By the time Seokjin arrives to escort me to the ballroom, Namjoon in tow, Kyungmin is positively glowing.

"You look like a real princess, " she gasps, clearly pleased with her efforts.

She spins the chair around, bringing me face to face with my own reflection. She's applied something shimmery to my face, something that makes my skin nearly glow with an inner light. My eyelids she has only dusted with the faintest of blues, with subtle eyeliner to match.

I can't help but gush over the way my lips look, innocently pinkened, but only in the center. It seems she gradually blended the lipstick out from there. She's even highlighted my high cheekbones, which are only amplified by the fact that my hair is pulled entirely into an elegant updo.

I honestly don't even recognize myself.

Kyungmin assures the boys that I am almost ready, and nearly slams the door in their face. I can actually hear Namjoon as he shuffles about in boredom on the other side.

She helps me slip into my dress, and then into a pair of dark, cornflower hued pumps. Butterflies erupt in my stomach, but I'm at least grateful that the heels are actually relatively comfortable.

She clasps a pair of intricate pearl earrings to each lobe gently, and then pushes me away slightly to gush.

"You are so beautiful!" She exclaims. "Oh, I am just so proud right now, I could cry!"

She fans at her face, apparently fighting the urge to do just that.

She scurries to the door, opening it with an adorable revealing flourish.

"Ta-da!" She exclaims brightly.

"Wow Olivia, " Seokjin whistles lowly. "You look like you came straight out of a fairy tale."

He smiles brightly, before adopting a crooked parody of an evil grin.

"Tonight, I am your villain, " Namjoon announces, bowing slightly.

He nearly looses his footing in doing so, and Jin actually cackles even as he helps right the poor man's footing.

They both look incredibly dapper though. I have to admit.

Seokjin had chosen a pale blue, both fabric and cut clearly tailored specifically for him. The color is really quite striking on him, especially given his shiny, ebony hair.

Namjoon, on the other hand, has gone with more of a dark, forest green shade. The color truly makes his darkly brunette hair pop, giving it a bit of a lightning effect. And just like Jin, he appears to have gotten his suit tailor made for this occasion.

Suddenly, I feel an overwhelming amount of panic.

"What if I'm not pretty enough? What if he can't see me the way I see him? What if he brought someone else?"

Jin takes my chin in his hand, smiling reassuringly as he addresses me.

"Tonight might not go the way you want it to, " he admits, "things could go sideways, or events might arise that you are forced to deal with. Just remember, tonight is your fairy tale, and it's your job to close a chapter in your life. One way, or another."

His smile only grows brighter as he continues.

"And I think you'll surprise yourself. I think you can handle it." He confesses softly. "Or I wouldn't push you so."

I take a deep breath, attempting to fill my lungs with confidence. But courage, I suppose, does not work that way, and instead I am left feeling more like a floundering fish than a princess of any sort.

But as Namjoon offers his arm for me to take, I grasp it willingly. And these first few steps, I realize, are the hardest. Filled with anxiety, and riddled with more fear than I've ever felt in my life, I am anything but calm.

However, by the time we have reached the balcony leading down, and into, the ballroom, I find it a little easier to smile, albeit awkwardly.

Time seems to still for a moment, and for what feels like an eternity, I search for Jimin's face amidst the crowd gathered below.

I'm not even sure what to expect, it's been weeks since I even talked to Jiminie.

But then, I spot him, chatting amicably with my father at the foot of the stairs and dressed to the nines. The pale purple he has chosen accentuates his drastically lightened locks, and I feel the breath leave my lungs in one fell swoop.

He turns, and the sparkle in his eyes as he recognizes me leaves me jittery and restless.

He looks infinitely better than he had last time I'd seen him, and yet, there is still a sad sort of hollowness in his eyes, even despite the way they light up at my arrival.  His smile is small, and my heart nearly breaks on the spot.

I ignore everything else.

Namjoon grunts in surprise as I release him, and nearly flee down the stairs on my own.

"The carpet helps, " I think to myself, as I concentrate on trying not to break my neck.

I can't imagine that I look very graceful, or very much like the princess I am supposed to be, but I just don't care.

Jiminie is here.

He came.

And he's been crying again.

I nearly fling my shoes off entirely, but instead, I gather them as gracefully as I can muster while still descending the stairs. By the time I have arrived at the base Jimin too must have become wrapped up in whatever I'm feeling, because he rushes forward to meet me.

And as I wrap my arms around him, dropping the shoes in order to hold him tightly, he does the same. I feel the wetness of tears against my cheek, and realize that Jimin is crying again.

Flashbacks of a lifetime's worth of precious memories are spinning through my head, flitting through and about like falling stars with no rhyme or reason.

I see a tender hearted Jiminie with a skinned knee, but he still carries me back to the main house because we are five, and I have twisted my ankle. He holds it all inside, wanting very much to be brave for me. But later, I'd hugged him as he'd cried, and revealed that he'd been so, so afraid.

I see our years together so crystal clear in this moment, and with perfect clarity I recall all the reasons that Jimin is so special to me.

"I missed you so much, " he confesses, voice soft and emotional. "I thought I was never gonna see you again."

I pull away, or attempt to at any rate, but only manage a short distance before Jimin clutches me all the more tightly, adamantly refusing to let me go.

I want to cry.

I want to comfort him too.

In fact the overwhelming urge to ease his pain is what carried me down the stairs so quickly. But now, as I look around, I notice that people are staring. Seokjin has invited all sorts if people, it seems, and not all of them are friendly faces.

My father for one, is watching with a clearly affectionate eye, but he might be the only one. Appa has adored Jimin, ever since we were in diapers. But his mother is also here, as is, it seems, Appa's new bride. My future sister in law is suspiciously absent, but maybe this is is a blessing.

I am suddenly filled with insecurity. Many of the eyes upon me are strangers, people who only know me from rumors in the tabloids. Even then, it's my mother that they really see, when they look at me.

The reality of the situation is upon me now, and all my doubts start to make themselves louder. Louder than the sudden chatter as people turn back to their own conversations, pretending that they aren't listening even though everyone knows that not a soul in this room isn't dying to know what will happen between Jimin and I.

Louder, even, than the soft sounds of orchestral music, or the serving men and their carts.

It's all I can do to wrench myself free, and grab Jimin by the hand.

I lead him out of the ballroom, and into the gardens. I am dying for some peace and quiet, some space to think. I need to clear my head.

The garden's fresh air helps tremendously, and once I've managed to catch my breath once more, I notice that Jimin is still fiercely holding my hand.