"mr kim," the man stands up a with smile, straightening his coat before extending out his right arm. "it's a pleasure meeting you. please have a seat."

"thank you, mr hwang. it's nice to meet you." taehyung smiles briefly, opening a button of his coat and sits down in front of the man's desk, while his manager takes the chair beside him, exchanging a forced smile with the advocate.

"i heard about your case from mr. jung, i'm sorry to hear you've to deal with it." hwang says, "but don't worry, i'll try my best to help you out now that you're here."

"of course. i had to get the best lawyer. i can't afford losing my son." taehyung nods.

"you can definitely leave that on me, mr kim. i only step in the court to win." the man says with a proud smile, picking up the file in front of him, skimming through the pages, "would you like to tell me more about the case- about park jiah? something that's not written in here and might be helpful for me."

taehyung sighs softly, glancing at hoseok, gesturing him to leave him alone with the lawyer for a moment. hoseok, with a tired look, gets up, walking out of the office and taehyung looks back at hwang seongmin, one of the best lawyers in seoul, who is going to take this case for him.

"i met jiah in college." taehyung starts, "she was a freshman and i was a senior. we didn't really talk for a whole year in the beginning, until that college fest. i don't remember how exactly we started talking, but from that point we just grew closer. within a few months we were dating and fell in love. her parents didn't allow her to date because according to them it might affect her studies negatively. she managed it, though, she has always been a bright student.

"it was a month or two before my graduation that i asked her to move in with me. she wasn't sure, but i convinced her. we both loved each other too much. we started living together, i graduated and started going for auditions— i was already trying modeling since college. it was all good, then one day i had to leave. i told her i was going to daegu to meet my parents, but from there a drastic change in plans occured and i had to leave the country. my uncle is a director in an american entertainment company and he had made an offer.

"i could debut as an actor, and be a model if i signed that contract with their agency for two years. i wasn't allowed to work for anyone else during that time or even tell anyone until my debut, because of the nature of job. i agreed, and didn't get the time to talk to jiah. so, i never came to know she was pregnant until i returned back this year and saw her with my child. at first i thought her family married her off to someone and they have a child, but eventually she told me the truth. she was raising our son all by herself."

the lawyer nods his head, leaning back on his chair and asks, "so she kept it a secret from you?"

"i wouldn't say she kept it a secret. we had no means of talking since my number changed and all. but yeah, she wasn't going to tell me even when i came back."

"and is she working right now?"

"no. she was working, but now she's not."

"oh, why not?"

"she had some differences with jimin. she worked there." taehyung sighs, "do we really need to talk about that too?"

"well, you really want your son then, yes. it's not easy taking a child's custody from the mother, mr kim. we need to prove in the court that she's not a good mother for you to have the child's custody."

"that's messed up." taehyung massages his temples, "it's gonna ruin her."

"it might. taking her child from a mother can be devastating for her, and that is why, mr. kim, i want you to really think it through." the advocate says, putting the file down under his palm, pressed on the table. "i have no problem taking this case and i can promise you that the final decision will be in your favour. this will be just another case for me, but for you, your child and his mother, it would be life changing; though i am a lawyer, i'd never want any of my clients to regret their decisions that they once made while being angry."

"i understand, mr hwang." taehyung hums, "i do want my son, since jiah doesn't want us together. or, maybe you can come with me and try to telling her once that this could end bad for her."

hwang nods with a smile, "if you want that, mr. kim. people do listen to lawyers at times like this." he chuckles, earning a subtle knowing smile from taehyung as well.

"are you free this week? we can go later then. i think she's busy tomorrow, and i've got some work scheduled as well." taehyung offers, "i can take care of your fee and other expenses."

"ah, please don't say it like that, mr kim. we can talk about the money later on." hwang says, "we can go anytime this week. i'll let your manager know the date."

"that would be great." taehyung smiles.

•••

"did the interview go well?" jungkook asks, taking jiah's bag and drapes his arm around her shoulders, sensing the dull mood.

she shakes her head to confirm his thoughts, and jungkook sighs softly, still smiling as he leans down to kiss her cheek, "that's okay," he whispers, "you cannot go nailing everything, can you, miss perfect?" he teases, which doesn't phase jiah so much, for she doesn't react and waits for him to get on the motorcycle, so she can sit as well.

"do you wanna get a coffee?" jungkook asks.

"no," she shakes her head, hopping on behind him and secures her arms around his waist, holding onto his leather jacket, "i'm messing up, jungkook. something's very wrong with me..." she mumbles, resting her cheeks against his back and closes her eyes, which is when jungkook suddenly accelerates, making her gasp and stick tighter to him.

"what are you doing?!" she hits his arm. "i'm not in the mood to joke around, jungkook. just take me home."

"okay ma'am." he mutters, driving at a normal speed and chuckles, feeling jiah's gaze from past his shoulder. "what?"

"you're weird, do you know that?" jiah scrunches her face, but hugs him tighter.

"no? girls usually said that i was sexy, a total boyfriend material."

"your girls were weird too." jiah mutters, watching the shops passing by as jungkook heads towards jiah's apartment complex. the rest of the way, she doesn't speak, and jungkook decides to keep it quiet as well, although he did slip his hand back in the middle to caress jiah's knee.

she enjoys the silent ride, keeping her eyes closed half the time to focus more on jungkook's hand touching her leg and her own hands that did not remain only to his jacket. she didn't realise when it happened, but a block away from her building, she noticed that she wasn't holding jungkook's jacket anymore, instead her hands comfortably rested over his t-shirt, playing gently with the fabric, underneath which she knows hides some amazing abs.

jungkook pulls over, waiting for jiah to get out of her dreamy land. the girl, however, takes a minute to finally prepare herself to let go of jungkook and steps down from the motorcycle with an upset look again. not feeling herself at all with the poor performance she gave in an important job interview, and now adding more to her sadness that she'd have to stay alone until evening when she would to pick jihun up from the day care. there would be no jungkook to hug her and make her feel like it's actually okay.

letting out the deepest sigh, she lifts up her hand to wave at jungkook, although his gentle laughter, makes her frown. she pushes her bangs out of her face to look at jungkook and see what part of her dreadful life was funny to him. however, when he catches her eyes, he's already getting off the motorcycle as well and wraps his arm around her, pulling her in a hug, "you're so bad at hiding what you want." he whispers to her and enters the elevator.

"what?" jiah blinks at him.

"nothing." jungkook grins, cupping her face, deciding to take the advantage of the elevator not having anyone else except for them. he steps closer, keeping her against the wall and leans down, "if you want me to stay, just say it, baby. i wouldn't ever go against your word. and i love your company." he whispers, the playful grin subsiding and what replaces it is a calm, subtle smile that screams his intentions of wanting to kiss her lips.

"stay." jiah hushes out, holding his jacket and the other hand resting on his shoulder. she gulps nervously as jungkook glances between her eyes and lips. just the thought of having his lips on hers, makes her throat dry and blood running laps and laps all over her body until she can hear her heart in her ears.

she presses herself closer to jungkook, licking her lips and closes her eyes, pulling him down and press her lips onto his. she kissed him first! there are no thoughts, unlike what jiah had expected— to almost die of guilt if she ever kissed another man. but this seems like a different story, the warmth of jungkook's mouth on hers, his hands on her waist that come up once to tug her hair behind her ear, just drives jiah insane. a hundred fireworks exploding in her gut, and suddenly the empty head is flooded with mixed thoughts, most of them just screaming in excitement and telling her to not ruin this moment like her job interview.

she had kept her eyes close, and she wishes now that she still had them close instead of wanting to see what jungkook looked like when he kissed her. she's a blushing mess now, almost forgetting that she has stopped kissing him back, while he stares at her soul, head angled a little as his lips work. jiah shuts her eyes quickly, pulling away instinctively, panting with the chain of events, suddenly struck by the realisation again that she was the one who kissed him first.

"god..." she hushes out, touching her forehead, then her lips, lifting her gaze up to jungkook's face. although, she quickly looks down again, cheeks heating up as if she wasn't already blushing furiously. "i'm sorry, jungkook..."

"sorry for this?" jungkook asks, making her look at him and licks his lips, "or are you sorry for not asking for permission before attacking me like that?" the smirk on his lips is clear that he's teasing, which earns him a light slap on his chest from jiah.

"i shouldn't have kissed you. i'm sorry for that, and also for not uhm asking you. although you'd have said yes, but still." she mutters.

the elevator chimes when jungkook opens his mouth to say something. she hurries out of the small place quickly, then stops in front of her door, giving a nervous smile to jungkook for he's the one who has her bag and the keys. he smiles, giving the bag to her and takes it as his job to trap her in a back hug, peppering kisses on her cheek and jaw.

"stop it, jungkook." jiah mumbles, but never tries to actually pry him off. entering her apartment, she walks like that to the living room with jungkook attached to her back. "okay now, for real. leave me." she says.

"no," he hums between nuzzling his face in the crook of her neck, making jiah smile softly. she turns around, about to say something but jungkook's hands on her waist and lips finding their spot on her neck makes her quiet down. "you're so beautiful," jungkook hushes out, "no wonder you have me falling for you like crazy."

the confession sounds drunk, and it makes jiah giggle, pulling her head back to look at jungkook, "falling for me like crazy?" she repeats with a teasing tone.

"isn't it obvious?" he asks.

"is it?" she chuckles, freeing herself from his hold and goes to the kitchen, getting a glass of water for him. "i'll-"

"don't tempt me into showing you how actually obvious it is, princess."

"oh yeah? how scary is that." she mocks at him, laughing as she makes her way inside towards her room. "now wait there, i'll be back in five minutes."

"take me with you." jungkook declares.

"i'm gonna get changed."

"exactly." jungkook says, nearing her with a mischievous grin, which jiah tries to ignore and places her hand on his chest, hoping to stop him. but jungkook captures her in another heated kiss, smiling as this time he notices jiah doesn't close her eyes and returns his gaze with a glint of playfulness.

she pulls him inside her room, backing against the door herself and brings his hands on her waist, securing them on the curve as though telling him that's where they belong— on her body. "i've noticed you make me a smile a lot." she whispers, kissing his lips again for a brief second, her warm breath mingling with jungkook's in the tiny space between their faces.

"i take pride in that." he smiles, pulling her body flush against his, "you're so fucking addictive. now that i know what you taste like, i just crave more of you."

jiah fails to hide her smile at that and pushes him back gently until his legs touch the bed, frowning at her. but before he voices out anything, jiah makes him sit down on the bed and kneels down, making jungkook choke on his saliva, reacting almost instantly as he holds her by her shoulders, "what the hell are you doing?"

"taking off your shoes?" she says, "so you can sit up properly."

"oh..." he lets out, pinching the bridge of his nose, which is when jiah realises what he might be thinking.

she laughs at him, standing up after helping him take his shoes off and sits on his lap, "aren't you too eager, jeon?"

"you can't blame me." he says, caressing his waist as she moves on his lap, sitting properly then, kisses his cheek. "aren't you loving me a lot today?" he chuckles, leaning back with his arm secured around jiah's waist, making them both fall back on the bed.

she laughs lightly as jungkook switches their position, supporting his weight with his forearms, as he holds himself steady above jiah, "so much love for me to handle." he says, caressing her face gently before leaving another trail of kisses along her jaw.

"well, that's something i cannot help. not anymore at least." she says, laying comfortably under jungkook, feeling his lips curve into a smile against her skin. "you make me happy, jungkook. happy like no one has ever made me feel."

"i'm glad." he hums, "i plan on making you happier, until you complain that your cheeks hurt from smiling."

"i wouldn't." jiah giggles, shifting a little and pats the space next to her, "lay down with me." she says, and jungkook sighs softly, flopping down beside her. he holds his arm open and jiah gladly shifts closer, resting her head on his shoulder while his arm wraps around her. "who would've thought we'd get along so well and cuddle in my bed some day?" she laughs.

"well, certainly not you." jungkook teases, "i've dreamt this. really."

"wow, fascinating."

"is it?"

"yeah. you sound like you're in a movie."

"with you, everything feels like a movie." jungkook heaves out, glancing down at her with eyes so sincere that jiah swears she can drown in them and wouldn't even regret. "remember you said this isn't a disney movie? well, turns out it might be."

"i guess i was wrong?" she shrugs.

"you were wrong about so many things now that i look back at our conversations." he smirks, emphasizing on the fact that jiah had refused to even be friends with him numerous times, and then they're here today cuddling in her own bed. it all feels like a good dream that's too pretty to be real.

"okay, you don't have to push it." jiah says.

"why not? i was right all alon—"

the doorbell goes off, making jiah get up with a sigh, "you didn't even let me change, jeon." she hisses, getting off the bed and so does jungkook.

"you can do it now. i'll take the door." he assures.

"and say what?"

he smirks at that, ruffling her hair and winks, "that my girl is busy, tell me whatever it is or they need to wait."

"yeah?" she chuckles, "well, good luck then."

"i don't need that." he boasts, slapping her ass and walks out quickly before jiah can say anything about it.

with a smile dancing on his lips, jungkook goes to answer the door, opening the door without checking through the peeping hole. his smile fades away and replaces it with a surprised frown, "park jimin, what brings you here?" he asks.

"i wanted to see jiah." jimin replies, equally surprised to see jungkook and gulps, "what are you doing here?"

"hanging out with her." jungkook says, opening the door wider and gestures him to come in. jimin sighs softly, probably feeling a bit weird about him but even if he does, he keeps it to himself. "is it something important that you wanted to talk about?" jungkook asks, sitting on the couch across jimin.

"yeah," he hums, looking around. "where is she?"

"coming," jungkook says briefly, wondering what it could be that has jimin visiting her again. she didn't mention anything about seeing jimin, or them having anything important going on. is she considering working with him again? that would be terrible, and jungkook just doesn't want to imagine it.

the only reason he let jimin inside, is that he can see jimin trying to be a better person to jiah. the past few weeks that jungkook has known jimin, he likes to think that jimin isn't a threat anymore, unlike taehyung. even in earlier times when jiah claimed to like jimin, the man was pretty decent, until he was not. but these days, jungkook saw him genuinely concerned for jiah, and that makes him put his guards down.

between the silence jiah's voice erupts from inside, followed by her footsteps as she asks jungkook who was at the door. "it's jimin." jungkook answers, standing up and so does jimin, "says he wants to talk to you."

"hey," jimin smiles a little, "i tried calling you but you didn't answer. so, i had to come."

"oh," jiah nods, "i'm sorry, my phone was on silent and i haven't checked in a while."

"why were you calling, though?" jungkook asks, sitting beside jiah while jimin stays across them.

jimin glances at jungkook, then at jiah, "can we talk alone?"

"no, it's fine. he can stay here." jiah says, and jungkook loves the way she pauses to look at him. he can stop everything and kiss her for this. she faces jimin again and nods, "so, uhm is it about the dinner?"

"yes," jimin hums, "i really need your help. i hope you won't hold my previous actions against me. i admit i've treated you poorly, but i promise i'm trying everything to reflect on them, and i would never disrespect you again."

"wow," jungkook mutters, "what's all this for?"

"he wants me to pretend to be his girlfriend in front of his family because they think he's after some girl and that's why he wasn't working the past few weeks."

"be his fake girlfriend you mean?" jungkook scowls, glaring at jimin, "i thought you weren't trying court her anymore? that's all for your thoughtfulness and maturity and all the ton of bullshit, park jimin?"

"shut up, jeon. i really am in a bad situation right now." jimin sighs, "and why are you even interested in this? i'm talking to jiah, she'll say no if she doesn't wanna go. you don't have to meddle in between us."

"between who?" jungkook stands up, "you and jiah? listen up man, she's my girlfriend. and no,  not a fake one."

"what?" jimin blurts, quickly turning to jiah. "really? since when? you said nothing like that yesterday."

"well, i didn't know that either." jiah mutters, glancing at jungkook, "girlfriend?"

"obviously." jungkook scoffs, pulling her to himself and smashes his lips on hers, kissing her deeply for a minute, then pulls back. "will you be my girlfriend, jiah?" he asks, ignoring jimin standing their and watching them with wide eyes.

jiah nibbles on her lower lip, staring at jungkook for a second, before pulling him in another kiss, "yes," she whispers in between, giggling when jungkook breaks the kiss and dips his head down on her neck, kissing the skin there. "jungkook!" she scolds playfully, gasping when jungkook pushes her back on the couch, about to hover above her when jimin voices in.

"stop! what the fuck!" he groans, "i'm still here, jeon!"

"and?" jungkook smirks. "she's my girl."

"and, i'm trying to talk to her."

"she's not being your fake girlfriend, jimin. that's messed up."

"please, jiah. just one dinner." jimin pleads, "i won't try anything, i swear."

jiah sighs deeply, "okay fine. but just one dinner, and after that i don't care how you convince your parents that we broke up. i won't give in to any of this."

"yes. of course! thank you so much, jiah!" jimin smiles, stepping forward to hug her, but jungkook's arm blocks it.

"i need you to stay at least at an arm's length from her." jungkook smirks.

"stop it, jungkook." jiah chuckles, pushing his arm away, and nods for jimin that he can give her a hug. "he's just messing with you."

"no, i'm not." jungkook mutters, wrapping his arms around her waist, "all of this is mine now. i'm not letting anyone touch you."

jimin clears his throat, giving up on the hug and just smiles, "uh thanks. i'll see you tomorrow then. we'll drive to busan tomorrow, have dinner with my parents at night and then come back at night itself if you want, or else we can stay the night and return on sunday morning."

"night itself. i can't leave jihun alone for that long." jiah says.

"yeah, you're right. i understand." jimin nods. "and about the babysitter, i've—"

"you don't need a babysitter when you have me." jungkook says, "i can take care of him while you're gone."

"are you sure? he's not lovely and cute all the time." jiah says.

"i can take it. he's my best friend afterall. we need to bond more and tomorrow can be the day."

"alright, then if you say so." jiah agrees, then glances at jimin as he's ready to leave. she leads him to the door, bidding goodbyes with him before closing the door.

"now," jungkook traps her in a back hug again, "where were we?"

"in my bed." jiah grins.

"we must go back then." jungkook picks her in his arms, going back to her room, smiling as jiah wraps her arms around his neck, kissing his cheek.

"you don't have a problem with me going with jimin tomorrow?"

"no," jungkook says, gently placing her down on the bed and sits beside her. "why are you asking that?"

"i thought you might not like it."

"it's not like i like it, honestly. but it's fine. it's just for a few hours, and you don't seem to have a problem. so, i'm okay too."

"thank you." jiah stares at him with sincerity. "thank you for everything."

"it's all for you. don't thank me. not in words." he grins.

"it's barely been an hour and you haven't stopped kissing me, jungkook." jiah laughs.

"well, it's not my fault because you were the one who started it." he huffs, "now i like it and i can't help but kiss you again and again. jihun will be so jealous of me."

"you're not going to make my toddler jealous!" jiah laughs.

"i might." jungkook smirks, "he's so cute when he's protective of you. like yesterday in the restaurant. remember how he was scolding me?"

"yeah, he likes to think he's big boy and can protect his mamma."

"hm, but i can be your real big boy now." jungkook teases, "how does that sound, mamma?"

jiah's face heats up, turning into a tomato as she hits jungkook's arm, "don't talk like that. it's so weird."

"why? i think it's cute."

"you're pathetic. i wanna break up."

"no, you don't." jungkook grins, "jihun and i need you. i'll go with you to pick him up from his day care today."

"okay? but you don't have to."

"i want to." jungkook smiles.

____________________

a/n: just vote guys 😩🤝✨