Nari rolled over in bed and stared at the ceiling, too excited to go to sleep just yet. Only half an hour and she would be 18. Her heartbeat sounded in her ears as her mind raced with the endless possibilities that would soon be within her grasp. 18. She had been waiting for this day for so long.

But not all of her thoughts were positive. In less than a year, she wouldn't be here and neither would they. Disbandment had been on the boy's minds for a while and now that meetings to discuss contracts were marked on the calendar, they were in mutual agreement: It was time for BTS to go their separate ways. Nari wasn't sad about the disbandment, they worked hard throughout these 12 years and deserved to retire, but it hurt her heart to know that her life here would never be the same.

Very slowly, Nari's door opened. But she wasn't scared. This was normal. "Namjoon?" She whispered, "Is that you?"

"Maybe." The boy opened the door a little wider, stepping into the room, "You wanna go for a drive?"

"Yes please."

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Nari gripped the handle above the passenger side window and prayed that the roads leading up to the mountain would be quiet. After all these years, Namjoon finally got his license...although he still couldn't parallel park. And he wasn't a very good at it in general. She begged him to let her drive since they both knew where they were going, but he insisted that he could do it. Besides, Nari didn't have the heart to tell him no when he offered to do something nice for her.

"You can let go of the handle," Namjoon said as they jolted to a sudden halt at a stop sign, "I'm not that bad."

The girl shook her head, silently thanking the inventor of the seatbelt, "No thanks. I'll keep holding on to the bitch bar."

"Hey! Bitch bar?!" He exclaimed, "Where did you learn that?"

"Oh you know, just on the internet," Nari shrugged, "It's not a big deal-Dude! You missed the turn!"

Namjoon sighed and pulled off of the road, doing a probably illegal U-turn in what looked like someone's front lawn. His companion shook her head, "This is why I said that I should drive. I don't mind, I promise."

"I am not letting you drive on your birthday!" The boy repeated himself for the umpteenth time that day, "It's 23:52, let me do one last thing for you before you turn 18. Please."

"Alright, you win," She smiled, "But only because I love you, old man."

"That's mean! I'm not that old!" Namjoon protested as he finally pulled into their usual parking spot on the base of the mountain, "I swear you turned 15 and then became a little rebel. It was Jungkook, wasn't it? He's always been the troublemaker. It's been a whole year already and I can't believe he signed for that lip ring."

Nari laughed and got out in the parking lot, she loved the feeling of the cold metal against her tongue, "I thought you liked it! You said it was cute."

"It is cute!" The boy defended himself while he locked the car, "I just wish that you would have waited until you were a little older, that's all. We could have done it all at once, you know? Tattoo and piercings."

She shook her head playfully and gently pulled his hand as they headed towards the familiar path, "Come on. It's almost midnight."

Namjoon smiled and followed her up the mountain. Throughout the years his love for the girl had only increased. Being able to watch Nari grow up was the greatest gift of all and every day his tattoo reminded him just how lucky he was. In just five years so much had changed, but he knew that their connection never would.

They reached the clearing at the base of the mountain. Nari took a deep breath and laid back on the dewy mountain grass, looking to the stars above. Her faded pink pixie cut shone in the starlight. Namjoon sat beside the girl with her head comfortably in his lap.

"This is it, darling," He said softly as he ran his fingers through her short hair, "Happy birthday, my Nari. You're officially an adult."

"Doesn't feel like it though," She replied thoughtfully, "I don't feel any different. I'm still just a kid compared to you guys, you know?"

Namjoon laughed, "Don't you worry, you'll always be my little girl. Maybe this'll be the year you finally start calling me Dad, who knows."

"Do you want me to?"

"Well, I mean," He couldn't help the blush spreading across his cheeks, "Maybe. Only if you want to, of course."

Nari smiled, "Sure thing, Appa."

The boy felt his heart swell with pride wearing her say that word. Appa. Father. Dad. Unable to help these new feelings if pure love and euphoria, Namjoon bent down and left little kisses all over the girl's face, much to her annoyance.

"Hey! That tickles!" She playfully pushed away his dimpled cheeks and soft lips between her bouts of giggles, "Don't you think I'm a little old for this now?"

"Never." Namjoon answered immediately and managed to land one last kiss on the tip of her nose, "Like I said, you're always going to be my little girl, my sweet lily." He looked to the star covered sky above, trying to hide the tears filling his eyes, "Darling, I'm so proud you."

"Proud of what?" Nari joked, "I'm just me, you know. Nothing special."

"Shh," The boy shushed her, "Just let me have my proud father moment, okay?" He took a deep breath, "Nari, it has been such an honor to be your guardian. I've watched you grow from this shy neglected child who wouldn't even let me hug her, to the loving and beautiful person that you are today. Every day you show me more reasons to love you, love myself, and love the world that we live in." Namjoon wiped a tear from his cheek, "Dammit! I told myself I wouldn't cry today!"

The girl sat up and wrapped him in a comforting hug, laying her head against his chest like always, "It's okay, Appa. I kinda cried earlier too." She gently kissed his cheek, "I've been trying not to think about it, but I'm gonna miss you so much when I go to college. Is it too late to switch? Can I choose a university in Korea instead?"

"No, darling," Namjoon managed a laugh, "We've already decided, you're going to college in New York and you're majoring in classic literature. You've wanted to do that since you were 14 and I'm not going to let you stop yourself because of me," He placed a kiss on the top of her head, "We're really going to miss you though. All of us, baby girl."

"I'm going to miss you too. We'll only be able to visit a few times a year," Nari spoke sadly, "I don't know if I can live with that. You've been with me for so long, I can't imagine a life without you."

The boy chuckled, "You talk about it like we'll never see eachother again, baby girl. You'll won't be so lonely, you'll have Iris. What are they majoring in again? Fine arts or something like that? And maybe now that you guys can live closer together, you'll get back together-"

"I swear, you're more upset about my breakup than I was," She shook her head, "We broke up for the last time years ago, Namjoon. Iris and I are better as friends."

"I know, I know," He sighed, "I just think that a lot of your problems were distance related and now that you don't have that obstacle anymore, you'll both be able to try it again. You and Iris are so cute together."

"If you say so, Namjoon," Nari finally agreed, "Well, how about you and Chelsea then? When are you two getting married? The fans have known for like a year now and you've been engaged since I was 15."

Namjoon let out a deep breath, "Well, darling, I don't think you'll have to wait for very long. We've started looking at venues and dresses and all that. As soon as my contract is over, we'll set a date and go from there. I hope the rest of the boys don't get too mad when I ask Suga to be my best man."

Nari's voice softened, "Namjoon, what's going to happen? You know...when BTS breaks up?"

"Well," The boy answered thoughtfully, "First we're going to get our little house in the countryside, of course. Maybe you'll finally get a sibling or two once Chelsea and I get married."

"But what about everyone else?"

Namjoon smiled and held her tighter, "They'll do the same, in their own way. We'll all start something new. It'll be okay, baby girl."

"I'm not ready," Nari whispered, barely holding back the floodgates of her emotions, "I don't want it all to change."

"No one is ever ready," The boy said softly, "But we've just gotta keep moving forward. That's what life is, darling."

"I know." She mumbled, "I just...feel so conflicted. I was so excited to turn 18 and get my tattoo and finally be able to have a drink with you guys, and I can't wait for the day where you and Chelsea finally get married because I love the both of you so much, but now I don't want it at all if it means that everyone has to leave."

"Nari, my darling, do you know how much I love you?"

The girl smiled, "More than all the stars in the sky."

"Good." Namjoon chuckled and tilted her chin upwards to look at the endless expanse of glowing dots above them, "No matter how many miles are between us, we'll always be under the same sky. The universe connects me and you with a love so strong that not even thousands of miles could make it waver for a single second. And it isn't just me, you're connected with all of us; Suga, Tae, the rest of the boys, Hyo and Kyong, Areum, even Chelsea. We all love you. That's what family does."

Nari said nothing, but cuddled deeper into the boy's lanky frame. Over the years, he had taken her to this place hundreds of times. From rough breakups, to good grades, to 'just because', no matter the reason, the mountain always felt special. Nothing existed here except love. All of the negative feelings seemed to wither away in her mind, leaving only the purest blossoms of safety and compassion.

"Namjoon?" She spoke aloud.

"Yeah?" He answered, "What is it, darling?"

"I love you."

"I love you more."

"Hey! No you don't!"

"Yes I do," Namjoon teased, lovingly kissing her forehead, "I can play this game all night, my Nari, and we both know that you'll lose."

The girl let out a good natured sigh, "You never let me win."

"And I never will." He declared, "I'd give you the world if you asked me to, but I'll never love you any less than you love me and don't you ever forget it."

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i hope this was a satisfying end to the book! if you've got any post epilogue questions pls let me know and i'll answer them! i've loved writing this fic so much and i'm glad that i got such a positive response from you all. nari's story doesn't end here though, i have a one shot book on my profile called "sweet lily" that you all r free to check out if you want more content! also requests r open so dont hesitate to comment or dm me your ideas. if you want, pls leave some of your favorite chapters/moments below! it helps me get a better feel of what to write for the future

anyway :) thank you all so so much for your support, special shoutouts to my boos Flowers2030 and SeokjinInspired for all your extra encouragement and love.

i luv yall (and nari does too!)