21 Under the surface

Monday arrived quicker than Seo wished it would. She spent her Sunday cleaning her small apartment and washing clothes. She tried to keep herself busy before returning to work the next day. She didn't want to overthink about every word exchanged with Jin the day before. She began to question how she handled the situation, and if she should have said or done anything different. 'It doesn't matter anymore. What's done is done.' She eventually accepted the way things were handled, and the remainder of the day flew by. Monday morning she told herself that Jin was a client, and she would treat him as such. Regardless of what had occurred, she had a job to do.

She entered her studio, and began setting up. Eun-ha arrived fifteen minutes later, and without hesitation, began helping.

"When should BTS arrive?" she enthusiastically asked. Her excitement to be part of this project was obvious. She wasn't normally this punctual, and willing to assist in set up. Seo-yeon inwardly smiled at her friend's fangirling.

"In thirty minutes, possibly." Seo glanced at the clock to make sure she was good on time. The members had a meeting at BigHit, and were expected to arrived as soon as that wrapped up.

"They must be exhausted. They are all over the place. It amazes me how they're so energetic even with little sleep."

Seo-yeon couldn't think of a response to this. She thought back to beach house, and how carefree they had been. She shook her head, realizing she still knew very little about them.

"Good morning!" Both girls waved at Tae-hyung, Ho-seok, and Yoongi who arrived earlier than expected.

"G, good morning!" Eun-ha stuttered.

"We're still setting up, but you're more than welcome to take a seat. There's coffee, and other beverages on the table." Seo-yeon attempted to maintain her professional stance. She wanted to stick to her promise to draw a line.

"We can help." Tae-hyung happily volunteered. He approached Seo-yeon with his cute boxy smile lighting up his entire face. She winced, 'Stay strong Seo!'

"I don't want to burden you."

"It's really no burden. We'd love to help." Ho-seok was already assisting the staff that had entered. He was busy fixing lighting, and background, while Yoongi silently assisted the tech group. Giving up, Seo turned her attention to Tae-hyung who was still in front of her.

"Thank you." She told him. He smiled and waved his hand, dismissing her thanks.

"Can I look at your camera? I'm not a professional, but I love taking pictures too. I'm always fascinated to see what equipment photographers prefer to use." Seo-yeon gently smiled at him. He reminded her of Kang-Dae. His love for the profession, and the eagerness to learn more.

He began to take pictures of the other two members who were still assisting the staff. Seo-yeon giggled when she looked at the computer screen. He captured both in unattractive poses. It was as if he was trying to find the worst angles. He childishly ran back to her, and laughed at the pictures he took.

"Can these be in the magazine?" They both laughed as they scrolled the images.

"Oh no, let me see what you did!" Ho-seok laughingly reprimanded Tae. The three continued to discuss the poorly taken pictures, when Yoongi reminded Seo-yeon of the time. She thanked him for the reminder, and they began the session. She was impressed at the suggestions given by the trio. Each picked their favorite images from past events, and worked with Seo in recreating them. The studio was full of laughter from all in attendance. The staff could not control the smiles, or laughter as the group switched from professional poses to random, comical ones.

"Seo," Eun-ha shyly called. She still hadn't overcome her nerves. She wished she could be more like Seo-yeon and treat BTS like clients, but still be friendly. "It's almost lunch. Did you want to wrap up, and save the images?"

Seo looked at her watch. She couldn't believe how much time had passed. She had been so engaged in the photo session, and the banter of the trio. They were extremely photogenic, and a pleasure to work with. They were a photographer's dream client.

"Ok. Let's take an hour lunch, everyone. We can do the individual pictures when we return."

The staff reluctantly began to disperse for lunch. They wanted to stay with the members as much as possible, but had pledged to respect their need for space. Eun-ha approached Seo while she began saving her work.

"Did you want to eat in here? I can pick something up from nearby." She suggested.

"Um, Ms. Park?" Tae shyly tapped her on her shoulder.

"Yes?"

"We actually have food prepared in another office space. We would love for you to join us."

She looked over at Ho-seok, who joyfully nodded in agreement. Yoongi shrugged his shoulders, but had a small smile showing that he wasn't opposed to the invitation. She planned on politely turning down the offer, when Tae-hyung glanced at Eun-ha, "You can bring your friend, if that makes you more comfortable." She internally cringed. Eun-ha would kill her if she said no to this. She looked behind her, and sure enough, she gave her pleading eyes.

"Sure." She meekly agreed. Ho-seok, Tae-hyung and Eun-ha began walking to the door discussing the meal up ahead.

"Why do you look like you've just been given a death sentence?" Yoongi laughingly said as he walked with her to the door.

"I'm sorry if I offended you." She bowed in apology. She still had a job and didn't want to offend a client.

"I'm not offended. I understand your situation. Would it help ease your worries to know that Jin won't be there?"

"Oh..."

Yoongi wasn't sure if her response was disappointment or if she truly wasn't bothered. He tried to read her face, but she was not that easy to analyze. He couldn't control his friends from inviting her, but he tried to eliminate some of her anxiety. He hoped that she could relax and freely talk to them like she did during the photo session. He told himself that he was doing all of this because she was important to Jin. That he was trying to make her comfortable because she was also his friend. She looked up at him, and smiled, "Thanks for being a good friend, Yoongi."

He looked down at her grateful smile. His heart skipped a beat, and he blinked rapidly. He mentally cursed himself for losing his composure for a second. He hastily nodded his head in response and walked ahead of her towards Ho-seok and Tae-hyung. He assured himself that he was hungry and in a rush to get to the food, and NOT attempting to put distance between them for any particular reason.