The lights came back up and everyone started talking at once. “Who in the world packs in four hours?” Minjae complained. “You're just too slow.” Tae Kyung said. “Let's get going.” Do Young said. We hurried out of the auditorium, joining the crowd of trainees rushing back to their dorms. When we got to Dorm C, Seung Woo was already there, methodically pulling clothes from his dresser and folding them in a duffel bag. We started packing. I didn't have much, just some clothes that Park Junho bought for me, my phone charger, toiletries and some personal things. I folded my last shirt and zipped up my bag then sat on my bunk, looking around the room. This had been my home for a week or so but it already felt strange to be leaving it. “Done.” Do Young said, his bag neatly packed and sitting by the door. “Show off.” Minjae muttered still trying to cram things into his bag. My noon, we were all packed, our bags were sitting by the door, ready to go. “Should we get lunch?” Minjae su

“I'm your hostel, Jung Hyunwoo and let me tell you, I’m so excited to be here with you! Four hundred of the most talented trainees in Korea, gathered in one place, all fighting for one dream! Can you feel that ENERGY?!!!” LIVE CHAT: @varietyfan: HYUNWOO OPPA!!!!😆😆 @itzdra_ma: He’s so good at this, omg @hypemas: I can feel the energy through the screen, already invested. @trainee#expert: They all look nervous lol “Now, I know you're all wondering, what's the first challenge?” Hyunwoo said, pacing the stage with a dramatic flair. Silence. Everyone was holding their breath. “Your first challenge,” Hyunwoo announced. “Is a TEAM PERFORMANCE CHALLENGE!!!” The hall erupted into surprised chatter. “This is how it works,” Hyunwoo continued. “You’ll be performing in your DORM TEAMS. That's right, the six people you're living with are now your teammates, you’ll have one week to prepare your full performance.” The screen divided and letters started forming. FIRST CHALLENGE: TEAM PER

I woke up to the sound of my alarm and dragged myself out of bed. My body was sore from yesterday's practice session and I was still sleepy. The dorm was already buzzing with activity. Dongpyo was making coffee, humming softly to himself. The twins were doing stretches on the floor and Peniel was reviewing notes on his phone, brows furrowed with concentration. And Seung Woo's bed was empty, already laid. “Morning,” I mumbled, heading to the bathroom to wash up. “Morning!” Dongpyo called back cheerfully. “Coffee?” “Please,” I said gratefully. When I emerged twenty minutes later, everyone except Seung Woo was gathered around the small coffee table, discussing our performance. “I think the opening needs to be more dramatic.” Jaein was saying, gesturing with his hands. “We need to grab attention immediately since it's a slow song, we can't afford to let people zone out.” Jaemin finished. “Agreed,” Peniel said thoughtfully. “Maybe we start with a solo dancer? Or maybe we start off

The Next Morning… I woke up toy phone vibrating non stop. At first, I thought it was just my alarm going off but the buzzing continued even after I swiped it away. Confused and still half asleep, I grabbed my phone and squinted at the screen. Hundreds of notifications were flooding in. My stomach dropped when I saw the headline trending at #2. #ORIONX Contestant Seo Ireum: Two week wonder or fraud?# What? My heart hammered against my chest as I clicked on the article. The article was from a blog called K pop insider secrets, run by someone called Wannabe Journalist. K pop insider secrets has learnt that ORIONX contestant Seo Ireum, who recently garnered public sympathy after being targeted by Choi Seung Woo, may not be who he appears to be. According to sources, Ireum was recruited by famous recruiter Kang Sujin without any training whatsoever and apparently trained for two weeks before the Star🌟lit audition. While countless trainees who have dedicated years of their lives

The Next Morning… I woke up before my alarm, my phone already in my hand. There was a message sent by Kang Sujin around midnight. Kang Sujin: Both video's are attached. Please be careful Ireum. I saw the two video files and downloaded it immediately then opened the first one. I watched myself dance, I looked pretty bad but okay, the ORIONX audition was way better. Maybe I really was some kind of prodigy? Either way, these videos will prove I earned my spot. But I couldn't just post them from my account. I needed to be more discrete. I created a burner account on T*****r, I*******m, TikTok, YouTube and used a VPN to mask my location. Then I uploaded both videos with a caption: “I happened to get my hands on the audition videos of Seo Ireum and I think he genuinely earnd his place, that's just my opinion though, y’all can watch and determine if yourself.” I posted it simultaneously across all platforms at exactly 7:00AM. Then I waited. Three hours later… The videos had explo