scripted (7)

☆ Hello and welcome to my account! I’m a fan of BTS (OT7) and my bias is Jungkook, although I love them all equally!

In here, you will find some BTS fanfics. I obviously take requests, so if you want to propose any ideas or feeling like talking just click on the “Let’s chat” box.

☆ Writing is a form of healing to me, and I do it mostly for fun. But also to improve my skills. It’s my first time publishing my writings, so I still have a lot to learn.

Hope you enjoy my work and, (girl) let me know what you think! ♡

What I’ve written so far:

…One-shots: Sports Car | F1 Jungkook fanfiction, Answer: Love myself | Jin fanfiction

…Work in progress: A safe place | Jungkook fanfiction, Racing hearts | F1 and BTS fanfiction

— RACING HEARTS ; An F1 and BTS fanfiction (Part four)

summary: Lucy was madly in love with her best friend Carlos Sainz. They knew each other since kindergarten and grew up together, though she knew he could never love her. It’s only when Lucy gets into a fake relationship with his enemy that he realises his feelings. Jeon Jungkook, who’s career was on the brick of ruins and only Lucy could have saved him. What will happen between the three? Will Lucy go back to her first love, or will she find a new life in Jungkook’s arms?

word count: 11k

Chapter 4 — Happier

“It’s... Jungkook. We are in love. He’s my boyfriend.”

His head throbbing, those words had poisoned his every thought. Carlos was destroyed—or at least, that's how he felt. How could she fall in love with his sworn enemy? He felt stabbed by her very words, left bleeding in a cage of his own pain.

Yet, what killed him wasn’t her betrayal. He knew that sometimes feelings were stronger than logic, so if Lucy was with Jungkook, she really must love him. Nor was it watching his rival take the girl of his dreams. What truly destroyed him was his own stupidity—for never making it clear that his heart belonged to her.

Carlos was still fighting these thoughts, desperately trying to push them away, especially now that she was supposed to be happy in another man’s arms. But did Jungkook treat her right? He hoped so. Otherwise, he would do whatever it took to rip her away from him.

They hadn’t spoken since yesterday—not even a single text. Carlos wasn’t ready; he felt too angry, not necessarily at her, but at the entire situation. He could never truly be mad at Lucy, not even now. She hadn’t meant to hurt him; it wasn’t her fault that they had fallen in love. The fault was his alone. He should have fought for Lucy instead of taking her for granted.

Carlos stared at his phone, re-reading their old texts and wondering what she was doing. Well, probably kissing her boyfriend, he thought bitterly.

In reality, Lucy wasn’t anywhere near a romantic getaway. She was curled up on her bed, crying her eyes out—mourning the loss of her best friend and haunted by the memory of his disappointed face when she had told him about Jungkook.

It was qualifying day, but she didn’t feel like working. In fact, she didn’t even feel like existing. It drove her insane that Carlos still consumed every single one of her thoughts, but she couldn’t help it. She had just lost her best friend over a selfish, stupid desire of her own.

Nonetheless she fought her depression and changed into a Red Bull outfit. As she cleaned her teeth, her phone buzzed. She grabbed it so quickly, desperately hoping it was Carlos, only to see a notification from her “boyfriend”

Kookie: Come to my room for a sec?

Jungkook insisted that she had to change his contact name, no one was gonna believe they were dating if she saved him by his name and surname. Not even his lawyer was that cold.

Me: Why?

Kookie: I wanted some company :(

Kookie: Jk, I wouldn’t ask you, not my type.

Anyway, we should discuss some things.

Me: Coming.

Before leaving her room, Lucy braided her hair into a neat ponytail. Knowing they were supposed to head to the paddock together, she gathered her essentials and shoved them into her backpack. With a heart so heavy, she took a deep breath, fighting to keep the tears at bay. It was going to be a brutal day—she knew it—and the thought of plastering on a fake smile or playing a fake love was almost too much to bear.

She took the elevator, praying she wouldn’t run into Carlos, who was staying on the very same floor.

Standing in front of his door, Lucy forced herself to knock. She had zero energy to talk today, especially with Jungkook. Through the heavy wood, loud music hummed, accompanied by a soft, captivating voice. Was he singing?

Lucy gathered enough patience to knock again. She waited, but there was still no answer. Sighing, she tried a third time, harder now. Nothing.

“Jungkook, open the door!” she called out. A frustrated groan escaped her lips. Rolling her eyes, she was just about to turn on her heel and leave when the door finally swung open.

There stood Jungkook, completely shirtless and wearing nothing but his boxers. His hair was soaking wet, and she watched, paralyzed, as droplets of water slowly traced the line of his neck all the way down to his soft V-line. It left her breathless.

He smiled at her and grabbed her by the wrist, pulling her into the room. “You know, it’s rude to stare,” he added, shutting the door behind them.

“I wasn’t,” she snapped, crossing her arms and shooting him a sharp glare.

Jungkook brushed past her, his bare shoulder accidentally bumping into hers and making her spin around slightly. She watched him walk over to the nightstand and pull a snack from the drawer. Lucy couldn’t help but focus on his muscles, her eyes tracing the way they moved beneath his skin and lingering on the dark ink of the tattoos covering his entire arm.

A quiet chuckle from him forced her gaze back to his face. His dark eyes were burning into hers as he ripped open the candy bar with his teeth, taking a big bite and grinning while he chewed.

“You’re sure staring a lot today, princess. Is everything okay?” His voice snapped her back to reality. Lucy tried her best to ignore the heat creeping into her cheeks under his gaze.

She decided not to give him any satisfaction. “Could be better, actually.”

Jungkook nodded, tossing the plastic wrapper into the trash can. He unzipped his luggage and pulled out a black Mercedes team shirt. “Problems in paradise?”

Lucy scoffed. She really didn’t want to discuss her love life with him, but apparently, she had no choice. Who else could she even talk to? She couldn’t explain the situation without revealing that she was in a fake relationship with Jungkook in the first place—and they had both agreed to keep that strictly between themselves.

“He’s mad at me,” she admitted softly.

Jungkook pulled his shirt over his head and walked toward her. Gently taking her by the arm, he led her over to the bed and motioned for her to sit down.

“Lucy, it’s just a phase. Don’t worry,” he said, standing in front of her as he stepped into his baggy jeans. “I bet in a few days he’ll turn into Mr. Perfectly Fine and come running to your door with a massive bouquet of flowers.”

She groaned and laid back on the bed, “How can you be so sure?”

“Because,” Jungkook said, looking at himself in the mirror as he buckled his belt, “I know how a man’s mind works. And when there is competition, the game is even more interesting.”

Lucy rolled her eyes, “That’s disgusting.”

He laid next to her and stared at the spinning fan, “But that’s the truth.”

“Whatever. Carlos isn’t like that,” she snapped, turning her head away. “He’s a gentleman. Unlike you.”

Jungkook laughed, a rich sound that echoed in the quiet room. He turned onto his side, propping himself up on one elbow to look down at her.

“Are you sure about that?” His voice was suddenly low

Lucy bit the inside of her cheek, suddenly unable to look him in the eyes. Because the truth was... she wasn’t sure anymore. If Carlos was such a gentleman, why had he left her in the dark for so long?

“He cares about me,” she whispered, sounding more like she was trying to convince herself than him.

“I’m just saying... a real gentleman wouldn’t have made you wait long enough for me to steal you away.” He murmured.

Frustrated by his tone, Lucy pushed herself up onto her palms, matching his height on the bed. Suddenly, their faces were just inches apart—so close she could feel the heat of his breath skin-against-skin.

“Except you didn’t” She breathed through her teeth,

”Keep telling yourself that, princess” He said while softly chuckling and playing with his lip piercing.

The air thickened, and only Lucy’s heavy breathing could be heard. They were staring at each other, so close. Jungkook loved making her angry; he liked to see that animal gaze she had whenever someone tested her. He slowly leaned closer to her ear, causing her body to shiver as his breath softly brushed against her skin.

“You get mad pretty easily, I like that,” Jungkook whispered into her ear.

She closed her eyes and tried to swallow the sudden ache low in her belly. He smirked as he placed a strand of hair behind her ear, gently taking her chin and moving her head toward him. They were incredibly close, and Lucy hated how the boy had hypnotized her.

Jungkook smiled, “And you blush pretty easily, we have to do something about that.”

Lucy got up from the bed, not able to stand any more of his teasing. Jungkook laughed at how fast she moved away from him. He had to admit, he particularly enjoyed annoying her: how she blushed whenever he got close, or simply the way her eyes pierced his skin, casually causing him to burn with desire.

Jungkook was attracted to her, it couldn’t be denied. If only she wasn’t Carlos' best friend, and madly in love with him, then maybe he would have tried to actually flirt with her. But now, engaged in this fake relationship, he had no intention of taking Lucy to bed. It would have been uncomfortable and unfair for the girl; he felt like it would be taking advantage of her.

“You are a pain in the ass,” Lucy said.

“No, I’m serious, Lucy. You can’t flinch like that whenever I’m near you,” he said, getting up from the bed.

“What do you suggest, then?”

Jungkook took his sunglasses and hooked them onto the collar of his shirt. “You have to ease up a little.” He raised his hand, gesturing for her to step closer. “Come on, sweetheart.”

She did as he requested, stopping about a meter away from him. Jungkook chuckled, reaching out to grab her hand and pulling her closer. He then moved his hand to her waist, holding her firmly.

“Whenever we are close, just think of something else. Preferably not something that turns you on.”

They were extremely close to each other; Lucy could already feel her chest becoming heavier with every breath she took. Jungkook wrapped his fingers around the nape of her neck, tilting her head back just enough to lean in, and softly brushed his lips against her skin. Carefully controlling his desire, he wasn’t going to kiss her. But then, her scent caught him in a total daze. It was intoxicating, blurring his mind for a brief, dangerous second.

Unconsciously, he slid his hand down her back, pressing soft kisses onto her neck as her scent took over. Lucy melted against his body; the feeling had taken control of her so strongly that she couldn't even think in this blinding haze—all she felt was a heat wave washing all over her.

Jungkook couldn’t stop; he liked the taste of her skin and the way his body fitted so perfectly against hers. But the moment a soft breath hitched out of her mouth, he pulled away just as quickly. “Sorry, I got carried away.”

Then he caught a glimpse of her face. She was completely red, her whole body visibly shaken by the touch.

“Lucy... is this the first time a man has ever touched you? Because if so, it’s better to drop this right now.”

She snapped back to reality at his comment. “What?! No, I’ve had my experiences!”

Well... only with one man. But that didn’t matter, she still had them. Though not the way she had hoped. Kylian and her were both young and completely inexperienced back then; neither of them really knew what they were doing, so it was always brief and empty. Lucy had only ever slept with him. She didn’t have it in her to hook up with a stranger, and since her heart belonged to Carlos, doing it with anyone else was out of the question.

“Ok… can I try again? Or does it make you uncomfortable?” Jungkook asked, sounding genuinely a bit worried for her.

“Just do it, pussy.”

He laughed at her comment and looked at her, licking his lips as he slowly leaned closer, setting the right pace for her. “This time, commit. Can you do it for me, princess?” he whispered in her ear.

Lucy felt her body shiver again, her cheeks burning up. Her mind quickly lost control as his hands traveled to her hair, his lips getting dangerously close to hers. Jungkook didn’t move—he wouldn’t kiss her; it was against the rules. Instead, he traced the corners of her mouth, still refusing to touch her lips. His mouth brushed past her right cheek, settling against her jawline. Noticing her sudden wave of adrenaline, he murmured, ordering her to maintain control.

She listened to his sweet, mesmerizing tone and forced her mind to drift somewhere else. Lucy thought of everything she could: ice cream, puppies, football. Slowly, her mind floated away from their intensity—the heat was still persistent, but not as overwhelming as before.

Jungkook broke off their closeness and looked at her. She wasn’t blushing anymore, just flushed with a soft shade of pink.

“Perfect.”

Lucy laughed at his approval. “So... am I ready now?” she said, lifting her chin up.

He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smirked. “We’ll see, honeybee.”

She rolled her eyes in annoyance, bothered by his confident manners—the smug smile on his face was proof he thought of her as just another one of his girls, who died to have his kisses and hands all over them. But Lucy couldn’t care less about his attention; she would much rather live without it.

They left the room together, and as soon as they stepped out of the hotel, Jungkook wrapped an arm around her shoulder, already selling the lie. They got into his car and drove to the track, silently enjoying the spectacular view of Shanghai. Once they arrived, Jungkook kindly opened the door for her and offered his hand. That was when the first pictures were taken.

Fans were screaming at the barricades, begging Jungkook for attention. He calmly signed every item, still holding her hand, occasionally looking over at her with a teasing smile. Lucy couldn’t stand him, he obviously enjoyed playing with her.

They walked through the paddock together, giggling and pretending to enjoy each other's company. Whispering in each other's ears, making it look like a sweet exchange of words, they were actually softly insulting each other. Lucy complained about how sweaty his hand was, while Jungkook kept telling her to loosen up, as her cheeks were already blushing violently every time he leaned in close.

Hand in hand, smiling so forcefully, greeting everyone with polite smiles. She wanted to rip herself away from him; his touch caused her body to explode with rage, her heart racing faster than it ever had. Lucy couldn’t stand being this close to him—she hated everything about him. But what she couldn’t stand the most was the way he could be so respectful and kind, like that night on the balcony or even this morning, reassuring her about Carlos... only to turn right back into the complete jerk that he was.

Passing by the garages, Jungkook caught a pair of eyes burning into them—it was Carlos, watching from afar. Jungkook looked at him and tried to suppress a smirk, thoroughly enjoying the way Carlos's face practically screamed in pain. He stopped right in front of the Ferrari box and turned Lucy toward him, staring at her with a bright smile as a sudden idea hit him.

She was confused by the sudden stop, not realizing what was happening behind her. Then Jungkook leaned closer, placing his hands on her hips and forcing Lucy to look up at him. She saw his devilish smile as he chuckled softly, whispering in her ear, “Try not to blush. Remember what I told you.”

Jungkook slowly pressed his lips against her skin, causing her body to melt under the pleasure. He kept his eyes on Carlos, smirking as the Spaniard clenched his jaw, clearly bothered by their closeness. Jungkook loved making him die of jealousy — it made him feel powerful, feeding his desire even more.

“Lucy,” his low, dark voice whispered against her ear, her heart beating far too fast for her liking. “I’m not gonna kiss you. I’m just gonna pretend I did.”

She couldn’t breathe, it was almost like a drunken haze, her head spinning at his touch.

“Is that okay with you?”

The words travelled all the way down her spine. She closed her eyes and nodded.

Then, Jungkook held her face between his hands and gently kissed the corner of her lips. A smirk broke through his features as he stepped away, winking at her.

Lucy was frozen, completely unsure of what to do. Her body suddenly felt flushed and warm, and she hated how easily he could get under her skin.

She turned around and saw him. Carlos had seen it all—that was why Jungkook had suddenly stopped. She was outraged. She knew making him jealous was going to be part of the plan, but the way Jungkook had so proudly shoved it in his face made her skin crawl with anger.

Carlos stared at Lucy, feeling a strange sting burning in his eyes. She offered him a small smile, but he simply shook his head and turned his back on her. Carlos felt his heart sink: it hurt so much to see her with him. He knew it was his fault, that he had pushed her right into his arms, and that was what made it worse. Seeing her with someone else had never bothered him much before, but now, Carlos couldn’t deny it.

Unlike with Kylian, Lucy truly seemed happier with Jungkook. He gave her the right attention, their closeness burning with a hot passion. Carlos felt selfish—even horrible—for hoping she wasn’t as happy as she was with him. Sure, they had never dated, never even kissed, but a part of Carlos had always thought something was eventually going to happen between them. While hooking up with other girls, the only woman he was confident about spending his life with had always been Lucy. He just didn’t know if she felt the same.

Carlos was terrified of his feelings for her; he had never consciously thought about being in love with Lucy. He had simply always seen her as his lifetime woman. But now, with his mind intoxicated by her, Carlos realized that those feelings he had carried all along were far deeper than a simple crush. He was confused, utterly dazed by the situation. He didn’t know what to do—whether to step back and wait, or fight for her. Because at the end of the day, he didn’t want to ruin what she had with Jungkook. Even if staying silent meant he had to suffer.

“Hey mate!” Charles’s voice snapped him back to reality.

His teammate was wearing his usual bright smile as he walked toward him. Bottle in hand, he watched as Jungkook and Lucy talked, the Mercedes driver looking completely smitten by her. Charles turned back to Carlos, who was staring intently at the computer screen, trying so hard to keep his focus on the data.

“Morning, Charles,” Carlos said without looking up.

Charles sighed, noticing the obvious way Carlos was hiding his feelings. He tapped his shoulder, forcing him to finally turn around. Charles tipped his head toward the couple outside. “So the rumors are true. I didn't believe them, honestly.”

Carlos simply hummed, wanting to avoid the topic at all costs. But his friend had other plans; Charles might not know Lucy well, but he knew Carlos, and the man was so obviously in love with her. So, he pushed further.

“They look pretty together, I have to say.”

That caused him to flinch. “Pretty? She looks kidnapped.”

Carlos hated how jealous he felt—it was like a massive rock sitting on his heart, slowly fraying his nerves until they were ready to snap. But he wasn’t entirely lying; somewhere in his mind, he was sure that Lucy wasn’t totally happy with him. It was too soon to say, since they had just gotten together, and maybe it was just his own desperate hopes speaking, but something felt off between them.

“Don’t you think that’s a bit weird?” Carlos muttered, nodding toward the walkway. “How deeply in love they are all of a sudden.”

“Maybe they hid it well,” his friend replied. “I mean, look at them.”

Charles pointed toward the walkway, and Carlos followed his arm, staring directly at the couple. Just seeing them hurt him deeply, though even through the pain, he noticed how nervous Lucy was around him, always blushing at his touch.

The truth was, no one knew her like Carlos did. She could sell this fake story to anyone except him. He didn’t doubt their relationship was real, but he questioned whether her feelings were genuine. When you’re truly in love with someone, you don’t constantly blush at every bit of attention they give you. The soft touches, the compliments — they become second nature, a habit you get used to. You don't feel shy and awkward around the person you're with, you find an uncontrollable, natural force drawing you to them.

He had seen how Lucy acted with Kylian: she was constantly timid, though she had never blushed. Whether her feelings were genuine or not, Carlos was certain of one thing: she secretly enjoyed Jungkook’s attention. Because that was exactly how she used to act around him. And sometimes, that thought made him doubt if Lucy had ever had any real feelings for him at all.

Carlos felt another wave of rage hit him—she was flushing even harder than she ever had with him. The thought killed him. Maybe it was all in his head, and his best friend was actually falling in love with his worst enemy. His throat tightened: the air suddenly felt suffocating. But it didn’t make any sense. How could she be with him now, when just at the party she had been flirting with Carlos?

“Well, I’m gonna go to my wife,” Charles told him, stepping out of the garage.

He walked toward Alexandra, who was standing right next to the couple, watching them as they talked. Carlos didn't miss the slight smirk appearing on her face. Alexandra knew better than anyone how much Lucy had pined over Carlos, so the fact that she had suddenly shown up with a handsome driver— who also happened to be his worst enemy — struck her as a bit suspicious.

It was almost too predictable, as if it had been written by Lucy herself just to make Carlos jealous. Alexandra had to admit, though, it was a fantastic show to watch, and Jungkook was playing his part a little too perfectly.

Charles briefly kissed his wife and stood beside her as he greeted the couple. “So, I need to know everything, how did this happen? Who made the first move? Who confessed their love first?” he asked, his voice pitching up with excitement.

Alexandra smiled at him; she loved whenever he turned into a total gossip girl. But when she glanced over at her best friend, she caught the subtle flash of panic and pain crossing her face.

“Honey, respect their privacy,” Alexandra chided gently.

Lucy locked eyes with her, offering a silent smile of gratitude. Right then, Alexandra didn't miss the way Jungkook quietly caressed Lucy's arm: a tender, soothing gesture, as if he were trying to comfort her. Alexandra furrowed her brow in confusion. Maybe he knew something she didn’t.

“Lulu!” a voice called out.

Lucy knew exactly who it was. As she turned, her smile widened at the sight of Kylian Mbappé. He jogged toward her and pulled her into a warm, tight hug, causing Jungkook’s grip on her arm to slip away. As they broke apart, they both laughed loudly, relieved to finally reunite.

“I missed you!” she groaned. “How’s Ester?”

“Great! She says hi.”

Charles stood right beside Kylian, his hands visibly trembling as he stared, barely blinking for a second. Lucy noticed the Ferrari driver's sudden nervousness and kindly introduced them. But what she didn’t expect was for Jungkook to have the exact same reaction—if not worse.

Anxiously, Jungkook extended his hand toward the footballer. “Whoa, man... I’m a huge fan of yours,” he said, his usual composure completely vanishing.

Lucy chuckled under her breath. Suddenly, he wasn’t the confident guy from the hotel room who stubbornly teased her every chance he got. Right now, he looked more like a little kid meeting his hero.

“Same here,” Kylian smiled, shaking his hand. “You’re an incredible driver!”

Jungkook felt his heart racing a mile a minute, trying – and failing miserably – to play it cool.

After chatting for a bit, Kylian made his way deeper into the paddock alongside Alexandra. Charles kindly offered to accompany them for a short walk before heading back to the Ferrari garage.

The second they were alone, Lucy dropped the sweet smile she’d been holding and turned to Jungkook, crossing her arms and shooting him a sharp look. She wasn’t about to break down, but she was definitely going to call him out for the stunt he’d pulled in front of the Ferrari box.

A smirk tugged at his lips. He looked down at her, raising his eyebrows, oblivious of her rage. “Mbappé is a fan of me,” he murmured, leaning in closer. “Carlos cannot compete with that.” He gave her a quick wink.

But for the first time, Lucy didn’t get flustered by his teasing. Instead, she let out a dry chuckle and rolled her eyes.

“You really love attention, don’t you?” she said quietly, her tone laced with bitterness. “Too bad you just embarrassed yourself.”

Jungkook’s smirk faded in an instant. “What do you mean?”

“Kylian and Carlos are actually really close,” she said, tilting her head with a taunting little smile. “And since Kylian happens to be my ex, he knows exactly how Carlos and I are. So that little show you just put on? Completely pathetic.”

“What?! You didn’t tell me Mbappé was your fucking ex!” his voice squeaked out, pitching an octave higher.

Then, a slow, devilish grin flashed across his face. Leaning in even closer, he whispered, “And about that show... I know you secretly liked it.”

Lucy felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment. She took a deep breath, forcing her composure back, and looked him straight in the eye.

“See you later, Jungkook,” she said smoothly.

Before he could react, she leaned in, pressed a quick kiss to his cheek, and turned on her heel—heading straight toward the Red Bull garage without looking back.

Whenever the engines started, all of her worries disappeared. Lucy followed Max actively, telling him to push harder. Unconsciously, she always checked on Carlos, wanting to know if he was doing well. But he wasn't, he barely made it through Q1. Lucy knew the car wasn’t the problem, because Charles was doing amazingly, sitting momentarily in first position.

Something was troubling Carlos, and she hoped she wasn’t the reason. As Q2 ended, he didn't qualify for the final session, reaching only eleventh place. On the other hand, Jungkook was incredibly fast and nobody knew how. Looking at Hamilton’s performance, he was struggling a lot, but his teammate made it look so easy.

At the end of quali, Jungkook managed to take pole position, followed by Charles and Max. He got out of the car and removed his helmet, his hair soaked with sweat. He smiled brightly and looked at the camera, sending a subtle wink to the viewers. He knows just what the audience wants, Lucy thought.

She watched as the interviewer asked him questions, sounding so surprised to see him take first place:

“What are the expectations for tomorrow?”

“I hope good ones,” Jungkook chuckled. “My brother is gonna be here, so I kind of feel the pressure. He is my biggest fan, and I don’t want to disappoint him.”

She didn’t know Jungkook had a brother. She wondered if he was just as insufferable as him.

Then came Charles. He looked truly happy, his dimple breaking through his smile. He answered all the questions kindly, as always, and had great hopes for the race. Then he was asked about Carlos, and Lucy’s heart skipped a beat.

“What a shame for Carlos. How do you think he’ll manage tomorrow?”

Lucy never understood why they always had to test the drivers like that—talking about others’ performances and, most of the time, criticizing them.

“Carlos is a great and smart driver. He’ll find a way.”

After the many interviews, Lucy waited for Jungkook in the parking lot. The sun was slowly setting, and she stared at how its light was painting the sky. She loved to look at the sunset, and right now she just wished to be on a rooftop, losing herself even more in those colors.

When she lowered her gaze, a certain driver caught her attention: his soft hair, as always, looking so effortlessly perfect on him. Carlos then looked up at her, his heart beating fast the moment their eyes met. He slowly walked toward her and dropped his backpack to the ground. Keeping his eyes locked onto hers, he leaned back against the car behind him and shoved his hands into his jeans pockets.

“It’s a beautiful sunset,” Lucy broke the silence, desperately wanting to talk to him.

“Don’t talk to me about the sky, Lucy.” His tone left a deep cut in her, she felt like she was bleeding.

The silence fell again, making her extremely uncomfortable. It hurt Lucy even more to see him right there in front of her, lacking the courage to open his mouth and fight for her heart.

“I’m sorry about quali, but eleventh is not that bad!” She tried to cheer him up.

Although Carlos seemed too lost in his thoughts, he kept his gaze fixed firmly on his shoe, never meeting her eyes. He couldn't look at her, not just yet. It carved an empty, dark hole in his chest. Because every time he caught that sweet dark brown color, he remembered the way she used to look at him, and couldn't stop thinking about the new spark her eyes found whenever she was near Jungkook.

“Are you truly happy with him?” He finally said, staring at her.

Lucy was surprised at his words. And Carlos noticed the way her face lost all its color, looking so pale, almost as if she saw a ghost. She furrowed her eyebrows and let out a nervous chuckle, “Of course!”

But the moment the words escaped her mouth, Lucy knew he could never believe her. Not when she is on the brick of tears, wanting to reach for him, and lose herself into his hug. Just as she thought, Carlos was even more confused than before, reading the lie in her face and voice.

“Give him my congratulations for the pole,” he said before walking away.

She was left speechless. Lucy hoped Carlos wouldn’t question their relationship too much. She couldn’t lie to him, not when it hurt like this.

Soon after, Jungkook arrived and greeted her with a warm smile. As they drove to the hotel, he immediately noticed how absent she was. To break the uncomfortable silence, he turned on the radio, but the music did nothing to comfort her. Lucy just wanted to cry, hide under the sheets, and never face the world again. But she couldn't.

Since they were supposed to be a real couple, Jungkook and Lucy had to share a room to avoid raising any suspicion. The thought of sharing a bed with him made her sigh in annoyance, she knew how insufferable he could be. Neither of them said a word, a heavy silence hanging between them as they entered the hotel, rode the elevator, and waited for Jungkook to unlock their room.

It all felt empty and shallow. To Lucy, pretending was getting harder by the second while she was suffering this much, her mind still completely consumed by Carlos. A part of her desperately hoped he would beg her to come back. She needed him to fight for her, to win her heart again. But it felt impossible, not when he kept silently killing her with his unfinished sentences, keeping the real truth to himself. Then, another part of her wished he would just hate her, so she could finally move on once and for all. It was the only way, really: there were no other options left for them.

Jungkook came out of the bathroom wearing his blue pajamas—the same ones he had on back on the rooftop. Lucy hadn’t even realized he had left to change, too lost in her own thoughts. She watched as he unmade the sheets, grabbed the two pillows from his side of the bed, and tossed them onto the couch.

Lucy looked at him, confused by what he was doing.

“You get the bed,” he said, not even looking at her.

She widened her eyes at his sudden gentleness. Lucy had fully expected to share the mattress, or even worse, that he would force her to sleep on the floor. But once again, Jungkook proved what a true gentleman he actually was beneath his fierce, confident mask.

“Absolutely not,” she insisted.

Lucy realized it was the first time they had spoken to each other since leaving the track.

Jungkook didn’t listen to her as he prepared his “bed” for the night. She rolled her eyes and scoffed. Why does he have to make everything so hard? she thought.

Lucy clenched her jaw and walked over to the couch, grabbing the pillows and setting them back on the bed. Jungkook groaned in annoyance and went to retrieve them, but she stepped right in front of him, crossed her arms, and shook her head, silently ordering him to stay put.

He brushed past her and grabbed a pillow anyway. She reached for his strong arm and began to pull. “Jungkook, leave it there.”

“No.”

“You can’t even fit on the couch, you stupid idiot!” she yelled at him.

They were full-on fighting now, throwing delicate slaps at each other. Finally, Jungkook tightened his grip on the pillow and yanked it out of her hands.

Lucy groaned in exhaustion and collapsed onto the edge of the bed. “Ugh! Why do you have to complicate everything, Jungkook?”

He didn’t answer right away. Instead, he sat down next to her, staring blankly at the white wall. “I’m sorry, Lucy. If you really want the couch, you can have it.”

She snapped her head toward him, suddenly feeling guilty for how she had acted. “God, I’m sorry,” Lucy said, rubbing her forehead in frustration. “You were acting like a true gentleman and I—I ruined it all.”

Jungkook furrowed his eyebrows. “Lucy, you didn’t ruin anything. I get it. You had a hard day.”

She stared at him, genuinely surprised by how easily he had noticed her state of mind. He didn’t reach for her; he simply acknowledged her feelings, asking for no explanation in return. Jungkook obviously expected her to be stressed during these first few days of their fake relationship. It wasn’t easy to be apart from the person you loved, especially when he was also your best friend and he didn’t talk to you.

“Thanks,” she mumbled, and he gave her a subtle nod.

After a quiet pause, Jungkook lay on the bed groaning loudly; he was exhausted from today. As he contemplated the room, he was slowly drifting away, the tiredness softly cuddling him into a deep sleep. But before he could even close his eyes, Lucy slapped his chest, causing him to flinch and wake up.

“Hey! Weren’t you supposed to leave me the bed?”

He groaned and ignored her; instead, he turned his back to her and put himself in a sleep position. Lucy got up and stared at him with her arms crossed, waiting for him to react. A smirk tugged at his lips as he could hear her sighing, and to annoy her even more, he faked a snore.

She hit him again, this time harder. “Jungkook! Get up.”

“No… you didn’t want it, now it’s mine,” he mumbled against the mattress.

“You are unbearable… just give it to me.”

Jungkook looked at her, propping himself up on one elbow, a smirk slowly tugging up at his lips as his gaze hardened on her. “Then come and get it.”

Lucy’s heart skipped a beat, her body burning as his eyes stayed on her, carefully scanning every curve. Normally, Jungkook was annoying, but when he purposely teased her, Lucy lost all of her senses, feeling completely dazed by his attention, making her hate him even more. She tightened her jaw. She refused to let him win this easily.

So, swallowing her flushed cheeks, Lucy slowly walked closer to the bed, enjoying how his expression broke so quickly, stealing away the confidence he proudly showed every time. A slight smile danced on her lips as she climbed on top of Jungkook, leaving him utterly breathless. He didn’t expect her to actually respond to the tease, but he couldn’t focus on anything, the room seemed to vanish. The only thing he could think of was her intoxicating eyes, staring so intensely into his.

Neither of them talked. Both were too busy trying to keep their breathing steady, attempting to hide the burning feeling that overcame them every time they got this close. Jungkook followed her hands as she slowly pulled out her scrunchie, her beautiful curly hair falling over her bare shoulders. He swallowed the lump in his throat.

Lucy smiled at his reaction and leaned closer, “You blush pretty easily too, Kook.”

Those words, whispered in his ear, made him shiver with pleasure, waking up a desire deeply buried inside him. Jungkook fought every raw instinct begging him to kiss that bare neck. He reminded himself of the gentle manners he always tried to follow, it wasn’t fair to touch her like this. He wouldn’t take advantage of her, not when she was still so fragile, and certainly not while she was still in love with Carlos.

To Lucy’s surprise, Jungkook seemed to snap back to reality. He grabbed her waist and flipped their positions, pushing her down onto the bed until he was on top of her. He pinned her hands above her head and dangerously leaned closer, their lips merely an inch away.

She blushed at the sudden twist, his body and scent completely taking over her strength, it was driving her insane. He looked down at her intensely, and Lucy could read a certain hunger in his eyes, causing her stomach to tighten into a knot that desperately needed to be released. Jungkook watched how her defenses were slowly fading away, clearly loving the effect his touch had on her.

“Honey, you can lie to yourself as much as you want,” he whispered into her ear. “But deep down, you know you like it.”

Jungkook stepped away from her and propped himself up on the couch. Leaving Lucy in the cold air, the room suddenly felt frozen without his warmth. She blinked rapidly, trying to process what had just happened, forcing her feelings to reset.

She was furious that once again Jungkook had won. She hated him, dreaded the power he held, making her feel so good with just one single touch.

Lucy went to the bathroom and washed her face, trying to suppress that burning feeling.

When she came out, the lights were turned off. Jungkook was already lying on the couch, seemingly asleep. Lucy threw herself onto the bed, scoffing and tossing around. Her mind was entirely consumed by the moment they had just shared, and she knew she had to get her revenge somehow. Jungkook couldn’t win this easily. She had to overcome her shyness.

After all, the whole reason she had agreed to this deal was to create a new version of herself, one that was confident, especially around men. She wasn’t going to let anyone step on her anymore.

Lucy woke up to a cold breeze and the loud roar of engines outside. Jungkook was shuffling through his luggage, attempting to move silently. He was searching for his cigarettes but couldn’t find them—until he turned toward the bed and saw they were placed right on the nightstand.

He grabbed one and tried to light it.

That’s when Lucy opened her eyes: Jungkook was standing right in front of her, shirtless, fighting with his lighter. She watched the tattoos sprawling across his hand and arm.

“Fuck me…” he mumbled through the cigarette resting between his lips.

“Good morning to you, too, Jungkook.”

Her voice took him by surprise as he flinched slightly. Then he looked down at her, a smirk already spreading across his face. “Good morning, princess.”

She groaned and turned the other way. “Don’t start already.”

Jungkook finally lit his cigarette and took a drag by the open window, leaning against the wall as he stared at her. “What?”

Lucy rolled her eyes and got out of bed. Without looking at him, she went into the bathroom and locked the door. After brushing her teeth, she came out and informed him that she had to go back to her room to grab fresh clothes, but he didn’t seem to care, his eyes fixed on the early morning city outside.

She walked through the hotel hallways in her pajamas. When she reached her room, Alexandra was standing right in front of it, knocking impatiently on the door.

“Lexie?”

Her best friend turned abruptly at the sound of her voice, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion. “Why are you in your pajamas?”

“'Cause it’s morning and I just woke up,” Lucy said smoothly.

A playful smile tugged at Alexandra’s lips. “Where were you? Has a certain tattooed man entertained you all night?”

Lucy blushed slightly and rolled her eyes at the comment as they entered the hotel room. Alexandra threw her purse on the couch and sat down, looking at her best friend with a knowing smile. She knew it—they were pretending. It was so painfully obvious. Alexandra knew everything about Lucy, especially how she acted around a man she actually loved. If they were so in love, why did she blush and get nervous so easily?

What she suspected was whether real feelings were growing between the two. It was too early to say, she knew, but Alexandra couldn’t stop watching the way they acted, so clearly attracted to one another. While Jungkook made it clear that he wanted her— always teasing her, always finding excuses to touch her — Lucy was still a case to crack.

Lucy noticed the sudden silence from Alexandra, and how she was carefully scanning her every movement. “Lexie, is everything okay?”

Alexandra got up from the couch and paced back and forth across the room. “I don’t know… you tell me.” Again, that playful expression painted her face.

“Okay, I really don’t understand.”

“Cece, I know,” she finally said.

Lucy panicked at her words, nervously fidgeting on the spot. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Alexandra let out a sigh and rolled her eyes. “Right. You can sell your perfect love story to everyone else, but not to me, girl.” She looked at her sweetly. “I know you, Cece. And this sounds just like something you would do.”

“Sure, because I always do things like this,” Lucy sarcastically retorted.

“No, but… you know,” Lexie smiled gently. “You’re a romantic at heart, and you love believing in crazy love stories. This whole setup sounds like it was pulled straight out of one of those books you read.”

She stepped closer and took Lucy’s hands in hers, wanting to reassure her that she would never mock her decision.

Lucy groaned, the tension leaving her shoulders as she looked at her best friend. “Lexie, you can’t tell anyone. Not even Charles! Please, it’s already bad enough that you found out.”

Seeing the genuine concern in her eyes, Alexandra squeezed her hands. “Of course not, Cece. Your secret is safe with me.”

They smiled at each other and enjoyed the sweet moment. Lucy felt a heavy weight lift off her chest; a part of her was deeply relieved that her best friend saw right through it all. But that also meant they weren’t convincing enough, and maybe Carlos didn’t believe the lie yet.

“Is it that obvious that we actually hate each other?” Lucy asked.

At that, Alexandra let out a loud laugh. “Hate is a strong word! Honestly, for a second I thought it was real, but then I saw your blushing face and changed my mind.” She gently caressed a strand of Lucy’s hair. “Cece, the others don’t suspect a thing. Charles told me last night how happy he was for you that you’ve finally moved on from Carlos, and he even added that you two remind him of us.”

Lucy furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

Her best friend continued smoothly, “I don’t know about Carlos... maybe he doesn’t believe it yet because he’s in denial, Cece. And besides, he knows you very well.”

Lucy nodded. She felt so much lighter now that someone knew—it made everything feel less lonely. She lay down on the bed, and soon her friend joined her, both staring in silence at the ceiling.

“Is he a good kisser?” Alexandra teased.

“What?! Lexie, how would I know?” Lucy sat up abruptly at the question, watching her friend chuckle.

“Okay, so you haven’t kissed... but why?”

Lucy sighed and propped herself back up on the bed. “Because I don’t want to.”

Alexandra looked at her, suddenly intrigued by her words. It was weird that she insisted so strongly on not kissing him if she hated him that much. Why would someone be so afraid to touch a person they claimed they couldn’t stand? But Lexie knew the real truth: Lucy avoided that kiss because she knew that if she let it happen, she would eventually fall in love with him.

There was simply too much tension between those two: it was like a loaded gun, just waiting for someone to pull the trigger.

Lucy hadn’t realized it yet, she was too blinded by her pride and hatred. But Alexandra knew, one way or another, something was bound to happen between them. She just hoped Lucy wouldn’t end up getting hurt again. She had already suffered too much, and all she truly needed in life was someone who was clear about his intentions.

Eventually, they had to head to the track. There was still a race to drive, and Max was starting in third position, an opportunity for the team that couldn't be missed.

As planned, Jungkook and Lucy arrived together and walked through the paddock, playing their usual parts alongside Alexandra and Charles. Lucy had asked her friend to keep her company before the race because she didn’t want to walk alone with Jungkook, she knew he would have teased her constantly, and today she simply had no energy for it.

Now alone in the Red Bull garage, she put on her usual headset and analyzed the strategy once more. Truthfully, she didn’t have high hopes for today, their car was still too unpredictable to fight for first place, but you never knew when Max was behind the wheel. He could win even on a bicycle; somehow, he always found a way.

The race soon began, and a wave of pure nervousness washed over Lucy. Jungkook had an amazing start, while Charles struggled a bit after making a mistake in the first corner. There was an immediate battle between him and Max, but Max managed to keep him behind. As the laps flew by, Lucy didn’t realize just how quickly Carlos was cutting through the field, and after only a few laps, he was already sitting right behind Max.

“Max, can you go a little faster?” She told him on the radio.

“I’ll try.”

Though not even a second later, Carlos surpassed Max, snatching third place away from him.

Jungkook had won the Grand Prix. It was a shock even for the Mercedes team, nobody understood how he had pulled off a win with such an uncompetitive car. Lucy watched as he threw himself toward the crowd and tightly hugged a man – quite a handsome one. It had to be his brother, tears streaming down his face as he looked at Jungkook with immense pride.

Lucy had to be there, playing her role as the supportive "girlfriend." She walked toward the podium area and waited for the drivers to come out. Carlos was the first. Her heart skipped a beat when his eyes locked onto hers, making her feel like she was suffocating in the crowd. He never shifted his gaze, and though Lucy tried so hard to look away, she couldn't. He was still her best friend, the man she had grown up with and loved so ardently.

But the moment Jungkook stepped out, jumping around and beaming, her attention shifted entirely to him. She smiled brightly at his pure happiness; it was a contagious force, and despite how much he drove her crazy, seeing him win made her undeniably proud.

Carlos was watching their exchange closely. He noticed the way Jungkook winked at her, wearing that signature smug smirk, and when he caught the soft pink flush spreading across Lucy's cheeks, his heart shattered. The champagne celebrations began, but Carlos's eyes remained pinned on Lucy, silently begging her to look back at him. Eventually, she did. And the moment their eyes met, neither could look away: it was a magnetic pull, holding them far too strongly.

Jungkook noticed the way they stared at each other on the screens and burned with anger. What is she doing? Eye-fucking him on TV? he thought, his jaw clenching.

Next to Lucy stood Jin. He recognized her, she was the girl who had mysteriously appeared at his brother’s hotel room in the middle of the night. Apparently, they were dating now, or at least that's what Jungkook had told him the day after. They looked completely in love, but Seokjin found the sudden rush to date this girl rather strange. Nonetheless, he decided to strike up a conversation with her.

“Hi, I don’t know if you remember me,” he began with a polite smile. “I was in Jungkook's room that night you came by. I’m his brother, Seokjin.”

She smiled at him and shook his hand. “I thought you looked familiar! It’s nice to meet you, I’m Lucy.”

“Is he treating you right? Because my little brother can be a real dick sometimes,” Jin asked with a laugh.

Lucy giggled at his blunt statement. He was completely right, Jungkook was a dick sometimes. “I get what you’re saying, but… he’s actually treating me perfectly.”

They shared a laugh and continued talking. Lucy was genuinely stunned by his gentle manners and warmth—there’s no way he’s actually Jungkook’s brother, she thought to herself. Jin mentioned his boyfriend Namjoon, who unfortunately couldn’t make it to the race because he was sick, so Jimin had come along instead. The blonde man stood right beside him, watching Jungkook with tear-filled eyes, sobbing like a baby over his big win.

After the race, they headed back to the hotel, the car ride wrapped in a heavy silence. To Lucy’s dismay, they were all going out to party tonight, and she was in no mood for it. Especially knowing she had nothing to wear, and even less desire to dance just to sell the idea of a perfect relationship. Luckily, Alexandra was coming with her, as they were also celebrating Charles’s second-place finish.

She wore a black mini dress and high heels, her curls tumbling loosely over her shoulders. Lucy wanted a completely different look tonight. She opted for bold makeup, nothing too harsh for her features, just the right amount to boost her confidence.

A sudden knock echoed from her room. She grabbed her purse and hurried to open the door. Standing in front of her was Jungkook, wearing a leather jacket over a white shirt tucked into his black jeans. The moment his eyes fell on her, the air was instantly sucked from his lungs. He stared at her from head to toe, his gaze carefully tracing every curve.

He licked his lip and let out a slow, appreciative smile. “You should wear dresses like that more often.”

Lucy rolled her eyes. “You are unbelievable.”

Jungkook laughed, leaning casually against the doorframe. “Are you ready to go?”

She nodded and closed her room behind her. Suddenly, he reached out and took her hand, his grip tight and confident as they headed toward the parking lot. The unexpected touch sent a shiver through her, making her freeze for a split second before letting herself be led by him. She turned her head, watching him closely as he walked beside her with such effortless calm.

As they arrived at the car, Charles and Alexandra were already there waiting for them. The couple was giggling, and Lucy couldn’t help but notice the way he stared at her best friend, with those soft, doe eyes he saved only for her. He never looked at anyone else like that. And the smile Alexandra wore whenever he did was pure light, bursting into colors.

Alexandra saw the couple approaching them and glanced down at their interlocked hands, a small smile tugging at her lips as Jungkook moved his grip, sliding his hand to rest firmly against the bare skin of Lucy's back. Alexandra noticed the sudden shift in her friend, seeing her flinch slightly at the touch as she tried so badly to hide her flushed cheeks.

Charles and Jungkook greeted each other with a warm hug, smiling and already joking. It surprised Lucy how close they actually were. She had always assumed they hated each other for some reason, but apparently they were pretty good friends who casually played tennis together in their free time.

Her phone buzzed, it was a message from Kylian.

Kylian: Yo I’m here.

Me: Yeah we are coming.

“Kylian is already there, we should get moving,” she said, slipping her phone back into her purse.

Charles’s eyes lit up and he practically started bouncing with excitement. “Man, we’re going to party with Kylian Mbappé! How cool is that?”

Alexandra and Lucy laughed as the two boys acted like little kids. They got into the car and drove off toward the nightclub. Lucy sat in the back with her friend, staring out the window at the passing city lights.

“You look pretty hot tonight,” Alexandra whispered to her. “You really like making him suffer, don’t you?”

Lucy giggled at the comment, shaking her head. “Trust me, I don’t think he’s affected in the slightest.”

Once they arrived, they greeted Kylian and entered the venue, the smell of alcohol already filling their nostrils. Jungkook held her close to him as they navigated through the crowd, looking for a place to sit. Fortunately, Charles had reserved a table slightly removed from the loudest noise.

There sat Carlos, talking to Lando. His laugh echoed deep inside Lucy’s chest: she had missed that sound, a familiar music that had always managed to calm her. The moment he saw her, his smile dropped instantly at the sight of the way Jungkook was holding her. But it all faded away when he looked at her face, shattered as she gave him a faint smile and waved awkwardly. Lucy was clearly suffering from their distance, just as much as he was.

Carlos couldn’t sleep; he couldn’t even eat. It was hard for him to focus. Everywhere he went, the thought of Lucy followed him relentlessly, driving him insane. And now, seeing them up close for the first time, there was no way he could avoid their sweet romance.

Jungkook looked at him, thoroughly enjoying the pain written across his face. He deserves it, he thought. Never take a woman for granted.

They sat down right in front of him, Jungkook wrapping his arm around her shoulders to pull Lucy closer. But he immediately noticed how her body froze, her face suddenly turning ghost-white. She was staring at Carlos, their eyes locked onto each other, and the bright smile she had been wearing just moments ago was completely gone, replaced by a tight, expressionless line.

Jungkook didn’t know what to do. He wasn’t going to flirt with her— not when she looked this heartbroken. Instead, he gently caressed her arm, drawing soft circles on her bare skin. That subtle, gentle touch seemed to calm her slightly, but Lucy was still destroyed inside, her heart feeling painfully empty.

The music slowly faded away from her ears, the chatter around them sounding distant and cold. The walls of the room fell loudly in her mind as she stared at Carlos. All she could actually feel was that quiet, warm caress on her arm, keeping her anchored.

Jungkook pulled her a little closer and gently kissed the top of her head. “Are you okay?” he whispered to her.

Those sudden words brought her back to reality. She blinked rapidly, trying to regain her surroundings, and stared up at her "boyfriend." Looking into his eyes, she could tell he was genuinely worried for her.

“Yeah, of course,” she reassured him, forcing a soft voice.

Across the table, Carlos got up from his seat and walked away, scrunching his nose in annoyance. His heart felt far too heavy to handle, he just wanted to free himself of the weight he had been carrying for so long. He slipped into the bathroom, the club's noise finally quietening down. Carlos was shaking, completely unable to stop it, and tears began to stream down his face before he could even control them.

Suddenly, a wave of nausea hit him, and his body pushed him toward a stall. He threw up, expelling every poisonous thought he had kept trapped inside his mind. He collapsed onto the cold floor of that dirty bathroom, staying there until he finally managed to calm down, slowly recovering every desperate breath of air he needed.

How could this be happening? he thought, his mind racing. Carlos was completely bewildered by her behavior. Why did she look so miserable with him? He knew she couldn’t possibly love Jungkook—it made no sense. The way Lucy used to look at him... that was love. He dug deep to find the strength inside himself to get up. He wasn’t going to let Jungkook steal the woman he so desperately needed to survive.

When he stepped out of the stall, he drank a bit of water and washed his hands. Then, suddenly, a door behind him opened, and out walked Jungkook.

He fixed his belt and tucked his shirt into his jeans, a quiet smile appearing on his lips as he looked at Carlos through the mirror. He washed his hands right next to him, but stopped when he felt the Spaniard's gaze burning with pure anger. Jungkook let out a sigh and turned to face him directly.

“Do you have a problem, Sainz?” Jungkook asked, his voice calm, though his dark eyes remained sharp as ever.

Carlos shook his head in annoyance. “Don’t play games with her or I’ll fucking end you.”

But Jungkook wasn’t shaken in the slightest. Instead, he let out a dry chuckle. “I’m not playing any games. We are in love.”

The words hit Carlos right in the gut, but he swallowed the pain. “Are you sure about that? ’Cause she sure as hell likes to stare at me,” Carlos said with sudden confidence.

“Is that really how you see her? A trophy you lost because of your stupid ego?” Jungkook hissed through gritted teeth.

Then Carlos moved closer. “I never lost her. You’re just a rebound, Jeon.”

Jungkook laughed right in his face. “That’s not what she’s been telling me,” he said, his voice dropping into a dangerous whisper.

“Just accept the fact that she chose me. Because unlike you...” Jungkook tossed the paper towel into the trash can, locking eyes with him through the mirror. “...I know how to satisfy a woman. And most importantly, I know how to love her without draining her.”

He left the bathroom, wearing that signature smug smirk. Carlos fumed with anger, letting out a loud groan before rushing toward the door. Without even realizing it, he stepped right on Kylian’s foot, making the footballer whine in pain.

“Man, that’s my foot, man!”

He was standing right outside the bathroom, waiting to go in. Carlos apologized profusely to him and headed straight to the bar to get a drink—he desperately needed one.

Lucy was still at the table, talking with Alexandra. When Jungkook returned, his eyes were burning with anger. He gently grabbed her wrist and pulled her up toward him. “Sorry babe, I need to talk to you for a second.” He then looked at her friend. “Is it okay, Alex? I’m so sorry to steal her.”

Alexandra shrugged her shoulders with a knowing look. “No, it’s fine, go ahead. I get it.”

Jungkook led her to a quieter corner where no one could see them. He gently pressed her against the wall and stood directly in front of her, resting his hands on his hips. He looked completely furious, his jaw clenched tightly and his tongue pressed against his cheek.

“Your boyfriend is completely insane,” he said, shaking his head with wide eyes.

Lucy furrowed her eyebrows in utter confusion. “What on earth are you talking about?”

“Look, I was in the bathroom and he came at me,” Jungkook was saying, looking like a madman, “telling me that if I hurt you, he is going to fucking end me.”

She crossed her arms and let out a sigh. “Can you blame him? Your reputation precedes you.”

“Fair. But there is a slight problem,” he looked at her. “Carlos doesn’t believe we are actually in love.”

Lucy dropped her head in disbelief, a heavy groan escaping her lips.

“Great. Just great,” she muttered, running a hand over her face before looking back up at him. “And what did you say to him?”

Jungkook tilted his head, a dangerous, smug smile slowly creeping onto his face “I told him we were madly in love. But he didn’t buy it. He said you were still looking at him like you always do.”

He took a step closer, shutting the distance between them “And honestly? He’s not wrong. You were practically frozen back at the table.”

Lucy felt her cheeks heat up, she could hear his breath softly brush on her bare shoulders “I was overwhelmed, okay? Seeing him like that… hearing his laugh… it caught me off guard.”

“I know,” Jungkook’s tone softened, his dark eyes searching hers. “I know it’s hard. But if we want this to work, if you want to show him that you’ve moved on and make him realize what he threw away, we have to make it look real. No more freezing up. No more hesitating.”

Lucy swallowed hard, “And how do you propose we do that?”

Jungkook raised an eyebrow, his fingers sweeping a stray curl away from her face, the touch trailing down to her chin to tilt her head up.

“We start making him really jealous” he murmured softly, his voice dropping low, “You follow my lead, okay honey?”

She nodded at him, suddenly feeling overwhelmed by their closeness, he was pressed up against her, gently taking her by the hips as he whispered to her ear, “and just say when you want me to stop.”

Then he stepped back and took her hand, dragging her onto the dance floor with his eyes glued to her, a bright smile on his face. Once in the middle of the crowd, Jungkook pulled her closer and began moving to the music, laughing softly at her beet-red face. Lucy, on the other hand, was completely frozen, standing like an ice sculpture amidst all the chaos.

He tilted his head cutely and furrowed his eyebrows, asking what was wrong.

She didn’t want to say it out loud—it was way too embarrassing. Instead, she looked away, nervously scratching her arm. Jungkook reached out and gently took her hand, making Lucy’s eyes snap back to his. He pulled her slowly toward him until he could whisper in her ear, “Is everything okay?”—his voice sounding genuinely worried.

Lucy blushed even harder. She had wanted to avoid this exact moment at all costs. Her whole life, she had stayed as far away from the dance floor as possible—at least when she was sober.

“You can tell me, Lucy. I promise I won’t judge you,” Jungkook said, his tone soft and reassuring.

She let out a frustrated groan, feeling her heart pounding in her chest. But as she looked up at his face, now wearing such a warm and sweet expression, she finally found the courage to open up.

“I... I can’t dance,” she confessed.

Jungkook burst out laughing, a rich, heartfelt sound. Lucy immediately gave him a playful shove. “You said you weren’t going to judge me!”

She crossed her arms and glared at him with a deadly gaze, which only made Jungkook laugh even harder. At that point, she turned on her heel and began walking away, but before she could even take a single step, he caught her wrist with both hands. Still smiling, he gently turned her back around to face him.

“Okay, I’m sorry, I’m sorry! It just took me off guard,” he admitted. “I honestly thought it was something serious.”

“This is serious!” Lucy fired back, her eyes narrowing.

“Lucy, look around you…literally no one in this room knows how to dance.”

She did as he suggested and glanced at the crowd. He wasn't lying: people were dancing awkwardly, with some barely able to keep their balance. A tiny smile tugged at the corners of her lips, despite her best efforts to suppress it. “Okay... maybe you have a point.”

He chuckled softly, looking down at her with a gentle gaze. “You care way too much about what other people think.”

Jungkook stepped in closer and immediately broke into a horribly embarrassing, exaggerated dance move. “See? You just have to feel the music!”

Lucy couldn’t hold it in anymore. She burst out laughing, a genuine, loud chuckle escaping her chest as she watched him act like a complete fool just to make her feel less ashamed.

That cute sound sent a sudden surge through his heart, making it race as he realized he had finally made her laugh for the very first time. He stared at her bright smile and round cheeks, completely melting at how beautiful she looked.

“You’re laughing,” he said, placing his hands on her waist and pulling her closer.

“No, I’m not!” she protested, even though a wide smile was breaking through her lips.

“Come on, admit it!”

Lucy hadn’t even realized they were actually moving to the music now. Caught up in the moment, everything suddenly felt light and easy. “What?”

Jungkook looked down at her, his eyes briefly flicking to her lips. “Admit that you’re starting to like me.”

At that, Lucy laughed even harder, shaking her head in denial while that bright smile remained plastered on her face. “I’d rather be tortured to death!”

He couldn’t stop staring at her, enjoying the sudden rush of adrenaline travelling all over his body. He leaned in closer until they were practically glued together. “When you put it like that, you make me want to tease you even more.”

From afar, Carlos was staring at them. He felt his world crumble into tiny pieces. The way Jungkook made her laugh so easily, how effortlessly he had managed to pull her out of her shell... Carlos hated himself. He felt like he had never been able to make her feel that way: as if the rest of the room didn’t exist, as if it were just the two of them standing in a cloud of lavender haze.

He couldn’t understand it. What did Jungkook have that he didn't? Carlos hated his own jealous eyes and how heavily they fell upon Jungkook, feeling painfully small compared to him. Maybe he was right, Lucy had chosen him, and Carlos was the one who had drained her, sucking into her blood till she felt dead. Like a vampire.

And maybe she was happier with him. Maybe all those hurt glances and soft smiles were simply because she missed him. But a selfish part of him wished she wasn’t as deeply in love as she tried to make it seem. A part of him hoped that, one day, she would look at him the same way she was looking at Jungkook right now.

He finally realized his mistakes. How poorly he had treated her, always thinking of her as a sweet, convenient jewel that never needed anything in return.

And Jungkook was right. He had lost her, or maybe he had never truly held her to begin with.

— RACING HEARTS ; an F1 and BTS fanfiction (Part three)

Lucy was madly in love with her best friend Carlos Sainz. They knew each other since kindergarten and grew up together, though she knew he could never love her. It’s only when Lucy gets into a fake relationship with his enemy that he realises his feelings. Jeon Jungkook, who’s career was on the brick of ruins and only Lucy could have saved him. What will happen between the three? Will Lucy go back to her first love, or will she find a new life in Jungkook’s arms?

word count: 8k

pairings: F1 driver! Jeon Jungkook x !fem! og character x Carlos Sainz

CHAPTER 3 — Less

After the party, Lucy locked herself within the walls of her room. She lay on the floor, surrounded by darkness as her loneliness echoed inside her chest. She didn’t want to see anyone, especially Carlos. He had tried to call her multiple times, but she had declined every call; hearing his voice would have hurt too much. He would have asked for an explanation as to why she had disappeared all of a sudden.

Jungkook had been kind enough to take her back to the hotel; they had stayed silent the whole ride, clearly not wanting each other’s company. In the elevator, he stood as far away from her as possible and walked away without saying goodbye. But she expected nothing less from him.

Now, alone in her bathroom, she was staring at her reflection. Her makeup, once so pretty, was smudged because of her tears. She hated to see so clearly how her love for Carlos was silently destroying her. And she didn’t want to feel this way anymore.

So, a fake relationship could be the start of something new: the chapter where the prince falls in love with his princess, or maybe the last episode of their beautiful friendship.

Jungkook had reassured Lucy, saying it was the only way to get Carlos's full attention. She wouldn’t be his little dog following him everywhere anymore, now she could be the woman of his dreams, the one who had the courage to turn her back on him.

But Lucy didn’t believe his words.

She felt ashamed to accept the deal. Carlos didn’t deserve this. She knew that the moment he found out about their “relationship,” he would look at her differently—just not in the way Jungkook thought. Lucy could already picture his face as she told him the news: red eyes and furrowed eyebrows, with only pain and disappointment readable on his expression.

Lucy had tried to reject the idea, but her body could no longer take this endless feeling of rejection. If only Carlos had stayed with her that night instead of kissing another girl, then maybe she would have laughed in Jungkook’s face. It was the only way for her to create a world outside of Carlos Sainz.

She tucked herself into bed and stared at the ceiling. This night would be hard to face, and she thought of all the possible endings—the good ones, but especially the bad ones. Lucy tossed and turned between the sheets, letting out a loud groan. Eventually, she gave up and grabbed her phone. It was quite late, but her best friend’s messages caught her attention; it wasn’t Carlos.

Alexandra had texted her, incredibly worried after seeing her friend disappear with Jungkook.

Lexie: Cece where are you???

Lexie: Are you okay?

Lexie: I’m sorry, Charles just threw up, it’s a mess. I have to take him home, is that alright with you?

Lexie: I don’t know if you are still alive, but answer me when you can :)

Me: Sorry Alex, I was on the balcony and then left. Is your mess of a husband okay?

Lucy placed her phone back on the nightstand, but just a few minutes later, it lit up, forcing her to look at the notification. It was Alexandra again.

Lexie: Yeah, he finally fell asleep. How are you?

Lexie: I saw Carlos kissing that girl. Ew, when will he wake up?

Like any good best friend, Alexandra knew perfectly well about Lucy’s feelings for the Spanish driver; it didn’t take a genius to see it. She was actually surprised that Carlos hadn’t noticed a single thing. It was obvious that Lucy loved him: the way she looked at him, how her smile always widened at the sight of him, or simply the way she acted around him.

The same went for Lucy—just as Jungkook had said, even Alexandra constantly told her that Carlos was in love with her. The problem was that Carlos hadn’t realized it yet. He was focusing on other women to forget about the one he truly wanted to be with.

Me: Yeah I know, but I’m okay.

Lexie: I bet… what were you doing with Jeon Jungkook?

Me: We just talked, why?

Lexie: And left together? Do you have something to tell me?

Because if you two are dating, I totally support it, girl!

Me: But what about Carlos?

Lexie: Cece, he had his chance.

Don’t waste your youth on someone who doesn’t make it clear that he loves you.

“Someone who doesn’t make it clear that he loves you.” Lucy read the text over and over, feeling the tears welling up again. But her body felt too tired to cry; she had officially run out of energy. She didn’t answer Alexandra’s text—it was too soon to give her an explanation of why she was with Jungkook.

The two still had to discuss how the deal was going to work and create a story about how they fell in love. It had to be convincing, not one of those love-at-first-sight tropes, because everyone who knew Lucy was well aware of how much she hated him.

She thought of many stories, but none seemed believable, not even in the slightest. To think her mind survived on these romantic fantasies, and yet she couldn’t find one for her and Jungkook.

Her phone lit up once again, though this time it wasn’t her friend who had texted her. It was an unknown number.

Unknown: Goodnight sweetheart!

Lucy knew exactly who it was. There was no mistaking it; she could even read it in his annoying voice.

Me: What do you want, Jungkook?

Jeon Jungkook: Shit, how did you know it was me?

Me: Next time try using a different nickname, not the one you used earlier.

Jeon Jungkook: I see you’re still thinking about it.

You liked it, didn’t you? ;)

She rolled her eyes and turned off her phone, desperately trying to get some sleep. However, her phone buzzed again, causing her to groan in exhaustion and bury her head in the pillow. What did he want from her now?

Jeon Jungkook: Fine, ignore me… Anyway, next race weekend, come to my hotel room.

We have to discuss our deal.

Lucy was surprised to see him act on it so quickly. Honestly, she had expected to handle all of it alone, but maybe Jungkook was just as miserable as her—or even worse.

Me: Ok, just tell me the room number. Now let me sleep.

Jeon Jungkook: Sorry, honeybee. Sleep well ;)

This man was truly irritating. Why do girls even like him? she thought.

Lucy fell asleep shortly after, only to be woken up by the sun beating its light harshly onto her half-naked body. She looked around the room, feeling dazed from sleep. Lucy gathered her memories of yesterday night and the pact she had made.

She got out of bed and took a shower. Just as she stepped out, a knock came at her door. Lucy quickly wrapped a towel around herself and rushed to open it. In front of her stood Carlos Sainz, and from his expression, he wasn’t particularly happy.

“Hi, Carlos,” Lucy greeted him. The moment he heard her voice, all his rage vanished in a snap. He hugged her tightly and kissed her forehead.

The driver had stayed up all night, waiting for her to reply to his texts and calls. When she didn't answer, he had messaged Alexandra to ask if she knew anything. When the girl told him Lucy was alright, he finally went to sleep. Still, he was confused as to why she had disappeared like that, and mostly, why had she ignored his calls?

Carlos tapped her arm softly. “Cece, I was worried sick about you! Why didn’t you answer me? I mean, one moment you were sitting at our table, and the next you were gone! God knows where.”

Lucy fidgeted on the spot, feeling extremely guilty about last night. “I’m sorry, Carlos. I just came back to the hotel.”

“What? How?” Suddenly, a strange feeling came over Carlos. He knew she didn’t have a driver's license, so there was no way she could have returned to the hotel alone. He mustered the courage to ask, “With who?” his voice coming out like a whisper.

She didn't meet his eyes; Lucy was not ready to tell him about Jungkook yet—it was too early. “Just some guy.”

Carlos didn’t know what to say; he was too stunned to speak. He certainly didn’t expect his best friend to get a ride from a stranger, and he certainly didn’t expect this weight in his chest to get heavier. Carlos couldn’t place the feeling yet—it was odd and new, making his skin burn with fury. He raised his eyebrows and stared at her blankly.

“Oh. You... you met someone?” he said, his voice sounding a bit squeaky. Lucy gave him a nod, not wanting to add any details. Lying was hard when it came to Carlos.

“Well, you could have asked me…” he mumbled.

She let out a dry, cold chuckle in response. “No, you looked pretty busy. I didn’t want to interrupt your beautiful moment.”

If Carlos was not mistaken, an ounce of jealousy could be heard in her voice. But he didn’t want to believe it; maybe he had just misheard or was too tired to read her emotions properly. An awkward silence fell between the two. Lucy hadn't even realized she was still wearing just the towel, and suddenly felt embarrassed, her cheeks flushing pink. Carlos noticed her panic and realized what she was wearing. Mortified, he looked away and apologized to his friend.

“I’ll wait for you outside!” he said as he walked out of the room, completely flustered by the moment.

He was now in the hallway, leaning against the wall as he thought about last night. She had looked beautiful, so dangerously stunning that it made Carlos lose all his confidence. He didn’t know how to act; she didn’t seem like the usual Lucy—the one he grew up with. Last night she was a woman, and he was a man completely smitten by her charm.

The feelings were too much for him, and it scared him. In Eva, he saw an escape from that unbearable and extremely intense tension between them. Carlos didn’t know why he felt this way toward Lucy sometimes. They were best friends; even a crumb of attraction toward each other would ruin everything. He knew it, so he avoided it.

And now that she had met someone, he couldn’t stop thinking about this mysterious man.

Suddenly, the elevator doors opened, snapping Carlos back to reality. Out walked Jungkook. He was casually whistling with his hands in his pockets. At the sight of him, Carlos flinched. What was he doing here? The Korean driver saw him, and a smirk tugged at his lips as he walked toward Lucy’s room, causing Carlos to furrow his eyebrows in confusion. Before Jungkook could step any closer, Carlos placed a hand on his chest, pushing him slightly away.

“Why are you here? Your room is on another floor.”

“How sweet of you to remember where I stay!” Jungkook joked, and while looking at him, he knocked on Lucy’s door, enjoying how Carlos’s glare intensified.

Finally, the girl opened the door and was shocked to see her fake boyfriend standing in front of it. Lucy awkwardly dragged him inside her room and shut the door forcefully. Carlos was left outside, shocked by what was happening.

“What the hell are you doing here? We were supposed to meet next weekend!” she hissed at him through her teeth, trying to keep her voice low.

Jungkook smiled and pulled her gold earrings out of his pocket. “You left these in my car,” he whispered, knowing Sainz was listening to their conversation. He didn’t want to get Lucy in trouble; it was too soon for the news to break, especially to Carlos.

She stared at him, ashamed of her outburst. For once, Jungkook was being nice to her. “Thank you…”

As Lucy reached out to take her earrings, their fingers brushed—a soft touch that didn’t linger for long. Nonetheless, it lit a quiet spark in Jungkook’s chest. He cleared his throat, trying to brush it off, and left the hotel room. It was a habit of his to leave without saying goodbye, so this time she didn’t even bother calling after him.

Carlos watched him walk away, shaking his head, and then looked at Lucy. “What did he want?”

“Nothing, he thought I stole his charger.” She tried to shrug off the topic.

“Why?”

“I don’t know, to annoy me?”

The two friends headed downstairs with their luggage. Carlos kindly offered to carry hers, and she let him. They loaded the car and went to the airport together. Next weekend they were supposed to race in China, so they decided to go a few days early with Charles and Alexandra.

It wasn’t a couples' trip — just a group of friends going to visit a country. The fact that Charles and Alexandra were actually married didn’t matter; they were all just friends. Lucy told herself this many times, but somehow she couldn’t fully believe it. Everything they were going to do felt like a couples' activity.

Once at the airport, while they were waiting for the plane to board, she received a text from Jungkook. It was an attachment. Lucy furrowed her eyebrows in confusion as she saw that he had shared a location. He sent another message:

Jeon Jungkook: I’ll be in China a few days before the race. If you want to drop by,

this is where I’m staying. Room 412.

Me: Thanks. I’ll let you know.

Alexandra saw the whole exchange. She smiled proudly at her friend and noticed how Lucy was nervously bouncing her leg. Lexie needed to meet Jungkook before forming a complete opinion on him, and she didn’t like believing the stories the press wrote about him. If he was making her Lucy happy, then those fake rumors didn’t matter to her.

In front of them sat Carlos and Charles, talking about their expectations for this season. Charles joked about his crappy performance at the Melbourne Grand Prix and applauded his teammate’s win.

While laughing, Carlos looked over at Lucy, though she wasn’t paying any attention to what they were saying. He noticed how intensely she was staring at her phone, biting her nails anxiously. Since the party, she had been cold; usually, Lucy was loud, smiling constantly at everyone. But today, Carlos caught how she distanced herself from the others, always looking at her phone or sighing.

Carlos knew exactly when his best friend was a little down. Between them, words weren’t needed—a simple glance or a subtle expression would tell it all. He thought maybe she was worried about the mysterious man. At the thought of him, Carlos swallowed the lump in his throat, trying to suppress what he was feeling. He didn’t want those emotions to get the best of him; finally, she was interested in someone. It didn’t matter if it wasn’t him.

Lucy had never really dated; the only guy she had been with was Kylian, though it hadn't lasted long and she hadn't been in love. Carlos was the first to notice it — how, in the last weeks of that relationship, she froze at his touch. Fortunately, Kylian was not the type of man to get mad at her for it; he understood that she didn’t reciprocate his feelings.

“Cece, are you okay?” he asked, genuinely worried.

She snapped her head up at him. “What? Yeah, I’m just texting,” she said, ignoring his big brown eyes looking at her.

“Quite an interesting text,” Alexandra joked, a knowing smile spreading on her lips.

Charles looked at the two of them, confused. “Wait, did I miss something?”

“Lucy met someone at the party,” Carlos said, still looking at her, feeling that fierce surge of emotion take over again.

The driver looked surprised by his teammate’s words. With his mouth half-open, he asked, “Should we be happy?” His wife kicked his leg and widened her eyes, telling him to shut up. Then Charles remembered that Carlos had no idea about Lucy’s feelings.

Everyone was staring at him, confused and almost shocked by how he had phrased it. “We are happy! I’m proud of you, Lucy! So who is the—”

Once again, Alexandra hit him harder this time. “Charles, come on, don’t bother her,” she said, chuckling nervously.

But Lucy didn’t care about this awkward interaction. Jungkook had sent her another message, and she opened it immediately.

Jeon Jungkook: Enjoy your flight, darling :)

Jeon Jungkook: Do you like this one better?

Me: Please stop. It’s fucking weird.

Jeon Jungkook: Yeah, that’s the fun part!

She sighed in annoyance and put on her headphones to avoid any further conversation. The plane still hadn't taken off—the pilot had to answer an important call and had stepped away a few minutes ago. Lucy stared at the view outside, mostly at the sun that was slowly setting. She liked traveling during sunset; it made her feel as if she were in another dimension, floating alone in those bright, warm colors.

Her phone buzzed again, but this time it was a message from someone she truly appreciated. Her ex, and now close friend, Kylian, sent a photo showing two VIP paddock passes for the Shanghai Grand Prix.

Kylian: Guess who is coming to see you!

Me: OMG, CAN’T WAIT TO SEE YOU!

She took off her headphones and showed the messages to Charles. He was a huge fan of Mbappé, and when he found out that Lucy had not only dated him but was still friends with him, he had constantly begged her to introduce them.

“No way!” the boy screamed in excitement as the plane finally took off.

Jungkook landed in China a few days later. He was going to meet up with his brother Jin and his boyfriend Namjoon, and then they would reunite with the others the next day. Jungkook was happy to see Jin again; recently they hadn’t managed to find time for each other, so when Jin had called to say they were going to China for the Grand Prix, Jungkook had been overjoyed. He was so happy to finally see him.

Waiting outside the airport, he saw a black car approaching. It honked incessantly, and he knew instantly who was driving. Stepping out of the car was Seokjin, wearing a pink shirt and sunglasses. He ran to his brother and wrapped him in a tight hug.

“Jin, I missed you!”

Jungkook then slowly let go of the hold. Jin placed his hands on his brother’s shoulders, scanning him carefully. “You are bigger, but definitely not smarter. And your style hasn’t improved at all.”

Jungkook laughed at Jin's sarcastic comment. “I could say the same to you. What’s up, flamingo?” he said, pointing at the bright pink shirt.

“You are a joker guy! This is high fashion… dumbass.”

Before they could start their usual bickering, Namjoon saved the day and came over to greet Jungkook.

“Jungkookie! Our big star!”

When Jin first came out and told him about his wonderful boyfriend, Jungkook had supported them immediately. However, his family hadn’t. They had harshly banished his brother from the house, but Jungkook never abandoned Jin. He stood up for him many times, causing multiple fights with their parents. Jin was kicked out when he was only 17, and for a long time, he couldn’t find a job. So, while Jungkook was racing in F2, he thought only of his brother — racing and winning just to send Seokjin all of his money.

Jin and Namjoon had been together through it all. Obviously, Jungkook saw his brother’s boyfriend as part of the family, even more than actual blood relatives.

The three of them got in the car. Jungkook was surprised to see Namjoon in the driver's seat. “Joonie, you got your license?”

“Yeah baby!” he screamed excitedly. Jin turned around and looked at his brother, telling him through hand gestures to put on his seatbelt, but Namjoon soon noticed what he was doing. “We are not gonna die, Jin! How many times do I have to tell you that I’m a good driver?”

Jin caressed his arm gently. “We’ll see…”

“So,” Namjoon tried to change the subject, “Second place! That was a great race, Kookie, we are proud of you! You know that Tae and Jimin cried?” He looked at the youngest through the rearview mirror.

Jungkook chuckled, thinking about his friends. He couldn’t wait to see them; it had been months since they last saw each other, and he missed them.

Jin rested his chin on his palm and turned around to talk to his brother. “So tell me, how is the car? And mostly, how are you? You seemed a little out of it on the podium.”

He sighed heavily. “The car is total shit, but I’m positive that we’ll fix it. And mentally, I’m… good.”

He didn’t like to lie to Jin, but how could he tell him that he is now engaged in a fake relationship to secure his spot? It would have been embarrassing and, most importantly, the less people knew about the truth the more it was gonna sell. This was a secret between Lucy and him.

Speaking of the devil, she had just texted him. He stared at the screen and read the message – he had already changed her contact to honeybee.

Honeybee: Can I come tomorrow?

Me: Only if you come at night.

Honeybee: …Absolutely not

Me: I meant it’s the only time I’m available, idiot.

Honeybee: OH, alright. I’ll be there around midnight.

After spending time with her friends, she was finally alone with Carlos. Truth be told, both of them wanted to avoid this moment, as they felt an unspoken tension lingering between them. But Alexandra and Charles couldn’t stand their company any longer. They loved them, obviously, but they were a married couple who needed some time and space alone. So, while they left for a romantic escape, Lucy and Carlos went out to dinner together—just like they had always done since they were little kids.

Once they arrived at the restaurant, already laughing, they sat at the table Carlos had reserved. He pulled out the chair for her to sit and gently brushed her shoulders, sending shivers all through her body. Lucy looks particularly beautiful tonight — then again, she’s always stunning, he thought. They looked at each other and smiled awkwardly, both realizing that this felt suspiciously like a date — probably even one of their first, judging by how much Carlos was trembling. The silence between them was as thick as ice, cutting sharply to the bone.

“Cece, you have to stop being this beautiful. I'm serious, people will think I’m a monster!” he finally broke the silence, making Lucy blush.

She smiled softly and stared out at the view, forcing herself to suppress her rising feelings. He meant it as a friend, don’t get your hopes up, Lucy, she thought. It was also eating her alive that he was being so sweet while she had just made a deal with his rival — the guy who had made him suffer so many times. But she couldn’t tell him yet; she had to wait until tomorrow.

Looking at her more closely, Carlos noticed how nervously she shifted in her chair. “Cece, are you okay? You’ve been acting strange all week,” he said, leaning over the table and placing his hand over hers, desperately trying to reach out to her.

She closed her eyes and brushed her hair back, suddenly feeling warm. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

He didn’t buy it — he could never buy it. Carlos knew her too well. He knew what bothered her, her biggest fears, and even what type of ice cream she hated—strawberry, by the way. Because of this, Lucy was terrified that their plan would blow up the second they were seen together. She couldn’t fake being madly in love with Jungkook; she didn’t even like him.

“Did something happen with that guy? Because if he hurt my Cece, I’m going to kill him.” Carlos kept staring at her, genuinely worried. He could never quite explain what he felt for her: taking care of her just came naturally to him, doing whatever it took to make sure she was alright—even if it cost him his own happiness.

“No, we’re cool. It’s nothing serious, Carlos. Don’t worry about me.” She said coldly.

“So you’re not gonna tell me anything about him? Who is he? What does he do? Is he good in bed?” Carlos chuckled. He had to know who his best friend was seeing—what if he was a drug dealer or, worse, a mafia boss?

Lucy’s heart softened at his concern, but then a heavy cloud of guilt poured over her, making her doubt her decisions. She had thought about it constantly, unable to get it out of her mind. A part of her wanted to stop this whole thing already, but deep down in her heart, she knew that this pact wasn’t made only for Carlos.

For so long she had dreamed of a romantic love story, but she had never gotten one. This thing with Jungkook—even though it was fake and she didn’t love him—felt like one of those books she always read.

It was for her. She needed to find a place in the world without Carlos. All her life had revolved around him, and she had never complained about it. But she needed a break from him; she needed to create herself in another universe, under different stars and planets.

“Look at you, trying to figure out all my secrets,” she smiled, sipping her wine.

“It’s not about secrets. I just like listening to you. Somehow, after all these years, you still manage to surprise me... and I love that about you,” he said in a low, gentle voice.

“What do you mean?”

“You’re full of surprises, Cece. Any guy would be lucky to have you, and I just want to make sure he’s good to you.” Carlos said while looking at the menu.

She was speechless at his words, feeling tears already welling up in her eyes.

“I never apologized for leaving you behind at the party,” he continued, finally looking up at her. “I was an asshole, and you have every right to be mad at me.”

“No, it’s okay. Eva was there, I get it,” she said in a shaky, uncertain voice. “But next time... just tell me when you want to be alone with a girl. And I’ll leave you to it.”

Carlos looked at her and nodded, feeling deeply sorry for the way he had acted. He didn’t deserve her, and he knew it. Lucy was too kind, too good for him, while he was a complete mess without her. Carlos had found his footing in life only thanks to her; he couldn’t imagine a world without his best friend. And these feelings that surfaced every now and then scared him to death — he was convinced that if she ever noticed them, she would leave him forever.

After a long silence, as they looked at each other, they broke out in laughter, feeling the weight coming out of their hearts. It was always like this when they were together, all worries disappeared in just one glance. They spent the night chuckling and told stories about when they were little, their eyes lingered on the other, watching carefully every detail: how they talked, how they moved or even how they reacted. It truly felt like a date, but Lucy knew, she was once again building that fairytale in her mind.

As the night slipped away, she completely forgot that she had to meet with Jungkook. Finally she checked the time, it was already midnight. She bolted up from her seat, causing Carlos to flinch in surprise.

He stared at her, confused, shaking his head with a subtle frown. “Is everything okay...?”

“Yeah! I just remembered I have to do something,” she quickly mumbled, collecting her things.

Carlos raised an eyebrow. “At midnight?”

“Yes,” she paused for a fraction of a second, quickly coming up with a plausible lie. “I have to work. Max and I planned a call, and this was the only time he was available.”

Carlos read right through her—he knew she was lying. Although he didn’t understand why, it hurt. Between them, there were no secrets; they had always told each other everything. So, why was she lying to him all of a sudden? He didn’t want to insist, he knew that eventually she would have told him the truth. He watched her leave, walk away so fastly as he stayed at the table alone, hoping she would have at least turned around to greet him once again.

But she couldn’t look at his face, it stung. His eyes momentarily lost their spark as she said goodbye. Lucy didn’t want to leave him like that, she would never want to hurt him like this. But Jungkook was waiting for her, and she was already late.

Meanwhile, Jungkook was at the hotel with his friends. They had asked him if it was possible to take a look at the view from his room since he always picked the best ones. They promised to stay for just a little while, and that was an hour ago. When he saw it was already midnight, he began to lose his patience. Lucy could arrive at any moment, and he didn’t want his friends to see her, especially not with his brother around.

All his friends were joking around, sitting on the couch while eating chips. Jungkook stared at the TV screen impatiently, bouncing his leg up and down with every minute that passed.

“Guys, I seriously need you to go. We’ll see each other tomorrow!” he pleaded.

“Kook, relax, it’s still early. You can get your beauty sleep later,” Taehyung said, trying to calm him down.

“Yeah, come on! It’s been months since we last saw each other,” Jimin added.

Jungkook stood up from the couch and crossed his arms, staring at them while clenching his jaw. Jin noticed how anxiously he was moving around the room. “Guys, let’s go. Kook needs his rest.”

A sudden knock echoed from the door. Fuck, not now, he thought.

They all looked at each other, extremely confused, with Hoseok quickly counting heads to make sure everyone was present. Jimin headed straight for the door.

“No, wait! Chimmy, don’t!” The words slipped out of Jungkook’s mouth, but he couldn't stop him. His friend had already pulled the door open, looking intrigued by the sight of the beautiful girl standing in front of him.

Jimin leaned against the doorframe, resting his arm against it. A flirtatious smirk flashed across his lips. “Well hello there. Who are you?”

Lucy stood there, slightly out of breath, deeply confused by what was happening. Maybe she had the wrong room, but as she checked the door number again, it clearly read 412. She felt slightly uncomfortable—her dress was quite short and revealing, and she didn’t know what to expect.

“Jimin, leave her alone.”

That voice. It was Jungkook. He came up behind the blonde man, pushing him slightly out of the way. The minute he saw her, his heart skipped a beat: the dress kissed her curves so perfectly that for a fraction of a second, he forgot how to breathe.

“Sorry, sweetheart,” he muttered, grabbing her shoulders delicately to guide her back a little. Standing in the doorway, he gave her an unapologetic smile and started closing the door, adding, “Give me two minutes and I’m all yours.”

She was at a total loss for words, confused and stunned.

Inside the room, Jimin smiled mischievously at his friend. “Sweetheart? Kook, you didn’t tell us you had a girlfriend, and quite a pretty one...”

“She’s not my girlfriend,” he gritted through his teeth as he began gathering their belongings.

“Oh, so she’s available?” Jimin asked, genuinely interested.

“Yes. But you’re not her type, so give up.”

Jin narrowed his eyes at his younger brother, trying to decipher what was really going on between him and this girl. He hoped she wasn’t just another one of his flings, as that would only damage his already fragile reputation. Jin had warned Jungkook multiple times about how he treated women; he always respected them, sure, but he never took the time to build a relationship. Most of the time, he just ended up leading them on.

“What’s her type?” Taehyung asked.

“Douchebags and ugly men.”

“So... you,” Yoongi said, mocking the driver and earning a dark glare from him.

His friends all burst out laughing, and in response, he threw their stuff at them. “Leave. Now.”

They got up from the couch and headed to the door. As they said their goodbyes, they passed a very dazed Lucy, who was looking slightly overwhelmed by the sudden crowd of men around her. The blonde one leaned closer, smiling brightly at her as he offered his hand. “Sorry about earlier. It’s just rare to see someone this beautiful. I’m Jimin, what’s your name?”

“I’m Lucy Mend—”

“Jimin, stop it!” Jungkook yelled, shoving his friend away. Jimin just laughed at his reaction, thoroughly enjoying how easily he got under Kook’s skin.

Jin noticed the entire exchange, and his suspicions rose once again. He walked over to say goodbye to Jungkook, wrapping him in a tight hug before whispering right into his ear, “We need to talk.”

After the door finally closed, it was just the two of them left in the room. An awkward silence fell over them—neither had any idea how to actually start this plan, making the moment feel weird and uncomfortable for both.

Jungkook tried to cut through the tension and walked over to his bed. Sitting on the edge, he looked her up and down, a subtle smile painted on his face.

“Did you dress up nice for the occasion?” he teased, biting his lower lip.

Lucy rolled her eyes and sighed. “Get over yourself, Jungkook. I was out to dinner with Carlos.” She walked over and sat down next to him.

“Your friends are... chaotic.”

“Yeah, sorry about that. I tried to make them leave, but they just wouldn’t listen to me.”

The air felt heavy with their sudden closeness, but it was surprisingly comforting, sending a subtle rush through Lucy. She smiled at him. “It’s because people don’t usually listen to jerks like you.”

He hummed, keeping his eyes locked onto hers. “Depends on the setting. Usually, people love to listen to me... especially when I whisper in their ear. And I bet you’d be no exception, princess.”

Lucy froze at his words. Taken completely by surprise, she let out a nervous chuckle, hating how her cheeks instantly flushed at the dark tone of his voice. She pushed him slightly by the arm, desperately trying to suppress the sudden raw desire winning over her, but that reaction only made Jungkook smirk even more cockily. He knew the exact effect he had on her, and he was enjoying every single second of it.

“Jungkook, we are here for a reason. I don’t have time for your crap.”

Surprisingly, he stood up, finally giving her some space. Lucy hadn’t even realized she was holding her breath the entire time they were that close.

Jungkook opened the drawer of the nightstand next to his bed, and she caught a quick glimpse of a box of condoms inside. Once again, her cheeks burned instantly. To avoid any further embarrassment, she quickly looked away and cleared her throat.

“Relax, princess. We’re not gonna use them,” he said in a raspy voice, reaching past the box for his cigarettes instead.

“I wasn't even thinking about that!”

“Right. You only dream about it.”

He grabbed a notepad and a pen from the drawer, tossed them onto the bed, and walked over to open the window. Still keeping his dark eyes on her, Jungkook lit up his cigarette and took a slow drag.

“Come on, Honeybee,” he murmured, exhaling a thin cloud of smoke out the window. “Let’s begin.”

Lucy sighed in annoyance and clenched her jaw, anxiously tapping her pen against the notepad as she thought about what she wanted.

“Okay, first: you can’t go out with other girls while we’re in this fake relationship.”

He groaned. “What? That’s unfair!” As he spoke, a cloud of smoke escaped his lips.

“Unfair? I don’t want to be known as the girl who got repeatedly cheated on by Jeon Jungkook,” she protested.

“Fine. But then, you can’t go out on dates with Carlos anymore. It’s weird.”

“No, it’s not! You’ve just never known true friendship.”

“It’s not a friendship if you want to fuck each other.” Lucy didn’t respond to that—unfortunately, he was right. She bit the inside of her cheek and glared at him, wanting to punch that arrogant smirk off his face so badly.

“Okay. You can’t kiss or touch me in any way,” she said, crossing her legs and smiling proudly at her own condition.

“You’re crazy!” Jungkook scoffed, shaking his head. “How are we supposed to sell a relationship that way?”

“Ugh, fine,” she huffed, rolling her eyes. “You can only do it on camera. But nothing too heated, it has to be sweet.”

“Lucy, people don’t buy sweet from a guy like me. If you want to act like a royal couple, fine. As long as it makes you comfortable.”

As long as it makes you comfortable. She didn’t expect those words from Jungkook; they echoed in her brain, causing her heart to melt a little. Not even once had it crossed her mind that he could be a gentleman who respected a woman’s boundaries—she had always pictured him as a selfish man who only cared about himself.

Jungkook noticed she was staring at him. “You okay?” he asked, genuinely confused.

Lucy cleared her throat, snapping back to reality. “Sorry, keep going.”

“We can’t fall in love. The moment one of us develops feelings, we break the contract,” he said, flicking his cigarette out the open window.

“You don’t have to worry about that, Jungkook.”

“Who knows... maybe one day I’ll finally charm you.”

“Only in your dreams.”

Jungkook took a sip of water from his bottle and sat down next to her. He lay back on the bed and stared at the ceiling; Lucy soon joined him, looking over what they had written on the pad. It seemed perfect. Now, the only problem was creating a cover story—one that could actually hold up under scrutiny.

“How did we fall in love?” she asked, staring at the ceiling beside him.

Although he didn’t seem to be listening, Jungkook was just playing with the rings on his fingers. Lucy scoffed, and as she was about to stand up, his voice stopped her in her tracks.

“What’s your favorite Beyoncé song?”

The question caught her completely off guard. She looked down at him with a confused expression. “What the fuck does that have to do with us?”

“Just answer me,” Jungkook urged, turning his head slightly toward her, which caused Lucy to sigh and lie back down on the bed.

“That’s like an impossible question. I’ll have to go with... everything.”

He laughed — a surprisingly cute sound escaping his lips. “Fair. We can tell people we were at a party together and a Beyoncé song came on. Seeing each other’s excitement, we bonded over it... and eventually developed feelings.”

“That is the dumbest story I’ve ever heard.”

“It’s sweet,” he defended with a quiet smirk, staring back up at the ceiling.

She shook her head. This story was never going to hold up. But Lucy knew exactly what would sell their love affair — she was just too shy to say it out loud. Nervously picking at her nails, she tried to find the courage to open her mouth.

“You know... we could say that you caught me in a vulnerable moment and consoled me. That, like a true gentleman, you made me laugh and kept my mind off what was bothering me. That’s how we bonded.”

He looked at her, touched by her words. She was describing the night of the party, the one where it all began. “Are you sure? I mean…it’s kind of personal to you.”

Lucy was sill staring at the ceiling. She didn’t care anymore, everything that has been hers was of Carlos as well, considering that moment. She had to create a new Lucy, one that was confident and indipendent, the one who would have made Carlos fall in love.

“Yes.”

Immediately after settling their rules, Lucy headed back to her room. Feeling completely exhausted, it was all becoming too real, and it scared her. Tomorrow she had to tell Carlos—it was going to be hard, and she did not want to see what his face looked like going.

Before going to bed she texted him, her heart felt so heavy of guilt.

Me: Carlos, can we see each other tomorrow morning? I have to tell you something

Carlitos: Cece of course! Are you okay?

Carlitos: You left in a hurry, I hope you are well. You know you can tell me everything right?

Carlitos: Love you, rest well :)

She couldn’t stop them: Lucy was already crying. It came without warning, overwhelmingly taking over her. All she felt was an emptiness in her stomach, her body paralyzed by the pain, but Lucy had to do it. For herself. That’s what she is been thinking constantly.

It was clear from the moment Lucy fell for him that someone had to suffer. And she did, for so long—never knowing what Carlos was feeling, always left drowning in doubt. Of course, he didn’t mean to; Carlos truly had no clue. But if only he knew how hard her heart beat for him, he would have run to her and kissed her soft lips.

Lucy couldn’t sleep; she didn’t even try. The stars had kept her company through her loneliness, their faint light shining down on her sad face. When the sun finally rose, it gently urged her to get up and face the day. So she did. Slowly, Lucy showered, letting the warm water fall over her body, hugging her, trying to fill the void inside.

Carlos was going to be at her room in a few minutes. As she stepped out of the shower, she pulled on a baggy t-shirt and shorts. Then came the knock on the door—hitting her right through the heart. She trembled in fear, tears already welling up in her eyes.

Lucy opened the door. There he was, looking distressingly handsome with his usual bright smile. But within a fraction of a second, that smile dropped completely. Somehow, he already knew. Carlos looked at his best friend, taking in her tired eyes and drained face; he had never seen her like this. Something was terribly wrong.

He stepped inside and closed the door behind him. Without thinking, he took her face in his hands, gently wiping away her tears. She sobbed heavily against his chest as he tightened his arms around her, trying to ground her. They stood in silence, filled only by the sound of Lucy’s shaky breaths.

“Cece, what happened?” he asked, searching her eyes.

“Please don’t hate me...” Her words came out as a fragile whisper, floating in the quiet room.

Carlos swallowed the lump in his throat. “I could never hate you, Cece. I only have love for you.”

She breathed heavily, feeling the weight inside her shift into a dull, stinging ache. “Carlos, I... I have to tell you something.”

He nodded, completely devoted to her in that moment. Noticing her distress, he gently led her to the table and sat opposite her, holding both her hands in his. Carlos stared at Lucy—at her swollen lips and red-rimmed eyes.

“You know the guy from the party?” she asked.

After a pause that felt like an eternity, Carlos hummed softly, encouraging her to go on. It took her a moment; she wasn't ready. Lucy looked at his face, wanting to memorize every feature before telling him the "truth." Immortalizing this moment and the sweet way his eyes stared so deeply into hers, she gathered her strength and found the courage.

“It’s... Jungkook.”

The name hung in the thin air, stabbing straight through Carlos’s chest. A sudden wave of darkness washed over him as if his world were crumbling into tiny pieces. The only sound left was his heart, slowly shattering. Carlos couldn't find a single word; he refused to believe it. It was impossible.

“We talked... one night. And it all happened so quickly. We're in love, Carlos.”

He quickly pulled his hands back, almost as if her touch had suddenly turned poisonous. Then, a single tear slipped down his cheek, gently tracing his handsome face.

“Lucy, I... I don’t understand. Is this a joke?” His voice trembled, a broken sound that struck her like a physical blow.

She couldn’t speak; her lips felt glued together. By simply shaking her head in denial, she watched Carlos’s face shatter even further, leaving behind only heartbreak and betrayal.

“I know you hate him, Carlos, but—”

He stood up from his seat and backed away, his gaze fixed firmly on the floor.

“—I love him, and he loves me. We’re happy, Carlos. That’s all that matters!”

He didn’t believe her; he couldn’t. Not when her voice sounded so strange, so far from the girl he knew.

“You’re lying, Lucy,” Carlos said, finally looking up at her pained expression.

“...No, I’m not.”

“Did he do something to you? Did he force you?”

“He has been a complete gentleman to me.”

“Bullshit, Lucy!” he snapped.

“You don’t know him, Carlos!”

“Neither do you! Cece, please, listen to me,” he pleaded, his voice cracking. “He’s doing this to tear us apart. Because he can’t stand the fact that...” He paused, clearing his throat before forcing the rest out. “...that I have the most beautiful soul right beside me, while he’s all alone.”

Lucy stared at him blankly. The most beautiful soul beside you, and yet you do nothing to keep me, she thought.

“At least he didn’t leave me at a party,” she blurted out, regretting it the exact second it left her mouth.

Like a dagger, her words cut straight through Carlos’s bones. In the heavy silence that followed, both of them felt utterly drained.

“I’m sorry, I just...” Carlos tried to speak, sounding broken. “I just can’t believe he truly loves you. If you have feelings for him, fine — it doesn’t matter. But he doesn’t love you, Cece. It’s just an excuse to get back at me, to make me mad and ruin me.”

“Why? Am I that hard to love?” she cried out, her voice breaking.

He shook his head, taking a deep breath. “No. Quite the opposite. You make loving look so easy, Lucy. But he... he’s just a jerk who wants to use you.”

She couldn’t breathe — how could she? “He’s not a jerk. He’s my boyfriend. He’s the one who truly loves me and accepts my true colors.”

“Fine. But I care about you too much to sit here and watch you cry over that douchebag,” Carlos said. Being the noble man he was, he walked toward the door. Before leaving, he paused to look back at her tear-stained face one last time. “I need to go. I’m sorry.”

He shut the door behind him, leaving Lucy trapped in an unbearable silence.

All she could think about were his stinging words, how he cared about her so much that he felt he had to leave.

— RACING HEARTS : An F1 and BTS fanfiction (Prologue)

pairings: F1 driver! Jeon Jungkook x !fem! og character x Carlos Sainz

status: ongoing

summary: Lucy was madly in love with her best friend Carlos Sainz. They knew each other since kindergarten and grew up together, though she knew he could never love her. It’s only when Lucy gets into a fake relationship with his enemy that he realises his feelings. Jeon Jungkook, who’s career was on the brick of ruins and only Lucy could have saved him. What will happen between the three? Will Lucy go back to her first love, or will she find a new life in Jungkook’s arms?

warnings/tropes: love triangle, friends to lovers, she fell first he fell harder, enemies to lovers, fake dating, forbidden love, SLOW BURN, smut, teasing, angst, fluffy, F1 alternative universe, Mercedes Jungkook, Ferrari Sainz, Red Bull og character

author’s note ! ! IMPORTANT ! !: So, this fanfic originally started as a joke with my bestie, but we are now completely obsessed with it. It doesn’t matter if you don’t know F1 or BTS, we are here for the drama! It will contain some references (lots of olivia rodrigo and pop culture), anyway let me know what you think and WHO YOU CHEER FOR!

— 📁 Here are the chapters ♡

Heated Rivalry, The Deal, Less, Happier

— RACING HEARTS ; an F1 and BTS fanfiction (Part Two)

Lucy was madly in love with her best friend Carlos Sainz. They knew each other since kindergarten and grew up together, though she knew he could never love her. It’s only when Lucy gets into a fake relationship with his enemy that he realises his feelings. Jeon Jungkook, who’s career was on the brick of ruins and only Lucy could have saved him. What will happen between the three? Will Lucy go back to her first love, or will she find a new life in Jungkook’s arms?

word count: 7k

pairings: F1 driver! Jeon Jungkook x !fem! og character x Carlos Sainz

| 📁 the story is loading…

Chapter 2 — The Deal

The soft click of the door echoed inside her, reaching every corner of the dark hotel room.

She felt her body crumble; she wanted to die. Why did her heart have to beat for her best friend? If only it were possible, she would have fallen for someone else, certainly not Carlos.

She screamed into her pillow and threw hard punches at the bed, while tears streamed down her face. It had been years, years she spent daydreaming about him. And now it all felt like too much for her poor heart.

She didn’t know why she was crying. Just as she thought she was getting better, Carlos gave her a reason to fall into the trap again. The moment shared in the hallway had only opened a wound that Lucy tried so hard to fend off. It was his stare on her, and those beautiful brown eyes, that forever inhabited her dreams. That dark color, empty of any malice, as it always wore a slight glint. Lucy had lost herself so many times in it.

It was unfair to think he was also a kind soul. Making it harder for her to move on, his kindness always spoke before him. So, Lucy knew there was no possible way to end this feeling. All that was left for her was to hope one day he would return her love without her begging for it.

She was staring at the ceiling, silently listening to the air conditioner; this cold room only reminded her of how alone she was. Lucy needed to get out; it didn’t matter if the following day she had an important race.

She got up from her bed, not caring about changing into another outfit, and opened the door. Whenever Lucy felt sad, she found comfort in the city lights and the quiet sound of cars moving. But there was only one place to find this peace: the rooftop.

She took the stairs, ignoring her tired eyes, and slowly walked to get the fresh air she needed. When she arrived at the top, the door was already open: “Weird,” Lucy thought, looking at the big brick placed against it.

The moment she stepped out, the night breeze of Melbourne filled her lungs, making her feel a little lighter already. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Lucy leaned on the railing and looked at the view: the skyscrapers only had some lights on, the inside of those buildings revealing some people still working, while others showed teenage parties or slow dances in warm apartments. Now she felt complete—alone in this quiet silence, where nothing mattered and all could be forgotten.

Maybe all could really be forgotten. Even if her feelings were strong, it didn’t necessarily mean they were forever. Maybe one day she would be able to move on, meet someone new, build a life with them, and finally accept the fact that Carlos only saw her as a friend. It was possible.

“I see I’m not the only one who likes to look at the moon,” a low voice came from behind her, causing Lucy to flinch.

It was Jungkook.

He was wearing a big leather jacket over his blue pajamas; for the first time, he didn’t have his piercings in, and his hair, usually so perfect, was now a complete mess. She watched him as he took a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket, offering one to Lucy, only for her to refuse.

Feeling a bit uncomfortable, she turned around and continued to stare at the city, trying to ignore his presence.

“Not a smoker.” Jungkook softly chuckled and took a spot next to her, but as he noticed how her body stiffened, he gently backed up and slid a bit farther away.

That light air, all of a sudden, felt extremely heavy. Lucy snapped her head toward him and asked: “What are you doing here, Jeon Jungkook?”

He placed the cigarette between his lips and looked at her while lighting it. Lucy blinked and forced herself to keep her cool at the gesture. “I could ask you the same, Lucy Mendes,” Jungkook said.

His arm was resting on the railing, while his body was turned completely in her direction. Lucy could focus only on his broad shoulders, and on the shirt that was particularly tight around his chest. He kept smoking, his eyes still lingering on her face, scrutinizing every feature: her big brown doe eyes, adorned by beautiful thick lashes, and her full lips. What a waste to be this pretty and stick to Sainz, Jungkook thought.

Between the two, only the city could be heard; they simply stared at each other. Her eyes followed his hand, moving up and down with each drag. Then Lucy looked away, suddenly feeling dizzy.

After a long silence, she finally spoke: “I’m not here for the moon.”

Jungkook was kind of surprised by her words, he expected to be harshly rejected. Maybe even yelled at. But Lucy didn’t care if he was her best friend’s rival; she just wanted to enjoy the night with someone, after spending so many nights alone with the stars.

“I like to stare at the city lights. They are so calming, don’t you think so?” Her voice sounded so sweet in the wind.

“Yeah, but nothing beats the moon. It’s always so beautiful, especially tonight.”

Lucy followed his gaze, finally looking at the bright moon, shining in the dark alongside the stars. Jungkook was right; tonight, it was particularly beautiful. In that emotional moment, she thought of Carlos and the night she fell in love with him, remembering all the times the moonlight kissed his face — a light brush on his cheeks and nose, looking like a true prince. Lucy let out a heavy breath, feeling that weight again, because wherever she was, her existence felt useless without him.

How could she ever move on? It was impossible. But the truth? She didn’t want to move on. Lucy depended on Carlos, just like the moon depended on the sun to shine in the darkness. Her peace was only with him, and no one else could make her feel that way. Even through all those nights she spent staring at the city alone, where she felt so much lighter, Carlos Sainz was still haunting her.

Lucy could already feel tears forming in her eyes; she couldn’t be seen by Jungkook in this state. Her hands pushed her away from the railing and, without looking at him, she rushed to the entrance.

“Where are you going?” Jungkook stopped her in her tracks.

She turned around to face him, forcing a kind smile: “It’s getting late, I must sleep.”

He didn't protest. Instead, he shrugged his shoulders and brought his attention back to the sky. Lucy stood there, speechless at his rudeness — he didn’t even think of waving goodbye. She crossed her arms and huffed, waiting for him to notice his mistake.

Jungkook felt Lucy’s eyes on him and smiled a little when he saw her looking completely pissed. He waited for her to talk, not understanding the sudden reaction, but her stubbornness refused to bring up the topic. However, in this endless silence, she gave up and groaned at his stupidity.

“Not even a 'goodnight, Lucy'? Or a 'sleep well'?” She yelled at him.

Jungkook furrowed his eyebrows in confusion: “Why would I ever say that to you?” he asked, chuckling a little.

Lucy opened her mouth in shock and shook her head like a mad woman: “I don’t know, to be polite?”

Now he laughed wholeheartedly at the girl’s incoherence: “You were the one who sprinted away without a word. If we are talking about politeness, then you don’t qualify for it.”

She widened her eyes, completely furious at his behavior. Lucy took a step closer and clenched her jaw, arms still crossed. Her rage became stronger with his every smile. How can someone be this arrogant? she thought. Her heart was now pounding fast, wishing to hit him. But she took a deep breath and let the anger fade away.

“You know what? Goodnight, Jungkook.”

Jungkook chuckled, his eyes looking at her from head to toe while he slowly licked and bit his bottom lip.

“Goodnight, Lucy. Are you happy now?” he said in a low tone, sending shivers through her body.

She let out a loud groan and walked away. On the stairs, Lucy tried to calm herself down, but just thinking of his face and smug smirk drove her insane, the way he was standing and how confidently he acted toward her. Jeon Jungkook was not worthy of her time, not even her breath. As she slammed the door, her body fell onto the bed, desperately needing to hit something — maybe his face.

Lucy felt her eyes slowly drifting off, but in her anger, she didn’t even realize she had fallen asleep. Until her alarm screamed in the early morning with that annoying beeping. She hit it hard, not caring if her phone was going to break, went to the bathroom, and washed up. She was still wearing the Red Bull t-shirt.

After changing, she skipped breakfast, not wanting to see Jungkook at any cost. Nonetheless, she sent a message to Carlos, informing him that she would not be eating this morning. He answered immediately:

Carlitos: Are you okay??

Me: Yeah, I’m just not hungry.

Carlitos: Weird…

Carlitos: Did something happen?

Lucy paused, unsure whether to tell him about last night and her talk with Jungkook. But she didn’t feel like keeping a secret from her best friend. It was nothing serious, Carlos couldn't get mad about it—at least not at her.

Me: I’ll tell you on the drive.

Enjoy breakkie :)

Carlitos: Ew, don’t say it that way.

Me: What do you mean?

Carlitos: So American.

One hour later, they finally reunite. As usual, Lucy was waiting for him in the parking lot, this time tapping her foot on the ground. She needed to complain about Jungkook, and Carlos was just the right person to go to—he would have listened to her, and he was definitely going to take her side.

Though when he arrived, Lucy stopped thinking about the Mercedes driver, just for a second. Carlos walked down the stairs, looking so effortlessly charming. His brown eyes brightened as he saw her. They kissed each other’s cheeks, both ignoring how the touch always ignited a spark in their bodies.

“Ay, Cece! How can you look so beautiful in the morning?” Carlos says.

He twirls her around, her cheeks turning deep maroon. Carlos places his hands firmly on her waist to keep her balance. He looks at her and smiles at her dizzy face: “Look at you! Sometimes I forget you are the little girl I grew up with.”

Lucy removes a strand of hair from her lips and furrows her eyebrows: “What do you mean?”

Carlos drops his smile and scrunches his nose: “Oh, nothing.” He enters the car without looking at her, and Lucy dazedly follows his movements. To avoid an awkward silence, she asks him about today’s race:

“Are you nervous?”

“Nah, not too much. I’m confident about this race,” Carlos says as he turns down the radio, then continues talking. “By the way, what happened yesterday? Did I do something?”

Lucy melts at his worry: “No, God! You did nothing!”

He lets out a breath of relief. “Then what happened?” His eyes stay glued to the street as he tries to comfort her.

She groans and rests her head on the seat: “It’s actually so stupid…”

“Cece, it’s not stupid if it affected you.”

Lucy takes a deep breath, hoping he wouldn’t freak out at her words: “Ok, so… after you left me, I couldn’t sleep—”

“Why couldn’t you sleep?” Carlos’s head snaps toward her; from his expression, he looked so worried about her.

“Carlos… let me finish.” He puts his hands up and apologizes, inviting her to go on with the story.

“So, I went to the rooftop to enjoy the city at night. And—” She swallows the lump in her throat and continues, “—and Jungkook was there.”

His grip on the steering wheel tightened at the mention of his name, his knuckles turning white from anger. “What did he do?” Carlos mumbled, playing with his tongue against the inside of his cheek to calm himself down.

“Actually… he was pretty kind—”

“No, he could never be. He is just a jerk,” he interrupted her, but quickly stopped his ranting to give his friend time to explain.

“Yes. Well, initially he was kind. We talked about the view. It was breathtaking, you should have been there! Anyway, as I was going back to my room, he didn’t even say goodbye! I had to force him!”

Lucy takes a long pause, thinking over her words and what happened that night: “Ok, put it this way, it sounds dumb. But he was so rude! Ugh, I hate him!”

Carlos laughs at her reaction, a sudden weight lifting off his chest. The knot in his stomach completely dissolved, replaced by a wave of pure relief. Her frustration proved that nothing romantic had happened on that rooftop, his hands relaxing while a subtle, satisfied smirk settled back on his face as he realized she was entirely on his side.

They parked at the track and walked to the paddock, Lucy was still talking about Jungkook, ranting about how annoying the man is. Carlos let out a sigh, and grabbed her hand “Cece can we stop talking about him? And focus on the race instead?”

Mortified, she blushes a little, and apologises to him. He looked strangely mad, almost jealous, but why would he? We are just friends, Lucy thought. Once they had entered, they were still holding hands, neither realised or maybe they did but the soft touch was impossible to let go of. It’s only when the press attacked them with questions that they had dropped it immediately.

Whenever Lucy entered the paddock with Sainz, fans and journalists assaulted them with questions, mostly about their private life. Once an interviewer had asked Lucy if she was pregnant with his baby just because she had gained a little weight.

Living under the public eye made her crush on Carlos much harder to forget. She was not the only one hoping that they would get together; thousands of people posted on social media about their cute moments, or words of appreciation Carlos said in interviews, always talking about Lucy. So, this fairytale she had built in her mind was becoming stronger, mostly because of these false hopes.

The press's attention quickly turned to someone behind them: Jungkook. He was wearing sunglasses, his hair was perfectly brushed, and he was waving at everyone so kindly, forcing a fake smile. Next to him was his manager, holding her purse tightly; the two of them walked into the Mercedes hospitality. By the look on her face, Jungkook knew she wanted to talk to him about serious matters, and maybe he knew exactly what.

Over the last few months, his particular lifestyle caused the public to turn a side-eye in his direction. They began to call him a whore, the paddock “slut,” and overlooked his hard work. Jungkook is a person who likes to have fun, so he goes out to parties and sleeps with a lot of girls — sometimes even men. But to the press, this was a sign of immaturity. Previously, he was one of the most beloved drivers in the paddock, and everyone recognized his gentle manners. Now, they took the smallest thing to turn against him, painting him as the bad guy, the villain of F1. He didn’t like it when people pictured him differently from how he really was. So, he sometimes forced the act — no one ever cared to know his true colors, and Jungkook suffered so much for it to the point that he closed himself off, accepting the fact that he was now hated.

He lay on the couch, closed his eyes, and enjoyed the peace before the race.

“Jungkook, we have to talk,” his manager said.

“Jen, I’d rather talk about it after the race. I already know what it is.”

“No, Jungkook. We talk about it now. I’ve told you a thousand times, this lifestyle of yours has to change. Your image is in serious danger, especially if your performance isn't great.” Jennifer took a deep breath before going on. “Jungkook, we both know that your family does not have the money to provide you assistance. You have no one to rely on if not yourself. You still have lots of sponsors, but trust me, you will lose them if you go on like this. Improve your performance on track and stop fucking around. Find a girlfriend, I don’t know!”

She said and stormed out of the room, leaving Jungkook in complete silence. He didn’t want to find a girlfriend; it would take so much time to find her, go out on dates, and find time and space for her. He could not afford it—he had to focus on his career.

He was kind of nervous for today; tenth position is not a good start, and the car was an absolute mess. Jungkook had to pull off a miracle; even if he couldn't win, a fourth position was still possible. He got up from the couch and walked to his dressing room, where he changed into his race suit and went to the garage. Even if Jungkook was hated by everyone else, in the Mercedes family he was particularly adored.

Toto had taken him under his wing from the moment he won the F2 championship and made his extraordinary debut at Williams. But when he was finally taken in by Mercedes, he proved just how talented and hardworking he was. At the age of 21, he was close to getting the world champion title, but right at the end of the season, the car began to have problems.

Jungkook also shared a nice friendship with his teammate, Lewis Hamilton. He saw him as his biggest inspiration, which is why he always spoke well of him in interviews, and both sides had deep respect for each other. Also, they were among the few in the business who came from a poor background, along with Albon.

Once everything was set for the race, he headed to the starting grid where his Mercedes was waiting for him. On the walk, Jungkook passed in front of Red Bull. Lucy saw him and rolled her eyes when he waved at her, always wearing that annoying smile of his.

“Not a fan of his?”

She was talking with Max at the moment, just a few minutes before the race.

“Well, he is not particularly nice to everyone…”

Max laughed. “No, I get what you're saying, but it’s just an act! He’s actually a great person.”

“I don’t follow you, Max.”

“I’m saying—”

The driver tried to explain, but Lucy soon cut him off: “No, wait, I don’t want to follow you. I won’t fall for this propaganda!”

Max chuckled at her and put on his helmet. “Whatever. You’re doing this just for Carlos.”

She blushed at his accusation. Her hatred for Jungkook was not because of her best friend; Lucy genuinely found him rude and unbearable. “Excuse me?! Can’t a woman have her own opinion?”

“Not when she’s madly in love with her best friend.”

Lucy hit his helmet, telling him to quit it. “Shut it. Good luck with the race, try to take first place,” she said and walked away while Max was still laughing.

She went to Sainz instead. He was discussing things with the mechanic next to him, looking a bit nervous as he fidgeted with his race suit. Lucy put a hand on his back. When he turned around, they shared a warm hug, holding tightly to each other. When they broke apart, he looked at her from under his helmet, his eyes shining brightly at the sight of her.

“I just came here to wish you luck,” she said, almost whispering the words.

Carlos didn’t say anything. His heart was beating fast at her gesture. He smiled and caressed her arm, sending shivers all over her body. “I would kiss you right now, but I have my helmet on.”

He panicked at his own words; the way he said it sounded a bit weird coming from a friend. “I meant kiss your cheek, obviously.”

She blushed and stared at her feet, trying to stop her heart from racing so fast. “Obviously,” she mumbled.

Then, on her tiptoes, Lucy placed her lips on his forehead. Well, she mostly kissed his helmet, and the taste didn’t feel too good. A wave of heat washed all over Carlos, stunned by how casually she had kissed him. There were times when Lucy took total control of his body; he didn’t know why he felt all of a sudden mesmerized by her, but he didn’t like the feeling. He was scared by it, so instead of processing it, he shook it off and hoped it would vanish. But it rarely did.

He looked at her walking away, her curls bouncing prettily. Carlos was soon brought back to reality when they told him to get in the car.

Lucy was ready to follow Max on track. With headphones over her ears, she forgot about her moment with Carlos and let her mind float away in the fast wind of the cars. Her driver started pretty well and Sainz kept his position; everything was proceeding smoothly until she looked at the screen. Jungkook was climbing the grid fast; from tenth place, he was now heading to take fourth, which was Max’s. How could he be so fast? Lewis was at the back, miserably fighting for 15th place.

“Okay Max, you have to go faster, Jungkook is behind you. He’s catching up easily.”

“I’m trying, but this shitbox of a car won’t let me!”

Jungkook was now incredibly close, right next to Max, and he managed to overtake him, making it look like an easy job. Lucy groaned in frustration. “Fuck this shit.” Horner looked at her and told her to relax; he didn’t want the press to turn this moment into a fight between Red Bull and Mercedes.

By lap 50, Jungkook was in second position, dangerously close to Sainz. Everyone had their eyes glued to the screen, carefully watching their rivalry in complete silence. On the last lap, the distance between the two cars was nonexistent—they were both attacking fiercely. They arrived at the finish line together, Jungkook shortly after Carlos, handing him the win.

Lucy didn’t realize she was tearing up; her heart had been beating so fast during the fight, she was scared for Carlos. The Red Bull team reached the podium since Max got third position, stealing it from Leclerc. First came the Dutch driver; he coldly lifted his trophy, definitely disappointed in himself as he could have done so much better. Then Jungkook arrived, smiling brightly with his cute bunny teeth. He looked at the team and pointed at every single one of them while blowing kisses. It made a laugh slip from Lucy's lips.

Jungkook noticed the girl and how she was smiling at him, but the moment their eyes met, she fidgeted in her place. Looking away and crossing her arms, she didn’t want to give him any satisfaction. When Lucy rested her gaze on him again, he was still staring at her, pressing his tongue against his cheek, biting his bottom lip, and winking toward her, chuckling at her blushing.

Then Carlos came out, his big smile lighting up the whole sky—he truly was the sun walking on earth. Lucy's heart began to beat fast as he lifted his trophy, and she started crying again. When they opened their bottles, Carlos called for her. She went closer to the podium, confused and worried. Maybe something had happened to him. Now standing right below him, the Ferrari driver spilled the whole bottle on her. Lucy was completely soaked, smelling like prosecco. Carlos was laughing, tears of joy in his eyes, and Jungkook watched it all.

Afterward, they washed themselves. Max lent his shower to Lucy as she needed it badly. For once, it was Carlos who was waiting for her; when she finally got to the parking lot, he rushed toward her and hugged her tightly. Swinging and twirling her, they were both chuckling and blushing hard.

When the hug broke, an awkward silence crept between them. She looked at him and said, “I’m so proud of you, Carlos. You ran an amazing race.”

He smiled. “Tonight we celebrate. Not only for my win, but also for your third place and Jungkook's sad loss.”

They got into the car and let the music warm up the mood. Before going out to party, they went back to the hotel and changed into nicer outfits. Lucy was kind of nervous about tonight; she hoped Carlos would notice her, so she put on her prettiest dress to see how he would react. The blue fabric looked so good on her caramel skin; she completed the look with some gold jewelry and soft makeup. Lucy felt confident—she was not going to waste another opportunity. She had to gather all her courage and flirt with him a little.

A knock came at her door. As she opened it, a very elegant and handsome Carlos appeared in front of her. He stared at her, blinking fast. She looked beautiful. That heat came to the surface once again, but this time it was impossible to suppress, not when she was this pretty. Carlos placed a hand on his chest, his mouth slightly open. “You’re breathtaking, Cece,” he whispered.

Lucy felt her stomach in knots, butterflies fluttering all over. Her cheeks were burning up, a shade of maroon violently splashing across her face. “Thank you…” She smiled shyly.

He took her hand and dragged her out of the room. In the car, they were both silent. He was trying so hard not to think about her and how her body looked in that dress. But her scent clung to his clothes and to the car; it was a haze that intoxicated his brain. When they arrived at the party, Carlos’s arm wrapped around Lucy, pushing her closer to him as they entered the crowd of people jumping and dancing.

They reached a quieter corner and sat at a table together. Carlos leaned into her ear, causing her body to shiver. “I’m going to get us some drinks. You wait here, okay?” he said while placing a hand on her thigh. She fidgeted nervously with her fingers. The touch on her skin burned, making her feel dizzy as his fingers softly caressed her. When he stood up, she let out the breath she had been holding for too long and finally relaxed.

Carlos came back, followed by a very drunk Leclerc. Lucy greeted her friend’s teammate, and he smiled at her. “Woah, Lucy, you look beautiful!” She blushed at the compliment. Carlos handed her the drink and rested his arm behind her.

They spent the entire night joking around, and as each minute passed, they got closer to each other until there was no distance left between them. Lucy felt her heart pounding heavily; they had never shared a moment like this. They didn’t look like two best friends; to someone who didn’t know them, they looked like lovers—two people who were crazy about each other.

Carlos only had eyes for her, his casual touches made her ache with desire. All of a sudden, they weren’t talking anymore. Both looked at each other in silence, his gaze slowly moving toward her lips. He moved a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled. He was about to say something when, in the corner of his eye, he saw her: Eva Santos. Carlos stepped back from Lucy and cleared his throat.

She was stunned by the sudden change in his behavior and looked at him strangely. Then, without speaking a word, he got up and walked toward the woman. Lucy watched as he obviously flirted with her, giving all his attention to the tall blonde girl. She felt her body sink into despair. This night was supposed to be different—he had made her believe things had changed. But once again, he was going after someone else, and she was left behind, waiting for him.

Carlos came back to her while holding the girl’s hand, looking completely smitten.

“Lucy, this is Eva Santos. I told you about her earlier,” he said to his friend.

She forced a smile, trying so hard to stop the tears from falling. “Nice to meet you, Eva.” Her voice was trembling, on the brink of breaking.

“So you are the famous Lucy! Carlos always talks about you!” Eva said sweetly.

On her left, Carlos was dying of embarrassment. He did not talk about Lucy constantly—only when he got the chance to, and it wasn’t his fault if she was always on his mind. They were best friends; it was normal to think about each other all the time.

“We should go dance!” he said, pulling Eva into the crowd.

Obviously he did not include me, Lucy thought. So she sat there, her eyes glued on the two of them as a hole slowly carved itself inside her. Lucy felt stupid, incredibly dumb to think, even for a second, that Carlos liked her back. Her throat closed up a bit more when he placed his hands on her hips, her eyes stinging a little more as they got closer, and her heart stopping as they kissed.

She could not breathe; the dress had become too tight for her. Lucy gasped for air. She could not stay in there any longer, watching the love of her life make out with someone else. She rushed to the balcony and shut the glass door behind her.

In the dark, she could finally let go. Her legs gave out, hitting the floor as a sudden wave of exhaustion washed over her. Feeling like a crumbled piece of paper, Lucy buried her face in her hands, her shoulders trembling with every harsh sob that broke through the quiet of the night. Even though she was letting all her emotions swim away, the weight on her chest only became heavier with every tear that fell.

Suddenly, a light breeze gently hugged her skin, carrying the cool night air that seemed to whisper for her to breathe. Feeling the wind, she forced herself to stand up, slowly recovering from the moment. Or at least, she tried to fake it.

Lucy walked over to the railing and leaned against the cold metal, her eyes sweeping over the city below. She spent a long moment contemplating the beautiful night that wrapped around her so gently, making her feel just a little less alone in the dark.

She looked up at the moon. It wasn't shining as brightly as it had yesterday, yet it still looked incredibly hypnotizing. And the stars, like always, kept company to the lonely satellite, never leaving its side. Lucy took a deep, shaky breath, enjoying the feeling of the fresh air filling her lungs and watching as it made her panic slowly fade away.

As she closed her eyes to feel the silence, a deep, raspy voice suddenly broke through the quiet.

“You seem pretty sad for a girl so in love,” it came out in the blue night like a whisper.

Lucy flinched, her eyes snapping open. Next to her stood Jungkook, once again smoking alone while staring at the moon. He was wearing a total denim look, an oversized jeans jacket, and proudly sporting his silver piercings that flickered with every small movement. His dark eyes shifted toward her, watching her carefully, scanning the red rivers of tears on her cheeks.

Lucy closed her eyes for a brief second, letting out a tired sigh.

“Go away, Jungkook,” she muttered.

“This is a public place, sweetheart. I’m allowed to be here just as much as you are,” he mumbled around his cigarette. He never moved his gaze from her face, analyzing every shift in her expression.

“Okay, fine. You can stay, but please... just don’t talk to me,” Lucy said, turning her head away to ignore him, and desperately trying to ignore the subtle smirk that played on his lips at her frustration.

He obviously had no intention of honoring her request.

“Your boyfriend made you mad?”

Jungkook’s voice sounded so low, a deep rumble that was oddly comforting against her inner silence. Nonetheless, his presence was bothering her, and she had zero intention of opening up to him of all people.

“He is not my boyfriend,” the words came out of her mouth by pure instinct.

She snapped her head around to glare at him, catching the exact moment he clicked his tongue. A smirk slowly spread across his face as he bit his lower lip, taking a slow drag from his cigarette. He took a step closer, shifting his weight against the railing, but maintained a respectful distance. He didn't want to make her feel threatened or uncomfortable.

“And why not?” he asked, blowing a thin trail of smoke.

“Because we don't have feelings for each other,” Lucy lied, her voice dropping.

At that, Jungkook let out a soft chuckle, shaking his head in quiet disbelief.

“Come on... you two are so obviously in love it’s almost painful to watch. So, what’s stopping you?”

“I’m not in love with him.”

“You’re a terrible liar, Lucy,” he said smoothly, leaning his elbow on the bar and tilting his head toward her. “Tell me honestly... Why are you so scared to be with him? What are you actually afraid of?”

Lucy turned to face him fully, her eyes narrowing as she felt her defenses rising up like a shield.

“Why do you even care?”

Jungkook took one last pull from his cigarette before flicking it away. He looked back at her, his dark eyes locking onto hers with an intensity that made her breath catch.

“I don’t,” he murmured softly, a sly smile touching his lips. “I’m just trying to fill the void of this boring night... and you're the most interesting thing up here.”

She huffs and rolls her eyes. But eventually, Lucy gives in to his charm and decides to finally talk about it out loud, making every thought she felt over the last months extremely real.

“He doesn’t love me…” her voice comes out shaking in embarrassment and exhaustion.

Jungkook simply nods, furrowing his eyebrows in deep thought.

“That’s impossible.” He scrunches his nose. “I mean, Sainz is not the brightest of guys. It will take him a lot to realize what he’s feeling, but believe me, the jerk is in love with you. If you really care about him, you just have to wait for him.”

Lucy closes her eyes and sighs in annoyance. Listening to Jungkook’s words only makes her furious. Who is he to talk about their relationship?

“What the fuck do you know about us, Jungkook? Don’t try to analyze the situation: you don’t know him and you certainly don’t know me,” she says harshly, so bitter it actually scares him.

“Listen, princess, calm down—”

“Don’t call me princess! I’m not one of your girls.” Lucy took a step toward him, pointing a trembling finger right at his chest in a clear warning to lower his tone.

Jungkook laughs at her reaction. He likes to make her mad, especially when she got so close that he could hear the frantic rhythm of her breathing.

“You wish you were.”

A smug smirk dances across his face, looking incredibly confident. It only makes Lucy rage with fury. She holds her hair and groans at his cockiness, wishing to be far away from him. Though her body wants to stay — it secretly enjoys the closeness between them. Jungkook is like a magnet to her, dangerously pulling her in.

“Why are you even here, Jungkook?”

She watches as his smile fades away so quickly. The proud and confident mask he was wearing slips off just like that.

He takes a step back and stares at the city. “You’re not the only one who finds the wind calming.”

Jungkook is suddenly quiet, avoiding her hard gaze. She doesn’t know what to do. Returning to the party only means seeing Carlos dancing around with Eva, and Lucy doesn’t want to suffer. On the other hand, staying on the balcony means sharing the silence with Jungkook.

Slowly, she walked back toward him until they were standing side by side, the space between them dissolving. Lucy realized then that he wasn't having the best of nights either. Behind the playboy persona, he looked genuinely troubled.

To return the gesture, she asks him, “Did something happen?”

“I don’t need your pity, Lucy. Go back to your boyfriend.”

Her mouth opens in disbelief. Clenching her jaw, she pushes away from him. “I was just trying to return the favor, but you know what? Fuck you, Jungkook. Have a nice night.”

She turned on her heel to walk away, but before she could take a single step, Jungkook caught her by the wrist. His touch was warm, and surprisingly gentle. When she looked back at him, his eyes — once so dark and arrogant — were soft, holding an unreadable spark.

“Don’t leave because of me. It’s only fair for you to stay.”

Lucy swallowed hard, but she didn't pull away.

Once again, they stood side by side, staring endlessly at the moon and losing themselves in its light. It felt like minutes passed before the silence was finally broken by Jungkook’s voice, rough and quiet.

“I might lose my spot.”

“What? Why? You are an amazing driver and you took second place today!”

“Sometimes it’s not enough. Not when the whole world hates you, and when you have no money to pay your way through.” He sighs. “My manager said my lifestyle is the problem. I sleep around too much, according to the press.”

“You don’t?”

“Oh no, I do. Just not as much as they think.”

He looks away. “Anyway, she has insisted on me finding a girlfriend. And since I don’t want to, I tried so hard to ace my performances. But it’s not enough, and I don’t have a lot of time. The press made it very clear.”

“I’m sorry, Jungkook.”

The silence falls again, heavy and thick, wrapping around them like a cold blanket.

“If a girlfriend is what you need, then why don’t you just get one?”

“It’s not that easy, Lucy. I don’t want to lead any girl on,” he says, running a hand through his dark hair with a frustrated sigh. “And I can’t fall in love with anyone.”

“No, I know, but... what about a fake girlfriend?”

“A fake girlfriend? And where would I ever find a fake—”

Jungkook suddenly stops mid-sentence as he turns to look at her. Realization hits him hard, right on his face. Lucy could be the perfect choice. She was single, desperetly trying to win her best friend’s heart. A fake realtionship between the two would have fixed both their problems. Jungkook knew Carlos liked her, he just needed a little push, and what could be better if not your enemy dating your best friend?

She notices how he suddenly goes quiet, and how his dark eyes are now staring intensely at her face.

“What?” she asks innocently, blinking.

“Well...” a slow, dangerous smile starts to form on his lips.

Lucy immediately reads his thoughts and jumps away from him, shaking her head violently in denial. “No. Absolutely not.”

She could never engage in this act, not when her heart beated so strongly for Carlos.

“Lucy, come on, think about it! It would be perfect!” he says, taking a step toward her, his eyes glowing with excitement.

“For you! What could I ever gain from this situation?”

“Hello? You gain Sainz’s attention!”

Lucy stops dead in her tracks. Her breath hitches. Dating Jungkook would definitely win Carlos’s attention—more than anything else, she would instantly become the center of all his thoughts. The idea makes her heart beat faster, but her conscience immediately fights back. “Just picture him, seeing us together as he fumes in anger!”

“Jungkook, I can’t do this to him! He is my best friend!”

“Who left you up here alone to go make out with another girl...” he points out softly, raising an eyebrow at her. His words cut right through her defenses, hitting the exact sore spot.

Lucy bites her inner cheek, looking down at the floor as she weighs her options. She looks back up at him, her expression hardening.

“If I accept, we have to make some rules.”

“Yeah, of course.” Jungkook takes a small step closer, holding out his hand with a triumphant smirk. “So, do we have a deal?”

Lucy hesitates for a second, looking at his large, tattooed hand, before finally reaching out.

“Deal.”

They step closer, their fingers wrapping around each other as they shake hands. The contact sends a strange, spark through her skin. Jungkook pulls her just a fraction closer, leaning down so his voice is a low rumble near her ear.

“But be careful, Lucy. I can be dangerously charming.”

Her body melt a little at his words. But, Lucy proudly pulls her hand back, rolled her eyes, even when her cheeks burned slightly under his gaze. “You think too much of yourself, Jungkook. I could never fall in love with you.”

— RACING HEARTS : an F1 and BTS fanfiction (Part one)

Lucy was madly in love with her best friend Carlos Sainz. They knew each other since kindergarten and grew up together, she knew he could never love her. It’s only when Lucy gets into a fake relationship with his enemy that he realises his feelings. Jeon Jungkook, who’s career was on the brick of ruins and only Lucy could have saved him. What will happen between the three? Will Lucy go back to her first love, or will she find a new life in Jungkook’s arms?

word count: 3k

pairings: F1 driver! Jeon Jungkook x !fem! og character x Carlos Sainz

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Chapter 1 — Heated Rivalry

Lucy Mendes dreamed about a perfect love story ever since she could remember. All her life she lost herself in these romantic fantasies: meeting her soulmate in a library while looking for a book, or casually bumping into him at a coffee bar, accidentally spilling her drink on his shirt.

Tension, stolen glances, and hidden touches, lies she believed just to feel something.

But here’s the catch: love is only real in books. The moment she fell in love, it felt weird. It didn’t taste like fresh water; it felt shallow, empty of all the romantic stories Lucy had built in her mind. The reason why she kept falling in love over and over was because of a fake reality, created by herself.

Though she didn’t feel that way for her best friend, Carlos Sainz.

Lucy couldn't remember a time without Carlos being in it; the two had been friends since kindergarten. Initially, they hated each other: Sainz mocking her for the curls she always wore, and Lucy giving him ridiculous names like "fish face" for his big mouth. She couldn't remember how they became best friends, but like most childhood relationships, it all started for no apparent reason.

Of their teenage years, Lucy remembers all the dirty looks that jealous girls had given to her. Carlos was the heartthrob of the school. His charm won over the coldest of hearts as he walked through the halls, effortlessly looking beautiful. He wasn’t just incredibly pretty; he also had a pure soul, making him even more irresistible.

Everyone was in love with him. Even Lucy.

She had never told him, but Carlos was her first real crush. It had all dawned on her on a warm summer night years ago. They were camping with his family when the two of them decided to stay up until dawn. Sitting on the beach, they watched the sun slowly set, revealing a beautiful sunset. They stared at the stars and talked non-stop about everything and nothing. Until, in the quiet dark, he looked at her just a second too long. With the moonlight shining on their faces, she noticed how his eyes had a little spark, and the way his hair fell perfectly on him. Her heart was beating so fast all of a sudden.

Through the years, Lucy had a hard time getting over her crush, relapsing multiple times till it felt too tiring. She hated the power Carlos held over her, how easily he could make her blush at a sweet compliment or a faint touch. But what killed her the most were his eyes, never meeting hers, not even once.

She stood behind, watching him from afar as he got with other girls, giving them his heart. Lucy couldn’t stand the feeling anymore.

So when she met Kylian Mbappé, her now ex-boyfriend and famous football player, a door opened. An escape to stop her suffering. With Kylian, she found a temporary happiness; for a few months, it all fit perfectly. Going to his games, supporting him from afar, and playing the part of the perfect girlfriend.

But her body still felt empty, almost as if she were pretending. Lucy realized there was no escape from her feelings; Carlos was haunting her, and no one could ever replace him. When she broke up with Kylian, he was surprisingly understanding. He said that he had always suspected it, and instead of blaming Lucy, he kindly offered her help.

The alarm beeps loudly in the dark room. Lucy mumbles and shuts off the annoying sound. With all her strength, she gets up from her bed and heads to the bathroom to wash up. Looking at her reflection, she notices her dark circles and a few pimples on her skin.

Today was the first “quali–day” of the season. They were racing in Australia, but Lucy knew Red Bull was going to fail miserably this year. She has been working for the team a long time now; debuting alongside Max Verstappen, she knew the struggles of her job. Especially since she was his race engineer. The two were both hotheads, impatient and shamelessly insulting each other during races, but that bond seemed to work.

Outside of the track, they were pretty good friends —better than in the car. Lucy gets ready and exits her room. She takes the elevator and heads downstairs to have some breakfast. With a book in her hand, she sits at the farthest table. Her phone buzzes; it is a message from Carlos:

Carlitos: Where are you staying?

Me: Maple Hotel, why?

Carlitos: Just turn around, dumbass.

Lucy turns around and sees a smiling Carlos approaching her, already looking so painfully gorgeous. His hair moves as he walks. Now in front of each other, Carlos hugs her tightly, swinging her left and right. Lucy chuckles at his excitement, but suddenly stops when he kisses her cheek, feeling a wave of heat wash over her.

“I’ve missed you so much, Cece!”

“We saw each other last week. What are you talking about?” Lucy laughs.

“Ay! Can’t a man miss his best friend?” The words sting a little to her heart— best friend. They sit and drink coffee together, Carlos joking about his morning hair and saying how happy he was for this season. Sounding truly confident: “This year we are going to win!”

Lucy was just staring at him, contemplating his beauty. She loved whenever Carlos was excited about something; he was a born entertainer, and it never felt boring when he talked about his many stories. Carlos keeps chatting but suddenly stops when he sees Lucy’s book placed on the table.

“Cece, what crappy love story are you reading right now?” His tone, sounding so judgmental, forces her to hide her blushing.

“Hey… the books I read are not crappy at all. This is a beautiful romance called The Deal,” Lucy proudly tells him.

“Is it about those two pretending to be in a relationship?” She nods, quite surprised by his knowledge. “How do you know about The Deal?” Lucy asks, squinting her eyes, suspicious of her best friend. Carlos takes a long time to reply, a playful smirk slowly appearing on his face. He tells her to come closer and leans toward her, causing Lucy to blush a little.

“You know,” he whispers into her ear, his voice sounding so sweet and calming, “I’ve been going out with a girl recently. She introduced me to it.”

Lucy felt her heart shatter into tiny pieces and sink into a dark, empty hole. She swallows the lump in her throat, trying to hide the pain away, not wanting Carlos to notice how her body suddenly stiffened. Because Lucy knew the moment he realized her breathing sounded heavy, he would have asked questions.

Lucy clears her throat: “Really? Who is the unlucky girl?”

Carlos slaps her arm as she laughs at her own joke. “Stop it! Do you know Eva Santos?”

“No.”

“Cece… she is a famous model!” Lucy shrugs her shoulders and takes a bite of her muffin, not caring about a single word he was saying.

“Whatever. We met a few weeks ago in Paris; she was doing a shoot in the same building. She is so beautiful and extremely funny; I think you would like her.” As Carlos keeps ranting about his charming girl, Lucy closes her eyes so tightly, hoping to brush the feeling away. She felt the room getting smaller at her friend’s words, almost choking in the unbearable pain.

“My heart might be falling for her, and—” Carlos says. Lucy finally opens her eyes.

“You only met her a few days ago, Carlos.” He looks a bit confused by her sudden reaction, her tone sounding so sour and bitter to his ears. An awkward silence falls between the two; she notices how his smile quickly faded away at her words.

“I’m sorry, it's just,” Lucy tries to justify herself, “you tend to overreact when you meet someone, and I worry about you. I mean, what if you get hurt, Carlos?”

Though her friend seems to ignore her, not listening to a single thing she was telling him the moment he stepped into the room:

Jeon Jungkook, Carlos’s biggest enemy. The two of them had been racing against each other since they were kids. Those days were so distant, yet so close to them; Carlos remembers all the fights they had, how jealous he was whenever Jungkook took the win. It didn’t help when people kept comparing their performances, as they were equally talented.

Their rivalry heated up the moment Jungkook won the F2 championship, shoving the trophy proudly in Carlos’s face. But Carlos soon took revenge: when he signed with Ferrari, he didn't only cheer for his great achievement, but he thought of Jungkook, still racing in Williams.

Back then, the press obviously took the chance to ask Jeon what he felt about Sainz going to Ferrari, his words still cutting so deeply to Carlos: “Well, it’s easy when you have daddy’s money backing you up. There are people in this sport who work harder than these rich kids and still stay behind.”

But it officially turned into hatred two years ago: Jungkook was officially in Mercedes, and Carlos spent his second year in Ferrari. During this time, Carlos had the pleasure of meeting a nice lady with whom he fell in love immediately. And she seemed to return the feelings. However, when they were close to dating each other, Jungkook swiped her from his hands. He and the girl shared one night in bed, but after that, she lost her interest in Carlos, desperately trying to get with Jungkook instead.

It was a silly teenage fight, but Carlos never forgave him for it. And, of course, he told everything to Lucy. She did not have a strong opinion on Jungkook; the two interacted just a few times, and he seemed uninterested, so she never cared about him. But, since he made her best friend suffer so many times, she had to hate him.

“Carlos, are you listening to me?” Lucy snaps him out of his trance.

“Yeah, I’m sorry,” Carlos mumbles and clears his throat. He sees his best friend’s confused look, so with his head, he points at Jungkook, who is now eating his eggs. Lucy follows Carlos’s gaze and notices the Mercedes driver, jumping a little when his eyes set on her, while a devilish smile tugs at his lips.

“I hate his stupid face,” Carlos whispers.

Lucy, not necessarily caring about their bickering, continues to eat and takes a long sip from her coffee. Carlos was still glaring at Jungkook, not even blinking his eyes. When she looked back at her friend, she noticed his crazy look.

“Quit staring at him! You are being weird,” Lucy says as she slaps his leg, causing him to flinch.

Carlos finally gives up and sighs in annoyance, viciously slicing his bacon. To check if the boy had noticed anything or if he had left, Lucy glances at Jungkook. But once again, he was already staring at her, chewing his breakfast as he wore a grin on his face. She felt her cheeks blush a little at the sudden eye contact and quickly broke it off. Carlos, on her left, noticed their odd interaction.

“What was that?” he asks.

“What?”

“Nothing, just forget about it.” His tone, husky and low.

Lucy ignored his sudden outburst and the silence he kept all breakfast. And Carlos tried to swallow the strange feeling in his stomach, the knot he always felt whenever Lucy interacted with another man. After eating, they drove to the track together, although neither of the two uttered a word. It felt weird to Lucy that Carlos was being silent; usually, he does it when he is particularly angry.

The moment they stepped out of the car, they were surrounded by fans— well, only Carlos’s —asking for autographs. The Ferrari driver excitedly signed everything, not paying any attention to Lucy, who was impatiently waiting for him to finish.

“Carlos, I have to go, but I’ll see you later,” she says, hoping the boy would turn around, but he doesn't.

“Yeah, see you later. Don’t let Max take the pole,” Carlos jokes.

When Lucy arrives at the Red Bull box, she immediately greets everyone and talks to the new recruits, trying to make them feel welcome. As a little girl, Lucy always dreamed about working for Ferrari, especially when Carlos got the spot. The two talked so many times about living their F1 careers together, and Sainz had recommended her to the team, swearing she was talented and perfect for the part. But the contract never arrived in her hands.

Through time, she found a family in Red Bull, especially thanks to Max. Now Lucy never wanted to change; even if she received better offers, she liked her life there. It was far from Carlos’s; it was her own little world.

“Lucy, good morning!” her driver greeted.

“Morning, Max! How’s your daughter?”

“Great! Are you ready for today?” Lucy nods and orders him to get in the car. This year's hopes for Red Bull were very low, the entire team knew it, and not even Max Verstappen could have changed their destiny. But it’s better to try than to instantly give up.

As Lucy wears her headphones, ready for the race, she sees a certain Mercedes driver walking in front of the box. Lucy watches as Jungkook talks with his race engineer, looking deeply focused on his words. She felt a bit mesmerized by him; it was impossible to deny, Jungkook was handsome. Still, she didn’t want to admit it — he was an asshole. But mostly because of Carlos.

Whenever they talked about him, Carlos always insisted on his appearance, saying he wasn’t that attractive and that girls only liked him because of his tattoos. But Lucy didn’t feel the same way, though she never told him, it would have hurt the boy’s feelings.

Jungkook felt someone’s eyes burning on him. He turned his head around to see who the secret admirer was, and then their eyes met again. It was the same girl that was with Carlos this morning. He knew her—everybody knew Lucy. Mainly because every driver had a secret crush on her, but recently she had proven to be a great race engineer. Mercedes had made her an offer, but she had kindly rejected it.

Lucy was blushing again. She didn’t know why Jungkook made her feel that way. Usually, she only blushed around Carlos, it was probably because of his intimidating look. But then, he waved at her, a devilish smirk appearing at the corner of his lips. The gesture caused her to shiver and sigh in fury: why was he interacting with her?

Thankfully, Horner came behind her and squeezed her shoulders tightly, forcing her to look away from Jungkook.

“Are we ready, Lucy? I 'm counting on you,” he says and gives a quick wink at her.

The first round of qualifying begins; Max somehow manages to get through it. Lucy actively checks on Sainz to know where he is positioned. The two Ferrari drivers arrived in first and second place, followed by Jungkook. In the second round, Max struggles more, swearing and complaining about the car.

“Max, all you can do right now is to drive your car. So, just do it,”

Lucy tells him, reminding him of his manners.

Finally, in the last round, Max takes fifth place. Not perfect, but not bad. Lucy didn’t complain; this was all they could do with that car. Eventually, they would fix it—at least she hoped. But nothing mattered to her at the moment: Carlos was in pole position. She looked at the screen and saw him happily cheering. He seemed so happy, smiling brightly at the interviewer. Lucy didn’t care that Red Bull couldn’t take pole; Carlos did it. That was enough for her.

The scene changed to Jungkook removing his helmet. From his face, Lucy could tell he was pissed. The Mercedes driver arrived in tenth position; apparently, they had an issue with the car.

Jungkook tried his best to keep it cool. He wasn’t one of those drivers who let out his emotions on others, even if the press liked to sell another version. He knew the car wasn’t in its best shape, but it was also his fault if he couldn’t get first position. What made him explode in fury was seeing Carlos so happy, and how his stupid girlfriend looked at the screen, almost tearing up at Carlos’s successful qualification.

After going through many interviews, Carlos rushed to Lucy. All he wanted was to hug her and celebrate the pole with her. He knew she was waiting outside for him, so he took a quick shower and went to his car. And there she was, scrolling through her phone, not paying attention to her surroundings.

Carlos took the chance and scared the poor girl. Lucy screamed in fear.

“Asshole!” she yelled as he was running away from her, terrified to be punched. Like two children, they chased each other, laughing hysterically and hiding behind the cars. When Lucy finally reached him, she hit his arm repeatedly.

“Cece, stop! I have a race tomorrow!”

Lucy froze and remembered Carlos’s pole: “Right! You were amazing today! I’m so proud of you, Carlos!”

A soft shade of pink appeared on his cheeks at the compliment. “Thanks. You pulled a magic trick with that Red Bull.”

“Nah, it’s all thanks to Max.”

“I highly doubt that,” Carlos says as he wraps an arm around the girl and leads her to the car. As a true gentleman, he opens the door and gently pushes her in by the shoulders.

This time on the ride, they were joking and laughing, never shutting their mouths, not even once.

When they arrived at the hotel, a comforting silence fell between the two. Carlos kindly offered to walk her to her room, and as they said goodbye, their eyes lingered on each other for a little too long. Lucy caught how his gaze slowly moved to her lips, but he quickly looked away.

Answer: Love myself | Seokjin fan fiction (Part one)

pairing: fem! reader x seokjin

summary: You’ve known Jin for years, he is the best friend of your brother (Yoongi). There is always been some tension between you two, and there were certain moments in your life where you thought you had a crush on him. But you knew he didn’t share the feelings: Seokjin has tried to forget his ex so many times, but still his mind was stuck on her. You on the other hand just broke up from a toxic relationship and are trying to find yourself. As you and him grow closer you realise maybe he is not just your brother’s friend but so much more, does he feel the same?

tropes/warnings: ONE SHOT with multiple parts, brother’s best friend, forbidden love, friends to lovers, she fell first he fell harder, romance, comfort love, found family, angst, cursing, fluff, healing, very soft smut, teasing, sexual tension.

word count: 7k

author’s note: heyy I’m writing this fanfic as a romance, it will have another part (or more but depends if I still like the story lol).

📁 The story begins…

I lie in bed, staring endlessly at the ceiling, watching the fan spin round and round. I keep hoping the feeling will fade away, but it never does. It has been two weeks since I broke up with my boyfriend. From that moment, everything has become tasteless. I force myself to feel at least something, but all I have in my chest is an empty hole that I have to fix.

Frank and I had been dating for six months, a short time if you think about it. However, to me it felt like years that wouldn’t slip away. He consumed every drop of energy out of my body.

He wasn’t toxic or crazy, he just didn’t love me enough. Which is somehow worse, because you can’t hate someone for that. The best thing you can do is blame their actions, and I do.

I hate how he led me on, just because he wanted a happy, always-satisfied woman next to him. A never-needy, ever-lovely jewel as someone might say.

My friends have been worrying about me, especially my brother. Yoongi always takes care of me through all my heartbreaks, which are a lot. Usually, he tells me whenever he has a bad feeling about a guy I’m dating, but this time he didn’t. Yoongi genuinely thought Frank was a nice man, perfect for me.

But love is not about meeting a good person, nor is it about simple compatibility. It’s a feeling of safety and wanting the best for the person next to you.

I get out of bed and go to the bathroom to take a shower. As the water washes over me, I can feel my nerves loosen up a little, temporarily letting go of the weight I’ve been carrying these past few days.

With my hair damp and just a towel wrapped around my body, I head downstairs to eat breakfast.

Yoongi was there, writing something in his notebook.

To his left Seokjin appeared, eating cereal out of a very big bowl.

Suddenly I remembered what I was wearing, and a wave of embarrassment washed all over me. As I turned around, I noticed all of my brother’s friends were there, some sleeping on the couch, others waking up from wherever they had rested.

“Oh, hi little sis. How are you?” Yoongi asks, his eyes still glued to the pages.

“I’m good… Good morning,” I blur out, my cheeks on fire. “Everyone.”

Jin stares at me while eating. “Hello, Y/N.”

The boys soon reached the kitchen and joined Yoongi, all of them eating like animals. Usually, I didn’t like it when my brother’s friends came over but they were an exception. I felt safe in their presence. It was also a funny show to watch: somehow they are always able to entertain you with their jokes and stories.

I enjoy being with them, especially Namjoon. We always discuss art, since he’s a literature graduate, and I feel at ease with him.

He reminds me a lot of my brother, except Namjoon is much more positive and far less intimidating.

Not knowing what to do, I simply fidget with my fingers, dying of humiliation. “I think I’m gonna go change.”

“But why? That dress looks perfect on you” Jin jokes, earning a laugh from the whole table – yeah, including my brother.

Jin was the kindest of all of them, yet after knowing him all these years I still felt extremely uncomfortable around him.

But he wasn’t the problem.

As I said, Jin is a good person! I just feel intimidated by him, It’s probably because of his handsome looks.

I don’t find him attractive in a particular way, but I recognize how beautiful he can be. So charming with everyone.

There were times when my mind was wrapped around him and the way he talked to me, but it was always a light crush. Fake scenarios I told myself to fall asleep.

“Very funny, but in this ‘dress’ I still outshine every single one of you” I answer back as I walk toward my room.

After changing into normal clothes, I stay in bed all morning, waiting for the guests to leave. I scroll through my phone for hours, but when the sound of the front door closing can finally be heard, I run downstairs.

They stayed so long after breakfast that it was almost three o'clock, and I was starving.

I open the fridge and grab a few ingredients to make myself a salad. On the table, I see Yoongi left his notebook.

I knew he was writing a new song, and I had asked him so many times to sing it to me, but he always refused: “It’s not ready yet, just wait a little!”

But my body physically can’t, I’m dying of curiosity to see what’s inside.

With my hands half-dry, I flip through the pages, not understanding a single word written there. Why does my stupid brother have to write this badly?

“Hey!”

Shit, he saw me. Yoongi snatches the notebook from me, holding it tightly now that it’s back in his hands. “I told you, Y/N… you have to be patient!”

I groan. “Ugh, I don’t know the meaning of that word!” My brother gives me a deadly look. “Fine, I’m sorry! I’m just intrigued by your new song”

Yoongi rolls his eyes and sighs, he already knows I won’t give up unless he gives me a small detail about it. “All I’m going to say is that it’s a song about you”

“Great, so it’s gonna be about how much I suck.” I hear Yoongi laugh as I turn my back to him, focusing on slicing the tomatoes perfectly.

“No idiot! It’s about our beautiful bond” he says, his voice sounding so dramatic.

“Ew, gross. You’re such a loser”

Mocking my brother was one of my favorite hobbies, just as annoying me was his.

After a while, I decide to open the topic. Again, it was nice of the boys to come home but, a notice would have been appreciated.

“Yoongi” He responds with a quiet mhm. “Next time the boys are over, could you please tell me? It’s nothing against them I’d just like to know”

“Yeah, I’m so sorry. We drank all night, and this was the closest place tocrash”

“Well next time tell me or write a message! I don’t want them to see me in a towel” I protest, throwing the sliced tomatoes into the salad.

“You are right I’m sorry”

I see my brother taking a bag of chips and throw himself onto the couch, loudly chewing as he watches TV. I soon join him and sit.

As I eat my salad I feel his eyes on me, those full of pity that has been giving me every day. After witnessing my break downs Yoongi knows exactly how much I hide my emotions, but it doesn’t make me feel better if he treats me like a child. I can take care of myself, plus it’s normal to be depressed after a break up. Especially if it made you go through hell for an entire month.

“Y/N, would you like to go to a party tonight? The others will be there, including Namjoon!” I know what he is doing, he wants to make me go out of the house, breathe new air.

“I’m not in a party mood.”

“Please…it’s good for you, I promise I will never leave you behind” One thing about my brother is that he is not someone who gives up easily, he will always finish what he started. So I know my protests are wasted breath with him.

“Fine.” I tell him and he smiles in excitement, returning to his tv series.

We both spent endless hours in the living room, not realising it was already evening. Yoongi sees the clock and jumps off the couch, “Shit we have to get ready!” he says after running to his room.

I look at the time and notice it was now eight o’clock, we were supposed to be there at nine. I can’t get ready in thirty minutes!

Nonetheless I try, quickly putting on an outfit and doing my makeup, in an attempt to feel pretty. Everything seems useless, not even the concealer could hide the dark circles under my tired eyes. I looked sick, a rotten fruit.

Frank liked when I dressed up, mostly because he could show me off like a trophy.

Without him every try is empty. Looking at my reflection I notice a drop of tear slowly gliding down my face, why am I this stupid? As I swallow the lump in my throat I quickly wipe off all the make up with a tissue, my lips once red are now smudged and irritated. I wash myself feeling more comfortable with my skin.

I tie my hair in a high ponytail, desperately trying to fix my bangs. As I nervously move every strand of my hair I hear Yoongi knocking on the door, his feet impatiently tapping in the hallway.

“Y/N we have to go!” he yells behind the door, “Come on you look perfect, let’s go!”

A groan escape my lips, I did not feel pretty even in the slightest. But it was too late, I take my purse and hurry to the door, swinging it open I see my brother nervously pacing up and down the corridor “Ok, I’m ready.”

We arrive at Hoseok’s house a bit late, but fortunately he is not too upset about it as he welcomes us with two drinks in hand. The house was filled by a cloud of smoke, everyone were calmly smoking weed in the living room. My brother wraps an arm around his friend, the two locking in a joyful conversation while moving towards the couch “Yoongi I want to introduce you to this guy, he is a guitarist and so talented”.

I’m left behind at the entrance, wasn’t he supposed to be next to me all night? As I roll my eyes I decide to look for Namjoon, maybe he is already here. Scanning awkwardly every room I don’t find him anywhere, at last I check the kitchen but it was totally empty. Well, except for a drunk guy laying on the floor.

As I turn around I bump into someone’s chest, the familiar scent of his perfume instantly hits me, it was Seokjin.

He stands right in front of me, hair falling perfectly across his face, his skin glowing under the warm lights. I hate how effortlessly beautiful he can be, like an angel walking on earth, and how easily I fall to his charm.

Looking down at his white shirt I noticed it was completely soaked, the now see-through fabric reveals patches of his skin, causing my mouth to open a little.

Jin was holding a red cup – that’s when I realized.

“Oh shit Jin I’m so sorry” I say to him quickly taking a paper napkin, trying to wipe away the mess I had made.

Jin softly grasped my wrist, the touch burning against my skin. He doesn’t let go of me.

“It’s okay, Y/N” he murmured, a playful smirk appearing on his face. He leaned closer and whispered right into my ear “If you wanted to touch my chest, you could’ve just asked, you know?”

I instantly stepped back, putting a huge gap between us. Jin laughed at my awkward reaction.

“In your dreams Jin.” I bite back

We both stare at each other. The air feeling so heavy around us whenever we were alone in a room.

“What are you doing here all alone?” He finally speak in a low and quiet tone.

“I was looking for Namjoon”

He scrunch his nose at my answer, clearing his voice as he leans on the counter behind him. Suddenly looking bigger, his broad shoulders is all I could focus on. He tilts his head a little, slightly smirking at me “He is not here. I thought Yoongi told you”

“No…?” I sigh and close my eyes “Typical of him”

Jin laughs at the joke and comes closer to me, only to fill his cup with a soda. I feel his body resting close to mine, the smell of alcohol and wet shirt intoxicate my brain. Whenever he was near me I suddenly felt nervous, even scared to move. Jin notices my stiff posture and steps back slightly to give me some space.

“You know, the towel suited you better” he says, taking a sip from his drink.

I let out a laugh, sounding a little dorky. But when I look back up at him, I notice he’s already staring at me. His smile is so pure, almost as if he’s genuinely happy he made me laugh.

“Look, I know I’m not Namjoon, and I know you’d probably rather leave this party” Jin blurted out, pushing himself off the table we were sitting on. “But I can keep you company!” he says, sending a quick wink that makes me chuckle again.

“Thank you, but... why do you care so much if I’m having a good time?” I ask confused by his sudden interest.

“Because you’re my best friend’s little sister!”

I don’t believe a single word coming out of his mouth. We’ve known each other for a long time, but we’ve never actually hung out together or done favors for each other. We weren’t even proper friends, to me Jin was just someone close to my brother.

“You’re not a very good liar, Jin…”

I watch him give up with a loud groan, his head and shoulders falling in defeat.

“Fine! My ex is here, and honestly, I have zero intention of talking to her” he admits.

“Because you’re still madly in love with her?”

Jin clearly doesn’t appreciate my sarcasm, shooting me an icy look.

“Whatever. I just need a distraction, and so do you! Let’s just have some fun instead of hiding in the kitchen, moping about our stupid exes.”

“I was not doing that!”

“Lying doesn’t look good on you, Y/N. I like you much better when that cute mouth of yours tells the truth.”

A shade of red creeps onto my face at the compliment. “Like what?”

“I don’t know... like how handsome I am?”

“When did I ever say that?”

“You didn’t, but your body did,” Jin smirks, stepping closer into my personal space. “Tell me, Y/N... was my shirt really that nice to stare at?”

I cover my face in embarrassment, my hands hiding my flaming cheeks and my nervous smile. Jin lets out a rich laugh, enjoying my misery.

“Okay enough” I mumble behind my hands, pushing myself off from the table. I badly needed to change the subject before dying of humiliation, “If I need to survive this night, without my brother or Namjoon, then I need a drink.”

Jin suddenly gets in action, as if he was just woken up from a dream. “Sure, whatever you want I’ll make it for you” he kindly offers.

“A vodka red bull?”

I noticed his raised eyebrows, and the corner of his lips slowly turning into a smirk “Really? A vodka red bull…”

I roll my eyes and cross my arms in response “What’s wrong with vodka red bull?”

Jin’s smile brightens at my reaction, clearly amused by how much his words had gotten to me “Nothing. Only losers drink vodka red bull.”

I know it will only satisfy him even more, but the sigh escapes my lips before I could stop it “Just make me the goddamn drink, Jin!”

He laughs whole-heartedly, but follows my order anyway. He moves through the kitchen to make me a perfect drink, opening the fridge – and accidentally hitting the drunk guy’s head. When he hands the glass to me, our fingers slightly touch. It's just a soft, momentary brush, but I have to swallow the sudden flutter in my stomach, praying he doesn't notice how much it affected me.

Jin simply smiles at me and heads to the living room. I join him shortly after and take a seat next to my brother. He was lost in a fever discussion with Taehyung, blathering about who was the greatest rapper of all time. I roll my eyes and glance at Jin, seated in front of me, widening my eyes as to secretly signaling how crazy they were. He softly chuckles and drinks from his cup.

“Hey Y/N!” Jungkook greets me by hitting my back, almost making me spill my vodka redbull “It’s nice to see you”

“Oh hi Kookie!” I smile at him

“Woah Jungkook careful!” Jin interrupts with a grin, pointing at the drink I was holding, he leans over the coffee table to take it from me and gently positioning it on a safer place “Don’t ruin my masterpiece!”.

Jungkook gets down and instantly recognise it by the smell “It’s vodka redbull, Y/N grow up…” He sits next to me, taking majority of the couch.

I groan while clasping my hands together, “I like it, sue me!”

They are both laughing at me now. Jin shifts, extending his arm along the back of the couch. Looking completely unbothered, while sitting with his legs open. The posture makes him look effortlessly attractive, impossible to ignore, as his eyes rest on me I feel an overwhelming heat of rush surging in my body.

“She is still little, within a few years, Y/N will outgrow that crappy drink” Jin says with a smirk in his face.

“I doubt it…” Jungkook almost whispers, I elbow him on the stomach and make him groan in pain.

I watch Jin laughing so hard there are actual tears in his eyes as he mocks Jungkook. Within seconds, the youngest jumps on him, slapping his arm repeatedly. This is exactly what I was talking about, they never fail to give you a good show.

Eventually, Jungkook gives up and retreats to his seat, leaving a triumphant and breathless Jin.

As Jin chuckles in victory, he carefully fixes his hair and clothes, “I’m too strong JK, you can’t beat me!”

I roll my eyes and let out a dry laugh “Strong is a big word”

Jungkook silently giggles beside me. Jin, too stunned to speak, just stares at me blankly “What do you mean?”

“Come on Jin…Kookie is so much bigger than you!”

Jungkook takes a sip from his drink, enjoying every single word coming out of my mouth as Jin’s smile fade away. But just as Jin opens his mouth to argue, Kook interrupts him “Hyung you can’t deny it!”

Jin turns his eyes back to me, looking deeply betrayed. “I can’t believe it! After I’ve made you a lovely drink, this is how you treat me?” He dramatically places his hand over his chest, pretending to be broken hearted by my statement.

Feeling a smile slowly fight its way onto my face, I try my absolute hardest to suppress it “Oh…but I thought you liked me better when I was honest to you”

Jin freezes, hand still pressed against his heart. For a second, he just blinks at me, completely caught off guard by his own words being thrown right back at him. On the other hand Jungkook burst into a laugh, wheezing so hard he almost falls off the couch “Look at his face!” he says between laughters.

Seokjin clicks his tongue, narrowing his eyes at Jungkook, he gives him a hard glare before slowly moving his gaze on me. Jin leans his elbow on the armrest, his disappointed and hurted face softly changes, becoming more confident as his smile turns into a smirk. He raises his glass to his lips, keeping his eyes locked onto mine and simply whispers,

“Touché”

My body stiffens at the gesture. For a fraction of a second, the room feels like it's spinning. I quickly break the eye contact and take a long gulp to finish my drink. When I look back up, I catch him wearing a victorious grin.

Jin was irresistible when he acted like this, always succeeding in turning me back into that teenage girl who used to have a massive crush on him.

A part of me suspects that he knows it. Honestly, it was pretty obvious, even my brother noticed and asked me about it. I remember my heart beating so fast whenever he came near me, or my palms sweating just from him saying my name. But Jin had always been an absolute gentleman, he never mocked me or led me on.

Though there were times when he purposely teased me, enjoying how easily he could make me blush.

“Jin?” A voice snaps me back to reality, it was a woman, a beautiful woman. She was wearing a red dress and loose curls, looking like a model.

“Millie... hi. How are you?” he stutters, turning his whole body toward her as if hypnotized by her presence.

“I’m good. Still happy with my Jack,” she replies effortlessly.

The tension between them is palpable: both look deeply uncomfortable, but looking at Jin’s face all I can read is pain. He’s hurting. She must be the famous ex.

I’d heard countless stories about this girl, but I’d never known her face or her name. Usually, the guys just referred to her as “the bitch.” Well... everyone except Seokjin. My brother once told me she had cheated on him with one of his closest friends, and ever since, Jin couldn't bring himself to look at another woman the same way.

Jin always had success with the ladies, but now that I think about it, I hadn't seen him with anyone since their breakup. So the rumors must be true. Jin was still in love with her, still dreaming of her arms around him. But that’s absurd, they broke up years ago. How could he still be holding on after everything she did to him?

I try to ignore the sudden lump in my throat, swallowing it down hard as I close my eyes and take a deep breath.

They just stand there, staring at each other awkwardly.

“Well, I have to go, but it was nice seeing you Jin!” she says before walking away, not even bothering to look at the rest of us.

Jin stares after her, deeply lost in his thoughts, his eyes slowly dimming. He suddenly gets up from the couch, scrunching his nose as he mutters a quiet “Excuse me,” before rushing toward the bathroom.

An uncomfortable and suffocating silence takes over the room. We all exchange shocked looks, even Tae and Yoongi stop their bickering.

“Man, that was hard to watch,” Hoseok sighs. “Poor Jin... his soul was shattered.”

Everyone nods in agreement. That’s when Tae clears his throat, breaking the heavy mood. “Anyway, as I was saying... Drake is the greatest of all time!”

“Tae, no! You're wrong, Drake isn't even close!” Yoongi argues back, forcing the room back into its normal and chaotic rhythm. I’m left speechless at how easily they moved on from the subject. I hit my brother’s head causing him to whine,

“You can’t be serious right now! Your friend is suffering…”

“I know but he refuses to talk about it with us” Hoseok interferes, “Maybe you should check up on him, you are a good listener.”

Why did I have to do it? They were his best friends, I barely knew the guy! No one was moving from their seat, they were all staring at me, waiting for me to move. I sigh and get up from the couch, “Fine!”

I rush to the bathroom, knocking softly at the door “Jin? It’s me, Y/N.”

Silence.

Nervously I bring my hand to knock again, hoping he would answer this time “Are you okay?”

Again silence.

Well, not totally, I could hear soft breathes coming out of the room. Was he crying? I had to come in.

As I open the door the image of Jimin making out with a girl burned in my mind, he had his hands all over her, almost naked. I was wondering where he went to, now I’d rather not know.

“Ew Chimmy! At least lock the door!” I yell at him, he turns around and breaks the kiss.

“Oh hi Y/N!”

“Have you seen Jin?” I ask him impatiently wanting badly to get out of that situation.

“I think he is out, said he was going to the garden” He breathes, I thank him and before I could even leave he keeps kissing passionately the girl. Forcing me to almost throw up.

I close the door and head to Jin, this time hoping I would find him. Outside the sound of the party vanished so quickly, the music sounding so distant in this cold breeze.

In the dark I see Jin, he was sitting on the ground, playing with some strands of grass. I approach him slowly and sit beside him, Jin doesn’t look at me, instead he keeps looking at the moon. Shining so brightly in the dark of the night.

“You weren’t supposed to leave me, a friend never breaks a promise.” I joke trying to lighten up the mood, he softly chuckles and finally turns around to face me.

He lets out a soft chuckle and finally turns to face me. “Yeah, I’m sorry. I was kind of hoping that vodka red bull would knock you out so I wouldn’t have to babysit you.”

His words making me gasp so loudly, Jin sees my face and burst out laughing.

“Wow! Thank you so much, then I’ll just leave you alone” He grabs my wrist, his grip wrapping around me so tightly.

“No please,” he whispers while looking at me “Stay.”

Our eyes lock into a silent dance, the moonlight reflecting off his beautiful face. I can’t seem to stop staring at him, his full lips look so tempting in the dark. I shake off the sudden rush of feelings and force myself to look away.

“We weren’t supposed to mop about our stupid exes” I say to him, and he smiles though doesn’t say anything.

“Promise me something?” Jin asks, suddenly sounding deeply serious. I nod, encouraging him to continue. “Could we help each other? You know... forget those idiots.”

Noticing my hesitation, Jin adds “It’d just be two losers supporting each other.”

A sudden laugh bursts out of my mouth before I can stop it. "Two losers?" I ask, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Well, it’s mostly referred to you" Jin says playfully, a glint returning to his eyes. "But in all seriousness... yeah. Just two friends having each other's backs."

I bump my shoulder lightly against his. "Deal. From now on, no more moping over people who didn't deserve us." Jin lets out a shaky breath. The sadness on his face melts away, replaced by a soft smile.

He bumps his shoulder right back against mine "Deal" he whispers quietly.

And so, we did.

Whenever either of us felt down about our exes, we texted each other, sometimes even calling when things got that serious. It quickly became our own little world, like a house we had built together, out of pure comfort and trust.

Jin told me about the time he found out she cheated on him with his friend, who was now her boyfriend. He felt crushed, a piece of paper crumpled up and abandoned on the floor. Then I asked him why he kept running to her:

“Y/N, sometimes we aren't in love with the person anymore... we're in love with the distant memory of them, or the idea of who they used to be. And when I see her, Millie just reminds me of those beautiful days. Deep down, she really was a lovely person.”

And when he asked me about Frank, I always found it hard to talk about it. Obviously, Jin never pushed me, he understood my pain and knew when to give me space.

But after a few months, I finally found the courage to tell him everything: It started about a month before the breakup.

Frank had stopped putting any effort into us, living the relationship for himself. Whenever I tried to talk to him about how distant he felt, he’d just fill my head with empty promises, to keep me from slipping away.

So I waited. And waited. I waited for so long that eventually, my begging just became exhausting. My body felt completely drained, while all he seemed to care about was sex.

I told Jin about the nights Frank would beg me to fuck, and how I forced myself to go through with it, hoping that things would go back to normal. Except they never did. It only made everything so much worse.

Eventually I was able to forget about him, mostly thanks to Jin. He made me forget about the heavy weight I had been carrying over the last months, with him everything seemed so much easier.

There were times when we got a little too close, joking around and mocking each other, only followed by an awkward silence. I don’t know how to describe it: the feeling of our bodies so near to each other, his soft skin gently brushing mine, it all felt electric. My mind was going insane, and I had no idea if these moments affected him as well.

Sometimes it looked like it. Over these last months, we didn’t only grew closer mentally, but also physically.

Jin liked to casually touch me, and not in a friendly way: hands that lingered too long on my thighs, kisses on my forehead whenever we saw each other, playing with my hair while we watched TV together. All these gestures that makes you doubt if he sees you only as a friend.

But I knew nothing, all my nights had become unbearable, a torture. I used to replay the moments we shared in my head, lose myself in this daydream. Hoping that he would’ve entered my room and kissed me.

So, all I knew is that I felt completely bewitched by him.

We were all sitting in the living room: me, Yoongi, and Jin. I was lying on the couch, my legs resting over Jin’s lap as he sat at the corner, while my brother ate ice cream in the chair next to us.

Jin was gently caressing my legs, making my body explode in shivers every time his hands softly pressed against my skin. No one was talking: we were all watching TV in silence, losing ourselves in the boredom of the afternoon.

I stiffened when Jin suddenly pulled me a little closer to him. His hands, now, between my thighs, once again tracing slow circles with his fingers. I looked up at him. His eyes were still glued to the screen, but I caught the faint smirk on his face.

As his hands traveled higher, the room suddenly felt like burning, making me gasp for air.

“What is he doing?!” my brother yelled.

We both jumped and Jin shoved my legs off his lap.

“Nothing!” Jin stuttered.

Yoongi turned his head toward the screen, oblivious to it all. “He passed the ball to the wrong player!” The idiot was just referring to the football game we were watching. Yoongi grabbed the remote and shut off the TV with a heavy sigh. “This game is boring.”

As the screen went black, Yoongi finally noticed our deadly silence, my flushed cheeks and Jin’s heavy breathing.

He narrowed his eyes at us. “You two spend a lot of time together lately.”

I shrugged, shaking my head in denial “No, we don’t.”

Getting up from his seat, Yoongi let out a long yawn and stretched his arms.

“Whatever. As long as you don't have any bad intentions, it’s fine by me,” he said, looking at Jin.

My head snapped, pulse racing as I waited for Jin's reaction. I watched him nervously bounce his leg, a flush growing on his face. My body strangely felt a little lighter seeing him struggle.

“Come on,” Jin said, forcing a dry laugh. “You know she’s not my type. Not even in the slightest!”

At his words I felt my heart sink, my hopes dying in an instant. I cleared my throat and got up from the couch.

I wanted to just let it go, at the end of the day, we were just friends. But the way he’d put it hurt. A lot.

I looked down at him and scoffed. “Glad we’re on the same page, Jin. Because having you as my standard would be a massive downfall for me.”

Yoongi laughs at my response. Jin, on the other hand, didn't laugh at all. His smile completely faded as he stared up at me. Furrowing his brows, he stood up, his frame instantly forcing me to look up at him.

“Great,” he snapped, “Because it would be an absolute nightmare to have you at my feet” his voice sounding sour and bitter.

I crossed my arms, “What makes you think I would ever be at your feet, Jin?” I spat back

Jin’s jaw clenched tight. We were staring at each other, his eyes darkened, looking pissed by my words. For a split second, I catch him stare down at my lips, breathing so heavily. He took a step closer, but Yoongi’s voice interrupted the moment.

“Ok chill out, Dinner’s ready.”

At dinner neither of us said a word. The tension could be cut with a knife. My parents noticed the heavy mood and attempted to lighten the atmosphere.

“So, Jin, how are your exams going?” my mother asked.

“Oh good, Mrs. Min” he replied politely, giving her a smile.

My mother adored Jin, she always referred to him as a true gentleman and had pushed me multiple times to find a man just like him.

“Have you found a girlfriend yet?” This time it was my father asking.

I looked over at Jin, suddenly worried he might think about his ex. However, he quickly glanced up at me, a smile flashing on his lips. “Not yet.”

I felt my cheeks turn slightly red, instantly looking away.

As the others kept talking, Jin and I ate in silence: eyes glued to our plates, both of us terrified to let any emotion slip through. Bored, I played with my food, desperately waiting for this dinner to finally end.

However, I was forced to snap back to reality when I felt Jin’s foot settle right between my ankles. He seemed indifferent to the contact, so I tried not to overthink it, assuming it was just an accident.

I continued to eat, but Jin distracted me again. At this point, he was doing it on purpose.

His foot slowly caressed my leg under the table while he calmly chewed his steak. A wave of heat rushed straight to my stomach as he continued. Feeling warm, I grabbed my glass and took a long gulp of water, the corner of Jin’s lips turning into a devilish and satisfied smirk.

Yoongi noticed me flinching in my seat. “Y/N, are you okay?”

My body was still shivering from his touch. Panicking I stammered, “Yeah... I’m just... tired.”

When I looked back at Seokjin, he was already staring right at me. He took a sip from his glass, never tearing his eyes away from mine.

“Tired from what?” he teased softly, slowly licking a trace of sauce off his thumb.

I couldn't bear the thought of letting him win this game.

So, while he was in a conversation with my brother, I decided to return the favor.

I slid my foot up his leg. Unlike him, I let myself go higher, close to his inner thigh.

Jin’s entire body instantly stiffened, making a funny noise with his mouth.

I watched with satisfaction as he tried painfully to focus on whatever Yoongi was saying, nodding and clearly not listening to him.

I continue the tease, making him groan in desperation

“Jin what’s going on?” Yoongi asks, I quickly retreat my legs.

“Nothing, I just have to go the bathroom” He announces while getting up.

My family is left speechless, they are all confused at his sudden reaction, “Maybe he didn’t like the peas?” my mom asked.

A winning smile dances on my lips while chewing “Impossible. They are sooo good.”

After dinner, I stayed behind to wash the dishes while the others talked in the living room. I could hear their laughter from down the hall, a comforting sound. Their voices turning into quiet murmurs, and I couldn’t decipher any of their words.

A second later, the kitchen door opened with a soft click. I turned around to find Jin leaning his shoulder against the doorframe, hands into his pockets as he watched me.

“Nice outfit” he teased, referring to my yellow gloves.

“You like it? It’s trending in Paris” I joked, turning back to the sink.

“Mmh, I bet” he hummed as he slowly came closer to me. “Anyway, it’s getting late…It’s better if I go.”

I cleared my throat, suddenly feeling strangely shy in his presence. Taking off the gloves, I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. Jin followed every single movement, resting his hands against the kitchen counter, looking completely mesmerized.

“I wanted to thank you...” His tone now becoming deeply serious. “For earlier, under the table.”

My cheeks burned as the memory came back at me. I crossed my arms, trying to regain my composure. “No problem, I was just getting back at you for being a jerk.”

“Is that what you call it?” he whispered, leaning down so his face was inches from mine “Because it felt a lot like a invitation”

“You wishes, Jin” I murmured, trying my best to hide my embarrassment.

After a moment of silence, Jin adds softly “I liked it. A lot” taking me by surprise.

Now, standing in front of each other, we were both desperate for more. Leaning in Jin placed his hands on my waist, pulling me against his body. I rested my hands against his chest, his heart beating so fast. I looked up into his eyes.

His gaze was burning with a hungry desire.

“I’m glad you liked it” I whispered, a provocative smirk appearing on my lips.

Jin groaned softly and shaked his head “God, you really know the exact words to drive a man insane, don’t you?”

“Just returning the favor,” I chuckled, my head spinning as he gently cupped my chin.

We were completely lost in each other, the rest of the world fading away. We ignored how dangerous this was: standing this close, in my kitchen, with my family just in the next room.

“Shut up for a second, Y/N” he murmured, his gaze dropping to my lips. He tilted his head and carefully leaned in…

“WHAT THE FUCK?!”

We both froze.

Our heads snapped toward the doorway. There he was, Yoongi. Looking absolutely furious as he stared at our closeness.

“You promised me, Jin,” Yoongi said, voice so low it frightened me. “I explicitly told you to leave my sister out of your stupid mess.”

Panicking, Jin shoved me back so fast that my back slammed hard against the fridge.

“Yoongi, wait–it’s not what it looks like!” Jin’s face was now red and his hands visibly trembled. He was terrified of my brother. “We were just... talking!”

“Talking?!” Yoongi barked, stepping into the kitchen. “Your hands were on her waist, Jin! Do you think I’m fucking blind?!”

“Man, calm down! I told you earlier, she’s not my type!” Jin forced a pathetic chuckle “It was just a joke alright? We were just messing around!”

What did he mean by messing around? It didn’t feel like a game to me…

“Messing around? Is my sister a joke to you?”

“What?! No, I–” Jin dragged a hand down his face “I care about her and it was just a stupid joke! Nothing serious” he cowardly says.

A stupid joke…?

“Jin, Y/N is not one of those girls you meet at a party and fuck them, she is my sister!”

I watched Jin panicking. He was at loss of words, scared to upset my brother “I know Yoongi. I never wanted to fuck her, I promise.”

My brother scoffs and shakes his head “See I don’t believe you when you say shit like this. Don’t you think I know what you told Jimin?”

What was he talking about? I look at Jin confused, but he refuses to meet my eye, instead he shamefully keeps his gaze fixed on the floor.

“What did you tell Jimin?” I finally talk. Jin still ignoring me, he just stares at my brother.

“It was nothing serious.” He takes a long pause before continuing “He asked me about us…if we- if we’ve ever fucked.”

“Jimin said it was because we were so close now, and everyone thought something was going on between us. Y/N, it’s not an excuse but that night…I was really drunk and not thinking clearly, so it just slipped away…”

He pauses once again. This time Jin takes longer to answer, I could see he was scared of my reaction.

“I told him I dreamed about it” He finally looks at me “That it’s all I’ve ever wanted.”

My heart sinks, its beats slowing down. My throat tightens as I try to form a word, I thought of Jin as a true friend, someone who cared deeply about me. Now he looks like someone I don’t know, did he seriously see me just as the girl he wanted so desperately to fuck? After knowing everything I’ve been through, how scared I was that another man would have seen me the same way Frank did.

“Do you really think of me this way?” I manage to say, so softly it almost sounds like a chocked whisper “Am I just a girl you brag about to your friends? One of those you bring to bed?”

“Y/N, God no! You misunderstood, I-”

“Jin just leave.” Yoongi orders,

Jin lets out a deep breath, he is still looking at me. Hand on his chest, and eyes slowly turning red as his tears fall from his face.

“Y/N please just look at me…” His voice sounding so broken

“Jin. Get out.”

As he gives up, his body staggers toward the door, then turns to me. At that point I look at him, his face was pale, lips trembling at the thought of losing me.

“You are not just some random girl, you are everything to me”

Sports Car || F1 driver JK

- One shot:

summary: In which you are a famous hollywood actress and jungkook is an F1 driver for Ferrari. You two were called to make a commercial together, although it’s not the first time you meet: years ago at a fashion show, you seated next to each other. To you he was extremely rude and full of himself, and to him you were just another spoiled girl who lived on daddy’s money and pretended to be nice. What happens when you meet once again and are forced to act close in front of the camera?

genre/warnings: enemies to lovers, f1 driver jungkook, “fake” dating, jungkook x fem reader, reader is a famous actress, slow burn, one-shot, teasing games, sexual tension, flirty jungkook, mature content, cursing, fluffy.

word count: 9,6k

author’s note: this is the first one shot I write so I’m kind of nervous. Also english is not my first language so there will be a few mistakes, sorry.

📁 Story begins here:

Being on set on summer days is like a torture, the makeup and costumes are particularly heavy to bear for a whole day, making it feel like a slow death. And if even one single drop of sweat falls onto your face, the director will get mad at you. So here I’m, drinking a soda with a heavy wig on my head and a corset that doesn’t let me breathe, waiting for my makeup artist to finish their retouches.

Silence creeps into the room when I see my manager, Kate, walking towards me. Her heels click at every step and the floor almost trembles as she walks, like she is not intimidating enough with her constant judgmental face. Kate reaches my position and, without even saying a word, she sends off the crew to talk to me.

From her purse she pulls out a note pad and flips the pages,

“On Monday you have to be in London for a Pepsi commercial”

“Well hello to you too Kate” She raised her head to look at me, her gaze so serious and cold that it made my body shiver.

“Yes hello. Can you be there?”

“Yeah of course but can I know any details?” Kate rolled her eyes and took a seat next to me.

“Jeon Jungkook will be in it, that’s all I know”

This can’t be real. Not him.

Jeon Jungkook was the kind of man everyone adored, he is kind, funny, great at his job and so determinated in his goals. You could describe him as a true gentleman. Except he wasn’t. The F1 driver – I once loved – was nothing but a total prick. Jungkook is nothing special, he is just a man who became famous and is in love with himself. I’ve never met someone as narcissistic and mean as him, he was not the god magazines liked to sell.

We’ve met the first time at a fashion show: Jungkook was sitting next to me, initially I was very nervous to be near the new discovery of Ferrari, so it took me a while to talk to him. The moment I began a conversation I could tell he wasn’t interested, Jungkook ignored me most of the night and as I complimented him for his performances he didn’t even thank me once. All the time he was silent, cold and distant, making me look as a crazy fan who wanted to know everything about his personal life.

From that moment every time we encounter I try my best to avoid him. I know that he hates me as well, his lack of interest makes it clear: short responses and icy looks directed at me, I don’t why he could possibly hate me but that makes my blood boil even more. All I’ve ever done was being nice to him.

“Kate,” I say “I would rather die under a bus than being near that asshole”

“You don’t like Jungkook?!” She sounds so surprised at the revelation,

“I hate him. And since when do you like drivers?”

“I don’t, he is a nice person and also very hot”

“No he is not, Jungkook is a dipshit and…well he is quite handsome” I must admit, the man had a pretty face. He may be the worst person in the world but I can’t deny his beauty, sometimes he looked like a fucking prince.

“Whatever Y/N, you must do it.” Kate gets up from her seat and walks away, without giving me time to protest. I did not want to be near Jungkook, as a matter of fact just thinking about him makes me lose my senses, and not in a good way.

“I heard you will be in a commercial with Jeon Jungkook” my makeup artist says “You are so lucky!”

“Ugh why is everyone so obsessed with him?”

The day had come. My mind tried so hard to avoid thinking about it, however every second felt like a torture invented to remind me that I had to meet him today. And honestly I had no energy to face Jungkook, only yesterday I was in Los Angeles finishing the last scenes of my upcoming movie, I had to take the earliest flight to be here in time, obviously my body feels exhausted from the trip.

On my way to the set I drink a coffee hoping it will give me energy and power to face the day. Once arrived I greeted everyone and went to my dressing room. When I entered Kate was already there waiting for me with note pad and pen in her hands,

“You’re late” she says without even looking at me, still writing

I roll my eyes at her statement and sit on the couch, actually laying on it. With my eyes close I attempt to sleep for at least 10 minutes before getting ready for the shooting. As I’m almost lost in my dreams Kate hits my face with her notepad, I whine and roll my face to the other side so she couldn’t bother me

“Y/N get up, they are ready to dress you”

I follow her instructions and sit on the chair. As I look myself in the mirror I notice the heavy dark circles and some light pimples on my skin. I hear the door open and a second later I see a man coming behind me, he holds my shoulders tightly,

“Don’t worry we will cover all that up!” he says with a big smile plastered in his face. I wanted to thank him but it didn’t feel like reassuring words, more like an insult.

“I’m Tom and I will be your stylist for today!”

“Nice to meet you Tom”

“Pleasure is all mine, It will be an honour to work for the beautiful Y/N Y/S” I laugh and blush a little at his words.

Tom takes my chin and lifts my head up to have a better look at my features,

“Honey you should use some face cream” he says shamelessly, my smile fading away so quickly

“I keep telling her but she doesn’t want to listen” Kate was now seated on the couch and scrolling through her phone.

After a while other people join, bringing with them many items of clothing. By the look of it I could tell they were all revealing, great I was going to be the slut of the commercial. I bet Jungkook will be the cool and hot guy who saves the desperate woman in need of help, all those usual bullshit that sells him as a gentleman.

I hear them talking and discussing about what I should wear, not even consulting my opinion, I sigh and simply stare at my reflection. I was used to these things, in hollywood people don’t care about your opinion, they just want you to look good. All of a sudden their talking seems to cease, I turn around and see Tom holding a very tight and revealing blue dress.

His eyes and smile tells me he clearly saw it as the one, he looked so excited while he handed me the dress “Oh you will look so hot! Every girl will be jealous that you met Jungkook in this dress”

Again his name.

“Not every girl is in love with him…” I say sounding a bit mean and envious

“Oh yes they are” Kate says and I roll my eyes in response.

Once my hair is done into soft curls, a girl does my makeup. She applies a heavy eyeshadow to make my eyes look brighter, then takes a red lipstick and puts it on my lips. I look like a supermodel and I hate it. I feel so uncomfortable in this look, it’s clearly not my style. And the worst has yet to come.

I put on the blue dress, my breath already feeling a little shorter than before. It’s so tight around my chest, so short that I am scared to sit down. Tom hands me the silver heels and helps me put them on, then to complete the look, I put on a thin silver necklace. Now that I’m ready, it’s time to face him.

Kate gives me the script. I have very few lines, with mainly Jungkook talking. I have to say that I’m kinda relieved. I’m a professional actress, but when it comes to learning my lines, I find it extremely hard, blame it on my poor memory.

My manager introduces me to the director and I shake his hand. While they talk, Tom fixes the last details, like the position of my hair and how my dress drapes over my body.

That’s when I see him, sitting on a chair, sipping his drink so effortlessly. Jungkook is reading the script, lost in the pages, not caring about what they are saying to him. Typical, I guess. He is dressed elegantly in all black, looking like an undercover spy. His hair falls so perfectly over his face. How can he look so good in this hot weather?

As he shifts in his seat, his eyes meet mine, we stare at each other intensely. His dark gaze feeling so heavy on my body, scanning very carefully how the dress fitted on me. I felt a sudden heat rush to my cheeks, Jungkook noticed and gave me a playful smirk while sipping whatever he was drinking.

Everything seems to disappear once we get locked in this staring game, my breath slowly vanishing as he kept his eyes on me. I sigh and look away, not baring another second of him. However, he was still looking, his stare burned my skin and I just felt the need to run away from here.

I excuse myself to Tom and go to the bathroom, staring at my reflection I gently press cold water on my face and neck, not wanting my team hard work.

As I exit my head hits something hard,

“You should look where you are going” it was him, Jungkook. I look up at him, feeling my anger increasing more and more. His black suit made him look taller and even intimidating. Nonetheless I decide to face him, I’m not gonna let him ruin my mood.

“Me? YOU should be more careful” I say

I see his lips slowly turn into a smile. He holds my gaze as his tongue plays with his bottom lip piercing, looking at me from head to toe. A simple gesture that causes my body to shiver, a heat wave centering in my chest. Jungkook knows what he’s doing: his dark eyes follow my every movement like I’m some kind of prey, making my skin prickle with frustration, or something else I don’t want to name.

“Whatever” he says while walking away and bumping my shoulder. I’m left speechless, how could someone be so rude?

I take a deep breath and walk back to Kate, who is impatiently waiting for me. As I approach, she orders me to go to the center of the set, marked by a big red X on the floor.

The whole commercial concept feels so stupid, I’m actually embarrassed to do it.

I’m supposed to stand in this gilded and elegant ballroom, completely alone. Then I get approached by a crowd of men, including Jungkook. At first I reject him but the moment he opens a can of Pepsi, I’m suddenly mesmerized and walk towards him, completely sold on his charm.

It’s so absurd and borderline sexist, but unfortunately, I can’t always turn down the projects offered to me, especially when the paycheck is this high.

Soon Jungkook joins me, as he stands next to me he fixes his dark hair. Being so close his smell reaches my nose trills, a scent so dazing and powerful that makes me go weak. I close my eyes and try to focus on other things. However he leans closer to me and whispers something in my ear

“For being a famous actress you look pretty nervous, it’s just a commercial you know that right?” his words sounding so distant when he is this close to me. As he talks I can feel his warm breath on my neck, cheeks already so red and legs slowly growing softer, almost turning into jello when he chuckles at my reaction. I feel so little in his presence, and I hate my heart for longing a deep and raw desire.

I look up at him and smile at his stupid face. I decide to ignore him, it’s best for the both of us. I read again my lines and wait for the director to begin, fortunately Jungkook didn’t continue his annoying game and, like me, went back to the script.

Although I still feel nervous, him being in my same room always disturbs me, I can’t wait for this commercial to finish. Finally I hear the director yell to everyone to get into their position.

So I do as he asks, “Action!”. There I was in the ballroom looking confused and lost, the first man approached and offered me to dance but I kindly reject him. Then there goes another, at the third I’m supposed to move and hide away but that’s when Jungkook enters the scene.

He takes me by the hips and twirls my body into a spin. I fall against his chest, and I suddenly feel overwhelmingly hot. My hands are on his shoulders, and his gaze pierces right through my skin. I can feel his heart beat faster at the closeness between us, we look each other in the eyes and I feel like floating. His strong hands on my naked back felt everything I’ve ever needed in life, like a puzzle piece I’ve been looking for years. I can’t stop but wanting more, being closer to him.

All feels even more damaging when he looks at my lips, so overwhelmed I step back and take a deep breath.

“Stop! Y/N what’s wrong?” the director asks

“Oh nothing, I felt dizzy for a second I’m so sorry” I look back at Jungkook and see he is staring at his shoes, a hand in his pocket while the other one looses up the grip of his tie.

He clears his voice and says “Do we really need to make all of this? Can’t the scene of me opening the can be enough?”

So he was nervous as well, maybe Jungkook wasn’t as confident as he liked to sold. Well, this meant only one thing: it was time for a little revenge.

“No I think we should keep this part it adds a spark to the commercial” I say while looking at him, his face clearly not loving my words. He clenches his jaw and plays with his tongue while sarcastically smiling, I return the smile and pretend the whole scene didn’t affect me in the slightest.

Kate hands me a bottle of water and I take a sip, then return to centre of the shot. Once I’m ready the director yells action again, this time I feel more confident and move effortlessly through the room, rejecting the men until Jungkook arrives. The same way he did before, he takes my hips but this time he doesn’t twirl me.

I feel Jungkook’s hands wrap around my body, tracing every curve. With one arm he holds me close, while the other slips up to rest against my shoulder. I already feel myself growing weak, completely lost in his warmth and breath, making my heart pound faster than it ever has. Once again, a sudden desire to be even closer to him washes over me. As he moves, I follow his steps feeling entirely trapped in his charm.

My mind snaps back to reality and I slowly back up, turning my head to face him. I shake my index finger to signal him a strong no, as I do he looks completely hypnotised by me, Jungkook licks his lips as his eyes burn on me. After maintaining eye contact for a while I confidently walk away from him.

“Cut! That was perfect, nice job!”

I laugh and jump in excitement, I did it. I made him look like a complete fool. Jungkook was still standing in the centre, looking so lost in his thoughts, probably feeling a little bit nervous. I go up to him and whisper in his ear

“For being a F1 racing driver you look pretty scared, it’s just a commercial Jungkook” I look at him and notice his face turned slightly into a light shade of pink. I smirk at his reaction and hold into the eye contact, then almost turning into another person, he smiles to me

“Yeah we’ll see who is gonna fall”

Again he left me speechless. I didn’t except such response, what did he mean by that? Was he truly that competitive as they said? I gulp as Jungkook walks away from me. Oh so this is going to be a challenge to see who crumbles in temptation first. I have to admit the man knows how to have fun.

We all took a short break before diving into the next scene. I quickly get off the set and hurry to my dressing room to have a moment of peace, wanting to eat my lunch alone. Kate follows me adjusting her pace to mine. As I lay on the couch she squeal in excitement, resting her note pad on the table

“Oh my god the chemistry you two had!” it surprised me to see such reaction from her, usually she was cold hearted and looked like the type of person who hates romance or any kind of intimate thing.

“It’s called hatred” I say with my eyes closed as I enjoy the fresh air of this room,

“I don’t care, whatever you two have keep doing it!”

“Kate it’s just a commercial”

“No it’s not! Do you have any idea of how the public will react to it? How much money you can make out from this?” I look at her skeptically, not understanding a single word she was saying.

“Y/N listen to me. The moment this commercial will be released the internet will go crazy for you two. We could use this as an opportunity to improve your image and who knows maybe you will get more sponsors”

“What are you trying to say, Kate?”

“I’m saying…that this is not the last time you’ll be seeing Jungkook.”

Her words hit me violently and cruelly, I could not engage in a fake friendship with that guy, especially if they wanted us to be flirty and touchy to each other. People would talk and I know it would develop into a fake relationship, which is even worse. I have no intention of forcing myself in any of this and I’m pretty sure Jungkook would neither. At the end of the day we both hate each other and it’s crystal clear.

“I will propose the idea to Jungkook’s manager” says Kate

“Woah! Slow down Kate” I say literally jumping from the couch, she was moving too fast we just shared one scene, nothing was going on between us. But she seems so uninterested in my protests, I see her mind merciless scheming, wanting to convince Jungkook’s manager into following the plan.

It still made no sense to me, how could a fake flirt possibly be good for my image? I hated it whenever my co-stars did it. Kate’s eyes widens, I know she got a brilliant idea in her brain,

“No Kate…Stop I don’t want this.”

“I don’t care, you NEED this.” well she wasn’t wrong. Over the last years my career has been drifting off, I couldn’t get a lot of roles and I wasn’t much invited to big events like the Met Gala. On the other hand Jungkook kept his fame stable, actually with time he is becoming more popular than the day before. His face is literally everywhere.

Kate runs to the door and quickly heads to Jungkook’s dressing room, probably where his manager was.

I stand there in silence, not knowing what to do. I take my lunch from the mini fridge and as I open it, I can’t shake the anger off. Sitting on the couch I think of the consequences of engaging into this play, and the harder I think about it the more it seems like a complete disaster. I can’t do this.

“Fuck it” I abandon my food and follow Kate, although she was already out of sight. God the woman was too fast. I approach a crew member and ask them where Jungkook room was,

“It’s next to yours” they say without looking at me. Well, this was embarrassing but it can happen to anyone, right?

But this mean only one thing, that I was late. As I go to the door I can hear Kate’s voice mumbling something, she sounds happy by her tone.

“But I have to discuss it with my client” the manager says, “Jungkook is it alright to you?”

at that point I decide to barge in without even knocking.

“Hello! Sorry to interrupt the lovely conversation but, I have no intention of following this pl-“ Kate shushes me

“Y/N you have no choice!”

“Yes I have.”

“Not when your career is this bad” she says

I hear Jungkook laughing, actually dying of laughter. “What the hell are you laughing at?” I ask him angrily

“You need a fake flirt to improve your career? Seriously? How sad…”

“All you need is muscles, probably even sadder”

“Hey at least I’m very loved”

“Not for what you do.”

I could tell I’ve upset him with my words, but he deserved it. And I wasn’t even lying, of course he was a great driver but the reason he became so famous was principally his good looks. He knows it too.

Jungkook stands up from where he was sitting and fills himself a cup of water, he leans on the table and carefully looks at me while he clenches his jaw. His eyes again felt so heavy on me, making me go weak. His lips turn into a devilish smile, I knew he was up to something.

“Ok, I’ll do it.”

He could not be serious right now. This was never going to work, we hated each other too much and people could tell. A fake flirt could actually be the end of our careers, if the internet were to find out it will be so embarrassing, surely more for me than him. He is a man, they always receive lots of love.

“Yey that’s great news!” Kate says, “I’m going to make some calls, hoping you will both get invited to some public event”

She leaves the room, soon followed by Jungkook’s manager sensing the tension between us.

We are both deadly silent, refusing to look at each other. I know the second one of us opens their mouth, an argument would blow up, and I had no energy for it.

I’m so furious my chest hurts, how could he be so stupid? He had the opportunity to step back, instead he decided to be the usual prick. I hear him sigh heavily as he sits on the couch, glass in hand, he looked blankly at the wall.

“You know I just saved your career” Jungkook says, his voice surprisingly calm and steady.

“What? How exactly?” I snap, spinning around to face him. He is not going to get any credit for this. I don’t need him to survive. All these years I’ve been perfectly capable of handling myself, managing my career and earning roles through my own hard work. So, this situation wasn’t my salvation, it was a fucking trap.

“A ‘thank you’ might be nice for a start”

“Oh, so you do know that word? I thought it wasn’t in your vocabulary” I bite back, referring to the fashion show we both attended years ago.

Jungkook groans, throwing his head back against the sofa“Get over it Y/N! It was a lifetime ago”

“So you remember, and yet not a single apology”

He rolls his eyes and turns his head towards me, his dark gaze locking onto mine.

“Alright, sorry if I didn’t feel like small talk two years ago” Jungkook says in a sarcastic tone “Are you happy now?”

“You are an asshole” I whisper shaking my head “I don’t get why you are so famous”

A bitter smile appears at the corner of his lips.“Maybe because I actually worked for my place here, instead of relying on daddy’s money.” I chuckle to that, a dry laugh slips through my lips.

He did not just say that.

“You are the last person who can talk about privileges” I say with my arms crossed.

Jungkook sets his glass down with a sharp clink on the table and stands up. He towers over me, taking a frustrated breath that expands his chest. I can tell I’m driving him insane, good.

“Listen, all we have to do is pretend to be madly in love for the press, I thought you were a good actress”

This man makes my nerves explode, he knows exactly how to get a reaction out of me. I squeeze my eyes shut and massage my temples slowly, hoping it will calm me down.

“Jungkook, you are making my life impossible.”

He comes closer to me, a smirk plastered on his face. He tilts his head, looking at me with mock innocence.

“And why is that?” he asks, taking another step toward me.

I feel towered over by his presence. Jungkook is now inches away from me, his scent intoxicating my mind, making me think of the worst possible things. His hands press gently against my face as he moves a strand of my hair behind my ear. The touch feels like burning flames on my skin. A breath escapes my lips, and I see his face wearing that devilish smile of his again.

I close my eyes, hoping it’s just a dream, but when I open them he is still looking at me, so intensely. His eyes are focused so hard on mine, before dragging his gaze over every part of my body, and licking his lips.

“Do I make you nervous?” he whispers.

I can’t talk. The air in my lungs feels as if it’s been sucked out of me, and I can’t move. I don’t want to move, his touch feels so good. I shake my head, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of making me feel weak.

“I hate you,” I manage to say.

“I hate you, too,” he murmurs, leaning down until his lips are right by my ear, causing my body to shiver.

“So we agree on something.”

Jungkook finally steps back, chuckling as he heads toward the door. As he opens it, he looks back at me.

“But be careful. I can be dangerously charming.”

“I doubt it...”

After a long silence, he says, “Don’t fall in love with me, Y/N.”

Me? Falling in love with him? That was impossible, my heart purposely refused to. I was now left alone in this big room, the silence almost echoing in me. In this moment realisation hit me: I was involved in a fake relationship with Jeon Jungkook, not even a relationship, it was a supposed flirt? Nothing of it made sense but it was now too late to back down. Although…he likes to sound and look extremely confident, but from what I’ve seen he is nothing like that: Jungkook is quite easy to play. And since he put me in this cage, it wouldn’t hurt anyone if I teased him. I smile at the thought of his face looking so out of space like the moment before in the commercial.

That sounded like a perfect plan.

Being with Jungkook all these days and hours isn’t as easy as I pictured. Well, I never thought this was going to be simple, but somehow he makes it harder than it seems, ignoring me most of the time or answering me dryly.

However, the moment he steps in front of the camera, Jungkook suddenly has eyes only for me. He plays the part so well it makes me wonder if a part of it might be real. It feels real for a second, but when there is no press around, he strips away his mask, revealing the usual cold version I know.

On the other hand, I am doing an awful job. Apparently, even though my profession is literally acting, lying is so hard for me, especially when it comes to faking my feelings toward someone. I hate him and I could never act like I'm in love with Jungkook.

When I know we’re being recorded, I limit myself to smiling and joking a little but that’s all I can do, while he seems so natural at it. Almost as if it were easy: the way he touches me and holds my body always leaves me speechless and utterly embarrassed. He mocks me all the time, saying I blush too easily.

But I’ve learned the right countermove. When we are alone I intentionally flirt with him, and his frustrated face never fails to make me laugh. The way he nervously plays with his fingers, trying his hardest not to look at me or give me any attention at all... I’ve come to realize that beneath all that arrogance, he is actually shy.

In any case, Kate was right. The moment that commercial came out, all people could talk about was our “chemistry.” I’ve seen comments saying I had more sexual tension with him than with any of my past boyfriends. I watched it a million times, trying to understand what they were seeing, but all I saw was a man I fucking hated.

Pictures and videos of us were everywhere. I began to receive more public attention and even interest from sponsors; I was invited to more events, and people seemed to love me. All because I supposedly had a fling with an F1 driver. It honestly felt so embarrassing.

Tonight, Jungkook and I were going to dinner. The next day he had a Grand Prix, and I was forced by my manager to attend it. It felt so tiring to travel everywhere just to be with him. Even though I enjoy F1, being in the VIP paddock is the worst of all my nightmares: meeting rich people who talk only about money and business is not intriguing at all.

Jungkook was picking me up. As the doorbell rang, I yelled for him to wait a few seconds. I was wearing a red dress, unlike the one in the commercial, this one was elegant. I put on pearl earrings and took my purse. When I opened the door, in front of me stood a remarkably handsome Jungkook, holding flowers in his hands: tulips, my favorites.

“How did you know that I love them?”

“Intuition,” he said, walking into the apartment. “Kate told me...” he muttered, sounding suspiciously like he was lying.

Jungkook looked at me, more precisely, stared at my body. He smiled and bit his lip.

“What are you smiling for?” I asked.

“You are wearing red.” He leaned against the kitchen counter, hands resting on the edge, making his tuxedo open up a little.

“Yeah...” I said, basically ignoring him while I tried to put the flowers in a vase.

“Is there any particular reason? Like, I don’t know... secretly cheering for me to win?” I could feel his eyes scanning my every movement.

“Mmh, you should see my underwear for that.”

“What!?” he squeaked, his voice pitching so high. When I turned around to look at him, I noticed his face was completely red, full of embarrassment. I laughed out loud at his reaction.

“Isn’t red underwear supposed to bring you good luck? I don’t know how these games work.”

“Well,” I could hear his stutter, “only when you want to have sex... but it works on New Year’s, too.” He fixed his tie nervously.

“Then I hope it works, not for you but for me.” I got closer to him. This was our usual play, mostly started by me, where I effortlessly flirted and he blushed, standing there like an idiot. “I’ve been... craving some good sex, you know?”

Jungkook gulped, avoiding my eyes to stare blankly at the floor. I could tell he was extremely nervous.

“I think we should go!” He choked out. Without even waiting for me, he exits the apartment and heads to his car. I chuckle at his reaction.

I could never understand how two-faced he can be: one moment he flirts shamelessly with me, and the next he panics, crumbling completely. Before leaving, I lock the door. Now, it is showtime.

In the car we barely talk, both dreading this night out. Jungkook keeps his eyes on the road, tapping his fingers to the rhythm of the music. He has his cute moments, though they are easily ruined whenever he opens his mouth.

Once we arrive at the restaurant, paparazzi are already all over us. Jungkook sighs,

“Here we go... I’ll open the door for you” he offers.

“I can take care of myself,” I firmly decline.

“Y/N, I could not care less, it’s just for the pictures,” he snaps.

How sweet and gentle of him... that’s the reason why I still hate him so much.

As he opens the door for me, he offers me his hand and I accept the help. With fingers interlocked, we dash toward the entrance avoiding all the flashes.

Once we are inside, our hands are still holding onto each other. Jungkook notices and immediately drops mine, as if my touch were poisonous. I have to admit, the contact makes me blush a little though not nearly as much as Jungkook.

He clears his throat and awkwardly approaches the host, saying he had made a reservation for tonight. The host checks it through the pages and confirms it, then he looks at me and at Jungkook.

“Is it a…friendly date?”

As I open my mouth to talk I feel Jungkook’s arm laying on my shoulders, bringing my body closer to his. “No, she is my girlfriend.”

I freeze. My entire body goes rigid under the sudden weight. I want to shove him off, break his arm right there. But with the host watching us with an expectant look, I force my jaw to unclamp, holding my tongue.

“Yeah,” I fake chuckle and rest my head on Jungkook’s shoulders, clinging at his jacket hoping the man will buy it.

“Well you are a nice couple, anyway follow me this way please” he nods politely, guiding us toward a table tucked into the quietest corner of the room. Jungkook’s hand was now moving to my back, actually almost touching my ass, making it harder to hold on into the play.

The second we are alone, I rip myself away from him. As I sit he does the same only on the opposite side. Neither of us opens the menu or their mouth. The silence between us it's suffocating.

I lean forward, hands resting flat on the table and knuckles turning white.

“Girlfriend? Seriously?” I whisper with my voice deadly low, “There were no cameras Jungkook. What was the reason?”

However Jungkook doesn't flinch. He calls the waiter over and orders a bottle of wine, then he fixes the napkin to his lap cluelessly.

“Jungkook.” I insist but he is still ignoring me. The same waiter comes back with Jungkook’s request, he fills our glasses slowly, every gulping sound becoming heavier as I stare at my “boyfriend” face. The waiter now leaves us alone, finally having some privacy.

“Answer me.” Jungkook slowly reaches out, taking his wine, locking his dark eyes onto mine while he takes a sip out of his glass. Strangely he doesn't look like the nervous guy from my apartment anymore.

“People talk Y/N” he finally says, his tone quiet “And you didn't pull away.”

“Well it would have caused a scene!” I try to justify myself

He looks at me with a smirk, doing the thing he always does when he's being playful: running his tongue over his lip piercing. It's a gesture that makes my stomach flip and my heart drop.

“Admit it. You liked it!” he says with infuriating confidence.

I let out a dry laugh. “Not in a million years.”

“Then why didn’t you react?”

“Because I'm playing a role,” I snap. “Don't mistake my professionalism for something else.”

Jungkook places the glass down. He leans in, closing the distance between us until I can smell his cologne. His gaze drops to my lips, lingering there for way too long. The air between us thickens, feeling a heavy desire that neither of us can deny.

“Is that what you call it?” he murmurs, his voice sounding so deep. “Professionalism?”

I lock my gaze with his, refusing to let him see how much power he holds over me.

“What about you, Jungkook?”

He chuckles softly and backs away from me. Was our sudden closeness too much for him to handle?

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Right... How about you dropping my hand like it’s a hot stove?”

“Because–”

Before he can continue, I cut him off.

“And you blushed!” I gasp.

Jungkook looks utterly helpless, searching desperately for an answer. I watch his mind race, and I can’t help the triumphant smile spreading across my face.

“No one was around, so it was useless to hold your hand,” he says coldly.

I try to ignore my throat slightly closing at his words. “Just like when you acted so jealous in front of that man?”

He rolls his eyes and lets out a heavy sigh. “I wasn’t jealous! I was... trying to—”

“You can’t even finish your sentence,” I reply, the words tasting so sour in my mouth.

“Just forget it Y/N!”

Jungkook looks genuinely bothered by my persistence. Silence falls over the table, a shade of guilt fills me for pushing him this hard. So what if he wrapped an arm around me? It doesn’t mean anything.

“I’m sorry, Kook. I ruined the night,” I whisper into the cold and sharp silence.

His head snaps up to look at me, looking oddly worried when I pronounced those words. His gaze softens the moment he notices how nervously I’m playing with my napkin.

Jungkook places his hand over mine, gently forcing me to stop and look at him. For the first time, the look between us doesn't feel harsh. We both just look truly sorry.

“Y/N... you could never ruin my night. I actually have fun with you.”

His words catch me completely off guard. For all these years I had convinced myself that he hated my guts.

“What?” I ask confused.

Jungkook pulls his hand back from mine, taking a sip of his wine as he tries to make this moment less uncomfortable than it already is.

“I mean, at first I really did hate you, but now...” He pauses, looking up to meet my eyes again. “Now it feels good, you know? I like annoying you. I like how your face looks when you’re mad at me, or the way you blush whenever I touch you in public.”

He takes a breath before continuing. “I know I can be mean, but I only do it because... a part of me actually cares about you. We’ve been doing this fake fling for months and... I don’t know. I just like spending time with you. At the end of the day, you’re good company.”

I sit there completely speechless, with my mouth open as my brain tries to process what was happening. Honestly, it feels like a dream or another stupid games of his. But this is very real, I can tell by the way his eyes linger on my face, so warm and genuine.

“I had no idea you felt this way. I just thought you were an asshole” I admit.

He laughs and his shoulders relaxing.

“I’m sorry Kook. I should’ve been kinder to you.”

“Nah, it’s my fault. I really was an asshole that night at the fashion show.” Yeah he was.

“Kook…” I say almost in a whisper, he is looking at me carefully “You are good company as well.” We both smile at each other like idiots, feeling the tension finally drifting away.

“Whaat? I thought you would rather die under a bus than being near me!” The words sounding too familiar to my liking,

“Hey how do you know about that?”

“Mmh, a little bird told me” He chuckles so sweetly, forcing me to stare at how his eyes lights up whenever he is happy.

The rest of the night drifts away so quickly. We keep eating, talking and laughing, my heart feeling lighter in his presence than it has in a long time.

I had no idea Jungkook could be this funny or that he could actually care this much. The entire dinner he made sure I felt comfortable, not by asking explicitly, but through small gestures and gentle words. Our conversation seems endless, to the point where we practically get kicked out of the restaurant. It was embarrassing realizing everyone else had already left and we were the only ones remaining.

Once we step outside, we both burst into laughter so hard we’re almost choking on our tears. Then Jungkook takes my hand, just in case there are still paparazzi around, though the street looks entirely empty. He leads me toward the car but I don’t want this night to end. I suddenly stop, forcing him to turn back toward me.

“Maybe we could walk a little bit?” I ask him. His face instantly brightens at the idea.

“Sure...” Jungkook whispers.

Once again, he holds my hand and we stroll through the city streets, illuminated by romantic night lights.

“So tell me, what’s the life of an F1 driver actually like?”

“Pretty much the same, honestly. I get up, I eat, I work out, I eat, I work out, and then I sleep.”

“Sounds incredibly boring.”

“It is” he admits with a warm smile “But it’s totally worth it.”

Again, Jungkook and I got completely lost in conversation, walking for hours under the glow of the moonlight. We talked about everything and nothing, his strict training, my life as an actress and many childhood memories. For the first time we weren’t bickering or pretending to like each other in front of a camera, it was just us appreciating each other’s company, we didn’t want this moment to die. But eventually it did, tomorrow Jungkook had a very important race so he should have rested.

Unlike before, this time the drive isn’t filled with awkward silence. Instead, we laugh, joke, and sing along to our favorite songs. He mocks my singing abilities, telling me I sound like a chicken being choked to death. When we arrive at my apartment, he kindly offers to open the door for me. This time I don’t protest, I just let him.

He walks me to the entrance. I don’t want to say goodbye to him. I know I’m going to see him tomorrow at the track, but something inside me refuses to pull away from Jungkook. It feels weird and it feels entirely new.

I look at him, leaning back against the entrance door.

“So, I think it’s time for me to let you sleep” I joke, he laughs out loud as his arm rests on the front door, encircling my body and closing whatever distance was left between us. His body so near to mine takes the air out of my lungs, filling my heart with a raw longing I’ve never felt before. His scent so intoxicating for my poor mind, it takes me a lot to keep my hands firmly gripped on the strands of my bag instead of reaching out and pulling him by the jacket, dragging him closer to me.

Neither of us has the courage to talk, the silence feeling as sharp as a knife. We just stare at each other, both consumed by a desire for the other but too scared of the consequences.

Jungkook takes a strand of my hair and places it behind my ear, the faint touch electrifies my body. Although he doesn’t move his hand, instead he leans even closer than before, our lips almost touching. Feeling like an absolute torture,

“Tomorrow, wear that red underwear.” he murmurs in a low and husky voice, making my heart skip a beat

“You’re way too full of yourself if you think I would do something like that, just for you” I breathe out

Jungkook stares down at my lips, looking at them like they are forbidden to touch, but a part of him wants to, so desperately needs it. He knew that surpassing that line would have caused only troubles, I see him struggling to contain himself. Then he places his lips on my cheek, sending my senses to heaven with a simple touch, he whispers to my ear

“Y/N go to bed,” his voice sounding so deep “Before I forget my manners”

I instantly open the door and back away from him, our eyes still interlocked until he sighs and shakes his head. “Goodnight Y/N” and he walks away into the night.

I shut the door feeling so dazed by his touch. All I could think about was how his skin felt on mine, and how our breaths almost tied together. The worst part was that I wanted more, I never felt the need to be with someone as much as him. My body longed for his and my mind only found space for him, I needed Jungkook more than everything. But we couldn’t, it’s too dangerous. We shouldn’t play with fire.

That makes me want him even more.

Usually I watched these races on my TV, in my living room eating popcorn with my family. So of course it hits different when you are living it on the track. As I arrived thousands of photographers and journalists assaulted me, asking me how I was feeling the race today, who I think was going to win, and I wanted to answer them honestly that I had absolutely no idea. Then I was asked the crucial question,

“Are you here to cheer for Jungkook?” But for the first time I don’t panic, I wasn’t pretending anymore so the words don’t sound like a lie.

“I always cheer for my Kook!” I walk away from the interviewer and go towards the paddock, there I find a perfect place where I can enjoy the race.

That’s where I see Jungkook climb into his car, although before he could, his head snaps up, helmet on his hands as he search for someone on the paddock. He ask help to the person next to him and they point at my direction.

When Jungkook sees me he kindly waves at me, sending butterflies to my stomach, I wave him back and I can’t help but smile.

As the green lights flash and the engines roar, a rush of adrenaline grows in my body, feeling so anxious and excited, desperate to know how this race is going to end.

At the end Jungkook takes the win, after a long time Ferrari won a grand prix. He was jumping around so happily, he then threw himself into the arms of his crew. At the cerimony I saw tears in his eyes, streaming down when they handed him the trophy. He wore that big smile of his so proudly, it made my heart melt a little. Afterwards he got tucked into lot of interviews and I watched all of them, once they finally let him breathe he goes to his dressing room.

I decide to wait for him outside, I can hear Jungkook’s voice singing while he takes a shower. I smile a little at the sweet sound, he had a beautiful voice. As he finishes I knock at his door, not wanting to wait anymore.

“It’s me Kook, can I come in?” Not even a second later the door swings open, revealing a very wet Jungkook. He was wearing only a towel wrapped around his waist, and I couldn’t help but stare at his body, blushing at how the water fell onto his muscles. The room suddenly feeling so hot.

He notices my reaction and smirks at how intensely I look at him, “Care to take a picture?” He chuckles snapping me back to reality.

“What? I wasn’t staring!” But Jungkook doesn’t believe it, it was actually impossible to do, my cheeks were burning in hot flames. I enter the room and rest my purse on a table, that’s when Jungkook takes me by the hips, twirls and lifts me in the air, pressing hard kisses on my cheek. I try my best to keep calm but his lips fitted perfectly on my skin.

“Y/N you’re my lucky charm!” He yells, but then Jungkook notices what he was doing and awkwardly steps back, his face turning red.

“I’m sorry...” I flash him a smile saying it was okay,

“I’m not your lucky charm, Kook,” I say trying to recover my breath. “You’re just a good driver.”

His eyes widen in fake shock “I’m sorry, what? Was that a compliment?”

“Yeah. I can be nice, but only to those who deserve it.”

Jungkook’s playful smirk slowly grows back onto his face, stepping closer and leaning down so his dark eyes lock onto mine.

“Mmh... So, I’m worth it?”

The air in the room felt like missing, the same desire of yesterday night growing in me the moment he leans closer. This was wrong.

“Do you want to join the celebrations tonight?” Jungkook asks in a low voice, I nod not founding any strength in me to answer. “But keep this dress, I like how it fits you.”

He closes the tension by backing up. Still looking at me, he takes another towel from the table and ruffles his hair. His movements sending shivers to my body, making me feel so weak and crumble in desperation, begging to feel a taste of him.

While he goes to the bathroom to change he yells “Go home, I will pick you up at nine”

So I do, as I enter my apartment I feel completely nervous for tonight. It was obvious that something was going to happen.

Originally I wanted to change but Jungkook asked me specifically to keep this dress on. So I settle on doing my hair nicely and retouch my make up, feeling more confident in my body.

I wait for him in my balcony, observing how the night reflects on the street. The second the clock striked ten, I saw his car approaching my apartment. I quickly hurried to the door and head downstairs.

Once outside I saw him: he leaned against the hood of the car, wearing an oversized leather jacket, elegant black pants and a tight white shirt. His gaze followed the way I walked, slowly getting more close to him. Jungkook smiled at me,

“You look even more breathtaking than before, how do you do it?” I blush so hard at his words, hiding myself with a chuckle.

“I don’t! You,” the words struggling to come out “You are very handsome tonight”

“Yeah a very special girl is waiting for me” he says softly.

I feel completely shattered, my heart broken in millions of pieces. I was so stupid to believe he could possibly be interested in me,

“You are the girl Y/N.” My eyes widen at his words, feeling suddenly shy I avoid how his dark gaze falls on me.

“God you are so clueless sometimes.” Jungkook laughs and he places his hand on my waist leading me to the car. He opens the door for me, and as I get on it I feel his palm push me by the back so delicately.

When we arrive at the party, everyone greets us, I feel so out of place in here. Eveyone were either a driver or a famous influencer, I didn’t fit with these people.

Fortunately I had Jungkook by my side, he was extremely kind to me, checking if I was feeling safe. Even when we danced together he never touched me too much. Jungkook was truly a gentleman, knowing the moment and the right amount of attentions to give to a woman.

We head over to the bar and order a drink, sitting on the high stools facing each other. His eyes stay glued to my face, analyzing every single one of my features. Whenever we look at each other like this, the rest of the world just seems to fade away. It feels like it's just our souls dancing in a cloud of sparkly dust, a scene straight out of a movie.

He leans in closer, his lips brushing against my ear as he whispers, “You have no idea how beautiful you are, do you?”

All my senses completely scramble at his words. Trapped under his spell, I find myself wanting him more than I’ve ever wanted anything before.

“Jungkook,” I say softy.

He hums in response, waiting for me to finish.

“What if we get out of here?”

Without a second of hesitation, he slaps a bill on the counter for the bartender, grabs my hand, and pulls me toward the exit. We don’t even bother saying goodbye to his friends.

We decide to order takeaway at a fast food nearby and enjoy it outside of the city, so that we can be totally alone. Jungkook finds just the right spot for us, showing the romantic city lights at night. We eat in silence, admiring the beautiful view. It feels all so perfect: his presence, the place, and the moment.

“I didn’t take you for a romantic” I say as I turn around to face him,

Jungkook looks offended by my words “What? I’m a huge lover boy!”

“It doesn’t look like it”

“Well, I haven’t met the right person yet” The silence now feeling a bit sharp and cold, he swallowed a big bite and continued “…until now.”

My head snaps back at him, almost breaking my neck for how surprised I was. I looked at him with widen eyes, he laughs at my expression and after a while he softly confesses “I mean, you’re the only one I can think of”.

My body can’t take this anymore, I have to end this unbearable tension between us, it lingered for too long. Without giving him time to continue I grab the nape of his neck, pulling him closer and crash our lips together, so desperately.

The kiss feeling so sweet, innocently beautiful. My shoulders and body relax at how slowly he moves through the kiss, the tension of all these months finally drifting away.

I break away from him, to give him room to process what had just happened. Jungkook looks stunned by my sudden boldness, breathing heavily, his chest moving up and down. He was now staring at my swollen lips, with a deep hunger, wanting so bad to close the distance between us,

“Why did you stop?” he groans in a low voice

Before I could even answer he grabs me and slams his mouth against mine.

Now the kiss felt more confident and passionate, giving my stomach a reason to flip upside down. It felt like a moment I’ve dreamt for all my life. Through the kiss he bites my lip gently but still making me weak, and I let myself escape a moan. His body feels more desperate, hardening how our tongues were dancing.

He moves one hand on my hair, gripping them strongly. With the other he caressed my thigh, slowly moving towards my mini dress. It all felt so intoxicating for my mind, he casted a spell on me, I couldn’t stop but desiring more and more of him.

As he climbed over me the seat backed all the way down, Jungkook was now above me. Without breaking any contact he kisses my neck, lingering a bit longer in certain spots, and I can’t help but moan. I feel him shift away, Jungkook slowly takes off his leather jacket and throws it on the car’s floor.

To that I take the hem of his shirt and quickly take it off: revealing his beautiful tattoos, so many times they’ve caused my legs to crumble. Without hesitation he continues to kiss me, and as he do I dig my nails into his naked back, tracing all his muscles. I hear him let out a soft moan from his lips, and I smile at the reaction.

Jungkook breaks the kiss, giving us time to breathe. He encircles me by resting his hands next to my face. We look at each other for what feels like an eternity, once again locked in another dimension, we laugh shyly at our redden faces. In between our smiles Jungkook kisses me again, my heart blooming at the sudden contact.

Then I feel his hands move on my shoulders, and slowly take on the strap of my dress. He looks at me intensely, his dark gaze meeting mine, asking for permission.

I simply nod and let him take it off.

I was now in underwear in front of Jeon Jungkook. As I looked at him, his shocked expression made me chuckle. He was left speechless at the sight, staring at me and how my body looked under his.

He lowers and shakes his head while chuckling, showing that cute smile he always has.