(Takes place 2 years before debut)
Minchae had only been a trainee at HYBE for three weeks, but she already felt like a ghost haunting the practice rooms. Long days. Aching muscles. Not enough sleep, and not enough progress—at least that's how it felt to her.
She was stretching in the corner of Studio B when the door creaked open.
"Practice rooms are stacked again," one voice muttered.
"Oh, this one's empty," said another.
Minchae blinked, sweat dripping down her temple. She turned, and her heart stopped.
Jung Hoseok. J-Hope. Her bias. Her everything.
There he was in all his casual glory—black beanie, oversized tee, and that energy that even the walls seemed to recognize. He smiled at something the staff said, and it hit her like a dance break.
He was real.
Minchae scrambled to look like she wasn't completely malfunctioning. She tugged her hoodie over her head and pretended to tie her shoe.
He walked in.
He was getting closer.
"Mind if we share the room for a bit?" he asked, voice as warm as she imagined it.
Minchae looked up, eyes wide. "I—uh—yes! I mean, no! I mean—of course, sunbaenim!"
J-Hope chuckled. "You're new, huh? What's your name?"
Her brain short-circuited.
"M-Minchae. Yoo Minchae."
"Nice to meet you, Minchae-ssi." He gave a small bow, still smiling. "Keep going. Don't let us interrupt."
Then he turned to stretch near the mirror, completely relaxed, as if he hadn't just altered the trajectory of her entire existence.
Minchae stared at her reflection. Her face was tomato red. Her heart was in her throat. But for the first time since becoming a trainee—
She felt something more than exhaustion.
She felt hope.