Wendy hates dancing.

“What did you say?”

“You’re scheduled for a special female idol collaboration stage for one of the year end gayos.” He repeats.

“No, no, I got that part. What did you say after that?”

“That it’s a dance stage?”

Wendy holds back an instinctive shriek. Wendy’s not a dancer, anything but. Master musician? Yes. Skilled and talented singer? Yes. Prodigy baker? Perhaps. But a dancer? Dear god, no.

“But I don’t-- I can’t. You’ve seen me try! I fall on my face 11 times out of 10.”

“I know-- we know,” He quickly corrects, “but the company wants you to try it. Show your fans something new.”

Wendy starts to bite her nail out of nervous habit.

“But how--“ The shakiness in her voice can be heard, “I haven’t even attempted dancing since my trainee days when they were potentially picking girls for the new girl group, CLC.” There's a tinge of sadness with her words.

Her, dance? She shudders at the thought of her first day at Cube. Her first evaluation and she trips over her own feet, falling flat on her . On camera. In front of all the other trainees. In front of the directors. How is she going to dance live on stage with all the other idols that sing and dance for a living? She did do a few musicals during school but even then there wasn’t such a big burden to focus on the dance.

Wendy figured part of the reason why she debuted under Cube as a soloist with love ballads and not a part of the new girl group was because of her two left feet, and sometimes she’s glad that she didn’t. But sometimes, whether she likes to admit it or not, she wishes she were.

To have some company. To have people that she could consider friends. To not be so alone.

“Practices have already been scheduled too. Individual and group ones.” He adds, as the bright screen flickers while searching for the picture he took of Wendy’s upcoming schedules. “I know it’s going to be hard for you but it’ll be fun! People will get to see a new side of you.”

“Oh god, I just…” Wendy pauses to gather herself. She takes a deep breath before speaking again. “When’s the first practice?”

Her manager smiles at her response. “Group practice starts in a week. Individual practice starts the day after tomorrow.” He double checks her schedule. “You’re free until then.”

Wendy feels a little better knowing she’ll at least have a whole day to rest and try to take her mind off of this horrible nightmare come to life. Maybe she'd bake something. She's been craving something sweet (no thanks to this ridiculous diet she's on). Chocolate chip cookies? Oreo brownies? Muffins? She makes a mental note to get more flour regardless.

“Thanks oppa. I think I’ll go back to the dorm then.” She gathers her belongings from the sofa in the recording studio.

“Don’t want a ride?”

“It’s close enough to walk, I’ll be fine. It’s nice to get some fresh air too. Maybe I’ll think of an excuse to get out of this torture on the way there, who knows.”

The two let out a small laugh as he holds open the door for her.

“Be careful and remember, no pi--“

She walks out, putting on her hood before interrupting, “Yeah, yeah, no pictures if anyone asks. I got it.”

 

---------

 

Wendy sighs as droplets of sweat find their way down her face. She wipes them away with the side of her shirt. It reminds her of home, her family. Of when she used to wear it comfortably in her room, making and uploading her own covers online.

She shoos away anymore thoughts of home before the tears start pooling into her eyes during dance practice.

“I think we’re good for today.” Her instructor suggests.

She nods as a sign of agreement, her hand already gravitating towards the water. She makes sure to thank him for the individual lesson and bows as he leaves the practice room to herself.

Her legs collapse as soon as he’s out the door, begging for a break from all these complicated movements that she’s not used to. She relaxes her body against the wall, gulping down half the water within seconds before stopping to browse the web from her phone. A video clip on the front page catches her eye. Wendy takes a few more gulps of water before neatly screwing the cap back on the bottle and clicking the video.

She quickly comes to regret watching it.

She's not good enough. How was she going to dance on stage with a bunch of idols who can dance like that? She can’t dance. She hates dancing.

She lifts herself back onto two feet after zoning out, staring at no particular part of the wall opposite from her. She turns on the music and stares at her reflection. She closes her eyes. She takes a deep breath. She does what she always does. She does what she has to.

Practice.

 

---------

 

Wendy feels a little nervous. Maybe it’s just the excitement of getting to interact and meet new people (loneliness has been her friend for far too long). She shows up ten minutes earlier than scheduled thanks to her constant need to always be punctual. She makes her way through the studio and peeks her head through the practice room door. A small sigh escaping as she finds the room still void of people.

She feels a bit out of place, but sits down on the bench as she takes out her phone to try and calm her nerves (she promised herself she would try and make sure her fingernails don’t go extinct). Her fingers tap back cheesy replies to her fans on UFO before people start to trickle in the room. Several of her bows go unnoticed, she continues to bow at the same level regardless. She chooses to stay optimistic anyways, a cold first impression hasn’t stopped her from befriending people back in Canada and shouldn’t now. She attempts to make small talk with the other idols but they all seem way too tired and immersed into their phones to even care. She stops as the clock hits three and the first group practice officially starts. She makes one last scan around the room and notices an empty spot.

“Alright ladies! Let’s get started! Go ahead and spread out a bit. We’re just going to warm up with what you’ve learned during your individual practi--“

“I’m so sorry I’m late! I’m so sorry!”

Wendy turns around at the sound of the door bursting open and watches an apologetic girl rush in, as does everyone else in the room. The girl makes her way up to the front and continues to bow. Her previously orange colored tips now fading into a dull yellow, fly backwards with each bow.

“I’m so sorry I’m late. It won’t happen again.”

Wait isn’t that…

“It’s alright Seulgi, we were just about to get started anyways. Just take that spot back there.”

Seulgi. Seulgi? The girl who was trending because her dancing clip from Radio Star was number one? The same clip Wendy watched, only to feel so bad about herself? Wendy’s eyes follow Seulgi as she bows a final time before taking her spot in the back row.

Wendy squints just to get a better look to recognize that this Seulgi before her is indeed the same Seulgi she had seen dancing.

Her features had looked so sharp on broadcast but now they're gentle and warm, like a baby's. Wendy watches her delicate hands as they tie her hair up into a bun and adjust her clothes, her movements so well-rehearsed and smooth. She sees her eyes and lips smiling at her. Wait. Was Wendy still staring?

Wendy snaps her head back to the front and begins to hear the music take over.

Wendy pulls at the neck of her shirt and swallows.

She hates dancing.

 

---------

 

Wendy’s surprised she didn’t fall in front of everybody by the end of practice (although there were a few close calls), especially since everyone already seemed to be leaps and bounds ahead of her in terms of dancing ability. She wipes the remaining amount of moisture on her face with the small hand towel she had packed and checks her phone. No new messages. Her manager isn’t here yet to pick her up from practice.

“Manager’s running late, huh?” A soft voice spoke.

Wendy looks up. Seulgi slowly walks over and sits down next to her (her bag leaving space between them).

“Yeah, he’s late sometimes.”

Wendy notices her smile again. It makes her feel nice.

Wendy’s semi-rookie instincts kick in and she realizes she hasn’t properly introduced herself yet.

“Oh, sorry. I’m Wendy, a soloist from Cube.” She lowers her head a little.

She mumbles her name the first time and then repeats it again, with more confidence. “Am I pronouncing it right?”

Wendy can’t help but let out a laugh. “Yeah, yeah. It’s fine! You’re Seulgi, right? From Red Velvet?”

Seulgi nods in confirmation. “Kang Seulgi, in charge of vocals and dance.” She throws up a peace sign at the end of her sentence accompanied by a shy embarrassed laugh.

Wendy laughs along with her, happy to finally have a decent conversation with one of the other idols participating in the collaboration stage (or any idol really).

“You’re really good at dancing. I watched your clip from Radio Star… it was really amazing.” Wendy kicks her feet and shyly claims, “I wish I could dance like that.”

“Ah, really? Thanks. But you’re not so bad yourself! This choreography is harder than I thought. I think I’m getting used to it though.”

“Do you think you could teach me?”

Wendy doesn’t think that what she said was so bad until she sees Seulgi just staring at her, lost and a little confused, eyes beginning to glaze over. Did she just ask someone she barely knows to teach her how to dance?

“I mean, could you help… uhm… go over the choreography with me… sometime?”

Wendy starts to panic, frantically waving her hands and starts to speak faster. “I mean if you’re not too busy with your schedules or anything like that, I understand if you don’t want to, we just met and I’m a horrible dancer and I just wanted to get some extra help since I don’t want to ruin this whole thing with my two left feet and I--“

“I’d love to.”

A soft vibration in Wendy’s lap saves her from embarrassing herself by trying to come up with a reply because Wendy didn’t actually think she would say yes (neither did she even think she would ask a question like that to someone she’s just met). Her manager is out front waiting for her.

Wendy sticks her phone out towards Seulgi before getting up to gather her things. “Uh, is it okay if I get your number then? So we can schedule a practice sometime?”

Seulgi hums in agreement as she delicately enters her number into the phone. She smiles at it when it shows that her contact info has been saved. “Here you go.” Seulgi hands Wendy her phone back.

“Thanks again… I’ll see you later, I guess?”

“Yeah.”

They exchange smiles before Wendy walks out the room, out of breath and exhilarated for some reason.

“How was practice?” Her manager asks, curious.

“Better than I expected.” Wendy throws her things into the empty seat next to her and settles in. “I think I made a new friend.”

 

---------

 

“And that’s the bathroom over there to your left, a very nice spot to hide and eat snacks in just to let you know. Oh! And here’s the practice room!”

Wendy doesn’t notice how excited she’s gotten to show Seulgi around the company building, let alone the practice room, but even her own ears find her voice a bit louder than usual today. Wendy was the one who arranged their first official dance practice together. Her texts with Seulgi were normal, (a few simple greetings, discussions of when they were both free, some small talk with emoji’s), but Wendy felt like they were getting close. Well closer than any other idol she knows. It’s been awhile since Wendy’s had someone to message aside from her manager and family.

“This place is really neat! It’s similar to what our practice room looks like.” Seulgi says as she looks around the room again.

“Aren’t all practice rooms just a wall of mirrors and maybe a table here and there?” Wendy replies.

“Ah.” Seulgi laughs. “I think you’re right.”

Wendy thinks it’s nice to have someone else in the practice room with her (it doesn’t make her feel so small for once). She watches Seulgi set her enormous yellow bag down on the table and is tempted to test if she can fit herself inside of it.

Wendy’s peculiar sense to detail has her racking her brain.

“Did you dye your hair?”

Seulgi finishes tying her hair into a loose ponytail. “What was that?”

“Did you dye your hair by chance?” Wendy asks again.

“Oh, yeah. We all dyed our hair darker a few days ago.”

Wendy assumes by ‘we’ she means her group mates.

“Does that mean I can look forward to a comeback?”

“I’m not allowed to say yes or no, so no comment.” Seulgi plays along, “Company policy.”

Wendy gives her a pout and Seulgi only returns it with a smile.

 

---------

 

“Your arm needs to be a little higher and your feet a little farther apart or else you’ll lose your balance.” Seulgi demonstrates the pose as an example before observing if Wendy’s got it right.

“Like this?”

“Yeah, just like that.” Seulgi shoots Wendy with another smile before checking the time. “I think you’ve got it down so far, I should get going though. I have a schedule in a little bit, but you’re getting better, Seung--“ Seulgi stops herself and looks for Wendy’s reaction.

Wendy chuckles. “It’s okay, you can say it.”

Seulgi smiles like a child on Christmas morning. “Seungwan.”

“To be honest, I’m surprised you even know my real name. Everyone just calls me Wendy.”

“I’m not used to calling people by their stage names. I’d rather call them by their real names, if they prefer it.”

“So how’d you figure out that my real name is Seungwan?”

Seulgi gets flustered.

“I- I- googled you.” There’s a pause. “I mean I sort of knew who you were before and I was just listening to your songs and read some articles here and there.”

“Oh, I see.” Wendy teases. “Doing a background check on me, I understand. Research.”

“N-No I really wasn’t, I was just--“

“It’s okay Seulgi, your secret is safe with me. I won’t tell anyone that you’re digging up info about me, I pinky promise.” Wendy shakes her pinky in front of a defeated Seulgi. “Thanks for the practice though, I really appreciate it.

Seulgi smiles again. “Anytime. You’re really getting better though. I don’t see why you think you’re so bad at dancing. You only fell three times today!” Seulgi laughs at her own comment and Wendy hits her on the shoulder. Seulgi swings her bag up onto her shoulder and is still laughing while Wendy tries to ignore her.

“Well, I guess I’ll talk to you later Seungwan. Try not to fall on your way home, okay?”

Seulgi is surprisingly almost out the door before Wendy has a chance to retaliate and the last words she hears is an ever so sweet, “Bye, Seungwan!” Echoing throughout the hallways.

 

---------

 

This time it’s Seulgi who asks when Wendy’s free. Ever since their first practice, they’ve been exchanging messages on a regular basis and it makes Wendy smile more often. So much so, that her manager had brought up the topic of boys again and flat out asked her if she was seeing anybody. Wendy quickly denied it because it was the truth. (Her manager still gave her a lecture about dating and to tell the company before hand to save them some trouble if she were.) Wendy only scoffs and quickly opens up her kakao chat with Seulgi to complain.

The car stops and he looks out the window. “I think we’re here.”

“Yeah, this is it.” She makes sure she has everything she needs in her backpack before getting out of the car. “Thanks oppa. I’ll let you know when I’m done.”

“Just let me know if you need a ride or anything.”

She shuts the door and watches him slowly drive off into the distance. She turns around and stares at the tall building.

She laughs at the story Seulgi had recently told her. Having just joined the company as a trainee (at the fresh age of 14) her easy going and child-like personality had gotten herself locked out of the same timeless building Wendy was now in front of. Wendy makes sure to let Seulgi know that she’s arrived and lowers her cap while waiting for Seulgi to reply. Wendy had told her she would be there by noon earlier in the morning, but Wendy’s phone already read 12:05 and she could feel passerbys giving her a look, each one lingering longer than the last. There was no doubt in Wendy’s mind that she was going to be locked out (of a company building she doesn’t even have access to in the first place but still), Wendy regrets laughing at Seulgi’s story now as her fingernail ends up paying a small price for it.

“Seungwan, you made it!”

“Oh my god, you scared me!”

Seulgi giggles. “Did I? I’m sorry, too excited I guess.” Seulgi steps aside (the sliding glass door preventing her from entering minutes before, now gone). “Come in, come in!”

Wendy walks in and is greeted with a large plaque reading, ‘SM Entertainment’ but before she can look at anything else she’s being dragged to the right. She assumes they’re going to the practice room. Wendy glances down at their hands for a second before she comes to her senses and makes sure she doesn’t fall down the stairs they’re walking down.

“Ta-da!” Seulgi finally releases her hand. “This is our practice room.”

It takes Wendy a few seconds to adjust to where she is. She spots the same old sky blue cloud backdrop that she used to see in dance practices online behind Seulgi.

“This place is so much bigger than ours. It’s huge!” Wendy spreads her arms out and flails them around, exaggerating her movements to try and prove her point.

Seulgi laughs at her. “Yours was cozy though. I liked it.”

“Whatever.” Wendy scoffs.

Wendy takes off her backpack and cap, tying her hair up to get ready for dance practice.

“So do you think you could help me with that one move? The one where we spin around and then we’re supposed to do this with our hands or something?” She poorly tries to copy the movement she’s describing but Seulgi still seems to know what she’s talking about.

Seulgi’s smile makes her feel welcome. “It’s not too hard. You’ll get it in no time.”

 

---------

 

They end up sitting on the floor side by side watching Korean dramas on Seulgi’s phone halfway through practice. Wendy had tried to follow along with Seulgi but couldn’t keep up, so Wendy suggested they take a break. How ‘taking a break’ ended up spending dance practice now watching this drama (which Wendy still has no idea what it is supposed to be about), she has no clue. She still enjoys it though.

She sneaks a peek at Seulgi and Wendy’s lips curve upward. Seulgi’s face full of concentration, her eyebrows furrowing ever so slightly. Several strands of hair escaping past her exposed ear as she disagrees with whatever just happened in the drama Wendy’s supposed to be paying attention to.

Seulgi almost drops the phone from pure clumsiness but Wendy catches it before it hits the hardwood floor. Seulgi gives her a goofy smile as a thanks and now they’re both holding the phone, fingers touching. Wendy hopes Seulgi doesn’t notice her hands getting all clammy for some reason.

A few minutes pass and Wendy thinks she understands what’s happening in the drama (at least the basics of it) but notices someone approaching the practice room door.

“Seulgi-ah! Seulgi, are you in here? Oh. Hello.” The beautiful girl changes her tone of voice to a more professional one at the sight of Wendy.

Wendy takes out the earbud she was sharing with Seulgi to get up and bow.

“H-hello. I’m Wendy, a soloist from Cube Entertainment. It’s nice to meet you.” She stutters.

Seulgi’s eyes look up to Wendy first before they follow Wendy’s line of sight to see her leader standing at the door.

“Unnie! Do you need anything?”

Wendy notices the older girl’s tone change again. Lighter and more playful than before.

“We were going to go get something to eat, want to come with?” She glances at Wendy. “Your friend can come too if she wants.”

“Oh. Oh! Yeah, that sounds good, right Wendy?”

“Y-yeah, I could go for some--“

“Unnie what’s taking so long?! Is Seulgi unnie not there? We’re starving!”

“Yeah unnie, let’s just go without Seulgi, it’s her fault if she misses a free meal.”

Two other girls step into the room. The tallest girl Wendy’s possibly ever seen and a child around her height. They both pause and stare at her like she’s some kind of animal in a zoo.

“Oh guys, this is Seungwan- I mean Wendy! And Wendy these are my members.” Seulgi points to the tallest one. “That’s Joy, our leader Irene unnie, and next to her is the maknae, Yeri.”

Wendy bows again. “Hello, I’m Wendy.” She tries to gauge their reaction but only ends up shifting her eyes over to Seulgi for some sort of guidance.

“So, where are we going to eat?” Seulgi grabs Wendy’s backpack for her and hands it to her. She gives Wendy a reassuring smile and moves closer to her ear, “They’re nice, don’t worry.”

Wendy’s ears pick up the familiar few syllables of her name coming from Joy and Yeri’s storm of quick whispers and giggles but isn’t quite sure if their conversation had even happened.

“We’re going to go get ddeokbokki. Oppa’s letting us have a free day before we officially start practices next week.”

Yeri squeals. “I’m going to eat the whole store, I’m so hungry! Let’s go, hurry!” She pushes Irene out the door and looks back to see if everyone is following her.

Joy waits by the door for Seulgi and Wendy to pass and stands in between them. Her arm is wrapped around Seulgi’s shoulder as they walk out of the building.

Wendy looks ahead and can still spot Yeri pushing Irene forward with all her might. Irene looks like she’s had enough and begins trying to push Yeri back.

“Are you sure she’s the leader?” Wendy chuckles at the pair in front, currently fighting for pushing rights.

Joy lets out a whole hearted laugh. “Those two are always like that. Unnie seems cold and mean on the outside but she’s a kid. She’s basically the maknae.”

“Must be nice.” Wendy speaks quietly.

Wendy’s brain always regurgitates the same thoughts whenever she witnesses idol groups get along. It's not their fault that that they've been put into a group with people they've bonded with over the years, but Wendy can’t help but feel envious. What's it like to have a second family with you when you go to schedules, or when you just need someone who understands the same emotional and physical difficulties you go through? She's been alone since day 1, from when she stepped foot in Korea, till now. And sure, her family back home had always said they were there with her but Wendy knew they each had their own lives to live, and with her being so far away physically, detached almost, the loneliness began to sprout.

Wendy shakes away the looming gloominess as the slight breeze pains her face.

Yeri bounces and waves her hands. “Seulgi unnie! Joy unnie! Wendy unnie! Hurry! They only have one table left.”

Irene lightly taps her . “Hey! Be quiet, we’re in public.”

The three jog to catch up to where the restaurant is and join Yeri and Irene at the table. Wendy feels her body perk up, excited to be out (to be with people). She’s always been more of an extrovert anyway.

A cup of water slides in front of her. She watches Seulgi pour everyone a cup, neatly placing it in front of the members on the other side of the table while they look at the menu. Seulgi pours herself a cup last.

Wendy rests her chin on Seulgi’s shoulder beside her. “So what do you usually get here?” She scans the menu for something that won’t upset her stomach too much.

“I usually get something spicy. What about you? Are you good at eating spicy things?”

“No… I lived abroad for a long time so I don’t think my stomach is used to it.”

Yeri suddenly joins the conversation. “You’ve lived abroad?! Are you fluent in English?”

“Yeah. I moved to Canada when I was young and studied in the States for a bit.”

“Wow. Do you think you could teach me? I really like English.”

Yeri’s smile was blinding. Wendy couldn’t refuse.

“Of course! This unnie will teach you.”

Yeri cackles in excitement and turns her attention back towards the menu, still smiling. They eventually decide on what to order and end up just sharing everything with one another. Seulgi pushes one of the dishes closer to Wendy and urges her to eat, assuring her that it isn’t as spicy as the others (Seulgi had made sure of it just for her).

 

---------

 

Wendy feels as if she could skip going to the gym for the next couple of weeks. She tries to stop herself from laughing and drawing attention to their table, but hearing Joy laugh only causes her to laugh harder, prompting Seulgi to tap her on the shoulder to try and get her to calm down.

In the end, both Seulgi and Irene force the two to get up and has Yeri push them out the store so they could finish and pay for their meal.

“I like you unnie,” Joy says while resting her arm on the shorter girl’s shoulder, “I’m glad you came with us today.”

“I’m glad you enjoyed my company. I’m your number one fan now, but don’t tell Seulgi I said that.”

“Don’t tell me what?” Seulgi pops in seemingly out of nowhere.

The two only burst out into another fit of laughter together until Wendy suddenly stops.

“Wait! We still have to practice! We barely did anything and ended up just watching that drama you liked.”

Seulgi grins at her pout. “Ah, okay. When we get back we’ll practice for real.”

Irene walks out of the store and joins the group. “Everyone got everything?”

Irene glances back towards the table and starts making her way down the street at the nods of their heads. They all follow the tiny leader like little ducklings. Wendy wonders if this kind of outing with them could turn into a regular thing someday. (She did promise to bake them all some bread and cake one day while they ate).

She watches from behind as Yeri and Joy both purposefully jump into a puddle on the side of the street. She hears Irene scold them for getting their shoes and jeans dirty. She notices Seulgi in front of her walking by herself. She catches up and links an arm with her. They laugh and smile.

For once, she feels like she belongs.

 

---------

 

Wendy is out of breath while Seulgi’s constantly wiping the sweat off of her forehead. Wendy is laying on the ground wondering if her legs are still attached to her body.

Wendy speaks in between each breath, “Dancing is not my thing.”

Seulgi lets out a huff of air which Wendy thinks is supposed to be a laugh.

“I think you’re getting better.” Seulgi tightens her ponytail and looks down at Wendy. “One more time?”

Wendy lets out a small whine that sounds like she’s laughing and crying at the same time, but still lifts her arms in the air, signaling for Seulgi to help her up. The older girl leans down and grabs ahold of her hands, successfully getting the younger to stand.

Wendy groans, “This is the last dance routine I do, ever. I swear.”

Seulgi starts the music and gets into position next to Wendy.

They’re halfway through the dance before Wendy starts to falter. She misses a beat and desperately tries to correct herself. Her legs feel like jello as she watches her feet step on each other. She closes her eyes, bracing herself for the fall, but instead feels a sharp tug to her left.

“Are you okay?” Her voice almost cracks due to worry.

Wendy opens her eyes and feels a pair of arms around her waist. She’s tightly wrapped in between Seulgi’s chest and arms, her face in the crook of Seulgi’s neck. Wendy’s surprised that Seulgi still manages to smell like some kind of freshly picked berry with how much she sweats. Her sweet scent paralyzes her for a few moments before she has enough energy to lean back and get a better look at Seulgi’s face (only to turn stiff again when Seulgi looks down at the same time).

Wendy’s eyes find her lips first.

Seulgi repeats her words, softer this time, almost a whisper. “Are you okay?”

Wendy’s gaze shifts to her eyes. Wendy swears she gets lost in them for a good few minutes before her brain crawls its way out of the pool of milk chocolate that are Seulgi’s eyes.

“Y-yeah. I’m fine.”

She feels Seulgi’s muscles relax at her reply. “I’m glad I caught you in time.”

Neither move.

Seulgi looks down at Wendy’s lips.

Seulgi starts moving her face closer, turning it at a specific angle, perfect for—

Wendy takes several steps back, forcing Seulgi to let go.

“Uh, t-thanks again for the extra practice. I think I’m g-gonna head back now.” She lets out an awkward laugh, her vision blurring.

Wendy turns around, grabs her backpack, twists the door handle and leaves.

Wendy doesn’t look back until she’s out of the building. She feels the blood rushing to her face, she can’t hear anything besides her heart beating. She’s breathing hard but can’t stay here any longer. She makes her way to a nearby convenience store before messaging her manager to come pick her up.

Seulgi and Wendy don’t talk to each other that night.

 

--------

 

It’s the night of the performance when Wendy and Seulgi finally see each other in person again. Few messages were exchanged after the incident, (neither of them have mentioned it since). Wendy feels her heart skip a beat (or two) when the PD calls for standby. She spots Seulgi on the other end of the stage (her thick eyeliner helping her standout from the rest; Wendy would’ve still noticed her without it). Seulgi matches her gaze and gives a quick ‘hwaiting’ gesture before the lights dim, cuing them to start getting on stage.

Wendy looks to where Seulgi is and notices her lagging behind after the ending pose. They’re rushed off stage as soon as the music ends and the lights shut off but she still manages to make her way towards Seulgi to help guide her off stage. She lets go of Seulgi’s hand after retreating to a secluded corner backstage. Seulgi doesn’t question anything.

They’re both panting a bit, trying to catch their breath.

Wendy speaks first.

“Hey, thanks again for all the help. I really mean it.”

“Yeah. No problem.” Seulgi flashes a quick smile (Wendy almost forgets to breathe).

“I couldn’t have done this without you, you know.”

Seulgi wipes the sweat off of her forehead with the back of her hand, her lips in the process (out of pure habit).

“You’re very welcome then.”

They’re still a little exhausted from the performance, both waiting for the other to say something more when Wendy notices the way Seulgi’s eyes sparkle under the dim light, her heavy but controlled breathing, her tongue her dry lips once more. It sparks something within her. Wendy impulsively decides that she doesn’t want to run away from this opportunity again.

Wendy cups Seulgi’s face and closes the distance between them. Wendy swears she sees Seulgi smile before their lips meet (she’s positive she can still feel her smile while they kiss). Seulgi’s hands run through Wendy’s slightly disheveled hair as Wendy’s wrap around her neck.

Wendy pulls away first, cheeks turning an even darker shade of cherry red (Wendy really wants to blame the dance performance for it). She finds Seulgi staring at her with a silly smile.

“What?”

Seulgi smirks and starts making strides back to the waiting room. “Nothing.”

Wendy’s eyes are wide with curiosity (has she always been this charismatic?)

“Seul, wait up!”

Wendy sprints to keep up, tripping over her own two feet in the process (Seulgi stops to catch her just in time again).

“Do you need more dancing lessons or what? Do you even know how to walk?” Seulgi jokes.

Wendy coos, “Teach me how to dance, please sunbae?”

Seulgi laughs with wide open at Wendy’s attempt at aegyo, almost dropping them both to the floor. She gently caresses the top of Wendy’s head while they discuss when their next dance practice is going to be.

It’s then when Wendy realizes, maybe, she doesn’t hate dancing so much after all.

 

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A/N: I apologize for any pain i have caused you. I hope everything made sense even though the scenes were lame and poorly written (I only edited it a few times so yeah). I don't think I'll be writing more fics (it's so hard like wtf) in the future but take this anyways.