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The artist battle has begun. Jiwoong came out into the hallway after checking the assigned song and ran into Jongwoo.
"Hyung, I made it to the Over me!"
"Hey, congrats! You wanted to do that song, right?"
"Absolutely, and our team is amazing! We're going to have a legendary performance!"
Jiwoong smiled as he watched Jongwoo's eyes sparkle like a child at an amusement park. How long had Jongwoo been waiting for this moment? Now he could show off his choreography and stage design, along with his true talent.
Jiwoong couldn't wait to see Jongwoo getting up higher. Starting at 73rd place, then rising to 38th, and most recently 16th place, with the mission song being a perfect fit, all that was left for Jongwoo was to enter the top 9.
"Yeah, you chose well. I'm looking forward to you being determined to make it hot."
As his tone became more confidential, Jongwoo hesitated to respond.
"You... should have chosen this song to perform together with me."
Jiwoong nodded passionately unlike his usual self.
"Sure, I wanted to do it together. But if I can't show something new with an opposite concept, it could be dangerous for me."
Jongwoo had never even imagined Jiwoong being pushed out of his debut spot, but he understood that Jiwoong needed a twist. After Love Killer, which followed the Backdoor, both intense and sexy, it was a good time to show a new side. Plus, Jongwoo had also been shocked when Jiwoong missed first place in Love Killer.
"Just do it like you did at the sports day. Show how fresh and lively you can be!"
"I'm worried that I won't fit in with all the fresh and lively kids. What if I look like a teacher when all others look like students?"
Jiwoong joked, but his face darkened slightly. Jongwoo sensed his anxiety and spoke up.
"Don't you ever worry about that! You have a face that beats everything else. It doesn't matter whether you're a student or a teacher as long as you make their hearts pounding. I'm sure that when people see you in person, they'll only be able to see you on that stage. Game over!"
"Really? Do you feel that way too?"
"What... what do you mean?"
"Do you also only see me?"
Jongwoo was taken aback by the unexpected question.
"Well... I like your face. Because I have eyes too, you know. No, well, I mean, there's no one who doesn't like you..."
He stuttered and blabbered without even realizing what he was saying. Why would he ask me that now? But it's too late to back out. On top of that, Jiwoong kept staring at him without even blinking. It wasn't until Jongwoo was almost sweating that Jiwoong finally spoke.
"Okay, that's enough."
And he added silently to himself. For today.
The second round of survivor announcements. Jongwoo ranked 15th, jumping up 23 steps.
Jiwoong, who had been waiting anxiously for a long time, was called out as the 5th. It was what he had expected. Though it was not easy for him to swallow, he accepted the stable debut spot with composure.
"I think what's important is a heart that won't be broken, not just rankings. So, if you Star Creators continue to water me, I'll grow a big flower."
While listening to Jiwoong's remarks, Jongwoo found himself smiling uncontrollably. A heart that won't be broken was the very words he had written in his Boys Planet self-introduction, and the words he had said to Jiwoong just recently.
With his head bowed deeply, afraid of his expression might be captured on camera, he felt the connection between himself and Jiwoong. He felt the emotions that flowed through that connection, without avoiding or hesitating. Jiwoong's words echoed in his ears.
"I'm just simple. If I love something, I'll go straight for it and won't give up until the end."
Cool, he's a real adult and a strong person. Jongwoo wished that the flower that Jiwoong bloomed after seven years of waiting would be as huge as a giant tree, so big that he could not hug it with both arms.
The joy of survival was short-lived, however, as Jongwoo was eliminated from the Over me team. Once again, at the moment of life or death. The feeling as if the sky was falling and the ground was opening up beneath his feet was familiar. He had been hanging on the edge of a cliff since joining the program, but this time it was different.
Until now, he had been able to hold on with a single strand of hope: Okay, it can happen because people don't know me. If they know, things will change.
He had believed that, but his team members knew who he was, how much he could do, and how hard he had worked, but he still couldn't keep his spot. He felt nothing but a hollow laugh, not even feeling pain or despair.
Jongwoo came out of the Over me practice room with a smile and kept smiling when he entered the Say my name room. As he appealed to Matthew to join the Switch team, he tried to avoid Joowong's gaze.
He felt like an idiot for getting excited about this. If Jiwoong looked at him with pity, he couldn't help but crumble. Jongwoo numbly moved until he reached the interview room, where he finally whimpered.
He had come so far, holding hands together with his team members, only to suddenly be thrown back to square one, alone. It felt pointless and empty that all the time and passion he had poured into this song and team had scattered like this.
