Sudden Change

Jungkook arrived at the cafe Aera asked him to wait and he ordered a cup of hot cappuccino latte. He reached there 15 minutes early so he still had time to drink his latte while waiting for Aera's arrival.

Actually, he was curious why Aera wanted to meet him all of the sudden. Usually, they'll just keep in touch by messaging each other or making some phone calls when they have time. But today, she requested to meet him face to face.

Not longer after that, he saw a figure that looked exactly like Aera. No, it was really her. He cleared his throat and repaired his loose tie. "Hey, good afternoon " Jungkook smiled to the girl who just sat across him. She smiled back and put her handbag to the side. "Afternoon too, kook " she said nicely.

At the same time, the waitress came to their table to give Jungkook his order. "Here's your latte, Sir. " the girl with a white cap said as she looked at Aera up and down. She probably thought Aera was Jungkook's girlfriend and got jealous.

"I'm sorry for disturbing you when you're working. I just really need to talk to you. " Aera said as the start of their conversation. Jungkook shook his head and raised his hand. "It's okay, I've done a few things earlier so I have time. No worries " he said to Aera.

She sighed in relief. She actually didn't want to be a burden to Jungkook despite she knows that Jungkook is a kind hearted man. He would never say no to someone who is in need.

"So, why do you suddenly want to meet me? I know there's something important you need to tell me, right? " Jungkook asked and leaned closer to her.

Aera tightened her grip on the glass as she began to speak. "I want to ask you about Jimin. Tell me about his past and everything about him that I don't know " she said, somehow sounded like demanding.

"Why? " It was the only thing Jungkook could ask her.

"Because I overheard your conversation with him yesterday " Aera answered which Jungkook found was shocking. He thought she wasn't there when they talked. He let out a small gasp as his eyes went wild. "What did you hear? " Jungkook asked more to know how deep did she heard their conversation. Aera slid her cup away from her sight and scoffed.

"I heard everything, kook. His wounds, marriage, his problems that would affect his future— what's that? Why he never tells me? Am I not important? " she asked in confusion. Jimin told her that he loves her. But he didn't share this important thing with her and she doesn't like that idea of him.

Jungkook sighed. "He do loves you, Aera. It's just— he doesn't have the urge to tell you the truth. He's afraid "

"Afraid of what?! " Aera thought it was just an excuse.

"He's afraid of losing you. He's afraid you will leave him after knowing the hurtful truth. Trust me, no matter what, you'll end up leaving him alone. " Jungkook blurted his heart out. Aera was taken back by his words as her brain was trying to process what did he says. "Me? Leaving him? No way. What make him thinks like that? Why would I leave him? He doesn't— trust me? " her heart broke a bit. She started to feel that there was a lump in her throat that insisted her to cry.

"He do trust you, Aera. It's just, something you'll never understand. " Jungkook sighed. He found it was hard for him to tell her the truth. He thought it was easy but when he faces it, he knows how hard it is to tell someone about the truth that was hidden for a long time.

"Then make me understand, Jungkook. " Aera said as she put her hand on his hand that was lay on the table. Jungkook looked up at her and stared into her desperate eyes. She really wanted to know what was happening and all the secrets that Jimin hid from her.

She deserves to know the truth, it was what Jungkook thought in his mind. He clenched his fist and forced himself to tell her. "Look at your necklace " he spoke. Aera did what he told her and looked back at him. "Why is with my necklace? " she asked.

"Do you remember where you got it? Or who gave it to you? " he asked her. Aera took a moment to remember, but she ended up shaking her head showing that she didn't remember anything. "I don't remember " .

Jungkook took his bag that was on his lap and took out a small pouch bag. He inserted his hand into it and pulled out a small red rose. Aera furrowed her brows, "Rose? " she asked. "It seems familiar to you, right? " Jungkook asked her even he had already know the answer.

"Yes, Jimin always paints a boy holding a red rose. Does it makes any sense? I can't connect the theory you're trying to tell. Can you just straight to the point? " Aera suggested and Jungkook smirked. "This little rose may look simple for us. But it means a lot to Jimin" he stated.

"And it's related to the necklace you're wearing " he added.

"Now, let me tell you the truth. " he whispered as he began to talk.

I looked down at my chest where my necklace was placed. I heaved a sigh. Did all the things Jungkook said was true? It was hard for me to believe him, but I know I need to trust him because he'll never lie to me.

I rested myself on the bed and looked up at the ceiling. He hates his dad, wounds, rose, necklace, soul, his dark paintings—

They make sense now. I've solved the mystery that had been hunting me since the first day I stepped into this house. No wonder he tended to live alone before. I knew it already.

I flipped myself on the bed and snuggled in the blanket. I was still stuck with the truth. That was why he didn't want to tell me.

Now I know why his paintings are majority based on darkness, nightmares, fears and worries. And now I understand why we always had the same nightmare.

I gained so much pressure and stress after knowing the story. I didn't what I should do as his partner. Should I stay with him? Or leave him? I only had two choices. It wasn't easy as yes or yes, but it's whether live or die. My decision was that hard though.

I groaned and hit the pillow with my hands. It was the only way I could do to express my anger. I was clueless. Should I get mad or, should I just let it be. I don't know, it was difficult for me to decide.

Jimin just got back from office after working hard for the whole day. He then walked into the house and grabbed some water to quench his thirst that he had been holding for the past few hours.

He looked around and spotted Uncle Seon who was in the kitchen with Mrs Song. They were both cooking for dinner. "Hey, what are you guys doing? " he asked, trying to peek on the foods.

"We planned to cook lasagna for dinner. We're just preparing the ingredients since we just got back from Supermarket. " Uncle Seon answered, his eyes were focusing on cutting the beef.

Jimin nodded. "It sounds delicious. But, how about I bring you guys out for dinner? " he suggested and both of Uncle Seon and Mrs Song stopped their actions. They exchanged their looks and slowly turned to Jimin who was standing behind him. They were shocked. It was the very first time Jimin invited them to eat outside together with him. "What do you mean, Sir? " Uncle Seon asked for confirmation.

"I want us to eat outside. Why? Don't you like it? I've booked the restaurant anyway. So you can't say no " Jimin stated.

"No, of course we like that idea. But, you sure you want to bring us? We're just workers here. Don't you feel ashamed going out with us? " Uncle Seon asked.

His question made Jimin questioned himself. Am I that bad? Why'd he thinks like that?

He sighed. "Of course I'm not, Uncle. I grew up with you. Why should I feel shy going out with you? Stop talking nonsense and get ready now. " he ordered and went upstairs to inform Aera.

They reached the restaurant Jimin booked earlier. All of them got out from the car and walked to the main door together. "This restaurant looks so fancy " Mrs song mumbled to herself as she was adored by all the trendy decorations.

A man was already waiting at the main door, ready to serve them. "Goodnight, Mr Park and.. " he looked at Aera, Uncle Seon and Mrs Song.

"Family " he ended his sentence.

"Let me lead you to your table. " he bowed nicely to them and walked into the air conditioner building. The restaurant was pretty big since it's one of Seoul's famous restaurant. It was still new and it is owned by one of Jimin's high school friends. So Jimin wanted to support his business by bringing his whole small family to eat there.

"Park Jimin? I can't believe you actually come! Thank you " a tall handsome man said as he shook his hand with Jimin. He turned to Aera and smiled.

"Is this your girlfriend? " he asked, still had the sweet smile on his face. "My fiancee " Jimin said as he wrapped his arm around her slim waist.

"He's Kim Seokjin, my high school friend. " Jimin introduced them to each other. Aera nodded slowly and smiled at Seokjin. "I'm Kim Aera. Nice to meet you " she said.

"Oh, so we have Kims here " Seokjin giggled but none of Jimin and Aera laughed. So he cleared his throat and pretended like nothing really happened then leaded them to their table.

"I hope you guys enjoy the foods here because I only serve delightful meals to customers. Have fun and call me if anything is wrong. " Seokjin winked and walked away to let them had some privacy time.

"It's a lot of food " Mrs Song grinned at her sight.

"Well, I bought it all for us. So, let's eat and forget about the diet shits. " Jimin laughed and they began to eat. Just by taking the first bite, it was enough to impress them. The foods were all delicious and mouth watering.

"I think we should learn how to cook a soft steak like this. Or should we go to cooking class? " Mrs Song asked Uncle Seon while enjoying her meal. Uncle Seon smiled, "I'm busy. You can just go alone. " he said and Mrs Song rolled her eyes quietly.

"Well, you can go with Mrs Song if you want. I can drive by my own to work. Don't worry about me " Jimin interrupted as he overheard their conversation. Mrs Song choked on her food and drank the water. "It's okay, Sir. I was just joking. " she stated and wiped her mouth with a piece of tissue. "But, I mean what I said. Uncle Seon has been working for me for a very long time. So why not if I give him some rest, right? Besides, you rarely take some days off. " he turned to Uncle Seon.

The old man smiled at him and put the fork down. "It's okay, Sir. I love working with you. I don't need any days off. It makes me feels awkward if I do nothing at home. " he insisted.

"If you said so, I can't do nothing then. Just so you know that you can take some rests in case you're tired or sick. "Jimin added and Uncle Seon nodded his head, showing that he understands.

For the whole dinner session, Jimin had noticed that Aera didn't talk much like she always did. She just focused on her foods and kept glancing at Jimin.

He can't deny that he felt a bit awkward when Aera didn't talk to him. But he just claimed that maybe she was on her period and didn't have mood to talk. So he just let her stayed quiet without asking for the reason.

When they were done eating, they decided to go back home since their stomach were already full. "We're heading home, right? " Uncle Seon asked to see if Jimin suddenly changed his mind. Jimin nodded and turned to Aera who sat beside him. "Do you want to go anywhere? " he asked

Aera stopped drinking her drink and seemed like to say something. "Can we go to Namsan tour for awhile? "

It's the place couples usually go to spend their time and lock their love there. It's not a believe, it's just a tradition Korean people do when they are in relationships.

Aera asked Uncle Seon and Mrs Song to leave them there meanwhile both of them go home. She wanted to spend some time with Jimin and didn't want anyone to hear their little conversation.

"Why do you want to come here? All of the sudden? " Jimin asked as they walked side to side with their hands holding onto each other.

Aera slowly rested her head on his shoulder and continued walking. She took a few seconds before answering his question. "I just want to spend time with you. That's all." she said.

Jimin stopped his steps and turned to Aera. "What do you mean? We can also spend time at home, right? " he asked. He could feel there was something wrong in her voice. It was like ; she was trying to tell something but she was hiding it from his knowing.

Aera smiled. "Yes, but I heard couples usually come here to spend quality time with their partners. So— I bring you here. To spend time " she finished her sentence.

Jimin sighed and held her hands. "Is there something you're hiding from me? You act different since this noon. What's wrong? Why you don't tell me? " Jimin asked.

Aera giggled softly. "Me? Hiding a secret from you? What make you think that? Of course I don't hide anything. But, do you— have ever hide something from me? Like, a secret or something? " she asked.

His expression changed when she said that. She sounded like she had know the truth. But it's impossible because he had warned Jungkook to not telling her. He gulped. "Why are you saying that? " he asked seriously, looking into her eyes to see if she was telling him the truth.

She didn't respond at first. It took her a minute to answer him. "Haha, just asking. Why do you look so nervous? Did I look fierce huh? " Aera laughed, playfully hitting his chest. At first, he didn't laugh. But seeing Aera acting normal, he thinks that maybe she doesn't know anything.

"That was not funny " he laughed as he slowly tickled her tummy. "Ow, don't do that. We're in public. You're a public figure, people might catch you like this. Doing stupid stuffs " Aera laughed and tucked his tongue out at Jimin.

He rolled his eyes, "I don't mind. At least they know I'll only be stupid when I'm with you " he said as he started to chase her.

"No! Don't chase me. You won't get me anyway. I'm a fast runner " Aera yelled while running away from him.

"I'm way faster than you. Watch out, I'm gonna catch you and eat you!" Jimin growled playfully as he kept running to get her.

"It's not fair! Your legs are totally longer than me. That's why you can run fast! " Aera whined after getting caught by Jimin.

"You were the one who wants to compete with me. I just did as you wish " he scoffed and took another bite of his ice cream. Aera groaned and turned away. "Still, not fair" she muttered.

As she finished her ice cream, she went to the trash bin nearby to throw the cup. Then, her eyes suddenly spotted someone interesting. Her pupils grew wide in excitement and she ran to Jimin.

"Hey, want to make something fun?! " she asked excitedly.

Jimin narrowed his eyes to right and left then asked "What? "

Aera grinned at him and pulled him by his arm. "Let's go there! " she clapped her hands and leaded Jimin to a very big gate that was full with love lockers. Jimin had no clue about what was the gate was about. "What are these things? Why it's full with colorful lockers? They're too bright" he commented after looking at it.

Aera rolled her eyes and started explaining. "It's called love gate. Couples will buy a love locker then write their names on it. Then, they'll lock it on this big gate " she said as kicked the gate with her feet playfully.

"Really? " Jimin crossed his arms. "Now I see how it works. " he spoke then looked back at Aera. "Do you want to do that too? " he asked.

"Of course! " Aera nodded

"Okay then, let's buy you some lockers " Jimin giggled as they went to the small shop that sell cute lockers

They bought about 5 lockers but Aera just wanted one locker to be put on the gate. "I think I'll take the biggest one. " she said

"Here, write your name on it " she said and handed Jimin a marker pen. "Where? Here?" Jimin asked to make sure he wrote it on the right spot. "Yeap" Aera nodded.

When Jimin was done, she took the locker back and wrote her name under his name.

"Perfect. It looks cute " she said and kissed the locker.

"Now, we can lock it!! " she said, pulling Jimin's hand towards the big gate. "I want you to be the one who lock our love on this gate. " Aera stated and give him the key. Jimin looked at her, "You sure? " he asked.

"Yes! " she answered right away.

Nodding his head, he locked the locker and Aera clapped her hands when he was done. "Yay yay yay! We locked our love here! " she cheered up.

"Why you look so happy? " Jimin asked.

"Nothing, just want to make sure we have something together. At least if one of us is gone, we still have memories to be remind here. " Aera said and Jimin froze.

"Why'd you say that? Gone? What do you mean? " he absolutely didn't like it when Aera said things like that. She stopped clapping her hands and turned to Jimin.

"Yes, gone. Nothing is permanent in this world, Jimin. That's why I want us to make some memories here. At least when I'm not around, you can come here and find our love locker " she said.

Jimin was confused when she said that thing. "Why are you saying this? Are you going to leave me? " he asked.

"Of course not. I told you I'll never leave you. It's just, in case if anything happens to me. "

"No. Nothing is going to happen to you and you're not going to leave me. Understand that? Stop saying nonsense stuff because I don't like it. " Jimin insisted on his words. Aera sighed.

"Yeah, I'm not going to let anything happen to you too. Let's stay together, forever. Okay?? " Aera asked as her voice lowered a bit.

Jimin sighed softly and nodded. "Yeah. Sure " he pulled her closer to his chest and hugged her.

"Remember, none of us will leave. Okay? "

"Okay "

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