Chapter 380: Elimination (1)
"We’re back in hell." Ari groaned as he stood outside a building that was unfortunately very familiar.
The dorms.
Jamie had picked him up bright and early along with Benjamin, and they were all just sitting outside with their suitcases and duffel bags.
Levi, Carlos, Mathew, and the other contestants had joined them, each hesitating to enter the building that would probably drastically alter their lives.
If they entered, it would mean things would become a little more concrete.
After all, today was the day 5 out of 19 people would be eliminated, leaving only 14 of them behind.
Then they would have to begin the preparations for the finals, which meant practice, practice, and even more practice.
And once these two weeks of preparation were over, it would be time for the finals.
The final performance.
The final time they would all be on stage together like this.
The final time living together with everyone.
And then 7 people would be eliminated, leaving only 7 behind.
After spending months with all these boys, even though he wasn’t super close to every single one of them, Ari felt a bit sad, and while he wanted it to end since he was completely sick and tired of the production team, tired of being recorded every moment of the day, he also didn’t want it to end, since that might mean the end of the dreams and goals of many others, including himself.
After, with the kind of people in charge, who knew what sort of nonsense they would pull in the background.
"Truly, this is hell."
"I wouldn’t call it hell, yeah? It’s more like..." Benjamin started, then paused as he tried to think of the right word.
"The demon realm?" Ari offered.
"No, not that."
"Hades?" Levi added as he pulled off his headphones.
"Nah."
"Tartarus?"
"Gehenna?"
"The underworld?"
"Inferno?"
"9 levels of hell?"
"That’s a duplicate of Inferno. Lost a point." Levi corrected Ari with a slight smirk.
"Oi oi. Are the two of you done?" Benjamin asked as he looked back and forth between Ari and Levi, who were apparently in a competition to list all the different variations of hell that ever existed.
"Almost. I have one more in me. Uhhhhhh let me think, Hel? The Norse version. Top that?" Ari waggled his eyebrows at Levi in challenge.
"...Naraka. It’s indian. No duplicates from me." Levi replied after several seconds of silence.
"Fine. You win. We’re done. Over to you, Benjamin.
"Thank you, nerd number one and nerd number two, but both you man are wrong. The word I was looking for was prison. We’re back in prison, innit? The PD is the warden, and we’re all inmates to be tortured. And those of us getting eliminated today are up for execution. Anyways let’s get going. No matter how much we wait outside, we still have to go in. Plus, there’s supposed to be a ranking ceremony today, right? It’s elimination time, so let’s get it knocked out of the way." Benjamin sighed.
Taking a deep breath, Ari got up and walked inside.
After leaving his duffel bag in the lobby along with all the rest of the contestants, he walked behind them as they headed to the dance studio side, where they had been instructed to go.
To his surprise, instead of the chairs being set up, PD Emily was there waiting with cameras, and the room was empty.
"Goooood morning, my beautiful contestants. Don’t you all look fabulous and cheerful today?"
Cheerful how?
There’s not a single smiling face here.
"Smile. Make sure you smile. You’re on camera!"
As they all forced smiles, the PD laughed.
"Just kidding. The elimination ceremony isn’t being held here. We’re taking the bus to the studio today, and I just needed you all to rehearse since it’s the second-to-last elimination round, you know? Don’t worry, you can leave your stuff here. After the ceremony is done, we’ll bring you all back, and those who are eliminated can grab their suitcases and go home."
Ari: ಠ_ಠ
Do you know how awkward it is when the eliminated and those who aren’t have to ride the same bus?
Nobody can talk because the silence is suffocating.
Have some consideration for the people whose dreams are shattered!
Of course, the production team had no such thing.
After making them walk around and practice a quick routine, the PD ushered all of them onto a large bus, and they were driven to a studio in downtown LA, where they once again entered the building for the elimination round.
On stage, Judges Jelissa, Larry Jackson, Kim Young-woo, Selena, and Jaywalk sat at a table with solemn expressions as they looked at the contestants who were filing in to sit down in the audience seats.
Instead of the usual extravagant pyramid that was set up on stage, there were 7 seats that looked like thrones and 7 plain chairs behind them.
And standing at the center of the stage was MC Ryan Leary.
Seeing that they were all seated, he brought the microphone to his lips and began speaking in a forcefully cheerful tone.
"Hello contestants, and welcome back! I hope all of you got an amazing night’s rest after your performances!?"
- yesssssss
- it was okay
- I was nervous
Hearing the mixed responses, Ryan Leary let out a chuckle before continuing, "Well, I’m happy to see all of you, and I hope that we can make the best of today’s circumstances. As you all know, today is elimination day, when we’ll announce the ranks and, unfortunately, those below the top 14 will be leaving us, their journey with the show ending today. I know it’s not easy, I know you’ve all grown as close as brothers, but that’s what we signed up for, right?"
- I guess?
- Sure?
- If you want?
With the muted responses coming from the contestants, Ryan Leary forcefully brought his energy up again, "Cheer up! This isn’t the end-all, be-all. You can still become stars in your own right, using what you’ve learned here and applying it. You’re young, you have two good feet unlike an old man like me who broke one, and you’re all very talented, so believe in yourselves, okay? Now, when I call your name and rank, please come to the stage and give your speech, okay. If you’re within the top 14, take a seat in the appropriate seat. Understand?"
They did.
"Now, let’s get started. The contestant in 20th place and the first person to be eliminated is Park Minjun. Please come to the stage." Ryan Leary announced.
"No!"
As one of the twins that Ari had briefly teamed up with screamed before muffling it and standing, Ari took a deep breath while keeping his face neutral.
Right now, he couldn’t even have too much of an expression and had to watch his reactions because of the cameras.
As Minjun walked by, shaking everyone’s hand while holding back tears, Ari shook his as well and patted him on the back in apology and as an expression of his mixed feelings.
While he was relieved he wasn’t the one eliminated, it still sucked because, at this point in the competition, nobody was really slacking.
Everyone was working hard to the best of their capabilities, but it wasn’t like sports where your effort and skill level were what won you matches. Here, your fate was decided by things completely out of your control.
With focused eyes, Ari listened carefully to each word of Minjun’s tearful speech as the boy thanked his teammates, the judges, and the fans, and wished them support in the future.
Once he was done, he received hugs from Ryan Leary, Jelissa, and Selena, and he was moved to the side.
"The contestant in 19th place and the second person to be eliminated is Park Minho. Please come to the stage."
"The contestant in 18th place and the third person to be eliminated is Choi Woobin. Please come to the stage."
...
One by one, Ryan Leary called out the ranks and contestant names, and those who were eliminated climbed the stage and gave their heartfelt final speeches.
"We’ve now reached the rank of contestants who have safely made it to the final. All of you, please give yourself a round of applause because your hard work has paid off, and you’ve successfully connected with the fans."
Clap clap clap
As enthusiastic claps and relieved sighs filled the studio, MC Ryan Leary continued his announcement.
"The contestant in 14th place and the first person to be safe is Jerome Tyler. Please come to the stage."
As Ari watched Jerome, one of the closest boys to William, deliver his speech, he did a quick headcount.
There were originally 19 people, since William was on an indefinite break.
5 people were just eliminated, leaving 14 behind.
Since all 14 people were here, they would all pass, right?
Didn’t this mean William was eliminated?
Had the production team finally done something good for once in their existence?
Just as Ari was thinking that-
"The contestant in 13th place and the second person to be safe is William Forbes. Please come to the stage."
- huh?
- What?
- No way.
The heads of the sitting contestants turned; they saw a familiar smug face walk into the studio, followed by a blonde man in a suit.
"He’s back?" Benjamin muttered beside Ari while covering his hand with his mouth.
"Tu te fous de moi là, putain," Ari muttered under his breath while keeping his expression neutral.
"I know what that one means. You’ve got to be fucking kidding me." Jamie whispered before looking straight ahead.
William was back.
As Ari stared at the annoying face staring at him as William climbed up the stage, then at the older blonde man who resembled William, he began cursing the production team in his head.
You had one job!
One freaking job and you failed to do it!
Are you guys really just going to keep covering up for him?
What the hell???!!
What happened to the lawsuit?
Martin!!!
Mr. Record Label owner!
I had faith in how evil you could be!!