The Chauffeur | Jinkook ✔️

Chapter Fifteen

As Jungkook drove them home, Jimin couldn't take his gaze away from the window; he couldn't stop grinning because he admired Jungkook's approach to Jin. While Jin kept his eyes buried in his phone, he could see how irritated and uncomfortable he seemed to be sitting next to him. He knew him being silent was also not a good thing.

Finally, he had someone who wasn't scared to stand up to Jin; something like that didn't happen very often. He had never seen anybody else stand up to Jin, and he believed that more people should do so so that Jin could see how terrible he was to others.

He knew all he'd hear once they got home was Jin's ranting since, of course, he wasn't going to follow Jungkook's advice, but Jimin didn't seem to mind. If Jin began his crap with him, he intended to leave home and go to a friend's place. He was still perplexed as to why his grandparents allowed Jin to take custody of him; it seemed as if they didn't care about him at all. With them, his life was so much better, and his mental health wasn't as bad as it is today. Jin really wanted him to concentrate on school and earn high marks, but he didn't care about school anymore, not when everything else in his life was falling apart. When life was as bad as it was for him, he saw no use in trying his best or giving his all.

It annoyed him even more, when Jin seemed to care and showed up at his school; he didn't care about him, so his presence was absurd. He was looking forward to the day when he could tell Jin to fuck off and live his life as he pleased, without his or anyone else's involvement.

He takes a deep breath and gets out of the car as it pulls up in front of their house and comes to a full stop. Anxious to get inside the house and into his room before Jin does. He hoped he wouldn't have to see him again for the rest of the day.

*****

Jimin had left the car so quickly that Jungkook had not even had the chance to get out of the car himself. The moment he saw this, he felt sorry for Jimin, as he was sure that what he had experienced earlier at the school had taken its toll on him. He was most likely rushing to his room to cry. That didn't sit well with Jungkook.

When he goes to open the door for Jin, he swiftly leaps back when the door is pushed open, nearly striking him, and Jin exits, appearing just as irritated as when he entered.

"Are you still in a bad mood?" As the door slammed shut, Jungkook questioned Jin, who stared at him but said nothing.

"I apologize if it came across before as I was overstepping by offering my thoughts, which I'm sure were unwelcome by you. However, I understand that being a parent is a challenging job; it is perhaps the hardest job in the world. Especially when you have to look after another person, even on days when you can't look after yourself. Forget about the days when you're unwell, and they're sick; it's as if you have to stop being sick only to keep them well. I understand how frustrating it may be and how we wish we didn't have the responsibilities, but we do, and we should do our best even when we aren't in the mood. I know you care for Jimin; you're his Appa, so there's no way you don't, but based on what I've seen, you could improve your communication with him. I'm not saying he's correct about everything he's doing; all I'm saying is that your communication style could be better."

"You have kids?" Jin said, leaning against the car and looking at Jungkook.

"I have a daughter; she is seven."

"Interesting."

"She isn't Jimin's age, but she is in the prime of her childhood, and it's not an easy stage for me. I have to depend on the internet to answer half of her questions."

"What about the other parent? They don't help out?"

"Her Appa passed away when she was one month old, so it's been me, and only me."

Jin said, "Oh, sorry to hear of your loss," not anticipating it to be the case.

"It's no problem," Jungkook murmured. "All I was trying to say was that I understand being a parent is difficult, but we must do our best since our children rely on us. Regardless of how irritated we may be."

"I don't believe you have the smallest understanding of my problems or what I have to deal with when it comes to Jimin," Jin says, shaking his head. "According to what I've gathered, you've always been involved in your daughter's life, which I'm sure is good for you. In any case, I don't believe you can connect to or comprehend any of my frustrations."

"How do you know you're so certain? Why don't we have a more in-depth discussion about this over dinner? When I'm not talking, I'm a terrific listener." Jungkook says, smiling at Jin.

"Thank you, but I'm not in the mood for discussions."

"We don't have to talk; just dinner would be enough."

"You claim your daughter is seven; shouldn't you be seeking to go home and care for her rather than inviting me to dinner?" Jin rolled his eyes, irked by Jungkook's persistent manner, but he found it somewhat amusing at the same time.

"You make an excellent point, and I do make every effort to spend as much time as possible with my daughter, particularly since beginning this job that requires me to work later than normal." However, she is now being cared for by a trusted friend of mine until I leave work, so to answer your question, yes, I am free to go out to dinner tonight."

"I didn't ask you to go to dinner."

"Yes, you didn't, but you can if you want, or you can accept my invitation to dinner. Another alternative is for me to cook dinner for you and Jimin. Given the day you've both had, I'm sure a nice meal would be great."

"Do you give up at any point?"

"Not when I see promise in something or someone I like," Jungkook said, shaking his head. "Unless you expressly state that you are not interested, in which case I will have no option, but I don't believe I have received such a statement from you."

"I'm thirty-two years old, and I have a sixteen-year-old son; do you not understand, or are you so desperate to get into my pants that you don't care?"

"As a twenty-six-year-old parent of a seven-year-old, I'm not sure I get what you're trying to express. If you're wondering if I care about your age or the age of your son, the answer is no. You and I are both of legal age, and I believe that's all that counts. Do I have ideas about you that make me want to get into your pants? You bet I do after that kiss, but right now, I'm more interested in going on a date with you, beginning with dinner, if that's okay with you."

"I have a lot to do this evening," Jin said after staring at Jungkook for a few minutes without saying anything. "Perhaps you could ask me again tomorrow, and I will think about it."

"Why do I get the feeling you'll come up with another excuse tomorrow?"

When Jin smiled and laughed, shaking his head, it caught Jungkook by surprise, causing him to smile as he leaned against the car to look at Jin, "you should smile more. That's not something I see you do very often."

Jin's smile faded, and he stood up straight, adding, "I'm going inside. Go home for the remainder of the evening and spend time with your daughter."

"All right, enjoy the rest of your evening, and I'll send you the details for dinner tomorrow night."

"I never agreed to that."

"Since you haven't denied my invitation, I'm going to assume you're leaning towards a yes. Also, try talking to Jimin when you get there, and if you're still angry with him, wait until you've calmed down before talking to him. No amount of yelling will get the job done."

"And what happens when my words are received with an attitude? Do you suggest I just keep talking and being nice?"

"No, that's not what I'm suggesting, but I believe you should attempt to speak to him about things that are bothering him right now. Instead of shouting at him about school, you should ask how you can help him. Try to figure out why he's ignoring things he should be doing; it's possible he needs therapy; I'm just trying to figure out why a smart kid like him would ignore something as important as school."

"He could be ignoring it because he doesn't care."

"But why doesn't he care?"

"Ask him that, don't ask me."