It was with great trepidation that Natalia Higuera walked to the First-Class lounge. Something inside of her screamed that she was going in the wrong direction but the ticket pulled up on her phone said otherwise. In all of her thirty years of living she had never flown First Class. She had also never had a trip completely paid for but it was clear that this would be the start of many firsts. Once again that "thing" spoke but the message was an old tape repeating how much she did not deserve these firsts.
Beep.
Somehow Naty had gotten to the door of the lounge and her trembling fingers held her phone still enough to grant her access. Whether she did deserve it or not, she was there. She immediately took a video clip.
It was always with great nervousness that she took her videos but it was the videos that got her where she was. Exactly two years ago she began her journey as an "influencer" and two months ago it put her in the hands of a huge sponsorship—TripExclusive. Naty couldn't take all the credit for getting TripExclusive's attention. She had an aggressively loyal 100k following that watched her grind until she turned the $0.01 in her bank account into a paid trip to Greece. Back then she did silly BTS reaction videos but now she focused on travel and so she owed her followers a glimpse of her success and advice on how to get there themselves.
The issue, she found, was that specific grind was actually a grind for content that constantly took her out of the moment. It wasn't until she looked through her photo album that she realized how nice the First-Class Lounge actually was. Naty's mind replayed the last few moments she missed. She came in, was offered a plethora of free stuff, sat down, was immediately given water and offered complimentary drinks. It was epic!
The lounge was larger than expected and designed with an obvious sense of luxury. The colors were gold and a deep red that made her feel regal. The seat she sat in felt like a cloud while the water tasted like it was straight from Mt. Everest. She expected the place to be lavish but she did not expect it to be so busy. The young influencer went to work on editing the videos to obscure identities.
The videos in question weren't just for the large sponsorship. In addition to that one, Naty had a haul of others she needed to make content for. The video editing app was one, the headphones she wore, travel tripod she positioned on the table in front of her, the wallet in her carry on, the comfy travel shoes she wore, and so many others she kept detailed in her notes app. All of them expected to see content of their items holding up during her travels and so she got to work filming enough tidbits for each sponsorship to be pleased. By the time she finished, an hour had already passed.
She looked at her watch—another sponsorship—with a huff. It was time to go live.
Naty set her phone on the tripod and directed it close to her for the privacy of others in the lounge. She had been using the head phones for over a week and so she knew it would cancel out everything but her voice. In the live section she typed out the title "What's new!" and fixed her hair in the screen. She took in a calming breath then preceded to launch.
Immediately 500 people tapped into view her trip.
"Hey everyone!" she spoke quietly but enthusiastically to her followers, "Chels, Sierra, Bo, Sonia, Anika, hi, hi, hi, hi!"
Naty tried her best to name the ones she remembered until an older guy behind her groaned about stupid "influencers."
"I made it!" she said in a quieter tone, "It's so lovely here and TripExclusive has made everything so easy. I literally just had to show up. And yes, I did get here four hours early. I am Latina."
The chat exploded with questions she did her best to answer while also promoting a fun environment for others to talk to each other in. From the beginning the live had been a place to chat about movies, shows, and K-Pop. Of course, other topics came and went but K-Pop always stayed at the center.
"No, I didn't hear about Stray Kids taking a small break before a comeback. I also didn't get a chance to hear ITZY's new song. I've been slacking on my JYPE updates. Is it good?"
Reviews flooded the screen that Naty tried to reply to until a comment made her gasp.
She read it out loud, 'Naty, when are you going to get over your cringe BTS phase and become a die-hard Stay like the rest of us? We already know Chan is your bias.'"
The comments went so crazy she lost track of the person that originally made it.
"Do you want to get blocked?" Naty joked, "BTS is not a 'phase' BTS is a life time and yes, I do enjoy Stray Kids bu—"
The older man behind her grumbled and then let out a low chuckle. She tried to ignore him until a foul odor infiltrated her nostrils.
Naty froze in disbelief. There was no way that man had farted but disgusted sounds and fleeing bodies told her it was true. She immediately threw her stuff into her carry on and left with the First-Class exodus. Upon exiting the Fart Lounge, she moved against the wall to avoid being in anyone's way and looked at her phone.
The live was wild with speculations of national security or seeing someone famous. Immediately she quelled the concern, "Sorry about that but someone took it upon themselves to let out the world's most rancid…fart. I'm going to get myself some fresh air but I'll hop back on before leaving. Stay safe!"
Well, that certainly was a first.
Naty looked at the time, looked at her scheduled flight departure, and decided she wanted to kill some time. She did this by weaving through stores and taking footage of things she found. She didn't stop until a familiar burn in her stomach told her she was even hungry. Once again, she had fallen into the content trap. The last few moments were a blur that she hardly remembered living. How long had it been since she left the First-Class Lounge? She didn't remember.
What she did remember was that she hadn't eaten since 3pm that day and it was well past nutrition time. She didn't like that. She didn't like her eyes hurting from starting at the phone screen too long or her moments slipping past her. On a regular day it was fine. On a regular day she had nothing to look forward to but this day was different! She had to treat it as such.
Naty let out a deep breath as she looked at her phone. It was time to cut back. She gave it a little kiss then put the phone in her pocket and finally looked at her surroundings.
Funny how that made her realize she wasn't hungry—she was starving!
She chewed on the bottom of her lip as she tried to figure out what to eat. That was the other issue. Naty was incredibly indecisive. Something about having her camera out to film gave her a clear path. With her phone, she knew she needed something aesthetic or eye catching or interesting. Without her phone the options were endless.
Hunger made her decide to walk aimlessly in search of anything to eat. The aimless part soon was forgone once a whiff of something delicious came across her. She was unsure of what exactly she was smelling but followed it to a small restaurant overflowing with people. She stood at the entrance and realized it was Latin Cuisine that called her home.
The small restaurant sat sandwiched between a sports bar and a Starbucks. It had its own bar at the front with stools and glass hanging upside down but on either side of the bar was an aisle of booths. One side had smaller, two people booths while the other could seat the maximum of eight. She thanked her good eyesight for being able to determine that since the lighting was dim and intimate. Naty supposed that was for travelers to avoid thinking about the time and appropriate meals for it.
Individuals moved past her and she realized no one was coming to seat her. A sign she didn't notice until then read to grab a seat anywhere she liked. She frowned at the hustle and bustle of the establishment but quickly scrambled to a small two-seater booth in the far back. Habit made her sit with her back to the door so that she could hide away from any onlookers and she was thankful a small touch screen would serve as her waiter so she didn't have to worry about service being found.
Naty took off her mask as she looked through the menu on the device and immediate let her gut pick for her. Nachos as the appetizer, an Enchilada with all the sides as her entrée, and to drink she got herself a Coca-Cola…with a water on the side to cancel it out. With her order put in she pulled out her phone but this time it was for self-pleasure.
She had been meaning to watch the new ITZY comeback but the live chat gave her a new buzz. As K-Pop always did, she became glued to the screen and all the visuals flying around her. She knew she would have to watch the video at least three times before even forming an opinion and so she happily let herself go on the ride. She was truly enjoying herself—
—until someone sat in the seat across from her.
Naty jumped at the sight of a man who quickly she could see was apologizing. The noise of the atmosphere and the music in her ears made it impossible to hear him but she can tell he had an accent. She paused the music, "I'm sorry, what was that?"
"I'm so sorry. I thought the booth was empty!" she identified the accent to be Australian.
"It's okay. You're fine," she smiled, really seeing him. The man wore a mask that obstructed his features but from his eyes he seemed to be around her age. He wore a baseball cap and a large hoodie hidden by a massive winter jacket. He seemed nice enough.
It was then she realized she had zoned out to the point of missing him speak again.
"I'm sorry. What was that…again?" she frowned in apology.
"It's really full here. Do you mind if I sit with you? I'll keep to myself."
Naty hesitated for a moment but immediately shrugged the hesitation off. She had headphones and was already engrossed in ITZY. He also seemed very polite and she didn't mind being polite to polite people, "Sure. I ordered food already and you're welcome to help yourself. You order with this thing for anything you really want."
"Oh, sweet! Thank you!"
She nodded and looked down at her phone. The music began again but her focus was split between her peripheral vision and the images dancing. She couldn't help but notice him take off his jacket and the mask. When he did, something odd grabbed at her brain she couldn't ignore. Naty didn't want to be rude and stare but something made her lift her gaze from her phone and to the man across from her.
"Oh my God," she whispered.
It was Bang Chan of Stray Kids.
