Secret (A Jungkook Fanfic) ✔️

Chapter 26 | A Journey Back To The Past

7 Years Later

You bowed as you left the chairman's office, your steps heavy as you made your way back to your own. You still couldn't quite grasp what you had just done. Without a second thought, you had requested a permanent transfer to the U.S. Even though the company had offered you a position in your hometown, you had turned it down. What kind of company would allow a talented employee to walk away so easily, accepting your decision without protest? They were glad to keep you with them.

You pushed the door open and sank into your chair, your mind wandering back through the journey that had led you to this moment—the journey that had brought you to where you are now.

You completed your Master's in Business Administration a couple of years ago, and now, here you are—exactly where you imagined and envisioned yourself. At 25, you're a young, independent woman, earning enough to live comfortably on your own terms. You don't need anyone's permission to make decisions anymore, and that's something you've grown to cherish. Your office is sleek, modern, a reflection of your achievements. The city skyline spreads out before you, its lights twinkling like distant stars. But as you sit there, staring at the view outside your window, a quiet emptiness settles in—a feeling that's harder to shake the longer you're here.

Luckily, you and your friends got placed in the same company. Savanah works in the financial department, and Violet's in Sales. The three of you have settled into your own routines, grabbing coffee during breaks, sharing stories about office drama, supporting each other through tough days. It should be enough. It is enough. But as much as you appreciate their presence, you can't help but feel the gap, the absence of someone who once meant so much.

It's been seven years since you left Korea, but still, your thoughts swirl around him. Only him. You thought new people, new places, and new challenges would help you move on, but if anything, it's only made it harder. You miss him with every passing second. There's a constant ache in your chest—a reminder of the friend you once had, the one you thought would always be there. The conversations you had, the quiet moments shared, all those unspoken connections... they linger in your mind like an unfinished symphony.

Almost 8 years have passed since you last spoke to him. It was that night in Busan—the night everything ended between you two. The friendship of 14 years, the bond you thought was unbreakable, shattered in an instant. And since then, silence. No phone calls. No messages. No closure. Just a gaping void where something once so precious used to be. You told yourself you'd move on, that time would heal the wounds. That it would be okay. But here you are, sitting in your office, staring out the window, caught in the memories of a past you can never fully let go of.

As you silently promised to yourself, you still watch his success from afar. Always in the shadows, always lingering at the edges of his world, like a silent observer standing in the corner of his milestones. You never stopped keeping track of his achievements, even when you told yourself you would. His hard work never failed him, never let him down. And alongside him, his bandmates—together, they paved the way.

Now, here they are, at the top of the world. The number one band globally, a household name, a force in the music industry. They are the face of Korea, and you can't help but feel a complicated mix of pride and longing when you see their name flashing across billboards, their faces gracing every screen. The fact that Korea is now a household name across the globe, the fact that people from all corners of the world know this place, is because of them. BTS. It's them who made this dream a reality, who shattered every boundary and barrier in their path. It's their sweat, their passion, and their unity that turned the impossible into the undeniable truth.

You watch from the sidelines, silently cheering them on, knowing that everything they've achieved is a direct result of their relentless dedication and the sacrifices they made along the way. It should bring you peace. But instead, it pulls at something deeper within you—a reminder of the connection you once shared, and the life that you could've had if things had turned out differently.