Warning: they lose their parents in this chapter :(

Honestly, I struggled so much with this chapter, I hope it serves its purpose well because I would continually rewrite it if I didn't settle with one version, I hope you guys enjoy it even though it's not a happy time.

Edited
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Namjoon, Jungkook and I are cuddled together on the couch of their living room when my brother's phone suddenly rings and startles us out of a daze, his ringtone set louder to avoid missing anything from mom and dad.

We had enough time to go grocery shopping after the both of them were done cleaning up their place. We had time to start cooking a slow dinner, time to put it in the reheat drawer of the oven so it wouldn't go cold, and then eat the food because it was getting late, yet still no sign of life from either of them.

It's not like them to keep us in the dark and it's been taking me everything to avoid panicking, to not give free reigns to my anxiety, which would be more than able to blow this out of proportions.

My mind continually screams at me the most horrible things and I'm powerless to stop it from getting louder with every hour. Their plane crashed on the way, they got in an accident on the way here, or worse. What could be worse? I don't want to think about it.

They're fine. They'll be here soon. They'll apologize for being late, and everything will be well. Jungkook will get mad at them, but he'll still make them a warm tea with their favourite tea cookies, a soft blanket over their legs because it's chilly in here. Namjoon's a furnace, always so hot.

Namjoon and I hold our breath as Jungkook hurries and stretches a hand towards the coffee table to grab his device. We can see the desperation in his form, feel it, as he turns his phone around to see who's calling.

Namjoon pauses the tv show we were watching to give him a chance to hear whoever called, and we observe silently as my twin accepts the call with a frown, the number shown on the screen not one we recognize.

Five hours, we have waited for a sign of life, and for five hours, we have received nothing.

They had to take the plane to reach our city, otherwise using a car would've taken too much time. The possibility of it being late is there. They rented a car at the airport, so it's also possible that there was a mistake and they needed to get that taken care of first.

Those are points that Namjoon brought forward for our peace of mind. They probably forgot to charge their phones, they're always so confused when it comes to technology, so that could totally be it.

We've spent the last five hours trying to convince ourselves that they're fine, that they're simply late, but there's always that nagging worry at the back of your mind in such a situation, the what ifs eternal and invading.

What if they aren't fine? What if something happened and we simply don't know about it yet?

Jungkook stands up abruptly and makes a few steps away from the couch, his posture hardening and his legs flexing.

I feel the shift in the air as if a blanket that slides over my skin slowly. Panic, worry, fear. It makes me feel uneasy, my anxiety being fed with each intakes of air when I notice the wobbling to his bottom lip while the rest of his face remains impassive. What's wrong?

"Are you sure? You're not mistaken? T-they- maybe you got the wrong people, it's possible, right?" he asks with a trembling voice, a voice that I've never heard on him before.

He turns to look at me with sorrow stamped all over his face, and I feel my body freeze cold. He looks like he needs an anchor, no matter what kind, just something to keep him from falling into a dark endless pit.

I reach Jungkook's side before Namjoon can even blink, and I hug him as tightly as I can. I don't need to know why, to know that right now, he needs this from me.

He holds onto me with one arm, he's holding onto me for dear life, his erratic heartbeat underneath my ear forcing mine to pick up the pace, I've never seen Jungkook in this state before, never.

The next second that follows happens with Namjoon joining us, a strong pillar for the both of us as he wraps his arms around our duo. It feels like time has stopped for a long second, and then everything comes crashing down when being so close allows us to hear what is being said from Jungkook's phone.

'I'm afraid this is no mistake, Mr. Jeon. We had a look at their IDs and upon searching in the database for any family, we found your number as well as their daughter's. You might want to take your sister with you to come see them as soon as possible, Mr. Jeon, we're unsure of how long they have left... they won't make it through the night. I'm sorry'.

My knees buckle under my weight at the words uttered and Jungkook squeezes his arm around me tighter, to keep me from falling to the floor and to steady himself, while his own body demands that Namjoon supports him. At this point, we're still standing only thanks to the giant man.

This isn't about who I think this is about, right?

"Who- who was that, Jungkook? Who were they talking about?" I ask in a whisper, my brain knows the answer but my heart refuses to believe it, I must have misheard everything, my ears heard wrong, that's all.

He ends the call and drops his phone to the floor before hugging me with all of his strength, both arms wound around my body like letting go would mean losing me forever. His body trembles heavily and I shake my head.

No, it can't be true, this isn't happening.

"Mom and dad are at the hospital, bubs, they had a big car accident on the way. The doctors tried to save them but... their wounds are fatal, they can only give us enough time to head over to say goodbye" Jungkook explains shakily, a massive lump stuck in his throat as he tries to keep a clear mind.

I start crying while continually shaking my head. No, this is just a nightmare, this is a very bad dream and I want to wake up right now, it's not funny.

"We have to go now before it's too late, okay? Come here bubs" he murmurs, a hand to the back of my head as he presses a strong kiss to my temple when my tears quickly morph into wailing, this can't be real.

This was our worst nightmare, to lose our parents to an accident of the kind, that we would one day wait for hours and hours only to learn that they'll never make it to us.

It was especially our worst nightmare to be the cause of their death, yet here we are. But it can't be real, right? This is all a lie. A nightmare, and we're going to wake up soon. Right?

They can't be dying. They were supposed to get here, we were supposed to have a fun day tomorrow, we were supposed to have a family reunion and make new memories together. We wanted to show them our home, our beautiful town, our shop, so what is this?

"Come, let's go" Jungkook repeats softly before pulling me with him to the entrance, and from there, I can only follow like a puppet as Namjoon takes charge of the situation when the strong facade that Jungkook tries to keep up wavers one too many times.

Everything feels like a dream, as if I'm watching from a distance as things unfold around me. Namjoon says things that echo so much in my head they can only form waves of sounds, their touch on my skin the only thing keeping me from crumbling down.

Namjoon takes the wheel while Jungkook sits at the back of the car with me, his arms always around me as he pushes my head to his shoulder while we get on the road for a reason that feels unreal, this has got to be a joke, a very bad prank.

I take a look at the time to see that it's ten and a half, which hospital are we going to?

"Can you go faster, Joon? That hospital is an hour away from here, we won't-" he swallows a sob before pushing the words out with difficulty, "we won't make it in time otherwise".

His soulmate looks at us through the rear-view mirror and nods his head before going faster as demanded, the air in the vehicle thick and hard to breathe in. My heart breaks some more with each thump it makes within my chest, what sight will greet us once we make it there?

The silence is only disrupted by my quiet sobs as the two of them remain calm in appearance, but I know better than to believe such a facade that is only meant to appear strong when from within, Jungkook is hurting as much as I am while Namjoon hurts for us both.

We make it to the hospital under an hour.

Forty-four minutes and eleven seconds to be precise, I counted myself, I couldn't stop looking at the time.

It takes three minutes to find a spot in the parking lot and two to make it within the gigantic building, one to finally reach the counter, then two for them to find the room and give us the directives.

Two minutes to wait for the damn elevator, one to reach the right floor, then five minutes of running through the corridors until we ask someone for the door to our parents' room, and then one minute before we finally reach the closed door that opens to their wounded bodies.

A doctor inside who appears to have been waiting for us says something, but Jungkook and I can't look away from our parents' unconscious bodies, so Namjoon listens in our stead before thanking the man who leaves the room to give us space with a sincere apology.

"They... they're currently in a sort of coma, it could be due to the shock from the accident. The doctor said it's unlikely, but they might be able to hear you so... if you have anything to say... now's the time" Namjoon explains softly with a hand on our shoulders each with a squeeze, he doesn't get an answer but he doesn't expect one.

A coma? So we can't even hear their voice one last time before they go? We get nothing at all, no squeeze of the hand, no kiss on the cheek, no weak smile followed by an I love you? We only get this horrible silence?

To see mom and dad covered with these bloodied bandages, face swollen and a million painful-looking cuts that decorate their skin, bruises that look like someone painted them on exaggeratedly, I can only stare in confusion.

It doesn't seem real, none of this feels real.

I make a shaky step forward, then another, and another, all the way until I stand between their respective beds, and I gaze at them, take in the wounds that look even worse from up close. They don't look fake, fake wounds don't swell like this.

I raise a hand and cup mom's cheek, then dad's, so cold, they're so cold, and as realization starts to settle within me, that we're really about to lose them, it feels like my world crumbles in thousands of pieces.

"Mom? Dad?" I murmur, this weak hope within me that they might open their eyes to stare at me flickering to life for a brief moment, but when Jungkook hugs me from behind, when his tears soak my shirt, the contrast of his warmth to their coldness is unmistakable.

I caress their cheeks again, disbelief warring with reality.

Dad trimmed his beard. It used to be so long, he loved his silly beard, but I'd jokingly told him to take care of it before coming over a few days ago, that he would scare the animals otherwise. He had laughed and agreed, our mom had apparently told him the same thing that morning.

As for mom, she who always tried to look her best, makeup, clothes, hair, nails, jewelry, she went for a natural look today because she knew that Jungkook and I both find her the most beautiful when she's not trying to overdo it.

Why is it that even in such a state, I can't help but find them so beautiful? They are and it breaks my heart, because wasn't tonight supposed to have those faces showing smiles? Do we not get to see their smiles again anymore?

I move a hand to my mouth as I slide to the floor with a whimper and my twin follows, his sobs shaking through his body and right into mine as we cry out our pain together.

We cry, because what we're seeing are lifeless corpses, unresponsive bodies. Such a deep silence coming from such loud people. It's unnatural, it's not right, this isn't them. Our parents are always so joyful, full of laughter and smiles, their selves expressive and cuddly, warm and kind.

Our parents are full of life, yet it got sucked right out of them without any warning.

Namjoon stays at the back of the room with a hand over his face to quieten his cries, he's known us for three years and never, never has he ever seen us in this state before. It breaks him, it makes him feel powerless, weak.

He had met our parents once before and understood instantly where our joy of living had come from.

They had accepted him in a heartbeat, they treated him like family. Namjoon had never felt as accepted as he had at that moment and it had warmed his heart, him who had been rejected by his family many years ago.

He had met them only once, but they left a mark on his soul, a mark in the shape of a heart, so he can't even imagine how painful it must be for us. He can see it, he can hear it, yet he knows that it's nothing compared to what we're truly feeling.

Because Jungkook and I feel deeply, our love rising to heavens that no one has ever heard of for the people whom we care about, for the people whom we have accepted into our heart. We don't love a little, we love until there's not an inch of free space in our soul anymore, every ounce of who we are meant for the people dear to us.

Losing our parents... it's shrinking all that love into a tight ball that then threatens to burst at any moments, a ball of love that, when it explodes, will give birth to a whole new universe that will have so much more to give, but it hurts, it hurts so badly.

Jungkook wipes his face after what feels like an eternity, he takes in a deep breath to try and pull himself together before pulling me up with him, and then he pushes the two beds together before moving dad to mom's bed so they can be together until their last breath.

I help him as much as I'm able to, but every so often, I can't help but fall into another fit of tears. They did everything together, they were inseparable, but why do they have to die together on top of everything?

Namjoon keeps staring from where he is because he knows us enough to know that this is between Jungkook and I.

All our plans of caring for our parents once they would lose of their independence, this is us doing it right now. This is our last chance to show them how grateful we are for all that they did for us, our last chance at giving back at least some of the love they always showered us with.

Jungkook kisses their cheeks one at a time, he takes their hands before kissing their knuckles and then intertwines their fingers together, the exact same way they've always held hands, just like roots merging together.

They were trees that grew next to each other all their life, trees that felt everything as one, their love for each other, their love for us, their love for life, they inspired us in so many ways.

Jungkook and I stare at their hugging forms in silence for many long minutes, the both of us holding onto the other with a tight grip, because we know, tonight is the last time we see them with a heart still beating.

And when midnight ticks, they draw their last breath at the same time, and the tight ball of love that kept contracting more and more within our soul shatters, and it takes everything with it.

Two men receive all of it right in the heart.

Their POV

At first, it's a weird sensation.

Like a flower that starts blooming, it's a sensation of a dimmed feeling that grows stronger and stronger until it fills all of their soul. Then, it's like a bomb that implodes from within, and they lose all strength to keep standing.

Jin crashes to the ground first and Yoongi second, their eyes meeting from across the room with panic because they don't understand what is going on. They've never had anything like this happen before, nothing so strong.

But then they hear it, the wail of lamentation, the cries, the sobs, just... pure pain.

It fills their mind, their heart, their soul, all of them, every inches resonating with that voice that pulls at their heartstrings with force and agony. It's a pull that begs for them, that hurts them, that makes them want to cry, and then it makes sense.

Jin swallows a whimper when he understands that it's their missing one, the relief that he should've felt nowhere near the surface when all he can hear is such pain, the feelings that fill his soul unlike anything he has ever felt before.

Something is wrong, terribly wrong.

Yoongi tries to force himself to sit up, but his body feels so heavy that he knows he won't be able to do anything until it ends. Weakly, he pushes himself towards Seokjin, his need to be with a soulmate stronger than the weakness that is currently overwhelming him.

It feels as if someone is stepping over his body again and again to keep him from reaching the other man and it terrifies him, the heavy sobbing that echoes in his head making him want to break into a run to join their youngest soulmate, yet he can't find the strength to move at all and it's the worst feeling he has ever experienced in all of his life.

Yoongi finally reaches his soulmate, and they immediately join hands, fingers and knuckles turning white from how tight their hold is. They are stunned and taken aback by the suddenness of the events, understandably so.

"You're hearing this too, Yoongi? I'm not the only one hearing this, am I?" the eldest asks with a shaky voice, tears already running down his cheeks. His soul has gone from one pain to the other, he never expected to be welcomed into their last soulmate's life this way.

"I can hear it too, hyung... Can you hear us, sweetheart? Can you hear our voice?" Yoongi asks with a lump in his throat, the feelings that are swarming him so intense that he can barely handle it, is there anything they can do to help their soulmate?

The sobbing abruptly ends to give place to unsteady breathing and they hear a soft voice fill their soul. They would melt from the sound alone if they weren't feeling all of the pain currently sent to them through the soul bond.

'Are you... are you my soulmates?" the trembling voice asks them. They both nod desperately, yes, yes of course they are.

"We are, baby, oh we have waited for so long. What's wrong, baby? Please talk to us, are you hurt? What's going on? Is there anything we can do for you right now?" Seokjin asks urgently, his voice stating that he would do the impossible if only their soulmate asked it of them.

They're answered with a long, heavy silence before the voice returns with a sad muffled sob that splits Yoongi's soul in half.

'Mom and dad... they're dead, we just lost them, they're gone'.

"Oh sweetheart" Yoongi gasps with teary eyes, what kind of sick game is fate playing on them?

'They were supposed to spend the weekend with us but...' there's a pause before the voice resumes with a sniffle, 'we waited for hours, and now they're gone. We'll never hear them laugh ever again'.

There is such a sadness that emanates from the voice that Seokjin and Yoongi would physically fight death in person if they could. Their soulmate is currently processing grief and the distance has never been as much an enemy as it is now.

"Oh sweetheart, I'm so sorry, so sorry" Yoongi murmurs. "You're not alone, are you?"

He wants to drop everything he was doing and take the first plane to wherever it is they have to go now, but they can't until they manage to get more information and right now doesn't appear to be a time for that.

'I'm not alone... Jungkook, he's... he's my brother. Namjoon is here too'.

Yoongi nods in slight relief while Seokjin's hands rub over his face and hair in agitation. They can't believe that their baby is suffering like this and they can't do anything about it.

"You're not alone, that's good... I'm really sorry about your loss, baby, truly sorry" Seokjin whispers after sighing deeply, and they hear a weak hum in response before silence takes over again, it must be so much to handle in one night.

The voice breathes in and out deeply and they feel the merged emotions within them try to find clarity, but it's like a bucket filled with paints of different colours that have all started to mix into one another, what sense can you make out of such a mess when you can barely differentiate the colours anymore?

'I'm really sorry that this is how the Soul voice experience had to happen, I... gosh, I was so excited about it but I'm such a mess right now' they hear next and their souls twist at the words uttered, how can their soulmate even apologize for being in pain?

"Don't you worry about it, baby, the soul bond just connected so that must means it's the middle of the night for, isn't it? How about you try and get some rest? Stay with your brother and be there for each other, we'll talk later in the morning, how's that?" Seokjin offers with a concerned frown, he doesn't want to stop talking but he can't be selfish, he finds their soulmate pretty good for even holding a conversation with them right now.

'Yeah... Namjoon said we should get back home for now and take the time to process this tomorrow when we have a rested mind. He's probably going to stay up all night to watch over us though, that's just how he is'.

"Okay, you do that, Seokjin and I will be right here if you need anything so don't be afraid to reach out, okay? That's what this bond is for after all, it's there to connect us" Yoongi makes sure to remind their soulmate, and they get a small 'okay' in response.

'Thank you for talking with me even though I'm in this state... I'll... I'll try to get my wits together tomorrow, I just feel so empty right now, it was a huge shock and I'm not sure how to feel at the moment'.

Goodness... a shock, they say? It's a crumbling-world event. Yoongi and Seokjin can't even imagine going through the same thing with a composed mind, they would be bawling their eyes out for hours.

"Take your time, we'll be waiting. Just like Yoongi said, we're right here if you need anything" Seokjin repeats his soulmate's words and from there, the bond dims until their soul clears of all emotions that weren't theirs to leave them feeling just as empty as their baby.

They remain sat on the floor for what feels like an eternity, hands still holding onto one another as they try to process. They won't get to sleep until they hear their voice again, they both know that, there will be no rest for both groups this night.

Seokjin and Yoongi look down at their marks, despite the sight greeting their eyes, the third dot no longer black but purple, they can't feel joy. Not when the price of their bond finally connecting had to be their soulmate's parents.

What a terrible price to pay for forcing fate's hand.