And he hangs up.

 

---

 

Seokjin is fuming. How dare Min Yoongi call him like that, distracting him from work and insinuating his son is some kind of hooligan? He parks at the daycare, maybe a bit outside the lines, but Seokjin is in no mood to fix it.

He approaches the glass doors of the daycare center, sunglasses fixed firmly in place to hide his ‘angry eyebrows’, as Jungkook calls them. There’s a man walking in front of him, and when he notices Seokjin, he opens the door and steps aside. “After you.”

The shades are slid on top of Seokjin’s head in order to see the man better. The encounter certainly lightens his aura a bit; at least there are some polite people left in the world. Better yet, the man is incredibly handsome, with a polished blazer and slicked-back hair and sophisticated glasses. Seokjin’s eyes flit to the door handle, where he notes the man’s lack of a wedding ring. “Thank you,” Seokjin smiles at him and enters the building.

“It’s a bit nerve-wracking, isn’t it,” the handsome stranger says, “dropping your kid off for the whole day in the hands of a stranger?”

“I know the feeling,” Seokjin replies, “It seems like just yesterday I changed my little boy’s diaper for the first time,” They share a laugh at the mutual memory, until Seokjin remembers why he’d just been upset. And unfortunately, he’s always had the habit of venting to strangers. “My son’s an angel, he really is, but I got a call about an hour ago and apparently he’s been a bad boy today.”

The man raised an eyebrow. “Oh, really? If it’s any consolation, I’m sure it’s not your fault.” The look in the man’s eye—Seokjin has seen it once before, when someone tried to pick him up at a bar.

He doesn’t get another word in before the main doors open and a crowd of children rush out excitedly. Seokjin spots Jungkook easily, in his favorite Iron Man tee-shirt, and when the boy bows his head, Seokjin knows there really is something wrong.

Min Yoongi stands by the double doors, ushering kids out to meet their parents, but his hands keep a firm grip on both Jungkook and another young boy with an atrocious haircut. Seokjin approaches the man and tries to keep a stern expression when he notices the tears on Jungkook’s cheeks, “Hello, Mr. Min, I’ll have you know that I was left very confused by your phone call earlier—”

“That’s fine,” Even from looking at Min Yoongi, Seokjin can’t picture how this man has enough patience to watch thirty kids the whole day. “If you’ll step into the main room, we’ll discuss the issue with your son. Now I’m just looking for a Kim Namjoon.”

“Oh, that’s me,” Seokjin turns around at the voice and is surprised to see the good-looking man from earlier, “I got your voicemail. Sorry I didn’t call back—I was busy. I’m sure you understand.”

Min Yoongi visibly cringes and leads both men and children through a large, toy-laden room and into a more boring office. Instinctively, Seokjin pulls Jungkook onto his lap, while Kim Namjoon’s son just clings onto the edge of a chair and begins bouncing erratically. “Now,” Min Yoongi leans back in his chair, “I know your boys are young, and this is a critical time for them to get used to sharing and social cues, but today things went a bit too far,” he takes a deep breath and rattles off more of his speech, “Today was the first day of our daycare program, and boys, I understand that new things can be challenging.  Jungkook,” the man makes eye contact with the toddler squirming in Seokjin’s lap, “it is not right to cut people’s hair off—”

“He what?” Seokjin interjects. His ears must be messing with him, “My son cut someone’s hair off?” It takes exactly one look at Jungkook’s closed eyes and clenched fists to know the truth.

A small voice pipes up from between their chairs, “I like!” It’s Kim Namjoon’s son, practically jumping up and down, showing off his newly-jagged bangs, “Style!”

Seokjin wants to disappear. He doesn’t care how much the other boy likes his hairstyle; he can feel both Min Yoongi and Kim Namjoon judging his parenting skills. It doesn’t add up. Jungkook has never shown aggression towards anyone, even people much larger than him. He’s an angel and Seokjin refuses to believe otherwise.

“And Taehyung,” the daycare counselor continues, “Please stop biting the other kids.”

“You bit him?” Kim Namjoon shoots a look at his son, “I told you not to do that anymore.”

Taehyung shows no sign of sadness, instead beaming up at his father with a thick-cheeked smile, “He’s delicious! I bited—”

“Bit.”

“—I bitted Jiminie today, too. He laughed! He’s also delicious.” Seokjin has to hand it to the young boy—he has a wide vocabulary for someone not yet in preschool. The boy makes a hissing noise and spreads his mouth wide open, “I’m vampire!” Sure enough, with the absence of his two front teeth, Taehyung does appear to have fangs. Jungkook shuffles to the edge of the chair farthest from Taehyung.

Min Yoongi rubs his temples, and in that moment, he doesn’t look at all like he watches children for a living. “Maybe your wives could help encourage positive social behavior,” he suggests.

Immediately, Namjoon shoots back, “I’m not married.” He looks directly at Seokjin when he says it.

Seokjin keeps his eyes straight ahead. “Me neither.”

The counselor sighs, “I just wanted to bring this to your attention,” he stands from his desk and motions for the door, “I’d like your cooperation in making my job as easy as possible.”

Seokjin and Namjoon leave in silence and there’s a definite poisonous atmosphere between them. Namjoon breaks it: “It’s not like my kid has rabies,” Namjoon ignores Taehyung, who has latched himself onto Namjoon’s leg and started to sing an obnoxious, babbling melody, “but he won’t do it again, right, Taehyung?” Taehyung falls dramatically to the floor in response, and Seokjin can’t tell if that’s a yes or a no. Then Namjoon says, “I’ll buy you coffee if you stop glaring at me.”

“Coffee? That won’t do anything!” Seokjin yanks Jungkook closer to his side, “Jungkook has a reputation to maintain, and he can’t do that with other kids playing vampire—”

“And your son wasn’t playing barber? Maybe it is your fault; you taught him how to hold scissors before preschool. And a reputation? What are you, one of the socially elite?”

“I’m a pharmacist.”

Namjoon scoffs. “Fine, I’ll buy you coffee anyway.” And then he winks. He winks and it takes everything in Seokjin to keep a straight face.

He tows Jungkook out to their car by the hand and right before he closes the door, Kim Namjoon calls, “Oh, so you’re the one with the parking?” Seokjin hopes Jungkook didn’t hear the naughty word, “They say the worst drivers are the most attractive, you know!”

All Seokjin does is slip his sunglasses back on, turn the radio up, and drive away.

He won’t let Kim Namjoon get the best of him.

 

---

 

—TUESDAY—

 

Another day, another phone call. Seokjin sits in the daycare waiting room, surrounded by other parents, mostly young mothers who approach Seokjin just to say, “Oh, I wish my husband would pick up our child once in a while! Your wife is so lucky!” Even though Seokjin doesn’t have a wife (and isn’t interested in one).

Then someone sits down next to him, someone with coiffed hair and tailored clothes and that irritatingly charming smirk. And a cup of coffee. “I did say I’d buy you a coffee,” he hands it to Seokjin, who does accept (but definitely won’t ever drink it, not at all), “So here we are again. Something like fate, isn’t it?”

Seokjin keeps his voice low, “I can’t tell if you’re trying to flirt with me, but I’m not interested.”

Namjoon laughs. “I’ll just have to keep trying, then.”

The double-doors open and once again, the two men are ushered into Min Yoongi’s office. And once more, Jungkook sits calmly in Seokjin’s lap while Taehyung ricochets off the walls. “Hello again, gentlemen,” Min Yoongi seems tired and irritated, to say the least. “Can’t say I’m surprised to see you two again. Well, I’ll just get straight to business: Taehyung dumped a tube of glitter over Jungkook’s head, and then Jungkook ripped Taehyung’s finger-painting in half.”

Seokjin hides his face in his hands, and fortunately Namjoon has a similar reaction. “I swear, I’m not a bad parent,” Namjoon mumbles as Seokjin brushes a few specks of leftover glitter from Jungkook’s hair.

“I didn’t say you were,” Mr. Min absently twirls a pen between his fingers, “I just don’t have problems like this with any of the other kids. And I reviewed both of your files; while Jungkook is the youngest child in our care center, at two, Taehyung is nearly four years old. Shouldn’t he know better, Mr. Kim? And other Mr. Kim,” he turns to Seokjin, “It’s come to my attention that you are listed as Jungkook’s ‘Legal Guardian’.”

He sees the intrigue on Namjoon’s face, but he’s not going to get into the gritty details. “I wanted kids, but not marriage. And currently, I am legally Jungkook’s father. Because he’s not biologically mine doesn’t make me a bad parent.”

“I didn’t say that, either,” Min Yoongi flips through some stray papers on his desk, “Jungkook just seems more timid than the rest of the children. I’ve heard that opposites attract, but in this case, your sons are having a bit of trouble. I don’t want to resort to desperate measures.”

Seokjin doesn’t know the definition of these ‘desperate measures’, but he doesn’t want to experience them. “I’m aware of that. By the end of the week, Jungkook will be a changed man.”

“We’ll have to see about that.” Min Yoongi stands up, opens the door, and sits back down. “Now if you’d please leave me to my work.”

 

---

 

—WEDNESDAY—

 

“Since our kids obviously aren’t getting along,” Namjoon doesn’t greet Seokjin as he slips into the next chair over; he just jumps straight to conversation, “We could organize a play-date. If you think about it, it’s a great idea. While our kids play, we can date.”

Seokjin gasps and hopes none of the mothers hear him. “You—you’re a dirty man.”

He doesn’t appreciate Namjoon’s laughing, and he definitely doesn’t appreciate how it makes his heart jolt. “I think you secretly like it. And personally, I haven’t had this much fun since the throes of my divorce.” Seokjin can’t tell if he’s serious or joking.

“Mr. Kim and other Mr. Kim?” Min Yoongi’s gruff voice calls to them from the doorway. Seokjin didn’t notice the children filing out into the waiting room, but he certainly notices the woman next to him whispering, ‘Are they together?’ with wide eyes.

“What did they do this time?” Namjoon asks once inside the office. From the crudely-drawn red flowers tattooing Jungkook’s cheeks, Seokjin has a decent idea.

Min Yoongi lets out a breath. He seems more exhausted every day. “Taehyung mistook Jungkook’s face for paper, and so Jungkook broke his favorite marker and we had a bit of an ink spill.” At least Jungkook’s bright red fingers weren’t stained with blood. “I don’t know how to communicate this to you more clearly: if your children don’t stop this behavior, we’ll have to remove them from the program. My assistants and I are at wit’s end.”

Seokjin nods slowly. “I understand. Mr. Kim and I are…considering ways to remedy the situation.”

“Well, it’s good to know you two are collaborating. I won’t be here tomorrow, but I expect a good report when I return.” Min Yoongi stands up from his desk, “Now, if you all would kindly leave my office.”

In the waiting room, Namjoon gives Seokjin his cell number almost-too-eagerly (“Just let me know when you want that play-date. Or an actual date,”). And Seokjin definitely doesn’t save the number as soon as he totes Jungkook back to the car.

 

---

 

—THURSDAY—

 

There’s no phone call at work that day, and Seokjin finds it a bit unnerving. He walks up to the daycare center in his sunglasses, and once again, Kim Namjoon holds the door open for him. “Maybe our kids finally came to their senses. After all, we get along just swimmingly, and the apple shouldn’t fall far from the tree.” Seokjin’s brain catches on ‘our kids’.

It’s another man that greets them in the waiting room, and in comparison to Min Yoongi, he seems completely opposite. “Hello, gentlemen! I was told to speak to ‘the only two men in the lobby’ if there was an issue today, and I’m guessing that’s you, but I really don’t see what Yoongi was talking about. Taehyung and Jungkook are absolute joys! I’m Jung Hoseok, by the way. Think of me as like a ‘daycare substitute’.” He deals out enthusiastic handshakes to Seokjin and Namjoon, who are both rather stunned.

Seokjin spots Jungkook then, and surprisingly, Kim Taehyung is attached to him at the hip. The older boy smiles wide, showing off his vampire-like teeth. “Daddy! I maked—”

“Made.”

“—I maded friend! It’s Kookie!”

Jungkook looks shyly at Taehyung, in his true nature, and grabs Seokjin’s hand. All he says is, “Tae Tae is my friend.”

Seokjin claps Jung Hoseok’s shoulder with his free hand and says, “You’re a miracle worker. All week, these two have been at each other’s necks.”

The man shrugs. “I didn’t do anything. Taehyung shared his pretzels with all the kids, and Jungkook seemed to warm right up to him.”

“I should’ve known!” Seokjin laughs, “That boy always cooperates for food.”

They leave like a chain, with Namjoon holding onto Taehyung holding onto Jungkook holding onto Seokjin. And when it’s time for the boys to part ways and head to their respective cars, Taehyung looks up at Namjoon with pleading eyes. “I wanna play with Kookie!”

Namjoon and Seokjin share a look, a look that ends in Seokjin nodding with a faint smile on his lips. “I think that can be arranged.”

 

---

 

—FRIDAY—

 

“I didn’t believe they had it in them, to be honest.” Min Yoongi’s eyes scan the report Jung Hoseok had left him, maybe for the thousandth time. “One minute they’re cutting hair and wasting glitter, and the next they’re best friends. Taehyung even shared his racecar toy with Jungkook, and he doesn’t even share that with Jimin.”

Namjoon sits relaxed; he and Seokjin are the only two guests in Mr. Min’s office, where they can see two young boys playing peacefully together in the next room. “I guess we just work really well together.”

“I guess so.” Min Yoongi’s reply lacks any hint of amusement. “I’d just like to thank both of you for making my work less hellish. I don’t know what you did, but it worked. Now please, take your kids and leave.”

It feels natural to give Namjoon an overhanded, celebratory high-five. They manage to separate Taehyung from Jungkook and head for their cars. “By the way,” Namjoon calls to him from across the parking lot, “you look really good in sunglasses.”

Seokjin’s not even mad.

 

---

 

Eventually (later than Seokjin would like but sooner than he’s willing to admit he’d like), Taehyung does come over to play, and Namjoon does get that date. When a horrified boy’s cry of, ‘Your dad kiss my dad! Ew! Cooties!’ is heard throughout the house, Seokjin can’t bring himself to care.

And over time, Seokjin learns that the title of ‘Single Dad’ is only a title (especially if half of it is false).