After lunch, we arrived at a compact event hall covered in RISE OF THE IDOLS — MEET THE FINALISTS banners.
I'd expected another promotional recording. Cameras, controlled lighting, staff telling us when to smile.
Then I heard the cheering.
"Haejun!"
"Ren, we love you!"
"Jisoo!"
Real people waited beyond the doors, close enough that their voices carried through the walls. Unlike the live stages, where the audience had always seemed distant beneath the lights, today we would be sitting only a few meters apart.
"Are you nervous?" Yuhyun asked.
"No," I lied.
He glanced at my hands. I'd been twisting the edge of my event badge for the past minute.
"Very convincing."
I had sung for cameras for weeks, but a crowd close enough to see my hands shaking felt entirely different. If I forgot a lyric onstage, music could carry me forward. If I forgot how to talk to someone, there was nothing to hide behind.
The doors opened before I could defend myself.
