Untitled, 2018

Chapter 66: Our Many Obligations

Jimin
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Sejin had wordlessly entered the dorm, counted us off, commanded Jin to call Jungkook, and made us file into the company van back to BigHit. I kept glancing at him, but he largely avoided eye contact.

It was right before we went into the building that he pulled me aside quietly and waited until we were alone before yelling. "Jimin! How could you keep this from us?! I thought maybe there was something between you and that camera girl always with you. I wasn't expecting you to keep a secret like this! 4Ever?"

I opened my mouth to answer but he cut me off.
"I don't want to hear excuses. You know you have to break up with her now, right? You need to be ready for that."
I groaned, "Sejin we're not together anymore! I broke it off last week! And even before that I'd barely interacted with her for a month or two."
He furrowed his eyebrows. "Then why...? Actually, you know what, it doesn't matter. When you walk in there, things are going to be stressful. I need you to be completely honest from now onwards. The CEO is angry. The Director is angry. The other managers are angry. It won't last. It'll pass. Stay strong, don't hide anything, and don't do anything stupid."

I nodded. Jungkook has just arrived from nearby with his manager, and the four of us walked in together. Jungkook looked pained and searched my face for my thoughts. What was I even thinking? I knew that I was brimming with silent rage but I knew that I had no right to show it when I was the center of the whole problem. I just felt numb, I was scared of what would happen.

I walked to a conference room outside which the boys were standing. Namjoon whispered, "He only wants you and Sejin in there."
I braced myself and walked in. Inside, Bang PD, our marketing and PR heads, the company director, and my manager were huddled around the large table, staring at me with varying degrees of disappointment, anger, pity, and sadness.

Everyone waited with baited breath for Bang PD, who looked up at me with rage in his eyes. He threw a folder in my direction. "Is this how we've raised you at this company?! Is this what you do to pay us back for supporting you?! Look at that folder! Sejin, look at what he's been lying to us about!"

Sejin opened it for both of us to see. Inside was a whole collection of photos of me and Baek Hee, either very obviously on dates, or our selfies together, and one photo of us kissing. I looked away in frustration. I heard Sejin breathe a sigh of relief.

"Sir, at least they're not... compromising photos." My manager piped up from his seat. One glance from Bang PD shut him up though.

"Do you understand how ungrateful this is, Jimin? We expected you to tell us! More than that, I expected you to be more careful! You don't know how disappointed I feel right now." The director of BigHit said.

Something ticked in my head and the anger I'd been pressing down and holding back was slowly bubbling. I kept my eyes lowered because I didn't want to scowl at the director.

"Jimin, despite where you are or how popular you are, I can't believe you'd do this. You're making me regret accepting you all those years ago if you were just planning to throw it away!" Bang PD said.

That's it, I couldn't hold it back. "Then you shouldn't have accepted me. Don't hold it against me if I just wanted my own life, sir."

The room went to a pin drop silence as people were processing the fact that I'd talked back.

"Are... you disregarding everything I've done for you?!" He yelled.
"Those sacrifices were also mine! The starving, the lack of sleep, the fatigue— those were mine! You can't write that off because I wanted to be a normal human being for once!" I couldn't believe I was taking this out right now in front of everyone, and I could see Bang PD's shock in his face.