*******Namjoon's POV*******

"I'm proud of our country, but these Americans are something else," Ji-Ho said as we carried our instrument cases, walking back to our dorms.

We had just finished performing during the opening ceremony for joint-military war games with the United States Army.

"I've never seen so many of one country's flags in one place," Ju-Won added.

"You should really go to the US, then," I told them. "There are flags everywhere. They're definitely proud of their country."

"I get that," Ji-Ho said. "But do they have to shove it in everybody else's faces like that?"

"I see nothing wrong with it," I said. "They're proud. And they should be. The US is a great place. I love visiting there. Though nothing compares with being here at home, of course."

"Would you move there?" Min-Jun asked me.

I shrugged. "I wouldn't move there completely. But I wouldn't mind having a house there that I could visit."

"Must be nice to have all of that money," Seo-Jun grumbled.

"It doesn't suck," I said with a laugh. "It was a lot of hard work to get it, though. And besides, if I didn't have it, then I couldn't buy you idiots food every time they let us off base."

"And didn't he just buy you a new phone because your screen was cracked?" Min-Jun asked Seo-Jun.

"He's the one that cracked it!" Seo-Jun exclaimed. "All I did was ask him to hand it to me, and he fumbled it like a nervous new recruit."

"It was an accident!" I told him. "It's not like I did it on purpose. And I paid for a new one, since it was my fault. And I apologized a hundred times."

"He also paid for your trip to see your grandmother for her birthday," Ji-Ho pointed out. "And for Min-Ho's fiancé to come to our graduation. And for my parents to come, too."

"He did," Seo-Jun said.

"I'm just pointing out that, yes, he has money from his life as an idol," Ji-Ho said as they stopped in front of the building that housed the military band. "But he does share it with anybody who needs help with something."

"Absolutely anybody," Min-Jun said as he set down his trumpet case. "I saw him buy one of the Americans coffee yesterday."

"She couldn't figure out the exchange difference between won and dollars," I told him. "I was only trying to help."

"Didn't hurt that she was cute," Min-Jun said with a laugh.

I shrugged my shoulders. "She was," I told him. "But I would have done it even if she wasn't. I was trying to be nice."

"You're never not nice, Namjoon," Ji-Ho said. "It's kind of annoying, really. None of us can compare, and it's exhausting trying to stay at your level of nice and polite."

"It shouldn't be exhausting to be a good person," I told him.

*************************

The next day, I got the shock of my life.

We were at Camp Humpreys, the US Army camp located in Pyeongtaek. This is where most of the friendly warm games would take place. It was a huge base, and we would be staying here for several weeks.

We were all lined up as we listened to instructions in both Korean and English, telling us to remember that these games were friendly and that we should mingle with the other troops, and remember that our nations were allies. Those of us who spoke English were encouraged to take other non-English speaking troops with us as we wandered around, so that we could act as translators.

As the troops were told that they were dismissed, I lifted my saxophone to my lips and our military band played the Korean National Anthem, then their band played the one for the US. When we were done, I started to take apart and pack up my instrument.

That's when it happened.

Mate.

'What?'

Mate.

'You can't be serious.'

Mate!

'Here? Now?'

MATE!

'Stop yelling at me! I heard you! How in the hell am I supposed to know who it is?'

Mate!

My wolf had absolutely lost his damn mind. He wouldn't stop saying that word in my head.

After Jimin found his True Mate in Aurora, the rest of us knew that ours would come eventually, since we couldn't find ours, until our Alpha found his. But this was about the last place that I expected my wolf to declare that our mates had been found.

I stood up and looked around. I knew that my mate couldn't be anyone in my unit or the military band, or any of the other South Korean units around me, because he had not declared that our mate was near in the nine months since I had joined, and at some point, I had been around all of them.

So that meant...

Our mates were most likely one of the US soldiers from Camp Humphreys that were taking part in the war games. This fact caused just one small problem.

There were over 3,000 of them on the field right now, and even more in the camp who are not present. How in the hell was I supposed to find the one person who is my mate?

Awesome. This is just...awesome.

I guess that I can weed out any of the men, since I'm straight. But still, the US had a lot of female soldiers, too. Narrowing it down to just the female soldiers didn't make the task of finding my mate any less daunting.

MATE!

'You're not being very helpful, Osian. If you want to find your mate, then you're going to have to give me a clue as to how to find mine."

Mate!

'Oh yes, Very helpful. I need more words than that.'

Mate here. Mate find. Find mate.

'How?!'

Look. Find mate.

'Again, so very helpful.'

Mates are here. You find our mates.

'Give me more details and maybe I can!'

Mate is here. What more do you need?

'A description would help.'

Don't know. Just find.

'Can you stop talking like a toddler and speak in full sentences. You know it hurts my brain when you do that. You're not a child.'

Excited. Mate is here.

'I get that, I do. But you need to tell me more, and I would prefer if you spoke like the thousand-year-old being that you are, and not like someone who still wets the bed at night.'

I could feel him take a breath and sigh in my head.

I am sorry. But I could not find my mate in our last life. It has been too long for me.'

'What can you tell me about our mates? Maybe it will help me find them.'

They are perfect for us.

'Obviously. Mates are always perfectly suited for each other. But that still doesn't give me much to go on.'

I can't tell you much more. I do not know what my mate looks like in this life. The last time that I saw him, he had dark curly hair and warm brown eyes. He was beautiful.

"But our mates will not look the same in this li-... Wait. He?!'

Yes. He. He is beautiful. Of that, I am sure. He is always beautiful.

'So we're into dudes now? Interesting. I didn't know that.'

That your mate is a man?

'Well...yes. I have only ever been attracted to women.'

And how did that work out for you? You were not meant to be with a woman. Our mate has always been a man. The perfect man.

'I don't know how to process this information.'

I suggest you figure out how to process it soon, and find our mates.

'Great. Awesome. Again, so very helpful.'

I can not be more helpful. I would if I could, because I want my mate. I miss him so much. Please do your best to find him for me. And for you.

'I'll try, I just don't...he's a man.'

When you find him, you will understand.

I sighed and knelt down to finish packing up my instrument. I noticed that everyone else in the band had already left. It must have been when I was arguing with Osian.

I still couldn't believe it.

My mate is a man.

Weird. 

******************************

Author's Note: If you've been a reader of my stories for a while, then you probably know that I tend to post chapters as I write them. Giving how hectic life as a teacher can be, there have sometimes been months between chapters, as it is often hard to find time to write. That is not that case with this story. At the encouragement of my best friend and soulmate, I have written this entire story, and it is all ready to post. It should all be up within a day or two. I hope you enjoy it. Please leave me comments to let me know what you think. -------Kat

And as always, I will be leaving smiles from the main character at the end of each chapter, because who doesn't need more sunshine and happiness (and in this case, dimples) in their life?