"Jina, I need to see you in my office now," Mr. Oh shouts above the throng of voices currently flooding the Firefly lobby area.
It's usually crazy here on Monday mornings but today the building seems more crowded than usual. Trainees make up the bulk of the crowd but there are a few executives milling about and some office folk that work in the offices above.
Bina and I have been here since 6am. We couldn't sleep so we decided to go through some dances before our evaluation results were revealed.
The announcement board in the lobby is usually updated everyday by 10am and now we are standing here tapping our feet. Something we've been doing since 9.30.
All twelve of us girls form a crowd of raging nerves and anxiety as we wait for the results of our performances from last week. Today the line up will be announced and each of us will know if we are going to perform or not.
Anyone left out will be terminated, which means we will be out on the streets by noon. Okay, maybe not that dramatic but in my case I would be packing my bags, ready to go back home to Hadong, where I will not only have to face my family but my entire community about my failure to debut as a singer.
The mere imagination of this scenario is enough to paralyse me with fear.
"Jina! Hello, I'm calling you. Don't pretend like you didn't hear me," Mr. Oh snaps as he nears us.
The girls part for him like the Red Sea but I don't miss their annoyance when he only focuses on me. He's been doing that a lot since I've been making headlines and it's becoming increasing obvious.
"Sorry, Mr Oh," I quickly say, barely paying attention to him. If my nerves could burn me I would be a pile of ashes on the floor by now.
"What are you girls hovering over here for anyway?" He stares at the board all of us are looking at and then laughs to himself. "Oh yes, the results. Can't believe I forgot about that."
"It's fine. You must be so busy managing all of our schedules, Mr. Oh," Grace beams at him like the perfect suck up that she is but he ignores her.
"Come with me. I have to discuss an upcoming event." He urges impatiently.
"Can I just see our results, please? I really need to know if I made it," I beg. There's only five minutes to go and I don't think I can take another minute not knowing.
He lets out a snort and looks at me. "Come on. As if you don't know you made it."
I do a double take at his words and thank God he said them softly because JinJin and her group would have thrown a fit at his insinuation. What does he mean by that?
Before I can ask, a staff member approaches from the lifts, carrying some colourful pieces of paper in her hands. Everyone falls silent as she walks past us and begins taking off last week's news clippings from the old fashioned cork board on the wall in front of us.
She begins to put up the new ones with small multicoloured thumb tacks and I hold my breath in anticipation.
We wait for her to finish and leave before we rush to the notice board like a pack of starving vultures.
Binna being one of the taller ones sees her name in the line up and screams in happiness. She turns to me happily. "I'm in the dance performance! I made it!"
I'm thoroughly happy for her but the impatient side of me can't really celebrate right now. I push through the crowd of girls till I am at the front and my eyes focus on the large printed piece of pale pink paper.
JinJin got a duet with Chan and a spot in the group dance. No surprise there.
The other duet went to Rachel.
With growing dread I read the next line and my heart immediately inflates like a balloon. Make it a helium balloon because I currently feel like I'm floating in the clouds.
I got a duet! A duet with none other than Jiho himself, lead singer of Viva and the guy who makes my heart race like I am performing on stage. There's going to be so many practices, so many hours spent together training.
My cheeks flame at the images currently racing through my mind.
"Jina, can you please get out of the way. Other people here want a chance to see their results too," Rachel berates from my side and I quickly mutter an apology.
I skim the lower rows and notice I am also selected in the group dance with the girls. I'm pushed to the side by other impatient girls and it feels like an out of body experience. I don't remember when was the last time I felt this happy.
It's like everything I've worked for is slowly coming into fruition. The road ahead of me is a straight line, no winding corners or dead ends. All I need to do is walk ahead without stumbling and the stage is there at the end waiting for me with a cheering crowd and the brightest lights.
"We did it!" I say with tears in my eyes when I reach Binna. Her eyes are glassy too.
"We did! Even after that sleeping in fiasco. We still managed to rock it!" Binna squeals happily and we hug each other.
"My God, so much melodrama." Mr. Oh appears at our sides again. "Can we go now. I have work to do and a life to lead too, you know."
I am so happy I could throw my arms around him in a hug as well but he would probably kill me for it so I don't.
We hear some wailing and I turn around to see three girls leaning by the wall, bawling their eyes out. I've never been close to Waiyin, Love or Lina but we've been housemates for years and I feel a pang of pain seeing them like that.
Binna and I rush to them, even Mr. Oh follows us.
"We didn't make it," Love says to Binna. Her face is red and her eyes are filled with so much pain, it shatters all the joy I was previously feeling. "It's over. It's all over now."
Binna hugs Love tightly and she cries into her shoulder, while Waiyin slides to the floor in shock. I squeeze Lina's hand but she stares ahead at no one in particular, looking like a zombie. What sucks is these girls were one of the nicer ones. Lina's always been so helpful during our English lessons.
"Girls, this isn't the end of the world. You can always reapply or try another agency. If this is your true passion you will never give it up." Mr. Oh finally steps up, filling his managerial shoes for the others in this rare moment.
His reassuring words seem to provide more comfort for the girls than our embraces. Waiyin and Lina finally look at him and Love stops crying for a moment.
"Come on. I've seen you three for years. You aren't quitters." He forces a smile and nods at them awkwardly. "This is just one setback. Now come on. Everyone back to training. Waiyin, Love, Lina, you girls go to the office and file for an appeal if you want to stay. Jina, for the last time. Come with me."
The crowd of hysterical girls finally quiet down after his words and everyone breaks up to go to their individual sessions.
"See you later," Binna mouths to me and I nod.
I follow Mr. Oh to the lifts, my chest heavy with a mixture of relief, happiness and misery for the girls who didn't make it.
"Congratulations, you made it," He says once we are alone in the lifts. "Although I don't even know why you were worried to begin with."
There's that statement again, making me wonder why he thinks I already have this in the bag. Like I had a spot before the evaluations even began. It leaves a sour taste in my mouth.
"Why shouldn't I have been worried. We're all in the same batch," I reiterate.
He just laughs like I'd made the dumbest statement. "You were literally all over the news for the past few weeks. Your name is the only thing drawing publicity to our new girl group. Do you honestly think Firefly would drop you for being a bad dancer?"
"Bad dancer?" I repeat, my heart plummeting to my stomach and then my feet. Is he saying that I automatically passed because of my short stint of fame?
"God, you're so literal. You're not bad. It's just a figure of speech." He rolls his eyes at me and walks out of the lift.
I follow him down the corridor, my mind going to dark places. Did I not deserve that spot? Was I good enough? What if I had taken one of the more deserving eliminated girl's spots just because I was famous.
I replay that day over in my head. Mr. Yang's criticism still a fresh cut in my mind. The truth is everyone got more negative feedback than positive. It's really hard to tell but I don't like Mr. Oh's words. Not one bit.
"You are going to Dalia's wake this Friday evening. I need you here by 5pm, your dance practices have been postponed. You will get ready here and then we'll go together." He shuts the door behind me and his office is so small it feels suffocating.
There's barely enough space for his desk and chair but he somehow managed to stuff a futon by the corner and a few potted plants on his window sill. They are perched on the edge precariously, one nudge and they would definitely fall over. I have the slightest urge to test out this theory with my pinky finger especially after what he said to me in the lifts.
I take a seat by his very messy table and stare at the folders and papers scattered all over the surface. A MacBook hides under the mess and he flips it up, ignoring the sheets of paper that slip to the sides.
"Okay, got it," I reply, wanting to leave this stuffy room as soon as possible. "Meet you here at 5pm, Friday."
He then crosses his fingers and stares at me in a very business like manner. "This is a huge deal, Jina. You have been invited to the most exclusive event of the century. This will be much more personal, only friends and family invited to Dalia's very own apartment studio."
His eyes light up in excitement and I realise he thinks this is the first time I am hearing of this. He probably expects me to faint on his futon.
Although, none of this comes as a surprise since Hyeon told me everything three nights ago. It's actually more surprising that he was speaking the truth. Soon I will be in Dalia's house, in close proximity with her three group mates Summer, Loona and Maria.
One of them could potentially be her murderer.
Mr. Oh must take my silence as shock because he carries on speaking. "I know it's crazy. I can't believe we're so lucky. It's going to be a high coverage event, meaning your face is going to be in the news again."
Great. Ever since I've been thrown into the spotlight following Dalia's death, I've felt like an extension of her. Who is Jina without Dalia? Will I be able to survive after this news dies down?
It all feels so out of my control.
There's only one thing anchoring me right now. And that is the option Hyeon gave me. The choice is entirely in my hands to help him figure out Dalia's untimely death.
He was right about this funeral, could he be right about her murder as well?