Seoul City

Ch. 8 - Charity Ball

Jungkook woke up with a pounding headache, the morning sunlight shining directly on his face through the lace curtains in the room. One look at those curtains told him this wasn't his house. He groaned as memories of last night flashed in his head. 'Shots, shots, and more shots' he remembered. As he tried to reorient himself, a woman rolled over and cuddled against his chest, reminding him that he had company. He gently pushed the woman off himself and carefully rose from the bed. Cuddling, especially the morning after sex, was not his thing. He picked up his clothes from the hardwood floor and got dressed as quietly as humanly possible. Then, without a moment's hesitation, he was out the door.

The day of the charity ball had finally come and Phoenixes were holding a meeting that morning to discuss the details of their plan. After the imposter Phoenix had provided them with a clue last week, this was their chance to take them down and restore peace on the West side. Fortunately, Jimin had stayed true to his word and mailed Jungkook the invitation to the ball shortly after their (unpleasant and slightly threatening) phone conversation.

"How do we know we can even trust that guy?" Jin asked suspiciously.

"We don't," Jungkook sighed, "but we're going to have to try. It's the only bit of information we have."

The other Phoenixes nodded in agreement before Jin clasped his hands together and said, "okay, then let's discuss the logistics."

Since Jungkook had been granted exemption from the trespassing law, there weren't many obstacles to discuss. Jungkook's mission was to attend the ball, place the winning bid on the vintage record, and get out of there as soon as possible. If anyone asked, he collected vintage records as a hobby and was on the lookout for the particular one auctioned at the ball for ages. Since Jungkook was entering enemy territory, the rest of the Phoenixes were going to monitor his every move and remain on stand-by outside the mansion in case of any threats. To facilitate this, Namjoon placed a hidden camera he'd designed to look like a button on Jungkook's suit along with a hidden, in-ear microphone.

Later that night, Jungkook got dressed in one of his many Armani suits, styled his hair, sprayed his Versace cologne and was ready to go. He also kept a precautionary gun on the inside pocket of his suit, just in case. Lord knew he couldn't trust any of the Griffins. For all he knew, the whole thing may have been a set-up orchestrated by them the entire time.

His team – Jin, Hoseok, Jackson, Bambam, Namjoon, Mark, and Yugyeom – had left earlier to scope out the playing field and to take up their assigned positions, leaving him to make his grand entrance alone. He had a difficult time choosing between his silver, Porsche convertible and his matte, black corvette, but in the end, he chose to go with a more subdued vibe, climbing into his audi TT.

The Parks' mansion was glittering with blue and silver lights that Jungkook could see from miles away. As he rolled up closer, he could see the red carpet that was laid out on their perfectly trimmed, jade-green lawn. Right in front of their 20 feet, marble fountain. Dozens of reporters and media personnel awaited outside the gates for a glimpse inside the grand event. He rolled his eyes at the extravagance of the entire thing before getting out of his car and tossing the keys to the valet parking attendant.

"Is this thing on?" Jungkook asked in a low voice as he adjusted the camera on his suit and walked towards the entrance.

"Yes, look behind you," He heard Namjoon's deep voice through his in-ear microphone. When he looked behind him, he laughed in disbelief.

"An ice cream truck? Really, Jin, that's all you could get us?" Jungkook asked in disapproval. That's where the Phoenixes were hiding and monitoring Jungkook.