Invisible String || PURINZ

03 • auditioning for the future

Despite that fear, she was also determined. She wanted to do well, and she's practised for hours on end: she could do this.

With her new-found courage, Chaewon marched towards the small studio, holding her head high. Once she walked through the studio door, and saw the black backdrop behind the wooden floor, she felt confident again. She wasn't being watched by all those girls: it was just her and the new group's soon-to-be managers.

She sat down on the chair, and watched the timer on the right of the desk. The manager clicked a button, and time started ticking. "We have sent you a song, and the choreography. Please show us what you can do." He spoke in a friendly manner, flashing her a quick smile– the same smile, Chaewon assumed, he showed every girl who walked in.

And so she did what was asked. She got up, walked to the dancefloor, and did exactly as she's done all those times in the practise room. She followed the beat, kept a smile on her face the entire time, and made sure to throw a wink in the mix. She had a few add-ons she thought would fit the choreo and once she was done dancing and singing her heart out, she was hot and heaving.

The managers had put up their best poker faces. Chaewon couldn't read them at all: though maybe that was a good thing. They waved her back to the chair, and looked at their screens.

"What position do you want to be in?" The manager on the right asked.

Chaewon took a deep breath. She'd thought about this a million times over, and each time she only had one answer.

"Leader."

The manager stopped typing, and looked up. It felt as if time paused, and this moment would never end. "I see," He mumbled.

"I want us to be successful. I want us to do well, and I want to go outside and hear our songs play in the street," Chaewon started on a whim.

The manager fell silent again.

"I want to move on and bring something new to the world. Something real. And I want this to be it."

Her five minutes were over. There was no sound to confirm it, but the numbers on the timer hit zero. She stood up, and got ready to leave– not knowing what to think of the whole interaction.

But the manager didn't care that their time was over. "New, real and successful? Do you think 'I'M FEARLESS' is all that?"

Chaewon was still standing. She turned towards the manager, shaking her head. "It is not anything. It will be what we make it."

A smile spread across their otherwise unreadable faces. "Go on, we'll give you a call this evening." The manager on the left said, looking more pleased than Chaewon herself.

The girl gave a nod. One that was quick, but not nearly as quick as she rushed out the door in fear of breaking out into a happy dance.

She ran up to Sakura, and held her hands. "I'm getting a call. I'm getting a call, that means– it means I've got a chance!"

Sakura's eyes lit up. She pulled the girl into a tight hug, suppressing a squeal.

"Do you want me to wait for you?" Chaewon asked, still comfortable in her friend's embrace.

She felt Sakura shake her head with the movement of her chin. "Go home, I know you're tired. I'll come disturb you in your room when I'm finished," The Japanese girl hummed.

"Kazuha just texted me, by the way. I think she's going to try out after all." She added.

Chaewon pulled back, her eyes wide. "Really? Oh, she's so sweet. Tell her I wish her all the best." She happily said.