Chapter Seventy-five (1/2)
A week had passed and it seemed like everything was back to normal. Dino and Dahyun have gone back to their normal schedules while Haechan was said to be moving to a smaller town to get therapy from what happened. Dino looked at his baking partner who walked in and saw her name as Meiqi. Jeonghan's words came back to his mind, and he had an itch to ask. "Do you know a Yuqi?" He asked after greeting her like he normally does. "Yuqi? I never heard of that person." She replied. "Who are they?" She asked. Dino folded his arms with a perplexed expression on his face. "My dad went to you and Nana's house the other day and met Yuqi there who claimed to be Nana's sister." He said. "Oh well.. Maybe it really was dad's Chinese skills going whack." He chuckled and looked at his counter space. Meiqi hummed and waved to Shownu. "Thanks," She took her apron from him, "do you know who Yuqi is?" She asked. "No, why?" Shownu replied. "Nothing.." He helped her put the apron on. "See you later." She stood on her toes to kiss Shownu's cheek. Dino was looking elsewhere during the two's intimate moment. He sighed inwardly. I wonder when I'll have my first kiss.. He muttered to himself. He heard a knock on the wall. He walked up to the wall and knocked twice. "Stop getting your butt kicked, Yeosang. Woozi's gonna leave you." He said through the wall. "It's not Yeosang this time!" Mingi shouted through the wall. Dino laughed and went back to his spot when the teacher came in. He looked at Meiqi and smiled. "I want to make a cinnamon cream cake." He said. "And I want to make the apple pie.. I think we can combine them." She said while holding her chin playfully.
Meanwhile, Jeonghan stretched his arms as he walked through the doors of the cafe. He saw Ren talking to a customer with a cute smile. He chuckled as the guy there was totally into Ren. He rolled his eyes and sat down. "Son! Come here and take my order." He knocked on the counter. Ren looked Jeonghan's way and then shrugged to the customer. "What can I get for you?" He asked, folding his arms. Jeonghan hummed and looked at the menu. "I have to think about it first," He teased. The boy shook his head. "So what's up? I heard that Wonwoo's tutoring is getting better. Will you be expanding the house soon?" He asked. Jeonghan nodded and pointed at a drink on the counter menu. "He's getting paid well for hour sessions with kids. Some kids are from stork school, others are from the community college here or the high school down the road." He said. "After Vernon's done school this semester, he's gotta decide what he's going to do next." Ren nodded and handed the selected drink to Jeonghan. "Does he have an idea yet?" He asked. "No.. I think he's not really cut out to be a university student.." He sighed. "But he's trying really hard to come up with what he wants to do." He said before sucking the foam on the top of the glass. Ren sighed. "We're in the same boat then. I don't really know what I want to do either. Maybe I'll just apply to Seungcheol's company." He said as he looked around to make sure no one needed anything. "I already have my degree, and I know he'll treat me better." Jeonghan smiled and put his hand on the boy's hand. "Just like I told the other children, take your time deciding. Don't stress over it. Find what you love and do it passionately. That's what I do with Cheol." He winked. Ren grew red cheeks. "Seriously.. Josh said you talk about sex often, but I didn't think it'd be in public." He laughed. Jeonghan shrugged and sucked on straw. "When you get done right, it's hard to not talk about it." He said nonchalantly. The boy's cheeks were cherry color by now. The parent chuckled and took out his wallet. Taking his allowance out, he hands a couple bills to Ren. "The extra is tip." He winked. "I'm going home now." He waved. Ren bowed and watched Jeonghan exit the cafe.
***
The next day, Jeonghan stayed home to work on Minghao's carpet. The boy accidentally dropped his pallette. Jeonghan scrubbed the paint. He heard the doorbell and sighed as he stopped scrubbing the carpet. He took his gloves off and went downstairs and opened the door. "Sungjae?" He looked at the boy. "What are you doing here?" He asked. The boy bowed. "May I come in?" He asked politely. "Sure," Jeonghan moved out of the way and let the boy in, "can I help you with anything? Dokyeom isn't home right now." He mentioned. Sungjae cleared his throat and took his shoes off when he was motioned to. "I was at the Seoul station in my subway and I found a little piece of paper on the floor," He started, "I was wondering if I could see your and Seungcheol's handwritings. Just so that I can testify in court it's not your handwriting." He smiled as he kept respect in his stance. Jeonghan hummed. "Cheol and and both wrote in DK's baby book, I'll go get that for you." He smiled and went upstairs. Sungjae smiled at the mention of Seokmin. He opened the book and looked at the dove's letter first. He blushed as he read the things the parents had written about Seokmin while the child was growing up. He nodded and closed the book. "Your handwriting matches the note I found on the floor." Jeonghan put down his coffee mug and looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Pardon?" He said.
"The note on the subway floor, it's your handwriting." Sungjae stated seriously.
Jeonghan opened his mouth to speak, but he didn't know what to say. He looked around before locking eyes with the boy. "Are you accusing me of having something to do with the kidnapping?" He asked in disbelief.
"No, I'm simply stating that your handwriting is the same," He gave the book back, "but I'm curious. Do you know anything else?" He asked.
Jeonghan huffed. "I've told you everything I know." He stated. "Why are you asking?" Sungjae nodded and put his hands behind his back. "Would you have anyone that would be interested in hurting you? Maybe an ex or a family member you never got along with?" He asked seriously.
"I have exes, sure, but none that would kidnap my kids." Jeonghan said defensively.
"Who are your exes?" He asked.
Jeonghan huffed and held his hips. "Who are you to ask me, young man?"
"I have a warrant to question you," He held out a piece of paper, "my hobby is the subway. But my job is being a private investigator." He explained himself. Jeonghan looked over the document and saw that the document was signed by the judge. He sighed and held his forehead. "So what? Are you trying to convict me or something?" He asked angrily.
"I can tell in your eyes that you're not lying when you say you don't know anything about the kidnapping or have any part in it." Sungjae pointed out.