As the final few shots for the girls' shoot wrap up, I scan the area for any sort of timepiece. It's been at least an hour and a half since the boys left, but I'm not sure exactly what time it is nonetheless. I put my hand on the shoulder of a girl named Yoobin next to me and strike a final pose— a winning smile with my other hand on my hip. My dress has Mickey Mouse on the front of it, and it's the final outfit of mine for the day. I'm excited to get out of here despite having a good time.

"Okay! Rin, Yoobin, you're done! That's a wrap!" Sangmi exclaims, shooting me a wink. I smile and step off the set, immediately bowing to all the staffs around me and thanking them for their hard work. Once I've bowed at everything that moves, Sangmi puts a hand on my shoulder.

"Excellent work again, Rin-ah," she muses. "Have you considered my offer yet? I know it's a big thing to think about, so please do take your time, but I'm curious."

"Well," I begin. "I really haven't had time to think about it all that much. I've been working on a lot of music lately and— well, this is supposed to stay under the radar, but Yoongi and I are going to release a collab track soon. That's been eating up a lot of my time recently, so I've been super busy just working on music. Not to mention a lot of other things going on with me. This is a lot of fun, Sangmi— it really is, don't get me wrong. I just need more time to think on it. I'm sorry if this is an inconvenience to you."

"It's okay, Rin. You take all the time you need to decide, alright? Just make sure if you're going to sign with a label that it's with me." She laughs and I can't help but laugh, too.

"Absolutely. Thank you, Sangmi."

"No problem. Now, go get changed. You don't get to keep those, after all."

"Right." I head to the wardrobe trailer and change back into my clothes. Yoobin is still there, and she chats with me as we're both getting ready to leave.

"This is really only your second gig?" She queries.

"Yeah, I don't have a lot of experience with this."

"You're a natural, kid. Are you signed to the label yet?"

"Thank you, and not yet. I've got a lot of other stuff I've been doing and I haven't really gotten the chance to think about Sangmi's offer yet."

"Well, hey, you'll make a lot of money from this. If it comes down to dollars and cents, this is the place to be."

"You're right about that," I say with a laugh. Internally, I think of the two million won that was wired to my bank account today— the same pay as the last time. If I do take this job, money won't be too much of a problem. Hell, I could probably quit working at the library.

"Hey, it's been nice, but I've gotta go. Hope to see you around, Rin!" Yoobin exclaims, leaving the trailer.

"Yeah, see you!" I reply. I spend a few more minutes cleaning myself up before I too leave the trailer and jump into my car. I've got to get my stuff from home.

As I drive, Bangtan's Danger begins to play. Odd, really, that an older song of theirs is playing on the radio now, but I'm not complaining. I smile, singing along to the best of my ability, and let my thoughts wander to how kind the boys are to me. Even Jungkook, who was terrified of me from the moment he first saw me, today ended up solving my biggest immediate problem. I'm going to have to write them all one hell of a thank-you note.

I pull into my driveway, but as I'm doing so I notice a small disturbance. The mailbox has been left open, and I can see a single letter inside. The mail normally does come today, but it's just strange that the door was left open. My mind wanders to Juyoung as I think about the letter, and I just hope it's not from him. I park the car and make my way to the mailbox, removing the letter and deciding to read it a little later. I unlock the door, set the letter on the coffee table, and rush up to my bedroom. I quickly gather pajamas, a couple changes of clothes, my phone charger, and all the necessary toiletries I'll be needing. Before I leave again, I decide to take a shower, feeling just a little gross from the photo shoot. I end up being in the shower for about thirty minutes, and when I'm done I change into leggings and a white t-shirt before I head back downstairs with my little bag of belongings. I'm about to walk out the door when I remember the letter on the coffee table. I quickly pick it up and scan it, hoping it's not a bill of some kind. Thankfully, but a bit confusingly, it's not. The letter is from a foster home outside of the city. I arch an eyebrow and sit down to open and read the letter. Pulling the piece of paper from its envelope, I begin to read.

Dear Miss Ah Rin,

Let me first introduce myself. My name is Bang Minkyeong, and I am the director here at Center for Support Foster Care. It has recently come to my attention that you and a friend of yours, who I only know as Yoongi, have been reading to some foster children who are currently living in my establishment. This group of children includes Yook Jieun, Song Jintae, Seol Seojin, Choo Geontae, and Je Heebon. This letter serves as a thank-you on behalf of my establishment. These five children have ranted and raved these past few weeks about how much fun they have when you and your friend read to them. I have watched their morale improve dramatically since they have started visiting the library. It is difficult to be a foster child, and seeing smiles on their faces brings a smile to my own.

There is another purpose for this letter, however. Jieun will soon be turning seven, and she has asked me over and over to invite you and Yoongi to her birthday party, which will be held here at Center for Support. It has come to my attention that your friend Yoongi may, in fact, be Suga of Bangtan Sonyeondan, but this is just a hunch going off of the kid's descriptions and his changing hair color. If this is the case, and he is busy at the time, he should feel no obligation to attend. Idols have very busy schedules, and we would not want to pressure him in any way. You, also, should feel no obligation if you are busy, but the children would love to have you. The party would be at three o'clock on June 17th, Jieun's birthday. Thank you very much for reading and receiving this letter, and thank you again for all you do for these children.

Best wishes,

Bang Minkyeong, Center for Support Foster Care

Reading the letter nearly brings me to tears. I hadn't realized the kids were orphans, and now it seems I've had a very profound effect on them. Realizing I need to tell Yoongi, I jam the letter into my bag and jump out the door. On the way, I stop at a corner store and pick up some ramen to eat once I've arrived at the dorm. I wouldn't want to take any of the boys' food supply, after all. I make my way to the dorm building and enter the elevator as if I actually live here. With my bag weighing down just a little more than I'd like on my shoulder, and the thought of the letter consistently nagging me, I'm not super comfortable on my ride up. Once I arrive on the right floor, I make my way to the door and use the key Jungkook had given me to unlock it. I take off my shoes and put the key on the kitchen counter, smiling as I get to cooking the ramen I bought. In Jungkook's own words, "Why worry about what's going on at home when you can take a little vacation?"

Admittedly, I was surprised when the maknae had invited me to spend the night at the dorm. Sure, I'd told him how uncomfortable Juyoung had made me, but I certainly hadn't expected such an offer from the kid. Not only that, but Jungkook even got the Manager's OK. That had sealed the deal for me, and I immediately took him up on his offer.

I cook the ramen and eat it on the couch, watching TV to distract me. Checking the time on my phone, I note that it won't be long until Bangtan returns from their showcase. I missed my chance to watch it, unfortunately, but I don't think they'll be exceedingly mad at me for not catching it.

After eating, I change into my pajamas and brush my teeth, not planning on doing anything else tonight. From there, I return to the couch to watch TV. An hour or so of mindless entertainment busies me until I hear commotion in the hallway, followed by the opening of the front door.

Immediately, I turn to greet the boys. "Hey, everyone! How'd it go?"

"Ah, we didn't win. It's alright, though!" Seokjin replies, giving me a tired smile.

"How are you, noona?" Jungkook asks.

"Okay," I reply. "Better, thanks to you."

I notice at that point that Yoongi is not part of the crowd at the door. As if reading my mind, Hoseok speaks. "He had to catch another elevator."

"Ah," is all I have for a reply. "By the way, Jungkook-ah, I left your key on the counter. Thank you for letting me use it."

"Anytime!" The maknae chirps. "Okay, everyone, I am going to bed. Goodnight!"

A chorus of goodnights echoes throughout the dorm as the other boys disperse either to their own rooms or to the kitchen. Seokjin comes up to me and with that same tired smile asks, "Do you want anything to eat?"

"I ate already, actually— I didn't want to make you guys do any more work than you normally would. Thank you, though, Jin."

"Of course, but never hesitate to ask for any—"

"Rin? What're you doing here?" Seokjin is interrupted by a very confused Yoongi standing in the doorway.

I look at Jin and roll my eyes. "You didn't tell him, did you?"

He chuckles. "Nope."

"I told Jungkook about how I didn't know what to do about Juyoung, and he invited me to spend the night. So, for this evening, this couch is my home," I laugh.

"I see," Yoongi responds. "Wait, Jungkook invited you?"

"I was just as surprised as you, in all honesty."

"Interesting." I notice that Seokjin has herded the other boys into their bedrooms, leaving Yoongi and me alone. Yoongi takes a seat next to me on the couch and I remember the letter.

"Oh, hey, you should read this," I say, getting it out of my bag. "It's important."

"Sure," Yoongi replies, taking the letter from me. I watch his face as he reads it, noting how his expression changes from confused to shocked before he looks up at me and speaks.

"They're orphans? How did I not know that?"

"I had no idea, either. I feel kind of awful. We were spending all that time with them, we should have known. Our poor kids."

Of course, this just has to be the moment Jimin walks in for something. "You're having kids? God, Yoongi, you do have game. You didn't take her out to dinner or anything!"

Yoongi rolls his eyes. "No one's having kids, Jimin. Here, read this." He presents Jimin with the letter and he scans it quickly.

"Well, all I know is that the birthday party is after Fire promotions end, so you could theoretically both go. Don't have much else to give you, though." He walks into the kitchen, then, and leaves for the bedrooms moments later with a water bottle in his hand. "Goodnight, guys."

"'Night, Jimin," I say. Then I turn my attention back to Yoongi. "So, we're going, right? To the party?"

"Hang on, June 17th seems familiar." He takes a second and scrolls through his phone's calendar before sighing. "Yeah, thought so. That's the first day of our MV shoot."

"Oh," I manage, defeated. "So we won't be able to make it?"

"I don't know. It all depends on how long it takes to do the performance shots."

"Do we even have our concept yet?" I question.

"No, unfortunately."

At that point, I'm struck with the definition of an epiphany. "Yoongi!"

"Yes?"

"We can have the kids in the video! The concept can literally just be telling our story. We can have Jieun and Jintae play us as kids, and we can hang out with them and do the shoot. It's killing two birds with one stone."

Yoongi nods, a smile slowly worming its way onto his face. "I like it. We'll have to call CEO-nim to get the OK, but I'm sure that he'll just be excited that we have a concept."

"I can go talk to him tomorrow if you want. And I can double check with the director, too, to make sure it's okay. I don't have anything planned, so I can just take care of it while you're promoting."

"Okay, and maybe if you're up for it, you could stay late again? We'll need to storyboard the concept after CEO-nim approves it, so that'll take a lot of time out of both of us. It'd be good if we could both do it together."

"Sure, that works for me. This is great, Yoongi— things are falling into place."

"They are, aren't they?" He says, stretching out. A yawn escapes his mouth and he leans back on the couch, clearly exhausted.

I laugh, nudging his arm. "You should go to bed, Yoongi. You're obviously dead on your feet."

"Yeah, but this couch is so comfortable, I don't want to get up. I could just sleep here, yeah?"

"You could, but that'd mean me stealing your bed."

"Yeah, that will not be happening," Yoongi says. With a devious smirk, he grabs me around the waist and holds me where I sit.

"But you're too tired to get off the couch," I say, rolling my eyes.

"Yeah, it seems I've just about used up all the strength I have left." He stretches out, his arms still not moving from around my waist. Unable to believe the nerve on this kid, I move with him until we're both laying down.

"You're just a little bit pathetic, you know that?" I say, smirking.

"Sure, but you haven't gotten up. So, I'm okay with being pathetic right now."

"I can't believe you."

"Sshh, stop talking, I'm trying to sleep," Yoongi whines.

I roll my eyes again and rest my head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. As sassy as I'm being, I'm immensely okay with this. I consider using the old "Goodnight, Min Yoongi" line, but decide against it. Saying anything would completely ruin the moment.

And just like that, with my head on Yoongi's chest and his arms around me, I slowly but surely fall into a deep and peaceful sleep.

☽☼☾

hello!

who could it possibly be, updating before midnight? what kind of heresy is this?

well, it's me. i was feeling productive today, is all.

anyway, if you feel so inclined, please leave feedback, whether it be positive or constructive criticism. it makes me better at writing, so it really does mean a lot to me.

thank you, and SAVE THE BEES,

sam

☽☼☾