Jennie yawns as she rubs her eye, opening her front door to head for school.
She hadn't been able to sleep last night, tossing and turning for an unknown reason, and was now feeling tired and cranky.
"Morning, neighbor!"
She does her best not to wince, but the energy practically radiating off of Taeyong is a little much at this hour.
"Morning," she does her best to not show her annoyance, although she's sure she's not doing a very convincing job.
"Sleep well?"
Jennie looks at Taeyong, unsure if he's teasing her as she walks up to him. She probably looks terrible—she knows it—yet the boy still smiles cheekily at her as if nothing is out of place, keeping his hands on his backpack straps as the two of them begin to walk to school together, having apparently come to a silent agreement that they were going to do so.
"More or less," Jennie replies when she realizes that Taeyong is still waiting for her to respond to his previous question.
"Do you feel any better from yesterday?"
"Yeah," Jennie sighs. She hadn't meant to let that sigh slip so obviously but is grateful when Taeyong doesn't question it, simply raising a brow at her. He's also quick to change the topic and Jennie quietly thanks him for doing so.
He asks a lot of questions that Jennie does her best to answer, knowing that if she'd gotten proper rest, she would've loved to use this opportunity to get to know the cute boy next door. However, that is not the case and she wishes she could have some peace and quiet. Taeyong doesn't seem to notice her sour mood and if he does, he's simply choosing to ignore this fact.
After what feels like an eternity of listening to him ramble and bombard her with questions, they arrive at school. Taeyong is the first to get noticed by his friends, getting called over. Jennie is internally relieved for the quiet she has to herself but only for a minute as Lisa walks over, linking her arm with Jennie's.
"Good morning!"
Why is everyone so chipper this morning? Jennie sighs again.
"Morning," she replies with the best smile she can muster. She can't wait to sleep tonight.
"Jisoo, Rosé, and I have a spot we like to hang out at before class starts. Wanna join us?"
"Sure," Jennie nods, knowing she doesn't really have a choice as Lisa's already pulling her towards their destination.
The whole day goes by in a drag. Despite it only being her second day of school here, Jennie knows that this will probably be her new routine: walk to school with Taeyong, meet up with her three new friends before class, eat lunch with them, and go home with Taeyong. Her routine at home after school is also predictable: eat dinner, do homework, shower, and sleep.
Sure enough, the first week goes by following that routine to the tee. The weekend has proved to be a good time for Jennie to catch up on any work or sleep, though there's not much she's done outside of that.
By the time Wednesday rolls around, Jennie finds herself begrudgingly sitting on a bus headed straight for the dance studio her mother had signed her up at. When she arrives, she signs in at the reception desk and is told which room to go to. Perhaps it's because she's here and it feels more official, but she can feel her nerves beginning to unsettle.
What if she's the oldest one in a room full of young children as beginners? What if dancing isn't meant for her and she makes a fool of herself?
"Jennie Kim?"
She's shaken out of her thoughts when she sees the instructor standing at the door with a kind smile on her face.
"You're right on time. The other girls are inside, so we can start now," the instructor says. Jennie nods and walks into the room, releasing a breath she hadn't even realized she was holding when she sees other girls her age. Perhaps she was worried for nothing.
Unfortunately, as the first lesson proceeds, Jennie finds herself struggling and feeling miserable in the two hours that she's there. It's not that there's anything particularly wrong with the instructor or even the girls around her, but Jennie has come to the humbling realization that she can't dance to save her life and her sense of rhythm is practically nonexistent; even with basic counts, she can barely keep up or move on time.
The guilt of having to take things slower than average and slowing down the overall progress of the class weighs heavy on her shoulders. The girls are thankfully nice enough to seem understanding and reassure Jennie from time to time that it's okay when they have to wait because they're all on the same boat as Jennie, having to learn and start from scratch just like her.
Out of the other five girls taking the class, there's one girl that has made Jennie feel a little better about having to take things slow, as she seems to need it almost as much as her. The girl would occasionally make eye contact with Jennie and never fails to smile every single time, even if Jennie isn't smiling from her own frustration. At one point, the girl gives Jennie a reassuring thumbs up and Jennie is embarrassed yet grateful nonetheless.
"Don't worry, Jennie," says the instructor, Mrs. Kahi. She smiles kindly as Jennie struggles, waiting patiently as the girl frowns deeply. "You'll get it eventually. Every great dancer has to start somewhere, right?"
Jennie respects her for her patience, but she can't help but think sourly that she's just not meant to be a great dancer. Well, she doesn't want to be a great dancer; she's only here because her mother signed her up and wouldn't budge about it. Of course, if it was her choice, she'd be home right now lying in bed, probably on her phone or doing homework.
When class ends, Jennie is unable to smile as she packs her belongings and gets ready to exit the room with some of the other girls.
"Hey, wait up!"
Jennie stops and turns to see the nice girl from earlier walk quickly to catch up to her.
"I'm Chaeyeon!" says the girl with a bright smile, offering her hand for Jennie to shake.
"Hi, I'm Jennie," she says with a polite smile as she shakes Chaeyeon's hand. When she lets go, Chaeyeon eagerly walks alongside her.
"That was an interesting first class," she says.
"Interesting is one word for it," Jennie nods. Chaeyeon giggles.
"We were both struggling for a big portion of class, so I guess we're both in the same boat in terms of skill," says Chaeyeon. "I don't mean that in a rude way, of course! We're just both obviously beginners—which again, I don't mean negatively—you know what I mean."
Jennie nods with a small smile and Chaeyeon is able to relax when she sees that Jennie hadn't taken offense.
"Like Mrs. Kahi said, every great dancer has to start somewhere. I guess we just have to start at the very bottom," says Jennie. Chaeyeon nods with a giggle and the two make their way down the hall.
As Jennie looks at Chaeyeon, she looks past her into one of the practice rooms and halts abruptly, causing the other girl to stop as well.
"Is something wrong?" Chaeyeon asks, turning her head to follow Jennie's line of sight and sees a handsome boy who looks to be around her age dancing powerfully to an equally powerful song playing in the background. "Do you know him? He's really good."
Jennie can't help but stare into the window of the practice room, her mouth ajar ever so slightly. Was that amazing dancer really the energetic and cheeky boy next door? She can't see his face very clearly, but she's absolutely sure that the boy dancing is Taeyong, though there's something different about him that makes her question if they're really the same person. The boy dancing in front of her is charismatic and his dancing is mesmerizing, a stark contrast to the image of Taeyong that Jennie's used to.
"Jennie? Hello?" Chaeyeon waves her hand in front of Jennie, snapping the girl out of her daze.
"Oh, sorry," Jennie blinks, shaking her head. "Let's go."
Chaeyeon spares Taeyong one last glance before looking back at Jennie and following her new friend, deciding not to mention anything else. They finally reach the exit of the building and bid farewell as Chaeyeon goes on ahead while Jennie waits for the bus.
When it arrives, Jennie finds herself an empty seat and sits alone with her thoughts, finally having some time to process her day and its events. Chaeyeon seems like a nice enough girl that Jennie would ideally like to keep as a friend.
When Jennie finally arrives home, her mother is just about done making dinner.
"I'm home," she says, closing the front door behind her and slipping her shoes off. She follows her nose, smelling the fragrance of food in the kitchen.
"Oh, there's my little dancer! How was your first class?"
Jennie shrugs as she peeks at the stove to see some dishes her mother made.
"It was okay. Why'd you make so much food for dinner?"
"Oh, we're having guests over," replies her mother. "Go on and shower now. They'll be here in thirty minutes."
"Guests?" Jennie looks at her mother curiously. "Do I know them?"
Her mother was very social, so she had plenty of friends and connections. Jennie did her best to remember all of her mother's friends, but it was hard to keep up.
"Our neighbors next door. I ran into them at the supermarket earlier and we started talking," replies her mother. "Somewhere during the conversation, I ended up offering them dinner and they agreed, considering the fact that we've never actually gotten to known each other during our time living beside each other."
Jennie stares at her mother.
"Do they have a son around my age?"
"Yes! Do you know him already?" Jennie's mother's eyes practically light up. "I asked them to bring him too to keep you some company!"
"Y-Yeah, we're acquainted," Jennie nods.
Taeyong's coming over for dinner. She needs to get ready!
A/N: oh man, life really likes to get busy when it's least convenient. but it's okay!! I appreciate y'alls patience and hope you look forward to the next chapters!