alrightyyy i'm done with school. i have time. let's get this show on the road !! 

Smoke greeted Mina as she stepped into the packed and rowdy house. Sweaty bodies rubbing on each other, alcohol bottles haphazardly lying around posing to be a very dangerous threat, and cigarette butts and other rolled up paper littered on every surface. The Myoui Mina from two years ago would never be seen in a place like this, but the Myoui Mina now isn’t the same as before. She’s no longer uptight, well-mannered, and put together; well, not when she’s on stage that is.

Once she puts on her pointes and laces them up, Mina becomes a different person. She’s no longer the girl who plays video games all night, or the girl who drowns her eggs in ketchup, or the girl who secretly smokes at her “friend’s” house. She becomes the deeply brokenhearted Giselle, Princess Odette who turns into a swan, or the brave young heroine Clara. Mina puts on a mask when she dances, a costume to act with, a persona to embody.

Dance has always been an escape for Mina, she let’s herself be carried away by the music. Let her hips sway and her body roll against the person behind her. No harm there, she’s fairly certain it’s someone of the same . Their bodies moved in unison, both as fluid as the calmest river. The woman behind Mina did not hesitate to pull her closer, gripping on her hips while Mina reached behind her head to wrap her hands around the former’s neck. They swayed to the beat, matched the rhythm, drowned out the people around them.

Mina wanted to take a peek behind her to see what her dance partner looked like. Would she have long or short hair, fair or tanned skin? What’s the colour of her eyes, the shade of her lips? Does she have freckles, piercings, or tattoos? As much as the curiosity gnawed at Mina’s throat, she had a rule. Never introduce, let alone know what the people you get too close to at parties look like. It makes one immune to the embarrassment if ever you encounter these people around the city. Mina would say, “ignorance is bliss”.

So no, she didn’t turn back. Mina faced front and let herself be taken away by the music. One thing’s for certain though, whoever she is, she smells tropical.

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Breathe in. Breathe out.

All 268 seats of the Weill Recital Hall are occupied by students and teachers alike, each person in attendance is anticipating being able to hear Dahyun play who, behind the curtains, could be seen sat in a corner alone, with her head down low. The young prodigy has her noise cancelling headphones on to block out the chatter coming from the audience piling in, instead delicate but strong chords rang through her ears filling her mind with notes that danced around in her head.

A tap to Dahyun’s shoulder jolted her away from the solitude of melodies she’s built. Her dear, angel of a friend, Wendy held out five fingers to her face and patted her head before walking back to her seat. Dahyun would forever be grateful to Wendy, the older girl looked out for her and took her care of her like an older sister would. She’d make breakfast for the two of them, haul the younger girl away from her keyboard and into her bed to get some sleep, or just to keep her company while Dahyun locks herself in their dorm room before finals. Needless to say, she wouldn’t have survived Julliard without the Son Seungwan.

Dahyun took a deep breath, counted backwards from ten, and took off her headphones. The busy noise that she expected that was typically heard backstage after 5 minutes has been called isn’t what she heard, surrounding her in its place is the booming base of electro pop mixes that you would hear in a very packed, very dirty club. Dahyun pulled her headphones back on and off again, on and off a few times just to make sure that she’s hearing right. No matter how many times she did it, Dahyun could still hear the loud party music without knowing the source of it.

The taste of ground coffee filled , or whiskey. The now empty bottle of water doing nothing to relieve her of the feeling, instead it burned. Lining with fire that cascaded down , it left her parched. The heat spreading like wildfire across her chest. Fear bubbled inside her stomach, attempting to push its content up.

Panic started to rouse inside of the pianist, her palms started to sweat and her legs began to bounce. Utter confusion filled the young woman, unable to make sense of what’s happening, and why it’s happening now. Dahyun was about to ask the person walking up to her but suddenly, the world turned silent when the familiar last-minute bell rang. The loud buzzing conversations from the audience and the shouting of commands around the backstage appeared to be just mere whispers compared to being engulfed by a Yummy remix played on repeat.

Whoever thought that that song deserved an award nomination must have been tortured to listen to it and must have been forced to like it.

Though no matter how perplexed she is, Dahyun couldn’t dwell on the fact that she probably needs to see a doctor. She needs to get through this performance first though, her last semester depends on it.

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“-missing. Her office was left spotless, nothing out of order. It’s as if she just disappeared into thin air.”

Sana’s eyes fluttered open, head pounding against the window of the bus. A clear and stern voice could be heard to her left. She could see the empty streets outside, establishments closed early for the night save for the nightcl