Chapter Text
The very moment the sun kissed Seoul with its warm rays, all peace subsided.
“SWEETIE!”, Romance shouted as he entered the bedroom of the youngest demon.
Such a level of volume caused Baby Saja to shout and fall out of bed. Once his head hit the floor, he let out a groan. He hated being woken up this way.
“What the fuck, Romance? I was in the middle of a really good dream!”, the maknae complained, sitting up from where he fell.
The maknae looked too adorable, right now. His hair was messy, he had bags under his eyes, his blanket was practically swaddled around his small body, and he had a pout planted across his face. Whatever Romance was screaming about, it better be good.
“Oh, honey drops! You fell out of bed!”, the love demon cried, rushing over and picking his little brother up.
“It took you long enough…”, Baby scoffed.
Gently, Romance placed him back onto the bed and proceeded to brush off his shoulders. He then tried his best to move Baby's messy bangs out of his face. This was getting to be a bit too much, leaving Baby to swat and kick.
“Romance!”
“Sorry, pookie. I just panicked for a moment there.”, Romance stated. “After all. Today's a biiiiig day for you!”
Baby tapped his chin. What could be today? Definitely not the anniversary of him meeting his hyungs. That happened already. Was it his birthday? No… That passed too. No wait- Maybe it didn't? Birthdays were pretty hard to remember when you're a multiple year old demon.
So what was so big about today?
“Oh, honey! Did you forget?”
Not wanting to admit that he did, Baby tried to play it cool. He tossed his blanket away and stood up, a proud smile on his face.
“I know EXACTLY what today is, Ro!”, he insisted.
Relieved, Romance smiled and proceeded to ruffle Baby's hair. He constantly said a bunch of nonsensical things as he did so. The only things that sounded just the least bit understandable were a mix of “Snoopy boopy boo boo” and “Cutie wutie mootie hootie baby boy”. The love demon had gone full mama bear.
Normally, Baby loved getting as much attention as possible. However, it was barely 6:00am and he hadn't had breakfast yet. So an empty belly was an open door to a grouchy maknae.
“Come now, my love. You need to take a shower, brush your teeth, and put on deodorant. Can't have a stinky baby in the studio.”, Romance declared, pulling Baby into his arms and carrying him bridal style to the bathroom.
The mention of the studio meant one thing.
“My solo photoshoot!”, he said excitedly, remembering everything now. “That's today?”
“Hmm? I thought you knew exactly what I was talking about?”, Romance chuckled.
Baby playfully stuck his tongue out. Of course he knew. He totally wasn't fibbing. Nope. Not a chance.
“Oh! I just know you're going to look so cute!”
Despite the joy in his tone, Romance almost immediately started to get emotional. He sniffled a few times, tears smearing his freshly applied mascara.
“S-Sorry, Baby! I just can't help it.”
“Why are you crying?”, Baby asked.
“It's just… It feels like just yesterday that I was wiping your nose and rocking you to sleeeeep!”, Romance wept.
“That was yesterday.”, Jinu declared, startling Romance.
Not pleased, the love demon turned to his hyung. He held Baby tight in his arms, brows furrowed.
“And where have you been?”, he asked.
“I took Derpy and Sussie for a walk.”, Jinu replied.
“Did you forget about today?”, Romance wondered.
Jinu smiled, then reached out for the maknae.
“Sweet Baby!”, he cooed, pulling his brother into his arms. “Oh I can't believe you're doing your very first solo photoshoot! You're such a big boy!”
“Yeah. I really am the best, huh?”, Baby bragged, looking smug.
Jinu happily hugged the maknae, spinning around as he did so.
“Careful now! If he gets nauseous he'll look pale! He needs to look his best for the camera crew!”, Romance gasped, holding Jinu steady.
That was a good point.
Carefully, Jinu put Baby down and patted his messy mop of hair. He still couldn't believe Baby was given the opportunity to do photos alone. It seemed as if the media always wanted everyone together.
“Go take a shower, Sweet Baby. I'll get your cosmetic clothes.”, Jinu commanded.
“I'll let Kyo-moon know we need a ride.”, Romance offered.
Such a name made Baby flinch. Did he hear Romance right?
“Can't Abby-hyung drive us?”, he asked.
“His car is in the shop, honey. Remember? He's getting new tires put on.”, Romance stated.
That was right. How could Baby forget?
Such news was not good. But why was that?
Well… Baby knew that Kyo-moon wasn't exactly a great manager. He's often impatient, is very controlling, and has a bad temper. Twice now, Jinu had laid him off and switched to other managers, even having to “borrow” Bobby a few times. Despite this, he always found himself going back to Kyo-moon because he was both easiest to get access to and the one who was the most available.
Kyo-moon, who once worked for many male KPop groups, wasn't working as much as he once did. He wasn't as young as he used to be and many didn't want to deal with him due to his temper. So, currently, he was rather desperate for work.
Despite his tone, he was good at keeping up with paperwork and setting up meetings and events. When it came to actually being a decent person, he sucked hard.
The first time Jinu laid off Kyo-moon was when he yelled at Bobby during a duo event between Huntrix and the Saja Boys. Such a reason for him yelling at Bobby was rather pathetic.
Basically, there was only one table available for the eight of them. So the group had to squeeze together. Kyo-moon was rather furious and demanded Bobby tell the staff to find another table. While that did happen, he ended up angry at Bobby anyway for letting it happen.
Fortunately, Bobby took the torment from Kyo-moon rather well. If he even got the least bit upset, you knew damn well Huntrix would have gone feral.
Regardless of what happened that day, it wasn't nearly as bad as the second time Kyo-moon was laid off.
This action was caused when the Saja Boys were filming a commercial that was advertising a brand of swimsuits. Kyo-moon was being picky and claimed that the swim suits looked “gay” because of the bright colors and the amount of skin being shown. By too much skin, he meant the fact their knees weren't covered enough.
What really set Jinu off was when Kyo-moon pinched one of his buttcheeks and said “Look at this shit! Half his ass is hanging out!”.
Despite this claim, Jinu's bottom was completely covered. If anything, the swim trunks were a bit tight and made it look like his butt was a bit squished.
The main demon was so pissed that he demanded Kyo-moon get out of his face. You did not want to get Jinu on his bad side.
Unfortunately, Jinu was desperate for a manager for assistance. Considering the four other managers he temporarily hired were rather unreliable, Kyo-moon was their only hope.
It wouldn't be that bad. Jinu had it all planned. He and the others would go with Baby to the photoshoot and keep their maknae comfortable. That way, all Kyo-moon had to do was talk to producers and photographers. At worst, Jinu would have to guide Kyo-moon a bit. As long as his brothers weren't bothered, he would take that risk.
Dreading the photoshoot now, Baby slouched over while he took his shower. Who knew what Kyo-moon would be fussing about this time? What if he commented on Nuki again? Baby remembered the time he brought Nuki to a meeting. Kyo-moon had the nerve to snatch the poor raccoon dog and drop it into the waste basket beside his desk.
“You can be a manchild all you want for your horny fangirls, but you act like a certified adult when with me! Keep that filthy toy out of my office!”, the cruel manager hissed.
Baby was lucky Mystery was so quick to rescue Nuki. He never tolerated anyone taking away Baby's comfort items.
“Maybe he'll be nice today. He was nice when he drove us to the fish market.”, Baby said to himself, scrubbing his hair with a rather large blob of shampoo.
This claim wasn't the most accurate. After all, that visit to the market didn't exactly go perfectly. Baby spent half the time complaining about the strong smell of the seafood bothering him and the crab tanks freaking him out. It didn't help that Jinu was buying crabs for Romance that day.
That wasn't even the worst part. The store was loud and some nosey fans kept following them. Even after Jinu and Baby gave autographs, the fans would not leave. The car ride home consisted of Kyo-moon starting some argument with Jinu over the Saja Boys taking Ubers instead of relying on him for rides. Jinu knew well he started preferring Ubers after being snapped at enough times.
Somehow, what really set the manager off was when he noticed Baby covering his ears and scrunching his face up. This happened before Baby had his headphones.
“What's with you? I'm not even being that loud! If you can't handle me talking in a normal tone of voice, how do you expect yourself to get through life in general?”, the foul man once spat.
Kyo-moon was a dick. Baby kept telling himself that. Jinu just had to avoid ubers due to ‘saving money’. What money needed to be saved? They were loaded, for Gwi-ma's sake!
After finishing up in the shower, brushing his teeth, and getting dressed, Baby dragged his feet to the kitchen. His former excitement for having a solo photoshoot was now melted into goop. Kyo-moon would for sure make things awkward or upsetting. At least his hyungs would make him feel better while there.
“Rice and eggs again? We had that yesterday!”, Abby complained.
“Well this isn't a restaurant! Go make your own breakfast if you're going to be a critic!”, Romance spat.
Hearing his hyungs arguing only soured Baby's mood. He hated when they were unhappy.
“Mystery, use your chopsticks!”, Jinu commanded when he caught his fellow demon eating like a canine.
“Food tastes better when eaten this way!”, Mystery insisted.
“Well you're not a dog!”, Jinu laughed.
With a smirk, Mystery quickly shapeshifted into a sapsali and proceeded to let out happy barks. Jinu only sighed at such a sight. At least Mystery was cute.
The smell of breakfast made Baby's tummy growl. Rice and eggs, hot coffee, and milk toast. Baby knew he had to eat. He never did well on an empty stomach.
Eagerly, he walked into the kitchen. The kind atmosphere of his older brothers nearly made him forget about Kyo-moon.
“There you are!”, Romance chimed, rushing over to Baby. “Come on. Eat up!”
“Thank you, Romance.”, Baby replied, sitting next to Jinu and picking up his chopsticks.
Casually, he took a few slow bites of his breakfast. The taste was comforting, as usual.
“So, Baby? Can't help being jealous. You get to be in a photoshoot all by yourself.”, Abby stated, his tone supportive. “With how cute you are, I bet you'll be on the cover of Rollingstones.”
“Um… maybe.”, Baby uttered, acting as if he wasn't that interested in the topic.
The others were a bit shocked by Baby's lack of enthusiasm. Maybe he was tired?
“We all got up early, just for you!”, Mystery insisted, his paws resting on the table and his tail wagging.
Baby was so nervous about Kyo-moon that he didn't even react to his brother being a dog, right now.
“Pookie? What's up? You look a bit sad.”, Romance said in sorrow, feeling Baby's forehead. “Hmm… You're not coming down with anything, are you?”
“I'm fine, Ro. I just… Erm… can't wait!”, Baby fibbed, forcing himself to perk up. “Haha! I was um… kidding! You know? Just throwing you off!”
Falling for this, Romance chuckled and gave the maknae a kiss on his cheek. He adored how silly the youngest demon got.
“Do you all really want to come?”
“Of course, Baby! It's not everyday our baby brother gets to go solo! We have to cheer you on!”, Mystery declared, jumping into Baby's lap and placing his front paws on his shoulders.
The canine proceeded to lick Baby's cheeks a bunch, causing a fit of giggles.
“Mystery… Human form, please.”, Jinu commanded.
“Seriously! Your fur is getting everywhere! It's bad enough when Derpy sheds about five cats worth of fur onto the couch! I end up having to go through half a bottle of nasal spray!”, Romance cried.
“Derpy? Where's Derpy? Chase! Chase! Chase!”, Mystery called out, rushing off and proceeding to chase the oversized feline.
Derpy, who was previously asleep in the living room, let out a startled growl when he spotted the sapsali running over. He then proceeded to run off.
“I swear to Gwi-ma, if he wakes the neighbors again-”
Jinu cut himself short when loud knocking was heard on the door. Could the neighbors have come to yell about the noise that quickly? If so, this was a new record.
“DOOR! DOOR! I'LL GET IT! I'LL GET IT!”, Mystery said excitedly, flashing back into a human.
Clumsily, Mystery bumped right into the door and fell back. He let out a whimper as he rubbed his forehead.
“Be cool… Be cool…”, Jinu whispered to himself before opening the door. He proceeded to put on a friendly face and act as if nothing went wrong. “Good morning! How lovely it is to see my favorite neighbor!”
“I don't believe I am your neighbor, Jinu.”, the man at the door declared. “Where's Baby? It's time to go!”
To everyone's surprise, it was Kyo-moon at the door.
“Oh! Hello Moon! You're early today!”, Jinu greeted.
“Hey! I am your manager, not your friend! You call me Kyo-moon! No nicknames!”, the manager scolded.
“Of course! Sorry about that.”, Jinu apologized, feeling a bit sheepish.
Without asking permission to enter, Kyo-moon stormed into the apartment and found his way to the kitchen. The moment he spotted Baby eating breakfast, he grabbed onto the maknae's arms and pulled him up.
“Ow!”, Baby cried.
“Come on! We have to go! The photographers are waiting for us!”, the manager commanded.
Upon seeing the man he greatly disliked, Baby frowned. He really didn't want to ride in his car.
“Well? Are you ready to go or what?”
“Um…”, Baby uttered.
“Ummm uhhh?”, Kyo-moon mocked.
“Moon, don't be so-”
“KYO-MOON!”, the manager hissed, causing Jinu to step back.
He was already regretting his decision to let this man work for them again.
“Baby, did you go potty before breakfast?”, Romance asked.
“I did.”, Baby replied.
“Good boy! Do you have everything you need?”, Romance added.
“No time for questions! Let's get going!”, Kyo-moon commanded. “B-man, you're going to be great today! I want to see your best effort!”
To the dismay of the others, Kyo-moon took Baby's hand and practically dragged him out the door. Abby, Mystery, and Romance quickly followed. They were too excited.
Being the responsible one, Jinu went to grab a few of Baby's necessities. No way he'd risk his maknae being unhappy.
Outside, the demons excitedly proceeded to pile into the car.
“Hey! What are you doing?”, Kyo-moon asked.
“We were finding a place to sit.”, Abby stated.
“Yeah… No you’re not. You boys aren’t coming.”, Kyo-moon declared.
The others forced themselves out of the car, all looking at their manager in disbelief. He didn’t mean that, did he?
“This is Baby’s moment. You all need to stay behind. After all, I wanted to talk to Baby in private. So go on. Baby would likely prefer that you don’t bother him, anyway.”
“Well I’d like if my hyungs came along too…”, Baby muttered.
Annoyed, Kyo-moon slammed the door to the passenger seat in his car. Such an action made Baby flinch. His hyungs all looked rather upset by this.
“We all want to support him the best way we can.”, Abby stated.
“I’m sure you do. But in case you didn’t realize, Baby is an adult. He doesn’t need a bunch of babysitters.”, Kyo-moon replied, heading over to the main door of his car and opening it.
Once he entered the car, he almost immediately started it. In a panic, the maknae rolled the window down. He smiled for a moment when his hyungs met eyes with him.
“Have fun, Baby.”, Mystery said kindly, bowing for the maknae.
“Show them all of your good sides!”, Abby commanded.
“He’s all grown up!”, Romance cried, pulling out a handkerchief and blowing his nose into it.
Baby waved at the others, feeling himself growing anxious. He didn’t like the idea of having to do this alone. It was moments like these where he wished Kyo-moon knew he and the others were demons. Then his hyungs could teleport into the car and join him for the ride.
The car started to move. As this happened, Baby caught onto one thing.
“W-Wait a minute, Kyo-moon! I didn’t get to say bye to Jinu!”, he gasped.
Ignoring Baby, the manager continued to drive off.
“Kyo-moon! Go back!”
To further ignore the maknae, Kyo-moon turned the volume up on his car radio. This made Baby grow furious.
“Dammit! Turn your stupid car around and go back to the apartment!”
“Watch your mouth. I don’t get paid to listen to you whine.”, Kyo-moon spat.
“But Jinu-“
“Don’t worry about Jinu. This is your day. It’s all about you. So worry about your own needs, got it?”, Kyo-moon interrupted.
As his apartment building grew further away, Baby felt his heart racing. This really was hard to swallow. He loved his hyungs and looked forward to them all being there to support him. Now he had to be all alone. Not getting to say goodbye to Jinu was the worst of all.
“Mama…”, Baby muttered, his hand smudging the window glass.
As of recently, Baby and Jinu made up a “bye bye ritual”. Why exactly did they make this? Well, it started two weeks ago.
It was an offday for both the Saja Boys and Huntrix. Better yet, an offday on a Saturday. While they all took the time to hang out together with outings and whatnot, Jinu and Rumi decided to spend their Saturday with just each other and no one else. That went as far as having a sleepover at Huntrix’s penthouse. Baby, who looked forward to a free day with Jinu, was rather upset by this. Not only was Jinu away for most of the day, he was away for the night too. This meant he wouldn’t be there to tuck Baby in. It didn't help Baby was regressing pretty hard that day. Not having Jinu with him often made him feel vulnerable. So, it was no joke that the maknae didn't take well to him and Jinu being separated for a long time.
This didn't always happen. After all, Baby has had a few sleepovers with Zoey in her bedroom or one of the large guest rooms. That was a whole night away from Jinu. Despite that, this didn't bother him for one reason.
When Baby slept over at Huntrix’s penthouse, Jinu always came along so he could say goodnight to him and spent a bit of time with Rumi. That way, by morning, Baby was less anxious at the idea that he was away from Jinu for the night.
Two weeks prior to today, his feelings were different.
Baby remembered how lonely he felt over the fact Jinu wasn’t here. Playing with his hyungs felt more like a chore and he barely ate. He truly missed Jinu that badly. Due to this, the night was sleepless and full of tears. Not even laying in Jinu's bed and cuddling up to Derpy helped.
When Jinu returned on Sunday morning, he got an earful of just how bad Baby felt about this. Romance easily had the most to say. Being the diva he was, you knew he would be a sobbing mess over how terribly he felt for Baby.
Knowing how the maknae got, emotionally, Jinu knew he had to fix this.
“Anytime we have to part, we will say the ‘bye bye ritual’ first.”, Jinu said two weeks prior.
“The bye bye ritual?”, Baby repeated in a rather confused but curious tone.
The bye bye ritual, made up by Jinu, consisted of Baby and him mirroring each other as they waved. Straight after, they locked hands. A little poem goes along with them marching in place and moving their arms up and down to the beat of their marching.
Bye bye! Bye bye!
I will see you sometime soon!
Bye bye! Bye bye!
I will come right back for you!
Take my hand and hold it tight.
Love will keep us safe, alright?
Bye bye! Bye bye!
Soon enough we will say hiiiii!
When the two finished their poem, they gave each other a big hug. Even if Baby had only done this ritual with Jinu a few times, it always made him feel better. Not being able to do it this time made him feel awful.
Maybe he didn't need it though. The photoshoot was only going to be a few hours, right? Just a few hours. A few hours… away from Jinu. At least Baby could text him.
The maknae decided now was the time to reach into his backpack and pull out a few things for comfort. He froze when he remembered something.
“Oh no!”, he thought, his heart skipping a beat.
Normally, Baby would make it obvious that he left Nuki at home. Knowing Kyo-moon, he would just get mad and tell Baby to get over it. After all, he often looked disgusted when Baby carried that toy around.
Being yelled at was the last thing Baby wanted. So he sat quietly and quivered his lip.
Back at the apartment, Jinu practically raced down the stairs and out the door. He heavily panted, almost falling over.
“There you are, Jinu Winu! What took you?”, Romance greeted.
“Don't call me Jinu Winu.”, Jinu replied, catching his breath. “Baby? I packed some things for you incase you get over-”
Looking around, Jinu noticed Baby wasn't anywhere. This made him a bit confused.
“Kyo-moon and Baby already left.”, Mystery stated.
“What? I thought we agreed we were all going along for the ride and staying with him for support!”, Jinu cried.
The others looked a bit annoyed.
“Well?”
“Kyo-moon told us we couldn't come because this was only for Baby.”, Mystery added.
“How rude! Baby should be allowed to decide if he wants us here!”, Romance spat.
Despite agreeing, Jinu was upset for a different reason.
“I have his backpack full of his sensory items. You know? Nuki, Blanky-hyung, his headphones? I know he doesn't always need them but I always make sure the backpack comes with us just in case he gets upset.”, the main demon pointed out, looking worried.
“Well you can thank Full Moon for that.”, Abby replied, giving their manager a rude nickname.
Suddenly, Jinu looked furious.
“I cannot stand that guy!”, he shouted, gripping the backpack.
“Okay, Jinu, honey. Maybe now is a good time for a cup of tea.”, Romance suggested, guiding Jinu back into the apartment.
“But Baby might need us!”, Jinu cried.
“Baby is familiar with the producers and crew. They'll make him feel safe.”, Abby stated. “Try not to worry so much.”
Despite this, Jinu had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.
————————————————————————
After a long ride to the studio, Kyo-moon managed to park in a VIP spot and make his way out of the car. Baby, still upset, didn't want to move.
That wasn't really an option. In seconds, several people came outside to assist the maknae.
“There he is!”, a woman chirped, opening the car door for Baby.
“Mr Saja! Ready for your photoshoot?”, a man asked, his hands already full of makeup products.
“Oh he's adorable even without makeup!”, another man cooed.
Like when he was around fans, Baby tried to say as little as possible. It made the “cute maknae” gimmick more believable. There were instances where he got loud if he was upset. Right now though, he felt a little better. He always looked forward to seeing his tailors and cosmetic assistants.
“Are you hungry, Baby? There's lots of snacks laid out!”, a male employee offered.
“What about water? Need some water?”, a female employee asked, holding up a water bottle.
As everyone fussed over Baby, Kyo-moon found himself getting a bit annoyed. He wanted things to be done right away.
“I'm spying a ton of cowlicks!”, the manager spat, pulling Baby's newsboy cap off of his head.
Baby let out a sad little whimper when his hat was taken away. He liked wearing it, after all.
What made the situation worse was when Kyo-moon roughly tugged at his hair.
“Ow!”, the maknae cried.
“Come on, people! His hair is a mess! He has to look perfect if he is worthy enough to make the front cover! I want to see him freshly groomed! No cowlicks, tangles, blemishes, or nothing! He must be perfect!”, Kyo-Moon commanded, shoving Baby forward. “Make yourself pretty, kid.”
As he was escorted away, Baby felt a wave of relief to be away from Kyo-moon. That man was foul.
As of now, he was led to his dressing room. First things first, hair and makeup. While this was repetitive, Baby enjoyed it quite a bit. He got to watch movies while this happened.
Of course, the way his hair and makeup looked didn't matter too much. It was all about the clothes.
“Have a seat, Mr Saja.”, a cosmetics professional commanded.
Doing as told, Baby gladly took a seat in a chair and reached for the tv remote. He almost immediately started scrolling through streaming services to find a good movie to keep on in the background.
“Such a handsome man, even before makeup.”
Baby smiled, not saying a word. He had his eyes glued on Disney Plus.
It was the same as any photoshoot with his hyungs. Makeup was applied, hair was styled, and clothes were laid out. It almost reminded Baby of when he had to get ready for school, without the burden of going to school.
For the next forty minutes, Baby had his makeup done and his hair styled. Technically, it looked the same as it usually did. Yet this morning's bedhead left a lot of tangles.
“Beautiful! Cute as a button!”, the cosmetologist complimented.
Admiring the compliments, Baby smiled and covered his eyes.
“Ah ah! You'll smear the mascara!”, the cosmetics professional stated.
“Sorry…”, Baby said with a shy smile.
Without another word of worry, the cosmetics professional squealed and clapped their hands. They adored how cute Baby looked now. This person was quite a bit like Romance. The cosmetologist was just as giddy.
“Well, your clothes should be dropped off any moment now. Best we give you privacy to get dressed. Best of luck with your photoshoot, honey!”, the cosmetics professional chimed, patting Baby's back.
“Do your very best!”, the cosmetologist said with pride.
“Thank you…”, Baby replied, turning his attention back to the tv and just barely paying attention to what the employees had said.
The cosmetics professional shut the door behind them, leaving Baby alone in his room. Happily, he continued to watch the movie he chose for today; Finding Nemo.
He got so engaged that he nearly forgot about having to get dressed. So when the door to his dressing room opened, he let out a gasp.
As expected, Kyo-moon barged in without knocking.
“Leave the outfit there! Nice and neat! I don't want to see a single crease or wrinkle on him, got it?”, the manager commanded.
“Of course!”, the tailor declared.
“Wait… This shirt looks too pink. Got any other colors for him to try on?”, Kyo-moon asked.
“Well, there's maroon and green-”
“Green! Get him a shirt in green! NOW!”, the manager shouted.
Anxiously, the tailor rushed off. This left Baby alone with the man he somewhat feared. To comfort himself, he turned his attention back to the tv.
“Alright B-man. Start getting dressed.”
“Uh huh…”, Baby muttered, staring at the tv.
Realizing the maknae was distracted, Kyo-moon scoffed. He then snatched the remote and immediately turned the tv off.
“Hey!”
“No time for tv! You have a career to focus on!”, Kyo-moon declared, standing Baby up and unbuttoning his jeans.
“Ah! I can do that myself!”, Baby cried.
“Do not raise your voice at me! Without me, you'd have no one to assist you!”, Kyo-moon spat, pulling Baby's sweat pants down and tossing them aside.
The tailor quickly returned, laying out a green shirt for Baby to wear. Out of respect, they looked away from the young idol while he was stripped to his underwear.
“Perfect! Now give the kid some privacy!”
“Kyo-moon?”, Baby called out.
“Less talky! More dressy!”, Kyo-moon commanded, pulling a makeup shield over Baby's head so the makeup wouldn't smear as he put his shirt on. “I'll be back in ten! Be ready! Got it?”
Baby sighed, bowing for the older gentleman.
“Good. That's my boy.”
Like the previous employees, Kyo-moon left the dressing room. The moment the door was shut, Baby pulled on his ears and blew a raspberry. He followed this by flipping off the door. He truly was sick of this guy.
Oh well. On the plus side, Baby was alone now. He had time to get dressed without anyone fussing over him.
“Let's see what we've got here…”, Baby said to himself as he glanced at the clothing that was laid out for him.
The outfit was a casual summer fit. No surprise there as summer was just around the corner. Baby looked forward to all of the fun things he and his hyungs were going to do. Going to the beach sounded like the most fun of all. Of course, other than photoshoots, Jinu was hesitant to actually go there for a fun outing. He often worried about crowds being too overwhelming. Then there was another thing; Baby couldn't swim.
“I can learn, Jinu. I'll swim to America!”
Confident, Baby picked up the white jeans he was given.
His hand tingled the moment he felt the odd texture against it. Almost immediately, he dropped the jeans onto the floor and anxiously brushed his hands against his bare legs.
“Oh man… Why are they so scratchy?”
If Nuki were here, he'd be giving Baby a pep talk.
“Come on, Babe! They're just a little itchy! Swallow your pride!”, he'd chirp.
Agreeing with his imaginary friend, Baby picked the pants up from the floor. Like before, his hands tingled and he found himself gasping. The pants soon hit the floor again.
“Yuck!”
One would think “yuck” was an odd reaction to a scratchy pair of pants.
To explain it in a way that made sense, Baby felt icky when he didn't like how certain materials felt against his skin. It brought him back to his childhood.
Often, he wore hand me downs from other kids in his foster home. Most of the clothes were a bit too big on him. He didn't seen to mind that. Actually, he preferred the feel of his skin being able to breathe.
His favorite thing to wear was a sweater that once belonged to an older boy who was adopted two years before he came along. That sweater made him feel safe.
When it came to now, Baby still relied on big sweaters for comfort. They made him feel happy.
These pants, on the other hand, did not make him feel happy. He dreaded the idea of wearing them.
“Quit being such a fucking wuss and put the damn pants on! If you refuse to wear them, you won't be able to do the photoshoot!”, Baby said to himself in his head.
The pants on the floor almost looked threatening to the maknae. Being innocent in appearance, the material was good at hiding just how awful it truly was.
Kyo-moon would be back soon. Baby had to get dressed or he'd be mad. This was so hard, though. Why was it so hard?
“They're just pants!”, Baby spat, grabbing onto the jeans and forcing himself to put them on.
The moment he slipped his legs inside, the maknae found himself growing even more uncomfortable than he was from just touching said material.
The horrid fabric scratched against Baby's legs. It almost felt like millions of little pins poking and scraping over and over again.
This was awful. No way this could work without Baby feeling like he was going to cry.
“Man up… Man up… Man up…”
The remainder of the outfit was still waiting to be worn. A green t-shirt, a thin lavender flannel, and baby blue platform shoes. Such an outfit was beautiful. Maybe if Baby put the rest of it on, it would distract him from the awful pants.
As careful as he could, the shirt slipped over his shoulders. He was grateful for the makeup shield protecting his face, even if he hated wearing it.
“Ohhh…”
The maknae found himself even more uncomfortable than before. This shirt was not only too tight, but it had a tag on the back that was making his neck itch. While not as bad as the jeans, it was still offputting to wear.
Things didn’t get any better when he put on the shoes and the flannel. Said flannel had a rough texture that may have been even worse than the jeans. As for the shoes, they pinched his ankles. What was the tailor thinking? This wasn't his style at all! Did Jinu remind them about how certain clothing textures were too much for the maknae?
“Ahh! Mmmgh!”
Baby scratched all over, growing anxious and upset at how awful these clothes felt.
“B-man! How's it going in there?”, Kyo-moon called out from behind the door.
The maknae found himself unable to answer. He was that uncomfortable.
For any other Saja Boy, an uncomfortable outfit could simply be taken off and tossed away. Baby, however, found such a thing to be rather difficult.
“B-man! Did you hear me?”
“Aaaah!”, Baby whined, clumsily falling into his makeup chair and struggling to think. “Yuck… yuuuuuck!”
Growing impatient, Kyo-moon barged into Baby's dressing room. The maknae was startled, but he didn't say anything. He only sat in place, gripping the armrests of his chair, and heavily sweating.
“Good lord… What the hell is wrong with you? They want you ready to go and you haven't even buttoned your shirt yet!”, the manager scolded, walking up to Baby and immediately buttoning up his flannel shirt.
“Nooo!”, Baby cried.
“Huh?”, Kyo-moon uttered.
“I… I mean…”, Baby said with a frown.
“Nevermind! Just come with me!”, Kyo-moon commanded, pulling the makeup shield off of Baby's head.
Once that was done, the manager grabbed Baby's wrist and proceeded to drag him out the door. Baby, feeling even worse than before, clutched onto the edges of the doorway.
“What are you doing? You have photographers waiting for you!”
“I don't want to see them!”, Baby cried.
“Why not?”, Kyo-moon asked.
“I just don't want to!”, Baby whined, tearing up.
Being the impatient man he was, Kyo-moon started clenching his teeth and pulling harder. He grew more furious by the second as he tried to get Baby out the door. Despite his tiny build, the maknae proved to be rather strong.
“Let go!”, Kyo-moon commanded.
“YOU LET GO!”, Baby shouted.
“B-man, what the fuck is up with you? Why are you throwing a fit right now? You were perfectly fine before!”, Kyo-moon ranted.
Terrified at this point, Baby started to kick and swat. There was no way he was going to take photos in these awful clothes. They were itchy, scratchy, pinchy, and rough. Such an outfit made Baby feel as if he were being tortured. It didn't help that Kyo-moon buttoning up the flannel made him feel like he was choking.
“Jesus Christ… Can you maybe tell me why you're acting so obnoxious, right now?”
Instead of giving a direct response, Baby started tugging at the collar of his flannel shirt. Kyo-moon started getting the idea rather quickly.
“What? Your shirt’s bothering you?”
Baby nodded, his tears ruining his mascara.
“Figures…”
“I wanna talk to Jinu!”, Baby begged.
“There’s no time!”, Kyo-moon denied. “Now come on!”
“NO!”, Baby yelled.
“Excuse me?”, Kyo-moon spat, roughly shoving Baby back into the dressing room.
Baby ended up hitting the floor. He was both dizzy and sore from the impact. More importantly, he was in disbelief that Kyo-moon actually shoved him.
With wide eyes, he stared up at the older gentleman.
Quickly, Kyo-moon pulled his phone out, ready to yell at Jinu over Baby being a brat. Instead, he placed his phone onto the makeup table when he noticed the maknae sniffling.
“Care to explain why you're so upset?”
“I want Jinu!”, Baby begged.
“Is that why you're upset-”
“NO!”, Baby cried, grabbing at his hair and tugging on it a bit. “Uuuuugh!”
“B-man, I swear to god! How do you expect anyone to help you if you act like that? Use your words!”, Kyo-moon commanded, getting impatient.
When it came to being this overwhelmed, Baby found talking hard. Sometimes he'd go silent, other times he'd start shouting. At this point, he felt as if his brain had burst and turned into mush.
This wasn't getting him anywhere, obviously. Kyo-moon was staring at him. He looked just the least bit concerned, though. So maybe he wouldn't be so upset if he was given the truth.
Baby took a deep breath and tried to gather his thoughts. It took a moment, but he did feel a bit calmer.
“I… I can't wear these clothes.”, he admitted.
“Why not?”, Kyo-moon asked.
“Because...”, Baby muttered, feeling a bit ashamed of himself. “They hurt.”
The manager was silent. Did he take a moment to realize that Baby was unhappy?
“They hurt?”, the manager repeated. “You're trying to tell me that these clothes hurt?”
“Yes sir…”, Baby replied, still on the floor and barely moving.
As if he just heard the dumbest thing in his life, Kyo-moon smacked his hand against his own face and slowly pulled it down. Baby didn't like the look or sound of that.
“B-man… You have to be kidding me.”
“I'm not-”
“They are clothes! Clothes can’t hurt you!”, Kyo-moon interrupted, pulling Baby off of the floor and standing him up.
Baby let out a cry of discomfort as he felt the rough material of the jeans rubbing against his legs. He felt sick at the thought that he hadn't even taken them off yet.
“These are hurting you?”
Without a care in the world, Kyo-moon roughly rubbed his hand against one of the pant legs. Baby let out a cry.
“Oh come on! These pants are what you consider uncomfortable? This is expensive fabric! You're overreacting!”
“Stop rubbing! It huuuurts!”, Baby shouted. “It feels like needles!”
“It does not!”, Kyo-moon spat.
“I can't breathe in this shirt!”, Baby panicked. “It's choking me! I CAN'T BREATHE! I NEED AIR!”
“STOP IT!”, Kyo-moon yelled.
“FUCK YOU!”, Baby roared, pushing Kyo-moon away with all of his might. “FUCK YOU! FUCK YOU! FUCK YOU! GET OUT OF MY DRESSING ROOM! JUST GET THE FUCK OUT! I'M NOT DOING THIS STUPID ASS PHOTOSHOOT!”
“B-B-man… Calm down now!”, Kyo-moon begged, sounding just the littlest but frightened by Baby's temper.
“SUCK A DICK, CHOKE IT DOWN, AND SPEW CUM!”, Baby boomed, his hands clenched into fists and tears flooding his cheeks.
“B-man-”
“STOP CALLING ME THAT! GET OUUUUUUT!”, Baby yelled, picking up his makeup chair and throwing it.
Fearing for his life, Kyo-moon ditched the scene just before the chair hit the wall. The chair ended up cracking the door frame.
Straight after such an action was executed, Baby slammed the door to his dressing room and proceeded to cry.
He was beyond uncomfortable now. Not just from mental anger but physical pain. He wanted to be free from these awful clothes, yet he found himself unable to take them off. They were that overwhelming.
Feeling helpless, Baby fell onto his bottom and shoved himself into a corner of the room. He wasn't sure what to do now. All he could do was sit there and hate how his body felt.
As he sat in a corner, half his body pressed against where the walls meet, a ringing sound filled his ears. He knew what that sound was. He knew what it meant. He couldn't bring himself to make it stop. He was stuck.
The ringing looped, still trying to get his attention. Baby wasn't sure what to do. He felt too scared to move.
The ringing soon sounded like two different rings at the same time. It was overwhelming but nothing could be done.
————————————————————————
After his phone went to voice mail for the fifth time, Jinu found himself growing anxious.
“You sure are desperate. Does Rumi owe you a night in bed?”, Abby joked.
“Funny… I was calling Baby. But… He's not answering his phone.”, Jinu stated, dropping his phone onto the couch. “He's okay, right? He's okay without any of us there? Right? He doesn't need his backpack, right? Right, guys? Right? Right?”
“Relax, Hyung. He's probably so busy with photos that he doesn't even hear his phone.”, Abby sighed.
Jinu nodded his head. That made sense to the others. Almost all of the others. Romance couldn’t help being just as concerned. As for Jinu, he knew well if he called Baby that many times, someone would have been bound to pick up the phone and alert Baby that he had a call.
“Kyo-moon isn’t answering either.”, the love demon stated, looking worried. “He always has his face in his phone. No way he’s ignoring it.”
Jinu quivered his lip.
“I gotta pick up my car. Let me know when you get ahold of Baby, alright?”, Abby demanded.
Jinu nodded his head again.
“Can I come? Can I? Can I? Can I?”, Mystery begged, bouncing like a happy dog.
“Fiiine… Someone needs to keep you under control, anyway.”, Abby allowed, stepping out the door.
“Can we get ice cream?”, Mystery asked, looking hopeful.
Abby only rolled his eyes. Mystery was acting more childish than Baby.
When the two left, Jinu called Baby again. He was still left with nothing.
“Jinu, you look like you need some water. You're sweating bullets.”, Romance claimed, taking his damp shirts out of their laundry hamper and heading in and out of the balcony to hang them against the railing.
At this rate, the love demon was trying to get his mind off of things.
“I just feel like something bad has happened.”, Jinu gulped.
“Like what?”, Romance asked, handing Jinu his own hamper.
“Like… Baby got upset and he went to hide or something.”, Jinu uttered, grabbing his clothes and struggling to fold them. “R-Remember when he got upset at the fan signing and he ran off to a different part of the mall? I found him trying to wedge himself between the wall and a drink machine. He could have done that again!”
Many understood Jinu's concern for Baby. Romance, being the mom friend, understood it the most. However, he tried to be calm in this scenario.
“There's so many people there though. One is bound to contact us if Baby is upset.”, he assumed.
“But you said Kyo-moon isn’t answering either. That is bound to mean something!”, Jinu cried.
Not accepting this, he tossed his clothes aside and went to grab his house key. He also pulled Baby's backpack over his shoulders.
“Where are you going?”, Romance asked.
“To check on my baby.”, Jinu replied, whistling after.
Hearing the command, Derpy dashed in. He immediately trilled and nudged into his owner once he met eyes with him.
“No, we're not going for another walk, right now. I need you to take me to the studio. Baby needs us.”
Obeying his master, Derpy bowed. Without a delay, the main demon climbed onto his pet's back. Before he was able to leave, Romance rushed over.
“M-Maybe I should come too! Just in case you need my help!”, he offered.
Accepting this, Jinu scooted forward. The added weight made Derpy strain a bit.
“Hey! I'm not that heavy!”
Ignoring his brother, Jinu motioned for Derpy to start running. And just like that, the oversized feline did.
Back at the studio, a rather furious Kyo-moon tried to get someone to lure Baby out of his dressing room. Unfortunately, this went nowhere.
“Nothing.”, one of the stage managers said as he walked out of Baby's dressing room. “He won't even look at me. It's like he shut down or something.”
“Well keep trying! We only have until two this afternoon!”, Kyo-moon spat.
“Couldn't you try again? You are his manager.”, a camerawoman suggested.
Remembering the chair being launched at him, Kyo-moon bit his lip.
“I did all I could!”, the manager fibbed.
“Well then maybe one of the other Saja Boys should be contacted.”, a male employee suggested.
“No need. We're already here.”, a voice called out.
A few gasps were heard when Jinu and Romance seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. Derpy, who had just dropped them off, already teleported through the floor before he got a chance to be seen. In fairness, he had been spotted several times. Yet one would know he'd get excited by all of the attention and make a mess. So it was better that he dropped the two off where there wasn't a crowd.
“Jinu! Romance! H-Hello!”, Kyo-moon greeted, acting as if he were happy to see them.
“Why haven't you been answering your phone?”, Jinu asked.
Kyo-moon thought about the fact he left his phone in the dressing room. Following this, he blushed a bit, then turned away.
“Dead battery.”, he fibbed. “I have a very specific cord and was unable to charge it as no one had a spare.”
Jinu looked at Romance, who only shrugged.
“So… Where's Baby?”, the main demon added.
Trying not to get annoyed, the manager took a deep breath. This didn't help too much.
“Moon! Where is he?”
“Kyo-moon!”, Kyo-moon corrected.
“Whatever! Tell me where Baby is! Is he okay? Is he hurt? Did he have his photoshoot yet?”, Jinu rambled, grabbing onto the manager's shoulders and shaking him. “WHERE IS MY MAKNAE?”
At this rate, Romance was surprised by how much Jinu sounded like him. He couldn't help being proud.
“Jinu, he's fine. He's just being stubborn again.”, Kyo-moon lied.
“What do you mean ‘being stubborn’? I've given you instructions on what to do if he gets like that!”, Jinu spat.
“Well he was beyond repair!”, Kyo-moon cried.
Growing furious and upset at the same time, Jinu dashed off.
“Baby!”, he called out. “Baby! It's Jinu! Can you hear me?”
“Sweetie! Pumpkin sugar muffin pie!”, Romance followed.
“Baby Saja! Where are you?”, Jinu continued.
“Honey lemon berry cake! Pookie wookie tanuki boy! ANGEL WITH A GOLDEN HALO!”, Romance wailed, going from slightly worried to panicking.
“A bit of a delayed reaction there. I was worried we switched for a moment.”, Jinu added.
Romance sniffled, wiping his eyes.
“I promised my therapist I wouldn't get so dramatic.”, he admitted.
“Therapist? You don't mean the doctor with the weird eyes do you?”, Jinu asked.
Before he could answer, Romance spotted Baby's dressing room. The door was shut, implying someone was in there.
With a shrug, Jinu knocked on the door a few times.
“Baby? Are you okay?”
Still bunched up in a corner, Baby continued to stay motionless. All he released were soft breaths through his nose. His mind focused on nothing but the clothes on his body. He felt like a chunk of ice that was caught in a smoothie straw. Helpless, unable to move, and a burden. That was what he was now.
“Baby? Sweetie pie, it's Romance!”, Romance called out.
He could hear his hyungs. Despite this, he couldn't move. He was too deep into his head.
Despite the rule that Baby didn't want anyone teleporting into his dressing room without permission, Jinu knew he'd have to go against this. With a sigh, he focused. Romance, catching on, did the same.
The maknae knew this was a familiar feeling. The feeling of being stuck and scared. This happened before when he was little. This happened often, even.
“Get off of the floor! Come on!”, his foster mother would yell at him.
Baby, about twelve at the time, laid on his side and quivered his lip. He was forced to wear pants just like the ones he wore today. They were awful.
“Get up! You're going to be late for school!”
“Baby!”, Jinu cried.
The flashback left Baby's mind when Jinu appeared in front of him. He still didn't give eye contact or react.
“Baby! What happened?”
Romance looked at the chair by the door, noticing one of the legs were broken. Left behind was a scuff mark on the wall and a bit of cracked wood. Around the maknae was a mess.
“Buddy? If you can hear me, blink twice.”
Hearing Jinu clearly, Baby attempted this. They were slow blinks but they were enough to confirm that the maknae was still there.
“Thank Gwi-ma…”
Before he tended to Baby, Jinu noticed two cell phones on the makeup table. One belonged to Baby and the other belonged to Kyo-moon. Now it made sense why neither phone was being answered.
“My little hearty bowl of bibimbap!”, Romance wept, falling to his knees. “What happened here? Did someone make a mess of your room?”
“Ro, I think he made this mess.”, Jinu assumed, reaching his arms out and pulling Baby into them.
The moment he held the maknae in his lap, the main demon raised an eyebrow. Something wasn't right.
“Ugh…”
“What's wrong?”, Romance asked.
Jinu stroked his fingers against the material of Baby's jeans. This caused the maknae to wince.
“These jeans are so rough and scratchy.”, Jinu cringed. “Who would wear these?”
Baby suddenly burrowed his face into Jinu's shoulder.
“My! Look how tight this flannel is on you, pumpkin!”, Romance gasped, immediately unbuttoning the shirt and taking it off of Baby’s small body. “Ah! This shirt is tight too! Look at the marks it's leaving on his skin!”
“And these shoes aren't even Baby's size.”, Jinu pointed out, popping them off of the maknae's feet and gently rubbing them both for a moment. “Buddy? Are you okay? Do you want us to take the other clothes off too? We don't want to expose you if you aren't okay with it.”
To the relief of Jinu, Baby moved his eyes and looked at his hyung. All he did was blink twice.
“Okay. Understood.”
Romance and Jinu proceeded to strip Baby back to his underwear, freeing him from the uncomfortable clothing. They followed this by fetching his cosmetics clothing he wore on the way here and assisting him in putting them on.
Once that was done, Baby felt his body loosen. He wasn't as tense as he was before, now.
“There there. Romance and Jinu are here. You're safe.”, Romance cooed, stroking his fingers through his little brother's hair.
As the love demon comforted Baby, Jinu started getting furious again.
“I don't understand. How could Kyo-moon have approved this outfit? I told him about Baby's sensitivity to textures! I told him and several other managers to not allow us a photoshoot from them if the clothes are triggering for Baby!”, the main demon hissed. “God, I'm such a dumbass! I should have never allowed that asshole to manage us again!”
“Jinu, it's okay. You had a moment of desperation and went with all we had. It was for the sake of-”
Romance cut himself short when he noticed a red mark on Baby's wrist. Such a blemish went all around it, almost as if someone was holding Baby too tight.
“Honey drops? What happened there?”
Still feeling too stressed to talk, Baby only sniffled and held himself. That was enough for Jinu to spring into action.
“Romance? Stay with Baby and make sure no one comes in or bothers him. I'll be having a talk with Kyo-moon…”
Respecting these wishes, Romance took Baby into his arms and gave him a hug. This was followed by Jinu gathering the awful clothes and Kyo-moon’s phone. He then stormed out of the dressing room, feeling a deep rage.
For a moment, Baby looked over at the door. He reached his arms out as he watched Jinu leave. He wanted his mama to stay.
“It's okay, Baby. Everything is going to be okay.”, the love demon hushed, rocking the maknae.
As the main demon made his way through the studio, many people around him cheered and whistled. As much as he adored his fans, Jinu had no time for them. He knew what was important, right now.
“Kyo-moon!”, he called out, his voice sharp.
The lousy manager revealed himself from a group of employees. He almost looked annoyed that Jinu was back to complain.
“What's wrong now, Jinu?”, he asked, looking exhausted.
Out of fury, Jinu tossed the clothes to the floor and roughly stamped his foot into the pile.
“Jinu! These clothes are very expensive! And why isn't Baby wearing them anymore?”
“I think you know why.”, Jinu replied, his tone low and angry as he handed the phone over.
Kyo-moon anxiously smiled, accepting the phone and chuckling. This was followed by Jinu clenching his fists.
“I told you early on that any deals we are offered must be double checked for one specific reason.”
“Which is?”, Kyo-moon asked, looking lost.
Jinu gritted his teeth.
“I don't see why you're so upset. Baby was the one who decided to be a spoiled brat and throw a huge fit over an outfit.”
That answered everything.
“You fucking idiot!”, Jinu shouted.
“Excuse me?”, Kyo-moon gasped.
“YOU KNOW BABY IS SENSITIVE TO TEXTURES! YOU KNOW HE CAN'T HANDLE BEING PUT UNDER PRESSURE! HE TOLD YOU THIS HIMSELF!”, Jinu yelled, shoving the manager away.
“He was overreacting!”, Kyo-moon said in his own defense.
“He's autistic!”, Jinu shouted.
“So?”, Kyo-moon replied, sounding careless.
Such a response made Jinu even more upset.
“SO? He talked to you about this! He took the time to make it clear that he needs things a certain way!”, he stated, tearing up. “It took Baby a lot of courage to tell us this. It took even more for him to tell you. As, at the time, you were a stranger who likely wouldn't understand or care about the reason why he feels a little different than others. Of course, it appears that you still are that cruel stranger.”
Still not getting it, the manager let out a sigh and turned away.
“So we're not doing the photoshoot then? We paid a lot for this, you know.”, he stated.
At this rate, Jinu was ready to explode. Instead, he took a deep breath and wiped his eyes.
“Money can be made back. But there's only one Baby Saja.”, he replied. “Any damage to him cannot be emotionally repaired overnight. So tell me, sir. Do you happen to know why Baby had a mark on his wrist?”
“A mark?”, Kyo-moon repeated.
“Like a bruise left behind on your skin when someone grabs onto you a bit too tight?”, Jinu explained, looking curious.
It took a minute for Kyo-moon to realize what he must have done while attempting to drag Baby out of the dressing room.
“Jinu! It was his own fault! He kept squirming and got rough with me!”, the manager insisted.
While he didn't accept this, Jinu only nodded his head.
“Okay…”, he replied. “You can go home now.”
“Home?”, Kyo-moon said in confusion. “What about the pho-“
“I won't be needing you anymore today. Or ever really…”, Jinu insisted, walking off. “Photoshoot is canceled.”
Not accepting this, the manager started to chase after Jinu.
“Jinu! You can't do this!”, he cried.
“I can.”, Jinu insisted.
“You'll just come crawling back to me! I'm not stupid! You've hired me back before!”, Kyo-moon spat, his veins popping out of the sides of his head. “Think of all the money I’m- we’re losing!”
Jinu didn't respond. He only continued to walk away.
“I've managed several boy groups! You're expandable!”
“To my knowledge, you haven’t had work in months.”, Jinu said casually, disappearing down the hallway. “Goodbye.”
For a moment, Kyo-moon glanced at the forbidden outfit on the floor. He couldn't help scowling as he did so. In his mind, this outfit was to blame.
Roughly, he kicked it away and stormed over to the exit. He only wondered how long it would be until Jinu called for him again. If that were to happen, that is.
As of now, Baby was sitting beside Romance. He happily gave Nuki a few pets on his furry head, humming as he did so. Romance smiled as he watched over the maknae.
“How are you feeling, my love?”, he asked, his tone gentle.
Instead of speaking, Baby gave a bright smile.
“Aww… Sweetie.”
With a soft creak, the door to the dressing room opened. Jinu made his way in.
“Let's get you home, buddy.”, he commanded.
“Good idea.”, Romance agreed, getting up off of the floor. “You didn't beat Moonie up, did you?”
Jinu smiled, squatting in front of Baby and petting his hair. Amused, Baby dropped Nuki and reached out for his hyung. This granted Jinu permission to pick Baby up and give him a strong hug.
“I gave him an earful. Probably not enough to keep him away but he won't be managing again. Not unless he improves himself.”, Jinu replied, rubbing Baby's back. “Can you grab Baby's things?”
Baby watched as Romance packed his backpack again. He was so happy to have been taken out of that stressful situation. Still, he couldn't help being just the littlest bit embarrassed.
“As much as I dislike having to ask Bobby for assistance, he does go above and beyond to make sure everyone is comfortable.”
“Oh, Jinu. He always offers help though.”, Romance claimed.
“Yeah but he's so busy with Huntrix. He shouldn't have to fuss over us too.”, Jinu sighed.
“That is true. I still appreciate how much he tries, though. Remember when he got us matching hats and scarves? He made sure the material was exactly what Baby approved of. Isn’t that right, pudding?”, Romance declared.
Exhausted from the chaos, Baby had managed to fall asleep. He was safe. Therefore, he was relaxed enough to close his eyes.
Romance and Jinu let out the softest but most emotional “awws” they had ever released.
————————————————————————
Of all the times Jinu returned to his crowded apartment, today felt the most welcoming of all. Baby, who was still asleep, was being dressed by his older hyungs; Jinu and Romance. The two made it clear to themselves that they wouldn't settle down until they were positive that Baby was comfortable.
Derpy, who brought the three home, sat in front of the group. His back faced them, using this as a way to guard the others. Like the good kitty he was, he could tell whenever someone was upset. The upset feelings from his fellow demons naturally flowed through his body and absorbed into his heart. He used this as an opportunity to turn these bad feelings into good ones.
A protective instinct devoured his soul, allowing him to insist everyone can feel safe around him. Then, when he felt confident enough, he would follow that with loud purrs and head-butts. The loyal tiger wouldn't dare leave any Saja Boy in distress. They were his family and family meant everything to him.
“There you go, Baby boo boo boo! All nice and snuggly wuggly in your favorite sweater!”, Romance cooed, holding Baby in his lap and snuggling him like you would with a teddy bear.
Baby, who was once asleep, found himself sleepily grunting as he was fussed over. He loved Romance, but he could be too much.
Despite the cute sight being a joy for Jinu, he still felt bad about what happened today.
“I wish I came sooner. It was stupid of me to think he would be okay with that douchebag.”, he groaned.
Baby reached out and placed his hand on Jinu's shoulder. The main demon was surprised to say the least.
“I thought you were asleep.”
“Ro woke me up…”, Baby replied, rubbing his sleepy eyes. “Um… What happened?”
“We took you home and dressed you in some comfy clothes.”, Romance stated.
Baby rolled his eyes.
“I mean, what happened at the studio?”, he asked.
Understanding the question, Jinu and Romance gave their maknae some cuddles.
“I had a moment with Kyo-moon. Basically gave him an earful for treating you like shit and hurting you.”, Jinu explained.
Baby lifted his left wrist up, noticing the red mark left from his manager's grip. There were still marks on his body from the stitching seams on the tight shirt.
“Poor thing…”, Romance sighed. “Kyo-moon was lucky Mystery or Abby weren't there. They would have torn him a new one!”
The thought of that made Baby giggle. If anything, he pictured a Popeye-style fight. Abby punching their manager to the stars and Mystery dragging him around like a dog toy. It was too funny.
Suddenly, the maknae burst into a fit of giggles, catching the others off guard. They were happy that Baby was okay. Although, they were also confused why he seemed to be punching the air and making snarling noises after.
Jinu and Romance looked at each other, then shrugged.
“Aren't you a darling?”, Romance cooed. “Are you okay now? Do you need anything else?”
Baby thought about this for a moment. He then smiled.
“Milk!”, he commanded. “I'm gonna drink a whole carton and get big muscles! Then I'll pound Kyo-moon into dust!”
“Oh Baby…”, Jinu chuckled.
“I mean it, Hyung! He's bad!”, Baby cried, suddenly rubbing his wrist. “Really bad…”
For a moment, Jinu thought about sucking Kyo-moon's soul right out of his body. He couldn't. At this rate, Jinu realized stealing souls was too easy of a punishment. Jailtime, isolation, and karma was better.
“Buddy? Can I take a picture of your wrist, real quick?”, he asked.
“Why?”, Baby said in confusion.
“I just need it for something important.”, Jinu stated. “Important for your safety.”
With a shrug, Baby held his wrist out and allowed his hyung to snap a picture on his phone. Soon after, Jinu got to work.
“We’ll see how much you like messing with my precious maknae, you worthless piece of trash.”
Whatever Jinu had just said sounded like mumbling to the others. It was a bit odd.
Suddenly, scratching could be heard on the door. Overlapping the scratching was a familiar voice.
“Mystery, get out of the way! I need to unlock the door!”, Abby commanded, his voice a bit muffled from the walls containing it.
Straight after this command, the door opened and Mystery came rushing in.
“HOME!”, he shouted, running around the living room for a moment.
Once he was out of breath, he flopped onto his tummy and started panting. His tongue hung out of his mouth as he did so.
“Hey, Abs! You got your car back?”, Romance greeted.
“Sure did! The new tires are great!”, Abby replied, holding out a flat box. “Better yet! We got pizza!”
“Pizza? Abby, it’s not even noon yet! And you told me your cheat day wasn’t until next month!”, Romance scolded.
“Oh I’m sorry. Are you saying you don’t want any?”, Abby teased, ignoring the cheat day comment.
Excited by the word “pizza”, Baby leapt off of the couch and ran over to Abby.
“Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!”, he begged.
“Hey now. Take a seat at the table first!”, Abby laughed, patting Baby's head. “You're chipper. Did the photoshoot go well?”
Baby stopped reaching for the pizza box, immediately frowning. Abby couldn’t help mirroring this when he noticed how upset the maknae looked.
“Oh, Baby…”
“I'm sorry. I had a meltdown over the clothes being uncomfortable and everything was canceled.”, Baby admitted, feeling bad for being so sensitive.
Instead of being disappointed or even the least bit mad, Abby placed the pizza box onto the coffee table and placed his hands on Baby's shoulders.
“What was wrong with the clothes?”, the muscle demon asked.
“Pants were scratchy, shirt was too tight, flannel was chokey, and the shoes were pinchy.”, Baby explained, showing the marks on his neck.
Abby scowled.
“And the moon man just let this slide? I thought we told him we had to approve the outfits before attempting to model them?”, he spat.
“Knowing Kyo-moon, he rushed everything just so he'd make money. He's such a dick…”, Romance scoffed.
“I'll say! He's so selfish he makes Mr Krabs look generous!”, Mystery stated, popping up from behind the couch.
Romance wasn't sure whether to question who Mr Krabs was or how the shaggy demon got behind the couch so fast. Not like it mattered. It still left him puzzled.
“Are you at least okay, kid?”, Abby hoped.
“I think so. I had time to calm down with Romance and I'm in my comfy clothes. No more bad feelings.”, Baby reassured, eyeing the pizza that was waiting to be eaten.
“Are you sure? You can take a break for as long as you need.”, Abby declared.
Baby smiled, reaching his hand out for the pizza box’s flap. Drool trickled down his chin.
“Yeah, he should be fine.”, Jinu insisted, breaking his silence.
The main demon had a cheeky smile on his face, almost looking like he just did something severe.
Catching on, the others, minus Baby, looked a bit confused. What was Jinu up to? Before anyone could ask, Romance let out a gasp.
Baby's face and sweater was covered in sauce. Clearly, he got impatient and wanted his pizza fix.
Amused, Mystery walked up to Baby and started to lick the sauce off of his cheek.
“Mystery!”, Romance cried, Abby bursting into laughter.
Despite the former anxieties, it warmed Jinu's heart to see his family so happy. Of course, he knew he was about to be a lot happier. All he needed was a little bit of help.
“Say, guys? Want to help me with something funny?”, he asked. “It’s very important!”
————————————————————————
After returning to his studio apartment, Kyo-moon tossed his briefcase aside and lazily flopped onto the couch. He was ready to scroll Netflix and drink off his anger. However, he paused when he noticed his phone had texts he hadn't read.
He was almost hopeful that maybe he had unknown management offers. Ever so eager, he opened the messages.
All of the texts had come from a group chat between the Saja Boys and Kyo-moon.
The messages were in order from oldest to youngest Saja Boy.
Jinu: You're about to regret what you did to our baby.
Abby: Such an action could throw you in jail.
Mystery: Be grateful we aren't reporting you… yet.
Romance: There’s still so much to do.
Baby: So, remember, Kyo-moon.
The bottom of the messages showed a picture of the Saja Boys standing together, all having glowing gold eyes and big fangs on display. Underneath, a text from Baby read in all caps…
WE ARE ALWAYS WATCHING YOU!
Startled, Kyo-moon dropped his phone. He couldn’t believe he was just exposed to something so hideous. Fortunately, he wasn’t very smart.
“S-Stupid kids and their special effects makeup…”, he grumbled to himself. “They’ll still come crawling back to me.”
Suddenly, another text came in. This one was of Baby’s sore wrist.
Jinu: Don’t think I forgot about this. Next time you try to pull a fast one, think about what you did and how lucky you are that we didn’t report you. If it weren’t for us covering your ass, you would be over. Not like you aren’t already though.
Growing nervous, Kyo-moon grabbed one of his couch pillows and hugged it tight.
The Saja Boys, devouring pizza and full of smiles, waited patiently for their manager to respond. To their joy, he did after a good ten minutes.
Their phones all dinged, urging them to check what the jerk had to say.
Kyo-moon: You think I’m scared of you?
Amused, the group burst into laughter. Baby then sent a text.
Baby: Very!
At this rate, Kyo-moon was grinding his teeth.
Kyo-moon: Grow the hell up! 😤
The lazy response only made the five laugh more. This was even more fun than pranking Huntrix.
“Let's scare him again!”, Baby begged.
The rest of the morning consisted of the quintet of demons teasing their manager. And when they were tired from that, they took the time to relax.
Soon enough, Baby was wedged between Romance and Jinu, enjoying the tender moment he shared with them.
When it came to getting upset, he always knew they'd be there to make things better. He couldn’t ask for anything more.