Snow White & the 7 Idols

Chapter 25

The next day, I was unexpectedly called into the PD's office. I went early in the morning to meet with him since I had a full schedule today. I knocked before I was granted entry. When I walked in, the producer was behind his desk with the head of the company. They both looked worried and stressed.

"You called for me?" I asked, catching their attention. They looked up before they sighed and offered me a seat on one of the couches in the office.

"I had a long talk with Kim Namjoon yesterday. He wants me to officially announce his relationship with you," the CEO of our company, Bang Si Hyuk said as they sat on the couch opposite of me. My jaw dropped. I knew Namjoon felt sorry about our secret relationship, but I didn't think he would go this far.

"He... what?" I asked, not able to fully process what was happening.

"Namjoon told us yesterday that you two have been dating for the past eight months. He also told us that he wants to officially announce your relationship. We could deal with it if he was anyone else, but he's RM of BTS. Do you know what the ARMY is like? What is going on, Le In?" The CEO asked. I sighed and resisted the urge to rub my forehead.

"Namjoon and I have been dating, but I told him yesterday that I understood why we had to date in secret. I also told him that we shouldn't get caught. I'm honestly just as surprised as you are," I answered honestly.

"The boys' fan base is ruthless. If word gets out about your relationship, they will ruin you completely," PD said quickly.

"I know. And I don't want to cause any problems for the company either," I agreed. There was a knock on the door before Namjoon entered. He watched us look at him before he sat next to me. I hit his arm.

"What are you doing? I told you yesterday that we should keep it a secret," I said to him. He sighed and ran his hands over his head.

"I know, but if we release the news through the company, maybe it won't be that bad," he replied. The CEO scoffed.

"It won't be that bad? Do you even know what your fans are like? If someone says anything bad about you guys on YouTube, they go flooding in to destroy them. What do you think they'll do if they find out you've been dating the new foreign idol?" The CEO asked.

"Don't make this hard on them. I'm okay, really. You shouldn't sacrifice your career for me," I said to Namjoon. He watched my face for a moment before he sighed and dropped his head.

"Okay fine. Let's say you don't care about your career, but what about Le In? She just debuted and she's a foreigner. First, her career will be over. Then, she'll be verbally and physically attacked on a daily basis. Are you going to take responsibility for that? And what about your brothers who have tried so hard to get to this point? Are you going to let them down too?" PD asked.

"No," he said quietly. I sighed and relaxed a little as my hands rested on my knees.

"CEO Bang, PD Eum... I'm sorry," I apologized. Namjoon placed a hand on my arm gently.

"It's not your fault. I've persued you from the beginning. I should be the one to apologize," Namjoon said. The CEO and PD both sighed before they looked at each other.

"Well, one good thing came out of this: we found out about your relationship before it was too late. You've done such a good job keeping it quiet, and I expect you to do so in the future. I won't make you break up, but I expect you to not have any problems in the future. Namjoon, you're crucial to BTS. You're the leader. And Le In is the first of her kind and a jack of all trades. I want to keep you both here and scandal free. Understand?" The CEO said as he stood up. I nodded.

"I'm sorry for this trouble. I honestly didn't think that far ahead," Namjoon apologized as he bowed to the CEO. CEO Bang sighed and put a hand on his shoulder before he left the office. I sighed and stood as I ran my fingers through my hair.

"You and I need to talk," I said to Namjoon. I said goodbye to PD before I left the office and went to my room. It was a moment before Namjoon came in as well.

"What was that about?" I asked, still confused and angry.

"I just wanted to go public with you," he said timidly. I sighed before I took a deep breath to calm down.

"I meant what I said yesterday. I'm okay with staying a secret if it means not disrupting your livelihood. I'm not upset, okay? We're okay where we are," I said. He sighed and pulled me into a hug before resting his head on my shoulder.

"I feel sorry towards you. I want to walk through a park holding your hand, and take you to see a movie. I want to take you to the main area of a fancy restaurant and drink soju with you at a street stall. I wanted to give you a normal relationship," he said softly. I sighed before putting my arms around him.

"Who's to say what a normal relationship is? You know I'm not much of a busybody anyway. I like the time we spend together. I like that we stay in and hang out with the guys. All of those are dates to me. Just because it's not outside, doesn't mean it doesn't count," I replied honestly. He hugged me tighter.

"I would drop everything to be with you," he said.

"But you don't have to drop everything just to be with me. I'm with you despite everything. Isn't that how you know when it's really love?" I asked. He nodded against my shoulder.

"I love you," he breathed.