Love Maze | BTS Poly

Hit Me with Your Best Shot

A limo is waiting in the deserted parking lot for us. Sungmin unlocks it and opens one of the doors for us to get in. The limo is absolutely gigantic for only three people. Although it's spacious, we still sit close together.

Sungmin rolls down the privacy shield and looks at us in the rear-view mirror. "I'm gonna swing by my house and pick up Gyeongtaek. We should get to the club around 2:30."

"Thank you!" says Youngmi, reaching into the beverage cooler and pulling out a bottle of champagne. She pops the top with a small squeal and sucks up the foam that threatens to spill over. Youngmi wipes off her mouth before handing us a flute.

She fills our glasses to the brim and holds her arm out for a toast. "Cheers to BTS..." Youngmi's eyes meet mine. "And cheers to newfound friendships."

We clink our flutes together. "Cheers!"

I take a sip of the bubbly liquid. It's some of the best champagne I've ever had. Then again, I haven't had a lot of good champagne in my lifetime.

When we get to Sungmin's place, Youngmi already has a glass prepared for Gyeongtaek. She gives it to him once he's situated, and pours each of us a second one.

"I'm sorry, we did the official toast before we picked you up," Youngmi informs Gyeongtaek. "But cheers to you for getting off the couch and coming out!"

"Like, out of the closet or...?"

Youngmi throws her head back with laughter. "No, stupid. I meant tonight!"

He laughs too. "I knew that."

The remainder of the ride is filled with cracking jokes and giggling until our stomachs hurt. As I get to know Gyeongtaek, I realize he's pretty different from Sungmin. The latter is on the more reserved side, while Gyeongtaek seems wild and out-there. But not in a bad way. His personality is similar to Youngmi's. He and Sungmin probably balance each other out well.

Youngmi throws back another glass of champagne in honor of Sungmin since he can't drink this evening. Nevertheless, he promised to dance with us the same way he does when he's drunk. Gyeongtaek said Sungmin did hip hop as a teenager and that they actually met in a club. He saw Sungmin on the dance floor and thought he was incredible, so he approached him. The rest is history.

Upon arrival, we immediately notice the long line of people waiting to get into the afterparty, including a large number of people being turned away. We line up to wait our turn. I begin to get nervous that our group will be denied entry too.

Jaehwa observes my anxiety and nudges me. I glance down to their open pack of cigarettes, offering me one. I gladly accept. They're Marlboro Vistas. My favorite.

They offer a cigarette to the rest of our group who happily take one as well. We pass the lighter around, smoking and chatting while standing in line. It moves rather quickly due to the amount of people being refused.

Soon enough, we're at the front. We show both our regular IDs and our Big Hit ones to the bouncer. The brawny man takes them inside without a word. Shortly, he returns and hands our stuff back to us. He gives a different bouncer a nod. The other man returns a single nod and lifts the rope, waving us over to enter.

I exhale a sigh of relief.

We're in.

Immediately, the music is blaring over the speakers. The building is packed with people. We shimmy through the crowd, finding ourselves in the middle of the club. I search the place for somewhere to sit. By a stroke of luck, I spot a cluster of friends getting up from their table. They grab their jackets and start to walk towards the exit.