[어울리는 우상 - Becoming an Idol] - [OPEN and ACCEPTING]

[Firefly_Dreamer]

[Please welcome eloquence to the rp!]

[Firefly_Dreamer]

Min Ki-Tae woke up at 5am sharp to get ready for her first day of Idol training. She took a brisk shower and dressed herself comfortable, yet formal clothes. Today's class was in vocals, so she wouldn't have to wear clothes she needed to move around a ton in, right? Instead she wore breathable clothes that made it easier for her to get her air.

Ki-Tae showed up to room 203-B for her vocal lessons with the other female trainees. She was the first one there, showing up 15 minutes early. For a while, it was just her and the vocal coach, sitting in silence as the other students arrive. There were so many trainees there that she was in awe. This company was not known for having very many groups... that must mean that they are going to cut a lot of people and that it was going to be super competitive here. It made sense. The company wants the best of the best. She wouldn't be surprised if she got cut today, though it would leave her heartbroken.

Ki-Tae overheard some of the other girls talking. Apparently, occasionally idols would stop by and join the class as guests, and helping out by giving suggestions, giving corrections, telling stories about their time as trainees, and sharing their experiences as an Idol. Today was not one of those days, however. It was evident to Ki-Tae that this did not happen very often due to their busy schedules.

Seeing the Idols of this company wasn't too important on Ki-Tae's list. Although their experiences were valuable to her, there were more important things on her mind; Like how she was going to lose all the weight that the company wanted her to, or how she was going to get through her rigorous schedule.

Before she knew it, it was 6am and practice had started. She would spend the next 12 hours working on singing and different styles of music. Unfortunately for her, there wasn't really a category that suited her voice well. It was soft and smooth, but that was about it. Her voice cracked often and was slightly shaky. How she managed to get past the audition bewildered her. Perhaps with enough practice she could master the song they were singing.

After a while, Ki-Tae noticed next door there was a dance class going on with a different group of trainees, and she could just barely hear one of the choreographers outright yelling at them, and dismissing 'Number 246'. It was really cutthroat here. Would she be able to make it?

WC: 430
TWC: 430

[feel free to post as much or as little as you like, eloquence. Also feel free to start at any time within my post, you do not have to wait until after my post has ended, timeline-wise. Just a heads-up ^^]

[єℓσqυєи¢є]

Einna awoke to crooning songbirds and sunlight streaming through her curtains rather than her alarm clock. She groaned, turning to her side to see the clock hands pointing to 5am. Along with her being more of a night owl than a morning person, Einna was still getting used to the time difference between Korea and New York City. She missed her friends and family dearly, but she was also excited to begin her journey towards becoming a kpop idol.

Step one: make it on time for vocal training.

Einna chugged an ice coffee to stave off her morning drowsiness and hurried to room 203-B to meet with the other trainees. She was fairly early, arriving 10 minutes before the due time. Another trainee was already in the room, warming up her voice with scale tones. If Einna squinted, she could make out a blurry Min Ki-Tae on her name tag. She hurried over, excited to make her first friend.

"Good morning!" Einna said with a chipper voice. "I think we're in the same cohort! My name is Einna El Nur, it's nice to meet you."

WC: 186
TC: 186

[Firefly_Dreamer]

Ki-Tae noticed a girl, the second to arrive, enter the room looking rather cheerful. She was unlike the other trainees that entered shortly after. They were quiet and reserved, but this girl had walked right up to Ki-Tae and introduced herself. "Good morning to you too!" She responded extending her hand. "I'm Min Ki-Tae, Number 482. Today is my first day."

She smiled genuinely, interested in Einna. She was the first friendly face that she had seen since joining the company yesterday. Everyone else was so strict and fussy.

There was a knock on the door and Ki-Tae looked in that direction. "Ah 482 and (insert number), I'm glad I caught you two before class." The shorter Asian man wore a thick lensed pair of glasses and had a short business cut. This was the trainee manager. "I'm here to remind you that you need to fall under 120 pounds within this next year, as per your contract, and to remind you of the rules stated in your acceptance letter." He stood a moment looking the pair of girls up and down. "Girls like you are a dime a dozen. The real question is how bad you want this. I bet my superior that the girls accepted from your troop wouldn't make it a month... Your goal is to prove me wrong." And with that, the shrewd man waddled out the door. He more-so talked at the pair of girls than talked to them.

Ki-Tae bowed to him when he entered and when he left. "We must be from the same batch of trainees to be accepted. What skill did you audition with? I sang IU's Ending Scene" She looked to Einna and smiled sweetly awaiting her answer.

WC: 288
TWC: 718

[+2 to Vocal Skill - Ki-Tae]

[єℓσqυєи¢є]

Einna shook Ki-Tae's hand vigorously. "Wow, it's my first day too! I'm so excited and nervous! Mostly nervous."

She took some time to observe her surroundings. The room was mostly empty, except for the piano and microphone. By now, most of the trainees had begun to file in. Some where starting vocal exercises, whilst others had broken off into small groups to chat. She didn't have a chance to meet anyone as her plane had landed in Korea only a few days before, and she had to catch up on sleep. Einna was glad the first friend she made was Ki-Tae, who seemed as passionate about becoming an idol as she was.

As the stout asian man made his slightly threatening speech about doing their best, Einna reminded herself to hit the gym soon. She basically needed to halve her weight in twelve months. Einna began to regret that ice coffee she chugged not too long ago.

"Oh wow, I love IU! I admire her so much, and want to be a solo artist just like her!" Einna gushed after Ki-Tae told her what song she auditioned with. "I also decided to sing! I mean, it's the only thing I'm half-decent at. Thank god they didn't make me rap or dance. Anyways, I sang Leehi's Holo. I absolutely adore the meaning, and I thought it was perfect to show off my belt."

Einna glanced at the clock, which said 5:58am. The teacher would arrive soon, and she was excited to see what they would learn today.

WC: 260
TC: 446

(heyy, are you going to rp all the instructors?)

[Firefly_Dreamer]

"Ah- I don't really have any groups I am fans of. I just like music and like songs that mean something to me, or that I like the sound of." Ki-Tae confessed to the other girl. "I do know that song, however. It's really pretty and I like it, but It's not one of my favorites." She noticed the other girl's glance at the clock and saw how close the time was. She took her seat and patted the space next to her for Einna to sit at if she wanted to.

The teacher walked to the door of the classroom and shut it before beginning her lessons on the different styles of music; Opera, Jazz, Pop, Rock, Alternative, etc; when suddenly the door handle jiggled. Without missing a beat, the teacher walked to the door, opened it, and mid sentence announced "313 you are dismissed."

Ki-Tae could barely see out the classroom door from the angle she was at and she could see a young lady on the other side of the doorm bowing in apology. She began to argue and beg for her spot back, but the door was shut abruptly in her face before she could choke out a sentence. The teacher then proceeded to pick back up from the middle of her previous sentence continuing with ease.

Hours passed and three more trainees were cut for falling asleep in class, all before their break, to use the bathroom and eat, should the trainee choose to do so.

WC: 251
TWC: 969

[єℓσqυєи¢є]

Einna nodded as Ki-Tae explained her tastes in music. "No yeah, I totally get that."

She sat down beside Ki-Tae and waited eagerly for their first lesson. As the teacher began her lectures on the different genres of music, her interest began to waive. Einna was expecting a more active class where they would actually be singing, but she reminded herself that music theory is important too. She was jolted awake by the argument between the teacher and the late student, and was shocked at how she was immediately cut. As trainees were asked to leave, whether they disrupted class or failed to pay attention, Einna was reminded of the harsh reality she was living in. Still, this only served to motivate her.

Class dragged on for what seemed like eternity. The teacher droned on about the evolution of music in Korea, and how singing styles had mixed and interchanged throughout the decades. Einna found this slightly more interesting, but her muscles were beginning to ache from all the sitting. Thankfully, break had finally come.

"Gosh, that was absolutely brutal for a morning class," Einna yawned after the teacher left for her next class. "What do we have after break?"

She checked her schedule on her phone, answering her own question. "Ah, we have dance! Although it's not my best subject, I'm relieved we won't have to sit through another lecture. Anyways, I want to know more about you! What are your interests?"

WC: 243
TWC: 689

[+4 vocal stat]

[Firefly_Dreamer]

Once the teacher started talking about evolution in Korea, Ki-Tae became fidgety. It was almost noon and she was already feeling exhausted from the energy of the teacher teaching class. Her head began to throb just thinking about another class. Once the teacher dismissed for the half an hour break they had, Einna yawned and commented that she had dance class next.

"You have dance? I have vocals all day today..." She trailed, "Dance tomorrow, then I have rapping the day after, then Dance again, Acting, then ettiquette and Korean Language. That pretty much sums up my week. I think they assigned me as such because of what I'm weak at. I heard Idols often dance for 12 hours a day with only a couple breaks. I personally think we are lucky to get one. Other companies give their trainees no time, or at least that's what I've heard others say." After a moment, Ki-Tae remarked, "Oh, I think this next class will be more active, anyway. We'll get some singing done. Otherwise why would they pass out the sheet music?"

After a moment, Einna remarked that she wanted to know more about Ki-Tae, and Ki-Tae was taken aback by how friendly and personal she was. It was such a drastic change from the Korean Native Trainees who kept to themselves when not gossiping. "Ah, well, What can I say?" She started. "My father met my mother in America and stayed with her until I was born. He wanted a son and picked out my name as if I were a boy. They were so confident that they were having a boy that they didnt bother to pick out a girl's name. My father was very disappointed. Trying to appease him, my mother named me Ki-Tae anyway, but he had already packed up and left, finalizing the divorce not even a month later." Ki-Tae took a deep breath, crossing her arms and tapping on her forearm with the other hand. "He wants absolutely nothing to do with me now, and he doesn't want his 'past mistakes' around his current family." Ki-Tae sighed. "I want to make him see that what he's doing by disowning me is the wrong choice. I want to make him regret it." She stated seriously.

"But honestly, I've always wanted to be a singer, and when the option to become an Idol came up, I went for it. It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I just can't pass up."

After stating her History, Ki-Tae went on. "Well, my interests? I really want to learn more about the culture here, and The language is neat as well. Very difficult with all the ways to conjugate verbs. Otherwise, I like arts & crafts, and reading novels, watching K-dramas, etc; The food here is also very... interesting. I still haven't gotten used to the different flavors, but I'd much rather have my pasta back home. Ah- just mentioning it makes me hungry and homesick." she stated.

WC: 497
TWC: 1466

[Einna gets a +4 to stats from your dice roll. In the future, could you tell me whether tou want a weight roll or a stat roll when you surpass the required word count (Increments of 500)? I would much appreciate it so I know what I'm rolling for you ^^. I'll PM the image from your roll as evidence]

[Ki-Tae gets a +1 to Vocals]

[єℓσqυєи¢є]

"Oh right, we have vocal basics with Ms. Myeong after! Sorry, I must have looked at the wrong day. I guess that iced coffee wasn't enough to wake me up," Einna admitted. "I'm excited to finally start singing though! Do you think they'll make us do some diagnostic of sorts? Gosh, my heart's racing just thinking about it."

Einna began rolling the bottom right corner of her sheet music to calm her nerves. She had already learned basic music theory from piano lessons and morning choir, but she still fretted over the lyrics and notes. Einna had always been somewhat of a perfectionist, always striving towards a flawless performance. Still, everyone in this room seemed so confident and talented. Would she really be able to stand out from the crowd and make her dreams come true?

Ki-Tae began to open up about her past and her family troubles. Einna was shocked and angry for her friend when she revealed her rocky relationship with her father. Her family wholeheartedly supported her dreams, and she couldn't imagine a life otherwise. Even when they worked so hard to immigrate to America, they still let her travel to Korea to do what she wanted.

"I'm proud of you Ki-Tae," Einna said sincerely. "You didn't let anyone hold you back. That takes strength."

Einna and Ki-Tae chatted about common interests, and bonded over their origins in America. "Ugh, I love pasta too! My guilty pleasure food are those honey bread rolls you can find at basically every asian market. Obviously I can't have them anymore, because carbs are the antithesis of a diet."

She continued to lament about the loss of her comfort food, and pretty soon break was over. Ms. Myeong strided into the room on the dot, her periwinkle gossamer skirt trailing behind her. In her hands was a standard clipboard and pen. As she took her seat beside the piano, the trainees all stood up and bowed in greeting.

"Hello Ms. Myeong," they chorused.

"Hello trainees. We're going to sing a basic major scale to warm up our voices. Back straight, shoulders down, face forward," she instructed. Ms. Myeong placed her hands on the piano and began playing to guide the trainees.

"Do Re Me Fa So La Ti Do," Einna recited. The next ten minutes were spent on basic vocal exercises and stretching.

WC: 392
TWC: 1081

[I'd like to roll a stat dice please! Also, is there a specific song that you want the characters to work on during this class?]

[Firefly_Dreamer]

Ki-Tae was a little upset that she didn't have a chance to get something to eat before the teacher arrived, but she remained optimistic. She bowed in greeting to the teacher. "Annyeonghaseyo Ms. Myeong" she chimed in with the other trainees. She tried her hardest not to yawn, but her eyes were tearing up from her tiredness. She took a sip of her water bottle before they got into the warm-ups. Ki-Tae rather liked the few that happened to be in English.

Ki-Tae glanced at her sheet music and the title on it, that she hadn't even bothered to try reading before-hand. The piece was a bolder piece, something that didn't really suit her soft delicate voice. It was ITZY's 달라 달라 or Dalla Dalla. It was a song about being different and loving who you are. Not needing to change for anyone. It was kind of ironic that in a Kpop talent agency where they needed to change to fit Korean beauty standards, that they would be singing about not changing.

Ki-Tae was excited to go over it in group, but dreaded when she would have to sing it by herself in front of everyone, or at least that's how she would expect it to go. Everything was so fast-paced here, and if you didn't pick up quickly you were gone. She figured that they would run through it less than five times and then each student would have to perform it. Then again, she could be wrong.

WC: 249
TWC: 1715

[Einna gets a +2 to stats]
[Ki-Tae gets a +4 to stats]