- Third Person POV -
"Hi, grandma! My name is Chanie and I'm almost four!" Chan smiled.
"Surprise!" Seungcheol bent down beside Chan keeping a hand on his shoulder as he talked to his mother. "I bet you didn't see that coming, huh?"
"Yeah, I'm a dad and this is your grandson. Sorry, I didn't introduce him sooner." He smiled sadly looking down at his knees. "I don't know, I was a little nervous, I guess... It's silly really. Even though you're not really here anymore I was still worried about what you'd think. I can already imagine you saying... 'Who let this child have a child?!' or something like that. Haha!"
"Papa, can I talk to Grandma now? I have lots of stories to tell her!" Chan pouted looking up at Seungcheol.
"Haha! Was I taking too long? Go ahead. I'm sure she'd love to hear them." Seungcheol unconsciously chuckled at his behavior and scratched his head before freezing at Chan's words.
"Grandma, I had so much fun with Papa this week! I bet he's the best Papa in the world! We went hiking yesterday and I saw his old fort. It was really cool! We kind of got lost though, but he found us!" Chan exclaimed excitedly and threw his hands up with a grin.
Seungcheol listened to Chan and gulped realizing just how much Chan cared for him.
"He plays with me all the time and he even brings me to work! I get to see him treat people all the time! His bedtime stories are the coolest too! It has dragons, tigers... And... And knights! Last night's story was about aliens!" Chan counted on his fingers.
Seungcheol couldn't take it. Tears surfaced in his eyes and his heart clenched realizing just how much his and Chan's bond meant to him. He bit back his tears to look strong for Chan.
"Oooh! But he makes really bad lemonade, that's why I ask for water now. But I still think Papa is the coolest even though he can't cook yet!"
"Chan come here for a sec..." Seungcheol hugged Chan with tears in his eyes.
"Hm?" Chan looked up at Seungcheol's face and pushed him off cupping his face as he saw the held-back tears. "Tears? Did you get hurt?"
"N-No. It's nothing. I have something in my eye." Seungcheol lied with a smile as he gently placed his hand over Chan's. His son was there for him. And that was all he needed at the moment.
"Uncle said crying is alright! So, Papa can cry if he wants!" Chan chuckled pinching Seungcheol's cheeks so that the tears trapped in his eyes trickled down like a fountain.
"Yeah, I heard that too. He's right." Seungcheol smiled and hugged Chan again. "I'm just really happy, Chan. Sometimes people cry when they're happy too."
"Oh, okay!" Chan nodded with his face over Seungcheol's shoulder as he hugged the one arm, he was able to in his small size.
"Thank you, Chan." Seungcheol patted Chan's back twice as Chan pushed him away for a split second to look behind at Grandma's grave.
"I wish grandma could join the hug." Chan pouted.
"If she were here right now she probably wouldn't even let go of you." Seungcheol wiped off his tears. "It would've been awesome... But wherever she is right now, I'm sure she is happy because she has the best grandson."
"Really?!"
"Absolutely!"
"I love you, Grandma!"
"I love you mom!"
The seconds passed and Chan looked at the purple flowers a few feet away from them.
"Uwaah! Look, there are flowers over there!" Chan pointed at him with a jump. "Can I pick some more for Grandma?"
"It depends if you remember what we talked about." Seungcheol chuckled.
"Yes!" Chan became serious imitating Seungcheol word for word. "Don't wander off too far! Stay where an adult can see you! Always check the surroundings or else you'll fall off a cliff again! Chanie will be good this time!"
"Alright! Don't take too long!" Seungcheol exclaimed watching Chan run away.
"Okay!" Chan yelled back.
"Careful now!" Seungcheol let out a sigh and fell back on the ground looking up at the clear blue sky.
"Haha! That's your grandson for you... Cheeky but he has the biggest heart. God, what did I do to deserve him?" He talked to his mother.
"If only I was like him when I was younger, then maybe you wouldn't have had such a hard time raising me... I know this is long overdue, but will you forgive me, Mom? When Dad walked away, I was so mad at you for not stopping him. I've always thought you were selfish for not letting me grow up with two parents."
"I could only imagine how hurt you must've been. And yet you did your best so that both of us could keep moving forward. You never took it out on me. Sorry, it took me all these years to realize that things like that simply happen and that you have no control over them. The same had to happen for me to fully understand that."
"You know, I was terrified when I first found out about Chan. I never had a father figure to learn from, how could I possibly take on such a huge responsibility? But now I've realized that I had you all this time. It doesn't matter if it was just the two of us back then, you were more than enough. If you were able to do it, maybe I can too... I'll try harder for Chan from now on so cheer me on, okay Mom?"
"Papa!" Chan popped and waved the pretty purple flowers in front of Seungcheol's face.
"Oh? That was fast." Seungcheol smiled sitting back up. "They're beautiful! Let's put them in the bouquet we bought."
"Papa, can we visit Grandma next time too?" Chan joined the flowers into the bouquet with Seungcheol's help.
"Of course, whenever you want, son." He smiled.
"Yay!"
><><><><
Tap! Tap!
"Guess who?" Jisoo sneaked up behind Seokmin who sat on a bench in the park and covered his eyes.
"Hm? The man I'm supposed to be on a date with whom I specifically told where my location is?" Seokmin chuckled gently taking hold of Jisoo's hands and pecking his fingers.
"Alright, smartass. You win." Jisoo retreated and leaned on the beach with a smile. "Sorry I'm late, I went to go check on Han."
"Oh? How is he?" Seokmin pulled Jisoo to beside him.
"Better. His foot was all bandaged up. A sprain is what he said." Jisoo looked at the ground.
"I see, that shouldn't take too long to heal. Was he with Cheol?" Seokmin looked at the sky.
"No, Cheol had to go somewhere with Chan..."
"Ah..."
"What's with the tone? Still guilty about what happened in the forest?" Jisoo looked at Seokmin in worry.
"Yeah..."
"He accepted the apology, didn't he?"
"Yes, but it didn't feel right..." Seokmin looked back at Jisoo. "He may seem really easygoing and nonchalant, but you can never tell what goes on in his mind. He's a little more reserved than he lets on, y'know?"
"Hmm, maybe you can talk about it again when the timing is right?"
"Yeah, maybe when Mingyu is here. He handles Cheol so much better than me."
"Mingyu?" Jisoo asked at the familiar name.
"Remember the picture I showed you? Mingyu was there, he's one of the kids we grew up with."
"Oh yeah, I remember."
"Yeah, he's coming home this week."
"I wonder if we'll be able to meet him."
"I'm sure you will. He likes making his presence known." Seokmin chuckled tilting his head on Jisoo's shoulder.
"Just tell me if he's a nice fellow or not, I wanna know if I should avoid him when he gets here."
"Nice? Hmm... It depends on who you ask. Haha!" Seokmin laughed.
"Does he get bullied?"
"Nah... He is the bully."
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Thank you so much for 5K+ Reads, 500+ Votes, 60+ Comments! ( >.< )
Sorry for the late update!
2 more Eps coming!
But!
That is after I go play HOLI!!! YAY!!!
Also...
Apologies for any spelling mistakes or punctuation errors.
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Blau, THE DOCTORS ARE OUT EP 42
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Word Count: 1401
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PIRATING CONTENT IS ILLEGAL!
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~ ALRIGHT752