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2017
Hye-Ji looked in the mirror, focusing on every detail of her face. She had small little freckles dotted over her nose and cheeks and acne scars that you couldn't see unless you really looked. Her eyelashes were long and full but straight, she'd never curled them since she'd never wanted to. Her lips were full, pink and chapped. Hye-Ji had never cared about her looks. She realised at a young age there was nothing she could do to change the way she appeared to others, and she made peace with that. As long as she was happy with herself she would be fine.
She stared at her reflection for a couple more seconds before getting changed into baggy jeans and a t-shirt. She put her hair into a braid that had strands sticking out of it, put her glasses on and then left her dorm. She made her way to the practice room she agreed to meet chan in quickly, trying to calm down. Last night, after she had gotten back to her dorm she called Jungwon and told him what chan had said. The boy was extremely happy. He had seen the girl train everyday for the past 3 years. Jungwon was very glad she was finally getting recognition she deserved, he knew it would happen someday. He knew she'd be a star . After she called Jungwon she called Sakura. As soon as Hye-Ji told her she began to cheer, telling her she had to join. She knew this was all the girl had wanted since she was six and she wasn't going to let her say no. Then after she told Sakura, even though it was late she went to visit Jun Han. Over the past year the two had gotten very close. They both provided each other with a sense of comfort and calmness. When Hye-Ji told Jun Han he hugged her excitedly and said she had to accept his offer. She just sighed and told him what was stopping her from saying yes. He understood and comforted her, just like he always did.
As she walked to the practice room, she still didn't know what to do. On one hand this was a good opportunity. It would mean she'd have a chance at debut, with people that seemed nice. But on the other hand she's still young, she'd have many other offers and what if they're better than this one. She was really stuck. She was usually very good at deciding things. She picked the most rational option, but there didn't seem to be one in this situation. Each had their pros and cons, and she just couldn't choose. Maybe meeting the other members would help?
Within a few minutes she had arrived at the room. She stood at the door silently. She could hear the laughter and discussion from inside "Her names Kim Hye-Ji, right?" She heard one ask. At the sudden mention of her name she tensed up "Yeah" a voice that she recognised as Bang Chans answered "Is she the one with the voice?" One questioned "the voice like a sirens?" "Mhm" bang chan said "What's she like?" Another asked "I've heard other trainees say she's quite cold towards them" "Yeah she can be" Chan agreed. Hye-Ji felt her heart sink. All her life she'd been told she was mean and cold. She didn't want to be called those things anymore, especially not by members of her possible group. So without a second thought she turned around and started to walk away "but-" Chan said. She stopped, quietly she turned back around and began to listen again "I don't think that's the real her. When I was talking to her I could see her true self trying to come out. To me her coldness seems like a coping mechanism. So she seems untouchable, like you can't hurt her.... but I know that beneath that she's fragile and that she needs people to be there for her. I think we can do that. She's talented, yes, very in fact, but she also needs people to support and care for her and I don't think she'll be able to find any other group of people that can do that better than us" he said to the other members. Hye-Ji didn't know what to think. She was shocked by how determined he was to be there for her, even though they had only known each other a day. He had managed to see beyond her coldness. Most people couldn't do that. Most people left her. The only ones that had stayed were Sakura, Jungwon and Jun Han. That meant something to her. The others stayed silent for a while "how old is she? She looks young" "JYP told me she joined the company at 11 in 2014, so she's 14 now" he explained "Wow" one exhaled "No wonder why she acts like that" one said "I would too" "She's strong" another agreed "very" after that was silence. She decided now would be the perfect time to walk in.
After a few deep breaths she knocked on the door. Almost instantly Chan opened it with a massive smile "Hye-Ji!" He exclaimed, opening the door more to reveal seven other boys "Hi" she said, smiling softly "Come in" he motioned for her to walk further in, so she did "these are the boys" he said, gesturing to the boys that were standing behind him "Hello" she said, fidgeting with the bottom of her t-shirt "I'm Kim Hye-Ji" she greeted. She knew they already knew her name but she still felt the need to say it One by one the boys started going up to her "I'm Changbin" a boy with dark hair greeted, waving at her with a smile. She noticed he was only wearing black, maybe that was his statement. She was unsure. Another came forward "I'm Jisung, or Han" he said. Hye-Ji nodded with a small smile, fighting back a laugh as she compared the boy to a squirrel Then another "I'm Seungmin" she noted that Seungmin kind of looked like a puppy Another "hello, I'm Felix" he smiled. Hye-Ji smiled at him and his bright expression. She'd known him a second and he'd already made her smile. He sounded like he was still learning Korean, it was endearing. She liked him. The brightness he brought. She wanted to stay close to him....and she would. Another "I'm Minho" he said. Hye-ji had never seen him before, maybe he was new. But he seemed to be quite older than her. However, he seemed nice. She felt calm with him. As he looked at her she felt understood, which was confusing Another "my names Hyunjin" he greeted. Hye-ji was taken aback by how handsome he was. She'd never seen anyone so naturally beautiful it was kind of shocking One more "I'm Jeongin" he said with a smile. The girl noticed that his eyes seemed closed when he smiled, she found it cute. It made her smile. She also noticed his braces. Maybe he was around her age "How old are you?" She asked the boy who she now knew as Jeongin "16" he answered "and you're 14, right?" She nodded and he did as well "we're the closest in age, everyone else is older" She turned to the others "how old are all of you?" Bang chan stepped forward and pointed to the members "I'm 19, Minho is 18, everyone else is 17 except for Jeongin who as you know is 16" Hye-Ji nodded "So the youngest and the only girl" she sighed, staring at the ceiling. A million thoughts whirling around her head. After a few seconds of silence she spoke again "I'm not going to lie to you all.." she started, grabbing all their attention "there's more cons than there are pros to joining this team" she said "but....there's something in me that can't say no to this. I don't know what it is but....its there" "Then say yes" Jisung said as if it were the simplest thing in the world She stayed quiet "I have to speak to someone first" Sakura. She couldn't make a decision without talking to Sakura first. She exhaled "I need to know you guys more" "We need to know you more as well" Hyunjin said, leaning back on his hands She went quiet "there's nothing to know" she spoke firmly. The thought of them knowing any more than they do now made her panic. They couldn't know everything "I'm 14, I joined in 2014... that's it" "What about your parents, friends?" Jeongin asked stretching forward She swallowed and looked down without speaking "So?" Hyunjin persisted. Why was he so set on knowing things about her Still the girl stayed silent "let's move on" Minho said, watching the girl sit there silently. Even though he'd just met her he knew what kind of person she was. She was like him. Hye-Ji looks up at him and met his eyes. She felt.... She didn't know how she felt. She had only ever felt like this when she was with her three best friends. She felt seen. Understood.
Over the next few hours the group spoke about themselves. Hye-ji learnt that bang chan and Felix were from Australia, Minho had joined the company not long ago, Changbin, Han and chan had been making music together for a while, Jeongin was from Busan, Seungmin liked baseball and Hyunjin liked to dance. She also learnt that they were all amazing people. People this cared for each other, we're talented and genuinely wanted to be idols and make a difference in the world. She really really likes them. So that night when she got back to her room she immediately called Sakura and told her everything.
