While the 13 surviving contestants were hard at work practicing for the final stage,
Episode 11 of *Jeodol*, which included the additional mission to select the center and the ranking announcement, aired outside.
And Dohee’s fans were having all sorts of reactions as they watched the additional center-selection mission.
-What...? Do they really need to choose one separately again...? Wasn’t Dohee already decided as the title track center?
└Seriously, Dohee absolutely has to be the title track center.
└I got into her after seeing that “I’m Smitten” center clip, so I naturally thought Dohee would be the center during the live broadcast too... (“I’m Smitten” center clip)
-But if Dohee gets 10,000 votes from the additional mission, couldn’t she take first place?
└Exactly. She made history this time and gained tons of new fans, so I think she could take first if things go well?
└Nope... It’ll still be difficult ㅠㅠ Since it’s voting through Netflix, there’s a limit to the number of votes, and the first-place reward is way too big ㅠㅠㅠ The final live broadcast will also open up text-message voting... For now, I don’t think she can take first at the third ranking announcement.
-But Sera and Dohee look really close...?
└Sera seems to really like Dohee. Every time they show a two-shot, she’s glued to her sideㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└They’re both gorgeous and adorable, so they do look good together...ㅋㅋ
Dohee and Sera’s fans had formed a rivalry based on the broadcast image that had built up since the first episode.
That didn’t mean they put each other’s contestants down.
Since multiple voting had been allowed up until then, the friendlier the fandoms were with each other, the more beneficial it was to their votes.
So most fandoms tended to get along well.
But today’s episode 11 ended with the final vote changing to a one-pick system.
Now that they had nothing left to hold back, each fandom began tearing down every other contestant in order to get their own pick to debut.
This phenomenon was especially severe between the fandoms of Dohee and Sera, who had been set up as rivals.
In the midst of all that, seeing the close friendship between Sera and Dohee made the fans feel awkward.
The embarrassing atmosphere only ended after Dohee’s final ranking was announced.
Dohee took first place in the additional mission and earned 10,000 votes.
Expectations began to build.
-Second place again? Second place again?
-Ah, this is ridiculous.
-A 2,000-vote differenceㅋㅋㅋㅋ
The nicknames “Second-Place Dohee” and “Bean Dohee,” which Dohee’s fans had laughed off until then.
They had rationalized it as bad luck twice.
But when it happened a third time, the fans began writing posts full of fury.
-Everyone can see that Dohee was first place, but that first-place rewardㅋㅋㅋ
-Ah, I’ve truly lost all faith in humanity.
-I’m already pissed as hell because other fandoms keep tearing her down over her vocal toneㅋㅋㅋㅋ Ah, this is so infuriating.
A few hours passed, and their anger began to subside.
-Still, second place isn’t bad.
-What matters is that she’s always a candidate for first.
-The final live broadcast doesn’t have a first-place reward, and text-message voting will be open too, so once you add in the general public votes, she can definitely take first!!!
Just as the calmer fans were compromising and coming to terms with things, a post went up.
[You still haven’t come to your senses.]
First ranking announcement.
It was still early on, and Eun Sera had a big head start in recognition and had performed incredibly well onstage, so that one was understandable.
Second ranking announcement.
Dohee had led the arrangement ideas for the second mission, but Jeon Harang, who had benefited from them, won the on-site evaluation with her singing rap, leaving Jeon Harang in first and Dohee in second.
Third ranking announcement.
Maylin’s trolling made things difficult from the very beginning, but Dohee covered for it with her fierce determination to practice without sleeping.
Then she used her quick wit to cover for Gu Eunhee’s stage mistake, even though Eunhee hadn’t practiced.
She carried the stage, created a visual legend, and even received the most individual votes in the on-site evaluation,
but their team lost the vote, so she ended up in second place yet again—this time by 2,000 votes.
The on-site evaluation wasn’t the problem.
It could easily have been overcome through online voting.
Just look at what the other fandoms are doing.
They’re constantly promoting their picks and even going out into the streets themselves to advertise.
But we just sit back and happily watch because Dohee naturally draws attention and does well, while playing it safe.
But what if she comes in second again in the finale?
Won’t she be stuck with that second-place image for the rest of her life?
Are you not going to get Dohee into first place?
The calm atmosphere began to burn again as if fuel had been thrown onto a rekindled fire, and Dohee’s fans made up their minds.
The last week before the live broadcast.
Passing through the busy districts, one could see promotional flyers and advertising panels for Dohee everywhere one stepped.
***
“I’ll call for the final slate!”
Two days before the live broadcast stage.
The final shoot at the filming center, where all the stage practices had taken place, began.
Along with the relief of finally realizing that it was truly ending came a sense of regret.
Paradoxically, the contestants’ finale was spent watching the first footsteps we had taken.
The screen showed the contestants as they had appeared during their third auditions.
Dancing and singing earnestly, showing off their individual talents.
Sometimes doing random dances and making unfunny jokes.
Everyone had worked so hard to pass the auditions.
Embarrassed by their own awkward past selves, they all recoiled and made a fuss.
[Hello! I’m Lee Dohee, a trainee at TopEast Entertainment for three years and six months!]
“Ooh~ Dohee~ Visuals~?”
The older girls were talking about my visuals.
But my angelic appearance was nothing new.
What mattered was the highlight of the video.
[I prepared a piano performance.]
Excited murmurs rose around me at the words I spoke on the screen.
For the more than four months of filming, I had deliberately avoided playing classical music.
A talent was most thrilling when it appeared without being intentionally shown off.
There I was, sitting in front of the piano.
Amid dazzling keystrokes, I played Scherzo No. 1, with its chaotic and bizarre atmosphere.
The me on the screen, completely absorbed in the piano.
Even I had to admit... I was crazy good.
The older girls in the video were completely immersed in my piano performance.
The sound of someone swallowing.
Huh?
The sound of someone swallowing?
Anyway, while everyone was mesmerized by the performance and staring at the screen,
my body refused to stay still and kept squirming.
My heart felt ticklish and tingly.
Was this love?
Luckily, there was an outlet right beside me where I could release those feelings.
Seoyoon sat beside me, completely absorbed in the video of my performance.
“Aww~ What are you doing~?”
I playfully nudged her.
“What are you doing?”
Seoyoon glared at me with a stern expression.
“You always pretend you’re not interested, but you’re really interested in me, aren’t you? I don’t know~”
“Ah, what are you talking about?”
“Do you like me that much?”
Kim Seoyoon’s face looked as though she had bitten into something rotten.
Rubbing the shoulder I had poked, she spoke in an annoyed tone.
“Don’t hit me.”
“Aww~”
“Ah, I said it hurts!”
Kim Seoyoon was very shy and easily embarrassed.
***
The final stage.
A gymnasium where the live broadcast would be held.
The contestants had already finished their styling and makeup.
With the final live broadcast stage coming tomorrow,
the rehearsal, as intense as the real thing, was in full swing.
“Eunseo, I think you should spread your legs a little farther here.”
“Some people’s arms touch the floor while others only extend them halfway, so let’s standardize it to halfway.”
Whenever the rehearsal stage ended, the contestants monitored it on-screen and gave their own feedback.
Watching the splendid, enormous stage on the monitor and the rehearsal that looked just like the real thing,
I thought, Tomorrow really is the live broadcast.
It was only now beginning to feel real.
I heard there would be 3,000 audience members tomorrow.
The roar of that many people.
Just imagining it made me think it would be the most exciting and nerve-racking moment of my life.
.
.
.
After finishing the first rehearsal, during a brief break,
I sat on the edge of the stage with a hand pressed to my chest, calming my heart as it continued to pound.
Why was my heart beating so violently even though it was only a rehearsal?
Naeun sat beside me and rubbed my back with a worried look.
“Are you okay? Did something you ate earlier not agree with you?”
I guess she misunderstood because I was clutching my rib cage.
“No, it’s not that.”
“Then it’s not like before, when your chest hurt, right?”
My chest? Ah.
Nearly three years ago, when I had just begun my second growth spurt,
I had developed lumps in my breasts and felt pain.
Back then, whenever I danced, my breasts would chafe and bounce, so clutching my chest had been an everyday occurrence.
“It’s not that. My heart just keeps pounding really hard.”
Naeun smiled fondly and tugged on my cheek.
“You’re that excited?”
It was hard to speak with my cheek pulled, so I simply nodded.
“I’m really happy too. But I’m a little worried.”
Still smiling, Naeun called over Kim Seoyoon, who was chatting away with Harang and Chaerin in the distance.
“Seoyoon! Come over here!”
Kim Seoyoon listened well to Naeun, at least.
She also came over and sat on the edge of the stage beside Naeun.
“What? What is it?”
Naeun took both our hands.
“I hope all three of us can debut together. Right?”
Of course.
“Yeah.” “I hope so too.”
Naeun spoke with a sentimental look on her face.
“Watching the audition videos yesterday reminded me of when our original five-member debut group broke apart. Chiyo was eliminated in the first round, and Uah in the third. But when I think back on it, Chiyo smiled and told us that we absolutely had to debut, while Uah held back her tears and then finally burst into tears, perhaps because she felt sorry toward us. Come to think of it, they must both have been having an even harder time than we were, but they thought of us first. I suddenly remembered that.”
Naeun’s hand tightened around ours.
“So what I want to say is, even if the three of us don’t all debut together tomorrow, the person who gets eliminated shouldn’t feel sorry, and the person who passes shouldn’t feel sorry either. We’ve decided to debut together someday anyway, okay?”
Kim Seoyoon’s eyes reddened as she scolded Naeun.
“We all have to debut together tomorrow too!”
Kim Seoyoon really was such a crybaby.
“That would be even better! Especially you, Dohee—don’t cry, okay?”
...Me?
“When have I ever cried?”
“You cried even while watching your own center video.”
...I had been pretty deeply moved when the title stage for “I’m Smitten” first came out into the world.
What could I do? I had looked so beautiful.
“...You can cry when you’re happy.”
“Right, only cry when you’re happy after debuting. Got it?”
“I’m telling you, I don’t cry.”
“Sure, sure.”
Just then, a camera approached to interrupt our conversation.
They were filming behind-the-scenes content to upload to YouTube.
“What were the three TopEast trainees gathered here talking about?”
The camera director asked us.
Naeun composed her expression and answered the director’s question.
“We were just saying, ‘Let’s all debut together tomorrow, okay?’ More importantly, could you not film us~? I’m bare-faced... I was so tired that I didn’t go to the salon today, so I feel awkward standing next to Dohee. She’s just too pretty.”
“Naeun, what about me?”
“You’re really pretty too, Seoyoon!”
Good grief. The spotlight belonged to Lee Dohee.
“You’re happy that you had to fish for a compliment.”
Kim Seoyoon suddenly sprang to her feet and tried to hit me, so I ran away.
Meanwhile, the camera director and Kim Naeun were left behind.
It was the familiar interview question that had aired in episode one.
“Kim Naeun, I imagine it must be difficult dealing with them.”
“Yes... The kids are really, really mischievous. They really are. Very much so.”