Chan by Chance

1⭐ A Fan's Hope

1☆ A Fan's Hope

Anichi was fully aware that only group order managers got to participate in K-pop video call events. She had seen the same people on repeat, on first name basis with artists for years!

Still, she loved Stray Kids so much, and living in the poor side of Stayville, she hadn't gotten to purchase their newest album, as the drop date was long before their payday. A concert ticket so far out of their reach (thanks Ticketmaster!), this might be the only way to get close to those 8 darling men, if Ani got incredibly lucky.

**

A Maniac Stay, the group had swept them off their feet like no other. A Kpop fan since 2014, devoted Carat, Moodz, Moomoo, and Atiny (among many others), the moment Ani-Kim saw and heard "Maniac 나사 빠진 것처럼 미쳐, Maniac", the Felix effect had struck again.
It was game over.

It is unknown how SKZ flew under Anichi's radar for this long. Their ears loved Hellevator and God's Menu whenever the songs popped up on the YTmusic playlist, but she was too enamored with other groups to add one more.

Ani-Kim even saw Changbin on 'King Of Masked Singer' -their favorite Korean variety show- and remembers cheering for the soldier, wishing he'd won. She recalled the panelist Kim Gura saying how he had a reputation for being a nice guy, and that alone made him a winner. They remembered him! Why didn't Ani research this beautiful rapper then?

*thinks* I will forever regret not being there for my boys from debut until the present, but I am undoubtedly a Stay for life now! That's what matters, right?

To make up for it, almost every live possible was watched (before VLive ended), every YouTube content that could be found was streamed, and the whole SKZ and 3Racha discography played several times over. Let's not forget that Ani also stayed up to date with current lives, TikToks, interviews and variety show appearances.

Channie's room also became part of the weekly routine, turning into a special healing time. It was amazing how a young man by the name of Christopher Bahng Chan became a soothing balm during one of the most difficult periods of their life. How did he know to be so comforting and wise at his young age, they thought... "I wasn't that wise and mature at 25!"

After months of following the group, it became apparent that somehow they always arrive at the right time, either via a Bubble message, a live video, or a comeback. Their timing is always impeccable, and their words always hit the bullseye. How do they do that?

Maybe that's why it took until Maniac for SKZ to fully come into Ani's life. They plucked her out of a darkness that if they hadn't shown up, could have consumed Ani-Kim. She was grateful.

Needless to say, Anichi Kimani Rodríguez LOVED Stray Kids.

**

When a known promoter announced a VC event on Facebook, she had to try. A longshot, because she only could afford one album, she said... "What the heck? I need the album anyways, so why not try? Maybe I'll get lucky!"

Clicking on the website, adding the desired album to cart, and "PayPal Pay In 4" selected, the purchase was completed, and prayers began to be uttered.

Please, please! You know how much I love these boys. It's a one-in-a-million shot, I know, but please!!

Ch. 1 end.

***
A/N: This is my first story... I know it won't be perfect. Please, if you find any errors, kindly let me know. I'm new to the platform, but I will do my best to make corrections.

In order to not confuse the reader when I mention the protagonist, I'll use several nicknames like Ani, Ani Kim, and their full government name, Anichi Kimani Rodríguez. I'll also use the pronouns she/they/them.

Hope you enjoy!