The Contract

Han River

Y/N's POV

The other band members met them both there. She just followed Yoongi, not really wanting to talk. She wasn't 100% sure how she felt about him. She knew it wasn't his fault, that if he could make this all go away and them go back to their separate lives he would. But his presence, his face, was a constant reminder of her stuck situation. And so she associated pain and heartache with him.

She remembered Namjoon and Hoseok and bowed politely to the other members who introduced themselves.

"Nice to meet you." Jungkook said smiling, shaking her hand. They all attempted to greet her with English, some more understandable than others. She appreciated their efforts.

They had decided to take her on a ferry ride. All the members were dressed in nondescript clothing, doing their best to stay away from large groups of people in order to not attract any attention. Their bodyguards kept a discreet distance. Namjoon acted as official tour guide and Jin stayed with her as well but the rest of the members hung back, not wanting her to feel trapped or enclosed. She appreciated that. It wasn't that they didn't seem nice, she just wasn't very trusting of men at this point in time. Or had she ever really been?

Jin wasn't always the most confident in his English but his confidence grew when he made several short comments that were received well. He ended up getting some English practice in. She was polite and listened with interest to both of them but you could tell she wasn't all there. There was an edge to every look, every half smile. A furtive edge, like that of a trapped animal.

Jin suggested they take a picture of her with the river in the background. She was hesitant at first but ended up agreeing just to get them to stop asking.

"When you get a phone we'll send it to you." Namjoon assured her and she nodded, hoping they would accidentally delete it. Where on earth would she get a phone? That required adapting and thinking about the future. Looking for a way forward. She wasn't ready to accept her circumstances just yet.

After the ferry they took a walk along the river, once again careful to avoid people. Namjoon kept chattering away and Jin would respond in Korean. She had run out of her limited energy a long time ago and now they were noise in the background. She sort of wanted to walk on ahead and leave them to their conversation but that would seem rude, especially since they were making such an effort to make her feel included.

She could see Yoongi hanging back with Jimin and Taehyung, he seemed to be giving her a wide berth. She didn't blame him. She was sure he felt the same way about her that she did about him. Hoseok and Jungkook were closer to the water's edge, talking about something in the water. At least that's what she guessed from their pointing.

She was tired. Could they just go back so she could sleep?

Yoongi's POV

"You know, hyung." Jimin started, watching her up ahead with Namjoon and Jin. Yoongi was relieved and grateful that someone else was keeping an eye on her. He appreciated both of those brothers so much in this moment. "She's beautiful." Yoongi grunted.

He couldn't disagree. Even with how disheveled she'd been every time he'd seen her, she was definitely attractive. The problem was looking at her reminded him of his situation and made him feel like throwing up.

"It's such a waste." He finally replied.

"Yeah. Her life's just stopped." Jimin put his hand on his hyung's back. "I mean, yours is affected too. But she can't ever go back to hers at this point." He said, referencing what Yoongi had told him about the contract. Yoongi just nodded, not feeling like saying anything.

"Does she have to work for that stupid company for the rest of her life?" Taehyung asked. Yoongi shrugged.

"I'm not sure but I think so. Kind of pointless for it to be temporary." He looked out at the river. The sky was as gray as the cloud he carried like a weight on his shoulders now. He still couldn't wrap his head around his...their...situation. It was unreal.