reef knot

fourteen

December 24, 2016, 12 p.m.

The restaurant is already packed by the time Jimin and I arrive at noon.

We were supposed to be here by eleven, but I overslept and Jimin took too long to get ready, so Dad decided to leave the house first with Jungkook and Seokjin, leaving Yoongi to escort my brother and I to the restaurant for the opening ceremony.

"Where's Mr. Park?" I ask one of the cashiers standing behind the counter, a smile forming on my face as my eyes register the bustling atmosphere before me.

"He's in his office, Miss," the cashier tells me with a polite bow.

I thank her quickly, starting towards the office at the far corner of the restaurant, leaving Yoongi and Jimin to serve the customers. I knock twice on the door before entering the room.

"Dad!" I greet him with a bright beam.

"Miss," Jungkook and Seokjin bow at me, both flanking the door.

"Honey, you're here!" he grins at me, fiddling with his collar as he stands behind his table. Picking up a comb from his table, Dad brushes his gelled hair as he continues, "Ah, this is my retirement! I must dress up properly to show my remorse for all the bad things I've done."

I smile, helping him to fix his tie. "As long as you're sincere," I reassure him, patting his suit down.

He nods firmly. "You're right." He pauses to glance at his watch, before speaking again, "Let's go! We shouldn't make the customers wait too long."

I nod eagerly, and together, Dad and I start to head out of the office.

However, the door flies open before I can even place my hand on the knob, and a masked man barges into the room, a sword in his hands.

I draw back, screaming in shock as the man swings the blade towards me, threatening to slice me in half. However, Dad pushes me to the side before the knife can injure me, and a distinct swish reverberates throughout the room as the metal slashes across my father's arm.

"Dad!" I exclaim in fright, rushing towards my bleeding father.

Jungkook kicks the man in the gut, and the killer drops the knife, curling his body in pain. My black-haired bodyguard takes advantage of this, wrapping his arms around the man to prevent him from attacking us further. "Bring them outside!" Jungkook orders Seokjin, who's already ushering my father and I out of the room.

Seokjin leads us out the back door and into a desolated alleyway, navigating us through the maze of cement as we escape from our attacker.

;;

"Are they gone?" the masked man asks Jungkook.

"I think so," Jungkook replies, slowly releasing the attacker. "Let's get to work," he snaps, leading the way out of the office and through the back exit, after making sure that Mr. Park and his daughter are gone.

The two softly shut the door behind them, twisting the lock into place and propping a pole diagonally across the doorway to make sure the people have no chance of escaping.

"Remember the front door too," the man reminds Jungkook, and together, they start towards the main entrance at the front of the building.

***

"What's taking it so long?" Yoongi hears one of Jung Minho's men complain.

He doesn't understand why Park Jonghyun would invite Jung Minho to his restaurant's opening ceremony even after the man has done so much harm to the family. The fact that Mr. Park decided to open a restaurant out of the blue makes this whole situation stranger than it already is.