Amaia and Audrey were having a late-night debriefing back in their hotel room, as Audrey could tell something was off from the moment JR voted against Bebe.
"Girl, we've been over this already.Bada knows it's a competition. I'm pretty sure she's not the kind of petty girl that would hold the vote against you," Audrey reassured her friend, seeing the worry etched on Amaia's face.
Amaia almost laughed at how obvious the cause of her misery was. "I thought so as well Audrey! But it looked like she didn't want to talk to me at the end of the day... should I text her?"
Audre was DONE. "I think you should give her some space. Let's see what happens on set. You're not even enjoying the experience anymore!"
"I am though!" Amaia said, defensive and not wanting to sound ungrateful for the opportunity, but this competition had stirred up emotions she wasn't accustomed to dealing with. "It's just that I'm in a situationship with, like, the most talented and hot person I've ever met. And I don't do situationships! I'm just out of my depth and I don't want to mess up."
"But you're not messing up! It's a competition! Maybe you should just ignore each other until we're done at this point," Audrey sighed, even though she knew the situation was quite complex.
"And then what? What happens when we're sent back home? Do I just go back to Barcelona like nothing happened? Is there even a chance that we can be an actual thing?"
Audrey paused. "Well, the moment you went on that date, obviously you signed up for hopefully more than a relationship, or I'd like to hope so. You can figure it out with her because, honestly, girl, you're having this conversation with me when you should be having it with her."
Amaia knew her friend was right "Alright well I don't know if I'm not regretting the date already, especially if she starts giving me the silent treatment over something I almost had no control over." She said, between resignation and frustration.
"Amaia, I love you, but you're sounding really dumb. You like her. She likes you. Okay. Settled. I thought you both made it quite clear to each other. Go through the competition. Find the time to talk to her. You have no plans after the show, which is like the best situation to be in as you have the most freedom. There is no rush."
Amaia smiled and hugged her friend wordlessly.
_____________________
Needless to say, the night brought her absolutely 0 wisdom, and at breakfast, Kirsten dropped such big news that Amaia almost forgot Bada's existence for a second.
"Girls !! The agency called! In the next two days they managed to fit in our schedule collaborations with K-pop artists!!" Kirsten was thrilled to see their bet was starting to pay off, and their crew was getting Korean recognition. She knew it could mean great job opportunities and it was exactly their goal entering the competition.
"Let's get that breaddd" sing-sang Latrice, obvious thrilled as well.
Amaia squealed in joy "Did they tell you with whom? What kind of collaboration is it ?"
"Ok so there are social media content like chill dances, or tiktok challenges I don't really know...but with Yeonjun, with TXT and Le Sserafim." She added "Apparently I'll also have to film some content with Bada for Taeyang to redo her smoke choreo. Amaia and Audrey you'll also be filming with Huening Kai from Txt I believe." She grinned
"OMG!" The girls collectively squealed. The prospect of working with these K-pop stars was beyond thrilling.
But Kirsten had one more surprise up her sleeve. "Annnddddd we'll film a video for the chorus of Jungkook's newsong in 3D!" she announced with a sly grin.
Amaia couldn't believe her ears. "Someone pinch me!" she exclaimed. The opportunity to collaborate with Jungkook, one of the biggest stars in the K-pop industry, was beyond her wildest dreams.
They packed swiftly, and on the cab to the filming locations, Amaia took the time to text Bada: Congrats for the collab with Taeyang! Kirsten told me you'll be doing your choreo, have fun !
Bada replied soon enough haha yes it's cool ! you have any plans as well ?
Amaia answered promptly, relieved to see the other girl was not ignoring her: Yep we do! I didn't think we'd have so many actually ! super excited :))))"
sounds awesome ! can't wait to see it ;)
Amaia's heart did a little flip. The storm did seem to have passed, and she might have overreacted. Audrey had been right, time and space had done the trick and things looked back to normal, the event of the Sunday behind them.
----------------------------------
After four exhausting hours of non-stop filming, Amaia felt drained.
"Seriously, Audrey, how are you not breaking a sweat?" Amaia exclaimed. "I turn into a tomato after three minutes, and we've been at it for four hours. It's kind of insulting."
Audrey laughed, her smile growing conspicuously mischievous. "Well, you did more takes with Kai than I did! I mean, it's no surprise considering the chemistry between you two."
Latrice jumped in looking genuinely as impressed as Audrey "For real Amaia, girl you should have told us you had such amazing duo skills. Why were you hiding this talent, girl?"
Amaia blushed, this time from the praise rather than the effort. "I mean, after ten years of competitive dancing in duos, I would hope to have good spatial awareness and connection."
Kirsten cut "Well we'll make sure to add this now to our missions if the competition offers us the chance to do so." Ling concluded "In any case, I would pay good money to get a masterclass on that, seriously! You could teach how to dance with a partner, no matter the style. It would be so useful."
Amaia smiled, her thoughts turning to a future goal. "Well, that's the plan, hopefully maybe one day !"
Kirsten, meanwhile, was eyeing a group of women who had just entered the studio's lobby.
"That might come sooner than expected," she said cryptically.
Latrice was curious. "You recognize them?"
Kirsten explained, "They're representatives from Just Jerk, the PR officers. They contacted me a while back to teach a class."
The women approached the group, introducing themselves as Jia and Minju:
"Hello, ladies! We're here to talk to you about a potential collaboration with our studio, Just Jerk. We'd like to discuss your schedules and see if you're interested in doing some masterclasses, individually."
Audrey and Amaia exchanged wide-eyed glances, hardly able to contain their excitement while trying to remain professional. Kirsten, ever the quick thinker, took the lead. " That sounds like great opportunities, but we do have to wait the end of the competition, for confidentiality reasons".
Minju shrugged her concerns of "Of course girl, we are in no rush, and waiting for the end of the show might just bring in even more dancers so no worries". The girls exchanged excited look. Jia concluded, shaking Kirsten's hand "Well, it's settled, then! Reach out to us using these emails with your availability." Minju waved goodbye, handing the girls their business cards.
_____________________
As they sprawled across their main room, relaxing and chilling after a long and exciting day, the girls received a notification on WeTransfer. Latrice wasted no time and opened the link, exclaiming, "Already? Damn the marketing girlies of the agency work fast". Inside the transfer were the videos JR had filmed earlier that day.
"We should post the group dance with Le Sserafim on our TikTok," Ling suggested. "Let's not wait too long. It could help us reach a new audience, and the next mission might require their votes."
Kirsten nodded, taking charge, "Alright, I'll upload it." The girls laughed as they brainstormed dumb captions, and managed to repost on their individual profiles. Amaia's heart was racing. She was watching her follower count rise almost in real-time. She had more than quadrupled her audience since the beginning of the show, but after 1 collaboration, the number seemed to have doubled within the hour.
Finally, she posted the own duet video with Huening Kai, captioning it, "It's been a while, but it was my pleasure @txt." Almost instantly, fan accounts tagged her, resharing her post. The fans were more focused on the TXT member, but the support was overwhelming. Her comments section flooded with positive feedback within an hour.
"Hummm hello ? CHEMISTRYYYY"
"we need more of Amaia!!"
"She'd make a great idol tbh"
"Who is sheee ??? Idk if I want to be her or HK honestly"
Amaia also recognized usernames from friends she had danced with for years back in Spain:
"mi bailarina favorita <3 te echo de menos querida"
« Incomparable »
« nadie se le puede comparar »
« Tqmmmm"
"vuelve prontito guapa"
Her heart swelled, and she suddenly felt very homesick. She replied to her friends' comments, almost tearing up. She couldn't explain how grateful she was for the life she was having, but moments like these made her wish she could share it with the people who had been by her side for as long as she could remember.
All the girls were left in awe of the immense support they received, and Kirsten seeing how overwhelmed everyone was starting to get suggested, "Let's take a break, shall we? I'm down for a sauna." The girls agreed and decided to leave their phones for a while, giving themselves a well-deserved breather.
___________________
Bada, fresh out of the shower, was surprised to find Lusher and Tatter lounging on her bed, engrossed in a video on their phones. She couldn't resist asking, "What are you girls watching?"
Lusher and Tatter exchanged amused glances, and Tatter teased her, "No way we beat you to something Amaia-related, Bada Bada's curiosity was piqued. "What are you talking about?"
Lusher excitedly explained, "Jam Republic just posted their collab, which is impressive, by the way. I'd be jealous if we didn't have our own collaboration today."
Tatter added mischievously "Amaia has filmed a duo with..." She didn't get a chance to finish her sentence as Bada swiftly plopped onto the bed between them.
"Let me see," Bada demanded, her enthusiasm clearly evident.
Lusher and Tatter shared a laugh, loving Bada's unhidden excitement. However, Bada was watching the video, speechless. The dance was quite fun and upbeat, but Amaia looked really mature and totally professional dancing with her partner. She seemed hyper aware of his positions, where he was looking at, and how to play with him all throughout the video. They were so seamlessly in synch that it looked like they had been dance partners for years.
"I did not know she could dance like that," Lusher admitted, sharing Bada's amazement.
"Yeah, and it seems the entire comment section agrees," Tatter added.
Bada couldn't resist pulling out her phone to scroll through the comments. She read them aloud as she went. " 'Hummm hello? CHEMISTRYYYY.' 'We need more of Amaia.' Well, someone's popular," she said sarcastically trying not to sound bitter as she was truly happy for the other.
Bada continued scrolling, and almost cursing Instagram for the translation option, as she discovered some message her friends had left her in Spanish
"My favorite dancer, I miss you, my dear." "Come back soon my life" . Well, isn't that sweet. Bada couldn't help but felt her heart squeeze as she saw Amaia had liked and answered hearts to those comments. "Incomparable,' they say. "Well, I have no arguments there". Bada mumbled to herself. However, she almost felt her chest constricted as she read "tqm" which translated into 'ily". She knew it probably meant nothing but it did triggered her into posting a comment on the video immediately :
"So pretty <33 ! You have to teach me your ways ;)" and hit send, although she couldn't ignore the twinge of jealousy as she saw that the rest of the entire comment section was gawking at her girl.
Tatter and Lushed jumped on the occasion "Bada's worried she's losing her spot as Amaia's biggest fan."
"The whole comment section is thirsting after her"
Bada rolled her eyes but joined in the laughter admitting "I have to say it was better when I didn't have so much competition"
Amaia wished she could quadruple liked Bada's comment. She texted in private to the other girl, fingers dancing over her phone's keyboard, her heart racing with anticipation.
Liked the video of the day then? Amaia couldn't help but grin as she waited for Bada's response, feeling the familiar adrenaline of the flirt.
You're kidding? You were amazing. Bada's reply came almost instantly, and Amaia's heart did a little flip. She bit her lip, her confidence through the roof
Haha, thanks. I'm glad I could showcase something different
Well, it seems you have a whole fandom now, bahaha
it's weird for sure haha so many new people following my account
Can I get a superfan badge? Bada asked, now teasing.
I'm guessing we could arrange that. Amaia just LOVED the flirt with the girl, which never missed.
Can I exercise my superfan privilege?
Sure, ask away. Amaia's imagination was running wild with possibilities.
When are we seeing each other again? Outside the set, I mean. Amaia couldn't contain her joy.
Whenever you want. I was scared you'd want to wait until the end of the competition.
I thought it'd be wiser at first as well. Bada texted her a second message. But I figured I didn't want to waste time I could be spending with you
Amaia's cheeks flushed as she read Bada's message.
hum glad to hear that, although "wiser" really ?
Well you do are...distracting
Amaia giggled like a 4 years old behind her screen. Bada found her DISTRACTING. She had basically won in life.
Let's try to find the time on Friday night? Amaia suggested
Alright, can't wait to see you on set after tomorrow, though. Bada agreed, and Amaia's heart swelled with happiness.
Same here, goodnight, guapa <3
Bada repressed a squeal, as she had translated that word earlier, from the comments left under Amaia's post, and she knew it meant beautiful. She blushed, mentally slapping herself for reacting like that at the smallest compliment.
_____________________
Please leave a comment if you like the story ! they really give me the motivation to keep writing ;)