The Definition Of Forever (Inked Hearts 1)

One hundred-two

AN:

Who's ready for the chapter?

Not me!!! 😫
OKAY!! 🤐

This chapter is dedicated to @MonaAroa5 for your comment that made my heart burst for joy 💜

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Diana first person POV:

"Thank you," I say at the door, bidding her goodbye.

"The company has my information," she says stepping out into the hall, "Don't be afraid to give me a call should you have any more questions or need help with anything."

"I will." I nod and bow.

Shooting me one last parting smile, she turns around and walks off for the elevator.

Releasing a sigh, I step back into the room and shut the door quietly before turning back to my soulmate.

His elbows braced on his knees and his head in his hands, Jungkook sits unmoving on the couch. I can tell by the way his shoulders shift in the tiniest movements that he's not breathing deeply or much at all, and by the way his head is downcast, I'm sure his eyes are blurred as he processes everything that just happened.

Releasing a silent breath, I walk towards my soulmate. The heels of my flats make quiet little noises as I near, but the sound of my beating heart seems to drown out all other sounds.

Or is it his heartbeat that I hear?

Stopping in front of him, I drop down to my knees as he did for me earlier and place a hand on his knee, rubbing with my thumb lightly over the material of his jeans. "Jungkook?" I murmur softly.

When he doesn't respond, I inhale and my eyes flick to the covered spot behind his left ear. I have a feeling that if I were to touch his tattoo I could help him, but the way his hands are covering it, I don't think I'd be able to get at it, and I don't want to do too much right now. Not when I don't... know.

"Jungkook," I say his name again, time a little stronger, "Look at me... please?" the last word falls from my lips no more than a whisper as I stare at his hung head.

I can sense something change within him at my plea, and gradually he inhales and begins to look up.

Slowly, his eyes lift and meet my own. In the depths of his dark orbs, pain and guilt stare back at me. "I'm sorry." He whispers brokenly.

Hastily, I shake my head and my hands start to reach for his face but he grabs my wrists before I can touch him, and holds them at bay. "No, it's...  you- you don't need to be-"

"Yes!" he insists and I start to shake again as his eyes grow hard. "I'm the reason you couldn't remember meeting the first time. I'm the one who blocked and closed you off. I... I... rejected you." He says the last bit and his voice cracks.

My hands strain in his grip to reach and embrace him, but he holds me back. "We rejected each other, it wasn't just you." I try to reason with him.

"How are you not angry with me?!" He says much louder now and pushes up from the couch to stand, pulling me up along with him but not close enough to embrace. "Did you not hear everything that she said!? If you hadn't- If we'd never- ... All those horrible things that she described about rejected soulmates, I could have done that to you!" He says practically shouting now, but I don't fail to catch the flicker of fear that flashes in his eyes.

"I'm not angry with you because it's not one-sided." I reason, but I feel my voice start to rise as well. "That could have happened to both of us, not just me! Why are you treating this as if it were your fault?!"

"This is my fault! If I hadn't rejected you like I did! If I'd just waited another minute, we would have realized that we were soulmates and none of this would have ever happened!!" He shouts back and I can no longer tell if the shaking of my arms and hands is because of him or me.

"It happened because you saw my tattoo!! My mistake!!" I fire back and feel my eyes start to sting. "If I had never been so stupid and-!!!"

"I should have known better!!" He cuts me off and leans in slightly closer. "We're soulmates! I shouldn't have let it blind and confuse me! I shouldn't have let it weaken me and wreck our bond!!"

Suddenly I pull back from him. And for the first time, my wrists tug away from him in the grip instead of toward him. The hands around my wrists loosen and release as I step back and away.

Had my eyes not fogged over from tears or searing emotion, I might have seen the shift in his eyes or the way his expression changed, I might have neared him again, but vision abandoned me for the moment that counted, and I staggered another few steps back.

"What are you saying?" I shake my head and hear the crack of my own voice.

"I-" he starts, but as the sentence goes unfinished, I feel panic take over me.

"Are you telling me... that you... that you don't... want our bond?" The horrible words fall from my lips and I feel like I could collapse.

"What?!" He asks, taking a step closer, his eyes growing even harder and more dangerous.

I don't answer him. I don't think I have the strength to answer him. It feels as if just thinking the words let alone saying them, drained everything in me, and her words of rejected soulmate effects flashback into my head.

"How could you- ever- think that?!!" He asks in a panicked but dangerous voice. "Think that I'd- that I'd ever- that I could ever..."

Taking the required steps he reaches out his arms and pulls me to his chest, wrapping an arm around my waist as the other pushes my back closer and cradles my head to him with his hand. Shaking himself, he leans his head down in my neck close to where my tattoo is and holds me tight.

"No, no, no, no, no, no," he murmurs solidly into my hair. "Never."

Bringing my arms up to twine around his neck, I cling onto him and let him hold me until gradually but steadily the shaking ceases and my heart calms to a steady beat, one that strokes along with his, and I start to relax into his arms.

Sensing my shift, he pulls back just far enough to properly face me and stare into my now dry eyes. "I didn't mean that." He shakes his head firmly. "I'm just... I'm so sorry I did this to us."

"When are you going to get this into your head?" I shake my own stare into his eyes. "It's not just you. It was never just you. It's us."

I watch as Jungkook's eyes blur slightly and he nods with the tiniest of smiles but a genuine one no less and leans down to connect our lips.

The kiss is neither harsh nor light, but a balance of meaningful weight.

Jungkook tilts his head to deepen the kiss and I feel him lift me from the ground till my toes are barely touching the floor and I can feel nothing but him holding me. My head starts to get fuzzy and yet feels light and clean as I kiss him back and I use what's left of my strength to cling to him.

His hands slide down from my waist to my thighs and the next thing I know, I'm lifted in his arms. My legs seem to have a mind of their own as they wrap around his waist and I press my chest closer to his.

I'm barely aware of the fact that he's walking, moving us, but then a hard surface is under my lap, and I realize he must have set me down on the table, with his arms on either side of me, caging me in his embrace.

Pulling my lips back from his with considerable effort, I stare into his eyes while trying to catch my breath, but as I look at his face I see him smiling softly as if he knows the hard part is over.

The smile grows large the more he stares at me, and soon it's turned into a grin, a broad open one, and then he smirks.

I start to bite my lip at the intensity of his smirk, but then his hand runs up my calf and to my thigh where his thumb makes a sweep on the inside of my leg, and I practically spit my lip out at the action.

Jungkook smiles at my reaction and does it again but on my other leg. I start to shiver and shake but in a completely different way from before and try to drop my head down onto his strong shoulder.

However, he has something else in mind and pulls his shoulder away, tips his head down to meet mine, and presses our lips back together.

Moving and massaging them with mine, I feel my mind fuzz over, and just when I feel I'm about to lose thought completely, he pulls back abruptly, smiles at my flustered state, and giggles.

I blink.

He giggles harder, his bunny teeth on full display and his doe eyes bright and round as they stare at me.

And just as I start to smile and giggle back, he smashes his lips back into mine.

My heart beats with his as I try to keep up with his fast-paced lips, but I can tell he likes the control and has no intention of slowing down. Then an alarming amount of determination sets deep within me, and I feel a rush of competitiveness.

Pushing my lips hard into his, I use my arms to grab at his shoulders and pull myself closer to him and tangle my fingers in his hair like I know he loves. Hands that held my back and neck, return to my thighs and begin to stroke again.

Harder, I kiss him, tugging his head to mine with my fingers. Hands start to grip at my legs before sliding me closer to the edge of the table as he steps closer between my legs, and I feel my chest tighten as it gets pressed up against his. But then a thought hits me... and I stop.

Pulling back slowly, I look into his eyes, down at the position we're in, and then up again at his face. Biting my lip I let out a soft breath of a laugh and watch as his eyes smile back at me. "We shouldn't be doing this here."

"No," he sighs and firmly clasps his hands together behind my back, "But we are following doctor's orders." He says and smirks again and I have to laugh.

"Being together is all it takes to right the wrong." I echo her words and then raise an eyebrow at him, "Or perhaps we should just write the word "wrong" on a piece of paper and burn it."

It's Jungkook's turn to laugh and I feel every blissful bit of it from where my hands rest on his strong chest. "Maybe. But I like this way much better."

"Oh, do you?" I tilt my head at him and teasingly push him away with my hands.

"Yes." He says simply and then pushes at my back until my hands give way and I'm back in his hold. "You can't tell me you don't."

"I never said I didn't!" I say with an air of haughtiness and poke my finger into his chest to keep him at bay. "I just chose not to comment."

Jungkook huffs and rolls his eyes before leaning down and pecking my nose. "You're cute when you're smug."

I feel my cheeks heat and I feel the urge to look down, but then a new feeling takes over and I raise my brow. "I'm not smug."

"Oh, yes you are!" he lowers his brows at me.

"I am not!" I argue back childishly with a fake frown, but it easily slips off to reveal the happy smile beneath.

"Can't you just take a compliment?!" he sighs, but something in his tone catches me off guard and I blink as the memory comes back of that time I was over at the dorms and my finger had been cut on glass so we went up to his bathroom and he cleaned it up for me. The last time we were in this position.

I think that was really the first time I saw him as something more, I saw a glimpse of what could be, what should be, what was meant to be.

"Not from you." I shake my head lean in slightly.

"Why?" he asks, smiling too, and carving away at the distance between us. "Why me?"

Lovingly, I take away the distance and kiss him softly on the lips. Nothing like the urgent kisses from before, but just as meaningful.

But then I pull away and stare into his dark eyes. "Why not you?"

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AN:

Ahhh!! A little trip down memory lane for ya! 🥰

Question:
Do you guys prefer longer or shorter chapters?

In any case!
I'm glad THAT's sorted!!

And (jsyk) I already started working on the next chapter, and it's one of my absolute favorites!! I just luv it soo much!! So I hope you will too 😂😇

Borahae
- Leia 💜