Chapter Text
Jeon Jungkook usually introduces himself as Kookie; just Kookie. Most people know him as "the Kim kid" and that is how Jeongguk likes it. Most people know his Papa, Kim Seokjin, the Michelin-star Chef and the host of one of the most famous cooking shows in the world - Masterchef, but less know his Daddy Kim Namjoon and his Uncle Taehyung(or Uncle Taetae, as he likes to call him) the CEOs of Kim & Kim, one of the biggest audit firms in the country. It would take a while to introduce his prominent relatives: two CEOs, one diplomat, a renowned pianist, and one of the top fashion designers in the world, and that's just the preceding generation. Jungkook is quite honoured to have such exceptional relatives, but he does not flaunt their relationship. With his parentage and upbringing, he has the pressure to surpass and succeed his father. After all, they have been grooming him painstakingly.
Jungkook has never met his birth parents, and right now, he has no desire to; he has all the family he needs. He recently found out that he was adopted by his Papa and Daddy when he was two because his birth parents could not take care of him the way they should, and he can assure you he is completely fine and happy about it. Papa lets him sit on the tall black chair during shoots, buys him banana milk every day, helps him with homework, helps him win in any game against Daddy (he and Papa are always on the same team) and cuddles with him whenever he cannot sleep in the night. Daddy takes him to work with him if he does not have school, let him sit on the nice roly-roly chair all day, tells him stories about the universe when they have lunch together and teaches him how to find constellations in the sky when they eat dinner in the table in the balcony. So yes, Jeongguk is a Kim in all but birth.
Jeongguk loves going to Papa's set when he is shooting (and not just because of the tall chair). He loves it when Papa smiles at him secretly during a scene, loves when the crew slip him some delicious food from the show (except for the time they made pancakes with octopus in them, Jeongguk did not like that one bit), but he especially loves it when Papa picks him up and walks around the set, checking in on things and talking to people. Jeongguk loves how warm his Papa is, even in summer months, loves how wide his shoulders are, almost always falling asleep in his arms.
The second best thing about Papa (other than his cuddles) is his breakfasts. People laugh at him when he tells them that out of everything his Papa makes, he loves his breakfast foods the best; and for all the right reasons. Not only is his Papa's cooking out of this world (duh!) but, because of his weird filming hours, dinnertime with him is never a guarantee; breakfast is. Papa usually sets him up on the counter while they chat about school, his friends (Mingyu had recently adopted a pet dog and Jeongguk got to name her with him - they chose Goop) his grades and what he is learning in his music class. Jeongguk sometimes gets up on the counter to sing and show him the song he has been learning from Uncle Yoongi, who is also his music teacher, his papa loudly cheering him on as he cuts the vegetables.
Jeongguk is given quite a bit of leeway in going around on his own when he accompanies his Daddy to his office; after his homework is done, his time is largely his own. Some of his friends (especially the ones with scary mothers) are quite envious of his freedom, but he knows that it comes at a cost; he is accountable for his time and actions. Since the kids' lounge is a bore, Jeongguk often explores the main floors of the office, the picture-lined halls and conference rooms, being a particular fascination to him. He finds solitude in the quiet hallways, lined with portraits of different events throughout history, some known to him, and the rest carefully observed so he can ask his Daddy when he sees him.
Daddy usually joins him after his meetings and they often, to the perplexity of his colleagues, have their lunch in the hallways or empty conference rooms, instead of the cafeteria, talking about ancient Greece and Rome (Jeongguk has recently started reading Percy Jackson and is curious about the old Gods). Despite being an atheist, Namjoon calmly explains whatever he knows about the Greeks and Romans to Jeongguk, never once forcing him to follow any belief. Sometimes Uncle Taetae finds them too and proceeds to be dramatic about being excluded (I've served this family for twenty-nine years and yet, I'm not invited to dine with them!), and Jeongguk all but scrambles up into his arms, all wide-eyed and too young to realize his Uncle is just joking and assures him Jeongguk would never do that, not to his Uncle Taetae. The three then have lunch together, Jeongguk in his Uncle's lap, legs swinging unconsciously, occasionally taking in sips of banana milk from the bottle in Uncle Taetae's hands.
Jungkook loves living in the city. He may be a little upset that he cannot see as many stars in the sky as he can when the family goes to his grandparents' house or their cabin in the woods, but the beautiful lights of the buildings, the shops bustling with customers, the street food markets, he loves all of it. Moreover, he loves when Daddy drives him home; occasionally they would find a huge poster( "It is called a billboard, Jeongguk-ah", Namjoon would correct) with his Papa's face on it and they will stop and take a picture with it to show his Papa when he comes home. Other than that, their drive is usually filled with idle chatter, Jeongguk tells his Daddy all about his day( "Goop came with Mingyu's mother to pick him up from school today and his Mama said it was okay for me to pet her, Daddy!"), and Namjoon, in turn, tells Jeongguk, what happened at work (do you remember Uncle Jackson, Kookie? The one that got you that Cookie Monster pajamas last month? He is getting married soon!"). Jeongguk loves that his Daddy does not speak to him like he is a child (he is nine now!) and tries to give appropriate responses here and there.
Once they get home, their routine starts. After washing up, Daddy is to heat the dinner already set aside by Papa, or they make some jjigae, one of the only things his Dad can be trusted to do well. Kookie is in charge of getting the plates, making sure they have water to drink, and coasters to keep the hot dishes on. Then they play rock, paper, scissors to decide what music they want to listen to while they eat( Jeongguk prefers old jazz piano, something he picked up from his Uncle Yoongi, and Namjoon just plays with him to humour him). Once, Jeongguk saw how tired his Daddy after working all day, and could not bear to see him doing the dishes, back bent uncomfortably (their kitchen was always a little too low for him, probably the only downside of their house) and asked earnestly if he could help. Namjoon had nodded, dumbly, taken aback by the unusual request from his child (Jeongguk constantly amazed Namjoon anyway, with how intuitive he was) and let him drag the stool to the sink(most the effort was Namjoon's) and do the dishes alongside him.
As he grows older, Jeongguk would get better at holding heavy crockery, even teach his Dad the technique of handling slippery plates and falling ones, and his Dad would be relegated to the stool nearby (the very same stool he had once used to stand next to him to do the dishes) and they would have many heartfelt conversations over dish-washing in this manner.
His house's kitchen, though not as spectacular as their greenhouse, or balcony, produced some warm moments.