The studio lights hit their faces the moment they walked in. Warm. Bright. Unforgiving. A whole team rushed around adjusting microphones, fixing hair, and begging seven grown men to sit still for five minutes.
Impossible task.
Jin sat first. "Position of responsibility," he said.
Namjoon sat beside him. "Position of babysitter."
Jungkook would have laughed, but he caught Taehyung's eyes for half a second. Hana's warning hit him like cold water. No staring. No lingering. No suspicious softness.
Taehyung mouthed one word: behave.
Jungkook looked away so fast he almost strained something.
Jimin hopped into the seat between Yoongi and Jungkook. "I am the barrier," he announced. "No one crosses my line of purity."
Yoongi rolled his eyes. "You do not have purity."
Jimin tapped his shoulder. "I have enough."
Taehyung took the far end of the couch. Hana placed him there like he was a fire hazard.
"Everyone ready?" the director asked.
No one was ready.
The screen in front of them lit up. Their first clip appeared. Fan edits. Airport footage. Slow motion. Dramatic music. A zoomed in frame of Taehyung whispering something in Jungkook's ear.
The entire room froze.
Jimin broke first. He burst into laughter. Loud enough to ruin the shot.
Yoongi facepalmed. "Of all clips, they picked this."
Jin covered his mouth. "This is comedy."
Namjoon tried to look serious for two seconds, then gave up. "Play it."
The edit showed Taehyung leaning close to Jungkook. Slow zoom. Emotional piano. Subtitles added by fans saying, "SOULMATES COMMUNICATE SILENTLY."
The group lost it.
Jungkook hid his face behind his hands. "Why are subtitles so dramatic."
Taehyung leaned forward, elbows on his knees, smirking at the screen. "My whispering skills are appreciated."
Hana glared at him from behind the camera.
Jimin poked Jungkook's side. "You look whipped."
Jungkook choked on air.
Yoongi watched Jungkook struggle and quietly smirked. "At least they got your good angles."
Next clip loaded. Another edit. This one from a backstage live. Taehyung leaning over Jungkook. Their shoulders touching. Fans had slowed it down even more.
Namjoon whispered to Jin, "We should charge rent for all the space they live in online."
Jin whispered back, "We would be rich."
Jungkook, under strict internal survival rules, did not look at Taehyung.
Taehyung, ignoring all rules, kept sneaking tiny glances at Jungkook.
Every time he did, Jungkook tensed like he had been unplugged from reality.
Hana muttered into her clipboard. "This is a nightmare."
The next clip loaded. A fan edit of the whole group. Funny moments. Bickering. Old memories. Concert clips. Their laughter filled the room in a different way now. Softer. Warm.
Jimin leaned his head lightly on Yoongi's shoulder without thinking. Yoongi did not move away.
Jin nudged Namjoon. "Look at them."
Namjoon smiled. "They are fine."
Taehyung watched Jungkook laugh at an old chaotic dance practice. Jungkook's eyes sparkled the same way they always did when he forgot to be careful.
Taehyung whispered, "You look happy."
Jungkook whispered back, "I am. But do not say things now. Cameras."
Taehyung smiled. Small. Private.
Final clip. A fan compilation titled, "BTS comforting each other through the years."
Namjoon's hand on Yoongi's back during a tough stage.
Jin hugging Jimin backstage.
Taehyung holding Jungkook's hand after a long concert.
The seven of them walking in a line, matching steps without even trying.
The room went quiet.
Not heavy. Just full.
Jungkook felt it first, the soft pull in his chest when Taehyung looked at him in that calm, steady way. Not chaotic. Not playful. Something else.
Jimin exhaled slowly. "This is why they love us."
Yoongi nodded. "Because we stay together."
The video ended.
The director clapped. "Perfect. We got it."
Hana pinched the bridge of her nose. "Barely."
Taehyung stretched his arms. "I behaved."
"No you did not," Hana said.
Jungkook stood up fast. "I think I did."
"No you did not," Hana repeated.
Jimin slid off the couch. "None of us behaved."
Yoongi shrugged. "We did better than usual."
Namjoon checked his phone. "We have ten minutes before the next shoot."
Jin grabbed his jacket. "We get snacks. We earned it."
They walked out of the studio together. Same pace. Same energy. Same quiet closeness that made fans overanalyze everything.
Taehyung slowed his steps until he was beside Jungkook again.
"You survived," Taehyung said softly.
"Barely," Jungkook replied.
Taehyung nudged his arm. "Then stay with me a little longer."
Jungkook did not answer. He didn't need to.
They walked forward as the noise of the hallway wrapped around them again, the group somewhere ahead, the pressure waiting, the tension growing in ways none of them fully understood yet.