Kyungsoo stood just out of the frame, waiting for Luhan and Minseok to finish cueing the music and prepping the camera for the first take.  They’d run through the dance three times before finalizing how Luhan would shoot the two-minute dance clip.  Everyone had an opinion.  Baekhyun liked to choreograph the camera movements like an additional dancer while Jondae typically stuck to zooming in or out and panning when the dancers moved from one side of the room to another.  If Kyungsoo’d had his way, they would have just set the camera on a tripod and hit record, but Luhan talked him into a couple of zooms and one movement.

Classes had wrapped for the day, but the usual crowd had shown up to watch.  The sides of the room were packed with students, but one group of girls chose to sit on the other side of the glass doors snacking on the chips and soda that were prohibited in the studio.  

Kyungsoo wasn’t sure how many times he’d been filmed since Minseok started the YouTube channel to advertise for his small dance studio.  They were a small company with just four instructors if you counted Minseok.  But they’d managed to post a new video every week-- something choreographed by one of the instructors or an occasional guest video by one of Minseok’s more and less famous friends from the industry.  He was the newest instructor, and this was the first choreography of his that Minseok had greenlit.

Kyungsoo shook out his arms, rolled his shoulders, and kicked out each leg, trying to stay loose.  Since he was the lead, instead of his usual black, black, and black, he wore a plain, white t with his ripped, black jeans and no cap.  Jongdae had insisted on styling his hair up off his forehead-- yeah, yeah, so everyone could see his pretty eyes.  He rolled his ankles.  He was ready to go, go, go, already.

As if reading his mind, Luhan said, “I’m ready to roll.”  

Minseok shouted for quiet from the far side of the room.  Kyungsoo checked to make sure his dancers were in position and signaled for Minseok to hit the music.  

Luhan called, “Rolling.”

Irene strode out to the center of the room.  “Clockwork Moon” by Loey, featuring Kris and Tao.  Take one,” she said and slapped her hands together.  

Ready to move, Kyungsoo bounced on his toes.  He needed a new pair of shoes.  He’d had these black and white low tops for a couple of months now.  The spring was all gone, and they’d probably lost the support he needed to keep his feet and knees pain and injury free throughout his career.  However long that would be.

Strong piano chords flooded the studio.  The force of this majestic opening always pushed out whatever thoughts and emotions were clogging Kyungsoo’s mind and chest, leaving him an empty vessel for the song to fill and guide his movements.

Then Loey’s deep voice rose up from under the chords, introducing the theme of the song, head still down, Kyungsoo stepped into the frame alone.  The piano fell underneath Loey’s voice and transitioned from carrying the melody to punctuating Loey’s rap.  He stood frozen, listening to Loey talk about the solitary nature of life in the universe.  Almost unconsciously, he popped his chest and rocked back on his heels on a high, light chord.  His next moves were short combinations of pops and waves, gliding and rocking back, gestures to portray the rapper’s frustration and anger.  Loey’s delivery picked up speed, and Kyungsoo’s movements became larger and more fluid while making each pop hit harder.  As the song built to a crescendo, he glided toward the camera.  Loey ended the first verse with a long pause, and Kyungsoo nodded to the camera in the silence.

When the grinding sound of electric guitars hit the room with the bass drum kicking the beat and the snare on a loop, Kyungsoo walked back from the camera.  Baekhyun, Jongdae, Jongin, and Sehun joined him in the middle of the room, and the five of them formed an X-shape with Kyungsoo in the center.  Kris and Tao took up the story, their delivery like rapid gunfire, and Kyungsoo led the dance.  

They’d spent the last week drilling the steps into their muscle memory so the movements were automatic and they danced together with machinelike precision.  The lyrics spoke of the anger and alienation of being reduced to a faceless automaton in a cold, uncaring world.  Meaning and comfort could only be found in relationships, the bonds between friends.  Kyungsoo had tried to give those words shape and presence in the physical world.  The dancers’ movements were sharp, forceful, filled with anger, but in sync.  They were one.  They had each other until the song ended.  Silence flooded the room.  Then they each walked out of the shot in a different direction except Kyungsoo who turned his back on the camera, head down, and walked to the far wall alone.  

He heard shouts and clapping as Luhan called cut.  He walked the last few steps and rested his forehead against the slate gray wall, catching his breath.  He looked down.  Maybe he’d get another pair of the same style shoe if they still had them in stock.  They were plain, ordinary, nothing-fancy shoes, but they did what he needed them to do.  He liked that.

He pushed away from the wall.  It was time to review the tape to see if they needed another take or three.  Then they’d film the students who’d learned the choreography and wanted to show their moves to the world.  The night was far from over.