"How are you feeling today?" I ask walking into the hospital room to bring Jimin some flowers and a bag of takeout from one of his favorite places according to Taehyung.

Taehyung walks in right behind me with Jungkook following close by, the youngest hesitant to even step inside and look at his best friend bandaged up and immobile. The look on his face when he finally sees him makes my heart ache. Even if his injuries are minor, the extreme bruising, swelling and cuts are just a reminder of how bad it could have been.

"Better than the night before." He smiles and points to the IV administering pain medication to him. We all chuckle at his high-like state until he grimaces from the pain of his broken rib. "You have food...for me?" He asks through a sharp suck of air.

"Oh, yes. Taehyung helped me order for you." I say as I pull out the container and begin to feed him with the chopsticks provided with the meal.

"Gomawoyo." He responds after the first bite, glancing at both Taehyung and I.

"No problem at all." I smile and offer him another piece of chicken.

The guys have barely been able to interact with him, but I think Jimin can understand and thankfully he doesn't look offended. Jungkook awkwardly stands near the door with his hands behind his back, looking up occasionally from the floor to watch him eat while Taehyung sits in the empty chair reading over some hospital paperwork and their notes on his injuries.

"They say if you do well, you'll be released early next week." Taehyung mentions as he flips to the next page.

"That's good!" I beam and look over at Jungkook who is able to offer me somewhat of a smile. "I'll be leaving on Sunday unfortunately, but at least I know you'll be out of here soon." I glance back over to Taehyung, still reading diligently and see him smile up at me.

Jungkook finally walks over and stands next to his bedside, grabbing his cup of water and offering him a drink. I think the shock of seeing him like this is finally wearing off, especially after watching how Taehyung and I are casually interacting with him.

"Are you okay?" Jimin asks after finishing swallowing the sips of water.

Jungkook laughs and sets the cup back down on the table, "Am I okay? Hyung, you're the one hurt."

"I'm fine, but I will need your help getting to class." Jimin smiles and I notice his eye is even less swollen than how it was last night.

"Of course, hyung. You know I will." Jungkook helps him sit up a bit to fluff his pillow, careful to not disturb his ribcage.

Taehyung sets down the paperwork and walks over to where I stood getting ready to feed him another bite of food and wraps his arms around me. "We're glad you're okay." He says while fondly looking at him. "But I have class soon. Jungkookie, do you want to stay?"

Jungkook smiles and nods towards the bag he left by the door, "Yeah, I brought the game for us to play."

I smile at him, loving the fact that he feels comfortable enough to stay behind.

"Okay, if you need anything call me." He says before stepping back and grabbing my hand. "We'll be back tonight."

Taehyung drops me off at a coffee shop on his way to class that day since his mom and I had made plans to have one last girls day before I flew back home. Having never had a daughter, his mother gets so excited at the prospect of being able to do girly things without the moaning and groaning of her husband and son while she shops or gets pampered.

Waiting at a small table near the window so that I'll see when she arrives, I pull out my phone and open up social media to see what's going on in the western world.

Friend Request (3)

Opening up the notification, I see Kinsley's name and smiling picture and press accept right away. I don't know why we hadn't made the effort to become friends on social media in the past, but that's sweet that she found me and requested to be mine.

Next, I see Antonio's name and his flamboyant picture. I giggle at the bright colored attire and the pose in his profile picture and press accept. He sure is one hell of a character, but he's cool people.

Finally, I see Ethan's name and profile picture. His usual dark brown messy hair and equally dark brown eyes make me recognize him right away. The small silver hoops he normally wears dangle in his ears and his slightly tan skin looks good next to his black crew neck shirt with the sleeves pushed up to show off his tattoos. Looking at the photo, I definitely wouldn't have thought he was a lawyer, but he's still young. No need to go all professional in every single photo he takes.

I hover over accept, wondering if I should. It's not like he doesn't know where I stand with him and it's not like Taehyung isn't aware of him. Plus, we did say that we'd be friends before I left to come to Seoul. Wouldn't it be rude if I didn't accept his request?

I press accept.

Blocking is always an option if it's needed and just because I have a boyfriend doesn't mean I can't have male friends after all.

"My sweet Ava!" His mom beams walking in with open arms to give me a hug. All formality of bowing has been extinguished since our trip in London.

Standing up right away, I open up my arms to welcome her motherly embrace and shut my eyes to relish in the small back rubs she does every time she hugs either Taehyung or I. Her sweet floral scent and freshly washed hair made me smile and relax into her arms. It was easy to feel safe with her.

"Did you want something to drink before we leave? I'll buy!" I offer as we pull away from each other.

"No, no. I'm okay. Let's go shopping!" She happily says as she pulls me towards the exit door and I struggle to grab my phone off of the table before I'm swept away.

We walk a few buildings down until we see a small boutique filled with clothes that both she and I would enjoy. Upbeat music plays through the sound system as the employees greet us and ask if we need anything. One of the many things I've been able to translate since visiting Korea. Coming here has definitely improved by pronunciation, but it still tickles me how even the smallest things I say get a round of applause from the locals. I think the effort alone impresses them.

His mother pulls off a black and cream colored handbag from the shelf and inspects it to see if she likes how it's made, checking every pocket to see how deep they are. Once she's approved of the quality, she puts it on her arm and checks herself out in the mirror. Her petite frame turning in different angles to try to decide if it's the one for her.

"It's really pretty. You should get it!" I say with a smile while browsing the clothing rack a few feet away.

"We could get matching ones! Do you like it too?" She questions as she pulls down the identical bag from the shelf and hands it over to me.

"I do." I smile again as I grab it from her grasp and place it on my right arm before standing next to her to look in the mirror.

She squeals out in excitement and claps her hands, happy at our matching bags and looks over at me to tuck some hair behind my ear. "I love it!"

"Me too." I giggle and do a small twirl, making her laugh as well.

After three different stores and four shopping bags later, we walk into the beauty salon for our scheduled facials we booked the other day. Thankfully, his mom takes the lead in explaining why we're here and what we want. Me trying to translate any of that or figure out how to formulate a proper Korean sentence would have been a complete disaster and there's no doubt I would have made a fool of myself.

The spa room had a soothing aromatherapy and an air purifier made it easy to breathe compared to the dusty air outside causing us to have to wear a face mask. The enchanting harp music played lowly through a small Bluetooth speaker and running water from tiny fountains added a special soothing touch to the ambiance.

"Have you ever had a facial done before?" His mom asks as she lays back on her small bed across from mine.

"Just once. Taehyung had set one up for me along with some more pampering one day as a surprise. The last time he came to visit the states actually." I explain as I pull my hair into a ponytail and lay down comfortably on my narrow bed.

She smiles over at me and reaches out for my hand to which I accept with a wholehearted smile. "My Taehyungie really loves you, but I worry because you guys are so young."

"That's why we don't plan on actually getting married until after school. I know that life could take us in many directions, but if it's meant to be...it will be." I smile and she nods in return.

The estheticians walk in and greet us joyfully as they sit down and get ready to cleanse, exfoliate and moisturize our faces to perfection. We lay there in silence and relaxation as they begin to work their magic, but my mind travels off to a solemn place instead. His mom is right. We are so young and even though we love each other very much, who's to say that's enough to get married? Who's to say we'll make it through college? Especially being long distance. Halfway across the world long distance at that.

All I can do is hope that if we do end up going our separate ways that we'll find each other eventually. And should that happen, I'll know he's who I'm meant to be with.

His mom must have picked up on my mood change because she immediately begins to ask me so many questions about America. Claiming she wants to know more about the culture and where Taehyung plans on moving to since she had only been once a long time ago. However, I'm pretty certain she was just trying to liven up my spirits again.

And it worked.

By the end of our conversation, I was no longer dwelling on the possibility of once loving and losing the one I love. But as Tennyson himself said, "tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all."

I just pray it doesn't crush me completely.

"Your skin looks so smooth!" She beams as we both sit up, polished and perfected.

"Thank you! Your skin looks like it's glowing." I smile at her petite face.

Between his mother and father, it's no wonder how Taehyung is so handsome. It seriously amazes me every time I see the whole family together and it makes me wonder what our future children will look like. All three of them.

His mom was kind enough to ride with me to the hotel room so I wouldn't have to worry about getting lost or struggling to figure out how to get back. Taehyung gave me explicit instructions on how I could get back from that area, but not having to worry about it was definitely welcomed by me. After a warm hug goodbye, knowing this is probably the last time we'd see each other before I leave, she goes on her merry way to meet up with some of her girlfriends for a late lunch they had planned together. Not wanting Taehyung to worry about me getting back safely, I decide to send him a quick text.

Hey babe
Made it back to the hotel
I hope class is going well
I miss and love you!

Taehyung 💙:
I'm glad you're safe
I miss and love you more!
Did you have fun?
She didn't show you baby
pictures did she? 🙄

Haha!
No baby pics unfortunately
But I did have fun!
See you when you get back
Now, pay attention in class!

Taehyung 💙:
Haha! Yes ma'am!

I smile at his messages and plug my phone up to be charged before grabbing out the book I've been reading since the airplane ride over here. Not having much time to really snuggle in and get lost in the characters since arriving, I kind of miss these fictional people. Plus, it will do well to make the next few hours fly by until Taehyung gets back. I love visiting him, but I do have to admit that not knowing many people here and not being fluent in the language makes it hard to not be so dependent on him right now. At least back in the states, Taehyung had Justin to also hang with and was able to get around with ease. It will definitely be a wise choice for him to move to America instead of me moving here. We can always come visit his parents whenever and it does make me happy knowing I'm not the sole reason he'd be leaving home.

Flipping to chapter twenty seven, I snuggle into the fluffy down pillows and cover up with the loose blanket at the foot of the bed. Taking a quick glance at the clock, I see that it's almost two thirty. Smiling to myself at the fact that I'll have at least two and half more hours of silence to let myself get lost in this fantasy world, I begin reading the words silently to myself. My mind dancing with visions of people and places I've never seen.