All of the trainees’ teasers were finally released to the public and it was caSTARs Rookies’ first official training session together. Various camera equipments were set up at the front of the studio, ready to capture snippets of the trainees’ first practice session as a group. It was two hours before the scheduled class when the first trainee arrived. A head peered out timidly from behind the studio door. On seeing the empty studio, the girl stepped in gingerly, standing awkwardly at the far end of the room. She gave a startled jolt as a voice over the PA called for her to introduce herself. Abashed at her jumpiness, she shyly moved to the center of the studio and bowed. “Annyeonghasaeyo, Lee HyeSun imnida!” She looked around hesitantly for further instructions, but hearing none, moved back to her spot. Her next few minutes were spent awkwardly looking around the empty studio and checking her watch. Recognizing that she was probably far too early and that there was only a slight chance of another trainee arriving within the next few minutes, HyeSun slowly lowered herself to the ground, and pulling out her towel, proceeded to start on some stretching exercises. Her eyes flitted hesitantly between the door and the ground, avoiding the cameras at all costs. She mentally berated herself for not being more gung ho and getting to know the other trainees better. That way, she could at least have tagged along with the others. She continued her warm-ups in silence as time passed agonizingly slowly for her. It was only half an hour later when the next trainee showed up.

Relief washed over her face when a somewhat familiar face entered the studio. HyeSun immediately rose to her feet and gave a deep bow as she acknowledged the sunbae. The new addition walked towards her as the former pointed to the cameras and passed on the message for them to introduce themselves. “Ah arasso,” she whispered back as she faced the cameras. “Ah - is this okay.. Annyeonghasaeyo, Min JinRa imnida.” She fidgeted with a strand of hair as the two of them avoided eye contact in awkward silence. JinRa unpacked her bag and launched into her own warm-ups at the barre as HyeSun resumed her floor exercises. Fortunately, it wasn’t long before the door of the studio swung open again and four trainees emerged. Both JinRa and HyeSun paused what they were doing and bowed again. As they exchanged greetings, the new arrivals stood in a line as they introduced themselves. A confident girl sporting a side-braid nodded at the rest before she smilingly introduced herself. “Annyeonghasaeyo, Leader Kim JaeEun imnida.” The significantly younger trainee beside her bobbed her head and gave the camera an excited smile before she launched into her own introduction. “Naneun Kim SooJin imnida!” The other two bowed in unison and waved excitedly at the cameras. “Cho MinJae-imnida.” “Lee Minah- imnida.” All four assumed their positions beside the two other trainees, giving one another thrilled grins. JinRa and HyeSun bowed their heads politely and kept their eyes low. The new trainees engaged in idle chitchat as they got ready for class, tossing a question now and then to the quieter trainees. 

Trainees trailed in fairly quickly forty-five minutes before the stipulated commencement of the class, with the trainees reaching first halting their activities and welcoming the subsequent arrivals. HyeMi arrived next, glancing at the trainees who were already present and taking her spot at the barre beside JaeEun after her greeting. A sombre silence filled the air as HyeMi announced her name in a business-like tone. The bubbly trainees started casting sheepish looks at one another. HyeMi noticed and instinctively turned her lips down into a slight frown. "Aniya... was that not correct?" HyeMi had on a quizzical look on her face now, and the other trainees grinned. "Molleunda... You sounded very professional!" SooJin piped up. Comprehension flooded her face as HyeMi animatedly turned to the cameras again. "ANNYEONGhasaeYO HYEMI imniDA!" she half-rapped. The trainees in the room went slack-jawed as the usually stern sunbae eased up for that split second. SooJin and MinAh burst out in fits of giggles. None of them had ever envisioned that the notorious strict gangster-like sunbae had this side to her. They still weren't 100% sure that it really happened. An embarrassed but mildly contented HyeMi shooed them back to their posts as they waited for the others. YoonKi, KyunJi, YonNi, MiYoo, RuiXian, SuJin, EunMi and MinHee turned up one after another. YoonKi was recognized as the one who had trained the longest under SME and MinJae immediately expressed her admiration for the former's determination. The others bobbed their heads in acknowledgement as YoonKi nodded uneasily and broke off the conversation, resuming staring at the door. KyunJi and RuiXian were the more proactive ones, instantly trying to get to know the rest. It was clear that the trainees present were curious about the situation between RuiXian and her sister, but none dared to ask, only subtly glancing at her from time to time. YonNi, MiYoo and MinHee were dubbed as the more focused trainees, as the others recalled them performing in many of SME's own trainee showcases. EunMi and SuJin joined HyeSun, JinRa, and YoonKi as the more reserved trainees, but smiled and attempted to answer the questions directed at them.

Right before the start of class, a girl in a long ponytail burst into the room, hurriedly taking her place at the end of the line, introducing herself as Kymin. Despite her halting Korean, the trainees welcomed her and she returned their greetings likewise. Noting the time, JaeEun clapped her hands for attention and faced the rest of the trainees as she started taking doing a headcount. Before JaeEun could finish, though, HyeMi tapped JaeEun on the shoulder and determined that they were short of two members – the transfer, YooMi, and the youngest, HaRu. JaeEun was surprised, and HyeMi gave a satisfied sigh. It was however, short-lived, as the other trainees, being new to the entertainment industry, failed to respond, only giggling uncertainly at the awkward atmosphere. HyeMi hid her grimace this time as she blended back into the crowd. She knew that members of the public were keeping an eye on caSTARs Rookie, and many were not attracted, to say the least, to her tough and strict demeanour she had portrayed before. She had wanted to start off on a better note, but it seemed like the sudden change was even weirder, both to the trainees and herself. She shook her head as she pushed the troubling thoughts out of her mind and focused instead on JaeEun.

EunMi had raised her hand and JaeEun gratefully nodded at her. “Sunbae, HaRu will be slightly late. School has just ended for her and she’ll be here in about fifteen minutes.” JaeEun nodded. “It’s alright; we’ll settle down and wait for her. Does anybody know where YooMi is?” The trainees shook their heads as JaeEun turned to the cameras helplessly. "Should we page for her? She might have lost her way..." MinAh reasoned. JaeEun was about to nod in agreement when the youngest appeared in the doorway in her school uniform ahead of time. JaeEun turned her attention away from YooMi momentarily to focus on HaRu. “Annyeonghasaeyo sunbae! Jung HaRu-imnida. Joesonghabnida! Sorry for being late. Thank you for waiting!” She bowed as she made her way towards her half-cousin. She waved shyly at YoonKi from afar as the elder gave her a slight nod.

During the chaotic welcome session, the door slammed open yet again as the final trainee entered the room. “Sorry I'm late.” YooMi stood near the door, as JaeEun struggled to get the trainees under control. There was too much excitement in the room so early in the morning. Fortunately, she was relieved of her duty as the production manager made her way into the room. Instantly, all the trainees quietened down and greeted her. She had another slightly younger girl in tow, which she proceeded to introduce as their manager henceforth. “This is Moon HyeJin, and she’ll be in charge of you all from now onwards. She’ll now brief you on some matters regarding monitoring.” The production manager left HyeJin alone with the girls (and the recording equipment) with an assertive nod.

HyeJin had no qualms about leading the girls. She clapped her hands for attention. “Okay, today we'll be mostly straighten administrative work regarding your teasers and dorm arrangements. We'll have you all settled into your respective dorms by today and then we'll finally unveil the first mission for caSTARs Rookie alright? I know that you all must have been really excited while your teasers were released.” There was frantic nodding from the trainees. “And I’m sure that you all have been monitoring the responses. We are here now to do an evaluation of the responses. I’m sure you all want to know who the most well-received members are?” HyeJin smiled. “Don’t worry though, this is just the beginning. You all will be able to show your charms in performances and in your reality show. This is simply a gauge, albeit a pertinent one.” A chorus of “Pali jusaeyo~” rose up amongst the trainees as they pester their new manager to reveal the members. A stray "Ah, so you mean we didn't have to do the warm-ups after all?" stood out as the others chuckled at KyunJi's regretful tone. “Alright!” HyeJin shook her head as JaeEun patted the rueful trainee on the head. Their eyes shone with expectation when they looked up at their manager, urgring her to quicken her pace. "Alright, just give me a minute!" HyeJin flipped the page on her clipboard and announced with a smile. “They are…” 

author's note:     I've done up a few chapters in advance but I'm still struggling to place the personalities of all the trainees opps so if you feel that your character is not portrayed like you intended please do tell me! thank you so much~