BABY MAMA | pjm

LVIII

ACT XII | SCENE LVIII

❝BOARD MEETING❞

JIMIN SIGNED OFF on another document, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and index finger in exhaustion. his gaze moved to the picture of jangmi and rosalie on the little girl's birthday that sat on his desk. a smile lifted his lips at the huge grins they wore in the candid photo. another framed picture sat on the other side and it was of rosalie, a copy from one of the pictures he'd gotten from her mother.

he ran his thumb over it, still smiling at how cute she was at only a year old. having the pictures on his desk made him feel better. like his daughter was there, cheering him on with her ever happy face. he shut the file in front of him and moved it to the side on top of the stack of addressed files. sighing heavily, he flipped open another file, eyes scanning over the information slowly. he was getting tired and couldn't wait to get out of the office and maybe see rosalie before he headed home. but he still had a lot of work to do. he flipped through the file carefully, making sure to take note of important information.

his phone buzzed on the desk, gliding across the smooth surface. his eyes moved to the screen where the words 'kwon yoseob' were displayed. still scrawling pen over paper, he reached for the phone, swiping the answer button quickly before placing it against his ear. "yes?" he let out, slightly distracted by the words he was writing. "the board just called an impromptu meeting." the older man informed. "they do that sometimes. that isn't news." he continued to scribble. "well, it's about you." yoseob stated. "me?" jimin's voice carried a note of curiosity. "apparently, they want to discuss the issue of you supposedly fathering a child."

the pen slid out of jimin's grasp, an unsteady line of black ink running across the paper in the process. "what?" his tone held a mixture of disbelief and shock. "i don't understand it either. you're not married, so why are they discussing your having a child?" yoseob sounded genuinely confused. "uh, i'll call you back later. thank you." he moved the phone away from his ear slowly, ending the call. he stared blankly for a moment, no decipherable thoughts crossing his mind. his leg had begun its familiar twitching, fingers drumming against his knee in the compulsive pattern his body recognised.

he had assured jangmi that he could manage himself, but the truth was that he had no solid plans for this what-if scenario which had now become a reality. he just never expected it to happen so soon. the twitching in his leg became worse, the heel of his black leather shoe clacking repeatedly against the tiled floor. he snatched his phone off the desk again, dialing his secretary's number. "lee junmyeon, please come into my office." he said sharply. the moment the call ended, his phone buzzed again.

the one word that flashed across the screen made his blood run cold. clearing his throat, he swiped the answer button. "yes, father." he breathed into the receiver. "there's a board meeting in ten minutes. i hope you're ready to face whatever happens today." his father's stern voice flowed through the phone. he didn't give his son a chance to reply before ending the call. sighing, jimin pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. a soft knock on his door pulled his attention up. "come in." he called.

the door opened and junmyeon stepped in. shutting the door behind him, he bowed slightly before walking further in towards the desk. "is everything okay? you look bothered." he noted the distress on his boss's face. "there's a board meeting i have to attend." jimin answered quietly. junmyeon said nothing, waiting for him to elaborate. "they found out about rosalie." he sighed out. his eyes widened in surprise. "what do you intend to do?" he queried. "tell them the truth if they ask." jimin shrugged, pushing his chair back and getting on his feet. "do i have any other choice? i can't deny my own daughter." he picked up his phone and shoved it in his pocket, hand staying inside.

junmyeon followed him as he left the office, a step behind. "so you don't have any plans?" he questioned softly. "what sort of plan could i come up with in this situation? if you've got one, i'd love to hear it." jimin stepped into the elevator, junmyeon right behind him. the other man didn't reply as the doors shut. jimin toyed with the silver rings on his fingers, focusing on breathing steadily.

he expelled air out of his mouth when the doors dinged open again. shoving both hands into his pockets, he stepped out onto the twenty second floor. he listened to their footsteps as they made their way to the conference room, stopping right outside the large oak doors. junmyeon wrapped his hand around the doorhandle, glancing at him. "are you ready, mr park?" jimin's eyes shifted from the doors, casting his gaze on the man, he nodded.

"as ready as i'll ever be."

☀️☀️☀️

dun dun dun! *slurps milkshake* bye homies