Chapter 3: A Change in the Game

By mid-afternoon, Heechul was pleased to look around the apartment and take in how nice it was looking after spending the day unpacking the last of the boxes and cleaning up a bit. It felt much more like home and not quite as crowded, which wasn’t saying much. But now he had some time to blow since the kids had detention for two hours after school. He hated to admit it, but he appreciated the time away from them.

Settling on the couch, Heechul reached for the remote and the television, switching between channels until he found some interesting soap opera to watch absentmindedly. Within minutes it had gone to a commercial and so he pulled out his phone and dialed a number before holding it to his ear. He waited patiently until the line was answered with a voice that never ceased to make his heart flutter. A smile spread across his face and he shifted to make himself comfortable for the duration of the call.

“Hey, babe!” Heechul greeted brightly, settling back against the couch cushion. The person he had called was his partner kid almost seventeen years and the man he loved most in the world, the one he liked to think was his better half.

“I was just about to call you,” Leeteuk informed him in response. Heechul brushed a strand of hair out of his face and breathed quietly. He couldn't describe how much he adored the sound of Leeteuk's voice; it was just so soothing and full of love.

“Oh, was there something that you wanted to talk about?” Heechul queued curiously. “I was just calling because I'm bored and it's lonely being stuck in the apartment by myself. I can't wait until the renovations are finished on the house.”

Due to unfortunate circumstances, they didn’t actually live together and it was really hard on the family. This renovation was the key to their future together because once it was completed they had planned on moving in together. But until that was finished, Heechul took the boys to Leeteuk's house each weekend so they could spend time with their other brothers, Eunhyuk and Henry.

Leeteuk cleared his throat to break the silence and continued the conversation in a calm but hesitant voice. “You're coming tonight, right?”

“Of course,” Heechul replied with a firm nod. He was looking forward to it. “I was talking to my parents earlier this morning. Mom wants to take the boys to the movies tomorrow night. We can have some time alone for once.”

“Listen, babe,” Leeteuk said in a serious tone, disregarding everything that Heechul had said. “I need to talk to you about something before you come. There was a man that visited Henry at school today.”

Heechul felt his heart skip a beat and his stomach twisted uncomfortably. Henry was his firstborn son from a previous relationship and his father had wanted nothing to do with him and left before he'd been born, but sometimes Heechul worried about what would happen if that man decided to come back into their lives one day. Henry did not know him, although he knew of him, and in every sense of the word, Leeteuk had been the only other parent besides Heechul that the boy had known.

“What do you mean there was a man at his school?” Heechul demanded, sitting up straight. “What did they want?”

“It was a scout from the private school twenty minutes away,” Leeteuk informed him calmly, knowing exactly what Heechul had been thinking.

Heechul relaxed but frowned lightly. “The private school of music and arts? They must have realized that we have a child genius.”

“Henry isn't a genius, Heechul,” Leeteuk said in a stern voice. Their son was already so full of himself; he didn’t want him to think that he was special. Henry just happened to be ridiculously smart and excelled in the art of violin.

“Well, what did they want?” Heechul asked, although it didn’t take a genius to guess what it was. No doubt the school had offered Henry some sort of scholarship, and Leeteuk confirmed this.

“Apparently Henry's music teacher had signed him up for a scholarship and he was chosen for it,” Leeteuk said with a heavy sigh. “They offered him a full ride until he graduates high school. All costs are covered and they want him to attend the Seoul University of Music for college with a partial scholarship; he'll get a full scholarship if he accepts the offer and graduates high school with full marks.”

Heechul closed his eyes and swore under his breath. He ran a hand through his hair and leaned against the couch feeling defeated all of a sudden.

“This really makes me mad,” He said in a bitter voice. “How are we supposed to tell our son that he can’t accept the scholarship to a prestigious school that will basically set his future? That damn teacher should have talked to us before signing Henry up for a scholarship.”

“I know, I feel disgusted with the whole situation,” Leeteuk answered with a exasperated sigh. “I'm just giving you a heads up, we can talk about it more in depth later tonight. I need to head out, though. Eunhyuk's soccer practice is just about done and I promised to drive his friends home.”

“Alright, I'll call you when I hit the road,” Heechul told him with a final bid farewell before ending the call. He placed his phone on the coffee table and stared at the television screen with keen disinterest.

An hour later, Heechul stood in front of the window in his bedroom with his arms folded across his chest and a distant look in his eyes as he watched the sun set outside. There were dark clouds