Taehyung's pov

What a waste of getting all dolled up...

"Jimin? It's Tae. Where the hell are you? I need you. This is the worst date I've ever been on. I'm literally falling asleep. I've considered smashing my head on the table a few times to keep awake. Unless you want me bloodied and bruised, I need you to call with a fake emergency. Call me back. Please." Pressing end call, I blew out a frustrated breath as I stood outside the restroom room in the dark hallway at the back of the restaurant.

A deep voice from behind me caught me off guard. "Unless he's also an idiot-in addition to being boring-he's going to know."

"Excuse me?" I turned to find a man leaning against the wall, his eyes pointed down as he texted away on his phone. He continued without looking up.

"It's the oldest trick in the book...the emergency phone call. The least you can do is put in a little more effort. It takes two months to get a reservation at this place, and it's not cheap, sweetheart."

"Maybe he should be the one to put in more effort. His sports jacket has a giant hole under the arm, and he's done nothing but talk about his mother all night."

"Ever consider that your snobby attitude makes him nervous?"

My eyes nearly bulged out of my head. "You want to talk about snobby? You eavesdrop on my call and give me your unwelcome opinions, all while staring down at your phone. You haven't even made eye contact with me while you're speaking."

The jerk's fingers froze mid text. Then I watched as his head rose, eyes following a leisurely path starting at my ankles, up my legs before continuing to trace their way over my hips, coming to rest briefly on my chest before finally settling on my face.

"Yes, that's right. Up here. These are my eyes."

He pushed off the wall and stood tall, catching the lone ray that had been lighting the hallway. The streak illuminated his face, and I could see him clearly for the first time.

Really? Not what I was expecting. With that deep, raspy voice and attitude, I assumed I'd find someone older, probably dressed in a stuffy suit.

But this guy was gorgeous. Young and gorgeous. Dressed entirely in black -simple and sleek, yet there was an edge to the way he looked.Strong, masculine features-a square jaw, prominent nose, and big, sexy, sleepy eyes the color of chocolate. Those were now staring intently at me.

Without dropping my gaze, he lifted his arms from his sides, holding them up over his head. "You want to check me for rips before you decide if I'm worthy of speaking to?"

He was gorgeous all right, but definitely an asshole. "That's not necessary. Your attitude has already decided that for me, and you're not."

Lowering his arms, he chuckled. "Suit yourself. Try to enjoy the rest of your evening, sweetheart."

I huffed, but stole one last fleeting look at the beautiful jerk before I walked back to my date.

Minjun was sitting with his hands folded when I returned to my seat at the table. "Sorry," I told him. "There was a line."

"That reminds me of a funny story. This one time, I was at a restaurant with my mother, and when she went to use the ladies' room..."

His voice faded away while I stared at my phone, willing it to ring. Damn you, Chim. Where are you when I really need you?

I noticed the jerk from the bathroom walking past our table. He smirked at me after taking a look at my rambling date and my disinterested face. Curious, I followed his path to get a look at who he was here with.

Figures.

Dyed blonde, pretty in a slutty sort of way, with a heaping amount of boobage falling out of her low-cut dress. She made googly eyes at her date as he returned; I rolled mine. Yet...I couldn't help but glance over at their table from time to time. the guy from the bathroom caught me staring at him. Across the restaurant, he winked, arched an eyebrow, and tipped his glass in my direction.

Jerk.

When I turned back, the jerk and his date were standing. Reading his lips, I could make out some of what he was saying...something about joining an old friend, I thought. Then suddenly, they were walking right toward our table.

Is he going to say something to Minjun about what he overheard?

"Tae. Is that you?"

What in the hell?

"Umm...yes."

"Wow. It's been a long time." He patted his hand on his chest. "It's me, JK." Before I knew what was happening, the jerk (who was apparently named JK) reached down and gripped me in a bear hug. While I was in his arms, he whispered, "Play along. Let's make your night more exciting, sweetheart."

Dumbfounded, I could only stare as he turned his attention to Minjun, extending his hand.

"I'm Jeon Jungkook. Tae and I go way back."

"Eun Minjun." My date nodded.

"Minjun, mind if we join you? It's been years since Bear and I have seen each other. I'd love to catch up. You don't mind, do you?"

Although he'd asked a question, Jungkook definitely didn't wait for a response. Instead, he pulled out a chair for his date and introduced her.

"This is Binna..." He looked to her for help, and she filled in the blank.

"Min. Min Binna." She smiled, undaunted by our new double date or Jungkook's obvious inability to remember her last name. Minjun, on the other hand, looked disappointed although I was certain he would never voice it.

He looked to JK as he sat. "Bear?"

"That's what we used to call him. He used to cuddle me a lot. My cuddly bear."

Once Jungkook and Binna were seated, there was a moment of awkwardness. Surprisingly, it was Minjun who broke it. "So, how do you two know each other?"

Even though Minjun asked the question looking at both of us, I wanted to make it clear to Jungkook that he was the one on the hot seat. This was his little game. "I'll let Kook tell you about the first time we met. It's really a funny story, actually." turning my full attention to Jungkook while batting my eyelashes with a sly grin.

He didn't flinch, nor did he take more than a few seconds to come up with a story.

The rest of the evening Jungkook told elaborate stories about our fake childhood, unafraid to embarrass me and himself in the process, and kept us all amused. I sometimes added to his stories when my mouth wasn't hanging open at the crap he'd made up.

By the end of the evening, I was ordering coffee to stall the night's end- I hated to admit it, but the jerk had started to grow on me, even while telling fake embarrassing stories about us.

Outside of the restaurant, Minjun, Jungkook, and I all handed the valet our tickets. Of course Binna had come in Jungkook's car like a normal date. She was also practically rubbing up against his side as she clung to his arm. When my shiny red Audi pulled up first, I wasn't sure how to say goodbye to...well...anyone. I took the keys and lingered with the door open.

"Nice car, Bear." Jungkook smiled. "Better than that hunk of junk you drove in high school, huh?"

I chuckled. "I suppose it is."

Minjun stepped forward. "It was nice seeing you, Taehyung. I hope we can do this again sometime."

Rather than wait for him to attempt to kiss me, I went in for a hug.

"Thank you for a nice dinner, Minjun."

As I stepped back, Jungkook stepped forward and pulled me into a hug. Unlike the friendly back-pat I'd given Minjun, Jungkook plastered me against his body. God, it felt good. His eyes lingered on my lips as I looked up at him, and for a brief second, I thought he might kiss me. Then he leaned down and kissed my forehead. "See you at the reunion next year?"

I nodded, feeling almost off-kilter. "Umm...sure thing." I glanced to Binna after he released me. "Nice to meet you, Binna."

Reluctantly, I folded into my car. Feeling eyes on me, I looked up while putting my seat belt on. Jungkook watched me intently. It looked like he wanted to say something, but after a few heartbeats, it felt strange to sit and wait any longer.

Taking a deep breath, I pulled away with one last wave, wondering why it felt like I was leaving something important behind.

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To be continued........

Strange right???! A sexy stranger saves the date...... well this was just their first meet, what's more going to happen?.....