"dude you're like pressing the wrong keys! that is not how you play the piano, stupid"
"𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘱𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘬, 𝘪 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘬𝘦𝘺𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶."
in which music major mark lee gets involved with baddie rina the ballerina...
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when hip-hop and ballet collides: today was no ordinary day for the dance students at sm university. inside the hall was a mix of ballet and hip-hop dancers–two worlds that seemed planets apart–but under mrs. hwang's guidance, anything was possible.
"listen up, class", she announced, her voice projecting with excitement. "–today, teacher hao and i have decided to fuse our dance classes. we will explore the art of each other's styles, challenging ourselves to embrace the unfamiliar."
there were about sixty people in the class and all sixty of them groaned in dissatisfaction. stepping out of their comfort zones was no small feat.
"you will be divided into six groups, each comprising five ballerinas and five hip-hop dancers. together, you will form teams that will inspire, learn, and grow from one another's unique perspectives."
teacher hao began calling out their names, "rina, yechan, hunter, haerin..."
wow, i was the first one to get announced, she thought.
all ten of them gathered on the far side of the hall, near the stage.
"so, how about we introduce ourselves first?", rina started the conversation.
her teammates nodded at the idea.
"okay cool, cool! so let's start with haerin first and then we go clockwise", rina suggested.
haerin introduced herself in a friendly yet slightly shy manner, "hi, i'm kang haerin, and i'm all about hip-hop. nice to meet you all."
hunter chimed in, "hello, i'm hunter, and i'm also a hip-hop dancer!"
rina followed suit, "hey, i'm rina lee, and i'm a ballerina."
"yo, the name's yechan kim, and swag is my middle name. i'm the hip-hop king!" yechan confidently proclaimed.
amused by yechan's self-assured introduction, rina couldn't help but roll her eyes.
gowon joined in with a sweet smile, "i'm gowon, and like rina, i'm a ballerina too."
continuing the introductions, wonbin stepped forward, oozing confidence, "what's up, everyone? i'm wonbin, and i'll be representing the hip-hop crew too."
changmin followed with equal charisma, "hey there, i'm changmin, and the hip-hop life is where i belong."
"hello, i'm kai! ballet is my passion."
soomin beamed, "hello, i'm hwang soomin, and ballet is my expertise as well, just call me hwangsoo!"
moonhee added, "hey everyone, i'm moonhee, and i do ballet like hwangsoo."
"alrighty! now that we all know each other, why don't we pick a song?" rina suggested, sitting on the platform, with the others following her lead.
yechan pulled out his phone and opened the spotify app, "ilichil's 'ayyo' would be perfect!"
"wow, i haven't heard of that one before, but it sure sounds hip-hoppy", replied kai as yechan played the song out loud.
rina bobbed her head to the beat, "what do you all think?"
"i'm fine with it", gowon affirmed.
"me too", hwangsoo added.
the rest of the group nodded, signaling their approval of the song.
soomin raised her hand, "ri, why don't we consider the classic tchaikovsky piece, 'swan lake', for ballet?"
"great suggestion, min. i think most of us have heard that song, whether we did ballet or not. anyone unfamiliar with 'swan lake'?"
"hmmm, i'm not so sure", changmin responded uncertainly.
rina began to hum the melody.
"ahhh, that one – i've heard it before, just didn't know it was swan lake", changmin realized.
"so, it's settled! ayyo and swan lake."
the team got down the platform and started stretching.
♬
rina's team moved to the field for practice, selecting a solid, covered area near the bleachers, rather than the grasslands.
"who brought a speaker?"
hunter raised his speaker in the air, "i did!"
"yechan, go connect to hunter's", rina instructed.
"yes, darling~", yechan cooed.
and for the second time, rina rolls her eyes.
"thanks, playboy!", rina replies.
their team spent the rest of the morning productively. they collaboratively supported one another in mastering the foundational and unfamiliar steps, maintaining a serious attitude during practice and gradually grasping the intricacies of the choreography.
"from the top!" kai led the group.
"water break", haerin panted heavily, "let's have a break–we've been practicing since morning."
kai glanced at his wristwatch, nodding in agreement. "true, let's take a thirty-minute break, everyone. fantastic job!"
rina headed toward the bleachers, reaching for her bag and grabbing her tumbler. she released her hair from its tight ponytail, the bright orange strands falling freely.
feeling exhausted, she reclined on the bleachers and gazed up at the clouds. the sun wasn't too harsh, making it the perfect time to relax. closing her eyes, she attempted to catch a quick nap.
soon enough, yechan returned, joining rina on the bleachers.
aware of his presence, rina glanced beside her, finding yechan napping on the bleacher just above.
the girl sat up, prompting yechan to do the same. "hi!" he greeted, waving at her.
rina responded back with a lazy wave.
"i'm bored. want to play hockey?" yechan proposed.
"hockey? here?" rina questioned.
"yep, right here", yechan got two boxes of chocolate pocky sticks from his bag.
he opened them, then took out his sphere mints from his pocket. opening the tin container, he placed a piece of mint on the cover.
he handed rina a pocky stick, to which she gladly accepted.
"hockey!" yechan rolled the mint sphere on rina's side of the tin can using a pocky stick, mimicking a hockey stick.
rina chuckled at the comical game setup. she controlled the ball of mint and skillfully maneuvered it into yechan's goal post, scoring a point.
"we must look ridiculous", rina remarked, still trying to stifle her laughter. "though my shot doesn't really count cuz we're missing a striking circle."
"agreed", yechan responded, taking a bite of the chocolate covered biscuit stick.
"it's improvised hockey, i guess", yechan handed her more pocky sticks with a grin.
"you really are quite the player, kim yechan", rina mused, studying him.
"nah, i've changed. i realized that playing with girls' hearts isn't very manly of me", yechan admitted sincerely.
rina shrugged, continuing to enjoy the free pocky yechan was sharing. they finished both boxes just in time for kai's call to return to the field.
unbeknownst to rina, someone had been observing their interaction from a distance.
