April 11, 20XX
Saturday pt. II

It's hard being with Taehyung.

For every step forward, I end up needing to take more back.

Before going on this trip, I thought that I was ready to bury the box of my past and throw away the key, but after this morning's conversation, it was like I wasn't ready to let go of it.

I believe things happen for a reason and if Taehyung had truly moved on, then it was a sign that I needed to also.

It's for the best.

Find your closure and move on.

I exhale harshly, staring outside the window as I tune out the presentation.

I was surprised by the number of photographers that had come to the conference. The entire hall was jammed pack, ranging from those who saw photography as a business and those who saw it as a hobby. The conference was more photography focused than business-focused, so I felt out of place this entire time.

Feeling a bit suffocated, I excuse myself from my seat, catching Taehyung a bit off guard, his round eyes watching me as I get up and exit out of the room.

Finally.

Outside the hall, there were people scattered around, most of them tending to booths with photo prints on display.

Captivated by one booth in particular, I stop to admire the pop of colors on all of the prints, women of every shape and size posing in ways that highlighted their clothing.

"See something you like?" 

I turn towards the voice coming from behind me, needing to crane my head up to make eye contact with the bronzed individual. 

He smiles widely, fixing his watch as he walks behind the table, picking up a print from the display.

You're telling me he's behind the camera?

"They're beautiful...like everything about them, the people, the clothes..." I smile as I accept the print that's making its way into my hands.

He beams,  "Thank you. Have you ever thought about posing yourself?"

I tilt my head, a new thought entering my head. "Like a model?"

He shrugs, "Why not?"

I laugh nervously, putting my hair behind my ear as I look at the photo. "I couldn't do that."

"Are you saying that because you're being modest?" 

I pick up the flirtatious tone behind his words.

"No, I'm saying that because I'll never come out like this."

He stares at me in disbelief. 

"Stunning."

I pick up my head, "Hm?"

He leans closer, palms on the table. "I'm saying you're lying because you're absolutely stunning."

His intense stare causes me to blush, his forwardness electrifying. 

"I'm Jongin, by the way."

"Jennie," I offer my hand which he shakes lightly.

"What are you doing here, Jennie? Are you telling me you're a photographer?"

"I'm here with my...boss. I just handle social media."

He's surprised, thinking about something before finally letting me know, "Come work for me. I'll pay you double."

Double?

As nice as that would be, it would also mean double the pressure.

"I'm not really experienced. I just started-"

"As one of my models." Jongin cut in.

I stare at the photographs, imagining myself in them, cheeks turning pink.

Can I really be a model?

Jongin leans in closer, his hand resting on my arm as he whispers in the opposite ear, "Excuse me for being too forward, but you're just a dream."

My heart starts racing by the attention he's giving me. Jongin was a very attractive man and I don't want to make it seem like I fall for anyone that gives me attention, but it was hard not like the attention of a man like him. 

I move my face back a bit, intimidated by the proximity of our faces. 

We're practically nose to nose.

Suddenly, we weren't. He falls back quickly, but not of his own will.

Taehyung had appeared out of nowhere, shoving Jongin back by his shoulder with enough force to have him stumbling back into the display.

My jaw drops and I gape at Taehyung, who calmly stands between Jongin and me. 

"What the hell?" Jongin's eyes tighten.

"My apologies, I might've misread what was happening, but it seemed like you overstepped your boundaries."

"Are you her boyfriend or something? I was just offering her a job." Jongin shoves his hands into his pocket, eyes pointing down at Taehyung.

"She works for me. Last I checked this wasn't a recruiting event."

"You have her behind the desk when she could be more valuable in front of the camera, are you stupid or something?"

Taehyung doesn't waver, eyes drifting from Jongin's. 

Jongin points at Taehyung as he narrows his eyes more "...You look familiar...are you...you're the guy that's headlining articles."

Taehyung presses his lips together, most likely tense from being recognized.

Jongin scoffs, "Wow! It is you. You even got your own studio, just by sleeping with the owner's daughter because let's face it, your photography skills are mediocre." 

Owner's daughter?

Irene's daughter of Scenery's CEO? 

My insides twist up.

"You don't know what you're talking about." Taehyung's gruff voice cautions Jongin, who shakes his head. I flinch when I observe Taehyung's hand form into a fist, terrified that a fight was really going to break out.

"Then you must have bought a good camera, but that camera's only going to take you so far." 

Jongin's words hit like a smack across the face, Taehyung's expression dull.

"That's not true," I whisper, feeling nervous when the attention makes it back my way. 

I build the courage to stare directly into Jongin's eyes, just minutes ago enough to make my knees weak. "Taehyung is a good photographer and it's not his camera. You keep criticizing him when all you've seen is his landscape photography. Just so you know, that's not his area of expertise. Taehyung's portrait photography is phenomenal and it's a shame he doesn't do it anymore."

A blush creeps up on my face, a result of Taehyung's hard stare.

"You're an amazing high-fashion photographer, but I bet that if you were doing street photography, it would be a different story. You would need practice, right? If you believe what you see is what you get, then I could never work for you."

I'm more than just a pretty face.

Taehyung's round eyes give him a childlike appearance, making me feel like I was a grown-up breaking apart a playground fight. 

Nodding a goodbye, I turn around and walk away.

I could sense Taehyung's steps behind me, the sense of his gaze enough to make me feel weird about walking.

I stop at the lemon water dispenser, attempting to pour myself a cup, but I couldn't push down the spigot.

His warm hands fall ontop of mine, gently helping me push it down.

"Jennie?" He asks in a gentle whisper.

I look at him, forgetting how to breathe.

He chews on his bottom lip. "Are you mad?"

Mad? Why would he think that?

"Did you want to become a model?"

I notice my cup about to overfill and quickly take my hand off the spigot, holding onto my cup tightly.

"Never. I could...never. He just offered to pay me more, that's it. That's all that was tempting."

I rub over the spot his fingers touched, feeling like fire. 

"Be my assistant."

I flicker my eyes onto his serious ones.

"It pays double what you make now." He takes a sip of his own drink.

"Taehyung..." I had a million things to say to him such as was there even an assistant position? Didn't he have to run that by Irene? Why would he offer it to me?

He pulls his phone out of his pocket, allowing me a glimpse of all the unanswered notifications clouding the screen. 

Putting it back into his pocket, he looks at me and I try to pretend I was staring at all the floating lemons in the dispenser and not his phone.

"We should head inside now."

"R-right."

Taehyung turns towards one of the doors leading into the hall, but before he goes inside, I stop him.

"I-I'm going to go to the bathroom real quick and I'll meet you there."

I just need a few minutes to collect myself.

He smiled at me, nodding before pulling the door open, but before he stepped inside, he gently called for me.

"You'd be an extraordinary model...If photography was a circus, then you'd be the ringmaster."

And I swear before letting the door close, he whispered, 

"Because you command the attention of everyone in the room."

_____________________________

Author's note;;

It has come to my attention that "One Room" was cut-off. I have corrected that, so maybe triple check if you read the full thing 💀

The last chapter was a wild one, wasn't it? Did I leave your head spinning? Taehyung's words were metaphorical and hard to decipher I bet. The hint was the chapter title. If you don't know who that is, you should look the name up. I think by now a lot of people guessed correctly and I enjoy reading your theories and analysis.

The reason I chose not to be direct with it is that it's a heavy subject. If I use the real words, it could be triggering which is why it's better for people to see "it" as an unrequited/unwanted romance.