The Heartbreaking Elimination (5)
“30th place trainee is……”
MC's voice grew heavy.
The venue fell silent.
It was as if each person's fervent prayers were drifting in the air.
“Han Yu-ri trainee!”
With the announcement, the screen showed only Han Yu-ri's face, and cheers erupted.
When Yu-ri came onto the stage, I searched for Park Hye-in among the trainees clapping.
Hye-in's lips curved into a smile, and her hands clapped steadily.
“Yu-ri trainee, how are you feeling right now?”
“It's wonderful! I want to perform the stage I prepared as soon as possible, and thank you all for voting!”
Even as her clear voice continued without any tremor, my gaze stayed on Park Hye-in.
She was still smiling nonchalantly, but her eyes were glistening with moisture.
“Unfortunately, Park Hye-in trainee was ranked 31st.”
Faint sighs followed the harsh result announcement.
But no microphone was handed to her.
Is asking for her feelings more cruel at this point?
I don't know.
Still, how many words she wanted to say.
It wasn't just Park Hye-in.
How many words would all the girls who fell have in their hearts?
Yet, without even giving them the chance to speak, they had to quietly disappear.
Even first place feels bittersweet.
The most bitter reason was definitely Park Hye-in.
The one who had become a crybaby, after falling, swallowed her tears.
In that sight, I turned my gaze away lest I cry myself.
The ranking announcement ended like that.
And the filming set became a sea of tears in an instant by the trainees who came down from the stage.
Even I, who hadn't understood why they were crying, was no longer an exception.
I found Park Hye-in.
I ran to her in one step and hugged her.
At that moment... tears burst out.
It didn't stop.
“You worked hard... really...!”
When I cried, Park Hye-in laughed as if in disbelief.
“Hey, why are you crying.”
I didn't know either.
I didn't even know I'd feel this emotion for Hye-in.
I just hugged her tightly and sobbed.
Then, the one who couldn't swallow her sobs eventually shed tears.
“...Thank you for the past.”
Her body trembled slightly with her voice.
Only then did I feel the emotions she had hidden.
I understand.
Even if Hye-in disappears from this program, her life doesn't disappear, it continues.
And we won't forget this moment.
*
“Congratulations to all the surviving trainees.”
Many trainees left, the atmosphere calmed, but the survival audition continued.
Some had sent off all their agency colleagues, and some were left alone in the concept evaluation song.
Still, most trainees quickly regained stability after the ranking announcement and accepted the current situation.
“After the ranking announcement, the number of remaining members for each song has changed. How many members were there per song?”
“Six!”
“Yes. But now it's different for each one, right?”
It was a statement that everyone had no choice but to understand.
And MC nodded as if agreeing.
“From now on, we will readjust the numbers.”
Everyone had expected it to some extent, so there was no big surprise.
But the announcement didn't end there.
“Additionally, starting from this moment, the discharge authority of the trainees who chose the song first will be removed.”
The expressions of the trainees who were called the boss were varied.
Some had a refreshing face because they had less burden, and some looked surprised at the reality that they themselves could be discharged.
“And we will select the discharged members through anonymous voting by all team members.”
Thus, discharge member meetings began for each team.
In I belonged to, there were 5 remaining trainees.
We were relieved that we didn't have to kick anyone out.
On the other hand, it was a bittersweet result.
So many have fallen.
Unlike the last time when the discharged members were decided and teams were divided, the team members who left after practicing together.
It couldn't be helped that emptiness was felt.
Especially when I first met Hye-in, I didn't know a day would come when I'd feel the empty spot.
It was a really strange experience.
To think I'd miss a friend I thought was annoying...
The practice time with her, the moments we laughed together, became memories that couldn't be held in hand now.
And the remaining people.
They would soon have to face the moment of farewell.
For now, let's focus on the present.
Sorry to the fallen team members, but there was hope.
Perhaps Na-bin could join our team?
I didn't remember the middle process, and through this moment, Na-bin's song could change.
Moreover, the number of remaining trainees in team that Na-bin belonged to was 7.
It meant someone had to be discharged.
Although the probability of discharging Na-bin is low, no one knows what will happen.
*
The expectation was thoroughly shattered.
Well, of course. There's no way we'd send Na-bin out.
But, Na-bin wasn't discharged.
Instead, an unexpected result came out.
Speaking of which, Serin is the discharged member?
A doubt flashed in my heart for a moment.
Why?
She was taking an important role in the vocal part, and her skill was definitely recognized, but why?
Was it a choice considering votes because she was ranked lower than Yu-ri?
Just as I was making that guess.
“The discharge member recruitment will start with the team that the highest-ranked trainee Lee Seo-yeon belongs to.”
At MC's words, I was momentarily dazed.
Giving priority to selection?
Since bringing in a member with higher win rate, it's a benefit, but...
Stop thinking useless thoughts and focus only on the situation.
No need to be too burdened.
It was an unavoidable situation, and fortunately, it wasn't a solo choice.
After a short meeting with team members, the decision on who to pick was quickly made.
Kang Se-rin.
She was just low-ranked, not someone who was absolutely inferior in skill.
“Let's pick Kang Se-rin trainee.”
Se-rin smiled brightly and looked at me.
But in that smile, there was something that didn't feel just bright.
In that sight, I suddenly thought 'oops'.
Should I have asked first if she wanted to do this song?
Then I shook my head inwardly.
Lately, unnecessary worries have increased too much while doing broadcasts.
This was probably a needless worry.
*
Oh no.
After the practice started, Se-rin seemed to feel the gap with other team members a little more each time.
We had already spent quite a long time together, and during that time, bonds were formed through grueling practice.
But Se-rin seemed to have too big a wall to follow all those things.
Is it that much harder because I have to do it alone from the beginning?
But the problem wasn't that simple.
Se-rin seemed to have lost her confidence.
It seemed largely due to being discharged from a vocal-focused song where she was confident.
“Can we try a little more?”
“Yeah...”
Team members stood up and helped and taught her earnestly, but she was in a very dejected state.
She was already timid, but now she felt more withdrawn than before.
And when practice for performance started, the difficulty became clearer.
“Let's all match it!”
Un-bi noona raised her voice.
Everyone took their positions and started the choreography.
Even at that moment, Se-rin looked a bit uneasy.
Her angles were off, her fingertips fell awkwardly, and her appearance was awkwardly clumsy, almost laughable.
Right, Se-rin... she's weak in dance.
I recalled that the reason she got D-rank in the first individual evaluation was because of the stumbling dance.
I had forgotten it for a moment buried under her vocal skill.
It seemed the same for the team members.
“Se-rin, here the hand angle is like this.”
As I approached to grab her fingertips while speaking, Se-rin lowered her head.
Her powerless appearance was like a cat curled up with illness.
“Sorry... I'll try more.”
Her voice was really small and powerless as it came to me.
This was clearly my judgment miss.
is a song where performance is important, so I brought Se-rin thinking only of her vocals.
But I can't give up.
When a team member is discouraged, you can't just leave them.
It shouldn't be too coercive, but if you can guide them somehow well... I believe this experience will definitely help save Lumiere.
“Se-rin.”
I lightly grabbed her shoulder and looked at her seriously.
“You are doing really well right now.”
“Right. Don't worry about not being able to dance well, just learn one by one. We all started like that.”
With Un-bi noona's agreement, Se-rin took a breath and lifted her head.
But her eyes still looked hesitant.
“But I'm too clumsy...”
I hurriedly cut off Se-rin's words.
To prevent more negative thoughts from spreading.
“Se-rin, we had already practiced beforehand, so it's better than now, and in the beginning, we were much messier than now.”
“Right! We're really doing well now!”
Whenever there was a chance, Un-bi noona and I helped Se-rin together.
As a result, an unbelievable change started to appear in Se-rin.