Single Father • Namjoon + BTS!Kids

cxxviii.

Yoongi shrank into himself but nodded, refusing to meet her eyes. "It's just, I wanted to ask her, and you're the only one I could ask about it because I don't talk to any other girls and you're a girl so I figured you'd know..." He caught himself rambling and put a hand in front of his face, embarrassed and frustrated. "Never mind, it's stupid, forget it," he said, getting up and going to leave the room, but she stopped him with a gentle grip on his wrist.

"Wait, Yoongi-"

He turned, and she hesitated before dropping her hand. She didn't know if she was allowed to touch him. Still, she soldiered on. This was progress, right? "Yoongi, it's not stupid. I think it's wonderful that you want to ask a girl to the dance." She paused before gesturing to her bed. "Come, have a seat." She sat down slowly, waiting for him to follow suit, and he did a few long second later, slowly sinking down onto the mattress. "This girl. She must be special for you to want to ask her. What's she like?" she asked softly, and Yoongi was quiet for a long moment. Then he opened his mouth.

"She's...cool. Sort of chill. I don't know," he said quickly, his words spilling over each other as he stopped himself from saying more, his face still flushed. "She's normal."

Their mom smiled to herself before nodding for Yoongi, trying to appear like she wasn't overly excited, but she was, for lots of reasons. "All right. Have you thought about how you're going to ask her?"

Yoongi scowled. "That's what you're here for. I don't know. I thought about it but it all seemed wrong."

"What seemed wrong? Tell me what you were thinking."

Yoongi hesitated before putting his hands in front of his face and continuing by mumbling his way through them. "I was thinking about flowers but that's too much. I don't love her, I just think she's pretty and cool and she's a little dorky but it's sort of cute in a way and- ugh." He paused before adding, "I thought about leaving her a note in her locker or something, but what if it went missing? Or she could always just ignore it."

Their moment hesitated before speaking. "This is just from personal experience but...I think that whenever your feelings are involved, talking face-to-face works best. It's personal, and you have a chance to say exactly what you want however you want it."

Yoongi lowered his hands slowly, looking suspicious. "But what if I can't talk? Like, what if I choke up and I can't get a single word out?"

She smiled encouragingly. "In the moment, it'll be scary, but you need to use your courage. You're strong, Yoongi. Extremely strong. I see that every day when you take care of your brothers above yourself, and I know they see it too. So you have to use that strength. Like I said, it'll be scary, but it'll be worth it in the end. Even if she says no, you'll always have that experience-"

"Of being rejected?" he said dully, and she shook her head.

"Of being brave. Of being honest and vulnerable, of telling someone how much they mean to you."

"What if she says no, though?" he asked, looking scared and vulnerable and...not very Yoongi-like at all. It was a side of himself that he'd never allowed her to see.

Until now. "Then that's a shame because she couldn't find a better boy to go to the dance with," she said, smiling at Yoongi, and he sighed.

"That's great and nice and all, but...that would be so humiliating," he muttered. "She would tell all of her friends and everyone would know about it."

"Yoongi." She waited until they made eye contact. "You like this girl a lot, right?"

He didn't say anything but tightened his lips.