"May I present The Glamorous One and his assigned female, Bennett Elenor." A disembodied voice boomed out our introduction as Jimin and I stepped into the room. For the first time in my life, my name sounded foreign to me. I had to remind myself that here, like they did in my universe, people used their surname before their first name.

Everyone turned to look at the two of us. I caught on more than one of the women's faces a fleeting judgemental look as they took in my appearance. It didn't help that I was clinging to Jimin's arm like one of those trophy wives I'd often see in the tabloid magazines. I couldn't help it though. Jimin holding onto me was the only thing that was helping ease my immense desire to run back to his house and away from the supercilious women.

"Hey, it's going to be okay, Nell," Jimin said softly so only I would hear. He gently pried my fingers from his arm that I hadn't realised had gripped his limb like a vice. When I didn't say anything, he pulled me into his chest and hugged me tightly. I felt myself relax, and I wished I could stay here instead of venturing further into the room. He pressed his lips to the side of my forehead just above my ear and whispered, "I won't leave your side if you don't want me to. We're in this together, okay?"

"Okay. Thank you, Jimin." A scoff sounded out in the room and it took every ounce of my reserve not to look up. I knew my nerves wouldn't be able to handle seeing who it came from, so I chose to stay in ignorance where it was a tiny bit less stressful.

A voice that I recognised pulled me from my safe place in Jimin's arms when he uttered, "Welcome to my home." I turned to look at the man with soft mint-green coloured hair and my heart melted at his smile. I had to keep reminding myself that he was not the same man from my universe. My inner fan girl, though, she didn't want to listen. Instead, that part of me was internally celebrating being this close to another member of my favourite band.

"Hello, Mr Exquisite One," I uttered nervously as I bowed low in respect. I was thankful that my voice had held somewhat strong. If I was this flustered over one of the members I liked, how would I be interacting with my bias?

The low, melodic laugh that I had heard many times through videos rang out. "Please, none of that nonsense, Elenor. You're family for the next year, so no need for that formality." His smile shone brighter—if that was even possible.

Like all ARMY, I wondered whether I would survive seeing Kim Taehyung's boxy smile directed my way, and the answer was... nope. My heart thumped to the point where I thought it might be audible over the soft conversations happening elsewhere in the large room.

"I am Kim Taehyung but please call me Taehyung." I'd always loved V's mint hair from the 2019 Grammy Awards, so to see it in person was doing something to my ARMY heart.

"Hi, Taehyung. Please call me Nell. You have a beautiful home." I looked around the room, first at the way it was decorated and then at the people inside it. I was surprised that only three women were standing and chatting with a man each; the other three were huddled together. I looked at the all-female group but pulled my attention away quickly. The glares from two of the ladies and a disinterested look on the third one's face reminded me that I was different in more ways than one.

Jimin and I chatted to Taehyung for a few minutes about his house until three of the other men came to join our small group. The two women who had been with the red-haired and blue-haired Seed Bearers had followed one of the maids. I assumed they might be going to the bathroom, but it wasn't any of my business. I did hope I got the chance to meet them because both ladies had sent me smiles as I entered the room with Jimin. It was hard to believe that I was in the presence of 5/7 of BTS, except they weren't Bangtan Sonyeondan here. I had to remind myself to not use their names until they told me I could, and even then I wouldn't be able to address them by their stage names. I shot the new Seed Bearers a smile, which I hoped came off as warm and excited rather than nervous or creepy.

"Nell, these are The Radiant, Majestic and Enticing Ones. Guys, this is my assigned female, Elenor," Jimin introduced with a bright smile as he slid one of his arms around my waist. It seemed like this was his go-to move when he wanted to be close to me, not that I was minding at all, though.

"Is Jimin treating you well?" The Majestic One with burnt orange hair asked, shooting the blonde man beside me a cheeky grin.

"Hi. Elenor, right?" The redhead known as The Radiant One interrupted me from answering. He shot me a soft smile as I nodded and asked him to call me Nell. "How's your time with Jimin been, Nell?"

"It must be going well since our little Jimin isn't letting her go," The Enticing One teased, chuckling as Jimin whined at being called out.

I giggled at their playful behaviour towards one another. I especially loved how cute my Seed Bearer looked when he pouted at things the others teased him about. "It's been going well with Jimin. He's been very welcoming and helpful, especially since this is all so new for me."

"Yeah, you don't look or act like the women from here—I don't mean this in a bad way. And please call me Min Yoongi, or Yoongi. I hate this 'The Enticing One' shit." The bright blue hair on Yoongi was even more stunning up close and it suited his milky skin tone so well.

"If you don't mind me asking, where are you from and how did you get here to the Greater Kingdom of Korea?" I swooned seeing the orange-haired man's killer smile sent in my direction. It dazzled me so much that it almost made me forget about his question.

I relayed the same cover story I had used with Jimin. Like the blonde Seed Bearer had done when he heard, the other men also assumed it was pirates who had brought me here. I hated lying. Until I knew I could trust that I wouldn't be locked up, sentenced to death or sent to a mental asylum, there was no way I was telling the truth about how I came to find myself here.

"Pirates? Oh, you poor thing," a soft voice said. I turned to find that the last two Seed Bearers had come, as well as a few of the women. "I'm so sorry you were brought here against your will. I am Ahn Soon-Bok, the assigned female to Seokjin—sorry, The Heavenly One." Our group laughed as the grey-haired Seokjin tried to look angry at being introduced so casually. He couldn't keep the frown on his face, which made us all laugh harder.

I could see there were sparks of romance flitting between him and Soon-Bok. They made a lovely couple and I hoped, from first impressions, that things went well for them. Soon-Bok was short, the top of her head coming just under Seokjin's chin. She looked like a beautiful doll with her large doe-eyes, cute button nose and plump lips that rivalled Jimin's in terms of how soft they looked. Her honey skin had old acne scarring. Yet, the imperfections did nothing to mar her natural beauty, showcased with minimal makeup. Unlike the other women in the room, Soon-Bok had some natural curves. Unlike my squishy fat-covered ones, hers were toned and looked feminine under her tight dress.

Like the Kim Seokjin of my universe, the silver-haired version standing before me was very handsome. If he was like this in each parallel universe, Jin should change his nickname from Worldwide Handsome to Universal Handsome. I tried to commit his appearance to memory so I could describe him in exact detail if I ever got to see my mother again. Mum would be so jealous to know I was within touching distance from her bias.

"The amount of attractiveness within one couple should be illegal." Laughter erupted with many nodding heads as I realised that I had let my inner thoughts slip. I felt my face flush with embarrassment. I turned to hide in Jimin's chest, which only caused my blush to travel further over my body. Happy murmurs at my so-called adorable behaviour flowed out as Jimin kissed my head.

"You're so cute when you're embarrassed, Baby."

I pulled away and looked Jimin in the eyes in shock. He just called me 'Baby' and did so in front of others. Part of me was soaring hearing the nickname. The other half was worried that it was only because he wanted to put up a front that we were closer than we actually were.

A loud gong rang out, making us all turn towards a butler who had come into the room. "If you will all please follow me, lunch will be served very shortly."

I went to follow the rest of the Seed Bearers and their females, but I was held firmly in place by the blonde man. "I know what you're thinking, Nell, and you're wrong. It's not because of where we are that I called you that." I wondered how he seemed to always know what I was thinking. Did Seed Bearers each have a special power and telepathy was Jimin's? "I really like you. Yoongi is right: you're not like the other women here. That's what is different about you and I love that. You see me for me, not for my hair colour."

I didn't know how to respond to that without letting slip any information that could inhibit my safety here. I wanted to tell him that he shouldn't be defined by his hair and that I would never do that. I was used to seeing his locks dyed with every shade under the rainbow; although, if I said that, he would know something wasn't right with me.

"You don't have to say anything, Baby." His voice held no tone of disappointment or unease, which I was thankful for. I was growing to like Jimin, but part of me kept resisting his charms because I didn't want to fall deeper for a man if I was just going to end up dead at the end of the year. "I wanted to open up like you did today. Come on, let's go join the others."

꧁♥💜♥꧂

While the females were all on one side of the table, each of our Seed Bearers was seated opposite us. Often, I had caught Jimin's eye, and I couldn't help blushing when he shot me a sneaky wink or a radiant smile. He was a lot more open with his flirting after our kiss last night. It was weird. Normally, I'd be turned off by the flirtatious Jimin in my universe, but I felt like a teenager again with how I was crushing bad and falling for a nice guy.

I had been seated on one end of the table between Soon-Bok and Cheong Ari, Yoongi's female. Ari was just as sweet and welcoming as Soon-Bok, which made my anxiety lower. Being around these two slightly diminished the ever-present desire to find somewhere quiet where I could be alone. Like Yoongi, Ari had fair, milky skin that glowed like it was lit from within. She had the most expressive brown eyes that crinkled whenever she smiled, which was quite often. Where Soon-Bok was stunning with her imperfections, Ari had a classic sense of beauty. Her appearance was even enhanced by two beauty marks that accented the side of her nose and cupid's bow of her lips.

During lunch, I learned that I was the oldest of the women, which didn't surprise me. I didn't expect to hear that Ari was 28 and Soon-Bok was 29. I thought they were in their early 20s, just a few years younger than me.

I had also been introduced to the other members' females: Jee Bong-Cha, Lim Da-Eun, Kim Ma-Ri and Lee Hana. Da-Eun, I realised, had been one of the females standing with her Seed Bearer when I'd first entered the room, with Soon-Bok and Ari being the other two. I briefly had a nice chat with Ma-Ri and Bong-Cha, and while Hana was also there, I found her to be very shy and reserved. I'd recognised Bong-Cha as the woman who had been assigned after me—the stunning one in the gorgeous purple hanbok.

As I observed the seven men interacting and joking together, I was reminded of BTS so much. Their personalities were so similar to what I saw on Bangtan Bombs and other online content. Yoongi was slightly less guarded and a bit more open with his expressions in this universe, but he still had that savage streak that came out with his sense of humour. Seokjin was still the jokester who loved pun jokes, although he was a little more mature than the fake-maknae persona he had as Jin. From what I could see, Taehyung, the redhead, The Ethereal One and The Majestic One had the same personalities as their counterparts.

I desperately wanted to talk to Hoseok but being seated so far away from him made it impossible. I was kind of relieved. I had no idea if I could successfully rein in my inner fangirl, especially as I could feel my social battery draining fast. I was starting to get overwhelmed by everything.

"If you don't mind, Taehyung, could I show Nell around your garden? She loves plants and has actually designed and planted an incredible vegetable garden at home. Our chef is very excited to use all the different herbs, fruits and vegetables when they're ready to harvest." I smiled shyly at Jimin's words. My cheeks grew flaming hot when a few of the men commented about how they'd love to get my opinion on the gardens at their palaces.

At Taehyung's insistence that I walk through the gardens, Jimin ran around to my side of the table like a little boy being told he could go to the park. With a gentle grace, he pulled my seat out for me. His hand found mine and together we walked out. Each step away from the table made the loud conversations grow quieter and my heartbeat became louder in my ears.

"Thank you, Jimin."

"I could see you were starting to fade. You and I are very similar in many ways, especially with how fast our social batteries can drain when around other people. And to be honest, I much prefer not having to compete with others for your attention."

I stopped as we exited the house and came onto a paved walkway. I pulled on Jimin's arm, forcing him to stop and turn. A worried look washed over his face as he checked if I was okay. I closed the gap between us and pressed my lips against his in a soft, unhurried kiss that I hoped conveyed my appreciation.

"You never have to compete, Jiminie. Whenever you're in the room, you're all I see," I whispered into his ear. I had to bite my lips to stop my laugh as he shuddered from the tickling sensations. To save me from doing anything that could embarrass myself, I began making my way deeper into the gardens.