"Are you sure you don't want me to~"

"We're sure, relax."

Taehyung sighs as he watches Seokjin and Namjoon move the rest of his things into the apartment his dad was helping him rent.

"You aren't supposed to be doing any heavy lifting, Taehyung. We've got it." Namjoon says walking into the house with a plastic tote.

"Just feeling a tad useless." Taehyung says jokingly as he follows Seokjin inside with the last of his things. "I really do appreciate it, guys. I wouldn't be able to do this without you."

"I'm glad we could help." Seokjin smiles before looking around the two bedroom apartment. "This is a nice place. Is the neighborhood good?"

"My dad says it is." Taehyung says looking around as well. "You guys don't have to stick around. I know I've kept you all day."

"Are you sure? We can help you unpack everything~"

"No, you've done enough. Really, go enjoy what's left of your day." Taehyung says. "I'll be fine. I'll call my dad if I need anything."

"Okay. Be careful, don't try lifting anything too heavy. You'll hurt yourself." Seokjin says hugging the brunette. "I love you, Tae. Call me if you need me."

"Okay. Love you too." Taehyung chuckles, pulling away from the hug and hugging Namjoon. "Thank you for helping me, Namjoon."

"Sure thing." Namjoon says hugging him back briefly. "Are you sure you'll be okay in here?"

"Yeah. I'm fine." Taehyung says offering him a small smile. "You guys be good, I'll see you later."

"See you later." Seokjin says before taking Namjoon's hand and leaving the apartment.

The silence that settles in their wake makes Taehyung sigh. He always hated when it was too quiet.

It wasn't supposed to be this quiet after giving birth to twins. They should be here, but they weren't. They were still too sick to come home.

His phone rings against the counter in the. He knows it's Jeongguk before he looks at the screen.

He hated himself for wanting to answer. He hated that his heart still longed for him even after he found out the truth. And he hated the worry that was eating at him since the ravenette was arrested in the hospital.

Despite the part of him that wanted to ignore Jeongguk for the rest of his life, he answers the call. Reluctantly bringing the phone to his ear. "Why do you keep calling me?"

    "Taehyung, thank god I finally got ahold of you." Jeongguk's voice comes through the other line sounding relieved. "Are you okay? Where are you?"

    "Why are you calling me? What do you want?" Taehyung says, forcing his voice to be void of any emotion.

    "I want to talk to you. I know you probably heard a lot of fucked up shit from those officers but it's not what you think." Jeongguk says. "You have to let me explain."

    "You're a liar, Jeongguk. What makes you think I'd believe anything you have to say." Taehyung says sitting down on the couch. Trying desperately to swallow his tears.

    "I didn't lie. I never lied, I told you over and over again that I kept things away from you to protect you~"

    "From a life you created for yourself." Taehyung says. "You came into my life knowing exactly who you were, you're a criminal. And you still tricked me into thinking that you loved me~"

    "I do love you, Taehyung." Jeongguk says firmly. "Everything I've done is because I love you."

    "You're a liar." Taehyung says, his voice cracking. "Don't call my phone anymore. And don't call my friends. We're through."

    "Taehyung, please~"

"My life isn't just about me anymore, and the other day really made me realize that." Taehyung says through his tears, his voice cracking as he barely held himself together. "I'm a parent, and your lifestyle puts me and my children in danger. And the worst part is that you waited until it was too late to tell me."

"Bad things would've happened if I told you about my family."

"Bad things happened anyway! Don't you get that?"

Jeongguk sighs on the other line, Taehyung falling silent as he tries to calm down enough to end the conversation.

"You have to know that I never meant for any of this to happen, Tae. I did everything I could to keep you and the twins safe." Jeongguk continues. "I'm sorry for what happened to Jaehyung, but they wouldn't have hurt him. They wouldn't've."

"That doesn't change the way I feel, Jeongguk. It doesn't change the fact that I'm a literal wreck right now. Do you know how hard it is leaving my babies in that hospital, knowing that someone can just walk in and take them?" Taehyung manages to say through his tears. "I can't sleep knowing they're there, I can't eat, I can't do anything. All I can do is worry about something that you caused."

"You think I don't worry, Taehyung?" Jeongguk asks. "I worry about them too."

"It's not fair, Jeongguk..." Taehyung sighs, rubbing his eyes as he tries to swallow the sob bubbling in his chest.

"What?"

"You kept this huge secret from me. And you're making me feel like an asshole for being upset."

They both fall silent, both taking a moment to breathe through all the emotions consuming their conversation.

"I only ever wanted to keep you and everyone around me safe. That's all I wanted. I didn't want to hurt you." Jeongguk sighs, his voice obviously strained from his own tears. "I don't want to lose you, Taehyung. I love you."

"I don't know who you are anymore, Jeongguk." Taehyung says, leaving Jeongguk silent on the other line. "It's over. Please stop calling me."

He doesn't hear Jeongguk try to stop him as he ends the call.

Leaving him in the dead silence or his apartment with nothing but his thoughts to keep him company.

~The next day...~

"Oh, you're such a fussy baby. Don't cry."

Taehyung smiles as Seokjin helps him strap the twins into their car seats. They were finally being discharged after two long weeks. He was so grateful that they were lucky enough to be discharged so early.

"Are you sure it's secure?" He asks Seokjin, who's busy strapping Jaehyung into his seat. "Make sure it's not hurting him."

"It's not. I promise." Seokjin says testing the seat one more time. "He's not going anywhere."

"Good." Taehyung sighs. Today was bittersweet for him. He wanted to be happy and he wanted to enjoy finally being able to take the twins home. But it was hard when his life has been literally turned upside down.

He wasn't taking the twins to their rooms that he spent so much time decorating. He was taking them back to an apartment that he wasn't even able to unpack yet. All he had there for the twins were the bare necessities.

He wasn't with Jeongguk, like he imagined he would be. He was with Seokjin and soon he'd just be alone. Which was what he feared  most going into this.

"What are you thinking about?" Seokjin asks from the passenger seat as Taehyung drives.

"Nothing." The brunette lies, checking the review mirror every few seconds to make sure the boys were okay.

"Does Jeongguk know they're going home?" Seokjin asks hesitantly, Jeongguk was still such a sensitive topic.

"No. Even if he did, he wouldn't be coming to my apartment to see them." Taehyung says, constantly in the defense when talking about Jeongguk. "I don't want him to know where I live."

"How long are you going to keep him away from them, Tae?" Seokjin dares to ask. He wasn't Jeongguk's number one fan, but he thought he had a right to see the twins if he was still willing to be apart of their lives.

"Until a judge tells me I can't." Taehyung says rolling his eyes. "They'd give me full custody in a heartbeat if they knew who Jeongguk was."

Seokjin falls silent, he didn't want to overstep his boundaries. He just couldn't agree with Taehyung on this.

"And I know how you feel about it. Don't think I haven't picked up on your little hints." Taehyung says glancing over at him. "I have. And I don't get how you can even start to defend him."

"I just think you're still really upset. And you aren't thinking clearly~"

"You love to point out when I'm not thinking clearly." Taehyung scoffs. "I'm sorry if not wanting an actual criminal around my kids is too insensitive, Seokjin. Really."

"All his charges were dropped. That has to mean something, Taehyung." Seokjin argues. "He would still be in jail if he actually did any of the things those officers said."

"Whatever." Taehyung says trying to end the conversation. He didn't want to talk about Jeongguk anymore.

"I don't think you're looking at the bigger picture right now, Taehyung." Seokjin continues. "Do you really want the boys to spend the rest of their lives without a father because you pushed him away?"

"He pushed me away first." Taehyung says, he was getting upset all over again. "He could've just told me the truth."

"You would've reacted the same way." Seokjin says. "I don't want to overstep~"

"Then don't. It's not your decision." Taehyung snaps. "You don't get it, Seokjin. So please stop trying to advise me on what to do."

"Fine." Seokjin sighs before falling silent. Looking straight ahead for the rest of the car ride to Taehyung's apartment.

"I'll get them out. You can just go." The brunette says getting out of the car. He didn't want to be alone but he didn't want to feel constantly judged by Seokjin.

"I'll see you later." The older says walking to his car. Not wasting anytime leaving the driveway.

Taehyung sighs as he opens the door. Smiling at Hanjae as he unbuckles him. "Hi, Hanie. Are you ready to see inside? You never been here before."

As he's taking Hanjae out Jaehyung starts to get fussy. Squirming in his seat as he goes into a full on fit.

"Okay, okay. I'm gonna be right there, Jaehyung. Don't worry." Taehyung says taking Hanjae out of his seat before walking up to the front door of his apartment. Opening it before taking the newborn inside.

He secures him as best he can on the couch before rushing out to get Jaehyung. His heart hammering against his chest as his anxiety skyrockets.

"It's okay, Jae. I'm here." He says unbuckling the baby. "Don't cry, you're gonna make dada cry."

The baby continues to scream at the top of his lungs as Taehyung grabs the bag he brought from the hospital. Closing the car door before rushing back inside.

"Okay. There we go." Taehyung says laying Jaehyung down next to his brother. "See, that wasn't too bad. We made it inside~"

Hanjae starts to cry in sync with Jaehyung, his face flushing as he cried crocodile tears.

"Are you hungry? Let me see." Taehyung says grabbing the hospital bag. He finds two bottles still in the side compartment. "You are hungry."

He stands and props Hanjae up with his bottle before taking Jaehyung in his arms. Cradling the baby as he fed him his bottle.

He sighs as he sits back on the couch. Looking between the two boys as he fed them.

"See? It's not so bad." He says to the two of them. "We're gonna be okay. I promise."

Taehyung tries his best to enjoy the momentary silence, knowing that it wouldn't last long after they finished their bottles.

~That night...~

"I never expected to see you around here again."

"Well, I got kicked out my place. So I'm fucked."

Jeongguk sighs as one of his old friends lets him inside his apartment. His dad decided to sale the house that he'd gotten for him and his mom. Deciding that it was best considering Jeongguk was no longer affiliated with the Jeons.

"That sucks, man." His friend, Minjun, says sitting down on his couch. "I meant it when I said you always had a place here, man. You can crash for however long you need. It's just me and Sunhee."

"You guys are still together?" Jeongguk asks sitting down on the opposite couch.

"Yeah. She's still controlling as hell too." Minjun laughs as he reaches for his vape. "You wanna try? It's cotton candy."

"What's in it?" Jeongguk says holding his hand out for the pen.

"Uhh, THC oil." Minjun answers, his lids so heavy that his eyes are practically closed. "It's Sunhee's I think."

"I can't." Jeongguk says handing the pen back.

"Don't be a bitch, just hit it once." Minjun says sitting back on the couch. "You need it, trust me."

Jeongguk sighs as he brings the pen to his lips, barely taking a drag before handing it back.

"How's mom?" Minjun asks looking at the tv as he continues to smoke from the vape.

"Fine, I guess." Jeongguk says sitting back on the couch. Sighing as he felt the affect of the vape almost immediately. He hated that he was smoking after trying so hard to quit, but he couldn't bring himself to care. "I'm not gonna be here long. Just long enough to find a job. And to get a place."

"I hear you. You can stay, man. You know I won't run you out." Minjun says handing him the vape pen. "We're like brother's, aren't we?"

"Yeah, whatever." Jeongguk says taking the pen, making Minjun laugh for no obvious reason.

He needed to make plans to move out as soon as possible. He just had no motivation, or any idea where to begin.