Life went back to normal after that day. The rest of BTS never got to meet Robert Viktor, but Daeun provided them with updates whenever she was out to see him. The boys continued with their day jobs with the exception of Hoseok who had been fired despite all of Seokjin and Jimin’s efforts. Instead, he spent his time at a local dance studio, holding tutorials and classes for anybody who wanted to walk in. It was a reignited passion that none of them had anticipated he would return to.

                Hong Jung Yee never allowed her to partake in any of the business meetings but she was requested to wait outside with Sapphire in which that allowed the two of them to talk about how charming Robert was each time he appeared. Without a doubt, he would always appear at Soigne with a compliment for the two of them. All the other girls in the building swooned whenever he breezed by them.

                Hoseok and Daeun did not ever speak about that evening again, but she could feel a shift in their relationships. A positive shift, but one that was slightly confusing to the both of them. Her relationship with Namjoon however, was a different story.

                “Oppa, stop,” she tried to push his hands away. The fork wavered in front of as the other members laughed around the table.

                “Unnie, just let him be,” Ayeon giggled, then batted her eyelashes in Namjoon’s direction.

                “Yeah, let me be,” he followed in suit, “I don’t get to do this at home anyways.”

                “Oh my gosh!” another girl squealed, “He said ‘home’!”

                All the girls had congregated inside the staff room when Namjoon appeared during the middle of the day bringing pastries from the bakery nearby the club. It was not the first time any of them had seen him, as he usually liked to wait outside after work on his off days, but this was the first time any of them had had the opportunity to speak with him and see him interact with Daeun.

                Daeun firmly pushed his hand further away, all the while eyeing the piece of cake that was on it. She gulped once but was determined not to back down. “We live together with a bunch of other guys,” she elaborated, “It’s not just the two of us.”

                “But they’re barely home so it’s practically the two of us, Babe,” he said, teasing her with the pet name he knew she hated. It was like how he had predicted: there was an onslaught of squeals from the younger girls. Daeun glared at him and shifted her jaw. He took her cue with a chuckle.

                “By the way, girls,” he spoke to the whole room, “I stopped by because I’ve got a couple of extra tickets to the concert tonight at the club I work at.” He placed the said tickets on the table. Instantly, all the eyes in the room lit up when they saw the gold embossed tickets to the posh club. “They’re free,” he encouraged them again, “I was only able to get a couple so you’ll have to fight it out to see who gets it. Diplomatically of course.” This earned another set of screams as the girls grabbed the tickets from the table, beginning their squabble for who gets to attend tonight. Their bickering led them out the door when one of them ran out with all five tickets.

                “Finally, some peace and quiet,” Daeun sighed when the room was emptied.

                Namjoon smiles as she kicks off her heels. With delicate movements, she pushes aside the pastry boxes and places her feet on the table. This causes him to laugh. “Man, if I knew you hated pastries so much, I would have not brought any of them at all,” he teases her.

                She blushes and proceeds to take her feet off the table.

                “Wait!” he exclaims. He gets up from his seat and takes out from his gym bag a large rectangular box. She watches with amusement as he rips it open and brings out a puffy machine. Running to the nearest outlet, he plugs it in and then places it on his lap. “Go on,” he says to her, gesturing to the two holes in the machine.

                She scrunches her nose in contemplation before slowly slipping her feet into the holes. She is rewarded with the soft mechanic massages of the machine onto her aching feet from running and standing all day. Sighing, she leans her head back and closes her eyes. She could feel him remove himself from beneath her lounging and then her ears tell her he is moving the pastry boxes. Her body is peaceful as the machine works its magic on her tired muscles. There is a small movement as this time, he slips himself beneath her leaning head. She relaxes her entire body such that her head lies on his lap.

                “Now, was that so hard?” he taunted her for finally allowing herself to relax in his company.

                “Shut up,” she replies.

                His long fingers trace the middle of her forehead to the tip of her nose. They then follow her cheekbones and flutter across her closed eyes; her eyelashes tickling his fingertips.

                “It feels like forever since we’ve sat like this,” he says with his fingers still running up and down the bridge of her nose. The action was stress relieving to Daeun and she could feel herself getting sleepier beneath his touch.

                “Forever? Might I remind you about the person who came running into my room last night claiming to be scared of the thunder and lightning?” she this time.

                “I am scared of thunder and lightning,” he defended himself without much conviction.

                She opens her eyes to glare at him. Their gaze meets each other briefly before he bends down and kisses the spot between her eyes.

                “Also, between last night to now is forever to me,” he whispers before planting a small kiss on her lips.

                Her body aches for his touch and it arches when he pulls away. They look into each other’s eyes again before laughing at his childish declaration. There is a small clearing of the throat at the doorway that interrupts their moment together. Daeun swiftly sits up when she sees that it is Sapphire.

                “I’m sorry if I’m interrupting anything,” she flashes them a smile.

                Daeun tries to stand but forgetting that her feet are still in the massaging machine, stumbles and falls on her . Namjoon and Sapphire laugh at her.

                “I’ll be waiting outside when you’re ready,” she tells Daeun before closing the door behind her to leave the two alone again.

                Namjoon helps her to her feet after turning the massaging machine off and Daeun groans at how embarrassing she was in front of him.

                Packing up his bags, he says to her, “I know you can’t make the concert tonight, but don’t stay up for me, alright? I will try and make it home as early as I can, though.”

                There is a sound that emits from her direction. He follows it and realizes she had tried to hide her laughter. He walks over and flicks her forehead.

                “One, ouch!” she rubs her head and feigns pain, “Two, what was that for?”

                “Your sass.”

                She sees him chuckle at her. Standing on her tippy-toes to reach him, she stares at him full in the face before saying, “Stay safe.”

                “Will do,” he says with a smirk. He hugs her one last time before slinging his bag over his shoulder. “I’ll see you at home,” he calls to her from the doorway. She waves shyly when she notices that Sapphire was indeed waiting outside.

                Once he had left, Sapphire walks into the room as Daeun cleans the table. Their hands work at ease together to clear the mess.

                “He looks different than when I had first saw him outside a couple of weeks ago,” Sapphire comments while watching Daeun slip her feet back into the high heels.

                “Couple of weeks ago?” Daeun echoes the observation.

                “That day after Mr. Viktor came in? He was waiting for you by a motorcycle, I believe,” Sapphire says.

                “Oh!” Daeun exclaims, “Oh no. That wasn’t Namjoon-oppa. That was somebody else.”

                This earned a smirk from Sapphire. “How many men do you have around your fingers, Daeun?” she teased.

                “Oh my goodness, Sapphire. The guy you saw is a friend. I said that the first you saw him too,” she cried.

                “And Namjoon-ssi. Is he ‘a friend’ as well?”

                The question caught Daeun off guard. In the couple of weeks, she had seen the relationship between her and Namjoon slightly float away from being as simple as “a friend”. However, it was not like they were dating. They were only seeing each other a lot and spending a lot of time together. He was the person who would sometimes crawl into bed with her at night, which had led to him semi-permanently moving into her bedroom. Namjoon was the one whom she found herself constantly looking for at the end of the day to express the stress and worries of work.

                “He’s a… special friend?” her pitch rising slightly at the confusion of whether this was a statement she wanted to make or a question to herself.

                Sapphire gave a light laugh. “Well whoever he is to you, you’ve got another man waiting outside,” she told Daeun.

                “Robert’s here?” Daeun asked the question she knew the answer to.

                Sapphire nodded. “He was waiting for a while, but I had a couple of girls attend to him while you were occupied.”

                “Could you ask him to wait a little while longer? I’ll be out in a second. I’ve got to put myself together,” she said, referring to the loose tendrils of hair.

                Namjoon threaded his way through the small maze of Soigne. He had been outside many times, but this was the first in which he had set foot inside. Knowing the nature of the business it ran, he had entered with certain expectations in mind but none had been met. Rather, the place was much different than he had envisioned. It was different from the homes of street es he had seen in movies or read about in book. Soigne was much cleaner and had a modern chic look to it amongst the traditional Asian décor that lined the hallways. He pressed through the curtains separating the back of the store with the front which had been put up as a façade. The lady, or secretary, nodded her head in acknowledgment as he left while attending to a client.

                As he was making his way out, a large burly man stopped him in his path. “Sorry, Sir,” the stranger held out a hand, “Would you please step aside?”

                Namjoon was ushered to stand away from the doorframe as the burly man stood in front of him, blocking the way. Namjoon tried to dodge around him, but it was as if he was trying to pull down a brick wall, so he waited impatiently as whoever was entering the building.

                From within the cracks of the arms of the security guard, which was what Namjoon assumed this man was, he caught the flash of a bright checkered suit. Gray hair wisped by them as the flamboyant man proceeded into the building with a group of more guards surrounding him. A final waft of pine scented cologne hit his nose before Burly stepped aside. Without a word, the other man joined the march at the end as they all entered through the curtain, drawing looks from the one other client that the secretary had been with.

                Namjoon rolled his eyes. It was probably one of the high rollers that had business with Soigne. The rich men were always pompous and rude in his eyes and that one had not proven his assumptions wrong. There was something about the scent of his cologne that bothered Namjoon. He couldn’t quite place a finger on it, but he dismissed the thought. It was likely one of the costly colognes that sat within a lavish glass box in a high-end boutique somewhere along Fifth Avenue.

                Robert stood up when Daeun entered the room. She had taken time to brush her hair back into a bun and applied a sheen of lip gloss. Meeting Robert always made her self-conscious with his perfect attire and pearly white teeth.

                He greeted her with a brush of his lips on the back of her hand. “You look charming as always,” he said, still holding onto her hand.

                She placed her other hand on top of his and slid both hands away after a single squeeze. Hong Jung Yee had instructed her to keep him company before any of their meetings and so she had started explaining to him the system of Soigne. He genuinely seemed interested in the mechanisms of the business and she had guesses that he actually had more knowledge about it all compared to her own.

                “Please, sit,” he gestured to the couch across from his.

She did so and sat with a straight back, away from the support of the couch with one leg crossed over the other. After constant nagging, Daeun had finally also been receptive of Sapphire’s request to teach her proper etiquette. It proved to be quite helpful and often times, Daeun could see the people around her nod in approval due to something as simple as her slight shift in posture.

                Tea was brought towards her by a new transfer. She approached Daeun nervously, tea cup rattling in its stand. Daeun took the offer before the girl could set it on the table, avoiding any splashes that could have been made. She sent an encouraging smile and watched as the girl’s tense shoulders slightly relaxed before leaving the room.

                “How have you been enjoying the day?” Daeun asked as she sipped from her cup. Tea was never her ‘cup of tea’, as the saying goes. She much preferred the bitter taste of alcohol but that did not sit well in an atmosphere like this way.

                “Mr. Hong’s been tough. We’ve been travelling a lot, visiting all the different facilities he’s offering in partnership with my father and I. It’s straining on the body, but I’m really learning quite a lot,” Robert smiled, sipping from his own cup. He pulled a face and tried to hide it, but not before Daeun caught it.

                She reached towards him, alarmed. “Is something wrong with the tea?”

                “Huh? Oh no,” he shook his head, “But between you and I, I wish they would serve some liquor in this place. A glass of wine or even a beer could do right about now.”

                She laughed when she heard that. He furrowed his brows in confusion. “I was thinking about the same thing, but I didn’t want to be impolite so I sipped my tea as well,” she said.

                When he realized the situation, he joined her in laughter. “Do you think Mr. Hong would have any alcohol around here? Or does it he keep it all stashed away for himself?”

                They laugh when he describes the image of Hong Jung Yee hoarding bottles of alcohol in a corner. The doors abruptly burst open and Hong Jung Yee walks in, talking loudly on a phone. The two stand up to greet the elder. Standing beside her, Robert whispers, “And speak of the devil. Think he’s ordering one of his guards to hide his stash away from us?” She giggles in response.

                The moment she starts giggling, Hong Jung Yee snaps his phone shut and turns to look at them. The sound stops midway and she clears when she feels his glare on her.

                “Robert!” Hong Jung Yee takes the younger man’s hand and pumps it energetically up and down, “I just spoke with my pilot and everything is set for us to fly out in two days!”

                This came as news clearly to only Daeun as Robert enthusiastically returned Hong Jung Yee’s greeting. It took a while until Hong Jung Yee acknowledged her presence.

                “Oh Daeun! You’re here as well,” he jerked his head towards her.

                She smiled, not sure if the mesh of colours on his checkered suit had messed with his brain like it was doing to hers.

                “I forgot to tell you,” he continued saying, “Robert and I will be flying out this weekend so that I can meet his father in person. You won’t be able to reach me for a while but I’ll have Sapphire organize everything while I’m gone.”

                She nodded.

                “Perfect then. We’ve got some last minute details to discuss, so…” he moved his head from her towards the door.

                She nodded again. Robert gave her an apologetic smile as she bowed to both him and Hong Jung Yee before taking her leave.

                “Mr. Hong, give me a minute. I’ll just walk Daeun-ssi out,” he patted the older man’s arm.

                It took her aback when he offered her his arm. She looped her around his and they exited the room.

                “Something recently seems to be pushing all his wrong buttons,” she whispered once they were out of earshot.

                He chuckles while they walk down the hallway. Another curtain separates the rest of the building from the pathway towards the VVIP room. “My fault,” he explains, “I asked him to keep hush about the contents of this trip. Or my father did at least. That’s why he seems irked and secretive.”

                “Ah,” she says when they stop before the curtain. She untangles her arms from his. “Well, I’ll see you in a week or so; whenever you’re back.”

                “Actually, I don’t know when I’ll be back,” Robert rubs the back of his neck, “This might be my last trip out of New York. My father isn’t doing well so I’ll likely be staying back to take care of him. That’s one of the reasons why Mr. Hong will be joining me on this trip.”

                “I’m sorry to hear that,” she puts a hand on his arm, “And I was starting to look forward to being in your company at work.”

                He gives her a sad smile and pats her hand with his. “You know, we’re not leaving until the evening night. Let’s say, I’ll take you out for lunch before then? As a thank you for your hospitality towards me.”

                “No, that’s too much. It’s my duty,” she shook her head.

                He grabbed her hands tightly in his. “I insist. It will be my treat,” he said. From his pocket, he took out a pen and his business card. “This is where I’m staying,” he said while writing the address, “I hope you’ll take up my offer two days from now. I really would like to be able to see you one last time.”

                He handed her the card with his eloquent cursive over it. She took it and he grinned when she does. “Okay, I’ll see you then,” she sighs in defeat, turning the card over in her had. ‘Robert Viktor: Prosecution Attorney’ was what it read.

                Grinning, he nods and bows in return to her leaving. She returns both the smile and bow, then exits through the curtain.

                Tossing and turning in his bed, Hoseok punched his pillow. This was the third night in which he had insomnia. He couldn’t understand why this was. There was nothing in his life that was giving him stress and he could not find the cause of his sleeplessness. Seeing as how the pillow did not change under his punch, he threw it to the end of the bed and settled on his side.

                In the darkness of the room, his eyes focused on the empty bed belonging to his roommate. Or ex-roommate, seeing as how Namjoon no longer enjoyed sleeping in the same room as he. Hoseok had often heard the two of them through the thin walls of the house; their voices filtering through into his ears as they talked late into the night. Sometimes, Namjoon would return late at night but then Hoseok would not see the other man until the next morning, walking out of Daeun’s room.

                It was not only he that caught Namjoon. The other members did as well and they were always quick to about why he was there; of whether he had spent the night.

                As much as he hated to admit it, he was jealous of the other man. The jealousy was evident long before that night. It had started when Namjoon first arrived at the steps of their house and it only continued to grow the more often he saw him. Before Namjoon, Hoseok was sure that he was the only man in Daeun’s life. She rarely hung out with anybody and none of the other members competed for her attention when they were together. It was annoying how Namjoon could show up and get so close to Daeun so quickly. Whenever the members suggested they go do or eat something, the two would blush and admit that they had already done the thing together. Without the rest of the members. Without him.

                He let out a low yell and turned his back away from the depressing sight of his absent roommate. That night with Daeun, he had thought things had changed between them. But upon seeing the necklace around her neck, he realized that someone else had beaten him to her. He despised seeing the other man’s success with his job and with the single girl who still constantly denied his own advances.

                Anyhow, what were Daeun and Namjoon to him? They could be together for all he cared. They could do things together alone outside the house or in her room. It did not concern him at all. There were certain memories that he and Daeun shared privately, and these were the ones that Namjoon was unable to intrude upon. Still, the annoyance that flared up in imagining the other man’s face was enough for him to kick off the sheets and stand on the bedroom floor. He stalked to the closed door of his bedroom to open it for fresh air when he heard voices outside.

                She had peeked out her bedroom when she heard his keys jingling in the lock. It was a little past one in the morning but she, as a night owl, did not feel an ounce of sleepiness. The door to the house slowly creaked open as Namjoon quietly made his way across the house towards his bedroom. His eyes were tired but they still darted to her closed door which led him to sigh, knowing that she was safe and asleep in bed. He could only hope that was the same for his roommate. Lately, he had been feeling Hoseok’s glare on his back whenever he spent the night asleep in their room.

                Small hands wrapped around his head and cupped his eyes, stopping him from entering his room.

                “You said you wouldn’t be back late,” she whispered.

                “And you said you wouldn’t stay up for me,” he whispered back, turning to meet her.

                “I’m a night owl. I wasn’t staying up for you,” she smiled at him. He set down his bag on the floor and scooped her into his arms. She squealed in delight as he flung her around. A loud groan came from Seokjin who was asleep on the sofa. They both held a finger to their lips and shushed each other while still giggling.

                They still held each other’s hands as they made their ways to their each of their rooms, respectively, tugging them back together. They laughed once again, then hushed when another load groan came in Seokjin’s direction.

                “I heard there might be a thunderstorm tonight,” she said, her eyes tugging him in her direction.

                He grabbed her waist and pulled her towards him. Her petite figure had always fit snugly against his body. “So what?” he asked, his lips dangerously close to her own.

                “Nothing,” she teased and pushed him away from her, “I just thought you’d like to know. Considering how you said you were afraid of storms this afternoon.”

                They were enjoying this small game of physical and mental push and pull. He took a step towards her, away from his room. “Now that you mention it, I think I did hear some thunder on my way back tonight.”

                She let him stand in front of her again and wrap his arms around. Her hands automatically came up and traced his face in the darkness.

                “How did the concert go?” she asked between the showers of kisses he gave her. Each time his lips met hers, she could feel the electricity pass between them.

                He paused long enough to say, “It was fun. A lot of people showed up and the venue was insane.”

                “I’m sorry I missed it,” she spoke, tickling his lips with each word.

                “That’s fine. I’m happy to be coming home to you anyways,” he smiled and kissed her firmly this time.

                They swayed in the darkness, intoxicated with each other. A loud snore from Seokjin broke their silence.

                Namjoon gave a throaty chuckle. “I think I just heard some thunder,” he said, containing another laugh.

                She put a finger to her lips. “Well then, we’d better hurry before lightning strikes next.”

                He picked up his bag from the floor outside his room and followed her into hers.

                From inside his room, Hoseok scowled upon hearing everything that had happened.