A nice whiff of food cooking in the kitchen caused Jongin’s stomach to growl. Feeling hungry, Jongin rose from the sofa and stretched his limbs a little. His head was still a little heavy, but it wasn’t as bad as earlier.

Jongin saw the copper-haired boy bounding up to him.

What’s his name again?

He tried his best to remember.

It’s Chanyeol.

“Kai, you’re up,” Chanyeol said as he flashed a smile.

There is something about Chanyeol which is endearing, Kai thought to himself. This guy always looks so happy. It’s as though he has been infected by a “happy virus” or something.

“Anyway I’m not Kai. My real name is Jongin. I’m sorry I lied. Kai was some random name I made up,” Jongin apologised.

Chanyeol broke into a laugh and gave Jongin a pat on his back. “Kai sounds easier to remember.”

“You’re not mad at me for lying?” Jongin questioned.

“I’m not. You’re probably just feeling uncomfortable being around us – a bunch of weirdoes – me included,” Chanyeol chuckled.  

Jongin look ashamed as he shifted his gaze to the ground.

What right do I have to see them as weirdoes when I am pretty much a queer?

“Err, Kai?” Chanyeol spoke.

“Ne?”

“No offence. I think you should go wash up or take a shower before brunch. You still reek of alcohol,” Chanyeol said, pinching his own nose.

“Mi-an-hamnida,” Jongin said. He did not know he smelled so bad and felt a little embarrassed.

“The toilet and bathroom is over there,” Chanyeol pointed out. “Do you need a towel and clothes to change or something? We’re about the same height. I can spare you some.”

“That’s alright. I’ve some clothes of my own. Do you know where my backpack is?”

“It’s on the floor next to the sofa.”

“Gamsa hamnida.”   

Jongin opened his backpack and took out his toothbrush, a towel, a t-shirt and a pair of pants. He headed to the toilet to shower.

As the cool water fell over his body, he felt immensely grateful to the people who took him in for the night. Who are these people? What do they do?

And then he wondered about his own situation? There’s nothing I can do here anyway. Should I just return home? 

A familiar face came to his mind again – Taemin.

Jongin sighed as he towelled himself dry. It was all over between him and Taemin.

He came out from the shower and head back to the living room. Adjoining the living room was the dining room. There was a large table and the utensils have been laid out neatly for eight people.

I didn’t know there were so many people living in this place.

Chanyeol spotted Jongin and dragged him to sit him down and one end of the table. Baekhyun was busy bringing out the food from the kitchen and setting the table with the various plates of panchan (side dishes).

Jongin then spotted a man saunter into the dining area with a newspaper in his mind. He heard Baekhyun greet the man with “Good morning appa” before he (Baekhyun) disappeared into the kitchen again.

The man Baekhyun addressed as appa was quite slim and tall, but shorter than Chanyeol. He had shaggy medium length black hair which was gelled up. He sat down on the chair and opened the newspaper to read.

Not long after, Jongin saw the man from earlier than morning – Sungmin – approach the other man from behind and wrapped his arms around his neck and giving the man a kiss on his cheek.

Jongin’s jaw dropped. Chanyeol glanced at Jongin and chuckled. Chanyeol nudged Jongin at his side to attract the latter’s attention.

“Kai, what’s wrong? You seem surprised.” Chanyeol asked.

“I just didn’t expect…” Jongin stuttered.

“Kyuhyun-appa and Sungmin-umma have been a couple for almost 20 years,” Chanyeol said.

“Wow!” Jongin uttered enviously. Almost 20 years – that is a long time. And that moment, Jongin wished inside that he would be able to have a partner that could be with him for a long time. His thoughts turned towards Taemin and he sighed.

Chanyeol noticed his sigh, “Are you envious of them?”

Jongin nodded.

“Well, they’ve been through a lot together,” Chanyeol said. “Anyway, most of the guys here are gay except maybe just one.”

Chanyeol let out a sigh and turned towards the direction of the kitchen. He started to look pensive. Before Jongin could ask who the person was, he heard Sungmin asking him, “Good afternoon Kai. How are you feeling? Is your hangover gone?”

“Ne. I’m feeling much better. Gamsa-hamnida Sungmin-ssi.” Jongin responded politely.

“Just call me umma like the rest of the boys here do. Hey Kyu, say hi to our guest.”

Kyuhyun reluctantly put down the newspaper and greeted Jongin before proceeded to pick up the newspaper and continued reading.

“Kyu, don’t be rude,” Sungmin chided.

It was then that Jongin noticed another boy enter the dining room and take the seat just opposite him.

This boy is as tall as Jongin. He is fair and has a high nose. His eyes were half-lidded and he looked sleepy. But Jongin thought of him as a real ulzzang. He smiled at Jongin.  

Just then Baekhyun came skipping into the dining room bringing a bowl and setting it down in front of Jongin. “Kyungsoo specially made some porridge for you.”

Just then Kyungsoo popped into the living room with a big bowl of soup.

“You must be Kyungsoo?” Jongin asked. Kyungsoo had a slightly rounded derp face with thick eyebrows and large eyes which that made him adorable.

Kyungsoo nodded.

“Thank you for the porridge,” Jongin said.

“Don’t mention it,” Kyungsoo smiled.

“Appa, umma, we can start eating,” Kyungsoo said.

Sungmin scanned the table. “Where’s Joon-myun? 

Just then a short smiling boy whose megawatt smile can light up a room came dashing into the dining area.

“Mianhae,” he bowed. “I was caught up with the work downstairs.”

“That’s alright. Let’s all start on our brunch,” Sungmin said.

The Joon-myun guy took his seat next to the ulzzang.

Everyone started on the food. Jongin was really grateful for the meal. The food was rather tasty. He was impressed by Kyungsoo for managing to whip up a delicious meal.

His eyes looked up towards the people around him. They were tucking into their meals happily. Sungmin was feeding Kyuhyun as Kyuhyun read the newspaper. Baekhyun and Chanyeol were heaping food for one another as they chattered with one another with Baekhyun turning to talk to Kyungsoo at times. . The ulzzang was whispering into Joon-myun; the former was occasionally being distracted by his handphone.

They were halfway through their meal when Sungmin suddenly said, “I forgot to tell you guys that we have a guest with us. His name is Kai. Let’s welcome him.”

There was a chorus of “Hello Kai” which made Jongin feel a little embarrassed from the overwhelming attention.

“Thank you for your having me as your guest. Actually my name is Kim Jongin. Kai is some random nickname I thought of.”

“Oh!” Sungmin mouthed.

“Anyway we should all introduce ourselves to our guest,” Sungmin said. “I’ll start. I’m Lee Sungmin. I’m the oldest here and umma to everyone. And I am one of the owners of Heaven. I also manage the day to day ops at Heaven.”

Taking Kyuhyun’s newspaper away from him and putting it down on Kyuhyun’s lap, Sungmin pointed, “He is Cho Kyuhyun, my husband.”

“I’m not your husband,” Kyuhyun said coolly.

“What?” Sungmin asked in shock.

“We’re not married. At least not legally. Partner, yes, husband, no,” Kyuhyun deadpanned.

Sungmin glared at Kyuhyun, “So our vows don’t count?”

“I’m just trying not to confuse our poor guest here or freak him out if he isn’t one of us. You know that gay marriage isn’t legalised in Korea.”

“So does it mean that what’s yours, remains yours and what’s mine remains mine?” Sungmin asked.

“Ne. I’m surprised you never asked that question before,” Kyuhyun smirked.

“But I’ve always thought that what’s mine is mine and what’s yours is mine?” Sungmin pouted.

“That’s because you’ve always assumed it to be that case. And I was too nice to ever make a clear stand on that.”

“Then why are you making that now?”

“As your lawyer, I need to advise you on your rights.”

Sungmin rolled his eyes in disgust and was about to grumble when Kyuhyun suddenly crushed his lips on Sungmin’s lips.

It was a quick kiss. Satisfied, Kyuhyun pulled back with a smirk as Sungmin blushed. “You’re mine. But other than that, what’s mine is yours.”

Turning to Jongin, Kyuhyun said, “Annyeong haseyo, Cho Kyuhyun-imnida. I’m Sungmin’s partner. I’m a lawyer by profession and a partner in a law firm. I am also a co-owner of Heaven though I’m not involved with the management. And I’m the appa around here though I’m younger than Sungmin.”

“Annyeong, Kim Joon-myun-imnida,” the smiley guy said. “You can also call me Suho. That’s my nick in Heaven. I’m the eldest kid here, so I’m the hyung to everyone.”

“Annyeong haseyo Oh Sehun-imnida,” the ulzzang said with a lisp. “Kai-ssi, when were you born?”

“January 14 1994.”

“Damn it. I’m still the maknae!” Sehun exclaimed.

Joon-myun ribbed the maknae. “What’s wrong being the maknae?”

“Because I get bullied,” Sehun replied.

“Do we even bully you?” Joon-myun pretended to throttle Sehun’s neck.

“This is good evidence of bullying,” Sehun huffed.

“Sehun-ah, you’re one of the last people on earth that can be bullied,” Chanyeol quipped.

Baekhyun nodded. “Sehun, you can twirl all the older guys with your finger.”

Sehun’s face started to turn red. “Ya! Baekhyun-hyung! Chanyeol-hyung, please control your Baekhyun.”

Chanyeol looked in horror at Sehun’s comment as he blushed, “He’s not mine. Anyway let’s carry on with the introduction. I think Kai knows my name. Park Chanyeol-imnida. I’m 20 and a second year college student.”

“Byun Baekhyun-imnida. I had been an orphan and was adopted by Kyuhyun-appa and Sungmin-umma when I was four. I’m 20 and a second year college student too.”

“Do Kyungsoo-imnida. I like cooking and singing. So I take care of most of the meals around here,” he beamed proudly.

“And he’s a cleanliness and tidiness freak,” Baekhyun added. “Don’t ever mess the kitchen or his room up or he’ll throw a fit.”

“What’s wrong with liking things tidy and clean?” Kyungsoo retorted.

Baekhyun stuck his tongue out at Kyungsoo.

Jongin was feeling amused. This is such a dysfunctional family. They were teasing each other but not in a mean and offensive manner. In fact, it was all rather in good spirits.

He thought of his own family. Meal times were a quiet affair and solemn affair. There was something warm about this group of family which he had never experienced in his own home.

“So Kai-ssi, tell us about yourself,” Sungmin asked.

“I…I…” Jongin stuttered a little. He was a little hesitant.

“You can speak your mind and share freely here,” Joon-myun encouraged. “We won’t judge you.”

“I’m from Gwangju. But I ran away from home,” Jongin said with his head down.

“Why did you run away?” Sungmin asked.

Jongin kept silent.

“It’s okay, you can tell us,” Sungmin urged.

And Jongin remembered the words that Chanyeol had said earlier – that most of Heaven’s occupants are gay.

“Well, my parents caught me in bed with my boyfriend,” Jongin said sheepishly.

“When you say that, you mean they caught you having with your boyfriend?” Sehun asked. Flatly.

Jongin nodded.

“After that they grounded me for two days. They confiscated my phone, won’t allow me to use the internet. And then I heard that they wanted to send me to a psychiatrist to cure me of my homouality. And they wanted to send me away to break me up from my boyfriend.”

Chanyeol’s smile vanished from his face. He looked rather downcast. Baekhyun gave Chanyeol a quick hug to comfort him. Baekhyun knew what Chanyeol was feeling at the moment.

Kyungsoo and Joon-myun eyed Jongin sympathetically.

“So you decided to run away?” Sehun asked.

“I thought we could come to Seoul and settle down together.”

“So why isn’t he with you?” Sehun continued to probe.

“Because he broke up with me,” Jongin sighed.

“Jerk,” Sehun spat. “Guys are all jerks.”

This time it was Joon-myun who reached out to pat Sehun on his back.

“But you still decided to come to Seoul despite the break-up?” Baekhyun enquired.

“I don’t think I can go back home after running away. I think I’ll be grounded for life. So I decided to try my luck in Seoul and see if I could find a job or something like that.”

Sungmin shot Kyuhyun a pleading look.

“Minnie, I know what you’re thinking,” Kyuhyun said coolly.

“So will you agree to it, please?” Sungmin said cutely.

“I’m not too sure. Seems like his parents are the difficult sort. It might be a bit of a problem,” Kyuhyun mused.

“Please Kyu. Didn’t we successfully take in Kyungsoo, Joon-myun, Chanyeol and Sehun and the so many others before them? Sehun also ran away from home.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to take Kai in. Well, Sehun didn’t run away from home. His parents think he is putting up at some friend’s place. We’re taking care of Kyungsoo on behalf of his parents. Joon-myun was placed under our care. Chanyeol was abandoned by his parents. But this time we’ll dealing with a runaway.”

“Kyuhyun-ssi, Sungmin-ssi, it is alright. You don’t have to worry about me. I can always go home. I’m really thankful for what you’ve done for me so far,” Jongin said.

“We can’t let you go back to that home of yours, could we, Kyu?” Sungmin nudged Kyuhyun.

Kyuhyun remained silent was he was lost in thought.

“Do you really want to live with us Kai?” Kyuhyun suddenly spoke.

“I guess,” Jongin replied.

“Why don’t you stay here with us for a while?” Kyuhyun suggested.

“I could?” Jongin’s eyes brightened up. “Gamsa-hamnida.”

The rest of the boys cheered to the likes of “Yay! We have a new brother!”

Sungmin hugged Kyuhyun tightly and kissed him tightly on his lips.

“So what do you intend to do about Kai, Kyu?”

Kyuhyun sighed, “Let me speak to Ryeowook and Yesung first. I might need their help. But first we need to get Kai settled in.”

Sungmin nodded.

“Kai, we need to have a talk after brunch,” Kyuhyun said.

Jongin nodded.

Kyuhyun sighed as he looked at Sungmin’s joyful face.

“Minnie, sometimes I wonder why I keep getting myself mixed up in all this. It’s all because of you,” he said as he put a spoonful of rice into his mouth again.

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Sorry to keep you guys waiting for this update.  

I know this chapter is a bit slow-moving though I do hope you enjoyed this chapter. Well, we've now met the rest of the family. 

Who do you think is the person that isn't gay which Chanyeol had thought and said in the chapter?

What do you think Chanyeol's experience was to make him feel downcast when he heard Kai share his experience? 

Why did Sehun say that all men are jerks? Will he meet a guy who will prove to him that men are not jerks? 

Will Kai be able to blend into the family? 

Please subscribe to find out.

And please leave me your comments. They are very much valued and appreciated. 

This story might take some time to finish because there are many characters. And I'm still trying to develop the plot to this story. So please be patient with me.

Do check out my other fan fics if you have not already done so.

My other fan fics

KyuMin: Almost a love story

KyuMin: 60 Days 

It's You (너라고) Neorago (a YeWook fan-fic)