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"Jungkook!"

Jungkook, who was leaning on his car, looks up from his phone hearing his name and his eyes crinkle seeing someone run towards him. He stands straight, adjusting his clothes and lowers his mask. He really didn't want to come here alone, almost said no to Taehyung on call but something, just something in him said that this is where he should be, today. 

"Sunbae," he smiles, bowing to Seojun who pats his shoulders.

"Look at you! Is it because all I see here are mud-covered faces or have you become more handsome in these past few months?" Seojun comments and laughs at his own joke. He does that often, exaggerating stories and situations to work in his favour so that he can make that one joke he's always been itching to say. 

Jungkook grins before returning the compliment, "You seem to be glowing too, Sunbae."

"Oh really? Waking up at 5 in the morning does that to you."

Jungkook laughs along with him before Seojun gestures towards somewhere, urging him to walk."Let's get some lunch, we can talk there." 

Jungkook nods, walking by him. Seojun is not easy to keep up a conversation with, Jungkook notes when the elder asks him about his work and then goes on to tell about his. Everything he says is layered with a series of triumphs, so much that it almost makes Jungkook scoff. He does remember Seojun bluffing some stories when they had met before, but God, did the military really build a whole castle for his ego?

 It's not until they are at the restaurant, does Seojun come to the point. Near to it at the least, it is enough for Jungkook to initiate.

"Oh right, was Jimin not coming with you? Yesterday, when Taehyung had called me up, he said I should expect both of you."

Jungkook shakes his head and sighs, taking a seat and thanking the waiter that led them inside the restaurant. It's a typical fast food place near a military base, Jungkook would otherwise not eat but Seojun seems adamant about it. 

"Yes, he was supposed to but..." he pauses and glances around. He has been worried that someone might recognise him and things would get out of hand if anyone gets the slightest hint on what he's talking about here."He couldn't, I mean he found his soulmate...and it is not really pleasant." 

Seojun laughs. "That's wonderful though. I am sure they'll come around. My friend had found out that his one-night stand is his soulmate and literally got traumatised about any kind of intimacy. Only when his soulmate married someone else, he did realise her feelings about her. They had to flee to marry, I had helped them by arranging an on-air marriage to Mauritius for free, my uncle's son's friend is a pilot, you know? Let me know if you ever need—"

Jungkook almost wants to kneel and thank the waiter who interrupted them to take their order. After they order their food, it's as if Seojun forgets whatever he was talking about and moves on to another topic."How's Taehyung doing? Is he holding up well?"

"He is doing well, I think so. I mean we talked this morning and he seemed to be so. He and Eunbee, that's his soulmate's name—by the way—they are living at her apartment for the time being..."

"Yes. That he did tell me yesterday. It's good if they are trying to make it work, otherwise, it would be like one of my friends—"

"Right!" Jungkook exclaims, all of a sudden, silently praying that Seojun doesn't notice his desperation to make him shut up. "He also wanted to congratulate you on the medal you won recently."

"Oh..." Seojun grins and silently thanks Jungkook. It seemed to have worked because he moves back into the topic once again. "He also told me that the string has been acting up. Acting up, like what? " 

Jungkook nods and thanks the waiter when he places their food on the table. He waits for the waiter to be at a distance far enough he can't hear anything from before continuing, "Yeah, like it forms knots in between, usually when someone touches it. The string I think is already shorter than usual and then the knots make it more. If they aren't close, the knot forms in that stretch of the string and it chokes Eunbee." 

Seojun furrows his eyebrows, "Really? Only Eunbee does? But the knot should pull both sides, right? "

Jungkook nods, "That's why it's 'acting up'. It has happened twice— we didn't mean to touch their strings because it was only strange for them to be visible to our eyes—but yeah, it was only her whose string tightened..."

Seojun sighs, shaking his head. It's unfortunate that they have fallen into such a fate, but it is extremely strange as well. Something doesn't sit right, and anyone who hears this can feel it.

"That's why they are forced to sleep in one bed, be in the same room, they can't even move from one place to another in peace— the other has to tag along," Jungkook knows he's rambling at this point, telling information he might not say otherwise. But the noodles are too good, the bond so strange and he can't help it.

"Alright, I see. That's actually very strange, I thought Taehyung was just panicking for nothing the other day." Seojun tilts his head slightly and then shrugs. "But, I don't know how can I help you, Jungkook."

Jungkook licks his lips before placing down his chopsticks, to ask him carefully and on point. They need every information they can gather to get out of this situation or make it better. 

"Actually Hyung said you know how to cut those strings. I mean— he also mentioned that you once told him about one of your family members doing today."

Seojun looks surprised, a little hesitant as well. He nods, as if unsure, "Yes my great-grandfather."

The short answer seems to surprise Jungkook, so he presses on the matter, "Do you know how to do it? If we can do that, it might really help Hyung, you know? He's an idol, after all, it would be difficult if he has to keep Eunbee close to him or even have that string hanging from his neck."

Seojun purses his lips, scratching his ear and looking outside the restaurant on the road. "Yeah, well.." 

Seojun tells him the story of his grandfather and how they broke their bond. If anything, Jungkook knows Seojun could bluff a lot, fuck, the whole story could be a lie. But Taehyung trusts him, he said, "He might bluff but for that too, he needs some truth. We need to know 'that' truth from him, Kook."

Jungkook sighs, hearing the story. He's lost count on how many times he has in the past two days. It's been a mess ever since the strings showed up, the abrupt cancellation of schedules and whatnot.

"Thank you so much Sunbae," he says, once they are outside the restaurant. Jungkook had insisted on paying but Seojun just slapped his hand away every time he tried to produce his card.

The elder shakes his head, "I don't know if I was of much help, these stories are just passed through the word of mouth in families anyway."

Jungkook nods and groans."Honestly, we just need a lead Sunbae. We have sent an email to the headquarters too, you know, if they can help sort anything out. But we are kind of in a hurry, our comeback was scheduled soon— we don't know how long that can extend. Even Eunbee, well, she is not taking this well at all. She refuses to speak to anyone, even V Hyung at that." 

"It's understandable," Seojun pats his shoulder and then looks up at the sky somewhere as if he was giving him a ted-talk before a war, like in the movies. "Perhaps finding out that a stranger is their soulmate is easier to process than having it be their childhood buddy."

. . .

"Major Lee, this is not the first time you have overlooked your senior's orders!"

Jungkook is exchanging his goodbyes with Seojun in front of the entrance gate to the training camp when they hear a raucous voice from the ground across the fence and whirl their head towards it.

Seojun sighs, noticing the scene and shakes his head."Major Lee again, give her a break from this commander."

Jungkook looks at the scene, confused and curious when he notices a woman— given the ponytail— standing straight, with her shoulders up, hands back, head low and face covered with a mask. She looks like she is being scolded by the rough one man standing in front of her. Jungkook can't see him because the man has his back turned towards him.

"What should I answer to the higher-ups now!?" the commander yells. Yes, definitely getting scolded.

For some reason, Jungkook can't find himself looking away. He keeps staring at the woman, even when Seojun pats his shoulder to say goodbye. It is not until Seojun speaks, does Jungkook look back at him.

"Anyway, I will get going now, reach home safe and don't worry too much, we'll figure something out."

When Seojun turns back to walk inside, Jungkook suddenly remembers something and calls the man out. 

"Didn't you say your great grandfather and his soulmate never met again after they had broken their bond? But like they did not want to break their bond to be normal friends again— like then why did they do not meet again then?" 

Seojun shrugs, "Never really bothered knowing that."

If Jungkook is disappointed, he doesn't let it show and waves goodbye. He finds himself turning towards the ground again, where he had seen that woman. The commander seems to be nowhere now and she's scooting down to tie her shoelaces. Then, as if everything around him is happening in slow motion.

The woman doesn't seem to have taken notice of Jungkook and she stands straight, dusting her clothes. 

That is where it all started.

When she hooks her finger around her mask's loop to remove it.

Jungkook's jaw drops in awe when he takes her in.

Beautiful pink petals on the honey skin that he wants to touch, tendrils he wants to twirl his finger around, a Juliet rose that was painted on her neck, something rare more than the flower itself. A swirl from its leaf disappearing beneath her uniform's collar, makes him want to rip her clothes right away and skim through the beauty.

He doesn't understand the sudden urge building inside him but he can blame it all on her tattoos— her tattoos are the most beautiful bouquet he would ever see.

The flowers that would never wither away, the flowers he would love to kiss every morning he wakes up, a painting he would like to paint lilac with his own pink lips.

The time around him completely stops when the woman looks up and their eyes meet.

Jungkook forgets how to breathe, forgets that he is an idol, forgets what he was here for. He can't read anything in her expression, but he does catch her eyes twinkling under the sunset.

Then the moment breaks.

She walks away, nonchalantly and Jungkook coughs a little when he finally breathes. He would have surely died if she did not walk away. His phone buzzes in his pocket, and he takes it out to see Taehyung's message.

V Hyung:

Did you meet him?

What did he say?

Jungkook ignores the message. He doesn't want to give his friend any unsure information and instil false hope in him. He wants to make sure of everything before he passes on any information. Seojun's story seemed like a fairytale, something impossible but Taehyung would insist on believing it.

Jungkook thinks hard while he is driving back home. His mind momentarily flashing images of the woman with tattoos and he shakes his head to get rid of it. But he cannot because somewhere inside, he knows he wants to cherish it. To distract himself, he thinks of the conversation he had with Seojun, trying to make sense of whatever he told.

"If they did manage to break the string, why did they not meet or stay as friends afterwards? Was it a mutual decision to not meet after? Was their goal only to break the bond and move on with their own lives? But..." He thinks loudly. "What if something went wrong? Were they injured? Or did they damage their body or brain..."

Jungkook tilts his head in uncertainty and taps his fingers along the steering wheel. He thinks and thinks. If what Seojun is saying is actually true, then his grandfather did have plans to go on a trip with his childhood best friend— a world tour he had mentioned. Then what is the reason did they not go to that trip or even stay in touch? 

The whole breaking of the bond thing would serve as such a great piece of information for people who get tied to someone against their will. But there's no information available anywhere about it. Did the story only pass through generations of his family and that also in broken bits?

Why? That's extremely strange.

Seojun never bothered knowing about it, no one even told him in his family. He stops on the signal and turns the radio on. "Lee Jungwon, the renowned writer has been diagnosed with Amnesia after he had a fall..."

Jungkook widens his eyes, staring at the radio and then his ears grow deaf to the voice speaking. His brain tries to connect all the dots of different incidents he read and heard to what Seojun told him.

And then it's another scenario, which might make sense, he thinks.  

If only they lost memories of each other.

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