"Little secrets grow up to be big lies. But between us, there was none of that."
<The Story Never Told - Sondia>
"Appa! Appa!"
Taehyung looked up, just as Hyeyoung rushed into the ward. It had been two weeks since he had been warded now... and Jennie and Hyeyoung had come to visit him every single day, without fail. A smile crept onto Taehyung's face as Hyeyoung bounded up to him in her school uniform, carrying a drawing in her hands.
"I missed you so much!" Hyeyoung climbed onto Taehyung's bed and gave him a tight hug. "That's why I drew this photo of us today."
Jennie strolled in behind her with a worried look on her face. Namjoon walked in next to her, looking slightly glum as well.
Taehyung positioned Hyeyoung on his lap and peered over her shoulder. "What did you draw, Hyeyoung-ah?"
"This?" Hyeyoung smiled as she held up the drawing in her hands, pointing at it as she explained. "This is me, this is appa... this is omma. We're a happy family."
The smile on Taehyung's face slowly disappeared as his eyes landed on the drawing that Hyeyoung had on her lap. It was a messy drawing, many colours were used and it was overall, a bad drawing. But Taehyung could see what was going on. He glanced up at Jennie and Namjoon, who just stared back at him, glassy-eyed.
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"Hyeyoung-ah..." Taehyung swallowed hard as he turned back to Hyeyoung, stroking her hair gently. "Why are we all floating...?"
"Omma said that you're sick, and that you might float up into the clouds one day-" Hyeyoung chirped with a happy smile on her face. "That's why we're all floating! We're going to go with you, aren't we? After all, we're always together. Don't worry, appa - Hyeyoung-ie won't let you go alone."
Taehyung was terrified of what this little girl had just said to him.
"That's what you told her...?" Taehyung glanced at Jennie with a look of concern on his face. "That... I'm going to float up into the clouds one day...? I told you to prepare her for me... leaving - not floating up in the clouds, not going somewhere faraway, is it really that hard for you to just tell her that one day, I'm no longer gonna be here because I'm gonna d-"
"Shut up-" Jennie swallowed hard as she covered a clueless Hyeyoung's ears. "She's listening, oppa. Don't say such things in front of her, will you? She's still young, I don't want her to say such things."
"She's young?" Taehyung scoffed. "Please. Just because she's young, you'll explain such an important concept of life to her in such simplistic, unrealistic terms...? Just because she's young, you're not gonna teach her that people live and die...? What kind of parenting is this-"
Jennie balled her fists. "Kim Taehyung, don't you dare try to teach me on how to be a parent. Don't forget that you-"
"Don't forget that I what...?" Taehyung heaved in anger, his fists balled at his sides. "That I'm not actually Hyeyoung's real dad...?"
