HYUN [ JJK ]

41

Hoseok bit the inner of his cheeks, couldn't bring himself to talk back considering how wasted his friend was.

"God dammit. I must be crazy." Jeongguk straightened his back and flashed Hoseok a smile afterwards. "Forget what I told you. Can you get me a mineral water?"

__________

"Who's Pororo's biggest fan? It's Hyun! Who's daddy's cutest boy?" Jeongguk paused while Hyun cackled, still couldn't get over how Jeongguk grabbed his arm and raised it in the air. "It's... Hyun!" Hyun's laughter once again erupted from his mouth, filling the bedroom and the sorrows of Jeongguk's heart.

All that left was waiting for Hoseok to fetch them, and then they would head to the casino. Jeongguk looked around his bedroom before his eyes landed on the baby's bag set on the corner of the room, on top of it was a Pororo soft toy that he bought for Hyun two months ago. A smile crept onto his lips when he recalled how awkward he was at that moment—apart from thinking that Pororo was a duck, he also was clueless if buying the soft toy would make Hyun stop crying for the whole day. It was the first thing Jeongguk bought for the little boy. If he could foresee Hyun being so attached to it, Jeongguk swore he would buy a more expensive one, the one Hyun would never get tired of.

"Hyun." Jeongguk pulled Hyun up and make the boy sit across him, couldn't help but giggling when Hyun blinked his eyes in confusion. "You... you can promise daddy one thing, right?" Without waiting for Hyun's response, Jeongguk reached for his small hand and intertwined his pinky finger with Hyun's. The size difference made his heart twinge for a reason he couldn't decipher. "You'll remember me, right? Maybe Jimin will give you everything you want, Jimin probably will provide you a way better life than I did but-" Jeongguk pursed his lips into a thin line and forced out a rather tight smile. "I love you. I'm sorry for yelling at you on our very first meeting. I'm sorry that I yelled at you when you couldn't stop crying. I must have scared you a lot, right?" Hyun's whimper made Jeongguk let his pinky finger go, ended up picking Hyun up and put him on his lap instead. "Being a daddy is fun, Hyun. The beginning was hard but slowly... and I don't know when it was, that I fell for you. To the point I stopped gambling so that I can stare at you for the whole night."

Jeongguk wrapped his arms around Hyun's torso, loved the scent of the talcum powder when he leaned in to peck on Hyun's cheeks. "Thank you for everything, Hyun."

The room then fell into a deafening silence. Sometimes it would be broken by Hyun's gurgles and cackles that of course, didn't fail to elicit a smile on Jeongguk's lips. He wondered if Hyun knew what was happening and what was going to happen for him to show off all his skills to Jeongguk. Jeongguk wondered if Hyun knew that night would be the last night they would spend together.

"Jeongguk." Hoseok's voice echoed before the front door was knocked from the outside.

Sighing, Jeongguk carried Hyun and picked the baby's bag up, almost dragging his feet to the door before turning the knob. There, before his eyes was Hoseok, waiting for Jeongguk to step out of the apartment with his hands tucked in the pocket of his jeans.

"Are you sure you have packed everything?" Hoseok asked, in which Jeongguk replied with a weak nod. "Then, I'll help you carry the bag."

The journey to the casino was killing Jeongguk that he couldn't even sit still, would always find himself shifting again and again. Even Hoseok was acting weird—he was so quiet, not even trying to create a conversation as he drove the car. Meanwhile Hyun was already sleeping soundly at the backseat, the soft toy was still secured in his tight grasp.

"How do you want to do it?" Hoseok started without looking at Jeongguk. "I mean... do you want to meet Jimin or do you want me to help you with that?"

Jeongguk sank deeper into the passenger seat and ran his fingers through his hair. "Look for Jimin and ask him to come out. I'll return Hyun to him by myself."

Hoseok nodded in acknowledgement. Before Jeongguk could realise, they were already stopping just across the flashy building, the neon lights were blinding his eyes that he had to squint in a tad bit. His knees were so weak that they might give in soon but Jeongguk braced himself to step out of the car, looking up at the characters that made up Seven Luck Casino. Didn't sure whether the night was too quiet or the speakers inside were too loud that he could hear the bass and party animals cheering loudly, could almost here the sound of pokers being slid on the poker table and the screams of victory coming from each corner of the gambling hall.

"I'll look for Jimin inside." Hoseok interrupted, snapping Jeongguk out of his thoughts.

Without waiting for Jeongguk's reply, Hoseok ran towards the casino. His silhouette then disappeared into the darkness of the night. Jeongguk huffed before leaning against the hood of the car, crossing his arms over his chest as he craned his neck to check on the sleeping Hyun.

How do you want to do it? Hoseok's question while they were in the car just now came to his mind again. Jeongguk was looking emotionless on the outside but only God knows the storm inside him, the tornado destroying every part of his being to the point he could no longer think straight.

The real question was, can you do it? That was what Hoseok supposed to ask because Jeongguk didn't even know if he could pick up the courage and return Hyun to Jimin with his own hands. He wondered how it would be—would Hyun cry again like the moment Jimin gave him to Jeongguk? Would Hyun remain quiet because he knew who Jimin was? Would Jimin be happy to have his son back in his arms again?

Jeongguk couldn't foresee what would happen, but one thing for sure, he wasn't ready to witness any of those.

"Jeongguk." Looking to his left, Jeongguk raised his eyebrows at Hoseok and stood up straight. "Are you sure the date is today?"

"Why?"

"J- Jimin." Jeongguk's fists curled into balls when Hoseok started stammering. "Jimin. He's not inside."

"Are you sure?" Jeongguk fished for his mobile phone to check if Jimin had texted him anything but to no avail. Their last conversation was a week ago, when Hyun was warded but Jeongguk's text was left seen. "Have you checked the billiard place?"

Nodding furiously, Hoseok exhaled in a rather exasperated way. "Call him." Was all Hoseok blurted before he made his way to stand across Jeongguk, hands firmly placed on his hips.

Jeongguk didn't notice that he was spacing out until Hoseok snatched his phone out of his grasp, pressing his thumb against the green button without a slight of hesitation. Jeongguk only managed to open and close his mouth as he eyed Hoseok's bitter demeanour—he could tell that the orange haired guy was annoyed.

Hoseok pulled the phone away from his ear before redialling, unaware of the fact that every of his action made Jeongguk's heart skip a beat. He bit his lips out of habit, feet taping the paved ground before a hiss escaped his mouth.

"Jeongguk, I don't want to scare you but-" Hoseok paused and handed the phone back to Jeongguk. "Listen to this."

Jeongguk glanced down at the screen of his phone, saw the timer of the call that remarked it was still ongoing. As much as he wanted to look tough in front of Hoseok, he didn't think he could talk to Jimin this time.

"No, I don't want to." Jeongguk shoved Hoseok's hand away before tucking his hands into the hole of his jacket. "I don't want to curse-"

"It's not Jimin." Jeongguk's step to the front passenger seat came into a halt. "It's the operator." Hoseok muttered under his breath, but loud enough for Jeongguk to catch the words. "The number is no longer available."