2019; ten years later

3 AM

            Yoongi sat up in bed.  Turning his head, he glanced at Yeoreum’s sleeping figure with a small smile, reaching a hand out to her hair.  He rolled over in bed, stood up, and tiptoed out of the room, shutting the door quietly behind him.

            Yoongi made his way into the kitchen.  Standing out the window, he poured himself a glass of water before sighing.

            “Daddy?”

            He whirled around, surprised to see a small child with brown eyes staring back at him.

            “Y-Yeseul-ah, what are you doing awake?”

            “I couldn’t sleep.”

            “Oh.”

            “What about you, Daddy?” She walked past Yoongi, grabbing a small stool from under the dining table and placing it in front of the sink.

            “Same.”

            “Did you have another nightmare?”

            Damn, she’s only six, but she’s just as observant as her mother.  “H-How did you--”

            “I heard you and Mommy talking about it once.”

            “Yeseul-ah--”

            “When I have nightmares, I always wish for magic powers so that I can defeat the dragons.  You should try that, Daddy.”

            He smiled.  “Should I?”

            “Yeah.” His daughter nodded.  “Or you should wish for me, and I’ll come into your nightmare and turn it into a dream!”

            “Shhh.” He placed a finger over his lips.  “Or else you’ll wake Mommy.”

            “Okay!” Yeseul’s eyes widened.  In a lower voice, she continued, “Sorry…”

            “I think that it’s time for a certain someone to go back to bed.” He smiled, scooping Yeseul up in his arms.  “You have to go to school later this morning, and Mommy will be really mad if you fall asleep in class again.”  The two made their way back to Yeseul’s room, and Yoongi placed her gently into bed, tucking the covers carefully.

            “Hey Daddy?”

            “Yes?”

            “Can you tell me a story?”

            “I--”

            “Please~”

            He bit his lip, knowing that Yeoreum would scold him when she woke up.  “What would you like to hear?” he asked, sitting on the edge of her bed.

            “The one about you, Mommy, and the magic letter.”

            Yoongi smiled.  “Again?”

            “It’s my favorite story!  My favorite part is when Mommy reads the letter and saves you from the evil dragons.”

            “Really?”

            “And you lived happily ever after!”

            “Of course,” he replied.

            “Honestly, Daddy, when I see the evil dragons in my dreams, I’m scared.  But they were mean to you, so I have to be brave and defeat them.”

            He paused, staring at Yeseul.  “Yeseul-ah…”

            “Mommy!” She sat up suddenly, kicking her blankets off of her body and startling Yoongi.  “You can’t sleep either?”

            Yoongi turned around, surprised to see Yeoreum awake.

            “Sweetie,” Yeoreum said, taking a seat next to Yoongi on the corner of their daughter’s bed, “it’s time to go back to bed.”

            “But Mommy, I wanted to hear Daddy tell the dragon story again.”

            Yeoreum’s eyes softened.  “Daddy can tell you that story as he drives you to school in the morning.” She turned toward Yoongi with a small smile.  “Right?”

            Yoongi smiled and nodded in agreement.  “Right.”

            It would be foolish to say that he was “cured” from his depression, that every day was a good day.  Nightmares still occasionally plagued him.  Sometimes, he would wake up from a horrible nightmare, crying.  But as Yoongi kissed his daughter on the cheek one more time before returning to the bedroom he shared with his wife, he knew that even when he had bad days, he had just as many good days.  He had people to live for.  And he would do his goddamn best to live for them.

I really can’t express this enough: thank you all for your support throughout this fic.  As I was writing this, I was honestly worried that no one would read this.  But this was always a story that I wanted to write, and I’m so glad that I could share it with all of you.

Until next time,

kpopluvr18