Chapter Text
“Please stand by,” said a staff member after she bodily rearranged Rumi’s arms from timidly hiding behind her back to neutrally hanging from her sides. Rumi, along with four other people, obeyed patiently in the front yard of the house set.
She stole a look at her fellow competitors. They’re a colorful bunch. Along with her own long purple braid, there’s a guy with mint hair and two other men with hot pink locks, tousled expertly by the stylists in charge of sprucing them up for the first and last time before sending them into the den of cameras. She couldn’t believe she had agreed to being filmed 24/7, the contents of it streamed online for curious denizens of the internet to scrutinize. She had thought she was done with showbiz after quitting the trainee life, but here she was: on a reality competition show lasting all summer long, all to escape Celine and her constant invitations of a reunion trip to Jeju.
Rumi breathed out a resigned sigh. She had never watched the original US show or any other country's seasons — opting to bawl her eyes out to local dramas for her TV time instead — but an acquaintance from one of the big three broadcasting companies had reached out to her about their plans on making a localized version, and it had seemed like a good idea at the time. Yes, she had been drunk out of her mind when she accepted the casting offer, but she still ended up going through the entire procedure with morbid curiosity.
So here she was: terrified and not at all ready. The show’s format included throwing ten strangers into a house where they are forced to be social. Yeah, social. Something Rumi had neglected so far in her twenty four years of living. She had grown up practically in secrecy, desperate as Celine was to shield her from the media vultures still interested in the Sunlight Sisters and their legacy even after Rumi mother’s death. Homeschooling in a high-security remote mansion on Jeju Island didn’t leave a girl with many, if not any, options of friends.
When she had become a trainee, all hopes of finding friends had been drowned out by whispers about nepotism and the spirit of competition. Rumi had given up after two years, enrolling herself to an arts university instead and attending most of her classes online. She had used whatever connections her heritage could give her to start up her songwriting career, which had been going well so far. In the safety of her apartment, she was just Mi-Ryu, the mind behind some popular idol groups’ B-Sides. One of them even became a TikTok trend and saw some chart success. She had been doing just fine, even with her human interactions being the minimum she required to keep her job going.
Those arms-length connections weren’t going to cut it in this show. If she wanted to last long enough to make it into the jury phase and thus get sequestered somewhere far away from Celine’s reach for the remainder of the summer, she had to forge some bonds.
Her only solace was that unlike in her trainee days, nobody here knew who she was. She could start fresh as Rumi, Songwriter, instead of bearing the pressure of being Ryu Rumi, daughter of Miyeong of the Sunlight Sisters. She clenched her fists and steeled herself. She could do this.
The host started her monologue and soon the house was open for the summer. Rumi headed in last and closed the door with a click behind her.
Jinu kept the practiced smile on his face; easy, boyish and inviting. He had done so many customer service jobs to make a living, his good looks making him an easy hire to take orders and fold clothes, though his bad luck had prevented him at every turn in his effort to escape poverty.
Until today.
Five hundred million won. When a customer suddenly asked him if he were interested in appearing on TV, the appearance fee was the first thing he asked about. The five hundred thousand won weekly stipend was already music enough to Jinu’s ears, but the grand prize would change his life. Not only would it be enough to pay all his debt, his mother’s hospital bills, and his sister’s education; if he invested it right, he could retire.
Jinu had spent the last nine years working himself to the bone with no end in sight. He was so, so tired. All he wanted was to finally be able to afford actual gifts for his sister’s birthday, or maybe have enough to take his family on a vacation overseas. He wanted to spend time with them, instead of just having glimpses in the morning before he went to work or at night before he collapsed from exhaustion into his old mattress.
He could not waste this chance. As soon as he got the offer, he took himself after his shift to the local PC Bang and researched all he could about the original American show. With his poor English skills, it was a struggle, but after a few hours he managed to get the gist of it. After a week spending everything he could spare from his paycheck at that PC Bang, he came to the realization that he would probably be good at it.
Jinu dealt with people all the time. He knew how they work and how easy it was to make them like him. He could lie with a smile on his face and get people to side with him even if he were caught.
On top of it all, he was serious about this. He could be wrong, but the other people he had met so far seemed to be more concerned about making friends or bolstering their online following.
Across him on the other couch was Mira, Model. Though she was intimidating, she didn’t strike him as being particularly thrilled to be here. Next to her was Zoey, Exchange Student. She was American, which immediately marked her as a threat because she clearly was a superfan of the show who knew how it worked inside and out, despite her claim otherwise. She was likely lying about her job too. Her expressions and body language were so obvious, Jinu could read her like a book.
The remaining two people were middle aged men. Bobby, Idol Manager, was so personable it was clear he would be the house favorite. Han, Doctor, had sharp, knowing eyes that had Jinu carefully adjust his mask every time they glanced his way. These two were dangerous in the sense that they might be a liability to Jinu’s game.
They all made small talk as they waited for the rest of the houseguests to enter the set. When Jinu spotted Abby, his bunk buddy back from his two years in the military, he knew there was a twist.
The ten strangers weren’t completely foreign to each other. Production had casted five people and then found someone they were each previously acquainted with to fill out the cast. For Jinu it was his same-squad friend Abby, Fitness Influencer. More brawn than brain, but he was a good guy and a loyal friend; someone he could definitely trust to have his back here.
The others took a seat and introduced themselves one by one. Mystery, Underground Singer, spoke too little for Jinu to get a read on. Baby, College Student, was if Gen Z stereotypes were a person. Romance, Bartender, was a total flirt.
Last but not least, the third and final girl of the season was Rumi, Songwriter. Jinu’s first impression of her was wow. She was beautiful. Honest, big, brown eyes and an elegant posture, she carried herself like a princess. Jinu wouldn’t be surprised if she had been an idol trainee once upon a time with those looks. Her unconventional hair color only added to her overall charms, a bit of rebellion from the otherwise conventional perfection. Jinu couldn’t take his eyes off her.
Okay. He might be a little bit in trouble.