The Eight | A BTS Soulmate Fic |

Chapter 102

Luck was not on her side that morning. Taehyung and Jimin were by the fireplace, and Jungkook was on some hiking adventure when she came up the stairs.

"Good morning, Yeppeun!" said Jimin, trying to be extra cheerful for her.

She gave him a smile that didn't reach her eyes and a quick, "Morning." before looking around for Namjoon,

"Is Joonie up here yet?" she asked the other two as they watched her carefully. She knew he was awake, but hadn't actually talked to him yet. She was kind of surprised to see Jimin and Tae already. They were usually the last to roll out of bed in the morning.

"Not yet." Jimin answered, "Is there something you need? I'm sure you're hungry." he moved toward her to show her the cereal and fruit selection they had out already. "The hot breakfast food will be out in a little bit. But you can have some of this if you want."

She noticed that he caught himself reaching for her a couple of times and corrected himself without her saying anything. His frustration level was high, and she heard him sigh a few times as he watched her eat from his spot next to the fireplace.

    After eating her bowl of fruit and yogurt, The Muse went outside to get some fresh air. Tae had gone out earlier and was sitting in the sun with the dogs, so she was free to wander around and explore a little bit. It was cold, but the air was fresh. It reminded her of home. Well. Where she came from, at least.

    They were staying in a lodge that was nestled in a valley surrounded by beautiful mountains. Breathing in the brisk air, The Muse was a little sad they didn't have more time to stay. But there was still a lot to see on their week long adventure.

    Jungkook appeared, apparently having hiked up to where the snow was that morning.

"Look, Yeppeun!" he smiled big, "I brought you some snow." he handed her the hunk he had broken off before heading back down the hill. The Muse couldn't help but smile back,

"It's almost like you completed a quest in a video game." she said, handing the hunk of snow back to him so he could show his prize elsewhere. He grinned and went to show Jimin and Tae.

    Once the cameras had moved on, her smile died down and she turned back to the beauty of her surroundings, reminding herself that it was all going to work out in the end.

    The hot breakfast food was out before they were to go on their morning hike. Jinnie and Joon were eating when The Muse was forced to come back inside. Taehyung had gone in to get ready for the hike, leaving no other warrior outside for her to be able to continue enjoying the sunshine. It wasn't a huge loss though, as Petal was demanding they eat again. Even though she had just had fruit and yogurt, The Muse thought she was hungry enough that she could eat every single thing the staff had put out for the meal.

    Jinnie filled her plate with a little bit of everything and sat her next to him at the picnic style table. Yoongi and Jungkook made their appearance while they ate.

    Everyone was waiting for Hobi and Tae so they could go on their hike up to the snow level. She checked in with Hobi to see what was taking so long. It seemed like he was styling his hair so he looked perfect for the cameras. With a roll of her eyes she headed down to see him, hoping to hurry him along a little, and maybe get a little intimate touch while she was there.

     A half hour later they were both redressed and rosy cheeked as they made their way up the stairs to meet the others for their hike. Hobi was all smiles and sunshine as the others grumbled their displeasure at his lateness. Most hadn't put together why he was so late, but Tae knew. He was holding the door open for everyone to go out, and stopped his wife as she passed with his arm across the doorway,

"One day soon, I will be the one to help you with your need for touch." he said to her in a low voice, "You will no longer need Namjoon or Hoseok or Seokjin to take care of you. You will know and trust that I will be there to take care of everything you could possibly want or need."

    He withdrew his arm, eyes staying connected with hers as he allowed her to pass. If there was one thing that Tae could do, it was intense eye contact. She held his gaze for a moment before walking by to join the group.

    In her leggings and oversized jacket, she was warm and the belly was well hidden as they made their way up the hiking trail. She stayed quiet for the most part, just listening in to their banter and jokes as they walked.

    They paused a short way before the end of the trail to look around. Joonie (of course) slipped and fell onto his backside. Laughing, The Muse went to help him up, only to slip and land on her knees. Joon, Hobi and Jinnie were immediately all over her.

"Are you ok?"

"Did you hurt anything?"

"Where are you injured?"

Slapping their hands away with her muddy ones, she laughed as she tried to stand back up, looking like a newborn deer as she tried to gain her footing.

"I'm fine!" Her giggles echoed around the valley as she stabilized herself.

She knew they were worried about Petal, and if she wasn't able to check on her little one whenever she wanted to, she would be, too. But the baby was perfectly fine. Her Warriors were all so close to saying things that they shouldn't say, and she had to step in.

"Guys. Look at me." All 7 men had their eyes trained on her, even though she was only talking to the three. She chose to speak through their connections instead of whispering,

"Petal is fine. I just checked on her. If anything is ever wrong with her, you will know, ok?"

The Warriors all nodded their heads in agreement.

"What was that about?" Asked Yoongi, clearly annoyed at the silent conversation that he wasn't a part of.

"Nothing." The Muse answered, keeping her voice light. Just reassuring my Warriors that I'm ok.

Jungkook piped up from the back, "Your husbands want to know that, too, you know."

She blew out air in a way that could very well have been a snort before wiping her hands on her pants in an effort to clean them off a bit.

"So who is climbing the rest of the way and who is heading back?" She asked, "I want to wash up and change before we set off for the day."