Chapter 84
Chapter 84
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 84
Chapter Title: Internal Vote Results
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“We will now announce the internal vote rankings.”
At the MC's words, all the teams straightened up in their seats.
They were all excessively tense.
“The group that places first in the internal vote will receive an additional ten thousand votes. And the group chosen for the weakest performance will lose their song selection rights for the next stage.”
Unsure of what exactly losing their song selection rights entailed, they could only dart their eyes around.
“The group that places first in the internal vote will have the right to choose the next competition song for the group chosen for the weakest performance.”
At those words, murmurs broke out here and there.
“Wow. What if they deliberately pick a song that's impossible to pull off?”
“This could be dangerous.”
“We won't get picked, right?”
Although there were no eliminations, this was still very much a competition program.
So it was only natural for the first-place team to receive benefits and the last-place team to receive a penalty.
“I'm so nervous. So, so nervous.”
“Hoo...”
“My heart feels like it's going to leap out of my chest.”
Anxious and uneasy whispers could be heard from all around.
Quite a few were exhibiting odd behaviors like biting their nails or shaking their legs.
Creatin was no exception.
“Then, let's start by revealing the group that took first place.”
A large roulette wheel suddenly appeared on the screen.
The one peculiar thing about it was that the wheel was divided into different colored sections, but there was no writing on it.
“Alright, let's reveal it.”
As soon as the MC finished speaking, the roulette wheel began to spin rapidly.
Then, it gradually slowed down.
Soon, the wheel came to a stop on a blue section.
“Who is it?”
“Who got it?”
The wheel had stopped, but since there was no text, no one knew who had won first place.
The MC offered no further explanation, simply fixing his gaze on the wheel.
Just then, the screen filled with blue, and letters began to appear.
[Creatin]
“Congratulations. Creatin has taken first place in the internal vote.”
The members of Creatin shot up from their seats like springs.
“Thank you. Thank you.”
They then bowed deeply to the others who had voted for them, expressing their gratitude.
“Now, we need to choose the weakest performance, so could Creatin please be seated?”
“Ah, yes. Our apologies.”
Overcome with joy and having momentarily lost their composure, Creatin sat down with sheepish expressions at the MC's words.
They then shared their joy with light high-fives among themselves.
“Before we reveal the weakest performance, I hope no one is thinking it might be them. Even if you're chosen as the weakest this time, you might not be next time. Besides, there's always the chance the results could be overturned by the online vote. So please, don't be too disheartened.”
They were words of comfort, but to the other teams, excluding Creatin, they were just noise.
When people are too tense and anxious, even kind words fail to register.
“Now, please reveal the group chosen for the weakest performance.”
Once again, the roulette wheel spun.
This time, it stopped on a white section.
Before long, letters slowly began to appear.
Even more slowly than during the first-place announcement.
As a result, it took a moment to clearly identify the group's name.
[Zero to the Boy]
The ones chosen for the weakest performance were none other than Zero to the Boy.
They had put on a joint stage with a girl group from the same company, but since they hadn't even debuted yet, the performance was led primarily by the girl group.
No one would have looked favorably on that, so it was an expected outcome.
Of course, not for Zero to the Boy themselves.
“Zero to the Boy. Are you all okay?”
“Yes...”
A listless reply came back to the MC's question.
They hadn't debuted yet, so this was their first time preparing for and performing on a proper stage.
They had previously been given a mission to prepare a stage in just five hours, but this felt different.
Back then, they could at least make the excuse that the performance was unsatisfactory due to lack of time, but not now.
They had worked for days on end for this one stage.
That's why the shock was so great.
“As I said just a moment ago, the results could be overturned by the online vote, and you might even take first place in the next round. Besides, this isn't the end, and you should be grateful just to be able to continue performing on stage.”
Although it was a survival show, there was no elimination system, so the fact that they didn't have to pack their bags and go home was something to be thankful for.
“There will be better results next time.”
“Yes, thank you.”
Despite the warm words of comfort, Zero to the Boy's shoulders showed no signs of un-slumping.
*'Even after working so hard, we were still chosen as the worst performance.'*
They didn't even seem to be comforting each other.
Zero to the Boy just stared ahead with gloomy faces.
Their gloom was set to last for a very long time.
***
While relaxing at the dorm, a buzzing vibration went off.
It wasn't just me; it was the same for the other members.
With puzzled expressions, we all checked our phones at the same time.
[We got first place. Thank you so much for your help. We were able to get a great result thanks to you! We'll be sure to return the favor next time.]
“That's awesome.”
“That's great, isn't it?”
It was truly something to celebrate.
“It really turned out well.”
Jung Eun-woo said, taking a swig of the beer he'd secretly bought from the convenience store last time without our manager knowing.
“I know, right?”
“But didn't you get goosebumps when the PD asked us if we wanted to be on the new variety show they're launching?”
“Don't even get me started. Just thinking about it makes me want a beer.”
Haru also got a beer from the fridge.
“Well, maybe I'll have one too.”
Seeing this, Lee Ho-jun naturally joined in.
“I'll have one too.”
“Yeah?”
Haru got a beer for Park Ji-ham as well, and just like that, a drinking session started in the living room.
“Yoon-seul, you're not having any?”
Since I was the only one drinking a soda, Park Ji-ham asked gently.
“Why would I drink something so bitter? I'm not a fan.”
My words made the other members burst out laughing.
“Our youngest is still a kid.”
Haru said, ruffling my hair.
“Hey. I'm not a kid.”
As I retorted with a hint of indignation, Haru's hand ruffled my hair more vigorously.
“You're a kid because you don't know the true taste of beer. You have to be an adult to appreciate it.”
I might be twenty years old now, but my mental age was similar to Haru's.
Before I returned to the past, I was twenty-five.
A year older than Haru is now.
So, of course, I couldn't help but feel it was unfair.
“Beer is as bitter as life is.”
Lee Ho-jun said in a playful tone.
“We've all had a bitter life. But it's not bitter at all right now.”
As I pouted, Jung Eun-woo laughed and playfully tapped the top of my head with his palm.
“That's just how it is for the youngest. Haven't you seen other idols' reality shows? The youngest's position is to get teased a little by the older members and be doted on.”
“Eun-woo's right about that. You'll have to get used to it.”
Park Ji-ham quickly added.
“That's definitely true.”
Haru nodded in agreement.
It seemed that as the youngest of RE-V, this was something I just had to endure.
Of course, it wasn't like I genuinely disliked it.
If I had shown any sign of truly hating it, the members would have stopped their teasing.
They weren't the type of people to joke around to the point of making someone uncomfortable.
Knowing that, it just felt like an expression of their affection.
“So, the youngest just has to adapt.”
“Right.”
“That's the youngest's job. Just like the leader has a job, so does the youngest.”
Excluding me, the other members were perfectly in sync.
“But hey, the reason you don't drink isn't because of your former members, is it?”
Park Ji-ham asked cautiously, yet in a playful tone so as not to ruin the current mood.
“That's not it.”
I quickly waved my hands in denial.
It really wasn't.
I disliked bitter things so much that I didn't even drink coffee, so there was no way beer would suit my palate.
On top of that, I didn't have any good memories associated with drinking.
Other than being forced to drink at company dinners I had to attend, I never had a reason to drink.
My family didn't particularly enjoy alcohol, and I had no friends, so it was only natural.
Though the biggest reason was the taste, anyway.
“As long as it's not something like that, it's fine. I was just asking, just in case.”
“Right. As long as it's not for a bad reason.”
“Our promotions are ending soon, should we have a toast?”
At Haru's suggestion, the members clinked their beer cans together.
I joined in with my can of cola.
“This is kind of funny, isn't it? Let's take a picture and show it to our BRAVEs later.”
“Good idea.”
Jung Eun-woo immediately picked up his phone and took a picture of the gathered cans.
We had gotten an earful after secretly holding a late-night snack party with our fans on a live stream without our manager knowing, but his reaction hadn't been as severe as we'd expected, so we'd all become a bit bolder.
*'We'll control ourselves anyway.'*
We weren't going to drink enough to affect the next day's schedule or stuff ourselves with food to the point of gaining a lot of weight.
After all, we'd all been through the wringer in this entertainment industry at least once before.
So, we would just enjoy what we could in moderation and be careful when needed as we continued our activities.
“What should we toast to? Anyone have a good one?”
“Hmm...”
A brief silence fell as everyone seemed to be drawing a blank on a good toast.
“In times like these, isn't the obvious choice the best?”
“The obvious choice?”
“Yeah.”
Haru lightly lifted his can and set it back down.
“Then, here's to finishing our promotions without any problems. Cheers!”
“Cheers.”
And with that, the cans clinked together with a cheerful sound.