Pluto Rooms | Jikook

We're Tired of Your Smelly Greed!

Raven scowls at Gyuri whenever they break for touch-ups, his stomach tossing with the anxiety of one who knows they've messed up but do not know how they've messed up.

"Fast touch-ups, let's get moving!" The assistant director, an equally pompous asshole who must wipe himself with sterilized tissues, Jimin surmises, orders everyone around like pawns on a chessboard. Gyuri clearly disproves of his 'own-all' behavior, but must be too caught up in her rage for Jimin to reprimand him. "Jimin, needs to go right next to that box--there, perfect! Now, where is my fake-tears person! Give Jimin some fake tears...unless he feels comfortable wetting his eyes enough to look distraught? Can he do that?"

Jimin brushes off the way the director refers to him in the third-person, as if he isn't there. "Yes, I'm able to tear up. I don't need the fake tears, thank you." Don't mind me, I'll be over here crying about Yeonjun's lost job. That boy was the funniest bartender at Radon...what the fuck did Gyuri do to get him fired? Ugh...

"Great." The director speaks flatly, too preoccupied with a thousand other things to express real joy. "Now where is that cane! Someone get the cane for Gyuri..."

Jimin meets eye contact with Yeji, who's leaned against the alley's wall as acting member of Gyuri's cult. Yeji rolls her eyes, frowning at Gyuri's turned back. Jimin rolls his eyes back, and they both stare daggers at the bitch who's getting her lipstick touched up. It feels good to share his hatred towards Gyuri. Feels good to have another person recognize her as the bad-guy, instead of expecting nothing but goodness and perfection out of her. Whatever Gyuri had tried to hide away from Yeji with her calm demeanor broke when she called Yeji a whore. Now Yeji understands where I'm coming from. Gyuri. Total. Bitch.

"Alright! We're set to shoot! Jimin, get those tears rolling. Places, places!" The director points demanding fingers out to various spots. His teeth flash as he provides last-minute commands to the cast. Then, he counts down from three. Like always when shooting, Jimin is reminded of Pluto, screaming suffice! quietly in his mind before he enters the level. Only this time, the level is a shitty scene where Gyuri lures him into joining her cult, then is supposed to kiss him. This won't be fun. "Action!"

Jimin tears up naturally, his eyes filming over with disgust, nervousness, and anger. As the camera pans towards Raven, Jimin knows that his acting is believable...maybe even above-average. It's to beat the level. To beat this room...this Pluto Room.

That's what Jimin has been telling himself recently. Equating his issues to game levels--to Pluto Rooms--mere doors that need to be entered, dissected, and beaten...makes getting through his problems easier. Like Jungkook told me, Pluto is the farthest planet--I mean, Kuiper Belt object. The one that sees all, rotating around the sun from its distant spot on the outskirts of the Solar System. The one that has the best view, no matter how lonely it is. Pluto gets to see everything, floating slowly around the others. Constantly watching.

In this perpetual war against Gyuri, Jimin knows he must step back, coax himself back to the position of the watchdog. If he attacks too soon like Mars, or badgers too much like Neptune, there won't be hope for him. He must rein back his anger to Pluto, play Gyuri's game of falling asteroids, and hope that in the end, it's him inside the Winner's Circle and not Gyuri. It's him who gets to open the door, him who gets to come out of this as champion. Even if Pluto isn't with me in this room, he is here in my heart. I can hear him cheering me on.

"Don't let that bitch kiss you, Melonheart!" Jungkook yells from somewhere on set. Jimin can feel his boyfriend watching, even though he knows Pluto isn't there. "Take the scene in your own direction and see if the other director likes your fantastic improv acting! Then befriend him and take his side. You should pit her own employees against her, make them absolutely abhor her, but don't let them beat her up...I call first dibs on that, Melonboy. I'll run her over with my wheelchair first time I get to see her."