Taehyung left the office earlier than usual. It startled everyone, but no one dared ask why. He walked through the hallway with purposeful steps, coat slung over his arm, expression unreadable. Jungkook looked up from his desk the moment he sensed movement, almost on instinct, and froze when he saw Taehyung approaching.
Taehyung stopped beside him, gaze sharp and cool. Jungkook straightened immediately, trying not to look like someone whose heart rate was suddenly doing acrobatics.
"I will need the finalized reports tonight," Taehyung said, voice calm but with a hint of something dangerous underneath. "Bring them to my penthouse."
Jungkook blinked. "Your penthouse? Tonight?"
Taehyung gave a slow nod as if explaining something to a child. "Yes. Tonight. I assume you can manage that."
Jungkook opened his mouth, confusion rising. "I mean… yes, but…"
Taehyung tilted his head slightly, eyes glinting. "If it is not too difficult for you. I know kids your age like being home early. You might get tired."
Jungkook felt the jab instantly. Color heated his face. "I am not a kid and I can handle delivering some reports."
Taehyung's lips curved. It was not a smile. It was amusement dipped in challenge. "Good. I will text you the address."
Jungkook stared, stunned, as Taehyung turned and walked away without another word. The man always managed to leave him feeling off balance, but today the effect was worse. Something in the way Taehyung looked at him felt calculated. Intentional. As if he wanted Jungkook to react. As if he was pushing him on purpose.
And Jungkook hated that it worked.
He watched Taehyung disappear into the elevator, his coat draped elegantly, black hair framing his face perfectly even after a long day. Everything about him looked controlled, composed, untouchable. Jungkook clenched his fists under the desk.
If Taehyung left early, why did he need the reports tonight? Why drag Jungkook to his penthouse when he easily could have had Hannah, or emailed the documents, or waited until morning?
This was not work. This was something else. Something Taehyung was not saying aloud. Something he wanted Jungkook to walk directly into. Jungkook exhaled, frustrated. His chest felt heavy as he pulled the files together. Hannah watched him quietly, already sensing the tension radiating from him.
"Did he give you extra work?" she asked.
"No," Jungkook muttered. "He gave me… a location."
Hannah blinked. "A what?"
Jungkook sighed, defeated. "I have to go to his penthouse."
Her eyes widened, but before she could speak, Jungkook cut in. "It is not whatever you are thinking. He is just being difficult."
Hannah gave him a sympathetic look. "You should be careful. He looks calm, but he is unpredictable."
Jungkook nodded, but deep down he knew Taehyung was more than unpredictable. He was impossible. Completely impossible.
As Jungkook finished the documents, he tried to shake off the lingering sting of Taehyung's comment about kids. It replayed in the back of his mind like a taunt. It mixed with the memory of Taehyung stepping close to him earlier, leaning over him in that suffocating proximity that made Jungkook's pulse misbehave. The thought sent an involuntary shiver through him.
By the time Jungkook left the building, the sky had already turned a muted shade of evening gold. He did not have a car, which made Taehyung's comment feel even more pointed. The man knew exactly what he was doing. He was getting under Jungkook's skin with full intention.
Jungkook took a metro, clutching the neatly bound reports in his bag. His arms shook the entire ride. He hated how nervous he felt. Hated that his stomach twisted at the idea of being alone with Taehyung in his penthouse. Hated that imagining Taehyung in a private setting felt… dangerous in a way he could not fully articulate.
He swallowed hard, trying to steady himself. This was work. Just work. The taxi he took from the metro station, stopped in front of a tall glass building that stretched into the sky like something out of a movie. Jungkook stared up, jaw slack. The penthouse was at the highest floor. Of course it was. Rich people and their obsession with altitude.
He entered the lobby, gave his name to the security guard, and was directed toward a private elevator. The moment he stepped inside, the quiet hum of the lift made his heartbeat louder. The numbers climbed slowly, painfully, floor by floor.
When the doors finally slid open, Jungkook stepped into a dimly lit hallway with soft lights and sleek walls. One door waited at the end, dark wood with a silver handle. Taehyung's address.
Jungkook forced his feet to move. He knocked once. No response. He knocked again. The lock clicked. The door opened.
Taehyung stood there in a loose black sweater, hair messy, glasses on his nose. He looked nothing like the rigid CEO from earlier. He looked relaxed, even comfortable, which somehow made everything worse for Jungkook.
Taehyung's gaze swept over him slowly. "You are almost on time."
Jungkook nodded, throat tightening. "I brought the reports."
Taehyung stepped aside. "Come in."
Jungkook's heart pounded as he entered the penthouse. He could feel Taehyung's eyes on him, calm but sharp, waiting for something. Expecting something.
And Jungkook suddenly understood: Taehyung was not just being petty. He was getting back at him. And tonight, Jungkook was walking straight into whatever lesson Taehyung intended to teach.
Jungkook stepped into the penthouse with the folder clutched a little too tightly against his chest. The quiet inside felt almost unreal, thick and steady like the whole place existed inside its own world. He had imagined Taehyung living somewhere expensive, but this was ridiculous. High ceilings. Soft lighting. A faint scent of cedar lingering in the air. Everything felt warm and rich enough to swallow him whole.
He turned slightly, ready to hand the reports over and leave as fast as humanly possible, but the words froze on his tongue the moment Taehyung walked back toward him. The man looked different. Very different.
Instead of his crisp suit and icy office presence, Taehyung wore a soft black sweater that hung lazily over his frame, sleeves covering half his hands. His dark hair was messy, falling over his forehead in uneven strands as if he had been running his fingers through it. His face looked warmer, softer, almost boyish without all that perfectly groomed perfection.
For the first time ever, Jungkook noticed something else too. He was taller than Taehyung.
Not by much, but enough that when Taehyung stood close and glanced down at the folder, Taehyung had to tilt his chin slightly upward to meet his eyes. The realization punched him in the chest out of nowhere. All this time he had assumed Taehyung was the taller one, the dominant one, the one who loomed over him, commanded the room, and made everything feel smaller around him.
But no. Jungkook was taller. And somehow that made everything a thousand times worse. Taehyung lifted a hand to adjust his sweater sleeve. The movement was small but Jungkook felt his pulse skip, like his body had decided to misbehave at the worst possible moment.
"You are still a few minutes late," Taehyung said calmly, though his tone lacked its usual sting. He brushed his hair back, still looking half relaxed, half distracted. "I thought you would have arrived sooner."
Jungkook swallowed. "Metro was slow."
Taehyung hummed a soft reply and walked past him toward the living room. The dim amber lights caught the edges of his sweater, making him look unfairly comfortable for someone who spent all day terrorizing employees. Jungkook followed silently, trying very hard not to stare at the way the sweater clung to Taehyung's waist.
"Place the folder on the table," Taehyung said, settling onto the cushioned bench near the window. He sat with one leg bent and one stretched out, posture elegant even in such a casual pose.
Jungkook put the reports down but kept standing, unsure whether to wait, sit, or flee.
Taehyung looked up at him lazily. "Why are you standing like someone gave you detention?"
Jungkook blinked. "I thought you wanted the reports. I can leave."
Taehyung's eyebrow lifted. "Do you want to leave?"
Jungkook hesitated. "I thought that was the point."
Taehyung looked at him for a long moment, eyes steady, sleepy, unreadable. Then he leaned back into the cushions with a faint sigh. "You can sit if you want. I am not making you run errands anymore tonight."
Jungkook hesitated again, but his legs moved on their own. He sat opposite Taehyung on the other side of the low table. The view from the window behind Taehyung framed him in soft silver city lights, making Jungkook's chest feel strangely tight.
This was dangerous. Very dangerous.
He should not be noticing how warm Taehyung's skin looked. He should not be noticing that the sweater made him look softer than the man who had snapped at him all day. And he definitely should not be remembering that dream. Not now. Not here.
Taehyung flipped open the folder, scanning the first page with practiced ease. "Did you double check the figures?"
Jungkook nodded quickly. "Yes. Twice. I made sure everything was correct."
A quiet sound of approval left Taehyung's lips. Not quite a compliment, but close enough that Jungkook's stomach tightened.
"You work well for someone your age," Taehyung murmured.
There it was again. The age comment. It should have irritated Jungkook. Usually it did. But tonight, hearing it in that soft, tired voice messed with his head.
"I am not that young," Jungkook said before he could stop himself.
Taehyung looked up, eyes lingering on him in a slow, deliberate sweep. Something shifted in his expression, subtle but unmistakable.
"No," Taehyung said. "Maybe not."
The words hung in the air, warmer than they should be.
Jungkook's throat went dry. "I should go home. It is late."
Taehyung closed the folder gently. "I can call you a cab."
"No. I can manage."
Taehyung studied him again, silent for a few seconds that felt too long. "You always insist on doing things yourself."
Jungkook shrugged. "I am used to it."
Taehyung looked at him quietly. There was no arrogance, no sharpness, none of that cold executive tone. Just a steady gaze that made Jungkook's heartbeat turn uneven.
"You do not have to do everything alone," Taehyung said softly.
Jungkook froze. Why would Taehyung say that? Why would he look at him like that? The moment stretched again, too charged, too intimate, and Jungkook suddenly needed to escape before his brain betrayed him with another dream or another reaction.
"I should go," he repeated.
Taehyung nodded slowly, though his gaze lingered. "Very well. Text me when you get home so I know you did not get lost on the way."
Jungkook met his eyes, startled. "Why would I get lost?"
Taehyung's lips curved faintly. "Because you are still a kid."
Jungkook glared before he could stop himself. "I am taller than you."
Taehyung's eyes widened for a fraction of a second. Then something like amusement flickered.
"Interesting. And you noticed."
Jungkook stood abruptly, face warm. "Goodnight, sir."
Taehyung leaned back, sweater slipping slightly off one shoulder. "Goodnight, Jeon."
Jungkook left quickly, but the image of Taehyung in that soft sweater, messy hair, relaxed smile, and warm penthouse refused to leave his mind. And that was the problem. It refused too much.