A Rose Between Thorns

Chapter 1: The First Page

I can see the town of Gangnam out of the plane window as the sun begins to set over the horizon. I remove one of my earbuds as the stewardess announces that we have arrived at our destination.

'Whistle', one of my favorite BlackPink songs, plays in my other ear as the stewardess instructs the passengers to remain seated, keep your seat belts on, etc. You know, the standard bullshit they have to go through every flight. I've heard this so many times it's like the grand pacer test all over again.

I take a look at the flight ticket in my hand that was sent to me by Big Hit, as well as the accompanying letter. I had received them both only a couple weeks ago, so I didn't have much time to say goodbye to my grandmother before I had to leave for South Korea.

I don't even know much Korean, I'm only fluent in English but I suppose that might be something I'd need to ask them when I get there.

Lee Taylor,

On behalf of Big Hit Entertainment, we would like to congratulate you on becoming the 8th member of Bangtan Seonyeondan (BTS). The members will be welcoming you when your plane lands, and will be escorted to the dormitory so you may settle in.

For the next few weeks you will be getting to know your fellow members and begin your training as we prepare for our comeback stage.

You may experience many hardships as you take on this journey with us, but we are glad to have you on board and welcome you to the family with open arms.

Regards,

Kim Namjoon

Big Hit Entertainment, Seoul, South Korea

I put the letter and ticket back in my red messenger bag as the plane descends onto the runway. I gather my things once we've come to a stop as people begin to exit.

The wheels of my carry on clunk against the metal jutting out from the floor as I check my phone for the time. It's about eight pm right now, but the air is a little chilly so I pull my leather jacket closer to my chest.

'Boombayah', also by BlackPink, begins to play through my earbuds. I can't help but sing along quietly as I scan my surroundings. Namjoon said they will be waiting for me, have they not arrived yet?

My black ankle boots click against the floor and soon I can see a large group at my gate. All of them are wearing black face masks save for two, who look like they must be either security or bodyguards. All of them look to be male, and I feel a little out of place without a face mask of my own.

"Miss Lee?" One of the bodyguards asks as I head over, who practically towers over me. Man they hire some intimidating people.

"Yes sir," I respond in a quiet voice, honestly exhausted from my long flight. "Are you the ones I'm supposed to meet with?" A soft yawn escapes my lips so I cover my mouth with my hand, taking my earbuds out with the other and draping them around my neck.

"Yes we are. We can head to the van now, there are a couple other staff members who will be getting your bags from the baggage claim."

He speaks to me in a serious tone, though I can tell English isn't his first language by the way he pauses before certain words. "They'll be meeting us at the dormitory, we need to make a swift exit so people do not try to swamp the group."

I give the man a slight nod and he leads the group out towards the airport exit, the other security guard behind me as I follow. There are a total of ten people in our group, including myself, so I assume the rest are the members of Bangtan.

I could feel some of their eyes on me as we walk, and I can't help but turn red from embarrassment. I'm not particularly used to being stared at, it's not like I stuck out much in the states.

One of the members gives me a thumbs up from ahead of me with a grin. His hair is dyed a soft brownish red, and I can assume it's Jung Hoseok because of the way his eyes look when he smiles. I merely give him a smile and a small thumbs up in return.

We all get into a large black van, the guard ahead of us holding the door open and gesturing for me to follow the members in. I'm seated in the middle of the second row of seats next to Hoseok and Park Jimin, whom I recognize by the bright blonde hair since no other member has their hair dyed that color at this time.

Also because he had filmed a VLive a couple days ago, and I decided to watch the stream at three in the morning. Because that's always a good idea!

Jimin pulls his face mask down, giving me a soft smile. I give him an awkward one in return, staying quiet since I'm normally not one to start up a conversation right away with someone I've just met. He then makes this weird pouty face with his eyes crossed, so I can't help but laugh a little.

Only one guard gets in the driver's seat, the other stays behind and gets into another matching black van. Since the van doesn't follow us as we pull out of the parking space, I assume he is waiting for the people getting my bags.

The boys take their masks off once we hit the road. Kim Namjoon took the passenger seat in the front and in between him and the driver is Kim Seokjin. Namjoon is sporting silver hair while Jin has jet black, who doesn't really look at me as he is fiddling with something in his pocket.

Behind us from left to right is Min Yoongi, Jeon Jungkook and finally Kim Taehyung. Yoongi's hair is a dark brown, while Jungkook and Taehyung both have black hair like Jin's. The two younger members immediately begin conversing while Yoongi closes his eyes for a nap.

Namjoon turns around to me with an extended hand. "Welcome to Big Hit, Taylor," He says as I shake his hand. "We are glad to have you on board."

I can't help but notice his dimples showing as he smiles at me. Am I the only Army that had the urge to just poke his cheeks? He is too adorable for his own good. I restrain myself from doing so and just settle for a polite smile.

I jump in surprise and feel a pair of arms around me in a hug. I look to my right to see Hoseok grinning like a weirdo. Wait, I shouldn't be surprised, it's Hoseok.

"YEAAAAAAH! We gonna have a great time!" He says while struggling to find the words in English. I give him a small smile in return, and I hope it isn't apparent that I feel just a little awkward. I wasn't expecting them to be so informal with me right away!

"I'm glad to be here, I hope I can live up to your expectations," I say quietly, and Namjoon motions for Hoseok to stop squeezing the life out of me.

"Well, you made it this far haven't you?" Namjoon says with a grin, showing his dimples once again.

"You wouldn't be here if we thought you weren't capable," Yoongi chimes in from behind me.

I mean, he isn't wrong. My audition was chosen out of thousands to become the 8th member of BTS, handpicked by the members themselves. I knew if I won it would be a long journey and it would be very difficult. I just hope I can be enough for my idols and help them achieve their goals. I simply nod and the guys start idle chatter amongst themselves.

I get the feeling I'm being watched, and I glance over to see Jimin staring at me. As soon as I meet his gaze, he quickly turns to look out the window as if he had been the entire time.

I wonder what he was staring at? My question remained unanswered as we headed off to the dormitory, the last remaining light from the sun dipping below the horizon.

This story will be written in English for the readers to understand but remember that Namjoon is the only one fluent in the language. There will be parts where Taylor is learning Korean and the boys seem to struggle with English.

If there are moments to be translated I will state that Namjoon is translating, otherwise assume the guys are speaking in English. The main character will not always understand the words but I want to make sure my readers do.

If you read this and want to see more, comment below who your bias is and who you hope Taylor ends up with! Maybe even some ship names? Thank you so much for reading Chapter 1 of A Rose Between Thorns!

~Author-chan