@☭ Xiao Zhan Yibo made a face at Zhan when he was scolded. After many years of hiding their relationship and enduring public scrutiny, groping his mate in public was his hard-earned right! As an alpha, Yuning seemed to realize what his potential was, and he spent a few moments looking at his own chubby little arms before getting distracted by the start of the dolphin show. Yibo snickered at Dejun's adorable mis-pronunciation, and he corrected the younger, "Dolphins, Junjun, say it properly. Also, you have to listen to the trainers! They're introducing them...ahh, the bigger one on the right is named Haicao and the smaller one on the left is named Dalang!" He pointed to them as he spoke, though his eyes were on his pups. He thought it was absolutely adorable that their little mouths were agape in awe, especially when the two dolphins began flipping about in the large body of water.
@☭ Wang Yibo "Mama," Zhan said in a warning tone, not wanting his children to pick up on his mate's habits. Of course, he was extremely grateful Yibo was still so attracted to him, so he didn't say anything else after, letting Yuning his arm like he was touching Jian Guo. "Alright, you two, settle down. The show is starting." He kept Dejun on his lap, keeping him slightly lifted so he could see above the head of the woman in front of them. "Dolpeens," Dejun clapped clumsily. "Mama, what are the dolpeens names?"
@☭ Xiao Zhan When they went out, Dejun was Zhan's responsibility and Yuning was Yibo's. So, the omega didn't bat an eye as his younger pup clambered all over his mate. Yibo didn't believe in the type of parenting that just handed over a phone to quiet the kid down either, hence Yuning didn't need any further stimulation to be on his best behavior. "Junjun, if you can't calm down, that probably means you can't have any sweets after the show," Yibo reminded his youngest. Only when Dejun decided to calm down did Yibo glance over, which of course exposed him to Zhan's muscular biceps and forearms. "Yuning look," he said, reaching out to Zhan's arms shamelessly, "Baba is so big. Isn't that so cool?"
@☭ Wang Yibo While they waited for the show to start, Dejun could barely sit still. He climbed all over his mother, then his brother, then Zhan, who finally held him down in his lap. "Junjun's had too much sugar already," Zhan reported to Yibo, as if it wasn't obvious enough. He struggled to hold his pup who, although small, was extremely strong for a four year old. Zhan secured his arms around Dejun's waist, and his shirt sleeves tightened around his biceps. "Junjun, look at your ge. Look how well behaved he is."
@☭ Xiao Zhan Dejun was excited for anything his father suggested, so it was no surprised when he exclaimed excitedly in agreement to watch the dolphin show. Being the fair parent that he was, Yibo had to get Yuning's opinion too, "What do you think Ah Ning? Wanna see dolphins?" Yuning beamed and gripped Yibo's hand tightly, skipping along happily while chanting, "Dolphins! Dolphins! Dolphins!" The dolphin show was on the other side of the park, since it was where the animals were housed. When they arrived, there was already a line of people at the entrance, waiting for entry. With the Fast Passes on their wrist, Yibo managed to lead them in earlier to choose seats close enough to see the dolphins, but far enough so they wouldn't splashed with the salt water.
"Baba's here!" Zhan cheered, welcoming his younger son with open arms. He was in much higher spirits now that he had a chance to recover, kissing Dejun over his cheek when the pup was deposited into his arms. "Was it fun, baobei?" He continued to hold on to Yibo's bag, handing his mate a map instead. "There's a scheduled show. It's indoors, so there's air conditioning. Want to watch it?" To Dejun, he kissed his face again, speaking in the usual baby talk to his pup even though he was already four years old. "Junjun want to watch some dolphins jumping around?"
@☭ Xiao Zhan With the fast passes on their wrists, they breezed through the line so that they only had to wait one cycle before it was their turn. Yibo loaded his pups in their seats before he strapped himself in as well. Usually Dejun would sit next to Zhan, but as Yibo instructed, he was securely settled between himself and Yuning. "Here we go!" Yibo cheered, hyping his pups up as the ride began to revolve.
When they got off the ride, Dejun was walking unsteadily, so Yibo bent down to pick him up with one arm, and held Yuning's hand on his other side. "Woo! Let's go find baba," he told his older pup, gesturing for him to lead the way. Yuning looked around the exit area, then pointed in excitement when he saw Zhan, "Baba's right there!" Dejun giggled as he was brought over, to which Yibo transferred him over to Zhan, "Alright, let's continue on! Where next?"
@☭ Wang Yibo Zhan smiled gratefully at Yibo. As the years passed, Yibo seemed to only get better at taking care of Zhan. "I'll watch for you where the drop is," Zhan reassured his young pup, prying Dejun's hand off his pants and forcing it into Yuning's hand instead. "And Baba will be waiting for you at the exit. Then we can go ride something else together, okay?" As much as Zhan just wanted to spend the rest of the day walking about leisurely, he couldn't bear the thought of turning Dejun down when he wanted to play with Zhan so much. One day, Dejun would grow up and realize he was too cool for his parents, and Zhan wouldn't have the opportunity again.
@☭ Xiao Zhan Dejun could not believe his little ears. His baba was trying to make him sit out of something fun? He whipped around and pouted, his thick eyebrows furrowing together as he shouted, "No I can do it baba! Junjun is not scared! Junjun is brave!" He grabbed Zhan's hand, pulling even more intensely to get to the ride. "Junjun wants to ride with Baba and Mama and Gege!"
Yibo knew that this was just another excuse for Zhan to stay back and watch a pup, but seeing that The Hurricane was a bit more intense than the other ones, he didn't feel good forcing his mate to go on this one so early in the day. "I think we're not allowed to bring our bags onto this ride," Yibo said, thinking of another excuse on the spot (truly, he could be an actor if he just had the looks for it), "So Baba is going to hold our things and Mama is going to take you both. Ah Ning, take your brother's hand so we can be put together. Junjun is the smallest, so he needs to be between us." Yibo looked back at Zhan, a knowing grin on his face as he mouthed the words, 'You're welcome.'
@☭ Wang Yibo At least no matter how much Yibo teased, he still looked out for Zhan. They ordered their drinks (Zhan figured his pups would sweat out all the sugar, anyway) before Zhan led them to the Fast Pass outlet. Each pup had an unsightly orange paper band wound around their tiny wrists, while Zhan watched with a hawk's eyes to make sure they weren't going on too tightly. Once they were put on, and Yuning was leading them to The Hurricane again, Zhan truly wondered if he was going to be able to last all day. "What's this ride?" he asked, to no one in particular. "Sounds scary. I think Junjun should sit this one out."
@☭ Xiao Zhan While their father was already wishing for a break, Yuning and Dejun had just started tapping into their adrenaline high. They shook their heads, refusing the juice and instead pointing straight to the next ride they wanted to go on: The Hurricane. "Baba!" Yuning even reminded Zhan, "The Fast Passes!" Despite being only six, Yuning had quite the memory, and he was often keeping track of things on his and his brother's behalf for their parents. Yibo was amused, but he had to step in when he saw how pale Zhan's face was. "Well, Mama wants a drink," he told Yuning, "So let's go get something to drink, and Baba can get the passes for us as we wait, sounds good?" He looked at Zhan, offering a small comforting look.
@☭ Wang Yibo The way Dejun was screaming at the top of his little lungs for the latter half of the ride and then immediately shut up as soon as the ride was over was wildly amusing to Zhan. He would've laughed if not for the bubbling nausea in his stomach and throat, threatening to immediately spew everything he'd eaten for breakfast out over the kids in the row in front of him. Taking Dejun's hand, Zhan let him walk in front as they made their way out of the ride. The sunlight was blinding after being trapped in what felt like a blender for so long. "Ah Ning, Junjun," he said weakly, "Aren't you tired yet? Want to get a juice?"
@☭ Xiao Zhan Yuning seemed to be quite afraid at the thought of being eaten by a shark, and so he pushed himself back into the backrest of his seat, gasping along with all the six year olds in the room who were just as scared. Yibo reached over to give his son a comforting hug, and then continued on with little gasps of his own as the seats began to shake and they felt little puffs of wind in their face as the submarine sputtered to get away. They traversed through an abandoned wrecked ship and began to scale upwards in the water where they saw some fish hurriedly swimming to escape the predator too. Dejun was taken by surprise by the shaking, so he clung to his father's hand as he screamed at the top of his lungs, only stopping to take a deep breath when they finally reached safety.
@☭ Wang Yibo "Okay, I'm putting them on," Zhan said. He, of course, should've known better than to think he could get away with not putting on his glasses when he was sitting right beside Dejun. The ride started out relatively tame, but Zhan took extra long blinks, keeping his eyes closed more often than necessary so he could miss out on more of the ride. It was in the middle of one of these blinks that the seat they were in suddenly lurched forward, eliciting screams from the children around them. Zhan winced, his nausea intensified with the shrill yelps. He grabbed Dejun's tiny hand, in case he flew out of his seat. "Junjun, hold on!"
@☭ Xiao Zhan "No baba! Junjun is okay!" Dejun reported without the slightest clue as to why his father was so worried for him. He would try any ride once, and his parents were right beside him! There was no /need/ to be afraid. He held onto Zhan's hand with his chubby fingers, smiling brightly at Zhan. "You have to put on your glasses baba!" he reminded Zhan. After the general safety instructions were given, the ride operators closed the doors to the simulator, cutting off any exits for the next three minutes. Yibo didn't know what to expect of this ride, but at least it was supposed to be mildly thrilling, even if they weren't actually in a moving ride. The submarine on screen plunged deep into the ocean, first showing off signs of the darkening water. Then, it expanded into a view of the coral reef, which many of the kids in the ride seemed impressed by. Though it was rather calm at first, the clear problem soon approached. They were being stalked by a shark!
@☭ Wang Yibo For some reason, Zhan thought the Submarine would be a /real/ submarine. This ride was not around the last time they were here as a family, and 'Submarine' seemed almost self-explanatory enough. The blood drained from his face for the nth time today when he was handed a pair of 3D glasses. "What do I need this for?" he asked needlessly, even though his pups were already obediently slipping on their glasses. Resigned, Zhan put them on, and looked to Yibo glumly. No amount of secretive flirting from Yibo behind their pups' backs after this would be able to cheer Zhan up. Despite how much he was not looking forward to the ride, Zhan reached over to check on his pups' harnesses himself. "Junjun, are you going to be scared? We haven't ridden the submarine before."
@☭ Xiao Zhan Zhan's reaction to being called old never failed to amuse Yibo. He just liked to tease his mate, and it was worth it every time. "I never said you're old...I just said I'm young," he whispered right back, even cupping a hand against Zhan's ear so their pups wouldn't be able to read his lips. He raised his brows playfully and even clicked his tongue in Zhan's ear, "Maybe if you can handle a few more rides...I'll remember how young you are too." Not long after, they were queued in a cluster for their ride. The Submarine was a 4D simulator ride, where they would sit inside a room and take a trip down the depths of the ocean. Once the doors opened for them to line up, Yibo spearheaded their family, leading Dejun and Yuning so they could sit between himself and Zhan in the same row.
@☭ Wang Yibo Zhan did indeed have the intention to buy his family fast passes, not wanting them to wait long for rides at first. But now, he had another idea—if he kept them in line for longer, that meant less time spent actually on a ride. It was foolproof, if not for the way his pups turned expectantly to him after Yibo asked for the Fast Pass. "I... yes," he said weakly, giving in immediately once he saw their pleading eyes. "How about after this ride? We're almost there anyway, so it wouldn't make sense to leave now..." Pulling Yibo close by his wrist, Zhan muttered low, so that his pups wouldn't hear, "And who are you calling old? I'm not even pushing forty yet."
@☭ Xiao Zhan "Another! Another!" Dejun chirped in excitement, pointing around and having some hush talk with Yuning to plan out the rest of their trip at the amusement park. Yibo followed behind in amusement as he saw how his mate was being dragged around (ever so unwillingly) by their pups. Well, that was the price to pay when one wanted pups right? He could've sworn that he would be the one in Zhan's shoes when they first brought up the idea of having kids. To think that he was actually faring pretty well made him chuckle to himself. Zhan's sore remark had Yibo laughing again and he reached out to massage Zhan's neck while his mate caught his breath in the next line, "Because I'm young," he said, winking again at Zhan. The joke would never, get old. "You can sit out...if you get those two to agree," Yibo reminded Zhan. "By the way...are you gonna get Fast Passes for us like you did last time?"
@☭ Wang Yibo "Another one?" Zhan whimpered. He held Yuning's hand in one, and Dejun's in the other, and both his pups dragged him like little sleigh dogs toward another ride: Submarine. This one seemed a lot more tame, so Zhan was more than happy to bring his pups into the line and give himself a moment to rest. He looked to Yibo, jealousy explicit on his face. "How come you're fine on Caterpillar?" he moaned, closing his eyes against the harsh sunlight of the day—it only seemed to intensify his headache. The clamouring from the Father's Day crowd wasn't helping, either. "I already know the pups are going to ask to ride again later... I'm going to sit out round two."
@☭ Xiao Zhan Yibo was a speed-demon, so he really didn't think much of this kiddie roller coaster. It was just funny to be spun around and twisted and turned as the caterpillar buggy made its way around the tunnel maze. On top of that, with Yuning taking control of the lever in the front and Dejun on the one behind, Yibo could just lean back and enjoy the slight thrill that came with being jerked around. Zhan was oddly quietly, on the other hand, so after their short ride was over, the first thing Yibo did was turn around to check on his mate. Zhan's face looked pink, probably because he was red from holding his breath and going white from the shock. Yibo chuckled as he blew his mate a kiss, then helped Yuning off. "Wahhh, baba is so brave!" he exclaimed, "He didn't scream at all! Even I screamed, Ah Ning, don't you think so?"
"Baba is so brave!" Yuning nodded obediently in agreement, reaching out a chubby hand to offer Zhan some help in dismounting. "Let's go on another one!" he exclaimed, looking for Dejun's agreement.
@☭ Wang Yibo Zhan stared back at Yibo, not amused in the slightest. Yibo /knew/ Zhan was going to have a hard time on the Caterpillar, and he wanted their pups to give him an even harder time. Before the ride started, Zhan had Dejun sit back so he could personally check on the harness himself, only letting Dejun go ham on the levers and buttons once he was sure Dejun was strapped safely in his seat. The ride flung Zhan around, and he gripped the bar over his lap and his sanity while screams from Dejun and the other children of the ride filled the air. Zhan was tight-lipped for the whole ride, afraid that if he opened his mouth, he would cry from the intensity of the kid's ride.
@☭ Xiao Zhan With Zhan's eventual agreement, Yibo and the pups cheered in excitement as they slowly waited for their turn in line. Ever since the thought of not being able to ride with their parents had crossed the pup's mind, Yuning had taken a stronghold on Yibo's hand, while Dejun refused to be placed on the ground and insisted on being carried in Zhan's arms instead. Luckily their pups weren't complainers, and they got through the line without any fussing otherwise. Yibo sat with Yuning in the front row of their two row section, leaving Zhan to get on the back with Yuning. "Remember, if we want the caterpillar to move around in squiggles, then we have to push the lever!" Yibo reminded his pups, turning to give Zhan a little wink so that his mate knew exactly what he was up to.
@☭ Wang Yibo When it was three against one, Zhan rarely won. Actually, even when it was one against Zhan, it was unlikely Zhan could push back. "Then you don't ride the kiddie rides... They weren't made for you anyway" Zhan mumbled to Yibo as he guided his family in line. He tried to ignore their pleas for a while longer, until it was too much to have Dejun yammering directly in his ear and pulling at his hair. "Fine! Fine, I'll ride the Caterpillar." The lines were getting quite long, so Zhan would have to buy them Fast-Passes for the rest of the day afterward if they wanted to get anything done here.
@☭ Xiao Zhan With their kiddie bag slung over Zhan's shoulder, the four of them made their way into the amusement park with bumbling excitement. While Dejun was still young enough to get free piggy back rides off of Zhan, Yibo held Yuning's hand and walked with him to find their first attraction. Yuning and Dejun were looking here and there, amazed by all the rides, but the moment Zhan suggested that they go on the Caterpillar on their own, a wave of protests erupted.
"But Baba, I want to go with Mama!" Yuning whined, looking up at Yibo with a pout. When they went on rides before, it was Yuning's favorite thing to go with his Mama. "Dejun said he wants to go with you already!"
Dejun could sense that his voice was needed, so he backed his brother up, "I don't wanna go with Gege on this one!"
Even Yibo had no intentions of letting Zhan off the hook, despite the fact that it was Father's Day today, "Don't be a buzzkill Lao Xiao. I want to play too. Are you saying I have to ride the kiddie rides alone?"
Hearing that his mother might have to do /anything/ alone, Yuning quickly shook his head, gripping Yibo's hand even tighter. "Noooo Baba pleaseeee!"
@☭ Wang Yibo "Ah Ning will ride with Junjun," Zhan muttered, his face darkening at the thought of riding that damned caterpillar again. By the time they arrived, both Yuning and Dejun had finished their smoothies, and Zhan knew Dejun would be dying to go to the bathroom anytime, so that was their first destination once their tickets were purchased. As expected, once both pups had gone to the bathroom, Dejun's first choice of ride was Caterpillar. Zhan heaved a sigh, holding Dejun's hand as he tottered about. "Baba will line up with you, Junjun," he said, "but Baba isn't going to ride with you. Gege will take you on the Caterpillar, okay?"
@☭ Xiao Zhan Like Zhan, Yibo was also enjoying the rare moment of silence in the car. He sipped on his unsweetened green tea and relaxed against his headrest. He could even afford himself a moment to stare at Zhan's profile again, like he used to when they went on long drives for dates. Zhan aged like fine wine. His features were still sharp, though there was even more maturity to his entire presence now. So, when his mate announced that he wouldn't be able to handle the rides at the amusement park, Yibo stifled a laugh. "You're old, but not /that/ old baba," he teased his mate, "At least go on the catepillar ride. Junjun will be so sad if he has to ride alone." Of course, if Yibo was going to ride with Yuning, then Zhan had to be with Dejun!
@☭ Wang Yibo "Good boys," Zhan praised, handing Yibo's card back to him after he paid. Once they received their drinks and each pup was handed a cup, Zhan lectured them on the importance of keeping a firm hand on their drinks so they wouldn't spill everywhere. With their sons sipping on smoothies, Zhan was granted another moment of silence with his mate, which he so cherished. In fact, it was so quiet back there, it was as if it was just Zhan and his omega in the car. Still, how could Zhan ever forget them? "I'm not sure I can do the roller coasters this time," Zhan said, "not even the caterpillar one."
You know, I see this and I'm just straight up jealous. This takes so much time and commitment and energy and genuine to the core interest in someone's writing. Oh, it's just /rom com sighs/ so romantic and I want that for me so much. I just think of my favorite writer and then i see this and think.. maybe it's possible? (◕‿◕✿) Love this, and hope you guys are still rping somewhere.