Work Text:
When the notice first appeared on the college bulletin board, almost nobody paid attention to it
Part-time childcare assistance needed.Two full days a week and weekdays from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.Suitable for responsible students.Flexible with classes.
Contact Mr. John.
Most students walked past it without a second glance.Engineering students said they already had too many assignments.Business students preferred internships that looked better on their resumes.Some joked that babysitting was hardly a college job.
But two people stopped.Not together.Not even on the same day.
Yet somehow, that single piece of paper would quietly change both of their lives.
Soobin was twenty-two years old and in his final year of Fine Arts.He always had paint on his sleeves.He forgot where he put his brushes almost every day. He played games for hours and wins most of them no matter team or individual. He remembered birthdays, favorite colors, and the exact shade of sunlight on old buildings in the evening, yet somehow forgot deadlines until the final possible moment.
People described him as gentle. Children liked him immediately. Dogs followed him.
He saw the notice while waiting near the print room. He stared at it for a few moments. Not because he desperately needed the money. Although, admittedly, art supplies were expensive. But because something about helping with a child interested him. He loved children. Always had.
---
Taehyun saw the same notice the following morning. He was twenty-one years old and studying engineering. Organized. Practical. The kind of person whose notes looked professionally printed. He had folders inside folders inside folders on his laptop. If anyone in his friend group lost something, forgot something, or needed help with something, Taehyun somehow became responsible for fixing it.
He looked at the notice. The pay was decent. The schedule was inconvenient. Yet the idea stayed in his mind. Maybe because he had spent years helping younger cousins. Maybe because it sounded more meaningful than data entry or tutoring. Or maybe because life had started feeling like an endless checklist and this felt strangely human.
He took a picture of the notice too.
---
Mr. John accidentally scheduled both interviews for the same time. He taught sociology, a friendly respected person. The sort of professor students genuinely liked. His wife worked long hospital shifts and their daughter Lilly had recently turned one year old. Their schedules no longer worked with daycare timings. Family lived far away. They needed help.
Mr. John looked at the two students sitting in front of him.
"You both applied despite studying completely unrelated subjects."
Soobin smiled."I like children."
Taehyun nodded. "I've looked after younger cousins."
Mr. John folded his arms."Do either of you know how to change diapers?" Silence.
"Prepare formula?" More silence.
"Handle tantrums?" Even more silence.
Soobin slowly raised a hand. "I can draw elephants."
Taehyun added, "I know first aid."
Mr. John laughed."That might actually be useful."
---
They got the job.Together.Mr. John decided having two students would be safer and easier than relying on one person.
Especially during evening hours. Their schedule became fixed. Tuesdays and Thursdays: full days. Every weekday: 3 p.m. until 7 p.m.
---
Their first day was chaos. Absolute chaos. Lilly hated strangers. She cried when Mr. John left. She cried when her mother left. She cried when Soobin picked her up. She cried when Taehyun tried making funny faces. She cried because she dropped her toy. Then cried because someone gave the toy back. By noon both college students looked as if they had survived a natural disaster.
Taehyun was reading instructions from a notebook Mr. John had prepared. Feed at twelve-thirty. Nap at one. Fruit at three. Formula at four. Medicine instructions. Emergency contacts. Food schedules.
It looked less like childcare instructions and more like operating procedures for a small spacecraft. Taehyun respected the organization immediately.
Soobin was terrified.
---
Something changed during the third day.
Lilly stopped crying when they arrived.
During the second week she smiled.
By the end of that week week she stretched both arms toward Soobin as soon as he entered the apartment.
Taehyun stared at her. "Traitor."
Lilly laughed. Soobin looked ridiculously proud.
"You saw that?"
"Yes."
"She chose me."
"She's one year old."
"Exactly."
---
Without ever discussing it, they slowly fell into roles. Soobin became the center of Lilly's little universe. He learned how she liked being held. Which songs helped her sleep. The exact way she liked her blanket folded. The bouncing rhythm that calmed her when she cried. He learned bedtime stories. Learned bath temperatures.
Learned how to carry a sleeping child without waking her. Watching him was strange. The distracted Fine Arts student disappeared. In his place stood someone patient.Steady.Capable.
Taehyun noticed it before anyone else.Soobin moved through childcare as if he had always known how to do it.
---
Taehyun found his own place naturally. He managed schedules. Food charts. Medicine reminders. Shopping lists. He knew how many bananas were left. How much formula powder remained. When Lilly's vaccinations were due. When nap schedules shifted.
If Soobin became the heart of the operation, Taehyun quietly became its structure. Invisible but essential.
Mr. John noticed. "You two work surprisingly well together."
Neither disagreed.
---
Their routines became comfortable. At three o'clock Taehyun usually arrived first. He checked supplies. Prepared fruit. Sterilized bottles. Reviewed instructions.
Soobin usually arrived carrying sketchbooks and exactly one item he had forgotten somewhere earlier in the day. Then Lilly saw him.She would immediately stretch her arms toward him. Soobin would pick her up.
And somehow the entire room looked brighter.
---
Some days were difficult. Teething days. Fever days. Days when Lilly wanted only to be carried. Hours passed with Soobin walking slow circles around the apartment with a sleepy child resting on his shoulder.
Taehyun noticed Soobin forgot himself while taking care of other people. Forgot meals, water.
So Taehyun adapted. A glass of water would appear beside him.
"Drink."
"I'm fine."
"Drink."
A sandwich would appear. Fruit slices. Tea.
Whatever happened to be available. Soobin would protest.
Then eat while holding Lilly with one arm.
"You know," Soobin said once, "you're oddly bossy."
"You haven't eaten since noon."
"That isn't relevant."
"It is literally the point."
Soobin laughed. Lilly laughed because he laughed.
---
There in their rare moments of gathering in a common friends group, they noticed changes. "You two spend an awful lot of time together now."
"We work together, it needs to develop coordination."
"You sound like an old married couple."
"We absolutely do not."
Their friends exchanged knowing looks.
Neither noticed.
---
One rainy Thursday, Lilly refused to nap. By four o'clock everyone was exhausted. By five, Soobin looked ready to collapse. By six, even Lilly seemed tired of being awake. Eventually she fell asleep against Soobin's shoulder. He carefully sat on the sofa. Afraid to move.
Taehyun placed tea beside him. Soobin smiled tiredly. "Thank you."
"You look dead."
"I might be."
Taehyun sat opposite him.
Rain tapped softly against the windows. For a while neither spoke.
Then Soobin said quietly, "I think I'd be good at this."
"Childcare?"
"Being a parent."
Taehyun looked at him.
Soobin smiled at the sleeping child. "I know that sounds ridiculous."
"It doesn't."
"I really think I'd love it."
Taehyun nodded. "You would." There wasn't a second of hesitation.
Soobin looked surprised. "That confident?"
"You know how to comfort her faster than anyone else."
"That's not true."
"It absolutely is."
Soobin laughed softly.
The rain continued outside.
---
Winter arrived. Their routines became easier. Lilly began speaking her first words.
"Ball." "Moon." "Soo." "Tae."
Soobin celebrated as if she had won an international award.
Taehyun quietly recorded every new word in his phone.
Soobin stared at him. "Did you just make a vocabulary list for a toddler?"
"Yes."
"You frighten me."
"Organization is a virtue."
"No, that's genuinely concerning."
---
They started talking more. Not about childcare. About everything. Books. Music. Families. Dream jobs. Bad professors. Fear. Regret.
The conversations arrived naturally because childcare created strange moments of stillness. While waiting for milk to cool. During naps. While folding tiny clothes.
---
Soobin wanted to illustrate children's books one day. Taehyun wanted to work on sustainable engineering projects.
Soobin loved old films. Taehyun loved documentaries.
Soobin forgot appointments. Taehyun set reminders for fun.
Opposites should have clashed. Instead they fit together strangely well. Like puzzle pieces from entirely different boxes.
---
One evening Lilly developed a mild fever. Nothing serious. Still, both worried.
Soobin sat beside her crib for hours. Taehyun recorded medicine timings and temperatures.
When Mr. John returned home late that night, he found one student sitting beside the crib and another updating notes nearby.
He smiled. "I think Lilly accidentally gained two extra parents."
Neither knew what to say. The sentence stayed with them long after he had gone to bed.
---
Months passed. Spring arrived. Lilly learned to walk. Everything became harder. And louder. And much funnier.
She climbed furniture with alarming confidence. Escaped rooms with professional skill. Stole pens. Shoes. Socks.
One memorable afternoon she stole Taehyun's calculator. Neither ever found it again.
---
One evening after an especially exhausting day, Lilly finally fell asleep. Soobin sat on the balcony steps. Taehyun joined him. The city lights glowed quietly below. For a while neither spoke.
Then Soobin said quietly, "Can I tell you something strange?"
"Probably."
"I think I might be gay."
The words settled softly between them. No drama. Just honesty.
Soobin stared at the streetlights below. "I've never said that out loud before."
Taehyun stayed quiet. Because some moments deserve space.
Soobin continued. "I think I've known for years." He laughed nervously. "I'm scared of it."
Taehyun listened.
"Everyone talks about being yourself as if it's simple." Soobin smiled sadly. "But sometimes being yourself changes the future you imagined."
The city hummed quietly below them.
"I always imagined having children." He looked toward the room where Lilly slept.
"I want school meetings and bedtime stories and badly drawn birthday cards on refrigerators." He laughed softly. "I want to be somebody's dad. And I'm afraid choosing this path means losing that."
Taehyun understood then. This wasn't fear of identity. It was grief for a future Soobin thought he had to give up.
"Can I tell you something?" Taehyun asked.
Soobin nodded.
"Families don't come in one shape."
Soobin looked at him.
"There are adoptions, there are foster programs, there are children who need homes." Taehyun looked at him as if he was trying read his face. "There are a hundred ways to become a parent."
Soobin remained silent.
Taehyun continued. "The dream doesn't disappear."
For a while neither spoke.
Then Soobin laughed weakly. "Trust an engineering student to solve emotional problems using alternative pathways."
"Optimization matters."
Soobin smiled.
"Thank you."
Taehyun shrugged. "You'd make an excellent dad."
The words came easily. Because they were true.
---
Something shifted after that conversation. Not dramatically. Just slightly.
Like a door opening a little more every day. Soobin spoke more freely about fear , about expectations , about growing up feeling different without understanding why.
Taehyun listened. Not to solve, simply to listen.
Sometimes that mattered more.
---
One afternoon Lilly tripped while running. She burst into tears. Soobin picked her up immediately. Taehyun brought water, a cold cloth, and distraction toys. Within minutes she was laughing again.
Soobin looked at Taehyun. "We're weirdly efficient."
"Years of professional experience."
"We've been doing this less than a year."
"Exactly."
Soobin laughed. Then stopped. Because Taehyun was smiling too. And suddenly the room felt quieter. Neither looked away immediately untill Lilly threw a toy block at both of them. The moment ended. But not entirely.
---
Their friendship deepened. People noticed. They noticed. Neither spoke first. Perhaps because naming things makes them real. And real things can be lost.
---
Graduation approached for Soobin. Job applications arrived. Interviews. Portfolio reviews. The future suddenly stood waiting.
One evening Soobin said quietly, "I'm going to miss this."
Taehyun knew he wasn't talking only about the job. "Me too."
---
Eventually the inevitable happened. Mr. John announced that Lilly had secured a daycare place. "Next month will probably be your last."
Soobin smiled. "That's good."
And it was , maybe but it also wasn't.
---
The final Tuesday arrived. They spent it exactly as they always had.
Storybooks ,building blocks, Crayons, fruit slices, evening walks.
The kind, people forget until they become memories.
At six-thirty Lilly fell asleep. For the last time under their care.
Soobin sat beside her crib. Taehyun stood near the doorway.
After a while Soobin spoke. "Funny."
"What is?"
"I thought we were applying for a job."
Taehyun nodded. "So did I."
"I don't think that's what happened."
Taehyun smiled. "No."
---
They walked home together. Halfway there Soobin stopped.
"What if we stop talking after this?"
"We won't."
"People always say that."
"We won't."
Soobin studied him.
"How do you know?"
Taehyun considered the question carefully.
Finally he answered, "Because somewhere along the way you became one of my favorite people."
The city moved around them, cars, noise, lights yet somehow everything felt very still.
Soobin looked away. Then back. "Would you like to grab a coffee tomorrow?"
Taehyun eyes squinted. "An old lame pick up line"
Soobin laughed, "because not many get 'the moon is beautiful isn't it'"
"No way. It is famous"
"Not many are romantic like you."
"They do"
"Think about your class".
"I agree , not many would. But I'm not romantic either."
"But you know the phrase"
"So"
"And we have a common list of films"
"...Yeah. So coffee on?"
"Yep"
"Mm ok"
"At 4 pm then"
"Here"
"Mm bye"
"Mm see you tomorrow"
"Tomorrow"
---
Six years later, two guys visited an orphanage ran by two couples. Guys with more defined cheekbones and more widened shoulders. And a pair of platinum rings adorning their ring fingers.
A staff walked in. "Hello Iam Kai, the head informed your appointment. They are on who-know-where their annual honeymoon trips. Please come in".
(B&Y orphanage)
.........