Here we goooooooo...

*

The utility door.

Always the fricking utility door.

Jimin would have preferred to use the main entrance, but someone - aka Kim Seokjin - had changed the key code in his absence, resulting in him fumbling along the gravel pathway on the east side of his property.

It wasn't the first time he'd had to stoop this level in recent weeks, but come on, his own bloody mansion?

'The shit I have to do,' Jimin mumbled as he jiggled the handle and found it locked.

At least there wasn't a keypad installed with Yunhee's birthday for the passcode.

Salvaging one of his Raptors, he eyed the windowpane and inwardly cursed at the idea of damaging his abode.

Honestly, if not for the fact that he'd spiralled through a cluster of stars a few hours ago, he'd have sworn he was back at that lunatic's estate. He never in a million years imagined breaking into his own house, and if he set the alarm off and security chased his arse through the gardens, he was going to throw a wobbly.

Gritting his teeth, Jimin smashed the pane with the butt of his gun.

The glass shattered, and he cringed when it clinked onto the utility tiles, but there was no other sound. Relieved, he whacked out the lingering shards and slid his arm through the jagged hole to unlock the entry from inside.

There was every chance Taehyung had made himself at home, and the last thing Jimin wanted was a repeat episode of being strung up, drugged, and tortured. With that in mind, he kept his gun trained beside his head and a vigilant eye on his surroundings as he stepped in and hustled to the next door.

Meticulously pulling it open, he peeked out into the empty foyer.

The residence was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, but he was ready to tackle any opposition and murder the first person who tried to stop him from being reunited with Yunhee.

The coast was clear, and so Jimin shimmied out into the ghostly hall, wondering if he needed to make a fast break for the staircase, or if he could roam freely without getting shot.

'This is madness,' he sighed as he started to manoeuvre along the gleaming marble floors. 'Sneaking around my own home, utter mad-'

'Drop it.'

Fuck.

He'd trained his man well.

The voice was terrifyingly sinister, and the gun pressed to the back of his head was going to leave a mark. Alas, the ambience was dark, and Jin obviously had no idea who he'd found roaming the halls at the crack of dawn.

In no mood to accidentally die, Jimin did as instructed, grinning like a clown when he released his Raptor and let it fall to the ground. He then lifted his hands, inch by inch, linking his fingers behind his skull as he carefully rotated to come face-to-face with his longest friend.

'You changed the front door code, asshat,' Jimin rebuked with an unconvincing sneer.

Jin's features were a motion picture of convulsing comedy as he shakily lowered his Smith & Wesson. 'I thought you'd ring the bell.'

A beat passed.

Jimin angled his head. The corner of Jin's mouth curved. And then both men threw themselves into a tight-fisted bear hug.

'Good to see you, boss,' Jin whispered against his neck.

The emotion in his buddy's voice was enough for his throat to clog and Jimin strengthened his grip on his polo shirt, relishing in the glory of their reunion after weeks and weeks of being parted. 'Good to see you, too, Jin.'

'Oh, God. Are you crying?' Fracturing their manly cuddle, Jin held him at arm's length with a grimace of disgust and inspected his dishevelled stature. 'You look like crap.'

'And you look like you butted someone,' Jimin retorted, not missing the red welt on his forehead. It was a hopeful sign, an indication that Jin knew everything and had thwarted the bastard who'd hoodwinked Yunhee. 'Is she here?'

'Is who here?'

Jimin withdrew a fraction, confused by the counter question and the cunning smirk on Jin's face.

'Yunhee,' he emphasised, but then quickly corrected himself. 'Miss Hahm.'

'Why would she be here?' Jin pouted and scratched his chin.

Jimin's pupils ballooned beneath his thinned eyelids; he was accustomed to this nature. That teasing "I'm going to draw this out as long as possible to get a rise out of you" tone that drove him and Namjoon crazy. 'Don't-'

'Oh, wait, let me guess!' Jin feigned surprise and popped his index finger in the air. 'Miss Hahm got away when you were gone, and you want to kidnap her again, right?'

'Right!' Jimin declared, instantly realising his error in his haste to see her. 'I mean, no, no! Come on, Jin, quit fooling around. Were you at the beach house with Miss Hahm?'

'What beach house?'

Jimin's face plummeted.

Jin should have been questioning where he'd been for six weeks, or leading him to Yunhee. Instead, the jester was joking around and throwing him out of sorts.

'Do you want another welt on your forehead, motherfucker? We don't have time for this. Yunhee may be in danger.'

'From whom?' Jin chortled as he swivelled on his heel and swaggered away. 'You?'

That twinkle in his comrade's eye. Jimin was going to extinguish it.

'Jin!' he bellowed, pursuing him through the foyer into the west wing. He couldn't believe it; the idiot was snubbing him, chuckling wickedly as he strolled into the study with Jimin hard on his heels. 'Seokjin!'

'Why do you care so much about Miss Hahm being in danger?' Jin asked as he calmly walked to the desk to swipe up and thumb through a piece of paperwork. 'Do you like this woman?'

Fuck it. They'd always shared secrets.

'Yes.'

Dropping the document, Jin crossed his arms and lifted his chin as Jimin - nostrils flaring and borderline hyperventilating - shifted closer to the bureau. 'How much?'

'A lot.'

'But you kidnapped her.'

Oh, now he was taking the piss with his games. 'Jin, I don't know what you're trying to prove, but-'

'How far are you willing to go for her?'

'How far are you willing to test my patience?' Jimin thundered as he thumped his hand on the desk.

'I'm just trying to gauge how much you like her,' Jin shrugged, his eyes sparkling with impishness and his tongue poking out in amusement, 'because she seems pretty crazy about you.'

In three strides, Jimin had a laughing Jin by the lapels, swinging him around to shove him into the wall with brute force. 'I didn't cross an entire universe to listen to your stupid fucking sense of humour. Where is she?'

'Wow,' Jin's charcoal brows dipped, his comical façade transforming into an expression of genuine amazement, 'so everything she said was true.'

Before Jimin could speak, his right-hand man prised his fingers from his collar and moseyed to the balcony. Jimin tentatively observed him loitering on the threshold, his broad shoulders and slim waist a Godly silhouette as he admired the bare cherry trees soaking up the sunrise.

'She came to me four weeks ago,' Jin began, sliding his hands into his pockets as Jimin jolted out of his reverie, 'and after spending a couple of weeks here, she relocated to her grandma's house. It was what she wanted, so I helped her move in and stayed with her as often as I could.'

Jimin's heart swelled with fervour, his breathing shallow as he gradually approached the subdued man. 'Yunhee came here?'

'No, I brought her here after she ran to the club,' Jin corrected with an air of sadness. 'She had nowhere else to go, Jimin. She didn't want to see Tae or any of her friends after what happened. It was too soon.'

It became apparent that Jin knew the unconventional truth, and it was a comfort to learn that his faithful companion had not questioned it. The struggles that Yunhee had suffered on her journey, however, shrouded him, and he hated the idea of her enduring it without him.

'Thank you,' Jimin croaked, eternally grateful for his assistance, 'for not leaving her alone.'

'But I did leave her alone,' Jin's voice was raw as he turned, his eyes crowded with a grief that Jimin did not expect to see. 'I was always fond of her, Jimin. Even though we kidnapped her, the woman intrigued me and made me want to laugh. Like you, I never wanted to see her hurt. So, when I got to the beach house last night and saw Hoseok-'

'Jin,' Jimin pleaded, overflowing with dismay as he shot forward, 'please tell me they didn't take her.'

'They didn't,' Jin's reassuring words knocked the dreaded weight right off his shoulders, but Jimin still had to grasp the edge of the bureau to steady himself. 'Yunhee said that you warned her about Hoseok, and I was already en route after seeing Taehyung. I got there right in the nick of time.'

'Enough now,' Jimin scraped fervently, unable to bear his name, wanting only to see Yunhee. 'Where is she?'

Jin's lips twitched, and he jerked his head towards the blushing gardens before moving aside.

Treading onto the balcony, Jimin began to search the enchanting landscape of his beloved home, his eager gaze zipping across the green lawns and barren flowerbeds until they stopped at the base of the chequered terrace.

There - dawdling on the dewy grass and sipping coffee - was a petite figure staring up at his father's hideous fountain. He couldn't see her face, but Jimin instinctively knew that she was scrunching her nose in disapproval.

The way she always did when she disagreed with him.

Yunhee's locks blew in the gentle breeze, a wild head of hair that Jimin once considered preposterous. Now, it was the only thing he wanted to see. The only thing he longed to touch, every morning and every night, for the rest of his days.

'Bloody hell,' Jin huffed impatiently from the doorway, 'why are you standing there like a simpleton? Go to her.'

Jimin stood to attention, producing a noise that sounded like a dying animal as he rammed a snickering Jin out of his way and pegged it out of the study.

'You owe me one, Park!' Jin screamed as the mob boss sprinted to the rear of the property and burst out into the breaking day.

Never was a truer word spoken.

*

'Meh.'

The fountain really was ugly.

Or perhaps she was imagining it after only a few hours of restless sleep, hence the pungent mug of fresh coffee warming her frigid fingers. Still, it was energising to be outdoors, the drowsy sun pouring over the city helping Yunhee make sense of her unsettled afflictions.

Jimin was lost, Taehyung and Hoseok were here, and knowing the lengths the oppressive crooks would go to, she was imminently in trouble.

Taehyung had already reminded her of his capabilities by abducting Hobi and sabotaging Tae's bank account, and although the message was divergent, it was still loud and clear.

He was coming for her.

He needed to be stopped, but could she and Jin do it alone? Was it safe to return to the warehouse to try and bring Jimin home when danger lurked around every corner?

Yunhee sipped her brew and studied the weathered cherub squirting water into the fountain below its charming little feet. It may have been unattractive, but it aroused affectionate memories that served as a welcome distraction.

Memories of a blossoming romance on a balcony in another world.

Jimin had apprised her that evening of how his heinous father had installed the fountain when he was five years old, and they'd humorously spoken of destroying it together one day.

Would he be mad if she made a start? A sledgehammer would do the trick, and it would definitely help her blow off some steam.

'Hmm...'

Behind her, a door slammed against the exterior wall, followed by thudding boots hitting the terrace.

Yunhee rolled her eyes and slurped her coffee as she inspected the cupid's head; Jin, no doubt, freaking out because she wasn't inside the house.

'Do you think Jimin would be upset if I demolished this monstrosity without him?' she pondered aloud as the footfall came to a halt.

Jin's breathing was laboured. It sounded different. Almost like...

'Yes. I think he would.'

Though his voice was the same, had Yunhee seen him first, she would have denied that it was him.

Hellish weeks taunted with fleeting exchanges where physical contact was impossible. She could no longer bear it, but Jimin must have moved to the mansion, because their worlds were blending again.

'We were supposed to do it together someday.'

The frost-bitten gardens tilted and thawed, her steaming coffee staining the blades of grass when her cup plunged to the ground.

Yunhee swore she was going to wake up from a wonderful dream as she turned, because the man lingering on the terrace steps looked so, so real. His mucky attire and dishevelled, outgrown hair. The tiny, pink scar slicing through his black eyebrow that she'd pecked relentlessly when in his arms.

Those soulful, brown eyes that spoke a thousand words when they connected with hers.

'You're not real,' she mouthed as Jimin cleared the stairs and stalked towards her.

'I'm real,' he rasped, his pace quickening, 'I'm real and I'm here, Little Legs.'

The way her treasured name fell from his lips, the passion and sentiment it relayed, was enough to make her gasp for air.

Yunhee's legs began to move, her lips trembling as they broke into a jog, faster and faster until there was no space left to run.

Only to collide.

Jimin caught her when she catapulted into his body, the savagery of their collision knocking him off balance and tumbling them to the lawn in a heap of hysteria and tears.

'Thank God you're alright,' Jimin whispered as his fingers clutched her sweater. 'Thank God, thank God.'

Yunhee buried her face deep into his neck, his tense muscles crushing her spine as she cried to release the tension of the wasted weeks, for the time they would never get back, and for the chance for love to take centre stage and dance once again.

'It's you,' Yunhee choked, delving her nails into his hair. 'It's really you.'

Wanting to make sure she wasn't dreaming, she retracted an inch and rested the tip of her nose against Jimin's, moulding herself against his torso and the heart that thrummed within as he thumbed away her tears and smiled up at her.

'It's really me,' Jimin beamed, lifting his head from the wet grass to pepper her skin with open-mouthed caresses.

'I tried to find a way back,' she wept as their tears mingled. 'I'm so sorry for leaving you. There wasn't a day that went by that I didn't think about us. I've been going out of my mind.'

'Me too, darling,' Jimin crooned woefully. 'I'm sorry, too. So sorry that I couldn't get to you sooner.'

'It doesn't matter anymore,' Yunhee asserted happily while showering his dirt-ridden face with love. 'You're here now.'

'I'm here now, Little Legs. And I'm never going to leave you again,' he declared.

'You'd better not,' she forewarned, her heart fluttering when her gaze lowered to his oh-so-tempting lips. 'Kiss me?'

Jimin's grin was infectious, and Yunhee couldn't help but return it as he cupped her cheeks in a sweet touch of adoration.

'Hell fucking yes,' he growled before capturing her mouth in a long-awaited kiss.

***

WHO'S WEEPING? I AM WEEPING. I CANNOT DEAL WITH THIS.

Guys, this story is far from over. If anything, it's just about to begin, but I wanted to thank you for your patience and continued support, because I know this scene was a long time coming.

I truly hope it lived up to your expectations. And for anyone wondering why it was so short, we have a whole chapter coming up dedicated to our two faves catching up.

Cue both hilarious and slushy Yumin moments. Guffaaawww!

I love you all!

Tannie x

20th March 2021