Episode Three

Part three

The girls were tired. That much was clear as scene of them practicing crossed the screen. Bonnie and Lily were dancing intensely, sweat flying off as a mystery male performed with them, face cut off from view. Sophia and Seoyun were in the recording booth, heavy emotions clear on their expressions as they sang together, lyrics unheard and leaving viewers to wonder. Taeha and Phoenix were in a practice room, singing together, playfully performing the choreo. Suji and Minyoung's scenes flashed between them in black clothes, charismatic and cool, and cute outfits, seeming as though they were nearly conversing with their choreo, a mystery man relaxing with them. Nabi and Iris were working with ease, their backup dancers just as good as them as they ran through the song. Seul, Daily, and Stacy danced their hearts out, some having more fun than others. The camera switched to the thirteen, lined up in their normal seats. Minji, Apink's Chorong, and the nation's little sister, IU. All three girls held their cue cards, but none looked at them.

"Welcome, ladies. Before anything, I am going to just say this- One of you will be leaving, there is no trick this time. However, there is no severe punishment if you score low out of one hundred from the judges. The three best teams will be in the apartment Team Sunshine stayed in, and the rest in a motel," Minji spoke boredly.

"We've used a randomizer to decide who wiill go first. However, before then, we have a few encouraging words from your family and friends to cheer you on," IU smiled, gesturing to the screen.

"Annyeong Suji-yah!" Lee Jongil, the father of Suji's nephew Muyeol greeted. The two-year-old was on his lap, playing with a bowl of Cheerios and ignoring the his father, "It's been a long time since we've seen each other, but I wanted to let you know that Muyeol is doing really well! I am rooting for you and I'll be sure to watch every episode. Sumi is watching over you, alright? Good luck, Suji-yah. Muyeol, say bye to auntie!" He picked up the little boy's hand and waved it as the screen faded to Kibum.

"SuSu, let me just say that you're doing amazingly. Though I may tease you a lot, you know I love you babe. To be honest you should dye your hair, though, you're losing a lot of personality with your normal color...Anyway, Suji, I know you're going to do amazing. Good luck!" He stuck his tongue out, waving at the camera. It then switched to Minyoung's best friend, Kim Micha.

"Hello dearest dongsaeng~" She laughed to herself, "I'm your only video message because it turns out trainees are a lot less busy than idols. The first two episodes you've been pretty good, but I think you can show more! Fighting Minyoung, show your best side and shock the judges and audiences! I know you can make it into the final group. Good luck to everyone else as well!" Micha waved excitedly and a new video played. Kim Yejun and Seon Soowook, Seul's parents, seemed a bit confused but spoke excitedly anyway.

"Hello honey!" Her mother Yejun spoke, tanned by the sun she worked under all day long, "I don't have the slightest idea how this will end up working, I want to say I'm proud of you and your hard work. Hard work will always get you where you need to go. Don't be afraid of the other contestants, understand?"

"Don't scold her," Soowook shook his head. He smiled kindly at the camera, "We are very proud of you, kiddo. I know you're doing your best, don't forget there are a lot of other opportunites out there!" Matilda Han and Baek Gayoung, Bonnie's best friend and aunt, appeared next.

"It's amazing to see how far you've come," Gayoung spoke immediately, and softly, nearly hard to hear, "You've made a lot of progress, and though I know we have a hard time seeing each other nowadays, however let's have brunch soon, okay?"

"And don't forget to come to class!" Matilda interjected, grinning widely, "College is important too. Good luck with your show, and don't forget to text me. I have so much to tell you Bonnie!"

"It feels like it's been a very long time, Unnie," Jung Hyeran, Phoenix's former bandmate was wringing her hands, "Despite that, I still think about our leader and I've been cheering you on ever since I heard you would be participating in RUSH. I hope you can find success there, Leader-nim. Good luck, neh?" Vivian Jung and Park Seunghee appeared together, a bit awkward but there.

"Hello Nabi," Seunghee said, a bit cocky, "I see youv'e found another way to try and win. I think you're doing really well, though, as much as it pains me to admit."

"But damn girl!" Vivian interrupted, "You've doing really well. I think you've shown many sides of yourself, and I'm glad that you have. Nabi, I'm really proud of you and proud to call you my best friend. Good luck today, fighting!" Many of the girls had large smiles on their faces, or maybe a few tears. The rest were shown, of course, but cut from the airing.

How touching! I hope they can see their family and friends more often!

Chorong called up Phoenix and Taeha. The girls took center stage with their backup dancers and the performance began.

(Left- Phoenix, Right- Taeha)

The audience clapped loudly, aas did two of the three judges- Minji was not as enthusiatic. She took a few moments to speak after holding the mic to her lips.

"I'm not sure how I feel," She began, eyebrows furrowed, "You've left me with a strange feeling of...Your performance being incomplete. I'm not sure I'm fond of the song choice. Your voices are strong in this performance and it holds the performance to a certain standard but whenever you were singing your verses, it felt lacklustre and the quality dropped. At those times, your vocies didn't match the song."

"I think that the lyrics were clever, though," IU carried on after Minji finished, flashing a cute smile, "It's very relatable and the song itself is very catchy."

"Definitely, it's the kind of song that you can sing after hearing the first chorus," Chorong laughed a bit, "I had to stop myself. I wish you'd had more choreography, though. You are vocalists but you need to show that you can do that as well. Thank you, Taeha and Phoenix!"

(Left- Daily, Middle- Stacy, Right- Seul)

"I was really surprised," Chorong still seemed to be, her eyes wide, "Uhm, that beginning was really something. I think the choreography and the set were really cute and fit well. The "oye hoi hoi" was really catchy. Overall, your concept was actually very strange, but I think it worked well with most of you. I ask that you guys work on energy for your voices, for Seul especially, you seemed too soft for it. Otherwise I think you three excelled. Thank you!"

"Interesting song choice. You did well," Minji seemed to be in deep thought, "Daily and Seul, you expressed the song very well in your performance and I think your voices shone. Stacy, you lack in your facial expression, you weren't as good as the other two in portraying the song. Your performance was enjoyable, though. Thanks! Suji and Minyoung will be performing their two songs next. Please prep the stage!"

(Left- Minyoung, Right- Suji, ft. Taeyong)

(Left- Suji, Right- Minyoung)

"Those two songs were, just, wow," IU breathed, "They were both really different but they fit both of your really well. I'm surprised that you two could play those kinds of roles together. Taeyong was truly a great addition to the first song, I commend you for finding such a fitting man to collaborate with. As for your second song, you have certainly proved that you're both talented as rappers."

"I was really impressed by Minyoung's rap. She finally proved herself, which is what I was waiting for," Minji smirked, "For the first song- Both your voices are distinct and they work very well together but Suji has a better technique that overshadows you, Minyoung. Despite that I think you chose a good song and your collaboration worked well. I do believe your satge presence oculd have been a lot better and that you need to work on owning the stage. It's clear that you two can only do that when rapping.

"Your second song shows that you have a lot of confidence, and that you can rap. I think people like to forget that, but the moment you rap you come alive, girls. Suji stole the stage, though. Even though low rap is less respected in K-rapping, I think she had a better attitude towards the camera. With your cute face, Minyoung, it amy seem hard, but you can own it just as great at Suji does. Don't forget that," Minji finished.

(Left- Sophia, Right- Seoyun)

"Your ballad was quite a change from all of the previous songs, but a very welcome one at the same time," Chorong tapped her pen, smiling sweetly at the two vocalists, "Sophia, I've noticed that you tend to let Seoyun take on the more challenging notes, and pieces. Why?"

"Oh, uhm, we just decided she was the better vocalist to..."

"Shouldn't you give yourself more of a chance, though?  You're also amazing vocally, so don't let anyone steal the show. That being said, Seoyun, you did phenomenal. You do need to watch straining your voice, though. I did absolutely enjoy your peformance together."

"Beautiful song," Minji said immediately, "It seemed to be a bit of an unconventional choice amd at times tou were straining your voices. You could have worked around the song better so you didn't have to strain your voices. But thank you. Nabi and Iris are next!"

(Left- Nabi, Right- Iris)

"This collaboration makes it very clear whom of you have the most talent in rapping- And that would be Iris," Minji was entirely ruthless, and Nabi could only release a sigh as she continued, "The one bearing this whole performance is you and Nabi ends in the background. Even with the distribution of lines I found myself wanting to skip Nabi's part and go back to listening to Iris'. You have to work hard, Nabi."

"While I do agree with Minji, I also think that Nabi has shown that she's a very diverse artist," IU commented, "While I wish there was more choreo, both of you are very charismatic on stage and Nabi's dancing parts were addictive. Thank you, the final stage will be with Bonnie and Lily!"

(Hyoyeon- Lily, Min- Bonnie, ft. Youngjae)

"I really enjoyed this collab stage," Chorong began,"All three of you really worked in good harmony and I commend the effort you put into it! I was surprised to hear how well your voices worked together, and I was certainly not let down. Lily and Bonnie truly proved how talented they are as dancers today, and the song honestly was a great choice."

"Though I'm sure someone else can, I can't find one thing to actually complain about," IU grinned, "I think that you three were easily the best performance of the night, and I'll let it slip that I've scored your stage presence at nineteen out of twenty- That's the highest of anyone. I'm glad that I was able to witness this kind of performance!"

"What a surprising collaboration," The main judge read her notes over, "I was not expecting this at all. Your dance was captivating and almost had me wanting to dance along. But Lily, although your rap was well--performed you were too much in the background. This felt more like a collab between Bonnie and Youngjae, a very well-performed collaboration at that, but I was missing you in the front more. I must admit though, that both of you had great stage presences and that the only way you cuold have improved was if Lily had more lines. Thank you for a surprising and well-performed collaboration."

Good job to everyone!

Everyone was standing by their team in front of the judges. They were about to be given their final score, and then the first contestant would be eliminated from RUSH. It was nervewracking, Daily could honestly say she was sick to her stomach. Phoenix started straight ahead as Taeha began to fidget, uncomfortable with the situation. She was worried beyond believe.

"Let's get this show on the road, yeah?" Minji asked, shifting towards the front. She held out her hand, in the direction of the screen, "Please announce the results!"

1st Place: Bonnie & Lily - 89 points

2nd Place: Sophia & Seoyun - 82 points

3rd Place: Seul, Daily, & Stacy - 78 points

4th Place: Suji & Minyoung - 77 points

5th Place: Phoenix & Taeha - 75 points

6th Place: Iris & Nabi - 70 points

Bonnie and Lily immediately began to celebrate, hugging each other as they jumped around. Suji and Minyoung simply nodded, congratulating the other girls on their positions. Nabi and Iris, however, were much more discontented, looking at each other with disappointment- They'd worked hard and had nothing to show for it. Taeha kicked the grown, expression bad before she cleared it up, smiling at the other contestants. Phoenix kept quiet, waiting for order to be called. This was the moment she'd really been waiting for. This is the part that really mattered.

"Congrats to the top three teams, however we have some bad news for one contestant," IU commented.

"Let's just rip off the bandage!" Minji announced, "Our first eliminated contestant it..."

"I was so scared. I was really scared," Lily spoke in the interview room.

"Nabi."

The rapper looked ahead, squeezing tightly at one arm. She could hear Minyoung crying to her right- Sure, they weren't close, but how could it feel to be eliminated first? It had to hurt, and Minyoung couldn't stop herself. Nabi forced herself to smile at the cameras, the speaking in the audience nearly loud enough to drown out her own thoughts. Bonnie and Taeha were already by her sides, noth that she could really hear what they were saying.

"Nabi, you truly showed the makings of an idol here," Chorong reassured, "Unforunately the viewers would have to disagree. But remember this- You will make it in this business. I will always believe that.

And so Nabi walked out of the room, and into a new future. She sat in the interview room, sniffling a bit as the PD handed her a tissue. She moved some hair out of her face, looking straight at the camera.

Q. Please introduce yourself.

"Annyeong, this has been RUSH's charisma and energy up until now, Nabi. I hope you can look forward to seeing me again in the future," She bowed deeply.

Q. What are your plans for the future now?

"I plan to keep rowing while there's water. I would use the popularity I gained from the show to get more appearances and jobs. I would remain under LOEN and await another opprotunity, but I would not sit idly and allow myself to be forgotten. I'm open to variety shows, acting, cfs, and pretty much anything to keep my name out there," She answered cooly.

Q. Good luck, Jisoo.

"Thank you," A few tears fell and with a final bow, Nabi was gone. The third episode of RUSH ended.