Euphoria | BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan)

"Holy Shit... You're BTS"

    I can not believe this is happening. After having worked as a photographer for so many years, I've finally worked my way up the ladder and now, I'm sitting in the lobby of this five star hotel, about to start my first world tour with a huge globally known artist. The butterflies in my stomach flutter as I think about how many cities I'm going to see and all the art I'm going to be able to create. I've been artist my whole life and the moment I picked up a camera, I knew it was what I wanted to do. Of course, my friends and family figures all encouraged me to do something with more "financial" stability. So, I worked my way up, on my own. I started locally and then finally broke into more known acts and was able to sign to an agency who believed in me and helped promote my work. My agent, Peter, has always believed in me. Because I'm a little older than most people in this industry, being 32, I am independent, stable and comfortable enough in myself and my work to know...I'm going to crush this job. My reputation in the industry proceeds me; I am well known for my work with artists and capturing more than just a snapshot. I am the go-to for tour and documentary style photography.

    I was told to wait in the lobby until a man named Manager Jigaemae would be meeting me here to give me the details, pick up my paperwork and tell me the next steps. I don't even know who I'm going to be working with; it's all so hush hush in this industry. I signed about a million and a half non-disclosure agreements, confidentiality waivers and countless other contracts so I knew, this was going to be huge. I was informed that this client was wanting not only photos of them during shows, but also day to day workings as they were in the process of creating a documentary for their fans. As I sat there flipping through my instagram mindlessly, I hear footsteps coming toward me and look up to see a tall, dapper man with glasses smiling down at me. His smile was warm and inviting and I couldn't help but smile right back at him.

"Hi, you must be Eleanor?" He pushes his hand out toward me and I shake it, firmly.

"Hello. Yes, I am. It's nice to meet you, Manager Jigaemae?" I question.

"That is correct. It's nice to meet you as well. Please, join me in the conference room to speak privately and get the details in motion." He responded.

I stand and follow him and notice 3 bigger men walking behind us. Security, I assume. We follow a hallway behind the lobby front desk that leads us to a series of dark rooms. My butterflies turn into anxiety as we enter the last room at the end of the hall and I see two more men in suits sitting at the table. Immediately, I am intimidated. They're big guys and their facial expressions are hard and unreadable. No matter how long I've been doing this job, the first day is always nerve wracking.

"Ms. Lopez, please have a seat" Manager Jigaemae looks at me warmly and extends his hand to motion toward a chair at the end of the long table.

"Thank you" I say as I drop my bags and suitcase next to me. I sit on the chair and smile at the men sitting around the table; trying not to let my nerves show.

The man at the end looks up from his computer screen and smiles at me; melting my anxieties slightly.

"Ms. Lopez, my name is Manager Sejin and I'm the main manager for the band. We are so delighted to have your joining our team. I know the process must have been quite troublesome for you but we appreciate your patience. As you'll soon see, our clients are very private people and this project means a great deal to them. They owe everything to their fans and this documentary will be the way that they thank them. We are an extremely tight knit group; we don't allow just anyone to come into the circle of management and team so we take background checks and character references very seriously".

I looked at him and nodded. This was, by far, one of the most grueling processes for a gig I'd ever partaken in. It's been 9 months since Peter had entered my name in for the job bid and for a while after submitting all my paperwork (which included everything except the promise of my first born child), I figured they'd picked someone else. The beauty of not knowing who the job is for made it so I couldn't have any preconceived notions, expectations or any emotional connection to it and I liked that. So, imagine how surprised I was when I got the call from my agent saying the job was mine.

"We received all your paperwork and everything looks to be in place," Manager Jigaemae continues. "I will remind you that there is a strict no phone policy while you're working and there will be no mention on any of your social media pages as to who you're working for. The rights to the photos you produce are owned by BigHit Entertainment and the band and it's individual members" he reiterates what was written in the contracts.

"Yes, sir. I completely understand. I've already advised the people I'm closest with of the stipulations of my job and they're all aware I'm not going to be always reachable" I assure him.

"Wonderful. We just need to grab copies of your passport, identification, and medical records and we can proceed with the schedule".

I open my wallet and hand over the documents he asks for and Manager Jigaemae takes them and excuses himself to go scan the documents.

"Now, Ms. Lopes..." continues Manager Sejin.

"Please," I politely interrupt "call me Eleanor or El" I say.

"Ms. Eleanor, I know you're unaware of who the client is. I know you were informed it would be a Korean artist and that their English language skills are not perfect but they are able to maintain conversions and understand commands. I assure you, there will be no issues with communication, as someone who speaks English and Korean will always be at your disposal" he assures me. "Now, if you'll follow me, I'll take you to go and meet the client whom you will be spending the next 9 months with" he stands and walks toward me, motioning at one of the security guards to grab my bags and extends his arm to allow me to walk in front of him.

I really wasn't too familiar with the world of Korean artists or K-Pop; I mean I know who the big groups are but I figured it must be a smaller group who maybe just debuted. The other thing I did do research on was the owner of BigHit Entertainment because they're one of the top Korean record labels and what I read about 'Bang' was fascinating. I knew the world of Korean musicians was super different so I was excited to take on the challenge.

We continue walking back toward the lobby and head toward the elevators. It was then that I noticed 3 more security guards standing there. The men exchanged words and we were allowed into the elevator. As we step on, Manager Sejin scans his key card and presses the PH button. 'Penthouse?' I think to myself.  Pretty rich for a group that just debuted. After a minute or so, the elevator comes to a stop and my hands start to sweat. Manager Sejin looks at me and says, "fair warning, these guys can be pretty rowdy but what do you expect when you've got seven guys in a room at all times, right?"

I look at him and smile, trying to hide my nervousness. Okay, so we are dealing with a group of guys. Cool. Good to know.

We stand outside the door and Manager Sejin gives a swift knock and says something in Korean before swinging open the door. As he walks through the door way, he leads me through the stunning foyer and toward a huge open living area where I see them.

As soon as I saw them, scattered around the living area, I knew I'd seen them before.; a lot. I knew this wasn't a band that had just debuted and I wasn't dealing with younger guys either. But, my mind was going a mile a minute and I just couldn't place their name.

The first people to catch my eye were the three guys sitting  on the couch directly in front of me. On the left side was a smaller boy with beautiful pink lips and sandy blonde hair. He was stretching across the guy in the middle to speak to the guy on the right; a taller, boy with the most amazing smile. They were laughing in a way that made me feel like I was interrupting a private moment as they were so blissfully giggling at each other. It had only been a few seconds when the man sitting in the middle caught my attention.  He looked like an actual angel. His long, shaggy, dark, hair was covering his face . He wore an oversized black t-shirt and grey sweatpants and still managed to look like a runway model. I was completely, at a loss for words. He lifts his head to look at me and his eyes pierce through mine. Immediately, goosebumps  scatter all over my body and my cheeks flush red. What was happening to me? I never reacted this way.  Manager Sejin stands next to me and says, "members, this is Eleanor. She will be your new tour and documentary photographer for the next 9 months. Eleanor, this is..."

After wracking my brain trying to figure out why all these faces looked so familiar, it finally dawned on me. Immediately I gasped and said, "holy shit... you're BTS"