One Week Later...

All the trainees had begun to start getting used to their new schedules here at the Produce facility. In their closets, they found sets of clothes ready for them to use. They were like a uniform of sorts, a simple white blouse with pink lining the sleeves along with a knee-length pink checkered skirt for classes on the history of mutants and regular lessons for math, english and science. For the underage trainees, it was important for the facility to be holistic in what they teach. They should still receive schooling that they might not have normally. Seunggi and the staff were well aware that most facilities didn't have the funds or didn't even care to aid mutants. They simply focused on containment which didn't sit right with them.

For physical activities like fitness training to keep them in top shape, each trainee was also provided with black athletic shorts and jogging pants paired with plain shirts of varying colors. It's safe to say that most trainees found these sections of the day to be quite a drag, but they put up with it because of the last activity for the day- ability training. It's like keeping a horse cooped up in a stable all day, it'll be yearning to run so badly that when it's finally let out, it runs forever. That's how many trainees felt about their situation. Under normal circumstances, using their powers could get them arrested or even killed by the government or anti-mutant organizations. It was too dangerous for them, so they'd have to hide their powers from the world. For some, the Produce program was an outlet for them to finally let loose and explore what they were actually capable of. That in itself was worth sacrificing their old lives for. It's not like many of them were happy in the first place.

"Yah, Choi Yena! Ahn Yujin! You two are late for breakfast...again." Said a very irritated voice early in the morning.

"Just five more minutes, mom..." Another voice sluggishly replied.

"Five more minutes? We're not gonna get anything if our room is late again! Don't five minutes me!" The two lazy girls continue to lay in their bunks without a care in the world.

"It's no good, Yuri. Looks like we'll be stuck with the scraps again...." Wonyoung says in an exasperated tone as she exits the room.

"You know, Wonyoung, we may have gotten off on the wrong foot, but these two are really making me thankful that you're here. Don't worry, step aside." Yuri cracks her neck and knuckles, and walks into the room.

After about five minutes, a very irked Yujin and a very flustered Yena walk out the door with Yuri right behind them sporting a smug grin. "Mission accomplished."

"Yah, I really wish I had your charm speak power, Yuri. You could get anyone to do what you wanted. What'd you even say to them?" Wonyoung asks as she observes the two sleepy-heads trudging along ahead of them.

"Well..."

----------

5 minutes earlier...

"Yah, Yujin, ah...Wonyoung said she'd like to take you out on a date." The big puppy eyes shot open at what she had heard.

"WHAT?! Really? No way!" Yujin was wide awake now.

"Really? That's what got you to move? I'll make sure to tell her you have a crush on her." Yuri says flatly.

"Oh my god, unnie. I really can't believe you. Do not tell her anything, I swear." Yujin was pretty embarrassed now that she'd been goaded out of bed so easily.

"Sure, Yujinnie, just give me some extra food during lunch time, and I'll keep my mouth shut." She made sure to add a little bit of magic into her suggestion to get what she wanted.

"Sure, unnie. No problem." She responded in a slight daze shaking her head a bit. "Wait, what did I just agree too? Ugh, fine, Yuri, you can have some, just don't tell Wonyoung."

"Good, now sit still, I have to wake up Yena now too."

"Yena-unnie. It's time to wak-" Yuri is interrupted by the girl lurching up from her bed, banging foreheads with her. "I'm awake! I'm awake! Have mercy!", Yena stammers as she tries to gather her bearings after hearing that familiar silky voice in her ear.

"Oh my god. Yuri, are you okay? I'm so sorry!" She said as Yuri was rubbing her head.

"Yah, Choi Yena, are you that thick-headed? How'd only I get hurt from that, aish..." She huffs. "Also, you're wearing that hideous thing again? Change into something more decent." Yena feigned offense. She rather liked her green pajamas, but her roommates didn't seem to agree. "I'll make sure to buy you a matching pair." She grumbles.

In the background, Yujin is snickering, which Yuri quickly picks up on. "Yah, do you really want me to tell her?"

"Wait, wait! I'm sorry! I regret everything!"

"Alright then, let's get ready for breakfast guys."

----------

"Nothing much. I didn't even need to use my powers, to be honest." Yuri says with a smirk.

"Alright, then. Let's go catch up with the others now." Wonyoung says as she goes ahead leaving Yuri to walk on her own.

"That was pretty cool, Yuri." Says a new voice from behind.

"Ah, it was nothing, Goeun. I just didn't want us to be last in line for breakfast. You know how Wonyoung gets when we're left with the scraps."

"True...we really do have an interesting set of roommates, don't we?"

"I couldn't agree more."

~~~~

"I can't believe Yuri-unnie did that to us. Using her powers to wake us up? Really?" Yujin complained as they got seated at a table.

"I don't know about you, but I don't think she used her powers on us at all." Yena responds. "What'd you want her not to say anyway? It sounded like she has some dirt on you."

"Oh, it's nothing, hehe. Don't have to worry about anything." Yujin then tries to turn the tables on her. "How about you though? The second you heard her voice next to you, I bet you went to heaven and back." She says with a laugh.

"Don't get started with me, Yujin. It's not like that. I just think she's...cute." Yena responds irritated.

"Aish, that's how all love stories start, unnie. I should know, I've seen many of them produced."

"You were the eye-wear model for crying out loud. Are you really gonna go around boasting about your former star status?" She barks back.

"Ouch, didn't need to make it personal, unnie." Yujin says sarcastically. The dynamic these two had formed was amazing for the short amount of time they'd known each other. They'd gotten to the point where they could say anything about the other without huge blowback.

"Hmm, so you'd be okay if she started seeing someone, then?" Yujin says as she sees a familiar two figures walk into the cafeteria. "What do you...?"

Yena follows her gaze where they rest upon Yuri next to their other roommate, Goeun, lining up together to get food. Yujin doesn't miss the irritation that flashes across her friend's face. "You're not the only one looking at her, unnie. Better speed it up."

"Aish, you kid. What would you know about love anyway? I have to keep my options open. She'd just be for dating if ever."

"Who'd be just for dating?" A husky voice says from behind. Yena silently prays to the heavens above before turning.

"Ah, no, no. It's nothing, hehe. We were just talking about celebrities, is all. Right Yujin?" She then kicks Yujin in the shin under the table. "Ow, I mean, yeah. That was all." She says as she rubs her shin.

~~~~

Over at another table, a different discussion is taking place.

"What's with those two?" A voice whispers to her seatmate.

"Observations suggest a very awkward atmosphere. My guess would be something happened between them recently."

"Yeah, no , Sakura. It's pretty obvious. They keep stealing glances from the other then go back to eating. They aren't even talking. It's been like this since yesterday."

"Then why'd you bother asking, Jurina-san?"

As described, the two Kims from their room, Minjoo and Chaewon were acting suspiciously. Sure, Minjoo was a shy person, but Chaewon was normally a social butterfly. She usually liked to pester Minjoo about things when they first met. It was strange.

"Ah, never mind then. These Koreans, so strange." Jurina sighs to herself.

"Hmm? Strange? I'd like to think most people in general are very odd. Not just Koreans." A voice interjects in perfect Japanese.

"Oh, Gaeun, I forgot you could speak our language. I was surprised." Jurina responds.

"How come? Were you perhaps saying something behind our backs?"

"Heavens no. We're better than that. It's been quite the treat to be able to meet Koreans and their styles, you know." Jurina responds gingerly.

Gaeun was, along with Eunbi, one of the older trainees. She wanted to become a part of the team to protect the people she loved. Her skills were elite, people had already penciled her in as one of the final twelve. The odds are around 95% at this point early on. Sakura had told Jurina one night.

"When'd you learn how to speak Japanese anyway, Gaeun-san?" Sakura asked.

"It was a long time ago. I was in Japan for a year and needed to know how to get around."

"Oh, is this a story time? I'd like to hear about it too, guys." Someone else joins in.

"Wait, Chaeyeon. You can speak Japanese too??" Sakura asked with a tone the others couldn't quite discern. Was it fear? Embarrassment? Whatever it was, Sakura seemed taken aback by this new information.

"Yeah, I was taught it when I was at JYP's school for mutants. I learned a lot from that place actually." She responds, speaking of her former home fondly.

Aish, what do I do? What are the chances she heard and understood some of the things I've said about her? It's got to be 50/50 now. Sakura hides her flustered expression, hoping Chaeyeon didn't hear anything.

As two-thirds of the group were having an animated discussion in Japanese, the two Kims were left to converse with each other which was...difficult to say the least.

"Hey, Chaewon-ah. I'm sorry again for what happened." Minjoo says quietly, not missing the way the fairy-faced girl turns away from her. She really regretted what happened because from the moment she met her, seeing how coolly she interacted with others and how calm her disposition was, she'd wanted to befriend her.

"Aish, I told you already. Don't be. I should've known better given your powers. I guess we both have a lot of practice to do." She responds, though, even if Minjoo didn't know it, she felt quite regretful as well at her carelessness.

----------

2 days ago

It was late in the afternoon, and Chaewon's group had just gotten back to their room. The first few days of training had been arduous and tiring, but most of them hadn't seemed that fazed. It was definitely a better life compared to what they'd be living if they had chosen not to follow what was instructed of them.

Chaeyeon lets out a sigh as she rests on her bunk. "Who gets first shower again today?" She asks hoping it'd be her.

"That would be Minjoo, Chaeyeon." Gaeun responds. It seemed customary for most rooms to elect a head to help organize things outside of training. After all, six people in each room was basically like living in a house already. Most rooms assigned leadership to the eldest and it was the same here. Gaeun was not only the oldest one in the room, but she had the aura of a leader in her, tall like a giraffe with perfect posture, hair always neatly kept around the shoulders. She could be a future trainer at this institute if she wanted to.

"Aww, can't I go first, just this once? Minjoo isn't even here yet." Chaeyeon complains.

"Rules are rules, Chaeyeon. You get to be first two days from now because of the lots we drew. Just wait for your turn." Just as she says that, Minjoo comes running into the room saying her apologies.

"I'm so, so, sorry, guys. My group got scolded again by Yoon-jeong sunbae. Yuri and Wonyoung always argue, so Sakura and I can't get anything done."

"Don't worry, Minjoo-ya. You got first dibs on the shower today, so we waited for you. Right Chaeyeon?" Gaeun says that last part giving Chaeyeon a glare.

"Ah yes, Minjoo. Go ahead, we'll just wait for you." She says cheerfully.

"Oh, thank you guys so much. I promise to try not to be late again." She says as she enters the bathroom.

"Aish, what a sweet kid." Gaeun says to herself.

"You're not wrong, unnie. How can anyone be that innocent?" Chaeyeon responds.

"Well, I hope she grows up quicker because things will get rougher as a mutant." She says sadly.

"What do you mean, unnie? What happened with you?"

"It's a story for another day. I don't want to think about it right now." Gaeun's expression darkens, recalling bad memories.

"Okay then, by the way, Minjoo did say Sakura was in her training group, right? Where is she? She didn't come in with her." Chaeyeon asks curiously.

"Hmm? What's with the sudden interest in her?" Gaeun gives Chaeyeon a knowing look.

"Huh? Uhm, I just find the Japanese trainees interesting, you know? We had some back in the JYP school. I've always wanted to get to know them better." She responds, suddenly very flustered.

"Jurina's Japanese as well, though? She said she was going to cafeteria early, didn't she?"

"Ah, well, uhm, you see..." Chaeyeon's now blushing hard trying to keep her emotions down. How'd she read me that easily? She thinks.

"I'm just kidding with you, Chaeyeon. Don't worry about it." She says as Chaeyeon makes her way out. "And if you're still wondering, Sakura's probably with Jurina too right now. They always hang out." She adds with a smile as she sees Chaeyeon start to pick up speed after she hears that. "Oh, to be young." And with that, she too steps out of the room looking for her dongsaeng, Yunjin.

----------

The room is empty when Chaewon walks in. Huh, where'd everyone go? She thinks as she grabs a towel to wipe her sweat. She takes a look at the clipboard Gaeun had left on her bunk with the room assignments. Hmm, Minjoo has first dibs today? Well, she isn't here yet. Maybe I can sneak in a quick shower before anyone shows up.

She cracks her knuckles before cloning herself into three copies and getting her things ready for a shower. It's always been nice being able to clone herself, but it takes a lot of focus. They don't have the same physical capabilities she has and disappear under immense pressure like when she was training with Chaeyeon the other day, but for things like grabbing towels and folding clothes, it's not a problem.

She doesn't hear any noises from the shower, so she opens the conveniently unlocked door. She thinks she hears a gasp, but simply dismisses it, attributing it to the wind from the window. Huh, why are there towels and clothes here already, and why is the floor wet? Her brows furrow in confusion wondering what was going on as she pulled back the shower curtain to reveal...nothing. "Strange..." She mumbles out loud to herself as she begins to undress, but as she does so, she hears a shriek. The towel she saw earlier was now floating in mid-air, draped over nothing.

"WAIT, CHAEWON-UNNIE!" The empty space screams.

"Woah, woah, woah, are there really ghosts here in this place? No way." She gets into a fighting stance, and looks around the bathroom saying. "This better not be some elaborate prank you guys!" The situation would almost be comical if it weren't for the dead serious look in Chaewon's eyes. She then makes a quick jab at the floating towel, hearing a grunt as it falls to the ground. "Hah, gotcha!" She says probably until she realizes that the towel isn't just draped over nothing anymore. Wait...towels, clothes, wet floor, roommates with powers...first dibs was...Oh no.... Chaewon looks down to see a very confused and hurt Minjoo crying on the bathroom floor, towel wrapped around herself, hair still wet.

"Unnie...I'm so sorry, I s-should've locked the d-door. I can't believe I f-forgot" She says in between sniffles.

"Oh my god, Minjoo, I really didn't mean to. I thought the room was empty. I'm really sorry about that." Chaewon is visibly flustered and embarrassed over what had transpired. Jesus Christ, Chaewon. You idiot.... She clones herself and tries to carry a traumatized Minjoo outside and to her bed, who is whispering apologies over and over to her. I cannot believe I just did that. Poor Minjoo. "Are you okay" She asks.

When Minjoo doesn't respond, Chaewon speaks up again. "Yeah, sorry, bad question, of course you aren't. Probably a bad time for sneak attack training, right?" She adds to be more light hearted. Minjoo smiles a bit at that, but is still overcome with embarrassment of her own. How could you turn invisible perfectly at all the wrong times? She had a knack of not being able to disappear when she wanted to, and it had earned her a scolding or two already in the first few days. "No, I'm sorry, unnie. I really should've locked the door, or spoken up once you entered, but I felt embarrassed."

"Aish, don't be so hard on yourself, Minjoo. You had first dibs on the list, but no one was here when I arrived so I thought I could sneak one in quickly." She says as she pulls Minjoo in closer for a hug bearing her sincere apologies.

"Why don't I treat you for some food at the cafeteria, hmm? To make it up to you."

"Weren't you going to take a bath, though?"

Chaewon looks back at the bathroom before replying, "It's fine...I was last on the list today anyway."

~~~~

The two now find themselves next to each other at the breakfast table, not having a decent conversation since the incident. Chaewon still felt very regretful at her rashness. She had a habit of doing that- trying to get away with things when no one was looking. She was a mess before Eunbi found her and brought her to the Woollim mutant facility. Her old habits still popped up from time to time. When you have the power to clone yourself, it gets tempting, but when Minjoo looked at her with those sad doe eyes. She couldn't help but feel bad about what she'd done. She was such a sweet person; people joke that she wouldn't be able to hurt a fly, and Chaewon honestly believes that now. She was a big softie. Aish, how long will this awkwardness last? She wonders to herself.

"Must be nice to be able to speak Japanese..." Minjoo says quietly to herself.

Chaewon catches on though and quickly tries to catch the group's attention. "Yah, not everyone here can speak Japanese, you know? Don't go on and leave the two of us out." She says with a laugh.

"Oh, we're sorry about that." Gaeun responds. "Sakura, you guys want to teach these two some Japanese?"

"Sure, sure, no problem!" She responds eagerly, which surprises her roommates. She then clears , saying. "Uh, I meant, certainly, it would help us more in our communication, and you can teach us Korean slang in return."

The group is now laughing and smiling over the phrases and sayings being tossed around in different languages from Korean to Japanese, with a bit of English and even Chinese thrown into the mix. Minjoo is laughing along, relieved to finally have met people who she can be around. She just misses the grin on her seatmate's face watching her as she's enjoying herself.

~~~~

"I finally got you, unnie!" A high-pitched voice shouts in delight. It completely juxtaposes the bigger picture wherein a short girl, barely five feet tall, has an older girl in a choke hold.

"Ugh, g-good job, Nako. You can l-let go now!" Eunbi manages to huff out, her face turning shades of purple.

"Not yet, unnie. You could be testing me. I don't even know what your powers do exactly yet either. For all I know, you could slip out of my arms any moment." This kid's perceptive, that's for sure. She thinks while the oxygen is slowly starting to squeeze out of her.

"I-I give up!" She yells exasperatedly, tapping out on the hard ground they were training on. Nako finally lets her go just as Eunbi was sure she was going to pass out. She had grown a soft spot for the diminutive Japanese girl ever since being grouped with her. She'd managed to win their hand-to-hand combats the first few times, yet Nako always came back for more, wanting to train. Out of all the Japanese trainees, she'd been the most eager to learn. She was such a cheerful individual, but also a diligent one. She was seen as one of the best at speaking Korean among the Japanese trainees too. She'd practiced very hard. Eunbi had always managed to beat her through pure skill thus far, but Nako had finally gotten her. She had shown great improvement over the past week through their trainings which Eunbi took pride in. Or maybe she realizes your secret. A voice at the back of her head whispers which she is quick to dismiss. I can't afford to be thinking about stuff like that right now. The two girls grab some towels and start heading back to their dorm.

"Unnie, shouldn't we wait for the others as well? Their trainings are just about to end too." Nako says. As the oldest as well as the appointed room leader, she was obligated to agree. Eunbi's roommates were a mix for sure. They felt like puzzle pieces from different boxes. Nako was the one she was closest with, but mostly because she spent the most time with her given they were in the same main class. There was another Japanese girl too, Hitomi. She and Nako were still getting to know each other, but Eunbi was surprised that that was their first-time meeting. Then there was Yunjin who was like Lee Gaeun's dongsaeng. Even though she was Eunbi's responsibility, Gaeun would still show up a lot to check on her. Eunbi had wondered what their relationship was, but given that she had her own share of secrets, she decided not to pry. Next was Chowon, a real jack-of-all-trades. Her powers were mental based, but she could go toe to toe with many other trainees, adapt to any environment. Camouflage and combat training from her old institution, Cube, do that for you. Finally, Kang Hyewon, the most curious case of them all. In essence, she was a quiet person. She could seem invisible at times with how little noise she makes. Some said how her personality was as cold as her ice powers, which, from Eunbi's experiences from trying to talk to her, was true. It was in her nature to try to cater to the needs of everyone as she was normally the eldest in the room. Eunbi had that motherly side that came out when she wanted to discuss things with people younger than her. She wanted to hear their concerns and apprehensions to try and resolve them. It was fine with most of her roommates, especially Nako who would tell her all about her old life in Japan, but trying to get through to Hyewon was like trying to talk to a brick wall (with extra icy padding). She would rarely say anything at all.

Eunbi had been so curious about her since the start of the week, but she tries to keep it to herself. With what she's hiding, how can she really tell others to trust her back. It was eating away at her conscience, but if she wanted to achieve her goal, she had to stay quiet.

"Unnie, whatcha thinking about?" Asks Nako inquisitively. "Hmm? What do you mean?"

"You've had this really serious face since before the others arrived. Is something wrong?"

Eunbi was relieved to have someone like Nako around, but at the same time wished she would keep things to herself more. She puts up a faux grin before responding. "Oh, it's nothing to worry about. Just thinking about what the rest of training's going to be like."

"Okay, unnie. I was just worried about you. You can always talk to me if you need to get something off your chest, you know? You offered it to us, so why can't we support us as well?"

"Thank you, Nako. That means a lot, I'll let you know if something comes up." Eunbi responds, gladdened by her roommate's sincerity. I just hope it doesn't have to come to that. She thinks to herself as they continue to walk back. "Let's keep training, Nako! It's gonna be a long couple of months!" She cheers. Nako's quickly grown into one of Eunbi's favorite fellow trainees, always energetic and attentive, rarely discouraged. How lucky am I to at least have a dongsaeng like her?

Her train of thought is interrupted once she hears an incoming announcement from the loud speaker. "Good evening, everyone! This is representative Lee Seunggi. I'm here to inform all of you that in five days' time, we will be having our first mission. This will be an evaluation of your teamwork, quick-thinking and ability training, so I hope you're all working hard! The groups will be announced over the next few days to give you all time to plan and get to know each other. The way you all individually perform will be observed and recorded. Despite this, remember once again, that a single shining star does not make a galaxy, it is up to you and your teammates whether you succeed or not. You will be in groups of six for these missions, two from each power category, combat, mental, or elemental. Good luck to you all once again and enjoy the rest of your evenings!"

"Hmm, what do you think it'll be about, Eunbi-unnie?" Nako asks, already cheerful and excited.

"I don't know, Nako, but we're gonna have to work twice as hard till then."

"I hope we get grouped up once again, unnie. I've recently felt more confident when you've been around!" She says cheerfully.

"Ha-ha, yeah, me too." Eunbi then turns to the direction of the sunset, painting the horizon a mix of oranges and indigos. Well, this will be the first big test for me. And she walks along.