"And why is that?" I frown, feeling like her past is more complicated than expected. "I...hm. Long story short, and this is going to be a bit weird to say it like that, but I was an orphan for a long time, then I was adopted by a woman when I was fourteen. I started working at a coffee shop during summer when I was sixteen, and that's how I met Sookyung."

"And what about your mother nowadays?" I do not give my opinion about this, knowing this will not be right. "I...I left her for Sookyung. She was...it was really hard to live with her, she was addicted to drugs and alcohol, so once Sookyung asked me if I wanted to leave, I followed because I never felt safe with her."

"You went through so much crap..." I breathe out. Hearing all those things from her makes me realize that I complain over small things. My problems are nothing compared to hers, yet, she is only twenty, and given the way it is going right now, this might not get better soon.

"That's life, I guess," she taps her hands on her thighs  and slides them forth. "But whatever, I think I said much more than I should have..."

"This stays between us, don't worry," I reassure her so that she does not regret talking to me. "Thank you..." she smiles, tenderly, but her attention goes onto her watch.

I stay quiet, expecting her to tell me she has to leave.

"I have to take care of someone. It's urgent, but I'll come back if you want, alright?" she gazes up at me, but after what happened earlier, I cannot give in so easily. "Can't you stay?"

"Well, it's an order from Sookyung," she does not answer with certainty, so I grab hold of my phone. "Let me text him."

[ Can't you send someone else instead of y/n? I'll pay you more if I can have her in my room for the rest of the night >

< She's everyone's favorite, Jungkook. How much would you pay? ]

[ As much as I have to >

< 550$? ]

[ alright >

"You can stay with me," I peek up at her to check her reaction but read some relief, and I get on my bank account to make the payment instantly. "Thank you for doing this."

"No need to, I want to make sure you do not have to deal with perverts or drunk guys," I put my phone down now that it is done, and I hide my hands in my pockets to get in the back of sofa and feel more comfortable. There is almost one hour left, so we can learn a lot more about each other.

•••

2 am.

'YOUR P.O.V'

"See you tomorrow, Mister Jeon," I bow to him, putting an end to an amazing night spent by his side, and he bows back to me. "See you tomorrow, sweetheart. Rest a lot," he offers me one last smile before leaving, and I wait for him to be out to focus on something else.

If he was not there, this day would have been the most horrible one ever. It started badly, but once I was with him, he managed to make me erase the pain.

"Y/n," Sookyung calls me, making me turn around. "Come here," he tells me to do, his hands remaining in the pockets of his trousers. I walk up to him, and once I am close enough to him, he lets his voice out, but only in a whisper. "Have you told anyone about Jun?"

"I haven't. Why?" I frown and shake my head, not understanding why he suspects this. "One of the clients came up to me and started talking about the girls, and that I'd get into trouble if one of them were pregnant and under age."

"I never talk about this to anyone, Sookyung. I promise you," I tell him the whole truth, hoping for him to not believe the opposite. "I'm trusting you, you better not have done it, otherwise, I swear you're gonna regret it," he steps away after threatening me, but I catch his arm. "Sookyung, I swear I didn't. I'd never want anyone here to know about it, let alone those perverts."

"I trust you," he repeats those words, knowing the impact this will have on me. He walks away without ordering me to get into his office like he usually does, so I heave a sigh to let the pressure out and head to the changing room.

I have not done anything wrong, so why am I even scared?

30 minutes later...

I say goodbye to the babysitter now that we are back, hoping for this night to be peaceful and allow me to get some rest. Once she steps out of the house, I walk inside my baby's room as quietly as possible to not wake him up, and I check up on him like I do every single day when I come back from work.

I lean over his crib to check his breathing, and make sure that he is doing okay and dreaming. I smile at the sight of his baby face that always helps me to forget every worry and problem, everything that I want to erase from my memories, and I brush my hand past his head, before moving away to leave and let him sleep.

I head towards my bedroom but stop myself at the feeling of my phone vibrating in my pocket. I do not open the door but check what it is, and once my eyes read the name written on the screen, my heart beats harder.

< I hope it didn't bother you to stay with me for so long tonight ]

I do not know why the effect that a mere text has is so strong, but this makes me so happy to read this.

[ It didn't bother me at all, Mister Jeon. I had a good night. I wish every night would be like that >

I send the message but wait on my spot since I answered right away. I do not want Sookyung to ask me who it is. I do not have the right to text the clients, so if he ever gets go know that I am chatting with Mister Jeon in private, he will go crazy and never let me have access to my phone without him checking every text I receive.

< It means a lot to me. Tell me whenever you want to stay in my room, I'll make sure it happens ]

[ Thank you very much >

< No need to, I enjoy my time only when you're there ]

I smile in front of my screen, feeling soft and special. It has been a while since I last felt that way. I missed it.

Seeing no more text from him, I put my phone on silent so that Sookyung cannot hear anything if I get another message, and I enter the bedroom to join him.

I do not say anything but notice that he is not already lying down but sitting at the edge of the bed, shirtless. I unbutton my blouse but already have his eyes on me, he puts his phone down on the nightstand. "Hey," he stares at me, doing what I know means he will not let me sleep yet.

"What?" I pretend not to know what he wants and take my top off, but he gestures me to come closer with a movement of his head. "I have to take my makeup off and apply some cream over my feet..." I still step towards him to end right in front of him.

"You can do it in the morning, can't you?" he slides his hand over the back of my thighs to pull me between his legs, so I drop my hands on his shoulders. "I don't like sleeping with makeup on..."

"You know I'm gonna ruin it anyway," he gives a squeezes to my inner thigh, staring into my eyes, he presses his lips against my breasts, and no matter how much I want to say no, I do not want him to be left with sexual frustration, I want to give him as much as he gives me, even if this is not the same.

If I am in a house, that I can feed myself and our child, this is because of him, so that is the least I can do for him.

"Hm?" he kisses my stomach, rubbing his hands over my thighs. I look down but give in to him. I get on my knees again, doing like I had to do last night, and he leans forward to lock lips with me.

— Next day —

Monday, July 19th, 2021.

1:20 pm.

I leave my baby's bedroom after putting him to bed for his nap, feeling exhausted, I head towards Sookyung's office. I need to ask him for something, I hope he will understand and not be bothered.

I knock on the door once I stand before it, and he lets me in, so I get inside. I walk up towards him but see him take his glasses off. "What's wrong, babe?" he lifts his arms up to hold them behind his head and stretch on his chair, so I sit down on one of the two that is placed in front of his desk. "I need to ask you something..."

"Tell me," he runs his fingers through his black hair, so I talk. "Well...The box of diapers is soon empty, and I'm not sure Jun will have enough for today, so I need some money to go shopping and buy some."

He heaves a sigh to make it obvious it annoys him, but he grabs his phone. "How much do you need?"

"I'll buy one box, but I need to buy some milk for him too..." I add to the list, seeing him type on his screen. "So fifty, and if you want something, tell me, I'll buy it."

"Yeah," he answers in a low voice. "Shouldn't he stop using diapers at his age though?"

"I'm slowly starting to teach him to use the toilet," I tell him, feeling like I am the only one who is raising our child. "Hm," he barely cares about it, he drops his phone on the desk and takes a look at his computer. "Get me some cigarettes and red wine. There's some more on your card if you wanna buy something for yourself."

"I will. Thank you," I stand up, glad that he did not complain too much. "Be careful on the road," he kindly says, but I turn around to remind him of his job. "Can you check up on Jun while I'm away, please?"

"I will," he nods, so I pray for him to not forget to do it. "See you," I tell him goodbye and get out of the room. I never like to do this since that means Jun is going to be alone with his father who does not care about him.

I will make fast.

20 minutes later...

I enter the grocery store, walking fast and processing through the aisles to find the baby's one since this is the first thing I have to buy.

I check the different boxes of diapers but pick the one with one-hundred and fifty in it. I put the heavy box in the cart, then move towards the milk that I always buy for him and which I believe to be his favorite. Then once everything is taken for him, I make sure to get what Sookyung asked for, and I head towards the beauty products. I need to buy the face cream I use everyday, as well as some makeup remover.

While checking if there is a discount on one of them, I get distracted by my phone, so I check what is the text about.

< get some condoms if you have enough, I forgot about it ]

[ okay >

I answer but wish he did not remember that, even if he will do it without having some. I guess he needs this every day, but I do not, and he does not understand, or simply does not care. I could tell him that I do not want to, but if I do, I am scared that he might be upset and go see another girl.

I sometimes feel like he is not only a boss to some of the girls, especially Lilly, but what can I do about it? Tell him that I suspect him of cheating on me and risk to not have a house for Jun anymore? I do not want that to happen, if I was alone, maybe I would have left him and his house long ago, but I depend on him, and Jun means the world to me, he is the only one that matters to me, so I will do anything to make sure he has a shelter, food, and love.

My thoughts now ruining the mood I was in, I grab a box of condoms, and my two products to throw everything in the cart, and I look at my phone.

I cannot stop thinking about what Mister Jeon told me last night. 'Let's imagine that someone can guarantee you to be safe, to earn money, and to work only if you want to.'

Did this mean what I think it did? I wish, but why would he even do that for me? Most of the girls in that nightclub do not want to be there but have to deal with perverts every night, so why would I be the one he wants to take care of and get away from this?

I want to text him and talk to him. Last night made me feel so good, I learnt much more about him, and I do not know why I want to be with him again.

The more I spend time with him, the harder it is to be away from him.

I feel disgusting for feeling like that for another man, but how am I supposed not to when the one I was in love with is now treating me like a piece of trash or sex toy? On top of that, he does not take care of our child but act like he is my son only, not ours, and that is something that I cannot accept at all.

"Y/n?" a familiar voice makes me feel in a daydream, so I leave my head to turn around, but my eyes catch sight of someone I would never have expected to stumble upon in this place, at this hour.

"Mister Jeon?" my heart hastens its beating, some excitement taking over me. "Hey, it feels so weird to meet you outside...like..." he does not say the word as if he wanted to avoid it, and I cannot help but smile. "Same. I'm so glad to see you..." I do not keep it to myself, and his lips curve up. "I'm so happy as well. How are you doing?"

"Good, and you? Aren't you working at this hour?" I stop everything I was doing to focus on him. "I took a day off, so I'm taking this opportunity to buy some food, but yeah, I'm doing good too," he tells me the reason for him to be free right now, and I understand. "Oh, alright. I see. You should have stayed home and do nothing though. You're always so busy..."

"Yes, but if I don't do it today, I'll have to do it on a busy day which is even worse. So it's better now, it only takes a few minutes anyway," he grins, and I look down at his clothes, noticing how chic he still looks even if it is to do some simple shopping. "It's..." he does not end his sentence, weirdly. "You look so beautiful, I mean," he acts like he has never done before, seeming hesitant. He licks his lips but gazes at me. "I never see you in casual clothes, you're so much...You look much better like this..."

"You think so? Most men tell me otherwise when they meet me outside of that place," I find it hard to believe him, even if I usually trust his words with no doubt. "I mean it. It's so much better to see you in comfortable clothes without all the unnecessary makeup you have to wear over there."

"Well...thank you for saying that," I avert my eyes from his, not knowing how to respond to such sweet compliments. I am not used to it anymore. The men I meet in the nightclub always find me ugly once I take off all the makeup and do not wear revealing clothes, so this truly makes me feel so much more confident about myself.

A soft chortle escapes him as if my shyness was too obvious to not be laughed at, so I try to make eye contact again, feeling hot for no good reason. "So...Will you be there tonight?"

"Of course I will. I'm not missing a night unless you're not there," he makes me feel like a special person again, fluttering my heart and giving me too much attention. "I'm happy then."

He beams at me, both of us staring at each other and speaking with our eyes. No matter what his eyes tell me, I would literally lose my mind and do anything he wants me to. His aura is so strong, I cannot prevent myself from feeling weak in the knees because of him. He has a lot of power, and from all what I hear at the club, he does not have this power over me only.

"Are you alone?" he looks around as if he was expecting someone to be close, and I nod. "I am. Sookyung is working at home right now."

"Oh," he leans over his cart to rest one arm on it but bring his other hand up to his glossy lips, and he fiddles with his bottom one. "Isn't it better like that?"

A smile forms on my face, knowing the answer to this but feeling ashamed of it. "It is..." I tell him but cannot say anything about the fear I am currently feeling because my baby is alone with him. I wish I could talk about my son to him, but this would reveal so much that Sookyung's reputation could be ruined.

If people ever get to know that he got me pregnant when I was seventeen, that he was already dating me one year before that, and that he hired me in a nightclub at sixteen, he would lose everything he has right now, literally everything. He might even be sent to jail, so I need to keep quiet.

"Do you have to be home at a certain hour or does he not pay attention to when you go and come?" he questions me as if he was interested in knowing more about my life. "I have to be home as soon as possible, so I cannot go wherever I want to."

His stare remains steady, his facial expression exuding some irritation. This is crazy how upset he seems to get every time he gets to know that I let Sookyung have a lot of control over my actions.

"And what if I want to hang out with you?" he straightens his back, getting this out from out of nowhere. "I'm his friend, so I'm yours too, right? There's no problem with hanging out with a friend, am I wrong?"

"Well...there isn't, techically," I agree either him, but also have to disagree. "But Sookyung doesn't think the same way. If you were a girl, he wouldn't mind, but since you're not, he will not appreciate it."

"And are you okay with this...?" he asks for my opinion once more, making me feel like he knows what is happening with Sookyung. "I'd be jealous if he was hanging out with other girls so...I respect that he doesn't want to see me with other men either."

Someone passing between us gets him to not answer, he runs his fingers through his black fluffy hair, and he drifts his hand down into a pocket of his coat. "Doesn't he go out with other girls?"

"From what I know, he doesn't, and since I'm always with him except for when we're working, it would be hard for him to do it," I tell him what I know, not lying and not even being skeptical about that. "True. I didn't know you were always near each other."

"Yeah, I mean, he spends his time in his office, so I only see him when he decides to take a break," I let go of the cart to fix the sleeves of my jacket, and he combs his hair back. "What about you? What do you do while he's busy?"

I hate to have to lie to him. "Nothing...I cook meals, I clean, I sometimes just pamper myself, I can't do much..."

"Do you think that if I want to go out with you, I'll have to ask for his permission?" he brings this up again as if this meant a lot to him. I love to hear him say that. It sounds like he sincerely wants to spend some time with me. "Yes, probably."

"Alright then. If one day you want to hang out, text me, and I'll ask him, okay?" he does not hesitate, so I count on him and agree with this idea. "Okay. I highly doubt that he'll say yes."

"Yeah, he cannot get any money from it, so he'll probably refuse," he states facts that I would never dare to admit, and he takes hold of his phone. "Aren't you always busy with work though? I wouldn't want to bother you," I do not brush this off, knowing how much work he has to do. "Yeah, but I don't work on Sundays, so we can see each other on this day," he makes it sound like secret dates no one can know about. "Alright. Tell me when you want to hang out."

"I'm always down for it, so I'm waiting for you," he makes me fall for his charming smile once more, and I glance away to not be too affected by it. "Can I ask you something?" I struggle to breathe, afraid to make a mistake and regret asking this question. "Hm. Tell me."

"You know...there are many other girls over there, so I'm just wondering why me?" I cannot frame my sentence properly, feeling dumb in front of him. He licks his lips but takes his eyes off of me. "Well, why another girl?" he returns it.

Is he trying to trick me?

"Because they're better...?" I state what is evident to me, but he does not seem to think likewise. "Not to me. I mean, there is a reason for me to like you more than the others."

"And what's that reason?" I do not give up since he likes to not be clear, but a corner of his lips curves up. "That's what I ask myself every day," he dares to leave me with no explanations. "That's not an answer, Mister Jeon..."

"I agree," he smiles, still not letting it out. I laugh at his behavior but do not attempt to get the answer I want to hear from his mouth. "Alright then. I guess I will take this as a good reason."

"Yeah," he enjoys this sort of game with me, seeming more playful than he is when we see each other at night, and I look away.

"Do you have a child?"