The Hong Kong concert went very well and fans were excited. The boys put on a killer show and left the stage for the last time, retreating to their dressing room to collapse, take a quick group shot, and then get into dry clothes.
Jimin fell onto a small, leather love-seat and took the bottle of water that was offered to him by one of the staff. He sighed wearily as Yoongi flopped down onto the sofa next to him. He screwed the lid back on his water bottle and started to get up. He wasn't in any kind of mood to talk to anyone, even Yoongi. He had just faked his way through a concert for the first time ever and he hated himself.
"Mini, can we talk for a moment?" Yoongi grabbed his hand as he started to walk away.
"Hyung, can it wait? I'm really tired," said Jimin softly, being extra careful to avoid the ever present cameras. He was hyper-sensitive to them today when normally he hardly noticed they were there. He didn't want to be on film this time. He was too transparent and everyone would know something had been wrong with Park Jimin once the Bomb or concert footage was released. People would speculate, one country's fandoms accusing another of putting their dear Jimin into a foul humor. He shook his head slightly as he looked down at Yoongi's large hand gripping his wrist.
"No. It can't. Sit." Yoongi took on a firmer tone and Jimin had no choice but to comply.
"I talked with Taehyung before the concert. He's worried about you." Yoongi stared at the side profile of his friend. Taehyung had been a bit upset that morning over the fact Jimin wasn't talking to him and that he had yet to see him eat one single thing that day and he had been watching too. Yoongi had shrugged it off but as he watched Jimin during the concert, he could tell that he wasn't being genuine like he usually was. He was faking. His smiles never reached his eyes and his usually high energy was only slightly subdued, but enough that Yoongi had noticed.
"Taehyung has nothing to worry about. It's none of his business anyway." Jimin scowled down at the innocent water bottle. He wanted to just go to bed and sleep off his bad mood.
"It is. It's all of our business. Look, Mini, if this is about those pictures-"
"With all due respect, hyung, Nari is my problem. No one else's. I wish people would let me be about it."
"Don't interrupt me," grumbled Yoongi, now frowning deeply. "It's obvious she was set up or something. I don't really know her, but if you like her she must be someone pretty special and someone with integrity."
"I don't know what to believe anymore," whispered Jimin, twisting the bottle around in his clammy palms. A staff member came over and encouraged the two men to get changed and hand over their stage outfits.
"You believe her, that's what you believe," said Yoongi, slowly and softly. "Until she proves otherwise, you take her side and you believe her. Taehyung said she was really upset. He's pretty good at reading people, you know that. If he thought she was lying, he wouldn't be standing up for her."
He watched as Jimin shook his head in confusion and ran a trembling hand through his hair. "Just give her a chance to explain her side of it. We all know how these celebrity gossip columns can be. You're choosing to believe some grainy photos taken in the dark over the woman you've obviously fallen in love with."
Jimin's eyes popped open wide and his face turned quickly to look Yoongi in the eye. "Love? I wouldn't go that far, hyung."
"Whatever. I call it like I see it. This whole thing bothers you so much because you have some deep feelings for this girl. Just admit to it and own it." Yoongi laid a strong hand on Jimin's shoulder and squeezed it gently. "Give her a chance, Mini. Don't shove her away without at least giving her the opportunity to explain." He patted Jimin's arm once more before standing up and moving to a small changing room.
"Hyung! Hurry! I'm starving," whined Jungkook, coming over and grabbing Jimin's hands, trying to drag him up off the sofa. "I want to eat! Manager-nim is taking us to this awesome steak place. Hurry, hurry!"
Jimin stood up slowly, staggering a tiny bit. He regained his footing quickly, hoping Jungkook didn't notice. The boy wasn't looking so it would appear he didn't. Jimin groaned and stretched, yawning deeply. "I think I'm going to take a rain check, Kookie. I'm exhausted."
Jungkook glanced over at Taehyung who motioned for him to insist on Jimin coming. He looked back at his friend, having not missed Jimin's little teeter when he stood up. "C'mon, hyung, I don't want to go without you. If you don't go, I won't go."
Jimin shrugged and walked towards the second changing space. "I guess we're both having an early bedtime then!" He laughed and shut the door to the changing room, leaving a bewildered Jungkook standing in the middle of the room.
"Fine! I take it back. I'm going," said Jungkook loudly but finishing in a mumble. He looked over at Taehyung and shrugged as if to say, "I tried!"
Taehyung frowned. He quickly pulled his phone out of his pocket and sent Nari a message.
"I hope you're still getting on that flight."
He waited for a response and thankfully he didn't have to wait long.
"I'm heading to the airport in just a few hours. How's Jimin? Does he seem open to talking to me at least? I'm struggling here, Taehyung."
"He'll talk to you, if I have to force him to. Can you meet him at a restaurant tomorrow for lunch or something?"
"I guess so? Does he talk better over food or something?"
Taehyung raised his eyebrows and then frowned as he glanced back at Jimin, who was now walking out of the changing room. He didn't necessarily talk more over food, but if Nari ate, he might eat something as well just because.
"Yes. I'll make arrangements and text you the place to go. Just trust me and make sure you eat well! ~(‾▿‾)~ "
He slipped his phone into his pocket and picked up a bag of snacks off the food table, opening the bag and eating a few as he walked over to his dearest friend in the world. He hated the fact Jimin had a poor image of himself in his head. He was an attractive man, slim and muscular. Taehyung couldn't see one flaw in his form at all. He had no idea how Jimin could see something no one else could see. "Hey, Jiminie, want some?" He waved the back of tasty snacks under Jimin's nose.
"Ugh, Tae, really? What am I, a dog?" Jimin chuckled and lightly shoved the bag away. "I'm not hungry." Just then his stomach growled loudly and he quickly turned away feeling betrayed by his own body.
"Your stomach says you're hungry." Taehyung smirked smugly and pushed the bag back under Jimin's nose. "Have a few. Then let's go eat with the guys. Hm? Okay?"
Jimin shook his head. "I'm going to the workout room at the hotel. I'll tell you what, bring me some back to the hotel, okay? I'll eat after I workout." He smiled brightly and grabbed his bag, making his way out to the waiting vans.
Taehyung frowned and angrily shoved the snack bag into a trash can. He knew full well that Jimin would be working out for another couple of hours, despite the intense workout every member of BTS just got during their concert. His jaw muscles flexed as he played out what would happen if he brought Jimin food home. He would likely say he can't eat after working out because it would upset his stomach. He would reject the food. Leave it on the table, wash up and go to bed, still having not eaten a thing. Jimin was dealing with too many things all on his own. Nari, his body image, everything. Taehyung stood with his hands on his hips and got angrier as the seconds passed. Fine, if that's the way he wanted to be then so be it.
Taehyung was done babying him.
* * *
Nari stepped off the plane the next morning, never having been outside of Korea before. She looked around awestruck like any tourist would be. As she stepped outside the airport, she saw a tall man standing in front of a black van. He was holding a sign with her name on it and she smiled and walked towards him.
"Choi Nari-ssi?"
"Yes, that's me. Are you picking me up?"
"Yes. I'll take you to your hotel. I'll be back around noon to pick you up and take you to the restaurant." He slid Nari's luggage into the back of the van and slammed the hatch shut.
Nari nodded slowly and then got into the second row of seats in the van. "Thanks," she said politely.
She watched as the city of Hong Kong passed by her eyes. She took in as much as she could before the van stopped in front of a hotel a few minutes later. It wasn't anything extremely high-end but it still looked nice. She was glad Jimin hadn't arranged for a terribly fancy hotel because it would have made her feel even more out of place than she already felt.
The manager exchanged numbers with her and promised to return at the time appointed. Nari left him and checked in, finding out she was on the top floor of the hotel. The hotel staff handed her a strange looking card and told her to just take a specific elevator up to the top floor. The key was to enable the elevator. She was puzzled at why it would operate an elevator and asked if it also opened her room door. The staff laughed softly and encouraged her to just get into the elevator. Just when she had thought it would be a nice modest hotel room, she stepped out of the elevator into a beautiful suite.
Her jaw dropped open and she looked around the room in awe. Fresh cut flowers were placed on almost every surface in the room, filling it with their soft, floral scent. The room was bright and modern. She dropped her luggage and slowly made her way over to the huge wall of windows that looked out over the city. She felt immediately vulnerable and scrambled to find a way to shut the blinds or curtains. She found a button and pushed it, standing back as privacy blinds slid down the windows. She found she could still see out but it would be difficult for anyone to see in. Breathing a sigh of relief she pulled out her phone and connected to the hotel's wifi.
Her thumb hesitated over her messaging app but she opened it anyway, pulling up Jimin's contact information.
"This room is beautiful. Thank you so much for arranging for me to stay here. I'm looking froward to seeing you at lunch!"
* * *
"Lunch?! Taehyung-ah! I don't want to go to lunch with her alone! Look! I'm exhausted from the concert. Can't I just sleep today? I won't get a chance like this to be alone and not working for a long time if ever! Why can't I just talk to her back in Korea?!" Jimin protested like a temperamental three-year-old child.
Taehyung moved around the room packing his suitcase and making sure he had all of his stuff. "Just go with her, Jimin, you'll be fine." He looked at his friend pointedly. "Also, eat. Eat a lot." He grabbed his sunglasses off the dresser and placed them on the back of his head as was his habit. "Enjoy your day off while the rest of us go back and get back to work," he grinned and ruffled Jimin's hair.
"Ugh, Tae! C'mon," whined Jimin. "I'm not ready to see her." He grumbled and flopped back down on his bed.
"Well, get ready. Your manager that's staying behind with you is under strict orders from me to drag you there if he has to. He'll do it too. You want to know why? We all want you to be happy, Jiminie. At least give this a shot and see if anything can be done. If you come back to Korea and still feel she's lying, then I'll take your side and trust your belief. Just try to see if it can be fixed first? Okay? She's a great girl. Don't let her slip away because of some misunderstanding." Taehyung grabbed his bag and smiled widely as he waved to his friend. "See you back at home!" And with that he left Jimin alone in the now eerily silent hotel room.
Jimin frowned and stretched out onto the bed with a groan. His stomach growled softly, almost pitifully. It had been ignored for so long now that it almost didn't have the courage or strength to make it's sad emptiness known. Jimin looked around as he rubbed his protesting stomach. He saw a small bowl of fresh fruit sitting on the table and a note in sitting in front of it with the words, "EAT THIS OR I WILL HAVE JUNGKOOK KICK YOUR BUTT WHEN YOU GET BACK. Love, Taehyung"
Jimin chuckled a little at his friend's bossiness. Some fans insisted Jin and Jimin were the mothers in the group, but Taehyung was the one who acted like he was Jimin's mother most all of the time. He looked out for him and nagged him incessantly.
Jimin picked up a small tangerine and peeled it, standing in front of his window. He looked out over the city as he ate the small citrus. He smiled faintly as Nari's face floated across his thoughts. His smile turned into a small frown as the images of her kissing her coworker also floated past, and he took a deep breath. He did owe her the opportunity to explain her pathetic behavior, even if he already had himself convinced that she would be lying.
He puttered around the hotel room for another hour or so before getting dressed for the date Taehyung was forcing him to go on. He slipped into fresh and clean black jeans, a white t-shirt, and his signature denim jacket. It might be hot outside but he had to be stylish. He found himself taking extra care with his hair and he secretly wished a makeup noona had stayed behind to give him a few touch ups. He felt a bit self-conscious of his appearance but it couldn't be helped. His confidence might suffer a bit but he had to make the best of the situation. He slid on his rings and made sure his earrings were straight. He ran his hand through his hair one last time and then slipped on his sunglasses.
He could do this.
He could face the woman whom he simultaneously cared about and also mistrusted.
He could stay strong in his anger and hurt.
She would have to make quite the explanation to convince him to stay with her.
He would definitely not make it easy on her.
* * *
Jimin decided to take a taxi when the manager told him he was picking up Nari with the van. He didn't want to be alone with her in a car with managers eavesdropping when there would be so much tension between them. No, he would just see her at the restaurant.
He stepped out of the taxi and walked up to a small restaurant. He walked in and gave the host his name, then the man smiled widely and motioned for Jimin to follow him to the back of the restaurant. Jimin looked around, curious as to why this seemingly nice place had no customers. His eyes finally turned back to the front and fell on the person who could cause him to feel such joy and also such pain. His steps slowed as he approached the table.
She was beautiful.
His mouth went dry and his mind felt muddled. He sat down and tried to avoid eye contact, all while reminding himself that he was angry and not to go soft.
Nari had watched him approach the table and she felt her breath stop. He was so handsome. Gorgeous. She felt a small smile tug at her lips when she thought that word to herself. He sat down at the table and his scent surrounded her. She felt intimidated but also extremely pleased to see him. She felt nervous to talk about their situation but she desperately wanted to clear up such a horrible misunderstanding.
"Jimin," she said softly, a small smile on her lips.
Jimin removed his sunglasses, carefully laying them down on the table and then sitting back in his chair. He glanced around and still felt puzzled that no one else was there. It seemed so strange.
Nari noticed him looking around at the other empty tables. She smiled and placed her napkin on her lap as she spoke. "Ah, Taehyung messaged me a while ago and said he rented out the restaurant for us for the next few hours. He made sure I understood it was a great expense and I could never repay him for this. He also already pre-paid for our food." She blushed as she looked down at the pristine white tablecloth in front of her.
Jimin watched her. Taehyung's extravagance had clearly embarrassed her. He felt embarrassed himself at the generosity of his friend. This was too much, but he was thankful. Taehyung knew Jimin wouldn't feel relaxed around a lot of people. Especially if something difficult needed to be discussed. Jimin silently thanked his friend.
The waiter placed two plates of salad and some water in front of them and then disappeared.
Jimin frowned and instead of feeling hungry as he had all morning, he felt too nervous to eat anything.
Nari glanced at him and picked up her fork, gently poking it into her salad. "Please, I'm so hungry from not having breakfast this morning, don't make me eat alone," she whispered, a nervous laugh following her statement.
Jimin sighed softly and picked up his fork. He could get away with eating the salad if he had to, but Taehyung better not have ordered some high-calorie menu for their main meal.
Nari watched him stab the salad and shove a bite into his mouth. She watched his jawline flex as he chewed. He was almost too handsome. She wondered why she hadn't noticed before just how handsome he was. Of course she had known it, but maybe she just wanted to appreciate him more today. Maybe she saw him slipping away from her and wanted to savor the moment she got to spend in his presence for maybe the last time.
Jimin caught her stealing glances at him and it made his ego swell a bit. He wanted to bring up the pictures so badly but he also hated to get right to the bad stuff.
Nari laid her fork down and cleared her throat, taking a quick drink of her water. She forced herself to look Jimin in the eye. It was now or never for her. She wanted to enjoy her lunch and there was no way that would happen if these bad feelings continued to exist. "Jimin, I need to talk about something with you."
Jimin froze, his fork hovering over another bite of salad. He quietly laid it down on the plate and sat back in the chair. Everyone wanted him to give her chance. He may as well hear her out. "Go ahead," he said, keeping his eyes downcast.
It wasn't lost on Nari that he didn't make eye contact with her since he had arrived. "Jimin, please look at me. I want you to see my honesty in my eyes. Please," she whispered. Her breath caught once more when his dark eyes shot up to lock onto hers. She felt confused for a moment but then regained her thought process. "Thank you," she whispered. "I know you've seen those awful pictures."
Jimin cleared his throat and shuffled in his seat.
Nari licked her dry lips and spoke again. "It was all a big accident."
Jimin watched her and his resolve began to crumble. He saw the emotion spreading across her face. Remorse, guilt, frustration, and anxiety. He saw it all.
"See, Jun's ex girlfriend had come back from Sweden and Jun got upset and went out back and my boss, Minnie, asked me to go out and check on him and I guess he was just upset and he is still hurt about me turning him down before and I guess he just got caught up in the moment and..." She paused and Jimin watched as her eyes filled with tears. She looked down at her lap and took a deep breath before continuing. "He kissed me," she whispered.
Jimin knew very well he could have stopped her at any time and not made her say the words that made her most uncomfortable. But his ego and pride needed to see her suffering just a little because he had suffered so much since he saw those photos and he also knew she needed to say it out loud as a way to give herself permission to release her guilt. He watched as she continued, swiping tears from her cheeks as quickly as they fell.
"Those girls must have been waiting. They took video and photos and as they ran off, Jun chased them. But..." she paused again, "he let them go," she whispered.
Jimin's stomach tightened as he heard her last few words. "He what?" He leaned forward and stared her down, knowing what he had heard but hoping he had heard it wrong.
"He let them get away. I was so angry with him for all of it. I accused him of partnering with them to get the photos but I don't think that's the case. What is the case, is that he let them get away with those pictures and footage. Jimin, I'm so sorry. I wish I could go back and just stay at the piano. I wish I hadn't made eye contact with Minnie and did what she asked of me. I just want to be honest with you, I didn't kiss him back. I didn't enjoy it. Not one second of it." She lowered her eyes, tears dripping down onto the napkin on her lap.
The waiter came over and sat the main course in front of them. Steak and steamed vegetables. Neither of them felt like eating now no matter how good it smelled. Jimin stared at his plate and then he let out a heavy sigh.
Nari's head came up at his sigh and she stared at his face. "I can't fix it, Jimin. I can't go back and change it. But I need you to believe me that it wasn't what those pictures made it look like. I'm not a cheater, Jimin," she whispered. "I like you a lot and I want to -"
Jimin felt his breath quicken and his heart race. He felt like he had just been on a roller coaster of emotions. He looked at the tear stained face of the girl in front of him and he stopped her mid-sentence.
"Nari, let's stop."