Chapter Forty-four (1/1)

Joshua's phone was returned the same day after Jeonghan not finding any flirtatious texts or anything else suspicious.  The next week passes by and Jeonghan decides that he's due a massage.  Coming into the spa, he hands his card to the woman at the desk. "I would like a general massage by Jaemin today."  He said.  "I made an appointment."  He stated. She looked up from the computer and nodded.  "Yes, I see that, Mr. Yoon.  He is ready for you."  She said. Jeonghan bows and walks down the hallway.  He opens the door and sees the adult closing the lid of a trash can.  Jaemin smiled and bowed.  "Good morning, Mr. Yoon." Jeonghan smiles and sits down.  "How did your week go, Jaemin?"  He asked, watching the younger using a lotion on his hands. "Assignments are a bit tricky, but the rest is going well."  He answered before putting his hands on Jeonghan's neck. "Your muscles are a bit tense, are things going well for you?"  He asked, gently putting more pressure in his movements. Jeonghan sighed and closed his eyes.  "Replacing carpet is never easy.. One of the kids accidentally tore a hole in the carpet with his sword.. I told him not to bring his dojo home, but I guess the kids are getting to the ages that they don't care what I say anymore."  He said sadly. Jaemin hummed.  "My parents say they're dreading the days I start that," He chuckled, "but WanEr is disobeying more than I ever had.  She's too cute to be mad at." Jeonghan put his head back, keeping his eyes closed as Jaemin worked on his face.  "I guess your parents don't mind you having a friend over while they're gone then."  He brought up. Jaemin raised an eyebrow.  "What do you mean, Sir?"  He asked as he stopped moving for the parent to move to the bed. "Joshua said that your parents were in Seoul last week."  Jeonghan laid down. Jaemin started on the older male's back.  "Joshua?  You know him?"  He asked. "I should hope I know my oldest son."  Jeonghan chuckled. Jaemin stopped moving.  "You're Joshua's father?"  He asked in shock. Jeonghan looked back at him.  "You're surprised?  I guess Joshua doesn't talk much about us."  He pouted as he turned his body toward the table once more. "He mentions you guys.. but he never told me your name."  Jaemin stated.  "I'm sorry for not formally introducing myself, Sir."  He said as he moved down the older's back. Jeonghan waved his hand.  "I suppose Joshua just doesn't want to introduce me to his friends."  He said with a sigh.  "I haven't even met Tae, but I hear that he doesn't do well on his assignments."  Jeonghan closed his eyes once more. Jaemin hummed.  "It's a shame he can't come over, but I guess it is a good punishment."  Jaemin chuckled.   "Do you have a girlfriend?"  Jeonghan suddenly asked. "No, I don't.  I don't have a lot of time, it's already tough making time for Joshua and Tae."  He explained, moving to Jeonghan's legs. "What all do you do?"  Jeonghan asked. "I take part-time jobs whenever I can.  Every year, the price of law schools goes higher, I need to make more money to live well."  Jaemin said with a sigh.  "I'll be busy during semester break, so I doubt I'll see Josh too much.."   Jeonghan pouted his lip.  "What do you think about Joshua?"  He asked. "He's wonderful.  He makes me want to continue working and studying."  Jaemin said with a smile.   "Jaemin, I'm going to give you one chance to tell me the truth.  I'll believe what you say."  Jeonghan said.  "Are you dating Joshua behind my back?" Jeonghan frowned when Jaemin stopped moving his hands.  "Yes."  Jaemin gave his reply. Jeonghan turned around and sat up, looking into the male's eyes.  "And do your parents know?"  He asked. "Yes, and they adore him so much."  Jaemin said with a neutral expression.  "WanEr looks up to him like a big brother..  she's always excited when he comes over because he likes to play with her."  He said with a small smile. Jeonghan looked angrily at him. "I'm only going to tell you this once, Jaemin."  He said seriously.  "I told Joshua not to date yet, and he disobeyed me.  I don't want you seeing my son romantically.  I don't want you two alone.  Do you understand?"  He requested. "I understand, Sir."  Jaemin returned the serious expression and tone. "You can either be a good, obedient boy or another child who disobeys me, Jaemin.  You make the choice."  Jeonghan stood up.  "If I hear anything about you disobeying me, I'm not afraid of you."  Jeonghan said, picking up his jacket. Jaemin watched the male walk to the door.  "I prepaid, so I will see you next time."  He opened the door, leaving the younger alone in the room. ***

Monday, Joshua entered the gate of the college with his siblings.  He looked around with a pout when he noticed Jaemin wasn't there waiting for him.  He furrowed his eyebrows as he went through the halls and didn't spot the male.  He folded his arms and headed to the roof.  He saw no one and looked across to other buildings. He went to his classes until the end of the day.  He went to the parking lot without his siblings and looked around for Jaemin's gold car.  He spotted it and ran to it.  He looked around and pouted when the man wasn't there.  We have to work at the cafe soon anyway..  He pursed his lips. Looking back at the buildings, he sees Jaemin walking with his head down.  "Jaemin."  Joshua called out. The two make eye contact.  "What are you doing at my car?"  He asked. "I haven't seen you around once today and you haven't been returning my texts."  Joshua narrowed his eyes.  "Did I say something to make you upset at me?"  He asked. Jaemin looked around and sighed.  "Your dad said for us not to see each other romantically.."  He said. "Jeonghan?  He told you not to talk to me?"  He asked angrily. Jaemin nodded.  "I don't want to stir any fire.. if I'm not welcome in your family, I don't want to tear you out of it."  Jaemin said with a defeated look. "Jaemin!"  Joshua said angrily.  "How dare you do this to me!"  He took the younger's wrist and walked him to the car. They sit in the back together.  "You said you loved me, what are you doing giving up?"  He asked with a broken expression. Jaemin's expression falls and he puts his palm on his forehead.  "I love you so much, I really do.  But love has its sacrifices."  He said. Joshua saw the tears coming from the younger male's eyes.  "I don't want to give us up, Jaemin."  He said.  "We're in too deep."  He held Jaemin's shoulder. He pushed the male against the seat and put their lips together. "I don't want to go against your father though."  Jaemin said after kissing back for a moment. "My parents weren't allowed to date either, and look what it brought them: happiness with eleven kids."  Joshua said with a smile.  "Maybe we don't have to get married right now.  Maybe we don't have to have kids yet.  But I want to be able to love you.  I want to hug and kiss you freely.  If we can't have sex, fine.  But I need you."  Joshua admitted. Jaemin looked into the older male's eyes.  "You're not just humoring me, right?"  He asked with tears. "I'm dating you to marry you.  You're turning into my world, Jaemin.  I fell for you quickly."  He laughed pathetically. "I did too."  Jaemin chuckled.  "I want to try again."  He said. Joshua stared at him.  "What do you mean?"  He asked. "I want to try getting accepted by your family again."  He said.  "Let's obey Jeonghan and not see each other without their knowledge."  He suggested.  "It's going to be tough, but love has its tests." Joshua smiled and nodded.  "Can you drive me to the cafe?"  He requested. "I can.  Let's work hard together, Joshua-ssi."  Jaemin replies. They move to the front seats and go to the cafe for the evening.

*** "I knew it,"  Jeonghan paced back and forth in his bedroom, "I fucking knew he was dating Jaemin."  He clenched his fists and stepped angrily. Seungcheol rubbed his eyes before sitting back against his bed.  "Well what do you think about Jaemin?"  He asked, trying to remember his characteristics he's learned from Joshua's story telling and Seungkwan's gossip.  He works a lot and studies.. sounds kinda like me..  He held his chin.  "He's some guy who thinks he can date my son, in secret, if I might add."  Jeonghan folded his arms.  "He's no good for my Joshu-ji."  He said, putting his nose higher. "What makes him not good for Joshua?  What has he done to make you upset?"  Seungcheol asked with his eyes closed. Jeonghan huffed.  "Who does he think he is dating my son without permission?!"  He asked angrily.  "He could have said, 'Hey dad, I want to date this person.'  But noooo!"  Jeonghan shouted. "Would him asking make any difference in your response?"  Seungcheol asked, finally looking at Jeonghan. "No.  The answer is no, Seungcheol.  My Joshua needs someone better."  Jeonghan said stubbornly.  "We didn't raise him with love for him to go and get himself a boy who doesn't care for him."  He continued. Seungcheol hummed.  "I agree,"  He sat up properly, "I want to talk with Jaemin."  He said. "Why?" "I want to know what kind of man he is."  Seungcheol said.  "I agree with you, he can't just secretly date Joshua."  He said, cracking his neck.  "So before you ban him completely, let me meet him."  He requested. "Fine."  Jeonghan put his hands up.  "Even if you say he's such a good influence for Josh, or he'll protect Josh, I'm not accepting him."  He said honestly.

Seungcheol nodded.  "I know,"  He said in defeat, "he has no business dating Joshua without both of us consenting.  So hopefully after our little talk, he realizes what he did wrong."  Jeonghan looked at the male skeptically.  "Are you for or against their relationship, Cheol?"  He asked, folding his arms and tapping his foot.  "I'm in the middle but leaning more toward the against part."  Seungcheol said.  "He could act like a gentleman all day, but is he really good for Josh?"  He smiled. Jeonghan nodded.  "Good, we agree for the most part."  He sat down and let out his frustration through a sigh.  "Let's go to bed."  He said.

***

Friday comes by and Seungcheol decides to pay a visit to the cafe.  He looked around and saw that there weren't too many people there.  He chose a spot at the counter and looked up at the different drinks.  He held his chin and waited. He spotted a boy with blonde hair coming by with a tray of dirty dishes.  He smiled and bowed.  "I will be with you in just one moment, Sir."  He said, going into the kitchen to put the dishes away. Once the boy comes back, Seungcheol smiles at the bright attitude he's giving off.  "What can I get for you, Sir?"  He asked. Seungcheol hummed as he didn't see just regular coffee.  "Get me whatever Joshua likes to drink the most."  He requested. "Joshua?"  The boy put the notepad down. Seungcheol saw the worker's name tag and then made eye contact again.  "My son, Jaemin."  Seungcheol said, still having a smile.  Jaemin's eyes widen and he bows automatically, accidentally hitting his forehead on the counter.  "Ow.."  He hissed. "Jaemin,"  Seungcheol tapped the counter, "what does my son like to drink here the most?"  He asked. The younger stood up straight and thought for a moment.  "Caramel brulee latte," He answered, "I will make it right away." Seungcheol watched the boy go to the machine.  He looked down at the counter and traced circles on the smooth material.  He's respectful, but a little clumsy.  He took a mental note.  He looked back up when the male came back to his spot at the counter. "Here you are, Sir."  He said, putting the cup on the counter.  "Would you like anything else?"  Jaemin asked.  "Do you have time to chat?"  Seungcheol asked.  "I'd like to talk to you about Joshua, if you don't mind."  Jaemin looked around the cafe.  "I'm sorry if I need to work while talking, but I don't think I'll have a formal opening to talk for a while."  He said, looking back at the kitchen.  "Joshua has a special request, so he's going to be in the back for awhile."  He informed. A coffee cake to be exact.  "Good,"  Seungcheol said, "now I know Jeonghan must have gotten really snappy at you, but until you start giving me attitude, I will remain neutral."  He informed the younger. Jaemin nodded and looked down.  "There's not too much for me to say, really.  I love Joshua and I know he loves his family too.."  He said. "What do you love about Joshua?"  Seungcheol asked before sucking on his sweet beverage. "What do I love about him?  I could list everything to his big smiles to his little pokes.."  Jaemin blushed.  "But I think what I like about him the most is that he makes me smile.  I'm comfortable when I'm with him."  Jaemin answered, looking at the parent in the eyes. "I like it when he comes over, even if Taeyong is involved.  He makes me feel whole."  He continued, putting his hands together.  Seungcheol put his straw down and cleared his throat.  "Now what made you think it was wise to have a secret relationship with him?"  He asked seriously. Jaemin sighed and looked around at the customers to make sure they didn't need anything.  "It wasn't my idea to keep it a secret,"  He replied, "Joshua said he didn't want to tell you guys until we got serious.  He didn't want to cause drama for something that was only momentary." Seungcheol nodded.  "And what makes you think that you two are serious?"  He asked. "We aren't serious to the point that I'm going to propose to him unless you let me date him,"  Jaemin started, "but we're serious to the point we're telling each other our secrets." "Secrets?"  Seungcheol raised an eyebrow. Jaemin nodded.  "He hasn't told one person in the school that he's a stork kid."  He said seriously.  "He even introduced the other kids as just freshmen.  Not his siblings.  He thought I would hate him because he's different." Seungcheol pursed his lips and heard the front door opening.  Jaemin bowed and attended to the new customers before coming back.  "What do you think about him being a stork child?  What do you think about him having two men as parents?"  He asked. Jaemin hummed.  "Obviously, I have no problem with the same-sex concept."  He put up one hand with a chuckle.  "But I never really believed there were stork children.  I thought that was something from a kid's book."  He admitted.  "But when my parents took me to the orphanage where they found WanEr, I met a few crows.." Seungcheol furrowed his eyebrows as he sucked on the coffee. "They looked really sad, and the staff said that they were from the legends."  Jaemin said.  "I couldn't disbelieve it after that.  We came back to the orphanage a couple months later as my parents needed to set up the house for a toddler."  He explained.  "And those kids had grown a lot since we went." Seungcheol nodded.  "Five years in one year."  He said. "It really amazed me.. I never thought I would be dating or even being in a friendship with a stork child."  Jaemin said with a big smile.  "And for Joshua to tell me about it.. he was so scared to tell me.  I felt honored and..  Mr..." "Choi."  Seungcheol helped out. "Mr. Choi, I really love Joshua.  I really do."  Jaemin said.  "But if it's between ripping him from your arms or emptying my heart, I can't get in the way of family.  Family means so much.. I begged Joshua to give me another chance to prove myself to you.. but now I find it selfish that I did that."  Jaemin sighed. Seungcheol pouted his lip.  "Why selfish?" "Because that was one more chance to make everything you and Mr. Yoon worked hard to be destroyed.  I couldn't do that."  Jaemin bowed.  "I told Joshua that I would always love him though.  So I'll stay free and wait for him."  He said with a sad smile. "Even if that never comes?"  Seungcheol asked.

Jaemin nodded.  "Even.. I gave myself to him, I can't take myself back."  He let a tear drop. "Do you mean sexually or emotionally?"  Seungcheol asked. Jaemin raised his head and wiped his eye.  "Both."  He said before running away.

Seungcheol widened his eyes, watching the male retreat to the staff bathroom.  He stood up and held the counter top.  He then looks at Joshua who came out of the kitchen in shock. "Dad?"  Joshua walked up to him.  "Did Jaemin just run to the bathroom?"  He asked in fear. "I guess.. he was holding his stomach."  He lied.  "Charge my drink to my card.  I'm going home now."  He patted Joshua's shoulder and left the cafe.  

The boy is willing to live the rest of his life without Josh.. Shoot.

What's Seungcheol to say to Jeonghan after that convo?

<3