From the crack of dawn, Hyunseung felt extremely uncomfortable being asked, “How is it?” by an uncle who had finished dressing to the nines.
“I think you overdid it a bit.”
This was all Hyunseung could say.
“Not good?”
Executive Director Park asked, looking deflated in front of the full-length mirror placed in the suit shop.
“Yes. And what’s with that bow tie? Are you going to a banquet or something?”
“Isn’t it your aesthetic sense that’s weird?”
“No, even a neighborhood dog passing by would say this looks weird.”
Hyunseung answered firmly to Executive Director Park, who was bristling.
“At least take off the tie right now. On your body as it is, even just the wine-colored suit looks too much.”
In the end, Executive Director Park regretfully loosened the bow tie and set it down.
At that moment, an employee who had been watching from a distance didn’t miss the scene and came over to offer another tie.
“How about this one?”
The tie he held out was a neat black with a diagonal strip of gleaming silver at the center.
“Hm.”
Perhaps because he’d already gotten attached to the bow tie, Executive Director Park didn’t seem interested in the tie the employee offered.
So then the employee changed targets and, looking at Hyunseung, asked,
“From your son’s point of view, wouldn’t this one suit him better?”
At those words, both Hyunseung and Executive Director Park looked at the employee at the same time.
“In what world do I look like his son?”
When Hyunseung snapped back, Executive Director Park pressed his lips together and couldn’t refute him.
“S-sorry. I thought you were a father and son with not much age difference….”
And then, right away, he took the tie from the apologetic employee who had bowed his head, tied a knot in it, and muttered,
“What’s wrong with me…”
Executive Director Park’s broad shoulders slumped like a balloon losing air.
“Sir, are you sulking?”
“No.”
“Or is it… are you going through menopause?”
“What, you little—?”
Just as Hyunseung was grinning mischievously—
Ding—!
A text arrived from Colt Jiho.
[ I’m almost there. ]
After checking the text, Hyunseung looked at Executive Director Park and asked,
“Are you really going with that wine-colored suit?”
“Yeah, and the bow tie too.”
“No, I told you, the bow tie is a no.”
The thought of being surrounded by men since morning already made him sigh, and he didn’t want to keep arguing over a single “bow tie.”
“Excuse me.”
He immediately called the employee over.
“Please ring up the suit he’s wearing now and the tie you recommended as well.”
He held out a glossy black card.
“What, why are you paying?”
To that question, Hyunseung just shrugged, as if it were nothing, and answered at once,
“Just… PT fees.”
Right. He was merely paying a very expensive training fee this way.
Looking at Executive Director Park and Ahn Jiho standing side by side, Hyunseung couldn’t help thinking what kind of combination this even was.
Right.
As for why the three of them had gathered like this…
“What did you say your daughter’s name was?”
“Oh, my daughter? Taeyeon.”
“That’s a pretty name. And your son?”
“My son is Taemin!”
It was because this was the day Executive Director Park’s children were returning to Korea.
‘But why am I here with them?’
Dragged out since morning under the pretext of checking a suit for Executive Director Park, then half-swept along, he’d come with them and only upon arriving at the airport did Hyunseung start to question why he was even here.
Well, he did kind of want to see with his own eyes the daughter who was like his very life….
He could at least come along to greet them.
Executive Director Park, glancing back and forth between the departure board and the clock, spoke anxiously.
“Why aren’t those rascals coming out…”
Strictly speaking, it hadn’t even been five minutes since the flight arrived, so it was still too soon for them to come out.
But hadn’t he parted from the children who were the apples of his eye, then waited with an aching heart for years?
To some extent, his current nervousness was understandable.
Before long, the arrivals gate opened, and people began pouring out.
“Taeyeon, Taemin…”
Lest he miss his children, Executive Director Park scanned the faces of those coming out one by one.
And then.
“Dad—!”
In the distance, a little girl with her hair in two pigtails, holding tightly to her kid brother’s hand, waved this way.
“Taeyeon!”
With a face that looked ready to spill tears any moment, Executive Director Park ran to the children’s side.
He’d known the man was a doting fool for his daughter but seeing it with his own eyes felt oddly unfamiliar.
Just then, under the brim of his cap, Ahn Jiho’s eyes turned red as he spoke.
“It’s kind of a moving scene.”
“Hey, are you crying again?”
“No.”
“What do you mean no? You’re crying again, obviously.”
Insisting it wasn’t so, Ahn Jiho pulled his cap down even lower.
“Can I shout to everyone here that Jiho-oppa is crying again?”
Hyunseung proceeded to tease Ahn Jiho mercilessly.
Just as the two were bickering—
“Kids, say hello.”
Holding both children’s hands in his own, Executive Director Park came over.
“They’re people who work with Dad.”
As children do, the two shyly hid behind Executive Director Park’s legs and peeked their heads out.
“H-hello.”
Executive Director Park looked back and forth between Hyunseung and Ahn Jiho, then let out a deep sigh.
“Let’s hurry up and go inside somewhere. With you tall lugs standing there like that, you’re scaring the kids.”
At that, An Jiho and Hyunseung looked at each other.
And sighed in unison.
“Ah.”
“Ah.”
With their black caps pulled down low and black masks on, their faces were hardly visible.
And perhaps because they’d matched all their clothes in black to avoid standing out as much as possible…
They looked exactly… like criminals.
Executive Director Park had certainly vowed to hold his daughter in his arms and play with her to his heart’s content today.
Right.
He’d told himself he’d do his job as a dad properly, to make up for all the times he hadn’t been able to play with them.
But…
It had already been a while since his daughter’s and son’s attention had been stolen away.
“Kyarurururu—!”
He appreciated that brat Ahn Jiho had rented out an entire kids’ café, but…
“Oppaaa! Again! Again!”
Because he had stolen his daughter’s entire attention, that handsome back of his looked annoying for no reason.
Maybe this is what it will feel like when my daughter brings home a boyfriend later?
Right.
In any case, sons should be played with by their dads!
Or so he thought, turning his head toward his son…
“Wow! Flame Man! You’re so cool!”
That was after Hyunseung had won his son over with a helmet.
‘What a cheap move…’
But watching closely, the guy was pretty good. He’d seemed to have no interest in kids at all, but he was playing with his son better than expected.
Ah.
He was grabbing the boy around the torso and swinging him in the air, playing fairly dangerously, to be honest.
“Shoooooo—.”
As is typical with boys, if you play rough like that, they love it.
“Kyarurururururu—!”
The children’s delighted laughter filled the place with noise.
Taking a step back and watching that scene, his nose prickled for no particular reason.
Right.
How had I ever thought of tearing myself away from little rascals like these?
‘I was such a fool.’
Just then, as Executive Director Park was lost in those thoughts…
Shake, shake.
Feeling his pant legs tugged on both sides, he turned his head to see his son and daughter hanging off him, grinning brightly.
“Daaad! Come play with us!”
“Play with me!”
“No, play with me!”
Truly.
At least at this moment, he had to be the happiest father in the world.
After playing to their hearts’ content, feeling like the skin on their backs might stick to their bellies, Hyunseung took everyone to a traditional set-meal restaurant.
“Aaah, open wide.”
Hyunseung took charge of the son, Taemin.
“Princess, no picky eating.”
Ahn Jiho took charge of the daughter, Taeyeon, and the two of them were waging a pre-meal war.
Ironically…
Only the actual father of the two, Executive Director Park, was eating his meal in peace.
“Feed yourself now. A man should take care of eating well, whatever it is.”
As if his patience had run out, Hyunseung put the fork directly into Taemin’s hand.
“Then, if I eat well, can I grow tall like Fire Man?”
At that question, Hyunseung glanced at Executive Director Park and answered, “Of course.”
Well.
It wasn’t certain, but since Executive Director Park was tall, wouldn’t he grow tall with the power of genetics?
Before long, to finally eat properly himself, Hyunseung took off the stifling helmet.
“Waa—!”
At the same time, exclamations burst from the kids’ mouths.
Even Taeyeon, who had practically been in Ahn Jiho’s arms, was now already leaning toward Hyunseung.
“Hyung, hyung!”
Suddenly leveling up from Flame Man to “hyung,” Hyunseung turned his head with a “What?” and Taemin asked with sparkling, admiring eyes,
“If I eat well, can I become as handsome as hyung?”
Again, Hyunseung glanced at Executive Director Park.
“Well, that I don’t know.”
He answered coolly.
And then, right away, he added in a low voice,
“Still, if you eat well, it might be possible?”
A kid is a kid—at those words, Taemin put on a resolute face and started diligently bringing all the side dishes piled on the table to his mouth.
“Hey, eat slowly.”
“To grow tall and handsome like hyung, I have to eat well!”
“If you eat too well, you’ll get chubby.”
“Uhh? I don’t want to get chubby like noona….”
“Hey! Why am I chubby!”
After a noisy meal ended—
Trudge, trudge.
They took a stroll through a quiet park to digest, and before they knew it, the kids, tired out, had fallen fast asleep.
Trudge, trudge.
Executive Director Park carried his daughter on his back, and Hyunseung carried Taemin.
And Ahn Jiho followed along, both hands full of bundles of gifts for the kids.
It was a strange picture. A very, very strange picture.
“The kids are all asleep….”
Unable to endure the awkwardness flowing between the three men, Hyunseung was just about to suggest they call it a day.
Ttiririring—.
Executive Director Park’s phone rang.
“Oh dear.”
Lest his daughter wake up, he carefully handed her over to An Jiho and took the call. The life of a busy dad, perhaps.
“Hello.”
A little ways off, Executive Director Park took the call.
“Mmm….”
Perhaps uncomfortable, Taeyeon happened to open her eyes and looked for her dad.
“Jiho-oppa… where’s my dad?”
“He’s just taking a call for a moment.”
At the sound of their conversation, even the younger Taemin woke up.
“Dad, where are you….”
In a voice heavy with sleep, he started to whine.
‘Well, this is tricky.’
In the end, Hyunseung handed Taemin to An Jiho and carefully approached Executive Director Park.
“Since you’ve taken away this precious, invaluable time, whatever conversation you’re going to have with me had better be worth it.”
As he drew closer, the content of the call became audible.
Though he couldn’t tell who the person on the other end was….
“If not, I think I’m really going to get angry.”
Judging from Executive Director Park’s uniquely threatening and high-handed tone, it didn’t seem like a welcome call.
Especially from the way his eyes were glinting sharply, the other party clearly wasn’t someone he was happy to hear from.
Soon after.
Having hung up, Executive Director Park realized both his kids had woken up, and he rushed back in a bound.
“What’s going on?”
Hyunseung stared blankly at the face of Executive Director Park, whose expression changed in an instant, then let out a small chuckle.
“My daughter, my son!”
“Mm!”
“Sleepy, huh? Shall we go home now?”
“Yeah!”
“I’ve got the rooms all set up. Let’s head back.”
Like Superman, Executive Director Park lifted both children up in his two hands, but since they were now fully awake, their eyes turned to Ahn Jiho and Hyunseung.
“Then, what about Jiho-oppa?”
“And the handsome hyung?”
“They’re each going to their own homes.”
“Ah, no! No!”
“Right! I want to have a manly pillow fight with the handsome hyung!”
Executive Director Park looked at Ahn Jiho and Hyunseung with a helpless expression.
“Y-you two… want to come sleep over at our place just for tonight?”
No matter how many times he saw it, the way he was at the mercy of his kids took getting used to, but….
“J-just for tonight, please.”
That was the very picture of an ordinary dad.
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