Mr. Bang and Mr. Cheese
Pairing: BangDae/HimLo (also lots of little Jongup with everyone)
Rated: PG13 (no smut but lots of naughty words)
Length: 6.2K
Prompt: I deviated a little from the original prompt and tags but it was still the main inspiration for the whole fic.
If he'd had his way then the party would have been at the park. It's the middle of summer, it's beautiful out, the playground was brand new and they lived just three blocks away. Unfortunately his son had the biggest puppy face in the world and the saddest eyes when he didn’t get his way.
"I hate this place." Yongguk grumbled to his brother as they hauled the first of many party supplies through the door. "If hell had a name it would be Chuck E. Cheese."
Junhong rolled his eyes behind his older brother's back. "You're just mad I passed on the patented pouty face to the kid. Not my fault that thing works every single time. It's a skill that took years of training."
"Jongup's five."
"And completely awesome."
They dropped the plastic Pokémon tablecloth and decorations onto the table reserved for them and headed back to the car for another load. This time Yongguk had a face covered with balloons and a hip full of wriggly birthday boy when they came back in.
"Grandma said the party started in thirty minutes so we needed to be here early!"
"Grandma also goes to the doctor an hour early and shows up at church when it's still dark outside. Never listen to grandma."
"Grandma is right here and has a piñata bat so watch your mouth."
Jongup kicked at his father's kneecaps until Yongguk dropped him to the floor. "Can I play now? Please? With Uncle Junhong?"
They both stuck out their bottom lips in identical expressions that both annoyed Yongguk and yet also made him want to pinch their cheeks.
"No ball pit." He told them sternly. "That thing's probably covered in poop and vomit and God knows what else."
He watched his son grab Junhong by the hand and tug him towards the jungle gym in the corner. The height restriction posted on the side meant Junhong shouldn't have been allowed inside in over fifteen years but it never failed to stop his oversized brother.
---
The manager on duty watched the lanky giant crawl into the slide and start climbing his way through the ropes. "He's back."
"Who?"
Himchan pointed to the boy now shaking the rope bridge making the kid behind him laugh. "That asshole. He comes in at least twice a month and crawls all over the play place no matter how many times I tell him to stop." He could hear Daehyun grunting behind him and remembered he was supposed to be helping him into his costume. "Sorry. Put your arms out."
Daehyun waited until the giant rat head was on before replying. "He's having a good time. Just let them play."
"But it's for kids half his sized. He'll break the tubes!"
"You've done all this complaining about him when you could have been spending it staring at his ass when he climbs up the rock wall. I'm ashamed of you."
Himchan's head snapped sideways to see what exactly Daehyun was talking about. Every time they came in he spent the entire time growing more and more furious and hadn't even stopped to consider that the man might be worth a second glance. He stared for a heartbeat too long for it to be considered a coincidence before turning away. "Not like it's a nice ass or anything anyways. He's too skinny."
"For him to be climbing that wall that quickly I'd say there's a lot of muscle hiding under those tight p-"
"Just go do your job!" He jerked the oversized head out of Daehyun's hands and pushed it over his face again. "And stop taking off the mask. The kids are supposed to think Chuck E. Cheese is real and you're ruining the magic."
Daehyun was already sweating under the thirteen pounds of vintage fur and scratchy material. He all of a sudden regretted reprogramming the animatronic characters to play R. Kelly songs on his last shift. Sure watching the giant purple monkey sing Snake was the funniest thing ever, but when Himchan found out it was him he ordered him to dress-up duty for the rest of the month.
"How many parties do we have today? Please say less than five."
"Nine." Himchan was still trying to sneak a glance at the jungle gym because now that Daehyun had brought it to his attention that ass was all he could think about. "Do you think that's his kid he always shows up with? He looks too young."
"I don't really care if it's his grandkid. I'm sweating my balls off and this thing smells like urine."
When he finally managed to drag Himchan away from the security cameras it was half past eleven and the first birthday party of the day was starting. Daehyun hated party duty but at least he got a small break in between them where he could take everything off and douse his head in the sink.
The only way he could see was to look through the thin mesh at the back of Chuck E.'s mouth and it was only a hazy viewpoint so thankfully Himchan led him around so that he didn't run into anything. One time another performer had tripped and fell into a birthday cake and traumatized the child so badly that Himchan had been forced to put her on bathroom duty. The only thing worse than being in the costume was cleaning the bathrooms. She had quit two days later.
"Okay it's a little boy about five or six. Just a couple of children, mainly adults. Oh great." Himchan stopped him just before he rounded the corner into the party room. "It's the jerk's kid. Oh my god I can't stop staring at his butt now. I hate you Jung Daehyun."
"Chuck E. Cheese!" A high-pitched voice screeched excitedly just before Daehyun was squeezed around the middle. He couldn't lower his head to see below him but he could hear giggles of happiness coming from the little boy. "You're here!"
He wasn't allowed to talk to the customers while wearing the suit but he, along with every new hire, had sat through the introductory training lesson so he knew to wave his arms around and dance on his feet in response.
"It's my birthday and I'm five now." The boy finally let him go and took a step back so that Daehyun could get somewhat of a look at him. A tiny little thing and cute as can be, he thought to himself. "My name is Jongup and my daddy told my grandma that you're the reason parents turn to alcohol."
Daehyun stifled a snort behind the mask but Himchan turned towards his mystery man in outrage. "Excuse me?"
The tall man, and was apparently abnormally tall because all Daehyun could see of him through the mesh was his shoulders, jumped backwards with his hands outstretched. "Don't look at me I'm just the uncle! I bring him here so much because Yongguk refuses. And I love you Mr. Cheese!"
The fingers around Daehyun's wrists loosened a little once Himchan realized his newly-formed crush wasn't already a father. "For your information, we provide quality entertainment at a value price. Our company works hard to give smiles to every person that walks through the door."
"You make my Uncle Junhong smile. He says making you mad is the best part of coming h-" Jongup's words were muffled from the hand suddenly wrapped around his mouth. He bit at the palm until Junhong let go with a yelp. "Your hand tastes like chocolate milk."
"Can we please just finish this party so I can go home and take a nap?" A new voice spoke up from behind Jongup. Daehyun tilted his mask back to get a better view of the owner of the deep voice. Even though he was also tall he was thankfully shorter than Jongup's uncle and Daehyun figured this was the real father of the birthday boy. The slender fingers that were tenderly brushing Jongup's bangs out of his face led straight to a tired face complete with pursed lips and furrowed brows.
"Fuck. Me." Daehyun accidentally muttered under his breath before Himchan stomped on his left paw. Jongup's daddy was way too hot to not be married but even through the netting Daehyun couldn't see a ring on his finger and there didn't look to be any women nearby that weren't grandmotherly age or already with someone. He was finally glad to be hidden behind the thick costume because he could stare as hard as he wanted and no one could see him.
When Jongup reached for him again he held out an oversized paw and took the tiny fingers in his own. "Thank you for coming to my birthday party Mr. Cheese. Do you want to help me blow out my candles?"
He really was just supposed to make an appearance at the table and then do a slow walk through the store so other kids could see him but Daehyun nodded anyway because the hope in the little boy's eyes was too hard to resist.
The cake was the same flavorless white cake they served at every party but Jongup's father had replaced the cheap candles with green ones surrounding a thick number five one.
"Green's my favorite color." Jongup told Daehyun as he pulled him behind the table. "What's yours?" Daehyun pointed to the candles. "Same as me!"
Red was actually his favorite but he loved how it had made Jongup clap his hands together.
"Do you want us to sing to you?" Yongguk pushed the cake in front of him and grabbed the camera in the center of the table. "You wouldn't let us on your last birthday."
Jongup chewed on his lower lip and shyly shook his head. "I don't like the singing daddy."
Yongguk grinned for the first time since Daehyun had come out and it completely transformed his stern expression. The smile was wide and loving and saved only for his son. Daehyun didn't understand why he liked that so much.
"We won't do it then." He told his son softly. "Just make a wish and blow out the candles."
The cake was nudged a little closer to Daehyun by Jongup. "You make a wish, too."
He thought maybe his wish was a little too R-rated for the occasion but he appreciated that Jongup wanted to include him so Daehyun closed his eyes and mouthed what he wanted most in the world right then.
"I want the scary manager to kiss Uncle Junhong." Jongup whispered beside him before he blew out his candles.
That is a wish I can help make come true, Daehyun thought as he patted Jongup's head and watched Himchan awkwardly standing behind everyone and keeping his eyes on the ceiling.
---
By the time they made it back to the office and Daehyun was able to pry the heavy mask off his head he was drenched in sweat and so thirsty that he powered through two bottles of water before pulling the rest of the costume off.
"You're lucky no one heard you talking to yourself." Himchan chastised him. Even though he was trying to be authoritative he never moved his gaze from the security camera hanging from the ceiling. "And remember you have to stay in-character so try not to get single daddy boners while on the job."
"You're one to talk. You want to play hide the pepperoni with Junhong's pizza."
Himchan scowled at him over his shoulder. "That doesn't even make any sense. Is the pizza his butt or his penis?"
"You know." Daehyun winked at him. "Besides at least he wants you. Single Daddy is obviously straight and doesn't even know what I look like." He watched the camera overlooking the party room so that he could see Yongguk blindfolding Jongup and handing him the piñata stick. "Since when do I go for dads?"
"Since you found one with a voice that makes your penis dance."
Daehyun grimaced at him. "Can you stop saying penis so much? It's making me really uncomfortable." When Jongup swung the wrong direction and hit his uncle in the knees Daehyun laughed out loud. "I like that kid. He's cute."
Probing eyes narrowed his direction. "Maybe it's not just that he's a hot dad? Maybe you're finally growing up and are looking for someone responsible who is raising a sweet kid?" They watched Junhong wrench the stick out of Jongup's hands and try to grab his brother to slip the blindfold on. "Why don't you go see if they need any extra plates or napkins?"
He was still damp and the thought of seeing Yongguk without the safe barrier between them made him anxious but Daehyun hoped that if he stayed on Himchan's good side that he would get out of costume duty earlier than planned.
"Does anyone need anything?"
He swallowed nervously at the sight of Yongguk standing a mere four feet away from him with black blindfolds covering his eyes. Now that he was in his regular work uniform he could see him a whole lot clearer and he suddenly became twice as attractive. The whole package was ten times better than the blurry half-images he had been given earlier.
"Where'd the manager go?" Junhong looked disappointed to see him instead of Himchan.
"He's… He's helping Chuck E. with his dinner." The bite of pizza half inside Jongup's mouth dropped to the table as he waited expectantly for Daehyun to continue. "But they said they'll be coming back out before your party ends so they can say goodbye." Yongguk's body was unmoving as he listened to Daehyun and his lips were thinned again. Daehyun finally managed to drag his eyes away and down towards Jongup. He knelt so that they were eyelevel. "He also told me to tell you he liked your birthday wish. It was very sweet of you."
Jongup nodded sedately and looked over at Junhong. "Uncle Junhong wants to kiss him too." He whispered to Daehyun. "Could I add a second wish?"
Daehyun shrugged. "It's your birthday. You can do whatever you want."
The little boy leaned forward so that he could encircle Daehyun's ears with is hands. "I want someone to kiss my daddy."
---
Yongguk forgot he was wearing the blindfold until Jongup took his stick back and started to beat on the Pokémon piñata since doing it without being able to see it wasn't working. He scrambled with the fabric until it came loose in his hand. "Who was that?" The only employee he could see in the room was the elderly man sweeping up trash in the corner. "Where'd he go?"
"Out the door." Junhong eyed him with a smug look on his face. He had seen the way the short employee had looked at his brother and Yongguk acting all bothered about wanting to see him only confirmed his thoughts. "Why?" As much as he wanted to tease him, he sure as heck didn't want to do it in front of their parents.
"I forgot something." Yongguk opened and closed his mouth as he tried to think of an excuse. "Forks. I needed forks."
The plate of pizza in front of him was halfway finished and they both could see it.
"You seem to have managed pretty well so far."
Yongguk glared in annoyance at his younger brother because he could tell Junhong knew exactly what was happening. "Maybe I should look for the manager then."
Junhong jumped up with a grin on his face. "No need! I'll find him!" He turned the hallway corner that they had went into earlier and found himself face to face with a wall of unnamed doors. "Shit." After trying a few to see if they opened he decided to sit back and let the manager come to him. Surely he had a camera queued up to him right this second anyways. He always seemed to appear as if by magic the very second Junhong climbed into the jungle gym. "Come out, come out wherever you are."
---
Himchan glared at the camera as Junhong paced up and down the employee hallway without a care in the world. "Do you believe this? He's not even trying to pretend he's being good anymore." He helped Daehyun finish redressing in his costume and shoved the mask into his hands. "Go back out there while I deal with this jackass."
"Don't forget to use a condom."
"Don't forget to lock the door so the kid doesn't see you riding daddy like a rodeo cowboy."
Daehyun still had his mask under his arm when he left the office and held the door open for Junhong. "He's waiting for you. Be careful, he bites." He laughed to himself as he imagined just how much torture the new boy had coming to him. Himchan wasn't one to shy away from commitment but he was fiercely possessive and Daehyun had no doubt he would dig his claws into him by the end of the night.
"You think my brother's attractive." The calm declaration stopped him in his tracks and he turned back to Junhong in surprise. "I'm not blind. You couldn't take your eyes off him. Without the costume and even inside it, I bet." Junhong cocked his head to the side and studied him. "He's a good guy so don't break him, okay?" He didn't have time to nod because Junhong's attention had switched to the still-fuming man in the office and a sly smile quirked up the corner of his lips. "God, I love it when you look at me like you want to punch me."
Before he had to bear witness to whatever punishment Himchan had in mind for him, Daehyun hurried to the door and reentered the party room where a second party was already in full swing. After taking a few family pictures and doing a rather embarrassing version of a conga line, he was free to go back to Jongup's table again.
"You're back! He said you'd come say goodbye!" Jongup patted the chair beside him and put down the plastic bucket of vanilla ice cream that he was eating. When Daehyun carefully scooted into the seat Jongup got on his knees next to him and stared into the netting where his eyes were hidden. "I know it's you." He whispered conspiratorially. "The man who I told my real wish to. But shh, don't tell anyone else. I want my daddy to think you're real still."
Daehyun nodded and laughed silently to himself. Out of all the months he'd spent working here he'd never actually taken the time to get to know a customer and he discovered he enjoyed making the children smile. Maybe Himchan was right. Maybe their biggest goal was to put a smile on every person's face that walked through the door.
---
"You're too damn tall to climb on the jungle gym. You're too damn tall period. How tall are you anyways? You look like you're fifteen, it's not fair."
Junhong paused what he was doing and disconnected his lips from the dip in Himchan's throat. "I'm old enough." He answered, concentrating on undoing the mile of buttons going down the starched black shirt. "And I'm skinny so I fit through the tunnels still. That's all that counts anyways."
Himchan opened his mouth to sarcastically reply but Junhong had discovered his collarbones and the fact that scraping his teeth across them made Himchan moan loudly into the quiet room.
"Does sleeping with the manager mean I get free tokens?"
---
"Where did Junhong go?"
The disgusted expression on Yongguk's face meant he was just as aware as Daehyun was of where he had disappeared to. Daehyun laughed behind the mask but Yongguk must have heard him because he glanced over from across the table.
"I think he's busy complaining to the manager." Yongguk told his mother, raising an eyebrow at Daehyun. "He's annoying so he'll probably be in there for a while."
Daehyun managed to nod even with the heavy mask on. He'd known Himchan since high school and was the sole reason he'd accepted this worthless job in the first place. And the one thing he knew about him was that Kim Himchan gave as good as he got. Junhong didn't know what he was diving into with him.
"Oh, I think all the employees were nice. And adorable, too. When you two were younger it was always older women working here. I like that they're hiring younger workers. That little one who came in earlier was cute as a button."
He tried to raise a thumb but the fingers on his paws were really only for show so Daehyun clapped his hands together at her compliment.
Yongguk shrugged as if he didn't care but he kept his gaze on Daehyun as he answered. "Was he? Maybe I'll get to see him before we leave."
If he didn't know any better he would think Jongup's father was flirting with him. Right in front of his entire family, too. Daehyun wasn't normally a timid character but Yongguk's stare was so intense that it made him automatically shake his head.
"No?" Yongguk's lips twitched in amusement. "Is he shy?" A nod from Daehyun. "That's too bad."
The only thing that saved the floor from swallowing Daehyun whole was the entrance of Junhong who sported a cat that ate the canary grin and a cup overflowing with golden game tokens. "Looks like it was Uncle Junhong's lucky day, Jonguppie. Let's go kick some skeeball ass. I'll hold you over the board and you drop the balls in the good spots."
The grossed out look covered Yongguk's face again and this time Daehyun didn't even try to hide his laughter. With a final pat of Jongup's head he waved goodbye to the table and left them to find Himchan and get out of this suit once and for all. Himchan may have been the boss but Daehyun had blackmail on him now. There was no way he was going back into that suit.
---
Himchan was face down on the desk when Junhong cracked open the door. He propped his head on his palms and whimpered pathetically. "I still hate him."
"Hide the pepperoni not go so good for you?"
"More like hide the pepperoni and break my legs."
Daehyun threw the torturous mask into the corner and stood behind Himchan, rubbing the thick paws into his back. "Junhong's pretty proud of himself. He has big plans to make the skeeball machine his bitch."
"I really hate him." Himchan groaned. "How was hot daddy?"
He sighed. "Too hot for me. I need to lower my standards I think."
"Junhong said his brother was dying to know what you looked like," Himchan turned his head to wink at him. "Apparently your voice got him all hot and bothered. There's a chance for you yet."
"Speaking of Junhong…" Daehyun sat down in the other chair and smiled slyly. "We need to reevaluate my month-long punishment."
---
Youngjae curled his lip when Daehyun sauntered into the kitchen. "You're the reason I'm stuck on rat duty for the next three weeks you little shit. I don’t know how you did it but I'm going to make you regret it."
He happily took the spatula out of the previous cook's hand and blinked innocently. "I don't know what you're talking about, Youngjae. Manager Kim just thought I was the best pizza maker in the store and wanted me in here more than out on the floor." He tsked sympathetically. "Maybe you should spend more time on your cooking and less time looking at the pretty server."
"She's my girlfriend." Youngjae deadpanned. "And I doubt that's what happened but you just stick to your story. We'll see who ends the month in that smelly suit." He stormed out with a huff of disdain.
"You look smug."
Daehyun beamed as he slid a mushroom pizza into the oven a few hours later. "I've had a better than normal shift. And I'm done being old Chuckster for a while."
Himchan crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. "Jongup wanted me to tell the 'pretty boy with the big lips' goodbye from him. You should have come out again."
He had watched their group leave two hours earlier but had purposely stayed on the sidelines. They were the first party he had let himself get attached to and he knew it couldn't happen again because there were too many customers every day to devote that much attention to. He could never keep this job if he spent so much energy on just a few people.
"It's fine. You'll see the uncle again in a week when he comes in pretending to want to play on the jungle gym. At least now you'll know how to handle him."
"That's not the point, Daehyun." Himchan pushed up and pulled something from behind his back. A dirty stuffed Pikachu with Jongup's name scrawled in messy Sharpie along the bottom was held out to him. "Sometimes you have to put yourself out there and see where things end up. Life's no fun unless you take big risks. You hold on to this for me."
The doll felt fragile and extremely important in his greasy hands. Daehyun gently slipped it into his apron pocket and wondered what he was supposed to do with it.
---
The moment Junhong and Jongup walked into the restaurant the next weekend they made a beeline for the man refilling the soda machine.
"Twenty tokens for a kiss."
Himchan glanced over his shoulder and bit back a smile. He knew Junhong would come back, he had promised after all, but it was a relief that he had actually meant the sappy proclamations from the office.
"I've upped my prices. Now it's twenty tokens for two kisses."
Junhong glanced around to make sure no one was watching so that he could reach for Himchan's hand. "It's going to be hard work but I think we can come to an agreement."
"Are you guys being dirty? Daddy said to tell him if you do anything dirty." They dropped hands and looked guiltily at Jongup. "And where's that doll? You said if I left it that the pretty man would get to meet daddy."
"You have to tell your father it's missing so that he can come get it." Himchan shot Junhong a withering glare. "Did you forget to inform Jongup that he needed to mention the doll before Yongguk would think to come back?"
The taller boy raised his shoulders in mock defeat. "Oops? Can't we just call him now?"
"Daehyun's off today. He's supposed to work the opening shift tomorrow. Are you not very smart? Because I'm going to get tired of spelling things out for you."
Junhong's easy expression darkened and his eyes drank in the angry posture and clenched fists of a very pissed off Himchan. "I know a lot of things. Things you've never even heard of."
"That's yet to be proven."
"What time are you off tonight?" Junhong's jaw tightened and the promise of later in his eyes made Himchan's throat dry up. "We'll see what tune you're singing then."
"Are you guys being dirty again?" Jongup tugged on his uncle's shirt. "Because I told you daddy said that you're not allowed to be dirty when I'm here."
Himchan smiled serenely at him because for all the talk, Junhong couldn't do anything when there was no one around to watch Jongup. "Of course we're not, Jongup. Uncle Junhong just likes to act like a silly boy when he's near me."
"Thirty tokens for a fist bump. Last offer." Junhong's smile was polite but that was the only thing radiating friendliness on him right now.
"How about I don't ban you from my store and you just zip your mouth for once?" Oh yes, Himchan knew he was in for it.
---
Opening the restaurant wasn't difficult and most people waited until after eleven to start coming in so Daehyun actually preferred these shifts. He could take his time starting all of the kitchen equipment and running checks on the animatronics to make sure there were no bugs in the system. He had a half a second's thought to reprogram them again. Britney Spears would sound hilarious coming out of the one of their terrifying mouths but he remembered how itchy and smelly Chuck E.'s costume was so he rethought that plan.
When one-thirty rolled around and every table was full and not even Himchan was on duty today to distract him, Daehyun wished he had went ahead and did it. Some catchy music would be a lot better than Crocodile Rock for the tenth time that day.
"Five and a half more hours, five and a half more hours." He chanted under his breath when the third kid in the last hour had spilled their drink and turned into a screaming monster over it.
"Daehyun can you grab the mop? We have another puke pile over by the basketball game."
He hung his head in despair. "I cleaned it up last time. It's Youngjae's turn." The giant rat next to him reached a paw up and thumped it against his head. "Oh yeah. I forgot you were on rat duty."
Sometimes he hated his job but sometimes there were bright linings. You just had to know where to find them.
---
Yongguk stood by the hostess desk and watched the man guiding Chuck E. Cheese around as he grinned devilishly before running away and leaving him alone. Whoever was in the costume obviously wasn't used to finding his way around by himself because he was stumbling over kids in the floor.
He didn't recognize the face but the voice was one he knew. The dark tone and accented cadence was the same one that had been driving him crazy all week.
The man was pretty short, but his mother had mentioned that so it wasn't a surprise. Even though Jongup and her had both commented on his looks it hadn't prepared him adequately enough. His dark hair hung messily down to his ears and his skin was bronzed and soft-looking enough to make Yongguk's fingers twitch to touch it. But the mouth was what really got to him. Plush looking lips that looked like they could go from parted and sensual to knowing and dangerous in just a split second.
"Was there something I can help you with, sir?"
Yongguk forced his attention to the hostess and placed an easy smile on his lips. "Himchan told me that I need to speak privately with a Jung Daehyun?"
The name was still unfamiliar on his tongue but Himchan had told him over breakfast that morning that it was the one he was wanting. He wasn't surprised that his brother had spent the night with someone but it was the first time he'd brought them over for their weekly Sunday breakfasts together. And when Himchan assured him that Daehyun was cute and friendly and just as curious as he was Yongguk figured coming here was worth a shot.
"He's in the middle of something right now but I can show you where the office is and you can wait?" She left the stand in charge of a different employee and led him through the back hallway to a closed door. "I'll tell him you're here, Mister…"
"Bang." He settled himself uncomfortable in the plastic folding chair and hoped like hell it wasn't the same one his brother had used with Himchan. "Mr. Bang."
It only took about ten minutes for the sound of footsteps to come sounding down the hall. He jumped to his feet and tried to make his expression one of casualness. One that didn't scream "I think you're cute and I want your voice in my ear pleading my name all night".
Daehyun shook his bangs back into place as he stood in the doorway and gave his brain time to catch up with his eyes.
"You must be Daehyun."
He blinked up at the tall frame and still couldn't get his mind to form an answer. He'd been told a Mr. Bang was waiting for him in the office but the name didn't ring a bell so he'd had no idea who or what this meeting was about.
"I'm Yongguk."
"I know." The reply he finally managed to voice made him feel like an idiot. "I mean, I remember you from the party." He reached into his apron pocket and pulled out the stuffed doll he'd been carrying around all week hoping someone would retrieve. "Here's the doll."
Yongguk glanced at it but didn't move to take it so Daehyun awkwardly sat it on the desk.
"My son liked you."
Daehyun smiled at the memory of Jongup. He had thought of him many times over the last week and missed the sweet little boy. "I liked him, too. Most kids that have parties here are brats. But Jongup was perfect."
Complimenting his son wasn't done to get him on Yongguk's good side but Daehyun could see the way the words loosened his shoulders. He didn't know what Yongguk was doing there since he hadn't seemed interested in the doll Jongup had left behind.
Yongguk was studying the office but kept going back to the camera in the corner showing the party room. "You can see pretty clearly on this thing." He leaned forward and Daehyun had to purposely avert his eyes away from the way the gray t-shirt rode up over Yongguk's hips. "Did you watch us when we were here?"
He didn't know what the proper response was. No might mean he wasn't interested and he was, he was so interested that his body ached. Yes would just make him look like a Peeping Tom.
"Better question, did you watch me while we were here?" Yongguk asked again.
Himchan was behind this, Daehyun suddenly thought to himself. That had to be why Yongguk was so cocky. Himchan had blabbed everything the first chance he had, he just knew it.
"Did Himchan-"
"It was actually Junhong." Yongguk interrupted, taking a step towards him. The office was small so just a couple more feet would bring them chest to chest so Daehyun backed himself against the door to keep some semblance of distance. "He's the one who told me you were practically drooling. Himchan just confirmed it." Another step and Daehyun had nowhere else to go. He was in a corner, literally, and Yongguk didn't seem to care. "Just to get this out of the way, I'm okay with this going however you want but I have to tell you that I make the best waffles in the world. Just in case that helps matters."
Daehyun could smell the cologne on his shirt and after smelling greasy pizza and cotton candy all morning the calming scent made his blood boil. He didn't know anything about Yongguk. Where he lived, what his favorite color was, even how old he was. But it wasn't like they couldn't discover those things as they went along he figured. Anybody that worshipped their son, made delicious waffles, and had lips that felt like heaven on his skin couldn't be all bad.
"But Jongup?" He tried hard to form the words he needed but Yongguk's mouth had traveled its way down his jaw and over his pulse. "Wife?"
"Jongup was my sister's." Yongguk pushed the collar of his work shirt to the side and nipped gently at the tanned skin of his shoulder. "She died when he was born so I took him home." He pulled away far enough for Daehyun to see the pain still evident in his eyes. "I adopted him and he's mine now."
He didn't think it was possible to like Yongguk any more than he already did but somehow it happened. Not only was he a great father but he was a great father when he didn't even have to be.
"So no wife?" Daehyun figured that maybe this was worth taking a chance on. If they crashed and burned then at least they tried. But there was always a chance this could lead to something huge, something that swallowed the both of them whole. "Or boyfriend?"
"I've pretty much been raising Jongup and Junhong at the same time." Yongguk's expression lightened again and Daehyun was glad to see the hurt erased from his face. "Do you honestly think they have ever agreed on someone for me at the same time?"
Daehyun was going to make a smug comment about how they both agreed on him which made him pretty special, but Yongguk's arms were wrapping around him again and he was desperate to know what his hair felt like under his fingertips so he kept it to himself. The only word his tongue felt like forming was Yongguk's name anyways.
"By the way I have no idea what the deal with this doll is." Yongguk laughed against his lips. "That's Jongup's handwriting but he's never had a stuffed Pikachu before."
The only way for them to produce a random toy was to get one out of the Lost and Found box in the janitor's closet. Daehyun growled angrily into Yongguk's mouth. "The bastards set me up!"
Rated: PG13 (no smut but lots of naughty words)
Length: 6.2K
Prompt: I deviated a little from the original prompt and tags but it was still the main inspiration for the whole fic.
If he'd had his way then the party would have been at the park. It's the middle of summer, it's beautiful out, the playground was brand new and they lived just three blocks away. Unfortunately his son had the biggest puppy face in the world and the saddest eyes when he didn’t get his way.
"I hate this place." Yongguk grumbled to his brother as they hauled the first of many party supplies through the door. "If hell had a name it would be Chuck E. Cheese."
Junhong rolled his eyes behind his older brother's back. "You're just mad I passed on the patented pouty face to the kid. Not my fault that thing works every single time. It's a skill that took years of training."
"Jongup's five."
"And completely awesome."
They dropped the plastic Pokémon tablecloth and decorations onto the table reserved for them and headed back to the car for another load. This time Yongguk had a face covered with balloons and a hip full of wriggly birthday boy when they came back in.
"Grandma said the party started in thirty minutes so we needed to be here early!"
"Grandma also goes to the doctor an hour early and shows up at church when it's still dark outside. Never listen to grandma."
"Grandma is right here and has a piñata bat so watch your mouth."
Jongup kicked at his father's kneecaps until Yongguk dropped him to the floor. "Can I play now? Please? With Uncle Junhong?"
They both stuck out their bottom lips in identical expressions that both annoyed Yongguk and yet also made him want to pinch their cheeks.
"No ball pit." He told them sternly. "That thing's probably covered in poop and vomit and God knows what else."
He watched his son grab Junhong by the hand and tug him towards the jungle gym in the corner. The height restriction posted on the side meant Junhong shouldn't have been allowed inside in over fifteen years but it never failed to stop his oversized brother.
---
The manager on duty watched the lanky giant crawl into the slide and start climbing his way through the ropes. "He's back."
"Who?"
Himchan pointed to the boy now shaking the rope bridge making the kid behind him laugh. "That asshole. He comes in at least twice a month and crawls all over the play place no matter how many times I tell him to stop." He could hear Daehyun grunting behind him and remembered he was supposed to be helping him into his costume. "Sorry. Put your arms out."
Daehyun waited until the giant rat head was on before replying. "He's having a good time. Just let them play."
"But it's for kids half his sized. He'll break the tubes!"
"You've done all this complaining about him when you could have been spending it staring at his ass when he climbs up the rock wall. I'm ashamed of you."
Himchan's head snapped sideways to see what exactly Daehyun was talking about. Every time they came in he spent the entire time growing more and more furious and hadn't even stopped to consider that the man might be worth a second glance. He stared for a heartbeat too long for it to be considered a coincidence before turning away. "Not like it's a nice ass or anything anyways. He's too skinny."
"For him to be climbing that wall that quickly I'd say there's a lot of muscle hiding under those tight p-"
"Just go do your job!" He jerked the oversized head out of Daehyun's hands and pushed it over his face again. "And stop taking off the mask. The kids are supposed to think Chuck E. Cheese is real and you're ruining the magic."
Daehyun was already sweating under the thirteen pounds of vintage fur and scratchy material. He all of a sudden regretted reprogramming the animatronic characters to play R. Kelly songs on his last shift. Sure watching the giant purple monkey sing Snake was the funniest thing ever, but when Himchan found out it was him he ordered him to dress-up duty for the rest of the month.
"How many parties do we have today? Please say less than five."
"Nine." Himchan was still trying to sneak a glance at the jungle gym because now that Daehyun had brought it to his attention that ass was all he could think about. "Do you think that's his kid he always shows up with? He looks too young."
"I don't really care if it's his grandkid. I'm sweating my balls off and this thing smells like urine."
When he finally managed to drag Himchan away from the security cameras it was half past eleven and the first birthday party of the day was starting. Daehyun hated party duty but at least he got a small break in between them where he could take everything off and douse his head in the sink.
The only way he could see was to look through the thin mesh at the back of Chuck E.'s mouth and it was only a hazy viewpoint so thankfully Himchan led him around so that he didn't run into anything. One time another performer had tripped and fell into a birthday cake and traumatized the child so badly that Himchan had been forced to put her on bathroom duty. The only thing worse than being in the costume was cleaning the bathrooms. She had quit two days later.
"Okay it's a little boy about five or six. Just a couple of children, mainly adults. Oh great." Himchan stopped him just before he rounded the corner into the party room. "It's the jerk's kid. Oh my god I can't stop staring at his butt now. I hate you Jung Daehyun."
"Chuck E. Cheese!" A high-pitched voice screeched excitedly just before Daehyun was squeezed around the middle. He couldn't lower his head to see below him but he could hear giggles of happiness coming from the little boy. "You're here!"
He wasn't allowed to talk to the customers while wearing the suit but he, along with every new hire, had sat through the introductory training lesson so he knew to wave his arms around and dance on his feet in response.
"It's my birthday and I'm five now." The boy finally let him go and took a step back so that Daehyun could get somewhat of a look at him. A tiny little thing and cute as can be, he thought to himself. "My name is Jongup and my daddy told my grandma that you're the reason parents turn to alcohol."
Daehyun stifled a snort behind the mask but Himchan turned towards his mystery man in outrage. "Excuse me?"
The tall man, and was apparently abnormally tall because all Daehyun could see of him through the mesh was his shoulders, jumped backwards with his hands outstretched. "Don't look at me I'm just the uncle! I bring him here so much because Yongguk refuses. And I love you Mr. Cheese!"
The fingers around Daehyun's wrists loosened a little once Himchan realized his newly-formed crush wasn't already a father. "For your information, we provide quality entertainment at a value price. Our company works hard to give smiles to every person that walks through the door."
"You make my Uncle Junhong smile. He says making you mad is the best part of coming h-" Jongup's words were muffled from the hand suddenly wrapped around his mouth. He bit at the palm until Junhong let go with a yelp. "Your hand tastes like chocolate milk."
"Can we please just finish this party so I can go home and take a nap?" A new voice spoke up from behind Jongup. Daehyun tilted his mask back to get a better view of the owner of the deep voice. Even though he was also tall he was thankfully shorter than Jongup's uncle and Daehyun figured this was the real father of the birthday boy. The slender fingers that were tenderly brushing Jongup's bangs out of his face led straight to a tired face complete with pursed lips and furrowed brows.
"Fuck. Me." Daehyun accidentally muttered under his breath before Himchan stomped on his left paw. Jongup's daddy was way too hot to not be married but even through the netting Daehyun couldn't see a ring on his finger and there didn't look to be any women nearby that weren't grandmotherly age or already with someone. He was finally glad to be hidden behind the thick costume because he could stare as hard as he wanted and no one could see him.
When Jongup reached for him again he held out an oversized paw and took the tiny fingers in his own. "Thank you for coming to my birthday party Mr. Cheese. Do you want to help me blow out my candles?"
He really was just supposed to make an appearance at the table and then do a slow walk through the store so other kids could see him but Daehyun nodded anyway because the hope in the little boy's eyes was too hard to resist.
The cake was the same flavorless white cake they served at every party but Jongup's father had replaced the cheap candles with green ones surrounding a thick number five one.
"Green's my favorite color." Jongup told Daehyun as he pulled him behind the table. "What's yours?" Daehyun pointed to the candles. "Same as me!"
Red was actually his favorite but he loved how it had made Jongup clap his hands together.
"Do you want us to sing to you?" Yongguk pushed the cake in front of him and grabbed the camera in the center of the table. "You wouldn't let us on your last birthday."
Jongup chewed on his lower lip and shyly shook his head. "I don't like the singing daddy."
Yongguk grinned for the first time since Daehyun had come out and it completely transformed his stern expression. The smile was wide and loving and saved only for his son. Daehyun didn't understand why he liked that so much.
"We won't do it then." He told his son softly. "Just make a wish and blow out the candles."
The cake was nudged a little closer to Daehyun by Jongup. "You make a wish, too."
He thought maybe his wish was a little too R-rated for the occasion but he appreciated that Jongup wanted to include him so Daehyun closed his eyes and mouthed what he wanted most in the world right then.
"I want the scary manager to kiss Uncle Junhong." Jongup whispered beside him before he blew out his candles.
That is a wish I can help make come true, Daehyun thought as he patted Jongup's head and watched Himchan awkwardly standing behind everyone and keeping his eyes on the ceiling.
---
By the time they made it back to the office and Daehyun was able to pry the heavy mask off his head he was drenched in sweat and so thirsty that he powered through two bottles of water before pulling the rest of the costume off.
"You're lucky no one heard you talking to yourself." Himchan chastised him. Even though he was trying to be authoritative he never moved his gaze from the security camera hanging from the ceiling. "And remember you have to stay in-character so try not to get single daddy boners while on the job."
"You're one to talk. You want to play hide the pepperoni with Junhong's pizza."
Himchan scowled at him over his shoulder. "That doesn't even make any sense. Is the pizza his butt or his penis?"
"You know." Daehyun winked at him. "Besides at least he wants you. Single Daddy is obviously straight and doesn't even know what I look like." He watched the camera overlooking the party room so that he could see Yongguk blindfolding Jongup and handing him the piñata stick. "Since when do I go for dads?"
"Since you found one with a voice that makes your penis dance."
Daehyun grimaced at him. "Can you stop saying penis so much? It's making me really uncomfortable." When Jongup swung the wrong direction and hit his uncle in the knees Daehyun laughed out loud. "I like that kid. He's cute."
Probing eyes narrowed his direction. "Maybe it's not just that he's a hot dad? Maybe you're finally growing up and are looking for someone responsible who is raising a sweet kid?" They watched Junhong wrench the stick out of Jongup's hands and try to grab his brother to slip the blindfold on. "Why don't you go see if they need any extra plates or napkins?"
He was still damp and the thought of seeing Yongguk without the safe barrier between them made him anxious but Daehyun hoped that if he stayed on Himchan's good side that he would get out of costume duty earlier than planned.
"Does anyone need anything?"
He swallowed nervously at the sight of Yongguk standing a mere four feet away from him with black blindfolds covering his eyes. Now that he was in his regular work uniform he could see him a whole lot clearer and he suddenly became twice as attractive. The whole package was ten times better than the blurry half-images he had been given earlier.
"Where'd the manager go?" Junhong looked disappointed to see him instead of Himchan.
"He's… He's helping Chuck E. with his dinner." The bite of pizza half inside Jongup's mouth dropped to the table as he waited expectantly for Daehyun to continue. "But they said they'll be coming back out before your party ends so they can say goodbye." Yongguk's body was unmoving as he listened to Daehyun and his lips were thinned again. Daehyun finally managed to drag his eyes away and down towards Jongup. He knelt so that they were eyelevel. "He also told me to tell you he liked your birthday wish. It was very sweet of you."
Jongup nodded sedately and looked over at Junhong. "Uncle Junhong wants to kiss him too." He whispered to Daehyun. "Could I add a second wish?"
Daehyun shrugged. "It's your birthday. You can do whatever you want."
The little boy leaned forward so that he could encircle Daehyun's ears with is hands. "I want someone to kiss my daddy."
---
Yongguk forgot he was wearing the blindfold until Jongup took his stick back and started to beat on the Pokémon piñata since doing it without being able to see it wasn't working. He scrambled with the fabric until it came loose in his hand. "Who was that?" The only employee he could see in the room was the elderly man sweeping up trash in the corner. "Where'd he go?"
"Out the door." Junhong eyed him with a smug look on his face. He had seen the way the short employee had looked at his brother and Yongguk acting all bothered about wanting to see him only confirmed his thoughts. "Why?" As much as he wanted to tease him, he sure as heck didn't want to do it in front of their parents.
"I forgot something." Yongguk opened and closed his mouth as he tried to think of an excuse. "Forks. I needed forks."
The plate of pizza in front of him was halfway finished and they both could see it.
"You seem to have managed pretty well so far."
Yongguk glared in annoyance at his younger brother because he could tell Junhong knew exactly what was happening. "Maybe I should look for the manager then."
Junhong jumped up with a grin on his face. "No need! I'll find him!" He turned the hallway corner that they had went into earlier and found himself face to face with a wall of unnamed doors. "Shit." After trying a few to see if they opened he decided to sit back and let the manager come to him. Surely he had a camera queued up to him right this second anyways. He always seemed to appear as if by magic the very second Junhong climbed into the jungle gym. "Come out, come out wherever you are."
---
Himchan glared at the camera as Junhong paced up and down the employee hallway without a care in the world. "Do you believe this? He's not even trying to pretend he's being good anymore." He helped Daehyun finish redressing in his costume and shoved the mask into his hands. "Go back out there while I deal with this jackass."
"Don't forget to use a condom."
"Don't forget to lock the door so the kid doesn't see you riding daddy like a rodeo cowboy."
Daehyun still had his mask under his arm when he left the office and held the door open for Junhong. "He's waiting for you. Be careful, he bites." He laughed to himself as he imagined just how much torture the new boy had coming to him. Himchan wasn't one to shy away from commitment but he was fiercely possessive and Daehyun had no doubt he would dig his claws into him by the end of the night.
"You think my brother's attractive." The calm declaration stopped him in his tracks and he turned back to Junhong in surprise. "I'm not blind. You couldn't take your eyes off him. Without the costume and even inside it, I bet." Junhong cocked his head to the side and studied him. "He's a good guy so don't break him, okay?" He didn't have time to nod because Junhong's attention had switched to the still-fuming man in the office and a sly smile quirked up the corner of his lips. "God, I love it when you look at me like you want to punch me."
Before he had to bear witness to whatever punishment Himchan had in mind for him, Daehyun hurried to the door and reentered the party room where a second party was already in full swing. After taking a few family pictures and doing a rather embarrassing version of a conga line, he was free to go back to Jongup's table again.
"You're back! He said you'd come say goodbye!" Jongup patted the chair beside him and put down the plastic bucket of vanilla ice cream that he was eating. When Daehyun carefully scooted into the seat Jongup got on his knees next to him and stared into the netting where his eyes were hidden. "I know it's you." He whispered conspiratorially. "The man who I told my real wish to. But shh, don't tell anyone else. I want my daddy to think you're real still."
Daehyun nodded and laughed silently to himself. Out of all the months he'd spent working here he'd never actually taken the time to get to know a customer and he discovered he enjoyed making the children smile. Maybe Himchan was right. Maybe their biggest goal was to put a smile on every person's face that walked through the door.
---
"You're too damn tall to climb on the jungle gym. You're too damn tall period. How tall are you anyways? You look like you're fifteen, it's not fair."
Junhong paused what he was doing and disconnected his lips from the dip in Himchan's throat. "I'm old enough." He answered, concentrating on undoing the mile of buttons going down the starched black shirt. "And I'm skinny so I fit through the tunnels still. That's all that counts anyways."
Himchan opened his mouth to sarcastically reply but Junhong had discovered his collarbones and the fact that scraping his teeth across them made Himchan moan loudly into the quiet room.
"Does sleeping with the manager mean I get free tokens?"
---
"Where did Junhong go?"
The disgusted expression on Yongguk's face meant he was just as aware as Daehyun was of where he had disappeared to. Daehyun laughed behind the mask but Yongguk must have heard him because he glanced over from across the table.
"I think he's busy complaining to the manager." Yongguk told his mother, raising an eyebrow at Daehyun. "He's annoying so he'll probably be in there for a while."
Daehyun managed to nod even with the heavy mask on. He'd known Himchan since high school and was the sole reason he'd accepted this worthless job in the first place. And the one thing he knew about him was that Kim Himchan gave as good as he got. Junhong didn't know what he was diving into with him.
"Oh, I think all the employees were nice. And adorable, too. When you two were younger it was always older women working here. I like that they're hiring younger workers. That little one who came in earlier was cute as a button."
He tried to raise a thumb but the fingers on his paws were really only for show so Daehyun clapped his hands together at her compliment.
Yongguk shrugged as if he didn't care but he kept his gaze on Daehyun as he answered. "Was he? Maybe I'll get to see him before we leave."
If he didn't know any better he would think Jongup's father was flirting with him. Right in front of his entire family, too. Daehyun wasn't normally a timid character but Yongguk's stare was so intense that it made him automatically shake his head.
"No?" Yongguk's lips twitched in amusement. "Is he shy?" A nod from Daehyun. "That's too bad."
The only thing that saved the floor from swallowing Daehyun whole was the entrance of Junhong who sported a cat that ate the canary grin and a cup overflowing with golden game tokens. "Looks like it was Uncle Junhong's lucky day, Jonguppie. Let's go kick some skeeball ass. I'll hold you over the board and you drop the balls in the good spots."
The grossed out look covered Yongguk's face again and this time Daehyun didn't even try to hide his laughter. With a final pat of Jongup's head he waved goodbye to the table and left them to find Himchan and get out of this suit once and for all. Himchan may have been the boss but Daehyun had blackmail on him now. There was no way he was going back into that suit.
---
Himchan was face down on the desk when Junhong cracked open the door. He propped his head on his palms and whimpered pathetically. "I still hate him."
"Hide the pepperoni not go so good for you?"
"More like hide the pepperoni and break my legs."
Daehyun threw the torturous mask into the corner and stood behind Himchan, rubbing the thick paws into his back. "Junhong's pretty proud of himself. He has big plans to make the skeeball machine his bitch."
"I really hate him." Himchan groaned. "How was hot daddy?"
He sighed. "Too hot for me. I need to lower my standards I think."
"Junhong said his brother was dying to know what you looked like," Himchan turned his head to wink at him. "Apparently your voice got him all hot and bothered. There's a chance for you yet."
"Speaking of Junhong…" Daehyun sat down in the other chair and smiled slyly. "We need to reevaluate my month-long punishment."
---
Youngjae curled his lip when Daehyun sauntered into the kitchen. "You're the reason I'm stuck on rat duty for the next three weeks you little shit. I don’t know how you did it but I'm going to make you regret it."
He happily took the spatula out of the previous cook's hand and blinked innocently. "I don't know what you're talking about, Youngjae. Manager Kim just thought I was the best pizza maker in the store and wanted me in here more than out on the floor." He tsked sympathetically. "Maybe you should spend more time on your cooking and less time looking at the pretty server."
"She's my girlfriend." Youngjae deadpanned. "And I doubt that's what happened but you just stick to your story. We'll see who ends the month in that smelly suit." He stormed out with a huff of disdain.
"You look smug."
Daehyun beamed as he slid a mushroom pizza into the oven a few hours later. "I've had a better than normal shift. And I'm done being old Chuckster for a while."
Himchan crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. "Jongup wanted me to tell the 'pretty boy with the big lips' goodbye from him. You should have come out again."
He had watched their group leave two hours earlier but had purposely stayed on the sidelines. They were the first party he had let himself get attached to and he knew it couldn't happen again because there were too many customers every day to devote that much attention to. He could never keep this job if he spent so much energy on just a few people.
"It's fine. You'll see the uncle again in a week when he comes in pretending to want to play on the jungle gym. At least now you'll know how to handle him."
"That's not the point, Daehyun." Himchan pushed up and pulled something from behind his back. A dirty stuffed Pikachu with Jongup's name scrawled in messy Sharpie along the bottom was held out to him. "Sometimes you have to put yourself out there and see where things end up. Life's no fun unless you take big risks. You hold on to this for me."
The doll felt fragile and extremely important in his greasy hands. Daehyun gently slipped it into his apron pocket and wondered what he was supposed to do with it.
---
The moment Junhong and Jongup walked into the restaurant the next weekend they made a beeline for the man refilling the soda machine.
"Twenty tokens for a kiss."
Himchan glanced over his shoulder and bit back a smile. He knew Junhong would come back, he had promised after all, but it was a relief that he had actually meant the sappy proclamations from the office.
"I've upped my prices. Now it's twenty tokens for two kisses."
Junhong glanced around to make sure no one was watching so that he could reach for Himchan's hand. "It's going to be hard work but I think we can come to an agreement."
"Are you guys being dirty? Daddy said to tell him if you do anything dirty." They dropped hands and looked guiltily at Jongup. "And where's that doll? You said if I left it that the pretty man would get to meet daddy."
"You have to tell your father it's missing so that he can come get it." Himchan shot Junhong a withering glare. "Did you forget to inform Jongup that he needed to mention the doll before Yongguk would think to come back?"
The taller boy raised his shoulders in mock defeat. "Oops? Can't we just call him now?"
"Daehyun's off today. He's supposed to work the opening shift tomorrow. Are you not very smart? Because I'm going to get tired of spelling things out for you."
Junhong's easy expression darkened and his eyes drank in the angry posture and clenched fists of a very pissed off Himchan. "I know a lot of things. Things you've never even heard of."
"That's yet to be proven."
"What time are you off tonight?" Junhong's jaw tightened and the promise of later in his eyes made Himchan's throat dry up. "We'll see what tune you're singing then."
"Are you guys being dirty again?" Jongup tugged on his uncle's shirt. "Because I told you daddy said that you're not allowed to be dirty when I'm here."
Himchan smiled serenely at him because for all the talk, Junhong couldn't do anything when there was no one around to watch Jongup. "Of course we're not, Jongup. Uncle Junhong just likes to act like a silly boy when he's near me."
"Thirty tokens for a fist bump. Last offer." Junhong's smile was polite but that was the only thing radiating friendliness on him right now.
"How about I don't ban you from my store and you just zip your mouth for once?" Oh yes, Himchan knew he was in for it.
---
Opening the restaurant wasn't difficult and most people waited until after eleven to start coming in so Daehyun actually preferred these shifts. He could take his time starting all of the kitchen equipment and running checks on the animatronics to make sure there were no bugs in the system. He had a half a second's thought to reprogram them again. Britney Spears would sound hilarious coming out of the one of their terrifying mouths but he remembered how itchy and smelly Chuck E.'s costume was so he rethought that plan.
When one-thirty rolled around and every table was full and not even Himchan was on duty today to distract him, Daehyun wished he had went ahead and did it. Some catchy music would be a lot better than Crocodile Rock for the tenth time that day.
"Five and a half more hours, five and a half more hours." He chanted under his breath when the third kid in the last hour had spilled their drink and turned into a screaming monster over it.
"Daehyun can you grab the mop? We have another puke pile over by the basketball game."
He hung his head in despair. "I cleaned it up last time. It's Youngjae's turn." The giant rat next to him reached a paw up and thumped it against his head. "Oh yeah. I forgot you were on rat duty."
Sometimes he hated his job but sometimes there were bright linings. You just had to know where to find them.
---
Yongguk stood by the hostess desk and watched the man guiding Chuck E. Cheese around as he grinned devilishly before running away and leaving him alone. Whoever was in the costume obviously wasn't used to finding his way around by himself because he was stumbling over kids in the floor.
He didn't recognize the face but the voice was one he knew. The dark tone and accented cadence was the same one that had been driving him crazy all week.
The man was pretty short, but his mother had mentioned that so it wasn't a surprise. Even though Jongup and her had both commented on his looks it hadn't prepared him adequately enough. His dark hair hung messily down to his ears and his skin was bronzed and soft-looking enough to make Yongguk's fingers twitch to touch it. But the mouth was what really got to him. Plush looking lips that looked like they could go from parted and sensual to knowing and dangerous in just a split second.
"Was there something I can help you with, sir?"
Yongguk forced his attention to the hostess and placed an easy smile on his lips. "Himchan told me that I need to speak privately with a Jung Daehyun?"
The name was still unfamiliar on his tongue but Himchan had told him over breakfast that morning that it was the one he was wanting. He wasn't surprised that his brother had spent the night with someone but it was the first time he'd brought them over for their weekly Sunday breakfasts together. And when Himchan assured him that Daehyun was cute and friendly and just as curious as he was Yongguk figured coming here was worth a shot.
"He's in the middle of something right now but I can show you where the office is and you can wait?" She left the stand in charge of a different employee and led him through the back hallway to a closed door. "I'll tell him you're here, Mister…"
"Bang." He settled himself uncomfortable in the plastic folding chair and hoped like hell it wasn't the same one his brother had used with Himchan. "Mr. Bang."
It only took about ten minutes for the sound of footsteps to come sounding down the hall. He jumped to his feet and tried to make his expression one of casualness. One that didn't scream "I think you're cute and I want your voice in my ear pleading my name all night".
Daehyun shook his bangs back into place as he stood in the doorway and gave his brain time to catch up with his eyes.
"You must be Daehyun."
He blinked up at the tall frame and still couldn't get his mind to form an answer. He'd been told a Mr. Bang was waiting for him in the office but the name didn't ring a bell so he'd had no idea who or what this meeting was about.
"I'm Yongguk."
"I know." The reply he finally managed to voice made him feel like an idiot. "I mean, I remember you from the party." He reached into his apron pocket and pulled out the stuffed doll he'd been carrying around all week hoping someone would retrieve. "Here's the doll."
Yongguk glanced at it but didn't move to take it so Daehyun awkwardly sat it on the desk.
"My son liked you."
Daehyun smiled at the memory of Jongup. He had thought of him many times over the last week and missed the sweet little boy. "I liked him, too. Most kids that have parties here are brats. But Jongup was perfect."
Complimenting his son wasn't done to get him on Yongguk's good side but Daehyun could see the way the words loosened his shoulders. He didn't know what Yongguk was doing there since he hadn't seemed interested in the doll Jongup had left behind.
Yongguk was studying the office but kept going back to the camera in the corner showing the party room. "You can see pretty clearly on this thing." He leaned forward and Daehyun had to purposely avert his eyes away from the way the gray t-shirt rode up over Yongguk's hips. "Did you watch us when we were here?"
He didn't know what the proper response was. No might mean he wasn't interested and he was, he was so interested that his body ached. Yes would just make him look like a Peeping Tom.
"Better question, did you watch me while we were here?" Yongguk asked again.
Himchan was behind this, Daehyun suddenly thought to himself. That had to be why Yongguk was so cocky. Himchan had blabbed everything the first chance he had, he just knew it.
"Did Himchan-"
"It was actually Junhong." Yongguk interrupted, taking a step towards him. The office was small so just a couple more feet would bring them chest to chest so Daehyun backed himself against the door to keep some semblance of distance. "He's the one who told me you were practically drooling. Himchan just confirmed it." Another step and Daehyun had nowhere else to go. He was in a corner, literally, and Yongguk didn't seem to care. "Just to get this out of the way, I'm okay with this going however you want but I have to tell you that I make the best waffles in the world. Just in case that helps matters."
Daehyun could smell the cologne on his shirt and after smelling greasy pizza and cotton candy all morning the calming scent made his blood boil. He didn't know anything about Yongguk. Where he lived, what his favorite color was, even how old he was. But it wasn't like they couldn't discover those things as they went along he figured. Anybody that worshipped their son, made delicious waffles, and had lips that felt like heaven on his skin couldn't be all bad.
"But Jongup?" He tried hard to form the words he needed but Yongguk's mouth had traveled its way down his jaw and over his pulse. "Wife?"
"Jongup was my sister's." Yongguk pushed the collar of his work shirt to the side and nipped gently at the tanned skin of his shoulder. "She died when he was born so I took him home." He pulled away far enough for Daehyun to see the pain still evident in his eyes. "I adopted him and he's mine now."
He didn't think it was possible to like Yongguk any more than he already did but somehow it happened. Not only was he a great father but he was a great father when he didn't even have to be.
"So no wife?" Daehyun figured that maybe this was worth taking a chance on. If they crashed and burned then at least they tried. But there was always a chance this could lead to something huge, something that swallowed the both of them whole. "Or boyfriend?"
"I've pretty much been raising Jongup and Junhong at the same time." Yongguk's expression lightened again and Daehyun was glad to see the hurt erased from his face. "Do you honestly think they have ever agreed on someone for me at the same time?"
Daehyun was going to make a smug comment about how they both agreed on him which made him pretty special, but Yongguk's arms were wrapping around him again and he was desperate to know what his hair felt like under his fingertips so he kept it to himself. The only word his tongue felt like forming was Yongguk's name anyways.
"By the way I have no idea what the deal with this doll is." Yongguk laughed against his lips. "That's Jongup's handwriting but he's never had a stuffed Pikachu before."
The only way for them to produce a random toy was to get one out of the Lost and Found box in the janitor's closet. Daehyun growled angrily into Yongguk's mouth. "The bastards set me up!"