Junhyuk has always been an extra person when it came to his family. Birthdays, holidays, school events, milestones, you can expect him to make it into one huge thing much to the disapproval of his kids and wife. When the kids were little, they loved all the surprises but now that they’re older, it was a different story. But it was one of the many ways he showed his love for them. Sometimes though, his kids and wife wished he would tone it down a bit—Ailsa wishes he would just stop but she knows that’s asking too much—and not turn things into a huge show. His wife wasn’t immune to the extra-ness either. Her birthdays were done on a much smaller scale than with the kids but their anniversary was always made into a huge debacle. This anniversary though, they couldn’t celebrate together because Junhyuk had to go out of town for work. So Junhyuk has been holding on to the guilt and the only way to have himself feel better is to give her a big thing for her birthday.

“Okay kids, gather around!” Junhyuk said as he walked out into the backyard. All five kids stopped their jumping on the trampoline and plopped down, crawling to the edge so they were closer to their dad.

“What’s up, appa?” Ailsa asked, scooting closer to Tait to retain body heat. Even though it was the middle of winter and freezing, ever since they got a trampoline, the Cho-Wu kids would spend a lot of time outside on it. During winter, they just pile on some layers and keep their shoes on when bouncing. It was one of the rare Junhyuk surprises that the kids thoroughly enjoyed.

“Your mom’s birthday is coming up soon and I want to do something special for her since I couldn’t do anything for our anniversary.” Junhyuk said, causing his five kids to sigh.

“Appa, eomma isn’t going to like it.” Hojeong said.

“Yeah. She doesn’t like that kind of stuff, appa.” Sungwoon added on.

“Save your breath, he won’t listen.” San sighed.

“So, I need ideas for what to do and of course, you five will help me get everything done!” Junhyuk said with a bright grin. All five kids groaned knowing that their father wouldn’t listen.

Aideen’s birthday was a month away but Junhyuk needs to start getting everything ready for his wife’s birthday surprise. And with the kids’ help, he’ll get more done quicker.

“Babe, I don’t want anything big for my birthday, okay. I just want to spend it with you, the kids, and Taehyun and Moonkyu if they’re not busy and just go out to dinner or something. I want it relaxed and quiet.” Aideen told her husband. Junhyuk grinned and took one of Aideen’s hands to give it a kiss.

“Don’t worry, my love. Leave it all to me and I’ll take care of everything.” He assured her before walking away to his at-home office so he could go over more his plan.

“That’s what worries me.” Aideen muttered to herself before going to the kitchen to work on dinner.

Junhyuk had a few things planned for the day. He would need to get either Moonkyu’s or Taehyun’s help to keep Aideen away from the house while him and the kids fixed up the house. One for sure plan is a surprise party. Another thing planned is a shopping spree for her and visit to her favorite restaurant but those events would be during the day, to keep her out of the house.

“Hyung, do you think this is a good idea?” Moonkyu asked as him and Taehyun accompanied Junhyuk at the store. It was mainly to help him with the kids. You would think that since the triplets were 18 and the twins were 14, Junhyuk wouldn’t need help but he has learned the hard way to never underestimate his kids, regardless of ages. If anything, when they were little was when they were the most easiest to handle and just get more difficult the older they got. It didn’t help that San had a habit of literally throwing Ailsa around like a ragdoll. He’ll grow out of it, his mom had assured him when San was younger and the habit first started appearing. He never grew out of it just like Junhyuk never grew out of his extraness.

“What do you mean? It’s a great idea! My love only has a birthday once a year!” Junhyuk happily exclaimed as he looked through the vegetables.

“I think what Timo means, hyung, is that will noona think it’s a good idea?” Taehyun asked, occasionally glancing over to where the five kids were mingling around, making sure they didn’t get too crazy.

“Why wouldn’t she? She’ll love everything!” Junhyuk cheered. Taehyun and Moonkyu merely sighed since they knew once Junhyuk got going, he wouldn’t stop.

“Well, don’t say we didn’t warn you when noon-YAH! Aish! These kids!” Taehyun exclaimed before hurrying to where the kids were to stop what it looked to be San about to stuff Ailsa into one of the freezers.

“Yah! Cho-Wu Sanghyuk! You put your sister down! Aish, I just wanted to do shopping for my wife and get my kids some fresh air.” Junhyuk exclaimed, running over and leaving Moonkyu to man the shopping cart and deal with the judgmental stares from the nearby shoppers.

“Let me tell you something, Ivy. Be glad that Yoongi doesn’t have the extra gene that Junhyuk does. I know I told him to not do anything big for my birthday but I have a feeling that he didn’t listen and is planning something as we speak.” Aideen said to her friend, Ivy Jung-Min. The two liked to meet every now and then for lunch. It allowed them to unwind from the stress of their lives.

“Oh God. Yoongi has that gene and you want to know how I found out? These past two months since we started planning Mariska’s 15^th. He knows that I don’t like big things so he keeps it simple for my birthdays and our anniversaries and the kids usually just ask for a specific thing for their birthday so he’s fine there, thankfully. But this 15^th thing…ugh!” Ivy groaned.

“How’s that going by the way? The kids told me that they were asked by Mariska to be part of her court or something like that.” Ivy sighed again.

“Yeah, it’s a tradition for it. And because this whole thing has so much meaning and tradition and because Mariska is basically Yoongi’s princess, he is going full out. He wants us to go big and it got even worse when KBS2 contacted us about doing a special episode for The Return of Superman.” Ivy shook her head and massaged her temples.

“You poor thing. Don’t worry, you have me if you ever need help. I’d offer Junhyuk’s help as well but he’s probably the last person you want working on this 15^th thing.” Aideen patted Ivy’s shoulder.

“Appa, will eomma really like this?” Hojeong wondered as he held on to Ailsa’s legs. Ailsa was currently seated on his shoulders to hang up some decorations. It was the day of Aideen’s birthday and Aideen had been dragged out of the house a few hours ago by Moonkyu so she didn’t see the preparations. The day had started off with breakfast in bed for Aideen, the kids having been dragged out of their beds two hours prior to help him. The kids weren’t allowed in the kitchen but that doesn’t mean they couldn’t help set it up. Aideen was surprised by the simplicity of the gesture since it was usually a buffet of things but it had been a simple Western breakfast with pancakes, eggs, bacon, and coffee. What she didn’t know was that because the kids were involved, it caused a huge mess to occur because San and Ailsa kept getting in each other’s way. Neither of them were in a good mood because of how early they were up so they got annoyed easily. The mess Junhyuk had to clean up hindered the time he had to make breakfast so he was only able to have a few things done just before Aideen woke up. It was enough for Aideen though and she didn’t have to go down to a mess.

“Of course she will! And I’m sure she’s loving the day she’s having right now!” Junhyuk said as he vacuumed the living room. Hojeong looked up at his sister and Ailsa looked down at her brother and the two shared a look.

Meanwhile, across the city in a upscale clothing store, Aideen was currently looking through a rack of dresses with a frown on her face. What she told Junhyuk to not do, he did. She should’ve been grateful, and she was, but that still doesn’t mean that she wasn’t annoyed that her husband didn’t listen. She should’ve known though, Aideen thought to herself. When it came to these kind of things, her husband became stuck in his ways. Moonkyu stood next to her with a look of sympathy and holding her purse.

“Sorry noona, we all tried to talk him out of his plans but you know how hyung gets.” Moonkyu apologized again ever since he picked her up an hour ago.

“It’s okay, Timo. I know very well how he gets. I married him for crying out loud. Do you remember the twins second birthday? It had been Junhyuk’s first birthday with them so he planned a huge circus themed party for them.” Aideen fondly rolled her eyes and Moonkyu laughed.

“How can I forget? He made me and Taehyun go with him to scope out different parks to find the ‘perfect’ one so he could rent.” Moonkyu laughed.

“And remember the petting zoo and huge tent? How he found a tent that looked like an actual circus tent, I still have no idea but holy crap. And he had a cotton candy machine, a popcorn machine, a face painter, a balloon artist, a magician, and don’t get me started on the clowns. I had never heard Ailsa scream and cry so loud.” Aideen laughed as well.

“She didn’t even cry like that when she got hurt at your guys’ wedding. She really has a set of pipes on her though. If she wanted to, she could be a singer too. Be as good as Sungwoon. Oh! Remember Sungwoon’s first solo in a school choir performance? And hyung made everyone shirts and stuff with a picture of Sungwoon.” Moonkyu laughed even harder now.

“My poor Sungflower! He was so happy to see the support but so embarrassed!” Aideen laughed as well. Her husband was too much most of the time but his heart was in the right place and he did it all with good intentions in mind so that made up for it.

Because of their trip down memory lane, Aideen was put in a brighter mood so since her husband was giving her a shopping spree, she was going to use that shopping spree now with a smile on her face and a bit of a spring in her step. It’s a good thing she didn’t know about the surprise party and the crowd of people that will later be at her house for the party.

“Appa, San isn’t helping. He locked himself in his room.” Tait entered the dining room where Junhyuk was supervising the caterers. Junhyuk groaned before telling his youngest to stay in the dining room while he went to go deal with San.

“San. Come on, come and help your siblings. Don’t you want to be part of the reason why your eomma has a good time?” Junhyuk spoke through the door. He merely got a loud groan in response and Junhyuk regretted not sending San with Moonkyu and Aideen. He listened to Aideen a bit better.

“San, it’s not fair that you’re in your room while your siblings do all the work. Come down and help.” Junhyuk sounded a bit more stern. Again, only a loud groan. Junhyuk sighed heavily.

“San, I’m going to count to three. If you don’t open this door by the time I get to three, you’re going to regret it. 1…2…2 ½…3! That’s it, you asked for it. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Junhyuk went into his and Aideen’s room where he had a skeleton key in his nightstand and then he went downstairs to the living room where the other four kids were putting the finishing touches.

“Kids, come upstairs and help me. I’ll finish down here.” Junhyuk ordered. He lead the kids up the stairs and to San’s door that was still locked. He unlocked the door and before opening it told his kids to go in and raise hell. He let his kids run in to San’s room, smirking at their war cries and San’s surprised yell, having been asleep and not expecting his dad to follow through with his threat. Junhyuk finished setting up the living room with a proud smile as he heard the thuds and cries come from San’s room. He usually tried to stop it when his kids physically fought but sometimes, the kids did better at punishing each other than him and Aideen could do.

“Hyung, I just got a text from Timo that him and noona are almost here.” Taehyun said. The guest had arrived, the kids were dressed and ready—San was in a bit of a sour mood, even his girlfriend and best friend couldn’t really bring him out of it but Junhyuk would deal with him later if he had too—and the only thing missing from the surprise birthday party was the birthday girl. Junhyuk was proud so far of the outcome. Even though there had been bumps in the road, he got it done and hopefully it continues to be perfect.

“I see them, appa! They just pulled up into the driveway.” Junhyuk looked over at Sungwoon who was given the job of lookout and then turned to the guests.

“Everyone, hide!” And they did just that. The Cho-Wu kids all scrambled to get behind the couch, all five pushing each other as they stepped on one another.

“You’re stepping on me!” Tait hissed, bumping Hojeong who had stomped his foot.

“I’m sorry! San pushed me!” Hojeong whispered apologetically.

“No I didn’t! The midget keeps moving.” San growled, shoving Ailsa.

“I will end you, you .” Ailsa threatened.

“Yah, shush!” Junhyuk snapped from across the room.

Aideen and Moonkyu walked up the pathway, laughing about more memories and stories. Aideen handed some shopping bags to Moonkyu so she could get her house keys out of her purse.

“Are you sure this is all he planned? My nails done and a shopping spree and lunch at my favorite restaurant. Aideen spoke as she unlocked the front door.

“Uh, yeah. It’s all he told me at least.” Moonkyu shrugged, closing the door behind him and putting the shopping bags down on the shoe shelf. He traded his shoes for his designated pair of slippers and took Aideen’s coat from her and hung it up while she took off her shoes and put on her house slippers.

“It just seems so…downplayed for him.” Aideen said. Moonkyu chuckled, leading Aideen into the house.

“Maybe hyung actually listened this time.” Moonkyu offered, waiting for her to get into the living room before turning on the lights.

“I’ll believe that when pigs-AH!” Aideen let out a scream when people jumped out from behind different places and yelled ‘surprise’! She shouldn’t have been as surprised as she was. Aideen had a nagging feeling that Junhyuk had something else planned but she just didn’t know what. Now it made sense why Moonkyu dragged her out of the house this morning and why the kids and Junhyuk had stayed behind. It also made sense why Junhyuk hardly contacted her throughout the day.

“Happy birthday, eomma!” The Cho-Wu kids cheered, all five in a much more brighter mood than before. They hurried from behind the couch to give Aideen a tight hug.

“Happy birthday, my love.” Junhyuk said with a grin, moving from his spot to give his wife a kiss.

“What is all this?” A stupid question, Aideen thought. But surprises always made her weird because she didn’t really know how to respond.

“It’s for you, eomma!” Sungwoon grinned.

“Do you like it?” Hojeong asked. Her lack of response cause San, Tait, and Ailsa to frown.

“I knew she wouldn’t like it.” San grumbled.

“Aw man.” The twins sighed. Junhyuk looked at Aideen with a questioning look.

“Do you really not like it, my love?” Junhyuk wondered. Aideen looked at her husband then to her children and merely sighed before giving her husband a kiss.

“No, I do. I just wanted something small and quiet but this is great.” Aideen assured. She thanked her husband and kids and then went to greet the guests.

The party continued and Aideen mingled with everyone. She seriously wished that her husband would listen to her just once but Aideen wasn’t going to ruin the mood. Junhyuk worked hard planning everything and it was just who he is. Later, after Happy Birthday had been sung and cake had been served, Junhyuk sidled up next to his wife.

“I have one more surprise for you, my love.” Junhyuk said in a hushed tone.

“Oh, no more surprises, my love.” Aideen pleaded but Junhyuk merely grinned.

“I think you’ll like this surprise though. But you’ll have to wait for the kids to go to bed.” And Junhyuk stuck out his tongue which helped Aideen understand what he meant.

“Oh.” She grinned but was surprised when she heard a loud ‘Ew!’ come from behind her and Junhyuk. The two turned and saw a grossed out San.

“I have been scarred for life!” San screamed as he ran away from his parents. He was only gone for a minute though before coming back with a straight face.

“Can I sleep at Jooheon’s? I don’t want to be under the same roof when your final surprise ensues.”

“Why do you need to stay at Joo-Joo’s?” Tait came over with a plate of cake.

“You don’t want to know Tait and don’t call him that.” San scrunched up his nose at the nickname.

“You’re the one that wants to spend the night at Joo-Joo’s! Not my fault you’re being all cryptic.” Tait huffed.

“For crying out loud twin you need to stop calling him that, your feels are showing. And what is dingus going on about?” Ailsa came over, munching on a cookie. San rolled his eyes and decided to just walk away.

“The one time I want to protect your innocent ears and you two brats won’t shut up.” San grumbled as he walked away. Needless to say, San was allowed to spend the night at his friend’s house while the rest of the kids went to Taehyun’s and Moonkyu’s so Aideen could enjoy her last surprise.

Click here please! Comments are very much appreciated! Also, happy birthday to one of my best friends and the co-author of this story, Rani! Te amo, friend!