Melody’s POV

The street lamps zipped past the van window softly illuminating the darkness. You gently leaned your forehead on the glass suddenly feeling nostalgic. There was always something fascinating about the night sky and tonight was no different. It has been unusually quiet since the concert in Paris, which was starting to freak you out. Especially since everyone else has been pretending it’s perfectly normal. The few times you approached Jae-Hwa to ask for an explanation she avoided you like the plague.

You closed your eyes desperately wishing for a cell phone to call someone…anyone. You broke down early last week and begged one of the managers to lend you their phone. Luckily Kyuhyun’s manager took pity on you and allowed you to make one phone call. At first you were going to call your brother, but instead found yourself dialing the number for Taemin-oppa. You held your breath as you waited for him to pick up, the only thing breaking the silence being the loud ringing in the background. You were still unsure of how to act around him after the last time you talked, however you knew he was the one person who would be completely honest with you. Part of you felt guilty for relying on him in your moment of weakness and in a way it felt like you were taking advantage of him. In the end it didn’t matter though for he never picked up, whether because he didn’t recognize the number or he was busy.

Partially you were relieved because you didn’t even know what to say in the first place, but it still didn’t help you get rid of any of your insecurity over the group selections. Despite your friend’s constant reassurances you still felt uneasy, especially when you looked at the girls next to you on stage. There was just so much talent it was positively staggering.

Opening your eyes you looked at Hara in the seat next to you. She was no doubt one of the best dancers and although her voice wasn’t as strong as Ailee’s or Hyorin’s it still held a charisma of its own. Mi-Na’s doll like looks and singing talent were equally as strong plus she has her father’s connection. Victoria and Amber were positively eye catching no matter what they were doing. Even Jae-Hwa, as much as you hated to admit, it was fairly talented as well.

Letting out a sigh you leaned back against the head rest and attempted to get some sleep hoping it would help take your mind of things. The final selections were rapidly creeping up as you approached the last tour dates in Seoul. In only a few short hours you’d be hopping on a plane, destination your future…

Next Day

“Can you believe it’s already coming to an end?” Hara asked.

You shook your head and stared up at the huge stadium that marked the end of an amazing journey. It was both frightening and exciting for tonight held the potential of placing you one step closer to your dream. The van pulled into the underground parking ramp for possibly the last time and you reluctantly climbed out. You and your friends promised each other the previous week that no matter what happened tonight you would support one another regardless of the decision.

It was great to be back in Seoul and you were looking forward to seeing your family and friends. Especially IU, who you hadn’t talked to in over a month thanks to the stupid cell phone rule. You were a little nervous over seeing Taemin and Ji-Yong oppa, but you would worry about that at another time. There were too many other things occupying your mind at the moment to concern yourself with how to approach them.

You followed Hara and Ailee onto the stage for the walk-through, however to your great surprise Mi-Na’s dad, the CEO, was waiting for you all.

“Good morning everyone! Welcome back to Seoul and allow me to be the first to congratulate you all on a job well done. I’ve heard nothing but good things about the other concerts worldwide.” He paused letting people applaud. “First thing to address is how we are going to reveal the members of our new girl group. It will unfortunately remain a surprise until the encore songs, sorry girls. I wouldn’t want you to be upset during the regular concert and be unable to perform to the best of your abilities.”

You just shrugged your shoulders knowing he was right about emotion’s ability to interfere with a performance.

“Now as I understand it each of you has put together a short dance selection of about 30 seconds in length correct?”

All of you nodded.

The CEO clapped his hands in excitement. “Excellent! Then here is how we will proceed. We will assemble all you on stage and call out our selections one by one. A spotlight will highlight you alone during which you will perform your solo dance. After we expect those of you not selected to leave the stage and then those of you remaining will perform the group choreography you’ve been working on with Dong-Sun sunsangnim. Any questions? No? Wonderful let’s get to work then.”

Having been dismissed you continued with the routine of exploring the stage. It helped to familiarize yourself with the layout before you had to traverse it in the chaos of the dramatic lighting. Shortly after the walk-though you held a full dress rehearsal finally ending with a long dance practice overseen by Dong-Sun sunsangnim. He didn’t want ‘his’ girls embarrassing themselves before they even officially debuted or something to that effect.

Almost too soon it was time to head backstage as the seats began to fill up. You could feel the nervousness starting to build as the noise level started to rise; luckily Hara noticed and placed a calming hand on your shoulder. You smiled at her and took comfort in knowing you were surrounded by your friends.

“How are you still so chill about everything?” You asked her.

“Are you kidding me? I’m an emotional wreck.” She nearly yelled causing you to laugh. She joined in a split second later and all of a sudden you felt a huge burden lift from your shoulders.

The two of you began the ritual of going through hair and makeup before you got dressed in your outfits. A few minutes later you were called to the stage.

You and your friends huddled together whispering words of luck before you broke apart and headed to the stage.

It’s show time.

The concert seemed to fly by and before you knew it the predictable chants of “ENCORE,ENCORE,ENCORE” were being yelled.

Well this is it…no time for regrets leave it all on the stage

You impatiently waited behind the side curtain watching as Super Junior and the regular back up dancers hyped up the crowd. Normally you’d be out there with them, but you had to change into your solo costume. It was a pair of sleek black pants and biker boots topped with a metallic tank top covered in fringe capped with beads. You picked the shirt to highlight the sharp movements of your choreography. You only hoped you actually got the chance to show it. The final notes strung out and the lights went dark.

A voice came out over the loudspeaker briefly explaining the girl group project before officially beginning to announce the selections.

“Our first selection may be cute as button on outside, but has a voice surpassing her small size. It is my pleasure to introduce the first member…Mi-Na!!!”

You watched as the spotlight struck Mi-Na throwing her into sharp relief as she danced her heart out.

“Our second selection comes to us from across the ocean bringing with her a voice that can only be described as heavenly… Ailee!!!”

You smiled as Ailee’s startled face appeared across the stage.

“Our third selection simply oozes appeal and grace leaving no doubt as to her destiny to stand on stage… Hara!!!”

You jumped up and down in excitement as your other half was lit up.

“Our fourth selection may come as a surprise for she was never a part of the original competition; however she has been training equally as hard at our headquarters in Seoul. Her voice is positively soothing and continually improves on a daily basis allow me to introduce the talented…IU!!!”

What? You quickly scanned the stage waiting for the spotlight to highlight the latest selection. Your jaw dropped as sure enough IU’s petite frame was engulfed in the bright light. The audience didn’t know how to react, but after her performance they exploded in applause. There weren’t many spots left and you felt self-doubt begin to gather in the pit of your stomach.

“Our fifth and final selection is someone who has continually proven herself to be a ‘jack of all trades’ excelling in a variety of aspects. She is someone who works hard to constantly improve and perfect. Allow me to introduce the amazing…Melody!!!”

You were still reeling from the revelation of IU that it took you a moment to recognize that you were now lit up with the blinding spotlight. You snapped out of it quickly however as the music began to play. In the end the crowd erupted into deafening cheers. There wasn’t much time before the next song started to play and you quickly ran to your spot on the outer stage. It was impossible to contain your smile as you looked at your friends around you. It felt like you were floating on top of cloud and you never wanted to come down from it. 

A/N: Well there you have it. Were you surprised? ;)