The drive back to Jungkook’s house wasn’t as peaceful as he desired because Taehyung and Jimin had insisted on dropping them off even though they lived 40 minutes away from him. Jimin and Taehyung’s carpool karaoke was lifting, but God was it loud. Those boys would probably need throat lozenges in a couple of hours.

Jungkook and Jihyo were sitting at the back of the car, Jimin was driving and Taehyung was in the passenger seat. Jungkook slyly reached his hand out to hold Jihyo’s without looking at her reaction. His heart beat fleetingly and it gave him goose bumps knowing Jihyo finally came back to him. The sweet reality was slowly sinking into Jungkook and he was basking in the giddiness and blitheness it was sending him to.

“Alright we’re here. You guys sort your out and call us when you’re done so we can catch up on Games of Thrones together,” Taehyung broadcasted valiantly as he looked at the two of them through the mirror.

“I’m not inviting you, dip.” Jungkook grinned as he and Jihyo got out of the car.

Walking to Jungkook’s house, Jihyo started to feel discomfited. Although she was over the moon that somehow her feelings and situation were getting clarified, she didn’t know how to start the conversation with Jungkook.

Jungkook slid his hands over hers again, holding it firmly. He felt like a teenager who got to hold his girlfriend’s hand for the first time. His heart was hammering loudly in his chest, his smile was tough to contain and so were his feelings.

Jihyo looked around, memorising how little the place had changed over the past couple of months she wasn’t there. Jungkook’s house felt like home to her, especially with him in it.

“Do you want to go to the back or stay inside instead?” Jungkook asked as he fished out the keys from his pocket.

“Let’s stay in the patio at the back,” Jihyo replied, feeling her hand getting clammy by the second.

When they reached the patio, Jihyo immediately sat down on her favourite wooden bench and Jungkook followed suit. There was a brief moment of quietness as they stared at Jungkook’s small garden.

“Do you want me to get you a drink or anything?” he offered, trying to break the ice slowly.

Jihyo shook her head. She just wanted to get it over with and feel Jungkook’s embrace once again. “I’m sorry,” she started and Jungkook looked at her. “What I did was reckless and really selfish.”

The temptation to hold her in his arms was creeping up on him, but he knew his girl. She hated being held whenever they had a serious conversation or more like angry conversations before.

“I understand why you did that. I really do. I wish you chose to hear me out before you left though. I know I was selfish too. I wasn’t thinking straight, I was immature, stubborn and I was afraid.” Jungkook looked at his hands as he waited patiently for Jihyo’s reply.

“I kind of wished I listened to you before leaving, but since things didn’t turn out that way, I’ll listen to you now if you explain to me,” she answered.

Jungkook nodded. It was time for him to finally reach out to her in person, with her willing to listen to whatever he had to say. “As soon as I realised what I have done when I denied that I was seeing someone, believe me, Jihyo, I tried literally everything to get hold of you, but none of my ways worked. I wanted to apologise for saying that because hell, I wasn’t thinking straight. I was afraid of the backlash, but when I lost you, the backlash was the last thing on my mind. Getting you back had become my priority and I have never been in such pain before. It felt like life was getting out of my system ever so slowly and cruelly. I never meant to deny us. I never wanted to hurt you and I want you here with me. I want you by my side. So, I’m sorry, Jihyo. I really am. Please let me make it up to you.” All those while, Jungkook was looking at Jihyo whereas she was looking down while listening to him.

“But how do I know that you’re not going to hurt me again?” Jihyo asked with fear in her eyes. “When I left, I was a wreck. Starting over again in a foreign country was a real struggle. I didn’t know their language, I didn’t know anyone and I literally had no one and nothing.”

“I can’t promise you that I won’t hurt you ever again. Let’s b