Days With You: BTS & Got7

Chapter 11: In Preparation for Battle

Chapter 11: In Preparation for Battle

The next two weeks fly by as Nami and I prepare for the Seoul Street Showcase. Our group name is still Street 3 for now, but it holds a different meaning. As JYP explained:

"Instead of symbolizing 3 members, the 3 in Street 3 now symbolizes the 3 elements of street art- power, swagger, and character, all three of which Nami and Mi-young possess. The fact that there's only 2 of them in a group called Street 3 will spark interest in the meaning behind their group name as well, so naturally, people will ask and they can explain what differentiates them from other female idol groups."

I was surprised by the how extensively JYP had thought about something as simple as a group name, but I was nevertheless glad to be in such a cool group.

Nami and I have spent all our days, even the weekends, at JYP, practicing our routine over and over again. It didn't take long for Nami to learn the choreography, but what took up the most of our time was getting our moves to be in sync with each other.

Since we've never actually worked together before, it took a while for us to learn to adjust to each other's tempo. At first, my movements were always too powerful and precise in contrast to Nami's, which created an apparent gap in ability which we needed to fill by either having me holding back or make Nami keep up.

Eventually, as she became more familiar with the routine, Nami was able to match me well enough that I'd be able to dance to my full ability and she'd still be able stand out.

We've also had to practice dancing while singing and rapping at the same time, which was much harder of a task than one would expect.

Several times, both Nami and I considered making the choreography less dynamic so it would be easier for us to control our voices when dancing.

But in the end, I think neither of us wanted to sacrifice such a good routine , so as we continued to work on the vocals, we gradually became less breathless while performing and our voices no longer shook with our movements.

And then, on many occasions, we've stayed overnight at JYP to use the main studio but have ended up falling asleep at some point and had to be waken up by the morning staff or idol group that arrived first at the studio in the morning.

Now, the staff and idol sunbaenims all like to tease Nami and me, asking if we need to borrow sleeping bags or if they should knock before coming into the studio in case we are still brushing our teeth.

It's only been about two months since I've come to JYP, but I already feel like family with some of the people here. Dae-hyun, Seo-jun, and the other two visit me during their trainee schedule breaks whenever they can and complain about how brutal Geon-hoo, the trainee dance instructor, is, and tell me how Seo-jun has improved at singing.

Whenever they come to me with stories about their regular lives as trainees, I'm sometimes a bit envious, but I know they're much more envious of me for being able to train on an independent agenda.

Today is the last day of practice until the Seoul Street Showcase.

I've just finished my regular health checkup with Ae-jung sunbaenim, who praised me once again for dropping another kilogram, but warned me to start paying more attention to my health, as she has been hearing how Nami and I have both been spending late nights training.

"Sleep more and eat more- but not too much, you can't gain weight!" Ae-jung sunbaenim advised, and I laugh a bit remembering how conflicted she was.

Nami and I both agreed that today should be a free day for us in order to properly wind down in preparation for the showcase tomorrow. It's only a bit past noon, but I already am unsure of what to do for the rest of the day- it's my first time being so free in weeks that I think I've forgotten how to relax.