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Vanderwood had witnessed the great personality change from the serious, cold and calculating Agent 707 to the disorganized, playful and annoying idiot of only Seven. They seemed like complete opposites and he'd be lying if he said he disliked this change entirely... (his damned procrastination and practical jokes aside).
And now again, he found himself watching another one of his changes, as if he was a larva that had just emerged from its cocoon and was now a fucking butterfly.
The change of no longer being “Seven” or “Agent 707”, but to Saeyoung, Saeyoung Choi, a full-fledged family man... Or at least he gave that impression, but Vanderwood knew better than anyone what Sev- no, no, Saeyoung was capable in those old days of gathering information, infiltrating and disposing of threats for and to the intelligence agency they both used to belong to.
He thought of all the times he saw him staining his hands in that crimson color and with that emotionless look that sent a shiver down his spine.
It was a surprise to him that he ended up being all lovey dovey with the girl they were guarding. If he was honest, he thought she’d be a normal person and leave his side when she saw how dangerous Seven was. And the surprise was even bigger when after the two most difficult months of his life passed, Saeyoung's now fiancée asked him to be the nanny of her children.
It was hard for him to accept; first, the news that she was pregnant was quite unexpected news, Seven Zero Seven being a father? It was more obvious that not even in his nightmares would that be possible... And calculating the date of pregnancy, Vanderwood concluded that she must have gotten pregnant around the time he accidentally kidnapped Saeran, which... shocked and disgusted him at the same time and in equal portions. Damn you 707.
Moving on, Vanderwood didn't know whether or not to accept her proposal, of course he needed a job that kept his identity a secret, but, ... wouldn't that be a little... awkward? Saeyoung had already shown him that he didn't want any connection with him because of the Saeran affair. He refused at first, however, she convinced him by saying that it was a safe bet: he kept a low profile, he was with people he already knew and he would certainly earn well on his pay so he accepted as it was her best offer. Mind you, the girl warned him that if he dared to lay a finger on any of them, she would kill him.
And here he was with Saeyoung, in a playground with his two children, a girl and a boy, both with most of their father's physical characteristics and no older than two years old.
The mother had been insisting that the four of them needed some time together while she went out with Saeran to do some shopping, so they weren't with the children and the adults. Honestly, Vanderwood would have preferred an outing where they were all together to... this.
An “outing” where the kids were playing around as he was just standing in a corner while watching the former agent play with his children, an endearing and awkward scene at the same time.
Saeyoung's attitude towards Vanderwood had changed only slightly after his wife's delivery as Vanderwood took care of the babies and household chores while the woman Saeyoung loved was recovering. The brunette man wasn't complaining, he heard her cries of pain from birthing and the other patients surely heard them too, and after seeing the size of the children he wondered how someone so petite could push those two out of her...ahem.
He respected her a little bit more after that.
However, they still weren't lifelong friends like the ones in that cheesy organization Saeyoung belonged to, but a little closer, the dork was now allowing Vanderwood to see the kids outside of his working hours, that's worth something.
And those two... the whiny boy and the girl who only knows how to smile, similar in personality to their father and uncle; both complete opposites yet, deeply close.
Maybe even life wanted to screw it up with his new job that made those two just as much trouble as the original twins. Mischievous, annoying… a bit messy but, unlike the others, he couldn't threaten them with a gun or hit them with a teaser, much to his chagrin.
When the kids started walking, their danger level increased by 50%, running back and forth, hurting themselves and worrying him and their father like there was no tomorrow.
Maybe that was why Saeyoung’s fiancée had asked them to go outside, the kids needed a place to run in the fresh air instead of the bunker – which, while safe– could be a bit stifling for kids as energetic as they were.
Something in his field of vision suddenly shifted that caught his attention and there he saw the two children playing catch with his former subordinate, letting them win only to chase them down himself.
A devoted and loving father, very different with the person he knew years before as a ruthless agent. Maybe Saeyoung had a disorder? That’d explain the drastic changes in his personality.
Vanderwood was so focused on Saeyoung that he didn't notice the drastic changes in his own person, to also go from being an unfeeling, 100% effective agent to... a babysitter. It was demeaning at first until he grew fond of those little redheads who made his day a little brighter and the understanding of the mother who accepted him without hesitation, trusted him with her children even after all that had happened almost a year and a half ago and gave him something he could call family. She was truly an angel as Saeyoung mentioned.
He gave a chuckle that went unnoticed as he watched the three redheads laugh embraced, a part of his heart filled with warmth and purity, as if those past dark days had never existed.
Closing his eyes and plunged into his thoughts with a mental image: A man dead inside who knew nothing but hopelessness. Now brimming with true happiness, with his twin brother with a calm and kind personality that contrasted with his previous one, next to his wife who seemed to be happier every day and behind them, some happy and healthy little redheads.
“You've definitely changed... Agent 707” Vanderwood mused as he tried to light a cigarette and try to warm up.
But his thought was interrupted when he felt a look that made his heart go to his throat and made him sweat cold. The former agent turned to the sides quickly trying to find some enemy, the twins' father? the head of the agency who was coming for revenge?!
“Vanderwood.”
There, he saw Saeyoung holding both sleeping children in his arms and with a cold gaze straight into his eyes that Vanderwood knew too well.
“Don't smoke in front of my children.”
...
One thing that would never change about Saeyoung, would be his eternal desire to always protect his family.