"Baby, are you excited about your school?" Taehyung inquired of his kid, who sat in the passenger seat, frowning, as his father drove.

Ji-hu fidgeted with his fingers as he shook his head.

Taehyung's smile morphed into a frown like his son's. "Why, bub?"

Ji-hu now shifted his gaze to his father, who was frowning. "Appa, they tease me." He sighed like an adult, causing Taehyung to stare at him for a brief moment before returning his gaze to the road.

"Who teases you, bear?"

"Everyone. Because I have no Appa." Ji-hu again frowned. Bullying and teasing didn't affect him anymore, because he was used to them.

Suddenly his frown changed into a smile while thinking about someone. "Appa, Aera is good. She is my best friend. She beats everyone who teases me." He clapped his hands, recalling how Aera used to push or beat up all the kids who teased Ji-hu.

"Wow! So my son has a friend too." Taehyung remarked and smiled to not make his son sad. He was glad that he requested Yoongi to drop Ji-hu since he would have never realized how his son was treated at school if he hadn't.

Once they reached the school, Taehyung walked out of the car and opened the door for his son, who was struggling with the straps of his bag.

After Ji-hu was done with his bag, Taehyung took Ji-hu's hands in his and headed towards the school's main gate. He kept staring at the children who waved to their parents while staring at Ji-hu as if mocking him.

Taehyung was quick to notice everything, including his son's tightening of his hand in Taehyung's as he gazed down.

"Ji-hu~" With a small wave and a big smile, a girl taller than Ji-hu addressed him. Taehyung turned to face his son, whose demeanor had shifted in response to the voice. His eyes twinkled, and he wore a boxy grin on his face.

"Aera~" Ji-hu called her with the same zeal as the girl, yanking his hands from Taehyung's grip, and sprinting over to the girl.

Taehyung walked at a slower pace to see what the friends were up to. A smile made its way to his lips when Aera and Ji-hu hugged, which wasn't noticeable because of the black mask he had worn.

"Aera, meet my Appa," Ji-hu told Aera and turned around to see his father approaching them from behind.

"Hello, Aera!" Taehyung waved his hand, and the same gesture was returned with a smile from the said girl. "Look at those pretty dimples on your face," Taehyung commented as he knelt beside his son and opposite from the girl to reach their height.

Aera blushed, saying a small "thank you" to which Ji-hu chuckled.

"Ji-hu, you said you don't have Appa. Is he really your Appa?" Aera asked in a rather more mature tone as compared to Ji-hu, prompting Taehyung to conclude that the girl must be older than his son.

"Yes, he is my Appa." Ji-hu smiled as he turned his right to face his father.

"I am his father, dear." Taehyung quickly took down the mask and rested it on his chin for a few seconds before pulling it up again, throwing a wink at the now-shocked girl.

With wide eyes, Aera drew Ji-hu close and murmured in his ear, "Where did you meet Kim Taehyung? Isn't he our favorite idol? Why are you calling him your Appa?"

However, the whisper turned into a scream that was heard by Taehyung, making him laugh. "I am his father, Aera. But you need to promise me to not tell anyone at the school, okay? I don't want my son to be bothered by students or teachers." He reasoned politely, and Aera gave him a firm nod.

"Samchon, can I have your autograph? I will show it to my father. He is your huge fan." Aera jumped on her feet while clapping her hands.

"Sure, sweetie." Taehyung winked at Ji-hu as they waited for Aera to take out a book and a pen from her bag.

"What's your full name?" Taehyung inquired as he grabbed the book and pen from Aera.

"Kim Aera."

Taehyung smiled and signed the autograph with some lovely words and handed it to the girl. "Samchon, I'll take care of Ji-hu in your absence."

She looked around and on noticing her classmates, she shouted, "And I'll make sure that everyone knows that Ji-hu has a father and I've met him."

Taehyung could see the girl was smarter than her age, and he was relieved that his son had found at least one good friend.

"Thanks, sweetheart! Hand me your book again." Taehyung spoke and grabbed the book, opening the last page and scribbling something down. "This is my contact number. You can call me anytime. Please let me know if somebody is bothering Ji-hu." He returned the book to the owner, who showed thumbs up.

Ji-hu was paying attention to everything his father did and said. And he considered himself fortunate to have such a father.

When the bell rang, the students dashed into their classes. "Appa, we're going." Ji-hu hugged his father, and Aera smiled as she looked at them.

When Taehyung saw the girl's genuine grin, he opened the opposite side of his arm, causing the girl to hug him as well. "Take care of yourselves, you two. Aera, you are also like my daughter. So you'll not only look after Ji-hu but also yourself. I want you both to be happy. Okay?" He asked, kissing both their temples as the kids nodded.

Once they broke the hug, they both ran inside while holding hands. Taehyung stayed there until the gates closed, then frowned and headed to his car. He felt guilty to see his son struggling. He wondered what all Jia and Ji-hu had to face while they were alone, and it only made him feel worse.

🥀

"Eomma~" Ji-hu screamed with a smile as he glanced at his mother heading to the school gate.

Jia greeted her kid with a smile and a wave. She was taken aback when she saw three boys with Ji-hu. She had only seen Aera with her son before, but today there were three boys instead of Aera.

"Hello, Imo~" the boys bowed respectfully as Jia approached.

"Eomma, they are my new friends," Ji-hu informed cutely, with a boxy grin on his face.

"I'm happy for you, baby. Hello kids!" Jia smiled as she waved to the boys.

One of the boys approached Jia more closely. "Imo, we apologize for bullying Ji-hu. We had no idea he had Appa." Jia was perplexed when he looked down as if he felt guilty.

"Yes, Imo," said another boy as he approached. "We shouldn't have teased Ji-hu without knowing about him." He looked down as well.

"Imo, we will take care of Ji-hu from now on," the last one said as he stood at his spot. "We are happy that he has Appa. We felt bad when he saw us with our Appa."

Jia's confusion grew as she listened to the boys. Ji-hu had always been excited when Jia talked about school. He even jumped and laughed while Jia came to drop him. She had no idea her son was bullied. Was it because he didn't want to worry me?

"It's fine, kids. Just don't do that with anyone else. What if you tease someone who has lost any of their parents? That would be bad, right?" Jia gently questioned, and all four boys nodded, including a pouty Ji-hu.

"So always enjoy while you are at school and don't bully anyone." Jia smiled and ruffled their hair while holding Ji-hu's hand.

"We shall leave now. I need to go to work. Bye, boys!" Jia waved and Ji-hu smiled at his friends before turning around and walking toward their car.

Once they were seated in the car, Jia looked at Ji-hu, who was smiling. Now that she knew how much he went through without her awareness, she didn't want to upset her son anymore. "Who came to drop you, bub?" Jia asked politely.

Ji-hu looked at his mother and gulped. He remembered how Taehyung refused to tell Jia that he knew the truth. "TaeTae," he murmured.

"Okay, baby! Let us go and meet your uncle before we go back home." Jia smiled and decided to speak with Taehyung about the situation.

___________________

My poor baby. I felt bad for Ji-hu while writing this part. I didn't like the idea of seeing the boy alone as he went through so much daily. So that's how Kim Aera came into the picture. I'm glad that Ji-hu has a friend now.

I hope you enjoyed this part too.

Have a good day/night! ♥️

Author-nim cries in pain after looking at these pictures of Taehyung. He's too good to be true 😭🖤