Attending SOPA

Chapter 5

*That Next Morning*
I woke up bright and early to shower and get ready for my big audition at JYP Entertainment. I chose to wear this outfit:

I meet with Hajoon and he is wearing:

We're both rocking a casual look today, but I hope they're not totally focused on our looks. Our teacher sent us the address and we take a taxi to the center of Seoul and into Gangnam where most of the entertainment companies are located. Hajoon and I are so nervous that we didn't even notice that we're gripping each other's hands. We look down and notice, pulling them away, blushing. Trust me, there are more awkward moments to come if we start being trainees at JYP.

We've now arrived to JYP after a dreaded 30 minute taxi ride. We walk into the large building and to the front desk. Hajoon does the talking for us. He asks where the auditions are taking place, and the women at the desk directs us where to go. We take the elevator, then walk down the hall into the audition room. There are tens of people in this room. Most of them have already audtioned and told whether they made it or not on the spot. This has me even more nervous. Hajoon has come prepared with his electric guitar in case they want us to perform. There is also an acoustic guitar for anyone who wants to use it. I think we need to prepare one piece a capella and one with instruments. Thinking right on the spot, I chose Answer by ATEEZ for our a capella piece, and Somehow by DAY6 for a song that Hajoon will play guitar with. I have thankfully memorized both songs and Hajoon will play by ear. We are completely winging our audition, but I'm praying all goes well.

Finally, it's come to our turn. We stand in front of the recruiters. We start with a note to see where our harmony would be. Then, we start singing Answer by ATEEZ together. The recruiters nod their heads, noticing that we're very good at harmony. I really like this song and it's truly beautiful. We finish that song, and now it's time for Hajoon to play guitar for Somehow by DAY6. He plugs in his guitar and puts in an earpiece where he will be listening to the song. By the chorus, our vocals together are very strong. I look out the notice and see someone very familiar pop their head up to watch the auditions. Is that. . . Jae of DAY6? Despite seeing Jae in the window, I continue singing with Hajoon. When we finish the song, Hajoon puts his guitar away and stands next to me. At this point, he doesn't care, and grips my hand in his. I can tell just how nervous he is. The recruiter in the middle states the words that determine our future;
"You made it. Welcome to JYP Entertainment."
Our jaws drop and we hug each other.
"We made it, Hajoon! We're trainees!" I exclaimed.
"You know why you passed?" The recruiter asks.
"Why?" I asked.
"You have a very unique voice and uh, facial feature." The recruiter said.
"Oh, thank you." I said.
"And you, boy have an idol face." The recruiter said. Being shy, Hajoon covers his face,
"Thanks."
"Your training begins now. Follow Ms. Jung to your first vocal lesson." The recruiter said.
"Alright, let's go Hajoon." I said.
"I'm so happy right now." Hajoon said.
"I am too, now let's go." I said, pulling him out of the room.

Whistling and standing against the wall is Jae. He's pretending like I don't see him.
"Jae 'Chicken Little' Park." I said.
"Ah, damn. You caught me." Jae said.
"I'm a trainee now." I said.
"I know, I saw. Congrats to you both." Jae said.
"What you doing?" Hajoon asked.
"Well, I wanted to watch the auditions today, but I have to get back to work now." Jae said.
"Thanks for watching and seeing the happiest moment in our lives." I said.
"Are you guys a couple?" Jae asked, noticing Hajoon and I holding hands.
"Oh no, we're just close friends." I said.
"Well, that's probably one of the reasons you passed, you two have good chemistry. Perfect for a duo or co-ed group." Jae said.
"Thanks." Hajoon and I say in unison.
"Y'all are perfect. I'll see you around, ok?" Jae asked.
"Could I get a selfie real quick?" I asked.
"Sure thing." Jae said.
We take the selfie together, then Jae is on his way. Wow, this day couldn't get any better. We passed our audition, we met Jae. What else is in store for today? Ah, yes our first vocal lesson as trainees. That's where we need to be going right about now.

Hajoon and I go to the studio where we'll be taking our first vocal classes. These classes are one-on-one or two-on-two, so it's more personal and intimate. We have one of the best trainers in JYP. He will be training us vigorously in preparation for our potential debut. When we finished our vocal lessons today, we were shown the place we will be staying as trainees. It's a small room with two bunk beds, a bedside table, and a small flat screen TV. I had asked Mr. Moon whether we'll be staying at our dorm at school or in the dorm that JYP provides for the trainees. He told me that it is completely up to the company. They control our lives now. They even took away our phones, and we don't get them back until we debut. This is it then. I had turned off my phone, and hoped that they won't wipe everything off of it because that has some pretty precious memories on it. I wouldn't want to lose them.

While relaxing in our new dorm room, Hajoon takes out his travel acoustic guitar that he had also brought along with him. We start singing Mikrokosmos by BTS together. It sounds so beautiful acoustic, and I wonder if BTS would ever release an acoustic version. That would be so nice if they did. I hadn't noticed it until our vocal teacher pointed it out, our voices do really blend really well. We look into each other's eyes while singing, and know we are in this together. There's no stopping us now.