23 ⋆ Parting

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Jimin's POV

Preparations for the mating ceremony begin today

I didn't want to get out of bed. Our legs were tangled together, our breathing and heartbeat in sync, and our bodies flush against each other. Smiling to myself, the events of yesterday ran through my mind; moans, bites, heavy breathing, kisses. I moved slightly, sure enough feeling the soreness in my lower body that I loved so much because I knew it came from Jungkook. I closed my eyes, knowing today we were separating.

The thought alone made me sad instantly. I could already tell that just by mating, my emotions and attachment towards him had grown substantially and my heart ached at the thought of being away from him. I tightened my arms around him just a little bit more, holding on as long as I could.

"Jiminie?" Jungkook's groggy morning voice asked.

I sniffed and looked up at him, giving him a trembling smile whilst trying to stop my tears.

"Hey, what's wrong?" He whispered, reaching out and wiping the water from my face.

"We have to say goodbye today," I said softly, looking into his eyes sadly. He just pulled me forward, connecting our lips. As they always had, but now just a little bit more, our lips worked in perfect unison against each other.

Jungkook pulled away and smiled softly at me, placing his index finger under my chin. "What happened to the Jimin from yesterday? 'Seeing each other will be even sweeter'?" He teased, pitching up his voice to mimic my voice. I laughed and wiped my face sadly, his humor breaking through my shell.

"That Jimin got mated to the most amazing man in the world instead of deciding to wait." I joked. Jungkook just grinned up at me.

"I'm going to miss you." He said.

I nodded and rested my head on his chest, trying to memorize the sound of his heartbeat. We didn't get to lay there long until a knock came to our door. I closed my eyes, knowing exactly what it was.

"Come on, Jiminie. The sooner the better." Jungkook soothed, gently sitting up. I nodded and climbed off of him, watching as he grabbed some pants to put on, then padded down the stairs to open the front door.

He discussed words with someone before letting them inside, guiding them up the stairs and into our room. I had never seen her before, but I assumed she was for me as she looked at me and grinned happily. I smiled weakly at her, sitting up in bed.

"Jimin. You have ten minutes before I have to take you." She said with a smile. The tears started up in my eyes again, making her lose her smile. I bit my lip and nodded as Jungkook quickly pushed past her and held me in his arms, allowing me to cry into his shoulder.

"Come on. You need to get going." He whispered.

I shook my head, "I don't want to."

He nodded, "I know. I know. But we have to."

I sniffed and wiped my face as he turned to the woman and asked for some privacy.

He lightly took my face in his hands and stared at me as he squatted down a little to get eye level with me. "Five days and then forever." He told me. I nodded at his words and slowly stood, walking to our closet.

I slowly put articles of clothing into my suitcase and pulled some on too, trying to keep back my tears the entire time. I grabbed my bag and pushed past Jungkook, not wanting to deal with the fact that this was the last time I'll see him in five days.

He grabbed my hand suddenly and pulled me close to his chest, then he wrapped his arms around me and gave me a kiss on the head. Not trusting my voice, I pulled away, pecked him on his cheek, and glanced at him one last time as I walked away in silence.

"Let's go," I whispered to the woman and walked out of the house, leaving a sad-looking Jungkook behind.

"This way Luna." The woman directed quietly, walking over to the house on the opposite end of Jungkook and I's.

Resisting the urge to look behind me, I continued to follow the woman as she pulled a key from her pocket and unlocked the door to the new house. It looked similar but different to Jungkook and I's. I smiled upon the comforting sight of Jungkook's mother sitting on one of the couches, waiting for us.

The woman who was leading me here left, leaving her and me alone. She stood and walked over to me, her arms outstretched.

"Hey, Jimin." She greeted warmly. I hugged her and rubbed her back, trying to hold back all of the emotions I was dealing with at one moment.

"How are you doing?" I asked, alluding to how she was doing since the death of her husband. She pulled away and gave a sad smile.

"I'm okay. The pain is still there but, I've learned to live with it." I nodded and watched as she looked me over up and down, a smile growing over her face.

"What?" I asked, looking down at my clothes.

"You and Jungkook mated, didn't you?" I blushed, my cheeks flaming up at her words.

"No mark though. Saving that for the ceremony then." She noted, looking me over again.

I looked up at her, confused. "How did you...?"

She winked, "Anyone can smell it on you from a mile away."

I blushed and looked down as she walked forward and grabbed my bag, continuing to smile at me as if she was in on some big secret shared between Jungkook and I.

"Come on, I'll show you to your room. Today is all about getting settled in. Tomorrow is when the fun starts."

I followed her up the stairs as she walked down a hallway and opened a bedroom door, pushing inside. I stared with wide eyes at the beautiful bedroom which overlooked the forest around us.

Jungkook's mom set down my bag next to the bed and smiled, placing her hands on her hips and looking around. "I have to say, I never thought I'd see this room again."

I laughed and walked forward to the window, staring out into the snowy forest.

"If you're really that concerned about Jungkook, look really, really close. Just out there. See it?" I squinted and leaned forward, barely seeing the outline of a dark little cabin far out in the snow that she was trying to point out to me, her finger outstretched in a certain direction.

"He has to stay out there?" I asked, mortified.

She nodded. "It's tradition. Don't ask me why. My husband always used to say it makes a man stronger, but I beg to differ." She groaned, shaking her head at the sight of the solitary cabin out in the cold.

She turned around and walked to my bag, unzipping it and starting to take out my clothes. "Want to help?" She asked with a laugh, looking over her shoulder.

I nodded, turning and grabbing some clothes as well, hanging them in the closet.

"Okay, so I'm going to be your teacher for the next five days. Tomorrow is the fun day because that's when we get to pick out your outfit and tribal paint, all that fun stuff. Wednesday you're going to learn where to go during the ceremony, what to do, what to say, that kind of thing. Thursday we do a test run, and Friday is the spiritual day, but I won't spoil that. And then finally, Saturday night, the magic happens."

I took in a deep breath and nodded, blushing at the thought of Jungkook and I together once more, the sudden thoughts of last night drifting into my brain as well.

"So today, you can just relax. I'll be downstairs in my room if you need me." I thanked her and watched as she closed the door behind her. I slowly approached the window once more and stared at the little cabin far out.

Suddenly, I could see two men walking towards it, one of them being Jungkook. I leaned forward, face pushed into the glass, watching intently as they opened the door, and walked inside. I couldn't see anything after they had closed the door, but when the door opened again, only one man left. My heart shattered when I realized Jungkook was in there alone. He wouldn't freeze, but I was still concerned.

This was like torture, being able to see the one you loved so close, yet so far away. I sighed and pulled away from the window, looking around the room. It was weird being alone. I expected him to be here. My mind was already going crazy at the absence of him, so the only thing I thought to do was sleep and hope it would be Saturday night already.

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