"Told You So,"

Prologue

As I sat on the plane with only a bag containing my bare essentials, accompanied by a woman I only met last month and another bushy tailed, wide eyed soon to be trainee, I readied myself for a new life ahead. I didn't even think anything would happen when I auditioned for JYP Entertainment four months ago, I only did it for the exposure and the experience. I didn't expect anything from it, yes I did have a little voice in the back of my head saying 'what if' but I never let that voice get louder and make me hope for more than being declined and not getting that golden phone call confirming my acceptance to the 2nd audition. 

   When I did receive that call to congratulate me and tell me the details if the 2nd audition, I was utterly shocked. I prepared myself and I practiced but not too hard in order not to raise my hopes up. By now that little voice in the back of my head got louder, but not too loud. I always lowered the volume of that voice in the back of my head that was gradually getting louder. The 2nd audition was in the JYP entertainment building in  South Korea, once I was finished we had to travel back Australia and wait for another phone call telling us the details of the 3rd audition. My young age of 14 wasn't what made me doubt my acceptance but the fact that I was a foreigner made my doubts strong and kept the voice in my head at bay. I remember that it was a dull, rainy morning-just a week after my 15th birthday. My mum answered the phone and talked to the man or woman for a whole hour, when the called finally ended my mum turned to me and asked me, "Are you sure you want to continue with this?" 

I replied back with saying, "Continue with what?"

"This K-Pop journey of yours. Your young and I don't know if your ready for it. You got accepted into the 3rd audition and once you say yes there's no turning back."

I didn't even think before replying with, "Yes, I'm sure. Besides, I have nothing to lose?"

The next week my mum and I flew to South Korea-courtesy of JYP Entertainment-they said that I didn't need to prepare for anything because the 3rd audition was just an interview with Mr. Park Jinyoung himself (the owner of JYP Entertainment). 

When we entered the building a lady who spoke really good English escorted us into a waiting room, where there was easily 50 young hopefuls waiting to be interviewed by Park Jinyoung. At least 20 of them were foreigners and the rest looked Korean. Some were mingling with other and being social, while people like me were shy and quiet waiting with our parent that accompanied us on this trip. Soon another lady and a man came into the room and told the parents of the foreigners to follow the lady and the parents of the Korean born trainees to follow he man. I remember one Mother asked if they were Korean but they lived in U.S.A which group they would go to and the lady replied that she should go with the foreigners. The parents left the children and we were told to wait for another employee to give them further instructions. It only took less than 5 minutes and 2 ladies came into the room. One spoke in Korean and asked the Korean born children to follow her, well at least that’s what I thought. The other spoke in English and instructed the foreigners to follow her. She gave us a tour and introduced us into the trainee life  to see if we really desired it. She said that if we got accepted our life would consist of sleeping, eating and training. “It’s harsh but very rewarding, Mr. Park lets trainees have fun too so don’t worry,” she told all of us.

Soon we met up in the same room again with the Korean born children. The lady then called out Lee Jun Seong and a 16 year old looking girl stepped up and followed the woman. Soon the room exploded in chatter and the foreigners and Korean born children made two separate groups and started talking to each other. Within the foreign group there were sub groups made. The English speaking, the Mandarin speaking, the kids that spoke Japanese and many other languages and they all started to converse with one another. Giving each other words of comfort, support and wisdom. I talked with a girl from California and her name was Jeniffer Park, her parents were Korean but she lived in California her whole life. She was 16, just a year older than me. She eventually got called up and I wished her good luck. We soon realised that after the interview no one came back, all the Koreans were called first and then the foreigners were left. I guessed I was at the very end of the list because 4 hours later there was only 3 people left in the waiting room. A 16 year old guy from Canada named Brian Kang- he said he lived in Canada for most of his life but he was Korean and that he got discovered on youtube, another 16 year old guy from California named Mark Tuan- he said that his parents were taiwanese and then there was little old me. I was finally called up for my interview and was nervous but hey, I had nothing to lose.

Little did I know my world would turn upside down and that statement would be to most false and naive statement I could ever make.

Quick authors note! I just wanna thank WynterFrost and Illyna for making me covers. They were both so good and I couldn't pick so I think when the story gets around halfway I'm going to swap it. WynterFrost made the cover on it now and it's like she's looking forward to her dreams and stuff (1st half of the story) and Illyna made a cover that is a girl getting makeup put on her (2nd half). I'm not gonna spoil anymore but once again thank you so much to both of you! :)