" No, this is not the beginning of a new chapter in my life; this is the beginning of a new book! That first book is already closed, ended, and tossed into the seas; this new book is newly opened, has just begun! Look, it is the first page! And it is a beautiful one! "
-C. JoyBell C
On tiptoes, Sora reached up the cupboard to grab a few mugs. Slowly, as she turned around, her eyes landed on the window. With a soft smile on her face, she walked up there. With her mugs her hands, Sora hoped to see the first shoots of spring.
The previous yellow, oranges, and red leaves were replaced with new green shades. A gradation of colors was coating the forest, leaving anyone under a spell of serenity.
" Sora! "
The woman turned toward the owner of the voice and grinned.
" Ah, Lisa. " She moved to walk toward her friend.
The blond-haired woman followed the previous line of vision of Sora and smirked, " And me who was wondering what took you so much time to grab the mugs...You were enjoying the view, I see. "
Sora walked up to Lisa and turned her eyes toward the colorful palette.
" Yeah, it's finally spring, and no matter how much we come to the treehouse, I get overwhelmed each time by this natural beauty. "
Lisa turned to the young woman with a frown, " The natural beauty of the forest, huh? "
A sighed of exasperation escaped her lips.
" You- " Lisa pointed outside. " I'm talking about this view. "
Said the woman as she pointed at their group of friends enjoying the nice weather while chatting.
Over a year had passed since the case with the Song had been closed. Sora hadn't heard of them since then. Song Hyujin had been sent to prison while Song Hyejin was living quietly in Japan, trying to recover from the loss of her father's company. The woman had never once tried to contact them, and Sora believed it was for the best.
Since Song Hyujin has been emprisoned, new reforms had been made to tighten the security around hybrids. A settlement between different Centers and the FPH had been formed to uphold those promises to protect those in need.
However, this unexpected unification was proven a bit difficult at first, and thus by the constant meeting between Sora and Hoseok. The pair was trying hard to keep things amicable between them, given their past, but it had obviously taken time for both to establish a friendly relationship.
Her eyes landing on the man in question, she waved at him through the window when he noticed her.
Starting everything from zero did take a lot of effort and time for both of them, thought the woman. Yet, it was proven to be efficient since they managed to recover from their wounds and become friends once more.
Her eyes then shifting toward the male next to Hoseok, her lips lifted up.
As for Yoongi, after a long discussion, the male had decided it was time for him to move out from Sora's house, and it has been almost a year since then. It would be a lie to say that their relationship hadn't changed, though. After becoming aware of the male feelings, Sora has become mindful of her actions and words. Nevertheless, she hadn't once broken her promise to Yoongi to stay by his side, but only by afar this time, though.
Suddenly, Lisa approached Sora and whispered in her ear, " What are you waiting for? "
Sora turned to look at her friend and stared at her as a confused expression invaded her face.
" Yoongi... You like him. "
Taken by surprise, the young woman choked on her own saliva before she replied, " Of course, I do. You know that already. "
Lisa shook her head as she rolled her eyes, " No, that's not what I meant, and you know that. You are in love with him. "
Sora lingered quietly as she watched the boys playing around near the treehouse. Their laugher echoing in the forest revealed their inner-child while the amusement in their eyes made their expressions change into that vision of relaxed joy and unrepressed jollity.
"... Am I that obvious? "
" Not really. " The woman shrugged. " I just know when my best friend is in love. "
Sora smiled and glanced back at Lisa before she shook her head.
" What am I supposed to do? "
" Confess, obviously. " Quickly retorqued the blond-haired friend.
Sora widened her eyes as she unfolded her arms and stared at the blond-haired girl.
" Are you crazy? I can't do that. "
Lisa frowned, " Why is that? He likes you. You like him. You confess, he accepts. End of the story."
" It's not that simple! "
" Why? " She asked. " Are you scared? "
Sora stiffened at the question.
" Sora, Darling, the only reason you find that difficult it's because you make it difficult. Love itself is an easy thing. You can easily fall in love as you can easily despite someone. "
She grabbed Sora by her shoulders and muttered, " Don't make yourself unhappy, Sora. You shouldn't be afraid to love when there is clearly someone who shows you that he cares about you. What happened between you and Hoseok...It was inevitable. Everyone goes through a heartbreak at least once in their life, but life goes on. "
Sora was stunned by her friend's wise words.
Since when has Lisa been such a calm and composed person, even giving wise advice to others?
" ...I think you hang out too much with Jaebum, Lisa. "
Her friend grimaced.
" Haha, and I think you should hurry to confess. Yoongi might be waiting for you, but he can't do that forever. Don't make him miserable. "
" I know! I know that too..."
" Then go on. Because I can guarantee you many girls would like to know what his lips taste like. " Smirked the woman.
Sora spun her head toward Lisa and frowned at her.
" I'm just saying. Since I often go to the coffee shop that Yoongi works at, I've noticed many customers had hearts in their eyes while gazing at him. You might wanna hurry while you still have time before someone snatches his heart. "
Sora lowered her head and bit her lips. Lisa was right. She couldn't make Yoongi wait forever, not after all that had happened before. She couldn't lose someone dear to her heart again.
" By the way, I'm curious. " Nudged Lisa. " When have you started developing feelings for him? "
Looking away, a red tint coated on Sora's cheeks.
" I don't know, I just...Before I knew it, I started to get conscious of him. "
Her eyes meaninglessly staring at the ground, a light smile slowly spread on her face. She started to replay all her interactions with the male in question.
The way his dark orbs would lay on her figure, the way their fingers would softly brush against each other, the way his lips would slowly lift up into a smile before turning into his usual gummy smile, or the way his voice would tenderly call out her name.
Many things made her say, " Ah, this is why I love him. " Yet, she couldn't exactly point things out. He was just so lovely to her, that her eyes would automatically search for Yoongi to observe him.
" Sora. "
Lisa's hand gently reached out to her friend's back.
" Don't feel the burden to love and be loved back. Love is supposed to be something innocent yet selfish, so don't bring yourself down. Lift your head up, and be the daring Sora that I know. "
The woman nodded in appreciation.
" A-Anyway, shouldn't we go join back the others? "
Lisa smirked and nodded, " Let's. "
Reaching the others, the two girls were quickly greeted by the rest of their friends. Jackson was the first to walk up to them as he grabbed the mugs from Sora's hand.
" What took you so long, girls? "
Lisa was the first to reply, " We had a hard time finding the mugs. Sora couldn't remember where she had placed them. "
The man giggled, " I thought you guys were coming here often. "
" So did I. " Replied Sora as they all started laughing.
The trio then walked up to the others before Jackson gave the mugs to his sister, Joy, as she filled them up with juice and served the others.
" Why are we even using mugs? " Asked Taehyung.
" Because I forgot to bring regular glasses. There are only mugs in the treehouse. " Replied Seokjin.
" Well, it doesn't matter. " Added Yoongi. " As long as we have something to drink. "
Jackson grinned, " Exactly! " He exclaimed as he pointed at the black-haired male. " Anyway, let's all bring our mugs together and make a toast. "
Jaebum nodded, " Like old times. " He muttered.
The nine individuals brought their mugs together and hit them lightly against each other while making a toast.
" To our everlasting friendship! " Screamed Joy.
" To our everlasting friendship! " They all repeated.
All grinned and laughed before they each got casually engrossed in a conversation with another.
Stealing a few glances at the wolf hybrid, Sora felt a nudge from her right and turned to look at Lisa, who had a smug look on her face.
" What are you waiting for? Go declare your feelings. " Murmured the woman so the hybrids wouldn't be able to pick up her words.
Sora gulped before her eyes turned back on the hybrid in question, who was surprisingly already looking at her. Feeling her heart stop beating, she looked away and cursed in her head.
Did he hear Lisa? She thought.
Gradually, she took her eyes away from the ground and took a deep breath.
As she did, her eyes unexpectedly met with Hoseok's dark orbs. His heart-shaped lips turning into a bright smile, he nodded his head at her as he mouthed, " Good luck. "
Was he also aware of her feelings, she wondered.
Smiling back at him, she tore her eyes from his figure to look at Yoongi.
Determined, the woman slowly walked toward the boys and called out his name. The young male turned his head toward her, and a warm smile quickly spread on his face, making Sora's heart clutch.
" Can I talk to you for a moment? "
Yoongi nodded as he put down his drink and excused himself before following Sora further away from the treehouse.
The young woman took a deep breath before she met Yoongi's sweet chocolate eyes. Her mind going blank for a second, she had a hard uttering a word.
With a knowing look, Yoongi's lips slowly lifted into a smirk before he nodded his head as to say, " Take your time, I will wait. " Which eased the woman as she finally finished gathering her thoughts.
Her lips forming the following words, Sora had never been so sure about something until now.
" I'm in love with you, Min Yoongi. "
There was silence.
The sound of the wind brushing against the leaves and the birds singing was the only noise that broke this stillness. Part of it is was becoming nerve-wracking and painful, yet it was something that Sora would endure to share her honesty.
" Took your time. " Finally spoke the dark-haired male.
His fingers traveling around her cheek, he took a step toward her and muttered, " I thought about giving up, but since you were sending me mixed-signal I didn't know what to do. " He chuckled.
" I'm sorry... "
Yoongi shook his head, " I'm glad I waited. Finally having you seeing me, loving me...It's the best reward I could ask for. "
Slowly, her hands flew to cup his cheeks and as she stared at his eyes.
" I love you, Min Yoongi. "
Repeating herself, Sora knew she had made the right decision as she watched his shy smile turning into a wonderful grin.
The emotions in his coffee-colored eyes told her he needed more of a connection as they switched between her dark orbs and her lips. His eyes were so different in moments like these, softer than she thought eyes could be.
Gradually, Sora closed her eyes and felt a soft touch on her lips. It was so light that it felt like a ghost touch as if he was afraid to break her. Her hand traveling behind his neck, she tenderly deepened the touch and felt euphoria.
In the sensation of this intimacy, a volume of emotions was spoken that transcended any works of the most famed lyricists combined.
In his kiss, was the promise of years of true love and eternal bond.
In her kiss, he was home.