“They’re so professional.” Na Ying remarked as soon as Jinyan finished her performance.

“Yes,” Ning Jing agreed as they both clapped their hands for Jinyan.

“Teacher Xie Na is crying.” Huang Yi mentioned as she watched their advisor wipe away her tears.

“Thank you, Wu Jinyan.” Xie Na said with a smile.

“Great job! Well done!” Xiaolei jie cheered. 

“Wu Jinyan, your dance made me cry.” Xie Na said as soon as Jinyan finished her performance

“Really, teacher?” Jinyan managed to blurt as she caught her breath.

“I am touched by your dance performance. Na jie, didn’t you cry too?” Xie Na said as she turned to look at the league mentor.

“I held back my tears just now.” Na Ying replied, “The minute she started dancing, I wanted to cry.”

“Yes,” Xie Na agreed, “I never thought we can smile and cry for the same things.”

“It makes you emotional.” Na Ying added.

“Really good, thank you.” Xie Na applauded Jinyan once again for her soulful dance performance, “Please go back to your seat.”

Ning Jing watched as Jinyan headed back to her seat, “Ah, girls who can dance are really great; I hope to see the five students dance together: Wu Jinyan, Zhu Jiejing, Tang Shiyi, Qi Xi. Hmm, anyone else? I’m sure there’s one more on the list…”

Xie Na signaled at Jessica, who shyly stood up from her seat. “Zheng Xiuyan!”

“Oh, wow!” Ning Jing casted an expectant look as her gaze landed on Jessica, hands automatically clapping knowing that the girl had a lot in store for everyone.

Na Ying, too, was excited to see what the new transfer would show off on stage, “I heard that she dances really well and that she is a professional dancer.” The mentor recalled from the file she had read about the girl.

“She was from a famous Korean training school.” Xie Na added as she and the other two mentors looked forward to the young girl who seemed frozen from where she was standing.

“Jess, it’s your turn. The stage is yours.” Cyndi whispered to her seatmate as she motioned for the latter to walk up to the stage.  

Er Jie, who was seated among the other students of her class, whispered to her seatmates, “I heard she is really good at singing and dancing. I think she is more experienced, and she must have gone through a lot to get here. She must have been very good to be accepted as a transfer.”

Wenwen watched attentively as Jessica made her way onto the stage, her eyes observed the transfer's every move as Jessica trudged the runway towards the platform where the performances happened. 

Ning Jing’s eyes never left the girl as she walked the long runway towards the center stage, “I am looking forward to her performance!”

“Is she going to sing or dance? Or both?” Xie Na wondered aloud, “I am looking forward to her dancing though. Look at those high heels!”

“Yeah, her shoes are tall, but I guess when you dance well enough, the height of your shoes won’t matter.” Ning Jing pointed out.

“I think she’ll take off her shoes.” Na Ying postulated.

“Really?”

“Uh, I don’t really know.” Na Ying retracted her statement when Xie Na asked her.

“Oh, she didn’t take off her shoes.” Xie Na said as she and the other mentors wondered what Jessica was planning to do when the student settled herself on the chair.

“Why you didn’t dance?” Ning Jing asked the young girl.

“I-I had n-no time to prepare... I-I just came str-straight here a-and stayed for one month.” Jessica shyly stuttered her answer, somehow feeling embarrassed for not being able to prepare for the showcase well.

“Ahh…” the mentors nodded in understanding, making Jessica feel more pressured due to the uncertainty of their responses.

Jessica felt herself break into a sweat from the pressure of her current mentors’ expectations, but when the lights dimmed and the audience disappeared in the darkness, she felt herself relax in her seat on stage. The feeling of being on stage again relieved her of her anxiety as the whispers of music began to soothe her into a trance.

This was her moment and nothing or nobody could take it away from her.

And so, Jessica sang her heart out as if it were her last performance, blowing the minds of her audience as she sang two songs in succession, one in English and another in Mandarin, showing off her vocal prowess in both languages without pause.

Liu Lian, who was watching attentively, had surprise written all over her face when she heard Jessica suddenly sing in Mandarin. Meanwhile, Xiaolei jie had a smug look on her face, knowing full well the lengths her younger roommate had gone through to master the Mandarin song.

Everyone froze for a moment when the new student finished her performance. Jessica lowered her head, afraid of seeing their reaction to her singing. But then, she heard a round of applause reverberate through the large hall. When she finally looked up, she saw her seniors, Tan Weiwei and Valen Hsu, alongside her dormmate, Wu Jinyan, giving her approving looks as they clapped their hands. Scanning the crowd, all she saw were gazes of admiration and pleasant surprise.

Eyes landing on her teachers, she saw the two league mentors smile at her while giving their applause. “Thank you, Xiuyan!” Xie Na said.

“That was a lovely performance! Congratulations on your first day here in Phoenix Academy!” Ning Jing applauded, “You have a beautiful voice! But I would want to see you dance next time…we all want to see you dance next time!”

Jessica’s face reddened at the compliment and the anticipation of her teachers for her dance performance, “T-Thank y-you, and I’ll promise I’ll dance next time.”

“Great job!” Na Ying told her as she headed back to her seat.

The other students welcomed Jessica with genuine smiles on their faces, some were very much impressed with what she showed to the audience. Others were pleasantly surprised, but Jessica was very much at ease after having finished her performance.

“You were great! Your Mandarin was very good.” Cyndi whispered as to her as sat down. Jessica thanked the senior student for the support and the compliment.

+++

A/N: Happy Birthday, Kelly Yu Wenwen! :) Updating this piece in celebration! There wll more interesting parts in store for the girls in the next chapter! :D