o27 || visit from the past

the pursuit of happiness
 
27
 
visit from the past
"Rim? Can I shower first? I'm so sweaty," Jaehyun said.

They were just coming back from the grocery store and there was a little bit of an incident. A stack of boxes nearly collapsed onto Jeno, so Jaehyun had to save his son as well as a few other people. It was a bit traumatic to say the least. His sons were all in a bad mood after the incident and Jaehyun was just sweating buckets.

"Go ahead, I'll fix us some dinner," Yerim nodded distractedly as she adjusted Sungchan on her hips. The boy was a bit fussy so Yerim settled him down on his high chair in order to focus on cooking. She cooked a lot for lunch so she's planning to heat up the leftovers. Maybe cook some black pepper string beans for an addition. She was in the middle of stir frying the beans when the bell rang.

Not just once or twice, but it was pressed continuously annoyingly.
"Who the hell…?"

She turned off the stove and put down the spatula before wiping her hands on the apron. The bell kept ringing and Sungchan began to whine, so she picked Sungchan up and settled him down on her hips.

"Nono-ya, sweetheart, can you get the door while I calm Sungchanie down?"

Jeno looked up from the building blocks he's playing with and nodded. He obediently walked to the door as his mother struggled with his fussy baby brother.

He opened the door and was instantly met with a woman.
"Is this Jaehyun's house? Who are you?"

Jeno stepped back, a little scared. He didn't know the woman and she's speaking in a foreign language.
"Oh, God! Was Sicheng trolling me?"
Jeno blinked his eyes in confusion and ran to hide behind his mother.

"Eomma! Scary woman!"

Yerim quirked her eyebrows and walked to the door, examining the lady in front of her. She's dressed to the nine in a dress—she guessed Versace—and was dolled up in thick heavy make-up.
"Excuse me, who are you?" She asked calmly.

"Who are you? I'm looking for Jaehyun."

The woman spoke in English, even though it's slightly accented.
"Jaehyun's in the shower. How may I help you?" Yerim asked politely.

"Are you Jaehyun's newest plaything?" The lady sneered.
Yerim was holding back her punches because she hasn't finished cooking, Sungchan is hungry and fussy, and then there's this weird lady calling her Jaehyun's plaything. Her patience is running low.
"Wow, that's rude. I don't know if it's considered a plaything but I'm mothering his children," Yerim shrugged as she turned to the boy hiding behind her.
"Jaehyun has kids? What the ?!" The lady was downright in rage right now.

"Jeno, darling, can you show this auntie the way to the living room? I have to finish cooking first," Yerim said softly to Jeno before turning to the lady again.
"I'm sorry but I have to finish cooking, please follow my son to the living room. And oh, please do not curse around the kids, it's a bad example for them," Yerim smiled tightly before disappearing to the kitchen.
She continued the stir fry she's cooking as she balanced Sungchan on her hips. The baby is very hungry so he's being difficult right now.

"Calm down, okay, baby? After I finished cooking, we'll go feed you your soft rice, okay? And your appa can deal with whatever barbie mutant that just entered the house," Yerim cooed.
As if on cue, Jaehyun finally went out of the bedroom, looking fresher after his shower.

"Smells good, Rim. What are you cooking? I thought we still had leftovers from lunch? Aren't you tired? Let me get Sungchan," he said as he tried to take Sungchan from Yerim's arms. The baby refused and curled further into her neck.

"Uhm, we've got a female intruder looking for you so please can you deal with her? I kinda have my hands full and Jeno is heavily creeped out by her so please rescue him?" Yerim grimaced as she turned to the living room.

"Intruder…?"

Jaehyun nearly had a heart attack when he saw Jeno fidgeting as he stood awkwardly in the living room with a familiar lady sitting on their couch.

The same lady he broke up with six years ago.
"Jaehyun oppa!" She stood up.

Yerim froze in her place. Oppa? So, she's Korean? Jaehyun's friend from college? She pretended to ignore the commotion and continued bouncing Sungchan on her hips as she plated her food.
"Hana? What are you doing here?"

Yerim shuddered. It's so weird to hear Jaehyun talking in English.

"I'm looking for you! I got your address from Sicheng oppa. I heard from Youngho oppa that you're getting married. Are you…?"
Jaehyun sighed. Sicheng that damned best friend of his!

"It’s right. I'm getting married."

"With that witch?" She sneered.

Jaehyun balked and scoffed, "Watch your mouth. That's Yerim, my fiancée."
Yerim heard her name being mentioned and perked up. She maintained a neutral expression as she walked to the dining room to set the table and serve the food.

She pondered a bit before deciding to holler in English.
"Umm… guys? Can we settle down everything after dinner? The baby is already hungry and fussy and probably Jeno too.”

Jeno ran from the living room to the kitchen and hugged her waist.
"Hungry, sweety?"

Jeno nodded.
Jaehyun looked at them and nodded.

"Well, join us for dinner then," he said to the woman with a defeated sigh.
Hana followed Jaehyun while she frowned. What is happening here? People said Jaehyun is just getting married. Is he marrying a divorcee? Or are those two kids his bastard children?

She was about to sit down next to Jaehyun when the little boy ran and frowned at her, pointing his finger at her scandalously.
"That's eomma’s seat!"
Yerim froze as she strapped Sungchan on his high chair.

"Jeno, that's rude. You cannot say that to the auntie. Please apologize to her," Yerim said.
Meanwhile Hana was confused. The female was scolding the kid for something he said and Jaehyun was coaxing the kid.

"But it's your place!" Jeno whined before pulling Yerim to sit in the place Hana wanted to occupy.

"Then where would Hana auntie sit then?" Yerim asked.

"I don't know. The living room?"
Deep inside Yerim was cackling because she knew Jeno disliked the girl but she couldn't admit it. At least not in front of Jaehyun.

"We are going to eat together, Nono-ya. Then, shall auntie sit next to you, hmm?” Jaehyun negotiated.
"I don't like it, but fine," the boy sulked as he took a seat in his usual place.
"Sorry, Jeno is a bit upset. Can you sit… there? Across Yerim?" Jaehyun said. Hana gritted her teeth before nodding.

"Jeno? Wanna say the prayer before we eat?" Jaehyun offered.

The boy nodded before closing his eyes and clasping his hands as Hana watched curiously.
"Dear, God. Thank you for the food we ate today. I hope it makes us full and healthy, and make eomma healthy too so she can keep making delicious food for us. Amen."

"Alright, let's start eating," Jaehyun smiled as he patted Jeno's head.
Hana ate uncomfortably as she watched the family before her. It never crossed her mind to see Jaehyun in this kind of scene.

"You don't have a maid?" She asked, again in English, directing the question to Yerim.

"Oh? No. We're pretty good at handling them ourselves," Yerim shrugged as she fed Sungchan his soft rice and finely-chopped side dishes.

"So, you're Yerim, huh?"

Yerim blinked. Is this mutant Barbie really asking that kind of question right in front of Jaehyun? She glanced at Jaehyun and saw the mild discomfort on his face. Well, if this wench wanted to play, then she's going to play.
"Yeah, I am Yerim. Did Jaehyun tell you about me before? And oh, you're Hana, right? Jaehyun said your name earlier. But I haven't heard much about you, I'm sorry," Yerim faked a sheepish grin as she wiped Sungchan's mouth.

She watched Hana's face tightened.

"I've heard some. You're part of the Korean guys' clique or something."

Yerim nodded lightly, ignoring Jaehyun's look at her.

"You could say that. And you?"

Hana smirked a little, "Ah, I was Jaehyun oppa's girlfriend, from college."
Yerim looked up and smiled sweetly, she knew Jaehyun had a panicked look right now but hey, might as well have some fun.

"Oh? Really? That's cool."

Yerim smiled again before turning her attention back to Sungchan.
"You like it, Sungchanie?"

The baby clapped his hands innocently and babbled, "Eommamama!"

"I know baby, I know," Yerim patted his cheeks before going back to eat her own dinner.
"Should I continue feeding him? You haven't eaten much," Jaehyun said apologetically.

"Nah, go entertain your guest," Yerim brushed him off coolly.

Jaehyun blinked before going back to his food.

"So, Jaehyun oppa, I thought you're living in your parents' house. It's quite shocking to see you living here… Isn't it pretty small?" Hana commented.

"This was intended as a place for me to live alone. We'll probably move out soon, but maybe later. It's difficult to move with a baby," he shrugged as he silently took Yerim's plate, taking some food with her chopsticks before offering it to since she's still busy with feeding Sungchan. Yerim yelped in shock but she smiled thankfully at him before taking the bite.
Hana furrowed her brows at the couple's interactions.
"Anyways, Hana, how did you find our place?" Yerim asked innocently.

"Sicheng oppa told me."

Yerim smiled, even though inside she's already making a mental note to give Sicheng an earful after this.

"You should've called beforehand. Had I known I would have baked something for you," Yerim said.

"Oh, you bake?"

Yerim nodded, "I bake a lot. Jaehyun and the kids love them."
"You rarely ate baked goods," Hana turned to Jaehyun confusedly.

The guy shrugged nonchalantly as he offered another bite of food using this time his own chopsticks to Yerim, which ticked Hana off.

"Yerim's food are all bomb. Not only we liked it, Sicheng and Ten loved them as well."

"And your mother too! Ah, remind me to make another strawberry mille crepe that she liked the most!" Yerim piped in and grinned sweetly. Jaehyun smiled back at her and nodded.
Hana was fuming. To be honest, it's a bit disgusting to watch them. Jaehyun was never like that. It was as if Hana was looking at another person right now. And to make it worse, the kid talked a lot to his parents in Korean, making her feel left out.

"I'll go dump the dishes at the sink and then give the boys their bath time," Yerim told Jaehyun after they finished the awkward dinner.

"I'll do it. You've cooked," Jaehyun said as he began to gather the dirty plates.

"I'll bathe the kids. Forget the dishes, we can do it later. Go entertain your special guest. Girlfriend, huh?" Yerim shook her head with a grin before picking up the messy Sungchan from his high chair.

"Hana... I'm sorry but I have to go bathe my sons. Feel free to chat with Jaehyun in the living room!" Yerim smiled before pushing Jeno towards the bedroom.
"Appa? You're not joining?" Jeno turned around, not liking the fact that his father is going to be around that weird lady.

"Appa has showered before eating, baby. He can join you tomorrow. How's that sound?" Yerim coaxed him.

Jeno ran to his father and handed out his pinky.

"Promise, appa?"

Jaehyun kissed the tip of his son's head before linking their pinkies together to seal the deal.

"We'll play with Mr. Gator and Mr. Ducky tomorrow morning, I promise!"

Jeno grinned before turning around to follow his mom.
After watching his sons and his fiancée disappearing into his bedroom, Jaehyun turned his attention back to Hana who was visibly sulking.

"Why are you here, Hana?" He sighed tiredly.

"I can't believe you're getting married. Why?"

"I'm going to be 29 in a few months. I found a kind hearted and beautiful woman. I think it's only right for me to get married."

"So… That was the Yerim you guys talked about a lot in college?"

"Yes. She's that Yerim."

"I don't understand. Wait, how old is your oldest son?"

"Jeno? He's six."
The gear inside Hana's brain turned and she balked.

"Jaehyun oppa! We broke up six years ago! Did you secretly screw that Yerim girl up while we were dating? And now you have two bastard children with her and you'll marry her?! Or what?"
Jaehyun's eyes widened at Hana's incredulous words.

"They're not my bastard child. I wasn't dating anyone for a while after you—"

"They're not your actual child? Then… are you marrying a widow?! What the hell?"

Jaehyun growled.

"Oh, shut up. They're my adopted children that Yerim and I loved like they're our own."

Hana scoffed, "You weren't like this in the past. Who is this Yerim girl? Is she the reason why you dumped me six years ago?"

Jaehyun sighed, "Hana. Listen. What happened six years ago was my mistake. I told you before the reason I broke up with you is because I don't have any feelings for you and I'm sorry if I led you on. I dated you because everyone told me to back then. I care for you, yes, but I only saw you as a little sister, as Youngho hyung's sister. That's why our relationship would never work."

"And you don't feel that way with that Yerim girl?"

Jaehyun nodded firmly.

 




"Nono-ya, can you stay with your brother for a while? I will shower first. Just for a short while?" Yerim asked as she rummaged through Jaehyun's closet.

Today's a random Wednesday and she wasn't supposed to stay the night but with Jaehyun still busy handling that mutant baby outside, nobody would drive her back so she might have to stay. And plus, it will be a great opportunity to irk that female witch into thinking that Jaehyun and her actually lived together.

And what's better than to use Jaehyun's clothes while she's at it? She found one of his pajama pants and his old t-shirt. She found one with Jaehyun’s university name plastered on it and grinned as she picked it up.

She glanced at Jeno who's talking to his brother before disappearing into Jaehyun's bathroom.
And even though Yerim said she won't take long, Jeno is still a kid. And he's impatient. And he wanted his appa and he hated the lady in the living room.

And so, he leaped down from the bed and went outside, only to find his appa and the lady arguing.

"Appa!"

He exclaimed before jumping to Jaehyun's lap.

"Jen! You're done bathing? Where's Sungchanie and your eomma?" Jaehyun softly brushed away Jeno's hair. He's secretly thankful that Jeno came to rescue him from Hana.

"Sungchanie… in bed! And eomma… showering!"

"Okay. Appa won't take long. Can you wait in the bedroom?"

"But I want to be with appa and eomma!" Jeno whined and pouted petulantly as he tugged Jaehyun's arm.
Just then Yerim exited the bathroom and was surprised to see just Sungchan happily rolling around in it with Jeno not in sight. She picked Sungchan up and rushed outside to see the boy she was looking for, trying to pull his father away.
Good job, that's my boy!
But of course, she didn't say that out loud.

"Jeno! Why are you outside?" Yerim stepped out and adjusted Sungchan's position before turning to Hana to give her an apologetic smile, but making sure the lady could see her clothes and smell Jaehyun's soap on her. Yes, Yerim is being petty tonight and she’s unapologetic about it.

"Eomma, I want to sleep with appa," Jeno whined.

"Of course, honey. But appa still have things to settle first. Let's go to the bedroom first, okay? I will read you stories!"

Yerim coaxed him and turned to Hana, "Sorry. He's been cranky this whole day and he wanted to be with his appa all the time!"

"Should I help you put them to bed?" Jaehyun asked worriedly, not realizing he was making Hana even more infuriated than before.

"Nah, I'm okay. Well, it's pretty late, maybe you could send Hana off first? Hana, I'm sorry for the inconvenience, the kids are unusually restless tonight," Yerim apologized before taking Jeno's hand to the bedroom.
Jaehyun sighed when he watched her leave with the kids. He turned back to Hana who was seething.

"I still don't know what you saw in her. She doesn't seem genuinely kind. I hope you open your eyes and realize that my feelings for you never changed, oppa."

Jaehyun sighed, "That was six years ago, Hana. You know what? It's late. You better go home. I have to put my sons to sleep," he said as he pushed her to the door.

Hana barked out several insults at him before finally leaving. He sighed as he went to the bedroom to peek. He saw Yerim cradling Sungchan while reading a bedtime story to Jeno. He then remembered the dirty dishes and chose to clean them first. Once he's done, he goes to the bedroom to see both his sons already asleep and Yerim is already under the covers. She sat back up immediately when she realized Jaehyun was coming in and stood up with a sigh.
"Rim... I'm sorry..."
She shrugged, "I'm uncomfortable and a little mad, but I don't like fighting. You know that I'm not supposed to stay tonight and I have to work tomorrow. Just drop me in my apartment tomorrow morning and we'll talk about this some other time. I know you're also…. affected, by her arrival. Let's just sleep, okay? You must've been tired."
Jaehyun felt her kissing his cheek before going back to her side of the bed to cuddle Jeno. He bent down to kiss her forehead and Jeno's too before going to his side of the bed. He’s just hoping everything’s alright, and Yerim will forgive him.
A/N
Hi all! Yesterday was very hectic at the hospital and I also got two webinars to attend so I really forgot to do my weekly posting :( sorry:(
but anywayss, it's jaehyun's ex from college! yes, he has an ex. just one. that one, and she's johnny's little sister from the states! let's see how yerim and jaehyun deals with this girl's sudden appearance! (((and let's wait for the couple to grill the life out of sicheng because sicheng was the one who gave hana the address to jaehyun's apartment lol XD)))
don't forget to support nct127 on their latest comeback, let's stream everybody! and don't forget to stay safe and healthy all the time <3 thank you for reading, commenting, subscribing, and upvoting, they mean a lot to me. i wuff u guys!
Love, btfg <3
 
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Comments

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tonnettie
#1
Chapter 41: Time really flies! But I really love re-reading this!
tonnettie
#2
Chapter 36: Little steps
tonnettie
#3
Chapter 24: An honest answer from a child
carlatricia #4
Chapter 41: I finished this again. I missed them! I miss your stories author-nim!!!!
thejeongjaehyun
#5
Chapter 41: This story never gets old and actually gets a lot better the more I read it 🥲
thejeongjaehyun
#6
Chapter 3: Oh how i wish i could leave many upvotes
thejeongjaehyun
#7
Coming back here to read this again in 2023 💚
exottalgi
#8
Chapter 41: i don't know what to say other than thank you for letting us read this beautiful piece. it makes my heart warm :)
carlatricia #9
Chapter 41: I'm gonna cry they are all grown ups now🥺 I'm gonna miss them!!!!
thejeongjaehyun
#10
Chapter 41: Oh my gosh! What a wonderful story! This deserves more upvotes and subscribers ♡ thank you thank you thank you for this amazing story