"Come here" Minsu waved me over to a group of guys that looked to be our age, maybe a little younger. "These are some of our cousins" he said each of their names but I had already stopped trying to remember people's names. There were too many of them and my brain gave up about two hours ago. Still I greeted them politely.

I met so many people they were starting to blur together. Minji wasn't lying when she said a lot of family was coming, the house was completely full. I was starting to get hot so I slipped outside to cool off. I stood out in the cold with my arms wrapped around myself as I shivered but I didn't want to go back inside yet. I suddenly felt a warmth in my chest and it spread throughout the rest of my body.

"What the hell?" I looked around but not a single person, other than me, was in sight. I sat on a stone bench next to a small garden at the front of the house and still didn't feel cold. My scar feels tight but it did not hurt "What is going on with me? Ever since I got here I've been experiencing an influx of emotions and strange sensations."

"Ma-ri!"

"Yeah?"

"What are you doing sitting out in the cold? It's freezing out here" Minji asked, her nose already starting to redden.

"I'm not cold" she looked at me like I had grown a second he's "Seriously I'm not" She put her had, which I'm sure was cold, to my face and on my neck

"You're warm. How are you warm without a coat on?" Minji's face frowned

"I don't know!"

"You're weird" she sat down next to me "How are you feeling?"

I shrugged, "It's awkward meeting everyone like this. I feel like I shouldn't be here, I'm the bastard child he left behind and everyone knows it"

"Has anyone said or done anything to you?"

"No, everybody has been very nice and welcoming actually. It's just me." I sighed, the cold latching on to my breath so I could see it in front of me. "Where are his parents?"

Minji's body became stiff at my question. I noticed one ever mentioned our grandparents and now I'm even more curious as to why.

"Uh, well our grandparents weren't too thrilled to know you were coming. Dad didn't have the best relationship with his own parents so me and Minsu have only seen them four times in our whole lives. Mom has talked to them once since dad passed"

"Damn, do you know what happened between them? Why wouldn't they come to their son's funeral? I'm not significant enough for his own parents to not be here"

"I don't know all the details but I know one reason is that dad dropped out of medical school so that put a wedge between. I assume another reason is him running out on my mom and meeting yours. I don't think they ever cared for my mother either so I highly doubt they would have shown up even if you weren't here"

"Well, shit. Is our whole family bad with familial relationships?" I let out a reflexive chuckle "let's go back inside before you turn into a popsicle"

"We have decent relationships with our aunts, uncles and cousins." She went in the house first and shook the cold from her body as I followed behind. "I'm sure Minsu introduced you to everyone already"

"I think so" I looked around the room, noticing the crowd had thinned out a little bit

"Choi Min-Ji!" We heard Mi-kyung shout from the kitchen

"Duty calls" she maneuvered through the crowd to reach her mom and I found an empty seat on the sofa next to a teenage girl. I'd guess she's about 17 or 18, she had earbuds in and I glanced at her phone screen and saw the guy from the billboard, the poster and my dream.

They all looked vaguely familiar but his face stood out to me more than the others for some reason. He is the one I keep recalling.

"Excuse me," I gently tapped her arm so I wouldn't scare her. She pulled out one earbud "who are they?"

"You-you don't know bangtan sonyeondan?" She looked offended then surprised

"Bangtan what?"

"Wow. They are the biggest group in the world!" She exclaimed

"Is that live? Can we put it on the tv?" I asked, I needed a better view of them. As soon as I saw them on her screen I felt warmer and my heart started to race. Yes they're are gorgeous but that was was exaggerated response to some pretty faces

"Auntie, can I please turn on the tv? It's BTS"

"Yes Yeeun" she quickly took the remote from the table and pressed the power button. Once she found the station I focused on the larger screen

"What are their names?" I asked without looking away. Yeeun pointed to the far left

"That's Jin, Jungkook, Jimin, V, RM, Suga and J-hope"

I finally knew his name. The longer I stared at him the stronger that pull started to feel. His eyes turned to the camera and I swear he was looking right at me. He scratched the back of his neck and I felt the hairs on the back of mine stand up. He blinked and I exhaled, when did I start holding my breath?

I looked at another guy and his eyes also locked onto the camera, he smiled and I felt a surge of excitement leading me to smile at the screen. His smile was gorgeous and infectious.

This is weird. I am obviously imagining things... there is no possible way I can feel them.

"Hey are you alright?" Yeeun asked. I felt my head nod but I never looked away from them. I focused on a different guy and he also stared into the camera as if he felt me looking at him. This time I felt my scar tighten again. He rubbed his chest then I suddenly felt a weight on mine

"I'm fine" I stood up but fell right back down, I was light headed and dizzy. I shut my eyes in an attempt to stabilize my surroundings, it helped. "I need to go"

"Minji!" Yeeun shouted. Footsteps pounded toward us "I don't think she's feeling well, she's burning up"

"Again?" my sister touched my forehead "Ma-ri, I think we need to get you to a hospital"

"No! No hospitals. I-I just need to lie down for a minute" again I tried to stand and nearly collapsed

"Help me get her up, we'll put her in my room for now"

"Oh my god!" Yeeun shrieked then clasped her hand over her mouth. Her eyes were on the tv where two of the members laid on the stage unconscious. My vision went blurry then black as my body went limp.

"Ma-ri!"

I woke up in an unfamiliar room that was ice cold. The window was open letting in the freezing, blustery winds from outside. I mustered up the strength I could to close it and wrap myself in the blanket that was laid on top of me

"I'm going to check on her now" a muffled voice said from the other side of the partition. It slid open and I saw Minsu with a bowl in his hand "Oh good, you're up already. Do you feel okay?"

"Yeah I'm alright, I'm just cold" I sat on the bed and he sat next to me "For me?" I asked pointed to the bowl

"Yeah, here" I accepted it, feeling the heat from the contents inside "It's kimchi jjigae, mom said you needed something hearty"

"Thank you" I accepted the spoon from my brother and dug in. He let it stay quiet between us for a few minutes before speaking you

"I think you should really see a doctor. You have passed out twice in two days and I'm sure that's not good."

"I've seen doctors and none of them know why it happens. There is nothing physically wrong with me, no diseases or disorders they can diagnose"

"Maybe you're not seeing the right kind of doctor" he said with confused look

"I've seen all kinds, I even talked with a psychiatrist to make sure I'm not crazy" Still he looked confused "What's with that look? Say what it is your thinking"

"I was looking up your symptoms and all kinds of things came up but something most doctors or people would not think of anymore caught my eye. What if you're trying to connect?"

"I'm not a machine, what exactly am I trying to connect with?"

"Not what but who, what if you have a soulmate?" He said and my practically eyes bulged out of their sockets.

"Minsu, you don't seriously believe in soulmates do you? People don't have soulmates anymore" I had to laugh. That was the most absurd thing I'd heard all day.

"I know it's been a long time since the last soulmates connected but that doesn't mean it's impossible! Listen, to this" he pulled out his phone and read out loud the words on his screen "Soulmate connections cannot be narrowed down to just one type. Many of the soulmates we studied said they felt several connections; some felt a pull to go to certain places, others felt a sense of familiarity even though they had never met or seen their soulmate, some said they would feel pain without injury and some soulmates said they felt random emotions that were not their own. We don't know how many ways soulmates can connect so we plan to continue studying and learning" he finished

I couldn't deny that the article explained how I was feeling accurately but there had to be another explanation. No one has had a connection in over seventy years and no one knows why. I think people just became selfish or afraid or both.

"That article is like fifty years old!" I rebuttal

"So? Noona told me you said you felt like you were being pulled here. Maybe your soulmate is here and at the way you keep passing out they are probably close by"

"That pull doesn't mean I have a soulmate, maybe I really needed to come for the funeral"

"You don't have to admit it right now but you know the possibility of me being right is very likely. I still believe in soulmates maybe you should start considering that you have one or two" he stood up to leave the room "You were out for a couple of hours and most of everyone went home so you can come out when you're ready"

I finished the soup in the bowl and felt a lot better with a full stomach. The partition opened again and this time it was Minji and Yeeun that stood in the opening

"Hey Minsu said you were awake, are you okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine now, thanks again"

"I need an explanation Ma-ri, this isn't normal. Are you sick?"

"No I am not sick and unfortunately I don't have an explanation, believe me when I say I wish I did. I already told you it just happens sometimes, never two days in a row, but I'm sure that was because of the stress"

"Minsu-oppa thinks you have a soulmate nearby" Yeeun said in a small voice

"Maybe he's delusional" I shrugged "That's not why"

"How do you know?" Minji asked with her arms crossed under her chest

"Jesus not you too, look I just know. It's not possible, no one has connected in decades"

"That we know of. What if people are still connecting and not telling?" Yeeun looked excited all of a sudden "I agree with oppa, I think you are trying to connect with your soulmate"

"If the doctors can't find anything wrong with you physically or mentally, what other explanation could there be? Ma-ri you should at least consider the idea" Minji said.

I wanted to oppose it so badly but nothing else made sense. Could it really be possible that I might be the first person in 73 years to connect with my soulmate?

"After the funeral, once I get back home I will do my own research and if-"

"Home? No, your soulmate is obviously here in South Korea. You can't go back before you find them" Yeeun cut me off

"Yeeun, I have to go back. I have a job and my life in America. I can't waste time here hoping to figure this out. Who knows how long it could take to find my soulmate IF that is what's happening to me, which I want to go on record saying its not"

"Stubborn just like dad" I narrowed my eyes at my sister's comment which I'm sure she intended to say under her breath so that I wouldn't hear it.

"Yeeun, we need to go now. We have to get up early to cook" her mother called out. She shot a look to Minji and waved to me before leaving the room

"Just think about it at least" Minji tapped my shoulder before walking back to the doorway "You should eat some more before you head out too"

"Okay" I sat in her room alone for a few more minutes trying to wrap my mind around the idea of possibly having a soulmate. Could that really be the reason for my fainting spells and unexplained emotions? I wanted to ignore the information Minsu read to me but it made too much sense to ignore completely.