Aron                                               and                            crying Luna (you'll understand when you read the chapter)

Chapter 35

When everyone had finished eating, the children left their seats to go play and the adults moved closer together, using fewer tables to continue a more joined conversation. Sandara, Ji Yong, Youngbae and Chorong also stayed back with the adults; though Ji Yong and Youngbae did not join their talk.

"Come on, Jonghyun!" Minki called, as he and his cousins ran towards a grass area.

"I'm coming!" Jonghyun called from behind them and finally reached the other kids. "I just had to get the ball from my appa," he told them, carrying a football in his arms.

"I don't want to play soccer." Minki pouted and crossed his arms. Then Jonghyun pouted, too, and walked closer to him.

"Please!" He made puppy eyes, staring at Minki. Minki hesitated, but couldn't stand against it for too long. He nodded, agreeing with the other boy to play soccer.

"Okay," he said.

"I want to play too!" Namjoo exclaimed with a smile. Jonghyun looked at her for a second, before turning to the others, motioning for them to come closer and create a circle, silently ignoring his sister.

"Let's form teams!" he said, putting his hands together in a clap. The others nodded. "I'll be team leader, and... Changjo!" He pointed at Changjo. "You'll be the other leader, okay?" Changjo nodded. Truth be told, they were the best soccer players - of the younger cousins, that is.

"I'll start," Jonghyun announced, not considering for long who to pick. "Jimin, I choose you." Jimin nodded approvingly.

"Junhong," Changjo chose then.

Jonghyun considered for a while who to pick next. Minki pouted at him, looking almost offended he hadn't chosen him already. Taehyung looked around himself, he didn't seem to be thinking about when he was going to be picked. Namjoo stamped in the ground, being a bit impatient. Jungkook looked excitedly at them, hoping he would get chosen. Hayoung stood a bit in the back, a not caring look on her face.

"Minki," Jonghyun said and Minki's face lightened up as he went to Jonghyun's side.

"Taehyung," Changjo said.

"What?!" Namjoo exclaimed. "You're choosing him before me? I'm good!" She was pointing at Taehyung, who pouted offended. Changjo looked at the ground embarrassed.

"Um, Namjoo, you're not going to play with us," Jonghyun said quietly. She looked really hurt.

"Why not?" she asked, getting upset.

"You're too competitive. It's no fun," Jonghyun explained to her. She looked angry now.

"But it's a game! Of course I want to win!" she exclaimed.

"But it's not fun when you make it into a competition like that," Changjo told her quietly. She turned her gaze to him. "We don't like it when you win nor when you lose. You bash on us no matter what."

Namjoo glared at the two boys angrily before crossing her arms and storming off offended.

"I don't want to play with you guys," Hayoung said with a shrug. "Not because you sent away Namjoo. Just because soccer isn't funny." She walked away to look for Namjoo.

"What about me?" Jungkook asked excitedly after she was gone. He looked around at the others.

"We don't think you should play either," Jonghyun told him.

"You're too young, Kookie," Jimin said with a shrug. Jungkook pouted.

"But I want to play!" he said.

"You can get hurt, you know," Minki said, helping the others. Jungkook just pouted more, and then turned an angry look at Minki.

"Jungkook, you can't play with us. Go find eomma instead," Jimin told his younger brother. The six boys turned around and walked away from the pouting three-year-old. Jungkook's lip started trembling when he walked with crossed arms towards the cafe again to find his parents. The remaining boys started playing their soccer game.

The older cousins were playing around a little further away. They had found some trees to climb in and the old buildings to explore. Currently Sohee, Chanhee and Amber were in the middle of exploring the ruins, while Aron and Luna were climbing trees. Byunghun was climbing on top of the ruins, humming a little melody by himself. When Luna climbed down from the tree she had been in, Aron had found the biggest tree, which he claimed he could get to the top off.

"Aron, you can't do it, you're going to fall down and break something!" Luna called to him when he started on his task. Still she couldn't help but laugh a bit by the determined boy.

"I can do it! You just wait down there and take pictures when I'm at the top, alright?" he called back, already getting close to halfway. She giggled a bit and took out her phone, ready to do what he requested.

Aron climbed up the branches. He was a bit out of breath as he started huffing harder; they had been climbing and running around for about half an hour, so it was no wonder he was getting out of breath.

He was a little over halfway when he grabbed a branch he thought was safe. It was almost as thick as the other branches, but he hadn't noticed it was slightly loose on the attachment to the tree. He grabbed it and breathed out, before carefully letting go of the thick branch he was standing on with one foot. He started pulling himself up.

"Ahh!" Luna looked up shocked when she heard the scream of her cousin: Aron was hanging in the air, his stomach and chest pressed against the side of the thick branch, his arms tightly gripping at the other side, his muscles tense, his fingers pale, his legs dangling in the air. His face was flushed as the branch he had grabbed at before fell to the ground.

"Aron!" Luna exclaimed with wide eyes.

"Get help!" Aron cried out, trying to pull himself up to sit on the branch. Without luck.

"Eomma!" Luna yelled as loudly as she could with her eyes fixed on Aron as he terrified closed his eyes and hung onto the tree with all his might. "Eomma, help!" She didn't even think about what words she spoke.

Byunghun who was standing closely by on the ruins almost fell off at the sudden outburst. He only regained his balance by jumping off himself. The other three cousins ran out of the buildings hearing the same, and they all stared with shock at Aron who was still dangling midair. The smaller cousins stopped their game and looked scared at the older kids, too.

"Eomma!" Luna yelled again and finally Baekhyun arrived, since he had jumped out of his seat, running to the kids, the moment he heard her call.

"What's wrong?" he asked. Luna pointed at the tree and Baekhyun stared with horror at the kid in the tree.

"Oh god," he mumbled. At that moment Luna took off, running away from all of them without anyone being able to stop her. Baekhyun didn't have time to think about it. Luckily some of the other parents had followed closely behind, and Chanyeol started climbing up the tree determined: Aron was unfortunately too high up for the man to reach him while standing on the ground. Baekhyun decided to go after the girl.

He found her sitting on the grass behind a bush not very far from the others. He sat down beside her. She was hiding her face in her hands, so he couldn't see her expression.

"Luna?" he softly asked, putting a hand on her shoulder. She didn't look up, just shook her head.

"I called you eomma..." she mumbled.

"I know," Baekhyun stated, looking ahead.

"You're not my eomma..." she mumbled and uncovered her face from her hands. She didn't cry, but her eyes had a shine to them.

"I know," Baekhyun mumbled, not looking at her. He moved his hand from her shoulder, neither of them looking at each other as they just looked ahead.

"I didn't mean to call you that," she said. Baekhyun looked at her. "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize for that, Luna. I don't mind," Baekhyun said.

"But you're not my eomma!" she exclaimed looking at him, tears now clearly on the verge of falling.

"I know, Luna," Baekhyun kindly and patiently said. He knew that the girl had called him eomma subconsciously and out of shock, due to seeing her cousin hanging in a tree on the verge of falling meters down. And he knew the girl would tell him her feelings if he just gave her the time without asking many questions. Baekhyun hadn't really minded her calling him eomma, but he knew that Luna must feel bad or confused since the words had blurted out of .

"I don't know why I called you eomma..." she said, looking away again as she blinked away the tears, not wanting them to fall. Baekhyun put his hand on her knee, wanting to let her know that he was listening and that it was okay. She continued. "Sometimes..." she began with a sniffle. "I miss my eomma and appa. I want them back so badly. But sometimes... I can't remember them anymore..." She couldn't hold back the tears any longer and she broke down crying, her face hidden in her palms. Baekhyun put his arms around the girl, letting her cry into his shoulder instead.

"I feel so guilty, auntie," she cried.

"Why?" Baekhyun asked her softly, patting her hair gently and soothing her.

"Because..." she hiccupped. "Sometimes I think of you... and uncle Chanyeol as... my parents..."

Baekhyun let his hand slide down her head, feeling her soft hair against his fingers, while she told him this. "It's okay," he whispered to her. She shook her head against his shoulder.

"No, it's not..."

"Yes, it is, sweetie," he said. "You want to hear a secret?" She nodded and he took her slightly away from him so he could look her in the eyes. "Sometimes," he told. "I think of you as my child."

She looked at him with slight surprise. "You do?" Baekhyun nodded.

"I have looked after you since you were four, Luna. I've known you since you were a baby." He wiped a tear away from her cheek with his thumb. "You are like a daughter to me. But I don't feel guilty," he told her truthfully. Luna tilted her head to the side.

"Why not?" she asked him.

"Because I know your parents are watching down on us. I know they must have chosen me and Chanyeol to be your guardians for a reason. I don't think they would blame us for feeling this way," he said. Luna thought for a moment.

"I just feel ashamed," she said, looking at the ground.

"Why?" Baekhyun asked. Her lip trembled slightly.

"Because I can't remember them properly... I can't remember their faces and I don't know their voices... I miss them so much. I want them back!" she cried again. "I don't want to forget about them."

"You're not going to forget about them..." Baekhyun said. The girl just cried and he took her into his embrace once again.

"Luna," he said. "I miss your parents as well. I loved your mom and your dad, and Chanyeol did too. He loved his sister and his brother-in-law very much. You've been a daughter to me ever since they handed you over four years ago. I know Chanyeol feels the same way. We knew we had to take care of you. And I never minded that job. We've always been a family. All of us." They sat a bit in silence while Luna cried and took in his words. "I assure you that your parents will never be forgotten. And if you ever feel the need to talk about them, Chanyeol and I will be happy to tell you everything. We can show you pictures and all kinds of stuff. They would have wanted us to try to move on. To be like a family."

Some minutes passed while they sat together on the grass, hidden. Baekhyun with his arms around his niece, and Lune crying her tears out into Baekhyun's shoulder. When she was done, she sniffled and gently got out of his embrace. She looked at the ground. Baekhyun waited for her to say something. But she didn't. She just nodded her head, as if saying she understood what he had said.

"I like living with you and uncle Chanyeol," she stated after some minutes of waiting. Baekhyun smiled.

"And we love having you around," he said.

"I might accidentally call you eomma again..." she told him. He just smiled wider.

"That's okay. But only if I'm allowed to think of you as my daughter?" She smiled a bit as well and nodded in agreement. Then Baekhyun grabbed her hand and stood, helping her to her feet too. They began walking back to the others. Baekhyun put his arm around her shoulders while they walked.

"We love you, you know," Baekhyun said. She smiled.

"I love you too," she mumbled loud enough for him to hear. Then she grinned. "Even Taehyung!" Baekhyun laughed.

"He loves you too."

When they got back to the cafe, everyone was sitting around the tables. Aron was sitting next to his parents, supposedly getting a reprimand from them for scaring them like that, judging by the look on his face as he looked at his feet. The other kids were silent, everyone feeling guilty for letting such a thing happen. Jonghyun was getting a lecture from his parents, as he had forbidden his sister along with younger cousin to play with them, and Taemin was scolding Changjo for the same thing.

Baekhyun and Luna went to the bench to sit down beside Chanyeol. Immediately Luna swung her arms around Chanyeol's neck, who looked surprised as well as happy, and he gently patted her back.

"What's going on?" he asked her and Baekhyun. Baekhyun shook his head and sat down on the other side of him, telling him not to worry about it, but Chanyeol knew he was going to tell him later on, anyways.

"I love you," Luna mumbled into his shoulder and Chanyeol smiled widely.

"I love you too, Luna!" he said, still oblivious to the sudden confession.

Some minutes later they said goodbye to the other family. They exchanged long hugs and reassured each other that they would meet again soon. Then they went to the harbor, departing from the island as the other family still had some hours on it. The home trip went just like the out trip with Aron and Byunghun lying on the bench, Tao's head down a bucket, Taemin lying flatly on the floor, and Ji Yong and Lu Han leaning against Minseok. The kids were more calm this time though, since they were tired and didn't want to get in any more trouble than they already were. When they arrived on land once again, they split up with Sehun and Jongin going out grocery shopping - with Sandara and Taemin taking along with them, as otherwise there wouldn't be enough seats in the other cars - and the others driving back home. Around six o'clock everyone was home at the house, safe and sound.

Bonus                                                           

Jungkook kept his gaze at the ground, his lip trembling. Why didn't the other kids want to play with him? Suddenly something in the grass caught his attention. He crouched down to the green and saw the little red insect. He grinned.

The parents all had a joined conversation and they laughed, just as Jungkook came back to the café, his eyes fixed on his palm which he was holding in front of him. He was grinning, but still Kibum and Jonghyun got worried.

"Why are you coming back all alone, Kookie?" Kibum asked him when the boy came over to his parents. Kibum caressed the silky soft hair of his son.

"Look!" Jungkook just said with a big smile and stretched out his hand for his parents to see. Kibum and Jonghyun both stared down at it. "It's a ladybug!"

Jonghyun and Kibum shared looks, before looking back at their son who was still smiling from ear to ear.

"Yes, it is, Jungkook. It's pretty," Jonghyun stated.

"But why aren't you playing with the others, baby?" Kibum asked Jungkook.

"They didn't want to play with me," Jungkook said, though it didn't seem to bother him. He climbed up on the bench in the middle of his parents, still staring at the ladybug in his hand.

"What?" Kibum exclaimed. "They didn't want to play with you?" Jungkook shook his head. "Who didn't want to play with you?"

"Jiminnie hyung and Jonghyun hyung and the others," Jungkook said.

"Did Jimin tell you to leave?" Jonghyun asked. Jungkook nodded his head.

"And Jonghyun hyung... and Minki hyung..." the boy told.

Jonghyun stood up from his seat. "I'll talk to Jimin," he said to Kibum who nodded as they had had the same thought. Both Kyungsoo and Joonmyun stood up as well, also feeling the need to talk to their sons.

"We'll come with," Joonmyun said. Jonghyun nodded and was about to walk away with the others, when Jungkook called him back.

"It's okay, appa, you don't have to," the little boy said. "It's okay, they didn't want to play with me. They said I was too young, but I think it was just because I'm better at soccer than they are." The boy flashed his grin at his appa once again, and by his side Kibum couldn't help but smile. Jonghyun looked at him and the two parents smiled at each other, for then to look down at their son. They couldn't help but be proud of their little three-year-old.

"Okay, I won't say anything." Jonghyun sat down beside his son again. "But I will tell him later that it's not okay to treat someone like that. Is that okay?" Jungkook nodded after a while, accepting that his appa was going to do that. Kyungsoo and Joonmyun sat down as well, understanding that Jungkook wouldn't want them to say anything either - though they both made a mental note to say something to their kids later on.

A/N: Okay, I just had to include a small bonus with Jungkookie when he got sent back by his brother and cousins :3 Hope you liked it! And sorry for the sad Luna moment, but happy Baekhyun-mommy-saving the day-moment \\(^o^)//

This week's birthdays: Happy birthday to Sehun! And happy birthday to Namjoo! Yaay ^_^ I apologize for anyone I neglect!

How was this chapter, my dear readers? Did you like it?

Thank you for reading, thank you for subscribing and commenting. Keep up the good work, and I will do the same :P