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[sup][color=A7CCCC][b]Location:[/b][/color] Practice Room  →  Basement
[color=A7CCCC][b]Interacting with:[/b][/color] Yuzuru [@OliveYou][/sup][/center][hr][hr]
[indent][indent][indent][b]“Are you eating well? Have you been getting enough rest?”[/b]

[color=A7CCCC][b]“Dad—”[/b][/color]

[b]“Is anyone picking on you? You have to tell me if anyone’s picking on you. Your mom and I are worried, you know?”[/b]

[color=A7CCCC][b]“Dad, I’m fine. How’s mom?”[/b][/color]

[b]“Oh, hang on, I’ll just…”[/b]

Some rustling followed by a muffled shout fills Jasper’s left ear. He fiddles with a loose string in his hand for a few more moments before a familiar voice all but [i]bursts[/i] from the phone, nearly making him jump out of his skin in shock.

[i][b]“Jasper Nam! Oh my God, why haven’t you called?”[/b][/i]

[color=A7CCCC][i][b]“Hi, mom. Yeah, sorry, I’ve been kinda busy preparing for stuff.”[/b][/i][/color]

The call only ends a full twenty minutes later, after reassuring his parents that he wasn’t going to die of starvation, and also apologising for being a terrible son who never phoned. Most calls with his parents follow a similar pattern – them grilling him about every last detail of his daily life, and Jasper doing his best to placate them without sounding [i]too[/i] annoyed. By the end of it, he’s winded, almost like he just ran a marathon, but he really couldn’t fault them for worrying. He [i]was[/i] living away from home for the very first time.

Truth be told, South Korea still felt more like home to Jasper than the States. He was born here, spent the majority of his childhood years within the sprawling metropolis of Seoul, and he was always better at Korean than English, anyway. Time and time again, he would get looks from people when he spoke to them as fluently as a local would, some even reacting with disbelief, though that was something he’s long since gotten used to.

Here, holed up in an empty practice room, Jasper has spent the past few hours doing vocal warm-ups and memorizing choreography. It was evaluation day, that much he knew, and he wasn’t about to be caught off-guard like [i]last time[/i]. He feels a chill run up his spine when he remembers the cold, disapproving stare of one of the managers when he messed up the choreography for his performance. In AS Entertainment, it was something of an open secret that Jasper was born with two left feet, or at least that was how it seemed whenever he tried to move his body in any meaningful way. Perhaps he was just too tall — long, gangling limbs weren’t exactly conducive for dance, after all. Or maybe his 

Whatever the reason, it still didn’t change the fact that he needed to work on his dance skills (or lack thereof). Achieving success in the K-pop industry wasn’t as simple as being good at one thing, you had to be the full package. Singing, dancing, not to mention looking like you just stepped out of a fashion magazine, were all important factors that contributed towards the making of a star. That’s what Jasper tells himself as he watches [url=https://youtu.be/heIvcW7nw5U]a practice video[/url] on his phone for what seemed to be the thousandth time. Just how did these people dance so effortlessly?

And then, the intercom rings out across the entire building, summoning every single trainee into what Jasper has since dubbed [i]The Basement™[/i] — capitalized for an extra sense of doom, obviously. He still hasn’t gotten the choreography down perfect yet, but he should be able to get through this without any slip-ups, right? God, he hoped so. The last thing he needed was another dance-related mishap.

With a sigh, he climbs back onto his feet, wincing a little at the high-pitched squeak his sneakers make against the flooring. No time for a shower, it seems. If he was the only one who showed up late for evals… he shuddered to think of the consequences.

Using a towel, Jasper dries the sweat from his face. He also pulls off the shirt he’s wearing to swap it out for a new one — more laundry for later. It’s only after he douses himself with a generous spray of citrus-scented deodorant that he starts to head for the basement. On the way there, he passes by a gaggle of trainees that seemed more intent on stalling for time than facing the inevitable. They hovered just outside the basement door, whispering amongst themselves about something he couldn’t quite catch.

[color=A7CCCC][b]“Um, excuse me. Are you guys going inside, too?”[/b][/color]

At the sound of his voice, the group’s conversation grinds to a screeching halt, and they turn to look at Jasper with such perfect sync that he wanted to back away slowly, then run for the hills once he was out of eyeshot. But after an uncomfortably long moment, one of the group finally decides to head inside, causing the rest to follow suit, though not before shooting him a look that could only be described as [i]disdainful[/i].

Deciding not to waste any more time, Jasper slips inside the room as well, and casts his eyes about for an empty seat. Most of them were already taken, of course, so he couldn’t exactly be choosy about who he wanted to sit with. In the end, he finds himself awkwardly hovering on the outskirts of another trainee’s personal bubble. What was his name again? It definitely started with a Y — Yuji? Yuta? He’s seen him around the building before, mostly practicing dance, but for the time being, he was having a bit of trouble remembering his name.

Ah, doesn’t matter. He’ll figure it out along the way.

[color=A7CCCC][b]“Do you mind if I sit here?”[/b][/color] He asks, gesturing to the empty seat next to the other. Jasper’s voice is surprisingly soft and gentle when he speaks, though he doesn’t get a response before the first trainee is being called up on stage.[/indent][/indent][/indent]
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