Gallery

Louder Than Bombs

'Smart man, posting those photos would have the gallery swamped with fans if they thought they had a chance to see him'. 

My apartment is filled with clothes and shoes everywhere, with backpacks and purses scattered from my pillows to the desk. It was hard to get the encounter out of my head, recalling the expression on his face as he realized he'd been spotted made me feel guilty. My stomach churned at the thoughts he might have had in those few seconds as he watched me from across the room. But I couldn't keep dwelling on it, because he sure as hell wasn't worried about the girl who'd spotted him and run away. I had a concert to plan for, where I was actually hoping to get to see them up close, last night had just been luck. 

"Where did I put those pants girl?"  I cooed at Cake who sat across the room on my nightstand, looking annoyed as the rest of the room continued to fill with everything that wasn't right. Cake, curling her tail in closer became a small black ball of fluff with her bright eyes staring unamused before closing them. 

"That's not very helpful you know. I know they're here somewhere!"  

I kept looking until a square of black fabric peaked my interest from beneath my bed. There they were, likely a victim of my inability to unpack nicely I assumed. The afternoon had been speeding past me, with my outfit decided on, probably, I was ready to start prepping. The mental list had been an ongoing internal document for weeks now and my excitement must have been palpable as I spoke to friends and family. I'd called both my family and Lexie during the morning to tell them about last night over coffee, since I couldn't really see any of them. I couldn't go back home yet, it was too soon. Thankfully, they'd all acted excited for me despite clear disinterest, which had only fueled my excitement. The group BTS had sparked something years ago to leave behind everything that had formed a cage around me, pushing me to return to my roots to discover who I really was. I'd wanted to be lots of things in life, but being happy had never really crossed my mind until hearing their music. Bringing me back to music was fate I'd hoped, but I would be a liar if I wasn't intrigued by the handsome faces and the vibrant personalities they portrayed in their videos. Tonight was the night however, to see those personas live. 

While I was definitely a fan of their music and followed their new Instagram accounts, I couldn't really call myself an army. I'd watched the music videos of course, and had watched the shows they'd been apart of but could never really bring myself to feel as apart of the army, though I certainly wanted to. Attending their concert, with my light stick in hand however definitely made me feel like a real army and that brought a true feeling of warmth. 

'I can be an army, there's no such thing as being too old anyway. I'm only 24 and most of the members are older than me anyway!' I thought to myself as I finished packing my bag, filled with all the essentials I'd seen recommended on the fan sites. 

'This time, I won't have to be sorry to see them either, they won't be surprised to see me in a sea of fans. Well, they won't see me but still.' 

I continued to wonder about my encounter as I dressed and packed, with thoughts of RM filling my mind. But I couldn't help wondering who the member was he had been with, if it was even another member for that matter. Regardless, I was beginning to get nervous that everything wasn't perfect as I scanned my outfit in the mirror and consulting my cat really wasn't helping my situation. Earlier, I'd seen none of the members had posted as expected, but upon refreshing my feed I was happy to see a post from Jimin of the members practicing on the stage. I could see at least four members as well as Jimin as he held the phone outward from himself, his arm stretched out presumably to capture as many as his members as he could. His eye smile was too sweet, as the members in the background looked to be laughing and goofing off I couldn't help but wonder where RM was. 

'Like. Now time to get ready, if they're going to start posting teasers it must mean it's getting close!' 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At the venue, the vibes were infectious to say the least as fans of all sorts bustled through the gates and squealed in the lobby waiting patiently with banners and signs. I couldn't help but laugh as some of the signs made me cringe, others were sweet with bright purple hearts covering the majority of them. Many of the fans were in groups, with friends hugging and talking loudly about their bias and hoping the VIP section would get to meet the band as they had in previous locations. A world tour was a big deal, but the meet and greets that followed for VIP attendants were legendary on any and all social media platforms despite the pandemic. I could feel my heart beat faster as I held onto my ticket closely, the purple metallic banner at the top shimmering in the lights of the girls sitting at a nearby table setting up their light sticks. The overhead speaker overhead brought silence to what I could only imagine was hundreds of fans, 

'VIP ticket holders, please line up at gates A & B to be directed to your areas. We would appreciate tickets at the ready and to be respectful of staff and armies alike.'  It was time. 

The concert was better than I'd imagined, with front row seats I felt like I couldn't have been luckier as members danced close, I could see small details like Jungkook's tattoos, Jimin's incredible flexibility as he danced past with a wink to fans who gasped, screamed and squealed. J-Hope and Jin had blown kisses across the crowd and Taehyung's growl reverberated through the seats against the backs of my legs. Unfortunately, RM had spent most of the concert on the other side and had only passed by while dancing, there was no chance he'd even glanced in my direction but that didn't matter. Suga however, had stopped by a nearby water bottle station, toweling off between songs before coming to life with water bottle in hand as he tipped it over his orange hair, flipping it around to cover me and the girls either side of me with what could only be described as sweat. He stood back up, slicking his hair back with his hand as he nodded to the front row, creating a unanimous swoon amongst us all. 

"He totally got sweat all over us, I think I'm going to die!" squeals the girl next to me, pulling me into a tight hug she smiles so wide she resembles the Cheshire cat. 

"Who's your bias then?" She says, pulling away to look up at me. 

"Yoongi, he is I swear. Maybe I'm in shock?"  I'm not too sure how to respond, I must not seem excited enough I suppose. She turns to the girls beside her and keeps squealing as I turn back to watch the last song as fireworks boom in the background. 

"Army! We purple you!"  They shout in unison as the show ends, the lights dim and the members run backstage. In recent fashion, the crowd gets louder as each member begins to pull their jackets off, revealing arms and shoulders. RM stretches out his wide shoulders, flexing his muscular back. It's hard not to blush while Jungkook hangs back until the last second, his jacket falls first with his shirt following quickly after causing what could only be described as bombs dropping amongst the crowds. The fans go wild as they disappear, and music begins to play in the background with confirmation playing over the speakers, 

"To those holding VIP tickets, please make your way to the staff waiting at the barricades. BTS will be holding a short meet and greet within the hour."