"h-how soon till we get there?"

jimin and namjoon were sitting in jimin's car, on their way to see jimin's mom. they had been switching off driving every thirty minutes and it was now jimin's turn to drive. namjoon felt restless sitting in his seat, trying to think of anything but the fact that he was about to meet the love of his life's mother. it was overwhelming. jimin loved his mom so much and if joon didn't get her approval he didn't know what would happen.

"well... it's about a two-hour drive," jimin said, thinking, "and we've been driving for like... an hour and a half."

namjoon looked over at him.

"so... only a half an hour left?" he questioned, nervously.

jimin just smiled, taking his eyes off the road for a second to look at joon.

"you'll be fine, joon. just like i told you a million times, there's nothing to be nervous about," jimin said.

namjoon just sighed.

"h-how do you know? what if she hates me or-"

jimin cut him off.

"she won't hate you, joon. she doesn't hate anyone. you're sweet and funny and smart. what's not to like?"

"just... tell me what to expect. like... what's she gonna ask me?"

jimin just laughed a little.

"well... she'll probably ask you about yourself. she'll want to hear all about your writing and your-"

"my writing? you told her i write?"

"of course i did," jimin said, "you want to be a writer for a living, joon, i didn't realize it was a secret."

"what else?" namjoon asked.

"well... she might try and talk to you about me. she's very protective, so she'll want to know if your genuine," jimin said, "and of course, you are, so that's not gonna be a problem."

namjoon just fiddled with the ring on his pointer finger, his anxiety getting worse.

"think about it like this," jimin said, "do you have any negative feelings toward my mom?"

joon shook his head.

"of course not. i've never even met h-"

"exactly!" jimin said, "that's how she feels about you, too. she's only heard good things and she's not thinking anything bad about you, so don't worry."

namjoon thought about what jimin said for a moment, feeling a little bit better.

"that's true."

"it is," jimin said, "and i'm sure she's nervous to meet you, too. what you think of my mom matters, too, don't you think?"

joon nodded.

"and i know for a fact she's not only nervous, but also super excited to meet you. she already thinks you're awesome, so just be yourself. that's all you can do."

"... you're right... it'll go fine."

jimin shook his head.

"it'll go better than fine," jimin said, with a laugh, "and it doesn't hurt that you look so fucking handsome."

joon just laughed at jimin's use of the curse word, still blushing a bit from the compliment.

"i mean it," jimin said, reaching over to intertwine their hands, "handsome, smart, hunky.., sexy," he said, teasing a bit, "trust me, you've got nothing to worry about."

-

ding ding

jimin had pressed the doorbell.

it would open any second and namjoon would be meeting jimin's mom.

he felt his heart racing, doing a million beats a second, quickly trying to think of a way out.

but it was too late.

the door was opening and before he knew it, jimin's mom was standing before him.

"jiminie!" the mom said, excitedly.

jimin ran to her arms and hugged her tightly.

and suddenly, namjoon felt a little better.

the lady looked very sweet.

she was very short compared to himself, no taller than one hundred and sixty centimeters. she had short black hair and a big smile on her face.

a smile that was so similar to jimin's that it almost made namjoon melt.

"i'm so happy to see you," his mom said, breaking away from jimin and looking back to joon, who was still standing awkwardly in the door frame.

"and you," she said, staring at him for a second, "you must be namjoon."

namjoon nodded quickly, smiling, "yes, ma'am."

it was quiet for a minute before namjoon felt arms wrapped around him.

"it's so good to meet you!" she exclaimed, parting away from him, "jimin's been telling me all about how amazing you are!"

namjoon smiled, looking over to jimin, who was smiling wildly right back, winking at him.

"and damn... the pictures don't do you justice. you picked out a handsome one, jiminie."

jimin just laughed, nodding as his mother looked back at him.

"...t-thank you," namjoon said, looking like he was about to crumble from how nervous he had been all day.

jimin's mom chuckled a little, thinking namjoon was adorable for being so nervous, "come on in, you two. i've cooked up a nice meal."

-

"that was so good," namjoon said, feeling a bit more comfortable after talking with jimin's mom throughout the dinner.

she asked about his writing, just like jimin said she would, and she thought it was super cool. they talked about what he and jimin did around campus for fun together and all the shenanigans they got up to. she wanted to know all about the time they realized they liked each other and how it progressed. jimin even told the story of how namjoon had bought him the sweater for christmas and how cute it was.

namjoon thought he would be a nervous wreck or embarrassed to talk about everything to jimin's mom, but he wasn't. something about the lady made him feel so comfortable, he felt like he could tell her anything.

"like mother, like son," he thought.

"t-thank you so much for cooking all this. it was amazing."

"you're very welcome," she said, "jiminie, baby, would you mind cleaning up the table and getting the dishes? i'd like to have a talk with namjoon for a moment."

namjoon froze in his seat, suddenly just a pinch of anxiety returning to him, wondering what she wanted to discuss with him in private.

"mom!" jimin said, laughing a bit, "please don't give him one of your talks. you'll scare him away."

"i won't, i won't, i promise," she said, with a laugh, standing up and motioning for joon to follow.

"don't say anything to embarrass me, please," jimin said, grabbing their plates.

jimin's mom agreed, guiding joon to their living room, sitting down on the couch, and patting the seat next to her for joon to sit.

joon sat down quickly, shaking a little.

"namjoon," she said, looking over to him, setting her hand on his knee, "do you love my son?"

she was staring into his soul, like how he responded could either make or break everything.

"yes," he said, quickly, without thinking through his answer.

"how much?"

joon just stared back at her, letting his emotions spill out.

"more than i've ever loved anyone or anything," he said, "he's everything to me."

the mom just smiled, with a nod.

"you know," she started, "usually jimin's father would be the one having this talk. he probably would have known all the right things to say... and ask," she said, with a laugh, shaking her head, "but... as i'm sure you know, he's not here anymore."

namjoon nodded, a sympathetic look on his face.

jimin's mom reached over to the table beside the couch, grabbing a framed picture.

"...that's jimin's father," she said, pointing at him in the picture

namjoon took the frame in his hands, staring down at it.

it was a family photo, with the three of them. jimin was little, maybe five or six years old. his father and mother stood behind him, all wearing big smiles. it looked like just a regular fun family day at some sort of amusement park. they were all wearing hats and fun shirts, holding shopping bags.

they all looked so happy.

"jimin looks just like him."

"doesn't he?" she said with a laugh, "he got my smile, but everything else came from his father."

joon just laughed with her a little, his face eventually settling as he stared down at the picture.

"it was three years ago that he died," she said, taking the frame back and setting it on the table, "jimin was fifteen."

namjoon nodded, not sure if he should say anything.

"he was a great man. he did everything for everyone. and he really did love jimin... so much," she said, "in fact, i think that's part of why he did what he did... loving that hard... it was too much for him. he couldn't love someone that much and love himself. it wasn't possible."

she sighed.

"but, jimin was never really the same after that happened. i mean... he put on a happy face for everyone, tried to be strong, tried to pretend it didn't bother him... he's like his father in that way," she said, "i heard he was telling his high school friends that his father was a drunk or an asshole and he didn't care that he was gone. but underneath it all... he was a wreck," she said,

"that is... until he met you."

namjoon's mouth parted, a little shocked.

"it had been so long since i'd seen him like that, namjoon. that big smile that could light up a room. his excitement about life... talking about all the things he wanted to do. being so passionate. hanging out with people, having a crush, loving life. it was so... refreshing. and i think... in a way... seeing jimin be alright made me feel alright, too. whatever was missing before is here now and i think that's because of you."

she reached over, putting namjoon's hands in her own.

"so... thank you," she said, starting to tear up a bit, "thank you for loving my son. thank you for bringing him back to me. i don't know what would have happened if you didn't come along, but i'm so thankful you did."

namjoon just smiled, getting a bit emotional as well.

"of course," he said, leaning in to hug her.

there was silence for a moment before jimin's mom spoke up again.

"and... if you wanted to... you could try and talk to him about it... everything that happened. i think it would be the last bit of closure he needs to move on. i think it would make a big difference to him if he talked to you about what happened and how he felt, you know?"

joon nodded once again, "i will."

the two talked for another moment, namjoon doing his best to console her and make sure she knew that he would always be there for jimin no matter what.

the two eventually got up from the couch, walking out to find jimin.

"...woah," jimin said, seeing the two walk out from the living room, "you guys look like you were crying. mom, i swear you better not have-"

"it's okay," namjoon said, reaching over to grab jimin's hand,

"it's okay."

_______________________________

:((( i love how this chapter turned out