As the dance auditions continued, time went by zoom, and three sections were already finished.
Jazz funk for the first verse, hip-hop for the first chorus, and hip-hop for the rap section.
Everyone had absolutely given it their all, and all of the trainees had auditioned for the first three sections. With hip-hop being in mostly everyone's wheelhouse, a lot of the trainees breezed through them. Jazz funk was more on the technical side, but for many of the trainees, it was still relatively easy to adapt to, especially since the style's vibe was fairly close to hip-hop.
The first three sections had all been on the easy-to-medium difficulty range.
But now?
Now it was time to go straight into hell mode.
Ballroom.
And for a lot of these trainees, ballroom was basically an entirely different language that they'd have to learn on the spot.
Now, it wasn't like they were all being forced to audition for the section. They could opt out if they wanted to.
But here's the thing.
If only a small chunk of the trainees auditioned for the section, then most of the screen time would naturally be focused on them for the entire section.
And that meant more chances to stand out.
Maybe.
Don't quote me on that.
But the gist of the matter was simple: more screen time meant more time to shine. And with fewer people in the section, there were fewer bodies competing for the camera's attention.
There could only be so many people the camera could focus on at once.
So, really, it was a win.
The thing was, a lot of these trainees had never done ballroom in their entire lives. Some might have seen it on TV or somewhere else, but for others, LEAVEN was their very first encounter with ballroom.
So it was safe to say that most of the trainees were still at the beginner level, or advanced at most.
Well...
There was Yone.
Yone had literally been raised in a ballroom studio by both of his parents, who just so happened to be world ballroom champions.
So yeah.
That was a whole different situation.
But Yone was a whole other situation when it came to dancing altogether, so it wouldn't exactly be fair to compare him to the rest of the muggles.
Meanwhile, on the evaluators' side, they were having a very different kind of conversation.
"Y'all, I admit ballroom ain't my lane of expertise, so I'm going on vibes alone," Dora said honestly. "I'mma let Sir Foca handle all the technical side of things."
"Gurl! He the only one who's qualified to judge anything ballroom on this panel," Tuesday said. "So what I'm gonna focus on is their energy and their hip action."
She paused dramatically.
"Oooooo, I just love me some men who ain't afraid to move them hips!"
"I do quite enjoy the sight as well," Cat honestly admitted.
"Period!" Dora said, clapping her fingers.
Foca and Luca couldn't help but smile at the conversation happening around them.
"Well, babe, I guess you have your work cut out for you," Luca said in a low tone that only he and Foca could hear.
"It's always a pleasure," Foca simply said.
Then he glanced at Luca.
"And don't call me babe. We are at work."
Foca gave Luca a little scolding, which only made Luca's smirk grow bigger.
"But you still love me even when I'm a bad boy," Luca said teasingly, making Foca huff.
"I love you, period. Now stop being a bad boy or you won't get snuggles later."
Luca's eyes widened in horror.
"No. You wouldn't dare deprive me of my snuggles."
"Try me..." Foca simply said.
Luca went completely speechless.
Because knowing Foca, Luca knew he would absolutely, positively, abso-bloody-lutely make good on his promise.
Foca didn't make empty threats.
If he said something, he would do it.
And that realization made Luca sit back in his chair, crossing his arms and pouting like a disgruntled little child who had just been informed that bedtime was non-negotiable.
Foca chuckled.
"Good boy."
He softly ruffled Luca's hair.
That was all it took.
Luca immediately beamed brightly again, all previous suffering apparently forgotten, and swiftly planted a soft peck on Foca's cheek.
This whole interaction?
You bet your asses it was all caught in 5K.
The trainees saw it.
The other evaluators saw it.
The cameras saw it.
Everyone and their mothers were being force-fed sugar at this point.
And honestly?
It was probably a good thing.
After all the intensity of the auditions, they could use a little sweetness before ballroom came along to humble everybody.
****
And so, the auditions began.
"Alright, everybody, first group, please." Foca called out.
And here's the thing about some of the trainees. Credit where credit is due, they actually used their heads on this one.
Because hear me out. Some of these trainees had really studied up on their ballroom.
Why?
Because they knew that not a lot of trainees would actually audition for this section. Ballroom had all that hard hip action, intricate footwork, and enough technique to humble a person in approximately three seconds. So they figured that if they really studied up on this section, they might have a better chance of getting some screentime.
And they weren't wrong.
They really said, Let me play the long game.
Big brain moment.
5D chess.
Calculations were calculating.
But then, just as some of them were about to step onto the stage, a lone figure was already walking past them.
And, of course, it had to be Yone.
Once again.
The moment they saw Yone step up, they immediately backed up.
The evaluators saw this and found it absolutely hilarious.
"They were like, 'Ooopp... never mind.'" Tuesday said, reenacting the trainees backing away with a dramatically exaggerated flourish.
"No, thank you! Have a great day." Dora joined in.
"That was the fastest 'nope' I've ever seen!" Luca said, laughing.
And honestly?
Who could blame them?
Because when Yone, a man who was basically born in a ballroom studio, walked up, he carried a completely different aura from every other genre they'd seen him perform.
It wasn't even the same kind of confidence.
This was the aura of someone who was genuinely at home.
Like the man had just walked into his natural habitat.
"Yone, you're wearing your ballroom shoes!" Foca said, clearly pleasantly surprised.
"When I got the chance to visit back home, my parents literally had my ballroom shoes ready at the front door, waiting for me when I opened the door to my parents' house." Yone shared, smiling at the memory. "I hadn't even gotten to say 'tadaima' yet, and my dad had practically changed my shoes into my ballroom ones and dragged me to the studio."
The evaluators laughed.
"From there, he had me start doing drills to brush up on my ballroom."
"Sounds like a great experience." Foca said sincerely.
"It really was." Yone smiled. "I never knew how much I missed ballroom until then. And my parents had these proud, happy faces on them the whole time. So... it was really fun."
Yone's smile widened slightly.
"My dad practically shoved my ballroom shoes into my suitcase, telling me that he would happily pay the extra luggage fee if that meant I got to bring my shoes. So here I am. At home, with shoes and all."
"So, does anybody want to group up with this guy over here?" Luca asked, looking over at the trainees.
The response was...
Silence.
Not a single trainee made eye contact.
Suddenly, the floor was fascinating.
The ceiling? Enlightening.
Their nails? Apparently the most captivating things they'd ever seen in their lives.
One trainee looked like they were about to discover a new form of life in the cracks of the stage floor.
Luca chuckled.
"I don't blame y'all."
"Well, I guess it's going to be a one-man group, then." Foca said, also finding the situation hilarious, but graciously allowing the other trainees to escape with their dignity mostly intact.
Because, like...
Let's be for real.
Putting the other trainees up there with Yone would only highlight the gap even more.
The fact that Yone's ballroom technique was far beyond the rest of the trainees' would become painfully obvious within approximately half a count.
It wouldn't just make Yone look good.
It would make everybody else look like they had wandered into the wrong audition room.
Like, kiddie beginner amateur bad.
And that's me being polite.
"Bring it!" Yone said, more than happy to have his solo moment.
And bring it, he did.
****
Once the music started, his presence suddenly exploded.
Movements? Sharp.
Flicks? On point.
Hip movements? Hypnotizing.
And the face-ography? Yone's expressions. The smirks, the winks, the genuine joy plastered across his face while dancing, brought the performance to a whole new level.
He wasn't just dancing.
He was performing.
And when he winked at one of the trainees, the poor bastard suddenly lost his damn mind.
"Ahhhhhhh! He winked at me!" the trainee shouted. "Oh my God, he winked at me! Step on me, sir!"
And the other trainees were no different.
"Dude, how does one's hip even move like that?" another trainee asked, seemingly to no one in particular. Perhaps the cosmos. Perhaps God himself.
"I guess you could say his hips don't lie. It's very hip-notizing..." Nemesis said, looking far too proud of himself.
Everyone who heard him immediately groaned.
Some rolled their eyes.
One trainee actually looked like he was reconsidering every life choice that had led him to this moment.
"Let's take you to bed, Grandpa," Lan said.
"Let's take Ibuprofen together, Nemesis," Cealan added.
"Doctor, the patient is acting up again," Ramon said.
"This little motherfuckers..." Nemesis muttered, physically restraining himself from smacking the three of them into oblivion.
Now, back to Yone.
Once he finished and struck his final pose, everyone couldn't help but erupt into applause.
"Alright, everyone, pack it up! We already have a winner," Ryu declared, slow-clapping as he shook his head.
"Oji-chan really do be insane in his element," Corsair said.
At that moment, Yone's ears twitched.
He immediately knew the two little gremlins were talking shit about his age again.
Of course they were.
"Yone, I just have to say..." Cat began, practically glowing with admiration. "This is your world, and we are just visiting. Watching you be in your element with all the confidence in the world was truly a genuine pleasure to watch."
"I agree a million percent!" Tuesday said. "And what I liked about it the most was the whole vibe of it. You, sir, brought something that only comes with your age."
Yone raised an eyebrow.
Tuesday pointed at him.
"And I know yo ass gets teased a lot about your age. But here's the thing. It worked in your favor. It brought a sense of maturity that none of these other babies can bring."
She gestured dramatically toward the younger trainees.
"You was not trying to be sexy. You didn't have to try hard at all, because it just comes natural, and I love it so much!"
"What she said!" Dora agreed vehemently. "That's what I was feeling! I couldn't describe it earlier, but when Queen Tuesday said you brought maturity, I was like, YES! YES! Because I felt like I was actually seeing a dancer dance his age."
She snapped her fingers for emphasis.
"It gives off a certain finesse. Elegance. That, just like Tuesday said, that certain sex appeal."
She pointed at Yone.
"You movin' with intention. And it doesn't feel juvenile or try-hard at all. You was confident in yo own skin up on that stage, and you for sho as hell delivered!"
Dora threw both hands into the air.
"CAN I GET AN AMEN?!"
"Amen!" everyone responded.
Even Yone.
"Thank you!" Yone said, bowing in gratitude.
Dora wasn't finished.
"Oh, and don't be lettin' that shit about you being too old to be in a pop group get to you. Thirty ain't old, people!"
She paused.
"But it does qualify one to be Daddy."
The room went suspiciously quiet.
Dora slowly looked Yone up and down.
"And I just have to say..."
She pointed at him.
"You were Daddy.
"Up."
She pointed downward.
"In."
Another point.
"There."
The trainees erupted.
"TRUER WORDS HAVE NEVER BEEN SPOKEN!" Tuesday said in solemn agreement, enthusiastically finger-clapping.
****
Yone couldn't help but smile as the trainees cheered for him.
"Daddy!"
"Daddy!"
"Daddy!"
The trainees chanted, and Yone basked in all its glory.
He turned to Ryu and Corsair, head cocked to the side, a smug little smirk plastered across his face. His expression very clearly said, Hear that? Ain't old, but I'm definitely Daddy material.
Ryu and Corsair immediately rolled their eyes before making the infamous 6-7 gesture, the one that had never once failed to ragebait Yone.
The smirk on Yone's face slowly sharpened.
And sharpened.
Until it became a downright deadly smirk.
His expression now very clearly said, Count your days, you little shits.
A shiver ran down both Ryu and Corsair's spines.
Those eyes were not joking.
Not even a little.
They suddenly had the distinct feeling that they had made several poor life choices.
After another minute or two of cheering, chanting, and general chaos, the crowd finally settled down.
"I just have to say, I'm very happy to see you back to dancing ballroom again, Yone. It truly brings joy to my heart," Foca said with a warm smile.
Yone's expression softened.
"Actually, my parents and I would like to thank you, Sir Foca." His voice carried genuine gratitude. "That day when you personally taught the class, you somehow brought me back to my roots with that impromptu tango we did."
He paused, his smile becoming a little more tender.
"When my parents saw me dancing ballroom again, they couldn't have been happier. They always told me how grateful they were, and that they owed you so much for bringing me back to my roots."
Yone gave Foca a sincere bow.
"So, on behalf of my parents and me, thank you so much, Sir Foca. You have done so much for me and my parents, more than you could ever imagine."
A round of applause erupted from the trainees.
Yone straightened and gave them a grateful smile, his eyes glistening slightly as he took in the warmth of the room.
Once the applause settled, Foca chuckled softly.
"Honestly, at the time, I just missed dancing ballroom, so I kind of dragged you into an improvised partnering exercise, knowing full well of your background."
A few trainees snickered.
Foca continued, his expression turning more thoughtful.
"That said, there's something really special when you dance ballroom, Yone. And please, don't mistake me saying that as me saying you're not good at other styles of dancing."
He shook his head.
"In fact, I can confidently say that you are a dancer who isn't caged to one style at all. You are an excellent dancer, Yone. That much is a given."
Foca smiled.
"But there is just... something special when you dance ballroom."
His gaze softened with genuine admiration.
"It's truly a marvel to witness your artistry. The way you carry yourself, the way you move with your partner, the way you tell a story without saying a single word. There is a certain elegance to you when you dance ballroom that is difficult to put into words."
He placed a hand over his chest.
"And it's an honor to be able to witness it."
Yone swallowed.
"Thank you so much, Sir Foca."
His voice came out softer than he intended.
He blinked rapidly, trying very hard not to get choked up in front of everyone.
Hearing Foca call him an excellent dancer shouldn't have affected him this much.
But it did.
Because those words weren't just praise.
They were validation.
And now, hearing it from someone he respected so deeply...
It meant everything.
****
PS: Hi, guys!
I would like to start by saying how incredibly thankful I am to all of you. I genuinely appreciate each and every one of you and all the support you've given me!
That said, please forgive this author for not being able to update as much as I'd like. It's just that life happened, along with several other things that are all happening at the same time. My creative juices just aren't juicing the way they should. 😅
I'm asking for your patience and understanding as I try to navigate this little journey called life.
And please don't worry. I'll update whenever I can. I love this story, and I promise I won't let it go unfinished. It deserves an ending, and I intend to give it one.
Thank you all so much for your understanding, patience, and love!
Love yah, guys! Mwuahhh! 😘