THE SELECTION PROCESS, DEC 2019

It was the cold winter month in the year 2019 when some mnet and iqiyi staff were gathered in quite a small room. In front of them was a desk, filled with big stacks of paper. Every paper filled by one trainee profile. They were all the trainees that had applied to be part of Produce R 101. Despite the scandal, the staff still had thousands of applicants to select from. Now they had to meet them all. All those trainees would come by and sit in the empty chair in front of them, one by one, trying their absolute best to please the staff. Hard days were ahead, but they had to push through. Trainees would be coming in by company, arranged in alphabetical order.

KQ ENTERTAINMENT

After already been through a few days of hard work, it was time for the KQ trainees to appear.

"Kwon Jungil, come in please!" One of the staff called out to KQ's first trainee. A guy carefully made his way into the room, he was small, but he had a strong aura to him. The staff had all their gazes locked on him, full of interest, as he sat down in front of them. "Hello, Jungil, would you mind introducing yourself to us for a bit?" One of the staff muttered while their eyes were scanning through Jungil's trainee profile. The trainee in question gave them a friendly, but somewhat smug smile.

"Hello," Jungil began with a slight bow of the head, "I'm Kwon Jungil, I'm very pleased to be here. I'm currently 21 years old, born and raised in Incheon and sadly a bit short." He introduced himself with a slight grin. The staff looked from the profile back to the boy in front of them, they seemed to have spotted a few things to talk about.

"Why does your weight state 'unknown'?" The staff commented, one brow slightly raised. Jungil's smile noticeably faded as he thought of an answer. "Um... I wrote that it's unknown because it is ever changing. My weight swings up and down like a yo-yo. It could potentially affect my health," Jungil explained, sounding ever so slightly worried. "Is this an underlying health issue? Could it affect your performance?" The staff responded. Jungil shook no as response before continuing: "Doctors haven't found any health issues, and so far it has not affected my performance. It could be an effect of the strict idol diets." The staff nodded in agreement.

"Another thing, you used to be an esports player? Why did you quit such a promising career after a year?" Jungil eyed both of the staff with a tinge of worry on his face, a moment of silence filling the room as he needed some time to think.

"I honestly couldn't handle the pressure. It is a heavy job and I was immature. You might ask 'Why are you here', because being an idol is just as heavy, if not heavier. But I have matured, and I am determined to keep going and not run away from this." Jungil explained, his confidence growing with every word he spoke. The staff nodded again, pleased by his words.

The rest of his interview went smoothly, and soon enough, the next KQ trainee was called in. Na Hyunsook.

Hyunsook entered the room with a more confident strut than Jungil, but she didn't really smile as much. After introducing herself like Jungil before, the staff started to ask questions.

"You're an influencer, right? On instagram?" The staff questioned, this part being the most interesting in Hyunsook's profile. She gave them a proud nod, finally smiling. "I am! I'm not the most popular, but I do have a decent following to get brand deals," Hyunsook grinned.

"Then why did you enter the idol career?" The staff continued asking away. "I got scouted by KQ, my current company. While I originally didn't plan on becoming an idol, I thought this was an interesting path to walk on. Now I'm here, in an attempt to prove myself with the rest of the cherries," Hyunsook explained in a calm manner. At the word cherries, both of the staff looked up. "Cherries?"

"Yes, cherries," the KQ trainee nodded, "The four trainees that you are meeting right now are KQ's cherries. We named ourselves this because we are a seperate group of eccentric and out of the box trainees."

"Interesting..." the staff exchanged looks. "Thank you for the interview, you will hear from us."

After Hyunsook had left, the next trainee to enter the room was a tall, elegant looking girl with a doll-like face. Song Jaegyu.

She may have looked elegant and graceful at first, as soon as she sat down, Jaegyu had a happy and quite goofy smile plastered on her face. The staff couldn't help but smile back, their hearts already warming up to the radiating positive energy that was coming from the trainee in front of them.

"Song Jaegyu, if I remember correctly, you are an Olympic medalist?" the mnet staff immediately began. The iqiyi staff that was assisting them nodded in realisation, "Yeah, you're quite famous even in my homecountry! It's a surprise to see you here!" They were blessed by one of Jaegyu's signature silly grins before she nodded. "Yes, I am Song Jaegyu, the retired gymnast." Jaegyu couldn't help but smile proudly when both of the staff responded in awe.

"I guess you don't really need an introduction here... But I do have a question, why are you here? Why did you become a trainee? You had such a fruitful career in gymnastics!" The staff commented, looking at Jaegyu with a curious gaze.

"Actually, I could not continue as a gymnast because of my injury, as you may remember..." the trainee started to explain, both of the staff nodding as they listened intently. "My little brother told me to become an idol, so I joined KQ to become one!" Jaegyu spoke happily, her low voice packing a lot of energy. The staff could really feel her positive energy and they really felt Jaegyu increasing their energy and power to keep working hard. But they needed some more responses from her.

"Now that you could be joining Produce R 101, how do you think people will react to your presence? Aren't you worried that they won't see you as an idol?" the staff commented, making Jaegyu go into thought. "That is a very interesting question..." she went into deep thinking for a bit before returning to her bright self, "I just hope that everyone will be excited to see me once again! But I really wish that viewers and dear fans could start to see me as idol Jaegyu, trainee Jaegyu, produce Jaegyu. Not ex-gymnast-that-fell-really-hard Jaegyu. That's in the past. I am now a new Jaegyu!" She gave the staff a bright smile while they hummed in approval. The iqiyi staff quickly jotted down that this had to be used in the show somehow. After that, the interview concluded. Jaegyu had one more request though.

"By the way, I heard that my twin brother, Song Jaewook, has also applied for this? He's an individual trainee," she wondered, and the staff started rummaging through the profiles, all the way to the back to the individual trainees section. Both of the staff nodded before showing Jaewook's trainee profile to his sister.

"Once you meet him, please don't mention that I am coming, he doesn't know and I want to surprise him if we both make it," Jaegyu leaned in to whisper, as if Jaewook was actually present in the room. "That would make for some fun TV, as expected of an already famous person like you," one of the staff laughed gently, jotting the comment down on their notes. "We will make sure that we won't reveal your participation." Jaegyu thanked them before making her way out of the room, waving goodbye in the doorway.

"Now onto the last KQ trainee. Her name is Zhang Yuyan, she's a Chinese freelance model," the mnet staff read from Yuyan's profile before giving the chinese iqiyi staff a glance. They let out a small sigh before nodding, "I'll do this one."

Upon Yuyan's grand entrance into the room, the staff immediately had some questions.

"Zhang Yuyan, freelance model in China, 26 years old, correct?" The iqiyi staff began in mandarin, gaining a surprised look from Yuyan. "I can conduct this interview in Korean!" she responded in pretty good Korean, "if that is easier for you guys." Her friendly and considerate tone spread warmth in the staff's hearts, but the chinese staff continued in Mandarin, "No, I insist to do this in Mandarin. It will be easier to express yourself." Yuyan smiled and gave them both a nod, "Okay, if this is more convenient for the program."

The staff quickly moved on to their first question: "I think everyone will notice at first glance that you don't really conform to the classic idol standards, being tan and quite curvy. That is a risk that could get you hate, what do you think about that?" While the staff really didn't mean it in a bad way, Yuyan's smile still turned upside down for just a moment before she composed herself. "Well, I believe that these standards are meant to be broken. That's why me and my little cherries have come together, to break the idol mold and shape our own."

"Oh yeah, all of the cherries are unique people," the staff agreed, already adapting to the unit name. "Is that why the cherries formed as a unit? Did something perhaps happen at KQ?" they continued, which piqued Yuyan's interest.

"Yes, actually, we were viewed as the weird trainees at KQ and other trainees don't really expect us to debut. So we came together and started working extra hard. I'm actually seen as the leader of the cherries unit," Yuyan explained, her chest heaving up proudly as she talked about her cherries. "It seems to be working, because you are the KQ trainees that ended up on this show. So what's your goal for produce R 101 as unit?" the staff responded, softly smiling at Yuyan's pride.

"We are here to show that we deserve a chance to debut. While we have been performing well, KQ is still unsure of how the public would respond to us. We are here to test the waters when it comes to public response. Only one of us needs to do well for us to get the chance to debut, so we are really determined to show everyone who we are," Yuyan explained their goals. The iqiyi staff seemed to be very interested, while the Korean mnet staff was just a bit lost. "That is a very interesting resolution, thank you for this interview," the Chinese staff finished off, exchanging greetings with Yuyan before sending her off.

"These KQ trainees were very interesting..." the other staff member murmured, taking a last look over all four of their profiles. "Kwon Jungil, Na Hyunsook, Song Jaegyu and Zhang Yuyan... Get them on the show."

OACA

It was a new day, and today was the day that the same staff as before welcomed the OACA trainees. There were seven in total, seven trainees who had flied over from China. OACA was one of the companies that got offered a spot in Produce R 101 because they were a staple in chinese survival shows.

"This should be interesting, all of them have debuted already, while some have done survival shows previously as well," the mnet staff commented. This time, the iqiyi staff was taking the lead because it was a Chinese company. "Let's start... Who's first?"

The first trainee that was called was Alyssa Chen, a fierce rapper that had a confident aura, but also a sweet side. She mainly talked about how it was as the leader of Fusion-VII and OACA's reason to come to Produce R 101. They wanted to get an international audience, and South Korea was the first and logical step, in Alyssa's opinion. Another topic was how Alyssa attempted to debut in Korea before, but got scammed by the company.

Next in line was Marelaine Li. As she made her way into the room with a graceful strut, the staff were bewitched pretty much immediately. The asian latina sat down on the chair with a hairflip and gave the staff a welcoming smile, as to say 'gaze upon my beauty and select me for the show now'.

"Chinese-Brazilian, very interesting... You don't see that very often, no?" the staff began in Mandarin, Marelaine nodding in response. "I haven't met anyone else that is not from my family that has the same origins as me, but it's a great combination," she responds proudly, flipping her long hair once again.

"You're the daughter of a famous Chinese actor, a former solo artist and now a member of Fusion-VII. You have quite the long list of experiences, one has to wonder why you are here as a trainee?" the staff wondered, looking over at the trainee with a curious gaze. She kept that beautiful, triumphant smile plastered on her face as she started explaining. "I do indeed have a lot of experience, but I am always open to more challenges. Besides, this is the perfect way for my group to get a fanbase in Korea, as that is our main goal." The staff nodded in response before muttering: "Alyssa mentioned that as well... The group is cohesive so far."

The staff needed a bit of thinking time before continuing: "Why did you move from being a solo artist to member of Fusion-VII anyway? I don't think you have as much success as you used to have?" The staff was correct here, and that made Marelaine nod in approval. "Actually, I was lonely. I really wanted to be in a group despite my fame probably taking a hit. I like to be the center of attention, but even more than that, I like to be surrounded by friends." Marelaine's lips curled into a pretty smile, making the staff smile as well. She had really captivated them, and they were very interested during the rest of the interview.

Xu Haitao was the next trainee to enter. He chatted on and on about his experiences as a former member of a very young boy group, and then barely falling out of idol producer's debut group. Haitao was very sure of making it into the show because he had already done very well on another iqiyi show.

Then came in the brothers. First Bolin and then Deshi. Bolin had a calm chat about his previous experiences as model and member of a kpop group, talking about his lawsuit against the company and how badly they were treated. The younger Deshi also had a failing group experience, but he refused to shed much light on it and cracked stupid jokes instead, actively avoiding the topic of his band, Glander. As it clearly was a sensitive topic to the young Deshi, the staff decided to not ask any further.

Then entered the last girl of OACA, Zheng Lushi. She insisted on taking the interview in Korean because she had lived in Korea for a long time, and talked about her dancing skills. Lushi worried that she wouldn't work well around a bunch of strangers, and would like to stick with other OACA trainees during the show. While she was not very talkative during the interview, her radiant smile endeared the staff.

Last but not least of the OACA seven was Zhu Junjie, and he was going to be a hard one to get words out of, just like the trainee who came just before him, Lushi. At first, Junjie was pretty quiet, but once that they had arrived at his goals, he had a lot of words to spill. Junjie talked about being a less popular member of Absolute-Z and did a whole speech about wanting to use Produce R 101 to grow more confident and step into the spotlight, away from the shadows of the other members that all had previous fame and experience.

OACA concluded as one of the companies to look out for. They all looked very nice, seemed to have a lot of talent and were very distinct from each other. Especially Marelaine and Junjie were to be watched.

INDIVIDUAL TRAINEES

All the way at the end were the individual trainees. Every year there were more and more of them, but many were just regular people shooting their shot, not really meant to be in the idol life. But every single year there were some standouts. Cai Xukun and Kim Jaehwan are prime examples of that.

The staff was looking for one of those standouts when they called a mysterious figure into the room. Equipped with a low, radiant voice, pierced lips and tattoos peeking from under his sleeves, the two staff members were quite surprised to see such an appearance sitting down in front of them.

"Jin Byungwoo, that's my name. 24 years old. I came here together with Song Jaewook," the pierced man spoke with short sentences, filled with an intimidating aura. One of the staff members shuddered just a bit, thinking that the trainee in front of them was some sort of delinquent. The aesthetic could appeal to fans, but it was worrying that he could cause problems on the show and damage the reputation.

"Your profile is quite interesting, Byungwoo," the other staff continued without being fazed by Byungwoo's intimidating aura at all. "First of all, you used to be an esports player and had quite the long and succesful career there, is that correct?" the staff looked up from the profile page to Byungwoo himself. His cold expression melted a bit as he started talking about his past: "Yes, that is correct. I really had a good time while being an esports athlete, but we expire even quicker than idols. Jaewook and I felt like it was our time to go."

"Then why did you decide to try and join this show? You have never received professional training before, I assume?" the staff lifted a brow, not really expecting a lot of skill coming from Byungwoo. His assumption got confirmed by an unfazed Byungwoo. "We have indeed never received any professional training, but we have worked very hard to prepare for this show. Both Jaewook and I dream of debuting. Well, it is mostly Jaewook's dream of becoming an idol. I just thought that it would be fun to tag along. I like the fame, to be perfectly honest."

This boy was definitely amusing, every word that came out of his mouth made the staff more and more interested. His responses were very straight to the point and unique, a very different energy from what they had gotten so far. The iqiyi staff pointed something out in the profile that the other had missed and asked Byungwoo a question about the scandalous topic that was mentioned on the paper.

"You are married and have a child?" both of the staff members had a shocked expression on their faces, wondering why a married father was present in the trainees section. Usually, debuting a married father was a no-no.

"Yes, I am married and have a son. You are probably wondering why I am here then? Well, the wife and kid came before the idol dream, so I think that it would be stupid to have my chances stripped away because of that," Byungwoo shrugged, keeping his cool in front of the shocked staff, "Besides, relationships really should not be such a taboo in the idol world. Esports athletes are also famous with fangirls but we are allowed to do it all, so why not idols? It's dumb, really." The trainee continued on, not trying to conceal his opinion at all to appease the general public. He spoke his mind so bluntly about a controversial topic, the staff were quite surprised. But their surprise grew even bigger when they saw Byungwoo holding his phone, a bright smile plastered on his face. "You want to see pictures of my son? He's a cutiepie!"

After the interview with Byungwoo ended, the staff were on the fence about him. He seemed very interesting, but the married with child thing was a problem. "He said he came with Song Jaewook, right?" the mnet staff mentioned. "Yes," the other nodded, "Song Jaegyu's twin brother, also a former esports athlete." They both hummed, deep in thought, trying to decide if they should put Byungwoo on the list or not. "You know what? Let's see how Jaewook does. If he is in, Byungwoo is also in. They probably won't want to separate anyway."

When Jaewook entered the small room, the staff immediately noticed the difference between his and Jaegyu's vibes. He was calm, seemed to be shy, and behaved in a soft and kind of graceful way. As he sat down, he bowed his head and gave both of the staff a soft bunny smile before adjusting his glasses. Jaewook looked quite nerdy, but the popular, ideal son-in-law kind of nerdy. He was very different compared to both his twin sister and best friend.

"Nice to meet you both, I am Song Jaewook. Currently 24 years old and a former esports athlete," Jaewook introduced himself, soft spoken as he usually is. The staff felt a warm aura emerging from him despite him being quiet. "You're Song Jaegyu's twin brother, right? The gymnast?" one of the staff mentioned, and they got a nod as response. "Yes, I am Jaegyu's brother. But I would prefer to not be remembered as 'Jaegyu's twin brother' on the show, if I make it," the boy spoke softly before grinning just a little.

"That's very understandable, being in the shadow is not very fun. You do have your own fame, but Jaegyu is no doubt more famous. Stepping out of her shadow is probably one of your goals on this show?" the staff mentioned. "Yes," Jaewook nodded again, "But it is not the only goal. Byungwoo and I are unexperienced, our main goal is to debut, or at least get picked up by a company so we can work towards making our debut. Together." Jaewook started to get more and more talkative as he continued on, growing more used to the presence of the two staff members.

"You and Byungwoo seem to be very close, is that correct?" one of the staff asked, which was answered by a grin and nod from the trainee. "We are best friends! If it's without him, I don't want to do it," the boy said happily, and it made the staff think of what they had discussed earlier.

"One more question, Jaewook, why did you quit your career as esports athlete? We heard from Byungwoo that you took the first step," the staff wondered as they advanced with the interview. Jaewook's smile faded for just a bit before explaining his career switch.

"Well, I was tired. Esports is very heavy and draining. I was in that career path since a young age so I felt like I wanted to try something else before I got too old. I am used to the draining lifestyle so I expect to be able to adjust to the idol life as well. I always really loved music, and both of my siblings as well. I felt like it was a logical step. Byungwoo joined me on the journey and we worked very hard to develop our talents. But despite all that, we never found a company..." the disappointment in Jaewook's voice was very noticeable as he continued on. "They always rejected us for our image, our vibes, and us not being really polished. But you know, Byungwoo always tells me that we are diamonds in the rough. Talented but unpolished. So I want to believe that," Jaewook ended his little monologue on a positive note, giving the staff a warm smile.

"That is a very good mindset to have," one of the staff members approved. "Indeed," the other chimed in, "but time is up, thank you very much for the interview, Jaewook. You will hear from us."

After Jaewook had left the interview room, the staff only needed to exchange a glance before nodding. "He's in, for sure," the mnet staff concluded. "And that means that Jin Byungwoo is in as well," the iqiyi staff added, jotting down their names on the list of selected trainees.

"This season is looking to be very interesting..." one muttered, the other nodding in agreement. "Also, have you noticed the connections? Song Jaewook and Jin Byungwoo are connected to Song Jaegyu... She is labelmates with Kwon Jungil, who probably knows the first two because they are esports athletes," one of them began to wonder. "Why do we have three esports athletes anyway? Is this a new trend or something?"

SIEN'S CORNER!

Hiya hiya! I felt like writing so I started writing! I'm very excited about this fic and finally had an idea to write a little teaser that didnt require a set of applicants! I hope that more will come soon so I can start writing out intro videos and such, which will also function as teasers. I really hope that my writing isn't too rusty (it has been over half a year I think?) and that you guys enjoyed discovering a little about my trainees that will be joining the show! Please leave a comment of what you thought :D