Gaining a courage to leave a loveless marriage was hard enough, but is it really a good idea to run to your best friend for help? And would you refuse him when he offers you another kind of 'help' when you needed it?
Character | Namjoon x reader
Gen...
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The expensive knife in your hand slices cleanly through the tender steak now sitting on your plate, but it would be useless against the tension thickening in the air around you.
You hadn't expected much from tonight. The dinner invitation wasn't even your idea. It was simply the only way to end months of your family pestering to "see you" and "catch up", after a long time passed without any news, without any contact from them.
Correction; it wasn't really you who they all wanted to see. You were sure of it. You would be lying if you said that you believed their words in the first place. This dinner is more about your babies—your beautiful seven-month-old twin boys—and the curiosity they had about the baby daddy.
Having them here, inside your home, was also the last thing you ever wanted.
The memory of how they reacted to your divorce with Jaebum still burns. How they cut you off for daring to put yourself first still aches, the betrayal too deep to forget, even if you have been trying so hard to heal from it. Letting them into the space where you have felt the most peaceful feels like handing over the keys to your safe haven.
You had argued against Namjoon's idea of hosting the dinner here instead of making a reservation at one of his restaurants. But, as always, he had managed to persuade you into changing your mind.
Yet he had done all this—planning this family reunion dinner—with good reasons. Even if it simply meant to keep the peace and having to give in for the sake of your children's future.
For a while, things had gone better than expected. The babies have charmed your parents into polite smiles, and you have realized that keeping them home instead of taking them out in public has made you feel more at peace. Namjoon has been acting as the perfect host since your family first arrived that you barely had to do anything to please them. And now the twins are sleeping soundly in the den, safely tucked in inside their little bassinets and blissfully unaware of the silent cold war brewing at the dining table.
"Thank you again for inviting us for dinner. Everything has been lovely," your mother says at last, breaking a lull that has stretched too long after the last conversation died out and the main course has been taken away.
For the past hour, conversation has been stilted, mostly shared between your parents and Namjoon. You have added only the occasional polite reply whenever you were addressed directly. It doesn't matter how much you try to ease up and go with the flow, your body kept reverting to that old, defensive autopilot—guard up, heart locked—and always ready for the shoe to drop.
"I'm glad the food is to your liking. We have dessert if you've still got room," Namjoon offers.
He starts to rise to grab them from the kitchen, but you catch his wrist to stop him. "I'll get them," you offer with a smile, having the intention to use this chance to escape for a moment.
