Only Above the Surface

Family: Part 1

"It was childish, that's what it was. I acted like a child." Jin admitted harshly.

Mrs. Jin rolled her eyes. "Well, then, I guess that makes you a child, huh? Guess you should move back in, I still got some of your baby clothes in storage. Cribs over six feet are going to be a little expensive, but we can manage. Good thing they make adult diapers—"

"Maaa!" Jin whined.

"Whaaaat! You're the one saying you're a child now, Benjamin Button! I was just trying to see how far you'd go." She chuckled, moving the hair out of her son's eyes. "You acted out because you thought he cheated. You said some mean stuff that was justified, at the time. I'm not saying you're not at fault for your actions but there has been a lot of miscommunication between you two. He will understand, my love." She paused for a second. "Unless you don't want him to understand."

"What?" Jin lifted his head to look at her.

"Do you want to be forgiven or is this an excuse to leave him?"

"No! This is not an excuse! Why would you say that, Ma? I-I love him!" Jin admitted shockingly even to himself.

"Ahh, you love him." Mrs. Kim smirked. "You wanna kiss him, you wanna love him," She sang teasingly. "It's been a while since I heard you admit you loved a man to me. He must really be something special, huh?"

"He-he is. He really is, Ma. God this sounds cheesy but—he's awkward but in a cute way. He's nice to me and cares about what I think. I used to compare him a lot with Minho, but, honestly, Minho has nothing on Jungkook." Jin lays his head back down, lost in thoughts of Jungkook.

"He does this thing with his nose when he laughs, it's so adorable—but he's built like a truck which is a weird combination but works 'cause he's hot. I mean, you've seen him. His smile brightens up the room and when he laughs—when he laughs, it makes me wanna fight the world just so I can hear the sound over and over again. And he's so hardworking in everything he does, he never takes a break—at least not for himself. He puts his all in everything he does."

"And what makes you think he didn't put his all in when it comes to you." Mrs. Kim bursts out into laughter. "I guess he did put his all into you, huh?"

"Maaaa,"

"Alright, alright, I'm done, I'm done. Forget how that sounded. But I gotta say you need more faith in this boy. I liked him even though I only just met him. You should bring him over. Have you told him you love him?"

"No," Jin says with a shake of his head. "I want to,"

"Then what's stopping you?"

"My stupid brain. I never even told Minho I loved him and we dated for two years."

"Maybe because you knew you never truly loved Minho. But as you said, Jungkook is different. He's special."

Mrs. Kim smiled as she watched her son's ear turn bright red. "Go talk to the boy. You can head back tomorrow. Its too late tonight."

"Okay. Thanks, ma," Jin said with a smile as he looked up to see the stars, the sky fully blanketed in darkness now. The sky never looked so clear.

*******

Tiny holes and tears appeared periodically, understandably, in a young boy's bedsheets, clothes, or jackets. It would be strange if they didn't. For Jungkook, these tiny tears were immediately covered up with delicate designs of flowers, bows, or simple circles. They varied in color sometimes, but normally stuck to whites and reds. Covering any damage that was once displeasing to the eye, presenting a soft and delicate appearance instead.