used to be the reason

Chapter 2: Seoul

April 15, 2026

3:30 am

I've just checked into the airport and I'm heading towards economy class on the airplane. My heart skips a beat every beat to the point where I feel like my head is dizzy and I can't breathe. I'm too excited. In around a day I'll be meeting BTS. I've already told Halsee that I'm going to go meet with family friends and I'm prepared to makeup work for my classes. Still, I feel uneasy, as if I'm missing something. Besides my luggage which is in the luggage section of the airplane, I have my school backpack containing nothing but my main essentials.

I'm staring at my ticket, trying to decipher the writing and figure out which section I'm in. The ticket says F56 so I'm assuming I'm in the very back. I practically hurtle myself into my seat as I'm so exhausted I could fall asleep right then and there. I place myself near the window and shove my backpack underneath my seat.

The airplane takes off after awhile and I'm left with nothing but my irrational thoughts. Next to me is a business man that looks too rich to be in economy. He snaps at his watch impatiently, as if the 14 hours would easily pass by in the blink of an eye. I want nothing but rest, yet I can't stop looking out the window.

The airplane passes all types of clouds. After a while, rain pitter-patters on the ceiling of the airplane as we are told to stay in our seats. I want nothing but this moment to go on forever. I try to imagine ways to approach BTS, but even in my imagination, its a disaster. Eventually, tuning into the sound of rain, I fall asleep, my head close to the airplane window.

April 16, 2026

6:00 am

I wake up to the sound of people gathering belongings and cracking there backs. I open one eye and observe my surroundings. Next to me is an empty seat and flight attendants are searching in an out aisles. Through the corner of my eye, I see a line up front. Someone taps my shoulders.

"우리는 서울에 있습니다. 너 물건 갖다 주겠니?(We're in Seoul, Korea. Would you like me to get your stuff?)" The flight attendant with ruffled hair says something to me and repeatedly motions at my bags. Me, being full Chinese and haven not taken a single Korean Language class in my life, flashes the OK sign dumbly with my fingers. I struggle to unfasten the seat belt. When I do, I hurry to grab my backpack and head out to the exit terminals. I grapple at my luggage and head out to meet Lily.

Before I left the U.S., Lily had added my Wechat I.D. and said we would communicate through that. I'm still half asleep as I call Lily.

"Hi Lucie." Lily says joyfully. "The cab driver, the main manager, and I should be arriving to your gate. What gate is it again?" Lily says something in Korean to someone off the phone.

"Um, yeah, its-" I gaze at my surroundings before hitting realization. "Shit. I can't read this." I stumble around before finding a gate number. "It says..." I squint my eyes. "I'm in Terminal D4." Koreans around me stare at me in confusion, as if I'm speaking a language out of this planet. "Yeah D4," I whisper again.

"Got it. We'll be there in 3 minutes. Sit out front so we can see you." The wechat call ends.

April 16, 2026

6:32 am

I ended up waiting 20 minutes. When Lily arrived, she wasn't much different than I expected. She had round glasses, brown hair in a bun, and lavender pants. Everything about her screamed "I'm high class and work for Taehyung at BTS." At first, she didn't recognize me and couldn't quite tell I was Lucie, as she had probably expected someone of better liking.