arrivederci (italian interjection, \är-ē-vā-ˈder-chē\) - goodbye, so long, see you soon, till we meet again

(1 month later)

i arrive at the funeral 30 minutes late, my eyes and nose red from crying. 

"hey," jungkook gently waves over to me from the last row. 

i head towards him and the remaining members of bts & got7.

"you okay?" jungkook asks. 

i shake my head, "what kind of question is that?"

"my apologies for caring about your well-being," he sarcastically replies.

a few minutes later, men bring the remains they could manage to find sealed within a coffin. 

everything i had forced myself to forget comes back at once

i stand up to leave ; i can't do this.

but jungkook pulls me back down and whispers, "for closure."

i sit back down but everything after flashes by and im trapped in my own thoughts. 

the next thing i know, people are shaking hands and waving farewell.

after a couple minutes, the media are surrounding the building. 

but a flashing news title that reads "5 idols die from producing a musical" is pretty absurd at first glance.

my manager slowly tells me, "don't say anything and just cry." 

his plan wasn't much different from mine to begin with.

he takes my hand and leads me through the crowd of yelling reporters and enormous cameras.

i step into the jype van and watch as the media are left in the dust.

a soft grin appears on my face. 

my manager asks, "you sure you're gonna be okay?"

i nod, "don't worry."

he replies, "i trust you, but if you need something just call me," and steps back into the van to return the got7 members to their dorm.

the moment i step back into my dorm after 3 months of vacancy, something immediately feels amiss.

"hello?' i softly call out. 

i take another step forward and hear a soft beep in the distance.

suddenly my bedroom door flings open and all my relatives and childhood friends pour out

"jimin!" they shout.

i was only discharged from the hospital yesterday and had been yearning to visit my family.

tears break through and i embrace everyone.

"where'd you guys get the keys to unlock my place?" i smiled.

my mom winked, "we got a little help from your manager."

i hold onto my parents' hands tightly, "please stay."

"even better," my dad pulls out plane tickets, "we'll take you back home - in thailand."

we share another hug and begin the celebration.

a dear friend hands me a beer, "you deserve this."

a wave of loneliness suddenly washes over me as i glance at yerin's empty room.

i take a swig of beer.

we spend the rest of the night drinking and talking.

the entrance opens and closes but im too drowsy to look at who it is.

my eyelids flutter closed and i was suddenly wrapped in a warm layer.

a male voice chuckled, "thanks for inviting me. looks like i missed a lot."

i finally will myself to open my eyes and all of my vision is filled with a jungkook's beautiful figure.

he begins to turn around but i grab his sleeve.

barely whispering, i breathe, "you're forced to stay. you can't leave."

he leans down and presses his lips against my forehead, "fine."

we lay there in blissful silence,

his head falls onto my chest and a small smile blossoms from my mouth.

"after everything we've experienced the past few months, i promise to stay by your side, no matter what's right around the corner."

hey guys!!

i've been SO busy lately with school and such but hopefully i can update more quickly soon.

also look forward to my new story saudade !!