GIRL GROUP | jjk

Chapter 4

The knock on the door beckons me out of my doom scrolling.

I'm dressed in my League of Legends sweatpants and a white T, and I don't exactly want the delivery man to see me right now.

"Nabi!" I shout. "Jesstina! Can one of you get the door?"

There's a scuffle in the bedroom that Nabi and Jesstina share. Eventually, Jesstina exits in her superhero pajamas. I still can't distinguish exactly which superheroes are stitched onto the cotton.

Jesstina opens the door as I return my attention to Instagram.

For a rare moment, there is stunned silence. I look up. Jesstina is as still as a freshly carved marble statue. "Sunbaenim?"

Sunbaenim—a word for our many seniors in the industry. It could be anyone.

But I have a feeling. A very bad feeling.

I stand up and skirt around the pillar that separates the tiny kitchen from the living room.

It's Jungkook. He's brought a silent cameraman along with him, but otherwise it's just his star power, and his baggy black cargo pants with a long-sleeved black tea. He's wearing a bucket hat, which is the most fitting thing I've seen since Nabi eating a lavender cupcake.

Jesstina is staring, and she seemingly notices it. Because she shakes herself and subconsciously rubs the fabric of her pajamas. I guess we both look pretty messy compared to him. Jungkook's grin is a bit shy, and if he notices just how much he's affecting us, he doesn't say so.

Nabi exits the hallway that leads toward the bedroom. She's the most classy, with an actual silk nightgown, but she almost falls when she realizes who's at the front door. "Sunbaenim...."

The cameraman nudges Jungkook with his elbow. Jungkook clears his throat, adjusting his bucket hat which has shifted barely wayward. His nose is so pretty. Why didn't I notice that before?

I pinch the inside of my elbow. Stop it. I can't let myself get distracted by Jungkook. Not when he's here for... what is he here for?

Jungkook scratches the back of his neck. He shifts from foot to foot, the movement barely noticeable. "Well, CEO Kimmy thinks it's a good idea that I room with you guys. It will make for some really good content, and plus we can bond throughout the debut season."

Jesstina gasps. It's so loud that I must flinch at least two inches. I share a long stare with Nabi, who looks like she might pass out at any moment.

Okay. I have to gather myself. "Are you sure that's a good idea?" I say. "You'll be fueling so many rumors, for so many reasons. Is it even... allowed?"

"I can sleep on the couch," Jungkook says. "And a cameraman will always be with me. I will be filmed at all times, and this is only a temporary arrangement." The magnitude of the change must hit him too. "Of course, this is up to you three. If you don't want me here, just say the word."

"Well if you will always be supervised...." Jesstina can't seem to finish her sentence, and her usual fire seems dimmer. I guess we're all pretty dim next to Jungkook.

"It's just so crazy," I say. I push myself forward to stand next to Jesstina. "It doesn't make any sense that you would stay with us. I respect you, sunbaenim, but it can't be good for either of our reputations. Not to mention you already have a huge apartment for yourself."

Nabi, the sensitive one, floats up next to me. "Jungkook-sunbaenim, we're honored that you came all this way. Karma, maybe if he really wants to stay, we can make a space for him."

Nabi usually doesn't speak up like this. If she feels that Jungkook should stay with us... could she be seeing something that I'm not?

"It'll be crazy for a cameraman to always be inside our dorm," Jesstina, flicking the air with her fingers. "But we can try it for a few days. You can take Karma and Yuna's old room, and Karma can stay with us. Fortunately, our place is big enough. If it doesn't work, respectfully, we'll have to push you to the curb."

Jungkook laughs easily at Jesstina's polite jab. There will be much more where that comes from, if you really do become a member of the Fates.

"Karma, is that alright?" Nabi says. "Just for a few days."

I find myself doing the impossible. I find myself saying, "yes."

Jungkook thanks us and bows politely.

Trying not to turn into a living and breathing tomato, I head to my and Yuna's room and begin to pack up my stuff. I'm moving so quickly that I'm surprised I'm not summoning a tornado in my wake.

Thinking of Jungkook makes me think of the boys in my high school.

It makes me sick. In my suburban Chicago high school, I was such an easy target. The girls were always fine. But the boys... they made it a competition to see who could mess with me the most. It was a constant game, such a stressful situation that I dreaded walking into homeroom every morning. A particular group of boys always made me feel like something was wrong with me. They treated me like an object. I was just the girl who was obsessed with K-pop and was delusional in my dream to go to Seoul. I was always the first to receive the brunt of the boys' teasing. It was relentless. And when it became a joke to ask me out on a date just to stir a reaction inside me, I couldn't help but cry alone in my bedroom and wonder what was inside me that's so worthy of the degradation.

I've always loved BTS, but they are boys just like the ones in high school. There's no telling when I'll be made a joke of again—to be made to feel like nothing. Jungkook may be a star, and a very beloved one at that, but he could hurt me.

Maybe without even trying.

A/N: If Jungkook roomed with the Fates in real life, could you imagine the mayhem? 

Karma liking League of Legends brings me back to my high school days. I loved the Run BTS episode where the members all played with a professional team. I want the show to come back so bad, but I guess we have to be patient.