“…Alright, it’s your turn, Ha Ye-rin. Please choose a team member.”
“…Ah, um… Yes…”
As Seo Yoo-jin was rejected, I blankly stared at it until Han Si-woo’s words snapped me back, and I replied.
“…I’ll choose 9th place, Park Yoo-jung!”
“Okay~ 9th place, Park Yoo-jung! You’ve been chosen by Ha Ye-rin! Will you accept?!”
“I will accept.”
Park Yoo-jung seemed to sense the awkward atmosphere and immediately responded without hesitation.
“Great! Then, Park Yoo-jung, please come up to the podium and stand behind Ha Ye-rin!”
Just like that, I smoothly picked Park Yoo-jung as my team member without any big issues.
It was a pity to miss out on the main vocalist, Lee Hye-jeong, but being able to pick 9th place Park Yoo-jung was a bit of a win.
However…
“……”
I was so shocked by Seo Yoo-jin’s rejection that I didn’t really feel happy in my head.
Park Yoo-jung looked similarly displeased as she approached me.
No, it wasn’t just me and Park Yoo-jung.
Other participants, including Lee Hye-jeong, Na Han-na, even Yoo Seol, and 10th place Kim Se-hee, who had just rejected Seo Yoo-jin’s call, were all wearing uncomfortable expressions.
In that cold atmosphere, the turn went to Yoo Seol…
“Yoo Seol, please choose a teammate.”
“……”
Yoo Seol hesitated uncharacteristically…
“…I choose 10th place Kim Se-hee!”
…She chose Kim Se-hee, the highest-ranked and skilled remaining participant, who had just rejected Seo Yoo-jin.
Kim Se-hee glanced at Seo Yoo-jin apologetically before saying…
“10th place, Kim Se-hee. You’ve been chosen by Yoo Seol. Will you accept?”
“…I will accept.”
…And she accepted Yoo Seol’s choice.
Thus, among the six leaders on stage, five had each gained a team member, leaving only Seo Yoo-jin stranded all alone.
“……”
Seo Yoo-jin had a dazed look as if she couldn’t believe this situation.
But…
“…Now, we will begin the second round of selections.”
Everyone present could guess that her hardships were just beginning.
“…I’m sorry. I will reject.”
“…I will reject.”
“Uh, I-I will reject.”
“…I’m sorry.”
Seo Yoo-jin was met with a consecutive four rejections.
And the fifth round began.
Up until now, every leader had succeeded in choosing members without a single failure, except for Seo Yoo-jin, who had failed all her choices.
And even in the fifth round…
“Participant Woo Ji-young, you have been chosen by Seo Yoo-jin. Will you accept?”
“Uh,… um…”
The participant chosen by Seo Yoo-jin looked flustered, hung her head, and answered.
“…I’m sorry. I will not accept…”
“……”
The outcome had been anticipated since the moment she failed her first selection.
After all, teaming up with someone like Seo Yoo-jin, who had suffered significant damage to her image from the last broadcast, was quite a burden.
Furthermore, if she was chosen after failing to select team members, she’d only end up with lower-ranking participants…
‘Who would want that…’
It was a pity to see Seo Yoo-jin’s situation, but team selection was a matter of survival for the participants.
Understanding the mindset of those who rejected Seo Yoo-jin only made the atmosphere heavier.
And so, once again, Seo Yoo-jin was the only one to fail in her selections as the fifth round concluded…
A murmur of anxiety began among the remaining participants.
“If she doesn’t get picked again this time…”
“She might be forced onto that team…”
Considering the remaining participants, if they failed to receive any other team’s selection, they would all be assigned to Seo Yoo-jin’s team.
‘That would be a complete dumpster fire.’
No matter how outstanding Seo Yoo-jin was, it would be impossible for her to produce good results with only lower-ranking participants.
I absolutely didn’t want to end up in Seo Yoo-jin’s team.
Such a crisis made the other participants, who had previously felt pity for Seo Yoo-jin, blatantly avoid her gaze and exude an atmosphere of reluctance.
Then, just as the sixth round of selections was about to start…
“…Now, we will begin the sixth round of selections…”
Hiccup…
Before Han Si-woo could finish his announcement, a sob broke through.
Hiccup…Ooh…
In the end, Seo Yoo-jin, unable to hold back, burst into tears.
She must have cried all night the previous night because the area around her eyes was red and swollen.
Seeing her, alone and shedding tears, tugged at my heartstrings.
“……”
It seemed Han Si-woo felt the same way as he paused and looked toward the production team outside the set.
He then made a gesture as if to say we should cut for a moment.
But the response from the PD…
Shakes head.
…indicated a refusal, followed by a gesture to continue filming.
“……”
In that moment, Han Si-woo’s eyes blazed with frustration.
He seemed to feel that everything, including filming, was just unbearable.
However, Han Si-woo was thoroughly a professional when it came to broadcasts…
Sigh…
His fiery determination concerning the filming quickly subdued, and he resumed.
“…Then, we will begin the sixth round of selections.”
“…Sob…”
Seo Yoo-jin, attempting to hold back her tears, bowed her head, struggling to stop them.
Yet everyone could only show pity for her, without offering any consolation.
I, too, wanted to step forward after seeing Seo Yoo-jin like that…
Tap.
“…Noona, it’s better not to step in here…”
Park Yoo-jung stopped me with a whisper.
“…Look at the production team’s atmosphere. If we step in foolishly and end up on the broadcast in a bad light…”
“……”
“…For now, we should just observe. Besides, anyway…, as mere participants, we don’t have much we can do…”
Park Yoo-jung’s words made me turn my gaze towards the production team.
Aside from the ever-smiling PD, the expressions of the other crew members remained unfazed even after witnessing Seo Yoo-jin crying.
…It seemed like they had anticipated this from the start.
‘Ah.’
In that moment, I realized.
This team selection game was a hydraulic press intended to squeeze the last bit from Seo Yoo-jin.
What would Seo Yoo-jin’s pitifully crying figure look like after being edited by the production crew for the broadcast?
…Somehow, I thought it wouldn’t cast her in a good light for the viewers.
If I got entangled improperly, I could end up suffering damage to my image as well.
Logically speaking…, as Park Yoo-jung said, it was the right choice to remain still.
After all, like she said, as a mere participant, there really wasn’t anything I could do here.
So… I deliberately avoided looking at Seo Yoo-jin’s tearful figure…
…Waiting for my turn to come.
“Okay~ So please begin the selections!!”
Hiccup…
Han Si-woo seemed to forcibly raise his energy as if he didn’t want to emphasize Seo Yoo-jin’s crying.
But all I could hear were Seo Yoo-jin’s sobs, not his voice.
Hiccup…
Feeling guilty about that, I shut my eyes.
And when I closed my eyes… the words directed at me by others over time came rushing back.
“I’ll make you regret today! When I see you next time, I won’t let you off!”
“Ye-rin, do you want to play the saint? Do you want to cosplay as a good girl?”
“I can wait as long as it takes. And… whatever choice you make, I’ll respect it.”
“……”
When I opened my eyes again, it felt like something complicated vanished and my mind became somewhat clearer.
Of course, I was just an ordinary participant.
But could I really do absolutely nothing right now?
‘…No.’
I didn’t think that.
I finally took first place in the official ranking announcement.
Despite that, Yoo Seol couldn’t feel the joy she expected.
She knew deep down that this wasn’t a legitimate ranking.
Sure, she had initiated and orchestrated the entire scenario…
‘More than I thought…’
The Na Ah Ah production team was harsher than expected, and the stones thrown by the public towards Seo Yoo-jin were sharper than anticipated.
As a result, Seo Yoo-jin sustained a deeper wound than she expected.
From the moment she first laid eyes on Seo Yoo-jin in the set…
Yoo Seol nearly faltered with guilt but quickly steadied herself.
‘…Get a grip.’
…She managed to compose herself.
But then…
‘…I’m sorry for misunderstanding and saying strange things the other day.’
Whether intended or not, Ha Ye-rin bulldozed through the steeled resolve of Yoo Seol.
From that moment, Yoo Seol couldn’t hide the guilt seeping out of her.
And she…
‘…I’m disgusted.’
…thought she was repulsive.
Did she act without foreseeing that events like this could transpire?
…No.
Even knowing that the worst-case scenario could lead to such outcomes, she went ahead with it.
…For her own ranking.
She had no right to feel guilty in her current situation.
So, she began to freeze her heart even further, thinking more rationally…
‘…Just exclude emotions and think only of winning.’
And she meticulously devised the optimal team, like a machine.
‘Anyway, there’s nothing I can do right now.’
The broadcast is a flow.
The way to survive in broadcasting was to ride the wave of the massive currents that composed it, and currently, the tide was trampling Seo Yoo-jin.
If she didn’t want to get trampled along with her, she had to neither throw herself into the flow recklessly nor resist against it; she had to either ride along or remain an onlooker.
Yoo Seol thought this way, further killing her emotions and humanity.
But it was then…
Hiccup…
Finally, Seo Yoo-jin burst into tears.
“……”
In that moment, Yoo Seol saw her past self in Seo Yoo-jin.
Seventeen years old.
Unable to focus on practice due to her father’s accident, she was ultimately excluded from the Tail Rose’s debut team…
‘Haa…, Hiccup…’
The seventeen-year-old Yoo Seol had sat alone in the practice room, weeping.
…Just like Seo Yoo-jin did now.
‘…Don’t get distracted.’
At that time, Yoo Seol had desperately wished for someone to reach out to the suffering version of herself.
‘…Think of my debut and Na Ah Ah’s victory only.’
But no one came to her.
‘Anyway, I couldn’t do anything.’
At that time, everyone else had just watched her, riding along with the currents, and so…
…Now, Yoo Seol was merely looking at Seo Yoo-jin.
“…Seo Yoo-jin, please make your selection.”
“…I-I will choose… Hiccup… Yeo Hee-min… Hiccup…”
“…You have chosen Yeo Hee-min. Will you accept?”
“…I-I’m really sorry… I will reject.”
“…Seo Yoo-jin has failed in her selection. The opportunity passes to the next round.”
In the end, Seo Yoo-jin also failed in the sixth round of selections.
As soon as Yoo Seol saw that, her heart felt as if it was going to explode…
Swipe-
…But she turned her head away.
‘…Ah.’
In that moment, Yoo Seol felt as if she wasn’t turning her back on Seo Yoo-jin, but rather on her past self.
The girl who had to cry alone in loneliness…
‘…Ahh.’
Suddenly, it felt like PTSD hit her, and the emotions from the past washed over her vividly.
Even now, recalling it brought an intense feeling of loneliness and isolation.
Someone’s touch was desperately needed…
‘Someone… help Seo Yoo-jin…’
‘Someone… help me…’
Then, it happened.
“…I will choose Seo Yoo-jin as my team member.”
“……!”
Upon hearing something utterly incomprehensible, I looked up to see… Ha Ye-rin standing there, expressionless with the microphone.
‘…What on earth?’
…The leader choosing another team leader?
More importantly, someone was willing to choose Seo Yoo-jin, who clearly had more cons than pros…?
Yoo Seol, Na Han-na, Lee Hye-jeong, Park Yoo-jung, Han Si-woo, even the production crew and Shin PD…
All shared a look of utter bewilderment.
But…
“…What? Ye-rin, what do you mean…?”
“Ah, let me say it again. I will choose Seo Yoo-jin as my team member.”
…Ha Ye-rin simply repeated herself with an expressionless face, steadfastly choosing Seo Yoo-jin.
“……”
“……”
The ongoing broadcast entered a moment of silence, caught off guard by the situation.
And in that moment…
Thud.
“Wow… sob… sob…”
Finally, Seo Yoo-jin, who had been holding her place, crumpled to the ground…
“WAHHHHHHH!”
Her cries filled the set like a waterfall, echoing throughout the space.
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