Thread by @neezwritesexo

The car ride was awkward – for Baekhyun at least. The teenager with him looked like he couldn’t care less about being with an enclosed space with a stranger. In fact, Sehun seemed very comfortable, even humming under his breath.

Baekhyun’s thoughts on the other hand were a tangled mess. Who was this kid? How did he know so much about him and Chanyeol? If he was indeed lying, he was doing an exceptional job. Baekhyun chastised himself for even considering that Sehun was telling the truth.

In what universe do time machines and sons from the future exist anyway?

His musing was interrupted when he recognized the words and tune the teen was singing under his breath.

/What the hell?/

“How do you know that song?” he demands, finally breaking the silence that dragged on.

“I love this song. Don’t you?” Sehun replies with a fond smile.

“You didn’t answer the question.”

“You won’t believe me anyway, papa.”

“I told you to stop–,” he begins but stops himself and decides to go back to the matter at hand. “That song wasn’t even released. How do you know it?”

Heaven. It was one of Chanyeol’s earlier compositions, when he was still trying to make a name for himself as a music producer. The song never got to see the light of day, but Baekhyun knew it by heart.

Chanyeol used to sing it for him all the time, back when they were still dating. Chanyeol claimed that Baekhyun was the song’s muse and that it was written for him.

Baekhyun really loved this song. He still does. It was a reminder of their happier past, when things were simpler, before life and its shitty circumstances came between them. Baekhyun felt his eyes water at the thought, but willed it away. Now was not the time to be sentimental.

“Are you okay, papa?” Sehun asks worriedly.

“I’m fine,” he answers crisply. “Listen kid, I don’t know what your deal is, but I am going to get to the bottom of this. If I found out that you approached us with ill intentions, there will be hell to pay. You got it?”

To his surprise, Sehun merely smiled at his tirade, not looking the least intimidated. “You really are cute when you try to be threatening, papa. Dad always teases you about it, and you always end up sulking.”

Baekhyun sighed defeatedly. This kid was a good actor. He decides to give up. He’s confident he’ll find answers when they get to the police station anyway. For now, he’ll play along.

“Here’s what’s gonna happen. I need to stop by my office first. I’ll take you to the station by lunchtime. You’re not allowed to leave my sight. No funny business. My building has security, so if you try anything…” he warns.

Sehun nods with a solemn expression. “I know the rules, papa. I’ll be on my best behavior. Promise.”

“I’ll have to trust you, I guess,” he replies dejectedly. “Hopefully, you’ll be out of my hair by noon.”

The boy doesn’t answer and stays quiet the rest of the way. Baekhyun noticed the sudden drop in Sehun’s mood, but tried not to care. For some reason, that was really hard to do.

Baekhyun breathed a sigh of relief when he finally parked the car. The tension was killing him. He was left puzzled as to why Sehun’s gloomy mood had such an effect on him.

The elevator ride up to his office was filled with silence once again. He observes Sehun from the corner of his eye. The boy was looking at the changing floor numbers, but otherwise looked comfortable with his surroundings. It was almost as if he had been here many times before.

His secretary greeted him at the door and immediately went off enumerating his schedule for the day.

“The mocks for the fall/winter collection are on your desk. You just need to approve and sign it off. The photo shoot for the launch next week is in an hour. Mr. Kim is already in the studio - who is this?”

“Oh, that’s um…” Baekhyun stutters, not knowing how to answer.

He didn’t even think about how weird it was for him to take a teenager to work. He was already running late earlier and he just wanted to get to the office. He didn’t bother to formulate a plan for when people ask questions.

“I’m his nephew,” Sehun answers for him. “My name is Sehun.”

“I didn’t know Baekbom had a teenager?” his assistant says, confused.

“No, actually I’m a cousin’s son,” Sehun replies again. At least one of them wasn’t having a mental breakdown.

“Is that so? I can certainly see the resemblance.”

“Joohyun, can you please tell Jongdae to see me?” he interrupts, before the woman asks more questions.

His secretary blinks once and goes back to business mode. “Of course. I’ll need those mocks signed by noon, please.”

“I’ll get them to you after the shoot.”

With that, Joohyun leaves and he was once again left with Sehun. Baekhyun clears his throat before addressing the boy.

“Go sit on the couch for now. Let’s wait for Jongdae and hear what he has to say.”

“Okay, papa,” Sehun says and plops down the leather couch. “Can I read them?” he asks, pointing to the magazines on the coffee table.

“Sure,” he replies as he shrugs off his jacket and hangs it on the rack. Despite his doubts about the boy, he couldn’t stop himself from asking.

“Do you want anything to drink? To eat?”

“No thank you, papa. I’m still full from breakfast,” Sehun answers with the same cheeky grin. It was growing on him.

One thing he noticed about the boy was his politeness. Baekhyun had been nothing but uncivil to him, but Sehun never once talked back. He was unlike any other teenager he knows.

“You’re very polite,” he comments before he could think twice about it.

“Thank you,” Sehun says, still smiling. “My parents raised me well.”

Baekhyun could swear he felt an overwhelming sense of pride with those words.

There was a knock and with it came Jongdae’s cheerful voice. His friend of fifteen years poked his head through the door. “You were looking for me?”

“Come in.”

Jongdae immediately notices Sehun, and turns to Baekhyun with question. “Who’s the kid?”

Baekhyun and Jongdae have been friends since high school. They founded an online clothing brand, Privé, with the minimal savings they had after realizing that slaving under corporate umbrellas was not for either of them.

Along with Chanyeol, Jongdae was the one who struggled for years with him, while he was trying to make ends meet and their company flourish. They both had their share of mischievous antics, and knew each other from the roots of their hair to the tips of their toes.

So, when Jongdae fixed Baekhyun with a confused expression saying “Why the hell would Park-Byun Baekhyun bring a kid to work?”, he was sure his friend didn’t know Sehun. At all.

Which leads back to the million-dollar-question: What was Sehun’s identity? Was he an assassin, sent to murder Chanyeol and Baekhyun in their sleep? Was he sent by one of his competitors in the market to spite him? Or was he…

No. There was no way in hell. Sehun wasn’t his – their son.

🌸🌸🌸

“So, a distant relative, huh?” Jongdae asks as he and Baekhyun, with Sehun in tow, made their way to the elevators. “I know all of your family Baek, why didn’t I meet this one before?”

They had made up the same excuse they gave his secretary to explain the teenager’s presence in the office. It was a good thing that they were already pressed for time to get the photoshoot going, else, Jongdae would have more questions for him.

“/Way/, distant. They don’t come to the city much, so you haven’t met them.”

“Hmm,” his friend ponders, thumb on his chin as he takes another look at Sehun who had a sheepish smile on his face.

“The resemblance is uncanny. If somebody were to say you were father and son, I’d believe it," Jongdae adds.

Baekhyun exchanges a look with Sehun and the boy had almost a smug look on his face. His heart was racing, his brain too muddled to think straight.

On the other hand, a seed of doubt was already planted on his mind.

/What if?/

He dismissed the thought almost immediately.

/Just no. There was no freaking way./

Baekhyun could swear his two companions heard his sigh of relief when the elevator doors finally opened.

If they did, they didn’t comment on it. The three of them silently made their way to the studios, where Jongdae’s husband Minseok was waiting.

“Finally!” the photographer exclaims as they enter. “I was beginning to think we wouldn’t be able to get started until noon!”

Jongdae rolls his eyes at his husband, but proceeds to place a lingering kiss on his cheek. “Sorry, babe. You’re not angry are you, my precious little boo bear?”

Minseok chuckles and reciprocates with a kiss to Jongdae’s temple, the look in his eyes not doing anything to hide how in love he was with his husband.

Baekhyun averts his eyes. He and Chanyeol used to look at each other like that. He didn’t remember when the last time was.

“I’m not, but we do have a slight complication,” Minseok says, turning to Baekhyun this time.

“What’s the matter?” Baekhyun asks, holding back a groan. Why was nothing going right today?

“The clothes the supplier sent are too big for the model.”

“What?” the designer shrieks. “How can they make that mistake?”

Minseok shrugs. “I have no fucking clue. We tried it on earlier and none of them fit. Our catalogue will look like a joke if we push through with the shoot.”

“Can’t we ask them to re-send the correct sizes?”

“We can, but it won’t get here until late this afternoon. We need to do the shoot now, if we want to make it to editing and the printers for the hard copies.”

This was a very important shoot. They were launching a new collection, one Baekhyun and Jongdae personally designed. He can’t see it fall through.

Baekhyun massages his temples, feeling the onslaught of a very bad headache coming.

He feels a hand soothing his back and turns to see that Sehun has stepped in behind him. Inexplicably, he finds the gesture both comforting, and he relaxes.

“Unless...” Minseok suddenly declares, making Baekhyun turn his attention back to his friend. The photographer’s eyes, however, were fixed on Sehun. “Who’s this?”

“Baekhyun’s nephew,” Jongdae answers for him.

Minseok raises an eyebrow. “I didn’t know your brother had a kid this age.”

“It’s a long story,” Baekhyun simply answers, trying to dismiss the topic. “You were saying?”

“Well, the clothes are about his size…” Minseok trails with a knowing look.

Baekhyun was baffled. He shakes his head firmly. “No. Absolutely not.”

“Why not?” the photographer challenges. “We need a model. We have one right here.”

“He’s not a model!”

“Excuse me, what’s going on?” Sehun politely interjects, not fully grasping the situation.

“Say, kid, do you want to be my model today?”

“Minseok!”

“Baek, I don’t think it’s such a bad idea,” Jongdae interrupts. “We won’t even shoot his face, just the clothes from the neck down. I mean, desperate times, right?”

He hated it when Jongdae was making sense.

“But...”

“I’ll do it,” Sehun says from beside him. He turns to the teen and gives him a warning look that goes unnoticed. “No face, right?”

“No face.”

“Okay, then.”

“Great!” Minseok says and beams at Sehun. “Okay, everyone! Get ready, we don’t have much time.”

Baekhyun pulls Sehun to one side and glares at the teenager. “What are you doing?”

“Relax, papa. I’m just trying to help.”

“But what if...” Baekhyun begins, but struggles to complete his sentence.

What if what? What if Sehun was really from the future and people find out about his identity? What if he was really his and Chanyeol’s son? Leaving behind evidence of his existence would complicate things

Wait, did he /really/ go there?

“Everything’s going to be okay, papa. No face,” Sehun tells him, apparently reading his thoughts.

Was he a mind reader now, too?

Baekhyun could do nothing but watch as Jongdae pulls Sehun away for hair and makeup.

He could come up with a list of a hundred things that could go wrong with this, but he was powerless.

In the end, he just decided to leave it all to fate.

Half an hour later, Sehun was dressed in the first ensemble. The teen steps out of the dressing room and collective gasps were heard in the room.

Where was the boy they found drenched on their porch this morning? This certainly did not look like him.

In fact, Baekhyun would very much like to take back what he said earlier. Sehun looked very /much/ like a model.

“You know, he reminds me of someone,” Jongdae beside him whispers.

“Who?” Baekhyun asks distractedly.

“Remember way back when we were still starting and we were too broke to hire a model?”

Baekhyun felt like he was punched in the gut as wave after wave of memories came crashing back.

The four of them, in he and Chanyeol’s little apartment they converted to a makeshift studio; all the awkwardness in his husband’s face as he first posed for the camera, and how he eventually relaxed as Baekhyun cheered and cooed at him from behind the lens;

the elation they felt when the photos were finally published.

Baekhyun’s hands balled into fists, reining the emotions in. It was all too much.

“Baek?” Jongdae calls his attention again when his friend notices his silence.

“Y-yeah?”

“You okay?”

“Of course.”

Jongdae doesn’t pry further and lets him be. Baekhyun lets himself get lost in his thoughts. As he watches Sehun take direction from Minseok, he couldn’t help but think that Jongdae was right.

Sehun did remind him so much of Chanyeol.

🌸🌸🌸

a/n: *something like this*

Baekhyun decides to head to the police station immediately after they were done with the photoshoot. His head was reeling with unanswered questions, and he was hoping to at least get some sort of enlightenment. A little assurance that he was not going crazy would be great too.

He also decides to go by himself. He wanted a minute alone with his thoughts, and Sehun’s presence made it harder for him to think logically. It wasn’t that the teen was causing a fuss – it was the exact opposite, actually.

The boy was so well-behaved. He didn’t speak unless spoken to, always answered politely, and was absolutely no trouble at all. By the time they were done, he had Minseok eating from the palm of his hand.

He was worried, though, about leaving Sehun alone with Jongdae. When he voiced this to the young man, he half-expected him to be upset, but was once again proven wrong.

“I’ll still be here when you get back, papa,” Sehun says with a smile. “And I won’t tell Uncle Jongdae anything, I promise.”

But unfortunately, he didn’t come back with the results he expected. He made his way back to the office more confused and conflicted than ever, everything he found out from the police station playing like a broken record in his brain.

He had arrived there and went looking for

his police officer friend Jongin. He wanted to be discrete. Going through the missing persons and juvenile list to look for your supposed future son was not something you should tell an officer if you didn’t want to be taken in for questioning.

He came up with a reason Jongin believes at least, but then again, Jongin had always been gullible – in a very, very endearing way. The officer had raised an eyebrow when Baekhyun told him he only had a first name,

but Jongin just shrugged in the end and entered Sehun’s name into the police database search.

“Nope, none. No juvie records. Not in the missing persons’ list either. How old did you say the kid was?”

Shoot. Baekhyun had forgotten to ask Sehun.

“Around seventeen, eighteen, I guess?”

Jongin hums and types a few more things into the computer, but the screen still comes up blank.

“There is no record of a Sehun residing in this area, either. Where did you say he was from?”

Baekhyun recognized red flags, so he decides to stop there. “I think that will do for now, Jongin.”

The officer had offered to look into it further, even telling Baekhyun that he could call other stations to see if Sehun had a record there.

Baekhyun had refused politely, thanked Jongin for his trouble, and left.

So now, here he was, back to square one.

At least he was sure Sehun wasn’t an axe murderer.

He sighs deeply as he reaches the door to Jongdae’s office, but the conversation he overhears makes him stop in his tracks. He listens in on his friend and Sehun’s conversation.

“You’re a natural at this. How did you end up having such a good eye for fashion?”

“I grew up watching my dad, so…”

“Really? Your parents seem to be really good people, the way you talk about them.”

“Oh, um… they are. They’re whipped for each other too, kinda like you and mister Minseok,” Sehun says with a chuckle. “I grew up in a loving home. I watch the two of them, and it makes me wish I find something like that too, you know, in the future.”

“That’s really sweet. You really adore them, huh? Where do I get a son like you?”

At this point, Baekhyun decides to make his presence known. He taps the door lightly with his knuckles, startling the two.

Sehun, however, breaks into a wide smile upon seeing him. It makes Baekhyun feel warm again.

“Hey, you guys ready to grab some lunch?” he asks.

“Minseok had to rush to another shoot, so it’s just going to be the three of us,” Jongdae tells him.

Baekhyun nods. “Let’s go.”

The three of them ended up in a quaint restaurant near Baekhyun’s office. Lunch was a pleasant affair, most of it spent with Jongdae gushing over Sehun’s photos, and him telling Baekhyun how the teen had helped him put together the first draft for their holiday collection.

“I mean, it’s crazy how the two of you are alike in so many ways. I guess it does run in the blood, huh?” his friend declares.

Baekhyun turns to look at Sehun, who now had his head down. He could see how the boy’s cheeks reddened at the praise.

He couldn’t help the fond smile that graced his lips.

“I guess it does,” he says, almost to himself. But Sehun hears this, and his head perks up to look at Baekhyun. He maintains eye contact with him, and Baekhyun was almost sure the teen was tearing up.

He couldn’t confirm this though, because Sehun shakes his head lightly, as if waking up from a stupor and smiles warmly at him.

“We have a busy afternoon, though. So we should hurry,” Jongdae reminds him, and the moment is over.

“Sehun,” he says, realizing this is actually the first time he calls the boy by his name. “You might get bored in the office, so I’ll take you home after this, okay?”

Sehun nods, still looking a bit dazed.

“Are you okay?” Baekhyun asks, starting to get worried.

“Yes, pa – Yes. I’m alright.”

Baekhyun hums and gets back to finishing his food. They were done after a few minutes, and Jongdae excuses himself to go to the restroom while Baekhyun calls for the check.

“Can we please get some gelato?” Sehun says, eyes pleading. “We should also take some home for dad. What do you think, papa?”

How was Baekhyun going to say no to /that/ face?

“Sure. You want to eat yours here?”

“Yes, please,” the boy nods, eyes twinkling in delight.

Baekhyun gestures for Sehun to follow him to the front of the store where the ice cream display was.

“What would you like, sir?” the attendant asks them in greeting.

“I’ll have the strawberry and one of the chocolate mint ones, please,” he answers thinking of Jongdae, and then remembers remembers Sehun’s request. “Oh, and another pint of the strawberry to go.”

“Can we get dad’s favorite flavor instead, papa?” Sehun says from beside him.

“What do you mean? Your dad likes strawberry.”

Sehun shakes his head firmly. “/You/ like strawberry. Dad likes mango. He only eats the strawberry ‘cause you like it.”

Baekhyun was left mum. How could he have forgotten?

“How about you, young man?” the attendant asks, oblivious to Baekhyun’s inner turmoil. “What will you have?”

“One scoop each of the strawberry and mango please, ma’am,” Sehun answers with a grin.

Baekhyun remained lost in his thoughts, even after the lady had finished scooping up their orders and placed them in the serving cups. She also hands Sehun the wrapped pint of ice cream for Chanyeol.

He only snapped out of it when he feels Sehun lightly tap his arm.

“Papa?”

“Yes?” he answers distractedly. Sehun’s smile grew wider.

“I’ll take this to our table. Uncle Dae’s back.”

Baekhyun nods without thinking about it, then turns to the store clerk.

“Where do I pay? I already asked for our check earlier.”

“Oh, is that so? Over here please,” she answers with a pleasant smile.

Baekhyun watches thoughtlessly as she punches several keys on the register and tells him an amount.

He fishes a few bills from his wallet and hands it over to her.

“Your son?” she asks, obviously talking about Sehun. “He’s very well-mannered. I wish my son was that polite. My boy can’t even say “please” to save his life. You must be proud.”

Baekhyun looks over to their table where Jongdae and Sehun were happily devouring the cold dessert. The delighted look on the teenager’s face makes him smile, yet again.

He may not believe Sehun is his son, but he is somebody’s child. And without a doubt, any parent would be proud to have a kid like him.

“Yeah,” he agrees. “He’s a good kid. I’m lucky.”

🌸🌸🌸

Baekhyun drives himself and Sehun home after lunch. It was too quiet. The soft hum of the air conditioner and the car stereo turned to a dull volume was their background. Baekhyun’s head was whirring.

Sehun was quick to catch on the situation, as he hasn’t said a word since they left the cafe and left the older man to his tangled mess of thoughts. Baekhyun was grateful for that.

It was a miracle that they hadn’t gotten into an accident yet.

To say Baekhyun was distracted was an understatement. He was confused, distressed, and most of all disappointed with himself. He can’t believe it took a tub of mango-flavored ice cream to make him realize what had gone wrong with his relationship with Chanyeol.

He remembers what Sehun told him that morning: ‘You forgot about the little things.’

Baekhyun hadn’t though much of that statement earlier, but now, it was like he got slapped in the face. He tries to look back and pinpoint when and where it had all gone wrong.

It hadn’t always been like this with Chanyeol. They used to be really affectionate. They were the kind of couple that made people cringe because of excessive displays of how in love they were with each other. That was why they got married in the first place.

They were each other’s first love, typical high school sweethearts who stayed together until college and eventually ended up tying the knot. They had their fights, sure – even broke up a couple of times, but they always found their way back to each other.

They were supposed to be the perfect couple whose love story was the envy of others. They used to talk about how their future children and grandchildren will talk about them, aspire to have a love like theirs.

So how exactly did they fall apart?

The first few years of their marriage were blissful. Their honeymoon phase lasted for over a year and they were so ridiculously clingy, Jongdae would pretend to throw up every time they gathered together.

The sex, god the sex was amazing. They couldn’t get enough of each other, it was like they were teenagers with raging hormones all over again.

This year was supposed to be the fifth year of their marriage. It was only until the last year that things started getting cold between them. Baekhyun’s two year-old company was finally getting noticed by the public and...

An overwhelming sense of dread came over him as he unearths the answer to his question. Several scenarios flash in his mind all at once, like a montage.

Baekhyun leaving in a hurry every morning, disregarding the breakfast his husband diligently wakes up for and prepares for him; at first it happened once a week. Then it happened twice, then four times, until he ignored and forgot about it altogether.

He remembers the times he cancelled on date nights because things got hectic at work and he simply couldn’t make it. He felt bad the first time, but didn’t think too much of it the next couple of times – all because Chanyeol never berated him for it.

He also recalls the first time one of Chanyeol’s produced songs was chosen by a really famous idol group. His husband had been ecstatic. They had promised to watch the song’s debut on a music show together.

But Baekhyun had cancelled the last minute, because there was a problem with one of their production factories. It was a very important milestone in Chanyeol’s career, and he missed it.

The worst thing was he never heard his husband complain. Not even once.

Suddenly, there was an endless list: burned out candles from the last anniversary dinner Chanyeol cooked for them that got cold and thrown away because he didn’t make it, album launches that he missed,

good morning kisses he had forgotten to give, sick days he wasn’t there to take care of his husband, ‘I love yous’ wanted to say but didn’t.

Baekhyun’s vision gets clouded by tears and he abruptly hits the brakes in fear of hitting something. The car comes to a halt, making Sehun gasp from beside him. Baekhyun feels his chest constrict as he finally gives in to the onslaught of emotions that overcome him.

He slumps on the steering wheel and weeps, uncontrolled sobs spilling from his lips.

“Papa? What’s wrong are you hurt anywhere?” Sehun asks, panic evident in his voice.

Baekhyun tries to tell the boy that he is fine and that he doesn’t need to worry about his unexpected breakdown, but his words come out in the form of a desperate whimper.

“Oh, papa,” Sehun exclaims.

Without another word, the teen gathers the sobbing Baekhyun into his arms and cradles the older’s head on his chest. It was weird to be comforted by a teenager of all people, but Baekhyun decides he doesn’t hate it.

His hands clutch at Sehun’s shirt in a resolute effort to get ahold of himself.

“It’s okay, papa,” Sehun says to him over and over. “Everything’s going to be alright. You’ll see.”

How long he stays there crying in Sehun’s arms, Baekhyun doesn’t know. But the tears finally did stop, and Baekhyun struggles to hide his embarrassment at being caught in such a weak moment by this boy he only met that morning.

“I-I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me,” he says, not able to meet Sehun’s eyes.

Sehun simply shakes his head and smiles kindly. “It doesn’t matter, papa. I don’t mind. Are you feeling better now?”

“I- Yes. Yes, I am.”

“Okay.”

Sehun doesn’t ask him why he had a breakdown in the middle of the day, but does make sure he is all right to drive. Baekhyun assures him that he was capable of taking them back home in one piece, so they set off.

Baekhyun parks the car in their driveway, since he has to leave again anyway. But he does get out of the car with Sehun, contrary to his initial plan of just dropping the teen off.

They find Chanyeol in the kitchen fixing himself his own lunch. Baekhyun looks at his wristwatch.

It was almost two in the afternoon, and Chanyeol is only now. How long has it been since he last made sure his husband ate on time?

Baekhyun castigates himself further at the thought.

Chanyeol looks up from the sandwich he’s putting together, obviously not expecting the two of them home this soon.

“Did something happen?” his husband asks worriedly.

Baekhyun was quick to shake his head no. “I’m just dropping Sehun off. I’m going to be really busy in the next couple of hours, so he might get bored in the office.”

Chanyeol contemplates this for a moment and it occurs to Baekhyun that he isn’t giving his husband a choice in the matter.

‘You’re doing it again,’ he scolds himself internally.

“Is that okay? I mean, I can take him back with me if you’re busy,” Baekhyun hurriedly adds before Chanyeol can take offense at his imposition.

“Oh, no, no. Of course I don’t mind,” Chanyeol responds just as fast.

“It’s just… You two seem to be getting along. Well, better than this morning.”

He exchanges a quick glance with Sehun and turns back to his husband. “He’s alright, I guess.”

“Not a serial killer then?” Chanyeol asks in jest, making Baekhyun smile.

“No. I think he can barely harm a fly.”

“Hey!” Sehun says in mock offense, a silly grin on his face. Then his face lights up as he holds out the bag in his hands and shoves it into Chanyeol’s arms.

“Papa brought you your favorite ice cream, dad!”

“O-Oh. Uh, w-wow. I’ve been craving for some straw-”

Chanyeol stops mid-speech as he opens the bag and sees what was inside. “This is...”

For some reason, Baekhyun feels so embarrassed, he could feel the heat creeping up from his neck to his face. He decides to leave before he makes a bigger fool of himself.

“I should go. Jongdae’s already spamming me with calls,” he says in a small voice. He was about to turn and leave when he remembers the morning’s events. He hesitates, but later decides to act on impulse.

With a stroke of courage he didn’t know where he got from, Baekhyun strides towards Chanyeol. He hears his husband’s sharp intake of breath as he lays his hands on the taller’s shoulders, stands on tiptoes and places a kiss on Chanyeol’s unsuspecting lips.

“Enjoy your ice cream,” he almost whispers and hurriedly leaves, blushing to his roots.

A smile blooms on his face as he starts his car and drives away. He was going to make things right with his husband, no matter what it takes.

🌸🌸🌸

*A/N: Sehun spends time with dad next!
Please do let me know what you think so far. RQs are always appreciated as they also motivate me to write.

Will be posting this on AO3 too.

Thank you as always! I hope you're still here for next ones!

Chanyeol startles as Sehun’s hand grasp his. The two were seated on bar stools by the kitchen counter as Chanyeol attempted to scruff down his lunch and the teen was quietly enjoying his second scoop of ice cream for the day.

“Uhm, dad? Are you okay?” Sehun asks, eyes alarmed.

“Huh?” he asks back distractedly.

“You were about to put mustard in your ice cream,” Sehun answers as his eyes drift to Chanyeol’s hand that he was still holding. Apparently, Chanyeol had /really/ been about to squeeze mustard into the dessert he had scooped up in a bowl.

He puts down the offensive condiment and glares at the bottle. Sehun lets him go.

“I like mustard,” he says in an attempt to explain his behavior.

Sehun stares, unblinking. “Not on ice cream. Are you feeling okay? You look a little flushed.”

Chanyeol’s hands automatically come up to both his cheeks and feels warmth seeping through his palms. Baekhyun had left a few minutes ago, but his head was still reeling. His heart had been beating so fast ever since /that/ kiss, and it hasn’t shown signs of slowing down yet.

Why in the world was he acting like a teenager with a serious high school crush? Baekhyun was his husband - well soon-to-be ex-husband - for crying out loud. They had done far worse than chaste kisses on the lips.

Chanyeol sighs and palms his face in a poor attempt to keep his expression controlled.

“Did something happen today?” he asks Sehun. “Baekhyun’s acting really strange.”

“How so?” the teen asks with furrowed brows.

“This, for one,” he says pointing to the ice cream. “And you know… that.”

He blushes instantly as he remembers the /surprise/ he got. His lips were tingling from that brief contact. Really, what was up with him?

Sehun, however, is failing to see what the issue was. “Buying ice cream and a goodbye kiss is unusual behavior from a husband?”

Chanyeol groans inwardly. What was he expecting from a teenager? Sehun definitely did not need to know that goodbye kisses or any kind of kiss for that matter was not a normal occurrence in this household. Well, not for quite some time, anyway.

“Forget I said anything.”

To his relief, Sehun merely shrugs and doesn’t press further. He asks another question, though.

“Aren’t you going to the studio today?”

Chanyeol’s principles in life are fairly simple. One of them was not to question things you can’t explain and stress over circumstances you have no control over. So, if he was taken aback by Sehun knowing what he does for a living without him telling the boy, he lets it go.

Instead, he answers as naturally as he can, like the two of them have this conversation everyday.

“I have to finish an initial demo before I bring it in for full production. I’ll do it in the basement,” he says, referring to his converted home studio.

“Is it for another idol group?”

“Potentially,” he says as he brushes the crumbs off his shirt and carries his plate to the sink.

Sehun does the same and follows behind him. “Cool. I hope you get it.”

“Me too.”

“You always do, dad,” Sehun says with a bright smile that Chanyeol can’t help but reciprocate. “You’re the best.”

Chanyeol shakes his head in disagreement. “I wasn’t always. There was a time when I didn’t make a dime. All I had was passion and a lot of debt.”

“But look at where you are now,” Sehun comments, the smile on his face never wavering.

Chanyeol shrugs noncommittally. “I guess.”

It was true that his dreams were almost within his reach. But what he had lost in the process was something no amount of success can equate to. Baekhyun.

“I’ll do the dishes, dad. You should go back to work,” Sehun adds, interrupting his inner monologue.

“Uh, thanks,” he says, still distracted. He was about to leave, but decides against it and turns back to the Sehun again. “Did you want to come with me to the basement?”

“I can?” Sehun perks up instantly, not bothering to hide his excitement.

Chanyeol chuckles. “Sure. If that’s something you wanna do? You might get bored.”

The teen shakes his head almost violently. “No way! I’m won’t be any trouble, I promise.”

“Alright,” Chanyeol nods. “Just head down when you’re done here. Just take-“

“The stairs beside the bathroom,” Sehun finishes for him.

“How did you-“ Chanyeol begins, but halts with an amused grin. Unexplainable. Right. “Nevermind.”

“I’ll be right down!” Sehun says enthusiastically and goes back to his chore.

🌸🌸🌸

Chanyeol was in a good mood in the next few hours he spends with Sehun in his home studio. Just as he promised, the teen was no trouble at all, even managing to pitch-in some of his inputs which have proved to be valuable.

Sehun had told him that this was the genre of music he prefers and Chanyeol for some reason was pleased to know that they had similar tastes.

He was in the process of putting the finishing touches on his demo, when Sehun asked if he could take a look around the studio.

Chanyeol nods, thinking that it was no cause for concern. The room was quiet for a while, with him being solely focused on getting his work done and Sehun tinkering with stuff inside the studio that was of interest to him.

“This one’s good, dad,” Sehun suddenly comments, grabbing Chanyeol’s attention.

“Huh, what?” he answers distractedly, not taking his eyes off the computer screen. “Hold on one second.”

Chanyeol enters a few combinations on the keyboard and finally stretches. He swivels his chair around and finds Sehun intently looking at a music sheet he has pinned on the cork board. Immediately, Chanyeol recognizes what has caught Sehun’s attention.

It was one of his /forgotten/ projects. It should have been in one of the storage boxes, hidden and never to see the light of day.

“What’s the title of this one?” Sehun asks again, oblivious to Chanyeol’s sudden change in mood.

“Oh, /that/. That’s... um, unfinished.”

To his utter despair, Sehun even reads the lyrics he had written a long, long time ago. Well, not /that/ long, but with all that’s happened since then, Chanyeol feels like a decade had already passed.

“When I look at the stars shining brightly
It almost feels like I’m looking at you
You’re like everything that shines bright
When the night sky grows dark
The whole world is sparkled with light.”

Sehun turns to him, eyes bright with excitement and admiration. “These lyrics are amazing. They’re so good. Why didn’t you finish this?”

“I just... Didn’t feel like it anymore.”

What Chanyeol doesn’t tell Sehun was that any inspiration he had when he first started writing this

song had already disappeared.

Chanyeol had lost his muse, and in effect, lost any motivation to continue. Sehun, nevertheless, sees right through him in ways Chanyeol didn’t think possible.

“It’s for papa... Right?”

The question throws him terribly off guard. “What makes you think so?”

“It’s these lyrics. I just feel like you’re describing papa. How bright his smiles are, how he gives light to your life."

"You always told me he’s like your own personal north star, illuminating the darkest of your nights,” Sehun replies, cringing at the last sentence. Then, his face turns apprehensive as he carefully asks again, “It was the sappiest thing I heard, but...am I wrong?”

Chanyeol sighs. There was no use in lying. “No. You’re not.”

“Sorry, dad,” Sehun says apologetically when he notices how somber Chanyeol suddenly looked. “I shouldn’t have said anything. My mouth has no filter, sometimes.”

Chanyeol dismissed Sehun’s apology with a wave of his hand. “Don’t worry about it.”

He doesn’t need to be cross with Sehun. The teenager didn’t do anything to ruin his and Baekhyun’s relationship in the first place. Chanyeol did it all by himself.

The beginning of their marriage wasn’t exactly smooth-sailing. Although they had no problems with each other, there were external factors involved - some, they have no control over. For one, Chanyeol was a struggling music producer back then.

He wasn’t kidding when he told Sehun all he had was passion and a lot of debt when he married Baekhyun. But Baekhyun loved him and that was enough. Or so he thought.

To make ends meet, Baekhyun started working an eight-to-five office job that took most of his weekdays,

as Chanyeol struggles to find ways to get his music out and make a living. He started singing in bars, open mics, even busking, but nothing worked. His gigs were enough to put maybe a week’s worth of groceries on the table and nothing more.

Baekhyun, being the supportive husband that he is encouraged Chanyeol to continue writing music, and just stay at home in between his jobs.

For the first few years, it was okay. They weren’t wealthy, but they were getting by. Then, just a little after their third anniversary,

Baekhyun came up with the idea of building his own company. Chanyeol wanted to give his husband the same amount of support he gave him, and so he did his best to make sure Baekhyun didn’t have to worry about anything but his new project.

Chanyeol eventually cut his gigs short, only choosing the ones that paid well so that he could have more time to take care of Baekhyun at home. It was like they were honeymooning again, being cooped up in that one-bedroom apartment they used to rent.

It was all hearts and rainbows, until Baekhyun’s company took off.

Make no mistake, Chanyeol was thrilled for his husband. He was the first one to celebrate with Baekhyun. He still vividly recalls the fancy dinner he had setup and the amazing, mind-blowing sex that followed.

It was easy for Chanyeol to stay in the sidelines and let his husband take the spotlight. It was because of Baekhyun that they were able to move into a bigger house, and live more comfortably.

He didn’t want to admit it, but he had already started feeling insecure.

There were times that he questioned his role in Baekhyun’s life. His husband could clearly manage by himself, and he wonders why Baekhyun still chooses to be with him. Chanyeol felt so useless and so ashamed of himself for failing Baekhyun.

Months passed and Chanyeol finally got a break when one of his songs got hand-picked by a rising idol group. From there, his career also took off and he started getting projects left and right.

As their bank account grew, the fire in their relationship started to dwindle until it was nothing but a flicker.

Baekhyun got busier, and so did he. When Chanyeol realized that they were spending less and less time with each other, he decided to build his home studio. That way, he could spend more time at their new home, just like the old times.

But things didn’t go as he planned. Baekhyun had been more absent than before, their interactions reduced to mere “good mornings” and “good nights”. His efforts had gone unnoticed, but he couldn’t find it in himself to get angry and blame his husband.

It was his incompetence that led them here, after all. Chanyeol let his insecurities eat him up, swallow him whole and spit him out like he was some piece of unwanted trash.

Baekhyun stopped caring, so Chanyeol decided to stop trying, too. He was tired. He gave up. So, when Baekhyun suggested divorce, Chanyeol agreed. He thinks that Baekhyun had finally realized he was better off without him.

If a divorce would make Baekhyun happy, Chanyeol would give it to him. He just has to learn to live without his light.

“I have an idea,” Sehun suddenly says, making Chanyeol jump. He was so deep in his thoughts he forgot he wasn’t alone. He schools his expression into something he hopes was nonchalant and gives the teen an inquiring look.

“Why don’t we cook for papa?”

Chanyeol raises an eyebrow at this. “We?”

“I’ll help you, of course!”

“Uh-huh,” he answers non-commitally. For some reason, he doesn’t see Sehun as someone helpful in the kitchen. A lot like /someone/ he knows.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he adds. “Your papa - I mean Baekhyun - and I haven’t had dinner together in a while.”

Or eaten together, for that matter.

“Well, why don’t we give him a call to find out?” Sehun suggests with a hopeful smile.

Chanyeol grits his teeth, refusing to give in. The look the boy give him is unwittingly making it hard for him say no; probably because it looked oddly familiar.

“I don’t want to bother him. I’m sure he’s really busy.”

He should have known Sehun would be stubborn. He squares his shoulders and holds out his hand, with a determined expression. Again, Chanyeol feels a sense if familiarity that gives him slight chills.

“Let me borrow your phone. I’ll talk to him.”

“Fine,” he concedes and picks his phone up from the table.

He hits speed dial number one and Baekhyun’s name immediately comes up on the screen. He puts the phone on speaker and waits for the call to connect.

Chanyeol was half-expecting that he would need to call again or be sent to voicemail. Color him surprised when Baekhyun picks up on the second ring.

“Chanyeol? What’s wrong? Are you two okay?”

Even from the receiver, one couldn’t mistake the worry laced on Bakhyun’s voice. Chanyeol’s brows furrow in confusion.

“Uhm, we’re okay,” he replies and looks over to Sehun who was sporting the same confused look as him.

Baekhyun sighs heavily. Chanyeol could almost see him clutching his chest. “Oh, thank goodness. You scared me there.”

“Why?” he asks, not able to help himself.

“Huh? Oh! It’s just... You never really call me anymore, not even when you were running a really high fever, it just took me by surprise.”

“Ah,” he answers lamely. What else was he supposed to reply to that?

There was a few seconds of dead air. When Chanyeol looks at Sehun again, the teen looked amused as he listens in on their conversation. He looked like he was trying really hard no to laugh. Thankfully, Baekhyun decides to break the silence.

“So... What’s the reason you called?”

Chanyeol then remembers the /real/ purpose of this call. “Sehun wanted to talk to you.”

He brings the phone closer to Sehun so that Baekhyun can hear him better.

“Hey, papa,” Sehun greets eagerly.

“Hi. You’re not giving your dad any trouble, are you?”

Baekhyun’s response takes Chanyeol aback. Something definitely happened when the two were in the former’s office. His husband doesn’t even tell Sehun off for calling him “papa” anymore. Just what the hell was going on?

“I am offended, papa,” Sehun answers in mock offence. The ear-splitting grin on his face was a dead giveaway. “I’m as well-behaved here as I was when I was there.”

Baekhyun chuckles from the other line and Chanyeol just melts. He hasn’t heard his husband laugh in so long. His chest suddenly felt so tight and he feels his eyes water. What was wrong with him today?

He looks away from Sehun’s prying eyes and furiously blinks back the tears that are threatening to spill. He takes a deep breath and knocks on his chest to get his bearings back.

“Alright, alright. I believe you,” he hears Baekhyun say, tone so bright it makes Sehun smile. “Did you need anything?”

“You’re eating dinner here tonight, right?” Sehun asks without missing a beat as Chanyeol holds his breath and prepares for rejection.

“Sure.”

That one word was all it took for him to lose his cool.

“Really?” Chanyeol blurts, skeptical.

“Yup,” Baekhyun answers at once, unaware of the effect it has on him. “Jongdae and I will finish up a little early today so I’ll just head home right away.”

Chanyeol gapes, not actually believing this was happening.

“That’s great, papa!” Sehun answers when he remains at a loss for words. “Dad and I are cooking tonight!”

“You are?” Baekhyun says excitedly and Chanyeol /hopes/. He shouldn’t but he does.

“I’ll look forward to it then. I think I’ll get home after eight, so I won’t be of any help in making dinner,” his husband adds.

Chanyeol hears genuine regret in his voice and the spark of hope that he sees in his head glows a little brighter.

Sehun was about to reply, thinking Chanyeol was still “distracted”, but he stops the teen and responds to Baekhyun himself.

“That’s totally okay!” he says, not caring if he sounded too eager. “Just... As long as you get home safely.”

Baekhyun hums and Chanyeol wonders how his husband must look at that very moment. “Alright, then. I’ll see you two later.”

“Bye, papa! Don’t work too hard!” Sehun adds.

Baekhyun laughs again. Chanyeol wishes he had his recorder on him. “I don’t think that’s possible, Sehun. But I will try. Have fun with Chanyeol!”

Chanyeol bids his husband goodbye and hangs up with a dazed look on his face.

The grip on his phone tightens as he convinces himself that the call /certainly/ happened and it wasn’t just in his head.

“Dad?” Sehun says, waving his hand in front of Chanyeol’s face to get his attention.

“Huh?”

Sehun giggles at his bewilderment. Chanyeol blinks, still unfocused. “You look really funny.”

He frowns and playfully flicks the teen on the forehead. “Let’s go.”

“Where?”

“Grocery shopping,” Chanyeol answers as he leads the way out of the basement studio. “We need to make your papa something delicious.”

His blood was humming with excitement. This would be the first time in so long that Baekhyun would be having Chanyeol’s food. He’d be a fool it he didn’t make it the the best meal he’s cooked in his in entire life.

🌸🌸🌸

A/N:
One more scene done!!! Phew!
I have one more fic fest entry to finish, so I will be updating this after that. It will be soon, though. Just a little after my short vacation. Thanks for understanding!

See you again soon. Love you, guys!!!😘

Melodious laughter is what welcomes Baekhyun the moment he steps into the house. He chews on his bottom lip as he hears his husband's overly-enthusiastic laughter. He had missed it very, very much.

He follows the sounds to the kitchen where he finds Chanyeol and Sehun bent over the counter, playfully arguing about something. They had their backs to him, so they were unaware of his presence.

"What do you mean? It tastes fine, dad!" Sehun argues and stomps his foot a little.

Chanyeol doubles over in laughter, holding on to Sehun's left shoulder as he struggles to right himself.

He straightens and catches his breath after a few seconds and turns to Sehun with a serious look on his face.

"It certainly does not taste /fine/. I'm sorry, Sehun. The least that could happen is you get sued if you let anyone drink this. It's /awful/.”

Sehun sulks instantly and crosses his arms over his chest. "You're so mean, dad."

Chanyeol chuckles some more and playfully ruffles Sehun's hair. "I'm just looking out for you, bud. I don't want you ending up in jail for trying to poison someone."

Sehun's pout grows more pronounced, it was adorable. Baekhyun decides it was time to make his presence know. He clears his throat loudly, making the two instantly whip their heads to look at his direction.

"You two seem to be having fun," he comments brightly as he makes his way over to the counter.

"If what you mean by "fun" is having Sehun try to kill me, then sure," Chanyeol answers cheekily, earning him a displeased whine from the teen.

"Papa, dad's being an ass."

"Language, young man," Baekhyun scolds, albeit lightly. Sehun makes a peace sign as Chanyeol flicks him gently on one ear.

"Anyway, you wanna try Sehun's bubble tea recipe?" Chanyeol says and offers him a glass with odd-colored liquid in it. "It tastes like expired medicine, but maybe that's just me."

Baekhyun wanted to refuse, he really did. But one look at Sehun's moping face made him change his mind. He takes the glass from Chanyeol and sips tentatively. The peculiar taste hits his tongue and it takes all of his willpower not to wince.

"Well?" Chanyeol inquires as he hands him back the glass.

"It's... um... exotic?" he offers as Chanyeol breaks into loud guffaws once more.

Baekhyun glances at Sehun, ready to apologize. But instead of looking dejected, the teen was smiling fondly.

"At least you didn't hate it," Sehun says and looks at Chanyeol with faux annoyance. "Papa is my favorite, now."

"Hey, that's not fair!" Chanyeol complains. Sehun merely sticks his tongue out at the older. Then, he walks over to Baekhyun and takes his bag from him.

"Do you want me to take this upstairs, papa?"

Baekhyun was about to tell Sehun that he had to go up to change himself, but stops when he remembers the /matter/ that had been bothering him on the whole drive home.

He needed Sehun out of the room to speak to Chanyeol alone, and he saw this chance.

"Yes, please," he answers. "You can just leave it on my study table."

Sehun nods and turns to leave.

"I'll set the table when I get back, dad!" he calls back from the living room a few seconds later.

Baekhyun doesn't even notice that Sehun didn't need to ask him where his room was. He figures he has maybe two minutes before the teen comes back.

He needed to settle things with Chanyeol - and fast.

"Chanyeol," he calls. His husband looks up from the pot he was stirring and meets his eyes. Baekhyun immediately shrinks back.

/How does he start?/

"What's up?" Chanyeol questions when he remains silent after a few beats of silence.

"You need to move back into the master's bedroom," he blurts out without thinking.

He half-expected Chanyeol to find the idea ridiculous, or worse - he had pictured him mocking him and laughing in his face. It was after all, Baekhyun's idea that they room separately when their marriage started falling apart.

Sleeping on the same bed was just pure torture when he knew his husband was repulsed by him.

To his utter surprise, Chanyeol merely nodded.

"I was thinking the same thing," his husband answers. "I'm- I'm actually glad you brought it up. I was hesitant... I didn't think you'd want to... Again..."

He watches in awe as a furious blush crept from Chanyeol's neck, his cheeks, and finally the tips of his adorable ears. Baekhyun bites his lower lip to suppress a giggle. Chanyeol, upon noticing that he had made a fool of himself, quickly looks away.

"I mean, we wouldn't want Sehun sleeping in the living room," Chanyeol mutters under his breath, while absentmindedly stirring the stew simmering on the stove. "I heard it's gonna be really cold tonight."

It was Baekhyun's turn to blush. He had a flashback of their "cold winter nights" in the past. Chanyeol had always found a way to warm him up.

"I'm back!" Sehun calls, interrupting his reverie. "I'll go set the table now - why are you both so red in the face?"

🌸🌸🌸

A/N:

Hi! I'm sorry for being MIA the past few weeks. Things have been hectic at work since I got back from vacation and I haven't had a single break. Hopefully, I have more time to write in the following days.

I had originally planned for Sehun to be with the Byun-Parks for a day. But YOLO right?

And yes, the current events happened only within the span of the day. It's craaaazyyyy.

Anyways, I wanna write more of Sehun and his parentals so I'll extend his stay.

I'm excited to write the first family dinner and the [redacted]. 😏😏😏

'Til next time! Gimme some love, I'm tired of life. HAHAHA!

Love you guys!

🌸🌸🌸

Oh! I also updated this on AO3 if you wanna read it there:
archiveofourown.org/works/19950922…