Chapter 75 - Shadow Under the White

That day, Jungkook arrived at work earlier than usual. He felt good—calm, stable. As if everything was finally starting to fall into place. He left his coat in the cloakroom, greeted the receptionist, and headed for his office. He didn't expect to come across a new face around the corner.

“Good morning,” said the woman in a snow-white coat. Her hair was perfectly pinned up, her lips were red, and her gaze was piercing. ”Choi Sena. New to the team.”

“Jeon Jungkook,” he replied, offering her his hand. ”I'm a dentist. I wonder why I wasn't informed.”

“I'm sorry, it was quite sudden. Management decided it would be good to strengthen the team.”

They exchanged a few pleasantries. Jungkook felt a slight tension, but he didn't let it show. Sena was nice, competent. Maybe even too competent. But when she asked about his “difficult media image,” something inside him trembled.

“You seem very calm considering what people say about you online,“ she said casually, as if in passing.

“I try not to read it,” he replied coolly.

Meanwhile, Jimin was returning from kindergarten with Yuna. He noticed a man in a dark jacket standing by the entrance and... watching. For a long time. Too long. When Jimin turned to take a closer look, the man was gone.

That evening, he told Jungkook about the situation. They didn't want to panic, but something was bothering them. Jungkook associated it with Sena's question. Too personal. Too inquisitive.

“It could be a coincidence,” Jimin said.

“Or maybe not.”

The next day, Sena showed up at the clinic again, this time with a smile, coffee, and a question about Jimin. “He works in the arts, right? A lot of people know him. It's a shame you guys don't show up more often.”

Jungkook just smiled. But inside, he felt an icy chill.

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Chapter 76 - Article

Jimin sat at the table with his phone in his hand. His face was pale, as if he had seen a ghost. Jungkook entered the kitchen and noticed it immediately.

“What's wrong?”

“See for yourself.”

The headline on the screen read: “Perfect match or manipulation? The showbiz world is abuzz about a famous dentist and his partner.”

The article was anonymous. But it clearly suggested that Jungkook and Jimin's relationship had been ‘created for image purposes’ and that the child ”may have been the victim of a family experiment.”

“That's nonsense,” said Jungkook. ”No one has the right...”

“But it's already online. Comments are flooding in. Posts, screenshots. People... are asking about Yuna. About us.”

Jungkook took his phone. Indeed, there were thousands of reactions. Hate, anger, but also... support. Several artist friends spoke up for them. They wrote that they knew them personally, that they were a family like any other.

“We have to do something,” said Jimin. ”Because if we don't react, this wave will overwhelm us.”

In the evening, they called a lawyer they knew. She said that the article could be reported, but... if a media battle started, everyone could suffer. Especially Yuna.

“So what? Are we supposed to keep quiet?” Jungkook asked bitterly.

“No. But we have to act wisely. And calmly.”

They went to bed without a word. Yuna fell asleep as usual, unaware of what was going on around her. Jungkook stared at the ceiling.

“Do you think it's Sena?” he asked.

“I don't know. But it scares me that someone knows our words, the details. It's like they're closer than we thought.”

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Chapter 77 - Eavesdropping

Two days later, an email arrived at the clinic with a link to a video. No signature, no explanation. Jungkook clicked on it. A familiar face appeared on the screen—his own. And a voice. He was talking to Jimin. In his office. Privately. About the article. About how they didn't know who to trust.

Someone had recorded them.

Jungkook's heart was pounding like crazy. He left the office, walked down the hallway, and knocked on the door to Sena's room. She came in smiling, a notebook in her hand.

“Something happened?”

“Tell me, was it you?” he said coldly. ‘The recording. The article. Was that your doing?”

Sena narrowed her eyes. ’I don't know what you're talking about. But if you're accusing me, you better have proof.”

He left, shaking with rage. That evening, he showed the recording to Jimin. Jimin turned pale.

“This is too much. It's our life. Our child.”

Meanwhile, on the internet, in addition to a wave of hate, other voices began to emerge. People who wrote that they had gone through something similar. That you can't hide your feelings. That love isn't a campaign.

Jimin looked at Jungkook.

“Maybe it's time to stop hiding. To tell the truth. In our own way.”

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Chapter 78 - The truth in our own way

The living room was silent. Not a peaceful, homely silence. Rather, it was thick, charged with the decision that had just been made. Jimin closed his laptop and looked at Jungkook.

“I agreed to an interview. A real one. In a small editorial office. Not mainstream. But honest.”

Jungkook sucked in air through his nose. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. Because if we don't tell this story, someone else will. And they'll get it wrong.”

The interview was to take place at their home. No cameras. Just a microphone, a recording, and then a written transcript. The editor, a woman in her forties with a warm gaze and a nonjudgmental voice, knocked on the door right on time.

“Thank you for trusting me,” she said, sitting down at the kitchen table. ”I won't ask you anything you don't want to say. I just want your voices to be heard.”

They talked for an hour. About the meeting. About Yuna. About his deceased wife. About love that didn't come right away, but came true. They spoke quietly, cautiously, but honestly. When the conversation ended, the editor stood up and simply said:

“Thank you. This was one of the most important meetings of my life.”

When she left, Jimin sat down on the floor and just sighed.

“There's no turning back now.”

“And that's good,” replied Jungkook. ”Because the truth is the only thing we have left.”

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Chapter 79 - Yuna's Voice

Two days after the interview was published online, the internet was abuzz. There were those who defended them with all their might. But there were also those who attacked with double the force. “Promoting pathology,” “what kind of family is this,” “the child doesn't know what's good for him” — these were just some of the comments.

Jimin couldn't sleep. Jungkook tried to shut himself off, but he couldn't help reading. However, what struck them the most were Yuna's words. Spoken suddenly, between dinner and bedtime stories.

“Did Mom know you guys were going to meet?”

They looked at each other. They were silent for a moment.

“She didn't know,“ Jungkook replied. ‘But I think somewhere... she would want us to be happy.”

“Am I?’ she asked seriously.

“What do you think?” Jimin asked.

“Sometimes I miss her. But when you hug me, I feel like I'm in a fairy tale. A little sad. But also beautiful.”

They fell silent. Then Jungkook picked her up and hugged her.

“Your mom loved you. And so do we. And we're here because she had you first. And we came after that. But we're together.”

Yuna fell asleep quickly, and they sat in silence for a long time.

“Do you think we're doing this right?” Jimin asked.

“I don't know. But we're doing it with all the love we have. And I think that's enough.”

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Chapter 80 - Sena's Mistake

The next day, when Jungkook came to work, he found Sena in his office. She was standing by his desk, holding her phone. When she saw him, she turned away abruptly.

“I was waiting for you,” she said quickly.

“In my office?”

“I didn't want to disturb you. I just left a note. I didn't open anything,” she added too quickly.

But his computer screen showed an open email inbox. And a message from the interview editor. Unsent. A draft. Still unformatted.

“What's going on, Sena?”

“Nothing. I swear. I just... wanted to understand why you're making such a big deal out of this. And why everyone is defending you.”

Jungkook froze. He already knew. Maybe she didn't have a microphone. But she had a motive.

“You were the source of the leak.”

“I have no idea what you're talking about,” she said coldly, but her face gave her away. Her lips trembled. She couldn't hold his gaze.

“If you ever touch anything of mine, my family, or my name again, it won't end with just a conversation.”

He left. He was shaking. But he also felt something else. Relief. Because evil finally had a face. And a name.

That evening, he told Jimin everything. Jimin just nodded.

“See? Everything comes out in the end.”

Chapter 81 - The Letter of Resignation

Sena didn't show up at work. Officially: “sick leave.” Unofficially: suspension. The clinic's management didn't give any details, but the atmosphere said it all. The staff whispered and avoided the subject. Jungkook didn't comment. He didn't have to. One look was enough for everyone to know that something had ended.

However, he didn't expect to find an envelope in his desk drawer. It was white, thick, with his name written neatly on the front. He tore it open and pulled out a piece of paper. He couldn't believe what he was reading:

“Jeon,

I don't know how to apologize because I know I can't fix what I did. But I have to try.

I envied you. Your family. The right to what I never had. I tried to destroy something I didn't even understand. And for a moment, I had power—over what you thought, what you felt. But it was pointless. It didn't heal me. It didn't fill the void.

I should never have gotten close to you. And I should never have stayed silent when your child was being targeted.

I hope that at least once in my life, someone will treat me with the same care you show your family.

- Sena”

He read it twice. Three times. Then he burned the letter.

That evening, he told Jimin:

“I don't know if I believe her. But I think it's over.”

“That chapter, yes. But not the whole book.”

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Chapter 82 - Fever

During the night, Yuna began to toss and turn. She rolled around under the covers, mumbling in her sleep. When Jimin put his hand on her forehead, he froze.

“She's burning up,” he said quietly.

Jungkook was already awake. He got up in an instant, turned on the lamp, and took her temperature.

“39.5.”

They didn't panic. They knew the protocol. Cooling, fluids, medication. But the sight of Yuna's pale face, her trembling fingers and absent gaze broke them inside. Jungkook held her hand. Jimin paced back and forth.

“Maybe it's just a virus. Maybe it's just an infection.”

“But what if it's something more?” Jungkook's voice trembled.

They took her to the doctor in the morning. Tests, auscultation, swab. The doctor reassured them—a throat infection, viral, classic. But for them, nothing was ‘classic’ since they became a family. Everything had weight, everything was a potential threat.

For the next two days, they took turns staying with her. Jimin read fairy tales, Jungkook made tea. At night, they whispered to each other so as not to fall asleep with anxiety.

On the third day, the fever broke. Yuna started talking more, drawing. But something remained—a shadow in their eyes. The awareness that everything could change in one night.

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Chapter 83 - The Decision

Jimin came with the news as if he didn't know whether it was a gift or a sentence.

“I got a job offer,” he said quietly. ”In Paris. For six months. A music and visual project. A huge opportunity.”

Jungkook was silent. He stood by the sink, a mug in his hands. He didn't speak for a long time.

“What do you think?“ he finally asked.

“I think it's a dream. But also... that I can't leave you guys.”

“We don't want to stop you,” Jungkook said. “But it has to be a decision we all make.”

In the evening, they sat down with Yuna. They told her about Paris. About how Jimin's dad could create something beautiful.

“But how far away is it?” she asked quietly.

“Far away. But not forever. And we can call you every day. Write letters. Draw pictures.”

Yuna thought about it. Then she hugged Jimin.

“If it's your dream, you have to go for it. But promise me you'll come back.”

“I promise,” he whispered.

Jungkook looked at them and felt his heart break and grow at the same time. Because it was love. The kind that doesn't hold you back. It just lets you go.

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Chapter 84 - The Empty Chair

The flight was early in the morning. Too early for Yuna to get up, even though she really wanted to. Jimin kissed her while she was still asleep, leaving a note with a drawing of the Eiffel Tower and the words, “See you soon.”

Jungkook walked him to the airport. They held hands almost until the last moment. As they said goodbye, Jimin whispered something comforting, but tears welled up in Jungkook's eyes.

“I'll be back sooner than you think,” Jimin promised.

“And I'll count the days.”

When he returned to the apartment, Yuna was already sitting at the table. She was wearing his T-shirt and making tea, trying to look grown up.

“Did Jimin's dad fly?”

“Yes, sweetheart.”

“So it's just the two of us now?”

“Just for a little while.”

During the first few days, everything seemed different. The silence had a different tone. Yuna's laughter sounded clearer, but also as if it had an echo. The chair at the table was empty. The piano was closed.

In the evenings, Jungkook read fairy tales that Jimin usually read. He cooked things he had never tried before. He learned new songs so that Yuna could dance. But there was still longing in his eyes.

And then, one evening, when Yuna was already asleep, Jungkook sat down at the table, took out a notebook, and wrote:

“Today I made rice that turned out like concrete. Yuna said it was the best in the world anyway. Your chair creaks. It says it misses you. Me too.”

He closed the notebook. He didn't send it. But he kept writing.

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Chapter 85 - Two Hearts in Two Cities

Paris was beautiful. Jimin had a view of the Seine, graphite roofs, and skyscrapers from another world. He worked with artists from different countries, creating something new every day. But when the lights went out in the rehearsal room, all he wanted was the sound of Yuna's voice and Jungkook's quiet laughter.

Their daily video calls became a ritual. In the morning, Jimin listened to stories about what Yuna had eaten and how Jungkook had burned the pancakes again. In the evening, he listened to them read fairy tales, even though he was thousands of miles away.

One day, Yuna said:

“I wish you were like the sun. Everywhere. Always.”

Jimin's voice trembled.

“And you are my sky,” he replied.

Jungkook sat to the side. He felt pride, he felt love, but also... loneliness. In the evenings, when Yuna was asleep, he wrote letters. He described every day. Every little thing.

“Today she fell asleep on my shoulder. She smelled like toothpaste and happiness. I thought that was the only thing you couldn't buy. And that you were part of it.”

He didn't send them. He didn't want Jimin to feel guilty. But he needed those words. For himself.

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Chapter 86 - Longing in the rhythm of everyday life

A month passed. One of the longest in their lives. Everyday life was absorbing, but it didn't soothe them. Yuna went to school, Jungkook went to work. But between meals, clothes, and visits, they were missing the third piece of the puzzle.

One afternoon, Yuna asked,

“If someone misses someone very much, can they get sick?”

“Why do you ask?” Jungkook asked.

“Because sometimes my heart hurts. But not like when I have a cold. It's different.”

Jungkook knelt down beside her.

“It's not a disease. It's love. So strong that it hurts.”

“Does that mean I'm sick with love?” she asked with a laugh.

“In the best sense.”

That evening, Jungkook took out all the letters he had written. There were over thirty of them. He sat down at the computer and pasted one of them into an email.

“Sometimes I write so I don't scream. Sometimes I'm silent so I don't cry. But most of all, I want to fall asleep next to you. And wake up in a house with a table full of food again.”

He sent it. For the first time.

In the morning, he got a reply. One sentence:

“I'm buying a ticket. Not now. But soon. Because home misses you too.”

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