Noona [Ateez]

One Chance

It seems I wasn't the only one impressed by her gorgeous appearance, because Mingi leaned down to my ear to ask "whoa, is that her?"

I didn't respond, just shot him a warning expression before guiding him inside. "Oh- hello! I'm Seo Chaewon. Please take good care of me!" She said, bowing at ninety degrees to us. We both bowed back at her.

"Good morning, Chaewon-ssi. I'm Do Bosam. I'll be in charge of guiding you on your first week. This is the artist you'll be working with today." I said, before looking at Mingi for him to introduce himself.

"Hey. I'm Mingi. Pleasure to meet you." he said with a smile, his voice an octave lower than usual. For a second I thought he was gonna start rapping– oh gosh, was he trying to impress her?

"The pleasure's all mine. I'm glad to be working with you," she said with a bright smile. I couldn't help but notice she also had perfectly straight, pearly white teeth. Seriously, her visuals were so impressive.

I had Mingi take a seat on the couch as I began to show Chaewon around the vanity and the products we use, as well as how I arrange them.

"I like to be here at least 15 minutes before schedule to arrange the station. I lay the products in the order that I'll need them, from right to left, since I'm right-handed. That way they're easier for me to reach, and I don't have to go looking for every product that I'll need. I also load my brush belt beforehand. I'm sure I don't need to tell you this, but make sure your brushes are clean and disinfected before you even get here." I said, to which she nodded obediently.

"I had never thought to arrange the products like that. That's so smart, I bet it cuts down time," she said, to which I smiled. "Yeah. It's good practice, especially for music shows, where time is of the essence. It should help you out on tour too." I said.

"Thank you, sunbaenim!" She said with a big, bright smile. I couldn't help but smile back fondly. She had a really endearing air to her. She kind of reminded me of myself when I was just getting started–  so eager to learn and genuinely grateful for the advice of the people who had more experience.

So many people helped me get where I am today. Teaching me all the things I needed to learn, back when I was just an intern, and pushing me towards a bright and successful future. Making me feel safe and comfortable in an industry that can be very intimidating. I hope I can repay that kindness, and be that person for Chaewon. I guess that's why I found myself saying "You can call me unnie."

We continued chatting about the products and other arrangements for a few minutes. I showed her the foundations that I had already pre-labelled for each member. She asked a few questions and I gave her some pointers, before I finally looked over at Mingi, who was already looking at us.

He had a small, hopeful smile on his face, making me chuckle and wave him over. He jumped to his feet and jogged over, quickly sitting on the chair. It was funny to see him being so eager to get his makeup done.

While the guys don't seem to particularly mind the feeling of brushes and makeup against their face, they still avoided it most of the time, because on days when we have schedules, they need to get their hair and makeup done first thing in the morning. Going first means less time to freshen up or even get some more sleep while the others are getting dolled up, so they usually play the ladder game, rock-paper-scissors, or draw straws to decide the order that they were getting their hair and makeup done. Mingi was one of the more particularly sulky members when he ended up having to go first, so seeing him all eager to get his makeup done was pretty funny to me.

"Alright, Chaewon. Let's have you try something natural on him, okay? Think 'variety show appearance'." I said, to which Chaewon nodded. I then stepped back and let her get to work.