33. Tattoos & Suspicions
"Why did you tell me to do that?" Taehyung was now in Jimin's office, too afraid to be talking to him in his own.
"She really said that?" Jimin was just as confused as Taehyung.
"Things were fine the way they were, why did you make me go and ruin everything?" he groaned again, hiding his face in his hands, "What the fuck Jimin? I never get into relationships; why did you think this was a good idea? I would have been A-okay with just being with her and not having a label."
"I'm... I'm sorry Tae," he sighed, reaching out for his friend's shoulder. Jimin was convinced there was something up, however. While he didn't know Jiah that well, he knew she felt the same way Taehyung did for her.
When he thought about it, nothing made sense.
"Dude," Jimin's voice was firm as he squeezed his best friend's shoulder, "You are the Kim Taehyung. This isn't going to make you waver. You are many things, but you aren't the kind of person to let this affect you. You're going to go back into your office and get on with your work. This is nothing compared to who you are."
Taehyung heaved a deep sigh, looking up at Jimin, "Yeah, you're right."
"Get up," he obeyed, and Jimin kicked Taehyung's butt before he headed for the door, "Go get 'em, Tae."
Taehyung didn't turn around to say goodbye, just shook his head at himself.
It was only a couple of days ago where Jimin could see the sun in his best friend's eyes as he thought about Jiah. Now it was so much worse; there was still sun in his eyes when Taehyung talked about her, but it was hiding behind a cloud of humiliation, of insecurity, of confirmed doubt.
Jimin knew the reason Taehyung stuck to one night stands instead of relationships. Taehyung hates when people see the vulnerable side to him - he likes the idea of loving someone without the restraint of having to pour his heart out to them.
But he knew Jiah had pulled that heart right out of his ribcage, watered it with every movement she made, only to throw it at the ground and stomp all over it before she could watch the flowers grow.
Although, something about the whole situation made him a little uneasy. The feeling he had about Jiah didn't go away that first time he overheard her conversation on the phone.
But it was wrong to assume.
Should he just go and ask her directly?
He shook his head. He didn't have any grounds for any questions either.
Just suspicion over one phone call.
But the scary thing about Jimin was that when he assumed something, he was rarely wrong. Call him psychic, but he had some sort of gift.
He didn't ever act on his suspicions unless he had proof, though.
Opening his laptop, he directed his attention to his email inbox. Scrolling down to a couple months ago when he had emailed in about wanting to see the video footage of his penthouse corridor, he saved the file. He watched it a few times before, and from what he remembered, nothing seemed unusual enough to use for any kind of investigation.
He clicked on the file now, just to rewatch once more in case he had missed something before and put his glasses on.
The two silhouettes did what he had seen a hundred times before, they trudged down the corridor and unlocked his door with some gadget hooked onto the passcode lock system. The smaller feminine figure was in first, the larger male was behind, and before following her, he looked around the hallway. He sighed, leaning back in his chair. Nothing.
It was just as unspectacular as it always was.
Shaking his head, he went to close his laptop, but his eyes widened at the paused screen when he was just inches away from it. He squinted at the small part of exposed skin on the man's neck, in the gap between the black mask over his mouth and chin, his long-ish shaggy hair and the turtleneck shirt he had on.
A tattoo.
One he had seen before.
And not long before, that tattoo was fresh in his memory.
He racked his brain for anyone, anyone with a tattoo that he had come in contact with. None of his employees had tattoos, none that he could recall anyway.
Closing his eyes, he tried to visualise the tattoo. An inked crown, black against the neck of a large man... black hair.
It wasn't long before he saw the sun rising in his mind as if a backdrop behind this man he was envisioning, dim street lights in the distance.
Eyes snapping open, he remembered.
Jiah's friend. Jungkook.
--
"Can you bring in the documents that were just faxed over," Taehyung tried his best to keep his tone calm as he spoke to Jiah. He couldn't lift his head, however, because one look into those beautiful caramel eyes made him want to wrap his arms around her waist and crash his lips onto hers.
"Yes, I will, anything else?"
He bit his lip, nodding, "Can you please reserve a table for two at Valerie again," he took in a deep breath, trying his best to meet her eyes now, "And book the penthouse suite at the hotel for the night, thank you."
He hoped she would connect the dots, and even if she didn't, he was going to make sure she understood what he was trying to get at.
Pulling out his phone, he dialled his date from a couple months ago, the date that he had left during the middle of the evening and asked her to come back.
This whole time he thought that maybe he was done with this lifestyle. But it really had no escaping him, it's who he is, and it's who he's most comfortable being.
The day was slow, and he felt himself getting anxious as six o'clock rolled around. A small slither of hope still remained in the pit of his stomach. What if she was just having a bad start to the morning and she really didn't mean what she said? What if she did actually want to date him and accidentally said no?
Get yourself together, Taehyung.
No one accidentally says no.
She rejected you.
Suck it up.
Jimin was right. This was not going to shake him.
Finally he heard a knock at his door and saw Jiah standing there through the glass.
He motioned for her to open the door and she did, he leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms over his chest, waiting for her to speak.
"Your date is here," she blurted out, to which Taehyung tried to hide his surprise, "She's waiting outside. I've finished the last touch up's for the new intern contracts, and I've sent out the appraisals for each board director, is there anything else you'd like me to do?"
"No," he shook his head, and she walked closer to him, each step she took caused Taehyung's heart to jump twice in his chest.
Badum. Badum. Badum.
"These are the final intern contracts. I'll be going now."
He stared dejectedly at the door as it closed behind her.
She really wasn't going to care, huh.
Well then he shouldn't, either.
Standing up, he draped his coat over his shoulders and looked at his reflection on the computer screen. Running his fingers through his hair, he tried to assure himself that he looked great.
Your looks make women - and even some men - freeze right on the spot and go speechless, Kim Taehyung. You're stunning, and no one can convince you otherwise.
Opening his door, the first place he looked wasn't the couch where his date was sitting, but at the desk. Jiah was packing up the last of her things into her handbag, standing up and getting ready to leave.
Looking up at the sound of his door closing behind Taehyung, they both made eye contact, and she almost dropped her phone onto the table. Because every time he held her gaze in his, she lost touch of reality.
Taehyung shrugged it off, though, strolling over to the couch as the gorgeous woman previously sitting there stood up and graced him with a huge grin. She was happy to see him. She wanted to be with him.
"Hi sweetheart," she had said, but this sent shivers down his spine. Not because he loved it, but because he remembered the last time he had uttered that same pet name. To Jiah.
When he realised how prepared he was to drop everything he had to protect her.
The time he realised he loved her.
He offered her a small smile, trying to compensate for her, but he knew that the thoughts spinning in his mind were going to hinder it.
"Let's go! I'm hungry," she didn't seem fazed, instead hooked her arm in his and led him to the elevator.
Forget it, Taehyung.
Forget her.
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