The Assistant -LeeKnow

Chapter 2

Naeun spent the next several days trying to get eight high-profile, endlessly busy rock stars packed for tour. For the sake of her sanity, she tried her very best to stay as far away from Lee Know as she could. Between the things he said to her and the way he looked at her, she knew it was going to be a challenge not to smack him across the face every time he opened his mouth. And she really didn't want to lose her swanky, piece-of-cake tour gig. She planned to put in her time with the guys, but also to enjoy as much of the States as she could along the way. She still couldn't believe she was even picked for the job. Last year at this time, she was an interning college student at JYP, trying to learn the in's and out's of the business, and look at her now – on tour with the biggest group in the JYP. It was a dream come true and she knew it.

"So, do you like your job so far?" Naeun's boyfriend Mark asked as she lay in bed with her cell phone perched on her ear.

It surprised her that he was even asking about it. The fact that she was going to be in the States, but not with him was a sore subject between them. Mark recently graduated college in SNU and went back to the States for the summer. It was the plan all along for Naeun to spend the summer with him in New York – they even rented an apartment together – but when she was offered the position with Stray Kids, she couldn't turn it down.

"Uh, yeah sure. I mean, the real job hasn't really started, but I've been helping them get ready for tour and stuff and it's been okay," I told him.

"Hmm. Has that one said anything to you lately?" He asked sounding displeased. Naeun knew which one he was referring to right away.

She made the mistake of venting to him about Lee Know after their first meeting, which only made the distance between them worse. Mark was worried about her, and Naeun was worried that Mark would find some sort of reason to turn everything right back around on her."Um, no. Not really," Naeun said, being vague on purpose. A flashback of Lee Know's palm on her ass cheek stuck out in her mind like a bad dream – except it was a stark reality.

"I swear, that little creep better keep his hands off of you," Mark  grumbled angrily into the phone.

"I mean, he's not going to like, rape me or anything," Naeun said, furrowing her eyebrows, knowing she'd be better off closing her damn mouth, rather than giving Mark these wild images to think about.

"He better not fucking touch you," Mark snapped, causing Naeun to cringe to herself. Yeah, she was an ace at putting her foot in her mouth.

Naeun quickly looked around her small flat trying to think of something to say to change the subject.

"Just... just drop it," she said when her brain came up short of ideas.

"I'm not going to drop it, Naeun. I don't like the idea of you going out on tour with this guy," he said once again, for the millionth time.

"I am well aware where you stand on the subject, Mark," Naeun snapped back at him.

"Yet you're still going," he hissed bitterly.

"Yes, I am. And you're just going to have to get over that," Naeun told him, feeling a flood of annoyance that he was still trying to get her to ditch a once in a lifetime opportunity – an opportunity that would no doubt advance her career to heights she couldn't even fathom. No, she was not going to quit any time soon.

"Get over it?" He scoffed, sounding quite angry over the phone.

"Just say it. Just fucking say what you need to say, because I'm sick of the tension," she snapped at him.

"You're sick of the tension?" He said with a dark laugh.

"Yeah," she said firmly.

"Well, I'm sick of you subjecting yourself to that little dick's bullshit. I'm sick of you going back there every day to put up with more. I think you secretly like it. Because he's rich and famous and..." Mark started.