⚠️mentioning of physical abuse, brief mention of suicide attempt
The word 'healing' can have multiple paths of definitions.
Whether that be physically: healing the damage of a physical wound using the body's own biological processes.
Mentally/emotionally: sorting through the trauma inflicted on one's mind so that it no longer holds a prominent place.
Spiritually: taking the time to learn or understand one's self in all aspects to reach a better or higher state of mind.
No matter what path is taken, it can be defined as the personal experience of the transcendence of suffering.
The process one takes to overcome hardship.
Sometimes that looks like getting stitches at the doctor's office. Sometimes that looks like attending a therapy session. And sometimes, it's sitting in a quiet room with soft music, simply taking the time to reflect and breathe.
"Sometimes, we just need to take a beat. It's very easy for us, as humans, to become overwhelmed. Even more so for people who have been through trauma and haven't had a break since."
Harper remembers her therapist's words.
"So sometimes, it takes doing simple things that we haven't done in a while to start that process for us."
She takes a deep breath in as she sits on the living room floor, folding laundry and watching Onyx closely.
He's been crawling around much more. He's been babbling much more. Even though it's the same little syllables he's been saying, their frequency has increased.
Harper and Yoongi also noticed that since he's hit the ten month mark, he's been doing what Dr. Parker introduced to them as 'stimming'.
Initially, she wasn't sure if that's what it was being that it's common in infants.
But now they know that Onyx rocking back and forth, putting his blocks into mouth and squealing are how he 'stims'.
Since being told this, it's helped his parents narrow down what could be going on with him at the moment.
Maybe he's overwhelmed by something on TV. Maybe a light is bothering him. Maybe the fabric of his onesie against his thighs is bothering him.
Or simply, maybe he's excited to see one of the people he loves so much.
Or animals, to be precise.
"Meow."
Jewel walks into the living room and rubs his body along Onyx's side. The baby smiles and claps his hands as he watches him.
Harper grins, watching him as he giggles. "You see Jewel?"
Onyx looks at her as he smiles.
Jewel lays himself in front of Onyx and rolls onto his back.
"Be gentle, Onyx, remember?"
The baby puts his hands out and pats the cat's stomach. It sounds like he isn't being as gentle as he should be. But Jewel doesn't seem to mind too much.
"Look." Harper gets up, putting the folded clothes into the laundry basket.
She sits by Onyx and uses his hand to rub Jewel's stomach. The cat purrs in appreciation and Onyx gasps. His eyes widen and Harper starts to laugh.
Onyx moves his hand and crawls into his mother's lap.
"He's not going to explode." Harper chuckles.
Jewel gets up and starts to sniff him, starting with his face, of course. It's always the first place that he goes. His whiskers tickle the baby's face and he scrunches his nose and shakes his head.
"Aah!" He rubs his face and leans into his mother.
Harper wipes his cheeks for him and he grabs onto Jewel. He hugs the cat to himself and Jewel allows him to do so.
"Play nice, please. Mommy has to finish folding the clothes." She glances at the time on her phone and sighs.
Yoongi left this morning to meet Luca and Taehyung at the gym. He was up at around around seven o'clock and was supposed to meet the guys shortly after.
However, he became very easily distracted by Harper's supple thighs and ample chest lying against him.
Yoongi was supposed to meet the guys at the gym at eight but didn't even make it out of the bed until eight.
In his defense, he fell asleep for another twenty minutes before Harper work him up and reminded him that he had somewhere to be.
Groggily, he finally got up, showered and let the guys know that he was running late. To which they both replied that that was very obvious.
About two hours after he left, Eva called and asked if she could come over. She didn't have much to do that day and wanted to spend time with her.
"Harper?"
"Yeah?"
"How you work this damn blender?" Eva frowns as she looks at it.
"Uh.. I don't know. That's Yoongi's fancy one. The instructions are in that drawer in front of you somewhere."
"Where's the not fancy one?"
"I broke it... on accident."
"How do you break a blender?" Eva asks in disbelief.
"I don't-. Are you gonna buy me a new one or bully me 'bout the old one?"
"Both, at this rate." She pulls the instructions out of the drawer and opens up the pamphlet. "Actually, on second thought, let me not touch this one either. Can we just go to the smoothie bar?"
"Yeah, I'm almost done folding these clothes. Can you get Onyx ready for me, please? He just needs his sneakers on and his pacifier clip."
"Should I put a jacket on him?"
"No, it's 74 out. That long sleeved shirt should be enough. The wind isn't really blowing too much and we'll be inside anyway."
"It's gonna drop back down to 50 something next week and piss me off. Mark my words." Eva says as she walks over.
"I'll scream." Harper replies.
"Me and you both."
"Come on, Onyx. We gotta put your shoes on." Eva squats and holds her arms out for him.
Onyx stares at her for a second before giggling at her.
"Why are you laughing at me? What'd I do?" Eva smiles and Onyx puts his arms up for her.
"You look funny." Harper says.
Eva smacks her teeth. "I look just like you so now what?"
"Bye, Eva. Go put my baby shoes on."
"Mhm. That's what I thought."
Harper and Eva laugh as they continue their tasks. Harper finished folding the clothes and sets the basket on the couch. She puts a towel over it knowing that Jewel will use their freshly washed clothes as a bed as if he isn't shedding.
Eva puts Onyx's shoes on and clips his pacifier to his shirt pocket. All the while, he watches her with his fingers in his mouth.
"You have so many shoes." Eva comments as she picks him back up. "They're all soft bottoms, though. I should get you some shoes you can walk in. It's almost that time." She gasps suddenly.
"You'll be one soon."
The thought makes her both happy and sad. Of course, she's happy that she'll be able to celebrate his first birthday with him. But it also makes her sad. The last time she really had a relationship with her sister, she was newly pregnant.
"But you know what? That's okay." Eves says quietly. "Because we've got your whole life to celebrate."
She walks down the hall with him to find Harper putting her shoes on.
"You ready?" She asks.
"Yeah, I just have to put my shoes on." Eva says, handing Onyx to her. "Have you guys decided what you're doing for his birthday yet?"
"Kind of. We briefly discussed it like a week ago. We're stuck between a carnival theme and an aquarium party. Though, honestly, we'll probably veer more toward the aquarium thing."
"We have an aquarium here?" Eva asks as she ties her shoes.
"No. But they do in Yoongi's hometown. It's next to their science center but it's like its own attraction. The building is huge."
"Have you gone before?"
"No." Harper shakes her head. "We rode past it when we were there and then he suggested it for a party idea."
"Oh... when'd you go there?"
"For Christmas. We stayed through New Years at Yoongi's house there. Well, before he sold it. But we stayed there and spent the holidays with his family. They put up a stocking for me and Onyx. They bought him some toys and even babysat while Yoongi and I went on a date for New Years. Actually, I wonder if she's busy right now. Do you care if she comes with us?"
"That's fine. She's really nice. I like her. And she's funny."
"Okay. We'll stop over then to see." Harper puts Onyx in his car seat, grabs his diaper bag and they leave the apartment.
Harper knocks on Yoongi's apartment door and Mrs. Min answers.
"Oh, hello. Good morning." She smiles brightly. "It's good to see you, Eva."
"Good morning." Eva and Harper chorus with smiles.
"It's good to see you too, Mrs. Min."
"We're going to the Smoothie Bar and wanted to know if you want to come with us." Harper asks.
"I'd love to." Mrs. Min perks up. "Just let me grab my purse and jacket. Come in for a second."
Eva and Harper step into the apartment and Mr. Min peeks his head around the corner. Onyx sees his grandfather and screams with laughter.
"There's my favorite little guy."
"He's your only little guy." Mrs. Min reminds him.
"Don't be a killjoy." He says back quickly.
Mrs. Min's mouth falls open before she laughs. She smacks him with her bag and he chuckles as he walks over to the car seat. He pokes Onyx's stomach in greeting and the baby blows a raspberry in excitement.
"Hey, dude. You going out today? Are you going to have fun?" He gasps and claps his hands, knowing that Onyx will mirror him.
"Grandpa's going to go close on a house today so we can start moving our stuff. Then you can come over to your own room and cool toys."
"Oh, that is today, isn't it?" Harper says, suddenly remembering. "I totally forgot, Mrs. Min. I am so sorry. If you need to go to that, that's okay."
"I wasn't going to go. It's just the closing and getting the keys. We'll probably start moving in sometime this weekend. You think, honey?" She looks at her husband.
"Yeah. We can start on Friday. Loading the trucks up and everything. Yoongi said that he and Taehyung will be at work but Luca and one of his friends has offered to help us as well."
"If it's any of the guys from the wedding, you'll be good. Those guys were huge." Harper comments.
She doesn't think any of the men on Luca's side of the family were under six foot. It makes perfect sense considering the fact that his father is 6'2 and his mother is 5'11.
"They go to the gym all the time. They're there now, aren't they?" Mrs. Min asks.
"Yeah. Yoongi left this morning to go with them. I know that Tae and Luca are with. I'm not sure who else is there, though. Matteo went back to Italy last month."
"Matteo left with their mom and Luca's father is still here, I believe. Or he came back. One of the two." Mr. Min says. "We're going out for drinks tomorrow night. He's a great guy. And he's an even better businessman. Everything that family does thrives. It's incredible to see."
"Even Luca's mom does good business, too." Mrs. Min adds. "I hear she negotiated most of her husband's most recent contracts. The ones that pulled in thousands of dollars."
"Really? Actually I'm not surprised." Harper shakes her head. "She looks like she could talk a fish out of water. I can't tell you how many photos she convinced Matteo to be in despite his obvious dislike of them."
Mrs. Min puts her shoes and jacket on and grabs her purse. She kisses her husband goodbye before the three of them head down to the parking lot.
They take Harper's car, it being the closest to the door. Eva sits in the back seat with Onyx, playing with him as they ride.
When they get to the smoothie bar, she takes Onyx out of his car seat, as per the request of Harper. She hands him to his mother as they walk into the building.
"They have high chairs here, right?"
"Yeah, I'll go get one." Eva says. "We're sitting at a booth, right?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"I can help who's next." One of the cashiers says, looking at Harper and Mrs. Min.
There are three cashiers here, fitting for the the size of the building and the usual length of the lines. They've come at a good time, just before brunch rush. They've missed the breakfast one already.
Mrs. Min leads the way to the register and looks at the menu. Harper smiles at the cashier in greeting.
The woman has dark brown skin, much like herself and Eva. Her hair is black with dyed streaks of dark green in it. It's pulled back into a ponytail with a middle part. Her edges have been swooped and styled.
The bridge of her nose is a prominent feature that. She brings attention to it with the double piercing in her left nostril.
The tag pinned to her hat reads 'Aliyah'.
"I'll have that strawberry mango smoothie, please." Mrs. Min orders.
"Would you like fruit topping with that as well?"
"Yes, please."
"And for you?" The cashier, Aliyah, looks at Harper.
"I'd like to try the blueberry pomegranate smoothie."
"Ou, good choice. That one's my favorite." She smiles as she rings it in. "Do you want fruit topping on yours?"
"Uh, I'm not sure what that is, actually. This is my first time here."
"Oh! Well, welcome in. Our fruit topping is just small kind of frozen chunks of the fruits that come in your smoothie. They're not completely frozen, though. You can change them up if you'd like or not get any at all. It's totally up to you."
"Mm. What do you usually get?" She asks.
"I usually get some strawberry chunks on top actually. It gives it a little more sweetness."
"Okay, then I'll do that."
Eva walks over to them and Onyx squeals when he sees her. She smiles at him and he grins back, showing off his four teeth.
"Oh, you're the cutest." She pokes his cheek.
"Are you ordering with them, too, Eva?" The cashier asks.
Eva's cheeks warm as she's addressed by name. "I am."
"Are you getting your usual?" Aliyah asks, already tapping the screen of the register.
Harper glances to Eva. She must come often if she's known by name and her order is memorized.
"Yes." Eva says with a nod.
Aliyah looks up from the register as Eva grabs her card out. Mrs. Min takes some cash out of her wallet and Eva looks at her.
"I got it."
"You don't have to, sweetheart."
"It's okay. I'll pay for it. You guys go sit at the booth." Eva points to the seats she picked out.
"I'm giving you the money back later." Harper insists.
"It's fine, it's fine. I got it. Do you know how much money you've spent on me?"
"You're my little sister. Of course I'm going to do that."
"Only by three years, Harper. That's not anything."
Harper sighs as Onyx lays his head on her shoulder. "Fine. We'll go wait for you."
Harper and Mrs. Min walk to the booth and Eva turns back to the counter.
"Your sister looks different than in pictures." Aliyah tells her.
"She looks different in general." Eva replies. "She's got like.. mom beauty now or something. I don't know."
"Mom beauty?" Aliyah says with an airy chuckle.
Eva puts her card into the reader as she speaks.
"Yeah. I don't know how to explain it. It's like when you see your mom and think she's one of the most beautiful people in the world. The whole 'I want to be pretty like my mom when I get older' kind of thing. Harper's also just grown all the way into her pretty potential. If she gets any prettier, she'll be unstoppable."
"It must be fun having an older sister." Aliyah says as she looks at Harper. "I'm stuck being the middle child. Of boys at that." She rolls her eyes.
"Your brothers are cool, though. I've always wanted a brother. I love Harper to death but she'd never go paint-balling with me. Or fishing. Or hiking. Actually, I lied. She'd go and have fun because I want to go but I'd have to wait months to ask her to do something else like that."
"She likes the indoors, huh?" Aliyah says as the receipt for the transaction prints.
"Yeah. But that's okay. There's still plenty of other stuff for us to do together. And her boyfriend's really cool. I like him. He's really nice and Harper's so in love with him. If you watch them close enough, every time they look at each other, they smile a little bit. Ether they make eye contact or not."
"That's so sweet." Aliyah pokes her bottom out. "And their baby is so cute. Oh my God. His little teeth? Precious."
Eva takes the receipt and moves off to the side as Aliyah makes their drinks.
"Harper said they came in almost all at once. His first two were late and the second two were on time."
"That must've been hard for him."
"I imagine it was. But Yoongi and his parents got him special teething rings and things to help him through it."
"I respect him a lot." Aliyah says. "I haven't met him yet but still. To call Onyx his own with every intent to raise him as such? I love that."
Eva leans against the counter as she looks at Aliyah. The wind coming in from the open window blows her bangs from her forehead. Her long lashes bat rapidly in response. Her light brown eyes blink roll in annoyance.
"Speaking of meeting him, when is the next family dinner? I'm still sad I couldn't come to the last one." Aliyah looks over as she puts the ice into the blender.
Her eyes meet Eva's whose already looking at her. They stare at each other for a few seconds before Eva realizes she said something.
"Hm?" Her eyebrows raise as she stands up.
"You didn't hear anything I just said, did you?" Aliyah deadpans.
"I was listening... trying to..."
"Eva."
"You look really pretty today."
"I-." Aliyah opens her mouth and quickly closes it.
Her cheeks warm and she blinks at Eva, trying to maintain eye contact. Eva smiles at her and, unable to hold her composure, Aliyah looks away.
"I don't know when the next family dinner with all of us is going to be. I'll be done with the semester in a week then I'll have more time. It'll probably be on a Wednesday. That's when Harper and Yoongi are free during the week."
"Well, just let me know so that I can make sure I'm not scheduled that night."
"I will."
Aliyah makes the three smoothies and Eva watches as the fruit blends together. When she's finished, she puts the cups on a drink tray and sets it on the counter.
"Have you told her yet?" Aliyah asks quietly as she grabs straws.
Told her what? Is the first thing that Eva thinks to ask. But she knows exactly what Aliyah is talking about.
"I haven't." Eva responds. "But it isn't intentional." She says quickly , heart skipping in her chest.
Aliyah gives her a small smile and nods.
"I know." She says softly. She inhales through her nose and sighs as she cleans the counter off. "You just started talking to her again and it's probably hard to find the right time to really talk."
"It is." Eva agrees. "But this is also important to me. You're also important to me. So I'm going to talk to her soon. Tonight, actually."
"I don't want to force you to come out to her. I just don't like feeling like.. I don't know."
"You do know, and that's okay." Eva calls her out. "Nobody wants to feel like a secret, no matter how private the relationship is. You're not forcing me to do anything. I'll talk to her tonight. I promise."
"Okay." Aliyah says with a nod. "Are you still coming over after you leave her house?"
"Yeah. I told my parents I was going to your house after so they're not expecting me back home, anyway."
There's a pause of silence before Eva decides to just say what's on her mind.
"We could always move out on our own, Aliyah." She says, softly. Cautiously. "I'd support you until we got everything situated. We could just go-."
"I couldn't ask you to do that, Eva." Aliyah says. "And I think that your parents would be wary about that, anyway." Aliyah admits. "I don't want to upset them."
"They would be wary. But it's not because of you. They love you. It's just..."
"Harper's stupid baby daddy made them cautious." Aliyah says.
"Very much so." Evangeline nods as she grabs the tray.
"I haven't liked him since I heard about him. But we'll talk later." Aliyah says with a wave of her hand. "We don't have to talk heavy topics right now. Have fun with your sister anndd..."
"Her mother-in-law."
"Awe." Aliyah melts.
"Aren't they so cute?" Eva says as they look at Harper and Mrs. Min.
Harper attempts to sit Onyx in the high chair and he bends his back and yells. She smacks her teeth and looks at him. Mrs. Min starts laughing as she reaches for him. She sets him on the table next to her and he laughs when she coos at him.
In reality, she's telling him that 'your father's got you spoiled, huh?' To Onyx, all he's seeing is his grandmother smiling and making funny faces to him.
"They are." Aliyah agrees.
"You know, if we don't get to have dinner with everybody soon, you can also meet everybody at Onyx's birthday party."
"When is his birthday again?"
"The end of July. The 22nd."
"Okay, perfect. Let me know when the party is so I can take off that day."
"Alright. I'll see you tonight. I love you."
"I love you, too."
Eva leans over the counter and Aliyah hesitates.
"Gimme a kiss."
"But your sister-."
"Aliyah."
"'Kay." She quickly concedes and leans over to peck Eva's lips. It's a quick kiss that makes her cheeks hot, anyway.
Aliyah retreats to the back to take the blender and utensils to the sink to be cleaned.
Eva walks to the table and sets the tray down. Harper smiles at her as she sits next to her.
"This one is yours, Mrs. Min. This one is mine. And this one, is Harper's. Oh, she even gave us a little spoon for Onyx." Eva looks at it before looking back to the counter.
Aliyah isn't there but it makes Eva grin anyway.
"So," Harper says as she takes the wrapping from her straw. "You like her?"
Eva's face drops and she looks at her sister. Her eyes are wide and she blinks.
"Yes or no, big head?" Harper says as she puts her straw in her smoothie.
"Mama!" Onyx reaches for her and she puts the straw to his lips. She pinches it a little so that he doesn't get as much through it.
He sucks on the straw and tastes a little bit of it. The temperature startles him and he frowns initially.
"It's cold, I know." Harper tastes some. "But it's good. Here, try some more."
Onyx tries another sip and puts his hand on his stomach. He squeals with his mouth closed and claps his hands. The smile on his face is one of approval and Harper laughs with him.
"Good job, Bear." She praises.
"She's my girlfriend." Eva says as she puts her straw into her smoothie.
Harper's eyebrow quirks as she looks at Eva.
"I asked you when we had dinner together if you were seeing anybody else and you said it was complicated."
"Because it is." Eva defends. "I'll tell you more later when we get back to your house." She pulls her straw in and out of the lid before sipping.
Harper recognizes her sister's deflection and the hint of melancholy in her voice. Respecting her sister's privacy and tone, Harper drops the conversation.
It does however, bother her to know that something about the situation unnerves her sister to this degree.
######
6:17 P.M
After a long day of what was supposed to be only a smoothie bar visit, Harper sits across from Eva as they take out all of the clothes they bought for Onyx.
Said infant is laying on the carpet, hugging Jewel as his blinking slows. He's almost asleep.
Almost.
Harper and Eva carefully take the tags from the new clothing and toss them into an empty Baby Gap bag.
"So.." Harper starts after a few seconds of quiet.
It took her a little while to process what Eva had just told her. The information was kind of heavy, even for her who isn't apart of the situation. So she can't imagine what Eva and Aliyah are going through themselves.
"If her parents found out that she was a lesbian, they'd send her away?"
"Mhm." Eva hums.
"But how would that even work? You guys are the same age, right? She's 20?"
"She's 21, but her parents are trying to get her under a conservatorship. They keep threatening her with it."
"What?!" Harper is completely appalled by the information. "For what?"
"Because they're ridiculously conservative and they bully her into submission. In November, she attempted..." Eva cuts herself off, getting upset by the though alone. "She usually stays on campus during the semester. But during the November break, her parents told her she wouldn't be allowed to next semester."
"Why?"
"She went to the gym and was working out, but she got hot so she took her sweatshirt off. She had on a sports bra under it and there was only like one guy there because it was a slow hour, I guess. But I guess her brother saw her and told her father. They called her all kinds of nasty names, they took her phone, they took her laptop. When she came back to school, her skin was bruised up." Eva's voice thickens as she looks at her sister.
"We were supposed to do homework together one night so I went to her dorm and I found her. I had to call the police because I didn't know what else to do. But the school called her parents. They told her that they were disappointed in her but made her stay at school. I didn't understand that and I couldn't decide if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Both, honestly, I guess."
Eva wipes her cheeks with her sleeves and Harper watches as her own eyes water.
"She wants to leave but she's scared. They keep saying they'll put her under the conservatorship because of her mental health. Her brothers are no help at all and they never have her back because their parents are so lenient on them because 'they're men'. Her parents have access to all of her bank accounts because they said she 'spends money on frivolous things'. They'll do anything to protect their family image to their church friends and family. I want to help her but I don't know what to do, Harley."
"Did you tell mom and dad?"
"No. I don't want to make it worse for her and you know how they are. I'm scared, too."
"Well, we have to tell someone, Evangeline. This is wrong. It's like blackmail. This is illegal." Harper realizes. "Aliyah's legally a grown adult woman. Some part of this has to be illegal."
"I don't know." Evangeline says, wiping her eyes. "I'm just scared that it's going to get worse. I get to see her now because I go when her parents aren't home."
"Eva, you're putting yourself in danger going there. The both of you are in danger there."
Eva stops rubbing her eyes and looks at Harper. There's not an ounce of playfulness in her eyes. The expression on her face is much harder than she's typically seen it. In truth, she doesn't think that she's ever seen this look on Harper.
"You shouldn't go over there anymore and she shouldn't be there, either." Harper stands up and grabs her phone, dialing someone in her contacts.
"What are you doing?" Eva stands up and follows her into the kitchen. "You can't call the police."
"I'm not."
"Hello?"
Yeonjun's voice comes through the speaker.
"Yeonjun, I need legal advice and I need it fast."
"Oh-.. kay. What's going on?"
Harper explains the shorter version of what Eva's just told her and Yeonjun is left stunned for several seconds before he responds.
"Well, you can get her out of the house but that doesn't mean she'll stay or tell the truth to authorities to keep herself out." Yeonjun explains. "Things like this are rooted in fear and manipulation; both mental and emotional."
"So we can go get her?"
"Harper-."
"Yes or no, Yeonjun."
Yeonjun sighs and pushes his hair back from his forehead as he paces his office. He looks at the time on the clock and rubs his forehead.
"No, you cannot. Send me the address and I'll go down to the police station myself." He grabs his jacket off the back of his chair.
"Okay. I'll text it to you."
"Alright."
Harper ends the call and Yeonjun puts his phone into his pocket. He walks out of his office and down the hall. The thick soles of his sneakers thud against the hardwood floor as he walks.
At the end of the hallway is a set of mahogany wood double doors, with thick golden handles and a print reader to match the rest of the luxe decor.
Next to the door, uniform with every other office in the three story building, is a gold plaque with a name on it.
Luciano Costa
Founding Lawyer
Yeonjun raises his fist to knock on the door but is halted by a thick Italian accent.
"You can just come in, Yeonjun. I know the sound of your soles on every floor."
Yeonjun swallows thickly and puts his hand on the handle.
He's been working at the firm for a few weeks now and he's been nothing less than welcomed with open arms. The plaque was made for his door three days after his interview. His golden name plate was waiting for him on his desk when he arrived for first day of work.
His picture for his work ID was taken on the second day and ready on the fourth. His picture for the 'wall of lawyers' was also taken on the second day. That poster sized image was printed with gloss, framed and hung up on the wall by the end of his first week.
He'd never felt more welcomed by anybody.
With the exception of his fiancée's family, of course.
But even still, speaking to Mr. Costa one on one, with him being his boss, is intimidating. He doesn't have very good experience being in this situation.
It makes him easily nervous, easily overwhelmed.
Yeonjun opens the door to Mr. Costa's office to find the older man sitting behind his office chair. He hasn't looked up from his paperwork once. Not even when he addressed Yeonjun to come into the room.
"Good evening, lawyer Choi."
"Good evening, Mr. Costa."
"What can I do for you, son?" He stops writing and looks up at him.
"Well, I was wondering.. um..."
Yeonjun puts his hands in his pockets, fumbling with his phone. He looks at the clock on the wall, watching the second hand tick by.
Even though it's only mere seconds, it feels like a useful minute passes with each ticking sound.
"I don't know how unorthodox this situation could get.. but I've never seen experienced such a situation before and I need help on how to navigate this."
Mr. Costa sits up straighter in his chair. He puts his pen down and takes a deep breath. His eyebrows crinkle together as he assesses Yeonjun's body language.
Nervous, yet in an impatient sense of urgency.
"What's going on?"
Yeonjun explains the situation that was explained to him and Mr. Costa stands up, adjusting his cuff links.
"What time will her parents be home?"
"Harper's sister said that they usually get home at around 11 at night."
"Well, then I guess that we should go and get this young lady sooner rather than later, shouldn't we?"
"Yes, sir."
"We'll take my car." Mr. Costa insists. "More space for her belongings." He explains with a soft smile.
Yeonjun walks with him out of the office. His phone buzzes in his pocket and he takes it out to look at it. Harper has texted him the address which he relays to his boss.
"Alright. What is her name?" Mr. Costa asks.
Yeonjun texts Harper who responds quickly.
"Aliyah Primm."
"After we pick Miss Primm up, do not tell Harper and her sister where we take her. Not until things we settle things on the legal end. If anything is already in process in the courts on her parents' end, they do not need to be held as accomplices."
"Okay." Yeonjun nods in understanding. "Thank you." He expresses his gratitude as they leave the building.
"Ah, no need. This may be a law firm but we are like family here. We are family here. And family have each other's backs, no?"
Yeonjun holds his hand on the passenger door as he looks at Mr. Costa. From across the top of the car, Mr. Costa looks at in return.
All that it takes is this one moment, this singular brief moment for Yeonjun to understand what Yoongi and Taehyung do.
And though they understand not much of anything at all about the world of the Costas, they understand just enough.
"Yes..." Yeonjun replies.
"They do."
A|N
#One final moment I wanted to play out to finish off Yeonjun's plot arc. He'll be very well taken care of and respected with Mr. Costa and his firm :)
#I saw a lot of the comments shipping Eva and Matteo. I'd like to point out that Matteo is older than Luca and Luca and Delilah are both 33😭 Eva was only mentioned to be Harper's younger sister. I never specified exactly how old but yeah
#T minus one plus the epilogue. But if it helps to ease your hearts at all... maybe.. possibly...