n the plane staring out the window. A crying baby caught his attention and unlike the people around him, he smiled. It brought him back to when he had moved away with Tao. The young boy had cried the entire way to their new home. He had been too young to understand that what Chanyeol was doing was the right thing. In the beginning he had wanted to move him right away, but Kris had shown signs of affection towards the boy and he felt cruel taking him away if Kris truly cared about him, but he was wrong. It was clear that Kris had no intention of dedicating his time to Tao.

The first time Kris had texted Chanyeol telling him to pick up Tao he knew that it was the start to something bad. Tao’s face had dropped when he saw Chanyeol waiting for him instead of Kris. Even though he was sad Tao had smiled and told Chanyeol that he understood that Kris had to work and that he was ok seeing him when he got home.

He ended up falling asleep on the couch waiting for Kris who didn’t get home until nearly 2 in the morning. Chanyeol had been pissed that night, but it wasn’t the first. Throughout the next few weeks Kris was never home and always asking Chanyeol to take his place. Chanyeol didn’t mind because he really liked Tao, but Tao was showing signs of neglect. Meals were left untouched and he would always fall asleep waiting for Kris who never came home until nearly morning. Chanyeol still remembered the first time that Tao asked him “Does Gege not want Tao anymore?” He had sat the boy down and told him that Kris cared about him and that he should never say that ever again.

Finally Chanyeol was fed up with Kris’s absence, “I am not Tao’s babysitter. Although I love the kid, he is not my responsibility. You need to fix your schedule so you can balance work with life. Do you understand?”

Of course Kris had tried to explain that he was a working man who had no time to watch a little kid and that mad him angry. That was the first warning Kris received from Chanyeol. He didn’t care that Kris was working hard and that his job was important. A child came first no matter what. That evening Kris had arrived home early genuinely surprising Chanyeol. However the next day went back to the way it had always been leaving Tao teary-eyed and Chanyeol fed up.

After dropping Tao off at school, Chanyeol sat down and had a long conversation with himself. He knew that he wasn’t the true guardian of Tao and that legally he had no right to take him away, but morally… that was another story. Each day Tao’s shoulders sagged a little lower and his eyes dropped a little more. The issue was beginning to impact the kid’s health and Chanyeol knew that it couldn’t continue. Kris wasn’t going to leave work for Tao and Chanyeol felt like an idiot for ever believing in him. He of all people knew what Kris was like, so he blamed himself for letting Tao attach himself to Kris more and more each day.

It was his mistake and he had to fix it. His conscience was reassured when he saw Tao slowly trailing out of the school after all of the other kids. In the car he said no more than a few words and even when he offered to get take-away, but Tao countered with “I’m not hungry.”

Chanyeol was at the stove fixing some stir-fry for Tao’s dinner when the apartment door opened. At first Chanyeol was afraid that it was a burglar or a criminal when he heard Tao squeal, but when he looked into the living room he saw Kris holding Tao.

“Kris, you’re home. Dinner is almost ready, why don’t you and Tao set the table.”

He couldn’t help, but stare at Kris the entire time as Tao refused to let go of Kris even to eat. Kris put Tao to bed and came to sit in the living room. Chanyeol took a seat near him and looked him up and down. Of course they ended up arguing since that was all they did lately. Chanyeol was about to scream back at Kris when he spotted a small figure hiding behind the couch, “Oh .” He didn’t know how to react even as tears spilled down Tao’s cheeks. Glancing over at Kris who was frozen in his place he took the liberty of running to the child.  Scooping him up he tired to soothe him even though he knew that it was pointless and that the damage was done.

Walking back to Tao’s room, he tucked him into bed and continued to rub circles on his back until soft, but shaky breaths were heard. Running his fingers through his hair he knew that something had to be done and because of this night, they could never go back to the way they were.

“You ed up.”

Chanyeol could see on Kris’s face that he knew he messed up, but knowing that you messed up and trying to fix it are two different things. He ended up falling asleep on the couch to the sound of Tao sniffling in the dark and when he awoke Kris was gone. How could he do that? How could he leave after what happened last night? He should be in the kitchen cooking Tao the best breakfast of his life, but instead he’s back in the office working.

He was about to call Kris to give him a piece of his mind when Tao emerged. The sight was so pitiful and when Tao began to sob again Chanyeol couldn’t take it anymore.

“What if you come live with me? Would you want to live with Chanyeol?”

When Tao nodded Chanyeol nearly sprinted to his room. Tossing clothes into a bag he didn’t bother with the toys or other items since they would only remind Tao of Kris. Taking the small child’s hand he led him away from the place he once knew as home.

As soon as the entered his apartment he knew that they would have to move. Kris knew where he lived and as soon as he realized that Tao was gone he was going to come searching for him. He didn’t even bother unpacking Tao’s bag and quickly made a phone call to an apartment on the other side of town. A building from the company was also located on that side of town so he could continue his job from a different location. Throughout the entire moving process and home change Tao didn’t cry once. He didn’t complain when they had to sleep in a boiling hot apartment, and he didn’t complain when they had to eat cold cereal for a day when the electricity was being put in.

Chanyeol was afraid that the cheerful young boy he once knew was broken all because of him. The years flew by and Chanyeol discovered that Tao was a very talented young man. He quickly rose to the top of his class and he was skilled in the art of wushu. The teachers always said that he kept to himself in class, but was still polite. Although happy that he was getting good grades, Chanyeol was still waiting for the day that Tao would bring a friend home. However that day would never come.

“Tao, why don’t you bring any of your friends over? I wouldn’t mind cooking you dinner and we could get some movies or games for you to play.” Chanyeol asked over dinner. Tao just looked down into his bowl of rice, “I don’t have any friends.”

“None? No one that you get along with?”

“I don’t want to make friends because if I do, then when they leave me I’ll be sad. It’s better to just be alone because I will never leave me. It’s impossible anyways.”

Chanyeol wanted to scream in frustration at himself, at Kris, even at Tao even though none of this was his fault. He was just adapting to the environment he had been placed in. That was the last time that Chanyeol asked about his friends. How could he be angry? Tao wasn’t in a gang, he didn’t do drugs or drink, he didn’t do anything illegal, and he never misbehaved. He was the perfect child yet Chanyeol wasn’t satisfied. He wanted Tao to be bad; he wanted him to talk back, to stay out too late. Anything that showed he wasn’t the cold robot that sat in front of him.

One night when it was storming Chanyeol heard cries coming Tao’s room. Running in he saw Tao thrashing around on the bed. Shaking him awake he remembered the petrified look that Tao had worn. That night Tao clung to him the entire time refusing to let go. They ended up falling asleep in each other’s embrace. When he had asked him about it the next morning he received only a short answer, “It reminded me of my childhood.”

That was the first time that Tao had ever opened up to Chanyeol and it made him happy. A few more years passed and Tao had grown into a stunning adult. His body was firm from the years of wushu and he was very intelligent. Any women would be lucky to have him, or man. He knew that it was wrong to feel anything other than a fatherly love for Tao, but it was hard. They weren’t related by blood and if they didn’t know each other there would be nothing separating them except for their ages.

The first time he had kissed Tao had been awkward and uncomfortable, but Tao hadn’t said no. He didn’t push Chanyeol off and scream at him. He just stared at him with wide eyes before resuming his cold uncaring expression. Chanyeol realized that if he wanted to see any emotions of Tao’s face he had to kiss him. That’s all he wanted; proof that Tao was human. That he was capable of feeling.

What they had going couldn’t continue. He was basically Tao’s father and if anyone found out they would be in trouble. Baekhyun had also made his feelings for Chanyeol quite clear and it wasn’t fair to him to sneak around behind his back. On Tao’s birthday he decided that he should no long keep Tao away from his childhood. That he wasn’t healing Tao’s wounds; he was just hiding the pain. The request he had put in to be transferred back had been approved and they were to move back into his old apartment in less than a week. Chanyeol had come up with some lame excuse for moving back that wasn’t the truth. He figured saying, “Yeah we’re moving back to see the man who ruined your life as a child so you can meet him and so you can reconnect.” Wasn’t the best idea.

As soon as he entered the old apartment he realized that he was home.

Finally the day came, the day that he would meet Kris again after all of these years. Walking into the office he was welcomed back by faceless people who meant nothing to him, all he cared about was seeing Kris again. Something deep inside of him told him that Kris was different, that he had changed and was no longer the workaholic he had been years before. The secretary greeted him and told him that Kris was working in his office. His smile sank when she told him that he had been here long before she had arrived.

‘Same old Kris.’ He thought to himself. His heart pounded as he heard the secretary announcing and his ears tingled when the deep voice of his old friend reached him. Stepping into the room he saw Kris’s eyes widen at the sight of him and they grew even larger when Tao stepped into view.

“Hello Kris.” He managed to say with a steady tone.

Kris’s face remained surprised as he stared almost unbelieving that they were actually standing in front of him.

“Do you still remember Tao?” he asked as he gestured to Tao who stood behind him. Based on Kris’s expression he knew that he did. Chanyeol glanced back at Tao half expecting him to run into Kris’s arms like he had done in the past, but he simply gave him a formal greeting before falling silent again. Chanyeol ended up being the surprised one when Tao blushed as Kris corrected his Korean. Tao showing an emotion, was this a miracle, no… it was Kris. Kris was the person to evoke emotions from Tao without effort. It hurt him to think that all of this time he had spent with Tao still didn’t match what Kris had done. Gently he squeezed Tao’s cheeks and laughed. He was happy that Tao was finally being himself, but he was also smiling to cover the sad expression that threatened to fall. He ended up inviting Kris to dinner and to his surprise Kris accepted.

Tao had insisted on helping with dinner that night and Chanyeol once again felt sad. Tao never made dinner with him, but if it was for Kris then he would even put on an apron.

“I’m glad that you decided to help me with dinner.” Chanyeol said as he watched Tao stir a sauce over the stove. When Tao didn’t respond Chanyeol reached over and wrapped a hand around his neck. Pulling him in he pressed his lips against his own and leaned in. Tao pulled away and showed the same flustered expression that he wore when Chanyeol did that. Kris appeared and Chanyeol wondered if he had seen their kiss. Based on his expression he decided that he hadn’t. After dinner Tao had announced that he was going to bed. The adults sat down and had a glass of wine. As expected Kris asked about Tao, “Doesn’t he have any friends his own age?”

Chanyeol didn’t want to admit that Tao didn’t have any friends because he didn’t want to be abandoned so he lied, “No. They aren’t as smart or athletic as Tao is and they would only bring him down.” It sounded so cruel and cold coming from his mouth, but the truth would only make Kris feel bad.

“It’s getting late. I have to be back at the office early as do you so I’ll take my leave.” Kris said as he stood up and headed for the door.

“Not much has changed.”

Tao had gotten angry at him after he went to talk to him and he realized that he wasn’t as good as he thought. Although he knew that Tao should be with Kris to be happy, he couldn’t help, but want him to stay. He had put many years of his life into raising Tao and trying to make him happy. To just let him go like that was nearly impossible. He was also afraid that Kris would hurt Tao again. He was still spending copious amounts of time at the office just like the old days which told Chanyeol that nothing had changed.

The next day at the office Kris actually left his office to come see Chanyeol. That had never happened in all of the years that Chanyeol had worked with Kris. He knew that it was all because of Tao and when Kris left Chanyeol didn’t miss the longning expression Tao wore.

When Chanyeol found out that he had to go away on business he was worried. Kris and Tao were both insisting that Tao should stay with Kris, but it seemed like it was too soon. Kris kept insisting that he would watch over Tao and Tao kept insisting that he was an adult who could take care of himself. Again they ended up arguing because of Kris and Chanyeol groaned as Tao slammed the door to his room. Of course he couldn’t say no to Tao so he ended up dropping him off with a heavy heart. He watched Tao walk into the apartment that he would never leave.

As the plane took off Chanyeol thought about how he was going to have to move all of Tao’s stuff into Kris’s apartment. Then he thought about how lonely he would be without Tao there. He hadn’t lived alone in nearly a decade and the thought almost scared him. He knew that he had done a good job raising Tao and although he was sad to see him go he knew it was for the best. Everyone grows up sometime, maybe it was time for him to grow up as well. A photo from Baekhyun put a smile on his face before the plane took off.

This is a chapter from Chanyeol's point of view since he's been looking like the bad guy. He really isn't, he's just someone who cares too much. He probably looked bad since most of it was coming from Kris, sorry about that >.< Hopefully this makes up for it. 

Also he receives a nice text from Baekyhun so don't worry Chanyeol won't be alone :)

"Don't worry Chanyeol, Tao will always hold a special place for you in his heart"