Chapter 14

"Taehyung, Jungkook & Hanuel reached to Seoul city mall., "When your shopping is complete, inform me half an hour in advance. I will come to pick you both up." Taehyung said to Jungkook." "Okay" Jungkook replied. As he was about to exit the car, something suddenly struck him, and he extended his hand in front of Taehyung with a mischievous smile. Taehyung, perplexed, looked at Jungkook as if questioning his intentions. Jungkook then, wearing a devilish smile, said, 'Give me your credit card for shopping." Taehyung looks at him with surprise. It was not that Jungkook was asking him for something for the first time. But today he was directly asking for his credit card even though he had a good balance in his own bank. Because he himself is an actor and had a good income but still why was he asking him for his credit card today. It impossible that he did not have money. Seeing Taehyung so confused, Jungkook pouted and said, " You are so stingy. You are sending your wife for shopping empty handed." Taehyung's driver burst out laughing after hearing what he said. Taehyung glared at him, the poor guy sat silently with his head down. Taehyung looked at Jungkook and said, "I will transfer the money to your account right away." Saying this, he takes out his phone from his pocket when Jungkook suddenly says, "No, there is no need for that. I already have enough balance in my account." Taehyung looked at him confused and asked, "But you just said that I am sending you empty-handed for shopping." "Aish! Now how can I explain to you that no matter how much money your wife has, he can only experience the true pleasure of shopping by paying with her husband's credit card," Jungkook said, showing his bunny teeth. Jungkook excitedly says to Taehyung, "Come on, take out your credit card. By the way, I'm thinking about how shocked they will be after seeing your card," Jungkook said. Then Hanni says, "Mumma, why does dadda need to do it on his own? Who will issue a credit card to dadda?" After hearing Hanni's question, all the laughter disappeared from Jungkook's face. Hanni was wondering why Taehyung needed a credit card because he is the richest man in Korea. Jungkook looked at Taehyung, who was barely managing to control his laughter. Seeing this, Jungkook felt very embarrassed by his foolishness. He pouted and said, "How would I know that? I'm not ultra-rich like him. I have to use my black card." Taehyung felt very fond after seeing his face. Jungkook looking so cute at this time. He felt like pinching both his cheeks like he used to do with Hanni when he was a newborn baby. Taehyung felt very fond after seeing Jungkook's face. Jungkook looked so cute at that moment. He felt the urge to pinch both of Jungkook's cheeks, much like he used to do with Hanni when he was a newborn baby. And when it came to cuteness, he was only impressed by Jungkook. Taehyung spoke to Jungkook in a very gentle tone, "Do your shopping comfortably. I will inform the mall staff about you." Jungkook pouted and said, "But then those people will already know that I am Kim Taehyung's wife. They might surround me and not let me meet my friend peacefully." "So I will inform them later. Okay?" "Ha, then it's fine," Jungkook said, satisfied. He left with Hanni. After their departure, Taehyung called one of his bodyguards and said, "Protect Madam and Little Master well," then instructed the driver to drive the car.

Jungkook and Hanuel were exploring the mall while wearing masks, as Jungkook's fame and the viral pictures of Hanni which he posted with him together. they can be easily recognized together. Jungkook sent a message to Myung - "I have reached. Where are you?" Myung replied - "Behind you!" Startled by the response, Jungkook immediately turned around. A boy of his age was standing there, looking very handsome, though not as beautiful as Jungkook, but more so than others. He stood with crossed arms and a cold, emotionless face. When Jungkook looked at him, his eyes welled up with tears. Today, after who knows how many years, Jungkook was meeting Myung. Jungkook ran straight towards him and embraced him tightly. As Jungkook hugged him, Myung's cold demeanor completely melted, and he hugged Jungkook back tightly. Hanuel smiled seeing both of them hugging. He was very happy to think that he had brought him to meet such a good friend of his. He was very anxious, thinking about when his mother would introduce him, but he remained quiet because he didn't want his mother's friend to think he had no manners. When Myung and Jungkook separated after some time, both had tears in their eyes. They looked at each other and simultaneously said, "How are you?" Then they both started laughing upon seeing each other. Unable to contain himself, Hanni couldn't stop himself from exclaiming, "Same pinch! Same pinch!" Hearing him, both Myung and Jungkook diverted their attention towards Hanni. Excitedly, Myung inquires of Jungkook, "This is Hanuel, right?" Jungkook smiles and nods in affirmation. Myung swiftly goes over to Hanni and lifts him in his arms. "Hi, Kiddo! I'm your mom's friend. I'm thrilled to meet you because I've always wanted to meet you." Hanni politely responds, "Hello, Uncle! It's nice to meet you too!" Hearing him , Myung says, "Aww...you are so sweet!"

Jungkook felt proud of Hanuel's manners, he felt like he himself had taught Hanni everything. But All of this was the result of Taehyung. Myung asked Jungkook, "Should I remove Hanuel's mask once to see him clearly?" Myung had also seen Jungkook's Instagram post, but he still wanted to get a close look at Hanni. After all, he was his best friend's son. "Not here! There are too many people around. Let's do one thing, let's go somewhere less crowded," Jungkook suggested. Then they moved to a corner, and Myung removed Hanuel's mask, delighted to see his face up close. Hanuel smiled. Observing him, Myung lovingly caressed his cheeks and remarked, "You are very cute, kiddo. Just like your mother." "You can play in the playground...Mumma has to have a very important talk with his friend," Jungkook said to hanni. Being very intelligent, Hanni immediately agreed. Both of them left Hanuel in the play area. Jungkook was aware that Taehyung's bodyguards would be discreetly protecting Hanuel, so he left him there without any worries.

Jungkook and Myung left Hanuel in the play area and sat at a corner of a cafe. There was silence between the two for a while. Then Jungkook took a deep breath, lowered his head, and said, "I know it was my mistake. My mistake was punishing Hanni for Taehyung's actions . Saying this, tears welled up in his eyes. Myung felt very sorry seeing Jungkook cry, but he remained calm because he wanted to hear what was on Jungkook's mind. After two minutes, Jungkook continued, "You know, i was such a cheerful boy. I got everything I wanted in life easily. I never lacked anything in life ,I used to enjoy life to the fullest. Then, when I met Taegoog in college, I was only 18 years old at that time... At that age, I started falling in love in a mere moment of attraction. I used to believe that I would be very happy with Taegoog for my entire life. I had different types of dreams, but... whatever Taehyung did to me that night... I was shattered. Tell me... When a boy gets physical without your consent, isn't it called rape? While Jungkook's conversation had started very emotionally, it had become very intense by the time it ended. However, he was absolutely right, a realization Myung came to, causing him to lower his head in shame. Even though he was aware that injustice had been done to Jungkook as well, he had never been aware of his pain. That was because over time, both friends had become distant from each other. "I know that Taehyung was also helpless... whatever he did... was because of drugs, but... it was not my fault... then why was I punished? I... I tried to stop him a lot... I pleaded a lot, but he... he didn't stop."Now Jungkook's tears began flowing from his eyes. After listening to his painful story, Myung found himself in the same condition as Jungkook. Tears welled up in his eyes too. 'I felt extremely lonely during that time and wanted to file a case against Taehyung, but... no one supported me. Then somehow, I tried to move on in life. I became pregnant. And Taehyung... forcibly married me. You... you can imagine... the person I wanted to see behind bars... I had to live in his house as his wife. And Hanni's presence in my womb reminded me every moment that everything that had happened and was happening to me was against my will. Jungkook began crying bitterly. Witnessing his distress, Myung lost patience. He swiftly rose from his chair, stood beside Jungkook, and embraced him while standing. Jungkook crying holding Myung's stomach . The people present noticed both of them intermittently. However, due to the dimly lit surroundings, no one could clearly see anything as both were sitting in a dark place. This was the reason why no one recognized that he was Jungkook. However, their movements were faintly discernible through their body language, creating an impression that one boy was crying while embracing the other, who was providing support. People refrained from intruding on their privacy; therefore, they avoided prolonged stares and simply glanced away from time to time. Myung tenderly caressed Jungkook's hair and said, 'Jungkook, forgive me! I kept insisting that you should give Taehyung a chance, unaware of what you were truly going through. I am sorry for not being there for you when you needed me the most. Instead of understanding your pain, I ended up blaming you. Please forgive me for this. Today, I am realizing how much I misunderstood you when you had no one. There was no mistake.'

Upon hearing this, Jungkook moved away from Myung and said, "No, it is my fault... I've punished Hanni for what happened to me. I've kept my own child away from myself... No stepmother could be as cruel as I was. I hurt my hanni a lot...and for that... I am very, very sorry."