Jimin's P.O.V

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[EARLY OCTOBER, TUESDAY]

Most people would consider a shower just a form of cleansing the body and being able to wash one's hair in the process. But to me, if you really put your mind to it, you can do just about anything in the shower. Actions you wouldn't commit in a public restaurant; like sing off-key to the song you love, or pretend you have magic powers to manipulate water, or even just fantasizing about the things you want to do when you finally get out of the shower. And all of that, was what made the alone time in the shower valuable.

Even if you fantasize constantly when you're out of the shower--  like I did for the entire weekend about Chicago, to the point where I didn't get of any sleep last night, because I wanted to make the ultimate bucket list.

You can still have fun.

And today was the day I was going to get to experience that fun for myself.

The weekend had swept by like a dusty tumbleweed, carrying with it a load of shopping and teaching moments of how to walk through the airport alone without getting turned around. I even found out how to search for global payment options if I wanted to purchase something (which was said very seriously by my halmoni since she feared I would run into a bind with cashiers as I do love to shop for cute things).

Now, I was exiting the shower and getting dressed in my blue knit sweater and ripped jeans in front of my mirror what was docked in my room. I couldn't put a stop to the heart inside my chest that was hammering away relentlessly as I stared wide eyed at myself.

I can't believe I'm actually getting to do this!

My hands twitched, gazing over at my bed where my phone lied recumbently on my pillow.I stirred up the possibility of texting Tae and telling him that I would be there soon. However- since I've never gotten the option to do this for someone- a nagging voice in my head said to keep it on the down low and surprise him when I arrive.

I grinned to myself, my lips spreading wide at the thought of finally getting to see my best-friend in person.

Oh, I could I squeal about it for hours.

"Jimin-ah! Are you all packed up there! You want make sure you depart right?"

If only I had that time.

I turned my head toward the open door of my bedroom where my suitcases sat against the wall. "Yeah! I'm coming in just a moment!" I tousled with my hair for mere seconds before scanning my room for anything that I might've been forgetting.

Luckily, I couldn't think of anything at the time and grabbed my phone from the bed before taking a hold of both of my suitcases. Somehow, I managed to maneuver my way down the steps and ended up on the bottom floor with my halmoni coming out from the dining room with her purse circling her shoulder.

Once she and I made eye contact, I could notice something spark in her irises as she blinked at me with a heart-clenching smile. "Ah... My grandson has really grown up, huh?"

I tilted my head, shaking it as well. "You always say that, Halmoni."

The older woman then took a couple steps forward, her hands came up to my eye level and reeled toward my face until her wrinkled palms came in contact with my cheeks. Her hands were warm like that of an oven that baked warm cookies during the winter. Her embrace was something any young boy would want from their parents.

She stared me into the eyes, an unfathomable amount of emotion was spoken even through silence; she didn't need to speak, but I knew she would.

"My boy... I know you haven't left yet, but I'm going to miss you while you're away. The house won't be the same without your bubbly presence... But I'm sure whoever you meet in America might appreciate it as well. Your personality can truly light up even the darkest places, remember that, okay?" I nodded without a second thought, keeping my eyes trained on hers.

"Okay, okay, okay... I will." Her eyes narrowed as she grinned joyfully, her palms receding from my face. She took a deep breath as if to reset her feelings.

My halmoni then put up finger, her face transitioning into a look of authority.

"Okay then... When you walk out that door, I'm assuming you know what you're doing, okay?" I nodded, "should we go over anything?"

I looked to the ceiling, stuck in thought. "I... Think I got all of the steps. I definitely can do this."

My halmoni sighed. "Okay... Just for good measure, I'll ask you one question and it's important... Do you know, once you land, where exactly the place you're going is? I'm talking address here."

I hummed in agreement. "I do! I have it in my phone and I'm going to make sure I call a ride to get there."

My halmoni gazed at me sternly with sly smirk of pride. "Great to know... We can head out now." My spine straightened and my heartbeat sped as if were trying to leave my body, "excited?"

"Yes, halmoni, yes! I've waited all weekend, let's go now!" I yanked my two cases with me, one bedazzled with purple rhinestones and one plainly black and simple which contained some of the things that couldn't quite fit in the other one, and even some things I found online that Taehyung said I should really broadcast to my halmoni. Lugging those two behind me I was making my way out of the house. The sun beamed fluorescently as it pretty early at around 8:30 AM.

With the trunk being unlocked, I loaded my suitcases in the back and sat patiently in the passenger's seat while my halmoni adjusted to her car. She didn't drive often unless it was to get groceries or take me to the doctor when I was younger. But for this, I knew she wouldn't let have chance at the wheel this time around. She sang sweetly to the nearly muted tune on the radio as she drove.

With the time it took to get to the airport from our city, I laid back and tried to relax.

Soon, the car was drifting into silence and my halmoni decided kick off a conversation.

"Jimin-ah... I know you're tired and all, and you can nap shortly, but I was wondering about this for a few days... I wanted to know what your plans are going to be when you land? Is there anything exciting you want to do?" She asked, inquisitive of my ideas

My eyes ahot wide open at the question which had so many answers that I didn't know how to sum it up other that one saying. "I want to do memorable things that won't fade when I eventually have to leave no matter what, when I look back on it... I want to say it worth all of the risk."

"That sounds like a beautiful plan... But- anything in particular? I know you Jimin, you probably have it saved somewhere--" I sat up from my relaxed position in my seat to fish in my jeans pocket for what my halmoni was indirectly describing.

Her eyes flicked over to my hand which held a small piece of folded paper. "What'cha got there?"

I exhaled through my nostrils, unfolding the paper to get a good look at my options. "This is my bucket list... It's just a few things so far..." My halmoni then turned the music off as if to cheer me on, "... And the first thing I said was... I wanted to do was to meet my friend Taehyung at his house, then I want to go shopping for a while... I want to visit places too.... Like a museum maybe or even just visit a river, go to the movie theater, eat in a different place and learn some recipes while I'm there! And I want to... Meet someone new and make friends with them."

My halmoni giggled beside me. "Oh, you've been thinking a lot then... You think you might find interest in someone while you're there? Perhaps and local boy?"

I gasped, snapped my neck to look at my halmoni's slick smile meant for embarrassing me. "Not really... I don't think I could manage something like that."

I crossed my arms and my halmoni chuckled playfully while turning a corner. "Oh boy, well if you do suddenly meet someone and feel that way, please give me a call."

"Yeah, whatever halmoni." The thought of finding love down there- although it sounded pretty marvelous and all-- didn't seem like it was possible.

With such a short time, I'd be surprised if I were to find anyone who would talk to me other than Taehyung and maybe Yoongi-- if I got to meet him. Honestly, if I did end up finding love at first sight and being swept of off my feet like a Disney princess, I'd probably pinch myself to wake up.

With warm air flowing from the AC in the car, my eyelids grew heavy and my brain traveled around in ovals and circles with the thought of my Halmoni's words.

They then formed a broad question I had never thought of before.

Where can I find love?

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When I had been woken up oh-so-rudely by the frosty air blowing across my face from the window being wide open, we were already arriving at a large parking lot filled with cars. There was a building beside us that harbored lines of other vehicles, and people who were retrieving their ibaggage before walking toward the entrance of the place I was heading to next-- the Icheon International Airport.

My halmoni's hand came to rest on my slumped shoulder, shaking me awake. "Alright, Mister... Nap time is over."

I yawned at the sound of her calling, yet I still was able to fix my posture enough to look out of the window properly.

Just then, there was a large lump appearing in my throat that I had to swallow as I gazed up at the enormous window that aligned the airport's walls, the beams of sun reflecting gracefully.

"Wow..." I whispered to myself in complete awe.

"Yeah, it looks pretty stunning... Are you ready to go in?" I turned to match sights with my halmoni who had a somber, yet somewhat proud expression painting her face. I could tell just by looking at her, that she didn't have a clue on what she should be feeling. But in my heart, I knew I had to be making the right decision, or else I wouldn't have gotten this far.

"I am." I responded, my heart leaping and bounding as my halmoni's lips split into an even wider smile that capitated me in warmth. She gave me a nod just before unlocking the trunk, giving me the signal to start being on my way.

I unbuckled in a flash, my hand on the car's door handle and all. Without any words to add, I was opening the car door and trotting outside to the trunk where my baggage was located. My chest was like a pickle jar's seal as I moved.

When I was finally able to take out my bags, halmoni's door opened; my motions stilled as I watched her get out of the car.

This look in her eye, not having much of a word for it- more like a combination of things- seemed like it was only sealing everything off. Especially, when my breath was stolen from my lungs the moment she pulled something out of her back pocket.

My gaze was shackled to her hand where she presented me a necklace of some sort.

"Before you head on by yourself... This is something I want you to have." My eyes lids dropped down to squint at the neckless, which now that she dangled it from her fingers. It looked much more like a choker by how small it was. This time around, I was also able to see the charm that was clasped to the black string it hung on.

A blue dolphin.

"It's something I gave to your eomma as a child. She would wear it every time we left the house," a dry chuckle escaped the older woman's lips, "it's all I have left of her... She loved it so much, and I think- now that you're becoming more independent... You should take it." She swung the necklace at me gently so I could grab onto. Not wanting to miss the chance, I took hold of the small necklace, clicking open its small clasp in back to place it around my neck. I watched my halmoni hold her breath as the small dolphin figuring lied on my chest.

"Thank you, halmoni." A small sigh passed her lips; her hand then came up toward her face, covering her nose and mouth.

"I'm going to miss you so much... I hope that you find everything and-- do everything you want to do. I love you, Jimin-ah." Without paying any attention at first, with just a few steps forward, I was being pulled into my halmoni's nurturing embracing. Her head rested on my chin for a few seconds before pulling back.

"Love you too." I replied, she brought her hand to the top of my head, her fingers swishing my strands of lavender hair around with a hearty laugh.

"Okay... Well, I shouldn't be holding you for so long. I trust that you will call me when you land or if something has gone wrong." I nodded and she took a graceful step back.

I grabbed my suitcases' handles and grinned at her as I began to walk backward out of the parking lot, giving her one last look before completely turning myself around and facing the airports' entry. I exhaled to give myself a bit of a relief, with a few breaths, the compression on my chest was beginning to fade.

I looked up at the windows, down at the cars and over at the people; I began to think about my direction and the first couple steps I had to make before being able to settle down on a plane.

I moved forward at a steady pace, following others inside of the airport's glass doors, dragging my baggage behind me. Once I had gotten inside, I was met with a few women and men standing behind different stations with a conveyer belt behind them. There were also small check-in points with tablets that we were able to login and retrieve our boarding information.

I smiled to myself, feeling accomplished.

Okay, this isn't so hard, huh?

After inputting my information to the system, I went along with the rest of the process of wrapping my tags onto my luggage and walking through to the security checking.

There were so many passing by using escalators or even carts. The air was lively until I had to stand in an excruciating long line just to get my bags checked. If I were to be honest, I felt like buckling over into a non-existent puddle when it was my turn to run my things through the scanners- including myself when I was checked and the staff had to tell me to take off my shoes and necklace because I forgot.

Somehow, when I was finished getting checked, I made it through toward the train that took people to different terminals. When I entered, I waited quietly and took a seat until it came to a stop at my terminal.

A couple of others walked with me as I exited. The gate I was supposed to arrive at was somewhere nearby, so I made sure to read the signs above that would help me navigate. I showed a few other people my tags until a kind woman and her son, that seemed around 4 or 5 years old, thankfully said they would walk me to the gate.

I trailed behind the small family, bending around corners and gliding on walking escalators until the walls of the airport were beginning to change as the woman informed me that were in the section of gateways and departures.

She pointed up ahead at our gate 'B-12' and informed me that I'd have to be there on time or I'll miss the boarding call.

"Thank you so much." I bowed to the older woman who smiled at me in response, her younger son giggled, his tiny fingers released his kid-sized spiderman-covered luggage to trot his way over to me. There was a strong and tender embrace from the kid latching to my leg. The older woman called after him as if he were running into a car filled street.

I naturally returned the boy's snug embrace. When he pulled back, looking over to his eomma with flushed cheeks, his lips spread wide into a boyish grin.

"Bye, bye, pretty man!" His hand moved up to give me a brief wave before turning and skipping away into his eomma's arms.

I watched as they walked away hand in hand, leaving me by my lonesome to do as I pleased.

My eyes trailed up to the ceiling lights that were bright like a million suns and moons combined. To get a full view, I twirled around to see he lineup of small restaurant, convince store, and cafés that were stationed to the sides. My stomach rumbled at the aroma wafting directly beside me. The emerald and white logo of 'Starbucks' hung up over the café.

"Great, I'm really thirsty." I let out breath of relief, with my tow luggage bags gone, I was able to a walk freely over to the shop.

The line was rather long and seemed like it might be more than a few minutes before I could order. I entered the line behind the last person, looking over the menu to see if they had anything that would keep me awake for at least a few more hours on my flight. After setting my mind on a mocha frappe, I hummed along to the music of the café. My eyes wandered about until they landed on the person who stood directly in front of me.

I could tell it was a man by the sturdy build of his back and shoulders;also, not to mention, his blue veins that popped out vibrantly on the man's fore arm that seemed to be littered with tattoos of flowers and symbols that had probably more meanings than he could count. The man was a few inches taller than me, his jet-black hair tied into a manbun, a few loose strands grazing his neck. The man's get up was something that you'd see on a person standing next to a casket on the day of someone's funeral. He dressed rather formally, head to toe in black. The aura he emitted was slightly unsettling; eerie and aloof like a lone wolf in the night.

I wonder where he's headed?

A few more minutes had passed and I tried to distract myself from the stranger in front me, but it was only mere seconds before I was overthinking and mentally meandering about what the man's face looked like.

He and I were next in line to order and I had to restrain myself from peeking over at the taller male as he ordered. While he talked, I watched him move his hands and gesture to the menu, not giving much attention to his order, I noticed a silver watch around his wrist that looked quite expensive from the distance.

After a while of zoning out, I barely recognized his lack of presence when he strolled away from the counter with his cup. My heart rate jumped up a mile as I searched and picked through my brain helplessly for what I had decided on ordering earlier.

Panicking as I reached for my wallet in my back pocket. I threw out the first idea that came to mind.

"I'll take what he had." The man with a dark green apron's eyes widened to saucers for a moment. I wanted to melt into puddle of nothingness when I came to the conclusion that I had startled him. He nodded and I apologized softly as I pulled out my debit card to pay for the drink he had to fix.

When he completed the order, handing me a white cup of what he described to be 'straight black coffee'. With a hopeful smile, I bid him a goodbye and scurried from the small confines of the café, only allowing myself to breath when I exited.

I haven't even left yet and I'm already embarrassing myself, way to go.

I looked up to the sign of my gate number, taking a quick step to approach the seating area where plenty of others were occupying themselves before the boarding was called. The opaque cup of black coffee in my hand wrinkled my nose and eyebrows at it's rather bland and unamusing smell.

My lips neared the small opening at the top of the cup. I closed my eyes to get a full experience of the taste; however, as soon as my taste buds were sloshed with even the tiniest amount, my body immediately rejected its burning, bitter introduction.

What even is this?

Out of reflex, I held the cup way from me as if it would be obliterated out of thin air. My tongue curled as I speed walked to my destination; luckily, there was a trash nearby that I shamelessly dumped the drink into.

After the discarding the item, I scanned the seating area before me, searching for any empty spot to fill. My eyes flew across the tops of heads and the screens of laptops until I locked onto a familiar sight. The man with dark hair and clothing, holding onto his newly bought coffee, was calmly sitting at the edge of the row. The only empty seat available were about two spaces away from him.

Wow, you're kidding me, right?

To avoid any more mortification from standing up while everyone was sitting, I hurried to the empty seat and sat slowly. I averted my eyes from the other male who drank from the Starbucks cup as if it were a glass of water on a sunny day.

Now being able to look at his face
- but not too much- I could clearly see his sharp jawline and stoic expression. He wore black earrings that stretched his earlobe only a little, his eyes were soft, yet dark, and his features were pale, almost as if he hadn't been out in the sun for months.

The longer I assessed the man's face, the more I wanted to speak out to him. There were plenty of questions I had for this man, but of course, when I saw his neck crane in my direction even by just a hair, my back pressed against the chair, and I stared straight ahead as if it were shielding me from his eyes.

I stayed like that for a while until a staff member came up to a small podium, telling the people in our section that we should be prepared to board. The woman who spoke called out a specific number range and others began to board the plane. They all lined up as they were getting their tickets scanned, and my knees were  out of commission as I tried to stand up after the woman had called out for tickets 40-48 where I was able to get in line along with the dark-haired male as well.

I distanced myself from him, letting a few people and children stand in front of me just for that purpose. The line moved rapidly after the first few people boarded. Since I didn't bring any carry-on bags, I breezed through and walked on a long ramp to finally be greeted by a flight attendants and the plane's captain. With the fear of slowing up the flow of seating, I picked the nearest place that was empty.

The capacity on this flight wasn't very much, so I had an empty seat to myself. When everyone was getting seated and putting their things away, I pulled my phone out to power it off, yawning in the process. Minutes passed and the captain was greeting us threw the speakers of the plane, telling us about our flight and our destination, followed by instructions on safety and crisis moments.

I clicked my seatbelt before I could be told, my head and back supported comfortably by the seat's cushions. My eyes rolled onto the window, soon, the body of the plane began to rattle with the force of the plane's engine and speed, even before we had taken off, my eyes were growing heavy like they did in the car ride here, the sound of side conversations and faint music playing in another person's headphone began to muffle as my heart's quickening pace was beginning to slow.

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"Alright, we are now landing in Mid-way Chicago. Look down and enjoy the view..." The loud intercom of the pilot's voice rang in my ears, My eyes blinked open at the sound of the man's voice.

The plane was lowering itself on the grown within just a couple minutes. When the bump of the wheels on the plane made contact with the ground you could hear people starting up their conversations again. The plane came to a stop after a while, and the lights were eventually turned on inside the cabin. People around me then either began to leave the plane or grab their things.

Stretching from my long nap, I cracked my bones and followed the others off of the aircraft. Down another ramp, it was pretty chilly and the scenery was completely different from english signs to different layouts. It wasn't until I was following behind two other people when I saw the side of the Chicago airport.

I skipped forward to see more, and there were plenty of signs demonstrating where to go. It was difficult to read a few of them, but I noticed a certain symbol.

Baggage claim.

I looked around for the signs and tagged along with others I recognized from my flight that knew the right way for sure. Trailing behind a few more people, my hand began to subconsciously grab onto the dolphin hanging from my neck as I looked around, turning just a few more corners until we migrated to a large area that contained carousels that moved around in an oval. There were plenty of people crowded around the machine, and awaiting their luggage to arise.

There were a few people who were able to grab their things, checking the tag first beforehand and walking off. I took a seat on the long bench where I waited for my bags.

Sooner than later, with tons passed bags and patience, one out of the two bags appeared. I got up from my seat to retrieve the purple one before it was swept away by the belt.

As I stood by, waiting on my second bag, I noticed the taller male from before getting up from his seat on a separate bench to come up and grab a bag from the belt. It was plain and black just like his outfit, and just like that, he was strolling away from the carousel and off toward a large hallway straight ahead. I reluctantly ripped my gaze away from the man, restoring my attention back to the belt where another black bag was coming around, I grabbed the bag instantly, hoping that it was mine and checking the tag only for it to reveal another name.

Jeon Jungkook?

Who in the world was that?

My gaze snapped back toward carousel. My mind began to race as others we're grabbing their bags swiftly and beginning their journey; Meanwhile, I was standing here waiting on mine to magically appear. Of course, I had the idea that someone else had already taken it, and even the possibility of it ever being lost, but I wanted to hope it would be anything but.

That is, until I noticed from my peripheral vision, the tall man from before walking back toward the carousel after he had disappeared. I gasped, checking the tag again and looking back up to the man walking toward me.

Oh, well what do you know... He's Jungkook.

His approach was menacing, and his eyes void of any emotion, laid onto mine and I was paralyzed into place. Soon, he was close enough that if he wanted to reach out and grab me by the neck, he could.

"Are you Park Jimin?" My lips quivered upon my response.

"N-Yes... I am." Did I almost say no?

Jungkook's index finger pointed toward the suitcase that I was now clenching like it actually belonged to me. "I believe you have my bag?"

I shook my head a bit, trying to function properly instead of focusing in on his deep voice, sounding smooth like a lullaby.

"Uh-- yes! I do... I'm so sorry." I unhanded the suitcase and pushed it over to the man who seemed to be eyeing me much differently than before. We then exchanged bags and the taller man didn't waste any time before turning to walk off in the same direction as before.

It was only when he was several feet away that my lungs accepted air into my sinuses, and my feet picked up their pace. Before I knew it, I was following behind this man named Jeon Jungkook, who probably thoight I had something wrong me, and was trying stalk him.

"Mr. Jeon--" The man's steps halted before we could enter through the hallway, he turned around, giving me a look of concern with a hint of annoyance, "-- are you, heading toward the exit?"

The man's neck jerked backward a bit, taken aback by my words. "Yes... I'm heading to an exit... Are you lost?"

I winced at his easy assumption. "Could you possibly lead the way?"

The man raised an eyebrow; however, he didn't question me further and instead nodded. "Sure thing."

He didn't spare me another word and instead kept trailing on forward. I made sure to keep my eyes on him until I realized that I needed a way to exit as well. 

It's literally 10 PM here, Taehyung doesn't even know I arrived.

I stuffed my hand in my jeans pocket fishing around for my device so I could contact him, only to find out when I pressed the button on the side, that it wouldn't turn on.

Are things just going to keep getting worse?

I groaned to myself, thinking of any option of a way to Taehyung's that didn't involve sitting in the airport for hours until my phone was able to charge. I placed my phone back in my pocket, trying to shake away the nerves. I kept my eyes forward, charging straight toward the best bet I had. Jungkook, who was still walking in front of me without even a mere glance behind him, didn't notice as I began to close our gap.

We were getting closer to a glass doorway, which I assumed was the exit, a large metal number three hanging in front of the door, symbolizing that we were in some sort of lane.

The ground was now transforming from marble to concrete as we were getting closer to the doors. Unknowingly, my pace began to speed up. The faster I went, the more traction I lost on my shoes, causing me to trip and hit my knee on the concrete as well as my hands. The sting was felt throughout my entire body, the piercing feeling of my flesh being ripped open by the hard plant on the ground zipped my mouth shut for a few seconds before I could pick myself up.

"Ouch..." I dusted off my jeans that were now a bit raggedy due to the dirt from the ground. I noticed through a hole in my ripped jeans red hue on my knee which sprouted a bloodied scrape; a few more scratches were scattered on my hands as well, but they weren't nearly as bad.

I lifted my head from gazing at my scratch, sucking in a large amount of air to subside the pain. In front of me, revealed the taller male having to walk back toward me for a second time. Even from far away, I noticed that he seemed distressed, possibly even a bit ticked off by my clumsiness.

But even so, the intimidating man still spoke
with a soft voice. "You alright there?"

I nodded, trying to reorient myself. I took small steps forward to meet him halfway, stopping once I felt a sharp pain in my ankle and foot causing me to limp lightly. "Yeah... I- I'm okay. Sorry about that. I'm fine."

Jungkook raised an eyebrow, staring me as if I were a mental case sprinting from an asylum. "You're in pain. There are scratches on your hands as well as your knee which is... Going to take a while to heal... And from the looks of it, you twisted your ankle in the process. How did you managed to fall?"

"I-- I was just trying to catch up so I could... Ask you something before you went off." Jungkook crossed his arms, turning to look behind him for a second and then refocusing his gaze on to me. With both of his eyebrows raised he nodded at me to continue.

"My phone is dead, and I don't have a way to get a ride to my friend's house..." My train of thought had derailed when I saw Jungkook looking at his silver watch, then glancing back up at me.

"Do you have a place to stay for the night?" He inquired, his voice seeming less empty and more  wary.

"Well, I-I need to contact my friend-- it's supposed to be a surprise that I'm here in the first place, and if I call him then it'll ruin it," Jungkook's eyes stared into mine impatiently, my throat dried as I stopped myself blabbering unnecessarily, "n-no, I don't have a place to go."

"Okay then," Jungkook bit his bottom lip, sighing at me frustratedly, "what I can do at the moment, since I don't know your age or where you're coming from-"

"I'm turning nineteen in a few days! I'm from Busan!" I shouted, entirely way too loud.

Jungkook nodded, "okay, Busan, that's great... I'm heading out to a place to pick up my rental car... I have a first-aid kit with me in my suitcase. If you're okay with it, I can take you to the place I'm staying and you can call your friend in the morning. If you have another plan that's quicker, please let me know."

My jaw was left hanging open after listening to his offer.

There was no way someone who looked as terrifying as him could be offering to help me.

I mean seriously, where did this even come from?

I don't know him.

What if he's just trying trap me, or what if he just wants me to do something for him?

Just as I was opening my mouth to give the other man an answer, that's when I watched his eyes convert into something unlike the others. Completely devoid of malicious intent, a near blank slate that I couldn't recognize nor could I explain just yet. From what I could pick up right then, it was only pure generosity shining in his dark orbs like a ray of sunshine reflecting from a mirror.

"You don't have to stay the whole time, just for your safety. I advise it." Something compelled me, my heart my mind, so be it. Something foreign was pulling and tugging inside my body for my lips to shape and form the word of acceptance.

But I had to make things work, even when they got difficult.

I had to pull myself together no matter how confusing or iffy things may get.

I came all this way...

I had to take a chance.

"Okay." I whispered.

"Okay?" He asked, emphasizing my agreement.

I nodded at him, not having much else to add on. Jungkook then came forward and grabbed both of my bags, tugging them around so he could walk with them dragging closely behind.

"Thank you." I spoke up. The man flashed me a simple closed lips smile.

"It's what I do." My eyebrows couldn't help but furrow at his choice of words. He didn't turn back around, so I followed behind him without another word.

We weren't too far away from the glass doors and when we were close enough, he pushed it open for me to walk outside. He handed me my bags when I was able to stand upright, then went back inside to retrieve his luggage that he left behind. The air of the night was brisk and cold against my skin, but it did everything to cool down the sizzling pain throughout my entire body.

Not much later, Jungkook was standing beside me outdoors as we were waiting next to a few other people who stood at different exits near us.

"There should be a car to pick us up soon, try not to put too much weight on your ankle."

With his his advice, I made move to shift my weight so I wouldn't be torturing myself as I stood. We fell into a strange silence, one that I wanted to break, and one that I was too afraid to.

I found myself gazing at the side profile of this man once again, admiring his features how they were so defined, this time I managed to zero in on a small-- definitely aged-- slash just above his right eyebrow.

About 10 minutes had passed, and a white car was pulling up. Jungkook lifted his head up from his phone, clutching the luggage-- now with three suitcases-- with both hands, and walked toward the street way. I tracked behind him, approaching the car as the man who drove it asked for his name. Jungkook confirmed his identity before the man unlocked his trunk and doors.

"Go ahead and get inside, I'll put these in." Without any hesitation, I did as the man said, opening the car door and settling down in the back seat.

It wasn't long before Jungkook was heading inside as well, he occupied the seat next to me and closed the door while telling the man everything was set up for him to drive.

Another box of silence had encased us as the man drove.

I stared out of the window blankly, wondering why even in the care of a complete stranger...

Why did I feel so safe?

▪︎▪︎▪︎▪︎

A/N: SOOO... HOW WAS IT?!

Jikook have met! I know things are slow, but prepare for more fun things down the road!

Q: HOW DO FEEL ABOUT JIMIN'S EXPERIENCES AT THE AIRPORT?

Q; YOUR THOUGHTS ON JUNGKOOK'S KINDESS?

Q: PREDICTIONS FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER?!

Well as you guys know...

You'll just have to wait and see for the next chapter!

Love you guys!

XxxS