Archive of Our Own

“Come on, Jinnie! Don’t you want to see what Santa has brought for you?” Chan called up the stairs to get his eight year old son to hurry up and join them.

“Oh! Maybe he’s been naughty! And he is worried about all the coal that will be filling the living room?” Felix, Chan’s husband and Hyunjin’s other dad, called out to tease him.

“I have not been naughty!” Hyunjin cried down the stairs as he ran to the living room. “If anyone has been naughty, it’s you!” Hyunjin stuck his tongue out at Felix as he passed him.

“Oh, you have no idea.” Chan muttered, poking Felix’s side as they all made their way into the living room.

Hyunjin ran ahead of his dads, entering the brightly decorated living room as he dashed to the tree. The room had been adorned in far too much tinsel and twinkle lights, enough to dazzle anyone with a sensitivity to light. Felix had gotten carried away with the Christmas spirit, and Chan had enabled every sparkling decoration he giddily hung to fill the room with seasonal cheer. The tree was the culmination of every sparkling adornment Felix had collected like a kleptomaniac magpie. Felix had questioned Chan and Hyunjin if he had gone overboard and made the living room too tacky. Chan had reassured him it was just tacky enough, while Hyunjin had just squealed as he ran around the room declaring he was the king of fairy land, an announcement that Felix had wished he had caught on camera for proof of his title in the future years. 

Hyunjin landed on his hands and knees in front of the tree, turning to inspect the plate of cookies that had been half eaten, then smiling proudly at the discovery. Hyunjin then turned to look at the pile of brightly wrapped presents under the tree. Hyunjin bounced on his butt, clapping his hands as he turned to look at his parents who came to sit on either side of him.

“Oh wow! Looks like I was wrong. With this many presents, you must have been super-duper good!” Felix said with a smile.

“I think Jinnie is just Santa’s favourite guy!” Chan added with a smile to his husband over their son's head.

“I told you I was good!” Hyunjin stuck his tongue out at Felix again, who tutted at him in response.

“Looks like Daddy has been good too. I think those blue ones are for him.” Chan said, pointing to the smaller, but still substantial pile of presents he had gotten for Felix.

“I think Dad has been naughty. I don’t see anything for him.” Felix teased.

“No! The Black ones are Dad’s! Did you forget?” Hyunjin corrected him.

“Oh, you’re right. It’s still less than us.” Felix giggled.

“Maybe Santa already gave me my gift last night.” Chan said to Felix who swatted at him over Hyunjin’s head to stop him from saying anything that would make Hyunjin ask questions.

“Can we open them now?” Hyunjin asked, not noticing anything in his parent's suggestive words, as usual.

“Go ahead, sweetheart. Pick whatever one you want to open first.” Felix said, turning his fond smile back to their son.

Hyunjin made a soft squeal of joy as he dove forward to grab the first present his outstretched arms landed on. Hyunjin grasped a medium sized, almost flat rectangular present. He pulled it onto his lap and glanced up at his dads for a moment before tearing into the paper. Once the paper had been removed, two smaller boxes slipped off a large pad of paper. Hyunjin placed the paper on his lap as he reached for the two boxes to inspect them. The larger of the two boxes contained a palette of watercolour paints, and the smaller box had a set of different sized paint brushes. Hyunjin smiled wide as he looked over the new art supplies. Then, like a cloud drifting to cover the sun, his smile faded from his face. Chan and Felix frowned with concern as their son’s bottom lip started to poke out as his upset became clear on his face.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Felix asked, putting his arm over Hyunjin’s shoulders and leaning over to look at him.

“I don’t want to do art anymore.” Hyunjin sniffed as he placed the art supplies on the floor and crossed his arms.

“Oh no! Why not? You are so good at art. And it always makes you so happy.” Chan asked, placing a hand on the floor so he could lean over to see Hyunjin’s face clearly.

“It makes me weird!” Hyunjin huffed.

“Why on earth would you think that, sweetheart? Your art makes you creative, and shows the world the beauty you have inside.” Felix tried to reassure him.

“It just showed the kids at school that I’m weird!”

“What happened?” Chan asked.

“I… You know that boy Changbin I told you about?” Hyunjin asked, biting his lip as he glanced sideways at each of his parents.

“Yeah, the boy you like?” Felix prompted.

“Yeah. I like him. I really like him! He’s so funny, and sweet, and strong! I wanted to show him how pretty he was to me… So I made him a drawing. I… I thought his face was so pretty, and such a lovely shape! So I drew things it made me think of! I drew a tortilla chip! And a pyramid! And an ice cream cone! But they said I was being mean! I told them that the triangle is the most perfect of all the shapes and that Changbin’s face was the most artistic shape! They laughed at me! Said I was weird! Said it was weird to give a boy a drawing, and then I was making Changbin uncomfortable with how I was acting! I don’t want to upset Changbin, he’s my best friend!”

“Oh, my sweet baby boy! There is nothing wrong with drawing what you feel!” Felix cooed.

“They shouldn’t have laughed at you. That was mean. You should never feel ashamed of who you are!” Chan added.

“What did Changbin think about the drawing?” Felix asked.

“I don’t know! I was explaining the shapes of him when the other kids saw it! I’ve been avoiding him ever since to make it better. I don’t want to say the wrong thing now! He keeps trying to talk to me, but I don’t want to be weird! He will never like me if I’m weird!”

“You’re not weird!” Felix insisted.

“I am! I look at him and see a beautiful triangle! I want to keep drawing him! It’s not normal!” Hyunjin wailed.

“Who cares about normal!” Chan burst out, startling the other two who turned to look at him.

“But… I want Changbin to like me too. He won’t if he sees that I’m weird. I’m afraid to be myself around him now.” Hyunjin explained.

“That’s just not true. Even if you act weird, which I’m not saying you are, that doesn't mean it’s bad. He might like it. Maybe, seeing who you really are, and how weird you are will make him like you all the more!” Chan explained.

“That never happens!” Hyunjin pouted.

“Oh yes it does! I’ve seen it!” Chan told him with a bright grin.

“What do you mean?” Felix asked, cocking his head at his husband, wondering where he was heading with his reassuring words.

“Ah, have you already forgotten?” Chan asked, his grin getting wider.

“What? Forgotten what?” Hyunjin asked, his curiosity taking over his upset and building his energy back up.

“Now, you know how I met Daddy when he was working for the first company I worked at?” Chan started.

“Yeah. Daddy was a diva pop star and you kept writing him love songs.” Hyunjin recounted, much more succinctly than his dad ever told the story.

“Love songs, sure, that’s what they were.” Felix laughed.

“Love songs!” Chan insisted.

“I think the lyrics are open to interpretation.” Felix chuckled.

“Anyway!” Chan said with a slight blush. “Did you know that Uncle Minho and Uncle Jisung met at that same company too?”

“No.” Hyunjin shook his head, his eyes wide and enthralled at the possibility of a new story.

“Oh my gosh! Yes!” Felix cheered, finally realising what Chan had been hinting at.

“Well, I think you might like to hear it. Uncle Minho has never been one to act normally, and Uncle Jisung, well, he just fell for it and fell for him!”

“They are in love!” Hyunjin cheered, happy at already knowing that the story he was about to hear had a happy ending.

“They are. But no one expected it to go like that. Uncle Minho also showed his feelings for Uncle Jisung in ways other people thought were weird, and that they thought Uncle Jisung would never like.”

“Tell me!” Hyunjin cried out, turning to face Chan with crossed legs, and leaning back against Felix.

“Okay, it was at least fifteen years ago now, and I had been working at this company for a while. I had just met your Daddy a few months earlier, and was still building up the courage to finally ask him on a real date and not just keep accidentally on purpose running into him at the cafeteria and buying an extra drink or sharing my dessert with him so that he would sit next to me and we could talk. Jisung had just signed a contract with us, moving companies after his popularity skyrocketed and he wanted more creative freedom to create his own music than he had at his previous company. He was an idol, just like your Daddy was. It was a big deal to have him join us, and we wanted to do everything we could to make him happy. Including hiring an up and coming new choreographer to focus on him with him to make dances for his songs with Uncle Jisung’s input. That choreographer was your Uncle Minho…

⋆✦☆❅☆✦⋆

It was the day that Minho was due to arrive. Jisung had been at the company for about a week or two, and I had gotten to know him a little in that time. He was pretty shy, but he was so passionate about music that I was able to bring him out of his shell by showing him my process and how we would work together to give him more creative control over his songs. Your uncle Jisung was very talented, and it was clear he had a talent for song writing too. He was excited about being involved in creating his own dances too, wanting to talk to the choreographer to incorporate the vibes he felt in the music into the dances for the songs. I had personally scouted Minho to assign to Jisung, having heard from a few people I worked with who had met him about how caring he was, and worked with his clients in a flexible way. So after seeing some videos to assess the quality of his dances, I had decided he was the best fit for Jisung.

So, on Minho’s first day at the company, I met up with Jisung and took him down to the dance studios to meet him. I knew Jisung could be a little uncomfortable with new people, so I wanted to be there to help him get more comfortable. I had also not met your Uncle Minho in person yet, even though I had been the one to recommend him to be hired. I had arranged for us to meet at lunchtime, so that we could fit it in between Minho getting settled into the company and Jisung had the excuse of going to eat if he felt too socially awkward with him. It’s so funny to remember how it was walking around the company with Jisung those first few months. See, your Uncle Jisung was already a big star by the time he came to work with us, probably bigger than anyone we had working for us at that time. So as we walked, everyone was starstruck and fawning for his attention. Your Uncle Jisung played it cool though, he would smile and chat to them casually, not seeming at all phased by all the attention, even if I knew that he was a soft and shy man under all that external superstar persona.

So, when we walked into the dance studio to meet Minho, I was expecting him to have a strong reaction to him. Maybe that he would want to take a photo with him, or ask too many questions about his life and songs. I did not expect him to react the way he did though. But to be fair, I’m not sure anyone would have. What he did was… Nothing! Well, said nothing at least.

“Hi! I’m Bang Chan, we spoke on the phone?” I said as I reached out to shake his hand. He took my hand but he didn’t even look at me. He was too busy staring at Jisung. A lot of people stared at him, but this was some next level intense staring!

“Hey?” Jisung sounded hesitant to me as he greeted him. I still didn’t know Jisung that well at that time, but it seemed like he was very aware that Minho seemed to be staring at him so much more intensely than anyone else did. It was like his eyes were doing all the invasive questioning for him.

“This is Jisung, as I’m sure you're aware.” I tried to break the tension that was building. “You will be contracted to us, so we will be expecting you to work with other people, but your primary role will be focused on working with Jisung, and helping him translate his vision into dances and concepts for music videos. Like I told you before.” Unfortunately, nothing I could say would seem to break the intensity of Minho’s stare and the weird energy that seemed to surround us. 

“Yeah, I want to be able to do a stage that conveys the energy of my songs. You know?” Jisung told him. Minho just nodded as he kept staring. Not saying a word. He had dropped my hand, but hadn’t moved an inch other than that.

“We were just about to go for lunch!” I ended up saying, hoping to maybe move the conversation to the cafeteria, thinking that might loosen Minho up a little bit. I was wrong.

“Oh yeah, lunch of broth and a plain chicken breast. Gotta love the preparations for a comeback.” Jisung tried to joke about the unfair restrictions that companies put on the idols. It seemed to snap something in Minho though, as he suddenly moved, so fast it made us both flinch. He darted to the wall where he grabbed a bag. When he brought it to us, putting it on the floor to rummage through it, I saw it was actually a cloth that had been bundled. I laughed because it seemed so out of place in our fancy company dance studio.

“Wow, are you from the past?” I asked as a joke. He just looked at me, almost quizzical before he turned back to get something from his bundle. He stood up and reached out, taking Jisung’s wrist and lifting it up to place what turned out to be a vanilla pudding cup into his hand. Then Minho gave him the first smile we saw on him. I will admit, it was a stunning smile. You know how your Uncle Minho’s smile always makes your Uncle Jisung’s face light up. It worked even back then, even that very first meeting when he was being quiet and staring. Jisung smiled back at him. They stared at each other for a moment, and I thought the ice had been broken and they might actually talk, but Minho just bent down, re-tied his bundle, then trotted out of the room without ever saying a single word.

“It’s pudding?” Jisung told me as he inspected the gift Minho had placed in his hand, once we were alone.

“Wow, he’s an odd one.” I laughed, unsure how to take how he had acted.

“Yeah…” 

“I mean, I had seen how hot he was when I saw his videos, and I was thinking, you know, if I didn’t have my interests elsewhere, I might like to ask him out. But… Wow. Even with that face and body, I doubt he gets many people asking him out.” I joked. I was honestly so shocked by how he had acted, and I wanted to try and put Jisung at ease. I was really hoping that they would get along, the future of my career kind of depended on it!

“Do you think I can eat the pudding?” Jisung just asked me, not giving any option on Minho or how he had acted.

“They gave you limited credits for the cafeteria, and have given you a personal dietitian. They never said you couldn't eat gifts. Knock yourself out.” I was honestly glad that Minho had given him the sweet treat. I hated the way the company tried to control how their idols acted and looked. So the loophole for him to eat something delicious was a good one in my mind.

We went the rest of the day without seeing Minho again. I did hear from some of the people I worked with that he took to the job quickly and had already wowed them with his dancing talents. So I was somewhat reassured. I contacted him again to try and arrange for a second first meeting, impressing upon him that he needed to talk to Jisung, and no matter how intimidating it might feel to be faced with such a big celebrity, he needed to just try and be himself and get to know him a little. For the sake of a happy working relationship. Minho agreed, and said he would try to get to know him. He was pretty quiet on the phone, so I figured that maybe he was also shy, and then since Jisung was such a big deal, he got even more shy. So I arranged for us all to meet before they had to start working on Jisung’s comeback routines. Jisung was busy in the creation and recording of his first comeback at that company. So I had to struggle to find time for us all to be able to meet again before they started to work together. I managed to get us some time, but I ended up running late, and walking in to find them both in the dance studio already.

I walked in, and they were laughing. I thought Jisung looked a little unsure, but I couldn't be certain. I was feeling relieved that they were getting along as I approached them. That relief was short lived though, as Minho smirked, and got a look in his eyes, you know the look. The look that makes you wonder if their cats actually are genetically their kids. Then he lifted his hand and he brought it down so hard onto Jisung’s butt that I heard the slap reverberate off the walls, followed by a squeaked yelp from Jisung. I panicked! I thought he was going to be fired. I thought I might be fired for hiring him! I ran to them waving my arms in the air and yelling. 

“No! No! No! No!” I yelled at them, hoping I could talk my way out of a lawsuit. “Please, Jisung, can we try and deal with this through HR before you get your lawyers involved?”

“Lawyers?” Jisung seemed a little confused, but I was so worried that I just thought he was upset at Minho.

“We can talk to Minho. We can do everything we can to work through this. Please, we care about your comfort and wellbeing. Let us try and fix this?”

“Fix what?” Jisung just looked at me blankly, and I glanced at Minho who only glared at me before his eyes went right back to staring at Jisung.

“The… The butt slapping…” I hesitantly addressed it, concerned Jisung might have some other names for it.

“Oh… Minho was just telling me about his hobbies. It kind of hurt, but it’s okay. I was asking him to share his interests with me.” Jisung explained.

“And his interests are…?”

“Butts.” Jisung told me plainly.

“I have to say, I have slapped a lot of good guys butts. But you take it the best.” Minho said like that was a perfectly normal observation to make to someone you had only ever met once before, or even ever.

“I just yelped.” Jisung laughed at him, and I felt my panic retreating. I was still confused, and a little unsure of Minho. I didn’t know if he was joking about his interest being butts, I didn’t know if he might even be a bit of a creep! I also didn’t know if Jisung was in on the joke, or what kind of dynamic this had established between them in the short time before I had arrived. But they had broken the ice, one way or another, so I couldn’t complain about that.

“So, we’re all good here?” I asked them.

“You told me to try and open up to Jisung. I did.” Minho told me, and I was so baffled by him, that I just accepted it.

“Okay. And Jisung, you’re okay?” I checked.

“Yeah. He likes cats too. He left his phone in his locker today, but he said he will show me pictures of the cats he has back at his parents home when we start to work together.” Jisung told me, and I smiled. Cats seemed like a much safer workplace topic than butts!

“That’s great! Yes! Pictures of cats. And only pictures of that interest, please? I would really rather not have to arrange a meeting with HR for all of us over pictures of butts.” I tried to joke. They both just seemed confused by me, and I felt pretty confused myself, so I thought the best thing would be to just move on. “So, I’ve not had lunch yet, do you guys wanna take this to the cafeteria?”

“I’ve not had lunch, not that what they give me will make a difference to my actual hunger.” Jisung laughed.

“I can come too.” Minho agreed once Jisung had said he was going.

We walked to the cafeteria in silence, all eyes on Jisung as always on the way. Jisung smiled back at people, and I noticed Minho glaring at them. I was a little worried his starstruck crush might become a problem, but he didn’t say anything to any of the people he scowled at so I tried to ignore it. In the cafeteria, I got some average lunch order, and Jisung got his specified meal planned by the company. I can’t remember what Minho bought, but he tried to pay for Jisung’s meal and was confused by the fact that he couldn’t since Jisung had specific meal credits and a pre-planned menu he could choose from that differed from the regular menu.

“What are these credits?” Minho asked us once we had a seat at a table.

“Oh, they like to monitor what us idols eat to keep us healthy and in shape.” Jisung said with a scoff, as he should, since the right diet is any food that makes you feel good and full!

“I could just buy you something else?” Minho offered.

“That’s kind of you, but the cafeteria won’t really allow that. It’s in my contract that I only eat pre-approved foods from the cafeteria.” Jisung told him.

“It’s stricter around comeback time. They have an image they like to maintain. And they think they know what will work for that. I personally think their idea of what is healthy is brutal.” I told them. I still stand by that!

“So… It would be fine to eat other things if you just ate healthy?” Minho asked us.

“As long as I don’t gain any noticeable weight. But they don’t trust me, so my options here are kind of limited. I’m not even at my own home enough to choose any of my own food most days.” Jisung commiserate. My heart ached for him. The life of an idol is not an easy one, just ask your Daddy. 

The rest of the meal, Minho was mostly quiet, just watching Jisung again as we ate. Jisung either didn’t notice, or as we now know was the case, didn’t mind. I talked a little with Jisung, but Minho was still kind of closed off. I wanted to try and get to know him more and understand him, but he just didn’t seem to care much for small talk. Once Jisung had finished eating his meal and got up to leave, Minho left without another word to either of us. I didn’t see Minho again for a while after that unusual interaction.

I had been working with Jisung a lot in the studio, and he had started working with Minho on arranging a dance for his title track that we were still finalising the finished recording for. I was more relaxed about Minho once Jisung started working with him. Jisung told me that Minho was good and really listened to him. My other friend at the company, Seungmin, also told me that Minho was a nice guy and he liked working with him. So I thought that maybe he was just a little nervous and maybe a bit strange, but I trusted my friends when they said he was nice. I had actually forgotten about the way he had acted until I saw him around Jisung again. It was quite a few weeks after he had started working there, and I was in the cafeteria with my friend Seungmin, eating lunch when we saw Minho and Jisung walk in together from dance practice. They got their food then headed to a table not far from us. 

“Huh… Is he allowed to do that?” Seungmin asked me while looking at them. I turned and saw Minho push Jisung’s approved lunch to the side as Jisung opened a lunchbox that Minho had placed in front of him.

“I don’t know…” I frowned, looking to see that the box looked like it was full of home cooked food. It looked healthy, but much more appetising and filling than the bland meal he had been given on his tray.

“Minho’s an idiot.” Seungmin said to me.

“Why?”

“He’s been here a while and doesn't even know the rules for idol’s meals. I’m surprised Jisung hasn’t told him.”

“He knows. Me and Jisung told him about the credits and meal plans not long after he joined.” I told him.

“Oh. Then is he trying to get Jisung in trouble?”

“I think… He’s trying to find a loophole?”

“He’s overstepping. Also, who brings someone else a packed lunch to work. It’s weird.”

“I thought you liked Minho?”

“I do! He’s great. But he is a certified oddball.” Seungmin said. He said it with love, but he was being a little too judgmental. We all were.

This thing of Minho bringing Jisung his homemade lunches continued. Every time I saw Jisung in the cafeteria from that day on, he had one of Minho’s meals in front of him. Even on the days when Minho wasn’t even sitting with him. And to Minho’s credit, they were much more nutritious than the cafeteria meal plan and Jisung was much happier with his meals. To tell the truth, I was a little jealous. I ate with Jisung a few times, and those meals looked so much better than anything they served in the cafeteria, even the stuff that wasn’t on the approved idol menu. Jisung never talked about it though, and I kinda felt bad for Minho. How he was clearly doing all of this for him because he liked Jisung and Jisung didn’t seem to be noticing all that effort. I thought that he was going a little overboard, too. And I thought he was just going to be disappointed with the results from all of these strange but well meaning gestures.

The next time I saw Minho making a grand gesture that no one seemed to understand was on Jisung’s birthday. Now, your Daddy’s birthday is the day after Jisung’s, and so I was a little distracted at that time. I had been building up the courage to ask your Daddy on a date, and I was using his birthday to finally try and win his heart. I had spent hours planning the perfect way to celebrate his birthday. I asked his manager about all his free days and then about what I could do with him in the time he had. I hunted down for the best gift ever, and I found out all of his favour foods-

⋆✦☆❅☆✦⋆

“Dad!” Hyunjin whined, pulling Chan out of his journey into his love filled nostalgia. “I know all this! You told me about the star light dinner and the necklace that looked like sunlight! I want to hear about Kitty-Uncle being weird like me and winning the love of his life!”

“Oh right.” Chan chuckled, glancing behind Hyunjin to see Felix beaming at him, his face still full of the radiant light and joy that made him fall for him the first time he saw him. “I just get carried away with how much I love your Daddy sometimes.”

“I know! It’s gross! Tell me about other people!” Hyunjin said as Felix chuckled.

“We can relive our date on new years, your parents are having Jinnie for a sleepover with his cousins.” Felix told him.

“Freezing cold starlight meal?” Chan chuckled.

“I’m sure we can find a way to stay warm.” Felix said with a wink and a smirk.

“Shut up! This is boring! You two are boring! I want to hear about Kitty-Uncle!” Hyunjin whined.

“The boy knows what he wants.” Felix pointed out with a proud smile.

“It’s an admirable trait.” Chan agreed. “Your Uncle Minho also knew what he wanted, and it was becoming very clear to everyone around him that what he wanted was for Jisung to fall in love with him…

⋆✦☆❅☆✦⋆

So, on your Uncle Jisung’s birthday, he still had to work. He was in the studio with me and a few other producers and staff as we were doing the final checks on one of his tracks. Jisung wanted to give his input and learn from watching us, so he was in the studio with us most of the day. It was not long after lunchtime, Jisung had kept working rather than going to the cafeteria to eat, when there was a knock on the door of the studio. One of Jisung’s staff that followed him around answered and let Minho into the studio. He looked around and walked right up to Jisung without saying anything to anyone else.

“Hey Minho!” Jisung greeted him with a smile.

“It’s your birthday today?” Minho replied, I saw the others in the room exchanging some glances about how blunt he was being.

“Yeah! My birthday gift is more work!” Jisung chuckled, getting laughs from the other producers in the room.

“Oh. Here.” Minho passed him a wad of paper, then rummaged in his bag to find the packed lunch he had brought for Jisung that day. “I missed you at lunch.” He told him as he pressed him the container wrapped in one of his bundles.

“What’s that on your bag?” I asked him, having seen a brightly coloured keychain jiggling around when he had been rummaging in his bag for Jisung’s lunch.

“Oh… This.” Minho lifted the keyring, and it was actually a cutely decorated card holder with Jisung’s most recent album’s photocard in it. Minho made a strange face, scrunching up his nose and almost sneering as he showed his front teeth, like he was trying to look disgusted. As if he hadn’t made the choice to put Jisung’s photo on his bag and displayed it for everyone to see.

“Doesn't he work here?” One of the staff asked another as Jisung was looking at the photo card.

“Yeah, it’s the new choreographer, Lee something.” Another muttered.

“Oh good. I thought a stalker had just got past security.” One of the producers whispered too loud and got a titter of laughs.

“You carry my photo around with you?” Jisung asked Minho as he smiled up at him.

“Idiot.” Minho said as he shrugged before turning to leave without another word.

“What did he give you?” I asked Jisung, trying to ignore the judgmental whispers around us.

“Oh!” Jisung placed his lunch on the floor before he examined the paper Minho had given him. “It’s… It’s like coupons? Handwritten. A lot of them are types of meals. I think he will cook them for me?”

“Oh that’s… Sweet?” I was so unsure if it was. It felt a little cheap and strange to me, but I knew that it was the thought of a gift that mattered, not the cost. So I wanted to be happy about it.

“That’s super weird.” One of Jisung’s staff blurted out.

“Right. They only just met right? Why is he giving him a ten year relationship style gift?”

“Yeah, does he have a sexy massage coupon in there as well?”

“Oh my god! That’s his game! He’s trying to get Jisung naked without questions being asked!” The staff were gossiping. I thought they were being mean and unfair to Minho, but I did agree that it was an unusual gift for people who had only known each other for a few months at most. 

“Oh look! The seaweed soup is already ticked off as redeemed.” Jisung said, not seeming to even be paying what was being said around him any attention. “Do you think that’s what he got me for my lunch today?” Jisung looked up at me, and seemed happy enough at the idea of his birthday lunch.

“That makes sense.” I agreed as Jisung carefully placed his coupons in his pocket then seemed to just ignore what had just happened to pay attention back to the production we were supposed to be doing. 

I might have been judging Minho a little unfairly on his gift to Jisung, but that was because of how long and how much money I had spent on your Daddy’s birthday gifts and celebration. It’s not fair to compare to others like that though, and besides, I never thought to ask Jisung how he felt about his gift. I was too preoccupied planning your Daddy’s birthday and trying to get my work done in time to be able to spend it with him. Minho wasn’t done with his birthday gifts for Jisung, though. The next one came a couple of days later. I was in the cafeteria with Jisung and a few other people. Jisung had his assigned meal in front of him, but he hadn’t touched it. He was just waiting, probably for the meal he knew Minho would be giving him. He was right to wait, as not long after we had all sat down, Minho came over holding a lunch box and something else for Jisung.

“I can’t eat with you today.” Minho said as he pushed Jisung’s tray away like it had personally upset him and placed the lunchbox in front of him.

“You are eating though, yeah?” Jisung asked, his eyes lighting up as he looked over his fresh home cooked food.

“I have a sandwich I can eat in the dance studio.” Minho explained, watching Jisung closely as he took his first bite. “Oh. Since you liked my photo card of you so much. I thought you needed your own. But it’s bigger, because my face is better.”

Minho then handed him the other thing he had been holding, and Jisung took it then burst out laughing as he dropped it lightly to the table. All of us at the table looked to see, we were very curious, and it turned out to be a framed picture of Minho. The frame was pink and sparkly, and the picture had little doodles all over it. Minho had drawn hearts and a label next to his face saying ‘Jisung’s soulmate’.

“I think it might be too big to hang from my bag.” Jisung said between snorted laughs.

“It will. Just try harder.” Minho deadpanned then just left.

“Is he being for real?” One of the guys we were sitting with asked.

“Is he making fun of Jisung?”

“I don’t think so… He’s being weird though. Acting like Jisung is the one who likes him and not the other way around.”

“This is like a ten year old girl with a crush. He has to be joking.” 

Jisung ignored the others talking as he placed the picture on the table next to him, still laughing as he started to eat, looking like the photo was his dinner companion. I really didn’t know what to think at this point. Jisung didn’t seem upset, and that was what I cared the most about. Minho was a nice guy, and I liked him. But I did think Minho was being very peculiar, and that he had no chance of winning Jisung’s affection with these gestures. But, as often happens, your Dad was being dumb, and I was very wrong.

All this time they had been at the company and working together, and I’d still never even really seen them have a real conversation together. The first time I saw them talking properly, I ended up just feeling even more baffled by Minho and how he was with Jisung.

It was not long after your Daddy and Jisung’s birthdays when I was with Minho at the company, and we were on our way to meet them. I forget what me and Minho had been in a meeting about, but it was probably some updates on Jisung’s image or something, it wasn’t important, and Jisung hadn't even been there. We were going to meet with Jisung to get lunch together before they went to dance practice. When we arrived, your Daddy was with Jisung, and they were talking about something. We walked up to them, and I quietly wrapped my arm around your Daddy, since we were dating by that time, and Minho stood in front of Jisung, staring at him again.

“I really could use a real break!” Your daddy was saying to Jisung. 

“I know, right? Even when I’m not working I feel like I’m working. I’ve still got to post, I still get photographed.” Jisung agreed.

“Oh right! It’s so strange, like, setting trends and being seen is a part of our job!”

“Yeah! Like, I’m just here singing my songs, why am I considered a social influencer?” Jisung mused as they chuckled lightly.

“Well, culture is often shaped and influenced by song and dance.” Minho said, interrupting their conversation and surprising us all. “You know about voguing, right? It didn’t get invented with the song. It was a dance that had been developed in queer and black communities long before the song brought it to mainstream popularity. It was a dance that gained traction as a form of protest and expression for marginalised groups. It was a part of what is called ballroom dancing. But not that kind of ballroom dancing. It was a part of the counterculture in the US. Highly stylised, and the vogue was mostly influenced by fashion poses. Dance has often been seen as an expression of gender, in many ways. So voguing was often done by drag performers as a display of their performance of gender. These ways of dancing and expressing themselves become iconic and indicative of these groups. Then the song popularised it, and it was still connected to its roots, but it had been brought out of the counterculture and into mainstream culture. So the dance itself has a deep history and meaning in culture. And the way it was taken and used again in the mainstream is also a cultural phenomenon.” Minho told us in one long breath of explanation. I was a little shocked. It was very unexpected, and very off topic. It was still very interesting what he had to say, and I thought it showed that his interest in dance went deep, but it was very unusual for him to just butt in and say all that without any prompting.

“Well… That’s… Very interesting!” Your Daddy said after a moment, he smiled at him encouragingly, but I could tell he was just as thrown as I was by it.

“Yeah! Dance definitely has a place in culture…” I said, unsure what I should say to contribute to what he had said.

“Wow! And I can hardly even do the dougie!” Jisung said, laughing hard as he seemed very unphased by Minho’s infodump. 

“I know. I’ve seen you dance.” Minho retorted with a smirk.

“Hey! I am good at dancing!”

“You are adequate.”

“I am excellent! Besides, I’m mostly a singer. Dancing is not as important.” Jisung huffed with a smile.

“Shall we get lunch?” I asked, not really wanting to interrupt them, but not sure what else to do.

“Oh? Sure. I just need to pack up my stuff. I’ll meet you there.” Jisung told us.

“Okay, see you soon.” I said as me and your Daddy walked to the door. 

Minho didn’t follow us though, he followed Jisung to help him get his things. Leaving me and your Daddy to walk to the cafeteria alone. We walked in silence for a moment, both of us musing about what we had just seen.

“I feel kinda bad for him.” Your Daddy eventually said.

“Minho?” I checked he was thinking the same things that I was.

“Yeah. Like, he is clearly so into Jisung, but he is going about it so strangely!”

“I know. I’m not even sure if Jisung has noticed he’s interested because of how he’s acting.”

“Right? Not to mention, I mean, Jisung is a big deal. He has people flirting with him all the time. He could be with anyone he wanted. And Minho is doing this stuff? The guy is just going to get crushed.”

“I know. He is such a nice guy, but I have no idea why he can’t show his interest normally. Everyone is kinda talking about it now, too. Minho is known as the peculiar dance instructor oddball who keeps acting weird around Jisung. It seems like everyone knows how much he likes Jisung except for him.”

“It’s so sad!” Your Daddy has always had such a soft heart, and he was genuinely sad for your Uncle Minho, thinking he would get rejected and hurt by Jisung. “I’ve gotten really close with Jisung since he joined us, and I just don’t think he has a chance with him unfortunately. He never really talks about Minho, and I’ve seen him be much more friendly with other people.”

“I know what you mean. I don’t think Jisung has ever shown any interest in Minho. I’m just happy he doesn't seem bothered by his attention. He is happy about the food Minho is making for him, and seems amused by his antics at least. I just hope it doesn't go too bad for Minho. I think he could fit in really well with us all. I don’t want him to feel like he has to leave if he gets his heart broken from rejection.”

I really did want the best for both of your uncles. I also really didn’t think Jisung was interested in Minho, or how he was acting with him. I know I should have asked Jisung about it rather than just assuming. Because you can never be sure about how people feel until they tell you. It was also wrong of me to join in the gossip with your Daddy, but we were worried about your uncle. I was also a little worried. We were in a workplace environment. Which meant I had to think about our jobs, and how to keep us all working together happily. So I was worried about asking what Jisung thought and maybe bringing Minho’s feelings to his attention if he didn’t already know about them. I didn’t want Jisung to feel uncomfortable or tense with Minho. I knew they were getting along smoothly enough, and they were working well together. So I was afraid to ask anything that might disrupt that harmony. I should have done better though. Jisung and Minho were not just my work colleagues, they had become my friends. I should have talked to them about my thoughts and feelings, and not kept it inside. Looking back, I feel so silly for not seeing what was actually happening between them. The next time I saw Minho and Jisung talking together really should-

⋆✦☆❅☆✦⋆

“Ho! Ho! Ho! Meow-y Cat-mas!” Minho’s voice broke through Chan’s story as he and Jisung entered the house.

“Hey guys! Merry Christmas!” Jisung greeted them cheerily as they entered the living room. “We would have brought the kids, but they are all so over excited and tired from their presents and special Christmas breakfast, and they just had to nap right away!”

“How many times do we have to go over this! Your cats are not children!” Chan said with a smile to his friends.

“How dare you!” Minho snarled.

“That’s it! You are no longer invited to Doogie's bar mitzvah!” Jisung announced.

“Doongie is Jewish?” Felix asked.

“Oh… I really hope not with all the Christmas gifts we gave him, and the bacon… Maybe I meant quinceañera.” Jisung frowned.

“That’s for teenage girls, and mostly only a thing in Latin American culture.” Chan pointed out.

“Oh… Whatever. Don’t bad mouth the kitties!” Jisung shrugged as he and Minho moved closer to them. Minho sat on a buffet he pulled close to the tree where the little family was still gathered on the floor, and Jisung perched to sit on his lap.

“So, what are you doing? Why isn’t there a tornado of wrapping paper in the air as you have a present frenzy?” Minho asked as they settled to join the other three in their Christmas morning celebration.

“They were telling me about how you two fell in love!” Hyunjin announced loudly.

“The best story ever.” Minho nodded sagely.

“He’s telling me about how Kitty-Uncle was weird and how Uncle Jiji fell for him anyway!”

“I’m not weird.” Minho pouted in a weak protest.

“You are weird. Everyone knows you are weird. But I like it.” Jisung said, turning to smile at Minho.

“Ahh!” Hyunjin cried out. “I need to know the rest of the story!”

“Yeah! Tell the story!” Minho yelled as Jisung chuckled on his lap.

“Well, we were near the end of the story actually. Well, not the end, because you are still together. But the end of how you first fell in love and got together. From my outsider point of view at least. I have no doubts it was a very different story for you two that I didn’t see!” Chan chuckled.

“Yeah! Dad and Daddy thought Uncle Jiji didn’t like you because you were weird!” Hyunjin explained excitedly.

“That’s because they’re morons.” Minho scoffed.

“Okay, so back to the story.” Chan continued, feeling the extra eyes on him as he went back to his tale. “So, as I was saying, the next time I saw them talking, it made me even more convinced that your Uncle Minho was just going to get rejected and hurt when Uncle Jisung realised he was interested in him. But I really should have seen past my assumptions and seen what was really going on with them. There was a large group of us in the dance studio, we were gathered to help prepare for a live performance, and so I was checking the track and Jisung’s singing while he danced, and Minho was making sure Jisung had the dance perfect. There were also far too many other people there, recording him, sorting out his schedule for the day, and some were just there to watch. It was too crowded in that little room. We were just taking a short break between run throughs…

⋆✦☆❅☆✦⋆

I was standing next to Jisung, who while used to the stress and bustle of idol life, still seemed a little overwhelmed by all the noise of the people who didn’t really even need to be there. What was being said wasn’t even important. People were just talking over each other as they shared their opinions, none of which were relevant to what we were doing at that moment. What they were saying could wait, but it felt like they all just wanted to feel involved and so were clamouring to be the loudest voice in the room. It was pretty overwhelming to be honest, even for me. Minho had moved closer to Jisung, staring at him as Jisung started to fidget with his hands, looking uncomfortable with all the people talking and having to wait for them to finish so he could continue with what he was actually supposed to be doing. Then, Minho shocked me. Not just me. He shocked everyone in the room. He, out of nowhere, and for no reason that I could see at the time, started to yell so loud that it almost hurt to hear.

“Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ahhhh!” Minho practically screamed. It echoed off the walls and startled us all into silence. We all just stared at him in shock. All apart from Jisung.

“Argh!” He cried out, covering his ear before laughing and slapping Minho’s arm. “Why do you have to be so loud!” Minho smiled back at him, looking just like a smug cat.

“I got possessed.” He said in a way of explanation.

“Yeah, by a demon. That is not news.” Jisung laughed.

Minho shocked us all again by starting to violently shake and shudder, his eyes rolling back and his head rolling to the side. Bouncing and jittering about like he actually was possessed.

“We need an exorcism!” Jisung cried through laughter.

“What is wrong with him?” One of the people in the room asked.

“I have no idea!”

“Isn’t he a dancer? Why is he moving his body like that?”

“It’s so weird!”

“He is so weird! Why is he talking to Han like that? Doesn’t he know who he is?”

The other people kept talking, but they were much quieter, and after Jisung finished laughing at Minho, he managed to get some order back to the room to do another practice run of his performance. At the time, I thought Minho was just being strange and loud for no reason. I thought it might have even added to Jisung being overwhelmed by all the noise. What I didn’t see at the time though, was that Minho’s yelling stopped the other people arguing for attention, and helped break Jisung out of his stasis of not knowing what to do. It made Jisung laugh and put him at ease. It threw the other people off balance and gave Jisung the opening to take control of his practice session again. I really didn’t value what Minho was doing for Jisung back then. Not at that time at least. I went away worrying that  I was going to get a call telling me I needed to scout a new choreographer for Jisung after this comeback since Minho wasn’t working out.

I soon got the chance to find out how wrong I had been just a few days later. Jisung had a busy schedule for his comeback, and so he was in the company building more time than not. I made sure to check on him as often as I could. I felt kind of responsible for him since I’m a little older and was teaching him about creating his own songs. It was late one night, and I was getting ready to go home, but I knew Jisung would probably still be in the dance studio practicing since he wasn’t in the recording studio where I had been. I decided to go and see him before I went home, to make sure he was okay and if he needed anything.

I opened the door to the dance studio and gasped at what I saw. Jisung was indeed in the dance studio, and so was Minho. But they were not practicing. Unless what they were practising was kissing! They were kissing right there in the middle of the dance studio! I was flabbergasted! Not only at not expecting to see my friends kissing in front of me, and at work no less. But because I had never thought that Jisung would kiss Minho. I had no idea that Minho’s feelings for him had been reciprocated that whole time. I left them alone, letting Minho take care of Jisung in a way that I clearly couldn't!

When I saw Jisung and asked him about it later, Jisung told me he had liked Minho from the first time they met. He told me how handsome he was, and how he was special. He listed all the things I had thought were strange and peculiar, but he told me about how much he had liked them. How Minho being weird wasn’t off-putting to him. It was actually why he fell for him…

⋆✦☆❅☆✦⋆

“So, that is how your Uncle Minho won the heart of an idol by being his authentic, and some might say weird, self. So never worry about being too weird for someone you like. Because the right people will always like you for exactly who you are. No matter how weird some people may think that is.” Chan finished his story with.

“Wow!” Hyunjin said in awe, his eyes wide and alight from the moral of the story. “Is that true Uncle Jiji.” He asked, turning to the two sitting on the buffet.

“It’s very true.” Jisung agreed with a bright smile, Minho’s arms wrapped tight around his waist. “See, I was very popular when I was young. But that popularity came from me being a singer and being famous. Everyone was always so fake with me. Worrying about upsetting me, or trying to be what they thought I would like. Or they were just trying to get into the circle of fame they thought surrounded me. They would just ask questions like I was a trivia game, and not actually care about who I was outside of the idol that I was when I was Han. Minho came alone and was so refreshingly authentic. He didn’t care at all about pretending or putting on a show. He was just Minho. He took an interest in me. He did things for me without expecting anything back. He wanted me to be happy. He cooked for me, and took care of me. He listened to me, and let me feel like I could be Jisung and not just Han. People thought it was weird, and yeah, it kinda was. But I fell in love with that weirdness. It felt real. And wonderful. And to this day, being with Minho is the happiest I’ve ever been.”

“It’s because I’m ideal, right?” Minho asked with a sly grin,

“Yeah, you are. You are weird, and unique, and ideal.” Jisung said before ducking his head down to give Minho a brief and soft kiss.

“Aww!” Hyunjin cooed loudly, clapping his hands. “They still kiss!”

“Oh yeah. That first time was not the first time I caught them kissing in the building. After that, it seemed they were truly inseparable. Two halves of a whole. Holding hands and kissing whenever they could. They would also… Uh…” Chan glanced around, seeing Felix’s mischievous grin and Jisung turning red. “Cuddle a lot. Even at work.”

“Oh gosh yeah! I walked in on them ‘cuddling’ more than once at work. I heard it too! Who makes those noises when cuddling, really?” Felix cackled as Minho glared.

“I want to make noises while cuddling!” Hyunjin cheered. “I want to loud cuddle Changbin everywhere too!”

“You…” Chan said, choking on a cough as all of the adults shared silent sideways glances. “Very nice.” Chan said, trying not to burst out laughing.

“So, why were you being told the story of how Minho won my heart anyway?” Jisung asked, changing the topic for them.

“Because Dad wanted to tell me how weird can be liked.” Hyunjin said.

“Yeah?” Minho tilted his head.

“Yeah. The kids at school called me weird because I gave Changbin a drawing that I felt showed how I feel about him. They said he wouldn't like me because I was being odd and weird.” Hyunjin told them.

“Kids can be such fu-” Minho started.

“Shh!” Jisung interrupted with a quick finger to Minho’s lips.

“Butt-heads.” Minho finished with a smirk.

“Yes! They are total butt-heads!” Hyunjin laughed wildly.

“Nice save.” Felix chuckled.

“So, tell me about this boy you like?” Jisung asked with a warm smile.

“He’s so cool! He’s really popular! Everyone at school is his friend! He is so funny! He also always likes to be a superhero when we play because he is so brave! He is so nice too! Always sharing. I really like him! And I like his face! And so I made him a drawing! Changbin is my best friend! But… I don’t think I’m his. The kids all said Changbin would find me annoying and weird. So I haven’t been talking to him. And I miss him!”

“Changbin… Why is that name so familiar?” Minho asked with a frown.

“Wait… Isn’t Changbin the name of Seungmin’s kid too?” Felix asked.

“Oh yeah! I totally forgot. It’s been a couple of years since we saw Seungmin and Jeongin’s kid.” Chan recalled.

“Wait… They live in the area… Does their Changbin go to the same school as Jinnie?” Jisung asked as Chan frowned more.

“No way…” Chan moved around to get his phone out of his pocket and find a recent picture of Seungmin with his husband and son. “Here, is this the Changbin you like?”

“That’s my Binnie!” Hyunjin practically squealed as he took the phone from Chan and brought it close to his face to get a closer look.

“Wow! It’s a small world!” Jisung laughed.

“How the hell do you not know that they are friends?” Minho asked. “Have they never met before?” Minho asked Chan.

“They have. But they were babies. You know, we usually only get to see Seungmin and Jeongin a few times a year to catch up. Life gets away from you, you know? And the kids aren’t at the age that makes it easy to have playdates anymore. When they’re this age, it’s so easy to lose track of your social life.” Chan explained.

“Oh, tell me about it! Our youngest, Dori, is such a handful! Like, his big brothers help, but having kids this age really takes over your life.” Jisung agreed as Minho smirked next to him.

“It’s not the same!” Chan blurted out.

“You have no heart.” Minho scowled at him.

“Do you wanna…” Felix asked Chan, glancing at the phone still in Hyunjin’s hands and then looking over his head to the doorway.

“I’m on it.” Chan smiled as he took his phone back from Hyunjin. “Jinnie, why don’t you open the rest of your gifts with Daddy. I’m just going to make a call, but I will be watching from back there, okay?”

“Sure!” Hyunjin grinned, looking excited as he seemed to only just remember the pile of unopened present under the tree

Chan got up from the floor and found Seungmin’s contact in his phone and pressed call as he moved to the doorway. Far enough that Hyunjin wouldn't hear what he said on the phone, but close enough to still see his son’s joy as he opened his presents. As the phone rang on the other end, he hoped that Seungmin wasn’t busy or out of town for Christmas. He was in touch with Seungmin and his husband Jeongin often, but they both had busy lives and so he didn’t know what their plans were over the holiday season.

“Hey.” Seungmin answered after a few rings.

“Hey! Sorry to call out of the blue, but I just found out the weirdest coincidence.” Chan told him. “So, Jinnie was upset this morning, and told me about this friend he has at school, and how he drew a picture for him because he likes him and the other kids teased him. Well, turns out this kid he likes is called Changbin. Did you know our kids were friends at school?”

“Wait… The Hyunjin that Binnie keeps talking about is your Jinnie?” Seungmin asked, sounding as shocked as Chan felt.

“Apparently!” Chan laughed, smiling as he watched his son cheering in joy as he revealed all of his gifts. “And it seems Jinnie is worried that your little Bin thinks he is weird now.”

“Oh! No! He has been so upset about, in his words, the prettiest boy in school ignoring him. He really misses him. I was getting ready to go down to the school and yell at this kid's parents. But you called me first, so that makes it easier for me.”

“Yeah, yell away.” Chan laughed. “So, I was wondering… Are you guys home now?”

“It’s Christmas day, where else would I be?”

“I don’t know. Maybe you went to be with your family.”

“Chan, I’m in my thirties. This is my family.” Seungmin laughed.

“Right, yeah. Okay, so… Do you think maybe we could all come over to spend the day with you? Minho and Jisung just arrived, so it would be the five of us coming. But I think it would be great for the boys to get to spend Christmas together and sort this misunderstanding out now.”

“Ugh, I dunno… I didn’t plan on hosting this year and… Wait… Did you say Minho is with you?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay. You can come over, but only if Minho will cook the rest of our Christmas dinner. I have been fighting with this damn turkey all morning.”

“Well, he was going to cook our dinner, so I’m sure he could cook yours just as easily.”

“Going to? Shouldn't your turkey already be in the oven?”

“We were going to have beef. Actually, do you have enough space in the oven for us to bring our food too? Make sure we have more than enough to feed everyone?”

“Sure. Our kitchen is too big for us. It would be good for it to actually get used right for a change.” Seungmin laughed.

“Okay, so we will be over soon, yeah?”

“Sure. I guess we have to put on real clothes then.” Seungmin grumbled before hanging up on Chan.

Chan chuckled and came back to his family in time to see Hyunjin opening the gift that Jisung and Minho had brought him. Hyunjin grinned brightly as he tore the paper to reveal a cat themed colouring book and a pack of glitter gel pens.

“More art stuff!” Hyunjin cheered happily.

“Very on theme for you guys.” Felix laughed.

“Okay, so, Jinnie?” Chan said, getting his son’s attention. “So, I just called my friend Seungmin, your friend Changbin’s dad, and he said we can go over and spend the rest of Christmas with them as long as Uncle Minho agrees to cook their dinner with ours too. What do you think?”

“Yes please!” Hyunjin jumped up and faced Minho. “Please Kitty-Uncle! Please will you cook for us?” Hyunjin begged with his little hands clasped to his chest.

“I dunno…” Minho mused.

“Oh don’t be cruel.” Felix chuckled.

“Fine. I will do this… On one condition.” Minho smirked and looked at Chan. “Admit that our kitties are our kids and it’s the exact same as raising children.”

“Oh come on.” Chan scoffed, but then looked at Hyunjin’s eager and hopeful face and gave in instantly. “Sure. Your three cats are your children. It’s the same. You are raising your own children too.”

“Good enough for me.” Minho smiled. “We’ll go pack up the food while you guys finish with the presents.”

Jisung and Minho left the living room to go to the kitchen, getting all of the food that Minho was going to be cooking packed into bags as they reminisced about how they met. Chan, Felix and Hyunjin finished opening their gifts and having their family Christmas morning before Felix got Hyunjin bundled up in his coat just to go to the car as Chan helped Minho and Jisung pack the food into the car before driving the short distance to Seungmin and Jeongin’s home. Hyunjin was excitedly chattering to Jisung in the backseat as they drove, telling him all about his friend they were about to see. Chan parked on the driveway and Felix got Hyunjin out of the car and tried to keep him from running to the house on his own as Minho and Chan gathered the bags of food from the boot. They all walked up to the door together, Hyunjin practically vibrating with excitement as Felix reached out to press the doorbell. They weren’t left waiting long before Jeongin opened the door with a bright smile, Seungmin behind his shoulder and Changbin peering around his waist.

“Welcome! Oh, it’s been too long since we saw all of you!” Jeongin greeted them warmly. “Come in!”

“Go on, Binnie. Say hi to your friend.” Seungmin prompted as they all filled into the house and Hyunjin and Changbin faced each other.

“Hi!” Changbin yelled with a wave.

“Hi!” Hyunjin said with a shy giggle.

“I missed you!” Changbin announced, looking a little shy at having all the adults watching them.

“I missed you too!” Hyunjin admitted.

“Okay! So, do you want to come and see what I got for Christmas?” Changbin asked, reaching out to take Hyunjin’s hand on his own.

“Yeah!”

“I got some chocolates! I can give you some! You like chocolate.”

“I do!” Hyunjin chuckled as they ran away from the others and into the living room.

“Oh that was too cute!” Felix cooed, following after to watch the kids playing.

“I know. I think I’m going to be sick.” Seungmin said as he rolled his eyes.

“Oh stop pretending to be a grump!” Jeongin laughed, slapping him lightly before turning to Minho. “I’ll show you around the kitchen. I’m so happy we won’t be having a festive food poisoning this year!”

“Hey! Don’t be so ungrateful! I am doing the best I can!” Seungmin huffed.

“Okay, come on, Jisungie, you can help me prep.” Minho said with a wink making Jisung blush as he took the other bags from Chan to follow them to the kitchen.

“So, you didn’t tell me you had a grandkid.” Seungmin teased as he and Chan walked over to the door of the living room to watch their kids playing. 

“Oh, ha! Ha! I’m not that old!” Chan objected.

“I gotta object. For the first few years of your relationship, I thought Felix was your son not your boyfriend.”

“You’re a sick puppy!” Chan laughed, shaking his head as he turned to listen to their kids playing.

“Why have you been ignoring me, Jinnie? Did I upset you?” Changbin asked.

“No! You did nothing! I was… I was embarrassed. They teased me about the drawing I made for you. They called me weird. I didn’t want you to think I was weird.”

“But I loved that drawing! I brought it home and my Dad put it in a frame for me! I have it on my wall!”

“You did!?”

“Yeah! No one has made me a drawing before! It made me feel special!”

“You are special! I like you.” Hyunjin said, blushing a little.

“I like you too! And I think you’re special. You’re so pretty! And you can draw so well!”

“Thank you! I got more art stuff for Christmas! I will make you something else! A painting this time!”

“Yeah? I want a painting too! That would be so cool!”

“You’re so cool!”

“So, are we still friends?” Changbin asked him.

“Yes! You’re my best friend.” Hyunjin shyly admitted.

“You’re my best friend too!” Changbin cheered before wrapping his arms around Hyunjin in a warm hug.

“Oh my gosh, my heart can’t take it!” Felix cooed.

“Feelings are dumb!” Seungmin said with a sniffle as he turned away.

“Are you crying?” Chan asked with a chuckle.

“No!” Seungmin denied. “I’m just allergic to sentiment.”

“It’s puppy love! It’s adorable!” Felix said, coming up to Chan and looking at him with eyes of adoration.

“Have you met my uncles yet?” Hyunjin asked Changbin.

“Dad said they are my uncles too. But I don’t really remember them.” 

“Come on! My Dad just told me about how Kitty-Uncle, Uncle Minho, was so weird that Uncle Jiji, Jisung, fell in love with him!”

“That’s so cool!” Changbin agreed, grabbing Hyunjin’s hand before they ran to the kitchen.

“Uncle Jiji! Kitty-Uncle!” Hyunjin called as they entered the kitchen.

“Jinnie!” Minho yelled back.

“This is my friend Changbin!” Hyunjin announced.

“We have met! Sure, you were little when we last met, but I remember you.” Jisung told them with a bright smile.

“He’s still little.” Minho added.

“I am not! I am a big boy!” Changbin declared, standing on his tiptoes and flexing his arms.

“Yes! We will be so big! We are going to be even taller than you!” Hyunjin added.

“We will eat lots to grow big!”

“Yes! We will eat and our legs will go woosh! And we will burst through the roof and we will be so tall! And so strong and amazing!” Hyunjin boasted.

“Oh, well if you are that tall, you won’t be able to do anything to stop me from biting your knees!” Minho said, chomping his mouth at them.

“No! Not my knees!” Hyunjin cried out and turned to run.

“I’ll save you!” Changbin cried as he ran after him.

“Raaah!” Minho roared as he ran after the two children to chase them around the house.

“I better go and supervise that.” Jeongin said as he left the room as Felix entered it.

“He is so cute with them.” Jisung sighed, watching his husband playing with the children fondly.

“Does it make you change your mind about having kids of your own?” Felix asked. 

“No way! I get jealous having to share him with the cats.” Jisung chuckled. “This way we get the joy of being the fun uncles and I get all his attention to myself.”

“I can’t believe that Jinnie is crushing on Seungmin’s kid.” Felix laughed.

“Oh yeah. Do you think it will work out? From puppy love to you being in-laws with Seungmin and Jeongin?”

“Oh, Seungmin would be so furious at that! I hope so!” Felix laughed as Minho came into sight carrying one of the children under each arm.

“I believe this is yours.” Minho said as he handed Changbin to Jeongin. “And this is yours.” he handed Hyunjin to Chan. 

Felix and Jisung walked over to join the others. Felix went to Chan as he placed their son on the ground and replaced his place in his arms. Jisung went over to Minho and kissed him on his cheek, making him smile fondly at him, like he was the only thing in the room. Hyunjin and Changbin giggled as they held hands and ran off to keep playing. Hyunjin felt at ease and overjoyed that his friend indeed liked him for exactly who he was, even if that was someone that was a little weird.

“This is the best Christmas ever!” Felix declared to the group of friends.

“I have to agree.” Jeongin said, watching the children laughing and playing together.

“I guess this might be a new Christmas tradition.” Chan suggested.

“Oh great, just when I thought I was rid of the lot of you.” Seungmin said with a chuckle.

“I can’t believe our love story became a reassuring story to your kid.” Jisung chuckled as he hung from Minho’s shoulder. 

“Yeah. I feel bad for Bin. He just had them two to tell them about how they met and Jeongin just asked Seungmin on a date. So boring.” Minho scoffed.

“I agree. Weird is better.” Jisung smiled at him before they kissed while Seungmin booed loudly in the background.