==forty-one==

"Okay guys, look here. I said look here. Jimin, stop talking and look here. Taehyung! You keep ogling at your phone like that and I'll make sure you don't even get to touch it for the next three days!"

You barely mustered the courage to take a glance at Sejin, who looked like he was about to explode into a thousand pieces anytime soon trying to get all the boys to listen to him.

"You sound like teacher trying to gather kids before a field trip." snorted Yoongi.

"Yeah well, there isn't much difference. Except that you guys are supposed to be freaking adults, and that I have to make sure one of you doesn't wake up with a face that looks like a dumpling tomorrow after spending the whole night playing video games instead of sleeping!"

"Ouch." Seokjin mumbled behind you.

"Now if I find any one of you still awake after 11, I'm going to stuff all of you into a single suite with me watching over you 24/7."

Almost letting out an ugly snort then and there, it didn't take long for you to figure out how sizeable his threat was at that moment. The comically disgusted looks on the guys' faces said it all.

"You really sound like an elementary school teacher now" Taehyung grumbled, stuffing his phone into his pocket.

"Yeah, that's what gets me my paycheck. You have a problem with that?" Sejin snapped.

Namjoon sighed. "Guys. Let's just... get going, yeah?"

There were a few moments of shuffling before everyone gradually parted ways for the night.

You watched as everyone except Sejin, Hoseok and Seokjin had now disappeared into the elevator, trying to figure out whether you wanted to go back to your room, not exactly pleased with having to be all alone again since Soeun would probably be busy with the other staff members because of the concert.

Hoseok broke your train of thought as he smiled and mumbled a cheery "goodnight", which you returned, before turning to Jin.

"You coming with me?"

You finally looked at your soulmate, who pondered a little before answering "No, I think I'm going to take a little detour."

Blinking for a second, the younger guy's mind seemed to go blank before a sudden look of realisation dawned upon his face.

"Ooh okay then! Have fuuuuun!" He beamed, and you did not miss that sneaky little grin before he marched off to the elevator.

With everyone gone, Sejin now turned to Jin.

"Jin."

"Yeah."

"No video games tonight."

"Yeah."

"Go straight to bed."

"Yeah no. It's barely five minutes past ten!"

The manager sighed. "Then what are you going to do, huh?"

You were trying your best to supress your laughter when Seokjin suddenly pulled a face. "As if I'm gonna tell you."

"Kim Seokjin."

There was no mistaking the sternness in his manager's tone as he refused to leave him without a proper answer.

The young man huffed before answering in a manner less stubborn than before.
"Fine. I'll probably take a walk around or be in my room."

And just like that, Sejin burst into a big smile, probably half-sarcastic, as he patted your soulmate's shoulder. "I can trust you with neither of the two, my friend. Unless..."

His eyes wandered around, finally landing on you. "Unless you take her with you. I need someone to keep a watch."

You were finally being pulled into this very dramatic conversation, and you couldn't help but be a bit nervous.

What if Seokjin wanted to be on his own?
What if he didn't like the idea of you tagging along?

Your train of thoughts didn't make it further than that, as he caught hold of your hand.

"Yeah, I was going to, anyway. Now, if you would allow us."

Struggling to maintain your calm demeanor, you tried your best to ignore the rapid thumps of your heart and the mild surprise that came with his actions.

But Sejin shook his head again. "Nope. I need to make sure she's on my side for now!"

You found yourself laughing despite all the nerves. "Don't worry. I'll make sure he doesn't stray away and gets back to his room before 11."

He finally let out a loose breath of relief, loosening up his shoulders. " Well, then. I trust you on that. Goodnight."

After you and Seokjin wished him the same, he hopped into the elevator, leaving you standing there, rather awkwardly, with each other.

"Uh, do you maybe... wanna go take a look at the terrace?"

"Are we even allowed to go there?" You asked, blinking stupidly.

"You think they'll say no to this ?" You looked up, only to find him proudly pointing at his own face. Of course.

Before you could comment on his vanity, he was cheerfully dragging you along with him towards the emergency staircase, one hand firmly gripping your wrist.

-

"That's at least five floors, Seokjin. There's no way you want to do this?"

Said man just smiled, clearly not wanting to stick to his decision of sneaking to the terrace.

"Well, it's a good amount of exercise isn't it? Could use this to digest all those sandwiches."

You huffed. "Let's just hope climbing a dozen flights of stairs is going to be worth it."

Without receiving as much as a word in response, you simply let him guide you through the heavy metal doors and onto what seemed like an endless maze of stairs. Mild fatigue kicked in as you and your soulmate conquered one flight of stairs after the other, your body starting to feel lethargic after the delectable meal you just had.

After what felt like almost an hour of cardio, you managed to pull yourself up the last couple of steps to reach another metal door, the one which would now open to reveal the terrace.
Your legs were starting to feel like jelly, and you struggled to not gasp for breath like a dog after a random street chase, lest you should appear totally unathletic to your partner, who presumably spent hours in the gym every day.

Yet, the sound of panting echoed through the empty staircases, and you turned to your right to find Seokjin bent over, one hand clutching his knee as he tried to catch his breath. His other hand was still firmly clasped to yours.

"This.. is what I get for skipping daily workouts. I feel like a sloth." He managed to speak, still pausing in between his words to normalize his breathing.
Again, a blithe smile crept across his face as he stood up straight and grabbed the door handle.

"Anyway, I still get to show you this."

You felt the anticipation building up in you as the lock clicked, feeling eager to know what was it that this man was so excited to reveal to you.

The door opened to reveal a typical, bland terrace area, kept only for the purpose of carrying out maintenance and repair operations.
But you soon caught sight of the clear night sky, dotted with starts that sparkled from even light years away.

A fascinated sigh escaped your lips as you stared at the sky, while your feet moved on their own. Any signs of tiredness and exhaustion were slowly fading away as the chilly night breeze whistled past the two of you.

"This is beautiful." You remarked, once you had gathered the willpower to peel your eyes away from the little abstract constellations floating above.

"The sky in LA feels different, doesn't it? I always find myself comparing it to the one back home." Jin commented as he trudged ahead, towards the parapet.

He only turned around to face you for a moment, motioning for you to join him with a tilt of his head. Eventually, you followed him, occasionally glancing up at the stellar night sky on your way.

"What I really want you to see, though," he continued, placing his hands on the steel railing lining the concrete wall, "isn't the sky."

You threw a inquisitive look at him, and he only laughed, goin back to peeping over the wall.

Stopping beside him, you followed his gaze, only to lay eyes on the most awe-inspiring view.

---

A/N: Guess who's back after a millennium with an update nobody expected or maybe even needed. Hellooo to all the precious souls who are reading this! (though I really think people will have forgotten half of the story by now T^T)

(Warning: Extremely long a/n ahead)

College was one hell of an endeavor omg and I'm so glad it's over for now, and here I am, clinging to Wattpad again instead of searching for a job or preparing for an MBA because I am struggling to move on from this little fanfiction that I published two years ago :)

After seeing all those notifications with people adding Bonded to reading lists titled "unfinished stories", I was really starting to feel like I should scrap the draft for this chapter and just put the story on hold. But I kept coming back every now and then to add a few words of my rusty imagination to this chapter whenever I needed a break from things, And after over a year of struggling to find the energy to write continuously, I finally managed to finish this one today woohoo!

I don't know if I'll be able to publish another update anytime soon, or whether I'll give up on this story altogether (which I don't think I'll be able to because I had so many things I wanted to do with this one), but this update is for all those who have stuck with me through my MIA phase and also all the new readers who have stopped by give this exhibit of my rusty writing skills a chance lol. You guys have lifted up my spirits from time to time with your votes, comments and messages and I'm so grateful for that.

I love you all very much, and I hope you are okay and happy wherever you are (and streaming D-Day) ♡

Until then, let's hope we get to see these two dumb people smooch on that terrace some time with the LA skyline at the back huhu ;)