Chapter 6

"Your dancing is pretty good, isn't it?"

Seon Woo-ju, who was dancing in sync with the beats of electronic music, twisting her body from side to side, had a remarkable skill.

It wasn't an incredible skill.

But as the saying goes, if you see one, you can infer ten. With a few months of investment, she had the potential to become a main dancer.

"Your flexibility is a bit lacking, though."

Perhaps it was because she had taken a two-year break from practice, her flexibility had declined. Some movements that should have been smooth came out rough.

However, flexibility is something that can be improved with stretching, so Representative Park Kyo-ho gave her a passing grade in dance.

Indeed, she had the skills of a six-year trainee.

"Why did Manager Yoon make such a fuss when she dances this well?"

Feeling puzzled, I turned my head, and Representative Park Kyo-ho looked at Manager Yoon Seok-hwan, who was sitting at the edge.

His eyes were wide open.

It was as if he had encountered a ghost.

"This can't be."

Yoon Seok-hwan's eyes were shaking uncontrollably.

Who was Seon Woo-ju?

She was the kid who was known as a log or a robot among the trainers of TJ Entertainment.

She had a good singing voice but was eliminated due to her dancing skills.

"Should I be moved by this, or should I be speechless?"

Seeing the kid, whom he had cherished like a younger brother, dance well made him happy, but honestly, it was quite surprising.

What was happening before his eyes was something he had never imagined, something he thought was impossible.

Seon Woo-ju was the one who, despite staying up all night, would receive a failing grade in dance during the monthly evaluation and feel dejected.

To suddenly change like this.

It was both delightful and bewildering, and on the other hand, it felt like seeing a child grow up, making his heart ache.

"If you had improved this much in two years, you could have given me a heads-up."

He felt a sense of futility for the three weeks of anxiety he had experienced.

Finally, the freestyle session ended.

Seon Woo-ju, standing in the center of the practice room, wiping the sweat from her face, smiled at him.

What a frustrating kid.

Yoon Seok-hwan clapped in his heart and looked around.

"Passed."

Even without saying it, the judges' eyes told him that the audition was passed.

Seeing people enjoy Seon Woo-ju's dance, Yoon Seok-hwan thought, "What a world, anything can happen," and smiled.

* * *

After the audition, I signed a contract with Lemon Entertainment.

For three months.

The contract included a clause that either party could terminate it at any time, and if there were no issues, it would automatically extend.

Representative Park Kyo-ho brought up the topic of debut.

"June next year?"

The planned debut date was June 2014.

It was almost December, so there were about six months left.

"The investors are pressuring us. It's been two years since the trainees were released, so they want us to produce results now."

"I'm fine with it, but will it be okay? The schedule is quite tight."

"It's fine. If it doesn't work out, I'll beg the investors, no problem."

Representative Park smiled and extended his hand.

"So don't give up and work hard, got it?"

"Yes, I will."

"Since it's the first day, we'll start the lessons from tomorrow. Do you want to meet the kids today?"

"Right now?"

"Since we'll be seeing each other anyway, the sooner the better, right?"

"Sure, that's fine."

I readily accepted the offer.

Representative Park's words were true; the sooner we got to know each other, the better.

The underground practice room.

After Representative Park went in first, I tidied up my clothes. When he gestured for me to come in, I stepped inside, and curious gazes followed me.

When I saw the four trainees, I paused for a moment.

They all had extraordinary visuals.

I couldn't tell how skilled they were, but they had a certain aura.

Two trainees with tall, strong features and a boyish charm.

And a trainee who, despite being young, looked like an actor the moment I saw him.

Our gazes intertwined in the air.

"Introduce yourselves."

Representative Park smiled and said.

"This is the friend who will be practicing with you from today."

Following his words, we awkwardly bowed to each other.

While exchanging pleasantries like "Hello," Representative Park introduced the trainees one by one.

He was just saying their names, but to be honest, I couldn't tell who was who at the moment.

A calm-looking trainee raised his hand.

"Representative, I have a question."

"Sure, go ahead. Bi."

"You said this person will be practicing with us. So, is this the person that Manager Jo said he would bring in...?"

"Yes."

"Is it really the person that Manager Jo brought in?"

As Representative Park nodded, a strange atmosphere spread among the trainees like a tide.

The way they looked at me was hard to describe.

It was as if they had finally received a long-awaited package.

The tall trainee asked.

"Does this mean we're debuting?"

"The schedule is set. The A&R and management teams are in a meeting, but we're aiming for June next year."

"Wow-!"

The youngest member, seemingly unaware, let out a shout.

Then he said, "Seniors! We're debuting!" and they hugged each other, cheering.

Seeing this, Representative Park smiled.

I felt like a bale of barley thrown into a festival, but I smiled, understanding how they felt.

After waiting for two years for a debut, it was only natural to react this way.

For a trainee, a debut is not just about appearing on TV.

It's a ray of light at the end of an endless tunnel.

It's impossible not to be excited.

No matter how much people around them say the outside world is dangerous and not to have high hopes, their hearts still soar.

For those running through the tunnel, a debut is like that.

When the end of a long tunnel is in sight, your heart races, you can't help but smile, and you want to hug everyone you meet.

I empathized with them.

"Kids, calm down."

As Representative Park smiled and held up a card, the trainees, who had been chatting animatedly, fell silent.

They looked at it as if it were Excalibur.

The light from the practice room's rail and the corporate card glinted off Representative Park's head.

"Since we have a new trainee today, let's have a welcome party and grill some meat here."

Cheers followed.

Listening to the cheers, I smiled quietly.

Overall, it was a good first meeting.

* * *

The first day ended with a meal to break the ice.

The real lessons started today, the second day.

I arrived at the practice room and turned on the lights.

7:00 AM.

The lessons start at 9:00 AM, but I arrived two hours early to make up for the lack of practice time.

With two years of missed practice, there was a long way to go.

I warmed up with leg splits and connected my smartphone to the speaker with an AUX cable.

-Cold Brown : See You

This is a hit song on the recent Billboard charts.

An R&B genre song with a standout dance performance.

The performance video I saw on YouTube this morning on the subway was for this song.

Before long, movements that I couldn't do before flowed smoothly from my body.

Wave.

The movements, divided into several stages, combined into a single ripple, which then passed from one arm to the other.

I now understood the entire process.

Not only could I mimic the movements, but I could intuitively understand the principles behind them.

Interestingly, this ability could also be applied to singing.

The ability to understand and mimic the movements of muscles.

Perhaps because the vocal cords are also muscles.

In fact, before the audition, I had recovered 60% of my original skills thanks to this ability. At this rate, it wouldn't be impossible to reach the minimum debut level within a month.

Click-

After breaking a sweat with a dance and doing a set of leg splits, the first trainee entered the room.

He had fair skin and well-defined features.

His appearance reminded me of a gentle deer.

His name was Kim Bi-ju, I think.

Yawning as if trying to fight off fatigue, Kim Bi-ju saw me and smiled brightly.

"You're here early, senior."

"Hello."

"Is it because it's the first day?"

"Yeah, it would be awkward to be late on the first day."

A clear laugh echoed.

From my observations during the meal yesterday, this trainee, who looked gentle, had a very calm personality.

Kim Bi-ju sat next to me and started stretching.

I marveled at how his legs stretched like a crane's.

He's incredibly flexible.

Was he the main dancer?

His every movement, fitting for the best dancer in the group, was smooth and elegant.

As I marveled internally, Kim Bi-ju, who met my gaze, smiled.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"You're incredibly flexible."

"Maybe because I've been dancing since elementary school. So, my dancing has improved, but I don't seem to be growing taller."

He made a sad face, and I smiled at him.

"Don't worry. You'll grow more."

"I'll be twenty in two months, senior."

"Really? I thought you were all high school students."

"Jung-hyun and I, the tall one, will graduate next year. The youngest will start high school."

The tall one, I think, was the member with a slightly rougher feel. I had mistaken him for being around seventeen due to his youthful appearance, but he was older than I thought.

We chatted while stretching, but since we had only met once, it was inevitably awkward.

It was a bit like "Wow, you're so handsome, ㅎㅎ," "No, you're more handsome, ㅎㅎ."

When the conversation paused for a moment.

While I was struggling with a leg split, Kim Bi-ju quietly spoke.

"Senior Woo-ju."

"......Hmm?"

"When you were at TJ Entertainment, you were selected for the debut group but dropped out because of your dancing, right?"

"Yeah."

What is he trying to say?

"Although it might seem a bit random, I hope you'll debut with us this time."

"Huh?"

I was confused.

"What do you mean?"

"Representative said we're debuting in June next year. We have about six months left, and the preparation will be intense. You might feel a lot of stress because of your dancing."

"That's true."

"You can't give up halfway, got it?"

"Sure."

"You never know with people. If you feel overwhelmed, please let me know."

Kim Bi-ju said seriously.

"If you feel you can't handle it, I can buy you a meal. I can also offer advice. Don't worry, just let me know. If you find dancing too difficult, I can help you even if it means staying up all night."

"Thanks. I'll remember that."

His serious tone made me think he had something important to say, but as I listened, I couldn't help but smile.

He's scared, I realized.

The trauma of the previous two times, when members dropped out just before debuting, was still fresh in his mind.

He was afraid I might leave, just like in those situations.

He wants to debut, and if I leave, it would be a problem.

Maybe I shouldn't have said that yesterday.

I had briefly summarized my trainee history, but it seemed to have caused a misunderstanding.

What should I say to him?

I can't tell him that I have superpowers and that dancing is no longer an issue.

"......"

Kim Bi-ju, perhaps embarrassed by what he had said, was stretching with a sheepish look.

Seeing this, I couldn't help but smile.

Click-

While silently stretching with Bi-ju, another trainee appeared.

He was wearing a tteokbokki coat and a beanie.

Like Kim Bi-ju, he had a boyish appearance, but the vibe was different.

While Kim Bi-ju was like a warm spring, this one was like a cold winter.

He had a proud, princely demeanor.

Very cold and aloof.

His name was Seo Ri-hyuk, I remember clearly.

His strong presence made him stand out even during the meal yesterday.

He was turning eighteen next year.

I greeted the new arrival, who was wearing headphones, but only got a nod in return.

As I blinked, Kim Bi-ju whispered.

"That's just how he is."

"He's cool."

He was about 170 cm tall, similar to Kim Bi-ju, but with a good build.

A lean figure and an intellectual face.

The boy, who was leaning against the wall and quietly listening to music, briefly turned his head at my gaze and then ignored me.

He's quite prickly.

I had a conversation with Seo Ri-hyuk when I went to the hallway to get water from the water cooler.

"Excuse me."

Turning my head, I saw his sharp eyes.

I smiled and replied.

"My name isn't 'excuse me,' it's Seon Woo-ju."

"Oh."

"Feel free to call me 'excuse me' if you find it awkward to use my name."

I smiled softly and spoke gently.

From experience, with people who seem to have this kind of personality, it's best to speak softly but firmly.

Otherwise, they won't take you seriously.

"Senior Seon Woo-ju, right?"

His tone suggested he didn't really want to call me "senior."

"I have something to say. Do you have a moment?"

"What is it?"

"I didn't have time to say this yesterday."

I blew on the paper cup and poured water, nodding as if to encourage him to speak.

His dark eyes fixed on me.

"Yesterday, you said you gave up being a trainee because of your dancing."

"......"

What are you, a pair of good brothers?