#no more wannabe hip hop ty >:(

[jungkooks-tea]

Straight to the Pointe I pt. 1 (M)

After working years to place yourself in the best academy for the arts you struggle to find the same love for ballet you once had under the intense pressure and blinding lights of the industry. The balance is almost impossible and with cocky hip-hop dancer, Jeon Jungkook, always around showing you another world entirely, you aren’t sure what you want anymore.

- Pairing: hiphop!jungkook x ballet!reader (small side Jiminxreader) 

- Word Count: 6.7k

- Genre: College!Au (kinda, arts school), eventual smut, cute romance

- Warnings: multiple smut scenes, really simple dance talk, industry abuse, eating disorder, no beta reader

- A/N: This fic was inspired by that one video of Jimin, Hoseok, and Jungkook dancing to those three different songs (you the know where Yoongi jumps in for a hot sec), and my love for ballet. This is my first ever BTS fanfic I’ve posted so please let me know what you think, thx <3</p>

Pt. 1 I 2 I

part one

“Shit…fuck,” you grumble, scowling at the small tear in your tights. You stared at the light pink hosiery’s fray that landed at the side of your calf, hoping that it was your eyes playing tricks on you. But no, as your finger brushed along it, careful to not do more damage, you could feel your skin underneath. “Fucking goddamit.”

You couldn’t think of the last time you tore your tights. You’ve always made sure to take extra time putting them on and taking them off, aware that the fabric was easy to succumb to a sharp nail or too much stretch. It was Ballet 101. But here you were, in the back area of the changing room, staring at the exposed flesh of your leg – hating past you for clearly doing something wrong the last time you wore the tights, a mere two days ago. Did you scrape against the bar? Did your bag’s zipper snap at it? Did you simply not notice it prior and it’s been there for much longer? The latter thought made you slightly dizzy. You reached for your bag, praying that you packed an extra pair.

“Y/N?”

Looking up you stared up into the soft brown eyes of Mina. She looked at you with slight worry, noticing your urgent bag rummaging. “You okay? You seem panicked?”

You pulled your hands out of your brown bag, knowing that you weren’t going to find any damn back-up tights. Night before you noticed that you bag was too bulky and unappealing, causing you to quickly shuffle out any non-essentials to downsize your load and up the ballet-minimalist effect. Apparently, back-up tights were too bulky in your mind back then. “Dumbass,” you thought.

“U-um,” you paused, taking a look around the rest of the dressing room. No one else seemed to be looking your way, busy with putting on their own tights or perfecting their bun. “Here, look.” Pushing out your calf you exposed the small – barely three-inch – tear. Mina looked down, squinting her eyes to better focus on the leg. Few seconds later she met your eyes with the same panic you had inside.

“Do you have a spare?” she whispered, looking over to your bag. She looked like she had a small twitch, her body reacting in a way that made it seem that she wanted to rummage through the zippered bag too.

“No,” you hushed back, “I removed my others a couple days ago. I’m so fucking stupid.” You clutched at your pinned-back head, groaning to yourself in self-pity.

Barely a minute went by before you noticed Mina quickly going through her own bag – also trying to not draw attention to the situation. “I’ll see if I have my other pair,” she murmured. 

This is why you loved Mina. She wasn’t like every other Prima Ballerina wannabe bitch who would laugh in your face if they noticed your attire fluke. She genuinely cared for others and wanted the best for everyone. You noticed that the day you met her at orientation, she smiled at everyone and cared little for the enormous amount of competition that came out of people in this program. Instead of stepping on people with her pointe shoes she was the angel who would help you get back up – with a graceful hand while at it. A true diamond in the rough.

Mina looked back at you with a grim look, tucking her nonexistent stray hair bend her ear – a nervous habit. “Sorry Y/N… I don’t have mine either.”

Well this was just perfect.

You gave a grateful smile to Mina; the only person you know you could ask for help in this room. “Well,” you looked down at your torn tight once again before reaching past to tie up your fairy pink shoes, “let’s go.” Following the majority of the other girls, you left the dressing room heading to one of the many practice rooms at the Minji Seoul, Academy for the Arts.

________________

You stood at bar with Mina to your left, completing warmups that your mind didn’t even have to process. After years of ballet and hours and hours of warmups your body went into a robotic mode that gave you the ability and finish quickly and efficiently. Flex. Point. Shift. Flex. Point. Shift. Trying to go unnoticed, you did go one rep less on your right side, quick to go back to your left to hide your tights from the classes view.

Mina followed suit, smiling gently at you in hopes to calm your nerves and encourage you to ignore the problem. She probably believed that the less you stressed about it, the less obvious the error would be.

“She’s probably right,” you thought. “I need to stop stressing, they’re just tights. I’m sure Ms –

“Wow, Y/N aren’t you brave.”

Lifting your eyes from the bar you turned towards the voice. Dressed in the standard leotard and tights stood Jihyun – smirk plastered on her face. “I’m sure Ms. Younghee will be very impressed.”

You did your best to hide your scowl. Pausing your stretch, you faced Jihyun fully, hands on hips. If there was anyone you would have not wanted to see your attire error was this bitch.

You and Jihyun grew up in the same town and attended the same dance schools since you were both three. When you were promoted to pointe, she was too. If you entered a competition, you knew for sure she would sign up too. If you won one day, she would win the next. Some said the competition was good, that’s how you both ended up in Seoul, dancing and learning in the best art academy in all of Korea. But you would much rather eat the lost-and-found dance shoes than see anything good in being the same presence as she. Unlike Mina, Jihyun was an ugly winner and even worse loser. She would gladly push anyone out of her way to be on top. Even if that means pointing out small flaws.

Jiyhun smirked at you, trailing her small eyes down your entire body before landing on the cursed tear. “I’m just saying,” she started, “you’re really brave to think Ms. Younghee won’t notice your ugly attire. I heard she cursed a girl out of the room for tying her laces the wrong way one year.” You subconsciously moved your right leg behind your other. In the corner of your eye you saw Mina look down at her own laces.

About to make your retort – to show Jihyun whats-what – you were quickly stopped by the sound of room’s door opening. Shutting your mouth quickly you and everyone else turned towards the woman entering the room – Ms. Younghee.

Younghee Suwa was a legend in the dance world. She was a Prima Ballerina back in her younger days and danced all over the world in every famous hall, taking on some of the most prestigious solos. Girls and boys in the ballet industry dreamed of being – or something even close to – her one day. However, a tragic accident on stage – a horrible misstep – broke her foot causing her to give up her young and famous days of dance. Now she, in her late 50s, teaches at Minji – picking out the best and tearing down the rest.

You have seen Ms. Younghee in various magazines and videos but you were still taken back by her beauty at such an age. Her tight face – though frowning – was still incredibly beautiful, the red lipstick contrasting with her pale face. She gave off an aura that made you think of drill sergeant. There was no room for mistake in her presence.

“Take position.”

At her two words the room scrambled. Every girl who wasn’t already there looking for a place at bar. You gave out a breath of relief, happy that you and Mina were already holding onto the bar in the farther corner of the room – Jihyun had to rush herself away from you two to find her own spot.

Ms. Younghee walked over to the small stereo in the room as the room got into first position – deathly silence taking over. She tapped the small right button on the machine. In a minor crescendo, the room was taken over by beautiful music.

It had begun.

________________

You watched the sweat on a small girl’s neck float down to her collarbone. She was clearly out of breath, and you hoped for her that she could hold out for the last 10 minutes of class. In all honesty you hoped you could too.

Throughout class your mind kept taking you to the small tear on your tights. Every time Ms. Younghee looked your direction you prayed that she wouldn’t look down and scold you. But the entire lesson was almost over, and she hadn’t uttered a word. Perhaps, you would get away with this.

Mid-arabesques the music stopped. Quickly going back to both feet you and the rest looked over to Younghee who stood in the middle of the room.

“I assume you are aware just how rigorous this school is. How rigorous I am.” She looked around the room, making each person feel small. “This program is not for everyone, but I assume that because you were able to get past the initial entrance you feel empowered,” she took a breathe. “But I want to ensure you that more than half of you are not cut out for this, that most of you will be out of this program by the end of this year.” The girls around you looked startled, even Mina. You, on the other hand, expected this.

With a small sigh Ms. Younghee picked off a nonexistent piece of lint from her black long sleeve. “Dismissed.” The class erupted in small claps, thanking her for the lesson.

Ready to make your way to the door with Mina, you were stopped by the raised hand of Younghee.

“Also,” she paused. “I thought it was safe to assume this, but I must let you know,” she looked you in the eye, dark grey eyes seeming to stare into your soul. “I do not tolerate any kind of attire contortion.” A cold shiver ran down my spine. “This is my first and only warning.”

Girls were quick to say Yes, Ms. Younghee before making their way out of the room. You on the other hand had to take several large intakes of air. You could just feel the smirk on Jihyun’s face. Mina, the angel, put her hand on your back in comfort, though you don’t think it could stop your racing heart even a little.

________________

“Wow,” Mina breathed out. “Can’t believe we actually survived. I literally thought my heart was going to stop every time she looked in my direction.”

You nodded in agreement, stomach still lurching due to the last statement Younghee made clearly at you before you were released. Mina must have noticed your sour scowl on your face. She understood that you put so much pressure on yourself. So much pressure to be perfect and this tights fuck up was not the way you wanted to debut yourself to Younghee. That woman could literally make or break your career as a dancer.

“Hey,” Mina inquired, “You wanna come with me to another studio?  I have a friend from Busan who is also studying here, said he’s usually out of practice by five on Mondays.” She checked her phone, catching the 4:35 time in the corner.

“Busan? Did he dance at the same studio as you?” You didn’t outright agree to go. Actually, you wanted to grab a quick bite before rushing back to the dance studio to have some solo practice. You noticed that you shook a little during your pirouettes - you had no time nor room for mistakes.

Mina shook her head and gave a quizzed look. “Ah, well, not technically. Jimin is kind of an overall dancer. Started off in ballet and then went more contemporary with lyrical and then—"

You stopped mid step, looking at Mina with a shocked face. “Wait, Jimin? As in Park Jimin? You know him?” Park Jimin was a serious up-and-coming dancer. He’s appeared in a couple magazines and you have even seen in him in competitions – just never really spoken to him. He was an incredible dancer with sensual moves – for ballet - that provoked the audience while also being graceful and humble to the stage. Seeing him live was like watching a great artist paint a masterpiece.

You knew he attended Minji – as most hopeful up-and-coming dancers and artists did – but had no idea that Mina had such connections. He was an upperclassman and took special solo lessons that were mostly reserved to third or fourth years, truly exceptional. “Do you know him personally well?”

A pretty blush hit Mina’s cheeks as she pushed that non-existent hair back. “I mean a little, we did dance together when we younger for a while, but then he went off to lyrical and study abroad once we hit middle school. I reached out when I told him I was auditioning for Minji and he said he’d want to meet up sometime after the semester started… if I got in.” She laughed a little at the end before looking up at you, “So you wanna come with me?”

Confliction ran in your mind. As much as you just wanted to go grab a small dinner and run back to the studio, you honestly couldn’t bring yourself to saying no to meeting the Park Jimin.

“Sure,” you answered, “what studio?”

“I think he’s in studio H in the Sei building.”

“Sei building?”

“Ya, it’s for the hip-hop dancers.”

________________

The walk to the Sei building was rather long. It was well across campus, allowing it to almost speak for itself of the great difference between the ballet sector and the other sectors – as many other dancers called it. Minji had started off solely as a school for ballet before times of change forced it to open its doors to all kinds of different art forms: culinary, fashion, composition, and more dance forms. However, ballet remained as it’s front runner. Competing very well with schools in countries such as Russia and America. Hip-hop you guess was just a way to get more money coming through the doors by people who wanted maybe to become a background dancer for music videos in the future? Maybe?

You weren’t shy to admit that you knew next to nothing about hip-hop. It was a wild dance in your mind and was nothing like your preferred precise form of movement. You couldn’t imagine what Park Jimin was doing there.

“I think this is it, Jimin said it had big windows.”

You stopped and looked up towards the three-story building. It’s modern look showed that it was clearly a newer building – especially compared to the ballet’s rustic and brick style buildings with vine greenery surrounding it. This structure was bright and open, allowing natural light to enter the rooms you could look into from the entrance. You envied it a little, it would be nice to dance in such open and light space, not in the basement lit by fluorescents.

Mina began her way up the stairs, grasping her bag to ensure it was secured. “Let’s go.”

The two of you entered the building easy enough. The hallway welcomed you to interesting art on the light blue walls and upbeat music drafting in from a couple of the rooms that you guessed were the different studios. You had the urged to peek a little to see what type of people it collected, but Mina kept walking causing you to follow suit.

“It’s a lot different from our studio, ya?” you nodded in agreement looking over towards the various trophies in the cases on the left side of the hall. While the ballet studio held way more, you admitted that the number of shiny molds was impressive too.

The two of you travelled in silence for the rest of the way until you both reached a door with a small gold colored plaque reading Studio H. Loud music was pouring out of the door, lyrics that you didn’t quite understand kept up with the beat strongly – English maybe?  

Quietly Mina began to open the door, allowing the already loud music hit both of you full force. Clearly these rooms were pretty sound proof… just not quite enough. Following Mina through the door you stopped shortly past the entrance of the room.

You were greeted with back of dancing figure. Clearly, he hadn’t noticed your entrance, either because the music was too loud to hear the door was just to engrossed in his solo. You couldn’t blame him; his fast movements were sharp and figured yet also loose enough to seem unforced. You didn’t know a thing about hip-hop, but you could tell he was really getting into his work.

“Ah,” Mina gasped. “That’s not Jimin. Maybe he gave me the wrong room number,” Mina whispered, barely audible due to the music. “Let’s get out of here before–”

“Oh, hey?”

The two of you looked up to look at the man who stopped dancing – probably finally noting your presence in the large mirror he was dancing in front of. He jogged over to turn off the music before facing you and Mina again – she went straight for her nervous habit. You weren’t any better. There was really nothing worse than interrupting a practice or dance. It was extremely rude in the ballet company – unless of course you had a greater status like Younghee. This was downright embarrassing.

“A-Ah, sorry w-we were just looking for Park Jimin-hyung,” Mina stuttered, “he said he would be in this studio. So very sorry we didn’t mean–”

“Ah, you looking for Jimin?” The man said, pushing back his slightly sweat damped caramel colored hair with a smile. You were a little taken back by just how handsome this guy was – friendly too. Didn’t you just interrupt him? But he was just all smiles as he puffed his loose, green T-shirt a little to cool down. “Sorry,” he started, “I took this room from him today, like the view, you know?” He looked over towards the large window left to the mirrored wall. “He’s in studio D-2 upstairs.”

“Oh really, ah, sorry for interrupting you,” you apologized. He shook his head still smiling, showing his cute dimples in the corners of his mouth.

“Hey, no problem, more of my fault anyway for stealing the room.” You smiled meekly back, not sure what to say next. “I was just about done here anyway, want me to walk you guys up?”

“Oh, that’s not really—"

“Thanks, we would appreciate that,” Mina said, looking at you with a smile.

“Cool, let me grab my bag really quick.”

You watched as the man walked off towards the other end of the room. “He’s rather friendly,” you whispered to Mina.

“Not everyone is like prima ballerinas, Y/N.”

You nodded in agreement. A few moments later the man was next to you two again as you made your way out of the room.

After taking a quick drink of water from his personal bottle, the man looked at both you – his height margin forcing him to look down slightly. “My names Jung Hoseok by the way – I’m a third-year.”

“Y/N,” you introduced yourself. His name sounded vaguely familiar, but you weren’t sure from where.

“Mina, we’re first years. Nice to meet you.”

“Ah you’re Mina, Jimin was talking about you just today.” This caused Mina to blush and pull a non-existent hair behind her ear. “You both from Busan?” She nodded.

The distance to the second floor didn’t take long to cover and soon you were in front of a new door – music also blasting from it. Not bothering to knock, Hoseok walked in, holding the door for the two of you to follow.

There were two figures this time in the room, both in sync as they flowed with the music in a way that was different compared to Hoseok’s own more robotic dance just a few moments ago. The music coming from the speaker was much more robust and heavy - causing the room to almost pound in vibration.

Park Jimin, you recognized immediately through the reflection in the mirror. His dirty blonde hair shifting with each fast-paced movement. Although you’ve seen him dance live – ballet and to very different music – he was truly something else to witness up-close.

About to turn to watch the other dancer, your senses were interrupted by Hoseok’s voice.

“Hey Jimin! I got Mina with me!”

Stopping, in what you imagined would be a soon to be step sequence, Jimin looked backwards towards the three of you. Beautiful and bright smile popping upon his face, “Mina!”

You couldn’t help but be a little envious of Mina in this exact moment. Not only did she know the Park Jimin, they seemed to be familiar with each other too. Though with how much she was blushing, others would guess that Mina was nowhere familiar with the popular dancer either.

Doing a light jog towards the door, Jimin huffed a little. “Sorry about telling you to meet me in Studio H, Hoseok-hyung is rather picky” – mentioned man gave a yah! – “about what room he practices in, so I agreed to switch.”

Watching Mina giggle and say it was okay, you turned back to the other figure in the room. He was dressed in all black with white shoes still going hard in his movements even after his dance partner left. His dark brown hair fluffed up with his quickly added jumps and swift head turns. You didn’t get a good look at his face – slightly blurred by his fast movements – before noticing a voice talking to you.

“You must be Y/N, right?” It was your turn to feel a little heated as you noticed it was Jimin speaking to you. You quickly nodded your head, hoping you didn’t look like a fool.

Fuck you thought. I look like shit right now.

While you never thought of yourself to be unattractive, you noted that your attire – that you didn’t even think of when agreeing to come along with Mina – was less than appealing. Grey heavy sweats and a pull-over didn’t exactly do well for your figure nor self-esteem when faced with a man as beautiful as Park Jimin. Said man was doing wonders on the eye with his lightly loose long-sleeved shirt and fitted black pants. You’ve seen his thighs in tights but being this close to him gave you a much greater insight. You really tried to not ogle.

“Your solo at Changwon last spring was really great, I was able to attend the second day of the competition and saw you perform.” You held your breath. You honestly couldn’t believe that he remembered you – you hadn’t even known he has been there. “Heard you received one of the highest scores ever given by Kim Eun.” Even Mina looked at you with a shocked face at that last comment.

“Ah, well, I think she was just being generous that day.”

Jimin laughed a little. It was bright and cheerful and really something you wanted to hear again and again. ���I don’t think so, you must have really—” he stopped and turned around finally seeming to remember the other person in the room who was still dancing. “Hey Jungkook, don’t be rude, get over here.”

‘Jungkook’ stopped quickly enough, turning around to look towards Jimin and the rest of you – allowing you to finally get a good look at him. And wow. This guy put almost every dancer in your own department to shame. With his beautiful tan skin, tall stature, and, even though you couldn’t see it under his loose clothes, you’d imagine a lean body. Where the hell are they finding these guys? In less than an hour of being in the Hip-hop sector you have meet some of the most attractive men you’ve ever seen in your young adult life.

You watched as he put his hands in the pockets of his black sweats before walking up to the four of you coolly. Hoseok clapped a hand on his shoulder as he arrived by his side. “This is Jeon Jungkook. First year and an okay dancer,” Hoseok said, ending with a laugh.  

“Still kick your ass at Dance-Dance Revolution any day though Hyung,” the younger man replied with a smirk – earning him a slap to his stomach from his fellow dancer.

“It was one fucking time you brat, and you picked a girls groups song – that’s like your freaking specialty.”

You watched as they both laughed in good nature, clearly the age difference didn’t create much of a gap in the relationship, if one at all.

Jimin laughed along too before speaking. “Jungkook is also from Busan, Mina. Dang, everyone from Busan must be wanting to follow my lead, ya?”

“What lead? You’re a wishy-washy has been,” Jungkook chuckled, moving out of the way from Jimin’s not-swift-enough kick to his shins.

While the rest of the group laughed, you were honestly shocked at this first year’s comments. While you weren’t as soft spoken and nice as Mina you knew when and with whom to hold your tongue. And to think that this hip-hop dancer thought he could call Jimin wishy-washy was honestly boiling your blood. He had no idea what the hell he was talking about.

“Hyung you done for today?”

“Ya, I’m going to head out,” Jimin said with a smile. “Going to get something to eat with these two.”

It was at this point that Jungkook finally looked in your direction. He looked you up and down quickly before meeting your eyes and raising a brow. You gave him the same look back, silently crossing your arms as if to hide… something?

“You want to come?” Hoseok added a me too after Jimin’s invite.

Jungkook looked conflicted for a quick second, as if pondering if he wanted to practice for a while longer before eventually nodding his head in agreement. “As long as you’re not making me pay.”

________________

The five you walked out of the Sei building at a leisure pace. Mina and Jimin were having a conversation up ahead about middle school from what you could hear and Hoseok was talking rather loudly on his phone to someone you didn’t know. This left you with the cocky fellow first year walking alongside you. Although he was incredibly attractive, you wouldn’t say you were very lucky. You were still mad at about his comment towards Jimin

“So, you a prima ballerina or something?” His voice caught you off guard for a hot second. You honestly didn’t expect him to speak to you.

“How do you know I do ballet?” you questioned, shifting your bag over to your other shoulder. Not only did you hate it when people called you a prima ballerina, but he had said it with such a tone that you got a little red.

“Well your bun is about as tight as a screwed lid and you look like this light breeze could push you over,” Jungkook commented, taking out his phone to looks at his texts and other notifications nonchalantly.

Stuttering for half a step at his comments you snapped your head up at him, angrier than you had been before. While the hair comment was probably true – no room for a misplaced hair in ballet – the comment associated with your weight was very unwelcomed. Yes, you were light, maybe a little too light for your height, but you had to be… you had to be.

He didn’t seem to notice your anger or the burning of your cheeks. Or he did notice and chose not to comment. You chose to hold you tongue too.

“Hey, you cool with going to Jin’s?” that comment had come from Jimin who has apparently stopped along with Mina to wait for you both – Hoseok still on the phone a little ahead. You were glad to pick up your step to meet them.

Jungkook, still apparently unaware of the way his comments affected you, caught up as well before nodding at Jimin. “Sounds good.”

“Who’s Jin?” Mina questioned.

Jimin answered, “He’s a friend who graduated from the culinary program last year. His start-up restaurant is just a little way off campus – really good food.”

You and Mina both nodded in understanding, before walking again. This time you made sure to walk with Mina.

Less than 10 minutes later you were faced with a quaint red brick restaurant. Its modern signage reading Odeng. You raised your eyebrow at that.

“It’s the name of his sugar-glider. He loves that thing,” Hoseok said, answering your unspoken question. You nodded before going through the door that was held by Jimin, he really was a true gentleman.

You were a little shocked by just how crowded the restaurant was. It was nearly packed and was bustling with a nice hum of conversation and light music. This was a startup? Seemed like an old bustling business.

Hoseok walked up to the short hostess telling her how many of you were in the group and if Jin was in. The rest of you waited behind him, waiting as she grabbed some menus before following her further into the restaurant.

She guided you to a round booth before laying out the five menus on the dark wood table. You, unfortunately, noticed the sequence of your group. Hoseok dove in first before Jimin, Mina, and yourself. This left the asshat – in your opinion – to be last, making him seated next to you still absorbed in his phone. You kind of wished you were seated next to Jimin, but you understood that it wouldn’t make sense to separate him and Mina who seemed keen on catching up.

Not really knowing what to say, you departed your gaze to the menu. You hoped that there was something that you could actually eat. The list of dishes was rather small and simple and probably created to have an easy way to whip up something amazing each time, however you struggled to find something. You weren’t picky by any means, but the list of saucey, carb heavy, or fatty dishes had you spinning in your mind with how you could order without sounding like a stuck-up bitch for not getting the meal as it came. It’s why you always rarely went out to eat and why you often opted to snacking on fruits and vegetables on the go – it was easier that way.

Your personal struggle must have not been as personal as you thought because you became aware of the gaze that was seemingly watching you. Turning towards the brunette – who didn’t even look at the menu – you gave a curt what?

“Nothing, just wondering if you’re planning on eating the menu with how intensely you’re looking at it.”

About to retort your voice was broken by Jimin’s.

“Ya, Jungkook, don’t be an ass. It’s hard for some dancers to know what they can and cannot eat. Not everyone can eat just about anything and gain no weight – like someone people,” he gave a pointed look towards the younger man before breaking into a giggle. “Besides who knows how many calories are in Jin’s food. Remember what he says ‘when something is delicious-

“It’s zero calories!”

You turn to look up towards the owner of the voice to see,

What the fuck you thought. How can someone be that good looking?

You didn’t understand how, in the span of only a couple hours, you have come in contact with some of the most beautiful men in your life. This one, with the large shoulders and tiny waist accented by the apron tied around his waist, gave whiplash. From your seated position he seemed impossibly tall and had a face that belonged in magazines if it wasn’t already.

He gave you a short glance with a kind smile before turning back to the guys at the table – clearly friends by his lax attitude. They chatted a little bringing up names you didn’t know the faces of.

“This is Mina and Y/N,” Jimin introduced. Mina gave a kind ‘hello’ while you followed with a nod of the head. “They’re perform ballet at Minji.”

“Oh so they do that twirly shit too?” Jin laughed. Mina giggled too; you… pursed your lips.

You understood that ballet had a reputation and those who were not in the business didn’t understand it, but you wished that people like Jin and Jungkook would keep quiet with their opinions if they just didn’t understand. Ballet wasn’t something you could just learn from a book or simply do to some music. It was an art form that took years to master – and only a select few could. The blood, sweat, and tears you put into this industry didn’t allow you to simply laugh off comments made by those who had no clue what they were talking about.

You didn’t notice the eyes that saw your small attitude change.

“Anyways, what would you guys like? The usually Hobi?”

The group rattled off what they wanted, even Mina seemed to have no trouble to your surprise. However, when Jin turn towards you, you found yourself unable to order anything other than a small side salad – holding all toppings except tomatoes and cucumbers. He gave a raised eyebrow before shrugging and turning back towards the kitchen.

“You really only going to eat… lettuce, Y/N?” Hoseok, clearly shocked by your seemingly nothingness order.

You felt yourself heat up a little in the ears and cheeks, embarrassed for your poor eating mannerisms. You tried to laugh it off saying that you had a large lunch and just weren’t that hungry.

You pressed a hand to your stomach, hoping to shush any potential sounds.

________________

Although you only had a small plate of lettuce topped with a couple cucumbers and tomatoes the rest of the table’s meals looked amazing. Hoseok and Jungkook’s beef skewers looked moist and tender and Jimin’s tilapia smelled wonderful. And even though you know that Mina is going to hit the gym later she looked absolutely delighted in her own meal – coated in a thin brown sauce.

Jin was also incredibly funny and nice to have around. He never held back from yelling at his younger friends when he came around to your table – quickly finding out that he is the oldest of their friend group  - and you found out that he was thinking about starting up another restaurant in a year or so after finishing up with management at this one. A busy - and oh so beautiful – guy. You felt bad for pouting over his twirly comment from earlier – he clearly meant no harm and most likely aimed it at Jimin who he was much more familiar with – and someone who was capable of taking such comments much more easily than yourself.

The meal also allowed you to see another face of Jungkook who was much more open than you previously thought. He was all louds laughs and cute bunny smiles that made his eyes crinkle as he spoke with his hyungs – all whom he clearly loved. Though he stilled seemed like a brat, you thought that maybe you were too harshly opinionated on him for seemingly just joking around with his friends. He was really cute too, causing the accidental light brushes of skin and knees to feel a little warm.

Or so you thought.

“So, Prima,” Jungkook started, putting his hands in his pocket as the two of you both waited outside the restaurant. The rest of the group was still inside waiting for Jimin – who drew the short straw apparently – to pay. He seemingly thought it was a fitting nickname for you even though you did not agree.

 He didn’t have his phone out of his black joggers, apparently dead, causing him to want to joke around you assumed. A very comfortable guy, even with almost strangers. “Can you do like a quick twirl for me or something? Are you able to do that in sneakers?”

“I’m not a monkey you know,” you bit out. “I’m not going to dance just because you say to.”

Jungkook raised an eyebrow as he pushed his dark hair back with on hand, making the slightly wavy locks move enough to show off some of his forehead. Man was he attractive. “Oh really, because I thought that’s what you ballerinas did? You do a couple spins and then maybe get thrown a banana or something as a reward?”

You plain out gawked at him. Did he really just insinuate that ballet and its technique was like a dancing monkey working for its food? “You can just shut the hell up.”

You huffed at him before turning towards the building’s restaurant. What was taking so long? Jungkook’s snickers of small laughter purchased its way into your ear.

“Ha, Ah-sorry. Didn’t mean to make the princess upset.”

That was the last straw.

“Okay you listen up you, you… asshat!” you pointed at him. “I don’t know what the fuck is your problem, but you should really learn to keep your mouth shut and not talk to me. Sorry that I’m not in your hip locking-“ you moved closer to him to pick your finger into his hard chest “-junk thrusting bullshit of a dance form. Some of us are actually working to make a name and career for ourselves and not just end up being a background dancer for some Kpop video!”

By the end of your rant you were looking up at him – his height beating yours by a good margin. He looked down at you too, allowing yourself to really get a good look into his deep brown eyes. And what we did next was just the cherry on top of infuriating actions.

He poked the bun on top of your head.

You honestly couldn’t believe it. You just yelled at him and he thought it was okay to touch your hair.

A little shocked by the action that he seemingly thought was funny, by the way he smirked at your reaction, you quickly stepped back. Putting enough distance between the two of you so he couldn’t do it again. Grabbing your phone from your sweat’s pocket you texted Mina saying that something suddenly came up and you had to go ahead of the rest and leave. You didn’t mention that it was because of this infuriating boy, but that you would talk to her later.

You actually felt more upset that you couldn’t personally say goodbye to Jimin, but asked Mina to say goodbye on your behalf.

Huffing you grabbed your ballet bag and began walking back towards the academy where your dorm was located on the east side.

“Hey, Prima, where you going!” Jungkook called from behind you, watching as you left.

You did nothing but raise your middle finger in the air back at him.

________________

Once you returned to your dorm you threw your bag to the side – sighing as you fell chest first into your plush bed. You really needed to take a hot bath to help the kinks in your legs and prepare for your class tomorrow, but you honestly wanted to just sleep off everything. It was an exhausting day. First, your tights fucked you over, had a small fit with Jihyun, and was scolded by Younghee. And although you were very grateful to meet Jimin – who you hoped you’d get to see again – Jungkook clearly got the best of you making your evening even more exhausting. Why did all the hot ones have to be so aggravating?

You felt your stomach growl loudly, making you have the urge to go eat perhaps some of the baby carrots in the fridge that you had bought a couple days ago. However, in your mind you recalled the small salad from this evening and forgot about the orange vegetable entirely. Stomach growls or not.

What you really needed to do was prepare for tomorrow. Pack new tights and ensure that you would look every bit as pure ballerina as possible. Fuck the fact that Jungkook thought you were a ‘Prima’ for doing such – he just had no idea how tough this industry was.

And what it truly cost

[makingmediameta]

Keyword Definition : Rap Music

Rap Music

Modern definitions of Rap Music tend to focus on the key structural components of the music itself. For example, the Oxford English Dictionary defines Rap as “A type of popular music of US Black origin in which words are recited rapidly and rhythmically over an instrumental backing” [1]. This method uses the signature vocal style and emphasis on lyrics to assign music to the genre. Indeed, these are key elements of Rap that have propelled it to the for front of American culture. Through out history, music has been used to tell narratives, weave stories, and convey ideas to large audiences. However, in recent decades, Rap music has emerged as the preeminent genre for these purposes. This is largely do to the fact that unlike most genres, Rap places almost all of its emphasis on its lyrics. Notice how the Oxford definition uses the term “instrumental backing” to describe the beats used in Rap. The word “backing” heavily implies that the instrumental part is of minimal importance compared to the spoken words. This could rarely be said about the beautiful guitar work common to rock music, or the beats used in modern day pop and EDM (electric dance music). In these genres, even when the vocals are the focus, it is often because the lyricist is singing in a way that is pleasing to the ear. In contrast, Rap artists usually employ a style of spoken word, focusing on the content of the lyrics themselves over their sound. This commitment to lyrical merit naturally leads the genre towards storytelling and narrative focus. A prominent example of this concept is the Eminem song, “Stan”[2]. In the song, Eminem raps a heart breaking story about the suicide of an obsessed fan, over a simple beat, focusing on themes of depression and abuse. Despite the heavy content and relative lack of audio that would be traditionally considered beautiful to the ear, the song has received over one hundred and forty million listens on the streaming site Spotify. Keep in mind, “Stan” was released eight years prior to the launch of Spotify.  Clearly, the lyricism and vocal style of rap music are heavily entrenched and defining of the genre. However, rap music has a colorful history, and in the past would not have been defined in such a structural manner.

Origins of Rap

Rap music originated in the 1970’s in New York City, a product of the fusion of African American culture with that of recent Caribbean immigrants. The resulting mix was referred to as Hip Hop Culture, and the music that came out of it as rap. The music at this time would barely be identifiable as rap today, and was characterized by it’s Dance Hall and Disco influences. It began as the sound of the New York party scene, but as it moved into the 80’s, became more and more politically charged. Young African Americans used the music as an avenue to express their discontent with their status and experiences in American society. Cheryl L. Keyes explores these themes in her 2002 book, Rap Music and Street Consciousness. She begins by explaining the origins of Rap and its ties to traditional African storytelling, as well as the influences of Caribbean culture on the genre. She then moves to commenting on the political and socioeconomic history of African Americans in New York City, before tying the two ideas together. In Keyes’ eyes, Rap at this time was used as a form of communication between African Americans. Commenting on the lyrics of the music, she writes “Here one learns about the ghetto, how to survive in it, and how to combat unwarranted economic and social oppression from mainstream society. A major requisite for survival in the streets is learning how to communicate effectively” (Keyes 29). She points to prominent artists of the time such as Grand Master Flash as examples of those whose songs contain themes of anti-oppression and lessons about living in poverty. Additionally, while musing about her discoveries while investigating the genre, Keyes proclaims “…..I realized that this music is grounded in the aesthetic and ideology of urban street culture” (Keyes xii). This point is especially important because it emphasizes the interconnection of Rap music to this local, hip hop culture at the time. Although today Rap music has become a global phenomenon spanning a variety of different cultures, in the 1970’s and early 1980’s it would have been impossible to define the term without focusing on its interconnectedness to New York Hip Hop culture as well as it’s emphasis on socioeconomic commentary.

Evolution of the Media

Throughout the 80’s, Rap gained popularity and entered what is commonly referred to as the “Golden Age” [3]. This period was marked by constant innovation and incorporation of a multitude of styles, such as Jazz, and was exemplified by artists such as A Tribe Called Quest and Big Daddy Kane. However, it remained concentrated in the New York Hip Hop scene. The first major deviation from this style came in the late 80’s, with the emergence of a new subgenera, Gangsta Rap. This movement came from the West Coast, and was centered around LA.  In his book Nuthin’ but a “G” Thang: The Culture and Commerce of Gangsta Rap, Eithne Quinn comments on some of the signature features of this style. Talking about common elements, he claims “selling drugs, endorsing St. Ides (a brand of alcohol), and producing gangsta rap. All are construed as socially irresponsible but income generating necessities” (Quinn 6). Gangsta Rap continued the New York tradition of socioeconomic commentary, however, as outlined by Quinn, it did this by embracing and glorifying the criminal activities the artists believed were necessary for survival in their economic bracket. This, along with the mounting gang violence in Los Angelas led to the genres label as Gangsta Rap. Quinn notes that the subgenera “communicates through commodities” (Quinn 7), emphasizing its obsession with items such as 40.Oz beers or fancy cars. Additionally, the genre heavily emphasized fighting back against or even violence towards authorities, stemming from the artists reaction to intense discrimination and police violence towards African Americans. This sentiment was fueled by incidents such as the beating of Rodney King by the LAPD, and was clearly exemplified by songs such as N.W.A.’s “Fuck The Police”[4]. The 90’s saw this subgenera become the dominant form of Rap in the United States, which led to controversy due to its often violent nature. To define Rap in this era, you surely would have referenced these “gangsta” and controversial features.

Rap in the Modern Day

Rap as we know it today emerged in the late 90’s and into the twenty first century. The main event that distinguishes the modern era of rap is its appropriation by other cultures. No longer is it confined to African American communities of lower economic status. Instead, it is listened to and even made by people of all socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds. Bakari Kitwana addressees this in his book, Why White Kids Love Hip-Hop. Analyzing the consumption of Rap by all cultures, he writes “Most hip-hop kids-white, Black, Latino, Asian, and Native American- are taking from popular culture what they find useful, fashioning it to local needs, claiming it as their own and in the process placing their own stamp on it.” (Kitwana 3). Through this process, Rap has gained influence from countless cultures and has developed numerous subgenera, focused on varying themes. It is no longer possible to define rap by its ties to one specific culture or use of certain particular themes. Instead, one is left simply to point to it’s core elements, it’s African American origins and use of distinct vocal style.

-JC

Notes

[1] Oxford English Dictionary

[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOMhN-hfMtY

[3]http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/26/arts/music/hiphops-raiders-of-the-lost-archives.html

[4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5fts7bj-so

Works Cited

Keyes, Cheryl L. Rap music and street consciousness. Univeristy of Illinois Press, 2004.

Quinn, Eithne. Nuthin But a "G" Thang: The Culture and Commerce of Gangsta Rap. Columbia University Press, 2010.

Kitwana, Bakari. Why white kids love hip-Hop: wangstas, wigger, wannabes, and the new reality of race in America. Basic Civitas, 2006.