He squinted as the light of the hallway flooded his eyes and grumbled as he moved toward where the giggles were originating from. His little girl was spotted in her little bouncy chair up on the counter before he could round the corner. A little panic bubbled up in his stomach when he didn’t see his husband anywhere at first, but as he stepped closer he saw the well placed hand on the baby’s tummy and then the man standing there making sure she was getting her jar of banana food mostly in and not on her bib.

Jinki was smiling wide down at his daughter, voice soft and playful as he made airplane noises. Jonghyun couldn’t see her face, just the top of her head full of hair, but her little hands were flapping around trying to grab the spoon her Daddy was bringing to her lips too slowly for her liking. Her fingers were covered in the baby food and Jonghyun chuckled softly. The sound of his laughter caused Jinki to look away from the baby and his eyes to almost melt at the sight of his husband. “Hey you. Sleep well?”

“Mornin’” Jonghyun smacked his mouth as he rubbed his eye with his knuckle. He slipped behind his husband and s an arm around his middle before squishing his cheek into his back. His voice was muffled because of a mixture of his lips being so close to Jinki’s back and still being half asleep as he replied, “Better than most nights. Pumpkin slept well.”

“She did. She slept in 5 hour little spurts.” Jinki’s voice was full of pride before it changed into his voice he spoke to Gwiboon with, “Didn’t you beautiful? You let Daddy and Pa sleep more like a good little baby.”

When Jonghyun glanced over Jinki’s shoulder he snorted, “Now if only she could be a good baby and get most of her food in and not on her fingers.”

He felt Jinki’s sigh before he heard it and he kind of liked feeling the rumble of his voice, “She’s a little messy, but she gets that from me. Sorry Pumpkin wrong genes from the gene pool.” Jonghyun’s lips curved into a little smile as he s the other arm around his husband. Jinki was very warm and he was tired. It was a beautifully horrid combination. “As much as I would love to stand here and let you almost give me the Heimlich maneuver our daughter needs to be washed up and changed, and you need breakfast.”

That just made him whine, “But you’re soooo comfy.”

“Go get showered and I’ll have breakfast all ready for you.”

That made Jonghyun pause. “Chocolate chip pancakes?”

“And extra whipped cream.”

“You know I just realized I have to shower.. it like just slipped my mind, gotta go!” Jonghyun dashed off after pressing a quick kiss onto his husband’s cheek.

Jinki laughed as he placed the half empty jar of baby food back onto the counter and wipes his hands on the cloth sitting beside it. He quickly dashed a washcloth with warm water and gently wiped Gwiboon’s face and hands before smiling and saying, “Your Pa is something else Pumpkin.” She just cooed as she was picked up to be changed from her now dirty onesie.

She was laid in her soft play pin after Jinki had rolled it into the kitchen. Her little legs and arms gyrated as her Daddy smiled down at her. They only stopped once her purple otter was in her arms and her head was softly caressed by Jinki. Once he was sure that she wouldn’t get herself into trouble he turned toward the fridge to face his husband’s pancake craving. It wasn’t an impossible request most of the time, but the longer he searched their cupboards with no sign of the chocolate chips it was quickly turning out to be just that. Good thing he found the bag of Hershey kisses he had bought Jonghyun a couple nights ago on the way back from his shift at the hospital. It was easy to cut the big pieces of chocolate into smaller chunks to toss into the batter he had poured into the skillet.

 The last of the pancakes was being flipped onto the plate when he heard Jonghyun humming getting louder. Soon enough when he glanced behind him the man was leaning over Gwiboon’s play pin to rub her belly. He only looked up when he heard the plate being set on the island beside him. Jinki was crouched down in front of the open fridge trying to pull something out from the bottom shelf, but before Jonghyun could ask what exactly he was doing he was straightening with the carton of orange juice that had been shoved far in there last night when they put their left overs away. Jinki beamed as he slid the carton on the counter and reached for the two glasses he had set out next to the stove.

“Are these all for me?” Jonghyun asked after he had pulled the stools around the island so they could watch Gwiboon.

“I get the two big ones. The rest are yours baby.” When Jinki had turned back around after putting the rest of the orange juice in the fridge 4 of Jonghyun’s 11 tiny pancakes were shoved into his mouth. Jinki just shook his head with a fond smile on his face as he placed the cup near his husband’s plate. “Don’t choke now.”

After they were swallowed Jonghyun quickly took a drink of the juice and beamed when he set it back down, “Roger that.”

“Nerd.”

“Dweeb.” Jonghyun retorted before he stuck his tongue out and they both giggled at how dumb they were.

                              ----

With the extra time that Jonghyun had before he had to leave for work he cleaned up their breakfast and washed the dishes. Once they were set aside to dry he turned to pick up Gwiboon to get some baby time before he had to go and work for 9 hours. He passed Jinki who was going through the fridge and cabinets making the list he’d take with him to the grocery store later. Jonghyun took a seat in the recliner and after bringing his legs up he laid the baby against his thighs. Her feet were on his tummy as she shoved her fist in and kept her otter close with her other hand. Jinki pushed the play pin back into the living room and placed the bouncing seat next to the couch before falling straight onto it’s cushions. He twisted his head slightly in order to see his little family, but he stayed there on his back sprawled out on the piece of furniture. “I’m exhausted and it’s not even eight in the morning yet.”

“Well just 4 more hours and it’s nap time.”

Jinki’s eyes fluttered close with a happy hum. “My favorite time of day.”

Jonghyun smiled at his husband before turning back to gently tap his fingers on his daughter’s little tummy. Her tiny fists waved in little circle motions before one was shoved in for her to chew on. “Don’t take it personally Princess. He loved sleep way before you came along.”

“That I did. I just miss it a lot more now,” After his chuckles subsided he quietly said, “Shouldn’t you be heading out Sweetie?”

“I have 20 more minutes of baby time mister.”

“That’s not including the time it’ll take you to take that package to the post office that I’m not allowed to send for you.”

“Oh… right.”

“Secret government business that little ole me can have nothing to do with.” Jinki heaved himself off the comfort of the couch to walk the few steps to the recliner. He held his hands out with his palms up, a sweet smile on his face as he said, “Come on Jonghyunie, gimme my baby so my sugarbutt can get to work.”

“But what if sugarbutt doesn’t want to go to work and just stay here all day with your baby?”

Jinki leaned down to poke Jonghyun’s cheek with his nose, “Then sugarbutt needs to call his super secret scary lab boss and call off. Which is fine by me because I can actually sleep on my day off for once, but we both know you must go to work and I must stay awake. Now gimme my baby.”

With a sigh Jonghyun handed Gwiboon over and she cooed as her head was held by her daddy’s palm and her was gently patted with his other hand. Jonghyun was grumbly as he put the recliner back down and stood up. His mood brightened when Jinki pressed a wet, sloppy kiss onto his cheek and Gwiboon made a cute little gurgle noise when he kissed her goodbye. After he had retrieved the box from his study and grabbed the lunch box Jinki had packed for him early Jonghyun jumped into his car. Jinki moved Gwiboon’s arm for her on the porch as he pulled from the driveway.

“Now let’s get some laundry going before we make our grocery list hmm, maybe even give you a bath Ms. Messy.” Gwiboon just reached up to pull off his glasses. “Gwi no Daddy needs those.”

The baby girl didn’t care. Not like he expected her to.

                    ----

The traffic to the grocery store was almost nonexistent. Besides a couple cars and the suv a couple car lengths behind them the road was clear. Gwiboon was quietly chewing on her play ring looking at the mirror that allowed her daddy to see her from his rear view mirror. Jonghyun liked to say he was corrupting their daughter by playing trot cds during car rides, but she was more quiet and content when they were on.     

When he pulled into the parking lot there weren’t many people at the store. Which was usually how it was on a Wednesday morning. He pulled into a spot on the side of the store and after making sure he had his wallet in his pocket he slipped his phone into the diaper bag on the passenger seat. He grabbed it before stepping out to get his little Pumpkin out of her car seat. The baby carrier was folding up on floor board and once it was snapped around his hips he lifted her from her seat. She was quickly held against his chest so he could lift the other half of the carrier up and slip his arms through it. He fixed Gwiboon’s tiny hat and left sock that she always liked to kick off before closing the door and shoulder the diaper bag once again. the     

    The diaper bag was set in the front of the cart before he moved toward the produce section. He fished the list out of his back pocket and set it on top of the bag for future reference. Gwiboon gurgled against his chest, little fists softly swatting at him. Jinki patted her and kissed her head as he pulled the cart to a stop with his other hand. A bag of carrots, a head of lettuce and two onions were picked out, bagged and placed into the cart after a twisty tie was placed at the top. A cucumber was next along with a thing of strawberries, a bunch of six bananas and three apples. One granny smith for Jonghyun. Bread was next, but they were out of the usual whole wheat brand they loved so he went with the one that was on sale. He didn’t think Jonghyun would mind very much.

After leaving the dairy section Jinki’s list was finished and he turned back around to head up to the front of the store, but as he made his way there he passed the cookie aisle. Jonghyun hadn’t said he wanted cookies this week, but Jinki knew his husband well enough that sometimes he just forgot to ask for things because he didn’t know he needed or wanted them at the time. Gwiboon had fallen asleep somewhere between the can good aisle and the dairy aisle. He cupped her head as he lowered down to pull the pack milano cookies from the shelf. He felt pretty proud of himself when she was still asleep when he tossed them into the cart.     

After checking his watch he pressed a kiss to Gwiboon’s head and smiled when she made a soft noise. “Shh Pumpkin. We’ll be home soon.”

    When he placed the last item on the belt he pushed the cart to the end and stood in front of the cashier to look up at the computer screen for the total. He gave Gwiboon his finger to chew on when she began to fuss, but only after wiping it off with the pack of disinfectant wipes in the side pocket of the diaper bag. The cashier was almost done with his things when he noticed the display of flowers up at the front. He wiggled past his cart and picked up a bouquet of pink ones. He arrived back at the register just as the last jar of mashed banana baby food was being scanned. “And this please.”

“It’ll be 78.96 sir.”

    Jinki flashed a smile at the young woman as he wiggled his wallet free from his back pocket. He handed her 4 twenties as he glanced down at the boy bagging his things. In his hand was the chewing toy Jinki had picked up for Gwiboon. “Can I have that out of the bag please?” Once it was handed to him he smiled, “Thanks. I’d like to have my finger back to drive.” Both workers laughed as the bags were finished and put into the cart, and he was handed his change of a dollar and 4 cents.

He slid the money into his pocket and thanked them before heading out of the store. He crumbled up his list and pushed it into the garbage can just before the car. Gwiboon was content chewing on her daddy’s finger so he kept her against his chest as he popped the hatch to start loading the groceries in. Lifting the water gatorade cases were harder to do with a baby on his chest and one hand, but he managed it. He walked around and set the bread and eggs in the backseat next to the baby seat. The flowers were set in the passenger seat. After a quick once over of the cart he lifted the diaper bag out of it and pushed the cart against the wall up the tiny ramp leading to the sidewalk as he walked back around to put Gwiboon in her carseat. “Do you think Pa will like his flowers when he gets home Pumpkin?”    

Just as he was about to slip the straps off his shoulders he heard a click and then felt something being pressed into his lower back, right against his spine. A gravely voice whispered against his ear. “Too bad he won’t get to see them Jinki Lee. Say anything and I’ll put a bullet through you.”

He swallowed thickly as his hands came up to hold Gwiboon closer. As he was lead away by a grip on his arm he locked the car and tossed the keys into the backseat before the door was closed. If Jonghyun came home to find them missing and came looking for them at the store he’d know something was up the moment he saw the keys sitting in the back with the car locked. Jinki tried to see the license plate of the black suv he was being pushed into and it was then he recognized the car. It had been the car following them earlier.  

He only saw the eyes of the man pointing the gun at him. “Keep that baby quiet and do not try anything.”

Jinki wasn’t going to. Not when he had Gwiboon. By himself he would have reached down to his phone and dialed 911, or texted Jonghyun to track his phone, but his little girl’s life was in his hands and he wasn’t going to jeopardize that in any way.