- • -

"____, hurry up or we'll be late at our check-in at the hotel!"

"I'm done!"

You shouted back as you hurriedly headed out of your room, already checked that there's nothing else forgotten and dashed your way through the door outside along with your packed things.

"Everyone already got what we need for the trip?" Your dad questioned, making some of us checked and tried to remember other belongings required.

"Of course hun," Your mom replied back, seeming rather impatient.

"Then let's go!"

You all then began to proceed to the car to load all the things and start the trip.

...

As you and your parents finally finished putting in all the things needed that were placed inside the bags in the trunk successfully, you all headed inside the car without hesitation nor with any problems.

While the car was moving for a while now, your mother was currently asleep and your father of course, is focused on driving while your little sister on the other hand, is on her phone with her earphones on, probably listening to some tunes, sitting beside you at the backseat.

You, meanwhile, are currently deep in your thoughts while looking at the window with your usual bored expression as you were dazed seeing the view of nature and buildings passing by.

*Flashback*

"I also...heard about you being told by my dad to talk to me about my mom," He mentioned, your reaction somehow a little surprised of him even knowing that part.

"W-Well, I was-"

"I..." Jungkook interrupted when you were about to explain, which then you went silent to hear on what he's about to say.

"I actually know where my mother is."

*End*

After thinking that over again, around 4 hours has passed. We stopped by some gas stations to fill our car tank and take toilet breaks. Finish with all that and as we continued on our journey, we've finally arrived in Busan.

Your dad then parked at the assigned parking spot located at the front of the hotel that we'll temporarily be staying in.

It's not that fancy or anything, just a decent place to stay.

As you and your parents were all done getting all the stuff from the trunk, you all checked in without problems as all of you now started entering the elevator.

"Phew! Good thing we arrived on time. This hotel is fully booked and we're lucky that we had reserved one," Your mother said, quite relieved.

"Yeah, we know. You already mentioned it for like, the fourth time already," You replied, somehow a little annoyed.

While heading out of the elevator, all of you went towards your designated room, a welcoming presence could be felt once you faced the door like those usual decent hotels. Then next followed all the luggages brought in to the room by two bellboys, who then gave out their smiles and swiftly left after finishing doing so.

"Those guys are quite nice," Your mother stated as she looked at them go with a soft smile on her face.

"Yeah, for job purposes obviously..." You muttered in sarcasm, rolling your eyes.

"Come on, ____. This is the moment where you get to see those two certain bastards out of your sight-"

"Honey, you're not helping."

Your mother intervened, cutting off your father's statement as a result.

"Sorry, hun. Well..." Your dad paused for a moment, trying to think for a probability.

"Why don't you and your lil sis go out and have some fresh air while we head out later on?" Your dad favored, looking at you with an endearing smile on his face as he patted your shoulder, seeming to try to cheer you up somehow.

"Really, dad?! We must go, unnie!" Your little sister's eyes suddenly beamed with joy as she looked at you excitingly.

"See? Now go clean yourselves up a little bit and we'll be ready in a minute," Your mother said, showing a positive vibe.

-

Now we're outside...

*Flashback*

"I was on a short trip in Busan for a stressful meeting, which is one of my duties."

"As I finished, I decided to take a little stroll and look around to ease myself from tiredness."

"But then, I saw a woman in a convenience store from the outside, buying something.."

"I only saw her back, but I really know that it was her."

"Wait-are you really sure? I mean-you haven't met for like..years"

"When it comes to my mom, I'm the one who knows her best…"

"…even after what she's done."

*End*

We may be in Busan…

But where the heck is she in this humongous place to search for?!

Sigh…

*Flashback*

"But do you know where she's at specifically? Or the place she's worked in?"

"No. I may have seen her, but I didn't have the courage to see nor talk to her, even showing up to her, since I still have an unforgiving mind at that time."

"Oh dear…" You sarcastically muttered as you rolled your eyes.

*End*

"Unnie, let's go there! That huge weird-looking castle!"

You looked to see where your sister's pointing at, who's acting like the usual excited kid she is, seeing a really big building.

"Oh..." You paused, realizing that it's actually a huge store rather than a weird-looking castle described by Taeyeon.

"That's the Shinsegae Centum City, dongsaeng. A mall, but named in a rather fancy way," You briefed, making your little sister learn a bit about it.

"Oh... Okay!" Your sister responded, showing out her innocent cheery grin.

Since the both of you were already near the place, you decided to enter to explore along with little Taeyeon.

Damn, this place is huge...

Upon entering, you were then welcomed by its beautiful interior and calming atmosphere, with bright yet mesmerizing lights existing within.

"Come on, unnie! Let's go!" Your little sister whined as she kept pulling your arm, not seeming to have the patience to just stand at her place.

"Alright, alright!" You replied as the both of you then began to walk.

As you looked through numerous shops, the both of you quite had fun strolling all around. But then soon later on, your sister quickly dragged you to a certain shop that has caught her eye.

Wew! I hope she won't be too attached to be wanting these kind of things...

You hoped in thought while looking at all the luxurious and expensive-looking clothings and such displayed all over.

"May I help you?"

You quickly stood up properly and quickly dusting your shirt for a bit then looked to see a rather beautiful saleslady right in front of you with a welcoming smile.

"Hey, her last name's the same as oppa's! And she kinda looks like seagull's mothe-"

"Oooooookay, noisy lil' sis!" You quickly interrupted your little sister's blabbering before she could even cause a ruckus.

But then you looked at the saleslady's name tag that made you curious since your sister mentioned something quite important about it.

"Are you perhaps…Mrs.Jeon?"

You asked as you were shocked at hopefully finding Jungkook's mother.

"Oh-um…yes? Is there something the matter?" She answered, quite uncertain because of the sudden unusual question.

"Nothing. Uh…" You paused, thinking for a moment.

"Do you perhaps…know Jungkook by any chance?"

She suddenly went silent, somehow ruining her usual vibe.

"I-I don't know who you're talking about. You must be mistaken," She enlightened once again, bringing up her friendly yet fake smile on her face, somehow trying to hide something.

"Oh! So she is the wife of the duke that went missi-!"

"Aaaaaalright! Settle down now, young one."

The saleslady, now named Mrs.Jeon, quickly intervened before little Taeyeon could finish saying it even louder.

"Is everything alright?" Another saleslady who seemed to also work in the store questioned with a hint of concern.

"Y-Yes, just trying to lower the disturbance is all."

Mrs.Jeon replied, letting out a small nervous laugh.

After giving out an excuse, her co-worker looked at her, quite weirded out as she then slowly nodded in return and went back to do her duties.

"U-Um…meet me at this place later on."

You then noticed a small card being placed swiftly on the palm of your hand given by Mrs.Jeon with a worried look showing on her face. With that, she began to tend the other customer's needs.

-

After hanging around the mall for a few hours, you and your little sister went to the place that's written in the card given to you, which is nearby from the mall that seems to be a small noodle place with no people whatsoever.

They probably close early...

The both of you then headed near the entrance of the place. You then saw a rather large man in the shop that seems to be going towards the door.

"Sorry, we're closed."

The man said as he opened the door then blocked the passage, facing in front of you two while crossing his arms.

"Um, Mrs.Jeon sent us this note."

You said nervously as you handed out the note to the man, who then took it and began reading it carefully with a tough look on his face, making you a little uncomfortable.

"Hm, alright…"

He grunted as he moved aside, giving way. With that, the both of you entered without a doubt and started scanning around the place.

After a few seconds of looking, you finally found Mrs.Jeon, who is currently seated at the corner end of the place, wearing a casual yet with a hint of a classy style that matches her young look yet mature vibe.

Your sister, on the other hand, has her eyes quickly moved at the attention of a small bark, which as a result, came from a puppy. An adorable Pomeranian to be exact. With that, she hurriedly went towards it, going further away from the two of you, and started petting it, now ignoring the purpose of being here.

"Hi, puppy!" She said excitingly, still petting it while the puppy seemed to be liking it and started to be playful, sensing that the little girl is not a threat at all.

...

"2 ramen please," Mrs.Jeon said in a nice way, adding it with a friendly smile.

As a result, the guy that you've met earlier, nodded with a smile as well then began to return to the kitchen.

"So...what business do you have with me, young lady?" She then questioned, her attention now towards you and that her expression quickly changed to a serious yet quite scary look on her face.

"Um…well. I have…questions that I've been wanting to ask of you," You answered, a little nervous from the certain tension that you've felt that's been coming from her.

As the usual cliche thing goes... if looks could kill, then I'd probably be dead right now...

"Oh- sorry for my rudeness. I'm ____. I was hired by Mr.Jonghoon before as a teacher or a tutor for both possible inheritors to take place of his position," You quickly added, trying to calm yourself down and clearing out the tension.

She hummed in response, signalling that she understood.

"Then, please don't ask me those questions that I'm not a part of since before."

She stated.

"But why, Mrs.Jeon?"

"It's quite... personal."

She answered...dead serious.

This is a bit difficult...especially her not being in the mood right now...

But I've got to take action. This is like my only chance to speak with her...

"Well, I've…actually heard about your past with Mr.Jonghoon."

You mentioned, pausing for a brief moment, hoping to get the timing right.

"And the past with you and Jungkook-"

"Enough."

She stated seriously, somehow hurt when she remembered that event.

"I'm sorry for asking an offensive question all of a sudden. But, Mr.Jonghoon suggested to ask you for answers that he himself couldn't- or wouldn't rather answer."

You replied, trying to keep the conversation going and to prevent her from leaving.

"Why would you care about our past so much anyways?"

You were quite surprised by her response for a moment, the atmosphere now quiet.

"2 ramen," The guy appeared in our sights as he had a tray with two bowls of ramen on top of it and started distributing it onto our table. After that, he left quietly, trying to not cause disturbance.

She's right. Why would I even bother in the first place? Why would I even care about it? I'm just a mere non-royalty who just wants to have a normal and peaceful life…but at the same time…

*Flashback*

K.T.H.
"You better not take my place... you pig."

-

J.J.K.
"We're never best friends to begin with... you imbecile."

*End*

Why...

You then remembered the moments appearing in your mind. Where you had been bullied and pranked by them during the early days, a pie fight with Taehyung, Jungkook removing the cream off your cheek with his thumb, and being called names.

*Flashback*

J.J.K.
"I actually liked you since we became best friends."

-

K.T.H.
"No need. It's yours to keep..."

"But-"

"Besides, I don't have anyone special to give it to...."

-

K.T.H.
"Don't do this to me..."

You then felt a tight embrace from him that made your angered expression turn into a shocked one, somehow calming you a bit.

"I'm sorry, ____. Just don't do it, please..."

-

J.J.K.
"I-I'm sorry for...hurting you more than you already had," He apologized dearly, his hug getting tighter as if he didn't want to let you go.

...

"...and I'm so scared to lose you. I feel like my heart will stop once you're out of my life."

*End*

Why would I-

*Flashback*

J.J.K.
"Didn't you remember? I already told you that I love you, shorty."

-

K.T.H.
"It's because I love you, okay?!"

-

"I love you..."

*End*

"B-Because I…"

"If you're done, you may take your lea-"

"Because I care about them."

You answered, and rapidly stood up from your seat unknowingly, the table making a small noise from the bowls placed on it but luckily, nothing messy happened.

You quickly noticed your actions then shyly sat back down, then things get serious once again. You continued your part.

"I don't know how or why. But, even if they've done some things that messed me up even at the worse times, there's still that part of me where I never forget even just a few yet memorable love that I've felt and received from them that makes me never want to leave them."

…

"Hmph. You do realize that it takes sacrifice to leave the people you love, just to give them a better future."

You looked at her, quite surprised at her statement, trying to know what it means.

"Even if it means to leave your son behind, which hurts…so much."

Your eyes widened for a short second, especially now that you saw Mrs.Jeon sort of showing up her true self.

"But why did you leave him in the first place?" You asked in a concerned voice, hopefully to let her answer.

"Because I'm not a good role model for him."

"What do you mean?" You queried, still not understanding that part.

…

"I guess he didn't tell you the whole identity of me, didn't he?" She said as she let out a small chuckle with a worried smile on her face then looked at the side.

"I may have some certain friendships from royalties and such before. But all in all…" She paused, looking a bit hesitant to continue.

"I was a thief and a manipulator."

You were shocked.

"But that was before, I swear in my entire life!" She added, showing that she really mean it.

"I stopped…when I married him, especially when Jungkook existed in my life."

*Flashback*

After their marriage, many royalties began to judge and spread rumors about Mrs.Jeon.

They would give uncomfortable glares at her as she held baby Jungkook into her arms while walking along with Mr.Jonghoon.

"So she also manipulated the duke as well?"

"And she even had the guts to have a baby with a life of a lowly commoner of hers."

"Manipulating and stealing our pockets of values. Now, she even got into the Duke's pants as well?"

"What a whore."

*End*

"When Jungkook's at age 4, kids won't even play with him."

*Flashback*

"Get away from us! Our parents told us that you've been taught by your mother to do bad things to us, freak!" One of the kids said as he roughly pushed little Jungkook, making him fell on the ground and began to cry.

"Hey!" Jungkook's mother shouted in a mad tone when she saw the incident and quickly ran towards them.

"It's the witch! Let's get away from here before she does anything bad to us!"

The kids then began to run away. Mrs.Jeon hurriedly went to her son and hugged him tight.

"It's okay, it's okay. Mommy's here," She calmed him down, comforting him by softly patting his back.

"I'm sorry, Jungkook…"

*End*

"That's when I realized that it was the last straw…and that it'll be better if I just leave."

She continued.

"But even though it's a stupid idea, I stole the money to bring all their attention of hate towards me instead and ran away."

She paused for a bit as she thought about the events that had happened to her.

"I didn't use the money for myself of course! I…decided to donate it to charities anonymously."

She corrected, wanting to clear any misunderstandings.

"I was…actually fine with it if they ever caught me and lock me up in jail forever. But it didn't happen surprisingly."

She said, quite surprised as well.

"Why would you do that though?" You questioned.

"Because…it hurts even more to see your child getting hurt and suffering all the time!" She answered, small tears started to form in her eyes.

"Even some servants don't even care about him when I stayed there before."

She rubbed her eyes, trying to clear the tears away but more just ended up as a result.

"I was trying to make a living. Having no parents with a bad past, with no money for college and only myself to depend on. That's why I decided to steal and trick others…but that was all in the past."

She added, somehow calming a bit and her tears started to lessen.

"I'm now here, working on several jobs like an average person and no important things to worry about," She mentioned, trying to lighten up the atmosphere for a bit.

"I didn't know that he had a first wife…"

She paused, in her thoughts once again.

"…and that I didn't know that my husband's first wife is actually my best friend."

- • -

Sorry for the delay. A very long delay 😅 I admit that I am trying to sort the events of this story (especially to express the characters' story) so it took me a while 😥

It's not only that, but in the recent times, I have been going to some family/other events as well and that I've also been preparing myself for the upcoming school that's going to start for me this July so it's quite a schedule breaker ya see 😕😩

But at least, this is around 3k word chapter along with the progressing flashbacks, so I hope it could entertain you somehow (Sorry for certain mistakes) 😅🙂

So that's all and thank you so much for still reading this and more chapters to appear! 안녕!~❤️