You follow Jungkook, your last glimpse of Myungsoo is of him arguing with Jimin.

Jungkook leads you back into the building, employees gaping as you rush by.

He storms through the lobby into the staging area.

Tosses open the door of the first dressing room he sees, and tows you in after him.

You look around, glad to see there was no one here to witness this awkward scenario.

He turns back to close the door.

And then stands still, keeping his back to you for several long moments.

"... Jungkook," you say softly.

He turns to stare at you.

No, he's not staring at you.

He's staring at Myungsoo's jacket.
More specifically on the upper arm sleeve where Myungsoo's initials are printed.

Jungkook takes a giant step toward you.

He lashes his arm out without warning and rips the jacket from your shoulders, whipping it violently onto the ground.

You flinch, the gust of wind rippling your hair.

The jacket snaps through the air onto the floor, sliding across the tile all the way to the other side of the room with the sheer force of his throw.

It rumples against the far wall.

You twitch backward, startled by his speed.

"Why are you so afraid of me?" He interrogates you.

Because you're frightening!

You're so intimidating!

You're too strong and too fast!

Why are you always so intense?

What's the matter with you??

You swallow.

"I'm... I'm not afraid of you, Jungkook," you say instead.

He huffs.

You take a deep breath.

"I just... I just don't know how to make things okay again."

The truth of your own words hit you, and to your horror, your eyes begin blur and a tear slides down your cheek.

Well, if you're going to have an emotional breakdown, you may as well just get it all out, you decide.

"I've been trying, Jungkook. I've been thinking. But I just don't know how to go back to the way we were. Every time I see you, you're upset with me. We can't even talk to each other anymore."

Your voice breaks and you wipe your cheek, looking into his face.

He stares at you, silent.

For the first time in two weeks, you hold each other's gaze.

"Please tell me how to make things okay again," you whisper.

He doesn't answer. He just looks at you.

"Tell me," you plead.

"Fine!" he snaps.

"You said that it wasn't right for us because we work together. But you work together with Myungsoo too," he spits the words out.

"Myungsoo? How does this have to do with Myungsoo?" You shake your head at him, exasperated.

"I know what I heard earlier on the set," he says, looking away.

Your heart drops.

You remember how it affected him during the live broadcast.

"... I... I'm so sorry. That it made you upset... and ruined your filming."

You take a deep breath.

"It wasn't what it sounds like, Jungkook. Everyone was exaggerating, making a joke out of it."

"What was it actually, then?" He asks, quiet.

"I... I barged into Myungsoo's office without knocking. He was halfway through changing. It was an accident."

"... And you're so friendly with him that you don't need feel the need to knock?" Jungkook looks up at you.

"Where did your manners go? Where did your etiquette go? You never forget them when you're with me. You never let them go, ever, when you're with me."

He clenches his fist.

You look back at him, speechless.

"What is it about him?" Jungkook's voice is low.

"I don't... I don't even know what you're asking! Myungsoo is just my friend!" You turn your palms up in exasperation.

He takes a deep breath.

"I don't want things to go back to the way they were before."

"Why?" You squeeze out.

"Because..."

He steps closer to you.

"Because I don't want to hear some other guy call you jagi. Because I know that you feel something for me too."

Your chest aches.

"Maybe...I... I do, but... so does everyone else." You whisper.

"What?" He furrows his eyebrows, confused.

"Jungkook. Everyone likes you. You're handsome and talented. You're an amazing dancer. Singer. You're smart and funny. Of course I like you, but everyone likes you."

"... Is, is that how you like me? Because I dance and sing? Are those the reasons you like me?" His voice wavers.

"I don't... I don't know... Aren't they? I mean, you're a celebrity... celebrities are attractive, and those are the sides of you that I see all the time."

You grip your hands together tight, trying to sort through your feelings.

"Am I not different to you than the hyungs? Do you feel the same about me as you do Jimin hyung? Namjoon hyung? Do you look at them how you look at me?" he urges, his voice full of frustration.

"No, but—"

"No. So it's not because I'm a celebrity. If it was, you would feel this way about all the hyungs."

He takes another huge step forward and separates one of your hands, gently pressing it against his chest with both of his.

"Tell me it's just me. Tell me you see ME."

"But... how do I, how do I know?" you ask him.

You feel the heat of his palms, and the slight tremble of his hands.

"You can know when... when you see me in a group with the hyungs, but you're watching only me."

He lowers his face closer to yours.

"When... you feel something different if I get close to you..."

He touches his forehead to yours.

"Like this."

His breath caresses your cheek and your heart speeds up, thudding madly.

And that's when you realize.

Yes, when you watch the Bangtan guys, you always have to consciously stop following Jungkook with your eyes.

You force yourself to pay attention to the other members too.

But the draw is always there.

He was like a bright light in your peripheral, always drawing your attention, even when you fight it.

And yes, you find Taehyung and Jimin handsome, but they didn't make your heart flutter the way Jungkook did.

He is different to you.

Different from everyone else.

He was the reason you came for Bangtan, all along.

You look up at him, surprised by the clarity of your thoughts.

His eyes search your face frantically, his expression a whirlwind of fear, hope, pain...

You lift your other hand to his cheek.

You stroke his ear.

"Jungkook-ah," you whisper.

His eyes widen.

He stares at you like he's been falling in the dark for ages and you just caught him in a safety net.

In one swift motion, he dips his head and presses his mouth to yours.

He kisses you urgently, his breaths ragged.

His lips over yours, hard and desperate.

A short sound escapes from him, between a whimper and a moan, and you recognize it as fear.

As pain.

Your heart tightens.

You kiss him back, gently.

Once, twice. Again.

He lets his shoulders drop.

Still, you place soft pecks on his lips.

His breaths begin to slow down.

You run your fingers along the back of his neck.

You wait.

You pet the ends of his hair.

Slowly, he stills.

Calms.

He finally stops shaking.

"I... I thought I lost you," he says against your mouth.

"I'm sorry... I didn't know what to do," you whisper back.

"I know, I know... I shouldn't have given up so easily," he says.

"I kept seeing you with him... with Myungsoo. You were always laughing. And then he was dancing for you. And then on the set... he said that—he called you jagi. And I couldn't focus on anything. I was going crazy inside. I've never been so angry and scared."

His grip on your waist tightens.

His voice drops.

"Then I saw him touch your hair and put his jacket around you, and I just lost it. I lost it because I couldn't have you and there he was, all over you, and I just wanted to punch him--"

"Shh..." You coo, stroking his cheek.

He was shaking again.

"I... I don't feel a lot of things," he whispers. "I care about Bangtan, and I care about my hyungs, and that's all I've never cared for...
But then you... you showed up.
I never expected it to matter to me at all. You were just another person to be polite to.
But I saw the way my hyungs got close to you, and it made me curious... and the more I watched you, the more I started to care where you stood, where you sat, who you were with, who talked to you... whether you wrote about me..."

It was as if his confession was literally sweeping you off your feet.

You feel yourself lean into him, light headed and weak.

All along... all along, the whole time you were convincing yourself that you didn't feel anything different for him, he was watching you too.

All along, as you kept your careful distance, he was trying to keep a distance too.

All along, you were both drawn to each other like moths to a flame.

Jungkook wraps both his arms around you, lowering his face into your neck.

"Please... please."

And you knew what he was begging for.

But could you afford to give him, and yourself, that?

His wet lashes brush against your skin as he blinks rapidly, trying to keep himself together.

Knowing he was in so much pain brought your own tears flooding back, and they fall, sinking into his shirt.

Your heart was expanding, swelling with want.

You wanted him, you wanted to have this fluffy haired boy, you wanted to have his warm arms and his beautiful voice and his bright smiles.

You wanted to take away his hurt and fear, you wanted to belong to him, you wanted to stop the sharp ache in your chest.

A reluctant knock sounds on the door behind him.

The two of you spring apart, eyes wild.

Is this it?

You were too aware that both of you had red, swollen eyes.

It would be too suspicious.

Is this the end of your career here?

Taehyung's head pokes through as the door cracks open.

"Ah! You guys ARE in here!" He whispers loudly.

He shuffles in sideways, shutting the door behind him.

Jungkook's defensive stance relaxes, but doesn't go away.

"We're talking. What do you want?" he growls.

"Everyone's looking for you guys!" Taehyung says in a hushed voice.

"Why?"

"Why? Jungkookie, ten different people saw you take her away! Jimin had to say that you were angry with her about something, but they want to know what. And the buses need to take everyone back to the office, we need to go!"

"Oh." Jungkook turns to you, frantic.

You stare back at him, equally helpless.

Taehyung's phone vibrates in his hand.

He hurriedly swipes a few times to read it.

"Ok, Jimin said here is the plan. We will all go back out, and we will tell everyone that Jungkook got mad because he heard Myungsoo and noona making fun of him. That's why he was mad at both of you. Jimin says this is best so noona can't get in trouble or be fired, only Jungkook will look small-minded."

He looks up from the text, nodding.

You pause, surprised.

"That's actually a really good solution... it makes sense. But... is that okay with you, Jungkook?" You ask him, worried about him taking the fall.

"I can't think of anything else," he replies immediately. "I'll just have to act offended for a while."

"Okay we have to go, Jimin hyung says they are coming to look for you guys!" Taehyung says, opening the door.

The three of you file out, Jungkook scowling and looking away from you.

You walk into a few crew members right away.

Too polite to pry, they simply follow as Jungkook takes the lead, storming out of the building and to the Bangtan van.

It wasn't difficult to feign being upset, as you were still pretty Jung-shook from the whole thing.

As you board the bus, sitting by a window and sighing deeply, multiple staff turned to look at you.

Myungsoo left his seat to join you.

"... Are you okay?" He asks, checking you up and down for physical abuse.

Everyone's ears perk up.

"I... well, remember I told you that I offended Jungkook?" You stare at the window, aware that plenty of people were listening in.

There's a shift of a fabric as Myungsoo hands you your laptop bag.

"Yes," he answers quietly.

"Jungkook... also heard us talking one day. Apparently, we made fun of how Bangtan were slow to learn their dance this time. I don't remember the comment, do you?" You fiddle with your bag strap.

"No... I really don't. But maybe it's possible we said something about the dance and he took it the wrong way," Myungsoo replies hesitantly.

"I think that's what happened," you sigh again dramatically. "He thinks we were being rude, and he got defensive on behalf of Jin and Namjoon. He was very angry and told me not to disrespect his hyung again."

"That's... so crazy. I really don't remember saying anything like that."

"I know... me neither," you say meekly.

Out of the corner of your eye, you see someone nod slowly in understanding, and two other people leaning together to whisper something.

"He looked furious, and he was grabbing you! It's practically assault! Did he hurt you?" Myungsoo asks urgently.

By now the bus had started up, cutting off the silence, and most people had turned away.

"No, it looked like he was being rough but he wasn't really, and he actually apologized to me after."

"Really?" He raises an eyebrow, skeptical.

"Really," you laugh.

Your laugh seems to convince him.

"We will have to be more careful what we talk about then," he scratches his head.

You nod fervently.