Right, so now that he was home and could actually go to a store, he needed to get new clothes, groceries, and hygienic and cleaning supplies for both him and the kid. Other than canned vegetables and frozen food, they didn't have anything to eat for breakfast. Squirt was still in the middle of his growth spurt and after years of having an unreliable food source, Kang did not want him to skip meals. He really had to go shopping if he wanted to prevent that.
Which brought up another problem.
What was he going to do with the kid?
Kang sighed as he wrote down the shopping list. The stores were always crowded, and save for the clothes, he needed to go and get everything immediately so they could have food to eat and things to clean up afterward. So, he couldn't push it off because they did need it.
The problem was that Kang was positive the kid was not going to have a good time if he tagged along, but at the same time, he really didn't want to leave the kid alone in the house. The kid was going to be thoroughly overwhelmed if Kang took him to the always busy stores, but he had no idea if leaving him alone was going to be better or not. Especially after what Han-jae told him about the kid most likely never being truly alone in his life.
Either he took the kid with him and risked overwhelming the kid even more out in public or he left him behind; where he could potentially enter another downward spiral like he did last night when he had been alone for mere minutes.
Granted, Kang planned to slowly get the kid used to being in large crowds out in public, it was something that he needed to do if he wanted Squirt to adjust. But that didn't change the fact that it was a dog-shit idea to pull something like that after the night they had.
This was more stressful than he thought it would be.
Alright, maybe he should talk to the kid first. He was freaking out something when he didn't even know if the kid was going to react like that to either situation. Maybe Squirt was going to be okay with going out or being left alone and he was just overthinking everything.
He probably was.
Probably.
Hopefully.
Kang sighed to himself again. He needed to do something else to get his mind off this.
Standing up, he carefully crept back into his bedroom. Kang could barely see him with the way the blanket was pulled up, but he almost nodded in approval when he saw that Squirt was still asleep. It was barely noon and considering his difficulty in sleeping, it made sense that he was still asleep, and Kang had no intention of changing that.
Slowly, he grabbed his duffel bag, and taking care that he didn't make too much noise, he crept out of his room. Feeling accomplished that he didn't wake up Squirt, he happily made his way to the bathroom, ready to wash up for the day.
Though the shower was meant to help him relax, Kang couldn't help but think about everything that he needed to do for both himself and the kid. All of them were somewhat urgent, and the only way he felt comfortable with leaving the kid by himself was if they had a method of instant communication. So that meant that he was going to have to get the kid a phone and then hope that would be enough for the kid to reach out whenever he needed help.
Which was another problem because the kid just did not ask for help.
It really does take a village to raise a kid because while these issues have always been present, he always had the other men present to ask for advice. If it wasn't Kang who noticed that the kid needed help with something, it was one of the men who would notice and help him. Now if the kid was in a situation, there was no one to tell Kang or help him figure out the right things to do or say, nor was there anyone to help the kid at a moment's notice.
Man, how do parents do it?
He was taking care of a 16-year-old that could take care of himself if he really needed to, and here he was, stressing over his kid like Squirt was a helpless child or something. How stressful was it to take care of a kid that was actually helpless? Being a parent was definitely something he could not imagine himself doing.
He had just finished getting dressed when his phone started vibrating, and he had to restrain a sigh when he saw that it was Han-jae who was calling him, "What?" He couldn't keep the annoyance out of his voice, but at this point, Kang thought that his idiotic brother deserved it.
Han-jae huffed on the other side of the line, "I'm at the store. Tell me what we need for the house."
…
Alright, he needed to fix his attitude. He was just being a dick to Han-jae at this point when all he wanted was to help.
Even if he was being really annoying about it.
But, in the end, Kang knew that he had to be grateful that Han-jae was so willing to work with him for the sake of his kid. Clearing his throat and taking in a deep breath, he steadied his voice, "Everything. We need everything that isn't canned or frozen. Buy some bathroom cleaner too, and dish soap." With the way his parents tended to go away for months at a time, along with him and Han-jae also leaving for their own careers, there was nothing perishable in the house. Apparently, someone used up the cleaning supplies before they left and they just didn't refill it, the bastards.
Putting Han-jae onto the speakerphone, Kang continued to get ready in the bathroom, "Okay. So, eggs, milk, and bread. Do you want any snacks? Does the kid want anything?" Kang could barely hear his brother over the background noise of people shopping, children crying, and just the general noise of a busy grocery store.
Han-jae was a lifesaver.
The kid would not have handled going to such a busy store. Though to answer the question, he needed to go and see if the Squirt was even awake. He pulled on his shirt, somewhat struggling because of the steam, "Just get me some ice cream." That's always the one thing that he misses the most when he was deployed, and he was eager to get it. Though he wasn't sure what the kid might want.
Opening the door was refreshing as the cool air rushed into the steam-filled bathroom, even more so when he stepped out of the bathroom, "He still isn't awake so—FUCKING—! Don't scare me like that!" He nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw that Squirt had been standing a few feet away from the bathroom. His mere presence was enough to thoroughly scare the shit out of him because Kang thought he was still asleep.
He was expecting the kid to still be in bed, not right outside the bathroom.
Willing his heartbeat to slow down, he looked at the kid up and down and sighed in relief when he saw that the kid looked better. He still looked a little bit tired, though, at the moment, he looked bashful. Probably because the kid scared the living shit out of him, "Sorry, sir. I didn't mean to scare you."
He sighed.
This has been a great morning so far. Nothing like getting two surprises in a row.
Trying to get that bashful look off his face, Kang ruffled his silver hair, "It's okay, kid. How did you sleep?" Even though he asked, he could tell that the kid slept like a rock if the spiky bedhead had anything to say about it. The soldier tried to smooth over the kid's hair, only to smile when it bounced back into place, even more so when the kid let him mess with his hair like that.
"—Hello?! Hamchan! What happened?!" Oh yeah. His brother.
He almost forgot about him.
Whoops.
Motioning for the kid to be quiet, Kang answered him after taking him off speakerphone, "Nothing. The kid scared the shit out of me." Squirt looked curious about who he was talking to, but like always, he waited patiently.
The fact that Squirt let him mess with his hair like that showed that the night's sleep had done him some good. That, or he was still a little groggy and too lazy to smack his hand away, but Kang had a feeling that he was feeling better.
Good.
He still needed to talk to the kid about what he said about not deserving kindness, but at the rate everything was going, that was going to be a later conversation. Kang wanted to have the conversation when Squirt was in a good headspace, and he needed to give the kid some time for that.
Kang tuned back to his brother just in time to hear, "Ask him what snacks he wants. I want to be the cool uncle." Han-jae was never to let go of that. The asshole.
"Shut up." Despite what he said, Kang's words had no real fire to them and he turned to Squirt, "Hey, kid, what snacks do you want?"
He blinked in surprise, dumbly saying, "Huh?"
"Snacks. What do you want?" Kang clarified, watching the way the kid seemed to be confused by his request.
It took a few seconds, but he answered, "Oh. The…the yellow ones that Dae-hyun would put onto his fingers." To emphasize what he meant, the kid curled his fingers inwards like he was mimicking claws.
Yeah, he had no idea what he was talking about.
Kang didn't get a chance to question what the hell he was talking about, "I heard him, I'll be home in a few hours. Bye, love you." In his usual fashion, Han-jae only stayed on the line long enough for Kang to return the farewell before he hung up.
Well, he had a few hours to help the kid get settled and cope with the fact that his younger brother was going to be living with them right off the bat.
Squirt was giving him an odd look, showing both his confusion and interest in the phone call, "Who was that?" Kang almost winced at the question.
Alright, that plan went straight out the window.
He had been originally planning to ease the kid into the situation with his brother, but with a question like that, he would only make the kid more suspicious if he avoided answering it.
Well, he had to tell the kid anyway, "Yeah…" he dragged it out, causing an eyebrow to raise, "That was my younger brother, Han-jae. He got kicked out of work and had to come home early." Kang couldn't tell if that was a blank face of acceptance or if he was trying to hide how he really felt about his brother, but he continued, "I'm sorry, kid, I didn't find out until this morning. I can get him to stay at a hotel if you want." Han-jae knew that the kid was already feeling overwhelmed, so Kang knew that his brother would gladly stay in a hotel for a few days. Besides, Han-jae had to do it if he wanted to be the fun uncle so he wasn't worried about that.
The kid was staring at him, and just as Kang thought he was going to say no, Squirt finally said, "It's fine." His approval was accompanied by a nod of his head.
Kang was genuinely surprised, "It is?" he seriously thought that the kid was going to say no, especially after the past few days that they'd had.
Squirt nodded his head, giving a truthful answer, "Yes. I trust you, Major." Alright. Kang had to admit that hearing his kid say that made him happier than it should have. He knew that Squirt trusted him, but there was something about the kid verbally saying it made it feel more tangible.
Smiling, Kang started to walk back to his room, Squirt trailing behind, "Thanks, kid. My brother should be home soon." Together, they started to make the bed. Squirt had a faint blush on his face (no doubt remembering the way he had sought comfort) but Kang didn't mention it, "Fair warning, he's kinda annoying. And dorky. He thought you were eight."
The kid actually blinked in surprise at that, and Kang had the front-row seat as confusion made the kid's face twist into a face he had never seen before. If it wasn't for the fact that it looked like the kid was questioning his brother's intelligence, Kang would have burst out laughing.
"I'm 16," Squirt said slowly as if Kang was the one that didn't know his age.
Though to be fair, it was one thing to be off by a few years and it was another thing to be off by an entire decade. Kang could tell him that Han-jae thought he was a six-year-old because he never told anyone but his mother how old Squirt was, but that was a Han-jae problem.
Even then, Kang was struggling to keep the smile off his face, "I know. But he didn't, so he bought a ton of snacks and stuffed animals for you."
Again, Squirt was looking at Kang as if he was the idiot that made the offending mistake, "He did?"
Now Kang was smiling as he tucked the corners of the blanket under the mattress, "Yeah. Something about wanting to be the fun uncle. He's kinda like Han-gyeol." Both of them were a bit dorky, and while they were both smart in their fields, they both had their moments that had Kang questioning their intelligence.
Squirt raised his eyebrow, and after a few seconds of deliberation, he finally asked, "Nice?"
Not the point he was going after but good enough.
Kang huffed out a smile, "Yeah. Nice. Have I ever told you about the time he and I broke the back windshield of our dad's car?" The look he got in return was enough for him to start the story.
They had wandered over to the kitchen while Kang told him stories about his childhood, about his and his younger brothers' shenanigans as they grew up. Because there was only frozen and canned food in the house, they ended up snacking on some edamame while they were waiting for Kang's brother to arrive.
Now that there was daylight streaming through the windows, he could see the details of the Kang family home. There was a sitting area, along with an eating area and such, with little quaint details that made it feel homely. Like the doorway, the rest of the house was painted a crème color, and there were a multitude of family portraits on the walls. Save for the pictures where it looked like Kang was a young child, everyone had bright smiles in the pictures.
He could definitely see the family relation between all of them. Kang had the exact same smile as his father and had the same brown hair as his mother. His little brother looked very similar to Kang, if it wasn't for the fact that Han-jae had black hair as their father did, he would have thought they were twins.
Once he heard the sound of someone walking up to the front door, he instinctively took a step back into the kitchen, stepping out of view as someone opened the door.
"I'm home!" the voice dragged out, matching the same intonations Kang would make whenever he announced his return in the barracks. Han-jae's voice was eerily similar to Kang's, his voice having a slightly higher note to it, "Come and help, I got groceries."
With a quick order for him to stay, Kang rushed off to go and help his brother and with a peak around the corner, he could see the brothers doing just that. Han-jae looked like he did in the pictures, the only difference was that his hair was longer, and he was wearing metal wire glasses.
"Thanks. I got us some food from the store. You two haven't eaten, huh?" Han-jae and Kang walked into the sitting area that was connected to the kitchen, and still hiding from the newcomer, he walked into the hallway. Circling around to be behind them, he kept on watching.
"Not yet. Huh?" Kang looked around the kitchen, clearly trying to find him, "Squirt? I told him to wait here."
Han-jae snickered as he put a bag onto the counter, and feeling bold, he crept closer to the kitchen, standing right by the end of the kitchen again, "You always manage to lose everything." He was only a few feet away from Kang's brother, and he noticed with some amusement that Kang was a little bit shorter than Han-jae.
"Shut up," Kang snapped back, though there was no real heat behind it as he kept his head on the swivel, "He's a little bit shy sometimes." Kang smiled when he spotted him a few feet behind Han-jae, "Ah, there you are. What are you doing over there?"
Han-jae whipped around to look at him and promptly jumped a foot into the air when they made eye contact, "JESUS—! Don't scare me like that!"
Huh.
He also reacted the same way as Kang after he accidentally scared him.
Weird.
It must be a family thing.
Without hesitation, he slipped past the stunned man to go and stand next to Kang, naturally standing slightly behind him in the process.
"God, you're a freaking ninja!" Han-jae breathed out, his hand on his chest as he tried to calm down, giving him and Kang a wide-eyed look in the process.
This time, it was Kang's turn to snicker, the soldier's hand landing on his head with more weight than he was comfortable with. Though, as soon as Kang heard the grunt he let out as a result, he immediately lightened his hand, "Han-jae, this is the kid I've been telling you guys about. You know, the six-year-old," Kang snarked out, much to his brother's embarrassment.
The more he watched Han-jae, the more he realized just how similar the brothers were. It was weird but interesting to see the way Han-jae averted his eyes with an awkward look on his face, somehow copying Kang's exact expression when he had the same reaction.
But to his credit, Han-jae got over his embarrassment as he gave him a small bow, "It's nice to meet you. I'm Han-jae. Hamchans younger brother." He gave Han-jae a small nod in return, and it wasn't until Kang slightly pushed his head down that he remembered that he was supposed to do the same.
He bowed, "I don't have a first name, but everyone calls me Kid." He knew that it wasn't a replacement for his name, but he didn't want to get used to yet another nickname from someone else.
Han-jae blinked in surprise, and sent a questioning look over to Kang, furrowing his brows at the news that he didn't have a first name.
"We know his family name," Kang clarified, a bashful tone in his voice, "but I haven't been able to find out his full name, so, Kid it is." Han-jae nodded his head slowly, taking in the news about his name.
For a few seconds, all they did was stand in a circle awkwardly in the kitchen, the brothers glancing at each other, and then at him.
"Alright then!" Kang clapped his hands, bringing them out of their stupor as he moved towards the bags on the counter, "Han-jae brought us some food. Here." Kang held out a little triangular plastic-wrapped object for him to take, and upon taking it, Kang handed him two more, "Those are tuna mayo. They don't have kimchi." Ok, good to know that they didn't have kimchi.
He still had no idea what they were.
It was when they were sitting at the table when Han-jae helped him figure out how to open the packaging. He was just as patient as Kang was whenever he was showing him something new. Curious if this was out of character, he glanced over at Kang, but when he saw Kang typing away at his phone, he relaxed.
It was good to see that Han-jae wasn't changing his behavior to win his favor.
Not wanting to be weighed down by the food (though it was delicious), he only ate one of the rice tuna things. He wanted to go on a run after being stuck inside all day. Not only did he want to explore a little bit, but he also wanted some time to himself, along with the chance to tire himself out so he could sleep.
He didn't know if he should be annoyed, or touched that Kang was so observant, but he didn't even get to ask to go on the run before Kang noticed how little he ate.
"Everything okay, Squirt?" Kang had a worried tone in his voice, and that only caused Han-jae to look over at him as well.
He blinked in surprise when he saw Kang and Han-jae giving him the exact same look of concern. It was weird, but he moved past it.
He nodded, "Yes. Can I go for a run?" Han-jae's eyebrows rose as if it was a weird question, but thankfully, Kang didn't question it.
"Sure, kid. Just don't go too far, okay?" Kang readily agreed, and already, he was pushing his phone across the table for him to take, "Take my phone. Call Han-jae's number if you need help getting back." He almost sighed in relief when he got the green light.
"Yes, sir." He dutifully took Kang's phone before going back to the room Kang gave him, so he could change and better ignore the whispering that was going on behind him.
"Hamchan!" Han-Jan furiously whispered, "What if he gets lost?!"
Kang almost laughed at his brother's concern, "Trust me. He isn't going to get lost. Kid has a better sense of direction than me. Besides," Kang huffed out, leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed, "he's been inside all day, "He's going to go insane if I try to keep him inside."
"At least go with him!" Kang had to admit that his brother had valid concerns if the Squirt had been a normal 16-year-old. But Kang knew that the kid could handle himself, and if everyone tried to mug or kidnap the kid, they were definitely going to have to earn it.
"He'll be fine, Han-jae." Kang breathed out, "If he wanted me to go with him, then he would have asked. He probably needs some time to himself." Squirt probably needed some time and space to process the day's events, so he wasn't going to stop the kid from doing just that. Besides, it was almost the end of the day, and they were in a residential area. Kang was positive that Squirt was not going to run into a crowd of people if he went for a run.
Han-jae clearly was not happy about the thought of the kid going out by himself, but before he could further question it, Squirt came back into the kitchen, already changed into new clothes, "Kang?" They both snapped to attention.
"Yeah?"
"Yes?"
For some reason, Han-jae answered as if he was the Kang that Squirt wanted.
Kang smacked his brother, much to his annoyance, "He meant me, stupid." Honestly, it was obvious that his kid was talking to him, not to Han-jae. Han-jae rolled his eyes as Kang looked back at Squirt, "What's up?"
Squirt looked in between them for a few seconds until he finally answered, "When do I have to be back?"
Glancing out the window, he was able to make a curfew within seconds, "Sunset." Kang readily replied, knowing full well that two hours was more than enough for Squirt to get all of his excess energy out of his system, "Make sure you eat when you get back." The kid had a terrible habit of not eating when he was stressed, and knowing this full well, Kang already knew that he was going to have to be a nagger about that until his kid adjusted.
Squirt huffed but agreed and with that, he was walking out of the front door, leaving just the two of them in the house.
Han-jae gave him another weird look, "Does he not eat enough or something?"
"Nah." Kang stood up and started to clean up the table, "Most of the time, he eats just fine. He doesn't eat as much when he gets stressed, and well, you know. As long as I remind him, he'll be fine." Han-jae made an 'ah' sound.
"Hey," Han-jae got up, and together, they started to clean up the kitchen, "tell me about Kid. Actually, hang on."His brother turned to face him, his hands on his hips, "What the fuck, bro? You helped him get into the country but you didn't give him a name? What the hell did you put on his forms?"
"Because he's not some fucking dog that I can name Han," Kang groaned out, thoroughly annoyed by the stupid question, "I put down his name as Jangsu, but as soon as we find his family, he'll get his identity back anyway." Granted, he put the English equivalent of John as the kid's name, but as soon as he found the kid's family, then he was going to have his true name back. Not to mention, it felt wrong trying to give Squirt a proper name, Kang wasn't his parent, and it wasn't his place to try and name him.
Han-jae persisted, "Why hasn't he picked a name for himself?" though it was a valid point.
Kang shrugged as he filled up the dishwasher, "Because he seriously doesn't care. When we first met, he told us that he didn't care what we called him, because he doesn't have a name. It's actually an improvement that he told you to call him Kid." Kang seriously thought that Squirt was going to tell him the same thing he told them when they first met, he thought it was going to be a repeat of 'call me what you want, I don't care.'
"Oh…" Han-jae slightly slumped forward, his face twisting into a frown, "Aw, that's really sad." It was, but it was something that Kang had learned to accept, as sad as it was.
"I know, but that's how he wants it."
Perhaps it was the topic, but Han-jae was quick to change the topic, "How's it going trying to find his family?"
That question was enough for him to heave out another sigh, prompting his brother to give him a pitying pat on his shoulder, "His parents died in the plane crash. I know who they are, and I know that he still has some living family, but they moved because the press kept pestering them. I haven't been able to find them. It really doesn't help that he has a common last name either." There were thousands of Koreans that had the Yu last name, and unless he somehow managed to find his parent's death certificates (which he doubted), everything was up to chance at this point.
"Damn." Somehow, Han-jae's simple response was enough to sum up his feelings about the kid's family situation.
Changing the topic, Kang circled back to Han-jae's original request to tell him about Squirt, "Yeah, going back to Squirt, just respect his privacy and don't try to force him into doing stuff. He'll warm up to you…eventually."
Han-jae raised his eyebrow, "How long did he take to warm up to you?"
"Forever." Kang groaned out, his head slightly falling back as he did so, "It probably took like three or four months?" It really did take a long time, though it was definitely worth it, "But to be fair, he was surrounded by me and my men and he didn't know any of us. Sunny really helped in that regard. She was really protective of him once she got bigger, and once he saw that she liked us, he only trusted us even more."
"Ah," his brother said inquisitively, "Sunny is really important to him, huh?"
Oh, that was an understatement.
"Yeah." Kang threw the dish towel he had been using against the counter in a sudden bout of frustration, "He loves that dog. He was really upset when I told him that he couldn't bring Sunny. That was the first time he yelled at me. First time he hugged me too." Had it been any other time, Kang would have been happy that he got such reactions out of Squirt, but it did nothing but make his stomach twist at the sadness his kid experienced.
His brother chuckled, "He yelled at you and then hugged you? Sounds like a teenager alright lmao."
Kang physically cringed, "Did you just say that out loud? Die. Never do that again." And Kang meant that from the bottom of his heart. Han-jae was only 27 but that didn't give him the right to be saying texting acronyms out loud as if it was normal.
Han-jae gave him a shit-eating grin.
"Lolololol."
Kang groaned, "I don't want to be seen with you in public."
That did nothing to get rid of Han-jae's stupid grin.
Throwing another dishrag at his brother's face, he went back to his room to grab the paperwork, and finish the still-needed shopping list. The two of them went their separate ways as they started to do their own thing.
Kang was in the middle of making the list again when Han-jae came back into the kitchen, "Hey." He looked up and raised an eyebrow when he saw Han-jae holding a medium-sized stuffed animal, "You mentioned that your kid missed his dog, right? You think he would want this or is he way too old?"
Kang restrained a sigh. Squirt wasn't his kid but that wasn't the point at the moment.
Raising a brow, Han-jae dutifully handed over the plushie once Kang motioned for him to give it. Somehow, despite the fact that he had never told Han-jae the characteristics of Sunny, it was almost identical to her. The plushie was a brown and black dog, with a fake tongue stitched hanging out of its closed mouth, and considering that Sunny usually had her tongue hanging out, it was almost eerily accurate.
Honestly, Kang had no idea if Squirt would want it.
The kid would have his moments where he was childish, where he had the curiosity and slight tendencies of a younger child, then there were other times where it was like he was far older than he really was. Kang knew that it was because the kid had been forced to grow up when he was still a child, but as a result, it made it difficult to accurately predict his reactions to stuff like this.
Still, "It looks a lot like Sunny, so he might like it." Kang placed it on the table in front of him, "I'll ask him when he gets back." He was willing to bet that Squirt would like it though.
"Huh. Alright," Han-jae said, clearly surprised that his gift could still be given to a 16-year-old, "He doesn't seem like the type to like something like this."
"Nah, he's pretty childish sometimes. I'm not sure, but he really misses Sunny, so maybe." It was still going to be a long time until Sunny was allowed into the country, so maybe this would curb the kid's longing until then.
Hopefully, it would.
The sound of the front door opening made them perk up, and with a glance out of the window, Kang was content to see that Squirt had returned before sunset as he had requested.
Sending a knowing look over to his brother, one that had Han-jae silently admitting that he was right, Kang called him into the kitchen. Squirt walked into the kitchen, slightly breathless, sweat dripping down his face and staining his shirt.
Yeah, he definitely needed that run by himself.
"Yes?" he was speaking just as quietly as ever, but Kang knew him well enough that he could tell that the run helped improve his mood and his shoulders were more relaxed.
"Here." Kang handed the Sunny lookalike to him, much to his confusion, "Do you want it?" His eyes furrowed at the question, but slowly, the kid looked over the plushie. Turning it over in his hands, a tiny smile spread across his face when he saw the dog's face.
Han-jae was staring at the kid as if he grew a second head.
Though it was fair, Kang hadn't seen the kid smile since they were back on base before the kid found out he couldn't bring Sunny. Seeing that his kid was smiling again made some of his stress ebb away.
"It looks like Sunny." Like always, Squirt wasn't saying his emotions outright, but Kang knew him well enough to know that he wanted to keep the plushie. Kang grinned, happy to see that the kid liked it, especially when he pulled it closer to him, "Thank you."
He waved off his thanks, motioning to the bashful brother that was standing a few feet away, "Thank him. He's the one who got it." Han-jae only got even more flustered when the kid gave him a small bow to show his thanks before going off to go and take a shower.
It was silent as they stared at each other.
"I would have gotten him a bigger one if I knew he would have liked it."
Kang snorted.
Well, it looked like the Squirt had managed to worm his way into Han-jae's good graces too, in less than a day too.
He ended up staying there at the kitchen table, making a list and catching up with paperwork until midnight. Kang honestly didn't realize that it was so late until Han-jae texted him to 'turn off the fucking light and go to sleep'. Which was fair.
It wasn't like Han-jae was making a bad point, so after he cleaned everything up, he got ready for bed.
Kang was just about to climb into his own bed before he remembered what happened the night before. How he had left the kid alone in an unfamiliar room led to him waking up to Squirt sleeping on the floor. How the kid wasn't able to sleep until they were in sleeping in the same room.
The soldier heaved out a sigh.
Alright. He knew what he had to do.
Stifling a yawn, Kang trudged into the kid's bedroom, his pillow tucked under his arm as he did so. As he thought, despite it being nearly midnight, Squirt was wide awake, immediately sitting up when he saw him walking in, "Sir?" If he hadn't been so tired, he would have smiled at the way Squirt had his new plushie sitting right next to him.
He paid no mind to his question, instead, Kang just muttered, "Scoot." Squirt, still confused, slowly scooted over in the bed, leaving more than enough space for him to lie down.
With a great sigh of relief, Kang lay on the bed, groaning at some of his joints cracked in the process of getting comfortable.
Knowing full well that telling the kid that Kang was there to help him with his nightmares would embarrass the living shit out of him, Kang instead said, "It's too quiet in my room." It was a shit explanation, but he knew it would placate Squirt. At least enough for him to not question why they were sharing a bed too much.
As he thought, it worked, "Okay," Squirt said quietly before he laid back down, letting out a sigh as he did so. Just like Kang had done moments before, he started to get comfortable.
"Night, kid."
"Goodnight."
The kid was asleep before Kang was dozing off.
