The Tells of a Different Childhood

82. A.U Younger - Certainty

"Over, under, bring it back to the front and then slide it off. Do you want to try?"

He watched with a smile as the kid struggled to hold the knitting needles in his hands, his fingers not accustomed to holding thin objects. His mother patiently showed the young man the craft he had been interested in since they sat down. 

The kid had been a bit antsy as of late, no doubt due to the lack of weekly sparring sessions for the past month. In an effort to curb that excess energy, they had made a family outing to the park.

Considering the fact that the kid was able to sit and learn how to knit without fidgeting on the spot. He was going to assume that it had worked. Of course, that was after he, Han-jae, and Squirt ran around for a few hours. Han-jae had tapped out long before he and Squirt had, leaving the two of them alone as Kang tried to catch the kid and vice versa. 

For now, though, all Kang was going to do was flop onto the blanket. He was half tempted to take a nap right then and there, the gentle warmth of the sunlight making it optimal for a nice afternoon nap. 

But he didn't get that. 

"Maybe the kid needs a hobby. Something to keep him busy." Kang cracked open an eye and right next to him was his father. Lifting his head, Kang looked over at his mother again, who was showing the kid how to do a stitch with the needles. Her hands overlapped with Squirt's as she guided him into the motion. 

Propping himself up onto his elbows, Kang watched them, a light bubbly feeling in his chest as the Squirt finally let someone other than Kang touch him. He couldn't help but smile. The kid tolerated casual touches, the occasional pat and ruffling of his hair but when it came to prolonged touch, like hand holding and hugs, his kid only tolerated such contact from Kang. 

Slowly, she guided his hands into the stitch, into wrapping the yarn over before pulling it under, over once more, and sliding it off to complete it. Not once did the kid pull away and when his mother grabbed his hands a second time to provide further assistance, he didn't show any sign of discomfort. 

His father nudged him, "What's got you smiling like that?"

Shrugging his shoulders, Kang laid back down, the smile still present as he got comfortable again, "Squirt usually doesn't let people touch him like that. That's all." And he was so proud of his kid. 

After almost two years, the kid was finally allowing people to get closer to him instead of keeping them at arm's length. It made Kang happy for so many reasons but most of all, he was happy that his kid was healing. 

"Huh. Do you think it's because your mom's a woman?"

"Probably," Kang admitted. It was more common for men to be violent back in the middle east, especially on the battlefield, where the kid had spent most of his time. Kang didn't blame him for having a gender-based wariness, it just happened after years on the battlefield. The kid probably had plenty of experiences where it was the men who fucked him over before the women did. 

Not to mention, his mom was a mother after all, the kid was probably thriving under the way she genuinely cared for him like a mother would. "And you know how mom is. She'll mother anyone who comes into the house." There were even a few times when Kang was younger where some friends had come over and his mother doted on them as if they were her own. 

His father snorted. "That's true."

"Good job!" His mother's voice carried with the wind, causing Kang to pick up his head to look over at them. She was holding up the little square of yarn with a bright smile. "Nothing practice won't fix. You did great." She ruffled the kid's hair and once again, Kang found himself smiling at the bashful smile the kid was making.