ink bound (JJK, Book 1 of the Soulmate Series)

chapter twenty four

"Do-yun!" I say, immediately recognizing him despite the mask he has on. I rush over to him, happy to be off the plane and with someone I know.

"Miss Taylor, it's nice to see you again!" Do-yun smiles brightly behind the mask, eyes crinkling slightly. He reaches out to grab the bigger of my luggages.

"You too. I can't believe I'm here." I say, a little hop in my step.

"This way." Do-yun gestures forward with his hands, and I walk alongside him pulling my carry on with me. The bear Jungkook got me tight in my hold.

"It's so much colder than I thought it would be." I pull Jungkook's hoodie over my fingers, letting the warmth consume me. It still smells faintly of him and the nerves start to kick in when his cologne registers in my brain. I'm here, in his home country. And he has no idea.

Do-yun leads me to through airport pulling a black mask out of his pocket. "Do you mind wearing this and pulling your hood down a little more? Just to be safe, in case someone recognizes the car."

I do as I'm asked, slipping the mask over my face and pulling the hood right over my eyebrows. I keep my head down the whole way to the car. Do-yun opens the door for me while taking my carry on out of my hands. I don't even dare look up until the door is closed, but when I do I'm met with pretty brown eyes and a deep dimpled smile.

"Joonie!" I say loudly, jumping in my seat to hug him. He returns the hug with a chuckle, wrapping his long arms around me.

"Welcome to Korea!" His deep voice cuts through the air.

"I didn't know you'd be here!" I pull away from him, settling back in my seat but facing my body his way.

"I couldn't let you land without a proper welcome, now could I?" He shines his smile at me. It's then that I'm reminded of who he is. The last time I saw him was just about 6 months ago. Messaging him every now and then is nothing like seeing him in person. I shy away on instinct and I can tell he notices by the way his smile brightens.

"So what's the plan? Jungkook is at the company right now, he should be heading home in like an hour or two." Namjoon says, an attempt at trying to make me more comfortable by changing the subject.

"I was thinking we could go see Jimin first?" I ask in more of a question than an actual statement.

"Jimin-ssi is probably home, let me call him." Namjoon dials him and I can hear a muffled version of Jimin's voice talking excitedly with his hyung.

"He's home, we can go there." Namjoon says when he cuts the call. "Do you want something to drink or eat before we do anything else?"

"I think I'm a little too nervous to do any of those things right now." I laugh softly, resting my head back on the seat.

"Don't be, I'm excited you're here. I know everyone else will feel the same." Namjoon says sweetly. "This is cute" He says gesturing to the bear I had sitting in the seat between us.

"Jungkookie got it for me." I smile, my eyes feeling heavy as the car starts moving.

"You can sleep, Taylor. It'll take us some time to get to Jimin's house." I hum in response, closing my eyes.

—

"Taylor" Namjoon shakes me softly, my eyes opening slowly trying to adjust to the light. "We're here."

As we're heading into Jimin's apartment complex, the overwhelming feeling of being in a new place takes over my body. Like a rush of adrenaline. My stomach immediately erupting into butterflies. Somehow the air smells different. New. Exciting. It's only then that I realize this is only my second time being out of Guam. This is my first time going someplace new without Malia. This is the first time I'll be meeting the guys in their home country.