The Second Chance of A Suicidal Idol

Debut Prep (5)

Nervously ASCEND stood in a larger-looking practice room. Mr. Jeong, many other trainees, a few higher-ups, and a scale were extra editions to ASCEND's usual just six.

It was a weigh-in day. It was the day a company's trainees, separated by gender, were to weigh-in. Oftentimes, even in Ha-rin's time, the people to do the weighing and screech their criticisms at hungry trainees, weren't even medical professionals. Even Joon-woo was nervous on days like these, though his nerves were clearly shared and even less than most of the other trainees.

Out of ASCEND, Jung Hyun-Ok and Joon-woo had the strictest diets and it showed in their easy exhaustion. But for weigh-ins, Ryeo Hyun was the biggest victim.

He was a man of muscle, even pushed by the company to work to keep them. But muscles added weight and weight was poison.

He was visibly nervous, Ryeo Hyun, even after Mi Yong had offered his hand of support. And what didn't help is that the other trainees knew ASCEND well. Not personally, but they weren't exactly unpopular to the public...

In fact, Producer10 season two had a viewership rating of almost twenty-five percent. That was about three times the first season. They had thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands, awaiting their debut. Perhaps that's why some looked at them with admiration, some jealousy. Joon-woo was similar in age to a lot of the trainees, gaining the most admirable looks.

A younger trainee, maybe 14, stepped up the scale with a forced blank face. He looked up with scrunched eyes to the ceiling as the scale went up, and up, and up...

67.5kg.

He stepped off the scale almost on the verge of tears.

"Why do you eat like you don't want to debut?" One of the higher-up's asked, her weight about double of the said trainees.

The trainee just clasped his hands and looked towards the floor. He was a perfectly healthy weight, the trainee, but the shorter one was, the harder it was to maintain the standard weight. This trainee seemed to be around Joon-woo's height.

"In your records from last time I said I wanted you down to 60kg. Is that so hard to do?" The higher-up continued.

'Yes, that's quite difficult' rang on the tongues of every trainee.

The higher-up sighed, "By next time I want you to weigh 60kg, no excuses."

The trainee nodded quickly, taking a walk of shame out of the practice room. The air was filled with a familiar tension. Joon-woo sighed. Jung Hyun-Ok was next.

Jung Hyun-Ok and his calm demeanor wasn't cracked, but between the exhaustion of debut preparations and a lack of food, Joon-woo imagined he must be a little nauseous.

"Jung Hyun-Ok... Set to debut in two weeks... goal weight 59kg..." The higher-up read from a sheet in front of her. "Step on the scale."

Jung Hyun-Ok abided. He displayed a rare type of confidence as the number on the scale went up. Joon-woo noted the admiration on the other trainee's faces with pride.

The higher-up's face was serious as she watched the number rise, but her expression ever-so-slightly softened when they slowed down and down.

58.7kg.

"Good. Maintain this weight until next time." She instructed, brushing the clearly relieved Jung Hyun-Ok off.

Jung Hyun-Ok sent the shortening line of trainees a small encouraging thumbs up as he left. Some trainees verbally expressed their admiration which brought a smile to all of the remaining ASCEND.

Joon-woo sighed as he watched the next trainee step up to be weighed.

–+–

51kg.