Starting Over •JJK• ✔️

Twenty Four

JK walked beside me as we ventured upstairs to Mrs. Chae's office. The knot in my stomach hadn't eased up in the slightest and all I wanted was to hold his hand for comfort. But there were still a lot of people around and we didn't want to make matters worse. So I had my arms crossed and head down as we walked.

"Maddie, it's okay." He lightly bumped his shoulder against me so I would look up at him. "You aren't going to lose your job."

"You don't know that." I wouldn't look at him. I knew that it would only make me want to wrap my arms around him to help myself feel better. "I know that they don't take lightly to stories getting out about you guys. I don't want to be responsible for you receiving any sort of backlash."

"There won't be. Honestly." JK's hand settled on the middle of my back as we approached our destination, stopping outside of the office door. "None of this is your fault. I'm the one whose idea it was to go out to dinner, remember?"

I nodded and finally looked at him, and his gentle smile helped to comfort me. I breathed a heavy sigh as he knocked on the door and we were invited in.

JK allowed me to enter the brightly lit office before him. Large windows brought in the rays of the setting sun, causing the furniture to cast long shadows on the floor. Framed diplomas hung on the walls and various trophies sat on the shelves of the built-in bookcases.

This was the office of a woman who loved her job and took great pride in her work.

I had met Mrs. Chae only a handful of times. As the Director of Communications, she was also the head of public relations. She is a member of the team who scours social media accounts and goes after those who try to damage the image of the artists. You'd expect a woman with a job like hers to be intimidating, but she was always very nice when I would see her.

I hoped that still held true.

Mrs. Chae stood to greet us. She's a petite woman in her early 50s, and her smile was as bright and welcoming as the sun that was currently shining through the windows. "Hello, Maddie. Hello, Jungkook." She gestured towards the two chairs in front of her desk. "Thank you for coming. Have a seat."

We all sat down and I set my bag down beside my chair. I crossed my legs as I did so, trying to prevent them from bouncing with nerves. I watched as Mrs. Chae gathered some papers, wondering how this meeting was going to go. I glanced over at JK and he gave me a small grin with a quick wink.

Of course he would be so calm. They couldn't fire him.

I turned my attention back to the desk when five photographs were set down before us. They were the same photos that she had sent in her message, although they were not any less blurry in printed form. But you could make out our facial features just enough in a couple of them.

They were taken as we were leaving the restaurant and walking back to the car. Some showed us holding hands while others showed me laughing with my arm hooked around his. We were behind the building and had a driver bring us, so I was baffled at how anyone would even see us.

Mrs. Chae continued to arrange a small stack of papers. "Just to confirm, the individuals in these photos are you both, correct?"

I raised my eyes to look at her and silently nodded, and I heard JK give an audible "yes."

"Okay. Thank you." She slid the photos back and put them into a folder before turning her attention towards us again. "We received these photos from a magazine who is set to release them first thing in the morning."

I looked at JK when he spoke. "How did they know we were there? We have been going to that restaurant for years. I know it wasn't the wait staff who tipped them off. They've always been great to us."

Mrs. Chae shook her head. "We aren't sure. These people always find a way somehow. We've already reached out to the restaurant and made them aware of the situation. They insist that they have no idea how it happened, and they've never given us a reason not to trust them."

I sat in silence as I listened. She didn't seem angry, at least not at us, so that was a good sign. But I was still worried. I didn't want JK or the rest of the guys to have to deal with any drama with their promotions and tour fast approaching. They already had enough on their plates.

"So, was this a date?" Mrs. Chae grinned as she looked back and forth between us.

"Yes, it was." JK's response was without hesitation. "Our first official date, actually."

I turned my head to see him smiling at me and he rested his hand on the arm of my chair, palm up. I pressed my palm against his and returned the smile.

He kept his eyes on me as he continued. "It was my idea. I wanted to take her someplace nice." He squeezed my hand. "She deserves it." He looked at Mrs. Chae but I continued to watch him speak. "I never meant for there to be any trouble as we've never had any trouble at that restaurant. I take all of the blame for this and I am truly sorry for the stress it's caused."

I looked at Mrs. Chae and cleared my throat. "We really don't want to cause a problem. We didn't plan on any of this happening. It just...happened."

"I understand." She continued to smile. "I've been married for almost thirty years. I never planned on any of that happening, but here we are." She leaned her elbows on her desk. "We can't stop the magazine from posting their story, but it will be taken down as soon as possible. We're going to squash this."

"Am I fired?" I blurted the words out before I could stop them. I needed to know. I'd never been in any sort of trouble with the company and since this involved one of their biggest idols, I knew that my fate could have gone either way.

Mrs. Chae's eyes widened. "Gracious, no. Of course not."

I sighed and closed my eyes in relief. "I just didn't know because of the idol dating policy, and with me working here and everything-"

"They aren't children anymore." She grinned in JK's direction. "Although I have known them since before their debut. They are all grown men now. All we ask is that you keep it private for the time being. Here at the company is fine but not out in public just yet. You both have a lot to focus on at the moment and don't need the media distracting you. Also, please don't let this relationship interfere with your work on a personal level."

"We won't." I sighed again. "Thank you."

"You are a valuable asset to our team, Maddie." Mrs. Chae clasped her hands together. "I see that you have discussed an issue with our security team regarding a previous relationship. The privacy and safety of everyone here takes top priority, so I can assure you that you are safe here. This is why I'm asking you both to keep this quiet for now. It's not to be mean because of course we want you to be happy. It's for safety purposes."

JK squeezed my hand again. "Yes, of course."

Mrs. Chae nodded and sat back. "Okay, well, that's all I have." We stood when she did and I grabbed my bag. "I'm sure you both have lots of work to get back to. Just be careful out there."

We smiled and thanked her before turning to leave. JK opened the door for me, and when he closed it behind us, I sighed. "That was terrifying. I was seriously mentally preparing myself to go home and start packing all of my shit."

JK chuckled and draped his arm around my shoulders as we started walking, pulling me close to his side. "I told you that everything would be fine." He brought his mouth to my ear and lowered his voice. "Although I couldn't stop thinking about how you had my dick in your mouth not even thirty minutes before you sat down in that chair."

I playfully pushed him away from me and glared at him when we stopped in front of the elevator. "Shut up." The doors opened and we stepped on. And when the doors closed, I found myself backed against the wall with his mouth on mine.

I don't know what I was more afraid of as I went into that meeting...losing my job or losing him. Both would have been devastating. We still had to deal with the photos going public, but we would tackle that tomorrow.

Right now, all that mattered in this moment was us.