章 29: Roomies (5)
As per the last challenge, the top 5 stood from their chairs and had arranged themselves in front of a designated area on the main floor for their soon to be made teams. Unlike the first challenge, FYP had summoned the top five back down and said, "You pick." Loud and clear into the mic.
It was clear, based on his previous warning, he was urging the top five to have to pick between people less talented and people more so. As a matter of image, they had to choose. A chance at first, that required stepping on the lower ranks, or to be overshadowed by higher rankers.
Joon-woo looked to Jung Hyun-Ok with a blank stare. He stood tense in front of a sign reading Team One and an image of Yong, just a few days prior in the same place. Yong sat in 23rd now. Would Hyun-Ok be there soon too? Would he himself?
"Rank One, Jung Hyun-Ok, please take your first pick." FYP instructed.
Hyun-Ok nodded as he peered at the curious contestants. And Joon-woo watched the sight just as such. Would Hyun-Ok save his image and pick people near his rank? Or would he toss it out the window for an easier chance to win?
Hyun-Ok's eyes traveled around the room, and after a few moments, he opened his mouth with an almost sly smile. "Rank Twenty, Contestant Mi Yong." He said, voice stone.
Soft gasps rank through the room. But Mi Yong seemed to be… fine. Mi Yong simply stood from his seat and trailed down the steps, even flashing Hyun-Ok a smile as he went to stand behind him. Joon-woo found the sight cute, he had forgotten they were close.
Other contestants, who had fallen victim to their Producer10 evil editing of their friendship, seemed surprised by the gesture, while Joon-woo and Reggie seemed unfazed.
Then it was the turn of the second place contestant, who stood as if baffled by Hyun-Ok's choice. They turned to the contestants and decisively declared: "Rank 40, Contestant Hae Dong-Yul."
Joon-woo sunk in his seat as such. The Ha-rin in Joon-woo knew that it was quite a bad decision, image wise. He imagined the weets that he would see scrolling through Witter tonight with a grimace.
The other top five contestants followed, all picking people ranked 20 or lower. And Joon-woo found the sight saddening.
"How moral less~" Reggie whispered, Joon-woo nodding along.
And then it was back to Hyun-Ok, who kept a blank face at the other top five's picks. Instead he looked at the contestants again and tilted his head with a smile, "Rank 19, Bo Jaesang."
Joon-woo's gaze faltered, was this guy just picking the people he got along with?
–+–
One Hyun later and Hyun-Ok had his team ready. Himself, Mi Yong, Bo Jaesang, and Ryeo Hyun. Reggie found the team amusing, sending the group a betrayed expression as he drew invisible tears on his face.
"Joon-woo we've been excluded…" Reggie groaned a seat away.
Joon-woo slightly smiled, looking at the group alike. They were chattering amongst each other with smiley, friendly faces. They even sent Reggie a joking finger heart in reply. Joon-woo smiled at the interaction.
"We'll just have to do better in our own teams…" He shrugged, flashing Reggie a competitive look.
Reggie nodded, making a fist with a confident smile.
FYP observing the teams, seemed a bit lost. He looked at the all interacting Team One, clearly made of contestants who had gotten close. And then he looked at the other four teams, who looked quite uncomfortable around their leaders, all ranked in the lower half.
He knew, based on the silence of the majority, that the last five teams were to be decided now. He sent Producer Jang-soo a look, as if to say, let's move on.
Producer Jang-soo nodded, gesturing to staff, who gestured for teams to clear.
The teamed up contestants filtered out, and FYP noticed the Team One fellas sending finger hearts in laughing fits to a duo of Contestant Reggie Lee and Park Joon-woo as the cameras weren't blinking red. He sighed.
He looked at the now empty main floor and exclaimed, "Will contestants placed 6th to 10th please come down…" He asked, voice tired with overuse.
Contestants ranked 6th to 10th followed suit, one by one coming down the stairs from their high ranked spots. They, just as the top five minutes before, lined up about quickly relabeled team signs. Rank 6th behind Team 6 and so forth.
"Please begin your picking…" He spoke.
–+–
Joon-woo had never felt more ostracized as he sat, Reggie, picked long ago, was no longer next to Joon-woo. In fact, no one was.
Teams Six to Ten were on the verge of being full of four members. Team Six, Seven, and Eight were filled already. And that meant that two contestants remained unpicked, and one of them was Joon-woo.
He wanted to curl in on himself at that moment, as cameras panned between him and newly ranked 13th, Lee Jin-Ho. They both wore nervous faces as they watched the almost full teams discuss below them.
Joon-woo didn't know what they were whispering, but he knew it couldn't be anything particularly good. He looked for Reggie in the small grouped teams and found him standing in full Team Seven. He was chatting it up with his new team, who looing upon Joon-woo and Jin-Ho with anticipation.
Joon-woo shook his head when he and Reggie locked gazes.
Why were they, he being so stepped around? He didn't recall doing anything important…
It was then, the leader of Team Nine turned away from his group and two the now empty ranked chairs. With his cheeks full, he nodded to his team and then to Jin-Ho.
"Rank 12, Lee Jin-Ho..!" The leader called.
Joon-woo's mouth went slightly agape as he watched Jin-Ho walk down the stairs with a relieved expression. He, Joon-woo, was last? He almost, out of instinct, went to hide his face, but instead just looked for Reggie's gaze again. The cameras wouldn't catch that, right?
And he found it, Reggie's gaze watching upon in surprise. His heart settled it's fast pace.
"Rank 13, Contestant Park Joon-woo, please join Team Ten." FYP asked over a microphone.
But to Joon-woo's surprise, he didn't seemed shocked in any way at the last picked contestant. Joon-woo shook his head. He wasn't that good at singing. Sure it got him a few weeks of rent money when he busked, but he was sure there were many better singers out there.
He approached a less than satisfied Team Ten with stiff steps.
Ranked 10th Contestant Baek Du-Ho and leader of Team Ten looked at Joon-woo with furrowed eyebrows and a side-eye that screamed 'go away'. Joon-woo gulped.
"Please take care of me." Joon-woo greeted with a slight bow.
"Ah, yes we will!" Du-Ho said with a camera-fake smile, his height of approximately 5'11' making Joon-woo sweat.
Joon-woo stood, trying to get a look at the other two team members he would be working with. Rank 21 and Rank 26 stood behind, breaking out of a conversation to give short waves to Joon-woo. Their eyes barely even grazed Joon-woo, despite him being fully in their view.
He gulped, thinking back to Team One and their friendship chemistry, and to Reggie, tucked to a sociable Team Seven. And even as he went to join the other three of Team Ten, they kept a camera-good distance from him, taking one step more once the red dots fell short.
"That's a wrap– let's move to the practice rooms!" Producer Jang-soo called out of his familiar megaphone. "Please walk with your teams per staff guides!" He instructed, voice laminated with tired ache.
The almost silent room broke then into light chatter. Each team chatting amongst themselves, every team but Team Ten… Joon-woo slightly frowned. Were all his teams gonna be like this?
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