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"Your presence can give happiness. I hope you remember that."
~Jin~
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Marriage and Soulmates: What's The Difference?
There is a distinction between those who are married and those who are soulmates. Some people who are married are not soulmates.
However, while you can change the person you're married to, you cannot change your soulmate. You cannot divorce your soulmate. They are simply your soulmate.
Soulmates are required to have physical contact daily with each other the first few months after finding each other. This gives the soulmate bond time to fully form, settle, and strengthen itself. Most soulmates can sense each other's intense emotions (i.e. euphoria, grief, pain, anger).
Some people believe that those with an extremely strong soulmate bond can even communicate telepathically, though this has not been scientifically proven.
Thus, there are specific laws that only pertain to soulmates. Soulmates are granted the ability to sue on behalf of their other half in cases of neglect or abuse where the victim might be ignorant to the neglect/abuse.
—an excerpt from
Laws and Soulmates
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Jimin didn't stir as I creep over to my duffel bag to grab my laptop. I try my best to remain silent while unzipping my duffel bag and pulling my laptop out.
With my laptop secured in my grip, I tiptoe back to my seat. I hold my breathe as Jimin moves a little in his sleep. When he didn't make another move, I cover myself with the blankets I had set to the side.
Now that I know for sure that BTS are my soulmates, there are some things I need to do. I already know I have to confront a rather controversial topic.
Is Jin mistreated by BigHit?
I came across this question when I was researching anything and everything about my soulmates. A lot of people seem to believe that Jin is not being treated fairly by BigHit.
I didn't know what to believe. Almost everything I found claimed that BigHit treated the boys like family. But, at the same time, it's a business. And my soulmates will always come before BigHit.
There were plenty of instances where Jin has been excluded or left out. He's been cut out of group pictures, given less lines, and barely has any screen time.
I know there's two sides to every story, which is why I made sure all my research was thorough and I wasn't simply basing everything off of someone else's words.
What I discovered left me heated and wondering if anyone even noticed (besides ARMY) what was being done to one of mine.
#1. Jin was once forced to perform even though he had hurt his neck in Kcon Paris. BigHit never made an official report about his condition.
This is something I agree with it. Being forced to perform while injured can negatively affect somebody (in this case, Jin).
#2. Jin was called fat by Bang-PD as well as his manager (who later was fired for mistreating Jungkook). Around the same time, Jin went on a diet and only ate chicken breast for a year.
This isn't something I can personally confirm. Jin said in a video that he "heard" which means that he could've possibly heard it from someone who was lying. Even with this possibility, I was furious when I read the article. Emotional abuse is still abuse. Did Bang-PD ever address this?
#3. Jin gets less lines and screen time.
This is something I absolutely believe. In Not Today, his only solo shot was around two seconds long and the Behind the Scenes video showed the crew filming a lot more of him. Jin was apparently told he had a voice that was more suited for ballads. But, in Butterfly, Jin was the vocal with the least amount of lines.
And I still came across more!!!
I broke down crying while researching. In some pictures, Jin would be cut out. For a second, it seemed like BTS only had six members and not seven.
I'm not going to schedule a meeting with Bang-PD behind everyone's backs (that can come later, if I have to) and suddenly go rogue. That wouldn't help anyone. I want to speak to Jin personally about it. Of course, I'm not going to bring it up right now.
They're currently on a tour. It's probably not the best time to say, "Hey, Jin! I think BigHit is mistreating you and you deserve better, so let's go have a talk with Bang-PD real quick!".
No, that's not the way to go about this. I'll be patient. It's the least I can do.
(After all, I'm about to shake things up.)
I open up my laptop and snuggle into my blankets. After making sure Jimin was still comfortable, I open up a new tab. The first episode of Bon Voyage is soon pulled up on my screen.
I quickly turn the volume down before it wakes Jimin. I don't need it anyway—I only read the subtitles.
~o0o~
(two hours later)
I pause the episode of What's New Scooby-Doo? to get up and use the bathroom. I had ended up switching from Bon Voyage to the classic TV show.
I remember so many early mornings where me and my uncle would have a Scooby-Doo marathon. We'd get a bunch of snacks and blankets, so we didn't even have to get up from the couch except for a bathroom break.
Speaking of a bathroom break, I need to change. Again.
~BTSBTSBTS~
After I relieved myself, I take a second to check out the back of the plane. I was discreet about it, so I'm pretty sure no one noticed me.
All the make-up artists were asleep, but it seemed like the security guards were doing shifts still. That's true dedication—I respect that. I know it's also their job, but I would be knocked out in their position.
I slip back to the front where the boys are. Namjoon is completely focused on what he's doing. He has a pair of earbuds in his ears and is scribbling furiously in his notebook.
A feeling of appreciation and love overwhelms me. Every member of BTS is special and they all shine so brightly. It's obvious even in the quiet moments like this.
They've accomplished so many things and they won't stop here. BTS will continue growing and becoming better. And you know what? I'll be right alongside them, cheering them on.
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After my moment of supreme snappiness, I check on how everyone is doing. Jin had reappeared and was asleep in his seat. Yoongi, bless him, is still asleep. Taehyung seems to have woken up and is talking with Hoseok. Jungkook is eating some food, scratch that, a lot of food.
Interrupt Hoseok and Taehyung or go back to my seat? Hmmm.
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I plop down in the seat besides Taehyung and act as if I had been there all along. Of course, I have not a clue as to what they're saying because they're speaking in Korean currently.
I don't even really mind—it's soothing just to listen to their voices.
They pause their conversation for a second, but when they see that I'm not saying anything, they soon resume it.
I start to play with Taehyung's hand, bending his fingers and tracing out little symbols with my fingertips.
He lets loose a tiny giggle when I trace over the center of his palm. Other than that, he doesn't show any sign that he's noticed what I'm doing with his hand.
Hoseok spares me a bright smile before he's engaged in his talk again. Raising Tae's hand up and turning it to face towards me, I marvel at its size.
I decide to press my hand against his to see the contrast between our hands.
Aligning my hand with his, I'm not a bit surprised at the outcome. His hand completely dwarfs my own. I smother my giggles as I interlock our fingers together for a moment before releasing them.
I only wanted to spend a quick minute with my soulmates; they're obviously having an important discussion. Not too important though, I guess, or they would've asked me to leave. At least, I think they would.
I return to my seat besides Jimin. He remains knocked out and doesn't even twitch as I settle back down in my seat.
(10 hours left of the flight)
~o0o~
(4 hours later)
I yawn as I shut my laptop and set it down on the floor. I had journeyed to the darkest corners of the internet in an attempt to amuse myself. I also ended up falling down the the rabbit hole known as Twitter.
I guess people really like my tweets? Though, me getting 20.4K followers is a bit of a stretch. At first, I thought it was a really big deal. But then I realized that it's actually not.
The followers could be bots or random people who just decided to follow. I'm pretty sure at least half of them or more will unfollow me in a week or so.
It does make me happy to know that other people enjoy my humor.
Actually, there's a funny (by this, I mean hurtful) story behind the second meme.
When I was a junior in high school, I had a boyfriend. His name? Kyle.
He was a senior and everything seemed to be going great. We made out a couple of times, went on a couple of dates. We were supposed to go to prom together, but some stuff happened.
By stuff, I mean he accidentally butt-dialed me while he was fucking someone else. I didn't really know the girl. I think she was pretty popular?
That was no excuse for what he did though. I made sure my revenge was swift and sweet.
Once I realized what was going on, I started recording the call. After a good five minutes, I hung up on him. My recording also caught Kyle moaning the name of the girl.
Jessica was really surprised when I confronted Kyle and played the recording on full-volume in front of the entire school. And she knew what she was doing. She told him to forget about "that Japanese wannabe".
I'm pretty sure they both remember me and what my name is after that.
I tug the blankets over me and grab my earphones. Opening up Spotify, I get comfortable and start playing my music (BTS Soft Playlist: Chill and Relaxing).
~o0o~
(five and a half hours later)
"Everyone, we will be landing shortly. Please take this time to prepare to leave the plane. In 15 minutes, we will begin to land. During this time, you will be asked to put your seatbelts on and remain in your seats. Thank you."
I'm torn from my sleep by the loud voice coming across the intercom. After the pilot finished speaking in English, he started speaking Korean. I assume he's repeating the same thing he said.
Everyone seemed to be up. All of our bags were grouped together, the blankets and pillows were being put up, and everybody was cleaning up their stuff.
I stand up and begin to fold my blanket. Once I finished, I walk over to the cabinet where the boys had put their blankets and pillows and add mine to it. After I complete my task, I slip my laptop into my duffel bag and look for someone to talk to.
My eyes land on Hoseok and I jog over to him. He has a list in his hands and seems to be checking over it.
When he hears my footsteps approaching him, he tucks away the list and looks up.
"Hi, cutie!" Hoseok smiles as he shifts his attention to me.
"Hello," I channel my inner Adele and mimic her singing the best I can. In my opinion, it was pretty close, but Hoseok's guffawing says otherwise.
Honestly, it wasn't my worst attempt. He takes a second to breathe, sees me glaring, and starts laughing again.
"Do you know who I'm staying with when we get to Sydney?" I grumble. His laughter finally dies down and he takes a moment to calm himself.
"I think you're staying with the crew this time. We're going to be having cameras on us almost all the time."
"That makes sense," I reply with a nod. "I'll take my bag with me then."
I was about to ask him what was the name of the hotel we would be staying at when the pilot interrupted.
"This is your pilot speaking. Will all passengers please take a seat? We are preparing to descend."
~o0o~
(15 minutes later)
(6 A.M. in Ohio; 8 P.M. in Sydney)
(September 2nd - Thursday)
I blend in with the make-up artists and security guards as we all bundle off of the plane. BTS is right behind us but pauses for some quick photos.
I hide a grin at the sight of them. Their mismatched outfits somehow work.
A group of security guards break off from the cluster of people and surround the boys. It looks like security is even more beefed up.
Earlier this year, I vaguely remember seeing a lot of tweets about a death threat made to a member of BTS. In the month while I was waiting for the concert, I found out it was Jimin who was threatened.
Someone said they were going to fucking shoot him! I can understand not liking BTS (no, I can't), but to want to actually take the life of someone else? You're fucked up.
Our group is addressed by a man standing at the front. I think he might be Manager Hobeom?
"Okay, we will be staying at the Novotel Sydney Olympic Park Hotel. It's around three minutes away from where the concert will be held. If you lose the group, we will not turn around for you! I trust you can all find the hotel yourselves if something unexpected happens."
He repeats what he said in Korean. It's more than likely that BigHit has employees who only speak English. That's why they make sure to say important information in both languages.
The crowd of people all start to move towards the airport. Luckily, it's night time, so the heat isn't too bad.
It's still a relief when we enter the building and are greeted with a gust of cool air. The group starts to move to the front of the airport and I follow after them.
Everything is going absolutely perfectly. Of course, that's why life decided to up the difficulty level.
I'm right behind the group. There are other people in the airport besides us, so it's easy to get lost. I, however, made sure to stay a foot behind someone I know is a BigHit employee. I didn't really care to see who was behind me.
Which is why, when I'm shoved from behind and end up facedown on the dirty airport floor, I'm extremely disoriented.
Someone's hands harshly land on my shoulder. They dig their fingers into my skin and shove with all their might. I'm sure if I look at my shoulders, I'll see a plethora of finger-shaped bruises.
My head slams against the linoleum floor with a loud crack. My ears ring; I can't hear anything else. I try to push myself up, but a foot on my back shoves me back down.
The clicking of heels echoes in my ears as I see my assailant walk away.
Peeling myself off the floor takes a minute, but a minute is enough time for the group to completely leave me behind.
I struggle to make my way to a bench to sit down. It'd be stupid of me to just sit in the middle of an airport. That's asking to get trampled on.
Speaking of getting trampled on, I swear to God, that bitch is going down. Shoving me is one thing. Stepping on me? Oh, just wait.
Akari Bennett always gets her revenge.
My army of unicorns will stomp all over you. Let's see who likes being stepped on now? I bet you never thought of what a unicorn's horn could be used for.
"Miss?" A voice cuts through my thoughts of unicorns and mayhem.
Is he talking to me? He's talking to me, right? Well, I'll look stupid if he isn't talking to me. But, he's probably talking to me.
"Yes, young grasshopper?"
Grasshoppers remind me of Jiminy Cricket. Jiminy......Jimin!
Oh. My. God.
Jimin is a cricket! This explains so much. Wait, what does it explain? My head hurts.
"Miss? Miss?! Miss?!?!?"
I faintly register a pair of arms wrapping around me as I fall. Sleep sounds pretty good right now. There I can dream of walking over bitches in black heels, stabbing things with a unicorn horn, and a Jimin cricket.
"I need some help over here!"
I have one last conscious thought as my mind gives in and drifts off to that sweet abyss of darkness,
'Are those cotton candy clouds?'
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All seven members of BTS wince. The cause? A sharp bolt of pain that quickly fades. Not one of them give the sudden pain a second thought because of how quickly it goes away.
They're only focused on getting through their crowd of fans, so they can get to their hotel as soon as possible.
No one notices the smirk playing out on her wicked lips, satisfied with her work.
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A/N: Thoughts? Sorry, it's been so long, this chapter would not cooperate. It still feels a bit awkward to me, but there's really not that much to do on an airplane in my opinion. Akari does have a (light) concussion; she bruises and gets hurt very easily. Her secret social media account will come in play later on in the story. BTS was feeling Akari's pain but it stopped when she passed out. Who's the mysterious person? 😳
Edit—02/06/21–Akari doesn't have a concussion—or rather she does, but it's pretty light and not the reason she passed out. Instead, she had a syncopal episode, which is commonly referred to as fainting, and can be caused by a numerous amount of things.
I definitely think Jin has been mistreated by BigHit in the past, but it's gotten better. Since I haven't done this, I'll do it now. I do not own the pictures or memes used in the story. I give all the credit to the owners. I also do not own the information about Jin. I got it from a blog. (The playlist mentioned in this chapter isn't mine either.)
I know this chapter mentions Jimin a lot. Akari was mainly by him for most of it, so he's been at the forefront of her mind. This chapter also gave a bit of background on Akari! I hope you guys liked it! Please vote and comment! If I made any mistakes, please let me know! Until next time, my fireflies!
***Also because I was so sappy and wanted to show Jin some love, enjoy my first-ever edit!