The Scattered Stars Effect part two
Pairing: HimUp
Rated: PG13
Length: 4.2K
Part One
Main Song
Song Two
Song Three
“Tired.” Hayoung batted sleepy eyes at him as she settled into the couch where he had laid her. “Jongup?”
“He’ll be here in a little bit. I’ll wake you up when he comes.” Himchan covered her with the blanket over the back of the couch fully knowing he wouldn’t have the heart to wake her.
He forgot to ask what Jongup liked to eat but if he had survived off of plain noodles for so long then he would probably be grateful for anything so Himchan just ordered their normal items and a few extra that Jongup could pick from.
The apartment normally stayed pretty clean since they were both gone most of the day for work and school, but Himchan give it a customary look over just in case. Hayoung’s backpack was moved to her bedroom and the breakfast dishes were thrown into the dishwasher. He quickly washed a few plates and set them in the drainer to dry and was peering frantically into his fridge trying to decide if Jongup was a beer or soda kinda guy when the doorbell rang.
“I brought something anyways.” Jongup hesitantly held out a bottle of wine (well that answered that question, Himchan thought to himself). “I hope it’s okay.”
“It’s fine.” Now that it was just the two of them trying to make conversation Himchan grew a little bit uncomfortable. When Hayoung was there she kept the topic light and airy. When it was only them two the meal felt a little more intimate than Himchan was going for. “I ordered the food. It should be here in about ten minutes.”
Jongup nodded. He slid off his sneakers before slipping out of his jacket leaving Himchan struck with how different he looked when he wasn’t working. His black jeans were more fitted as was his white t-shirt, the collar cutting a deep V-shape over his chest. The same hair that was just recently flecking with paint was cleaned and brushed and falling softly over his eyes.
“White’s a very brave clothing choice for a painter.”
“I’m a brave kind of guy.” Jongup grinned, his eyes disappearing and leaving him all teeth and hair. “Where are your glasses?”
Once Himchan pointed the correct cabinet out Jongup made himself at home, pouring them each a glass of wine and drying the plates in the drainer before bringing them to the table. They waited in their seats before the food came in silence. Himchan was exhausted after a long day at work and Jongup was busy glancing around their apartment.
“You have a nice home.” He offered, trying to break the quiet. “I was right when I pegged you as not much of the artsy type. You don’t have a single thing on the walls.”
“My eye for art must have been blinded at birth.” Himchan responded wryly. “I put Hayoung’s school pictures on the fridge and that’s about as far as I go.”
Jongup frowned. He took a sip of his wine and sat back in his seat in thought. “Favorite color and favorite thing?”
“What?” Jongup waved at him to answer. “I don’t know. Blue? Nighttime? Why?”
“Just trying to picture what kind of art you would even put in here. Why do you like the night so much? Most people prefer the sunshine.”
“I like the stars. You can’t see them very well from the city but on the slight chance they break through the smog they’re beautiful.” Himchan was inexperienced with wine. He liked beer and sometimes hard liquor when work had been insanely tiring. But this was a welcomed surprise. The wine was thick and spicy on his tongue and rolled smoothly down his throat when he swallowed. “This is really, really good. I had wine at our work Christmas party last year and it tasted like stale cough syrup.”
“I’m a man of many talents. Being crazy good at picking out excellent wine is just one of them.” Jongup winked mischievously at him just before the doorbell rang again.
After Himchan paid and had brought the food back to the table he let Jongup take over while he pondered the easiest way to try and wake Hayoung up. He poked her cheek with a finger and quietly whispered her name but she stayed as still as a rock.
“Let her sleep.” Jongup had refilled Himchan’s glass and held it out to him. He smiled down at her fluttering eyelids and parted lips. “She’s too peaceful to wake up.”
The silence while they ate was a nice one. A comfortable one. For the first time in ages Himchan ate out of enjoyment rather than necessity. Jongup being there was so easy it felt like it had happened hundreds of times before.
He didn’t like mushrooms and Jongup disliked onions, they quickly found out when both reached for each other’s cast-off’s at the same time. Jongup wasn’t a big fan of beer, he told Himchan when the wine ran out, but he didn’t mind taking one.
After the meal Jongup offered to do the dishes so that Himchan could take care of Hayoung. It was weird how easily he had inserted himself into their nightly routine, but Himchan was growing too tired to question it. The feel of the heavy food and three glasses of wine and beer in his stomach made him eye his bedroom door in need.
“Thank you for supper.” Jongup was waiting by the front door by the time Himchan had undressed Hayoung and slid pajamas over her. With his shoelaces already tied and his jacket lying across his arms he was prepared to easily slip out. “Please bring Hayoung over again sometime. I enjoyed having her help.”
He was already gone before Himchan had even opened his mouth to reply. “You’re welcome?” He mumbled, staring at the closed door and wondering why the apartment suddenly felt so empty.
---
“I think we’re almost done with the Ko account.” Himchan’s co-worker dropped a new stack of files onto his desk with an apologetic smile. “A few more days of filing and we should be finished.”
Himchan should have felt ecstatic but one look at the pile of work that was just given to him and he knew it was going to be another late night at work. “Sounds great Yongguk.”
He stood by the desk for a moment and silently watched Himchan go through each folder and put it in the correct piles. “That’s about eight hours’ worth of work. Do you want me to help you get started on it?”
“No, that’s fine. You go on and work on whatever they gave you.” Himchan pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed his mother’s number. “I’ll just ask my mom to keep Hayoung a little bit longer than usual.”
Yongguk chewed on the corner of his lip before finally nodding and leaving him alone at his desk. If Himchan noticed the downtrodden response then he didn’t say anything.
“I’m sorry sweetheart, but I have a big mess at work and I have to stay a little later and get started on it… No, you’ll be eating dinner with grandma and grandpa tonight... If I’m not home by bedtime then you get to stay up an extra fifteen minutes every night for the next week.” He pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a sigh at her next question. “What flavor?”
The bakery they always passed on their way home was starting to feel like a second home for Himchan. He had managed to hold her at bay for a few days but he knew it was only a matter of time before she asked about it. Now he not only had to work late but he also had very direct orders to pick up a chocolate chip muffin on his way home. A regular parent would have said no, but Himchan’s ability to deny his daughter anything was almost non-existent. His parents thought he was spoiling her to the point of excess but when you had the job of two parents on your shoulders you had to make do with the skills you had.
And being able to easily make his daughter smile was a life skill he had perfected early.
Jongup wasn’t immediately visible when he entered the building and Himchan couldn’t help but feel a tiny stab of disappointment. He had been hoping to see him again after their dinner the week before so that he could re-invite him on a night Hayoung would be awake. Hearing her angry screams and crying from her bedroom when she woke up the next morning and realized she had slept through everything was a headache Himchan didn’t want to ever have again.
“He’s not here.” The man behind the counter raised an eyebrow at Himchan’s obvious peering into the dark hallway. “You’re the one with the kid, right?” At Himchan’s curious nod, the man sighed in reply. “Jongup was hoping you two would come back and see him. He hasn’t been in to paint for a few days. Sometimes he loses motivation and quits until it comes back.” Himchan could tell from the barely advanced work on the wall that nothing new had been done. For all of Jongup’s talents he sure wasn’t in any hurry to get the job done quickly.
“Do you know when he’ll be back in?” Himchan couldn’t help the anxious tone in his voice because if he had to go back and tell Hayoung her paint man was gone then he might as well not even open his mouth ever again. Nothing was worse than a Kim woman not getting what she wanted. “Do you have his number?”
The man narrowed his eyes at him from across the counter. “I don’t know if he would appreciate me giving his phone number out. Why don’t you leave yours and I’ll pass it along?” After Himchan quickly scribbled the digits down and ordered Hayoung’s muffin the man held onto the bag a little tighter than normal when Himchan reached for it. “Jongup’s an artist and that means sometimes he’s impulsive and flighty. We need him to stay cheerful to paint the bright mood of the mural. But he needs someone he can be close to since he’s new in the city so I’m going to give him your number on the promise that you will treat him well and be a friend to him.” The look he gave Himchan promised five layers of hell if he didn’t fulfill his duty.
“I want to be his friend.” He answered, not knowing where the honesty suddenly came from. The last time he had wanted to befriend someone was twenty years ago when he was in kindergarten like Hayoung and the boy down the street had a nicer lunchbox than he did. But Jongup had made friendship so effortless and so comforting that Himchan had found himself several times over the weekend craving the quiet calm of their dinner together. “I wouldn’t purposely try to hurt him.”
The bag was finally let go of but the man’s eyes followed Himchan all the way out the door and out of view of the window. Obviously that man had known Jongup a lot longer than he had been hired for and for some reason was protective of him. But that was none of his business and he shouldn’t worry about it, Himchan ordered himself with a frown. All he was concerned with the fact that his daughter had formed an unlikely bond with the painter and it was the first time since her mother died that she’d ever reached out to anyone and Himchan was going to do everything possible to bring them all together for her.
---
It took him a few days to call the number on the back of his receipt. He wasn’t sure if he was overstepping his bounds by calling him and assuming they had formed a friendship. For all he knew Jongup hadn’t even given them a second thought. But Himchan had to have faith even though it was new to him, all of this was new to him.
“Hello?”
“Hi.” Himchan licked his lips, unsure of where to go from there. The only people he called were his mother or clients and they were always with a purpose. Nothing was ever just because he wanted to or just because Hayoung was hitting him hard in the kneecap and asking when they could go play together again. “It’s-It’s Himchan. Hayoung’s father?”
The voice on the other end sounded amused, that was a good sign right? “I know who you are, Himchan. We had dinner for two hours last week. How are you both?”
He hissed at no avail for Hayoung to go back to her room. “Fine, I’m fine. Hayoung’s fine, too. She said to tell you hello and that she wants to use purple next time.”
“Purple huh?” Jongup hummed over the line as he thought. “I think we can fit some purple in there. But she’ll have to mix the paint up for me. I’ve tried ever since she did it and I just don’t think I’m doing it as well.”
Himchan bit back a smile as he repeated the compliment down to his daughter. Somehow Jongup always knew the right thing to say to make her entire face beam with happiness and this time she listened obediently when he asked her to give him some privacy.
“Will you be painting tomorrow?”
“I haven’t been working there as much this week.” Jongup admitted. “It’s hard to paint when you’re distracted. There’s a new piece I’ve been playing around with lately. It’s taken up all of my time.”
“Oh.” He was disappointed. Hayoung would want to go back as soon as possible now that she thought her help was vital to the art Jongup was making. “Well I’m sorry to bother you then. Maybe some other t-“
“Wait!” Jongup seemed to sense he was about to hang up because his voice bordered on alarm. “You both could come here? To my apartment, I mean. I do kind of owe you a meal.”
Himchan frowned and thought it over in his head. Taking his daughter to a stranger’s house couldn’t be any worse than inviting the stranger over to his own home. But two home visits and dinner in barely a week was… Different. Himchan wasn’t sure if he was okay with different. “You don’t have to do that.” He finally decided on. “I asked you to our apartment to thank you. If you try to do something nice back then I’m just indebted all over again.”
Jongup laughed and Himchan’s nervousness melted away. The soft sound of his laughter went straight through him, all the way to his toes.
“Then I guess we’ll just keep going around in circles until one of us gives in.”
---
The neighborhood Jongup lived in was dreary. The streets hadn’t been cleaned of trash in what looked like weeks. And the few open storefronts they passed had bars in the windows and one had a suspicious looking red stain on the concrete out front. Himchan held tight to Hayoung’s hand as they carefully made their way down the street.
“Which one is it? Which one is it?” His daughter didn’t seem to notice the shabbiness of the buildings, her attention fully focused on getting to see Jongup again. “Is it this one?”
“No sweetie.” He rechecked the directions in his hand and turned them down a side street, squeezing just a little bit harder to keep her close. “I think it’s around here somewhere…”
“You would be right.”
They both jumped in surprise at the voice coming from above them. Hayoung shrieked with happiness when she saw Jongup leaning over the balcony and grinning down at her. She pulled Himchan to the door and excitedly pressed the buzzer until Jongup came down to let them in.
“Jongup! Daddy said we were eating here with you but we didn’t see any places to eat on your street!” She didn’t even wait for an answer before she bolted through the kitchen to see the rest of the apartment, yelling loudly and then falling completely silent.
Himchan flushed with embarrassment at his daughter’s rudeness as he ran after her. “Hayoung, if you can’t stay calm we’ll turn around and go straight ho-“
He trailed off when he saw what had brought his daughter to shocked silence. “Are all of these yours?”
The paintings were everywhere in the small room. Hung along every square inch of wall space and even stacked a dozen deep in several places. Large canvasses shared space with smaller ones, but every single piece of art was beautiful, something an ignorant eye for art like Himchan could even see.
Jongup nodded from his spot against the wall. “I don’t have a TV and reading makes me fall asleep so painting is pretty much the only thing I do at home.”
Himchan could see dark paintings and bright paintings and ones with people, ones with large flowering trees and even one of Jongup himself, the deep eyes staring straight at him from the corner of the room.
“Pretty!” They watched Hayoung run to one by the window. The bright colors and swirled lines almost looked as if she could have painted it herself but Himchan figured it had taken Jongup days to make it look so perfectly imperfect. “Can we do one together?”
“Hayoung, don’t-“
Jongup nodded, ignoring Himchan’s awkward stammering. “Sure we can. But maybe not tonight, okay? You might ruin your pretty dress.”
She spun around so that he could see the way it swooshed around her waist. “My dress is beautiful. Daddy said so.” The pastel pink dress was bought by his mother, another overly wasteful outfit that she had showered on the little girl. “Grandma said I have to dress like a lady so that daddy will look better.”
“Oh my god.” Himchan buried his face in his hands. “Daddy’s talked to you about not repeating anything grandma says.” He hissed to her through his fingers.
“Well you look like a beautiful lady.” Jongup tried not to laugh at Himchan’s embarrassment. “And daddy looks fine. He shouldn’t worry so much.” He held a hand out to Hayoung and led her towards the tiny kitchen. “We’re not ordering supper tonight. We’re going to cook. Do you want to help?”
The thought of home cooked food stunned her enough that she stopped in the entryway and widened her eyes in shock. “You can paint and cook?” She looked at Himchan over her shoulder and shook her head. “Daddy can’t even make rice. One time he burned our waffles and the smoke alarm went off and we had to let the firemen in and daddy was just in his under-“
“Hayoung!”
Jongup couldn’t hold back the bark of laughter this time. He waved off the shameful look on Himchan’s face. “I’ve had more fun in the last ten minutes than I’ve had in days. Please bring her over every night.”
By the time Himchan had fought down the red flushing his cheeks and neck the other two were already absorbed in making their dinner. Hayoung was slowly and carefully brushing the meat with sauce, making sure each strip had the exact perfect amount that Jongup had taught her. Jongup had pushed the sleeves up on his cream-colored sweater and was chopping vegetables with a practiced ease and dropping them into a bowl.
“Can I help with something?”
“Do you want to cook the noodles?” Jongup moved out of the way so that Himchan could have room by the stove. “I didn’t turn the burner on yet but the stove is hot from the grill so it shouldn’t take long to boil.”
Himchan looked blankly at the pot of water and the package of noodles sitting behind it. He picked them and turned them over in his hand before looking blankly at Jongup.
“Wow, Hayoung was right. You are hopeless.”
He pouted, bottom lip sticking out just like Hayoung did when her feelings were hurt. “I may not be a good cook but at least I look nice trying it.” Himchan joked, ruffling his daughter’s hair and earning a growl when it broke her concentration.
Jongup pointed to the small two-seater table and told Himchan to sit down. “Let the two real chef’s cook. In the door to your right there’s some wine if you want some while you wait.” He pointed sternly at Hayoung. “You can’t have anything to drink until you’re done. I run a tight ship.”
She giggled, the sound making Himchan smile. “I’m only five!”
“What?” He held a hand over his mouth. “You’re only five? But… But in that dress you look at least eight!”
“Uh-uh.” She turned to Himchan and grinned widely at him. “Tell him daddy!”
Himchan’s heart was so full of lightness and happiness that he wasn’t sure if he could speak if he tried. Seeing the innocent joy on Hayoung’s face was more than he thought he could take.
Jongup reached into the cabinet above him and pulled out three wine glasses. “You keep brushing that marinade on, okay?” He pulled open the door he had motioned to and peered inside thoughtfully. “Do you like fruity or oaky wines more?” When Himchan didn’t answer he pulled his head back to see the blank expression on his face. “Or do you not have a single clue what I’m talking about?”
“The second one?”
“Want me to pick one?” At Himchan’s nod Jongup smiled and grabbed a bottle near the bottom and one right at the front. “I like oaked wines the best. This one has a slight vanilla taste.” He poured them each a glass from the larger bottle and then one smaller amount from the second bottle. The label was turned around so that Himchan could read that it was merely grape juice for children. “Shh.” Jongup winked at him as he handed Hayoung the glass.
She took a suspicious sniff but when her dad didn’t stop her she gulped the glass down, leaving it empty and leaving her with a purple mustache above her lip. “Yummy!” The glass was held out towards Jongup again. “More?”
“Okay kiddo.” He sighed, pouring her another half glass. “But this is it. You have to take your daddy home.”
“How do you know so much about wine?” Himchan didn’t want to appear greedy and drink the entire glass in one sip, but it really was delicious. He didn’t know if he could ever go back to beer again.
Jongup started laying the meat out onto the grill, adjusting the controls so it didn’t burn. “I lived in France for a few months. If you don’t know how to pick a good wine after that then there’s just no hope for you.”
He could imagine Jongup in France. In his normal paint-covered clothes and carrying an easel and a bag of paints around. He would fit right in.
“What did you do in France?”
The question made Jongup’s shoulders tighten and Himchan immediately regretted the question. He didn’t want to push the other man, he was just curious and trying to make conversation, but somehow the question wasn’t the right one.
“I’ve lived all over.” Jongup finally replied, his voice implying he didn’t really want to answer. “I think I’m going to stay in Korea this time though. It’s nice to be home.”
Himchan let the conversation die while Jongup cooked their dinner. Thankfully Hayoung was too young to sense the tension and happily chattered to each of them until their plates were on the table.
“Come sit on my lap.” Himchan patted his knee and pulled her plate beside his so that she would have a place to eat.
“Hold on.” Jongup jumped up and ran towards the bedroom. “I bought something when I went out for groceries.” He came back in with a plastic fold-up chair for Hayoung. Cute cartoon cat faces covered the back and seat and it made her squeal with excitement when Jongup set it up between the two adult chairs. “Now there’s enough room.”
Knowing that Jongup had bought his daughter something on the assumption that she would be coming back to use it again made Himchan’s throat seize up. The only people who cared about Hayoung and showed her even the slightest bit of affection were him and his parents. He could see the way she looked at Jongup. Like he was her new best friend, boyfriend and parental figure all rolled up into one man.
That worried at a tiny part of his mind. What if Jongup was just passing through their lives, just waiting for the next adventure to send him of God knows where?
What if he was there to stay?
part three
Rated: PG13
Length: 4.2K
Part One
Main Song
Song Two
Song Three
“Tired.” Hayoung batted sleepy eyes at him as she settled into the couch where he had laid her. “Jongup?”
“He’ll be here in a little bit. I’ll wake you up when he comes.” Himchan covered her with the blanket over the back of the couch fully knowing he wouldn’t have the heart to wake her.
He forgot to ask what Jongup liked to eat but if he had survived off of plain noodles for so long then he would probably be grateful for anything so Himchan just ordered their normal items and a few extra that Jongup could pick from.
The apartment normally stayed pretty clean since they were both gone most of the day for work and school, but Himchan give it a customary look over just in case. Hayoung’s backpack was moved to her bedroom and the breakfast dishes were thrown into the dishwasher. He quickly washed a few plates and set them in the drainer to dry and was peering frantically into his fridge trying to decide if Jongup was a beer or soda kinda guy when the doorbell rang.
“I brought something anyways.” Jongup hesitantly held out a bottle of wine (well that answered that question, Himchan thought to himself). “I hope it’s okay.”
“It’s fine.” Now that it was just the two of them trying to make conversation Himchan grew a little bit uncomfortable. When Hayoung was there she kept the topic light and airy. When it was only them two the meal felt a little more intimate than Himchan was going for. “I ordered the food. It should be here in about ten minutes.”
Jongup nodded. He slid off his sneakers before slipping out of his jacket leaving Himchan struck with how different he looked when he wasn’t working. His black jeans were more fitted as was his white t-shirt, the collar cutting a deep V-shape over his chest. The same hair that was just recently flecking with paint was cleaned and brushed and falling softly over his eyes.
“White’s a very brave clothing choice for a painter.”
“I’m a brave kind of guy.” Jongup grinned, his eyes disappearing and leaving him all teeth and hair. “Where are your glasses?”
Once Himchan pointed the correct cabinet out Jongup made himself at home, pouring them each a glass of wine and drying the plates in the drainer before bringing them to the table. They waited in their seats before the food came in silence. Himchan was exhausted after a long day at work and Jongup was busy glancing around their apartment.
“You have a nice home.” He offered, trying to break the quiet. “I was right when I pegged you as not much of the artsy type. You don’t have a single thing on the walls.”
“My eye for art must have been blinded at birth.” Himchan responded wryly. “I put Hayoung’s school pictures on the fridge and that’s about as far as I go.”
Jongup frowned. He took a sip of his wine and sat back in his seat in thought. “Favorite color and favorite thing?”
“What?” Jongup waved at him to answer. “I don’t know. Blue? Nighttime? Why?”
“Just trying to picture what kind of art you would even put in here. Why do you like the night so much? Most people prefer the sunshine.”
“I like the stars. You can’t see them very well from the city but on the slight chance they break through the smog they’re beautiful.” Himchan was inexperienced with wine. He liked beer and sometimes hard liquor when work had been insanely tiring. But this was a welcomed surprise. The wine was thick and spicy on his tongue and rolled smoothly down his throat when he swallowed. “This is really, really good. I had wine at our work Christmas party last year and it tasted like stale cough syrup.”
“I’m a man of many talents. Being crazy good at picking out excellent wine is just one of them.” Jongup winked mischievously at him just before the doorbell rang again.
After Himchan paid and had brought the food back to the table he let Jongup take over while he pondered the easiest way to try and wake Hayoung up. He poked her cheek with a finger and quietly whispered her name but she stayed as still as a rock.
“Let her sleep.” Jongup had refilled Himchan’s glass and held it out to him. He smiled down at her fluttering eyelids and parted lips. “She’s too peaceful to wake up.”
The silence while they ate was a nice one. A comfortable one. For the first time in ages Himchan ate out of enjoyment rather than necessity. Jongup being there was so easy it felt like it had happened hundreds of times before.
He didn’t like mushrooms and Jongup disliked onions, they quickly found out when both reached for each other’s cast-off’s at the same time. Jongup wasn’t a big fan of beer, he told Himchan when the wine ran out, but he didn’t mind taking one.
After the meal Jongup offered to do the dishes so that Himchan could take care of Hayoung. It was weird how easily he had inserted himself into their nightly routine, but Himchan was growing too tired to question it. The feel of the heavy food and three glasses of wine and beer in his stomach made him eye his bedroom door in need.
“Thank you for supper.” Jongup was waiting by the front door by the time Himchan had undressed Hayoung and slid pajamas over her. With his shoelaces already tied and his jacket lying across his arms he was prepared to easily slip out. “Please bring Hayoung over again sometime. I enjoyed having her help.”
He was already gone before Himchan had even opened his mouth to reply. “You’re welcome?” He mumbled, staring at the closed door and wondering why the apartment suddenly felt so empty.
---
“I think we’re almost done with the Ko account.” Himchan’s co-worker dropped a new stack of files onto his desk with an apologetic smile. “A few more days of filing and we should be finished.”
Himchan should have felt ecstatic but one look at the pile of work that was just given to him and he knew it was going to be another late night at work. “Sounds great Yongguk.”
He stood by the desk for a moment and silently watched Himchan go through each folder and put it in the correct piles. “That’s about eight hours’ worth of work. Do you want me to help you get started on it?”
“No, that’s fine. You go on and work on whatever they gave you.” Himchan pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed his mother’s number. “I’ll just ask my mom to keep Hayoung a little bit longer than usual.”
Yongguk chewed on the corner of his lip before finally nodding and leaving him alone at his desk. If Himchan noticed the downtrodden response then he didn’t say anything.
“I’m sorry sweetheart, but I have a big mess at work and I have to stay a little later and get started on it… No, you’ll be eating dinner with grandma and grandpa tonight... If I’m not home by bedtime then you get to stay up an extra fifteen minutes every night for the next week.” He pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a sigh at her next question. “What flavor?”
The bakery they always passed on their way home was starting to feel like a second home for Himchan. He had managed to hold her at bay for a few days but he knew it was only a matter of time before she asked about it. Now he not only had to work late but he also had very direct orders to pick up a chocolate chip muffin on his way home. A regular parent would have said no, but Himchan’s ability to deny his daughter anything was almost non-existent. His parents thought he was spoiling her to the point of excess but when you had the job of two parents on your shoulders you had to make do with the skills you had.
And being able to easily make his daughter smile was a life skill he had perfected early.
Jongup wasn’t immediately visible when he entered the building and Himchan couldn’t help but feel a tiny stab of disappointment. He had been hoping to see him again after their dinner the week before so that he could re-invite him on a night Hayoung would be awake. Hearing her angry screams and crying from her bedroom when she woke up the next morning and realized she had slept through everything was a headache Himchan didn’t want to ever have again.
“He’s not here.” The man behind the counter raised an eyebrow at Himchan’s obvious peering into the dark hallway. “You’re the one with the kid, right?” At Himchan’s curious nod, the man sighed in reply. “Jongup was hoping you two would come back and see him. He hasn’t been in to paint for a few days. Sometimes he loses motivation and quits until it comes back.” Himchan could tell from the barely advanced work on the wall that nothing new had been done. For all of Jongup’s talents he sure wasn’t in any hurry to get the job done quickly.
“Do you know when he’ll be back in?” Himchan couldn’t help the anxious tone in his voice because if he had to go back and tell Hayoung her paint man was gone then he might as well not even open his mouth ever again. Nothing was worse than a Kim woman not getting what she wanted. “Do you have his number?”
The man narrowed his eyes at him from across the counter. “I don’t know if he would appreciate me giving his phone number out. Why don’t you leave yours and I’ll pass it along?” After Himchan quickly scribbled the digits down and ordered Hayoung’s muffin the man held onto the bag a little tighter than normal when Himchan reached for it. “Jongup’s an artist and that means sometimes he’s impulsive and flighty. We need him to stay cheerful to paint the bright mood of the mural. But he needs someone he can be close to since he’s new in the city so I’m going to give him your number on the promise that you will treat him well and be a friend to him.” The look he gave Himchan promised five layers of hell if he didn’t fulfill his duty.
“I want to be his friend.” He answered, not knowing where the honesty suddenly came from. The last time he had wanted to befriend someone was twenty years ago when he was in kindergarten like Hayoung and the boy down the street had a nicer lunchbox than he did. But Jongup had made friendship so effortless and so comforting that Himchan had found himself several times over the weekend craving the quiet calm of their dinner together. “I wouldn’t purposely try to hurt him.”
The bag was finally let go of but the man’s eyes followed Himchan all the way out the door and out of view of the window. Obviously that man had known Jongup a lot longer than he had been hired for and for some reason was protective of him. But that was none of his business and he shouldn’t worry about it, Himchan ordered himself with a frown. All he was concerned with the fact that his daughter had formed an unlikely bond with the painter and it was the first time since her mother died that she’d ever reached out to anyone and Himchan was going to do everything possible to bring them all together for her.
---
It took him a few days to call the number on the back of his receipt. He wasn’t sure if he was overstepping his bounds by calling him and assuming they had formed a friendship. For all he knew Jongup hadn’t even given them a second thought. But Himchan had to have faith even though it was new to him, all of this was new to him.
“Hello?”
“Hi.” Himchan licked his lips, unsure of where to go from there. The only people he called were his mother or clients and they were always with a purpose. Nothing was ever just because he wanted to or just because Hayoung was hitting him hard in the kneecap and asking when they could go play together again. “It’s-It’s Himchan. Hayoung’s father?”
The voice on the other end sounded amused, that was a good sign right? “I know who you are, Himchan. We had dinner for two hours last week. How are you both?”
He hissed at no avail for Hayoung to go back to her room. “Fine, I’m fine. Hayoung’s fine, too. She said to tell you hello and that she wants to use purple next time.”
“Purple huh?” Jongup hummed over the line as he thought. “I think we can fit some purple in there. But she’ll have to mix the paint up for me. I’ve tried ever since she did it and I just don’t think I’m doing it as well.”
Himchan bit back a smile as he repeated the compliment down to his daughter. Somehow Jongup always knew the right thing to say to make her entire face beam with happiness and this time she listened obediently when he asked her to give him some privacy.
“Will you be painting tomorrow?”
“I haven’t been working there as much this week.” Jongup admitted. “It’s hard to paint when you’re distracted. There’s a new piece I’ve been playing around with lately. It’s taken up all of my time.”
“Oh.” He was disappointed. Hayoung would want to go back as soon as possible now that she thought her help was vital to the art Jongup was making. “Well I’m sorry to bother you then. Maybe some other t-“
“Wait!” Jongup seemed to sense he was about to hang up because his voice bordered on alarm. “You both could come here? To my apartment, I mean. I do kind of owe you a meal.”
Himchan frowned and thought it over in his head. Taking his daughter to a stranger’s house couldn’t be any worse than inviting the stranger over to his own home. But two home visits and dinner in barely a week was… Different. Himchan wasn’t sure if he was okay with different. “You don’t have to do that.” He finally decided on. “I asked you to our apartment to thank you. If you try to do something nice back then I’m just indebted all over again.”
Jongup laughed and Himchan’s nervousness melted away. The soft sound of his laughter went straight through him, all the way to his toes.
“Then I guess we’ll just keep going around in circles until one of us gives in.”
---
The neighborhood Jongup lived in was dreary. The streets hadn’t been cleaned of trash in what looked like weeks. And the few open storefronts they passed had bars in the windows and one had a suspicious looking red stain on the concrete out front. Himchan held tight to Hayoung’s hand as they carefully made their way down the street.
“Which one is it? Which one is it?” His daughter didn’t seem to notice the shabbiness of the buildings, her attention fully focused on getting to see Jongup again. “Is it this one?”
“No sweetie.” He rechecked the directions in his hand and turned them down a side street, squeezing just a little bit harder to keep her close. “I think it’s around here somewhere…”
“You would be right.”
They both jumped in surprise at the voice coming from above them. Hayoung shrieked with happiness when she saw Jongup leaning over the balcony and grinning down at her. She pulled Himchan to the door and excitedly pressed the buzzer until Jongup came down to let them in.
“Jongup! Daddy said we were eating here with you but we didn’t see any places to eat on your street!” She didn’t even wait for an answer before she bolted through the kitchen to see the rest of the apartment, yelling loudly and then falling completely silent.
Himchan flushed with embarrassment at his daughter’s rudeness as he ran after her. “Hayoung, if you can’t stay calm we’ll turn around and go straight ho-“
He trailed off when he saw what had brought his daughter to shocked silence. “Are all of these yours?”
The paintings were everywhere in the small room. Hung along every square inch of wall space and even stacked a dozen deep in several places. Large canvasses shared space with smaller ones, but every single piece of art was beautiful, something an ignorant eye for art like Himchan could even see.
Jongup nodded from his spot against the wall. “I don’t have a TV and reading makes me fall asleep so painting is pretty much the only thing I do at home.”
Himchan could see dark paintings and bright paintings and ones with people, ones with large flowering trees and even one of Jongup himself, the deep eyes staring straight at him from the corner of the room.
“Pretty!” They watched Hayoung run to one by the window. The bright colors and swirled lines almost looked as if she could have painted it herself but Himchan figured it had taken Jongup days to make it look so perfectly imperfect. “Can we do one together?”
“Hayoung, don’t-“
Jongup nodded, ignoring Himchan’s awkward stammering. “Sure we can. But maybe not tonight, okay? You might ruin your pretty dress.”
She spun around so that he could see the way it swooshed around her waist. “My dress is beautiful. Daddy said so.” The pastel pink dress was bought by his mother, another overly wasteful outfit that she had showered on the little girl. “Grandma said I have to dress like a lady so that daddy will look better.”
“Oh my god.” Himchan buried his face in his hands. “Daddy’s talked to you about not repeating anything grandma says.” He hissed to her through his fingers.
“Well you look like a beautiful lady.” Jongup tried not to laugh at Himchan’s embarrassment. “And daddy looks fine. He shouldn’t worry so much.” He held a hand out to Hayoung and led her towards the tiny kitchen. “We’re not ordering supper tonight. We’re going to cook. Do you want to help?”
The thought of home cooked food stunned her enough that she stopped in the entryway and widened her eyes in shock. “You can paint and cook?” She looked at Himchan over her shoulder and shook her head. “Daddy can’t even make rice. One time he burned our waffles and the smoke alarm went off and we had to let the firemen in and daddy was just in his under-“
“Hayoung!”
Jongup couldn’t hold back the bark of laughter this time. He waved off the shameful look on Himchan’s face. “I’ve had more fun in the last ten minutes than I’ve had in days. Please bring her over every night.”
By the time Himchan had fought down the red flushing his cheeks and neck the other two were already absorbed in making their dinner. Hayoung was slowly and carefully brushing the meat with sauce, making sure each strip had the exact perfect amount that Jongup had taught her. Jongup had pushed the sleeves up on his cream-colored sweater and was chopping vegetables with a practiced ease and dropping them into a bowl.
“Can I help with something?”
“Do you want to cook the noodles?” Jongup moved out of the way so that Himchan could have room by the stove. “I didn’t turn the burner on yet but the stove is hot from the grill so it shouldn’t take long to boil.”
Himchan looked blankly at the pot of water and the package of noodles sitting behind it. He picked them and turned them over in his hand before looking blankly at Jongup.
“Wow, Hayoung was right. You are hopeless.”
He pouted, bottom lip sticking out just like Hayoung did when her feelings were hurt. “I may not be a good cook but at least I look nice trying it.” Himchan joked, ruffling his daughter’s hair and earning a growl when it broke her concentration.
Jongup pointed to the small two-seater table and told Himchan to sit down. “Let the two real chef’s cook. In the door to your right there’s some wine if you want some while you wait.” He pointed sternly at Hayoung. “You can’t have anything to drink until you’re done. I run a tight ship.”
She giggled, the sound making Himchan smile. “I’m only five!”
“What?” He held a hand over his mouth. “You’re only five? But… But in that dress you look at least eight!”
“Uh-uh.” She turned to Himchan and grinned widely at him. “Tell him daddy!”
Himchan’s heart was so full of lightness and happiness that he wasn’t sure if he could speak if he tried. Seeing the innocent joy on Hayoung’s face was more than he thought he could take.
Jongup reached into the cabinet above him and pulled out three wine glasses. “You keep brushing that marinade on, okay?” He pulled open the door he had motioned to and peered inside thoughtfully. “Do you like fruity or oaky wines more?” When Himchan didn’t answer he pulled his head back to see the blank expression on his face. “Or do you not have a single clue what I’m talking about?”
“The second one?”
“Want me to pick one?” At Himchan’s nod Jongup smiled and grabbed a bottle near the bottom and one right at the front. “I like oaked wines the best. This one has a slight vanilla taste.” He poured them each a glass from the larger bottle and then one smaller amount from the second bottle. The label was turned around so that Himchan could read that it was merely grape juice for children. “Shh.” Jongup winked at him as he handed Hayoung the glass.
She took a suspicious sniff but when her dad didn’t stop her she gulped the glass down, leaving it empty and leaving her with a purple mustache above her lip. “Yummy!” The glass was held out towards Jongup again. “More?”
“Okay kiddo.” He sighed, pouring her another half glass. “But this is it. You have to take your daddy home.”
“How do you know so much about wine?” Himchan didn’t want to appear greedy and drink the entire glass in one sip, but it really was delicious. He didn’t know if he could ever go back to beer again.
Jongup started laying the meat out onto the grill, adjusting the controls so it didn’t burn. “I lived in France for a few months. If you don’t know how to pick a good wine after that then there’s just no hope for you.”
He could imagine Jongup in France. In his normal paint-covered clothes and carrying an easel and a bag of paints around. He would fit right in.
“What did you do in France?”
The question made Jongup’s shoulders tighten and Himchan immediately regretted the question. He didn’t want to push the other man, he was just curious and trying to make conversation, but somehow the question wasn’t the right one.
“I’ve lived all over.” Jongup finally replied, his voice implying he didn’t really want to answer. “I think I’m going to stay in Korea this time though. It’s nice to be home.”
Himchan let the conversation die while Jongup cooked their dinner. Thankfully Hayoung was too young to sense the tension and happily chattered to each of them until their plates were on the table.
“Come sit on my lap.” Himchan patted his knee and pulled her plate beside his so that she would have a place to eat.
“Hold on.” Jongup jumped up and ran towards the bedroom. “I bought something when I went out for groceries.” He came back in with a plastic fold-up chair for Hayoung. Cute cartoon cat faces covered the back and seat and it made her squeal with excitement when Jongup set it up between the two adult chairs. “Now there’s enough room.”
Knowing that Jongup had bought his daughter something on the assumption that she would be coming back to use it again made Himchan’s throat seize up. The only people who cared about Hayoung and showed her even the slightest bit of affection were him and his parents. He could see the way she looked at Jongup. Like he was her new best friend, boyfriend and parental figure all rolled up into one man.
That worried at a tiny part of his mind. What if Jongup was just passing through their lives, just waiting for the next adventure to send him of God knows where?
What if he was there to stay?
part three