Backstage | VSOO ✔︎

nineteen | new beginnings

Third Person POV

"New York City Global Ballet Auditions" Jisoo read. It hanged all mighty on the tall building. She continues to stare at it, feeling numb to emotions. For years Jisoo dreamt of this exact moment, the day of her auditions to her dream company. She imagined this moment religiously and even the thought of it scared the living hell out of her, but to her surprise she felt nothing in the present. She looks up at the banner feeling as if this was just another ordinary day.

"Oh excuse me" Jisoo stumbles forward causing her earphones to fall off her ears. Fortunately finding her balance before she glares at the person who bumps into her.

The stranger immediately straightened herself out upon realizing who she had just bumped into. "Omg I'm so sorry!"

Jisoo softened her look, letting out a soft smile before she went ahead and entered the building.

It didn't take a while until Jisoo finally reached the level of the dance studio, being punctual herself she had arrived an hour before call time.

To no surprise Jisoo was greeted with numerous dancers already warming up and in their dance attire. She scans the room, letting a deep sigh out. The room was three times bigger than her usual dance room back in the University. She began to feel overwhelmed like reality was finally hitting her, but this didn't scare her.

One by one the other students nudge one another, pointing at Jisoo's direction. It's a silent announcement that she has arrived, The Kim Jisoo has arrived. Unbothered by the longing stares and several dirty looks she was receiving, Jisoo finds a spot at the corner. Probably the worst spot, it was located near the bin of all trashed pointe shoes that definitely smelt like rotten eggs.

Jisoo knew and felt all the stares coming her way. Who wouldn't stare? She is Kim Jisoo, Kim Jisoo of  Korea National University of Arts. Practically every ballerina student in Seoul or maybe Korea knew of her. The one and only Jisoo who was given a scholarship and personally trained by BoA the first Korean ballerina to ever play as Odette in Russia, she is known as the Black Swan of Korea. Everyone knew how strict and selective BoA was with her students so being merely her student is a reflection of the dancers skill.

Every student would never fail to purchase a ticket of KArts's annual ballet play as they knew Jisoo always snatched the lead role, she was the standard, and everyone hated to admit it. Plus being enchantingly beautiful was another reason to hate her more.

Jisoo continues to sit on the ground, gradually removing the amount of layers she was wearing. As a ballerina, everyone knows the importance of keeping your muscles warm, especially on a day like this where you need to be at your best performance.

One final look, Jisoo stares at her reflection in the mirror making sure she looked presentable. She wore her black leotard that accentuate her body line, pink ballet wrap skirt, and pink tights. It's truly crazy what makeup can do, no one would be able to tell she had barely been sleeping these past couple of days. In contradiction to her emotions, she looked blooming, her beauty was radiating, someone would mistake her as newly in love.

Light steps towards the barré alternating her feet from flexion to extension then rolling it around as she starts to warm the muscles surrounding the most important element, her feet.

"Okay listen up everyone!" This caught all the dancers attention, Jisoo slowly turns her head around.

The man had explained how the audition will work and introduced the three judges, the assistant directors of NYCB.

It was a group performance at first, each dancer performing identical ballet positions and steps, then solo performances.

Everyone acknowledge how much Jisoo stood out. The way she executed her steps were truly unique, near perfection. Anyone can accept she was on a different level, and this made the onlooker tense further. There was only five spots, but with Jisoo present, there was only four left.

Finally it was Jisoo's solo performance, like she was a portrait in a museum, all eyes were on her.

Jisoo positions herself in the middle. She nods the pianist letting him know she is ready, then she closes her eyes, imagining like she was just back in KArts her usual practice room. Images of her family, Rosé, and BoA flashed before her eyes. For years they were her supporter and motivators. Years of blood, sweat, and tears will all be worth it after this audition.

Then his face appeared on her mind. Her heart was being fuelled with more blood and energy. She mustn't let him ruin this for her, she will be successful and she will show him that he never deserved her or her love.

As the classical music whispered into her ears, she began to dance. Steady graceful steps as she tunes to the tempo, light arms flailing in the sky above her, she whirled around. She couldn't remember the last time she felt this way, passion consumed her, letting her body take full control.

It wasn't until Jisoo heard the subtle claps bringing her back to reality. Breathless, she let out a small smile, bowing deeply as she exits the floor.

☆☆☆

"How are you? I miss you." Jisoo reads the last message of many of Rosé's text messages she has been sending for the past week. She reads it with a sad expression on her face. As much as she wants to reach out to her best friend, she just couldn't get herself to, she wasn't ready, when she thinks of Rosé, she thinks of Jungkook, then V. It wasn't fair but it's not like she could control it.

"Hey don't mind them." A pair of warm hands slid across her thighs, Jisoo looks up to find a smiling ballerina beside her.

Her large eyes were chestnut brown, simple, and elegant.

Oh. them. Jisoo thought.

"They're just jealous because you're more talented than them" the girl continued to speak.

It's been a little over month since her auditions and it's been two weeks since she found out she got in, plus a week since she moved to New York. Everything happened way too fast, there was barely any time to process everything.

It's also been a week since the foreign girls have been bullying Jisoo. Her mere appearance of her perfect face to neck ratio, long arms, and slender legs was enough for the other girls to feel threatened.

Jisoo didn't feel comfortable speaking in English, not that she didn't understand or knew how, she just didn't like speaking it too much. But those girls used it against her, degrading her, and mocking her.

English is not the only language in the world. I came here to pursue ballet. I am Korean therefore I will speak fluent in my mother tongue. My lack of english word choice does not define my skills nor my abilities.

Jisoo kept her thoughts to herself and simply nodded at the girl who was still beside her.

"I'm Lalisa Manoban by the way, Lisa for short!" The girl reached out her hands, smiling ever so brightly.

She took her hands and shook it lightly, "Jisoo Kim".

Jisoo smiled for the first time in a while. A glimmer of light and hope opened in Jisoo's heart. She is now here, in New York, her dreams! Something was finally going right, and she will not let loose this opportunity.

To new beginnings.

A/N: oh man was this chapter so hard to write. idk why i wrote a ballet fic when i myself is not even a ballerina 😂 i only did it for like four years and that's it! so just excuse the inaccuracy. I'm also done exams so expect for this story to be updated more frequent! I actually changed the original ending I had in mind to smtg else... hopefully you guys will like it🙈 ALSO MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE OR CHRISTMAS WHEREVER YOU ARE 💚❤️