Like every other story, this one starts with rain. Not a downpour, not a drizzle either. It’s the kind of rain directors in dramas produce for a dramatic moment, enough to make the characters wet, but not too much to make it impossible to act. He’s not an actor, he’s not acting, and he’s definitely not being filmed by anyone. He’s simply a regular worker, getting soaked to the bone. Seemingly most of the people walking on the street had apparently read the weather forecast before leaving home, for most have their umbrellas open, successfully sheltering themselves from the rain.

Anyway, it rains, and Junmyeon it’s not one to walk around with an umbrella, so he does his best to shelter himself from it. His coat is past the point of drenched, at this point just contributing to make him wetter.

It’s not really his fault; normally Junmyeon is more than prepared for sudden – or not – weather changes. The thing is, his car broke down just a couple of days ago and he’s been using the subway for the past days, something he hasn’t done since his student days. He’s accustomed with making his own schedule, often staying past work hours. A coworker had to warn him to hurry if he wanted to get the last train, and despite all the running he did, Junmyeon wasn’t quite as lucky as to arrive on time for it.

Talking about luck, he feels like Someone Above – in italic, to give emphasis – is out for him in the past days, and he doesn’t remember doing anything wrong in… Damn, never really. His mother had raised a wonderfully polite child who grew into a charming gentleman. Junmyeon had always done his best to follow the rules and given his all in everything he put his mind in doing. He graduated as first in class and was the favorite TA before becoming a full-fledged professor.

Ok, so maybe he’s being a little dramatic here. It’s not like someone died, at least, not that he knows of.

Geez he should relax, breathe in, breathe out, shouldn’t he?

He sighs as he finally finds a shelter at the front porch of what seems to be a natural products store. It’s late, and the employees are closing down the place, so he doesn’t bother entering it, not wanting to make them work more. Instead he takes a deep breath and picks his phone, calling an Uber, since every taxi that passed by him either had a passenger or decided to ignore his honestly not-great appearance. It’s not like gel can survive this much water.

The app says his driver will take twenty five minutes with the current traffic, and Junmyeon consoles himself with the fact that he's not getting wetter by the suddenly-turning-into-a-downpour rain in front of him, leaning back on the store’s wall. Some people don’t share his patience, passing by him in a hurry, business men using their briefcases in an attempt to cover their heads, some girls squealing and cursing their high-heels. The traffic jam in front of him moves slowly, the dark tinted car windows reflecting a distorted image of his body. If he were the poetic type, he’d go on how the street lights cast a melancholy shade as the world continues to go on without a care for the other and… He’s not poetic.

A couple minutes tick by, the rain continuing to fall down, growing steadily heavier; he’s starting to get cold, his coat soaked through like his shoes and socks. He’s thankful for leaving his most important papers back at his office, now carrying a small briefcase with his tablet, keys and some document copies he still has to look over the moment he gets home.

Suddenly a small shadow passes by him to go into the store, a soft clinking of a bell announcing its presence. He turns to fully see who could be at this time, mentally admonishing this person with no sense of education.

Instead, he’s met with another figure, even smaller than the first one.

It’s a child, he notes with no small amount of astonishment. Better yet, it’s a child carrying another child, both soaked to the bone.

Junmyeon searches for a possible parent, eyeing the store in search for the shadow that just entered.

His heart lurches on his ribcage when all he sees is another child, dripping wet, offering what looks like a bunch of coins to an annoyed-looking employee. There’s no sign of anyone accompanying them; the child inside the store is about seven or eight years old, while the other two by his side don’t appear older than five and two. The youngest squirms in the other’s arms before starting to cry. Junmyeon still can’t see these children’s parents anywhere.

It’s not your business; you don’t have anything to do with it. Do not meddle, Junmyeon, do not…

“Hello darling, where are your parents?”

The boy carrying the toddler startles so bad he almost slips on the wet floor, Junmyeon kneeling and holding him straight at the last second. Wide, dark, damp eyes stare at him, fear evident. The kid’s arms wrap even more tightly around the toddler he holds, in an attempt to protect them from Junmyeon. The toddler cries harder, grabbing the boy’s shoulders and pushing their face into his neck. The boy looks at Junmyeon, then at the shop’s window and then at the toddler he carries, before turning back to Junmyeon.

This child trembles even though he stands his ground; Junmyeon can’t help but think what he could have possibly gone through to be so guarded at such a young age. His heart hurts at the thought, so he focuses at the present moment.

“Hey, hey, I’m not going to hurt any of you.”

“Soo says to not talk with strangers.”

The child’s voice is soft, a bit hoarse with lack of use.

Junmyeon does his best to smile reassuringly, sticking out one hand. “I’m Kim Junmyeon.”

The child shyly looks at him, “Jongin,” he whispers, not taking Junmyeon’s hand, “This is Sehunnie.”

“See? We’re not strangers anymore,” Junmyeon says, sneakily checking his phone. Damn it, his Uber is just turning the street’s corner, less than five minutes away. He needs to decide what he’s going to do, and he needs to decide it now.

It’s not like he can ignore three children who are apparently by themselves, in the rain and at night. He can’t force them to go with him either; what if they do have parents, who are in a desperate search for them in this downpour? And if they’re really alone, shouldn’t he call the police? They would certainly know what to do with the children; it’s not like he has to take them with him Even if he did, what would he do with three children? He has a nephew, yes, and sometimes his students act like toddlers, but otherwise, he has no experience dealing with children. He’s also sure that if he does take them with him, he’ll be committing some sort of crime. Yes, calling the police is the right thing to do.

“Who are you and what do you want?!”

He startles out of his thoughts as the third kid, the oldest one, leaves the store, panting almost manically. He carries a plastic bag with something inside, and is just as wet as the other two.

Jongin scurries to his side, and the other boy pulls him to stand behind him, shielding him and the toddler from view. “We don’t want any of your stuff, old creep!”

The boy’s words on a normal day would annoy the hell out of Junmyeon, not only for his lack of education when speaking with an older person, but for also calling him a creep; that was not a normal day and so Junmyeon decides to let it go.

“He’s Junm-… Junmy- he’s ahjussi-Myeong,” Jongin stutters in saying his name, cutely chopping it to fit in his mouth, “He didn’t offer weird things!”

Dark, large eyes seep into his, a far too mature look taking over a childish face as the oldest of the three children turns back to Junmyeon, trying to size his intentions. It would be comic in any other situation, to see a child attempting to act like an adult, but right now, it is simply sad, for there’s no reason for this to be a mere act of defiance; this kid is truly trying to intimidate Junmyeon to protect his younger siblings.

He sits on his heels in front of the boys, putting himself on their size. “It’s Soo, right? I was just asking Jongin-ah where your parents are.”

“It’s Kyungsoo,” Kyungsoo frowns, looking at him, then at his siblings, then back at him before saying, “Father left us.”

“How about your mom?” Junmyeon asks, fearing for the answer. Behind Kyungsoo, Jongin lips start to tremble, and he sniffles loudly.

“We don’t have one,” Kyungsoo answers.

As if in cue, a car parks in front of them; an older man opens his window slightly, “Are you Kim Junmyeon-ssi?”

“Yes!” Junmyeon says, rising to his feet. He looks at the pitiful children in front of him, and his heart makes the decision for him before his head can start overthinking it. “Do you want to come with me? It’s very late, and it’s no good for you kids to stay in the rain,” he sees how Kyungsoo opens his mouth to clearly deny his offer, so he attempts to appeal to his protective, brotherly side, “it’s dangerous for Jongin-ah and Sehunnie to stay outside. They can get very sick.”

The older boy widens his eyes, as if the idea is only now passing through his head. Behind him, Jongin nods frantically, further unsettling Sehun, who never stopped crying. Junmyeon makes a gesture for the Uber driver to wait a little longer when someone honks at him; the older man seems to understand that he’s at least dealing with difficult children – he must think they’re Junmyeon’s, oh my god, he’s not old enough to be a father of three – and smiles at him.

“Please hyung, let’s go,” Jongin bumps Soo with his head, since both his hands are busy holding Sehun. “I’m hungry.”

Junmyeon’s mind goes instantly to his pantry in an attempt to recall if he even has anything edible for these children to eat. He can make instant noodles on a good day, he’s an absolute disaster on his worst, and he’s pretty certain children can’t take any of the protein shakes he has at home. The strawberry milk might be spoiled, but maybe he still has soy milk and apple juice somewhere.

This really should be read as a warning as to why he totally does not know what he’s doing, yet he continues to look at the three children in what he hopes is comfortingly. Every second that ticks by feels like one eternity after the other.

“You promise you’ll take care of us?”

He doesn’t know if it’s the rain, his head or if it’s real the way Kyungsoo’s eyes shine with unshed tears. For the first time in the minutes he’s known him he acts his age, his insecurity and innocence peeking through the hard façade of maturity. Once again Junmyeon’s heart is ready to collapse with the sudden flood of emotions; someone bad could take these kids, do horrible things to them, and a fierce protectiveness rises in him. He wants to give his best to protect them, as temporarily as it’ll be.

“Pinky promise,” Junmyeon offers his pinky to Kyungsoo, who eyes the finger offered to him with slight mistrust before tangling his own pinky with Junmyeon’s.

Smiling wide, Junmyeon ushers the children to enter the Uber, apologizing profusely to the driver for making him wait and for wetting the car. The older man shrugs his apologies, saying it was fine, that the rain wasn’t supposed to last so long.

Junmyeon helps Kyungsoo in putting the seatbelt on himself and Jongin, taking the toddler Sehun from the middle child’s arms; at this point, Sehun cries softly, whole face red and puffy from effort. He’s wrapped on an old blanket that at this point is more harmful than good given how wet it is, so Junmyeon takes it off him, asking the old man to turn up the heat to its maximum.

Kyungsoo takes two juice boxes from the plastic bag he carries, giving one to Jongin and another to Sehun; both boys immediately drink them dry. He has nothing for himself.

Forty minutes later they arrive at the front of his apartment complex. He pays the kind Uber driver almost double for the entering the car soaked to the bones and makes sure to give him a five star evaluation on the app. He guides the children towards the entrance, thanking Li the doorman when he opens the door for them and holds the elevator open for them to enter.

He’s not rich, per say, but he can’t deny that he has lived a comfortable life from start; both his parents are much respected professors themselves, and he’s not one to spend carelessly or splurge. Truth is he has no reason to spend beyond his basic needs. With a life without a significant other – man or woman, he never cared for gender – no children and no pets – he had a puppy, but spent so long gone from the house the poor baby became so lonely that in the end he gave it to his older brother, whose first baby had just been born – he was by himself, reading or working out. Every other hour of his day was dedicated to his class and students.

The elevator stops by the 12^th floor and Junmyeon guides the boys down the hallway to apartment 1204.

Home.

He doesn’t need to tell the boys to take off their shoes, for they do it immediately.

They stand in front of him, in the middle of his living room, and Junmyeon has no idea of what he should do. Should he feed them first? Should he prepare a bath?

“… Ahjussi..?” Kyungsoo call in a shy voice, completely different from before. He even has two bright pink spots of color in his cheeks, in embarrassment. “We’re wetting the floor…”

Like a , Junmyeon looks down and the boy sure is right: the place where the four of them stand is only getting wetter, a growing puddle on his living room. “Oh my god, you’re right! Come with me, I’ll prepare a bath for you boys to warm yourselves.”

His bathroom, thank the gods, is one of the largest rooms in his apartment, complete with a large tub and separate shower.

With practiced ease, Junmyeon starts to run the bath, adjusting the temperature so it isn’t too hot for them; he even puts his favorite vanilla-scented soap. Soon the sweet, soothing smell fills the room, and Junmyeon smiles, turning on his heels to pick towels for all the boys. Then, he stops.

“Do you boys need help?”

Kyungsoo puffs his chubby cheeks, “I can bathe by myself.”

“Me too, me too!” Jongin exclaims, already without his pants and soaked shirts tangled on his head.

“Too!” it’s the first word Sehun speaks. He’s copying Jongin, doing his best to take off the clothes that stick to his little body.

“No Sehunnie, you don’t!” Kyungsoo goes to him, helping him take his shirt off and undoing the zipper for his pants. The youngest huffs and crosses his chubby arms, even though he trembles with cold. Junmyeon stands still, observing as Kyungsoo moves automatically, like someone who does this every day. He’s so painfully young and yet so mature, Junmyeon cannot even begin to think what he – they – must have been through to act this way. He feels lost within their dynamic, an outsider in a deep fraternal bond; memories of his own childhood with his brother cross his mind, their days playing and fighting and making up, but they never shared this deep, deep bond. They love each other, that is certain, not like this.

He hides his discomfort as best as he can, “Kyungsoo-ah seems to have everything under control, right? I’ll leave the towels here and I’ll start to make dinner.”

Kyungsoo stops to bow deeply at him, pushing Jongin’s head just as low as his, ignoring his protests. “Thank you, ahjussi.”

Junmyeon shoots one last smile at them, walking out of the bathroom and leaving the door open, so he can monitor the kids. He careens to his room to change clothes and then the kitchen, throwing every cabinet door open in search for food. He thanks Buddha when he finds a few boxes of instant ramen and mac n’ cheese from his cheat days. He leans against the countertop, sighing.

“What the am I doing?”

.

.

First chapter. Is there someone out there?

I've never wrote children before, and despite being a glorified babysitter for my cousins, they're all grown up and I lost my touch with how they act. 

So, I'm trying. This is also a way of writing without much compromise. I just wanted to write fluff.

Forgive my mistakes, hope you all like, I wish you all Happy Holidays and all you may want next year!