The Fire Inside

28. Feeling...Something?

Jimin gulped as she watched the scene in front of her. Varun had Maria up against a wall and was clearly making out with her. Jimin, feeling extremely uncomfortable, cleared her throat before speaking again.

"U-Um. Just w-wanted to know i-if you guys are c-coming down," Jimin stuttered.

Varun quickly released Maria before clearing his throat.

"Yeah. We'll be down."

"S-Sorry," Jimin squeaked before running out.

She felt her face grow hot. How long were they a thing? Just a few seconds ago they had been arguing like usual. She grabbed her hair and tugged down in frustration. That had been too awkward for her. She felt her roots pull and winced at the pain. She felt a hand on her hands and released her hair. She turned around to see Julien smiling at her.

"Hey, you ok? Don't pull your hair like that. It'll hurt."

"No shit," Jimin said turning away.

"Jimin? Listen. I don't know what I did wrong, but I'm really sorry."

Jimin sighed, "You did nothing wrong..."

Julien looked at her quizzically, "The why're you upset?"

Jimin's face turned red again, "U-Um. I don't know. Let's go down ok?"

"Yeah. I'll walk down with you. Lemme go call Dakota first," Julien said walking back to what Jimin believed to be his room.

Jimin left Julien and walked towards the stairs. Sitting down on the carpet, she looked down at the huge enclosure. The double door was right in front of her. Windows littered the walls in a haphazard way making it impossible to find any pattern in the architecture. Besides that, the walls were dark and as Jimin kept looking around, she began to notice how everything branched off in the corridors behind her or under the stairs she was currently sitting on. She figured that the dining room was probably there. If they were going to be stuck with Dakota, she might as well enjoy it. She sighed out loud.

"Why do you guys keep sighing? It's not the end of the world yet."

Jimin turned to see Dakota appear along with Julien.

"Just have a lot on my mind," Jimin said not giving much information.

Just then, Maria and Varun decided to make an entrance. Varun froze when he saw Jimin's face, but quickly turned to Dakota.

"So, we going down to eat or what?"

"Or what," Dakota said cockily.

Julien punched Dakota's shoulder, "Yeah, we're going down now."

The group of five walked down the long and never ending staircase. Maria and a Varun practically trampled the rest as they ran down screaming that they were starving. Jimin wondered if they were referencing something else. Dakota rushed behind them to show them the way before they ate the house. Jimin heard her stomach grumble and closed her eyes to make the pain go away. She hadn't eaten in forever. How could she have forgotten? Probably the fact that they were in the hands of death at least five times. She looked up at the lights that twinkled on the roof. She wished she could be as bright as them, but she felt so hungry that she refused to put a smile on her face. Jimin's foot slipped as she was mesmerized in the crystal lights that decorated the ceiling. She fell backwards and was about to hit her head when she felt someone cushion her fall. She gasped in shock and looked to see Julien look at her with worry.

"Are you alright?"

"Y-Yeah. I think so. Thanks."

Jimin whispered the last word hoping Julien would hear it anyway. With the bright smile he shot her, she figured he had heard her. Julien helped Jimin to her feet before continuing down the stairs. She noticed how he kept stopping and looking back to make sure she wouldn't fall again. The thought brought a subtle pink to her cheeks. They went towards the dining room. The dining room itself could've housed a solid hundred people. The ceiling was pretty damn high and there were three long tables running down. On one side, Varun, Maria, Heiwa, and Isadora were filling their plates just as fast as they were inhaling the food. In front of them, Emmalynn and Riley were taking their own sweet time savoring every bite they served themselves. Jimin looked across the sides and could even see the door to the kitchen. She caught a glance of the pristine white of the countertops inside. She looked back to the tables to see everyone chowing down on the assorted food displayed in front of them. Jimin chuckled as her friends filled their faces like pigs.