Park Taecyeon was always smarter than his schoolmates. At twelve, he already spoke his mother tongue, Korean, in addition to English, Chinese and Japanese. At thirteen, bored out of his mind, he started learning Spanish since all those tangos sounded y to his ears and he wanted to understand the lyrics. At fourteen, he created a webtoon named ParkCat. At the fifth installment, he had already over a thousand readers following his little blue cat. When he decided to translate his toons, he gained over ten thousand readers, making his webtoon win an award at the end of the year to his biggest surprise.

 

The following year, to encourage him further, his mother had made a ParkCat doll for her son, and even knitted a ParkCat hat, which he wore to school. His schoolmates thought it cool and asked if they could buy one, being huge fans of the toon already. So, at fifteen years-old, Taecyeon with the help of both his parents, started a small business. At first, it had been small dolls, knitted blue hats with wide white eyes and cute ears, notepads with the blue cat's face drawn on it. With time, other items appeared, and the ParkCat got even more popular.

 

At nineteen, being in his last year of highschool, he was asked to tutor a hoobae, being told it would look great of his university applications, as if his grades were not enough. So he saw himself paired up with seventeen years-old Im Junho, a cute, slightly shorter young male with a dazzling eye-smile. Every tutoring night, he would go visit the Im's house, being welcomed with warm, soft, sweet cookies that were just coming out of the oven, made especially for him by the younger man.

 

On the night he received the acceptance letter from his wanted university, he went to tutor Junho as scheduled. When the younger heard the good news, he could not hold back and jumped to his sunbae's neck. Taecyeon, surprised, fell backwards with Junho in his arms, and as in so many dramas, they shared an accidental kiss when they landed on the floor. But compared to those dramas, while both flushed, only Junho tried to get away, only to be dragged back into the kiss by Taecyeon. He had dreamt of those plump lips quite a few times, though never dared to hope being able to kiss them one day.

 

The next three years went by so fast for the young couple, Taecyeon studying both arts and business, taking care of his business and drawing his webtoon. Junho finished highschool and started university as an hotel and catering baccalaureate. He still loved being in the kitchen, but there was something about hotel trade that called to him.

 

As soon as Taecyeon obtained both diplomas, the two lovebirds got engaged, promising each other to walk down the aisle once Junho received his diploma also. And they held their promise exactly one month after Junho was out of school. To them, their family and closest friends, this afternoon in Church was the most beautiful event they lived in the past years.

 

They spent their honeymoon touring Korea. While in Daegu, they visited an orphanage and helped there for a few days when a sad, crying, adorable little boy was taken in by a social worker. This little boy had just lost his mother due to a violent, drugged boyfriend of hers who happened to kill her after a rough beating. The little boy was at the neighbor's house when it happened, playing with another kid his age. Junho, and subsequently his husband, felt their hearts break when hearing this story. Exchanging only one glance, they knew that this little boy needed them, so they applied immediately to adopt him. A week after, papers were signed. Kim Minjun, now Park Minjun, was officially the two-year old son of the Park couple. Their honeymoon that should have lasted another week still, was cut short as the couple came home with their toddler.

 

The little sprout adapted really quickly to his new family, winning the hearts of his families: the two grandfathers swooned over their newest grandson, every uncle and aunt, and even his four cousins loved him at first meeting.

 

A few weeks after Minjun's third birthday, the family took a trip south to Busan, to meet an old friend of the couple. She welcomed them in her almost-empty apartment, with a small baby in her arms. She was so poor that she feared for he child's well-being, and the child being so young kept her from working so she could afford taking care of him. She begged her friends to adopt him, saying that she was sure that with them, he'd know what it was to have a loving family and lead a comfortable life. And this is how Jang Wooyoung became Park Wooyoung, when he was about ten months old.

 

The couple was really happy with their kids, and thought they could not get happier. Junho was a full-time parent at home, but he loved this role much more than anything else. Besides, his husband would not let him work, saying their kids had enough grief they did not need a babysitter that would not care enough for them on top of it.

 

The following year, on a cold February evening, Taecyeon just stepped out of his office's building, locking the door when he heard a baby crying. On the doorstep, a basket laid there containing a ball of crying blankets. His heart constricting, he quickly looked around and seeing no one, picked up the bundle of fabric. He tucked the baby and its blankets inside his coat to keep him the warmest, picked up the basket and walked to the nearest police station which was about a block away from his office.

 

Police officers rushed the baby and himself to the nearest hospital. While the small infant was being checked by pediatricians, Taecyeon called his husband to let him know what happened. Junho knew that his husband would bring back that poor baby if the authorities would let him do it, so he only asked him to pick up diapers that would fit the little bundle of joy and powdered milk for him too.

 

When the infant was declared healthy even though he was left in the cold winter like this, the policemen let Taecyeon take him home after signing an agreement to bring back the child if a mother would search for her missing child. If no woman would claim him back, they could got to court to adopt him officially after a year of caring for him.

 

The couple named this newborn Chansung, in remembrance of the agreement Taec had to sign. A year later, to the couple's happiness, they were able to legally adopt little Chansung.

 

By then, they had moved from a tiny house to a bigger, more spacious one. Taecyeon and Junho wanted to offer their three sons a house where they'd have each their rooms, and could house visiting family and friends. By Minjun's seventh birthday, they had bought a big land just outside Seoul, with a ten bedrooms cozy house built deep on the land, far from the passing street.

 

Taecyeon's business was growing at a fast pace, and potential business partners in Thailand wanted to meet him. Grandfather Park JinYoung, having his artist agency under control, told his son and the latter's husband to just hop on a plane, that he'd move in with his grandkids while they are dealing business in Thailand. Both young men knew their kids would be spoiled like no other, but knew they could trust the old man. They'd miss them for a few weeks, but it was for them, in the end. And so they left.

 

Two days after landing in Phuket, the island became the scene of a disaster. Continuous downpours caused many houses to collapse, many roads to become impassable, many families to be broken. Orphanages were filled with heartbroken children. Since they were stuck on the island until transport was available again, and conducting business was not possible at the very moment, the couple decided to help rebuild the village they were in after the downpours have stopped. While helping the workers throw the damp construction materials, they would gather stuff they deemed salvageable and brought those items to the local over-filled orphanage. Approaching the orphanage, they could witness a small boy, a little older than their Junnie, bawling his eyes out while holding a baby in his arms. The boy mumbled in a mix of English and Thai. Taecyeon kneeled down beside the boy and nudged him softly on his arm, checking at the same time if the baby was ok. After a few minutes, Taecyeon was able to make out the boy's story. His parents, older brother and two sisters were taken from him by the waters. He's seen them drowning in front of his eyes while he was holding his youngest sibling in his arms, saving him from being taken also. Taecyeon sat on the floor and brought the kid on his laps, and held him tightly. He looked at his husband with such sadness that the younger of the two simply stepped in the orphanage with the thought of bringing those kids home with them. He did not understand the conversation his husband had with that kid, and once in the building, he quickly understood that he could not communicate with the staff there, so he motioned them outside. Taecyeon, in the end, was the one explaining everything to the director. Since the orphanage was too crowded, she allowed them to take the kids to the hotel, with the promise to come back the next day with them. And so they did bring back the kids to the orphanage every single day, having fed and washed them at the hotel every single time. After two weeks, the roads were reopened, and on the last day they were on the island, the director waited for the couple with adoption papers, even if they did not ask for it, thinking that she would be too out of it to even let them try to adopt.

 

Nichkhun and Kunpimook became the newest additions to their rapidly growing family.

 

Upon coming back home, Minjun had some difficulty letting go of his role as the oldest of the bunch. But once Nichkhun started learning Korean and was able to communicate more, he realized how sweet his new hyung was and let go of his previous sentiments towards him. Everyone loved the baby, with his round beautiful cheeks. As Mookie grew up, he started hitting things with his toys, and reminded Taecyeon of an old cartoon, the Flintstones, so he nicknamed him BamBam.

 

Four years later, the couple had debated a long time if they should adopt more or stop since they already had five very active sons to take care of. They finally decided that even though they wanted to save every children out there, that they could not honestly do so. It was with a heavy heart that Junho tried to forget having a little princess one day, a dream his husband had dreamed too, but since life only put boys on their paths, they could not argue with destiny.

 

It was on a rainy September day, Junho was coming back home from the market, having bought supplies for his family's meals. He was alone in the car since Nichkhun and Minjun were babysitting their younger siblings at home. He was driving down the boulevard when he witnessed a van running over a car, hitting the driver's door directly. The scene seemed in slow-motion, everything seemed so unreal before his eyes. After every vehicle stopped moving, he threw his door open and ran to the car while calling 119. Arrived at the car, the first thing he saw was the driver. Her head had been busted on the driver's wheel, her cranium opened and leaking so much blood he was sure she had not survived. Since the person on the other line asked him to check for her pulse, he did so and confirmed she was dead.

 

His head turned around and noticed a pink toddler car seat in the back. A little girl was strapped into it, her head was lolling to the side, lifeless. Or so he thought. He could hear faint police sirens in the back of his mind, but his eyes could not see anything anymore, he was crying over this little girl he never met. The police and ambulance stopped beside them, and pushed him aside to see what they could do. The medic unbelted the little girl and laid her on the stretcher. Junho saw her moving her little fingers. On reflex, he offered his finger for her to hold and she grabbed it unconsciously. The medic made him step away and break contact, then rushed the stretcher to the ambulance, taking the toddler straight to the hospital. The mother, as expected, died in the crash.

 

Junho had to leave his name, address and phone number with the policemen, in case they had questions about the accident. They van's driver was taken into custody. For about two hours, Junho sat behind the wheel of his car and cried, he could not drive yet or he'd get into an accident as well. When he finally got home, he cooked for his kids, but hid from them so they would not question his puffy eyes. Taecyeon took care of the kids, making sure they'd finish their homework, took their baths and went to bed in time. He found his husband hunched on himself in their bedroom and they talked.

 

They had spent part of the night talking about that little girl since Junho could not stop mentioning her. The morning came too fast, but as the amazing parents they were, they still got up to make sure the five boys would be ready for school. Junho waited with four of them at the bus stop while Taec drove Nichkhun to his highschool on his way to work. Junho stepped inside the house, walking towards his computer to search for a job once more since even Bammie was now in school, but froze when the phone started ringing. His stomach clenching, he ran to the phone and picked it up. It was a policeman, who asked him to come make his deposition of what he knows about the incident. Junho agreed to go to the station quickly, but not after asking news from the little girl. She was occupying all his thoughts since he noticed her in the back.

 

After going to the station, he was given permission to visit the child in the hospital. As soon as he saw her, his heart clenched. She was pitifully laying in bed, having an arm and a leg in casts, and plugged to a solution. He sat beside her small bed and held her hand. She woke up and looked at him. She smiled softly to him, and squeezed his fingers. He stayed for a few hours, and promised her to come back the next day. On the fifth visit, a social worker was waiting beside the child's bed upon his arrival. She walked him out of the room to talk to him about the child's situation. Social services knew of Park Junho and his husband, since on top of all those adoptions, they were also running a boarding house for foreign students. The mother, as he knew, died in the accident. What he didn't know was where the father was. The father was a military soldier, who have been to the front lately. He was currently on his way back to Korea after his battalion got ambushed. He did survive compared to his companions, but had lost his left leg in an explosion. The man would need regular treatments and could not care for his daughter at the moment, so they were looking for a family to take her in as soon as she was out of the hospital. Of course, the couple would need to meet the man before he'd allow them to take his daughter. Even with this condition, Junho knew he'd take home the little princess soon, and he couldn't wait to tell his husband.

 

Two weeks later marked the arrival of princess DaHyun in their family. They had signed papers that they were to care for the little girl, but could not hope to adopt her for a few years, since the father was thinking of taking her back once he was able to care for them both. Even though temporary, they now had a daughter to take care of, and they finally felt whole as a family. Mookie, now used to be the pampered baby of the family, took a look at his new sister and fell immediately in love with that little sunshine. They could not tear him away from her most of the time, he was teaching her everything he learned either at home or at school, and played with her with dolls, dining sets, etc.

 

DaHyun has been part of their household for almost four months now, and Christmas was approaching very fast. Around a huge Christmas tree that was erected in the high-ceilinged living room were six happy kids decorating the tree as much as they could while their parents were busy making a ton of Christmas cookies in the kitchen. Yes, they were a big family at eight people, but their extended families was no joke. Cooking in advance to receive everyone was the best they could do.