Twelve

Seokjin was adjusting to his new life routine fairly well for someone who felt like they could have a full mental breakdown at any moment.

His days always start the same now. His alarm wakes him up, only for him to look over and notice that once again, the other side of the bed is empty, meaning another supposed late night at the University.

He gets up and drinks his coffee silently, enjoying the peaceful time he has completely alone to think. Maybe 'enjoy' isn't the right word to describe it since he's mostly thinking about his failing marriage, but at least he doesn't have to feel the guilt when he looks at Jungkook, and especially Jangmi.

Next, he prepares breakfast for only the three of them. He's had to learn to cut back the portions he prepares since he's only cooking for three now instead of four. He can only assume that Namjoon must be eating out often, so Seokjin doesn't want to imagine how much of their money he's been blowing through. He's refused to check their bank account.

Though maybe he should... maybe it could give him a clue if something... suspicious... is really going on.

After they finish eating, Jungkook goes to school, and Jin takes Jangmi to school. Then, the mother either goes to work or does house chores on his days off.

When work is over and school is out, he picks up his daughter, waits until Jungkook returns home, and makes dinner. He bathes his daughter, tucks her into bed, scolds Jungkook for staying up too late on a school night.

And lather. Rinse. Repeat.

Though Jungkook's doctors appointments mix it up a little more.

Being a single parent is hard. Jin caught himself thinking as he finished the dishes after Jangmi was put down for bed. He swiped his hair off his forehead with his wrist since his hands are wet and let out a deep huff.

Is he really thinking about life as a single parent right now?

He's had this routine for weeks now, and it's been about that long since he and Namjoon have even had a real conversation.

Is this it? Is this really their end?

Seokjin gripped the edge of the counter on either side of the sink. His shoulders slouched as he lowered his head in distress.

In front of Jangmi and Jungkook, he would never let himself cry, but now that he's fully alone and the cursed thoughts swarm in his head, he can't help but let a few tears slip past the brim of his eyelids, slowly making trails down his pink cheeks. He's never been much of a cryer, but now, as the reality of things are truly hitting him, he can't help it.

His marriage was failing, and he might be on his own.

Jin didn't hear it when the front door was opened. He didn't hear the footsteps through the home that led to the kitchen, too distracted by his dark understandings of things.

"Jinnie?" He heard a deep voice call him from the kitchen archway. He swiftly wiped the tear tracks off of his face to erase any evidence that he had been crying. The last thing he wanted was to look weak in front of his husband.

He turned around and immediately noticed Namjoon's questioning face. "What are you doing up?" The younger asked, glancing at his watch before looking back up at Seokjin.

Seokjin glanced at the clock on the microwave and realized that it was after midnight. He'd usually be fast asleep by now since he typically wakes up very early. "Jangmi refused to sleep tonight, so it took longer than normal to put her down. She insisted on watching Beauty and the Beast before bed, but thankfully, she passed out half way through. The dishes still hadn't been done from dinner, so I was finishing that up."

With that, Namjoon's facial expression of curiosity turned into one of sympathy. "They could have waited until tomorrow..."

"Yeah, only for me to have double to do after breakfast," Seokjin scoffed. "You know, if you're so concerned about my well being, then why haven't you been home to help me!?"

The older male had no intention of arguing with Namjoon right now, but seeing his husband in front of him for the first time in what seems like forever brings the rage out of him. He was shocked by his own reaction.

At Jin's tone, Namjoon held his hands out defensively. "Jinnie, calm down... I'm sorry, okay? Work has just been so busy, and teaching this class has reminded me of how much I loved studying this stuff. So I get carried away... you understand, right love?" Namjoon fiddled with his fingers, hoping that what he had said was enough.

"I do understand your love for studying, especially the political side, but you can't just disappear on us. Jangmi misses you.... and I miss you." Seokjin could feel himself tearing up, but he refused to let Namjoon see it. He turned toward the sink again.

"Oh baby... I'm so sorry that I've been so neglectful." The younger walked up behind him and started to massage his husband's tense shoulders. "How can I make it up to you? Hmm?" He left a peck on the back of his neck. "How about I take you out Saturday night? We'll ask Jungkook to watch Jangmi and I can take you out to dinner. You can get all dolled up for me?" He spoke in a sultry tone, making Jin shutter and blush.

"I don't think we've had a real date like that since before Jangmi was born." Seokjin giggled, loving the idea of quality time with his spouse.

Namjoon squeezed Jin's broad shoulders one more time before reaching down to squeeze his wide hips affectionately. "Well then it's a date! Now, I'm going to go shower because I stink!"

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Seokjin would be lying if he said he wasn't thrilled about their date night. He's had to wait all week for Saturday to arrive, barely seeing Namjoon in the meantime. He almost feels giddy like they were as teenagers dating. It's like they're finally going to start over and make things right between them again.

They could have some alone time to discuss Namjoon's new work hours and how to manage it better. They could learn to reconnect with one another again.

And if it goes well, maybe they can reconnect in the bedroom sense too. Honestly, Seokjin has felt pretty deprived in that way.

Seokjin took his time getting ready. He wanted to show Namjoon just how much he wants him and just how much he loves him. He can't remember the last time he's gotten all dressed up for his younger husband, so this shows how serious he is about saving his marriage.

After he was finished, he took a moment to glance at himself in the mirror. He chose a simple pair of black skinny jeans that hugged his thighs and hips perfectly and a light blue, silky button down. The shirt was nice and flowy, easily concealing any of his stretch marks and leftover baby weight he was never able to get rid of after Jangmi was born.

Usually, Namjoon never makes him feel self conscious about his body, telling him that his body is perfect because he made their perfect daughter. But ever since the crazy idea of a possible affair popped into his mind and the fact that Namjoon works with younger college students, Jin can't help but want to make sure his flabby midsection is concealed.

The mother even put on a little lip gloss to accentuate his thick lips because Namjoon used to say that his lips were his favorite feature of his.

Once he was ready, he gathered his wallet and his phone and went out to the living room where he found Jungkook and Jangmi cuddling on the couch, watching a Disney movie. The sight was adorable.

"Thanks for watching her Kook. Remember to have her in bed no later than eight o'clock." He instructed.

Jungkook waved his brother off. "I got it, I got it. Now go have fun on your date with your husband." His tone was harsh at the end.

The teenager has vocalized his distaste for Namjoon lately, stating that Jin can do better than a man who's always awol. But he understood why Jin was trying to make it work.

"Alright, I'm going to go." He leaned over the couch and pecked the top of his daughter's head, who currently refused to pull her eyes away from the television screen. "And I don't mind if you invite Taehyung or Jimin over, just don't keep Jangmi up!" And with that, he left.

Earlier in the week, Namjoon had texted Seokjin the restaurant location for them to meet at. The older would have liked to be properly picked up for their date, but he was just glad to be going out in general. So he chose to look past it.

The restaurant was nicer than Seokjin had anticipated. Usually, he would complain about the prices at a place such as this one, but today, since Namjoon was wanting to treat him, he wouldn't complain.

The lighting was low inside and the decor was elegant, giving a nice romantic touch to the restaurant. He approached the receptionist desk, unsure if a reservation was already made or not. He wasn't even sure if Namjoon was here yet.

"Um, excuse me. Was there a reservation made under Kim Namjoon for this time?" He asked the kind-looking, young girl behind the desk.

"Let me check really fast." She smiled before typing on the screen in front of her. "Here we are! Yes, Yoojin will lead you to your table."

Another girl, probably a year older than Jungkook, dressed in all black led him to a table in a secluded area of the venue. When Seokjin saw the table, he thought that Namjoon had really outdone himself this time.

The lighting was dim because the only light came from decorative fairy lights draped neatly over the table. In the center was a bottle of champagne and two matching flutes. Off to the side, the table was decorated with a bouquet of roses. This was the perfect date for a cheesy chick flick movie and Seokjin was loving it.

The only thing missing was his husband, but he just assumes that he's only minutes from arriving.

"Can I get you anything while we wait for the other guest?" The sweet waitress asked.

"He'll be here any moment, so can I just get water for now?" The girl nodded before disappearing.

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Seokjin slowly sipped on his water, every so often glancing at the time on his watch.

What started as only a couple of minutes late, quickly turned into ten minutes. From ten minutes, it turned into thirty minutes. He cracked open the champagne early since only sipping water wasn't cutting it anymore.

At an hour, the waitress brought in another bottle of champaign. He needed something to take the edge off, something to ease the pain of being stood up by your own husband of nearly three years.

Was it two hours now?

On second thought, maybe he needed something stronger.

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Written by squidster97

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