Hold Me Tight | One Night
Title: Hold Me Tight
Three: One Night
Pairing: Jung Hoseok x Y/N
Synopsis: Working as an assistant to a fashion designer was not what Y/N wanted to be doing with her life. Fetching coffee, picking up dry cleaning, rotting away catering to an impossible boss. It was a step in the right direction, but she felt stuck. Enter Jung Hoseok. When the translator hired to work with him fell through, Y/N was told to find someone new. Instead, she stepped in. Suddenly her whole life was thrown onto a new trajectory. Was she ready for it?
Tag List: @staytinyarmy @magpir8629 @arlecchino-soon-main @misszkr @withmuchluv-tannie @sleepyeclipes @deaddumblbumble @thatsrayllensworld @bjoriis @nammies-girl @juju-227592
~2023~
Working with Hoseok I was seeing sides of fashion week I never got to see trailing behind my boss as her assistant. When it was time for the actual show, I was sitting right next to him on the edge of the runway. Because my job was to help him communicate. If this was the reason I had no job at the end of the week, maybe it was worth it. At least I got this experience.
Hoseok leaned over smiling, “You look like you’re enjoying yourself.” he said in Korean.
“I’ve been to three fashion weeks and this is the closest I’ve gotten to the runway.” I nodded, “Thank you for this opportunity.” I smiled at him.
Our attention went back to the runway. Occasionally he might lean over and comment on a design or ask my opinion. It was about midway through the show when a particular design caught my attention. Hoseok looked over at me, his brow furrowing in confusion and concern at my expression.
“Y/N?” He whispered, “What’s wrong?”
“That’s my design.” I said quietly. Then my eyes darted to the next model coming up the runway. “And that…” All I could do was sit there and watch as two of my visions, come to life, walked down the runway and circled back. There were changes yes, but those were my designs.
Hoseok looked from me to the models and back. I was fumbling with my phone, pulling up the pictures I had of the sketches. He peered over my shoulder seeing the sketches.
“I’m sorry, I need some air.” I apologized to him before getting up. We were just about to intermission and I knew it was unfair to him to leave. But I felt like I might suffocate staying in that room. I quickly got up, excusing myself as I crossed in front of those around us.
Once I got outside the main hall, I felt the wave of anger crash over me. The shock, disbelief, and denial all washed away right into anger. How long had this been going on? How had I not seen it happening when I followed her everywhere. There were so many questions. I ran my hand through my hair, my mind racing as I tried to piece it all together. Yet, I was coming up with nothing.
“Y/N,” I turned to see that Hoseok had followed me.
“You should go back inside,” I said, “I don’t want you risking…”
“Intermission.” He stated simply as he walked towards me. I looked up to see that a few other people had come out as well. Most would stay in the hall and mingle there. “Talk to me, please?”
“Those were my designs, but it’s her name on them.”
“Your boss.” He clarified.
“Ex-boss. She fired me,” I told him. “When I tried to talk to her about stepping in as your interpreter she had one of her temper tantrums and fired me.” In no way did I blame him, nor did I want him to feel like any of this was his fault. “It’s better this way anyways. She was a horrible boss and now I understand why I’ve been stuck as her assistant for as long as I have.” There was this new level of clarity that came with this whole mess. The bigger problem was, I didn’t even know how to go about dealing with this. “I’ve been such an idiot.” I was so frustrated and angry. I didn’t even realize I had started to cry.
Hoseok surprised me, he stepped forward and pulled me into a hug. The sudden embrace was enough to ground me. I sighed, knowing that this was unprofessional, but I didn’t pull away. We stood like that for a few moments before he pulled back, his hands on my shoulders as he looked down at me.
“Starting at the bottom, falling down, being knocked down, none of that means you have to stay there.” He smiled, “I should know. We fought hard to climb to the top. I know you can do it, too.”
With intermission ending we had to go back. I did step into the bathroom to freshen up and he waited for me. I noticed that Hoseok lingered a little closer than he had before as we made our way back to our seats. I had to sit there and pretend that there was nothing wrong.
At the end of the week there was another dinner to attend. Outside of the firing and theft, I had truly enjoyed my time working with the idol. When we arrived for dinner, Hoseok and I found the table that we had been assigned to. As we approached though, I shook my head. I had managed to work through the realization but I didn’t think I could sit at the same table as her. Hoseok looked up, recognizing my ex-boss from that first day.
“Do you want to go?” he asked quietly.
“It’s okay,” I replied, noting her smug look when she spotted me. “I can’t leave you without an interpreter.”
“I never said I would be staying. We can go elsewhere. Have our own dinner.”
I looked up at him, surprised by this, “If this is part of your schedule…”
He was already waving over his staff. He spoke quietly with them before coming back to me. “All clear, let’s go enjoy our last night before we part ways.”
I saw what he was doing. I also saw no harm in it, we had spent the last week together. It had been an interesting week. I found the idol to be charismatic, he managed to make everyone smile. His own smile was absolutely infectious. Working so closely, we had had the opportunity to get to know one another, too. I spoke of studying fashion and languages. He talked about being part of his group and how hard it was to be going solo for now. It wasn’t just about work, he also spoke of his upcoming military service, explaining that it was a requirement for all able men in South Korea. It had almost felt as though despite being brought together for professional and business purposes, a bit of a friendship had been forming.
We ended up at a nice restaurant where we had dinner and a glass of wine. I noticed that Hoseok took his time with his single glass. After only a few sips his cheeks were pink. After such a crazy week, it was lowkey and an enjoyable night.
“I do hope you’ll consider staying in touch,” Hoseok said as we were leaving. He had insisted on paying for the dinner and hadn’t even given me the chance to see the bill. Granted, it probably would have given me anxiety seeing whatever number was on it.
“I doubt you have much space in your life for a lowly fashion assistant,” I joked.
“You mean, an up and coming fashion designer.” He corrected me with a smile.
We were staying in the same hotel, so we took the same car back. I couldn’t explain it, but the air felt charged. When we got back, the hotel lobby was deserted. We stepped into the elevator, each pressing the number for our floor. Reaching my floor first, the elevator chimed.
“This is me,” I said looking up at him. It felt so final, a goodbye after the whole week. Because tomorrow we were going our separate ways, back to our lives.
“Y/N, wait.” Hoseok caught my arm gently. He stepped forward, closing the space between us. Then he kissed me. It was unexpected, but that charged air between us ignited. I didn’t even notice as the elevator door slid closed again and started up to his floor.
Nothing about this week had gone the way I had expected. Losing my job, interpreting for a k-pop idol, or ending up in his bed.
One night stand with a famous guy was never anything on my bucket list. Yet somehow, I’d ticked it off. I woke up in Hoseok’s bed. The realization of what we had done hit me hard. I sat up, looking down at him as he slept. He was attractive and last night was probably one of the best nights I’d had. But I knew it was a one time thing. After today it was likely we would never cross paths again, despite his request that I stay in touch. I knew maybe it was wrong, but I panicked. Quickly getting dressed, I grabbed my phone and heels before slipping out the door.
Thankfully no one saw me, I made it back to my room unseen. I took a hot shower to try and clear my head. One night stands weren’t typically my thing, but if one was going to happen having it be with a guy like Hoseok made it worth it. Right? I was supposed to be working with him, not sleeping with him. After my shower, I checked my phone.
I felt his genuine concern in those texts. With the towel wrapped around me, I sunk down on the edge of the bed. I typed a response, deleted it, then typed something else.
Hoseok: Woke up and you were gone.
Hoseok: Are you okay? I’m sorry if what we did upset you.
It was the first time I'd called him by his requested nickname.
Me: I’m sorry. Early flight. I’m not good with goodbyes, it’s easier this way.
Me: I’m not upset, Hobi.
One night, that’s all it was. That’s all it could be. Or so I thought.
Hoseok: Maybe we will get to work together again someday. If I need an interpreter can I keep you in mind?
Me: Sure, maybe I should get certified.
Hoseok: Then I would have to share.
~2026~
Hobi: Your new collection is perfection. I'm proud of you, Jagiya.
Me: Thank you, Love. See you in Vegas?
Hobi: Can't wait.
