Encounter | MYG & KTH

Narrative

"You better have a good explanation for this," Bang Shi-Hyunk, the CEO of BigHit Entertainment and Producing Director of BTS stern tone cut through Min Yoongi like a sharp sword. Even through the grainy screen of the video call, Yoongi could tell the PD hadn't slept in hours. He'd rarely seen this side of him and was in some ways glad he didn't have to be there to be scolded in person. He couldn't even begin to imagine the amount of hurt, stress, and disappointment he'd caused Bang PD-nim.

Yoongi sat awkwardly in his chair in the VIP lounge room at Hong Kong International Airport. They had an hour layover before they boarded the plane again to Seoul. It would be an understatement to say he and everyone else was a mess at this point in their 22 hour journey. It was a nerve racking feeling, to know the career you've built up for almost a decade was crumbling as you sat miles above the ground, cut off from the rest of the world. He felt so guilty for so many things that he'd lost count. His head was spinning.

Yoongi cleared his throat, staring at the marbled swirls of the table his laptop sat on. Finally looking up at his screen he answered, "I'm so sorry. I made a mistake."

Bang PD massaged his temples with a heaving sigh. "Min Yoongi, do you realize how graze your mistake is? Your fault becomes all seven faults. All seven Bangtan's faults becomes the company's fault. You know this."

His words pierced Yoongi like needles. This was the last thing he wanted to be reminded of. Every waking day was a reminder that he didn't just live for himself and that he gladly signed up for it. But the consequences drove him to dark places at times, places he didn't want to revisit. And now, the one time he gave into his temptations without listing the repercussions bought him to this bitter moment. This was one of his worst nightmares.

"I know," Min Yoongi managed to say. The back of his eyes felt hot and he swallowed the lump in his throat. "I just..." he trailed off unable to find the words to explain himself.

"Who is she?" Bang PD asked, his tone lowering an octave of sharpness.

Yoongi didn't know if he wanted to turn to stone or laugh at the ridiculousness of his predicament. "You don't have to worry about her, she's just someone I met on the trip. We have no other relationship."

"That's exactly why I'm worried. We don't know what kind of girl she is and whether or not she'll try anything to profit from this situation," Bang PD explained as he picked up his reading glasses from his desk.

Yoongi furrowed his brows in confusion. "Profit? She's not that type of person..."

Bang PD wiped his glasses with a microfiber cloth. "Oh, how would you know? You said you just met her on the trip."

Yoongi stayed silent.

"What's her name?" The older man looked at his screen.

"Leila." Yoongi answered.

"Last name?"

Yoongi paused. "I don't know..."

Bang PD's eyes widened. "You've got kidding- Where is she from?"

Yoongi didn't answer.

"So help me understand... You had a one night stand with a random stranger and got caught doing it. Yoongi do you realize how that sounds worse than you being caught dating someone? It makes you into a disgusting lunatic that hits on random foreign girls and goes to hotels with them at night doing god knows what?" Bang PD looked like he aged 10 years in ten seconds.

Yoongi gritted his teeth in silence.

The producing director sat back in his chair with a long sigh. "Forget it, the reason I insisted on this call was to let you know of a certain new development."

Yoongi sat up straighter. "New development?"

"I don't know if this is karma toying with us or throwing us a bone but the reporter who broke this story has contacted us. In fact, he sent us the unreleased pictures he took of you and the girl entering the hotel room.  I've had the legal team look into this and the pictures are legitimate. But this reporter... he's willing to not release them for a price." Bang PD stated putting on his glasses and squinting at his screen. He pressed something on his keyboard.

Yoongi's phone dinged alerting him of a new email. The rapper took out his phone and opened the email. His crescent eyes widened seeing a picture of himself in wet clothes looking over his shoulder as Leila, in her wet red dress, punched in her hotel room's password on the door's keypad. She was faced away from the camera. Yoongi scrolled down. There were a few more pictures taken in bursts of them walking into the room together and the door being closed.

None of them had Leila's face in it. Yoongi unclenched his jaw, which he hadn't realized he'd been doing. Somewhere within all his jumbled emotions, he was relieved her face wasn't out there. Relieved she wouldn't have to go through the same backlash as him. The last picture was of Yoongi alone rushing out of the same door with a phone in his hand, this time in dry version of his clothes from the night prior. The camera flash he thought he saw that morning wasn't his imagination.

"How much is he asking?" Yoongi asked, his shame and guilt morphing into anger now.

"10 million USD." Bang PD replied.

Yoongi inhaled sharply. "Tell me we are not considering paying him off."

The director sighed. "It wouldn't be the worst idea."

"You can't be serious-" Yoongi was taken aback.

"You have any better ideas?" Bang PD asked with dry sarcasm. " It seems like the reporter wanted this from the start. Why else would he have not released the most damning photo? Plus losing you boys over this would be more of a devastation to this company than losing 10 Million."

Yoongi sat back in his chair running a hand through his hair in frustration. "Would the public believe it to be just a rumor though. Half of our fans are already trying to kick me out."

"Not quite." Bang PD replied leaning towards his computer screen. He opened his browser and clicked through some of his open tabs. "I've had our social team monitor most medias and they've said majority ARMYs are skeptical of the news as the photo that's presented as "evidence" does not prove what the initial article's claims. It's just that the numerous news outlets have chosen to highlight the negative comments instead for perhaps more traffic on their site. We can easily change the narrative with your's and our company's statement, but only if we stop the photos from being released."

Yoongi scratched the back of his neck, thinking. "How exactly will we change the narrative?"

Bang PD folded his arms to his chest. For the first time in the whole video call conversation, a slight smile formed on his lips. "By getting you a girlfriend..."