Go hard or go home.

Event: #rksep20eval Tagged: @ianrk, @rkyoona Song: Not Shy - Itzy ( lyrics ) Parts: Ryujin (Main), Chaeryeong/Yuna (Sharing with Ian)

Getting to this point didn’t come without its struggles. Somin’s background in teaching and having done contemporary helped her understand how Ian’s limbs moved in order to be able to perform a hard-hitting choreography and strict choreography like this. Every stop mattered. Details mattered just as much as dance lines.

Tagged: @ianrk, @rkyoona Event: #rksep20eval - preparation Word Count: 295

Finding a song had to be almost as difficult as figuring out how to do a performance with another guy and girl with the concept of their horoscopes. Somin had long since forgotten those ever existed since she didn’t like letting those things define her, rather that she found things that describe her.

But being a Gemini, it did kind of spell out her indecisive persona, and having to settle on the song with a constant back and forth between Ian and Yoona was a true depiction of their Gemini nature in itself. Once they found it, the task revealed a domino effect of determining how to re-enact their persona traits, and showcasing it in a style that suited the three of them. Yoona was a vocalist while she was the rapper, and Ian seemed open to both sides, so the split of lines wasn’t as difficult to deal with.

Now the choreography...

Somin had to roll her sleeves for that, and put on her choreographer hat, while ensuring that all the key parts of the dance weren’t going to get lost in the middle of the overhaul. Dancing wouldn’t be able to express everything so there was going to have to be some acting involved, even though it took lots of mapping out on endless stacks of formations and direction for each part of choreography. But if something didn’t look right, it was either a call for revision or to figure out how they could make it work without sacrificing themselves.

It did mean sacrificing Somin’s attention span over her food during meal times and trying to figure out during the others’ practice times how they could fix each step and make it look even better.

rkella​:

There was some spare time to be had while Luxe took a break from their own practices. Their title song had already been fine tuned and filmed for their music video so early in the month, so it was just their B-side track that they had to learn and eventually be recorded for their own purposes. Aside from her own personal projects she would like to achieve, she found herself wandering the halls wondering what she could stick her nose into.

Maybe that was invasive to say, but some projects she knew were going to be confidential or recording something, so she wouldn’t be able to just walk in. Other occupied rooms were used by trainees for their evaluation, and she felt more comfortable going into, curious to see what they were up to.

Seolhyun thought that her observing their dance might feel intimidating for some. After all, she was an idol of two years now, but she /was/ also a trainee just like them not too long ago. Singing was something Naeun or Yena were better equipped to comment on, so she went to the studios to see who might be undergoing their dance practices. 

She noticed one practicing alone, wearing high heels, which Seolhyun could assume would be for a girl group dance. Who’s though? Now she wondered what she was up to. With a short rap of the door, she opened it and stepped inside after a short greeting. “Mind if I come in and check on you?”

She decides to try again from the very beginning, starting from the centre of the room and walk towards the mirror with a sway of her hips. Her gaze is fixated on the positioning of her hips as she does so, and swinging her right leg in front of her left foot that plants as her support. 

Her attention is set solely on her reflection, barely noticing the knock until the door opens and she turns to look. She’s– She knows who she is. She’s seen her in Naeun and Nayoung’s group, and she’s reminded herself to learn their names as best as possible. But she still reminds herself that she’s the hoobae here, and she bows immediately at the other female with a sheepish smile. “Hi seonbaenim. Uhm... feel free to.”

She scratches the back of her head. “I don’t mean to take up your time and all.” Oh god, this is awkward. I don’t know what to say. “I’m just... trying to pick up some choreography and make my own, but nothing seems to look right no matter what I do.” 

jiwoork​:

“cold? is this a thing?” she asks, confusion visible in her face. considering jiwoo just said something absurd about a nonexistent allergy, she can’t help but wonder if the new trainee is trying to fool her or not, but she ends up shrugging. the world had a lot of weird things she didn’t know about, so she wouldn’t be surprised. “i guess some people are special. not me though. i don’t have any allergies,” she chuckles. jokingly, she makes a face as she turns to somin. “this is cheating unnie! but if you manage to do what my mom has been trying for years that would be really impressive.” 

even if she doesn’t really understand the whole thing about the quality of the ingredients, she still listens attentively to the other as she eats the delicious omelette. “have you always been interested in food?” the girl asks curiously. this was one of jiwoo’s interests, but she only liked eating and making food, not really worried about nutrients, health and such things because it sounded too complex for her brain. 

“yeah, i guess. luxe and de:code sunbaes are working hard these days so we have this nice building and good food.” she laughs softly, pretty pleased with the good treatment they had at royal, especially when somin shares about her former company, which makes her realize she should be more thankful and complain less even if sometimes training was too much for her. “i hope that means you will stay with us. it’s sad when they leave,” jiwoo purses her lips, still missing the trainees who gave up or switched companies in the past months. 

“I honestly thought it was just something she made up, but there are people who are allergic to the sun, but it’s a lot more grave than we see.” She had seen a few shows that indicated something of the sort, but it usually ended up being that the child was covered in bandages and lots of thick clothing to be able to manage walking around. That, or I have it confused with another condition... “Is it cheating? I’d like to say that it’s more of being cautious. Free-range eggs means the chickens are out of the cage, so they’re more exposed to other things that aren’t supposed to be in their environment.”

She scratches the back of her head. “I want to say... I only got interested in it a few years back? With trainees being on diets and having to pick up any other hobbies, I tried to pick up a few different lifestyle changes that wouldn’t result in me putting bad chemicals in my body. Protein powder sounds great, but it’s artificial protein that you’re putting in yourself and not giving your body the necessary nutrients you need from the food you eat. By eating something like that, you don’t fill yourself up either, and you’re more prone to getting hungry. So I was trying to figure out what I could eat without having to suffer from the side-effects of a diet. That, and my brother is a chef.”

She smiles sheepishly. 

Tagged: @rkella

Trying to unteach herself and relearn from other people’s dance styles had been something that Somin had a hard time adjusting to. By no means did she have any struggle learning choreography, but when other people had a different dance style that was so far removed from her own, or at a different pace, it was a wake-up call for her to rethink how she was allowing herself to learn. That’s why she found herself in the dance studio, learning one of the things she absolutely hated the most: sexy-like dances. Somin had allowed herself to learn it before, but it was never her thing. She always got scolded for not dancing sexy enough, or not looking feminine enough.

Fixing her hair into a ponytail for the umpteenth time, she sighs as she stands in the middle of the empty dance studio, hands on her hips to stare at her reflection. It takes her a moment to rethink it all over again, just a simple hip sway, or the turn of her hips as she rises from a crouching position. The little hair flips.

Event: #rkaug20eval - Preparations

To be a model meant being like a doll with expressions that could leap off a page, yet pull it off with a look that was very much realistic. Every single move you make had to be picturesque, that standing in the mirror is not simply just standing in the mirror. It means a lot of posture fixing as well, the coach’s words echoing in her mind. If she presses her upper back against the wall for a period of time, it would open up the space of her chest rather than appear like she’s hunched over. 

Outfit: LINK Location: Laundry Pizza Event: #rkaug20eval Trigger Warning: Diet mention

At first, Somin had chosen to do the arcade since she was already dressing in that concept practically every single day. But there was another concept she realized she had overlooked, set at the Laundry Pizza location. Since it was summer, it was less about the teen demographic that could’ve worn the style at the arcade, and more about hanging out with friends. (Plus, who could pass up pizza, even if you couldn’t actually eat it.) Being able to get her hair and make-up done made it less of a hassle for her in the morning when she had to prepare herself for this, and it also saved her from worrying about smearing any make-up before arriving to the location.

jiwoork​:

jiwoo is almost proud when she sees the surprise in the other’s features. saying she was allergic to greens had become such a classic lie she tells to people that she could believe in her own words or saying it without blinking, but somin seemed too nice for her to lie to her face like this, especially with the nice offer of food. “i’m very convincing, right?” she giggles, then picks up a bite of omelet to try. looking up, she shakes her head no. “i’m like that cat versus cucumber compilations.” if she saw cucumber, she would stay away from it, that’s for sure. 

chewing the food quietly, she listens to the older girl explain about organic food intently. is that what it is about? she wouldn’t know, to be honest, but while it sounds nice and healthy, it doesn’t change her thought on it, maybe because royal’s food wasn’t only organic, but too healthy. “is this omelet organic?” she asks seriously, “because it’s really good.” so she would conclude it’s not, but that’s her silly side talking. 

“no, it’s okay,” jiwoo flashes a smile at her. even if it sounded too complicated for her to fully understand, she was glad to have this conversation with somin. “i guess we should consider ourselves lucky then, since sajangnim prepared this for us.” she’s not entirely convinced, but it made her see him like a mom, like her mom and her ‘eat your greens’ discourse at least. turning to look at the flowers behind her, she looks back at the girl. “how do you like it here? it’s pretty, isn’t it?” she asks with a soft grin.

“I can’t say I’m not surprised or I’d be lying, but then again, anything’s possible. My mom’s allergic to the cold, so she starts to get rashes on her skin, but she’s too stubborn to actually try to cover up because she’s not a fan of it.” She blinks at the comparison, tilting her head curiously. “I don’t remember if I’ve seen that. I’ve seen a puppy against a lemon though? But okay, note to self. No cucumbers for you. I’ll just have to mince them enough so you don’t notice that they’re cucumbers then.” She grins cheekily, chuckling.

She glances down at the omelette. “The vegetables in the omelette are, but I don’t do that with the eggs because I usually come across free-range eggs. I mean, it’s a good thing to have free-range eggs, but it has some drawbacks so I tend to stay away from it because of those drawbacks.” When she first found out what free-range was, she couldn’t help but be worried.

rkxdowoon​:

“Tell me about it. Some days I’m almost afraid to sneeze wrong in case they decided to take it up the wrong way…” Dowoon snarks, only half joking. (Then again, his reasons for hiding any budding sniffles are far more serious than he’ll let on to anyone else.) “But urgh~! I’m sorry something like that happened to you too. I mean, I get why they get so wound up about it, but…” he trails off briefly.

“Sometimes their reactions just feel so over the top.”

Dowoon pauses at Somin’s questions, eyebrows furrowed a little as he thinks. He know how other companies have reacted to similar scandals, CONVEX’s expulsion of Romeo still coming to the forefront of his mind even a year and a half later. But as for Royal….

He’s been pretty sheltered so far from anything overtly strict, bar that little mishap at the start of the year.

“I don’t really know, to be honest. I mean, I don’t really interact with the coaches or other staff all that much unless–” he breaks off as Somin suddenly latches on to the Triple Threat competition, his eyes widening a little at her reaction. 

Could that be why she looked so familiar….?

“I… I was in the one held last April, in Yongsan-gu.” he replies a little hesitantly, his ears going red. “I performed Just Right and I was scouted by Royal on my way home after the results…” he trails off again.

“Y’know… I didn’t want to say anything before, in case I was wrong, but…. I think I have seen you somewhere before, Somin-ssi.”

She laughs lightly. “I don’t think they’re going to be that serious. I heard there are companies that are much more strict with their trainees, but then again, I still have a lot more to learn about from Royal still.” She shrugs. “It was a careless mistake on my part. I was younger, and I was just a little excited to be able to do a collaboration with a friend. I don’t usually do sexy dances, so it was kind of out of my comfort zone but my friend was good with me. I think it depends on how you treat them in return? If you’re aloof to them, they’ll just be professional hard-asses on you - pardon my language.”

Her gaze drifts over to him after a while, a curve of her lips into a smile. 

“Ah, yeah.” That was definitely it. “Royal scouted me back then too, but I failed that miserably. I guess 90s pop songs wasn’t their thing.”

rkxdowoon​:

Dowoon isn’t sure whether to be relieved or not that Somin seems to be equally flustered at how he reacted to her statement about being a former trainee. As it is, he runs his hand through his hair in agitation as she calls him a sunbae instead.

It feels weird, but Dowoon didn’t want to correct her and sound rude, especially when she insisted that he shouldn’t address her as a senior, despite her technical seniority.

What a mess.

“Ah, I’ve been here just over a year… I was scouted just after the TRC Triple Threat thingy… even though I still don’t get why they thought I was worth scouting.” he finally admits with a laugh, ears still tinged red. “So trust me, you don’t have to call me a sunbae either. I’m still working on even being worthy of a title like that.” Eventually the tension in his shoulders eases as they walk down the hall.

“It’s strict here, I’m not gonna lie.” he replies bluntly. “I got the whole company on an SNS ban because I joked about a dating scandal on twitter… so don’t do that.” Dowoon lets out a sheepish noise that could be called a laugh. “But if you stick to the rules and everything, it’s not half bad here. Even though the coaches and all that are strict, they’re fair, y’know? And they do pay attention to hard work and stuff like that. It’s a steep learning curve, but if I could manage it, I’m sure you will too!”

She listens to the male, the corners of her lips tugging upwards because she knows she can definitely relate to the experiences. “The staff have eyes everywhere, no matter how you look at it. I don’t think I got the company in a ban, probably just me. I forgot to put the hashtags on a teaser post of a dance collaboration I was doing with a friend, so you can imagine how that turned out. He ended up getting in trouble for it too so...” She laughs sheepishly at the memory.

It had been a simple hand-holding picture for a dance cover of Erase by Hyolyn, but... the quick post had been come back to kick her in the ass for it. But the more she thinks about the words he says, the more she wonders that about herself.

“What’s the strictest thing they’ve done around here?”

Maybe she’d be able to withstand them, but that doesn’t mean she intends to defy the coaches completely. Before, she had been so wholeheartedly devoting herself to Nova, willing to do whatever they wanted before she started to take her musical direction and let them see what she could do with the right kind of push, rather than the content they wanted to see. Of course, there was no room for creative direction in a company like that, or like this. All she could do was prove that she had so much to offer, and not live by that stupid number that ruled her entire trainee life at Nova.

Tagged: @rkrose

Having to learn how to pose in front of the camera was a whole different story than having to walk down the runway or act in front of a camera. It meant having to ensure your facial expressions weren’t always the same, no matter what position your head was, or the way you stood. Everything had to have its own feeling.

But when it came to concepts already being given and having to choose from them, Somin’s a little lost looking at the list.