Chapter Text
Hongjoong knew that moving would be difficult, especially with 2 children whose only way of entertaining themselves is teasing each other.
“Rami, stop hitting your brother with that cardboard!”
Hongjoong steps away from the boxes he was opening and walks towards his children.
He softly wraps his hands around the 5 year olds wrist and takes the cardboard away from him. He throws the cardboard a few meters further onto the ground.
Hongjoong scoops Rami up in his arms before he can run towards the cardboard. Hongyo, who was already crying, cries even harder and Rami starts bawling his eyes out as well.
It can’t go on like this, Hongjoong needs time to unpack and make the space liveable. On top of that he’s expected to start his first day at his new job in a week.
In one day he managed to unpack a grand total of one box with the children running around. If he wants to be finished before his own life starts back up again he needs to pick up the pace.
Hongyo goes to sit down in a corner of the room, his knees pulled up to his face and his arms folded on top of them. He pushes his face into his arms and cries.
Hongjoongs tries not to laugh at the temper tantrum of his son as he sits down on the couch and puts Rami into his lap. Hongyo can’t be in pain, Rami does not have the strength yet to actually hurt his brother.
He takes his phone out of his pocket and starts searching for schools in the nearby area.
Maybe he should have done this before moving, but between his divorce being finalized only a month ago, him suddenly turning into a single dad and getting a new job, it slipped his mind until now.
There are 3 schools within driving distance of both his house and work, one is in a shady area of town, the other looks good enough if not for the angry reviews from parents on facebook about how disrespectful especially the kindergarten teacher is.
Which leaves only the last school, Forevermore.
Because of the crying of both his sons and Rami trying to escape his arms he cannot focus on the school site or reviews.
“Whatever” he grits through his teeth trying to stay focused on his screen when he signs both of his kids up for the new school.
When he finally manages to fill in the last piece of information and submit the request for the two boys, he lets Rami go.
Rami immediately stops crying and jumps out of his arms and waddles over to the piece of cardboard he discarded earlier.
Hearing the little feet patter over the floor Hongyo turns around, his eyes red and swollen. “Daddy! He’s going to hit me”
Hongjoong takes a deep breath, trying his best not to snap and yell at the two boys he loves more than anything. He’s tired, but he can’t take his frustration out on his sons.
“Hongyo you are two years older than him, why are you so scared of him?” Hongjoong stands up and walks towards Hongyo
He grabs the boy under his shoulders and hoists him up to his feet. He crouches down and wipes the tears away from his face.
“Stand up for yourself big man, tell Rami you don’t like it”
As if one cue Rami walks up to the both of them with the cardboard in hand. Instead of walking past Hongjoong he stops behind him and starts hitting Hongjoong on the back with the cardboard.
Hongyo slowly stops crying, a small smile now cracking onto his face as he watches his younger brother hit his dad.
Hongjoong tries to hide his smile, taken aback by little Rami’s actions. He however can’t help himself when the laughter of his two boys fill the space.
Hongjoong pretends to fall over, “Nooooo! Hongyo, save me! I’m being attacked!” Rami continues giggling and softly hitting his dad.
Hongyo runs out of Hongjoongs line of sight, eventually returning with another piece of cardboard. “What?” Hongjoong asks, confused.
he feels a second piece of cardboard come down on his back, “No! Hongyo! You were my only hope!”
At the end of the day both boys are asleep cuddled up on the couch. Hongjoong could not get any unpacking done, the boys would not leave him and each other alone.
He stares at his children, peaceful and asleep. Hongjoong takes a picture, there aren’t many chances he gets of the two not fighting with each other. Seeing his finger in the picture he frowns and takes it again, making sure to not get his finger on the camera now.
He admires the picture. After things went down with his now ex-wife, Rami and Honggyo were the lights of his life.
He would give the boys the world if he could. His entire life revolves around them, he would do anything if it means his boys could grow up safely.
Hongjoong gets pulled out of thought when he gets an email notification, “Choi Jongho - Forevermore”
Hongjoong opens the email.
Good afternoon Mister Kim,
I have read through your submission and have decided to accept your boys.
Of course it is 2 months into the school year, this means that they both have 2 months of learning to catch up on. Which is why I do not want for them to start any later, if possible with your schedule I would like to enroll them by next monday.
Preferably, you would come to my office after dropping your children off by our teachers (Jung Wooyoung and Park Seonghwa) to sign some paperwork. Finalizing their enrollment.
Sincerely,
Principal Choi Jongho
Hongjoong smiles at his screen, Monday is in 2 days. 2 more days of these little demons terrorizing him before he can take his time unpacking.
The next two days pass in a flash. Hongjoong does not try to unpack, he takes the boys out to get more familiar with the new area they live in.
They discover playgrounds around their apartment where the boys can play around with other children their age. Hongjoong talks to the parents there. Some of the children go to Forevermore, he is happy to hear that everyone is positive about the school.
Hongyo already makes some friends, he has always been a social butterfly. He talks to anyone that is willing to listen, most of the time even people that don’t want to listen.
Rami has a bit more difficulty adjusting. He does talk and play with the other children, but after at most 10 minutes of playing he walks towards his dad and starts tugging at his jeans, or undoing his shoe laces.
Hongjoong tried ignoring it, hoping he would just go back to the other kids. But when Rami starts crying because his dad doesn’t pay attention to him he caves.
He picks the small boy up and tells Hongyo they're going to continue their adventure through town. They discover the ice cream store, the boys are mostly fond of that. Especially when the old lady behind the counter gives them an extra scoop.
Hongjoong tried to pay for it but the woman refused, telling him it’s good that he’s out with his children. Hongjoong smiles politely, before thanking the lady and trying to drag his kids away from the counter.
Monday morning finally arrives and Hongjoong is the most nervous he has ever been.
He wakes up way before he has to wake up the boys. The night before he had found his laptop in one of the boxes.
Hongjoong sits at the table in the middle of the room on the school's website. His lack of research into the school making him more nervous than anything.
“Jung Wooyoung” He mumbles, the person that is going to be Hongyo’s teacher.
Hongjoong opens the picture, a pretty man with longer hair and a soft smile staring back at him.
He clicks off the picture to read his biography
Hello, I am Jung Wooyoung (most of my students call me Woo)
I am 29 years old
I prefer to be positive with my students, praising them for their achievements and helping them through their difficulties.
One of the most important things in my classroom is understanding, I strive for everyone to be accepted and no one to be left out.
Hongjoong lets out a relieved sigh, Hongyo’s teacher seems good. From what he assumes about the man he almost seems like the perfect teacher for his boy.
He navigates his way on the site to the other person Choi Jongho mentioned to, who he assumes to be Rami’s teacher. Park Seonghwa
Instead of a kind hearted person Teacher Wooyoung looked like, he is met with a serious man.
His expression emotionless, his glasses low on his nose bridge, his hair slicked back.
Hongjoong winches, This was not the image of someone he wanted to teach Rami. He was hoping to be met with another kind smile.
Hongjoong’s eyes glide over the screen, hoping his biography might change his opinion.
Park Seonghwa
35 years old
Teacher for 10 years
One daughter
Hongjoong stares in disbelief. The teacher seems so cold, how could he be the kindergarten teacher?
“PAPA!”
Before he can finish freaking out about the teacher, Rami yells. Hongjoong looks at the time, of course the little demon would be awake an entire hour before he has to be.
Hongjoong hurries into Rami’s bedroom, praying that he does not wake his brother.
“I’m here big man, what’s up?”
“Need poop”
Hongjoong sighs out of breath, he lifts the boy from his bed and carries him towards the bathroom. It’s too early to argue with the boy about how he does not need his dad to carry him to the bathroom. He puts him down right in front of the toilet.
“Here you go big man”
Hongjoong turns around making his way back to the door, his hand is already on the door handle when he hears his son speak way too loudly for it to be 5 in the morning.
“Help!”
“Help? You can poop by yourself man”
“No!”
Hongjoong clenches his teeth, his son is just being difficult for no reason. He has not needed help going to the bathroom for an entire year now.
Hongjoong turns back around, of course on an already difficult morning his son needs to be demanding as well.
“Rami, you can poop by yourself”
“NO!”
“Joongrami!”
The little boy looks up at him, a mix of confusion and fear in his eyes. Hongjoong never calls him by his full name, preferring the cute nickname his mom had given him after Hongyo couldn’t pronounce his name.
“You can use the toilet by yourself, right?”
The boy nods, the look of fear replaced with one of guilt. Hongjoong ruffles his hair, trying to reassure the small boy.
“I’ll be right outside the door”
When Hongjoong exits the bathroom he jumps when he sees another figure standing beside the door. Hongyo woke up.
They stare at each other for a bit.
“What-”
“I need to pee dad”
Hongjoong laughs.
“You can go in a second, your brother is in the bathroom”
Hongyo nods and sits down next to the door, Hongjoong takes a seat next to him. He closes his eyes and leans his head against the wall.
Hongyo talks to him about something, he almost feels bad for not listening. His mind stuck on Rami’s teacher.
He should have looked earlier, that way he could have tried to find another school. He just feels so bad leaving his youngest son with someone that looks like they believe spanking is still a valid punishment.
The only thing saving him is the line about him having a daughter, at least he will have some actual valid experience with children.
“Dad! You’re not listening”
Hongjoong opens his eyes and looks at his son, at least one of his boys will have a good teacher.
“Sorry, go on”
Before Hongyo can start his story again the door opens up and Rami walks out. Rami looks around for his dad, when he sees him sitting on the floor he wastes no time climbing into his lap and clinging onto his neck.
“Hongyo you can go use the bathroom”, Hongjoong says, wrapping his arms around the smaller boy.
Instead of getting up Hongyo grabs onto Hongjoong’s bicep. “I’m not done talking!” and he starts again, apparently talking about the dream he had that night.
Rami looks up from his dads arms and pushes Hongyo. Hongjoong stands up with Rami in his arms before it can escalate “Allright boys… Hongyo you go pee and tell me all about it over breakfast”
Hongyo pouts but goes into the bathroom. Hongjoong makes his way towards the living room and puts Rami on the couch turning the tv on for him.
Hongjoong starts making breakfast. Halfway through his oldest comes back from the bathroom and stands next to him, continuing his monologue about his dream.
He makes the kids eggs and bacon, making sure they both eat enough for the long day ahead of them. While he is in the kitchen he makes a bento box for both of the boys, slipping it into their school bags so he can’t forget it.
Time flies when he is trying to get two energetic boys to eat, get dressed, comb their hair and brush their teeth. He is walking down the stairs of their apartment building, Hongyo holding his hand on one side and Rami holding his hand on the other.
They walk to the car, he helps Rami into his booster seat when Hongyo gets in the front seat by himself. He puts Rami's bag down on the ground of the car, Rami kicks it over. Hongjoong sighs but leaves it anyway.
Once he makes sure that Rami’s seatbelt is secure and the little menace cannot undo it halfway through the ride he closes the door and gets behind the wheel.
“Hongyo your seatbelt” He says without looking. He does not need to look to know his son is not wearing it.
He hears a whine coming from beside him but thankfully the sound of a seatbelt being pulled out comes shortly after. He waits to hear the click of it being put into the buckle before turning the car on.
He types in the address to the school and starts pulling out of the parking lot.
The drive was all but relaxing. With Rami trying to interrupt his brother any chance he gets, and Hongyo being rage baited by his little brother way too easily Hongjoong has to tune them out to not crash the car.
He pulls into the school's parking lot, both his sons are glued to the window. The school isn’t big, it’s honestly on the smaller side.
Around the school are a lot of trees, from what he can see the school playground looks quite big. Enough room for multiple classes to play with enough equipment for the kids to entertain themselves on.
The car door opens, “Hongyo wait, I’m getting Rami out too and we go inside together". He’s relieved when he sees Hongyo does grab his bag with him. The door closes and Hongyo stands bouncing on his feet looking around, waiting for his dad.
Hongjoong steps out and makes his way towards the backseat. He opens the car door and starts unbuckling Rami. He hears his other son yell something and run off.
“Hongyo!” He looks over the car hood and sees Hongyo running towards a friend he made on one of the playgrounds yesterday.
“Jesus fucking christ” he mumbles underneath his breath when he leans back down to unbuckle his youngest.
Before lifting Rami out of the car he grabs the bag at his feet. When he has both the bag and his son he closes the car door. As he puts his son down he locks the car and takes Rami’s hand in his. “Stay with papa okay?”
The boy isn’t listening anymore, He is already pulling on his dads hand trying to run off towards other parents and children.
He passes Hongyo and takes his hand as well, he kindly greets the other parents as best as he can with two boys pulling his arms.
They make their way inside, he looks around for a bit trying to find at least one of the boys’ classrooms.
His eyes land on a familiar face, Jung Wooyoung greeting the children by the door. Hongjoong forces a kind smile on his face before he approaches.
“Hey…” The younger man looks at him “Kim Hongjoong, I’d shake your hand but I only got two and they're both occupied” He laughs awkwardly showing where he’s holding his son's hands.
Wooyoung laughs at his joke, “I can see that, welcome.” A warm smile spreads on his face. He crouches down to Hongyo's height.
“You must be Hongyo” Wooyoung extends his hand towards the small boy “Nice to meet you” Hongyo stops looking around and focuses on the teacher
He grabs his hand and shakes it enthusiastically, “I have friends here!” Wooyoung looks surprised. He looks up at Hongjoong before looking down at the kid again “Already?”
“In the weekend-”
“We went to the playground!” Hongyo interrupts him. “I played with many friends”. Hongjoong simply nods his head.
Wooyoung lets out another laugh, amused by the boy's enthusiasm. “Why don’t you go inside and see if you can find some of your friends, I’ll talk a bit more to your dad”
“Okay!” Hongjoong lets go of Hongyo’s hand and watches him run off into the classroom. He takes a step forward making sure he actually does find some of the people he played with.
Only when his boy sits down at a table does he let out a relieved sigh and takes a step back again. “I understand leaving your son at a new school can be nerve wracking”
Hongjoong nods “And I have to leave both here” He chuckles nervously looking down at Rami who is somehow standing still beside him. “It always feels silly when I am more nervous than them”
Wooyoung lays a hand on his shoulder, “It’s normal to feel nervous or scared to leave your kids with people you don’t know” he squeezes his shoulder to reassure him. “Is there anything I need to know about Hongyo?”
Hongjoong sighs “he’s a social kid, talks a lot, will talk through you during explanations, sorry for that” Wooyoung holds back a laugh “He just… does not know how to stand up for himself, he can talk your ear off for hours but when it comes to defending himself he’s a lost puppy frozen in fear”
“I’ll make sure no one picks on him”
“Thank you, I appreciate that”
Hongjoong looks at Wooyoung, Wooyoung looks back. An awkward silence falls between them. “Is there anything else?”
Hongjoong furrows his brows “Well…”, Wooyoung looks at Rami “Oh! Mister Seonghwa’s classroom is the one down the hall, the very last one”
“I actually…” Hongjoong avoids eye contact, his mind turning his words over to try and not sound like he is bashing the other teacher.
“Oh…” Hongjoong looks up at Wooyoung who's giving a mischievous look “I mean he had a divorce like 2 years ago, it was mutual however. He started dating again this year, said he is ready to move on”
Hongjoong turns red “What?” He stares at the younger man in disbelief.
“I mean, I’m not sure he swings that way. I’ve never really heard him talk about his dates, but you can always shoot your shot” Hongjoong is shocked, the words he wants to say dying on his tongue.
“You have to be fast though, almost all the single moms have their eyes on him” Wooyoung gives him a wink and bumps his shoulder, Hongjoongs face turns impossibly redder.
“Thats not… I got out of a divorce myself barely a month ago” It’s the fastest thing his brain can come up with to stop whatever his sons teacher is talking about. He watches as the others face turns from teasing to mortified "I'm so sorry… I didn’t know…”
“It’s okay” he assures him, he can feel the awkwardness build up between them once more “I’ll bring this little one to his class then, Have a good day”
He looks inside to say bye to Hongyo, when he sees he is already deep in conversation with his classmates he decides against it.
Hongjoong tightens his grip slightly on Rami's hand, the boy too busy observing his new environment to pay attention.
Hongjoong takes a deep breath as he walks towards Rami’s classroom. Does he look gay? More importantly, does he look like someone like Park Seonghwa would be his type?
Hongjoong always imagined if he ended up with a guy it would be someone kind, with a good and caring heart. Not someone with a cold vibe like he saw in that picture.
When the door comes in sight he does not see the teacher. He feels a nervous feeling bubbling up inside his stomach.
They finally reach the door and he looks inside. His eyes widen in surprise with what he sees inside.
The cold teacher he saw online is crouched down, his eyes closed as one of the girls in the class is putting a plush bunny headband on his head.
The little girl takes her hands away, laughing and clapping her hands. The teacher opens his eyes and gives the girl a fond smile, saying thank you.
Hongjoong is shocked, this cannot be the same person he saw online. The person in front of him has the warmest, sweetest smile he has ever seen. Nothing like the cold look he was giving him through the screen.
His eyes are in actuality round, and kind. Especially when they focus on him. Hongjoong snaps out of his thoughts when he realises the man is now looking at him.
He clears his throat and takes a step inside the classroom. Before he can speak however Rami is tugging on his arm to go back outside the classroom.
“No! No school!"
Caught off guard Hongjoong stumbles against the door frame.
“Rami!?”
He hears someone laugh behind him. When he looks back, the kindergarten teacher is standing behind him. The bunny ears sitting proudly on his head.
“I’m sorry” He mumbles before turning his attention back to his child. “Rami what’s wrong? Why don’t you want to go?”
“No! I’m going home! I’m going to mama!”
Hongjoong is once more taken aback by his son's words. He did not expect his son to suddenly bring up his mother like that, he had not seen his mother since the divorce finalized. He had never complained about wanting to see his mom.
He sees the teacher crouch down next to him in the corner of his eye. The older man reaches for Rami’s hand and softly taking it into his own.
“What’s wrong Rami? Why don’t you want to stay?”
Hongjoong’s full attention is on the teacher. He is aware he should be making sure his kid isn’t running away, but the moment Seonghwa holds the child's hand he feels his son stop pulling his arm.
“Who are you?”
Before Hongjoong can open his mouth to scold the boy for talking so rudely, Seonghwa speaks up. His voice is kinder than before.
“I’m Seonghwa, my full name is Park Seonghwa. Can you tell me yours?”
Rami looks between his new teacher and his dad, he pulls his hand out of his dads grip and crosses his arms.
“No!”
Hongjoong gives his son a dangerous look, when Rami sees it he takes a moment to think before he uncrosses his arms.
“Kim Joongrami”
“That’s such a pretty name! What do you like Rami?”
The boy's eyes light up, He jumps up and down in front of the teacher as he talks.
“I love dinosaurs! We have a dinosaur at home, his name is destroyer, papa got it for me at the dinosaur place on my birthday”
“Oh wow, that’s so cool” Seonghwa looks at Rami with the most interested look. He however turns his head to look up at Hongjoong and that interest changes to confusion.
“The museum” Hongjoong whispers, Seonghwa makes an oh shape with his mouth and turns his attention back to Rami.
“We have some books about dinosaurs if you want to read them” Seonghwa turns around and points towards the corner of the room where a bookcase stands. A few children are already sitting nearby with books in their hands. “Why don’t you pick one out and read it with the other kids?”
Rami’s eyes widen when Seonghwa mentions the books. Without another word he runs off into the classroom, bolting for the books.
Both Seonghwa and Hongjoong watch him run inside. Hongjoong is the first to look away, his eyes landing back on the teacher as he stands up straight.
Although he looks a lot kinder than his picture he would still not have guessed he was a teacher. Apart from the bunny ears he is still wearing, he looks almost gloomy when he rests his face.
His hair is once again slicked back, thick brows, full lips and black rimmed glasses resting on his nose.
His clothes are fully black. Black pants that almost look like the ones Hongjoong usually wears under his suits and a black turtleneck.
His hands come up to adjust the glasses on his face, a bunch of rings on his fingers. Hongjoong is mesmerized, staring at Seonghwa’s hands, lost in thought.
The teacher turns his attention back to him, “Park Seonghwa”
Hongjoong looks at him for a moment longer, “Kim Hongjoong”
“It’s nice to meet you, Rami seems like such an energetic boy”
Hongjoong laughs, “energetic is certainly one way to describe him, his previous teacher described him as a handful" Seonghwa laughs, and Hongjoong feels a warm feeling in his chest.
“Either way, he sounds like a fun kid to have in class” A smile cracks onto Hongjoong’s face, “Thank you” He takes a breath and looks at his kid in the corner reading a book. “I’m just afraid, the last few days he did not make many friends on the playgrounds. I don’t want him to be alone‘
He feels the teacher's eyes on him. He stays focussed on Rami, hoping he approaches another kid and talks to them instead of sitting by himself reading about dinosaurs. “My daughter is in this class, I’ll ask her to talk to him”
“Oh! No you don’t have to” Hongjoong snaps his head to the side, looking at the teacher standing next to him he notices that the other man is slightly taller than him.
“I don’t want you to force other children to talk to him, that would be unfair”
“Don’t worry mister Kim, Byeoli is a very social girl. She’ll love it if I ask her to introduce herself”
Hongjoong thinks back to the school website, it did mention Seonghwa had a daughter. He did not expect for the daughter to be in this class though.
“Which one is Byeoli?”
Seonghwa points to a few chairs, arranged to stand in a circle. A bunch of girls and boys are sitting on the chairs with dolls in their laps talking to each other.
“The one in the purple dress is my daughter”
Hongjoong’s eyes land on the girl in the purple dress. Her hair is put up in two pony tails. She is chatting away with the other children, holding her doll up to show to everyone.
“She’s cute”
Hongjoong says, a fond smile spreading on his face. Seonghwa laughs.
“Thank you, she refused to keep her doll home today. Told me she had to show it off to everyone”
Hongjoong nods his head “Yeah, I used to have to convince Rami every morning that taking his dinosaur out is not a good idea. Somehow I managed to get through to him”
They both laugh, it has been a while since Hongjoong felt this connected to someone. He does not have many parent friends, and the ones he does are still married.
He finds comfort in talking to someone that went through the same things as him, someone that is a single dad as well. It’s nice to have another dad to talk to that knows how difficult it is to raise a child on his own.
“Do you want my number?”
Hongjoong blinks in confusion “huh?” The teacher gets flustered, his ears turn a cute pink.
“I just meant… you must be nervous…” Seonghwa plays with the rings on his fingers nervously “I thought maybe I could keep you updated?” he looks between his hands and Hongjoong “On how Rami is doing…”
“Oh!” Hongjoong reaches inside his pocket and takes out his phone, he opens up a new contact. “Of course” He hands the phone to Seonghwa.
Without another word Seonghwa takes the phone and quickly types in his number and his name. He hands the phone back to Hongjoong.
Hongjoong sends a quick ‘Hi’ so Seonghwa can save his number as well. In the distance he hears a phone vibrate on the table.
On que the bell rings, a sign for Hongjoong to take off. “Thank you” He gives Seonghwa a nod, his eyes once more looking at the headband the teacher is wearing. He suppresses a laugh.
Before he turns around to walk away he watches as the teacher reaches up and feels at his head. He looks shocked when he wraps his hand around the bunny headband and yanks it off.
He quickly walks inside his classroom and closes the door.
Hongjoong is happy, he’s glad that Seonghwa is not what he was expecting him to be. He is glad that both Seonghwa and Wooyoung seem like good teachers for his boys.
He stumbles around the building for a bit more before a janitor helps him find the principal's office.
He greets Choi Jongho, as he remembers from the email. Apart from getting papers to sign, an explanation of what they are for and where to sign, he does not talk to the man.
Something about being busy and having to move on. Hongjoong does not know how busy the principal of such a small school could be but that is none of his business.
Despite it being none of his business he managed to catch an open chat on his computer before the principal closed it. All he saw was a name ‘Kang Yeosang’. He wonders how important that Kang Yeosang must be for the Principal to hurry him out of his office.
The drive home is silent, finally. He enters his apartment and for the first time in a week it's quiet. It feels much more foreign than it did the first time he came when he officially moved in.
Hongjoong takes his shoes off and looks around, so much to clean up. On top of the boxes that still need unpacking, the boys had made such a mess already.
“let’s get started”
He spends most of his day cleaning up, every hour he would get a picture from Seonghwa. Rami and Byeoli playing, sitting next to each other, talking, doing work. He would reply with an emoji, heart eyes, thumbs up, anything that would fit the picture.
Hongjoong waits for the pictures, he can’t get enough of his son enjoying his time at school.
In every single picture part of what seems to be Seonghwa’s thumb is in the shot. Hongjoong can’t help but smile at the older man’s photography skills.
He however can’t laugh too hard, he himself has to retake pictures quite often to make sure nothing he doesn’t want to be is in frame.
After 12 however the pictures stopped coming, He’s finishing up his dishes from lunch around 13:00 when he realises. He picks up his phone and opens Seonghwa’s chat, maybe his phone just did not give him a notification.
When he sees Seonghwa in fact had not sent him another picture he frowns, did something happen? He types out a quick ‘Everything okay?’ and sends it.
For another hour he does not get a response, Hongjoong gets more and more restless as the minutes tick by.
He has completely stopped unpacking, his mind too busy thinking about why his son’s teacher stopped sending him updates. After staring at his phone for what feels like hours it rings, an unknown number.
Hongjoong picks up, “Hello, Kim Hongjoong, how can I help you?”
“Hello mister Kim, Choi Jongho speaking”
Hongjoong feels the blood drain from his face, the principal calling him on both his boys first day cannot be good. His first thought is that Rami got in trouble, then he thinks back of Wooyoung assuring him he won't let anyone pick on Hongyo. What if it didn’t help?
Hongjoong is scared of the amount of things that could’ve happened to each of his boys. What if they both got into trouble?
“I would like to ask you to stop by after school today, Something happened between Rami and a girl in his class. Byeoli?”
Hongjoong can’t breathe
“What happened principal Choi?”
“Uhm… He hit her, we’ll talk more if you’re willing to stop by after class today”
“ah… Of course”
They exchange a quick goodbye and hang up. Hongjoong slowly lowers the phone from his ear.
His son, hit Byeoli, the daughter of his teacher, the daughter of someone Hongjoong could finally bond with.
Hongjoong is tired, he feels defeated.