IT'S BAD → LJH

seven

Jihoon realized his feelings one fine day when Jinyoung had to go to work. He felt as if he were missing something. Seunghoon felt it too, mainly because he lost his playmate and felt lonely. The whole day Jinyoung wasn't there, Jihoon felt sluggish and felt less motivated. He kept making little mistakes like forgetting to take a shower in the morning, forgetting to put the milk in the fridge, forgetting to close the bathroom door when he had to go- just the little things.

Seunghoon was also out of it. He took longer naps and was less motivated, just like his father.

"Appa," Seunghoon whined. "I'm bored."

"Me too," Jihoon sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair.

There was a blank page of sheet music in front of him with nothing but faded lead marks and eraser shavings. Nothing seemed to be working out. He was stuck. The notes were on repeat in his head, but he didn't like seeing them on paper. He seemed so uninspired that he only wanted to take naps.

Jihoon actually ended up taking a nap on the sofa, and Jinyoung got back to his apartment to see Jihoon snoring peacefully on the sofa. She went to his room and grabbed a blanket to cover him so he wouldn't catch a cold. Seunghoon told him the whole story the next morning when he woke up.

"Appa, did you, did you know that," Seunghoon took a breath. "Did you know that, that Jinyoung is a really nice person?"

Jihoon smiled and ruffled Seunghoon's hair.

"Yeah, she is."

After that one time, Jinyoung was there for Seunghoon. She babysat him every single day, thus letting her be in the Lee household every single day. Jihoon found himself working in the kitchen rather in his bedroom where he normally composed. He found himself staring at Jinyoung as little beads of perspiration dotted her forehead when she played with Seunghoon. He found himself staring at her hair, her eyes, her smile- No. He wasn't allowed to. Lee Jihoon, a divorced man with difficulty in his job, should not find himself falling in love with another girl. Lee Jihoon, a man of embarrassment, should not be wanting to hug this girl tightly in his arms. Lee Jihoon, a man not capable of caring for himself, should not be caring for another that is unrelated to him.

Jihoon's feelings grew by day, by hour, by minute, by second. He looked at himself in the mirror and would constantly deny his feelings for this woman who saved him from disaster. He denied his feelings because he was a divorced man. Nobody wanted to be with a divorced man. He would give himself these pep talks every night, and Seunghoon would hear them every night.

"Appa? Do you not like someone?" Seunghoon asked one night with a stuffed bunny in his arms and an adorable pout on his face.

"No Seunghoon-ah," Jihoon beckoned for Seunghoon to come closer. He sat Seunghoon down on his lap as the two faced Jihoon's piano in his room. Jihoon leaned back on the bed, his back touching the wall.

"I love someone too much."

"Who?"

Jihoon looked at his son and asked, "Will you promise to not tell them?"

Seunghoon frantically nodded, the stuffed bunny in his arms bobbing as well.

"You like Jinyoung noona, right?"

Seunghoon shook his head. "No, I love her!"

Jihoon chuckled and hugged his son tighter. "So do I."

Jihoon put so much faith and trust in Seunghoon. He honestly thought Seunghoon wouldn't tell Jinyoung anything. However, Seunghoon was a child. He had no filter on the information he received. The next morning, he told Jinyoung everything.

"Noona! Guess what!" Seunghoon ran into Jinyoung's arms for a hug.

"Yes my little ray of sunshine?"

"I love you!"

Jinyoung chuckled. "I love you too, Seunghoon."

"Do you know what else?"

"What?"

"Appa loves you too!"

Jinyoung froze. She didn't know how to react. Was Seunghoon just telling her that, or did Jihoon actually love her? Jinyoung felt her heart flutter. She never experienced this type of feeling before. She sat on the sofa and tried to calm herself down. Jihoon probably liked her, but if the word love was enough fluster her this bad, then what was Jihoon to her? The divorced man who lived next door, or the talented man who wrote amazing songs?

Jihoon, who was in his room listening to Seunghoon talk to Jinyoung, slammed his head against his keyboard so hard that the piano keys made a grotesque noise. Sighing, he got out of his chair and went into the living room where Seunghoon was sitting on Jinyoung's lap on the sofa. Jinyoung abruptly stood up when Jihoon entered the room, Seunghoon almost falling off her lap.

"Noona!"

"Sorry, Seunghoon," Jinyoung kissed the top of the boy's head and Jihoon could swear he felt heat rise to his cheeks.

"H-hey," Jihoon cleared his throat. "There's something I've been wanting to tell you."

Jinyoung walked over to Jihoon and they went into the corridor. Seunghoon, who was to enthralled with his purple bunny, stayed in the living room.

"Yeah?" Jinyoung asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"This might seem weird, and maybe a little creepy, but whatever Seunghoon said is true," Jihoon trembled as he ran his fingers through his hair in attempt to keep his cool. "L-love might be a strong word, but I like you too much to simply say I like you."

Jinyoung shifted on her heels nervously, her fingers entwining.

"I, I hope you don't find this weird, and I hope this won't ruin what we have right now but," Jihoon looked Jinyoung in the eye. "I love you."

Jinyoung felt heat rush through her body, her cheeks flourishing with shades of pink. She looked down at her feet, then up again, and back down at her feet. Small words were muttered at the ground and Jihoon strained to hear them.

"What?" he asked softly.

"I said," Jinyoung exhaled. "It's fine because I l-love you too..."