RURI LEADS THE NATION.
HighlightMySoul. Seol. 9/10. 積読本.
Chae ruri
"No matter how many times I get pushed down, I'm still going to get right back up. It's dancing or nothing for me and nothing isn't an option."
PERSONALITY TRAITS —
+ : hard working, energetic/active, passionate, reliable, courageous, benevolent, adaptable, creative.
= : determined, dorky.
- : straightforward/blunt, critical, over-emotional/dramatic, private about personal things, stubborn, ignorant/oblivious, assertive, insecure, self-distructive/self-centered.
+ : hard working, energetic/active, passionate, reliable, courageous, benevolent, adaptable, creative.
= : determined, dorky.
- : straightforward/blunt, critical, over-emotional/dramatic, private about personal things, stubborn, ignorant/oblivious, assertive, insecure, self-distructive/self-centered.
ELABORATION —
"I appreciate the masterpiece that is you, because your existence alone is art." With a warm smile, energetic disposition and her head in the clouds, Ruri is someone you might easily notice in a crowded room. She's definitely someone who is recognized for her impressive skill and her straightforwardness, however, it is very obvious that she has very unrealistic views and expectations. Ruri is a loving and fun person, someone who is courageous and a go-getter with undeniable passion flowing through her veins and energetic vibe. Her fears seem absent to others around her, but they really are there if you look hard enough. She's definitely one of the more playful and active members, one of the girls who can easily make a bad situation into something better. She's noticeably kind and caring, someone you can rely on for just about anything, but Ruri definitely has her many faults, especially compensating for her secrets.
"When tomorrow comes, the bright light will shine so don't worry." Something that most people notice right off the bat is that she’s always energetic and active. It’s like she drinks five Monsters with a side of twelve Expressos in the morning for breakfast because she never slows down. She’s always seemingly ready to go for anything and everything, even going as far as to practice well into the night without showing signs of feeling like death. Ruri is also a very active individual and takes pride in getting things done at a quick rate. She’s always moving and tries not to let fatigue slow her down or get in the way of her dreams or practice. She's always trying to teach herself new dances or perfect the choreography given to her, and in her free time, you can find her going for a morning jog and yoga session. Ruri is also probably the biggest dork you’ll ever know who says sassy, funny things, lame jokes, embarrasses herself and you in public by doing dumb stuff like dancing badly or obliviously talking to the guy you have a crush on about you and even yelling at y guys for you if needed. She wiggles her eyebrows a lot and will sing and rap terrible karaoke with you. She’s definitely the one who’s obsessed with things like anime and dramas and doesn’t mind fangirling publicly about her interests. This, paired with her courageousness is a recipe for disaster because she’s not ashamed or embarrassed to do just about anything in front of people or even by herself. It's like she doesn't know how to be embarrassed because she just turns her back on the idea and does everything so openly and wholeheartedly. So don’t ever dare her to do something that could cause you to probably die of embarrassment because she’ll do it with a huge oblivious grin on her face. She’s always been very open and unafraid for the most part and doesn’t mind rising to a challenge. She’s someone who blindly goes out into a sea of people with only the thoughts of her passion on her mind which is what makes her courageous. She believes that if you are doing things for the right reasons or that you don’t always worry about what others think about you and only picture your drive then you don’t have a reason to be afraid. So Ruri isn’t one to tend to be shy or too embarrassed, and if you are, then she would happily stand in your place, so you don’t have to experience the embarrassment. However, this courageousness that she excerpt is almost blind stupidity and fearlessness. Because she isn't afraid, most assume this is just because she's plain crazy or reckless, and this might be the case, but Ruri tries to be fearless. Though this isn't always the truth. Even courageous people have doubts and fears, and Ruri definitely has both of these ten-fold, but she tries not to let this take over her.
"I just want to know your heart." Ruri is someone who you can always rely on to be there for your or even just do her part in general. If you need someone to count on or put your faith in, she’ll always pull through for you even if it seems tough for her. If you need anything, all you have to do is ask, or if you just want to share your thoughts to or open up about private matters, she’s all ears and wouldn’t dare tell your secrets on purpose. Ruri is benevolent in the sense that she honestly means well in everything she does. However, she does have her terrible moments, but she isn’t evil or overall a bad person. She tries to look for the good in people rather than the bad and doesn’t always accept that some people are just mean. She’s determined to make those assumptions on her own after further analysis. To her friends and family and anyone she considers to be a decent person, she’s the one you can count on to put a smile on your face, make you laugh or just do things with you, so you aren’t alone. She’ll help you to understand and perfect the choreography if you need help or even try to help you learn the lyrics of the song even if she isn't the best singer. She can't just sit by and do nothing while someone struggles. She’d gladly give up her water bottle for you if you left yours at home or forgot to bring money with you. She loves spending time with people just because she enjoys their company. She shows her affection by physical means as well as with words and doesn’t expect that in return. If she cares about you then she does, and there’s nothing you can probably do to stir her away, so just get used to her being all over you and wanting to drag you places or make you watch musicals and animes with her.
"If we're together it's always right. Always all together, we have strength. Whenever, we'll be alright. Together, we'll never cry." She’s also very adaptable and can mold herself to fit situations and people. She doesn’t have a problem approaching others or getting settled in a new and strange environment and tends to find a sense of comfort in every situation. She can make do with just about anything you throw at her or click with others who she’s never really known. This is all thanks to her Japanese Professor mother who thought it would be a good idea for her children to experience new and scary things such as traveling and learning other cultures and languages, so they can learn to adapt and find a common ground with others, which has come in handy with meeting new trainees and doing scary things such trying to chase her dreams of becoming an idol.
"I want to protect you forever, I'm eternally in love." Ruri is one hundred percent determination and hard work, not up and laying off. Hard work should be her middle name since it's basically what she's all about. She doesn't stop even for a second. She'll pull her own weight and then some. You never have to worry about her slacking on her part. She's responsibilities, responsibilities, responsibilities. It's like second nature since she was raised this way. She knows what she has to get done, and she'll make sure she does it. Once she sets a goal for herself, she'll not rest until it's complete, even if it seems impossible. She's dedicated to whatever she gets herself into and won't quit until it's over. Hard work doesn't come from taking things lightly, and she believes this. You have to be willing to take a little bit of attitude and some hard criticism to become successful. And, to be successful means to her that she needs to take matters into her own hands.
"Don't be trapped in someone else's dream." She’s also very stubborn, especially with her own dream and opinions. Because of her dedication, she can be way too set in her ways or focused on getting to where she needs to be. It’s very irritating at times when she’s so stubborn and bent on doing things that she believes are right and can cause her to clash heads with others who are also strongly opinionated. She’s also very creative and wildly in love with her dream. She constantly is thinking up new song lyrics, or ways to do things. She is an out of the box thinker, which can set her apart from others, mainly because she’s rather strange and oblivious.
"I'm only human." However, one of Ruri's most obvious traits is her straightforwardness and brutal honesty.It's ironic because she takes immense pride in being honest but in retrospect, she's not even fully honest with herself or her friends and loved ones. Ruri thinks she's just truthful and upfront, but she's brutally so, almost hurtful even at times. Ruri is noticeably straightforward and tends to tell things like they are right off the top of her head. Even going as far to tell you she doesn’t like someone’s outfit, personality, performance, and even admitting to her own crush on someone. She doesn’t hide her feelings and tends to wear her heart on her sleeve which sometimes can cause her very horrible heartache and damage and has in the past. However, she tries to keep her feelings to herself now, only about liking others more than a friend. She tends not to have a censor when it comes to being honest and doesn’t have any clue that this is sometimes hurtful and offends others. So she’ll always state her mind, regardless of the comment. Although Ruri is very oblivious/ignorant to others feelings at times and doesn’t realize when she’s hurt someone unless they make it obvious. She really does mean well and thinks that her blunt nature is truth, but it’s a bit more than that. Her close friends often chastise her for being too straightforward, and she does try to cut down and censor herself because the last thing she wants to do is be mean or rude unintentionally. However, this is compensating for her secrets. She doesn't want people to know what has happened in the past and chooses to cover that up with being blunt, however she's still living a lie. Ruri is also very critical, which doesn’t go well with her straightforwardness. If someone else's work doesn’t seem up to par, she might try to politely point it out, however, it might not always come out as sweetly as she hoped because it can be downright rude or hateful. She can’t help but be very critical of her judgment. However, she does try to give people the benefit of the doubt, but she doesn’t hide her doubts or what’s on her mind. Sometimes she can become too judgemental and almost harsh with her critiques but doesn’t realize this, which can be very annoying to others around her and might get her some harsh responses back which won’t hesitate to hurt her feelings because she doesn’t realize what she’s doing unless you tell her.
"Remind yourself that it's okay not to be perfect." Ruri can also be way too assertive. Growing up as the older sibling, she’s used to taking charge and leading the way, even if it isn’t her place. She's not always playful and oblivious, she’s tough when she needs to be, to her group and herself if it's the only way she can get something done. She'll try her to take authority in any situation, which can be very annoying or aggravating to others, especially if she wasn't even involved in whatever was going on in the first place, she'll just show up and take over which can get her yelled at by the other members or really annoyed looks. Don’t get her wrong though, she doesn’t try to be bossy on purpose, but she is used to being assertive, and if Yeni needs help commanding the group or needs to hear someone else’s point of view for a situation, Ruri can definitely be her girl. However, if she is being way too in your face sometimes you just have to tell it to her straight, regardless of how she reacts. Speaking of reacting, Ruri is extremely over dramatic and emotional. She exaggerates a lot of the time, acting like some things are the end of the world when it’s not even that big of a deal. She tries to keep her emotions at bay, but she feels things way too deeply for her own good and experiences extreme highs and lows. If she has a bad day, such as someone critiquing her negatively or she reads a harsh fan comment, she takes it to heart, way more than others tend to and will indeed cry and feel depressed and upset for the remainder of the day, or in some cases, several days. This goes for both good and bad feelings, each are heightened to intensity which becomes somewhat hard to control at times. Overall, Ruri is a dorky, oblivious to life and very honest and playful girl with a big heart and big dreams. She can get on your nerves or be your best friend, however, she does mean well in the end.
"When tomorrow comes, the bright light will shine so don't worry." Something that most people notice right off the bat is that she’s always energetic and active. It’s like she drinks five Monsters with a side of twelve Expressos in the morning for breakfast because she never slows down. She’s always seemingly ready to go for anything and everything, even going as far as to practice well into the night without showing signs of feeling like death. Ruri is also a very active individual and takes pride in getting things done at a quick rate. She’s always moving and tries not to let fatigue slow her down or get in the way of her dreams or practice. She's always trying to teach herself new dances or perfect the choreography given to her, and in her free time, you can find her going for a morning jog and yoga session. Ruri is also probably the biggest dork you’ll ever know who says sassy, funny things, lame jokes, embarrasses herself and you in public by doing dumb stuff like dancing badly or obliviously talking to the guy you have a crush on about you and even yelling at y guys for you if needed. She wiggles her eyebrows a lot and will sing and rap terrible karaoke with you. She’s definitely the one who’s obsessed with things like anime and dramas and doesn’t mind fangirling publicly about her interests. This, paired with her courageousness is a recipe for disaster because she’s not ashamed or embarrassed to do just about anything in front of people or even by herself. It's like she doesn't know how to be embarrassed because she just turns her back on the idea and does everything so openly and wholeheartedly. So don’t ever dare her to do something that could cause you to probably die of embarrassment because she’ll do it with a huge oblivious grin on her face. She’s always been very open and unafraid for the most part and doesn’t mind rising to a challenge. She’s someone who blindly goes out into a sea of people with only the thoughts of her passion on her mind which is what makes her courageous. She believes that if you are doing things for the right reasons or that you don’t always worry about what others think about you and only picture your drive then you don’t have a reason to be afraid. So Ruri isn’t one to tend to be shy or too embarrassed, and if you are, then she would happily stand in your place, so you don’t have to experience the embarrassment. However, this courageousness that she excerpt is almost blind stupidity and fearlessness. Because she isn't afraid, most assume this is just because she's plain crazy or reckless, and this might be the case, but Ruri tries to be fearless. Though this isn't always the truth. Even courageous people have doubts and fears, and Ruri definitely has both of these ten-fold, but she tries not to let this take over her.
"I just want to know your heart." Ruri is someone who you can always rely on to be there for your or even just do her part in general. If you need someone to count on or put your faith in, she’ll always pull through for you even if it seems tough for her. If you need anything, all you have to do is ask, or if you just want to share your thoughts to or open up about private matters, she’s all ears and wouldn’t dare tell your secrets on purpose. Ruri is benevolent in the sense that she honestly means well in everything she does. However, she does have her terrible moments, but she isn’t evil or overall a bad person. She tries to look for the good in people rather than the bad and doesn’t always accept that some people are just mean. She’s determined to make those assumptions on her own after further analysis. To her friends and family and anyone she considers to be a decent person, she’s the one you can count on to put a smile on your face, make you laugh or just do things with you, so you aren’t alone. She’ll help you to understand and perfect the choreography if you need help or even try to help you learn the lyrics of the song even if she isn't the best singer. She can't just sit by and do nothing while someone struggles. She’d gladly give up her water bottle for you if you left yours at home or forgot to bring money with you. She loves spending time with people just because she enjoys their company. She shows her affection by physical means as well as with words and doesn’t expect that in return. If she cares about you then she does, and there’s nothing you can probably do to stir her away, so just get used to her being all over you and wanting to drag you places or make you watch musicals and animes with her.
"If we're together it's always right. Always all together, we have strength. Whenever, we'll be alright. Together, we'll never cry." She’s also very adaptable and can mold herself to fit situations and people. She doesn’t have a problem approaching others or getting settled in a new and strange environment and tends to find a sense of comfort in every situation. She can make do with just about anything you throw at her or click with others who she’s never really known. This is all thanks to her Japanese Professor mother who thought it would be a good idea for her children to experience new and scary things such as traveling and learning other cultures and languages, so they can learn to adapt and find a common ground with others, which has come in handy with meeting new trainees and doing scary things such trying to chase her dreams of becoming an idol.
"I want to protect you forever, I'm eternally in love." Ruri is one hundred percent determination and hard work, not up and laying off. Hard work should be her middle name since it's basically what she's all about. She doesn't stop even for a second. She'll pull her own weight and then some. You never have to worry about her slacking on her part. She's responsibilities, responsibilities, responsibilities. It's like second nature since she was raised this way. She knows what she has to get done, and she'll make sure she does it. Once she sets a goal for herself, she'll not rest until it's complete, even if it seems impossible. She's dedicated to whatever she gets herself into and won't quit until it's over. Hard work doesn't come from taking things lightly, and she believes this. You have to be willing to take a little bit of attitude and some hard criticism to become successful. And, to be successful means to her that she needs to take matters into her own hands.
"Don't be trapped in someone else's dream." She’s also very stubborn, especially with her own dream and opinions. Because of her dedication, she can be way too set in her ways or focused on getting to where she needs to be. It’s very irritating at times when she’s so stubborn and bent on doing things that she believes are right and can cause her to clash heads with others who are also strongly opinionated. She’s also very creative and wildly in love with her dream. She constantly is thinking up new song lyrics, or ways to do things. She is an out of the box thinker, which can set her apart from others, mainly because she’s rather strange and oblivious.
"I'm only human." However, one of Ruri's most obvious traits is her straightforwardness and brutal honesty.It's ironic because she takes immense pride in being honest but in retrospect, she's not even fully honest with herself or her friends and loved ones. Ruri thinks she's just truthful and upfront, but she's brutally so, almost hurtful even at times. Ruri is noticeably straightforward and tends to tell things like they are right off the top of her head. Even going as far to tell you she doesn’t like someone’s outfit, personality, performance, and even admitting to her own crush on someone. She doesn’t hide her feelings and tends to wear her heart on her sleeve which sometimes can cause her very horrible heartache and damage and has in the past. However, she tries to keep her feelings to herself now, only about liking others more than a friend. She tends not to have a censor when it comes to being honest and doesn’t have any clue that this is sometimes hurtful and offends others. So she’ll always state her mind, regardless of the comment. Although Ruri is very oblivious/ignorant to others feelings at times and doesn’t realize when she’s hurt someone unless they make it obvious. She really does mean well and thinks that her blunt nature is truth, but it’s a bit more than that. Her close friends often chastise her for being too straightforward, and she does try to cut down and censor herself because the last thing she wants to do is be mean or rude unintentionally. However, this is compensating for her secrets. She doesn't want people to know what has happened in the past and chooses to cover that up with being blunt, however she's still living a lie. Ruri is also very critical, which doesn’t go well with her straightforwardness. If someone else's work doesn’t seem up to par, she might try to politely point it out, however, it might not always come out as sweetly as she hoped because it can be downright rude or hateful. She can’t help but be very critical of her judgment. However, she does try to give people the benefit of the doubt, but she doesn’t hide her doubts or what’s on her mind. Sometimes she can become too judgemental and almost harsh with her critiques but doesn’t realize this, which can be very annoying to others around her and might get her some harsh responses back which won’t hesitate to hurt her feelings because she doesn’t realize what she’s doing unless you tell her.
"Remind yourself that it's okay not to be perfect." Ruri can also be way too assertive. Growing up as the older sibling, she’s used to taking charge and leading the way, even if it isn’t her place. She's not always playful and oblivious, she’s tough when she needs to be, to her group and herself if it's the only way she can get something done. She'll try her to take authority in any situation, which can be very annoying or aggravating to others, especially if she wasn't even involved in whatever was going on in the first place, she'll just show up and take over which can get her yelled at by the other members or really annoyed looks. Don’t get her wrong though, she doesn’t try to be bossy on purpose, but she is used to being assertive, and if Yeni needs help commanding the group or needs to hear someone else’s point of view for a situation, Ruri can definitely be her girl. However, if she is being way too in your face sometimes you just have to tell it to her straight, regardless of how she reacts. Speaking of reacting, Ruri is extremely over dramatic and emotional. She exaggerates a lot of the time, acting like some things are the end of the world when it’s not even that big of a deal. She tries to keep her emotions at bay, but she feels things way too deeply for her own good and experiences extreme highs and lows. If she has a bad day, such as someone critiquing her negatively or she reads a harsh fan comment, she takes it to heart, way more than others tend to and will indeed cry and feel depressed and upset for the remainder of the day, or in some cases, several days. This goes for both good and bad feelings, each are heightened to intensity which becomes somewhat hard to control at times. Overall, Ruri is a dorky, oblivious to life and very honest and playful girl with a big heart and big dreams. She can get on your nerves or be your best friend, however, she does mean well in the end.
HISTORY —
• April 12th, 1998, in the beachy city of Busan, Chae Ruri was born into the Chae family. Her life started like most her age, full of adventure and curiosity. Her parents, a Japanese professor, and an accountant, loved her dearly and gave her all of the time and affection they could spare. The small family of three lived in a modest house a few blocks away from the waterfront, and the beautiful sandy area became her backyard play pin for a while. Ruri's father was mostly busy, so she didn't really get to spend much time with him as a child, so she spent most of her hours with her mother. Ruri's mother was a Japanese Professor who was obsessed with the language and culture, even going as far to give Ruri a Japanese name in tribute to her devotion. She taught Ruri at a young age to experience different types of environment and culture, teaching her of the language, as well as letting her travel to the country for a summer when she was eight. However, one thing was very present in her life -- music.
2001-2005 From a very young age, Ruri took fascination in watching musicals and listening to music in her mother car. As just a small five year old, she would sing along to the Disney movies and beg her mom to let her watch the Japanese music performances that she enjoyed watching some afternoons after work. With her persistence, Ruri's mother definitely couldn't turn her down so Mrs. Chae let her daughter watch this over and over, even casually introducing her daughter to the classic Korean music. The tiny girl would dance along to the songs and make up her own choreography, much to the amusement of her parents and family and she was always moving. Mrs. Chae would occasionally take Ruri to her parent's house where they had an old grand piano in their living room, and little Ruri would constantly tap on the keys in interest. After doing it so often, even showing more interest in the piano than her grandparents' presence, Mrs. Chae decided to enter her little dancer into dance lessons down at the college where she taught. Ruri was obsessed after that, she was so excited at the prospect of going to her after school lessons and dancing at the recitals, and that was all she could think about. She was very devoted to her newfound interest. It became her whole world before she even knew it. Ruri was constantly listening to music, dancing or singing.
2007-2008 Of course, at this time, Kpop was very popular, and Ruri couldn't ignore this fact. She loved watching the music videos and performances with her friends on tv and was fascinated with their abilities to dance so beautifully and elegantly and captivate an audience with their spectacular performances. They were so talented and seemed to free on stage, and she wanted that to be her. That's when she knew she had to be an idol. It was her dream, her ultimate hope. She had to be an idol, and that was that. There wasn't anything else in the world she wanted to be. Music was her everything, and she couldn't go through a single day without listening to a song, this was her goal.
2009-2011 However, when she was eleven, her mother gave birth to her baby brother, Sejun who became the other center of her world. Just a year after his birth, Mr. Chae passed away due after getting involved in a car accident on his way to work. The Chaes were devastated, how could such a thing happen to them? They were heartbroken and at a loss. Ruri soon gave up her dance lessons and instead focused on being with her family and taking care of baby Sejun while Mrs. Chae had to work more hours to support them. However, Ruri and her mother made a pact to show Sejun as much love as they possibly could to make up for the loss of Mr. Chae. Ruri and Sejun became very close, she did everything for him, sang him to sleep when their mom had night classes to teach and kept him entertained, dressed him for school and even learned to cook to make sure she and her brother were well-fed in the absence of their mother. Ruri understood the weight of the situation; she knew it was time for her as the older sister to step up and take care of Sejun to the best of her abilities. For years she did so, but she refused to give up practicing dancing and chasing her dream and continued to do so in her free time when she wasn't caring for her brother or doing homework. She used her mother's laptop to search dance covers just for fun, but she wasn't satisfied and knew she wouldn't be until she became an idol. Her heart ached for this.
2012-2013 Her mother, knowing how dedicated her daughter was to pursuing music wanted Ruri to go after her dream and continuously encouraged Ruri to try harder and shoot only for success. Ruri fixated her attention on improving her dancing and branching out to different styles that she had learned from videos, as well as her old dance classes and the underground dancers. However, her mother's encouragements were what gave her the courage to audition for Starship Entertainment at just the age of fifteen. When she came across an article online that the agency was accepting virtual auditions for new trainees, Ruri jumped at the chance. Of course, Ruri was nervous because she was even more afraid of not being able to follow her dream, so she sent in a video file of her dancing to three different songs to show her versatility and one video of her singing. The next few weeks drug by because of Ruri's nerves. She came home every day to check her email to make sure she hadn't received anything from Starship until finally the company called her and accepted her as a trainee. Ruri was ecstatic and soon joined the company after celebrating with her family. Ruri wasn't so sure about leaving her mom and brother behind, but she her mother wouldn't let her skip out on the amazing opportunity she had been waiting for, and Ruri soon moved into the Starship dorms in Seoul. (More info in trainee life section) However, after being pushed to the back of the trainees and practically ignored Ruri started to lose faith. She wanted this so bad but training was harder than she expected and with so many other talented girls it was hard to compete. That is when things began to go downhill. To gain inspiration, Ruri decided to start showing up to Seoul's underground dance scene which was widely different than the one in Busan. The dancers here were older and seemed to be more experienced. However, that's when she saw him, Lee Taewon. He was one of the older dancers and was clearly talented. He won most of the dance battles and showed promise for being an amazing dancer who would go somewhere in life.
2013-2016 Unknown to Ruri, Taewon had noticed the younger girls presence among the underground scene and one night in between performances decided to approach her. Taewon and Ruri quickly got to talking, and he found out she was a trainee at Starship which peeked his interested. Though Ruri didn't know at the time, the much older male, 28 years old to Ruri's 15, saw her as a way to latch on to his ticket to fame and success. The two began to hang out outside of the underground scene, and Taewon made a point to be very gentlemanly and kind to her, making Ruri develop feelings for the older. Taewon had missed his chance years ago at another entertainment agency because of getting caught using drugs during a trainee drug screening. He was dropped from the company and soon became too old in his own eyes to join up anywhere, so he stuck to the underground scene. As time went by Ruri improved greatly and was definitely going up the ranks in Starship and Taewon couldn't let her go now. Ruri was under the impression that Taewon, despite their , really cared for her and she held his opinions high than anyone else. She looked at him with starry eyes and a naive heart and when he asked her to be his girlfriend she quickly accepted. They kept their relationship a secret, just as Taewon suggested, they didn't really go further than kissing, so she wasn't alarmed that he was just using her as a conquest, however, Taewon was smart about his plan. So when he began to insult her appearance, talent, and weight, Ruri had no one to turn to.
Taewon became very emotionally abusive, lowering Ruri's self-esteem and causing her to develop body issues. She became anorexic for fear that she wasn't skinny enough to be an idol and didn't fit the bill. She kept this a secret from everyone, including Taewon because she didn't want anyone to judge her. The anorexia put a new weight on her shoulders, causing her to become weaker and couldn't even look herself in the face. He continued to bring her down and became the source for her insecurities. Ruri was very depressed, suffering greatly and her weight dropped. She became way too skinny, and all she would do was practice dancing day in and out. She wasn't anything like herself at this time, she didn't even know her own face when she looked in the mirror and was so sunken and miserable. However, Starship took notice of her improved skill, and her prayers were answered in the form of a possible debut in their forming girl group, Cosmic Girls. Ruri didn't hesitate to accept and began training even harder to prove herself. This was her big break, and she couldn't pass it up. She would show Taewon that she was good enough and he could be proud and finally love her. Ruri put all of her hope into this one chance and saw this as a last resort to do well, and she wouldn't give it up so easily. She was quickly accepted as the main dancer as well as a vocalist, making the cut and would start training with the rest of the possible lineup for WJSN. Everything seemed to be looking up however Taewon made things worse.
When she told him the news of her possible debut, Taewon was worried she would get popular and leave him behind so he started using more insults, cutting her down so low that she stopped looking in the mirror. She became pathetically reliant on him, and she thought he would only accept her if she was pretty, skinny and talented, so Ruri stopped eating entirely. During practice with the other accepted trainees, she finally collapsed and was admitted into the hospital. Her family and company were informed of her eating disorder and body issues. Ruri's family were heartbroken and couldn't understand why this had happened, why she had turned to this when they thought she was so happy and comfortable with herself. However, that's when Ruri's family and Starship found out about her destructive relationship with Taewon. Starship agreed to keep this secret to save the family from embarrassment, but Mrs. Chae pressed charges against the Taewon for being in a relationship with a minor. Starship couldn't handle the fact that she had anorexia on top of thinking that she was in association with Taewon's druggy past as well as the fact she was in a possible ual relationship at such a young age, and the company decided to terminate her contract and drop her completely from the lineup. They couldn't afford to curropt the image of their newest girl group with using her as a member, so she was out before she even realized what happened. An article was quickly posted in regards to her dropping from the company and the lineup of Cosmic Girls spread around the internet claiming that she was dropping out due to health issues as well as terminating her contract to spend time healing. (To this day, Ruri still struggles with her body image and has a slight cause of an eating disorder, however she just eats very little and is still trying to cope and heal. Though she doesn't tell anyone about this or about her past with Taewon for fear of what they may think since he was a known druggy and now accused e.)
Ruri was devastated. She felt horrible that Taewon had been using her all this time and that they had to press charges against him, as well as her dream fading away because the company didn't like the idea that she wasn't a perfect trainee without problems. She was humiliated before she even had the chance to really show the world what she had. She had nowhere to turn, her family still loved and supported her, but her mother was disappointed in her relationship with Taewon, though she decided to move to Seoul for a short period of time so she could be with her daughter in her time of need to help her cope with the anorexia. Going back to SOPA as a failure was heartbreaking and scared her more than anything else besides not debuting. Everyone in the school whispered about her termination and vague health issues and gave her judging stares from across the room, and Ruri was horrified. Everything she once knew was a lie and she didn't know what to do. Was she meant to be an idol? She couldn't face that reality, she wanted this so bad but now she doubted herself and her abilities and her chances had flitted away. She became the girl who was dropped from her future girl group.
She took nine months off from searching for a new company to let her scandal die down, however she decided instead to take up underground dancing while she waited. She improved even more and became a very powerful and skilled dancer. However, she made a point to avoid the idol spotlight because of her body image issues. She developed her own style, even branching out to more dancing styles and had a swag that she didn't have before. She was finally back in a good place, or a semi good place and was confident in her talent again. Until a friend from her school informed her of a new opportunity at Bighit. (See more in relationships section)
2001-2005 From a very young age, Ruri took fascination in watching musicals and listening to music in her mother car. As just a small five year old, she would sing along to the Disney movies and beg her mom to let her watch the Japanese music performances that she enjoyed watching some afternoons after work. With her persistence, Ruri's mother definitely couldn't turn her down so Mrs. Chae let her daughter watch this over and over, even casually introducing her daughter to the classic Korean music. The tiny girl would dance along to the songs and make up her own choreography, much to the amusement of her parents and family and she was always moving. Mrs. Chae would occasionally take Ruri to her parent's house where they had an old grand piano in their living room, and little Ruri would constantly tap on the keys in interest. After doing it so often, even showing more interest in the piano than her grandparents' presence, Mrs. Chae decided to enter her little dancer into dance lessons down at the college where she taught. Ruri was obsessed after that, she was so excited at the prospect of going to her after school lessons and dancing at the recitals, and that was all she could think about. She was very devoted to her newfound interest. It became her whole world before she even knew it. Ruri was constantly listening to music, dancing or singing.
2007-2008 Of course, at this time, Kpop was very popular, and Ruri couldn't ignore this fact. She loved watching the music videos and performances with her friends on tv and was fascinated with their abilities to dance so beautifully and elegantly and captivate an audience with their spectacular performances. They were so talented and seemed to free on stage, and she wanted that to be her. That's when she knew she had to be an idol. It was her dream, her ultimate hope. She had to be an idol, and that was that. There wasn't anything else in the world she wanted to be. Music was her everything, and she couldn't go through a single day without listening to a song, this was her goal.
2009-2011 However, when she was eleven, her mother gave birth to her baby brother, Sejun who became the other center of her world. Just a year after his birth, Mr. Chae passed away due after getting involved in a car accident on his way to work. The Chaes were devastated, how could such a thing happen to them? They were heartbroken and at a loss. Ruri soon gave up her dance lessons and instead focused on being with her family and taking care of baby Sejun while Mrs. Chae had to work more hours to support them. However, Ruri and her mother made a pact to show Sejun as much love as they possibly could to make up for the loss of Mr. Chae. Ruri and Sejun became very close, she did everything for him, sang him to sleep when their mom had night classes to teach and kept him entertained, dressed him for school and even learned to cook to make sure she and her brother were well-fed in the absence of their mother. Ruri understood the weight of the situation; she knew it was time for her as the older sister to step up and take care of Sejun to the best of her abilities. For years she did so, but she refused to give up practicing dancing and chasing her dream and continued to do so in her free time when she wasn't caring for her brother or doing homework. She used her mother's laptop to search dance covers just for fun, but she wasn't satisfied and knew she wouldn't be until she became an idol. Her heart ached for this.
2012-2013 Her mother, knowing how dedicated her daughter was to pursuing music wanted Ruri to go after her dream and continuously encouraged Ruri to try harder and shoot only for success. Ruri fixated her attention on improving her dancing and branching out to different styles that she had learned from videos, as well as her old dance classes and the underground dancers. However, her mother's encouragements were what gave her the courage to audition for Starship Entertainment at just the age of fifteen. When she came across an article online that the agency was accepting virtual auditions for new trainees, Ruri jumped at the chance. Of course, Ruri was nervous because she was even more afraid of not being able to follow her dream, so she sent in a video file of her dancing to three different songs to show her versatility and one video of her singing. The next few weeks drug by because of Ruri's nerves. She came home every day to check her email to make sure she hadn't received anything from Starship until finally the company called her and accepted her as a trainee. Ruri was ecstatic and soon joined the company after celebrating with her family. Ruri wasn't so sure about leaving her mom and brother behind, but she her mother wouldn't let her skip out on the amazing opportunity she had been waiting for, and Ruri soon moved into the Starship dorms in Seoul. (More info in trainee life section) However, after being pushed to the back of the trainees and practically ignored Ruri started to lose faith. She wanted this so bad but training was harder than she expected and with so many other talented girls it was hard to compete. That is when things began to go downhill. To gain inspiration, Ruri decided to start showing up to Seoul's underground dance scene which was widely different than the one in Busan. The dancers here were older and seemed to be more experienced. However, that's when she saw him, Lee Taewon. He was one of the older dancers and was clearly talented. He won most of the dance battles and showed promise for being an amazing dancer who would go somewhere in life.
2013-2016 Unknown to Ruri, Taewon had noticed the younger girls presence among the underground scene and one night in between performances decided to approach her. Taewon and Ruri quickly got to talking, and he found out she was a trainee at Starship which peeked his interested. Though Ruri didn't know at the time, the much older male, 28 years old to Ruri's 15, saw her as a way to latch on to his ticket to fame and success. The two began to hang out outside of the underground scene, and Taewon made a point to be very gentlemanly and kind to her, making Ruri develop feelings for the older. Taewon had missed his chance years ago at another entertainment agency because of getting caught using drugs during a trainee drug screening. He was dropped from the company and soon became too old in his own eyes to join up anywhere, so he stuck to the underground scene. As time went by Ruri improved greatly and was definitely going up the ranks in Starship and Taewon couldn't let her go now. Ruri was under the impression that Taewon, despite their , really cared for her and she held his opinions high than anyone else. She looked at him with starry eyes and a naive heart and when he asked her to be his girlfriend she quickly accepted. They kept their relationship a secret, just as Taewon suggested, they didn't really go further than kissing, so she wasn't alarmed that he was just using her as a conquest, however, Taewon was smart about his plan. So when he began to insult her appearance, talent, and weight, Ruri had no one to turn to.
Taewon became very emotionally abusive, lowering Ruri's self-esteem and causing her to develop body issues. She became anorexic for fear that she wasn't skinny enough to be an idol and didn't fit the bill. She kept this a secret from everyone, including Taewon because she didn't want anyone to judge her. The anorexia put a new weight on her shoulders, causing her to become weaker and couldn't even look herself in the face. He continued to bring her down and became the source for her insecurities. Ruri was very depressed, suffering greatly and her weight dropped. She became way too skinny, and all she would do was practice dancing day in and out. She wasn't anything like herself at this time, she didn't even know her own face when she looked in the mirror and was so sunken and miserable. However, Starship took notice of her improved skill, and her prayers were answered in the form of a possible debut in their forming girl group, Cosmic Girls. Ruri didn't hesitate to accept and began training even harder to prove herself. This was her big break, and she couldn't pass it up. She would show Taewon that she was good enough and he could be proud and finally love her. Ruri put all of her hope into this one chance and saw this as a last resort to do well, and she wouldn't give it up so easily. She was quickly accepted as the main dancer as well as a vocalist, making the cut and would start training with the rest of the possible lineup for WJSN. Everything seemed to be looking up however Taewon made things worse.
When she told him the news of her possible debut, Taewon was worried she would get popular and leave him behind so he started using more insults, cutting her down so low that she stopped looking in the mirror. She became pathetically reliant on him, and she thought he would only accept her if she was pretty, skinny and talented, so Ruri stopped eating entirely. During practice with the other accepted trainees, she finally collapsed and was admitted into the hospital. Her family and company were informed of her eating disorder and body issues. Ruri's family were heartbroken and couldn't understand why this had happened, why she had turned to this when they thought she was so happy and comfortable with herself. However, that's when Ruri's family and Starship found out about her destructive relationship with Taewon. Starship agreed to keep this secret to save the family from embarrassment, but Mrs. Chae pressed charges against the Taewon for being in a relationship with a minor. Starship couldn't handle the fact that she had anorexia on top of thinking that she was in association with Taewon's druggy past as well as the fact she was in a possible ual relationship at such a young age, and the company decided to terminate her contract and drop her completely from the lineup. They couldn't afford to curropt the image of their newest girl group with using her as a member, so she was out before she even realized what happened. An article was quickly posted in regards to her dropping from the company and the lineup of Cosmic Girls spread around the internet claiming that she was dropping out due to health issues as well as terminating her contract to spend time healing. (To this day, Ruri still struggles with her body image and has a slight cause of an eating disorder, however she just eats very little and is still trying to cope and heal. Though she doesn't tell anyone about this or about her past with Taewon for fear of what they may think since he was a known druggy and now accused e.)
Ruri was devastated. She felt horrible that Taewon had been using her all this time and that they had to press charges against him, as well as her dream fading away because the company didn't like the idea that she wasn't a perfect trainee without problems. She was humiliated before she even had the chance to really show the world what she had. She had nowhere to turn, her family still loved and supported her, but her mother was disappointed in her relationship with Taewon, though she decided to move to Seoul for a short period of time so she could be with her daughter in her time of need to help her cope with the anorexia. Going back to SOPA as a failure was heartbreaking and scared her more than anything else besides not debuting. Everyone in the school whispered about her termination and vague health issues and gave her judging stares from across the room, and Ruri was horrified. Everything she once knew was a lie and she didn't know what to do. Was she meant to be an idol? She couldn't face that reality, she wanted this so bad but now she doubted herself and her abilities and her chances had flitted away. She became the girl who was dropped from her future girl group.
She took nine months off from searching for a new company to let her scandal die down, however she decided instead to take up underground dancing while she waited. She improved even more and became a very powerful and skilled dancer. However, she made a point to avoid the idol spotlight because of her body image issues. She developed her own style, even branching out to more dancing styles and had a swag that she didn't have before. She was finally back in a good place, or a semi good place and was confident in her talent again. Until a friend from her school informed her of a new opportunity at Bighit. (See more in relationships section)
RELATIONSHIPS —
Chae Eunji - 46 - mother - creative, kind, eccentric, excitable - College Professor (Japanese Teacher) - Ruri and her mother have a pretty good relationship. Over the years, she has been the source for Ruri's wonder and creativity. She taught her only daughter that there was more to life that just Busan, where they lived and she should dream big. She has a very unhealthy obsession with Japanese culture and even named her daughter a Japanese name to show her love for the language. She's always been a bit-out there, which is why Ruri is a bit eccentric herself. But she's always one for having a good time and making the most of life. She taught Ruri to be passionate and live life to the fullest. She supports her children in everything they decide to do, and when Ruri is feeling down, she'll give her mom a call.
Chae Sejun - 8 - younger brother - clever, kind, playful, shy - Everyone in Ruri's family treats Sejun like a king. He's the youngest and by far, the most adorable, and Ruri spoils this kid so much. You would think it would be awkward between them because of the huge , but despite this, Ruri and Sejun are very close. When their father died a year after Ruri's birth, Eunji and Ruri had a silent agreement to make sure this child had as much love and attention he could ever need, so they have succeeded in doing just that. Because of their mother working most of the time, Ruri would get Sejun ready for school and walk him to the subway, where they would ride until his stop, where Ruri would have to prepare herself for Sejun to grab onto her hand and not let go. Ruri always jokes around that when Sejun is older, he'll be a little brat, but for now, he's still a sweet angel. She does miss him a lot while she's at Starship and then Bighit, and she would immediately burst into tears when he and their mom would Facetime her every weekend. However, she tries to call him at least twice a week to check in. Ruri's goal is to become the older sister he could look up to.
Kim Misun - 20 - best friend - protective, laid-back, charismatic, humorous, intimidating - university student - Ruri and Misun have been friends since their middle-school days. They've practically been attached at the hip forever. Misun was very popular during their middle school years and Ruri was a bit thrown off by her intimidating vibe. She walked around like she was better than everyone else, or that's what Ruri assumed, until they were paired together for gym class. Misun and Ruri then became very close and Ruri learned that Misun was more down-to-earth than most and a sweetheart inside, once you've gotten to know her. She always gets dragged along with Ruri to watch musicals and go to concerts, despite not being very interested herself, however, she never wants to let Ruri down. She even encouraged Ruri to take part in Starship (before she decided against it) and then audition for Bighit. Misun is one of the only people who tells Ruri when she's being way too brutally honest and slaps some sense into her when she's being overdramatic.They still talk regularly despite Misun and Ruri being so far apart in distance. (Faceclaim: Gfriend's Sowon)
BTS, Seventeen, Pristin, Oh My Girl, Red Velvet, Suran, Ailee, etc - Ruri really admires these groups and looks up to them as artists and heros. She's probably their number one fans and literally buys all of their merch XD She hopes one day to be close to them or even be able to stand on the same stage as them as idols after debut.
Woo Yeni - 19 - bandmate/leader - Yeni and Ruri met at SOPA, which both girls attended and being the same age meant that they somehow were placed in the same class. Ruri didn't outright approach Yeni for a while and the two barely acknowledged each other's presences until around 2015 when both girls had their extremely devastating falls in Smtm for Yeni and being dropped from Cosmic Girls for Ruri. Both girls came back to SOPA with heavy hearts for different reasons and were the new target of judging stares from their peers. Ruri around this time developed a bad case of insecurity and doubted everything she knew about herself. She thought she was the only one suffering this embarrassing and horrifying failure of missed chances and listened to the hateful words of "why don't you just give up being an idol, not even Starship entertainment wants you? Clearly it's not for you. You didn't even make it into Cosmic Girls when you had the chance." Ruri became a shell of herself and closed off from the world. That is, until one day. Ruri was heading to the bathroom when she heard someone sniffling in the stalls, a sure sign of crying and being the concerned person she was, Ruri awkwardly called out. "Is someone crying in there, are you okay?" and when she didn't receive an answer, just frozen silence, Ruri's heart ached. She couldn't just let someone suffer in silence and had to help. So she leaned against the stall door and began to tell her failure to this unknown person. "I've always wanted to be an idol. I just knew in my heart that that's what I wanted to be and if I couldn't dance and sing, I wouldn't do anything else. This is the only path for me. And when I missed my chance by my own mistakes, I received so much hate and self-doubt but you know, you can't always let things like that get in the way of following your dream. People are always going to ridicule you and say you aren't good enough, but if you quit and give into that then you're basically saying that yes, you aren't good enough. So just know you aren't alone in your hurting, and I hope you're okay." Ruri wiped the tears that had gathered in her eyes and moved away from the stall when she heard the latch click and a soft, "Thank you. You don't know how much that means to me. I know exactly how you feel, probably more than anyone else." Yeni and Ruri then officially met, talking briefly of the struggles they faced from rejection. Every day after that, when Yeni or Ruri were suffering or feeling down, they would glance across the room to one another and share a small smile that meant more than words. They now had someone who understood, and that was enough. Years after, Yeni still remembered Ruri and decided to watch her practice videos for herself and realized that Ruri was indeed a talented dancer that had raw potential to do well in Young Nation and asked her to join Bighit. Now, Yeni and Ruri go together like yin and yang, they have their differences, but they complete each other well. When Yeni needs strength or is feeling down, Ruri is there to pick her back up and Yeni does the same for her when she needs it.
IDOL LIFE — this will only be answered by the chosen applicants later on.
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