Letters On Our Skin || BangChan

the moment they met

It's Thursday afternoon, and this part of Yeouido Hangang Park has been relatively empty for the past few hours. But not anymore. It's been filling, people of all ages have slowly been gathering on the green grass area.

When I arrive, most of the usuals are already here.
I do this twice a week. Every Thursday and Friday when I get off work a bit earlier than usual.
I place the huge speaker onto the ground and immediately some of the younger trainees gather around me.
"Are we doing Blackpink today?"
"Can we do Justin Bieber?"
"No, let's do Dua Lipa!"
They tug on my shirt while I connect my phone to the speaker.

These kids are just like I was at their age. Relentless. Hungry.
The only difference is that they have someone who teaches them for free what I had to learn in expensive ass classes for years.
Every Thursday and Friday afternoon, when most people go home to their families, I come to this park with my music box.

And I teach dancing to anyone who wants to join. It started with myself, dancing a routine I choreographed by myself, and a sign leaning against the speaker, saying "Want to learn? I teach dance for free!"
After two or three times, a group of teenagers joined me and I started teaching them beneath the clear sky of Seoul. Five people turned into ten, which turned into twenty.
Now, there are about thirty people who regularly show up to dance with me.

We're a colorful group. Background doesn't matter to me. Neither do age, gender, or wether or not you can actually dance. This isn't meant to be a competition. It's supposed to be fun. It's supposed to bring some light and weightlessness.
I've been dancing for the past 12 years. It's everything I ever wanted to do.
People deserve to have that kind of distraction from their day to day lives. I deserve it.

"Alright, you guys! Today we'll be doing a new choreo," I announce in Korean as the regulars gather around me. Most of them are wearing athletic clothes, but some look like they just got off work.
There's a young man in a suit who's loosening his tie, next to him stands an older woman, her vest says "Seonwoo Grocery Store".

A few young mothers have gathered in a smaller circle towards the back, one of them carrying a baby on her hip.
I can see a few high school students stretching and warming up.
I raise my voice, "I promise it will not be difficult, so we'll power through it today!"

My eyes travel over the faces of those standing towards the sides. There will always be people watching, so I make it a point to include them when I talk. It creates a more welcoming atmosphere and from time to time, they even join spontaneously.
"For those of you who have not danced with me before," I carefully choose the right words and hope I sound as fluent as I think I do, "You're very welcome to watch, join, cheer, and all of the above. We're here to have fun, this is a safe space. Everyone is welcome!"

I turn on one of my favorite songs - Shower by Becky G - and call out, "We'll start with a quick warm up, follow my lead!"
I get in position in the first row, facing the river. Behind me, everybody falls in line and I can hear the first people cheering and clapping. As always, some people take out their phones to record us.
I do a few easy dance moves, moving my legs and arms to the beat. Then I include a few movements that look like squads and small jumps to warm up the bigger muscles of the body. I roll my arms, shoulders and neck.

I love this energy. It's rushing through my body, leaving me warm and fuzzy. I am giddy by the time the song ends and I pause the music on my phone.
"Alright, well done!" I clap my hands and they join. "Now, I'll dance the choreo for you one time and then we'll get to learning. Sound alright?"
The dancers cheer and I get in position.

It took me no more than a day to come up with it and learn it by heart, since it's not that difficult. For the purpose of this free class I choose not to teach my harder choreographies because we're doing a new one each week and this is supposed to be a get-away from having to think too hard.
I scan the crowd that surrounds us now before I start the new song.

For a moment, my eyes get caught on a young man in a dark sweatshirt and black pants. He can't be much older than I am.
His dark eyes are glued to me and he grins.
He smiles so wide, the joy is basically radiating off of him.
I have never seen someone who looks so... kind.

I clear my throat and force myself to look away from him, then I start the music.
Bruno Mars sings from the speakers, one of my favorite songs of his - Finesse. The fun version with Cardi B.
I close my eyes and take a deep breath.
When I open them again, the people in front of me blur together with the trees and river behind them. Everything turns to merely shapes and colors and the music drives my body forward without me having to think about it.
I dance the choreography, putting as much joy and ecstasy into each step as possible.
The choreography is only one and a half minute long, but it's enough.

When I'm done, the audience applauds me and I bow before them, waving like I am some sort of princess in a wagon.
I notice too late that my eyes are actively searching for the boy with the kind smile in the crowd.
I find him a few rows behind the front dancers, pulling his sleeves up to his elbows. His face is pulled into a mask full of focus and I grin to myself. This always works.

"Okay, from the top, folks," I demonstrate the first eight counts quickly, before repeating them slowly.
"You want to make sure to really hit that sixth count with a lot of power! Pow!"
We go over each count twice and by the third time I turn to examine the dancers. I found that it helps many people to get a positive response or word of encouragement. I don't care that much if they do the steps perfectly, as long as they're having fun. As long as they're feeling the community, and all the joy.

We go over the whole choreography slowly, step by step, before I feel comfortable cranking up the speed a little. Many of the younger dancers keep up pretty easily, but the older generations struggle a bit.
"You're doing great, there in the back," I call to a lady with grey hair and an equally mature gentleman beside her. They laugh and wave.

About an hour later, we've gone through the choreography a couple times to normal speed but without music.
"Alright, now lets do it one time to music and then I'll let you guys go home!"
We dance it through from top to bottom and end the song with a freestyle session.
"Okay, feel free to try out this choreography at home and come back tomorrow! Then we'll put a bit of speed and detailing into this thing!"

Slowly, everyone trickles away from the grass area, packs up their stuff and walks away. A few people wave towards me, a smaller kid throws its small arms around my waist. I tell many people goodbye, thank them for coming.
"Bye, see you tomorrow."

When I bend down to disconnect my phone from the speaker, I can feel someone approach me from behind.
It's the boy with the kind smile.
Now that he's standing right in front of me, I can see his dimples and the way his dark hair curls and peaks out from beneath the hood of his sweatshirt. My eyes travel over his wide shoulders and the obviously trained arm muscles, before I look back into his eyes.
"Hi," I say.

"Hi," he scratches his neck and swallows thickly. He's nervous.
I pull a few strands of my blonde hair away from my face and say, "I saw you dance, you did very well! Was it your first time with us?"
Relieved I started the conversation, he lets out a shaky laugh and answers, "Yes, actually. I didn't even know this existed here. It was so much fun!"

I giggle. "I'd like to consider myself Seoul's best kept secret. I'm glad you had fun."
The heat crawls into my cheeks. I've never been shy around people, not even around boys as handsome as him. But I usually don't start flirting right in the first second.
I add, "You're very welcome to come back tomorrow! Dance in the front, where people can see you."
"Oh, I really should stay in the back," he says and chuckles, "But I'd love to come back! I haven't had this much fun in a whole while. Is it okay if I bring my friends with me?"
"Of course," I say and pocket my phone, "Everyone is welcome! The more, the merrier."
He smiles again and I can't help but stare at the twinkle in his dark eyes.

Then he says, "I think what you're doing here is amazing! I'll definitely be here tomorrow."
"Great!"
"So," he hovers as if he doesn't know how to say it, "Goodnight-...?"
I realize he's asking for my name and I quickly answer, "Olivia. Park Olivia."
I reach out my hand and he shakes it.
"Nice to meet you, Olivia," he says, "I'm Christopher, but most people call me Chan."