with his bangs curving upward. Joshua had a bright smile with his bangs in their bowl-shape. Junhui and a devious smirk with a martial arts pole strapped to his back. And lastly, Hoshi was drawn with a set of tiger ears. "Seungcheol?" He heard a familiar voice. "Hwasa-sunbae," Seungcheol bowed, "what are you still doing here?" He asked. She looked down as she pressed her lips into a line. "I have a little debt I need to pay off," She said, "what about you?" "I guess you could say the same thing," He started, "but more like working for a debt I will have in the future." He scratched his neck. She looked at the drawing with a smile. "How are they?" She asked. "Happy," Seungcheol replied, "that's what I care about right now. Them being happy and healthy." He raised his eyebrows as they walked through the room to the door together. She nodded and put her hands behind her back as Seungcheol opened the door for her. "Just remember that your appearance makes them happy too." She reminded. "Moon-mom would stay at the school late some nights with paperwork. I would be sad that I couldn't see her." Seungcheol nodded. "Thank you, Hwasa-sunbae." He bowed. "I'll make sure that I'll be able to see their smiles. At least once each day." He promised. She smiled and patted his shoulder. "You're doing well, Seungcheol. Don't ruin it." She said as they exited the office building. He bowed once more and walked to his silver vehicle. He opened it and turned on the engine. Holding the steering wheel after buckling his seatbelt, he sighed. I'm sorry for being late, Jeonghan. He apologized inwardly. He kept his hands firmly on the wheel, but put his forehead against it. He heard his phone buzz and he picked the device up automatically. Jeonghan (1:34am)Someone's at the door. Seungcheol widened his eyes in panic. Seungcheol (1:35am)Can you see anything throughthe peep hole? Jeonghan (1:36am)I'd have to turn on the porchlight.. Seungcheol bit his lip and looked around. Seungcheol (1:38am)I'm on my way, don't answerthe door, okay? Keeptexting so I know you'reokay. Jeonghan (1:40am)Please be careful.
Seungcheol put his phone down and cracked his knuckles. He shifted the gear to drive and headed out of the parking lot. He heard the notifications come in every other minute, signaling that Jeonghan was still near his phone. He checked the texts when he got to red lights, and the messages were just saying things like, here, and, I love you. He parked at the apartment and looked up at their door. He looked around and saw no one. Having caution, he texted that he would be opening the door in a minute. He looked around as he locked his car and walked up the steps. It was all quiet and dark, but no one was at the door. His foot hit into something and he accidentally screeched. The door opened automatically with a panicked Jeonghan. "Cheol?" He asked, turning the light on. They locked eyes before looking down. They both stand there in shock as they see a baby in a basket, holding a dark blanket and looking up at them. They look at each other once more in silence. "I.." Jeonghan was the first to utter a sound. Seungcheol held his heart as he watched Jeonghan bend down to pick the basket up. Seungcheol sees an envelope with the emblem. He looked around before walking into the apartment with Jeonghan. He closed the door and took his shoes off. The baby was quiet and so were their footsteps as they made it to the couch. "I'm so sorry," Jeonghan muttered, "you were out there for so long.." He thumbed the boy's cheek.
Seungcheol remembered the letter and picked it from the basket. He opened the envelope and took the paper out. "Dear parents, Made with quiet love, Jeon Wonwoo has come to you. He's a dark and mysterious man just like the location he was made. Take care of him well!" Seungcheol looked at Jeonghan. "The meeting at the library a few weeks ago.." Seungcheol remembered. Jeonghan smiled and felt the baby's head. "Look at his eyes, they're so cat-like." He commented. "Your dad's eyes, right?" Jeonghan laughed and looked at Seungcheol. Seungcheol nodded and felt the baby's hand. "Perfect timing, Wonwoo. You're gonna be going to a nice house." He winked. Jeonghan looked at Seungcheol. He noticed the older's tired eyes, red and puffier than the night before. He held Seungcheol's shoulder. "Help us move in tomorrow. I want our first day there to be complete." He insisted.
Seungcheol nodded and leaned in to kiss Jeonghan's forehead. "I'll call the office in the morning," He whispered, "you head to bed, I'll get Wonwoo comfy in our room." He urged. Jeonghan kissed Seungcheol before standing up and carefully placed Wonwoo back in the basket. "I love you," He said, not knowing if they'll have another chance to talk tonight as Jeonghan is exhausted. Not only due to the late hour, but from panicking too. "I love you too." Seungcheol said, standing up and putting their lips together briefly. "Too much, maybe." He continued as he stroked the younger's brown locks. Jeonghan smiled. "Better than not enough." He laughed before walking to their bedroom. Seungcheol watched the other collapse, sleeping right away. He then put Wonwoo in the crib with the sleeping babies already there. Junhui and Hoshi are a noticeable size difference compared to Wonwoo. You kids grow up so fast.. He inwardly commented. He finished the night and put his arms around the younger, bringing him as close as he can and smelling the sweet shampoo they share on Jeonghan's neck. He closed his eyes and instantly fell asleep.
Seungcheol is staying late hours and not spending too much time with his family.
However, their love is still strong. Especially with the new addition to their family, heheh
<3