"Mr. Chris," Alex said, the cap on his head hiding his face. It's only been less than a week since the scandal broke out, yet their looks had already degraded so much. Their eyes were bloodshot, undereyes were dark, and their unshaved faces looked unkempt.
Azure's head of the editing team and past Phoenix employee, Chris Ong, glanced around the headquarters before pulling the two desperate boys inside his office.
"What are you two doing here?" he said in a reprimanding voice.
"You were supposed to protect us, right?" Hyunwoo said in a desperate tone. He hadn't brushed his teeth for days, so the sll of build-up plaque wafted through Chris' nostrils.
He took a step back and breathed in so fresh air.
Hyunwoo's breath alone should get him arrested for assault.
"That's before you were exposed to be drug users," Chris said, an uncaring smile on his lips. "I'm sure you've already talked to CEO Kim. You know how Phoenix values its reputation. I'm surprised he even bailed you out of jail. I'm sure other companies wouldn't be so kind to do that."
"The company has kicked us out," Alex said. "We didn't even do anything wrong! Drugs are fucking normal these days. More CEOs are using drugs compared to the two of us. I don't know why the company isn't giving us a chance."
"Because you're in Korea, young man," Chris said. "Even if you were using drugs, you wouldn't be dumb enough to get caught while buying it."
"It's not our fault," Hyunwoo scread, making Chris cover his nose. "It's that Choi Joon-ho. I'm sure it was him who exposed the picture."
Chris frowned and tilted his head to the side. "June? You're talking about trainee June?"
"Yes," Alex said, his jaw clenching. "I knew that bastard was acting innocent right from the start. He knew more than he let on...and he's shown his true colors now."
"How are you even so sure that it was him who posted the photo?"
"I just know," Alex stubbornly said. "That's why he needs to pay."
Chris senses the murderous intent of the two eliminated trainees, so he slowly backs away.
"And you're going to help us, Mr. Chris," Hyunwoo smiled, his yellow grin sending a shiver down Chris' spine.
Chris rummaged through his pockets for his phone, but Alex held onto his wrist, cornering him in the office.
"I believe I can't help you," Chris said, trying to look tough. "I can't bring you back to the competition. That would be way too out of my power."
"We're not asking you to do that," Alex smirked. "We just want one little favor from you, forr boss," he continued. "Get us on the set of Rising Stars right now."
Chris frowned, pushing the young man away. "I can't do that, too. They're currently filming the live eliminations."
"We know," they said in unison.
"And you'll be the one to take us there," Hyunwoo said, walking back and forth in front of him and playing with sothing in his hands.
"Otherwise, you're wife might just find out that you're cheating on her with a perky intern."
***
"25th, Sehun."
"24th, Johnny."
"23rd, Gyeore."
Nana glanced around until her eyes landed on a familiar trainee. "This trainee's ranking has changed from the first eliminations, and I am pleased to announce that he is now in 22nd place."
June got ready to stand up, leaning his elbows on his knees.
This week, he definitely expected to have regressed in ranks. The bullying scandal had made a huge impact on his popularity, and it was also blown out of proportion during the first half of the week.
As much as he wanted to deny it, Alex and Hyunwoo have definitely tarnished his na.
There are still so loyalists who believe in the two druggies' words, so June is still receiving hate until now.
He didn't know how it had impacted the fans who voted for him with stars before, but he guesses that they also probably gave the stars to soone else during the duration of the scandal.
And even when the hate cald down after Alex and Hyunwoo were exposed to be drug users, June knows that those two days probably weren't enough to raise his ranks.
"Congratulations to trainee Bin! You are still in the running for Rising Stars."
Murmurs of gossip resonated in the room, and even the viewers were surprised with his sudden drop in rank.
- What the hell? He's out of the top 20 now?
- His rank has been going down per week. I wonder what's happening,
- He hasn't done anything that surpassed his audition, so people aren't voting for him as much anymore.
Reluctantly, Bin made his way to the stage and gave a lancholic speech. He definitely felt worried about his sudden drop in rank.
"21st, Anthony."
As the 21st trainee had been announced, June was expecting his na to be called next. If he didn't drop in ranks, he must have maintained it.
"Now, it's ti for the top 20! Can you believe we've already made it this far?" Hyerin asked Nana in fake excitent.
Nana rely smiled. "Without further ado, I present to you the 20th trainee!"
"Trainee Akira, Congratulations. You have made it into the top 20!"
Akira's na being announced as the 20th trainee caught both June and Akira by surprise. A look of astonishnt crossed Akira's face, his eyes widening as he took in his jump of nine places.
"Congrats, man. You deserve it."
"Keep rising, bro!"
"Wow, I...I honestly didn't expect this," Akira's voice trembled slightly as he addressed the stage, his words sincere and heartfelt. "Thank you to everyone who's been supporting . This ans so much, and I promise to keep giving it my all."
The announcents continued the trainees' reactions varying from elation to disappointnt. But as the ranks drew closer to the top ten, June's confusion deepened. He had anticipated his na being called by now, and yet, he remained unnoticed.
Could he have dropped so much after the scandal?
Deep in his thoughts, he missed out on the important mont.
He looked around the room and saw that almost all of them were looking at him.
"What?" he instinctively asked.
Zeth and Jisung chuckled by his side. "You've been called," Jisung said.
June frowned and looked at the huge LED screen, and there he saw his na.
11th—June.
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