This night is sparkling, don't you let it go
I'm wonderstruck, blushing all the way home
I'll spend forever wondering if you knew
I was enchanted to meet you¹

            I woke to the sound of my iTouch going off with Taylor Swift’s Enchanted. I made a really bad mistake by setting it on shuffle. It was five thirty in the morning. I staggered out of my bed, made my usual breakfast of bagel and cream cheese with one eye open, and had a cup of my favorite French Vanilla coffee. Ugh... talk about a Monday morning.

            Although my brain was still dead from last night’s show, there was one thing I remembered like a cloudless sky: Kevin. The concerned look when he handed back my pointe shoes still stuck to me like a broken record. It kept playing in my mind over and over again. Sorry, I’m going off on a tangent. Back to the story.

            Arriving at the studio, it was... startling. The room consisted of polished birch barres and a smooth maple floor. The simple arrangement of the room seemed too simple for such an elaborate dance. But the time old saying goes, opposites attract. How’s Kevin’s practice room? Is it nice as this one? Or is it littered with half empty cans of Coke, cold chicken from yesterday’s lunch, and stacks of paper covering every inch that the eye can see? What? They are guys.

            I found myself thinking about Kevin. His smile. The way his eyebrows would slightly raise when he laughed. The soft voice that delivered the mellifluous melodies. I just realized that he was flawless. Stop thinking about him.

            “Okay everyone, first position for your pliés.”

***

            “Lift your legs higher.”

            “Spot when you do your chaîné turns.”

            “For heaven’s sake, pointe your toes!”

            Yup, that’s our ballet mistress, Miss Ambre. She’s subbing for Miss Claire today because Miss Claire has come down with the flu. I personally think Miss Ambre looks and acts like a nettle. You know, the ones that sting you if you touch it. She was a tall person, about five foot nine with flaming red hair and an attitude to match it.  I want to be just like her when I grow up. Haha, no.  

            For some reason, my mind keeps drifting back to Kevin. He’s stuck to me like a burr on rabbit fur. His face keeps replaying in my mind over and over again. I caught myself smiling stupidly at the mirror. Just my luck, Miss Ambre walked over. And she did not look amused.

            “You know, Maddison,” she started.

            Crap.

            So I ended up with a forty minute lecture from her about focus and dedication. This is what I think she said. “...to be a dancer, you must be focused and dedicated. Every movement, every jump must be perfectly balanced...” This is what I heard: “...focus... dedicated... perfect” I nodded from time to time pretending that I was listening to her. I was thinking about you-know-who. And no, it’s not Voldemort.  

            Ninety minutes later, salvation arrived in a statement.

            “Class, you are dismissed. Please report to your respective rehearsals.”

            It’s over. Thank God.

***

Kevin’s POV

            It was another day for us. We were up early to practice for our new track, Bingeul Bingeul. So we were at our practice room, bracing ourselves to be scolded by the choreographer. “Dongho, lift your arms up. Zombies can do better than you!”

            “Kiseop, dance with more energy. You’re not dead, are you?”

What an exciting day.

            How is Maddy adjusting to Seoul? Does she like it? Is she doing well with her performances? These thoughts coursed through my head. I stopped my thinking process. Why am I thinking about her? You’ll probably never meet her again.

            “Whatcha thinking about Kevin?” a voice disturbed my thoughts.

            “Huh? Oh, I was just thinking about our comeback.” I turned my head, seeing Xander. Leave it to Xander to be the mom of the group.

            “Kevin, dance your part for me,” the choreographer looked my way.

            Let the torture begin.

***

Maddy’s POV

            For the next sixteen hours, I had rehearsal. How was rehearsal, you might ask? It was... fun. Let’s just leave it at that. If you’re the person that considers fun as being walking around in a tutu for four hours with no bathroom breaks, a bunch of sweaty people breathing down your neck, and old ladies screaming, I mean directing dancers for ten hours. Yeah, it’s pretty fun.

             I was walking back home from a tiring day when I heard someone shouting my name.

            Wait... isn’t that Kevin?

***

Kevin’s POV

            We had some free time after practice. Soohyun, Eli, and Kibum decided to go home and play Halo Reach. Dongho and Kiseop went to the gym to work out. And Xander is going home to prepare dinner. I know, I have great friends.

            So I decided to take a walk around and hope that I won’t get mobbed by ecstatic fan girls. It was already dark, and I couldn’t see much since the street lamps were unlit for repair. So much for my idea. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a familiar figure walking alone on the streets.

            Doesn’t she know that it’s dangerous to walk on the streets alone? She could be violated or something.

            Before my mind could process my thoughts, I hollered,

            “Maddy!”

***

Maddy’s POV

            Is that person really Kevin? He could be some druggie who tries to me.

            “Maddy!” the person shouted. Okay, that’s definitely Kevin with his high-pitched feminine voice. But now the question is: what do I do? Do I run away? Say hi and look stupid? Pretend that I don’t know him? I chose the natural choice: I ran away.

Kevin’s POV

            Why did she run away? I stopped running because I was seriously out of breath. I stood there huffing for with my hands on my knees; my lungs felt like they were going to burst any moment. Boy, she’s a fast runner. Or maybe I’m a wimp who doesn’t work out. Her shape was dwindling by the second, fading into the cool evening. I stood there, staring after her fading figure, which was soon swallowed by the darkness. Way to go. I felt so accomplished right now. Not.

Maddy’s POV

            You are such an idiot! I get that a lot. What are you going to say to him the next time you see him? That is, if I see him again, which is about oh... 0.1%. But if I do see him, I’ll be like “sup, how’s it goin?” Except that I won’t be sounding like a gangster. I’m standing in my kitchen right now, having a mental argument with myself. Now that I think about it, I shouldn’t have run away from Kevin. He’s probably thinking of me like a psychopathic lunatic who should be in an intense mental rehabilitation unit. Option B would have been better— if I said hi and looked like a total moron, he would only think that I’m dumb instead of mentally unstable. See my (slightly flawed) logic here?

            I don’t know, but I have this unexplainable feeling when I’m around him. It’s... hard to explain. But what are the chances of meeting him for the third time? He’s an idol, for crying out loud. He has the money, love, fashion, fame, and all that’s in between². And not to mention his fans. They scared the heck out of me. They were lurking around backstage after the variety show with their Nikon DSLR cameras. And me? A girl who tries to find a way through the jungle we call life. I wish I had my machete with me. But I’m not exactly regular am I? I mean I have danced with some of the most prestigious dance companies on the planet. Not that I’m bragging or anything. Life without Korean entertainment barging into my life is perfectly fine. Right in my comfort zone.

            I apologize for not updating this story. I had to take my finals and I was on a two week vacation immediately after. For me, this is more of a reflective chapter where Maddy thinks about her feelings. And she seems undecided and confused at the moment. If this was literature analysis class, this would be the end of the exposition and the start of the rising action. I actually drew a diagram for this story because I actually have a plot for my story. (That’s hard to find these days on AFF) I’ll enjoy reading your comments, and I hope that you had a merry Christmas and a happy New Year.™

¹ Lyrics from Taylor Swift’s song, Enchanted

² Lyrics from the lead track of U-Kiss’s second studio album, Neverland