“Unji-ah, if you don’t want appa to put you in this cart, stop touching everything!” Jimin scolded his 5-year old daughter, trying amicably to discreetly put the packet of fruit snacks back in the box she ripped open and slide the evidence behind the perfectly sealed ones.  

“Now hold my hand,” Jimin ordered, holding his hand out expectantly while beginning to push the cart down the isle, but his daughter refused, clinging to her oppa instead. Jungkook couldn’t really hear the ordeal going on in front of him because he had headphones buried deep in his ears, embarrassingly jamming to some girl group song he’ll have to learn the dance to later.  

“I’ll hold Jungkook oppa’s hand, appa,” Jimin rolled his eyes, directing his attention forward instead of on his daughter who was working his very last nerve, “whatever, just stop touching things.”  

Jungkook’s hand naturally curled around the significantly smaller palm digging into his own. Unji had a knack for clinging to Jungkook, which Jimin is pretty sure is the workings of his daughter having a crush on her oppa, but he’s used to it ever since he began to crash at Jimin’s home, and it doesn’t bother him one bit.  

“What do we need at the house, Jungkook? Milk? Probably.” Jimin pretty much answered every question himself that he directed to Jungkook, and it was easy for the younger male to become a walking child tamer rather than a shopping companion (which Jungkook is 99% sure that’s why Jimin insisted that he tag along with him to the grocery store in the first place).  

“Unji-ah, what kind of pancake mix do you want for your breakfast?”  

Unji stepped forward, without letting Jungkook’s hand go, to look at the options as if she could read them, but really she was just looking at the pictures to decipher what she had wanted. “Chocolate chip, appa,” she chose, snuggling up to Jungkook’s side once she made her selection.  

Jimin smiled at his daughter, wondering briefly when and why she was so attached to the younger male, but if he got her to shut up, and sit still, it was completely fine by Jimin.  

“Jungkook-ah?”  

Jimin turned around at his dongsaeng’s name being called, and didn’t recognize the woman who owned the voice, but he tapped Jungkook’s side tilting his head to the woman that called out his name. Jungkook shifted, yanking one of the headphones out of his ear and recognized the woman instantly.  

“Oh – Jihye-noona, what are you doing in Busan? How are you?” Jungkook lifted his resting face into a smile, and had to pry Unji’s hand from his in order to give the woman before him a proper hug. She was Jungkook’s distant cousin. He barely knew her, but he does remember seeing her at family functions as a child, so she wasn’t all that unfamiliar.  

“Just visiting family here,” she replied, hugging the younger back in a quick squeeze and retracting with a sweet smile on her pale face, “I’m doing great, and how are you?” she asked, her eyes flitting from Jimin once more, to Unji who forced her fingers between her oppa’s again, and back to Jungkook.  

“Uncle Seungyoo? I just seen him a couple weeks ago. I’m doing great, Jihye-noona,” Jungkook replied, then suddenly remembered where he was and who he was with, and the expectant Jimin looking at him from the corner of his eye, “oh– this is Jimin, and Unji, say hi, Unji,” Jungkook cooed, prodding at the girl to greet the unnie in front of her.  

Unji shyly dug her nose into Jungkook’s side, suddenly feeling shy and trying to make herself look smaller, “Hello,” she finally muttered, but it was muffled by Jungkook’s coat, but the male figured that was enough.  

“Excuse my daughter, Jihye-ssi, she’s a bit shy around strangers. It’s nice to meet you,” Jimin supplied, bowing to his elder as he did, a sweet smile on his plump lips.  

“Oh no, she’s fine. She’s so adorable! You all are. Jungkook – it’s a beautiful family you’ve got here. But my father never mentioned you having a husband and a kid. Weird.”  

Jungkook’s brows furrowed at the assumption. How could she think he had an entire family? Wasn’t he a bit young for that kind of commitment? He was only 24. But then he looked at the small body glued to his, and the close proximity Jimin maintained between them. They did look a lot like a family didn’t they?  

Jimin chuckled lightly – leaving it up to Jungkook to correct her.  

“Oh no, noona, Jimin is just a friend. I live with him while I’m looking for a new apartment, and yeah. Unji is just pretty fond of me, but no we’re not married, nor is this little brat mine,” Jungkook teased, ruffling the back of the toddler’s head as he called her light-hearted names. She punched his side, weakly albeit.  

Jihye rose her eyebrows, thoroughly more surprised by the fact that she wasn’t right. “Oh? Could have fooled me. You look a lot like a couple. This one here is quite handsome, and his daughter is just the cutest thing!”  

Jimin tried to hide his blush, his eyes hidden behind the fading orange of his hair.  

This isn’t the first time the pair has heard something like this – in fact they hear it often. That they would make a beautiful couple along with the accessory of Unji. Their own parents even mentioned them making a jaw-dropping duo, but Jungkook never really thought about it ‘til now. Jimin is beautiful, isn’t he?  

Before Jungkook could dwell any further on this sudden realization, his noona was speaking once more, “anyways, I’ve got to go. I’ll possibly see you soon, Jungkook-ah. Bye, Unji!” Jihye cooed, the little girl in response doing the cutest wave goodbye, causing her father to smile brightly at her.  

“Ah – my baby girl, you’re so adorable,” Jimin spoke, squeezing the apple of his daughter’s rosy cheek.  

“Why do people always think we’re married?” Jungkook inquired out loud. Jimin began to walk in this moment with his cart, shrugging with a small smile on his face as he look down at the metal he was grasping.  

“I don’t know. Maybe we just look way too domestic to not be a family, I mean. My daughter is attached to you, and you’ve got the whole 'careless husband’ persona going on, not so crazy of a thought is it?”  

Jungkook nodded, “I mean, yeah, I get it but why married? Why couldn’t we just be boyfriends, or dating? Do I look that old?”

Jimin shook his head in amusement, “out of all the assumptions of us being married, the only thing you’re worried about is seeming old? Ridiculous.”  

“Hey! I just don’t want anymore years put on me, hyung. We’re getting on the older side, holding on to my youth is a priority. Sorry you’ve seem to let yours go,” Jungkook teased, to which Jimin hit the younger man’s shoulder in retaliation, “you brat! I’m only your hyung by two years!”  

“Older none the less, hyung. Is that a gray hair I see? And you seem to be getting even shorter. You know what they say, once an adult, twice a child. You’re getting there, Jiminie-hyung.”  

Jimin was about to hit his smug dongsaeng once again when seconds later, the sound of glass shattering against the floor, and an absent Unji alerted him.  

The girl manage to knock four jars of spaghetti sauce off the shelves, trying to grab the one she sees Jimin cook with often. “Unji!”

Jungkook went out to search for an employee to get it cleaned up while Jimin scolded his daughter. It was weird how naturally it felt to do so, like a routine.  

Jungkook smiled.  

Yeah, maybe they did look like a family.

And maybe that wasn’t so bad.