Welcome
Bound to You
Part I
Existence
I
Welcome
Again and again, she examined her right wrist. The light blue words written legibly on the inside of her wrist clearly read "Park Jimin" and the young woman sighed. There was no denying that his name was there on her wrist.
The young woman turned her head towards the window, looking out at the falling cherry blossoms that signalled the end of spring and the transition to summer. She ran her pale fingers through her silky, ebony hair in thought.
“Of all the people, why…?” She whispered, eyes locked onto a figure below. He laughed merrily, slinging an arm around a beautiful young woman.
“Why did it have to be you?”
April
A soft rustling of the cherry blossoms overhead reached her ears, a warm breeze striking her face. She looked left and right before crossing the empty street. April, the start of a new school year, has come once again. The young woman fiddled with the hem of her blue skirt in thought. This year will be her first year of high school- a scary thought to most. She was certainly no exception.
“Excuse me.”
The young woman jumped at the sudden voice, turning around to greet who called out to her. There stood a tall and beautiful upperclassman with long, caramel hair and a cheerful smile. She had long legs and a slim stature that was most definitely the object of envy amongst those in her age group.
“If you’re heading to Busan Arts, then it’s this way.” She pointed behind her.
“Th-Thank you very much.”
“You’re welcome.” The caramel haired upperclassman walked alongside the other girl. “I’m Nahyun, Kim Nahyun, third year.”
“Xai M-Mami, first year. It’s a pleasure t-to meet you.”
“First year?” Nahyun grinned. “I know someone in her first year too. I’ll definitely introduce you two!”
“Th-Thank you, sunbaenim.” Mami ducked her head down, a small smile spreading across her face.
“You have a nice smile, don’t hide it.” The beautiful upperclassman chuckled. “Oh, and, no need to be so formal. We’re friends now, Mami.”
A full smile spread across her face.
“Y-Yeah, friends.”
“Over there’s the gym and there’s the field right next to it.” Nahyun pointed over a few ways away from the two as they walked alongside each other on the stone path through the iron gates.
“Nahyunnie!”
The two of them turned to find a black haired young woman running up to them. She was beautiful as well, with a healthy looking figure and flawless, smooth skin. A big grin was plastered across her face, contradicting the charismatic eyeliner that accentuated her eyes.
“Ana-yah!” Nahyun caught the other’s running hug with ease, a large grin upon her face.
“Ah- hello there.” The beautiful young woman turned to Mami with a matching grin.
“Ana, this is Mami, a first year like Newsunnie.”
“G-Good morning, I’m Xai Mami. It’s a pleasure t-to meet you.”
“I’m Jo Eunae, but my stage name is D.ana.” She extended her hand for a handshake, which the first year took politely before inquiring.
“S-Stage name?”
“Ah, right, first year…” D.ana chuckled, hand retreating into the pocket of her uniform blazer. “In your first year at Busan Arts, you’ll be picking a major before selecting your stage name for performing.”
Mami nodded silently, taking in the new information. Busan Arts was a performing arts school that’s typically difficult to enter if one isn’t part of an agency already, created to educate upcoming and current idols of the South Korean entertainment industry. The agencies began to train their trainees this way as of recent and their performances were used as evaluations. In a way, Busan Arts was a small industry of its own with its own “music shows” and variety shows, used to train upcoming idols for the real thing.
“What major are you thinking of choosing, Mami?” Nahyun piped up curiously.
The ebony haired first year fiddled with her sleeves in thought. One’s major is what a trainee would specialize in such as dance, rap, and vocal. This made it easier for agencies to categorize them and select those who desire to debut soon.
“Well, don’t worry about it! You can always change your major anytime you want.” D.ana pat her underclassman’s shoulder reassuringly. “After choosing your major, you also have your secondary too.”
After choosing one’s major, there’s also choosing one’s secondary. This is also an important part to agencies when choosing the trainees they wish to debut. One can choose among composing, acting, variety, and others for their secondary.
“W-Well…” Mami began to speak softly, earning the immediate attention of both her upperclassmen. “I was thinking of choosing v-vocal as my major.”
“Ah, vocal…” Nahyun hummed in approval, but with a slight disappointment. “Our friend, Yoonsun, is in the same year as you, but she’s choosing rap as her major.”
“I-I see…” Mami replied with a bit of disappointment as well. If Yoonsun was as friendly as Nahyun and D.ana, then it truly was a loss that they didn’t choose the same major.
“Oh, but don’t look so sad! The two of you have a chance to be in the same core classes.” D.ana interjected with a hopeful smile.
Core classes, such as mathematics and science, were also part of Busan Arts’ curriculum, allowing trainees to be educated and train. The core classes aren’t separated by major to ensure that some classes aren’t fuller than others.
“Y-Yeah, thank you.” The ebony haired first year smiled back, grateful for the rapper’s words.
A light breeze passed by that carried the echoes of her upperclassmen’s cheerful laughter with it. Mami smiled at their carefree and energetic behavior as she strolled alongside the two towards the towering building known as Busan Arts. Only minutes earlier, she would have been trembling at the sight, but she was calm- relaxed.
However, a sudden burst of laughter hit her ears coming from her right. Instinctively, she turned her head, ebony stands whipping behind her. Once her eyes landed on the laughing group, a male figure immediately drew her attention.
Time seemed to slow as Mami stopped in her tracks, examining the person several feet away. He was inches taller than her with a handsome eye smile plastered on his expression. His uniform was worn loosely and his dark chocolate hair cropped into a undoubtedly attractive, boyish style that covered his forehead. His laughter resonated like music to her ears and she felt as if her heart was about to burst.
Suddenly, she flinched, grasping her right wrist. The letters etched in light blue began to sizzle and burn against her sensitive flesh. A realization burned into her that the person several feet away was her soulmate. Mami looked up from her wrist back to where the young man stood. Her eyes trailed down to his left wrist, only to be disappointed, seeing that it was covered by what appears to be a watch.
“Mami-yah, are you alright?” Nahyun worriedly asked, realizing that the first year stopped walking.
“S-Sunbae…” The young woman, trembling, pointed over to a group several feet away. “Wh-Who is the boy w-with the brown hair?”
“Oh, him…” D.ana grimaced slightly before answering. “His name’s Park Jimin and trust me when I say this, do not associate with him. He’s a playboy that’ll just break your heart.”
“H-His name is…” Mami bit her lip, pulling her sleeve down to examine the light blue letters engraved onto her right wrist for the millionth time since she had been born.
Park Jimin
His name was written ever so clearly on the inside of her wrist, even more prominent due to the burn she received seconds earlier. Both Nahyun and D.ana curiously peered over the first year’s shoulders before paling.
“I-I need to s-speak to him.” The ebony haired girl stuttered with determination.
“Please don’t!” Nahyun immediately placed herself in front of the determined first year, blocking the smaller girl from view. Her eyes full of desperation and her usual smile absent from her beautiful face.
“S-Sunbae?” Only minutes ago, her sunbae was so carefree and smiling.
“This is bad…” D.ana sighed, running fingers through her short, obsidian locks.
“If you speak to him, he’ll only ignore you.” Nahyun began, seeing that her underclassman calmed and stood in place. With a heavy heart, the caramel haired young woman stepped aside and quickly motioned over to the group. “Do you see the guy with the purple hair? He’s my soulmate.” *
“Y-Yes…” Mami answered, before her eyes widened. Said young man with the vibrant purple hair slung his arm around a gorgeous, blonde upperclassman. “Wh-What…”
“You see, my soulmate, yours, and their friends- they don’t believe in the legend.” Nahyun explained with a resigned smile. “I figured out the hard way.” She ruffled Mami’s hair, maturing only in a matter of seconds before her. “If you try, he’ll only ignore you. After all…” Nahyun glanced back over at the group.
Jimin laughed again, an arm wrapped around an equally gorgeous female with sharp eyes.
“I’m sorry.” Nahyun whispered to the silent first year.
The ebony haired girl stared over at the young man’s form, a resigned look beginning to take over her expression. She dropped her wrist to her side in defeat and looked to the ground, obsidian strands billowing around her as a result of the cold breeze that flew by seconds ago.
“N-No, it’s okay…” Mami whispered back ever so softly, dejected. With a deep breath, the girl looked up again at her upperclassmen and gave a sad smile. “L-Let’s go.”
As the trio made their way into the main building, Mami couldn’t help but stare wide eyed at the interior. For someone as short as her, the ceiling of windows seemed so high as the sunlight lit up the entire area. Lights were hung down by silver chains, currently off, in case of a darker day. Colors appeared and blended- black, brown, silver, white, blue, red- the spotless floor seemed to sparkle and papers pinned to bulletin boards came in a vibrant variety of hues with fancy lettering.
“Shall we get our schedules?” Nahyun smiled kindly, smoothly snapping the first year out of her thoughts. With a nod, the three headed towards the faculty wing, more specifically the student assistance hall.
It didn’t take long for Mami to notice the overhead signs that marked the doors were listed by agency- SM, YG, JYP, Cube, Woolim, Big Hit- there were much more than she ever knew.
“What agency are you from, Mami-yah?” D.ana inquired as she and Nahyun stopped in front of the door labeled ‘TS.’ “Nahyun and I are from TS, along with Yoonsunnie and the others.”
“I… um…” The first year murmured quietly. In truth, she belonged to no agency, and those without an agency were notoriously ridiculed for it. She could trust her sunbaes, but the thought still frightened her- what would happen if they knew?
“You don’t belong to an agency, right?”
“...Yes.” Mami admitted, heart stopping as she kept her head down, not wanting to witness their reactions.
But something unexpected happened.
“Wow! You must be super talented to get past the auditions then!” The two of them gasped with wide eyes, amazed at the first year.
If one wasn’t part of an agency prior to entering Busan Arts, then they would have to be tested through an audition process. The audition is said to be harder than any other agencies’ auditions, for the school believed that they would only pay the expenses for the best. Audition students, as they’re called, are extremely rare and very few that there may not be any some semesters. In fact, it’s been years since there were any at all!
“Oh, then you must be part of the famous ‘Generation of Miraculous Talent’ that the teachers were talking about!” Nahyun gushed excitedly.
“G-Generation of Miraculous Talent?” *
“Well, you see, it’s been years since Busan Arts had audition students. This semester, however, it was announced that a total of six audition students will be joining the school! Six! That’s the highest amount of audition students the school ever accepted in a year!” D.ana explained, grinning proudly.
“S-Surely that’s just an exaggeration… I’m not…” Mami tried to protest, but it fell upon deaf ears as her two upperclassmen began to discuss amongst themselves.
“I always wondered who the mysterious sixth audition student was! Turns out it was Mami-yah after all!” Nahyun smiled widely, pleasantly surprised by the outcome.
The first year paused- the mysterious sixth student?
“D-Do you know who the other audition students are, sunbae?”
“They announced them on the school website.” D.ana began to explain. “Yong Haeun, enrolling as a second year, and has a very proficient skill in dance. Im Sohee, enrolling also as a second year, and noted to be amazing at all majors, but her skill is in composing and variety.”
“Jung Kana, enrolling as a third year like Ana and I, and said to have an outstanding rapping talent. Choi Seona, enrolling as a fourth year, and has an excellent skill in dance.” Nahyun continued.
“Kim Yunseo, enrolling as a fifth year, and has both vocals and visuals out of this world.” The two of them finished.
“A-And… me?” Mami nervously asked, noticing how she was left out.
“Well, there wasn’t anything about you except for a few vague lines.” D.ana mused, trying to remember the exact words.
“Enrolling as a first year, foreign student, and with vocals sent from the skies…” Nahyun snapped her fingers, having remembered the lines. “A girl whose limits are beyond that of the sky.”
“Th-That’s not…” Mami flushed at such praises, protesting.
“Well, the Journalism Club runs the school website, so they probably compiled what they heard from the teachers.” D.ana ruffled the first year’s hair affectionately. “Anyway, let’s get our schedules already, before the Welcome Assembly begins.”
“The Welcome Assembly…?” Mami tilted her head to the side, trying to recall where she heard that from before it hit her.
Busan Arts has a Welcome Assembly every beginning of the school year where speeches are made from top students from each year of each major and secondary. It’s also where audition students are introduced for the first time.
“Alright, well, if you keep going down the hall then you’ll find the room you’re looking for. Don’t worry, it’s an easy process.” Nahyun pointed down the hall. “Since Ana and I are already third years, it’ll be really quick, so we’ll wait for you outside, alright?”
“Thank you…” Mami smiled gratefully at her upperclassman’s reassurance.
As the door to TS shut close, the first year stood alone in the long hallway. With her kind friends gone, Mami wrapped her arms around herself, feeling smaller each second as she carefully walked over to the end of the hall. There, a door labeled ‘No Agency’ was waiting for her. A deep breath, two, and she reached out to push the door.
Once the door opened, she was greeted to the sight of spotless white tiles and a sleek, ebony desk in front of her where a lady sat, typing away at her computer. Behind the lady was a large window with numerous shelves of files upon files, a door next to it that read ‘authorized personnel only’ and on the sides were even more shelves of files.
The lady looked up from her computer and gave a polite smile. “I’ve been expecting you. The other audition students already came by as well.” She rolled her office chair over to the other side of her desk where a mountain of files rested. “Name?”
“X-Xai Mami.” The shy ebony-haired girl answered softly.
“Ss-ai may-me…” The lady sounded out, going through the section of the files labeled ‘S.’ She frowned, unable to find what she wanted. “Spell it for me, please?”
“X-A-I…” Mami began, noticing that the lady’s eyes brightened and pulled out the file labeled ‘X’ and began to thumb through it. “M-A-M-I.”
“Aha, found it! Lovely name dear.” The lady smiled as she pulled out a file from the file. “Now, before we move on, can you please clarify that all the information here is correct? If any revisions need to be made, just cross out what’s wrong and write the correct information near it. Once you’re done, sign your name below. Oh, and, you’re welcome to take a seat while you’re going over it.” She handed a pencil and the file to her.
“Th-Thank you…” Mami bowed politely, carefully taking the items and sitting in the admittedly comfortable leather chair. She opened the file, noticing her picture on the top above her name from her audition form.
*
| Name: Xai Mami |
| Date of Birth: December 17, 1997 |
| Ethnicity: Laos |
| Blood Type: O |
| Height: 163 cm |
“Ah…” Mami pursed her lips. “I’m not 163 cm… I’m shorter than that…” She murmured to herself, nearly inaudibly. Crossing out 163 cm, she replaced it with 160 cm. *
| Height: |
| Weight: 47 kg |
| Birthplace/Hometown: U.S. |
| Hobbies: Listening to music, drawing, playing games, reading |
| Personality: Introverted, shy, quiet, low confidence |
| Appearance: Long black hair, large brown eyes, fair skin, petite |
| Language(s): English, Laos, Korean, French |
| Individual Talent(s): Playing the piano |
| Ideal Type: "Someone kind and hardworking" |
| X ___________________________ |
She closed the file, finished, and looked up at the lady who had been waiting for her to finish.
“You finished a lot faster than I expected.” The lady remarked as she received the file and the pencil back. “I’m sure you noticed that the information was taken from your audition, albeit a bit of it was estimated.” She informed, typing at her computer, and stood from her chair. The sounds of the printer echoed through the room. She walked over and grabbed the paper that finished printing before handing it over to the awaiting audition student. *
“Th-This is…”
“Your schedule, yes. Now, you should probably hurry before you’re late for the Welcome Assembly.”
“Th-Thank you.” Mami bowed deeply.
“We’re looking forward to your time here at Busan Arts, along with the other audition students.” The lady smiled encouragingly.
The audition student bowed again at her words before heading out the door.
Fortunately, the three of them had made it in time for the Welcome Assembly, where most of the students now resided in their own little groups until it was time. D.ana and Nahyun scanned around before brightening, grabbing onto the first year, and quickly heading over to a group. When the three arrived, Mami noticed five other young women together.
“You’re late.” One of them said, giving a playful glare.
“Sorry, unnie.” Nahyun smiled, obviously not sorry.
“Hi there.” Another greeted Mami with a wide smile.
“H-Hello…” The first year bowed deeply in greeting. “I-I’m Xai Mami… a first year.”
“I’m Ji Sumin, fourth year. Nice to meet you.” The one who greeted her, Sumin, shook hands with her with a friendly expression.
“Sung Minjae and I’m also a fourth year.”
“I’m Hong Euijin and I’m in my second year.”
“I’m Kim Dohee, but my stage name is High D. I’m in my second year.”
“Choi Yoonsun, nice to meet you friend. I’m a first year too.”
“I hope the two of you will be good friends!” Nahyun affectionately pinched both first years’ cheeks.
Yoonsun smiled at Mami, albeit a bit bashfully since they weren’t close yet. The two shook hands and the taller of the two began to speak.
“So, what major are you thinking of choosing?” Yoonsun inquired curiously.
“V-Vocal.” Mami replied shyly. “Nahyun-sunbae told me th-that you’ve decided on rap.”
“That’s right.” The tall girl grinned confidently. She snapped her fingers as an idea came to her. “Let’s check our schedules to see if we have any classes together.”
The two girls pulled out their schedules, comparing them.
| Student | Choi Yoonsun | Student | Xai Mami |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | 1st | Year | 1st |
| Period 1 | Literature 1-PAP | Period 1 | Literature 1-PAP |
| Period 2 | Math 1-PAP | Period 2 | Math 1-PAP |
| Period 3 | Science 1-PAP | Period 3 | Science 1-PAP |
| Period 4 | History 1-PAP | Period 4 | History 1-PAP |
| Period 5 | Gym/Art/Technology/Health/Free | Period 5 | Gym/Art/Technology/Health/Free |
| Period 6 | Major | Period 6 | Major |
| Period 5 | Secondary | Period 7 | Secondary |
“Y-You’re taking all PAP classes too?” Yoonsun blurted in astonishment. Her parents had signed her up for all PAP classes despite the teachers’ warnings about taking all of them. Most students would take a couple of PAP classes due to the workload it brought.
“Y-Yes.” Mami answered softly. “I-I usually take all of the most advanced classes that I can.” She frowned slightly, thinking back when she filled out the schedule form. “I-I was a bit disappointed that first years can only take PAP classes.”
“That’s really amazing.” The rapper remarked at the other’s words. “What’s more amazing is that we have all the same core classes at the same time. Even our fifth period is in the same order!” *
“Th-That really is amazing.” The vocalist agreed, surprised at the amount of classes they shared.
Suddenly, the bell rang. Students began to take their seats in order by their year.
“Here, follow me.” Yoonsun carefully led her new friend to one of the seats in the front, where the first years were to be seated. She sat herself second last on the row, with Mami sitting on the end seat.
“S-So, the assembly’s starting now?” Mami whispered.
“Yeah. Oh, and, make yourself comfortable. Sumin-unnie said these assemblies take really long.” Yoonsun comfortably settled into the auditorium velvet seat.
Mami was about to ask how long, but the lights began to dim and point towards the stage where a podium was positioned. A tall man walked out and in front of the podium, many others following behind him dressed sharply and with sophistication… well, most of them. The man settled himself in front of the podium with ease and a warm smile. The whole auditorium became silent at the presence of the people standing on stage.
“Good morning students.” The man waved in a friendly manner to all sections of the auditorium. “As many of you may know, every year a different CEO becomes the main speaker of the assembly. This year, it’s me.” He inclined his head slightly before lifting it, signalling a slight bow. “I’m the CEO of Solar Entertainment, Kim Taeyang, but most of you know me as Solar. So, how about we skip all the boring stuff and go right into saying- welcome to Busan Arts!” *
Students applauded happily, especially the elder ones knowing how long the introduction is.
“Alright, now we’ll be giving an honorable mention to the top students of last year, male and female, of each major. They will be displayed on the screen behind me.” Solar pointed behind him where the screen flickered on, displaying a student’s name, major, current year, and picture. *
Both Yoonsun and Mami grinned, recognizing some of the names that appeared on the screen. However, the two also noticed the names of certain individuals that appeared alongside their friends.
Last Year's Top Students
High D (Kim Dohee) Euijin (Hong Euijin)
Vocal Dance
Second Year Second Year
Nahyun (Kim Nahyun) D.ana (Jo Eunae)
Dance Rap
Third Year Third Year
V (Kim Taehyung) Jimin (Park Jimin)
Vocal Dance
Third Year Third Year
Minjae (Sung Minjae) Sumin (Ji Sumin)
Vocal Dance
Fourth Year Fourth Year
J-Hope (Jung Hoseok) Rap Monster (Kim Namjoon)
Dance Rap
Fourth Year Fourth Year
Suga (Min Yoongi) Jin (Kim Seokjin)
Rap Vocal
Fifth Year Sixth Year
“Now, I’m sure you all know, but we want to announce that this semester we will be welcoming a total of six audition students- the highest amount Busan Arts has ever accepted. Please give them a warm welcome.” Solar led the crowd of students in applause as the screen changed to display the faces of the new audition students. *
This Year's Audition Students
Kim Yunseo Choi Seona
Vocal Major Dance Major
Acting Secondary Variety Secondary
Fifth Year Fourth Year
Jung Kana Yong Haeun
Rap Major Dance Major
Composing Secondary Variety Secondary
Third Year Second Year
Im Sohee Xai Mami
Rap Major First Year
Composing Secondary
Second Year
“Now to the boring things, starting with conduct…”
The students groaned- this was going to be a long assembly.
Next time on Bound to You...
II
Introduction
"The Generation of Miraculous Talent..."
"S-Sorry..."
"Looks like we're roommates!"
"So, you're saying you've NEVER went to an amusement park?"
* Notes:
1. If you haven't figured this out, Nahyun and Taehyung are soulmates. I ship them along with others that will be mentioned in this story.
2. "Generation of Miraculous Talent" is a reference to Kuroko no Basket's Generation of Miracles. I couldn't help myself and put it in the story for laughs. Virtual cookies to anyone who got this reference!
3. Mami's audition form picture, in which she took a picture and basically just glued it on the form.
4. I'm at a short height of about 160 cm, but people think I'm taller so I just wanted to put that in there haha.
5. At the audition, the judges wrote down the information and asked questions, so that's the information they collected. As you can see, this is my way of giving her a profile and introducing her... kind of.
6. The fifth period classes change each day, which is why there are multiple classes written on Yoonsun and Mami's schedule on that period. Gym is on Monday, Art on Tuesday, and so on and so forth.
7. Solar Entertainment is a fictional agency I made up for plot. CEO Solar is going to be a prominent character too.
8. Just a way I'm introducing basically the main characters of this story. (SonaBTS mostly play a large role in the Soulmate aspect of the story.)
9. Same as above, except they'll play an even larger role in the School/Music aspect of the story.
Author's Note
So, I couldn't help my feels for Jimin and wrote this story... yeah. So, the story as of now is pretty light and more on the school/music aspect of the overall plot. However, this is only the beginning and as time goes on, it's most likely going to switch over to the more angsty soulmate aspect. As it reads in my * notes, the Generation of Miraculous Talent plays a very large role in the school/music aspect of the story while SonaBTS plays a large role in the soulmate aspect. Basically, this is my poor attempt at combining both a SchoolAU and a SoulmateAU (and I guess an IdolAU) into one. To be honest, I didn't even plan to have the school be a training school for idols, but my muse just decided to go down that route.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this first chapter that decided to take too long to update and stay tuned for the next one!
-ItonamiKanmi
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