When We Were Sixteen || Jeon Jungkook

Epilogue - Age Twenty Five

It's been four years since I last spoke or saw Jungkook. 

I was finally happy. Everything had changed since that night, and I was finally able to move on from Jungkook. My heart didn't long for him anymore, and it finally healed from the heartbreak that I caused myself four years go. I had finally accepted their relationship and realised that I was the selfish one after all these years. I had let my own heartbreak ruin Jungkook and I's friendship that we built for five years. 

I returned back to Seoul a year ago because of a job that I was offered through this big media company to become a journalist, so I couldn't decline the offer. I didn't think I would ever return back to Seoul because everything seemed like a distant memory which brought me so much pain in the past. As much as there was painful and sad memories in Seoul, there was also good memories that laced the city - especially when I was sixteen, the day I first met Jungkook. 

Taehyung and I remained good friends, even though distance was a problem between us. We spoke daily and I eventually told him where I was living which made him visit me every weekend. Soon, we found our ways to each others heart and began to love each other. He was kind to me, and he was a person who was my shoulder to cry on when things got tough, that is when he found a place to my heart to where I thought was broken the most. 

I heard from Jungkook somedays from Taehyung as they were still best friends. He told me Jungkook got married two years ago, and he had brought a larger house with Hana. I was glad that Jungkook was happy in his new married life, and I treasured every moment of our friendship. Even though Jungkook and I no longer spoke anymore, I could only wish him the best from a distance and maybe one day we will meet again. 

Taehyung and I were happy. With the season's changing more each week, the snow melted and the flowers started to bloom. The small stuffy apartment changed to a bigger apartment with Taehyung. He would make me laugh every day and made sure that my day was going okay. 

Waking up beside Taehyung every morning was a blessing because almost four years ago, I felt like my heart would never heal from the heartbreak I had from Jungkook. I believed that I would never love someone like I loved Jungkook again because of the fear of rejection returning to me. I had been at the lowest point of my life at that time, the most shattered and heartbroken I've ever felt. I almost lost myself at one point, dwelling on my sadness every ticking moment four years ago. I had become a better person from the pain and landed a dream that I never wanted to wake up from. 

Which brought me to right now, where my legs were tangled up in the soft cotton sheets with my sleeping boyfriend beside me, his hair a mess on the pillow and his cheeks pressed up against the pillow. My fingers trailing over his face, brushing the hair away from his forehead and eyes flickering at his peaceful face.

"I know you are awake," Taehyung whispered not opening his eyes.

"How can you tell?"

"I can feel you touching me," he grinned, opening his eyes slowly.

"Don't make it sound creepy." I whined, slapping his chest.

"I know you can't help looking at me, I'm so gorgeous." his laughing made me smack his chest again, trying to frown like I was annoyed. His hand sliding to my hips as he maneuverer on his back and pulled me on top of him. The sun casted a glow against his cheek at an angle, making my insides from how beautiful he looked. 

My hair was shorter, falling in a mess manner over my face. His hands slipped from my hips down to my bare thighs, thumbs circling into the skin as he held me in the place of his lap, my knees bent onto the side. The blanket pooled around my backside making goose bumps rise from the sudden burst of cool air hitting my skin.

"So pretty," he said softly, his eyes soft and squinted as they trailed over every inch of me. His eyes furrowed as his smile faded slowly, and a heavy sigh escaped his lips as he gripped onto my waist. "I love you. You do realise that?"

"I know. I love you too," I clarified, my fingers playing with the hem of his shirt. 

"Jungkook wants to see you again," he said quietly. "It's been four years, and he's still sad without you in his life. I know you have avoided him for so long. Maybe just give him a chance."

"Okay," I replied. "I'll do it."

"Really? That was easy." Taehyung said, suddenly frowning like something bad was going to happen. "Do you think you will still have feelings for him if you saw him again."

"Everything is in the past now, and I love you, not him." I reassured him. "If I saw him again, I wouldn't feel the same way about him. What's happened is gone, in the past. I have you now."

"Okay, I was being stupid then."

"You've always been stupid," I said, rolling my eyes at his persistence and then cracking a smile when he started to whine. His hands slowly found their way to the middle of my shirt, fingers attacking my sides as he sent me into a fit of laughter. My body falling onto my side, and in a quick moment he was on top of me, pinning me down with his weight as he continued to tickle me.

"I'm sorry!" I squealed, the tears rolling down my face at how hard I was laughing, my hands desperately gripped onto his arms.

"Say you love me and then I'll stop."

"I love you. I love you!" my laughter bellowed out as his hands stopped moving at my sides. He smiled as he rolled back beside me, laughing quietly beside me. I tolled onto my side to face him, trying to catch my breath from laughing. His eyes locked onto mine, and he smiled softly into a gentle expression.

"Let's get married."

"What?" I asked, my eyes widening as he sat up, my own body following. I crossed my legs as I watched him reach over to the bedside table and opened the drawer. He pulled out sometimes and held it in his fingers in front of me.  Between his fingers was a small silver ring with a diamond on the centre of it. Nothing fancy, just simple but effective. 

"Not right now," he clarified, as he grabbed my hands and laced his fingers with mine. "But someday, when we were both ready. I want to make you mine."

The earnest looks on his features made me melt, and without a word. I nodded as he slipped the ring onto my finger.

From when I was sixteen, I wouldn't have imagined life like this. Even when I thought my heart would never heal, in place came Taehyung. The person who I cherished and loved when I was twenty-five. Although he wasn't my first love, he was someone I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. The only person I want to love. 

"I love you," Taehyung whispered, pressing his lips onto mine and from that moment, I was certainly positive that this was were I exactly wanted to be, and I was happy. 

"I love you always."

A few months have passed and I reunited with Jungkook again, promising each other to remain good friends and we would meet up once a week to catch up on our lives. It was nice to see him after four years, and it felt like nothing changed between us. It was like when we were sixteen, the best of friends who promised to never let go of each other. We were both moving on with our lives even if it wasn't with each other. 

Jungkook and I let go of the past. He was living his married life, and I would be soon to be living mine with Taehyung. I was glad that when I looked at Jungkook, I didn't love him the way I did, he was just my best friend from when we were sixteen, full of happiness and hope between us and nothing seemed to worry us anymore. We didn't hide things from each other, and continued our friendship onwards on a positive note. 

It was perfect. He was perfect, and I am glad after nine years I was able to find someone I truly loved. We were both happy. We promised each other when the moment was right, he would say those four words. 

And when he knew when the moment was right, I would say yes.

Everything was truly perfect.