Epilogue
Jun
Three days turned into a month, and a month into moving boxes and hastily made plans. The convenience of living next door to the bakery made Miles reluctant to leave his shoebox of an apartment, but with Jun’s recording equipment to account for and a baby on the way, there simply wasn’t enough square footage to make the space sustainable. After weeks of touring disappointingly small units nearby and searching without success for local houses for sale that weren’t overrun with black mold, it was Stella who came through with the solution.
The net proceeds from the sale of Jun’s swanky Los Angeles home were more than enough to tempt even the stingiest slumlord into selling his run-down apartment complex, and Miles’s was no exception. It wasn’t the soundest financial decision by any means, and Jun was sure his wealth manager was cussing him out under his breath with each new withdrawal he made, but in less than a month, it was done. The deed was transferred over, and ownership of Miles’s apartment complex came into the possession of one Mr. Ha-Jun Park, streamer extraordinaire.
A flurry of renovations followed, and a few short weeks before their family of two became a family of three, the first phase was complete—Miles’s tiny apartment was transformed into the two-bedroom, one-bath upper floor of a two-story unit. With a large living space downstairs, a kitchen worthy of a pastry chef, and two more bedrooms and bathrooms, their new home had everything they needed to live a happy life. It wasn’t glamorous, but cosmetic upgrades would come in time. For now, Jun was focused on making sure the tenants he’d inherited upon buying the building were cared for—each of their apartments was being updated and improved to make sure they could live comfortably at no additional increase to their current rent.
Plus, having his contractors out of his own space and working on other issues with the building meant he had far more time to devote to Miles as they navigated the end stages of his pregnancy… and the birth that followed.
Su-Jin Park-Palmer was born without complication in the dreamy stretch of time between Christmas and the New Year, and was there to witness his fathers usher in what would be the first of many years they would spend together. He was an easy baby—quiet and happy—which was a relief, as Jun wasn’t ready for parenting on hard mode just yet. As it was, he had his hands full with feedings and dishes and laundry.
So much laundry.
It seemed impossible that such a tiny little man could go through so much clothing, but it was either that or they’d unleashed the world’s (literally) shittiest ghost during renovations, because it felt like Jun was running down to the laundry room every other day to keep on top of things.
It was chaos, but strangely, it was also cozy.
Coming back up from the laundry room to find Miles passed out in the armchair with Su-Jin snuggled safe in a sling on his chest warmed him like nothing else ever had. Everything had come on so suddenly, but moments like this made Jun believe it had been for a reason. Somehow, the only person who’d managed to spark obsession in him was now his, and they had a beautiful son together. A life together.
A life that was settling into a new normal now that Miles’s paternity leave had ended and he’d gone back to work.
On that day, Jun woke when the baby did and cared for him just the same as he’d been doing for the last four months. Diaper change—check. Bottle prep—check. Formula mixed and heated to the right temperature—check. While Su-Jin enjoyed his breakfast, Jun made a point to engage him in worldly conversation. With both Ms. Rachel and CoComelon now dominating children’s YouTube, what would the future of the industry look like? Who would next take the world by storm and score a Netflix deal?
Jun had a couple guesses, but Su-Jin didn’t have much of an opinion, which was fine. After all, he was only four months old.
When their morning routine was finished, Jun took Su-Jin to his office so he could start recording. There was a bassinet in the corner, out of sight of the cameras, which meant he was only a few feet away from the baby at all times.
He was just about to put Su-Jin down for his post-meal nap when his phone vibrated with a new message.
Miles
Hey babe. How are my favorite people doing this morning? Hated having to leave you guys
Upon reading the text, Jun diverted his course from the bassinet to his computer chair. Miles had to be taking his first break of the day, and that meant not only did they have time to chat a bit before he went back to work, but that Jun had time to brighten his day and hopefully make him laugh. Miles had previously expressed how anxious the thought of going back to work had made him, so it seemed particularly important to make sure he knew that everything at home was okay.
Jun plopped down into his seat and fiddled with his camera equipment and ring light, then took Su-Jin out of his sling and set him on his lap. One preset photo timer, a wireless control, and a pair of headphones later, Jun had exactly what he needed. He flung the photo into his editing software for a quick touch-up, then sent it to Miles.
Jun
Missing you of course, but it’s not all bad. Su-Jin just pulled off his first 360 no scope and I am so proud
The photo attached was cropped to show Su-Jin gripping the controller and “wearing” his father’s headphones. Sure, the headphones were around his shoulders instead of over his ears, but it didn’t change the fact that their son was obviously a pro gamer.
To fully set the scene, Jun had even scribbled little angry eyebrows onto Su-Jin’s face with the brush tool.
Finer work had never been done. Michelangelo who?
Snickering, Jun pushed the conversation along.
Jun
Anyway, how are things going for you?
Miles
Oh nooo. My poor precious angel is being subjected to child labor by his father already! I should have known better than to procreate with a gamer smh
Apart from your cruel and unusual torture of our sweet baby, things are going ok. First official day as co-owner and Astrid and Enrique will NOT stop calling me Chef. Every time I say anything they go, “Heard, Chef,” and I’m about to fire them both out of spite. Other than that, though, things are pretty normal. Just hard to be away. Miriam spoiled me with the extra two weeks of paternity leave. She’s lucky I came back at all.
Jun
Heard, Chef
Miles
I am divorcing you.
Jun
Joke’s on you, you have to marry me first in order to do that ;)
but for the record, I’m joking… unless you want to get revenge tonight after Su-Jin is down, in which case I regret nothing. But for real, I am very proud of you. I already know you’re going to be amazing at this, and it sounds like Astrid and Enrique know it too if they’re already pulling your leg like they are. You think you can make it through a full day, or will I need to disconnect Su-Jin from his CoD game so you can come home for an afternoon snuggle?
He snapped and sent another picture of Su-Jin, this time with a badly photoshopped bottle of Mountain Dew and an open bag of Cheetos beside him. Patchy orange spray dusted his hands, lips, and chin. Su-Jin’s angry eyebrows were now even angrier.
Miles
Thank you. I’m trying to remind myself that Miriam wouldn’t have hired me for this job if she didn’t think I could do it. Working on limiting negative self-talk is so dumb. Maybe I like having low self-esteem, did my therapist ever think of that?? (Jk, I’ll be good, I promise. I will definitely complain about it the entire time, tho.)
I think I’m gonna try to make it through the full day. Not sure if I’ll make it, but I don’t want to become one of those helicopter parents who can’t let their kid out of their sight 24/7.
Plus I don’t want you to think I don’t trust you with Su-Jin alone.
Although, you do know you’re supposed to put the Mountain Dew in a bottle, right? And warm it up in hot water, NOT the microwave, and test it on the underside of your wrist to make sure it’s the right temperature? C’mon, we covered this in parenting class…
Jun
Oh, right. ngl I did not absorb much. I was way too busy thinking about how lucky I am to be here in person with you. So should I like mash the Cheetos or??
Miles
Su-Jin doesn’t even have teeth, Jun. You PUREE that shit, obviously.
Gotta go put in another batch of scones. The new orange pecan recipe I was messing around with at home has been a major hit. (Trophy when??) I’ll be back in a few.
Jun
Idk all of this sounds sus to me. Have you felt how hard he can gum you when he puts his mind to it? Pretty sure if the little dude wanted to, he could gum just about anything to mush on his own.
But yeah, take your time. I will just be over here getting to the bottom of who’s behind Big Baby (which is similarly evil to Big Pharma, but cuter and focused on turning its victims into indentured servants… uh… well, shit, that’s Big Pharma, too. If you don’t hear back from me it’s because I’ve come too close to figuring out the truth.)
With Miles allegedly off baking scones, Jun removed all of Su-Jin’s gamer accessories and scooped him up into his arms. He was usually out cold within half an hour after his morning bottle, and the little dude’s eyelids were drooping. It was bassinet time.
He laid Su-Jin down and made sure he was comfortable and dry. In those scant few seconds, Su-Jin fell deeply asleep. Smiling, Jun brushed the hair back from his forehead, then returned to his desk. He’d been able to meet his production schedule during Miles’s pregnancy, but due to the renovations on the building, he hadn’t been able to get ahead, and now that he was gearing up for their next big step forward, he wanted to make sure he had videos banked so he’d still have content coming out even when he took time off.
Recording went well.
Su-Jin was used to noise, and Jun’s reactions didn’t bother him. Thank god he wasn’t known for his horror gameplay—he did play spooky games from time to time, but if his claim to fame had been shrilly screaming at anything and everything instead of chill comedy commentary, it likely would have been a different story.
About an hour later he’d recorded a full video, and a few messages from Miles were waiting on his phone. He took off his headphones, kicked back in his chair, and opened up their conversation.
Miles
If They get you, I will avenge you.
In other news, I am officially losing my mind.
I thought I was doing well pretending like I was a normal human being doing a normal human job and not a certified insane person about to go freak out on everyone like that one chimpanzee that ate that lady’s face that one time, all bc I have been away from my small human for less than five hours, but… I am afraid to say I am failing my mission spectacularly and will soon be found out.
I miss my baby.
How am I going to handle going out to dinner with you tonight? I know it’s supposed to be a celebration of my promotion and everything, but what if nuclear war breaks out, or the zombie apocalypse starts, and we’re just sitting there eating Thai food too far away from our baby to save him??
Aaaaaaahh.
I may be overthinking. Please send coping mechanisms.
Jun checked the timestamp. The messages had been sent within the last five minutes, so there was a good chance Miles was still on his phone—hopefully somewhere private, since Jun had a perfect, although somewhat risqué, coping mechanism in mind.
Jun
Nowhere’s too far away when your baby daddy is a pro gamer. Do you know how many zombie apocalypses and nuclear outbreaks I’ve survived already? You don’t get a body like this by sitting on your ass playing games all day.
He set up his phone on his desk tripod and popped up onto his feet, lifting his shirt with one hand and pulling down the waistband of his sweats with the other to show off his body. While he’d lost his home gym after selling his house in LA, he’d tried to stay on top of his workouts here in Aurora, and he was looking good. Toned, tight, fit. Miles had expressed appreciation for his body more than once in the heat of the moment, and Jun figured a little preview of what he could look forward to that night after dinner might help take his mind off things.
Jun
I gotchu, babe. I’ll keep you safe. You and Su-Jin both.
Miles’s reply came almost immediately.
Miles
I know you will, and I know I’m just being dramatic, as always.
It’s just like
I knew having a kid would make me feel a lot more anxiety about everything, and I prepared for that, but I didn’t realize how much I would MISS him, even when I’m gone for just a few hours.
BUT I know it’s something I have to get used to, and as much as I miss our little one, I miss you too. I know everything has been about the baby lately, and we didn’t have a whole lot of time to spend one-on-one before we were suddenly responsible for a whole human being, so I am looking forward to having you to myself for a little while. I just… might be a little insane about it at the same time lol
I hope you understand. Like, I’m sure you do, but… bleh. Parenthood, man. Complicated in ways you wouldn’t even expect.
Su-Jin stirred and started to fuss, so Jun left his desk as it was and went to tend to his son. He took him into his arms and rocked him, talking to him in hushed tones, and began to wander through the house to stretch his legs before he had to sit back down and resume work.
He stopped in each of the rooms downstairs, lingering for a while in the living room and kitchen before carrying Su-Jin up to the second floor. He popped into the nursery, where a mountain of laundry waited to be washed, then entered the master bedroom, which had once been half of Miles’s living room and his bedroom nook. There, the pigeon family was eating breakfast. Their babies were long gone, having grown up in the blink of an eye, but the parents remained. They cozied up together in their new nest—warmer now that Miles and Jun had purposefully left some cattail fluff out for them to encourage them to stay—and shared a piece of croissant. Jun couldn’t be entirely sure, but for a second, he thought he caught a glimpse of something white beneath them.
New eggs.
More babies on the way.
They were getting ready for a new phase in life, and they weren’t the only ones.
Absentminded, Jun dipped his hand into the pocket of his sweatpants and ran a thumb over the small velvet box inside. He’d been carrying it everywhere, psyching himself up for what he was about to do tonight, and now he was ready. In less than twelve hours, a new phase in his life would begin as well.
As the pigeons cuddled, Jun sat on the edge of the bed and laid Su-Jin on top of the covers. He was starting to get squirmy, and in a second Jun would take him downstairs to the living room for some tummy time, but first he wanted to wrap up his conversation with Miles.
Jun
You feel however you need to feel, and I’ll be there to support you through it. It’ll be okay.
I might be grossly misinterpreting the situation, but I have a feeling the lead-up to tonight will be way worse than when you’re actually in the moment. At least then you’ll have me to distract you ;)
Miles
You’re right, and I promise I really am looking forward to a night out with you. I think we’ve earned a little bit of indulgence, don’t you?
And it’s true, you ARE the best distraction.
Got any plans on how to woo me, or should I give you some suggestions? Because if you do need suggestions, my first piece of advice would be wear the silk button-up and leave the top two unbuttoned. The light blue one with the pocket on the front? You know the one…
Jun
Always open to suggestions, but I do have a trick or two up my (blue silk) sleeve.
But seriously, if there’s anything at all you want out of tonight, say the word and it will be yours
Miles
You’re so sweet and I don’t know what I did to deserve you. I thank my unbearable heat horniness and the advent of hookup apps for leading me to you.
I love you.
No tricks or bits required. Just bring yourself and that’ll be more than enough.
(Do wear that shirt tho, if you can swing it)
Jun snorted.
Jun
(You got it. If it weren’t for the high chance of attack by baby bodily fluids between now and then, it would already be on ;))
Love you, too, babe. Have a good rest of your day and I’ll see you real soon for an unforgettable evening, just you and me
Miles
Looking forward to it! (And I promise I’m not just saying that.) See you soon 3
With the conversation concluded, Jun put his phone away and carried Su-Jin downstairs. He was looking forward to it, too, in more ways than Miles could ever know.