morrow lily x reader; non-idol au
warnings: mean girl lily; mentions of underage drinking
getting into your dream university was a struggle, one that you expected. growing up, money was always tight and you were used to having less. never complaining, only accepting what you could get. that taught you to be grateful and kind to others, two important character traits you’d always be thankful for.
the only way for you to get into that prestige school was by getting a scholarship. at first when you were notified of the opportunity, you were overjoyed. it meant you could fight for your dreams, something you’ve worked so hard to achieve. there was nothing that could ruin it for you.
until you met lily. one of your three dormmates. lily jin morrow, the daughter of some sickeningly rich people. maybe if you grew up visiting auction houses often, you’d know who the morrow family was. to you, it was just another name in the crowd, people like all the others. to everyone else, the morrow’s were one of the most influential families in the whole south korea.
she grew up without every worrying about money, something you were kind of jealous of. sadly, she also was unreasonably mean to everyone less fortunate. going to a prestigious school like yours, she probably didn’t expect to meet people like you.
enough about your one dormmate, you still had two others! one of them was nakamura kazuha, a lovely girl on a sport’s scholarship. her family could easily afford the school but she was accepted specially into the football’s team. kazuha was the girl you were fortunate enough to room with. despite being absurdly spoiled, much like lily, she was a true sweetheart.
the last girl, lily’s roommate was yet another girl from an awfully rich background. an english major, pham hanni, the funniest girl you’d ever met. she joked a lot that if her parents would let her, she would do comedy major. hanni was the perfect game buddy when you were busy after studying the whole day. she and kazuha would absolutely smash you in mario cart any time they could.
then again, lily wouldn’t ever join you. she wasn’t outright mean or anything, but you could feel that distance she forcefully tried to keep between the two of you. when she found out you were in the school on scholarship because you wouldn’t be able to afford it, she made a point to keep away from you. avoiding you between classes, stopping her conversations when you were in the room. she never said anything too bad to your face, but you had a feeling she did talk being your back.
lily never thought she was a bad person per se. she just didn’t like people who were below her league. growing up in luxury, she was just used to having everything her way. getting randomly assigned roommates was bad enough, but one of them was awfully pretty to top it of? it’s not like lily was against any type of love but the idea of coming out in college…
just thinking about it made her head spin. when she looked at you, she couldn’t help but think about how pretty you were, even for someone her family would consider below her. she thought that you looked good in those stupid sweats you liked to wear on colder mornings, but you’d look so much better in one of hers. that thought didn’t sit well with her. of course people would notice if you wore her clothes. why did she even like that idea? thinking you were beautiful was one thing, but thinking about you like that…?
maybe because it was the first time lily found herself liking a girl, or maybe because she never before liked someone poorer than her, she didn’t know how to behave around you. the easiest way out was of course to avoid you.
talking shit to her roommates made her feel better too. they were like her, they should understand.
“i just don’t understand how we got roomed with her.” she mumbled while rolling her eyes and sitting down on your dorm’s couch, next to hanni. kazuha was currently on practice and you were wherever. she didn’t care at all, according to her at least.
“she’s nice actually.” hanni responded finally. she liked lily a lot, the older girl was normally super nice but whenever she was moody, she’d feel the need to shit talk about something. usually you. “i don’t know why you’re so mean to her always.”
“y/n? i’m not mean to her!” she huffed in response. “we barely talk. i could be mean to her, but i avoid her.”
“sure. that makes your case so much better.”
then, they both turned their heads as the doors to the dorm opened. in came kazuha, clearly tired after practice. she had her gym bag slung over her shoulder and her phone in her free hand.
“hey girls.” she greeted them both, cheerful as ever despite having probably ran miles during the practice. “y/n just texted me that she’s finishing her shift in the campus cafe, do you guys want anything? she offered to bring some coffee.”
hanni could hear her roommate scoff at that. “that’s lovely actually! ask her to get me lemonade please? i think that nice boy is on duty with her today and he makes it the best!”
kazuha wiggled her eyebrows at her friends before notting that down. “and you, lily?”
“i don’t want anything from her.”
“gosh, stop being so stubborn!” hanni groaned and punched the older girl’s shoulder. “she never did anything to you.”
“if she’s so rich she wants to buy me coffee, why is she here on scholarship?”
“can’t you just appreciate it when a girl does something nice to you?”
kazuha shook her head in disapproval before sending the text. “don’t bother, hanni.”
“i don’t know why you guys like that girl so much.”
“she’s nice. unlike you.” hanni stood up and walked closer to kazuha. “wanna play mario in your room? just take a shower first, you kinda stink.”
the japanese rolled her eyes but a small smile appeared on her face. she nodded her head and the two went their ways, leaving lily to sit on the couch all by herself.
aside from gossiping with her friends, the one thing lily loved was going to parties. it was just yet another chance for her to dress up and let loose.
imagine her surprise when she saw you out of all people, at a party in the senior’s dorms. how were you even invited? why’d you look like you were having so much more fun than her? how could you look so good?
then, kazuha noticed her. lily knew her and hanni would be here, so that wasn’t much of a surprise.
“hey, lily!” the japanese pushed through the sea of bodies, a red cup in her hand. “good to see you.”
“you thought i wouldn’t be here?” kazuha rolled her eyes subtly before shaking her head. “exactly.”
“never mind that. how are you?”
“i just arrived.” lily glanced at the cup before taking it from her roommates hand. “alcohol? i didn’t take you for someone who drinks underage.”
before kazuha could reply, she the liquid quickly and wincing. “no- i don’t drink. just some tonic.”
“ew. that’s why it tastes like shit.”
“have you seen y/n?”
lily followed the japanese girl’s. you looked good, even she could admit that. “i didn’t think she’d be here.”
“i think chan invited her. they’re friends, you know?”
“oh. right.” lily placed the empty cup on the counter. she wouldn’t use it again anyway. “she’s friends with everyone, isn’t she.”
“y/n is actually nice.” kazuha glanced back at you, but you weren’t standing in that spot. she quirked her brow in surprise before resuming her speech. “you should give her a chance.”
“i don’t like poor people.”
“why?”
the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. “yeah, why?”
lily winced as she heard your voice. there you stood, in that ravishing dress. she turned to you with her neck mocking smile. “y/n.”
“lily.” you acknowledged her with a nod of your head. sensing the shift in the air around you, kazuha decided to head back to her friends. she didn’t want to be a witness to whatever went down.
lily leaned on the counter, scanning you up and down. “i didnt expect to see you here.”
you glanced down at the cup you were holding before taking a sip and humming. “chan invited me.”
“tonic?” she pointed to the red solo cup.
“nope.” you gave her a small smile and took another sip. “some cheep bear. it’s kinda disgusting, but one has to let loose somehow, right?”
“let loose?” lily chuckled quietly and moved closer to you. you felt almost uncomfortable with the sudden proximity. “did you know underage drinking could get your little scholarship cancelled?”
your cheeks turned a little red at her comment. she wouldn’t do that to you, right? “come on, lily…”
her hand suddenly landed on your waist. “you’re so pretty in that dress, you know?”
“hmpf.” you tried to move away from her, but her hand was keeping you in place. “i thought you didn’t like poor people.”
“i don’t.” she leaned even closer. so close in fact, you weren’t sure if your cheeks were red from embarrassment or from how close a pretty girl was to you. “but you’re a little different. you’re so annoying.”
“what-“
“but also so beautiful. i could maybe fix you.” before you could say anything else, she lightly kissed your cheek. stupid rich people. her breath didn’t smell like alcohol when she leaned in though. “shhh, don’t talk baby. you didn’t like me being mean, right? i’ll play with you a little then.”
so that was a couple months ago. now, you and your girlfriend of two weeks were sitting on the couch in your dorm, kazuha and hanni on the opposite side of you. lily had her face buried into your neck as she slept, the ‘l.m.’ necklace she gave you after your first date adoring your skin.
“can’t believe that’s how she got you. you like them mean, huh y/n?” hanni wiggled her eye brows at your and your cheeks turned uncomfortably red.
“i thought she was a little annoying…”
“excuses. i knew you two would end up together. speaking of which…” kazuha turned to hanni and reached out her hand with a knowing look. “you owe me 10$.”
“huh?” with a baffled expression, you glanced between your two dormmates.
hanni groaned loudly before reaching into her pocket. “i was betting you’d end up with chan…”
“you guys were betting on us?!”
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⤑ 9 months to fall in love 16.
It seems like everyone around you is either already in love, or in the process of falling, and while normally you couldn’t give a damn, finding out the co-worker you’ve had a teensy crush on is dating someone else at the office seems to sucker punch you right in the gut. It’s stupid, and you’re irritated at yourself, but you can’t seem to shake out of the funk you’ve fallen face first in.
Feeling lonely and heartsore, and mad for no reason, during drinks with your best friend you spot a man at the bar. Tequila confident, you make your way over to the stranger, and successfully one thing leads to another. The next morning you leave before he’s woken up, feeling satisfied in one way, but still as discontented as ever. Telling yourself it was an inebriated mistake, you quickly try to forget about it.
Only, three weeks later that night comes back to haunt you – in a very unescapable way…
pairing; kim seokjin x f reader
au/genre; unplanned pregnancy, strangers to lovers, slow burn, romance (dare I say romcom in places), smut, angst, (melo)drama, dual pov
words; 7,234
warnings/includes (!) I’m sorry, but we’re back in angstville for this one, be strong, everything will be ok!!!! There’s like 10% fluff, then 90% angst, conflict, they tell Oc’s family and it couldn’t go any worse if they tried tbh, Oc’s dad is not happy to put it lightly, he goes OFF, mentions of parent death, prepare to feel really sorry for Seokjin lmao, but he also gives the dad what for, our man needs a hug, but also Oc deserves one too!
⟶ ao3 link
*inspired by the manhwa ‘Positively Yours.’
↪︎ series index
SEASON TWO
⇤ previous | next ⇥
Yesterday had been a busy day altogether, because after your appointment with Dr. Choi, you’d visited Yuna and Jimin to share the news, then three (unplanned) hours later, you had to whisk off to meet up with Hoseok, Kang and Jungkook, the latter making reservations for dinner. You’d thought about gathering all your friends together to tell them, but you’d both decided quite resolutely, that you weren’t ready for Yuna and Jungkook to meet just yet. You would save that for the baby shower Yuna kept going on (and on) about.
You’d texted Namjoon to tell him he’d lost the betting pool, and also Yoongi to let him know he was on the winner’s team, who floated the idea of Globbina for a name – which had made Seokjin laugh a lot when you’d told him, followed by a ‘please, God no.’ You’d also let Yuna’s parents know the news, feeling guilty you’d managed to forget about them when Boyoung’s text had come through politely asking if she could find out. In the general scheme of things, you probably didn’t have that many people to tell, but to you it seemed like hundreds.
The day after, you both made the drive down to visit Seokjin’s parents again, his brother and Seohyun already there with Taeoh and Jiu, all of them excitedly waiting to find out whether Glob was a girl or boy – well, maybe minus Jiu, who didn’t understand what was going on (but, was successfully warming to you more!) Mikyung teared up as soon as you told her the news and showed her the sonograms. She couldn’t wait to meet her second baby granddaughter. Sangwoo smiled and clasped Seokjin’s shoulder proudly, Seokwon brought him into a hug, just as Seohyun did the same to you, which should have felt awkward, but you were just so happy to share the news, so happy everyone was happy too, you didn’t bat an eyelid. Taeoh squealed and wrapped his arms around the tops of your thighs, happily yelling HI GIRL GLOB COUSIN to your bump, while Jiu looked at him oddly.
(Deciding to tell him that nickname was the best thing you’d ever done. You were pretty sure it was the funniest thing he’d ever heard.)
“Is your brother silly?” you’d asked her, crouching down as much as you could in an attempt to be eye level. You’d been rewarded with your first smile and a shy chuckle. You’d have this whole mother thing down in no time!
Then on Monday, it was the office’s turn! Two days later they surprised you with a little party and a cake that said: ‘It’s a girl!’ in stereotypical pink icing, not that you didn’t love and appreciate it – cake was cake, and it was a very delicious cake at that! You were further surprised when you saw Seokjin walking through the door, Namjoon having secretly invited him, and your jaw practically dropped when later you saw him having a friendly conversation with Yoongi by the water cooler.
The only ones you hadn’t told yet, was your family. The guilt had started to creep in when you’d told Seokjin’s, and had gradually, but surely grown worse as the week went by. They didn’t even know you were pregnant! The cruise had been out of your control, however you couldn’t help but wish you’d told them earlier. It had been a mistake to keep it from them this long.
Thankfully though, your dad and Yeonja were now home, and you were almost certain that as soon as Yeonja had gotten through the front door – no, maybe sooner than that – she had lunged for the phone, calling you to organise lunch for Saturday. Every time you thought about it you felt a little sick. Of course, as it usually seemed to be, Saturday rolled around way too fast, and you had no other option but to put on your big girl pants (which were actually really stretchy ‘granny pants’ as Yuna called them.) You left to make the hour’s drive at half 11, your stomach twisting in anticipation. It was finally happening.
Seokjin seemed nervous too, which wasn’t a surprise. He’d been quiet ever since he’d gotten a phone call from Hoseok as you were finishing off your makeup. You hadn’t heard the entire conversation because he’d slipped out of your bedroom to continue it, and when you’d asked him if everything was all right, he’d nodded and smiled. Maybe he’d been confiding in his best friend how anxious he was, not wanting to burden you. To show him you were in this together, you reached over to squeeze his thigh every once in a while, earning you a smile each time.
.
.
The car journey too, seemed to go too fast. In no time at all Seokjin was pulling into the familiar driveway.
“This is a really nice house,” Seokjin awed, as you rounded the car to meet him, a bottle of champagne in one of his hands.
“My dad built it,” you explained, smiling as he continued to gaze up at it, an almost silent woah, slipping past his throat.
It wasn’t anything elaborate, your father didn’t like anything over the top, but it was a great looking house. You’d been so jealous of it when you were a kid, although you could never work out why. As you got older it all made sense. You wanted to live in a house your father had built.
Casting his gaze over to you, Seokjin smiled warmly. “Do you think he can build us a home one day?”
He was joking, you thought, or maybe not, the glint in his eyes almost hopeful, earnest? It made your insides feel all funny, hard to describe the feeling, but you were grinning, your hand finding his free one, laughing quietly. “Ready?”
“As I’ll ever be.”
The sound of the door knocker hitting the wood matched the banging of your heart, and you took a slow, deep breath, psyching yourself up. These past few months had been a series of new and nerve-wracking situations, what was one more to add to the pile?
Yeonja was on the door like a flash, yanking it open, smile wide. “____, honey.” Her eyes were on your face for a second tops, before they flew to your right, taking in the man wrought with discomfort beside you. “This must be Seokjin. Oh my,” — back at you again, a raised eyebrow of approval. You’d told her his name on the phone and she said it now with a practised ease.
And then, the moment you’d been waiting for. Her gaze dropped, briefly, to your stomach, barely taking it in before she was directing that smile back to Seokjin, and then…then she had to do a double take. “Oh—” she exclaimed, the sound sharp and cutting off abruptly.
“Surprise,” you sang, internally cringing at yourself. You might as well have added jazz hands.
“You’re—You’re—”
You nodded, pretty sure she had guessed you were pregnant by now. The hug she threw your way confirmed it, but it was over surprisingly quick, and she just stared at you in wild disbelief, her hands gripping your shoulders. You offered her a feeble smile, unsure what else to do, or to actually say.
Yeonja turned her head, looking behind her, then snapped her neck back to you. She repeated. Then hugged you again. When she pulled back you were afraid she might be malfunctioning. “Minsoo!” she suddenly cried in hysteric excitement. “Look!”
Your stomach twisted. Yeonja was one person, you still had three more to go, your father being one of them. Your stepmom ushered you both inside just as you heard your dad’s footsteps coming into the hallway. You smiled at him sheepishly when he came into view and stopped by the staircase. Instantly, his eyes found your bump. “What’s this?”
He said it so quietly, so calmly, you needed a moment to collect yourself and remember how to speak. “Surprise,” you sang once again (WHY), weaker this time. You’d expected him not to have much of a reaction, but the instant disappointment you felt made your heart feel as though it weighed a ton.
“Minsoo,” Yeonja gushed, “isn’t this amazing news?”
Before he had a chance to respond, or to grunt his response, your brother appeared from the living room, a baseball cap on his head back to front. “What’s going on?” he asked, brows furrowed, and you noticed the game controller in his hand.
“Your sister is expecting,” Yeonja beamed, the back of her fingers pressed to her mouth in a bid to control her excitement.
Jihoon’s brow only seemed to crinkle more, obviously confused by the word ‘expecting.’ Expecting what? A delivery? Then, he looked at you, really looked at you, his mouth dropping open. “Holy fuck.” He said each syllable emphatically. He tilted his chin, ignoring his mom’s whispered scolding, and shouted up the stairs. “Joo, get the hell down here now!” There was a pause. “JUEUN!”
Then just as loud: “I’m still getting ready, asshole!”
Beside you, Seokjin shifted, but you felt strangely stiff, unable to turn to acknowledge him. Yeonja tutted, no doubt embarrassed. You knew Seokjin wouldn’t bat an eyelid at this kind of behaviour, he and Jungkook often acted in the same way and they were in their thirties, not in their late teens. He was probably just feeling uncomfortable because you father hadn’t taken his eyes off you both since he’d appeared. You chose to pretend you hadn’t noticed.
“You’re gonna wanna see this,” Jihoon shouted back.
“See what? Is ____ here?” Ten seconds later you heard a door open and just as quickly, your sister was running down the stairs to greet you, smiling as she did so. She noticed almost immediately, stopping on the second to last step. “Oh my god,” she gasped. “You’re pregnant?!” With a squeal, she was launching herself into your arms.
“Jueun, not too hard. You might hurt her,” Yeonja warned, but it didn’t stop her from joining in. A laugh bubbled from your throat as you wrapped your arms around each of their waists, making the three-way hug work. “Jihoon,” Yeonja beckoned, pulling away. “Congratulate your sister.”
He reluctantly made his way over, obviously embarrassed, because you guessed showing a little sibling affection was mortifying for an 18-year-old. Still, he gave you a short hug, mumbling, “Congrats, ____.”
As he stepped back, you realised Jueun had belatedly taken note of Seokjin’s presence, her face a little flushed as she pushed some hair behind her ear and smiled up at him shyly. “Joo, Ji, this is Seokjin,” you introduced, trying to control your amused smile.
Seokjin raised a hand adorably. “Nice to meet you guys.” He seemed a little overwhelmed, but kept a smile on his face, glancing at your father. “You too, sir.”
Yikes, probably a little too formal for your father’s liking. Not that he said. Well, not that he responded at all, actually.
Yeonja cleared her throat before it could get anymore awkward, probably picking up on the atmosphere. “Let’s all sit down. Lunch is almost ready and you need to be off your feet as much as possible, ____, standing in the doorway like this.” She shook her head, as if chiding herself. “Jihoon, set the table.”
“Why me?” he whined. “I was in the middle of a game.”
“Just do it,” she said forcibly, no room for argument, before beaming over at Seokjin. “Let me take this off you, Seokjin.” She reached for the champagne, pausing to read the label. “Oh, how lovely. Thank you. Very fancy,” she giggled. Giggled.
Of course. You should have known Seokjin could win her over with only his face.
“Jueun, go help your brother,” she directed at your sister, wrapping an arm around your shoulders to lead you inside the front room – the room that was reserved for guests. “I have so many questions.”
“I want to hear the answers as well,” Jueun grumbled, looking put out.
“Well, make it snappy then,” Yeonja suggested primly, before laughing so loudly it pierced your ears.
.
.
Yeonja kept you talking well into lunch, it was a wonder you managed to eat at all. You filled her and Jueun in on all the little details of your pregnancy so far. How many months you were, that you were having a girl, what symptoms you had been, and were, suffering with. Even Jihoon listened with interest (until the symptoms part, that was.) Your father on the other hand stayed practically silent, sitting to your left at the top of the table. Any words he did say were few and far between, and always (reluctantly) prompted by Yeonja. A little voice in your head told you this was more than just being uninterested. He hadn’t cracked a smile once, his jaw set firmly. He was mad, everyone at the table knew that, but you couldn’t for the life of you understand why.
“I wanted to tell you sooner,” you were telling Yeonja now, who was sat the opposite end of your dad. “But then I found out you and dad were going on that cruise and telling you on the phone seemed…” You trailed off guiltily, offering an apologetic smile.
“That’s no problem, darling” Yeonja said with a smile. “How long have you known? Not long?”
“Um. Actually, we’ve known quite early on,” you said awkwardly, now feeling even guiltier. “We didn’t want to say anything until it was safe, I guess. I didn’t want to jinx anything.”
“Oh, ____, of course. We understand,” Yeonja replied, even if she did look a little shocked by your revelation. She turned her attention to Seokjin who was beside you. “And your parents, Seokjin, do they know yet?”
“We told them around a month ago.”
Yeonja shook her head. “That stupid cruise. I mean, it was a great cruise – We had a great time, didn’t we, honey?” Your dad grunted in response. “But I could have found out the news sooner!”
“I can’t believe I’m going to be an aunt!” Jueun exploded, seated in front of you, making everyone laugh – sans one person.
“What is it your parents do?” Yeonja asked Seokjin.
“They’re retired actually,” he replied, wiping his mouth with his napkin. (A napkin?? Yeonja had really pulled out all the stops.) “Um. I own my own company, so I’m able to help out and provide for them. When they need it, of course,” he added awkwardly. He rarely liked talking about himself or his accomplishments, you’d long realised.
“Oh. So filial,” Yeonja beamed, looking impressed. “Jihoon, are you taking note?” Jueun snicked beside him. “Are you going to own a company in the future and look after us?”
Ignoring her, Jihoon asked Seokjin: “What’s the company?”
“It’s a gaming company. You may have heard of it…Alpaca Gaming Studios?”
Jihoon’s jaw dropped. “No fucking way!”
“Language!” Yeonja clipped.
“Mom, he owns one of the best gaming companies in the world,” Jihoon cried. Swearing was justified.
“That might be a bit of an over exaggeration,” Seokjin chuckled.
“This is fu—I mean, this is freaking crazy!”
“So you’re famous?” Jueun asked, eyes wide.
Seokjin full on laughed now. “Not quite. The games I helped create, maybe.”
“They’re next level, dude,” Jihoon gushed. “I’ve been playing your games for years. Ever since I was a kid!”
“They’re not just my games,” Seokjin stated modestly, but your brother was too far gone in his excitement to hear.
“I’m googling you right now!”
“Let me seeeee,” Jueun whined, trying to look over his shoulder.
“Get lost.” Jihoon nudged her away. “Woah. It really is you!” Holding up his phone, Seokjin’s face filled the screen. The same image you’d been met with when you too had googled his name all those months ago.
“Oh, I should have my glasses…” Yeonja muttered. “Hold it closer, darling.” Yeonja practically leaned over the table. “A headshot! How handsome!” She glanced over at your dad. “Minsoo, are you seeing this? Your daughter’s boyfriend is a CEO.”
“I see it.”
Your stomach dropped at your dad’s tone, and you shared a surreptitious look with Jueun, who looked as unsure as you felt. Your dad seemed to have a problem with Seokjin? How and why? Seokjin shifted uncomfortably beside you, picking up on the vibe too, and you felt a twinge of embarrassment. How could your dad act this rude?
“Jihoon, if you want, I can show you around the AGS building some time?” Seokjin suggested, trying his best to carry on as normal.
“Foreal, dude?” Jihoon’s eyes were wide.
Seokjin grinned. “Foreal.”
“Can I come too?” Jeuen asked.
“Sure.”
“You don’t even play video games,” Jihoon shot, pulling a face.
“I do!”
“The Sims doesn’t count.”
“Oh, come on,” Seokjin laughed. “It does. It’s a simulation game, just like BT21.”
Despite the animosity radiating off your father in waves, it was nice to see Seokjin getting along with your siblings. You caught Yeonja’s eye and smiled.
“BT21? That’s one of your games?” Jeuen asked. “Maybe I’ll buy it.”
Seokjin shook his head. “No need to spend your money.”
“She doesn’t have any money,” Jihoon scoffed.
Seokjin chuckled. “I mean, I’ll get you a copy.”
Jeuen beamed over at him. “Thank you, Seokjin.”
You all managed to finish your meal, but conversation animatedly started back again halfway through dessert. This time however, it seemed your father wanted to join in…
“Tell me more about your relationship,” Yeonja urged Seokjin. “How did you guys meet? When was it?”
Jihoon groaned; the topic not nearly as interesting as AGS.
“Oh,” Seokjin guffawed, put on the spot. He wasn’t the best at this, as you’d already established. Ten seconds of questions from Yeonja and he’d end up spilling all the sordid details. “We met at a bar.”
“____ is always so secretive,” Yeonja joked. “I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s been hiding you away for years.”
“Hah, not quite.”
“How long?”
You were so surprised to finally hear your dad’s voice unprompted, it didn’t register at first. Seokjin’s eyes were slightly rounded when he met his gaze, swallowing before he replied. “Well…”
“How long have you been together?” your dad repeated flatly.
“Minsoo,” Yeonja said, the smile on her face painful looking.
“I just want to know how long he’s been dating my daughter.”
Jihoon fidgeted in his seat, sensing the atmosphere immediately. Jueun looked at you, wincing.
“It’s more than dating, dad,” you said as casually as you could manage. Practically the first words you’d uttered to him all afternoon.
When his palm hit the table, you jumped. It hadn’t been loud, but it took you by surprise anyway. “Will someone just answer my question, please. How long has it been?”
Frustrated and growing angry, you knew you needed to at least leak some of the truth. Your father wasn’t like Yeonja, happily blinded by the news of your relationship. He’d already guessed the answer. “A couple of months. Okay?” You hadn’t meant to raise your voice, but you were suddenly feeling defensive. “I got pregnant when we weren’t together. Not that it matters, because now we are and are very happy.” It felt as though you had to justify yourself, and you hated it. It felt forced.
“Oh, well,” Yeonja started, trying for damage control. “That doesn’t matter at all—”
“I can’t believe this has happened. How could you let this happen, ____?”
Your father’s words burned shame across your face, your skin prickling. Or maybe it was anger. Red hot anger. He sounded so disappointed in you.
“Minsoo,” Yeonja warned lowly, no longer smiling. Beside you, Seokjin was stiff.
“No, Yeonja. I’m sorry for doing this, but do you really expect me to just sit here and listen to all this nonsense?”
Seokjin cleared his throat, speaking respectfully. “I know it’s a shock but—”
“I don’t need you to tell me what’s a shock.”
“Dad!” you cried, incredulous. How dare he speak to Seokjin like that.
“How, ____?” he demanded again. “How could you have a baby with a stranger?”
“Seokjin is not a stranger!” you shouted. You looked around the table, your siblings silent and nervous. Yeonja was glowering at your father. “This is ridiculous. I’m nearly thirty years old!”
“You are still my daughter!”
“Minsoo, please. This is not the time and place,” Yeonja hissed.
“Then what is? After she’s had the baby?!” your dad yelled. “After this man has grown bored of her, moved onto the next woman who catches his eye, gets them pregnant too, maybe?!”
Too stunned, too hurt, you didn’t know what to say to that, you could only stare at him open mouthed.
“Minsoo!”
“That is never going to happen,” Seokjin said beside you, addressing your father’s ridiculous claims. Despite everything, he still spoke diplomatically. “I understand I’m a stranger to you right now, but you have this situation all wrong. I care about ____ and our baby very much.”
“I have nothing wrong, believe you me. I know your type. You think you can come inside my home and charm my entire family right in front of me? All while I’ve been oblivious to the charming you’ve been doing to my pregnant daughter this whole time. Do you think I’m a joke?”
You realised then that your eyes were stinging with tears, but you held them back with all your might.
“That’s enough!” Yeonja yelled, standing up. “Jihoon, Jueun, get upstairs. I need to talk to your father.”
For once, neither put up a fight, standing quickly and leaving the dining room in silence. As you heard them walk upstairs, Yeonja came over to you and put her arm around your shoulders. One hot tear slid down your cheek, and you wiped it away quickly. “Look what you’ve done. This is so embarrassing, Minsoo!” Yeonja cried. “Would it kill you to be happy for her? For them?!”
“Happy?” he roared. “Happy for what? That some rich, pompous ‘CEO’ has impregnated my daughter?! Oh yeah, I’m over the fucking moon, Yeonja.”
When you sniffed, Seokjin turned to look at your face, realising that you were crying. “Maybe we should talk alone?” he suggested to your father calmly. “You’re upsetting your daughter.”
Your father’s eyes flashed with anger, before softening briefly when they found yours. He looked down at the table and snarled. “Fine.”
Before Yeonja could help you up, Seokjin reached over and rubbed your back. “You’re okay.” You tried to let his soothing voice reassure you. “It’s all right, I promise.”
A few moments later you were sat on the couch with Yeonja, a protective arm still around you as your tears fell silently. “Oh, ____, honey. Don’t cry. It’s all okay.”
“How is it okay?” Your voice broke at the end of your question. “Dad is so angry.” ‘
She squeezed your shoulder. “Not at you.”
“Being angry at Seokjin doesn’t make it any better,” you sniffed, and just thinking of him made your heart clenched. This was so unfair to him. You wiped your eyes defiantly. “I need to go back in there.”
“Just leave them for a moment. It’ll be fine.”
The sick feeling in your gut didn’t tell you the same, but you knew that your father wasn’t an aggressive man. Then again, you’d never seen him this angry before. His reaction was still shocking, you hadn’t processed it. He was usually quiet, even when furious. When you were a child, one stern look from him had you instantly behaving. He had never even raised his voice at you, and even when arguing with your mom, he chose to leave and cool off instead of continuing the verbal confrontation.
Yeonja brought you into a hug, and you let yourself close your eyes. You could smell her familiar powdery perfume. Ever since you’d known her, twenty-two years, it had always been the same one. It made you feel comforted, even if just for a moment.
“Your emotions must be all over the place with all the pregnancy hormones,” she murmured. “Mine went haywire with Jihoon and Jueun, your dad didn’t know what to do.”
It’s not really the same though, you wanted to reply, but stopped yourself. Your emotions had been perfectly fine until you’d shown up here today, but you knew that wasn’t Yeonja’s fault. Right now, she was only trying to make you feel better. To distract you, even. So you just let her.
.
.
Seokjin took a deep breath, trying to be as discreet as possible. He wasn’t afraid, but he still needed to steel himself. If he was being honest, he’d expected a not so warm welcome from your father, call it intuition, despite how much you’d believed he would be indifferent. Still, he hadn’t imagined such anger. Seokjin couldn’t recall a time he’d been so unfairly judged, couldn’t recall someone being this incensed with him. He had never been in a physical altercation in his life, and while he didn’t actually believe your father would hit him, this day had been full of surprises. So, his default was to diffuse the situation.
“I understand why you’re so angry, I would be too if I was in your shoes.”
It wasn’t exactly the news every dad wanted to hear, was it? Their daughter pregnant by a man they hardly knew at the time. By a stranger. He’d said so himself. How could you have a baby with a stranger? You’d long stopped feeling like strangers, but at the time, it was the truth. Seokjin tried to envision the same thing happening to him in the future. His daughter, all grown up, telling him an identical story. Minsoo’s reaction wasn’t unjustified. He too, would be furious.
Minsoo stayed silent, regarding him stonily from the other side of the table, so Seokjin continued uneasily. It was up to him to sort this out, to make your father see he had nothing to worry about. “I get it, I really do, but… What can I do to make you see it’s not like that at all?”
In all honesty, he wasn’t so confident this approach would work, according to Minsoo, he was a master manipulator…
“Nothing,” he replied gruffly, and Seokjin let out a frustrated breath. That was it? This man wasn’t going to give him a single chance to change his mind?
“Then that’s a shame, because I plan on being in your daughter’s life for a very long time,” Seokjin said as effortlessly as he could manage. It didn’t matter if Minsoo didn’t like him, didn’t want to accept him. Yet even as Seokjin thought that, he felt uncomfortable. Seokjin liked being liked. Many a therapy session had made that clear.
More silence followed, and while Seokjin was sure it wasn’t a good silence, at least your father didn’t seem as heated anymore. Seokjin followed him with his eyes when Minsoo suddenly stood up, making his way over to a wooden mini bar. He reached out for a bottle of whisky, but didn’t open it, only stared down at it.
“How well do you know ____?”
Seokjin swallowed, unable to tell if that was a dig at him because he hadn’t known you very long, or if it was a genuine question. Before he could reply, your father continued.
“When she was six, me and her mother got divorced.” Seokjin nodded, showing he knew this already. Not that Minsoo could see him, his back still turned. “We weren’t together very long before we found out Hyesoo was pregnant, we rushed things, thought it was the right thing to do. It wasn’t.”
Seokjin’s eyebrows pinched together in realisation. Minsoo was telling him the same would happen to you and him.
“____ didn’t take it very well. She didn’t take my second marriage very well either,” Minsoo continued. “She never said anything, that’s not her style. But I knew… She wanted to be there for her mom, be on her side. I understood that. I still do.”
“Her and her mom seemed very close,” Seokjin offered, trying to show how engaged he was in this conversation.
“They were,” Minsoo nodded, finally turning around. “Like two peas in a pod. ____ even stayed at home for university, just so she didn’t have to leave her. They had a close relationship, but it was also very…dependant.” Minsoo paused, thinking how to continue.
“I don’t know if ____ sees it like that.”
“No, she doesn’t,” Minsoo agreed. “____ was all Hyesoo had, and I think that made ____ feel as if Hyesoo had to be all she had too. Or maybe I’ve had it wrong all these years.” He chuckled dryly, shaking his head. “Maybe my own daughter just really can’t stand to be near me too long.”
Seokjin frowned, he didn’t think that was the case, remembering back to the semi-fond way you’d spoken about your father the morning after you’d finally slept together again. But was it his place to say? Your relationship seemed complicated, both you and your father under false presumptions.
“My daughter is admirably independent and so emotionally strong. Just like…” Minsoo trailed off, starting again. “But that doesn’t mean she’s not sensitive, it doesn’t mean she doesn’t hurt. After Hyesoo’s death, she wasn’t right for a long time, had to get counselling.”
Seokjin’s eyebrows lifted in surprise; he hadn’t known that. Although, what happened after your mother’s passing didn’t exactly come up in conversation very much.
“Even then, she withdrew from me even more. I let it slide because I knew she had her friends, Yuna mostly and her family. She was doing well again, but…” Minsoo stared at him, warning written all over his face. “She doesn’t deserve anymore heartbreak. She’s already had enough of it to last a lifetime. No child should lose a parent that young, but she came out the other side. Always does, because she’s incredible like that.”
The corner of Seokjin’s mouth lifted, a sad smile. “Have you ever told ____ all those things? I think she would like to hear them.” Everybody craved and enjoyed being praised by a parent, no matter how old they were.
Minsoo shook his head and turned towards the mini bar again.
Seokjin opened his mouth hesitantly. He didn’t want to speak for you, but some things needed to be said. “She wasn’t expecting your reaction today.”
He could tell it had taken you by surprise and upset you greatly. Just seeing you cry had physically hurt him, as it always did, and he knew it had hurt your father too. Your family dynamic wasn’t at all what he’d imagined. It was normal, and loud, and…fun. (Minus the angry father part, but Seokjin knew that was all because of himself.) It was obvious Yeonja adored you and you seemed to have a good relationship with your siblings. Maybe you weren’t so close with Jihoon, but with Jueun, he’d felt that sisterly bond, noticed your shared glances, doing that telepathy thing you and Yuna did, the kind he wanted with you. It didn’t matter if you didn’t see them all that often, they loved you all the same, and you loved them too, and it was so glaringly obvious now, that Minsoo loved and cared about you deeply. He showed it in the wrong way, anger never got a person anywhere, but Seokjin could see it. He wanted you to see it too…
When Minsoo didn’t reply, Seokjin tried again. “She was so certain you’d be unbothered by the news.” Seokjin didn’t want to overstep, but he thought you were under that impression because your father showed no active interest in your life.
Minsoo whirled around incredulously. “Unbothered?!” He was angry again. “Why would I ever accept this? I’m not my wife who romanticises everything! This wasn’t how I wanted things for her.”
Seokjin looked down at the table, the sight of dessert making him feel sick. He’d been doing so well, getting somewhere possibly, and now he was back at square one.
“I don’t want to watch a repeat of everything that went wrong with me and her mother.”
Seokjin’s eyes flew up, just like the anger that suddenly collected in his chest. “I’m not going to hurt her.”
“How do I know that?”
‘She knows that.” That was all that mattered. He had to keep reminding himself.
“Why does she think she knows that?” Minsoo countered. “What did you promise her? All that money… You think you can just buy her affections? Fuck, I thought she was smarter than that.”
Seokjin tried to get a hold of himself. It would do him no favours if he started raising his voice too, but he hated hearing what your dad was saying. You were smart. Getting pregnant didn’t erase that. He took a deep breath.
“I don’t think that at all. I don’t need to buy anything, and ____ would never let me.” He chuckled humourlessly. “How well do you think you know your daughter?” The question rushed from his mouth before he could stop it, but he didn’t feel regret. Instead, anger spurred him on. “Five months. That’s how long I’ve known her, and in that time, I’ve never once seen you call her, text her, anything.”
All the fight seemed to zap right out of Minsoo, shoulders hunching. When he spoke, he sounded embarrassed. “We don’t have that kind of relationship. We don’t do talking on the phone, messaging… I can just about use a phone.”
His excuses made Seokjin’s nostrils flare. “All ____ wants is a family. Me, her and our daughter. I want that just as much.” If not more, at one point, Seokjin thought privately. He had hoped for this, wished, for this outcome. How dare this man assume otherwise. “Maybe if you had done more, you’d know that all already.”
Seokjin was playing with fire, he knew that, but he was glad he’d said it. It was how he felt, how he’d silently perceived the situation for weeks now. How were you supposed to know how your father really felt when he never told you a thing? Yes, maybe you had always been distant, taking your mother’s side, but you had been a child. You were his child. He was the adult. He should have made more of an effort, instead of letting his daughter think he didn’t care about her life all that much. He would say this too, if he had bigger balls.
Big balls have nothing to do with it, he heard Jungkook’s voice say, but it did little to lighten the mood.
Minsoo narrowed his eyes accusingly. “Who are you to tell me what I should have done? Are you an expert on our life? You’ve known her five minutes, not thirty years.”
“I may have only known her for a short amount of time, but it doesn’t feel like that. We, she—we talk to each other a lot. I know things. We’ve really gotten to know one another.” You opened up to him. It had taken a while, but you trusted him now. “It’s been intense,” Seokjin continued, less defensive now, “with the pregnancy, but it’s made it better, it’s worked out. It’s continuing to work out.” He held Minsoo’s gaze, expression severe. “I care about your daughter a lot—more than a lot. She’s strong, so clever, admirable. I don’t…maybe I don’t deserve her, she’s amazing, but I want to try, I want this. So maybe it doesn’t matter if you don’t accept us.”
If you don’t accept me, he thought.
He didn’t need it, he tried to remind himself. He was thirty-four years old, and he didn’t need everyone to like him. He didn’t need to be accepted by everyone. Other people’s acknowledgement wasn’t everything. But it was hard to believe when the one person he needed that approval from was unwilling to give it. This was your father. However, because of that fact, he wasn’t going to let Minsoo see how much being liked by him mattered. It would do him no good to come across as desperate. He’d said his piece, and he’d lick his wounds when he was alone.
He'd have plenty of time to be alone next week, he remembered glumly, his phone call with Hoseok this morning yet another issue in now a sea of many…
.
.
The car ride home was made in silence. You leaned your head against the window and closed your eyes almost immediately, but you weren’t really asleep, just mentally exhausted. Seokjin only concentrated on the road, his jaw set tight and visibly tense.
After Seokjin reappeared, Yeonja had apologised profusely. He’d assured her it was fine and wasn’t her fault, but he seemed subdued, and wouldn’t look you in the eyes properly when you told him you wanted to leave. He was upset, and that just made this entire situation worse and hurt you even more. Yeonja tried to persuade you to stay and talk to your dad, but you refused. He hadn’t even left the dining room, which told you all you needed to know. Telling Yeonja there was no need for her to call you tonight because you didn’t feel like talking, you asked her to say goodbye to Jueun and Jihoon for you. You couldn’t face doing it in person right now.
When you finally arrived outside your house, you tugged the door handle, unsure what you would do when you got inside, but needing it all the same. You needed the comfort of your own home, the familiar smell, the furniture that had always been there. You realised then that Seokjin hadn’t moved at all, even though he’d switched the engine off. You turned to look at him quizzically.
“Hey, I think I might head back to my apartment.” His voice was hoarse, not having spoken for over an hour.
“Oh,” you managed. Rejection hit you, but you tried really hard to ignore it. You forced yourself to smile reassuringly. “That’s okay.” Seokjin didn’t respond. “Listen Seokjin, I am so sorry about what happened.”
He finally looked over at you, disbelief on his face. “It’s not your fault.”
It felt like it was. “I was the one who told you he wouldn’t care. I thought it would be fine.”
“Why did you think that, ____?” he asked softly. “Because you don’t realise how much your father loves you?”
Frowning, you didn’t understand what he was getting at. “What?” For some incomprehensible reason, your first instinct was anger. “I know my dad loves me, Seokjin. He’s just—I thought he’d be okay with it.”
You thought he’d be happy with the news, in his own roundabout way. How wrong you were… That’s why you were so upset. His reaction had been the complete opposite of what you’d imagined. Indifference was so much better than rage.
Seokjin said nothing, so you asked: “What did he say? When you were alone?”
Seokjin bowed his head and shook it slowly, both hands gripping the wheel. He was reluctant to tell you, and all you could do was worry about all the things that had been said.
“I think maybe he should be the one to tell you,” Seokjin said finally, glancing at you.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
You didn’t want to take your frustration out on Seokjin, but he was the one you trusted, the one you felt comfortable with, like you could share anything with him. So why couldn’t he tell you what had happened when he and your father were alone? Unless…
Maybe Seokjin was too hurt and embarrassed to repeat their conversation. You reached over, a reassuring hand on his knee. “I don’t care what my dad thinks. You understand that, right?” you told him gently.
Seokjin stared down at your hand, looking visibly exhausted. “I’m just feeling very overwhelmed right now. I need to be alone, to sort through everything.”
You tried not to feel hurt by what he was telling you, you tried to understand, but right now he wanted to be on his own, and you didn’t. You had become used to being your own support over the years, but Seokjin by your side had helped reinforce you. You wanted to be with him, so it was painful to know he didn’t want your support right now.
“Will I see you tomorrow?” you asked.
You watched him shake his head, your mouth parting in shock, and you removed your hand from his knee. “I mean,” he rushed, noticing and sounding remorseful. “I mean, shit, that phone call I had with Hoseok this morning? I need to leave for Japan tomorrow afternoon.”
“What?” Surely he was playing a joke on you.
He closed his eyes. “There’s a gaming convention next week. I was due to appear by video, but there was a change of plan this morning. They need me there.”
“You’re leaving for an entire week?” you asked in disbelief.
“I was going to tell you as soon as we got back. I didn’t want to ruin today…”
You both lapsed into silence hearing the irony of that now.
“So you’re just going to leave,” you whispered after a few moments. “Without talking about this? Jump on a plane tomorrow, and then what?”
You’d act as if nothing had happened when he got back? Or worse, what if your father’s behaviour scared him off? As soon as you thought that, you shook it away. You were being ridiculous. That would never happen.
“I’m sorry,” he apologised. “I’ll message you every day, check in. I don’t know how often I’ll be able to phone, but I’ll try to—,”
“It’s fine,” you interrupted, trying to be understanding. “Messaging is enough if you’re very busy—Well, of course you’ll be very busy.”
He nodded, not meeting your eyes, and you were suddenly overcome with a feeling of hopelessness. You were usually the closed off one, not Seokjin. Seeing him like this was disconcerting. You felt sick with unease. How had this day turned out so terrible? Yeonja had been happy for you, your brother and sister had been happy for you. Everyone you knew was happy for you. So why couldn’t your own father be?
“Seokjin, talk to me,” you pleaded, trying once again and taking one of his hands. “I don’t care what my dad thinks,” you repeated slowly.
“But I do,” he said with a resigned sigh.
You wanted to tell him he didn’t have to. You wanted to feel frustrated, but you couldn’t, because if things had been the opposite way around, his family not accepting you, you would have felt the same way too. Those few scary moments when his mom had found out, they were nothing compared to your dad’s reaction today.
“I’ll see you in a week then?” You wanted it to be an assertion, but it came out more like a question. Seokjin nodded. “Message me before your flight takes off?”
“I will,” he replied, managing a small smile.
You hesitated, wanting to reach over and hug him more than anything, but you settled on a quick kiss to his cheek and slowly got out of the car. You hadn’t missed the way he’d sadly closed his eyes as he felt your lips on his skin, as though attempting to savour the feeling.
Your legs felt wobbly as you walked to your door.
Written 2022.
Please refrain from posting my work elsewhere. No translations allowed.
© floralseokjin 2022
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