FILTHY || J.JK

6| Photograph

Jungkook's POV

10 PM

"I'll make sure to look forward to the assessments, miss Choi." I take my glasses, put them up on the deck, heaving a sigh. My work is cut out for me, a load of it. "Thank you, we need your assistance on the exam papers for the upcoming term."

Miss Choi smiles, unbuckling her seatbelt to bow at me right before she opens the door of the car to leave, "have a good night, mister Jeon. See you tomorrow at school." I replicate her gesture, undoing my seatbelt at the same time to feel a bit free, "have a good night yourself, and please tell the kids my best. See you tomorrow." She nods, kindly, and goes over to her house.

The little boy who meets my eyes, their lovely and youngest son, he instantly smiles and waves his small hands at me so I do it back, making sure he sees my greeting through the half opened window.

"I'll submit my homework tomorrow, for sure, sir." Jaehyun, the eldest one never fails to make me smile at his silly jokes. "You better do, or it's detention for you!" They all chuckle at this little game, and I roll all the windows back up; they are really a sweet family. I hope it stays the same forever.

My phone ringing, I get back to myself and look down at the caller ID. It's Kitae, and he never calls at this time, so it's definitely something important.

I can't even hold back from picking up the call, it's not something a father can do so easily. "Hey," I speak first, looking out through the windows as it's starting to rain, I turn on the windshield wipers and let it stay that way. "Hey....I wanted to let you know that mama and I are leaving for Lyon at midnight."

He doesn't help me feel better, but this doesn't cause any issues either. All that had to be done is done. There's nothing I could do to help change it.

"Yes, I- uh, I'm aware. So, the flight, is it at two, right?" I try to hide the fact that I don't want him to leave, trying to suppress every sort of emotions tied to me and him as our bond doesn't allow me to ignore something so important, I just hide them all. "Yes, and we're already at the airport so you don't need to come to our house." He intensifies the knot building up in my throat which leads my eyes to water, causing a blurry vision.

What is left to say? I can't even see my baby one last time before he leaves with his mother and her boyfriend. "Is mama there with you now?"

"No, she's in the washroom. We just came to the airport. Anthony is here." I rest back on my seat, feeling myself sinking in it, my head gets all heavy and everything around me seems to have disappeared. "Okay..." Managing to blurt out, I allow the silence to linger a bit for some painful seconds, "you'll be a good boy, not trouble your mother and call daddy everyday, do you get me? Don't forget, because even if you do, I'll remember it and if you won't call, I'll spam you with calls until you pick it up."

My twelve year old giggles, offering me the sweetest sound which I'm going to miss a lot, for sure. "Yeah, I will call, dad. Don't worry. And I'm not a baby anymore, I don't trouble mama." He makes me smile through the pain in my chest, "good...." I raise my hand and check for the tattoos on my skin which will always remind me of my son, his lovely little face.

"Oh, I...we gotta go, dad. We're going to get our luggages checked." The three words which I'm scared to say, I still say, "go. Be safe, and text me once you can reach the internet and also when y'all land in France. I love you."

"Yep, bye! I love you too." He hangs up, leaving nothing but silence and blackness surrounding me at my lowest, some moments from the past gathering in my mind and twisting my brain. I want to see him, in front of me, and I really want to hug him before he could leave me and all of our memories, abandon every sort of emotions keeping us connected.

But it's too late. They've already checked in, in the airport. All I can do now is rot in this loneliness, being nothing but a mess of a man.

End of Jungkook's POV

I cannot believe this. How did my watch stop? I barely was able to pay for the repair last time, when it stopped abruptly. I have to buy a new one, this is turning into a junk. This time when I get my paycheck, the first thing I'll do is take Haerin to the candy shop she's wanting to go to since a year and then buy a new, nice wall clock which won't wear out in two years.

"You're very late." She gets away from the counter and stands in my way, telling me what I already know and guilty for. "I know. I'm sorry. My...time messed up, a little."

"Your time?" Kazuha crosses her arms, ready to take me and my problems on the stroll for fun, her eyes giving me a judgemental look which makes me want to die under my skin, "please, excuse me this time. I won't repeat it. I'll work an hour extra too." Whatever I could find to say which would soothe her down, I tell, and she still goes back to her place with a frown on her face.

"Two hours extra. You're an hour and some minutes late. So that's applicable, okay?" I'll reach home at three in the morning, how lovely. "Okay..." A sigh leaves me, giving me low energy when I've literally just stepped inside the massage centre. This is bad but I need to work to earn.

1 AM

"Kang, is mister Jeon not coming?" I step out of the cabin, needing of some fresh air, feeling terribly thirsty and tired too.

"I don't think so, yesterday he said he would come at one a.m. but it's going to be half past one now. He's seldom late, never skips a schedule so maybe he ain't coming now." I grab a cold water bottle from the refrigerator kept for the staffs, hearing them talk while all I can think of is Haerin who's staying with her new babysitter at her house because I cannot trust my stepfather enough to let them stay in our house.

I hope she's asleep with a stomach full, and that she won't be missing me or crying. "Cherry, wait a second." Kang stops me before I could go and refresh myself in the washroom. "Did mister Jeon say something to you about being absent for today's schedule?"

"No," I shake my head, frowning a little, the whole scene making no sense to me as I'm not a part of it. "He didn't say anything?" He asks once again go confirm. I affirm, "not at all."

"Hey, try checking on him with a call." Kazuha suggests Kang, but he takes a deep breath of exhaustion, "I did already, that too four times. It wasn't reachable." She ends this long discussion here after Kang ends his sentence, "okay, well. We'll see to it tomorrow. You leave because your shift is done. It's only Cherry's shift now."

"Ah fine," the poor one gives up, throws away his apron and runs inside his cabin to clear the room before leaving, happy to be free from the hard work.

---