SATURDAY

8:04 A.M

”Is he coming soon?” Jungah asks with a slight pout. Her pigtails are still slightly tousled as a result of waking up less than an hour ago, but the curious glint in her eyes is impossible to miss. 

Sehun pinches her cheek. ”He’ll be back soon, don’t worry,” he chuckles, fighting the urge to check his phone in case Jongin might have called him. 

”How long does it take to buy some breakfast cereal?” Jungah huffs impatiently. ”Lisa said she and her mother would take me to the zoo for my birthday and I don’t wanna miss that." She looks at Sehun with a serious expression. "I’m a girl and we need a long time to look nice, you know.”

”You won’t miss out on it, I promise,” Sehun says, and he’s about to continue when the sound of tires pulling up outside fills the air. Sure enough, Jungah moves to get up, but he manages to grab her arm in the last minute. ”Wait right here, okay?”

Jungah blinks in confusion. ”Why should I?”

Sehun doesn’t bother responding when he hears the front door opening a few feet away. As much as he wants to walk over and assist Jongin, he forces himself to restrain Jungah after Jongin enters the kitchen without taking off his shoes. Despite the impatient frown on Jungah’s face, her eyes immediately light up when she sees the large cardboard box in Jongin’s arms. 

Jongin carefully sets it down on the floor, a bright smile on his face as he brushes his hands together. ”Now, I know you’ve been asking for your present for a while,” he says and looks at Sehun, who sends him a warm smile. ”And since you’re officially a big girl, Sehun and I decided that this would be the perfect gift.”

With that being said, Jongin wastes no time in bending down and carefully unfolding the lid to the box. Even though Sehun has already seen the many, many videos sent by Jongin’s mother, he still can’t help but grin when the familiar tiny, white poodle peeks its head out from the top. It sniffs the air for a moment before it nearly knocks the box over trying to wriggle out.

Jungah is on the floor and eyeing the fluffy animal with stars in her eyes less than a fraction of a second later. She giggles when it her cheek, and despite the fact that this is most likely her very first pet, Sehun can’t help but admire her natural protective instincts when she scoops up the puppy and cradles it like a newborn baby.

”Is it really for me?” Jungah asks with glittering eyes.  

Jongin nods. ”He’s all yours,” he chuckles and gets on his knees until his face is six inches from the fluffy animal.

”What’re you going to name him?” Sehun asks from his spot on the bottom step. 

A contemplative look appears on Jungah’s face. ”Monggu!” she squees. As if on cue, Monggu looks up and her chin. ”One of my favorite TV characters is named Monggu, so I want him to be called that since he's just as cute as him!”

Jongin reaches out and tries to pet Monggu’s head, only to recoil when Monggu slobbers all over his hand and watch. ”You’ve been so good lately, and since you talked about wanting a new friend, I knew he’d be perfect for you," he says, discreetly wiping his palm on his jeans. 

One of Jungah’s pigtails tickles Monggu’s nose when she kisses his fuzzy forehead. ”I love him, he’s perfect,” she squees. She makes to keep a protective arm wrapped around Monggu’s tiny body when she stands up. ”He’s much cuter than my Rilakkumas, right?” 

”You're right about that,” Jongin chuckles before his voice turns serious. ”But you still need to take care of him, alright? I trust that you know that a pet is a huge responsibility.” He sends Jungah a wink. ”But I know you’ll take good care of him, so I shouldn't be too worried, right?”

Jungah frantically nods. She adjusts Monggu's baby blue collar, which sticks out like a sore thumb against his white fur. ”Can we take him for a walk?" she asks. "Where’s the rest of his stuff?”

Jongin scratches the back of his head. ”I had to let him stay at your grandmother’s house as to not spoil the surprise, so most of his toys and food are over there.” He sends Sehun a look. ”But Sehun promised to walk you over and drop Monggu off before you head off with Lisa.”

Jungah blinks. ”What do you mean?”

”I was thinking Monggu could stay with your grandmother until we get back from the zoo,” Jongin says, checking his watch. ”I have to pick up a few things at the office, it'll only take a minute or so, so I’ll join you guys later on if that’s-”

”Why can’t we bring him with us?” Jungah exclaims. She frantically looks at Sehun for support when Jongin blinks. ”I don’t want to leave him with Nana, I want him to meet Lisa and see all the animals!”

Jongin presses his lips together. The mere thought of a tiny, albeit possibly feisty and untrained dog running loose in an area packed with dangerous animals is enough to make him shiver. ”Are you sure?” he blurts out, even though he knows that he’s already lost when he sees the look on Sehun’s face. ”I mean, it could be…wouldn’t it be better if…”

”I don’t see why not,” Sehun says after walking over and scratching Monggu behind the ear. ”It could be good to let him socialize in the outside world early, don’t you think?” 

It’s not until Jungah goes on to send Jongin one of her trademark, doe eyed looks that Jongin finds himself nodding before he can stop himself. 

”His things are in a box in your grandmother’s hallway, his leash should be in there somewhere,” Jongin says. As if on cue, Monggu goes on to wag his stumpy tail with a loud yap. 

”Is Sehun also gonna take care of him?” Jungah asks.

Jongin bites the inside of his cheek. ”Of course he is,” he says. ”I mean, he was a present from the both of us-”

”Will Monggu have to live in two different places, then?” Jungah asks with a hint of resent in her voice. ”You know, like children with divorced parents,” she adds, cradling Monggu. ”Why can’t Sehun live with us? Then Monggu won’t have to travel so much, right?”

Jongin flushes when Sehun looks up and sends him a look. ”We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” he quickly says. 

Thankfully, his mother picks the perfect time to call and ask him when they're planning on heading over, and Jongin hears himself mutter a low excuse to Sehun and Jungah after he hangs up. He’s glad that he’s only supposed to collect a few papers, since spending the rest of his evening cooped up in his cubicle is the last thing on his mind right now, even if it means needing to control Monggu’s hectic self in the middle of a busy zoo. Despite that, Jongin quicklly kisses both Sehun and Jungah goodbye before flying out the front door.

10:00 A.M

Jongin is glad that it’s Saturday, since it saves him from awkward small talk as he makes his way to his cubicle. Sure enough, Jungah is already bombarding him with text messages telling him to hurry up since they’ve already got Monggu on his leash and are waiting for Lisa’s mother to stop by with her car. If Jongin knows anything, it's that he’s going to be receiving text after text from Jungah telling him all about how jealous Lisa is of her new puppy. 

As he slides into his seat, Jongin tries focusing on where he might have placed his papers instead of the excitement still surging through his veins, which hasn't left ever since he got in the car earlier with Monggu’s cardboard box sitting in the passenger’s seat. Jongin is still glad that his mother agreed to let Monggu stay with her for the night despite springing the idea on her at the last possible second. On top of that, Jongin is also glad that Jungah was too sleepy to question why he didn’t come with her and Sehun after leaving the latter’s house this morning.

To Jongin’s annoyance, he doesn’t locate his papers until he’s scavenged through each and every one of his drawers, which has him making a mental note to clean up his cubicle before the end of the week. After stuffing them in his briefcase, Jongin gets out of his seat, seconds before his phone buzzes with a text.

Since Jungah’s ancient cell phone is unable to record videos, Jongin isn’t surprised when he sees that Sehun has sent him a clip of Monggu looking out the window of Lisa’s mother’s car whilst sitting in Jungah’s lap. With the window rolled down a few inches, Jongin is worried that Monggu’s tiny self might blow away like a piece of paper, but he dismisses it when he sees that Jungah has got an iron grip on his leash. 

It’s not until Jongin remembers that Luhan left the leftover muffins from a few days ago in the break room cupboard that he steps back into the hallway, since he doesn’t think Sehun remembered to give Jungah any breakfast while they waited back at their apartment.

___

The first thing Jongin registers when he opens the break room door is not only that Chanyeol, Taeyeon and Siwon are chatting away at the table, but that they’re doing so in the wrong goddamn break room. Jongin vaguely recalls his boss mentioning something about Sales being handed a new project as of Wednesday, but that doesn’t stop the spark of annoyance that ignites in his chest when Taeyeon waves at him.

”What’re you doing here on this fine Saturday?” she hums, filing her nails. Judging by the bottles of nail varnish, nail files and earphones by her elbow, Jongin figures that their workload for the day isn’t exactly booming.

Jongin fights an impulse to not respond at all, since Jungah, Sehun and Lisa are probably already in the middle of trying to find a parking spot by now. Chanyeol looks up when Taeyeon finishes her question, making Jongin scramble for the cupboards so that he can bolt out of the room.

Thankfully, Jongin immediately locates the platter of leftover muffins, and he swipes one before carefully balling it up in a few tissues. ”I just had to…pick a few things up,” he mutters, placing it in his briefcase. 

For a second, Chanyeol opens his mouth to speak, only to close it again before resuming his conversation on Line. Next to him, Siwon adjusts his earbuds without sparing any of them a glance.

Taeyeon nods in understanding. ”Any plans?” she asks, seemingly far more interested in Jongin’s life instead of her own. ”How’s your little darling doing?”

Awkwardly leaning against the fridge, Jongin shrugs. ”She’s doing fine,” he says and tries to ignore the way Chanyeol shifts in his seat. ”It’s her birthday today, so her friend’s taking her to the zoo,” he blurts out, unable to stop himself from smiling.

”I love the zoo,” Taeyeon squeals. ”Tell her happy birthday for me, okay?” She uncaps one of her nail varnishes and promptly ignores Siwon and Chanyeol wrinkling their nose at the strong scent that soon fills the whole room. 

Jongin nods and he’s about to respond when Jungah texts him that they’re thankfully safe from standing in line for two hours since Lisa’s mother pre-ordered their tickets last week. Even though the local zoo is only a ten minute drive from the office, Jongin excuses himself before throwing the door open.

With his phone buzzing with excited texts from Jungah every two seconds, Jongin nearly stumbles over the threshold. However, he barely makes it three steps before the door opens again.

Chanyeol catches up with him in no time, and Jongin finds himself unable to move a muscle after he turns around. For a second, all Jongin can do is try to focus his gaze on anything but Chanyeol’s silver locks while they fall into silence. 

Jongin forces himself to speak when Chanyeol goes on to stare at him expectedly. ”What do you want?”

Chanyeol shrugs. ”I just wanted to…talk, I guess,” he says.

Adjusting his briefcase, Jongin fights the urge to pick up his phone when it buzzes for the hundredth time. ”About what?”

Chanyeol clears his throat. ”How old is she now?” he asks after a moment of silence. 

Jongin nearly looks away when a small smile tugs at Chanyeol’s lips. ”Trust you not to know,” he grumbles.

”Did you get her anything nice?” Chanyeol hums, leaning against the wall. His eyes are a shade of bright that Jongin doesn’t think he’s seen on him before.

”Why should I tell you that?” Jongin blurts out a little louder than necessary. He curses his introversion for making him unable to tell Chanyeol to just leave him alone, so he takes a step back in hopes that Chanyeol will take the hint.

Chanyeol nods. ”That sounds-”

”What do you want?” Jongin interrupts. ”You don’t need to do this, you don't need to do all this, just tell me what you want.”

Chanyeol opens his mouth to respond, only to close it again. ”I just wanted to say that I might’ve got the date wrong,” he says, at which Jongin blinks. ”Y’know, for the place.” He doesn’t give Jongin time to respond before he continues. ”So I was able to cancel in time without needing to pay a single penny.”

Jongin blinks again. ”That’s what you wanted to-”

”I wanted to say sorry,” Chanyeol interrupts. ”For…you know, getting so pissy the other day.” He scratches the back of his head. ”That was…I haven't been able to stop thinking about it ever since, to be honest.” 

With his phone ringing in his pocket, Jongin is torn between picking up and bolting out of the building. His jaw subsequently throbs, but he can’t bring himself to head for the elevators. All he manages is a meek nod that probably doesn't look all too convincing.

”In a sense, you sort of did me a favor,” Chanyeol says while fiddling with the tip of his tie. ”He was a real load to have around sometimes, believe me.” He shakes his head. ”Always complaining about everything and everyone, never satisfied with anything.” 

A part of Jongin wants to walk over and slap Chanyeol across the face a second time, since he really doesn’t want to hear Baekhyun being talked about in that way, even though he might agree to an embarrassing extent. 

”Where even is he?” Jongin blurts out. ”Baek, that is. I haven't seen him in a while, I think.”

Chanyeol gestures upstairs. ”Resigned a few days ago,” he says. ”I don't blame you for not knowing about it since he literally didn't tell anyone, but if you’d come in earlier today you would’ve seen him cleaning out his office.” 

Jongin blinks. ”That’s a shame,” he dumbly says.

Chanyeol shakes his head. ”Don’t mention it,” he mutters. ”I mean, don’t get me wrong, it and all, but it is what it is. He isn't picking up the phone or responding to my texts no matter how much I try contacting him about it, so it’s whatever.” He’s silent for a second. ”You know, I’ve been doing some…thinking lately.”

”About what?”

”This, everything,” Chanyeol says. ”I mean, you were always trying to, y’know, reach out and all, and it was just…really ty of me.” He scratches the back of his head.

Jongin bites the inside of his cheek. ”What are you-”

”I know you probably think I’m bullting,” Chanyeol interrupts, ”but there were times where I was, like, worried about you and stuff.” He furrows his eyebrows, voice dropping two octaves. ”Like, no lie, ever since they called me up from the hospital I was constantly worried you’d like, go to bed one night and never wake the up again.”

With his blood surging through his veins, it takes Jongin a minute to process what he’s hearing. He isn’t able to make any sense of Chanyeol’s words no matter how hard he tries, but he figures that it doesn’t matter. All he knows is that Chanyeol’s bleak attempt at trying to finagle himself back into his life is only making his urge to run outside skyrocket.

On the other side of the break room door, Taeyeon can be heard talking to a friend on the phone. Her loud cackling is the only thing preventing Jongin from screaming at the top of his lungs at this point.

”I’m serious, man,” Chanyeol says, nearly making Jongin jump ten feet in the air. ”Look, I know this sounds stupid and all, and I never knew how to tell you, but on those days you’d come in super late, I was actually damn worried about you, it was actually kind of embarrassing.”

Jongin is torn between laughing and crying as he shifts. ”You were?”

Chanyeol nods and for a second, Jongin swears that something flashes in his eyes. 

”I kept seeing you looking like that and…yeah, it was goddamn miserable, to say the least.” Chanyeol runs a hand through his hair. ”It , man.”

”But you knew,” Jongin blurts out. ”You knew how it was, you knew I needed you.” His spinning head is threatening to make him pass out.

”I know that,” Chanyeol huffs, eyebrows furrowed in exasperation. He seemingly refuses to acknowledge Siwon and Taeyeon sitting in the break room as he gestures everywhere. ”Look, despite what you think I might know and whatnot, I knew that. Damn it, I wanted to do something, I wanted to help.”

As much as Jongin wants to let the words fall from his lips, his raging pulse makes him unable to choke out a single one. ”Then why didn’t you,” he mutters, tightening his grip on his briefcase.

”I couldn’t,” Chanyeol quickly says. ”Look, I was just as freaked out as you were, okay? I had no goddamn idea what to do, and I couldn’t do anything with Baek there, it was all just…” He curses low in his throat. ”I didn’t know how.”

Jongin forces himself to breathe when he genuinely worries he might suffocate. He doesn’t realize that he’s been biting his lip to the point of drawing blood all along until he opens his mouth to speak. But the words still won’t come out.

”I mean, I figured you didn’t need me, anyway, since…y’know.” Chanyeol indiscreetly gestures at Jongin. ”I guess I didn’t want to get in the way after a while.”

Amid his spinning head, it takes Jongin a minute to realize that Chanyeol is referring to the darkening bruise on the right side of his neck. He’s thankful that he doesn’t have the energy to beat himself up over forgetting to bring a scarf, so he simply turns up his collar while hoping Chanyeol doesn’t comment on his reddening cheeks.

For once, Jongin wholeheartedly hopes that Chanyeol will speak up, since all he hears is the blood rushing in his ears after they fall into silence.

”Not to sound like a crusty, old grandma or anything,” Chanyeol mutters, ”but I know you’re smart enough to know that won’t be the same after this no matter what happens.” He tucks his tie back in when Jongin only nods. ”So let’s be adults for once in our damn lives, shall we?” 

Siwon emerges from the break room, but he is so busy watching a video on his phone that he hardly spares either of them a glance. His strong cologne lingers in the air for a solid minute until he disappears upstairs.

”Are you going to tell her?” Chanyeol asks with a look so piercing that Jongin's knees nearly give in.

Jongin swallows before he nods ever so slightly. ”She knows who you are, she’ll put two and two together one way or another,” he sighs. 

As if on cue, Jongin’s phone buzzes with a text. Jongin automatically fishes it out and tries not to grin when he views the photo Sehun sent him - of Jungah and Lisa wearing identical stuffed snakes around their necks in the gift shop. All it does is convince him that he should definitely get going, since they’ve probably spent a good half hour roaming the store while waiting for his arrival. And if Jongin knows anything, it’s that arriving late to a birthday celebration is pretty much on the same level of unacceptable as missing a phone call from your mother.

Jongin looks up to excuse himself, only to nearly choke on air when he sees the look on Chanyeol’s face. Jongin isn’t sure, but he’s pretty sure he hasn’t seen Chanyeol sport an expression that timid ever since their rookie days ten years ago. Jongin knows that if Jungah were here, she would rush right over and embrace Chanyeol in a bone crushing hug, and Jongin would be lying if he wasn’t feeling the same exact way.

”I gotta go, I'm late to--” Jongin cuts himself off. ”I mean, you’re allowed to…you know, talk to her and be with her at times if you want to,” he adds, only to blink when Chanyeol stills. 

It’s not until Chanyeol visibly pales to the point that Jongin contemplates fetching him a glass of water that he finally speaks. ”I…don’t think so,” he says before he clears his throat. ”Anyway, point is, ’s happened, and ’s still happening—” He points to himself for dramatic effect. ”And I know it sounds bloody impossible, but could we at least try to drop whatever this is?”

The sound of Siwon's video loudly playing fills the air until Jongin can bring himself to think again. Sehun’s photo must be getting to him, because Jongin can’t stop himself from nodding. It takes him way too long to realize that his phone is still ringing in his pocket, and he pulls it back out before he can explode under Chanyeol’s gaze.

For a second, all Jongin hears is a loud, childish commotion before Jungah’s voice comes through on the other end.

”Are you on your way yet?” Jungah asks in her usual chirpy tone. ”They said they technically don’t allow dogs and cats on the zoo premises, but they made an exception this time! It must be because Monggu’s so cute, right???”

Jongin nods, only to mentally slap himself when he realizes that Jungah can’t see him. ”I’ll be on my way in just a little bit,” he says, after which Jungah tells him all about the stuffed baby seal Sehun bought her as a second birthday gift.

After he makes sure to remind Jungah not to let Sehun buy her too many things, Jongin hangs up and turns to face Chanyeol again.

”I really need to get going,” Jongin says, buttoning his coat with his free hand. "Y'know, birthdays and stuff." 

Chanyeol says something about Jungah sounding just as adorable as she looks. ”Wouldn’t want to miss your zoo date,” he snickers and defends himself by saying that he’d rather be at the zoo than stuck in the office. ”But I’ll see you Monday, right?”

Jongin tries dismissing the warmth bubbling in his chest when he nods. ”Right,” he says before turning on his heel and making his way towards the elevators.

___

As usual, the elevator is stuck on the first floor, so Jongin opts to check his phone to save himself from looking awkward as he waits for it to arrive. He barely gets a chance to unlock his phone before it buzzes with a text.

Amid the ocean of recently received texts from Jungah and Sehun, Jongin is surprised to see a new message from his mother. At first, he wonders if she might be asking him to take her to the zoo to join them, only to break out in a grin when it shows up on the screen.

From: Mom

I forgot to send you these since I couldn't find the charger to my cell and your father misplaced the spare one, but I snapped these photos on Wednesday after I let her play with some of my makeup xxx She said she felt like a princess and wanted you to see them xx Congratulate her one more time for me!! xxx

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THE END.

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