Hongjoong had insisted on keeping Seonghwa company while he made food. The two of them had left Seonghwa's study about half an hour before Yunho's shift ended, and he would presumably bring Wooyoung home. By the time they arrived in the kitchen and Hongjoong sprinted over to one of the chairs to perch on it and be out of Seonghwa's way patiently, Seonghwa again rubbed his face in stress.

He had forgotten to call a mechanic in all this time he had spent at home. By now, their working hours had ended, so he would have to do it tomorrow. Maybe he would leave Wooyoung home from kindergarten for a day.

With a sigh, he brushed the feeling of incompetence off. Hongjoong remained oblivious.

"Can I help you?"

Seonghwa reached into the fridge to get the carton of eggs that Hongjoong specifically set aside for dinner. The demon's face showed sorrow when he watched Seonghwa take them away, but he swallowed his comments. His little hands fidgeted with the walrus he had built from legos while Seonghwa rolled up his sleeves.

"I'm afraid that no matter what you help me with, you'll have to watch your precious eggs get cooked. Can you bear that?"

Hongjoong huffed. His eyes flicked around the kitchen insecurely for a second, but then he nodded. Seonghwa supposed that this was him actually pulling his weight. After all Yeosang had said on that weird first evening that already felt as if it had been ages ago, Seonghwa hadn't expected much given that Hongjoong still was a demon, but at least their rules actually applied to him. Maybe Seonghwa had been lucky in the choice of demon that had landed on his premises.

"Have you ever needed to divide eggs before?"

Hongjoong tried very hard to school his expression into a neutral level that didn't convey sheer disgust. Seonghwa found it amusing that whatever importance eggs had to demons, it clearly didn't align with what humans did to them.

"I can do that."

With the demon busied by his task and his walrus watching on from beside him, Seonghwa returned to his pan. He found it not in the cupboard that it usually was in but in the oven instead. After one long look at the confused item, he put it on the stove.

"You must really like eggs. Are all demons like that?"

Seonghwa didn't need to turn to notice Hongjoong struggle with the eggs. In between his juggling, he sometimes licked sticky remnants off his fingers.

"Yes, we love them. You humans have tons of weird food, but eggs hold all the nutrients one could ask for. I learned that humans who live healthily also use them a lot."

So not the bodies of the unborn, after all. Seonghwa had been a fool to believe that.

"You know a lot about humans. Far more than we know of demons."

"Well, it's not my first time on earth, and the sole sense of purpose for my kin is to heed the calls of people. Humans supply us with life, and we supply them with whatever needless material thing they desire."

Casually, Seonghwa stirred some cinnamon into his batter. Wooyoung adored the slight note of it in his pancakes, but so far, he hadn't figured out what it was. Seonghwa kept telling him that it was a secret only a dad turned master chef could ever know. The awe in Wooyoung's eyes was worth every lie.

"And is it fun? Do you like doing this?"

Once Hongjoong was finished with dividing, Seonghwa took the yolks from him to mix them in. He instructed his demon helper to stir the rest and to stop snacking on the side.

"It's fine. As I said, we do this for work, and usually, we get something nice out of it. By hierarchy, we are normally perceived as the stronger race and more powerful participant of the contract. Things rarely go wrong, but for some of my brothers and sisters, the sense of respect is actually quite helpful in their development. If you want to learn more about it, you could ask Yeosang about a book."

Seonghwa didn't necessarily feel the need to read too much more. So far, he placed his hopes on Yeosang and the man's promise to get their odd contract looked into. If everything went according to plan, Hongjoong would leave soon, and Seonghwa could write off this whole incident as an awkward nightmare.

Hongjoong aggressively stirred the eggs. He had tucked his tongue between his lips unconsciously as he concentrated, and Seonghwa detected the tips of his horns on his forehead. They hadn't thrust through his skull completely, but in his loss of focus, they showed at least partially.

"Do you usually eat eggs often?"

Hongjoong's sudden question caught Seonghwa by surprise. Quickly, he stopped staring to lazily stir his batter again while Hongjoong did most of the work.

"Sometimes. Wooyoung needs the proteins to grow, but we don't eat them... like you. We like them as components in our food."

"Can you cook many dishes with eggs?"

Seonghwa took the finished egg foam from the demon and mixed it into his bowl. Then, he set the timer to wait for ten minutes. In the meantime, he leaned back against the counter to uphold their conversation. He noticed that the magnets on the fridge that weren't in use and usually formed a smiley face had shifted, and the face had grown little horns.

"I know a few, yeah. But many of them feature eggs in other forms than raw."

Disbelieving, Hongjoong shook his head. His contempt had Seonghwa chuckle.

Hongjoong and boiled eggs were no different than Wooyoung and vegetables.

He just opened his mouth to drop a snarky comment when the bell rang. Upon his surprised eyes to the window that led to their front yard, Seonghwa detected a little Wooyoung bundled up in a scarf that wasn't his as he jumped and waved cheerfully on the other side of the glass. Seonghwa motioned Hongjoong to stay seated as he went over to let his son in.

Yunho stood next to Wooyoung in front of the door in his long coat and towered over the kid. His warm smile directed from Wooyoung to Seonghwa, and Seonghwa couldn't help but copy it.

"Hi, dad!" With a cheerful yell, Wooyoung ran into the house and threw his shoes off. His rucksack landed in some corner, discarded and forgotten as the boy quickly checked the kitchen for what he hoped to be pancakes. His squeal when he saw the batter was worth the work.

"Did your day ease on you after the morning?"

Yunho pushed his hands into the pockets of his cosy coat. Seonghwa wanted to invite him in and offer him some tea so desperately, but that would have to wait. As soon as Hongjoong wasn't around, he could have the man over as long as he wanted.

"Yeah, thanks again for your help. I'll make sure to bring over the potholder soon."

Yunho shrugged it off.

"It's fine, no worries. Oh, Wooyoung also has your keys."

Surprised, Seonghwa patted down his body as if he would even have them on his body while he was at home in the first place. No key. Just Wooyoung giggling in the kitchen with Hongjoong. Thankfully, the demon kept mostly quiet so he wouldn't be noticed. When Seonghwa glanced up at Yunho with empty hands, the man nodded over to the driveway.

There, in all of its shining white glory, stood Seonghwa's car. Innocent as if it had never been gone.

"I made a quick trip to the fuel station to get a canister since I figured that would be faster. It's tanked up and ready to go once Wooyoung separates from your keys," Yunho announced dazzlingly. Seonghwa didn't know what to say.

"I- Thank you so much! I completely forgot around my work today, so this is a huge help! Yunho..."

Sometimes, Seonghwa wondered how he had deserved this man to look out for him so much. They barely met as private people, the only link between them being Wooyoung's cheeky self. Yet, Yunho watched out for Seonghwa with special patience and care.

Yunho's smile remained brighter than the sun. He seemed happy as long as Seonghwa was happy.

"Don't mention it. I felt like I had to from how stressed you looked this morning. I'm glad you feel better now."

Torn, Seonghwa looked between him and the corridor leading inside. Wooyoung had yet to clean up his things.

"I should drive you home, but-"

Would he take the risk to leave Wooyoung alone with Hongjoong? He disliked the thought of Wooyoung at home by himself already, and Hongjoong didn't seem like much of a good caretaker.

"No, no. I can take the bus with no problem. Wooyoung was looking forward to his dinner so much, don't leave him hanging."

Seonghwa sought Yunho's eyes, but they showed only sincerity and patience. When he had come here, he hadn't expected Seonghwa to do anything.

Yet, he felt even worse for not even offering the man some food after his long day. Should he risk it?

However, before he could decide, Yunho already tipped his head back to look at the darkening sky. The first few stars were already showing above the little town they resided in, and the air was cooling gradually. Seonghwa's gaze caught on his jaw and the lines of his neck.

"Then I shall leave you two to it before he eats the whole house. See you tomorrow, have a nice evening."

Yunho grinned once more and just turned to leave when Seonghwa caught his sleeve. The coldness of the ground seeped through his thin slippers and socks.

Seonghwa had to tiptoe to reach, but once his hand found Yunho's cheek to guide him closer, the man immediately responded and dipped to ease Seonghwa's stance. When Seonghwa's lips met his cheek in a soft kiss, he could feel Yunho smile bashfully. A blush decorated his ears and cheeks when he pulled back.

Seonghwa's face felt hot, too, but their shyness was mutual. Yunho rubbed his neck.

"Get home safely, and thanks again."

Too busy smiling to say something, Yunho just gave a little wave and turned. He cradled his cheek in his hand cutely before he disappeared around the corner. Seonghwa smiled after him as his chest bloomed with the sweet flowers of liking someone.

"Daaaaad, I'll die soon if I don't eat!"

At once, Seonghwa remembered his little nuisance of a son that he loved very much. Enough to hurry in and close the door to save him from starving, at least.

Hongjoong piqued up again once Seonghwa returned, but his eyes followed him curiously. Maybe he had seen Seonghwa and Yunho together from the living room this morning, too? Seonghwa brushed it off since he didn't ask questions anyway. Instead, he jumped to the stove to prepare their meal.

Soon, the delicious smell of pancakes wafted through the house. Seonghwa was glad that Wooyoung was busy pestering Hongjoong, so he could think about how smooth Yunho's cheek had been beneath his lips. Once he put the pile of pancakes on the table, Wooyoung immediately dug in while Seonghwa got himself a fork.

Since he knew the drawer so well, he blindly reached in to retrieve one, only to end up with a spoon in his hand.

Confused, he looked at it, then back to the drawer. Hadn't the knives been on the left, the forks in the middle, and the spoons on the right? Why were the spoons in the middle? Had the spoons always been in the middle?

Puzzled, Seonghwa just exchanged the item in his hand before he went to eat with the others. Hongjoong only watched since he wasn't supposed to eat his slimy eggs in that awful method in front of Wooyoung. His horns were gone by now, too.

"How was your day, dad?"

Wooyoung's childish voice sounded far too grown up and responsible when he asked. He had made it a habit to question Seonghwa since Seonghwa also checked on him, but sometimes, it was too adorable for Seonghwa to handle.

"I had fun with Hongjoong. Maybe you two can build with legos one of these days. He's far better than I am."

Immediately, the conversation shifted to Hongjoong and his walrus. Wooyoung had to share all of his expert insider information with the demon, and Hongjoong just looked as tiny as Wooyoung did on his chair as he listened. Peacefully, Seonghwa enjoyed his pancakes.

"Ah, we can play later! If that is fine with you, daddy?"

Seonghwa shrugged. By now, he didn't believe Hongjoong to be a risk to Wooyoung anymore. If something were to happen, he was only one room further down the corridor. He could use the few hours for himself while those two were busy. Maybe Hongjoong was indeed more of a help than Seonghwa had expected him to be at first.

Dinner ended with Wooyoung wolfing down more pancakes than his little stomach could handle and getting a tummy ache. Despite his dramatic complaints and helpless pats on his round belly, Hongjoong picked him up and carried him to play to distract him. He had gotten the very essence of taking care of a child pretty quickly.

Seonghwa found time to read his book and think about Yunho while the other two played. No incident came up.