cupid's gamble. exo

。nine

⠀⠀It was after classes at 4:00PM when Chanyeol decided to drop by Jongdae's apartment, his heavy, laptop and notebook-filled black backpack swinging from one shoulder. Chanyeol hummed softly along to no so song in particular, his head lightly nodding to his own beat. He received a couple whistles from various girls, to which he playfully winked back at. Internally scoffing as he saw the girls giggle, Chanyeol carried on towards his motor bike and was soon on his way to his one and only's apartment.

⠀⠀Once he parked in the parking lot, Chanyeol trudged up the concrete steps of the apartment complex, his left hand shoved into his hoodie pocket with his other gripping tightly onto his bag strap. Should I make up a random reason to see Jongdae? Chanyeol contemplated as he went up another flight of stairs. The shorter Kim boy might find his unexpected visit odd if he didn't come up with something. Chanyeol shook his head and hiked up his bag. No good, believable reason was coming to mind, and he sighed. Then, Chanyeol stopped suddenly at Jongdae's door step where—he paused to count—six pairs of children shoes rested. What the hell?

⠀⠀Chanyeol pounded on the door with a closed fist. There was a sudden jumble of loud, high-pitched voices from the other side of the door, then a loud shhh! before silence again. Chanyeol furrowed his brows and curled his hand to knock again before the door opened suddenly. There seemed to be no one in the door, but Chanyeol had the idea to look down and found a small girl smiling wildly up at him and waving excitedly.

⠀⠀"Hello, mister!" the small girl chirped, her head tilted cutely. "Wow, you're really tall! Like, really, really, really tall!"

⠀⠀Chanyeol rubbed the back of his neck as he laughed awkwardly and squatted down to reach eye-level with the small girl. "Ah, I am?" he asked softly, the girl nodding excitedly.

⠀⠀"Yeah! My big brother Jongdae is so short!" she laughed happily. Chanyeol cocked his head, frowning slightly. Since when did Jongdae have siblings? He wasn't aware of this in any way, shape, or form.

⠀⠀"Yah, Haesoo, come back inside!" a loud female voice called. The girl, Haesoo, turned around and ran back into the apartment, which—as Chanyeol could now see—was littered with toys of all kinds and kids running around. A breathless Jongdae hurried to the door, his fringe flat against his forehead with sweat. He smiled as he glanced at Chanyeol, then let out a tired laugh.

⠀⠀"Hi, Yeol," Jongdae breathed out as he slumped and leaned his head against the door frame. "Sorry, my nieces and nephews and some of my brother's friends' kids got dropped off here by my brother and them and now I'm in charge of them all," he sighed and ran a hand through his black hair. It took a moment for Jongdae to catch his breath, but when he did, he straightened up and stared apologetically at Chanyeol. "Sincerest apologies if you wanted something, but as you can see, I kind of have my hands full." Jongdae shrugged. Chanyeol lightly chuckled before shaking his head and adjusting his bag strap.

⠀⠀"Nah. My professor assigned us something but that's not due until next week or so," Chanyeol said mildly and carded his fingers through his crimson-dyed hair. "If you want, I could help out, though I'm not that good with children," he offered with a shy smile, rubbing his nape. Jongdae seemed to brighten up in an instant and nodded excitedly, like he himself was a child, and Chanyeol laughed.

⠀⠀"Can you really? God, you'd be so amazing if you did help me," Jongdae sighed happily, his hands clasped together. Chanyeol put on a fake pout.

⠀⠀"Was I not amazing before, Jongdae-yah?" he whined, prompting a scoff and eye roll from said boy.

⠀⠀There was a sudden thump in the apartment and a loud cry of pain, and Jongdae instantly spun around and dashed away towards the source of the clamor. Chanyeol decided to let himself in without permission, only to drop his bag and run into the nearby living room where Jongdae sat on a couch, rocking one small crying boy in his lap. There was another off to the side that had his arms crossed with a stubborn, nearly-indifferent expression on his face. Three girls, including Haesoo, gathered around them.