[CONTENTID1] Twenty-Three [/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2]

"Come to Busan," Jungkook whines for the utmost time as you hug each member goodbye, "It's not too late!"

You roll your eyes as you wrap your arms around Taehyung, "How many times do I have to say 'no' before you actually believe me?"

"Yeah, obviously she'd rather go to Daegu with me," the wind mage counters as he tightens his grip around your shoulders.

"No way. We can go to the beach in Busan! What even is there in Daegu?!"

"Me," Yoongi cuts in, pulling the younger boy off of you, then slinging an arm around your waist in a half-hearted one-arm hug, "Come on, ___-ah. Let us show you around."

Flustered under his attention, you blush and stammer for a few seconds, and can't remember how to refuse until he lets you go, "It's fine, oppa," you say, pressing a hand to your chest to slow your racing heart, "Maybe next time."

Namjoon chuckles at this, "Busan or Daegu? I think she's lying to all of you. I think she wants to go to Ilsan with me. Let's see how my girlfriend actually feels," he says, teasingly brushing your mind with his—only to hit a steel wall. He frowns and tries again, but it's an impenetrable defense.

You tense and as a result, your defense instinct kicks in and he is sent flying out of your mind before he can make contact.

"Ouch," Namjoon winces, rubbing his temples, "That was a bit harsh, babe."

Your face blanches, "Oh my god, I'm so sorry," you rush over to him and grab his hand in both of yours, "Did that hurt a lot? I didn't mean to do that."

"Nah, it's ok," he shakes it off, "I'm just surprised that your control is so… powerful now."

"Yeah, Jimin's been a great teacher," you say, sneaking a glance at the earth mage. He frowns back.

"___..." he murmurs your name, "Maybe it'd be a good idea for you to come to Busan with us…"

Your heart skips a beat at the look of unease on his face, "No, it's fine," you say, a bit too quickly, "You guys go on. Just have fun, and don't worry about me, ok? I'll be fine! And break will be over before you know it, so enjoy yourselves!"

Jimin still looks a bit perturbed, so you try to distract them from his discomfort by swinging an arm around the maknae's neck, "You'll be of age on the first of the month, right?"

Jungkook grins broadly at that, "Yes, I will!"

"Great, so you'll come back to me as a man, then?" You ask with a playful wink.

His eyes widen so much that they look like they might pop from his skull. "N-noona, I… I—"

"Aish, get off of her," Jin says with an exasperated sigh as he tugs the maknae away, "Our bus will be here any second now."

You laugh and blow the maknae a little kiss, earning yourself a choked gasp and groans of annoyance from the older members. "Oh, look—the airport shuttle is here!" you exclaim as a large white bus catches your eye, "Hurry, guys!"

Everyone scrambles to pick up all their luggage as the bus comes to a stop in front of the eight of you. There is a chorus of good-byes as the members trickle into the bus. Hoseok is one of the last to leave and he picks you off the ground in a bone-crushing hug before he runs up the steps into the bus. Through your thick winter coat, his touch isn't as toxic as it usually is, and even then, the nausea that you're used to at this point imbues you with familiar warmth.

After all the members load up in the bus, Jimin hesitates halfway through the door. He pauses, then turns to stare at you with an uncharacteristically serious expression in his eyes, "___... Please come with us."

You can tell that his sixth sense is tingling. He's spent so much time in your mind that he can see through your false cheerfulness and your lies. He knows that something is off. But he doesn't know why.

You shake your head and force a smile, "I'll see you after break, Jimin."

The earth mage hesitates for another second. But the honking of the horn from the annoyed bus driver startles him. He has no choice but to grudgingly enter the bus. But even after he sits down, you can still feel the heat of his gaze through the glass window.

You don't allow your smile to falter as you cheerfully wave and call out to the boys until the bus disappears from your sight. Only then do you let your arms fall to your side. Your smile immediately shifts into a deep frown of concentration. Then you get to work.

The next two weeks pass fitfully, the way time seems to slow while in anticipation for a grand event. But in your case, it's more like dread.

Campus is deserted. You are part of a sparse handful of students that remain at school instead of returning home for the holidays, so no matter where you turn, all you see is empty snow, like the startling whiteness of a blank page. Too accustomed to loud boyish voices and boisterous laughter at this point, the resulting silence seems as stifling as a prison cell. But the familiar loneliness wraps around you like the embrace of an old friend, and makes you feel like yourself again.

You spend Christmas alone in your dorm room, lifelessly cutting out paper snowflakes to tape on your windows. The members pop in and out of your mind, but the connection is fuzzy with distance, and besides, they're too distracted with their own families and loved ones.

New Year's is