Hatching

'I Love You to the Moon and Beyond'

June 16th, 2017

The second Dawa saw his mother and sister he ran straight to them and gave them a hug. It was not the lame hugs that he would usually give people, not the ones where he loosely wraps his arms around them with barely any emotion. This hug was all of the hugs that he couldn't give them over the years in one. He hugged them tightly, eyes shut, in an attempt to keep the tears from falling. Do-Hwan secretly took a picture of this while sniffling and wiping away a stray tear.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"How have you been?" Dawa's mother asked the both of them as she served them tea. They were all in the small living room, sitting on the couch. Essie has fallen asleep, her head resting on Dawa's shoulder, about an hour ago as it was way past her bedtime.

"We've been good, just living the life." Dawa chuckled dryly. He wasn't lying. Although it got hard sometimes and tiring, he and the boys would still choose this path again and again. He felt thankful for all that he had, and all the people in his life. "It really isn't all that bad compared to what others are probably going through. Some never make it, you know. I'm just glad we have so many fans and support from our families."

Kayla gave her son one of those mom looks. "But still, you guys are working so hard all the time. You must feel a little lonely and you know, the more famous you get, the more people you can't please."

Dawa thought about this. "We've been good. We've been fortunate, mum and that's all that matters."

"Honey..." Kayla stops herself for a second. Do-Hwan slurped his tea, a habit that is usually kept in check but he was just too tired to do so. Kayla smiled at him, letting him know that it was okay. "I'm so lucky to have a son like you. What did I do to deserve you?"

"You took me in."

"Listen, I'm so happy that you're someone who can see the good things in hard situations and you are right, you are fortunate but fortunate people also have their share of hardships." Kayla started. "What I'm trying to say is, even if your hardships and pain don't seem as big and great as others, it's still something you're going through. It's still pain. You shouldn't ignore it and bottle it up."

Dawa stayed silent, unsure of what to say. He just stared at his cup of tea. Kayla sensed that Dawa probably needed to settle in and get some rest. She set her tea down on the wooden table and stood up.

"I'm going to bring Essie to her room."

Dawa turned to look at his sister. "Can I?" Kayla nodded, smiling as she knew that Dawa loved to tuck his younger sister in bed. It was always their thing until he left.

Dawa picked Essie up gently, resting her chin over his shoulder. He walked down the hallway, to her bedroom and rested her on her bed. He put the build-a-bear that he had sent her for Christmas in her arm and pulled the blankets over, tucking her in like he used to do.

"I love you, sweet dreams." He whispered softly and left the room.

Meanwhile, Do-Hwan watched Kayla carry two heavy carry-on backpacks on each shoulder and drag two suitcases, one in each hand.

"I-I can help with those."

"Nope, you just sit here and relax. I've got these." Kayla refused Do-Hwan's help and chuckled at the state of shock Do-Hwan was in. "I did weightlifting for a few years when I was in college." She explained walking away.

Dawa walked back to the living room scratching his head. "Hyung, my mom got the guest bedroom ready for you. I'll show you, so just follow me." He spoke to him in Korean.