Hey guys!
Lolly here. Have you ever been under the bare sky, counting stars? It might seem kinda childish, part weird and stupid at the same time. BUT it's not, trust me. Counting stars is something amazing. The sky was cloudy yesterday yet I found 90 stars twinkling so beautifully.

Twinkle [Jimin]

I was pulling in through the entrance of the driveway to my house. The security gate was propped open at that time even though I was an hour earlier than usual. I decided to hop out of the car and walk through the rest of the property and into the house, leaving the key with the guard on my way.

"Momma!" My five year old son, Kim Heiry cried out with excitement clear in his voice across the deck.

I saw him running towards me with a man following him from the back with a soft smile plastered on his lips.

"I missed you while granny and I were having gimbap at lunch." He said as I kneeled down to his level to pick him up with a hug.

"Did mom leave some for me?" I said, smiling at the now-pouting kid in my arms.

"Yep, half of a roll!" He said, showing ten of his frontal teeth perfectly because of smiling cheekily.

"So..." Jimin said, making room for himself inside the conversation. "Heiry, the sky was in shades of purple and red, remember?"

"Oh, yes! I need to complete coloring and show it to mom before sleeping." He said, abandoning my arms as he ran towards the deck chair to grab his scrapbook and went inside.

Jimin cleared his throat to draw my attention from the child who disappeared behind the doors moments ago. "Kim Y/N, get your hands off that contract."

I rolled my eyes and turned to him only to answer him with a, "no."

"I've wanted to import their goods eversin-"
He got cut off by me.

"They can't export their grease to anyone in here in South Korea except me no matter who it is, and it is enforceable by law, you know that fairly well. Tell me if you have something else more important to say. I've got to go and have dinner with Heiry, wanna join?"

"Then marry me," he said with a smirk that never really matched his facial features.

"Why? For merging the business? Jimin, your brain didn't develop much compared to your age as an adult. I love the idea of getting married to some guy for some random business merging contract but that's only when it is in the movies or dramas. The idea of falling in love is amazing too. But none of it quite fits in great in my case." I eyed him for a while. "It'd be great to have you join us for the dinner tonight. Please tag along." I said and turned around get home.

He followed.

My mom was always great at making the most warmly welcoming atmosphere surrounding her whenever required which is why our dining table never really felt quiet. Moreover, she had a good connection with his mother which made it obvious for her to like Jimin. There were small chats which managed to draw some smile out of my lips despite my efforts to hold them back.

"The sky is clear today. I'd love to lie down next to my once-friend under the open sky." He said while fiddling with the salad on his plate.

I just stared at him blankly.

"That's a pretty great idea and the weather is soothing as well. Staring at the sky is fun. Go for the terrace, it's top is of transparent glass. I'll tuck Heiry in bed." She motioned for the staff to clean the table and got up.

I kicked a cushion closer to one of the wing-backs and laid my legs on it as I leaned comfortably against the chair. We were sitting next to each other.

The night felt relaxing and the sky looked fuller compared to other nights because of having more visible stars twinkling in it.

"Someone seems fascinated." I could see him turning his head to my direction through the corner of my eyes and he was smiling like he always did.

"Is that how you start a conversation with every woman?"

"Okay, let me try something different then. What are you thinking about right now?"

"My child, our future, the track I'll be using for my business and my not-so-perfect duties as a mother. And you, the obstacles you're trying to build, precisely."

He let out a sigh and looked up at the sky. "Showing pity on you won't help. But this is pathetic. You should've aborted the child in the first place. I mean, having to accomplish your dreams through making some selfish choices is okay."

I was supposed to get outraged but somehow I was still calm.

"I couldn't. Not after Hobi passed away with the wreck. I couldn't afford to lose his only belonging which was growing inside me and I never found myself regretting that decision. Abortion is like a legal murder in our society and not going for that was the best decision I've ever made. He is so Hobi." I pulled my hands to my heart and smiled while facing the sky.

"The baby boy is adorable and you're a good mother. It's just that.. your age wasn't a nice fit."

"Keeping him became my aim and after he was born, nurturing him was my purpose. A pleasant one indeed. I was a bit laggy in the beginning because of missing out a year and a half on the conventional education but dad arranged home school for me. No grudges taken and I'm doing pretty great."

There was a thick silence in between us for a while.

"How about counting stars?" I asked.

"That's uncountable. Are you out of your mind?" He laughed a little.

His smiles were beautiful. They were one of a kind where you could find joy just by looking at them.

"You see these few brighter ones?" I said, pointing at them with my index. "They're almost visible every night except when the sky is cloudy on rainy days. I like the way they stay in their own paces all the time. It feels like they're stuck but in a beautiful way."

My index moved to the right and I said, "And then you see the fainter ones over there? Keep staring at them and there'd appear more. When I start counting them, the countdown just continues until I fall asleep on the chair or the rays of light from the sun starts to strike up in the sky. I find happiness in counting them and so I do."

"And you learned that from?" He asked.

"Heiry. On his fourth birthday when he knew the numbers from 1-10. A week followed with the counting and he learned up to thousandths because of the countdown." I chuckled a bit and looked at Jimin who is now looking at me.

His mouth was agape. "That was a smart move at making kids learn numbers and it's kinda amazing."

He was smiling. Again.

I took a sip of my margarita and walked from the terrace to the yard. I lied on my back on the grass and Jimin positioned himself next to me. "I can't live a life similar to that of the stars. I can't stop the time. Everything is temporary and I'm happy with what I have now. All we have is now. Past is gone and future seems fictional."

He sat up, looking down at me. "Heiry doesn't ask about his father?"

"He drew his father once because of getting asked to draw in the school. He didn't know what a father actually meant." I continued. "He still doesn't but I can see him feeling a lacking somewhere. I wanted to be enough for him but the amount of time I'm spending on him doesn't seem to be enough. I think I'll just keep him busy with playdates till I reach out to a stability in my business."

"We can't rewind the past as in, an adult can't get his childhood back but they get to live their childhood just by playing with the kids. A father is an example. A mother is an example. You are an example." He smiled and looked at the grasses. "I was quite shocked when you proposed for counting stars. For real. If you ever feel like he needs a father figure, choose me."

I blinked in confusion and stayed quiet. He was a kind being apart from the jerky businessman attitude he showed me. "I'll think about it," I said.

Rest of it ends in your imagination. It's Jimin's 25th Birthdayayayayayay