Before They Were Bulletproof // OT7 BTS FF x OC ᵖʳᵒˡᵒᵍᵘᵉ

43. 24K Gold

"Yeah... I figured as much. Say, if you're not busy maybe we could catch up sometime? Would be good to keep in touch" Mimi and I were always fairly close so it made me happy that she'd asked. We exchanged phone numbers before I went back into the library.

Seeing her had sprung up memories that I thought I'd already let go of. It made it hard to concentrate so I decided to call it a night and head home.

Snippets of happier times I'd had with Mimi and the others flicked through my mind. All the laughs, drinks, and even the small arguments all seemed so nostalgic. The door security, Grey was his name, as I'd recently learned, let me through straight away. It was kind of an odd feeling, having a line of people waiting as long as 2 hours to get in but some scruffy University student was getting let in instantly. It must have been confusing to them. At the same time to me it was amusing.

The music blared as I took a left towards the stairs that led up to the VIP lounge. I caught a glimpse of Joon, Yoongi and Hoseok as I passed by. Supreme boi and some other people I didn't know were all sitting together. I continued up two more flights of stairs until I reached my little haven. I could still hear the music from downstairs. I guess at the end of the week it would be like this.

I went to my room and put my things away and had a shower, got changed into a knit crop singlet and some shorts then went to find those strawberries Yoongi had left me.

They were sweet, and in more ways than one. I can't recall exactly when it started but, for a while now it seemed like life was moving so quickly. I remember when Yoongi and I first met. I'd thought he was so cool, him and the other three rappers. Back then we'd hang out in the studio and chill out over beats. That's right, then Yoongi stumbled into me after work that time. I was shit scared about them judging me but he didn't, instead, he kept my secrets nice and safe.

Maybe it was then that I put my trust in him, so much so that at the first sign of trouble he was the one I'd call. And, the fact that he was there for me without question any time I did call.

It wasn't just Yoongi that I'd been through a lot with, it was all seven of them. Each one I had a unique cascade of memories with, each as special as the others. Back then, I remember being more hesitant to open up my heart but, it seems to have happened regardless. Maybe I'd lied to myself all this time. Maybe my fears were unnecessary to being with.

Undoubtedly, there was a time I was happy. Recently, I don't know. A part of me is but, it's overshadowed by anxiety. Uncertainty of the future. Self-doubt.

I took a deep breath and let it all go. Coincidentally enough it was just before I heard my name being called playfully from the stairway.

"Jiaaa~ Babyyy~ Are you home?" Jin's head popped into view as he reached the top, he had two bags in hand.

"Jinnie pooo~ I'm right here~" I called back, obviously not to be taken seriously.

"God. That sounds terrible, don't call me that ever again please" he laughed before pulling out a chair and taking a seat beside me.

"So, how's your day been?" He went on, leaning in to kiss me on the cheek.

"Yeah, nothing too interesting. How about you?" I smiled. Jin broke into a grin.

"Amazing! You wouldn't believe what I got my hands on today" He gave the bag beside him a little shake in excitement.

"No idea, what is it?" I tried to have a sneaky peek inside but he gently slapped my hand away. "Hold on, naughty girl" Jin raised a brow playfully before taking the bag in his lap and reaching in.

The suspense was killing me as he slowly lifted something, the dramatic effect was working.

"Ta-Da! 24k gold face masks" Jin held up two golden packets of beauty face masks. The ones you leave on your face to make your skin all soft and supple.

"Whoa for real? Gold? Since when was that a thing?" I looked at them in awe, they were so shiny.

"It's a relatively new thing. Someone I was dealing with today had a ton of them and wanted to get rid of a few." Jin grabbed my wrist suddenly and pulled me to my feet.

"Huh? You want to do them right now?" I asked, Jin had already dragged me halfway to the bathroom. "Yes. It's the perfect time. If you want nice skin you need to make sure you go to sleep before 1 am. That's the optimal time your skin heals overnight" Jin stopped at the sink, smiled at me and then grabbed the headband that I used to keep my hair back when I washed my face and shoved it over my head.

"Ow, okay, be gentle" I pouted, waiting for him to fix it up. "Yeah okay princess, whatever you say" he chuckled. Jin helped me wash my face even though I insisted I could do it by myself. The playful bickering between us was just as it had always been. After that, we put our face masks on and laid down and relaxed in bed beside each other to let them bake.

"Jin, can I ask you something?" I peered over at him, he lay on his back comfortably.

"Sure, what would like to know?" He replied. Eyes still shut.

"Why didn't you tell me you knew the others?" I asked. I'd been curious about it for a while now.

"It never came up in our conversations, also I just assumed we'd run into each other eventually." He answered.

"Oh... Okay" I gave small sigh and closed my eyes again.

"You don't sound convinced... It might not show right now but, I have a lot of trust in my team. Not to mention, I didn't want to put you in an awkward position." His tone had changed, become softer.

"I still remember what you said to me back then. That you'd be there for me no matter what." I recalled. He'd been so sincere back then. I'd believed him wholeheartedly.

"Even though I said that, I don't think I kept my word." I held my breath. Searching for the right words. That just wasn't true.

"All you've ever done is support me. Care about me. Be kind to me. Make me smile. Whatever you're thinking, stop it because it's not true." I felt a small tension release.

"You're so precious, Jia. It's almost cruel. You know, this path you're going down with us isn't going to be pretty. I've given it a lot of thought lately. Logic dictates I should push you away from all of this, but I might just be too selfish in the end. Not having you around, I don't think any of us could bare it." His confession hung heavy in the air. I felt similarly.

"And here I was thinking I was the only one who felt that way." Silence befell us for a small while, time ticked by until our masks had finished baking.

We peeled off our face masks and Jin went and put them in the bin. He came back and snuggled into bed, pulling me into his side and lifting my leg over him comfortably. Even though this was the first time we'd ever slept together it felt like we'd done it a million times.

Jin lifted my chin and placed a plump goodnight kiss on my lips before resting back on his pillow.

"Sweet dreams princess."