jiseo lets out a sigh as she looks out the window of the police car she's currently in. neither jiseo nor namjoon bother to converse with each other. the only thing that can be heard is the sound of the engine and the music emitting from the car radio. it's playing a hip-hop song that jiseo doesn't really pay much attention to.

"you look so bummed out because kook left," namjoon points out.

jiseo looks over to the police officer, "no i'm not, i'm just tired."

there's a few seconds of silence before namjoon continues the conversation, "you know, kook's not necessarily safe to be around. he's like— like a warning sign."

"i know."

"you seem to like sticking around him though."

"because i want to," she explains. "i believe he's not as bad as they think he is."

"he's a good kid." jiseo eyebrows perks up at the statement. "i think, well, he's just someone who had a rough beginning, which led him to bad decisions, and bad situations."

"i, as well, believe he would not be who he is now if he had a different start to begin with."

"you say that like you've known him for a long time," jiseo responds.

"i do," he sighs. "i've known him since he was fourteen. kid had a really fucked up life. i just.. he deserved better, that's from my perspective."

"you think so?"

"yeah," namjoon nods. "kid had it rough."

jiseo feels the curiosity blooming in her mind. "rough?"

"well— i shouldn't be telling you this but, his dad was an alcoholic. you know how that shit goes. basically, the relationship between his family wasn't pretty."

jiseo listens to namjoon carefully. only now does she realize that she barely knows jungkook. apart from how he only wears black, apart from the endearing giggles, laughs and smiles, apart from his sweet honey-like voice, jiseo knows nothing. she knows absolutely nothing about jeon jungkook.

"you should've seen the love he had for his mom though." the statement makes jiseo drift out of her daze.

"he would do anything for her," he pauses, his grip on the steering wheel tightens for a few moments, and jiseo can feel his hesitation. "but she god damn left him. he— he left him all alone with that jerk of a dad."

"she just disappeared one day— and jungkook thought she would come back, but she never did. i remember when he called me on the phone out of the blue and sobbed his heart out. jungkook's a strong guy, he doesn't really cry, so when i heard him crying on the other line, i just— i just felt the fear creeping into me because i knew something went wrong."

"i know i'm a police officer, and i should be doing the right thing. but— i can't go against jungkook. i don't have the courage to," namjoon presses his lips into a thin line. jiseo on the other hand doesn't know what to say. all these words just came out so suddenly out the officer's mouth and she can't really process everything that he has just told her.

"honestly, i really don't know anything about jungkook," jiseo admits.

"exactly."

—

the park is a tad bit chilly as the faint wind blows in the midst of dawn. jiseo can see the coal colored sky leisurely starting to light up. after the police officer dropped her off, she decided to head to the park not far from her apartment to daydream— actually, she wants to let herself drown in her own thoughts, thoughts of jungkook, of course.

jiseo doesn't fathom why she enjoys jungkook's presence so much. they barely know each other, but it really does feels like the male is important to her. as messed up as it seems, she cares, she really cares about him and she wants to stay by his side. it feels like he has made a home in her heart.

"you know, i thought if i meet you here, that means fate wants me to talk to you," a sweet honey-like voice speaks up, and jiseo immediately recognizes it because that voice warms her heart and she loves how pleasant it sounds when the owner of the said voice laughs or giggles. she finds his voice like chocolate, how incredibly sweet it is and how she melts listening to him. "guess the universe really wants us together, huh?"

the female's eyes still widen in surprise as she looks into the direction from where the voice is coming from. "jungkook," she whispers, though it's still audible to the other party in front of her. a small smile plays on his lips.

"hi."

"what are you doing here?"

"i thought i would say goodbye before i go, and i promise you that you're never going to see me again after this so you—"

"go— what? go where?" confusion is instantly splattered on her face before he manages to finishe the sentence.

"away... from you," he answers, looking away and jiseo can feel the words pierce through her heart like daggers.

"w-what? why?"

he sighs. "i almost killed you jiseo," jungkook replies as if it's been obvious the whole time.

"but i'm fine," jiseo promptly says. "no scratches at all, see? so—"

"you almost died because of me," he cuts her off.

"but i didn't." silence washes over them and jiseo abruptly feels like the thick silence is filled with utter poison. she feels like the poisonous silence is seeping into her insides, paralyzing her from any movement or speech. it lingers in the air, think and heavy like a blanket. they say silence is gold but right now, it is the complete opposite. she wants him to say something, just something, anything.

"you said you would protect me, jungkook," jiseo speaks up, breaking the silence that penetrates the atmosphere like ice spikes. "and you did."

jungkook seemingly looks sullen, the face of his emits a shade of gloominess and jiseo dislikes it— no, she hates that look. "i... i don't know if i'll always be there to protect you every single time."

"so you're just going to leave?" she can't keep the tincture of bitterness out of her voice.

the boy doesn't reply, he just stares at her brown orbs. jiseo perceives the thick wall of tension between them, how the wall seems like it's growing thicker, how the wall is starting to grow thorns. "say something, jungkook."

"i'm sorry."

the corner of jiseo's lips curve downwards. she then takes a few steps closer towards jungkook slowly. "sorry? that's all you want to say? jungkook— don't leave, please."

she takes another step closer to jungkook and his eyes dilate, immediately taking a step back, so they weren't too close for comfort. though, jiseo takes one more step forward so they're back in the previous position. she notices how jungkook tenses due to the distance between their faces. he gulps, but he doesn't take the effort to move away.

jiseo takes the moment to admire the boy. his raven hair that covers his forehead and how mesmerizing his wide doe eyes are. his adorable big nose that fits perfectly on his face, and his pink lips. the top lip is thin whilst the bottom lip is thicker than the top. his lips look soft and only then does jiseo realize that she's closing her eyes, tiptoeing and leaning in.

their lips connect and jungkook freezes in his spot. there's a slight hesitation before jungkook closes his eyes and kisses back. they move in perfect sync and as cliché or cheesy as it sounds, jiseo feels butterflies fluttering in her stomach. it's soft and gentle, packed with shyness and warmth. jungkook smiles between their lips and places a hand on the other's neck, deepening the kiss. it starts to turn fiery, the shyness soon replaced with fierceness and dominance from both parties.

after a few moments, jiseo pulls away, gasping for air. their breaths mingle with each other's as both of their faces are still centimeters away from each other. "i—" he pauses, catching his breath, "—i don't want to let you go yet."