«Μόνο με την καρδιά μπορεί να δει κανείς σωστά. Αυτό που είναι απαραίτητο είναι αόρατο στο μάτι.»

❝It is only with the heart that one can see rightly. What is essential is invisible to the eye.❞

⁂ ⁂ ⁂

"That's a mess, girl!" 

Ara rolled her eyes at Mina as she went through her lyrics. The two of them were at Yoongi's studio, trying to record their new song. 

"What's so messy about a Nintendo switch, a mic, and a cupcake? As if you've got any better for a soulmark," she scoffed playfully, and Mina raised an eyebrow. 

"You're right. Mine is a web browser and a lyric pad," she bit her lip. 

The two of them glared at each other for a split second before cracking up loudly. 

"Something funny going on here, ladies? Care to share the joke?" Seung Cheol, their bandleader, who also has an enormous not-so-discreet crush on Ara, called out. Mina shook her head, and Ara chuckled. 

"It's nothing. We were talking about our soulmarks," Mina said and rubbed her fingers along her soulmark. Seung Cheol's eyes widened a little bit as his gaze set on Ara's soulmark. 

"O-oh, y-your bonded? I didn't n-notice," he muttered, and his gaze shifted. Mina had figured what was wrong, but Ara barely took notice. 

With a loud sigh, Mina smiled at Ara and pulled Seung Cheol away. 

"Hey, hey, what now? Don't tell me you're serious about having a crush on her," Mina looked him in the eye, but he looked away. 

"I don't know, okay? I thought I've always hated her, but I realized I never did. She makes me feel different," he confessed, and Mina sighed. 

"Listen, Coups. You'll find your soulmate too one day. Everyone starts crushing on someone at some point in their lives, whether they're soulmates or not," she placed her hand on his shoulder and continued, "It's entirely normal to fall in love with a beautiful girl, like Ara, but sometimes you won't know who fate has chosen for you until you meet them." 

He hummed and nodded. "Alright, I understand. It's fine, Mina. You should get back to your work now," he sighed, and Mina nodded. The two of them then went their separate ways; Coups to his friends for lunch and Mina to Ara. 

"What's wrong?" 

"It's nothing! I wanted to talk to him about one of our songs," Mina put on a smile, and Ara nodded. "So, what do you think will happen between Yoongi and Hoseok~ssi?" She asked, and Ara shrugged. 

"I have absolutely no idea. Yoongi seems very sad about it, but you know him! He's extremely good at hiding his feelings. He's bottling up that sadness, and on the other hand, Hoseok~ssi is building up a wall. All I want right now is for him to open up and let Yoongi in soon," Ara sighed. 

When Mina was about to say something, the pair saw Namjoon walking towards them. "Hey, girls! What's the tea? Care to spill to a friend?" 

Mina rolled her eyes at him, and he sat down beside her. "Hey Joon, it's nothing. We're just concerned about Yoongi," she said, and Namjoon made an 'oh' with his mouth. 

"Ahh, I see. I'm concerned too, but I'm sure Hobi has his reason to stay away from hyung," he concurred. 

"Hobi?" 

"Ahh, yes, Hobi! That's what his close friends call Hoseok! He's just a few months older than me!" Namjoon answered once he saw his best friends' confused looks. 

"Aww, Hobi's a cute name!" Ara cooed, and Mina nodded. 

"And I'm going back to my studio!" They heard a voice grumble. 

Turning to the owner of the voice, they saw Yoongi with his hands tucked into his hoodie pocket as he pouted in annoyance. He turned around on his heels and was about to leave as soon as he heard his soulmate's name. 

"Aishh, Yoongz! Get your ass back here, kitty!" Ara chuckled and pulled him back. "We were starting to wonder which pool you drowned in!" Ara joked, and Mina laughed with her. 

Namjoon rolled his eyes, and Yoongi said, "Wow, now I know why Jin is your soulmate!" 

When Ara's and Mina's laughter died down, they gave him a questioning look, and he sighed. 

"Never mind." 

- - -

Ara was in the kitchen when her phone chimed from the living room couch. 

"Noona! It's Yoongi hyung!" Taehyun, who was watching TV, called out to her. 

A smile spread across her face as she set the hot ramen noodles on the counter and ran to the couch. Answering it quickly, she placed the phone between her left cheek and shoulder and walked back to the kitchen. 

"Yeoboseyo?" 

"Ahh, yeoboseyo Ara? Are you busy?" 

"Making dinner, Yoongz. What's up?" 

"Is Tae there too?" 

She hummed as she drained a little bit of the ramen noodles onto the kitchen sink. 

"Okay, mind if I come over for a while? I need to talk to you," he sounded urgent, and Ara was starting to get worried. 

"Uhh, yeah, sure, Yoongi! You know that you can stop by any time of day, right? It's not like I'm going to send you back or something, geez Yoongi!" 

Yoongi chuckled lowly and hummed. "Alright then, see you in ten." 

Ara smiled as she ended the call and set the phone aside. "Tae! Ramen's ready!" Taehyun came running as soon as he heard that, and Ara giggled at his enthusiasm. 

"Thank you, Noona! Oh, and why did hyung call you?" He asked, and Ara took a slurp of her ramen. 

"He's coming over in ten minutes. Oh, speaking of, I think I should keep some ramen for him too!" She carefully put aside some extra ramen, and the two siblings shared the rest. 

A few minutes later, the doorbell sounded, signaling Yoongi's arrival at the Kang's. Taehyun opened the door and let him in after bowing. 

"Hey, kiddo. Where's your sister?" He removed his shoes and flopped onto the couch. 

"She went upstairs to put her phone on charge. I'll go get her!" 

While waiting, Yoongi ran his hands through his deep black hair. 

"Hey, Yoongz!" Ara's voice sounded as she walked up to the couch and sat down next to him. 

"Hey. So..." Yoongi trailed off, not knowing where to begin talking. "I like him." 

Ara's eyes widened the slightest bit, and then she laughed. Yoongi raised his eyebrows, and she cleared her throat. "It was pretty obvious, you know?" She stated, and she saw his cheeks light up in the brightest shade of red. His pale skin color gave himself away when he blushed. 

"Well, whatever, but that's not it. If I ever get my hands on Hoseok's parents, I swear to God, I will rip them apart with my own two hands!" He cursed and clenched his fists, which even scared Ara a little bit. 

Her eyes widened much more this time as she scooted closer to him. "W-what do you mean, Y-Yoongi? What's wrong? Did s-something happen?" She looked perplexed and afraid, but she took hold of Yoongi's hands in hers. 

He sighed and calmed down as she urged him on. "Yoongi?" 

"His parents are the worst, Ara. They ruined his life, and that's the reason he's not opening up to me. He had to go through something no one should ever go through! My parents tried to make me do it too, but I fought it. He's too innocent and meek that he suffered silently with no complaints. His wretched and disgusting parents ruined who he was and replaced him with who they wanted him to be!" 

"Yoongi?" He had tears flowing down his eyes like a river. Ara leaned forward and wiped his tears for him. "Is it what I think it is?" She asked, and he sniffled with a slight nod. Ara closed her eyes and hugged Yoongi closer, wrapping both arms around his neck. 

"Shh shh, it's okay, Yoongz. His parents are naïve and narrow-minded. They're never going to survive in a world where homosexuality is accepted. Hoseok will love you the way you love him. Soon, Yoongi, soon. You're not alone. He's not alone. You have us. You have me. You have Mina, Joonie, Jin. You have all the people who love you for who you are, and that's all you'll ever need. Arasseo?" 

She cupped his cheeks, and he nodded. "Aigoo, why are you so cute??" She cooed, and he rolled his eyes. 

"Yah! You're the only one I open up to, so you better not tell anyone what happened here!" He glared at her, and she chuckled. 

"Okay, grandpa." She giggled, and he started tickling her. "Ahhh, no, no, stop! Yoongi! Hajima, stop, please!" The two of them rolled around on the couch, giggling and poking each other. 

A few hours later, Taehyun went to get a glass of water when he saw Ara and Yoongi cuddled up on the couch. He chuckled lightly as he quickly snapped a picture of them and ran back to his room.  

x Chapter Fourteen x