Sol furrowed his brow at the new quest that appeared before his eyes. The mint-colored bordered notification window overlapped with Tae-oh’s handsome face, creating a somewhat amusing sight. As Sol read the text scrolling across Tae-oh’s forehead, he felt a dizziness coming over him.
Sol found the quest name unsettling from the start. <Dance Initiation Ceremony>, really? Sol briefly entertained the thought, “Could this quest be given by Yoon Tae-oh?” Suddenly, a shiver ran down his spine at the thought that emerged. In the end, both Tae-oh and the mysterious notification window were compelling Sol to dance right now. Sol shook his head nervously.
Commonly known forms of dance, such as ballet and modern dance, differed in their essence from practical dance. Of course, when looked at in the broader context, considering that both involve expression through the body, it couldn’t be said that they were entirely different. However, even within these three categories—modern dance, Korean dance, and ballet—the handling of fingertips and toes differed.
Not to mention practical dance—the branches were endless. Locking, hip-hop, popping, b-boying, jazz dance, popular dance, street dance. Sol’s specialty was Korean dance. Of course, Sol had been on stage not only for Korean dance but also for modern dance. However, if one were to pick the thing he excelled at the most, it was Korean dance. It was somewhat incompatible with popular dance forms. As an idol trainee trying to showcase his skills, he couldn’t just spontaneously perform something like “Hanryangmu” (T/N: A traditional Korean dance). Doing so would probably distort Tae-oh’s handsome face even more than it already was.
The image of Tae-oh’s crumpled face came to mind. While for a regular trainee, having any foundation might be appreciated, Sol was part of a debut group on the brink of their debut. Even if he was a finished product, he wouldn’t surpass Tae-oh or the other members. Of course, Sol hadn’t exclusively focused on dance like a stubborn traditionalist.
From the beginning, he quickly excelled at anything involving body movement. Occasionally, he joined Yoo-chan, Ju-hwan, and others in the practice room, dancing to trendy moves just for fun. While he had some memorable short routines, in front of those who had undergone professional training, anything he did would inevitably look amateurish.
However, a more significant issue than these challenges was the fear of dancing. Even if he genuinely wanted to dance, whether he could do so without mishap was the question. After the accident, Sol recalled the last moment he had danced.
Unable to resist Yoo-chan’s teasing, Sol had pushed back just like now and playfully executed a grand pirouette. As usual, they had playfully made a bet, challenging each other to see who could perform more pirouettes. However, before completing even two turns, Sol had felt a sharp pain in his legs and had to sit down on the floor. A male dancer who couldn’t even properly execute a pirouette, it was practically the end.
It was practically over. Unlike female dancers, where artistic movements dominated, male dancers relied heavily on technical skills. A dancer who couldn’t even perform a proper turn. Just the thought of dancing brought tension and fear that made his skin crawl.
Looking at his pale face reflected in the mirror, sudden fear overwhelmed him. The four pairs of eyes staring back at him through the mirror were intimidating. With his face turning pale, Sol clenched his fists, bracing himself like a student facing a homework inspection, and looked at Tae-oh. He wanted to leave this place immediately.
“Uh, the, the bathroom! I’ll go to the bathroom and come back to do it!”
In front of the four people, or rather, the four reflections in the mirror, Sol found himself becoming even more frightened. Sol, hiding his trembling hands behind him, forced a casual smile and spoke to Tae-oh. In response to Sol’s attempt to somehow avoid the situation with his excuses, Tae-oh’s face became even more expressionless. Sol couldn’t help but think that, despite the circumstances, Tae-oh was truly handsome.
Finding himself entertaining unnecessary thoughts in such a situation, the corners of Sol’s mouth twitched, amused at his own absurdity.
With fists clenched, Tae-oh looked down at Sol, and beneath Sol’s faint smile, Tae-oh could discern his thoughts. The emotion hidden behind Sol’s laughter was ‘defeat’. No matter how much Tae-oh tried to see it positively, he couldn’t overlook Sol’s attitude. Perplexed, he shook his head and let out a small chuckle.
“...Go ahead. Turn left at the corner and it’s at the end.”
As soon as Tae-oh finished speaking, Sol swiftly left the practice room without looking back. Intent on escaping, Sol, retracing his steps down the path he had taken, quickly hid in a corner of the corridor upon hearing Yeong-ho’s voice from above the stairs.
As the sound of Yeong-ho’s footsteps coming down the stairs grew closer, Sol, with no other option, ran towards the restroom as Tae-oh had instructed. To any unfamiliar observer, Sol appeared in a great hurry, as if he had urgent business. Turning left at the corner and reaching the far end, Sol entered the restroom and locked himself in the last stall. He thought that once Yeong-ho left, he should make his escape.
With a careless mindset, Sol had withdrawn himself for the time being, but now that he had done so, the future became a problem. He had no money on hand, and he didn’t know whom to contact for help. While there might be a significant insurance payout due to the incident involving his family, the problem was that Sol didn’t have the insurance policy itself.
Even worse, it was the middle of winter outside. Sol, who had been absent-minded throughout the van ride, couldn’t help but notice the traces of snow passing by the window and the Christmas trees set up in various places. Like the protagonist who, escaping bullying in a teen movie, Sol sat forlornly on the cold seat.
[In case of failure, system shutdown (or corresponding pain)]
[Remaining time: 00:09:57]
In one corner of his vision, the time limit for the tutorial quest popped up. What would happen if he “failed” and the “system shutdown” occurred? He vaguely recalled what happened in games when quests failed. Although he wasn’t much of a gamer, Sol didn’t think anything significant would happen if he failed. Of course, the accompanying “corresponding pain” bothered him, but perhaps failing the quest could help him escape this strange situation. After all, it was just a system shutdown.
‘All right. Let’s see what happens by just sitting here in the restroom.’
It was barely less than 10 minutes. If he let the time pass quietly, maybe he wouldn’t have to see any more strange notification windows or follow unwanted commands. It was a bit unsettling, but now, this was the only option Sol could choose. He certainly didn’t want to showcase his strange dance in front of those four people. Especially not to his own reflection in the mirror.
Sol embraced his knees tightly, curling his body even more. Faintly, from other practice rooms where training was in full swing, various music mixed and reached his ears. He wondered if he would hear a familiar song, but not a single tune was recognizable. It was natural. Since the accident, Sol’s time had come to a standstill, leaving him ignorant of the world, and he tirelessly exerted himself to remain ignorant.
Perhaps, in an effort not to lose the memory of that day, Sol might have unknowingly been repeating his steps in place. DK introduced himself as eighteen years old, and at that very age, Sol had already come to a standstill. Whether it was now when he had just turned 20 or the time when he was a 25-year-old unemployed person, nothing had changed.
'If it’s going to be like this, just pretend the accident never happened.'
Like the unfamiliar family photo on his phone. Sol uttered a futile wish for the dream or game to end quickly. Slowly, his thoughts flowed aimlessly, much like the numbers rapidly decreasing in the corner of his vision. Thoughts about needing to get his phone back from Yeong-ho, how to get home, and that he should call Yoo-chan first when he wakes up from the dream. Mundane thoughts like these wandered through his mind.
The narrow bathroom stall, with tiles that felt freezing against his back, strangely brought comfort to Sol’s heart. Listening to the occasional sound of water rushing down the pipes or the rhythmic dripping of water, he felt a strange comfort. Sol eagerly awaited for the numbers in his sight to quickly reach zero.
What would happen to the four who would be left in the practice room when Sol woke up from this dream? Would they wait for him, who wouldn’t return? It was a strange thought. When the dream ended, it was over. An alert window with a bright mint-colored border appeared on the neatly arranged white tiles. The remaining time was now 30 seconds. What could “System Shutdown” possibly mean? Sol calmly stared at the slowly diminishing numbers.
[Remaining Time 00:00:00]
Finally, all the numbers became zeros.
[<Tutorial: Dance Initiation Ceremony!> Failed]
[System Shutdown]
‘Is it just going to end like this?’
In the vanishing alert window, Sol expressed his doubt. Unlike the ominous statement about the corresponding pain, nothing happened. With a hint of uncertainty, he tried uttering “Status Window” twice, but the mint-colored bordered status window did not reappear.
In this strange dream-like situation, just like in a movie, Sol woke up, but nothing changed. Sol, who was enjoying a quiet moment alone, tilted his head at the sudden overwhelming sense of unfamiliarity. As if time had come to a standstill, everything was silent. Sol, tense like a cat with raised fur, cautiously stood up and opened the bathroom stall door.
The dripping sound that had been falling in sync with his heartbeat until a moment ago had stopped, and all sounds vanished, making the air feel nonexistent. Everything had come to a halt. The moment he realized the frozen world, a massive shock akin to that summer day in his sophomore year overwhelmed Sol.
