when jungkook dropped aria off in front of the fancy restaurant, aria had hoped that she was the one who arrived earlier for obvious reasons. although, as she entered inside, she quickly noticed the staff greeting her like some sort of important guest and taehyung smiling at her from their private dining hall where one of the waitresses lead aria into. it was a lovely sight to be honest, all those flowers and faint, misty fragrance dancing in the air along with the soft jazz music playing in the background. it would be a big lie if aria said that taehyung didn't make any efforts to make this evening special.

sitting in front of him alone in a room filled with scented candles, flowers and dim elegant lightnings could be a dream of many girls including aria if it were a few years back. maybe she would've fallen for him instead of his brother if taehyung put in the efforts first, if he treated her as good as jungkook always has, and if her brother, who is otherwise friends with taehyung, brought him home sooner than when she started dating jungkook.

taehyung is the kind where you'll have to look for flaws, yet no guarantee that you find some. he's built with perfection, his smile, his eyes, the mole on his lower lip, his hair, all of his body, his personality and especially his voice. aria almost feels bad that she has to break the heart that belongs to such a man, all for his brother. yes, she still wishes for jungkook to be a little more outspoken when it comes to his choices and stands, but considering how much he loves his parents and brother, aria kind of already knew that expecting anything from her boyfriend was more or less insignificant.

as if he won't hurt his family like this.

it makes aria worried thinking about what could happen if they continue this— meeting behind everybody's back and being lovers when she's engaged to the elder son of the family. she hopes for some miracle to happen and the families to just realise that this marriage won't work.

in contrast to aria's distorted thoughts, taehyung is busy talking about his hobbies and hinting once in a while that they could go for their wedding shopping together. aria can choose his suit, and he can help her figure out the best dress for the big day. it all makes her want to throw up the lasagna she's almost finished from her dish, staring at taehyung with a polite smile. jeon jungkook, you're so dead!

she picks up her glass of water, taking a small sip then wipes her lips with a napkin before looking up to find taehyung watching her with the softest look she had ever seen. not better than her boyfriend, though. "i was thinking if you could come home tomorrow?" taehyung asks, "actually, mom wanted you go through some jewelry and other accessories. you can also meet my brother there. you guys haven't really got the chance to interact yet."

aria's heart does a summersault inside her chest, as she nods in agreement, smiling when taehyung smiles at her. "great, i told jungkook to be at home tomorrow. just had to ask you."

"i'll be there," aria nods, taking the last bite of her food while taehyung just finished.

"jungkook would be happy to meet you. he told me that you're beautiful when we came to your house the other day." he chuckles, "i have a feeling you both will get along well."

"of course, i'd be pleased to meet your brother." aria says, her voice polite to taehyung. although she's speaking to him, she doesn't look at him directly, busying herself with making sure that she doesn't have any sauce or anything around her lips. she takes one last sip of water, and glances up happy that the dinner is done and now she'd be able to go back home.

a waiter arrives at the table and aria gives him a smile, about to stand up when she's stopped, suddenly noticing that his hands aren't holding the cheque but a tray of ice creams for dessert. no matter how much she loves ice cream, she has a deeper urge to go home and fall asleep with jungkook on the call. yet she's forced to stay put and picks up her cup quickly, thanking the waiter and also taehyung with her eyes.

"i heard from jimin that you love ice creams." taehyung reveals with a shy grin as he rubs the back of his neck. of course it's that double faced man who snitches on his own sister and goes around telling guys what she likes and dislikes. the kind of sibling bond taehyung has with jungkook is beautiful and serene, almost emotional to aria, when compared to her deadly one with her brother.

jimin is nice— a literal angel fallen from heaven— but for aria, he's just a typical brother who would sell her soul for snacks. it's funny how he once made her birthday card that assured her that he would take a bullet for her, then threatened her that even if it was her birthday he wouldn't tolerate his portion of the cake being touched. he's double faced and delusional according to aria. he's also married, which makes her feel bad for his wife.

"thank you, taehyung. you didn't have to do all this." aria emphasises with gratitude dripping from her expression, tricking taehyung easily into believing that she did enjoy their date.

"i had to. i wanted it to be special for you. for us." he says softly, leaning forward and holds her hands in his, staring right in her eyes, making her smile. she pulls her hands back gradually after returning an assuring squeeze and picks up her cup to engage her hands and not look rude.

finishing up her ice cream, she stands up quickly before he can interrupt her and gestures her hand back towards the door, "i need to use the restroom if you don't mind..." she says, stepping out of the narrow space between her chair and the table, earning a quick nod from taehyung.

"sure, i'm waiting right here."

aria gives him a subtle nod, taking her purse with her as she makes her way outside towards the hallway which leads to the restroom. there's a girl in there, fixing her make up and two cubicals are occupied. aria enters the third one and closes the door quickly, sitting down after collecting her dress properly and sliding down her panties. as her bladder empties and a sense of relief makes her sigh, she knows it's not really the time to relax. if today was bad, tomorrow could be worse.

who knew she would be asked to visit taehyung's place, especially to spend with her soon to be mother-in-law and brother-in-law. ridiculous how aria used to think that she would step in that house with jungkook as his girlfriend one day, and maybe even his wife if things went right. but now, life is busy playing tricks and aria's here sitting in the toilet, stressed even when she's peeing.

she pulls out her phone, dialling her boyfriend's number and waits for him to answer. her other hand is busy cleaning herself up and fixing the underwear back in in place. she flushes the pot, putting the down lid and sits on then, sighing deeply when jungkook finally answers, "hey, i thought you're busy with the date?" he says, "taehyung isn't as good as me, huh?"

"no, he's fine actually." aria sighs, "do you know i'm supposed to come to your house tomorrow and meet you and your mom, so we can have a good time?"

jungkook hums tiredly, "mom told me about that as soon as i stepped inside the house."

"okay cool, let's meet up tomorrow then, brother-in-law." she scoffs, hearing jungkook groan in frustration. "jungkook, baby you're the sweetest guy and i'd be down to risk it all for you. i love you, and i'm even willing to go against my family for you, please just take one step forward at least? i swear i have your back. but you need to take the first step, right?" she tries to convince him in a soft voice, her own worries painting her face and dripping with the way she trails off at the end, waiting for him to say something.

"i know," he hushes out, "i love you too. but it just scares me how my parents and tae will react... he won't be happy, ari. he has started liking you and it feels wrong when i think about telling him the truth."

aria frowns at that, massaging her temples and asks, "then what do you wanna do? i'm not saying anything because i'm waiting for you, jungkook. i know and i understand that if i tell taehyung the truth, it'll hurt him more because then he'd want to know why his brother didn't open up first. you're the one who needs to talk to your family, okay? it will hurt them more if they come to know about us from anyone else except for you."

"just give me some time..." jungkook says.

aria falls silent for a while, wondering if she's pushing jungkook too much. of course it will get him in some hot water with his family, but at least it's better than lying to their faces for the rest of their lives if they can't stop this marriage. she shakes her head, glancing at the screen to check the time and stands up, "look, if you wanna talk to them, then please do it as soon as possible. or else, let me know... i'll have to prepare myself for the wedding." she says quietly and hangs up, opening the door of the cubical. the girl from earlier is still there and looks at her, instantly putting on a small smile.

"boy problems?" she asks, sounding casual to not come off as nosy. aria shrugs her shoulders, standing beside her and washes her hands. "i overheard you on the phone— didn't want to! but i can't get my eyeliner right, so i've been here..." she says, moving her hands in the air, giving a subtle gesture towards her messy eyeliner. aria chuckles at that, wiping off her hands and steps near her, offering to help.

"it's complicated." she admits, outlining the shape of the girl's eye just the way she managed to pull off on her left eye.

"my sister had a similar situation. her boyfriend kept her hanging and our parents were trying to get her to marry this another man."

"wow," aria blinks a few times, "what happened then?"

"our parents won." she sighs in disappointment, "boyfriend turned out to be an asshole. but i really hope yours isn't."

"i'm starting to question." aria takes a tissue, wiping off the tiny smudge on the end before stepping back and hands the eyeliner back to the girl, "what's your name?"

"tara," she smiles, holding out her hand, "thank you for helping me, uhm..."

"aria,"

tara smiles at her, as aria shakes her hand, "thank you. i thought i'd have to spend the next three hours here struggling with my make up." she says, making aria laugh and shake her head.

"it's nothing. but how did you even get that messed up?"

"don't even ask. men are shit, and mine is just the shittiest one." tara rolls her eyes, gathering her make up items and puts them all back inside her purse, leaving aria to question if it was her boyfriend. "no, my husband actually. we've been married for a year now. he's been alive for like thirty years, but doesn't know how to take care of his shit."

aria frowns at that, "uhm, does he, by any chance, hit you or something? i'm sorry if I'm assuming things or invading your privacy—"

"no, it's fine. i don't think it's really private when he acts like a dick in front of the world."

aria's eyes soften at that, "i'm sorry,"

"no, don't be. why are you sorry? i'm going home now and i'll make sure he's the one who feels sorry." she nods with determination, grinning with confidence which makes aria feel a little light about the situation. she steps closer to tara, giving her a warm hug, which tara reciprocates and pats her back, "i'll pray for you too. hope your boyfriend gets some sense knocked into him."

"i hope so too," aria chuckles, "and good luck dealing with your husband. don't let him ruin your make up again."

"never!" tara laughs, heading out of the restroom with aria.

"i'll go now, my fiancé's waiting. bye." aria says, waving at the girl, who waves back instantly.

"see you around, aria!" she says before heading out while aria returns back to where she left taehyung. he's scrolling through his phone, the table is cleared and he looks kind of bored, which makes aria realise that she took a bit too long.

"i'm sorry, it was a bit crowded in the restroom." she says, having taehyung's attention instantly. he smiles at her, shaking his head dismissively, letting her know that it's fine and he doesn't mind waiting for her. taehyung stands up and gestures his hand towards the door, leading her outside meaning it's over. aria smiles to herself, although her last words to jungkook keep repeating in her mind, afraid of the possibility that jungkook might not want to go against his family.

she knows how much his parents and brother mean to him, especially after being told at a very young age that he was an illegitimate child of his mother's extra marital affair. it's a lot more complicated to explain, but for now you can safely assume that jungkook loves his family to death and wouldn't leave them for anything, maybe not even aria. it's not like she wants him to go against his family and fight them or anything, she knows how they all love him too, and she'd never want to take something as dear as family, away from her man. but that doesn't mean she didn't expect jungkook to at least try and talk about his own life and decisions, his girlfriend who is going to marry his brother in front of his eyes.

she sees thin chances of anything like what she wants happening since jungkook still needs more time and the wedding is getting nearer. she looks up at taehyung, unable to see him as someone who can replace her boyfriend, but still it's slowly getting clearer in her head that she might have to marry him and live by his side with the title of his wife if jungkook steps back.

"please do something, jungkook." she mumbles to herself, holding her phone tightly in her hand for there's no call, no message from him after she hung up.

"did you say something?" taehyung asks, his hand resting on her back as they head towards their car. aria smiles quickly, shaking her head as a 'no'. "oh okay, get inside. i'll drop you home."

aria does as she's told, sitting at the back with him while a driver takes them towards her apartment. the silence lingers in the air for a moment until aria is forced to look up on hearing taehyung's voice, "i hope you had fun with me today. i was kinda nervous, since i didn't know if you liked fancy dates or not." he says.

"it was beautiful, taehyung. and trust me, all the girls love fance dates once in a while." she says, "thank you for today."

"i'm glad," he smiles, patting her head, "i didn't get to say this earlier, but you look gorgeous. i've never seen anyone as beautiful as you." aria looks down at that, a pinkish tint adding more to the blush she applied earlier while getting ready.

"thank you," she hushes out, remembering how jungkook always compliments her and makes sure that she knows that she is beautiful and deserves to be spoilt with love. it makes her smile, and taehyung chuckles at her, which is when she realises that he probably thought she's blushing so hard because of him. "you look handsome too, taehyung." she says quickly, not lying of course. she doesn't love him for sure, but she's not blind to not see his atrociously good looking features.

"thank you," taehyung laughs, "you're adorable."

aria decides not to stretch it as the car has already stopped in front of the skyscraper when she owns an apartment in. she steps out and thanks taehyung for the ride, "it's nothing," he says with a smile, "see you tomorrow. i'll pick you up, alright? we'll go home together."

"okay," she nods, stepping away from the car as it speeds away, leaving her standing by herself, watching the four wheeler fade away at the end of the street under the street lights. aria looks down at her hands, pressing the power button of her phone and sighs softly as there is still no message from jungkook.

she heads inside the building, getting in the free elevator without wasting a second and soon she's makes it to her apartment, standing in her room with a frustrated expression. her hands struggle to get the zipper of her dress down as it won't move easily when all aria wants is to get out of the dress and fall under the covers of her bed. she pulls the zipper down harshly, conveniently ignoring the sound of the plastic breaking. she slips the dress off her body, grabbing a few wet wipes and make up remover, wiping off her face without looking in the mirror, for tears well her eyes with the thought that jungkook might give up on her.

yes, she told him to let her know if he can't do anything, but that's not exactly what she meant! she loves him and letting go of him is something she never even thought about. marrying off his brother and living under the same roof as someone else's wife will kill her every day, every minute, and jungkook knows that too. she won't be the only one hurting. jungkook loves her a lot, he just needs to be brave enough to try and talk to his family.

the make up is gone now and aria ties her hair up into a bun, entering the bathroom, stripping off her undergarments as well and turns on the faucet to fill up the bathtub. her phone rings just then, sending a wave of relief to her chest on seeing it's jungkook. she answers with no second thoughts, taking a breath that felt stuck in her throat till now, "jungkook..." she hushes out, closing her eyes and a tear quickly rolls down her eyes.

"what's wrong, ari? are you okay?" jungkook asks, probably sensing the pain and fear in her voice, "did you reach home safely?"

"can you come here, please?"

"are you okay?" he asks again, taking a deep breath, "i'm coming right now. you're at your place?"

"yeah," she hums, gulping down slowly and rubs her eyes.

"i'm on my way, alright? don't worry."

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a/n: i am so excited for this book sgskshkssh and i hope you are too! i really really want a lit of people to read this book and enjoy the story as i enjoy writing it. stay tuned for more updates, follow me. vote and comment if you like the chapter, your engagement is what motivates me to keep going ❤️✨