Seulgi had immersed herself within the crowd, and whether she liked it or not, she mingled with anyone that came her way - compliments and quick small talk with women wearing designer dresses and jewels, a small flirtatious comment thrown in passing to a man that offered her a drink (one that she then offered to someone else as soon as she was out of his sight). There was a reason why she was there, but it would be too obvious if she had gone straight to anyone she suspected to be up to something - this wasn’t a fairy tale, after all, and she had to play a part in the crowd to fit in.
“Maybe after all this is over, we can get a dinner elsewhere.” It was an empty offer to a man that had gently tapped her on the shoulder to make a rather extensive compliment on her outfit - but in reality, she was responding to the voice in her ear (in which case, the offer was legitimate). Seulgi offers a playful smile before she excuses herself, letting the man continue on his way and her moving onto hers - however, he had seemed rather popular. She would have to make note to keep an eye on him and who he talked to if she saw him again. And perhaps she curses herself for not asking his name, but brushes it off - she’s there to observe and gather information - there’s still a lot of time to kill.
Catching a waiter with a drink, she brings it to her lips, but not enough to actually drink from it - just enough for her to quietly whisper an actual response to Jongin. “Outer part of the dining area. I forgot how much I don’t like people.” The moment she finishes, she takes an actual sip before moving the glass away from her lips. She had to be careful communicating back - thankfully, they could at least hear one another’s conversations - otherwise, she wasn’t sure she could have kept a proper connection. And while she was thinking about it…she had done so many tasks on her own in the past where she didn’t have the discreet earpiece to talk to a partner - and honestly, Seulgi was appreciative of it this time. It made things a little more interesting, and a little more motivating since she had someone else to get the job done with.
“Gonna see if I can get some of these tougher looking gents to bite at conversation.” more whispered words before Seulgi abandons the drink in her hand on a dining table near her, glancing around subtly. Although really, she’s knows what she’s looking for - someone, something, that might be beneficial to them.
"Alright. Be careful." The conversations Jongin had overheard weren't even completely necessary for him to be aware of the disgusting men that were around the place. Married or not. He holds himself not to roll his eyes upon this thought, beginning himself to move once again around the place.
Their next moves were related. He noticed after some time doing jobs of this sort for Phoenix that, in this types of events, one way to get useful conversations going on was with women. Married women. A lot of the rich couples out there existed mostly for appearances, and, for what he knew, the ladies were resentful for the way they were treated. And when they were caught, this was another reason for him to think that that's well deserved.
So, in all those years, learning how to use his charms to convince people to do what he wanted was extremely convenient. He was actually surprised when a woman accepted his champagne glass without even being suspicious of his intentions. Not that he could complain, of course. The bummer was that he barely got anything useful.
Jongin stopped roaming around when Lee Yeonseok's speech begun, but instead of paying attention to him, he focused on the guests more than before. Not that he would be interested, anyways. The male only looked back at the host when a cheer call was made, but that's when everything got black. Literally.
Disoriented at first, looking around him and the place, he took some moments to process what was going on.Â
"Seulgi?!"  Amidst all the screaming and confusion, there was no need to play a character anymore, so Jongin was almost yelling at his in-ear. "Are they trying to kidnap him?" Who's closer, can you—" He stopped midsentence, realising their device could not even be working anymore. At least he hoped it was the reason why she wasn't responding.
Fuck. Of course things weren't gonna go smoothly that night, that's why they were there. But even though he tried not to miss the possible targets, it was hard to assimilate the mess of countless silhouettes in the darkness. When he saw a group of people moving together near the stage, he begun running towards there, being hard on his shoulders but trying not to trip on anyone.Â
But he didn't even got to catch up before hearing - and feeling - what would be the first bomb of the night. Bending his knees and moving hands on top of his head by reflex, his beat fastened at the surprise and fear. His anxiousness grew as he walked through the smoke, arm covering his nose.
And then he heard the cracks. Seulgi. No. No, no, no. Fuck the mission. That was completely out of expectations, and at this point, he wouldn't even think of considering playing with something he didn't know what it was. So Jongin didn't think twice to turn back and search for his counterpart where she previously said she was. The female probably wasn’t there anymore, but he had to check.
To make it more difficult, the crowd got even messier and dangerous, everyone in desperation to get out. But more important than finding a way out immediately, he had to make sure Seulgi was okay and they both could come back safely.
