For:
torontokFrom:
homiten @ ao3 Title: You & I (we have a lil something)
Rating: NC-17
Pairing(s): Tao/Chen, side: Krisoo, Luhan/emptiness
Length: 14,512 words
Summary: Tao decides that he's no longer willing to let his career take centre stage, and takes a break to get his priorities straight. A chance encounter leads him to his local library, where he gets another opportunity to chase his dreams for a second time.
Warning(s): kidfic, always-a-girl chen with a girl name, a healthy appreciation for breasts, kyungsoo's eyebrows, a cliche wrapped in a large amount of words, inappropriate flirting in a kid's section.
Author’s Note: I deviated waaaaaay off the beaten path of your prompt, but I hope this is something you'll still enjoy. A disgusting amount of thanks to my beta who was my biggest cheerleader, and RSML for their constant support and kind words.
Tao's late for his meeting. He hefts the bag higher on his shoulder and curses as he checks his watch. He already knows how Kyungsoo gets when he's forced to make small talk outside of conference rooms, so he does his best to hasten himself.
Olivia's fast asleep in the backseat. Her little body's completely tilted over and she's hugging her stuffed cat tightly, unmoving. Tao's in a hurry, but he's still gentle when he unlocks the rear passenger, unbuckling her seatbelt and hefting her bag up his shoulder once more.
She makes a small noise of discontent when he gets his hands on her and Tao tries to calm her with soft babble, voice and hands tender in equal measurements while he gathers her into his arms. Her arms wrap around his neck and he brushes her long hair out of her face.
They'd attempted pigtails before she left and even lopsided, Tao thinks they did a good job. Tao's forever grateful for Olivia's nanny's kind words and patient teaching while he struggles through most things, but the women in his life have always taken the time to answer his frantic, nonsensical questions. Even as he texted, HELP?!?!?! HOW TO USE A SCRUNCHIE?!?!?!?! he knew she would be able to help him.
It's messy as fuck, but his little girl had been so happy, beaming with joy as she hugged him and admired herself in her giant hot pink vanity. She looks so cute and he's so proud of himself that he lets it carry him all the way across the parkade and towards the main elevator.
He nods at the guard, trading whispered banter and self-deprecating laughter until the door slides open and they go inside. The ride up is short, but Tao's pressed for time and Olivia's already fussy in his arms. He shifts her in his arms again and presses a kiss to her forehead when she whines a cranky "Daddy" muffled into his neck.
Once the doors open, it's a mad dash to Reception. He greets the receptionist, laughing when her head whips up to say hi causing her headset to slide into her face, and hurries on to Conference Room C. Kyungsoo's already there, unsurprising in itself, but if he's surprised to see Tao run in with Olivia, he doesn't show it.
Tao smiles and Kyungsoo frowns. He gathers two of the conference chairs together and lays Olivia down and gently as he can. He's not entirely certain it's safe, but he'll be sure to jump into action if it looks like she's about to fall. Dropping Olivia's bag onto the table, he takes his seat beside Kyungsoo and turns to face him.
Kyungsoo's eyebrows furrow and Tao smiles wider, amused, which makes Kyungsoo scowl harder. "I don't like tardiness, Zitao," Kyungsoo mumbles. He shuffles his papers in front of his face, intent on blocking out Tao's Most Charming Smile™. He settles his papers down, lips pulling tight, and Tao straightens to attention.
"I've made the necessary arrangements for your hiatus to go as smoothly as possible." Kyungsoo shifts in his seat, steeples his hands and regards Tao. Tao's been angling for time off for years now, has made his own preparations and has poured over his contract with his Kyungsoo and his lawyers to triple check that his label can't slap him with a lawsuit when he takes a hiatus.
Things were different when Olivia was a newborn. It was never easy to leave her with her nanny for long periods of time, but he’d done so before because he’d been forced to. He’d put so much into his career, and made enough sacrifices in order to have this much for himself; for them. It's even more important, he knows, because she's been through so much without him and now that he can afford to take the time off, he's going to do so.
Tao tries his best to focus on what Kyungsoo's telling him about tying up last-minute promos--interviews and music shows for his last single off his most recent album, a song dedicated to Olivia that he hopes she will appreciate when she's a bit older--but his attention is torn.
He remains distracted, eyes flitting over to his daughter shifting in the chairs nearby, Kyungsoo's voice rolling and dipping as he explains that Tao still has about two weeks until he's free to do what he pleases.
"But I'll be able to do what I please," he smirks, tips his chair back and laces his fingers behind his head.
Kyungsoo frowns again and Tao's worried he's going to get wrinkles. "Within reason," he says, and then sits up straight when the sound of Olivia's breathing shifts from slow and peaceful to choking sobs as she wakes up forcefully. She calls for him, face turning baby tantrum red when the chairs start sliding. She's scared and in an unfamiliar place, too nervous to open her eyes and find him, but Tao hops up instantly and rushes to her side.
"Shh, Li Hua," he murmurs, gathering her up in his arms before she hurts herself. Kyungsoo looks concerned, smile tilted absently, something Tao's rarely seen directed towards himself. Kyungsoo has always had a range of expressions readily available for Tao's baby.
Olivia sniffles, red faced, and finally opens her eyes to look around. The conference room is familiar in the way that she's been here before but it's obviously not her home. She's pressed so close to Tao that he can barely understand her when she tries to talk to him.
The sound of Kyungsoo rolling in his chair is loud over the hum of the air conditioner and Olivia's head pops up as she regards him with recognition. She immediately starts talking to him, words tripping over each other in an excited mix of lingering baby babble and shy big girl words.
They've been working with her on her speech, but she's still a baby and Tao is a bit unwilling to see her grow up too fast, even if her progression is slightly more than average three-year-old development.
"Daddy has four w..w.." she bites her lip, unsure, but Kyungsoo nods in understanding.
"Four weeks, right?" His smile is wide and unassuming when she nods her head in agreement. "Four whole weeks until Daddy and Olivia get to play all day!"
Olivia claps her hand in joy and bounces, pigtails swinging wildly, and Kyungsoo claps lightly along with her.
"You're so good with kids," Tao says kindly, and pretends not to see Kyungsoo stiffen in slight discomfort.
"It's a part of my job," Kyungsoo says simply, eyes going as wide as his smile as he plays with Olivia bouncing on Tao's lap. It's not his job at all, not really, and Tao's too nice to say anything about it. He joins in once he's sure Kyungsoo has nothing else to say to him, documents and the rest of his schedule forgotten while Kyungsoo plays peekaboo to the soundtrack of Olivia's childish laughter.
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(Olivia's nanny had helped her make a clock. It's flimsy, made more out of glitter and large sequins than anything else. It has cardboard hands, and was decorated with hot pink pipe cleaners, glitter glue and finger paint.
Olivia had presented it to him one night after an overnight stay in the studio. She had practically thrown it at him in her haste, pulling her long hair out of her face and mouth with the kind of determined frustration small kids get before they learn to be embarrassed.
Tao'd been positively charmed. Squatting down until he was her height he had taken the clock and turned it over and over in his hands. Behind Olivia, Amy had been holding a large poster board. She and Olivia had decorated it with painted handprints and pictures of cats, a large drawing of what Tao had assumed was Olivia and Tao stood underneath a space that said "X days until Olivia and Daddy can play!"
Tao stared, shocked and slightly amused. "Huang Li Hua, did you do this for me?" he asked. Olivia shifted bashfully, smiling, unsure now that all of her father's attention had been focused on her.
She huffed. "Amy said," she began shakily, then again with more confidence, "Amy said you have to change the number every day. Like this!" Running over to the board, clumsily flipped the paper until numbers are released. "This many!" she'd proclaimed and Tao was proud as hell that not only had she been practising her numbers, but she'd sat still long enough to create something of that magnitude.
"Yes," he'd agreed. "That many. Did you say thank you to Amy?" Olivia shook her head no and Tao had stood up. Taking her hand he'd made sure that she was stable before they turned--kids were surprisingly wobbly--and, in their loudest inside voice said, "Thank you, Amy.")
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Tao groans as he rolls over. His hand automatically reaches out to slap the alarm, but that's not what woke him up. He still hasn't broken the habit of waking up for work, even if he hasn't had to do that for weeks now.
He peers blearily in the semi-darkness of his room, confused at what's woken him up. He can see the sun shining brightly behind his curtains, and his room is silent save for his tired wheezing.
Suddenly, there's a giggle and that's all the warning he gets before he's got a lap full of squirming baby. Olivia twists and turns until she's moved her way from outside his duvet and into his arms.
He croaks, making her giggle again as she presses her face into his chest. He breathes in her baby scent, pulls her even closer as he tries to remember why it's a bad idea to just fall back asleep.
"Daddy, I'm hungry," Olivia whines and, ah, there it is. He almost asks her where Amy is before he remembers that Amy is currently in the Dominican as a nice thank you for taking care of Olivia, all expenses paid by Tao in his ambition to do all of this himself.
That was clearly a mistake.
"No," he whines. "Daddy wants to sleep." His voice turns cajoling, but unfortunately Olivia's not buying what he's selling.
"Daddy," she whines. “Li Hua,” he whines back and he's struck with how similar they sound.
She huffs and crosses her arms petulantly. "It's time for Wiggles and eating and we have to go to the park!" She bounces on his chest, little head and bits of hair hitting his chin and making his teeth clack. A pause. "Daddy," she yells.
Tao groans. "What have I done," he mumbles into his pillow.
He rolls over and Olivia immediately crawls onto his back and starts to bounce up and down. "Horsey!"
"This is how I die," he groans. Thinks to himself that Kyungsoo will probably find him a few days from now face down in a plate of grilled chicken and glazed carrots, hair pulled into mini braids. He shudders.
It's enough to give him the will to live and the motivation to get him out of bed. He hauls Olivia up into his arms, ignoring her shrieking and flailing limbs as he makes his way out of the room and down the stairs to the kitchen.
“Do you need to potty?” He asks and she shakes her head, no.
He lets her down at her kiddie table, watches as she gets settled into her booster seat and straps her in, pressing a kiss to her forehead before he heads over to the fridge. Today will be eggs and toast for him, oatmeal and a cup of milk for Olivia, and he grabs what he needs before he kicks the fridge door closed.
He'd made sure the kitchen was fully stocked before he'd gotten Amy to the airport. The guys from the security company were a bit hesitant to allow him out grocery shopping, but he was used to always having three or four guys trailing him at all times, it wasn't anything new.
Right now he knows they're out patrolling, protecting him and Olivia while she blows milky bubbles and makes farting noises while giggling to herself. At least one of them will be hiding in the bushes across from his kitchen window and the thought alone makes Tao laugh to himself.
He works quickly. The oatmeal's boiling away before he sets the bread in the toaster--whole wheat, obviously, since Kyungsoo knows where he lives and his spider sense would probably tingle if Tao did something crazy like have sourdough--and works quickly to get his eggs in the pan.
He sneaks a glance at Olivia, just making sure she's okay, before he rushes to grab his toast when it pops up and flips his omelette. He gets everything plated and takes a seat at Olivia's kiddy table. His knees are going to hate him by the time he has to get up, but it's worth it to suffer a bit if it means having Olivia associate eating with family time.
"No boys," she chides, scooping her oatmeal and smearing it around her mouth. "No boys," she says again, forcefully chewing on a raisin.
He blinks and frowns. "Hey... I'm not a boy," he says. She laughs at him, little hands slapping on the table. He says, "I'm Daddy" and this makes Olivia laugh, bits of oatmeal dribbling out of her mouth, He quickly wipes her face and then realizes that he doesn't have anything besides his shirt.
He grimaces in distaste but he's not too mad about it. "Right? I'm Daddy," he says and it sounds like a song when Olivia joins in happily.
"Daddy, Daddy," she sings and Tao rocks from side to side, enjoying the company and his toast. He's got so much planned for them today since the weather seems to be on his side and Olivia could use a day out.
Yesterday they had dressed up and had a tea party. He'd donned a blue wig and Olivia had draped him in her hot pink feather boa, while she had worn its canary yellow cousin. They'd taken lots of pictures and posted them on Instagram: #bestie #nofilter The picture of him sipping tea while hunched over Olivia's kiddie table had gotten three hundred likes in about a half hour and Kyungsoo had texted him, stop pimping your kid for likes, but Tao had seen his Insta handle as one of the earlier likes.
Today he plans on a park outing. He'd asked one of the security guys to get a picnic blanket and Kevin had come back, shit eating grin firmly in place as he presented Tao with the puke green flannel.
He'd stayed up after Olivia had gone to bed to make the snacks and sandwiches, dug the cooler out of the basement behind the box of baby pictures that hadn't made it upstairs to be displayed. There was a tonne of stuff Tao hadn't had time for in the past, but at that particular moment, he'd promised himself to bring them upstairs and sort through them all with Olivia.
Now, armed with an oversized, disgustingly coloured picnic blanket, a squirming preschooler, and a giant picnic basket, Tao squares his shoulders and marches across the grass. The park's busy. Tao's gotta find a spot in the shade so that Olivia doesn't get harmed by the sun.
He spots a giant tree a bit out of the way, relatively unclaimed by bodies, and jogs to make up the distance. He sets Olivia down and gets the blanket laid out, basket placed strategically in his sight and doing double duty holding the blanket down. Olivia plops down immediately once he gives the okay.
Her fingers are already out and she's begging for a juice box and Tao thinks yes, this must be his child because she's got little Marc Jacobs sunglasses on and is looking at him like he's too slow to feed her properly.
"Please," he chides, holding the sandwich out of her reach. She pouts and then bats her eyelashes at him.
"Please," she sings and Tao's so charmed. He hands her half of the sandwich and places the other half on a torn piece of paper towel nearby for her to grab if she's still hungry. He digs out two juice boxes, one for her and one for him, and then starts working on his own sandwich.
Tao slathers them in sunscreen before they get down to business.They eat and people watch for a bit, relaxing in the sun while the screams of little kids float all around them. Eventually they get up to find the playground and Tao pushes Olivia in the swings to her absolute delight.
He spots Kevin sitting at a nearby bench, conspicuously keeping watch for any potential threats, and a guy in a car inconspicuously snapping pictures of them.
"Time to go,” he mumbles to himself and then louder to Olivia, reassuring her that they will come back soon, but hurrying back to pack up their stuff. Olivia begs for another juice box and Tao relents once he's gotten her secured in her car seat. "Don't make a mess," he warns and she solemnly pinky swears on her life.
He slides into the driver's seat, and after double checking in the rearview mirror once more that Olivia's fine, pulls out his phone to quickly check his messages. Why are you on TMZ???? Tao can feel Kyungsoo's disapproval from his seat. Ahhhh my kid's so cute~! he fires back and pulls out of the parking lot.
Olivia's bouncing in her seat, sugar high and excitement fuelling her good mood. She should be going down for a nap soon, but he wants to get so much out of their day together: that’s his approach for this entire vacation. His phone's buzzing angrily on his passenger seat and he laughs when he sees Kyungsoo's name flashing across the screen.
"Can’t hurt me if you can't catch me," he hums and indicates to turn onto the highway. He's got vague plans to bring Olivia to their local library. Thoroughly vetted by his head of security, it's also been recommended to him numerous times by his mommy friends.
He pulls into the parking lot nervously. He already knows that his detail is on him at all times, but he always gets antsy when he takes Olivia out in public. He finds a spot and kills the engine quickly. Scanning around he takes a moment to find at least one of his bodyguards before he gets out of his car.
Logically he knows there won't be a problem, but shit's happened before that he doesn't want repeated, so he's cautious enough to be paranoid. Once he spots Kevin, he unbuckles his seatbelt and gets out of the car. Olivia's done her juice box, so he helps her out carefully, making sure to grab the empty box before shutting the door.
Even if it costs them time, he'll always take the chance to teach her life lessons, so he waits patiently while she hops over to the recycle bin, little arms pulling back to chuck the empty container into the basket. She prances back over to where he's standing, jumping into his arms when he bends down to pick her up.
"Where are we going now?" he asks, brushing her hair out of her face and removing her sunglasses.
"Books," she replies. He helps her sound out the words slowly. "Library," she repeats, tongue tripping over the letters but still putting in a good effort, and he gives her a little high five when she holds out her hand.
The library is quiet when they enter. The first floor seems to be the common area, the layout as standard and familiar as he remembers of his own forays into libraries. It's fairly modern and decorated nicely. He spies an info desk nearby and, after asking a few pointed questions around Olivia's impatient shuffling, gets directed to a large set of glass doors deep inside the building.
He's not expecting much, a few bookshelves here and there and maybe a few kids reading quietly with their parents, but he's shocked once he gets a good look inside the room. It's big, probably an entire wing of the library and a significant portion of the common room's floor space.
There's a huge tree that runs floor to ceiling in the centre of the room, branches spread out and raised and tipped up like they're trying to reach through the thick glass of one of the largest skylights Tao's ever seen outside of a mall.
A large room encircles the tree, suspended by thick metal framing and seems to be connected by two large drawbridges and a giant staircase slightly off to the corner. At the trunk, a soft looking mound of something covers where the roots of the tree would be, giving the appearance of a grassy knoll.
The bookshelves are spread out in a semicircle, layout slightly off centre and wrapping around the perimeter of the room. There are books and tablets and beanbags and kiddy chairs, kids and parents, and it's slightly noisy, but not obnoxious, and Tao's appreciative regard gives way to desperation when he realizes that Olivia's been squirming to be let down and is about to pitch herself out of his hands.
He sets her down and not a second too soon, before she's off and running towards a section filled with soft looking toys. Tao's a bit out of his element and trying not to show it. It's hard not to be slightly intimidated by the sheer magnitude and unexpectedness of this library, compared to what he’s used to.
He tries to find a librarian or an information desk somewhere and nearly trips and falls as a group of kids go running past him, hands clutching books and faces flushed in excitement.
He hears laughter nearby of the adult variety and makes his way over, warily glancing around to see if any other kids are about to bum-rush him, keeping Olivia in his peripheral at all times.
The information desk in the children's section is shaped like a ring. Three women sit serenely on the inside, fingers clacking away on keyboards, and Tao is almost hesitant to interrupt them. He clears his throat apologetically and the woman in front of him jumps slightly.
"Hello," he says, smiling when she looks up at him. Her eyes widen slightly as they finally make thier way up to his face and he chuckles, rubbing his nose. He doesn't want to be that guy, but he also doesn't know how to read the situation.
"Hello," she replies, and her voice is lower than he has been expecting. She's looking at him expectantly, air unhurried and patient, but she's clearly probably wondering what the fuck he wants since he's just staring at her. "Do you need some help?" she asks kindly.
Tao's not prone to shyness. Kyungsoo would call him a peacock, voice derisive and slightly mocking if Tao ever tried to play coy with him. But right now he feels it almost in his bones with the way she's looking at him. He's not trying to read too much into it because she's just trying to do her job and help a parent who's made their way into the room, but she's gorgeous.
Her lips curve, kittenish, smile a bit rueful. She has a row of piercings going down her left ear, and it makes him want to hum in appreciation. She's wearing black and pink frames, eyes done up in the sharpest wing he's ever seen outside of a photoshoot and he's vain enough to recognize the meticulous care that went into her makeup.
When the silence stretches for far longer than is acceptable, he sees her smile start to flicker, but she's doing her best. It's the weirdest game of chicken, highly inappropriate, but he's struck stupid.
The woman gathers her hair and tosses it over her shoulder. "Sir, is there something I can help you with?" She's still polite, but her voice has a small edge to it, assessing him and probably finding him lacking. An embarrassment, probably. Fuck that.
He smiles his most charming smile but stays where he is, giving her space. "Hi, I wanted to inquire about a library card for my daughter."
The woman blinks, posture going a bit relaxed and turning to one of the other women who was undoubtedly watching the proceedings. The woman opens a drawer and hands the attendant a small card. "Could you please fill out this form with your child's information and then we can head to the laminating room and create her card."
She stands and hands him a piece of paper and a pen and Tao watches as she peeks at him from underneath her lashes when she thinks he's not looking. The other women are surreptitiously elbowing each other and it's slightly awkward.
They both laugh at the same time and look away.
Tao clears his throat and takes the pen and paper. "I'll do that," he says, and god, that sounds so stupid.
"Please come find me if you require any assistance," the woman says, sits down and smooths out the fabric of her shirt. Tao's hoping a little bit that maybe he's made an impression, worries that it might not have been the one he was aiming for.
He decides to play it cool. "Thanks," he says simply. He raps his knuckles on the desk and makes a decision. "And if I need your help, who should I ask for?"
There's the sound of someone trying to stifle exaggerated choking, soft, but he knows it's at his expense. Nonetheless, he soldiers on. If she's even the least bit interested, she'll let him know.
"Jongmi," she says. "You can ask for Jongmi."
He says, "Jongmi," and it sounds sweet on his tongue. It's hard to walk backwards and smile but he's doing his absolute best. It's been a while since he's felt so giddy, flushed with the understanding that the situation is kinda inappropriate, but Tao flourishes while breaking rules.
He turns smoothly and walks over to where Olivia's been drafted into a roundtable of older kids sharing stories. There's a young girl reading to her while Olivia sits serenely in her lap, occasionally laughing or making distressed noises when the story gets a bit too scary. She doesn't call out for him, for all intents and purposes seems to have forgotten that he's even there.
It doesn't hurt as much as he expected it would. His little girl is growing up and making friends without him. He tucks the paper into his back pocket for now and puts the pen behind his ear. His smile is wide when he sits down on the ground beside them.
"Daddy!" Olivia knocks the book out of her lap in her haste to run over to him and he gathers her up into his arms before he apologizes and thanks the young girl for keeping Olivia company.
"Are you having fun?" he asks Olivia. She nods her head once and begins to immediately introduce him to her new friends. They seem to all have the same variation of the name "girl" and "that one", but they don't seem to mind and any lingering discontent Tao has in the back of his mind fades away when Olivia parks herself on his thigh and starts a rousing game of counting numbers.
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Before he knows it, autumn rears its ugly head and finds him slightly unprepared to deal with the crisp chill of rapidly dropping temperatures and an aggravated toddler. Olivia doesn't like the cold. She abhors being cold, and isn't afraid to let him--and everyone else in the immediate vicinity-- know.
They're already running incredibly late for preschool and Olivia's crying on the carpet in her bedroom. Her face is red and she shrieks in rage every time he tries to get close enough to get her dressed. She's naked, and he's worried she'll accidentally pee herself.
Tao stands with his hands on his hips and tries to remain calm.
Olivia hiccups loudly and frowns. She looks up at him and then bites her lip guiltily.
He groans. "Olivia!"
She whimpers and he allows himself one moment to show his annoyance before he bends to scoop her up, ignoring the giant wet spot on the carpet spreading quickly between the fibres.
"Shh, my big girl." They're already messy, but he figures at this point a bath is probably for the best. Like most children, Olivia loves playing in water, but actually getting her into the bath is always a struggle. Still, with the way she's so distressed, she clings to him and seems to be amiable enough, if only because she can't bring herself to do anything else.
"Sorry," she says, voice muffled from his chest, and he hears his mother's voice in his head extolling the virtues of patience and calm in the face of adversity.
He doubts this is what she really meant, but she did raise him after all.
He gets the tub as full as as he dares and sits Olivia gently in the water. Olivia sniffles quietly and sits while he soaps her up, rinses her with her favourite pink bucket. She protests when he moves to wash her hair but after a stern look, she relents, pouting the entire time.
He can't think of anything that might've set her off. They'd woken up at a normal time, and had had a quick breakfast before going upstairs to pick out clothes for school. Olivia had taken the garments from his hand and had thrown them on the ground, along with herself, and proceeded to scream bloody murder.
He's confused to say the least. They don't really have many off days and his level of expertise with this kind of mood is lacking. Still...
He makes sure he has her full attention. "Olivia," he says seriously, "please tell Daddy what's wrong? Don't you want to go to school? Don't you want to see your friends?"
He wonders if maybe there's something happening at school that he should know about. Immediately he starts assuming the worst, but Olivia just farts, jumping at the sound in the tub and then giggling to herself.
He blinks. "What the hell," he mutters. Kids. He hauls her out of the bath and gets the plug out so it can drain while he gets her dried off. As they get back to her room, he's reminded of the giant pee stain on the carpet. His temples throb steadily.
"Baby," he starts, waits for Olivia to stop trying to eat the towel. She spits it out and smiles at him cutely. "Don't try to distract me," he says and she laughs at him. "Are you going to tell me why you were crying? Are you sick? Does your tummy hurt?"
She shakes her head. He tries to work so that they can get her hair dried quickly. He doesn’t want her to get sick while he tries to get an answer out of her. "Why is my daughter so coy," he muses. Olivia blinks innocently and helps him pull her shirt over her head.
"Were you just sad that you had to go to school without me?" She nods. "But you go to school all the time by yourself. Aren't you a big girl?"
"Daddy's lonely when I'm gone," she says, completely serious, and Tao's hands falter for a moment. The impending clean-up spurs him into action once more despite his curiosity.
"What do you mean by that?" He's intrigued.
He leaves her on the bed, feet swinging while he rushes to grab her blow dryer and come back. She hasn't moved an inch and he breathes a small sigh of relief. “My friend says his mommy gets sad when he’s gone. You’re sad too, right, when I'm gone?” Tao hums thoughtfully and pulls her closer to him.
Drying her hair is oddly cathartic. Prone to near constant activity, this is one of the few times she behaves long enough for Tao to catch his breath. He appreciates that they can bond over this as well, as she also seems to take some comfort in the hum of the blow dryer, like white noise, seen as something positive combined with Tao's fingers smoothing and sliding through her hair.
Tao turns off the blow dryer and Olivia inhales noisily like she'd fallen asleep. He smiles, grabbing her comb, combing out any stray tangles and gathering her hair up into a ponytail. He points out her reflection in the vanity across from her bed and she squeals excitedly.
"I’m so pretty!" she crows and Tao laughs good-naturedly. "Yes you are," he agrees.
She hums thoughtfully. "Like a peacock," she says. Tao stares.
"Who told you that?" he asks and she tosses her hair over shoulder in a move so much like her mother that Tao's breathless for a moment once more.
"Kyungsoo said you were a peacock."
He groans. Fucking Kyungsoo. "Then that makes you a peacock’s baby," he tells her and helps her down from the bed. The carpet's going to be a problem, he thinks. He doesn't really want to hire anyone, but he's not sure he has the capabilities to clean it. This is probably something Amy would be able to handle, he thinks wistfully.
He hopes she's enjoying her vacation, but he misses her help.
After a quick Google and a few mocking texts to Kyungsoo later, he's got the puddle cleaned up and a healthy distrust of what was once a drying stain on the carpet. Olivia's in better spirits now, running around her room and singing to herself. He checks the time quickly and realizes that they don't have a hope in hell of making her preschool classes now.
He wracks his brain for things they could do this late in the morning, but then remembers that today's Thursday--story time's a viable option. If they leave right now they'll make it in time for Jongmi's first story of the afternoon in an hour.
"What do you think," he says, gathering her up into his arms. She laughs when he blows a raspberry on his neck. "Do you want to go see Jongmi today?" he asks her and fumbles to keep her from falling when she enthusiastically yells and tries to jump out of his arms.
She goes running out of the room and he suffers a mild heart attack panicking about hardwood floors and staircases before he follows hastily.
"I like her," Olivia sings and Tao laughs, nodding. "Me too."
❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎
The children's area is quiet. Quite a feat considering the nature of its purpose, but the only sounds Tao hears as he pushes open the large doors is the sound of children engrossed in Jongmi's melodious voice. She's sitting on the ground with a large group of children and parents in a semi circle and she has everyone's attention as she details the adventures of a Very Hungry Caterpillar that eats his way through life.
Olivia makes a distressed noise and whispers, "Daddy hurry," prompting Tao to get moving before Jongmi finishes the story. They fall to the back, taking a seat on the plush rug laid by the giant tree that's reserved for story time. Jongmi herself is propped against the trunk of the tree, hair down and completely focused on making sure everyone has ample time to see the illustrations.
She pauses before turning the page, eyes on Tao, and he gives her a shy smile, rubbing his nose and waving slightly. He sees her visibly gather herself, the curve of her lips the only thing betraying her before she turns the page and starts reading again.
Olivia's completely engrossed. She gasps at all the right times, claps along with Jongmi when she prompts the children to count along with her, and squeals in joy when the Very Hungry Caterpillar finally turns into a butterfly. "He was very hungry," Olivia says sagely and Tao nods.
They stay for the next story, moving up bit by bit when the other parents begin to leave to run their errands. Olivia sits riveted on Jongmi's every word, and Tao, if he were being completely honest with himself, is too.
Story time wraps with a group chant and a circle clap. Olivia starts to do the wave, prompting a few other children to mimic her until what's left of their ragtag team looks like they're holding a spontaneous dance off.
Tao and the other parents make charmed yet awkward conversation while they watch their kids break it down exuberantly. Jongmi watches fondly from her spot on a stump in front of the tree.
Tao excuses himself hastily. He almost, but not quite, walks calmly over to where Jongmi is sitting. She pauses when she sees him, eyes widening before she looks around, settling on him again in no small amount of shock.
He's got his hands in his pockets, the picture of nonchalance, when he says, "Hi," and smiles as charmingly as he can. Jongmi snorts loudly and unattractively.
"Are you for real right now," she wheezes and laughs at his face when he pouts at her.
She moves to stand up and he quickly gets beside her, offering her a hand up. Her eyebrows rise, but she takes pity on him and thanks him for his kindness. It makes him preen.
"So, I'm pleased to see that you made story time today," she says. Her hands immediately fly to her ear, fingers rubbing over the ring in her cartilage, and he can't help but just look at her, forwardness be damned.
He's a motherfucking peacock, after all.
"Yeah, we had to. I know you'd miss your favourite patrons. Actually, we had a bit of an accident this morning," he says.
Jongmi makes a small noise. "Nothing serious, I hope."
Tao hums. "No, just a misunderstanding. My kid thinks I'm lonely when she's not around to keep me entertained."
He says it like it's a joke, but he's a bit concerned about it. Jongmi tilts her head in consideration. "There is a bit of truth to that, I think. Kids are incredibly simple with their reasoning, Tao. If Olivia goes to school and doesn't know that you have a life outside of her, to her, you will be lonely because she isn't there to play with you."
She begins walking to her desk, and Tao has no choice but to follow after her. He tries his best, but he's blatantly admiring the way her black stockings cling to her calves, the way she walks in those ridiculous heels of hers and he feels so intensely struck stupid by his crush all of a sudden.
He hears Kyungsoo's voice in the back of his head. "Danger! Be cool, you stupid fuck." Tao shakes his head rebelliously, skip in his step, and follows after Jongmi.
Jongmi sits in front of her computer, fingers moving quickly over the keyboard. Her nails are painted a lovely shade of berry red and she smiles beatifically at him when she notices his staring. "It's called 'Size Matters'."
"Does it?" he asks her cheekily and she purses her lips, tucks her hair behind her ear and replies, "Ask me on a date and you'll find out."
It's bold, bolder than what he was expecting, but unsurprising with what he's gleaned about Jongmi from all of his visits with Olivia (and unofficially, since he's hopeless). Jongmi is brash, slightly obnoxious, and incredibly kind.
She's also patient and caring, somehow working her way into the heart of his kid. Tao thinks they should at least be friends simply because Olivia needs more positive female influences in her life.
"Unless you want to continue bitching out like you've been doing for the past four months that you've been coming here." She whispers the last part and Tao's eye widen. He barks a laugh, helpless, and withers under the glare of one of the other librarians.
"We're in a children's section," he protests weakly and Jongmi hides her giggle behind a closed fist, clearing her throat loudly.
Jongmi hums, returns to her typing and Tao looks around to make sure that Olivia is behaving herself. She's playing Duck Duck Goose with a few children by the tree, enjoying herself immensely, and Tao's glad they came today. Even happier that Jongmi is in such a flirty mood and seems to be amiable to his advances.
He blows out a breath. "Would you like to have dinner with me?"
Jongmi smiles. "Wow, don't hurt yourself there, stud."
Tao whines. "Be nice to me, fuck."
"Language!" One of the other librarians looks murderous, while the other is very clearly laughing behind the purse she's trying to search through. Even his mental Kyungsoo is rolling his eyes.
"Sorry," he mouths and then pouts at Jongmi. She rolls her eyes, but her lips quiver with a smile that she can't completely hide. "Yes," she says. "We can have dinner sometime this week."
His heart does a jump, skip, and a hop right in his chest and he tries to calm down. It'd be terrible if he made an orphan out of Olivia.
They exchange numbers under the distrustful eyes of the older librarian, and Tao manages a quick 'thanks!' before he hears Olivia scream "Daddy" and he suddenly has a child-sized barnacle attached to his person.
"Hello, Olivia," Jongmi sing-songs and Olivia screams, "Jommi!" before fussing to be picked up. Tao dutifully scoops her up and places her on the edge of the information desk, counter too high for little ones to climb without assistance.
"Jommi," Olivia says and it sounds so melodious, like even his child can't resist singing her praises. Her little mouth can’t pronounce it properly, but Olivia takes her time and does her best.
"Hello, sweet girl. How are you today? Are you being good for your papa?" Olivia nods her head emphatically, little body shaking, and Tao presses a steady hand against her back just in case.
"We're bonding," Olivia says in her grownup tone. It's the one she learned from Kyungsoo, the one she uses when she's saying Very Important Things and You Need To Pay Attention, Please.
Jongmi whistles. "Bonding, huh? Do you always have to take care of your dad and play with him?"
Olivia clasps her hand in her sweater and nods. "Daddy will get lonely if he doesn't have anyone to play with."
"Is that right," Jongmi grins and her teeth are sharp and gleaming. "Since we're friends, I could play with your dad and make sure he's not lonely." She says the words while looking right at Tao and Tao shivers. Goddamn, this woman.
Someone clears their throat from behind Jongmi and suddenly the older librarian is up and walking through the exit gap of the information desk.
"That's my cue," she sniffs, grabbing a cart full of books and walking away. Jongmi smirks at Tao before she shifts her attention back to Olivia, smile going less feral, warmer and appropriate for her audience.
Tao decides he's done distracting Jongmi enough for one day. "Come on, child. Let's go back home and get some food inside of you before nap-time." He swings Olivia around and up over his shoulder, bouncing her until her protests turn into laughter.
Jongmi watches them fondly. She stands and Tao turns so that Olivia can say goodbye properly.
"Bye, Jommi," Olivia whisper-yells and Tao turns to say goodbye to Jongmi.
"You better call me," she says, and Tao is gratified to see that, even momentarily, she looks about as nervous as he does.
He makes a finger gun gesture at her and walks--no struts--away.
"Daddy, can we get ice cream?" Olivia asks, incorrigible.
part 2