chapter 4

The Jeon household had changed.

It wasn't loud. It wasn't messy. But something had shifted. Something had bloomed.

The quiet house in Busan now had a new sound—a laugh that echoed through the hallways~ small feet that ran from room to room~ and a voice that never stopped talking.

Kim Taehyung had made himself at home.

And the Jeon family—all three of them—had let him.

Every morning~ Taehyung woke up and ran to Jungkook's room. He didn't knock anymore. He just opened the door and jumped on the bed.

"Kookie! Wake up! The sun is up! The birds are singing! We have to play!"

Jungkook~ who used to love his quiet mornings alone~ now found himself smiling before he even opened his eyes.

He would pretend to be annoyed. He would pull the blanket over his head. But Taehyung would just crawl under the blanket with him and poke his cheeks until he laughed.

And Jungkook always laughed.

Mrs. Jeon watched the boys every day with a full heart.

Taehyung followed Jungkook everywhere. To the bathroom. To the kitchen. To the backyard. Even to Jungkook's room~ where he would sit on the bed and talk while Jungkook read his picture books.

Jungkook didn't mind anymore.

In fact~ he started talking back.

It started small. A word here. A sentence there. Taehyung would ask a question and Jungkook would answer. Not with one word. With whole sentences.

"Kookie~ why is the sky blue~?"

"Because of the light. The sun makes it look blue."

"Kookie~ do fish sleep~?"

"Yes. They sleep with their eyes open."

"Kookie~ do you like me~?"

Jungkook would turn red and look away. But after a moment~ he would nod. Just once. But Taehyung saw it.

And Taehyung's smile would light up the whole room.

Mr. Jeon also changed.

He started coming home earlier from the cafe. He would sit in the living room and watch the boys play. Sometimes~ Taehyung would climb onto his lap and tell him long stories about nothing.

"And then Jimin said he can run faster than me but he can't because I'm the fastest and then Hoseok laughed and fell down and Yoongi said—"

Mr. Jeon would listen. Really listen. He would nod and ask questions. "Who is Yoongi~?"

Taehyung's eyes would go wide. "Yoongi is my friend! He is sleepy all the time! Like a cat! A grumpy cat! But he is nice. He shares his snacks with me."

Mr. Jeon would smile. A real smile. Not the small~ tight one he used to have. A soft~ warm one that made his eyes crinkle.

Jungkook saw his father smile more in one week than he had in his whole life.

And the jealousy that had burned in his chest on that first night~? It was gone.

Because when his father smiled at Taehyung~ Taehyung smiled back. And when Taehyung smiled~ Jungkook smiled too.

It was a circle. A happy~ warm circle.

.

.

.

.

To be continued...

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***