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“Hello, Tokyo!”

Anna’s voice, loud and enthusiastic, echoed through the nearly empty apartment, making Jimin poke his head out of his bedroom. It was his day off and he had spent most of the morning the best way he saw fit for someone suffering from the exhaustion of his schedule - with his headphones on, his eyes closed, and his body sprawled out on his bed. By this hour, he assumed the dorm to have been cleared out. So, when he saw Anna sitting on the couch in the living room, he had to admit he was surprised.

But honestly, he had been more surprised when he had heard her voice in the first place, the energy and life in it catching him off guard in the wake of recent events. He had been hopeful, to say the least, so he immediately deflated upon realizing Anna’s voice had come out of the TV and not . She was watching the newest SKEES Family Concert DVD from the Tokyo Dome, her knees brought up to her chest and her head resting on them. Just from her body language, Jimin could tell she was feeling down.

He decided to approach her, taking soft, soundless steps in attempts to playfully achieve the element of surprise. She seemed to be distracted by something on her phone so he knew it was perfect timing for him to seize the opportunity. And he was successful, making her jump as his hands clasped at her forearms from behind her. He noticed the panicked way she pulled her phone out of view, raising a few red flags in the back of his mind, but he decided not to mention it. It wasn’t typically like her to be so closed off but everyone was entitled to their privacy.  

In the end, the effect of the whole shock only lasted so long. As soon as she looked back to see Jimin, she relaxed and returned to her original slump. She never again reached for her phone, either.

“Hey, Chim,” she muttered half-heartedly, much to Jimin’s dismay.

“Wow, I expected you to give me a nice smack or something for scaring you,” he tried to carry over the playfulness, refusing to give up. “I remember a time when Hoseok did something similar and you hit him in the stomach so hard for it that I honestly thought your hand would slice through his body.”

She raised an eyebrow at him. “Do you want that?”

Jimin grinned at her response. Maybe he was getting somewhere.

“Nah, I’m good. I’d prefer to keep my body in-tact.”

He frowned when he didn’t get a single chuckle from her, realizing he probably didn’t really get anywhere at all. Or if he did, he had returned right back where he started. She simply nodded, turning her attention back to the TV. Hoseok and Jimin were coincidentally just starting their set, becoming totally different people as they transformed into their "Double J" artist personas. Anna always loved their performances, thinking the duet was a fantastic creation by SKEES, but for once, she wasn’t smiling. She was simply watching, expressionless, probably wondering how things had changed so drastically.

“How is he?”

“Hoseok?” Jimin inferred. 

“Yeah,” she nodded. “How’s he doing?”

“You haven’t talked to him?” Jimin asked in surprise. If there was anyone who was as close to Anna as Yoongi and Chun Hwa were, it was Hoseok. They told each other everything.

“I’ve talked to him. Just… not about this,” she admitted, her voice and her confidence shrinking towards the end of her sentence. It was painful to see how obviously she was struggling.

The older boy nodded, not needing her to explain any further. Although part of him wanted them to grieve together, he wasn’t clueless to how much she probably didn’t want to talk about her fallen friend with someone who was as emotional as she was.

She sighed, her lips turning downwards. “Honestly, though, I haven’t talked to him very much. We’ve really only spoken to each other in passing.”

“You should reach out to him, then,” Jimin suggested encouragingly. “He really misses you.”

She heaved another heavy sigh. “I miss him, too. A lot.”

“So, talk to him. He won’t say no,” he assured her, nudging her with his shoulder. “Besides, I never thought any of us would admit it but we all miss your crazy antics with him.”

He smiled at the sight of her smile, his words making her reminisce on times he knew she loved and cherished. “Yeah, I miss them, too. We always knew how to have a good time.”

“And that shouldn’t change now,” Jimin concluded, sitting up straighter and checking his phone. “You know, last I heard, Hoseok was with Kai in one of the practice studios.”

“Kai?” Anna questioned, thinking of the dancer for probably the first time ever. “I didn’t know they were friends.”

“They weren’t, but I introduced them recently. Him and I trained together way back when,” Jimin explained, discretely withholding a lot of information. “I’m sure it’d be okay if you dropped in on them.”

“You think so?” She asked, suddenly sounding nervous. Jimin knew it was only because Kai was now in the equation.

“Yeah,” he nodded with confidence. “Kai may be a bigshot but he’s one of the most genuine guys I know. You don’t have to worry about him.”

He gave her another encouraging smile as he watched her ponder over her choices. Honestly, he had deeper intentions than what he was letting on. There was more to Kai and his past than anyone knew and although Jimin did really want Hoseok and Anna to reconnect, he especially wanted Anna and Kai to meet. His past gave him an advantage to break through to her that no one else had and Jimin wanted to see where that would lead. And more importantly, he wanted it to help her.

“Come on, I’ll even walk you there.”

Having someone there to break the ice for her seemed to warm Anna up to the idea as she nodded. “Okay, I’ll go.”

Jimin broke into a grin, seeing his plan come into motion. “Really?”

“Yeah, but let’s go before I change my mind,” she half-teased, slowly getting to her feet and walking away from the couch to get ready to go. Jimin was about to get up and follow when his eyes landed on something on the couch.

“Oh hey, Anna! Your phone,” he called after her, making her spin around much more aggressively than he anticipated. She momentarily looked a little panicked before she caught herself, casually returning to take the phone from her friend’s outstretched hand with a quiet ‘thank you’.

Jimin’s eyes continued to follow her as she went to grab a light hoodie, suspicion swirling in them. But in reluctance to put her under anymore stress, he said nothing.

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Anna was notably fidgety on the walk over but Jimin continued his trend of silence. He wondered whether the nervousness was coming from the whole phone incident until she relaxed at the sight of a lonesome Hoseok at the practice studio. Although his suspicions were far from put to rest, his mind was eased momentarily knowing that at least for now, it was just meeting Kai that had her worried.

“No Kai?” Jimin asked after the three of them said their hello’s.

“He just went to the bathroom. He’ll be back soon,” Hoseok explained casually from where he sat with his legs sprawled out on the floor. “What are you guys up to?”

“Just thought we'd stop by and see you, but I also thought I'd take the opportunity to introduce Anna to Kai.”

“Oh,” the eldest boy said with a hidden sense of surprise that Anna, being one of his best friends, caught with ease. She wasn’t sure how to feel about it but didn’t get the chance to ask about it as a tall and attractive young man walked into the room. He was wiping away the thin layer of sweat on his tanned skin before stepping back at the surprise of the two new guests.

“Jimin-ah,” Kai greeted the younger boy in pleasant surprise, pulling him into a casual hug, neither of them minding the sweat. He then turned to Anna, giving her a small, polite boy. “And Anna-ssi. I don’t think we’ve ever officially met.”

Anna returned the bow, saving her from the embarrassment of staring at his attractive features. She was in no way flustered, nor would Yoongi have anything to worry about. She just appreciated a good-looking person when she saw one. “I don’t think so. It’s very nice to finally get the chance, though. I've heard nothing but great things about you.”

“As have I,” he agreed happily before taking the conversation in an unexpected direction. “But, how’ve you been? I know this is a tough time.”

“Oh, uh…,” Anna stuttered, caught totally off-guard. Her eyes were wide and her hands began to fidget again. But as if Kai had expected such a reaction, he sat down on the floor next to Hoseok and pat the spot next to him.

“Come, take a seat.”

“O-okay,” the girl agreed, doing as he instructed with Jimin following suit. The four sat in a circle but somehow, only Anna seemed to be flustered.

“So, really, how have you been? Everyone on this campus seems to be worried about you,” Kai so boldly continued, leaving Anna even more speechless.

“Oh, well, um,” she struggled with her words, not expecting to discuss anything of that sort ever, let alone with someone she had just met. “I… don’t really know what to say.”

She wanted to be mad at him for invading. For making her uncomfortable. For bringing up a situation she despised and the feelings that came with it. But there was something in the way that he was so patiently waiting on her response that kept her at bay. Something so genuine about his intrigue that it calmed her. The feeling only increased with his soft smile.

“I’m sorry, I can be pretty abrupt,” he apologized with a gentle chuckle. “It’s just, I’ve been where you are and I’d like to help if I can.”

Anna’s eyebrows raised, continuing to be surprised by the man sitting by her side. “You’ve been where I am?”

“Kai lost his best friend when he was around your age, too,” Hoseok decided to interject, making his presence known amidst the thick tension in the room.

“Oh,” Anna voiced, taken aback for the nth time before immediately feeling for the man. “I’m… so sorry.”

Kai gave her a comforting smile. “It’s okay. It was as difficult for me to accept as it for you now but I’ve learned to cope over time. And I’d like to help you achieve the same thing.”

Anna shook her head, a sad smile on her lips. “I don’t think that’s possible.”

“That’s what you think now,” he returned with a knowing smile. “But don’t forget, Anna. After every storm comes brighter days.”

Welcome, Kai, to the SKEES fam! As an ARMY and an EXO-L, I had it set in stone that an EXO member would find his way into this story. What do you guys think of his past experience with loss, just like Anna? I hope you're all interested because although this story will reveal a little more about it in the next chapter, I've decided that one of the books in this series will be dedicated to unveiling Kai's past in its entirety! So, yes, for any of you wondering, this story is just Book 1 of a multi-book series! 

Also, May 30th was Anna's birthday! I meant to do a birthday special for her but my junior year of college recently ended so I decided to take a few days off from work and meet up with some friends in L.A. for a week. I can still do a delayed birthday special if any of you would like it :) But Happy 20th Birthday to our Anna! Here's her Instagram for anyone who wants to send her any belated wishes: https://www.instagram.com/annabellepop/