The skies are dark and littered with stars by the time they land back in New York. Jungkook feels exhausted from the flight journey and craves for his bed. Taehyung and him walk through the airport in comfortable silence, both of them much too tired to speak.

"It's late, let me drop you off home," Taehyung says as they walk into the car-park. Jungkook opens his mouth to answer but the shrill sound of his ringtone cuts him off.

He sends his boss and apologetic look and answers the phone. "Hello?"

He is met with Jimin's frantic voice, hastily telling him something from across the line. Jungkook's eyes widen at his words, "what?.. Y-Yeah, I just landed. O-Okay, I'll be right there."

He quickly hangs up the phone and looks over at Taehyung who stares at him curiously. "I-I'm sorry but I have to go somewhere, sir. I'll catch a taxi. S-See you at work tomorrow."

Taehyung barely gets a chance to reply before the younger zooms past him and rushes to the taxi bay. Taehyung stares at the smaller before he lets out a sigh and walks towards his car.

~

"Jungkook," Jimin says, embracing the younger.

"W-Where is she?" the younger asks as he drops his head onto the blond's shoulder.

"She's in the ICU right now..."

"I-Is she going to be alright, what did the doctors say?" He asks frantically, lifting his head from his shoulder.

Jimin sighs and runs a hand through his hair. "They said the stroke was pretty serious but told me that they currently have it under control."

Jungkook gulps and looks down at the tiled floor. "Where's Seonnie?"

"With Bri, she was the one who called the ambulance."

Jungkook nods and then drops himself onto one of the metal seats. "T-Thanks for coming Hyung. I'll stay the night here. It's late, you should go now."

Jimin frowns and crouches down to be eye level with the younger. "Hey, Kook, it's going to be okay, okay?" He says as he cups the younger's face.

Jungkook gently grabs onto the older's wrist and pulls them away while weakly smiling. "Y-Yeah, I know."

Jimin stares at the boy with worried eyes."Are you sure you don't want me to stay with you? I can-"

"No Hyung it's fine, you should go."

Jimin sighs before standing up straight. "Give me a call if you need me, okay, Kook?"

Jungkook nods, still keeping that small smile on his face. Jimin pats his head as a departing gesture and then reluctantly walks away, leaving the younger to sit there on those cold metal seats by himself. Jungkook stares down at the polished floor, mentally grimacing at the strong stench of disinfectant lingering in the air before he lets out a ragged sigh.

"No kookie, that's the letter L, not I." Jungkook looks up at his mum and blinks before slamming his small hand onto the book.

"I!" He exclaims excitedly.

His mother giggles and shakes her head as she cuddles her son. "No, L. What does L stand for?"

Jungkook frowns. "L? L stands for...LOLLIPOP!"

The small boy squeals as his mother starts tickling him. "Lollipops? How cheeky. No Koo, L stands for Love. Luh-Luh-Love," she says, annunciating the word clearly.

The small boy looks up at her. "Luh-Luh...Lollipops!" He giggles.

His mum rolls her eyes and tickles him even more. Jungkook flays his legs as he screams out in laughter. "Momma Loves you," she says while nuzzling her nose into his small neck.

"louve?" he mumbles out. "Louve louve... love love," he chants. "Kookie loves momma!" He exclaims.

Jungkook drops his head into his hands and runs a hand through his hair. "Momma," he whispers to himself. "Please be okay."

~

Taehyung furrows his eyebrows as he watches the smaller boy enter the room. Normally, Jungkook enters with a small wave, greeting him with a 'good morning'. But today he just quietly enters the office room with his head held low.

"Morning, Bun," Taehyung says, trying to garner the younger's attention.

Jungkook looks up at him and smiles weakly, startling Taehyung with his dark eye bags. "Good morning, sir," he says, sounding exhausted. Taehyung observes the younger who seats himself at his desk before he quietly starts working.

Is he okay? Taehyung asks himself. Maybe he's just tired from jet lag? Yeah...that has to be it, right?

Jungkook exhales a small breath as he starts signing some documents. He watches as the black ink wobbles around as he writes with his trembling hand. Get a grip on yourself, Jungkook. He says to himself. He closes his eyes for a moment and opens them back up, now staring down at the document with a blank look in his eyes.

~

Namjoon pinches the bridge of his nose as he slides the document over to Taehyung. "Here it is, a full list of workers who were in the sales department that could have possibly tampered with the documents from yesterday."

Taehyung grabs onto the paper and leans back on his chair, observing his brother. "You look tired."

Namjoon lifts his head and waves his hand. "I'm always tired," he says, brushing it off.

Taehyung sighs. "Hyung, don't...don't stress yourself over this okay? I can handle it...after all, it's partially my fault. I should have looked over the documents more thoroughly."

Namjoon shakes his head. "You don't know every single data value in this company, Tae. You can't blame yourself here. You already have a lot on your hand. I just...I just wish I could help you more."

Taehyung looks over at his brother, frowning. "Don't feel responsible for my actions, Hyung. You do help me... you help me by being here, with me," he whispers the last part out, averting his eyes away from the male.

Namjoon looks up and sighs, staring at his brother's sombre expression. He stands up and walks over to the younger before smiling down at him, the action slightly strained as he tries to hold back his emotions. "Y-You're doing well, Tae. I-I'm proud of you."

Taehyung's lips pull into a pained curve and he sighs. He turns back to the document and opens it, looking at the papers inside.

"Mark Lester, Joe Pelcum, Lila Baker, Min Yoongi, Dun Minho and Kimberely Rain. So these are all the people who could have come in contact with the document?"

Namjoon nods but then frowns. "But...none of them really make sense. All of these workers have been working with us for years, I don't see anyone with a motive to do anything like that."

Taehyung leans back on his chair and rubs his brows. "Actually...there is one person."

Namjoon frowns. "Who?"

~

"Bun?... Bun...Jungkook!"

Jungkook startles and looks up from his document. "A-Ah, yes sir?"

Taehyung frowns. I called his name at least five times, is he okay?

Jungkook notices Taehyung's frown and ducks his head in an apology. "S-Sorry, sir. I was just- my focus was somewhere else."

Taehyung stares at the younger for a moment before he nods. "That's alright..." he pauses, inspecting the way the younger looks up at him tiredly. "I was just going to ask you if you could go get some information from Ms Kimberly about these files," he says, handing over a document.

"Yes sir," the boy replies.

"Ask what her involvement was with these documents."

Jungkook nods, "okay, sir."

Taehyung nods and clamps his hands together, finding the silence and short replies rather unusual from the younger.

As Jungkook picks up the file and leaves the room, Taehyung watches him, observing how the boy walks with slouched shoulder, seemingly carrying the weight of an unspoken burden.

~

"What do you want?" The woman snarks as the small boy enters her office.

Jungkook would normally roll his eyes when interacting with her but today, he has no energy to do so. He simply places down the file on her desk and takes a step back.

"Mr Kim wants to know what your involvement was with these files," he says, voice monotone.

Her eyes light up and she straightens her back. "W-What? Mr Kim asked?" She smiles. "Well, I created the data tables for this whole document," she states proudly. The blonde then leans in, smirking. "Why? Was it that good that Mr Kim wanted to thank me in person?"

"Your data tables had false values in it and lost Mr Kim a very important deal," the younger deadpans.

The girl scoffs, "false values? Do you think I'm an idiot? I double-checked those values with the ones in the system before even entering them into the document."

Jungkook frowns, "So you're saying these match the ones in the system?"

She rolls her eyes, "do I need to spell it out for you? That's just what I said."

"Forward a copy of the system data values to Mr Kim, he would want to check it out," Jungkook says while picking up the file.

"Oh look at you, giving me orders like you're my boss. I'm you're superior, Jungfuck, or whatever your name is. Show a little respect."

Jungkook sighs, already feeling fed up with the conversation. "Ms Kimberly, we're just trying to solve a little issue here. Just cooperate with me."

The blonde raises her eyebrows at him. "So you're just going to order me around? Stay in your lane, newbie, I've been here longer than you, you should learn how to behave around me. Has your mother not taught you a thing about respect?"

Jungkook freezes. "Don't...don't say that..." he pleads, voice gentle.

The blonde laughs obnoxiously, "aww, what's this? Don't tell me you've got mummy issues?"

Jungkook looks up at her with wide eyes and takes a step back. "J-Just forward the copy, Ms Kimberly. I-I'll be leaving." And with that, he stumbles out of her office room. With hastened steps, he rushes to Mr Kim's office, trying to calm his breathing as he does so. He arrives at the door and takes a deep breath as he stands outside of it.

She's just joking around, don't think about anything. Everything's fine. Nothing's wrong. He chants in his head. With a trembling hand and one last deep breath, he opens the door and steps in. He's met with Taehyung, seated on the edge of his polished desk as he reads a document. Eyes still trained on the document, the older speaks. "Did you get any information?"

Jungkook clenches his fists to try and stop his voice from shaking.

"Doctor, how was the surgery?"

The man looks at Jungkook with furrowed brows as he places a hand on the boy's shoulder. "It was successful and we have the damage caused by the stroke under control but...but unfortunately, the stroke severely damaged parts of her temporal lobe."

Jungkook looks up at the older man, eyes wide. "S-So what does that mean?"

The doctor sighs. "Her hearing and language will be impaired. It is most likely she will be unable to verbally communicate after this."

"Y-Yes," he stutters. "Um- the-the, she," the younger brings his hand to run through his hair. "S-She'll forward the document to you."

Taehyung finally looks up from his document and furrows his eyebrows, staring at the boy. "What document?"

"I-I mean a -um- c-copy of the system, she-she..."

"...Bun," the older interrupts.

Jungkook looks up hesitantly, "y-yes sir?"

Taehyung doesn't say anything for a moment, instead, he inspects the younger's pale features in silence. After a few seconds pass, he finally speaks up. "Are you okay?"

Jungkook bites his lips to stop them from wobbling before forcing on a smile.

"Y-You mean she will completely lose her ability to speak and understand language?"

The doctor nods while frowning, staring at the younger sympathetically. "Yes, that's the most likely outcome. But, worst-case scenario, it could possibly affect her memory even more and increase the rate of her alzheimers. And since Ms Jeon is already at a later stage of the disease...this could be fatal."

"I-I'm fine..."

Taehyung's dark charcoal eyes continue to stare into the younger, sharply observing his fidgety body and slightly pouted lips. The younger squirms in his spot as he stands under the other's penetrating gaze.

"Come here," Taehyung finally whispers when he notices the boy's discomfort.

Jungkook stares at the older for a second and blinks before he slowly trots closer to him. He startles when Taehyung suddenly pulls him closer by his wrist.

"Now tell me," Taehyung whispers as he leans in closer to the boy's ears. "What's wrong?"

Jungkook shakes his head. "N-Nothing, really."

The younger yelps as the older spins him around and plops him on the desk. He holds his breath as Taehyung cages him with his arms and leans in closer to his face, head tilted. The pools of melted honey swirling within his eyes quiver as they stare deep into the other's starless midnight globes. Taehyung's sternness caresses him, leaving a roughly tender touch against his cold paper-like skin.

The man's intensity is overwhelming to the younger but Jungkook can't help but melt into the touch of comfort that coincides with his firm stance. The mixture of emotions that comes from a simple look and the welcoming solace that lingers in the scent of Taehyung's cologne is pacifying. So much so that Jungkook finds the suffocating wall built around his heart finally dissolving, leaving it to beat with utter rawness until it builds up a melody that matches his slight sniffles.

Taehyung sighs, face softening. "Bunny," he whispers, cupping the younger's face.

Jungkook tries to muffle his abrupt sobs while he lowers his head, hiding his reddening face. He roughly wipes his hands over his eyes, making his vision blurry. "M-M'okay," he cries out, trying to convince not only his boss but also himself that he's truly okay.

Taehyung strokes the pad of his thumb across the smaller's soft cheek in a comforting manner. "You don't seem okay to me."

Jungkook sniffles and rubs his eyes before dropping his hands and staring at them on his lap. Taehyung steps closer and stands between his legs before tilting Jungkook's face up with both his palms. The gentle blue iridescent lights cast a meek shadow upon the younger's face, colouring a monotone painting of his tear-stained lashes on his red cheeks. Taehyung sighs before he slowly leans in closer to the younger and leaves a small peck on the apple of his cheek.

The warm action brings more tears to the smaller's eyes and he angrily rubs them once more, his hands curled into fists in a desperate attempt to stop his cascading tears. Taehyung chuckles against the boy's cheek, noticing his agitation towards his own emotions. "For your sake, I'll pretend you're not crying," he starts, voice airy from restrained laughter. "But first, I wanna know why."

At this, Jungkook exhales and casts his eyes onto the floor. After seconds of fiddling with his fingers, he finally urges himself to start speaking, his tiny voice barely audible to the man next to him. "My mum's in hospital." And with that small sentence to start him off, Jungkook releases all his suppressed thoughts, finding it hard to control his mouth as he opens up to his boss about a topic he likes to keep in secrecy. His mother.

"And-and I'm just scared she's not going to live for very long," Jungkook says before finally quietening down, letting the heavy weight of his words simmer in the light atmosphere of the room. He lets out a small breath after a moment, finding it gratifying how the fire burning in his heart has now slowly eased into a gentle warmth radiating through his body. He didn't expect it but after speaking to Taehyung, speaking about something so close to his heart, something so vulnerable, he feels oddly relieved, uplifted even.

Taehyung remains silent for a moment after, taking in everything he's just been told. It took him by surprise, the revelation that Jungkook, the boy he sees as a small helpless bunny is, in fact, carrying the burden of his family on his back. He wonders to himself as he runs his hand through the younger's soft hair how a boy so seemingly fragile could bear such a heavy weight without breaking.

But it seems he still hasn't fully understood the younger yet. After all, Jungkook is not a boy whose fragility puts him at risk of breaking apart. He's simply a fragile boy who's already broken. For him to bear such weight, it would be a harmless overkill; like driving a hammer into broken glass.

"Let's go," Taehyung finally says, breaking out of his thoughts.

Jungkook frowns. "Where?"

The older looks down at him and swipes the hair out of his tear-stained face. "To see your mum."

Jungkook's eyes widen. "W-What?!"

Taehyung smiles as juts his chin towards the door. "Go ahead, I'll meet you in the car."

Jungkook gets up from the desk and confusedly walks towards the door. "What-I'm-are we really..."

Taehyung waves him off, continuing to smile.

~

When the younger closes the door, Taehyung spins towards his desk and presses the phone connected to it. He listens to it ring as he clenches his jaw, eyes darkening.

"Hello?"

"Hyung," he rasps, thumb scraping against his clenched fist. "Tell Ms Kimberly to meet me at my office tomorrow morning."

"Oh? Okay. Did you find something about her regarding the documents?"

Jungkook wipes his eyes. "A-And I didn't want to cry here or anything...m'not a baby, b-but Ms K-Kimberly can be a bit overwhelming sometimes. I'm sorry for crying...again."

Taehyung frowns. "Ms Kimberely? Did she say anything?"

Jungkook looks up at him, eyes widening before he quickly turns his head away. "N-No..."

"No," Taehyung chuckles humourlessly into the phone, slightly concerning his brother on the other end. "It's nothing regarding that."

A/N: Honestly, these chapters are really hard to write because I kinda lost motivation for this book. Idk, writing it is difficult cause i feel lost when doing so.

But yeah...I'm sorry for the bland chapter :/ hopefully I'll be able to write something good soon! I love you guys!! ❤️