"Happy birthday to you was created for you, ah, it'll take a little time, might take a little crime to come undone.. hey child stay wilder than the wind and blow me into cry.. who do you need, who do you love, when you come undone? Words, playing like deja vu, like a radio tune, I swear I've heard before.. can't ever keep from falling apart at the seams, can I believe you're taking my heart to pieces?" 'Come Undone' Duran Duran
~~
"Do you know how long I was waiting in line for this? Who knew Floriad was so popular? I didn't even know the Marriott had a bakery at all." Wonjoong slid the small white box with the delicate red and cream ribbon crisscrossing the top into Yoongi's hands as he stepped out of the car.
"Red velvet, white rosebud icing? The ones with the tiny green petals. Not the ones with the big open flowers." Yoongi frowned looking down at the box that somehow looked tiny and insignificant in his palm and he started to hand it back to his second.
"Careful! And yes, of course I got the right cupcake, relax you're being weird." Wonjoong grabbed Yoongi's wrist as he shoved the box back toward him.
"I'm not being weird, when I ignore her you're saying I'm being cold, make up your damned mind." Yoongi steadied the box in his hands and walked past his friend and into the hallway behind the garage, his shoes loud on the pale tile.
As he turned to go down the steps Wonjoong detoured into the kitchen, no doubt to raid the fridge or do whatever else he did out of Yoongi's sight. He took the steps by two until he realized he was jostling the cupcake box, so he slowed down with a grimace. Glancing at his watch his mind was already drifting to the meeting that night making him force his attention back to the present. This would take only a couple minutes and the least he could do was be present during it.
He knocked gently against the fourth door he reached on the hall, he smiled then immediately stopped. That felt wrong so he tried to relax his face and must have looked fairly stupid when the door opened a moment later his face somewhere between the two expressions. Iseul looked up at him with red rimmed watery eyes.
"Happy Birthday Iseulie." Yoongi held the cupcake box out stiffly, his brain tripping over itself to try to adjust to the new situation. Why was the girl crying? Did all teen girls cry on their sixteenth birthdays? Did they cry on all their birthdays? Certainly he knew teen girls were volatile, but he'd not known Iseul to be anything but exceptionally sunny.
He glanced behind her into the room, it was a small but comfortable apartment space with a sleeping area, low dining table, and kitchen off to one side. He wondered if someone else was there that had upset the girl, but the room was empty except for Iseul. Her mother, Choi Hana, had left almost six months ago, moved to Busan to take care of a sick family member for an indefinite period of time. Yoongi's mother persuaded him to let Iseul stay, she'd lived in this apartment for over a year, had been attending the prestigious school, getting amazing grades and making friends. There was nothing for her in Busan except the same poverty and failed education she'd had before moving in the mansion.
"Are you missing your eomma?" That must be it, Yoongi said gently, his hand patting her shoulder but all that did was cause a burst of fresh tears from the slim girl and a look of outrage.
"I'm not a baby!" Iseul turned into the room and ran over to her sleeping pad flopping down, face in the pillow sobbing.
"Shit." Yoongi whispered under his breath, barely a sound, but he grit his teeth looking over his shoulder back into the hall. Maybe he should get Baekyunssi, the housekeeper, she was rather serious but a more maternal option surely than him? As he stepped toward the sleeping area abandoning the cupcake box on the kitchen table he was already regretting his decision. He wondered if he called his own mother how quickly she could arrive. Not soon enough, Iseul was curling into a ball and making terrible sounds despite the pillow muffling the noise.
"Alright, you're not a baby, but everyone needs their eomma." Yoongi knelt next to the sleeping pad, his hand patting her head. "Sit up and tell me what's wrong, problems don't go away with a flood of tears. But sometimes they feel less important when we say them out loud." He was careful to not let any impatience bleed into the words, even though he worried this was going to make him late.
Iseul slowly sat up, tucking her legs under her she swiped at rosy cheeks with her hands, her face a mess of tears, her nose red tipped. There was definitely hesitation as she smashed her lips together, an unspoken reluctance to trust him with whatever was upsetting her.
"Really Iseulie? You can't talk to me? The guy who let you sneak into my office and listen to records when your eomma grounded you? Me, who let you ride in my Maybach to school to impress those dumb rich kids? Wait, is it them? Have they been messing with you?" Yoongi knew he was right when fat tears spilled down her cheeks, still chubby with the last touches of youth.
"Cha Hong-bin brought me flowers for my birthday, I thought he was being nice." The words tumbled from her mouth, some of them cut off by squeaky gasps as she struggled to not cry. "Then after school he dragged me behind the gym and told me I needed to be grateful he was being nice to me, and tried to make me kiss him. When I wouldn't he tore up the flowers and told everyone he'd gotten them as a joke." Her face was so miserable, Yoongi felt his anger rising.
When he had been in his second year of high school he'd busted the lip of a guy who'd done less than that to Eunae. Walked right up to the sanctimonious little prick and popped him right in the teeth, then held his head against the grass and screamed curses at him until the guy begged for release. But Yoongi wasn't a hotheaded kid anymore, that was nearly ten years ago. Businessman Yoongi crushed people other ways, made them beg in a much more effective way, but was that really the best play here?
"Did he hurt you Iseulie?" That was the only thing he could allow himself to say in the moment, and a good starting point to decide the fate of the bully.
"No." She mumbled wiping the new tears on her sleeve.
"Good because since everyone thinks I'm a mob boss I would have to behave like one and make him disappear." Yoongi grinned cupping her cheek then patted it with brotherly affection.
"What am I supposed to do at school tomorrow?" Iseul looked miserable still but leaned into his hand making Yoongi sigh.
This was a question for someone who had been a teenage girl, not him. Give him a complicated problem with angry artists squabbling over ownership rights, or hesitant shareholders and he could work it all out, but this was drawing a huge blank. He couldn't throw money at it, something he'd gotten much too comfortable doing. He sat on his butt letting his legs extend in front of him with a groan. He channeled Eunae, pictured her in as much detail as he could draw into his mind. She might not have been an expert at sixteen at fending off rapidly growing rumors but she'd grown into one of the most composed and elegant women he knew. What would she say right now?
"Care less about what people are saying Iseulie. I know it won't feel good or be easy, but they want their words to change you, cut you. And when they succeed there's satisfaction for them, so deny them that. Imagine there's a rope between you and their words, every time they tug if you fight it, the rope gets tighter. Stop protesting and combating their words, either think of something very clever to respond, or shrug and be unbothered." He could picture the dozens of times he'd seen Eunae let icy words roll away. With Jungjae as a 'father' they came her way more than was fair over the years.
"How can I just let them say things that aren't true?" She wrinkled her nose, she wasn't buying a single word Yoongi was selling.
"Does defending yourself make anyone believe you?"
"No." Iseul replied a bit sullenly.
"Then waste no breath on idiots." He grinned and it was contagious because she huffed but grinned too.
"What would be a clever response to Hong-bin saying he bought me flowers for a joke?" She seemed to racking her brain, and Yoongi realized her heart might be too kind to summon harsh words.
"Personally I would have told him I only accepted them to save him the humiliation of rejection, so it's a good thing we're both on the same page now." He winked sending Iseul into a fit of laughter.
"I could never say that!"
"Sure you could, picture you're a famous headstrong character in your favorite drama, and say what she'd say. I know there must be dozens of examples of sassy women, maybe we could watch some episodes of Hotel Del Luna, IU is fierce in that." Yoongi wiggled his eyebrows teasingly.
"You do not watch dramas!" A scoffing protest from the girl let him know they were probably through the worst of her melancholy.
"I do, and lots of cat videos, my two favorite past times when I can't sleep or I'm in a bad mood. Now stand up, wash your face, and come up to my office, I think I have the perfect thing that will cheer you right up!" Yoongi hoisted himself from the floor and watched as the lanky girl hurriedly splashed some water from the sink on her flushed pink cheeks.
A few minutes later they were in his office, Yoongi in the chair behind the desk, slipping headphones over Iseul's ears. His fingers gently smoothed her long black hair aside so it didn't snag in the large ear cushions. She was licking some icing from the cupcake he'd sent Wonjoong to buy, an identical one her mother had bought her for her birthday the previous year. He'd picked it in hopes of reminding her of that special moment, and Iseul's happy smile had told him he'd succeeded.
"No one outside MCC has heard this yet, Verbal Jint is releasing this in a week, but if somehow you managed to accidentally mention you'd heard this song to your friends, I couldn't stop you. It's called 'Stressin Me' and no one will be able to look at up online." He smiled pressing the play button on his laptop, he knew the song intimately, had worked with Kim Jin-tae personally on this masterpiece.
Yoongi watched as the girl bobbed along to the very catchy beat, her body leaned back against his lap. For a second he almost moved her, but in the end just let it happen. He knew leaking this song was all kinds of bad but he didn't truly think it would grow much beyond her school, maybe whispers in their neighborhood. Verbal Jint had a massive following but without the actual song her knowing the title ahead of time wasn't going to ruin anything, but it would give her cool points with her friends. That thought made him roll his eyes, was he really advocating for high school drama?
"One more time?" Iseul hit him with big Bambi eyes when he attempted to take the headphones back a few minutes later.
"Alright, one more time, but don't go trying to memorize it." He gently squeezed her hip where she supported herself against his thigh.
~
Eui pressed the doorbell on the studio door, she'd taken almost every single minute of her allotted time to shower and get dressed. Gyuri had stocked the shelves with more makeup and facial products than she could have conjured up in her mind to need, so that hadn't been a problem. They weren't all her preferred brand, but every single one was massively more expensive than her own. With a stupid grin she wondered if she might like the luxurious ones better, then frowned. While she did enjoy spending a doms money, doing it consistently would be an adjustment. She doubted she would ever come close to her more than generous monthly allowance.
"Hmm, you're still wearing the robe, but you look lovely." Yoongi tugged her through the doorway his fingers slipping into the silk material until he found the opening and could cup the bare warmth of her sides in his palms. He was wearing a black suit with a black shirt beneath, the neck open, no tie, just a glimpse of his pale throat.
"I didn't put a dress on because I worried that a dress with the name Daigo stitched in it might not be appropriate to wear to dinner." She let him tug her back to his chair where computer screens were lit up in front of long electronic boards with buttons and switches.
"The restaurant we are going to tonight will not find your attire odd if it says Daigo." Yoongi sat pulling her into his lap, his arms around her waist. It felt comfortable, his chest against her back.
"Convenient." Her mind tripped into darker thoughts wondering if they'd ever go anywhere public or if he'd only ever take her to approved venues where no one would ask questions. The answer felt more than a little obvious.
"Don't be disappointed baby, the food is delectable." His lips kissed behind her ear before sliding headphones on, he was excruciatingly careful to not jostle her delicate hairstyle. "I don't know if I want to invest in this rapper, what do you think of him?"
After slipping his own headphones on Yoongi clicked play on the computer screen. The music had a slow rhythm the beat thumping into her chest, finally after several seconds a deep calm voice started rapping. Eui knew nothing about music really, she knew she enjoyed listening but couldn't be trusted to know talent. Something about the guy's voice raised the tiny hairs at the back of her neck, made her want to shiver in Yoongi's lap.
"Well?"
"I don't know! Are you saying I have to decide after only listening once?" She turned looking at him, tugging one ear piece away.
"Yeah, I listen once maybe twice and decide. If I listened a dozen times I'd never get through how many come in." He shrugged playing the song again, they were both quiet for a few moments letting the song play again.
"Do you listen to all of them?" She pulled the headphones off when he clicked pause on the computer near the end of the song.
"For the rap labels, yes, I delegate the singers mostly to someone else, the groups go through the different labels, I let them decide what they prefer. But when it comes to just rappers, I want to hear them. I don't want my name on trash. So Eui, is Mark Lee trash?" Yoongi nodded toward the computer screen as he clicked on the photos attached to the sample.
"Hey, isn't that kid a model?" She leaned toward the screen, the rapper was young, baby faced and adorable. "He should be KPop not a solo rapper." Eui laughed but the sound dried up when Yoongi frowned deeply. Had she said something wrong?
"That's what I thought, are you reading my mind now beautiful?" His smile turned into a grin and he kissed the corner of her mouth. "I'm glad we agree." When he patted her hip she stood.
"Get dressed, we need to leave in a couple minutes." A quick kiss against her forehead and Eui was propelled out the door gently toward her room.
She chose an ankle length black dress with a lace corset detail and was at the door to the private elevator with Yoongi five minutes later. As she'd walked down the hall he'd appeared from the master bedroom and zipped the last two inches of her dress without even being asked, he now also wore a black tie with tiny gold details. She already knew the dress would be easy to kneel in, the generous split in the side assured her later at Dagger she'd be able to seamlessly play her submissive role.
Eui's eyes widened when they entered the elevator vestibule and found Wonjoong sitting on the couch where they'd left him hours ago. He grinned standing, clearly checking her out. He seemed relaxed and not at all bored.
"Don't be shocked princess, I wasn't sitting here the whole time. I have an apartment, much smaller than this one, downstairs." He assured her before stepping next to Yoongi to murmur something into his boss's ear. She only caught the words 'five times' and 'not stopping' before Yoongi waved him away.
"It's my birthday, I don't really care." Then he tugged Eui next to him, his hand around her waist. Wonjoong laughed at this response, a soft incredulous sound but made no further comment. "Is Haejun here with the car?"
As the elevator arrived the two of them were already talking about something work related, Yoongi dictating to Wonjoong to move Mark's sample over to a KPop label. No he didn't care which one, and then they were walking through the private garage. Instead of a sleek black sedan, a large black SUV was parked in one of the two spots. Asul, Haejun, Eui reminded herself, got out opening the back seat for her and Yoongi, Wonjoong took the passenger seat on his own.
"Haejun wasn't driving earlier." She commented, her brain trying to bring together how the puzzle pieces of his staff fit together.
"I have several drivers, but I prefer keeping Wonjoong and Haejun the only two that visit Dagger. It's not normally an issue since they're both active doms on their own accord there, which you're already personally familiar with." He raised a brow turning to look at her and she wasn't sure if she could read his expression.
"Does that make you angry? Should we revisit that conversation?" Eui stabbed her nails into her palm to keep her tone light. It wasn't like she'd hand picked Asul and Gaeru to spend so much time with her. She instinctively knew that was a choice Daigo had made.
As he kissed her cheek with a small head shake, the thought crossed her mind wondering if he'd somehow orchestrated her friction with Taejo. Had he somehow egged the man on until he ruined what had always been a very smooth dynamic between them? She didn't get a chance to ask, his phone was already in his hand, his fingers flying across its screen.