Novel Full 92 Close Match
Team Aces finally left the stage, yet the impact of their performance still lingered in the air. The audience chattered among themselves about their newfound admiration.
Jia, who was still speechless after the performance, felt like her soul had been sucked out of her body. Watching their performance was an out-of-body experience, and her fondness for June increased exponentially after it.
However, she wasn’t alone in her emotions.
Bora, who stood there in shock, slowly turned towards Jia. She tugged on Jia’s sleeve, causing the latter to snap out of her daze.
“What?” Jia asked with one eyebrow raised.
“June,” Bora said his name.
“What about him?”
Bora smiled, curiosity twinkling in her eyes. “Tell me more about him.”
***
As Team Aces made their way backstage, Jisung slung an arm over June’s shoulder.
“Are you alright?” he asked with a concerned look. “I saw you cry a while ago.”
‘It’s because of you!’ June screamed in his mind.
Zeth joined in on their conversation with a sad smile. “I saw that too. I felt like I was about to burst into tears after seeing you, little brother. You did such a great job.”
Yuri nodded in agreement. “Were you overwhelmed by your emotions?”
“Not really,” June nonchalantly said. “My eyes just hurt.”
Lin Zhi laughed out loud, slapping his knee. “As expected,” he chuckled. “You’re back to yourself again. You can tell us if you’re a crybaby or something. We promise we won’t laugh.”
June sighed. “I’m telling the truth.”
“Well, whatever the truth is,” Leo butted in. “I think it was a very good choice. It was a very emotional performance, and I believe we did a great job.”
Zeth smiled. “Damn right, we did. The audience was going nuts for our performance back there.”
“Team Aces?” one of the production crew members called for their attention. “Please head to the results room right now. Afterward, join the other trainees for the overall rankings and some announcements.”
Zeth let out a deep breath, looking a bit nervous. “Let’s go,” he seriously said.
Just a while ago, they were a team.
But now, they were back to being individual trainees. At the end of the day, this was still a competition.
Jisung nudged June’s side, causing the latter to look at him.
“I was amazed, brother,” he genuinely said, showing two thumbs up. “It would only be fair if you got first place,” he whispered.
June smirked but didn’t respond.
He sat next to Jisung as they arrived at the results room.
June knew better than to expect the best results. Being on this team, he already had low expectations. All his members were in the top 10, and although his rank wasn’t low, there was a clear difference in their fanbases.
It was already pretty obvious in the audience today, too. Zeth’s placards dominated everyone else’s.
So, for June, it wouldn’t be too surprising if he would be the last place in their team.
The screen finally lit up, and the team watched in anticipation as their ranks were shown one by one. The trainees and mentors were also monitoring their rankings backstage, and Hwan, whose eyes were still exposed, was secretly rooting for June. In his mind, he was the one who embodied the song the most.
In contrast with his teammates, June didn’t feel nervous at all. He was already sure that he wouldn’t win, but it was clear that their team would be taking the group benefit. So, there wasn’t any bitterness in his heart.
“6. Lin Zhi — 182 votes”
June’s eyes widened in surprise. The team turned to Lin Zhi and saw a scowl on his face. His fists were clenched, and it was obvious he didn’t like the outcome of the voting.
June was surprised because he genuinely thought he’d place last. If he wasn’t last, then maybe he’d be fifth.
“5. Leo — 197”
Now, this was even more surprising. The trainees backstage also gossipped among themselves.
“I didn’t expect that. Leo is in the top 5. That’s so few votes.”
“Is it really possible for June to rank higher than him?”
“He didn’t stand out for me. It’s just expected.”
June let out a sigh. He’s fourth. He can already feel it.
“4. Jisung — 243”
This was ridiculous. June’s actually in the top three?
Jisung squeezed June’s arm and smiled at him, his eyes crinkling in delight. “I think you’d get the personal benefit, brother.”
June shook his head. “I’m next,” he said. Yuri’s the current top six, and he also had the most lines in the group. It would make more sense if he was third.
“3. Yuri — 256”
With each member shown on screen, Jihyun’s heart leaped out of her chest. She couldn’t vote for June, but if she could, she’d do it a hundred times. Maybe, she should have taken a leave just to join the audience and vote for June.
“Holy,” Akira whispered. “June’s actually competing with Zeth.”
Ren frowned. For quite some time, Zeth had been at the top. He had always been the number one trainee in their company—during monthly trainee evaluations, pre-debut projects, modeling gigs, and a lot more.
In this group of trainees, only Casper stood a chance against him.
However, here comes June—an independent trainee who had been unknown in the idol industry before he joined Rising Stars. And to think he was actually going head to head with Zeth?
The screen showed both of their names.
Zeth vs. June
Everybody seemed to hold their breaths as the final numbers were shown. The trainees gasped when they finally saw the final results.
‘Zeth’s Victory!’ the screen showed.
Sighs were heard across the room. Some were sighs of disappointment, while some were of relief. Gun was one who sighed in relief. As much as he hated to admit it, June did a very good job in this performance. However, he’s still not convinced about his fast improvement. For him, it was unfair for a trainee to display such drastic improvement in less than two months!
“Zeth won,” Ren frowned. He expected it, of course. At the end of the day, he’s still the number one trainee in the competition.
However, he didn’t expect the number of votes they had gotten.
“2. June — 416”
“1. Zeth — 417”