Chapter 66
Chapter 66
There was a step we had to go through before leaving for music camp.
The final was always split into two teams, competing in a face-off format. So naturally, we had to divide into teams first.
The method of dividing teams changed every season.
What was it last time... I think they split into the team that chose orange juice and the team that chose cola in the waiting room.
It'd probably be similarly underhanded this time, so I had to brace myself in advance. Even if the show got canceled early, I'd still be stuck with these people for a few days.
It wasn't just me. The other trainees seemed to sense that teams were about to be divided, too, because I kept overhearing related conversations on the bus.
"How d'you think they'll split us this time? Honestly, the most ridiculous one was when they divided people based on who stepped into the interview room with their right foot versus their left foot..."
"We have to watch our feet now? That's brutal, seriously."
Surprisingly, Baek Gyeonwoo joined in on this conversation.
"Just go with the first option, no matter what."
"Huh?"
"Front or back? Pick front. Left or right? Pick left. Up or down? Pick up."
"Ah, got it."
If we ended up on the same team, that'd be nice. Besides Baek Gyeonwoo and Hyun-i hyung, there wasn't really anyone left among the remaining contestants I felt comfortable around anyway.
Baek Gyeonwoo's idea itself seemed solid enough. Every method they'd used so far was some form of binary choice.
"What we've prepared for you today is an MBTI test!"
So, when we heard the MC say this, Baek Gyeonwoo and I exchanged glances for a moment.
'What do we do?'
'I don't know.'
And then we quietly took our seats. After a bit, MBTI test sheets were handed out one by one.
'I was planning to save this...'
Well, yeah. Wasn't MBTI essentially a test that got trendy because of how intuitive it was?
I'd never actually taken the test, but I meant that I'd roughly inferred what my MBTI probably was over the course of my life.
'By my own estimate, I'm probably... INFJ? I feel like that's what I'd get.'
Let's see if I'm right.
The first question was this.
[When you have to meet new people, you:
1. Feel so excited and expectant! What should I talk about?
2. Feel tired and drained just thinking about it...]
...Wasn't an idol who picked option 2 kind of a problem?
Not that there's anything wrong with 2, per se, but an idol checking that box seemed a bit off-putting.
I checked 1 and moved on.
[When you see an apple, what thought comes to mind?
1. Snow White, Newton, songs related to apples... etc.
2. It's red, it's delicious, it's round... etc.]
Obviously, if they worded it like this, option 1 would come to mind first.
For an accurate assessment, I tried to recall what thoughts I actually had when seeing apples in my past life, but I genuinely couldn't remember.
Since option 1 came to me right now, I went with 1.
[If the food a friend made specially for you tasted bad, your reaction would be:
1. Their sincerity counts as flavor! I'd compliment them and say it's delicious.
2. This is way too salty and sweet! Do you have a problem with your tongue?]
Simply checking option 2 seemed like it could cause a scandal.
Without any further thought, I immediately checked 1.
And just as I was about to move on to the next question, I felt an intense gaze from the next seat.
"......?"
I turned my head. Ahn Jiwon was staring intently at my test sheet.
I instinctively covered my paper.
"Don't cheat."
"It's not like it wears out if I look. Let's look together."
Well... true.
I accepted that logic and examined the fourth question.
[An enjoyable trip abroad! If the restaurant you were heading to is closed, you:
1. Go somewhere else.
2. Go to a restaurant you've already planned as a backup.]
It was already questionable whether I even had a 'restaurant I was heading to,' so the likelihood of having a backup restaurant planned was...
I checked 1 and looked over the final question.
[In bed at the end of the day, before falling asleep, if a plan you didn't finish suddenly comes to mind, you:
1. Ah, it'll work itself out! I go to sleep.
2. Feel a nagging sense of unease and discomfort.]
Didn't that depend entirely on what kind of plan it was?
If it was something I could do right then, I'd get up and get it over with. If not, I'd just go to sleep. It wasn't like feeling uneasy or uncomfortable would solve anything...
After thinking it through, I seemed closer to 1. Let's go with 1.
I checked the last question and submitted the test.
Soon after, the MC came back.
"As you might have guessed, this test was meant to divide you into teams for the final mission. I'm sure you're all curious how it will turn out. Right?"
"Yes!"
The MC smiled fondly, looking at the trainees who answered like kindergarteners.
"Before I announce the teams, let me first tell you your MBTI results. Hmm, what do you think my MBTI is?"
Everyone enthusiastically shouted out answers.
The MC, who had been listening quietly, spoke up.
"My MBTI is ENFP."
"Whoa, I got it right!"
"It suits you so well!"
"Haha, thank you. But looking at the results, a surprising number of trainees share the same MBTI as me. Any guesses who?"
Once again, the names of various trainees were thrown out.
'ENFP, huh...'
As far as I could tell, that seemed like a type more applicable to the bright, kind kids.
"One of the trainees who is ENFP like me is... trainee Seo Cha-gyeom."
"Huh?"
"Chaegyeom is?"
The filming set buzzed with noise.
Lee Jae-young, sitting in the front row, even went "Ha ha ha" with laughter and turned to look at me.
"Chaegyeom-ah, you've gotta take the test honestly."
Even in that moment, I just sat still because I didn't know what was so strange.
What was wrong with me being an ENFP?
"And the second ENFP trainee is Baek Gyeonwoo."
A brief silence fell over the set.
I turned toward Baek Gyeonwoo and said,
"Gyeon-woo, you have to be honest."
Baek Gyeonwoo's eyebrow twitched.
Then, as the topic moved on to the next trainee, Baek Gyeonwoo leaned toward me and whispered quietly so the mics wouldn't pick it up.
"I told you, we agreed to just pick number 1."
"......Ah."
So that rule applied to the test, too.
I had completely forgotten, but by sheer coincidence, I ended up being a loyal guy. That was a good thing.
"And trainee Ahn Jiwon is also an ENFP, huh?"
Everyone seemed to accept this part, as it was quiet.
"The last ENFP trainee is Song Se-ho."
He was a guy I'd never spoken to, so I had nothing much else to say.
Following that, the MBTIs of the other trainees were all announced, and the MC spoke.
"Now, you must be curious. What connection does MBTI have with this music camp mission?"
As soon as the MC finished speaking, the beam projector turned on, revealing text on the board.
[P's Trip vs J's Trip]
"That's right. This music camp will be divided into six P-type trainees and six J-type trainees. Aren't you curious what kind of trip we'll show you?"
They were really going full variety show with this.
Originally, this period—meaning the 10th episode, airing after the ranking announcement—had always felt like a filler special to rest up before the live final broadcast.
"Ah, since the test results came back with only four J trainees, those who scored evenly between P and J will all be placed into the J team."
So that meant the four ENFPs from earlier would naturally end up on the same team.
'Who were the remaining two?'
Among the faces I recognized, Lee Jae-young, Choi Jun-bin, and Kim Han-ul were all (thankfully) on the J team.
Well, I didn't need to go searching for them. A little waiting and they came to me on their own.
The first was Hyun-i hyung.
"Hyung!"
"Chaegyeom-ah......!"
I shot up, happy to see him, and Hyun-i hyung also ran over happily and sat next to me.
That was a relief. At least I got to spend this last group residence with him.
And the new faces were two people.
"Hyowoon hyung, come over here."
"Ah, h...hello."
Lee Hyowoon.
I wasn't sure if he remembered. He was from the same agency, Deuz Planning, as Ahn Jiwon, and he was the trainee who sat beside Ahn Jiwon at the first filming and we exchanged greetings.
He'd tied his hair up in the <AWAKE> music video and got nicknamed "Ponytail" for it.
"Nice to meet you! I'm Song Se-ho."
Song Se-ho.
This guy became famous for the photo of him wearing a beret at the production presentation, and he was called "Beret" for a while.
For reference, both of them were high-ranking trainees who'd never once fallen out of the top 10.
So, was there a trainee among them suspected of being a pre-selected member...
Yes.
Who, you ask? Both of them.
But well, if the plan went sideways at this timing, it was reset without a doubt, and even if the show ended early as planned, this broadcast footage would just be scrapped anyway.
Either way, it meant there was nothing left to worry about.
"As you know, camp is a one-night, two-day trip. That's quite a long time, so the budget must be pretty substantial, right?"
"Yes!"
"Are you giving us some?"
"Yes, we're giving it to you!"
The trainees cheered.
"The total budget is 150,000 won per team. The production crew will cover lodging and transportation, but any costs for activities to spark your inspiration, as well as meal expenses, must all be resolved within your budget."
150,000 won.......
Maybe it was because I'd never gone on a group trip anywhere, but I had no sense of whether that was a lot or a little.
"150,000 won for six people?"
"That's pretty tight, no? For two days and one night, we'd be eating at least two meals."
It seemed like it was a small amount.
"Now you'll discuss with your team members and make a schedule. Once you're done, submit it to the crew, and then you can depart right away!"
The location had been pre-determined by the crew: a campsite near the beach in Gangneung.
Ahn Jiwon spoke cheerfully.
"Whoa, Gangneung! My family's house is in Gangneung."
Song Se-ho, sitting beside him, teased,
"Then Jiwon, you can be our guide."
"I don't go anywhere except in front of my house, you know."
"Local restaurants are the best!"
"I only eat at franchises."
At this point, Baek Gyeonwoo also started to chime in.
"So we can just go eat at your house for one meal, then."
"Gyeon-woo hyung, what's the matter with you!"
The mood was already bright right from the start.
...Wait, now that I looked, except for me and Hyun-i hyung, everyone had been on the same team during the first round.
'Everyone from my first round team is dead except me.'
Just as I was sliding into that thought, Ahn Jiwon spoke to me.
"Hyung, is there any place you want to go?"
"Me?"
A place I want to go......
The general picture of this music camp was this.
Until the first evening, we'd build team memories through experiential activities, and then from nighttime onward, we'd start the brainstorming session and naturally transition into flashbacks.
Then the next day, after returning to the dorms, the actual work would begin.
In short, until evening, it was basically just playing around.
Of course, that's how it looked to the viewers. The moment a camera was on you, it wouldn't feel like playing.
But still, to fit the purpose of a music camp, we probably needed to pick a place where we could pull some memorable moments...
...But could something like that even make it onto the broadcast?
"I don't care. Anywhere is fine."
"Is there nowhere you've wanted to go?"
"Uh, well......"
"What about something you want to eat?"
"Anything?"
Ahn Jiwon made a slightly displeased face for a moment, then let out an 'Ah!' sound.
"Gangneung's famous for coffee. Wanna go to a coffee factory?"
"Oh, sure."
"Ah, right! We're the Ah<Mary>cano team!"
At Song Se-ho's final remark, Baek Gyeonwoo glanced sideways at me.
"You go eat a cucumber."
Should I......
Anyway, the first day's itinerary was decided: Coffee Street.
Watching Ahn Jiwon and Baek Gyeonwoo start drafting the schedule centered around Coffee Street, Song Se-ho joked,
"Are Gyeon-woo hyung and Jiwon really P's? You're way too planner-type for that."
"......."
As the two fell quiet, a sheepish Song Se-ho turned his head toward us.
"Um, then Hyowoon hyung and I will look for other things to see near Coffee Street. Hyun-i hyung and Chaegyeom hyung can find stuff to eat!"
"Food?"
Food, huh.
Hyun-i hyung and I placed a tablet between us and started searching for famous restaurants in Gangneung.
"How about here?"
"Seems fine."
"What about here?"
"That's good, too!"
Our entire feedback loop consisted of nothing but "fine" and "good" bouncing back and forth. Apparently, we seemed too unreliable, because Baek Gyeonwoo cut in.
"That place is in the opposite direction of our route."
"Then here?"
"That overlaps with break time."
"Here?"
"You're suggesting a franchise?"
"......Should we just go and eat whatever?"
"Hyung, you really are a P......."