"So what are you trying to say, Ssaem?"

"I'm telling you that people can change their minds, especially when it comes to their children. So don't be afraid to tell them."

"What if they say something unpleasant?" Taemin asked.

"Trust me, they won't. At least you're not doing drugs, or committing a crime that would land you in prison," Jung-kook assured. "And I hope you are not."

Taemin smiled. "No, I'm not doing anything of the sort."

"Good. Then they have nothing to worry about, including you getting some girl pregnant."

"That's definitely true," Taemin chuckled as he stood up from his seat. "Well, thanks for listening to me, Ssaem. You're the best!"

"Don't sweat it. I'm here anytime you need help," Jung-kook responded. "And remember that life is too short to spend it being miserable, so do what makes you happy."

The hollowness of his words echoed around the room as Taemin left.

Following his own advice wasn't a forte Jung-kook possessed. He had been given another chance to choose between someone else's happiness and his own, and he chose the former. Thought it might be too late for him, at least, it wasn't for his grandson. He wasn't about to make the same mistake again.

As he gathered the books from his desk and stood from his chair, an old photograph fell. The very same one of him and a young boy he once loved, arms around each other during happy times. Jung-kook picked it up and remembered how he had held it up while concocting a weave of lies surrounding the image, while the real one sat in front of him, oblivious to the history between them.

That was almost twenty years ago, when his heart died a second time. A worse feeling than the first. Jung-kook did not know how he managed through all those years, trying to stem back the tears, to untie the knot in his heart, whose beating had been dulled by Taehyung's absence.

His steps towards the courtyard were heavy, the sun hindering his eyes. People looked like shadows fleeting around him, the cars blurring past as he sashayed across the small street, not realizing that for almost a fraction of a second, his life could have ended, if it weren't for a hand gripping his arm, pulling him away from the crowd and into safety.