11 Stand Still

"Good morning," the receptionist greeted as Eun-ha headed to her office. She spent the remainder of her weekend shaking off the events of the wedding. Keeping herself busy with household chores, and laundry, she hoped to clear her mind of what had transpired. After cleaning her small apartment, twice, she had no other option but to take a seat.

Yoongi hadn't contacted her which she was grateful for. She didn't know what she would say to him, and she wasn't sure if she was ready to see him when they had to return to work. She didn't see any other options, other than requesting be assigned to a new idol. She figured that she could state that they had different view and goals therefore could not find common ground. Everyone was witness to previous disagreements, and aware that they did not get along in the past, so she felt that this was the best route.

Finding Yoongi a manager that would place his needs first, and share his vision was her top priority. Before officially taking a step back from being his manager, she would find someone that matched him professionally. Having set her mind to this new plan, she entered the building in attention mode. Setting out on a mission.

She greeted others with a stiff smile in place. She continued to pep-talk herself the entire way to her studio office. 'This is what's best for both our careers. Just find a new manager, and distance yourself.'

"I didn't think you were going to come in."

Yoongi, lounging in her office chair, was quite a sight to take in. He grinned at her, revealing his gums slightly. She felt her breath catch at his trademark smile. His hair was messy as usual, but he was dressed impeccably well. She frowned to herself as her thoughts continued to draw to how handsome he looked.

"What are you doing in here?" she said, a little harsher than she had intended. Her frown deepened at her inability to control her emotions.

As if knowing what was going through her mind, his smile widened. He spent his weekend devising ways to keep her around him. He knew that she was going to attempt to escape what she felt was an impossible situation. It had taken him a couple months to realize that he had feeling for her that were stronger than friendship. At some point all the bickering was no longer filled with hostility.

He couldn't pin-point when he began looking forward to teasing her. Perhaps it had been before he left to serve his time in military. Their last argument before he departed had left him unnerved. She had called him out, accusing him of feeling guilty towards Jin for harboring feelings towards Seo-yeon. He had been over what was nothing more than a brief infatuation at that point. Eun-ha often teased him about it, but for some reason it had irritated him that day. As he glared down at her face, somewhere in his subconscious, he took note of how beautiful the "brat" was.

"You know, I hate to admit it, but I've missed that tone," he smirked as he approached her.

"Tone? What tone?" she denied as she stepped back.

He chuckled as she continued to avoid his approaching steps. She stopped when her bottom met the edge of one of her small shelfs. Yoongi stood a few inches away from invading her personal space. All he had to do was stretch his arms out to bring them closer.

"I contacted Manager Sejin and will meet with him later," she firmly stated. She held his stare as if trying to convey her position in this matter. "I'll work out a plan with him on finding you a new manager. I'm sure Mr. Bang will understand. Maybe Sejin and I can swap temporarily."

"Swap?" he muttered.

"Yes. Sejin has experience working with you and would require very little transition. Of course, once we find you a manager, he would go back to Jungkook, and I would find another idol to represent."

"You've put a lot of thought into this."

"Of course I did. I wouldn't leave you without a manager. Now, I'm hoping that we can find someone fast so that we don't hinder anyone's work flow."

"What about me?" he argued. He gently grasped both of her shoulders. "What about what I want? What if I'm against this?"

"What you want is noted. When I was first placed as your manager, you clearly stated that you wished to have someone that was professional enough to keep their personal life from interfering with work. I will make sure to find you someone who can do that."

His grip on her shoulders tightened but not remained gentle. 'Damn, she's dead set on putting distance.'

Shrugging his hands off her, she walked away and rounded her desk, taking a seat. He followed her every move.

"Eun-ha, you don't have to do this," he leaned over her desk, face inches away from hers. "I don't want anyone else to represent me."

"Be reasonable, Yoongi," she snapped, eyes never faltering. "How can I be your manager after what happened? Things can't go back to normal."

"I don't care for normal!" he rounded the desk, and pulled her out of her seat. "You have always been professional, even when we didn't see eye to eye. You have also not let our friendship affect work. Why do you believe that anything would be different because of a kiss?"

"Because it wasn't just a kiss!"

They stared into each other's eyes. Each shaken by her statement. Yoongi knew that the kiss meant more to him than a simple gesture, but he couldn't say the same for her. Hearing her words now shook him to his core.

"Please," she sighed, "How can I manage you..."

"Like you always have," he cut her off, "Your biggest concern is that our feelings for each other will be found out and ruin our careers. You worry that you'll be view harshly. I understand that. But I'm not an idol anymore. I'm not confined to a no dating rule. I'm doing what I've always wanted, producing."

"And I don't want to ruin that for you," she pleaded. He pulled her closer, feeling her resistance fading. He wished he could guarantee that this would not blow up in their faces, but he knew he couldn't make such promises. They were witnesses to the scandal that followed Jin and Seo. They were aware of what could happen if the media found out. Although he wasn't an idol anymore, he was still loved by many.

"We just witnessed two people marry that are in the entertainment business. They proved that you can have love and maintain your career. How can we give up before we even try?"

He leaned forward. She closed her eyes as feeling his lips lightly touch hers. He merely brushed his lips against hers, but she could feel it all over her body. She opened her eyes to meet his passion-filled ones. One of his hands gently pulled her face towards his for another kiss.

The door sprang open, and a breathless Jungkook rushed in. They pulled from their embrace, but his wide-eyed stare was evidence that he had seen more than enough. Eun-ha's face flushed in embarrassment, and Yoongi scowled at having been interrupted. Jungkook cleared his throat, mostly to mask his shock.

"Don't you knock, Kook?" Yoongi chided.

"Forget knocking," he quipped, "What did I just witness?"

"Nothing," Yoongi firmly said. Jungkook caught the pleading in his eyes, and understood that he wanted to spare Eun-ha further humiliation.

"What are you doing here so early?" Eun-ha said attempting to deter the conversation to anything but what had just occurred.

"Oh right!" he pulled out his phone and passed it to Yoongi. The pair gathered to view what had brought the younger man over.

Plastered on a gossip website, and trending online, was a picture of Yoongi and Lovee from the parking lot. Some one from the press had captured a picture of Lovee clinging onto his arm the night of the wedding. To others it looked like an affectionate couple.

"What the hell is this?" Yoongi growled.

"Apparently, the press is saying that you two have developed feelings while producing her next album. I went to your studio to tell you, but you weren't there. I came here to tell noona since she's your manager."

"This is ridiculous. We are not secretly dating. I can barely stand her."

Yoongi and Jungkook stood unsure what the next step they needed to take regarding a dating scandal. Jungkook at first was surprised that his hyung could possibly be interested in the younger woman. He was aware of he infatuation with him and how irritated it made Yoongi feel.

A small part of him thought the news was real, until he walked into the office to witness their passionate embrace. Now all he could think about was how this would affect whatever was going on between them. He loved Yoongi as a friend and older brother. He respected Eun-ha, and liked her as a friend and sister. The idea of them becoming a couple was strange, but in an exciting way.

Eun-ha pulled out her phone to place a call. Pushing aside feelings and everything that was still unspoken, she instantly switched to manager mode. The phone rang once before being answered. "Manager Ji-hoon, we need to meet."