Naughty and Nice
Description
Yonghwa bumped around the living room, hitting his shins on the coffee table and hopping around in pain. The fake white beard and mustache was starting to give him the sniffles, and he knew that red Santa outfit was giving him a rash on his backside. He was starting to itch all over.
The stuff I do for my family, he grunted, rummaging through his red sack and trying to see in the dark. Each package had been carefully wrapped and labeled by his wife. All he had to do was to see them safely delivered under the christmas tree.
He sighed as the last gift was stuffed into the stocking hanging on the mantelpiece over the fireplace. He stretched out his arms and yawned. I think I deserve a nap after that bit of good deed, he thought to himself before dropping onto the couch for a quick nap.
A few days before, his wife had started nagging him again about dressing up as Santa this year.
"But Yongyong is five years old!? Don't you think he's too old to believe in Santa?!" Yonghwa grumbled as he dived onto their king-sized bed.
"He's still too young, yeobo. I think this should be the last year we can indulge his imagination. It's good for the child's development, having imagination," Seohyun explained matter-of-factly. After five kids and lots of research, and of course, trial-and-error methods, Yonghwa knew he should just believe his wife and go with her plans.
He just didn't feel like doing it anymore.
"Joohyuy... do you have any idea how uncomfortable that Santa outfit is?!" he whined, rolling around the bed, pretending to have tantrums. Seohyun couldn't help but smile at her husband, still acting like a choding even after all these years.
She stood up from her vanity table and moved over to the bed, her hands on her hips and putting a stern look on her face. "So are you saying you don't wanna do it?" she said, dropping one sleeve of her robe off from her shoulder. She knew exactly how to get her husband's attention, pretending to smooth out her skin on that shoulder.
"You can't manipulate me like this, Joohyuy," Yonghwa whispered, his voice croaking, moving up to a sitting position like a little kid expecting a christmas gift. His eyelids were drooping, a hooded look on his face.
Seohyun looked at him, pretending nonchalance. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said, shrugging both shoulders daintily. The movement caused the other sleeve to fall off her shoulder, revealing her chest. She gasped exagerratedly and put up her hands to cover her chest. "Oooh, this dressing gown must be too large for me," she said huskily, propping up one leg onto the bed, revealing what seemed to be miles upon miles of smooth, milky-white skin on her slim leg.
Yonghwa visibly gulped, but remained quiet, his huge eyes feasting on his wife's bare leg. She moved her leg from side to side, sliding the dressing gown further up her thighs and...
"FINE! I'LL DO IT!!!" he cried out before pouncing on his wife and pulling her onto the bed.
"You are such a tease," he whispered huskily as he poured kisses on her bare neck.
"I am no such thing," Seohyun whispered before giggling like crazy as her husband continued pummeling her with kisses.
- * - * - * -
Yonghwa groaned at the memory, covering his embarrassed face, even though he knew no one could see him in the dark.
She gets me EVERY SINGLE TIME. PABO!!! he thought to himself, tapping his knuckles on his head as if to knock some sense into it. He was just too crazy about his wife that nothing made sense to him most of the time. His friends called him a love-fool, even after all these years and all their children. He just felt helpless around her. A grin escaped from his lips then.
And yet I couldn't ask for anything more, he thought, giving a resigned sigh. With that, he sat up from the couch and decided to confront his wife, who was probably fast asleep in their bed upstairs. He had to remind her who was the man in this relationship...
"Santa?"
Yonghwa stopped and groaned to himself. He was caught. AGAIN. This time, he was prepared and ready. He turned towards the small voice and boomed out, "Ho ho ho, merry christmas Yongyong!!!"
He wasn't ready for the big lump of boy that jumped into his embrace and squeezed the air out of his lungs. The kid was so excited he had pounced on him without warning.
"Santa, I knew you'd come! Oh my, I've been waiting for you since last Christams, did you get my thank you letter for last year's gift? I didn't think I'd get anything since I was so naughty, but when I woke up on Christmas day Appa was there and he was holding a bike for me!? He said it was from you, and oh Santa, I was so happy, and, and---"
Yonghwa had to laugh as he watched his boy take a deep breath after his excited monologue.
"Ho ho ho hold on Yongyong! Yes, yes I got your thank you letter, but you didn't really have to send one. I always knew you were a good boy," Yonghwa said, patting the kid's head.
Yongyong's eyes rounded at his words and started to sparkle. He jumped up and clapped his hands.
"Oh Santa, I've been trying to be good all year, I barely bothered my noonas, and I listened to Appa and Eomma all the time, and, and--" he suddenly gasped and looked into Santa's eyes.
"I'm not supposed to be here," he whispered suddenly, his hands covering his mouth.
Yonghwa's eyes glittered as he whispered back, "It's okay, it's so nice to have you here with me."
"I'll see you again next christmas, okay?" Yongyong whispered again before giving him another hug and rushed off to his room.
"Wait Yongyong, don't you want to open your gift?" Yonghwa called out softly. The little kid waved from the stairwell.
"I'll see it tomorrow, anyway. Happy christmas Santa!" and with a final wave, he was gone.
Yonghwa breathed out a long sigh. He stayed still for a couple of moments, pondering on how the years went by so fast, how he and Seohyun met, then started a family, and now having a large family. He then started to laugh quietly, still caught up in the huge blast of excitement from his youngest child. He was going to miss their little midnight talks next year, when he no longer had to pretend to be Santa.
He noticed the plate of cookies on a little table beside the christmas tree. A tall glass of milk was beside it, looking inviting with a red bow tied around it. He grinned and reached out a hand for a cookie.
"What do you think you're doing?"
Yonghwa froze as someone whispered from out of nowhere.
"Uhm, getting a cookie?" he whispered back, trying to look around and see where the voice was coming from.
"Why have a cookie, when you can get an entire cake, Santa~~~" the voice whispered huskily. Two dainty hands slowly sneaked around his neck and tied a piece of cloth around his eyes.
He recognized the voice now, and his heart started pounding on his chest excitedly. He settled back in the couch as he waited for her next move. The blindfold added to his excitement, and the fact that his wife was actually playing with him.
He felt her sit on his lap, one arm around his shoulders. He groaned as she fidgeted, trying to get herself comfortable on his lap. He sure as heck was in no way comfortable.
"Merry Christmas Santa," she whispered, just as she took off his blindfold. She was holding up a small cake with two candles, one pink and the other was blue.
What really caught his eye was her clothes. She was wearing a female version of his Santa outfit, complete with the white fur, and with emphasis on the "female version." His eyes almost popped out.
"Yah Oppa, stop ogling me. This calls for celebration," Seohyun chided him, giggling at his obvious annoyance when she told him to stop.
"We already had christmas dinner, Yeobo, plus, the kids are all asleep," Yonghwa answered, deciding to play along. This was a rare event for his wife, so he gave her his full attention.
Seohyun adjusted her seat again, and Yonghwa groaned again. He was pretty sure his wife was torturing him. He lifted her in his arms as he stood up and settled themselves comfortably on the lazy chair beside the fireplace, where it was all toasty and warm and hot... darn he felt hot, and not because of the fire.
"Alright, let's get on with this celebration so we can all just go to bed and... and..."
"Sleep. Yes, oppa I know you're tired you need to sleep right?" Seohyun said, her eyes sparkling in jest. Yonghwa recognized that sparkle and smiled. He suddenly remembered how he fell in love in the first place.
"Okay Joohyuy, what do we need to celebrate then?" he asked, wrapping his arms around her as she leaned on to his chest.
"Well, first of all, we're celebrating Christmas, of course."
Yonghwa nodded in agreement.
"Next, we're celebrating the fact that this is your last year as Santa. Next year, Yongyong will be too old. I mean, he's a pretty smart boy, don't you think so, appa?"
Yonghwa nodded again, his eyes caught by cleavage sneaking out of his wife's outfit, which she didn't seem to notice.
"What's after that?" he asked, clearing his throat as he tried to focus on her words.
"Well, did you know that we celebrate our half-birthdays in December?" she piped up excitedly, her eyes glittering again.
"I didn't know that," Yonghwa said in wonder, calculating in his head and smiling as he got it.
"Yes oppa, you celebrate your half-birthday on Dec22 and my half-birthday on Dec28, so since today is the 25th," they both looked at the clock on top of the mantelpiece to see it striking midnight exactly, "and 25 being the middle of 22 and 28~~~"
"Happy half-birthdays to us, oppa," she whispered as she kissed him. She smiled as she blew off the pink candle, then held up the cake for him to blow off the blue candle.
Yonghwa felt something catch in his throat. He felt so touched at her simple act of thoughtfulness, and yet it was just so her. He couldn't think of anything to say after that, so he held her head to his shoulders and they stayed that way for a couple of moments.
"Merry christmas oppa. Let's have more christmases together, for a long, long while," Seohyun whispered.
"All my christmases are reserved for you and our family, Joohyuy. Forever," he whispered back, kissing her fully and passionately. It was one of the most perfect moments of his life, which were already getting too many to remember.
"Eomma?"
The two Santa's froze as they heard Yongyong's voice, softer than usual.
"Eomma? Why~~ Why are you kissing Santa?"
Seohyun's shocked eyes locked on Yonghwa's equally surprised ones. He squeezed her arms as if to reassure her, and she got her wits back with her.
She stood up and smiled at Yongyong, calling him to her with her arms wide open.
"It's okay, Yongyong, everything's alright. You see..."
Yonghwa took off his hat, the fake beard and mustache. Yongyong's eyes widened.
"You see Yongyong, it's okay coz Santa... is Appa," Yonghwa explained, smiling widely at his little boy.
The boy stood frozen in his spot. Yonghwa and Seohyun waited for his response, looking at each other nervously.
"Santa... is Appa?" Yongyong whispered, seemingly trying to work things out in his little 5-year-old brain.
Seohyun and Yonghwa nodded their heads together.
Little Yongyong stared at his father's face for a little while longer. Slowly, a smile creeped out on his lips, his two front teeth missing yet the smile kept getting wider.
"Santa... is Appa. My Appa is SANTA!!! I'm the luckiest kid in the world!!!" he suddenly shouted as he jumped and hugged his father.
Yonghwa looked guiltily at his wife, who also had a stricken expression on her face. Little Yongyong seemed to have gotten the wrong conclusion.
"My Appa is Santa, yahoo!!! I have to tell my noonas!!! Yey yey yey!!!" Yongyong kept repeating as he ran up the stairs to tell his noonas.
The parents sat frozen in their seats, too shocked to do anything.
Yonghwa was the first to move and say something.
"I think we should..."
Seohyun stopped him with a hand and pushed him back in his seat. She smiled at him guiltily, but she continued to move towards him to kiss him.
"It's gonna be okay oppa. We have until next Christmas to convince him otherwise. He's just five, after all..." she said, leaning against his chest and sharing his warmth.
Yonghwa laughed out loud at the absurdity of their situation.
But she was right. Everything's going to be okay.
Naughty or nice... Santa was here to stay.
Comments