Abyss - Kim Seokjin AU Fanfiction

Chapter 10 - Jin

In the spring, there was always a simple get together at the Kim estate for a certain amount of people. The Youngs were always in attendance in that soiree. Mrs. Kim would have a garden brunch where all the guests were to wear pastel colors to celebrate the departure of the dreary, cold winter season.  It was one of the things she picked up in her travels when she was younger, and had since then carried on the tradition in her family.

Jin was standing by the lattice archway, wisteria flowers dangling above him, and the vines trailed along the cobblestones he stood on. On events like these, his task was to greet the guests while his parents ushered them to their seats at the long table. He bowed politely and would never fail to receive complements on how handsome and well mannered he was. As he counted the familiar faces, he waited for a particular family that he always looked forward to.

The Youngs had arrived a little later than usual. Jin had the habit of seeing everyone in before he would take his seat. When at last he could see the two doctors dressed in white cotton, he sighed in relief. Their daughter trailing behind them, hands behind her back. She wore a pale blue dress, like lilacs. Elara's head was bowed, counting her footsteps quietly. Jin could see her mouth the words twenty two, twenty three... He smiled at how he knew this mannerism of hers very well.

"Welcome Mr. and Mrs. Young." He bowed at them. They returned it with a warm smile, and Ela's father pulled him into an embrace, patting his back.

"You grow more handsome by the day Seokjin."

"Thank you sir." He laughs a little. And then his eyes settle on Elara. The crown of her head was right in front of him, painting the strands of her hair in a mix of brown and black.

As the elder Youngs moved forward, Ela tailed them silently, still keeping her head down. Jin had stepped a little to the right in order for her to brush past him, and when she did, he heard her curse.

"Sorry, I did not mean to hit you." She said softly, lifting her head to meet his eyes. It happened so quickly that Jin wished he had blocked her way completely.

"It's alright." He said. Just as he was about to ask if she would like to sit beside him as she always was instructed to do, she bowed her head again and caught up with her parents.

What he wanted to say hung in the air still. It mixed with the scent of orange blossoms, from her hair. Jin stood there for a while, lingering with the traces of her around him. He turned to the long table where everyone was settling in their seats, and saw that Elara, left the seat empty to the left of his mother's chair at the head of the table.

Jin squinted his eyes to focus on her, only to find that she was looking to where he was too. The way her gaze was set on him meant something. And though he wasn't sure about everything, Jin knew, that she waited for him to come. Whether it be out of habit or longing, he would gladly take either if not both.

It took a while for Jin to comprehend what happened that night at Mari. He did not know what took over him when he decided to hold her hand like that. Now, he joined Ela in the anxiety she felt when she thought too much  of everything. The fact that she did not pull her hand away was a good thing, this was what he tried to say again and again to himself during the drive back. As soon as they finished their meal - that they had in complete, disturbing silence - they bid Yoongi goodbye. Jin had promised that they would come back soon. Yoongi did not let them pay for the meal.

When they had reached the building where Ela lived, she requested to be dropped off at the front. Jin obliged and parked his car by the left side of the Summit. Ela Got ready to get out when he stopped her. It was by impulse that he took her hand again. This surprised him as much as it did her. For a moment, both of them sat there, unable to move.