𝐌𝐚𝐟𝐢𝐚 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬 ( 𝐀 𝐐𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬)

•34•

The room had gone so silent, you could hear the soft clink of the spoon as she stirred the rice with trembling fingers.

"God," Taehyung whispered, standing up slightly. "No…"

Namjoon's face hardened, his fingers curling into fists.

"She doesn't think she's allowed," Jimin muttered, barely able to breathe.

Even Jungkook silent, stoic looked shattered.

She sat on the floor, cross legged, the bowl cupped tightly in her small hands, as if it might vanish. Her body was tense, eyes flicking up only when she felt someone move then quickly lowering again like a startled animal.

Her place at the dining table remained untouched behind her.

None of them moved not even Jungkook, who had been halfway through pulling out her chair when she quietly slid to the ground, sitting by the table leg instead.

Not one of them had ever imagined this, that their sister the girl they had once chased around the garden, who would sneak cookies off the jar and get caught would one day sit like a servant in their home, with eyes full of guilt instead of mischief.

Hye-joo knelt beside her, reaching forward slowly. "Honey, you can sit at the dining table," she said gently, stroking her hair. "This is your home."

Y/n looked up, startled her lips moved but only a soft whisper escaped.

"Am I… allowed to?" Hye-joo froze at the moment those words sliced through her like a dull knife.

Y/n looked up nervously as she picked up a spoon. "Is it okay?" she asked, glancing around like she expected someone to pull it away from her. "Can I eat this?"

Before she could answer, Y/n's gaze wandered to the rest of the dishes on the table colorful, rich, warm.

She looked back at her own bowl. Just plain rice. Her head tilted to the side, hesitant, confused.

"Can I eat... the other things too?" she asked.

At that moment no one knew how to breathed. Jimin's throat clicked while Yoongi looked away. Even Hoseok's hand always fidgeting stopped completely.

Jin as he took a step forward. "You can eat anything," he said, voice rough. "Everything here is yours."

She blinked. "Really?"

He nodded.

Her stomach gave the softest rumble. She startled at the sound, immediately curling into herself and covering her mouth like she had done something wrong.

Then, sheepishly, she looked at Jungkook, who had dropped to one knee in front of her.

He gave her a soft, lopsided smile, his voice catching a little."Don't be scared. You can eat however you want, and as much as you want."

Still holding her rice, she finally reached up slowly, almost shakily for a piece of glazed tofu. But her hand stopped mid air, she looked again.

"You sure... they won't be mad?" Jungkook closed his eyes, briefly. Then opened them and leaned forward to whisper. "No one here will hurt you again."

She didn't answer but just stared at him, eyes too big, too haunted for her face. And then she whispered something, so soft he nearly missed it.

"Why was that lady crying before?"

He blinked. "Who?"

"The... the one with soft hands. She said she's my mom." Her face scrunched. "She was crying a lot. Did I do something bad?"