﹄✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ﹃

"what's it like having a daughter like yejin?" jihye asked yoongi the next day. she was heading back home from a grocery run and had run into the father and daughter while they were on their way to get ice cream.

"it's fun. but it's... difficult." he said simply. "she's been with me for five years now, but there are some things i'll never get used to."

a butterfly flew by, dancing along the stone path and swirling around their feet. yoongi's footsteps fell into stride with jihye's as they watched yejin chase the butterfly down the path.

"does yejin go to school?" jihye asked as she kicked a pebble, watching it bounce.

with a sigh, yoongi shook his head guiltily. "i can't afford it," he said simply. "sometimes i try to teach her how to read and write, but... i'm no teacher."

jihye turned to face him, a sad look painted on her face, "so she has to follow you around all day, huh?"

yoongi nodded slowly, "one day, i'll be able to pay for child care." he said, "yejin doesn't show it, but i know she gets bored easily. she absolutely hates coming to work with me."

jihye nodded in understanding, until her face lit up ever so slightly. "yoongi..." she started slowly.

"unnie! unnie!" a voice interjected. yoongi turned to see a group of small children running up to jihye, bunches of flowers clutched in their tiny, pudgy hands. jihye beamed, "what do we have here?" she asked delightedly as she knelt down to the level of the children.

"we brought flowers!" the same young girl said. "we picked these out of mrs. kim's garden!"

yoongi raised an eyebrow and to his surprise, jihye just chuckled and dismissed his look with a wave of her hand. she sat down in the grass next to the stone path and motioned yoongi and yejin to follow, the five-year-old squealed excitedly and joined the small cluster of children. and together, the group began to follow jihye's motions just like every other day, and continued to make their flower crowns.

yoongi smiled to himself and shook his head as he joined the group in the grass, "you're good with kids."

"i love kids," jihye said with a euphoric smile as she glanced around at the children who were all chattering loudly amongst themselves. "don't you?"

"yejin is a handful," he chuckled as he watched his daughter bop a boy in the head for stealing the pink flower. "gotta love her though." he trained his gaze back to the short-haired woman. "um... were you saying something earlier?"

jihye pursed her lips and thought for a moment before her face lit up the same way earlier. "oh yeah!" she said enthusiastically. "so... my parents actually run a day-care center," she pointed out into the horizon, "right down the street from here, actually."

yoongi tilted his head to the side.

"yes, i know you can't afford it- but i think my parents would be willing to take her in for free."

yoongi's mouth dropped open. but he quickly cleared his throat and scratched the back of his head, "i mean... that's really kind of you- but i don't want your parents to be losing money."

jihye shook her head, "it's fine, really. they love children, and i'll tell them it's for a friend of mine."

"i... well..." yoongi muttered, knowing that this was an amazing offer that one would only get once in a lifetime. he needed the time, he needed the money, and he wanted yejin to be able to meet new friends at daycare, play with real toys like a normal five-year-old should.

"i don't know..." yoongi murmured, "your parents..."

"-won't mind."

"are you absolutely positively sure?" yoongi asked as he tilted his head to the side. jihye rolled her eyes playfully, "as sure as i'll ever be,"

"i-i still don't know..." yoongi stuttered, "it's a lot of money that you're losing and-"

"yoongi." jihye interjected as she placed a hand on his shoulder, i know we haven't known each other for very long, but i know you need this."

yoongi smiled slightly.

jihye grinned as he didn't protest and handed him her phone, "now type in your number, i'll contact you if my parents agree."

yoongi's heart soared.

"jihye,"

"mhm?"

"thank you." he breathed.

jihye punched him slightly. "hey, don't worry about it." she said. "that's what friends are for."