Beauty | Kth - Chapter 2

Beauty | kth - Chapter 2

Pairing: Taehyung x OC (Reader) , slight Jimin x OC

Genre/Tags: Strangers to Lovers, Idiots to lovers (kinda), single dad; humor (-ish?), slow burn, angst, fluff, smut

Warnings: Eventual smut

Word count: 10k

Series summary: Taehyung knows what beauty is. He sees it everyday.

You feel like you haven’t seen real beauty in a while but you think you remember what it looked like.

Or maybe you both have no idea?

Prologue - Chapter 1 - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Normally, Taehyung really likes his job. He usually works at different locations, it is varied and he has the privilege of photographing beautiful people every day. But the best part is that he gets to do what he loves all day long. And that includes photographing and putting his camera to good use.

Well, as a model photographer at the company he works for, he can't be as creative and is a little more limited as he would like to be but it comes at least very close to his dream job. Not to forget that he has a steady income, which enables his and his daughter to live a solid life.

So how could he complain, right?

"Taehyung!" Ah right... He forgot about his boss for a second.

Preparing for the upcoming encounter with Satan's little dwarf brother in advance, Taehyung tuns away from the scenery he was just looking at. He was just about to decide on which camera setting would be best to do next before he was so very rudely interrupted by his boss.

Not to be mean but Mr. Han seriously is a walking joke. His demeanor resembles that of a spoiled child and his physical appearance — although Taehyung usually isn't one to make fun of that — doesn't help him make up for that. When Jungkook randomly came to a shoot one day for the first time, the boy wouldn't stop laughing at him for a solid 30 minutes after Taehyung got scolded by his boss once again. Since that day, Jungkook won't stop referring to Mr. Han as 'raging Yoda' and Taehyung may or may not have copied that because it's just so fitting.

Even if it doesn't help much, if Mr. Han wasn't the one who's responsible for Taehyung's employance, he'd laugh in his face whenever he'd decide to be rude to him again. Sadly, he can't effort to do this.

"Mr. Han?" Taehyung addresses him politely, ignoring the way all eyes seem to be on him and Mr. Han at this moment. Everyone was probably feeling for him because they all know he's after Taehyung and enjoys taking him down regularly in front of an assembled audience.

"Why is this taking so long?" Mr. Han grunts, looking up. "How long can it take to snap a sexy photo for a calendar?"

It takes everything in Taehyung not to lash out on him but he needs to think of Hyejin. He needs this job. No matter how much he wants to put that angry little dwarf in his place. "I'm sorry, Sir. I was just about to do the last shot for today actually." He answers in a calm voice, gaze dropping to his feet in an instance.

Mr. Han scrunches his nose, looking through Taehyung's camera and messing up the setting he just wanted to use in the process. "There. That's better." He then says, folding his arms while looking up into Taehyung's unimpressed face.

Taehyung forces a smile and then takes a look as well to check the new setting. He's annoyed to see that his boss just messed everything up, making it worse rather than 'better'. Idiot. If he didn't know better, he'd say this joke in front of him majored in clownery instead of photography. They could've simply mixed up the two words on his diploma...

'Just stay calm, Tae. You need to stay collected.'

He just nods his head and offers him a very pained smile. Taehyung is sure that one can literally see him die right this moment.

Thinking this would be all and hoping his boss would just disappear, he's about to get back to work, when he realizes that Mr. Han isn't moving. He's still standing there, looking at him as if he hates him with all his guts, which he probably does.

"Sir? Is there anything else I can help you with?" He asks him skeptically, not trusting the weird situation.

"Mmmh... You know Taehyung, I've been very patient with you these last couple of years you've been working here, don't you think?" Uh-Oh, that doesn't sound good.

"Uuh... I'm sorry?" Taehyung doesn't really know what he wants to tell him with that. Is he going to fire him? He hopes not.

"Apology accepted. Anyway, I didn't say anything last week, when you just left us hanging right before the shoot and Minho had to take over. Remember?" He innocently asks but Taehyung already knows there's more to it.

"I mean... You immediately yelled at me the next day as soon as I walked—"

"And I was so patient when you needed to take a day off in January. Can you recall?" He asks further, ignoring Taehyung's attempt to answer him.

"My daughter was sick and it was just one day. I mean, she had a very high fev—„

"And remember when I didn't even say anything when you started this affair with one of the models, a couple of months ago?"

"Yeah again, that wasn't me. That was the intern, who left right after because his mum found out about it." Taehyung say confused. "And you still yelled at me for it." He adds without Mr. Han paying any attention to him while already forming his next words in his head.

"Exactly. And I did all of this because I am lenient." Taehyung can't help but almost laugh at that. "Because I am such a good employer. Because I'm such a good man." Okay, one more and he can't hold it anymore...

"Sir, may I ask—"

"What I actually wanted to say is..." Taehyung watches attentively as Mr. Han smiles at him, in a very creepy way, while turning his body sideways and pointing at Hyejin, who is happily drawing in her coloring book while she sits on the floor. "What is this small human doing here?"

With a heavy heart, Taehyung shrugs off the need to make a joke about the size of his opponent and instead tries to stay serious when he answers his question. "We actually call that 'a child', Sir." The laughter about his own joke almost instantly dies down when he see that Mr. Han doesn't even smile one bit. Clearing his throat, he quickly finds his composure and sinks his head in shame. "That's my daughter, Sir."

"Yes. I already thought so far. The question is, why is you daughter here, while you should do your work?" He then asks, voice getting deeper as he seems to be getting angrier.

"I—I'm sorry. I just didn't have anyone today to look after her while I'm at work." Taehyung softly answers.

"And since when are we running a daycare?" Mr. Han sarcastically asks him.

Taehyung sighs, trying to find the right words but he already knows he won't be getting out of this easily. "We aren't. But I had no place to take her to and—"

"And that's not an excuse." Mr Han cuts him off for the hundredth time in the last two minutes, unknowingly testing Taehyung nerves. Or maybe he does know it but he just doesn't care because he's just "such a good employer".

"I'm really sorry, Sir. It won't happen again." Taehyung reluctantly apologizes.

"Oh, I'm sure it won't. Because if it does, I'll just have to fire you once and for all." He threatens him. "Did I make myself clear?"

Taehyung once again clears his throat out of nervousness, gaze falling on Hyejin. Luckily, it doesn't look like she's caught any of the conversation, even though Mr. Han is talking to the whole studio at this point.

And when he thinks once again that his boss is finally done and going to withdraw, he's already proved wrong when he suddenly talks again.

"What about your boyfriend then? He couldn't take her?" He asks him, partly disinterested and partly annoyed.

Taehyung stills, lifting a brow in a questioning manner. "My... What?" He asks in total shock.

Mr. Han looks at him as if he's stupid. "That boyfriend of yours? The one, who came around a few times." When he sees, that Taehyung still doesn't catch on, he deeply frowns, "Tall, weird fluffy hair, annoying to no end... You know, that pretty boy." He then says and it klicks.

"Jungkook?! Oh no...No! He's my best friend. He just looks after Hyejin most of the time when I'm not around but he's actually the reason I had to leave early last week and I'm still kinda mad at him so—"

"Listen Taehyung, I don't care about your love life problems, okay? Just don't bring any children to work. Ever again." With these words he finally says his good bye and pulls back, probably on his way to yell at somebody else.

Taehyung rubs his face in annoyance before he gets back to work. But he can't help but think about Mr. Han's words. He never liked him much. No, that would be put far too nicely... He never liked him at all but somehow he seemed to like his work or at least, he likes it enough that he hasn't fired him yet. But he will probably not go along with it much longer.

It's all pointless anyway because taking Hyejin to work all the time from now on, wouldn't have been a permanent solution either. Taehyung knows that. He just didn't have someone for today because Namjoon had to work himself and Jungkook... well, Jungkook was not an option.

It's not that he will never let Jungkook take care of his daughter again but it's only been a week for christ's sake. He was still mad at his best friend and his ego won't let him forgive him that easily.

He quickly finishes his job for today and takes the final photo of the girl, that's now waiting for way longer that she should have had to. Taehyung kinda feels sorry for her because the studio isn't the warmest, since Mr. Han likes saving money on heating costs, and she's in nothing but a lace bra and panties.

"Alright, that's it. You did pretty good, I'm very sorry you had to wait for so long." He calls out to her as soon he found a photo that's good enough.

"It's alright, Tae." She smiles, throwing a wink his way.

He simply returns the smile before he packs his things and goes to Hyejin.

She's still drawing when he arrives by her side, currently working on a picture of Elsa and Anna but she doesn't look as happy anymore. It's kinda cute how she suddenly looks so angry and annoyed while practicing her favorite hobby. Taehyung doesn't even need to think about what's wrong when he's greeted by not only Hyejin but five other voices, belonging to some of the models who he had to work with today.

"Tae, is that really your daughter? She's so cute, oh my god!" Byeol squeals, as soon as he appears.

"Yeah Tae and she's so smart and talented!" Nari agrees with her.

Byeol and Nari are two of only a handful of girls Taehyung really bothers to remember the names of. It's not that he's a completely ignorant asshole who doesn't care about other people. The main reason is just that he's not very good with names and he sees new faces everyday. Byeol and Nari though, have worked with him so many times by now, that he started to remember their names after a while.

The other reason is, he can barely remember all the other girls because at some point, they all just seem to look the same for him. It's not even supposed to be mean but models... oh well, they kinda blend in together after a while. At least for him.

"And she's soo cute!" One of the other girls sighs dreamily as she touches Hyejin's hair, making her flinch away and Taehyung cringe in the process because he knows exactly how much his daughter hates when someone touches her hair. She won't even let him comb it in the morning, without making a scene.

He takes Hyejin's hand, helping her stand up from the ground as he politely smiles at the girls. "Yes I know. Thank you. She's quite perfect, really." He winks at Hyejin, who just looks up to him and raises her arms for him to pick her up. He happily consents, making everyone in the room dramatically coo at them.

He could swear he sees Hyejin roll her eyes and it makes him grin. She's never been very fond of people babying and complimenting her in the way these girls just did. Taehyung always feels like he's raising a teenager instead of a four year old...

"Daddy, can we please just go now?" She whines, obviously irritated by everyone right now.

"Sure darling, I'm just packing up the rest of my stuff and you can go get your jacket, okay?" Taehyung smiles at her, making her smile back instantly. She then jumps out of his arms and happily skips away to get her things.

Taehyung looks after her for a few more seconds as she sings loudly to herself — she always has to sing loudly — while she's getting dressed. A proud smile covers his lips as he looks at his daughter. How is it possible that he has such a perfect child?

"I didn't know you had a daughter." A small voice shakes him out of his state of pure bliss, making him turn away from Hyejin for a moment. Instead, he now looks into Byeol's big, almond-shaped eyes. "Didn't even know you were married." A slight chuckle followed by a smile, that doesn't nearly reach her eyes, spreads on her lips.

A little surprised by her sudden attempt to start a conversation about his private life, Taehyung simply shrugs. "Well, you never asked." He crouches down to pack the rest of his stuff together. "Besides, I don't think we've ever had a conversation where this could've come up so..."

Even if he's not directly looking at her right now, he can feel her frown.

"Oh right... I guess?" She says in an unsure voice before she becomes quiet. Taehyung almost thinks she's disappeared before she speaks up again. "So... Is there a reason you don't wear a ring on your finger then?"

Taehyung stops his packing for a moment and looks at her again. She's getting a little too close for his liking but it's nothing he isn't used to by now. The girls here are usually not at all afraid of flirting and he's a straight, young male who is also divorced. He'd lie if he said he's never flirted back.

But this is getting too private for him. Especially with his daughter standing only a few meters away from them.

He doesn't like to talk to people outside his comfort zone about is private life and people from his workplace are definitely not part of his comfort zone. But he's known Byeol for quite some time now and he knows she's not one to give up easily. Beating around the bush won't do much and he hasn't got the time nor the desire to stay here any longer than necessary.

"That might be because I'm not married anymore." He simply says, ignoring the way her grin is getting bigger.

"Oh, how come?" She asks further, still not letting go.

"Just... Didn't work out?" Taehyung is slowly but surely getting irritated by her interrogation. He actually wants nothing more than to tell her to leave him alone already but he doesn't want to make her upset either.

He's still a gentleman and at the end of the day, he has to work with her again and he doesn't want any bad blood between him and any of the other employees. If his boss already hates him, he needs to at least have a good relationship with his colleagues.

"Hm... I can't imagine. Her loss then." A flirty smirk creeps up on her face as she seems to be getting even closer.

Taehyung isn't having it though. He doesn't like how lightly she deals with the situation. His situation. Who does she think she is, interfering in his business like that?

"Please excuse me Byeol. My daughter is waiting for me." He doesn't say any more when he finally walks away, leaving her to stand there by herself.

Hyejin is already waiting for him at the entrance, giddily taking his hand and puling him outside of the building.

"Daddy, do I always have to come with you now?" She suddenly asks him the moment they step into the car.

"No darling, you don't have to." Taehyung answers her, laughing about the way her face immediately lights up at his words.

"Good because all the people there were annoying." She rolls her eyes as she groans in order to express her anger.

"Hey, come on now. That's pretty rude, Hyejin." He scolds, face turning into a frown. He secretly shares her opinion of course, but he doesn't think that someone her age should be judging people like that. Besides, everyone was just trying to be nice to her and they actually never gave her a reason to be rude to them.

"I'm sorry..." She sighs but it doesn't sound very regretful to be honest. "I still don't like them though..." She mumbles under her breath but Taehyung still hears her.

"What's wrong, Hyejin? Was someone being mean to you?" He then asks, digging deeper because he can't think of an explanation to why his daughter has such a chiseled opinion about those girls even though she only got to know them for no more than a few minutes.

"No... I just didn't like the way they were looking at you." For such a small child, she sure can frown when she wants to. One could think she's making plans on how to get rid of someone if they were looking at her right now.

"Like what?" Taehyung asks a little dumbfounded but also quite impressed by his daughter's ability to catch on to things like that so well.

"Like uncle Jungkook looks at those girls on the tv." She suddenly says after thinking about her answer for a moment. "The one's with the small swimsuits on." She adds, making a face.

Fucking Jungkook.

How often did he tell him to not watch Baywatch reruns with Hyejin?

"That stupid motherf—" He thankfully stops himself before he finishes that sentence and instead tries to offer Hyejin a small smile through the rearview mirror. "They were just being friendly Hyejin. They didn't mean any harm, okay love?"

Hyejin nods her head in approval but the frown is still present on her forehead. Seems like she doesn't believe him. How could he blame her though? His daughter might be only four — nearly five — years old but she's very attentive and definitely not stupid.

Oh, he can't wait for her teenage years...

You're standing in front of one of the large, colorfully mixed flower bouquets on one of the tables in the shop. It's just one of many in Mr. and Mrs. Yang's flower shop but somehow it got to you. Maybe it's because of the colors, starting with an incredibly vibrant red, changing to a not as vivid but still strong pink, to a pastel pink with a bit of yellow in between.

It's definitely far from the most beautiful or distinctive bouquet in the shop but still eye-catching and unique in its own kind of way.

It made you happy just to look at it, catching all of your attention so you don't even notice the strange looks the only other person in the shop is giving you.

"So... I have two questions. One, for how much longer are you going to give the bouquet those lovey-dovey eyes and two, is this some type of weird objectophilia, fetishism thing? Because I don't want to assume shit but I also can't see where your hands are right now."

With your face still buried in the flowers, you quietly groan. Annoyed by the fact, that your wonderful and very rare moment of pure inner peace was just ruined by no other than the most unpleasant guy you've come across since you came to Seoul.

"Shouldn't you be fertilizing the bonsai trees, Yoongi?"

You turn around to look into his — unsurprisingly — expressionless face and cross your arms over your chest.

"I've already done that. Looks like some of us actually do work here, eh?" He says, occupied by his phone, not paying attention to you anymore.

You scoff, raising a brow. "You barely ever do anything. The times you leave to use the bathroom are the most I've seen you move your ass around here."

Yoongi puts his phone down again and offers you a slight smirk. "Didn't know you find me so interesting, you need to watch my every move."

"You should get our ears checked. Seems like you hear things that aren't there." You offer him a fake smile just as he immaturely mimics your expression.

"People call that intuition. Might want to google it." With those words he walks around the table and is suddenly standing right next to you.

"What's so special about this one? Thinking about someone?" He then asks, suddenly seeming interested but you can already tell that he's merely making fun of you.The look in his eyes gives it away.

You actually need to think about it because yes, you surely don't like to admit it but it does remind you of someone.

"He used to buy me flowers all the time, you know?" Sad eyes wander from the colour spectrum to the attentive eyes, that are already focused on you. "It's kind of cliche, but flowers have always made my days better. Just looking at them can lift my mood in an instant. He knew that. And he made use of it. So yeah, maybe I subconsciously was thinking of someone." You offer him a sad smile and watch as his face slightly crumbles at that.

"I'm sorry ___. I didn't want to open any old wounds. I'm an idiot." Yoongi looks ashamed of himself as his gaze drops down to his feet. It's a new experience for you too, because you barely ever see anything affect him.

You offer him a sad smile as you shake your head. "Nah, it's okay. I'm good, really."

The sheer look on Yoongi's face, tells you that you're not the only one, who doesn't believe you. To your relief, however, he doesn't elaborate on your lie.

"You came here to Seoul to start a new life, didn't you?"

You nod your head in an approving manner.

"Good, then stop thinking about him, ___." Yoongi says.

"If it was that easy, I would've done it months ago, Yoongi." You roll your eyes and play with the petals of one of the flowers in order to keep yourself busy so you won't cry.

"It is that easy, just look at me. My heart has never been broken before." He shrugs and slaps your hand off the poor flower as you nearly kill it.

"But have you ever been in love before?" Feeling like you already know the answer to your own question, you only listen with one ear as Yoongi scoffs loudly, confirming your suspicion.

"Do I look like a pussy?"

"Depends on what you mean by 'pussy' because you do look like a cute little kitten." You laugh and ruffle his hair in the process. Your laugh only gets louder as he desperately tries to get you out of his hair.

"Don't ever do that again ___, I swear!" If looks could kill...

Without another word, he walks around you and leaves you on your own again to admire the beautiful flowers surrounding you.

If anyone would've encountered your little scene just then, they might think you hate each other but that's not the case at all. You actually like Yoongi. You find him annoying at times, lazy and sleezy all of the time and he has that creepy serial killer look on his face which haunts you since the day you first met him but all in all he's a good guy.

At least that's what you think of him. He isn't very social or outgoing, he most definitely doesn't like talking to anybody and you've never actually seen him around anyone but Mr. and Mrs. Yang but you've experienced his kind and caring side first hand when you came to Seoul with absolutely nothing on you and he was the first one to cross your path.

You asked him for directions to a hotel that night and he straight up refused to 'lead an innocent and obviously stupid idiot to their death' and that's how he introduced you to Mr. and Mrs. Yang, a lovely elderly couple, who owns a beautiful little flower shop and two apartments. One of which was still available at that time. The other one was safely occupied by no other than Yoongi himself, turning the two of you into neighbours.

And that's the story on how you made your first acquaintances, home and job on your first night in Seoul.

So no, you definitely don't hate Yoongi. You owe him a lot.

"Wait, wait, wait, so the little raging Yoda actually threatened to fire you?" Jungkook asks disbelievingly as he takes a sip from his beer.

"Ugh, I don't know but he said some stuff and I better don't want to find out." Taehyung groans, feeling the need to throw up just by thought of his boss.

That evening, Taehyung felt like he just needed a little alcohol. So after he tucked Hyejin into bed, he got a few beers from his fridge and let himself fall onto the couch. It didn't take long for Jungkook to join him after he came home and a few minutes after, Namjoon rang the doorbell to the apartment and joined in as well.

And that's how it kinda turned into a guys night in. Before anyone knew what was happening, there were three fully grown up men, drinking a few beers and a few bottles of wine while talking about life. And all of that while trying to stay somewhat quiet in order to not wake the little girl up, that was asleep just one floor higher.

"Sorry Tae, I really would've taken Hyejin today, if I wouldn't have gotten called into work so suddenly." Namjoon apologizes but Taehyung just waves him off, taking a huge sip out of his wine glass.

"Don't sweat it. Wasn't your fault, Joon."

"Yeah and it's not like he didn't have any other options, right Taehyung?" Jungkook butts in, obviously talking about himself.

"Don't start again, Kook. You know exactly why I didn't have another option."

"Ugh come on, hyung! Will you never trust me again with her now? It was one mistake..." The younger man sighs loudly while pouring himself yet another glass of wine — the third...fourth one? — sometimes taking a sip from the glass before going back to his beer.

"Of course I will, I just want to let you bleed a little longer." Taehyung smirks.

Jungkook sneers at him, rolling his eyes, "Hmh and between the two of us, who's the one that suffers the most from that?"

Taehyung stays quiet and looks away from him, knowing he's right but not wanting to admit it.

"So, what are you gonna do now?" Namjoon then asks after a few moments of silence.

"Well, I can't take her with me anymore, that much is clear. But it wouldn't have been a permanent solution either way. Hyejin hates that place. Maybe even more than I do." He sighs loudly.

"What do you mean? Man, I really don't get what your problem is. You work in fucking heaven!" Jungkook suddenly exclaims.

"Language." Taehyung only mumbles, not really listening.

"Wha— Hyejin isn't even here, she's fast asleep."

"Doesn't mean I'll allow you to swear in an environment where she could possibly hear you."

Jungkook scoffs and looks at Namjoon for help but the older man just hides a smirk behind the rim of his beer bottle while shrugging his shoulders and keeps himself out of the discussion for now.

"Anyway, literally any man would kill to have your job — especially any man in your position — and you don't even appreciate it." He further adds, trying to get his point across.

"Why? Because I work with models?" Taehyung asks stupidly.

"Uhh yeah? Because you work with models you idiot." Jungkook just rolls his eyes and takes another huge gulp from his bottle.

"Literally who cares about that, Jungkook? I'm not 18 anymore, I have a child." Taehyung jus shakes him off, already done laking about it but Jungkook isn't having it.

"But you aren't 80 either, Tae." Jungkook mocks him, obviously not agreeing. "Literally when was the last time you got some pussy, huh?"

"Jungkook! Shut up, Hye—"

Jungkook groans, rolling his eyes, "She's still sleeping, Tae. So tell us. When was the last time you got some, huh? And don't lie because I'll see right through you." He challenges.

Namjoon just stays quiet and waits for Taehyung's answer because he wouldn't have asked him but he himself is quite interested in it to be honest.

"It shouldn't concern you, okay? That's non of your business." Taehyung blocks off, cheeks turning a little pink. All just side effects from the alcohol of course.

Namjoon hums quietly, gaining his attention, "That long, huh?"

"Wait, but you had at least one in those two years after your divorce, right?" Jungkook asks, slightly getting concerned.

Taehyung stays quiet and that's the moment Jungkook loses it.

"Oh please don't tell me the last action you had was with Jisoo?!" He nearly yells, making Taehyung and even Namjoon shush him, "Sorry..."

"It just never...came down to it, okay? It was never my priority and you don't have to act so surprised." He directly says to Jungkook, "You live here too, don't you think you'd know if I ever...well you know." He shrugs, obviously done discussing his non existent love life but he knows his friends won't let him off the hook that easy.

"Dude, your divorce was two years ago and you two practically despised each other in the two years before that, so—"

"Can't you just please, drop it?" Taehyung whines, desperately needing to drown his wine and his beer with one gulp each.

"No, I can't. I worry about your dick, man." Jungkook of course disagrees.

"Yeah no. There's no need for you to do that, really."

"Oh but there is! Because you're my best friend and that means, that I need to make sure you're alright."

"I am alright, Jungkook! I'm not dying!"

"Yeah? Tell that to your dick then and see what he has to say about that!"

"He has nothing to say about that because he doesn't talk!"

"Well not with words, it doesn't!"

They both get louder with every word that leaves their mouth but they currently don't even seem to realize it, being way to drunk to register something like that anymore. Namjoon just watches them. He must say he's quite amused by their little brainless argument right now. He wouldn't dare to interrupt them even though he probably should.

"Can you please stop talking about my private parts now?" Taehyung then says, voice getting quieter again, trying to not let the younger man let him get railed up so easily but Jungkook just laughs at him, making it very hard for Taehyung to keep his cool.

"Oh my god, your such a dad." Jungkook mocks him, "'Private parts'? What, can't you even say dick anymore?"

"Of course I can, you idiot."

"Say it then." Jungkook further provokes him, smirking.

"No, I'm not twelve years old, I don't need to prove anything to you. I'm an adult, okay?" Taehyung scoffs.

"Alright show me your dick then." Jungkook shrugs, expression totally unaffected.

Namjoon and Taehyung both choke on their drinks, the older one looking absolutely horrified. In the meantime, Jungkook just looks like he's discussing the weather or something.

"I'm not doing that." Shaking his head in total disbelieve, Taehyung takes yet anther sip of his wine.

"Why not? I thought we were best friends?" Jungkook asks still pretty serious.

"What does us being friends have to do with me showing you my dick?" Taehyung asks him.

"Oh so you can still say it then." With a proud smirk growing on his face, Jungkook drinks again. "And that's just something friends do, okay? Like sharing a bowl of chips or something."

"I wouldn't necessarily compare those two as if it's the same thing—"

"I've seen Joon's as well." Jungkook suddenly interrupts him.

Surprised by the new information, Taehyung looks at Namjoon, who's currently about to die from a coughing fit.

"Wh—When?!" Namjoon asks Jungkook as soon as he can breathe again, voice full of horror and maybe even a little bit of embarrassment.

But Jungkook just shrugs unaltered, "Remember that one party where you got absolutely shit faced?"

"Right, I remember!" Taehyung suddenly exclaims loudly, almost instantly slapping his hand on his mouth when he remembers Hyejin. "We've all seen it, Joon. You got drunk and just took your pants off. But we were impressed, so you're good." He adds in a much quieter voice, simply shrugging his shoulders.

It doesn't hep Namjoon though. The man is still absolutely terrorized by that thought alone.

"I wasn't," Jungkook then says, making the other two guys look at him. "Impressed, I mean." Namjoon frowns, giving him a look. "I knew it'd be huge, so I wasn't surprised and that's what kept the impression down for me." The youngest one concludes, not even realizing the way the other two look at him with their mouths wide open in pure disbelieve.

Taehyung is the first to get out of this pure state of shock, shaking his head to clear his thoughts. "Anyway, I won't get naked now for you to see my dick and I also don't think my sex life is that big of a deal. I'm fine, okay? Really. I'm quite happy with my life right now, I don't need a girl to fulfill anything." He then says, seriously meaning every word of it.

"So what's your plan for the next 20 years then, huh? Staying by yourself, only to be there for Hyejin until you die all alone in your ugly ass brown love seat, which doesn't even have a purpose because there's no one for you to love and Hyejin has already moved out?" He waves his arms around wildly, which makes the situation more dramatic than it has to be.

Taehyung frowns deeply, thinking about his best friends words for a moment before he looks at him with shock written all over his face. "Wait a minute, why don't I make it past 50 in your weird forecast story?"

Jungkook throws an intense look at him, that lasts so long, Namjoon kinda feels like a third wheel while watching them both. "Because lonely hearts die young, Tae." Jungkook then whispers, with a pained expression on his face.

Namjoon doesn't know if he's supposed to laugh or cry, that's how serious the two friends look in their weird little moment. But in the end, he decides to just wait and see where this is going.

A mix between a scoff and an uncomfortable laugh leaves Taehyung's mouth as he mimics the look on his best friend's face, somehow sliding to the edge of his seat in order to be closer to him.

"But I'll still have you guys though... right?" Taehyung tries to smile, eyes racing from Jungkook to Namjoon but he actually looks a little alarmed now.

Jungkook reaches out his hand to grip Taehyung's shoulder. "Man, you will always have me. That much is safe."

"God, I love you bro."

"I love you too. So much, man."

When he's sure that he can see tears appear in their eyes, Namjoon senses that this is the moment were he should probably say something for once because he isn't sure if they're about to cry in each other's arms or start making out and he quite frankly doesn't want to see either of those scenarios.

"Okayyy, how about we try to calm down a bit?"

Both guys tear their gaze from the other to look at him now. Namjoon clears his throat and offers them both a smile. He firstly directs his attention to Taehyung, trying to calm him down, "Tae, just because you hate your job and don't want to start useless flings with your colleagues, doesn't mean you're going to die alone, okay? And Jungkook—" He stops himself for a second to look at the youngest one, "You should... You should really go see a doctor or something. I mean it. Please get some help."

Leaving the two guys dumbfounded, he stands up from his seat on the sofa and walks to the door. "And stop drinking you both. It's like a fricking telenovela going off in here every time the two of you start drinking together." He gives them one last look before he just walks out on them and leaves them to it.

Taehyung and Jungkook just stare at the closed door for a little while longer. None of them say anything before Taehyung suddenly breaks the silence.

"God, he's such an idol." He breathes out, amazement clear in his voice.

"I want to be just like him when I grow up." Jungkook silently agrees, both of them nodding their heads in sinc.

And that's what marks Taehyung's "comfortable evening with a bit of alcohol". At the end of the night, he's even more exhausted than he was to begin with and as he finally lays in his bed, he can't help but think of Jungkook's words.

Yeah the boy is an idiot and he's an even bigger one when he's drunk but he did have a point and Taehyung knows that.

He can't close himself off forever and never talk to a woman again. It's not what he wants anyway. He knows he said that he is perfectly fine on his own and he is, he really is but at times he wishes he'd have someone by his side again.

Hyejin is growing older and even if he has the full support of his friends, he can't deny that she really is a handful at times. Juggling a job and a four year old at the same time, while being a single parent and often even having to look out for the 25 year old baby he calls his best friend, just kinda pulls on his nerves.

And at the end of the day, there's no one there to cuddle up to and just forget abut all the stress a normal day brings with it.

The next morning comes much too fast for Taehyung's taste. He wakes up when his bed starts to shake and a pair of very small feet find their place right in his face.

Even though his head kills him the second he opens his eyes for the first time, he can't help but smile as he hears the very familiar, tiny giggle that wakes him up next to every morning at six am sharp.

At this point, his daughter is even more reliable than any alarm clock he ever had. It's very useful most of the time but on a day like today, it's just torture.

"Daddy, are you still sleeping?" Hyejin whispers, right into his ear. He slightly cringes because of the feeling of her warm breath in his ear and resists the urge to wipe it off.

Instead, he cracks one eye open for her to see that he's awake and shakes his head. "No honey, I woke up the second you put your smelly feet all up into my face." He jokes, smirking at the little girl.

"My feet aren't smelly!" She exclaims outraged. Taehyung's head immediately starts to pound even harder because of the loud noise and he instantly shuts his eyes, groaning.

"Not so loud Hyejin, please. Daddy has a headache." He grumbles, massaging his temples in the process, a desperate attempt to somehow get rid of the pain.

Hyejin's little smile turns into a small pout as she looks at her dad confused. "Uncle Jungkook has one too, are you sick?"

Quite surprised that Jungkook is already awake, Taehyung slowly tries to put his aching body in a sitting position so he can start to get up. "No no, everything's fine, don't worry. Uncle Jungkook and I just went to bed pretty late and didn't get much sleep."

Hyejin arches one brow as she watches her father slowly get up. She seems to find his behavior unusual but not worrying and thus follows him with clumsy steps into the kitchen. "Uncle Namjoon is making breakfast, daddy. Maybe that will help you."

'Thoughtful as always' he thinks to himself while a proud smile makes itself known on his face. He just couldn't wish for a better child. Of course every dad thinks of his child as the best but he's pretty sure that Hyejin can't be topped.

As expected by Hyejin's earlier statement, Taehyung sees Jungkook and Namjoon as soon as he enters the kitchen. Jungkook is sitting at the table whereas Namjoon is standing behind the counter making breakfast. At least that's what it looks — and smells — like.

With a growling stomach and a hurting head, he sits himself right next to Jungkook. The younger man doesn't even notice that somebody has joined him, as he rests his head on the table.

"Good morning, Tae! Nice of you to finally join us!" A way too loud voice, that belongs to no other than Namjoon, echoes through the room. It makes Taehyung and Jungkook flinch in the process.

While Taehyung makes a face that comes close to the face Hyejin makes whenever he tries to get her to eat something healthy, Jungkook looks absolutely furious.

"Joon, I won't say it again. If you do that one more time, I'm coming over there and I won't hesitate to—"

"Aww calm down Jungkookie, did you forget who's making breakfast and helps you overcome your hangover because some specific people just don't know their limit?" Namjoon laughs loudly, making fun of the two younger man.

"I sure as hell didn't forget who woke me up with a fricking harmonica at just half past five this morning. And all after a night of pure, uncontrolled drinking." Balling his hands into two very dangerous looking fists, Jungkook keeps glaring at Namjoon, who looks nothing but amused at the whole scene.

"Since when do you play harmonica, Joon?" Taehyung quietly asks. Watching the interaction between his two friends kinda makes him feel like he's still dreaming.

"He doesn't." Jungkook seethes through his teeth while Namjoon chirps a happy "I don't," at the same time.

"You really enjoy all of this, huh?" He states at a grinning Namjoon, who's already on his way to serve breakfast.

"Sure he does. It's easy for him to because he had close to nothing to drink last night." Jungkook scowls with a husky voice. Nonetheless he immediately throws himself at the scrambled eggs Namjoon made, the moment he spots his plate in front of him.

For some reason Taehyung feels his headache getting worse just by watching those two interact with each other and he doesn't know if he can take it.

The real problem is though, that he still needs to be at the studio in less than two hours. And that's what keeps his mood sinking even lower.

For a moment he thinks about calling in sick but when he remembers Mr. Han's and his little talk yesterday, he quickly throws that thought out. He doesn't want to give him another chance to hate on him. At least not so soon.

Groaning, he slowly shakes his head, silently regretting the choices he made last night. How could he be so stupid? Drinking himself to sleep with his best friends on a work night? Great. Just great really because now he has a hangover, looks like total crap and probably won't be able to do a good job today, which will result in Mr. Han throwing another fit.

Namjoon is the one who gets him out of his head just a few minutes later, when he puts a cup of coffee in front of him on the table. He then sits down on the chair across from him without a comment and starts to eat as well.

Taehyung is more than thankful for having him in his life right now.

"Thanks Joon, I really needed that." He thankfully moans as soon as he takes his first few bites and sips of his coffee.

"No Problem, I thought it'd be a tough morning for you." Namjoon simply shrugs.

It looks like he even manages to care for Hyejin, who is already happily munching on something that looks like all kinds of fruits cut together in a bowl. Damn... He came over at an ungodly time in the morning, made breakfast, coffee and even managed to put a fruit salad together?

Who was the dad again in this constellation? Taehyung can't help but feel a little jealous. How come he never gets stuff done so easily?

"I'll take Hyejin today, if it's okay for you. I figured you didn't think of another solution since last night, eh?" Namjoon suddenly speaks up.

And that's the moment Taehyung starts to ask himself where he'd be exactly, if it wasn't for his friends. Yes, even Jungkook. He really couldn't do it without them.

"Ugh, I totally forgot about that, I'm so sorry." Feeling a total loser, he shakes his head in disbelieve.

"Nah, it's fine, really. I have the rest of the week off anyway." He offers Taehyung a knowing smile, which he gladly returns with a grateful one himself.

"I can't take her after that though, I'm sorry man. After this short break, I'll probably have to work overtime because my boss wants us to land a big deal overseas and it looks like there's a lot of work waiting for us."

"Don't worry, I will find a different solution. You've done enough already anyway." A small noise, that sounds like a throat clearing rings out right next to him and he suddenly draws his attention to Jungkook, who's already looking at him. "Is there something you want to say to that?" Taehyung asks, feeling like he knows what's about to come.

"Not to be the ass— butt...butthole here. But I feel like, I'm not valued enough by you, okay?" Jungkook chimes in, "I mean, how many times have I watched Hyejin for you, huh?"

Before Taehyung can even think of an answer, Jungkook already keeps on talking, "Yes exactly, four whole years." He then answers himself.

Taehyung opens his mouth to prostest but doesn't even get the chance to breath in enough air before Jungkook talks further, "I looked after her for four years straight and I'm not complaining because I love the little gremlin, obviously. But all I ever get is your nagging and whining about what I do wrong but then Namjoon is looking after her for a handful of days and all of a sudden, he gets the whole 'Oh my brother, I love you, I couldn't do this without you' speech?"

This time, Taehyung even holds a hand up in order to get to say something but it still doesn't change anything because it seems like Jungkook isn't done yet. And he's right. Not a whole second passes before he starts talking again.

"Where is my appreciation, huh? Where is my love!?" Practically raging now, Jungkook even stood up from his chair to get his point across, silencing everyone in the kitchen for a few moments.

Namjoon is the first one to find his voice again, mumbling a questioning, "butthole?" In the round while staring at nothing in particular.

Taehyung sighs loudly and looks at his best friend. "I do appreciate you, Jungkook. I'm very thankful for everything you've done those past years and everything you still do for Hyejin and me. We'd probably both be dead by now if it wasn't for you." He offers Jungkook an honest smile, getting one back in return.

"But I just want to clarify, that you most definitely didn't watch her for four years straight." He then adds, rolling his eyes in the process.

"Aaaand he's back at it again, ruining a perfect bro-ment." Jungkook sighs.

„Ew, please don't ever say that word again." Causing a creak by his chair, Taehyung stands up and walks to the kitchen sink to get himself a cool glass of water.

"But anyway, you should really go look for a nanny or something." Namjoon suddenly changes the subject again. "Jungkook, you start your new job in a few weeks right?"

In an instant, Jungkook's face lights up and he nods his head. "Yes, I'm so excited! I can't wait to see what it will be like this time."

The words this time, hold much more meaning than anyone who doesn't know Jungkook that well might guess. The thing is, that this will be the twelfth job that he'll start. The twelfth.

The problem is, that Jungkook doesn't have a lot of stamina when it comes to jobs and the duties that come with it. It's not that he's particularly lazy, it's just that he always feels like he could get more out of his life and he doesn't want to waste it by spending hours doing a job that bores him to death after a short period of time. And that's the reason he never really works at a job for more than a few moths before he quits again.

"Yeah, none of us can." Namjoon says under his breath, making Jungkook raise a brow in question.

"Wait, what's that supposed to mean?" He innocently asks, looking from Namjoon to Taehyung, who desperately tries to look elsewhere.

The truth is, Taehyung usually supports his best friend's decisions but due to the fact that they share an apartment and Taehyung relies on Jungkook to contribute to the rent, he really wishes that the younger one could finally find a real and steady job.

"Nothing, I'm just saying. You're 24 and this will be like... your twentieth job." Namjoon shrugs.

"Twelfth..."

"Whatever. Look, I don't want to start something, okay? What I actually wanted to say with this is, that you can't babysit Hyejin that much anymore when you start your job. So Tae, you really need to think of something."

"Problem is, I don't have the money for a nanny." Taehyung sighs.

"Daycare?"

"No money."

"I could lend you—"

"No, I don't want that, I will find a solution myself, okay?" Taehyung kindly declines.

Nobody says anything about it anymore after that. The boys know exactly how stubborn Taehyung can be. If he says he won't take any money, then he won't take any money. It's as simple as that and they respect it.

"Tae, what about that girl from last week?" Jungkook suddenly exclaims, seeming very excited all of a sudden.

"What girl?" Namjoon asks, immediately looking interested.

"The one who found Hyejin and brought her to the police station. She's the reason we found her so quickly." Jungkook elaborates.

Taehyung frowns slightly and looks at Jungkook. "Her name was ___. And what about her?"

"Yeah ___ right. What if you asked her if she could look after Hyejin one or two times?" Jungkook suggests.

"Kook, we met that girl exactly one time. She probably doesn't even remember who we are."

"That's not true. I bet she remembers us. She was so nice! And she got along quite well with Hyejin and you know that girl despises the presence of women like no other."

"She doesn't despise them, ok?" Taehyung quickly checks if Hyejin is still eating but she's nowhere to be seen and has probably already gone to play in her room. "She just feels more comfortable with men because she's growing up with a lot of them, obviously."

"But remember when I brought a girl home that one time and Hyejin was such a brat to her?" Jungkook asks trying to get his point across.

"She wasn't a brat to her. She was reserved and a little jealous. You're her favorite uncle after all." Taehyung just shrugs, ignoring the way Namjoon frowns at him after he finishes that sentence.

Jungkook's face lights up as he hears it and a proud smile makes itself visible on his face. "Aww she's my favorite too!"

"Okay, but Jungkook's idea isn't even hat stupid and me saying that, means a lot." Namjoon says again.

Jungkook merely flips him off while he offers him a fake smile. "First of all, fuck you. Second of all, I'm actually pretty smart. I just choose to not show you that most of the time because I feel like a king whenever you guys underestimate me and I show you what I'm really capable of."

While Namjoon and Taehyung are busy holding back their laughs, Jungkook simply ignores them by taking another bite of his breakfast. He again moans at the taste, only coming to his senses again when he hears Namjoon asking about whether the girl from last week was pretty or not.

"Yes, she was totally pretty, hyung. And so nice! I think she actually tried to prevent Tae from killing me that day." He chuckles to himself, looking in Taehyung's equally amused face.

"Jungkook fell in love with her the moment he learned that she's originally from Busan." Taehyung jokes.

"Yeah, isn't she just perfect, hyung?" Jungkook exclaims, looking at Namjoon this time. "I'm so mad, I didn't get her number."

"Well, you know where she lives, don't you." Taehyung jokes but halts immediately as soon as he sees Jungkook actually thinking about it. "Don't even try to think about it, Jungkook. I won't allow it. Leave that poor girl alone."

"Oh, so you don't get sexually frustrated, working with hot models in tiny clothes while you spend your life in celibacy but as soon as I show interest in someone, you want to get back in the game?"

That feeling you get when you experience a dejavu, suddenly appears in Namjoon, as he watches the scene in front of him. But then again, being with these two idiots never ends any other way.

"I just don't want you to randomly show up hat her house and scar her for life. I wanted to do her a favor by driving her home, not ruin her life."

"Wha—Are you saying I'm not a great catch?"

"No, what I'm saying is, stalking is definitely not the way to get closer to someone." Taehyung really can't believe he's having this conversation with his best friend right now.

"I was just joking. Jeez... Where's your humour? Like I would need to stoop that low." When he notices that Taehyung actually believed his words, he can't help but laugh at him, earning a middle finger in the process.

"But all jokes aside, yes she was pretty, Joon." He then says again to emphasize his earlier statement, as he focuses on Namjoon.

"Damn, the fun stuff always happens when I'm not around." The oldest man groans in annoyance, making Taehyung look at him questionably. "I mean... Not that Hyejin disappearing would be fun, just... yeah."

He quickly shuts his mouth and takes a huge bite of his breakfast instead.

"Tae, what do you think happened to her face though?" Jungkook finally asks, which immediately piques Namjoon's interest again.

"Why? What was wrong with her face?"

"Nothing was wrong with her face, okay? Don't be so fucking rude." Taehyung replies, growing annoyed by his friends as more time passes.

The two man gasp in surprise straight away. Jungkook nearly even falls from his chair. "Did you just swear?"

Surprised by his own actions, Taehyung feels his face getting warmer.

"You never swear when Hyejin is around." Namjoon frowns.

"It slipped. Just forget it happened." He tries to simply shrug it off but knows it's kind of a huge deal. Somehow, he just didn't like the way Jungkook and Namjoon asked their questions.

"I didn't mean it in a rude way. I was just curious..." Jungkook quietly says, sounding a bit ashamed himself.

"Well, how would I know, Kook?" Taehyung replies with his thoughts somewhat absently. He also feels a little abashed. He had already asked himself the same question when they met last week, but would never have asked her about it on his own. "It's none of our business anyway."

"Why are you acting so protective all of a sudden?" Namjoon smirks.

"I'm not, I just think that we shouldn't talk about that stuff. It doesn't matter anyway, it's not like we'll see her again." He shrugs nonchalantly.

"Yeah, it was stupid of me to ask, I'm sorry." Jungkook agrees, "Well, I would say sorry to ___ but she's not here."

It's at that moment that Hyejin comes back into the kitchen, big eyes looking at her father's face.

"Daddy, can we finally visit ___?"

After he hears what she says, Taehyung falls into a coughing fit and clutches his chest tightly. "What exactly did you hear uncle Jungkook say?" He asks her thoughtfully.

"I just heard him say ___'s name." She shrugs.

"Wow, that girl must've really made an impression on Hyejin, if she still remembers and wants to go see her." Namjoon exclaims pretty impressed.

The truth is, she had asked Taehyung over and over again all week to visit her ‚new best friend ___' but Taehyung somehow managed to get her off this idea every time without causing her to make a big fuss. At least until now.

"Darling, I already told you something about that." Hoping she would just let it go, he checks his cell phone to see how much time he has left until he needs to leave for work. When he sees that he only has an hour left to shower, get ready and drive to the studio, he starts to sweat.

But it would be too much to ask of a child to just drop a subject like that, wouldn't it?

"But I want to see her. Please daddy, why can't I?" She stamps her little feet and starts to whine.

"Hyejin, I said no. Please be a good girl and listen to me. I'm going to take a shower now, I have to leave in a bit." He didn't mean to sound so harsh but he really needs to leave and he just can't deal with Hyejin's whiney behaviour, while also handling a hangover.

But seeing her expression change from happy, to glassy eyes and trembling lips because of him, makes his heart go soft again.

"Darling, you have to understand that we can't just bother a stranger like that—"

"She isn't a stranger, she's my friend!"

"She's still a stranger, honey. You only met her one time, we don't know what her life is like. She could be very busy and we don't want to disturb her, no?" He tries to explain to her in a calming tone and even gets down on his knees to be on eye level with her. "And I also don't have the time right now, I really need to get ready and go to work, okay?"

He silently watches as she nods her head defeatingly. Taehyung smiles proudly and kisses her head before he leaves to his room, giving his friends a quick nod to let them know.

As he walks down the hall to his bathroom, he can hear how Jungkook tries to comfort Hyejin by telling her that he believes ___ still thinks about her too and that she might see her again sometime.

Who knows? Maybe she will.

Copyright © 2021 jananakookie please do not repost, and thank you for reading :)