one.
I'll Just Be Me
c h a p t e r o n e
one.
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author's note
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» I know. I know. I really should finish the other story. I will; don't worry. It's just that I think the storyline for that is too cliche and very trite. But for now, I'll be focusing on this story. The first part probably won't make any sense to you at all but I'm going to ask you to trust me with this. What happens in the first couple chapters will explain everything that happens later on.
Anyhoo, when you are reading the story, you'll notice that I'm using a lot of technical terms. I'll do my best to try and explain it but if you have questions-- ask me. Otherwise, it won't make any sense.
-study_xd
P.S. If you haven't noticed: I'm trying out layouts now. :] I hope you like it! If you have any problems with it, contact me!
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This was it.
After months of preparation, the moment of truth had finally come for Haeri. Right now, she was standing in a huge arena with hundreds of spectators anticipating the action that would soon unfold. She drew in a sharp breath in an attempt to relax herself but she just could not shake that jittery feeling inside of her. Her stomach was in knots, her face was flushed, and her palms were sweaty-- all of these signs gave her away and told her competitors that Haeri was extremely nervous.
Haeri tugged at her bright blue leotard and tightened her ponytail. She tried to convince herself not to be nervous by thinking things like 'you can do this' and 'don't be nervous.' But with such an important gymnastics competition so near-- in fact, minutes away-- it was impossible not to be nervous. Letting out a resigned sigh, she bent down and fished for some things in her backpack. From it she took out a pair of scissors and a roll of beige-colored bandage wrap. After cutting a strip of the latter, Haeri wrapped it around her right ankle and proceeded to do the same with her left wrist. Haeri was so caught up in her thoughts about the competition that she did not notice that her coach was standing behind her.
"Are you ready?" her coach asked, as she pinned a paper that had a number onto Haeri's leotard.
"No," Haeri replied numbly, trying to focus and get rid of the butterflies in her stomach.
Her coach tried to reassure her. "Don't worry, I have confidence in you," she said, smiling.
But Haeri did not have any confidence in herself. She did not believe that she would be able to succeed. All she was hoping for was that she would not make major mistakes and avoid making a fool of herself. For Haeri, gymnastics was her life. It was not just a sport but a lifestyle that had started when she was just seven years old and continued ever since. Her dream was to make the Korean Olympic team for artistic gymnastics.
All of a sudden, the announcer called her name. "Lee Haeri, number one hundred thirty-two from Seoul, on the balance beam." When the announcer called Haeri's name, her nervousness and anxiety grew. She tentatively stepped up to the platform and gave her coach a sidelong glance. Her coach just gave her big smile and a thumbs-up. Haeri smiled back weakly and headed toward the balance beam.
By the balance beam was a large container of chalk-- which Haeri took and rubbed all over the beam apparatus. She then used it to mark the beam in two places. When she was satisfied with the amount of chalk on the beam, she placed it back into the tub.
It was finally time. Haeri drew in a deep breath, vigorously rubbed her hands together to make sure the chalk was spread evenly over her hands, and saluted the judges.
» If you don't get this scene, you scroll below and read the Author's Notes. Sorry for being confusing! :(
Haeri jumped onto the springboard and mounted the end of the beam. She took a deep breath. Step one- split leap. She ran three steps across the beam, did a split in the air, and landed solidly on the beam. Step two- front aerial. Haeri swung her arms forward and used her legs to push herself into the aerial. However, at that moment, something went wrong. But it was too late. When she finished the move, Haeri knew that it was all over. She had landed too low and had one foot that was not on the beam. Haeri could not maintain her balance and fell.
» For those who didn't know: an aerial is a hands-free cartwheel.
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At the same time, there was a tall, slender boy dressed in jeans and a white t-shirt sitting on a subway with headphones on his head, listening to music. His bangs and dark eyes seemed to give him a bad boy feel but when he smiled, he almost seemed innocent and childlike. This boy's name was Kim Jong-in.
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Haeri sat in front of the mirror on her desk and stared at herself. Her eyes were red, swollen, and tired-looking, signaling that she had just recently cried. After the gymnastics meet, Haeri could not help but feel angry and disappointed at herself. Why, why did she always fail in the most crucial moment? Why was she, out of all people, the most affected by her nervousness? The fall on the beam caused her to lose a full point, and she was scored last out of all the contestants. Beam was supposed to be her best event. When her disastrous beam routine had been over, Haeri had been unable to recover from her mistake. In later events, she could not gain her confidence back, and the rest of the routines were filled with mistakes.
"Nervousness always get the best of me," she thought to herself bitterly, with a wry smile on her face. "I've been practicing for years just to perform in this national junior gymnastics competition-- those years of preparation, that one chance is gone in a minute. The bane of my gymnastics career."
Haeri's frustration built up inside of her, and tears began to well up in her eyes. She knew that the only way to succeed was to get rid of her competition "trauma." Right then, Haeri made a resolve to figure out a solution to her problem. She got up abruptly and marched out the door.
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author's note
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» Gymnastics Background:
There are 4 events in women's artistic gymnastics: floor exercise, balance beam, uneven bars, and vault. (Click on each for a video example.) I prefer that you check out the videos so that you'll get a better understanding of the difficult of gymnastics.
The Use of Chalk: Chalk is commonly used in gymnastics. During practices and meets, gymnasts dust their hands and legs with chalk to absorb sweat and improve their grip strength during events. It can also be used to mark the beam so the athletes know where they are on the beam. The marks can indicate where a certain skill needs to be done.
Scoring in Gymnastics: It is based on a points system. The contestants are given two separate scores that are added together. The first part is called the D-score or difficulty score. Each element of move has varying difficulties. The scores for the moves are added together to make the D-score. The other part of the score is called the E-score or execution score, which is graded on how well the elements were performed. A full one point deduction is taken if a gymnast falls. This can be disastrous to their score.
*Important: For all the competition scenes, I'll being italics to show what Haeri is thinking as she excecutes each move.
» Hi guys! I'm so sorry that I'm so slow on updating! So busy these days. I know that the ending of the first chapter is really abrupt. It won't make sense until the next chapter. I hope you like this! Please comment and subscribe! I promise to love you forever if you do! Ireally need feedback because I'm testing this out. Notify me if there are errors.
-study_xd
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