Daehyun paused for a moment. He quickly shook his head. There’s a lot of people who have that name. His shoulders dropped in disappointment. He felt worse than before.

He reluctantly returned to the front where he saw the stranger talking to his father. Daehyun raised an eyebrow, observing the stranger. He looked about his age with soft snowy skin and silk black hair. His eyes were soft, and he wore a gentle uneasy smile on his lips.

“Thank you for everything.” Youngjae thanked Jaejoong. “Please. You thank me every day. It’s not a problem.” Jaejoong told him. “Look! It’s Mr. Scrooge!” Kihyun pointed to Daehyun, noticing him first.

Jaejoong turned around. His eyes slightly widened.

Youngjae looked at the 22-year-old but didn’t recognize him. “Kihyun, that’s not nice.” Youngjae told his nephew. “But hyung, it’s true~.” Kihyun insisted. “He has a motorcycle too!” He went on. He then looked at Daehyun. “Mr. Scrooge, can we see your motorcycle. My uncle likes motorcycles too.”

Daehyun paused at his words.

Youngjae panicked. “Kihyun, stop call him Mr. Scrooge. That’s not nice. You need to apologize.” He told the 4-year-old. “But he hates Christmas.” Kihyun refused.

Youngjae sighed and looked to Daehyun. “I’m sor-,” “Do you believe in vampires?” Daehyun suddenly blurted.

Youngjae looked at him in confusion. Jaejoong bit his bottom lip.

“Excuse me?”

“D-Do you believe in vampires? Did you think they were cool at one point? Did you…Did you ever share your gingerbread house with another gingerbread man? When…When was the last time you saw your best friend?” Daehyun bombarded him with questions, not caring if he looked like a madman.

Youngjae was beyond lost.

“Was the last time you saw your best friend late on a Christmas night? 11 years ago?” Daehyun asked desperately.

Youngjae’s heart stopped at his words. His eyes slowly widened as he registered what the stranger just said. His heart pounded in his chest.

He looked to Jaejoong. “I’m sorry .” Jaejoong whispered.

Daehyun furrowed his brow. He looked at Youngjae, then his father, then back to Youngjae. “Are you…” He didn’t need to finish his sentence when he saw tears form in the younger’s eyes.

Daehyun looked to his father. “did you…” Jaejoong nodded before he could finish. Daehyun stumbled back, the weight of betrayal fell heavy on him.

-

Youngjae had no idea how he ended up here and how things ended up like this, but he found himself sitting at the Jung’s dinner table. Tension loomed over them as they ate their meal, mostly coming from Daehyun and Jaejoong. Yunho and Jaehyun were the only ones that offered a friendly conversation, making Youngjae and Kihyun feel at home. But Youngjae was more tense than anything else.

When they arrived at the house and everyone found out who he was, he was greeted with an overwhelmingly warm welcome. Jaehyun had given him a tight hug. And Yunho gave him a welcoming smile, already knowing who he was.

“Wow little guy, you’re eating really fast.” Yunho laughed. “The food is soo soo good.” Kihyun muffled through his stuffed cheeks. Jaehyun smiled proudly at the compliment. “Don’t eat too fast or else you’ll end up swallowing air.” Jaejoong’s motherly instincts kicked in, temporarily forgetting about the tension. “You’ll end up getting a tummy ache. Remember?” Kihyun nodded. Youngjae fed him a glass of water, allowing him to swallow and eat easier.

Daehyun watched Youngjae in disbelief, as if he were seeing a mythical creature for the first time. He couldn’t believe that he was there at his house in front of him. He had grown so much. He had so many questions to ask him. But there was one that bore his mind. Why had he hid from him?

“Ii guess we should get going now.” Daehyun’s world shattered at Youngjae’s words. He had no idea how much time passed since he’d been staring. But when he looked around, he saw that everyone’s plate was empty. Daehyun panicked. He didn’t want him to leave. He didn’t even get to speak to him.

“Already?” Jaehyun questioned.

Youngjae nodded. “Thank you for the meal. Your cooking has really improved.” Youngjae smiled to the younger. “Thanks.” Jaehyun’s proud smile returned.

“Why don’t you stay? It’s late and cold.” Yunho offered. “Yeah! I’ll get the guest room ready.” Jaehyun jumped from his seat and hurried to prepare their spare room. “It’s okay. Thank you though.” Youngjae turned down.

“Awe, come on. Look, Kihyun’s already a sleep.” Yunho pointed to the 4-year-old who was fast asleep on Jaejoong’s lap. Jaejoong was busy cleaning off his face. He had fallen asleep right after eating and his face fell right into his plate. “You don’t want to wake him, do you?” Yunho winked.

Youngjae sighed, “Okay. We’ll stay the night.” He gave in. Daehyun perked up, “I have spare pajamas you can use.” He jumped out his seat, catching the younger by surprise. “Eh. I’ll go get them. I think you and Jaejoong should clean the kitchen.” Yunho smiled. Daehyun was about to argue, when he made eye contact with his father. He sighed in defeat, falling back into his chair. “Come on Youngjae. Let me show you to the guest room.” Yunho offered. Youngjae carefully took his nephew from Jaejoong and followed Yunho out the kitchen.

The atmosphere fell heavy on Jaejoong and Daehyun. “I’ll wash the dishes.” Daehyun stood back up, not looking at his father as he collected the dinnerware. “Daehyun wait.” Jaejoong tried to stop him, but he ignored him.

Jaejoong followed after him. “Dae, listen. Let me explain.”

“Explain what? Explain why you hid him from me? Was that why you were so persistent that I leave? Because you didn’t want me to see him?” Daehyun could hardly believe the words that came out from his mouth. It hurt him even more, saying it out loud. “Daehyun, it’s not like that.” Jaejoong tried. “If it’s not like that? Then how is it? How long have you known he was here?”

Jaejoong opened his mouth but paused. He knew his answer would only anger him more. However, his silence was enough to give Daehyun a good idea. Daehyun huffed in disbelief and stormed out the kitchen without saying another word, leaving his father to clean alone.

“That went well, didn’t it?” Yunho said as he and Jaejoong climbed into bed. Jaejoong didn’t say anything. He laid on his side, his back turned to the younger. “I got him to stay tonight. But it’s gonna be tricky getting him to stay another day.” Yunho thought to himself. “Maybe we can get him to stay for Christmas if he doesn’t have any plans.” He offered his idea. But Jaejoong didn’t respond to anything his husband said.

Yunho cocked an eyebrow, noticing his silence. “Jae, are you okay?” He sat up. A sigh escaped Jaejoong’s lips. “Daehyun is mad at me.”

Yunho shrugged, “That’s kind of expected.”

Jaejoong turned to look at him. “Yunho. I feel terrible. You should’ve seen how hurt he looked when he realized it was Youngjae. And Youngjae…” Jaejoong paused, remembering how broken the 21-year-old looked. “It wasn’t supposed to happen th