The Letter
Chapter 1 – The Letter
"Mae? MAE, do you hear me?"
Everything was a blur. My heart was racing, my chest tightening like someone had wrapped it in a rope. I felt my body start shaking because someone touched my arm.
"Mae, are you okay? What happened?" Ayla's voice cut through the fog.
I blinked hard until my surroundings came back into focus. The café, the soft chatter of people around us, the smell of coffee and cinnamon in the air. And Ayla—my best friend since high school—sitting across from me, her brows furrowed in concern.
I swallowed, forcing myself to breathe. "Ayla, look at this." My voice trembled as I handed her my phone.
Before I could explain, her eyes widened, and she screamed loud enough to make people turn their heads. "You were chosen to go to Korea for your internship!?!"
Heat rushed to my cheeks. I nodded slowly, whispering, "Yes." It sounded so unreal that I almost didn't believe it myself.
I grabbed the phone back, staring at the screen as if the words might suddenly vanish.
Dear Mae Kuijpers,
We would love to announce that a music entertainment company has chosen you to finish your internship in Korea.
We first want to congratulate you and applaud the hard work you put in to make this happen. We, as a school, are proud that one of our students has been accepted into this trial.
You have been accepted into JYP Entertainment. They have informed us that they need confirmation that you will be able to spend the next 12 months in Korea. Please sign the documents attached, including the privacy statement and contract.
Pros: the flight will be paid for and you will receive a salary of €2500,00 a month.
Please send the confirmation before July 1st. The flight is scheduled for August 20th, and your first day at JYP will be August 25th.
Mae, we believe you will have an amazing time and wish you the best.
Kind regards,
MyArt Academia
My fingers tightened around the phone. This was real. This wasn't just some silly dream I used to whisper about in Ayla's room at 3 a.m. while we listened to music and complained about school. This was happening.
I felt Ayla's eyes on me. "Mae... this is huge. Do you even realize what this means?"
"Yes," I said softly. "I realize." But did I? Did I really?
"It's JYP! Like... the JYP. What's holding you back?" Her voice was filled with excitement, and her smile could have lit up the entire café.
My stomach twisted. "What if it's not the right choice? I mean... it's a whole year. I'll be gone from here, from you, from my family. What if I regret it?"
Ayla leaned forward, her hands wrapping around mine. "Mae, listen. You're twenty-two. You deserve to live. You live alone, you work, you study—you've been so serious about everything. Maybe it's time you go out there, make friends, do something crazy for once. You don't get opportunities like this every day."
I looked at her, her dark eyes filled with certainty. Ayla always believed in me, even when I couldn't.
I sighed, leaning back in my chair. "Maybe you're right..."
"Of course I am," she said with a wink. "Now stop overthinking. You've been dreaming about something like this forever."
Later that night, I sat on my bed, the letter still open on my laptop. My room felt unusually small, like the walls were pressing in on me. I hugged a pillow to my chest and tried to imagine myself in Korea.
The thought scared me... but it also made my heart beat faster in a good way. Excitement. Fear. Hope. It was all mixed together.
I pressed play on my playlist, and the familiar voices of Stray Kids filled my room. Their music had been with me through sleepless nights, long study hours, and every heartbreak I'd had so far.
And then... it hit me.
Stray Kids. JYP.
My eyes widened as I sat up straighter. If I went through with this internship, I'd technically be under the same company as them. Not that I'd actually meet them—let's be real, idols live in their own world—but still. Just the thought of walking through the same building, breathing the same air, was enough to make me squeal into my pillow.
I rolled onto my stomach, kicking my feet in the air like a lovesick teenager. For the first time all day, I felt genuinely happy.
Without thinking twice, I opened the email again and scrolled down to the attached documents. My hands were trembling, but this time it wasn't fear—it was adrenaline.
I whispered to myself, "You're really doing this, Mae."
Page after page, I read through the contract. Most of it was standard legal stuff I barely understood, but I didn't care. I filled in my details carefully, my heart pounding with each line.
When I finally reached the last page, I signed my name: Mae Kuijpers.
I sat back and stared at it for a long moment, letting it sink in. This was it. I had just taken the first step into a completely different life.
My phone buzzed with a message.
Ayla: Sooo??? Did you do it yet? 👀
I smiled, biting my lip, and typed back: I did. I'm going to Korea.
Almost instantly, she replied with a line of screaming emojis and: I KNEW IT! Proud of you girl!
I laughed, hugging my phone to my chest. Maybe Ayla was right. Maybe this was exactly what I needed.
But as the laughter faded, silence crept back in. My eyes wandered to the ceiling, and I let out a slow breath.
Twelve months. A whole year. Far away from home, from everything I knew.
Could I really do this?
I closed my eyes and let the music play louder. The lyrics wrapped around me like a blanket, reminding me why I had started songwriting in the first place. Music had always been my escape, my way of expressing what I couldn't say out loud.
Maybe this internship wasn't just about school. Maybe it was about finding myself.
I opened my eyes and whispered into the quiet of my room, "Korea... here I come."
Now I just have to tell my mom and little brother....
