When Kim Taehyung's fictional romance with his costar Jeon Jeongguk starts to feel more genuine than anything he accomplished in his entire acting career, he believes it shouldn't be a problem: after all, it's just acting.
But isn't it wrong to be...
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Company dinners in Korea were no different in Seattle.
When Jeongguk and Taehyung entered the private party room, he recognized the atmosphere immediately. The cast members and crew were huddled at one, long table toward the back. On the table, the smell of meat crackling against the grill and the clink of soju shots followed by cheering confirmed his dread.
It wasn't hard to spot Penn, Hoseok, and Yoongi. The trio sat on the opposite end with seats empty for Jeongguk and Taehyung. With that, Taehyung gave Jeongguk's hand a gentle tug, and together they joined their coworkers.
"You made it!" Penn greeted them first, her cheeks as red as her. Taehyung waved, sitting across from her and Jeongguk. He surveyed the table, noticing they were already eating and drinking, the tell tale green bottles on the side a sure sign of their late night escapades.
"Damn, you managed to bring Jeongguk?" Hoseok chuckled, sipping his cup of alcohol through a bendy straw. Taehyung grimaced, deciding to not comment on that.
"He convinced me," Taehyung corrected, thanking Penn, who was already handing him alcohol.
"He convinced you?" Yoongi's eyebrows raised over his pale forehead, sounding genuinely shocked. He nodded. Was he missing out on something again?
Taehyung snuck a quick glance at Hoseok for some sort of explanation. Unfortunately for him, Hoseok didn't seem to be catching his drift. Sighing, he ended up helping himself to some of the meat that was done grilling. On the otherhand, he kept a close eye on Jeongguk, who was whispering something to Penn.
"I did," Jeongguk finally spoke, pulling away after Penn eyed him warily. Taehyung didn't miss that: the concern that flashed over her expression. Okay, something surely had to be wrong, right?
"Guys, c'mon. I can already predict what you're going to say," He grumbled, taking a clean plate off the stack on the center of the table.
"I'm fine. There's nothing wrong." For some reason, he felt that was directed to him, specifically.
And for some other reason, Taehyung's heart twitched once more. Faint yet tangible.
"If you say so," Yoongi resumed eating. While he spoke with Hoseok, Taehyung noticed he was smiling. It was a fond smile. One of those gummy ones that seemed reserved for Jeongguk.
If Yoongi was fine with it, maybe tonight wouldn't be that bad after all.
Nobody regarded Jeongguk after that, but they did check up on him everytime a few others down the table shouted, or a sudden shriek of silverware against ceramic made them cringe in their seats. Taehyung always found his gaze first, noting how Jeongguk squeezed his eyes shut before letting out a shaky exhale.
