CHAPTER 22 — BEFORE THE STORM
(15 DAYS BEFORE BUSAN)
SEOUL — MAIN PRACTICE HALL
Something felt different the moment everyone walked in.
The practice hall was full.
Not just dancers.
Not just stylists.
Managers.
Security.
Music producers.
Stage directors.
Even the tour planning team.
Yuna looked around in confusion.
"Why is everyone here?"
Sora whispered,
"This looks like a company meeting."
Jisoo looked at Min Jae.
"You know something."
He sighed.
"…Yeah."
Before she could ask more —
the door opened.
Everyone went quiet instantly.
Jae Rin walked in.
Black oversized hoodie.
Hair tied loosely.
No makeup.
No stage energy.
Just calm.
Too calm.
She walked to the front.
Put her hands in her pockets.
Looked at everyone slowly.
Then spoke.
"We're doing a world tour."
Silence.
Nobody reacted for two seconds.
Then the room exploded.
"WHAT?!"
"WORLD TOUR??"
"Already??"
"WHEN??"
Manager stepped forward quickly.
"Please calm down!"
He looked at her carefully.
"When does the tour start?"
She answered without hesitation.
"Next month."
Now even the manager froze.
"…Next month?"
Yuna stared at her.
"You just finished promotions."
Sora added,
"You didn't even take a break."
Jisoo crossed her arms.
"You're not sleeping properly either."
The room went quiet again.
Jae Rin didn't react.
"I'm fine."
Min Jae finally spoke.
"You said that last time too."
She looked at him.
"And I was fine."
He didn't answer.
Because he remembered.
Five years ago.
Hospital.
Sleepless nights.
Doctors.
Percy sitting next to her.
He looked away.
She turned back to the crew.
"Show them."
The lights dimmed.
The big screen turned on behind her.
At first only one word appeared.
WORLD TOUR
Then the first city.
BUSAN
Murmurs started.
TOKYO
OSAKA
BANGKOK
SINGAPORE
The dancers already looked shocked.
But the list kept going.
LOS ANGELES
NEW YORK
TORONTO
VANCOUVER
Sora whispered,
"This is huge…"
More cities appeared.
LONDON
PARIS
AMSTERDAM
BERLIN
ROME
Jisoo shook her head slowly.
"This is not normal…"
The screen still wasn't done.
MUMBAI
DELHI
DUBAI
MANILA
Now the whole room started talking.
"DELHI TOO??"
"SHE'S DOING INDIA??"
"THIS IS CRAZY"
More.
JAKARTA
SYDNEY
AUCKLAND
HONG KONG
And finally—
SEOUL — FINAL STAGE
The room went silent.
Everyone stared at the screen.
Even the manager looked overwhelmed.
"This isn't a tour…"
He looked at her.
"This is the biggest schedule we've ever done."
She nodded calmly.
"Yes."
He hesitated.
"This will be exhausting."
She didn't move.
"I know."
Yuna stepped forward.
"You're not sleeping properly."
Sora added,
"You look tired every morning."
Jisoo spoke softly.
"You don't have to do this now."
Silence.
Min Jae watched her carefully.
Her breathing was slightly faster.
Small.
But he noticed.
He always noticed.
"You don't need to prove anything anymore."
She looked at him.
Voice quiet.
"I'm not proving anything."
"Then why now?"
For a moment…
she didn't answer.
Her chest tightened slightly.
She took a slow breath.
Ignored it.
Then said softly—
"Because I don't want to stop."
No one spoke after that.
The manager cleared his throat.
"We announce tonight?"
She nodded.
"Yes."
He asked one more time.
"You're sure you can handle Busan first?"
Her fingers curled slightly in her hoodie pocket.
Her chest felt tight again.
Just for a second.
No one noticed.
Except Min Jae.
"Yes."
He looked at her.
Long.
Serious.
Worried.
Because that was the same tone she used
five years ago
right before everything went wrong.
NIGHT — WORLD TOUR ANNOUNCEMENT
The poster dropped online.
Black background.
Her standing in the center.
Long hair flowing.
Cold expression.
Text appeared under it.
KANG JAE RIN WORLD TOUR
BUSAN
TOKYO
BANGKOK
SINGAPORE
LOS ANGELES
NEW YORK
TORONTO
LONDON
PARIS
AMSTERDAM
MUMBAI
DELHI
DUBAI
MANILA
SYDNEY
SEOUL FINAL
The internet exploded.
Fans screaming online.
"DELHI??? SHE'S COMING TO INDIA"
"MUMBAI AND DELHI BOTH??"
"THIS IS HER BIGGEST TOUR"
"QUEEN IS INSANE"
"HOW IS SHE DOING THIS"
Tickets crashed websites in minutes.
Trending #1 worldwide.
SAME TIME — KEIFER POV
Ci-n ran into the room.
"You saw this?!"
Keifer looked up.
"What."
Ci-n showed the phone.
Tour poster.
Long list of cities.
Keifer stared at it.
His eyes stopped on one word.
DELHI.
Then MANILA.
Then BUSAN.
Then SEOUL FINAL.
His jaw tightened slightly.
"That schedule is impossible."
Aries crossed his arms.
"She always does impossible things."
Angelo sighed.
"She looks tired lately."
Keifer looked again at her photo.
Confident.
Strong.
Untouchable.
But her eyes…
Looked different.
His voice got quiet.
"She shouldn't be touring."
Ci-n smirked.
"You worried about her now?"
Keifer didn't answer.
He kept staring at the screen.
Because the feeling in his chest
kept getting worse.
Like something was going to happen.
And soon.
15 DAYS LATER, BUSAN
BUSAN — WORLD TOUR OPENING NIGHT
The stadium lights were off.
70,000 fans filled every seat.
Lightsticks glowing.
People screaming her name nonstop.
"KANG JAE RIN!!"
"KANG JAE RIN!!"
"KANG JAE RIN!!"
Backstage, the atmosphere was tense.
Stylists running.
Managers shouting.
Dancers stretching.
Music blasting from speakers.
Jae Rin stood in front of the mirror.
Her stage outfit was ready.
Black and silver performance outfit, designed for the tour.
Fitted stage jacket, shining details, high boots, long gloves.
Her long silky hair fell all the way down past her knees.
Makeup sharp.
Eyes intense.
She looked like a star.
But her chest felt tight.
Just a little.
Min Jae walked in behind her.
"You ready?"
She nodded.
"Yeah."
He watched her reflection.
"You didn't sleep."
"I did."
"With pills."
She didn't answer.
Yuna came in.
"Five minutes."
Sora looked at her carefully.
"You look pale."
"I'm fine."
Jisoo crossed her arms.
"You always say that."
Manager shouted from outside—
"ON STAGE IN 30 SECONDS!"
Her heartbeat got faster.
She took a deep breath.
Then another.
Air didn't go in properly.
She ignored it.
Min Jae noticed.
"You okay?"
She nodded fast.
"Yes."
The stage lift started moving.
Too late now.
ON STAGE
The platform rose.
Lights exploded.
Fire shot from the sides.
The crowd screamed so loud the stage vibrated.
She stepped forward.
Confident.
Powerful.
Untouchable.
Music dropped.
First song started.
Fast beat.
Heavy choreography.
She moved perfectly.
Sharp turns.
Hair flipping behind her.
Fans screaming louder every second.
Phones everywhere.
"She looks insane tonight!"
"HER OUTFIT OMG"
"QUEEN"
Second song.
Even faster.
She ran across the stage.
Jump.
Spin.
Turn.
Her dance moves clean and strong, exactly what fans loved about her performances.
The camera zoomed.
Her hair flew as she flipped it back.
Crowd lost control.
Backstage, Yuna laughed.
"They're going crazy."
Sora nodded.
"She owns the stage."
Min Jae watched quietly.
Her breathing was already heavier.
He noticed.
THIRD SONG — RAP + DANCE BREAK
The beat dropped.
Her rap started.
Fast.
Sharp.
Aggressive.
She walked to the front of the stage.
Did a spin.
Hair flipping behind her.
Fans screaming even louder.
She smirked.
But suddenly—
Her chest tightened.
Air didn't go in fully.
She missed half a breath.
Her step slowed for one second.
Only one.
Fans near the stage noticed.
"She okay?"
"She looks tired…"
She grabbed the mic.
"BUSAN ARE YOU READY?!"
Crowd screamed again.
She forced a smile.
Music continued.
She kept dancing.
Backstage, Min Jae frowned.
"…She's breathing too fast."
Yuna looked at the monitor.
"She didn't eat properly today."
Jisoo whispered,
"She didn't sleep either."
Sora shook her head.
"She's pushing again…"
MID SHOW
Lights dimmed.
Next song slower.
She walked to center stage.
Started singing.
Voice perfect.
Stable.
But between lines —
she took deeper breaths.
Too deep.
Her chest hurt.
She turned slightly to the side.
Whispered to staff.
"Water."
They ran.
She drank fast.
Fans noticed.
"She needed water again…"
"She looks pale…"
"She's sweating too much…"
She smiled.
"I'm good!"
Crowd cheered louder.
Music started again.
She forced herself to move.
Dance break.
Fast.
Sharp.
Hair flying.
Body turning.
Fans screaming.
Everything looked perfect.
Except her breathing.
It kept getting worse.
LAST SONG
Fireworks ready.
Final stage.
Her sad song started.
The stadium went quiet.
Everyone listening.
She sang softly.
🎵
YOU MOVED ON
WHILE I WAS TRYING TO SURVIVE THE NIGHT
I COULDN'T SLEEP
I COULDN'T BREATHE
I COULDN'T TELL YOU I WASN'T ALRIGHT
🎵
Her voice shook slightly.
Just once.
Fans felt it.
Some started crying.
She closed her eyes.
Her chest hurt again.
Air felt heavy.
For a second —
her vision blurred.
She almost lost balance.
But she kept singing.
Finished the song.
Finished the show.
Music stopped.
Crowd exploded.
She smiled.
Waved.
Bowed.
Turned around.
Walked backstage.
And the moment she crossed the curtain —
she grabbed the wall.
Breathing hard.
Min Jae ran to her.
"Jae!"
She shook her head.
"I'm fine…"
He grabbed her shoulders.
"You couldn't breathe again."
"…Just tired."
His voice got low.
"You're not doing the next show like this."
She looked at him.
Eyes tired.
Really tired.
"…We'll talk later."
SAME TIME — KEIFER POV
The concert stream played on TV.
Ci-n eating chips.
Rory on phone.
Aries quiet.
Angelo watching.
Keifer standing.
Watching carefully.
Then it happened.
Short breath.
Water.
Hand on chest.
He frowned.
"…Pause."
Ci-n groaned.
"Again??"
"Pause."
Replay.
Again.
Again.
His eyes narrowed.
"She's sick."
Aries sighed.
"You don't know that."
Keifer didn't look away.
"She looked like that before."
Angelo frowned.
"When?"
Keifer didn't answer.
His eyes stayed on the screen.
Her face.
Pale.
Still smiling.
His voice almost a whisper.
"…Jay… what happened to you after you left…"