Realizing the reality of her coming of age.

|xoxo|

His fifteen year old daughter stood before him defiantly, pouting as she held out her hand.

Daehyun snorted, his hair revealing dashes of gray; his eyes heavy and dark with tire and boredom; fingers wrenching together into a tight fist to untie the knots folding in his muscles. "Bwoh?"
"Money," she blurted, her lips jutting out into a childish pouty frown.
"For what?"

No more Dada.
No more high-pitched cries for Appa.
It was not just a melodious alto ring calling for his name, more particularly for whenever Dayoung needed money or assistance on homework.

Daehyun shuffled through the pages of his sports magazine, ignoring the rolling eyes of his wife. 

"Shopping."
"With whom?"
"Min-jung unnie and Seohyun-ah... and Jae Wannie."
Her voice trailed off into an incoherent mumble at the last name, but Daehyun vaguely caught it; instantaneously, he threw down the magazine and glanced up from behind his reading glasses, crackling his knuckles tautly. "Jae Wan is a guy's name," he stated bluntly.
Dayoung stamped her feet immaturely, whining to her aging father as her mother simply chuckled, exiting the dining area to leave the father and daughter to their own. "Appa!" she drawled.
"Is he your boyfriend?"
"Aniyo!"
"Aniyo?" Daehyun chorused. "Aigoo, speaking impolitely to your father now?"
"Appa!"

Daehyun sighed, throwing a good wad of cash into her hands. "Ah, araseo, araseo," he simpered with a tight smile. "At least come home a , ne?" he jeered, receiving a playful glare in return. Despite her hardened eyes, Dayoung released the tension from her crumpled state and smiled briefly. "Gohmahwoh, appa," she sang cheerfully, snatching the won out of his grasp.

"Dayoungie," he called, watching after her as she bounced out of the dining room.
"Ne?" She poked her black-haired head from behind the doorway, smiling excitedly.
"I mean it when I said to come home a ."
"Appa, I know!" she drawled, groaning indignantly.

Just in time, his spouse had made her way back into the room, situating herself into the seat beside his as she giggled at her daughter's rebellious antics. "A handful, isn't she?"
"You were never like this when you were fifteen," Daehyun muttered, a grumble lurking behind his throat.
"I was one of the rare good girls," she tittered with a teasing giggle.
"Dayoung should've inherited some of those good genes."

"Why are you complaining?" she laughed. "You're probably more of a baby than she is."
Daehyun smiled. "If I can't baby her anymore, I might as well be babied myself."
"She's growing."
Daehyun winced at his wife's words unknowingly, cringing mentally at the thought of Dayoung growing any older. 

"Soon, I won't be able to baby her anymore," he whispered, setting down his reading material. He casted off his glasses and placed them neatly onto the magazine, eyeing his wife meticulously. "And soon, we're both going to have to let her be married off into some family."
Daehyun grasped his spouse's caressing hand tightly, bringing it up, guiding her slender hand to trace his defined cheekbones. Hollowed out with endless work, the retired performer, and now music producer sat in his chair, pondering for his daughter's future; Daehyun suddenly felt a twinge of pain race through her heart.

"Has it really been fifteen years?"

Ah, Dayoungie... you're a princess to me still, but I'm going to have to give you the title of queen soon, won't I?

|xoxo|

Jung Daehyun

Status: Great daddy.