Baby Steps | hyunsung

14 | HYUNJINNIE IS A DAD!

CHAPTER FOURTEEN;

HYUNJINNIE IS A DAD!;

Jisung remembers the time his daughter had said her first words. Coincidentally enough it was on her birthday—she was turning one. There was a party being thrown, it taking place outside the Han family's backyard. With the weather slowly but surely shifting from the constant downfall of white snow, to a now much warmer temperature, Jisung's mother didn't hesitate to propose the idea of having a big celebration. Pink and yellow balloons were tied to a wooden table that had connected benches. Snacks of all kinds were displayed, almost instantly being eaten once the few children that were invited from the daycare caught sight of them. And the tiresome voice of a woman singing classic nursery rhymes blasted from a speaker, mixing in with the laughter and chatter of the select few guests.

All while everyone looked to be having an absolute fun time, Esme personally clung to her father with a frown. She was stuck in the arms of Jisung, even when the other kids urged her to play with them. For a response she would only shake her head as to say no before stuffing it in the crook of the blonde's neck. Jisung scolded her for such behavior, not only because she refused to interact with others, (causing him to gain a cramp in his arms) but the single father had spent at least half an hour trying to get her to look presentable; yet here she was ruining his hard work by rubbing her head against his skin.

"Time for cake everyone!" Mrs. Han was the one to shout the news, hands clapping excitedly while everyone else cheered. And as she scurried to go grab the rectangular dessert from the kitchen, all guests began to surround the bench. The children took all of the seats, almost bouncing in utter joy at the mere thought of eating something delicious. All while the adults stood around still talking absentmindedly about the latest gossip swarming the town.

Taking this as the opportunity to finally set his only daughter down next to all the other kids, Jisung approached the bench. Esme seemed to only hold tighter. She actually had her own personal seat at the end of the table—a high-chair decorated with flower themed cut-outs. Eyes of most watched the interaction of her whining and kicking at her respected seat, and Jisung trying to pry her off his body with bribes and promises.

"Esme, let go! You won't be able to eat cake if you don't!"

That's when she said it. With her fingers clawing at her father's blue shirt, and tears daring to spill from her eyes, she finally said something.

"No daddy!"

Jisung went still. The same breath he swears he was losing from having to fight against his daughter had finally escaped his lungs. He swears his eyes were as wide as saucers, an immense amount of surprise glossing over them as he stared down at her. Her face replicated the same baffled emotion. She was confused by how she managed to speak actual words—it being something that everyone was able to understand, and not just nod with a smile. And that once growing frustration that the blonde father once had was now gone. It had disappeared completely after witnessing Esme say her first word. Even if it was because she was whining. Her voice echoed within his head, invading all of his senses.