They did it. They did something no one thought would ever happen, at least in this lifetime. They did something that people said they couldn’t do. They did something some would hate. They did something others would love. They did the impossible. These three young idols achieved something millions only dream of achieving. They became Kpop idols. This might not sound like a big deal; but it really is. Why? Well, the three that achieved idol status are… ‘special’ to say the least. The reason as to why they are so special: they aren’t Asian. They’re three non-Asians: a Caucasian female named Alice; a African-American male named Blake; and a Hispanic-American male named Eddie. These three reached for their goals and accomplished them. Many admired them; others envied them. The world had mixed feelings about the three, but only time would tell when they would either make or break. They were childhood friends who made their dreams reality together.

How the three got to become idols you ask? Well, the Big Three: SM Entertainment, YG Entertainment, and JYP Entertainment, decided to hold a survival show solely targeting contestants of non-Asian descent to see if they truly had what it took to become a Kpop star; if they did win, then they could pick whichever of the Big Three to sign under and debut, since the other main reason as to why they made the show was due to the fact that the companies were going to debut three groups: a nine member SM girl group, a six member YG boy group, and a eight member JYP group. The show was called ‘Aspiring Hopefuls.’ Twenty-one contestants, out of the millions that applied, made the cut to appear on the show; amongst them, Alice, Blake and Eddie. During the first two episodes, the contestants were asked to show what made them star material. Many sang, others danced, others rapped. The judges told the contestants that they weren’t looking for them to show off their obvious talents; that’s how they passed the audition. They were looking more for personality, charm, etc. The judges let the contestants off with a free pass the first two episodes. But, afterwards, they began to eliminate contestants. Over the spanse of the show, the contestants participated in photo shoots, performed special stages, created small unit groups, and even had to pretend that they were on a variety show. Throughout the show, contestants began to get eliminated, with Alice, Blake and Eddie surviving until the final episode. The last episode of the show saw five contestants left. They each had to perform a stage, showing off their best talent. Eddie was a natural born singer, so he sang a medley filled with high and long notes. Blake was a pro at rapping and dancing, but decided to rap because he felt more comfortable doing it. Alice had been a dancer for most of her life; so, naturally, she chose to dance. During the final elimination in which the winners would be chosen, all the contestants were holding hands, nervously waiting to see if they would win or lose. Each judge chose a contestant. Blake was called out first and was told that he wouldn’t be eliminated, meaning that he had won. Alice was called out second, and she burst into tears as soon as she heard her name. He nearly didn’t make the final cut, but Eddie was called out third, and he fell to his knees in disbelief. Soon afterwards, the three were told that they could pick one of the Big Three to sign a contract under. Coincidentally, the three already had who they were going to pick in mind, and each chose one of the Big Three. Alice chose SM, Blake chose YG, and Eddie chose JYP. The survival show was met with great reception and had a huge fan base. People loved seeing others try their hardest to try and debut, and these three would get their shot at stardom.

Alice went to train under SM for a few months and would debut with the nine-member girl group, R-Evolution, which consisted of Alice, Bitna, Soonja, Jina, Nari, Hyojoo, Miran, Yumi, and Gyun.

Blake went to train under YG for a few months and would debut with the six-member boy group, Ex-Tra, which consisted of Blake, Beom, Jitae, Junha, Haeil, and Kiha.

Eddie went to train under JYP for a few months and would debut with the eight-member boy group, ARC8/Arcade, which consisted of Eddie, Nobu, Gyeong, Kei, Ricky, Aiguo, Hwan, and Jun.

All three groups would debut on the same day, January 8, 2016, at the same time. They had all been working hard for this moment. They knew that their lives would change from that moment on. It could only go uphill or downhill; they all prayed it would go uphill.

R-Evolution debuted with their first mini-album, ‘New Girls in Town,’ with the title track, ‘Rebellion.’

Ex-Tra debuted with their first mini-album, ‘Out of this World,’ with the title track, ‘U.F.O.’

ARC8 debuted with their first mini-album, ‘Press Start,’ with the title track, ‘Play Hard.’

The three groups were received well into the Kpop world. Everyone loved the music videos and bought their music and merchandise. Everyone chose their biases and their bias wreckers. Everyone chose their ships. People just loved them. It was everything they wanted: for people to accept and love them.

They finally got to join the fun and bright Kpop world that they had always dreamed of joining. Or, did they just ruin their lives by joining a world that is known for having a dark side?
Eddie felt as if his heart was going to explode. He and the two other groups were going to perform their debut stages. He, Blake and Alice had come a long way since winning on ‘Hopefuls.’ He saw the reception that they got from the music videos and sales, so he wasn’t nervous about the stage, he was nervous about how much people would expect from him. Blake and Alice felt the same way. They had such great expectations to meet, but their group members told them to take it a day at a time. They shouldn’t try too hard to get people to like them. They’d take it slow.

Questions ran through their minds as they tried to figure out just how much things would change. Would they lose each other and hate each other? Would they remain friends? Would they make new friends and forget everyone else? What about themselves? Their companies would tell them how to act for a certain time or maybe even forever to keep a mysterious personality. Eddie wasn't a mysterious guy, he liked being who he was: spontaneous and fun. He didn't want to be told how to act in front of a camera, that's outright lying. But, he had to slowly accept the probability of it happening because, well, he chose this life; consequences were bound to follow.

They didn't know what to expect from the world of Kpop, aside from learning Korean and not seeing their families for some time and other things. Anything could happen: a scandal that gets out of hand, crazy saesangs, just anything could happen, including disbandment. The Kpop scene seemed so fun and so bright, yet, Eddie, Alice and Blake knew that it was only one side of the story. They don't exactly know what goes on behind the scenes. Abuse, crazy diets, arguments, the list goes on. What if they were to fall in love or something? They had contracts that restricted the dating scene and even when that eventually fizzles out, dating would be hell. Being constantly followed by fans and paparazzi; taking pictures of where you go and what you do. It's ridiculous.

But, only time would tell when things like that would happen. They had to take things one day at a time. They had to breathe and trust that everything was going to work out and not go to hell.

Eddie let out a sigh as he listened to the music on his phone as he waited alongside s to perform their debut stage in M! Countdown. He was listening to everything but the ARC8 mini-album. Gyeong and Aiguo told him and the rest of the members to at least listen to their song and practice it a few times. Eddie did that, but it was only a few minutes until they'd go up. R-Evolutionhad finished performing and Ex-Tra was currently performing. It was crazy on Eddie's mind. Everything had changed in a blink of an eye. Alice had debut d, Blake was in the process of it and Eddie was next. These three had to remember that they had to cherish and enjoy every moment because time will fly since they'll be constantly working.

Ex-Tra finished their performance and ARC8 got ready. They got together in a huddle and gave a chant. Afterwards, they walked towards the stage door and debuted on stage to the world.

There were no words as to how Eddie could describe his experience of the debut stage. It was...perfect; everything he had dreamed of. He had finally done what he had been wanting to do for a while. He was smiling so hard it started to hurt. Never had he ever been so happy, maybe other than his eighteenth birthday. He was just really happy.

Blake felt a little uneasy about his debut stage. He messed up a part of the dance, which wasn't noticeable on camera, but he knew he did and it made him feel bad. He thought that the cameras caught it and that it would already be on YouTube or something and netizens would be talking about how much Blake . He told Jitae about it and the latter told him to relax and that everything would be fine. He couldn't think like that. He had to remain positive. Everything was gonna be fine.

Alice was feeling good. She had fun performing on stage and it was awesome. The positive energy of the crowd really boosted the performance and the ambiance. It was a truly fun performance. She messed up once during the whole thing, but she wouldn't let it hinder her current mood. She would make mistakes and learn from them. She knew that she would also make a few mistakes on stage every now and then; it was inevitable.

The debut stages for the three of them went fine. To the Kpop world, they were people that everyone, Kpop fans or not, should know. They had made history and are living the dream. Or so, they think. Did they make the right decision or did they just throw they're lives down the drain? Only time will tell...