hidden - jjk

Haeun

Meaning: Gift from God

___

The corner where the interview would be held was inspected by numerous staff members and bodyguards, they had metal detectors in their hands as the scanned the area. The walls of the hotel lounge were a boring shade of beige, a colourful carpet covered the floor and eight chairs were placed in the middle of the room. The elevator to the right of the chairs was locked, preventing any unwanted intruders from crashing the place.

In less than an hour, a variety of cameras were surrounding the chairs and all the staff members were waiting for the special guests to arrive. Seven boys entered as everyone sat on their assigned seats, their flashy outfits and colourful hair grabbing the attention of those in the room. The first to appear was the leader, Namjoon with Jhope then Jin and Yoongi walked in, they were followed by Jimin, Jungkook and Taehyung.

Behind the cameras stood a woman dressed in coral suit pants and a white top, her matching jacket was thrown on a nearby chair. The colour was bright enough for her to stand out, yet dull enough to blend in with the crowd. Haeun opted for comfortable white sneakers instead of high heels. Her round face was covered in natural makeup and her bangs covered her eyebrows. Her hazel eyes were observing every single thing in the room, from the seven boys being interviewed by an American reporter to the coffee cups that were on the wooden table waiting to be served. Haeun's lips were painted a couple of shades darker than her natural lip colour and a sweep of mascara curled her thick eyelashes. Fortunately for her, the interview seemed to be going well, the boys looked comfortable and the interviewer didn't ask any unnecessary questions.

"Cut, that's a wrap!" the American director cheered as he motioned for his team to pack their bags and make a place for the next camera team.

Everyone started moving, the assigned female staff rushed to the boys, fixing their makeup and hair and getting them ready for the next bunch of interviews, while another staff member handed them snacks to fill their hungry tummies.

Working for the currently most popular boy group was very challenging, the managers and security always had to be ready to jump in when needed, not being to relax for a second. A tired sigh escaped her lips as she looked through the schedule she was given, her hair was black but when she stepped into the light her black hair turned to a rich brown. Her manicured fingers traced the words on the paper as she hummed softly. Most of the interviews were almost done and Haeun smiled in relief, she was proud of herself for handling everything well, even though she was substituting the manager for the day. Haeun has been working for BigHit as the assistant of the manager for 4 years and today was the chance to prove herself.

After looking through the schedule planner, she strode to the middle of the room, grabbing the attention of the whole crew, her strong yet graceful posture radiating confidence. The employee card over her neck indicated that she was in charge.

"Listen, one interview was added just now, it's the last one so sit tight and if a question makes you uncomfortable then look at me and give me a sign, maybe clear your throat or touch your ear lobe, got it?"

"Left or right earlobe?" Taehyung questioned, Haeun rolled her eyes at him.

"It doesn't matter Taehyung, whatever you're comfortable with" she answered as she shot him a look, he just sent her a nod and returned to chatting with Jhope.

"Yoongi, nice choice of clothes. Is it the third time you appeared in it?" Haeun pointed at his FG shirt he's been wearing for the third day in a row.

"Why? I love this shirt and it's cleaner than your face", Yoongi childishly stuck his tongue out.

"Yeah, whatever", she rolled her eyes, too tired to argue with him.

"Manager, can I talk to you for a minute?" big eyes looked at her, waiting for her response. Haeun raised her eyebrow questioningly at him. "You sure it can't wait for later, Jungkook?" she asked. He shook his head with a smile, a hint of mischievousness in his eyes.

"The next interview will start in five minutes, so you better hurry up." Haeun tried to hide her smile as she motioned for him to follow her. Jungkook's eyes lit up as he jolted behind her, his long legs reaching her in less than two strides.

They walked with an acceptable distance between them, but as soon as they were out of sight Jungkook's hands reached for hers, intervening their fingers as they entered a storage room. The only source of light in the storage room came from a small window above them. It was the perfect place for the new couple to hide from unwanted attention.

"Finally, I have you for myself," Jungkook whispered, the sunlight shining on his square-shaped face, making his eyes sparkle. He leaned against the metallic table in the middle of the room and pulled Haeun to stand between his legs, drawing circles on her hand with his thumb. His coffee-coloured hair was parted in the middle and his curls turned a lighter shade under the sunlight.

His thin lips spread into a shy smile, revealing his bunny teeth. Jungkook had this shy look about him, like a teenager that matured faster than his friends, having the innocence of a child and the body of a bulky man made him irresistible for Haeun. He wore a black loose shirt that was tucked into a pair of jeans with a brown belt circling his waist.

"You've got less than four minutes," Haeun said in a teasing tone.

"Oh come on, cut me some slack. I haven't seen you for ages," he whined with furrowed eyebrows.

"Don't give me that look, we're here for work and I saw you like two hours ago Jungkook", she poked his nose and then the mole under his lip. Even though her voice was harsh, Jungkook knew from the softness in her eyes that her scolding was half-hearted.

"Two long hours with the members ordering me around". he huffed.

"Come on, you can't fool me. We both know that you don't listen to them", she narrowed her eyes at him making him laugh. His laugh rolled out of him like waves on a shallow beach and his nose scrunched up making him resemble a bunny.

"You know me too well", he snickered, pulling her into his embrace, breathing in her peach scent that he grew to love. Haeun wrapped her arms around his neck pulling him as close as possible, she rested her flushed cheeks on his shoulder.

Jungkook leaned back and stared at her, his earthy brown eyes meeting hers, sending shivers through her spine. One look from him made her heart flutter and the butterflies in her stomach go crazy. Her hands moved to his hair, twirling his dark locks between her fingers. She loved touching him – not in a sensual way, they didn't reach that level in their relationship, she loved caressing his face, caressing his hair and playing with his fingers. The warmth of his body radiating into her cold fingers comforted her.

"I have to admit, you looked hot today throwing instructions around, my baby became the boss", he admitted as he cupped her cheeks a little too tight for her liking.

"Jungkook, I'm only a substitute because Manager Sejin called sick today and if things go down the hill, he promised to have my head, now let's hurry back before the next interview starts", she whined at him through squished cheeks.

Jungkook nodded not releasing her from his grip, his eyes gazing at her lovingly, as if he feared to forget a single detail on her face. Her looks weren't anything special, yet he felt a magic force pull him to her always serious features. He loved running his fingers through her smooth black hair that cascaded over her face. The tip of her buttoned nose was decorated with a tiny mole and her cherry lips curved into a shy smile. He loved each one of her soft features. Haeun bit her lip, averting her eyes from his gaze and suddenly finding interest in the dusty grey tiles. Jungkook's eyes twinkled, fighting back a smile when her cheeks turned into soft crimson red.

Jungkook and Haeun returned to the set, in contrast to Jungkook's goofy smile Haeun face showed no emotions as she put on her work mask and went back to the corner she was standing in before. Jungkook plopped on his seat ignoring the teasing looks from the members. It was common knowledge that both of them were lovers. From their gazes that lingered on one another, to the shy grins that graced their lips. It was obvious, mostly from the way their voice became softer when they talked to each other and how they stood a little too close for friends, but no one dared to confront them, most of them decided on enjoying the spring breeze that came with this new couple.

"That was fast," Jimin commented while wiggling his eyebrows, Jungkook just smirked back at him, which caused an uproar between the members.

There was a new camera team positioned and ready to start filming. A familiar man was sitting in the middle, not understanding the boys chatting in their native language, but he noticed the subtle glances Jungkook threw at Haeun. Throughout the interview, Jungkook's eyes followed her every move. Haeun glared at him a couple of times, mouthing to him to focus on the interview, but he just shrugged and kept staring at her. This interaction was noticed by the interviewer, who had an evil grin on his face, ready to expose them.

Haeun gave up on getting her boyfriend to focus and went back to her work, she walked around making sure that the preparations for the next schedule were moving smoothly, after that she strode towards the security guards informing them about the next schedule. Jungkook was fascinated by his girlfriend, just minutes ago she was the cutest bubble of sunshine but now her posture was screaming professionalism. When he first met her, he didn't know that under all that serious and constant calm exterior lays a girl full of cuteness and humour. The moment she started working she would turn into a completely different person, her big round eyes would turn smaller concentrating on every task coming her way. Haeun was one year younger than him, but she had a mature demeanour.

"Moving into the next question, knowing that you're too busy to date, have you ever hooked up with someone for the sake of doing it?" The interviewer questioned as he looked at Jungkook, who didn't notice it since he was busy observing his girlfriend.

Namjoon shifted in his seat, looking for Haeun with his eyes as he scratched his left earlobe, but she was nowhere in sight.

A heavy silence settled over them, thicker than the morning fog on a cold day. Jin glanced at Namjoon, wondering why he didn't translate the question. Yoongi shifted in his seat uncomfortably, understanding the question without Namjoon's translation, he scratched his neck in discomfort.

Normally, Namjoon would just claim that the connection was bad and move on to the next question, but unfortunately, this excuse was useless here. Jungkook noticed the silence and snapped out of his thoughts looking at his members in confusion, but he decided to stay silent.

"Mr Brown, please refrain from such questions", a staff member warned.

"Oh, come on, we're men and we have to release our stress one way, or another am I right boys? Now tell me, do you hook up with prostitutes or with a random girl in the club or does your management arrange these things for you?" he pressed further trying to get them to answer.

"Mr Brown, this is the last warning" the same staff member repeated in an angrier tone and the security guards that were standing on the side walked closer, waiting for a sign to interfere.

"Okay, okay. I'll rephrase my question. When was the last time you guys got laid?" the interviewer provoked with curious eyes.

An intern rushed through the crowd trying to bring Haeun's attention to the situation, she ran across the lobby and sighed in relief when she spotted Haeun talking to the hotel manager.

She dragged her tired feet to Haeun and poked her softly.

Haeun looked up to meet the nervous eyes of a petite girl, hair curly hair tied into a messy bun and she had glasses that covered half of her face. "Yes, Mina, how can I help you?" Haeun glanced at the employee card to recall her name.

"Boss this interviewer asked a question that wasn't approved by Bighit and Namjoon touched his earlobe three times." Mina rambled as she gave Haeun his business card.

"What was the question?" she asked as she inspected the business card of the interviewer.

Mina was hesitant to tell her, scared of her reaction, but when Haeun glanced at her questionably she leaned closer and whispered in her ear.

Haeun blank expression was replaced with a scowl as she stood up, dusting her pants off and throwing her blazer over her shoulders, ready to give the interviewer a piece of her mind.

"Wasn't he that interviewer that was warned last time? Mr Brown, right?", she glanced at the intern as she made her walked through the countless number of people.

"Yes boss, last time he asked BTS an inappropriate question and was sent off with a warning", she quickened her steps trying to catch up with Haeun's fast ones.

"I told them that this interviewer was bad news, if they just listened to me then we wouldn't have to deal with this mess", Haeun grumbled under her breath.

"Add his name to our blacklist", she instructed Mina, then walked to stand in front of the camera.

"Okay boys, the interview is over. Let's get you back to your rooms" she announced as she clapped her hands ushering everyone to move. The boys moved without questioning her actions, slightly relieved to be freed from the tortuous interview.

"The interview is not over! Who do you think you are to interject?" The interviewer snapped, Haeun mentally scoffed at his rude tone.

"Mr Brown, was it? My name is Lee Haeun and I'm the manager of BTS", she introduced herself with a smile, but her eyes showed no hint of kindness. "I regret to inform you that you broke one of our rules, and according to the contract you signed we have the right to end this interview, now if you'll excuse us", she bowed slightly then turned to the staff members.

"Ladies and gentlemen, since we finished earlier than expected I ask all of you to go up to your assigned rooms and rest. We'll meet here in two hours for our next schedule."

She then started walking towards the hallway. Haeun felt a hand grab her wrist harshly, turning her forcefully around and causing her to be slightly unsteady on her feet. She raised her head and stared at the offending interviewer.

"Sir, I advise you to withdraw your hand, or else I would be forced to sue you for violence", her calm and lukewarm voice although quiet, radiated throughout the hall.

Mr Brown flinched slightly as he glanced down at the young woman who suddenly released an oppressive aura that crashed down on him, forcing him to almost instinctively step back.

He gulped and his eyes shook. The pressure he was feeling was overwhelming.

"Mr Brown", her cold indifferent voice snapped him out of his prior trace.

His eyes enlarged in shock. 'What the… was I just intimidated by this little girl…?' He sneered, refusing to believe what he had just experienced as he quickly composed himself and covered his momentary stun with a disdainful chuckle.

"What got you so riled up? It's not like it really happened?"

Haeun's eyes flashed with a cold light. She will not allow this degrade under any circumstances to ruin her boy's reputation. The security guards rushed to stop the scene but Haeun held up her free hand as she glanced at them, assuring them that she'd be fine and that everything is under her control.

Ignoring the surrounding commotion, the interviewer continued to stare down at the shorter lady in front of him, his previous fear forgotten.

"Or did it?", Mr Brown asked with an ominous smirk tightening his grip around her pale wrist.

"I'd love to satisfy your curiosity, but unfortunately I have duties to tend to, so if you would excuse me", she forced her wrist out of his grip, massaging the dull ache and motioned for the security.

"Please, show this gentleman and his team the way out."

The security reacted swiftly and escorted him and his team roughly to the exist.

In under half an hour the lobby was empty again, Haeun sighed, fortunately, nothing excessive happened and it all ended well, kind of. She fixed her sleeves, noticing that the redness of her wrist and ache gone. She made sure everything is in place before making her way to her room that was located on the same floor as the BTS members.

She could feel her mask slowly dissolve as she sat down on her bed. A tired sigh escaped her lips as she was exhausted, but she still had so much to do. There was a knock on the door, but she was too tired to face anyone.

"Haeun, it's me, Jungkook. I bought you some tea." Jungkook called.

Haeun rushed to the mirror to readjust her ponytail and apply a swipe of lipstick on her lips.

She opened the door to meet a smiling Jungkook, his huge hands were holding a small pink mug as he entered her room.

His smile was contagious and before she knew it, she had the same goofy smile on her lips.

She took the mug from his hands and brought it closer to her lips, sipping the tea carefully. Haeun closed her eyes as the warmth of the warm drink sent a pleasing shiver through her body, relaxing all her tense muscle with every sip.

She watched Jungkook as he talked about the new video game he bought. At moments like this she forgot that he was a worldwide star, he seemed like an ordinary man in his twenties and she loved those moments when he showed her his true self.

"Are you listening?" Jungkook asked, snapping her back into reality.

"Yeah, I am" she lied, Jungkook smiled and continued rambling about his game, moving his hands in excitement. Haeun continued staring at him, her brain not registering a single word he's saying.

'To hear his voice, I could give up sleep anytime.'

[Edited: 17/10/2019]