IDOL'S SECRET [Taekook FF]

Chp.21.5

RUMORS & RESENTMENT

The meeting room felt colder than ice. Fluorescent lights buzzed overhead, too harsh, too revealing. Vante sat stiff in his chair, his mate beside him, bundled in a hoodie and mask to hide the pallor of his face. No one outside the family knew he’d given birth three weeks ago. No one could ever know.

The five other members filed in with varying expressions—annoyance, smugness, thinly veiled contempt. Jungkook kept his head down, fingers tightening on the sleeves of his hoodie. The alpha could smell the sharp sting of his anxiety, and it made him bristle.

The company director leaned forward, steepling his hands. “There are… rumors.”

A heavy silence settled.

“Fans saw you collapse on stage,” the director continued, eyes narrowing at the omega. “Some believe you’re hiding an illness. Others say you’re unfit for the group. Do you know what that does to our image?”

Vante’s jaw tightened. He opened his mouth, but one of the other members spoke first.

“Let’s stop pretending,” Jin, the sneering one said, his tone dripping poison. “He’s always been a problem. He’s dragging us down. We should cut him loose before he ruins us all.”

Jungkook flinched like he’d been struck, eyes flickering. The alpha’s hands curled into fists, knuckles whitening.

“Careful,” he growled, voice low and dangerous. “Say that again, and you’ll regret it.”

The director frowned. “Enough. We need solutions, not childish bickering.” His gaze flicked back to Jungkook. “What’s wrong with you? If you’re sick, you need to step aside before this escalates further.”

Jungkook’s lips parted, trembling. Shame flooded his scent, and the alpha’s heart cracked in two. Before he could answer, another member, jimin, smirked cruelly.

“Maybe he’s not sick,” he said. “Maybe he’s hiding something worse.”

The words hung in the air like a blade. The alpha stiffened. The wolf started snarled at him, ready to tear them all apart if they dared push further.

Jungkook shifted uncomfortably, pressing a hand against his stomach as if instinctively protecting the place that had carried life only weeks before. The alpha noticed. So did one of the others—and their eyes narrowed with suspicion.

The director slammed a hand on the table. “Enough speculation. Whatever this is, it stays buried. If fans catch even a whisper—our careers are finished.”

The meeting ended, but the venom lingered. As they left, yoongi brushed past the omega and muttered under his breath, just loud enough to be heard.

“You’re nothing but a mistake. And mistakes get erased.”

Jungkook froze. His heart pounded in his chest, air leaving his lungs. Vante caught the words, too—and the fury that surged through him was unstoppable. He spun, slamming yoongi against the wall with a snarl that wasn’t entirely human.

“Say that again,” the alpha hissed, his eyes glowing faintly, wolf bleeding through his human shell. “Say it—and I swear you’ll regret ever opening your mouth.”

Gasps echoed down the hallway. Staff members froze, eyes wide with shock. Jungkook tugged at his mate’s arm desperately, whispering, “Stop! Please—someone will see—”

The alpha released him with a shove, chest heaving. His gaze swept over the others, each one pale with fear but still seething with resentment.

He grabbed the omega’s hand and pulled him away, ignoring the whispers, the shocked stares.