A/N: New Chapter, finally!

It was busy from the very next day. The very first episode was to be aired the next week leading to a massive bout of nervous breakdown among the contestants. Maybe it was the fact that all episodes were to be aired live, that made all the contestants nervous, or maybe it was simply the novelty of standing on a stage and performing in front of a crowd this large with judges such big names in the industry that scared the participants. Whatever the reason was, I did witness Baekhyun running off to the toilets quite a few times to retch, Jongin dancing to the point that he almost collapsed in the practice rooms. Even Kyungsoo and Chanyeol had difficulty during their song practices: they kept forgetting their parts or fumbling with the lyrics or singing off key. Sehun was unusually quiet, more so than regular. It did worry me as to how they would survive in the later stages of the show if they were unable to cope with the pressure now. The only one with any semblance of normalcy was Joonmyun.

To be honest I was surprised, and impressed with his attitude, especially how he constantly encouraged his band mates. It was as if they weren’t a group, but a family. He nagged whenever the members taxed themselves by over-practicing or gently advised them when they were under performing, but never once did I see him loose control. He cared for them like a mother or an older brother would, and not simply as the leader.

Three days before the performance, it was time for their concept’s photoshoot, I and other makeup artists were busy getting them ready.Their concept seemed to be very emo for which they needed dark clothes and dark makeup and even some fake tattoos! I would be lying if I said they weren’t looking good. Who knew these guys would look so good in black eye shadow and makeup, better than I look when I wear the same. Life is so unfair sometimes.

There were photoshoots for the band members individually and a couple of group shoots. It was essential to get it done well, as these photos, which when released online will determine the band’s fanbase even before their first camera performance. The larger pre-debut fanbase a band has, the larger are its chances to win the contest.

I lingered at the site while they were being photographed, emitting smoky and mysterious aura with their expressions, making me hard to believe they were just rookies.

But of course, things had to go wrong and due to some technical fault in the camera, we needed to delay the shooting for an hour more, as just my luck, there weren’t any spare camera’s lying there. Just as I was done talking with the ca