Chapter - 1
The soft morning sunlight slipped through the curtains, falling gently across Aria’s face. She stirred slightly, pulling the blanket closer before finally opening her eyes with a small, content smile.
Mornings had always been her favorite. They felt… safe. Predictable. Like nothing bad could ever happened.
“Aria! You’re going to be late again!” her mother’s voice echoed from downstairs.
“I’m awake!” she called back, laughing softly as she got out of bed.
At twenty, Aria’s life was everything she had ever hoped for. A college student, working toward her dream of becoming a doctor—just like her parents .
Her mother, a respected doctor, and her father, equally dedicated to his profession, had built a life in South Korea over the past twenty years. And in that life, Aria had grown up—an Indian girl with roots in two worlds, yet perfectly at home in both.
She quickly got ready and rushed downstairs, the familiar smell of breakfast welcoming her.
Her father sat at the table, scrolling through his tablet, while her mother placed plates in front of them.
“Late night studying again?” her father asked.
Aria grinned. “Future doctor. I don’t have a choice.”
“Or maybe she just wants to impress someone,” a teasing voice interrupted.
Aria rolled her eyes. “Aarav, focus on your own life.”
Her younger brother smirked. “I am. My life doesn’t include smiling at my phone like an idiot.”
“Eat your breakfast,” she muttered, but couldn’t hide her smile.
Their home was always like this—warm, noisy, filled with small arguments that never lasted longer than a minute.
And Aria loved it..
Her younger brother Aarav, still in school, was the chaos of the house—always teasing, always loud.
And Aria? She was the calm in between.
The day passed like any other—lectures, notes, laughter with friends.
Aria was the kind of person people were drawn to. Bright, kind, and effortlessly warm. The kind of girl who made life feel lighter just by being around.
As the evening approached, she finally headed home, the sky painted in soft shades of orange and pink.
Earphones in, music playing softly, she smiled to herself.
She had always admired them—not just for their music, but for who they were.
BTS.
All seven of them.
They weren’t just idols to her. They were comfort, inspiration… a small, beautiful part of her everyday life.
She was walking toward her house, lost in her thoughts, when suddenly—
THUMP!
“Ahh—!”
Aria jumped, her hand flying to her shoulder.
“Annie! You scared me!” she snapped, turning around. “Why the hell on earth are you running like a horse?”
Annie stood there, completely out of breath, bending slightly as she tried to speak.
“I… I… hav—”
She stopped, huffing hard.
Aria frowned. “What? I can’t understand anything you’re saying!”
“Okay… okay…” Aria held her shoulders. “First breathe in… breathe out. Relax. Do you need water?”
Annie quickly shook her head. “No… no water… I have something good to share…”
Aria raised an eyebrow. “And what is it?”
Annie suddenly straightened, her eyes sparkling.
“Guess what???”
Aria blinked. “what?”
“I GOT IT!!! YEEEEEEE!” Annie screamed.
Aria stared at her. “What did you get, Annie?”
Annie grabbed her hands, jumping.
“BTS concert tickets!!!”
For a second, everything froze.
Aria’s eyes widened.“Tickets, Aria! BTS concert tickets! WE’RE GOING!!!”
“Oh my God—OH MY GOD—REALLY?!”Both of them screamed at the same time, jumping like kids in the middle of the street, laughing uncontrollably.
“This can’t be real!” Aria said, her eyes shining.
“It IS real!” Annie laughed. “I tried for hours—and I got them!”
She slowly put her palm over her mouth.
“I… I can’t believe it…” her voice trembled. “After what feels like eternity… after so much hard work… after seeing them from so far… admiring them from so far…”
Her eyes filled with tears.
“The dream to meet them… to go to their concert… it’s finally going to come true…”
She turned toward Annie, tears slipping down her cheeks.
“Annie… do you remember how hard we tried to get the tickets?”
Annie laughed softly through her own tears. “Don’t even remind me…”
“We didn’t have enough money…” Aria continued.
“And when we finally saved enough—”
“The tickets were sold out!” Annie cut in.
Both of them laughed, even as tears rolled down their faces.
“And we were crying in each other’s arms…” Aria said softly.
“Pathetic,” Annie added, wiping her tears with her fingers. “Okay, Aria, now don’t cry.”
Aria smiled through her tears. “You don’t cry either.”
They both looked at each other… and smiled.
A moment filled with pure happiness.
Suddenly, Aria gasped. “Wait—that’s why you didn’t come to college today!”
She hugged Annie tightly. “You know I missed you so much!”
Annie hugged her back just as tightly. “Yes! Because this time… I didn’t want to regret not getting BTS tickets.”
Aria laughed, her heart lighter than ever.
Everything felt perfect.
Too perfect.
She didn’t know—
That this happiness…
this moment…
was standing right before the storm.
That soon, everything she loved…
everything she trusted…
would begin to fall apart.
