It's been six months. Almost? Daegu had been an absolute bliss. She loved everyday of it. Jennie was happy. Very happy.
She and her grandmother finally reconnected. She reunited with a couple friends who still lived in Daegu after high school. She visited Taehyung's mother a lot. Taehee and her spent a lot of time together.
Everything was nice. But of course, nothing was ever perfect. And right now she was happy...but her life lacked a few important things.
She missed phone calls from Irene, ones telling her about what she would be seeing today in the infirmary. She (strangely) missed arguing with Dahyun, eating lunch with Lalisa, meetings that consisted of joking around with Hoseok and Yoongi, making childish bets with Jeongguk, and staying up late watching sad romance movies with Taeyong.
Jennie missed the charm called Taehyung. His smile. His brown eyes. She missed his smell of a fresh breeze, and seemed to only be obvious whenever she was pressed against him. His curly brown hair. And his lips — yes, Jennie missed his lips.
She missed their late night walks. His car. His room. Eating dinner in her kitchen. Drinking coffee in the afternoon together. Practicing in the arena together.
They talked everyday. It wasn't the same, it would never be the same. And she missed him everyday, but at the same time she was so happy.
"Kim Jennie, are you daydreaming again?" Mina snapped her fingers in front of the brunette, she sat up abruptly. Then she smiled apologetically.
"Sorry. What were you saying?"
"H2O. It's a club. The three of us, let's go."
"I'm not single." Jennie sighed. "You two can go."
Jaebeom's eyes widened, turning to Jennie with a pleading look. "No, please come."
Lim Jaebeom and Mina Myoi were longtime childhood friends of her and Taehyung. Though a lot of time had passed between them, their recent reunion made it feel like they had never parted.
"You need to tell me who your partner is." Mina sighed. "I don't know why you're not telling me. If it's a girl...I honestly don't care."
"It's not a girl." Jennie laughed. "I'll introduce you to him in good time. Be patient."
"Jennie, please come with us. Things are always boring without you."
"Are you saying that I am an exciting person, Jaebeom?"
"If that convinces you to come; then yes."
She always suspected there was something going on between the two. Jaebeom himself was very attractive. His hair had grown out compared to high school, but his personality had not changed. He was still as shy as before. Mina had become the polar opposite. Jennie always used to believe she was the pretty one of the four, but rather than being the shy one...she was now the most outgoing one of them all.
"It does." Jennie beamed. "I'll come. Maybe something interesting will happen."
•
And something interesting indeed would happen. Jennie marveled at the site, and how similar it looked to SBS. Red and purple strobe lights decorated the walls, loud music booming through the speakers.
Jennie entered linking arms with Mina. The other was wearing a skirt and crop top, but Jennie settled with dark ripped jeans, a long coat, and a pair of heels which Taehyung had given as a birthday present. He always had a good taste in fashion.
"You look like you don't want to be here." Jaebeom noted, eyeing her ensemble. Jennie let out a laugh.
"Jae, maybe I don't want attention drawn to me." She grinned. "Please go talk to Mina. It's so obvious she likes you."
"It's easy for you to say."
"It really isn't." Jennie mused. "But knowing you, you won't. I might just have to ask Mina."
He pouted, then sipped at his drink. "I will go ask her to dance." So now she challenged him. Good job Jennie.
The brunette grinned again. "That's the spirit." As the taller left, her phone buzzed. She glanced down at it, and involuntarily a smile spread.
tae
are you doing anything?
jennie
i'm designated driver for
mina and jaebeom today
tae
you're at a club?
tae
don't have too much fun :(
jennie
how could i, you're not
even here
She sat a table, where they had left all their belongings. Jennie wasn't really here to party or have fun, but she did enjoy watching the two enjoy themselves. She couldn't personally see any of the duo, but she hoped that they were together. They reminded Jen of her high school romance.
Innocent and sweet.
Ever since she left Seoul, her mind would travel back to her adventures of being a member of Bangtan. That chapter of life hadn't ended yet, it was only at a pause. But it had been so enthralling while it had been happening.
The awkward tension around her and Taehyung in the beginning. She remembered when she couldn't even breathe while being in the same room as him. Then she shot a sniper who had tried to kill him. That's when things changed she supposed. It became appallingly obvious how much danger he dealt with on a daily basis. And that had scared her a little. Was she ready to fall for a man who could disappear just like that?
But by that time, it had already been too late for her to back out.
Afterwards, she found out that Lalisa was Taehyung's half sister. It suddenly made sense why he was protective over her. But she showed her true strength, it made Jennie wonder what Lisa had gone through when she lived in Thailand. Lisa didn't talk about it, but that was a story she would be willing to listen when the girl was ready.
Now that Baekhyun was gone, Jennie wouldn't have expected to see herself living the next few months away from everyone. But she needed this break; more than anyone else.
Jennie diverted her energy away from her thoughts when a loud commotion caught her eyes. Mina?
"I told you to get away from him!"
"This club is a public space." The other girl sneered. "I'll touch whatever I want."
"What's going on here?" Jennie tiredly called, slipping her hands into her pockets. She made her way into the center of the circle, Mina sighed in relief at the sight of the brunette.
"Jaebeom looked so uncomfortable around her. I..." She looked at the man behind her once, who looked beyond embarrassed. Jennie already understood what was happening.
"Yah. Don't dance with guys who aren't single." Jennie smirked. "There's so many other people to dance with at the club."
"What?" Both Mina and other spoke at once. Jennie gave them a warning glance.
"They're dating?" The girl scoffed. "I don't know who the hell you are, but I know that's bullshit."
"Don't believe me. But that's your loss, I was just trying to help you—" Jennie was interrupted when the girl slapped her. Surprised, she raised a hand to her cheek, then laughed, closing her eyes.
"Are you drunk? Because you definitely made a mistake doing that." She grabbed the girl's arm suddenly, curling it behind her back. Mina watched the fight, surprised.
"I knew she took taekwondo lessons, but I didn't realize she was this good."
"I..." Jaebeom bit his lip. "About what Jennie said earlier. She wouldn't be completely wrong, would she?"
Mina turned to him, surprised. "Wait, really?"
"I don't know what that means..."
She scoffed. "Finally. I was wondering when you would ask. Yes, I'll be your girlfriend. Let's go watch a movie tomorrow."
"My name is Jennie." She whispered mischievously in the fallen girl's ear. "If you try to come near Mina or Jaebeom again, I will hurt you again."
"Yah, Kim Jennie. Why is it that you always cause a scene at clubs?"
Jennie fought the smile on her face, laughing under her breath. Then she turned, along with Mina and Jaebeom.
"No way." Jaebeom looked surprised. "Kim Taehyung?"
"Shut up!" Mina looked between Jennie and Taehyung. "Don't tell me...he's—"
Jennie smirked, reaching out a hand to Taehyung. "Meet my boyfriend."
•
Mina and Jaebeom were long gone, now it was just the two of them walking together. She was the first to speak.
"This is a surprise. I didn't think you would stop by."
"I missed you." He answered simply, staring at the view ahead. "Nothing much has been happening in Seoul, and I wanted to see my mom for a few days."
"Ah, I see." The brunette stopped suddenly, then wrapped her arms around his torso. "I missed you too."
"Is your grandma home?"
"No. Her friends in Andong wanted to meet up, so she left this morning."
"So it'll be just us at your place then?"
"I guess. Unless you wanted to go spend the night with your mom. I don't mind."
"I'll just stay with you. It's been a while anyways." He beamed. "There's a lot you've missed since you left. When do you think you'll come back?"
The brunette looked at him, letting the smile spread across her face too. "Maybe soon. I can't stay away forever, can I?"
"I was hoping you'd say that." Jennie glanced at their surroundings, recognizing the park that they had walked past sometime ago. Near there was where she had dumped him after high school. There was also where he asked her to be her girlfriend a few months ago.
So a lot had happened between them.
"You know, I was talking to your grandmother a lot lately." He spoke up, staring at the same scene she was. Jennie looked at him.
"I was actually planning this for a bit of time now. I asked her if she liked me."
"What kind of question is that?" Jennie snorted. "Sometimes I feel like she likes you more than me."
"I know." Taehyung laughed. "I also asked her if she saw me as a son."
She took a small step away from him, turning her body to face him. "Tae, wh—"
"I want to marry you." The taller boy breathed. "I know I wasn't ready to say it back then, but I love you Jennie. It hasn't changed. When we broke up after high school, I tried hard to move on. But I literally couldn't settle down with anyone else without getting reminded of you. So I just opted to forget about you."
"By the time I came to that conclusion, it was too late. Lalisa introduced you into my life once again. Not that I mind though," He grinned nervously. "this part of my life has been the most interesting."
"You're not pranking me, are you?" Jennie's hands were shaking. "I swear, if you are, I will actually hurt you."
"No, I'm being serious. I even brought the ring." Taehyung pulled the box out of his pocket. "I don't really think doing fancy, extra gestures is our thing. I thought this would be more...us."
"It is." Jennie snatched the box from him, opening it. "I forget that you're rich sometimes, this ring is fancy." She grinned at him. "Okay. You have my consent."
"Jennie, you're the weirdest girl I know. We're you going to say no if I didn't bring a ring?"
"No. But maybe now that mention it...I might've." She elbowed him. "Kim Taehyung, i did not expect this from you."
"Yeah I didn't either." Jennie couldn't break away from his intense stare. "But you make me do things that even I don't see coming."
"When I saw you again after seven years, I was mad at you. I was mad because you were still the same, and every time I saw you I felt threatened that I would lose my intimidating appearance. I guess I did lose it, because you stole it from me and threw it away. You're a thief Jennie Kim. You took everything from me and made it yours."
"Which is a good thing I believe. Had I stayed like the way I had been, I don't think that would've been good for anyone. I was still a good guy at heart, but I had a really hard time showing it until you reentered my life."
"Jennie, you changed me. Thank you."
a/n: one more chapter 🥺