“We will reveal the next test,” said the Voice of I-LAND.

The screen revealed what the next test was going to be.

“Concept.”

“What does he mean by that?” I asked myself.

“This next test will be a performance based on the chemistry with your trainee mates and the concept theme that you select. The only time to practice for it…is two days!”

Two days, I thought, But that’s a short amount of time. Will we even have enough to practise the entire dance?

“The cooperation of the choreography is crucial to this test,” said the Voice of I-LAND, “This will be based on your leadership responsibilities and the average of the scores will become the final score. That will define which of the contestants shall be going to GROUND. Every single one of you must keep a high score…so that more people can come to I-LAND. This time, it’s up to you who stays and who goes.”

“Boys,” said Sunoo, “We have to make sure that Y/N does not get sent to GROUND. Even if she chooses to take one of our places, she deserves to be up here more than anyone else.”

“And most importantly,” said Jaebeom, “We have to keep that high score. Which could get Y/N and the other girls get sent to GROUND.”

“If you don’t let anyone be eliminated…” said the voice, “Then the GROUND stage is canceled. The one I-LANDer with the highest score will receive an exemption card. It can be used for no more than 3 people. Including yourself. If you do happen to use it, then the next elimination candidate is out. Decide on your parts now. You have just only two days, eighteen hours, and twenty-four seconds.”

 

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It was already a month and we had to work on our next test. It wasn’t hard. But it wasn’t at first easy. There were parts we had to be assigned. And yes…we are doing our own thing. I was not working to get the highest score. I’m going to do what I want to do…and that was to get Jake out of GROUND.

We were in the practice room figuring out our “concept” song. We already had choreography ideas, it was just choosing a song…and figuring out our parts. We thought and we thought and we thought, Until…

“Wait, guys!” said Hinata, “Instead of doing it as one big group, we could have a separate performance! Y/N, you can do it with Galway Londoners and that will leave us as a sub-unit!”

“What’s a sub-unit?” I asked, tilting my head.

“I think it’s when a few members from a group make a team and they produce their own songs, and not the entire band themselves.” said Holly, “But you, my best friend, are going to be a leader in both groups!”

A leader? In both groups? I was confused. I didn’t know that they chose me to be the leader! I was always thinking that Leila, the oldest, would be the leader. But I guess not.

“But why would you think of me as a leader?” I asked.

“You fought bravely for us and stayed so strong, we decided you should be our leader.” Erika said.

“You’ve done so much for us.” added Holly.

Thankfully, I accepted.

Meanwhile, in GROUND, Jake and the other GROUNDers were sitting in a circle and they were deciding on their parts as well. Jay, especially, didn’t want to be humiliated again. So, he made himself the leader. But Jake thought of him as unfit to rule a whole group of GROUNDers. But he let Jay have his way.

 

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“We should be able to have enough parts for the next test. There are at least twelve of us.” Jay said to the GROUNDers, “So we should begin with our assigning parts.”

The first one, they made Jay have it. Daniel the second part. And Jake the third. The rest of the boys could decide on their own. But Jake didn’t feel like dancing at all. He was missing me so much. And to be honest, I missed him to bits too. But what can you do about it?

He laid on the floor hopelessly. Daniel and Young-bin sat beside him on both sides. But that didn’t help. They patted his back. That didn’t work either.

They saw how many tears were in his eyes.

“Don’t cry, Jake,” said Young-bin, wiping his tears with his long sleeve, “Y/N will be fine, and she will use the special card to get a few of us out of here.”

But Jake didn’t answer. He still sniffled and softly whimpered.

Back in I-LAND, there was nothing else to do. I walked by the big closet. I saw that there was a section for girls and boys. I took a black hoodie and a pair of track pants. When I changed and looked at the mirror in my new outfit, I looked back during the time when I met the eleven girls at Dream Life. I had so much nostalgia, I felt like I was going to cry.

Heeseung found me and said, “Jake misses you, you know.”

When he mentioned Jake’s name, I knelt down and my eyes welled with tears. I felt more depressed than I ever thought I was.

I sat on the couch in my dorm room. I spaced out a lot. I didn’t even know that the other boys had already entered. I didn’t want to deal with them at the moment, so I let them come in.

But they saw how depressed I was. EJ and Sunoo then sat down next to me.

“I want to be alone.” I said with my voice muffled with my hands covering my face.

“Well, we don’t,” said Sunoo, “You have been depressed all day! Let’s go do something! Let’s go out to eat, or shopping or do a Tiktok!”

“What’s a Tiktok?” I asked, sniffling.

I never had a Tiktok. I never allowed myself to have one. It was considered “addicting” in my home. However, I let my mum have one. But she doesn’t use it much.

Later on, Sunoo and EJ took me out on a walk. We then passed by GROUND. Coincidentally, I saw Jake, walking out to the snack bar.

We then looked each other in the eye. There was silence.

“How are you doing in I-LAND?” he reluctantly asked.

“What does it matter to you?” I stammered (I didn’t want anyone to know that I really liked him), “You are in GROUND and I am in I-LAND. You should know I am doing all right.”

“A simple ‘I’m doing fine’ would have been better.”

“Well, I am doing fine! I’m just annoyed that GROUND and I-LAND have separated us!”

“Me too!”

“Well, Mr. Sim Jae-yun, I have to get going! I will wish you good luck!”

“And I wish you good luck too!”

“Hmph!”

“Hmph!”

We stormed away in a huff. I didn’t notice that Sunoo and EJ were snickering at our slight argument. But it didn’t matter much then. I was only upset that he had to go to GROUND and that the voice told me I belonged up in I-LAND.

 

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“And what do you mean by that?” I said, complaining at K and Jungwon’s suppos