Hooked | JJK | Fifteen

 Pair: UndergroundFighter!Jungkook x f!reader 

Summary: Walking away from your brother was never what you intended, you just wanted to run from the ghosts of your past. But now you’re back home and ready to pick things up from where you left off. If only things could be that easy, right? 

There’s a new guy living in your house, your brother’s best friend, someone you can’t help but grow close to. And the more you find out about him, the more you learn about yourself. An underground fight club, a newspaper competition, an overprotective brother and secrets you can’t seem to escape from. Did you make the right decision by coming back? Or did you just put yourself and those you love in danger? 

Genre: Series, fluff, smut, angst. All the aus: non-idol, underground fighter, brother’s best friend, roommates, rap-scene, chaebol. 

Chapter warning: Plot is plotting SO HARD. Brace yourselves! 

WC: 6.3k

JULY 11TH | 12:44

You couldn’t remember the last time you shared a homemade meal with your brother, just the two of you. And given that you didn’t really know how he would react once you and Guk told him about your new-almost-relationship, you felt like you wanted to soak in the little moments with your brother, just in case he closed in on himself. 

You didn’t think that telling him would go terribly wrong at all, and you held Angel’s words to your heart; when Namjoon realized that it was his best friend, a genuinely good guy, he would be happy for you. Relieved, even. 

Still, it couldn’t hurt to butter him up and be on his good side in preparation for The Talk. 

That’s what had you cooking your best creamy Shin Ramyun recipe, complete with soft boiled eggs and fried Spam. You served the lunch in two bowls and topped them off with thinly chopped coriander. 

You didn’t need to ask Namjoon where he was, knowing your brother enough to be able to tell that he’d spend every free time he had in the studio. Being at the festival, headlining and watching other artists perform, was inspiring to say the least. 

Bam had stayed with you the whole time as you cooked, keeping you company when his dad was nowhere to be seen, and followed you to the backyard. That’s when you parted ways, as the dog returned to his kennel out of his own accord, and you headed over to RKIVE. 

Holding the bowls and chopsticks in each hand, you couldn’t type in the pin code that would unlock the door of the studio, so you resorted to hitting the wood with your knee to alert Namjoon of your visit. 

A few moments later he was opening the door while holding his phone to his ear. Namjoon looked at you with surprise, then he saw the food and smiled with a dimple on his cheek. 

“Yeah, bet.” Namjoon was still speaking to the person on the phone, laughing at something they said. He opened the door wider, letting you inside. 

You left your slippers at the door and stepped in, putting both bowls of food on the small center table. Namjoon went back to his big producer chair and sat down, still facing you instead of his monitors or equipment, which you took as a win. He then pointed to the mini fridge in the corner as if to say ‘get something to drink with the meal’. 

Lost in the middle of endless energy drinks you found two cans of Sprite, bringing those back with you when you sat on the couch to wait for your sibling to be done.  

“No, I think it’s gonna be really sick.” he carried on with the call. “Alright, take a look at it and tell me what you think. Sounds good, yeah, I’m here anytime. Kay, talk later.”

As soon as the call was over, Namjoon left the phone on the desk and wheeled his way over to you. He almost bumped his knee against the center table in the process, making you laugh. 

“This looks amazing, dove.” he smiled unceremoniously, helping himself to one of the bowls. “I was really starving.” 

“I imagined you weren’t planning on leaving the studio to eat, so I came to your rescue.” you shook your head, getting your own chopsticks to break the egg yolk and mix it in with the noodles. “So, that was new.”

“What? I talk on the phone all the time.” Namjoon scrunched his face, mouth full of ramyun. 

“Mhmmm, you're usually not smiling like that, though.” you waved your chopsticks in the air as if to deny it. “More like… brooding.” 

“If you say so.” he dismissed with a lighthearted laugh. 

And you were offended. “Are you really not going to tell me?” 

“You never tell me anything.” your sibling countered with a shrug, but you could tell he was having fun with this.  

“So it’s a girl.” you guessed, chewing before adding: “Is it the edgy singer? What's her name? Soyoon?”

Namjoon went absolutely red in the face, caught in the act. You gasped and coughed in surprise, opening your can of soda to help wash down the last bite. 

“We were talking about business.” Namjoon said before you could get any more ideas. 

“Is that what the kids are calling it these days?”

“Shut up, I'm serious.” his eyes were rolling, but he couldn’t hide the smile behind his hand for too long. “She wants to do a collab.” 

“Oppa, that’s incredible.” you chirped, holding the boiled egg white with your chopsticks as you said: “And it doesn't hurt that she's so cute huh?”

“Stop it.” he groaned, shoving more noodles into his mouth than he could handle. 

You laughed, taking a bite of the egg and dropping the other half back in the bowl. “No can do, big guy, not after all you make me go through.” 

“First of all this is not the same.” 

“Oh, don't you dare double standard me.” you warned, but he shook his head.  

“I'm not. But for starters I'm not hiding anything.” he sent you a look, but before he could get into it, you said: 

“I won't be hiding for long.” 

“So you admit.” it was Namjoon’s chance to turn it on you. 

“I admit I haven't told you much about this person in my life, but I want to.” you compromised, trying to keep this conversation light.  “We’ll do this on my time, okay? Can you trust me?”

“I do trust you.”

You could tell that Namjoon wanted to say something else after that, maybe argue that he was only looking out for you, that it was brotherly concern and interest. But you knew all that already, so you were glad when he let it go. 

His giving up allowed you to ask:

“So tell me about this collaboration?” 

“Soyoon has a song already, that she never released because she thinks that something is missing from it.” Namjoon started to explain and you were hanging on every word. It felt like you hadn't hung out like this since before you left.

“She thinks you’re what is missing in her life?” you gushed, holding your heart.  

“So she sent it to me for a listen and I sent back a few verses to see what she thinks.” he ignored you. “She just called me because she was surprised I replied that fast.” 

“How long did it take you to write the verses you sent?” 

“An hour, give or take.” your brother gestured as if it was no big deal. 

“Damn, Joon! And they say Yoongi is the genius.” you praised, making him laugh.  

“If she likes it, I think it would be fun to record it. She talked about a music video and everything.”

“Is she from Seoul?” you wondered. 

It would be good for Namjoon to change his scenery a bit. He obviously had good chemistry with this girl, if she was caught sneaking out of his bedroom in Jeju and they were already talking about another type of collab.  

“Incheon.” he told you, which wasn’t half as bad, just a little over an hour away. “Depending on what she thinks about the verses, I might go there this week to record.”

You didn’t miss your chance: “Remember to pack a toothbrush.” 

“Trying to get me out of the house?” his eyes were squinting, but you could tell it was just a joke.  

“Trying to see you happy.” you corrected, eating the last bite of your noodles. “And don’t forget I’m the one who told you to go talk to her, back at the festival.”

“That you did.” Namjoon was staring at your empty bowl, you could tell he was grateful in his own ways.  

“So you better name your first born after me.” 

“Okay, are you done?” your brother deadpanned, making you laugh. He offered his empty bowl, saying: “You’re starting to annoy me.”

“Yeah yeah, I’ll leave.” you huffed, playfully, balancing one bowl on top of the other, holding thedirty chopsticks with your thumb and your still full can of sprite with your other hand. “Just so you can call your girlfriend again.”

“Aish–”

Namjoon got up from his chair to open the studio door for you to leave, politely waiting for you to put your slippers back on. 

“Oh, I have to work tonight, so I won’t be here to feed you.” you told him on your way out. “So please come out at some point.” 

“I promise.” his smile was genuine, just as his nod. “Thanks, dove.”

You raised the can as if sending him a cheer. 

Namjoon closed the door behind you and you walked back to the house, whistling so that Bam would join you again. The big dog wasted no time to leave his unlocked kennel and follow after you. His legs were long and his tail was wagging like a whip, hitting you on the thigh once he passed by you to reach the house first. 

“Wait for me, you big baby.” 

As if he could understand you, Bam looked back and waited for you to catch up. He walked next to you all the way to the kitchen, where you placed the bowls next to the dirty pans in the sink to wash. As you heard his big gulps from drinking water from his fountain, you felt your phone buzz on the back pocket of your pants. 

Incoming call: Unknown number. 

“Hello?” you answered.  

“Good afternoon, my name is Gim Sora, I'm calling for a, uh... K.Y.” the caller spoke formally, surprising you when you heard your initials called like that. “Is this a good number to reach them?”

“Yes, this is her speaking.” you nodded to nothing in particular, resting your back against the counter. “May I ask what this is about?”

“Amazing! Of course, I'm from the Seoul Chronicles and I’m calling on behalf of Mr. Jeong Baek.” the woman provided and even though you’ve never heard the man’s name before, you knew the Seoul Chronicles all too well. “Mr. Baek has requested to set up a meeting with you, at your earliest convenience.”

“What would the meeting be regarding?”

“Unfortunately Mr. Baek didn’t give me that information, he simply asked me to contact you.” Sora sounded apologetic, but you guessed she was just a staff member to actually know much more than what she was saying. “I believe you entered our newspaper contest about a feature article? That's how we got your number.”

“Yes, I am aware of that.” your tummy was squirming with butterflies and a certain level of anxiety that was uncomfortable. “Whenever would Mr. Baek be able to meet?”

“Can I put you down for today at 15h?” 

“That works for me.” you agreed, looking at the clock on the microwave to calculate how much time you’d have to get ready. 

“Perfect, I'll text you the address of our office on this number, would that be okay? We look forward to seeing you!” the woman was chirpy and friendly, typing something out on her end of the line.

“Thank you, bye-bye”

Well. 

Fuck. 

JULY 11TH | 15:00

The Seoul Chronicles was located in the middle of the Sangamsan district, inside an office building that had mirrored walls and stood tall and imponent. The headquarters of the newspaper took the last three floors of the thirty-two story building. 

Following the text message you received from Sora, you arrived at the last floor with some time to spare. 

The office space was open, with several working bays and smaller offices, food to ceiling glass walls and smaller meeting rooms. The space was noisy, like it was to be expected from a newspaper; printers working over time, people throwing ideas off each other, phone calls hoping to catch the newest breaks. 

It was exciting and lively and so much better than your family company’s boring office where people got told off for having conversations. 

“Mr. Baek will be right with you, please feel free to wait inside.” 

At three o’clock on the dot, Sora –Mr. Baek’s personal assistant– was allowing you into the empty office of her boss. She left you alone in the room after a small bow and you couldn’t help but look around in awe. 

The main desk was imponent, made out of thick, glossy wood, littered in neat piles of paper and trinkets. The table name plate read ‘Jeong Baek - Chief Editor’ and the wall behind the desk was covered in framed prints with all kinds of incredible headlines that were likely under this man’s belt. 

The glass wall that faced the outside carried a beautiful view of the Namsan Tower in the distance and of the Seoul districts from high up. It was breathtaking, making you wonder just exactly what you were doing here. 

On the reflection of the glass, you smoothed out your black and white, tweed matching set composed by a skirt and blazer. You felt too preppy in the vintage Chanel that could have belonged to your mother, but when you didn’t know why you had been called to this meeting, it was better to dress to impress than to disappoint. 

“Beautiful view, isn’t it?” the new voice had you turning around. Mr. Baek was tall and slightly buff, a receding hairline and pearly white teeth as he smiled while offering his hand for you to shake. “It’s so nice to finally put a face to the pseudonym, miss…”

“Kim Yn.” you accepted the hand shake and bowed in respect. “It's nice to meet you, Mr. Baek.”

“Please, have a seat.” he offered you one of the two armchairs facing the desk, walking to the hidden cabinet on the wall to show the selection of drinks stashed. “Can I get you anything? Water, coffee?” 

“I'll have a bottle of water, thank you.”

You could already feel your throat get a little dry, thankful for the cold glass bottle. As Mr. Baek took his time sitting down and folding the sleeves of his shirt up to his elbow, you opened the bottle and took a long sip. 

“You must be wondering why I asked to see you.” he started as you swallowed. 

“I Imagine this has to do with the contest?” you guessed, closing the cap on the bottle and placing it on top of the coaster in front of you.  

“I'm a way.” Mr. Baek opened a manila folder that was sitting at his desk, pulling out a printed stack of papers. Pushing it your way, he asked: “You wrote this, correct?” 

After a quick glance you could recognize your words on the paper, the article you’ve written into the contest that you sent in last saturday. 

“Yes, sir.”

“While it was a very entertaining read, our contest rules stated that every article submitted should be veridical.” Mr. Baek got the copy of the article back after you were done looking at it.

“I am aware of that.” you nodded, eyebrows twitching as you wondered if you were called here just to be told off about breaking a rule. 

“I was, however, quite impressed by your writing skills, this is a fascinating story.” he praised, going a completely different direction than you expected. “All of the elements you used, the metaphors... Idols portrayed as champions in an illegal fight club? Delicious.” 

Your neck was flushing from the compliments. “Thank you–”

“The thing is,” the man started again and his next words felt like a drop sinking in your stomach. “I do not believe this to be a fictional story at all.”

“I’m sorry?” your mouth felt like sand again.  

“I've heard about The Circle before, miss Yn.” he was watching you intently, noticing the recognition in your eyes. “That's the real name isn't it? Not, how did you call it? The Hole.”  

“How do you…” 

“We caught wind of this a few years ago. We already know it exists.” Mr. Baek said as you tried to make sense of his words. He held your article in his hands, a smile pulling at the corner of his lips. “But this... You added so many new details that we never even dreamed of knowing. The kind of thing only someone with connections to the inside would be able to obtain.”

“If that's what you think, sir.” you tried to remain passive, as much as you could. 

You didn’t know what else this man knew, you didn’t know if you could trust him. So far, he already knew more than you and that was an unnerving feeling in itself.  

“I think you got scared. I think you started writing this and changed your mind, deciding to submit it as a piece of fiction.” his guess was so spot on that it had you reaching for the water again. “That's why I invited you here.” 

But you were good at guessing too. “You are interested in that story.”

“I am fascinated by that story.” he corrected. “But I am interested in you. Joining our team.” 

“Joining…”

Mr. Baek leaned forward, but his shoulders were lowered, so it made him feel a little less intimidating than his size should make him. His smile was also genuinely excited, as if he was about to tell you a great idea. 

“We want to get this story out there. This has the potential to make international news, it would be the exposé of the century!” the man exclaimed, surprising you when he added: “We already have a group here, they’ve been working on this for years. And I believe that with you on that team, we’ll finally be able to do that.” 

Your mind was swimming with all of the information the editor was laying on you, trying to make sense of the fact that a considerably big and respected news outlet knew about The Circle. You couldn’t tell exactly what they knew previously to your article, but you did a pretty good job of explaining it from your point of view. 

So if he connected the dots, you could guess he –and this team of journalists– had a pretty good grasp as to what went on in the Itaewon undergrounds. 

“I don't know how you got this information and I'm not interested in finding out, for the sake of confidentiality.” Mr. Baek started again, bringing his pointer finger to his lips as if promising to keep your secret. “But I also  believe that there's more from where all this came from. There is a deeper story to be told, one we have been trying to break through for years. And I think you might be the key to bring this to light.”

For the first time since you sat down you felt like you had any kind of leverage in this subject. You had the rest of the information, you had the proof, you had the way in. Mr. Baek admitted several times that he couldn’t release any articles about the Circle without you. 

And while he kept thinking this way, you had something to work with. 

“You see, I could just offer to buy the story from you.” 

You shook your head. “Money is not of interest to me.” 

“I know it's not. Someone who writes a piece like this... You want to tell stories and you want to be heard.” Mr. Baek said with a cheshire smile. “We think the same way here. This could be your way into our team, but I don’t think it would be the last thing you can come up with.” 

“What are you saying?” you wanted to at least hear him out, you made it this far.  

“I’m saying this wouldn’t be a one time thing. We want to hire you as part of our dream team.” he offered and part of you wanted to say yes on the spot. You held your impulses, however, for the sake of your sanity. “Have you heard of the Burning Sun scandal?” 

“Of course I have, everyone has.”

The Burning Sun was a very elite nightclub in Seoul, frequented by celebrities, actors, and politicians. The scandal broke out in 2019, when word got out regarding everything that went on inside the nightclub; multiple cases of assault against women, distribution of illegally-obtained video clips that documented horrible scenes done by several rich and influential South Korean men. Which included K-pop idols and actors, like BigBang’s Seungri. 

The scandal changed South Korea and it’s all everyone talked about for many years. 

“It was our team that exposed them.” Mr. Baek told you, and you couldn’t help the feeling of respect that washed over you. “The same team I want you to join.”

“If I were to accept, what happens to the people from the Circle?” you heard yourself asking. “This isn’t like the Burning Sun, no one is being exploited, no one is being drugged or kept there against their will.”

“No real names need to be used and I’m not interested in the workers. You can remain anonymous too, no one will know where any of this came from.” he assured you, and you desperately wanted to believe him. “I am prepared to draw a five year contract, just so you know you’ll have a long term spot here.” 

This sounded too good to be true, in every sense. But you still could see things from his perspective. You had valuable intel, you had everything he ever needed to be able to release something akin to Burning Sun 2.0. And Mr. Baek read your article, he was impressed enough to look for you and set up this meeting. 

Even if it was all a lie and he only wanted you because of what you knew, you weren’t scared to work hard to earn your stripes, to start from the bottom and earn the “team” respect. You only needed a chance. 

And that’s what he was offering you. 

“Do I need to answer right now?” you were in no state to accept nor decline. You needed to sit on this, you needed to talk to someone. And you knew exactly who would listen to you. 

“No, not at all. You’re free to go and think about it and call me when you’ve made a decision.” Mr. Baek wasn’t pressuring you, which was a good sign. He opened up a drawer to pick up a piece of paper and wrote something down rushedly. “This is my personal number and you can call me at any time you want.”

JULY 11TH | 18:28

You didn’t think you had ever been to the Circle this early ever since you learned about its existence. You didn’t even know if it opened that early in the first place. But, according to Jeongguk, it was a special occasion. 

You found him and all of the fighters in the ring floor of the fight-club, all dressed in normal gym clothes, as well as some guys you’ve never seen around before. They looked like professional fighters, the real kind, not the flashy, pretty boys you saw every night. 

One older man had a piece missing on his right ear. 

You sneaked in quietly, trying to stay out of the way as you approached Jeongguk. He was talking to a guy named Seo-joon that only came to the circle sporadically as his main job kept pretty busy. 

“Hey, guys.” you greeted both men, but Jeonggul had the horrible habit of being blinded to his surroundings when you were near. 

Not that you minded when he turned his back on Seo-joon, the taller man was already used to it and laughed while walking away. 

“You look fancy.” Jeongguk noted your clothes, clearly not used to you wearing things like this around him. You weren’t used to wearing this at all. “Where did you come from?” 

“I was in a meeting.” you spoke quietly, so only he would hear. “I’ll tell you all about it later, okay?” 

And you meant it, too. You’ve kept this from him for long enough. It was about time you started cutting back on everything you’ve been hiding or lying about. 

“I like your hair.” you smiled, letting his presence soothe you, mind quieting now that you were near him. “I’m glad you didn’t cut much of it.” 

“I know better, you’d kick me out of the house if I had.” he chuckled, caressing the side of your face. 

“You’d still look handsome even if you were bald.” you pointed out, watching his bunny smile form. “But don’t get any ideas, just in case.” 

That made him laugh and you wanted to put the sound in a bottle and carry it around in your pocket forever. Jeongguk was wearing a black tank top that showed off his muscles and cinched his waist, good enough to eat. You were ogling him up and down when his name was called out. 

“Come on, Jeon, you’re with me.” it was the same guy missing an ear that called to him, but you held Jeongguk by the arm, suddenly worried about what was about to happen. 

“We’re just practicing, I promise.” Jeongguk hurried to assure you. “That’s coach Tommy, he’s our boxing teacher.” 

“Oh, okay.” you gave his arm a little pat, feeling better once he explained. “Yeah, go.” 

“Watch me, okay?” he grinned boyishly, stealing a kiss from your lips before running off. 

Other three fighters and their coaches were on the fighting ring, which was completely covered by a gym mat for easier practicing. You watched as Jeongguk wrapped his hands with a white tape and started to jump to warm up. Coach Tommy had boxing pads on both hands as he got into position. 

Oh.

Shit. 

Fuck. 

Jeongguk started to hit the pads in quick succession, punching it with grunts as the coach moved around and tried to hit him back, but the boy ducked and launched with powerful moves. His footwork was quick and agile, backing down when the coach advanced and lunging for the older, bigger man when he had an opening. 

This, you realized, was a real fight. 

Not the kind that would end up with a win or a loss, but Jeongguk was actually calculating his hits and using his real force. Unlike the fights in the circle, those were meant for entertainment only, well rehearsed like choreography. 

His grunts were growing in volume the more he got into it, his muscles were bulging with each punch. You had never seen Jeongguk like this and, for his opponent’s sake, you wished you never would. 

Tommy was a professional boxing coach and his scars told you that he was probably a professional fighter back in the day. And he still couldn’t surprise Jeongguk, going as far as wobbling backwards whenever Guk advanced too fast. 

It was beautiful to watch and had you feeling all types of way when his tight tank started to ride up to reveal golden, sweaty skin. 

“Dove, you have a little drool right there–” Mingyu was standing next to you and you had no idea when he joined you. 

On instinct, you touched your lips to find them dry and the boy started to laugh at your expenses, making you groan and try to push him off. It only made Mingyu snicker harder, especially when your efforts didn’t even sway him. 

“My man is fucking hot, okay, I’ll drool over him if I want to.” you told Mingyu so, crossing your arms. If you could be entitled about anything, it was about this. 

“Yeah, yeah, just wait until you see me.” he winked, but you knew it was only playfulness. 

Mingyu was a big baby, someone who had the body of a God and the size of a giant, but he was also whiny and cute. He kinda reminded you a little of Jeongguk, but amplified a few times. Which explained why they got along so well. 

“Hey, Mingoo.” you started, receiving a sideway look that told you he already knew you wanted something when you used that nickname. “How long have you been part of the Circle?” 

“Ah, too long. Seven years, I think?” he answered easily, eyes going back to the training happening in front of you. 

“Wow, that's a long time.” you didn’t even know this existed for so long.  

“Once you're in, it's hard to leave.” he shrugged, easily keeping up the conversation. “I could if I wanted to, but I love this place and the money is good.” 

“I definitely get it.” more than you  ever thought you would.  

“You adapted well.” 

Mingyu looked at you with a smile that made him feel like an older brother. And then you remembered your actual brother and how Namjoon had no idea what you were doing, or how you had a whole new group of friends he’d never guess. You had to swallow the lump from the realization that you were living a double life right now, and Namjoon would completely freak out if he found out.

What hurt even more is that, if Namjoon had the capacity of listening to your side of things, you’d be able to tell him. You wanted nothing more than to be honest. But, right now, for the sake of your brother-sister relationship and his mental health, it was better if he didn’t know. 

Trying to steer the conversation to safer waters, you asked:

“Since you've been here for so long, you must know about what happened, right?” 

Ever since leaving the Seoul Chronicles’ office, you couldn’t help feeling a little bugged about something that Taehyung had mentioned before. And if you were even going to entertain the idea of accepting Mr. Baek’s proposal, then you needed to start placing some puzzle pieces together. 

When Mingyu frowned, you knew you needed to be a little more specific. 

“With the fighter that passed away?” you kept your voice down. 

“Jaehyuk?” Mingyu whispered, looking around. “We don't usually talk about him.”

“Of course, I understand that.” you nodded and touched his arm to show you respected it. And then, since you couldn’t tell him what was on your mind, you fed him a little, harmless lie. “I heard one of the girls commenting about it, so I just got curious, that's all.”

“If the girls were mentioning it…” ever trusting Mingyu, bless his soul. 

You could tell he was about to tell you whatever he knew, but not before walking away from the ring and looking around to make sure no one would hear you talking. You followed suit, relaxing your shoulders and pretending you were just having a normal conversation.  

“Do you remember what happened?” you asked quietly.  

“Yeah, it was really scary actually.” Mingyu was frowning, nibbling on the inside of his cheek. “We never had anything like that happening before.”

“I’m sorry to hear that it was scary.” you meant it sincerely, offering him a small, comforting smile. 

“Jae hyung was friends with everyone, he never hurt a fly.” Mingyu carried on, unprompted. “But they say he started looking into things he shouldn't have.”

An alarm bell rang in your head. “What kind of things?”

“I don't know. I didn't want to end up like him, so I never asked.” he shrugged and that was the end of that thread. 

“Do you know how he died?” 

Mingyu looked reluctant for a few seconds. No, he looked scared. As if simply mentioning it could attract a ghost from the past. If this was about to make him that uncomfortable, then you were about to drop the subject then and there. 

But then he spoke up. 

“He was lined up for the last fight of the night, going against Kaito, who was his best friend at the time.” Mingyu told you and you nodded to show him you were following. “Everything was going on as usual, nothing out of the ordinary at all. And then he just... fell, in the middle of the fight.” 

“Just like that?” 

He nodded. “We have the tape of that fight. We might not have security cameras in the area where the patrons are, but down here…”

“The fights are recorded to play on the TVs upstairs.” you looked around to the corners of the space, seeing a few of the cameras looming heavily like all seeing eyes.  “Are the files kept?” 

“I don't think Hatter keeps a copy of every single fight, but that one was different.” the boy looked over your shoulder, gaze lost as if remembering something and not actually looking. “We watched it back, after it happened. Kaito was feeling so guilty about the whole thing, thinking he might have killed his friend.” 

“But he didn't.” 

“It wasn't a knockout gone wrong or anything like that, not even a hard punch that could have messed up with his heart or whatever.” Mingyu gestured: “One second Jae hyung was there and the next he wasn’t. Poof.” 

“I'm sure everyone must have a theory of what might have happened.” you definitely did. 

“They found a high dosage of VOID in his blood.” Mingyu told you and you knew that it was a type of illicit drug. Maybe Tae had mentioned it that day he brought up this story and that’s how you knew what it was. 

“Was it an overdose?” 

“It’s hard to say. VOID is not a recreational drug, it’s not supposed to be found the way that it was found on Jae hyung.” Mingyu himself was confused about it and you could tell it was frustrating him. “The way it was found, it was meant to kill him.” 

“Someone targeted him for snooping.”  

“Yeah.” 

And then a dark thought brought chills to your spine: “Did they ever find who did it?”

“Not really. I mean, some people left the Circle after that happened, but we don't know if it was due to fear or guilt.” you didn’t know which option you’d prefer. 

“How–”

Your interrogation was cut short when a warm, sticky body hugged you from behind. You could smell Jeongguk all over you, his scent was strong and deliciously musky. He didn’t care about your squeals when he rubbed his sweat against your neck with his face. 

“You were supposed to be watching me, baby.” he whined, uncaring that Mingyu was still watching.

“I did watch you, you were so good.” you told him with a small laugh, still attempting to free yourself. “You need to shower and not get sweat all over my clothes!” 

“Come with me.” Jeongguk mumbled. “The showers here are big enough for two.”

“Are they big enough for ten?” you asked as you tried to look at Guk’s face. “Because I think everyone else is done training.” 

 JULY 12TH | 00:53

Jeongguk had to leave right after his shower, texting you a quick message to say he had  important errands to run and wouldn’t be able to stick around the Circle tonight. You assured him you’d be okay, you didn’t need him as a bodyguard anymore, even if you missed his presence dearly. 

It was a shame that he wasn’t there to see your outfit for tonight in person, as you were feeling pretty cute in your short, pink leather skirt, and fitted, matching top. But you did send him a picture of it, if just to torture him a little more. 

Mingyu still came upstairs after his fight –which he won–, and he’d check in on you in between conversations with his fans. Tonight he was wearing a see-through top that didn’t cover anything; from the lines of his abs and his dark nipples, making you wonder if Jeongguk would ever wear something that revealing. 

And if he did, how you would feel about it. 

Overall, the night was passing without grand excitement, you didn’t get any orders wrong and, for the first time ever, your tip jar was a little more full than Jennie’s. Not that you were counting. 

Maybe just a little. 

“Well, well, so it is true, huh?” you heard the voice, but didn’t recognize it right away. You had to lift your head to see the man walking closer to the bar, with an air of superiority that already had your blood boiling. “'I'm suspended for a few weeks and they let a mouse in?” 

“You’re not supposed to be back yet, Wonho.” Lisa answered the man, despite the fact that his hard gaze was on you. “Does Hatter know you’re here?”

“Hatter is not the boss of me.” Wonho laughed, taking a seat at the bar as if he was planning on staying there for a while. “Besides, I’m not here to fight, I came to watch. I’m here as a paying customer, so you girls better serve me.” 

“What is it you want?” you refused to let someone like him intimidate you. You weren’t scared of Wonho, you never were. If anything, you were irritated that he tried to stab Jeongguk and still got away with it with only a temporary suspension. “You didn’t bring your buddy tonight? Who will finish your sentences for you?” 

The man scoffed. “So the mouse has claws, huh.” 

“She has teeth, too.” you warned.  

“Or maybe a beak?” he laughed, tilting his head. “What do they call you here? Dove, right?” 

Up until this point you were able to separate your stage name in the Circle from the pet name that Jeongguk and your outside friends used. They almost felt like completely different words. But hearing it from Wonho’s mouth made you sick to your stomach. 

“That’s a pretty bracelet.” he pointed to the jewelry around your wrist, the one with the two doves.

“Are you going to ask for a drink or not? I have other patrons to tend to.” you pressed, trying to catch Mingyu’s eyes from across the room just in case Wonho tried anything.  

“Huh.”

Your eyes were rolling as you said: “What now?” 

“You really look like someone I knew.” Wonho said, and your whole body went rigid.  

“I’m sure you’re mistaken.” your tone was leveled, your guard was up.  

“Must be.” he eyed you up and down. “Or else I’d be seeing a ghost.”