Caught in a Lie

13 hours

Every Sunday at 8am was the time her videos were posted. Or at least that's what time it was in South Korea by the time the notification appeared on his phone. Yet today was a far more different and important day. The most vertically challenged member of BTS woke with so much excitement the other members could sense it even before any of them got out of bed. They all loved watching the American girl and her friends whenever they could. It was a great help that her friends could speak different languages so her videos were translated quite well and incredibly fast. Unfortunately today would hold slow and not so accurate translations. Though this fact did not damper anyone spirits as Namjoon himself would translate with ease. All the members gathered in the living room after breakfast, complementing the chefs for the wonderful meal, and waited eagerly for the show to air. The makneas arrived first, racing to find a seat and grinning from ear to ear. To one particular maknea it mattered the most that he sat in the center where he could see her the clearest.
Park Jimin sat up tall with his tiny hands in pressed together in a prayer as he tried to contain himself. Many times the group would be invited to interviews and many times more they would be asked who was their celebrity crushes or ideal types. None of the boys were known to lie but it was difficult to not cheer her name for the world to know. The other members knew and would tease him endlessly whenever he asked to leave dinner early to watch her videos if he missed them that morning. He hoped they would run into her at some point when they toured America.
"And now, I want to bring out a new friend of mine. She's been on YouTube for over five years and her fan base has grown to a whopping 17 thousand in the matter of weeks."-
The crowd cheers loudly as the members wait in anticipation. It was true, the American girl had grown popular quite rapidly and the world instantly fell in love with her. Jimin wasn't the only one trying to win her heart but that didn't mean he would give up any time soon.
"-She's super shy but super sweet. Please welcome Miss Maria Hernandez!"
A small chorus from on of her recent music videos sounded throughout the entire dorm. The band clapped as if they were in the audience too. Miss Hernandez entered the stage with a shy smile and waved to the crowd, blowing kisses to her fans. The makneas pretended they could catch them and the hyung line pretended the kisses were piercing bullets through their hearts. They all laughed at each other.
She shook Ellen's hand and sat down, smoothing out her dress. They greeted each other like old friends and the interview was going smoothly. Hernandez had a knack for creating laughter in most awkward situations and this interview was no exception. Jimin places his head in his hands as a soft sigh escapes him. She fit his ideal type so well it almost seemed like a dream. Though she was a few centimeters smaller than he hoped but who was counting? Hernandez was sweet, shy, adorable, and not to mention a excellent dancer and had a gorgeous vocal range. Her favorite type of dance style was cha cha but she used to be a wonderful contemporary dancer too. Jimin wondered why she quit and perused other dances instead.
"I absolutely love your outfit! But tell me more about who is on that necklace of yours?"
Hernandez turns pink as she looks down. She seems to know exactly what the show host was talking about but pretended she didn't. Jimin wasn't paying attention until he heard-
"Oh this thing?" She nervously laughed. "This necklace Elizabeth made for me by hand. It's the circle that represents my bias, V from BTS, in the Wings era."
Jimin's head snapped up, turning immediately to his hyung who translated without hesitation. The boys 'ooh'ed at Taehyung who's box smile grew wider.
"But this is a picture of Jimin-" The small Korean's head snapped back to the screen in disbelief.
"He's my bias wrecker and he's been swerving out of his lane lately. My little heart can't take it." She joked.
As Hernandez explained what a bias and bias wrecker were, Jimin became distracted again in his thoughts. If only she knew what effect she had on him. She was the one swerving out of her lane.
"So you are a BTS fan?"
"An Army, yes. I think I started listening to their music in my senior year of high school. Kpop in general has been a big part of my life."
"I think your agent told me, when she called me the other day, you first listened to Kpop in middle school?"
Hernandez nods solemnly as Namjoon quickly translates. Jimin frowns. Why is there suddenly a sad look in her eyes?
"I used to listen to Kpop way back when. In fact the first song I listened to was Run by MBLAQ. I found it by accident on year and when I realized it was Kpop I got excited and wanted to show my friends."
"Right," Ellen agreed and nodded for her to continue.
"That was until I found my closest friends talking trash about it and about Jpop and other types of music. Music has been such a important part of my life but I valued being cool or normal more than my own personal interests."
"So you changed yourself to be like everyone else. How long did that last?"
Hernandez grins as she looks towards the audience.
"About four years-" The crowd becomes sad instantly but that's not how Hernandez rolls.
"-But, Elizabeth wouldn't have any of it. In fact in my senior year, she introduced me to BTS and I started to listen to Kpop again. It has made me much happier."
Ellen smiles warmly back at the younger. "I can tell. You seem like a weight has been lifted off of you. Kpop must have helped you though some tough times."
" All types of music but yes, Kpop played a huge role."
The interviewed continued with more talk of how Hernandez came into popularity and her infinite obsession with Nightmare Before Christmas. The boys sighed when Ellen brought the interview to a close.
"But don't go anywhere! When we come back, Maria will perform one of her favorite parodies for us after the break!"