With Love

64. Out in the open

At the airport,

Mr. Drew: Oh! Looks like it is time to board your flight.

Namjoon: On behalf of everyone here, I would like to thank you profusely Mr. Drew for your hospitality. We really had a great time! I would love to visit again someday in the future.

Mr. Drew bows gently, holding his straw hat with both his hands in front of him.

Mr. Drew: It has been my pleasure. I just feel bad that your vacation had to see a rough patch towards the end. I apologize for that once more. I should have supervised better.

Jane: Oh no Mr. Drew, you don't need to apologize. None of us saw it coming. Besides, it's all sorted now and we are all safe and sound!

Jungkook squeezes Jane's hand gently and she gives him a quick reassuring smile.

Jimin: Yup, I'd rather choose to dwell in the fun memories we made here. And there is plenty of that!

Mr. Drew: Thank you. That's a really sweet thing to say.

Taehyung: Okay then Mr. Drew! See you! Do take care and thanks once again for everything!

After exchanging a few more fond greetings of goodbye with the old caretaker, the group get ready to board their flight. Following the attack by the stranger the previous day, the whole lot of them were required to return to Korea a day earlier than originally planned. This also meant that the girls could spend an additional day with the members before heading back to their own hometown.

Once inside the flight, everyone relaxes in their seats, a distinct calmness enveloping the atmosphere as they await the flight to take off. However, the calmness is marred by a chain of loud yawns resounding in the enclosed space.

Jane: Why does everyone seem so...tired?

Jungkook shrugs his shoulders and turns around to glance behind his seat. He spots Jin's head nodding down as he struggles to keep awake. Next to him, Hoseok was yawning aloud, patting his cheeks in a desperate attempt to ward away his sleep at least till the flight takes off.

Jane: See?

Jungkook chuckles to himself, fancying at the thought of something in his mind. On noticing a perplexed Jane beside him, he shakes his head and pats his shoulder for her to lean on.

Jungkook: Who knows? Maybe they stayed up way past bedtime.

_______________________________________

The Previous night,

Jin wakes up with a startle when he sees a silhouette passing by his tent in the dead of the night. He wonders who it might be and peers out slowly. He spots Jungkook walking by himself, heading towards the shore.

Jin decides to follow him. He was afraid of what the younger intended to do. He was well aware that the proceedings of earlier that day might have totally taken a toll on him emotionally if not physically or maybe both had had an adverse impact on him.

Carefully treading after him at a distance, he keeps a watchful eye on the figure engulfed in the baggy black shirt as he saunters further away from the pitched-up tents. Jungkook's gait looked unsure as he stares into the distance in a daze. Suddenly, he breaks into a sprint and makes his way towards the steep rocky cliff that they had seen the previous day. On reaching the peak of the cliff, he stands near the edge with outstretched arms, seemingly ready to dive into the water.

Jin feels his heart pounding aloud in terrible fear as he presumes the boy is going to jump off impulsively. He is about to make a dash after him but refrains himself when he sees the younger one folding his legs beneath himself and squatting on the ground. He curses under his breath due to the sudden overwhelming fear that had just washed over him.