Taehyung
"Yiseo, dinner's ready!"
"Wait, I'm still in the bathroom."
I checked my messages while waiting for Yiseo. After a while, she finally finished taking her shower and came to the dining table with pajamas.
"Geez, you can try to look good for once, you know?" I said, causing her to roll her eyes.
"Said the man who is wearing a dirty t-shirt and perforated pants."
We both chuckled and started to eat the food on the table. We talked about how our day went and pretty much everything else.
Kim Yiseo was my 16 years old daughter. She's a bright, talented, and beautiful girl. She always talked about wanting to be a doctor and was working hard on it at that time in high school so she would get accepted into a high ranked university in the states. She's quite ambitious indeed.
Yes, my late wife, Jihae, passed away as soon as she gave birth to Yiseo. Her heart problem couldn't handle that much pain, causing her to leave me alone with our daughter. I was devastated and was certainly depressed for a long time, but I knew I had to raise her by my own and I was grateful that my parents along with the boys came regularly to help me.
As for BTS, a band that the boys and I were a part of, had no longer been active, though the seven of us were still close. We parted and went on different ways. Namjoon hyung and Yoongi hyung were full-time producers and composers while occasionally releasing mixtapes, Hoseok hyung opened a very big and successful dance school, Seokjin hyung at that time debuted as a solo singer, Jimin and Jungkook were art consultants for different companies while also occasionally releasing solo albums, and as for me, I went acting and was part of a film production team for a while before I had my own clothing company.
"Alright, dad. I'm gonna go back to my room now," she said while walking to her room.
"Oh, you're seriously not gonna study again, aren't you?"
"I have mid terms tomorrow," she said, proceeding to close her bedroom door because she knew I would follow her inside, which I did. "Dad, get out."
"Come on, let's watch a movie together," I said, pouting while sitting on Yiseo's bed to annoy her.
"You know I can't."
"You've been studying your ass off for the last 3 weeks. Just have some fun for a while."
"Dad," she said while sitting next to me, "I want to go to Harvard for my next education. I have to be on top of my class to be able to do that. You know that."
I sighed. There was no way I could convince her otherwise. "Okay, fine. But don't study too much, alright? Get some rest after you finish."
Yiseo smiled, then nodded. I kissed her forehead before heading out.
"Oh, before I forget," I said, pausing by the door, "Uncle Jungkook's having a wedding next month or so. You'll have to come, okay?"
"But I barely know his partner!"
"Yeah, long story," I said. "Anyway, night, kiddo."
I closed her room and went to mine. It's been more than 10 years since Jihae's passing, but I was still not used to going back to an empty bed.
I sighed, then covered myself with my thick blanket. All the memories in this room reminded me of the past, where Yiseo was born.
After Jihae had a heart attack during the labor, I was asked by the nurses to leave and let the doctors do their job. The boys were there for me and it brought me back to a few years ago when we had our huge fight and Jihae was run to the ER because of the same heart attack.
The doctors came out of the operating room with a small baby girl in his arms. We all rose from our seats to look at the baby. Tears of joy were coming out from my eyes as I held my newborn daughter.
"So, doc, how's my wife? Is she okay?"
"Mr. Kim, sir, I'm sorry, but your wife has passed away after giving birth to your child. She couldn't survive the heart attack."
No one knew how destroyed I was emotionally and mentally after I heard those words coming out from the doctor's mouth. Luckily, Jimin was holding Yiseo before I fell onto the ground, crying and yelling as I just lost the love of my life.
Yiseo was such a lovely little baby, but was certainly not a calm one. She cried literally every night and since I didn't have a mother instinct, I had to go with my own. I tried every possible way to make her stop crying, but almost nothing worked. One night, I even had to hide in my room, crying along with Yiseo's because I just didn't know what to do.
Jimin and Mijoo, who had a kid earlier than us, came to my apartment that night at 2 AM. I remembered calling Jimin while sobbing and being a best friend of mine, he understood what I meant and came quickly. They even stayed for a few weeks until I got back on my feet and taught me a thing or two about parenting. It was hard at first, being a single dad with a daughter, but I started to get a grip and bonded with Yiseo. It was... interesting to say the least.
"Hey, dad," Yiseo called as she suddenly came into my room, which made me snap out of my fantasy, "is Mingyu coming to the wedding?"
Ah yes, Mingyu was Jimin's 18 years old son who was at that time a freshman at Seoul National University, studying law. Yep, he was a smart fellow, just like his dad.
"Why? Do you like him?"
"Dad, we've been friends for almost my entire life," she said as she, once again, rolled her eyes. "Now, do you have any idea whether or not he's coming?"
"Well, of course he's coming. It's his dad's friend's wedding."
"Alright, I just came to ask you tha-"
She suddenly stopped and came closer to me. "Dad, are you crying?"
I quickly wiped my tears and got up. "No, no, I'm not. Why should I be?"
She seemed to be concerned as she approached me and hugged me. "Oh, dad. You're missing mom, aren't you?"
I smiled bitterly. "I've always been missing her, Yiseo. Don't worry."
"Dad," she said, "have you ever... I don't know, I guess, hated me?"
"What? Why would I hate you?"
She pursed her lips. "Well, mom died after giving birth to me. I was the cause of her passing. Technically, you have every right to hate me or even to disown me."
I pulled her into my arms and caressed her hair. "That's nonsense, Yiseo. Your mom had been sick for years before that and her passing after your birth has nothing to do with you. I'm eternally grateful that God has given me such a smart daughter like you," I said, "so don't ever think that I hate you, okay? You're the best kid anyone could ever wish for."
She chuckled, then she said goodnight after she kissed me on the cheek.
"Hey, Yiseo," I called, causing her to turn around, "I would approve anyway if you want to be with Mingyu."
"Ugh, dad!"
