Allured

150

They were eating silently inside the fancy restaurant where Taehyung reserved their dinner. They were seated beside each other and in front of them was his mother. No one is speaking and only the sound of utensils are heard. Then, his mother spoke.

"Taehyung, you forgot something in your car," she firmly said while slicing her steak.

Taehyung was confused and looked at his mother. Jisoo just glanced at the lady across from her, still silent. She doesn't want to say anything to avoid the risk of doing anything wrong.

"Huh? No, I don't think I have something—" his mother cut him off and put her utensils down.

"I said, you have something you forgot in your car. Go and get it," she eyed him intently and Jisoo cannot help but reach for Taehyung's hand under the table and squeeze lightly to tell him it's okay. It's obvious that his mother wants them to be alone.

"Mom—" he tried to reason.

"Leave us alone," she said with finality.

Taehyung looked at them interchangeably and sighed defeat against his mom. He put his utensils down and pressed Jisoo's hand below the table. He stared at his mother before slowly standing up.

"Don't scare my girl, alright?" he uttered and kissed the top of Jisoo's head before walking out of the VIP room completely. Jisoo followed him with her eyes while his mother continued eating quietly again.

She looked at the lady for a second before she awkwardly went back to eating. She is so conscious of her movements and she doesn't know what to say. Jisoo racked her brain for any topic to open up but she cannot come up with one. They were silent for a minute until his mother spared her a stare.

"You will not talk to me, young lady?" she asked.

"Uhm... Sorry madame," Jisoo put down her utensils and grabbed the table napkin to wipe her mouth gently.

"Why are you trembling?" the lady pointed out as she eyed her shaky hands.

"I was uh... Kinda... Nervous," Jisoo admitted and cannot look directly. She tried to control her breathing and think of something proper or different to say.

"Of me?" the lady questioned, raising a brow at her.

"Sort of..." her voice trailed off and finally met her gaze.

"You're honest, I see," Taehyung's mother said while lightly nodding and wiping her lips with the table napkin.

"So... You and my son," the lady sat up straight and stared at her, "You are dating, huh?" Jisoo gulped.

"Yes ma'am," she answered softly.

"Are you two serious about it?" she asked.

"Yes. We are in a serious relationship, madam."

His mother crossed her arms over her chest and examined her appearance, "Why should my son end up with you?" she questioned and took a sip of champagne.

"Because..." Jisoo searched for the right words to convince his mother.

She tried formulating flowery words but her mind went blank. She cannot think of anything so she closed her eyes and heaved a sigh. There's nothing she can do. She didn't prepare any long essay to win her so she decided to just be honest. Whatever it is, at least she will be genuine.

"Because... I— I love him," she bravely admitted and stared at the lady's eyes. Then, Jisoo continued.

Screw this, she thought before speaking her feelings.

"You see ma'am, I'm not the best, I'm not that deserving. I actually hurt your son before, we had a rough time in our relationship. I'm not even the sweetest girlfriend he may have had but I... I love him. I'm happy with him and I think he is, too. After we separated for a while, I realized I cannot live without him. So I'm trying my best to be better for us," she said.

His mother was silent for some time before she started to tell the stories, "Taehyung, he never really had a serious relationship before, you know. I just heard about his flings but he never talked about anyone at all. You're the only one he mentioned to me. Whenever he talks about you, he has this sparkle in his eyes," the lady chuckled and smiled softly at her.

"I like you," she added, "I mean for my son. I like you."

"Really?" Jisoo beamed and stifled a smile. Suddenly, she can sigh with relief and she felt a little comfortable when she heard that.

"Uhuh," his mother laughed at her, "Sorry about that, I'm just playing and testing you," she continued and smiled wider.

"That was a relief ma'am, I was really nervous," Jisoo held her chest and laughed too.

"Ma'am? What ma'am?" the lady shook her head and grabbed her hand to squeeze it lightly. She smiled at Jisoo, a smile that resembled his son's.

"Just call me mom, okay? I think you'll end up as my daughter in law soon, too," she guffawed and gestured for them to continue eating dinner while she called for Taehyung to go back inside.