Chapter 29

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"I haven't been here in a while", you said as you got out of the car.

"To Busan?", Jungkook asked. You nodded in response. 

It was already noon, and the streets were packed. 

He shut the door and locked it. You followed him to the entrance of the hotel where you didn't even have to wait for anything. It seemed like Jungkook knew the people around here, and as soon as he exchanged a few words at the entrance, a man in a black suit behind the counter handed him a magnetic card. 

Jungkook gave you a triumphant look, almost like he wasn't expecting everything to go so smoothly. You couldn't quite recall the last time you stayed at such a fancy hotel - if at all. 

There must have been a time in your childhood when your parents took your brother and you to Japan for your birthday, but the two of you were so young you barely remembered scraps of it. Though the smell of your sugary birthday cake that you accidentally dropped on your dress will haunt you forever.

Apart from the hotels you occasionally worked at - and to stay overnight was an even more seldom occurrence, plus, the rooms for employees weren't as fancy as the one for the guests - you didn't quite have the time nor the money to do this. And to be here with Jungkook on the weekend, just because he wanted it, and not because it was an event, was refreshing. 

It was only when you got into the elevator of the 15-story hotel that you realized what floor you were staying on. He pressed "14" and fumbled not to drop the magnetic card. The number printed on it wasn't a prominent one to indicate that it belonged to a room. It was rather subtle and could've been mistaken for a credit card. 

The hall on the fourteenth floor was even plainer than your relationship: there weren't even any cheap paintings on the walls. Maybe that was what made it so expensive. Still, there was a certain scent that you had yet to adjust to: instead of the citrus-minty-like one in other places, it had a rather floral scent, with a hint of something that you couldn't quite wrap your head around.

When Jungkook swapped the card, the light lit up in a faint green glow and with a little peep. It was then that you remembered you forgot to ask him if you were sharing a room. 

Like, yes, he only got one card. And yes, he even looked at you and it didn't seem like he forgot anything. You didn't know why you missed it. 

You prayed that at least there would be two beds, because otherwise, you would walk back to Seoul, no matter how long it took. 

He opened the door wordlessly and held it. You understood the hint and got in first.

It was almost impossible not to sigh in relief when you noticed two twin beds in the large room. And they were even on the opposite wall. 

"I'm sorry I didn't book two rooms, this was the only place left on such short notice. I should've thought about it earlier."

"It's okay!", you reassured. It was so much more than you expected. "The place is perfect."

You didn't know if your wording went too far, but you wanted to show him that you appreciated it. It was by no means self-explanatory - he technically didn't have to do this, not even because he wanted the public to know you were in a happy relationship. 

He flashed you a smile and threw his bag on one of the beds. 

"I'm taking this one!"

You shook your head and smiled at his childish behavior. 

Thinking about the public and how they viewed your relationship, you suddenly remembered what you thought of Jungkook the first time you saw him: that he was the opposite of what he looked like in the pictures. Though it was only a first impression (moreover, it was the day of his wedding and his soon-to-be wife left him), you realized you kept seeing him as the person he was on the day you met him: angry, cold-hearted, and annoying. And a little self-absorbed. 

It wasn't fair. He showed you that he was a genuinely acceptable person, maybe even a nice person. And you told Hoseok yesterday that he was horrible. 

It was a rather spontaneous decision, and you will definitely regret it in the near future, but you decided to give Jungkook a chance at proving he wasn't a horrible human being and that he cared about other people other than himself. And you hoped that after the next three weeks, you could maybe - just maybe - see him as something more than just the guy that paid you to get married to him: a friend. 

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