(no subject)
Title: Jay 'verse'
Author: Virgo
Rating: PG
Genre: A bit of Angst, Original Character death
Summary: Jay is only 15 weeks old when Cissy dies. Featuring Single!Father Yunho.
I know it's called the Jay 'verse' but it's just a oneshot. The short drabbles in the verse are separated by the ~~ in the fic. It's a kid!fic, so yes, there is a child involved. It's not mpreg.
Why did I write this: Because I have no life and refuse to study, ultimately ending with a big fat FAIL on my exams. No but seriously this idea has been driving me crazy for a long time. I just had to get it out of my head. Originally a Kyusung fic but I felt it would be better as a Homin
~~
Jay is only 15 weeks old when Cissy dies.
The funeral was a bleak affair, the soft spray of rain and grim, grey clouds above all added to the perfect gloomy setting for the occasion. Luckily they had constructed a small white tent for those who were attending. Most people didn’t quite fit under it and therefore left early as the coffin was lowered into the ground. Others fetched umbrellas from their vehicles but Yunho hadn’t looked away long enough from his fiancé’s grave to care.
He stood in the drizzle, water rolling off the tips of his hair that was currently matted to his head like a wet rag. His eyes were burning, he didn’t know whether it was from the unshed tears or the drips of water flowing into them, but he kept them open, refusing to miss the last few moments Cissy’s body would spend above ground.
Another couple of minutes pass after the coffin is covered with mounds of dirt, he begins to hear Jay’s fussy crying from behind him and it’s only then he looks behind him. As he watches as his mother try to calm Jay’s insistent cries, Yunho quickly strides forward. Toward his son, the only part of his fiancé he had left; a precious physical gift that was given to them, one that was still a part of his life.
Despite how miserable he felt, Yunho swallowed the large lump in his throat, putting on a brave front for his son. Jay was all he had left. Sure he had his parents and other friends who would want to help out, but that was all just temporary. In the end he would have to eventually make it on his own for both his and Jay’s sake.
His mother doesn’t hand Jay to him when he’s finally in front of her. He can understand why. His clothes are soaking wet, his hands are freezing and from the way she is looking at him Yunho assumes he must look dreadful. Thankfully, Jay’s cries seem to dampen a little in his presence; his son hiccups a little from time to time but is otherwise quiet.
“I think it’s time we went home” his mother tells him.
~~
His mother and father stay at his apartment for about a week before Yunho gets fed up of their constant pestering and kicks them out. He loves his parents to death but if he’s going to start over, he’s going to have to pick up the pieces on his own. His focus is mainly on Jay, he has to be strong for Jay.
When his parents finally do leave, promising to call everyday, Yunho goes to the main bedroom where his son is asleep in the tiny cot that Cissy had forced Yunho to buy because she thought it looked adorable.
He smiles a little as he recalls the memory of her putting on a cute pout as she begs him to buy the awful looking cot. The thing had 3D Hello Kit plushies for Godsake.
“I do not want my son sleeping in a Hello Kitty infested trap” he had teased, his face set in mock sternness.
Yunho doesn’t realize he’s crying at first. Then the signs become more predominate, his throat gets all clogged, his nose immediately starts automatically making sniffling sounds, his bottom lip is wobbling, his tears warm and wet against his face.
Bracing his forehead against the handrail of Jay’s ugly crib, Yunho sobs. It’s the only sound he hears in the apartment and he realizes how terrified he suddenly is of being on his own.
~~
A few days later, Jay starts crying with a fury for no obvious reason. His noise subsides for a while and Yunho breathes a sigh of relief. Another couple of minutes later his son is wailing his lungs out.
In a mode of panic, Yunho rushes him to the hospital.
The doctor say it’s just colic and that it would past.
After four more days of endless crying and trying to soothe his baby, Yunho finds himself worn out and at the end of his rope.
He shoves his back up against the ball, holding Jay who is still crying at the top of his lungs. Yunho’s legs collapse under him and he slides down the wall until he’s sitting on the floor.
“I’m trying my best” his voice is so soft he can barely hear it himself over the sound of Jay’s burden.
As the sun sets on their day, Yunho and Jay bawl their eyes out in front of each other.
~~
“Dah! I wanna this one” Jay tries and manages to hold up a large box of chocolate cereal with his small hands.
“Jay! Be careful with that” Yunho warns, making sure to keep a close eye on his son while he bends to pick up some milk.
He hears Jay’s awkward pitter pattering feet as they close the short distance between father and son. At some point his son drops the cereal box and spends the next 2 minutes trying to pick it back up properly.
Yunho grabs Jay around his waist, lifting the 3 year old to his sit on his hips. He picks up the cereal, pretending to read the front of the box, which is just a large picture of a rather happy looking green dinosaur.
“Hm. This looks nice, but Jay, we’ve already picked up your favorite box of cereal” Yunho points to the other cereal box that is resting in their trolley.
Jay makes a pouty face, one that could easily rival Cissy’s.
“Cah Jay ‘ave all?”
Suppressing a smile, Yunho thinks it over. Their budget probably wouldn’t allow it, but he figures that if he buys two boxes now, then they would last Jay twice as long, preventing Yunho from having to make another long trip to the store.
He nudges his face between Jay’s collarbone, blowing raspberries that cause his son to giggle hysterically.
“Alright champ, you win”
Puppy dog brown eyes glisten with joy and Jay grins proudly, “Jay always wins”
Yunho pouts, “Only because your daddy has a soft spot for…”
Someone clears their throat behind them and Yunho turns away from Jay.
The younger man behind them looks sheepish as he scratches the back of his head,
“I’m sorry to interrupt but uh can you…”
Yunho unconsciously licks his lips as he studies the other man. He knows exactly who the person is. Although they had never been formally introduced up close, Yunho had spent enough time analyze his new neighbor from afar to be able to recognize him from this angle. The women on his floor had said the young man’s name was Shim Changmin and that he was some kind of violent gangsta who was running a brothel in his apartment.
However, Yunho was pretty sure that was all mindless fangirl gossip. Leave it to the people living their building to spun wild tales about their new neighbor rather than getting to know him.
Snapping back to reality Yunho says, “Uh yes, um, you’re Changmin, right?”
The younger man seems surprised by the fact that Yunho knew his name.
‘Way to look like a sex offender’ Yunho berates himself for being so bold.
“Uh, yeah, yes that’s my name. Have…do we know each other?” Changmin points a finger back and forth between them. Yunho is shaking his head when Jay introduces himself.
“Ello, I’m Jay! I am thwee ears old” Jay promptly holds up 5 fingers, looking proud at his accomplishment. Changmin chuckles heartily at Jay’s antic and Yunho finds himself entranced by the man’s husky laugh.
‘Would you snap out of it?’
It’s been three years since Cissy’s accident and although the thought of dating while still taking care of Jay scared him a little, Yunho had come a long way in discovering his appreciation of the male body. He had never actually been with a man, but he had accepted that he could see himself being attracted to another male.
Changmin leans forward until he’s face to face with Jay,
“Well, hello Jay. My name is Changmin. And I’m…” he holds up both hands, wiggling all ten fingers.
Jay’s eyes widen dramatically and he turns to Yunho with a new urgency, “That’s a lot, daddy” he points to Changmin’s hands then glances back at the younger boy, shaking his head, “You not older than my daddy. He’s like, like uh bizallion ears old”
Yunho hangs his head, listening to Changmin amused giggle.
“He looks handsome still though, right?” Yunho heart jumps a little from being called handsome.
Jay perks up, “Daddy is the prettiest! Aunty Ber say so”
Curse Amber and her influence on his son’s vocabulary.
“You’re our neighbor” Yunho blurts out as he places Jay inside of the little basket at the top of the trolley, ensuring that his son was comfortable before turning to face Changmin again.
The younger man straightens his back, his height once again just a few inches above Yunho.
“Really?” he smiles, “I, I’m still kind of new to the building, haven’t had the chance to settle in and meet the neighbors yet. I must seem like a prick right?” Changmin grimaces at his word choice, looking at Jay with guilt written all over his face. Thankfully Jay has had enough of grown up talk and is trying to remove the buttons from Yunho’s cellphone.
Yunho snorts, waving him off, “Nah, we give you at least 2 weeks to settle in before we start calling you a prick”
Changmin smiles sharply, “Of course. Well, you know my name…”
It takes a few moments to register what Changmin had trailed off for and Yunho immediately stops grinning like a loon and introduces himself.
“I’m in apartment 345” he adds.
The taller man states, “Wow, I’m in 343”
As if Yunho hadn’t already known that from all the sexy-new-neighbor stalking he did. He blamed Yoona, the girl who lived in 340, for her encouragement in the whole spying on Changmin ordeal.
“Anyways I came here to pick up some coffee” Changmin smiles softly and it’s so contagious Yunho smiles back.
They probably spend a long number of uncomfortable seconds like this before Changmin clears his throat,
“You’re blocking it” he states matter-of-factly.
It’s then Yunho realizes what Changmin had originally intended to ask from the beginning. A little jerky in his movements Yunho manages to step aside, allowing Changmin to swoop down and grab one of the large coffee containers.
“Thank you. It was nice meeting you two. Buh bye Jay” Changmin ruffles the three year olds already messy black hair. He grins when he locks eyes with Yunho again, “See you around?”
Yunho nods, “Definitely”
He expects to meet Changmin at the cashier’s desk but the other man has apparently already left.
~~
As luck would have it, as soon as they exit the train station, the entire place is positively raining cats and dogs, the night air cold against his face. Yunho doesn’t have his umbrella on hand and so they end up having to shelter the rain for what seemed like forever.
Jay starts getting fussy after the first 20 minutes of them just standing there mixed between a crowd.
“Jay, please, behave for daddy please” he warns his son softly. The boy, who is now trying to tug himself out of Yunho’s hold, releases a loud whimpering sound.
Yunho sighs, shifting the two large groceries bags into one hand. He bends slightly, wraps an arm around Jay’s waist and lifts his son. Jay immediately wraps his tiny legs around Yunho’s torso, burying his face into daddy’s neck.
“M’tired dah”
The rain doesn’t show any sign of letting up anytime soon and it takes all of his strength and patience not to curse at the weather.
Thankfully it does indeed hold up half an hour later and with his jacket draped over Jay’s sleeping body, Yunho charges onto the sidewalk with purpose in his steps.
He just wants to arrive at home.
Jay isn’t a baby anymore and his weight is a little too much for Yunho’s grip. Somehow he manages not drop the grocery bags. They’re another 25 to 30 minutes away from home when a loud car horn honks right beside him.
Jay is a bit startled by it but doesn’t wake up. Yunho doesn’t pay much mind to it until it honks again. He doesn’t recognize the vehicle but it’s just cruising slowly directly beside him and it’s a bit unnerving. He shifts Jay’s weight a bit more to one side and begins walking faster.
“Yunho! Yunho! It’s me, Changmin”
This causes Yunho to pause. The vehicle now has the passenger window rolled down and surely enough Changmin’s bright grin is staring up at him.
“I didn’t know you had to walk? Or I would’ve offered to take you guys home. Um, would you like a ride?”
Yunho wants to say that they’re almost there, but his arms are aching and it really is an offer he can’t refuse.
When they get to the building, Changmin offers to hold Jay while Yunho grabs his keys to unlock his door. He carries in the bags inside first, and then comes back out to retrieve his son.
“Thank you so much” he praises the younger man for what seems like the 14th time since Changmin picked him up.
Changmin once again waves him off, “It was no problem. Anytime”
When Yunho disappears into his bedroom to set Jay down under the covers he returns to find Changmin still lingering in his open doorway.
Without the security of his son, Yunho feels a little exposed. He knows if he were to look around his apartment he would see various messes that needed to be cleaned, therefore he keeps his eyes on Changmin.
“Um. Do, would you like uh, something to drink?” he grimaces when he considers what he has in the fridge. He wonders if Changmin would like a juice box.
Shoving both his hands into his pockets, Changmin shrugs, “I’ve, got some studying to do…”
Yunho heart plummets at the excuse. It shouldn’t really matter all that much if the man wanted to get away from him. They’ve spent enough time in each other’s company as it is.
“Okay, okay”
“I’m not, I’m not trying to blow you off or anything. It’s just that I really do have a lot of studying to do. Uni is kicking my ass. But I’ll, I’ll come back for that drink”
“All I have is apple juice boxes that Jay takes to daycare” Yunho babbles nervously.
Changmin chuckles quietly, grinning when he locks eyes with Yunho, “That just happens to be my favorite”
Yunho gives him a goofy lopsides smile, “Really? I can only give you one though. Jay would smite with his deadly pout if he saw me giving out his juice”
“Then you’ll just have to smuggle my supply on the down low” he places a finger over his lips and makes a shushing sound.
They share a pleasant laugh together.
“Goodnight Yunho” he gives Yunho a little wave, moving to close the door behind him.
“Goodnight Changmin”
~~~
I know that there's probably a bunch of things that aren't explain to the fullest but they are just drabbles in Yunho's life with Jay. Maybe if I ever get the plot bunny juices again I'll write a longer version to it. And if you know me, then you know just how long and drawn out I can make a fic *sigh*