"This is the RV you were talking about?" I asked, pointing at the giant vehicle that was being driven out of the garage by one of the chauffeurs. It had been polished and cleaned up, which was impossible to miss in the bright morning sun.

Jungkook chuckled softly, grabbing one of the travel bags so he could stow it away. "What else did you expect from Jeon Hayun?"

I tried to ignore the bitterness in his voice when he spoke, but I didn't have time to analyze his expression before he was already loading our bags into the RV. The chauffeur handed us the keys and wished us a safe trip.

I didn't know how to react or whether going on this trip was still a good idea. Just half an hour earlier, I had overheard Jungkook arguing with his mother about something I still couldn't grasp.

But as Jungkook climbed the two steps into the RV and dropped off our bags, he turned to me with a warm, sincere smile. He held out his hand to me, and I couldn't help but smile back as I took it.

His skin felt soft under mine, a familiar sensation that sent butterflies to my stomach. Every time he touched me, the world around us seemed to fade away.

Now we stood in the middle of the RV, Jungkook's arm wrapped around my waist. I let my eyes wander over the interior, marveling at how spacious it was—much larger than it seemed from the outside.

A kitchenette with all the essentials was set up under a large window, complete with an island in the center for dining. A generously sized sofa sat directly behind the driver's seat with a flat-screen TV opposite.

The colors were neutral, and the decor was simple, much like in our mansion. At the rear was a queen-sized bed and a private room that I guessed was a bathroom. The RV was furnished more nicely and was more spacious than many homes.

"Do you like it?" Jungkook asked, lifting my eyes to his.

I nodded, my hand on his chest, feeling the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. "It's nice."

"Do you have everything?" he inquired.

"I think so, yes." I mentally checked everything I'd packed, reassuring myself that if I'd forgotten anything, it couldn't be essential. "You?"

"I've got you. That's all I need."

I laughed and patted him on the chest before pushing away from him. "Shut up. You're so cheesy."

His laughter filled my ears, his teasing grin washing over his beautiful face. It was my favorite sight, though I'd never tell him; his ego was already higher than Everest.

I secretly loved it when Jungkook said things like that. They came at unexpected moments, during the most mundane activities. That's probably why they felt so natural and genuine, never forced or scripted.

"I know you like it," he continued to tease, but I ignored him as I dropped into the soft passenger seat. It was rotatable, offering a view into the back of the RV, which I now took in with a contented sigh.

I crossed my legs. "Are we going to talk or are we finally going on this trip?"

Jungkook grinned one last time before he took the driver's seat and started the engine. And so our journey began, winding through cities and small neighborhoods until we took the country road through the woods.

The scenery was magnificent, a refreshing change from the concrete jungle we were used to. Big cities had their advantages, but they often hid the true beauty that nature had to offer.

This felt right—just hanging out with Jungkook, singing along to songs only to have him laugh at me, which made me stop sulkily. Putting an apple slice in his mouth, only for him to bite my finger playfully. Falling asleep because the drive was taking so long, but feeling safe because he was next to me.

I wished we always had that. A home where we didn't have to follow any unwritten rules, where we could do whatever we wanted. I was grateful for everything I had, but that was the one thing I longed for and hoped to have soon.

After driving for over twelve hours and taking countless breaks, we finally found a small spot away from any civilization that turned out to be ideal for parking our RV. It wasn't too deep in the forest, giving us peace and quiet, yet offering a wonderful view of a lake and the mountains.

The sun was already setting when we realized we were hungry. We devoured the sandwiches the maids had prepared for us, too tired from the drive to make ourselves something hot.

After a refreshing shower and a soothing cup of tea outside, we both fell into bed. Jungkook was out like a light before I could even glance his way, exhausted from doing most of the driving.

The next morning, I woke to the sounds coming from the kitchen. The fresh scent of toasted bread filled my nose, and the sight of Jungkook shirtless blessed my eyes. A smile crept onto my lips before I could stop it. I stretched, throwing a leg over the covers, and hugged my pillow as I watched him.

Finding my husband preparing breakfast felt domestic and intimate, even if it was the most natural thing in the world. I couldn't help but find it adorable how he concentrated on cutting my strawberries into equal-sized pieces.

Jungkook had a rough exterior. He often smirked, masking his true feelings behind a facade he had perfected over the years. But when you really looked at him, you saw the rough edges that made him who he was.

Jungkook, like everyone else, was a human being. Despite his skill at concealing his emotions at times, he cared deeply about those around him. He paid attention to details even when it seemed like he wasn't. Words had a way of affecting him, causing him to put his heart in bubble wrap.

Perhaps he was also a bit of a romantic, evident in the gestures he made throughout our marriage. Like a dangerous lion with a gentle cat's nature.

And I needed to stop thinking like a high school girl who just had a big crush.

"Morning, baby." I heard his soft morning voice bring me out of my thoughts. A smile sat on his lips as he grabbed four eggs from the fridge.

I hadn't realized he had caught me staring and smiled back at him. "Morning."

"Sleep well?"

"Like a grizzly bear in hibernation," I joked.

He laughed with me. "I'm making breakfast," he stated the obvious as he pulled out a small bowl from the cupboard above his head. "How do you like your eggs?"

I decided to tease him a little. "Fertilized."

An egg fell out of his hand and cracked open on the floor. "Fuck." he cursed as he watched the mess.

I had to clutch my stomach because I was laughing so hard, cramps setting in. Jungkook's face was flushed, a rare sight that made me appreciate his vulnerability. I mentally noted to provoke this reaction more often.

I could hear him muttering under his breath, his lips twitching into a smile he tried to conceal. "Stop laughing," he scolded, teasingly, which only made me giggle harder.

"You should have seen your face." I snorted, taking a deep breath.

Jungkook shook his head vigorously as he wiped up the egg residue from the floor, quickly washing his hands. Within moments, he stood beside me, leaning over with his hands on the mattress, effectively trapping me between his arms.

The intensity in his eyes was unmistakable, his gaze fixed on me like I was his prey. "Do you enjoy flirting with me?" he asked, his voice low and playful.

"I like seeing you flustered," I admitted with a small grin as I ran my hand along his bare chest.

"Hmm." he tilted his head, clearly amused and intrigued by my words. "Cruel little wife."

"Just for you."

His face was very close now. I liked having Jungkook naked, but at that moment, I wished he had a shirt on so I could pull him to me. I needed him all over me and he seemed to be thinking the same thing.

I wrapped a hand around the back of his neck, bringing him down but before our lips could meet in a hot kiss, a strange smell filled my nose.

"Is that burnt butter?" I asked hazily, my breathing heavy.

"Smells like it. I put some in the pan for the eggs," he replied with the same heavy breath as he kissed my neck.

And then we both realized what had just happened. Within seconds, Jungkook pushed himself off the bed and hurried to the stove. He grabbed the pan and then carelessly dropped it into the sink without turning on the water.

Finally facing me, hands on his hips, he let out a string of colorful curses. I couldn't help but laugh even harder, knowing I'd be sore from laughing so much tomorrow.

─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────

Two days slipped by in the blink of an eye. Tomorrow, we would resume our usual routine, despite how deeply we had embraced the tranquility of these hours. But that was alright. I was a realist, never fully losing myself in a world tinted with rose-colored glasses.

We still had a lifetime ahead of us, filled with many such escapes from the rigors of everyday life, and I eagerly anticipated each one.

I wanted to dwell in the present moment, to savor it without the intrusion of thoughts that could destroy my happiness. So, I turned my attention to Jungkook, lying beside me with one arm propped near my head, his cheek resting against his hand as he gazed down at me.

We had been lying in the same position for hours, talking and laughing about random topics. Sometimes it delved into serious matters, at other times veering into light-hearted banter. But that was our rhythm, effortlessly shifting between the profound and the mundane.

He was teasing me again and I rolled my eyes at him. "Remind me to hire someone to swap out this bed for a bigger one if we end up using the RV again."

"Exaggeration is your middle name?"

"You had me in a headlock and kick combo. The whole two nights," he said with a raised eyebrow.

Maybe he was right. But I couldn't help the fact that using him as my pillow was so comfortably cozy.

Some would think it could get boring in an RV in the middle of nowhere. We started with a morning stroll, hand in hand through the tall grasses by the lake, cooked meals together at noon, and spent our evenings engrossed in a series.

Last night we had played a game where you had to guess places and objects. For every correct answer, you were allowed to undress the other person. I didn't like the game because I had ended up completely naked - even without socks - while I only managed to rid Jungkook of his shirt.

Well, it had been fun for me after that because I got to undress Jungkook however I wanted and the real fun had started then.

"Blame the bed. It's just smaller than ours." I shrugged.

Jungkook's eyes twinkled, transitioning from an amused glint to something much warmer. He gently brushed a strand of hair from my face, his thumb lingering against my cheek with an affectionate touch.

"What?" I asked, a little embarrassed by the change of mood.

"I love it when you say ours," he explained, his voice rough and deep, but so affectionate it sent a shiver down my spine.

I smiled shyly at him. The words had flowed out of me without a second thought. Because it was just that. It was ours.

Confusion began to well up within me as Jungkook's demeanor shifted. He sighed softly, and although he probably thought he had done it discreetly, I heard it clearly. His gaze drifted down to my lips and then further down, before he casually brushed an invisible speck of dust off my top.

"What's wrong?"

"Hmm?" He seemingly snapped out of his bubble as his eyes shot to me. "What do you mean?"

I gently cupped his face, concern evident in my touch. "You seem to have something on your mind," I ventured cautiously, allowing him the space to decide whether to open up or not. Normally, I didn't pry into the conflicts between him and his family, but whatever had transpired before our departure seemed to be weighing heavily on him, and I couldn't ignore it.

"Why do you think that?" he replied, attempting to mask his emotions with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. It was a clear indicator that something was bothering him.

"You're quieter than usual," I murmured softly. Our gazes locked, and I could see the furrow return to his brow. It seemed like he was struggling to maintain eye contact. "And you're looking at me like that."

"Like what?"

"Just... different." I searched for the right words, but couldn't find them.

I had begun to notice it shortly after our arrival here. He had made love to me, joked, and laughed, but in the quiet moments when he was left to his thoughts, something troubled him deeply. Whenever our eyes lingered too long in a gaze, he would avert his eyes, a behavior so unlike him. It was as if he couldn't meet my gaze, as if burdened by guilt.

Honestly, it was starting to unsettle me. With each passing moment, fear and uncertainty gnawed at me. My intuition, which rarely faltered, whispered that something was amiss.

"It's just..." he sighed deeply, let his gaze drift off again, and then found me. "Do you think we lost time?"

I was taken aback by the unexpected question, and for a moment, I struggled to formulate a response. "I don't know," I began slowly, searching for the right words. "I believe everything happens for a reason. The right things find us when the time is right."

"Yeah," he nodded thoughtfully. "I just wish I could go back and change things. Make you mine sooner, so we'd have more time. As long as you would let me."

His words puzzled me, leaving me uncertain of their meaning. What did he mean by having more time? And why did he speak as though our time together might be limited?

"Jungkook, I'm not sure I understand what you're getting at. Is there something you want to tell me?" I asked straightforwardly. "You can talk to me."

"Reva, I–"

A sudden jolt and a loud crash against the RV abruptly interrupted our conversation. Startled, I let out a cry, and Jungkook instinctively wrapped his arm protectively around me. Silence settled in like the aftermath of a storm, leaving us both wondering if we had imagined it.

"What the fuck was that?" Jungkook muttered, his voice low and tense as he rose from the bed and strode towards the kitchen window. He pulled back the curtains and peered out into the dark night.

"A bear maybe?" I breathed.

"Stay there," Jungkook's voice carried a soft yet authoritative tone. He retrieved a flashlight from one of the kitchen drawers and approached the door cautiously.

Opening it slowly, he swept the beam of light in all directions. Concern gnawed at me; in this darkness, there could be lurking dangers like bears. But the likelihood of a murderer wandering about seemed remote.

After several tense minutes, Jungkook returned to find me standing in the kitchen. His hand rested on his hip as he noticed I hadn't obeyed his directive to stay put. He shook his head with a smile, amused by my stubbornness.

"I don't know what it was, but it seems to be gone," he explained after stowing the flashlight away again.

"Oh, thank God." I exhaled the air I didn't realize I was holding. I scowled at my husband. "Why on earth would you go out there?"

Jungkook walked up to me and wrapped both arms around my body. "Were you scared for me?"

"Can you be serious for once in your life?" I grumbled against the fabric of his shirt but wrapped my arms around him anyway. His warmth reached out to me and I wasn't mad anymore.

Jungkook laughed under his breath and pulled back to look me in the eye. "Let's go to sleep. We have to leave early in the morning."

We didn't go to bed early. Jungkook kept us both up late, but it was something we both needed after the events. He made love to me until we heard the birds chirping and then fell tiredly to sleep.

He had let me scratch at his back. Had made me forget everything else in my pleasure, so much so that I moaned into the sheets and came so hard my whole body shook. But it had felt different. Desperate and lost. So deep and intimate that I lost myself. As if it was a goodbye.

I gazed at the lake under the morning sun, my mind restless despite the few hours of sleep. An anxious knot tightened in my stomach, and I struggled to quell the queasy feeling.

"I don't want to go back yet," I confessed quietly as Jungkook approached.

"Me neither," he replied softly.

"But we have to," I added, completing his thought. He gave me a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes and kissed my temple gently. Returning his smile, I headed towards the RV.

The journey back was markedly different from our trip there. Jungkook fidgeted with the air conditioner controls incessantly, and conversation between us was sparse. Yesterday's interrupted discussion hung between us, and I hesitated to broach the subject of what Jungkook had wanted to tell me.

Perhaps he wouldn't have opened up after all, opting to bury whatever troubled him as he often did. Dwelling on it further seemed futile. I wanted to preserve this trip as a fond memory. So, I attempted to diffuse the tension with small talk.

It worked somewhat, but as we neared the mansion, Jungkook grew increasingly tense. Upon pulling into the garage, he insisted on handling our bags and urged me to rest, maybe take a soothing shower.

After following his advice, hunger eventually roused me from sleep, but I had missed dinner. Jungkook hadn't joined me in bed, despite his lack of sleep the previous night.

I proceeded down the hallway toward the kitchen, intending to warm up some food, but my steps faltered as I caught muffled voices from the end of the corridor. I rarely ventured into the left wing of the house, where my in-laws' rooms were located, including Mrs. Jeon's study.

Curiosity tugged at me, despite feeling intrusive. Yet, my gut feeling urged me closer to the slightly ajar door. I hesitated, knowing eavesdropping was not right, but my gut instincts rarely led me astray.

Inside the study, Mrs. Jeon and Jungkook stood facing each other, engaged in yet another heated argument. It was evident from their voices that the issue they were grappling with now mirrored the one before our trip.

"You never listen to me, do you?" Jungkook scolded, now slamming his fist on the desk next to him. I jumped and so did Mrs. Jeon.

"How am I supposed to just leave like that, Jungkook?" she asked exasperatedly, a bit of anger audible in her voice.

"You should have thought about that before you did all this to Reva and her family!"

Enough was enough. I couldn't tolerate the cryptic words any longer. I needed answers. With resolve, I swung open the door, startling both Mrs. Jeon and Jungkook, who stared back at me with wide eyes.

"Is there something you want to tell me?" My voice carried a distant edge, uncertain yet demanding clarity.

Little did I realize, this question would soon unravel a truth that would shatter my world.

_________________

A/N: *dramatic music starts playing*
Hi guys! I know it's been a long time since the last update but I hope you enjoyed reading the new chapter.
What do you guys think? What could Mrs. Jeon have done?😱
I missed writing... I'm hoping to be more active from now on. I wanna finish this book 🥺 goal is at 440