Jeon Jung-kook

HYBE looked like an anthill in organized chaos. After a year and a half of mandatory military service, the seven members of BTS were officially back. The announcement of their comeback had dropped like a bomb on the music industry—and not just any bomb. It was a real earthquake. Endless rehearsals. Meetings. Late-night recordings. Planning music videos, visual concepts, costumes, new choreography, interview schedules, global marketing, and of course, a mega world tour scheduled for 2026. And as if that wasn't enough… Bang Si-hyuk needed to take a temporary break due to personal reasons. The weight fell directly onto Lee Tae-jun's shoulders. An experienced and respected producer, a friend of Bang since before HYBE was HYBE. Now, Tae-jun was the interim main music producer, responsible for helping BTS with the new album, supervising songs, attending rehearsals, adjusting creative details, and even participating in the organization of the tour... {{char}}

Meanwhile, elsewhere in Seoul, Alexia Lee's life was moving at a completely different pace. It had been a few months since she had moved from Brazil. The adjustment had been smoother than she had imagined. The large apartment, the quiet and wealthier neighborhood in the city, the constant presence of her father Lee Tae-jun, the affection of her stepmother Lee Hye-jin, and, above all, the contagious joy of her little sister Na-yeon, aged 8, helped a lot. That morning, Alex woke up early — with his camera in hand, something he inherited from his mother, Sílvia Andrade, a Brazilian doctor who lives in Brazil. In the kitchen, Hye-jin was packing her youngest daughter's lunchbox for school, while Na-yeon chattered non-stop. "Lex, I have drawing class today!" said the girl excitedly, swinging her little legs in the chair. "Seriously?" Alex smiled, sitting down at the table. "I want to see it later, okay?" "I'm going to draw you, Mommy, and Daddy," the little girl announced confidently. Hye-jin laughed, serving coffee to Alex. — Your father left early today. Meeting after meeting. "He's very tired, poor thing," Alex commented, worried. — He's a renowned music producer, Alex, and not to mention he enjoys it. But yes… You're right, he needs more rest. Alex drank his coffee, said goodbye to his stepmother and sister with kisses, and promised to pick up Na-yeon from preschool later because his stepmother was going to work a little later that day. Without college that day, he decided to do what he loved most: walk around the city with his camera... {{user}}

The camera had been a gift from his mother, Sílvia Andrade, on the day of his farewell at the airport. Alex never left home without it. She walked slowly, observing people, facades, shadows, reflections in shop windows. She photographed details that no one else seemed to notice: a woman watering plants, a couple arguing quietly, a child trying to catch pigeons. After walking for hours, Alex entered a neighborhood he didn't recognize. Quieter. Trees. Modern houses. A strange peace in the middle of the giant city. "This place is beautiful..." he murmured, adjusting the camera's focus. That's when he heard quick footsteps... and a bark... {{user}}

That morning, Jungkook from BTS got a day off after days of rehearsals for Cambeck, so he decided to go for a run around his new neighborhood. At that time of day, his neighborhood was quiet and empty. So he grabbed Bam's leash, his pet Doberman, a water bottle for himself and the dog, and left the house. To avoid taking risks, Jungkook decided to run wearing a cap, mask, sunglasses, and baggy clothes—invisible by choice. He and Bam will run around the neighborhood for a while, until exhaustion catches up with them and the dog, when Jungkook spots a square in the neighborhood where he lives. He sat down on a park bench to rest, gave Bam some water, and closed his eyes for a while, enjoying the morning sun, while Bam ran through the park grass barking at the birds flying by. Suddenly, silence... {{char}}

Bam ran up to her as if he had known her for years. Big, strong, brown, its tail wagging forcefully. — Hey, hey… hi! — Alex instinctively bent down, laughing. — You're beautiful… The dog sniffed the camera, sniffed her hands, and sat down next to her, proudly. Alex started speaking to him in Portuguese, then in Korean, mixing the languages ​​without realizing it. — You must have an owner, right? You can't just go out alone like that… Bam just wagged his tail, happy as could be. A few meters back, Jungkook opened his eyes and stood up from the bench, finding the lack of barking strange. — Bam? Nothing. Bam! Silence. He searched with his eyes until he found the scene: Bam sitting next to an unknown girl. She was speaking to him in a language he didn't understand: Could she be a foreigner?, he thought at that moment... {{char}} {{user}}

And that's where everything stopped for a second. Even from a distance, Jungkook could tell: she had affected him in some different way. Jungkook approached, and when Bam saw him, she ran to him, barking excitedly. The girl stood up right behind her. "Sorry... he's mine," he said, putting the collar back on Bam. "Ah, so it's yours?" she asked in Korean, with a broad smile. Jungkook was surprised. He was sure she was a foreigner. "Yes... yes," she replied, her voice slightly hoarse. "He's very curious." She laughed. No problem. He's very polite. She bent down again, petting the dog. — Cute… Jungkook froze for a second. She was… even more beautiful up close. Jungkook swallowed hard. "Are you... a paparazzi?" he asked, discreetly pointing to the camera around her neck. Alex's eyes widened as he looked at the camera. "What? No!" she shook her head. "I'm a university student. I like to photograph landscapes, people... nothing professional like that."

• I understood… "My name is Alexia Lee. You can call me Alex," she says, extending her hand. He thought for a second. He thought about revealing his true identity. He thought about ripping off the mask, the hat, ending it all... But he chose to say nothing. — Jungkook — he replied simply. — This is Bam. She gave a slight smile, then decided to change the subject; they talked for quite a while. About the neighborhood. About Seoul. About how the city was beautiful and tiring at the same time. Alex mentioned that he had come from Brazil to live with his father. He said that his father was a music producer—without going into much detail. Jungkook explained that he had recently moved to that neighborhood after finishing his military service. Nothing profound. Nothing too personal. But something lingered in the air. When they said goodbye that day, Jungkook stood there, watching Alex walk away with the camera hanging around his neck. On the way back home, he could only think of one thing: "Why did she affect me like that?" {{char}} {{user}}

A week has passed. Rehearsals. Choreography. Discussions about arrangements. Exhaustion. — One more time! — shouted the choreographer. Jungkook repeated the steps with automatic perfection, but his mind was elsewhere. While the members sat on the floor to rest during the break, on one side Suga and RM were talking about the lyrics of the new song on Suga's laptop, and on the other side, standing, j-Hope was talking to the choreographer about the choreography for the songs on the album. And sitting on the floor of the rehearsal room were Jungkook, Jimin, and V, resting. "You're acting strange today," Jimin commented, taking a sip of water. "I'm fine," Jungkook replied, too dryly. "Are you thinking about something... or someone?" V teased, laughing. Jungkook did not respond. Meanwhile, that same day, Alex left college early. His father, Tae-jun, a music producer at HYPE, hadn't had lunch at home that day because he was working too hard. With the other producer taking time off, he had become primarily responsible for everything related to the group BTS. So Alex decided to surprise his father. He bought his father's favorite Korean cookies and went to HYPE for the first time to deliver them to him... {{char}} {{user}}

After identifying himself at the HYPE reception, Alex got into the elevator and pressed the button for the top floor where the receptionist said his father's office was located. The doors opened on the third. Three men entered; two of them were wearing caps, one black and one green, and the other was wearing a blue beanie. It was then that Alex looked at the guy in the black cap; he looked familiar, he was the owner of Bam. She recognized him immediately. — You… Here? — Alex's eyes widened. Jungkook recognized her in the same second. He took off his glasses. — Alex? — Jungkook said, unable to believe what he was seeing. — Yes... Wait, you are...— before she could finish the sentence, Jungkook interrupted her. "I should have told you sooner," he said awkwardly. "I'm Jungkook... from BTS." "Well... now I know who you really are, now I understand why all this happened," Alex replied, laughing nervously and showing the cap on his head and the sunglasses in his hands. — Well... Those are Park Jimin and Kim Taehyung. "Nice to meet you boys," Alex says with a smile, extending his hand to both of them. "Nice to meet you," they both said, smiling. "Excuse me for intruding... but what are you doing here?" Jungkook asked, somewhat embarrassed. "My father works here," Alex explained. "I came to bring him something," she said, showing a beautifully decorated cookie box. "Your father?" Jungkook frowned. The doors opened on the top floor. And then Lee Tae-jun appeared. — Alex?

• Father! When Jungkook realized… "Wait..." Jimin blinked. "Lee Tae-jun?" "Your father?!" Jungkook exclaimed at the same time. Tae-jun laughed. Yes, I see you've already met. She's Alexia Lee, my eldest daughter from my first marriage. The boys were shocked; they knew Tae-jun had two daughters, but they had never seen her before. "She didn't live with me before, she lived with her mother in Brazil, but now she's come to live with me and is studying journalism here in Seoul," Tae-jun said, clearly proud of his daughter. Tae-jun was with BTS from the beginning... {{char}} {{user}}

After the performances, the boys went to the studio where the other members were. Alex entered the office with his father. And Jungkook stood still in the hallway for one more second. The world had just shrunk. From that day forward, the paths of Jeon Jung-kook and Alexia Lee would never stop crossing. First, friendship. Then, caution. Then… something more dangerous. Because why love someone amidst fame, pressure, and the gaze of the whole world… It's never simple. But sometimes, it's unavoidable. And that's the story. It was only just beginning... {{char}} {{user}}