Filming always made Mark feel funny. He either ended up on an energy high that took forever to come down from, or everything just seemed a thousand times more difficult than usual. Today was the latter, draining his energy at an almost instantaneous pace. When the director called for a break, he immediately moved into a chair offstage, right in front of one of the review monitors. A perfect spot to rest while still doing a little self-assessment at the same time.

The relative silence was broken when the cheerful squeals of one of the staff’s little girls echoed through the warehouse. “Shh,” a voice said, “We have to stay quiet.” There were some whispers that followed, overpowered by the sounds of the crew changing out pieces of the set, then a rush of footsteps. One set definitely sounded like a child's. The other was obnoxiously loud and extra forceful. Someone was clomping around, probably chasing the kid.

When they got close, Mark heard the girl stumble, followed by the inevitable crying almost every toddler did when they fell down. He turned to see Jackson, Jinyoung and a man who he guessed was the girl’s father huddled around her. She quieted down quickly, noticing how much attention she got.

Jinyoung and the other man stood up, but Jackson stayed kneeling next to her, a grin spread wide across his face. “How about I carry you?” he suggested to the girl. “Just until you feel better.” She nodded so fast it looked like her head might fall off and climbed into Jackson’s arms.

The look on his face as he walked around with the little girl in his arms was unlike anything Mark had ever seen. Sure, Jackson had looked proud before, but something about this was different. He looked like a parent, enjoying the simple pleasures that came with having a child.

No words in any language could ever accurately describe how Mark felt about Jackson, especially during moments like this. The younger never failed to surprise him in the best ways possible. He’d always shown an interest in kids before, always wanting to make them laugh and smile. It was personable Jackson looking for an audience.

This time, though, he was calm. His smile radiated joy. It was the same smile he had on when he was about to see his mom or when they won their chart show #1.

Mark’s eyes stayed fixed on Jackson longer than they probably should have, especially since one of the staff had started recording all of them. No doubt he was filming some behind the scenes footage, like always. Sometimes Mark resented never having any privacy, especially when it came to moments like these. He just wanted to keep watching Jackson. Instead, he averted his gaze back to the now-blank playback screen.

But, no matter where he looked, the image of Jackson’s face had burned into his mind.

“I heard you were staring at me earlier.”

A hand slid across Mark’s shoulders as he walked toward the dressing room. He turned his head to see Jackson grinning back at him. The older just exhaled, letting his head fall into the crook of the others’ shoulder for a moment. He felt comfortable tucked under Jackson’s arm.

His silence was enough of an answer for Jackson, who used his free hand to ruffle Mark’s hair. “I know I’m y, but you should really try and be a little more subtle,” he joked. Being subtle hadn’t been either of their strong points when they were around each other. It was something they were trying desperately to fix, for their own sake.

Because if the public found out about them, everything could be over.

The older didn’t pay any mind to Jackson’s jokes though. The moment from earlier was still replaying in his head. “You’ll make a good dad one day,” Mark muttered, half lost in his thoughts. He’d always known that Jackson was suited to be a parent, but seeing that caring side of him when he was around kids just made him that much more certain.

Jackson paused, causing Mark to step out from under his arm. When he realized that the other wasn’t next to him anymore, Mark glanced back. His eyebrows raised up as he saw the confused look on his best friend’s face. “What?” Mark asked. “I saw you with that little girl earlier.”

But that didn’t seem to satisfy Jackson. “That’s kind of random to just bring up out of the blue,” he said.

“That wasn’t out of the blue,” Mark argued. “You brought up the whole thing to begin with.”

Jackson blushed and looked down, suddenly fascinated with his shoes. Mark moved closer to him, putting one of his hands at the back of Jackson’s neck as he tilted his head to look at his downturned face. “What’s wrong, Gaga?”

It took a minute of them standing there, awkwardly posed and yet completely comfortable near each other, before Jackson finally straightened up. Mark followed suit, but kept his hand at the back of the other’s neck, gently massaging the skin with his thumb. Jackson’s blush had faded away almost completely, leaving just a rosy hint on his cheeks. Mark always thought he looked cute when he was embarrassed.

“I was just surprised,” Jackson admitted quietly.

“Why?”

Mark saw Jackson’s eyes close and, for a split second, he thought he’d go back to staring down at his shoes. But the boy’s head stayed up and he kept his eyes closed for a moment. “I just didn’t think you thought about stuff like that.”

Mark chuckled, finally starting to understand everything. “It’s kind of hard not to think about in a situation like that,” he replied. “Especially when you looked so happy. Of course I’d think about you as a dad.”

Jackson’s eyes cracked open again. He glanced up cautiously at Mark. Under a sea of sadness and doubt, there was some hope that sparkled in the corner of Jackson’s eyes. Hope that, maybe, he’d be able to have a family just like everyone else. Mark noticed it and smiled, leaning closer to whisper in Jackson’s ear.

“Everything will work out,” he whispered. “Just give it time. I’ll be right here next to you.”

Jackson nodded, not daring to say a word, and wrapped his arms around Mark’s waist. The older returned the hug immediately, his arms naturally wrapping around the other. They stood in comfortable silence for a minute before Jackson took a step back. He still looked sad, but his body wasn’t as slouched over as before.

Mark looped his arm around Jackson’s waist, pulling him toward the dressing room. “C’mon,” he said. “The sooner we get home, the sooner we can have some ice cream.” That made Jackson smile a little. It was just enough to make Mark sigh a little breath of relief.

There was more the two of them would need to talk about eventually. Both of them had so many questions for each other. But, for now, Mark was content with seeing Jackson’s hope for a normal future grow. All he wanted was for the other to be happy.