438.

439.

440.

441.

"You look happy." Jaehyun grinned as he saw his son strolling into his office with a huge smile on his face. That smile was something he longed to see on his son's face and those eyes told him everything he wanted to know. His son was extremely happy. He didn't even have to smell him to know that.

"Mhmm..." Jimin leisurely took a seat opposite to him, crossing his leg at the knee. "He's amazing, dad. I never thought I'd say this in my life but Jungkook is everything I didn't know I'd need in my life."

"I'm happy to hear that, son." Jaehyun felt relief flood him. "Does this mean he's someone you can see yourself sharing your life with?" He knew the answer already but still it didn't hurt to ask him again.

His son huffed. "I already told you. He's the only one. My answer won't change no matter how many times you ask." Jimin suddenly beamed and moved to the edge of his seat, leaning forward. "Did you know that we have met before? Like when I was thirteen?"

"Yeah?" Jaehyun leaned forward, planting his elbows on the table. "At thirteen?" Curiosity flooded him. He didn't know of this.

"Yep. It was by chance. I was at this park and saw a few pups bullying this tiny pup playing all by himself. Long story short. I intervened, took the pup to the nearest convenience store, tended to his scraped knee and bought him a bunny plush to make him smile again." He leaned back in his seat, staring at the ceiling dreamily. "Never thought that pup would be the one to hold my entire heart in the palm of his hand." He opened his palm and stared at it like a love sick puppy.

Jaehyun scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Wow. So he's really your destiny."

"Right?!" Jimin's face lit up even more and he didn't remember seeing his son this excited in years. "I even went back there a year later to that convenience store because I knew his father worked there. But he wasn't there anymore. Looks like we were always meant to meet."

"You met Jeong-Ho?"

Jimin nodded enthusiastically. "I didn't know the cashier was the pup's father. I bought first aid and patched him up. But he told me it was on him because it was his pup. Later, when I bought the bunny plush, he was hesitant to accept it but allowed Jungkook to keep it when I insisted. It's still surprising to me that we have met before."

"Considering how the events unfolded, I'm not surprised," Jaehyun stated. "You imprinted on him when you were seven after all."

"What?" Jimin blinked, the smile falling to form a frown. "At seven?"

"Remember the time when we briefly discussed your childhood trauma and your time at the hospital?" he asked and his son nodded. It was a topic they all avoided. There was so much pain in there. "There are things we didn't mention to you." He exhaled. It was still a nightmare to him. "Thanks to Jungkook's mother, we were able to see our only son alive and thanks to Jungkook we got back our only son fully recovered."

"I..." Jimin's brows creased. "I don't understand. Why don't I remember then?"

"You were young." Jaehyun took a deep breath. "You were alive when they brought you outside that day, but barely." To this day, talking about it loudly was hard. "Your mother...she was broken." His voice cracked with emotion. "We had you after several heats amidst health complications and we were told it'd be life threatening for her to bear another child. Your mother died at least a thousand deaths when she waited outside that shopping mall and blamed herself for losing you. She kept saying it should have been her." He took a deep breath as his son's scent shifted to that of concern and sorrow. "At the hospital, the doctors had to waken your wolf forcefully in order to heal you, but you were only a pup and your wolf was so scared. You went feral and the doctors struggled to bring you back. At only seven, we had to confine you and you weren't even accepting your mother's scent."

Jimin stood and skirted around the desk to perch on it next to him. He took his hand in his.

Jaehyun smiled. "As a parent, to see our only pup fighting for his life was the worst thing we had to do. Those two months, your mom wasn't herself. She wouldn't leave your side. Even when you didn't allow her anywhere near you, she'd sleep outside the door. The only time she left was to help Jeong-Ho with his little pup. While you were feral, Jungkook was struggling to adjust to a life without his mom. He wasn't weaned off breast milk, you see. So he wouldn't eat anything and wouldn't stop crying. So your mother volunteered to help the pup and took care of him while Jeong-Ho mourned his wife."

Jimin's expression fell. "I didn't know she did that."

"Your mother also got him a job at the hospital and spoke to the management, allowing him to bring his pup to work. As for you, the doctors tried to use a new born pup's scent to calm your wolf. You continued to react violently and ripped off the sheets that were brought to you. It was already two months and we were slowly losing hope." Jaehyun paused, his throat closing up with emotion.

"What happened?" Jimin's voice was soft.

"Jungkook happened." Jaehyun laughed warmly. "I said his father was working at the hospital right?" Jimin nodded. "This little one somehow managed to evade everyone and crawled into your room. Sneaky pup he is." He chuckled again. "You were growling at him, already crouching on the floor as if you were on a hunt. The doctors and us were panicking, trying to figure out how to rescue him safely from your room. But you know what he did?"

Jimin was at the edge of the desk with wide eyes. "What did he do? Tell me I didn't hurt him."

Jaehyun snorted. "That one...he crawled right onto your lap, ignoring all your growls. You tried to push him off, but he just wrapped his tiny palm around your hand, looking at you with those wide eyes and laughed." Jaehyun enclosed his fist around Jimin's hand, mimicking the pup's actions. "Then he started babbling some nonsense while you just froze on the spot. And then like a miracle, you cradled him when he fell asleep." He smiled at the memory. "For the first time since you went feral, we saw your gentler side emerging and it gave us hope. We noticed your wolf reacting to the pup's scent and you went to sleep with him in your arms. The doctors managed to remove him from your side when you fell asleep and the next day you woke up normal, telling us your head hurt a lot. You didn't remember meeting the pup and never mentioned it even once. So the doctors or I didn't tell you."

"Wow," Jimin whispered. "So we met long back."

"It's not just a meeting." His son deserved to know it now that he was going to mate Jungkook. "You imprinted on him, Jimin."

Jimin's head whipped up.

"Your wolf created a bond in the tiny room. Maybe he saw that pup as someone he wanted to protect or as a part of his pack."

Jimin was silent, eyes wide and processing his words.

"Jeong-Ho was aware of it. Why do you think he agreed to marry his son to you when I asked him at the hospital? He knew of the bond your wolves created all those years ago." Jaehyun stood with an exhale. "But we weren't sure if your wolves would still react the same way or if you both would want to nurture this bond and become mates. That's why I wanted you both to meet and talk. Fortunately for me, you guys have decided that you both wanted to try this. Jeong-Ho was right, if it's meant to be, it will be."

"Why didn't you tell me something sooner?" Jimin asked, his tone soft and features full of emotion.

"Because I didn't want you both to go into this with an expectation or a preconceived notion of how this is going to be. I wanted you to do this for the right reason. You know the imprinted pair doesn't have to mate. They could remain friends as well," he explained.

Jimin nodded. "Makes sense."

"Speaking of which, it's time we tell your mother." Jimin's head whipped up. "She saw you with Jungkook and is concerned about this entire thing. Hye-Jin isn't pleased that she doesn't know what's going on."

"Dad, I told you..." Jimin whined.

"She's your mother," his voice was stern. "You're her only son. She deserves to know. Now that you're sure, it's time we both come clean. As her mate, it's killing me to keep this from her."

"But what if—"

"Whether you tell her now or a year later, her reaction isn't going to change. Knowing her, she'll feel hurt the more she's left out," Jaehyun warned.

"But dad you said—"

Jaehyun rubbed his temple. "What she doesn't know cannot hurt her, son. But now that she knows you're with someone, she's going to feel betrayed by both her son and mate when she finds out. However, she reacts to this, then is on her, but hiding this isn't good. Not anymore."

Jimin nodded in understanding. "Two weeks, dad," he asked weakly. "Can you hold on for two more weeks? I haven't prepared Jungkook for this yet. Our bond is still fresh and we didn't even go out on that many dates. It's just...I want to do this the right way."

Jaehyun nodded. "It's understandable if you're seeing someone and eventually bring them over to meet your parents. But she knows I've chosen him for you. I don't hide anything from her apart from the things that you specifically asked me not to divulge."

Jimin sighed, running his hands through his hair. "I'll talk to her. Say something to hold her off for now."

"Okay. Just don't put me in the dog house," he said in a light tone. "You're her entire world, Jimin. It hurts her more than she lets anyone know to see you on the front pages of tabloids with different omegas. She blames her for it and thinks she has gone wrong somewhere and didn't do a good job."

"That's not true."

"She's a mother. You showed no interest in commitments until now. She naturally worries," he said. "Also, Jimin, she naturally has a soft spot for Jungkook. She knows I'm her legal guardian and told me she wants to meet him. While I do not know if her kindness would remain the same when she learns about the nature of the relationship you both share, I think we should give her the benefit of the doubt at least."

His son blew out a breath. "Okay...I don't know what to tell her yet but...let's see." Jimin stood, glancing at the time. "I have a meeting in ten minutes. I'll see you later then."

He nodded. "Okay. Just think about it."

"I will." Jimin nodded curtly before exiting the room.

Jaehyun could only rub his temples, wondering what to do. Between his son and his wife, he knew he should prioritize her. But he also knew she'd want to meet Jungkook immediately to determine if he was worthy of her son. Not to mention that he was a regular omega. He didn't know how she'd react.

He couldn't force his son to tell her and he couldn't come clean because that would mean breaking Jimin's trust in him. But not telling her would mean breaking her trust in him. Jaehyun was torn. He was in a dilemma. Whatever it was, if they didn't come clean soon, he was the one going to be in trouble for it.

Jaehyunsighed. He could only hope for the best. 

***

A/N: That's it for today. 

For those who are interested - Flashback for this is available as an extra to read on Patreon.

- One Step Closer - Extra #10 | Maraschino Cherries Part 1

- One Step Closer - Extra #10 | Maraschino Cherries Part 2