— The room was dim as the evening sun filtered through the curtains. Taehyung sat cross-legged on his bed, his back resting against the headboard. Jin was beside him, his arms crossed, clearly trying to stay patient. "Tae," Jin started, his voice measured,

"You have to tell Mom and Dad about today." Taehyung shook his head, pulling at a loose thread on his sweater. "Hyung, no. That'll just make things worse. They'll freak out, and then it's going to turn into an even bigger mess." Jin exhaled, tilting his head to study

his younger brother. "They're already upset with Jungkook, Tae. If you keep quiet, they'll end up being mad at you too." His tone sharpened just enough to press the point. Taehyung snapped his head up, eyes narrowing. "They don't have to know, okay? It's my problem."

He hesitated before his lips quirked up slightly. "And Seojoon Hyung… he still wants to marry me. He promised he'd fix everything." Jin stared at him, his expression unreadable. "You really think everything is just going to magically fall into place?"

Taehyung's smile faltered, replaced by a slight frown. "What's that supposed to mean? You don't think I can be happy with Seojoon?" Jin sighed, leaning back on his hands as his gaze softened "That is not what I'm saying, Tae. I just think you need to be ready.

Life doesn't always give you what you want, and you can't fall apart when it doesn't." Taehyung opened his mouth to protest, but before he could speak, their father's voice boomed from downstairs. "Hana! Where's Taehyung?"

Taehyung froze, his eyes darting to Jin in panic. "He sounds mad," he whispered urgently. "I'm not going down there." Jin gave him a pointed look. "Tae, you can't just hide up here. If you don't go now, it's only going to make things worse."

"He's already angry!" Taehyung said, but Jin stood up, motioning for him to follow. "Come on," Jin said. "It'll be worse if you don't go down." Taehyung hesitated for moment, his stomach churning. He shot Jin a pleading look, but his brother wasn't having it.

Jin motioned for him to keep moving. With a reluctant sigh, Taehyung trailed behind him, his steps heavy. In the living room, their dad, Daehyun, was sitting on the couch, looking like he was one wrong word away from losing it. Their mom, Hana, stood nearby with her arms

crossed, watching him like she wasn't sure if she should step in. "Daehyun," she said, her voice low. "Keep it down. Mom's upstairs resting." He waved her off, not even looking at her. "Ok I will." His eyes locked onto Taehyung as soon as he came into view. "You. Sit."