Bang chan | 🪩✨️

You had barely stepped through the front gate when you were hit by three things: the smell of spilled soda mixed with cheap alcohol, the booming sound of a playlist blasting “Last Friday Night” by Katy Perry, and the surreal sight of Ni-ki dancing with a string of fairy lights around his neck like he had just come from a Christmas rave.

The party was, at the very least, surreal. The house old, spacious, clearly rented by someone irresponsible shook with every beat of the music. There were people on the counters, people on the floor, people who clearly had no idea how they even got there. It wasn’t a fancy party. It was sweaty, filled with the smell of stale chips, grape soda spiked with something suspicious, and teenage despair. And yet… you felt like you were in the right place.

Then you saw him. Jackson Wang, in the middle of the room, wearing bunny ears and heart-shaped sunglasses at three in the morning, completely out of his mind and clearly loving every second of it. He was yelling at Mina:

“IF NO ONE FILMS IT, IT DIDN’T HAPPEN!”

For some reason, Giselle from aespa was trying to balance a pizza box on her head while Felix and Jeongyeon were betting who could drink more soda through double straws. Jungkook suddenly appeared on the balcony wearing nothing but underwear and you were CERTAIN it had “Jimin” written in glitter on the butt. He yelled “THIS IS FOR SCIENCE!” before jumping into an empty pool of balloons. Sana and Yeji were dancing on top of the washing machine, while Changbin tried to explain that I.N had gotten stuck in a closet thinking it was the bathroom. No one really knew how he was still inside, desperately texting in the group chat.

In the kitchen, Beomgyu was making questionable drinks with strawberry milk and iced tea, yelling:

“I SAW THIS ON PINTEREST, TRUST ME!”

And of course, Bang Chan was the epicenter of the chaos. Dancing, shouting, hugging strangers, holding a broom like a microphone and singing with so much passion it felt like the finale of The Voice. Out of nowhere, he turned to you, like he’d been waiting for you all night.

“Hey... you made it,” he said with a crooked smile, before putting a pink wig on your head and shouting:

“NOW THE PARTY IS OFFICIALLY COMPLETE!”

You didn’t even have time to process. Jisoo and Rosé ran past you, laughing with a fire extinguisher. Hanni from NewJeans was dancing in slow motion like she was in a music video, while Kazuha from LE SSERAFIM clapped along and laughed. Sunoo showed up dressed as a unicorn, saying he lost a bet. There was a banana hanging from the ceiling, which promptly fell on Soyeon’s head. She just grabbed it, took a bite, and went back to chatting with Dahyun, who also asked for a bite. There was a kissing booth run by San, with a sign that read: “NO PIX, HUGS ONLY.”

You tried to take two steps into the living room but were blocked by Soobin, who was sliding across the floor in socks like he was competing in some invisible Olympic sport. He slid by screaming “SKRRRRRT” while holding a pillow with Yeonjun’s face taped to it.

In the corner, Nayeon and Jennie were giggling as they changed the clothes of a Barbie and a Ken doll which suspiciously had Lisa and Jihyo’s faces glued on. Beside them, Seungmin was trying to open a bottle with his teeth, only to be scolded by Cha Eunwoo, who wore a prom dress and a plastic tiara that read “Miss Congeniality.”

You blinked, confused. And then as if reality had glitched you saw Bang Chan climbing on a coffee table (which was already half broken, mind you), holding a flag made from SEVENTEEN t-shirts knotted together. He started yelling like he was about to give a student council speech, then just let out a primal roar before collapsing backwards onto a bean bag where Kai and BamBam were trying to finish a 500-piece puzzle in the dark, laughing hysterically.

There was glitter floating in the air, like someone had set off a magical bomb. And maybe someone had because Hyunjin showed up seconds later, covered in sparkles, shouting that he was now “literally a celestial being.”

Out on the balcony, Han Jisung was playing a sad tune on a three-string guitar while Miyeon played Uno with Chaeryoung and an inflatable doll wearing a Ningning mask. You didn’t know who was winning, but the doll looked disturbingly competitive.

Back in the living room, Bang Chan had a new wig this time blue and passed you by twirling a plastic cane like he was in a school musical. He smelled like mint candy, sweat, and poor decisions. He tripped over a bean bag and fell laughing. Moments later, Suga walked by, chatting with Woozi, and without seeing Chan on the floor, he tripped over his leg and fell face-first, spilling his drink. Woozi laughed and roasted him immediately.

You looked around, not sure if you should laugh or cry. Sungchan and Wonyoung were putting temporary tattoos on each other’s foreheads. J-Hope had dressed the neighbor’s dog in a BTS hoodie. And in the background, Wonwoo was crawling up the stairs saying he was a “horny leopard” while Heeseung walked ahead tossing Cheerios behind him like a trail of breadcrumbs.

On the wall, a handwritten sign read “DO NOT FEED JAY PARK,” taped up with black electrical tape.

And even with all this going on around you, your eyes kept being pulled back to Chan. Not because he was the hottest in the room (though he was a strong contender), but because… he belonged to the madness. He was the king of improvisation, the conductor of chaos, the heartbeat of the mess.

You saw him now, sitting on the floor with his back against the couch, eyes closed and a goofy smile on his face. Someone had put a princess tiara on his head and a “kiss me” sticker on his forehead, He hadn’t taken off either.

And when he opened his eyes slowly, like he knew you were watching him, Chan smiled, and tilted his chin toward the empty space beside him.