FAMILY | on hold

five✔

there's a long interaction between jin and kriti in the last few pages but i just want to show how their friendship develops. i havent forgotten that this is a taejin fic! ;)

NOTE: "samchon" = uncle

At 2PM the next day, Seokjin is back in Mr Kim's office. He was quite confused when he received an email from Mr Kim asking him if he's able to return tomorrow (which is today) at the same time to discuss something important. It was sent just minutes after their meeting ended yesterday.

"Good afternoon, Mr Kim," Taehyung says, and gestures to the chair in front of his desk. "Please take a seat."

"Thank you," Seokjin murmurs as he sits down.

"I don't want to waste your time so I'll get straight to the point," Taehyung says. He grabs a plastic sleeve that contains some papers that are stapled together and he slides it over to Seokjin. "You asked for an extension with the payment due date and I said it's not possible because it's a fixed date; however, I have an alternative. If you don't mind and if you have time, please give this a quick read."

The cover page says 'CONFIDENTIAL'. Seokjin takes the form out and flips to the first page. The first thing he sees is 'COOKING & HOUSEKEEPING CONTRACT' at the top. He has an idea of what this is about but he still skims through the pages to make sense of this. There's a brief description/explanation of the purpose of this contract, a list of tasks that must be completed during every shift, a consent form, and a confidentiality agreement. By the time he's done reading, he's sitting there in disbelief because this is a lot to process.

Mr Kim has offered free schooling for the boys in exchange for cooking and housekeeping services on weekdays. Seokjin can't tell if there are any hidden intentions behind this contract but even if the intentions are pure, he can't agree to this. It's complete madness.

"Well? Are you interested?" Taehyung asks, quite hopeful. He's not the best at reading emotions or making predictions but there's no way that Seokjin would reject this offer. It has a bunch of benefits and it's so worth it. If someone was to reject this then they deserve the title 'World's Biggest Idiot'.

"I'm sorry, sir, but I have to say no," Seokjin says as he puts the form down.

Taehyung blinks a few times because he can't believe this. He can't believe what he's hearing. "May I ask why?" he asks. "I know it's very sudden and unexpected considering our conversation yesterday but I do think this is a good offer. Please think twice before you make a decision."

"Sir, with all due respect, you have to be much less demanding if you would like someone to consider an offer like this. I will admit that it's very tempting and it's very generous of you to provide free schooling for all three of my sons but you haven't taken into consideration that I can not start working tomorrow morning when I have a shift at my current job."

Taehyung's face heats up slightly because he only now realises that he was, in deed, quite demanding with his terms and conditions.

"My employer will need a two weeks' notice about any significant changes to my availabilities. Dropping my day shift is like resigning and I don't want to inconvenience my employer or co-workers," Seokjin says. "You also haven't taken into consideration that I'll be losing nearly 50% of my income. I want my sons to attend a good school but I also have to pay bills and make enough money to feed them." He slips the contract back in the plastic sleeve and hands it to Mr Kim. "Like I said: I have to say no."

Taehyung is speechless because Seokjin didn't hesitate to turn down this offer. Criticising the contract due to one too many inconveniences is one thing, but ultimately rejecting it? Seokjin's brain must not be functioning properly today. There's a thing called negotiation.