•••

12:25 pm.

"Y/n?" Luca comes up to me as I am making a new drink, my head hurting from all the crying and making it difficult to focus on the orders. "It's thirty past noon. You should take a break," he suggests, concern evident in his voice. "I'd rather keep going and stay busy."

He silently follows me to the coffee machine, and I steam the milk. "Just five minutes to eat something. You haven't eaten anything."

"I'm okay, Luca," I look up at him and reassure him. He breathes out sharply, showing some worry despite what I tell him. "I'd like to talk to you. Can you come to my office when you're done with this order?"

I nod and agree. "I'll be there."

"Thank you, sweetheart," he walks away and leaves.

In a few minutes, I finish up the order and leave it to Wendy, and I make my way to his office. The door is already open, and as soon as I stand at the door frame, he looks up from his laptop and notices me. "Come in."

I step forth and close the door, walking over to his desk. I sit down and wait for him to speak.

He closes his laptop and gives me his full attention. "I'm sorry for bringing you here again, but, uhm," he rubs his fingers over his bottom lip. "I know you're not feeling good today, I know it must be tough for you, but I don't want to witness you hurting yourself."

"I'm just trying to keep myself busy because it's the only thing that helps right now," I explain the reason why I am doing this. "I understand, but please, remember to eat. If you don't want to be alone or in the cafeteria, you can spend your breaks here, and we'll stay together. I just want you to stay healthy. Starving and overworking won't help, no matter how much you might think it does right now."

I nod, showing him I am comprehensive.

Not getting any answer from me, he toys with his lips and lowers his gaze. "I once felt the pain you're going through. It might feel like your world just ended, and that you'll never be happy again, but I promise you, things will get better," he speaks slowly, being careful to use the right words.

I smile with gratitude, feeling comforted by his words. "Have you...both made up?" I fight against my inner self to not burst into tears. "Yeah. Don't worry about it. I'll make sure he takes care of himself, I promise you," he tells me. "Thank you..." I swallow hard, trying to keep my emotions in.

"No need to," he says with a gentle smile. "Do you think he'll ever come back?" I dare ask. He squeezes his bottom lip between his fingers and drops his hand down to the desk. He nods to me, and the shattered pieces of my heart seem less further away from each other. "I believe you're both meant to be together. Once he'll have worked on himself, you'll meet again. Whether to be friends or more, I know you're the only one he'll ever want to date."

I did not expect to feel much better by talking about it with him.

"You have no idea how much it helps to hear you say that," I tell him honestly, and he smiles warmly in return. "And I'm pretty sure you'll feel a bit better if you eat something."

It is so obvious he is trying to make me feel better that it actually hurts me.

I smile and nod in agreement. "I'll eat something."

"I'm glad to hear it. I know you don't have anything in the fridge, so I got you a dish from the shop next door, and if you ever want something sweet, you can get a pastry from here. The boss won't know about it," he shows some undescribable amount of care, doing his best to make sure I do not dwell on the pain. "You didn't have to, but thank you. I'll eat the dish."

"I put it in here," he stands up and heads to his mini fridge, pulling out a container of pasta with a sandwich. He comes back to me and places the dish in front of me, and drops the sandwich on his spot. "And the fork," he places it down on the container, and I thank him again.

"If you have a favorite meal that could make your day, tell me, and I'll cook it for you whenever you want, alright?" he pampers me, making me wonder if Jungkook told him to. "No, no need to. I appreciate it, but you really don't have to go through all that trouble for me."

"I'd love to do it. Don't think that way," he sits back on his chair. "Okay," I glance down at the pasta, wondering where I should eat. I am not very hungry, but he spent his money on this just for me, so I cannot leave it untouched.

"Do you mind if I stay here to have lunch?" I look up into his eyes, and he shakes his head. "You can stay here as much as you want. I haven't eaten yet either, so we'll actually eat together."

"Thank you," I grab the dish and open it to reveal a delicious meal inside.

I cannot help but think about Jungkook. I hope he is not alone.

•••

7:30 pm.

The velvet box feeling soft under my touch, I stare at it for a few more seconds and slowly open it. This is a ring. The same as the one I gave to him.

How am I supposed to move on?

I take the silver ring out of its cushion and leave the box on my thighs as I stare at the ring in my hand, memories of the day when I gave him his on his birthday flood my mind.

I put the ring on my finger and admire how pretty it is. I miss him so much already.

– Six months later –

Friday, December 17th, 2021.

8:30 pm.

"Good morning, y/n," I hear a familiar voice say as I turn around to see Luciano entering the coffee shop. "Good morning," I smile in return and focus back on cleaning the tea pitcher as he said hi to Luca, who is coming.

The tall man walks up to me with his hands in his pockets, a bright smile on his face. "Hey, how are you feeling about starting your last day as an intern?"

"It feels weird. It went by so quickly, but I hope the boss won't extend it again and hire me instead," I reply. "You cost less as an intern, but he's not allowed to keep you as one for longer, so don't worry. I talked a lot about you, and said as much good as I could. More than I ever did for anyone else."

"Does that mean he might hire me?" I gaze up at him with hope in my eyes, and a smile spreads across his face. "Maybe. I may have praised you more than enough. So, who knows?" he pretends to ponder, to be unsure. "You may have?"

"Yeah," he grins and grabs the tea pitcher I just washed to dry it with a towel. "I'll maybe say thank you if he does hire me then."

He laughs and continues helping me, and Luciano joins us with Selene.

"Hey, is it really your last day?" Luciano takes care of the coffee machine, not waiting a second before getting to work. "Yeah."

"Unless she gets hired," Luca comments and grabs every dish I clean. "I hope you will then," Luciano smiles at me and walks away. Most of them are so kind to me, I truly hope to be kept on this team. I do not think I will ever find another workplace that is as good as this one.

"Are you still going out with Matthew and some friends tonight?" Luca asks me, curious about my plans. "Yes, I am really excited. I wanted to invite you, but I'd rather go out with you tomorrow than make you handle Matthew's friends."

"No worries. As long as you have a good time, that's all that matters," he replies, not showing any hint of disappointment. "Will there be a lot of people for your birthday though?" I cannot help asking, knowing he is a popular person with lots of friends. His birthday party must have plenty of people.

"I'm gonna celebrate it in two days, but tomorrow I'll only spend the day with you, and a few colleagues. Today though, I'll spend it with more personal friends, including Jungkook," he pronounces his name. "I wanted to just celebrate it tomorrow, but I'd rather avoid inviting you both at the same time."

"You didn't have to. I'd have handled it, don't worry," I say, trying to hide the fact I would love to see him. It has been months. It hurts less than at the beginning, but I still miss him as much. "Yeah...but not him."

"What do you mean?" I turn the faucet and dry my hands with the dish towel he is using, making him stop for a few seconds. "He...I don't think he'd like me to talk about it," he chuckles nervously. "He just misses you a lot more than you'd imagine. It'd be very difficult to see you."

"I miss him a lot too," I confess, although he is already aware. "Anyway, do you know where Matthew's taking you all?" he changes of subject. "He just told me we're going out. It's gonna be fun though because Milly's coming. What about you? Are you going out with your friends or partying at home?"

"Partying is a big word, but yeah. We'll go out tonight to a place called Urban Oasis," he mentions a name I have not heard. "Oh, I hope you'll have a good time there then. Don't drink too much alcohol though."

"I won't. I have to drive back home, so I gotta be responsible," he grabs a cup to serve himself some black coffee. "You're a good man," I smile as I can tell he appreciates it. "I'm just getting old, so I'm more careful."

"Yeah...Twenty-seven. It's like nine, almost ten years older than me, can you imagine? There's not much time left before retirement," I joke with him, and he stares at me after taking a sip. "I hate you for saying that, you damn brat," he gives me a bitter look, clearly amused. "I'm kidding. Twenty-seven is still so young for a man. Most of you age like wine anyway."

"Most? Am I one of them, or?" he drinks his coffee, his body language reminding me of mature, business men. "Of course, you are. Look at all the girls chasing after you, if you-"

"Luca," Selene asks for his attention. "Can you come and help me with the boxes in the storage room, please? Callen doesn't want to."

"Yes, I'm coming," he straightens his back and peeks at me. "Get to work. I'll be a mean supervisor today. That's what you deserve," he banters and follows Selene to the storage room as I laughed.

"It's funny," Luciano scoffs to himself. "What?" I help him unpack the box of new bottles of milk. "How Selene always needs Luca's help or attention when you're both together."

"I don't mind. I know she likes him," I fill up the fridge with every bottle he hands me. "Everyone knows, but as you said, he got all the girls chasing after him. The only one not doing it is you, and you're the one he's actually the closest to."

"Are you eavesdropping?" I glance up at him, waiting for him to get the other box of cans open. "I mean, you're right next to me. It's not like I can close my ears. You know?"

"Yeah, I guess," I smile .

•••

11:25 pm.

The moon shining bright in the dark sky, I stare outside the window of Matthew's car as his friends are chatting in the back. I can hear the faint sound of music playing from the radio, but the guys in the back are already tipsy and loud.

"Are you sure you wanna come?" Matthew asks, taking me out of my daydream. "Yeah. Why?"

"I don't know, you seem annoyed," he peeks at me while driving, worried about the way I feel. "No, I'm not. It's just the first time I go to a bar, so I'm a bit nervous."

"There's no need to be worried, I'll stay near you the whole time if you need," he reassures me with a comforting smile, and I feel some relief. "I know guys are gonna flirt with you, so I'd rather stay close."

"No, they won't," I do not believe in his nonsense, and he sneers. "Sure. We'll see who's right."

"Milly will punch anyone who gets too close to me anyway," I smile and look at the road. "Milly's way too crazy, so I don't doubt it."

"Stop it. She's not." I laugh and defend my best friend, but he disagrees with me. "Are you kidding me? She slapped the shit out of me just 'cause I looked at you."

"No, you were tipsy and tried to kiss me!" I explain the situation of which he must have erased a part. "I never did that..." he denies.

I punch his arm and snap, "Stop lying, I wasn't drunk, unlike you!"

"Yeah, whatever you say," he grins, trying to get on my nerves by refusing to admit the truth. I know I am right anyway.

20 minutes later...

'JUNGKOOK'S P.O.V'

"Try this, there's no alcohol in it," he hands me his drink filled with different layers of colors, the music in this nightclub nearly covering his voice despite the closeness of his mouth to my ear. I lean in and take a sip, feeling the sweet and tangy flavors mix on my tongue.

I nod and glance at him. "It's good," I say as loud as needed. "You can have it," he leaves it before me, giving a tap to the side of my knee. "Sure?" I ask, not wanting to take his drink when he ordered it. "Yeah," he calls out for the bartender and asks him to add the same colorful drink again to the order.

"What is this though?" I keep swallowing, and he comes closer to my face to explain, "It's a mix of juices and syrups, I'm not sure. It's my favorite non-alcoholic one here though, and the bartender calls it the Rainbow Paradise."

"Well, it's fucking good," I add and hold back from drinking it too fast. "Yeah," he smiles and looks back at the bartender, who is heading towards us with all the drinks. "Thank you!" Luca grabs three of them, and I give him a hand to take the two others with mine.

We both head back to the table, ready to enjoy our drinks together. Luca and I place the drinks down on the round table, and I sit down in front of him on the leather seats. He leans back and takes a sip of his drink, enjoying this last day as a twenty-six year old man. I do the same but take my cigarettes out of my pocket and light one up, hearing another song play.

"Bro, they only play old bangers in here!" one of the guys yells while taking a shot of tequila. "What song is that? I'm too young to know it," Luca playfully asks as I take a drag and exhale slowly, smiling at their talk. "DJ got us falling in love...something. Listen!" he shouts while dancing, the tequila getting to his head.

"He knows it! He's old! He used to listen to it in his teenage years," another of his friends adds. Luca pulls a middle finger up in response. "Fuck you, kid. I should only have invited your brother."

"Nah, I'm gonna make the part-"

"The DJ got us falling in love again...!" the drunk one closes his eyes and mumbles the rest, not remembering the lyrics. "'Cause baby, tonight!" he goes back to it, and I laugh but look down at the shot of tequila that the younger one, Nolan, just moved towards me."You want?" he asks, gesturing towards the shot.

I hesitate for a moment, the smell drawing me in but twisting my stomach at the same time. I have not drunk alcohol in a month since I last went out with Luca. Just one will be alright.

I grab it and swallow it in one go, the burn of the liquor making me shiver. I drop the empty glass on the table and swallow some of my drink for the tequila to not hit too hard.

30 minutes later...

My second shot of tequila going down my throat, I grimace at the taste and cover my face. I know I should stop now, or this will be too much.

Feeling the need for more nicotine, I get another cigarette out and light it up. Nolan next to me asks for one, so I give him one, and he uses his own lighter.

I lean back at the sight of the most drunk out of our group pushing his way away from his seat. "Gimme gimme more!" he sings along and sways unsteadily on his feet, bending over the table to move forward.

I spread my legs to leave some space, but he stumbles and falls onto me. I pull my cigarette out of my mouth and scoff, grabbing his arm to help him up. "Oops, sorry, Sir," he smiles at me but raises his unsteady gaze to mine. His eyes are glazed over with a familiar look of intoxication. "You wanna dance with me?"

I shake my head, smirking. "Alrighty," he presses a kiss on my cheek. "Just-" he sticks a finger against his lips. "If-If you want. I'm there. I dance good, hm?"

"I'll keep it in mind," I sneer, and he winks at me in one of the most obvious and cheesy ways possible, before walking away. After this unexpected moment, I slide one hand in my pocket and take a long drag on my cigarette. The smoke fills my lungs, and I look at Luca, who is typing on his phone while smiling.

His eyes remaining on his screen, a blond girl startles him with some sudden closeness. She bends over to his level, his eyes going down to her red lips in an instant. He brings his face closer to hers as he must not have heard her. She speaks in his ear and gazes back into his eyes.

She seems a little tipsy.

He smiles at her and seems hesitant about something, then shakes his head and says sorry, followed by some more words. She nods and smiles back, walking away after probably getting rejected.

"Why did you say no?!" Nolan questions him. "She's drunk. I'd rather not," he leans back and empties his glass. "You two are getting hit on way too much tonight," Nolan remarks, pointing his finger at Luca and I.

"That's 'cause he's a pretty boy," Luca grins, looking at me. "Next girl that comes here to dance with you, you say yes!" Nolan nudges my arm, but I show my disagreement. "You want a new one?" Luca asks me, holding his empty glass in his hand. "Yeah, please."

While consuming my cigarette, I pay attention to where he is going but catch a girl stopping him again. This is actually insane.

"Look at that, bro! He's a magnet!" Nolan notices, and I watch their interaction. She is his type. Petite, cute brunette with pretty eyes, and a pretty smile. I wonder what he is going to do.

She touches her arm while speaking to him, her head tilted back because of the crazy height difference. He runs his fingers through his hair, maintaining eye contact with her and making her obviously shy. He holds the side of her face and speaks in her ear, knowing exactly what he is doing with those smooth moves.

She nods and smiles at him, and they both part ways. I stub my cigarette out and decide to follow Luca, heading to the bar with him.

I stand right by his side as he is ordering more drinks, and he notices my presence. I grin at him and ask why he keeps rejecting those pretty girls tonight.

"I don't know. It's not in this type of place that you can meet the right one, you know what I mean?" he says. "And I'm just here to have a good time with you guys."

"I understand you," I share the same feelings. "And with the bad experience you've had, I guess this doesn't feel tempting anymore."

"Exactly. Not all of them are like that, this one seemed cute and all, but I don't want to have to break another girl's heart," he peeks down at his phone, and I hear a girl say his name after approaching him. She catches his attention and gets us both to look at her, but as soon as I see who is standing right next to her, my heart stops beating.

This cannot be her.