"Namjoon, Jungkook, good morning!" I say when I turn around. Their eyes sparkle as they take me in, see that I'm well and healthy. "Good morning, Y/N. Shall we go? The others are impatient to see you too" Namjoon says and I nod. We start walking next to each other, me in the middle. It's quiet, but it doesn't feel bad.

I turn to look at Jungkook and see him already staring at me. He doesn't shy away from my eyes, instead, he just gives me a bigger bunny smile and his doe eyes make my heart skip a beat. "Did you sleep well? You look tired?" Namjoon suddenly asks and I mumble, trying to find an answer.

"Mmm... I can't say I slept well, but it wasn't as bad as I thought, so I guess that's good?"

Jungkook hits Namjoon's arm from behind me and he gives me an apologetic gaze. "I shouldn't have asked, I'm sorry". I shake my head with a smile. "Hoseok kept me company this morning, he talked for hours, it made me energized and happy". They both beam at hearing their soulmate's name and I can't help but wish I could feel the bond for a moment. It must be so great, to share love and happiness with each other. Of course, you also share the bad, I couldn't do that to them.

Jungkook then points to my camera. "Are you going to take pictures today?" I look down to see it dangling from my neck. "I'd rather bring it with me than miss a picture that could only happen once". He nods with understanding. "Taehyung loves taking pictures too, you guys could have fun taking doing this together". I look at him, surprised. "He's really good too" he adds with a grin.

The walk is actually quite short, we quickly arrive in front of an apartment and Jungkook hurries to open the door, allowing me to walk inside first. A little intimidated, I take quiet steps inside, peeking into the empty room. I can hear noise from further away. I breathe a little, happy to not be overwhelmed too fast.

"Don't worry, I asked them to not jump on you as soon as we arrive. They already know we're here" Namjoon says and I give him thankful eyes. He really is considerate. I take off my shoes, placing them neatly by the others and we step into the living room. They ask me to sit down on the couch while they go see what the others are up to. Namjoon looks back at me. "Do you want something to drink? I can ask someone to make you a hot chocolate?" I nod, grateful for the offer.

They both leave the room and I'm left alone. I take that time to look around, walking closer to a wall that shows many pictures. Some pictures taken alone and many group pictures, showing how there's always one more person in the next one. They all exude so much happiness, my soul starts begging for me to feel them, bring them to life. Hands brushing against the one that helped me yesterday night, I can still remember Jin's vivid wish of finally being a complete group of bonded soulmates.

"They're nice pictures right?" I hear a voice say from behind me and I turn around to see Yoongi holding a cup. I smile at him and turn to the pictures again. "They are. They make my soul long to know more about these moments". He chuckles and hands me the cup. "Namjoon said you wanted a hot chocolate so I made it, I hope you like it. And I'm sure the others wouldn't mind you feeling the pictures, they are all wonderful memories". He shows me a set of shelves on which more framed pictures are standing. I get closer, curious while taking a sip, humming at the delicious taste.

"These are the pictures you took of us. It's quickly becoming the favorite wall of the house" he says, voice soft and I receive such a big wave of love. I look behind me to see Jin coming closer, footsteps quiet and slow, like he's trying to not scare a deer. He gives me a big warm smile and looks at the wall behind me. "It's fascinating to see them move. Does it look like that at your home? Moving pictures everywhere? Maybe even a whole wall?" I laugh. Now that would be interesting. "I actually have pretty empty walls, now that I think about it". Yoongi and Jin look at me with disbelief.

I shrug at the sight and look at my hands. "I didn't really have anything I wanted to see on a daily basis. They're all engraved in my memory anyway. For those I felt, that is".

Hoseok joins us, followed by Taehyung and Jimin. I give them a big smile, their shining eyes on me making me blush a little. The attention is getting a little too intense. "Let's eat, guys! Don't overwhelm Y/N!" Namjoon shouts from what I guess is the kitchen and Taehyung gets as close to me as is possible without physical contact, Jimin on my other side doing the very same.

"We're not overwhelming her, it's called... loving!" Taehyung shouts back and then grins at me, his boxy smile giving life to butterflies in my stomach. Jimin's smooth laugh rings in my ears and I follow them as they guide me through the house. We stop in front of a table filled with different kinds of food and the next question has everyone thinking very hard. Who sits where.

Luckily, it's a round table, so everyone gets to see everyone, but the problem right now is mostly, who gets to sit next to me. So it's with games of rock paper scissor that Hoseok and Yoongi end up sitting by my sides. Pouty faces sit on the remaining seats and soon the table has faces surrounding it. It's quite a sight really.

"I hope you like the food, Y/N" Jin says from in front of me and I give him my brightest smile. Even if the food was disgusting, I would still be delighted because they thought of me while making it. We start filling our plates and everyone fights to give me some of their favorites. I giggle, seeing my plate fill too quickly. "G-guys, I can't eat everything" I stutter and Yoongi's shoulders shake silently. Hoseok gets closer and moves his fingers like he's doing a magic trick. "It's fine, you have seven men around you. The food won't last for long".

We dig in and the food is exceptional. With each bite, I can feel the love that was put into making it, literally. I look up to Jin who's staring at me with a knowing look. "Can you do that?" I ask, amazed and he chuckles. Taehyung swallows his bite and looks at me. "When we feel down, Jin's food is truly the best". They all nod and Jin's ears start going red. He's so cute!

Like Hoseok said, food disappears quickly and I understand why. I feel so happy, confident, loved, in security. I was feeling like the strongest woman around the area, like nothing could break me.

I look at each of them and smile fondly. Jungkook meets my eyes and gives me a little smile. "What are you thinking?" he asks me and I giggle a little. "I just feel like I've known you all for longer than a few days. Like you've always been a part of my life, I like this feeling". They all beam, huge smiles on their faces. Jungkook and Jimin giggle like little kids and Namjoon chuckles. "I'm glad you think so, Y/N".

I help clean the table, ignoring Jin's pleas that I go to the living room and I take the plates to the sink where Taehyung happily cleans everything. While Jin cleans the table, I clean the counter, which isn't really that messy. When I arrive to where they cut the fruits, there's some strawberry juice over the cutting board. It triggers one of the memories from the tortures and I fall to my knees with a loud grunt.

"Y/N?! What's wrong?"

I hear many feet run towards me and  a hand starts stroking my back gently. Pain bursts through my body in waves and I try to fight the images that seep into my mind.

"Deep breaths, we're here, you're with us, you're alright" I can hear Namjoon's deep voice trying to calm me, keep me grounded. I force air into my lungs, taking steady breaths. "Concentrate on my voice" he keeps talking and I feel my heart calming down. My head hurts immensely from fighting the memories and I let it fall on the cold floor.

"Jungkook, can you try to help without touching her skin?" Jin asks and he nods. I feel a second hand on my back and I hear a wince. Before I can move away to spare him from the pain, it starts fading. My tightened eyes relax and I feel my shoulders fall from relief. "How are you feeling?" Jungkook asks in a small voice. 

Not daring to open my eyes just yet, I nod. "I feel better, thank you and sorry". "It's fine". I sit up, back against the cabinets and I open my eyes slowly. I look at all of them, worry evident in their eyes, mouths in a fine line, eyebrows furrowed. "What happened, Y/N?" Yoongi asks and I set my eyes on him, see the questions floating behind his eyes. I snicker. "It's actually really dumb. The strawberry juice triggered... some bad memories". Worry gives place to confusion and they look at each other. Jimin's eyes widen and he stands up.

"I forgot to clean the counter after cutting them because I was so excited to see you... I'm so sorry, Y/N" he apologizes in a sad voice. I shake my head and smile at him. "You couldn't know, it's fine. It also took me by surprise. I wish you all didn't have to see me like this, but I guess it was only a matter of time, really".

"Is there anything we should be aware of? To avoid this kind of situation" Namjoon asks and I try to stand up, many hands ready to support me should I lose my balance. "For now, anything that looks like blood. I think that would be a good start". They just nod, but I know the bond is flowing with confusion and worry. This is exactly what I wanted to avoid the most by pushing away the bonding.

"Let's sit in the living room" I say and they lead the way, Jimin and Hoseok staying by my side just in case. They sit next to me and the others set down on single chairs and the other couch. "First of all, I want to say sorry for how I left yesterday. It truly was urgent and out of my control, you must have been really worried. I also want to thank you for the picture, it really helped me a lot. I could feel Jin's sincerity and love for everyone, even for me, it warmed my heart".

I hear sniffles and see Jin's cheeks soaked with tears. Worried, I glance at Hoseok but he smiles at me while shaking his head. He's fine. I sigh with relief. I then continue, feeling everyone's eyes on me. "I... I think you all deserve to know. As my soulmates, this is something that will occur a lot and I don't want you to stay in the dark about this, but you have to promise me to not say a word about this to anyone. No research on the internet, nothing. It's a secret organization, they don't want people to know about them. I haven't known you for long, but I know I can trust you all"

I see Jimin's hand about to wrap around mine before pulling back. I smile sadly. It must be hard for them too. "You don't have to, Y/N, please don't feel forced to tell us everything" Hoseok says next to me and I hesitate for a moment. Do I really want to tell them everything? Do I want them to know the suffering I have to deal with? Do I want them to suffer from knowing?

But I had made my mind already. I shook my head. "I think it's only fair. I want you all to know what you're getting yourselves into with me as your soulmate. You can then choose if you'd rather keep me out of your lives". I hear shocked gasps, but their eyes grow serious.

"Y/N, please know that no matter what comes with you, we don't mind. We want you and we'll do everything in our power to help and support you. Don't ever think that we would refuse you in our lives, ever" Taehyung murmurs and I can feel the truth in his words for everyone in the room.

I take in a slow breath and exhale. "I was recruited by the Memory Initiative, an organization that is after people with my ability when I was young. As soon as my ability triggered, they were on the hunt for me. They investigate crimes and need my ability to get to the bottom of them. We're useful for them, because we can feel the pictures of the scenes. I don't know about the others, but I know I can go far into the subject's memory, past, knowledge. That way, I can see faces, hear names, find out where it happened, where they were going, family, jobs. Anything that can help the case"

I take a pause to gather my thoughts. The guys are silent, like they're holding their breaths. Jimin puts a hand on my back and I feel love and trust seep into my body. I feel proud of my choice to tell them and I realize it's Jimin trying to encourage me. He's himself feeling proud that I'm opening up to them like that and wants me to know. I give him a teary eyed smile to which he responds with one of his own, mirroring mine. 

"They... as much as I want to help, these memories are everything except nice ones. I have to go through the murders, whatever happened, myself. I have to feel everything they felt, the pain, the fear, the despair. It puts quite a toll on your body and mind after a while. I can't leave until I've given them a satisfying amount of information. I..."

I can't possibly tell them I've almost died multiple times. As I talk about it, I can hear how heavy this conversation is as my voice starts shaking. I realize that as my way of coping, I usually try to act like this isn't my reality, that it's not that bad. But the further I walk in life, the deeper I seem to fall.

"You don't have to keep going, Y/N" Jin whispers in a shaky breath and I look up from my hands. Everyone seems on the verge of sobbing. This is definitely not what we all had in mind when I came to eat breakfast.

"I guess I should leave it at that for now. What I wanted to say with this is that it will happen again. When they call me, no matter where I am, what I'm doing, I have to go. And it's very important that I don't stay alone when this is over... it's... let's not get into that either, I just wanted you to know".

The bond must hurt right now because I see them cuddle, Taehyung going to sit on Yoongi's lap, asking for hugs, Jungkook cuddling with Jin and Namjoon. Hoseok and Jimin by my sides, as close to me as possible.

"Is that why you don't want to bond too fast? Because you don't want us to feel your pain?" Hoseok asks and I nod. "You'd have to deal with my fear too, my struggles, I can't do that to you". Hoseok opens his mouth to say something but Jimin is faster. "That's the beauty of a soulmate's bond, Y/N. Not to feel your pain, but to give you comfort. To give you love, warmth, protection. To make you feel that you're not alone, that you have us, no matter where you are".

I feel tears fall down my cheeks. Could I be so selfish? "It's not selfish, Y/N. It's not selfish to want to be part of a loving bond, to feel safe with your soulmates. You deserve to be loved and now that we know what you have to go through, there's even more to give. When you're in pain, lost, sad, confused, we want to be there, to pick you up in our embrace and kiss away your worries" Yoongi then speaks up and I sob.

Such wonderful soulmates. I really got lucky with them.

"Then... can I bond with you?" I finally whisper.

"Of course".