➜ Summary: You come from a long line of matchmakers. Your ancestors’ ancestors were matchmakers and it’s all because of a special, inborn gift. A gift that allows you to see each person’s fated ones above their heads. But it’s not so much a gift when one day, your boss walks in with YOU above him.
(sorry my tumblr app glitched so im not sure if this was sent twice) taking a chance for the requests! how about a seokjin or namjoon arranged marriage au with this: “Am I your lockscreen?” “You weren’t supposed to see that.” 🎄 happy holidays!!
↳ Playground Promises
1.9k || 100% Light Fluff || Kim Seokjin
The bell rings.
Moments later, children are sprinting from the doors and flooding the playground. You watch in fondness as some climb the monkey bars while others sit and dig into the sandbox. All of them were forging their first friendships they’ll remember forever and you were their witness.
This is one of your favourite times of day. You enjoy seeing the kids have their fun, listening to their laughter and giggles, watching their games of tag to play pretend. But today, your enjoyment is interrupted by a certain male teacher that comes to stand behind you.
Tall. Dark. And handsome. His broad shoulders carry the weight of the third-grade class and practically the entire elementary school. But you’d never admit that out loud.
“It’s a bit chilly out today. You should’ve brought your coat with you.”
You hum.
Every staff member, married and single, swoons over Kim Seokjin. It’s hard not to. But if others knew what your relationship was with him, you’re sure you’d never hear the end of it. The kids would make a big fuss and so would all the staff and faculty, and you’d rather avoid that.
“I didn’t know you were on playground duty today.”
“I switched with Sana,” he says and leans over to smile. “Thought you could use some company.”
You scoff. “She’s perfectly fine company.”
The corner of his plump lip pulls. “If you want to talk about the mathletes program. And I’m pretty sure you don’t.”
Before you can respond, a boy approaches the two of you with pink cheeks and wind-swept hair. “Mr. Kim, can I go to the bathroom?” the third-grader asks in the midst of catching his breath and the older man nods.
“Go ahead. But don’t run in the hallway, Lucas.”
Said boy grins and dashes off.
Seokjin turns to you and lowers his voice. “My mom’s been asking about the kids.”
Your brows furrow. “Why? They’re a good bunch.”
“No.” He shakes his head. “I don’t mean your class’ kids, I mean our kids.”
You blink owlishly. “There are no our kids.”
“That’s the problem.”
You sigh and roll your eyes. “Wasn’t getting married enough for them?”
Seokjin shrugs with a faint, mischievous smile. “They want to go out for brunch with your parents this Sunday. Are you free?”
“When am I not free?” you retort lightly, but slip your phone out of your pocket to check your calendar anyhow. Seokjin glances over to your screen and once you finish, you slip it back into your pocket. “I have some marking to do, but I’ll probably finish by then.”
“Okay.” The pair of you turn back to continue monitoring the children playing and you’re glad to revel in the silence that’s been created between you. But after a beat, Kim Seokjin pipes up again. You don’t know why you’re surprised. He’s quite the talkative guy. “Hey, Y/N.”
You look over and he meets your eye.
He asks, “Am I your lock screen?”
Your face heats. If you were once cold, now you were warm from head to toe. “You weren’t supposed to see that,” you mumble. It was just a picture from the other day and you wanted to change things up on your phone. You had nothing else to use. It was convenient. That’s it.
Your entire relationship with him is built on convenience. At least...on his side it is.
Still, Seokjin grins and fortunately, he doesn’t tease.
You rush to change the subject. “A-Anyway, yeah, Sunday works for me. But we should probably talk about this after work.”
“Why? No one’s around.” His smile is spread from ear to ear and he leans in, whispering, “Are you that scared of people finding out we’re married?”
Immediately, you whip your head in all directions. Luckily, there’s no kid or nosy faculty member. You turn back to him, glaring. “I already said, I like to keep my private life under wraps.”
“I remember. But if I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were embarrassed of me.”
You scoff and a murmur unintentionally spills out of you, “That’s impossible.”
You don’t notice Seokjin’s smile.
It’s been three months since you got married. It was a summer wedding. More importantly, it was an arranged marriage. And not because you were both wealthy and needed to be wedded to get the inheritance under some arbitrary contract rule or because it was your grandmother’s dying wish. No. You live a much more mundane, normal life than the dramas, movies and books.
It was your mom who threw a fuss. She was scared you’d be alone and unmarried, an old maid like your aunt — you didn’t say it, she just heavily implied it. But following her practically senile meltdown, you agreed. Partly to appease her worries and partly just out of curiosity.
You always wanted to get married. And deep down, you always wanted your own kids. But at the rate you were going, you had a feeling you wouldn’t be able to meet someone on your own.
What you didn’t expect on that blind date was for the other person to be Kim Seokjin, third grade teacher. Down the hall from you at the school. Someone across the room every lunchtime. Your dads were apparently long time colleagues, but Jin was still as equally shocked as you were during that first meeting. Yet, he easily agreed to getting married when you brought it up. Even when it was only after two months of occasionally seeing one another outside of your workplaces.
You still don’t know why he said yes.
“Ms. L/N!”
You’re torn out of your trance by a little girl at your knees.
She pouts. “Jennie won’t let me play on the slide!”
“Did you ask her to share?”
“Yes!”
Before any more can be said, she drags you over and Seokjin trails after you. There’s another girl with brown braided hair climbing on the slide, and she swivels her head over as the two of you approach, eyes the size of saucers.
“Are you taking turns, Jennie?” you ask her, and she vigorously nods.
“I am!”
“Well, you’ve been on it for a while. How about Lisa takes a turn next.”
“Okay,” she draws out and gets off of the slide before turning to her friend. “Here you go.”
It’s always little problems you have to solve — from sharing to knee scrapes and monkey bar accidents. Sometimes it’s difficult for the children to compromise, difficult for them to apologize and difficult for you to find a good solution. But you undoubtedly wish your own issues were this simple.
While you’re stuck in your thoughts, you miss Jin watching you fondly.
“You’re good with kids,” he says as you move out of the way of running children and walk back to the perimeter.
“I wouldn’t be doing this job if I wasn’t. But I deal with older kids much better.” There’s a reason you teach fifth graders and not any lower than that. Seokjin knows it too.
“Remember when we had to supervise that kindergarten class together?”
You shudder. “It was a nightmare.”
“You weren’t that bad,” he tries to say but then laughs. You feign a glare, and he adds on, “Okay. I’m sorry, but I still mean it. It’s not as terrible as you thought. You’d make a good mom.”
At that, your glare vanishes in favour of furrowing brows. You really shouldn’t, but you can’t help it when curiosity pries — so you break your own rule against discussing private matters at work.
“Do you want my kids?”
Seokjin is wide-eyed and he turns to you. “Why not? We’re married.”
“Yeah….but…”
“But? Do you not want kids?”
“No! I definitely want them,” you declare, almost a bit too boldly. He nods and you explain, “It’s just...I don’t know if you’re serious.”
Seokjin blinks. “I’m being perfectly serious.”
“I mean I don’t know if we’re serious.” You add, “Enough to have kids.”
“What’s more serious than being married?” Jin has a genuinely inquisitive and amused expression, head quirked to the side.
You inhale a sharp breath and his gaze coaxes you to go on, so you do. “It’s just that you agreed so quickly to be married to me. It doesn’t….feel real. I don’t know if you wanted to marry me, if you did it on a whim, if this is some kind of joke—”
He frowns. “This isn’t a joke, Y/N. I wanted to marry you.”
Your mouth hangs open. Your eyes are rounded.
“Wh—”
“Mrs. L/N!” You’re interrupted by your fifth-grader, Park Jimin. He sprints to you, huffing and puffing, before leaning his hands onto his knees to catch his breath. “Have you seen Taehyung?! We’re playing tag!”
“No, I haven’t.”
Jin suddenly points to the left. “He went that way.”
Jimin books it.
Silence fills the spaces between you and Seokjin again, but it isn’t like normal. It’s filled with unanswered questions and the suspenseful cliffhanger of an unfinished conversation. The laughter of kids on the playground and field resound around you, but for the first time, you don’t listen to it.
It fades into the background as you turn to Seokjin, wanting to know more. “What did you just say?”
The man smiles softly. “You have to know.”
“I don’t,” you assert. “So tell me.”
“I’ve always liked you.”
You blink and he continues, “Since you substituted for the art teacher and I saw you squirt red paint all over yourself. It’s something I couldn’t forget. Plus, the way you draw those stick people.” Seokjin laughs heartily and you’re trapped in your spot, unsure of how to react or what to say. He reads your expression and softens. “Did you really think I would rush into a marriage if I didn’t have feelings for you?”
“I…” Your mouth is agape. “I don’t know. Why did we never talk about this?”
Seokjin shrugs. “You never asked and I didn’t want to make you feel uncomfortable if you didn’t feel the same way. I knew you married me for convenience.”
“That’s not true,” you retort within a beat. This whole time, you thought he married you for convenience sake. But it wasn’t entirely like that for you.
Seokjin’s eyes are big and you swallow down your embarrassment. “Isn’t it obvious every single breathing person loves you? It’s hard not to.”
Slowly but surely, a grin spreads into Seokjin’s puffy cheeks and he’s smiling from ear to ear again. “Well, you’re very good at hiding it then.”
Suddenly, the bell rings.
All the children reluctantly climb off the equipment, some dusting their hands while others grabbing their friends, and they rush into their lineups. There’s a few stranglers lugging their legs while groaning. But busy in their small playground worlds, no one turns around to notice you leaning in and pressing a chaste kiss to Seokjin’s mouth. It’s shy and brief, like the first peck exchanged between two for the first time. And you pull away just as fast, lips left tingling.
“We can continue this later, Mr. Kim.”
You stride off while Seokjin’s left smiling. After a breathless moment, he chases after you like children who have just made promises of their first love on the playground.
Your daughter is the most important person in your life. Her father? Not so much. He's been away for years, and now he wants to come back.
Pairing: Seokjin x F!reader.
Rating: 18+
Genre: Smut, angst, fluff
Word count: 6.1k
Warnings: Single parenthood, sex and swearing
Author note: This is for my best friend, who is the ultimate Jin stan.
You press your fingers to your temples, trying to soothe away the migraine threatening to take over your senses.
‘I’m sorry, but I can’t make it for at least an hour. Can you take her to an after-school club? I can’t be the only parent more than an hour away.’
The school administrator on the phone with you is unrelenting, immovable, immune to the pleas of harried parents. You’re just another name on the list she has to call to let know the school has to close early because of snow.
Finally, you sigh. ‘I’ll be there as soon as I can.’
You end the call and take a moment to compose yourself.
You’ve got this, you think to yourself.
And you have got it, you know you can cope with most things.
Unexpectedly having to pick up your eleven-year-old from school three days before the biggest deadline of your career thus far is merely a blip.
Just a minor wrinkle in the fabric of your life.
You reach for the emergency diet coke you keep in a drawer along with a blister pack of migraine meds. Fortified, you sling your bag over your shoulder and head to the school.
The snow’s thick but hardly unmanageable. You’re waiting at the gates when you see her.
Reiha, your daughter. Your beautiful, Amazonian, sweet, kind daughter. Sometimes she looks so much like her father it still hurts you in ways you hadn’t expected.
‘Hey, mom,’ she says, casual. ‘Can we get pizza?’
Your daughter looks like Kim Seokjin, but her personality is all you.
***
Reiha tilts her head at you over her slice of pepperoni pizza.
‘Who’s that from?’ she asks, nodding to a thick white envelope that came in the mail.
‘It’s the adoption agency,’ you say, deadpan. ‘They’ve finally found a family to take you off my hands.’
Reiha rolls her eyes. ‘Hilarious, mom.’
You tear open the envelope because you’re curious too. It takes you a moment to work out what it is. Your eyes scan the page, skimming over the unfamiliar words, until you spot the first mention of his name and you put the pieces together.
It’s a non-disclosure agreement.
Your ex-boyfriend, now a world-famous pop star, wants you to sign a non-disclosure agreement before he meets your daughter. The daughter you had when you were seventeen and too stupid to be wary of the potency of Kim Seokjin’s sperm.
The same daughter you’ve raised without him, whom he’s never met.
It’s been difficult raising her on your own, but your real sympathies lie with Reiha. After all, you’d had a dad to hassle you to mow the lawn in the summer, to take out the trash every week, to embarrass you in front of your friends.
All Reiha has is you, and your parents in the holidays.
Reiha’s too damn smart. She’s been reading the pages upside down whilst you’ve been spinning in your own head.
‘He wants to meet me?’ she asks, and the hope in her voice breaks your heart.
‘Yeah, baby. Do you want to meet him?’ you ask, quietly. You succeed in keeping your voice neutral.
Reiha’s aware of her father’s name and what he does. Thankfully, she’d been too young to be aware of him at the peak of his fame, when he’d been idolised by women and men the world over. That had been hard for you too, knowing that the boy who’d got you pregnant and then ditched you had gone on to sing for millions of screaming fans and become the subject of endless media speculation on his personal life.
He's still plenty famous though, apparently enough that you need to sign paperwork before he even deigns to see you.
It’s not your call to make. Since your daughter was born, you’ve been making decisions in her best interests, constantly, and now she’s old enough to have a say.
And who wouldn’t want a world famous, beautiful, rich idol as a father?
Reiha’s face lights up, and you grab a pen, sign on the dotted line without reading it because what does it matter? You put the papers in the return envelope to send off.
***
It’s a week before you hear back, a week of Reiha looking at the mail hopefully every day.
She’s as tall as you are, your daughter, but she’s so young still.
You swear to yourself you’ll hurt Kim Seokjin if he disappoints her.
You’re at work reviewing a contract for a client when your secretary Eun-Woo calls you.
‘There’s a man here to see you, Y/N.’
There’s an odd sighing quality to her voice, you wonder if she’s feeling all right.
‘A client?’ you ask. ‘I wasn’t expecting – actually, just send him in.’
You push your mug of tea behind your desktop so it’s not so obvious and go to greet your appointment.
The door to your office opens just as you get to it.
Your first impression is of beauty, pure and classical. Seokjin’s always been handsome. He was the boy at high school everyone had a crush on, tall, broad-shouldered, likeable. You’ve seen enough pictures of him over the years that you know he’s kept his good looks. He’s somewhat of a hero in your hometown, even though he hasn’t really been back since he left to pursue idol training.
He's as tall as you remember him, probably a shade taller, and you find it endearing that the way he tilts his head reminds you of Reiha. It shows you how much your daughter is the star of the comedy that is your life now, and Seokjin’s just a supporting role.
Once upon a time he’d been the sun.
‘Good afternoon, Y/N,’ he says, smiling down at you. He’s poised, gracious, and there’s no sign of any nervousness at meeting you.
‘Good afternoon,’ you say. You force your own smile, then wave him into a seat. You’re grateful that you’d made it all the way to the door from your desk, because the extra steps you take on the way back give you time to compose yourself.
Your hands are still shaking when you sit down, so you place them in your lap.
‘I, uh, signed the non-disclosure agreement,’ you say, because it’s always been easier for you to start with facts.
‘Thank you,’ Seokjin says. ‘I wasn’t sure you’d want me to meet her.’ He’s looking at the framed picture on your desk of you and Reiha at her 10th birthday party.
‘She wants to meet you,’ you say. ‘That’s her.’
‘She’s tall,’ Seokjin observes.
‘She is,’ you reply. ‘She’s at school right now, but I’ve got to go pick her up in a couple hours.’
‘When can I meet her?’ Seokjin asks.
‘You can come to our house this evening, if you’re free,’ you offer. You’d been expecting something like this since you’d sent off the papers, and you think it’ll be easier for Reiha if she’s in a familiar place, with you, when she meets him.
‘I’d love that,’ he says. He’s looking at you carefully now.
‘Should I drop you a pin?’ you ask, picking up your phone.
He gives you his number and you send him a location pin.
He has no reason to stay, so you ask the question that’s been in your head since you received the NDA.
‘What are your intentions, Jin?’ you ask, and you could bite your tongue at letting the informal contraction of his name slip from your lips.
If he notices, he gives no sign of it.
‘I’d like to be a regular presence in her life,’ he tells you, and you guess he’s had time to think about what he wants to say as well.
‘I don’t want her to be hurt,’ you tell him. Reiha’s too important to you not to be upfront about it.
‘I don’t want to hurt her,’ Seokjin says.
His assurance is not enough, not nearly enough, but what else do you have to go on? You arrange for him to come over after dinner.
***
Reiha’s glowing at the news. It would hurt you if you didn’t love seeing her so happy.
By the time the doorbell rings, she’s practically levitating.
It’s only when you open the door to Seokjin that she hangs back. You can practically feel her sudden flare of nerves.
Seokjin walks into your living room. You can see his confidence as he smiles at Reiha, after all, he’s a man used to putting on a front, meeting people, making a good impression.
Your daughter stares at him, then you can see her back straighten visibly, almost as if steel’s locking her spine into place. Her chin goes up, she steps forward, and you’ve never been prouder of her.
‘Hi,’ she says. ‘I’m Reiha.’
‘I’m Seokjin,’ he replies.
You’re looking at your daughter and your ex-high school sweetheart, facing each other, and with an odd sort of pride you realise suddenly that Seokjin’s more nervous. There’s an edginess to the way he’s standing, arms tense by his sides.
‘I’ll make tea,’ you say. ‘And there’s cake.’
***
Seokjin and Reiha are seated at the kitchen table whilst you cut cake and make tea. You can hear him asking her about her life – her favourite subjects at school, her hobbies, her friends.
Reiha asks questions in turn about Seokjin’s family, who she’s never met.
You catch Reiha’s eye as you put the cake in front of her. ‘You ok?’ you mouth.
Instead of answering, Reiha smiles at you, bright, happy, reassuring. Your daughter is meeting her absentee father for the first time in her life aged 11, and she’s trying to reassure you.
You don’t know what you did in a former life to deserve your daughter. You must have been a goddamn saint.
You glance at Seokjin, and realise he’s been watching your wordless exchange with Reiha. There’s a look in his eyes you can’t read. You’re not sure you want to.
It’s way past Reiha’s usual bedtime, and it’s a school night, but she’s reluctant to go to bed, and you think you know why.
‘You know, Seokjin, it’s a school night. Maybe we can continue this another time? There’s a lot to catch up on.’
You’re watching Reiha as you speak, and the way she look at Seokjin, eyes alight, almost makes you want to pull Seokjin into the other room so you can coach him into giving an answer that doesn’t disappoint her.
As if he senses how important it is, he looks right at Reiha and says, ‘Yes, of course. Can I come over tomorrow?’
Reiha looks at you.
‘Do you want him to?’ you ask, although you know the answer.
Reiha nods.
‘Sure. Sounds good. Why don’t you come over for dinner?’ you ask.
‘I’d love that.’
You send Reiha up to bed to brush her teeth and get ready for bed, and walk Seokjin to the door.
He stops at the doorstep to look at you.
‘Are you ok?’ he asks.
‘I’m fine. Are you ok?’ you ask, reflexively.
‘I’ve been missing out,’ he says to you. ‘She’s amazing.’
There’s so much you could say to that, but you don’t trust yourself to speak. You’ve always wanted him to know his daughter, to show what a good job you did with the most important thing in your life, and now that he’s acknowledged how great she is, you feel an odd sense of hollowness.
The fact is, Reiha’s the most important thing in your life, and you are in hers, but neither of you were important enough to Jin, to even warrant a phone call, not for 11 years.
So all you say is, ‘Yeah, Jin. She’s fucking amazing. Good night.’
You close the door on him so you can start picking up the pieces of you scattered everywhere, remnants of the emotional tempest of tonight.
***
You’re running late after picking Reiha up from school. A trip to the grocery store for food for dinner had cost you, the line had been obscene. You’d texted Seokjin telling him you were running late but he hasn’t replied.
You park your car and start unloading. You’re carrying your groceries round to the kitchen when Jin walks up to you both. ‘I thought I could help cook,’ he says, lifting the bags out of your arms.
Reiha’s looking at him. ‘Can I help cook?’ she asks.
‘Can you cook?’ you ask Seokjin. ‘I’ve got steaks and salad ingredients.’
You unlock the door and let everyone in. You change out of your work clothes, and when you get back to the kitchen, Reiha and Jin are standing in front of your kitchen island.
You’re behind them, so you allow yourself a moment to enjoy the tableau. Jin and Reiha, both tall, beautiful in silhouette, talking earnestly about seasoning. The stark winter landscape just beyond them with the bare trees in your tiny back garden.
Reiha turns around. ‘Hey, mom. Can we make brownies for dessert?’
‘Sure,’ you say, because it’ll give you something to do instead of thinking about how you wish Reiha hadn’t missed out on Jin’s presence all these years.
Whilst the steaks are marinating, Reiha goes upstairs to work on her homework before dinner.
When she goes, you feel the tension in the air ratchet up a few notches. You try and ignore it, and focus on your brownies. You’re tired, emotionally drained, and all you can think about is how unfair it is that Jin gets to walk in to your wonderful daughter when he didn’t do a damn thing to help when you were drowning in poor sleep patterns, financial uncertainty and a lack of validation for your parenting. That he gets to enjoy the spoils of parenthood when he never even so much as changed a diaper.
That even though you made Reiha together, he got to live his dream, and you were left picking up the pieces he left behind.
You know you have to find a way to manage your resentment before it ruins the future between you and Reiha and Jin, but you’re so damn tired all you can do is stew.
Jin clears his throat, and you look up, guiltily, to see his eyes on you. You wonder how long he’s been watching you.
‘Have you been getting the money?’ he asks.
About five years ago, Jin arranged for a sum of money to be sent to you each month. The same amount gets deposited in your bank account on the third of each month, and you’ve set up a standing order so on the fourth it goes straight to Reiha.
‘Yes, thank you,’ you tell him. ‘It’s all been going into a trust, for Reiha.’
‘It’s not just – ‘ he breaks off and starts again. ‘It’s not just for her.’
‘I don’t need your money, Jin,’ you tell him. There’s no heat in your voice, it’s a fact.
‘I want you both to be provided for,’ Jin tells you. He’s chopping tomatoes for a salad, and he’s not looking at you.
His words remind you of that night five years ago, when you ran into him outside a store in this very town, and he spent the night making you whole, only to break you all over again the next morning when he left.
You have no idea what he’s thinking, if he even remembers it.
‘Thanks, Jin,’ you say, because you want out of this conversation. Every sentence he says, every response you give, is loaded with all the shit you can’t say without upsetting the delicate balance you’re in right now.
And so you skirt around the emotional clutter of the last 11 years and take the path of least resistance.
‘There’s lettuce in the fridge,’ you say. You finish off mixing the brownie batter and pour it into a tin to bake.
***
There’s a junction a few blocks away from Reiha’s school that’s notorious for car accidents. The trees grow out into the road, the branches reduce visibility around the corner. You’re normally extra careful, you’re aware of the risk, but today your timing’s a little off.
The car hits the tail of yours after you’ve almost made it out onto the main road.
You pull over and survey the damage.
The man in the other car’s getting out, and you steel yourself for a confrontation.
‘Hey, are you ok?’ you ask.
He’s nodding, giving you the same wary look you’re giving him. ‘Are you ok?’ he asks, in turn. His voice is gravelly, lower than you were expecting.
‘I’ve got to pick up my daughter from school,’ you tell him. ‘Should we just take some photos and exchange insurance details?’
‘Yeah,’ he says.
You’ve traded numbers when he says, ‘Can you drive it? I can give you a lift if you need to get to your daughter.’
His kind offer surprises a smile from you. ‘I think I’ll be ok,’ you say.
He nods. ‘I’m Min Yoongi.’
‘Y/N L/N,’ you reply.
You’re only about ten minutes late to get to Reiha. She’s sitting on the edge of the steps of her school entrance.
‘You ok? Sorry, baby, I got in a car accident.’
Reiha looks at the car doubtfully. ‘Will it get us home, mom?’
There had been an ominous clunking sound from the vicinity of the trunk on the way over.
You decide not to risk it and call a tow service.
‘Guess we’re getting a taxi home,’ you tell Reiha.
Reiha beams. ‘Can we stop for pizza on the way?’
‘Sure,’ you say. ‘Maybe Jin can meet us at the restaurant.’ He’d had plans to stop over tonight.
You call Jin whilst you’re waiting for the taxi.
‘Hey,’ he says, voice warm and rich down the phone. ‘I was just about to leave.’
‘Change of plan, Reiha wants to go for pizza, is that ok with you?’
‘You mean go to a restaurant for pizza?’ Jin asks, and there’s a hesitance in his voice you don’t understand, at first.
‘Yeah.’
‘I don’t go to many public places,’ Jin tells you.
‘Ah, ok,’ you say. ‘Should get grab takeout instead?’
‘No, wait, tell you what. Why don’t you come over to mine?’
***
Jin lives in an exclusive neighbourhood. You give the taxi driver the address and look curiously at the house when he pulls up in front of it.
It’s modern but understated, set back from the main residential street. You can’t see the back of the house, but from the front it looks huge, spacious. Reiha glances over at you as she gets out of the taxi.
You rarely hold hands anymore, but when you hold out your hand to her, she takes it.
‘Fancy,’ you say, lightly.
Reiha laughs. ‘I’ll try not to break anything, mom.’
You’re still laughing at Reiha’s joke when Jin opens the door. ‘Where did you park?’ he asks, looking behind you at his empty driveway.
‘We took a cab. Car’s in the shop,’ you tell him. His entryway is lovely, a cool marble floor offset by the warmth of the grey walls.
‘Mom got in an accident,’ Reiha announces, dropping her backpack on the floor carelessly.
Jin’s eyes fly to yours.
‘It was a fender bender,’ you say, waving a hand. ‘Anyway, the car’s been towed. I’ll give them a call tomorrow to check up on it.’
‘Are you ok?’ Jin asks, concerned.
‘Yeah, like I said, it was minor. There’s a junction near the school that’s notorious for accidents.’
‘You should have –’ Jin breaks off at the look you give him.
‘You can always call me,’ he says. ‘I can help.’
His words make you falter, for just a moment. The truth was, it hadn’t even occurred to you to call him for help. You’re used to dealing with everything on your own.
He’s still watching your face, and to cover your lapse, you say, quickly, ‘Shall we order the pizza? Reiha gets hangry.’
‘The pizza’s here,’ Jin says. Then, to Reiha, ‘You like pepperoni, don’t you? You said you did.’
Reiha tucks into the pizza Jin’s ordered with the enthusiasm of a child who hasn’t eaten in months. You’d be embarrassed if Jin weren’t doing the exact same thing.
There’s definitely strength in the Kim genes, you muse. Apart from the strong physical resemblance, Reiha’s mannerisms are similar to Jin’s. Sitting across from them, watching them eat, it’s starkly obvious to you that physically, there’s barely any of you in Reiha. She’s a smaller female carbon copy of Jin. You wonder if Jin’s noticed.
Jin pushes the box towards you. ‘Eat,’ he urges.
You roll your eyes. ‘I am eating. It’s not my fault the two of you eat like wild animals.’
It’s a habit you got into in Reiha’s early years when money was tight, chewing slowly, giving yourself time to feel full. Now you’re earning well enough that finances aren’t an issue. It hadn’t been bravado when you’d told Jin you didn’t need his money.
Funny how some habits stay with you for life.
After dinner you and Reiha peruse the pictures hanging in Jin’s hallway as he spoons out ice-cream. There are dozens of pictures, Jin with various celebrities, Jin with his brother and his parents.
The absence of Reiha, and you, is blinding.
You hope she doesn’t notice.
Her hand slips into yours again as she stands there, looking at the pictures. You squeeze it, reassuringly, and she looks over at you.
Jin’s standing at the kitchen doorway, watching you both. ‘We should get some pictures of you framed so I can add them to the wall,’ he says, quietly. There’s a look in his eyes you can’t interpret.
Instead of replying, Reiha points to a picture you hadn’t noticed. Your traitorous romantic heart squeezes when you see it. It’s Jin, with his arm around a beautiful woman. They’re both smiling. It’s a gorgeous picture, and it looks recent, if Jin’s hair is anything to go by.
‘She’s beautiful. Who’s that?’ Reiha asks.
You’re more interested in the answer than you’d ever admit to yourself.
‘She’s uh, she’s my girlfriend. She’s called Chaeyoung.’
You’re glad Jin can’t see your face as he answers Reiha.
By the time you turn to face him again, your face is neutral.
After ice cream, Jin insists on driving you both home.
‘Thanks for dinner, and for the ride,’ you tell him.
Reiha turns to give Jin a hug. The look on his face tells you he hadn’t been expecting one. He curls an arm around her, and drops a kiss on her head.
You hope Jin can’t see your expression clearly in the dark.
On the way up the stairs, Reiha says to you, ‘I like him, mom. Do you think he likes us?’
You pretend to be thinking about it. ‘Well, I think he likes me. Not sure how he feels about you.’
Reiha giggles.
You stroke her hair. ‘He loves you, baby, of course he does.’
You sense she has more questions. ‘We weren’t in any of the pictures,’ she points out.
You snort. ‘I mean, it’s probably just as well. We’re not good at pictures, are we?’
You’re referring to Reiha’s annoying habit of crossing her eyes in every photo. You haven’t taken a decent photo of her in at least a year.
Reiha laughs again.
You’ve reached the top of the stairs. ‘He loves you, he just wasn’t ready for you,’ you tell her. You don’t want her to ever feel bad that her father wasn’t around at the beginning of her life. ‘Remember, some kids don’t have two parents ever. He’s here now.’
Reiha’s smile finally reaches her eyes. ‘I love you, mom.’
‘Ugh. Get lost,’ you say, pulling her close into a hug. You squeeze her tight, hoping she can feel your love. Hoping that it makes up for your and Jin’s fuckups.
***
Jin comes to watch Reiha play hockey on a Saturday morning. So far all the time he’s spent with Reiha has been with you as well.
He’s sipping the coffee you’ve just poured for him, yawning.
‘Is it always this early?’ he asks.
You adjust your sunglasses on your nose. ‘Every Saturday for the last two years.’
‘I wanted to thank you,’ he says. ‘For making this easy.’
Part of you wants to laugh that he thinks his transition into Reiha’s life has been easy so far, because it hasn’t been easy for you.
Jin’s watching you again. ‘I appreciate it.’
‘It hasn’t been easy for me,’ you admit. ‘But Reiha matters more than anyone, and as long as she wants you in her life, that’s what she’ll get.’
You glance at Jin. ‘You are planning on staying, aren’t you?’
‘I’m done with touring,’ he tells you. ‘I’ll have projects that I have to travel for, but I’m not leaving Reiha.’
Again, your snide subconscious fills in. Not leaving Reiha again.
‘I’m glad you’re staying. She likes having you around,’ you tell him, honestly.
‘Do you think she’d spend time with me, without you?’ Jin asks.
You’re so raw from the last few weeks his question hurts.
‘Ah, yeah sure,’ you say, fighting hard to keep your voice neutral. ‘I’ve just been around for the last few weeks because I wanted to be there for her. In case she was uncertain –’
‘I understand,’ Jin says. ‘And it’s not that I don’t want to see you –’
You’re already waving a hand. ‘I get it, you want some father-daughter bonding time. I’ll ask Reiha, and if she’s happy with it, I’m happy for you to spend time with her, just you and her, if that’s what you want.’
‘No,’ Jin says, and there’s the faintest hint of frustration in his voice. ‘I mean, yes, I want to spend time with her. I just don’t want you to think I don’t want to see you, because I do.’
You rummage in your bag, because you’re now close to tears.
Jin’s never hinted that he still cares about you, and to be fair, even if he did, you’re not sure how you’d feel about it. For fuck’s sake, he out and out told you he had a girlfriend.
And although you’d convinced yourself that you no longer care that he doesn’t care, there’s a stupid small part of you that still does.
You’ve never been more grateful for your sunglasses.
Jin touches your arm, and you blink away the tears in your eyes.
‘Y/N,’ he says. He sounds sad, and you’re sad too.
‘Just.’ Your voice cracks. ‘Just give me a minute, ok? Jesus, I haven’t even finished my coffee.’
You adjust your sunglasses again, and focus on counting the blades of grass under your feet until you manage to fight back the emotions threatening to overwhelm you.
You get to a thousand before you know you’ll be ok.
Reiha comes running up to you after her match. ‘Mom!’
She looks at Jin. ‘Dad,’ she says, softer.
Jin’s face crumples. ‘I like that,’ he tells her. He steps forward and they hug.
It’s everything you ever wanted for Reiha.
***
Your phone rings and you’re trying to work out who it is when you realise you could just answer it and find out.
‘Hey, it’s Y/N,’ you answer.
The voice that greets you is sexy, deep, in a faintly familiar way. ‘It’s Min Yoongi. The guy who crashed into you the other day?’
‘Oh, hi,’ you say, surprised. ‘Was there a problem with the insurance details?’
‘No, they went through fine,’ Yoongi replies. ‘I was just calling to check you were ok.’
‘Yeah, I’m fine. That’s very kind of you,’ you say. ‘Are you ok?’
Yoongi says, ‘Yes, I’m fine. And also –‘
You wait.
He says, ‘Would you like to go for a coffee sometime?’
***
You don’t date, not really. For years you didn’t really feel like you trusted anyone enough to leave Reiha with them.
Then your dad had a stroke, and things were tough for a while as you’d had to support your parents and Reiha.
It had been so tough that you’d swallowed your pride and tried to get in touch with Jin. At that point Jin was on the cusp of making it, had amassed a huge following that hadn’t quite translated into sales yet. You’d got his number off his brother, which had actually turned out to be his manager’s number. You’d never got as far as speaking to Jin.
His manager, Donghyun, had bought you a house, the house you’re still living in now.
You’d been desperate enough to accept, with the understanding that you’d not try to 'interfere’ with Jin’s success.
You’re not proud of any of it, but you’d had to do it for Reiha and your parents, and you’d do it again in a heartbeat.
You’d not tried to contact Jin again. The meeting outside the store in town had been a complete coincidence.
You’d been stocking up on groceries, your parents had been living with you at the time and Reiha had been nearly six. You’d loaded your things in your car, and when you’d shut the trunk, Jin had been standing there.
‘Jin,’ you’d blurted out, all you could manage in the moment.
He’d looked as desperate as you’d felt. ‘Y/N,’ he’d said.
You’d driven with him to his hotel, getting a taste of what his life was like when you’d had to drive round to the back entrance to avoid being mobbed. He’d wrapped his arms around you, shielding you, moving fast.
When you were up in his hotel room and it was time to let go, he hadn’t.
Instead, he’d kissed you, lips frantic, mouth hungry on yours. You’d been just as hungry, the smell of him, the look on his face pulling you into his orbit.
He’d always been like the sun.
You’d stripped each other’s clothes off, hurried and hushed, as though you were doing something illicit. And in a way it was. You didn’t want to know if he was seeing anyone else, and so you didn’t ask.
He’d taken his time learning your body again, his plush lips pressing against your heated skin. You’d forgotten all about your groceries languishing in the trunk of your car, trading the responsibilities you’d been shouldering for years, for the weight of his beautiful, strong body on yours.
Afterward, to your surprise, he’d cried.
You’d been lying in his hotel bed, his body half on yours, when he’d kissed your cheek, and you’d smiled at him, and he’d cried into your shoulder.
You hadn’t known what to say.
‘I’m sorry,’ he’d told you. ‘I let you down.’
You’d cracked open the door for him then, just a little. ‘You can see her, if you want,’ you’d told him.
Maybe you’d waited too long to say it, because it seemed like he was asleep. He’d never answered.
The next morning, he was gone. You’d put your clothes back on, glancing around quickly for a note or something to tell you you hadn’t imagined anything he’d said, but there was nothing. You’d picked up milk on the way home, and salvaged what you could from the food you’d bought the day before.
The money started arriving in your account the following week. It was clear to you that money was all Seokjin was prepared to give.
***
You meet Min Yoongi for coffee over lunchtime one afternoon. He’s already there when you arrive. He smiles when he sees you, and you realise that he’s attractive.
‘Hey,’ you say, taking a seat across from him. ‘So what do you do when you’re not crashing into people?’
Yoongi laughs, the corners of his eyes crinkling up, straight teeth flashing. ‘I produce music.’
‘Oh,’ you say, nodding. ‘What kind of music?’
‘I like the popular stuff,’ Yoongi says, shrugging. ‘It’s steady work.’
‘I went out with someone once in the music industry,’ you tell him. ‘To be fair, he was the only person I’ve ever dated. I’ve got an 11-year-old.’
Yoongi takes your revelation in his stride. You can’t even see him visibly doing the math of how old you were when you had Reiha.
‘It can’t be for lack of people asking you out,’ Yoongi says. ‘You’re gorgeous.’
‘Smooth,’ you say, approvingly, and you both laugh.
‘So can I take you to dinner?’ Yoongi asks.
You’re about to turn him down when you realise that Jin could stay with Reiha.
‘Yeah,’ you tell Yoongi. ‘I’d like that.’
He smiles at you again, and he seems genuinely pleased.
He puts a hand on your lower back as you exit the café, and an unfamiliar thrill races through you. It takes you a while to realise it’s excitement.
***
Jin’s due to pick up Reiha for a sleepover at his house. You’ve helped her pack and left her watching TV downstairs whilst you get ready for your date with Yoongi.
You slip on your dress and look in the mirror nervously. It’s new, a silky black number that fits you well. You touch up your makeup and fluff up your hair, grab your purse and go downstairs.
Reiha smiles at you. ‘You look pretty, mom. I like your dress.’
You smile back at her. ‘Thanks, baby. Are you sure you’re ok staying with your dad overnight?’
Reiha pats her packed bag.
‘I’ll call him later to say good night,’ you promise. You set an alarm on your phone to remind you. It’s probably wishful thinking that you’d still be busy then, unless the date goes really well.
The doorbell rings, and Reiha runs to answer.
‘Dad,’ she says, smiling. She’s still always so happy to see him.
Jin pulls her into a hug and takes her bag off her. ‘I’ll –’
He trails off, and you realise he’s staring at you.
Your cheeks begin to heat.
‘You look pretty,’ Jin says. He hasn’t taken his eyes off you.
You feel warm all over. ‘Uh, thanks,’ you tell him.
To cover your self-consciousness at the way he’s looking at you, you pull Reiha in to a hug.
‘I’ll call you later, ok?’ you tell Jin. ‘Just to say goodnight.’
‘Plans?’ Jin asks.
‘Yeah,’ you reply.
Jin’s reaction to you gives you the confidence boost you need just before your date. You meet Yoongi at the restaurant.
He stands when he sees you, and he, too, has made an effort for your date. He’s dressed in black, like you.
He’s leaning forward to give you a hug. ‘You look beautiful,’ he tells you.
‘Thank you. You look great too,’ you tell him.
You’re taking a sip of your wine when you realise how badly your hands are shaking.
‘I’m sorry,’ you tell Yoongi. ‘I haven’t done this in a while. I’m nervous.’
Yoongi says, ‘I’m nervous too.’
You scoff. ‘You? Mr big shot music producer?’
Yoongi gives you a crooked smile. ‘I never said I was an in-demand music producer.’
‘Aren’t you?’ you ask.
‘I am,’ Yoongi confirms. He holds up a hand. ‘But look, I have sweaty palms.’
You touch the palm he holds out to you and he snaps his hand closed, trapping your fingers.
You startle, then burst out laughing.
Yoongi laughs too. ‘Let’s just enjoy dinner. I heard the seafood here’s good.’
Yoongi’s a good guy, you realise over the course of dinner. He’s kind, considerate and funny in a dry, sardonic way.
He’s walking you to your car when he says, ‘Hey, there’s a park near here. Shall we go for a walk? It’s a nice night.’
You turn to him, his skin gleaming golden in the light from the streetlights, his breath coming out in white puffs.
‘Sure,’ you say.
Yoongi holds out his arm, and you curl your hand into the crook of his elbow.
He tucks you in to his side, his arm firm, strong. ‘Ready?’ he asks, turning to you to smile.
Impulsively, you kiss him. His lips are cool, soft. When you pull away his eyes pop open.
‘That was nice,’ he tells you, encouraging.
‘Yeah?’
‘Yeah.’ Yoongi takes you for a turn around the park and sits you down on a park bench. He huddles close. ‘Want to listen to a song I’m producing?’
‘Sure,’ you say, anything to keep him close.
He hands you an earphone to put in your ear and hits play. His arm stays around you.
In the dark frostiness of the moonlit park, listening to the beat of Yoongi’s song, you almost feel like a teenager again, like before you got together with Seokjin and the trajectory of your life changed. Maybe this is what it would have been like.
I never expected anything to come from my life, honestly. I was the youngest of a rich family - so I had money, but I'd been told many times, both by others and myself, that I'd never have any power, or legitimate freedom - the worst of both worlds, you could say. But, it was expected - it was what I'd always expected. So, while I did mind a little bit, it was never something that kept me up at night.
Yes, I was technically an heir to my family's company, but really, everyone knew that position was supposed to be my brother's. Despite my childhood being filled with, "Wooseok would never do that", or "Wooseok is in charge - as always", or "You should listen to Wooseok, he knows", I'd still known I'd eventually study business, and take some sort of role in my family's company - after all, business is business, and while many people said you should never mix family and business, as my father said, those people were often poor.
"What business do they have?" He'd sneer, and Wooseok would agree, as always.
When Wooseok's scandal became public knowledge however, I wasn't necessarily prepared for everything that would entitle.
My business courses never prepared me for any of it - not the intense scrutiny - where at one point I was scrutinized mostly for my outfits of choice, suddenly it was that as well as, "but what does she know about running a business?" or "It must be so embarrassing for her family - her being the maknae, running their business".
Of course, I wasn't actually running it. After Wooseok's scandal, my father had taken over, and while I technically was in line to be the next CEO, my parents were fairly certain they'd find someone else to run the company. How best to do that and keep it in the family? Marry them, of course.
Enter Kim Seokjin. Suddenly, the question of what I'd expected of my life, and just how I wanted to live it, was not only in question, but in jeopardy.
Pairing: KSJ x fem!reader; with appearances by OT7
Rating: Mature content (21+)
Genre: Rich boy!AU; strangers to lovers; fluff; angst; smut; crack
Total word count: 100,702 words
Status: Completed ✅
Warnings (more written in individual chapter updates): socioeconomic imbalance; character physical disability; cussing; office banter; arranged marriages; secret relationships; medical scare; smut; crack; criminal investigation; smut; protected sex; unprotected sex; oral (mutual)
Summary: Kim Seokjin lives in a world where money is no object as he is the heir to his family's lucrative company; OC is a scrappy go-getter who has to work hard at multiple jobs to meet her financial obligations. When their paths cross, they'll have to figure out whether they can find a balance point between themselves and their lives.
A/N: This KSJ character is based off my other series, Gradation. I've made a few tweaks to the character and updated a few other roles around him so that this can be a standalone story.
❤️, comment, reblog, or send me an ask 📩. Would love to know what everyone thinks!
DECEMBER BTS TWITTER POSTS BIG HIT BTS OFFICIAL POSTS 1 December Weverse: Tae. 201201-Billboard tweet. 201201- Grammy museum masterclass tweet. -Mini Masterclass with BTS (from Grammy Museum) 201201- BTS Run - 2020 Ep 118. Photo Story 1 Weverse. Vlive. (pics) 201201-'[BANGTAN BOMB] ...
DECEMBER
BTS TWITTER POSTS BIG HIT BTS OFFICIAL POSTS
1 December
Weverse: Tae.
201201-Billboard tweet.
201201- Grammy museum masterclass tweet. -Mini Masterclass with BTS (from Grammy Museum)
201201- BTS Run - 2020 Ep 118. Photo Story 1 Weverse. Vlive. (pics)
201204-BigHit posted photos of Jin: 1, 2. Facebook. Instagram.
201204-'BTS 'BREAK THE SILENCE: THE MOVIE COMMENTARY PACKAGE’ Official Trailer (Commentary ver.)’.
201204-BTS won 1st place on 'Music Bank’! #Dynamite26thWin.
201204-interview MTVFreshOut. BTS Reveals the Meaning Of ‘BE’ & Their Favorite Song
5 December MMA - 7 Wins. Life Goes On 3rd Win.
Twitter: Big Hit (trans). JHope (trans). Jimin (trans). Weverse: JHope: 1, 2. 3.- Yoongi, JHope’s reply.
201205-BTS at the '2020 MMAs’: Awards: 'Top 10 Artist’, 'Album of the Year’, 'Best Dance (Male)’, 'Song of the Year’, 'Netizen’s Choice’, 'Artist of the Year’. Performance. (pics). Total 7 awards Artist OTY, Album OTY – MOTS:7, Song OTY – Dynamite, Top 10 Artists, Dance (Male) – Dynamite, Best Rock – Eight (IU ft. #BTS #SUGA), Netizen Popularity Award.
201205-'2020 MAMA - Star Countdown D-1 by BTS’.
201205-BTS won 1st place on 'Music Core’! #LifeGoesOn3rdWin.
201206BTS won 'International Group/Duo of the Year’ at 'NRJ Music Awards 2020’.
201206-BTS at 'MAMA 2020 Awards: 'Best Dance Performance (Male Group)’, 'Album of the Year’, 'Best Music Video’, 'Worldwide Fans’ Choice’, 'Worldwide Icon of the Year’, 'Best Male Group’, 'Song of the Year’, 'Artist of the Year’.
201206-BTS at 'MAMA 2020- Red Carpet (pics).Performance: 'ON’, 'Dynamite’, 'Life Goes On’. 'Thank You Stage’.
201206 BTS won 1st place on 'Inkigayo’. #Life Goes On 4th Win.