Am writing it as a one shot but if you guys like it, I will make it to a longer fic

It’s perhaps stupid to be 30 and still turn up in torn jeans for a comic con. Or so Jongin thought, but he was in a situation most people in their middle ages find themselves in. Namely, when they had the desire to enjoy something they had no money and when they finally made enough money, they were too old to enjoy it. At least Jongin had an excuse. His 6-year-old niece was a crazy fan of ‘Miko No Ai’. Joingin had suffered through the inane show where a little priestess goes about talking about things she loves. Each episode talks about a fruit, a flower, a rhyme or a story and on Saturday’s there is a marathon of 5 episodes of the current season plus 5 of the previous season. Jongin had been reduced to tears some Saturdays just by hearing that terrible opening song a total of 10 times.

He was ready to kill his sister when she asked him to be her designated chauffer when she took her daughter to the comic con just to see the dumb Miko with the stupid bowl cut, until she had proudly informed him that the relaunch of “Take no senshi” was expected to happen in the comic con. Jongin was at an impressionable age of 11 when Take no Senshi first aired. The masked bamboo warrior had instantly taken his heart away. The show was a huge success because of the mysterious identity of the lead character. It ran for 6 years but suddenly came to an abrupt end owning to the author of the manga on which the anime was based, suffering an illness. It always bugged him that he never got to know the person behind the mask of his favorite character.

Kids on sugar high are as bad as drunken drivers is what Jongin thought as yet another tiny spiderman rammed hard into his knees. Jongin was beginning to regret his desire to revisit his favorite anime even before he stepped into the madness that was the comic con. His sister had met up with another friend of hers near the entrance who was also there with her son and promptly abandoned Jongin. So, Jongin just stood around lost and wondering where to go.

Thankfully, Jongin noticed a tiny man standing near a counter with a bunch of pamphlets. With purpose, Jongin approached him.

“Excuse me, can you please direct me to the Take No Senshi stall?”

The man looked up startled. Just then a kid, probably a teenager got the pamphlets from the guy with thanks and walked off.

“I… er… I am not sure…”

Jongin colored with embarrassment realizing his mistake. The tiny man was not a volunteer as he had assumed.

“I am sorry, I thought you are a volunteer.”

“oh, that’s okay… I… I am not.”

The man looked ill at ease. If Jongin felt like an ajusshi, then the tiny man was even more of an ajusshi than himself. He looked like he was in his mid-thirties and was wearing a charcoal gray suit. His jet-black hair was combed back and set in place with gel. The only thing missing was a briefcase.

Jongin stiffly bowed once more and made to escape the awkwardness when the man timidly spoke up again.

“I am also looking for the same stall, if you don’t mind, can I come along with you?”

Jongin looked back in surprise.

The man was shyly looking up at him and Jongin couldn’t help being reminded of a bunny. The fair skin and pouty mouth made the guys beautiful and Jongin decided to accept the offer of a pleasant company.

“Sure…”

The man took a step forward and Jongin truly realized their height difference. They walked side-by-side strolling from stall to stall.

“Are you a fan?”

Jongin nodded.

“One of the best, isn’t it?”

Jongin smiled in fond memories.

“Yeah… they don’t make heroes that way anymore do they. Do you like any other anime?”

Jongin found the man blushing when he glanced his way.

“A few…”

“Oh, which…”

As if to cut him off. The man hastily extended his hand and introduced himself.

“I am Junmyeon.”

Jongin shook the tiny hand and introduced himself as well.

“I am Jongin. Did you come here alone?”

“Yeah…you”

“My sister and her 6-year-old spawn of hell are somewhere around here. I am just the muscle ready to carry the truck load of junk they are bound to buy.”

“Oh…”

“And you? Are you here on business.”

“What! No, I, I am a lawyer by profession. I… I heard that Take no senshi is getting relaunched and I wanted to check it out.”

Jongin did not know what to say, so he just kept quiet.

“Weird uh, for a middle-aged lawyer to be here.”

“Hey, not at all, not anymore weird than it is for a lab technician to be here. As Masayoshisan would say “Watashinojinsei, watashi no michi (My life, my way.)

Jongin stepped forward and enacted a sword strike just like the hero ‘Justice’ would do in the anime, making Junmyeon laugh brightly. Jongin’s heart lurched a little. He attributed it to low blood pressure and continued to chat away with his new friend.

To their surprise, when they found the stall of their favorite anime, there was a huge stage instead of a small booth. There was a lot of bustle and both Jongin and Junmyeon got excited with the idea of actually participating in the event. However, the event was an hour away. They exchanged phone numbers and Junmyeon excused himself and agreed to meet Jongin in the same place after an hour.

Jongin just sat there wondering how strange it was that he already missed the tiny man. Jongin had a weakness for cute things and Junmyeon was undoubtedly cute. He would have continued with his daydreaming as he sat in one of the chairs near the now empty stage if not for his sister’s urgent call.

“Joinginne, come to stall 67, I need your help now.”

Without much thought, he instantly went in search of his sister, which lead him to his current predicament. The situation where he was getting violently shoved by determined mothers and a few fathers to lay their hands on the limited edition plushies of a talking star fish that made his mind melt day in and day out at home. But it was the trusted sidekick of the famous Miko and his niece was determined to have it.

As he used his height to his advantage and waded through the crowd after battling it out with a couple of vicious ladies and emerging victorious with a purple star fish tightly clutched in his claws, something hit him, or rather fell on him from the back. Without much thought, he just grabbed the falling figure and dragged him or her out of the crowd as well, only to emerge with a blushing Junmyeon clutching a yellow star fish.

Junmyeon’s eyes widened in horror on realizing who exactly his rescuer was.

He clutched his yellow starfish and with a pout sheepishly looked down.

“Junmyeon… why do you have a Mokichan in your hands?”

“I… I…” Junmyeon looked anywhere but Jongin.

“Miko no Ai? Seriously?”

The lawyer took a deep breath and with a determined expression said, “Mokichan is cute, think what you want! I don’t care.”

The pout was back on full force and Jongin thought Junmyeon should be an alien. Its not possible for a human to cross 30 and pull off cute better than a 4-year-old. Regardless, Jongin had the overwhelming urge to pull the man close and hug the daylight out of him.

“God how are you even a lawyer, you could have lied that it was for your son or something.” Jongin fluffed his new cute friend's hair.

“I don’t lie and I don’t have a son and maybe will never have.” Junmyeon mumbled.

Jongin threw his head back and laughed.

“You are way cuter than the dumb miko.”

Junmyeon was spared any more embarrassment when a tiny figure ran up to him.

“Ajusshi! Can I have the yellow one? My uncle got the purple one for me but I don’t like purple.”

Jongin stared at his ungreatfuk niece but Junmyeon visibly brightened. And kneeling down to the little girl’s level he exclaimed.

“Oh, I love purple!”

“Hey, your uncle is refusing to this deal.” Jongin interjected.

Two sets of pleading eyes turned towards him. Jongin felt powerless against the combined onslaught. The pout grew stronger on Junmyeon’s face and Jongin objectively wanted to be disgusted but couldn’t help find the ridiculous expression cute anyway.

“Alright, I will agree if the owner of the yellow Mokichan agrees to a selfie with me.”

Jongin’s wise sister of course stepped in offering what any self-respecting evil sister would do; she offered to take a picture of them. Junmyeon hesitated but purple power won in the end and he reluctantly stepped in front of Jongin for a photo on Jongin’s phone. Up close, Junmyeon was so tiny that Jongin wanted to fold him carefully and carry him in his pocket like his very own piece of sunshine. Instead, Jongin of course shamelessly pulled the smaller man closer to him in the pretext of a better angle and subtly put his arm around the narrow shoulders of his new best friend. If they looked a tad bit too cute, his sister didn’t say a thing.

Thus, at the ripe old age of 30, Jongin ended up with a photo holding a purple starfish plushie in one hand and a tiny pouting Junmyeon with a yellow star fish in the other. If Jongin’s smile was exceptionally wide in the picture, that was because right at the moment his sister took the shot, a thought occurred to him. It just struck him that the picture on his phone is a guaranteed gateway to at least a coffee date somewhere away from pesky sisters and annoying Mikos and startfishes.