If you’ve ever wondered how life changes quickly, without anyone noticing, I will share
the details and explain how my life went from classic and boring, to unpredictable and
fun. It started when I decided to host a student teacher for the upcoming school year.
No big deal, since I have done it before and been very successful. Anyway, turns out,
the student teacher was a retired army sergeant who happened to love dancing and
knew a lot of choreographers around the world from his earlier dancing days, which I
thought was amazing! He was always inviting me over to his house to meet these
friends, since they traveled often and made stops in Seattle just to see him.

This one night I was invited, like always, so I showed up right after school, then took
over his kitchen-he knows I love to cook, but he doesn’t so it’s a win-win situation. He
kept checking on things, then the guests arrived around 6pm, so I had all the food on
the table, which surprised them, but also made them super happy. We were just eating
and talking, when I realized two of the guests were Korean choreographers and that
they worked for BTS, which is one of my favorite bands. I played it cool, pretending not
to care too much, but then one of the Korean choreographers asked if I had ever
thought about becoming a backup dancer, since I love to dance and have pretty good
rhythm, which he had seen because after dinner the dancing friends always want to
show off/catch up and my student teacher always encourages me to join in.

I shrugged my shoulders, not really taking him seriously, since I’m obviously a teacher
first, then whatever else. He asked for my number because he said he needed a good
dancer for one of the songs he was working with the guys on, where there was one
female who would be in the center, while the guys each took turns dancing with her,
until she disappears at the end of the song and for some unknown reason, he thought I
would be perfect for this. I guess he had also seen how dramatic I was, with my
expressive face/body and he knew it would fit perfectly with his vision for the new
dance/song. I gave him my number, not thinking anything would come of it, since the
band lives/practices in Korea, but I’m obviously over here in America. My student
teacher said to his friend that if he taught him the moves, he would stand in for the male
parts and I could still learn the female part.

I felt like I was invisible while the two of them planned the whole thing, from online
rehearsals, to video chats, to me flying to Korea, then rehearsing in person with the
guys, and finally performing live with them. I did not like the sound of this, seeing as
how it was right in the middle of the school year, but neither of them listened when I
protested, so I stopped trying and went to tidy up the dishes from dinner. Soon, the
other Korean choreographer came in after noticing me being upset and asked what was
wrong. I just sighed and said I felt like nobody even cared about what I wanted- they
planned my entire next few months without me being involved.

He came to help with the dishes and said he would talk to the other choreographer to
smooth things over, since he could clearly tell I love being a teacher and was not just
going to quit my job suddenly. I only stayed until 10pm, then I decided it was time to
leave-clearly, they were not going to include me anymore and I was annoyed. The next
day, the original Korean choreographer called to set up a rehearsal schedule for me
online, where he could teach me the moves I needed, but wouldn’t interfere with school.
I sighed, not really excited or able to see his ending vision, but I trusted him, so I
agreed. Every day after that, I would come home, join his video call, and practice my
part, which started off difficult, but then became easier as I got better and better.

Also, it helped that my student teacher was able to stand in as the male parts, so I had
someone to interact with and react to, since a few parts involved me touching arms,
being lifted, touching faces, etc. I was actually getting excited about the process but was
also afraid to hope for the actual end result of dancing with the guys because I knew it
was a total long shot at best. Soon, it was November, and I was available for 5 days
during Thanksgiving break (I took the Weds half day off) and flew to South Korea. I was
terrified but also worried about being good enough in person with all 7 of them, since I
was used to practicing either alone or with just one guy, sometimes 2 or 3, depending
on which dancer friends my student teacher invited over each week.

Since I am not famous, nobody knows me, and the choreographer was able to come
pick me up himself, which I was thankful for. He took me right to the studio and wanted
to watch me alone first, before he had the guys come in. Little did I know, the guys were
already there, just not in the room with me, so they were watching as I did my parts
perfectly, pretending to have 7 males to interact with, which impressed them at least.
Finally, I was able to meet them, and I was not surprised when JK ran up and picked me
up and spun me around, then kissed my cheek and said he loved me. I just laughed,
knowing that’s his personality, and politely introducing myself to the others, while trying
to keep myself calm inside my head. Once the actual rehearsal began though, I was all
business, so I did not mess around with being nervous or intimidated anymore-I went
right to work.

We realized that one part needed to be switched because Jimin is actually the same
height as me, so the visuals for him being above me, to reach down for me, would not
work, so we swapped that part for Jin’s where I was just being moved around alongside
him. The first time after that switch was amazing and all the guys were actually
impressed that I could fit into each of their parts as if we had been practicing the whole
time together. We did a few more full run throughs, then the choreographer wanted me
to work with each guy individually, to perfect my facial expressions and reactions to the
guys, since it was constantly changing. I had no issues with any of them, but JK would
not take it seriously and always kissed me somewhere during his part, which was not
supposed to happen and soon I was annoyed because although it started out being cute,
I was ready to stop-I was exhausted from my flight and I wanted to just sleep for a
while.

After about five mishaps, I asked the choreographer to give me a second with JK, so I
pulled him to the side and politely told him that I understood how cute he wanted to be
and how he thought it was funny to mess things up so he could still kiss me over and
over again, but I was tired from my flight and deserved to sleep, which he had not
known, so he apologized and promised to focus more. I didn’t know it at the time, but
Joon and Suga had been watching me get more and more frustrated, then wondered
how I would handle it and now they had admiration for me being able to tame JK with
just a simple talk. Joon smiled to himself and wondered what other hidden talents I
might have.

Finally, the choreographer had me practice with Joon, the last and most difficult part
because after this piece, I would be hooked up to the harness and lifted into the ceiling,
away from all of them, as the lights dimmed and they ran off the stage to change outfits
for the next song, so his part included a lot of touching, lifting, etc. I did not have time to
be nervous because I knew it was super important for him to focus on my safety, so I
made sure to keep my face focused on the moves, not the emotions. At least, that was
my plan anyway, until he got right up to my face, forehead to forehead, while at the
same time reaching around my back to pretend to hook up the harness, while pulling
me closer to his body, so I could feel every breath he took and how incredibly strong he
was, which threw me off guard and caused me to blush, which made him laugh, and we
both fell to the ground. I apologized immediately, but he also took the blame, and we
tried again, this time a little better because I pretended it was a staring contest to keep
myself from losing focus.

After about 5 more times, the choreographer added the hook that Joon was going to
attach to my back to the routine, since both JK and V bring it over to him, which has to
be pulled from the ceiling and since they are the strongest, it made sense for them to be
the ones. Now that I was able to concentrate, it was much easier to be near Joon,
feeling his heartbeats, me reacting to his dance moves, then I was pulled away, while
he reaches for me. JK and V had to lift me and pretend I was being pulled by the
harness, which was actually hilarious because neither one of them was sure where to
put their hands on me- they didn’t want to offend me or somehow touch me
inappropriately, so the first try ended in laughter from all 3 of us-which I also ended up
on the floor for as well.

Joon came rushing over to make sure I was ok- JK and V are huge and could easily
crush me, but luckily, they had avoided that, so Joon was able to help me up, then hug
me and check to make sure I had no injuries. It was sweet of him to care about my
safety, but since we were rehearsing, I thought he was just in leader mode and keeping

me safe like the rest of the members, so I didn’t pay attention to the looks he was giving
me. We then realized having JK and V lift me would not work because the harness was
going to already be attached to me, part of my costume anyway, so the only part they
actually needed to do was bring the hook to me and make sure it clipped into place,
which could not happen there, at the dance studio-we needed the actual stage for this.

Turns out, the stage was available that night for rehearsal, which I was thankful for,
since our first performance was the very next night and I was super worried about not
being able to do my best. We had finally decided to be done practicing, so I asked the
choreographer was the plan was for me, since I had my suitcase and hadn’t even been
to any hotel or house yet, I came straight from the airport. Joon immediately replied that
I would be going home with him, so he could feed me and let me shower/rest before
that evening, if it was ok with me, which I instantly said yes to, since I was a walking
zombie at that point. He rolled my suitcase outside for me, then opened the passenger
door for me and drove quickly to his house, about 15 minutes away. He easily chatted
with me the entire time, asking about my life, teaching, etc. I completely trusted him and
started to become attracted to him by the time we arrived at his house, but there was no
time for that because he told me I could shower, while he made some food, then he
would let me rest. I did not argue because I was so sweaty from practice and exhausted
from the travels. When I got out of the shower, dressed in baggie clothes and my
soaking wet hair hanging down my back, I wandered into the main living area to find all
the guys there-just like I expected, and it made me so happy!

They had all followed Joon’s car, not wanting to miss out on food or getting to know me
better, which did not surprise me at all. Also, I knew Joon could not cook, so I had
suspected that he had asked the others to come help, so he could not be embarrassed
by his lack of kitchen skills. When they first saw me, they rushed over, hugging me,
playing with my hair, smelling me, teasing me about my tiny feet, tiny hands, etc. Joon
was the only one who hung back and waited for the others to disperse, sit around the
table etc. before calmy approaching me and asking if I was ok. I smiled right at him and
assured him that I was actually super happy, just hungry and tired, which made him
smile right at me, reach for my hand, and guide me to the table.

I scored more points when I picked up the chopsticks and immediately knew how to use
them, which all the guys pointed out and exclaimed in Korean about loudly, causing me
to jump and wait for Joon to translate, as he was laughing himself. Once they had
calmed down, we ate like normal and somehow Joon always found a reason to reach
over to me, touch me, rub my leg, stare at me, etc. After I had eaten what I could, the
guys were still chopping away, but my eyes were getting super sleepy, so I leaned my
head on Joon’s shoulder and the others started commenting on how adorable I was,
which made him blush and promptly help me up to escape down the hall. He guided me
to his room, then told me I could rest on his bed, and he would come wake me when it
was time to leave for rehearsal.

He turned to leave the room, then noticed I was shivering, wearing only a t-shirt for a
top, my hair still wet, so he came over, helped me put his hoodie on, then snuggled right
up next to me, keeping me warm until I fell asleep not long after. He wondered how he
was going to tell me how he was feeling when Suga entered the room, saw Joon’s face,
saw me sleeping, and knew right away his friend was in trouble. They talked about how
it might just be performance feelings, since I was the only female, he had ever danced
so closely with, but Joon knew it was more than that-he had felt an instant attraction and
connection the moment I had entered the dance studio and he had made eye contact
with me. He told Suga it felt like his skin was on fire when we were dancing so close
together and he had trouble remembering the steps because he was so focused on
keeping me safe, which Suga acknowledged, but also shared his concerns about, since
I was only going to be visiting them for this weekend. Joon said he did not care-he
would find a way to make it work because he could not imagine a life without me in it
anymore.

What felt like five minutes ended up being four hours, so when Joon woke me up, I felt
really fuzzy and confused, but then I saw his handsome face and knew I would be safe
because I trusted him. I changed into some dancing clothes, not so loose, because I
knew the harness would need to be fitted properly and I didn’t want to fall because the
baggie clothes got in the way. All the way to the stage Joon kept sneaking glances at
me, then grinning and looking away, sometimes blushing, so by the time we arrived, I
turned to face him and asked, “Joon, why do you keep looking at me like that? Is there
something wrong with my outfit or hair?” My hair was dry by then and I had put it into a
ponytail, wanting to avoid any hairs being ripped out by the harness soon. He blushed
and said quietly, “I just find myself very attracted to you right now and I didn’t know how
to tell you, since we just met this morning.”

I smiled and replied, “Joon, I understand, but now is not the right time to be liking me-we
have an important job to do for the concerts, and I need you to be 100% focused or I will
get hurt. You don’t want that, do you?” He shook his head, took one of my hands, kissed
it, then answered, “I promise to focus on keeping you safe for this dance, but outside of
the rehearsals and performances I cannot promise to keep my feelings hidden
anymore.” I nodded, agreed with him, then opened my car door to exit. We walked into
the stage entrance, and he had to guide me to the main stage area, which was massive,
so I was instantly afraid of being lifted up way higher than I had planned. He noticed my
worried face, then reached for my hand and squeezed it, giving me a smile and some
confidence back. I was taken to one of the backstage areas, while the guys were fitted
with their headset mics, so the harness could be fitted for my arms and legs properly,
then a random flowing dress was added on top, since I would have a costume on during
the song and they wanted to see if the harness would still work with clothing over it.

We started practicing the song, all the parts working together, until Joon’s part with me,
when we realized the harness had several metal loops placed where they dug into
Joon’s torso, making it painful for him to be near me and still perform. We tried an
alternate harness, one that went on like a diaper, around each leg and then clipped at
my belly button, with the top part coming around my arms and clipping into the bottom
like a life vest, which seemed to work better for Joon, so I didn’t mind changing. While I
was attempting to get into the next harness, the straps had not been adjusted yet, so I
had one leg in, while the other was out and when I lifted the other leg, it got caught in
the strap and I would have crashed right into the stage if Joon had not caught me and
helped me.

He asked if I was ok, then concentrated on making the straps tighter, not wanting me to
trip or fall anymore. Once it was fixed, our dance practice continued and it was much
more successful this time, especially Joon’s part because I knew when he looked at me,
the romantic looks he was showing were not fake and it made it so much easier for me
to truly react and trust him with my life. When the time came for me to be lifted, I could
feel V and JK touching my back, struggling to find the hooks, but then Joon’s calm hand
guided them and suddenly I was lifted right off the stage like an invisible hand had
picked me right up!

I had no warning, so I was not prepared for how strong the pull would be and that first
attempt had me looking like a surprised rag doll- not part of the dance at all, then the
pulley got stuck, so I was just dangling in the air, about ten feet off the ground, for
several minutes, while the guys pretended to play pinata with me, slightly out of reach,
me panicking at first, then I realized what was happening, so I folded my arms across
my chest and straightened my legs and pouted-which made them laugh and when I was
finally brought down, they all hugged me while saying how funny I was-except Joon who
was worried I got hurt. I assured him I had just been scared, but the pulley operator
promised to use a slower setting this time, so I was trying to be brave.

Luckily, the second time was successful, and I was gently lifted up, so I could actually
use my hands and legs to show the move I was supposed to, then I was swung around
and eventually brought down backstage, while the guys had run off stage through the
hallway. After a few more run throughs we decided to try it with my costume, since it
was ready backstage and I really didn’t want any accidents the next night at the actual
performance. The guys did not have to wear their outfits, which I thought was unfair, but
also, I understood, since they didn’t need to hide a harness underneath their clothes.
The first issue we realized what that the outfit had two layers-one tight, for under the
harness, while the other layer was flowing, for on top of the harness. The top layer had

a back that was completely closed, so there was nowhere for the hook to click into when
I needed to be lifted. I had put on the tight part and was halfway into the loose part
when the harness got stuck and I had no idea how to get untangled. Luckily, Joon heard
me struggling and appeared just in time to help me pull up the rest of the dress, not
saying anything about the outfit or how ridiculous I looked at the moment. The dress
was covered in lace, with flowers embroidered into it, on top of what looked like satin,
which was actually very pretty and I loved how it spun out when I turned, but again, it
didn’t have a back hole for the harness, so I had to stand perfectly still while the sewing
crew member cut a hole, then stitched up the edges so the rest of the dress would not
rip. She also added Velcro to the edges of the hole, so the harness could be attached
directly to the dress, making sure the loop was visible for the hook JK and V needed to
find while on stage. They didn’t want any mistakes and if clothing got in the way, we
didn’t know how strong the harness would be-nobody wanted me to fall down.

Once it was fixed, we headed back on stage and did a full run through with my outfit on,
which actually looked super awesome when I was dancing with each of the guys, even
they noticed how pretty it was when I was being spun around. It was finally Joon’s part
and although I knew he was worried about the outfit keeping me safe, he kept his
concerns to himself, only showing the care he knew I needed to see, which gave me
confidence, and when V/JK reached for the strap, easily got the hook attached, I was
gently lifted up, posing in my final move, rotated around and put down backstage. Joon
was the first to reach me and swung me around in his arms, telling me how beautiful I
looked and how happy he was that I got to dance with them-he liked protecting me. I
was blushing as the other guys took turns complimenting me, saying how unsure they
were in the beginning, since we had never met and I wasn’t even living in their country
at the time.

Soon after, we got me changed back into my original outfit, then headed back to Joon’s
for a later dinner and bedtime, since we had another rehearsal in the morning, followed
by sound checks and the actual concert started at 5pm. I helped with dinner, since I’m
good at cooking, and Jin was grateful for the help because Joon is clumsy and not
welcome in anyone’s kitchen because of it. I laughed and winked at Joon, who
pretended to be offended, but also smiled right back at me. Once dinner was done, the
guys were just hanging out, not sleepy yet, and neither was I because I had slept earlier
and the time difference made it impossible for me to adjust myself. They were playing
video games, on their phones, or just chatting, which I loved being a part of-they are
actually a really sweet group of guys!

Around midnight, Joon said the sky was really clear and asked if I wanted to go look at
the stars with him, so I agreed, but I didn’t have a jacket, so he gave me one of his to
wear and led me outside, holding my hand. He led me over to a swinging bench he has
in his backyard, then helped me sit next to him, told me to look up at the sky and tell him

what I saw. I love the night sky, so I was happily describing constellations to him, the
whole time he was watching me, rubbing my cheeks, rubbing my hands, etc. until he
finally said, “I need you to know how important you are to me. I also want to know if you
think you could ever be as attracted to me as I am to you. Do you think you could ever
love me for just being myself?” I was caught off guard by his comment, not expecting it
at all, so I had to pause for a second, take a deep breath, and think about what he was
actually asking me.

“Joon, I think you already know that I am attracted to you, from the moment we had to
practice our part for the dance, where I could feel you breathing and see the look on
your face when you must be that close to me. I knew you were not acting like the other
members, and I’m pretty sure you could tell I wasn’t either. I don’t care about anything
that has to do with your fame-I just like you for who you are with me. Caring, protective,
calm, sweet, thoughtful, and very handsome. But why would you choose me, when
there are literally millions of other, younger and prettier girls all over the world who
would die to be sitting here with you right now, holding your hand?”

He kissed my cheek, then answered, “You are right-there are tons of girls around the
world who think they love me, or pretend to love me, but you are forgetting one very
important thing- they don’t know the real me and if they did, most of them would not be
interested anymore. I choose you because you see the real me, like me for myself, give
me hope for the future, bring out the best in me, and love the guys as much as they love
you, which has been impossible to find in the past. You don’t care how rich or famous
we are, as long as we are kind human beings with respect for others. I value that more
than anything else.”

I felt my cheeks catch fire but still nodded to show I understood what he was saying. He
was silent for a while, so I thought I had maybe made him mad, but when I looked up at
his face, he was staring right back at me. He had been watching me looking at the stars,
enjoying me being happy, and didn’t want to ruin the moment. I should have anticipated
his reaction but didn’t and was totally shocked when he kissed me, very cautiously, but
sweetly, then leaned his forehead on mine and whispered, “I would do anything for you
and follow you anywhere in this world if you let me be a part of your life.” I was too
shocked to answer, which he saw and made him chuckle, then he kissed me again and
watched my cheeks get hot, which he secretly loved, so he smiled and told me, “I don’t
think I will ever get tired of watching your face. It is so expressive, and I love every
second of your reactions.”

I tried to bury my face in his jacket, but ended up falling off the bench, which made him
laugh, so once he helped me back next to him, the romance was ruined, but he was
even more in love with me, which I did not know at the time.

We sat for about another half hour, then he felt my head resting on his shoulder,
watched my eyes getting heavy, and knew it was time to head back inside for bedtime.
This time, he guided me inside, waited for me to change and get ready for bed, then
motioned for me to cuddle him right away, which I happily accepted. I was asleep
quickly, having been physically and emotionally overwhelmed for most of the day, so it
didn’t surprise him when he heard my breathing slow down and felt my fingers loosen
their grip on his shirt I had been clutching. He brushed a few hairs away from my face,
then kissed my forehead, just as Suga entered the room. He already knew what he was
going to say, but Suga could not argue with what he saw on Joon’s face and changed
his speech to ask how in the world we would make a romance work when we didn’t
even live near each other. Joon was so content and enjoying the moment that he
ignored Suga’s questions and just told him he would find a way once the concerts were
done because he could not allow me to be anyone else’s love-he was determined to
keep me all to himself.

Suga could sense defeat, but when JK and V came in, they didn’t even try to talk Joon
out of it-they fully supported him, just like he had fully supported them when they shared
their hearts with him. Jimin, Jin, and JHope soon came in as well, saw Joon so happy
with me snuggled right next to him, then knew they could not deny their leader his one
chance at happiness. Although they did not fully understand, they did agree that Joon
deserved a chance to be happy and if that meant loving me, then they would support
him somehow, some way.

I woke up in the morning, around 10 am, really confused about where I was and who
was surrounding me because even though Joon was right behind me, I also had others
in front of me. JK and V had squeezed into the bed with us, and I was now the monkey
in the middle, which didn’t bother me, just confused me because I did not remember
anyone else being in the bed when I fell asleep with Joon. I rolled onto my back,
accidentally waking Joon in the process, but he was happy to see me and smiled. I just
blinked and tried to focus on the details from the night before-something about him
liking me because I liked him just the way he was… I started blushing, which he noticed
right away, traced my cheeks with his hand, then kissed me and whispered, “I will never
grow tired of waking up next to your beautiful face every morning.” I bit my bottom lip
and stared at him, apparently the wrong thing to do, which made him kiss me again and
say, “Why do you make me lose my mind with every look or action from you?”
I giggled at his reaction, then he helped me get out of the bed, so I could use the
bathroom. Once I was done, he took his turn and as soon as he was in the hallway, I
threw my arms around his neck and said, “Thank you for being so amazing to me. I
never have to worry about my safety with you around because I know you will always
protect me. I will do my best to love you as much as you love me, if you are patient.”
Then I buried my burning cheeks in his neck as he pulled me in for a tight hug.

We stood there for a few minutes, then he gently untangled himself from me and told me
we needed to get breakfast ready for the guys so we wouldn’t be late.