Crossroads and Rings | Super slow updates

Chapter - 22

Jungkook rushed to his bedroom, tearing through his closet finding the box easily. He was well organized and it didn't take time at all to locate the contents he needed so badly. The small box held the notes he received over the years he cared so much for.

My secret Santa.

His hands shook when he sifted through the notes, comparing the handwriting with the one he had in his hand.

Same.

He'd stared at the handwriting for years that it had ingrained in his memory. He'd spend hours trying to put a face for his secret Santa. A soft sob heaved out of his chest. It was indeed her. He sagged on the floor, crossing his legs as he stared at the note. All this time.

Jungkook clenched his jaw. He didn't even know how to react now that he found the truth. Why?

All these years she had been a major part of his life and he never knew. The person he came to care for had been his sister. She'd changed her name, but that was all that changed. Why would she even care for him? And that too without expecting anything in return.

Well, if I had my way, we wouldn't meet at all.

Her words echoed in his head. She wasn't planning to reveal her identity. If it wasn't for this will, she'd have never contacted him, he realized.

Jungkook didn't understand. He was five years old when he received his first gift. How could she even think of something like that when his father had shunned her away? Why?

Tears streamed down his cheeks. He didn't deserve the kindness. Not when he had given her nothing in return. The gifts he had bought over the years stared at him from their designated space in his closet. He chuckled humorlessly. There were twenty gifts, one for each year. Every time she sent a gift, he bought one in return and stored it in his closet, hoping he would find her one day.

The first gift was a sketchbook, the second year it was a toy car. Every year he bought something, hoping he'd find the person sending him gifts so he can return the gesture. Twenty years later, he was still searching for them and now he found her.

He couldn't believe his luck. One of the reasons he accepted their offer to become their photographer was to get close to Taehyung so he could ask him who ordered the Vante sweater. Now it all made sense. It was fucking exclusive because his sister ordered it for him. She made sure there was only one piece in the world.

Jungkook couldn't really bring himself to complain. He understood her to need to hide this secret. He understood her fear of rejection. She feared Hobi hyung would hate her if he knew the truth. Honestly, Jungkook didn't know how his hyung would react to this truth. Though she hadn't admitted to him, he knew she feared him too.

She had been running and hiding all these years from him, yet she was keeping tabs. Tears pooled in his eyes again. The very first camera she bought him smiled at him from its cozy place. The one that encouraged him to pursue his passion for photography. And years later, here she was once again handing him the opportunity to live his dream.

How would Jin hyung and Hobi hyung react to this news?

Should I tell them?

He shook his head immediately. A strange sense of protectiveness surged inside him. He promised. She didn't reveal her identity to him, but it didn't take a genius to put two and two together. Now that he could finally put a face to the person who had been in his life as a silent supporter, he really couldn't complain.

She said she had reasons. How could he even blame her for wanting to stay away? Their father signed the fucking papers for adoption. Is that what happened? Is that why she changed her name? So she must have known.