Ranking Announcement (2)
As the advertisement ended and the broadcast resumed, she froze.
The screen continued the announcement.
“The crossroads between survival and elimination—the 2nd-place trainee who will decide survival is right here!”
The host’s voice rang clearly in her ears.
She could not hide the nervous flutter in her chest as she waited for Lee Seo-yeon’s ranking.
“2nd place, trainee Lee Seo-yeon!”
The moment her name was called, she stared blankly at the television screen.
“Does… does Seo-yeon really come in second?”
She could hardly believe it.
The screen zoomed in on Seo-yeon’s face.
“It is truly an honor to receive a ranking that feels too good to be true!”
Seo-yeon spoke with unaffected sincerity, her bright eyes conveying deep emotion.
“Thank you to everyone who voted for me. I will work even harder from now on!”
“Seo-yeon! Not at all unworthy!”
She muttered the words to herself.
Though Seo-yeon could not hear them, she stared at the screen and vented her frustration alone.
Watching Seo-yeon climb the stage and take her seat in second place, her heart ached.
How much effort she must have poured in to reach this moment, how difficult the journey had been.
The thought of such a Seo-yeon made her chest hurt.
“But it’s too good to be true… Still, you worked hard, Seo-yeon. It would have been better if you had been first, but congratulations on second!”
While she teased herself, the announcement of first place followed.
“First place is, trainee Yu Na-bin!”
It was the expected outcome.
This ranking announcement had clearly been set up with Seo-yeon and Na-bin locked in a battle for first.
Yet Na-bin looked slightly surprised.
“I honestly thought Noona Seo-yeon would take first. But to be first like this… Thank you so much to the voters, company staff, and production team…”
As she continued, Na-bin turned her head slightly and glanced at Seo-yeon.
A warm smile bloomed on Seo-yeon’s face.
She looked genuinely untroubled by the second-place position.
“We were called rivals, but I don’t think of her that way at all.”
“Noona Seo-yeon is someone I can rely on, so I’m ready to step aside anytime.”
“And because I like her so much, please don’t turn us into a competitive pair!”
Hearing those words, she let out a soft laugh while watching the screen.
“Ah, her gums are showing.”
As Na-bin’s words suggested, the two were far more than rivals—they clearly relied on each other.
She had been a fan of Seo-yeon, yet the sight of Na-bin speaking so warmly made her feel both touched and strangely heartwarming.
“Those two need to be paired up.”
The thought lingered for a moment.
The next ranking to be revealed was another crucial moment.
“Now, the remaining spots are 50th—only one position left.”
She watched the situation with growing calm.
When 50th was called, the rest would be eliminated, but that had nothing to do with her.
It was supposed to be that way, yet she sat up straighter.
50th was a real possibility.
“Park Hye-in is a candidate?”
She watched the screen with mounting anxiety.
This was impossible.
Park Hye-in, please do not even scrape through to the bottom.
Seo-yeon had received those votes yet still lost first place—whose fault was that?
And if she recalled the hardships Seo-yeon endured because of her own reckless behavior, she absolutely could not.
“50th, trainee Park Hye-in!”
Her eyes widened.
When Park Hye-in was announced as 50th, the screen showed her beginning to speak through tears.
“She must be out of her mind. Who on earth picked her?”
The camera then panned to Lee Seo-yeon.
Seo-yeon’s eyes were already glistening.
“Does Seo-yeon cry along with this?”
“Why is our Seo-yeon so pure-hearted?”
“Don’t cry because of that kind of person, Seo-yeon.”
She bit her lip, watching the scene.
It was infuriating to see Park Hye-in crying, yet her own eyes grew moist whenever Seo-yeon did.
When Park Hye-in began speaking, her teary voice shook her to the core.
“A person who can’t even squeeze out a single tear is crying so pitifully.”
Not only that—her words gripped her heart.
“Because of my greed, I caused the team members a lot of trouble, and I didn’t realize until the broadcast how foolish and wrong my actions had been.”
Those words were filled with self-reproach for her past foolishness.
“I received a huge shock watching this broadcast, and the guilt over how much the team members must have suffered….”
Her face trembled pitifully as she spoke.
“I was afraid that if I admitted everything was my fault, I would be eliminated. So I couldn’t say it until the end.”
Hearing that, she understood how much self-torment Park Hye-in had endured.
Everyone had their own version of that moment.
Looking back, it seemed so obvious why she had done it, but at the time the right choice had felt so terrifying, and she had avoided it.
“I should have apologized even privately, but it seems too late. Thank you to those who picked me, but I want to apologize sincerely to the team members through this position. I’m truly sorry.”
In the end of Park Hye-in’s heartfelt confession, her voice cracking, her heart was shaken deeply.
That sincere apology pierced her chest.
How much anxiety must this child have carried?
How much fear?
The emotions she had hidden deep inside, terrified of being hated by others.
Upon realizing these feelings had finally surfaced, her own tears welled up.
“I wish I could squeeze out a tear right now….”
It was not forced tears for the broadcast.
This emotion was genuine.
And she believed Park Hye-in’s sincerity as well.
It was remarkable that she now had the courage to apologize in front of everyone.
Honestly, some might blame her for apologizing simply because she survived.
Actions meant to gain sympathy, they would say.
But her thoughts were different.
Even if Park Hye-in had been eliminated, she would have apologized.
“Looking back, even if it felt hateful, I didn’t need to dislike her so much.”
Had she hated her more than necessary?
Had she harbored a bigger grudge than the mistake itself?
Now she felt sorry for Park Hye-in too.
And she had always known why Park Hye-in had acted that way.
She had not wanted to fail.
She had wanted to be recognized somehow.
She had been a girl chasing her dreams, desperately facing an uncertain future more than anyone else.
It had simply been a slightly wrong direction and inexperience.
“But still, making it to the bottom by the skin of her teeth.”
Was she trying to give her one more chance, like the opportunity given to her?
Suddenly, a thought crossed her mind.
“Could the production team have posted it?”
A doubt flickered in her mind as she had watched the broadcast.
“The villain needs to stay so they can keep creating interesting pictures.”
She shook her head.
No matter what, they had not manipulated the rankings.
“Whatever, from now on, even if someone acts a little annoying, don’t dislike them more than necessary.”
This vow was for herself alone.
“Congratulations to all the surviving trainees.”
The MC’s voice continued.
“Your discharge and survival will be divided into the third task: position evaluation.”
The trainees buzzed with excitement.
This position evaluation would be rap, vocal, and dance.
They would create rap, arrangement, and choreography themselves in the chosen position and perform in front of the audience, just like last time.
“And the 1st place in each position will receive benefits. Do you remember the last benefits?”
“Yes!”
“Trainee Kang Se-rin. What will this benefit be?”
Kang Se-rin hesitated before speaking.
“Ten thousand votes…?”
“Exactly one hundred thousand votes!”
The number echoed through the trainees.
Gasps of shock escaped them.
“So it’s really important to choose a position where I can claim to be first, right?”
The position evaluation songs appeared.
Numbers were listed beside each song.
The limit on the number of participants.
“When the number of people listed is filled, that song automatically closes… no, pushing begins.”
The trainees buzzed again.
Whether or not, the process continued.
“What does that mean—who starts choosing the song?”
Their gazes turned to one place.
Right to Park Hye-in. The bottom trainee.
“Truly ruthless.”
It was ruthless to let the bottom trainee choose first and then force them to perform the remaining songs.
But the current method was even crueler.
After the bottom song was chosen, she would be pushed until first place selected.
“More importantly, after I choose, Na-bin chooses, right.”
Of course she remembered which position and song Na-bin would take. Yet unease lingered.
Meanwhile,
“Alright, then let’s begin position selection with 50th Park Hye-in trainee.”
Park Hye-in had chosen her position and song, and her head tilted reflexively.
“She’s choosing that? What is she thinking?”