But Beautiful

part 22

"Mom, can I talk to you about something?" Jungkook asked, hesitant as he sat across from his mother at her kitchen table. She had just set down two tea cups, settling in her chair as she gave him her attention.

"Of course," she replied, looking at him fondly. "What's going on?"

"I... ah, please, don't say anything until I'm finished, okay?"

"Go on, out with it!"

"I've got feelings for one of the patients I work with," he admitted, holding his breath as he tried to read her immediate reaction.

"No," she gasped, eyes wide. "You're going to get in serious trouble, Jungkook! You've worked so hard for this."

"I know," he started, resting his face in his open palms, elbows planted on the table. "I've talked with Dr. Yoo about it."

"And? Is he going to report you, or send you to another facility? Alert the medical board, the school?" she asked, frantic.

"No, no, no, and no." Jungkook looked up, a pang of sadness by the disappointed look on her face. "I didn't mean to, of course. I don't think anyone means to develop feelings for someone. In this case, it just happens to be a patient..." he trailed off as he watched her expression morph from disappointment to bewilderment. "I haven't done anything with him!" he blurted, "and Dr. Yoo knows everything! It's such a particular situation," he continued, rubbing his temples with his fingers. "I wanted to talk to you about it because I was hoping you'd give me some advice, or at least some support, but you look like I betrayed you somehow so I'm upset I brought it up."

The woman took a deep breath, reaching across the table to offer her hands to her son. "Jungkook, I'm not feeling betrayed! I'm worried. You've spent over half your life wanting to be a doctor, and studying for it a decade, so it's a bit shocking to hear something that I know could end that dream. You're so close, this is your last year before you're getting your license to practice. I just don't know what to think about it! What does Dr. Yoo say?"

"He told me that I need to do what feels right," he began, frustrated as he aggressively stirred his long-forgotten tea. "So I try, I do. It's hard, because Taehyung..." Jungkook shook his head, dropping the spoon with a loud clang. "He's so beautiful, so precious, and he's consistently stepping over lines I try my damnedest to set. And you know, I don't even care. I like him so much," he admitted, voice becoming quiet before adding, "and I can't help it."

"Oh, Jungkook," his mom sighed, getting up to walk around the table and hug her son. "It's that silent boy who paints, is it? Taehyung? Has the doctor tried to transfer your care to another patient so you don't have to be tempted by him?"

"It's not like that," he sniffled, leaning into her embrace. "I'm not his doctor, I just do his physio and whatever procedures he needs that I can administer. But I've also become his friend, and I can't refuse him care because I like him. He is the silent one, yeah, and after two years in the facility I'm the only one he communicates with. I'm the only one he's shown trust in. I couldn't just stop seeing him, and I don't want to. And I won't. I just wanted to get this off my chest."

The woman remained quiet for a long moment, petting Jungkook's hair before saying, "do you think you can trust Dr. Yoo to not report you or try and ruin your future?"

Jungkook thought about it, just as he had the entire night before while laying sleepless in bed, and he nodded his response. "I do trust him, yeah. He could have kicked me out and reported me right away, but instead he's somewhat encouraging me to follow Tae's lead on things. And his lead has lead me to some compromising destinations, but I believe Dr. Yoo would have acted by now since I tell him everything. He wouldn't want any gossip around his facility, and he wouldn't compromise a patient of his, so I don't think he'd do anything to jeopardize what he has."