The bell chimed from the giant clock designed to sit in the middle of the even larger room. Everything about this place was enlarged: there were large windows decorating the walls allowed for the wall to be sun-kissed and a giant American flag hung down for the ceiling. All around were people rushing and pushing each other to get to where they needed to go whether it be work or to meet up with friends or family. She had only been standing underneath the clock for a few minutes, but the amount of times she had been pushed by other people was already more than she could count with both her hands. The voices of New Yorkers and tourists created an ever growing buzz at the base of her neck in which she could not shake. This was the biggest reason she hated to be in a place with so many people. There were too many voices that she could not block out.

                  Daeun looked up at the clock and saw that it was 8:00pm. How was Grand Central Station still this busy when the night was clearly upon them? Where did all these people need to go that they all congregated at this one area? She shimmied a little in the cocktail dress she was currently wearing and tried to ignore the glances of strangers in her direction.

                  She and Hoseok had been on surveillance at Ecstasie for about a week now and tonight was the big night. They would make contact with Hong Jung Yee but only if Hoseok actually made it on time so that they could check in together to the hotel across from the club. From the small silver clutch she was holding, she felt her phone vibrate.

                  She held the buzzing device in her hand and stared at it before holding it to her ear.

                  “Hello?” she answered the phone tentatively. This was the first call she had received from anybody back in Seoul. There was the text from Seohyun two days ago but her roommate had only texted to ask if she could eat the last tub of ice cream from their fridge. Daeun doubted that Seohyun was sober enough to realize that she had disappeared for the past week and a half.

                  “Daeun?” Namjoon’s deep voice came into her ears, “I’ve actually reached Chae Daeun?”

                  “Yes,” she said, still wary of why he had called her.

                  “Where the have you been?” he growled angrily. There it was. That was the reaction she had expected from Namjoon when (if) he called.

                  “Um, somewhere,” she replied. She felt it unnecessary that he knew exactly where she was. She knew that one, he’d be angry that it was not in Seoul and two, if he found out the exact location, he’d probably try to come and find her which led to three: she couldn’t allow him to be near her for the risk of his own life. There were too many unknown factors in this plan for Hong Jung Yee.

                  “You’re not at home. You haven’t been to work. Seohyun said she hasn’t seen you for at least a week. Can you at least give me a more concrete answer instead of ‘somewhere’?” he sounded genuinely concerned.

                  “I’m safe,” she tried to give him comfort. So Seohyun had noticed. Seems like she gave too little credit to her roommate.

                  “Why do you do this to me, Daeun? Am I not allowed to be worried for somebody I care about?” he said.

                  From her periphery, she could see Hoseok walking up to her in a dazzling white suit. He grinned when he saw that she was looking at him. He had paired the outfit with a light pink shirt in which he left the buttons undone to allow his chiselled chest to peak through. There were a lot more glances in his direction than when she stood here in her champagne cocktail dress.

                  “I’m fine,” she repeated hastily into the phone. As much as she wanted to talk to Namjoon, she did not want him to find out that she had come to New York because of BTS.

                  “I wish you would have had at least given either myself or Seohyun a call. I know you always think that people don’t care about you but there are people who do,” he was continuing on.

                  Hoseok slid up next to hear and put a hand on her waist. She glared at him and tried to move away but he only held her tighter. “You look ravishing tonight, Mrs. Chen,” he leaned into her ear.

                  “Daeun, is that – ” she heard Namjoon start to say into her other ear. She pushed Hoseok away and hurriedly said, “I’ll have to talk to you later. It’s getting late here and I’m tired.” She hung up as the monotonic lady from the station said over the PA system, “Welcome to Grand Central Station. It is currently 8:37. Have a good evening.”

                  “Who were you talking to?” Hoseok asked as she started walking out of the station.

                  “A friend,” she replied. They were late to meeting the rest of the members and if there was one thing she hated more than being lied to, it was being late.

                  “I didn’t know you had friends,” he mocked. The air was cool around them as they walked a couple of blocks down to the hotel they had booked. Now that they were walking closer to where the rest of the clubs were and fancy hotels, the two of them blended in perfect.

                  She did not respond to his comment. “Walk faster, would you? We’re late.”

                  He widened his stride to match hers. “It’ll be fine. The rest of the members will be waiting for us anyways.”

                  “They wouldn’t have to wait if you hadn’t been late,” she scoweled in return. They quickly checked into their hotel room when they arrived and took an uneventful ride up to their floor. Hoseok was wrong. When they walked into the room, only two members of BTS were in the room. Yoongi sat in his corner with three laptops open and his fingers already flying over the keyboard. Jin had his back towards them, staring out the window at Ecstasie across. He turned when he heard the door being unlocked.

                  “I’ve heard of the saying, ‘fashionably late’ but you two took it a little far this time, don’t you think?”

                  Daeun had never been scolded by Seokjin before and she felt uncomfortable under his piercing glare. She opened to explain but Hoseok beat her to it, “There was a pretty lady down the street who needed my help in finishing a drink. I really tried to resist but she insisted.”

                  Seokjin turned his glare away from Daeun and towards Hoseok instead. “I’m sure she did. You two come here and let Yoongi gear you up. The others have already gone out to their respective stations.”

                  They followed his instructions and Yoongi patched listening devices on the two of them. He had these personally built for them so they fit perfectly and blended in with the outfit. To Hoseok, he handed a knife.

                  “Hoseok, keep this in your pant leg. Metal detectors won’t sense this material but it’s sharp enough in case anything goes wrong.”

                  To Daeun, he opened her purse and dropped in two sticks of lip stick. She raised an eyebrow. “They’re pepper spray,” he explained.

                  “You give him a knife and then me pepper spray,” she was unamused.

                  “You can press the other end and it’ll be a taser?” he shrugged. She accepted the small token nevertheless.

                  Seokjin was now pacing around the room, his mind clearly occupied with the immensity of everything that was happening tonight. When he saw that they were all prepared, he took out two familiar gold cards. “This is the form of currency at Ecstasie. They don’t allow you to carry cash or bring your own credit cards in case they can be traced back during transcactions. I’ve got the boys working on getting money as we speak. The two of you only need to get in contact with Hong Jung Yee and get him interested. I doubt that we will have any type of transaction tonight but stay vigilant. Jimin is already there and the rest of us will meet up at the rendezvous point later on. Yoongi will be watching all of us and I’ll be in constant contact.”

                  He handed them the cards. “Please, be careful,” he urged.

                  Tonight, the card felt heavier than before in Daeun’s hands. She slipped the card into her purse and tried to look confident. Hoseok twirled his between his fingers before putting it into his own pocket. “Don’t worry, Hyung. I’ll take care of her,” he slung his arm over her shoulder again.

                  “Target’s arrived,” Yoongi spoke from his spot.

                  The three of them snapped into attention. Mr. and Mrs. Chen turned and left the room, making their way towards the club across the street.

                  The club was already packed full with bodies as they swayed to the music. There was the smell of expensive cigars from VIPs and VVIPs who hung out in the upper balcony where those that were lucky enough to get into the club stayed at the bottom. Beautiful girls sashayed around tables getting tips and bringing drinks. All around them, people were dressed in their most expensive items of clothing and doing their best to act like they did belong.

                  Daeun and Hoseok walked past all of this and instead towards a small hidden door tucked behind the bathrooms. Nobody usually walked this far into the club but anybody who did would notice how heavily guarded the bathroom was. The largest of the guards held a hand and stopped Hoseok from entering. The two of them flashed their gold guards and that was only when they were let through. Each time Daeun stepped inside, her breath was knocked out of her.

                  Gold decorated every part of this underground market. Large crystal chandeliers hung every few meters apart on the ceiling and uniformed attendants would appear and disappear with the snap of fingers. In here as well, wealthy socialites wore the newest Vera Wang or Valentino. They gathered not around the dance floor but around gambling tables. Each night, thousands upon millions of dollars were bet as the richest battled each other to show who had more worth to their name. Further down the large room, the bright decorations were less extravagant and rows of closed doors met the eye. This was where the exchange of other possessions occurred.

                  “Mr. and Mrs. Chen, welcome,” a solemn man greeted them in English. Daeun nodded her head in response. Although their appearances at the club were not numerous, Mr. and Mrs. Chen had been a rising name in Ecstasie. They were a couple in which nobody knew much about but brought with them an enormous amount of wealth each time they arrived. Mr. Chen was swift with his hands at the gambling table while Mrs. Chen liked to watch. The sellers were persistent in trying to interest the two of them but all of them were rejected politely. There was only one person in which they were rumoured to be interested in.

                  Hoseok took his usual seat at the largest blackjack table. The other gentlemen there smiled politely at him but Daeun knew what they were thinking. All of them hated when Hoseok played as he would bet millions of dollars and leave with even more.

                  “Honey, blow on these cards for good luck,” he waved her over. Daeun did as she was told, the only time she would not dare to object with all the eyes upon her. The man across from Hoseok’s seat cast a glance at her cleavage when she bent down. She glared back at him.

                  Hoseok made a show of complaining about his terrible hand before slamming down a win. The table was seen to silently groan in unison as he took his prize money. He made a hand for the dealer to go again. Daeun had to hide a yawn. Yoongi had told them that Hong Jung Yee was here tonight and she wondered what took him so long to reach out to them. Had they not been obvious enough in trying to capture his attention?

                  “Mrs. Chen,” the attendant from earlier walked up to her, “I have a message for you from one Mr. Hong Jung Yee.”

                  Daeun froze and put a hand on Hoseok’s shoulder. He did not move but continued on his game. “Go ahead,” she told the attendant.

                  “He’s requesting the presence of both yourself and Mr. Chen. He is waiting inside the Emerald Room.” She did not recognize the name of the room. Each VVIP producer held a special room in which they could conduct their business. To keep the nature of their business secretive, the producers would rotate rooms during the week. When a room was given the name of a jewel, it meant that the room had been bought and only that particular producer was allowed to use it.

                  Daeun bent down and whispered into Hoseok’s ear, “Hong Jung Yee wants to meet us.” He again did not respond. Daeun took a deep inhale and spoke in a louder volume. “Love,” she said through clenched teeth, using the pet name he had insisted on, “I’m a little bored. Shall we take a walk?”

                  At her voice, he smiled warmly at her and took her hand. He bowed slightly to the other men at the table before tapping his gold card at the end of the table to obtain his prize money. “Sorry to leave so early gentlemen, but this one is just a little needy at times.” Nobody at the table said anything.

                  The two of them waited for the attendant to speak again to tell them where to go but he did not. Hoseok spoke to him, “Well, do you expect us to stand here all night or are you going to tell us which direction we should walk?”

                  The attendant looked Hoseok in the eye and shook his head. “Sorry sir. But I will be leading you there personally. I would not like for either you or Mrs. Chen to get lost in here.” There was something his voice that unnerved Daeun. Hoseok shrugged and took her hand as they walked down the hallway.

                  They bypassed the back tables and entered deep into the market. This was a place where neither of them had walked before and Daeun was slightly glad that Hoseok was there with her, although she would never admit it. His warm hand helped calm her heart. The three of them walked through a door into which led to another long hallway. Here, there were minimal lights and the faint sound of loud yelling and thumping music reached their ears. Daeun found it strange that she could hear the sounds of the club from so deep within. They reached a door that was literally painted an emerald green. It was here that their stopped. He gestured for them to walk in.

                  At the head of the office, an older man sat at the table. He was surrounded by three guards and another smaller man was at the corner of the room, rummaging through the multitude of wires that had been strung out. In their presence, the older man stood up and opened his arms, “Ah! Mr. and Mrs. Chen! This is such a pleasure to finally put faces to the names I’ve been hearing about all week.” Daeun was suffocated into a tight hug along with Hoseok. “I hope you don’t mind that. I hug all my potential business partners. Creates a sense of bonding right off the bat, you know what I’m saying? Mr. Chen, take a seat. And Daniel, bring a blanket for Mrs. Chen to cover her legs as they sit. I heard it’s a customary to do so in Seoul.”

                  Hong Jung Yee was a large man. He towered over the two of them, stretching a little over 6 foot 3 and Daeun could feel the strength of his arms in their brief encounter. He had a large booming voice that reminded her of the announcers she often found on television. When they were all seated, he clapped loudly, “I’m so glad to see the two of you. There aren’t many Korean people in this city and just the fact that the two of you want to do business with me? I am so incredibly honoured!”

                  Hoseok looked like he wanted to say something but Hong Jung Yee continued talking, “Now, now… When I heard about the two of you, I was immediately intrigued. I mean, I’ve had dealings with many men of your status, Mr. Chen. But for you to bring the lovely Mrs. Chen to this meetings as well!” He waved his hand as if to dismiss the thought he had meant to say, “Needless to say, I am very interested in what my services could possibly offer you.”

                  Neither Hoseok nor Daeun knew what to say. Hong Jung Yee mistook their silence as hesitance and pointed to each of his guards. “Do not worry. Whatever you say in here only remains here. If any of these three gorillas speak of it, I’ll personally see that they have their tongues removed. As for that little one in the corner, we had a small malfunction of the air conditioner here earlier so he’s just fixing that. Hey, you won’t be speaking outside this room, right?”

                  The small man squeaked out, “No, Mr. Hong. I would not dare.” Hong Jung Yee clapped again and the sound echoed off the walls.

                  Daeun turned in her seat to look at the small man. She met Jimin’s eyes.

                  “Mr. Hong,” Hoseok started.

                  “Call me Jung Yee. My close friends all do and I want to become your close friend, Mr. Chen.”

                  “Jung Yee,” Hoseok started again, “I have heard much about you. And I hope you take it in no offense what I’m about to say. In my line of work, I must be extremely careful. I only work with people I trust and the way my trust can be earned is if I see the products or services you offer with my own eyes.” 

                  As Hoseok had been speaking, Daeun heard Yoongi’s voice in her ear whisper, “Stall for two minutes, Hoseok. Jimin doesn’t move as fast as I do.”

                  Hong Jung Yee’s throaty laughter caused her to flinch in her seat. “Of course, Mr. Chen, of course! Please, allow me to give the both of you a tour.” He got out of his seat and extended a hand towards Daeun. She grasped it and noticed that his hands were rough and full of scars. She shivered in thinking that whatever had caused them probably brought this man to the status of his today.

                  Her eyes briefly met Jimin’s again as they stepped out of the Emerald Room.

                  The guards followed behind them and Daeun slightly in the front. She looked at the backs of both Hoseok and Jung Hong Yee as they walked through the hallways, away from the direction they had entered. The sounds of yelling and music continued to grow in her ears until it became a deafening roar. Daeun knew that they were not from the club upstairs any more.