Maria stood at the top of the stairs, her fingers clutching onto the railing. She had a ball of nerves in her stomach, and she dared to walk down the stairs at the alluring sound of Jimin's laughter.
His laughter, however, fell short when she entered the room. His eyes once full of amusement suddenly turned dark with lust and want, and he looked her up and down slowly to take in everything.
"You look..." he swallows, sliding a hand around her waist. "Breathtaking."
Maria giggles, her cheeks a rosy red as Jimin ghosts his lips over hers. He looked dangerously handsome tonight, with his sharp suit and slicked back hair.
"I will kill anybody that dares to look at you too long," he murmurs, squeezing her hip.
Maria takes a shaky breath before tugging him closer for a kiss. They were interrupted, however, by a forced cough.
Maria pulls away, embarrassed, and her eyes widen at the new face in the room.
"Maria, this is Jin, the waiter I told you about?" Namjoon says. "He's going to hold the champagne tray so you can slip the poison in."
"Pleasure to meet you," Jin grins, winking at her.
"Likewise," she replies, offering a wary smile.
"Here, put this in," Jimin says, handing her the ear piece. "Jin, I imagine you have a backup plan in case this falls back on you? You are the waiter holding the glass of poison, after all."
"Don't worry, pretty boy," Jin laughs. "No one would suspect my handsome face. Plus, compared to you, who looks more suspicious? No offense."
"None taken," Jimin chuckles, shaking his head. "Is everyone ready?"
"Let's go over the plan again," Hobi says, crossing his arms. "I want everybody to be on the same page."
"Fine," Jin sighs dramatically. "I'll be leaving soon to get ready for the dinner party. I'll walk around and offer people glasses of champagne."
"Hobi and I will be here with the laptops. We'll hack into the cameras and make sure you're not being seen," Yoongi continues.
"Maria, Tae, Jimin, Namjoon and I will be walking around, talking to people and acting like Maria invited us personally," Iris then says. "Her father won't be able to make a scene, let alone at his own event, so we will get to know others to make witnesses."
"We'll pass the vial between our hands," Taehyung says. "Until it lands in Maria's hands."
"And then Jin will come around us and offer us drinks," Jimin continues.
"And then I'll slip the poison in the last glass," Maria finishes. "And then when he drinks it, he'll die."
Everyone nods, and then it's quiet for a few moments before Jin speaks up.
"Anyway," he laughs, clapping his hands. "I'm gonna get going. I'll see you all there."
Jimin raises an eyebrow as Jin walks out, and then he turns to Namjoon. "You sure we can trust this guy?"
"He's not so bad, y'know," Namjoon grins, folding his arms over his chest. "Give the guy a chance."
"Well if you trust him, I suppose I could too," Jimin shrugs. "Are we all ready to go?"
Yoongi hums around his sip of wine and raises a thumbs up, Hobi already typing away furiously at his laptop beside him.
"Then let's go."
***
The familiarity of the events she once attended smacked her in the face as soon as they walked in, the only thing keeping her stable being Jimin's hand on the small of her back.
The fake smiles, the rented clothes, the deals being made under the table.
Maria was once again reminded of how much she hated her old life.
"Maria," the greeter beams. "Glad to have you back from your vacation. Are these, um... guests with you?"
"Of course," Maria smiles tightly. "They're close friends of mine. I'm sure you wouldn't mind if I brought some guests, right? It's my fathers event, after all, and he would be very upset if I didn't get my way."
"R-right," the greeter stutters, gulping nervously. "I hope you have a good night, ma'am."
"Damn, I wouldn't even guess that you and the person who just spoke were the same person," Yoongi says through the ear piece.
"Focus," Namjoon mutters, forcing a smile to a lady he passes.
"Let's go mingle, my love," Taehyung smirks, linking arms with Iris and walking away.
"See you on the other side, hyung," Jimin winks towards Namjoon, walking away with Maria.
Maria was, obviously, noticed by many people. And annoyingly enough, said people wanted to chat with her.
Jimin was growing bored, trying his best to keep up with the conversations. Some were pointed at him, asking if he and Maria were dating and who his father was and what his family had to offer. Jimin's grip on her waist only seemed to tighten with each query.
Namjoon weaves through the crowd, the vial of posion clutched in his palm. He sees Taehyung by the punch bowl and strides towards him, subtly slipping the vial into his hand as he walks by.
Taehyung then walks to the dessert bar, where Iris looks over the sweets. With her hands cupped behind her back, Taehyung slides it into her hands as he gives her a kiss on the cheek from behind.
Iris scans the crowd and spots Jimin talking to some man, and she stifles a laugh at the way Jimin tries to keep up with the man despite how obviously bored the honey-haired boy was.
Iris slips the vial into his left hand as she walks by, and Jimin curls his fingers around it. "I'm sorry, Mr. Choi, but I really must find Maria. I do believe she owes me a dance tonight."
"Ah, nice girl, she is," the old man laughs with a wink. "And a nice catch, if you know what I mean."
Jimin grimaces and musters a small smile before walking away towards Maria, who was surrounded by a few older women.
"Hello," Jimin smiles at them before interlocking his hand with Maria's, the vial held between their palms. "I'm so sorry to interrupt, but I would really love to have a dance with you, Maria."
"Oh, of course," Maria smiles shyly, looking at the women. "I hope you don't mind..."
"Of course not," one of the women says, winking at her.
Jimin and Maria make their way to the dance floor, and Maria subtly stuffs the vial into her bra before they begin to sway together.
"This is familiar, isn't it?" Jimin chuckles against her ear.
"Quite," Maria laughs back, smiling up at him as he dips her.
Jimin matches her smile, holding her close as they dance underneath the chandelier. It was like they could forget about the true mission for a few minutes, and instead, focus on one another.
"Jimin," Namjoon smiles as he approaches the couple. "I'd like you to meet my good friend, Jin. He works here."
"Hello," Jin beams, offering the tray with the glasses. "Champagne?"
"Oh, I would love some," Maria smiles, grabbing one before gasping dramatically. "Oh no!"
Jimin, Namjoon and Jin surround her so no eyes can see what's going on in the middle.
"What is it, my love?" Jimin asks loudly in fake concern as he watches her quickly dump the poison into the drink.
"I think I got some on my dress," she huffs, slipping the vial into Jimin's hand so he could tuck it into his coat pocket.
"I'm sorry, ma'am," Jin frowns, taking the glass and switching it for another. "Please, take another."
Maria smiles, thanking Jin and lacing her arm through Jimin's so they could continue to mingle. There was only one glass left on the tray now, and it belonged to one man and one man only.
"Watch it," Hobi says quickly. "The cop is heading your way, Jin."
Maria inhales sharply and squeezes Jimin's hand, and the honey-blonde simply kisses the side of her head.
"Officer Jeon," Jin smiles.
"Hello, uh—Jin," Jungkook chuckles as he reads the name tag. "Having a good night?"
"Of course. Mr. Seong always throws the best events," Jin says, and then he pauses, hesitant to ask the question. "Would you like a drink?"
Jungkook purses his lips in thought before shaking his head. "I can't. I'm on the job."
"Ah, well I hope you have a nice night then," Jin smiles, and then he walks past Jungkook with a sigh of relief.
Jin makes sure to avoid any other guests, his eyes trained on one in particular. When he approaches the man, he bows slightly and smiles.
"Champagne, sir?"
"Ah, thank you," Kyu laughs, taking the glass before returning his attention to the men he was talking to.
"Jin, get the vial," Yoongi says through the ear piece.
The waiter tucks the empty tray beneath his arm and walks towards Jimin, and the honey-blonde exchanges the vial into the elder's hand. Jin then walks quickly, exiting the ball room and into the kitchen.
"Hey, Jin," a nearby chef greets. "Good party out there?"
"Yes, definitely," Jin laughs, placing the empty tray down on the counter. "I can do some dishes now, though, before I go back out with more drinks."
"Thanks, man," the chef says sincerely.
Jin waves him off dismissively and rolls the sleeves of his dress shirt up to his elbows before taking off his service gloves. With a side eye to each direction, he slips the vial from his coat pocket and into the soapy water.
Getting rid of fingerprints was easier than people thought. Get some alcohol, or perhaps vinegar, and let the chemicals burn the prints away before cleaning it with soapy water so it looks brand new.
But just as fingerprints were easy to get off, they were that much easier to get back on.
Jin places his gloves back on before slipping the vial back into his pocket, and he gets to work putting more filled glasses on the tray.
"I'm heading back out," Jin informs the chef before heading back into the ballroom.
Maria was growing antsy. Her father hadn't drank any of his champagne yet, and the anxiousness was eating away at her insides.
"Kitten," Jimin starts, a low murmur in her ear as he watches Jin subtly slip the vial into her father's pocket. He was about to speak again before her father downed the whole glass, and it was only seconds before he started choking. "Time to act, baby."
Maria takes a deep breath before letting out a blood curdling scream, rushing towards her father as the people gasp and shout in horror as they watch foam spew out of his mouth.
"Dad?" Maria sobs, tears building rapidly as her voice shakes. She catches him as he falls down and winces as his fingernails dig into her arm.
She sees him struggling to speak; sees how his eyes do it instead. How they fear her being so close. Like he knew she was the reason behind his pain.
"Somebody help me!" she screams, looking at the people before bending down and hugging him. And in doing so, she takes his hand and forces his fingers against the vial in his pocket.
"Get out of my way!" Jungkook shouts, barging through the people and falling to his knees beside them. "Move, Maria."
Maria shrinks back and watches Jungkook check her father's pulse before getting to work. A few other policemen had arrived too, aiding Jungkook in his attempt to save her father.
Jimin crouches behind Maria, cupping her elbows and helping her back up. She immediately hugs him and hides her face away from the scene, and she may or may not have smiled into his shirt.
"He's gone, Jungkook," the policeman says, placing a hand on his shoulder.
Jungkook's body sags in defeat, and he sits back on his haunches.
"I'm sorry," he says, swallowing thickly. "I'm so sorry."
Maria turns away from Jimin and pulls Jungkook up into a hug, sobbing into his chest. Jungkook's hand cradles the back of her head as he tries to calm her down with sweet words, his thoughts going a million miles a minute.
But as Jungkook thought she was crying out of despair. Out of grief and sorrow and devastation, everyone in the plan knew better.
She was crying out of happiness.