By Your Side

Chapter One: You're Not Worthless

You weren't sure what was worse, your screaming daughter or the fact that everyone was now staring at you in shame. Being a single mother wasn't easy and it wasn't something you had planned to happen at the age of 24. Most of your friends has secured themselves successful careers, many getting engaged and travelling the world, you however, had a one-month-old daughter. Your ex-boyfriend made it clear that he no longer wanted anything to do with you or the child you had conceived and your parents were not keen on the idea of their daughter being pregnant, alone and unmarried, luckily, they still supported you. Here you were, in the middle of a coffee shop, trying to calm down your baby.

You were rocking your daughter from side to side, her face becoming redder as the minutes went by. She had been fed and changed, she was clearly in a cranky mood. "Please, Gi, shh for mummy please" you whispered, feeling the tears brim at the corner of your eyes out of frustration. You knew everyone was looking at you, judging you for being young and new to motherhood. Deciding that enough was enough, you began to put her back into her pram, ready to leave the coffee shop, you needed to get out of there. But it wasn't until you put her down that her crying worsened, you weren't sure it could get any worse, but oh boy it could and it did. "Gi, please, I don't know what else to do" you mumbled, now wiping the tears from your cheeks. You picked her back up, her crying settled slightly, but still sobbing in your arms. Maybe she was still hungry you thought. You picked up the blanket from the pram, wanting to shield yourself from the customers in the shop while you fed her. Dropping the blanket out of clumsiness, you sighed to yourself, could anything go right today? Holding Gi with one hand, cuddled into your neck, you went to crouch to the floor to retrieve the blanket, when you noticed someone else already pick it up for you. Looking up you were met with a familiar and kind face, it was Kim Taehyung.

"Y/N?" he asked, handing you the blanket, a confused look spread across his face. "Hi" you replied, voice cracking, another tear falling down your cheek. You had known Taehyung from school and were close for many years, however, when he debuted you had naturally lost touch. "Hey, don't cry sweetheart, come on let's get out of here hmm?" he questioned, resting his hand protectively on the small of your back. You simply nodded to his suggestion, it was all you could manage. You were trying and failing to pack up your belongs while holding your child, not daring to put her down in case her crying worsened once more. "Here, give her to me while you pack up" he insisted, holding out his arms. You were hesitant, it wasn't that you didn't trust Taehyung, it was mostly because you didn't want to seem like a failure, giving up on trying to sooth your own daughter. Biting your lip, you eventually passed her to him, now watching the pair for a moment. "Hello little one" he whispered, tucking her into his chest, two little eyes peeping over his shoulder, "And what do we call you, hey? I'm sure it's something beautiful". You smiled at his kind mannerisms, "Gi" you spoke, whilst putting away your belongings. "I was right, very beautiful" he confirmed, rubbing her back slightly. You hadn't noticed at first due to you being distracted by packing away your things, it wasn't until you were ready to leave that you noticed that Gi was no longer crying. "Shall I just carry her home?" he laughed, looking down at the sleeping infant, cuddled into his neck. You laughed at his comment, beginning to wheel the pram out of the coffee shop. Thank god for Kim Taehyung.

Arriving at your apartment building, you punched in the code and held the door open for you and Taehyung, who was still carrying your sleeping baby in his arms. You walked out of the lifts towards your apartment, unlocking the door, beginning to push the pram into your hallway. "You've got a nice place y/n" Tae commented, looking around nosily. "It's not much, but it's home" you replied, taking off your coat and hanging it on the hook. "Shall I just put her in her moses basket?" asked Taehyung, to which you nodded, now walking into the kitchen to make you both a drink. He walked into the kitchen, his coat too now removed, he lent against your kitchen worktop. "So" he said, crossing his arms, "What's gone on here?" he questioned, cocking his head slightly to the side, patiently waiting for your answer. You don't know why your lip began to wobble, maybe it was because he was the first person to ask you what had happened, maybe it was the emotional day of trying and failing to calm down your daughter or maybe it was because one of your oldest and dearest friends was stood in your kitchen for the first time in a very long time. You let out a sob, to which Tae immediately reacted to, taking you in his arms, your head nuzzled into his neck whilst he began shushing you. "Hey, please don't cry y/n, you know I always hated it when you cried" he whispered, pressing a quick kiss to your temple, the action warming your heart slightly. You let out a small chuckle and pulled away from his embrace, "You make it sound like I always used to cry". He wiped your cheeks with his thumbs, showing one of his boxy grins, a smile that you could never forget. The kettle clicked, alerting you that it was boiled. You turned on your heel, placing a tea bag into each mug, pouring in the hot water. Handing him a mug, he looked down, a small smile tugging at his lips. "What are you smiling at?" you questioned walking into the living room. "No, it's just you made me tea, you never asked what I wanted to drink" he answered, sitting down onto your sofa. "Well, it's cold outside so a hot beverage is needed and you don't like coffee, you find it bitter" you stated, placing your mug down onto the coffee table. Tae didn't question why you had remembered such pointless information about himself, he kept his thoughts to himself, secretly glad that he was still etched into your memory in some way.