Zayne was running from me. Literally running but figuratively as well and I chuckled as I watched her jog away, enjoying the way her lush hips swayed in the pants she wore. The clothes she’d had on the first time I’d seen her at the restaurant hadn’t done her form any justice. She was the definition of an hourglass figure and every part of her was curved to fit her five foot something frame perfectly. Maybe a little too slim but I could work on that, get her eating more than the measly amount she’d finished at the restaurant.

She looked delectable with her forehead lightly beaded with sweat and her hair in a tight ponytail. The thick mass of it was barely contained at the back of her head but the curls had definition and flowed like waves. I wanted to run my fingers through it, hold it tight while I brought her close to me. But she was getting further away and I had to bring back my focus from the edge. She was beautiful and entrancing and I knew nothing about her beyond her name. Maddening but fun, I was eager to find out more.

“Park Jimin! Are you coming or what?”

I turned in the direction of the yell and saw a tall man with dark and messy hair waving to me from across the market. I took my time getting to TaeHyung and to his credit he only needed looked at me once before I broke.

“Her name is Zayne. She was at the restaurant a few weeks ago,” I muttered with barely concealed excitement. A raised eyebrow and a quirking of his lips was his response to the unsolicited explanation. But he couldn’t fool me, his disinterest wouldn’t last long. We walked in silence among the stalls for a while, sometimes with me grabbing at potential produce, other times with Tae poking at the glass tanks that kept the various fish trapped inside.

“I’ve got a gallery showing coming up in a few weeks. Could you do the catering?”

“Of course, for a fee,” I grinned at my business partner and he rolled his eyes heavenward.

“I own half the restaurant,” he complained, and I smiled wider at his annoyed whine that changed his original deep timbre to something much higher.

“Yeah, but you don’t own me. You can cook everything yourself if you want, the kitchen is all yours.”

TaeHyung pushed me sideways and with quick steps I managed to avoid a stall full of various vegetables. Laughing at the angry blush on his face, I thought of the last time my friend had cooked and the disaster that had followed. After numerous cuts and a small pan fire he had presented me with only half cooked eggs and sausage.

“So, are you gonna see the girl again or what?” I pretended to peruse the lobsters in a barrel and the ones sitting in ice, deciding which would taste better. I thought maybe my happiness at seeing Zayne again wasn’t hidden as well as I’d thought.

“I don’t know, I don’t have her contact information or anything. We just spoke briefly,” I replied absentmindedly, still thinking about possible dishes I could make with the seafood presented.

“You didn’t get her number but you were doing that thing?” TaeHyung asked with confusion and his weird question made it through my thoughts. “Twenty of these sir,” I pointed to the lobsters still kicking in the barrel and looked at my friend.

“What thing?” I asked him genuinely confused.

“You know,” he insisted with a casual wave of his hand. “That thing where you lean your face in close to a girl you like.”

“I was not that close,” I hissed when I felt my face heat at his words.

“Yeah right, I saw the whole thing. But I can see why, she was pretty.”

I scoffed at his lame description. “She was more than just pretty; you didn’t see her up close.”

“Defensive already? So then...”

“So nothing,” I lied. I hadn’t been having the best luck in that department lately. I shrugged off the sad feeling that rested over me when I thought of the past few years and instead busied myself with buying more elements of the future menus I had in mind. Tae didn’t bring up Zayne again and for that I was grateful.

“Lunch!” I called out as I brought the last few dishes to the table, the china clinking gently as I set everything down. There were six people working in my restaurant excluding me, three wait staff and three cooks to help me prep and complete our busier dinner services. Before work began, I would make everyone a meal, something to get us started on our day. Today’s menu was blackened ahi tuna, garlic roasted potatoes and pan-fried veggies in teriyaki sauce. Steam rose lightly from it, wafting its delicious smells through the dining room.

While I sat and reviewed financial reports, the people around me argued and gossiped good naturedly, joking with each other and generally causing a fuss. I didn’t mind the warm atmosphere; it made my job easier as a boss if everyone was friendly towards each other.

“Hyung just look at this!” Kookie moaned next to me, his voice full of grievances. “I was scrolling through Twitter and saw someone folding a chip bag without a clip and it was completely sealed! I'm starting to think I may have been living my whole life wrong.”

I watched the forty second clip with bemusement and then stared at the younger man. “You’re insane.”

“You don’t get it! Do you know how many times my bag of hot Cheetos has gone stale? This was a vital part of my education that I was missing.” I nodded solemnly in understanding

“Yeah-still insane”

The group around us laughed at the expression of betrayal on his face but I knew it would ease within a few seconds. Jungkook laughed at himself much more than others, didn’t take himself so seriously. Maybe it was because he was the youngest among our friends, but he had a maturity that kept him balanced beyond his years. It was nice to see his childish side once in a while.

I didn’t have a great head for numbers, but I finished the report that my accountant had sent over with joy. Better than just being in the black, the restaurant had done extremely well this quarter, well enough to pay a large amount of my loans off. If it continued this way, I could finally buy the building, maybe even open a second location. I was excited at the prospect, happy that my dreams had panned out. Not everyone was as lucky as I was and I knew that I would have to keep working hard in order for my success to continue.

“Alright guys, go ahead and start prep. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

As I delved deeper into my economics, I realized abruptly that I was doing well, better than well actually. Well enough that if I wanted a second restaurant it would be easy enough to get a loan and maybe this time go for a cafe feel or potentially something more casual. Excitement bubbled under the surface all afternoon as we cleaned up our meal and guests began to come in for the lunch rush. I sent out dishes of yukgaejang, tteokguk, doenjang-jigae in what felt like a stupor, the multiple soups that were on today’s menu filing the kitchen with delicious smells, but they didn’t penetrate my thoughts.

There were risks to expanding any business, more than just the need to pay back any loans with interest. The people I worked with were considered family to me, I didn’t want to begin something only to have it fail. I was responsible for their livelihoods and I took that responsibility seriously. When it came to culinary there were no safe bets; even if the food and atmosphere were good that wasn’t a guarantee customers would come. And even though I knew the risks, ideas still bounced around in my head for the rest of the night, the hectic energy and heat of the kitchen unable to curb them.

The end of the day came to an easy close, guests and waitstaff having trickled out one by one until I was the only one left. After inspecting the kitchen one last time for any left-out ingredients or unclean surfaces, I began to shut off the lights. I locked the doors and then started to make my way not upstairs but to my car that was parked across the street. The public lot was well-lit, and my BMW sat waiting with an air of sullenness. It had truthfully been longer than a week since I’d used the car, much more used to walking through the city or driving the restaurant’s truck when I needed to shop.

I patted the car once in apology for neglecting it before cranking the engine to life. In the quiet my thoughts drifted to the morning and the short glimpse of Zayne. I wondered if I should make it a habit to go to the fish market instead of sending Kookie, wondered if she would be there tomorrow. It was strange but I had felt immediately drawn to the woman, something about her begged to be found out, a riddle waiting to be solved.

My second apartment was one I had moved into just a year ago, eager to have a place where the smell of cooking oil and smoke didn’t permeate the whole of it. The restaurant’s upper room was as cozy as this place was spartan in both furnishings and color. I had gone for simple black and silver, had forbidden my mother and sisters from bringing me knickknacks and decoration pieces that would clutter the space. I enjoyed the unused feeling of it; it was like experiencing a nice hotel every time I came here.

I stripped out of my clothes and threw them in the laundry basket by the bathroom door. , I walked into my shower and stayed away from the spraying water until it grew warm. Exhaustion caused my shoulders to fall and I leaned against the wall of the shower, letting the water douse my whole body as well as my hair. I stayed inside the small glass enclosure long enough that the entire bathroom was hazy with steam and I wiped away the condensation on the mirror with a hand after wrapping a towel around my waist.

Hastily I ran a smaller towel across my hair and then brushed my teeth, eager to be done with the nightly routine. I slapped on some moisturizer for my face and body and then looked for suitable pajamas in my closet that was almost empty. A pair of basketball shorts later and I snuggled underneath the white sheets on my bed, thoughts of tomorrow’s lunch menu lulling me to sleep.

“Yeoboseyo,” I croaked into my phone, and popped open one eye when it continued to ring. This time I pressed the answer button and crackling sounds came out from the speaker.

“Park Jimin!”

“Eomma, how are you. I’m fine thanks for asking. It’s always a pleasure to hear your beautiful voice in the morning,” I managed to get out before a loud yawn escaped my lips. I glanced blearily at my phone’s home screen and the early hour made me flop back onto my pillows in disgust.

“Don’t get smart with me! I just heard from Jia’s mother. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Mom what was there to say, she broke up with me. Not the other way around,” I said shortly, maybe some lingering annoyance still residing in my heart. Why was this love thing so much harder than it looked in the movies?

“Well, the best thing to do now is find a nice girl, one you didn’t meet in a bar,” she reprimanded lightly, and I only sighed at her censure.

“I just got out of a six-month relationship; don’t you think I should take a break?”

“Nonsense, what if you miss the right one?”

“It’s inconceivable,” I muttered while she continued on, her words coming faster as she warmed to her topic.

“Your aunt is having a party and we’re all going, family and family friends. With so many people bringing relatives, you’re bound to find someone suitable.”

“Alright mom, I’ll go. Don’t worry.”

“Jimin,” she hesitated, and I open eyes that had begun to close, hearing the heavy tone of her voice. “You know there’s nothing wrong with you. If these girls can’t see how special you are, it’s their loss.”

I couldn’t help the rueful smile that broke across my lips. “I know eomma.”

No matter how much I wanted to take a break from dating, I wanted to be an obedient son, wanted to make my parents happy. My being settled like my older sisters were was foremost in their mind and took up not a small portion of my own. They were worried but so I was I, so maybe the family get together wasn’t such a bad idea. Or at least I had convinced myself of as much when I pulled up to my aunt’s house later that evening, sunset just beginning to settle over the city.

My aunt and uncle lived in a large townhouse, the building formerly a boarding house remodeled for this century. Its heavy oak doors were original to the façade and the beaming face of my uncle greeted me when I rang the doorbell.

“Samchon, it’s good to see you,” I choked out as the larger man drew me into a bear hug.

“You’ve kept yourself holed up in that restaurant for too long, your aunt and I haven’t seen you in weeks.” I felt the blush rise in my face at his gentle ribbing, knowing full well he knew I was avoiding the family dinners like the plague.

“I’ll be by a lot more often, promise,” I told him and actually meant it. The pitying looks of my family could be stomached but long-term distance couldn’t be, no matter how much they sought to interfere in my personal life.

I greeted my dad, mom and aunt who were all huddled collectively in the living room that was full of people milling around, the kitchen and stairs just as full as everywhere else in the house it seemed. People of all kinds were grouped together and I knew that this wasn’t simply a family get together, this was a melting pot of the people my aunt came into contact with at her job. The shelter brought in workers from all backgrounds and ethnicities, and I could even see some who had been homeless once upon a time that my aunt had helped get back on their feet.

There were no sad faces in this crowd and I wandered through them all after making my excuses to my parents. I waved to those who I recognized and called out to closer friends who were in attendance, gravitating to the buffet table that sat in one corner of the house. Various types of food littered the two large tables along with plates, napkins and plastic utensils. I grabbed a few pieces of spicy yangnyeom chicken and struck up a conversation with a cousin who was back for a weekend break from college. We joked around for a while until I saw a flash of something out of the corner of my eye, a mass of wild curls moving fast.

“Hey, I’ll call you later, I think I just saw someone I know,” I told my cousin who waved me away as his attention went once more to the spread of food.

I weaved my way through the crush of people, the throng somehow thicker than it was only a half hour before. But that head of hair came into view again and I felt my heart tremble in my chest. Zayne was really here, dressed in a simple but form fitting burgundy dress, her hair half up in a bun, the rest loose and curled in a heap of spirals. Her lips were painted a deep cherry red, eye catching and full of temptation. Unlike my own stunted movements, Zayne made her way easily through the throng, people parting for her as she bee-lined for the outside terrace.

I hesitated only a second before I continued to follow her, eager to be in her presence, wanting her to see me. I couldn’t remember ever being this excited to be around someone else, the nervous flutters in my stomach only increasing in their fervency the closer I came to her. I peeked around the bay doors that she had absconded through, but my eyes were met with a scene that cooled all my flaming emotions.

Zayne was overlooking the railing of the terrace, her hands clenched around the metal tightly, as if she was afraid. But her face was bathed in the fading light of the day and I could see that her cheeks glistened with fallen tears, her plump lips caught between her teeth. She held herself steady against some unknown pain and the sight of her anguish hit me full force in the chest. A part of me wanted to leave her in peace, but the larger part had to know, what to fix whatever it was hurting her. I stepped out fully from behind the door and all at once Zayne turned to look at me, a startled gasp leaving her lips loudly enough to be audible to my ears.

“Why are you so sad?” I whispered to her, the words at once a thought in my brain had been so quickly spilled out of my mouth. And from the way she tensed I knew she’d heard them, and I was unable to take them back. She simply stared at me for a long while and the longer she looked, the more I felt like an idiot. Why did I rush over, why did I bother her? I was sure she was thinking about how best to get away from me as fast as she could. So, I was surprised when she came closer, her steps punctuated by the click of her heels against the stones under our feet.

“I don’t think I know you well enough to tell you,” she seemed to choke out, the words flippant but her tone anything but. “What are you doing here Jimin?”

A/N: Welcome back everyone! I hope you all enjoyed this peek into Jimin's life, his family dynamic and just a bit more understanding of his character and what drives him. We honestly havent't been getting much from him, as this story mostly centers around Zayne. But I'll be sure to add in adequte chapters of his pov. Let me know what you guys think and what you like so far! Remember to COMMENT, UPVOTE and SUBSCRIBE for more content! Much love, <3!