When Yoongi left, Seung Hee explored the apartment anyway.

 

One room was full of exercise equipment—a treadmill, a bench-press, a set of dumbbells, a punching bag, and a blue exercise ball. So this is what used to be the guest room.

 

Yoongi's room was the best one in the whole place. A king-size bed occupied the middle of the room, and two walls were filled with pictures of BTS. The other wall was entirely made up of glass and faced the city of Seoul. There was a large desk in one corner filled with equipment she guessed were for producing songs - she had seen things like that in movies.

 

She stood at the glass wall, and looked; the city sidewalks were alive with people, and cars looked tiny from up there.

 

What she thought was a door leading to another was room was in fact in his cupboard. It was the size of her old bedroom, and there were hundreds of shirts, coats, jackets, pant, shoes, sweaters, T-shirts, a drawer full of ties, cufflinks, sunglasses, belts, and other accessories. It was like being in a shop—a huge shop that sold expensive, designer clothing.

 

She wandered out of the cupboard into the bathroom. There was a huge bathtub, and a shower stall. The walls here were mirrors, and there was another cupboard filled with expensive shampoos, body washes, perfumes, and creams. There was even a hair straightener, a curling iron, and a blow drier - it looked like a hair-salon's cupboard.

 

Wow. There was no other word for it.

 

And Seung Hee decided that she didn't care what he said – she would do as she pleased here. Maybe if she defied Yoongi behind his back, she wouldn't be scared of him anymore.

 

Seung Hee did not want to get up for school. She could have stayed forever in that king-sized bed, marveling at it's comfort. There were about ten pillows on it, and the blankets were so soft they could be made for a baby. When the alarm on her phone went off, she knew that she really did have to get up. She got into her school uniform and checked her phone as she ate.

 

She had one new message from Jungkook, telling her that he had a schedule so he couldn't drop her off and wished her luck. There was also a message from an unknown number.

 

I'll watch over you from now on.

 

She smiled and her nerves calmed down. Jungkook was really sweet. Did he get a new phone? She called the number but no one picked up. Even though she knew it was Jungkook, she texted, who are you?

 

Immediately, there was a reply: I won't tell you. Figure it out on your own.

 

I know who you are.

 

really?

 

You're Jungkook.

 

JUNGKOOK????!!!!!!

 

are you mad I guessed?

 

what does JUNGKOOK have to do with this?!!!!

 

I know it's you.

 

I can tell you one thing- I'm not Jungkook.
 

Seung Hee did not believe that for even one second. Who else besides Jungkook would text her? Ok, there was Ha Na, but clearly was not Ha Na. There was one last text: Don't be late for school.

 

That was the reminder that she needed to get going - and who else other than Jungkook knew that she was going back to school? Well, Yoongi did, but he didn't count.

 

Finding her way to school was not hard, as she had carefully studied a map the other day. On her way, she met a couple of classmates, who greeted her cheerfully.

 

Ha Na was waiting in front of the school gates and it felt just like old times – as though Seung Hee had never shut Ha Na out - as they hugged, squealed, jumped around, and yelled, “OMG I MISSED YOU!!!”

 

A teacher came and whacked them on the head with a newspaper.

 

“QUIET!!! This is a school!”

 

They giggled but calmed down, and the bell rang. They went to their respective classes. In homeroom, they all got the expected lecture about studying hard for their finals and how “this will determine your future.”

 

Unfortunately, each teacher thought their subject was the most important one, and piled on the homework and threatened to spring surprise tests.

Already on the first day, Seung Hee was beginning to feel the stress and the pressure that would surely increase as the year went on.

 

She cheered up at lunch, though, when she and Ha Na sat at their favourite table. Ha Na brought kimbap and Seung Hee brought rice and kimchi. They shared as usual, and everything seemed normal - except that the cafeteria was louder than it usually was.

 

It was the girls who were being especially loud. Most were making a scene - screaming, tearing at their hair, and a few were even crying.

 

“Hey,” called Ha Na to a nearby girl who seemed relatively calm. “What's going on?”

 

“You didn't hear about it? Here, read this.”

 

The girl passed her tablet to Ha Na and then comforted her friend who had just burst into tears. Ha Na scanned the headline and her eyes widened.

 

“What is it?” asked Seung Hee, and her blood froze when Ha Na passed her the tablet.

 

'BTS's Suga Opens Up About His Girl,' read the headline. The article stated that he denied the marriage rumors, and went on to say that his ideal girl was younger, 'warmhearted… and innocent.' However, it ended with the article insisting that he was secretly married and was referring to his wife.

 

There was more: a close source revealed that she was in fact in high school.

 

“Seung Hee,” whispered Ha Na. “How did they find out?”

 

“I don't know,” Seung Hee whispered back, fear infiltrating her mind.

 

Yoongi would be so mad that an article like that had been published…

 

“You don't think that Yoongi…?”

 

“No,” said Seung Hee. “I know he would never tell the press - this is worse for him than it is for me.”

 

“I guess you're right,” said Ha Na slowly. “But.. why would he describe you as his ideal girl?”

 

“Huh?”

 

“Didn't you read it? Everything points to you – younger, kind of innocent.

 

"Yah, that's not me!” cried Seung Hee.

 

“It is you,” insisted Ha Na.

 

“And that's not his type,” said Seung Hee. “He likes… girls like

supermodels, you know?”

 

“How do you know?”
 

“Just look at him! He obviously likes those kinds of girls!”

 

"I don't know...” muttered Ha Na. “You can't judge by appearances. Plus, they may be his type, but he could change. Like me – I used to like good boys, and now I like bad boys.”

 

"That doesn't mean anything...”
 

“Then why did he mention you in the interview?”

 

“I don't know – I don't think it's me.”
 

Ha Na rolled her eyes. “I'm not going to keep arguing about this. Are you done eating?”

 

“Hold on,” replied Seung Hee, and she read the article again. Although she could barely believe it, she could kind of see what Ha Na meant about Yoongi describing her.

 

It was ridiculous and did not make sense, and maybe he was talking about someone else. Yet a tiny thread of hope beat it's wings inside her - maybe, just maybe, he was talking about her.

 

* * * *

 

When Seung Hee got home, the light was on. Had she forgetten to turn it off before leaving? She went to the living room, dying to flop on the couch and rest before getting on with the pile of homework she had.

 

Someone was already on the couch, though. Manager Woo smiled, and it did not reach his cold eyes.

 

"Good evening,” he said politely.

 

She bowed.

 

“Sit down.”

 

She sat in the armchair, facing him.

 

“How dare you,” he said.

 

She did not understand - she hadn't done anything!

 

“How dare you let the press find out!” Manager Woo shouted, making her flinch. “Do you have any idea what a mess this is? You are that 'close source' aren't you? And what did you do to Min that he spoke about you in the interview?”

 

“He… talked about me?” she whispered.

 

“Playing innocent, are we?”

 

“She is innocent,” said a firm voice from the doorway, and Seung Hee would never have thought that she would be glad to hear that deep, slightly husky voice.

 

“Min,” said Manager Woo. “Go back to the dorm - this does not concern you.”

 

“You are in my house shouting at my wife. Which part doesn't concern me?”

 

“So now she's your wife. What happened to the pesky brat you complained about?”

 

Seung Hee wished she hadn't heard that - knowing that Yoongi thought of her like that, that he actually spoke of her like that... it hurt, for some reason…

 

Yoongi glanced at her before saying, “Just leave her alone. She has nothing to do with all this.”

 

“This is a company matter,” said Manager Woo. “You have no right to interfere.”

 

“And you have no right to conduct company matters with a minor in the absence of a guardian.” Yoongi sat in the chair next to Seung Hee.

 

“Her guardian?” said Woo skeptically.

 

Yoongi nodded. “She has not yet turned eighteen. Until then, I am her legal guardian.”
 

Yoongi was her guardian? Seung Hee had always thought it was Mr and Mrs Min, not Yoongi.

 

Yoongi and Woo glared at each other. Finally, the manager averted his eyes and turned to Seung Hee.

 

“Move out immediately,” he said.

 

“She-”started Yoongi, but stopped when Seung Hee briefly touched his arm. He also jumped slightly, and turned those burning eyes on her. She had made a mistake - she had touched him without permission.

 

“Sorry,” she whispered, but he kept his eyes on her. She couldn't read his expression - it was closed, and that was a bit scary. She tried not to pay attention to him – really, those eyes were so beautiful, so intense - and turned to Manager Woo and asked, “Why should I move out?'

 

“You are living alone with a man,” he replied. “Doesn't that bother you?”

 

“He doesn't live here – he lives at the dorm."

 

Manager Woo's face darkened. “Do you know what will happen if the public finds out?!”

 

“People should remember that idols are also humans," she retorted. “They have a right to their private life.”

 

“It will still cause problems-”

 

“ I think that most of the problems will come from the press," said Seung Hee. "They will make it into a huge issue. But I don't think the fans will care – those who really love him will still love him, and respect his privacy.”

 

“You impudent little -” Manager Woo seemed to swell up with rage, and he raised his hand to strike her.

 

Seung Hee froze – no one had ever hit her before, she didn't know what to do! Yoongi pulled her head to his chest, his arms around her protectively.

 

“Leave her alone!” he shouted. “Are you going around hitting girls now? What will CEO Kim say to that?”

 

Seung Hee hardly dared to breathe. Her face was pressed against his chest, but it didn't feel suffocating…. it felt comforting. And the arms around her were strong and safe, and his heartbeat was comforting, too. She felt his body shift to shield hers, and she heard furious whispers and hisses that she couldn't make out, and she didn't even try. She heard someone stomping towards the door and slamming it shut, and felt Yoongi's chest rise as he took a deep breath.

 

His arms were still around her, but not in a shielding gesture. He was cradling her to him, almost tenderly

 

“Don't worry,” he whispered. “I'll protect you.”

 

Seung Hee's heart filled with warmth, and she felt so safe – almost as safe as she had felt with Grandfather.

 

Yoongi smelled nice – like freshly washed clothes, a bit of perfume, chocolate, and something she could only identify as his own scent. She could feel the warmth of his skin through his sweater, and she forgot that she was afraid of him, that she hated him…

---