Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Iroha's voice repeated consistently the combination,

"Plíe, tendu, plíe, ronde de jambe, plíe en seconde, demi plíe fifth, en croise degagé!" Chan's legs obeyed, fluidly carrying out the motions he'd practiced for years. "Other side!" Madame Iroha called out, and Chan switched mirror-side. 

During stretches, Chan noticed a new sight. Changbin's barre had a second person. A tall, lean-muscled man with the gracefulness Chan had spent years to achieve had his left leg on the bar, in a deep plíe that nearly touched the floor. 

"Everyone, we have a new student here, Kim Seungmin. Seungmin, please tell us a little about yourself," Iroha directed. The man blinked nervously, but said shyly, 

"Hi, I'm Seungmin, and I've been dancing for ten years, um, I transferred from the Beijing school of dance?" Several murmurs of awe arose from the group. 

"Thank you, Seungmin. Now! The Albrecht variation, Chan, you go first," Iroha interrupted. Lined up perfectly in turn to go next, everyone stood as Chan stood en croise, waiting for the music to start. Toure jeté, arabesque, pirouette, foutte, foutte, foutte. "Yes, beautiful!" Iroha called out. Every compliment made Chan's heart swell with pride, and finished with the fall from his leap onto the floor. 

"Nice job," Minho whispered as he took Chan's place for his turn. 

"Thanks," Chan responded. 

It was Seungmin's turn for the variation. He had learned it at his old university, years ago apparently. 

He was beautiful. 

His dancing, of course. 

The strength and precision he contained was stunning, each toure jeté incorporating so much fluidity in its execution. His turns were sharp and the fouttes seemed fragile but balanced. And his pointe? Ethereal. 

"Well done, Seungmin!" Iroha congratulated after the final move, falling gracefully onto the floor. Chan was almost slightly jealous of the way he danced, but mostly in awe. Felix whispered to him,

"He's good, almost better than you," Chan chuckled at his comment. 

"Let's see him in contemporary," Felix scoffed and punched him lightly on the shoulder. 

"I can't, I have freestyle with Minho," 

"You'll see at the showcase next month, then," Chan said. He didn't mean to sound mocking, it just sounded like that. 

Chan arrived at contemporary early. He looked at himself in the mirror, studying his lines, pointin his legs, hoping they could bend as far back as Seungmin's could. Then, as natural as dancing was to him, he began to move. Tossed around a couple chaînes to the left, jumping into a assemblé, and escaping the previous ballet mindset, he twisted his arm around, sliding to the floor elegantly, his legs moving into a split and lifted himself off the floor. 

As he finished, he looked in the mirror, and behind him, the door was open, showing Seungmin. His eyes widened in surprise. 

"That was really good," he mumbled. 

"Thanks," Chan responded, just staring dumbly. The door to the left opened suddenly, and both men jumped as a woman strode in, a sweet air around her. 

"There's my star student, Chan," Moka praised. 

"Good morning, Moka-ssi," Chan greeted, bowing. 

"Who's this? Boyfriend?" Moka teased, her kind eyes crinkling. 

"No, no, I mean, this is Seungmin, he's new," Chan stuttered, hating how flustered he was becoming. He looked back at Seungmin, who was blinking rapidly. 

"Ah, shame. You could use one," Moka added.

"Who's boyfriend?" Hyunjin cried, running rambuctiously into the room.

"Nothing!" Chan exclaimed. 

"Oooh, Channie's got a crush-" Jisung giggled, joining Hyunjin.

"NO I DON'T!" Chan protested. 

"Okay, okay, calm down! Short warm up today, you guys are still warm from ballet, right?" Moka said, trying to get everyone to calm down. 

"Yup," Changbin said confidently. He slid into a middle split in his usual flaunting manner. Moka rolled her eyes and began playing her warm up music.

"Five, six, seven, eight!" Moka directed, starting on neck isolations. 

"The showcase is next month, and today we're going begin the casting for the duet," Moka instructed, after the warm-up. Competitive glances were made, and everyone already looked at Chan, knowing that he was secured a spot already. Chan already knew the choreography, he had helped Moka make it, after all. 

"What's the song to?" Hyunjin asked. 

"Golden hour. I know this seems a little unfair, but Chan's already got the spot for primary lead. We need to choose one more person for this spot," Groans filled the room, jealous but knowing. "We'll learn the choreography today and I'll choose by tomorrow, is that alright?" 

"Yes ma'am!" Jisung replied sassily. 

After learning the choreography, everyone went one at a time with Chan doing the duet. It wasn't a very touchy duet, unlike the pas-de-duexes he was used to in ballet. He made a mental note of everyone that went.

-Hyunjin was very fluid, however, his floor work was sloppy. Stick to the hip hop duet. 

-Changbin was not a very good secondary lead, he was used to being the lifter. Flexibility also didn't match. Stay as the pas-de-trois lifter. 

-Jeongin was ok. The turns could use work. Keep him in hip hop duet with Hyunjin. 

-Jisung was good. Like, good good. His calypso jump was perfect, his arms were graceful, and his pointe was great. Definitely consider.

-Seungmin was amazing. His movements were delicate but passionate, mastering each jump and turn without overstimulating them. He was the one.

After practice, he walked over to Seungmin, who was stretching out his calf. 

"Hey, um, I just wanted to say, you did really well with the choreography," Chan complimented, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. 

"Thank you," Seungmin replied, and a small smile crept up to his face. Adorable, Chan thought, barely catching himself before he scolded himself internally. 

"You were made for that choreography," Chan murmured. Seungmin's eyes fluttered in surprise, as his smile broadened. 

"Thank you, Chan-ssi,"

"Chan-hyung," he corrected. Seungmin quirked an eyebrow. 

"Hm?"

"You can call me hyung," Chan stammered, a blush rising to his cheeks. Seungmin giggled and waved goodbye as he left. 

Felix, who had gotten back from his freestyle class and had watched the whole ordeal, said,

"You like him," Chan whipped his head around in shock and asked,

"When did you get here?"

"I'm pretty sneaky when I want to be," Felix said while shrugging. 

Chapter Text

The finalized showcase list was out the next morning. 

2025 Seoul School of Ballet Spring Showcase Cast List

Hip Hop: 

Duet-Hwang Hyunjin, Yang Jeongin

Solo 1- Aeri Uchinaga

Solo 2- Lee Taemin

Ballet:

Pas de Troi- Seo Changin, Jeong Yoonchae, Lee Chaeryoung

Pas de Deux- Lalisa Manobal, Park Jimin

Contemporary:

Duet- Bang Chan, Han Jisung

Chan was confused. Jisung? Moka had shown interest in Seungmin very clearly. Seungmin was the best.

"Oh," a small voice said next to him. Chan turned his head to see Seungmin, looking at the list intently. His eyebrows furrowed-Chan would have thought it was cute if the situation were different- and the corners of his lips turned down slightly. 

"I'm sorry, Seungmin, I thought you would have-"

"It's okay. I kind of expected it," Seungmin's voice was heartbreakingly quiet. Chan wanted to hug him, and had to hold himself back from even touching him. 

"No, I'll speak to Moka-ssi. She must have judged you incorrectly yesterday," Chan insisted, and gave him a comforting smile. Seungmin returned the smile, a bit muted due to the disappointment. 

Chan entered Moka's studio, who was stretching deeply in a wide straddle. 

"Moka-ssi?" he asked quietly. Moka's head tilted up to see Chan, and a grin appeared on her face. 

"Good morning, Chan, what can I do for you?" 

"I was wondering about the roles for the duet. Are you sure Jisung is the best pick?" Chan asked. 

"I thought you said he was good," Moka said, confused. 

"He was, but I thought that Seungmin would have been a better fit," Chan replied, picking nervously at his nails. Did he sound too imposing? He hated when he sounded imposing-

"Yesterday was his first day, Chan. I don't want to pressure him into a role so quickly," Moka said sincerely, her kind composition calming Chan down. 

"He was from the Beijing Ballet Company, I think he could handle it," Chan mumbled. Moka's eyebrows shot up in shock. 

"Repeat that?"

"Beijing Ballet Company," 

"We can reconsider things," Moka chuckled. 

2025 Seoul School of Ballet Spring Showcase Cast List

Hip Hop: 

Duet-Hwang Hyunjin, Yang Jeongin

Solo 1- Aeri Uchinaga

Solo 2- Lee Taemin

Ballet:

Pas de Troi- Seo Changin, Jeong Yoonchae, Lee Chaeryoung

Pas de Deux- Lalisa Manobal, Park Jimin

Contemporary:

Duet- Bang Chan, Han Jisung  Kim Seungmin

Jisung stared at the list. 

His name was scratched out. 

Scratched out. 

Like he was an afterthought, a dulled thing thrown away for a shinier toy. 

"Hey, calm down, Sungie," Minho said, sensing Jisung's disturbance. 

"They replaced me," he whispered. 

"Hm?" Minho asked. 

"They replaced me with the new kid," Jisung repeated, louder that time. 

"Seriously?" Minho scoffed. 

"Yeah, Chan's new favorite," Jisung grumbled. 

"That's favoritism," 

"Ballet is favoritism," Jisung said underneath his breath. 

"We should go to your teacher. This isn't fair," Minho said, gripping Jisung's shoulder in support. 

"I'm sorry boys, but me and Chan decided it was best. Maybe the Christmas showcase?" Moka offered, looking at the list they'd handed her. 

"But that's in six months!" Jisung cried. 

"He was first! He should have the spot!" Minho demanded. 

"I really am sorry, Jisung, but Seungmin was Chan's first choice. Seungmin is quite the dancer," Moka noted. Jisung felt tears prick his eyes as he crumpled the list and bowed, saying,

"I'm sorry for wasting your time, Moka-ssi," 

"You didn't waste my time, Jisung. It's simply just a concern, a valid one for someone in your position-"

"But he's new," Minho murmured. 

"You haven't seen him dance, Minho. He's almost as good as Chan. Quite close to Rui. I'll have him mentor Seungmin, in fact," Moka suggested to herself. Rui. The most prestiged dancer at the school besides Chan. He was extremely flexible, could pull off crazy tricks and jumps, and frankly captured every teacher's-and students-hearts. Including Moka. 

"Rui? He already mentors me!" Jisung squeaked, outraged. 

"It's very possible to mentor two students at once, Jisung," Moka said, getting slightly annoyed. 

"But-"

"Thank you for your time, Moka-ssi, lunch is very soon and Jisung gets grumpy without it," Minho said quickly, noticing Jisung's rising anger. Jisung used to be extremely volatile, and still could be. Minho rushed Jisung out of the studio and into the cafeteria. 

They went to their usual table, with Felix, Hyunjin, Jeongin, Changbin, and Chan. They were all happily chatting and eating, until Jisung noticed a familiar figure beside Chan. Seungmin. 

"Hi, guys!" Minho greeted. He sat down next to Hyunjin, and Jisung sat down as well. 

"Hey, why are you late? Jisung is usually the first one here!" Felix joked, patting Jisung on the shoulder. Jisung groaned and rolled his eyes. 

"Someone's grumpy," Changbin murmured. Jisung's gaze flickered to Chan, who was whispering something to Seungmin. Seungmin giggled at whatever remark Chan made. Jisung's already bad mood dropped even lower. 

Chapter Text

"Congrats on your role, Seungmin," Felix cheered, his smile bright that calmed Seungmin's nerves a bit.

"Thanks! Really, though, it was Chan-"

"No, Seungmin, you're really good," Chan said sincerely. His eyes were soft, almost adoring. Jisung, from the other side of the table, stirred silently, his arms tensing. 

"He's not wrong," Hyunjin added, with an enthusiastic grin. 

"We have Modern after this, right?" Jisung asked, trying to change the subject. 

"Mhm, I'm pretty sure I have break-dancing intro workshop, though," Minho responded. 

"Seungmin, do you have Modern?" Chan asked gently. 

"Yeah, it's with Wonhee-ssi right?" Seungmin said. Jisung hated how innocent he looked. So innocent that nobody would suspect that he stole his role. 

"Yup, you'll love it," Jeongin nudged Seungmin's elbow. Chan's eyes lingered on his arm for a few seconds too long, disturbed by it. He didn't know why, he just was. 

"Modern is in ten minutes, so you'd better move on," Felix said, looking at his watch. Chan got up, with Seungmin in tail. He kind of liked it, Seungmin depending on him like that. Jisung thought it was gross.

"Thanks for the heads up, Lix," Changbin replied, patting his head. 

"You're welcome," Felix said smugly. Chan rolled his eyes as he headed over to the Modern classroom, opening the door quietly. Wonhee was warming up in her left splits, looking at her phone at something that seemed to be interesting. 

"Hi, Wonhee-ssi," Chan greeted softly. Wonhee looked up and smiled, brushing her legs out of her splits and stood up. 

"Chan! Is this that the new student Moka was raving about?" she asked, studying Seungmin. 

"Mhm, he's really good," Chan said, his eyes sweeping over Seungmin in an almost revering way.

"He must be, he's in your duet!" Wonhee praised, her smile broad. 

"I'm-"

"Wonhee-ssiiii," Hyunjin drawled, interrupting whatever Chan was going to say, swinging the door open loudly. 

"Good afternoon to you too, Hyunjin," Wonhee sighed. 

"And up and down and pas de bouree! Slide! Changbin, please stop flopping like a dead fish on the floor, please," Wonhee groaned. Changbin was belly-flopped on the marley floor, instead of gracefully lifting his leg in a penche with his hands holding him up, he was on his stomach and his leg stuck out awkwardly. Jisung stood up to help him, lifting his arms to only trip and fall on top of him. 

"Jisung, please," Chan sighed as he helped correct Hyunjin's pointe. It wasn't uncommon for highly advanced students to play teacher, in fact, it was encouraged, as the teachers had a lot on their hands already. 

"I'm just trying to help! Look at Seungmin! His arms are horrendous!" Jisung protested, pointing at Seungmin. Seungmin really wasn't used to floor work as much as the others, so his arms sunk a little lower than they should have. 

"Jisung, please stop," Wonhee said. 

"Yeah, Jisung, worry about yourself," Chan snapped. He walked over to Seungmin, and bent down to pull Seungmin's forearms higher. The contact sent shivers up Chan's fingers, electric and addicting. Seungmin's form was right in everyway, but Chan still corrected. Was it possible to correct the perfected? He pushed into Seungmin's back, arching it deeper, and pulling his already-impossibly-high leg even further. Just the touch turned him on, sending delight up through his arms. 

"Soon he'll be bending over for him a different way," Jisung murmured. All eyes focused on him, unaware of how loud he was.

"JIsung, that was completely inappropriate," Wonhee snapped. Chan glared at Jisung, anger and hatred coursing through him. 

"Don't," Chan hissed, struggling to hold himself back.

"Seungmin, could I see you, please?" Wonhee asked after class ended. 

"Of course," Seungmin said quietly. The classroom was empty and the contrast of the loud class and now was stark. 

"Both Iroha and Moka told me that it would be smart if Rui, one of our best students here, mentored you. You have a lot of potential, and you could go leagues with the right training. We're providing you with what we feel isn't enough for you," Wonhee explained.

"Does it mean I'm bad?" Seungmin stammered. They thought he was bad? He would work harder, then. He always did. 

"No, no, Seungmin, you're amazing. I've never seen a student quite like you, we're thinking that if you are mentored a little more, you could go far. Like, Royal Ballet far. Bolshoi, even," Wonhee said. Seungmin's eyes widened. Bolshoi? His teachers back in Beijing told him he couldn't even make it to the senior leagues. 

"I'd love to," Seungmin replied. 

"Perfect! Does tomorrow at eight p.m. work?" 

"Yes!" Seungmin responded eagerly. The adrenaline from the compliments had driven him.

"And she told me Rui would help mentor me! I've heard he's really good," Seungmin said to Chan on the way to dinner. 

"Yeah, he's pretty good," Chan said, bitterness underlying his tone. 

"I can't wait! Wonhee-ssi said I could get really good with him," Seungmin said excitedly. It was simply unfairly how adorable Seungmin looked, eyes eager and smile wide. Chan didn't really like how enthusiastic he was about Rui, and it didn't help with how he felt about Jisung's comment barely ten minutes ago. 

Seungmin entered the Modern classroom nervously, to see a man dancing elegantly in pointe shoes, dancing like the world was about to end, feverishly and desperate, but still poised and perfect. 

"Are you Rui?" Seungmin asked meekly. The man turned around, startled at the interruption, but his surprised look melted into a warm composition, and replied,

"Yeah! You're Seungmin, correct?" Seungmin nodded, and stepped forward into the classroom. Rui's warmth was intoxicating, making Seungmin feel comfortable. "Moka-ssi couldn't stop talking about you. You must be pretty impressive," 

"I'm not that-" 

"I get to judge that," Rui cut off. "I've learned Chan's part for Golden Hour, I'll be running it with you for the first couple practices, and then we'll work on some Modern," Seungmin nodded in reply. 

Rui was simply shocked. Seungmin was amazing. He had a balance of emotion, grace, and skill, each move refined and impressive. The only part he struggled, which was barely a minor inconvienence, was the part where Seungmin would bend over Chan's arm to go into a back walk-over. 

"I'm not that good with acro," Seungmin admitted shyly. 

"You're better than some acro students I know, your back flexibility is unreal," Rui complimented. "Try bending a little more, I know you can, and then kick harder. That should help,"  Seungmin nearly bent in half over Rui's arm, and kicked as hard as he could. Rui helped a bit by pushing underneath Seungmin's thigh lightly, and Seungmin's hands touched the floor and landed in a tendu, neck arched and head tilted. "That was perfect!" Rui exclaimed, grinning widely and taking Seungmin's shoulder into a side hug. 

"Sorry to interrupt, but Moka-ssi said I should probably watch," Chan said, opening the door as he eyed the two warily. 

"Got it," Rui replied playfully. 

"From the top?" Seungmin asked. Chan shrugged as Rui nodded profusely. 

The dance started with Seungmin sitting on the floor, arching himself backwards. Soon, Rui came up to pick Seungmin underneath his arms, carrying him as Seungmin's left leg was in the air. Chan sucked in a breath as Seungmin's head fit perfectly underneath Rui's. During the chorus, they finally separated, completing six pirouettes. Seungmin turned into a calypso leap to the floor while Rui did a grandé jete, Seungmin's arm reaching outward toward Rui's, who pulled Seungmin up gracefully, turning him into his arm, where he completed the hardest step of the dance, the back walk-over. Chan could hardly contain himself when Rui's hand pressed into Seungmin's thigh, pushing him over. His frustration lessened as they separated again.

Chan nearly crushed his metal water bottle, however, when Seungmin laid on the floor, his back curving up, head thrown back, and Rui fell into a penche, faces inches away from each other. Seungmin pushed himself up and Rui turned away, neck bared and Seungmin in an arabesque, reaching out. 

Why was he so concerned?

Chapter Text

After ballet, Chan caught up with Seungmin, who was talking to Jeongin about some combination he was having trouble with. 

"Seungmin?" he asked, touching his shoulder lightly. Seungmin quirked his head to the side, a casual warmth radiating from his face. 

"Yeah?" Seungmin responded, enthusiasm written in his words. 

"I-I heard that there's a hip hop thing near the train station, some of my friends from freestyle told me about it. I'd think you'd really like it," Chan stammered. Seungmin blinked nervously before replying,

"I don't really do hip hop-"

"Come on, Seungmin, it's really easy," Jeongin added. 

"You're good at it, though. I took one workshop two years ago," 

"I can help teach you," Chan offered. Seungmin's shoulders pressed down as he let out a sigh, and said,

"Fine, I'll go,"  

"First, ditch the leotard," 

Seungmin returned, in sweatpants and a tank top, scrolling absentmindedly as he met up with him.

"You look good," Chan mumbled. Seungmin's eyes crinkled a bit as he smiled. His smile is too damn cute, Chan thought. 

"It's nothing, I guess," he murmured, the tips of his ears reddening. 

Chan led him over to a block south of the train station, where a couple guys and two girls Seungmin barely recognized were dancing, popping their arms out and getting low to the floor, everything different and contrasting to ballet. He was intrigued. 

"Chan-ssi!" a man called out, waving him over. 

"Mingi!" Chan responded, pulling Seungmin over to them. 

"Who's that? He's kind of cute," one of the girls asked. Seungmin blushed, and Chan's hold on his arm tightened. 

"This is Seungmin, my partner for the contemporary duet. Seungmin, this is Mingi, Taemin, Riki, Yunah-ssi -she's the freestyle teacher- and Aeri," Chan introduced. They all gave him a friendly smile, and as the music switched to a new song, Taemin's eyes lit up. 

"Guerilla! I love this song!" he proclaimed, and began a complex dance, with swift motions of his arms and several other moves Seungmin didn't even want to try and attempt. 

"Come on, follow me," Chan whispered, and pulled him out into the circle. "Pop, rock, slide, step," he directed, putting his leg out, stepping onto it and jumping back, dragging himself to the left, and stepped forward to repeat. Seungmin copied, until Chan shook his head. "You've still got the ballet mindset. Let loose a little, you're rigid," Seungmin's eyebrows furrowed, but pulled his shoulders forward. Chan nodded. Seungmin started to get into the rhythm, popping back and isolating. 

"Aye, he's pretty good!" Riki shouted out. In perfect sync, the two pulled back and executed a body roll. The end of the dance left Seungmin both exhausted and satisfied. Yunah lenaed over to whisper something to Aeri, who grinned maliciously and headed to the speaker and fiddled around with the music. Soon, a familiar melody began. Chan looked over at Seungmin, who was eyeing him, puzzled. 

"Do the duet!" Taemin called out. Seungmin shrugged, and Chan sighed. Seungmin plopped himself on the floor, starting all in the same.

And it was beautiful. Chan and Seungmin's rhythm fit together, like they were made to dance with each other. The flow and pure elegance of the dance fell in tow to each other, Seungmin's grace and Chan's emotion intertwining to find a balance, skill derived from their souls. Seungmin melted into Chan's arms during his back walk-over, careful hands placed on the back of his thighs, guiding him over. Sentiency seemed to strike them from under their skin, lithe and polished. 

"WOO!" Mingi whooped after the final pose, Chan and Seungmin breathless. They looked at each other, proud and a little nervous, faces flush with tire and... something else Chan'd prefer not to name.

"The showcase is going to be real good this year," Yunah chuckled. 

"Thanks," Seungmin said, tone quiet and timid. 

"Come on," Chan grunted as he pulled Seungmin up from his position on the floor. Seungmin's phone rung suddenly and picked it up. 

"Shit, I have an physiotherapy appointment for my knee. I'll see you tomorrow," Seungmin said, as he ran off. Chan's eyes didn't leave him until Aeri said,

"You like him," 

"He's nice," Chan said shakily, fiddling with his pant leg. 

"You know I mean," Aeri said sassily, giving Chan a look. Yunah chuckled in reply, and Riki pressed his lips together humorously. 

"It's not like that-"

"If you're going to pine after him for the rest of your life, I don't want to see it. I'd prefer PDA over you moping around," Mingi added. Chan glared at him as Taemin burst out in laughter. Chan groaned,

"You guys are impossible," 

Seungmin looked so happy, doing his dance. 

Jisung wasn't spying. 

He was just watching. 

Watching the new kid who he was just as good as do his part in his dance. 

He was going to get his role back no matter what. 

Chapter Text

"Minho, I need your help," 

"Yeah?" Minho asked on the phone. Jisung's voice had that tone where he was plotting something, usually light-hearted. He had a feeling that it wasn't. 

"I need you to give Seungmin my number, but call it Chan's," Jisung explained. 

"Why would I do that?"

"Because you're my best friend, and I love you sooooo much-"

"Okay! Okay! I'll do it!" Minho cried, shaking his head, annoyed. 

"Good. Now do it convincingly, please," Jisung sighed, and hung up. 

"Hey Seungmin?" Minho asked, catching up to him after Contemporary. Seungmin turned around, and Minho's palms slicked with nervous sweat. 

"What's up?" 

"Um, Chan told me to give you his number," Minho said, rushing over his words. He handed Seungmin a slip of paper with Jisung's number, 'Chan' written on the top.

"Oh, okay," Seungmin responded, the tips of his ears turning red. Minho ran off, and once Seungmin was out of sight, called Jisung. 

"He got it,"

"Perfect," Jisung cackled. 

"Well?" Minho asked impatiently. 

"Well what?" Jisung snapped. 

"Has he texted yet?"

"You just gave it to him-yes, he just texted," 

"What did he say?"

"This is Seungmin," Jisung read. 

"That's boring," Minho grumbled. 

"I'm texting, 'oh, you', like it sounds like he's kind of pissed but not angry," Jisung explained. 

"Okay?" 

"He just said, 'yeah, me,', what do I say?" Jisung panicked. 

"Say that he's being annoying," 

"But that's too strong!" 

"But it'll work," Minho huffed. 

"Fine," 

"What did he say?"

"'Are you okay?' I'm telling him I'm fine, he needs to stop being irritating," Jisung cackled. 

Seungmin read the text. 

Chan:

I'm fine, stop being irritating

He didn't know how to respond. Maybe Chan was just different over text. 

Seungmin: 

I'm sorry

Chan: 

🙄

That was a bit overkill.

Chan: 

Also, can you stop being sucking so much in the duet?

Im gonna have to replace you if you're screwing up this much

Maybe jisung

Seungmin:

okay

i'll practice with rui more

Chan thought he sucked? Just yesterday Chan had been praising him. 

Maybe it was a façade. Maybe he just hated Seungmin and had to act nice in front of the teachers. 

Did Chan really hate him?

Chapter Text

Chan was confused. Seungmin seemed to be avoiding him. They usually shared a barre, but instead, Seungmin was next to Felix. For a pas de deux variation, Seungmin chose to be with Changbin instead of him. He tried to brush it off-maybe it was because Changbin was stronger than Chan- but it still pissed him off a little bit. 

In Contemporary, the spark between their dance was missing. The technique was right, the execution was right, but the emotion-gone. 

"It's-it's just not right," Moka murmured to herself. Jisung heard, and grinned to himself. It was working; the more they fell apart, the more he had a chance at Seungmin's role. "Seungmin, could you try and match Chan?" the teacher asked, rubbing her temple. Seungmin flinched-visibly- and tried again. 

And again. 

But it still wasn't right.

"Do you trust Chan?" Moka asked. Seungmin nodded too quickly. Chan's lips pursed, gaze faltering. "Run it one more time," she sighed. 

It just wasn't as good. 

"Jisung, could you please try Seungmin's part?" Moka said. Seungmin's heart plummeted. Jisung's face lit up as he responded rather enthusiastically, 

"Of course, Moka-ssi," 

And it was good. 

One could say better, even. 

Jisung almost fit in Chan's arms, maybe it was the height similarity, maybe it was the skill, maybe it was Jisung's determination. Whatever it was, it worked. 

Moka pulled Seungmin back after class. 

"Seungmin, I'm really sorry, but unless you improve the duet, I will replace you with Jisung. I'd suggest more practice with Rui," she said, her tone full of sympathy. Seungmin didn't feel one bit. 

So he practiced. 

He texted Rui that night, asking for more help, explaining the situation. Rui responded eagerly, happy to help. 

"What exactly did your teacher say about the dance that was off?" Rui asked, studying Seungmin's form. 

"She just said something wasn't right," Seungmin said, eyebrows crumpling. Rui bit his lip and narrowed his eyes, trying hard to find what was wrong. 

"I'll record us doing it, then we'll look at it to see what's wrong," Rui suggested, and Seungmin nodded in reply. 

After finishing the dance, they reviewed it over the phone. 

"I don't see anything wrong. Moka-ssi must be imagining things," Rui mumbled, confused. 

"Is it because I'm bad?" Seungmin asked, fighting back tears. Dancers didn't cry. 

Rui's head snapped to the side, his disposition concerned and empathetic. "No, Seungmin, you're amazing," he said, and pulled Seungmin into a hug. Seungmin hesitantly wrapped his arms around Rui, trembling slightly. 

Little did they know someone was watching. 

Chan was furious. 

Rui and Seungmin hugging? Just them together set him off. And now? Seungmin's spot in danger? Seungmin avoiding him?

He was loosing Seungmin. 

Fast. 

Chapter Text

The whole dance didn't feel right with Jisung.

In Moka's eyes, it was perfect. 

In Chan's, it wasn't right. It just felt... weird. 

Something was missing. 

"Perfect, boys, perfect!" Moka cheered after the final pose. Chan could see Seungmin on the side, fighting back his forlorn look that loomed over him. His heart clenched and wanted to reach out and hug and tell him that he was going to keep his duet part. He still had two days before Moka decided. Lots of time to practice with him. 

After class, he asked Seungmin, "Can we practice after Modern? I think it'd be better with me than Rui," Seungmin nodded hesitantly and scurried off. Chan's smile wavered. Barely. 

Chan:

Nevermind

I can't practice

I have something

Just go practice with rui or something

You're gonna need it 

Seungmin:

oh um ok

Chan: 

why are you so weird

Seungmin:

idk

why would you ask that

Chan:

because?

you're just kind of strange, i guess

i have to go, jisung and i are practicing

Chan stood Seungmin up to practice with Seungmin? He thought Chan wanted to practice with him. Because he wanted to dance the role together. He was confused. So, so confused. 

The Modern studio was empty. Except for Chan, who stood there impatiently as he began warming up his already warm muscles. And sore, he thought grumpily. Choosing dance was to make friends with pain. Split toenails and strained calves were part of the fun. 

What wasn't fun? No Seungmin. 

Thirty minutes passed and Seungmin still wasn't there. Chan roamed around the hallways, peeking in each window to try and find Seungmin. 

Until he passed Wonhee's room.

Seungmin and Rui, dancing with perfect chemistry. Perfect technique, perfect form, perfect everything. 

Seungmin stood Chan up to dance with Rui. Rui wasn't even his fucking partner. Chan left in rage, his fists curling as Rui and Seungmin whirled away together, unbeknownst of him. 

Chapter Text

Today was the last day Seungmin could prove that he could keep his position.

He tried. 

He tried so hard. 

And Chan could see it.

Every step was right. Every move was executed correctly. So what was wrong?

"Jisung, the role is now yours," Moka had said after the final move. Chan's heart sunk. "Seungmin, you're not giving your all," she'd said.

Something in Chan tore away as Seungmin's face fell. It was barely noticeable-but Chan noticed. 

After class, he pulled Seungmin aside and whispered, "Seungmin, I'm sorry, I tried-" 

"Why?" 

Chan bit his lip. Seungmin's tone was angry; something deeper than the situation of the moment. 

"Did I do something?" Chan asked. Seungmin turned away. Chan put a hand on Seungmin's shoulder and continued, "Whatever I did, I'm sorry-" 

"It's fine," Seungmin hissed, and pulled away. 

Chan shook his head, watching him walk off. 

Mine.