Symphony of Seven Men: I

20. Who Are You Really?

Jungkook took the Motrin and bottled water from the end of the countertop as he rushed towards Alexis. Even though she'd just fallen on her ass he couldn't contain the smile that was beaming from his face. It made him blush the way she recounted how she felt about him. Her opinion of him given so freely without restriction. She was holding herself back from him all night which admittedly left him feeling slightly insecure about her thoughts.

Not anymore. Dream self or not. That's how she really felt about him. She said she loved me. "Hi baby..."

Alexis stood up quicker than she'd fallen making herself dizzy. Face to face with Jungkook she rolled her head to the side feeling guilty. "Ughhh damn, this was real??! You shouldn't be here."

She winced at the pain in her right temple. The previous night came crashing back to her in disorganized puzzle pieces. Even with everything that happened being real, she was having a hard time wrapping her head around the fact that Jungkook was in her house.

She remembered driving Ru to the iHeart radio festival. Then she remembered photographing BTS. The hallway where she met this sweet seemingly naive man in front of her to him beating the shit out of a man who was going to do worse to her. The sweet way they played around in the SUV to that damn first kiss. When he pulled her hair into a ponytail before he fashioned himself tightly to her body on the back of her bike. The way he laid in her lap falling asleep at Ru's. How he picked out the outfit she was still thankfully in. How he took pictures of their shadows musing that their shadows were in love. That's what made her head hurt worse. Alexis did fall in love. In one night, and with him of all people. "Oh my god...fuckin' hell. My head."

"Jagiya, I couldn't just let you go last night so I went after you." Suddenly he was nervous. Was this one of those moments where he needed to take control or leave her alone?

"Ughhh, my god-w-what happened?" Alexis squat down and held her head in her hands attempting to avert the pressure building behind her eyes. Her cranium feeling like it was splitting in two as she remembered more of the night. Jungkook sung a love song in her ear somehow drowning out the thumping bass of the EDM music traveling through Exchange's wall speakers. Their fight in the alley over G-eazy dulled by the way he held her begging her not to leave.

Then she jerked her head up thinking about Joon-seo and the men in his apartment who were going to hurt her in front of him if she didn't pay them what his mother owed. A blurry vision of a scared and crying Joon-seo standing behind her in that dark apartment tugged at her heart. Then a clearer vision of Jungkook coming through the door, unrecognizable, even though she'd told him to leave her. He fought like a man who had experienced a tougher life than she assumed.

"Your head baby." Jungkook pleaded lightly shaking the Motrin bottle. "Please, bunny..." He whispered softly unsure if she'd respond to the pet name they'd given each other.