22 | THE SPARK

The classical music that carried throughout the room would have been calming if my mind was not so preoccupied. I was dazed, my muscles mirroring the actions of the other dancers as we warmed up, our feet sliding and tapping on the floor. Even our professor's strict voice barking out instructions was not enough to pull me from my thoughts.

To start, our class was relocated to a new studio since the previous one was affected by the fire. Repairs were being done on the damaged areas, and several classes had to meet in an older, more historic building on campus. The studio we were in was more spacious, with wooden beams on its high ceilings and hanging, old-fashioned lights that glowed a dim orange. The space was less modern but held a beauty to it that I could not appreciate as the new setting just reminded me of what that monster did to Jimin.

Then my thoughts were brought to what happened after Jungkook dropped me back off at the hospital. Once Jimin's parents left to eat, I was able to tell him about my time with Jungkook and my vague memories of him as a kid. With an ache deep in my heart, I found no surprise in Jimin's eyes - only guilt. He knew about my history with him all along, and as he later admitted, he also knew that Hoseok was Jungkook's brother. I felt so guilty for not telling Jimin about how Jin and I broke up, all while Jimin had been keeping much deeper secrets from me. Secrets about my own past, and secrets that would have helped me in my quest to learn more about those who surrounded me.

He only offered excuses and riddles just as Jungkook had.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you, Jangmi," he said while regret settled on his features. He reached for my hand from his place on the bed, but I remained still. "I couldn't. I wanted you to ask him because it wasn't my secret to tell. They have reasons for hiding things from you. If I ever thought you were in danger, you know I would have told you right away."

"So that's why you said it couldn't be Hoseok or Jungkook? You already knew about their past with me, and you still know more than you're telling me, right?" I asked, feeling my grasp on composure slipping away with each second.

Jimin nodded, brows knitting together as he observed me. "Do you remember when Jungkook and I came late to the opera house that night? He was telling me about their plans to help and how he wanted you to remember everything."

"And you truly think we can trust them? Whatever else you know, it's enough for you to believe them fully?"

He nodded. "If you trust me, you can trust them, too."

For the first time, Jimin's assurance did not ease the turmoil that raged within me.

Early the next morning, Jimin sent me away, saying he refused to let me 'babysit' him. He advised me to stay around Jungkook as much as I could and to not go anywhere alone. Begrudgingly, I agreed to return to school, and Jimin's mother offered to drive me back to campus. I gladly accepted it.

A day later, I was back in our Contemporary Ballet class. All throughout the warm-ups, my eyes continued to linger on Jungkook in the reflection, only to be caught under the demanding hold of a certain pair of amber eyes.

Hoseok stood next to the professor and towered above her smaller figure. Arms crossed like always, he scanned the room occasionally, only to focus in on me again. Even with his mask on, I could sense that he knew something had happened between his brother and me.

The strong presence of those two, along with the absence of Jimin, made it impossible to concentrate fully. Only when we were instructed to go to our dance partners and practice some moves did I finally gain enough focus.

Jungkook and I met at the center of the room, surrounded by all of the other dancers. His eyes captivated mine as each order came from the professor. As we followed along to her voice, his hands slid around my waist and drew me nearer to him. My hands went out to the sides then raised above my head as I leaned backward, allowing him to hold my weight. My spine arched against his grasp and my hair nearly brushed the floor. His fingers tightened their grip on my hips and lower back, and it was surprising how comfortable I felt in his arms.

"Good, now that you know your partner isn't going to just let you fall, let's practice a couple of basic lifts."

I straightened up as Jungkook released me, and my eyes spotted a dusting of pink on his cheekbones, matching the color of my pointe shoes. To avoid his gaze and prevent my own blush, my attention snapped to the professor. She went on explaining the importance of trust when it came to lifts, then had Hoseok decide on which types we would practice.

As the masked choreographer told the class what to begin with, my heart fluttered. It had been a couple of years since the last time I danced with a partner and even longer since I did any lifts with one.

"Don't be nervous. Just trust me," Jungkook said low enough for only me to catch.

I nodded, and he came to stand behind me. In the reflection of the mirror, I watched as he leaned down and placed one hand on the back of my thigh and the other circled around my waist. I wrapped my arm around his neck. Together we pliéd, bending our knees before I launched off the floor, and he helped carry my weight as I brought my legs out into a split and leaned my body over his shoulder. He spun us around and then slowly lowered me back to the floor in front of him.

The lift was a simple one, but I still was left breathless at how smoothly the two of us worked together. It was like our bodies synched into one bound entity.

After practicing a couple more lifts, the period ended. While Jungkook and I changed our shoes, the class slowly filtered out of the studio.

"Think you can stay for a bit? We should talk to Hoseok and tell him what happened," Jungkook said quietly beside me. I peered at him while tying the laces of my white combat boots.

"I have a while before my next class."

Despite my words, my stomach twisted at the thought of talking to Hoseok. One of the last interactions with him had been when he hugged me after my nightmare in the hospital, and now suddenly we were going to tell him that I remembered him from my childhood. Knowing how closed off he tended to be had me worried about how he'd react.

"What's going on between you two?"

My spine straightened as his deep tone came from behind me. I looked into the mirror and met his gaze that was so piercing, it nearly turned me to stone.

Jungkook stood and I followed, both of us turning to face him. The red tones of his hair were more copper under the studio's lighting, and his skin appeared more golden than normal. His dark brows were set in what I could only assume was a frown, as my eyes drifted to the scarlet mask covering his mouth.

What do his lips look like when he frowns? What do they look like when he smiles?

"She remembered," Jungkook stated boldly.

Hoseok was silent but I caught the slight widening of his eyes as they snapped to me.

"You told her?" Hoseok's voice lowered dangerously, the sound growing rougher.

Jungkook sighed. "No, brother, I didn't tell her. I just... helped her remember on her own."

"What is that supposed to mean?" the older asked, almost in a growl.

"It means I jogged her memory a little. Hugged her and said something I told her in the past, too. It worked."

"Why?" Hoseok asked, stepping closer to him. "I told you she's better off not remembering. You just put her in even more danger," he hissed.

Jungkook's eyes lit up in a wave of anger that matched Hoseok's. "Stop acting like you're so selfless. You just don't want her to find out that you-"

Hoseok's hand shot out to Jungkook's shoulder, and his fingers dug into him. I watched Jungkook as he tried not to wince, setting his jaw while his gaze hardened on his brother.

"Don't," Hoseok warned.

Jungkook scoffed bitterly, his lips stretching into a mocking smile. "What's wrong? Afraid she won't forgive you?"

Hoseok pushed Jungkook back as he released his shoulder, and I reached out to catch the younger's upper arm to keep him from stumbling.

"Stop talking like I'm not even here!" I shouted suddenly, causing them both to look at me. "And please stop fighting! If you want me to trust you guys, you need to start letting me in and getting along. I'm not going to put up with your arguing, and I most definitely am not going to put up with all of the hidden meanings in what you say."

Hoseok's chest swelled as he took a deep breath. "I'm sorry," he said with a pause. "How much do you remember?"

"Not much. I remember Jungkook being my friend, I think. I cared about him. And I remember you... watching me dance," I replied, lowering my voice.

"That's it?"

I nodded, and he brushed a hand through his hair to pull it away from his forehead.

"You have to keep remembering on your own. Give us updates when you remember something new because if we tell you anything before you remember it, you'll lose that memory for good."

"How does that even work? I don't understand."

"Do you understand what you've seen in your nightmares? What happened to Jimin?" Jungkook asked, watching me carefully.

I looked between them both. "No, none of it."

"The more you remember, the more you'll see that not everything follows the logic you know."

"You're doing it again," my jaw ticked as I glared at him. "Talking without really telling me something. Hinting but not elaborating. Do you know how frustrating that is?"

"Jangmi-"

"No. How am I supposed to trust you two when you can't tell anything to me straight?" I raised my voice again, hating how it wavered.

Hoseok stepped closer, and I noticed his hand flex and close at his side, almost as if he was refraining himself from reaching out to me. "Listen, Jangmi," he spoke softly, "We just want to keep you safe. You've seen us, you know we've met before. You mean something to us which is why we care to protect you. But we have to tread carefully in order to help you, and part of that includes waiting for you to figure a few things out on your own."

As much as my body relaxed from his soothing, my mind still spun. "But you just said you didn't want me to remember. You wanted me to stay in the dark."

"I just didn't want you to remember so soon. It makes things more complicated, but what's done is done," his eyes briefly found Jungkook's before returning to me. "Now that you've seen pieces of the past, it's important that you keep trying to remember it all."

"How am I supposed to do that?"

"You have to want it," Jungkook cut in. "The other night, I may have helped you but you still only remembered because you wanted to."

"If you remember the third boy's face, we can stop him," Hoseok added.

I looked at Jungkook as my heart began to race. "Wait, why do you have to wait for me to remember him? I thought you said you were already protecting me."

"We are. But we can't remember him either. I wanted to figure out who it is on our own so that you didn't have to remember, but now that you've already started, you might as well try to recall who he is," Hoseok said, and I noticed his eyes were filled with concern.

"You don't remember him either?" The question came out as a whisper.

"We remember what happened, but we can't remember his face or his voice. He's like a shadow in our memory," Jungkook answered.

"So he erased his identity from both of you?"

They nodded together.

"And he's the one who made me forget, too?"

Hoseok replied first. "That's part of your past, so answering would run the risk of you never remembering."

"Fine," I sighed, glancing between them. "Then I guess I need to spend more time around you both to jog my memory. And probably the others, too, so I can figure it out."

"You should try to always be with one of us, not just to remember more but also for your safety. I know you need time to yourself, too, but at least keep us updated on where you are when you're alone."

A chill crept down my spine at the implication of what he said. Caution always prompted me to tell someone where I was, but hearing Hoseok advise the same sent the cold reality of the situation crashing into me again. Any time I was alone, I was not safe.

"I have a class to get to, but I can invite the rest of the guys to hang out tonight," Jungkook offered, bringing his attention to me. "Are you up for that?"

"Yeah, just let me know the details later." If being around the rest of them would help me figure out The Hood's identity, I was more than determined to do so.

Though I still felt uneasy about some of the ways Jungkook and Hoseok behaved, my gut led me to trust them. I wasn't happy about all the things they still veiled from me, but if it was for my own good as they claimed, I would wait a while longer.

Not like I have much of a choice anyway.

"Want me to walk you to your next class?" Jungkook asked as he picked up his denim jacket from the floor and slipped his arms through it.

"It's okay, I have a break before my next period," I told him, sensing Hoseok's eyes on me.

Jungkook nodded, biting his lip while he observed the two of us. He shrugged his backpack over his shoulder. "See you later tonight then," he said with a far too conspicuous wink.

Hoseok let out a quiet scoff as we watched him leave the room. As soon as he was out of sight, I turned to find Hoseok already awaiting my gaze.

"How much of me do you remember?" he asked hesitantly like he was afraid to hear my answer.

"All I've seen is us in a studio. I was dancing and I could see you in the mirror watching me," I said, picturing his red mask being replaced by the black bandana. Both were intentional in hiding everything below his eyes, and I felt a dull ache in my chest at the thought of how long he'd been hiding a part of himself.

Hoseok's fingers twitched as they had earlier, and I realized he wasn't wearing his gloves, but he spoke before I could question him about it.

"There's so much I want to tell you after you get it all back," he whispered.

My breath strayed away, his tone too gentle to leave me unaffected. So much longing, such emotion was buried beneath his words, and it only brought out a deep longing in me, too.

"Do you mind if I try something?" I asked as an idea came to me. Nerves ran through me and my heart grew more aware, beating with excitement.

His head moved slightly to the side while he tried to read me. He seemed to come up with nothing, yet he still said, "I don't mind, Sunshine."

My feet were light as they hesitantly, slowly carried me near to him. His brows drew together softly, his yellow irises like liquid gold as they watched my every step. He made not a single sound nor a single move as I stopped only a breath apart from him. Dropping my gaze from his, my hands carefully slid around his waist as I took a final step closer and rested my head on his chest, our torsos melding together.

The reaction his body had to mine was instant and unexpected. A gasp left his mouth from above me. Beneath my touch, his muscles tensed. His heart began to race, the beating clear to my ear that was pressed against his chest. It took several moments for him to finally move, and when he did, it was only a careful pair of hands that slid around my waist to rest at the middle of my back. It felt almost as if they weren't there, the lightness of his hold like a phantom's touch.

I eagerly awaited some sort of scene to unfold in my mind like it had when Jungkook hugged me, but the harder I wished for it, the more blank my head became. Clinging to his warmth a bit longer, counting each heartbeat, I felt my soul yearning to bind with his. Even without another memory, I was left with clarity that he, like his brother, was someone I loved when I was young.

Pulling away slowly, Hoseok's let go of my waist, but just as I was going to step back, he reached out to catch my hand. Our eyes connected, both wide with surprise from his actions. He was just opening his mouth to speak when a burning heat sparked at the contact of our bare hands. We both retracted quickly, only while I tried to search his reaction, he turned his head to look away.

"Hoseok-"

"I need to go. Let's meet tomorrow for another lesson," he said, then as fast as the spark struck between us, he left.

• • •

A/N: Hi everyone! Let me just say I'm super proud to be getting this out on Monday again, even though it might already be Tuesday for some of you. It's Monday in Cali, alright?

I know it has been a lot of Jungkook and Hoseok lately, but next chapter will finally show more interaction between our rose and the other guys. And what if I told you that soon Hoseok and Jangmi are going to dance... together? ;)

Not too eventful of an update, but I hope it was still enjoyable! Do you prefer the chemistry between Jangmi and Jungkook or Jangmi and Hoseok? And what do you think that spark between them when they touch means?

Thank you, thank you, thank you for returning. I appreciate you so much. Take care of yourselves.

Your grateful author,

Kat ❤

October 19, 2020