by the time they had gotten back to the apartment, irene had explained everything to taehyung—how namjoon had called her to his office the other day, and etold her how he'd found her brother in an asylum dedicated to orphans.

taehyung didn't have to ask to understand what this meant—that it only supported her father's claim that her deceased mother had a genetic condition—which very well could have been passed down to irene.

"whether or not it's true, i don't care."  taehyung shakes his head as he places a palm on the counter, running his other hand through his hair.

but irene already seems to be at the brink of her boundaries.

"then think about your parents." she hisses tiredly in return from where she stands in her apartment, voice strained. "the daughter of a mentally unstable woman, and now the sister to a mentally unstable boy. your mother would never accept me." she adds coldly.

taehyung's features crumple as she waves a hand for him to leave, turning her back to him.

"just go now, taehyung. it could be any day, any hour that i turn on you." she says as she walks into the kitchen, but he follows after her.

"irene, i love you." he insists, his footsteps quickening as he grabs her arm pleadingly. "that means i'll do everything in my power to work things out."

his words line the border of desperation and hurt.

"this isn't something that can be treated like a bet!" irene turns and spits out through clenched teeth, "you can't say you're sure of what's going to happen, taehyung. that's always been the problem. you. can't."

silence.

"what are you saying?" taehyung's voice is strangely weak as he finally chokes out a low chuckle of disbelief, burning like acid in the back of his throat. he takes in her widened gaze, her clenched fists, her knuckles whitened and breathing shallow—suddenly, his gaze hardens, and irene flinches at the anger in his tone as he speaks. "since we met until now, you've always been pushing me out. i've never understood what i was doing wrong. but now i know...that this is what you're scared of."

he breathes in sharply, tears clouding his eyes. "irene, what day is spent without having to overcome the unexpected? what day is spent without facing new issues that we might not know how to solve? what, then, makes two people in a relationship different from anyone else?"

in the pause that he takes, irene doesn't meet his gaze as her hands tremble on the cold surface of the refrigerator.

"what's important we have the same goal, irene. we have the same objective, and that's to be together."

it's then that irene finally realizes—the love that she'd given to taehyung had been a self-protective love, one that kept herself far away from harm. perhaps, in a way, irene had loved kim taehyung selfishly.

when she finally turns and faces him, finding hints of suppressed frustration splayed amongst his beautiful features, she shuts her eyes, waiting for him to continue—to announce his departure from this moment, from her life—only to feel him pull her against his chest, cradling her gently as he tilts his head down and presses his lips to her hair.

her resolve breaks immediately.

"i'm sorry, tae. i'm so sorry." she chokes out, "i'm scared of people knowing. i'm scared of not knowing what to do, not being in control of even myself."

"it could be a coincidence," he says, voice finally emitting the warmth it had always held, "but even if it isn't, i told you—i'm not leaving you."

"but—"

"if we don't have much time left, then we should spend as much time as we can together." taehyung interjects firmly.

"you don't deserve this, taehyung..." she musters out, voice muffled by his shirt. "i can promise you that you'll regret it. your parents, they'll surely object, too."

but taehyung only answers, "it's not about them."

—

the summer was now approaching the fall, settling a thin layer of fog over seoul outside the apartment complex. it was night, and yerim was perched in front of her laptop, wearing a large t-shirt that loosely shadowed the contours of her body as her fingers clack quickly at the keyboard. by her side was an ignored cup of black coffee, precariously placed near the cable of her earbuds, which were currently cranked at full volume. even when the door creaked open behind her, yerim had been completely unaware.

jungkook had been out on a business outing with hoseok for a week prior, and had only been able to return that night. he'd thought that he'd see yerim sleeping heavily when he stepped into the apartment, but when he sees her sitting straight at the kitchen counter, the light from her laptop spilling over the slopes of her face, he finds that she is far from relaxed in his absence.

seeing yerim dressed in his t-shirt, two bare legs peeking out from underneath, jungkook sets down his suitcase and walks forward lightly, bending slightly as he slides one arm around her waist, picking her up from the seat and murmuring against her cheek, "yerim..."

yerim's body stiffens in shock before she detects the warmth of his breath on her neck, a smile forming on her lips as she turns to face him.

his body still carries a few hints of the night—of cool air and smoke—as he kisses her lips strongly, stifling the giggle which had been bubbling in with the demanding entrance of his tongue. she senses the unsteady rise and fall of his breathing as her fingers slip into his hair, her toes curling as her legs wrap around his torso.

"go shower first," yerim barely musters to say, swollen lips slightly parted as she inhales his familiar scent, "i still have some things to do."

jungkook frowns a little as he gently places her back down at her seat, "what are you working on?"

already immersed in the glowing screen of her laptop, yerim mutters nonchalantly, "i'm helping seulgi out with a new website feature for her coffee shop."

jungkook nods, finally releasing her completely to go shower as yerim returns back to her work.

yerim, however, had drank a little bit too much coffee. even when jungkook comes back and tugs her to bed, nestling her in his arm, she can't seem to sleep. blinking for a few moments in the dark, she sits up after a while.

" i'm going to go finish my work." she informs him, slipping out of his grasp and off of the mattress.

jungkook sweeps his gaze tiredly over the clock on the wall, seeing that it was already nearing four o'clock in the morning. watching the screen of her laptop illuminate her face, his brow dips slightly in inevitable concern.

"yerim, come sleep." he says.

but yerim responds briskly, "don't mind me."

suddenly, jungkook, too, rises from the bed, walking over to the desk and gently closing her laptop shut. "yerim, it's late." he chides, the fatigue evident in his voice.

yerim, however, had just been in the middle of contemplation, and being interrupted like this, she'd lost her train of thought. she raises her head to stare up at him with slanted brows, but jungkook doesn't avoid her gaze, a bit of frustration peeking through the depths of his eyes.

after a moment, yerim turns, reopening her laptop. "did you forget what we agreed whenever i stayed over? i won't bother your work, and you won't bother mine."

jungkook, seeing her unapologetic expression, feels that inevitable prick of anger in his chest.

it wasn't that he purposely wanted to invade her personal space. he'd been out for a good chunk of the month on that business trip, and hadn't slept too well even one night. once all the events had ended, jungkook hadn't stayed one extra night in the hotel like hoseok had. rather, he'd quickly driven back to seoul overnight, and was honestly worn to wits end at the moment. the only thing he'd wanted was to be with yerim, but she didn't seem to care at all.

but that was a small matter—what truly irked him was that it was far too late into the night. even if she didn't care for her health and body, he wasn't willing to watch her go on like this.

after a small silence, jungkook banishes his impulsive urge to pick her out of the chair and put her back in bed out of her will, instead, pulling a seat and sitting beside her. 

"i'm sorry, yerim. i won't bother you, but at least let me sit here beside you."

yerim doesn't say anything after, only staring at the screen and continuing to type. 

as jungkook watches her from the corner of his eye, he feels the anger subside in him completely. yerim never truly meant to hurt him, she was just too used to being this blunt all the time. and, after all, how could he ever be angry at her for long?

being stared at by jungkook like this, yerim slowly finds herself unable to focus. suddenly, she seems to realize that he had come back all the way from his business trip—it was far too late for him to stay up like this. how would his body be able to take such a toll?

she decides to compromise.

turning her head, however, she suddenly finds jungkook leaning peacefully against the backing of his chair—his head slightly tilted, his eyelashes peeking out from underneath his eyelids, his breathing slow and long—he had already fallen asleep next to her.

yerim pushes away her laptop, kneeling down in front of him, studying his facial features quietly as guilt rises in her chest. it is only then she seems to notice the dark circles which line his eyes, the tired creases on his handsome features. in that moment, she finally feels a prickling pain at the sight of jungkook so worn out. 

reaching out, she slowly shakes his shoulder. 

"kookie, kookie...i'm sorry, i won't work anymore...let's go sleep on the bed, okay?"

jungkook hadn't even opened his eyes when a smile tugs at the corners of his lips. 

it's only when jungkook had reached out and placed her on the bed, his warm body curling tightly around her, his breathing soft at her ear, that yerim realizes.

jungkook had been awake all along—he'd tricked her into complying to him.

"kookie accepts your apology, baby." he whispers against her hair.  "i love you, now let's sleep."

—

when joy arrives at irene's office that night, she finds it oddly empty.

oftentimes, joy would find irene working at late hours into the night at her office, regardless of the setting sun or dimming sky. the younger girl often came to irene's company to ask for her advice, and so, it was often most park sooyoung who had finally convinced irene into a healthy eating schedule.

whenever joy came, that meant that irene would eat dinner on time.

but today was an exception—it seemed that level 23's infamous work addict had actually gone home before six for once.

joy sits herself with a sigh atop irene's desk, staring out the glass panels under the lighting of a single lamp. lately, with seokjin ignoring her calls and texts, she'd taken to delving head-first into her own matters. besides managing her own branch of her father's companies, she'd been planning to start a business of her own for a while, but she'd been having a hard time convincing her rich, second-generation friends to invest in her startup.

"oh my god!" joy wheezes harshly as the door to the office opens with a sudden creak, the looming figure of a young man almost six feet in height towering at the entrance. she practically falls of the desk as she recognizes the face which greets her, the screams dying in and giving way to hacking coughs.

"i'm so sorry, are you alright?" the figure approaches her, deep voice full of shock.

"no, no, i'm fine," she waves a hand profusely as she answers, "it's just—you and irene both have a knack for appearing out of nowhere." joy rubs a couple of circles to her chest as the coughing finally subsides, grumbling, "i think i just lost half a life back there."

the man seems a bit taken aback by the whole situation as he laughs, "my apologies, miss. i thought irene hadn't left work yet." he explains, then, introducing himself, he holds out his hand. "i'm kim namjoon."

joy's eyes flicker back and forth to his now-extended hand and the genuine friendliness in his eyes as she moves to return his gesture.

firm grip, eye contact, ending pause.

attagirl, park sooyoung.

"i know who you are." she admits sheepishly, cheeks almost flaring at the thought of how she'd once accused irene of being his mistress. "i'm joy. irene's neighbor and mentee."

he smiles widely, and she's pleased to find that his cheek is dimpled.

"irene told me about you." he says next, to her absolute horror.

"w-what?" she half-chokes out nervously, her voice reaching a slightly higher pitch as her complexion visibly pales.

no, she couldn't have. irene wouldn't ever share such an embarrassing thing—

"she told me you're starting up your own company soon. asked me to look out for you. says you've got quite the potential." namjoon clarifies, watching curiously as joy's shoulders lower immediately in relief. 

"oh," she nods quite happily at the prospect of irene complimenting her in front of kim namjoon, of all people. "i hope i'm not a bother, stealing your employee and all." she adds modestly, lowering her head a bit meekly, "i'm honestly having a hard time convincing my friends to join me, so i came here today wanting to ask irene unnie for advice."

namjoon nods slowly, his eyes never breaking away from their alignment with hers, as if he knew exactly what she was thinking at the moment. "i used to think like you, you know. i thought things were more attractive if they seemed fun, or, at least, if they seemed carefree. in terms of business, i thought that meant making things as loud as possible to get my point across—i'd throw parties, wrap whatever i was trying to sell in extravagance, no matter what it was."

joy nods, her eyebrows knitted in concentration as namjoon continues.

"but what people truly want whenever it means giving up something that is important to them—in this case, money—is transparency. it's simply a loop in the human mind—sometimes, people are more likely to believe in something when they are aware of its imperfections and flaws, when things aren't so fun and have to be sit down and talked through." 

namjoon clasps his hands together over his lap in the small interlude that follows. 

"joy-ssi, why do you like owning a business?" he asks after some time, seating himself across from where she was propped on irene's desk. "you and i both know that this has never been about money—is it just because you want to prove yourself?"

joy tilts her head slightly, curiosity lining the edges of her voice as she answers, "honestly? i like the thrill. the excitement." she pauses slightly before adding, "the risk."

"no," namjoon shakes his head, "you don't like the risk. you like being able to overcome that risk. what you've always loved to do is win—it's to take that risk, and turn it into certainty."

when joy looks into his eyes again, she sees a dim flicker underneath, one of warm encouragement, one of having been through exactly what she was going though now. 

one that believed in her.

—

irene, in fact, had returned to her apartment early. that night, she knocks on the door of apartment 2302, an apologetic smile on her face as seungwan stares at her in surprise.

"irene unnie," the younger greets, "you're never back home this early."

irene chuckles, nodding. "do you think we can talk for a little bit? i think i just need someone to talk to—my place, i'll make dinner." she offers, a bit more quietly than usual.

"of course," seungwan says, grabbing her keys and closing the door behind her.

when they are seated in irene's living room after dinner, irene speaks.

"i've been keeping something from all of you." she confesses as she hands seungwan a wine glass. "my mother...was mentally unstable."

she doesn't wait for seungwan to interject.

"when i was little, there weren't even any relatives to take care of her. i always questioned myself how i'd been able to survive to three years old. i didn't starve, i didn't die of sickness, i was never hit by a car. there weren't even any scars on my body. two months ago, my birth father found me and told me that my mother had been genetically ill. i've always been questioning."

"what are you questioning?" seungwan asks quietly then, her voice gentle. 

"today, taehyung's mother took me out for dinner." irene explains, "on the way, we coincidentally saw taehyung's father cheating on her with another woman. while she was crying, she said one thing: that having a mother who is beggar is always better than having a father who is rich."

seungwan watches silently as irene's lips curl, tears welling in her eyes.

"seungwan, i think i've been wrong all this time. i always thought that i've never experienced motherly love, but i think...when my mother was alive...i did. it's only because of this that i survived all these years. even though my mother was that kind of...mom. but, she was still my mom."

"irene," seungwan blinks back her own tears, "if i were a man, i'd give you everything good in the world." she says, her eyes shining, "i thought my own situation was already bad enough, but it's incomparable to yours."

irene shakes her head. "today, i suppose i have to thank taehyung's mother. if it weren't for her words and situation, i'd never be able to look back on my past like this."

"for her to trust you not to say anything about what you witnessed, did she do a background check on you?" seungwan jokes, evoking a laugh from irene as well.

"i know taehyung believes that his mother won't, but even if i were her, i'd look into his girlfriend's background, too." irene lowers her chin, taking a small sip of her wine, "though i've never been in his kind of family, i've seen quite enough of namjoon's and joy's to know what it's like. especially when he's the only son, his parents will only care more about the woman he marries. so, i don't mind to an extent. even if she finds out who my birth father is, i don't mind. as long as..."

irene trails off, her fingers curling subconsciously at her side.

"what about you?" irene's gaze lands on seungwan's shoulders with a small smile as she changes the topic, "have you...talked to yoongi yet?"

"no, i haven't." seungwan answers truthfully, biting her lower lip. "remember how one of his old friends sent me a text message with an address?"

"the one called woohyun?" irene piques, to which seungwan nods.

"he quit his old lifestyle. now, i found out he works at a restaurant as a server. i actually went to check up on him a few days ago." she explains, a small sigh escaping her lips as her shoulders seem to sink visibly. "it's just...without his money, do i still like him as much as i did? back then, did i really like him for who he was, or was i blinded by his money?" seungwan swirls the wine glass in her manicured fingers, shaking her head, "i keep asking myself, but i don't really know."

irene reaches out and places her hand on seungwan's, which is resting on the sofa. "it's okay. eventually, i'm sure you'll figure things out."