﹄✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ﹃

five years later...

dawn rose through the curtained window of yoongi's tiny apartment and rays of sunshine sprawled across the walls like strokes of golden paint.

stirring to life, yoongi sat up and rubbed his eyes before peering at his daughter. " yejin-ah." yoongi whispered tenderly and watched as his daughter twitched slightly. "appa has to go to work," yoongi whispered again.

yejin opened one eye, only to close it again. yoongi sighed slightly and hovered over the girl's face, "come on yejin, we don't have all day."

"i'm sleepy." the five-year-old said without opening her eyes. yoongi stood up, frustrated. can't she listen at least once? he took his daughter's delicate hand and wiggled it slightly. "yejin-ah, please." he said, his patience dwindling away, "i can't be late again,"

by some miracle, yejin stretched and opened her eyes. she sat up in bed, a scowl on her face. yoongi smiled slightly, there she is. "can you come and get ready, please?"

"fine." yejin grumbled. yoongi whistled to himself as he went to the kitchen to make breakfast- the walk wasn't far. their entire apartment was one room- the kitchen on one side, the bed on the other side, and the two shared a laundry room with the other apartment members. the bathroom was a little door, about the size of a closet. yoongi yawned as he turned on the stove, the blue and orange flames sputtering before coughing up into a flame. he placed a pan over top of it and cracked two eggs, letting the yokes fall slowly into the pan to hear the sizzling impact. yejin came running into the kitchen, her pink and white toothbrush in her mouth. "appa, i found it!" she said, spitting toothpaste everywhere. yoongi couldn't help but chuckle. "what did you find?"

"my toothbrush!" she said with glee. "it was behind the toilet!"

yoongi bit back a laugh, still getting used to the five-year-old's fearlessness to germs. "you made sure to wash it, right?"

yejin nodded, still smiling.

"good job, yejin-ah," he laughed lightly, feeling his heart swell, despite the fact that yejin was probably brushing her teeth with toilet water. "hurry and finish brushing, breakfast is almost ready."

yejin saluted to her father and hurried back into the bathroom, slamming the door in the process. yoongi took the spatula and placed the eggs onto two pieces of buttered toast he had prepared. perfect.

"yejin-ah, breakfast is ready!"

as if on cue, yoongi heard the sound of his daughter's loud footsteps pounding into the kitchen. she jumped into her chair and waited for yoongi to bring over the plastic plate, just like they did every morning. "thanks, appa."

together they ate their eggs and toast quietly, enjoying the silence as they watched the curtains rise and fall in the early morning breeze.

it was peaceful, quiet, that is, until yejin asked a particular question that yoongi had dreaded since the day she was born.

"appa, how come i don't have a mommy?"

yoongi froze and nearly choked on his egg.

a... mommy?

yejin placed a hand under her chin and looked off wistfully out the apartment window. "my friends have mommies. but... i only have you, appa."

yoongi fidgeted with his chopsticks nervously and cleared his throat. "you have a mommy," he answered honestly as he bit his lip.

yejin's face lit up. "where is she?"

"she's... not here."

yejin gave him a puzzled look. "not here?"

just tell her the truth.

"hyeri-" he cleared his throat, "your mom and i weren't prepared for you, love."

"but i came anyway?" yejin said, still looking confused. yoongi panicked, afraid he would have to explain where babies came from. "you just decided to show up," he blurted without thinking.

yejin nodded as if she understood this nonsense. yoongi almost sighed in relief, "let's just say... your mom didn't want..." he cleared his throat again, ".... your mom wasn't ready to have a baby. so i took full custody of you."

yoongi didn't expect yejin to understand any of that, nevertheless- he didn't want to keep hyerin a secret. yejin deserved to know, didn't she? it was her own mother after all.

"what's custardy?" yejin mumbled.

"that means i get to take care of you." yoongi said as he reached across the table to pinch her cheek. "custard is yummy." yejin said quietly, munching on her toast. finally, yejin finished her interrogation and continued to eat her breakfast. with a sigh, yoongi did the same.

deep down, yoongi wished he could give yejin a mother, a family, a proper education. but alas, yoongi was a single father. he could barely afford to pay rent, or even feed the two of them.

but if yejin was happy, yoongi was happy. and if yejin was happy, nothing else in the world mattered.