freckles

* chapter eighty four *

"Well, she's a Beagle, and she doesn't have any broken bones." The vet smiles as she patted the puppy's head. "She's one tough little girl."

"Oh thank the Lord." Claudette breaked, Jungkook's arm around her and rubbed her shoulder. "What about her shots, and vaccines?"

"Everything is good with her, there's just no chip." The vet sighed, looking at her clipboard. "The owner must've wanted the pup at first, and then decided to get rid of her last minute or something."

"So I can keep her?" Claudette asked hopefully.

"There's no one here that's going to tell you no."

---

Jungkook stared at himself in the mirror, Claudette in her room with her dogs. He stayed in his room, in his bathroom, staring.

He rolled up the sleeves of his short sleeved shirt and started at his arms. Then he lifted them up, seeing the undersides of them. That's where his stretch marks were.

And for the first time since he got them, he didn't look at them with disgust.

Why?

Because of Claudette.

Jungkook had his arms folded behind his head, watching her with a smile as Claudette held the puppy, acting as if she could fly. He giggled once Claudette helped the dog land, Claudette beaming as she looked at him.

"Kook!" She touched his arm. "You have stretch marks!"

He looked to where she was pointing and saddened. The one night he decides to wear a short sleeves shirt, she notices. "Yeah." Jungkook mumbled, not noticing the look of awe on her face.

"They're beautiful!" She whispered, tracing them with her fingers.

Jungkook was taken aback, not knowing what to say. His stretch marks?? They're beautiful? But-

"I want stretch marks." Claudette commented, pulling Eliot into her arms before laying against Jungkook. "I want them on my thighs. So I can be super strong and super awesome."

Jungkook quietly wrapped his arms around her, holding her close.

"They're so cool! Like, little rivers along your skin." Claudette kept on talking about the beauty of stretch marks. "And the color is so pretty as well! Our bodies are so cool and so unique."

He kissed her forehead, at a loss for words.

Jungkook smiled and pulled his sleeves down, proud of how he looked. "I have rivers on my body." He pushed his shoulders back and stood tall. "And I love them."

- meanwhile -

"Let me in Namjoon." Jimin kept on knocking on Namjoon's studio. "We need to talk."

"Go away."

"I'm not mad Namjoon." Jimin kept on trying. He hasn't seen Namjoon since their fight yesterday. "I just want to apologize and know you're okay."

Namjoon glared at his door, glared at Jimin's outline on his door. He did not want to see Jimin. Why couldn't it have been Hoseok, or Yoongi? Someone he didn't kick in the stomach.

But he unlocked the door anyway.

Both of them remained standing, and Jimin barely had enough room to stand all the way in the studio. He looked up at Namjoon and Namjoon looked down at Jimin.

"I'm sorry for attacking you yesterday." Jimin sighed, still looking at him. "She means a lot to me, and I heard you yelling at her. So, instincts just kicked in."