A/N:  Is this soon enough to call a double update??? Not really sure but the newest edit is ready to roll. I hope you enjoy it!

Jimin and Taehyung led the others out of the dance studio, hair still wet from their showers. They had learned long ago that spending too much time styling their wet hair would only lead to disaster after hitting the road in their rented 2015 Ford Mustang convertible. They made their way through the small asphalt lot towards their black car, the top already down to prevent the day’s heat from gathering inside. Taehyung quickly unlocked the doors, allowing Jimin and Jungkook to squeeze into the back seats as Hoseok climbed into the front and Taehyung took the wheel. Originally Hoseok, as the eldest, had been their driver but it didn’t take long to figure out he couldn’t handle the busy L.A. streets well. Taehyung, on the other hand, was a natural at zooming through traffic. It was important he had a competent navigator however or there was no telling where they’d end up, most likely halfway across the country.

“It’s our last night in L.A. Where do we want to eat?” Taehyung asked excitedly before even starting the car. After much debate between In and Out Burger, Sonic, and their favorite Korean BBQ joint, the latter was chosen. “You guys sure?” he asked as he pulled out into traffic, Hoseok pointing out the correct way.

“We have a whole week left eating American food but who’s to say we’ll find any more good Korean food while we’re here.” Jimin reasoned aloud. As much as they enjoyed their stay in L.A. there was no denying they all missed home. It was nice to be able to indulge in familiar foods from time to time. It was a great way to combat homesickness.

The drive to Korea Town was filled with blaring music as the boys sung along. The air in the convertible was hot, even with the wind buffeting them as the late May day began to bleed into the evening. Despite the heavy traffic, the boys were used to the dirty air quality that beat its way through the open roof. The smog, reminiscent of Seoul, went completely undetected as they sped from highway to highway.

After almost an hour in the car, they finally pulled off the busy streets, parking in the small lot behind their favorite Korean BBQ place. Energies were high as they piled out of the car and made their way through the back door into the establishment. Their usual server, Soohyun, sat them in a horseshoe-shaped red vinyl booth near the back knowing they could get rather loud and rowdy at times.

“I’m famished,” Taehyung complained before rattling off the group’s usual order. Soohyun expertly took the large order down and then headed back into the kitchen. “I’m gonna miss this place when we go back to Seoul.” Taehyung lamented as he turned his attention to his friends. “We definitely need to eat as much meat as we can while we still have the chance.” The others laugh wholeheartedly, agreeing all the way.

“Weren’t you concerned about the dieting when you decided to become a trainee?” Hoseok asked the orange haired male in a teasing voice. The boys were all pretty close but they had never discussed what had led them to dream of becoming idols.

“, hyung.” Taehyung laughed. “I just didn’t want poor Jiminie to have to audition all alone. I never thought I’d actually end up here, you know?”

Jungkook and Hoseok both looked scandalized at this answer. “But… your parents? Your family is okay with you becoming an idol?” Hoseok couldn’t help but ask. The question itself left a bit of a bitter aftertaste on his tongue as he tried not to think of his own father’s disapproval of his life choices.

“Well, I guess,” Taehyung answered. His shoulders tensed a bit, uncomfortable talking about his family. However, he figured that, since they were all friends and would eventually debut in the same group, he might as well get at least the short version of his life story out in the open. Especially since Jimin already knew everything anyway. “Actually, my mom died when I was about 10. Life was pretty ty after that, to be honest. But, thankfully, my dad’s in prison now. He, uh, beat me so bad I almost died so now I don’t have to put up with the abuse anymore.” At the look of guilt on Hoseok’s face, he quickly added, “It’s okay though, hyung. It was a long time ago and it led me to move in with my aunt and uncle. I was pretty messed up at the time but between my new home and meeting Jimin, I think I turned out alright, you know? I suddenly had people around me who cared and Jimin taught me to look towards the future. I was happy to discover that I was good at something that wasn’t illegal and singing especially became just as important to me as it was to Jiminie. I’ll never be as good of a dancer as you guys are but now that I’m a trainee I can work even harder at becoming the best me possible.”

“Wow.” Hoseok breathed out, unconsciously dismissing the younger’s odd wording. Taehyung was well known for being unconventional after all.  “I don’t feel like I deserve to think I had it rough after hearing that.”

Before anyone could question his statement, Soohyun returned with a tray covered in the boys’ drinks, rice, and numerous side dishes. “I’ll be right back with your meat,” she said in her singsong voice.

Once she left, Jimin continued the conversation. “Was it hard for you to decide to be an idol, Hobi hyung?”

“Actually, that was the easy part.” Hoseok confided with a huff. “My dad was dead set against it, however. I’m lucky my mom and sister supported me though. My mom even had to get a job out of town so we had enough money for me to go to my high school. It was extra expensive since it specialized in rap and dance. My dad refused to use the money he made on the tuition. He didn’t want me involved with anything that included rap or dance but my mom gave up on her dreams when she married my dad so I think that’s why she wanted me to be able to follow my own dreams, you know?

“Actually, once my mom was gone for work, I had to sneak out of the house all the time to do underground dance battles. My dad was always pissed off at me but my mom understood, even if she wasn’t there to stand up for me with my dad. In the end, I had to disobey my dad in order to battle. I hated disappointing him with my ‘bad behavior’ but, as it turns out, it was the right thing to do. My friends usually recorded the battles and posted them on youtube. When I finally moved to Seoul, I was already kinda known and it landed me an invite to audition at Big Hit. I wouldn’t be here if I had done what my dad had insisted. I just hope we can do well so I can prove to him that I wasn’t being selfish and childish by chasing my dreams like he always claimed.”

It was momentarily silent at the table, the younger three soaking in this new insight to the normally bright and bubbly male’s background. It gave them a deeper sense of responsibility, knowing that Hoseok was relying on them to help make their group the best it could be. “I’m so glad you’re here with us, hyung,” Jimin said in all honesty.

“Thanks, Jiminie,” Hoseok replied with a somewhat forced smile.

“I remember overhearing some of the guys talking about you at the audition and some of the old trainees too, hyung. They were always passing their phones around when they talked about you. I bet they were looking at your videos, huh!?” Taehyung exclaimed, bouncing excitedly in his seat. He suddenly felt like he was sitting next to a celebrity.

“Alright. Here’s your bulgogi, samgyeopsal, galbi, and your extra side of kimbap.” Soohyun interrupted the awkward atmosphere with her arrival. The boys thanked her as she set the dishes on the table then walked away. Hoseok was quick to grab the tongs, busying himself with setting the first round of meats onto the grill in the middle of the table.

“What about you, Kookie?” Jimin asked curiously as the meat began to cook.

“Me?” Jungkook questioned, still sometimes surprised when the others addressed him. When Jimin nodded at him in affirmation he replied, “Uh, well, I got tired of studying martial arts all the time so when my homeroom teacher suggested I join the dance club at school I did. It turned out I was pretty good at it. Then my teacher asked if I could sing too and when he heard me he said I’d be amazing if I took some vocal lessons. When that turned out well too I decided the next step would be to audition for a company. I know I can be pretty quiet but music has always been important to me. Getting to work with music every day just makes me happy. What about you, hyung?” Jungkook was more than happy to get the attention off himself and back onto the others.

“Well,” Jimin stopped to consider his words before he spoke. It was never easy talking about his home life. His father was a CEO for the largest hospital in Busan. While the man had been mostly absent, busy ruling his own professional world, Jimin’s mother had ruled over the homefront. He had never felt anything but disdain from his parents. Being born as a soulmate to some unknown whom his mother was sure was some lowly peasant, was a black mark against him all his life. He was hidden away from the public eye while his younger brother was touted as the genius heir to his father’s throne. Looking back, he was sure the only reason his parents let him attend lessons and then join a company had been to get him out of the house so they wouldn’t have to put up with him.

Trying to shake off the negative images, Jimin plastered his best happy-go-lucky smile on his face, trying to sound nonchalant as he replied, “I guess I’ve been singing and dancing most of my life and I’ve never really considered doing anything else. When I was about four, I went to my cousin noona’s ballet class with her. I wasn’t really a part of the class but I’m told they couldn’t keep me from participating. I vaguely remember begging my parents to let me join. Since then I’ve studied ballet, contemporary, jazz, tap, modern, and now hip-hop dancing. I talked my parents into letting me take vocal lessons too starting in third grade and have basically been working my whole life to be an idol. It’s all I’ve ever wanted to be.” He felt no need to add that being an idol got him out of the house at an early age which he would forever be grateful for.

As the meat finished cooking, Hoseok cut it up and distributed it onto everyone’s plates. They continued the conversation between mouthfuls as Hoseok also put more meat on the grill.

“What about your soulmate? How are you supposed to find each other if you’re too busy being an idol?” Hoseok asked Jimin, nodding towards the black tattoo-like outline on the heel of his left hand that proclaimed his having a soulmate. It was believed that, at the beginning of humanity, everyone had had a soulmate but over the centuries, as the world had become more heavily populated, the need for soulmates diminished and therefore the phenomenon diminished as well, currently being very rare.

Again, Jimin tried hiding his doubts with a smile. He tried not to think of how relieved his family would be if he never found his soulmate as he answered, “You see, hyung, I’ve actually put a lot of thought into this.” He wasn’t truly sure how much of his answer was deep thought and how much was his attempt at rationalizing the life road he had decided to take. “My soulmate is more or less supposed to be a part of who I am, right? Just like I’m supposed to be a part of who they are.” The other boys nodded, signaling that they were following Jimin’s logic so far. “Well, if I were to deny who I am by not chasing my dreams, I’d also be denying who they are and would have no way of finding them. But, if I follow the path of my dreams, of who I am, it’s bound to lead me to my soulmate as well, right?” The thought of finding true love seemed so far-fetched yet he couldn’t help but hope, even if finding his soulmate meant his parents would hate him forever.

“I’m telling you guys he’s a freaking genius.” Taehyung piped in, proud of his best friend. Hoseok just nodded, not finding any fault in Jimin’s theory even if it was just a theory. Jungkook, on the other hand, furrowed his brow, not sure if that was really how soulmates worked but not finding the right words to question his hyung. Then again, it’s not like he had ever met another soulmate before. In the end, all he could do was hope the other boy was right.

They dismissed the heavy topics as the next round of meat was pulled off the grill. The rest of the meal was filled with jokes and lively banter as usual. Everyone savored their meal and as their stomachs were filled to the brim, the tiredness of the day began to seep ever deeper into their bones. Finally, it was time to head to the small apartment they shared during their stay in the U.S. Tomorrow they would be heading on an adventure.

The sun was setting behind the Rocky Mountains, reds and oranges dyeing the sky as Jin drove through the busy streets of Boulder, Colorado. It was finals season so the whole town seemed to be a little more frantic than usual. Stiffly, he finally pulled up to his apartment complex, glad to be off the road at last. The apartments looked nice from the outside, each section painted different pastel colors; pink, blue, green, coral, yellow. With a fatigued groan, he slowly pulled his aching body out of his tan Honda Civic, grabbing his loaded bag from the back seat before trudging into his pink apartment complex.   

Just like the dying light outside, it was dim inside the building; the fluorescent light fixtures placed sparsely along the hallway leading to each of the eight doors per floor. Jin trudged his way up three flights of stairs, heavy duffel bag hanging from his broad shoulders and bouncing off his thigh with each step. His sandy brown hair hung in his eyes as he watched his feet take one step at a time, his head too heavy to hold up. He was so glad to be home, having traveled to Nebraska for three days in order to interview a soulmate couple for his thesis paper. To say the experience was a bit unnerving was an understatement. The couple lived in a tiny little hick town in the middle of nowhere and had never met an “oriental person” as they called Jin. He may have been the one asking the questions but he felt like he was some sort of caged zoo animal in their presence.

As he finally made it to his floor and began to wobble down the corridor with his heavy load, he couldn’t help but wonder what his two roommates were up to. He had met Yoongi first through his research into soulmates and Namjoon for the same reason the year after. Although there weren’t many Koreans in Boulder, they certainly didn’t feel out of place there. Even so, it was this commonality that had led them to get to know one another outside of Jin’s research and eventually become friends and then roommates.  

Adding to commonalities, Yoongi and Namjoon were both soulmates. Jin could understand how this had brought the two together as friends, however, their stories were so different from one another that he often worried about their relationship. Somewhere along the line, the two had become ‘friends with benefits.’ Namjoon often had a hard time finding a love interest because he was a soulmate that had lost his counterpart while he was still in high school before the two had even had a chance to meet. Jin’s heart hurt for him. Yoongi, on the other hand, was still waiting to meet his soulmate. Jin couldn’t help but worry that Namjoon’s heart would be broken once Yoongi found his soulmate. The young man swore he wasn’t attached to the elder ‘in that way’ but it was hard for Jin to believe him.

Jin finally made it to his door, keys jingling in his fingers as he tried to slot them in the lock. Like always, it took some maneuvering to get them to turn. At last, the door opened and he bumbled his way inside. His two towheaded roommates were sitting on the couch not five feet from the door, attention on what appeared to be a movie playing on the small television.

“Yah. You guys could have opened the door for me.” Jin huffed as he staggered down the short hallway just to the left of the door, headed towards his room to drop off his bag.

“Sorry, hyung.” Namjoon piped up absentmindedly.

Jin was only gone a moment, tossing his burdensome bag on the foot of his bed before returning to the living room. The place could be considered rather sparse on a good day, however, since the three of them were traveling back home to Korea together soon, the majority of their personal belongings had been placed in storage for the upcoming summer. They already had a new lease signed for their return in the fall but they didn’t see any reason to pay rent while no one was even in the country. All that remained in the apartment, for now, was their ratty couch, debate ongoing as to whether it was blue or green, the small coffee table in front of it, and the tv sitting on a wobbly end table. They still had their beds as well and enough summer clothes for their trip home but even the kitchen was already packed up and moved into storage, much to Jin’s chagrin.

“What are you watching?” he asked the two younger men although he couldn’t really find it in his tired bones to care.

“‘I Am Legend,’” was Yoongi’s bored-sounding reply. Somehow the man always sounded bored and tired. At first, Jin had found his constant act of apathy to be off-putting but he had since become accustomed to it. It’s not that Yoongi didn’t care, he was just better at actions than words. The irony was not lost on Jin. After all, the guy was an up and coming rapper as well as a music major and was well known in his circle for his emotionally moving lyrics.

Namjoon had been known to dabble in music and rap as well. It had been his intention to pursue these when he was young yet the combination of his naturally inquisitive mind and the loss of his soulmate led him to double major in biochemistry and microbiology instead. It was a good thing he was smart; Jin was sure such a class load would kill him.

“Isn’t that a horror flick?” Jin asked, a shiver running along his spine at the thought.

“Umm, I’d call it more of a suspense thriller personally,” Yoongi stated. He’s watched many so-called ‘horror’ movies and has yet to find any of them scary. He figured it’s because he knows it’s all fake. If it’s not possible, there’s no reason to be afraid. Usually, he would find such movies to be more comedy and stupidity than anything else.

“I just wish they went into more of the science. I’d love to have the chance to cure the world.” Namjoon piped in, eyes alight with curiosity.

“Ugh. Well, you can count me out.” Jin clamored to his feet with a tired groan. “I’m going to go take a shower.” As he turned to leave, a realization suddenly hit him. “Hey, aren’t you two supposed to be studying for finals?”

“Yeah, but, you know what they say… ‘All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.’” Yoongi replied, quoting Stephen King’s ‘The Shining’ with a smirk.

Namjoon just rolled his eyes. “I think what he means is that any more studying and our brains would have turned to mush. We’re just taking a break hyung, no worries.”

“Fine, fine. I don’t know about you but I have to get up early tomorrow. I’ve still got a couple more exams to proctor for my advisor. Good night you two.” Jin ended his statement with a yawn before heading off to the shower and then to bed.

Namjoon and Yoongi returned their own ‘good nights’ absentmindedly. The movie was getting close to the and they just wanted to finish it in peace, not that they’d ever dare complain about it to Jin. He’d just find more ways to interrupt just to mess with them.

The next morning Namjoon tiptoed into Yoongi’s room as if he wasn’t there to wake the elder. “Hyung.” he stage-whispered, nudging the sleeping man in the shoulder. “Yoongi-hyung.” he tried again when he didn’t get an answer. He was well aware that waking Yoongi could potentially lead to the loss of life or limb but this was an emergency. “Hyung.” he practically whined as he gave in and shook Yoongi’s small frame.

“ you, Namjoon.” Yoongi groaned in reply. He wasn’t being malicious, he was way too tired for that.

“Do you have my calculator, hyung?” the younger man hissed, a hint of panic in his tone of voice.

“The would I have your calculator for?” the elder answered, irritated at being awake when he didn’t have to be.

“I don’t know. Maybe you picked it up when we were done studying last night. I need it for my finals, damn it. And if I don’t find it quick I’m gonna be late!”

With another groan, Yoongi reluctantly sat up in bed just to point towards his backpack sitting in the corner near the door. “You can look in there if you want.” After a moment of thought, he added, “Aren’t you a genius, Joonie? Can’t you just do it in your head or something?”

Namjoon scoffed as he quickly rummaged through Yoongi’s bag. “Well, technically, yes. But it would take too much time and I wouldn’t be able to check my answers once I finish.”

Yoongi rolled his eyes and huffed. “Sometimes I forget what a nerd you are, Joon. Who even checks their answers after a test, huh? Either you know what you’re doing or you don’t. If you think about it too hard you’ll end up second-guessing yourself and change the right answer into a wrong one.”

“. It’s not in here.” Namjoon cursed, only half listening to the elder.

“Did you check under the couch? Maybe between the cushions?” Yoongi continued as he tried to think back to when he had last seen the younger with it. He took a quick glance at his alarm clock. It was only 7:04 am and he was already done with life for the day.

“Oh!” Namjoon jumped at the suggestion and ran out of the room. Yoongi could hear the younger searching in the living room. “Aha! I found it, hyung!” he yelled through the apartment. “See ya!” There was a bit more scuffling to be heard before the front door creaked open and then slammed shut.

“, there’s no way I’ll be able to get back to sleep now,” Yoongi grumbled to himself. With a wide yawn, he shuffled out of bed and towards the kitchen for some coffee. He couldn’t help the pained whine that escaped his lips when he spied the empty countertop where the coffee pot was supposed to be, having forgotten it was packed away in storage. “ my life.”

A/N:  Well, there you have it, the first and second chapter have been edited and combined into one. I hope you like the depth I added to Jimin's character. There will be a little more to come for Yoongi as well in the next chapter (if I remember correctly.)

I just want to take a moment and thank all my readers for putting up with me, supporting me through difficult times, and cheering me on. You all mean so much to me. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!!!  <3