Home | COMPLETED - Jungkook x reader

Chapter 33

It was two hours till boarding time, and the duo just finished dinner as they walked hand in hand around the airport. Glancing at the departure board, she decided that it would be a better idea to head in early since there was nothing much to do.

"Kim Jihyun!" She could hear voices shouting from behind, and Jihyun turned slowly to see the seven boys rushing towards her. She landed her eyes on her favourite in particular, her heart sinking when she saw his swollen eyes and runny nose.

"Appa!" Junghyun shouted excitedly as she let go of Jihyun's hands and ran towards Jungkook, the boy squatting down to carry her into a hug before jogging over to Jihyun.

She was dumbfounded - didn't he say that he was going to be late because of practice today? What were he and the rest of the members doing here?

"Were you really going to leave without a word?" Jungkook asked through his sniffles and she could feel the heartbreak as grief seeped through her veins and tears had escaped her eyes.

"I'm sorry Kook, I couldn't tell you in person..." She sobbed softly as he pulled her into his chest while he passed Junghyun to Jin. "Please don't go." He pleaded softly and Jihyun shook her head, "I can't stay."

"Why not?" Taehyung asked this time, and she looked at him to find tears streaming down his face as well.

"Nari doesn't only have pictures of Jihyun and I, but also you and her." Jungkook explained and Jihyun could tell that Taehyung was livid as he clenched his fists tightly. "She threatened her with those."

"We can fix this, Ji. Don't leave us." Taehyung said as he held onto her arms but she shook her head. "We can't, Tae. The media outlets already have the pictures and are already going to publish them on her cue."

"We can talk to Bang PD about this! He'll stop the media." Jimin said and Jihyun sighed. "I think this issue spans more than just Nari. Even if we solve this issue once, it's going to keep coming up again. Nari's not going to let it go, the media has already caught on and will continue to keep an eye on you guys. I don't want everything that you guys have built over the years to crumble just like that."

The group fell silent because they knew she was right.

This wasn't something that was only going to happen once. With their popularity, it was just going to occur again and again, and they wouldn't have any control over how the issue would play out.

"If I leave now, we can control the damage and there'll be no more uncertainties." She said firmly as she felt a stinging pain in her chest.

Breaking the silence, Jin spoke up. "We'll give you some time together." He said as he nudged the boys to separate and carried Junghyun away while Jungkook and Jihyun headed to a more secluded corner.

"I don't want you to leave." Jungkook said as he buried his head into her shoulders once they were out of sight, and Jihyun could feel her heart wrenching as she took in the smell of her favourite cologne.

"Let me work it out with the management! I'm sure the fans will understand. My fake relationship with Nari was well-accepted, wasn't it? The fans will accept you too-"

"Jungkook, it's not only the two of us now. There's Junghyun too." She said softly and the boy sighed, shuddering at the thought of Jihyun and Junghyun being harassed by paparazzi and fans. They both fell silent, clear of what the answer between the two was - but neither wanted to admit it. "I can't let her be exposed to any form of harm."

"I'll talk to the management, I'll stop Nari from releasing the photos. I'll do anything to make it work." He pleaded as he cupped her cheeks, forcing her to look into his eyes.