Jimin and Lee sit in comfortable silence at the bus stop. Jimin looks down at their hands which are a few centimetres apart, fighting the urge to hold their hand.

Why do i want to do that?, He asks himself. What's with the strong sudden urge to feel her touch? Is he really that desperate for affection? Maybe he's been feeling lonely lately. Or maybe..

I like her? Jimin goes stiff. No way.

His heart beats fasten as his eyes fall on her face. He takes in her round sharp eyes, her small nose and lips, the fading acne scars scattered over her cheeks and the mole by her right eyebrow, her damp hair that's now in a high ponytail and the scars on her knuckles. They're all details that make her beautiful in his eyes.

"The fuck is wrong with you?"

Jimin blinks, her question pulling him out of a trance as he realises she's looking back at him.

"What?"

"I called you like a hundred times. The bus is here," She says, pointing at the bus, "And you've been staring at my face for a long time and smiling like an idiot."

"Oh." Jimin feels heat rising to his cheeks, so he looks away to avoid her eyes, hastily grabbing the crutches and standing up. "I think i just zoned out a bit."

They get on the bus, Lee taking the window seat and Jimin beside her. He freezes for a second after sitting down, not knowing where to put the crutches as he's holding them up uncomfortably, so Lee offers to hold one while he holds the other, and they sit in more silence.

Jimin tries not to look at her again to avoid embarrassment, but he can't help but glance at her to see her eyes on something else. He averts his gaze to where she's looking, which is a young woman sitting a few seats away, applying a lipstick as she holds a mirror in her hand.

Jimin looks back at Lee. "You never really use makeup, do you?"

She blinks and turns her head to him, replying after a few seconds. "I don't really know how to."

"Well, do you want to?"

"When I was a teenager, I did," She says, turning her head to look out of the window, "Especially in highschool when all the other girls would use it. But I couldn't exactly afford it. And when I could, I realised I have more priorities than feeling pretty and trying to fit in."

Jimin doesn't know what to say, so he looks ahead and stays silent, feeling his heart hurt a little bit at realising how much she wanted to have a normal life like everyone else but couldn't because of her tough childhood. She had to mature early, put her life at risk to save her only family from a corrupted household. It made Jimin even more fond of her, looking up at her a little more.

"I really... " Jimin trails off.

"What?" She asks, looking back at him.

"I just," He hesitates, his heart pounding in his chest, "I think I... "

He looks at her eyes, and the words get stuck in his throat. He can't say it.

"Nothing," He finally says, his heart beats slowing down, "Forget it."

"Ah, I hate this," She whines, sliding back in her chair, "If you have something to say, just say it!"

Jimin chuckles. "Sorry, I forgot what I was about to say."

Lee stares at him blankly. She doesn't believe him. He knows she doesn't. But she shrugs it off anyway, looking away.

---

"I'm home," Lee says as she walks in, kicking off her shoes by the door before walking straight to the kitchen.

She opens the fridge as Jungkook walks in. "Hey."

"Hey," She replies before letting out a sigh and closing the fridge. "Were you studying? Your exams are close, aren't they?"

"Yeah," Jungkook replies casually, sitting down at the dining table.

"Study well," She says, walking up to him and ruffling his hair before opening a cabinet and grabbing a noodles package, "You need to go to a good college, right?"

"About that," Jungkook chuckles awkwardly, "I don't know."

Lee shuts the cabinet and turns to him. "What?"

"I don't really want to go to college," He mumbles.

"What do you mean you don't want to go to college?" She scoffs, "Are you kidding me?"

"No... "

"Do you have any idea how hard I've been trying to save up for money for you to go to college?" She asks with furrowed eyebrows, leaning back on the kitchen island with her arms crossed.

"That's the thing," He grunts in annoyance, "I never asked you to save up money for college. I never even told you I wanted to go to college!"

"I told you a hundred times that I'm saving up for your college and you never said anything! You never told me you didn't want to go to college!"

"So you just assume I want to go?" Jungkook argues, throwing his arms in the air.

"Because why wouldn't you?" She asks, "You get good grades and you're smart. You've got what it takes!"

"But it's now what I want to do!"

"Then what the hell do you want to do?"

"I want to help Yoongi hyung with the tattoo parlour," He mutters under his breath, looking down at his lap.

When it goes silent for longer than it should, Jungkook looks up at Lee, pinching the bridge of her nose with closed eyes.

"Iㅡ"

"No, Jungkook," She cuts him off, "Just no."

"Why not?! I'm a good artist!"

"I said no."

"I even made a few designs! Maybe if I show them to Yoongi he'll like them! I don't know why you don't want me to do it!"

"Because I want you better!" She snaps, breathing heavily, "Because I want you to get a proper education so you get a stable job! So you never have to wonder where your next meal is coming from! So you don't have to do things you don't want to do for money! So you don't become like me!"

"The tattoo parlour is a risky business," She adds through gritted teeth, "We have no idea whether we'll make it work or not, so get your head out of your ass and think ahead."

Jungkook clenches his jaw, looking back down at his lap. "Not everyone who goes to college gets a stable job."

"But they have a better chance than those who don't," She says calmly, passing by him as she walks out of the kitchen.

Jungkook turns around in his seat and yells, "I'M NOT GOING!"

"FOR FUCK'S SAKE, JUNGKOOK!" She barks, her voice cracking, "I'VE BEEN WORKING MY ASS OFF FOR THIS! I'VE BEEN DOING EVERYTHING I COULD SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO LIVE THAT WAY ANYMORE! AFTER EVERYTHING I'VE SACRIFICED FOR YOU, HOW CAN YOU SAY YOU DON'T WANT IT?! I PUT MY LIFE ON THE LINE SO YOU LIVE BETTER! AND YOU SAY YOU DON'T WANT IT?! EVERYTHING I'VE DONE WENT IN VAIN?! WHAT THE FUCK AM I SUPPOSED TO DO NOW?"

Jungkook goes silent, taken aback at her outburst.

"You used to fucking cry everytime I went home with bruises and broken bones!" She says, her eyes growing teary, "And then it was like you didn't care anymore. Like you got used to me getting hurt for you. All I need from you is to at least acknowledge the shit I had to go through so you have this life."

"And now you say you don't wanna go to college," She laughs bitterly, "Fine, I'll give you your college savings and you can do whatever you want with it. It's all yours, anyway."

And with that, she goes upstairs, and Jungkook hears the slam of her door.

---

A/N:

Whose side are you on?