Chapter 1 - I don’t even have a plus one,okay?
It was just another tragic Tuesday at the office.
Hana had been staring at her laptop screen for so long, she was convinced it was burning her retina. She squinted. Nope. Still Excel. Still suffering.
“Everyone, can we gather near the pantry for a quick announcement?”
Oh god. That voice. That cheerful, overly moisturized voice.
Hana dragged herself toward the group like a zombie. There they were—The Couple—shining brighter than the office LED lights.
Jaehyun and Mirae.
“Surprise!” Mirae beamed, flashing a rock so huge it had its own timezone. “We’re getting married!”
Applause. Screams. Glitter from somewhere??
“We’ve left invitations on your desks,” Jaehyun added, “And don’t forget to bring your plus ones!”
“Plus one?” Hana muttered. “My what?”
She looked around. Everyone else had someone: Jisoo from HR was already texting her boyfriend. Manager Kim was high-fiving his wife. Even that weird intern had a date lined up.
Hana? She had leftover curry and a dying plant named Bruce.
―――
Later that evening…
Drink Night™ was in full swing.
“To Jaehyun and Mirae!”
“Love! Booze! And never doing office work again!”
Hana downed another shot of soju and slammed the glass down like she was in a K-drama.
“Who needs a plus one anyway,” she mumbled. “I have… me.”
Someone passed her another shot. Bad idea.
Fifteen minutes later, she was dramatically singing into a spoon.
“You are the cause of my euphoria—”
“Unnie, that’s the menu.”
―――
Midnight. It was raining.
The romantic kind of rain where couples kissed under umbrellas.
Hana? She was walking home alone, wobbling like a penguin in heels.
“Stupid Jaehyun and his romantic face. Stupid Mirae and her fairytale ring. Ugh.”
She almost slipped on the sidewalk, cursed gravity, and continued muttering to herself.
Then—bump.
She crashed into someone.
“Woah—s-sorry,” she slurred.
The person was in a black raincoat, face hidden, tall and silent. As they walked away, something shiny fell from their pocket.
“HEY!” Hana shouted. “You dropped something!”
No reply. Just the rain.
She picked it up. It was a golden ticket. Literally. Shimmery and smooth, glowing faintly under the streetlight. On it were the words, handwritten in swoopy script:
3 Wishes. Yours. Use Wisely.
Hana blinked.
“…Am I drunk or did I just fall into a fairy tale?”
She giggled.
“Okay okay—if you’re real, magic ticket thing—I want to date Kim Seojun. Yeah. The hottest actor alive. The literal man of my dreams. Make it happen!”
And with that, she yeeted it into the trash can.
Unseen by her, the back of the ticket read:
Be careful what you wish for.
―――
The Next Morning
The alarm buzzed like it hated her.
Hana groaned, rolled out of bed, and stumbled into the bathroom with raccoon eyes and zero motivation.
Her head was pounding. She needed coffee. And probably a life coach.
Then she heard something.
Clatter. Sizzle. A humming sound.
From her Kitchen.
She froze.
“I live alone”, she whispered.
She grabbed a pen like a dagger, phone in hand, ready to call the cops.
Step by step, she crept toward the sound.
She peeked in.
And then her pen dropped.
There, standing in her kitchen, flipping eggs like it was the most normal thing in the world… was Kim Seojun.
Her favourite actor. Her one and only celebrity crush, in boxers. In her home.
He looked up and smiled
“Morning, Honey. Breakfast is ready.”
Hana blinked.
“What the F…”
