HYUN [ JJK ]

05

It's been hours since Jeongguk and Hoseok scrolled through the internet to find a new babysitter. They had a long list of numbers now, but none of them managed to get a yes from Jeongguk. He just couldn't pin point what the reason was, but he assumed that he was starting to have trust issues now. Looking for someone who's a total stranger to him and entrust him/her to look after his baby was a risk, but a risk that Jeongguk had to take no matter what it is.

Hoseok had been nagging at him for being so picky but Jeongguk would tune the latter's voice off, eyes busy scanning the laptop screen though he could tell that Hoseok was so done with him now. It's his fault too for agreeing to help Jeongguk looking for a new babysitter yet now he couldn't stop whining.

"Just pick one, will you?" Hoseok muttered under his breath, his arm propping his head. "What's so hard about picking a babysitter? Do what you did when you picked the previous babysitter."

"No." Jeongguk replied almost immediately. He had learnt from his mistake and there's no way he would be that careless again. He had been accused as a fuck boy, and now if he randomly chose one before actually knowing the person inside out, he probably would have to go through the same situation again. "Next."

Hoseok laid down, his grasp was no longer on the mouse as he closed his eyes for a split second. Jeongguk swallowed hard at the sight of his friend but he knew he shouldn't be mad, aware that he was being extremely picky so he simply let it slide.

"Talk it out, Jeongguk." Hoseok mumbled, his head landed on the same pillow Hyun was sleeping on. "You told me that Hyun has a trouble opening up to new people, right? He must have recognised her. Wouldn't it be hard for Hyun to suddenly be around a new babysitter?"

Jeongguk let out a frustrated sigh, closing the laptop before joining the latter to lie on the floor. His eyes roamed on the framework above him, voices coming from the hallway of the dance academy remarking they were no longer the only people there. He knew that he shouldn't go so hard with himself but this, a tiny bit of feeling to give the best to the little boy, took the best of him. He had made the biggest mistake by agreeing to look after Hyun, and now he had to face the consequence which was to keep the baby alive as long as he's living with him.

Jeongguk had zero knowledge in parenting, didn't even know how to make a formula at first. But he slowly had gotten used to this new life of his—being awaken up early by Hyun who would touch all over his face, going to bed late every time Hyun took an evening nap longer than he was supposed to and that resulted him to be wide awake at night. Life was hell for Jeongguk throughout the first week, but he tried. Tried to bear with Hyun and learnt about him more because that would make two months shorter than what he had imagined.

"Don't you think you are thinking too much?" Hoseok suddenly asked. Jeongguk almost bit his lower lip to control his facial expression, taken aback by the question thrown at him.

"Stop talking nonsense." Jeongguk replied before looking away from him. It's hard for him to control his expression when Hyun was lying in between him and Hoseok, hard for him to lie to himself and the latter with the baby sleeping soundly in between them, his soft whimpers were something that could break Jeongguk's wall of defence.

"Remember what you told me in the car back then?" Jeongguk didn't realise that he had been clenching his hand, couldn't find a better way to force himself to let whatever coming from Hoseok's mouth like a passing wind. "You said you might end up sending Hyun to an orphanage, remember?"

Jeongguk bit the inner of his cheeks, at this rate he wished he could ask his brain to not process what he heard. It took a while for him to mutter a yes, though he couldn't deny that his whole body was screaming to forget what he said before. Realising Jeongguk's silence, Hoseok nudged his foot slightly, startling Jeongguk a tad bit.

"Hey I'm talking to you." Hoseok raised an eyebrow, still waiting for his answer.

"I-" Jeongguk paused to wet his lips. "I-" Before he could speak out the words lingering on his mind, a whimper hit his eardrums before it gradually turned into soft whines. Both of them turned their head towards Hyun, but Jeongguk didn't take much time to pick Hyun up from the floor and laid him on his chest afterwards. "Hoseok, can you pass me Hyun's bag?"

Hoseok got up to get the bag Jeongguk had left on the couch and returned with a baby bottle in his hand.

"Thanks." Jeongguk said frantically, almost snatching the bottle out of Hoseok's hands. Sitting up, he laid Hyun on his lap with his right hand holding the bottle.

Hoseok couldn't bring himself to sit down when he saw the drastic change in Jeongguk's personality. They're no different from the boys at their age—they stayed up until late at night, would come to the night club at times to hang out with their friends. Jeongguk he used to know was not the one he was seeing now—not the one who thought of someone who's unrelated to him way too much, not the the guy who's this well organised. The old Jeongguk was known well for his habit of leaving his reference books at home and not returning the books he had borrowed from the library (because he had lost them), but this guy, the one sitting on the floor with a baby in his lap, the new Jeongguk—Hoseok could see how meticulous he was. For someone who never had experiences in taking care of a baby to be thinking far by considering the just-in-cases. Just in case if Hyun wanted his milk, Jeongguk had prepared one beforehand. Just in case if Hyun peed, Jeongguk had brought two diapers and a clean onesies before he left home.

"Guk." Hoseok called out, causing the latter to look up from the baby. "I don't think you need a babysitter. You look, or should I say are, so daddy now."

Jeongguk snickered, still in denial. "If I don't do this then I will suffer for two months."

Hoseok smiled. "I won't be shocked if you cry when you have to return Hyun to his father later."