The Rules

Chapter 40

The boys were going over all the aspects of the concert with their team. They met with the head of sales to go over numbers from everything from tickets to merchandise that was sold. They met with the facilities manager to get a report on how things ran from their perspective and what needed to be adjusted for the future. They spoke to about 10 different managers over 10 different aspects of the day, then they met with Mr. Su and his team to talk about any security issues that occurred. Overall there were the usual occurrences of excited fans trying to sneak backstage and the fans at their apartment afterward. Mr. Su then gave an overview report of what transpired with Ami in full.

"The breach was alerted by code phrase to me via text message from Ms. Ami. At that time protocol dictated we locked the members down in the reception room, posting guards on the inside and outside of the door. After your safety was established I was able to get more information about what the threat was from her. I then radioed out a description of who we were looking for over the radio, which then put 100 sets of security eyes on alert. We were able to locate her at the security checkpoint in the main hall on the 2nd floor and we brought her back to the reception room. It was shortly after the girl was located and she was interviewed in the hallway, and ultimately the police were called and she was turned over to them. The girl's friend was located and told about what was happening and she was released to go home."

"Wait. Ami alerted you with the code phrase?" Yoongi was trying to process what he was hearing.

"Yes sir," Mr. Su replied.

"Mr. Su, how does she know that?" Hobi asked, seriously.

He looked up at the members, who were looking confused.

"A couple of days ago I met with her to give her the ticket Mr. Kim had for her, and her backstage passes. We talked in general about the passes, she asked if there were different levels of passes, and I told her there were. I don't think she put together her pass was unique though with the gold lanyard. Although, with her eye for detail, if she had time I wouldn't be surprised if she would have figured it out in time. She jokingly asked if we had code words we used, and I said yes. I determined that the most important one for her to know would be the one she ended up using."

"I don't know how I'm feeling about all this," Jungkook said as he rubbed his hands through his hair.

He looked at them all struggling with this new information, "Can I make an observation?" He asked the members.

"Of course," Namjoon said, he wasn't overly thrilled to learn this information as well.

"You all have been very careful not to share with her a lot of details when it comes to security or logistics. I'm guessing it's because you want to keep her safe and for her not to worry about things. But, you have all also decided to be a part of her life, and her of yours. Now that she is starting to dabble in music, more and more of the two worlds are going to collide. My professional opinion is that she can handle it. She has proven herself over and over, and with very little to go off of. I would not have told her any of those things if I felt like she was not trustworthy or if it wasn't in her best interest. The fact she had that information, we were able to handle the situation faster than if she didn't. If she didn't have my phone number, and she wasn't able to alert anyone, the amount of time lost could have been detrimental in all aspects.

Her getting jumped was not because she was recognized or anything she or you all did, that was a jealous fan that took matters into her own hands. Nothing more. Even in that situation, she handled it with skill without anyone knowing there was an underlying threat. She never let on that she could understand her. She figured out details she could then pass on that helped us.

She is smart. Really smart. She is always watching, she can read micro cues and body language that others just glaze over. It is my opinion you need to let her in and trust her a little more. She is 100% on your side. My guess is she already knows more than she shares with you already."

There was silence in the room. The boys knew he was right. They had been purposely keeping things from her under the umbrella of protecting her, but they were past doing her any favors.

"What was the demeanor of the girl that was arrested last night after we left?" Yoongi looked up over at him.  It was something she said the night before that he was confused by. 

They all just looked at him, questioningly.

"Sir?" Mr. Su asked.

"The girl. After we left you, did she say or do anything? How did she act when she knew she was getting arrested?"

Mr. Su sat back, "As we were waiting for the police, she went from apologizing and crying to mad and yelling. Saying it wasn't her fault, she was tricked, and that she would be back to meet you again someday. Why do you ask?"

"Because Ami said she didn't believe her." He said quietly.

Even Mr. Su had forgotten that part and they all sat there shocked.  The rest of the meetings went quickly and without issue, and they all went home.

The van ride was quiet, as they were reflecting on what they learned and realized about their girl.

"Why do I feel like we've lied to her?" Jimin had a glazed look, looking out the window on the way home.

"We haven't lied, we just haven't given her all the information, thinking we were keeping her safe, but I don't think that 100% applies anymore," Jin said from the back.

"I didn't even tell her I had a car set up for her to take her to and from the concert," Namjoon added. "I set it up for her because I didn't want to worry, and I would feel better knowing one of our guys was keeping an eye on her to get home safely. She didn't ask for it and I didn't ask her to give her a choice, she didn't even know until she left to go to the concert." He trailed off.

"Remember when we first met her, she was hesitant to tell us things. It took a while for her to trust and share with us. She promised me when we started working in the studio together, that she would be open and honest with how she was feeling so I would know where she was at, and then know how to get the best from her. Then, how she ultimately trusted us after her album dropped." He didn't have to say more, he was referring to how they all took their physical relationship to the next step. Yoongi said from the back.

Jungkook said quietly, "actions speak louder than words, that's what she told us walking her home down the waterfront that night." he trailed off. "Fuck."

They got home late, and she was sleeping on their couch when they walked in. A notebook of music she was working on had fallen on the floor next to her. Namjoon picked her up and took her to his bed to tuck her in. Yoongi picked up her notebook and started thumbing through it.

"Hey there...," she murmured as he set her down and covered her up.

"We're all home. Let's talk tomorrow, OK babe?" He kissed her and she fell back asleep quickly, and he headed back out to talk to the guys.