Ba Reum walked next to the tall caregiver, keeping the plushie hugged close to him and just loving the feel of it. He never had a plushie before, and he felt as if he should be paying it more attention, but he couldn't let himself go like that in public.
"There's an ice cream booth," Ba Reum said, pointing it out, "which flavours do you guys want?"
"Mmh, do they have something with lemon?" Hyuk's father asked, squinting at the menu.
"There's some lemon sorbet, sir," Ba Reum said.
"Please, say Chang Wook, and a lemon sorbet sounds wonderful, no cone for me," the man said, smiling at the little, who nodded.
"And what do you want, sir..uhm, Hyuk," Ba Reum asked shyly, but politely.
"Some banana would be nice," Hyuk said.
"A cone?" Ba Reum asked, wanting to be sure that he got Hyuk exactly what he wanted.
"Yes, please," the big man said, smiling at Ba Reum in a way that made him feel safe and warm, and he tried to resist the urge to put his thumb in his mouth.
"Can you hold the stuffy for me?" Ba Reum asked instead, holding it up towards Hyuk, not wanting to accidently spill anything on it. The big man took it easily and put it on his lap while he went to sit on a bench with his dad.
Ba Reum took out his wallet, looking at the money in there, and frowned. Last time, Hyuk had given him an ice cream with two scoops, and he wanted to say thank you now, she he needed to get two ice creams with two scoops, taking out a few coins, he was relieved to have just enough money to get four scoops in total, and went to stand in the row with a big smile, relieved that he could do this at least.
"He seems nice," Chang Wook said to his son, who was waving at Ba Reum standing in the row, the little waving back with a big smile.
"He does," Hyuk said, his eyes fixated on the little.
"You sure someone like that wouldn't fit with you?" Chang Wook asked, seeing his son look startled, and then look at the unicorn on his lap.
"He said he was an older toddler," Hyuk said, "They.... don't need the care I need to give,"
"Too bad," Chang Wook said, feeling a little disappointed, "but perhaps you two could try?"
"He's got compatible caregivers with the little agency," Hyuk said, closing the conversation just when Ba Reum came walking with the ice creams, holding them out with a big smile, and a look of excitement.
"They're artisanal made, so they must be super good," Ba Reum said, and Hyuk was surprised that the little didn't ran back to the booth after both he and his dad took the ice cream.
"Let's test it out," Chang Wook said, taking a bite, and appreciating the sweet and sourness of the lemon sorbet.
"Where's yours?" Hyuk asked, not licking his one yet before he knew that Ba Reum had one of his own.
"Oh, no, I didn't have dinner yet," the little said, as if this explained why.
"But you can have your dessert before," Hyuk said, "otherwise you can't have one,"
"That's fine," Ba Reum said, looking a little surprised, and shuffling a little, and Hyuk saw a hand shyly reach out, before pulling back.
"Do you want the unicorn back?" Hyuk asked, holding the stuffy out to him, and Ba Reum nodded, quickly taking the stuffy in his arms, and hugging it close, trying to not think about the fact that he would have loved an ice cream.
"I should be getting home now," he said softly, not wanting to bother the two anymore.
"Really? That's a shame," Chang Wook said, "my son was just saying how much he enjoyed your company tonight,"
"Oh, really?" Ba Reum said, looking surprised, and even Hyuk was taken aback, trying to fold his face in neutrality but knowing exactly what his dad was doing.
"You are a very pleasant to talk to," Hyuk said, "you seem like a very nice person,"
"Oh, I'm just normal," Ba Reum said, flushing and feeling pleased, "you're very nice as well, getting me the stuffy,"
"Don't worry, it gave my dad something to do," Hyuk said with a grin.
"And I did it wonderfully," the old man said with a grin. Ba Reum let out a laugh, and Hyuk smiled at the sound of the laughter, feeling warmth in his body.
"Well, I am very grateful," Ba Reum said, "I wish I could have done more to make it up,"
"Just stop for a talk when you see me," Hyuk said, "I would be happy for that,"
"I will," Ba Reu assured them, before thanking them again and insisting to go home. He felt sure enough that they were just tolerating him, and to be honest, he was getting quite hungry. His watch had also buzzed when he had stood in line for the ice cream, and he certainly didn't want to make a fool of himself if he wetted his pants in front of the nice caregiver.
Who knew if he was just like the other one and thought he should put Ba Reum over his lap.
Arriving home, he smiled at the unicorn, putting it on the table. Quickly going to the toilet and trying to press down as hard as he could, leaking a little.
And once that was done, he started to cook. He had spent more money than he liked at the fair, so he would have to see that he made it through the weekend until he got his next stipend. Just a few more years and then he would get the pay check as a police officer, and money would be less tight.
Yawning, Ba Reum took the more wilted veggies out of the fridge, and made a simple rice dish, topping it off with an egg. Barely feeling awake, he ate the dish and put the leftover in the fridge, where it could serve as breakfast tomorrow morning.
Going to the bathroom and again trying to press his bladder as hard as he could, pushing really hard with his fist, he was glad that a little more moisture escaped.
Even though it wasn't extremely late yet, he crawled in the bad, grabbing the unicorn very closely, and smiling at it. It was incredible soft and huggable, and Ba Reum couldn't help but smile at it while he buried his face in the stuffed animal.
"That's new," Chi Kook said, seeing the unicorn laying around in the couch and picking it up to take a closer look.
"What is?" Ba Reum asked, poking his head of the kitchen, and flushing when he saw what Chi Kook was holding.
"This," Chi Kook said with a smile, and Ba Reum hurriedly came over with the small tray with teacups on there.
"Oh, yeah, here I'll take It," Ba Reum said, trying his best to not rip it out of Chi Kook's hands, but feeling overprotective over it. Chi Kook smiled at the behaviour, glad that his friend had something like that in the house.
"Did your caregiver get it for you?" Chi Kook asked, and Ba Reum looked at him wide-eyed.
"Uhm, I got it from the fair, the caregiver's dad was there as well, and they won it for me," Ba Reum said, trying to not feel as if he was lying to his friend, which he kind off was.
"Well, I'm glad he did it," Chi Kook said, taking a cup of tea and surprised that even Ba Reum's didn't have any sugar of milk in it. Glancing at Ba Reum, who was putting the plushie back to the room, he got up and went to the kitchen.
Unsurprisingly, the fridge was empty, and Chi Koo frowned, feeling a little annoyed that his friend hadn't mentioned not having money for food again.
"I get paid Monday," Ba Reum said when he came back in the kitchen, looking embarrassed, "I still have enough to get through the weekend,"
"Yes, of course," Chi Kook said, "especially since you're invited for lunch tomorrow. Mom has been dying to try out a new recipe,"
"Oh, really?" Ba Reum asked, surprised, and feeling lucky to have an invitation.
Chi Kook nodded, smiling, and when he told his mum that afternoon, the woman had to go search a new recipe to try out and he and his dad were sent out for grocery shopping, with the express message to buy doubles of everything.
It wasn't an easy job to keep Ba Reum fed, but one she took personally. A child his age shouldn't have to struggle so hard to survive.
Ba Reum for his part was surprised to hear that Chi Kook's mother had accidently used a recipe for eight people instead of four, and he felt so lucky to get several Tupperware boxes home with him for the coming days.
Grinning at his stocked fridge, he wouldn't need to go to school hungry on Monday, and if he stretched it out, he wouldn't need to buy food for halfway through the week.
By Wednesday it began to taste a little funny, but Ba Reum still ate it as breakfast, unwilling to let it go to waste, and then hurried to police school, knowing that his old PE teacher would not appreciate him being late.
Of course, it didn't mean anything even if Ba Reum was still okay, the man being brutal during their physical class. Ba Reum tried to keep his head down, knowing he wasn't the only wone that struggled.
"Come on, bunch of wimps, my grandmother can do this course faster than you guys, and she just broke her ankle," the man called out, "again,"
Almost without breath, he joined the queue of students to do the course again, running, jumping climbing while their time was measured. Just during a breather, he felt the sharp jab of pain coming from his abdomen, and felt panic overcome him.
"What is it poopy pants?" the teacher asked when Ba Reum raised his hand.
"I'm sorry, but I need to go to the bathroom," Ba Reum said, hoping that the man would let him go.
"Bathroom? Do you think that you're allowed to go to the bathroom in the middle of a chase?" the man practically screamed at him while he squirmed, feeling his bowels contract and expand internally while he did his best to keep it in.
"But..," Ba Reum tried, feeling another hard cramp, but the man glared at him.
"Talking back, poopy pants," the man said, the end of his sentence sounding a little different when he noticed Ba Reum unable to hold himself.
There was some shuffling and some noise from the students, who had stepped back from Ba Reum when the instructor had started to shout.
"Well, well, well, and that's why littles don't have a place on the force, poopy pants," the man said, even when Ba Reum's face flushed when he felt it in his underwear, making it sag and quite sure that it was staining the back of his light grey jogging pants.
"I needed to go..." Ba Reum said, feeling shocked that this happened to him a second time.
"Ooh, poor little baby, messing his pants," the man mocked him, "seeing you are disrupting my lessons, I suggest you go stand there with your nose in the corner, where everyone can see what you've done, or I just might fail you for the class,"
Sniffling, Ba Reum wanted to protest, wanted to run and get himself cleaned, but a failure on the class would mean he wouldn't be eligible for the program anymore. Feeling his stomach clench in humiliation, he went to stand in the corner.
To his shame, a second wave of diarrhoea suddenly flowed, and by the "ews", sounding from the group, he guessed it was quite visible.
"Now, let's continue our exercise people, and if you pass him, don't forget to blame him for the stinky air," the PE teachers said, starting to shout again for the class to do their best.