011121

To answer your question, they found his car 50 ft...

Later that night, I was feeling a bit better.

It was odd, because it wasn't like any of the problems or challenges I'd encountered during the day had gone away, or been resolved. I was just bathing in the comfort of knowing Jungkook was in this with me, at least. He was the only one who saw the text I'd received from Minie. He'd immediately pulled me to the side and told me we wouldn't speak about it. He knew it'd make me worse.

...below the Han river. That's how.

I agreed I wouldn't talk about it, but that didn't mean I couldn't think about it. I made my promise to Jungkook with my fingers crossed behind my back, anyways.

...Strike one...

I knew the other boys cared about me and my situation, it was just all so complicated at the moment. None of us had a good grip on our emotions so it was overall challenging. They still had to continue with their work, album promotions, and everything else being an idol presented to them. To top it all off, I didn't even know if my brothers were going to take me out of SOPA the next day or not.

I had missed a few classes that day from leaving early, and I wasn't eager to leave my schoolwork in the dust to let it add to the pile of hardships I had at the moment. I decided to Facetime Suho so he could help me with a few assignments that I'd missed. He'd offered earlier in the day, anyways.

After a few rings, Suho picked up with a small smile.

"Hey Sujin, give me two seconds, I need to go." There was a faint voice off the screen and Suho nodded. "Okay. Sorry Sujin, so, do you mind if I set this down and talk? I forgot you might need help, and I promised to help out with something else too."

"Go ahead." I shook my head with a tiny chuckle. "As long as I'm not gonna be distracting you."

"I am a pro at multitasking," he smirked playfully before setting the phone down so the camera was looking at the ceiling.

Suho talked softly to someone off screen again before popping back up in front of the camera with latex gloves on this time. "Alright, I'll explain the work for theory, production, and vocal, as I recall those are the classes you missed. The phone's on speaker, and make sure to tell me if I need to speak up."

He started explaining the work and how I could prepare for the next class, as well as occasionally sending me a picture of his own notes to copy. I started asking questions about the homework that I hadn't understood. He took a bit longer than he usually did to answer, and occasionally talked to someone else, but we made it halfway through before he popped back up in front of the camera.

"See, told you I was good at multitasking," he grinned. His shirt had a few smudges of pink that it didn't before, adding to the already paint covered tee. I was confused about how I didn't notice the painting shirt before.

"You certainly are good at multitasking," I agreed, looking away from my homework for a second. "What were you doing though? You're wearing your ruined shirt, and you usually don't pick up when painting."

"Oh, I was helping dye hair." He carried the phone and walked into another room. "Bleached first. Then pink, if you couldn't guess by the fresh smudges. I'm horrible at keeping the paint away from my clothes. It's a real pain when I'm wearing clothes I like."

"You can dye hair? Or... is it something for HXSTS?" I asked, referring to the band Dae and Jiho had been in. Er, I thought Dae was still involved at the moment, considering the music video I'd seen the other day. "That wouldn't be surprising, either."

"I guess you could call it that," he shrugged. "I hang out with the stylists a lot when I'm waiting for Dae, and there's trainees in and out of there all day long. Just picked up a few things."

...50 ft below...

"Sujin?"

I shook my head "Sorry. A few?"

"Alright, maybe more than a few," he said. "I get distracted. I don't think you understand completely how easy it is, when you're sitting by trainees and stylists who like to keep up conversations. I may be able to multitask, but even I have a limit."

"Fair," I snorted. "So, you ever overheard anything super fun? Like while you were around all those trainees and stylists?"

He hummed, "Yeah, one of the staff apparently had a huge party last week and I know of at least six other staff members that blacked out and keyed multiple cars. One guy stole like four bags of Doritos from a store, another stole a puppy from some unknown place and has yet to return them, there's a lot that happened."

"Wow," I laughed, "I wonder if it's like that around BigHit, you know, their stylists and all. Doesn't seem like it, from what I can tell. They're all pretty serious around their jobs, and my brothers are always the first ones to break out of that."

To answer your question...

"Who knows? Might be a good thing to ask your brothers then."

...they found his car...

"Maybe." I flipped my pencil around my fingers before turning it upside down and tapping the eraser onto my paper. "I think I'm done with homework for now." I put my papers into my binder and then inside my backpack.

"But we haven't finished all your classes, have we?" Suho asked, his face out of frame.

"Depends on whether they're 'my' classes anymore. I might not ever step foot in SOPA again, and all that work we just did was for nothing." I huffed, watching as Suho's head popped into the screen in a split second.

"Huh? You might never step foot in SOPA? Our school? The one we both go to? Together?"

I blinked, but then nodded.

"Sujin, I think you might have some explaining to do."

I was quiet for a moment. "My brothers."

"Your brothers?"

"Yeah. My brothers."

"Your brothers are going to... like, unenroll you? Or you guys have to move because of them? Or...?"

"I think they're going to unenroll." I shoved a textbook into my backpack. "They're not really happy about me being there anymore."

Suho opened his mouth, closed it, and then shook his head. "One, why would that be? And two, is it really their decision to make? This is SOPA we're talking about. SOPA. Seoul's School of Performing Arts. They're just going to unenroll? Where would you go?" He threw his arms in the air before letting them smack his sides when they fell, displaying my exact emotions perfectly.

He continued to rant, "It's so hard to get into that school. You, or them, must have a really good explanation. What would be better than SOPA?"

"Well I don't know, I didn't ask for it to happen, and the subject just came up today."

"Today?" He took a seat and positioned the camera to face him, with a white wall behind him. "Did something happen today to make them think of that idea?"

"I don't know," I said, shirking away from the camera slightly.

"Meaning you don't know of anything yourself? So pretty much a no?"

I shrugged. "It's weird, Suho. It's complicated."

"It's school. That's not very complicated." He rested his head on his palm, cocking his head to the side. "Unless there's something more than school. Unless there's something up and you're not telling me."

"It's alright," I tried to assure him. "I think I'll talk to my brothers, I just... I don't know. It'll be okay."

"Do you think there's any plus side to leaving?"

"Realistically, not yet." I shook my head. "I don't know, I'll think about it, but also listen to what my brothers say."

"Are you sure there's not a prominent reason, or one at all, that you're not thinking of? Or something that would make you prone to agreeing with them?"

"I'm sure, Suho," I said, giving him a soft smile to try and justify the fake sincerity in my voice. "I'm sure there's nothing wrong. It just might not be the school for me, that's all."

There was pain in those words. I couldn't imagine leaving SOPA, but I definitely didn't feel like disclosing all the information to Suho, so I had to try to side with my brothers in front of him. It was challenging.

He nodded, but I could tell he wasn't completely pleased with the answer. His eyes skipped from side to side, as if he were thinking hard. "Then, let me know if there's anything I can do. And update me if a decision is made."

"Will do." A knock on my door turned my head. "I think I should go. Thanks for the help with the classes, Suho. Be well."

"Same to you, Sujin. Bye."

"Bye."

...the Han river. That's how.

He ended the call, leaving me to sigh before turning to my bedroom door and calling for the person to come in.

And that was when it all fell apart.

The conversation that came up when I went downstairs to face all seven members was indeed about SOPA and the note. No, they weren't extremely serious about unenrolling me, but it was a possibility, concerning the situation at hand.

The conversation ended in disagreements from almost everyone about what should happen next. It only turned into arguing.

"And I'm just saying there's a reason to keep her in SOPA," Jin said, raising his voice above Taehyung's. "Of course there's a reason to keep her in SOPA. There's almost every reason to keep her there, if we want to not be weak and just run away from the problem."

"Jin hyung is right. Who says this isn't going to happen everywhere she goes?" Yoongi asked.

Jin shook his head in disbelief, "And Jungkook goes there, doesn't he? Is he going to just suddenly move, too?"

"We need to not just dismiss the idea," Namjoon said, putting his hands out in front of him to offer his idea to the table. "We need to just not dismiss the possibilities. This issue isn't the first, and now that the subject's come up, we need to decide if it's worth discussing. If it's worth something at all, and I believe it is."

Hoseok, who hadn't determined a clear side yet, decided to comment, saying, "So how about this: Sujin, how do you feel about SOPA in relation to Jiho?" He looked around the kitchen and dining room where everyone was spread out. "Has anyone taken that into account?"

To answer your question...

...they found his car 50 ft below...

...the Han-

"I don't think it's had much thought yet, and it should," Jimin said, still seething from before. "Isn't that place just the biggest reminder of what happened? And Minie still goes there, doesn't she? And all Jiho's friends, which is what started the conversation in the first place?!"

...the Han river...

I nodded, but then shrugged. "Sure, but I don't know if I should base all of it on that."

"You need to know, Sujin," Namjoon said.

"Why don't we look into the other possibilities first?" Taehyung suggested, and then turned to me from where he was leaning on the counter. "What if there's a school that fits all our needs and more?"

"Please elaborate," Namjoon offered.

"Well," Tae thought for a moment and then continued, "SOPA has opportunities for extra security, like it being a private idol school and all that, plus Jungkook goes there. But if you guys actually took a second to think about it-"

"Actually took a second to think about it?" Jin challenged. "Is that relevant?"

"It sure is, hyung," Tae shot back, cocking his head to the side and narrowing an eye. "If you guys thought about it- let me finish what I was going to say," he said, pointing a finger at Jin's open mouth when he saw the elder's temptation to interrupt, "there could be other people, pardon me, but better than Jungkook, better than a private school filled with idols. Think about a private, extra secure school where BigHit staff could come. Or even where staff already go? Jungkook doesn't have to be the only 'guardian angel protector' for her. There's BigHit staff that are still in school and guess what kind of school stylists go to? A school of art. Plenty of schools mix art with performing arts."

"Where do you think we'd get the money for a school like that, one that's just perfect, though?" Yoongi asked.

"Exactly. There's so many more factors to think about," Jin said. "And what about Jungkook?"

All heads turned to the youngest, who shrugged. "I still got to go to SOPA, didn't I? No matter what else happened at the school, or during my time there, right? Why would I let the fact that I finished my education when we weren't at the best spot financially, affect the education and safety of Sujin?" He shifted the weight on his feet. "I'm almost done with my education, and Sujin is another story. Sujin is different. Look, we have the funding, don't we? Look at our new album. Look, realistically, at the sales. We're golden."

"Kook has a point," Hoseok agreed.

"I don't care what I had or have," said Jungkook, "we need to look into what Sujin needs to have."

"Thanks," I said softly.

"Okay, okay, back to the beginning. You know we all want what's best. But what is that?" Jimin asked.

"What does Sujin think that is?" Taehyung asked.

I didn't hesitate. "I was pretty happy at SOPA, and sure, it has its faults. I guess I've been so concerned with worldly things to care."

"That's it. That's exactly it," Namjoon said, biting his nails. "Worldly things." He was silent a moment before moving on, "That's her life. That's our life, isn't it? Our job is connecting with the world, being present in the world. Whatever education we continue with, it needs to support that. And I think I have an idea."

When 'Joon dismissed himself to his room to discuss things with Sejin, we all deemed the aggravating conversation over. I was happy the arguing was over with, but we still didn't have an answer yet.

I found my way to Jin's room that night, and it was at least past midnight when Jungkook found his way into the older's room as well. I wasn't in a state to sleep alone, and I'd been comforted by Jin's earlier comments when he was trying to keep me in SOPA.

Kook climbed into the corner of the bed behind me, and I moved from where I had previously had my hand on Jin's left forearm to face him.

"Everything okay?" I asked in the lowest whisper my voice could muster. I took a portion of Jin's sheets and placed it over Jungkook as he got comfortable on his side, propping his head up with his hand.

"I get the odd feeling that depends on you."

"It shouldn't." I pulled the covers closer around me. "Why- how does it?"

"I just wish it wasn't like this. School and everything." He bit the side of his lip. "I wish you were graduating this year, like me."

"Me too. That'd make everything better." With a sigh, we both turned to glance at the oldest, who was still softly sleeping on his side with his back to us. "You all work so hard and I don't want to make things worse like this."

"You work hard, too. And now Jiho, and his friends, and the media, and Minie's brother, it's just all piling on top. Those are all problems reaching towards you. That's what I don't like."

...they found his car...

I nodded. "It's okay. It'll be okay."

My brother looked at me for a second, before taking my hand in his and locking the fingers together We both looked at it, watching the interaction happen with silence.

I scooted closer to him, letting him wrap an arm on top of me. "I miss him."

...50 ft below the Han river...

"I know you do. I don't blame you, not a single bit. Do you remember Sinae?"

My eyes shut, tightly. Yes. I remembered.

...the Han river...

They both had their last moments at the same spot. "You must have grieved her," I assumed.

"I did. It was exactly what you're going through." He smiled, letting his beautiful doe eyes sparkle just a little. "But look at me now." He drew in a breath, "Jiho... He might be gone, but the rest of us are still here. That was the past, this is the present."

To answer your question, they found his car 50 ft below the Han river. That's how.

"He didn't have to do it that way. He didn't have to end it himself."

Hey guys!

Yeah, this chapter was a bit heavy. And it only gets worse, really, before it gets better. But I'm glad all of you, and BTS, are there for her. 

The Discord server is out! I'm not really sure if any of you are gonna join it, but it's there, and I think it'll be fun even if not a lot of people join. It has chatrooms for each key character, roles for character stans, places to share your thoughts and theories, and I'll be sharing my announcements about the book every so often! If you don't have Discord yet, you can always sign up, it's a pretty neat platform for chatting. If you're not really interested, that's okay too! But it's here if you want it--

https://discord.gg/svF6SVeU

Kai is usually awake 24/7, it seems, so she's always open if anyone wants to ping her at the unlikely times of the night- and day lol. 

I hope you are all doing well! Today was a bit stressful and it's harder to find free time with all my other hobbies and prep for school finals taking up my time, but I'm alright! How are you guys doing?

See you next week! As always, please stay safe, healthy, and happy!

Rose