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THERE'S no one else on the planet that can get Lee Minkyung quite as riled up as Lee Minho seems to be able to with minimal effort. His existence alone is enough to infuriate Minkyung beyond words, leaving the girl fuming with metaphorical smoke billowing out of her ears.
If she had it her way, she wouldn't run into any of those pesky competitors from Noir, who are most definitely no match for her own studio, despite what the delusional judges seemed to think. Cloud 9 has beat them on numerous occasions, so Minkyung doesn't understand why they suddenly think they're the best because of half a point difference on their latest score sheet. Then again, she supposes that Noir must not win very often, and they have to celebrate it on the rare occasions that they actually do.
It's exactly what she spends at least twenty minutes telling Minhyung and Daehwi on the way to the studio after school. She'd spent ten minutes waiting at the bus stop outside of the Gangnam Institute because her classes always finished early on Tuesdays, avoiding eye contact with the group of boys who'd decided to skip their last period of the day, because her mother was insistent on her children walking home together. Having two brothers attend her rival school definitely wasn't fun, especially when it was Minkyung who ended up stuck waiting for them after school.
Tuesdays meant that Taemin, the third oldest Lee sibling, was in charge of driving the youngest trio home after school. And unfortuntely for Minkyung, he's currently holding some sort of choreography class at her rival dance studio. Minkyung doesn't know how she feels about it, because naturally, her older brother is a great dancer, and an even better choreographer. But Minkyung also doesn't want to give the rival studio an advantage, especially not when they're coming off of a win.
It's in Minkyung's blood to be competitive. You can't grow up in a household with six brothers without having to compete for everything. And if there's one thing that she's learnt so far, it's that she does not like to lose.
She doesn't even try to keep the scowl off her face as the three Lee siblings come to a stop in front of the Noir's studio (which Minkyung begrudgingly admits looks much nicer than her own studio). But no matter how fancy or modern it might look on the outside, Minkyung knows that Cloud 9 is miles ahead of them in terms of talent, and they have the trophies to prove it.
The lobby is even nicer than the building's exterior, a fact that only makes Minkyung even more sour as she glances around at the modern aesthetic and the greyscale colours that decorate the room. The lobby is empty, except for the receptionist at the front desk talking on the phone (and if Minkyung had to take a guess, she'd say the girl was talking to her boyfriend, and not a client, from the way she was twirling her hair around finger), and a small group of dancer trailing behind a boy exiting one of the corridors.
The boy is built for dancing, that much is noticeable even from a distance. His hair is bleached a light brown, and he holds himself with an air of arrogance as he walks, like he knows that he's good at what he does. He's dressed in an oversized black sweater and dark sweatpants, the only pop of colour being the white strip on the side of his sweatpants. It's only when he runs a hand through his hair and glances around the lobby briefly that Minkyung gets a look at his face.
And then she promptly tries to turn around and march back to the car park.
Unfortunately, she doesn't get very far because both Minhyung and Daehwi had been anticipating some sort of escape attempt from her the minute they stepped foot in the building, and all that follows is a weak scuffle in which Minkyung ends up no closer to the front door that she originally was. By the time she's given up trying to make a run for it, she's already caught the attention of the very boy she wanted to avoid.
"Well, if it isn't one of Cloud 9's talented little dancers," says Lee Minho, a smirk on his lips as he comes to a stop in front of her. Minkyung raises an eyebrow, tempted to comment on the fact that she most definitely isn't little, and she's easily as tall as him, even without a pair of high heels. She hopes it makes him feel just the slightest bit intimidated.
She tilts her chin up, if only to give off the impression that she's even taller than she already is, and crosses her arms. "Yes, one of the talented dancers that has kicked your asses many, many times."
Minho scoffs, mimicking her position. "I don't think your little studio is quite on our level after the last competition," he says. Minkyung balls her fists, shooting him the scariest glare she can muster, and swearing – admittedly, louder than she'd intended – at his response.
So maybe his dance studio wasn't the best choice to pick this fight, considering he had the advantage of home turf, and there seems to be a class of small children just finishing up, if the scandalised expression a nearby mother shoots the pair of them after Minkyung's particularly loud expletive and covers her son's ears is anything to go by. But Minho started this battle, and Minkyung is going to finish it.
"I'm sorry, but at Noir we only take talented dancers," Minho muses, unbothered by the parents shuffling past them.
"You must have very different standards of talent, then, since you're always losing to us," Minkyung shoots back.
Minho opens his mouth, no doubt ready to throw back another reply (which will probably be no way as witty as Minkyung's), but before he can say anything, they're interrupted by her brother, who greets Minho with a smile and a friendly handshake, clearly some sort of diversion from argument that his twin sister and Minho were in the middle of.
Minkyung has never felt more betrayed in her life, not that her twin brother seems to notice. Minhyung just continues his conversation with Minho, completely ignoring the intense stares that Minkyung keeps giving him.
Minho just smirks that annoying smirk, and Minkyung has to resist the urge to turn around and give the boy a piece of her mind. Instead, she decides to be the bigger person and walks out the front doors, this time successfully avoiding both her brothers' attempts to stop her, her hands balled into fists. She'll wait for her brothers in the carpark.
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DRIVE / lee minho. velvetseulgi [ AUGUST 15, 2019 ]
