umbrella { sunjay }

33.

song recommendation: black beauty -lana del rey

jay and eunjoo sat across from each other as they waited for sunoo to return with the pancakes that were requested. the older male offered to help but sunoo refused, wanting him to just relax while he could. 

jay had gone through something pretty traumatic and sunoo felt the urge to take care of him. it wasn't much, but eunjoo loved sunoo's breakfast so he figured jay might as well.

"how are you, eunjoo-ah." jongseong attempted to make conversation with the girl who's smile hadn't seemed to fall since the three of them had shared the morning together.

"i'm excited for pancakes!" she cheered gleefully while lifting her arms into the air. laughter could be heard from jongseong and from the other room where sunoo continued to cook in the kitchen.

"be honest, is your dad's pancakes actually good?" he semi-whispered with a teasing smile. he knew sunoo could hear him still, so he decided to mess around.

"they're the best!" eunjoo cheered again, bursting with energy. the beginning of the day was her favorite time of the day. she loved her morning chats while eating her favorite foods.

"that's my girl." sunoo suddenly appeared into the dining area with a stack of fluffy pancakes in his hand and a big smile on his face. 

"you could never turn my baby against me, park." sunoo narrowed his eyes to playfully scold the other. in defense, jay put his arms up in surrender. the atmosphere was almost dripping with tranquility and serenity. 

it felt like jongseong could actually stop to take a breath and enjoy the moment. his life had become overwhelmed with stress and adversity. it felt like a pressure was gradually lifting the longer he stayed with the two of them

sunoo cut eunjoo's pancake into fourths. the same way he's been doing since she could eat solid foods. he could tell his daughter was happy to have a guest over, specifically jay. 

the three of them ate their breakfast with a peaceful bubble surrounding them. it felt like warmth. 

it felt like home.

"mr. park?" eunjoo's little voice caught their attention as they chewed.

"hm?" jongseong hummed while trying to finish the piece of food that remained in his mouth.

"where did you go? i didn't see you for a long time." sunoo and jay made silent eye contact from across the table.

of course the adults wouldn't tell the little girl the entire truth. she would never fully understand even though she's very smart.

the male cleared his throat before swallowing the rest of his pancake. he looked at the girl's eyes that beamed with curiosity. she genuinely wanted to know why he had suddenly disappeared.

"well... i had somethings to... take care of..." suddenly the air felt tight and the peaceful bubble had been evaporated. 

from the corner of his eye, he seen sunoo's gaze fixated downwards at his plate as he listened to their conversation. 

sunoo was accidently reminded of the heaviness of the situation that was actually at hand. no matter how much he tried to push it away and act like everything was fine, the reality of it was still there.

"my daddy was sad when you were gone." 

her mood turned blue as a little pout formed on her lips. she hated seeing her father clearly going through something for the past few months. the entire house felt cold, aside from the weather changing. 

she could feel something wasn't right, even if she would never understand. she could see the somber on her father's face every morning.

"that's enough, joo. let's eat, okay?" sunoo interrupted with a fabricated smile and patted her head. he refused to look at the other male across from him.

but if he had looked, he would see the way jay crumbled. he wasn't aware that his absence had such an affect on his friend. 

friend. what a familiar word that feels so foreign.

both of them knew they were friends. 

but they also knew there was something lingering in their stares, their words, their touch, their gestures. 

something deeper.

sunoo was more aware and acknowledgeable about it. he accepted that he felt something for the male two months ago. but he also accepted that nothing would come from it.

jay's stare remained on the man who remained quiet. why did something crawl inside him and eat his conscious from the inside out? he wasn't dense but he also wasn't connecting anything for himself that made sense.

❀

after breakfast, eunjoo mentioned the promise that jongseong had made two months ago. she still wanted them to all play together even though the air felt slightly heavier since breakfast.

"she has a good memory." jay commented as he and sunoo sat now with crossed legs in the middle of the living room, awaiting eunjoo's instruction.

"it's not always a good thing." sunoo chuckled softly, slightly easing the tension.

"okay. we are going to play house." eunjoo clapped, proud of her idea and also excited that she gained another playmate. 

"mr. park, you'll be the daddy. daddy, you'll be the mommy. and i'll be the baby!" her dimples were on display as she explained the rules.

however, someone had protest to her dictatorship.

"wait, why do i have to be the mommy? how about mr. park can be the mom, and i'll be the dad." sunoo had a cocky smirk on his lips as he looked over to the other male who looked horrified.

"okay! mr. park is the mommy!" eunjoo ran around, giving jay no time to object. 

the girl raced to her large toybox and pulled out a matted blonde princess wig that she got for her last birthday and giggled as she ran back.

"mommies have hair." her smile never disappeared as she happily placed the horrendous wig onto jongseong's head. 

the man sat with no complaints, only looks of defeat and terror reflected on his face. sunoo was having the time of his life as he watched his daughter try to smooth out the frizzed up pieces that flew everywhere.

his laugh echoed across the entire apartment, and eventually he fell onto his back from being so amused.

"perfect! now you look like a beautiful princess-mommy!" eunjoo clapped and sunoo sat up, joining her in cheers. 

the trio spent the remainder of the day spending time together and following the little girl's every request. the games ranged from musical chairs, to a newly formed rock band. but there was one thing that was consistent.

and that was their laughter and happiness.

❀