"Heechul, meet Hyukjae, my good friend and co-worker; Hyukjae, meet Heechul, my boyfriend."

The two politely shook hands with each other, and Hangeng was relieved knowing that Heechul didn't break the younger's neck or anything, which meant that his first impression of him wasn't bad. It wasn't like the first time they met each other, in which Hangeng complained that Heechul was being too much of a diva and Heechul was complaining about his heavy accent.

The day was so far so normal for Hyukjae, who had just dropped his kids off at school and was now at the café. He really didn't expect to meet Heechul, the lover Hangeng mentions once in a while, until the Christmas holiday was very near; however, Hyukjae thought it was good to finally meet someone who makes his friend a very happy one, based on the silly grin his boss was currently holding on his face.

"Since there's still thirty minutes before the store opens, how 'bout I make us some coffee and talk for a while?" Hangeng offered the two, but only got a nod from Hyukjae.

Heechul turned to his lover, who was much taller than him. "You should make me a Caramel Macchiato, instead," He suggested with a pout, his arms resting on the younger's hipbones. "Coffee gives me serious headaches, which of course, are a pain in the derriere."

Hangeng chuckled, pecking the other's lips. "Sure thing," He replied. "Would you like something else, Hyukjae-ah?"

"I'd say I want a Strawberries N' Creme Frappucino, but today I'm in a coffee mood," the youngest of the three said with a smile.

Taking in both orders, Hangeng then excused himself to prepare the drinks. Hyukjae led Heechul to one of the tables that were next to the large glass window, giving a good view of the many streets and buildings.

With lips jutted out slightly, Hyukjae began to nod his head with the rhythm playing in his mind, patiently waiting for his hyung to come back. Heechul was checking hs nails, a habit he had whenever he was waiting. 

Somehow the silence wasn't too bothersome for either one, but being Kim Heechul, he eventually got irritated by the quiet aura. It seemed louder than him screaming out when he's tipsy, and that's really loud. "How long have you worked here at Hangeng's café?" He decided to ask.

Snapping out of his trance, Hyukjae met gazes with Heechul. "Around six years," He replied with a friendly smile.

Heechul's eyes widened in surprise. "Wow. That long?" The older questioned.

"Yeah. I don't exactly plan on leaving this job until I can trust my kids to stay home alone while I work more complex jobs," Hyukjae informed politely. "And Hangeng-hyung told me that you work in the fashion field?"

"Ah, yes," Heechul practically beamed upon hearing his job be mentioned. "I help with various designer companies, and it was only recently that I was promoted to a higher position in one of them. It's the reason I had a business trip to New York City."

"Oh, interesting," Hyukjae nodded in consideration. Hangeng did mention to him that Heechul had really high ambitions.

The two talked for a couple more minutes about their lives until Hangeng came back to them with a tray of drinks. Soon the party of three had no trouble finding topics to converse about, for one talk led to another. The pastry chef of the café, Ryeowook, who had known Heechul since a while back, arrived a bit later and joined in the interesting conversation, also giving some of his insights.

When the store had opened for the day, Hyukjae, Hangeng, and Ryeowook excused themselves from Heechul so they can get started on serving the newly arrived customers. Heechul, who can't stand staying in one place all day without company, chose to walk around the city, most likely for shopping purposes.

-

After working hard for the past few hours, it was almost time for Hyukjae to pick up his kids from school. Heechul had arrived back for a while now, and was chatting with Ryeowook, who was on break.

Slipping on his light blue hoodie, Hyukjae went over to the table Heechul and Ryeowook were at. "Is it okay if one of you tell Hangeng-hyung that I'm going to go pick up Kyu and Henry? He seems too busy right now."

Both nodded. "Thanks!" Hyukjae said. "See you guys later."

"Bye~" Heechul half-sang, waving the fingers of his hand as if he were pressing piano keys one by one in order. It was an odd way of waving, but Heechul likes to stand out so what can he say?

Right when he was going to step out of the shop, the phone in his back pocket began to vibrate. As the third vibration rang, Hyukjae pulled it out before answering the incoming call, which happened to be from none other than Donghae.

"Yoboseyo?" He said as he continued to walk out the café.

"Appa!" Wait. Donghae was nowhere near having a high octave and he DEFINITELY did not call him 'appa,' so was this.....

"Henry??"

"Hi, appa!!" What in the world?

"Henry?!"

"Appa, you're saying the same things!" A loud fit of giggles was heard through the phone.

"Baby, how did you get your Donghae-hyung's phone?"

"Hyung picked up Kyu-hyung and me from school!"

"Oh," He tried to not sound as confused as he actually was. "Henry-ah, let me talk to your hyung."

"Okay, appa!"

"Hello?"

Hyukjae sighed, but smiled after hearing his other son's voice after a long day. "Hi, Kyu," He greeted, realizing that Henry thought he was referring to his brother. "Is Donghae-hyung with you right now?"

"Mhm."

"Can you give the phone to him?"

"Okay, appa. Bye~"

"Bye, baby."

"Hello?"

"Hey, Donghae."

"Hi~"

"So... Remind me again why you've picked up my kids from school?"

"I have no work to prepare for today, and I just happened to walk by the kids' school right when they were dismissed."

"Oh." It wasn't like it was the first time Donghae's done such a thing, but it was the first time that he wasnt notified about it at am earlier time. "As long as they're safe, I'll keep calm."

Hyukjae heard the other chuckle. "So I guess I'll just meet you there."

"Okay, bye."

"Bye."

Hyukjae soon ended the call and turned back to the direction he had walked, now heading back to the café.

-

"So... how was your day at school?" Donghae asked, chuckling when Henry began to sway their linked hands back and forth.

"It was fun, hyung!" Henry beamed, now jumping up and down as he walked. "We celebrated our 100 days of school and and and we got a new class pet!" He exclaimed. Kyuhyun, who was walking next to Donghae on the other side, decided to add into the conversation.

"What animal was it?" He asked, being the inquisitive kid he was. His hand continued to hold onto Donghae's, but Kyuhyun was looking at his brother.

"A hamster!" Henry replied. "We all think it's cute! And my classmates say that I remind them of it because of my cheeks!" Giggles came out of both boys' mouth, and soon Donghae was laughing along with them.

"How about you, Kyuhyun? How was your day?" He asked. For some reason the said person quieted down a bit and gave a short reply.

"It was fine," The older child said, now looking down at the floor. Hyukjae had previously told him that Kyuhyun doesn't open up to a lot of people quickly, so Donghae understood.

The three continued walking down different streets, with Henry being the main source of conversations and entertainment. Donghae wasn't sure if he should be flattered when people mistake him as Kyuhyun and Henry's father, or if he should be offended, but based on the smirks many female passerbys gave him, he knew that a lot of them thought he was attractive playing a father-ish role, so....

"It's appa!" Henry exclaimed, pointing at the glass window of a shop to the left of them.

Donghae looked the direction the child was pointing at and realized that yes, it was, in fact, Hyukjae. The male was back in his white button-up and black apron-slash-vest, and was kindly laughing at whatever the customer was telling him by the cash register. His friend was way too polite to people, to people that weren't him or their friends. But Donghae would like to see that as a good thing because that meant Hyukjae was comfortable enough to be mean and sarcastic to him.

"Can we go in?" Henry asked, glancing up at Donghae with the never-disappearing smile of his. Donghae let go of the two kids' hands before ruffling Henry's hair. The latter giggled and attempted to grab Donghae's hand in order to make him stop. "Hyung~"

"Arasso," He said. The dance instructor then followed the two happy kids from behind, letting them run inside the café as they pleased.

The small bell above the door made a loud ring, signaling that people had entered the café. Upon hearing the bell, Hyukjae was about to greet the newly arrived people as an instinct, but discarded that thought when he saw Donghae and his kids. "Hey, guys," He said in a more casual way than he would with strangers.

A smile formed on his face when his two kids ran to him and hugged him on both sides. First he carried Henry up and let him sit on the long counter after he squirmed in his arms, wanting to get out of his grip. The boy was then easily distracted by the children's menu his dad gave him, which included crayons to color in the pictures.

Hyukjae soon carried Kyuhyun and kept him on his arms. His eyes landed on Donghae, who was taking his time to walk over to where he was by the cash register, before smiling. "Hey."

"Hello," The other replied with a mirrored smile, now taking a seat on the high chair next to the register counter.

"Want anything to drink?" Hyukjae asked, adjusting Kyuhyun's position in his arms. The child let out a sigh as he began to get sleepy, his head now resting on his dad's chest. 

Donghae took a glance at the nice-looking menu behind Hyukjae, which was covering most of the wall. After seeing something that he'd like, he nodded. "I'll have a... Vanilla Frappucnio."

When Hyukjae began to laugh, Donghae was indeed confused. "Wait, what?" He dumfoundedky asked, tilting his head. Hyukjae shook his head, wanting to dismiss it, but Donghae didn't take it. "What?" He gave a cute pout, holding back his own laughter when Hyukjae laughed a bit more.

"Nothing... I just find it really weird taking your order," The waiter said, his laughter dying down but his smile still in tact. "And the way you say 'vanilla' is kind of really amusing."

Donghae's jaw dropped upon hearing what Hyukjae said, but he couldn't find himself to be offended by his friend's words. At the same time, Hangeng had come to view as he walked towards Hyukjae. "Hey, hyung. I was just about to look for you," Donghae perked up.

"Oh, really? Why?" Hangeng asked, giving Donghae a short hug over the counter.

"I'd like to file a complaint about Hyukjae," He replied, and Hyukjae lightheartedly rolled his eyes, watching as the conversation continued.

"What happened?" Hangeng amusedly asked, stealing a glance at his longtime friend.

"Well, he wanted to kill me with a spatula—"

"I did no such thing!" Hyukjae exclaimed, his mouth gaping open. When did a spatula ever enter this whole thing? However, it was quite funny how Donghae acted way too dramatic.

"It was horrible, hyung~" He sighed, resting the back of his hand on his forehead.

Hangeng chuckled. "Sorry to burst your bubble, but the spatulas we have are all safe with Ryeowook, meaning that your story is false," He stated, and Hyukjae smiled in victory whereas Donghae frowned like a child. "I'm going to get back to taking orders." The eldest of the three then said, the two others nodding in acknowledgement.

"And in celebration of my victory over you," Hyukjae said, "I'll pay for your Frappucino."

Donghae looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "I thought you were already going to pay for it?" The dance instructor jokingly questioned, and Hyukjae chuckled.

"You wish. Now you make me not want to pay for you," He jokingly replied in return, gently passing the now-sleeping Kyuhyun to Donghae, who didn't have to be told to know that Hyukjae wanted him to carry the child. "But since you also picked up my kids, I'll keep my word for it and still pay."

"Aww, you're so sweet," Donghae said as if he were speaking to to baby. Hyukjae laughed, rolling his eyes before he went to prepare the other's order. "But thank you."

"You're welcome," Hyukjae replied, his back now facing Donghae as he began to mix ingredients together.

As Donghae waited, he watched the sleeping Kyuhyun in his arms. The boy looked so peaceful and adorable while he slept, to the point where Donghae wanted to squeeze his cheeks; but Donghae was still cautious around Kyuhyun, considering the fact that they weren't so close with each other. Yet.

When Hyukjae finished making Donghae's drink, he placed it in front of the other on the counter before taking Kyuhyun back from him. "Gosh, Kyuhyun must be really tired," Hyukjae stated as he put the child in a more comfortable position on him. "I blame the new episode of Fairly Odd Parents he insisted to watch at 9PM. Why must new episodes premiere that late?" He sighed.

"What time do you usually put them to sleep?" Donghae curiously asked, stirring his hot drink with a teaspoon.

"Around 8PM, 8:30 at it's latest," Hyukjae responded with a casual shrug. Donghae chuckled, but he didn't look away from his drink. "Yah! Why are you laughing?" The older asked, though he wasn't upset.

"Nothing, it's just that you treat your kids like how a parenting handbook encourages you to do," Donghae admitted, looking at the other with an amused look. "It's not a bad thing, but I mean, 8:00? When I was their age, 8:00 would be the time I'd come home from soccer practice or something."

Hyukjae shrugged, planting a random kiss on Kyuhyun's head.  "What can I say? I'm the type to play by the rules, or in this case, the handbook. At least it's going to benefit them in the future."

"Once I have kids, I'm going to make them the complete opposite of yours just so it could irk you," Donghae jokingly stated. "Then you'll want to make them 'Hyukkie's-boys' or something."

"Yup, they'll be my babies, too," Hyukjae lightheartedly responded. "I'll raise them and encourage them to not listen to their 'Hae-appa's' rules to instead have them practice Hyukjaeism for kids."

"Hyukjaeism for kids?" Donghae asked with an amused look. "Really?"

"Positive," Hyukjae replied. The two stared at each other before they broke into a fit of laughter, thinking about how silly their conversation is turning into.

"Hey, I know that annoying laughter from anywhere."

Donghae took note of the familiar voice before turning around, only to see his longtime friend Heechul getting up from one of the many tables. "Heechul-hyung!" He exclaimed, quickly jumping up from his seat and running to his hyung. "I missed you!"

The two pulled each other for a bone-crushing hug after not seeing each other for months already. "Freaking Donghae, missing his hyung but never making an effort to call him,"  Heechul lightheartedly scolded, causing Donghae to laugh.

"I'm assuming you guys know each other, too?" Hyukjae broke the shared moment between Heechul and Donghae, not that they minded. It seemed like they had a fairly mutual group of friends, but he and Donghae have never known each other until what is now almost a month ago.

"Oh, hell yeah we do," Heechul chuckled at his own comment, following Donghae as they sat down on the seats near Hyukjae. "Our families were neighbors back when we were in middle school," He continued.

"Hyung and I would sneak out of our houses at night just to adventure around the city," Donghae said, giving a reminiscing smile before taking a sip of his drink.

"Ah, those were the days," The oldest of the three said, sighing in satisfaction as he recalled the past.

Heechul and Donghae continued to catch up with their lives, filling up each others' minds with months' worth of new information. Hyukjae let them do so as he went back to working at the register, smiling politely when customers would compliment the café, the way he worked, or even his kids. And yes, every now and then Henry would look away from the menu he was coloring to cheerfully greet customers that talk about him with his dad.

Soon Hyukjae's shift had ended, and he was now bidding his goodbyes to his friends and co-workers. He already took off his apron in exchange for his hoodie from earlier, and had his hands rested on his two sons' shoulders.

"Hey," Heechul said to Hyukjae and Ryeowook. "Donghae, Hangeng, and I are going to go drinking tomorrow. Want to join us?"

"Sure!" Ryeowook happily accepted the offer. It's been a while since he was able to let loose and relax with friends. "Can Yesungie come?"

"Why not?" Heechul questioned in return, and Ryeowook took that as a yes before clapping in joy. "How about you, Hyukjae?"

"No, thanks. I usually have movie nights with my kids on Fridays," The father of the five kindly declined the offer. Donghae's mood slightly went down upon hearing this, but he shrugged it off since it wasn't really a big deal. 

"You sure you don't want to?" Hangeng asked.

"Yup," Hyukjae nodded.

"Okay, then," Heechul replied. "I guess I'll just see you next time~ Expect to see me more in the future~" He added, and Hyukjae laughed.

"I'll look forward to it," The waiter responded with a smile. Heechul chuckled.

"I like him already," He said to Hangeng, who also chuckled.

"Okay, bye, guys~" Hyukjae lastly said, getting goodbyes in return. He then began to walk out of the café with his kids.

As they were walking on the sidewalks, Hyukjae decided to text Donghae a last minute thought.

To: Donghae
Don't get too wasted tomorrow night at the bar, arasso?

From: Donghae
Aw, Hyukjae is being all 'Hyukkie-appa' status on me ^__~

To: Donghae
One day you'll be praciticing Hyukjaeism, too ^^v

From: Donghae
LOL, YOU'RE A WEIRDO.

To: Donghae
I... I know ; o ; ㅋㅋㅋ
k. bye. ^^

From: Donghae
bye, weirdo ^^

-------

a/n: sorry for updating so late ; A ; but viola~! here is an update. I'll try my best not to make it a habit to update late /)__(\ but school comes first, I suppose, lol. okay. I should sleep considering how late it is right now o___o.

btw, HAPPY THANKSGIVING, GUYS :3