He had thought that the tour would be awkward as he had never been good with strangers - but perhaps due to the nature of their job, Sooyoung was a great conversationalist, and Miyoung was extremely chatty and friendly. He found himself enjoying his time with them - especially with Junghyun who was quickly warming up to him, and he learnt more about Jihyun and her life in New York.

He held onto Junghyun's hand as she the ice cream with delight, pointing out excitedly to the ducks swimming around the pond at Central Park. They settled down at a spot and Junghyun had pulled Miyoung to the pond to feed the ducks.

"Jihyun? She was a mess when she first arrived here." Sooyoung chuckled dryly and Jungkook pursed his lips, staying silent. "I could hear her crying every day from my room - the walls were so thin. The girl was so lonely in this big city. We totally understood how she felt because when we first came from Korea we were like that too, so we went over the next day and approached her, she was so easy to get along with! We instantly clicked and became close friends." They explained and Jungkook cast his eyes towards the ground. He knew the reason why she was crying, and it wasn't just because she was lonely in New York.

"We have dinner parties all the time! We usually get off work around the same time and get dinner together, before gathering at the sofa to chill with some wine. Ji loves that the most. But the thing about wine is that she'd get all sentimental and start crying for no reason at all." Sooyoung chuckled but Jungkook remained expressionless - the boy realised that most of their memories involved Jihyun crying.

"Ji's such a strong girl." Sooyoung said before continuing, "She came to New York and she had to juggle work along with taking care of Junghyun. Thankfully Mrs. Kim was here, but it was really heartbreaking seeing Jihyun suffering so much over the last few years." She said truthfully and Jungkook was taken aback. "How about Junghyun's father?" He asked curiously and the girl looked surprised, "You don't know about it?" She asked and he shook his head in response.

"Well, we don't know him personally, but anyway it's not our place to talk about this so you should ask her personally." That was all she said while he nodded his head in understanding to respect her privacy.

--

"You're back!" Mina screamed the moment she caught sight of the brown-haired girl coming into the office - she could recognize that face anywhere.

Chuckling, Jihyun ran into Mina's arms, as if the two had been separated for a long time. "Gosh, it's only been a month!" Jihyun pushed Mina off playfully as the older clung onto her. "It felt like forever!"

"You're exaggerating." Jihyun rolled her eyes and Mina peered over to the back, only to find Jihyun alone. "Where's my favourite girl?" She raised her eyebrows and Jihyun laughed, "Miyoung and Sooyoung are taking care of her now." Mina pouted in response.

"Okay fine, I would love to catch up, but we have a tight schedule! Jessica's coming tomorrow so let's run through the details on her photoshoot." Mina straightened herself quickly.

"Let's go!" Jihyun pumped her hands in the air, getting herself and her mindset ready for work. She was determined not to let Jungkook mess up her thoughts.

The next 8 hours became a brainstorming session and arrangement of different people coming together to coordinate the outfits and look for the photoshoot. No matter how busy she was, she couldn't help but think about Jungkook, and whether he was okay. Glancing at her phone, the girls seemed to have read her mind.

She opened the group chat to find a photo of the two girls with a covered up Jungkook and a smiling Junghyun posing in front of the Statue of Liberty - she let out a small smile, glad that they seemed to be having fun.

"Go home, Jihyun. You had a long flight today and we need to get up early tomorrow." Mina said as she took the papers away from her hands but Jihyun shook her head, "I can continue."

"It's an order. I'll finish up here, just get some rest and I'll see you tomorrow." Jihyun nodded slightly and excused herself, thankful that she was finally going to get some rest. Her phone rang the moment she exited the building.

"Ji! We're thinking of going to Marks' Diner for our favourite hamburgers, what do you say?" Miyoung said excitedly. "You guys go ahead, I'm pooped. I just need some sleep." She rejected their offer before hailing a cab. "I'll see you guys later."

She came home to the smell of bibimbap in the apartment. Following the smell to the kitchen, she saw Jungkook standing in the kitchen wearing her favourite blue apron, carefully placing an egg onto the plate as Junghyun sat quietly at the dining table coloring. Her heart melted at the sight of this happy scene - never in her life had she imagined that she would be able to witness a scene like this, where Jungkook was home and Junghyun would be waiting for them at the dining table. Simple moments like this made her heart swell in delight.

He turned back as soon as he heard footsteps, surprised to see her coming through the door. "I didn't think you'd be home that early." Jungkook said and Jihyun shrugged, "I thought you two were heading out with Miyoung and Sooyoung."

"Well, I overheard your conversation with them. I knew that you'd probably end up sleeping through your hunger because you're too tired, so I came home to cook." Her heart warmed slightly at his words, but all she could come up with was a nod of approval. "Alright."

They finished dinner quickly, both were too tired to hold a conversation after a whole day of happenings. It had been an overwhelming day for Jihyun - the boy who broke her heart had followed her to New York, the very place she escaped to six years ago, and the place she thought she'd escape to again to get away from him this time. The only difference was she couldn't escape this time - Jeon Jungkook was right next to her.

She quickly put Junghyun to sleep, but the girl requested for a short bedtime story. "Baby, eomma's too tired today. I'll read one for you tomorrow, okay?" She asked and the girl pouted, "But I want to hear a fairytale story."

"How about I read you one?" Jungkook interjected as he turned his attention to the young girl, while she clapped her hands excitedly. "Yes please!" She said as she snuggled into her bed and Jihyun stopped him, "Jungkook, you're tired too. Just go to sleep, I'll handle her."

He shook his head in response as he settled down beside the young girl, "It's alright. I'm not tired yet. Go to sleep, I'll read her the story." He said and this time, Jihyun obliged as she gave a quick nod, too tired to argue.

"Once upon a time..."

--

Waking up to her 8am alarm, she was surprised to find Jungkook's comforter folded neatly, and panting as he entered the door. She looked at him in his sweats and running shoes - the boy managed to make such a casual outfit look that good.

"Good morning." He smiled and she hummed a reply. "Breakfast?" He asked and she shook her head, "I gotta head to work, big day."

She seemed casual on the outside, as if she's alright with him coexisting in the same space as her, but she was questioning herself the whole time - He did something so terrible that it had scarred her, was she really ready to forgive him? What was their status now? Were they friends? Roommates? Ex-lovers? What was the meaning of all these? Did she still love him? Does he still have lingering feelings for her?

And all these progress that he was making with Junghyun - she knew that her daughter had taken a liking to the boy, it was obvious when she talked excitedly about her day with Jungkook around the city during shower time, and how he fed the ducks with her while playing pretend with her using her favourite barbie dolls when Jihyun was at work.

She had thought about talking to him and straightening things out before she slept last night, but her busy schedule and the jet lag didn't allow any of that to fit in.

"What's up with today?" He asked as he buttered the toast while glancing over at a sleeping Junghyun. "We're doing a photoshoot for the Korean-American Singer, Jung Jessica."

"Oh, she's a friend of mine." He said as he ate his toast, "She is? I guess the industry is pretty small, eh?" She shrugged and he nodded.

"Anyway, what are you going to do today?" She asked as she put on her makeup in front of the mirror. Jungkook had been staring at her the whole time - she was rarely relaxed with him, and a simple act of putting on her makeup in front of him made him feel that the littlest moments mattered the most. "Nothing much, probably just roam around the neighbourhood, with Junghyun of course."

"You can meet up with Miyoung and Sooyoung, their schedules are pretty flexible. They are coming over to take care of Junghyun. I'll just send your number to them, they'll contact you." She said as she fiddled with her phone and he nodded. "I'll see you later." She turned to him while he gave a small smile, "Have a good day at work!"

Before leaving, she landed a small peck on Junghyun's head and headed out. Jungkook let out a small smile - he could tell the girl really loved her daughter. But the real question was, who is her father and why is he not here?

Contrary to what Jungkook said, the day wasn't going well at all.

First, she had forgotten to bring her laptop from home and she lived 45 minutes away from the venue. Panicking internally, she racked her brain for solutions as she looked at her watch nervously and realized there was no time to go home.

Just then, the main door to the shooting warehouse swung open, and there stood a man in a black hoodie and skinny jeans. He approached the girl who was furrowing her eyebrows as she held onto the papers tightly. "You forgot this." He ran to her and held out the laptop bag, catching her attention as she looked up and gazed into those familiar brown orbs.

"How did you know I was here?" She asked incredulously, heaving a sigh of relief when she saw him holding onto the familiar black bag. "Well, I saw your laptop on the table but you weren't replying to my messages nor answering my calls, so I pulled a connection and tried to find out your whereabouts." He prodded his head towards the star of the show, who gave a wide smile when she saw him. "Right, Jessica." She muttered, unsure of the tingling jealousy in her heart when she saw him smile right back at her. "Anyway, you're a life saviour." She fina