10. What Do You See? (final) | Reliability Kth

10. what do you see? (final) | reliability • kth

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pairing: taehyung x reader word count: 5.662 genre: drama, angst rating: pg-15 warnings: cursing, kissing, implied mental health struggles, brief description of panic attack au: ceo/office trope: enemies to friends to lovers tags: ceo!taehyung, office!au, best friend!yoongi, unresolved emotional tension, mutual pining, slow burn crosspost: ao3

summary: all good things must come to an end so that better ones can begin. until then, taehyung is forced to deal with the aftermath of y/n’s choice

A/N: i'm a tad emotional to finally share the last chapter of this special story. full note at the end :)

shout-out to my wonderful beta indigo (@playmetheclassics). thanks to you i'm wrapping this up the way i always dreamed of: with fluidity emotion and good dialogues. i appreciated all of your suggestions <3

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Walking back to Yoon Gi’s car, I felt the cold wind on my back as it passed through the thin layer of my suit and made my teeth chatter. My hands were cold as ice and all the heat that consumed me minutes ago disappeared the second I heard Eric’s voice. Now I had this strange sensation on my face as if my skin was tight. I think it’s the dried-up tears.

“Drive” I said as soon as I got in the back seat, startling Yoon Gi.

“What happened?” he locked his phone and faced me.

Something felt off. I had butterflies in my stomach, but not the good kind. I felt nauseous, consumed with shame, and my chest was aching. It felt as if there wasn’t enough air in the room and I couldn’t breathe, I wanted to take a deep breath and I couldn’t.

“Just drive, please” I mumbled quickly, doing my best not to pass out or throw up because I didn’t know which one would happen first.

Yoon Gi understood and firmly said to his driver, “Dong Hyun, go!”

I thought the car moving would help calm me down, but it didn’t. I thought physically distancing myself from Y/N would help, but it didn’t. Instead, distancing myself from Y/N caused me a sense of panic that I had never experienced before. To the point where I started to sob uncontrollably, on the verge of hyperventilation. My head screamed control yourself, but my heart screamed something way louder, and it didn’t let me hear anything else. A wave of anger suddenly took over me, and I started kicking the front seat, scaring Yoon Gi. He never saw me like this, and I never felt like this either.

“Tae, breathe” he stroked my arm a few times.

What is happening? Why is my tie so tight? Stupid hands won’t obey me.

“I can’t” I cried out, as I struggled to take the tie off and open the window at the same time.

“Slow down” Yoon Gi said, loosening the tie for me.

“Hey, hey… look at me!”

I met Yoon Gi’s serene and commanding eyes. He was determined to de-escalate the situation, and I realized by how calm he was that he had done this before.

“Deep breath” he guided me gently as I did what he said, “Nice, that’s better. Keep going”

I felt better, yet the pain in my chest remained.

Fuck. This is horrible! Is this why they called it a heartbreak?

“Dong Hyun” he tapped the driver’s shoulder, “take us to Tae Hyung’s house, please”

“Yes, sir” he responded, stepping on the gas pedal.

The drive to my house was silent. With my tie loose, the window open, and Yoon Gi checking in now and then, I began to calm down as the minutes went by.

I felt utterly empty. My despair was gone, making room for sadness. The image of Y/N crying and Eric showing up played in my mind constantly in slow motion. The way she pulled herself together when she heard his voice as if what we were doing was forbidden hurt me.

Honestly, I don’t know what I was expecting from her. She is engaged. Of course, she would choose him. She repeatedly said that she needed time for herself, wanted to make her own choices, and look at me, Mr Trying To Intervene Again; every time I try to fix a situation, it just gets worse.

But I don’t regret it.

I had to tell her.

Maybe it was a little selfish and pretentious of me to think that with a confession, she would magically accept me, and things would be back to normal but I had to try. What was my other option?

Complain about it for the rest of my life? Wonder every day what could have been? No thanks, I had been doing it for a month, and it was miserable enough.

“We’re here” Yoon Gi’s soft voice dragged my attention back to planet earth.

I get out of the car feeling heavy. I don’t have the strength to walk. If I could, I would lie right here in the street and stay. Next to me, Yoon Gi bends down to speak to Dong Hyun through the passenger window.

“I’ll stay with him. Take the day off tomorrow. Thanks!” he tapped the roof twice and turned to me.

“Where are your keys?”

My eyelids were already closing on their own. All I could do was reach for the keys inside my jacket and give it to Yoon Gi without saying a single word.

“Let’s get you inside, come on.”

With each step, my body gave more signals that it would shut down at any second. I couldn’t say whether it was an automatic response to trauma, the alcohol losing its effect, me just being exceedingly tired, or the combination of all three. What I was optimistic about was that I needed to lie down. So I went into the house, taking off one piece of clothing at a time, starting with my shoes at the entrance, until I reached the bathroom and closed the door.

I didn’t notice Yoon Gi coming right behind me, just his voice through the door when I slid against it towards the floor, “I’ll be right outside if you need me, just don’t lock the door, okay?” I nodded, feeling the cold tile floor below me.

I don’t know how much time passed before I could muster enough strength to get up, go to the shower and turn it on. Once I did it, I removed the last pieces of clothing still on me and went under the jet of water, feeling my skin burn from the temperature.

“You love to exaggerate things, don’t you?”

“Honey, this is your opportunity to differentiate yourself from your father”

“Bold?”

“Yes, you are not scared to take a risk”

“You and I have more in common than you think”

“You poor thing. No, you won’t. She won’t come back. I’m sorry to be the one to break it down for you, but she’s ‘the one that got away”

“Just remember to speak from the heart”

“I wanted to be your friend, wasn’t it obvious?”

“You never bothered to get to know me”

“For the first time in a long time, this is something I chose for myself. Not for you, not for my family, not for anybody”

“You think I wanted to walk away from this? From you? I had to”

“Please don’t marry him. Don’t go to London. Choose me”

“I love you, Y/N”

Crying so much made me dehydrated. I must have spent almost an hour in the shower, brooding over different moments, possibilities and words. I already felt more relaxed and ready to sleep, but I decided to go to the kitchen and grab something to drink before doing so.

“What’s this?” I asked once I saw my dinner table full of food.

Yoon Gi smirked, “I’m hungry, and I thought you would be too”

“Thank you” I sat down.

“Don’t mention it” he handed me the chopsticks.

Yoon Gi was an excellent cook. Everything was delicious. His mother used to be a famous chef before getting married, and he visibly learned a lot from her and inherited the natural gift of making people feel loved through food.

“I did it” I finally spoke, eating a piece of tteokbokki.

“Did what?”

“Told her how I felt” I placed a piece of meat on Yoon Gi’s plate.

“I’m proud of you” he smiled and ate it.

I wrinkled my nose, “Why?”

“Being vulnerable takes courage and actual physical strength. Not many people talk about the effort you have to make to verbalize the words. It can hurt”

I recognised the truth in what Yoon Gi just said. Still, I don’t get why things had to happen the way they did.

“And all for what? For fucking nothing!”

“What happened?” he cautiously asked.

Saying what had happened out loud made the situation real, and I couldn’t help it when some tears escaped. I dried them quickly and tried to explain as rationally as possible.

“I confessed, she cried, I cried, the fianceé showed up, and she chose him”

“No” he said with his mouth full.

“Yes” I replied, playing with the food on my plate.

“Are you sure?”

“What do you mean? Of course, I’m sure. It’s done. We’re done”

“What did she say?” Yoon Gi took a sip of water.

“Nothing” I shrugged, “Eric appeared, and the moment was gone”

“Damn”

“I don’t think she was going to say anything. I mean, she couldn’t. She was crying. Hard. I’ve never seen her like that before”

“Isn’t that a good sign?” he asked, waving his chopsticks.

“Me making her cry?”

“Maybe it was a good type of cry, you know?” he slurped some of his ramen, “She was touched by what you said”

“I guess we’ll never know” I got up and put my plate in the sink, “Thank you for the meal. You don’t have to stay. Sorry to drag you into this. Good night”

While I said it in a monotonic and practically robotic way, deep down, I was overwhelmingly grateful that my best friend was by my side today. I hate being a burden to him, and that’s why I made it a point to say he could go. He saw enough. However, being the great guy he is, Yoon Gi stayed the whole night and knocked on my door early the next day.

“Tae, I’m leaving”, he paused, “It’s almost 7. You have to get up for work”

I was already awake and just hummed.

“I’ll text you later”

I heard his footsteps moving away and thought to myself how stupid I must look right now because how come a grown man can be lying in bed feeling sorry for himself when he had a multimillion company to run? I’m young but not that young. I don’t have any excuses for acting like a teenager, and God, do I feel like a teenager when it comes to Y/N. I had a couple of girlfriends before, but nothing compares. This is intense, warm, and also hurts like a bitch.

My pride is wounded. I thought I could make her stay. Was it crazy for me to believe that was even a possibility? I thought we could be something. Did I take too long? What is “too long”? Does it mean Eric beat me to it? It feels like that, but I know it’s not. Maybe she decided to try things with him because I never showed interest, I don’t know. Am I being too conceited? All I know is that now that the truth is out there in the open, I feel ten times worse. She didn’t precisely reject me, but she didn’t accept me either. I don’t know if I should be happy that she was so emotional over what I said.

I won’t take it back. I feel for her is real and won’t go away that easily.

I have never been heartbroken before, so I don’t know how to move on.

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******

6 weeks later

To say it was easy would be a lie on my part, but it was not as difficult as I thought it would be. My goal wasn’t to forget Y/N, instead to live one day at a time, trying not to overthink the things that happened and the fact that I couldn’t change them. I had two choices: torture myself for everything I did wrong or focus my energy on something more productive, like work or the relationship with my father.

Although far from ideal, I started spending more time with him to absorb any tips or lessons he could pass on to me about the company. Believe it or not, he simply placed the company in my hands and walked away. There was no transition phase where he taught me the day to day. I just showed up and learned over time.

Ironically, I am in a similar situation. Nobody explained what it is like to have your first heartbreak, so I just live and learn as I go.

My mother has been torn ever since I told everything that happened with Y/N — it was honestly way harder trying to hide than to tell the truth — because even though she wanted us to be together, the fact that we weren’t made it possible for me to see my father more often, so she was happy to see me around the house and watch the bond between the two of us get stronger.

A month or so ago, I finally gathered the courage to tell my dad that Y/N had left Vante and moved to London to study. He reacted better than I expected. However, he still criticized how I ‘should have predicted something like that and provided better opportunities for her’.

In the weeks leading up to the wedding, I kept my mind busy with some best man duties. My brother asked for a simple bachelor party, which was enough of a distraction not to think about my pain, and last Saturday, both of us, plus two of our cousins ​​and three college friends of his, went to a nice cottage in Chuncheon.

Ye Jun’s definition of fun was the following: a luxurious place close to nature, lots of drinking and good food. Cell phones on airplane mode.

Pretty reasonable in my book, so I ensured we were all set for a fun, relaxing weekend. By Monday morning, I felt the old Taehyung slip through the cracks of what it was once a heart. Maybe that meant I survived. Perhaps it wasn’t that bad after all.

Today, standing in front of him while fixing his tie, I find myself pondering how life doesn’t stop or wait for anyone. Time is everything. And that’s kind of the beauty of it. To heal our hearts and feelings to find closure takes time. There is no other way to put things into perspective.

“You look almost as handsome as me” I say to Ye Jun, making him instantly roll his eyes, “Hey” I give him a nudge, “You know how much I look up to you, right?”

“Tae...” he looks down, all red in the face.

“It’s true” I smile, playfully shaking him by the shoulder, “I don’t say it that often but I hope you know I mean it”

He looks up and cups one side of my face, “Thanks!”

“Are you nervous?” I ask, moving sideways so he can check the mirror.

“Not really” he replies, making a few poses and inspecting his outfit from head to toe.

“There’s a lot of people out here”

“There’s nothing to be nervous about”

“You’re committing yourself to another person for the rest of your life” I cross my arms and look at him through the reflective surface, “You’re signing a document. A binding contract”

“That’s romantic of you to notice” he gives me a thumbs-up, and I burst out laughing. He was so dorky. Ye Jun knew how to be funny sometimes.

“I’m not nervous because I want this” he explained.

“Hopefully, one day, you will want it just as much, and I’ll be right by your side saying the same contract thingy”

“We’ll see about that” I flashed a quick smile, trying to change the subject, “Now, let’s get you married!”

Once we stepped out into the garden, all eyes were on us. The sun was shining, not a cloud in the sky, a light breeze, and just the perfect temperature set the scene for this special day. I was so proud to be with Ye Jun that I couldn’t contain my genuine smile as soon as we walked down the Aston House’s stairs. The place had a stunning view of the Hangang River, and my mom did a fantastic job scouting the venue.

We passed by all our family and close friends, greeted them with smiles and nods, and took our positions at the altar, waiting for Hyun Jae’s grand entrance. When it finally happened, everyone turned to her. On the other hand, I turned to Ye Jun, who was completely mesmerized. He always had that in love look, but ten times more. And I don’t blame him, because the second I glanced over to her, I was sure that a princess was coming towards us. Hyun Jae was the personification of delicacy.

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******

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After the religious ceremony, the couple’s grand entrance at the party, and their special dance, the DJ turned the music down and handed me the mic.

“Hi everyone, if I may have your attention please” I began, “My name is Kim Tae Hyung, brother of the groom and also his best man. I would like to say a few words to the couple”

The entire room went dead silent, and, for a brief moment, the sudden attention became unsettling to me. Putting on my best CEO attitude, I continued.

“Not long ago, I discovered what it was like to truly love someone. On the other hand, Ye Jun knew that for a while and always told me how special and meaningful his connection to Hyun Jae was. Today I can confidently say I understand every single word he meant”

I remember when he first told me he was in love with her. He spent almost 10 minutes explaining how amazing their date went, the clever things she said, and how much he missed her whenever she wasn’t around. I thought he was crazy. I did. I was sure he was exaggerating. It didn’t make sense to me how another human could be that likeable. Skip to a few years later, and here I was, reminiscing about Y/N, how she was the coolest, most intelligent person and how much I missed her.

“Being here today celebrating two people I deeply care about is an honor, and I’m sure you all feel the same, so please let’s raise our glasses to Ye Jun and Hyun Jae. May they…”

And that’s when I saw her. Sitting in the back, the third table from the left, looking prettier than ever with her hair tied in a bun and an off-the-shoulder silver dress. She caught my breath, and I had to clear my throat to keep going with the speech.

“May they… uh… always celebrate together the happy moments, rely on each other when things get tough, find forgiveness in their hearts when they feel they have been wronged, and above all, trust that their love is strong enough to heal, overcome and protect. No matter what happens. Cheers!”

With the glass raised in front of me, my gaze met Y/N’s across the room, and I could feel that she understood the message when her hand tipped the drink further in agreement. The toast ended up revealing much more about the two of us than about the bride and groom, which took me by surprise because I hadn’t planned on speaking so honestly, especially if I knew that she would be there listening.

A few minutes later, while I absently contemplated the buildings across the river from underneath the garden’s wooden gazebo, wondering what Y/N could be doing here, she carefully approached me.

“Great speech”

“Thanks” I looked over my shoulder, then back to the river, “Weren’t you supposed to be in London?”

“I was. Flew in last night” she paused, stepping out from behind me, “Can we find a quiet place to talk?”

“Sure” I agreed, following her inside the hotel for a little more privacy.

Once we stopped in front of a large glass window with the Gwangjin Bridge in the background, we could see the sun already setting as the sky mixed different shades of blue and purple with orange clouds. The light was coming in reflected on Y/N’s dress, and I’m positive she has never looked so beautiful.

“Wow, that’s what I call a view” Y/N eyes went wide.

My gaze shifted from her to the window, “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”

Trying to keep the conversation light as if the last few weeks hadn’t been overwhelming was my biggest challenge right now. Thank God Y/N didn’t take long to take the lead.

“I need to start by apologizing to you”

“No, you don’t have to, it’s fine” I reached my hand forward, “I was out of line to show up at your house like that”

Y/N sighed, “You weren’t”

“Oh?”

“Your timing kinda sucked,” she chuckled, “but you said everything I dreamed of and then some”

Everything I dreamed of? This woman knows how to make a man speechless.

“I’ve been pretending for a long time” she turned to me, “I lied to myself, saying that my feelings weren’t valid, that I could not have fallen for my boss, and that you would never see me the same way”

She paused for a second, eyes staring into mine, making sure I was listening to all of it—my turn to step forward, more attentive than ever.

“In my head, you would never notice how I wanted to be noticed, even though the chemistry was there” Y/N looked at her feet for a second, “To be honest, there were times when I thought I was crazy because I was sure you felt the same, but…” she looked up at me, “next thing I knew, you went and did something that sent the complete opposite signal and I—”

I already felt terrible about everything, yet hearing Y/N confess her feelings so honestly filled my chest with a renewed sense of guilt. She fell for me.

Me.

“I’m so sorry” I whispered.

“When you questioned your trust in me, I felt my world collapse. You are the person I admire the most, trust and care for the most, and hearing those words made me think that we didn’t have the relationship I thought we had. I felt like it was all a lie”

The last sentence made her emotional, and I could spot tears forming in the corner of her eyes.

“We were never friends, I know…but through work, we created a bond, this sort of mutual respect, and once I realized the decision I made was what caused a side of you that I never wanted to know existed to come out, it hurt me” one single tear broke free. I immediately swiped it away before she kept going, “My pride was wounded, but soon after, I felt liberated. I suddenly understood that ultimately it was all a fantasy. You and I would never happen, and I needed to do my own thing”

Y/N smiled and recomposed herself while I took a step back to give her some proper space.

“So… I took some time to think about what the next phase of my life would be like and what I wanted to do, which ended up being to enroll in another course in London” she explained, fixing her makeup.

“To my surprise, Eric was responsible for admissions, we reconnected, and I felt that that was a sign from the universe for me to give a 360 in my life. A new course, a new city, new people. Until, of course, you showed up at my house” she poked my chest playfully.

Seeing Y/N go from serious to cautious, then vulnerable to funny in such a short time left me relatively shocked. I did not expect to hear her side of things like that. I wasn’t prepared for this conversation — not today of all days — and I must say that the Tae Hyung of 6 weeks ago wouldn’t be able to hold it together like I am doing now.

“But you were already engaged” I pointed out, attempting to display some humor in my voice.

Y/N made a ‘duh’ face, “Yes, but not married”

“Yoon Gi said the same thing!!” I shouted, making her laugh out loud.

My God, I missed her laugh.

“You two are close, huh?” she added, more like observation and not a question.

“Yeah, well, anyway, you went to London, you got married….”

“Who said I’m married?” she interrupted, “I don’t see a ring on this finger”, and pointed to her left hand.

“W-what? Wait…” I grabbed her hand as I’d never seen one before in my life.

She laughs again, and I can’t help but laugh with her, only this time nervously because I don’t know what’s going on right now. I’m getting this tiny bit of hope inside my chest, and I’m scared it will be taken away, so I refuse to believe it.

“Even though I went to London, I couldn’t stop thinking about what you said. I kept replaying it thousands and thousands of times in my head. Before bed, during classes, cleaning the house…”

It’s happening. She’s giving me hope, isn’t she?

“What about Eric?” I gently let go of her hand.

“That was another hard conversation I had to have” Y/N pinched her lips.

Yep. This is it.

“You’re telling me you’re not with him anymore?”

Every fiber of my body was vibrating, and the seconds that followed my question were incredibly long. I hadn’t allowed myself to think about this whole thing again, much less believe in the idea that Y/N and I could be something for real. However, I should’ve known she would surprise me. She always does.

“No, I’m not” she beams at me like a kid telling a secret. It’s like she can help herself. And I can’t help either — happiness is infectious.

“Plus, a little birdie told me that you needed a date for this wedding, so I’m here doing a favor” Y/N shrugged.

My mother had many talents. One of them is bringing people together. She always made sure to do everything for our family, and this time was no different. It means a lot that she intervened. Without this opportunity, I wouldn’t have a new chance at love.

“A favor?” I quirked an eyebrow.

“Oh yeah,” Y/N nodded, “I was promised free booze too, by the way”

I can’t help but find the idea of my mom and Y/N negotiating extremely funny, “I’m serious, Y/N. What does this mean?”

Before she could say anything, I decided to be just as honest and vulnerable, committing myself to her and the possibility of an ‘us’.

“You know what I see?” I moved closer, “I see a future”

“For us?” she tilted her head, intrigued.

“Yes,” I sighed and chuckled at the same time, relieved that we were finally on the same page, “One where I support you, where you don’t have to make choices for anybody else but yourself. A place full of trust”

“What else?” she asked, genuinely curious, analyzing every inch of my face.

“I see us being happy, never fighting and baking. Do you bake by any chance?”

“Uh, I bake, yes,” the question took her by surprise and earned me a giggle, “but I don’t know about the fighting part. You can be very annoying”

“I’ll do better. I’ll do better!”

“Keep going,” she moved closer to me, “I like your plans so far”

“No, tell me what you see. I wanna know” I said, placing my hands in my pockets.

“Huh…” Y/N took a second to think, “I see myself finishing my studies, then traveling for a couple of months, then coming back to Korea and starting my consulting firm”

“Amazing! What else?”

“I see this handsome guy waiting for me at the airport with balloons and a big smile,” she said, shifting from one foot to the other, “then taking me to a proper date where he will tell me everything he’s been up to with as much detail as possible and that will be our day one”

She looks so cute when she’s nervous.

“I didn’t know you were a romantic person”

“See?” Y/N smirked, “There’s a lot about me you have yet to learn”

“I can’t wait”

I deeply meant it because this was a chance I didn’t expect to have and to hear from her lips that it would be possible floored me. Here she was, in front of me, willing to and very much available, feeling the same way I did. It felt like a dream.

“What? Do I have something on my face?” she rubbed her right cheek.

“No, it’s just that I wanna kiss you so bad right now” I wet my bottom lip.

Y/N blushed, “You do?”

“Yeah”, I nodded, approaching her slowly, moving a strand of hair away from her face and caressing her cheekbone with my finger. “There’s something about your lips that is just fascinating to me” I then brushed my thumb across her bottom lip while pulling her by the waist very gently.

“Interesting” she gazes between my eyes and my mouth, hand coming up to my nape and stroking lightly with her nails.

I move in closer, cupping her face, our lips almost touching, “I’ve been wondering what they taste like”

“Why don’t you find out?” she looks up at me with the most gorgeous and mischievous expression in her eyes.

And just like that, I closed the space between us to meet the softest lips ever, tasting an unusual combination of green apple and vanilla. I’m instantly addicted, and I think Y/N is too because she took the initiative to separate her lips in search of mine through delicate and cautious movements. As she was discovering me, I felt my insides melt. I knew she was testing the waters, wanting more, so I tilted my head and deepened the kiss. My heart was racing like crazy. The way we clicked was just surreal. It just...made sense. The more we kissed, the more sure I was she was the one for me.

As we slowed down, I softly pulled her upper lip, then her bottom lip, and left sweet pecks while tugging her hair behind her ear with both of my hands.

“I’m so happy” I pressed my forehead against hers.

“Me too” she takes a deep breath, placing her hands over mine, eyes closed.

We stood like this for a few seconds, totally lost in our little world, like it was only the two of us in the party, feeling as though time had stopped as we held each other. And as badly as I wanted to stay here longer, we needed to talk about what would happen next, so I addressed the elephant in the room.

“So, when is your flight back?”

“Tomorrow” she lamented.

I pouted and kissed her hand, “Already?”

“Yeah. But I’ll be back!”

“How long?”

“A year” she revealed.

“A year???” I whined, “No, no, no, I won’t survive!”

“Always so dramatic” Y/N laughed and hugged me, “You will be fine”

“You are right. Doing the math real quick, 365 days seems like a fair amount of time to plan the perfect date”

“Whatever keeps your mind occupied, Mr Kim” Y/N’s arms rested on my shoulder.

“Mr Kim, huh?” my hands intertwined on her lower back, “You don’t work for me anymore, remember?”

She quickly pecked my lips, “I know”

“Okay, is this happening?” I looked around to make sure I wasn’t going to suddenly wake up in my bed again, cursing my head for conjuring another perfect dream.

All Y/N apparently could do was smile and nod. It was as if she had slept with a hanger in her mouth. The joy oozed from her body, and I wanted to remember this feeling forever. And kiss her forever too, so that’s what I did again and again after that.

“Right” I try to regain focus, “We’ll make it work. You can come once a month. I can go once a month… we’ll figure something out”

“You mean that?” she grabbed my hand.

“Of course, Y/N. There’s a world out there for you to conquer. I don’t wanna hold you back”

She gave me a squeeze to show she understood my feelings. I knew she was thankful too. She didn’t have to say anything. I could see it in the way she held my hand, looked into my eyes and kissed me. She was in this as much as I was.

It was crazy to think that a few months ago, things were completely different. Even crazier that I woke up today with no idea what was coming next or how my life would change. Man, that’s the real power of choices.

“Let’s go” she said, leading me back to the garden and poetically into a new life.

After so many mismatches, ups and downs, I found that trusting someone depended on me a lot more than anything else. I had to be confident enough to expose my fears and desires without expecting anything in return. So I faced my insecurities and dove headfirst into this strange and scary feeling of love, choosing Y/N with the hope that she would pick me too. She accepted my flaws and wants to see where this goes. It took her a bit, but here we are.

Our story could have been a lot different, but I wouldn’t change anything because, in the end, I learned so much. No, wait, probably just the part where I take years to realize my feelings and all the signals this gorgeous woman was sending. That would save me some time and a ton of tears, for sure.

In all honesty, I can’t say I’m an entirely changed man yet. I don’t know if I ever will be. The only thing I’m sure of is that I’m willing to try my best for her. Because she deserves it, she earned it, and it’s perfectly okay to rely on someone.

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A/N²: this wasn't the first fanfic i wrote but it was the first one i showed anybody (my best friends) and the also first one i shared with the world, so it will always be one of my favorites. maybe because of that, i put pressure on myself to reach a level of excellence and perfection completely unrealistic for a girl who had never written before, let alone in a different language.

i liked the first chapter a lot, the second one as well, and since the story was drawn perfectly in my head, i thought it would be easy to execute and put into words everything i had imagined, but it wasn't. i faced many challenges along the way and thought about giving up a lot. the low post engagement also helped with me thinking i wasn't good enough to publish stories. honestly, my mistake was attempting to build the perfect blog. i spent so much time structuring a posting schedule, trying to stay active, writing a little bit every day, following the right people, affiliating with known networks, and so many other tips that i read in hours of research. all for nothing bc i became more and more unhappy.

with this unhappiness came a new author's block and after struggling a lot i managed to finish chapter 09 and post it. this happened in march/2021, now it's jan/2022. i don't know if anyone who is reading this now, in fact, waited ten months to read what happens next but if so: i'm deeply sorry. it was never my intention to take a year to publish such a short story.

regardless, i hope that whoever got this far enjoyed it, had fun, laughed, cried, and allowed themselves to be transported to a new reality. my only wish is that my stories help people overcome a bad day, a bad week, a bad month; to feel happier, more loved, more connected. deep down, that's what we are: connected by the love for bts. 

thanks for reading, thanks for liking, for sharing, commenting or simply taking some time out of your day to experience a world that only exists in my head.

until the next story, xx bella

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𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗱 ❤ 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗺𝗲 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝘀𝗸! 𝗶 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆

snowed in • pjm

pairing: jimin x reader

chapters: 6/10

genre: fluff, romance

rating: pg15 

warnings: unbelievably cute kid, even cuter dog, hallmark type of fluff, jimin is the best dad, tiny bit of angst bc it's me, also some making out & mention of sex

au: single parents

trope: neighbours to lovers

tags: single dad!jimin, journalist!reader, dad!yoongi, godfather!jin, the whole gang is here

crosspost: ao3

summary: thanks to your dog you met the cute but guarded neighbor. thanks to a snowstorm you discovered he could be much more than that. would the two of you be ready for new beginnings, even if your pasts left deep scars?

alternatively: how you and park jimin fell in love by christmas

☆ disclaimer: this is a work of fiction taken from the depths of my imagination, which takes place in an alternative universe (AU) and has no real connection with people, places or organizations. everything you will read is fictional and created by me. i do not authorize its reproduction, translation or publication, partially or entirely © mrsparknamjoon⠀⠀

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CHAPTER 01: hide and seek ↳ release date: february 9th, 2021 ↳ word count: 1.349

CHAPTER 02: sorry ↳ release date: august 7th, 2021 ↳ word count: 1.281

CHAPTER 03: (play) date ↳ release date: september 24th, 2021 ↳ word count: 1.666

CHAPTER 04: the card ↳ release date: september 26th, 2021 ↳ word count: 1.238

CHAPTER 05: jia’s birthday party ↳ release date: november 14th, 2021 ↳ word count: 3.596

CHAPTER 06: the snowstorm ↳ release date: february 6th, 2022 ↳ word count: 5.642

sometimes i wonder why i came up with the idea of becoming a ff author. i didn't know it would be this difficult to balance real life with a writing schedule. also, inspiration doesn’t always come. i'm working so hard on the final chapter of reliability and it's still not as good as i want it to be :( maybe i should just give up and read other ppl's stories, idk

06. the snowstorm | snowed in • pjm

previous | index | next

pairing: jimin x reader word count: 5.642 genre: fluff, romance rating: pg15 warnings: cursing (once), angst (i’m sorry i can’t help it) au: single parents trope: neighbours to lovers tags: single dad!jimin, journalist!reader crosspost: ao3

summary: stuck at home due to bad weather, Jimin and Y/N are forced to face a frightening and unexpected situation. will it bring them closer together or break them up for good?

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Sunday started off rough for Y/N. She woke up feeling terrible, as if a truck had run her over and then backed it up. An unbearable headache made her open her eyes at 11am. Wow, I slept that much? she thought as soon as she saw her phone screen. In fact, that was the worst decision ever, because the light was so bright it immediately caused a twinge of pain.

The moment she tried to sit up, Y/N felt the first shiver and found it a little strange. She was partially covered with a good comforter, the temperature in the apartment was 70ºF as usual and no windows were apparently open. It didn't make sense, did it?

When she finally managed to get up, she peeked out the window and everything was white. The street, the sidewalk, the trees, the window sill. In Y/N's hometown, it didn't usually snow this much. She doubts she had ever seen a storm up close, and while it would make a great photo for Instagram later, it was totally impractical to leave the house, let alone while feeling this sick.

Deep down, Y/N didn't want to admit that she was unwell. She hadn't had the flu in years. Not even a cold! Nothing. And oh my god, how was she supposed to work this week? These symptoms had to go, she didn't want to ask for a day off. But anyway, that was a problem for later. Let Monday's Y/N deal with it.

After making a cup of tea, Y/N checked the living room window and, to her not-so-great surprise, it began to snow again. Very hard actually. Bo made sure to be close by, sensing Y/N wasn't feeling 100%.

After a few minutes of sitting on the couch, holding the hot cup tightly between her hands, Y/N notified the dog, “I'm going to order some medicine and food online. Do you need anything?”

Bo tilted his head and wagged his tail.

“I don't have time to wait for you to think, Bo” she petted his head, “The storm is getting worse”

Where is my phone? she wondered, patting her sweatshirt pocket and then the couch over the blanket. Bo thought she was trying to play with him and started to jump and bark all happy.

“No, silly! The phone” she chuckled, “I want my phone. Have you seen it?”

Bo got off the couch, went into the kitchen, and barked a few times at the counter.

“Good boy!” Y/N stood up, feeling even heavier than before and a slight dizziness quickly threw her off balance as she took her first step and bumped into the coffee table. 

Bo barked again. He wanted to help.

“I'm fine, Bo” she assured, going towards him, finally confident in her own steps.

“Let's see... delivery app, delivery app” she scrolled through her phone, “Here! Wait, unavailable? What do you mean, unavailable? This is important”

Frustrated with the deliveries being suspended due to the storm, Y/N decides to finish her tea and take a bath to relax. In a few hours she would try again. Surely the weather would have improved by then and deliveries restored.

“Maybe I should eat something first, right?” she looked down and Bo groaned, “Of course, you too”

Y/N filled Bo's bowl with some food and proceeded to warm up what was left of the budae jjigae she made on Friday. She wasn't hungry, but she figured the headache might improve a bit with a full stomach.

While inside the tub a few minutes later, Y/N wondered if it would be best to go to a hospital. The bath as great as it was didn't help as much and she began feeling extremely sleepy, which was weird because she got up an hour ago.

The bath was nice and she felt her muscles relax thanks to the water's temperature, but the aching in her body didn't subside. Her head was no longer throbbing, yet she still had intense pain all over it. She knew the moment she stepped outside the bathtub everything would be back to what it was. 

“This sucks!” she mumbled.

Bo watched Y/N carefully finish her bath, change and tuck herself under the covers once again. Concerned for his owner, he lay down pretty close as she fell asleep cuddling him.

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After lunch, Jimin and Jia were sitting on the couch watching some animation on Netflix. He, distracted by his own thoughts. She, almost falling asleep. Suddenly, Jimin remembered the gift that Y/N had given Jia. Where did he put it? Here in the living room? Her bedroom? He couldn't remember exactly.

Getting up slowly so as not to startle his daughter, he began his search for the yellow box with the white bow. 

Jia loved yellow, and it was these kinds of details that touched Jimin's heart. How had Y/N noticed this? He doesn't remember Jia mentioning it during their play date. Funny how a stranger could be this mindful about random things, especially regarding a kid that's not even her own. It didn't make the slightest sense to Jimin but he found the gesture (among others she had shown at the party) very meaningful, making him appreciate this new friendship even more.

And there it was! Sitting on top of Jia’s tea table. Jimin opened the box and found the small white frame with a smooth texture that mimicked marble. As soon as he held it, the memory of Y/N explaining what it was came flooding in.

“It’s to hold this” Y/N whipped her phone to show a picture of Bo and Jia hugging in the backyard, “Don’t they look adorable together?”

Yes, they were incredibly adorable, but what surprised Jimin the most was how he felt when Y/N came to show him the picture, all giddy. She was standing so close that he could smell the scent of her shampoo, see the glow in her eye and her rosy cheeks. She was breathtaking. Although the second he realized he was staring too hard, he handed the device back and took a step back, secretly praying she wouldn’t notice or think of him as creepy.

There was something about her, beyond the nice attitude, perhaps to do with personality or character. Y/N was winning Jimin over day by day simply because of the energy she radiated. It was inexplicable, and to other people it might even sound like he was exaggerating, but Jimin felt that he could trust her. It's been so long since he trusted someone too by the way. It would be really nice to have that bond again. If he only let her get to know him.

Jimin reached for the phone in his pocket, started to look for his neighbor’s name among the contacts, and soon realized that he didn't have it. Of course he didn't! He never asked. You are so dumb, he thought.

Nevermind, this is a quick fix. There's a snowstorm, Y/N is definitely in her apartment — where could she possibly be in this crazy weather? — so Jimin is going to knock on her door and very casually ask for her number. Not a big deal at all. He got this.

Leaving the frame on top of the TV cabinet, Jimin noticed Jia in a deep sleep, making this the perfect time to go over to the apartment next door.

He knocked once. No response.

He checked his phone. 12:43pm.

He knocked again. Nothing. Not even Bo barked. Weird.

“I’ll come back later” he said.

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∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

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Around 5pm Jimin decides to try knocking one more time.

“Jia, I’ll be right back” he said to the girl sitting on the floor with a coloring book and a few dolls, “I’m going over to miss Y/N’s house. Our door will be open but stay inside, okay?”

“Okay”

When he gets to his neighbor's doormat he decides to knock a bit harder, just to make sure. And would you look at that? It worked! Jimin immediately heard Bo barking and rushing towards him. A few seconds go by and Y/N has yet to open the door. Bo barks one more time and starts scratching the door trying to get Jimin’s attention.

A voice inside Jimin’s head said ‘Maybe she’s in the shower or sleeping’ which might be true, yet he started to get this unsettling feeling in his gut. Something seemed off because usually before Bo barks a third time Y/N is already at the door.

“Hey doggie, it’s me!” he greeted, trying to turn the knob but the door was locked. 

Jimin tried to think fast. What’s next? Spare key!

“She must have one” Jimin squatted and lifted the mat, “Oh, come on! She doesn’t?” He then moved his search to a nearby vase, “Please be here” but it wasn’t there and he increasingly got more nervous.

“I’ll be right back” he promised Bo. The dog whined in reply.

“Daddy, I'm hungry” Jia complained as Jimin walked in and closed the door.

“Alright, angel. Let me see what we have here” he opened the fridge and looked through the shelves, “How about a sandwich?”

“Yes, please”

While getting everything ready he decided to call the building manager and tell him what was going on. Was it possible that Y/N had gone out for a few hours? Yes. Was it possible that something had happened to her? Also yes. He preferred to err on the side of excess.

“Hello, Mr. Yoo. This is Jimin in 30B” Jimin placed the phone between his ear and his shoulder to prepare Jia’s sandwich.

“Good evening, Mr. Park” the older man answered, “How are you doing?”

“Yes, I'm doing good, thank you”

“Horrible storm, huh? Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah, I know, this storm took us by surprise” he commented, spreading some strawberry jelly to a slice of bread, “Well, the reason I'm calling is because I'm worried about my neighbor in 30A” he spread cream cheese onto the other. 

“The new girl? What's her name again? Uh... Y/LN?”

“Yes, Miss Y/LN” Jimin almost dropped his phone, “She hasn't answered the door in a few hours” he whispered, turning away from the living room.

“Well Mr. Park, maybe she's out of town or traveling and you're worrying too much”

“I know but she wouldn't leave her dog alone for so many hours. I'm thinking that something might have happened” he looked over his shoulder, Jia was coming in his direction.

“Oh, yes, I see,” the building manager noted, “and how can I help you?”

Jimin handed Jia the plate and went to this office for a little more privacy.

“I would like you to open the door using the extra key to the building”

“Open the door?” Mr. Yoo slightly gasped.

“Yes”

“I don't know, Mr. Park, maybe we should call the police? Korea has strict rules about privacy”

“I understand that but you don't have to come in, Mr. Yoo” Jimin pleaded, “This secret can stay between us” he added with a subtle smirk.

The man took a few seconds before replying. “Will you take responsibility?”

“Absolutely” Jimin reiterated, “Just open the door and go, I'll take care of the rest”

“Okay, I'm coming down. Wait for me”

Jimin raised his hands as a sign of relief, “Thank you, Mr. Yoo”

“Yes, yes” he huffed.

A few minutes later the elderly man knocked on Jimin's door with a not very friendly expression and hinted he was ready to do the favor. Jia this time joined her dad as he carried her attached to his hip.

The moment Mr. Yoo opened the door, he turned around and walked away, taking Jimin’s word for it. Meanwhile, Bo couldn't hide his own relief from seeing other people so he jumped super high licking father and daughter.

“Why don’t you sit by the TV and play with Bo while I check on miss Y/N, huh?” Jimin put Jia down.

“Okaaay” she smiled, trying to act funny.

Jimin’s heartbeat was at a frantic pace. With every step he took down the hall, the more anxious he felt because he got transported back to that day when Jia had disappeared while playing hide and seek, which is a little ironic since that's how he met Y/N.

Bathroom? No.

Room on the right? Not there either.

Room on the left? Ding, ding, ding.

“Shit” he ran to the side of the bed.

Now closer, he saw that Y/N was sleeping and a part of him relaxed, making him instinctively reach out and try to caress her. Before he could even regret such an intimate gesture and withdraw his arm, he felt her skin on fire.

“No, no, no” he begged, moving his hand over her forehead, “You’re burning up. This is bad”

Okay, focus Jimin. Y/N needs you. Come on!

On the way to the living room, he stops by the bathroom and grabs some towels from the cupboard under the sink. No fever medicine on sight, let alone a first-aid box. Great.

“Jia, I'm going to need your help” he stated, using a soft but firm tone.

The girl raised her head and immediately went to her father in the kitchen, where he was waiting for her with a chair in front of the sink.

“Come here” he lifted her up, placing her on her feet in front of the faucet, “Wet these towels for me please, okay?” he pointed to two white pairs next to the drying rack.

“What’s going on, dad? Where is miss Y/N?”

“She is sleeping in her bedroom but she needs our help” Jimin gives a faint smile to Jia, not knowing exactly how to explain the situation without scaring her, “She has a fever. Remember when you had a fever a few months ago?”

“Yes” she nodded.

“It’s the same thing” he pinched her nose, “What we need to do right now is put wet towels on her body so she can feel less hot”

Jia hummed in agreement and looked around confused, “But is she going to be okay?”

“Yes, angel” Jimin kissed her the top of her head, “While you wet the towels I’ll look for some medicine”

Jia agrees and turns on the tap.

Jimin started to thoroughly search the kitchen and found nothing but food and utensils. He moved on to the rest of the house, desperately rummaging through all the drawers, cabinets, and bookshelves. No luck. She had zero medicine, but he certainly did. 

Jimin tried to pull from his memory the image of his medicine box and guessed that he had some options that may be able to help. Considering all the current possibilities, they couldn't leave the building and they couldn't order online, leaving them with calling emergency services, and although Y/N was pretty hot, she didn't seem to be at that stage yet.

“I’m done, daddy!” Jia shouted.

Jimin enters the kitchen to help her down the chair, “That’s my girl, thank you Jia” 

Jia watches her father twist the towels, waiting intently for his next instructions with Bo by her side. The dog spent the last few minutes going back and forth between her and Y/N as if he wanted them to know he was there to help and protect.

Bo climbs on the bed and lies down next to Y/N, snout resting on her arm, eyes sad but very alert. Jia decides to sit on the edge and watch her father doing the work, which consisted of applying a smaller towel to Y/N’s forehead and a larger one between her neck and chest.

“Jia, do you mind looking after miss Y/N and Bo for a little bit? I need to go home and bring some medicine for her” Jimin asked, wondering if Jia is feeling scared about this whole thing.

Jia nods, “Sure!” and moves up the bed, sitting next to Bo to pet him gently. The poor dog needed some sort of comfort as well.

“I won’t be long, promise” Jimin cups Jia’s cheeks.

Back in his apartment, Jimin went straight to his master suite and gathered as many cold, fever, and pain pills as he could. He then spread them out on the bed to check them one by one, quickly coming to the conclusion that he had more children's meds than adult ones, so he made a mental note about preparing better for such occasions. What if he got sick? Jia couldn't go out to buy it, could she? He had to think of all the scenarios, but he was a teeny bit afraid to think of extreme situations.

“Good job” he cooed a couple minutes later entering Y/N’s room, “Thank you, Jia! Wanna go watch some TV with Bo while I take care of miss Y/N?”

The girl shook her head, “No, I wanna help” 

Jimin put a couple of bottles of medicine on the bedside table and kneeled next to her, “I think you did everything you could, angel”

Even at her young age, Jia already showed herself to be a caring, empathetic person who knew how to follow rules. Jimin was so proud!

“I’m gonna give her the medicine and meet you in the living room in a little bit. Sounds good?”

“Yeah but Bo and I can stay”

She is so cute! he smiled to himself.

“I know, I’ll take it from here though, thank you”

“Okay” Jia jumped off the bed, “Let’s go, Bo!”

The dog followed with no hesitation and Jimin walked around to the other side to double-check the towels. Damn, they are still warm. Y/N needs to wake up so she can take the medicine in order to bring the fever down — he didn't even need a thermometer to know that she was close to 100 degrees.

“Y/N?” Jimin squeezed her hand, “Y/N, it’s Jimin”

She didn’t move.

He squeezed again, this time his thumb gently rubbing her knuckles, “Y/N?”

Finally a grunt! Thank God, he closed his eyes in relief.

“That’s it…” Jimin then removed the towels with his free hand, putting them on the floor, “Can you hear me?” he wiped her face with a fresh dry one.

Y/N grunts louder, trying to move.

“I’ll take that as a yes” he reached for the Tylenol, “You have a fever, okay? I need you to open your mouth a little bit for me”

“What?” she mumbled.

“Open your mouth, Y/N”

Y/N was very drowsy, like she had taken some heavy sleeping pills. She felt unbelievably tired and didn't understand what was happening or where she was. Opening her mouth was a struggle. Her eyes though? Even more so.

As soon as Jimin sprinkled a few drops of the remedy, Y/N's immediate reaction was to make a hilarious disgusted expression.

“Why are you making that face? It’s Tylenol for kids” he giggled, still worried, “Supposedly tastes like strawberry”

“What time is it?” Y/N's voice was hoarse. If only Jimin knew the amount of effort she had made to get her voice out with a dry throat.

“5:34”

She muttered something back.

“Sorry, what?”

“I-I’m sleepy”

“It’s the fever” he tucked her in, just like he used to do with Jia every night, “I’m changing your towels and then be back to check on you. Rest”

In the kitchen, clutching the towels tightly between his hands, Jimin took a moment to control his shaky breathing. He didn't want to lose his composure in front of his daughter but she seemed to be handling this situation better than he was. 

Y/N would be okay. They were all okay. It was just a scare. If everything kept going well, in the next few hours the medicine would kick in...he just had to wait. He hated to wait. Waiting usually meant bad news. 

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“Jia, the ramen is ready!” Jimin called, placing the hot pot on the table, “Be careful”

Once he changed Y/N’s towels and tidied up the bedroom, Jimin played with Jia for a while and headed to the kitchen to cook dinner. Ramen seemed like an easy and fast choice.

“Bo is hungry too, dad” she climbed on the chair.

The dog sat and stared at Jimin, patiently waiting with his tongue out.

“Oh, right” Jimin turned to look for the bowl of food he prepared minutes before, placing next to Jia's chair, “And that’s for you buddy”

“Listen angel,” Jimin began, serving her a portion, “I think we might need to stay overnight to keep a close look on miss Y/N. Is that okay with you?”

Jia nodded, “Can I sleep with Bo?”

“Yes” Jimin chuckled, handing her the ramen, “I’m gonna get your stuff and be right back. Be sure to finish your plate” 

Jimin glanced down at Bo, hands on his hips, “You too!”

Jia was almost done eating when Y/N finally awakened in her room, feeling better but still a little disoriented. The drowsiness had worn off, thankfully. 

Once Y/N sat up and noticed it was 8:22 pm she got startled. On her bedside table there were some meds, water, and the humidifier on. A quick flashback indicated that Jimin had been around, but maybe she dreamt the whole thing because Jimin couldn't get into her apartment, it didn't make sense. 

Wait, where's Bo?

“Bo?” she called him, “Bo, where are you?”

The dog came running in, happy to hear his owner’s voice and jumped on the bed licking Y/N's face.

“Hi! Hello!”

“Miss Y/N?”

Surprised to hear a child's voice, Y/N stopped playing with Bo and looked in the direction the sound was coming from.

“Jia?”

The little girl was by the door and stepped timidly into the bedroom, “You slept a lot today. Daddy said you had a fever”

“Oh, he did?” Y/N realized she hadn’t dreamed after all, Jimin was in fact here taking care of her. She wasn’t sure how to feel about that just yet.

“I had one too” Jia approached the bed, “But he took care of me and now we are taking care of you”

Y/N was overwhelmed and grateful. She gave Jia a genuine smile as she tapped the mattress twice, inviting the girl to sit next to her.

“Dad, me, and Bo too!” she climbs on the bed.

“Thank you so much, sweetie” Y/N strokes Jia’s hair, playing with her bangs and leaving a pop on the nose, “And you too Mr. Bo, thank you” she planted a kiss on the dog’s head.

“Where is your dad?”

“He went home to get some stuff” Jia said before hearing the front door being closed, “He’s here!” she hopped off the bed and ran to the living room.

“Dad, dad, dad… miss Y/N is awake!!” she grabbed Jimin’s hand and started pulling, “Come, quick!”

He didn't even have time to unload what he brought, because before he knew it his daughter had dragged him into the bedroom. Y/N was sitting on the bed with a confused look and rosy cheeks, trying to fix her hair.

“Hi” she said.

Jimin smiled back relieved, “Hi”

They looked into each other's eyes for what felt like minutes, not knowing what to say next. 

Y/N couldn’t believe Jimin was in front of her and did all of this to make sure she was okay.

Jimin, who for the past few hours could only think of the worst scenario possible, upon seeing Y/N awake and smiling felt something inside his chest expand.

Without breaking eye contact with Y/N, Jimin handed his daughter's backpack, “Jia, take your things to the guest room, please”

“Okay,” she hugged the backpack and looked back, "come Bo. I need help.” The dog promptly followed her.

“They’re best friends already” Y/N giggled.

Jimin didn't even hear what Y/N said, he was lost in his own thoughts, thankful to see her able to speak whole sentences. She didn't seem to be feeling any pain, the smile on her face, though faint, showed that everything would be okay.

Unlike a few hours ago, Y/N was now awake, alert, and appearing healthier. Jimin thought she looked good even under the weather; eyes still a little swollen from sleeping, hair in waves framing her face. Y/N was effortlessly beautiful.

“How are you feeling?” he sat beside her, instinctively putting his hand on her forehead to check the temperature.

Jimin's touch was warm and inviting, delicate and firm at the same time. When their skins met, Y/N felt small shock waves invade her body, running through every inch as goosebumps. She slowly looked up at his hand, and then into his eyes, making sure that this was not another fever hallucination, “I’m fine”

Jimin moved his hand to Y/N's cheek, closely watching her face for any sign of discomfort, feeling that her soft skin under his palm was now no longer as warm as before.

“The fever is coming down” he said in a whisper.

Jimin's voice was like honey and Y/N surrendered to the sensation of having him so near, quickly closing her eyes to enjoy his touch; his fingers tangled in her hair, his thumb lightly brushing her temple.

“I’m feeling a bit weird” she said, not knowing if she was starting to get hungry or was the medicine losing its effects.

Jimin thought she said that because of how he was touching her so he pulled his hand back and blushed, cursing himself for being too bold.

Y/N opened her eyes, feeling unexpectedly cold without his touch. Maybe it was another hallucination.

“How long have I slept?” she asked.

“I don’t know. I’ve only been here for a few hours” Jimin pursed his lips, “What’s the last thing you remember?”

“Taking a bath around noon and eating some soup”

Oh my god, noon? Jimin was stunned. Y/N needed help much sooner than he imagined. He shouldn't have waited until 5 to go back, he should have been suspicious the first time he knocked on the door. His gut told him that something was wrong and it was! How could he be so stupid and ignore it? 

Y/N could tell by the way Jimin stiffened his posture and looked away that he was mulling things over. She felt bad for worrying him so much.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Y/N smiled, “I’m okay Jimin”

“Right…” he replied, still going over scenarios in his head.

“Thanks to you”

Y/N emphasis on the last word made him look up.

“I mean it” she continued, “I don’t know how you got into my apartment but I’m so glad you did. I knew something was wrong but I couldn’t have guessed that I was getting into this feverous stage where I could barely stay awake” she chuckled, “I didn’t have any medicine and with the snowstorm I couldn’t go out and neither the delivery guy could come in”

Jimin’s doe eyes were full of worry, “You could have knocked on my door” 

“I realize that now but at the time I thought ‘oh, I'm just gonna lie down for a little while and wait for it to go away, maybe it's nothing’ but it obviously wasn’t nothing” Y/N looked down, again embarrassed for worrying him so much. 

When he didn’t reply, Y/N understood it as a sign that he was upset so she soon engaged in an apology.

“I’m sorry if I worried you” she reached for his hand, “That’s the last thing I wanted. I’m so used to being on my own that I seem to forget I can count on people for help”

Jimin squeezed her hand, “You can…” and paused to smile, “You absolutely can. You’re not alone”

Y/N nodded, cherishing Jimin's warmth once again. But before the heat could rise to her cheeks, the young woman decided to change the subject.

“I reeeeally need something to eat. But first I need a shower and fresh clothes” she announced, already moving to get out of bed.

“Whoa, slow down” Jimin got up, “Easy” he reached out his right arm to Y/N, “Let me help you”

“Jimin, I’m not invalid you know?” she pouted cutely.

“You look exactly like Jia when she says she’s old enough to do something”

Y/N accepted his help and held onto his arm as she stood up, “I’ll take that as a compliment, thank you very much” 

Jimin laughed out loud.

“See? Much better when teeth are showing!”

“What?” he muttered, watching Y/N fix her hair in a ponytail.

“I like it better when you smile” she replied, “You looked so serious before”

“Oh, it’s just that I couldn’t help but replay the image of finding you here. That’s all”

“I’m really sorry” Y/N bit her lip.

“Don’t!” Jimin smiled again, “Look, see? I’m smiling!” he pointed at himself, trying to be funny, “Not worried anymore”

“Perfect” she chuckled and patted his shoulder, “Now if you’ll excuse me…”

“Right, yeah” Jimin headed for the door, “If you need anything, shout” he added, to which Y/N replied with a smile and a nod before disappearing into the bathroom.

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∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

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Following her long-needed shower, Y/N went to the kitchen and found Jimin grilling some stake while Jia slept peacefully on the couch with Bo.

"Smells so good in here!" she sat on the island stool.

"I'm almost done with the hanwoo beef" Jimin said, "There's ramen over there. I heated up for you" he pointed to the dinner table.

"Oh wow, you really didn't have to, thank you"

Jimin turned around with a shy smile on his face and assembled Y/N's plate, adding the beautiful piece of meat, followed by some vegetables and a tiny side bowl of kimchi.

“Here you go”

“Thank you for the meal” Y/N bowed her head and grabbed the plate to move to the table, but while she did that she realized Jimin had no plate of his own. “Wait, what about you?”

"First I'm going to take Jia to the guest room” he handed her the chopsticks, “I'll be right back. Eat before it gets cold”

Now that Y/N wasn't delirious because of the fever or high on her meds she wondered what this whole day meant. Were she and Jimin friends? Just good neighbors? Neighbors wouldn't do what he did for her, right? What she was absolutely sure of was that the crush she had on Jimin had grown into real feelings, and as much as she wanted to act on it, she didn't quite know how to verbalize it to him. Y/N felt guilty, once again, for liking a stranger so soon, whose marital status was still unknown.

"It's delicious, Jimin, thank you so much" she complimented him as soon as he walked back into the kitchen.

"I don't want to brag, but it's kind of my specialty" he joked, assembling a plate for himself.

“I can see why” she took another bite.

Jimin was glad to see Y/N eating with such an appetite, and in the silent minutes that followed as the two of them ate, he wondered if she was genuinely feeling better, if she needed anything else, or if she would mind him and Jia spending the night. 

Maybe tomorrow he could try to talk to her about everything. About the party, about today… about himself, because he knew his situation was very confusing and Y/N was trying hard to be respectful of his privacy, so she ultimately deserved clear answers.

Jimin got up first to put the plate in the sink and Y/N came in right behind, already eager to do the dishes as 'thank you'.

“No no no” he gently pushed her away from the sink, “Go back” he waved his hand and Y/N took two steps back, “Yes, thank you, reverse, moonwalk”

Y/N laughed. Again. Recently, all she did was laugh. Jimin made her happy. His sense of humor was witty and she often thought of what to say to him to make him feel the same way. She wanted to make him truly laugh because something inside her said that Jimin needed it. But before she could do that, she had to put an end to the uncertainty once and for all. 

“Listen, I wanna ask you something but I don’t how to”

Jimin turned his head, still washing the dishes, “Pretend I’m a child and do it in the simplest way possible” he smiled and turned back to his chore, “That’s what I try to do with Jia at least”

“Okay...hm…” Y/N paused and studied her following words because not only she wouldn't be able to take them back, the answer itself would change everything. 

“Are you married?”

Jimin stopped washing the dishes immediately, the only noise that could be heard in the kitchen was the faucet running. 

Y/N gulped.

This is not how he was planning on telling her about Sunny, but he couldn't run away from the truth; it's definitely strange for a man to raise a little girl alone, without a mother around so of course Y/N had questions.

Jimin sighed. Today, tomorrow, next week. What’s the difference?

“No” he started washing the dishes again, “I’m a widower”

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A/N: hello dear reader! tkysm for reading chapter 6, i hope you liked it. it was a challenge to write, but i am very thrilled with the result  ❤️ unfortunately due to personal reasons, i will be putting this story on hiatus for a little while. i hope you understand and wait for me. with love, bella xx

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𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗱 ❤ 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗺𝗲 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝘀𝗸! 𝗶 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆

Heyy! Just checking in on you<3 It's been quiet here for a while. I'm the one who fell in love with your story, Reliability! Your work was one of the first things that made me excited about writing on tumblr. I often check your profile to see if you've updated anything. And it's totally fine even if you haven't. I just hope you're doing okay and you're taking care of yourself:)) Just wanted to let you know that. Sending big hugs<33

Have a nice day:))

hiiii, hello!! it’s so wonderful to meet you 💕 i often asked myself who liked reliability that much and it’s you

it sure has been quiet, you’re right. i used to write a lot, then i got stuck and couldn’t barely write 2 sentences, then i met someone and suddenly this little online world of mine wasn’t a priority anymore bc i started living everything i ever wished, read and wrote about

i do miss it though! writing fanfics allowed me to work through some emotions and feelings i didn’t know i needed to. even my therapist said i should try it again and see what comes out 🤨

these past few months were incredible. i grew a lot and some days i really wanna translate that into a new story bc it wasn’t all easy peasy lemon squeezy lol being in a relationship is hard. i’m definitely a different person and i’m confident i can write better material once the inspiration strikes me

the fact that one of my stories inspired you to write is insane to me. thank you again!! i would be honored to read some of your stuff. pls send me some links 🙏🏼

last but not least, yes i’m doing okay. however, i must admit i haven’t been taking care of myself. not as diligently or as fondly as i take care of my boyfriend. next step is relearning how to do that

i appreciate you reaching out and i’m definitely looking forward to more interactions between us ✨ have a wonderful week, xx

Heyy! Hope you are doing great, I just finished reading your story Reliability on Tumblr, and I wanted to tell you that I absolutely adore the way you write. I instantly fell in love with the story. This is by far the best story I've ever read. I'm really looking forward to reading your other works! Keep going and have a great day!💖

i was doing fine but after this ADORABLE message you can consider me amazing, over the moon, excited, a tiny bit overwhelmed and a whole lot of grateful — THANK YOU!

reliability is a personal fav and the fact that somebody other than my friends read the damn thing makes me seriously wanna cry. i’m so glad you liked it!!! alslldjajwjendndkskow yay 💜

i don’t have many stories out but i’m excited for you to read them! pls lmk when you do. i deeply appreciate the support

now YOU have the best ready ever okay? 💕✨