WASTE IT ON ME

 

***

 

 

You should have known it smelled like trouble from the moment you got woken up at six in the morning on a Saturday, by one of your closest friend, Sora. You dragged yourself out of bed, grumpy as hell, ready for a murder and the killer vibes grew only bigger the moment you opened the door and faced your friend.

"You've got to be kidding me." You groaned in frustration but before you could even snap at her and strangle her, she pushed you out of the way and got inside the flat, uninvited.

"Y/N, I'm in big trouble. " Sora announced, her hands ruffling restlessly her hair in frustration. “I ed up big time."

"Again?" You sighed in defeat as you tied tighter your dressing gown.

Sora let a groan of frustration escape her lips as she threw her arms in the air before slumping into the couch.

You eyed her for a moment, contemplating the idea of kicking her out of your flat or be a nice and understandable friend and listen to her, of course you chose the latter.

"What have you done again?"

"Can you not insist on the again please?"

"No. You know I'm right."

Sora buried her face into a pillow and muffled a scream with it, then she snapped her head and looked at you. For a moment, the young woman did not say a word, instead, she stared and tried to choose wisely her next words because she knew how you would react otherwise. "Fine. You remember the article the Boss asked me to write?"

You thought for a moment, being a journalist, you had your own share of articles to work on but then you remembered the conversation. "The one about the gang? What was their name again?” You paused and tried desperately to remember –you never really cared about gangs because you considered them like the worst of the trash of this world. “Don't tell me you accepted it?!"

By the look Sora gave you, you knew that she did. Of course she would. Sora had the terrible tendency to get into trouble and to stick her nose where she should not and this time was not an exception. Of course the Boss had told you about the story too but you categorically refused, it was way too dangerous. But Sora could not resist, could she now?

"I can't believe you! Can't you stay out of trouble for once?" You scolded her and pinched her arm

"But Y/N! It's a nice story to write! I couldn't possibly say no!"

"Nice story? Are you kidding me? Do you know what kind of gang they are? It's way too dangerous!" But then you stopped scolding her because something caught your attention. The moment you had started scolding her about the danger of this stupid article, Sora's eyes lowered, she was hiding something. "What else have you done?"

Sora kept shut into a thin line, looking at you with so much guilt and regret. “What have you done?” You repeated calmly yet it sounded terribly scary.

"I...I went to a club to meet with Jun and ask him for information. He tried to dissuade me, just like you but you know me. So, he showed me a guy, one of the member of this gang."

"No." You cut her in the middle, knowing exactly where it headed. "You did not do that. Please tell me you didn't flirt with a potential drug dealer, or worse a killer?"

Sora bit her lips and shut .

This girl was going to be the death of you!

"Sora!! What the hell were you thinking?"

"I wasn't thinking! But Y/N you haven't seen him! He was so stupidly hot!"

"What kind of logic is that?!"

Sora's body cringed at your reaction and all the scolding, the young woman knew she was in the wrong and didn't know what to say for her defence.

You sighed in defeat. Sora and you had been friends for years now, meeting during your studies, you had spent all of your college years together, studying journalism, and even getting hired at the same place. It had its perks to work together, you shared your sources, worked even together on some articles, proofreading each other. You were both extremely different from each other and yet you clicked. But there was still, after all these years, one thing that absolutely infuriated you was how selfless Sora could get.

“Was he worth it at least?” You finally gave in, after all, there was nothing you could do anymore to prevent Sora from getting herself even more involved in this mess.

Sora grinned widely before answering, “More than that.”

The second time you hear about this stupid gang story was barely two weeks later when once again Sora barged at your place -at a reasonable time at least this time, a suitcase at her side and a rather worried and desperate look on her face. You quirked your brow at her, suspiciously, wondering what she had done again -something probably bad enough for her to bring her suitcase over. You did not let her time to explain, not this time, as you pushed the door to slam it right into her face but Sora was faster and put her foot, blocking the door.

"Please." She begged and did her best puppy face.

"I'm so going to slap you so hard one day." You threatened her, nevertheless you gave up and let her slip inside the flat. "You better start talking. Leave no details."

But before Sora could do so, you let her settle in the spare room, helping her despite the disapproving look on your face.

It was only later, both of you sat on the couch, blankets and pillows scattered all around you, drinking hot chocolates and watching a random TV show. The atmosphere was relaxed and almost normal if it was not for the explanation you were still waiting for.

"So? What now?"

Sora's eyes darted between her cup and you, tracing slow circles on the cup, gathering her thoughts before coming up with a proper reply. "I saw Taehyung again." You frowned instantly and she hurried to add, "Don't scold me yet!"

You put your cup back on the table, partly because you were done drinking and partly because you knew you were about to lose control and you would need your free hand to deal with whatever Sora had done.

"Keep on."

"So, you know how I took photos of the documents in his flat? I went to the place of their meeting, I was discrete I swear but it wasn't enough. Clearly." Sora put her cup back on the table too, before looking back at you. "Taehyung tried to contact me but I tried to avoid him until one night. I went to a club and saw him and I don't know, I lost it." She grabbed her head between her hands. “At first, it was fine. We talked, had fun, but then, he clearly saw through me. He saw me that night. And suddenly he didn’t seem like a very fun and nice guy, you know? He scared me but I managed to get out.”

“How?”

“I kicked him. It took me completely off guard and I took the chance to run away.”

“Nice but probably very stupid too.”

You grabbed a pillow and pressed it harder against your chest, trying to absorb all the information and find a solution for Sora. Taehyung had tricked Sora with such ease, you had never seen him, but without a doubt he was not someone to mess with. “How long do you think you will stay at my place?”

“I don’t know. I really want to work on this article. I think writing about this gang will be great for my career.”

“It will. If they don’t kill you before.”

“I know. And since Taehyung clearly caught me red handed, I need to go into hiding which means I can’t even go to work.”

“Does he know where you work?”

“No, but I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t stop him from finding me.”

You nodded, approving her reasoning for once but before you could work on this, her phone rang and she froze on the spot at the name appearing on her screen. Kim Taehyung. Sora glanced at you, panic written all over her face, she refused to even touch her phone as if it could burn her.

It was going to be a long night.

For a whole week, Sora stayed at your place, pretending to be sick, you covered for her at work, and at the same time you helped her to get as much information as you could about the gang. It did not take you long to find out who Sora was dealing with. BTS was the second biggest gang in Korea. Throughout the years they gained so much power in the whole country, whenever it was their territory, people, they even managed to get their hands on politics and even police. Of course your boss would want to write a story about such an influencing gang but it was stupid, dangerous and pure suicide. They would never let it go or let them live at this point. Why did Sora need to get involved in this mess, seriously?

One night, you tried to find out more about the members of this gang. The key-word being 'tried', without success. It was almost funny how popular this gang was and yet there was nothing about their leaders. Nobody knew about them, what they looked like or even names. It was odd and terribly alarming. Which lead you both to realize that you still knew nothing about Taehyung and his position in the gang.

“You can always pray that he’s some little worthless .” You said, trying to sound comforting, but really, your voice did not sound convincing even to your own ears. Sora raised her head from her laptop and looked at you, her gaze intense behind her glasses, judging you silently. “Or he might be one of the leaders.”

Sora only groaned, just like you, convinced that Taehyung was probably the latter knowing Sora's luck.

 

 

***

 

 

As much as Sora wanted to stay at your place and hide from the world, she had to get back to work eventually and you both knew it. But what happened on a Friday night nearly surprised you.

Just like any other nights, you got back from work, but feeling a little bit more excited than usually because you knew that someone was actually waiting for you with probably some yummy foods. The perks of having Sora crashing at your place was definitely her cooking skills. No more takeout or instant noodles, here came real food. You were grateful for that.

Just like you had thought, the place smelled of roast chicken and something else that you could not pinpoint and you did not really have time to dwell on it because the moment you got in the living room, a very familiar suitcase caught your eyes. You stopped right in your tracks, frowning at it, before glancing at the kitchen.

“Hi there.” You sniffer the delicious smell coming out of the stove.

“Hey! You’re just on time, food is almost ready!”

“What’s up with your suitcase? Are you finally leaving?” You could not stop yourself from asking.

Sora stiffened a little at your words, halting from cutting some more vegetables before glancing your way. “Yeah. I can’t hide forever, can I?”

“I don’t mind having you around. But yes.”

You knew Sora did not tell you everything, maybe scared of your reaction, maybe thinking about how to break the whole thing to you. For once, you decided to help her. “I promise; I won’t get mad.”

“Why would you even get mad?” Sora hurried to ask. “Not like I did anything bad.”

You quirked a brow at her, not fully believing her.

“It’s not as bad as you think.” She finally said. “I’ve met with Taehyung.”

“Then it’s even worse than I thought!”

“I couldn’t possibly hide forever! So I confronted him. We had met for a coffee and talked. I actually met two other guys from the gang.” Sora actually shivered at the memory. “I thought Taehyung was scary but damn his friends are so much worse.”

“What did he say?”

“We made a deal. I give up on the article and they leave me alone.”

“Did you really buy it? They would never leave someone off the hook just like that.”

Sora nodded her head, approving your words eagerly. “I’m pretty sure they will follow me around for a while. But Taehyung, I think despite being a hot mess, I can trust him. He gave me his word, now I need to keep mine.”

“And will you? Will you really give up on the article?”

Sora looked straight into your eyes, her gaze being intense and deep and with so much determination that you realized there was no way the young woman would give up on the article.

If anything else, this mess only boosted her confidence.

No matter how much you hated her stubbornness, there was nothing you could do except bracing yourself for a storm that coming your way.

 

****

 

 

The first time you ever heard of Jeon Jungkook happened two weeks later and it was really confusing, amusing and a tiny bit awkward.

Ever since the situation with Sora and BTS occurred, you did not have time to go out and have fun but things were about to change when one night both of you decided to have a girls’ night. A nice restaurant before crashing at your place and watch some movies in pyjamas and face masks. The kind of night you were looking forward to. Except, it did not really go as planned.

Not at all.

The restaurant you chose happened to be one of those fancy restaurants where it was expected of you to be dressed decently if not classy and chic. The restaurant was pricey but from time to time, you loved to spoil yourself and Sora happened to feel the same about it, so here you were, drinking while chatting loudly, laughing at stupid jokes, relaxing and enjoying the food. Until Sora’s face paled at the speed of the light, her eyes growing wide, staring at something behind you. Something or someone. You wanted to turn around but Sora grabbed your hand tightly, forcing you to look at your hands instead.

“What’s wrong?” You muttered just in case someone nearby would hear you

“We either keep calm or we run.”

“What?”

But before Sora could answer, her grip on your hand got suddenly awfully painful, you winced and tried to free yourself. Until a deep voice echoed from behind you, sending shivers down your spine.

“Fancy seeing you here, doll.”

Sora let go of your hand almost instantly, her eyes glued at the man now standing beside you. By the way your friend reacted, you guessed that the man was no other than Kim Taehyung, the very hot and dangerous gangster. You knew he was hot from what Sora had told you, you just did not expect him to be that hot. It bothered you to no end but then, your eyes fell upon another figure standing just behind Taehyung. Your blood froze and so did your brain, you were absolutely stunned by the man. He looked a little younger than Taehyung, but he was another handsome mess with black hair, dark doe eyes and a terribly attractive mole under his lips.

What a sight.

“Hi Taehyung.” Sora finally gathered the courage to answer and yet her voice betrayed how nervous she actually was.

Her voice brought you back from the little staring-eyeing moment and your eyes darted back and forth between your anxious friend and a smug gangster –actually they were both smug.

“Oh, I forgot. This is Jungkook, a friend of mine.” Taehyung pushed Jungkook before him and no matter how hard you tried to resist, your eyes could not help but go back to staring at Jungkook.

“Mind if we join you? We’d love to have such nice company.” Taehyung sure knew how to charm people, with his face, his voice and his smile, it was almost impossible to refuse anything to him. Except, you knew who he was and this sole thought made you resist him.

You looked at Sora and then back at them. There was no way in the world you let them stay with you. You put your napkin back on the table before looking their way.” Sorry, not interested. Now get lost? Thank you.”

Sora looked at you, first scandalized at your words, but then admiration crossed her eyes and you knew that she loved you a little bit more at that moment. Taehyung, on the other hand, looked positively surprised at the turn of the events while Jungkook looked unfazed, if not bored.

“That was rude.”

“Your face is rude. Now, can you please leave us?” You snapped, forgetting for a second who he was. “It had been months since I spent a quality time with my friend, so please, leave.” You added much calmer this time.

If Taehyung was offended, he did not show any of it. His ego was undeniably bruised with your words and Sora feared what he could do in revenge, but surprisingly, he let it go. “Fine. Doll, how about you call me later, hm?”

“Sure.” Sora hurried to answer but her eyes told you another story.

“Then, ladies. Have a nice night.” Taehyung bowed lightly, making Jungkook roll his eyes, before they decided to finally leave you alone.

“Phew, that was intense.” Sora relaxed on her chair.

Too soon.

Just when you thought, they had left, a presence behind your back made your hair stand on your neck in fear and panic. Someone leaned over you and before any of you could react, you felt a warm breath just above your ear.

“Nice girls shouldn’t lie.” You shivered at his breath, at his voice and at how he put his hands on your shoulders, squeezing them just enough to freak you out, just enough to make your body go weak. The combination of his voice and his touch terrified you, the insinuation behind his words made it only worse.

And just like that, he left. His words hung in the air, troubling both you and Sora, especially their meanings. Did Jungkook realize you lied? You hoped not, otherwise your own life would take a turn you were not ready for.

“Bunch of hot messes.” You muttered under your breath, frustrated at how weak and small he made you feel with just few words. You were not the kind of woman to lose control and even less against a man. Against a kid. Bloody hell.

You poured yourself some more wine before drinking it in one go.

“Did you know they would be here?” You finally asked your friend, glaring at her suspiciously, the now empty glass in your hand.

“The hell. I would never follow them.” Sora started but one unconvinced glance from you made her think again. “At least not when you’re with me. I mean, clearly I have a thing for danger but I would never drag you down with me. Not on purpose at least.”

After that, there was a moment of silence between you two, both processing what had happened. Sora thought about a plan, of what she would do next, why you on the other hand thought about someone.

“The other one. Jungkook. He was kinda hot.” You admitted quite seriously

Sora stared blankly before bursting into a laughter along with you.

 

 

***

 

 

After the encounter with Kim Taehyung and Jeon Jungkook, you got back to your normal life, almost forgetting all about the two men. Almost. Sora was back at work too, unhappy though since she had to officially give up on her article –she had sulked for hours in your office, randomly screaming at how it was unfair and how she could not believe the boss chose to give this article to her worst nemesis. Fair enough, you thought and yet you preferred her to work on something less dangerous.

The screen of your phone lightened, causing you to look away from your article and check the phone instead.

"Hi babe. Are you free tonight?"

You cringed hard at the babe, you hated those pet names but you could not really complain. It was hard enough to find a decent man nowadays, in addition to that, your work consumed much of your free time too, leaving nothing for dating. Just like many, you ended up trying the blind dates. Of course, you regretted some, having your own share of bad dates, but then you had met Jaehyun. He was a lawyer and had a rather good sense of humour that matched with yours. It had been two months now and till this day you still did not know whenever you were in a relationship or not. Did you even want to be with him?

Things were going pretty smoothly with him, you saw him regularly and genuinely enjoyed spending time with him. But a something had been creeping up on your mind lately. Or rather someone. You could not stop thinking of Jungkook at the weirdest times. You wondered why that happened and your mind played tricks on you where you thought you recognized him when it was a totally other person.

Over the next two weeks, there was not one day you did not think of Jungkook, in one way or another: the smell of a stranger's perfume that reminded you of his, a shirt you planned on wearing before remembering it was the one you wore when you met him. Even seeing a damn rabbit on TV reminded you of his face. All of those small things made you realize slowly that no, he was not a simple thought at the back of your mind, not anymore. The boy had a bigger impact on you than you had initially thought and you were not sure how to feel about it. So maybe entertaining the idea of a relationship with Jaehyun was not the best option and yet it sounded like a much needed distraction.

it.

You taped quickly a reply, hoping not to regret it later.

“I’m in.”

Except, it did not turn into a date but rather a party between his friends that you did not have a chance to meet yet. Maybe it was his way to show you off or maybe he wanted to finally announce your relationship, either way you did not feel at ease. Going out was one thing, spending times drinking at a bar with loud music and surrounded by people you did not know, made you uneasy and a little anxious.

“Hey Y/N, do you want something to drink?” Jaehyun asked, his attention back on you along with his hand on your back, rubbing gently in circles. “You’ve been awfully quiet.”

“I’ll go for a beer. And yeah sorry about that. Had a long day.”

Jaehyun let go of your back as he handed you the battle of beer. Were you disappointed by the turn of event? Definitely. But at least he paid for the drink and for that you were still thankful.

From your place, you observed his little group of friends composed of four more men probably of his age and two young women. They seemed lively and rather nice but the disappointment was just too strong for you to really enjoy your night.

Until Jungkook happened.

While you were sipping quietly on your beer –barely listening to the people around you, someone at the bar finally caught your attention. Someone you had been trying to forget, to get rid of your mind for the past two weeks. Jeon Jungkook, out of all places he could have chosen, sat at the bar with a glass of whiskey busying himself with a girl glued to him. What a sight you thought bitterly.

Just like in your memory, he looked terribly and annoyingly handsome in black, black turtleneck jumper, black leather jacket with black jeans and his hair pushed back, leaving his forehead at sight. He looked effortlessly perfect and for a moment you wished you could just dump Jaehyun and his friends and join Jungkook instead. What a bad idea. Get a grip on yourself girl!

Unconsciously you bit your lips hard, pulling at it as your eyes kept roaming all over his body, taking all of him, memorizing every small details like for example how the rings on his hand that held the glass, stressed out his veins or how he scrunched adorably his nose, laughing at the girl’s joke.

You got pulled out of your thoughts and jumped in surprise when a voice called you.

"Y/N? My friend should be here any second"

"Oh...Right, cool." You responded, engrossed in your staring, before turning back your eyes to the subject of your distraction.

Your eyes met with a pair of warm brown ones that caught you completely off guard. Jungkook had finally noticed you and was now staring just as intensely, his eyes piercing you. The feeling of weakness, just like the first time you had met, was back and you could not find the strength to hate it. It was absurd, he was dangerous, a gangster and yet. He brought his glass to his lips, smirking as his eyes never left yours. But then, something you could not fully understand crossed his eyes and the next thing you knew, he grabbed the girl beside him and made her sit on his laps, his arm wrapped tightly around her waist.

Jeon Jungkook played a game, a game you refused to lose and even better you refused to play. You slapped yourself mentally, reminding you that he was bad news and that you did not want to have anything to do with a gangster. Quickly you emptied the rest of your bottle of beer before standing up and grabbing Jaehyun by his collar and crashing your lips against his. It was rushed at first, unexpected for him, but the moment you bit his upper lips, asking for more, he let you do. You sighed in delight, your arms wrapped around his neck, bringing him closer to you as your fingers pulled lightly at his locks. His strong arms instantly found their place on your hips, pressing you even harder against him. Whatever you had previously on your mind was long forgotten as Jaehyun kissed you back with probably as much passion and eagerness, making you moan into the kiss.

Someone beside you whistled, followed by a Get a room!

Reluctantly, you parted from him, your lungs screaming for air, but the butterflies in your stomach remained, a huge grin on your face as you had slowly let go of him. He had a similar smile on his face, your lipstick stuck at the corner on his lips. You reached for his face, wiping your lipstick with your thumb.

Maybe in the end you did not mind spending a night at a bar with Jaehyun and his friends, seeing how your body positively reacted to the kiss. Suddenly, all your doubts and insecurities about Jaehyun vanished.

"Wow." Jaehyun whispered, his grin growing only wider, his eyes twinkling while looking fondly at you.

You thought about putting some space between you two as his friends' comment still rang in your head, but Jaehyun did not care, not anymore, not when you had finally opened up to him, showing openly your interest, instead he pulled you at the empty space beside him, your thighs pressed against his, his hand rested comfortably on your thigh, not high enough to mean something, but enough to make your heart flutter.

And yet, you glanced one last time back at the bar. Jungkook was gone and so was the girl.

Whatever. You rolled your eyes and this time you let Jaehyun's friends a chance and concentrate on their conversation, taking even part of it, Jeon Jungkook long forgotten.

 

 

 

****

 

 

"One hazelnut latte in grande, please." You ordered during your lunch break. Maybe having a latte for lunch was not the best but it was your guilty pleasure and you could certainly not refuse it.

The morning was long and hectic, your current article was much harder to work on than you had initially thought; maybe writing about corruption and a well-known and loved senator was not the best choice but after witnessing his true self you could not close your eyes and ignore it. So here you were, overworking yourself, trying to use all your network but it was taking time and you did not know how much longer you could actually last without your boss kicking your .

"Here." The waiter handed you the drink with a smile. "Have a nice day and see you tomorrow?"

You laughed heartily because he was absolutely right. "See you tomorrow."

The simple interaction with the waiter put back a smile on your face.

It did not last.

As you got outside, ready to cross the street as soon at the light turn green, you raised your head and froze on the spot, eyes widening. You had thought that after the failed date at the bar, you were done with the madness that was Jungkook but no, he was still driving you crazy. Did he make such a strong impression you thought of seeing him nearly every day or was it just a product of your imagination?

It was not.

At the other side of the road, hands tucked in his pockets, cap on his head, stood Jeon stupid Jungkook, looking back at you. It was ridiculous how in the span of some seconds you had lost all of your ability to think, to talk. Jungkook stood there, staring at you with such intensity, with such a predator look in his eyes and you could not help how your stomach tightened in response to his eyes.

You gulped, feeling almost uneasy and yet your ego refused to show any of your weakness, instead, you held his gaze, defying him in a way –or maybe you were just waiting for his reaction.

Everything happened in slow motion, just like in a movie, the world suddenly seemed to have slowed down around you until there was only the two of you. You wondered if you were supposed to show some sign of recognition, maybe a wave your hand to say hi or maybe simply smile. You did none of that. The moment you took your decision, a bus drove before you and the next moment Jungkook was once again gone.

I’m finally losing it. That’s it. He couldn’t be real. You need to drink less coffee and sleep more girl. You tried to convince yourself that exhaustion had finally made you snap and lose your mind but a little voice told you that this Jungkook was not a part of your imagination after all.

When you got back at your office, you found a sulking Sora, slumped in her chair, head pressed against her desk, she looked absolutely defeated and terribly angry. You wanted to tell her about the encounter but forgot all about it the moment the young woman sighed.

“What’s up? Why the long face?” You asked and sat beside her, poking gently her sides to make her react. “Stop sulking, you’re not a kid.”

“It’s Sungyeol! He’s pissing me off!” Sora suddenly straightened in her chair and grabbed you by your shoulders, squeezing it hard enough to make you wince and fight back. A useless attempt. “Ever since the Boss gave him the mission, he has been snobbish and arrogant and-“

“Typical of him.” You stopped her in her rant. “And you know that. So why are you bothered?”

“I don’t want him to succeed! Not after I had failed and got myself in trouble.”

“Be the mature one, please. Ignore him, you’re better than that.”

Sora sighed in defeat and finally let go of your shoulders. You knew exactly how she felt since you too, was not very fond of Sungyeol –this man’s ego was bigger than the moon.

“Speaking of trouble.” Sora started, her voice suddenly low and shaky. “Taehyung paid me a very nice visit.”

“What did he want?!” You almost yelled before slamming a hand over your mouth and regaining your composure. “I thought you had a deal?”

“He wanted to know about you and how much you know.”

“I hope you told him I know nothing.” Which was a big fat lie now that you thought about it but he did not need to know that.

“I did.”

“Did he buy it?”

“Probably not.”

Crap. I’m doomed.

And you certainly were. Heart pounding against your ribs, your vision got blurry for a short moment, breaking out in a cold sweat, before finally came the chills. It was one thing knowing that your friend got somehow involved with a gang, it was another one to know that they were interested about your whereabouts too. You hated it and you feared of what would come next.

Sora’s hands covered yours, rubbing your knuckles gently; she did not need to ask to know your thoughts.

“Breathe.” She whispered, “I know you don’t like it. I know it scares you but you know, despite Taehyung being an , I actually believe him when he says we’re safe as long as I keep my part of the deal.”

“Then what the Jungkook was doing at the bar?” You groaned and yet, you grabbed Sora’s hands and gripped them tightly.

“What are you talking about?”

Until now, you did not think too much into it, but knowing that Taehyung had asked about you made you realize that maybe seeing Jungkook twice was not a coincidence after all.

“I’ve met him at a bar not two days ago. And today when I came out of Starbucks, I saw him too.”

“That’s weird. I’m sure it was nothing and you’re overthinking.”

But even Sora did not believe her own words.

 

 

***

 

 

No matter how strong, stubborn and relatively down to earth you were, you could not stop from slowly losing your mind. It was one thing stressing over something -an article for example-, but it was a whole new story when one of the biggest gang in Korea had suddenly taken interest in you. It confused you at first but soon those feelings turned into something else, something worse. The more you looked for information about the gang, the more you realized how your safety had been compromised. The gang had done so much, so many bad things that would keep you awake at nights. But you did your best not to think about it, not to give in to the fear that had slowly been eating you from inside. You wanted, despite knowing the risks, to lead a normal life, without having to look behind you in the street, without having to worry what could happen to you. At first, it worked, or at least you somehow convinced yourself that you were fine. You kept going to work, interacting with people, you even went to few dates with Jaehyun, but it did not last.

It was one week after the conversation you had with Sora, one week after seeing Jungkook for the last time, that you started noticing the changes. You could not tell if your fears had finally won but you felt the changes with all your being. You did not feel safe any longer whenever you were outside -alone or with someone-, you would constantly feel eyes preying on you. It started with your hairs standing on your arms, knees getting weak and shaky, your mind screaming for you to calm down and to be rational; it was all your imagination.

But was it really? Or were you trying to convince yourself?

Then came the odd noises at night, noises you never paid attention to. Were they always there or was someone outside your door, waiting for you to make the wrong move?

Sora was of course the first to notice the change in your behaviour. One morning she brought a huge cup of coffee with cookies and made you talk. It was easier than you thought and you felt even better afterwards.

"Y/N, don't let your fears jeopardize your life. I get it, a gang is watching us but hey, is it even weird? I mean, how many times did you receive threats for what you wrote?" Sora tried to comfort you on her own way. She had a point.

"Once or twice."

"Did you change anything because of that?"

"No. Yes. I mean, I was careful for a few day."

"The situation here is fairly similar. Taehyung warned us nicely so I don't think we're in any kind of danger."

If only it was true.

You regained confidence for about six hours. Six happy hours, fear free. Until when you got back to your place.

After a long and rather good day, there was nothing better than to get into the comfiest clothes and make some hot chocolate. You put some music, relaxing as you moved in your living room, halting at the small balcony you were lucky to have. The weather was getting cooler and without a doubt winter was around the corner; a season you were not particularly fond of.

You sighed in delight, enjoying the moment, steam coming out of your cup and warming up your face. What made things even better was the fact that you lived in a very nice and peaceful neighborhood, far from the troubles of the city. At least till tonight.

A movement from under the street light near the entrance of your building grabbed your attention. It was past eleven and the streets in your area were completely empty, so why would someone stand just under the street light? It did not feel right. Your mouth felt dry and your heart thumped painfully as panic rose within you.

At first, you did not react, not fully. It had to be your imagination and the stress from the past days. Why would anyone follow you? It did not make sense. You’re going mad, girl! You tried to ease your mind. But then, the figure moved again and raised its head, looking straight at your balcony. You could not see the person’s face because of the darkness, but there was no doubt, this person was looking at you and you did not like it one bit.

Gathering your courage, you refused to give in, not while the person was looking at you at least. Instead, your grip around your cup tightened, your head up, you turned around and went back to your flat, making sure to close the door behind you. Only then, your legs gave in. You fell on the floor, your cup shattered in pieces, spilling the hot chocolate on the floor –but it did not matter.

I’m losing my mind.

You thought things could not get worse. But it did.

You were getting home after a small detour to the grocery store; it had been a long and tiring day and all you wanted was a bottle of white wine with some snacks. Maybe for once you should have refrained yourself, maybe you should have ignored your cravings and maybe it would have avoided you another painful encounter.

The grocery bag swinging in your right hand and the other one tucked warmly in your coat’s pocket, you were getting back home, just five more minutes of walking and you would reach the safety of your house, far from the cold and this annoying humidity. What was five minutes?

And yet, it became the five longest minutes of your life.

Steps echoed from behind you. Slow yet steady steps, following your pace. Your whole body froze, rooted to the spot, as alarm bells rang in your head. Not again! You thought, irked with the situation. Despite your anxiety, you could not help but feel the urge to turn around and to snap at the person, you were sick and tired of feeling threatened and followed every single day, you wanted your life back. But then, you remembered who probably you were dealing with and it calmed you down.

You looked at both sides of the road before crossing it carefully. Once on the other side, you resumed to walk at a decent pace, a few minutes later though, you frowned and turned around to look behind you. You were surprised when you saw nothing, you had expected to find someone on the pavement but there was nobody.

As soon as you get inside your building, you did not wait for the lift, too scared that the person that had been following you could manage to get inside the building despite the code, instead, you went for the stairs, running for your life. It was only when you reached your flat, slamming the door loudly behind you, your hand gripped tightly on the knob, you let yourself slid on the floor, panting, heart in your throat, you were terrified.

Despite you feeling numb, you gathered the strength to look for your phone in your bag, only one thought in mind: warning Sora.

“I’m being followed.”

And the reply came almost instantly.

“WHAT?! Are you ok?!”

“Yes, yes. Scared as but I’m fine. Just, I don’t know what to do?”

“Have you seen the person?”

“No. I pretended not noticing the person so I could at least get home safe. I didn’t look behind.”

“This is nuts. Do you want me to talk to Taehyung? They can’t threaten us like that!”

“No. Don’t. I’m scared it will do no good.”

“I’m still going to kick his stupid the next time I see him.”

 

 

 

***

 

 

You sneezed for the tenth time this morning. December showed you no mercy and just like many others you caught a cold, resulting in you sneezing every ten minutes, blowing your nose every five and coughing every two. The typical cold that ruined your week. It has been only two days and you already felt better but not enough for your liking. But to add to your misery, you were running late this morning which was not that unusual coming from you but it still made you grumpy and you decided that it was not a good day.

You opened your door, ready to storm out of your place, almost stumbling and missing the small package left on the floor at your door step. Swiftly you dodged the package, only to stare at it, curiously, the next second. It was nicely wrapped in a red paper with a golden bow and a small card stuck to it. You checked the time before your eyes darted back to the present. You were late, really late but the curiosity got the best of you. Taking the package off the floor, you went back inside your house for a moment. You decided to read the card first.

“You won’t catch a cold with this one.”

To make the present even more mysterious, the person who gave you this, had printed the message instead of writing it which was unusual but you did not mind. Only one person came to your mind who worried and scolded you when you caught the cold: Jaehyun. You smiled, feeling already hundred time better, your day did not seem so gloomy after all, as you unwrapped your present. Inside laid a beautiful, smooth, made up with cashmere red scarf that looked way warmer and better than the one you currently wore. Without hesitation, you tore your current scarf off your neck and wrapped the new one tightly, hiding half of your face. It felt absolutely divine around you and on your skin, making you feel warm and fluffy.

“Thank you for the present. I love it.” You quickly wrote to Jaehyun and pressed sent.

A quick glance to your watch made you wince. You were beyond late and your boss was going to skin you alive. But the scarf was worth the scolding.

Except the boss spared your life the moment he saw your red nose and your guilty eyes. For once in your life he let you off the hook. The day was saved.

Or so you thought.

The moment you got at your desk, your phone rang, it was a message from Jaehyun.

“Hey! I’d love to say you’re welcome but it’s not from me! You have a secret admirer! Careful there, I might get jealous.”

Your face paled at his message, blood running cold and no matter how many times you read the message, you still could not calm the rising anger. You tore the scarf off your neck as if it had burnt you, and in a way it did. If the scarf did not come from Jaehyun, you could only think of one person that could be behind it: the one following you. You threw the scarf on the nearest chair, glaring at it with a frown on your face.

There was no way you would bring this thing back with you at home. you whoever you are for messing with me.

Two days later you found the scarf on your bed.

 

 

***

 

 

To say it became a rather odd routine was the understatement of the century and yet, in the middle of this chaos you managed to find a balance between the stalking –there was no other way to describe it, your love-life, your friends and your work. It was arduous, nerve wracking and yet you did it. You concentrated on your work, on things that actually mattered and made you happy, ignoring the footsteps, ignoring the eyes. Some could say it was unwise but you begged to differ. Whoever was following you, never tried to hurt you, he just freaked you out. So you accepted your fate, in a way, learning to live with it.

It was only when your stomach growled that you realized just how late it was. Past nine and you were still stuck at work, trying desperately to finish this article. It had been too long since you started digging about the senator, you knew how bad this man was, you had met his victims but it was nothing solid enough to bring him down. You had spent the last week, trying to gather all the information you could but it was still not enough. It was driving you crazy. But for now you had to deal with your hunger.

Ugh, maybe I should go and grab something to eat. Not like I can do anything right now.

It appeared that you were not the only one to think that it was time for you to get out of your office and have something to eat; a delivery boy knocked at the door with a huge box of pizza in his hand, grinning widely at you.

“Hi! I’m bringing your order.”

You raised a brow, puzzled since you had no recollection of ordering a pizza. Nevertheless, you got up to have a look at it. Should you have been surprised to see that someone had ordered your favourite pizza with mushrooms, cheese and ham?

“Your boyfriend has already paid for the pizza.” The delivery boy commented as you eyed the pizza.

“My boyfriend? Did he perhaps tell you his name?”

He looked at you, probably wondering what was wrong with you before shrugging –weird people happened to be everywhere after all. “No. Had a nice voice though. Oh! And he has a message for you!”

“Does he now?”

“Something along the line of: 'I picked up the phone myself to order it so please, work less, sleep more and eat all of this delicious pizza!' ”

You rolled your eyes but thanked him anyway before grabbing a slice of pizza. At least your 'boyfriend' chose right.

The surprise came the following morning. You barely took a step on the floor that Sora handed you an envelope with 'urgent' written on it.

“What is it?”

“No idea. Just received it for you.” Sora patted your back before leaving you to your work.

The envelope was too big for its content, you could tell it by the shape and the weight. And you were right. Just as you ripped the top and turned it upside down, a USB stick fell in your hand. You eyed the stick, an unsettling feeling creeping at the back of your mind. The stick was light and yet you could tell how heavy it truly was. It was not a mere coincidence that it had arrived in your hands and a name popped in your head at this thought.

I wish I was wrong.

The moment you connected the USB to your computer and opened the private folder, you stopped breathing. There were literally hundreds of files, pictures, videos, copies of contracts, and it was all about the senator. Now you had everything you needed, solid proofs to expose this damn man and finally make him pay for his sins. But along with these information, you learnt something else. Only one person could access such private and important documents. Only someone who had been dealing with the same type of business.

I’m going to kill you, Jeon Jungkook.

 

 

***

 

You had so many reasons to be mad at Jungkook starting with his now clear stalkish and weird behaviour. Who in the world would go to this extent with a person, an innocent one? He had no valid reasons to follow you for so long and even less reasons to mingle with your life. All this time, you had imagined some kind of monster, psychopath, and yet it was only him being a very weird man. But for some reasons, you could not completely hate him and it had probably everything to do with his little help with your work. If it was not for him, you would have never finished your article on time –or maybe never finished at all, and for that you were thankful.

Your boss, upon reading your article, was ecstatic since finally your newspaper was ahead of every other. It had exceeded his expectations and he could only praise you, promising a night out with the whole team. You did not mind the attention; you were proud of your work but at the same time a little embarrassed because you knew you got your information from someone not nice.

But you should have known better than to attack a powerful senator. He could not attack you or threaten you without others journalists and paparazzi interference but it did not mean he could not send discretely angry mails and threats. You almost found it childish. Could he not just accept the consequences of his own actions?

“You know. I must say I’m surprised.” Your boss started saying as he looked through the angry mails you had received this morning. “I expected you to be more scared about the threats.”

You noticed how Sora tensed beside him, she knew exactly why you were not as fazed as usually, clearly all the stalking taught you how to compose yourself and deal with scary and dangerous situations.

“I guess I just got used to it? Come on boss, it’s not the first time.”

“True. You’re right.”

Except, it did not go as well as you thought. Maybe pissing off a senator who had been working with some underground companies was not the wisest of moves, maybe it would have prevented you from another life-threatening experience.

It happened during your lunch break. On your way back, you could not resist another of your craving –cravings that could be dangerous though, and got yourself another hazelnut latte from Starbucks.

“Y/N?” Someone called you from behind as you stepped into a smaller street that lead to your workplace. The man wore a black suit with black glasses and something told you that he was up to no good. You acknowledged him but turned your back, ready to scamper from here.

Not a chance.

Two other men blocked the other side of the street and more got out of the car. You could smell trouble.

.

“Y/N.” The man got closer to you, repeating your name. He grabbed harshly your arm, almost making you spill your drink on yourself.

Oh.

Your body reacted first as you threw your hot latte on the man, aiming for his face. He screamed, letting go of your arm instantly. You were proud of yourself but the feeling of satisfaction vanished almost instantly as your action was the sign the others needed to attack you.

. . .

A second man grabbed you before you could even think about running away. He was fast and much stronger than his colleague that you had nicely burnt. He yanked your arm harshly, bringing you closer to him. You fought back, trying to free yourself, desperately with no success. It irritated him only more, his hand tore your scarf from your neck, before his fingers wrapped tightly around your neck, slowly putting pressure on it, choking you.

. I’m really going to die because of my stupid cravings? How lucky of me.

“You’re coming with us.” He spat angrily

“Hell no.” You managed to say despite the pressure of his fingers.

“, you-“

“Cap.” Someone whispered from behind him, sounding extremely scary.

The said Cap’s eyes glanced behind him and just like his man, he froze and you could tell he was petrified by the sight. Or more exactly by the man who stood before them, looking smug as always, his hands in his pockets but you still could tell the difference in his behaviour. He was fuming with rage. His eyes had always been deep and intense, but now they were flaring, and you could feel his intent to kill from where you stood.

Jungkook.

Jungkook was here and you should not feel relieved upon seeing his face. But you were. His eyes were on you, on your face, observing, he did not seem to care about any other person around you. Just you.

“Let her go.” Jungkook slowly ordered with icy voice

“S-sir, we can’t. M. Lee asked us to bring the woman.” Cap tried to explain, looking not so confident anymore.

“Do I look like I give a ? Let her go. You don’t want to anger me, do you now?” His voice got even deeper and colder. This boy sure knew how to scare the crap out of people around him.

Cap’s hands retreated immediately, too worried for his life –not like you could blame him for that. You fell on the ground, your legs too numb and your fear too strong. You coughed a few times before raising your head and catching a glimpse of Jungkook and the men.

“Leave.” Jungkook ordered once again

This time, nobody complained and obeyed.

Neither of you spoke after that. You stayed on the ground trying to calm your crazy heart, trying not to puke at this madness, while Jungkook simply watched –just like he had been doing for a while now.

Jungkook sighed, still angry, yet glad that he arrived just on time; he could not start imagining what they could have done to you otherwise. He stepped closer and leaned to pick up your scarf from the ground.

“What are you doing here?” You managed to say, it came out as a mere whisper, your throat painful.

“No thanks?”

If you were not feeling that weak, you would have kicked him and probably slapped away the smirk from his face, instead you only groaned and let him help you to get back on your feet.

“Here.” He said and wrapped your scarf back around you. His hands lingered on your shoulders, his eyes scanning your face, looking for any injuries, looking almost worried.

Ridiculous. Why the hell would he worry for me?

But you could not deny the way his eyes softened at the sight of you engulfed in your scarf –which was not the one he gave you-, your hair absolutely messy after the fight. His fingers found your face, softly your cheek before he brushed a strand of hair from your face, tugging it back behind your ear.

“What am I going to do with you?”

 

***

 

You exhaled loudly at the sight of your phone, still no message from Sora and it was not a good sign. Your friend was a phone-addict and would never part from it, which meant she would reply almost instantly to any of your messages and yet, it was the second day that you found yourself waiting for a reply. Another one would have thought that maybe you did something bad and the young woman was simply ignoring you. You knew better. Sora’s lack of response meant only one thing: she was in trouble once again. But the real question was how badly was she in trouble? You came to pray that she had decided to mess around with Taehyung again, instead of imaging the worst case scenario.

You threw your head back, resting on the couch as you bit your lips in frustration. It was unbearable not to be able to know what was going on around you but you had no time to dwell further on the subject. You switched the TV on and of course the first thing you heard was the voice of a reporter explaining that senator Lee had finally been arrested and would be judged for his crimes. You should have been happy about it, you were the one who had reveal the truth to the general public after all, and yet, you could not rejoice.

“What am I going to do with you?” Jungkook asked, his voice much softer now just so he would not scare you away.

You stared back at him, your heart pounding hard in your chest, your cheeks flushing under his stare. You slapped yourself mentally for being so weak just for his handsome face and pretty eyes. It was ridiculous and you knew it.

“Nothing?” You answered just for the sake of it but truth to be told you did not know how to behave around him. You had so many thoughts running through your mind and all of them were about him.

You closed your eyes for a second, taking a deep breath, gathering your scattered thoughts before looking straight into Jungkook’s eyes, scowling at him. “The do you think you were doing? Do you know just how scared I was?”

All the frustration was finally out, now that the culprit of your hell was before you, you needed to let it out and make him understand just how wrong it was.

If Jungkook was surprise by your outburst he did not show any sign of it, instead he bit his upper lip and it angered you only more.

“Jeon Jungkook. Why did you follow me?”

“You’re not wearing my scarf.”

His words cut you instantly in your mumbling. You blinked few times, incredulous; he had completely disregarded your outburst.

“ you.” You spat angrily

“Any time.”

You decided that this man was infuriating and you wanted nothing to do with him any longer. Another time you would have probably slapped him, but not this time, you were still too shaken to actually ponder on this subject or to even talk with him –or more exactly scream at him for being such a creep. You squeezed the handle of your bag and decided to get back to work just so you would stop thinking about those men in black trying to abduct you.

“I promise; they won’t bother you again.”

You should have felt relieved but you were actually scared to understand the meaning behind his words, because after all, Jeon Jungkook was a gangster and his mere presence in your life meant trouble.

“Oh and by the way. Thank you for this article. I knew you’d find the right words.”

You halted instantly in your track, your grip around your bag only tightening. You knew it, you felt it, from the moment you received the USB stick, it was not out of kindness that he helped you. No, he had his own agenda and you just happened to be the right person to use. A pawn.

Once again he reminded you of what and who he was. Jeon Jungkook could not to be trusted and you were a damn fool to think otherwise.

You sighed in defeat at the memory. It should have worried you more, it should have pushed you to go to the police and ask for help, after all Jungkook’s gang was more than famous. But you did nothing. Oddly enough, now that you knew Jungkook was the one following you around, you were not so scared anymore. It was weird and even disturbing but you felt at ease and by the end of the day it was the only thing that mattered.

Your phone rang again, the screen lightening, showing finally the name you were waiting for all this time.

“Hey! I’m sorry, got busy. See you tomorrow!”

You frowned at her message. This is weird. Sora loved rambling and would share with you everything so seeing such a short message after all the worrying meant only one thing: something had happened.

“You are so dead tomorrow, Sora. How dare you disappear without a word? It’s so out of character!”

“I know. And Y/N, I’m sorry.”

You understood the meaning of her words two days later.

 

 

***

 

 

Exposing senator Lee was the biggest and longest of your work in a while but despite it being finished, you could not just sit and wait for another job to start. Some of your colleagues would always jump at any opportunities they could find, but you would always choose your topics wisely, wanting it to be interesting and challenging. What would be the point of doing something just for the sake of writing an article? It was vain and definitely not your style.

Instead of going for a proper lunch, you spent your break time at a small café down the street, choosing the best spot ever: at the window. Your computer on, a hot chocolate a clear view of outside. It could have been perfect, except it was snowing and everything felt dead. Winter happened to be the most soulless season for you and you could not wait for spring to come –sadly it was only the beginning of your misery.

Your phone laid on the top of your scarf. A scarf that you should have thrown away long ago and yet you could not help but wear it. So what if that it comes from a creep, it’s warm and fluffy.

You were reading the news on various websites when the first message came.

“Glad you’re finally using the scarf. It suits you.”

You gaped at the message, absolutely taken aback because you, of course, knew exactly who wrote this message. Now, the main question was: How did he get my number? But the answer seemed to be pretty obvious: Sora. You did not have the chance to talk to her since she had mainly been avoiding you. Not for long, you were now determined to have a nice chat with her.

“Nice dress by the way.”

'You've got to be kidding me' was the only thing you could think of. Jungkook had absolutely no limits, no shame; it seemed following you was not enough anymore since he had found a new way to bother you. But then, you thought about his comments, he had to be here again and just when you raised your head, here he stood at the other side of the street, concentrated on writing something else on his phone. Probably another message that would put you in a rather bad mood.

Your lips pressed into a thin line, you refused to answer him –and yet you saved his number. You put back your phone on your scarf and tried to get back to the article you were reading before the interruption.

“Rude.”

“I’ve been a nice boy. Can’t you answer me?”

“Oh come on! Y/N! Don’t ignore me like this!”

You closed your eyes in annoyance, it was impossible not to glance at your phone every time the screen lightened. You should have just turned your phone off but you did not want to give him the satisfaction.

“You? A nice boy? Nice boys don’t stalk.” You finally answered back, scoffing at his description of himself. Nice attempt to be innocent but of course it did not work on you.

“Stalking? I was merely making sure you were playing nice.”

“What?”

“You both lied that night. I don’t know what made you think that we would buy your little lie. Did you really think we wouldn’t notice?”

He did not sound so innocent and nice anymore and it was a tiny bit intimidating how fast he could switch from an almost decent guy to who he really was.

“So what? Sora has a deal and I definitely don’t want to have anything to do with this!”

“I noticed.”

“Then, what are you still doing?” At that you actually looked at his through the window, staring and waiting for his reaction. You were getting irritated, impatient and snappy but Jungkook was not fazed as easily as you.

“I like your dress.” He did it again. He had completely ignored your attack.

“You mentioned it before, yes.”

“Wish it was shorter though. Look at those legs, damn.”

Completely taken aback, you threw your phone on your scarf, burnt by his words, by his bluntness and by how it actually affected you. You could not ignore the blush on your face, you were burning and you could even less ignore how your heart missed a beat. It was so wrong on so many levels. And yet, when another message came, instead of ignoring it like you should have, you opened it again.

“And your skin looks so smooth. I wish I could run my fingers across your skin.”

You raised your head from your phone, glancing at Jungkook again, wondering how he could keep such a serious face while writing something like that. How could he be so blunt?

“Stop it, Jungkook.”

But he did not.

“I like your eyes and how you have this cute wrinkle between your eyes whenever you frown. I like how you laugh so easily (I must say, I’m quite sad to see that you always scowl at me though. It saddens me, princess.)”

“You’re crazy.” You managed to type quickly.

“So I was told. But do you know what else I am? A thief and I’m here to steal your heart.”

“Oh my god!!”

“I’ve been wondering, do your lips taste as good as they look?”

“You know what? I’m lost. Can you give me directions to your heart?

This time, you just could not hold it as you burst into laughter, tears forming in the corner of your eyes as you genuinely enjoyed his terrible pick-up lines, showing a side of him you did not expect to see.

“Did the sun come out or did you just smile at me?”

“Jeon Jungkook! These pick-up lines are horrible!

“But I made you laugh.”

Sadly, he did.

 

 

You kept scowling at Sora, or more like staring daggers, waiting for the perfect moment to kidnap her and have a very nice talk. She could no longer avoid you, not after you spent your whole lunch texting with Jungkook. It was unreasonable, you were pretty aware of it, but the temptation was too strong. It surprised you how despite being just across the street, Jungkook kept his distance, texting seemed to be enough for him, for the moment.

The moment you stepped out of the meeting room, you grabbed Sora’s arm and pushed her inside your office, making sure to close the door behind you so nobody could eavesdrop. You crossed your arms against your chest, frowning and looking like a very angry mom –which you were not in reality.

“Ok. What did I do?” Sora asked beforehand

“I don’t know. YOU tell me.”

Sora blinked, confused, or pretended to look confuse and before you could explain to her what she did wrong, Jungkook beat you to it, sending another message. Except this time, it was a picture of a coffee cup with the caption:

“You’re right. Hazelnut latte is the best.”

“And sweet like you, princess.”

You groaned, your façade completely crumbling at all the cheesiness Jungkook kept displaying without any notice. Sora looked curiously at you and you could only shove your phone under her nose, showing her the different texts Jungkook had sent you throughout the day.

“Oh. He didn’t strike me as romantic but seems like I shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.” Sora commented without much surprise in her voice

“You don’t look surprised. Why don’t you look surprised?!” You almost shouted at her.

Sora bit her lips, guilty without a doubt, taking a safe step back before actually daring to look into your eyes.

“Spill it. Now.” You ordered before adding more softly, “No more mystery, please. It’s complicated enough already.”

“They brought me to their headquarters and no, I don’t know where it is, they knocked me out.”

“Clever.”

“I know. Taehyung said I broke the deal which is ridiculous. I mean, yes, I was looking around for information but never enough to trigger them. But someone else was being too noisy about this stupid article.” Sora sighed in frustration at the only thought of the responsible of her misery.

“Who?” But then, the answer seemed way too obvious. “Don’t tell me it was Sungyeol?”

“I thought I was the noisy one but he happened to be even worse.”

“And they thought you used someone else to get the information.”

“Yeah. Jungkook made me talk. Something about him being good at reading people.”

“What did he do?”

A very odd and unsettling feeling washed over you. With the sweetness of his messages, you had almost forgotten about his work and knowing he kidnapped so easily your friend worried you. You felt immediately bad and regretted giving him attention. Sora tilted her head, noticing the change in your mood before a small and knowing smile spread on her lips.

“Believe it or not, he listened to what I had to say.”

“Did he now?”

“Yeah and he helped convincing the others. Both Taehyung and Jungkook believed me. He’s not that bad.”

Maybe. But it did not stop you from typing a very convincing, angry and threatening message.

“Jeon ing Jungkook. If you ever again dare touching my friend, even just a strand of her hair, you are a dead man and I will never talk to you again.”

You pressed *send* before actually realizing how childish and unconvincing your message sounded but at least you conveyed your feelings. Gangster or not, he took the first step toward you , now if he wanted even a slightest chance of being a friend, he needed to be careful. It was time to play the game by your rules.

“Wow. That was hot?” you read the answer.

“But don’t worry. Sora is safe.”

Yeah but for how long?

 

 

***

 

 

Once upon a time you were a woman with a high sense of justice, very wise, stubborn and down to earth. Somehow, in the middle, you had lost your way. When exactly, you were not so sure, but something told you it had everything to do with your meeting with a certain gangster going by the name of Jeon Jungkook.

One month flew by and many things changed for you, not really from outside but you definitely felt the changes within you. You were no longer scared to go out and feel a presence lingering around. You were no longer scared of getting involved with something you could not properly understand. Talking with Jungkook on daily basis did change everything. You could not ignore the fact that he was bad and dangerous but sometimes you just forgot who he was.

Whenever Jungkook would send you a message for the past month, you could not ignore it and did not want to. It was a very dangerous game and your mind told you to be wary, to stay away from him, but your heart happened to be less reasonable and more treacherous.

Your phone’s screen lightened with a new message –a little bird told you it was another message from Jungkook. And you were just right. It was a picture of a puppy, a golden retriever puppy, looking absolutely cute and fluffy with its tongue out and looking positively happy. You did not have time to react when a second picture load in your conversation and this time it was an even cuter sight: Jungkook holding the puppy in his hands and smiling –which happened to be a rather unusual sight.

“Hi. This is Joe and he just became my new best friend.”

“And he’s the second cutest after you.”

It was too much for you; you could not hold back the squeal of fondness leaving your mouth. You quickly slammed your hand to cover your mouth and checked around you if someone had noticed your sudden outburst. Fortunately for you, nobody did.

You forced yourself to calm down, failing miserably, since your grin got only wider as you looked back at the pictures –that you took pleasure saving on your phone, just in case. Sometimes, it was just impossible to resist this man.

Another time, Jungkook would ask for random stuff: what to eat, what to drink, where to go. At first, it was unsettling and you ignored him. Not quite the right thing to do, Jungkook just knew how to be annoying, bugging the hell out of you until he got a reaction. But now? You were beyond used to his weirdness and you truly enjoyed his spontaneous character –especially the days he did not have time to follow you.

Today was one of these random days as Jungkook sent a new picture, asking for your opinion. It was a picture of three suits of three different colours. You frowned at it before actually reading his message.

“Don’t laugh, but we have to attend a sort of charity party and I don’t know which one I should wear tonight.”

You blinked few time, thinking you had misread his message. A gangster going to a charity party? Oh the irony.

“You? A charity party? Nice joke.”

“My point exactly. But when my boss has something on mind, we have to obey.”

“Poor little thing.”

“Now I feel like you’re mocking me, princess. I thought you were a nice girl? :(“

“I am. I just find it so amusing that you will attend such a party. I wish I was there.”

Oddly enough, it took him longer than you expected to answer you. Your wish was just a joke and you hoped he knew it.

“Nah, you’d get bored.”

“So? Which one?”

You quirked a brow at his attempt to avoid the subject; something was off but you let it slide, it was not your business after all. And as a friend, you decided to help him. But it was harder than you initially thought. Ever since you had met the young man, you had never seen him out of his black jeans and leather jackets which made it difficult to imagine him wearing something classy and chic. What would suit him better? A black suit? The white one? Or should he go for the red?

“Shouldn’t you try them all and send me pictures so I can judge?” You finally replied, biting your lips, hoping that he would say yes.

“Ha! You just want to see my face.”

“That too.” You pressed send without thinking, letting your emotions control your body and only then you realized what you have done.

.

Knowing Jeon Jungkook, you expected him to either make a witty comment or find something to tease you for finally showing your feelings. Except, he did not exactly react the way you thought he would. Instead of answering, he simply sent another picture and this time it was a selfie. You almost dropped your phone on the floor at the sight of a rather ready for a party Jungkook. It was probably the first time that you actually saw him without his cap on, his hair looked perfect, fluffy and pushed back. His lips looked even more pinky than on usual and so damn tempting and inviting. He smiled to the camera, his eyes twinkling, he looked genuinely happy and effortlessly handsome.

What are you doing to me, Jungkook?

“Satisfied, princess?”

“. You weren’t joking about this whole party. Now I feel really important since I’m the one to decide whenever you will look hot or ugly tonight.”

“Except I look hot every damn time.”

You wanted to say cocky bastard but he was right, sadly.

“Go for the white shirt and red jacket? I really like it.”

“And you look less scary too.”

It took around fifteen more minutes to get a new picture of him, making you regret you could not get to this so called boring charity party because Jungkook looked elegant, yet y and terribly beautiful.

“How do I look?”

You wished you could tell him the truth but it would be unwise and you did not want him to tease you about it either.

“Ok I guess.”

You cringed at your own words.

“Girl, you just lied.”

“How would you know? You can’t see me! Can you?”

“I don’t need to. I know I look hot and you think so too.”

“.”

“See.”

You could not help but smile. What a silly man.

But your smile disappeared almost as fast as it came when another message came. From Jaehyun. Maybe, after all, you were just as bad as Jungkook. You had someone in your life already, not a fully committed relationship, but after the night at the bar you made yourself pretty clear. And now? You were ignoring him for the sake of someone who represented everything you had been scared of all this time.

“Hey Y/N! I’m so sorry for not contacting you for a week. I’ve been working on a case and guess what? We have a reason to meet and celebrate! I won! Should we have a date on Saturday? Please, say yes, I miss you.”

You let your phone fall on the couch as you slumped into the couch, you covered your eyes with your arm as a sigh left your lips. What are you doing, Y/N? You hated how guilty and unfair you felt toward Jaehyun. He had done nothing but showering you with compliments and attention –as much as his work allowed him to. He was the safest choice, you knew it better than anyone and yet. Why did it bother you so much to let go of Jungkook?

 

No matter how uncertain you were, the following morning you had no other choice but to make a decision. The first thing you heard arriving at work was about the sudden disappearance of Deputy Kang’s daughter who attended the very same charity party that Jungkook did. Rooted to the spot, you simply listened to your colleagues debating whether Kang’s daughter disappeared because someone decided to kidnap her or because she ran away –would not have been her first attempt.

You caught a glimpse of the worried look on Sora’s face. Your friend looked tired and confused and something else. She glanced at you, biting her lips before her head turned back to the TV. Just like you, she had heard about the news and you were convinced she knew more than anyone else in this room.

You approached her, your steps hesitant, but the need to know was just too strong.

“Sora.” You whispered and as the young woman turned around, you asked what had been bugging you. “Is it them?”

Sora took a step back, her face paler than ever, she bit her lips before finally nodding her head.

You should have known something like this would eventually happen. You knew it from the very moment you let Jeon Jungkook in your life. You knew he was trouble and yet you let him in. So why could you not help yourself but feel disappointed? Betrayed?

How silly of you, Y/N. Did you really think that Jungkook being nice meant that he was a normal guy?

It was arrogant of you to even consider that you would be able to change him, to make a difference.

This time, it was your turn to take few steps back, your face showing your disappointment and frustration, before you turned your back and went inside your office.

The moment you closed the door behind you, your sight got blurry for a moment, the world started spinning around you and you had to lean against the door to support yourself while trying to calm your racing heart. So many thoughts rushing inside your head made things only worse. You had to distract yourself before anxiety fully you.

Jaehyun. I need to choose Jaehyun.

But really? Did you?

Quickly, with your hands still shaking, you took your phone out of your bag and typed a quick message.

“Let’s celebrate this weekend! I miss you.”

They say liars burn in hell. What a big fat liar you were.

 

 

***

 

 

“I should have brought you with me. I was bored to death.”

“And just picturing you in one of those fancy dress…Gosh, I’d probably die, princess.”

“Joe is as rebellious as you. He refuses to sleep in his own bed. And I just can’t find the strength to scold him. Look at his adorable face!”

“Already sleeping?”

“Sleep well, princess. Don’t dream too much of me hm?”

“Or are you ignoring me?

“Did I do something?”

“Y/N?”

“Does your silence have anything to do with the news?”

“So it does. Princess, you can’t be mad at me for that. I never tried to hide what I am and I do for a living.”

“You can’t ignore me forever either. Don’t you miss me?”

You threw your phone somewhere on your coach, grabbing a pillow you squeezed it tight against you, your legs brought against you. It had been two days since you started ignoring Jungkook and you already felt your resolve waver. When did you become so attached to this man? You knew better than to fall for someone like him, especially when you had someone safer in your life, but you could not deny the attraction and what your heart desired.

But you missed Jungkook. You wanted to talk to him, to answer to all his messages, to see his face. But that would be extremely unwise, would it not?

It was the noise of something or someone scratching at your door that brought you back from your thoughts. It startled you, making you spin your head to the side, listening to it carefully. This kind of noise could not be made by human which only left one option: an animal was just behind your door. Curious, you stood from the couch and went to your door, hesitating for a second before opening it.

The moment you opened the door, something pounced on your legs, it eagerly. It was a puppy. A really cute and terribly familiar one. A part of you was petrified at the sight of Joe on your doorstep since he could not be here on his own. However, another part of you felt absolutely thrilled by the meaning of it. And how could you resist this cute puppy?

“Hi Joe.” You bent and his head, rubbing it softly behind his ears as he barked happily before your fingers. You could not hold back the giggle that left your mouth and you could certainly not hold back the wish to take the puppy in your arms. “How can you be so adorable?”

You took him in your arms, straightening up before bringing him closer to your face, smiling widely at the ray of sunshine that he was. Nobody could resist this little fellow. Nobody. He gave your face another happy before barking, his tail wiggling happily.

“Aww.”

But then, you remembered that it was Joe, Jungkook’s dog which could only mean one thing. Jungkook was nearby. Your heartbeat fastened at the thought, thumping loudly, excited, betraying you once again.

A shape in the corner grabbed your attention; you turned your head only to spot Jungkook at the lift, staring back at you with a rather melancholic look. You both stood there, looking at each other, you in a plain white long shirt and Joe still in your arms –pressed against your chest this time, while Jungkook had his eyes just on you. Only you.

Here again were the butterflies in your stomach, your skin warming up under his gaze. And what a gaze. Intense yet warm and loving. He should have been upset, he had all the reasons in the world since you had unfairly ignored him for two days, but no, it did not matter to him.

“Jungkook.” Your whisper barely audible to your own ears and yet he heard it.

“Hi, Y/N.”

To your surprise, Jungkook did not try to approach you, instead he stayed at the same spot he was previously, watching you from afar, scared he would make you run away from him again. But it did not make things easier for you. You wished he would act mean to you, tell you that you were selfish and should have told him clearly that you did not want to see him again.

“I knew Joe would be fond of you. Now I’m not sure he would want to go back home with me.” Jungkook said and smiled a little at the puppy in your arms. “What a lucky dog.” And you could certainly not ignore the little pinch of jealousy in his voice.

“Are you jealous of your own dog, Jungkook?” You asked, lowering your eyes, you started rubbing Joe’s head. “He’s adorable.”

“He can be close to you and touch you. I don’t have the luxury of doing the same.”

Your heart dropped, sadness and guilt washing through your body at his words.

“Jungkook.”

“I know.” He cut you before you could say anything else. He ruffled his hair in frustration before sighing in defeat. “I know.”

You set Joe back on the floor and he ran immediately back to his master, still happy as ever and oblivious to the growing tension between the two of you. Jungkook took a step forward, wanting to reach you, to at least be able to sense you but your instinct and your body reacted on its own, taking a step back. He halted immediately, tensing and looking at you, his face torn with pain and sadness. You regretted your move almost immediately but it was for the best, you knew it.

You hoped for it.

“You need to go home, Jungkook.” You managed to say, your own voice filled with so much emotions.

“Can you really let go?”

Despite the situation, there was something in Jungkook’s voice, almost as if he hoped you would give him an honest answer even if it went against your decision.

“No.” You admitted, “But I can’t be with you either. I already have someone in my life, Jungkook. And you know I can’t accept what you’re doing either.”

“What a pity.” He laughed humourlessly.

Jungkook took Joe in his arms and without sparing you one last glance, he left, taking with him a part of you that was dying to learn more of him and be with him.

It’s gonna be ok.

 

 

Except you were not fine at all. After that night, everything changed. Jungkook had stopped sending you messages, just like expected and he even stopped following you around. It should have relieved you, rejoiced you. But it did not.

You sighed for the hundredth time this morning, unable to concentrate on anything else. You have been trying to find a new article to work on, a subject that would spark your interest, but nothing seemed worth of your time. You grabbed your head between your hands, elbows resting on your desk as you tug on strands of your hair in frustration.

Sora came in your office the next moment bringing coffee, she halted in her tracks at the wrecked sight of you before sighing and making sure to close the door behind her.

“Want to talk about it?” She asked and took seat in front of you, pushing your cup of coffee closer to you. “Let me guess. It has something to do with a rather dark and hot boy by the name of Jungkook?”

You groaned and slammed your face on your desk this time, giving up on life.

“Guess I’m right.” She took a sip of her drink, proud of her guess, observing you with an amused glare. “Can you enlighten me on why you’re being so grumpy?”

“It’s not funny!” You straightened up and sent daggers her way.

“What? I’m just stating the obvious.”

“Yes. Yes, it has everything to do with this stupid man!” You angrily ripped the sugar sachet, before looking back at your friend.

“What happened? The last time I checked, you were getting pretty close?”

“We did. But then…The thing with Kang’s daughter happened.”

“Oh. That.”

“Don’t ‘oh’ me! It’s serious.”

“I know, but then what?”

Her words did not make any sense. Why could she not be as bothered as you by this?

“Why? Why are you so calm about it?” Sora looked uneasy and you just knew that she hid something from you. “Spill it.”

“Kang is involved with many gangs and let’s say by kidnapping his daughter, they want to make things clear with him.”

“I can’t believe you know all of this and you’re fine with it.”

“I never said I was fine with it. I’m far from being ok, but you know…Taehyung never gave me a reason to be scared of him and to hate him. Did Jungkook give you a reason?”

“He stalked me!”

“And yet you became friends.”

“He stole my number from you.” Sora actually rolled her eyes at your vain attempt to defend yourself –arguments that were not valid even for you.

“Ok, but did Jungkook ever give you a reason to doubt him?”

“No.”

“Did he ever threaten you?”

“No.”

“Did he ever put you in danger?”

For a moment, you wanted to say yes, because in a way you did found yourself in a rather dangerous situation with senator Lee, but then again, it was mainly your fault since you were the one who wrote this damn article and wanted to expose him.

“No.”

“Then cut him some slacks. Yes, he’s a gangster and you can’t change that. But Y/N, he has been nice to you, showing you who he is under all this façade. Is he that bad?”

“No.”

“See. He keeps you away from his business, from the killing. He wants a normal relationship with you. What’s so bad about it?”

“But the danger-“

“Jungkook is a big boy. If he wants you by his side, he will make sure nothing ever happens to you.” Sora smiled at how lost and weak and regretful you suddenly looked. “Actually, I’m pretty sure, Tae and I are the only one aware of his crush for you.”

These were the words you needed to hear. In your fear and doubts, you chose the safest path despite knowing it was not what you truly wished and not what your heart wanted. Sora’s words echoed deep in your mind.

“What should I do?” You whispered

“You have a date with Jaehyun on Saturday right? Go. Clear things with him first, he deserves it. And then? Try to call Jungkook. Hopefully he’s not petty.”

It did sound like a great plan.

 

 

***

 

 

Saturday night came too soon and despite the time you had to prepare yourself, your mind was restless and unprepared for what would happen tonight. Your conversation with Sora stayed at the back of your mind, replaying from time to time just to stress you a little bit more for this date. You were absolutely not ready.

Despite knowing that you were about to end things with an amazing guy, you put lots of efforts in your looks: a black turtleneck velvet dress reaching just below your knees, you had even curled your hair for the occasion.

You were so lost in your thoughts and your stress that you did notice a very familiar shape approaching you, it was only when Jungkook pulled the chair and sat in front of you with a smirk on his face that you realized what was going on. Your own eyes widened in shock, gaping incredulously at him before the realization down on you. Jungkook was in the restaurant. He was here before Jaehyun and he looked way too amused with your reaction. Something about it felt awfully wrong.

“What the hell are you doing here?!” You whispered-yelled at him.

“I was passing by and I saw you all alone. A beautiful woman like you shouldn’t stay alone.” He smiled before adding “You look stunning, really.”

Smooth Jungkook. Very smooth. But sweet-talking won’t help you.

You wanted to say, instead your eyes twinkled in amusement because you knew he lied. “Jungkook, there’s no window around this table, you couldn’t have seen me from outside.”

Jungkook gave you only a cheeky smile before raising his hands in defeat. “Busted.”

“Jungkook.” You said in a half desperate half warning tone, “You shouldn’t be here.”

“Why? You’re alone and I happen to be very much alone too.” He wiggled his brows playfully and it seemed that he had forgotten all about your conversations from the other night, forgetting all about you pushing him away. How could he?

“I’m waiting for someone.” It took you a lot of courage to mutter those words. You wanted him to stay but for now you had other things to take care of and Jungkook was a huge distraction.

“Are you now?” Jungkook’s voice got suddenly terribly low, deep and threatening. Something in his eyes shifted and he no longer looked amused or playful.

You decided to play along and not give in. “Actually, yes. Now can you leave, please?”

“No. I actually have other plans.”

You frowned upon his insistence and coldness. “Too bad, I have something else planned for tonight. So leave.”

Jungkook’s scowl only deepened at your words and by how tense he got you could imagine him squeezing his fist tightly under the table. It took him a lot to control his anger but you were playing at a dangerous game by testing his patience.

“Don’t wait for him. He won’t come.” Jungkook finally said and you blinked confused at him.

What? How? Why? You wanted to ask it all at once but your words got completely stuck in your throat. Your stomach sank at the implications behind his words. You wanted to push your chair and leave but Jungkook was faster, he grabbed your hand that was resting on the table, interlacing his fingers with yours, squeezing them hard.

“What have you done, Jungkook?” You managed to ask as panic was slowly rising inside you.

Jungkook had seemed to notice your state as he started rubbing gently your knuckles, his eyes softening. “Nothing much, really.”

“You didn’t kill him, did you?”

“I don’t go killing people just because I get jealous you know?” He scoffed but then laughed at how ridiculous it sounded. “I might have scared him a little bit when he refused to let you go.”

“What.”

“Let’s say I asked him nicely to stop seeing you?”

You groaned and tug at his hand to show your annoyance –yet you felt relieved to know that he did not hurt him, but it did not faze him that much, he only shrugged as if it was nothing.

“And what did he exactly say?”

“Something along: she’s too good for an like you.”

“Now that’s true.” You could not help but comment.

Truth was, you were not that upset about this which was definitely a bad thing. You were supposed to be the one to end things with Jaehyun and not Jungkook. It felt absurd and not right but there was nothing you could really do about it. At Jaehyun’s place you would have been scared too. You had no problem imagining how Jungkook convinced Jaehyun to stay away from you.

You sighed in defeat and squeezed his hand back, catching him off guard by your sudden display of affection.

“You’re so damn stupid.” You said, “This date was supposed to be about clearing things between us so I could go back to you, you .”

Jungkook’s whole face froze, his brain refused to properly function at this revelation before he actually understood your words. He opened his mouth to speak but then his words died as fast as they came.

“I feel stupid.” He admitted.

“It’s because you are.”

The only thing Jungkook could do was to laugh at the situation, at how hard he tried to threaten the lawyer without exposing his identity, how hard he tried to get close to you when in the end you had chosen him anyway. He felt absolutely stupid but extremely happy and relieved too.

You tried not to smile, not to look too happy about his reaction but it was so damn hard to ignore the fluttering of your heart and how warm and loved you felt. Maybe getting out of your comfort zone was not such a bad thing after all. Maybe Jungkook was worth the risk. You wanted to believe he was.

Before you could jump into a comfortable conversation, the waiter interrupted you with his presence.

“Are you-“ The young man started but as soon as his eyes landed on Jungkook, he paled, his eyes widened in shock and terror and you had no doubt he had once encountered Jungkook. Jungkook himself was not helping the situation at all as he scowled at the waiter almost as if he was ready to murder him on the spot.

Poor man. You bit your lips and decided to save the man from the torture; you nudged Jungkook’s shin with your shoe under the table, startling him. He looked betrayed and outraged by your behaviour but something lightened in his eyes, something that meant trouble for you but oddly enough you did not mind.

The waiter coughed awkwardly before regaining his composure and looking at you instead. “Are you ready to order?”

“No.” Jungkook in. “Actually, we were about to leave. Right princess?”

“We were?” You asked puzzled.

The waiter did not complain, simply nodded his head and almost ran away as fast as he could from your table, running for his life. You frowned at Jungkook’s smug face, shaking your head in discouragement. Nobody could change him.

“Shall we go?”

Jungkook stood up and stretched his hand toward you, waiting for you to make the step and to accept him. You did without hesitation.

The night had taken a rather unexpected turn.

Except, you regretted following him the moment you stepped outside and saw his motorbike. You froze on the spot, refusing to make any other steps, freeing your hand from Jungkook’s.

“You got to be kidding me.” You groaned “You can’t expect me to ride with you in a dress! And it’s freaking cold!”

“Don’t be mean to my best friend.”

You judged him hard at that. You never understood men who gave pet names to their cars or in his case, motorbike, it felt ridiculous and childish.

“I’m not going.” You warned him and crossed your arms against your chest, your eyes darting back and forth between Jungkook and his motorbike.

You were in the middle of January, it was cold, you wore a dress and you actually hated motorbikes, you could keep going with your list and reasons of why you would never ride it but by the look Jungkook gave you, he would not let you any choice anyway.

“Don’t make me to put you on my motorbike by force, princess. You really don’t want it.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

You knew he would.

“Try me.”

You took a step back as his eyes glowed in a mix of excitement and warning, nevertheless you refused to follow him. How in the world were you supposed to ride it in a dress? Jungkook did not seem to care for your opinion –what’s new? He approached you, smirking, and before you could run for your life he grabbed your arm and pulled you abruptly against him and finally slid his arm around your waist, lifting you easily and throwing on his shoulder. You yelped hitting his back restlessly.

“Jungkook!! Put me back on the ground, !”

He laughed only louder at your pointless attempt to convince him, instead, he slapped playfully your , making you yelp in surprise before shutting you up completely. You grabbed his shoulders tightly, digging your nails into his jacket, too scared he would drop you –you could not help but think about it even if you were aware of his strength.

Jungkook put you on his motorbike, his thighs touching yours and you were awfully aware of his proximity to your body. It was not the time to think about it but it was hard not to.

“You were saying?”

“I hate you.” Was all you managed to say.

Jungkook rolled his eyes at you and took place just before you; he grabbed your arms and wrapped them around his waist, squishing you against his back. “Hold tight.”

“Where are we even going?” You tried.

“Surprise.”

Something told you that there was no use fighting him, he would not spill the beans until you reach the destination. Resigned, you tightened your grip around him, leaning your head against his back.

“Ready?”

“No. But let’s go.”

If only you knew how long you would have to ride to reach your destination, you would have jumped out of his stupid motorbike and save yourself a long and exhausting trip.

Through the first half of the trip, you kept tugging at your dress with one hand, the other one gripping tightly his jacket. It was useless and after a while you just gave up. Instead, you leaned even closer to him for his warmth and for the safety he represented. You rested your head against his back, enjoying his smell, a mix of fresh mint and leather.

The notion of time somehow changed during this trip. You could not tell for how long you have been riding but after probably at least two hours, Jungkook finally stopped at a service station. It was late and the place was empty except for the shop assistant –who was distracted by some movie playing on the TV. Not for long. The moment the two of you entered the shop and his eyes landed on you, he almost fell from his chair.

It must have been a rather odd sight: a woman too dressed for a ride on a motorbike and a man looking too gloomy and dangerous. Something in this picture did not seem right for the young man behind his stand. He looked like he wanted nothing more than to call the police but that would be a harsh decision and to jump to conclusions. He knew better. Instead, he said a nice welcome, his eyes glued to you mainly -seeing a nice woman and so dressed up in the middle of the night and at this service station was a rather rare thing.

"What can I do for you?" He asked, a shudder ran down his spine as he met Jungkook's scowl and instantly he turned his gaze to somewhere else on his screen.

"Two coffees would be nice." Jungkook spoke and you had to nudge him in the stomach because he was being childish with his jealousy. "I'll go looking for snacks."

He let you deal with the cashier. You rolled your eyes at him before looking back at the young man and smiling. "Sorry for that, he can be moody."

"Is everything ok? Should I call the police?" He finally dared to ask, whispering just in case Jungkook was still around and could hear him.

"What?" You asked incredulous, "Why would you do that?"

"It's just" He started explaining, feeling almost stupid for asking, "He looks dangerous."

You had always said that people should not judge a book by its cover and this young man was doing exactly that: judging Jungkook by his look -you could not fully blame him, Jungkook did look like he had just kidnapped you, but it still bothered you.

"He is. But he happens to be my friend." It took you a lot to say the word friend, you were more than friends by now but it was not his business after all. "So please, don't assume he's dangerous."

"I'm sorry."

You smiled sweetly but your smile never fully reached your eyes.

Once the coffee was ready and Jungkook had bought some snacks, you settled at a table near the window.

"You do realize that you forced me to come with you?" You really wanted to sound upset but something about Jungkook made it impossible.

"So?"

"So romantic."

"For you? Always."

"Oh my God."

You cracked up, your eyes twinkling with amusement. He never ceased to amaze you with his antics.

The second time you made a stop was at a beach. The wind was a little stronger on the coast and you had to hide your face with your scarf to warm yourself up. Jungkook glanced your way, worried for a second –you kept shivering despite your warm scarf and coat, before taking his backpack. He slid his hand in yours, giving it a gentle squeeze and put it right in his pocket. The gesture surprised you but at the same time made your heart flutter at his sudden display of affection and at the attention he gave you.

Your fondness quickly vanished when you came in term that your final destination was indeed this beach in the middle of nowhere. There were no houses around, no street lights, just the cliffs and the sea for as far as the eye could see. In the end, the only source of light happened to be the moon and the torch Jungkook out of his bag.

You yanked your hand from his pocket, forcing him to stop in his track and look at you with raised brow.

“What?”

“Are you serious? You’re taking me to an isolated beach in the middle of January?! And when I’m wearing a freaking dress? Jeon Jungkook, are you trying to kill me?! I’m going to freeze to death!” You scolded him, frustrated with the outcome of your night. Another time, another day and especially another month it would have been perfect and very romantic, but not tonight. You were too tired and dejected.

“Don’t be such a drama queen.” Jungkook rolled his eyes at you and pulled you abruptly, too abruptly since you almost fell on him. Fortunately for you, he was fast enough to wrap his arm around your body and steadying you. “Easy there.” He your back in circles, trying awkwardly to calm you down. “I promise, it’s getting better.”

You pushed him away, unconvinced, apprehensive. You still followed him.

You thought things could not get worse. It did. It was not until you reached the sand that you realized the extent of damages you were about to suffer. The previous day, it had rained making the sand wet, slippery and dirty. You could say goodbye to your shoes –needless to say it pissed you off since they were brand new.

Jungkook led you almost near the water, the cliff stood behind you. Almost twice you tripped, unable to see the stones on the ground, you felt relieved when he came to a stop. At first sight it seemed like another empty spot at this beach, on the difference that there was traces of bonfires with tree branches scattered around the place.

You stopped and observed Jungkook gathering the branches, putting them together before he took his backpack. To your biggest surprise, Jungkook pulled out two blankets, one that he set down on the sand near what you guessed would be a bonfire.

You were almost surprised at how good Jungkook was, everything was planned, he had everything he needed to make you comfortable.

“What are we even doing here.” You muttered more for yourself, your disbelief clear in your voice.

Jungkook did not mind it at all and instead of considering to give you an explanation, he sat on the blanket and patted his laps to urge you to slump beside him.

“No. I want to go home.”

“After driving for so long? Not gonna happen. How about you enjoy the moment?” Jungkook almost sounded annoyed and bossy and cold but you would need more to get scared.

“Jungkook.”

He sighed –you hoped in defeat, but instead he grabbed your hand and you knew exactly what would come next, he smirked proudly and before you could even fight back, he pulled strongly at your hand making you fall on your knees right between his legs. Jeon Jungkook knew how to play dirty.

“I hate you.” You mumbled, raising slowly your head, only to realize how close you two were.

Jungkook gave you a sheepish smile. “You mentioned that a few times now. Should I worry?”

Of course not. You wanted to say, but he did not deserve your honesty and it was not like he needed it to know the depth of your thoughts. “Yes. You do.”

“Ok.”

That did sound worrisome.

The almost innocent smile turned into a wicked one and the next thing you knew he flipped you over, your back now pressed hard against his chest, his arms wrapped tightly around your frame and you felt his chin in the crook of your neck.

“You’re so rebellious, princess.” He whispered sweetly.

You could have tried to push him away, but the warmth of his body and his arms were just too inviting, too comforting for you to do any of that, so instead you wiggled in his arms to find the perfect position. He chuckled at your reaction before nuzzling his face in the crook of your neck, his nose bumping lightly against your skin before he planted a soft kiss on your skin.

A shiver washed over you and you were not so sure whenever it was due to the cold or to what Jungkook made you feel.

He pulled back for a moment, only to grab the second blanket and wrap it around both of your bodies.

You thought that by now Jungkook could not surprise you any more, he had showed all his cards to conquer you. Oh how wrong you were. You see, there was a certain talent you did not expect from a man like him and yet. Till this very moment, you sat in silence, the crunch of branches, the waves were the only thing you could hear. That until Jungkook started singing softly, his head no longer pressed against you.

“No limit in the sky

That I won’t fly for ya

No amount of tears in my eyes

That I won’t cry for ya, oh no

With every breath that I take

I want you to share that air with me

There’s no promise that I won’t keep

I’ll climb a mountain, there’s none to steep.”

He had the best, the sweetest voice you had ever heard. It was soft and so pleasing to listen, you could not resist to the urge to close your eyes and enjoy his voice. You pressed your cheek against his arm, your eyes still closed, you wanted to feel him in every possible way.

“When it comes to you

There’s no crime

Let’s take both of our souls

And intertwine

When it comes to you

Don’t be blind

Watch me speak from my heart

When it comes to you

Comes to you.”

You peeked from your heavy lids, captivated by his voice and the choice of the song. It was not one you would have chosen to listen but the way he sang it changed everything.

On impulse, you pushed his arms away, turned around to get on your knees. You grabbed his face between your hands, making him stop singing and instead staring at you with eyes wide opened and confused. You smiled fondly at him before giving in and pressing a soft and tender kiss on his lips. It was gentle and hesitant and yet it had so much meaning behind it. You pulled away, your grin got only wider at how shocked Jungkook was.

“And here I thought gangsters were all bad and mean. How come you’re such a softie?” You teased, pecking his lips once again to make him react.

He did not. His doe-eyes widely opened, it seemed that you had just lost Jungkook to a kiss. So you giggled, absolutely smitten with his reaction –or lack of it.

“Jungkook.” You hummed, pressing your hands a little harder against his face. “Still there?”

“Bloody hell.”

He did not let you time to even breath, his face got terribly close before finally you felt his lips on yours. It was at first a sweet brush of his lips, lingering a little longer. His hands circled your body, bringing you even closer and you had to slightly straighten yourself on your knees to deepen the kiss. A kiss that was no longer innocent or hesitant. Far from it.

You could not tell which one of you had waited the most for it to happen and it did not matter in the end because the feeling of his lips was the best thing that had ever happened to you.

You were at a desert beach, in the middle of the night in January. It was cold and humid and yet, you felt warm, fuzzy and blissful. You were in his arms and you wished this moment would last forever.

If you thought the trip to the beach was long, the trip back happened to be even longer. Not because it was longer in distance, but the state of exhaustion made it hard for you. But to your surprise, Jungkook had planned things perfectly. You expected to ride his motorbike again to get back home but somehow –you did not want to know how; a black car was waiting for you when you finally decided to move. Your eyes darted back and forth between Jungkook –how could he act so nonchalant, and the car. He just knew how to amaze you, did he not?

“You really had everything planned.” You commented, “But what if I had said no? Would you still have forced me to come with you?”

Jungkook looked genuinely tortured between giving you the answer you wanted to hear and the one he really had on mind. You pressed your lips into a thin line before giving up.

“You know what, I don’t want to know. It doesn’t matter.”

The only thing that mattered right now was that you would be able to get home faster and in the safety and warmth of the car. You were not that demanding after all, were you?

Through the whole trip back, you kept dozing off. A part of you wanted to stay awake, talk some more with Jungkook but he did not make things easier with you. The moment he noticed how heavy your lids were, he stopped on the sideway, took a blanket from the backseat and put

it on you.

You had thought about it for a while now and you came to conclusion that there were three perfect words to describe Jungkook: dangerous, awkward and extremely sweet. And all yours.

 

 

***

 

 

“It’s six in the evening and I had just woken up. You ed up my sleep habits.”

“Not like I mind, but still…How am I going to change that now?”

“Guess I’m not the only one.”

“So. How come you’re being silent? As a stalker, you’re doing your job poorly. I should hire a new one.”

“If you’re doing something illegal…Please be careful.”

“I mean. I don’t want to hear bad news.”

“Ok…It has been three days. Should I worry?”

“Jeon Jungkook. You better have a valid excuse for ignoring my messages.”

“How come Sora is the one to give me news from you???? Nice to know you’re alive, .”

“I’m serious. If you don’t answer, I’m going to flip a table.”

“You are so in trouble mister.”

“Payback is a , now I know it.”

One week.

Jungkook disappeared for a whole week following the little trip to the beach and the kiss you shared by the bonfire. You wished you could say you were not affected or mad about his behaviour but that would be a big fat lie. You were furious. At first of course, you thought he got busy, but then it never stopped him before from sending you messages. You got confused and after a week you just wanted to punch him right into his face and make him sorry for worrying you.

You knew from the beginning that letting Jungkook in your life was a risky bet, whenever it was for your safety or for your heart but he had given you so many reasons to believe in him and to give him a chance. So you did. And now you were not so sure it was a good thing.

You kept tossing in bed, unable to sleep, unable to clear your mind and calm down. You turned around for the hundredth time, glancing at your phone, checking the time and if you had any message. It was two in the morning on a Sunday night –you would probably curse in the morning when you would have to get up to work, and it was another sleepless night.

Except, it was time for you to stop moping around and deal with him your own way. You grabbed your phone and quickly wrote a message to Sora, praying that she would be awake –or forgot to mute her phone.

“I need their address. Now.”

“Are you serious? You woke me up for that?”

“Yes. Now?”

“You better kick his sorry .”

You grinned wickedly at your screen. Game on.

Despite it being two in the morning, you still drove to the address Sora gave you, not caring if it was dangerous and caring even less if they were all sleeping –did gangsters actually sleep at all?

Throughout the ride to their place, you imagined many things, many scenarios and how their place could look like. Except, you failed to imagine that it would be a huge mansion with agents guarding the place; one at the main entrance and the two others on the side of the mansion.

Your blood ran cold for a moment as you parked your car on the side. Was it really worth the risk? You had your doubts about your plan, you knew there would be obstacles between you and your prey and those agents did not look very friendly. But you happened to be more pissed.

“Miss, I’m sorry but you need to leave.” The agent at the main entrance stopped you with his arm stretched.

You looked at his arm and then at the entrance, calculating whenever you could just push him by surprise and run inside. Probably not the best idea. Though it would be something Sora would do.

“That’s sad because I really need to get inside.”

“I don’t think so. You must leave.”

“I repeat; I need to get inside. I want to see Jeon Jungkook.” and beat the crap out of him too.

The agent actually stopped for a second, realizing that you knew –or at least have heard of Jungkook-, it was weird enough for him to think about what he should do.

“Miss-“

“Ugh, you are so annoying!” You threw your arms in the air in frustration. “What is wrong with gangsters nowadays? I knew you were bad but not annoying!”

His first and probably instinctive reaction was to put his hand on his gun –just in case if he needed to use it against you, but then, he actually shuddered under your deadly gaze. Something was wrong with you and he wished he could just let someone else deal with you.

Seeing how the agent was not willing to cooperate with you, you had only one option left –well two if you count pushing and running for your life.

“Jeon Jungkook. You better get out of your pretty mansion or I might kick this stupid agent and call police. That would be inconvenient for you, wouldn’t it?”

“Miss, don’t make me use strength on you. Just leave.”

You had a rather nice word on the tip of your tongue that never came out because of the man who appeared at the door. Exhausted after probably running like a mad man just to get on time. You would have laughed at his eagerness if it was not for your own anger. Now that Jungkook was out, you pushed the agent without hesitation, taking him by surprise, and approached Jungkook, pointing a finger at him.

“You have no idea how mad I am right now.”

“I’d say pretty mad since you came on your own in the middle of the night.” Jungkook answered back without thinking.

“See, you’re not the only one who has a thing to force people out this late.”

You halted in your track once you were before him, shooting daggers at him. And then you just snapped, letting out all of your accumulated frustration: you slapped him. Hard. The slap echoed in the yard, probably attracting some unwanted attention but right now you could care less.

“This. This is for being an idiot.” It felt nice slapping him –your hand stung just as badly. But it was not enough. Not yet. Then came another slap. “This is for ignoring me!”

“Woman, calm down!” He tried, grabbing your hands tightly, but not strong enough to hurt you.

But you were not having any of it. You yanked your hands from his grip, too easily, poking his chest with your finger. “No, no, no. You listen. You don’t go force someone on your stupid motorbike, have a freaking long ride, only to ignore afterwards. Where’s your freaking manners?!”

Jungkook should have defended himself like any normal man would have. Instead, he stood there, biting his lips and feeling almost remorseful.

“You better start thinking how to make it up for me, Jungkook.” You whispered

After meeting you for the first time at this restaurant, Jungkook had thought he figured you out easily. You were a rather simple woman with simple needs and yet you came to be a challenge, an addiction he was not willing to part. He thought you could not take him by surprise or confuse him. How wrong he was.

Despite clearly hating his world, you came to his place, angry but fearless, ready to face all the danger in the world just to make him regret his choice. Did he like it? Definitely. Did he regret his decision of ignoring her? Not really since he had to the chance to see this side of her. You were constantly surprising him in the best of ways and as he felt a wave of affection overwhelming him, he could not stop himself from whispering hesitantly:

"I just... It's because you..." He looked behind him, as if he was checking nobody else could hear what he was going to say, before looking straight into your eyes and admitting "You're incredible. And way too good for me."

The vulnerability in his eyes caught you by surprise and left you breathless. You could see how much you counted for him, and the conflict between his mind and his heart.

Taking him once again by surprise, you grabbed his shirt, yanking him harshly, forcing him to be at your level before crushing your lips against his. The simple contact of his lips against yours set your body on fire. You had been dreaming about kissing him ever since you came back from the beach and finally you had it. The kiss was needy, desperate as you poured all your feelings, frustration and longing for him.

Despite the initial shock, Jungkook wrapped one arm around your waist, squishing your body against his as he kissed back with just as much eagerness as you, wanting nothing more but feel you.

“You’re so so stupid.” You exhaled into his lips before biting his upper lip playfully. “You better know. I’m not holding back any longer, Jeon Jungkook.”

Jeon Jungkook was a gangster and everything you happened to despise in this world. And yet, he became everything you ever needed.

“Game on.”