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The dance portion of the fine arts building is larger than Seungmin thought it would be.
He roams by numerous rooms with the walls being windows. There are classes for ballet students, and others where they seem to be in their first year learning different genres. It's a mix of everything and anything, and Seungmin is amazed by the talent that everyone showcases. It's no wonder they have to hold tryouts for the university's dance team, where they represent the program as a whole.
He makes his way through the hall, passing by students who linger. He ignores the way they look at him. Like he's some kind of new entity walking through. He's getting tired of the stares and the whispers, but there wasn't anything he could do. No one has done anything extreme to warrant Minho to step in and shut the bulltshit down, either. Still, it was beyond annoying. The only person he'd get a kick out of seeing him around here is Leehan, but Seungmin hasn't seen the cheer captain since the party. It hasn't been long since then, even less time since the fake dating arrangement—but Seungmin knows it's only a matter of time before Leehan says or does something.
Whatever the case would turn out to be, Seungmin pushes it to the side. That was something he can focus on later.
He continues to walk the halls. Seungmin scans each room number until he finds the one Wooyoung said they were located in. It takes a while, but eventually, he stops outside the one where it reads DNC1117. He looks through the windows, the mirrors glaring back at him as his eyes widen at the sight of the dancers. He spots Wooyoung and Yeosang first, the two serious and focused. The music is loud, but not to the point that it disrupts the classes around them or the students who pass by. The squeaking of their shoes against the floor can be heard, and Seungmin is in awe at the way they move so smoothly.
Then he spots Minho. He's at the centre, unsurprisingly. But that isn't what makes his heart begin to race. It's the way his body moves to the beat of the song. The way he puts his all into every single coordinated step. He's focused, concentrated, but also seems to be having fun nonetheless. Seungmin can tell he loves what he does, and he can't help but continue to stare in amazement. He knew Minho was the dance captain for a reason, though seeing him in his element directly gave Seungmin more insight into why he was. Minho was made for this, and he doesn't think anyone else would be able to lead that position better than him.
He stands outside the room until they finish the song. Everyone is breathing heavily, and he sees what must be their dance instructor by the sound booth, telling them to take a break. All the students heave a sigh of relief, and he watches as Minho goes directly to their instructor instead of where the rest of the group gathers to the side. It's then that Seungmin decides to go inside. Wooyoung already let him know he could just waltz right in, and though that made Seungmin nervous, he also knew he could trust Wooyoung (sometimes).
When he opens the door, all heads automatically turn to him. The dance instructor and Minho both pause their conversation, and he sees his eyes widen as Seungmin steps into the room. The door shuts behind him, and he bows towards the class while offering a smile. "Hello, everyone."
"Seungminnie!" Wooyoung yells, dropping the water bottle he had in his hands and running over towards him. Seungmin barely manages to catch him, and he laughs as he hugs him back. He looks up and over Wooyoung's shoulder, seeing Yeosang put down his own water bottle to walk over to them. He has a small smile on his face, with one eyebrow raised.
"What did he bribe you with for you to agree to show up?" Yeosang asks. Wooyoung detangles himself from Seungmin and turns around to hit his boyfriend on the shoulder. "Hey!"
Seungmin smiles. "He didn't bribe me, not this time."
"I never bribe you." Wooyoung scoffs, and Seungmin blankly stares at him. "Sure you don't."
Wooyoung is about to retaliate when someone clears their throat. The three of them turn their hands, seeing Minho standing not far from them. He has his arms crossed over his chest with a neutral expression, yet his eyes are narrowed. Wooyoung was right. Minho in dance captain mode was no joke.
"What's this all about?" He asks. Sharp and quick-witted. The uneasiness Seungmin felt in the beginning suddenly disappears, and this time, he holds himself back from rolling his eyes.
"I invited him to practice for today." Wooyoung states. He's nervous, Seungmin can tell by the way he shifts his weight from one foot to the other. The whole room has fallen silent at this point, and the atmosphere turns tense and awkward. Two taller boys are staring with their mouths agape, and when Seungmin glances at them, they immediately turn away.
Huh. Interesting.
Minho frowns, "Why is that?"
"Because he's here to give us feedback." This time, the dance instructor speaks. He has a pretty smile, making his eyes turn into crescents and black hair that frames his face nicely. He's shorter than Seungmin, but still holds an aura that demands respect.
He addresses the class as he walks over to them, kind but stern. "Everyone, continue to go over the dance and make sure to stretch. No eavesdropping either." He says, and the class scrambles to comply. Slowly, conversation starts up loud enough that when they start talking again, it mostly goes unheard amongst the rest of the class.
"It's nice to meet you. I'm Professor Park. I assume you're Seungmin? Wooyoung-ah here told me about you." Seungmin smiles and bows lightly as Professor Park introduces himself, reaching out to shake his hand as the instructor does the same.
"Nice to meet you, Professor Park. I hope he only told you good things about me." Seungmin says, and it gets a laugh out of him.
"Of course, of course. He told me you were willing to help our team out. I appreciate it, and I'm sure our captain does as well." At the mention of Minho, they all turn their heads to him. He still has his arms crossed, but he doesn't look like he wants to murder anyone anymore. Seungmin smiles brightly, tilting his head in a way he knows makes him look cute. Minho squints at him, seeing right through him, before returning to normal.
"Yes, I suppose so." He confirms. Wooyoung lets himself relax and hops on the balls of his feet in excitement. Yeosang stands beside him, remaining quiet with a curious expression as he watches the scene play out before him. "Though I would like to know why I was unaware of this until now."
Wooyoung stops jumping and pauses, scratching the back of his neck. "That's on me. I overheard you talking about it one evening. I asked Minnie if he'd be willing to sit in for at least one practice because I knew you wouldn't ask him, even if he's your literal boyfriend. He's a music major, too and would be perfect for this." He explains, and Seungmin doesn't miss the mischievous glint in his eye. He has to stop himself from tensing at the mention of them dating, and when he glances at Minho, he's blinking rapidly at Wooyoung—a sign he didn't exactly know how to react either.
Seungmin realizes Wooyoung did not just want him to come to practice and see what they do. He wanted to see Minho and Seungmin act like the boyfriends they supposedly are, right in the flesh. Never mind the fact that Wooyoung had said he was intimidated by Minho. The fucker had a different plan all along.
"Oh! You two are dating? This makes it even better! Seungmin-ssi, if this goes well today and if you have any extra time in your schedule, please do tag along at any time!" Professor Park exclaims, and Seungmin's heart races. This was fine. Perfectly fine. He totally wasn't planning on how to get back at Wooyoung for this.
Seungmin opens and closes his mouth, shock clear on his features until he formulates some sort of response. "Yes, of course. As long as Minho hyung tells me when the practices are, and that way, my dearest friend doesn't have to relay information he should be telling me instead." He gives a pointed look to both of them.
Why did he agree to this again?
"You know I don't like bothering you with these kinds of things." Minho is honest, and he has a softer tone and look in his eyes as he addresses Seungmin. It makes his stomach twist.
"That's the point of us dating, hyung." He replies just as quietly. It's works like a charm, because Minho finally lets himself relax and uncrosses his arms from his chest. "Whatever," he murmurs, but his ears have gone red, and it makes Seungmin smile in victory.
"Wow. I've never seen him fold this fast." Yeosang mutters, and Wooyoung chokes on a laugh. Professor Park watches the whole exchange with a fond expression, not at all bothered by whatever dynamic the four of them have going on. Minho glares at Yeosang, but Seungmin notes that there is no real heat behind it.
"Alright, as much as I love seeing the four of you get along, we have some dancing to do. Seungmin-ssi, there's a seat for you by the sound booth. Again, I truly appreciate you doing this." Professor Park expresses his gratitude, and Seungmin smiles as he reassures him that it was no problem at all. Yeosang pats his shoulder as he walks past him with a smile, and Wooyoung winks at him and laughs as Seungmin glares at him. What a brat. He really should have known better.
Minho comes up to him, amusement clear in his eyes. "I didn't know you had friends on the team."
"You literally follow me on my socials. How did you not recognise Wooyoungie? Or Yeosang hyung?"
"Why would I need to focus on them when I have you to look after?" Minho is blunt. His voice was low enough to make Seungmin shift on his feet. He doesn't know what to say to that.
"They're your teammates." He replies weakly. Minho hums, taking hold of his hand, rubbing his fingers along each of his knuckles. "And you're my boyfriend. I look after them and focus on them here, but outside of it, you're my priority."
Seungmin rolls his eyes this time, ignoring the pang of confusion that shoots through him. He shrugs Minho off, walking towards the sound booth. "Whatever you say."
He settles down on the spare chair Professor Park had set aside for him, not knowing how he missed this detail before walking inside the room. Seungmin drops his bag beside it and plops down on the seat with his legs crossed over one another. He watches as everyone gets into position, noticing how the two tallest guys in the class are talking with Minho. One of them reminds him of a puppy, and he wonders if this is how all his friends see him as well. The other is cute too, and from the looks of it, they're definitely younger than Minho. Seungmin thinks they look familiar, but before he can dwell on it any longer, Professor Park is telling them to hurry and get into their spots.
Wooyoung passes by him, offering a bright smile. Seungmin gives him a deadpan stare, and it has him giggling again as he gets into place.
When the music starts, Seungmin keeps an eye on all of them. The beat of the song is one he recognises well, the lyrics of 30 for 30 by SZA playing through the speakers. Like this, Seungmin gets a full view of the members. There's obviously Wooyoung and Yeosang, and Minho as the captain. Then four boys, including the two tall guys, and four girls.
Honestly, Seungmin thought there would have been more. He guesses it makes sense. There can't be too many people on a team unless they want it to become messy and uncoordinated. There's also the cheer team and the pom squad, both of which hype up their sports teams more than the dance program itself. And if more funds go towards that, then it is only reasonable to keep the dance team small while keeping up with its other available classes.
It's still nice. It makes him have fewer people to worry about, and makes it easier to focus on footwork and the beat of the song. Everyone does amazing, as Seungmin expected after seeing them go through it once before he came in. But he does take note of certain parts that could use some improvement, and some parts that could be changed to fit the vibe of the song better.
Then Minho is there. Sweaty and tired, but he still puts his all into it. Seungmin doesn't take his eyes off him, and his mind ends up wandering to something different, to their deal. It's no wonder Minho posts his own choreographies or dance covers. He's good at what he does, but Seungmin wonders what he could come up with when he's dancing along to a song with Seungmin's voice as the premise. He wants to see it, wants to know how Minho will look and if he will complement his vocals.
Seungmin is suddenly full of want, a need.
As a friend, of course.
When the music comes to an end, everyone is once again out of breath. Wooyoung looks like he wants to collapse to the ground, and Seungmin bites his lip from giggling. He only does so when Professor Park hums out a small, "That was good." And the students groan in unison.
"Alright, time for our dance captain to sit this one out. Seungmin-ssi, any suggestions?" Professor Park addresses Seungmin, and it makes him snap back into reality.
He doesn't hesitate to make the suggestions he thought of, as well as other things. Even gets up and demonstrates. He thought he wouldn't be taken seriously, since had no experience in this at all. But everyone nodded along and even asked questions to which he answered honestly. They wanted an outsider's opinion and perspective, so that's what he gave them. But he still didn't forget to praise them for their hard work.
"Overall, you guys did amazing. I was truly impressed. Be proud of yourselves!" Seungmin exclaims, and it gets a few shy smiles and thank yous from the students.
"Wonderful, let's go again!" Professor Park says. He gets into formation this time, which leaves Minho and Seungmin by the sound booth. By themselves. Side by side.
The song plays, and without a second thought, Seungmin goes, "You should send me your schedule, especially when you guys have practice."
Minho's eyes widen briefly before he settles on a smirk. "You liked seeing me dance that much?"
"Hm, I did," Seungmin replies easily. Minho pauses, searching his face for—something. Seungmin isn't sure.
The music plays, Professor Park is counting and saying things that go in one ear and out the next. Minho stares at Seungmin with that familiar dark gaze, and eventually, he huffs out a laugh. Leans against the chair Seungmin is occupying with his arm now settled on the back of it. His fingers graze Seungmin's shoulders, and the brief touch burns.
"Alright. Whatever you want, puppy." Minho agrees, turning his gaze away. Seungmin hums and settles back comfortably, watching the students once more.
He doesn't correct Minho about the nickname this time, and tells himself he just forgot.