“Stay calm,” Chan muttered. He must have noticed the tensing of Mijoo’s shoulders or maybe it was the way that her breath caught in her chest. 

“Easy for you to say; you aren’t looking at someone who tried to kill you,” Mijoo muttered back, her eyes flickering between Mark, and the powerful members of the group. Their entrance at the gallery had drawn all the attention in the place towards them. Mijoo saw Hongjoong greeting the troupe, giving the woman a brief hug and kiss on either cheek before turning to the mayor with a smile. 

Chan let out a breath of a laugh that brushed across her ear. Mijoo blinked not realizing he had leaned in so close. “Honey, most of the people in this room have tried to kill me at least once,” he said in a low voice.

“And yet here you are, in the same room as them. I’m pretty sure that makes you insane,” Mijoo breathed out the last part of her sentence not really intending for Chan to hear it. 

“The line between insanity and confidence is blurry at times,” Chan replied, not sounding that insulted even though Mijoo had just called him crazy. “Come on, let me introduce you to the mayor.”

Mijoo turned her gaze towards Chan, her eyes wide. “What!” She quietly exclaimed. “You mean like, go over there. Where Mark is!?”

Chan didn’t reply, instead straightening his shoulders and leading Mijoo towards the group. Mijoo had the brief, almost childish thought, to dig her heels into the ground and put up resistance.  “Mayor Park,” Chan called out as they approached, his fake smile from before back on his face. 

The mayor turned towards the two of them and smiled. “Mr. Bang, it’s so good to see you again. I was wondering if your company would be represented here tonight.” 

“We wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Chan replied. 

“I’m glad to hear that.” The mayor then turned his attention towards Mijoo, “and who is this beautiful woman with you tonight?” Mijoo tried to not shrink under the attention of the group as they all turned to look at her. The woman in the red dress gave her an uninterested once over, a look of disdain barely veiled on her face. The man that Mark was shadowing stared at her with a cold unreadable expression. Mijoo tried to not look over where Mark was standing, not wanting to give any indication that she recognized him from somewhere. Even though she wasn’t looking at him, she could still feel his eyes on her. She tried not to shiver. 

Chan removed his arm from Mijoo’s grasp and slid it around her waist pulling her in tighter towards him, “This would be my girlfriend, Mijoo.” Mijoo was grateful for the extra support, afraid her legs would give out in front of the group. 

The mayor gave her a warm and charming smile, taking her hand and giving it a light kiss, “It’s a pleasure to meet you Mijoo.” Mijoo’s brain stuttered to a halt. The only thought running through her head at the moment was whether or not kissing someone’s hand was a normal upper class activity or if she was just meeting a bunch of very weird people in a short amount of time.

Chan squeezed her side, bringing her back to reality. “Oh, well I’m honored to meet you Mr. Mayor-”

“Please, call me Jeongsu,” The mayor interrupted, that warm disarming smile still on his face. The woman in red crossed her arms loosely over her chest, squaring her shoulders back as she sized up Mijoo. 

“I’m honored to meet you… Jeongsu,” Mijoo said, the name feeling odd on her tongue. 

The woman to her left let out a slight cough, almost as if there was a small tickle in . Mayor Park tore his eyes away from Mijoo and looked in between the two of them, “Ah, where are my manners tonight, this is Kwon Bo-ah. She’s a… close friend of mine and often works with me on charity projects.” 

Ms. Kwon lazily extended a hand toward Mijoo, which Mijoo shook. Chan didn’t move. “I always love seeing new, young faces at these events,” the woman spoke, and somehow, although she wasn’t sure how, Mijoo felt like she was being insulted. 

“And this is a newer associate of mine. Chan, I believe you and he are already associated, if I’m not mistaken,” Mayor Park continued turning toward the other man. 

Chan gave another forced smile, “Yes, Mr. Im and I are very well associated.” 

Mijoo watched before her eyes as the cold blank face melted into a smile that looked absolutely dastardly, “Chan, what have I told you? Please call me Jaebum.” Mijoo could feel Chan’s arm around her tense as they shook hands. While both of them were smiling there was a look in their eyes that made Mijoo feel that she was standing near two dangerous animals that were ready to attack. 

If Mayor Park noticed the tense atmosphere he chose to ignore it, giving both Chan and Mijoo another warm smile, “Well, I look forward to speaking with you both some more later tonight. If you’ll excuse us for the moment, Director Kim wanted to give us a sneak peak on some of the more exclusive pieces.”

“Of course,” Chan nodded before stepping away with Mijoo allowing the group to move along. With his hand around her waist, he led Mijoo towards a quiet table off to the side.

“Oh my god,” Mijoo muttered to herself. “I think I’m going to throw up.” 

“Please don’t,” Chan said, his gaze looking around the room as he removed his hand from her waist.

“Who was that guy? He was GOT7 wasn’t he? Who was that lady? Why are they with the mayor? Why are we not with the mayor right now?” Mijoo asked, turning suddenly towards Chan with a barrage of questions on her lips. 

“Hold on, hold on - one question at a time.” Chan said, putting up a hand, his gaze snapping back to her. “Yes, that was the leader of GOT7, Im Jaebum. The woman is Kwon Bo-ah, she…” Chan trailed off as if trying to find the right words. “She owns a chain of wealthy resort spas for the rich and famous, her other job is catering girls to the rich and famous when they ask.” 

Mijoo’s brows furrowed, “Like… ion?” 

Chan’ tilted his head confirmation, “She’s the most powerful madam in the city.”

“And she’s… on the arm of the Mayor…” Mijoo spoke slowly. 

“And she’s on the arm of the mayor,” Chan repeated, nodding. 

“More like he’s at the end of her leash,” Jisung muttered next to her. Mijoo had almost forgotten he and Changbin were still following them. Chan let out a breath of a laugh, but didn’t refute his statement. 

“So the mayor of our city is surrounded by madams and gang leaders,” Mijoo continued. “Not what I imagined he would be like when I saw him on TV. He always seemed so...nice, really changes my perspective on him.”

“Well look at the company you’re keeping now sweetheart,” Chan snorted.

Mijoo sighed, looking away from Chan, she couldn’t argue with that. She didn’t think the company she kept now represented who she was as a person, but she was having a harder and harder time recognizing herself in the mirror as the days went by. “So why are we not getting an exclusive sneak peek with the mayor? Doesn’t that put u- put you all at a disadvantage?” Mijoo asked, watching as the group slipped behind a curtained doorway at the back of the room.

“Normally it would, but Hongjoong has already shown me all the pieces he’s showing them,” Chan answered.

“Oh,” Mijoo said dumbly. A beat of silence passed between them before Mijoo opened to speak again. 

Before she could say anything however a familiar voice called out to them. “Ah, Chan! Mijoo! What a wonderfully pleasant surprise to see you both here,” Seonghwa called out as he approached them.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to throw up?” Mijoo muttered under her breath to Chan, which earned her a surprising reaction from Jisung as he struggled to hold back a laugh.

Chan gave her an unimpressed look, “Behave… both of you,” he said, shooting a glare at Jisung behind her. Chan turned back to Seonghwa with a blindingly fake smile just as he reached them. “Seonghwa, It’s so nice to see you again… and so soon. You’re never in town this long, business must be doing well.” 

“Well of course it is, how can it not be flourishing under my care. Honestly, I hate being away so much, I always end up missing all the fun,” the way Seonghwa’s eyes glinted made Mijoo think that the fun he was talking about really wasn’t all that fun. “You know… I heard a rumor recently about an incident in the warehouse district. Did you hear anything about that?” Both Changbin and Jisung shifted and the atmosphere around their group tensed considerably. 

“An incident? I’m afraid I don’t know what you mean,” Chan said, his voice impassive as he tilted his head to the side in confusion. “I’m afraid I don’t get over towards the warehouse district very often.”

Seonghwa looked down, a dangerous knowing smile pulling at his lips. “Ah, well then that's too bad. And here I was hoping to get all the nitty gritty details. Mijoo, it’s wonderful to see you again. I hope that Chan took the time to tell you how beautiful you are this evening, because if not I would gladly be willing to fill that role,” Seonghwa said, turning his dark gaze towards Mijoo.

Mijoo suppressed a shiver. She could see Chan staring her down out of the corner of her eye as if willing her to not challenge the man in front of her even though she desperately wanted to tell him to go himself. “Don’t worry Seonghwa, I am more than satisfied with my boyfriend's attentions tonight,” Mijoo replied, giving him a forced smile.

Minho, who had wandered closer to the group, choked on his wine and began coughing - obviously having overheard the conversation. Excusing himself from the people he had been talking to he walked over to the bar, hiding a smile behind a napkin.

Seonghwa’s smile never faltered, “Ah well then, maybe next time.” Mijoo wanted to tell him that there never would be a next time cause she’d rather punch his smug face in, but she held her tongue. “Anyway, I actually came over here to retrieve your boyfriend for a few moments. While I realize this is a party, I’m afraid there is some business that has come up that must be attended to.”

Chan finally let a frown find its way to his face, “Can’t it wait?”

Seonghwa let out a sigh and shook his head, “I wish it could, but it can’t.” Mijoo had a strong suspicion that he was not at all sorry about pulling Chan, her best protection and cover, away from her.

The muscles in Chan’s jaw tensed for a few moments before he finally let out a sigh, “Fine,” he relented. He turned to Mijoo, “Try to behave for Jisung, darling; he’s already stressed enough as it is.” He was trying to be lighthearted and play the part of the caring boyfriend, but his real message was loud and clear. Don’t do anything that could put yourself in any more danger.

“Oh, I wouldn’t dream of causing trouble at Joong’s special event,” Mijoo replied with a smile. 

“Please hurry, boss,” Jisung spoke up with a resigned sigh.

Chan gave Jisung a short nod, before turning and walking away with Seonghwa, Changbin following silently behind.

Once they were out of earshot, Mijoo let out a deep sigh, turning to face Jisung, “I don’t like this.”

“Yeah I don’t like being stuck alone with you either, sweetheart,” Jisung muttered, his gaze continuing to scan the surrounding vicinity. 

“No… well, yeah that too, but I mean I don’t like whatever Seonghwa is up to. I don’t like him and I certainly don’t trust him. What if he,” Mijoo leaned in with a whisper, “-kills Chan or something.”

Jisung scoffed, “Even Seonghwa, as enterprising and power hungry as he is, isn’t stupid enough to just kill Chan point blank. Especially at his boss’ event.”

“Well he’s up to something, that’s for sure,” Mijoo insisted, crossing her arms. 

“Mijoo, seventy five percent of the people here are ‘up to something’ that doesn’t mean you need to be worried about Chan. He can take care of himself, he’s a big boy.”

Mijoo frowned, but decided to not push the conversation. If Jisung wasn’t concerned then why should she be? A few seconds of silence passed, as Mijoo half-heartedly looked out the large glass wall that overlooked the neighboring street. She could see people walking by on the sidewalk, several taking interest in looking up at the glamorous event taking place at the gallery. Eventually she turned to look around the room. “Why are there no seats anywhere? Does Hongjoong not realize how much these heels hurt to stand around in?” Mijoo wondered aloud.

“You know, I was just wondering the same thing,” An approaching voice replied. “My feet are killing me and my boyfriend tells me that I’m not allowed to sit on the ground because I’ll make a scene. I argue that if I get enough people to join me I can make it seem like a new trend or some ridiculous like that.” Mijoo looked over to see a woman and man walking towards them.

The woman who had spoken had dyed ash blonde hair that was cut short around her face. She wore large hoop earrings, a gold skirt, black top and tall, black high heels. The man with her, who Mijoo presumed to be the boyfriend she had mentioned, was almost too pretty to be real. He had brown hair parted down the middle with very delicate facial features. The pair was quite stunning.

“Sorry I don’t mean to interrupt. I’m Jeongyeon, and this is my boyfriend Yeosang,” the woman introduced, with a bright smile. Yeosang gave her a nod as a hello with a small smile. Mijoo wondered if their smiles were genuine. After seeing so many fake smiles and having put on so many fake smiles, she was beginning to wonder what was real. “As much as I love these events I never seem to learn my lesson when it comes to shoe choice, and I’m having such a hard time finding anyone who understands my lack of chair pain.” 

“I’m Mijoo, I’m afraid my boyfriend stepped away for a brief business discussion, otherwise I would have introduced him,” Mijoo replied, turning fully to face the couple. “And I don’t mind, you’re not interrupting at all. I’m afraid I don’t really know anyone else here who isn’t currently busy with some sort of important business.” Jisung let out a slight cough catching Mijoo’s attention. Had she said something wrong?

“Well then it’s nice to meet you, Mijoo. I take it this is your bodyguard and not your boyfriend then,” Jeongyeon nodded towards Jisung. “I keep trying to convince Yeosang that we should get bodyguards for these events, but he never goes for it,” the woman shook her head like that was some sort of tragedy.

Yeosang didn’t respond to his girlfriend's comments, but he did offer up a sigh. His attention seemed more focused on looking around the room than on the conversation Mijoo and Jeongyeon were having.

“So what company are you here representing,” Jeongyeon asked, the friendly smile still on her face. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you at one of these events before.”

“Ah well,” Mijoo started, wondering how she was possibly going to finish this sentence, unsure of what she could share. She opened to continue speaking when the oddest look passed over Jeongyeon’s face that moved quickly from confusion to fearful surprise. Before Mijoo could say anything else Jeongyeon was grabbing her by the arm and pulling her down towards the floor as the sound of shattering glass filled the air and a brief burst of pain broke across her shoulder. The quick movement pulled at Mijoo’s healing skin and she hissed in pain as her knees made hard contact with the wood floor.

“Yeosang, my radio! My radio damnit!” Jeongyeon yelled, as Mijoo took a moment to catch her bearings. Jisung had also dropped down to the ground next to her and was now shielding her body from the glass wall of the gallery. “All units! All units! We have shots fired at 9th and Park at Destiny Gallery,” Jeongyeon spoke into the radio that Yeosang had given her.

Mijoo in a deep breath as the pain in her shoulder began to throb. Looking down she saw blood dripping from her shoulder, her creme top slowly changing color as blood soaked into her clothing. “The bullet grazed your shoulder, but she pulled you out of the way just in time,” Jisung mumbled quietly as the gallery descended into chaos around them. 

The sound of breaking glass filled the air again, followed by screaming. “All units please be advised we have a sniper in the building adjacent to the gallery and is shooting into the crowd,” Jeongyeon spoke into her radio. “Give me my gun already, Yeosang! , I knew I should have worn a pantsuit! I hate these ing events!” 

Yeosang pulled a gun out from under his suit coat, handing it to Jeongyeon before pulling out a second gun for himself. Turning he looked over at Mijoo, “Are you ok?” Mijoo couldn’t find her voice, so she just nodded. “Good, you need to get to better cover. Can you move?” Mijoo nodded again. 

“I’ll take care of her; you guys go do your jobs,” Jisung spoke up, putting a hand on her back. Yeosang nodded before turning back to his partner. “Okay, when I tell you to run you need to run towards the bar, you see that gallery wall?” Mijoo nodded. “Try to get behind the wall. Ready?” Mijoo wanted to tell him, no she wasn’t ready, but her voice had left her and Jisung wasn’t given her a chance to say no. “Go!” He pushed Mijoo up off the ground and she took off running. She let out a scream at the sound of a bullet hitting the ground near her as she ran, but she didn’t slow down. Her heart felt like it was beating so hard it was going to beat out of her chest.

All around her she saw guests running around, screaming. She still couldn’t wrap her head around what was happening, but she knew she didn’t have time to think about it. She rounded the corner of the gallery wall for cover and almost ran straight into Minho. 

“!” Minho yelled, as he grabbed Mijoo by the arms to keep her from barreling them over into the ground. She let out a gasp of pain from his grasp. A moment later Jisung rounded the wall behind her. “What the is going on?” Minho asked, looking between Mijoo and Jisung. He finally noticed the blood covering Mijoo’s shoulder and his eyes almost bugged out of his skull, “Did you get shot? What the !” 

“Sniper, building next door,” Jisung breathed out. 

Minho let out an almost hysterical breath, “Jesus, okay.” He ran a hand through his hair, messing it up in the process. “Where’s Chan?”

“He went with Seonghwa to discuss business a few minutes ago,” Jisung replied. 

Minho frowned, “Convenient.”

A few more shots rang out in the gallery eliciting more screams from the guests. Mijoo was having a hard time catching her breath. Jisung said something else, but it was like he was speaking through a filter and she couldn’t make out the words. Mijoo swayed on her feet and she put a hand out towards the gallery wall to catch herself from falling over. 

A hand gripped her uninjured shoulder and shook her slightly, “-joo, Mijoo, come on focus!” Jisung said, catching her attention. “Stay focused! We need to get out of here.” The sounds of sirens were now filling the air. Somewhere Mijoo could hear someone crying. “We’ll go out through the back and hopefully meet Chan at the car,” Jisung continued. “Follow me, ready?” 

Mijoo nodded, not really sure her head was even moving, but soon Jisung was taking off and she was running after him. She had no idea how she was able to run in the shoes Minho had given her, but she focused on putting on foot in front of the other to follow Jisung. He led her through a door near the bar that led back into an empty hallway, the door shutting behind them cutting off the chaotic sounds coming from the gallery.

Minho let out a sigh leaning against the wall for a moment, “And here I was thinking I was going to get to enjoy a nice evening at an art gallery. Can’t have in Detroit.” 

Jisung shot him a confused look, “We don’t live in Detroit.”

Minho shook his head, “It’s a- never mind, let’s just get out of here.”

Mijoo let the two men lead her through the back halls of the gallery, not paying any attention to the path they were taking. Eventually they found themselves outside the gallery on the sidewalk, sirens filling the air from the first responders who had arrived at the gallery.

“I’m going to see if I can find Seungmin or Hyunjin, you all go find Chan and Changbin,” Minho spoke up, drawing the attention of Jisung and Mijoo. 

“Okay, let’s all meet at Chan’s,” Jisung replied. Minho nodded before turning and heading towards the front of the gallery. “The car’s this way, come on. Chan’s probably waiting for us there.” 

Mijoo stayed silent as she followed Jisung to the car. As they approached she spotted Chan and Changbin waiting for them. Chan was talking on the phone while Changbin leaned against the car with his arms crossed over his chest. 

Changbin spotted them first, uncrossing his arms and standing up straight. “Well, that was exciting,” He sarcastically laughed out, before frowning as he looked over Mijoo. “Did you get shot?” The question drew Chan’s attention away from his phone call as he looked over at Mijoo, a dark look passing over his face as he looked at her blood covered arm. 

“Yeah, I’ll talk to you more about this later. Call me when you have news,” Chan said, ending his phone call. “What the hell happened?” 

“Sniper,” Jisung replied. “Aiming to kill, but Yeosang’s partner got her out of the way just in time.” A cold shock passed through Mijoo at his words. She almost died tonight.

“You should have been paying better attention. What if Jeongyeon hadn’t been there?” Chan asked accusitorially.

“Sorry boss,” Jisung replied, ducking his head down. 

“Give me your tie,” Chan ordered, holding out his hand. Without argument Jisung loosened and took off his tie before handing it over. Chan approached Mijoo with the tie in hand. “Your arm,” he indicated. Mijoo looked down at her wounded shoulder, suddenly remembering that she really had been shot. Obediently she lifted her arm. Chan slipped Jisung’s tie under her arm before tying it tightly around the wound. Mijoo took a sharp breath in as it tightened, the pain shooting violently down her arm. 

Jisung sighed. “Man, that was my nice tie,” he muttered under his breath. 

“Think of this as your punishment for not paying better attention,” Chan replied, not bothering to look over as he finished tying the knot to keep the tie from falling off. The bullet wound was now throbbing under the pressure, but Mijoo stayed quiet. 

“Hongjoong’s going to go mental. He’s been preparing this auction for months, I wouldn’t be surprised if he kills Seonghwa in the city square for this,” Changbin mused.

“Seonghwa?” Jisung asked, looking up again, raising an eyebrow. 

“Let’s get to my apartment and debrief with everyone, Hyunjin can take a look at your shoulder there,” Chan said, acknowledging Mijoo. She just nodded, feeling like a ghost as Jisung ushered her into the back of the car with Chan, the four of them leaving the gallery and chaos behind them.