"I want to start a family with Kyuhyun-ssi. Plus, it would be cute to hear Donghae-ah call him daddy~"

 

 

Jongwoon sighed at a small piece of paper in front of him. Putting your wish in a sock and hanging it above a fireplace will make your wish come true, huh? He wasn't a kid so he wouldn't believe it. Nevertheless, some small part of him still stupidly believed in it…

 

 

"Appa! I'm done writing my Christmas wish!"

 

 

He smiled and turned around in his swivel chair to greet his son. A small boy aged no more than ten beamed brightly and jumped up on his lap. The boy excitedly showed a paper in his hands to his father.

 

"I want to stay a night at Hyukjae-ah's house? Hae-ah, you can just tell me! You should use your wish for something else."

Donghae pouted, "but that's what I want the most…"

"Really? Are you sure that you don't need anything else?"

"Hmmm…."

 

Jongwoon patted the boy's head in fondness. Donghae looked so serious trying to think of what he wanted! He was just too cute! He hugged his son tightly and kissed the boy's cheek. Donghae giggled and kissed his father's cheek back, causing the older man to smile even more happily. He was about to ruffle Donghae's hair but an incoming call interrupted him. Seeing the caller's name made him blush madly. He gently picked Donghae up from his lap and let the boy sit on his chair, while he got out into a front yard to answer the call.

 

 

"H-Hello…?"

"Jongwoon-ssi, it's me, your son's homeroom teacher."

"Yes, I know it's you, Kyuhyun-ssi. So…?"

"This is a mandatory call to remind all guardians that I'll go collect the wish paper today and that the Christmas party will take place this Sunday."

"Understood. So… Is that all?"

 

There was a pause.

 

"Why?" The voice at the other end of the line suddenly turned teasing. "Were you hoping for something more?"

"What!!? No! I was just curious!"

"Really? Jongwoon-ssi, I'll give you another chance to answer. Were you hoping for something more?"

 

 

Yes, go out with me.

 

 

...Was what Jongwoon thought but he didn't say it out loud.

 

 

"No… If you're calling just to mess around with me then please hang up."

"I called you because I miss you though?"

 

Jongwoon immediately pressed the "end call" button. He wouldn't let that man mess with his heart more than it already happened. Cho Kyuhyun, that's the name of his son's homeroom teacher and also the man whom he had been in love with one-sidedly for almost two years…

.

.

.

"A new teacher?"

"Yep! Hani noona who is my math teacher said she has to leave to… to… to make a baby?"

"No, Hae-ah, it's giving birth to a baby."

"Oh, yeah it was something like that! Anyway, Uncle Shindong took a new math teacher to our class today, said he'll be our new homeroom teacher!"

"I see. I have to go greet him then."

"Why go greet him?"

"To ask him to take great care of my cute son, of course!"

 

 

At first, that really was his only reason to meet the new teacher, Cho Kyuhyun-ssi.

.

.

.

.

"Appa?"

 

 

Jongwoon snapped out of his memory as his son's calling. Smiling at the approaching boy, he scooped the boy up into his arms and asked why the boy followed him into a garden.

 

Donghae beamed, "I already wrote a new wish!"

"Really? What did you write?"

"I won't tell you!"

"Ehhh~ Hae-ah, won't you tell me?"

"Nope! Cuz it might not come true if I told you!"

 

With that said, Donghae thinned his lips tightly and covered it with his hands for a good measure. The boy's action made Jongwoon cooed from adoration. He happily ruffled the boy's soft hair while trying to coax him to spill his secret.

 

 

Snap!

 

 

Jongwoon slightly jumped after hearing a shutter sound. Turning around, his heart skipped a beat when he saw a handsome man standing at the fence. The newly arrived brown-haired man smiled and winked at Jongwoon, and he hated how his heart immediately went ba-dump. Upon seeing the older man, Donghae's face lightened up like a Christmas light. The boy cheerfully at the brown-haired man while Jongwoon stepped toward the fence.

 

"Donghae-ah, Jongwoon-ssi, good evening!"

"Teacher Kyu!!! Helloooo!"

 

"Teacher Kyu" chuckled and patted the boy's head fondly. Then, he turned to the father and smirked.

 

"Jongwoon-ssi, where is my good evening?"

"Please get to the point, Kyuhyun-ssi."

 

Jongwoon didn't bother to return the pleasantry. Kyuhyun sighed but didn't linger on it. He showed a red Christmas sock to the family.

 

"I came here to collect the wish paper. Have your son written it?"

"Already did!"

 

Donghae answered in place of his father. The young boy took out a folded paper from his pants pocket and dropped it in the sock.

 

"Teacher Kyu, you must must must make my wish come true no matter what! That's our promise!"

"Although I don't know what you wrote in there but I promise I'll make it come true."

 

The teacher extended his pinky finger and hooked it with the boy's smaller one. Slightly shaking their hooked fingers, Donghae pressed his thumb with the older man's thumb.

 

"Teacher, you promised! I won't like you anymore if you break our promise!"

"Oh my, then I have to do my best then!"

 

Kyuhyun made a firm promise with his student. That was when he noticed that the boy's father was staring at him. With an evil smirk, he decided to tease the black-haired man a bit.

 

"Jongwoon-ssi, is there something on my face? You've been staring at me for a while now."

"W-What!!?" Jongwoon blushed, "no! You were just imagining it!"

"I see, but there is something on your face though."

 

Freeing his hand from Donghae's hand, Kyuhyun gently brushed the back of his fingers along the shorter man's jaw line.

 

"Your beautiful smile is on your face, Jongwoon-ssi."

 

Kyuhyun burst out laughing when Jongwoon turned tomato red and ran away back into the house.

 

******************************

 

"That jer—"

 

Jongwoon stopped himself once he recalled that Donghae was still with him.

 

"That j-joker of a teacher! He teases me again!

 

He let out a children-friendly-version curse while depositing the boy in the living room to watch his favorite movie— Finding Nemo. As for himself, he went back to his office and continued working on his designs. His cheeks flushed brightly when he suddenly recalled a feathery touch at his jaw. Slumping down on a chair, Jongwoon groaned while ruffling his hair in frustration. That jerk teacher flirted with him again! Even though he already had a wife and kids!

.

.

.

.

It was a love at first sight.

 

 

"Hello, I'm Cho Kyuhyun. I'll be your son's homeroom teacher starting today."

 

 

It was the man's handsome face and shining smile that made him breathless.

 

 

"H-Hello, I'm Kim Jongwoon, Donghae's father."

 

 

It was the first time in his life that he felt this strongly attracted to someone.

 

 

"We'll meet each other quite often in the future so I hope that we got along well."

"Y-Yeah, I agree, I hope so—"

 

 

He saw a silver ring flashing under a neon light on the teacher's left ring finger.

.

.

.

At first, he didn't put much thought into it. Well, there are people who wear a ring on their left ring fingers even though they're single, right? For an aesthetic, maybe? He wouldn't give up just because his future husband wore a ring!

 

 

Jongwoon cheered himself up while making up his mind to pursue his son's teacher.

.

.

.

In the end, he eventually gave up, not because of the ring, but because of a beautiful woman and cute twins.

 

 

It was a coincidence. He was on his way back from groceries shopping. While stopping at a restaurant to buy dinner, he saw the new teacher sitting at a table with a beautiful woman and cute twins. The kids looked exactly like a replica of their parents, with Kyuhyun's eyes and the woman's face. The four of them made a perfect family photo that Jongwoon's heart ached so much. So, the first person whom he ever liked was a married man? Simply wonderful.

 

 

Jongwoon bit his lips hard and immediately left the shop after he got his takeout order. He felt like hearing his name being called but he ignored it. He also ignored how his vision was blurry to the point that he walked into a pillar.

.

.

.

.

"He kept flirting with me for the past two years even though he is already married and has kids! He's so ing shameless!"

 

 

He complained while throwing useless paper scattering on the desk into a bin. His own statement made him feel guilty. Shameless? The real shameless one was actually him. Even though he knew that Kyuhyun was cheating on his wife by flirting with him, he never outright turned the man down. True, he never returned the flirts, but not completely cutting ties with Kyuhyun wasn't different from accepting the gestures. He hated himself but at the end of the day, he was still an ordinary human with a selfish desire…

 

"Huu? Where did my wish paper go?"

 

Jongwoon frowned once he realized that the paper he wrote down a stupid wish was gone. He checked around the desk but couldn't find it. Maybe he already threw it in the bin? Whatever. He shrugged and went back to work. He had to finish this before dinner. He still had to call Teuk hyung and asked if Donghae could stay a night at their house.

 

************************************

 

December 25

 

 

"Appa! Hurry up! I want Teacher Kyu to make my wish come true as soon as possible!"

"Slow down Hae-ah. You're going to trip on your foot."

 

 

Jongwoon chased after his son along the hallway. The boy obediently stopped running. Donghae jumped up and down excitedly while telling his father to walk faster. He quickened his steps to catch up with the boy while looking around. The hallway was full of colorful Christmas decorations. His son's school held a party every Christmas. Each room was changed into food vendors and game vendors operated by the homeroom teacher. This year, his son's class held a game called "We're Santa" by Kyuhyun's idea. In this game, each kid came up with their Christmas wish and wrote it down in a paper. Then, everyone would discuss how to make the wish come true. Whose idea got the most vote got a Christmas gift from the homeroom teacher. Parents weren't allowed to talk so it was all up to the children's ideas.

 

He followed Donghae into the classroom and politely greeted the other parents. The adults, including Jongwoon, settled down at the seats at the back of the classroom while the children sat on the floor. Soon, Kyuhyun who was wearing a Santa Claus costume walked into the room and happily greeted everyone. The event then started. Jongwoon smiled at the excited children who kept shouting ideas after ideas. He couldn't wait to see what his son wrote down.

 

 

Maybe he might understand why Donghae kept grinning and giving him a thumb up ever since the event started.

 

************************************

 

For some reason, his son's turn never came. One kid after another took a turn telling their wishes to the class but not Donghae. Eventually, Kyuhyun announced that the event had ended even though Donghae had yet to tell his wish. Hyukjae-ah who was his son's closest friend quickly told their teacher about it, but Kyuhyun only smiled mysteriously. He informed them that Donghae wished for everyone's happiness so there was nothing to discuss. While that sounded like something his son would ask, Jongwoon had a feeling that it wasn't what his son wrote in the paper. He waited until all parents and children left the room (and told Teuk hyung that they would drop off at his place after the party) to approach the homeroom teacher. As for Donghae, he knew that the adults had to talk so he wisely sat aside and opened the gift from his teacher quietly.

 

 

"Kyuhyun-ssi, that wasn't what my son wrote in the paper, right?"

 

The Santa Claus teacher smiled at him and nodded with a carefree shrug.

 

"That's correct. I lied because Donghae-ah asked me to keep it a secret. Most importantly, I'm the only one who can make his wish come true so I see no point telling other people about it."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean something like this."

 

Kyuhyun suddenly took Jongwoon's hands and intertwined their fingers.

 

"Kim Jongwoon, ever since the first time I met you two years ago, my heart only listened to you. When I'm alone and when I'm with people, when I'm wide awake and when I'm asleep, when I'm happy and when I'm sad, your beautiful smile is the only thing I can see in my head. In this entire world, I only want one thing and it's you. Jongwoon, you sacrifice your life in order to take care of Donghae-ah even though you aren't blood related. Let me help you. I want to make you happy and be a part of your lovely family, so,"

 

Kyuhyun tightened his hold on the shorter man's hands.

 

"I love you. Will you go out with me?"

.

.

.

.

Jongwoon blinked so many times that his eyelids felt like getting a cramp soon. What did Kyuhyun just say to him again? Did Kyuhyun… just say that he loved me? His chest immediately felt warm from happiness. However, the cruel reality soon splash cold water against his face. Wait, Kyuhyun already had a wife and kids. Wasn't that an affair? No, no matter how much he liked Kyuhyun, he wouldn't stoop that low!

 

"You! How dare you say that so casually!!? Don't you have even the tiniest bit of morals in your heart!!? Shameless!!!"

 

Kyuhyun made a face like a puppy being scolded.

 

"Is it that wrong of me to love you? I mean, I know many people are still against homoual but I don't care about it. I just love you and want to have a cute family with you!"

"You—you didn't even realize what you did wrong!!? What would your wife and kids think if they knew that you're cheating on them with me!!?"

 

At first, the handsome teacher looked genuinely confused. He just stood there blinking cluelessly. However, his warm brown eyes soon shone with mirth and the corners of his lips were pulled up.

 

"Jongwoon, by any chance, is this my wife and kids that you talked about?"

 

Chuckling in disbelief, Kyuhyun showed a picture of a beautiful woman and twin children in his phone to the black-haired man. Jongwoon, despite his heartache, nodded resolutely while glaring at the taller man. The daggers glare only served to make Kyuhyun laugh louder. Then, he called someone and speaker mode with an entertained smile.

 

"Kyuhyun-ah? Is something wrong?"

"Hello noona. I want to introduce my future husband to you. Why don't you chat with him a bit?"

"Really!!? Hello dear future brother-in-law! I'm Ahra, Kyuhyun's older sister. Nice to meet you!"

 

Jongwoon was too stunned to reply. What? Did she just say that she was Kyuhyun's sister? But then…

 

"B-But the twins?" Jongwoon stammered.

"Oh, so Kyuhyun-ah already told you about my twin children? Aren't they the cutest little angel?"

"Yes, they're the cutest." Kyuhyun said firmly. "Anyway, noona, let's end the call for now. I think my future husband isn't in the state to greet you properly."

"Eh? But I didn't get to know him yet!"

"Later, noona, I promise I'll tell you everything. Bye and say hello to the twins for me."

 

Kyuhyun ended the call while laughing uncontrollably at Jongwoon's cherry red cheeks. Donghae looked up at the two adults for a brief moment before resuming whatever he was doing. As for Jongwoon, he was so embarrassed that he wanted to bite his tongue and just died.

 

"Don't laugh at me! If you aren't married then why did you have to wear a ring!!?"

"This?" Kyuhyun showed his left hand to the black-haired man. "I wear it to chase away annoying parents who won't stop flirting with me even though they already have a family. Didn't know that it'll chase you away too. My bad, I guess?"

 

Jongwoon's anger deflated like a bursting balloon. Everything was too ridiculous that he couldn't bring himself to get angry. He wasted two years beating himself over and over because he thought that he had a crush on a married man. Turned out Kyuhyun was single the whole freaking time!!? He lost his strength and slumped down on the floor on his knees. He covered his face in his hands and groaned in embarrassment. Great. Now what?

 

"Soooo," Kyuhyun kneeled down beside the black-haired man, "you've been pushing me away all this time because you thought that I already have a family? Really?"

"Yes, I know I'm an idiot. Blame me as much as you want. I'll even help you with it."

"Hmm… How about we cut to the chase and just go out on a date? Is tomorrow good with you?"

 

Jongwoon looked up from his palms at the handsome teacher. Blush crept up on his cheeks at the sight of Kyuhyun's teasing smile and shining eyes. Despite his abnormal heartbeat, he quickly nodded at the brown-haired man's question. He would be the stupidest man on earth if he didn't seize the chance! Kyuhyun beamed brighter than Christmas lights and pulled the black-haired man into his arms.

 

"That's awesome! Now there's only one thing left to do!"

"What is it?"

 

Pulling out of the hug, Kyuhyun smirked at his (now) boyfriend and gestured up. Jongwoon followed the teacher's gaze and glanced up. His dark eyes widened after seeing a mistletoe wreath hanging above their heads. Wait, since when did there was a mistletoe here—

 

His sentence was cut short by a pair of soft and warm lips. The uninvited kiss stole his rationality and made him unable to think straight. His whole being only focused on the moving lips that tasted his own lips with great enthusiasm. The sensation awoke a beast he kept hidden and Jongwoon impatiently returned the kiss. The couple was busy and nibbling their partners' lips and only broke apart when something fell on Kyuhyun's head— the mistletoe wreath.

 

"What—"

"Daddy! I'm sorry! I tried to hold it longer but my arms got a cramp!"

 

Just before Jongwoon got to say anything, a young boy's voice cut in followed by the boy himself who threw himself in Kyuhyun's arms and sobbed loudly. A plastic rod with a mistletoe wreath tied at the end of a white thread was lying forgotten behind the boy. Kyuhyun quickly soothed the crying boy and patted his head kindly. His son's tears averted his attention away for a second and he, too, quickly moved in to comfort Donghae. However, as soon as the boy's sob was lessened to a snivel, his brain immediately noticed something strange in his son's words.

 

"Wait, Donghae-ah, what did you just call Kyuhyun?"

 

Donghae sniffled and stared at his father with red eyes.

 

"Daddy?"

"What!!? Wait, wait, wait, daddy? Really? But—"

"Isn't that what you want? I do my best to fulfill your wish."

"How did you know—"

 

Jongwoon suddenly recalled the disappearing wish paper.

 

"Donghae-ah? You took my wish paper?"

"Yes… Appa, I'm sorry for taking your thing and lying to you… I just want you to be happy…"

 

Donghae shifted nervously in Kyuhyun's arms and looked at his father with sad puppy eyes. Obviously, Jongwoon would never get angry at his son. He smiled kindly while ruffling his son's head.

 

"It's okay. I'm not angry at you. Actually…"

 

Jongwoon coughed awkwardly while avoiding Kyuhyun's eyes.

 

"Actually, I have to thank you. Without you, we wouldn't have, well, ended up like this."

"That's right." Kyuhyun added. "Without Donghae-ah, I probably still think that you didn't like me and never made a move."

"So…" Donghae hesitantly looked between the two adults, "I did the right thing?"

"Absolutely. You're my little Santa Claus. Donghae-ah, this is the best Christmas gift I've ever received. Thanks."

 

Donghae's smile slowly brightened up at his father's praise. The boy lunged out of Kyuhyun's arms and into his father. Jongwoon happily returned the hug, then blushed slightly when Kyuhyun suddenly hugged both of them. He quickly relaxed and leaned on the brown-haired man while pulling Donghae closer. The three of them stayed like that quietly for a while, just enjoying the moment. That was when Jongwoon's eyes fell on the offending mistletoe wreath. He untangled himself out from the two koalas and smiled sweetly at his boyfriend and his son.

 

"So, whose idea is it? That mistletoe rod?"

""It's daddy's idea! / It's Donghae-ah's idea!""

 

Jongwoon raised his brow at the father-son duo. So, they just became a family but they had already become like father, like son, huh? He sighed in defeat. It seemed like he had to prepare himself for the inevitable troubles brought by the two father and son…

 

 

Jongwoon sighed again while fondly watching Kyuhyun and Donghae taking turns throwing the blame back and forth.

 

 

 

The next Christmas would probably be a lot noisier with Kyuhyun joining them, but Christmas is all about spending time with your loved ones, right?