Prepared To Hate You

The Guilt

"How do you think she knows Lay from EXO?"

Jimin and Taehyung started to come up will theories.

"They were hugging, so they must be close."

"Maybe he's her boyfriend?"

"He was on the show she did in China."

Both boys turned to look at Yoongi.

"How did you know that, Yoongi Hyung?"

"I looked her up, didn't you?"

"Maybe, but I didn't expect you to show an interest in her."

The rapper frowned at Jimin.

"Why not? She's our new group member, of course I'm curious."

"So curious you've barely looked at her, let alone talked to her."

"Seriously? I'm not the one that shouted insults at her during dance practice!"

Jimin wasn't the only one who winced at the memory.

"I know, okay! I feel sick about it. I was having a bad day. I had a headache, and I just wanted to go home. I tried to apologise to her later that night, but she didn't answer her door."

"That's because she wasn't at home."

"What was that, Kookie?"

Jungkook filled with the sleeves of his sweatshirt as he spoke.

"She didn't answer the door, because she hadn't come home yet."

"How'd you know that?"

"I heard her come home. I couldn't sleep and there was some noise in the corridor. Manager-nim was..."

"Was what?"

"Hyung, he practically had to carry her in. She was dead on her feet."

"What! What happened to her?"

"Do you know, Jungkook?"

"Manager-nim was struggling to open the door, so I went out and helped. He said she carried on rehearsing after we left, and he found her asleep in the middle of the practice room floor in the middle of the night."

"She what?"

Taehyung was shocked and Jimin went pale.

"You don't think -"

"It's because of what you said? Yeah, I'd say so."

"Oh god!"

Jimin put his head in his hands.

"But she was so perky the next day, you never would've known..."

Hoseok murmured to himself.

"And her facial expressions were on point."

"Still think she's a fan girl who's not serious about the work, Yoongi Hyung."

Namjoon tried to calm things down before they started pointing fingers at each other.

"Okay. I think we all reacted a little strongly to this whole situation, maybe it's time to accept it?"

"I don't know why your including me. I didn't do anything to the girl."

"Jin Hyung, you've done nothing but make jokes at her expense."

"What? I was trying to make her feel included!"

The others just stared at him.

"Too much?"

"Are you seriously making jokes about this?"

Jungkook was shocked at his Hyungs' behaviour. He wished he had said something sooner.

"What's wrong, Kookie?"

"What's wrong is how you've all been treating her. Like it or not she's a member of our group, and we should have welcomed her. It must have been so hard for her to join an established group. In a foreign country. As the only girl!"

The more he thought about it, the more upset he got. Why hadn't he reached out to her? He knew what it was like to be scared, in a new place, and surrounded by new people.

"Umm, you run away every time she comes near you?"

"Hyung, that's because... you know... I'm afraid of girls."

He whispered the last part, but that didn't stop the others from hearing and they couldn't stop laughing.

"It's not funny!"