Stigma ✔

||Prologue||

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Bae JooHyun collapsed on the floor as soon as the choreographer announced they were done for the day. Staring at the glaring lights on the ceiling, JooHyun struggled to control her breathing, her chest heaving. She closed her eyes and let the adrenaline drain away and the exhaustion and pain kick in.

She had injured her ankle during a tricky part of the choreography but decided to not reveal it for fear of the practice being pushed forward a few hours. She knew her members were as tired as her, so if she could control her pain for a while it will be better. And that is exactly what she did.

The coolness of the floor seeped through her clothes as she felt a little lightheaded. Six hours of continuous training and practice with little food in the stomach can do that to a person. However, the five members would go through every day if it leads to fulfilling their dreams.

In a matter of two months, the five girls were set to debut as idols under one of the top three entertainment companies in South Korea, SM Entertainment. Multiple years as trainees had made them aware that this was no joke. The pressure was immense but they were sure that they will pull through, and that their struggle and endless practice will not be a waste.

JooHyun looked to her right to see Sooyoung sitting in a cross-legged position, leaning back with her hands supporting her. As if sensing her stare, Sooyoung looked at JooHyun and gave a bright smile. JooHyun smiled back and wordlessly the girls got up from their positions and walked towards the common table to grab their bags before exiting the room to go back to their dorms.

As soon as the girls entered their dorm they headed straight to take a shower. JooHyun came out of a steaming bathroom with a tired look on her face, feeling refreshed from the shower but soon very sleepy. She walked straight to her bed and collapsed on it letting sleep consume her finally after a long day.

After a while, her sleep broke when she heard chaos in the room. She knew the girls were awake but she couldn't understand the source of their energy levels. Just why can't they fall asleep?

"Wae nae mameul heundeuneun geonde! Wae nae mameul heundeuneun geonde"

"Aish! you girls are too loud! JooHyun Unnie is still slepping can you guys lower your volume!"

"Unnie! Isn't this song too catchy? I love it!"

"I know, but it is seven in the morning Yerim-ah. My head is already hurting because of the insane volume!"

"Aishh. Okay! I'll lower it."

"Aishh?! Wahh! You have no manners at all. Come here! I will teach you a lesson!"

JooHyun lay tucked in her bed, her members chasing each other around. She could still hear the song playing in the background, and she smiled when her favourite part came. It was short, but it was her favourite part of the song. She felt silly for obsessing over a small portion when the entire song is so good.

His voice was like a key to a box full of strange emotions. She had seen the singers during their debut when she was still a rookie. For some reason, her eyes always strayed towards one person who always managed to catch her attention.

No one knew of her crush on him. She didn't want to believe it, thinking of it as a natural attraction towards a handsome man. She had a reputation among other trainees- they called her 'Ice Queen'- and she was determined to keep up that facade.

Now that she will debut soon, she will have an image and a reputation to uphold. She will be the leader of the upcoming group, and harbouring crushes on a fellow celebrity was not something she could allow to distract herself from her responsibilities. She smiled at the thought of her biggest dream coming true. Pleased and at ease, she dug her body into the duvet and bopped her head to the song.

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I know Yeri joined the group in 2015 but let's just pretend for this story that she was a part of the original line-up.

Hope you are liking it so far!

(Edit: I had taken this chapter down earlier for some editing and now it's back up. Not much is changed so I hope you don't get confused!)