three ☆ k.jw | ✔

03

Slowly but surely, Yeonwoo and Jungwoo started making progress.

Two days later, Yeonwoo no longer cried when Jungwoo looked at or spoke to him.

A week later, and he stopped shyly hiding behind your legs when they were in the same room.

Two weeks later, he gave Jungwoo one of his toy dinosaurs before running back and hiding his face in your chest, much to the elation of the older man.

Seventeen days later exactly, Yeonwoo let Jungwoo feed him at breakfast one morning, such an ordinarily extraordinary thing that delighted the dad.

Three weeks later, and Jungwoo held him for the first time. You might have almost cried. Jungwoo definitely did.

A month later, and the three of you were watching PJ Masks, Yeonwoo absolutely enraptured by the TV screen. He'd never admit it, but Jungwoo also liked the show, almost as much as he liked the fact that Yeonwoo would now sit in between you two without feeling the need to hide or throw himself into your lap. You went to the bathroom for a moment and came back to see Yeonwoo on his father's lap. As soon as you sat down, however, he retreated into yours quietly. You had to hold back your snickers at that one. Later that night, after you got him ready for bed, Yeonwoo wordlessly climbed back out of his bed, approaching the door. You opened it for him curiously, watching as he walked back out to the living room where Jungwoo still was. He stopped in front of where his father was sat, opening his arms wide. Their first goodnight hug.

You taught Jungwoo what kind of food to make him, how to change his diaper, how to bathe him, when to let him figure things out on his own and when to help him. And you could tell, Yeonwoo was learning what a dad was too.

Six weeks after you and Yeonwoo had started living with Jungwoo, you were surprised one Saturday morning to have woken up all on your own, not by Yeonwoo managing to open your door and leap onto your bed with you, or by him screaming, or by a frantic Jungwoo who couldn't remember how to change him. Looking at your clock, you had even slept in. Listening suspiciously, you could hear Yeonwoo's giggles, but they sounded further away than his room. Sleep slowly receded from your eyes as you treaded out from the hallway, emerging by the kitchen. From inside it, you could hear the sounds of Yeonwoo babbling and Jungwoo's gentle tones replying, and it was accompanied by a delicious smell. You stood in the doorway of the kitchen, heart warming at the sight before you. Yeonwoo was sitting in his high chair, angled so that he could see Jungwoo and Jungwoo could see him as he attended to the stove.

"You cooked?" You questioned Jungwoo teasingly, letting your presence be known.

Yeonwoo turned to face you excitedly, holding his hands out towards you. Jungwoo had also whipped around to face you, the small and light chuckle coming from him letting you know that he thankfully found your question amusing as well.

"Why yes, I did," he proudly answered as you gave in to Yeonwoo's grabby hands, picking him up and setting him on your hip.

"Morning, bub," you kissed his head before peering around Jungwoo to see what he was cooking. "Ooh, eggs."

"Yeonwoo's is plain, not even salt or pepper."

"Good."

You took a couple steps back from the stove again, resuming your playful interaction with Yeonwoo, blowing raspberries on his stomach and gently tossing him around. Jungwoo spoke up again, "What do you want in yours?"

"Oh, uhm, just some salt and pepper," you said before bending over to hold the boy upside down, "Oh no! You're just too heavy!"

He squealed as you brought him right-side up, then did it again, bringing him even closer to the ground. After doing that a few times, you were already out of breath, stopping for a moment. When you did, you saw that Jungwoo had three full plates of eggs, then went to put Yeonwoo back in his high chair. You'd just gotten him strapped in and his bib attached when a warm hand was at the small of your back and Jungwoo was nonchalantly leaning over you to set Yeonwoo's plate down. The jolt you'd gotten travelled through you quickly, spiking your heart rate just a little as he moved away from you as imperceptibly as he had come.