- Kim Seo Yul -

I looked at the papers for the training review as I walked on the corridor. There was the name list of the trainees there. The audition had been passed more than two weeks ago. The Casting and Training Team had been called the ones who had passed and they already started their training. Today was the 7^th day of their training so I wanted to check on them before we had our weekly review with the trainers.

Besides of Yong Guk, there were around 20 to 30 other trainees who joined the training. They were facing the survival training in order to get a position on the new group. Most of them were good. But I still put my interest on Yong Guk. But I heard from the dance trainers that Yong Guk was lacking in dancing so I needed to check on him since I didn’t want him to get eliminated soon.

I remembered that the dancing training, Yoon Jiyoung, complained at me about how worst the trainees were in dancing when we were having dinner together. He was mentioned Yong Guk name among the list. But other than dancing, he had good review from the trainers. So I thought I needed to see how bad he was in dancing.

I put the report back on my folder then stopped in the front of the dance training room door. I peaked inside through the viewing glass on the door. The trainees were training. I opened the door and sneaked in silently. I walked toward the wall side where the assistants and the staffs were sitting. They saw me coming and nodded at me. One of them gave me the space for sitting.

“Thank you.” I told her then sat on the space.

I looked at the dance training. The trainees were dancing along the music with Jiyoung looking around and spotting the wrong moves or the stiffed dancers.

“Bang Yong Guk! Loose your body!”

I grinned as Jiyoung called Yong Guk’s name. I always knew that Jiyoung was a strict trainer. Even I couldn't escape from his scoldings if I couldn't do the right moves. I learned to do choreograpy from him and I became his dance partner in the most of the time. I still danced with him sometimes. I guessed I understood a little about him. I opened my folder and started to note down my review about the trainees.

I looked up at the trainees who were dancing seriously in the front of me. I watched them carefully as they danced and noted down whatever comments that I had for them. I circled the names that I thought good in dancing. I looked up again and watched Yong Guk as he danced. I guessed I could see why Jiyoung said that Yong Guk was a bad dancer.

As he danced, his body was so stiffed and he couldn't follow the beat in the most of the time. He also made a lot of mistakes on his moves.

"Bang Yong Guk! Go home if you can't dance!!"

I heard Jiyoung scolded him again. I saw he stopped and released a sigh then danced again. I just smirked to see him then looked back to the paper to write my comment about him.

'Need to improve more in dancing. Intensive training!!!'

That was my comment about him. I put three exclation marks on it. He really needed to have an intensive training. After I wrote it, I heard another scold from Jiyoung to Yong Guk.

"Bang Yong Guk! If you can't dance in the right way, just go back home!! How many times do I tell you to loose your body and dance along the beat?! And can't you even memorize the moves? We have been doing it since 3 days ago. Why can't you do it in the right way?"

I turned my look to Yong Guk. He stopped dancing and looked frustrated. I also saw anger in his eyes. I guessed he got pissed. Somehow I sensed that trouble would come soon. It seemed that Jiyoung noticed Yong Guk's rebel look. I quickly closed the folder and put it on the chair. I stood up and turned off the music. Of course, all the trainees stopped because of it.

"What? You want to defy me?" Jiyoung asked as he walked to the front of Yong Guk. "Why did you come here on the first place and train to become an idol when you can't dance?"

Yong Guk just stayed silent and looked at Jiyoung with defying and angry look on his face.

"I've told you. You can't become an idol if you can’t dance."

At that moment, I started to feel afraid if Yong Guk would start a fight with Jiyoung. Yong Guk was someone with big pride. So I came to Jiyoung’s side.

“Is there any trouble?” I asked.

For a while, Jiyoung and Yong Guk were changing glare. I could feel the intense between them. Then Yong Guk broke the stare and looked at me.

“There is nothing, Kim Timjang-nim,” he said. “I’m so sorry.” He bowed then turned.

But I knew that Yong Guk was very angry. He had never called me with my title. He always called me Nunna. Somehow, to hear him calling me Timjangnim was made me feeling upset. It was making me sad too. I thought that he was pushing me aside as his friend, as if he was building a barrier between us.

I looked at Jiyoung, wanting to ask him whether he was fine or not. The guy was looking at me. His look told me that he was fine. He patted my shoulder to tell me that I shouldn't be worried then turned.

“Okay, take a break for 15 minutes,” Jiyoung said to the trainees.

I saw all the trainees were going to the wall side. Yong Guk walked there too. He seemed to be pissed. But Jiyoung did the right choice to put a break now. I was sure that both Jiyoung and Yong Guk needed to calm their selves. I looked back at Jiyoung and saw him walking toward the door. I didn't sure that Yong Guk would like to talk with me. He always liked to be alone to calm his self. So, I decided to follow Jiyoung instead of coming to Yong Guk.

Outside, I bought drinks from vending machine on the ground floor then came back to find Jiyoung. I saw Jiyoung as he was resting on the bench at the corridor near the elevator. I walked toward him. He noticed my footsteps and he looked around.

"Ah, Seo Yul-ssi," he said as he saw me.

I smiled at him. No matter how close I was with him, he always called me Seo Yul-ssi. I stopped in the front of him. "Drink?" I said to him then handed him the bottle of isotonic drink to him.

"Yeah." He took the drink. "Thanks."

I sat beside him. "Good decision to put the training on break. Both of you need to calm down for a while."

“Yeah.” Then he leaned forward and resting his elbows on his knees. He opened the bottle and drank it. “But he’s really unbelievable, you know.”

“Why?”

"You've seen it, right?" He replied me as he looked at me. “His body is so stiffed and he missed out beats. And if I scolded him too hard, he will defy me. Even the other trainees call him ‘stiffed body’.” He exhaled in frustration. “I don’t know what I have to do with him.”

I smiled and lowered my gaze. I wanted to open my bottle.

“Seo Yul-ssi.”

I looked back at him.

“Do you really want him on this new group?”

I shrugged as I lowered my hands. “I guess it’s too early to judge his ability. And even though he is my first choice and I want him to be a part of the group, I think his acceptance will be depending on this training period. I don’t want to be biased over him even though his image fits for the group.”

“What if he fails?”

I went silent when I heard the question. I never thought that Yong Guk would fail even though for once. I had a faith that he wouldn’t fail. I smiled. I guessed Yong Guk would never fail. I believed that he wouldn't be failed.

"I don't think he will be failed." I told Jiyoung. "Because, you know what? Bang Yong Guk is the type of guy who won't give up. If you told him that he can't, he will prove that he can." I paused. "So, I believe that he won't be failed."

I could hear Jiyoung scoffed because of it.

"You're really over-valuated him, you know?"

I just chuckled because I was feeling amused to know that I really put my faith on Yong Guk. "I guess I am."

"But what if he really fails?"

If he failed…

I shrugged. “I don’t know. If he failed, I guess I’m over-valuating him.”

- Bang Yong Guk -

I looked at my moves as I danced on the mirror wall in the front of me. No wonder why Jiyoung hyung scolded me over and over and everyone called me ‘stiffed body’. My body was so stiffed as I danced. And sometimes my movements were not right. I was sure that my head knew how I wanted to move but my body moved to the other way.

I stopped and exhaled as I sat and rested for a while. I was staying behind for extra self-practice at the training center. It was so late already so nobody was here. I could use the training room as long as I wanted to.

Yeah, I decided to stay behind just to practice my dance.

I took a deep breath and exhaled hard then stood up to prepare my self for practicing again.

As I practiced, my mind went back to the incident that happened earlier. Jiyoung hyung always scolded me before. But it was the first time he exploded and said that I couldn’t become an idol because I couldn’t dance. But somehow when I heard Jiyoung hyung said that I couldn’t become an idol and I couldn’t dance, I got angry. Not only because of his words that looked down on me, but also because of my self. I hated when someone said that I couldn’t do something. Somehow it burnt the flame within my soul and I wanted to show him that I could dance. I wanted to prove him that he was wrong.

But there was something else that made me wanting to show that I could dance. It was Seo Yul.

She was there to watch our practice. I caught her writing something on her note as I danced. She was there when Jiyoung hyung scolded me. She was there when I defied Jiyoung hyung. And I realized that I had made her worried by the look on her face when she stepped in between us. At that moment, I suddenly remembered what Yong Jun hyung had told me about the fact behind my acceptance. At that moment, I realized that I had let her down and I shouldn’t have done that.

When Yong Jun hyung told me that Seo Yul was one of the people who insisted to pick me as a part of this new idol hip hop group, I was praised. And as someone with high position and influence on the company, I was really proud that Seo Yul picked me personally. It seemed that she was staked her reputation for putting me into the new group. She had a faith in me. And when Jiyoung hyung scolded me, I felt that I had failed and made her embarrassed about me. Somehow I felt that I had failed her faith on me. I didn’t want her to feel like that so I decided to practice over and over again until I could dance on the right way.

Then, as I danced, I caught a glimpse of a figure standing by the door on the mirror in the front of me. I stopped and looked at the figure. It was Seo Yul. She was leaning beside the door with her arms across her chest and her hand holding a bottle. I turned to see her.

“T-timjang-nim,” I said awkwardly.

She smiled and lowered her hands then walked toward me. “Still practicing?”

“Yes, Timjang-nim,” I said then dropped my gaze. “Sorry if I use the practice room without permission. I will leave immediately.” I bowed as I apologized.

“It’s fine.” She immediately stopped me.

I looked back at her.

“This place is free to use anytime. So I guess its fine for you to use it even though it’s late.”

I smiled. “Thank you so much,” I said as I dropped my gaze again.

“But then…,” she said that made me looking back at her.

She pouted her lips and narrowed her eyes. But I could see some playful sparks on her eyes. Ah, she would be teasing me again.

“Will you keep calling me Timjang-nim and use polite formal words at me?” She asked then touching the bottle that she brought on her hand to her lips.

“Ah… that…” I dropped my gaze again.

“Why do you change your attitude toward me suddenly?”

I tilted my head. “I guess…,” I paused, “…that’s the proper thing to do.”

A smile broke on her lips and she asked, “Why?”

Actually, to tell her the true reason would make me feeling more awkward. But since she asked, I also thought that I had the obligation to tell her.

“Because…,” I dropped my gaze again, “I didn’t know that you’re having big influence on this company.”

“Big influence?”

“Yes,” I answered. “So I guess, I’d better stop treating you as a friend.” I paused then continued. “Because… you’re also the Heojang-nim’s niece.”

But then, I heard her laughter as she asked, “Mwo?”

I looked at her and saw her smiling in amusement. She looked at me with a big smile on her face.

“Then, I can’t be friend with you because I’m the Heojang-nim’s niece?” She scoffed in amusement. “Oh, Yong Guk-ah, if everyone here starts to have the same thought like you, I definitely will give my resignation letter to Sajangnim.” She looked at me again. “I might be related to Heojang-nim. But I’m also an employee here and I’m expecting everyone to treat me like an employee here.”

I just smirked awkwardly and scratched the back of my head.

“So you’d better stop calling me Timjang-nim,” she said then offered the bottle that she had on her right hand to me. A gentle smile came to her face. “Just call me Nunna like before.”

My smile went wider because of that. “Alright then,” I said as I received the bottle. “I’m so sorry about that.” I paused. “And honestly, it’s a little bit weird to treat you so formally.”

She smiled again. “I’ve told you,” she said then turned and walked toward the wall side then sat there.

I followed her as I opened the bottle and drank it as I sat beside her.

“So,” she said as she crossed her legs and leaned forward.

I looked at her.

“How’s the training?”

Somehow the question made me lost my mood. I lowered my hand that held the bottle and closed the cap. I looked at the front. “Like what you have seen before. I screwed up on dance practice.”

“Jiyoung-ssi might be strict. But he’s a nice and good trainer.”

“I know,” I said then dropped my gaze. “But I guess it’s me who lacks in dancing.”

She didn’t say anything. I looked at her.

“Tell me something honestly, nunna.”

She looked like as if she told me to continue my words.

“Why did you choose me on the first place?”

She smiled calmly. “Because you’re good and I don’t want to see your talent got wasted. Besides, my intuition told me that you’re going to make it.”

“What if I screwed up and failed?”

She seemed to think for a while. “Will you fail?” She asked me in return.

I just looked at her as she asked me that question. I could see that she has this confidence that I couldn’t explain in her eyes. I could see that she was believed in me and had a deep faith on me. And somehow I didn’t want to fail. Somehow I determined to be better and be the part of that new group.

I turned my gaze to the front and straightened my body as I cleared out my throat. “I guess I’d better back to practice.”

I could hear her chuckles.

“Alright.”

I saw her standing up and turned her body on me.

“Do you need me to drive you back later?”

I put the bottle on seat then stood up. “No. I guess I can go back on my own. You’d better go home and rest, nunna.”

She chuckled then narrowed her eyes in playful way. “Aish, you brat. Who the hell are you to tell me some kind of advice like that?” She joked.

“Bang Yong Guk imnida,” I said politely as I nodded.

She chuckled again. “Alright,” she said. “Just be careful on your way back home later, okay. And take care of your self. Don’t get into troubles. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“I understand.”

She smiled. “See you tomorrow.” She turned and walked toward the door.

I just looked at her. She was using a loose sweater and jeans with sneakers. She also tied her hair into a pony tail and it was waving as she walked with light steps. I smiled to see that. Her appearance indeed didn’t look like a woman on her late 20’s. But somehow she looked very attractive. Seo Yul was indeed a beautiful and attractive woman.

“Nunna.” I called her as she had opened the door.

Seo Yul turned at me.

“Becareful on your way home, okay.”

She smiled. “Okay.” She waved her hand to me before coming out.

I just smiled as the door closed then I turned to face the mirror. I exhaled hard through my mouth. Somehow I felt that I had gained my strength after talking with Seo Yul. Then, probably I thought I would need to practice again. I needed to prove my self worthy somehow.

As someone put her faith on me and I don’t want to let her down.

---

Please remember that Korean Age system is +1 year from the International Age system.

And it's just a work of fiction. So don't trust the timeline too much. ^^

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