Josephine Swan never imagined that her stay in South Korea would lead her into K-Pop's glittering and challenging world. Each day, she encounters new hurdles and adventures that fate has in store for her and her four team members. Between gruelling...
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I silently followed Hannah into the bright open cafeteria at the end of the corridor.
Although it seemed small at first glance, it surprised one with its hidden corner seats for sufficient privacy during meals. Wooden tables and chairs had been positioned in the centre and around the edges to ensure a large number of employees within the main building had the necessary space to eat.
"Josie! Hannah!" called Su-a excitedly, waving us over as soon as we were in sight. She was sitting with Jinny at one of the many tables set up, the five debut girls beside her. They had arranged some of the tables and were seated much like a large long table. Among them were Rosè and Ji-soo, who looked up at the mention of our names and gave us big smiles on our part.
"I'll join you in a minute," I said to Hannah, swivelling my head towards the food counter. She nodded her understanding and walked towards our table while I stood at the counter. The many different side dishes and meals were open for visitors to choose from, while most of the staff washed dishes or refilled emptied containers with food in the back. The smell of the food immediately hit my nose and made my stomach growl in invitation.
The pressure and stress of the last few days gradually disappeared from my body and the hunger for food and energy came increasingly to the fore. My workout pants tickled my skin and stood out slightly from my legs, where just a few months ago they were tight around my thighs.
I screwed up my face and moved closer to the queue.
My gaze slid around the cafeteria and spotted the girls talking quietly to each other. Many of them had trays with only a bowl of soup, rice and vegetables on them, while others went without food altogether. Hannah had her arms folded in front of her and was listening intently to the girl next to her. The criticism from Yang Hyun-suk was still evident on her face, although she tried to distract herself.
It wasn't just the harsh criticisms from teachers, producers and Yang Hyun-suk that often made us forget our appetites. The enormous pressure, the strict schedules, the preparations for the monthly audition and often the demand to visually meet the standard made many trainees skip their meals unintentionally or intentionally, causing them to lose a lot of weight.
I darkly remembered some articles that spoke of collapsed and exhausted trainees collapsing and fainting from hunger during training. Others had problems with proper food intake their whole lives and suffered from eating disorders and being underweight.
I shook my head and smiled kindly at the woman at the food counter as the man in front of me left the counter with a loaded tray.
♛
"Josie...this is Miga Choi, Jennie Kim and Lalisa Manobal." Jinny introduced the remaining three girls of the debut group as I came to the table with my food tray and sat down.
"It's nice to meet you all," I said honestly, looking at the girls in turn.
The leader of the group Miga Choi smiled slightly at me as she was introduced. Her chin-length black hair framed her round face, while her made-up brown eyes scrutinised me intently. The other two were also looking in my direction with interest.
Jennie Kim, along with Miga Choi, was one of the longest-trained trainees and one of the most well-known in entertainment. The dark-haired Korean with brown dyed hair tips waved briefly in my direction and smiled politely at me.
Right next to Jennie sat Lalisa, who looked at me intently with a wide grin and sparkling brown eyes. Similar to Rosè and I, she came from another country and was the first non-Korean member of YG Entertainment, according to Jinny.
"Your hair is really beautiful," said Lalisa, her eyes running over my hairline. With flushed cheeks, I took a section of my long hair over my shoulder.
"My mother is originally from Sweden...a lot of her family had similar hair," I explained to them quietly.
"You're from Britain, aren't you? From London...?" asked Jennie quietly, shaking my head at the latter.
"I was born in a London hospital, but grew up and went to school in Somerset, in the South West of England," I answered her, skipping over the county aspect with ease.
"It must have been hard...your move to South Korea and then...this..." said Lalisa, pointing her head at our current surroundings. Rosè and Ji-soo looked up from their conversation with Jinny and listened quietly to our conversation. My gaze involuntarily drifted to Hannah, who was engaged in conversation with Choi.
"But your place in this world is no longer just in Britain, it's in South Korea as well."
"You belong in this entertainment and most importantly you belong in this world."
I smiled and turned back to the two girls sitting across the table from me.
"It wasn't easy at first either...in many ways a big change to adjust to without being crushed by the sudden burden," I said honestly as Rosé and Lalisa nodded in agreement. The Thai girl then began to grin.
"I was 14 when I moved to South Korea and became a trainee. And apart from 'Annyeonghaseyo', the rest of the Korean language was foreign to me. Jennie was the only one who spoke fluent English at that time and I could communicate with her most of the time until eventually I could speak and understand enough Korean," she recounted with a smile on her lips that grew wider as time went on. Jennie next to her smiled too.
"I moved to New Zealand when I was ten and stayed with a host family for five years..." the brown-haired Korean girl began to tell and my eyes widened at the young age at which the girls were determined to leave their home countries and start a new existence on their own. Even Rosè left Australia at 15 to become an apprentice under YG Entertainment.
Forgetting the food in front of me as time passed, I sank back in my chair and listened curiously to the stories of Jennie and Lalisa as they were in the early days of their training.
