They were sitting in class, Jungkook in his regular seat beside Soo Jung, Jimin and Taehyung in front of them. Jungkook turned to Soo Jung with a grin as their lecturer announced that they would need to be in pairs for their upcoming project. She returned the grin easily, both of them nodding at each other before turning back to face their lecturer. They had been friends for two months now, and Soo Jung was slowly coming out of her shell. She still had the lingering fear at the back of her mind that she would mess up and say something that would make them hate her, but at two months, her friendship with Jungkook and the others was her longest. Apart from her friendship with Yoongi.

They collected the handout for their project and looked over it together. Up to this point, she had never bothered to put much effort into her studies. The ‘education’ she had undergone at the Institute ensured her an IQ well above average, and she could memorize almost anything after reading it once. But she decided that this time, she wanted to actually put some effort into her studies, because she wanted to do well with Jungkook. They made an outline for their project and decided that they would meet up the next day to get started.

That night, she lay in bed listening to music that Jungkook had recommended to her. She smiled as she thought about meeting him the next day. She felt ridiculous for getting so excited for something as simple as meeting up with a friend, but for her, it was a completely foreign and new experience. She had never been allowed to befriend anyone at the Institute, they were taught to care only about their missions, even their own lives meant nothing. In some ways, she felt like a child embarking on life for the first time, instead of the twenty year old woman that she was. Something as simple as meeting friends and going to an arcade, going to class or having a meal where there was conversation were all new situations to her.

She had slowly begun to let down her guard, slowly letting herself believe that she could actually live a normal life, just like Yoongi wanted. Her train of thought was broken by the sound of her phone. She picked up the device and saw Yoongi’s name there. “Hey, Yoongi.” She said. She only called him dad when other people were around to hear. “Hey Kiddo, how are you?” she pouted at the nickname. “Everything’s good. Really good.” She said, a small smile making its way onto her face as she thought about her friends. “You still hanging out with those boys?” he asked, sounding to her like a textbook dad. She laughed, “Yes, dad.” She joked.

Yoongi smiled at the sound of her laugh. He couldn’t believe the massive change that had taken over her the past two months. She had become more confident and vibrant. It was exactly what he had been hoping for when he had become her guardian. That didn’t mean that he had to be happy about the fact that she was hanging around with boys that he had never met. “Have you made any girlfriends yet?” he asked hopefully. She snorted, “I don’t seem to get on well with girls. I mean I can do the whole makeup thing, especially the eyeliner, but I just don’t seem to click with other girls. Sorry to disappoint.” She teased. He let out a dramatic sigh, “Fine. Just don’t be asking me any technical questions about relationships. Just google what you need to know.” He said gruffly.

Her face burned scarlet at his words. “Oh my god, no… no. I’m going to pretend you did not just say that.” She said as she covered her face with her free hand. “Ok, ok. I said nothing. Not a single thing.” He said quickly. “Remember to check in, alright?” he said to change the subject. She nodded even though he couldn’t see her. “Yup. I’ll call you soon.” They said their goodbyes and hung up. She dropped her phone next to her and covered her face. “Oh my god, he's like a real dad sometimes!” she wailed.

Her phone beeped with a message and she eyed the device warily, just in case it was a message from Yoongi with some links to websites about the ‘technical’ implications of a relationship or something equally as horrifying. She hesitantly picked up her phone and was relieved to see Jungkook's name on her screen. She sat up and quickly opened the message.

Jungkook: Hey, just checking that we’re still on for tomorrow at 10? JK

Soo Jung: Yeah, 10 is perfect. Meet you at the entrance of the boys dorm? SJ

Jungkook: Sounds like a plan, see you then =) JK

She smiled at her phone as she lay back down, rereading the short messages. “See you tomorrow.” She said as she turned off her phone after setting an alarm to make sure she wouldn’t sleep in.

She couldn’t move. She tried to move but her whole body was strapped down tight. Her eyes darted from left to right but all she could see were pristine white walls, and bright, florescent lights. Panic settled over her as she tried to thrash against the bindings that held her against the cold metal table underneath her. “I thought I told you to sedate her.” said a voice from out of her line of vision. The voice was familiar and it made her freeze, as if she stopped moving the owner of the voice wouldn’t be able to see her. Her breathing was shallow as another voice replied.

“We’ve already given her double the normal dose but she's still awake.” Said a thin voice. The owner of the first voice spoke again, his voice completely devoid of emotion. “Then give her another dose.” She heard the clink of metal on metal. She desperately tried to turn her head to see what was happening, but the restraints around her neck and head made it impossible. A thin, balding man appeared in her vision with a syringe. She recognised him and immediately started thrashing again. “Stay still.” He muttered as he stuck the syringe into her arm.

Her head began to swim with the concoction of chemicals now swimming throughout her bloodstream, but she did not lose consciousness. “That’s triple the amount.” The thin man muttered. The owner of the first voice laughed loudly as he leant over her. She pressed her head back against the table in a feeble attempt to put as much space as possible between her and this man. She was terrified of him. “Well, aren’t you the tough customer?” he said as he put his cigarette in his mouth, taking a long drag before blowing the smoke directly into her face. She coughed at the foul smell, her eyes watering. He laughed before pressing the burning end of the cigarette against the skin of her arm. She screamed at the searing pain from the burn.

The cigarette man chuckled. “Triple the dose and she can still feel everything.” He said as he took another cigarette from a pack and lit it. Her eyes were trained on the cigarette in case he decided to use her as an ash tray again. He turned back to her and smiled. “Looks like you're in for a hell of a day.”

Her eyes snapped open as she sat bolt upright, her hand automatically flying to her arm. She took a few deep breaths as she looked around her room. “It’s ok. I’m safe. He's not here. He can’t hurt me again.” she said, her fingers still lingering over the faint scar on her arm. She looked at her clock and groaned. “Four am.” She muttered. She rubbed her eyes and muttered a long string of curses. “There's no way I’m getting back to sleep after that.” She threw off her blankets and pulled on her running gear, determined to shake off the horrible feeling left behind from the memory that had surfaced in the form of a nightmare.

She put on her headphones and put on her running playlist as she set off out of the dorm building. She had already chosen a path that took her around the full length of the campus. She knew that she’d need to make the circuit at least twice to shake off the feeling that the nightmare had left behind. The nightmares weren’t uncommon, she had been having them for as long as she could remember. They were at their peak just after she left the Institution. Yoongi had explained to her that it was probably because her mind was trying to cope with what had happened to her whilst she was growing up, something which she wouldn’t have been able to do whilst she was still at the Institution as she had been living in survival mode while she was there.

It had been a long year before the nightmares finally become less frequent. Sometimes there was something that would trigger them. Strong antiseptic smells guaranteed her to have a nightmare. But sometimes, like this one, they would come without any trigger. She tried to block out all of the memories that had resurfaced from the nightmare as she ran. She pushed herself to go as fast as she could, letting the rhythmic pounding of her feet against the asphalt and the loud music blaring in her ears clear her mind.

She ended up making four full circuits of the campus before she felt calm enough to go back to her dorm. She immediately went into the shower to wash away the sweat that had built up from her workout. After her shower, she took her time getting ready before it was time for her to go and meet Jungkook.

She tried to push away the bad feeling that the nightmare had caused, and instead tried to focus on the fact that she was going to be seeing Jungkook. She made it to the boy’s dorm a little earlier than she had planned, but she had been too anxious to stay in her small room any longer. She jumped up onto the small wall outside of the dorm and played with her phone while she waited.

She had only been waiting for five minutes when a familiar frame sat down beside her. “Hey.” Jungkook said, a shy smile on his face. She smiled back, feeling a little bit of her worries melt away. His eyebrows furrowed as he looked at her. “Are you ok?” he asked, his dark brown eyes staring intently at her face. “Y-yeah, I’m fine.” She stuttered, breaking eye contact with him. “You sure? You look kinda tired.” He asked, his voice laced with concern. She flashed him a small smile. “I didn’t get a great sleep last night.” She admitted. Jungkook frowned at her. “Are you sure you're up for working on our project? We’ve got plenty of time if you wanna met up and do it another day?” he offered.

She shook her head, knowing that being left alone with her thoughts was the last thing she needed right now. “I’ll be fine. Just wake me up if I fall asleep.” She joked, hoping that he wouldn’t worry anymore. She didn’t want him to worry, she wanted him to always have his bright smile in place. He gave her one more intense look before smiling. “Ok. We better get to the library before all the good spots get taken.” He said as he jumped to his feet and offered her his hand. She shyly reached out for his hand, a blush making its way onto her face as he pulled her to her feet. “Let’s go.” He said as he let go of her hand and started walking towards the library. She glanced down at her hand which had been in his only seconds before, a smile on her face. “Soo Jung!” her head snapped up at the sounds of his voice. “Coming!” she shouted as she rushed to catch up with him.