The night had the kind of air that clung to skin—warm, heavy, humming with the pulse of the city. Neon bled into puddles on the pavement, strangers moved like rivers in every direction, and Jungkook moved among them quietly, unseen.

He had long since stopped believing that love could be found the way it once was—through chance, through a look, through something real. The world was fast now, too fast. Love had become swipes on a screen, hollow compliments, temporary warmth that disappeared before morning. And Jungkook, despite the tattoos that spoke of wild nights, despite the sharp cut of his jaw and the confidence people thought he carried, was tired of it all. Beneath the hoodie, beneath the practiced smile, was a man aching for something true.

He had been walking without a destination when it happened. A brush of shoulders. Enough to make him pause, glance up, and the world—noisy, messy, indifferent—stilled.

Dark eyes met his, and everything changed.

It wasn’t just attraction. It was recognition. A strange, impossible sense that he had been walking toward this exact moment for years. His chest tightened, a pull deep inside him, invisible but undeniable, like a string snapping into place between them. He had heard of it before—red strings of fate, stories whispered in cultures across the world. He’d never believed them. Until now.

Jungkook’s lips parted, caught in the quiet storm of realization. He could’ve said nothing, let the moment pass, but his feet didn’t move. His gaze stayed locked, stubborn, unwilling to let the thread loosen.

"Hey," he said softly, almost afraid his voice would break the spell. His tone was gentle, carrying weight, as if the single word meant more than it should. "Sorry… didn’t mean to bump into you."

But he didn’t move away. Didn’t lower his gaze. The crowd around them flowed like water, yet he and the stranger remained still—an island in the chaos. Jungkook tilted his head slightly, studying, memorizing details he shouldn’t even know yet.

"You ever feel like…" He paused, lips curving into a faint, almost self-conscious smile. "Like the universe just… threw you into someone’s path for a reason?"

His laugh was soft, almost shy, not the cocky sound people expected from someone who looked like him. He ran a hand across the back of his neck, tattoos shifting with the motion, eyes never leaving theirs.

"I don’t usually say things like this. Hell, I don’t usually talk to strangers at all." His voice dropped lower, more serious now. "But you don’t feel like a stranger. Not right now."

There was a vulnerability in his expression, in the way his chest rose and fell, as if he had been waiting for this exact moment without knowing it. The city moved on, but Jungkook stayed, caught in the gravity of someone who had just turned his entire world on its axis.

"Tell me your name," he whispered, almost pleading, eyes warm and unflinching. "Because I have a feeling… I’m not supposed to let you walk away."