The Jeon Family- Taekook AU

-Twenty--nine-

Ara stood there, her heart pounding in her chest. The room was filled with laughter and chatter, but all she could hear was the deafening silence of her thoughts. She looked around, her eyes landing on Jungkook who was now engaged in a deep conversation with Taehyung.

She could see the concern etched on his face, the way his brows furrowed, and she knew he was genuinely worried for his friend.

"You invited her?" Taehyung softly questioned, trying not to cause a scene, "Yes, why? Is there a problem? If you did not want me to you should have said that,"

"I feel like I should not have to say that, you knew what happened last time I met her, you couldn't tell I didn't like her?"

"But why don't you, she is nice,"

"Something is off about her, I don't trust her, I don't want her near my kid,"

"The kid is mine too you know," Jungkook felt himself fill with annoyance, "Do you want it to be?"

"You are joking, right? Why would you even say that to me?" Jungkook scoffed, taking a step back from the boy, "Jungkook, you can not just kiss me and then flirt with a girl in front of me and expect me to think this is gonna be a happy ending, you don't want me and I don't want a girl I don't trust to be around my son,"

Jungkook was still. His brain was trying to form words but none could come out. He knew it would be better to let the situation go until later.

Ara then turned her gaze to the Jeons, who were now laughing and chatting with Taehyung's parents.

"Their son is going to be smart and good at sports," Mrs. Kim smiled happily, "what was you twos reaction when finding out?" The other woman spoke, curious to find out how the other couple felt about the situation.

"We love Taehyung, we support everything he does and every decision he makes, I think the most shocking thing to hear was that it was Jungkooks," Mr. Kim took a drink of his water and Mrs. Jeon giggled.

"I always knew something was going on," a fake smile was placed on the others man's face, he wasn't lying.

At this point in time, it was hard to believe that they were the same people who had just threatened her father's business and forced her into this mess.  Ara felt a lump forming in her throat. She wanted to scream, to tell Jungkook everything.

But the words of Mrs. Jeon echoed in her mind, "If Jungkook finds out that we put you into this he will never speak to us again..."  She took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart. She had to do this, not just for her father, but for herself too. She had to prove that she was more than just a pawn in the Jeons' game.

As the evening wore on, Ara found herself drawn into the festivities. She helped with the presents, laughed at the jokes, and even managed to have a few conversations without stumbling over her words. But through it all, her mind kept drifting back to Jungkook.

She watched him from the corner of her eye, the way he moved, the way he spoke. He was so different from the others, so genuine. And despite everything, Ara found herself drawn to him.

The party winded down and Jungkook was saying his goodbyes, with only himself. Taehyung, Jimin, Jin, Hoseok, Yoongi, and Namjoon left he felt calm.

Tension was still in the air, "Well that is over with, you guys got so much stuff," Namjoon analyzed the mound of gifts that were in a pile.

"I'm glad you noticed that because you guys are the ones hauling it into Taehyung's dad's truck," Jimin smiled sarcastically, "Taehyung is pregnant what is your reason you can't carry it?" Yoongi questioned, his eyebrow began raising.

Jungkook couldn't help but steal glances at Taehyung who was quietly eating strawberry's while sitting down, "I get it, I am pregnant," Taehyung finally spoke as he got up and went outside to the porch.

"Is he okay?" Hoseok asked, watching the boy walk away, "Pregnancy hormones," Jungkook shrugged and Jin gave him an annoyed look.

Jimin and Jin walked in the direction of Taehyung and came up behind the boy.

"Tae, we are here for you," Jin stated taking the boy into his grasp, "Guys I'm scared and in a shitty position, I thought this was gonna be fun, but Jungkook and I are growing apart and I don't know what to do anymore,"

"What did you say to him last?" Jimin needed more to go off of, "He kissed me last night, but it didn't feel right, so today Ara came and I don't trust her, so I told him and then I asked in a way if he wanted to be a father,"

"Has he tried talking to you yet? That can not be left unsettled," Jin opened his mouth in shock, "If it is then it is, I just am lost right now," Once the statement left Taehyungs mouth Jungkook walked out to where Taehyung, Jimin, and Jin were.

"Hey we are starting to pile things into the truck, if any of you want to help," The boy leaned against the door frame with his hands in his sweatpants pockets, "Yea we will help," Jimin nodded and Jin gave him a confused look before getting pulled away.

That left Taehyung looking down and a sigh emerged from Jungkook's mouth, "You know I really want to do this with you," Jungkook stated, no response from the latter who was ashamed to make eye contact.

"Do you think our friendship will make it through this?" A soft sentence came out of Taehyungs mouth, "We have been through a lot of things with each other," 

"Nothing this big though, maybe we aren't as strong as you think,"

"Maybe," Jungkook replied, his voice barely above a whisper. "But we won't know unless we try, right?"

Taehyung looked up at him, his eyes filled with uncertainty. "And what if we fail?"

Jungkook took a step closer, closing the distance between them. "Then we fail together. But at least we won't have any regrets."

The silence that followed was deafening. The tension in the air was palpable, and for a moment, neither of them moved. Then, Jungkook extended his hand towards Taehyung, a silent offer of support and solidarity.

Taehyung stared at the outstretched hand for a moment before slowly reaching out and taking it. His grip was firm, a silent promise of his commitment to face whatever was coming their way.

"Let's do this," Taehyung said, determination flashing in his eyes. "Together."

And with that, they turned around and walked back towards the truck, ready to face whatever challenges lay ahead. As they worked side by side, the tension slowly started to dissipate, replaced by a sense of camaraderie and shared purpose.

As the sun began to set, painting the sky with hues of orange and pink, they finally finished loading the truck. Exhausted but satisfied, they climbed into the cab, their hands still tightly clasped together.

As they drove off into the sunset, they knew that whatever happened next, they would face it together. And somehow, that made everything seem a little less intimidating.