A/N: Hi, guys! Here’s the next chapter! :D

Book 2: The (Crazy) Baby Years

Chapter 9: Umma

The first word of a baby. That’s very important. Most parents wait for it very eagerly. Some even have the baby books at the ready so that they can jot down that precious first word right away.

Kyuhyun wasn’t much different.

As Minhyun turned 9 months old, our dear evil maknae anticipated Minhyun’s first word. Sure, Minhyun had been babbling a lot over the past months, but the first word was different. It was special.

“It’s probably going to be something like ‘power’ or ‘dominion’ or even just ‘mine,’” Kyuhyun had told Hankyung excitedly over the phone during one of the Chinese man’s calls to “check if Kyuhyun and Minhyun were still alive.”

Most unfortunately, Hankyung had had to agree with Kyuhyun on that note. Given the “evil environment” in which Minhyun is being raised, Hankyung wouldn’t be very much surprised if one of those words was indeed the baby’s first word.

However, as Minhyun reached his 10th month, there was still no first word.

Kyuhyun had started to worry. He had soon eventually found himself knocking on Xiari’s front door yet again with yet another “baby concern.”

“Maybe I should take him to a doctor?” the maknae had asked immediately as soon as the Chinese woman had opened her door.

Xiari had blinked at him, and then she had rolled her eyes. Kyuhyun didn’t need to elaborate on what he was talking about; the maknae had been talking nonstop over the past few days about Minhyun still not talking.

“Most babies don’t start talking until they’re around one year old,” Xiari had said pointedly. “There’s really no need to start worrying so much yet.”

“Minhyun’s always advanced, though!”

And Xiari had had to agree with that assessment. As an ELF, she was Minhyun’s number one cheerleader (right after his mother, of course) whenever the baby did something that reflected his parents’ evil and/or genius. Mostly, what the baby did were evil and genius, though. Evil genius.

Minhyun’s another evil genius in the making.

And that evil genius trait of course manifested itself, and made Kyuhyun suffer, when he eventually said his first word.

During Minhyun’s 10th month, Kyuhyun hadn’t been only worried; the evil maknae had also started to get desperate. Forget words like “power,” “dominion,” or “mine”! Kyuhyun would have even settled for a typical first word at that point!

“How about ‘appa’?” Kyuhyun had practically pleaded with Minhyun, who was on his high chair, as he gave a small slice of banana to his son. “Can you say ‘appa’? Say ‘appa,’ Minhyunnie! Call me ‘appa’!”

“Waa mwaaa dyuu!” was all the senseless babble that had come out of Minhyun as he tried to reach for the banana. Food! Must get!

Kyuhyun had sighed wearily as he gave the slice to his son. It wouldn’t do well to withhold food from Minhyun, anyway. Not if he didn’t want his eardrums to burst.

“Not even ‘appa,’ Minhyunnie? Just ‘appa,’ come on!

Of course, with Minhyun being the cute, evil little minion that he was, the first word had been so far from “appa.”

And yet… it’s quite near “appa.”

To be exact, Minhyun’s first word was the opposite of “appa.”

Whenever Hankyung would visit the mother and son duo, he would always refer to Kyuhyun as Minhyun’s mother:

“Hey, Minhyunnie! Your umma’s still managed to keep you alive?”

“Minhyun, tell your umma to stop torturing me!”

“Don’t you dare do that, Cho Minhyun! I will tell your umma! Wait, never mind, your umma will probably cheer you on…”

Or even just “Minhyunnie. Your umma is crazy.”

“I am his appa, goddammit, hyung!” Kyuhyun would yell in protest every time Hankyung referred to him as Minhyun’s “umma.”

And then, the evil maknae would proceed to try and kill his hyung.

But, unknown to the adults, all Hankyung’s referring to Kyuhyun as Minhyun’s “umma” apparently rubbed off on Minhyun.

As Minhyun would eventually let Kyuhyun know.

One night, Kyuhyun was trying to fix the clothes in Minhyun’s dresser. Of course, the keyword here is “trying.” The hapless-with-chores maknae was very confused as he tried to figure out which of Minhyun’s clothes should go into which drawer (Xiari had thoughtfully arranged the dresser and made it organized, but apparently, neatness and organization just confuse Kyuhyun even more).

Meanwhile, Minhyun was standing in his crib. His little hands were clutching the wooden bars at the