Kapitel 22: Mi Yong (3)

After a dramatic montage of the previous two seasons of Producer10. The winners, the overdramatized losses, the trainees eliminated along the way. The first camera shots of this season, their season. The wideview shot of every trainee sat upon their ranking chairs.

Beginning at a shot of the 50th place contestant, then 49th, one after another at a fast, less than a second for each contestant and slowing down as the top 15 came about. Ryeo Hyun.

"My name is Ryeo Hyun, and I'm from Xe Entertainment."

Bo Jaesang.

"My name is Bo Jaesang, and I'm from Xe Entertainment."

Joon-woo pursed his lips, watching as he from a few days ago appeared on screen. Reggie's mother, who Joon-woo hadn't even noticed, cooed at the sight of Joon-woo and lightly shoved him at the shoulder with a large smile. Joon-woo knew who Reggie had gotten both his looks and familiar grin from, he chuckled at the thought.

"Uhh… What are the question?" Joon-woo asked, shy sweat dripping from his forehead.

"Name and company…" A staff member reminded quietly.

"Oh– Park Joon-woo, and um… I'm an independent trainee."

Joon-woo looked up to the high-leveled ceiling, embarrassed. Did they really have to include his bloopers and no one else's? The evil editing had started already, he thought. But still, it seemed to be only Joon-woo that thought so, as Reggie and his mother didn't seem to care.

"Ehh… Why did they give you more time than the others?" Reggie questioned, as now the top ten were beginning to be introduced, and still no one had as much screen time as Joon-woo.

Joon-woo shrugged, "I don't think they like me."

Reggie's mother hit Joon-woo on the shoulder again, "Don't be stupid! How could they dislike you?" Joon-woo definitely knew where Reggie got his touchy-ness from too. He shrunk into the couch and away from her, uncomfortable.

The show began to introduce the top three. The background music suddenly got tense, and the almost sped up pace came to a close. It showed each one walking up the stairs, a light following them as if to put them in full focus.

"My name is Jung Hyun-Ok, I am a 5-year trainee at ICE Entertainment." He spoke, taking his throne in 2nd place. He pulled his blond hair behind his ear and the camera perfectly caught his mixed features.

Then, somehow, it got more dramatic. The show had edited the lights to flicker as Mi Yong walked up the stairs, they had cast a slow-mo camera on him. His pink hair, his well-built yet thin body.

"My name is Mi Yong. I am an ex-member of Winner and ready to try again." Mi Yong said, face a bit forced.

Joon-woo cringed. Had they really made Mi Yong say that? He rolled his eyes, looking at Reggie as he looked at the screen curiously.

"Yong Hyung debuted before?" Reggie asked.

Joon-woo nodded, "Winner, they disbanded a few months ago." He informed dryly, just focusing on the sad expression on Mi Yong's face as he spoke.

Reggie and his mother's expression softened, "Disbanded? That's– that's so sad." Reggie muttered. Joon-woo chuckled, Reggie had fallen for their pity editing already. And Joon-woo was sure more people would as the episode continued.

–+–

Joon-woo was, to be frank, freaked out. The episode had gone as he had predicted to go. It had focused on Mi Yong and his struggles, Mi Yong and every contestant that affiliated themselves with him.

But then it got to the team picking challenge, the lottery wheel. They completely rushed through Team Five, Team Four, Team Three– barely highlighting Team Two. And when it got to the moment where Mi Yong had rolled for Joon-woo on his team, it paused.

It paused on Mi Yong's smirk when reading Joon-woo's name. It paused on Joon-woo's bewildered face when his name was called, placing cheesy captions in the bottom that assumed what he was thinking.

Joon-woo raised an eyebrow. He hadn't thought a single thing they had edited him to think. He didn't feel honored, or not good enough to be on Mi Yong's team. He was surprised. He silently cursed the editors.

But to Joon-woo's surprise, none of the scenes of him had been evily edited, in fact they were favorable. He gulped, as the next scenes were quite literally both he and Mi Yong's reactions to each contestant being called to their teams.

And even when they had both made faces at the appearance of 50th and 49th place, it was edited more as… chemistry? Joon-woo tilted his head.

"You and Yong Hyung get along?" Reggie asked, "I don't recall you talking much…"

Joon-woo shook his head, "No– It's just what they do. They edit things to their liking." He explained, "To be honest I thought they were gonna edit me like I was a dickhead…" He joked.

Reggie shrugged, "If anything, I'd thought they'd edit you as the opposite." Reggie's mother looked confused, "Especially with the way you got punched…" Reggie nonchalantly continued.

Reggie's mother looked Joon-woo's way, concerned. "Punched?" She asked, motherly, concerned in a way Joon-woo had gotten used to not seeing.

Joon-woo scratched at his cheek. The bruise had mostly faded, but it was still visible enough that when he pointed to it, Reggie's mother ran over and cupped his face, her eyes concerned.

"Why would they punch you?" She asked, her black stringy hair bobbing, her eyes dilating as she admired the bruise, her voice of pity. But not the bad pity, not the pity that left Joon-woo shaky and frightened. A pity Joon-woo hadn't seen much, even as Ha-rin.

The pity of a parent.

He zoned out for a moment, and tried to recall Ha-rin's familial memories. Her mother, father, anyone– and blanked. Ha-rin, Joon-woo– couldn't remember what his mother looked like, not his father. They were all blurs of a Korean body, a Korean couple and Joon-woo couldn't remember them.

Joon-woo felt his chest burn as he looked away from Reggie's mother. He choked back his emotions and sighed. "It doesn't hurt." He reassured, shifting out of her grip and shifting away. "It barely even stung."

Reggie's mother frowned at Joon-woo's avoidance. "Okay." She said, "That's good."

The episode ended with the groups heading to their designated practice rooms. In a dramatic montage of each leader closing the door behind their team. They lingered on Mi Yong especially. How his hand stayed on the door knob just a second longer, as if he had been longing for another chance to lead.

Joon-woo chuckled at how Mi Yong centered things seemed to be. However, the last scene caught his eye. It was a preview of the next episode, their practice, team conflicts. However, it was different than he expected. There was no Mi Yong.

It was him, it was Joon-woo. It was him practicing after hours. He sucked his teeth, as they were told that stuff wasn't recorded after 3 P.M.. But it was more. It was Ryeo Hyun passing by, it was Ryeo Hyun noticing Joon-woo struggle with the moves. Wasn't this a breach of contract?

Joon-woo shook his head, as at least it wasn't even editing.