Beneath Your Mask

part ten: suffer alone

  THE PRESENT

are you as excited as me to see Jimin and Jungkook? such pretty boys

**

It hadn't been easy to arrange the meeting. Everyone's schedules were shifted slightly. Yoongi flew back into Seoul when he was supposed to have a rest day in Tokyo after his show there, and he was going back that night. Taehyung felt guilty when he found that out.

He was nervous. The couches in Bang PD's office had space enough for all eight of them to sit, but Taehyung couldn't sit there, like being comfortable on a soft couch was somehow not allowed for him. He pulled a chair over from the desk, a harder one without much cushioning, and sat at it. His leg bounced with anxiety and it was a fight to keep his fingers out of his mouth and not bite them down to nothing. He greeted them as they came into the office with barely a nod and a mumble of hello, everyone looked tired. None of them except Jin were dressed for public schedules, all in tracksuits and oversized clothing without make-up.

Taehyung jumped when someone suddenly touched his hair.

"It's so electric," Jimin said in awe. "I saw it in the videos, but it looks so amazing in real life."

Recovering from his small shock, Taehyung accepted Jimin's compliment with a tight smile and a nod. Jimin smiled back at him, but there was concern in his eyes, and took a seat on the couch in the space closest to him.

He caught Jungkook's eyes and they held each others gaze for a moment. Taehyung looked away first, his leg bouncing more rapidly then earlier. Jungkook sat between Namjoon and Hobi on the couch opposite Jimin, Jin, and Yoongi.

"So as nice as it is to see everyone in the same room, what are we doing here?" Jin asked, silencing the idle chatter and drawing everyone's attention straight to Taehyung, who closed his eyes when he felt everyone look at him.

Bang PD cleared his throat.

"Yes, there's no point in avoiding the issue at hand. We have serious matters to discuss, and all of you are involved in this, so here we are," he said. "Before we begin, please know that everything said in this room remains in this room. If you can't agree to that, then leave."

Sensing the change of atmosphere, everyone shifted slightly in their seats, looking serious.

"For your safety, there are many things that Taehyung has kept from you, but outside factors have made this discussion necessary," Bang PD said. "So listen closely with an open mind, please."

Taehyung glanced at Yoongi, who was looking back at him with a mixture of concern and confusion. Tae gave a weak smile and Bang PD motioned for him to talk. Taehyung went to open his mouth, but no sound came out. His mouth went dry. He'd been holding everything in for so long letting it out was impossible.

"Take your time," Jimin said quietly, reaching for him.

Taehyung looked at his hand brushing on his sleeve and took a deep breath and swallowed.

"Six years ago," he began shakily, looking at the floor. "I - I left Seoul because I was being threatened and stalked." He rolled his shoulders back and lifted his head and looked at them. "And so were all of you."

The reaction was slow. He avoided looking at Jungkook. The shock came with his confusion, questions, and Bang PD held up a hand to stop them from speaking.

"Let him finish. Tae, please," he said.

He glanced at Yoongi.

"Sorry, Hyung. I didn't tell you everything. I didn't..." He looked down again, his fists clenching tightly in his lap. "I guess..." He looked up and fake smiled and shrugged. "I'm so ashamed."