Pursuit of a Santaroni (Chapter 3)
Title: Pursuit of a Santaroni 3/?
Author:
Genre: Fluff, AU (for this chapter)
Rating: PG-15. May go up~ (PG-13 for this Chapter)
Pairing(s): Haehyuk, Jongkey (More later)
Characters: Eunhyuk, Kyuhyun, Henry, Kibum, more to come...
Warnings: Child!Henry/Kyuhyun/Kibum. Though I wouldn't be alarmed by the youthful-ness. And Cursing. Only a small sexual implication.
Disclaimer: I own nothing but this fic/idea. I wish I owned more.
A/N: Boring chapter is boring.
Chapter(s): Character Intro. / 1 / 2
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-8:00 AM-
The large clock tower over at Pure Life Church chimes a little tune softly to notify the new hour.
The small district of SM Heights, purposefully located on the outskirts of Seoul and distinctly made up of four main streets and six side streets, happily prepares itself for another day. The local elementary, Gee Elementary, start their classes. Teachers begin to call off the names of all the good students who arrived on time. A few lively teens walk on their way to school, passing by the said elementary and laughing at the late children who are now getting scolded by the disciplinary. Parents rush on their way work, waving a quick hello to passing neighbors in their haste. The elderly groan and stretch their tired backs, slowly making their way to their individual posts around the corner to gossip tend a local shop. All simple routines while the refreshed sun shines down brightly.
It’s a lovely area; not quite big enough to be considered its own city, but large enough to be prosperous and home around 200 people. Even though its located on the outskirts of Seoul, Seoul’s local government has respected its founder’s wishes to be kept a secret, stay unknown to the public for the price of paying double the annual rent for the land and maintaining the forest/three sister parks surrounding it. SM Heights agreed instantly, appealing to the idea of still being considered part of Seoul without partaking in the bustle of the city life and rising crime rates.
Years passed and after all of the hard work, secret deals, screening of incoming residents/mailmen/teachers, and bribing the media and finally been finished, SM Heights became a very beautiful, thriving, and unknown community. Upon entering you would come across T Street, the street that encases it all. This curvaceous main street encircles the whole area with a long, tall, sturdy, vine-covered stone wall bordering its edge, cradling and protecting the peaceful community inside. An iron gate is promptly placed at the front to mark the entrance and exit to the establishment. R Street, A Street, and X Street will soon come into view, horizontally stretching long and straight to gracefully meet T Street in parallel union. Shops, markets, and a lovely vegetable garden lay on R Street, encouraging residents to support each local business with reasonable prices and great service. A Street was created for home owners and schools, planting itself smack dab in the middle to make it convenient for students to walk to their school. Lastly, X Street was specifically made for residential homes, ranging from one bedroom apartments to 4 bedrooms houses and a cute, petite library perched just around the corner.
It has anything and everything Key has ever wanted in a community.
The 25 year old brunette is now currently driving back home from dropping off the kids to prepare for another day at his home daycare, nodding politely at passing neighbors. He cheerfully hums the tune to Rania’s Masquerade while turning down X Street, almost reaching his beautiful three bedroom/ 2 bathroom house. The large, white, western styled house is simply lovely, tastefully furnished with the latest furniture and equipped with a lush front yard and an exotic back yard. Just thinking about his gorgeous home makes him want to squeal like a lovesick teenager~ he doesn’t think anything could ever bring him such happiness as this! Well, besides his kids, of course.
And Hyukjae’s kids.
And the neighborhood cat that sometimes walks by.
And maybe even that drama he watches every night at 7?
…
Is that it?
He scrunches up his face in thought while pausing at a stop sign. He's forgetting something, right? He purses his lips, thinking hard before a name suddenly pops into his head.
Ah! Right! Jonghyun-ah! Aigoo, silly me, forgetting my own boyfriend.. Ha he makes me happy too~ He chuckles aloud. For the most part, at least.
Kim Jonghyun.. Oh sure that idiot is the love of his life, and probably the only person he could ever NOT live without, but that man can be too much sometimes. Oh well.. He happily sighs. That’s love for you, and I definitely love that fool.
Thoughts improving his mood now that a certain lover was on his mind, he continues his drive home, mind trailing off to memories of just how difficult it was to even get in to live in this haven.
It’s a miracle really.
SM Heights is almost nearly impossible to find when it’s so tactfully isolated from society, no thanks to the three jointed large parks that completely hide its entrance way from any onlookers. Sister Gavy, Sister N, and Sister J Parks were well known for their nature paths, vast lakes, and how they dutifully overlap one another, almost as if it were shaped like the Olympic rings. One would actually have to drive around each park, circling until it reaches a dark and aged forest, ending all paved roads, before driving onto an unnoticeable dirt path towards a half-built bridge left forever ago to rot. If the bridge doesn’t throw you off, then one would drive underneath it to reach a pebble-studded pathway, make several lefts and rights all before making a sharp U-turn to the right to finally arrive to a somewhat frightening, pitch black, mysterious, leafy, shaded and inconspicuous hole. Coincidently big enough to fit two large family vans. If the fear doesn’t stop you in your tracks, although it most likely will for the ruthless amount of rumors of hauntings, monsters, ghosts, and murderous crazy people are very known to .. well.. everybody.. then one would enter that cave-like tunnel. Eventually, you’d have to wander around aimlessly inside that tunnel for a few minutes in the dark, make two sharp left turns and then viola! the gate to SM Heights.
Purely a miracle, yes?
It must have been fate.
He honestly accidently stumbled upon it two years ago. 23, tired, and walking aimlessly around Sister N (the middle park) in search of his good friend’s cat, he wound up getting lost in the hundreds of trees. With his cell phone losing signal, he walked where he thought was back-tracking, and somehow found his way into the leafy cave, curiosity peaking when he thought he heard laughter echoing inside of it. Children’s laughter? It was creepy; the sun was setting and cool breeze went past his neck and made the diva’s arms feel prickly. Why would children play in such a scary-looking cave? He must find them! Save them before a kidnapper rapes them! Then scold them for going somewhere so dangerous.
A white and creamy brown rabbit idly hops by, mindlessly bouncing its way into the tunnel’s mouth.
HE MUST SAVE THE RABBIT TOO!
Despite his thoughts of the forest being full of rapists out to get him, the children, AND the bunny, he walked towards the spooky echoes of giggles, the darkness engulfing him completely. He had to use his cell phone’s light in order to not trip, hands feeling the vine covered wall [at least he hoped they were vines], and turned left. Afraid to use his voice he mutely followed the wall, cursing himself in his head and deciding maybe he should just go back. He sharply turned left and found himself in front of a large, iron gate.
Before curiosity could even flow into him, the gate opened and he yelped, startled before barely dodging a car that sped off out the cave.
Yet he could care less about the car.
Sunlight poured onto him as he walked in, eyes growing wide when he saw the vast community before him. There were children playing in their front yards, a teen girl walking her dog while busying herself gossiping to her friend, grandfathers reading the newspaper in a rocking chair on their front porch, mothers watering their gardens and keeping a keen eye on their little ones~ it almost like a makeshift heaven for ideal neighborhoods. There was a sense of serenity and peace unlike any other, completely surrounding the area; a huge contrast from the poverty he knew too well from his childhood in the city.
He saw a security office next to the gate and immediately asked to speak to the person in charge.
He was brought to an elderly couple, one of the few last founders to the land, and stated his interest. After a thorough background check, interview, screening, AND drug test [within 4 hours for the elderly woman ‘knew’ people], he was invited to consider renting one of the two houses about to go for rent. Key didn’t hesitate in his answer. He called his bank (luckily the new area had reception), transferred all of his life savings into their account, signed the lease and contract of secrecy, and determinedly placed a down payment on them both, deciding right then and there that is where he and Hyukjae were going to live.
Hyukjae, 24 years old at the time, newly divorced, and constantly struggling to even pay for food on the table for his three children nearly cried when Key told him the news. He wasn't sure if he should thank his good friend for being so thoughtful, or sob at the idea of having to now pay such a large amount of rent for the one bedroom house offered to him. As soon as he made up his mind to just refuse the gesture, Key instantly smacked him on the back of his head and said he (meaning his boyfriend Jonghyun) would pay for his first year’s rent until he can get things together, strongly declaring it’s payback for all the kindness he’s ever received. Plus Hyukjae’s the only one from high school who stayed being his friend despite his diva-ish ways. Key had given that look that said he wasn't going to back down. Hyukjae just cried, tears streaming past his pink cheeks and humble smile upon his face, hugging his dear friend.
And that was that.
Once Key made a decision there is nothing anybody could ever do that could ever change his mind.
Ever.
But Jonghyun wouldn’t hear of it. Why would he? Sure he loves Key to death and was ecstatic when his boyfriend of five years said they were finally going to move in together, especially after three long years of asking, but there’s no way, right? And sure, his job as a musical tutor for ten of Seoul’s top richest pre-teens paid him off better than the average successful business man [for each pre-teen, mind you], but that’s his hard earned money. He would never agree to pay rent for not only is own three bedroom house [since Key wanted to run a daycare center at home for a living], but for TWO houses, just because his boyfriend said so?
There’s no way, right?
HA.
Key made a deal with his fuming boyfriend.
Flashback
Jonghyun spat his drink out onto the kitchen table. He couldn’t believe his ears.
“What?! Seriously??!!”
Key scoffed and crossed his arms in slight annoyance, disgusted at the sight of his stupid boyfriend with soda all over his face and the mess on the table, but nodded regardless.
Jonghyun couldn’t believe his luck. Sex anywhere? Anytime? Any way? EVERY time? For a whole YEAR?! How can he possibly say no?! Key was extremely stingy when it comes to, as he likes to puts it, making love, feeling relationships would last longer if he always kept the other wanting and desperate. But who, with a healthy sex-drive and a ridiculously sexy as hell boyfriend, can live off of just ONCE every TWO MONTHS?? Jonghyun was wanting. And dear God he was so, so, so desperate.
“Or...” Key interludes, lips turning into an innocent, sweet smile. “You know, we can just.. you know.. never do it again~ You know I don’t mind loving you platonically and all,” Key said added sweetly, getting up to go around and kiss Jonghyun softly on the cheek before turning to start cleaning up the sticky mess the soda-spit created.
Jonghyun growled angrily and dragged Key up to his bedroom. Like hell they’d never do it again.
End Flashback
And so, for the next year, after they settled into their brand new place, Key bravely pulled through his end of the deal like the real man he was. He followed through every ridiculous demand, obeyed every order, submitted to every desire, and fulfilled everywish, all without a single word of complaint. For a whole year.
Jonghyun was literally, all in all, thoroughly fucked sated.
Now, two years later, Jonghyun is still paying Hyukjae’s rent. He was that satisfied.
Key lets a small smirk tug on his thin lips as he pulls into his driveway, loving the fact things has gone exactly as planned. Leaving people wanting and desperate always got him what he wants.
Always.
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Henry guiltily looks down on the floor. “It’s cuz’ him missed the ball and then it broke.”
“Noooo~ not ‘him’, it’s ‘he’.”
“He! It’s cuz’ he missed the ball. Then it broke Key ajussi.”
“Aw it’s okay Henr- Yah! How many times do I have to tell you to call me Uncle Key!”
Henry giggles, a tad bit delighted at his caretaker’s change of face. “I know Uncle Key~ but you make funny faces when I call you that.”
“It’s called ‘pouting’ my dear Henry.”
“Pouting.. Yeah you do ‘pouting’ a lot! Appa does ‘pouting’ a lot too. So does Kyuhyunnie hyung~” He giggles again.
Key smiles and picks up Henry, taking him outside to go walk in his backyard.
He absolutely loves the one on one time he gets with the child. One ‘o’clock is when all the young children leave his home daycare, leaving Henry and him to talk and explore things together until his dad gets back. Henry’s extremely bright for his age, his language and social development broadening noticeably every day. Not only is the kid a music prodigy, able to work his small, nimble fingers around to miraculously play the violin, but he breathes in knowledge like a fish breathes in water, always excited to learn more things and experience the world.
And Key, being the Early Child Development Major he is, is more than happy to give it to him.
One thing he loves about Hyukjae’s kids is the fact that they all love to learn. He's worked with them since Kibummie was born.
Kibum was quick to love reading and writing at the early age of three, terribly fascinated by books and excelling at puzzles and memory games. He wasn’t in much for socializing though, preferring to keep to himself, and always found it hard to communicate with others.
Kyuhyun on the other hand, was good with his social skills, loving to make the other kids feel inferior to his enhanced skill of knowing more insults than the other. He wasn’t able to make many friends besides Zhou Mi and Amber, but he excelled at numbers and strategies, enhancing his cognitive ability with Checkers, Children’s Monopoly, and Sudoku. Gamekyu was his name and winning is his game.
Now there is little Henry, who not only carries the Musical Intelligence [courtesy of Howard Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences], but is really the best when it comes to being positive and interacting with others. At the early age three, most children are egocentric or self-centered, not in the negative way, but by being able to only see from their point of view, unable to comprehend or understand how others can feel unless told through means of relating it to themselves. Though Henry seems to kick Piaget’s Stages of Development in the face and say ‘I can understand how you feel dummy.’ His vocabulary and grammar also just doubles naturally and exceeds every time he communicates with his two hyungs, for they would talk and play with him constantly. He isn’t very good with math concepts or reading, but he never gives up, working his hardest to remember how to count to twenty the right way. He’s still three, and his imagination absolutely loves to go wild.
Henry starts to play with Key’s hair, enjoying the sleek strands of brown before resting his head on Key’s shoulder.
“Does this mean Uncle Jonghyun’s going to get in trouble when he comes back home? We didn’t mean to break the lamp. The lamp didn’t liked us anyway..”
Key chuckles and gently caresses the child’s back, soothingly drawing circles. It’s about time for his nap anyway.
“It’s ok, I’m sure you two were just playing around. Does it feel good outside Henry-ah?”
Henry nods quietly, eye lids drooping as Key sits on the porch swing, swaying gently back and forth as the sun warms his back. He softly begins to suck on his thumb, clinging onto Key’s sweater as he nuzzles his face into his caregiver’s neck, letting himself be lulled into slumber.
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Key smiles as he tucks Henry into Zhou Mi’s bed, placing the blanket lightly over his sleeping figure. He always had no problem taking care of Hyukjae’s boys. It’s been eight years since the day he first met his precious best friend; his hair was a natural, deep brown, quite healthy unlike his own rainbow streaked hair. They were both awkward teenagers in their shared Korean Literature class, somewhat breaking the ice when they had 10 minutes before the teacher came back, and found that they were both frustrated with unrequited loves.
Hyukjae was pitifully sulking about how the gorgeous new girl in his History class had blatantly ignored him when he tried to ask for her number, whereas Key had been banging his head on the desk on how that charmingly annoying dinosaur-looking guy in his Music class was just so stupid.
Flashback
“-and then he just looked at me! JUST STARED at me! And that IDIOT just HAD the BALLS to ask ‘Uhh.. So does this mean you need help or not?’ I wanted to strangle him! STRANGLE HIM. HE IS SO STUPID! I AM SO DONE WITH HIM!” Key pulled at his hair frustratingly, finishing his story about what happened when he called his crush Jonghyun over and tried to flirt with him.
Hyukjae pursed his nicely-shaped, plump pink lips in a quiet wince at Key’s frustration. His long, sleek brown hair fell naturally over his single lidded eyes when he sympathetically nodded that yes, Jonghyun really is stupid and yes, he deserves to be strangled.
Then those innocent eyes widened when something seemed to come to his attention.
“Wait- Key-ssi You’re gay?”
Insert stupefied, baffled look.
Key stiffened, mistaking the shocked look for a look of disgust and felt insulted. His annoyance level rose tenfold as the bitchy diva in him kicked in. Am I.. GAY?! The fuck?! Four years, FOUR freaking YEARS every single student in this god forsaken school runs around, calling me fag and what not, and he’s just BARELY realizing I’m GAY?!?! The FUC- WHO the HELL is he trying to fool here???
Dark feline eyes narrowed dangerously as he got ready to pounce on Hyukjae and tear him to pieces.
Hyukjae gulped at the glare and shrunk a bit in embarrassment, sensing the frightening aura coming off of his classmate yet still oblivious to the reasons why. Was it something he said? He cleared his throat and tried to explain himself.
“Well..You see.. Well because I hear a lot of things and..” Hyukjae trailed off, feeling the threatening gaze become much more terrifying. He had the sudden urge to hide.
Key’s eyes darkened as he stared murderously at the squirming brunette, looking very much like a pissed off panther.
“Why yes, Lee Eunhyuk, I am. Is this going to be some sort of.. problem Eunhyuk-ssi?” he challenged, eyes daring and full of venom as he steeled himself, ready to jump the boy if he says even the slightest thing wrong.
Hyukjae averted his eyes down to his lap and shifted uncomfortably in his seat. I don’t get it.. Why is he so mad? Maybe he thinks I’ve insulted him? He fiddled with the seam of their school uniform’s blazer, feeling suddenly guilty for making the other angry like this. How could he be so insensitive? He looked back up and tries to explain himself once again.
“N-No, Key-ssi, I was just a-asking. I really d-didn’t k-know.. I mean I know you’re really pretty and all, b-but.. but I’m not one t-to listen to gossip s-so.. So I-I’m r-really sorry.. Honestly.. I didn’t k-know..” Hyukjae looked down in shame and bit his lip, trying hard not to cry in front of the latter. Curse his sensitivity. He wouldn’t be really manly if he did that now, would he?
Key’s glare softened, feeling the sincerity in those soft, stuttered words. Plus Hyukjae just called him pretty. He instantly relaxed his posture with a soft chuckle and tilted his head in cheerful amusement to watch the other.
Hyuk heard the chuckle and glanced up only to look down again, hair hiding his face as his bashful side instantly kicked in. He lightly smiled to himself. At least the other wasn’t upset anymore.
Key grinned, thinking the latter was kind of cute when he’s shy. He yawned and stretched with dramatic laziness before putting an arm on the brunette’s shoulders, rewarding him with a playful hug.
“Good, because I like you. You’re sweet and you’re a good listener. Would you like to be friends Eunhyuk-ssi? You should come over and hang out this weekend.. We could make cookies! I happen to be a hell of a cookie maker.”
Key smiled brightly, making Eunhyuk turn a bit pink in embarrassment. Regardless of his sexual orientation, he had to admit Key was awfully pretty when he smiled.
He shyly smiled back, pink gums poking out making Key smile wider at its sweet innocence.
“Sure. I’d like that.”
End Flashback
He grins in remembrance as he finishes picking up the last toy on the floor. Hyukjae was such a sweet, innocent soul before he met her. That god-awful woman. He scowls as he secretly wishes she could burn in hell, his happy mood growing dark. The bitch broke his best friend. He swears if he ever comes across that witch ever again, he’ll rip her apart. Torture her. Make her feel the pain of what she left when she left his best friend. And then dump her out to drown in the seas so she would understand just how many tears her children had cried, how many wasted beautiful, pure drops of remorse poured out for her as Hyukjae took the beating, being left to fix the damage her selfishness brought.
Stupid whore.. You better pray to never see me again.
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A/N: So you just got a glimpse at Hyuk's neighbor and best friend, Key. And yes, some more Henry action haha (I can't help it, he's cute) but no worries! Haehyuk action in the next chapter!
A nickle for a pickle?