{completed} cuties » stray kids

insomnia » jeongchan

little!jeongin
caregiver!chan

jeongin has trouble sleeping, so chan lulls him to sleep

~*~

"Daddy..." Jeongin whined from the door, rubbing at his eyes with his fists.

Chan had put Jeongin to bed over an hour ago with a story that had always helped him sleep better on nights where he couldn't. But when he heard his baby's small voice from behind him, Chan tilted his head backwards over the headrest of the couch he was sitting on to see Jeongin standing there.

"Hi, baby," he said softly, sitting up straight and turning around so he was facing Jeongin. "What's wrong, babydoll?"

Jeongin whined again when he heard Chan's voice, always so soft and understanding, and what was rubbing his eyes from tiredness turned into trying to rub away the impending tears that he could feel rising.

"Baby, baby, it's ok," Chan immediately stood from the couch and made his way to Jeongin, holding him by the waist and pulling him forward so he could hold his baby close to his chest. "What's gotten my baby boy all upset?"

"Can no sweep, Daddy..." Jeongin whined, soon turning into a thick sob as he clutched to Chan tighter, suddenly fearing he would let him go.

Jeongin got like this sometimes, where he would suddenly become too clingy for his own liking, but Chan always reassured Jeongin that that was ok and that he loved Jeongin whether he was feeling clingy or not.

"Baby so tired, Daddy, and baby wanna sweep!" He cried as Chan rubbed his back in circles, trying to calm him down.

"Daddy will help you, baby boy, don't worry," Chan reassured as he held Jeongin close to him. "Come on, baby, you want some milkies?"

Jeongin pulled away from Chan and rubbed at his eyes tiredly, nodding with a pout as Chan held his hand out for Jeongin to take. Jeongin did so without hesitation and let Chan lead him to the kitchen, where he whined and made grabby hands for the elder again.

"I'm here, baby, I'm here," Chan shushed as he picked Jeongin up and held him up on his hip. "You want to sit on the counter while Daddy makes the milkies, baby?"

Jeongin whined more at that, holding onto Chan tighter as he buried his face in his caregiver's neck, clearly not wanting to be let go of right now.

"Ok, gorgeous, Daddy's got you," of course Chan wasn't going to say no and make Jeongin sit on the counter. Although it was quite difficult to pour the milk one handed while also trying to hold Jeongin on his hip, Chan managed to and screwed the cap of the bottle on securely before handing it to Jeongin and kissing his forehead.

"Will Daddy come night-nights too?" Jeongin asked timidly as he held onto his bottle with two hands. Chan hiked Jeongin further up his hip and used one hand to stroke his baby's cheek softly.

"Of course, little one," he smiled, heading to their bedroom and sitting Jeongin down on his side of the bed. Chan crossed over and got himself comfy on his side of the bed, holding the covers up for Jeongin to squeeze in next to him. "Need help with your milkies, baby?"

Jeongin shook his head and brought the nipple of the bottle up to his mouth, beginning to drink his milk hesitantly. Chan knew that Jeongin sometimes got anxious before bedtime. He'd always had some form of minor separation anxiety, and for the last two years of him and Chan being together, he wasn't able to sleep if Chan wasn't there too when he was little.

However, recently, Jeongin had expressed in both his big and little mindsets that he wanted to try sleeping on his own or going to sleep before Chan instead of waiting up for Chan to feel tired at ungodly hours of the day. Some days, he was able to sleep and other days - like today - he had trouble sleeping. Chan understood wholeheartedly and was always patient with Jeongin. It wasn't like Chan slept much anyway, so he understood staying up late was something Jeongin didn't like doing.

Chan noticed his unease and opened his arms, allowing Jeongin to snuggle closer to him with his bottle in his mouth. Like this, Jeongin's forehead was almost touching Chan's, and he looked up at his caregiver nervously.

"You're ok, baby, Daddy's gonna stay here all night," Chan whispered, kissing Jeongin's forehead. "I want you to know, baby, that Daddy's gonna keep you so warm and so safe tonight and every night."

Jeongin settled into Chan's chest with a small hum, always liking when Chan whispered things like this to him. He carried on drinking his milk, the beverage slowly making him feel sleepy.

"Good boy, that's it," Chan cooed, stroking Jeongin's hair softly. "Daddy will rub your back all soft, gorgeous, and give you lots of~ kissies!"

Chan started kissing all over Jeongin's face, causing the younger to giggle around the bottle in his mouth. Chan chuckled at his baby's cute expression as he settled back into a comfy position against his chest.

"I love you so much, baby," Chan whispered as Jeongin's breathing evened out, his bottle slowly falling from his lips. Chan moved to put the bottle on the nightstand and Jeongin whined, following Chan's body heat as tears filled his closed eyes. "Daddy's here, baby boy, it's ok."

Chan wrapped his arms around Jeongin securely, cuddling the younger close to his chest as he rest his head on top of Jeongin's, keeping the boy safe.

"I got you, baby," he whispered, kissing Jeongin's forehead as he felt his baby drift off to sleep against his chest. "I love you, Innie."

~*~

totally didn't forget to update earlier...