Director Kang had promised to look into Junmi's background and connections. It took her a few days, but she finally called Taehyung and asked him to come to her office.
"I appreciate you doing this for me, Director." He sat calmly in the chair across the desk from her.
"It's no problem Taehyung-ssi. I'm afraid, though, that I don't have anything to offer you."
"What do you mean?" The leather in the chair creaked as he leaned forward.
"Well, Junmi obviously passed the background checks we performed when we hired her. She has no relation to Soohyun, and ultimately, her record is clean."
This sounded eerily familiar to Taehyung as he listened to her speak.
"But I will say," she continued, "her records seem odd. I can't put my finger on it, but something is off about them. They only go back a couple of years, and she never even listed any family. Her records do not indicate being adopted, so I'm not sure what all that means."
"When did she start working here?"
"Hmm...let's see. It seems she was hired around two months before the incident."
"Two months before Soohyun killed herself?"
"Taehyung-ssi, can we not speak of that directly? It still gives me chills. I can only imagine what it does to you to talk about it." Director Kang looked like a concerned mother.
"I'm doing better with it. So perhaps might her background be fake? Could she be related to Soohyun, and no one was aware because Junmi lied during the application process?" He knew he was grasping at straws, but he was desperate.
"It's possible. I'll tell you what, I have a connection in the police department. I'll have them look into Soohyun's background and see if any sisters or relatives pop up, and I'll also have them look into Junmi. If she has secrets, we will uncover them," she answered, nodding with confidence.
"Thank you. If the police need any info, feel free to contact me, or Jenna." Taehyung bowed slightly as he stood.
"Understood." The director picked up her phone to make a call as Taehyung closed the door behind him.
He walked back to the practice room, where the rest of the members were already practicing. His mind kept trying to put all the pieces together, but what could it do when half the puzzle was missing?
He sighed and threw his jacket into a corner of the room, and then watched the guys for a moment before jumping into place. The mood immediately lifted a few notches as they threw themselves into the dance, just enjoying working together.
Finally, the music stopped, and they all collapsed. Jungkook didn't stay down long before he jumped up, and grabbed everyone a small towel, and passed them out. The only sounds in the room were their heavy breathing.
"I thought our last comeback was the hardest dance we would ever do. How does our choreographer keep coming up with these things that are so much tougher?" whined Jin.
"I don't know, but I hope no one tries to cover this one. I would hate to have the death of our Forces on my head. Ugggggh." Yoongi flattened out on the floor and groaned.
"Yaaaah, where's the fighting spirit? We only get tough dances because they know we can do them, and ARMY expects it. See all of those awards? It's because we work hard and everyone knows it! It shows! Now, come on! Let's go!" Hoseok hopped up and tried tugging Jimin up with him.
"Hyuuuuung, I can't. Just let me rest here a minute." Jimin closed his eyes and tried to catch his breath.
"Bunch of sissies," Hoseok muttered and sat back down.
Jungkook scooted over to Taehyung, who was sitting with his knees up and his head resting on them. Both boys were trying to catch their breath, sweat dripping from their hair.
"Hyung, you did well." Jungkook slapped Taehyung on the back.
"Thanks, Jungkookie," Taehyung responded between breaths.
"Did you talk to the director this morning?" Jungkook asked as he wiped his face. It was like winter in this room because of the AC, and yet they were all still burning up. That was how powerful this dance was.
"Yeah, but we ended up with more questions than we had answers for. She is talking to one of her contacts at the police department. I'm glad we had practice because it helped me clear my mind. It's been cluttered lately." He laid himself back on the cold floor, enjoying the cool feeling on his hot skin.
Jungkook looked down at his friend. "Good, maybe they can help. Have you talked to Jenna-noona today?"
Taehyung raised his eyes to the boy sitting next to his head. "Not yet. I want to spend every minute I can with her, but it's not smart or practical. She has a life to get settled, and I have to keep everything with her a secret. Sucks."
Jungkook wiped off Taehyung's forehead with his towel, the sweat immediately reappearing.
"Well, we need to keep a close eye on her. She's too trusting, hyung. I think that's going to be a problem."
"I know. I'll talk to her." Taehyung struggled to sit up, so Jungkook grabbed his hand and assisted him.
Soon, the music started again, and both boys stood on wobbly legs. Finding their place as quickly as they could, they continued to practice, drenching their shirts in more sweat.
* * *
Jenna's phone rang as she browsed a home furnishings store. She passed her hand across some deep red throw pillows and sighed with longing.
Removing her phone from her pocket, she answered it. "Hello?"
"Babe! How is my favorite girl today?" Taehyung's chocolatey voice came pouring through the phone, making her smile widely.
"I'm good! I found a home store and so I'm looking for some decor. Oh, look at that!" She walked quickly over to some lamps and decorative lights.
Taehyung laughed and tried to imagine her flitting from display to display. "Are you alone?"
"No, Junmi is here somewhere. Not sure where she wandered off to. Hm. Anyway, I think I've bought enough today. I think I would like to keep the apartment simple."
He heard her checking out at the customer service desk.
"Babe, can you call me when you're alone? I need to talk to you a little bit." He hoped she was listening.
"Yeah, sure! I'm heading home after this. Can't wait to put up what I bought. I'll call you then, okay?"
"Sounds good. Have fun," he told her.
He didn't like that she was with Junmi, but there wasn't anything he could do about it. Assuming Jenna still hadn't changed her door code, he decided to wait for her at the apartment.
When he arrived at her door, he was correct in his assumption. She still hadn't changed her code, so he changed it for her. This girl needed a good dose of paranoia. Just a smidge of it anyway.
He sat quietly watching TV in her living room till he heard multiple tries at the keypad on the door. He chuckled to himself and walked over to the door, opening it and startling Jenna.
"Aaaahhhhh! OPPA!!" Her hands full of bags flew to her face. Then she poked her eye with one of the corners of a bag in the process.
"Owwww!" She staggered past him with one eye shut while he tried not to giggle.
"You have to stop doing this to me, Taehyung!" Jenna whined and dropped the bags carefully onto the couch.
Her eye was watering dreadfully, and Taehyung had a sudden attack of conscience. Running to her bathroom, he grabbed a washcloth and wet it down with cold water. He brought it out to Jenna, who was now seated on the couch holding her eye.
"How did that thing get past my glasses is my question." She felt him put the washcloth in her hand and immediately put it on her eye.
"Aaaaah that feels better," she sighed. "I don't understand why my code didn't work. How did you get in here?"
He laughed. "Babe, I told you to change your code, but you didn't. So, I did it for you. It's my birthday, so don't worry about forgetting it." He smiled smugly.
"Oppa, I couldn't forget the most important day in the history of the world." She removed the washcloth and slowly tried to open her eye. Success.
Taehyung cringed, her eye was terribly bloodshot.
"I'm sorry about startling you," he whispered as he came to sit beside her.
"It's okay," she grinned. "What did you want to talk about?"
"Junmi."
"Why?"
"I don't trust her, and I don't think you should either. At least not till we prove whether she's legit or not." He leaned his arm on the back of the couch, resting his head on his hand. His eyes stared at her, taking in every detail of her appearance.
"I told you, Oppa, I trust you. If you say I shouldn't trust her, I won't." Jenna frowned slightly.
"What's wrong?" he asked, noticing the change in her expression.
"Well, she's the only friend I have right now. Without her, I would be spending all my time alone. I still have a little over a week before I start working."
She sounded sad, and it hurt Taehyung's heart. "I'm sorry. I spend whatever time I can with you. I'm sorry it's not more."
Now it was his turn to frown.
"No, babe, it's not that. I understand your position. But I'm in a strange place, and Junmi has been my only contact. But, I also like living, so if you say limit contact with her, I will." She smiled bravely at him.
He leaned forward. Placing his hands on her cheeks, he pulled her face closer to him. Their lips met with a spark, and both of them were flooded with warmth.
Jenna pulled back from the kiss that was threatening to become heated at any moment. Taehyung groaned with displeasure.
"Sorry, babe." She poked his nose and smiled. "Let's go to the balcony. It's nice outside today."
She tugged him off the couch, and the couple stepped out onto the enclosed balcony. The company had engineered it so she would have some privacy. The walls were all windows that could be slid open, and in case you did want them open, they were completely covered with screens to keep out the bugs when a breeze was needed. It was a large balcony that stretched across the width of her apartment. There was another door that led to her room. She loved it and used it as often as she could.
She pushed a button that opened all the blinds. The cityscape instantly appeared before them. The sun was setting and cast shadows across all the people and buildings.
"I love this. I've lived in a small suburb all my life. Yeah, it was just outside Indy, but we never went into the city much. I always wanted to live in a big city. And now here I am." She opened a few windows, and the warm summer breeze came flowing through.
Taehyung listened to her speak and studied her. All he could think about was kissing her again. He knew it was dangerous to be here alone and get into a kissing session, but he couldn't help it. He was a red-blooded male with a beautiful woman he loved, standing right in front of him.
"Tae, you have a funny look in your eye. What's going through your mind?" Jenna backed away from him a smidge.
He stepped closer to her, never breaking eye contact. "Jenna, you don't want to know what's going through my mind right now."
Jenna wasn't stupid, or completely naïve. She could tell what he was thinking by the smoldering look in his eyes. No stare he had given on stage could compare to the one she was being given right now. She backed away, not out of fear, but out of caution. Her back hit the wall of her building, and she looked around frantically, trying to find someplace else to go.
"Well, that's what I call convenient," he murmured as he closed the gap between them.
"I think about you a lot. Okay, more like all the time." He tilted his head and brought his lips down to hers.
"Oh," was all she managed to murmur as their lips were locked together. His one hand was on the wall beside her head, and the other was on her waist, attempting to pull her close.
She felt her face blush, and his proximity to her was sending her feelings into overdrive.
Finally, she got both hands between them and up to his chest. Pushing him away slightly, she was able to break the passionate make-out session.
"Tae, stop, okay?" She smiled to help soften the blow of making him stop kissing her.
"Why? I don't want to," he mumbled as he brought his lips down to hers again.
Jenna melted. She had to do something soon before both of them ended up doing something regretful. "Taehyung, really, we need to stop."
"Are you afraid someone will see?" he asked softly. His hand reached over to the switch that closed the blinds and hit it. The blinds shut immediately, and they were left in a room that wasn't quite dark, nor was it well lit.
Jenna looked up through the shadows to see his eyes close, and he came in for another kiss.
She forced herself to turn her head. Her body and mind were just not in sync. One was screaming for her to listen to reason, and the other was screaming for gratification.
Taehyung let out a low, soft growl and stepped back. "I'm sorry, Jenna. I couldn't help myself. Forgive me."
She tried not to giggle too much so she wouldn't hurt his feelings. She knew he was doing his best to hold back.
"It's okay, Oppa. There's nothing to forgive. I enjoyed it," she smiled flirtatiously.
"Be careful, woman," he warned.
"Come on, let's go back in. You can help me put out my new decor!" Jenna clapped her hands a few times in excitement.
Taehyung suddenly felt all his warm fuzzy feelings disappear, and his eyes glazed over.
Jenna's phone alerted to a new message. She opened it, and a cold shiver ran down her spine.
"His kisses belonged to someone else. You don't deserve them. I won't let you be happy, foreigner."
Jenna dropped her phone. She suddenly felt very violated. She switched open the blinds and scanned the ground level, trying to see who could be watching her.
Taehyung grabbed her phone off the floor and read the message. He growled lowly in frustration and grit his teeth. Whoever this was was going too far. How did they see? What if they had pictures?
Jenna's phone alerted again, and this time a file was sent. It was a video of the two on the balcony just a moment ago kissing. His eyes widened.
"Jenna," he said abruptly, calling her in from the balcony.
He showed her the video, and she immediately broke down into tears. It had only been a week, and she was already being blackmailed. Taehyung grabbed her into his arms and held her while she cried.
Then he went to the balcony and scanned for cameras. Moments later, he found one under the edge of a blind that was able to record anything that happened on the balcony. Grabbing it angrily, he took it to the entryway and smashed it with his boot.
Jenna sat on the couch with her knees bent up to her chin while tears rolled down her cheeks. Her phone alerted again, making her jump. Taehyung grabbed it off the coffee table and read the message.
"I see you have a knight in shining armor, Jenna. You may have found that camera, but trust me, there's more. Go ahead and find them. I have all the footage I need to ruin you, Taehyung. Break up, or I'll send it to the media. You have two days to decide."
Taehyung grabbed Jenna's hand. "Come on, get your things. You're coming with me. Once the police sweep this place, you can come home," he whispered.
He didn't give her the opportunity to refuse. Turning off all the lights, they fumbled around in the dusky light of sunset, grabbing what Jenna would need for a few days away from home. No need to give the blackmailer extra footage.
The pair slipped on their shoes and immediately left the apartment. Taehyung called his manager requesting they be picked up, then he called Director Kang. He didn't even wait for her to speak when she picked up the call.
"We have a serious problem."