OC- Sera

“To see is to believe.” Is what they say.

When Sera saw the scene unfold before her eyes, she didn’t know what to think. It’s like her mind had gone through a permanent mental breakdown, unwilling herself to react let alone think straight. She didn’t know what to make out of it—or to even believe it, though the image was pretty clear and obvious:

Jungkook was married. Jungkook has a family.

The moment the three of them went out of the café, giggling and smiling like the happy family they were, Sera wanted to get out of the car and run out as fast as she could. No words could describe the surprise and disbelief she felt upon seeing them. Not to mention the pain—

A knock on the window made her jump and as she glanced to her right, she was surprised to see the little girl, waving at her happily. “Sera noona!”

Sera felt a pinch in her chest at seeing the little girl looking up at her with bright eyes. She’s as beautiful as her mom, she thought as she looked at her heart-shaped face and rosy cheeks. She waved back and opened the door, slowly, careful not to hit her. “H—hey kiddo.” She stuttered as she stepped out of the vehicle. To her surprise, the kid gave her a hug, wrapping her little arms around her waist. Sera stood there awkwardly for a while, but eventually patted her head.

Looking up, she met Jungkook’s gaze which was a mx of surprise and confusion. She shrugged, knowing that he’s probably wondering why the hell his daughter was hugging her.

“So this is Sera,” A female voice said and Sera switched her gaze to the beautiful woman standing beside Jungkook. She reached out her hand, dazzling her with a warm smile. “I’m Ririn.”

“Sera.” She said as she took her hand. “You’re the girl I bumped into this morning…”

“You’ve met?” Jungkook asked Ririn, who smiled at him. “Yeah. Our little Jinyoung decided to go running off this morning.” She stared pointedly at the little girl, who deliberately hid herself behind Sera, using her as a shield.  

Sera tried not to focus on how she had said “our Jinyoung”.

“Oh?” Jungkook frowned as he motioned for Jinyoung, who slowly went out of hiding to take his hand. “Been causing trouble, are we?”

Jinyoung shook her head and looked like she was about to cry. Jungkook chuckled at her reaction and poked her nose, “I’m not mad, Jinnie.”

“Appa looks mad.” She said.

Appa…, Sera thought, feeling a slight pinch in her chest.

“Nah.” He ruffled her hair affectionately. “I was just worried. But don’t make your omma worry again? Okay?”

Omma… she thought again, feeling like the ground was shaking beneath her.

“Good girl.” Jungkook looked at Sera and nodded at her. “Time to go? Hoseok will be waiting.”

Hoseok… Sera snapped out of her daze, remembering her fiancé. She swallowed and nodded without a word, before moving over to the backseat.

“Wait, you can sit—“

“It’s okay.” She smiled weakly as she helped Jinyoung into the car. “Ririn should take that seat.”

Jungkook stared at her and the situation was so awkward she wished she could just wrap herself in a ball and hide. It was a good thing that Ririn had butted in, “It’s fine, Sera. You can sit beside Kookie.” She smiled before moving towards the backseat.

Kookie?? Sera snorted at the term of endearment and Ririn gave her a look, “You okay?”

She cleared , embarrassed for letting that slip. “Sorry. Just got something stuck in my throat.” She hopped in hastily before she could do any more damage.

 ~~~

They arrived at the restaurant a few minutes later and Hoseok was already waiting by the entrance. Sera smiled as they approached, feeling relieved to be finally released from her misery. The car ride was extremely awkward and as much as Ririn tried to make conversation with her, she just couldn’t keep up. Everything was still so surprising to her and she needed some time to let it all sink in.

The car parked and Jungkook went out, causing a surprised expression from Hoseok. “Jungkook-ssi?”

“Good evening.” He nodded as he opened the passenger side door, revealing Sera. “Hey honey.” she greeted, weakly like she was tired from the errands she had run earlier that day; which was not much considering that she only had the dress fitting.

“Hey.” Hoseok grinned as he approached her, wrapping her up in a warm hug. “I missed you.” He whispered in her ear, sending shivers down her spine.

“Mmm.” she said as she kissed his cheek in return. Jungkook looked away, his hands clenching. The backdoor opened and out came Ririn, who immediately hooked her arm onto Jungkook’s. Sera watched her do it, feeling—

wait… am I actually jealous?

Hoseok looked at the two of them with a smile. “Who’s this?”

Jungkook smiled as he glanced at Ririn, “This is Ririn—“

“Omma! Can I sit with you?” Jinyoung moved out of the car, running towards her mother. Hoseok beamed at the sight and Sera chuckled, knowing how much he loved kids. “Oh! Who’s this pretty girl?”

“J-jinyoung.” She bowed before holding onto her mother’s hand.

“Nice to meet you,” Hoseok said as he knelt in front of her, reaching out a hand. “I’m Hoseok.”

“Hyung.” She smiled and Hoseok chuckled. “Uh, I think that’s oppa…”

“But appa calls omma, noona…”

Noona? Sera wondered.

Hoseok glanced up at the couple with a weird look, “What are you teaching your kid?”

Ririn let out a good-natured laugh, “Old habits die hard, I guess.” Sera looked at Jungkook and thought, it does.

“Well, since you’re here.” Hoseok said as he stood up. “Would you like to join us for dinner?”

Sera’s eyes widened at his offer and immediately said, “I think they’re busy honey…”

“Plus we wouldn’t want to intrude.” Ririn added.

“Nah.” Hsoeok waved a hand. “It’s fine. There’s a lot of food to go through anyway. Plus! We’d need more people to help us decide.” He poked Sera on the rib, knowing it’s her tickle spot and she immediately moved away with a smile. “This beautiful lady here can be quite indecisive.”

“Yah.” She hit him playfully, causing him to laugh. Jungkook felt a tinge of jealousy at the sight.

“Omma I’m hungry.” Jinyoung whined and Jungkook looked at her disapprovingly. “Jinyoung—“

“See? The little girl wants in.” he chuckled.

“Are you sure it’s fine?” Ririn asked as he looked at Jungkook. “We wouldn’t want to intrude.”

“Of course! It’s absolutely fine!” Hoseok said. “Right, honey?” Sera glanced at Jungkook and was surprised to see him already looking at her. She slowly nodded, “Yeah.”

“Great! Let’s get eating, then.” He chortled as he led everyone into the restaurant.

~~~

It was probably the longest dinner Sera has ever been to as they tried almost every single dish available in the place. The food was delicious but Sera wasn’t able to enjoy it much, mainly because of the boy sitting right in front of her. She was a little pissed that he didn’t tell her that he was married or that he had a family. But the more she thought about, the more she wondered: what difference would it have made if he did? It’s not like I’m hoping—

Sera stopped before her thoughts could even get there. She watched the table in front of her, observing the situation. It was mostly Hoseok and Ririn who engaged in conversation, with Jungkook butting in every once in a while. Sera remained silent all throughout, nibbling at the dishes served.

“Sera, honey, are you okay?” Hoseok nudged her. “You hardly ate.”

“I’m just not feeling that well, I guess.” She shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. Probably just exhaustion.”

Hoseok held her hand underneath the table, giving it a light squeeze. She gave him a smile before going straight back to staring at her half-empty plate. She felt something nudge her foot and when she glanced up, Jungkook caught her gaze. He stared at her, his head slightly tilting to the side. Without any words said, she knew exactly what he meant. She gave him a nod, telling him that she’s okay, but Jungkook didn’t believe it and continued to look at her worriedly even though she had already looked away.

Sera hated how easily she could communicate with him just by the looks on their faces. She hated how they knew each other so well. 

~~~

The dinner ended an hour later and it took about another hour to get home.

“They’re really nice.” Hoseok said. “The little girl was precious.”

“Hmm.”

“Are you okay?” he asked, concerned. “You’ve been really quiet tonight.”

“I’m just tired, Hoseok.” She said. He walked towards her, hugging her tight as he swayed her from side to side. “What are you doing?” she asked as she let herself be swayed to his movements.

“I’m hugging the pain away.” He murmured. Upon hearing those words, Sera felt her walls crumbling down and tears streamed down her face. She broke down, letting all the stress, the confusion, and the pain she had swallowed down for