Strings Attached

Chapter 10, Jiah

Life was merciless, it was cruel, yet you didn't hate it. You didn't hate it because where you were engulfed in hundreds of problems, there was hundreds of other things to provide you the comfort you needed.

The greatest of them, of course, was your daughter. You still remember when you held Jiah in your arms for the first time three years ago, you didn't even know you were capable of loving another human so much. You remember how you cried all night, so happy yet so sad. You were about to lose control that night, you were about to mess everything up because you wanted to share the news with Yoongi so bad. You wanted to let him know that he was now a father of a beautiful baby girl, that you named her Jiah because it meant wisdom and beautiful and because those words reminded you of him. You just wished and wished but did nothing that you would regret later on.

Three years fast forward, you were glad you didn't call him that night. Yoongi was now a superstar, a rapper, songwriter and a producer and was super successful. You kept track, you bought each one of his albums and mixtapes and you saw him go from 0 to 100 and you couldn't be happier for him. You knew he was out of the dark now, you knew that he saw light now and it comforted you even if he wasn't here with you.

"Mommy, is Joonie and aunt Sarah going to come over today?" Right, how could she go on with her day without mentioning her favourite people on this planet?

"Yes, they'll be here any minute. It's almost your bedtime, though. Promise me you'll go to bed after meeting them?"

Your daughter let out the funniest groan ever as she nodded her head despite her liking.

As if on cue, the doorbell rang and Jiah ran over to the door to meet her favourite Joonie and Aunt Sarah.

"HELLOO JOONIE AND AUNT SARAH!" She ran over into Namjoon's arms and the sight always warmed your heart so much.

"I can't believe she calls him Joonie but calls me Aunt Sarah, do I not deserve the same love?" You laughed off Sarah's never ending whining as you took the card from her hand.

"So it's finally happening, yeah?" You asked with a fond smile while she nodded looking over at Namjoon.

"It's only a month away and honestly I'm freaking out. I can't believe we're getting married, Y/N. I mean I can technically we dated long enough, it was high time."

"You'll be fine, Sarah. I'm so happy and excited, I can't wait to see you walk down the aisle while Namjoon waits and cries for you as his best man comforts him."

The mention of best man had Namjoon and Sarah eyeing each other even when Jiah was trying her best to distract Namjoon with her toys.

"Why are you guys looking at each other like that?" You got the hint, there was only one topic that ever brought this awkward tension into the room and that was Yoongi.

"Jiah, go change into your pyjamas, love. I'll come tuck you in bed afterwards." Your 3 year old knew she had to do what you said without arguing so she dragged her little feet into her room without question.

"He's...He's coming back in 2 days. As soon as he heard about me getting married, he booked his flight. He's my best friend, Y/N. I can't..I can't get married without him."

You nodded your head as if you understood his point and of course you did. You weren't selfish to even hope that Namjoon got married without Yoongi by his side but..but how were you supposed to keep Jiah a secret from him now?

As if Sarah heard your worries, she spoke up on her own. "Listen, Y/N. You don't need to tell him that Jiah is his daughter if you don't want to. You've kept this a secret for so long now and telling him now will only make things worse. He'll come here and meet us for a day and then he'll leave for Daegu. He has some work there and then he'll come back 3 days before the wedding. You can make sure he doesn't get to know about Jiah, we'll all make sure."

You had no other option than agreeing to this but you should've known better. It was easier said than done.

☆☆

Two days passed rather quickly and today was the day Yoongi was arriving back here. You thanked God that he was only going to stay for a day before leaving for Daegu because that meant you didn't have to meet him today. It's not like the two of you were best friends or anything anyway.

"Mommy! It's an ice cream truck! Can we please get ice cream?" Your daughter was jumping up and down in her car seat and you had no choice but to stop the car to get her ice cream.

Jiah held your finger in her hand as she started walking with you when Sarah's call interrupted your movements.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Nothing, Yoongi came like 3 hours ago and just left saying that he needs some fresh air to feel like he's home or something. God, Y/N. He has changed SO much. He smiles at everything, laughs so much and even talks more than usual. He's still savage but his personality has gotten so much brighter."

You felt a sudden rush of happiness in your heart, you made the right decision. You did the right thing. "I...I'm happy to hear that."

"What about you? What is your little minion doing?"

"My little min-" You looked down to look at Jiah  and you panicked. She was not holding your finger anymore, hell she wasn't even close nearby. "She's gone, oh my God, Sarah. I can't see her, she was with me right here but..."

"Okay Okay calm down, Y/N. Where are you? I'll come right away." You told her the address and hung up to go look for your 3 year old. Your eyes started stinging as you screamed her name over and over again.

You ran and ran, losing your breath in the process when you finally spotted her. She was sitting on a bench licking her ice cream that you definitely did not buy for her but you were just grateful. So so grateful to see her again.

You ran over to her as you hugged her tight. "Don't leave mommy alone like that again, okay? Always stay with me, please."

"Mommy my ice cream is melting, I don't want to waste the ice cream Shoogy bought me."
You backed away as you looked at her with weird eyes. Who the hell was Shoogy?

"Yeah she's here in a park without a guardia-"
The sudden voice had you turning your face towards the source and oh boy were you about to fall flat on your face.

"Y/N?"

"She's my mommy, Shoogy."

The call long forgotten, Yoongi just stared at you with longing eyes. You weren't his soulmate anymore yet he felt some kind of electricity just by seeing you after four long years. You on the other hand were no different. Your heart was beating at a crazy rate as you saw the man who didn't look much different but in some ways was totally different.

"Is she...is she really your daughter?"