To Find Something True

※ fifty

This time, everyone went, and that evening, they had the chance to go to the Gardens by the Bay. They almost canceled the plan for the day because of the rain, but fortunately, it only lasted for an hour. They heard that Satay by the Bay was nearby, thus, they planned to stop there for dinner.

From a distance, they could see tall trees graced with neon lights, slowly giving out different colors.

At the Gardens, there were two domes. One was the Flower Dome, and the other was the Cloud Dome. Jiah chose to go with the rest who wanted to go to the Flower Dome.

When she entered the dome, her eyebrows lifted, and her mouth hung open at the wide landscape of colorful flowers. It felt as if she was on a flower island. She walked along a path with flowers and a couple of trees lined up.

She took photos of the different kinds of flowers from every angle. When she was done taking photos above her, she put her phone down, and her peripheral vision caught sight of Seokjin entertaining Joohee. She turned her head to look.

Lopsidedly smiling at them, Jiah watched as Seokjin carried Joohee on his piggyback. She heard Seokjin say he would carry her so that she could reach branches nearer, but Joohee was too smart and replied, saying both of them were too short for that.

Chuckling, she then turned around, finding others dispersed in different places with other children. Some were with Namjoon, Yoongi, and Wheein at the Cloud Forest's bridge to see a wider landscape.

Taehyun, as usual, was with Hoseok. Taehyun was only four years old. Upon seeing the beautiful landscape, he could only point at the trees and flowers with his tiny fingers, saying to the older man, "it's pwetty, pwetty." The more she observed Taehyun, the more she noticed that he and Hoseok had a lot of similarities.

When Jiah first met Taehyun, he turned away when she opened her palms to reach for him. But he didn't shy away from taking the small chocolate she gave.

Taehyun spent most of the time with Hoseok, and Hoseok never said 'no' to the baby. Taehyun spoke more words (even though still with limited skills) when he was with Hoseok too, just like how he did now. Seldom she heard the baby's laugh, but when he was with Hoseok, no words were able to describe how his loud giggles could make her heart burst.

Seeing Hoseok give a peck on Taehyun's chubby cheek, her lips curved, forming two rounds on her cheeks. She never heard how Taehyun got too attached to her boss, but witnessing the bond between them was lovable that she couldn't stop watching and smiling.

"Hey, hey!" Wheein sing-songed behind her. Jiah turned her head to see the gothic-styled woman approaching. "Who are you looking at? Seokjin? Hoseok?" the younger woman teased, pointing at the men.

"Ah, seriously!" Jiah groaned, making Wheein laugh. "I thought you were at the bridge. How did you end up down here so fast?"

"I've been here for more than ten minutes. It's just you, too engrossed with the guys!" Wheein said, her face grimacing, fingers pointing at the men to continue teasing. "Joohee mentions Seokjin and Hoseok too much, doesn't she?"

Sighing, Jiah droned, "the first thing she asked me yesterday was whether Seokjin and I are dating."

Wheein sealed her dark red lips, holding back a laugh. "She likes seeing you two together."

"She also asked if Hoseok and I are dating, and that's because of the news!" Jiah said. "The news sure had spread like wildfire." Whimpering, she dropped her head down.

They walked together to other spots, passing by other tourists. Wheein lightly raised her fist and said, "I'm team Hoseok."

Jiah's face twisted as she expressed, "what?"

"I'm team Hoseok!" Wheein repeated but firmer. "Presume that it is true, then I'll be rooting for you and Hoseok. Don't tell Jisoo though," she said, putting her index finger in front of her lips.

"Ugh! I don't care, I don't know."

"Jisoo told me the other day, Seokjin likes you," Wheein said, ignoring her comment.

"You're kidding me," Jiah muttered after a short pause, looking at her through the tail of her eyes.

"I'm not! She told me her brother is planning to confess to you when he gets the courage. I have nothing against her brother, but I think you need to know this," the gothic girl uttered. The dark red lips curved upwards. "Seokjin is the type to go 'zoop!' –" Wheein gestured a straight palm fast move "– once he's determined. He isn't up for layer by layer."

Despite dressing in a dark concept, Jiah could clearly see Wheein was behaving a lot like Jisoo at that moment.

"Besides," Wheein added, clapping her hand once. "Seokjin can be impatient sometimes. Given that he might have heard he has competition, I can feel that he'll confess soon."

"I don't think you have to tell me. Isn't someone's feeling supposed to be a secret?"

Flicking her forehead, Wheein said, "dumbo!" Jiah yelped, palming her burning forehead. "All of us have been talking about the three of you. It's no more a secret. You're just blind with how Seokjin and Hoseok have been behaving, because you're their focuses!"

Jiah's small, full lips drooped.

"All of us weren't surprised to know that many of the staff would like you too. Taehyung and Jungkook admitted they used to have a short crush on you. Even Namjoon admires you. I would have had a crush on you too if I weren't dating Jisoo," Wheein said. Someone's approaching presence forced her to stop talking and look. Hastily, she whispered, "oh, oh, oh, oh! He's coming, he's coming!"

Jiah saw Seokjin with Joohee. As soon as they stopped in front of the women, Seokjin said, "I'm leaving Joohee with you. I need to go to the toilet."

"Uh, sure!" she said, taking Joohee's hand. Seokjin smiled at her, mouthed a 'thank you' before walking away.

When his silhouette became far in sight, she looked at Joohee. Joohee mischievously giggled, showing her missing incisors. Jiah mimicked her, briefly scrunching her nose.

Beside her, Wheein crossed her arms and whispered, "I'm sure this kiddo is born with matchmaking skills."

Jiah was only able to chuckle at that.

**********

They ordered chicken and lamb skewers for dinner at Satay by the Bay. A few ordered chicken rice, while the rest ordered the salad covered with dark and sweet, crushed peanut paste – Rojak, the locals called it.

The clanging of wok, sizzling satay, fragrant curry, satay grill smoke filled the air. Stalls lined in different places. Circle and square tables positioned sparsely. There were even long rectangle tables just near the opened entrance, filled with big families. Residents of different ethnicity came to eat and chat.

As they ate, Jiah couldn't help but look at Taehyun and Hoseok at the other table. Hoseok was feeding him the yellow rice. Taehyun's small mouth puckered, moving up and down before gulping. Then, he let out a soft 'ah' to ask for another, leading to a careful shove of the spoon into his mouth.

Seokjin sat beside Yoongi. The older man's dominant hand held a spoon, while the other held a satay stick that still had meat in it. They seemed to be having a serious talk, judging by how stern and quiet Seokjin was. Seokjin kept nodding his head as Yoongi talked.

Jiah assumed that they were talking about Bejiwoo or In-Kang, and she didn't want to bother.

A plump, Chinese woman was seen walking around with a basket of fresh flower bouquets in her arm. She was shorter than Jiah. Her face had hints of wrinkles and freckles.

She went from one table to another, asking if they would like to buy her flowers. There was a strong Chinese accent in her speaking as she spoke in English. Since the time she entered the hawker center, she had only sold two. The rest shook their heads or waved their hands to refuse.

Yoongi and Seokjin's talk paused when the woman stopped at their table. They shook their heads, lightly smiling at her, and bowed a little as she walked away. She stopped at Jiah's table, and she politely turned it down. Next to Hoseok, he almost stuttered to say "no, sorry." The lady skipped the kids and moved on to the next table.

The lady left the center, having Hoseok staring as she walked away.