God Idol Project: Hope [GIPH]

Chapter 11: Surprise End-of-Month Evaluation

"Ham Iwon trainee. Please come forward."

At the call from the representative, Iwon, surrounded by trainees, felt a wave of dread. He was suddenly expected to sing and dance in front of everyone without any preparation. This was a far cry from just coming to watch.

The staff and trainees of the agency were accustomed to idols and likely had high standards. After all, they even had their own idol groups. With such discerning eyes watching, he felt completely lost, knowing his skills would be exposed.

Though his dance skills might be scrutinized, he couldn't avoid the impromptu performance. Since this wasn't planned, he hadn't prepared an MR (music recording) and had to ask a staff member for help, which caused a slight delay. Given the unexpected nature of the situation, everyone seemed to understand, and the atmosphere wasn't too bad.

He looked around and saw that those he met were silently cheering him on. Park Ha waved his arms excitedly, helping to ease his tension a bit.

"I'm Ham Iwon, who just joined. I will perform a song and dance together."

A reckless challenge to perform both singing and dancing simultaneously. The trainees, who had come to watch, cheered with an 'Ooh!' The gaze of the trainees, usually cold towards rookies, seemed a bit warmer today. Maybe they were inclined to support the underdog.

Taking a deep breath, Iwon steeled himself and got into position. As soon as the MR started, there was a stir among the trainees. The murmuring even reached him.

The song "New World" was the track that had brought solo dancer Ju Yeoreum into her prime. While the dance itself wasn't too difficult, the song was notoriously hard. Rumors suggested that doing both at once could leave you breathless. Moreover, the track was prepared in a female key, and Ju Yeoreum was a woman.

As the song began, Iwon let himself go with the lively beat and executed the movements accurately. He focused on expressing emotions as he had learned from his trainer, Cho Rok.

If the dance and singing were separated, his choice might not have been bad. The dance was moderately challenging and focused on emotional expression, which he had been practicing recently. Choosing to do both was a gamble, but he was confident. After all, he had the vocal skills and training from Hyun-oh.

He reminded himself to control his breathing. He took steps forward, wiping his face with his hand and opening his mouth.

"I didn't know this feeling, like facing a new world..."

˚˖✧✧✧˚.

After finishing the performance, he stood politely in place, waiting for feedback. Silence lingered, and only the sound of his heavy breathing filled the room. What did this silence mean? He wished someone would say something.

The representative, who had chuckled first, broke the silence. "Has it only been about a month since you joined? Hmm...! It's quite surprising. I did see potential from the audition."

Perhaps it was surprising if they hadn't expected much. While there weren't major mistakes, it wasn't perfect. He had missed a breath and merely copied the movements without paying attention to details like hand positions or expressions. There was still much to improve.

Reflecting on this, the familiar new talent development team leader grabbed the microphone. "Since you've had your first end-of-month evaluation by accident, you'll need to work on something before the next evaluation. It seems you have weaknesses in the dance portion. Right? I'll leave the details to the dance trainer."

A young male trainer, who received the microphone unexpectedly, asked, "How long have you been dancing?"

"Since I joined the company, that's when I started learning properly."

The dance trainer was impressed. The trainees behind him took a deep breath. "You have good instincts, but it shows how much effort you've put in. There are parts that talent alone can't cover. However, while you focused on the dance movements, your expressions and eye contact were a bit flat. On stage, unique atmosphere, expressions, and gestures are more important than you might think. It would be good to work on those details while looking in the mirror."

"Thank you."

After the end-of-month evaluation, everyone left in a rush. Once he regained his composure, he found himself back in the practice room. He didn't even know how he had left the conference room.

Park Ha, who was exhausted, had dragged him to another practice room. He calmed his excitement with an energy drink. Ji-on, who had been staring at him intensely, spoke first.

"To be honest, I was shocked. Iwon."

"Shocked?"

"It was my first time hearing your singing. Come to think of it, Iwon, you always said singing was your specialty from the beginning."

He never got tired of hearing praise for his singing. Ji-on hadn't seen him perform a full song. With his brief vocal training and Ji-on being a rapper, their schedules didn't often overlap. They usually only met during dance practice.

"It was impressive. The song choice was great too. How did you think of singing and dancing at the same time? That's bold."

To Chorok Hyung, who was almost as good as a professional dancer, it must have looked awkward.

"It was a song that could showcase about 70% singing and 30% dancing. If done separately, you'd need to show 100% for both. It was a clever trick."

"Wow. Iwon, your thinking is unusual! Haha!"

Park Ha laughed while slapping his arm and rolling around.

"I think that song was about 130% singing and 70% dancing. You did both in one go, so it should be 200 out of 100. No, actually, considering there's a bit of a bonus, it should be around 300."

"......?"

Did he really do something so silly? Other trainees usually showed singing, dancing, and rapping separately.

"I guess I made a foolish mistake due to my lack of experience..."

"If you're confident, you should do it. I think it was a strategic choice."

Ji-on seemed to think too highly of him.

"You were almost at debut level, weren't you? We need to step up our game. The other trainees must be feeling anxious too. A genius has joined us."

Was this some sort of skill for smooth social interactions? Seo-hon Hyung was good at flattery.

"Anyway, thanks to everyone for the compliments."

"The praise you received earlier was thanks to Iwon. Thanks for the advice."

Seo-hon Hyung had only added a few words to a problem-solving discussion. If that helped, he was glad.

"I also found a new perspective on dance while teaching Iwon. It feels like solving a long-standing problem."

"I'm grateful too! Seeing Iwon work hard made me find my original motivation!"

"Ah, um, no need to mention it?"

After listening to Chorok Hyung and Park Ha's thanks, he received feedback on the dance he had performed. They decided to help him alternately with future tasks.

He thought he could manage things little by little like this.

"Hyungs! Let's have dinner and then practice again!"

The lights in the practice room stayed on late into the night.

˚˖✧✧✧˚.

With the argument that a hearty meal was needed to regain strength, the menu for today was samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup). Hanul Enter wasn't strict about the trainees' diets as long as they maintained a reasonable figure.

As long as it didn't show, late-night snacks were allowed, just like on the day he had chicken.

He almost lost the joy of eating. Following the considerate recommendation from Seo-hon Hyung, he ordered mung bean samgyetang. Although the soup was slightly murky due to the mung beans, it had an excellent umami flavor. The tender meat melted in his mouth with a touch of salt.

The kimchi cubes were adequately tangy, enhancing his appetite. After finishing all the soup, they were able to look up.

The gluttonous Chorok Hyung insisted on paying and argued for a while. He insisted on paying because he ate the most.

In the end, they all lost to Chorok Hyung.

"Where else would I spend the allowance I get from my wealthy father, if not here?"

Chorok Hyung's tone was oddly sarcastic. Was his relationship with his father not good?

When he looked at him blankly, he tousled his hair and said that was how it was.

On the way back after the meal, everyone walked back to the company in silence, side by side. It was probably because they were lost in various thoughts. The uncertainty of when they would debut loomed large.

Could I not worry about an uncertain future? Even if I didn't know where the finish line was on this course, I had no choice but to run diligently.

Noticing the gloomy atmosphere, Seohon suggested a bet. "Shall we race to the practice room? The loser buys ice cream."

As soon as Seohon finished speaking, four shadows dashed out like arrows. I stared blankly at their backs before starting late.

Since the company was not too far away, the results came quickly.

First place was Seohon, and last place was me. "This doesn't count."

There's no way to just dash out without preparation. I'm quick on my feet, but the short distance prevented me from catching up and I arrived last. While Seohon, with his athletic build, wouldn't end up last even if he started late, it was a significant handicap for me.

"How unfair. Seohon hyung, you suggested a race on purpose, didn't you? Because you wouldn't end up last? We should have just played rock-paper-scissors."

"Iwon, accept the results. Haha."

Seohon, with a kindly smile, teased me and added further explanation. He said that even though the person who is always last in games requiring luck wasn't present at that moment, we don't play rock-paper-scissors when just the two of us are around.

"Who is it...?"

"You'll meet them soon. By the way, Iwon, it's time to go get the ice cream, isn't it?"

With a sulky face, I left the practice room. Seohon hyung offered to pay, but I quickly avoided it. I decided to stop by the restroom before heading to the convenience store. It was evening, so there were no people in the building.

Crash? Boom!

Walking alone in the hallway, I heard a loud noise from somewhere. Startled by the sound of something falling and clattering, I quickly changed direction.

At the end of the dim hallway, I saw Inyoung lying on the floor. My heart sank instantly. Memories of finding Hyun-oh injured surfaced.

"Oh no...."

Ah....

It wasn't the same as before. The lady wasn't unconscious. I quickly snapped out of my recollection and hurried to help her up.

Next to her was a cleaning cart, and cleaning tools were scattered around.

"Are you okay?"

She was a cleaner I had met a few times and exchanged greetings with. She had either slipped or tripped over the cleaning tools, as she was limping.

"Oh, it seems like I might have sprained my ankle."

"Should I help you? Or would you like me to take you to the hospital?"

"Could you just get me a taxi at the front gate? I feel bad troubling a young student."

"Just a moment. Please give me your arm."

I helped her by placing her arm around my shoulder. As we walked a bit forward, I noticed the lady glancing back.

"Ah, student, I'm really sorry, but you shouldn't leave the cleaning tools there. It could affect the evaluation... Could you perhaps put them in the small room next to the management office on the first floor?"

"Yes. I'll organize them after I get you there. Don't worry, go ahead."

As I said goodbye, the lady looked at my name tag around my neck.

"Thank you so much, Iwon. I'll remember your name. If we meet again, I'll buy you a coffee."

"That's fine."

I sent her off in a taxi and then organized the cleaning tools. Looking around, I noticed the floor was shiny. On closer inspection, I found it was oil. I realized why the lady had slipped. I wasn't sure why there was oil here.

I chose a cleaner from the cleaning tools, sprinkled it on the floor, and wiped it with a mop. Although I wasn't asked to clean, I did it to prevent others from slipping like the lady. I never wanted to see someone lying on the ground again. After wiping off the oil enough so it wouldn't be slippery, I organized the cleaning tools and put them where the lady had said.

"Oh, ice cream!"

I thought about the practice mates who were probably eagerly waiting for ice cream in the practice room. I rushed to the convenience store to get back as quickly as possible. What seemed like a trivial accident was wrapped up just like that.