The next morning Jae, much to her dismay, woke up alone. In Jungkook's absence, she immediately thought about the night prior, and she couldn't help but smile and giggle as if she were a teenager who just had her first kiss.
After the initial joy went away, worrisome thoughts started protruding her mind however, as they always seem to do. How will the other guys feel? What if they don't like it? What if they hate me for it? What if they get mad at Jungkook? A bunch of other questions raced through her mind as she got up and decided to walk outside. Seeing them would make her feel more at ease.
The bright sun was shining down on her and she could make out the hustle and bustle of the hybrids in the camp. Her seven familiar hybrids, however, were nowhere to be found.
So, she decided to wander and enjoy the bright green scenery, while doing her best to keep her distance from the other hybrids, and ignore any stares they gave her. She had walked a little ways, and then she heard a familiar voice, "Stop it! Right now, both of you!!" Namjoon was growling deeply, like a warning. Jae became worried and lightly jogged in the direction of the voice. "What the fuck is your problem?" That was Jungkook and he sounded angry.
Jae peaked ever so quietly and her eyes shot open as he saw Namjoon holding Jimin back, and Jin had his arms around Jungkook's, holding him as well. She almost gasped when she saw Jungkook's bloody lip. Both were trying to be unrestrained but to no avail.
Yoongi arms were crossed, Tae looked pissed and he looked like he was chewing something and Hobi looked like he was about to jump up and help with worried eyes darting back and forth. Jae gulped on air. Did Jimin know we kissed last night? Is that why he punched him? Was he actually awake?
"Just tell us if what Jimin said is true or not. It's important." Jin said to Jungkook, still fighting him. "What does he mean? What did you tell them?"
Jimin rolled his eyes. "I don't know, Jungkook. What would I have told them?" Jae had never seen Jimin like this. He was always so loving and smiled around everyone else, but now he looked nothing short of...envious.
"I don't know, Jimin. That's why I'm asking you." Jungkook snapped back, a little too defensively. Yoongi was looking straight at the ground, not saying a word. Namjoon cleared his throat. "I'm just going to ask you outright, Kook. Did you scent her?"
Everything froze at that moment. Not even the sound of wind was blowing and Jae felt the need to cover her mouth in order to not make any noise. Did he scent me? What does that even mean? He kissed me but that's not the same thing, right?
Jungkook looked shocked but he answered almost immediately, "No! Of course not! I would never do that unless she wanted me to. Unlike him over there. He almost did it earlier in front of everyone. You all saw it." He said, glaring at Tae. "What was that?" he growled, gripping his thighs. "I wasn't the one who had her wrapped all around me this morning. She smelled like you, so you can't blame us for believing-"
"Okay, we get it. We believe you Jungkook. Namjoon we should tell them now, before things get any worse. We need to get back soon, I don't like thinking about Jae in that tent by herself. You both need to stop acting like children fighting over a toy." Jin spoke up, slowly letting Jungkook from his grip. Namjoon did the same, and Jimin rolled his shoulders, causing them to pop. Namjoon gave Yoongi a look, almost as if to ask if something was okay. Yoongi just looked away, and Jae couldn't read his expression. "Tell us what?" Jimin huffed.
Namjoon took a deep breath and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. He looked at Jimin and Jungkook, "Would you too agree that, under normal circumstances, you would never hit each other? This is the first time this has happened between you two, right?" They looked at each other, and Jimin immediately looked apologetic when he saw Jungkook's face. "I...yes." Jimin said quietly.
Namjoon sighed, "You all have been acting a little different. You've noticed I assume. In each other, and in yourselves." He looked at Yoongi again, struggling with the words he wanted to say. Yoongi got the signal, and took over.
"I know what this is, because I've felt it before with someone else. Although, not nearly like this..." He said, looking like he was lost in thought. Everyone's eyes were on him, including Jae's. "Do you feel the overwhelming need to be close to her all the time? Protect her? Do you want to do everything with her? Does everything just feel so right, despite her being with us for a short time?" he cleared his throat. Jae couldn't see his eyes behind his hair. A couple pairs of ears twitched at that. He looked like he was struggling with what to say next, but he continued.
"When every hybrid is born, they have a destined soulmate. It's just in our design. I'm sure you've heard about it once or twice from somewhere or other." A couple heads nodded while others looked focused. At the word soulmate Jae's head started to spin. "Again, I felt this before so... I know this is the real deal. I know I've found my soulmate. In fact, we all have." Yoongi said, slowly looking at everyone. A moment of silence passed, then Tae spoke up first.
"So...what are you saying..exactly?" Namjoon answered the question for him. "We are all destined to find a soulmate, but it seems we, as in all seven of us, have found one." Jae swore she could hear the sound of her own blood running in her veins. She didn't, or rather, couldn't process what they were saying. They don't mean...
"It's Jae...Jae is our soulmate. Isn't she?" Hobi said it so quietly Jae could barely hear. The silence between them all was a good enough answer, and Jae didn't know if her heart was beating so fast she couldn't feel it anymore or if it had just stopped completely. If her world wasn't already flipped upside down, it was doing multiple backflips now.
"Isn't that...impossible?" Jin asked, looking bewildered. "Apparently not." Yoongi said, crossing his arms. "It's supposed to be. After all, usually if you have a soulmate, that person is yours, and yours alone. Both are like one mind and soul, and you are connected with each other for the rest of your life. Anyone who dares to disturb that is...it's a deathwish." Yoongi said grimly.
"That's why Jimin wanted to rip Jungkook's head off a few minutes ago. He was protecting what he claimed in his mind as his from another hybrid. It's instinct. That's also why Hobi protected her yesterday without a second thought, despite putting himself at risk."
"But with Jae..." Namjoon said slowly, "she seems to affect all of us, equally. The problems remain: how are we going to deal with this? How are we going to tell her? I mean, would she even..." he trailed off, not needing to finish the question. Jae didn't know how to react. She didn't know how to think. She didn't even know how to breathe. I'm their soulmate? For...all seven of them? How is that even possible?
She felt like she was going to faint. How am I anyone's soulmate, let alone the soulmate of seven hybrids? Is that why Jungkook kissed her? Is that why they were being so nice? Was it just instincts telling them to do so?
She wanted to laugh at herself for having the slightest thought of anything different. Of course it was. They don't really feel that way. Deep down, that's all it is. Just instincts. She had to get out of there. She couldn't deal with this right now. She was naive for thinking anything was real. She crept away, careful not to step on any twigs or leaves that would make her presence known.
As she gained more distance from the men, she felt more and more empty. Maybe it is for the best that we separate. I don't know how this whole soulmate thing works, but Yoongi said he's felt it before. I'm sure they can find someone else. And maybe they won't have to share. She thought bitterly to herself.
She hurt herself more when she thought about the feeling of Jungkook's lips on hers. She thought she felt something from him. The thought of wanting to kiss him again, to run out there and tell them that she was attached to all of them was only tearing her apart more.
Jae was interrupted by something bumping into her legs. She looked down and she saw the same hybrid child she saved previously, Lulu. She looked scared, frantic in fact, and her small bear ears were tilted down and back. Jae looked around for her father, but he was nowhere to be found. "Hey there." Jae said, making sure her eyes were dry.
"Lulu, right? What is it? What's wrong?" Jae asked as she bent down to her eye level. Lulu didn't say anything but she pulled on Jae's sleeve with all her might, dragging Jae just a little. Jae looked around. She saw nothing but trees, there was no one else around. She had a bad feeling about this, but she looked genuinely scared and her eyes were big and pleading. "What is it? I need you to use your words." Jae said gently.
"Bad people." Lulu whispered, and Jae's blood turned cold. There's no way... She made sure to be gentle but she grabbed Lulu's shoulders. "Lulu. Listen to me. I want you to run back to camp, and get your daddy. Tell him what's going on, okay?" She shook her head and continued pulling her along, tears falling down.
This wasn't good, but she wasn't taking no for an answer, and she was getting more and more frantic. She didn't want to put her in danger, but she wasn't going to stop. "Okay, whatever it is, take me near it. Then I want you to run and get some other adults, okay? Deal?" she asked her. Lulu nodded furiously and started running, dragging Jae with her. Her little legs could only go so fast, so Jae was trapped in an easy jogging pace. She wasn't sure what she was going to see but she wasn't prepared for the scene that unfolded in front of her.
She saw HHA soldiers, about 10 of them and a group of hybrid kids tied up on the forest floor, being loaded one by one into a big military truck. She recognized some of them from yesterday. Her heart was racing, and she wanted nothing more than to run in there and save them all. Of course she couldn't. The kids were crying, and she felt so helpless she wanted to scream so loud in frustration.
She turned to Lulu, who was staring at the situation in fear. Jae was scared herself, she couldn't even begin to imagine what was going through this little girl's head. "Hey remember what I said?" Jae whispered. "Go get some adults you trust, okay?" Another thought hit her. "Remember the hybrids that were with me by the lake?" she thought about it and nodded. "Go find them. Okay? Go now, hurry. Don't make a sound."
Jae gave her a small nudge and she did what she was told. Jae looked over her shoulder and once she couldn't see her anymore, she tried to think about what she could do. They had different uniforms on, ones she had never seen before.
They could possibly be from a different region, she thought. But what are they doing here? The whimpers of the poor children shook her out of her thoughts. She only had one thing in mind. It wasn't the smartest, and it definitely wasn't ideal, but all she needed was to buy time. She was shaking like mad. She had to reveal herself. She hoped they didn't shoot first and ask questions later.
As soon as she arose from behind the bush, a soldier immediately said "Hey!" and pointed one of his big guns at her. The rest followed suit and she made sure to put her hands up. She didn't have time to waste. "Listen to me. I'm your boss's daughter. The one that was kidnapped? I suggest you stop pointing those at me, unless you want to get fired, or much worse." she was surprised how confident she sounded. She glanced at the tied up children. They were all looking at her as if she was a hero with a cape. Truth was, she was horrified. Maybe it was easier to put on a face for the kids. She had to be brave for them.
"What's a girl like you doing all the way out here in these parts? How do we know you aren't tricking us or something?" Another soldier pulled out a flier, and to her shock, her face was on it, along with a reward with lots of zeros. Of course, her father pulled out all the stops to find her. "No, it's her alright. Look." he said, holding it up, comparing.
"Yeah, it's me. So do your job and get me out of here. The hybrid kids stay though. I don't want to stay with them." Jae said, in the most snobby tone possible. She didn't mean it of course, but she was trying to give them a reason to set them free.
"Are you crazy? We could be on to something huge. This many kids, there's gotta be parents nearby." No no no. "It's probably a good idea to take the runts farther away from here. If we cause a panic for the bigger ones, they're less likely to think straight. Easier to take them down." Jae was sick to her stomach. "No, you're the crazy ones if you think you can take on that many on your own. You all must not want to live anymore." she sneered.
One of the bigger men who looked like the captain of the whole operation his beady eyes stared her down. "You don't make the rules missy. Here's what you're going to do. You and those hybrid kids are going in the back of that truck. We can do this the easy way, or the hard way. It's your choice." He said it as if there wasn't a choice to begin with, and she knew that was the case anyway.
Knowing full well the consequences of what she was about to do, she went to kick the captain in the shin but right as her foot left the ground, she was grabbed roughly by her arm and swung full force on her side. She was being pinned down, arms locked behind her, and the force almost completely knocked the wind out of her.
"We had heard you might be a feisty one, but I'll be honest it doesn't look like your the type from that wanted poster alone." He said, as she felt the familiar burn of rope being wrapped around her wrists. "You might wanna work on your combat skills before you try that shit again." Jae could hear the smirk in his voice.
Luckily, unlike the kids, they left her mouth alone, allowing her to talk. However, to keep that privilege she decided to remain silent until they all were loaded harshly in the back of the hefty truck. "We better get a raise for all this." another one said, as they slammed the doors shut. There was light coming through small windows in the back so she could still see the kids.
They looked frightened and someone was still crying. "Guys, it's going to be okay," she reassured them, and tried to stay as calm as she could, "I have help coming. Lulu is gonna get some adults. Okay?"
As much as she wanted to reassure them, she knew her words could only do so much. What could she do? What was there left to do? She let her head rest on one of the walls. Slowly, her hope was dwindling away, but she could only hope that Lulu would make it back to the camp safely. She could only hope that somehow, some way, her seven soulmates would find her again.
***********************************************
😳😳🥺🥺4K I-
Thank you all so much and also thank you for all the votes and those of you who leave comments I sound repetitive BUT it really brings me over the moon so thank you.💕💕