Kpop Idol.
Demi-romantic/Demi-sexual / queer.
Dating Josh.
01/04/1994.
28.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
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Post by Yeo Taehoon on Aug 1, 2020 15:35:38 GMT -8
Taehoon had been working on trying to incorporate some rhythms and movements from a few styles of latin dance, including some of the leans that got used in partner dancing, as he was working on a piece of choreography. There were two problems with this, the first being that he was actually having to go back and refresh his memory and learn new elements of a style he'd not touched in years. The second was that he currently didn't have anyone to really practice this with.
He could always drag Josh-hyung into helping him, but there was definitely a part of him that was embarrassed by that idea with how these dances were. He also just didn't really want Josh to see him fumbling with elements of a dance. This was of course a style that no one that he knew of in the company was terribly proficient in.
So he took up the side studio for several hours, music playing, and tried things that he'd seen in videos, trying to get himself to settle into the movements and get a feel for the rhythms. Some of it had come back quickly enough from the classes that he'd taken before his military service. He remembered how to do the more fluid hip isolations well enough, but some of it seemed like it would be so intimate that it made him nervous, even if that was part of the point of him digging into this style.
Elena Moon
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Dreams Ent Trainee.
Bisexual.
Single.
04/13/2005.
17.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Velexa.
Offline.
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Post by Elena Moon on Aug 1, 2020 16:09:10 GMT -8
Elena was heading back up to the dormitory when she felt her blood sing. She didn't know why, but suddenly she wanted to dance. She realized it must be because she could hear latin music coming from the side dance studio. She grinned and charged towards the door, remembering her manners and opening it slightly, peeking in.
She saw a boy working on some of the steps for a medley of styles. She thought he might have been trained classically at some point, but latin dance was less about counting and more about feeling. She could tell he was trying to feel the music, but it wasn't quite natural. She was rather impressed by the strong hip movements though.
She stepped into the room and closed the door behind her while she waited for the next move when he'd need a partner. The move in question required spinning a partner several times before leaning them back into a dip. It also required one of those sensual touches from neck to navel, during the dip, but she wasn't sure he'd be confident enough to pull that off.
She quickly stepped in, keeping to the beat to execute the turns and dip with him, hoping he'd just go along with it instead of dropping her, but she was mentally prepared to be dropped.
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Kpop Idol.
Demi-romantic/Demi-sexual / queer.
Dating Josh.
01/04/1994.
28.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
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Post by Yeo Taehoon on Aug 1, 2020 16:22:50 GMT -8
Taehoon blinked a few times when the new girl basically materialized in front of him. Elena, he remembered. Seojin had mentioned her, several times, and Taehoon had of course seen her when he'd been helping with preparations for JBN's debut. He was a practiced enough dancer, and had done partnered dances enough in the past that he entered dance frame with a partner easily enough when she basically inserted herself in the dance, leading her into spins and a dip with a lean. He was pretty sure that he was missing several important elements of the dip, but it did help with understanding the balance of it.
He lifted her back out of the dip, and stepped back, saying, "Hello Elena, I'd ask if you normally went around inserting yourself in dances, but I've heard enough from Seojin to be fairly certain that the answer is yes. That was helpful though. I've not practiced things from these styles in ages, and I'm rusty."
He wasn't particularly ruffled by her closeness, but he did start running through the movement in his head again, saying, "I take it that these are some of the styles you're most familiar with though?"
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Dreams Ent Trainee.
Bisexual.
Single.
04/13/2005.
17.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Velexa.
Offline.
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Post by Elena Moon on Aug 1, 2020 16:37:48 GMT -8
Elena was pleasantly surprised when she didn't ruffle Taehoon's feathers. "I am Elena! You're the Yuseong member who was added at the last minute, like me! " she said excitedly.
"So depending on which dance you were doing, that dip might have gone lower or contained a swinging motion to it," she explained, giving herself time to think of his name.
"Taejoon-oppa, right?" she was happy she'd remembered it, unaware she'd remembered incorrectly. "Yes, my reputation proceeds me, I most definitely insert myself into random dances."
She moved beside Taehoon and did the footwork he'd been practicing. "You were really close, I've seen a lot of people do this step for competitions but the actual step is like this, which is actually much easier," she said, showing the variation.
"But you move your hips really well. I was very impressed," she grabbed his hands and placed them on her hips, "but for that move with the body roll, your hips come in last. So you'd roll the top part of your body without moving these," she demonstrated the move, keeping his hands on her hips to show they were stable, "then at the end, these come in really quick to help with that latin flair." She completed the move, then did the whole thing again in slow motion.
"If you need a partner or want to practice," she put her hand up in the air and jumped a few times, "pick me teacher!"
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Kpop Idol.
Demi-romantic/Demi-sexual / queer.
Dating Josh.
01/04/1994.
28.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
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Post by Yeo Taehoon on Aug 1, 2020 17:31:42 GMT -8
Taehoon chuckled, amused by her enthusiasm, and said, "You're close. It's Taehoon. And yes, I was the member added to Yuseong at the last minute. Apparently the CEO is trying to start a tradition. He will need to find a last minute trainee for the boys. On the other hand, I was a replacement trainee."
He laughed and said, "I've only gotten training in these styles for the competitive style, and I didn't go very far in partnered dances because I didn't have a regular partner. I'm out of practice for sure. I wasn't trying to do a specific style, I'm borrowing for choreography purposes and trying to get myself back in practice so that I can borrow well, but maybe closer to a samba rhythm and feel. How would you style a dip like that in that context."
He watched her carefully, and imitated the moves that she'd demonstrated, incorporating them into the surrounding steps. They did feel like they were less forced in the context of the dance. He nodded and said, "That does feel more right. Thank you."
He looked at her contemplatively and said, "If you're free now, I was trying to work out how leans and drags worked again, but those aren't things that I can do solo. I was contemplating going and getting Josh-hyung but he doesn't know much latin dance at all, so I'd rather be confident with what I'm doing before I drag him into it."
He gave her a questioning look. He wondered if she'd ask about what he was trying to choreograph for, and he wondered if he described the idea of the choreography more if it would make her more helpful or less helpful.
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Dreams Ent Trainee.
Bisexual.
Single.
04/13/2005.
17.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Velexa.
Offline.
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Post by Elena Moon on Aug 1, 2020 17:55:25 GMT -8
"Taehoon, right. Sorry. Yeah, I hope it was a smoother entrance into Yuseong than it has been for me and JBN." Elena said. Then realizing it sounded like she wasn't fitting in she quickly corrected, "I mean the fact that I knew I was joining but no one else did. The JBN members have been great and really welcoming."
"I'm surprised you're considering samba. A dip would depend on the music, so I can't answer until I hear it, but samba has a lot of drags, lifts and spins and fewer dips. Usually the person dancing the traditionally female role needs to be fairly flexible because often legs are used," she lifted her leg straight up in the air, "to execute turns and other moves."
She put her leg back down. "It's also very slinky, where you're crawling almost slithering on and around each other. It's not what I would expect to see in Korean choreography." Her interest was officially piqued, "what are you choreographing? I'm happy to help with drags and dips and anything you need."
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Kpop Idol.
Demi-romantic/Demi-sexual / queer.
Dating Josh.
01/04/1994.
28.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
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Post by Yeo Taehoon on Aug 1, 2020 18:08:01 GMT -8
Taehoon laughed and said, "I was an emergency lead dancer replacement. I had a smoother interpersonal incorporation into the group with some members than others, but most of them were really relieved that I was there because I ended up basically teaching them the debut choreography because they'd lost their original line up main dancer right before they got the choreo but after debut date was already set. It helped that I got along really well with Josh-hyung right from the start. We're all close now though."
Taehoon shrugged and said, "It would definitely not be a terribly traditional samba, but back when I did study the competitive latin styles, it was the one I was the best at, though from what my teacher said I sometimes had trouble meaning it, unless I thought that the music I was using had an interesting story. I wanted something that went with more of the drags and spins and lifts though and fewer dips, I find the dips harder when the choreo is with someone very close to me in size."
He hesitated for a moment and then shrugged, saying, "The CEO's having Josh-hyung and I release a duet, the first subunit for Yuseong, and I wanted to do something different. People expect me to be a little bit offbeat for Korea because I'm only half Korean, but because I'm born and raised in Korea half Korean, it's a little mixed in terms of what they expect. Who would be leading and following would be switching back and forth some, there's a storyline to it, but with that in mind, while Josh-hyung is flexible enough, I'm definitely the one with the advantage on that front and will probably need to keep that in mind. On the other hand, I'm going to have an easier time with being the one doing the lifting, since he's only a little taller, and I'm a bit heavier."
He watched Elena, considering how she would respond to his explanation, intentionally left somewhat vague.
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Dreams Ent Trainee.
Bisexual.
Single.
04/13/2005.
17.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Velexa.
Offline.
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Post by Elena Moon on Aug 1, 2020 18:18:55 GMT -8
Elena wasn't one for details, she'd heard all she needed. It was going to be samba inspired with two men switching the leading positions. "I'd advise against lifts unless one of you is significantly lighter than the other. Samba isn't really about the run and jump lifts where you can prepare. It's closer and takes more small muscle movements to execute the lift. They're also fairly frequent in face to face interactions. I'd worry about you injuring yourself."
She took a turn around the studio to think, "drags will involve a little lifting but I think that'll be much better, and if you decide to do the sensual intertwining parts, I think you could get away with fewer lifts."
She returned to her place in front of Taehoon, "are you planning to do any of the leg parts?" She clapped excitedly, "I'm really impressed the company is doing this. There needs to be more homosexual representation in Korea."
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Kpop Idol.
Demi-romantic/Demi-sexual / queer.
Dating Josh.
01/04/1994.
28.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
|
Post by Yeo Taehoon on Aug 1, 2020 18:49:57 GMT -8
Taehoon replied, "I can do static lifts and unprepped lifts with Josh-hyung. He's not a ton lighter than I am, but we've used lifts in choreo before."
He nodded along to her comment about drags and was about to respond to her comment about about doing the legs part when she got to her conclusion statement, and he busted up laughing. He did an over dramatic, "Shh," and said, "Don't warn the CEO, please. It's got to be plausibly deniable subtle, but I've been given a lot of artistic freedom with this, and I'm sure that plenty of people are going to figure it out, but I've got to keep it within certain bounds so that it doesn't get too high a rating."
He was still chuckling, but he said, "And yeah, the legs are one of the parts that I remember more confidently. If you can do a bit of lead, you can check if I'm overestimating my skill level with legs."
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Dreams Ent Trainee.
Bisexual.
Single.
04/13/2005.
17.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Velexa.
Offline.
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Post by Elena Moon on Aug 1, 2020 19:12:40 GMT -8
Elena nodded, glad to hear that Taehoon seemed to know his limits. "Since the drags will have slight lifts in them, I would limit the dance to having only one or two actual lifts to minimize risk of injury."
She walked around behind Taehoon and put her hands on his back, "lean back on my hands, I need to see how much of you I can support to see if I can help you with leg work."
She was surprised when Taehoon admitted to the choreography representing homosexuality. She told herself not to, but couldn't help it, "are you gay?" She stomped her foot at herself, "Unnie told me to stop asking people that," she muttered to herself.
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Kpop Idol.
Demi-romantic/Demi-sexual / queer.
Dating Josh.
01/04/1994.
28.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
|
Post by Yeo Taehoon on Aug 1, 2020 19:24:33 GMT -8
Taehoon nodded and said, "That sounds about right on the amount of lifts. They're good accent pieces, but I wouldn't want to spend an entire song doing them."
Taehoon leaned back into her hands, keeping his core engaged so that he was supporting as much of his weight as possible as he leaned. He was barely taller than her, no more than a centimeter or two, but he guessed that he probably outweighed her by a good ten kilos just from her build, though he also knew that he was heavier than he looked to most people, so he could be misjudging her as well.
He waited until he stood back up to answer her question, "Seojin's right, you probably shouldn't just go around asking people that. In the context of this conversation, it's probably OK though. The answer is not precisely. The word for it that I know is demisexual, demiromantic, but most of the people I've had any interest in in my life have been men. That's not common knowledge, though most of the other Yuseong members know at this point, and a few trainees, though I don't think that Seojin's one of them, and Thomas. If I was talking to someone who didn't know that much about it, but for some reason was telling them, I'd probably say that I was gay because it would be simpler."
He knew that there was a degree of danger in telling her, but she'd made her stance pretty clear, and Taehoon was a pretty open person when asked things directly.
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Dreams Ent Trainee.
Bisexual.
Single.
04/13/2005.
17.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Velexa.
Offline.
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Post by Elena Moon on Aug 1, 2020 19:41:06 GMT -8
Elena tested Taehoon's weight and tried to judge whether or not she could help him. She wasn't completely sure, so they'd just have to do their early practice runs near a wall so he could catch himself if she couldn't support him.
She nearly dropped him then when he said Seojin's name. "What? Why do you Seojin-unnie told me not to ask that? Sorry," she said as she tried to calm herself. She'd made sure not to say Seojin's name because she hadn't wanted her involved. Why would Seojin warn her off such a question unless she'd asked Seojin that question. She hadn't wanted her outed or anything. She put on her best smile and tried to pretend it was all normal.
"Yeah, Seojin-unnie has a lot of work to do when it comes to me and my Spanish-ness. What is demisexual or demiromantic in English or Spanish. They're not words I recognize in Korean," she asked.
She was surprised Seojin didn't know about Taehoon's sexuality. She might be more comfortable if she knew there were others in the company who were hiding their true selves.
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Kpop Idol.
Demi-romantic/Demi-sexual / queer.
Dating Josh.
01/04/1994.
28.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
|
Post by Yeo Taehoon on Aug 1, 2020 19:54:27 GMT -8
Taehoon replied soothingly, "I didn't mean to unsettle you. I guess it could have been Shieon or Hayun, but I doubt it would occur to Hayun to say such a thing, and between what you've said and what Seojin has mentioned, I'm pretty sure that you were mostly spending time around her. It was an educated guess."
Taehoon nodded and said in English, "That would be demisexual and demiromantic, I don't know the words in Spanish, and I couldn't remember if you're one of the ones who speaks English or not. My Spanish isn't completely fluent, and I get mixed up between Spanish and Tagalog sometimes because I learned them from the same grandparent, so be warned if I'm ever using Spanish with you and switch into a language you don't know, that's what's going on."
He turned towards her and said, "What do you think, can you support my weight enough to see whether I'm decent enough at legs?"
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Dreams Ent Trainee.
Bisexual.
Single.
04/13/2005.
17.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Velexa.
Offline.
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Post by Elena Moon on Aug 1, 2020 20:02:35 GMT -8
Elena nodded her head, Taehoon was making logical leaps so hopefully Seojin's secret was still safe. She was starting to remember Hayun talking about someone who kept everyone's schedules and helped the manager and Seojin talking about someone who danced with her a lot and helped with choreography. Those people must be one person: Taehoon. She her brain figured stuff out eventually.
"Demisexual... Demiromantic," she said the words to herself in English, "I'll have to look them up in a translator. Can you explain what they mean?"
"If we try our first few times doing leg work near the wall, then I think I'll know better. I don't want to say yes and then drop you, so I want to make sure you can catch yourself," she explained.
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Kpop Idol.
Demi-romantic/Demi-sexual / queer.
Dating Josh.
01/04/1994.
28.
Rooster (Korea)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
|
Post by Yeo Taehoon on Aug 1, 2020 20:44:39 GMT -8
Taehoon nodded to her question and said, "They're a similar idea, for both areas of attraction, but it means that I don't start developing any real sort of attraction to someone before knowing them very very well and being platonically very close to them. Everyone I've ever had any sort of attraction to was a close friends for years before I was interested in them that way."
He headed towards the wall and said, "Working near the wall to start with makes sense. Don't worry about it too much though, I'm good at catching myself if need be, and in this particular context, it helps that can do the splits in whichever direction."
He wasn't particularly worried about Elena dropping him. He knew how to fall, and he was generally pretty good at disengaging if someone was going to drop him and he felt it coming. He said, "Don't try to push yourself beyond your comfort point though. I can drag Josh-hyung down here at some point and have you give him lessons. And I know that I can lean on him without there being danger of knocking him over, at least once he knows what he's doing."
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