Socializing and networking was not his scene. It never was and never will be. A few feet from him, Taehyung stood with three business associates, deeply immersed in a conversation. It was such a Kim Taehyung thing. He lived for these events.

"Water?"

Jungkook wordlessly accepted the cup Jimin handed him and chugged it down his throat. He checked his phone for the hundredth time that night, wishing for the networking to end. Why did he agree to attend this event again? That too on a Saturday night. Ah, his father had set him up without consulting him again. He blinked as a hand fell on his shoulder.

"Mr. Jeon."

Jungkook flinched and fought the urge to move away from the grip. He slowly turned, already regretting... "Oh, hey, Yuna."

The beautiful actress smiled radiantly handing him a drink. He eyed it dubiously before accepting it with a tight smile. "You remembered."

He gave her nervous laugh, sipping the drink. Jungkook was in no mood for the drink. He had to work on the proposal for JH Inc. and drinking was the last thing he had in mind. But socializing meant a few friendly drinks and saying no was considered rude. He sighed as he tried to come up with a response and failed. He settled for a nod and swept his glance across the hall.

Taehyung was far away from him. His grip on the glass tightened when Yuna looped a hand through his elbow. "What are you doing tonight?" Her seductive smile or the low cut that accentuated her generous assets didn't affect him.

Hands off. He bit back the response and downed the entire content of the glass in one go. "Sleep."

Yuna laughed out loud, leaning more into him, her free hand resting on his chest as a camera flashed on them. Great. Now the lurking media had enough content for tomorrow's gossip. He squirmed and tried to move away but her grip on his elbow only tightened. "You're funny. Do you know that?"

Funny how? He was merely stating a fact.

"You're the first person to tell me that." He lifted a brow. Why am I even putting up with this?

"Really?" She leaned more, pressing her body not so discreetly on his arm. "Sleeping is boring. I'm up for some fun if you want it."

Whoa.

Jungkook tightened his lips, running a hand through his hair. That escalated fast. "I...uh..."

"Room 801." She ran a finger along his torso, making his eyes widen further. "I––"

"Mr. Jeon." Jungkook jumped at the sudden intrusion. Jimin held his phone out with an apologetic smile toward Yuna. "Sorry to interrupt, but this is urgent." He jerked his gaze to the phone.

Jungkook glanced at Jimin's phone, his brain finally releasing the adrenaline to his system as he lunged for it as if it was his lifeline. "Hello," he breathed, untangling his hand from Yuna and quickly exiting the hall.

He didn't stop until he reached the deserted hallway, his mind vaguely realizing there was no one at the other end. Jungkook stared at the phone, thankful for the much-needed distraction also wondering who would call him on a Saturday night.

"Sorry about that. Thought you could use some distraction."

Jungkook whipped around to see Jimin standing with his hand in his pockets. He wore blue skin tight jeans with a white silk button-up shirt––the first three buttons were undone, teasing the smooth expanse of his chest. His platinum blonde hair was parted in the middle, the tips of the hair falling over his lashes. Rings adorned his fingers and he had traded his usual silver hoop earrings for feather earrings that made him look otherworldly. Jungkook's gaze trailed down, admiring the pink, plump lips, settling on the silver chain on his neck with a few charms. What distracted him most was the porcelain skin and the collarbone that was on display. An involuntary shudder ran through his body when he remembered how he used to mark that smooth skin, so everybody knew Jimin belonged to someone.

Jungkook blinked a few times, composed his thoughts when he realized he was blatantly staring at his personal manager. He wordlessly handed Jimin's phone to him.

"You okay?" Jimin tilted his head to the side and Jungkook's eyes jumped to his neck.

Fuck.

"Yeah. Yeah," he managed to say. "I just need some air before I can get back inside."

Jimin nodded in understanding. "I'll go see if the zone is clear."

"Yeah, okay."

Jungkook swallowed. So, Jimin had lied about the phone call to get him away from Yuna. It worked. He laughed nervously, but also couldn't take Jimin's image off his mind. Jimin had dressed to kill tonight and he succeeded. Jungkook rubbed his temple. Get it together Jungkook. It must the alcohol, but he very well knew that wasn't the case. He was doomed.

***

Jimin skirted around the tables, smiling and bowing politely at the business associates and the other guests as he made his way to the party hall. When he got a call from Taehyung that afternoon asking him to get ready and meet them at the Four Seasons Hotel in the heart of Seoul at four p.m. before texting the details of the event.

He had dressed quickly and jumped into a Kakao taxi without further question. Jimin did some digging while on the way and figured it was the big boss Jungwoo, who fixed the schedule without consulting Jungkook first. He was mildly annoyed because he should be aware of these things as his personal manager and the old man didn't even bother to keep him in the loop.

Jimin: Boss is attending an event this evening in Four Seasons Hotel. Is there anything I should know?

He quickly shot a text to Byeol. Her response came after three minutes.

Byeol: Is this the gala organized by Sungmin?

Jimin: Ah, yeah I see his name as the host.

His phone rang immediately flashing Byeol's name on his screen. "Hey, Bee..."

"Jimmy...this guy is trouble alright," she started without a greeting. "He's is Jungwoo-ssi's best friend."

She was someone Jimin could consider a wingman. They'd built a good comradery over the past two weeks and they both agreed on almost everything.

"Oh."

"Yeah, he has a daughter, alright." He does? Jimin could guess exactly where this conversation was going. "They were trying to get them dating for almost two years now. Boss is not interested."

"Hm...What's my role today?"

"Keep them away."

"I think I can do that."

"You better bring our boss home in one piece."

Jimin chuckled. "I will."

"See ya, Jimmy."

"Bye, Bee."

The event had been boring at its best. Jimin saw a few reporters lurking in the room, clicking photos. For the rest of the evening, he shadowed Jungkook and Taehyung keeping his distance. Taehyung was natural, he could tell by the way the former blended with the crowd. His boss, however, was a different case scenario altogether. He felt bad for the youngest, who looked like he would be anywhere but here, which was the truth.

Jungkook wore tight black jeans and a black turtle neck t-shirt, finishing his look with a long Prada coat, all black. The man must love black. His black hair parted to the side fell in waves, covering his brow. He had added a few more hoops to his earrings, which looked stunning.

The event progressed at a snail pace. Jimin took one look at Sungmin and decided he didn't like him. His daughter, draped in Gucci from head to toe was another story. Her eyes had lit up the moment she saw Jungkook. She practically attached herself to him the next moment and Jimin couldn't think of a way to peel her off him.

Jimin realized his job was harder than he thought it would be. When he noticed her liking to vodka, he'd befriended the bartender and whipped something strong. He kept the drinks going at them and soon, as he expected, her father had dragged her drunken ass away with an apologetic smile.

He smiled to himself at his slyness. Just as he thought he solved one trouble, others surfaced. One hour into the party and Jimin was exhausted. He could only imagine how Jungkook must be feeling.

"Care for a drink?" Jimin whirled around pursing his lips when she spotted Yuna again.

"I'm driving, thanks," he said politely.

"Where's Jungkook?" she pouted.

"He's still on call."

She looked as if she wanted to say something, but turned and left. Jimin sighed, scanned the party hall for potential vultures, and found them right away. When his gaze locked with a few they grinned suggestively and he averted his gaze. When they figured who he was, many offered a drink and tried to socialize with him. Jimin tried to keep his best attitude politely denying the drink. It was a lie. He didn't own a car. It was just an excuse to evade them. He wasn't much of a drinker and drinking gave him bad headaches.

"Thanks for earlier."

He whirled around at the sound of Jungkook, who offered a small smile.

"No problem."

Jungkook nodded, pushing his hands into his pant pockets. The small move emphasized his broad chest muscles and slim waist. Jimin blinked when he realized he was sizing up his boss. His heart beat faster.

"Sorry to put you through this," Jungkook said. "Weekend and all."

"It's okay." Jimin smiled. "You can call me any time."

Jungkook's gaze jerked to his face at that and he stared. Jimin shifted from one foot to the other. His boss had been doing that a lot lately. While he couldn't figure the reason, he believed it was his way of regarding a person. The intensity of his gaze made Jimin squirm, but it also sometimes made his heart race. He chuckled at the thought. What the hell was that? I'm overreacting. It shouldn't bother him. Both were men.

When he looked up Jungkook was still watching him intently. The ice seemed to break after the last Monday board meeting. Jungkook wasn't much of a talker, but he often said thanks and gave him a tight-lipped smile. That was something. Jimin opened his mouth to speak, but they were swamped by a group of older men.

Jungkook wordlessly took the drink they offered while Jimin declined politely saying he was driving. The excuse always worked. He stuck around and another hour passed when Taehyung found them at the back of the party hall surrounded by another group of business associates.

"Jungkook-ah, something came up. I have to leave."

"Okay."

"How will you go?" he asked Jungkook.

Jungkook jerked his head to Jimin. "Jimin will drive."

"Right. See you tomorrow." Taehyung frowned before pulling Jimin aside. "How much did he drink?"

"A lot." Jimin pursed his lips.

"Okay. Don't let him linger for too long." Taehyung looked around just as his phone blared. "Shit. I need to take this one. Jimin-ah, take him home now. His alcohol tolerance is shit." With that, Taehyung raced away.

Damn. He was doomed.

He looked over to where Jungkook was and his skin crawled at the sight of Yuna. She was running her hands all over Jungkook while his boss, tried unsuccessfully to pry her hands off him. Without another thought, he rushed to his boss. He pulled his phone out again. Jimin didn't think it would work again, but he had to try and save the young CEO without pissing the famous actress.

"Mr. Jeon..."

"What?" Yuna snapped. "Can't you see we're busy?"

Jimin was taken back, but he looked at Jungkook and saw him swaying lightly, shaking his head as he blinked. Shit. He was drunk. Jimin pocketed his phone and stepped forward.

"I see he's drunk. My orders are to take him home."

Yuna laughed. "Don't be a party pooper. We're just getting to know each other." Her grip tightened on Jungkook's hand, who stared at her with a frown. She lowered her voice, "He just agreed to spend the night with me. You can leave."

The audacity of that woman. Jimin crossed his hands across his chest, noticing one of the reporters moving closer in his peripheral vision. He forced a smile as he glared at Yuna. "Hands off," he hissed with the same smile. "I don't care who you are. Mr. Jeon is going home now."

"How dare––"

"I'm not a patient man, Ms. Jung. I don't give a fuck about the audience. Stop throwing yourself on him and find someone else for the night."

"You––"

Jimin grabbed Jungkook's arm, his boss lifted his half-hooded eyes, blinking a few times and relaxing when he saw Jimin. He pried her hands off Jungkook, his smile still in place. When she refused to let go, he applied enough pressure on her wrist that made her gasp. "Told you, I'm not a patient man and I don't give a fuck."

"Who do you think you are? I'll end you."

Jungkook chuckled interrupting them. "You wish, but you can't." His demeanor changed the next moment. "Listen carefully, Yuna. If you so much as looked at him, I'll end you." He threw a hand around Jimin's shoulder. "And find a damn pole next time if you want to scratch your itch. I'm tired of putting a pleasant face just to please you." Yuna's jaw almost hit the floor and Jimin suppressed a smile when Jungkook turned around. "Take me home, Jimin-ah. I'm done here."

Jimin obliged, he bowed at her still sporting a grin and followed Jungkook outside.

I enjoyed writing this chapter. So what do you think? 

Until we meet again...💜💜💜