8 What Are You Doing?

Jungkook's mouth fell open. "Holy shi-"

"Hey! What did I say about swearing?" Seokjin bellowed, instantly pulling a reign on the curse the maknae was about to spew.

"This is bad, right?" Jimin began nervously. "If the reporter discovers our secret contract with MSL, things will get out of hand."

"Yeah, no shit," Yoongi stated, his demeanor surprisingly calm. He ignored the disapproving look Seokjin shot him. "We need to stop him before he leaves."

Namjoon sighed as he rose. "Then what are we waiting around for? Let's get to it!"

The boys bounded out of the room, their feet leaping over the tiles in their haste to stop the reporter from leaving with the wrong file. Namjoon ran his eyes down the length of the long corridor, but he couldn't spot any sign of the elusive man. "He couldn't have reached the elevator already, could he?" The question hung over them as the leader scrambled for their next course of action.

Looking at it bleakly, they didn't have too many options. If the reporter boarded the elevator, it would be infinitely difficult to catch hold of him before he discovered the contents of the file. They would have to gallop to get there and Namjoon didn't know if they could make it in time.

But the leader suddenly straightened as a wild idea struck him. The elevator was situated past the lounge, where the videography team had been instructed to stay until the departure of the reporter. Was it possible to enlist their aid?

"Does anyone, by any chance, have the contact number of the videography team?" he inquired with his usual alacrity that never failed to spur the members into action. But all of them shook their heads, with the exception of Taehyung who held up his phone.

"I have Ji Ah Noona's number," he said helpfully, already beginning to dial it. The members looked at him in astonishment and Namjoon raised his eyebrows.

"And exactly why do you have it?" he asked curiously, instantly regretting his inquisitiveness. Taehyung barely noticed as he handed his phone over to the rapper.

"Well, we just happened to exchange numbers when she drove you to the hospital-"

"That's not important," Yoongi interrupted Taehyung, his palm wiping the sweat off of where it had pooled in droplets on his forehead. "Is there anything she can do about this?"

"Let's find out," Namjoon replied tersely as he waited for Ji Ah to answer, his hand tightly gripping the smartphone.

She did, on the second ring, her voice ringing out cheerfully through the speaker. "Taehyung-ah! What's up?"

"It's me, Namjoon," the leader cut Ji Ah off before she could speak further. "We need your help."

Ji Ah stared at her phone, beginning to harbour a sneaking suspicion that Taehyung had given her his number on purpose. "Well then, Mr. Kim? Missing me already?"

Namjoon rolled his eyes at her insolence, trying to assuage his rattled nerves. "Look here, I don't have the time for this. If you peek out the door, you'll see a man heading your way."

Ji Ah's interest sufficiently roused, she moved towards the door, pushing it open gently. Sure enough, a stout man carrying a folder, a burlap slack slung over his shoulder, was walking towards the elevator. "I see him alright."

"I need you to stall him in any way you can," Namjoon stressed urgently. "He's a reporter who has the folder which holds the MSL contract."

"What?" Ji Ah almost shrieked, startling So Min into spilling juice over her pants. "How the hell did that happen?"

"No time to explain. Can you do it?" Namjoon realized he was almost pleading, but this affected her as much as it affected him. They had to rectify the situation somehow before it was too late.

Ji Ah didn't answer, merely stepping out of the room, hoping to discover some sort of solution. Her prayers seemed to have been answered as her eyes landed on a signboard. The words 'OUT OF ORDER' were engraved on it in bold letters, the board obviously having been left lying around following the monthly maintenance of the elevator the previous day.

The reporter was evidently engrossed in a conversation over the phone, not noticing as Ji Ah quickly grabbed the board and placed it before the elevator. She hoped it would be enough to stall him, at least until Namjoon could arrive.

The leader was sprinting down the hallway, the members towing along. "Why on earth is this damn corridor so long?" Yoongi demanded breathlessly as he continued his excursion at a snail's pace.

Taehyung and Jungkook seemed to have disappeared somewhere along the way, but Namjoon couldn't be bothered to question their whereabouts. They turned the corner, almost running into the reporter whom Ji Ah had managed to ensnare in a discussion.

"So you see, you can't use the elevator," she was saying as her lean frame blocked the man's path.

"But I used it merely an hour ago," he stated dubiously, squinting at Ji Ah through his spectacles. "And who are you again?"

"The new stylist hired by Big Hit," she replied confidently, eyeing the elevator and hoping nobody stepped through it and shattered the entire façade.

"I've heard that Big Hit only hires married women," the reporter said as he studied her carefully. "You look too young to be married."

Ji Ah huffed in disbelief. "Are you insinuating that young people can't get married?" she said, poking the surprised man in his chest. "Wow! You're unbelievable! So what, am I supposed to be a grey-haired lady to get hitched?"

The man shook his head anxiously but Ji Ah interrupted him before he could utter a word. "And then you say that it is the prerogative of young people to marry soon and that they should fulfill their duty and have kids and be respectable members of the community. Would you look at these double standards?Wow, what a society we live in!"

The reporter looked thoroughly anguished and Namjoon had to stifle a laugh at the videographer's animated gestures as he and the members approached them. Ji Ah sighed in relief as her gaze locked with the rapper's.

Namjoon held up the press conference contract, gearing up to address the man, when a roaring sound caught his attention. The members, along with the reporter and Ji Ah, turned around, their eyes widening in shock as Taehyung and Jungkook skated towards them at full speed, their roller blades screeching against the tiles.

"What in hell-" Seokjin began, but was cut off as Jungkook miscalculated his speed and collided with him, toppling to the ground along with a startled Seokjin. Namjoon could hardly believe his eyes as the elevator doors pinged open, revealing the figure of Bang PD as he stepped out of it. The leader fumbled for words and even Ji Ah's face blanched.

"I thought the elevator was out of order," the reporter said pointedly and Ji Ah mustered a smile as she shrugged.

"What is going on here?" Bang PD exclaimed as he eyed the tangled forms of Seokjin and Jungkook.

But before anyone could answer, Taehyung barreled into the CEO, slamming into the reporter as the three tumbled to the ground in a heap. The folder containing the MSL contract sailed through the air, landing with a soundless thud at Namjoon's feet. Ji Ah seized the chance the moment of confusion had afforded, grabbing the folder as Namjoon replaced it with the original file, handing it over to the reporter who was struggling to stand up.

Jimin assisted Bang PD while Yoongi and Hoseok tried to help Seokjin and Jungkook, occasionally breaking out in fits of laughter at their disoriented states. But a sharp look from Bang PD silenced them, a gradual state of order settling over everyone present.

"You all," the CEO began sternly, "have a lot of explaining to do."

                                 ***

Namjoon breathed in the crisp, summer air as he jogged through the empty streets of Seoul. The city was alight with the glow of the breaking dawn, a slight breeze rustling his hair, the music blaring through his earphones.

The mishap of the previous day had been cleared up without any serious repercussions and the leader recollected the ease with which their CEO had handled the situation, sending the reporter off with the right file. He had reprimanded the members lightly, ultimately ending up laughing with them at the sheer ridiculousness of the situation.

Namjoon smiled to himself, Ji Ah's embarrassed face popping into his head as she had tried to apologize to Bang PD. But the man had thanked her instead, commending her for assisting his clumsy boys. Ji Ah had laughed then, the sound trickling through Namjoon's very skin. If he closed his eyes, he could still hear it just beneath the layers of his consciousness.

He shook his head, willing his mind to avoid conjuring any images of the assistant videographer. The rapper bent over, heaving as he caught his breath. He had arrived at a small park just on the outskirts of the Han river and a chorus of sounds snagged his attention.

What's going on this early in the morning? he thought, striding towards the source, stopping in his tracks as he stepped into the park. There, amidst a group of preteens, stood Hong Ji Ah, flailing her arms about. She was clad in track pants and a crop top, her brunette hair pulled into a bun atop her head.

From the logo on the t-shirts the kids had donned, Namjoon discerned them as belonging to 'Hope Orphanage'. They were engaged in an exercise routine and he couldn't help but marvel at the contentment that shone in Ji Ah's eyes.

Namjoon quickly crouched behind a couple of bushes as Ji Ah faced the direction he had been standing in, not wanting her to see him. But his apprehensions were unfounded as a short woman glided towards Ji Ah, smiling as she pulled the taller woman into a hug.

"You have no idea how much we appreciate you doing this, Ji Ah," she said as she grasped her hands. "You're so good with the kids and they adore you."

Ji Ah grinned, looking at the kids as they continued the exercise routine she had just demonstrated. "I adore them too. And I'm glad I can help in their growth, in whatever little manner."

The woman's face glowed with gratitude. "This is more than we could ask for. It's heartwarming to see that you care enough to volunteer every single day despite your schedule."

Ji Ah shook her head. "It's as much for me as it is for the kids. You know I love spending time with them."

Namjoon was surprised to see the warmth that had crept into Ji Ah's face. Fully acquainted with her carefree and indifferent exterior, he knew how impatient she could be, how impulsive. But the rapper had never imagined he would uncover a different side to her, one which made him question how well he had really known her.

Or if I knew her at all, Namjoon thought.

And as he watched Ji Ah, instructing a couple of kids who seemed to be struggling with the moves, smiling encouragingly as she guided them, Namjoon realized that there was more to her than met the eye.

It looked like he wasn't the only one who had found happiness.