Sticky Scandals

03. Chapter Three

"Oof," Taehyung jerks away.

Everyone grimaces.

"That's rough, man."

Jin doesn't say a word. Fluttering his eyes closed, he blocks their voices out. A trait he's very good at. He takes a deep breath in.

Breathes out.

Breathes in.

But this no longer works as Jin breaks out of the stupid breathing exercise with a string of beautiful curses, shattering like a crumbling sandcastle. He pays them no attention and curses his way out, storming off to the fiery pit waiting for him.

────

"You're kidding, right?"

"No, unfortunately, I'm not."

Jin and Aera sit there side by side like two middle schoolers at a principle's office. They had the same dumb stare: eyes squinting in confusion, jaws slanting with disbelief, mouth slightly parted, and heads tilted to the right. They could be a mirror of themselves, really. The two idols stare at their respective bosses like they've grown two extra heads.

Although Aera is kind of flattered that people think she's in a league where she can date Kim Seokjin, she's still upset about this because— well, she just debuted a year ago. She can't have a dating scandal tarnish her reputation, especially when we all know how messed up some people's logic are. Ahem. Yes, those delusional weirdos.

Aera speaks up first. "What do you mean we have to pretend like we're dating?"

Director Hyun, CEO of Stardom Entertainment sends her a look. Not a pleasant one, let's leave it at that. "It's exactly what it sounds like. Pretend to be a couple for a few months. It'll help with our promotions for 3ce and it'll be good media play for BTS. It's a win-win."

"How does that even make sense?!" Jin yells. His irritation crawls over his skin like annoying mosquitos. He was not about to let them thrust him into an unwanted relationship when he'd tried so hard to keep his actual one a secret. If he has to be in a dating scandal, it should be with Yerin. His real girlfriend.

Realizing the air around them shifted to an uncomfortable one, Jin heaves a heavy sigh. This time, he lowers his voice. "I mean, how is a dating scandal a good thing for us? You guys always told us it would ruin our careers."

Aera nods. He's got a point.

Bang PD slides a tablet over, tapping on the screen. "For you two, it is. Because quite surprisingly, a lot of people are actually supportive of your relationship."

Aera scoffs to herself. "Yeah, a relationship you pulled out of your ass," she whispers, annoyed. And it takes a lot for Aera to be annoyed. Beside her, Jin catches this and lets out a choked snort, weirdly forgetting about his anger and starting to see this whole thing as somewhat hilarious.

No. He snaps out of it, popping his balloon of thoughts. This isn't funny.

Now, Jin is a smart man. Being in this industry has taught him quite some useful things. He pulls out his last card, knowing that it'll work just like the other times he had caused trouble.