“That’s the last of them,” Joon said as he straightened and wiped the sweat from his brows, “I didn’t think we had so much stuff.”  He glanced around the large two bedroom apartment and sighed.  “I’m glad we stored your excess furniture in storage when we’d moved into the dorms,” he said, leaning against a stack of boxes, “At least now we don’t have to worry about buying new ones.”

“Yeah,” Seungho replied, walking over and sighing, “I didn’t think we’d be living at the dorms forever.”  He turned and gave Joon a smile.  “The dorm was great but… at least we don’t have to worry about being overheard by other people,” he said, wiggling his brows and leaning in for a kiss.

“Or at least,” Joon said, dodging the kiss playfully and poking Seungho in the stomach, “People we know.”

“Right,” Seungho said, catching Joon by the waist and pulling him in for a hug, “That’s what I meant.”  Reaching a hand behind Joon’s neck, he pulled the latter in for a soft kiss.  It started out chaste, but quickly morphed into a heated one as the two pressed their bodies together.

Joon hummed in contentment as he felt Seungho’s other hand on his lower back.  Everything had been settled at KTA and the move had been relatively smooth.  Although Cheondoong had been quite upset, he had avoided for their last few days at the dorm.  At least for a while, they didn’t have to worry about getting into another argument.  Seungho had been convinced that Cheondoong would come around eventually, something Joon wasn’t so sure of.  But, despite his doubt, Joon hoped that things would turn out alright.  The only thing he could do now was wait for that to happen.

Joon was brought out of his thoughts as he felt a hand dip underneath his shirt.  He felt fingers brush against the curve of his spine, sending shivers of lust to his groin.

“Now?” Joon murmured as Seungho nibbled his lower lip, “We haven’t even set up the bed yet…”

“That’s what the kitchen counter is for,” Seungho murmured, pushing Joon back until they were leaning against the sink.

Joon moaned softly as he felt Seungho press a thigh between his legs.  Reaching his arms around Seungho’s neck, Joon pulled him close and drowned himself in the heat.

A sudden knock at their door made the two of them jump.  Pulling back, Seungho raised an eyebrow and looked at Joon.  When Joon mirrored his look of confusion, he straightened out his clothes and padded over to the door.  Joon followed behind him, curious at their surprise visitor.  Who could it possibly be?  They’d only just moved in and it wasn’t like anyone from the company would visit them now of all times…?

As Seungho opened the door, Joon quickly straightened his clothes too and patted down his hair.  Seungho’s fingers had been all over it so it, no doubt, looked like a hot mess. 

He blinked in surprise as the door opened to a slim, middle-aged woman.  She was dressed in a light spring jacket and carried with her a big black purse.  Her face looked young but was graced with lines of age.  Her eyes were stern and strangely familiar.  Her gaze was fixed on Seungho as her lips pursed into a thin line. 

A tense moment of silence fell, making Joon curious.  It wasn’t until Seungho spoke did he realize exactly why this woman, who was oozing with grace and presence, seemed so familiar.

Seungho took an unconscious step back before whispering, “O… Omma…”

Cheondoong yawned as the taxi finally pulled to a stop in front of a small apartment complex.  Pulling a few bills from his wallet, he grabbed his bags and stepped out onto the sidewalk.  Sighing with exhaustion, he straightened his jacket and made his way to the staircase.  Climbing each flight with leaded feet, he let out a breath of relief as he finally approached the apartment door.  Before he could knock, the shrill sound of a baby’s cry erupted from behind the door, making him jump.

Sighing, he knocked on the door and shifted the grocery bags in his hands.  When there was no response, he tried the doorknob and was surprised to find it open.  Pushing it open, he peeked inside the tiny apartment and searched around for its owner.  The last thing he wanted was another awkward entry; he’d been there and done that when he walked in on Seungho and Joon.

“Chulyong-ah,” he called, knocking on the open door again, “Bang Chulyong!”

“Oh!” came a reply from the bathroom at the other end of the apartment, “Here, hyung!”  Sounds of water drifted across the room, accompanied by the soft whimpering of a baby.

Closing the door, Cheondoong set the bags onto the floor and kicked off his shoes.  Making his way over to the bathroom, he wasn’t surprised to see Chulyong standing in front of the sink shirtless as he tried to wash what looked like a puke stain off of his dress shirt.  Beside him, in a small crib, was Son Jinju’s new baby girl.

“Again?” Cheondoong asked, shuffling over to the baby and wagging a finger at it, “Isn’t she puking a lot for a baby?”  He couldn’t help the smile that pulled across his lips as the baby gargled at him and gave him a smile.

“I think she’s rejecting the formula,” Chulyong sighed as he wrung the shirt and shook it out, “I don’t know what else to do though.  She’s rejecting every single baby formula I’ve tried.”

“Have you asked the doctor?” Cheondoong asked, letting the baby grab onto one of his fingers, “Maybe it’s not the formula.”

“I haven’t had the chance,” Chulyong said, grimacing at the now wrinkled shirt, “Every time I visit Jinju and her doctor, I get so wrapped up on her details that I forget.”  Sighing and tossing the shirt into a filled hamper, he turned to look at Cheondoong with red eyes rimmed with dark circles.  “Honestly, I can’t figure out why anyone would ever want to have kids willingly,” he muttered, “Since Chohee was born, I’ve barely had time to take a proper dump.”  He glanced at the baby girl and wagged his finger at her, making her burst into a fit of giggles.

“Yah,” Cheondoong said, “Is that what’s important right now?”  He took a hold of the baby’s crib and wheeled her out into the main room.

“It is if you’re stuffed with-” Chulyong started but Cheondoong interrupted before the conversation became too gross.

“Ugh, stop,” Cheondoong said, wrinkling his nose, “I don’t want to hear about your bowel movements.”  He nodded towards the grocery bags on the floor.  “I brought you some food,” he said, shrugging out of his jacket, “Go eat something.  You have to get to the hospital right?” 

“Mm,” Chulyong said, already digging through the bags like a ravenous wolf, “But what’s with the get-up?”  He looked Cheondoong up and down before raising an eyebrow.  “Why are you wearing a suit and make-up?” he asked, smiling widely as he took out a large sub and unwrapped it. 

“I just had a shoot,” Cheondoong said, taking off his blazer and tie, “I came right after.”  ing his dress shirt, he shrugged out of it and tossed it to Chulyong, who was already halfway through his sandwich.  “You can wear that to the hospital since you got puke on yours,” Cheondoong said, “Give me a clean T-shirt or something.”

“Yeah about that,” Chulyong said as he shoved the rest of the sandwich into his mouth and grabbed the dress shirt, “See, I haven’t done laundry in weeks and I’m kind of out of clean shirts…”

Cheondoong blinked as he watched Chulyong button up the shirt.  “Not a single one?” he asked, crossing his arms across his bare chest, “The baby’s only been born for a few days!”

“See,” Chulyong said as he pulled on a pair of jeans, “I was already behind on laundry when Chohee was born…”  Chuckling sheepishly, he slipped on his shoes and grabbed his wallet.  “Thanks for the shirt,” he said as he stepped out, “I’ll do laundry as soon as I get back!”  Without another word, he left the apartment and closed the door behind him with a soft click.

Cheondoong stood in the middle of the room half as he stared dumbfounded at the door.  Looking around the apartment, he sighed in exasperation.  Saying that the place was a mess would be a severe understatement.  Pizza boxes and soda cans littered the floor, along with pieces of discarded clothing and what looked like dirty diapers.  The kitchen was littered with half-filled bottles of baby formula and the countertops were dusted with small mounds of formula powder.

Curling his lip in disgust, Cheondoong put his blazer back on for a lack of clothing, and grabbed an empty garbage bag.  Making a quick kissy-face to the baby, he began gathering the garbage around the house.  He’d gotten used to it; he’d been coming around the house every day since Chohee was born less than a week ago.  With Jinju hospitalized with a complicated birth, Chulyong had been so busy with taking care of both sides that he’d even skipped out on school.  To lend a hand, Cheondoong came by whenever he didn’t have a schedule or school himself, and watched the baby when Chulyong had to run to the hospital.  Fortunately, the doctor had mentioned that Jinju was recovering quickly and could be discharged within the next few days but that didn’t stop Cheondoong from dropping by.  Though he was exhausted, he’d grown fond of the little girl and her gurgling laughter.

But laughter wasn’t what he heard as he cleaned the kitchen.  Almost done with the dishes, Cheondoong turned from the sink and gazed at the crib with concern when he heard the beginnings of a wailing session.  Wiping his hands on the cleanest cloth he could find, he walked over and looked down at the baby.  The baby paused briefly to look at him with teary eyes before scrunching up her tiny face and letting out high pitched wail.

“Oh, what’s wrong?” Cheondoong asked, frowning as he reached down and tickled the baby’s tummy gently, “What’s wrong, Chohee-yah…”  When the baby began wailing at a higher octave, he winced and reached down to scoop her into his arms.  “Chohee-yah,” he cooed, rocking her gently as he patted her bum, “What’s the matter?  Are you feeling sick?”  When the crying continued, he bit his lip and pulled out his phone.  Should he call Chulyong?  Would that even help?  He doubted Chulyong would know what to do either.  But then if not him… who else?

Cheondoong shifted the baby in his arms and scrolled through his contacts.  If not Chulyong then… Seungho?  He frowned and absentmindedly shook his head.  There was no way he could call Seungho about this.  Other than the fact that things were still tense between them, what would that guy know about babies?  But then… who else could he call? 

As he reached the bottom of his pitiful list of contacts, he paused at Soyun’s name.  Maybe she would know.  She was a girl… after all.  Wasn’t she?  Cheondoong rolled his eyes at his own exasperating thoughts.  Just because she was a girl didn’t mean she knew anything about babies.  But, on the other hand, she did say she grew up with Changwook… so maybe…?

Throwing caution to the wind, Cheondoong dialed the number and held the phone with his shoulder as he shifted the baby again.  Her wailing continued as she cried a river on his blazer.  Cheondoong just hoped that she didn’t start throwing up any time soon.  The blazer was an endorsement; he sure as hell didn’t want to have to pay for it.

He perked up instantly as he heard the phone click and the sound of Soyun’s voice on the other line.  “Oh, yah,” he said, forgetting all formalities, “What do I do if the baby won’t stop crying?”  He rocked Chohee in his arms as he tried to keep the phone on his ear.

“What?” Soyun’s voice rang on the phone, “Baby?  What baby?  Your baby?”  Her voice hiked up an octave as she said the last few words with shock.

“No,” Cheondoong said quickly, frowning, “Not my baby, a friend’s baby.”  His frown deepened as he thought about what he’d said.  “Well actually, not really his baby either,” he said, his mind a mess from the screaming in his ear, “It’s sort of a complicated story-”

“I assume the background music is the baby crying,” Soyun said dryly, clearly not believing a word he says, “How long has he been crying?”

“She, actually,” Cheondoong corrected, “She’s been crying for the past hour, but she really took it up a notch in the past few minutes.”

“Geez,” Soyun scolded, “Crying for an hour and you only call me now?”

“Yah,” Cheondoong scowled into the phone, “I thought crying was normal for newborn babies.  And if you’re not going to help-”

“Have you checked her diaper?” Soyun asked, interrupting him.  Cheondoong could just picture her standing there with a hand on her hips.

“Yes,” Cheondoong said, though he put a hand on her diaper again, “I checked fifteen minutes ago and she’d done her deed.  There’s no way she’d already dirtied another one…”  And as he’d expected, the diaper didn’t feel warm or heavy.

“When was the last time you fed her?” Soyun asked as if she was checking off a list.

“Er…” Cheondoong said, staring at Chohee as the baby quieted a bit, “She’s been rejecting all the formulas we’ve been trying to feed her-”

“Why are you feeding her formula?” Soyun asked, her voice irritated, “The mother should be giving her milk!  That’s terrible-”

“Oh stop judging,” Cheondoong said, even more concerned now that the baby’s cries toned down, “The mother’s in the hospital from a complicated birth.”  He peeked at the baby’s face and frowned.  Chohee’s ears were red, though it could have been from all that crying just now.  Cheondoong vaguely wondered what her blood pressure was after that intense vocal workout.

Silence fell on the line before Soyun said, “Oh.”  After another brief moment, she asked, “Did the baby stop crying?  I don’t hear her wailing anymore.”

“Yeah,” Cheondoong muttered, his heart racing despite the silence from the baby, “That’s… weird right?  That they’d suddenly stop crying?”  He placed his lips against the baby’s forehead to check her temperature.  His eyes widened as he pulled away.  “Y-Yah,” he said, suddenly frantic, “She has a fever!  Her face is on fire!”

“Calm down,” Soyun snapped into the phone, “Where are you?”

“Eh?” Cheondoong said, his mind blank, “I’m… I’m at Chulyong’s house.”

“And where’s that, exactly?” Soyun asked, her voice gentler this time.  Cheondoong heard the sound of a car door closing from her end.

“I’m going to the hospital,” Cheondoong said, “I’ll meet you at the general one near Seoul High.  It’s the closest one from here.”  He swallowed nervously as he set the baby back into the crib and looked around.  What did he need to bring to the hospital with him?  Did Chohee have an identification card?  What about diapers?  Did he need diapers?  Did the hospital have diapers?

“Okay, I’m only about ten minutes away from there,” Soyun said, “Wrap the baby up in blankets and make sure she isn’t exposed to any cold breezes.  Bring any identification papers you can find on her and don’t bother with bringing anything else like diapers or formula.”

Pausing in his frantic circling of the apartment for diapers, Cheondoong nodded into the phone and said, “O-Okay.  I’ll see you there.”  Hanging up the call, he dropped the diaper bag he was holding and ran to the linen closet.  Unsure of what Soyun meant by blankets, he grabbed four large towels and brought them to the crib.

Gently, he raised the baby and placed her on top of the stack of towels.  Unsure of how to wrap her, Cheondoong decided to roll her up in it and use a clothpin to keep the towels snapped together.  Careful not to block her face Cheondoong pushed the towel down until just her face was exposed.  “Sorry, Chohee-yah,” he murmured as he grabbed what looked like a birth certificate from her crib, “You’ll never remember this part of your life anyway.  At least… I hope.” 

Running over to the door, he slipped on his shoes quickly before closing the door behind him and running down the stairs as fast as he could.  His heart raced in his chest and his breathing was short and shallow.  He prayed that he was overreacting and that the baby was fine.  He didn’t know what to do if there was something seriously wrong with Chohee.

“Ahjussi,” he panted, as he got into a cab, “The general hospital by the high school!”  As the car set off, Cheondoong rocked the baby in his arms and murmured reassurances to her.  The ride seemed to take forever.  With each passing second Cheondoong felt his heart beat just a little faster.  He prayed with all his heart that she was okay… that everything was okay.

Author's notes:

I had to cut this one off because I was writing enough to be two chapters!  Another Cheondoong based chapter!  That boy doesn't get enough attention in this storyline!  But did you like the crazy twist I threw in for JoonHo?  Kekeke...  And just when you think things couldn't get any worse...