Contentment was an odd feeling. She wasn’t even sure that was what she was really feeling, having never felt it before. Can one be content and filled with worry at the same time? Whatever she felt, watching her little sister act like a normal little kid in front of the television made her happy. 

The front door opened to reveal a sweaty Mina coming back from the Dance Studio. She watched Mai Ri sing along with the show before turning to Sunny with a grin. 

“So, how was your first day together?” She asked as she cuddled next to Sunny on the couch. 

"It went surprisingly well. We fixed my room up so that we can fit a bed in there for her. Got her some clothes and toys. Picked up some food she likes. We are watching some horror movie now. I think it’s called “LazyTown.”  

Mina chuckled. “Sis, that’s a children’s television show.”

“I’m pretty sure it’s not. It’s terrifying. Those puppet things have the most expressionless faces I’ve ever seen. I’m almost certain they are possessed. I’m also pretty sure the pink haired is a serial killer. And they all keep bullying the only decent guy on this show, the one with the chin.” 

“He’s the main villain.” 

“He’s incredibly misunderstood. He just wants everyone to like him, but they are bullies and serial killers.” 

“So it sounds like everything went alright, then. What did the boss say?” 

“We get to keep her here. They are working on all the legal stuff to make me her guardian. They were mainly worried fans would think one of us has a secret love child, so she’s officially being signed up as a trainee, and there will suddenly be rumors out there of a secret 8th member of Phoenix named Marie. Fans love that kind of .” Mina smiles at that, it quickly fades.

“And what about…”

“They still haven’t caught him. Until they do, we just have to be extra careful. Make sure you always have someone with you. Even from the car to the dorms, apparently.” 

Mina nodded with a sigh. She watched Mai Ri for a few moments, before walking up to her slowly, crouching down to eye level. 

“Mai Ri, are you hungry? I’m a better cook than Sunny is, if you are. She only knows how to make ramen and sandwiches.” She whispered loudly like they were sharing a secret, making Mai Ri giggle. 

“YAH! My ramen and sandwiches are what made you grow into the stunningly beautiful wench you are today.” Sunny exclaimed with mock hurt, watching as Mina and Mai Ri held hands and headed to the kitchen. She was excited to see Mai Ri interact with someone else besides her. 

After all the drama that had happened the day before, Mai Ri had become Sunny’s shadow. She’d allowed the girls to say hello to her, but she’d flinch any time one of them got too close, and hide farther behind Sunny. So it had been up to Sunny herself to get the girl washed for probably the first time in weeks, and dressed her in an old shirt for bed. Mai Ri had clung to her the entire night, and while it took some getting used to, it was kind of nice. Sunny knew it was probably the first time that the girl had received that much care and attention since whenever her Mom had died. She’d have to remember to ask more about that. 

“Hey, do you know where Ruby is by any chance? I know everyone else’s schedules, but she was gone when I got up and she’s not answering my texts.” Sunny yelled so she’d be heard over the clanging of pots and soft laughter coming from the kitchen. 

“Uh, not sure exactly. I think it was something about meeting a sponsor?” 

Sunny freezes, and manages to choke out “Sponsor?” At their old company, sponsor meant something not good. 

“Sis, this is Big Hit. I’m sure they don’t do that kind of thing here. You know that if I thought it was something to worry about I’d tell you. Especially after what happened to me.” Mina walked into the living room to try to convince her sister to calm down. 

Sunny was already gone. 

---

Sunny was storming through the Big Hit office, throwing open every door, furiously looking for Ruby. Finally, she came upon a small conference room and locked on her target. Ruby’s eyes widened seeing Sunny storming her way, and stood up quickly, hands out beckoning her to calm down. 

“Sunny, relax. I’m safe. I left a note? Didn’t you get it?”

“No, I didn’t get a note. Who leaves a note unless it’s a one night stand you’re trying to get away from? Why haven’t you been answering my texts?” Sunny asked quietly, hiding her worry beneath a mask of irritation. 

“I’m sorry. I was in a meeting. There are several people here, including a female manager and Namjoon, see?” Ruby whispered, gesturing to the people at the table that Sunny was just now registering were present. There was an unknown man looking at her with a cocked eyebrow, a worried looking Kim Namjoon, and a woman that Sunny vaguely remembered handing her some paperwork once. 

Sunny cleared and bowed half assed to save face. “I apologize for the interruption. I had to verify my group member’s location. What exactly is this meeting for?” 

Namjoon smiles in understanding, himself being a leader. “He represents a clothing line. He wants to work with Rose and me on some shoots. We were just discussing the possibility of signing and the concept.” 

“Huh. Yeah, that sounds like something up Ruby’s alley. I’ll leave you all to it in a moment.” Sunny hopes she sounds calm, despite the fact that her heart was still beating at lightening speed. She nods politely at the group and pulls Ruby off to the side.

“’s sake woman, I nearly had a ing heart attack. Do you at least have your stuff?” Sunny hisses at her, not letting herself soften in the least, despite Ruby’s adorable pouting. 

“Yes, Mom. I have my pepper spray, the alarm thingy, and that knife that looks like a key. I remember everything you taught me about punching my hand into the nose, kicking them in the nuts, and using my shoe laces to get out of a zip tie. Honestly, Sunny, I’m fine. Manager Choi is here, and she’s tough. She wouldn’t let anyone touch me. Not to mention Namjoon is here too, and I’m sure if that little fashion rep tried to drag me off somewhere, Namjoon would save me.” Ruby said that last part almost as a sigh, making Sunny wonder what developments were happening there. 

“He’d probably break his own arm in the process, but sure, I trust Namjoon a smidgen. Just, next time, please answer your texts. Or even better, just tell me in person before you even leave the dorms. I will happily lose sleep if it means knowing you’re OK. Go back to your meeting, and good luck. I’m sure you’ll look fabulous.” Ruby squeals and throws her arms around Sunny, who looks uninterested in the show of affection to the casual observer, but all the girls know she secretly adores it.

“Yeah, yeah. Check in periodically so I know you’re not in a gutter somewhere. Try to be back in time to go to dinner. We’re taking the kid out for BBQ. She needs to get some meat on her bones.” Sunny shakes Ruby off and strolls out of the office, seeing Ruby sit back next to Namjoon out of the corner of her eye. Yet another thing to keep her eye on, it seems. Although, the two of them would make a cute couple. 

Sunny closes the office door behind her, before leaning back on it, closing her eyes. She just needed a moment to calm down. All the scenarios of what could be happening to Ruby had played through her mind on the way over here, each one worse than the last. Sunny knew that it was a combination of her horrible ing anxiety mixed with what had happened to Mina that made her freak out like that. However, knowing the cause never does anything to stop her from worrying. 

“So, what was that all about?” Asks the gravelly voice that she’s been hearing too often in her dreams. 

Sunny looks through narrowed eyes to find the source right in front of her, casually leaning against a wall, coffee in hand. How dare he look good just standing there, wearing jeans and a plain shirt.

“You have tiny legs.” 

There you go, Sunny, take him down a notch. 

“You have a big nose.” He replied in a monotone. 

Sunny couldn’t help that snort that escaped and saw the answering smirk on Yoongi’s face before he started walking away. 

“Your office or mine?” He asked, not looking back. 

“Yours is bigger, duh.” Sunny pushed herself off the wall and followed behind.

---

“Two giant screens is totally unfair. I bet you only use it for .” Sunny commented from her comfy chair she’d taken over in a corner of Yoongi’s studio. 

“Well, not only. I use it for Netflix too.” 

Sunny actually laughed as Yoongi scooted his chair closer. He lounged back and cocked an eyebrow her way. 

“So, that thing where you were running through the halls like a wild animal, screeching for Ruby. What was all that about? Something about the kid everyone is talking about?” 

“Do you really want to do the talking thing?” Sunny joked, hoping he would think “Damn, you’re right” and drop it. Instead, he just stared at her, his expressionless face telling her to continue. 

“Fine. So, everyone already knows that we were at another company. We trained for years, and we’d gotten close to debuting a few times. After awhile, they started to pick up on how desperate we were. So, they started mentioning things here and there about breaking us up, moving certain members to different groups. We all adamantly refused, so they started talking about sponsors. Normally, when people hear “Sponsors” they think about products or gigs. Something of that nature. So, when I couldn’t find Mina one day, I asked around and was told they’d found her a sponsor, and she was in a meeting with him. I thought, “Oh, good for her. She deserves the world. Hopefully, this will bring her closer to her dream.” I didn’t worry about it at all.”

Sunny leans her head back into the chair and closes her eyes, bracing herself for the memories she’s about to endure. 

“At least not until I mentioned it to our manager when she asked where Mina was. I saw how she looked like she was about to throw up and forced her to tell me what was going on. Turns out sponsors are men that use idols and trainees like they’re escorts. After she explained everything and found out where Mina was exactly, I stole her car and raced to the hotel where they were at. When I got to the door, I heard crying, so I broke the door handle with a fire extinguisher. There was my little sister wrapped in nothing but a sheet, crying. I was too late.The bastard was taking a shower, so I ran in there, pulled him out, and beat the out of him. When Mina and I got back to the dorms, I gathered the girls together and we left. The company tried to say they were going to come after us for breaking our contracts, but took it back and left us alone when we threatened to expose their little trade operation.”

Sunny opened her eyes and stared down at her clenched fists. “I still want to tear that company and even the building down piece by piece, but Mina wants me to leave it alone. She wants to be left in peace, and despite everything in me wanting to go to war, I’ll do what she wants. But that’s why I panicked earlier. The girls know to ALWAYS tell me where they are going to be so I can try to prevent something like this from ever happening again. I won’t fail them again.” Sunny’s voice cracks as she finishes her story and tries to keep herself together. She dares to take a peek at Yoongi, and sees him sitting with his arms resting on his thighs, staring at the ground. 

He looks up, smiles softly, and simply says, “.” 

Sunny chuckles at that. “Yeah.” 

“You know that you’re all safe here, right? And that if any of you felt threatened, you can come to one of us for help?” 

“OK.”

“Look at me for a minute. I’m being actually serious here. That’s not going to happen. However, IF you hear something like that, bring it to me. I will not hesitate to shut that down. Got it?”

“Yes, sir, Yoongi Sir.” Sunny saluted as Yoongi rolled his eyes.

He lets out a loud, dramatic sigh, and slides his chair back. “Alright, now that we have the mushy out of the way, get the hell out of my office.” Yoongi commands with a big smile and Sunny thinks he’s incredibly lucky that she gets his humor or he’d be in deep . 

Sunny walks towards the door, pausing when he starts talking again. 

“What were you going to do for dinner?” He asks, facing away from her, eyes on his monitor. 

“I’m taking the girls out for BBQ. Why?” 

“Text me the details. We’ll join you.” 

Sunny looks at the back of his head in surprise and a little irritation, since he makes everything sound like a damn command. 

“I’ll think about it, and I’ll let you know when I decide.” Sunny declares as she saunters out of the office, not missing the quiet snort from the office chair. 

“Enjoy your !”

“Thank you. I will.”

---

The screeching was deafening as Sunny related the news that the boys were going to join them for dinner. She watched in amusement as six grown women jumped for joy over hanging out with boys. Granted, she was a little excited herself for a certain black haired loser, but she’d never admit that out loud. Only her and the crazy that lived in her head knew how weak she was getting for that guy. 

She felt a tug on her sleeve and looked down to see Mai Ri looking nervous. She waved her down and Sunny bent and offered her ear. 

“Am I going too?” Mai Ri whispered in Sunny’s ear. 

“Is that OK? I know it’s a lot of people, but there will also be a lot of food. And the boys are nice. You liked their music when you hear it, right?” Mai Ri nodded, her little face serious and deep in thought. Sunny knew she was trying to get the courage to deal with so many people at once, having been kept away from the world. She remembered how difficult it was for her to learn that skill, one that she was still working on to this day. 

“If you feel like it’s too much, tell me, and I’ll bring you straight home.” Sunny watched as Mai Ri seemed to calm a bit with that promise, and started helping her get ready. She puts the girl in one of her new outfits, something big and fluffy to cover the bruises and protruding ribs, and covers anything on her face with a bit of BB cream. 

As Sunny sits behind Mai Ri braiding her hair, they both watch the flurry of six women trying to get ready. Clothes were flying, makeup being dabbed on each other, at least five different perfumes being spritzed. It was a madhouse, and Sunny and Mai Ri exchanged a small smile in their little quiet corner. 

Suddenly, Nara comes running up to Sunny with a hideous pink dress. “Throw this on! I don’t want you scaring the boys way, so dress girly. And let me do your makeup. OHH, and maybe some blond extensions. Maybe smile more?” She’s going a mile a minute, rifling through her jewelry box and picking out every pink monstrosity of an accessory she has. 

“Do I look like Hannah Montana to you?!” Sunny drawls, and Mai Ri laughs since she’d just learned who that was today. 

Nara looks at the both of them in disgust. “I swear, 24 hours in your company, and she’s already a mini you. Fine, just, at least be nice…ish. Don’t freak out Jungk…uhh…the boys.” She flips her hair nervously and goes back to primping. 

Was she about to say Jungkook? Was her entire group pairing off with them one by one like some weird cliche, herself included? Interesting. 

“Alright, everyone. Five minutes to take off. Finish getting ready or enjoy having dinner with your makeup half on.” Sunny yells, covering Mai Ri’s ears so as not to startle her. 

The screeching intensifies.

---

Somehow, Sunny had ended up with Yoongi sitting next to her, with Mai Ri next to him. She would have preferred Mai Ri closer, but Yoongi had spouted some nonsense about the girl needing to be at the end of the table so she could get to the bathroom quicker if she needed to. So, here she was, plastered against Yoongi’s side. So close she could feel the heat emanating from his thighs, hear his heartbeat, and feel the timbre of his voice all throughout her body whenever he spoke. To distract herself, she watched the other girls interact with the members. They all seemed to get along well, the laughter and flirting in abundance. She noticed a few longing glances between certain people and made a note to have “the talk” with the males in question. The talk being “Hurt them and die.”

Sensing movement to her right, she turned and watched as Yoongi refilled Mai Ri’s water and placed more food in front of her. Watching him be so quietly caring was making her little Grinch heart grow in size. 

“Excuse me.” Sunny looked up to meet the gaze of an older woman, and a man, possibly the husband, looking on from behind her in fond amusement. “I just wanted to tell you that you have a beautiful family. Your husband and daughter are simply beautiful.” She smiles widely at the pair, leaving Sunny stuttering.

“I…uhhh…they….”

“Thank you.” Yoongi smirks, quietly chuckling as the woman waves and walks away. He lifts a pork belly wrap to Sunny’s still agape mouth, shoving it in with ease. 

“Close your mouth and eat, wife. You’re setting a bad example for our daughter.” His deadpanned voice barely hinting at it being a joke. 

Nope. That totally didn’t just give her goosebumps. 

Sunny struggles to chew the overstuffed wrap, looking around the table at the amused faces. She glared until they went back to their conversations, then looked at the ingredients in front of her, forming a plan for making a wrap for Yoongi in retaliation. Maybe some big pieces of raw garlic, too much ssamjang….

Her plot for revenge was interrupted as she felt fingers threading through her right hand. Long, elegant fingers. She looked down and stared at their hands, palm to palm, interlocking fingers, what the …

She glanced at Yoongi, who was looking around the room completely straight faced, occasionally taking a bite of something. Nonchalant as hell. He offered her a sip of his beer, unfazed by her glare when their eyes met. 

Sunny wasn’t sure if she should say something, do something, whatever…so she just sat there, occasionally taking a sip of her own beer, but only able to concentrate on the fact that she really liked his hands. They were soft and warm, and his thumb kept massaging slow circles on the back of her hand, sending twinges straight to her core. They stayed like that the rest of the dinner, occasionally sending each other small, shy smiles. 

---

“I had so much fun, Sunny!” Exclaimed the very tired little girl, currently being tucked into bed next to her. They had all finally gotten home close to midnight, having to finally leave the restaurant after watching Mai Ri yawning every five minutes.

“Can I tell you a secret?” Mai Ri whispers. 

Sunny scoots closer, face to face with the girl. 

“What’s up?” 

“I like them. They’re nice. Especially Yoongi.” Mai Ri says softly.

You have good taste, kid. 

“Hmm, I think I like them too. Should we hang out with them again?”

The girl nods her head enthusiastically, and Sunny chuckles. 

“OK, Miss Ri Ri, we’ll hang out with them again. Go to sleep now.”

Sunny lay there deep in thought for maybe a minute before she heard rustling as the girl turned back to her. 

“I think you should be with Yoongi. He doesn’t seem like the men that I know. He took care of me tonight and he held your hand. ” 

, how did she see that?

“Uhhh, no promises little one. We’re idols now. Dating is technically frowned upon. Besides, your big sister is one messed up weirdo. I pity anyone who dates me.” 

Sunny heard the girl huff in the darkness, not pleased with that answer, obviously. Sunny did think her reading of Yoongi was correct though. She forgets occasionally how much life experience this girl has already had. Sunny starts to hum, trying to rush the girl back into slumber to avoid this awkward conversation. 

“Go to sleep, little creep, you’re driving me crazy…” she sings softly to the tune of some long forgotten lullaby, making the girl giggle. She listens as her sister falls into a deep sleep, and finally closes to eyes to try and get there herself. 

Her phone buzzes, and after checking to make sure Mai Ri didn’t get woken up she looks at the text. 

Yoongi: Keep Saturday open. And leave the kids at home. 

Sunny: Why?

Yoongi: Husband and Wife date night. 

Sunny: You are running with this joke, aren’t you?

Yoongi: Our marriage is a joke to you? I’m hurt. 

Sunny: Whatever. I’ll see what I can do. 

Yoongi: Don’t see. Just do it. 

Sunny: Yes, Min Yoongi master sir.

Yoongi: Just Oppa will do.

Sunny: Not gonna happen. 

Not My Oppa Yoongi: We’ll see. 

Sunny threw her phone down, determined to ignore his ridiculousness for at least the rest of the night. She realized her jaw seemed to hurt, only to feel that she was still smiling. She never smiled this much. Why was she smiling like a damn fool? This was dangerous. He was dangerous. She’s only survived this long by being strong and not trusting anyone except her girls. 

So why did she want to let down her defenses around him? 

She heard the rustling next to her and remembered her new reason for staying strong. She had Mai Ri now. Mai Ri who lived the same life Sunny had, and understood her better at eleven years old than anyone else ever would. She needed to focus all of her attention on her music and Mai Ri. She had no room for romance and all the drama that went with it. Besides, Yoongi didn’t need to deal with her mental baggage. By all accounts, he had plenty of his own. Yes, the best choice was to stay far, far away.