{h} the butterfly effect : bts gang au

I.

The bones in my hand start to ache and crack as I struggle to finish my last sentence on an exam. My heart skips a beat as the timer goes off and I still have three more words to go.

"Fuck," I mutter to myself, looking around at my classmates who have the same mixed look of anxiety and relief as I do. My entire essay is a mess, and not having a finished statement at the end just scrapes the icing off of the corn muffin. This amateur paper is far from a piece of delicious cake; it's as tasteless as a corn muffin.

"Everyone please put your pencils down. As you exit, put your essays on my desk in a pile. Have a fun and a safe break everyone! And don't forget about those books you have to read and dissect by September!" Our professor announces into the now nearly empty room. How great. Reading six books is definitely how I want to spend my next three months of vacation.

My wrist cracks in pain as I toss my essay onto the aging desk that belongs to my literature professor. Walking out the double doors that separates the classroom from the corridor, I notice my friend's shiny brown hair while she is standing by the window.

"How did you do?" She hesitates, knowing the expression on my face isn't a happy one. I grind my teeth together before I spill out a response.

"I did as good as your grades throughout your first year of high school," I groan, gripping my sore wrist. I'm going to have to ice this baby for weeks. Jae gives me a small smile while placing a hand on my shoulder.

"That bad, huh?" We start walking towards the exit that shielded the inside from the warm air outside. I chuckle slightly at her reply as my hair whips in my face upon walking out to the windy yet warm day.

"Definitely not my best. That was worth about thirty percent of my overall grade too," I cringe at the thought of how horrible my paper is. College hasn't been an easy trip for me and it doesn't look like it's getting easier in the future.

"You have worked so hard to prepare for this, Hana! I doubt it turned out that bad and you are just self criticizing yourself," she tries assuring me. I fight the urge to roll my eyes at my friend who is just trying to help.

"I didn't even have time to finish my last sentence," I say. She looks at me while shrugging her shoulders. "Okay, well sorry I actually care about how well I do in school."

"And you think I don't? Should I remind you that we are in the same college so obviously I've been doing something right." Jae rolls her eyes at me, nudging my shoulder a little.

I run my fingers through my hair which was slowly thinning because of how much I stressfully go through with this habit. Some people bite their nails when they are nervous, but I just play with my hair when I'm nervous which is almost every moment of everyday.

"You're right, I'm sorry. It's just now for the next few weeks I'm going to have crippling panic attacks over this fucking essay and just the thought of it is stressing me out," I complain.

"We could get so drunk that we forget about everything," Jae suggests playfully, knowing how much I do not like drinking. It leaves me with an empty feeling in my stomach along with a fuzzy mind, and I like being in control of my actions. But right now, I'll have an exception.

"Honestly, that is probably the best idea I've ever heard," I confess and she looks at me with wide eyes, obviously having to process the unbelievable words that have slipped between my lips.

"Well I'll ask around to see if anyone is having a party tonight and if not we can just get wasted in our apartment," she smirks, swinging an arm over my shoulder which makes my body tense up in response. "Jeez, Hana. Relax, would you?"

"I would if I could," I simply say as we head down the street towards our apartment. The road smelt strongly of exhaust and rubber, which was the basic stench of the ever-growing city of Seoul. The busy sidewalk ushers me to keep moving at an unnaturally quick pace that puts a slight strain in my knees.

Before I knew it, Jae is unlocking the door to Apartment #13. Relief instantly runs through my veins as I plop my body down on the futon we use as a couch.

"Tea or coffee?" Jae asks while walking into our small but efficient kitchen. It's walls are sort of an off-white that probably are discolored because of time and one of the lightbulbs in the ceiling has been out for several months, yet it was still an organized and clean kitchen because that's how I like it. If Jae lived here on her own, there would probably be dirty dishes in the sink for weeks before she would finally do them.

"Tea, please," I muffle into the simple throw pillow we keep here just to make it feel more like a home. Despite it only being halfway through the treacherous day, I feel my eyes start to feel weighted down in exhaustion.

To make sure I don't fall asleep, I turn on the television to distract me from my impending slumber. The news instantly flashes on the screen with a serious looking reporter.

"--and police are still looking out to find these masked criminals. Supposedly, this gang sets out 'to take care of what the police can't', but this gang is still a danger to the city. So far there have not been any classification on names or faces, but if anyone has any information on the gang BTS, please report it to the police immediately." The reporters face disappeared from view as I changed the channel to something more interesting.

I have never seen any gang activity in Seoul, nor have I heard anyone speak of it really. These people are probably blowing this entire thing out of proportion like they usually do.

My eyelids become extremely heavy, and I let the weight holding my eyes open go. The faint smell of tea and Jae's perfume lulls me to sleep before I could protest.