x

"Don't you think this is too much?"

“What are you talking about…” Jinyoung murmurs as he zips up Youngjae’s jacket. Standing back, the five-year old does look more like a big ball than a person, all bundled up in his winter clothes, but Jinyoung insists, “It’s the middle of winter! I’m not going to let my baby freeze.”

Jaebum laughs easily as he tugs on a beanie. “If you say so.”

Jinyoung stoops back down on one knee until he’s at eye level with Youngjae, who peers up at him between his wool scarf and cap. “Now listen, Jae,” he says evenly, “If that silly boy Yugyeom bothers you again, just ignore him, okay?”

“Yes, appa,” Youngjae manages to mutter, his voice muffled behind his thick layers. A dark flush creeps onto the boy’s cheeks and is not unnoticed by the taller of the two adults.

“Ah, now I see how it is!” Jaebum chuckles to himself.

Jinyoung looks up, eyes wide. “How what is?” Jaebum chuckles and waves a dismissive hand in reply while tugging on a pair of white gloves.

“Nothing, nothing. He just has that look on his face.”

“What look!?” Jinyoung has his mother voice now, high pitched and strained. He stands up but he still barely makes it to Jaebum’s chin.

Jaebum just smiles knowingly, winking, “He gets it from you.”

Jinyoung flounders and whines, begging Jaebum to explain what he means. He immediately quiets down when a large hand cups his cheek and Jaebum brushes their lips together. Jinyoung wonders if Youngjae can see, or care, but the boy is busy waddling over to the shoe rack to pull on his boots.

The lovers only break apart when a loud crash resonates through the house.

“The twins,” they say simultaneously and Jaebum’s forehead wrinkles. Jinyoung laughs at Jaebum, while smoothing his crease down with his thumb, and his gentle smile seems to comfort the taller male.

“Go,” he says and pecks Jaebum once more. “I’ll deal with the demons.” Jaebum responds with a grin, more grateful than sympathetic, and takes Youngjae’s hand as he leads the boy out the door. Jinyoung sighs once as they’re gone and turns to head to the playroom, already anticipating the worst.

When he walks in, everything is blue. Mark, the older of the twins, is on the floor, his red hair splayed out around him, and his body is quaking with boisterous laughter. Jackson stands a few feet to the side, doubled over in the same state as his brother. Their shirts are splattered in blue paint, as are their faces and the tips of their hair. A can of paint lies toppled over in a far corner, a trail of blue showing where it had rolled from. Jinyoung would be mortified at the mess if the whole scene didn’t look hilarious.

The seven-year-olds freeze when they finally notice Jinyoung’s presence in the room, the laughter dissipating in a snap. Mark sits up, eyes wider than saucers, and Jackson swallowed loudly.

Jinyoung puts his hands on his hips. “What happened here?” he asks, attempting to feign sternness. It seems to work because Mark quickly scrambles to his feet and points at Jackson.

“It’s his fault!” he accuses and the other scoffs.

“No, it wasn’t!”

“Yes it was!”

“Nuh-uh!”

Jinyoung presses his lips together to hide his smile but his shoulders shake nevertheless. He clears his throat to suppress his laughter and furrows his eyebrows again. “Do you know what the punishment is for boys who spill paint all over themselves and get their room dirty?” he asks.

He almost feels bad for playing a trick on them when tears fill Mark’s eyes. His black orbs are glistening before the giant teardrops spill over his cheeks and he starts blubbering, the words jumbled behind his sobs. Jackson on the other hand just stares solemnly at the ground, scuffing his foot on the now-indigo floorboards. Jinyoung smiles softly and walks towards the twins.

“Aw, Mark, I was only kidding,” he says and Mark hiccups, rubbing at his wet cheeks with a closed fist.

“W-What?”

“You two aren’t in trouble,” Jinyoung soothes and reaches out to smooth down Mark’s unruly red curls. “If you promise to clean up the mess then I’ll forget it happened, kay?”

Both boys visibly brighten as they look up at their father. “Really?” they ask in unison. Jinyoung grins now and holds out his arms.

“Of course!” he says and a laugh bubbles in his chest when Mark leaps into his embrace. Jinyoung grunts and lifts him up, the gangly child wrapping his legs around his waist and hugging his neck. Jackson latches onto his leg and grins his signature smile up at Jinyoung. Jinyoung silently laments the blue paint stains that he knows will be on his clothes and he’s glad he wore his old grey sweat pants.

“Let’s get you two cleaned up first, okay?” he suggests. They both nod and Jinyoung carries Mark while simultaneously dragging Jackson on his leg towards the bathroom.

When he finally gets them inside Jinyoung sets Mark down on the closed lid of the toilet. After some complaining(and threatening), Jackson finally unwraps himself from the older man’s leg, climbs up to sit on the sink counter, and kicks his feet aimlessly in front of him. Jinyoung stoops to run the water for a bath.

“Can we have a bubble bath, appa?” Jackson asks with a slight lisp, bringing his knees up to his chest.
Jinyoung smiles. “Of course, baby.”

“Yay!” exclaimed both boys in excitement.

The bath water is flowing over the edge when Jinyoung gets the both of them in. Though they are the same age, Jackson is already starting to outgrow Mark, and Mark is five minutes older! 

Mark’s skinny knees break the surface of the water. He cups his hands and blows bubbles at Jackson, to which the slightly larger boy giggles and pops them. The water sloshes across Jinyoung’s front when he reaches across to scrub the blue paint off Jackson’s face and he sighs. He really shouldn’t have expected anything else, though.

“You two are getting so big,” he says when he wipes a streak of paint off Mark’s cheek. “Soon you’ll have to take baths separately.” The boys look devastated and Jinyoung almost feels sorry for making the comment.

After the bath, where most of the water ends up on the floor or soaked in Jinyoung’s clothes, he hoists them out and dries them off with a fluffy white towel, laughing when Jackson pokes his head out and scrunches up his face.

“Oh no! I lost Mark!” Jinyoung jokes when the smaller boy gets tangled in the enormous towel. Jackson gasps audibly and wiggles around in the towel until a head of shiny red hair pops out. Mark’s thin lips stretch into a grin and he giggles when Jackson hugs him tightly.

“Okay, go get changed,” Jinyoung says as he pulls at his drenched shirt. “And then help me clean up the playroom.” The boys nod and run off to their bedroom to get some clothes. Jinyoung walks towards the broom closet, digging around until he finds a mop. He feels a tug on his pants leg and he jumps, startled, and hits his head on a shelf. He groans and rubs the throbbing spot on his head.

“Jackson, what did I sa—“he turns and comes face to face not with Jackson, but Kunpimook, nicknamed Bam Bam. The adopted toddler has a fist curled in Jinyoung’s sweats, the other rubbing at his eyes still heavy with sleep. Jinyoung squats until he’s face to face with Bam Bam, smiling as he ruffles his light brown bangs.

“Did you have a nice nap, Snake*?” he says and the nickname, concocted (of 
course) by Jaebum, rolls awkwardly off his tongue. Bam Bam nods and drops his fist from his face, lower lip pushing out in a pout.

“Where’s appa?” he mumbles drowsily.

“He’s taking Youngjae to vocal lessons,” Jinyoung explains and purses his lips. “Can you help your brothers and me clean the playroom?”

Bam Bam nods and takes Jinyoung’s hand, tottering next to him as they walk down the quiet hall. Jinyoung looks at Bam Bam’s bare feet and makes a mental note to grab some socks for him later. When they walk in Mark and Jackson are already there, scrubbing at the floor with paper towels. Jinyoung wonders where they got them from so fast, but he just shrugs and mops at the paint. The twins have been in stranger situations.

They finish in no time, with Jinyoung doing the brunt of the work, and he leans against the handle of the mop. He runs a hand through his hair.

“So, what do you three want to do now?” asks Jinyoung. Bam Bam grabs his fingers and pulls him out of the playroom, silent, and Jinyoung follows with a shrug while Mark and Jackson walk at his heels. Bam Bam takes them into the neat living room and lets go of Jinyoung’s hand, crawling onto the couch and crossing his legs under him.

“You want to watch cartoons, Bam?” Jinyoung asks and sits down next to him. Bam Bam nods cutely and curls into Jinyoung’s side, thumb sliding between his bow-shaped lips. “Okay.”

Mark and Jackson plant themselves at the foot of the couch, side-by-side, while Jinyoung searches between the cushions for a remote. He finds it, giving a small whoop of victory when he does; his cheeks redden in embarrassment when the twins stare at him in response before 
bursting into peals of laughter. They fall over each other on the carpet and Jinyoung murmurs something under his breath, turning on the television.

“Can we watch SpongeBob, appa?” Jackson asks, wiping a tear of laughter from the corner of his eye.

“I wanna watch Keroro!” Mark whines in retort. They bicker senselessly for a while, most of their words jibberish to Jinyoung, before a tickle fight ensues. They’re rolling around on the floor, grunting and giggling, and Jinyoung panics when he thinks they’ll hit their heads on the entertainment center.

“Boys, boys!” he sputters but when he reaches to break up the battle he ends up getting caught in it instead. He lets out an unmanly shriek as he topples off the couch and onto the floor. By this time Bam Bam is laughing too, tiny feet stomping on the couch as his entire body shakes with squeaky chuckles.

Jinyoung grunts when Jackson sits on his chest and grabs his face, squishing his cheeks together. He grins down at his father, amusing himself by playing with Jinyoung ‘s face, and Jinyoung finds that he can’t move with the child’s weight on top of him; it doesn’t help that Mark decides to trap his legs on the ground by straddling his knees, pinning them down.

“We got you!” Jackson says triumphantly. He turns to the toddler on the couch with a smug squint of his eyes. “Didn’t we Bammie?” Bam Bam nods and a wide grin threatens to split his face in two.

Jinyoung hears two pairs of footsteps come through the front door, one of them heavy and loud while the other is a light pattering of socked feet. He can’t see who walks into the living room because Jackson’s body is blocking his vision, but he knows who it is already.

“Did I miss the party?” Jaebum laughs, removing his shoes.

“Daddy!” the three children cry in unison and Bam Bam is off the couch in a flash, launching himself into Jaebum’s arms with a squeal. Jaebum hoists the toddler up into his arms and bounces him twice, gums peeking out in his smile. Jackson gets off of Jinyoung’s chest to latch onto Jaebum’s leg, and the man on the floor sits up with a groan.

“Wild children,” he mutters, mostly to himself. Mark hears him and looks guilty, getting off Jinyoung’s legs. Jinyoung smiles at him. “It’s okay, Mark. You’re allowed to be once in a while.”

Youngjae walks further into the room, looking much smaller in stature without his oversized winter jacket. His cheeks and nose are still pink from the cold. Jinyoung holds his arms out towards him and the boy huddles into his embrace, burying his face in Jinyoung ‘s neck.

“How was lesson, sweetheart?” Jinyoung asks, patting Youngjae’s hair. The boy pulls away and beams up at him, lips stretched into a heart-shaped smile.

“Really good! Mr. Park Jin Young said I’ll be able to perform in the spring festival with our class,” he says. His voice is quiet but he sounds enthusiastic nevertheless. Jinyoung chuckles, and having the same name as Youngjae’s instructor didn’t help either.

“That sounds wonderful.”

“Can we come watch?” Mark asks, bounding over to stand by Youngjae and grabbing his younger brother’s hand.

Jackson goes back to them and hugs Youngjae from behind, lifting him up a little from the ground. Youngjae lets out a tiny yelp and his legs flail.

“Yeah! We want to see Jae dance with his friends!” grins Jackson.

Jinyoung wrings his hands and reaches for Youngjae. “Jackson, put your brother down,” he says tensely, voice cracking. Jackson flushes in embarrassment and sets him down; Youngjae doesn’t seem too fazed after the initial shock, already used to the broad boy’s wild antics. Jinyoung looks up and sees Jaebum suppressing a deep laugh, lips pressed together.

“What?” Jinyoung narrows his eyes.

Jaebum shakes his head, bouncing Bam Bam a few more times. “Nothing, nothing.” He looks at each of the children in turn. “You boys hungry?”

“I’m starving!”

“Food! Food! Food!”

Mark’s stomach growls and Jackson erupts into laughter, right eye twitching, until a similar sound comes from his own gut.

Jaebum smiles and tilts his head to the side. “Well, I bought pizza on the way here, so if anyone wants some they better wash their hands and go into the dining room,” he says and he has to dance around as the kids scramble to get out of the room. Even Bam Bam wiggles his way from Jaebum’s arms to follow his older brothers into the dining area.

Jinyoung heaves a sigh and pulls himself onto his feet. He walks over to Jaebum, who turns toward him with a soft smile.

“Pizza?” Jinyoung asks curiously. Jaebum puts his hands on the smaller man’s hips and pulls him close.

“Youngjae wanted some, and you know I can’t say no to his eye smile,” he says and smiles, imitating Youngjae and shrinking his own to emphasize his point. Jinyoung chuckles and goes on his tiptoes to press a kiss to Jaebum’s full mouth. Jaebum smiles into the kiss and pulls him closer, tilting his head to get a better angle. 

Jinyoung parts his lips and sighs contentedly, ready to deepen the kiss when an exaggerated noise of disgust comes from behind them.

Jaebum untangles himself from his partner and turns to see Mark and Jackson looking up at them, noses scrunched up and tongues sticking out.

“Ew, gross! Don’t you know appa has cooties, daddy?” the smaller of the two asks. Jinyoung sighs and rolls his eyes.

“Of course.”

“Is our baby kissing other boys?” he whispers, eyes wide. Jaebum just grins and pats his cheek.

“Don’t worry about it, Jin. Let’s get some pizza.” Jaebum wheezes and flaps his arms uselessly while Jaebum leads the children into the kitchen.

That night, after watching The Lion King for the sixth time that week (at Jackson’s insistence), Jinyoung ushers all the children into their rooms to get dressed for bed. Bam Bam is the first one back out, dressed in a sky-blue onesie, and clutches his elephant plushie to his chest.

“Goodnight, Snake,” Jinyoung murmurs and stoops down to press a kiss to the small boy’s head, grinning when Bam Bam smiles up at him shyly. The toddler then runs over to Jaebum, who scoops him up and showers his face in feathery kisses. Bam Bam giggles and squirms until he’s let go. He runs to his room just as Youngjae shuffles over to Jinyoung, already half-asleep and ready to fall over.

Youngjae accepts Jinyoung’s hug, resting his head on his father’s shoulder, and sighing softly. Jinyoung opens his mouth to bid him a goodnight but stops when he hears light snoring. Eyes wide he looks up at Jaebum, who in turn raises his eyebrows.

“Is he asleep?” he mouths.

Jinyoung holds back a laugh and rubs Youngjae’s back. “Looks like,” he murmurs in reply.

The twins are out of their rooms last, wearing matching racing car pajamas. Mark pads over to Jinyoung and the latter reaches around Youngjae to kiss the small boy on the cheek. He looks expectantly at Jackson, who is still standing a few feet off.

“No goodnight kiss, Jackkie?” Jinyoung asks

Jackson puffs up his chest, hair bouncing about his face as he does, and crosses his arms indignantly. “I’m a big boy, appa,” he says in a matter-of-fact tone. “And big boys don’t need kisses.”

Jinyoung smiles and his eyes twinkle with mirth. “Okay. I’ll just give your kiss to Mark, then.” Jackson’s eyes widen and Jinyoung knows his tactic worked. Usually when one twin had the other’s things, automatically he wants it back! So it came as no surprise when Jackson rushes over and grabs Jinyoung’s arm.

“I was kidding! I want my kiss, appa,” he says quickly. Jinyoung chuckles and pecks the boy’s nose. The twins then go to Jaebum and are squished in a tight hug from the taller man. They run off to bed and Jinyoung stands, Youngjae gathered up in his arms.

“I’ll take him to his room,” he says. Jaebum shakes his head and takes Youngjae’s sleeping form in his own embrace.

“No, let me,” Jaebum smiles. Jinyoung nods gratefully and goes to his and Jaebum’s shared bedroom, forgoing a shower and pulling on a pair of boxers and his black cotton shirt. He collapses onto the bed, not realizing how tired he was until his bones and muscles creak from exhaustion.

Jinyoung didn’t want to think about having to wake up in the morning to make breakfast for the boys (Jaebum included) as well as packing lunch for them in brown paper bags. Then there was fencing class for Jackson, and martial arts for the both twins that he had to pick them up from, Youngjae’s birthday party he had to plan for, and Bam Bam was due for a check-up with the pediatrician.

A weight settles down on the bed behind him and Jinyoung relaxes back into Jaebum as the older of the two wraps his arms around his waist.

“Your face is going to freeze like that,” Jaebum chides playfully, pressing a kiss to the spot under Jinyoung’s ear. “Stop furrowing your eyebrows so hard.”

Jinyoung grunts unintelligibly in response and Jaebum laughs.

“Listen. I racked up too many sick days at work and they’re forcing me to take them, so I’ll be staying home all week,” Jaebum murmurs into the pale skin of Jinyoung’s neck. Jinyoung turns onto his back.

“What?”

Jaebum’s arms tighten around him and he laughs softly. “I’ll be here to help you out for a change. How’s that sound?”

Jinyoung shuts his eyes, sighing. “You’re the best,” he breathes, rolling over to face Jaebum. He opens his eyes to smile at his partner, seeing his own happiness reflected in the other’s face. He tilts his chin up and their lips meet, nice and slow and sweet.

“And while the kids are away at school,” Jaebum says when they pull away, eye smile kicking in. He wiggles his eyebrows. “The daddies will play.”

Jinyoung groans and buries his face in Jaebum’s chest. “Ugh, don’t say that. That was worse than all those pick-up lines you used when we started dating.”

Jaebum hums and runs his lips down Jinyoung’s temple. “All of them?”

“Especially the ‘baby did it hurt when you fell from heaven’ one.”

“Hey, I got you to blush with that one,” Jaebum protests, not even slightly embarrassed.

“I—” Jinyoung stops when the door to their bedroom creaks open. He sits up and his eyes crinkle into crescents when a head of brown hair comes into view. Bam Bam has a thumb slipped between his lips as usual and he totters over to the foot of the king-sized bed, looking up at his parents with wide imploring eyes.

“What’s wrong, Snake?” Jaebum asks, sitting up as well. Bam Bam shakes his head and grabs onto the sheets, feet flailing as he attempts to hoist himself up onto the bed. Jaebum laughs, slides from the bed, and picks Bam Bam up under his hairless armpits. He goes to lie back down by the bed and nestles the small boy between his and Jinyoung’s bodies.

“It’s okay, baby,” Jinyoung murmurs as he settles back onto his side. He combs his fingers through Bam Bam’s bangs and brushes them out of his face. Bam Bam whimpers and curls into Jinyoung’s chest, burying his nose into his shoulder. “Appas are here with you.”

Jaebum puts his arm around Jinyoung’s waist and pulls him closer, effectively snuggling Bam Bam who between them. He places a gentle kiss to the side of the toddler’s head.

“Do you want a lullaby, Snake?” Jinyoung asks in a whisper. Bam Bam nods and sniffles a bit. He tilts his head and one sparkling brown eye looks up at Jinyoung, glistening with unshed tears. Jinyoung’s heart clenches at the sight, wanting to do nothing more than dispel the fear he sees, so he quietly sings the words from an old song from his own childhood. His voice, hushed and sweet, dances in the darkness like a ribbon floating in the breeze. He stops only when Bam Bam’s breathing evens out and he sees the boy has dozed off, body cocooned in the warm notes of the melody.

Jinyoung kisses the boy’s cheek. When he tears his gaze away from Bam Bam he sees that Jaebum, too, had fallen asleep, lips parted slightly. He suppresses the laugh that presses against his ribcage; it hurts in the good way, because it feels like his heart is too big for his chest to accommodate all the love he has for his family inside. 

So even with the hustle and bustle of the fanily, the twins making a mess, and everything that was hppening around him. Nights like this made Jinyoung the happiest. 

And Jinyoung wouldn’t change it for the world.

---

*Snake: Bam in Korean is snake, therefore ‘Bam Bam’ means ‘Snake Snake’. It was mentioned on Roommate Season 2 when the GOT7 members came to help the cast deliver items