The Siren of Gijang Middle School
The first time I saw Sunbae was when I was in the fifth grade.
Starting in the fifth grade, our school allowed us to choose our own seats during lunch, which meant I could finally sit and eat with my close friends.
I was eating lunch like any other day when I noticed someone sitting all alone by the window far away, eating in solitude.
At first, I figured a friend would join them soon.
But that person remained entirely alone. No one came over; they just quietly ate their meal by the window.
Normally, I wouldn't spare a second thought for someone I didn't know, wondering, 'Why is she alone?' But there was one thing about her that was simply too striking to ignore: her appearance.
Even from a distance, she stood out so sharply, as if she had been highlighted with a neon marker. My eyes were naturally drawn to her.
While some girls who were quick to hit puberty and take an interest in their looks started wearing makeup in the upper grades, this girl didn't seem to have a speck of it on.
That only made her more intriguing.
'Why is she eating alone? Is she being bullied?' In the end, I couldn't help but keep glancing in her direction throughout lunch. Yet, even by the time I had finished every last grain of rice on my plate, she was still completely by herself.
From that day on, she lingered in my mind.
I started catching glimpses of her here and there afterward.
It wasn't like I was actively looking for her,
but once you recognize a face, you can't help but notice it.
She just stood out.
She was always alone.
She ate lunch alone, spent recess alone, and walked home alone. She didn't look like an outcast, though. It wasn't as if people were actively bullying or avoiding her. She was just... alone. As if being solitary was the most natural thing in the world for her.
To my childhood self, being alone meant being cold and lonely. It meant having no one to play with, no one to listen to you, and harboring a vague sense of dread.
Yet, despite always being by herself, she never tried to strike up a conversation with anyone, nor did she ever look intimidated.
She just seemed a little melancholy.
Maybe that was why I couldn't comprehend how someone so beautiful could be so isolated.
'Why on earth is she always alone?'
That question was finally answered during PE class.
Specifically, during PE in the second semester of our fifth-grade year.
"Alright, listen up, everyone! Today, we're playing soccer."
"Yes!!!!!"
"But your opponents today will be Class 2 from the sixth grade."
"Aw..."
Normally, even if we played soccer, we would match up against our own grade level. But due to some scheduling conflict that day, we ended up playing against the sixth graders.
I wasn't particularly fond of sports like soccer, so I sat on the bleachers like most of the other girls and the less athletic boys, cheering on our classmates who were stepping up to face the older kids.
"Go, Class 5!!!"
Not wanting to lose to their juniors, the opposing side sitting on the adjacent bleachers began to cheer as well.
"Go, Class 2!!!"
At that moment, the whistle echoed across the field, and the match began.
"Hey, look over there!"
At that exact moment, I saw *her* standing on the field. She had the ball. And then, she started to move.
I still remember that moment as vividly as if it were yesterday. She moved as if the ball were glued to her feet. In the blink of an eye, she bypassed the kids blocking her path.
"Whoa! How is she doing that?"
Even amidst her explosive movements, her body and the ball didn't move separately; they seemed fused together, as if they had been born as one.
A brief moment later, the ball was in the back of the net. Barely dozens of seconds had passed since the whistle blew. In that incredibly short span of time, she had dribbled past a whopping six players to score.
"Whoaaaaa!!!!!"
"Han Se-ah! Han Se-ah! Han Se-ah! Han Se-ah! Han Se-ah! Han Se-ah! Han Se-ah! Han Se-ah! Han Se-ah! Han Se-ah!"
That was the moment I learned her name.
And then, several years passed. Since then, I had joined the youth academy of Suwon IC, but a long-term injury had sidelined me for a full year. I decided to participate in Pick Yu-Ah as a way to make my comeback. I needed a fresh spark and new experiences.
And today, when I walked into the waiting room of *Pick Yu-Ah*, someone immediately caught my eye. Han Se-ah. I could never forget that name. Even though years had gone by, I recognized her instantly. That almost unnaturally striking beauty of hers.
She was still sitting in a corner all by herself, just like before. She was even muttering something under her breath. Watching her, I hesitated for a moment. Should I talk to her, or shouldn't I? As I stood there debating, a faint murmur escaped her lips.
"...Messiah goes..."
I decided to approach her anyway.
"...and she shoots..."
She was literally broadcasting a soccer match. All by herself, with the utmost seriousness. She looked so incredibly solemn that I almost burst out laughing. But knowing I shouldn't laugh, I barely managed to hold it in and spoke to her.
"Excuse me."
After talking to her for a bit, it became clear she was a massive fan of Leona Messiah. The moment I brought up Messiah, she lit up. She got so deeply immersed in the conversation that her pitch went up, and her speaking speed accelerated as if she were playing on double speed.
The contrast between her quiet, isolated demeanor and this passionate side was hilarious. I wanted to become friends with her. So, on a whim, I called her 'Sunbae.' After all, she really was my senior. She didn't seem malicious at all, and I figured it would be nice to have someone close in a cutthroat survival show like this.
Not long after Sunbae's name was called and she headed to the studio, my number was called too. As I left the waiting room and walked over, I secretly hoped there would be a seat right next to her for me to take.
But that hope was instantly shattered. Sunbae had gone and done it! She had actually sat down in the number one seat at the very top of the pyramid.
A poisoned chalice. No, for an independent trainee like Sunbae, that seat was pure, unadulterated venom. Unless you were a youth academy idol from a prestigious club—like Jeong Yu-ah or Seol I-an, who were already the top debut contenders of this show—that spot was impossible to handle. That was what the number one seat represented.
In the end, instead of sitting next to Sunbae, I had no choice but to take the 24th seat—a high-ranking spot that I felt was at least within my reach. It felt a bit awkward having no one above me or on either side, but still.
The next person to enter was none other than Jeong Yu-ah. True to form, she marched straight up toward the number one seat. And then, it happened.
"Hey, you."
"Would you mind moving?"
She wasn't even talking to me, but I felt goosebumps break out on my skin.
"Why...?"
I seriously wanted to scream. *Are you completely out of your mind?*
"Are they about to fight?"
As the surrounding contestants whispered in hushed, anxious tones, my hand instinctively flew to cover my mouth.
Wait. Looking closely at Sunbae's eyes, I saw something glistening. Were those... tears?
'Is she terrified?! I told you, why did you sit in the number one seat in the first place?!'
Fortunately, Jeong Yu-ah backed down and took the number two seat. Once the brief tension dissipated, Sunbae sat there with an incredibly proud, triumphant expression. Seeing that, I couldn't help but let out a dumbfounded chuckle. 'She really is a bizarre person.'
The level tests began. The order followed the seating arrangement, starting from the very top. The first name called was:
—Han Se-ah.
Oh Hae-rin took a deep breath. She watched Han Se-ah's back as she walked toward the stage. Her posture was perfectly straight. Her stride was so confident that it was hard to believe she was the same person whose eyes had been brimming with tears just moments ago.
The music began. The vocal portion started. The instant the first line resonated, Oh Hae-rin held her breath. The second line. The third line. Hae-rin could do nothing but listen, completely spellbound.
Someone next to her turned on their phone's flashlight. The trend quickly caught on and spread. Without even realizing it, Hae-rin pulled out her own phone as well. The studio transformed into a concert venue. As the vocal performance concluded, a deafening cheer erupted. Sitting in the 24th seat, Hae-rin cupped her hands around her mouth and cheered along.
'Whoa! As expected of our Sunbae! She absolutely tore up the stage!' At the same time, a sobering thought crossed her mind. 'Yeah, I shouldn't even dream of competing with her on vocals alone if I want to debut.'
Then, the dance portion began. Oh Hae-rin adjusted her posture. If her vocals were that legendary, her dancing had to be at least decent. Even if she lacked formal training as an independent trainee, someone with natural rhythm would always show some spark.
The music started, and Han Se-ah began to move. The song was TIKI TOK by Blaugrana, the first-team group of IC Barcelona. It was Leona Messiah's debut track and the absolute epitome of the bright, bouncy pop-punk genre.
The first movement. The judges' table began to whisper. Oh Hae-rin blinked.
The second movement. The contestants' eyes widened, and several gasped, covering their mouths. Hae-rin blinked again. 'Wait, what?'
The third movement. The staff members behind the cameras let out wry grins. By the third move, she had completely missed the beat. Hae-rin furrowed her brow.
The fourth move. Her arms went the wrong way. The fifth move. Her feet tangled. The sixth move. The way she threw her weight was completely off-balance. 'No way...'
Then came the fast-tempo section. Han Se-ah's legs began to twist and flail like a confused mollusk. Her arms moved entirely independently of her lower body. She was falling further and further behind the beat.
"Oh dear..." Hae-rin quickly slapped a hand over her mouth.
The song built up to its climax. Han Se-ah attempted a grand, dramatic spin. It looked incredibly awkward—mostly because she seemed to be spinning in the exact opposite direction of the choreography.
The studio fell dead silent in an instant. The one hundred contestants who had been screaming in adoration just moments ago shut their mouths in unison. The quality of this silence was entirely different from the awe-inspired quiet of earlier.
Vocal Trainer Ri Cheon-hee slowly resumed chewing her gum. Dance Trainer Ahn Ji-hwa stared at the stage, her smile completely vanished. Rap Trainer Kim Na-ju knit her brows and tilted her head slightly to the side.
The music ended. Absolute silence. Oh Hae-rin stared at Han Se-ah. Se-ah stood on stage, facing forward. Her expression didn't waver in the slightest. Her face practically screamed, 'I nailed it!' Which only made the sight all the more heartbreaking.
The trainers huddled for an emergency discussion. After a brief deliberation, Main MC and Trainer Park Ji-hyun broke the silence.
"Han Se-ah."
"Yes."
Park Ji-hyun looked down at her cue sheet, which contained the profiles of all the contestants, and asked as if she couldn't believe her own eyes.
"Before we proceed with the official evaluation, I have one question to ask. You mentioned this in your email application as well... Are you really the person from that legendary 'Gijang Middle School festival video' that surpassed five million views on YouTube?"
The moment the question was uttered, the studio erupted into chaos.
"No way, she's the girl from that video?"
"Ah, that explains why her vocals were so insane..."
"But why is her dancing like that...?"
"Wait, I couldn't really tell from the video because of the quality, but she actually looks like *that*?"
Gasping and murmurs of shock rippled through the pyramid seats. Even Jeong Yu-ah, sitting in the number two seat, couldn't help but widen her eyes.
Under the barrage of staring eyes, Han Se-ah puffed out her chest and answered with absolute confidence.
"Yes, that is correct! I am indeed the Siren of Gijang Middle School!"
Her sheer, unmitigated shamelessness—acting as if the disastrous dance performance from moments ago had been completely wiped from her memory—made Rap Trainer Kim Na-ju burst out laughing. Ahn Ji-hwa massaged her temples as if a headache were coming on, and even Park Ji-hyun let out a dry chuckle.
"Ah... Yes, it really is you. Hearing your vocals just now makes it undeniable. Honestly, it makes absolutely no sense why you haven't debuted as a singer until now."
"If we were judging solely on vocal ability, you could easily be sitting up here on the judges' panel with us. Haha."
Once again, envious sighs of "Whoa..." rippled through the one hundred contestants in the studio. Just as Han Se-ah's lips began to curl upward into a massive, triumphant grin at the immense praise—
"However." Park Ji-hyun paused for dramatic effect.
"We are here to produce idols, not just solo singers. As for your dancing... you need to rebuild it from the ground up. And I mean the absolute basics."
"Yes, ma'am..."
Though it was a brief response, Se-ah's voice, which had been brimming with pride just moments ago as she boasted of being a siren, was now completely deflated and barely audible.
"As we mentioned at the beginning, your grade today will determine the difficulty of the lessons you will receive moving forward. And currently, Han Se-ah, your dancing is severely lacking. Therefore..."
D Grade.
A strange silence fell over the studio. To think someone with vocal talent of that caliber would be placed in D Grade.
Oh Hae-rin watched Han Se-ah walk down from the stage. Her slumped shoulders and downcast lips made it painfully obvious that she was far from satisfied. She even looked like she was on the verge of tears.
For some reason, looking at her now, Hae-rin was reminded of the lonely girl she had watched from afar in elementary school, eating her lunch all by herself.