Chapter 3~

...Behind Closed Doors...

To the world, the Jeon family was perfect.

Perfect parents.

Perfect son.

Perfect legacy.

Every magazine loved them.

Every reporter admired them.

Every news channel praised them.

Whenever cameras appeared, the family smiled.

Whenever interviews happened, they laughed together.

Whenever reporters asked questions, they looked like the definition of happiness.

People envied them.

People admired them.

People wished they had a family like the Jeons.

Nobody knew the truth.

Nobody saw what happened after the cameras disappeared.

Nobody saw the closed doors.

Nobody heard the arguments.

Nobody witnessed the loneliness.

And nobody knew that Jeon Jungkook had stopped believing in the word "family" years ago.

The flashes of cameras blinded him.

"Mr. Jeon! This way!"

"Please look over here!"

"Smile!"

Jungkook forced a polite expression.

Beside him stood his father.

On the other side stood his stepmother.

Both smiling perfectly.

Both acting perfectly.

Both pretending perfectly.

His stepmother gently fixed his tie.

The cameras immediately captured the moment.

"Aww."

"They look so close."

"What a wonderful family."

Jungkook almost laughed.

Almost.

The woman adjusting his tie hadn't spoken to him in nearly two weeks.

Not unless she needed something.

Usually money.

Always money.

His father wrapped an arm around his shoulder.

Another perfect photo.

Another perfect lie.

"Jungkook is our greatest pride," his father told reporters.

The reporters smiled.

The cameras flashed.

Jungkook felt sick.

Because that same man had called him a disappointment less than twenty-four hours ago.

The moment they entered the mansion, everything changed.

The smiles vanished.

The warmth disappeared.

The masks fell.

His father loosened his tie.

His stepmother checked her phone.

Nobody looked at Jungkook.

Nobody spoke to Jungkook.

Nobody cared.

Until—

"Jungkook."

There it was.

The reason.

His stepmother finally looked up.

"We need money."

Of course.

Jungkook wasn't surprised.

Not anymore.

"How much?"

Her eyes brightened.

"We're renovating the vacation house."

Jungkook remained silent.

His father stepped forward.

"It's not a request."

It never was.

Nothing in this family was.

Hours later...

Jungkook sat alone in his office.

The headache behind his eyes refused to disappear.

Document after document blurred together.

Numbers.

Contracts.

Meetings.

Problems.

Always problems.

The office door suddenly opened.

Yoongi entered.

One look at Jungkook's face and his mood immediately darkened.

"What happened now?"

Jungkook didn't answer.

That was answer enough.

Yoongi sighed.

"You know, normal people take breaks."

"Sounds boring."

"Normal people sleep."

"Also boring."

"Normal people don't look like they're about to collapse."

Jungkook almost smiled.

Almost.

That evening, another family dinner was scheduled.

Another performance.

Another lie.

The dining room looked elegant.

Expensive.

Cold.

The food alone probably cost more than most people's monthly salaries.

Yet nobody spoke.

Not until his father placed a document on the table.

Jungkook immediately recognized it.

Another financial transfer.

Another massive amount of money.

Another demand.

His father folded his hands.

"Sign it."

Jungkook looked at the paper.

Then looked away.

"No."

Silence.

Dangerous silence.

His stepmother stared.

His father stared.

The servants immediately lowered their eyes.

Nobody moved.

Nobody breathed.

"What did you say?"

"No."

For the first time that evening, Jungkook sounded firm.

Tired.

But firm.

His father slowly stood.

The atmosphere changed instantly.

Years of experience told Jungkook exactly what would happen next.

His jaw tightened.

"After everything we've done for you—"

Jungkook nearly laughed.

Everything?

What exactly had they done?

Ignored him?

Used him?

Treated him like a bank account?

His father slammed both hands against the table.

"You owe this family!"

The words echoed through the room.

Jungkook remained silent.

Because arguing never changed anything.

It never had.

Later that night...

The confrontation became worse.

Much worse.

Voices echoed through the mansion.

Anger filled every corner.

And eventually—

A door slammed shut.

A lock clicked.

Silence followed.

Jungkook stared at the closed door.

His father had left.

The room was dark.

Quiet.

Empty.

The guest room wasn't large.

But right now it felt even smaller.

A punishment.

A way to remind him who held power.

Jungkook slowly sat on the edge of the bed.

Exhaustion settled over him.

He wasn't angry.

That was the problem.

He wasn't angry anymore.

Just tired.

So incredibly tired.

Outside the room, his stepmother sighed dramatically.

"What if people find out?"

His father scoffed.

"They won't."

"The press?"

"They love us."

"The investors?"

"They worship Jungkook."

A smile appeared on his father's face.

Cold.

Confident.

"They only see what we allow them to see."

And unfortunately—

He was right.

The public saw a loving family.

A successful family.

A perfect family.

Nobody saw the reality.

The next morning...

Yoongi arrived at headquarters.

No Jungkook.

That was unusual.

Very unusual.

Jimin arrived thirty minutes later.

Still no Jungkook.

Now both were worried.

Because Jungkook practically lived at the office.

Missing work wasn't normal.

Missing calls wasn't normal.

Missing meetings definitely wasn't normal.

Jimin frowned.

"Something's wrong."

Yoongi already knew.

The problem was figuring out what.

Across the city...

Taehyung reviewed another report.

Another successful operation.

Another financial loss for Jeon Corporation.

Yet his attention wasn't on the report.

His attention remained on one sentence.

Jeon Jungkook absent from scheduled meeting.

Absent.

For some reason, the word bothered him.

A lot.

More than it should have.

He closed the file.

His expression unreadable.

Because while everyone else saw a powerful billionaire standing at the top of the world...

Taehyung was beginning to suspect something else.

Someone that powerful shouldn't look so exhausted.

Someone that successful shouldn't disappear without explanation.

Someone with everything shouldn't seem so empty.

And for the first time...

Taehyung found himself wanting answers.

Not because he cared.

At least that's what he told himself.

But because understanding an enemy was the first step toward defeating them.

Or so he claimed.

Even though a small part of him was beginning to wonder if Jeon Jungkook was fighting a far more dangerous battle than the one between their empires.

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