Butterfly - BTS

Chapter Twenty

Jimin. Jungkook. Yoongi. Hoseok. Namjoon. Taehyung.

I stumbled back to the campsite, my eyes red and puffy and my vision blurry. After hours of searching, I still hadn't found Taehyung's body. He should've washed ashore, but he hadn't yet. At that point, I had to get over the fact that I wouldn't even be able to see his face ever again, not even in a coffin. He was gone, just like that, and my mind spun to find a better memory of him to remember forever. As I treaded back into the forest, my heart heavy, I lamented over my loss.

The cold was harsh and biting, so I shoved my hands into the pockets of my old jacket. My right hand brushed against a slip of glossy paper, and I pulled it out, bewildered. It was a Polaroid picture.

It was an old, folded Polaroid picture of the dark blue ocean under a clouded sky, and I recognized it. With that one picture, torrents of memories flooded back to my consciousness. Not only was it the ocean that Taehyung jumped into, but it was the one that Bangtan went to, long ago, when we filmed a music video there. We'd liked it there so much that Jungkook had asked me to take a picture so we could remember exactly where to go to relive that day. Afterwards, we'd gone camping there, and we'd used the Polaroid to find the exact spot again.

It was one of the best days with all the guys, and Taehyung and I had automatically come here when we had needed cheering up. We were drawn to this place because it reminded us of everyone. It wasn't the dorm, where Jimin had died, and it wasn't the practice room, because that reminded us of the pain of being idols. Here, we were just boys with intertwined fates.

Oh God, I missed them.

I kicked a bush in my path out of misery and frustration, and a small kaleidoscope of butterflies flew out from it, harassed by my disturbance of their home. My eyes widened when I saw them all fluttering out in a whirl of lively colors. They were all beautifully shaded, ruby red, cloud white, onyx black, lapis lazuli blue, lime green, and vibrant purple. I'd never seen such lovely colored butterflies in the area before, and I was sure they weren't native. Captivated by their beauty, I took out my camcorder and filmed them, following them through the forest. They seemed so ethereal as they glided through the expanse of the forest, the sunlight catching on their thin wings as they passed.

As I followed them, I tripped over a tree root, losing sight of the butterflies as I hit the ground. I cursed myself for losing sight of those creatures. I had to find them again--they were breathtaking, and it was all I could do to distract myself from my sorrow. Picking myself back up again, I scoured the area for them, finally going into a clearing after seeing a flash of red.

It was the clearing that Taehyung had first ran to after we'd arrived. There was the same abandoned pool, the graffitied walls, and the platform above the pool. The six butterflies had gathered around the mattress, swirling above it like a halo of color.

"Found you," I whispered softly, leveling my camera at them and pressing the record button.

When I looked through the viewfinder of the camera, I gasped softly, tears welling in my eyes. I didn't see six butterflies; I saw six people. Six familiar people. Six dead people.

It was Bangtan.

Through the viewfinder, I saw Taehyung lying down on the mattress, his arms over his eyes to block the sunlight. He seemed to be asleep and oblivious to the world. Five other boys--Jimin, Jungkook, Yoongi, Hoseok, and Namjoon--crowded around him, Namjoon shaking his arm to wake him up. I bit my lip to keep from crying out. I'd never thought that I'd see them ever again. Taehyung uncovered his face and looked at Namjoon, springing up immediately and hugging him. I longed to do the same. The other boys joined in on the hug, all saying excited and joyous words, but I couldn't hear them through the viewfinder. For a moment, I was truly happy.

I knew that as soon as I stopped recording, it would all be over. I knew that when I watched this video, all I would see would be butterflies. I knew that this was something else, something that wasn't normal. But I also knew that the boys were together and that Taehyung was with them now. They were together, and they were waiting for all of us to reunite. That was all I needed to know to keep on living.

Suddenly, noise came from the viewfinder. I flinched slightly, but I almost started crying at that familiar voice. It reminded me of everything that I had been missing, and everything that I couldn't have again until death. Jungkook had spotted me and had pointed, causing all of the other boys to turn around to look. When they saw me, they all grinned and waved, and Taehyung widened his eyes and offered me an apologetic wave.

"Oh, it's Seokjin-hyung."