In the dark

48

The room was silent when Peri's eyes began to flicker open. It was pitch black in the room. She could just make out Jungkook's outline of his sleeping face. She leaned in and lightly kissed the tip of his nose. The sensation caused him to let her go and rub his nose in his sleep. He turned his body so that he was lying on his stomach. Peri smiled as she watched him get into a more comfortable position.

She slipped out of the bed and walked into the small living room area. She took in the room for the first time. There were two matching Parisian chairs and a beige sofa surrounded by a white-painted fireplace. Old photos of the past hung on the wall in bright yellow gold frames with little snail shell-like curls on the four corners.

Peri walked back out to the balcony and let the summer breeze blow softly against her skin, causing goosebumps to rise. She leaned against the railing a peered out at absolutely nothing. The city was asleep. No cars were buzzing by. No people are walking the streets. No sounds were coming up from the city below her. The whole city was her oyster. "Just a few minutes," she whispered to herself.

Peri stood up and walked back into the hotel room. She tip-toed into the bedroom. She quietly opened up her suitcase and dug into the contents. She found a pair of leggings and a sweatshirt and quickly put them on. She picked up her sandals by the door with one hand and the hotel key card in the other. She opened the door and slipped out. When she was a few paces away from the door, she dropped her shoes and shucked her feet inside before continuing on her late-night adventure.

The sound of chirping woke Yoongi from his slumber. He rubbed his eyes to wake himself up and focus on what was happening. The chirping noise sounded off again, this time grabbing his attention. He reached over to his phone and flipped it open to see what the fuss was about. "Where are you going?" he said to himself as he looked at his phone. Yoongi groaned and pulled himself out of bed. He grabbed a sweatshirt and pushed his feet through his sandals before opening his hotel door and walking out.

Peri was wandering around Paris with no real destination in mind. She was content with just walking. She wasn't going to stray too far away from the hotel. She was just going out far enough to take in some sights but close enough to where she could make her way back without issue.

She walked for a few more minutes before coming across one of Paris's famous attractions. Pont des Arts, or more famously called "love locks bridge." There had to be millions of locks running the length of the pedestrian bridge. So many stories of love- love found, love lost, new love, and old love. All were standing the test of time. Peri ran her fingers along them, hoping some of their magic would reach out and touch her. She squatted down to take a closer look at some of the locks. Some were heart-shaped. Some were old and rusted with orange. Some were shiny and new. All of them have initials carved into them. Peri's fingers followed along the etching of S's, T's, E's, and M's, hoping she would get as lucky as these people did.

"Couldn't wait a single night, could you?" Yoongi called out from the end of the bridge. His tone was unreadable.

Peri chose to ignore his statement. The damage was done. She was already out. "Come and take a look." Keeping her tone equal to his.

"What am I looking at so early in the morning?"

"All of these declarations of love. It's a sight to behold." Again, she chose to ignore the grumpy cat now standing next to her.

"It's a safety hazard."

"Ever the cynic."

"Ever the realist. I thought you and I had that in common."

"Any other night, I would agree. Not tonight, though. Look at all these locks! All of them connected with the idea of everlasting love."

Yoongi smiled at Peri. Underneath her realistic view laid the heart of a romantic. Another thing she and him had in common. "If I want to look for everlasting love, I just need to look for my brothers."