The white swan had her chin tilted up to the sky. Her right foot gently slid to the back as she lowered herself to a kneel. With eyes closed, she slowly sat backward. First, she freed her left wing, and then her right from the constraints of the earth.
Then for one final forward movement, she dove into the water.
It was late and Jimin thought he was the last student rehearsing in school when he heard the distant music of The Dying Swan. He never noticed any other students practicing this late before. He clutched his backpack straps and went to follow the music. At the next turn, he saw the light streaming from the door of one of the farthest rooms.
As he got closer to the door, he caught a glimpse of the dancer. She had her eyes closed as she did bourrees across the studio, a swan gliding on the water. He was captivated.
For a moment after the music ended, she did not move. He watched her breathing and slowly, gracefully, she sat back up. That's when their eyes met.
He apologized for startling her and for interrupting. She invited her to come inside the studio and reached out her hand. Jimin found out her name was Nira. They talked about the music and the choreography inspired by Fokine. Since then, every time he finished rehearsal he always turned his head to see if there was light coming out of Nira's studio. They would walk out together and separate at her bus stop.
A few months before he left the school himself, he learned that she had left school abruptly, but never even knew anyone who may have known her to find out why. He was too timid then to ask for her number, and he lost track.
As he looked back, Jimin was truly disappointed that she had not been able to return to dancing. Even then, he saw that Nira would have been great. She had a commanding presence about her and she transformed with the music. She was driven. She was passionate. She was mesmerizing. She was luminescent.
In that sense, it was no surprise that Jungkook was drawn to her. She was beautiful and she was warm and charming.
"We could both hang out with her!" he offered. That was the start of his plan. He had an impression that that wasn't precisely what Jungkook wanted to hear because his response was not enthusiastic at all. In fact, Jeongguk leaned back and lost himself in deep thought. This made Jimin think: Is JK falling in love?
Well, there must be an alternative to that, Jeongguk thought to himself. He likes spending time alone with Nira, but he saw how beneficial having Jimin around would be. If both of them visited the cafe, then it would be less suspicious to anyone who would catch wind that he visits the cafe with other intentions.
"Jungkookieah," Jimin called his attention back. Jimin was studying his face then he asked. "Do you like her?"