LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 90
Chapter 90
The 21 trainees stood on the circular stage, each on their designated spot, waiting for Jena’s announcement.
“The trainee debuting in 9th place is…”
“……”
After some dramatic pause, as always, Jena skipped the cut-off rank and swiftly moved on to announce the debut members, starting with 9th place, Kim Sejong.
8th place went to Ha Seo-joon, chosen as the rap sub-leader, from the Calling group. In 7th place was Kashima Sora, who consistently remained in the debut zone due to his neat appearance and stable skills.
Oh Hyun-jin, whose popularity had significantly dropped due to controversies about his pro-Japanese ancestry, was chosen as the vocal sub-leader, taking the 6th place.
The trainees had been instructed by the production team not to leave their spots unless they were announced as debut members. So, each time someone was called, they celebrated and applauded while remaining in their places.
Those who succeeded in debuting walked around the circle, exchanged greetings with the other trainees, shared their trembling voices of gratitude, and then sat down.
At this point, fans began to give up on Ban Yo-han and Seo Moon-gyeol’s chances of debuting.
– ㅎㅏ..
– I’m giving up here. It’s easier to just stop expecting.
– Gyeol, I’m sorryㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
Fans of On Raon, who had resolved the controversy affecting his image just before voting closed, were also anxious.
– Please, 5th place.. Please…
– Our boy has to debutㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
– Call his name, please…
– Is it real that no one from Boss has been called yet?
– Where’s Raonㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
Despite the hopes of Boss fans, 5th place was Ji Yeon-woo, 4th was Jing Xiao, who had consistently stayed near the top, and 3rd was Ok Do-yoon.
Seo Chan-bin and Na Yoon-jae, who were also among the top contenders, still remained on their spots, leaving the lower-ranked trainees feeling despondent.
– ㅅㅂ.. There are no spots leftㅠㅠㅠ I can’t watch this anymoreㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
– No, there’s still 10th place left. Raon can still debut.
– I’m going crazy.
“1st place is… trainee Seo Chan-bin from Ri Pong Entertainment!”
Shortly after, Seo Chan-bin, chosen as the performance sub-leader, took 1st place, and Na Yoon-jae, the other 1st place candidate, sat in 2nd place.
– Raon 10th place, Raon 10th place, Raon 10th place
– Jun-woo, don’t cryㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
– The trainees must be exhausted…
As one comment noted, after almost four hours of live broadcast, the trainees still standing on the narrow platforms, waiting to hear their names, were in agony.
‘Wow, my legs are numb.’
On Raon, whose stamina had long since reached its limit, endured the time with willpower, rotating his ankles or clenching and unclenching his fists.
“Now, only one spot remains in Breaker.”
The camera zoomed in on the still empty 10th place seat.
Unable to avoid the trainees’ and representatives’ wish for a quick announcement, Jena started revealing the ranks from 21st in order.
The trainees ranked 21st to 18th were revealed at once and moved to a designated area, holding hands.
The same happened with those ranked 17th to 15th.
Now, the remaining trainees on stage were Kim Jun-woo and Yoon Myung-soo from Wes Music, Ban Yo-han and Seo Moon-gyeol from Seed Entertainment, and the independent trainee, On Raon.
– Wow… It wouldn’t be strange for any of them to debut.
– It’s unbelievable that 4 of them will be eliminated.
From 14th place, the ranks were announced one by one, with the subtitle “Who will be the 14th place trainee?” appearing on the screen.
“14th place. …trainee Seo Moon-gyeol from Seed Entertainment. Thank you for your hard work.”
– ?????
– No way, Seo Moon-gyeol already???
– What’s going on?
Seo Moon-gyeol, who had frequently appeared in the debut ranks and was considered one of the strongest candidates along with On Raon, was called in 14th place, causing a stir in the live comments.
Seo Moon-gyeol calmly accepted the result, expressing his gratitude for receiving such a high rank and thanking everyone for their support, then moved to join the eliminated trainees.
Soon after, Yoon Myung-soo was called in 13th place, and Ban Yo-han in 12th place.
As Yoon Myung-soo finished his brief remarks with “Jun-woo, you worked hard,” Kim Jun-woo collapsed on the spot, burying his face in his hands.
After Ban Yo-han concluded his remarks about learning a lot through Pick Heart, only Kim Jun-woo and On Raon remained.
“Trainee Kim Jun-woo, if you could say a final word?”
“I want to debut. But… even if Raon debuts, I wouldn’t be surprised and would congratulate him.”
“Then, On Raon, do you have anything to say now?”
“I hope that all the older and younger brothers, and friends who have worked hard, do well, no matter who debuts.”
– Oh, these kids…
– Jun-woo looks so exhausted and Raon looks so sadㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
– Jena and everyone else look so worn out, just announce it quicklyㅠㅠㅠㅠ
“The final debut member is…!”
As soon as the production team gave the signal, Jena announced the 10th place with relief.
“Congratulations, trainee Kim Jun-woo from Wes Music!”
– Wow
– Oh Jun-wooㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
– How could the world do this to me?
Not caring what the production team asked them to do, On Raon, with trembling legs, jumped off the platform and ran first to the confused-looking Kim Jun-woo, hugging him reassuringly.
“Congratulations, hyung.”
“Raon, I…”
“Do you know? From the first time I saw you, I knew you’d do well. Really. No matter what happens, you’ll do well.”
Overwhelmed by the sincere tone, Kim Jun-woo couldn’t say anything more and hugged On Raon, sobbing.
“Thank you… Raon, you too… You’ll definitely… sob, definitely…”
“I’m going to do well too, so don’t cry and go give your speech.”
Saying that, On Raon returned to his spot, and Kim Jun-woo, with a tear-streaked face, moved to the center of the stage to give his speech.
“Raon just said a moment ago that we can all do well. I really hope that comes true…”
After finishing his speech, Kim Jun-woo sat down with a tear-stained face.
“Let’s hear from On Raon, who unfortunately finished in 11th place.”
The camera zoomed in on On Raon’s face, filling the screen.
– ㄷㄷㄷ..
– Wow, you can almost hear the crowd murmuring every time his face gets a close-up;
– The Fallen Prince? With that face, he could revive a fallen country and conquer at least five neighboring nations according to academic consensus.
“Hello. I’m independent trainee On Raon.”
On Raon opened his mouth as he received the microphone.
“Wow… it’s really over now. We all had a tough time, didn’t we?”
On Raon slowly nodded his head, seeming to empathize with Jena, the mentors standing on one side, the other trainees seated, the production team who worked hard for the broadcast, and all the fans who had supported him so far.
His attitude felt more approachable due to his soft smile and informal tone.
“Um… what I really want to say is, I’m okay. Really, I’m fine. There were tough times, but… people can’t always be fine. I just hope you’ll trust me. Yes. Please trust me.”
On Raon added calmly after his firm request.
“I want to be someone who makes others happy and joyful rather than sad and troubled.”
After briefly pausing as if to reflect on his words, On Raon spoke again.
“I said it grandly, but everyone wants to show their best side, right? Especially to the people they like. So, I won’t cause any worries to the fans from now on. …I think I just said something weird, so please understand.”
On Raon, seemingly unable to organize his thoughts, awkwardly laughed and repeatedly wiped his flushed face with his cooler hand that wasn’t holding the microphone.
– A face that could cause a country to fall ten times and rise a hundred times.
– Dropping a kid like this? Shouldn’t we sue the crazy guy who posted the controversy thread on Myu Park for business obstruction and claim damages?
– Why settle for a prince? He should just be the emperor.
– His heartfelt speech is getting overshadowed by his dazzling looks.
“Although I haven’t debuted yet, they call celebrities stars. But I don’t think I can shine like a star by myself. I think it’s because of the production team working behind the scenes and the fans who have always supported me that I’ve become known. So, the shining stars are you, and I’m like the moon or a planet. Yes. I’ll continue to work hard without forgetting this grateful heart. Thank you.”
– I hope Raon does better and better and stays happy in the futureㅠㅠㅠㅠ
– He speaks so well.. His mindset is so good that it breaks my heart to think he’s not even twenty yet.
– Oh… I said I wouldn’t watch Season 2, but here I am againㅠㅠㅠ
With the end of On Raon’s heartfelt speech, the final broadcast of *Pick Your Heart* came to an end.
* * *
…it’s over.
I thought I had abandoned all expectations for this program, but now that it’s really over, I felt more empty and hollow than I expected.
It was similar to the feeling of completely clearing a game, but now I knew this place was not a game.
Therefore, my story would continue without pause.
‘Still, I want to rest a bit now…’
I was exhausted.
Was it right to end it with just saying I was tired? I felt so tired that I could die, but I exchanged farewell greetings with the other trainees, knowing it wasn’t the last time.
“Don’t pretend you don’t know me when you get famous later, or I’ll post all your dark history online.”
“Do you think you have more dark history than me…?”
“…Chan-bin hyung, congratulations on being first!”
“Thanks. I wanted to perform on stage with you.”
“We can do it together next time.”
During this time, my heart kept pricking.
Gil Jun-yong had hinted that I was predestined for the debut team.
I didn’t know what would happen in the future.
I just hoped that everyone who worked hard wouldn’t be too hurt.
Then, somewhere, a furious voice shouted, “Jo In-soo, you bastard, go to hell!” It seemed to come from a member of the audience.
Everyone flinched for a moment, then reacted with varying degrees of agreement.
After that, sporadic shouts of “Well done,” “Good job,” and “You did great,” among others, could be heard.
“Yo-han, I love youuu!”
“Myung-soo, you worked hard!”
The names called out were mostly those of the eliminated trainees rather than the debuting ones.
The trainees also exchanged greetings with the mentors they had worked with.
Muk Hye-sung approached me and asked,
“Did you really not know we were related?”
Of all things, he asked this first. He must have been really curious.
“My eyes almost popped out when you came out earlier.”
“Then how did you get my number? You know it doesn’t make sense to call someone without knowing who it is.”
“….”
I subtly avoided Muk Hye-sung’s stern gaze.
This was all because of that bastard Larry.
If I told him that, he’d probably think I was crazy, right?
“I’m sorry. Actually, I knew it was you when I called. I didn’t know from the beginning of the broadcast, but I found out in the middle of it… I got the number by asking my mom.”
Instead of telling the truth, I chose to omit and fabricate parts of the story.
According to the letter, the parents of ‘On Raon’ here were similar to my own— they didn’t pay much attention to their children but would do what they were asked if it wasn’t too troublesome.
I didn’t know how close Muk Hye-sung was to ‘On Raon’s’ mother, but it wasn’t an implausible story.
“I apologize for being rude when I called suddenly. But I wasn’t pretending not to know earlier! I was really surprised. Finding out that someone I admired and respected was actually my family… It’s like something I only imagined became real. This is the first time I’m meeting you knowing you’re my family, no, my relative.”
Did that nonsense work?
I thought it was a much more natural explanation than saying a system named Larry gave me your number.
I glanced at Muk Hye-sung’s expression.
Fortunately, Muk Hye-sung looked at me with eyes that said, ‘I thought so.’
This was annoying in its own way.
“And thank you for coming today. Even though you had to come as a mentor, I appreciate you coming out earlier.”
Muk Hye-sung finally let out a shallow sigh.
Then, in a calm voice, he said,
“I told you earlier. Your parents wanted to come, but they were too busy, so they asked me to come instead.”
That was a lie.
“It’s okay. I knew they couldn’t come.”
Family is undoubtedly a valuable relationship, but not all families care for and love each other.
I thought this without a hint of sadness.
Muk Hye-sung seemed a bit angry and sorrowful at my response, and he opened his mouth to say something.
“Raon, you worked hard! I love you!!”
Startled by the sudden shout from the audience members who hadn’t yet left the venue, I turned around abruptly, almost too violently.
I stood still, dumbfounded, trying to locate the source of that astonishing sound.
“…Raon?”
In truth, there was no need to search far.
The resonance of those soft syllables, the words they formed, remained wholly within me.
Love. I love you. I love you….
I knew that for some, these words were nothing special.
‘It can’t be.’
But it was real.
For the first time, those words came to me.
As if they were some sort of key.
‘Wow…. What is this….’
In the world that spun and blurred dizzyingly around me.
The warm and overflowing emotions that I had fiercely pushed away, denying their possibility, suddenly flooded in, overwhelming me inside and out.
“Teacher, I didn’t mishear that, did I…?”
Standing before a gift that could be mine or might not be, I needed confirmation even in that moment.
“Yes.”
Muk Hye-sung answered plainly, without asking anything else.
“What you heard is correct.”
The firm affirmation from a reliable adult shattered the last wall I had stubbornly maintained.
‘Ah….’
Larry once told me that life was a battlefield without a tutorial.
But now, it felt as if I had just completed some preparation and was standing at the starting line.
That didn’t mean the experiences I went through to get here were meaningless.
As cliché as it sounds, the end was another beginning.
Thanks to an unknown someone who gently held me and pulled me down to the ground, as if my feet would never touch the earth.
I finally settled into a world where it was okay to give my heart.