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#Hair down ji eun my beloved
shinmiyovvi · 8 months
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WIP
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alpacaparkaseok · 4 years
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Shut Eye
pairing/genre: idol!Yoongi x reader, fluff
premise: In a world where every night you meet your soulmate in your dreams only to forget their face and voice when you wake up, you’re now more desperate than ever to find them.
word count: 2.6k
a/n: I was listening to the piano version of ‘For Forever’ from Dear Evan Hansen while writing this...so maybe that explains it?? THIS IS SOOO CHEESY YOU GUYS
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requested by anon - thanks for the fun request, hope you enjoy! a picture of your ask/request will be at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
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You awoke with a gasp, the covers flung aside in an effort to grab the notebook and pen you kept handy on your nightstand. Not bothering to flip on the lamp, you used the little moonlight filtering in through your window to write down the events of your dream.
You spent most nights in the dreamscape with your soulmate, his face and voice a blurry mess in your mind. The two of you would talk for hours, that much you know. The general idea of the conversation would stick with you as well, but beyond anything else, you’d wake up with the same familiar feeling.
The specific brand of heartbreak that tends to accompany goodbyes. 
Tonight’s dream had been something entirely different, though. Try as you might, your mind can’t seem to conjure up the exact words your soulmate had so calmly whispered in your ear as you stood on a red carpet facing innumerable flashing cameras. However, one thing was for certain.
He was trying to send you a message. 
He was trying to find you out in this big world. 
You’ve made a bullet-point list now, with the words red carpet, famous?? and beautiful suit starting off the list. As the list continued on, you only grew more and more confused. Why did your soulmate choose that dreamscape? After years of the usual sitting room and long chats, something must have happened to make him change.
Frustrated, you scanned last night’s notes to see if anything out of the ordinary had happened. You nearly gave up before one of the final bullet-points caught your attention.
we talked about family
did we talk about our family??
Eyebrows scrunched and lips pouted, you wracked your brain for any recollection of the conversation from the night before. Indeed, you remembered waking up with the distinct feeling of discussing future baby names, but for the life of you, you couldn’t remember what he had said he liked. What you did remember was that it was a name that had made you laugh, and that he had been upset about it for the rest of the evening. 
Not too upset, though. He’d still quietly warned you in the way he always did when he knew he was about to wake up. Softly lacing his hand through yours, running his thumb over the back of your knuckles until in the blink of an eye he was gone. 
There had been several occasions when you’d woken up still feeling the ghost of his hand on yours.
The notebook in your hands glared up at you, an unwelcome reminder that you were nowhere near close to understanding the meaning of your most recent dream. 
Normally, you would have just let it go. But today was different. Today you woke up just knowing that he had meant something by the dream. The way he’d brought you out on that red carpet, your arm linked through his as he led you toward a group that was already posing for pictures-
Wait. A group? You’d forgotten that part. Another bullet-point was added to the growing list.
part of a group (friends?)
Your eyes drifted shut as you tried to remember any more details, the ways the cameras flashed seemed to impair your vision as you’d looked at the group that had smiled as you neared. One of them had made some extra space for you and your soulmate, and you’d nearly keeled over when you saw who it was.
But who was it?
You sighed, scribbling one last bullet-point before your brain quit functioning.
I recognized the friends - famous?
It was a bit discouraging to look down at the list and see so many question marks, but you paid it no mind as you tossed your notebook back onto the nightstand and found the strength to get up for the day. 
You’d just have to wait until the next dream.
•••••••••••••••••••••••
“I have no idea where this is going,” you admitted while staring up at the ceiling,  sprawled out on your bed. “But I just know that he’s trying to tell me something. You know?”
Your best friend, Ji-eun, just laughed on the other side. “I’m sure he was...but honestly, who knows? Maybe he just wanted a change of scenery.”
“Ugh. You’re no fun.”
“Well, I hate to break it to you, but no more fun for you tonight. I’ve got to go to bed. Got to wake up early tomorrow, remember? It’s a big day.”
“Oh, that’s right! Are you nervous?”
You’d nearly forgotten that your best friend was also one of South Korea’s most beloved singers. On most days, you forgot her stage name, too. 
“No, not really. I just usually hate having to sit there by myself, you know? There are so many groups, and them I’m just by myself. Looking beautiful.”
“Aww, poor IU, all alone.” You teased. “I’d go with you, but-”
In an instant, Ji-eun, or IU, squealed and you knew that she had an idea. “Yes! Come with me!! I’ll sneak you in! You won’t even have to worry about the red carpet- wait.”
You winced, having held the phone at a distance from your ear so as to not immediately lose your hearing. “Oh no, now what? You know I’m not fit for award shows, Ji-eun.”
“Didn’t you say that your dream was on the red carpet?”
You blinked. “Yeah.”
“Sooo,” Ji-eun dragged out, “Maybe you’ll see him.”
A wry laugh escaped you. “What makes you think he would recognize me even if he was there? Or that I would recognize him?”
IU made an indecisive noise. “Well, you already described his beautiful suit-”
“Hey, no teasing. It was absolutely gorgeous.”
“Exactly! If there’s a guy that shows up wearing that suit, then maybe that’s him! And, maybe he’s part of a group! You would recognize the group if you saw them, wouldn’t you?”
“You’re just trying to get me to come with you,” you drawled, ignoring the little spark of hope. 
“Obviously. Hey, you know that really pretty red dress you bought not that long ago?”
“Yeah.”
“Wear that, and work your dreamscape magic or something to help him remember the red dress. He’ll recognize you when he sees you tomorrow!”
With an eye roll you’re pretty sure Ji-eun heard through the phone, you groaned. “If he’s even there. If.”
“So you’ll do it?”
In the end, it was the memory of having to say goodbye every morning without even remembering who you were saying goodbye to that had you agreeing. 
••••••••••••••••••
Falling into your dreams had always felt more like waking up, the urge to stretch and run around almost too much to deny. Tonight, you entered the familiar sitting room that you’d frequented nearly every night for the past few years.
Your soulmate is waiting for you when you enter, his back turned to you.
A part of you knows that the two of you have been through this many times before. You’ve technically met your soulmate hundreds of times - maybe even thousands at this point. But every night, it’s the same little feeling of anticipation as you wait for him to turn around. 
Always wondering who it might be. Always dreading the moment you wake up and forget his face all over again, waiting for the next dream to identify him.
He’s in the black, lightly checkered suit that he wore last night, not a single strand of his black hair out of place as he turns around with wide eyes.
Your breath is momentarily caught in your throat as you suddenly recognize him, not only from the previous dreams but from nearly everywhere else in the waking world. 
“Hey,” Yoongi mumbles, a soft smile gracing his lips as he looks at you. “You look beautiful.”
You looks down at the red dress you’re wearing, the same one you’re planning on wearing at the award show. Nodding at his suit, you grin.
“Are you wearing that to the award show today?”
He nods, stepping toward you. “I wish you could go, I know that I’d be able to find you-”
“I am.”
Yoongi stops, his mouth slightly open. He takes a single step toward you. “You are? How?”
“Ji-eun is my best friend, remember?”
He takes a moment to recall that tidbit of information about you, nodding. “So...we’ll see each other.”
“I hope so.” You tilt your head. “But will you recognize me? It was so hard for me to remember any details after last night’s dream, I feel like it’s getting harder.”
“I think it is,” Yoongi agrees, striding over to you and grabbing your hand even as a light pink dusts over his cheeks. “But I don’t think I’ll be able to forget this dress.” With a wink that belies his shy nature, Yoongi leads you out onto the red carpet, where cameras are waiting. 
He walks you through the event, glancing at you every few seconds as though afraid that you’ll disappear at any moment. That’s certainly a valid concern - it’s happened plenty of times.
You’ve just made it to where the rest of the members are standing when you feel the tell-tale pull back toward reality. 
You’ll be waking up at any moment now. Most likely because of that pesky nest of birds that have decided to camp out just outside of your windows. 
Instinctively your grip on Yoongi’s arm tightens, and he turns to you. He can tell by the look in your eyes that you’re about to leave.
“What if it doesn’t work?” You blurt out, taking in every last detail of him. From the way his cheeks are still pink to the fit of his suit. 
Yoongi absolutely shocks you as he presses a chaste kiss to your forehead, pulling you a little closer. His breath that dusts over your ear feels so real as he whispers gently to you.
“We’ll find a way. I promise.”
•••••••••••••••••••
It was the same dream as the night before; the same infuriating goodbye that seeped into your bones as you hurtled awake. However, this time, you could have sworn that you recalled a puppy-dog gaze that was begging you to remember him as you left the dreamscape.
You’d worn the red dress you currently had on, the red lace falling just below your knees. A part of you remembered the way your soulmate had reacted when you’d waltzed into the dreamscape, the way you had casually linked your arm through his as you walked onto the red carpet.
Today you couldn’t find the energy to write anything in your full notebook, opting to bury your head in your hands.
“Who are you?” You groaned. The feeling of his soft lips against your forehead has you sighing, wishing that you could replay it all over again. After shooting a glare at the red dress hanging in your closet, you grabbed your notebook to write down one note before getting up.
We love each other
•••••••••••••••••••
Ji-eun - er, IU, instructed you to wait for her at the entrance to the photo-op portion of the red carpet. She would be busy doing little interviews before that, which honestly didn’t seem that appealing to you. 
Especially not when you were so nervous you thought you were going to throw up.
Staring down at your red dress, you nearly jumped out of your skin when there was a hand on your shoulder.
“Ha! You’re jumpy today,” IU teased, “I wonder why.”
“Oh good, you’re finished.” You ignored her tease, happy to get moving. “You look amazing.”
It wasn’t a surprise, but she still deserved to be complimented. IU looked absolutely ethereal in her flowy green gown, the two of you looking like some sort of Christmas ad. 
“You look great as well!” She motioned toward the carpet. “I think we’re just after this group. Ready?”
Armed with a smile and your best friend at your side, you ventured onto the carpet. It was easier than you though it would be; most of the time you were stepping aside to allow the photographers a clear view of IU.
You’ve nearly made it to the end when a fresh round of screaming picks up. 
There’s only one group that can command that much attention.
You couldn’t help but crane your neck as you see BTS walk onto the carpet, just a couple of groups behind you. Your eyes widened on their own accord when you saw them, unable to shake the feeling of having met them before. 
Of course, they pay you no mind. However, you couldn’t help but chuckle at the way Suga took a moment to get up on his tippy-toes, looking around. You went to point it out to IU, nobody paying either of you any mind as you walk off the carpet. You lost all ability to speak, however, as you took a closer look.
It’s the suit. 
The one that is checkered with a light gray, the one that fit your soulmate just right. 
It’s the black hair that’s perfectly styled. 
And as Suga turned to look your way, you didn’t miss the way his eyes caught on your red dress.
Almost like he had been looking for a red dress.
In the span of a single heartbeat, you made eye contact with the idol, the same question lingering in your eyes. 
For Min Yoongi, that’s all it took. 
Abandoning all precepts, he took off down the carpet, heading straight toward you. From the way the other members took one look at you and your red dress and immediately began speaking to those present, you knew that they’d been waiting for this. Knew that they weren’t planning on keeping this low-key, because there was no real way to do that. 
Not as Yoongi saw you and knew. 
You managed to take three steps toward him before he was before you, grinning with his gummy smile even as his ears turned red. 
“Quick,” Yoongi breathed out, reaching down to take your hands in his. “If it’s really you, tell me what name we can’t agree on for a girl.”
The question threw you off guard, making you laugh. But after a moment, you found with a gasp that you remember.
You remembered everything.
The way the two of you first awkwardly stumbled into the dreamscape at the age of nineteen. How you eventually opened up to each other, grew to care deeply about the other. 
You remembered the nights when the two of you were rambunctious and laughing at stupid stories Yoongi told you about the boys. 
You remembered the nights when you sat in silence, dreading the moment you would have to wake up.
And you remembered that just a few days ago, Yoongi had brought up family. You’d spent the night talking about how many children you’d want, how you’d raise them, what you’d name them.
And there was one horrible name that he loved and you hated, and neither of you were willing to budge on it.
“Ugh,” you groaned even as you smiled. “We are not naming her Pearl! It would make her sound like a pirate ship!”
The cameras flashed, which made Yoongi’s eyes glimmer as he laughed along with you. Then, without a care in the world except for knowing for certain that it was all real, Yoongi tugged you closer until your foreheads touched and all you could see were his dark eyes pulling you in.
“I told you we’d find a way.”
Hundreds of cameras flashed, documenting the moment and effectively labeling it a dream come true.
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readyplayerhobi · 5 years
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Silver Bells and Cockle Shells
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; Widower Single Dad!Hoseok x Reader
; Genre: Angst, fluff, smut
; Word Count: 22.2k
; Warnings: Mentions of death, grief, depression, insinuated blowjob and car sex, penetrative sex, masturbation, fingering
; Synopsis: Jung Hoseok has three beautiful daughters whom he loves more than anything in the world; Soo-ah, Ji-eun and Ji-soo. For five years now, it’s been only them and him against the world. But what happens when he wants to bring someone new into their lives?
; A/N: Hello, this is something I just randomly got in my head. Was meant to be a drabble...ha, evidently not. I half edited this but full honesty, I got bored and just wanted it out! If you like it, pleeeease reblog it! Leave me lovely comments and feedback, send asks and like it! I hope you enjoy this and that...it’s not boring or anything ;-;
; Sequel - Sleigh Bells Ring
-
“Soo-ah!” Hoseok cursed, frowning deeply as he bent over and picked up the toothbrush she’d carelessly dropped to the floor after she’d brushed her teeth for bed. “Pick up your stuff after yourself!”
Sometimes he felt like he spent half his day chasing around after his daughters to put his house back together. Honestly, going to work could be classed as a relief at this stage in his life. Pausing for a moment, he stared at himself in the finger printed mirror before letting out a deep sigh and rolling his eyes. 
He was too young to be thinking like that. At only 33, he was pretty sure that he should only just be experiencing the stress he’d endured for the past ten years. His friends certainly were only just beginning to understand what he’d gone through.
Already, Jimin had started whining about how tired he was with his newborn son which was making Namjoon start to blanch whenever they met up and the conversation started. His own wife was due in three months and Hoseok was looking forward to being as smug as humanly possible whenever the younger man complained himself.
They’d all had to endure years of Namjoon saying it can’t be that bad and encouraging them all to simply remain calm and all that bullshit he spouted in his daily role as a psychiatrist. It had made Hoseok want to hiss fire at him when the man had no concept of trying to cope with two colicky babies alongside a five-year-old who tantrumed over the wrong breakfast cereal.
The man had it coming, Hoseok swore. A small, sinister part of him was hoping that Namjoon’s baby would be the antichrist but then he pushed that thought away. In actuality, he hoped that Namjoon and his wife would have the most pleasant experience as parents.
No matter what, he was positive it would be better than his own experience.
Putting the toothbrush back into its place, he crouched down to grab the cleaner and sprayed the mirror in an even coating, placing the bottle back before grabbing a cloth and wiping the mirror clean. It was stupid, but the pristine surface soothed a part of him that screamed out at the sheer tornado of chaos his children caused.
His love for his daughters was infinite and he would happily give up his own life to protect them and ensure their unending happiness; but sometimes he also just wanted to scream in frustration. Sighing heavily, he rests his hands on the counter and looks down into the sink, brows furrowing together once more as he notes the stains of toothpaste spit that has dried on the porcelain and a deep groan runs through him.
A full clean of the house will have to be done this weekend. He’ll have time to do it as his parents are taking the girls to the aquarium and then a movie for the day after a sleepover. And then, after a whole day of cleaning, they would come back to a nice house with everything in its place and it would all go back to looking exactly how it had in the morning within hours.
Rubbing his hand over his face, he licks at his lips and looks back in the mirror. Said hand soon moves to run through his hair, pushing the sleek, black strands out of his face and he notes idly that he needs to get it cut. The sides are getting too long and he scowls slightly, pushing at the hair that should be shaved close to the sides of his head.
Maybe he could take the girls to get their hair done and then ask if the hairdresser would quickly do his as well. They’d be entertained with each other for a while, surely? Or maybe he could run out on Saturday while they’re gone and get it sorted. He did need to go shopping to buy groceries for dinner and it would make sense to do it at the same time. Hoseok had become very adept at finding time to fit multiple things together.
His stomach flipped nervously as he thought about dinner. 
If everything went right with the conversation he was about to have with his girls, then Saturday evening would be the first time he would introduce you to them. For five years now, Hoseok had raised his beloved daughters as a single father.
It hadn’t been out of choice. 
His eldest daughter, Soo-ah had turned ten-years-old in March this year. She’d been born when he was 23, a surprise pregnancy with his college sweetheart. They’d married a year later and Hoseok had enjoyed four wonderful and happy years with Soo-ah and the woman he’d considered the love of his life, Yoo-jin. 
A second pregnancy occurred when they had both been 27; this time it was planned and very much wanted. On October 29th, two beautiful twin girls had been born and Hoseok’s heart had swollen even more with love and affection. Ji-eun and Ji-soo were perfection in human form to him.
October 29th had also been the last day his wife had been alive. 
Complications from the strain of birthing both girls had taken his wife from him, and he’d suddenly been alone in the world with three daughters relying on him. Grief had taken a backseat as he’d thrown himself into the three innocent lives that needed him so desperately and it had been the hardest thing he’d ever done.
Crippling depression had hit him hard with the loss of Yoo-jin and sometimes the very sight of his kids had caused him to burst into tears as he’d thought about how she wouldn’t get to see their daughters grow and experience life. It had been even harder with two newborn girls who had demanded every moment of his time and attention, leading to him having to take time off work as a software engineer at first and then work from home once his leave ran out.
What had been even worse though, was that not only was he trying to cope with his own grief but that he also had to cope with Soo-ah’s. She’d been only five-years-old. Her mommy and daddy had gone to the hospital one day and had promised to bring back her baby siblings.
Only daddy and two sisters had come home. She hadn’t understood why mommy wasn’t coming back and for two whole months, Soo-ah started and ended every day asking when mommy was coming home. Everytime, his eyes had watered and his throat tightened as he’d had to tell her that mommy wasn’t going to come home, that she’d gone to the sky to watch after them all.
They say kids understand more than you expect, but it had still taken a long time for her to grasp the concept that her mommy was gone. He hadn’t been able to say that she had died, and he’d broken down the night that she’d turned six. Hoseok had tried to make it a happy and fun time for her, but it had only been five months since Yoo-jin had passed and Soo-ah hadn’t been coping too well.
She’d been happy at the start of her party, accepting her presents from all her friends and her many uncles and aunts who doted on her immensely. Her grandparents had already visited earlier in the day and Hoseok knew that everyone was spoiling her to try and make up for the one thing missing from her day.
Later on, she’d begun to act out and had a tantrum that resulted in the party ending earlier than expected. Hoseok had known that she might exhibit behaviour like this; she was just a child and it was a big emotion for her to compute. The happiness and excitement of everything, combined with seeing the other kids with their mom’s had simply been too much.
When he’d put her to bed that night, giving her lots of extra kisses and cuddles, she’d been quiet and sullen. It had broken his heart and yet again, he hadn’t known what to do. There wasn’t a manual for this.
But what had destroyed him had been what she asked him, her voice tiny and more than a little fragile as she curled up in his arms beneath her Mickey Mouse bedding. 
“Mommy’s dead. That’s why she’s not coming home. Right?” How he had got the strength to carry on that conversation with her without falling apart right then and there, he’d never known. But he had. And then he had checked on the twins before falling into his own bed, his pillow soaked with his own tears as pain had eaten at him.
Five years had passed since, and with time it had gotten a little better. His heart no longer aches when he thinks of Yoo-jin and he could talk about her openly with a smile. He made sure to keep her photos in the house for his daughters, reminding them of their mom and letting them know that she loved them. Each of their rooms, the single for Soo-ah and the room that Ji-eun and Ji-soo shared as they refused to sleep apart, was decorated with pictures of Yoo-jin and Hoseok.
It made him sad to know that he had no photos of Yoo-jin and the twins for them, but they’d never asked about her either. They had never grown up with a mom, so they never thought anything of it. Soo-ah had though, and while she had slowly turned back into the happy and loving girl he’d known, he knew that she would never forget her mom.
Nor would he want her to.
But for five years, he’d only limited himself to one-night-stand’s in which both he and the recipient were abundantly clear that there wasn’t going to be anything further. He hadn’t wanted to engage in romance, hadn’t wanted his feelings to get involved. All he had wanted was the relief of an orgasm and the intimacy of another person for a few hours.
His parents had encouraged him to go on a few blind dates in the last two years, and he had done so reluctantly. Even Yoo-jin’s parents had told him that they wanted him to be happy, even if that meant finding someone new to love.
It was hard though. He’d felt disloyal with the first few dates, even if they’d just ended up in casual sex before never seeing each other again. Most of them hadn’t been interested in anything further with a man who had three young daughters. He hadn’t been interested in them once they gave him that opinion.
So he hadn’t bothered mentioning it after, because he simply hadn’t wanted to engage in anything that would involve feelings. 
Until you.
He’d met you a year ago, when Jungkook’s wife had brought you to one of his summer barbecue get togethers. It had been before anyone else in their friend group besides from Hoseok and Seokjin had had kids, so it had been deemed a kid free event to allow the parents to kick back and relax.
Yoo-jin’s parents had taken the kids for the day and Hoseok had got to simply be himself for a few hours without having the stress of constantly checking on what his kids were doing. He’d discovered that three children meant three times the amount of potential damage and carnage that could be caused, and minus another parent figure resulted in just overall disaster material.
Hoseok still shuddered in horror whenever he thought of the supermarket experience from two years ago. Even now, he refused to go back there from sheer embarrassment.
But you had simply been there as a friend, and at first he hadn’t even paid attention to you in any way other than simple respect. You’d been sweet and friendly, if a bit shy as it had been obvious that everyone knew each other except for you. Chae-young, Jungkook’s wife, was a colleague of yours and you’d become close through a mutual love of equestrian activities.
At the time, that was as much as he’d known about you alongside your name, age and that you were the manager of a sales team in an office. There hadn’t been any need for him to know more, but by the end of the night he’d been quietly endeared by you.
He hadn’t laughed as much in years, his smile bright and wide on his face while he talked intently with you. For three whole hours, you’d both been in a little bubble of shared mutual interests from tennis to dancing to pop culture. Neither had noticed the subtle glances everyone was giving each other as they watched their friend, who had spent so many years with his light dim and subdued, come to life before their eyes.
Before he’d even realised what he was doing, you had both swapped numbers and he’d enjoyed a few weeks of casual interaction via text. He’d enjoyed the conversation with someone new and had been determined to not let his busy life get in the way.
Even better, you’d already known about his kids and hadn’t been bothered in the slightest. In fact, you’d even been inquisitive and he’d happily discussed them, pride behind every word. The texts had soon turned into phone conversations which soon turned into video chats.
Soon enough, he’d been meeting you for lunch in the city at a cafe that was between both your workplaces. Hoseok hadn’t realised how close Chae-young worked to him until then, and he’d enjoyed his lunches more than he ever had with the easy conversation that flowed between you both. 
It was ironic really. He’d spent so long not looking for anything that he didn’t even realise when something wonderful fell right into his lap. And you were wonderful, beyond wonderful.
For the first time in over a decade, Hoseok had gone to bed early to simply lay there, curled up under the covers, while he texted you like a teenage boy with his first crush. And that’s what he’d felt like, even if he hadn’t quite realised it. Every text had made his stomach flip and every call made him breathless with nerves.
He found himself going to the bathroom before lunch, checking over his hair and looks before meeting up with you. Things he saw in the store that reminded him of you found their way into his basket before ending up in your hands, all to see that pretty smile that made him feel so funny.
It had been so long since he’d dated properly, so long since he’d liked anyone in more than just a lust filled euphoria, that he just hadn’t realised what was happening. And it had taken his mom, of all people, to point it out to him.
He’d been at theirs one afternoon, the girls playing in the living room with the toys their grandparents had accumulated over the years while he sat at the island in the kitchen. His mom had been watching him for five whole minutes instead of preparing the meal for that night, observing the way her son smiled and laughed to himself, eyes locked on his screen.
It had made tears come to her eyes when she had realised that she hadn’t seen him like this since Yoo-jin had been alive. She had queried him who he was talking to, causing him to casually say your name without a second thought. And then she had asked him how long he had been dating you, which had thrown him for a loop.
“I’m not dating her. We’re just friends.” He hadn’t even realised he’d said those fateful words out loud, hadn’t realised the meaning of what he’d just said. In his mind, that was exactly what you were. Friends.
Which was why his mom had given me an exasperated smile and a shake of her head. “Hoseok, sweetheart. If you’re not dating her, then you should be. I haven’t seen you this happy in...a long time. Especially not with another woman.”
Hoseok had frozen then, staring down at his phone with a frown as his mother’s words had finally penetrated the shield that he had held so tightly around his heart for half a decade now. The last text you had sent him had been something stupid, but he’d gripped his phone tight as he’d realised she was right. You made him happy, you made him want to try.
And that made him feel guilty.
She’d spent the rest of the afternoon convincing him that it was okay to move on, to truly move on and find happiness with someone else. That night, he’d refrained from texting you as he’d tried to compute his newfound emotions and find a place for them to sit alongside everything else in him.
For so long, he’d thought that Yoo-jin would have been the only woman for him. The woman that he would grow old with, be buried next to and so forth. And then she had died at only 28, and he’d been without her once more. He’d spent years convinced that he should stay loyal to her, after all, they hadn’t broken up.
But as he’d laid there that night, he’d worked through the guilt that wracked him as he’d realised that he didn’t want to be alone anymore. He didn’t want to wake up alone, in a cold bed and come home to only his children. Hoseok loved his kids, he truly did, but he wanted someone that he could talk to, laugh with, argue with if necessary, be intimate with. 
He wanted someone to love again, and he wanted to be loved in turn.
Everyone had always said that he had a big heart, always ready to bestow it on whoever had his affections that day. A smile that could light up the sun and so forth. And for five years, he’d only poured love into his daughters because they were all he had.
As he’d gone to sleep that night, he had contented himself with the knowledge that he was no longer happy with his lonely situation. But he planned to do something about it, because he had also realised that he liked you, and he wanted to pour that love into you too if you would let him.
The very next lunch he had with you, he had asked you on a date. His confidence had faltered halfway through as panic had suddenly set in, worry that you wouldn’t want to date a 33-year-old father of three. But you had smiled brightly, face lighting up with such happiness and excitement that he’d been unable to not smile back, before eagerly accepting.
That had been six months ago, and he had fallen in love with you slowly every day since.
Despite this though, he had yet to introduce you to the girls. There were many reasons for this and he’d been pleased that you had accepted them all without complaint. The most important reason was because Hoseok hadn’t wanted to introduce anyone to them if it wasn’t going to end up serious.
It would just hurt them if you broke up and they never saw you again, and he wasn’t ready to impart that kind of emotional turmoil on his little girls. Secondly, he hadn’t wanted to pressure you into doing anything with his kids when you didn’t have to. You weren’t their mom, nor were you looking to be and he didn’t want to force that role on you. 
He’d wanted you to feel comfortable enough to finally meet them, and he’d wanted to feel comfortable enough in his relationship for you to meet them. But also, he’d just wanted to enjoy you to himself without the interference of children.
Hoseok loved his kids, he would never give them up and his whole life revolved around them really. Yet his relationship with you was the first thing in five years that he’d had solely to himself, untouched by their presence. He felt selfish thinking that way, but he’d just wanted to enjoy you a little longer without the pressure of parental expectations.
After six months though, he’d finally decided that it was time. It had been a huge decision, and he’d agonised over it a few weeks before finally talking it through with you. He’d had to be sure that you even wanted to meet them, because as worried as he was for how his daughters would react to you, he couldn’t even imagine what it must be like for you.
You’d started dating him in the knowledge he had three kids, but knowing and actually seeing and being a part of those small lives was entirely different. Most women probably didn’t start dating someone with a ready made family, and he’d stressed a little over that.
Dating him seriously meant you would be directly involved with his daughters. He didn’t want you to think that he wanted a second mom for them, because he didn’t and he doubted his daughters wanted that either, but it would be hard for you to avoid some parental activities.
And that wasn’t even thinking about whether or not you actually wanted children in the future. There was a chance that you might think he might not want more kids because he already had three, but you had none. Overall, it had taken a lot of thinking before he’d finally proposed the idea of introducing you.
He wanted to be able to bring you home, cuddle up with you on the couch after a long day without having to worry about the girls finding out. Eventually move onto you staying the night, hopefully one day in the future even moving in together. He had kids, yes, but that didn’t mean that he couldn’t have a relationship like everyone else.
Hoseok wanted to give you as normal a relationship as he could, despite the three extra people he came with as standard.
You’d been sweet about the whole thing though, consoling him and letting him know that you were supportive of whatever decision he made. There weren’t enough words in the English language for him to convey how much he appreciated how easy-going you were about it all and he’d just fallen even harder for you.
It was a little odd really, how quickly he’d realised he loved you. Admittedly, he’d spent months without even realising he liked you, but he’d told you those three special words within three months. He’d taken half a year to tell Yoo-jin, and he wasn’t sure what that meant. If it meant anything.
But all of this was completely moot if his girls decided they didn’t want to meet you. They were allowed that decision, and Hoseok was fully prepared to love you separately for a while until they got used to the idea. He didn’t want to, but he wouldn’t force someone onto them if they didn’t want it. Nor was he willing to break up with you solely for that reason.
He loves his daughters, but he refuses to let them rule his life entirely. Just as he works hard they’re happy, he knows that he’s entitled to happiness himself.
Pushing away from the counter, he takes a deep breath before heading into the twin’s room. The bathroom was the one all the girl’s shared while he had his own thanks to the en-suite. Something he was positive that he was going to be very thankful for when they all hit teenage years.
The twin’s room was pure chaos, as expected. He’d long since given up trying to keep this room tidy. Instead, he would simply go through once a day and make it look less like a bomb had gone off in it. 
There was plenty of room in the house for them to have a room each, there were actually two spare bedrooms in this ridiculously large house he’d bought with Yoo-jin years ago. It had been cheap purely because it had needed to have a lot of stuff fixed in it, but over the years he’d worked with both friends and family to turn it into the family home it was today.
But splitting the twins up had proven to be an unthinkable act. He’d tried it once when they were four and they’d screamed and cried for hours before going quiet. Thinking they were asleep, he’d gone to check on them only to discover that Ji-eun had gotten out of her bed and was curled up in Ji-soo’s bed.
The very next day, he’d moved her stuff back into the room and they’d been content ever since. Twins were funny, he mused to himself as he watched them both lying beneath Ji-eun’s Iron Man bedding, his iPad in Ji-soo’s hands as they both watched a movie.
He had refused to let them have an iPad, even a joint-owned one as he didn’t want to end up being that dad whose kids spent all their time on a screen. Even now, they were limited to only two hours of screen time a day. Soo-ah was the same, only she was allowed to use the computer to do her homework when necessary as well.
It caused them to whine a lot but he instead encouraged them to play, read books or even use the board games he’d bought. Thankfully, they were pretty happy with it despite the minor whining but he knew that his policy was going to have to change soon. Particularly for Soo-ah.
“Hey you two, how are my little pumpkins?” He said with a bright smile as he crouched down next to the bed. Two sets of identical eyes flicked over to him, their warm chocolate depths filled with sleepiness and fondness swelled in him.
“Hi daddy,” Ji-soo whispered, the tiny mole on her cheek being the only way to distinguish her from her younger sister. Her black hair shone with health in the warm light of the Avengers lamp on the bedside table and Hoseok reached out, stroking the flyaway strands down. Ji-eun was too busy watching the iPad and he smiled, resting his head on the bed next to them both and watching quietly.
There was only a few more minutes until it was over, and he took the tablet from them before switching it off and placing it next to him on the floor. The door creaked open and all three looked over, taking in Soo-ah’s frown as she looked at her sisters and dad.
He’d asked her to come into the twins room once she’d gotten into her pyjamas and he grinned at her mismatching clothes. A Mickey Mouse t-shirt was combined with Batman bottoms but he chose not to say anything as she flipped her long, black hair behind her shoulder in a movement that reminded him so strongly of Yoo-jin.
The twins were growing to look like him, but Soo-ah was all Yoo-jin. It was a soft ache sometimes to look at her, but it just made him love her all the more.
Gesturing to her with an open arm, she tucked herself into his side where he knelt and he kissed the crown of her head with a loud ‘mwah’, enjoying the way she wiggled and whined in protest. She was reaching the age where affection from him was met with embarrassment but he didn’t care.
“Are you all excited to go to grandma and grandpa’s tomorrow?” All three of them nod, excitement lighting up their eyes and he has to bite his inner cheek to stop the grin that wants to paint itself onto his face. His parents spoil them, they truly do. He has no doubt when he picks them up on Saturday that they’ll have eaten their weight in sugary goods and will likely have another toy each.
“Good, they’re looking forward to having you too. I want you all on your best behaviour, yeah?” Each little girl gives another nod and he goes soft with pride for them all. They were truly the most important things in his life and he squeezed Soo-ah a little tighter in response.
“So...err,” He paused, brow creasing as he realised that he didn’t know how to go about this. “On Saturday, we’re going to have dinner with someone. She’s...she’s someone very special to daddy.”
“Is she your girlfriend?” Ji-soo asks innocently, her eyes filling with curiosity and he smiles in response, running his fingers through her hair once more before nodding.
“Yes...she is. I...she’s been daddy’s friend for a while now, and daddy really likes her. So...I want to make sure that you all are okay with that? I don’t want to bring her if you’re not going to be happy.” This is possibly one of the most awkward he’s things he’s done in a while but he preserves, hoping that his daughters will understand and accept.
“Do you love her?” Ji-eun asks and Hoseok freezes, his eyes widening. He feels it’s far too soon to confirm that for them when he’s only just telling them so he shakes his head instead, leaning over to kiss her forehead.
“I like her a lot. She makes me very happy and I want you all to get to meet her. She’s excited to meet you if you want to. But it’s only if you want to.” There’s silence for a few moments more before the twins nod enthusiastically with smiles that resemble his own so much.
“Okay daddy.” They both respond at the same time, causing him to chuckle as that odd twin telepathy happens again. It weirded him out sometimes but it mostly just made him glad that they had each other.
Soo-ah hasn’t responded and he looks down at her, noting the way her eyes are downcast and her body is tight. His heart sinks slightly, knowing that she was going to be the one that he had the most trouble with. 
She was the one who remembered her mom, who vaguely remembered scenes of her mommy and daddy hugging and kissing, whispering they loved each other. It was always going to be the hardest with her, and he wondered how long it would take for her to accept it. If she ever did.
But then she surprises him with a slight shrug, her fingers tracing unseen shapes into his jean covered thigh, her lips pursed out in a tiny pout. “Okay dad.”
Her tone isn’t nearly as enthusiastic as the twins and he frowns slightly, kissing the twins goodnight and turning the lamp off before he gently encourages Soo-ah out of the room. She doesn’t speak on the way to her own bedroom, the interior of this room a soft purple that’s decorated with numerous horse posters.
Without a word, she climbs into her bed and curls up with her back to him underneath the covers. His heart clenched tightly as he sits down next to her, the mattress dipping and causing her to roll slightly towards him. Neither says anything for a moment as he simply runs his fingers through her hair gently, enjoying the way it feels and thinking about how big his little girl was getting.
“Soo-ah? Are you really okay with it? It’s okay if you’re not,” He whispered, looking away from her to the bookcase opposite him that’s filled to the brim with books. “She’s nice, I think you’ll like her. She goes horse-riding and knows so much about them.” 
“What about mommy?” And there it is, the very thing he was looking forward to least. His breath leaves him in a deep and heavy sigh while his head drops down momentarily as he tries to put his thoughts together into cohesive speech. This is all very new and alien to her and he’d always known it was going to be a tougher sell to her than the twins. They’d only ever had daddy, she’d had both.
“Mommy is still here with us Soo-soo, she’s not being forgotten. I still love her so much and I know that she still loves you. Y/N isn’t going to replace mommy, I swear.” Soo-ah stays curled up, her body tight and he grits his teeth, hating that he had to go through this with her.
“What if you fall in love with Y/N and forget about mommy? I don’t want another mommy. What if she’s mean? What if she hates us and tells you that she doesn’t want us?” Wow, this is way more questions than he’d anticipated from merely asking if they’d be okay with meeting you but he got the suspicion that these were things Soo-ah had worried over for the last few years.
Which meant he had to go very carefully, otherwise things could go very wrong.
“You’re not going to get another mommy, I don’t want that for you. You had one mommy, and you always will. Y/N doesn’t want make you unhappy, she’s not expecting you to love her or treat her like a mom. She also doesn’t hate you and she would never tell me make me choose. She’s known about you all the whole time I’ve known her and she’s excited to meet you all. I’ve told her so much about my smart girls. And she’s not mean. She’s one of the nicest people I’ve ever met. I wouldn’t bring someone into your life that I didn’t trust and like. I swear Soo-soo.”
She’s quiet for a moment longer before shrugging again, her body relaxing as she lets out a deep sigh. “Okay,” His shoulders relax as he senses the acknowledgement in that one word. “I love you daddy.”
Biting his lip, he knows that she’s still not entirely okay with it and he also knows that he’s going to have to be very careful on Saturday. He loves Soo-ah, but he knows that she can be temperamental around things like this, with valid reason, obviously. But he also knows that she doesn’t really know what to think, hence her calling him ‘daddy’, something that she hadn’t done for 3 years now.
“I love you too Soo-soo.” Bending over, he kisses her head goodnight before leaving her room too, resting his back against her door as he lets his head fall back and a deep sigh leaves him. He hopes you know how much he truly loves you with how willing he is to let you into his life, because for him and his little family, this is the biggest earthquake to strike since the death of Yoo-jin.
Only this time, he hopes that that result afterwards would be happy instead of painful.
-
Hoseok lets out a happy groan of delight as he bites into the greasy pizza, the tangy cheese contrasting wonderfully to the meaty pepperoni and rich tomato base. It tastes far too good and a voice in the back of his mind tuts at the wilful carbs he’s adding into his body. He’s not as young as he once was and keeping off the weight was beginning to be a little harder nowadays, but he pushed that thought firmly away.
You liked his body, even if he wasn’t as toned as he had been ten years ago. But whatever, you weren’t dating 23-year-old Hoseok and 33-year-old Hoseok didn’t give a damn when the pizza tasted this fucking good. 
A light chuckle sounded from his right and he glanced over, finding you watching him with amusement dancing in your eyes while a bemused smile played on your lips as you chewed on your own slice of pizza. Once you’d realised that you’d caught his attention, you swallow your piece before leaning over to wipe at the grease on his lips with undeniable affection and his stomach felt a little bit fuzzy.
He was being honest when he said that you made him happy, because you really did. In fact, he was pretty sure that this was the happiest he had been in five years and sometimes he got a little sappy and emotional about it. So long had been spent purposefully isolating himself for his daughters that he hadn’t really understood what he was missing out on again.
But, he conceded to himself, he was glad of that as well. Because he wouldn’t have started a relationship with you if he’d started dating earlier. So he was content with his earlier decisions, content with you.
Having kids and losing a wife had really turned him way more emotional than he’d used to be, but he reasoned that it was okay. He’d just learned what it was like to lose something he loved dearly, and he had spent years regretting not loving Yoo-jin more fiercely. Which was why he was determined to make sure that you knew exactly how much he loved you, for however long you both lasted.
He would not make the same mistake twice.
“Enjoying that?” You ask him, expression mischievous as you take the pizza crust he hands you and start to eat it with a joyful hum. Hoseok simply watches for a moment before nodding with a grin.
“Do you know...how nice it is to get to eat junk food?” A snort leaves you as you roll your eyes, shifting until your back is against the cushion on the couch and you pull your legs up. You’re only wearing some bed shorts and an oversized logo shirt with the Star Wars logo on it, both faded from overwashing but still comfortable.
“Am I supposed to feel sorry for you? You’re the one who chooses the meals in your house. If you want junk food, then just eat junk food.” The way you say it is completely casual but Hoseok gasps in mock outrage, a hand resting on his chest.
“How rude! You’re supposed to be complimenting me on how wonderful of a father I am because I make sure my daughters are eating the healthiest food! Did you know, we haven’t had chocolate in our house for over a year now? Only health snacks allowed.” A droll stare is all he gets in response and he squirms slightly, trying his hardest not to let his lower lip pout out.
You were two years younger than him and also childless, yet sometimes he felt like you were the older one and also the parent. 
“Blatantly false. I distinctly remember you eating a Kit Kat the other week in bed when we facetimed. I thought lying was bad Hobi?” You’ve got him there and he finally lets his lips purse before he chuckles in defeat, nodding his head.
“Okay fine, we have one day of junk food a week. But they’re not allowed anything unhealthy unless they’ve done something really good, like got a really good grade or done some chores around the house. Me on the other hand...well, let’s say I might have a secret stash hidden somewhere in the house that little girl’s can’t reach.” His hand waves airily as he speaks and you burst into laughter, reaching out with one foot to push at his thigh.
Without even thinking about it, he lowers his hand to rest on your leg and runs his fingers along your skin affectionately. There’s no pizza left anymore and instead he focuses on sliding his hands along your calf, digging into the muscles there and massaging gently until you let out a soft sigh.
Silence falls between you both, the comfortable kind where neither of you feels the need to speak. The television is playing some Netflix Original series while the lingering scent of pizza still fills the air.
He’d come over to yours for the night, enjoying the fact that he was actually able to spend the whole night with you. His parents had asked to have the girls last week tonight and he’d agreed happily, knowing that it meant he could spend more time than usual with you. Staying over was only possible when the girl’s were not home, and that was pretty rare.
Your apartment was pretty small, the size dictated by what you could afford in combination with the car you had and the salary you earnt. But he liked it all the same. It was filled with a combination of pop culture in the form of figurines and plushies everywhere alongside beautiful paintings that hung on the walls or elegant photographs of landscapes. 
Candles dotted the area, a few lit to fight the pizza scent with vanilla and he smiled as he felt himself relax both physically and mentally. There was no hint of children here, no toys thrown around or crayons half hidden underneath furniture. He obviously loved his kids but sometimes it was nice to just...have somewhere that didn’t look like Toys R Us had thrown up in it. 
In actuality, he found dating as an adult slightly odd. The last time he’d properly dated had been with Yoo-jin, and that had been over ten years ago. He’d been a student when they’d got together, only 21 and he’d had a young adult’s mindset to go with it too. At the time, all he cared about was his grades, partying, getting drunk and getting laid.
Not necessarily in that order.
Okay, definitely not in that order.
A job, taxes, bills, childcare, children and so forth hadn’t even entered his head really. Dating back then had simply meant meeting up with Yoo-jin after class and going back to the apartment he’d shared with Yoongi and Namjoon, fooling around for a few hours before crashing in bed. Maybe going to a party or actually doing his homework.
The most stress he’d had was exam period, or maybe that time he forgot to hand in his term paper and he’d been handed his ass by Professor Lee in History of Medieval Europe. That hadn’t been fun.
Dating had been almost...relaxing with how carefree it had been. How unburdened with the stress and realities of life.
Dating now was far different. Now he had to fit in his dates with you in his lunch breaks or the rare evening he could get someone to watch the girls. Talking was relegated to when they were in bed and a lot of the conversations often ended up being about world events or problems with a job or co-worker. It felt mundane and if he thought about it, boring, but he oddly didn’t mind.
Being with Yoo-jin in the early stages had been exciting and fun, dates being extravagant and wild. Being you was different. In Yoo-jin, he’d sought excitement but with you he sought comfort and quiet. A way to simply be Jung Hoseok, the man, again instead of being Jung Hoseok the father or colleague.
He felt a little sad that he didn’t get to experience the wildness with you, but then again, he felt far too tired for that anyway. It was only 8pm and he was already contemplating asking if you wanted to go to bed. Not even for sex, but just because he was tired. 
Though he wouldn’t say no to sex. 
That was definitely something that he’d discovered was perhaps even better than with Yoo-jin, which he’d felt a little guilty about at first. Sure, he perhaps couldn’t go as often as he had when he was 21 but it was just...better.
Both of you were far more experienced and knew exactly what you liked and didn’t like in the bedroom, and you were both mature enough to be honest and open about it. He’d been mortified to find out that he hadn’t actually given Yoo-jin an orgasm for six whole months because she’d been too shy to tell him whereas you’d told him exactly what to do for the very first time you’d slept together.
He’d been a little shocked actually, but it had resulted in perhaps the best sex he’d had in a long time. Particularly for two people who had never had sex with each other. And yet it had; he’d never felt such an intense and emotional connection with someone before and it had even frightened him a little bit, made him feel disloyal because he couldn’t ever remember Yoo-jin like that.
It had taken a quiet discussion with Namjoon over his guilt to realise that the sex was probably better because you were the first person he’d slept with that he’d been friends with beforehand, who he’d fallen for long before. Yoo-jin had been a one night stand that had turned into something more, but he’d known you for months.
Sex with you was some of the best he’d ever had, and it blew his mind even more because you hadn’t even had a huge amount of it in the past six months. The lack of time he had for meeting up with you meant that there just wasn’t time for it and so he’d had to fit it in where he could.
For the first time in well over ten years, he’d actually had freaking car sex. And it was not as pleasurable as he remembered. His cheeks flushed as he recalled that incident vividly. It was perhaps not his best moment sexually, but you’d both handled it so well.
it hadn’t even ended in an orgasm because you’d got cramp from bending over and he’d hit his head against you when he’d jerked forward in worry. It had ended up with you back in the passenger seat and giving him a blowjob while he’d felt guilty as hell over not being able to properly reciprocate.
But even that had proven how compatible you were with each other as only minutes later, with his cum still dripping down your face from where you’d overestimated your deep throating abilities and practically coughed it all back up, the two of you had been giggling like teenagers at the failed sex.
A snort leaves him as he remembers it and he shakes his head in response to the look of query you give him, tugging at your leg until you give in and move over to him. He smiles in victory as you curl into his side, your warmth pleasant against him while he wraps his arm around you comfortably, pressing his lips to your head and simply taking the smell of you in.
You smelt like the perfume he’d bought you for your birthday last month, a fruity candy scent because that’s what you loved above all else and he loved it. It made him want to eat you, and he felt a stirring in his groin as he considered doing just that.
“Are you sure they’re okay about tomorrow?” Your voice is soft and quiet but he can hear the insecurity behind it. He understands why. The two of you had made sure to have an in depth conversation about what would come about from you being introduced to his daughters.
You’d known that it would mean sometimes you would come to his place which would mean interacting with them on a personal level. Dates would sometimes end up being family events and they would come in tow. Quite simply, the longer you continue to date and the more the two of you settle into your relationship, the more integrated you would become into his own family.
He could hardly date you seriously and never include you with his own family. Particularly if he ever hoped to move you in one day. No, you would need to know what you were getting yourself into and needed to be accepting of that.
Just as he didn’t want to force something on his daughters, he didn’t want to force a family on you.
As much as he said to Soo-ah that you wouldn’t be replacing her mom, it would be impossible for you to not take on some mother aspects for them. Firstly, it just wouldn’t be fair to be in a long term relationship with him and never expect to do anything with his kids considering how young they were.
Secondly, you were a kind and nurturing person anyway. He had no doubt that whenever you eventually moved in, because he was pretty positive that would be happening in the future, you would want to actively try with the girls. How receptive they would be, he didn’t know.
But if you wanted to try with them then he certainly wasn’t going to stop you. If they didn’t want to reciprocate then they wouldn’t have to and he’d make sure that you knew that too.
“Well...I mean they’re only kids, so I can only really take them at what they say. The twins probably don’t understand properly but I don’t expect them to. They never got to be with Yoo-jin so, this is all new to them. For them, the only thing they’ll probably get upset is that daddy will have someone else that he’s going to pay attention to. Soo-ah though?” His tone turns a little unsure without him even meaning to and you wiggle against uncomfortably.
“She’s the one who’s going to be harder to get through to, isn’t she?” Hoseok hugs you tighter to him as the despondency in your voice and he wishes that he could take it away, but you’re right. Soo-ah is the mystery in the whole situation and she could make everything perfect or it could all fall apart.
“Yeah. She’s...she’s worried that I’m forgetting her mom or that you’ll try and replace her or something. A valid concern for her to have, but I think it’s going to take a while for her to come round to it. To everything really. To you being in our lives, to me loving someone else. It’s going to be hard on her and I wish I could make it better for her but...I can’t. I’ll just have to work with her and show her that being with you isn’t going to mean that Yoo-jin didn’t exist.” 
You push up from him at that, a hand resting on his thigh and he looks deep into your eyes for a moment. He sees love for him there but also concern for his daughters combined with uncertainty for yourself and he can’t stop himself as he leans forward, pressing a soft kiss to your lips.
“I don’t want to take the place of their mom. Especially not for Soo-ah, I can’t even imagine what she went through and...that’s not what I want. I’ll try ready hard with them, I will. I swear. And I won’t get too offended or upset if they get angry at me. I know it’s a hard situation for them to get used to. It’s just been you four for a while now and I’m the interloper.” His heart warms at your words and he hugs you tighter to him, kissing your forehead hard before resting his nose against you.
“That’s why I love you. You know that? Because you care and you don’t push. I appreciate that so much. They’ll come around to it, even if they’re not happy at first. I don’t expect them to be happy, but I can’t be forced to be alone for the rest of my life just because they don’t like it. I...I feel a bit guilty saying this but...I deserve to be happy too.” A soft brush of your lips against his neck lets him know that you agree and his racing heart settles a little.
He’s nervous for tomorrow, yes, but he knows that he’s right. It’s been years of loneliness and now he’s finally ready to accept someone else. And he knows that his daughters would come to like you just as much as he does. Hoseok doesn’t expect them to love you, and he never would, but he hopes that they’ll at least come to like you.
“Anyway, let’s not focus on that right now. We’ve got that bridge to cross tomorrow. Tonight is just me and you, the last night of it being just us,” His brows wiggle suggestively and you roll your eyes in response, lips quirked up in amusement. “How about we take this to the bedroom?”
An unladylike snort leaves you as you push up from him, grabbing the pizza box and heading over to the kitchen to throw it away as he turns off the television.
“Really? You want sex already?” The exasperation in your voice causes to throw a look of outrage at the kitchen door but you’re not there to experience it so he just grins instead, grabbing both your phones and heading over to your bedroom.
“I just meant going to sleep you horndog! God, I thought men were supposed to be the ones who always thought about sex?” He calls out, biting his lip in amusement as he plugs your phone into the charger by your bed and places it on the bedside table.
The screen lights up momentarily and he grins as the lockscreen image pops up; it’s of him kissing your cheek in a park. It had been one sunny lunch and the cherry blossoms had been out in force, providing the perfect backdrop for a perfect picture.
He jumped in surprise, letting out a yelp and dropping his own phone onto the table with a clatter as two hands grip his ass firmly before they slide round to his stomach, wrapping him in a tight hug while you giggle and press kisses to his back.
“How can I not think about sex when my boyfriend is this hot?” The pink painting his cheeks is slightly embarrassing but he can’t stop the primal flush of pride at your compliment and he wants to roll his eyes at himself. 
Turning around, he looks down at your pretty face and bends down to press his nose against yours in a butterfly soft kiss before catching your lips with his for a proper kiss. His arms move to wrap around you in turn, holding you tightly to him and for a few minutes, he just focuses all his efforts into exploring your mouth in a slow yet sensual kiss.
By the time he’s finished, you’re slightly breathless and he admires the dazed look in your eyes, lips swollen and the stirring in his groin he’d felt earlier becomes even more insistent. Perhaps too insistent given the way you look down at his crotch with a raised brow before glancing back up, biting your lip.
“You might want to go to bed but I want you, so how about it daddy?” He pauses, looking at you with a carefully blank face.
“As long as you never call me that ever again then sure. I think I can forego sleep for a little while longer,’ he grins broadly before stepping back. “So undress for me princess. Let me see how hot my girlfriend is.”
“Yes sir.”
“Oh...now that...I like.”
-
Waking up the next morning was surprisingly nice and he simply laid there for a few minutes in the quiet, taking in the way your scent saturated everything and how warm the bed felt. When he finally did open his eyes, he was met with the sight of a clock that read 8am.
Surprise flooded him for a second before he stretched out, groaning softly before smiling and simply laying there. He hadn’t woken up as late as 8am in years and it felt freaking glorious. Half of him wanted to roll over and simply go back to sleep, but he knew that his body wouldn’t let him now that he’d opened his eyes.
You on the other hand, were curled up in a ball next to him beneath the covers, your back facing him. A few ideas ran through his mind, wondering whether he should just get up and go shower or if he should spend some more time with you.
Time with you won out, as he knew it would have. He wasn’t going to turn down a morning with you without kids, no way in hell. And so without another thought, he rolled onto his side and curled up behind you, humming contentedly as the warmth of your body seeped into his own.
“Princess...priiincess,” He cooed into your ear, grinning as you shuffled slightly in his arms and let out a quiet croak in response. “Are you awake?”
There was no doubt about it, he was being a little shit right now and doing the exact thing that he whined at his own kids for doing on the weekend. But he didn’t care, because he found your response far too cute.
“No.” The pout you must have your on your face is abundantly evident and he laughs, pressing a kiss to the back of your neck. He wouldn’t kiss you, because he’d discovered that you really hated kissing with morning breath. Not that he was a fan either, but sometimes he just...wanted to kiss you really bad. 
Though sometimes he had regretted it, but he just pushed those thoughts out of his mind. No, he wouldn’t kiss you today. At least...not until you’d both gotten up and brushed those pearly whites until the kiss would be minty fresh from both ends. 
Instead, he just squeezed your body tighter to him and let out a quiet sigh of satisfaction. It was easy to forget how nice it was to just lay and cuddle with someone he loved; the warmth of you, the smell of you, the touch of you. It all merged together until he felt himself start to drift off once more, eyes closed and breath levelling out until you suddenly turned in his arms and he jerked awake once more.
An amused laugh left you as you looked up at him, eyes bleary with sleep while pillow lines creased your sleep swollen cheeks and his eyes narrowed playfully. “I thought you were sleeping.” He mumbled, burying his face into the slope of your neck while his hand moved to lay flat on your stomach, fingers stroking absentmindedly.
“Hard to sleep when I’ve got your hard on pressed against me.” Hoseok grunted at that, his fingers darting up to pinch at the nipple that made itself present through the thin material. A yelp left you before you laughed again, taking his hand and trapping it between your chin and shoulder.
“Don’t get too flattered. If I had a dollar for every time I woke up with an erection then I’d probably be just as poor because I’d have spent it all by now. But you get the point.” Your lower lip vanishes beneath your teeth as you hum, brow furrowing slightly.
“Are you saying that you don’t find my sleep face and morning breath attractive?” A snort leaves him as he presses his nose against your cheek, kissing the softness there slowly.
“I find you more than attractive missy, and you know that. I believe this is the first time we haven’t fucked after waking up together.” Pouting, you turn your head until you’re looking directly at him and he ducks his face slightly so that he’s not breathing directly on you. He did that once. 
Once.
“Don’t give me that face. The only reason I’m not balls deep in you right now is firstly, because I need to go shower and then head home to clean up and secondly...I don’t have another condom.” Your face contorts on itself before sighing, your hand moving to brush over his boxer briefs and he lets out a hiss of breath as he feels you move against his cock.
“I could suck you off.” It’s almost innocent and he glares at you, lips pursing before he pulls away, rolling to the side and departing the bed before you can entice him any further.
“That’s not...I mean...minx.” You just grin at him before getting up yourself, letting him see the way your shirt has twisted on you in your sleep, clinging tightly to your curves. His hands clench automatically as he huffs out a breath, staring at the sight of your boy shorts that cup your ass so beautifully.
He was trying to be good here and you were ruining all his intentions.
“So...you don’t want a blowjob in the shower then?” There’s not even a chance for him to respond as you tug off your shirt, revealing the delectable sight of your breasts as they’re revealed to the morning air. Without even looking at him, you head towards the bathroom door.
Indecision fills him as he stares at the door, the straining erection in his underwear telling him to go but the logical part of his mind reminding him that he is, in fact, an adult man and not a horny teenager. But then your panties come flying through the door, landing in a heap and he lets out a deep groan before striding over.
He may be an adult, but he’s an adult who damn well likes your mouth on his cock and he is not turning that down. Not today, when later on will be stressful. Right now, it’s time to just enjoy you while he has you entirely to himself.
Inside the bathroom, he finds you merely brushing your teeth at the counter but your eyes move to land firmly on his and he desperately wishes he didn’t find it so weirdly attractive to watch the way your arm moves. But then he realises it’s what you want as your free hand slowly trails down your body, reaching the hair at the apex of your thighs.
Swallowing thickly, he lets out a slow breath before reaching around you for the toothbrush you’d given him to use here and carefully begins to brush his own teeth, trying his hardest not to look. This was not supposed to be a sexy activity, and yet here he was, eyes glued to your hand while his own hand tried to brush his teeth.
A quiet moan slips from your mouth, eyes fluttering shut and your arm shudders slightly, pausing in your movements as the fingers between your thighs work at yourself and he hisses, brushing far quicker in his haste to be done. He doesn’t want you to get all the fun, no way in hell. 
Leaning over, he spits out into the sink and is suddenly reminded of all the times you’ve chosen to spit instead of swallow when you’d blown him and he has to repress the urge to giggle. Instead, he washes his mouth and realises you’re doing the same next to him, head so close to his own that he has an almost preternatural awareness of you.
Glancing up into the mirror, his breath escapes in a rush as he sees you bending over the counter, one elbow resting while your other hand moves in slow circles between your legs, now spread wider. Oh, this is just not fair, he thinks to himself before his eyes narrow.
“I thought I was getting a blowjob?” He asks, moving upright and looking down at you with an imperious brow raised.
You watch him with innocent eyes in the mirror, your own brows raising to complete the facade while you bite at your lower lip. “Did I say that? I thought you didn’t want anything.” The last syllable ends on a soft moan and his hands finds your hips without him even meaning to as your eyelids flutter shut, mouth opening in a perfect circle as soft moan leaves you.
It’s like a lightning bolt to his groin, cock aching at the sound and he realises he can hear wetness as your fingertips slide between your folds. His own fingers itch with the need to take over, to feel that slickness and rub till you’re breaking apart against him.
“Well...it’d take a strong man to turn this down princess,” Moving behind you, he presses his front to your back firmly and mouths a hot kiss to your shoulder, tongue working slowly before he looks back up into the mirror and smirks at how you watch him with those needy eyes. “I’m not that strong.”
Without another word, his arm comes around to your front and he pushes your hand out of the way, his own delving into the gap and his fingers finally rub against your clit. You’re already slippery with your own desire, worked up from your own touch while you’d been safe in the knowledge that he was carefully watching.
Your head falls back against his shoulder, even at this awkward angle with you bent over the counter but he just focuses on kissing and sucking at the sensitive skin of your shoulder and neck. He makes sure not to leave any marks on your neck but he’s more than giving with his attention, his free hand moving around to massage your breasts firmly, playing with your nipple till you push back against him.
“Condom…” The word is panted out from you, your hips gyrating against the firm touch of his fingers on your engorged nerves and he doesn’t even notice it at first. Not until you’re shifting position, trying to reach over to the drawer by your side. He pauses in his movements, fingers half inside you at this point and watches as you tug open a drawer and pull out a foil wrapper.
Looking back in the mirror at you, his brows raised in a combination of surprise, amusement and mild rebuke. “Wow...you really are a little minx, huh? Keeping condoms in the bathroom and not telling me. I’d say naughty girl but right now, I approve.”
A low laugh leaves you as you tear the foil with your teeth, pulling the condom out and handing it back to him. He kicks off his underwear quickly before giving himself a few firm strokes, breath coming a little quicker from the friction but he’s more than excited to be inside you already. It’s not even been 12 hours since the last time he’d fucked you.
Once on, he reaches between your legs once more and plunged two fingers inside of you, checking that you’re more than wet enough for him without needing to get any lubrication. Sometimes you needed it, sometimes you didn’t. Today appeared to be a didn’t, and he wondered if you had some kink of mirror sex kink because you were already near enough dripping for him.
Grinning, he lined up his cock and rubbed the tip against you, rocking his hips forwards and back in slow motions to let your juices coat his cock. The sensation has you gasping softly, causing your own hips to push back as you try and shift enough to find the right angle to get him to slip inside.
He lets you take control for a moment, watching intently as your pussy finds his tip, the engorged head slipping into your sopping entrance. Holding your ass with his hands, he slows your movements down and slowly penetrates you until he’s balls deep inside, breath leaving him in a slow and controlled exhale as you squeeze tightly around him.
His eyes roll slightly at the sensation and he can’t help but grip your ass harder, tutting slightly. As said, you’d already had sex in the last twelve hours and it had been two rounds worth. He’d been proud of himself for producing two performances like that in such quick succession but he had no doubt that you were feeling at least a little bit sore right now so he tried to go slow for you.
Turns out you didn’t want slow and a soft, keening whine leaves your mouth as you try to push back against him harder. Glancing into the mirror, he has to bite his lower lip to stay quiet as he watches the pleasure filled expression face back at him, your eyes screwed tightly shut while your mouth falls open.
The thrusts he makes into you might be slow, but they’re also deep and each movement has you jerking forwards slightly. It causes your breasts to rock with each slap of his hips against your ass and he watches, entirely mesmerised by the movement and wanting to see how you react when he’s fucking you harder.
“Hobi.” You mewl, the sound strained and yet oddly high pitched as one hand moves back to grasp at his hip, trying to pull him into moving faster in combination with your squirming ass and he brings down the flat of his hand on your rounded cheeks chidingly. The sound is loud in the quiet of the room but your inner muscles immediately grip in tighter, the sensation causing him to choke for a moment and his brows rise in amusement.
Well, someone liked being spanked. He was definitely going to remember that for future events.
Any hope he had of being gentle with you to avoid soreness is gone though and it’s clear to him that you’re wanting it harder and faster than he’s going. So he decides to give you it, his hips moving forward faster until the bathroom is filled with the lewd sounds of skin against skin, slick wetness, breathy pants and lust filled groans and moans.
“Come on princess,” He grunts deeply, kissing your shoulder before his arms slide around your waist. One pushes against the counter, giving him extra balance as he thrusts while the other dips back between your legs, the slippery mess there making your soft warmth even more delightful.
The combined touch of his fingers and cock increases your moans, though they’re more like vocal hitches of breath that whine with stroke inside you. Your own hand moves to press down on his own, rubbing furious, tight circles into your clit while he continues to slam into you. The wetness has to be leaking down your thighs now, coating your inner legs and the thought turns him on almost as much as the completely fucked out visage he gets to watch in the mirror.
Breath coming quickly, he pants into your ear before moving his lips down to kiss at your neck frantically as the pleasure in his groin tightens furiously, the need to move faster and harder so strong as he feels the impending release of his orgasm. He desperately wants you to come first, but sometimes that just doesn’t happen and he can’t help it as your pussy flutters around him once more, tightening viciously and he succumbs to the waves of pleasure that flood through his body.
A long and drawn out moan leaves his mouth, high and filled with pure satisfaction and carnal pleasure as he moves inside you slowly, pulling every bit of pleasure he can out from your warm depths before it feels too much for him. Hissing lightly at the overstimulation, he refuses to move as his fingers move back to your clit, rubbing at you in quick, fast movements that have you shivering in his arms as needy moans leave you.
Tiny movements of your hips as they gyrate and the clenching of your pussy has him whining quietly but he doesn’t move, determined to get you off as well. Sometimes it didn’t happen and you’d push his hand away, but this time you keep him firmly against him until your body seizes tightly around him, muscles stiffening before convulsions take over.
His cock slips from you in the midst of your orgasm but you don’t notice, not when his fingers keep moving and prolonging the pleasure until your hips shift away from his hand, the subtle movement telling him to let go. Heavy panting is all that remains in the room and he strips the condom quickly, throwing it away before wrapping his arms around you and hugging you to him tightly once more.
“Fuck...I was not intending that. I was trying to be good.” He mumbles against your shoulder, not noticing the way you give him a tired smile of affection in the mirror as your hand comes up to run through his messy hair. 
“I didn’t want you to be good. I wanted you to fuck me good and hard, and you did. So thank you.” You murmur, turning around and pressing a kiss to his lips firmly. Neither of you move for a few moments, simply enjoying the post-coital bliss of an orgasm induced intimacy before Hoseok finally pulls away with a contented noise.
“Okay princess, now that we’ve got even more dirty...let’s finally take that shower.”
-
Hoseok finally manages to leave your house an hour and a half later, meaning that he’s running behind on his own internal schedule and he feels the slight anxiety that he always does when he’s not being on time. With three kids, he’s had to learn to strictly regiment his time if he ever wants to get anything accomplished.
Whether they obey or not is a different story entirely.
After getting out of the shower and pulling on some clothes, he’d then been forced to sit down on your couch while you cooked him a quick breakfast. The very idea of having food cooked for him by someone who wasn’t his mom was bizarre after so many years, but he’d enjoyed eating the over cooked toast and bacon more than he’d like to admit. 
He’d originally intended to run out to the grocery store and grab the food for dinner before heading back home and cleaning everything up. Only you’d looked far too anxious about tonight when he’d been on his way out, shooting multiple questions at him that gave away your nerves and he’d felt sympathy swell.
It was easy for him to focus on his girls and worry about their reaction, but he had to try and remember that this meeting involved you as well. And you were at a severe disadvantage in that you are the odd one out, the one intruding into his family unit.
So he’d found himself asking if you wanted to help him before he’d even realised. Part of him felt bad about it as it meant that the girl would be coming home to someone they don’t know, but he figured that they already knew they were meeting you anyway. It would at least allow you to calm yourself down and get a little more comfortable in his home before you finally meet his daughters.
Which was why he was currently walking down the aisle of the grocery store, hand tightly entwined with yours as he pondered what to make for dinner. He was actually glad that you were here for that and he posed the question to you, causing you to hum lightly as you lean into him.
“What do the girls like?” The question throws him a little and he frowns, looking at the rows of microwaveable rice before glancing back at you.
“Well...what do you want to eat though? You’re the reason we’re having a special dinner.” He can hear the soft sigh you give, your head resting against his shoulder and his chest warms at the small gesture of affection. It might not seem much to others but to someone as romantically starved as him, it was unbelievably fulfilling.
Pulling away from him, you move back until you’re gently tugging at him to move and he follows you quietly. “No, we’re going to cook what your daughters love to eat because this is going to be an awkward time for them and their favourite home cooked meal will be one less thing they have to worry about. So what do they like to eat?”
His heart flips at the concern and warmth in your voice, causing him to smile as he glances down, tugging you closer and kissing your forehead quickly. “We’ll make lasagne, they all like that and it’ll give us plenty of food. You like that right? And I know you like garlic bread.”
You grin impishly at that, nodding enthusiastically and he chuckles. “I’ll go get the stuff for the bread, you get the stuff for the lasagne yeah? Should I…” A pause causes him to look at you with a raised brow, watching the indecision flutter across your face before carrying on. “Should I get them anything? Like...a present or...chocolate or something?”
“No, don’t get them anything. I mean maybe you should but...I don’t personally like the idea. I don’t want them to feel like you’re trying to buy their affection and love. Just...be yourself.” There’s a brief hesitation before you nod almost shyly, arm moving to cover your stomach in a protective gesture before you head off in search of the ingredients.
Time seems to move faster after that and before he realises it, it’s already time for him to go collect the girls from his parents. The house had been fully tidied and cleaned, though he’d wondered why on earth he was doing that when you were literally cleaning it with him but something he’d discovered today was that apparently you had a strange kink for cleaning.
Not even sexual, you just liked to clean. He’d laughed when he’d discovered that, your excitement at the Dyson vacuum cleaner he’d produced spurring on the new revelation and he’d proclaimed that he had a house that would bring you eternal joy.
Three children meant there was no such thing as a clean house, just organised chaos. And sometimes not even organised, just plain chaos. 
But true to your word, you hadn’t uttered a single complaint and had instead sung loudly to the music he’d played on the speakers that were connected to his phone. He’d had a whole moment of affectionate bemusement as he’d watched you wiggle around the living room, singing while you even dusted for him.
There had been a few moments of quietness from you when you’d noted the pictures of Yoo-jin on the mantle of the fireplace. He kept a few dotted around the house for the girls and he’d worried for a moment that you’d feel jealous or annoyed.
Instead, you’d simply picked up the silver framed wedding photograph, taking note of the younger Hoseok in a suit and the pretty girl in a beautiful wedding dress next to him, both smiling so brightly with a small Soo-ah in his arms. It was his favourite picture of Yoo-jin and he still felt a bubble of love for her when he looked at it.
Which is why he hoped you wouldn’t be mean. And you hadn’t been, instead looking at him with a small smile and carefully placing the frame onto the floor before moving the others as well. “She was beautiful.”
And then you’d knelt down on the floor and carefully polished the frames until they were spotless, giving them a level of care and attention that had him having to leave the room so that you couldn’t see the tears in his eyes.
Once he’d recovered himself, he’d gone back in and sorted out storing the many toys away while telling you stories behind some of the pictures and preening ever so slightly over how you cooed over the photos of his daughters. Damn right they were cute.
Now though, he was shrugging on a jacket and picking up his car keys to go get them and bring them home. It’s only when he looks back round that he sees the way your shoulders are curled inwards, making yourself small while your hands cross over your chest. 
Moving back over, he hugs you tightly to him before kissing your forehead as your chin rests on his chest, nerves evident in every part of you. “Hey, come on. It’ll be okay. Remember, if they don’t respond well tonight then it’s just the first time. Don’t take it to heart.”
“I know. It’s just...I don’t really know what to do, you know? Never met my boyfriend’s kids before.” A quiet laugh leaves him before he dips down, pressing his lips to your own in a quick kiss.
“I love you,” He turns around and heads to the door, knowing that you’re probably going to end up cleaning something else. Part of him wonders if he should have you leave and come back in half an hour but that seems stupid. So he shakes his head and opens the door, looking back at you and smiling. “Please, try and relax a little.”
“Okay. Love you.”
-
Pulling into the driveway, Hoseok takes a deep breath to fortify his nerves before glancing into the mirror to check on the twins in the backseat. His parents had, as expected, spoilt all three and the twin’s were coming home with Funko figures each to put on their shelves while Soo-ah had a ridiculously thick book of horse breeds.
One day, he worried that he might be expected to buy her a horse. He didn’t like horses, and he certainly didn’t want to own one. You were currently convincing him to let her have horse riding lessons and he was considering it as her Christmas present, but he still worried immensely that she would get hurt.
Still, she was slowly proving that it wasn’t a phase and he knew that he was going to have to relent sooner rather than later. He didn’t want to be the dad who stifled her passions and dreams, even if it could potentially cause interest.
“Okay everyone, we’re back. Now...as I said before, Y/N is already here. She helped me to make dinner and clean the house for you guys! So it’s all clean. Ideally, I’d like you to keep it clean but I know you rascals,” He eyes the twins at that and they both give him identical toothy grins. “Are probably going to mess it all up.”
“Grandma was excited.” Ji-eun blurts out, her expression mischievous as if she was fully aware that she was tattling on his own mother. He can’t help the smile that spreads as he imagines his mom gushing to them. She’d spent years now trying to get him to finally move on, so needless to say, she’d been beyond ecstatic when he’d told her last week that he was going to introduce the girls to you.
“Grandma needs to learn to keep her nose out,” He mused quietly before laughing. “Anyway, I’m just going to ask one last time...please be good for me? Be on your best behaviour and be polite. You don’t have to like her, but I did not raise rude girls, right?” 
The stern look he gives the twins causes them to give him carefully blank faces as they nod slowly. He eyes them for a moment longer, knowing that trouble was never far with them, before turning to Soo-ah. She sits next to him in the passenger seat quietly, arms wrapped around the book and her hair in low pigtails.
“Soo-ah?” She tenses slightly when he says her name before looking at him, her brown eyes filled with so many emotions he didn’t understand. But despite all that, she nods slowly while her lips purse out.
Before he can say anything else, the twins are rushing out of the car and bolting over towards the door. He swore under his breath before getting out of the car himself, watching with resignation as they rush inside.
Looking back at Soo-ah, he sees her quietly getting out and closing the door in a much more gentler fashion than her excitable sisters. Hoseok can’t help but walk over to her, crouching down and looking up at her as he takes one of her hands gently between his own. The fact he has to look up at her now while crouching makes him sad, yet he’s so proud of her too.
“Soo-soo...if you don’t want to do this then you can tell me. You don’t have to meet her. I can ask her to go home, or I can take you back to your grandparents if you want. I’m not going to force you to do something that you don’t want to do, okay?” The only sounds for a few moments are the chirping of the birds in the trees that line the street and a car engine in the distance.
“It’s okay dad. She can stay. I’ll meet her.” His brow creases and he reaches up to run his hand down her hair slowly.
“Are you sure?” One more time, just to make doubly sure because he knows his daughter well. And he knows that she’s not entirely happy, but what can he do when she’s verbally telling him it’s okay? He’s giving plenty of chances for her to back out and he wouldn’t be mad at her. Sad, yes, but not angry. 
“Yes daddy.” And with that, she heads into the house as well. He’s left to stand there, face grimaced as he wonders if he should just call it all off. But then he suddenly realises that you’re on your own in there, with his daughters.
“Shit.” He curses and runs inside, faltering in the doorway that leads into the living room. The twins are sat on the couch while Soo-ah is in the arm chair, all three quiet and looking at you like you’re something fascinating. They’re pretty relaxed whereas you’re stiff as a board in the doorway to the kitchen, a brittle smile on your face that turns into one of relief when you see him.
“Hey err...we’re back? Obviously.  Erm, okay well. Girls, this is Y/N, my...girlfriend,” He doesn’t really know if he’s meant to be introducing you as that or just his friend, but they’d already figured it out the other night anyway. “Y/N, this is my eldest daughter, Soo-ah. And this is Ji-soo with her hair down and Ji-eun with her hair in a ponytail.”
“Hello Y/N.” The twins said at the same time, their voices light and whimsical and he almost hisses at how creepy they sound. They’re doing it purposefully, he can see the shine in their eyes because they know people find it weird when they do that. Soo-ah simply gives a polite hello of her own, dipping her head ever so slightly in welcome.
“Hi...erm,” He can tell that you’re struggling to say something and he so desperately wants to go over and place a reassuring arm around you. But he can’t, because he feels he should be with the girls instead. “It’s nice to meet you all. Your dad has told me so much about you.”
The sudden ringing of an alarm in the kitchen interrupts whatever else you were about to say and Hoseok jerks, eyes glancing behind you to the room. “Okay, girls...clean up and then come to the table. Be quick, we’re having lasagne.”
That gets a bright smile from all three as they jump up and rush towards the bathroom situated downstairs, eager to wash their hands before going into the dining room. You’d set the table earlier for him once he’d shown you where everything was and even now, you were helping him by bringing some of the food into the room.
His daughters were smiling in delight as he served the lasagne out to them, his own stomach rumbling at the smell and he realised belatedly that neither you nor him had eaten since breakfast. The plate you place down with garlic bread is soon emptied, with Hoseok making sure to grab two pieces and place one on your own plate.
It’s odd, having five people at the table instead of three, he thinks to himself as he sits down after handing you the plate with your own lasagne. All of them are used to it being just the four of them, with Soo-ah normally sitting next to Hoseok while the twins sit opposite. But today, Hoseok is sat at the end of the table with Soo-ah next to him on the right while you’re next to him on the left. 
It unnerves him a little, taking this weird head of the table position but he doesn’t mention it as he takes a mouthful of lasagne. A quiet hum of appreciation comes from you and he glances over, chewing and smiling at the way your eyes close in delight.
“Daddy! Ji-soo has more than me!” Ji-eun complains before shrieking as her sister pinches her arm. Already, Hoseok has visions of a full fight blowing up between the two because if they’re not being sweet with each other then they’re having astonishing fights and Ji-eun is already turning around to retaliate.
“Hey! What did I say earlier? Best behaviour. Do not fight.” Hoseok hisses at them, eyes narrowing as he gestures a finger at them. Both girls slump down in their chairs, sauce covered lips pursing as they glare at each other. 
And then, as always with their contradictory nature, Ji-soo carefully cuts a piece of lasagne and places it on her sister’s plate without a word. Ji-eun smiles happily and eats it, doing a little butt wiggle dance in her seat in victory and Hoseok has to fight the urge to laugh at them.
Glancing at you, he notes your widened eyes at his sudden rebuke and his cheeks heat up. “Sorry. You get used to it. They’re either working together to cause trouble or they’re fighting with each other.”
You nod slowly at his explanation before a wry smile spreads, eyes flicking back over to the girls who are now sat being good as gold. “It’s okay. I had a friend in high school who was a twin. They had the worst fights but you did not want to come between them. It must be nice to have someone who will always be there for you.”
“You know someone with a twin too?!” Ji-soo exclaims loudly, her pretty eyes going wide with astonishment and Hoseok doesn’t even bother to stop his laugh this time. They’d never met any other twins before and they knew from people’s reactions that they were pretty special.
“I did! I’m not friends with them anymore but she had a twin brother, not a sister like you two. They had a special language that they would talk in and only they understood it.” At that, Ji-eun is the one to squeal in excitement as she claps her hands.
“We do! Daddy hates it when we do.” He grumbles good naturedly at that, pointing at them with his fork before taking another bite of lasagne with a grin. 
“Yeah, it was very strange listening to them. But that’s special though, it means that only you two will ever be able to understand it so it’s something that only you share.” They nod slowly, smiling brightly at your encouragement and his heart warms at how they seem to be pretty accepting of you so far.
His eyes flicker to Soo-ah who’s eating methodically, keeping quiet. She’s always been a quiet girl, but he feels like the silence is more oppressive this time and he chews slowly, wondering how to get her involved too.
You’re talking to the twins now about your favourite Marvel movie, because he’d told you all about their love of the superhero genre and it was a pretty easy way to win favour with them. It seemed to be working too, as Ji-soo was sidling up to you as close as she could get in her chair, her eyes stern with concentration as she discusses in her five-year-old language why she thinks that Black Panther is the best movie.
Which is then countered by Ji-eun’s outraged shout as she disagrees vehemently, proclaiming that the best film is obviously Captain Marvel because she’s a girl and she’s cool and powerful. It leaves him to smile as he rolls his eyes, you throwing your own hat into the ring with the suggestion that your own favourite film is the first Avengers.
He contemplates if he should have warned you about the fact that they’ll never stop talking now that you’ve shown an interest in their favourite subject ever. At least he’d never really mentioned their second passion lately which was Pokemon. 
Admittedly, he was on board with both of these passions but he’d spent so long now discussing them with two overly eager daughters that the very subjects inspired more of a sigh than excitement. Though he would still be taking them to see every film that came out.
“Soo-ah, did you know that Y/N goes horse riding? She even used to do show jumping in high school.” He gestures towards you with an overly bright smile, hoping that discussing his eldest’s favourite passion would encourage her to engage with you in the same way.
All he gets is a sullen look and a shrug before she puts another forkful in her mouth. Despair fills him momentarily but he’s surprised when you take the initiative and take up the conversation he’d suggested. He hadn’t even realised you were listening to him.
“I did! I used to go to competitions on the weekends with my horse, Artemis. She was a really good jumper but I wasn’t very good with her unfortunately. We never really won anything but it was just for fun. Now I just ride whenever I get time. Artemis is pretty old now so we just go trail riding.” Hoseok smiles as your eyes light up as you discuss your horse.
He knew that you were expecting to lose her any time now and it would probably hugely devastate you. After all, you’d had her since you were only 14 and she was still here, 17 years later.
“Cool.” Is the only response he gets from his daughter and he has to bite his tongue in frustration. He’d known that she was going to be the hard one to crack, but he didn’t think she was going to be this cold about it all.
“I think you’d like Artemis, Soo-soo. She’s a...Dutch Warmblood?” He looks at you in question, relieved when you nod in confirmation before he’s smiling back at his daughter. “You told me about those, right? They’re supposed to be really good at that kind of stuff? Maybe, if you want, Y/N will let you ride her.” 
“Of course, she’s really sweet and she’d be good for someone who’s never ridden. She’s old now but as long as you’re not mean with her then she’d be happy to take you round a ring. I think that you’d find her very pretty. She used to be dapple grey but is now just pretty much white.” You say with a smile, turning your head as Ji-soo asks if she can ride too.
“I don’t care.” Soo-ah says suddenly, her voice firm and raised and Hoseok looks at her sharply. Her cheeks are flushed while her brows dip inwards, annoyance and anger written all over her face. “I don’t care about your stupid horse or your stupid riding. I don’t care!”
The silence at the table is awkward after that and Hoseok feels numb, unsure what he’s supposed to do to resolve this situation. So he carefully places his cutlery down on his cleared plate and coughs quietly, giving Soo-ah a smile.
“Soo-ah, sweetheart. It’s okay-” He’s cut off immediately though, as if a switch has been flipped in her.
“Stop saying that! It’s not going to be okay! Because she’s going to come here and ruin everything! You’re going to forget about mom and we have to accept her! I won’t! I don’t care about you! I hate you!” She spat viciously at you but despite her anger, there’s tears brimming in her eyes and Hoseok has never felt more helpless. “I don’t want to talk to you! My dad might love you but I won’t! I never will! I love my mom!”
And with that, she slams her chair out of the way and storms out of the room. The thundering of her feet on the stairs as she runs to her room is soon followed by the resounding slam of her bedroom door and Hoseok feels stunned.
Blinking for a few moments, he watches as the twins faces crease slightly and he can see the tears in their own eyes as uncertainty and fear fills them. They glance between him, you and the doorway and he knows they don’t know what to do.
Are they supposed to be angry with you too, like their sister? He doesn’t want that, and so he clears his tight throat and smiles at them both, a little stiff but they still relax a little.
“It’s okay. Soo-ah’s...not happy about me bringing Y/N here. And she’s allowed to feel that, I’m not mad at her,” Okay, so he was a little bit as she’d just been incredibly rude and mean but it was already fading because most importantly, he understood her. “If you aren’t happy either, then you can tell me. It’s okay.”
Ji-soo looks at him, her beautiful brown eyes shining with unshed tears that she wipes away with a firm hand before shaking her head. “I’m okay daddy. Is Soo-ah okay?”
“She...will be. I’m sure. She’s just...it’s hard for her.” He smiles slightly, moving into Soo-ah’s chair to brush a few strands of hair out of Ji-eun’s face as she watches him quietly. Without even saying anything, she shuffles closer and leans against his side.
“Because she had mommy right?” The question is quiet and his throat feels so tight that it’s hard to swallow. They may only be five, but his twins are so smart and caring.
“Yeah, because she had mommy. So she remembers her, and she’s just worried. But we’re not gonna forget about mommy. She will always be important, okay?” He presses his lips to Ji-eun’s head, kissing her hair before looking at Ji-soo and giving her a reassuring smile.
They’re both quiet for a moment before nodding, and his heart swells with emotion as Jisoo turns to you and takes your hand in her own small ones. “It’s okay. We like you.”
He doesn’t get to see your reaction as he’s looking back at the doorway, wondering if he should go to her and check that she’s doing okay or just let her cool down. On the one hand, he doesn’t want her to feel suffocated when she’s obviously upset but at the same time, he doesn’t want her to feel like he’s abandoning her.
“Go.” You whisper and he looks back sharply, catching your eye as you gesture your head to the door. “It’s okay. Go.”
He stands up and goes to make a move before hesitating, uncertainty in him. You give him another nod and he lets out a deep sigh as his shoulders fall.
“I’ll be right back,” Hoseok smiles awkwardly, mouth stiff as he avoids your eyes. “Be good girls okay? I’ll be back in a few minutes.” He bends down and kisses the twin’s heads, taking in their expression to make sure they’re okay and feeling a bit of relief as their faces are cautiously neutral.
“It’s okay Hoseok, go check on her. I’ll be okay. I’m sure that we can find something fun to do, right?” You give him a tight smile, nerves evident as you look back at the twins with tentative hope. They’d reacted pretty well to Soo-ah’s outburst but he was worried that they might be mean while he was gone. But you give him a ‘go’ look and he knows that you can look after yourself.
So he heads out, feeling a little bad that he’s leaving the table but he has to at least check on Soo-ah. He isn’t sure if he’s supposed to be ignoring her or not but that feels wrong in his gut. She’s already worried about things he doesn’t even know yet, he’d rather not add to that by not coming to see her. At least she knows that her dad is always there for her, even when she doesn’t want him.
Her door is firmly closed and he stands outside it for a moment, hands clenching and unclenching as he’s unsure what to do now. This isn’t a conversation he really knows how to have, but he takes it as a positive really. It at least means that her life since Yoo-jin’s death hasn’t been too tumultuous. 
Taking a deep breath, he raps his knuckles against the door quietly and leans forward, his ear almost pressed to the door. “Soo-ah? It’s dad...are you okay?”
Silence answers him and his stomach sinks. He desperately wants to go in and comfort her, make her smile or just talk to her about her concerns but he’s been very clear over the years about their personal space. A closed door means that he can’t enter without their permission.
It might seem a little extreme given young they all are, but as the only male in the house he felt it was necessary to set those boundaries. When their door was closed, he wouldn’t go in unless invited. They’d grown to be pretty respectful of that for him as well and he was immensely relieved at the high levels of trust they all had with each other all ready.
They needed to know that they had a space that was private and safe, only for them. Which is why he lets out yet another deep sigh, his forehead resting against the white painted wood. It’s at moments like this that he wishes Yoo-jin were still here, so that she can help.
A flash of guilt runs through him then, both for wishing that she was alive when it meant he wouldn’t be with you but also because he is here with his daughters and Yoo-jin isn’t. Swallowing, he pushes that thought away before trying again.
“Soo-soo...I’m not...I’m not mad at you. I know you, and I know that you’re not mean or cruel. You’re just...I know this is confusing for you, and it’s hard. I’m not angry, and neither is Y/N. We understand, but I wish you’d talk to me. Please, let me know what’s upsetting you exactly.” Hoseok really isn’t sure what he’s meant to be saying to her but he’s speaking the truth; he isn’t mad with her.
He was at first, when the biting words spilled out of her. Firstly because he was simply shocked that his daughter could be that rude and mean but then secondly because he’d seen the hurt that had flashed over your face at her blunt rejection. But that had gone quickly when he’d seen the film of tears that had glazed over his little girl’s eyes and he’d known that she only lashing out because she was confused and scared.
“Soo-soo…” His voice trailed off, uncertainty over what to do when he heard noises from inside and his heart jumped a little. 
“Go away dad,” Soo-ah’s voice was strained and he could practically hear the tears, causing his face to grimace as his paternal instincts screamed at him to go to his hurting daughter. “Leave me alone.”
“Soo-ah...sweetheart…”
“Go away!” The words are shrill and he closes his eyes, feeling his whole body drain of energy as he recognises a losing battle. Well, no one can say he didn’t at least try. And at least he’s come to her, even if she doesn’t want him there. It’s not even one of those scenarios where she’s telling him to go away but he can tell she actually wants him there.
This is one of those times when she evidently wants to be left alone. So he will, for now at least.
“Okay Soo-ah, I’ll go. But I’m downstairs if you need me. Just come, or call, and I’ll come up okay? I’m not mad, you can talk to me,” He rests his hand on the door, trying to push through his love and affection to her. “I love you.”
With that, he lets his shoulders slump in defeat, waiting a few moments longer to see if she would come out before walking back down the hall. As much as he’d love to sit and wait her out, he has two other daughters that he needs to be worrying about. Two twin five-year-old’s, actually, who he’s left alone with you.
The realisation causes him to pause, eyes widening as he realises the carnage he could have potentially left you with. They’re handfuls with him, and he at least has the authority to ground them or tell them off. He can’t even imagine how easily they’re running you around.
Rushing down the stairs, he moves into the dining room only to pause in confusion, noting the suspiciously clean table. Heading through to the kitchen, he hears the dishwasher running and is even more confused.
The girl’s don’t know how to use the dishwasher, which must mean that you’d put them in there for him. Guilt rises immediately as he realises that you’ve cleaned up dinner for him, giving him one less thing to do. He appreciates it, but at the same time, he can’t help but think his mom would be scolding him right now.
You’re a guest in his house. Therefore, you should not be cleaning up after yourself. He should be doing that for you.
A sudden peal of bright, girlish laughter from the living room distracts him and he headed through the doorway in pursuit of it. The scene he comes across makes him pause in surprise, head tilting for a moment before a smile spreads and he rests his shoulder against the frame.
None of them have seen him yet, but the twins had you down on the floor with them as they showed you their expansive toy collection. Currently, they had the whole set of Avengers dolls along with others he’d bought for them from the Marvel collection. They were most definitely superhero girls, and currently they were fighting over who got to play as Captain Marvel.
Despite the fact they had three versions of her, but he’d discovered over the years that if one of them wanted something then the other wanted it twice as much. You were sat between them both, a bemused smile on your face as you held a Shuri and Black Panther doll in each hand, looking them over intently.
“Hey, hey! Come on now, let’s not fight, yeah? How about...neither of you be Captain Marvel because you’re both fighting? Why not be someone else? Shuri’s really cool,” You wiggle the doll with a grin, brows raising as you raise her arms up and pretend to fire lasers like in the film. “And then we’ve also got Nebula!”
“Nebula’s bad!” Ji-soo pouted, flopping down onto her butt and crossing her arms. Ji-eun pushed her immediately, laughing loudly as her sister fell over.
“Nebula’s cool! I wanna be her.” She grabbed the doll from you quickly and grinned up at you, pushing the sheet of black hair out of her eyes and behind her ear. He really did need to get their hair cut. It was a mess of tangles as usual right now, causing him to sigh as he knew how much of a struggle it was to get them to sit still and have their hair brushed.
“Nuh-uh, Shuri’s the best. She’s smart. I’m smarter than you.” Hoseok has to bite his lower lip to keep the chuckle inside that so desperately wants to escape as he watches your face fall slightly as they begin to fight once more. Welcome to his world, he thinks to himself, fully amused.
“Hey now, what have I told you both about fighting?” He says sternly, heading into the room and standing over them both with raised brows. There’s absolutely no need to look at you, because he’s fully aware that he’s using his dad voice right. 
And he was equally aware of your thoughts about his ‘dad’ voice, given all the times he’d been on the phone with you and suddenly had to to tell them off, or when he’d given them their goodnight call when they were with their grandparents. It had made him embarrassed at first, to realise his voice changed that much but you’d just been thoroughly amused.
Ji-soo immediately smiles at him, rushing up to her feet and running over to him with Shuri clasped tightly in her hand. He laughed loudly and came back over with her, small hand clasped tightly in his own as she directed him to sit on the floor next to you. Looking over at you with a small smile, he leans over and whispers to you.
“Thank you for cleaning up, but you really didn’t have to.”
“Hoseok, I was alone with twin five-year-old’s that I don’t know. When I’m anxious, I clean. Besides, it wasn’t any trouble and they wanted to help.” His brows rose at that and he looked back at the twin’s, taking in the sloping noses that resembled his own so strongly.
“Wow...so it’s just daddy that you won’t help, huh?” Pressing a hand to his chest, he pouts dramatically in a wounded tone that has Ji-eun giggling as she launches herself at him and settles in his lap. She’s getting too big to be doing this, but he won’t complain. One day, she won’t do it all.
“Daddy said we have to be good.” His heart warmed at that and an immense flush of pride swelled deep within, pressing a kiss to her head in pure paternal love. Glancing back at you, his cheeks flushed slightly at the look of adoration you give him and he just knows that you’re internally screaming at his interaction.
“So. If you’re Nebula, and Ji-soo is Shuri...then what can Y/N and I be? What about...if I’m Captain Marvel?” Ji-eun gasps loudly, shaking her head furiously and he splutters out a mouthful of hair as her ponytail smacks him firmly in the face.
“No daddy! You can’t. You have to be Iron Man!” He lets out another gasp, not actually bothered because Iron Man was cool but he’d actually wanted to be Captain Marvel. The film was great, sue him.
“Why? Because I’m a boy!” Yet he doesn’t push away the Iron Man doll, he calls them dolls purely because figurine is probably too hard for them to say to right now. The red and gold figurine is well used, scratches and dents marring the plastic surface from the intense playing they’d given him over the years.
Which included seeing if he could fly by throwing him out of the window onto the drive. That would have just gotten an eye roll from him normally, except they’d thrown him with some force and he’d landed firmly on Hoseok’s car. Who would have known that such a small toy would cause such a scratch on the windscreen?
“No daddy, because Y/N can be Pepper.” Ji-soo hands you a doll, smaller than the others and from the Iron Man 3 film but just as good. You take it from her with a gracious smile but he can see the confusion in your eyes as to why you have to be Pepper Potts and not one of the other superheroes. 
He doesn’t even think to question the fact that his kids that are doing that odd thing where they both seem to know exactly what the other is thinking. 
“Why Pepper? Why can’t she be Captain Marvel if I can’t?” Playfully, he pushes at the doll in Ji-eun’s hands and she giggles sweetly, looking up at him with those warm brown eyes that he loves so dearly.
“Because Iron Man loves Pepper, and you love Y/N.” Well...there’s not much room for argument there really. His cheeks once more flush red as he steadfastly avoids your eyes, oddly embarrassed at his daughters for outing him so thoroughly to you. You knew he loved you obviously, but the easy acceptance with which they react makes him feel a little odd. 
He doesn’t really know why, but he pushes it away and takes a deep breath. “Okay sweetpea. Now then...what bad guy are we fighting?” 
-
Soo-ah doesn’t come down for the rest of the night, nor does she let Hoseok into her room whenever he comes to check on her. It fills him with worry and he knows that he spends most of the night looking at the ceiling in anxiety.
He knows that, because he’s had more than a few comforting touches or smiles from you throughout the evening. An hour of playing with the twins had soon turned into them sitting with both Hoseok and you on the couch while episodes of Pokemon played on the flat screen television.
They seemed to have got along with you pretty well, and while they certainly weren’t being overly accommodating, they had been open enough that he got the impression that everything was going to be pretty okay with them. You had enough common interests with them to keep them entertained and he had the added benefit of them both being influenced by each other.
So if one really liked you, then the other would come around soon.
Ji-soo in particular seemed to be the one that he suspected would latch onto you with a few more visits. She was already more than enamoured in the stories you’d told her of the places that you’d been over the years and he wondered if you knew that you were probably going to end up with two little shadows soon enough.
After a few episodes of Pokemon, he’d put on Detective Pikachu at Ji-eun’s request because you hadn’t seen it before and they found that to be a complete travesty. It had been around 8pm then and he was being generous in letting them stay up later than he normally would in honour of your visit.
The first hour of the film had involved you having to spend more time listening to the running commentary from the twin’s as they explained important plot points, or what they was important, and point out every little thing. He was pretty sure that you hadn’t actually been able to properly watch any of it, and he made a mental note to watch it again with you at a later date.
And then everything had gone silent. He’d been so invested in his own thoughts and worry about Soo-ah that he hadn’t even noticed until the credits were rolling and no one had complained about it.
Turning his head, he couldn’t help the smile that spread over his face as he took in the sight next to him. Something he probably hadn’t expected to happen for months, but evidently all three were more tired than he’d anticipated.
Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he quietly unlocked it and turned on the camera before taking a picture. Staring at his screen, he grinned and set it to his home screen and placed his phone on the arm of the couch.
Ji-eun was curled up next to her sister, her head resting on Ji-soo’s shoulder until their hair blended together perfectly. Ji-soo on the other hand, was curled up into your side, your arm resting around them both while your head had fallen back against the couch, all three sleeping quietly and he felt a ridiculous amount of warmth and love for you all.
Carefully, he stood up and lifted Ji-eun up as slowly as he could so as not to wake her. She made a soft little noise of complaint in his arms but didn’t stir, not until he was shifting her bed covers until he could get her beneath them. Ideally, he’d like to get her into her pyjamas and have her brush her teeth, but he knew that if he tried to wake her then he’d just have grumpiness followed by an inability to sleep for another few hours.
So this time, he’d let them sleep in their clothes. 
He repeated the same actions with Ji-soo before giving them both a kiss on the head and whispering good night to them, turning off the lamp in their room and closing the door behind him while their night light glowed warmly. Heading back downstairs, he was left with the sight of you fast asleep on the couch.
Hoseok realised that he really, really liked the sight of you in his home like this. It was an odd feeling and he shook his head, moving into the kitchen and looking in the fridge. The dish of lasagne had been left on the side, some foil covering it as it had cooled and he looked inside casually.
There was one slice left, and without a word he put it into a small tupperware tub before heading back into the living room. Crouching down next to you, he placed his hand on your knee and pushed gently while calling out your name to wake you.
A quiet groan left you as you blinked blearily, eyes glazed until they focused on him. They were blank for a moment before filling with warmth as he smiled up at you. Glancing to the side, you frowned slightly at the missing girls and he laughed slightly, standing up and taking your hand to pull you up.
You wobbled slightly, leaning your weight against him as you got your balance but he took care of that by wrapping his arms around your shoulders and hugging you to him tightly. Neither said anything for a few minutes, just simply enjoying the feeling of being in each others arms and he wished that you didn’t have to go.
“Tonight was...good. I love the twins already, they’re...characters,” You chuckle against his chest and he can’t help but laugh in return as he nods. “But sweet. I really like them. And who knew you were this good at cooking hmm? Really got myself a man who can do it all huh?”
His cheeks burn bright red then as he makes a few protesting noises but you shush him loudly, leaning your chin on his chest to look up at him with an adoring expression. “I love you. Your family...is wonderful. I can feel the love between you all, it’s...really nice. Even with Soo-ah. I was a bit awkward but I can understand why she feels like that. I hope that she can come round to me.”
“I’m sure she will. One day. I’m not going to push her though. I feel bad about it because I knew she wasn’t okay with it, but she kept telling me she was. Maybe I moved too fast with it all.” You shake your head in response, tightening your arms around him and pressing a kiss to his chest.
“She’s a big girl, and if she tells you that she’s okay with something then you have to take her at face value sometimes. We all do things that we don’t really want to do. I get the feeling that she was trying for you and at least the ice is broken now. If she refuses to have anything to do with me then...that’s within her rights I guess. At least I’ve met her. Don’t beat yourself up about it, please.” He lets out a bone deep sigh before nodding slowly.
“Okay. Thank you. For today...everything. I...despite the thing with Soo-ah, I’m really happy. Like...really, I’m so glad that the twins seem to like you a lot.” Pulling away from him, you grin as you head out into the hallway and grab your jacket and bag.
“I’m glad that you’re happy. You deserve some happiness too Hoseok, remember that.” Nodding, he catches sight of one of the photographs of Yoo-jin on the wall and swallows thickly. You were right, he did deserve to be happy as well. Yoo-jin wouldn’t want him to wallow forever.
“Oh, you can take the last of the lasagne. This is not going to get eaten unless it’s by me having midnight munchies, and I do not need the extra weight.” Patting his stomach, he held out the container which you took with a bemused expression.
“You make out like you’re overweight Hoseok. You’re not. You’re cuddly sized.” The teasing in your voice causes him to roll his eyes but he just accepts you hug once more, the muffled thanks from you taken in gratitude as he takes a deep inhale of you.
“Be safe. Drive carefully. Text me when you get home.” You exaggeratedly agree to all of his demands before he lets you go, standing in the open door as you turn to him and pull him down into a goodbye kiss. It maybe goes on a little too long, but he doesn’t care.
“I love you.”
“I love you too. Text me.” He says sternly, wagging a finger in your direction as you head over to your car in the darkness.
“Yes dad!”
“Don’t start that again!” But his protest is pointless as you just laugh and get into your car, reversing out of his drive and pulling away. He watches until he can’t see your tail lights anymore before heading back in and locking the door behind him.
His usual nightly routine is followed after that, but after he brushed his teeth and had done his business in the bathroom, he heads back over to Soo-ah’s door and knocks lightly. There’s no answer, and he wonders if she’s gone to sleep.
It makes his heart hurt to think that he can’t resolve this tonight with her, but he decides that he’s going to try and heal the rift between them tomorrow. He has to. He can’t go on with his little girl being mad at him.
After a few more minutes of silence, he sighed heavily and turns off the light before heading into his own bedroom. He spends half an hour beneath the covers of his bed, scrolling through social media and the news on his phone. You haven’t texted him yet, and worry fills him when suddenly, a light knock reverberates around the room.
Sitting up suddenly, he frowns and calls out for whoever it is to come in. The door opens slowly and he’s met with Soo-ah, dressed in her pyjamas and her hair still in the pigtails from earlier. She looks shy and hesitant, her gaze on the floor as one hand crosses over the stomach, holding the doorknob firmly.
“Can I come in daddy?” Immediately he’s nodding, opening his arms to her and she quietly closes the door behind her before rushing over, climbing onto the bed and burying herself in his arms. Even in the dim light of his bedside lamp, he’d recognised the swollen red eyes of someone who has spent a long time crying and he coos to her softly as she wraps her arms around him tightly.
Laying back on the bed, he pulls her with him and kisses her head. “Soo-soo, what’s wrong? I’m not mad at you.”
“Really? I was mean though.” Her voice is more childlike than he’s ever heard it and his heart tugs for her.
“Yeah, I’m not mad. I mean...I wish you hadn’t been mean, but I know that it’s a tough situation for you. Y/N wasn’t mad either. I just...I wish that you would have told me that you didn’t want to and I would have told her to go home. You’re important to me Soo-ah, your comfort is important.” He whispers to her.
“I was okay with it, I swear. I was worried, because I don’t want her to take mom’s place. But I know you like her. And you’ve always been alone,” She pauses, burying her face in his chest while her small arms squeeze him tighter. “I tried, but...I just...I was angry. She’s pretty and smart and funny, and you look at her all funny and it made me angry because she’s not mom.”
Hoseok blinks a few times, trying to stop himself from crying as she blurts out all of her inner feelings. He can’t even imagine how hard this has all been for her, but he lets her continue.
“I want mom, I want mom because she’s pretty and smart and funny too but mom is dead so I can’t have her. But if you’re single then she’s still here. Y/N means that she’s not here anymore, because Y/N will be here and you’ll take down her pictures and then she’ll be our mom but she’s not our mom!” Her words are fast and staccato, not really making too much sense but he doesn’t say anything about it. She’s only ten, and she’s just worried and upset about everything.
“And the twins were being so nice and they didn’t seem to care! I just wanted to scream at them! What about mom! Why does no one remember mom?!” A hiccup soon turns into a sob then and he hugs her tighter to him, letting her cry out her frazzled emotions.
“No one is going to forget mom, okay? I’m not going to forget her and she’s not going to disappear from this house. She will always be here, because you and your sisters are here. There were always be pictures of her in the house for you and I will always talk to you about her, whenever you want. I miss your mom so much, and I still love her. My relationship with Y/N doesn’t mean that she’s going to be forgotten, because she isn't. She is important to all of us and Y/N knows that. She doesn’t want to take your mom’s place, because that place is your mom’s, like I said before.” Pressing a kiss to her head again, he swallows and contemplates how to continue.
“I won’t ever expect you to call Y/N mom, and neither will she. I know you Soo-ah, and I know this is hard for you. Harder than for the twins, because you got five with your mom. But don’t be mad at them. They don’t know any different than it just being us four. They never got to have mom with them, so to them this is all new. I just...I love you all, and I don’t want to hurt any of you.” The final sentence is whispered and he feels more than a little despair.
Silence falls between them for a while before Soo-ah speaks once more.
“Tell me about mommy. Was she nice?” He’s nodding before he even realises it, flicking through his memories of the 7 years he had with Yoo-jin before finding a story for her. And so for the next hour, he proceeds to regale his daughter with all the stories of her mom that she’d never heard before. Stories he’d forgotten over time, but now remembered so vividly.
Glancing at the photograph on the other bedside table of her, his heart hurts as he remembers his beautiful wife. Kissing Soo-ah’s forehead, he smiles down at her.
“You look just like your mom. I know that she’d be so proud of you, you’re such a good girl. I know that she loves you a lot, just like I do. Don’t ever doubt that, okay? No matter what happens, I love you and your mom loves you too.” Soo-ah’s eyes fill with tears once more and she sniffles.
“I’m sorry daddy. I’m sorry I was mean to Y/N. I don’t hate her.” He laughs softly, pulling her back into a bear hug and squeezing her until she giggles, the sound making his heart soar.
“I know you don’t. I know you Soo-soo, and you’ve got too big of a heart to ever hate anyone. She knows that too.” Soo-ah quietens after that and he hums lightly, some song he heard a long time ago but can’t remember the name of. It seems to be working as Soo-ah’s eyes droop closed and she fights desperately to stay awake.
“Tell her I’m sorry. I’ll be nice next time. I swear,” She mutters, voice thick with sleep and he grins and acknowledges it. “Will she still let me ride her horse?”
He desperately wants to laugh at that and part of him wonders how much of this is because she wants to ride a horse. But he’s not going to look a gift horse in the mouth, pun fully intended. He would give Artemis a big, juicy carrot whenever he saw her.
“She’d be happy to. If you want to, then I’ll let her teach you how to ride as well.” A tiny noise of happiness leaves his daughters mouth but she doesn’t say anything further, eyes closing finally before she’s fallen fast asleep.
He doesn’t expect this to be the last time she’ll have an issue with him dating you, in fact he fully expects more issues as she comes to terms with her feelings regarding the whole thing. But at least she came to him and told him what was upsetting her. And more than that, she had apologised for her behaviour. He wanted to apologise to her as well for putting her into the situation, but instead he was just going to have to make sure that he paid more attention next time.
For ten minutes, he simply enjoys the happiness he feels from the reconciliation with his daughter and the exultation he feels at the fact he’s not having to go to sleep with her angry at him. Finally though, he gets up and carefully takes her to her own bed, musing to himself how he ended up doing this with every daughter tonight when he hasn’t had to put Soo-ah to bed like this in years now.
When he gets back to his own, he sees the message icon on his phone blinking and eagerly jumps back into bed, turning the screen on to see that you had finally texted him.
[9:31pm] Y/N: I’m home :)
[9:31pm] Y/N: I stopped at the store and they had a 2 for 1 on your shampoo. 
[9:32pm] Y/N: You can keep one here and take the other home :)
[9:32pm] Y/N: Also bought a candy bar. I’m eating it now. Mmmm
He grins at your texts and shakes his head before his fingers are flying across the screen, typing out his own response.
[9:35pm] Hoseok: Mean, you know I can’t eat candy
[9:36pm] Y/N: We established that was a lie yesterday Mr Jung
[9:36pm] Hoseok: :(
[9:36pm] Y/N: I’d share my candy with you :)
[9:37pm] Hoseok: Ha. Thanks. For the shampoo too <3
[9:37pm] Hoseok: I just put Soo-ah to bed. She came to me. Told me why she was mad. She says sorry
[9:38pm] Y/N: She doesn’t need to apologise! She’s allowed to be mad. Is she okay?
[9:38pm] Hoseok: Yeah, it was exactly what I thought. Worried about her mom. I just have to make sure she knows I won’t forget her
[9:39pm] Y/N: You won’t. I don’t want to take her place. Even though I kind of am but you get what I mean
[9:40pm] Hoseok: I do. And I love you for it
[9:40pm] Y/N: I love you too
[9:41pm] Hoseok: She also wants to know if you’ll still let her ride Artemis
[9:42pm] Y/N: Lol, of course! 
[9:42pm] Hoseok: Kinda said you’d teach her how to ride too
[9:43pm] Y/N: Haha, again, of course. I’d be happy to for you :) and the twins if they want
[9:43pm] Hoseok: Thank you. I’m gonna sleep now. I love you <3
[9:43pm] Y/N: I love you too <3
He grins at the final message before placing his phone on the bedside table and looking at the picture of Yoo-jin and him on his own table. Smiling softly, he reaches out and brings it closer to him, rubbing his thumb over her face beneath the glass.
“I hope you’re okay with this baby. I’m sorry you can’t be here, I wish you were. I hope you’re not mad at me for being with Y/N. I think you’d approve though, I really love her a lot already and she makes me so happy. I miss you, but I hope you’re okay with me moving on. I won’t forget you though, like I told Soo-ah.” Placing the frame back on the table, he turns off the lamp and curls up beneath the covers with a sigh before drifting off to sleep, his dreams filled with his daughters, you and Yoo-jin as a happy family together.
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laughing-with-god · 6 years
Text
Pen Pal II
Words; 4.6k
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“I love you so much that nothing could matter to me- not even you...only my love- not your answer.  Not even your indifference.”
Reincarnation was an interesting theory, you decided.  
It was a philosophy that held the utmost importance upon karma and charity.  In a way, it made sense. If you did something good in a past life, you should be rewarded in the next one with good fortune.  This mindset explained how some of us seem to have been born under the worst circumstances that was only added on by very odd and horrid luck that appeared in the form of people or situations.  While others have the rare ability to just waltz past life without a single hitch to hinder their enjoyment.
You deduced that you must’ve been a very wicked person in the life prior to this one.  
That could be a grand explanation for the awful series of events that have been striked upon you by an outside force whom is hell-bent on making you pay for crimes you weren’t aware you committed.  ‘Yes’, you thought, ‘I must’ve been a devilish person in my past life.’
You were cursed to forever be terrified of the world, your only sibling meant to guide you through life was murdered in front of you, your mother has gone mad and the one person you found comfort in somehow found a way to be worse than what you already knew him to be- a criminal.    
You bitterly chuckled.  
You wished he was a good-for-nothing criminal.
You would have much preferred that over what he truly is.
A serial killer.  
Tuesdays were the worst.  In your rather short and uneventful life, a pattern had formed concerning the second day of the week.  Your sister was murdered on a cloudy Tuesday afternoon. The day you were labelled with a disorder was on a Tuesday morning, right in your own home.  The day your mother had finally broke and yelled atrocious things at you that you’ve always known she thought but never voiced, was on a Tuesday evening.  And the day you discovered the jarring truth about your ‘pal’ was at 2 am while surfing the web on a Tuesday.
You were naive to be giddy at the latest letter you had received.  
Jungkook had said some rather mean things about your mother, however due to your bruised ego and lingering depression caused by the woman’s harsh put down of you; you couldn’t bring yourself to be upset with his insults toward the woman who gave birth to you.  In fact, your heart felt warmed at his protective slandering. For it meant that he was offended on your behalf, that he cared of what you felt and that anyone who disgraced you was harshly judged by the critical eye of your ‘friend’. He took your side in the matter.  Like a loyal ally that you have always wanted on your side for times like this.
He mentioned that he wanted to utilize the option of calls instead of letters.  You had to admit as an old soul that writing letters to a companion was a very vintage and refreshing practice that you had grown fond of.  Childishly, you would picture yourself in a Fitzgerald novel as a lonesome and willowy woman who eagerly awaited the letters of her dear partner who was far far away.  Or maybe off to war. You supposed that reading all those books had made you a romanticist.
But there was something rather intimate about getting to hear someone’s voice despite the miles in between them.  
You wanted to please Jungkook by surprising him with a call.  And more secretly, you wanted to see if his voice matched his face in the picture he gave you or the voice in your head that would recite his letters whenever you read them.  
You imagined it being very gentle and almost musical, like the light buzz of bees on a Spring day, humming around the blooming flowers.  You hoped (and somehow just knew) you were right in this prediction.
But, you needed to find a way to make this possible.  
That’s when you seeked information in the form of the internet.  Although you loved to picture yourself in a Fitzgerald-esque, roaring twenties type of era, you couldn’t deny the usefulness of the current one that you were living in.  
According to the re-search you had gathered, a telephone account had to be set up in order for Jungkook to talk to anyone.  Also, inmates were allowed to make outgoing calls but incoming ones were not allowed. You frowned, this meant that Jungkook had to call you but you couldn’t call him.  The air of surprise was deflated.
However, you did have a role to fulfill.  Only someone from the outside could set up the calling account.  You would have to pay for the ability for Jungkook to call anyone.  
You then went onto the prison’s website and began to fill out the form for the account.  
Name: (Y/n) (M/n) (L/n)
Age: (Age)
D.o.b: (Date of Birth)
Address: (Address)
Relation to Inmate; Friend.
Card Info: (xxx-xxx-xxx)
Phone Number:  (xxx-xxx-xxx)
Prisoner;
You were stunned at the prisoner section of the form.  It wouldn’t allow you to write Jungkook’s name down, instead you had to enter numbers.  You sighed and realized that you had to get Jungkook’s number in order for the system to match him up with the account.  Luckily for you, the info of prisoners was public knowledge for anyone wishing to seek it. You opened another tab to go the the penitentiary’s website and searched for Jungkook’s name.  
A mugshot of your friend popped up. his boyishly handsome face stared almost disinterestedly at the camera, dark and glassy eyes brooding with raven strands of hair revealing his smooth forehead and framing his sharp face that was marked with intense brows, strong Romanian nose and plush berry lips that sat above his cleft chin that marked the ending point of his angular jaw.  The frosty complexion of his skin made the darkness of his features and orangeness of his jumpsuit stand out. You knew he was very good-looking, and it was a shame that he was locked up. You were sure many ladies would be all over him if it weren’t for the fact that he was stuck in an all male prison for a lengthy amount of time.
The top of his head met the 5’10 mark of the background of the mugshot, making you note the height of Jungkook which was a detail you never really thought about before.  He was tall, but most handsome men were.
Below the image was information about him.  You briefly felt as if you were violating privacy, but you consolidated yourself by reminding yourself that you simply needed his number to further the calling process.  It had to be done. Besides, Jungkook was your friend. You were positive that he wouldn’t mind.
Name: Jeon Jungkook
Height: 5’10
Weight: 154 lb
Date of Arrest; June 6th, 2018
Crime: Serial Killing, Multiple Homicides, First Degree Murder, Crimes Against Humanity
ID Number: 65709-303
Your blood ran cold.  
--
You would have made a decent journalist.  
But to be fair, it wasn’t like his crimes wasn’t that well documented.  
He was practically famous.  
A warm cup of joe is all that you had to company you as you began your plunge into the crimes of Jeon Jungkook.  It had required the use of many old news clips, dramatically written articles and even pictures of the vulgar crimes along with court documents and police reports.  Amidst this crazed quest for knowledge that was fueled by a harsh sting of betrayal, a narrative formed from the foggy woodworks. The jagged puzzle pieces of your beloved ‘Jk’ formed, creating an image that you wished to never have witnessed.  
On March 27th, 2016 an innocent woman was murdered.  Her name was Lee Ji-eun and she was a music teacher at a prestigious private high school.  She was found in her office, throat slit from ear to ear and body laying lifelessly across her desk, school papers stained scarlett red in her blood.  The killing shocked the community, she was adored by her classmates, respected by colleagues and admired in her community. No one had a clue on who could’ve committed such a random act of violence.  
On April 16th, 2017 a man called the police due to his missing wife and daughter.  The daughter, Nayeon was found in a field out in the country, throat blue from having been strangled to death.  Her mother was only a few yards away from her, bullet enlodged in the back of her head from being shot execution style.  Nayeon’s father was desperate for justice, but the police had told him that the killer was just too good.
On April 1st, 2018 another girl named Lalisa was found in her room, dead.  Unlike the other crimes, her murder wasn’t a dramatic or gory one. It had appeared that she was poisoned to death.  Up until then, the police had no leads. It wasn’t until the realized that Lalisa’s boyfriend had been missing as well.  He was caught getting in a suspicious vehicle on surveillance camera, only to never be seen again. A vehicle that was traced to Jungkook.  
Jungkook admitted the murders of all three of these girls, along with Nayeon’s mother and Lalisa’s boyfriend.  Although the boyfriend’s body was never found.
He did all of these crimes on Easter.  
The first murder of Lee Ji-eun just so happened to fall on that day.  
But like other serial killers before him, Jungkook formed a habit.  A ritual. A routine.
You noted with distaste how little the motives were discussed.  
Jungkook never told why he killed his victims.  He was silent. Even in the interrogation process, he just admitted that he was indeed the killer.  Nothing else was uttered from his lips. The trial was semi-famous, due to the fact that such a young and handsome man turned out to be a murderer.  People even called him the new Ted Bundy for his aristocratic fall from grace that was the revelation of his sick minded actions. He came from a rich family, was somewhat quiet as a student but still earned high marks.  Someone no one thought could be capable of taking five innocent lives in such a bloodthirsty fashion.
The Easter Bunny was what some struggling news station tried to nickname him in a frenzied act of getting higher viewership rates.  Turns out, the name stuck.
You shut your laptop and stared off into space.  
The five faces of the victims would forever be burned into your memory.  
You just had one question, why?
Why take away these people’s lives as if it were nothing?  What had they ever done to him? It was just so random and it puzzled you.  Jungkook was a smart man, why did he never tell anyone the reasoning for his snap?  Why did he let the press run with guessing motives and possible reasonings instead of putting the victim’s family at rest by telling them the truth?  Did he plan to take it to his grave?
What could those five people have done to make him murder so ruthlessly?  
You gulped down the last of your coffee that was somewhat chilled due to the long passage of time.  
Remorse slid itself over you body, spreading its’ inky and sticky dread until every part of your body was effected.  
You felt dirty.
You had unknowingly created a friendship with the slayer of five lives.  
A psychopath had somehow became your closest buddy.  You had seeked comfort within his sweet words.
Was this how he lured in his other victims as well?
A shudder came next.  
He lied to you.  If you had known all of this from the beginning, there would be no way that you would have tried to reach out to such person.  You fancied yourself a empathic and understanding woman, but this was just something from hell itself.
You stood and decided to take a shower, hoping that scrubbing the invisible stains of guilt would somehow ease your racing mind.  
--
It was a given that you would stop all communication with Jungkook.
You could never even attempt to play as if things were normal after this.  As much as it pained you, you would have to lose a friend.
It would be rather simple, you will stop sending letters and he would catch onto the silence and move on with his own life.  You were sure that he would have more vital concerns in that concrete jungle that was his home. Although you would miss the communication, you valued your conscious more.  
You attempted to fill your time by distracting yourself with mundane things.  You managed to stay away from your front door, not wanting to catch yourself longingly gazing at your mail slot for Jungkook’s letters.  You began binge-watching one of your favorite shows. And when this wasn’t quite enough to divert your mind and heart, you ordered a new novel online.  Reading always made you emerge yourself into other worlds, you would drown yourself into any plot at the moment. Despite not being able to relate to most characters within those free-spirited stories, you still rather bury your head in a book then spend your time thinking of Jungkook and what he was doing.
This lead to another problem.
The drawings.  
Your assumption of him being an artistic soul was indeed spot on.  He sent you three etchings, all done by pencil and depicting of you.  The first one was just a drawing of your selfie, you could tell by the hair-do, pose and outfit.  The second one was just of you, portrait style with eyes staring ahead at any observer and very detailed.  And the third one was of you tapping a pen against your chin, brows scrunched and staring down at your hands that held a piece of paper.  Right next to this image was a side note of ‘this is what I picture when I think of you writing me letters.’
It was almost unbelieveable how good he was at drawing you.  
It was as if he knew your face for years, he created it so well from just having a picture to go off of.  The cross-hatching, the shadowing, the use of texture, the blending and the perfect imagery of every feature on your face.... It was baffling. It was like looking at the lense of someone else’s perception of you.  He clearly thought you were way prettier than you did. The girl he drew was elevated from what your self-esteem would let you think yourself to be. It was so odd….but you couldn’t help but marvel at his works. It was nice of him to draw you, almost intimate.  You wondered how carefully he dissected your picture to be able to draw you in situations that he’s never seen you in.  You never thought you’d say a boy took the time to draw you, but you were flattered.
Too bad you were unable to tell him how impressed you were with such effort.
Too bad you couldn’t study them any further.
You thought about burning them.  Cutting them into millions of pieces.  Throwing them away. Letting them drift in the wind onto some random street below your apartment.
But when you worked up the nerve to initiate any of the acts of destruction, you just couldn’t.  
You may hate the artist behind the creation.  But not the creation itself.
You stored them under your bed, not wanting to spare any thought to Jungkook but also wanting to preserve the art for a later time when your heart wasn’t wounded and a certain serial killer was in your rear view mirror.  
But you couldn’t ignore the killer for as long as you would’ve liked.  
Your book arrived.  And you had to get it,
While doing so, you were faced with three envelopes addressed to you.  From Jungkook.
Your halted your actions for a split second.  It was almost second nature to feel the bubbling excitement and instinct to reach for them.  
But then those deceased five faces flashed before your eyes.  
In the end, you ignored them in favor of retrieving  your freshly purchased book.
But after you laid yourself on your couch and found yourself re-reading the same first paragraph over and over again, you realized that those letters just couldn’t be ignored.  They stubbornly beckoned your attention, a siren’s call demanding your priority. You huffed and set the book down, fixing your gaze towards the entrance of your humble nest, were the letters innocently laid.
Here you were faced with a dilemma.  
Did you trust yourself enough to read the contents of the letters and not send a response of your own?  
Would it be the right thing to even open them?  
Could you bear not knowing what he had to say to you after you haven’t made contact in a while?  
You bit your lip and contemplated the ethics at play.  
Surely, just to read the letters wouldn’t mean any harm…...right?
You had ended the ties but what was so wrong with glancing over some previous records of the relationship?  Because that’s what Jungkook’s letters would be...evidence of the past friendship you shared with him.
You honestly couldn’t bear the mystery.  
You just had to know what he had to say.  
You grabbed the letters and ripped them open in a rush to put an end to your inner turmoil.
He was worried.
He was confused.
He was hurt.
Jungkook expressed his somberness for not hearing from you.  He also voiced his concern for your well being. He was anything but mad at you, just alarmed.  That alarm was genuine from what you could tell by his growingly frantic penmanship.
This set ablaze a glowing fire inside your chest.  
The audacity of that...that...heathen.
To act so kind and compassionate when he lacked those same emotions towards his victims.  You almost wanted to laugh at his pitying tone, wondering if he had such ability when he put those five bodies six feet under.  How dare he put the blame on you for not responding back? For making you feel guilty? It was him who was at fault.
A sudden urge to inform him that his jig was up suddenly hit you.
You wanted nothing more than to shove his face in the fact that you broke free from his cute manipulative narrative concerning his mother.  In a burst of fury, you quickly grasped for a pen and paper. A rebuttal was all too ready to escape your mind and pierce his soul.
‘Dear Jungkook (or should I say Easter Bunny?)’
--
It had been a week.  
Usually, this is when you would get a response letter.  
But when you went to your mail slot and opened the incoming letter, you were left scratching your head in bewilderment.  
‘My Dearest Y/n,
I see you found out about the nickname the hideous press gave me.  
Well...I think this type of revelation is best talked over in person.
I’ll see you soon.’
It hardly seemed like a proper response to what you had said to him.  
You had exposed his truth and his despicable crimes and the only thing he had to reference was the nickname bit?  Was he avoiding the topic? Why was the letter so fucking short? And how come he mentioned seeing you in person?
A little bit of paranoia was the theme for the rest of your day.  
Logically, you knew that he had no way of seeing you.  He was locked up and the severity of his crimes would surely mean that he was heavily guarded, and even if he did manage to overcome that burden, then how the hell would he find you?  
But still….you didn’t think Jungkook was capable of murder either.  He still did that as well as lied to you to add a ripe cherry on top.  
Perhaps he was just trying to fuck with you?  To play with your head one last time and freak out the mentally ill girl as one last ‘fuck you’.  It wouldn’t be the first time someone used your fears against you. Maybe he wanted to manipulate you once more so you couldn’t help but look over your shoulder even after you two stopped conversing…..
Yes.  Getting into the mind of a killer, you would think this was the most effective way he could cause lasting harm to you from behind bars.  He was most likely snickering in his jail cell, telling his inmates about how he managed to scare his lunatic of a pen pal. He probably delighted in turning your phobia against you.  
This was the only logical explanation.  
But still, you made sure your doors and windows were locked after this letter.  Just for the sake of clarity.
--
Days have passed along with your paranoia for the oddity of Jeon Jungkook.  You were focused on getting your life back to normal. Or normality to you, considering that not much changed.  You just opted out of daydreaming of conversational topics to send to your pal along with the obvious sending of letters.  Sure, you still thought about him from time to time...but you would catch yourself in these moments and force some random chores upon yourself to occupy your brain.  
Today was a rainy day and you made a goal for yourself to finish the novel you had bought only days prior.  
About 30 minutes in, a knock at your door sounded, interrupting your leisurely reading.  
You smiled and checked the time.
Your groceries had arrived.  
You went to answer the door, making sure to grab the delivery boys’ tip on the way.
When you opened the entrance to your home, the usual boy was there, handing over two big brown bags that were overflowing with food.  You grabbed one of the bags and reached for the money to hand over so you could have to tact to grab the other bag without having to struggle to give the boy his tip, when something struck you.  
The boys’ head was ducked downwards, not show casting his face but instead the grocery store’s logo on the hat.  His hair was darker than you remembered….now that you noticed it, he was taller too. And overall just bigger….
The grocery boy you were used to seeing was of a more adolescent type of figure, you knew it would be preposterous for the boy to have such a growth spurt in only a weeks’ time.  Unless he suddenly decided to take up steroids. Confused, you tried to call out his name to get a better look.
“Renjun?”  
A moment of suffocating silence.
An icy shock of terror crashed down upon you and somehow you just knew who was under that hat without him having to look up.  
A flurry of movement commenced, marking the beginning of your doom.  
You tried to keep him out, but your reflexes weren’t fast enough,
In a haste, you dropped the bag and moved to shut the door, pressing your weight against it with all your might to keep him out.  Your body was acting faster than your brain could, not sparing a second to even comprehend how the hell he was here. You had to keep him out, he couldn’t violate your safe haven like this!  Survival instincts were kicking in.
But he was faster, and stronger and arguably more determined.  
He strode in easily, as if your attempts were at a child’s level.  Your found yourself with a large and snowy hand clasped over your mouth, preventing any hollerings for help.  
He ducked closer to you, big glassy eyes staring at your horrified expression with an almost dreamy manner.  
“Why are you shocked?  I told you I was going to see you.”
--
You never gave much thought to what it would be like to be in the presence of a killer.
Somehow, you knew it wasn’t supposed to be like this.  
You sitting on your couch with the killer wrapped around you, large frame practically enveloping your smaller one as you were forced to feel his pulsing muscles up close.  His face in near proximity to yours, big eyes absorbing your profile with an unreadable look upon his graceful face.
You were under close inspection, it had been like this for twenty minutes at least, him staring at you whilst keeping you caged under his far more capable body.  He stared at you with such focus, you found yourself wondering what possibly could have been going through that demented mind of his.
Were you next?  
Were you going to be the sixth notch under his belt?  
Why wasn’t he saying anything?  
The silence was unbearable, for you knew that when it would be broken; something very unpleasant would unfold.  You wanted the silence, but it also petrified you.
Finally, you gathered the courage to pierce the blanket of quiet.  
“A-are you going to kill me?”  
His nose scrunched up at this, transforming his stoic expression into that of confusion from a now somewhat boyish face.  His already big eyes seemed to widened and they peered into yours with a new softness that you wouldn’t expect from a killer.  
“What?  Of course not!  I just wanted to talk to you.”  
His voice was indeed what you pictured it to be, somewhat breathy and puerile but musical in a sense that could not be explained.  You didn’t have time to analyze the person behind the letters, compare him to the mental image you had in your head, when you were too busy trying not to panic and hyperventilate.  You read somewhere that if a person is ever kidnapped it’s best to not outwardly panic because it could cause the attacker to want to get rid of you sooner. With this in mind, you tried to calm your racing heart and breathing.  First, you need to find out what he wanted, convince him to trust you, and make him turn himself back in. Freaking out could get you nowhere, you must use logic as your escape plan.
“What do you want to talk about?”  You wished you sounded as calm as your voice sounded, it completely masked the chaotic state your nervous system was in.  
“My crimes.”  He nuzzled his face into the crook of your neck, inhaling your scent very loudly as if the smell was addicting to his nose.  His behavior was odd, it was as if he was separated from a long lost lover who he finally found once again. He was attached to you, petting you, studying you and even breathing you in.  It was so intimate and you felt like you were being groomed for slaughter….
“Why did you do what you did?”  
Jungkook halted his cuddling for a moment to lean back and stare into your eyes with a more serious feeling.  
“They didn’t love me like I loved them….”  
You were sure you were going to die.  
He was insane.  
The killings were crimes of passion, towards innocent girls who were unfortunate to witness the side of Jungkook that you are seeing now; a love-struck and delusional man with no boundaries or sense of relationships.  
In a last effort to stay alive, you wrestled against his larger form and made a reach for the door.  
To your surprise, nothing prevented you from getting up.  He didn’t stop you.
“What are you going to do Y/n?  Leave?” He called out from behind you in a cynical and delighted tone.  
“Sugarplum, you know damn well you can’t go out there.”
Terrible, terrible realization dawned upon you like a poisonous fog that forced your eyes to water and lungs to clog.  You were only a foot away from your front door, but you knew you couldn’t venture behind it. Your safe haven has become your own prison.
“You’re stuck here with me.”  
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kim-lexie · 5 years
Text
one spring night.
this drama seriously up there with “reply” series and “something in the rain”. i would 11 out of 10 recommend watching this one. it follows a women jeong-in who has previously been content in a not so happy romance with ki-seok. there are multiple plot lines that are followed but they all stem from her primary story, and as it collides with our beloved ji-ho. before i go on, i must let you be aware there are spoilers ahead. 
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*spoiler alert*
let me just say that this drama was hard to get through, i was annoyed throughout with people’s perceptions they placed on jeong-in and not allowing her words to mean anything. like how many times did she need to break up with her boyfriend, just because he didn't say it was okay doesn't make it any less valid. 
jeong-in has so many character flaws and is annoying as heck at moments like i cannot process some of her thought processes. like the moment when ji-ho was drunk and said “don’t leave us”. like what is wrong with that, a genuine fear is he not allow to have feelings and needs to be perfect all the time, mr. composed all the time. no he doesn't. something he said in a drunken state without even talking to her afterwards got her down a rabbit hole of uneasiness and running away from a good thing. don’t get me wrong i like her character and we need a little bit of flaw but this moment towards to the end of the show really got me worked up, like why you gotta be like that friend, why?
ki-seok is wack. like his character. his personality. all wack. here is my list: the fact that he never listens to her. going around her to her family to try and propose. proposing to her even after all the nonsense happens. him tailing them on their first date. him being an idiot and trying to get advice from shi-hoon (her sister’s abusive husband). and to top it all off when he tries to give eun-woo money after their library visit with his dad. 
ji-ho is perfect. i don’t understand why and how everyone was so hung up on him having a child (and its besides the point but eun-u is the most perfect little human). he has a great job at the “woori pharmacy” (can i add beautiful foreshadowing how they meet at “our pharmacy” TT).
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some of my favorite conversations depicting how perfect he is:
ji-ho talking with hye-jung (his boss at the pharmacy)
hye-jung: how far are you willing to go? just dating for now?
ji-ho: the endgame. she will be the last woman in my life.
H: you should never assume that.
J: just wait and see what happens then.
the little family-to-be at the park (p.s. this whole scene of them on their little outing was precious. the fact that jeong-in wanted to make the effort to know eun-woo and the fact that this was priority for her was beautiful.)
eun-woo: ms. lee asked if i’d like her as my mom.
ji-ho: so what did you say?
E: yes. 
*cues my tears of happiness*
J to jeong-in: are you really coming to us?
jeong-in: yes. i can't wait until i have gray hair. 
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the little family-to-be talking in the car:
eun-woo: appa
ji-ho: yes?
E: are you and ms.lee getting married?
J: yes. why do you ask? does it make you feel weird?
E: then is she going to be my mom?
J: yes.
jeong-in: yes, i’ll be your mom.
*cues tears of happiness because i love them so much*
J: i’ll be good to you. 
jeong-in: no don’t say that. the three of us will get through this together.
also can i say ji-ho threatening ki-seok on behalf of his son is the hottest thing that he did in the whole show. like dang, you come for my child, i will come for you and your family if you threaten me again. *insert me slow clapping, standing ovation for this man*
the family though had their own nonsense to deal with. the storylines with the sisters i appreciated. i loved jae-in’s personality and how she contrasted with how steadfast and hard in stone the rest of the family was with regards to jeong-in and ji-ho’s relationship. her father was awful in trying to utilize ki-seok and his family to bring up his title, when his daughter was clearly unhappy. i appreciated how much ji-ho’s parents supported them in the end. 
jae-in’s reaction to her sister, seo-in, being abused by her husband was a completely heart wrenching scene. my heart broke the fact that no one knew and she finally opened up to her sisters. seo-in’s situation should not have impacted her in her career field, i found it so hard to accept that she had to quit her job to have her child and divorce. still don’t quite understand the culture behind it that would support the abuser to have her hide her life. 
major “something in the rain” vibes, from the cinematography and the dwelling of scenes on seemingly insignificant moments, to the characters themselves who need to overcome appealingly dream obstacles to appease the culture around them. 
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the ending brought us full circle back to the pharmacy. i wept. 
ji-ho: thank you for coming to me.
jeong-in: spring brought you to me.
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gwynne-fics · 6 years
Text
Pictures
walking
Rachel opened the door to Eun-Sang and Young-Do and tried not to laugh at their disappointment that she was not holding Hye-Rim. She obsessively went through their connections and was pleased to see that the one connecting the two of them was stronger than the last time she saw them, but incredibly sad to see the pain in Eun-Sang’s connection to her mother.
“Did something happen?” she asked while they removed their shoes. Young-Do kept his hand on Eun-Sang’s back as they walked into Rachel’s home.
“My mother wants to replace me,” Eun-Sang said bitterly. “I know she doesn’t like my rebellion right now but she’s being cruel.”
“It is not a rebellion to demand respect.” Rachel took her hand and led her over to the couch. “Eun-Sang, unless she’s willing to change her parenting, in twenty-five years, she will have the same problem all over again when your sibling fights against her control. And you are irreplaceable.”
Eun-Sang laid her head into Rachel’s lap and quietly cried while Rachel stroked her hair. She looked at Young-Do with concern and he sighed. He ran his hand over his mouth and looked troubled as well.
“Her mother is forcing her to be the president of the vaccine subsidiary. She forged Eun-Sang’s signature on the documents and gave her all of the shares. She is setting her up to fail.”
“We won’t let that happen.” Rachel made Eun-Sang lift her head so she could meet her eyes. “I promise you. We won’t let that happen. Why didn’t Kang Ji-Hyuk warn you? I’m going to call my mother.” She pulled out her cell phone and Mother answered on the first ring. She explained what had happened without accusing her boy toy of being useless. It was not easy. Mother was quiet for a few moments.
“I will look into this. I will give Eun-Sung Hee-Jin for a month until we find her someone suitable. I will have her text Eun-Sang her information by tonight.”
“You didn’t know?” Rachel felt more shocked about that then Mother relinquishing her beloved Hee-Jin.
“I can’t know everything, Rachel.” It was a tad defensive.
“I’m sorry. You just always know everything.”
“Hee-Nam has been tailing Ji-Hyuk this last week. I wouldn’t put it past her to test his loyalty. But as my relationship with Ji-Hyuk is more equal than it appears, I don’t have complete control over him. He told me Eun-Sang’s lesson today went well. That is all I cared about at the time.” Rachel could tell Mother was clenching her jaw. It never occurred to her that Mother might be emotionally attached to Kang Ji-Hyuk and that this news could hurt her.
“I’m sorry,” she said quietly. “I thought your true love was Yoon Jae-Ho.”
“I don’t believe in true love. I will come by tomorrow to visit Hye-Rim.” She hung up and Rachel tried not to sigh. Young-Do just looked amused as Eun-Sang wiped her face.
“I think that’s the weirdest conversation we’ve ever had.” Rachel set her phone down and pulled out her handkerchief to help her sister clean her face.
“I want to believe that if he knew, Ji-Hyuk would’ve warned me today at the animal shelter. He had ample opportunity and he’s been supportive so far. If your mother is right and my mother is testing him then...then he must believe I can do this as well. He was my favorite guardian and I want to believe...I want to believe in somebody. There has been enough betrayal.”
“I agree,” Rachel said even though the look on Young-Do’s face said he wasn’t ruling it out. She caught him glowering and tilted her head at him. He tried to change the subject.
“Where is Hye-Rim?”
“With Hyo-Shin. They’ll be back soon. Bo-Na is giving him a crash course in his first job and she had something happen where she needed Hye-Rim to be cute around her. Hye-Rim wanted to go with her father. That’s normal.” Young-Do made another face and she chose to misinterpret it. “I know you’re just using my daughter to soothe your crankiness the way you did with me when we were children. Let her relax or you’ll wear her out.”
He flushed but didn’t argue with her. “Let’s go look at the backyard.”
“Wait,” Rachel said as a detail hit her. “You’re adopting a pet?” Young-Do and Eun-Sang exchanged a look that included a small smile. “You found an animal that doesn’t react to your aura?”
“Yes,” Young-Do said with a slight flush. “He’s a puppy. We can’t take him home yet because he’s too young. Eun-Sang practiced healing on him today. We’re going to call him Cerberus.”
“He ran right up to Young-Do and just wanted to be with him. It’s going to be a few weeks before we can bring him home. We’d like to see how he’ll do with Hye-Rim.”
Rachel wrinkled her nose but nodded. “I will talk to Hyo-Shin. I don’t know how he feels about animals. But if that puppy was excited to be around Young-Do, then it is a special puppy and you should get him.”
The three of them went outside and Rachel took a step back to watch her brother and his wife fall into talking about turning her backyard into a fairy garden for Hye-Rim. It was a delight to watch their connection as they shared something together that they both loved. Hyo-Shin and Hye-Rim returned while Eun-Sang made Young-Do pull out his tablet and began brainstorming.
Hyo-Shin put his arm around her waist and kissed her temple. Hye-Rim was dozing against his shoulder and Rachel smiled as she smoothed back her hair from her forehead. “She’s getting too big to carry.”
“I don’t mind. My back does, but I don’t.” That made Rachel smile and Hyo-Shin kissed her forehead again. She liked his tender affections. There had been more recently and she clung to them because he had started to lose his guilt and return to his past confidence. She laid her head against his shoulder when he started playing with the ends of her hair.
“They might get a puppy. Are you okay with Hye-Rim being around a puppy?”
“That might be good for her.” Rachel tried not to show her surprise that he agreed so easily. She thought he would forever naturally be at odds whatever Young-Do brought into their lives. “I thought animals didn’t like...people like him.”
“They normally don’t. They went to an animal shelter today for Eun-Sang’s training and found a puppy that liked him. He’s always wanted a dog so I’m happy for him. My mother doesn’t like animals.”
“What about you?”
“A daughter is enough work for me.” Hye-Rim heard her and lifted her head with a sleepy pout. “You can pout when you can walk and are potty trained, pretty Hye-Rim.” Her little girl just yawned and then looked over at Eun-Sang and Young-Do. She started making grabby hands at them and dove to the grass when Hyo-Shin didn’t move fast enough. He carefully got her to the ground and they expected her to crawl over to her aunt and uncle.
But instead, Hye-Rim pushed herself up on her feet, and with more dexterity than Rachel expected walked carefully over to Young-Do and Eun-Sang. Her brother and his wife were too enthralled in what they were doing to notice Hye-Rim until she tugged on Young-Do’s pants and plopped onto her bum with a giggle.
Rachel tried not to gape at her as Hyo-Shin had rushed to pull out his phone and record the moment. She held his free hand with tears in her eyes at the milestone they got to share together. Hye-Rim had been rolling over, scooting, and nearly crawling when he got out of prison.
Young-Do picked Hye-Rim up and she happily began punching his hand. Eun-Sang looked back at Rachel and tilted her head. “Did we just miss her walking for the first time?”
Rachel nodded and quickly wiped her eyes as she and Hyo-Shin crossed the yard to join them. Hye-Rim had a proud little grin on her face. “She’s been fighting me whenever I practice with her. She does like her secrets.”
“She likes being exceptional,” Hyo-Shim murmured as he poked their daughter’s cheek. “I was like that. I didn’t talk until I could be perfect at it. So I looked like I skipped steps sometimes. My mother loved to brag about it.” He kept his gaze focused on Hye-Rim and Rachel could tell he was uncomfortable sharing such personal information around Young-Do. She was glad he did though. She was proud of him for trying for her. “We love to brag about you.”
Hye-Rim gave an adorable, bashful grin before she covered her face with her hands.
“How is Bo-Na?” Young-Do asked after a few moments of just watching Hye-Rim be cute for them. “Rachel said she’s having a rough day.”
“She didn’t go into it in detail and I’m about to become her employee,” Hyo-Shin said as he took Hye-Rim from Young-Do. “But I think something happened with her birth mother and husband. She very angrily ate cheesecake at the café we went to.”
“I failed her,” Rachel said sadly. “Her mother was able to hide her connection from me. I assume she was able to fool our mother as well. And you know how Bo-Na can get some times.” Young-Do sighed and when he raised his eyebrows at Rachel, she nodded. “I think she would really appreciate a call from you.”
They had a nice evening together and Rachel tried not to get lost in watching Hyo-Shin socialize with her loved ones. She was proud of him and Young-Do for at least pretending to get along with no snide comments. Eun-Sang gave her a hug and kissed her cheek before they left.
“It will be easy to grow a garden here,” she said. “There is so much genuine love.”
Rachel kept that sentiment close as she and Hyo-Shin got ready for bed. She caught him staring hard in the direction of the nursery and laughed when he turned back to her with a determined expression.
“What is it?”
“I think she’s asleep. She can’t interrupt if she’s asleep.”
“Interrupt?”
“We haven’t had a lot of opportunities lately. I don’t want us to get out of the habit. I might also be worried what Cha Eun-Sang thinks when she looks at us. She’s stopped my heart before and I do not want to relive that experience. Besides, I think we’re getting better.”
Hyo-Shin took her hand and kissed her gently. Rachel laughed when he lifted his head a few moments later and listened for Hye-Rim’s giggles. When they didn’t come, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back.
“We are getting better.”
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mywebfoot · 7 years
Text
Suspicious Partner fanfic
So, wow, it was in there after all. All it took was a prompt from anon. Tonight, I opened up the piece I wrote and asked myself… why am I struggling with it? Why does it sounds so stilted, like I am trying too hard. Isn’t Noh Ji Wook a beloved character?…. and no, the answer was no. For the first time, I want to write the female lead. There’s something about Eun Bong Hee that I adore. She’s real, she’s droll and she’s witty, mostly at her own expense. So here is my version of her. Nam Ji Hyun is perfect in this role, and I believe she inspired this fic. 
Thanks for waiting! Have fun!
Title: That Man. These Eyes. Description: Eun Bong Hee’s point of view, from her confession to the day after. Spoilers up to Ep 13.
“I like you.” 
Was that my voice? It didn’t sound like it. Most days, my voice sounds like a dignified chicken, I like to think. That voice I just heard? It sounds like a howling amoeba. If an amoeba could howl. Amoebas have one cell. One cell to think, eat and poop with. One cell to lust after the boss with.
So no. That couldn’t have been me.
That was me.
Now, it’s also me, awkwardly standing where I’ve launched myself in his arms, waiting for him to get over his shock. Come on, come on. This is the part, Lawyer-nim, where you say Great, yeah, let’s do the horizontal tango, Aegi-ya.
No?
Silence is an awful thing. It’s the thing that fills the space between plea and judgement, between sentencing and when the guard moves to take you away into jail. I should just spend the silence enjoying the chance to be close to him. I can smell his cologne. It tickles my nose whenever he walks by my desk. The scent always slithers up into my brain, and slips down to zing my woman bits to full attention. I should report inhumane work conditions. Especially at the end of a long day, like now, it’s mixed in with his personal scent - some sweat, some breezy ocean, and all bedsheets-wrapped naked man.
“Don’t… like me.”
Squish. Sound of a flattened amoeba.
I can’t breathe. Something blows up in my chest, taking up all the space in there, squeezing my heart, shoving my stomach down, down, down. I step back. I leave his arms. I try to breathe but that thing inside keeps growing. It’s compressing my lungs. I can only pull in tiny, short gasps. It sounds very much like hitching sobs.
At least I have no tears. This is good. I can hold it in.
Ok.
If I can hold it in, I’m still in control. If I am in control, I can think. He said no. Well, he’s put the amoeba where it belongs, for a lifetime sentence in Solitary Confinement.
Ha. Lawyer love joke.
Lawyer. I’m a lawyer. Lawyers can plea bargain.
“I don’t regret liking you,” I croak. Great. No dignified chicken here.
“I’ll deal with my feelings…. but…”
His beautiful eyes go carefully blank. He thinks I’m going to beg. All I really want is to run away, but honestly, what do I have to lose anymore?
“Can I ask for one favour?”
He looks horrified, but I plough on. That thing in my chest expands.
“Just… just one more hug…” I try for one last gasp of air.
“…before…,” I choke out, because I don’t want to say it’s the end.
He pulls me close. I put my arms around him. Just one more second. For courage. One more second. I press closer, because, curse my chicken heart to hell and back, it feels so right. I just don’t touch him with my hands. I have control. The time for no more touching has started.
I pull back. Turn. And escape.  
***
My eyes. They feel like balls of pork gristle on a blackened barbecue pan the day after the drunken party.
In the bathroom mirror, one eyeball is red-streaked. Medium rare with a crusty edge, I judge. The other eyeball I have not seen since I woke up. My right eyelid is glued shut with dried tears.
At least I won’t have two eyes to look at the deranged birds nest that is currently my hair.
I turn on the tap. Warm water flows out and I bypass the ladylike cupping of hands and stick my head under the stream of water. I stay there. That way I can say that it’s only warm water on my face, and not fresh tears.
Water is medicine, as Omma says.
Later, the shower fixes my hair and gives me life. It doesn’t solve my swollen eye problem though, and I will NOT have That Man see them. I may have thrown my pride away last night, but it came slinking back overnight with its tail between its legs. I let it back in, because I missed it.
What I need is in the kitchen. Ice. But, out there lies the big, bad hunk who said no.
I crack open my room door. That Man must still be peacefully snoozing the morning away. I scuttle to the freezer, and wrench it open, then stick my head into the freezer, far deeper than it needs to be. Just in case he pops up.
There’s no ice. Actually there isn’t much left in the freezer. It’s been cleaned out, which is strange. That Man usually has food for weeks. The ice tray has nothing in it. Lawyer Byun, that old geezer ‘forgot’ to refill it again, I guess. I briefly consider just leaning my eyes against the cold plastic, but hurriedly discard that idea. Who knows what meat bacteria I will be pressing onto my eyelids.
I pull my head out again to do a quick check to see if he’s anywhere, but the house remains blissfully quiet. He must have had a good night’s sleep after ramming through my hopes. After slaughtering my dreams and staking them on a post as a warning to all women who dare enter these gates…
I see the spoons in the drying rack at the sink. An idea pops up between my violent fantasies. That should work.
***
Of course, it works.
Of course, That Man sees me wielding spoons like a broken-hearted, crazy woman.
“It’s good for swollen eyes from sleeping too much,” I blurt. Great excuse, Bong Hee, I congratulate myself. Brilliant mind, you have.
He doesn’t buy it. Then he does the Thing.
He gets kind. He offers me a cool cloth, and scuttles to get it. Like he cares. Like he gives a damn what happens to me. How dare he be kind. It’s the worst treatment for the open, weeping wound that is my heart. It’s grating, harsh, and tears open the tender new scabs I have.
I didn’t know I could get this furious this fast. I feel this wave of lava, rising, swelling upwards and spilling out of my mouth in a fiery snap.
“Don’t.”
At least I clench my jaw fast enough to stop the rest of the fury. I want to yell and curse. I am not sure where I find this well of calm, but I reach for it and it steadies me. It helps me explain.
“Don’t. Don’t be kind. It doesn’t help.”
To his credit That Man tries. He reaches for the time when we were strangers. He even finds the right tone. It hurts, but it’s the right one - cold enough, distant enough.
“Are you still staying here in the kitchen?”
I should congratulate him for trying, too. I will, once I get over that tone.
I’ll put a memo on my desk.
END
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gwynne-fics · 7 years
Text
Becoming Royals
strategy
“I am reminded of another woman who knelt before me asking what the right course of action was for her beloved maid,” Grandfather mused quietly after she explained the situation. “You will probably like my advice even less than she did.”
Rachel tilted her head and his laugh was a little sad. “Your mother discovered that her maid was in love with a military officer who served under Commander Yoon. Captain Cha took an arrow at the border shortly after her maid conceived. Esther had already given her approval for the match but Tae-Hoon wouldn’t sign the certificate. Esther wanted to keep her maid but with her habit of throwing out women who claimed to have children with her husband, she had to do the same to maintain her authority. I told her to send her maid back to me and I would care for her. That was not the answer my Esther wanted. She kept the child to raise to keep Hee-Nam out of poverty.”
“Eun-Sang.”
“Knowing her father’s name will not help her position, not with Lee Chan-Hyuk. The Cha family would not accept her anyway. They did not want Hee-Nam nor did they believe she carried a child of their bloodline. If Eun-Sang had been born a boy, perhaps, especially given all of this generation are girls, but she wasn’t. Esther did as I suggested because forcing the weak Cha family to take in a daughter-in-law they didn’t want would’ve thrown the political landscape into chaos. I was more prudent then.”
“Harabeoji...”
“You are not queen yet, Rachel. And as you kindly reminded me, we are not invincible. Going back to the palace is the right choice to preserve the stability of the court. It will protect your maid and Lady Song, who is a delight and clearly takes any excuse she can to visit you here. I understand why your heart is torn.”
“Because I am a hostage.”
“If you go back, there is very little I can do to help you. The King won’t allow me to take you like I did three months ago. He will be prepared for that. And if you lose your child, he will insist on deposing you.” Grandfather sighed. “I’m certain, if you make it to the last third of your pregnancy, and Princess Yoo-Ra is also pregnant, he will send Prince Young-Do to war and start training Prince Myung-Soo to take his place. There are many stray arrows on the front.”
Rachel closed her eyes. The picture he painted of her life was bleak and depressing. “Thank you for being honest with me. I know what I have to do.”
“Tomorrow, the magistrate for the capital will present more evidence of Lee Chan-Hyuk’s treason. Lee Hyo-Shin might lose his title and the Song family might not want the match.”
She laughed bitterly. “It’s what I asked you to do. I can’t complain now.” Rachel rose to her feet and bowed. Grandfather stood and gave her a hug. “Young-Do will pardon him. Hyo-Shin is smart and will hide if he has to. I have to believe in that.”
He kissed her forehead before she left and went back to her rooms. Young-Do immediately stood when she arrived and Eun-Sang paused in fussing with Hyo-Shin’s hair. It looked like one of the maids had dressed Young-Do and gotten him ready for court. They stared at her and she couldn’t breathe. “I will return to the palace today. Eun-Sang have a courier send word to...whomever is the head court lady right now. Do you want to come with me or stay here? It is safer here and your mother--”
“I will go with you. Don’t be ridiculous.” Eun-Sang rushed to give her a tight hug as Rachel started trembling and tears came to her eyes. Eun-Sang kissed her cheek and Rachel struggled not to cry or let her fear show. This was the right decision. It would protect everyone she needed it to protect, except for herself. “I will cook for you exclusively. No one else will touch your food.”
Then she went to do as Rachel commanded. Rachel avoided meeting either man’s eyes. Hyo-Shin bowed to her deeply but she didn’t just let him leave the room. “I know you are our hostage, but the magistrate is going to present the court with more evidence of your father’s treason tomorrow. He’s been altering the reports about refugees and unaffiliated warriors moving throughout the country. He might be colluding with the Kim family or this might be part of his own rebellion.”
“File a motion with the court immediately,” Hyo-Shin said immediately. “Make me a member of your personal guard. I have to forsake my family and pledge my life to yours. I did that when we were sixteen. When you’re king, we can work around it. I’m the only male heir. The Song family is smart enough to see that and I can still marry Ji-Sun.”
“I agree. Go.” Rachel forced herself to smile at Young-Do. “It will take me time to get ready to leave and for the palace to be ready to receive me.”
She met his eyes as he finally came up to her. “You’re terrified of the palace. Are you sure you want to do this?”
“No at all. I don’t want to but being a princess means forsaking my own comfort for my subjects. Ji-Sun, Eun-Sang, Hyo-Shin, you...” She cupped his cheek as he wiped her face with his handkerchief. Rachel took his hand and placed it against her stomach. “I love you. I know you love us. We will not be a tragedy.”
“We won’t be a tragedy.” He bent down and kissed her. Rachel wrapped her arms tightly around his waist and held on for as long as she could before he had to take Hyo-Shin and leave. She sat down on her bed, holding Young-Do’s handkerchief, and quietly cried as she prepared to lose everything that made her feel safe these last few months.
Rachel put her hand on her stomach and breathed deeply. “You have to survive. You have to be a boy. For the sake of our country...please.”
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