The next day, everyone was excited for the New Year's Eve party that night. The suite had been closed off to the group while the staff worked on decorating, so they had decided to go to a nearby park to burn time until they had to get ready. The staff had planned a picnic for them, and Ji-Hoon had brought his camera so he and Alex could tape some light interviews while they were there.

Jungkook was laying on the grass with his eyes closed, the sun was shining, and he was humming a tune to himself. Jimin and Hobi had grabbed a frisbee from the hotel shop on their way out and were tossing it around to Jin and Tae. Yoongi was sitting on the ground leaning against a tree in the shade. With his sunglasses on it was hard to tell, but he had quite possibly fallen asleep. Namjoon had brought a book with him and was sprawled over a blanket while he read.

Alex was making notes in her journal while Ji-Hoon got the camera ready. They were keeping it casual, so they let the guys keep doing what they were doing while they asked questions.

The camera zoomed in on Namjoon first, "RM, with the new year approaching what is something you'd like to accomplish or do that you haven't yet?"

RM rolled over to his side and rested his head on his hand while he thought about it. "I think, if I were to choose something I haven't done before, I'd like to travel a little more. Something like backpacking through Europe, or biking."

Alex nodded her head, she could see him doing that. "Jungkook, what about you?"

He still had his eyes closed and had his arms behind his head, "I think I may try and break a world record."

Alex and the others laughed, "Which one are you going to try and break?"

He shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know, I may just look through the books and choose one I think I can beat." Alex smiled and shook her head, she could absolutely see him succeeding.

Jin yelled over to Alex, " I want to travel to famous restaurants around the world. We'll call it a food tour." He laughed as he tossed the frisbee to Jimin. "Your turn, Jimin."

"I'm not sure." He thought to himself for a minute, "I think I want to start up a dance school, for underprivileged kids whose families can't afford it on their own. There is a lot of talent out there that goes unnoticed just because they don't have the means."

"Wow," Rm sat up, "that's an amazing idea."

Jimin smiled, "What about you Hobi?"

Hobi pulled his sunglasses down his nose and looked out over the rims, "I want to start my own clothing line. I think I could do well at designing."

Tae clapped his hands, "Yes, hyung, I can see you doing that and succeeding very well." He scooped up the frisbee and tossed it in the air. "I think I'd like to learn another instrument. Maybe the double bass. I like the feeling it puts in your soul when you listen to jazz."

Alex could imagine them doing all of those things. She looked over at Yoongi to see if he was awake. He had taken his sunglasses off and was looking up at the sky thoughtfully. "What about you Yoongi, what do you want to do or try?"

He put his sunglasses back on and crossed his arms over his chest. "I think I want to invest in some real estate. Something over in the states."

Tae nodded his head, "That makes sense with how much you are over there when you are working with American artists. You could split your time up between home and there."

Yoongi nodded his head in agreement, "That would be the plan. If we aren't busy with promotions or events. I could be over there, maybe find a new way to spend my time when I'm not working."

Alex never considered he would live anywhere but South Korea, but Tae was right. It made sense to have a house there instead of living out of hotels. "Where would you buy a house? California? Maybe New York?"

Yoongi shook his head, "I don't think I want to be in a big city. I'll have to research and see what I find."

Alex checked her watch, "Well, we better go. It's time to go make ourselves hot for tonight."

"Oh, well then I'll just stay here. I mean, I'm already hot." Jin ran his fingers through his hair and put his modeling face on.

Alex rolled her eyes, "Then maybe we should slap a mole on your face and tone you down a bit."

The guys all burst out laughing as they gathered up their things to head back to the hotel. Jimin was still laughing when he came up beside Alex as they walked and slung his arm over her shoulder, "Oh, Alex, you really do fit in with us."

She smiled up at him, "Why thank you."

________

Alex spun in a circle in front of the mirror. She was suddenly nervous about the dress she had brought for the party. It had seemed like a saucy idea originally, maybe she could make Yoongi blush a bit, but now she almost felt like a hussy. Oh well, she didn't have any other options, so she was going to have to put a brave face on and strut her stuff. She checked her makeup one last time. She went with her signature smokey look, and her hair flowed down her back in big soft curls. Her heels were killer, but she knew she'd have them kicked off before the night even started.

She grabbed her room key and headed down to the suite. The guys were already there with Ji-Hoon waiting. She walked in and was greeted by loud music coursing through the room. It had been decorated in a casino night theme. There were large poker tables in the center of the room with chips and decks of cards waiting to be played. Balloons and tinsel curtains covered the walls, an ice sculpture sat on a tabled covered in appetizers and finger foods, and there was a small bar set up in the corner with numerous bottles of liquor for any drink they may want. On the other side of the room was a photo booth station in case they wanted to take their photos.

Alex found herself smiling from ear to ear, "Oh, this is going to be so much fun!"

The guys had been waiting for Alex to arrive so they could get the party started. They were all dressed up in tuxes to match the theme of the night, high rollers. Yoongi had been checking his watch again when he felt Jimin hit him in the arm. He looked over at him and saw him pointing towards the door. Alex had just walked in, and she looked drop dead gorgeous. His jaw fell and all thought left his head.

She wore a black sequins dress, strapless, that hugged her body all the way down to the floor. His eyes followed the slit in the dress that went all the way up her thigh, then he continued up her body till he finally landed on her eyes. She was looking at him with a knowing smirk.

Jimin put his drink in Yoongi's hand and he downed it in one swallow. He handed it back to him then walked over to Alex. He wrapped his arm around her waist and leaned in to give her a small hug. He stepped back and looked at her again. He licked the corner of his lip. "You really know how to make an entrance."

"Oh, this old thing?" Alex looked down at her dress then waved her hand in the air, "I've had it for years." She gave him a wink then walked past him to say hi to the others and grabbed herself a drink.

Yoongi didn't know what had gotten into her, but the Alex he saw tonight sparked a whole new wave of emotions in him. She was like a chameleon, constantly changing her colors. For once, she was keeping him on his toes, and he couldn't wait to see what she did next. He walked over to the group and listened as the guys gave Alex compliments on how she looked. His heart swelled a bit, he was proud of her, and he was feeling pretty lucky himself.

After sampling the food that was set out, they headed for a poker table and sat down to play. Tae took the dealer spot first and passed out their cards. They were playing Texas Hold'Em, a favorite of Alex's. An hour later, she was sitting with the biggest pile of chips on the table. Several of the guys were glaring at her, in fun. She hadn't had the heart to tell them she was pretty good at this game.

RM folded his hand after he had played his last chip. He downed the last of his drink then pointed his finger at Alex, "You're a sneaky one. Next time I'll know better."

She shrugged her shoulders and gave him a cute smile, "Sorry! At least we didn't make real bets on anything." She grabbed the deck of cards for her turn to deal.

Yoongi was sitting back in his chair, swirling his drink as he watched her. She didn't realize it, but she was shining tonight. She stole the attention of the room, and was completely oblivious to it. This beautiful, funny, smart, considerate woman actually liked him. He couldn't call her his, yet, but that was all going to change very soon.

They started wrapping up the last game as the clock was getting close to midnight. Champagne and noisemakers were passed out to everyone. The doors to the balcony were open wide so they could here the fireworks around the city. As the countdown started Yoongi had the sudden urge to be alone with Alex. He took her hand and pulled her out to the balcony with him. 10, 9, 8 . . . . they watched as fireworks erupted throughout the city . . . . 7, 6, 5 . . . . Yoongi looked over at Alex, she was staring up at the sky, a smile spread across her face . . . . 4, 3 . . . . he turned her toward him and grabbed her face in his hands . . . . 2, 1!

"Happy New Year." His lips crushed against hers for a kiss that caused their own fireworks to erupt. Alex had to hold on to his sides to keep her balance. In the background they barely heard the cheers from everyone inside. In that moment, it was just the two of them. After what had seemed like hours, Yoongi drew his head back and looked down at Alex. She was looking up at him, her eyes half closed, her lips were red and swollen from their kiss. He had never wanted to scoop her up and take her away as badly as he did right then.

"C'mon you two, the drinks are getting warm!" Jimin yelled from the doorway.

"Saved by the bell." Yoongi remarked sarcastically as he rolled his eyes.

Alex laughed, "Did you have other plans?" She took him by the hand and lead him back into the party.

They stepped inside just as Tae was grabbing a microphone, he started singing "I've Got You Under My Skin" by Frank Sinatra. Alex sat on one of the couches to watch him. Yoongi brought her a drink and stood behind her, he was tracing soft circles on her shoulder as they listened to Tae.

RM and Jin were standing off to the side watching Yoongi and Alex. RM slapped his hand on Jin's shoulder, "Well, it looks like our boy is all grown up and ready to leave the nest."

Jin feigned wiping away tears, "It just happens so fast." They laughed at themselves as they walked over to join the rest of the group.

They partied into the wee hours of the morning before everyone made their way back to their rooms. Yoongi was walking Alex to her door. "Get some sleep, the next couple of days are going to be rough." He ran the back of his knuckle down her cheek then headed down the hall to his room.

"Night." Alex was all smiles as she walked into her room. She knew her head would be killing her tomorrow, but she didn't care. She was still floating from their kiss on the balcony. She didn't bother washing her face, she was too tired to. She slipped off the dress and hung it over the back of the chair and crawled into bed. She was out before she could count to three.