“Welcome back, Dream Boys!” Si Woo called out from the podium. “It’s a big day today, as you know. Today, our Top–” A beat as his eyes flicked down to the card in his hand. “–Dream Boys will go to 25. Some of your dreams will continue. And, some of you–” Another beat, this time clearly planned. “Let’s just say you’ll get a lot more sleep starting tomorrow.”
Si Woo’s corporate banquet humor deserved a polite chuckle at best. But the Dream Boys were too keyed-up and nervous for anything less than raucous laughter. Andy laughed, too, just so he wouldn’t stand out. But he heard that first pause. Si Woo had been about to say Top 50, only stopping himself at the lastmoment. Maybe someone had scribbled that out on his card, leaving him to improvise. Andy glanced over Si Woo’s head at the screen. It no longer said Top 50, either. Only Elimination Day. That was it. No official statement. Not even a mention. As if Choi Hyun Woo had never existed. He wasn’t just gone. He’d been erased.
Andy pushed the depressing thoughts away before they made him frown, turning his attention back to Si Woo as the bloodbath commenced. They started announcing ranks with 24 instead of 25, which went to Peak, who’d jumped 8 places from his old rank. They paused after rank 12, calling two of the guys up at once to announce who’d made the Top Ten cutoff, Tae Oh from Andy’s room and Seo Jin from Andy’sKingmakerteam. Andy was happy for both of them, but more so for Tae Oh, who broke into the Top Ten. Leo moved up two ranks to seven. Woo Jin and Tae Woo swapped ranks, with Woo Jin moving to number 4. Min Jun kept his number 3 rank. Unless the unthinkable was about to happen, Andy would end up at least back at number 2.
Andy shared a glance with Min Jae as Si Woo called them both up to stand at the base of the grand, stepped platform full of ranked Dream Boys. Showtime. A PA handed Andy a mic once he stood at his mark.
“Well, well,” Si Woo continued. “This is the third time I’ve seen the pair of you standing at the end. I’m starting to think neither of you is willing to give up the top two spots.”
Andy grinned, absolutely sizzling with charm as he chuckled. “Are you jealous, Min Si Woo?” Si Woo playfully snickered as the rest of the Dream Boys burst into roaring laughter. “Seriously though,” Andy paused, glancing at the guys seated behind him. “This is an impressively talented group. I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before someone knocks one of us off the top.” He put his arm around Min Jae, an act he would’ve found unthinkable a couple of weeks ago. “But I don’t mind saying that we’reboth impressively talented, too, so they’ll have their work cut out for them.”
Si Woo laughed as he nodded, a sparkle in his eye as Andy charmed him. “What about you, Min Jae? Is today the day you retake the top spot?”
“If it’s what the Dream Makers want, I’ll happily take it.” Min Jae smiled as he slipped his arm around Andy’s waist. “But Andy deserves it as much as me.”
Si Woo’s smile briefly fell as his eyes flicked to the side. Then it was back in full force as he raised his mic to speak again. “I’m sure. And now it’s time to announce our number one rank. The top ranked Dream Boy, receiving 7,264,307 votes from our global Dream Makers, is Kwon Min Jae!”
Andy ignored the momentary flash of disappointment as he turned toward Min Jae to congratulate him with a full hug. “You totally deserve it,” Andy whispered, knowing his mic would pick it up anyway. “Congratulations.”
“Thanks for keeping the seat warm,” Min Jae quietly replied, barely suppressing his chuckle.
Andy laughed, patting him on the back. “Only the best for our number one Dream Boy.”
Once Andy and Min Jae had taken their new seats atop the others, Si Woo announced that it was time to find out who would be the final contestant in the Top 25. Andy scanned the risers, seeing so many of his new friends and teammates remaining. All but one of them were about to be sent home. Fresh tears blurred his vision until he gingerly wiped one away. It was the nature of the game, but it still sucked. Oh Jin Hwan took the final spot, and reality hit for 25–no, 24–guys who would soon pack their bags and go home.
There were too many guys leaving for drawn out goodbyes, so Andy focused on the most important ones. Si On, his roommate. Sang Chul, Yi Zhe, and Dong Yoon from hisKingmakerteam. The day had been brutal, as expected. Once they wrappedfilming, with everyone still gathered in the middle of the performance hall, the PAs began ushering people back to the bus. At least everyone had more time to exchange contact info and say their final goodbyes back at Sky Village.
Andy found Leo waiting for him near one of the exits when a PA tugged on his arm. “We’d like to record a quick diary after the win,” she explained. “It should only take a few minutes.”
Andy shrugged and waved to Leo. “Okay, whatever you need.”
The PA directed him backstage, leading him toward the small studios they used for confessionals. Min Jae stood near the entry to one with a PA by his side.
“Oh,” Andy said. “Are you doing both of us together?”
“I don’t know,” the PA answered. “They just told me to bring you here.”
Min Jae’s PA gestured toward the door beside him. “They’re ready.”
Andy shrugged and opened the door, anxious to get his diary session over with so he could eat. His first clue that something was off was the absence of any camera crews. The second was Director Choi, himself, leaning against the far wall, his arms folded across his chest. Ice filled Andy’s veins for the second time that day. You didn’t have to be a genius to smell the ambush. Not a large man, Choi’s presence still managed to fill the room. Dressed in two pieces of his three piece suit, the jacket folded across the back of the plastic chair, he could’ve come right from an SCG board meeting.
Choi smiled, a shark meeting its dinner, and pushed off the wall. “Andy, Min Jae, welcome.” He gestured toward the small, two-person couch to Andy’s right. “Have a seat, both of you.” He turned to the PA. “That’s all for now. Thank you.”
Andy settled on the couch beside Min Jae, giving Choi the power position, looming over them with all of his five foot seven inches.
“I appreciate your time,” Choi began, once they had the room to themselves, as if they were his colleagues and not his prospective idols. Maybe that was really how idols were treated. “I know today’s been stressful, with the eliminations and that unfortunate situation with Choi Hyun Woo.” His smile dipped enough that the room almost darkened. “That’s partly why I wanted to chat with you both like this, off the record. I’d like your help.”
Andy could almost hear Min Jae’s frown. His own was probably just as loud. Survival shows had only recently recovered from vote fixing scandals in the past few years. Everything about the meeting smelled wrong.
“How is it we can help you, Director Choi, sir?” Min Jae asked, his speech formal but his voice tight.
Choi’s beaming smile returned with a vengeance. “I’m glad you asked, Min Jae. My job here is to produce a top notch new idol group with this show. But my priority is and always will be protecting the SCG Entertainment brand. With all the tabloid press Hyun Woo’s situation is getting, we need a new, strong narrative to distract the public. A powerful rivalry between the top two contestants could be the perfect narrative to do so.”
Not a cheating attempt, then. Choi wanted their help with PR. Andy almost sighed with relief. Almost. “With all due respect, Director Choi, won’t that just hurt us?” He glanced at Min Jae, who nodded. “The #MinDy ship has a lot of traction with the Dream Makers who just voted for us. Our chemistry is what they responded to.”
“Chemistry?” Choi’s smile dropped again, his expression shifting from fatherly to boardroom executive in a snap. "Yes. We've all been very impressed by your chemistry." He glanced at one of the ceiling-mounted corner cameras behind Andy. They were being filmed. “Play it.”
The screen mounted to the wall behind Choi flickered to life, showing a grainy, grayscale image of Andy and Min Jae standing on the roof at night. No, not an image. Andy’s heart dropped tohis stomach as he watched himself get in Min Jae’s face. There was no audio, but their dynamic was as plain as day. He watched it all. The posturing, the arguing, Min Jae's hand on Andy's face, the slow lean-in for the almost kiss. The video froze with the pair of them face to face, their lips inches apart.
