Playing with Fire: A BLACKPINK Story

Chapter 28: The Best-Laid Plans

2019.

Time was running out. If they weren't going to come for me soon, then they weren't going to come for me at all. That would mean a couple of things, not all of them bad. If they had been bluffing the whole time, then none of it would have mattered. It meant that we would have wasted a good deal of time and energy, but nothing bad would have come out of it in the end.

Of course, it also meant that I would not be able to get my hands on Hyun-suk in a manner that would give me deniability. Maybe that would be for the best, but I couldn't help feeling disappointed. It would have been the most sure-fire way to put a stop to all of it.

Then again, there was still time. The girls wouldn't be leaving the States immediately after the last show, meaning there would be a few chances for me to be taken.

"You can't make it look like you want to be grabbed," Amelie was saying again.

"I know. I've done this sort of thing before, remember?"

She gave me an annoyed look, but then her face softened. "Sorry. Just... want to make sure everything goes right."

"Are you worried about me?" I asked, teasing her a little.

"I'm worried this is going to go south," she said. "This wasn't what I signed up for."

To be fair, it wasn't what I had signed up for either, but here we were anyway.

"Go," she said. "I'll be watching."

As always, I was wearing my communicator earpiece, though I imagined that if they grabbed me, they would remove it almost immediately. Even so, it was useful to have for however long I could.

I headed off to where the girls were, now that it was almost time for the show. We had returned from our shopping trip in good spirits, and everyone was smiling and laughing, thoroughly enjoying themselves. None of them knew what I was planning. I intended to keep it that way.

<Everyone ready?> I asked enthusiastically. It wasn't fake enthusiasm. I was always thrilled to see them perform.

Rosé gave me a thumbs-up. <You know we are!>

They all laughed at her cheer. Out of all four of them, she was the one who loved the music the most. It was why she did what she did.

<You got this,> I said, as they headed off to the stage. Before she left, Jisoo stayed behind to give me a hug.

<When this is over, let's talk,> she said, before kissing me on the cheek. <I think you'll want to hear what I have to say.> She smiled at me, and I felt a pang of guilt.

<It's a date,> I replied.

<Just like the night we snuck out,> she said with a chuckle. <Remember?>

<I'll always remember,> I said.

Suddenly, I heard Amelie's voice in my ear. "Get her out of there. People are coming and they're not happy. They have to be YG. No one is stopping them or even questioning them."

I gave Jisoo one last tight hug. <Go show them what you can do.>

<This one's for you,> she said with a wink before stepping away and following the other three members.

"She's gone," I muttered, ducking around a corner. "Where do I go?"

"Somewhere you can mix it up and no one will question it."

I cast my eyes about wildly, looking for something that might fit the requirement. "Staff bathroom?" I asked.

"Should be big enough. It's close to a backdoor exit as well."
That was perfect. The goal was to put up a fight but to make sure that they had a way to get me off-site without too much trouble.