You are an about 6 to 9 years-old, wise-beyond-your-years kind of girl (brat) called Kang Miho (強 美鎬 / 강 미호) whose parents are divorced. You have an older brother, but he lives with your father in the United States. You live with your mother and her fiance; they are expecting a child. You fought with your mother and ran away from home, meeting a somewhat, also-distraught Kim Ryeowook in the park. Oh, and by the way, this is kind of set in 2013, a slight alternate universe in which there is no military service :D (-as Jaedelle gets shot by an officer-) And zomg I hate having to look up what their current hair colors are >:! Crayonish hair dye inventor, diva-Jaedelle royally hates you!!

 

A Childish Heart

 

"Kang Miho, get back here this instant!" Your mother screamed at you. She's been spending more and more time with her fiance than with you, and it hurt that the only times that she seemed to notice you was whenever you made a mess or did something you weren't supposed to, like mouthing off at a teacher at school. Heck, she'll probably forget that you even exist once her and her fiance's baby is born.

"Why don't you make me?" You yelled back, running down the stairs of the apartment complex. You hear your mother chase you a few steps, but then you hear a thud. You don't turn back to look; your pride hurts and your eyes are stinging too much. Determined not to cry like a loser in front of the mother that will likely completely forget you soon, you flee from the building and keep running until you reach the neighbourhood park.

 

Well, that was a brilliant idea. Your mother probably did forget you, or better yet, she doesn't give a hoot about you, since the sun is already setting. You look at the vibrant reds and oranges as you sit on the swings, kicking your little feet into the ground to get it going. The wind dries your tears as you swing like a pendulum, back and forth, and repeat, chafing your cheeks.

"They probably don't even notice I'm missing," you say as you hear a light blueish-purple haired man on the higher swing set next to yours murmur the same phrase. He sighs, poking at his phone and scrolling through songs.

"Hey, ajusshi," you stop swinging and look at him.

"Hm?" He pulls out an ear bud, smiling weakly. "You should call Teukie-hyung, Heechullie-hyung, and Yesungie-hyung 'ajusshi,' not me. I'm not thirty yet, little one. I'm an 'oppa,' not an 'ajusshi.'"

You continue to stare somewhat rudely at him, not really sure what to call him. You don't want to call him "oppa" because that would just make you miss your brother, since daddy took him away when he and mom decided to go separate ways.

He sighs. "Kids these days . . . Little one, what's your name?"

You blink and stare some more. Mom told me not to talk to strangers, they're dangerous.

"Fine, I'll just keep swinging and singing to myself like all strange ajusshi do," he huffs, sticking out his lower lip and fluffing out his cheeks. "A warm wind is blowing like it was that night. The flowers you lovingly planted have bloomed; before I know it, spring has come again. I still want to deeply sleep like it’s winter . . ."

You look away as you listen to his song, wanting to cry even more as you remember how your family used to be. The flower pots that mom used to take care of, the ghost stories that dad used tell you and your brother, the time your older brother face-planted in the snow while skiing . . . And just like a loser, you start crying again. A warm hand ruffles your hair and you freeze.

"Little one, you should probably go home soon," the blue-haired stranger says kindly. "Come on, oppa will piggyback you home." He extends his hand to you, and you cry harder, missing your dad and brother more now. "Don't cry," he hugs you. "What's bothering you, kiddo?"

"Mom--" you sobbed.

"Ah, you argued with your mom?"

You nodded.

"If it's ok, can you tell oppa what you two argued about?"

You shake your head and he sighs.

"Ok. If oppa tells you his name first, will you tell him yours?"

You stare at him again.

"I'm Kim Ryeowook. Little one?"

"Miho. Kang Miho."

He offers you his pinky. "Oppa promises that everything will turn out ok, ok? Let's go home; your mother is probably worried sick."

You shake your head violently. "Mom doesn't want Miho to come home. She and that man have another baby on the way."

Confusion is written all over his face before he understands. "Oh . . . But, Miho-ya, how do you know she doesn't want you to go back?"

You shake your head again, not wanting to answer. So you take a jab at Ryeowook-oppa after remembering what he was mumbling about earlier. "What about oppa? Did oppa fight with his mom, too? Is that why he's out when it's almost dark out?" You puff out your cheeks.

Ryeowook-oppa laughs weakly. "Mom lives a little far away, dad does, too. I fought with Kyuhyun and some of the hyungs, actually." He looks away. "Guess I'm kind of childish, like you."

"Height wise?"

He frowns. "Coming from you?"

"Touche."

Silence. Then the two of you giggle.

"But Miho-ya, I really think your mother is worried sick about you, shouldn't you at least tell her that you're ok?"

Your eyes water as you want to scream no, but instead, you say, "She probably forgot all about me already." Then you changed the subject. "What about oppa? Shouldn't you tell Kyuhyun and the other oppas?"

"That's Kyuhyun-oppa--wait, no . . . Kyuhyun-ajusshi to you, he's older," Ryeowook-oppa began, thinking. "Well, maybe I did overreact . . . But then again . . . Well . . ."

"It's not like you pulled on Kyuhyun's ponytail or anything, is it?" You fluff out your cheeks again.

"Kyuhyun-oppa." He corrects you again. "And no, I didn't do that. Kyuhyun doesn't have enough hair for me to pull like that. If I really wanted to get back at him, I'd make him eat a bell pepper salad or delete his game accounts."

"Then why would oppa not tell the other oppas?"

"Because they forgot my birthday," he laughs somewhat bitterly. "I know it's not a big deal, but . . ."

"Happy birthday, oppa," you say with a monotone.

"Thanks, kiddo," he pats your head and you blinked, expecting more to his story. He took a deep breath. "It's ok for them to forget, I guess, since there's a lot of us, and they each have other things on their minds . . ."

You stop to think for a momement. Maybe mom is worried about different things, too . . .

". . . Bills, rehearsals, work . . . But, refusing to eat the lunch I made them? And eating instant ramen while scratching their--nevermind . . . Basically, they were lounging around on the floor eating ramen after I made lunch . . . And Kyuhyun just had to tell me to 'shut up' when I told him to come eat . . . while looking at his computer screen . . ." His eyes watered. "Maybe they forgot I existed."

You tug at his blueish fringe. "Oppa is weird."

"Excuse me?"

"Oppa is weird," you repeated. "Oppa remembers almost every detail. Miho doesn't think other oppas forgot oppa because he still remembers them."

Ryeowook-oppa blinks, baffled that such simple, yet true insight is coming from a kid less than half his age. "Maybe . . ." His phone rings, startling him. It reads: Heenim-dictator. And he answers it. "Yeah, hyung?"

"Yah, where the bloody Gulliver are you?!"

Ryeowook-oppa flinches and holds the phone a few inches away from his ear as a loud, raspy voice starts screaming from the other end. A chorus of worried and loud voices follow.

"Ah, KIDS, SHUT UP. Oh, sorry. Heechul, I didn't mean you. Can I have the phone, please?" A calmer voice came on the phone.

"Ryeowook-ah?"

"Teukie-hyung?"

"Where are you? We're kinda worried since you just stormed out like that."

Ryeowook-oppa's eyes widened. 

"Hey, Ryeowook-ah! Happy birthday," screamed a really hyper voice. You hear what sounds like some shoving and dragging before the calm voice comes back on the line.

"Donghae-ya, be quiet for a second, will you?" The voice sounds like it's addressing someone behind them. "Ryeowook-ah? Where are you?"

"I'm at the park, I'll be home soon. If you guys are hungry, just eat the lunch. It's on the top shelf in the fridge, stacked in the blue containers on the right."

"Mm, ok. Kyuhyun-ah, Ryeowook's on the line," you hear the voice on the other end call out to someone and watch with amusement as Ryeowook-oppa's face brightens with each new voice he hears. "Oh, for the love of God, Kyuhyun . . . take your hands off the keyboard for a few seconds and hold the phone yourself!"

"But hyung, I'm feeling a bit tired," a deep voice says, sounding a bit mischievious as he lets out a few fake coughs. "Ryeowook-ah!"

"Yeah?" Ryeowook-oppa rolls his eyes, smiling.

"Sorry I told you to shut up earlier! And happy birthday!"

"Thanks--"

"Oh, and also, sorry that one of your giraffes fell out the window, but I swear that was Donghae and Kangin-hyung's fault--"

"My what fell out the window?"

"Nothing! Just come home! Teuk-hyung, Heechul-hyung, I'm done, take your phone back before I die!"

You hear what sounds like lasers being fired, some more voices, then the line just beeps. Either they hung up or the phone died. 

Ryeowook-oppa looks at his phone, smiling brightly now. He looks at you and frowns. "Well, what to do with our Miho?"

You stare at him, and he chuckles.

"How about this? I'll take you with me, and you call your mother and at least let her know that you're ok? Oppa won't force you to go back until you're ready to face your mother," he ruffles your hair again. "Ok?"

You frown and look away. "Ok."

"Good girl." He hands you his phone, crouching on the ground. "Hold on to that and hop on. Just press this button to access the number pad, then this button to make the call go through, ok?"

And you climbed onto his back, holding on tightly to him and his phone. He begins walking, and you feel almost nostalgic, but safe. You remember running away from home when mom and dad fought in the past, and that your big brother had found you and piggybacked you home in the same fashion. After a long nagging and arguing session, of course. You feel a tear slip past the corners of your eyes as you drift off to sleep.

 

"Miho-ya," a voice calls you.

"Oppa?" you blink, still half asleep. You see your brother's face for a split second before Ryeowook-oppa's peculiar blueish hair fills your vision.

"Oppa is tired, think you walk from here? We're going to need to go up some stairs, then take an elevator to the top floor."

"Ok."

He slowly crouches down and you clamber off, rubbing your eyes. He rises and stretches a bit, and you hear his joints pop.

"Sorry, oppa . . ."

He huffs. "It's ok, oppa's not that old. Teukie-hyung would have needed a defibrillator halfway--or less-- here. Let's go." He drops his hand down, and you take it. He looks up and squints. "Kind of odd that the lights on both floors are off . . ."

You your head to one side and look at him, and he shrugs as you both enter the big building.

 

In the dorms . . .

"Happy birthdayyyyyyyyyy~~!!"

You continue holding onto Ryeowook-oppa's hand with an expressionless face as a cake comes flying out of the door and hits him square in the face.

"Maybe it would have been better if they did forget about me," he grumbles, picking cake pieces out of his nose and eyes with his free hand.

A wide-shouldered man runs out and hugs oppa, and you look at him just as he looks down at you.

"Hello, little one," he smiles like a little kid. 

He looks like a fish. You thought. "Fish." You point at him and he laughs.

A skinny man in brightly colored clothing and a spikey cap claps oppa's back while resting his elbow on the fish. "We didn't forget about you, see?"

He looks like an . . . "Anchovy." You point at this new guy and he stares at you, frowning slightly.

"Um, no? I'm a handsome jewel boy! And that's Eunhyuk-oppa to you, kiddo."

A thin-shouldered man with sandy blond hair leans on the door frame with his arms crossed and eyes narrowed. "Ryeowook-ah, please explain after you come in and take your shoes off."

He looks like . . . "Jurassic Park." You say, pointing at the man leaning on the door frame, and his jaw drops, causing oppa and the other two to crack up.

"Jurassic Park," gasped the fish.

"Makes sense, he is our oldest hyung," Fishy and anchovy fall over each other, guffawing.

"Ryeowook-ah, you have a lot of explaining to do!" The blond man turns on his heel and goes into the apartment, flipping light switches.

 

A little bit later, after oppa has cleaned the cake off his face and you've seen first hand what the sunbaes at school call "bromance" . . .

"So it's like that," Leeteuk-oppa breathes out a sigh of relief. "I thought she actually was your daughter . . . she talks just like you!"

"I don't talk like that, hyung--" Oppa began.

"You do." Shindong-oppa says bluntly. "And Kyuhyun, too, sometimes. Well, always. Just not to Teukie-hyung."

"I do not," Kyuhyun-oppa shot back. "Miho-ya, don't talk like that to people older than you, ok?"

You frown and stare at each of them.

Ryeowook-oppa pats your head. "It's ok for now, our Miho will learn later. Miho-ya, did you call your mother yet?"

You look away.

"Miho-ya?"

The oppa with broken Korean scooches next to you and says, "You should really at least give them call. They must worry much."

And spider-legs oppa nodds. "No mother ever forgets her kid."

"And whatever you did, it can't be so bad that she'd never want you to go home, call her, Miho." Ryeowook-oppa opens the number pad menu on his phone and hands it you.

You pinch his sleeve and stubbornly shake your head. She's probably very angry.

He sighs, scratching his head. "Ok, how about this? Just dial and oppa will talk to your mother, ok?" He ruffles your hair again, and you nodded, slowly. He smiles faintly. "Good girl."

"Hello? Is this Madam Kang?" He talks to your mother for you, offering you his pinky once more, mouthing, It'll be ok, I promise you.

"Yes, hello? This is she," you hear your mom say wearily.

"Um . . ." He pauses for a bit, not sure how to explain the situation. "I'm your daughter's friend and--"

"Our Miho? Is she ok? Where is she?" Mom sounded panicked, worried.

"She's perfectly fine and safe, ma'am," Ryeowook-oppa calmly assures her. And you grip his arm tightly, wanting to cry, but not wanting to at the same time because all these big oppas are in the room. "Um . . . She's with us now, but I don't know if she's willing to speak with you--"

"Mommy--" you find yourself calling out.

"Miho? Are you ok, sweetie? Where are you?"

Ryeowook-oppa holds his phone to your ear and smiles, nudging you lightly, mouthing, Come on, kiddo.

"Mom, I'm ok. Oppa's taking care of me right now . . ."

". . ." you hear mom sigh. "Sweetie, it's dark out. Do you have any idea how worried I-- nevermind. Can you come home now?"

You look at all the oppas. Anchovy-oppa is smiling with his gums showing while agruing with Fishy-oppa, Bear-oppa is lying on the floor and staring at the ceiling, Cinderella-oppa is saying something to Jurassic-oppa, Violin-oppa is tuning his instrument in the corner, Quiet-oppa is studying out of some book, Game-oppa is on his computer, Philtrum-oppa is playing with his turtles in another corner, Bunny-oppa is peering over Game-oppa's shoulder, Buddha-oppa is eating, Horse-oppa is waiting to speak with Jurassic-oppa, Chinese-oppa is shifting his attention from the television to Cinderella-oppa and back, and Spider-legs-oppa is on his phone. And Ryeowook-oppa nods.

"Yeah, I'm coming . . ."

"Miho-ya, mommy is sorry for yelling at you earlier, but you shouldn't have said that to your teacher," your mother says before hanging up.

You look up at a smiling Ryeowook-oppa.

He offers you his hand once more. "Shall we go, kiddo?"

 

A Childish Heart // END

20130725 - And first story is Ryeowook's~ ^-^ I probably forgot to tack on an "oppa" to a lot of their names . . . Was supposed to be in order of age with Zhou Mi and Henry last, but I couldn't figure out a scenario for Leeteuk.

Next will probably be Donghae's or Sungmin's, since I have vague ideas for them right now.

Jaedelle apologizes for the typos, it's really early in the morning and I'm not used to typing on the fly right into the site ㅠ_ㅠ

And haha, get it? Jurassic Park and Park Jungsoo? xD -shot-

20130727 - minor grammar and content fixes