Charade

Frenemies

Taehyung bit his lip as he read over the paper again, clicking his pen as he did so. "Chairman Kim?" Taehyung looks up as Hoseok stands by his door.

"Yes, Secretary Jung." Taehyung felt so exhausted.

"It's lunch time. What would you like to eat today?" Hoseok smiled brightly at the troubled Taehyung.

"It's alright. I packed food from home," Taehyung answers, looking back down at his work. He probably won't eat anyways with so much on his mind. "You can go." He smiles at Hoseok.

Hoseok excuses himself and Taehyung is left to float in his own thoughts again. 'You don't care about others. You don't care how they'll feel like with the words or actions you do. You look down on a lot of people.'

Taehyung's shoulders slumps as Seokjin's words play again. 'You're rude and full of yourself.'

~~~~

The loud chattering stops. "Can I sit here?"

Silence beats for a minute. "Of course, Chairman Kim," Hoseok smiles brightly. Taehyung smiles back and sits down. All the other employees munch on their food quietly as Hoseok continues to speak like nothing happened.

Taehyung pulls out his lunch and tries to eat but, whenever he looked up, all his employees looked away. Whenever he spoke, they all stared at him as if expecting to be scolded.

In the end, he left dejected.

He didn't stay late, wanting to go home early. As he was leaving, Hoseok was leaving too. "Secretary Jung?" Hoseok turns and smiles. They go into the elevator together.

"What did I do wrong today?" Hoseok asks as the doors closed.

"Oh-uh," Taehyung splutters. He shakes his head. "You didn't do anything wrong. I did."

"Since when does Chairman Kim make mistakes?" Hoseok asks with a raised brow.

"During lunch today." Taehyung frowns at the memory. "And when we're not working, can you please not call me Chairman Kim?" Being called V is already odd.

"Then what should I call you?" Hoseok asks his boss.

"V. Just V is nice." Taehyung looks over to Hoseok. "And can I call you Hoseok outside of work?"

Hoseok nods. "Sure, V." Taehyung felt better already. This is a change. "Your problem with lunch, is it because of how they act around you?" Taehyung nods. "May I ask why you want to eat lunch with us?" Hoseok asks him.

The elevator doors open. "I know I'm their boss but, we should have a friendlier relationship. I don't like them always being scared and tense around me. Acting like I'm gonna chew them up then spit them back out. Also, it gets lonely being in the office all day."

"I thought you love being alone," Hoseok states.

"Everyone has a limit," Taehyung replies. Hoseok smiles at his answer.

They walk out the elevator. "If you want to be more comfortable around them, you should show the side of yourself you show Jungkook and Namjoon," Hoseok advises him. "But, not too much. You are still their boss."

Taehyung nods. They were already standing in the parking lot by V's car. "Thank you, Hoseok."

"Anytime, Chairman Kim." Taehyung makes a face at being called 'Chairman' again. Hoseok laughs. "Old habits die hard. Drive safely, V. Say hi to Seokjin for me."

~~~~

Taehyung frowns when the maid tells him Seokjin went to sleep already. "Already? But it's still so early. The sun is just setting." The maid avoids his eyes looking down at the floor. "What time did he go to sleep?" Taehyung questions.