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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: Exhaustion and a Surprise Visit
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The exhaustion hit her like a tsunami. On top of that, repeating choreography she had already mastered for hours, deliberately making small mistakes, was driving her crazy. All she wanted was to collapse into bed and sleep.
“Should we take a short break?”
Na Yeon-woo asked, looking at the other trainees. She was particularly looking at Hye-sung, who was so worn out she was yawning three times a second.
“No, let’s keep going a little longer before we rest.”
“Yeah, let’s all push hard today.”
Strangely, even though everyone was exhausted, none of them seemed to be thinking about going back to the dorms.
*...I'm so sleepy I could die. But there's probably going to be a surprise inspection soon.*
She remembered from watching Supernova Project as a viewer that the trainers had burst in at dawn on the final day before the re-evaluation.
Hye-sung was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion, but she agreed with the suggestion to keep practicing.
“The trainers might show up, so let's just catch our breath and keep going. Anyone who needs the restroom should go now.”
Just as Hye-sung predicted, the practice room door burst open a little after 2 a.m.
“Girls, are you doing well?”
It wasn't Jade or Kang Min-guk who entered, but Minty.
“Wow, hello.”
“Hey, hello. It's been a while, hasn't it?”
This was the first time Minty had come to the practice room since the training camp began. She was probably too busy to participate in regular lessons and could only drop by for inspections.
“Have you all been practicing hard?”
“We've been practicing, but...”
Although they had improved a lot, they had been scolded all day, so everyone's confidence was low.
“Well then, shall I take a look?”
After watching the F Class trainees dance, Minty's expression was unexpectedly bright.
“You're better than I thought. The vocal and dance trainers all said you got scolded again today, so I was really worried.”
*Just how low were her expectations for her to say we're good?*
Hye-sung was also flustered by the unexpected praise. They had roughly synchronized their movements, but a third of them were still at a level that would keep them firmly in F Class.
“The details are off, but you've generally mastered the movements.”
At Minty's words, a spark of life returned to the eyes of the trainees who had been on the verge of giving up. The effect of being praised for the first time was tremendous.
“Alright, then let's go over the parts that aren't synchronized, together with me.”
Minty took off her jacket, placed it on the floor, and stood in the center.
She just did a few light stretches, but it felt like they were being overwhelmed by her aura.
“Seven, eight, boom!”
The timing of their jumps and turns was all over the place.
“You did well with the other parts, but it seems you're struggling here.”
Minty corrected each trainee's angles, watching over every single movement.
“Shall we run through it from the top one more time?”
It was much cleaner than before she had corrected them.
“You just need to get the timing of the turns right. You've all already done a good job with the other parts overall.”
“Thank you!”
“The class leader is Yeon-woo? You worked hard, teaching the others. Watching you today, I think you're definitely going to move up.”
“Thank you, haah.”
Na Yeon-woo, who hadn't held back at all since Minty arrived and had performed every move at 100% power, gasped for breath and bowed deeply.
Hearing those words, her expression brightened, as if she felt that her hard work over the past two days, with less than four hours of sleep, had paid off.
“But Hye-sung.”
“Yes?”
Hye-sung, who had been losing the light in her eyes as she hit her physical and mental limits, answered with a start.
“You're not sick, are you? Your expression has been...”
“Ah... I'm sorry. I think it's because I haven't gotten enough sleep. From practicing...”
Hye-sung, her complexion ashen and dry, replied with trembling lips. She looked so fragile it seemed she would crumble at the slightest touch.
“Really? No wonder you've improved so much. Still, don't push yourself too hard. You look really pale.”
“Okay.”
“Well, I'll be going now. Just do as well as you did today during the recording, alright?”
“Yes! Thank you for your hard work! Thank you!”
It was well past 3 a.m. when Minty finally left the practice room.
“We got praised for the first time!”
“Ah, I was so scared Minty-ssaem would scold us too.”
Despite the late hour, the practice room was unusually lively. It really seemed like no one planned on returning to the dorms tonight.
Regardless of what the other trainees were doing, Hye-sung plopped down on the floor like a deflated tube man.
*I really think I'm going to pass out. What have I gotten myself into, trying to be an idol when it's not even my destiny...*
And just like that, she collapsed and lost consciousness.
* * *
“They say you can sleep when you're dead. I guess I actually died trying to live by that.”
Hye-sung sighed as she saw herself floating in an empty space again.
Just moments ago, she had been desperately trying to hold on in the practice room, but then she lost consciousness as if someone had flipped a switch. It seemed she had collapsed from overwork.
“Did I actually die...?”
This strange, unknown space she was in now was a place she had visited before her dream world and reality had switched.
“Don't tell me this is that boundary.”
The boundary of the world, a place she was told she'd be trapped in as a penalty for exceeding her karma.
Her heart sank at the thought that this might be that place.
“What am I supposed to do? Does collapsing rack up karma? Working hard isn't a sin. Hey! Status window!”
Hye-sung thrashed about, a mix of frustration and annoyance. In that moment, the background changed.
This time, she was lying down, and an unfamiliar ceiling came into view. She could just make out an IV stand beside her, so she figured it was a hospital.
*Ah, I'm back. I must have been taken to the hospital.*
“Eonni.”
She felt someone take her hand.
Then, a familiar face slowly came into view, and a tearful voice reached her ears.
“Why did you do this...”
Na Yeon-woo was crying.
*Yeon-woo...!*
She tried to call her name, but Hye-sung couldn't speak or move. It was strange. This place didn't seem real either.
*Why are you crying? What's wrong?*
Her vision blurred along with her unreachable cry.
Leaving the crying Na Yeon-woo behind, Hye-sung lost consciousness again.
“Gasp!”
And then she woke up in the real world.
“Wha-what was that just now?”
“Hye-sung eonni!”
“Hye-sung!”
Dazed, she sat up and found herself on the practice room floor.
The F Class trainees were gathered around her, their faces filled with worry.
“Was it a dream...?”
Hye-sung muttered with a blank expression. She was relieved, but also confused.
“You suddenly collapsed, eonni... I didn't even realize you were in such bad shape...”
Na Yeon-woo hung her head low. Her voice was damp with tears.
She was crying, just like in the dream.
“I'm okay, Yeon-woo. I think I just passed out from exhaustion.”
Hye-sung gently rubbed Na Yeon-woo's back, reassuring her that she was fine. She could feel her thin back heaving beneath her palm.
“Don't cry...”
*I never want to see you cry again.* Hye-sung, who had always been particularly weak to Na Yeon-woo's tears, felt her heart being torn to shreds. Watching her cry was more painful than having collapsed herself.
“Hye-sung, are you sure you don't need to go to the hospital?”
“You should go just in case.”
The other trainees were also very worried, fidgeting anxiously.
“By the way, how long was I out?”
“Just now. You woke up right away. It probably hasn't even been a minute.”
“A minute?”
She thought at least an hour or two had passed, but it hadn't even been a minute. It was hard to believe.
“If I woke up right away, I should be fine without going to the hospital, right?”
She was still tired, but she felt much better than before she fainted, and it didn't seem like there was anything physically wrong with her.
“Let's go to the hospital. What if this happens again?”
“That's right, eonni. Let's go.”
“I'd rather sleep than go to the hospital...”
Despite the trainees' protests, Hye-sung didn't go to the hospital and returned to the dorm.
When she entered her room, Lee Ju-ha and Han Young-won were already back.
“You're back early today.”
Han Young-won said, glancing over.
“Yeah. I was tired.”
“We have to film the re-evaluation video starting in the morning, so it's best not to overdo it and get some rest. Are the other girls done practicing for today too?”
Lee Ju-ha asked as she straightened her blanket.
“No. The others said they're pulling an all-nighter, but I just collapsed, so I'm going to rest.”
Hye-sung said nonchalantly as she gathered her toiletries. Hearing this, Lee Ju-ha and Han Young-won whipped their heads around in shock.
“What?”
“You collapsed?”
“I fainted for a moment. I think it's from lack of sleep. I'm going to go wash up.”
As Hye-sung tried to go to the bathroom, Han Young-won blocked her path.
“You shouldn't be here. Go to the hospital.”
“I'm fine. They said I woke up right away. I'll be better after some sleep.”
“You've been practicing relentlessly for almost three days without proper rest, your body tense the whole time. You didn't collapse just because you were tired; it's a sign that your body's functions are severely weakened. What if there's something seriously wrong? Go to the hospital.”
“...”
*I'm pretty sure I just fainted from exhaustion.*
She couldn't talk about the immense mental fatigue from , so Hye-sung just kept her mouth shut.
“What if you collapse again? Do you think you can last until the end of this training camp?”
“She's right, Hye-sung. Let's go to the hospital.”
“Follow me.”
Han Young-won snatched Hye-sung's toiletries, set them down, and grabbed her hand, pulling her out the door.
*...I think sleeping would be better. But she's being so stubborn, I guess I have no choice. I shouldn't have told them I collapsed.*
“Alright. I'll go to the hospital.”
In the end, Hye-sung was led by the two of them into a production crew's car and headed to the emergency room.
“But why are you two eonnis coming with me? Aren't you going to sleep?”
“Because you're making us worry.”
Han Young-won said curtly.
“She said she feels uneasy sending someone so much younger alone after she collapsed. Right, eonni?”
“No.”
“What do you mean, no?”
Though she denied it, Han Young-won, the oldest contestant in Season 5, was secretly concerned about Hye-sung, the fake minor.
Having watched the struggling girl push herself so hard as her roommate, her feelings of pride and pity had grown even stronger.
“But you must be tired.”
“We came back at midnight and rested for a bit. We were just about to head back to the practice room when you came in.”
“Ah... Still... are you sure it's okay not to go to the practice room? Because of me.”
“You don't need to worry about us.”
That was true. Season 5 didn't accept contestants with prior debut experience, so it was full of fledglings who had never even come close to a debut lineup at their agencies.
Lee Ju-ha and Han Young-won, on the other hand, had both made it to the brink of debut. As already proven trainees even within the Ace class, Hye-sung had no reason to worry about them.
* * *
The emergency room was crowded at this early hour. In a place where “Why did you come here for something like this?” and “Why did you wait so long to come?” intersected, Hye-sung was lying on a cot, receiving an IV drip.
They would need to do a more thorough examination later to be sure, but for now, aside from slightly low blood pressure, there seemed to be nothing else wrong with her.
“Um, are you just going to keep staring at me like that?”
“What else am I supposed to do?”
“Eonni, why do you keep talking so sharply? Hye-sung might misunderstand.”
She wanted to rest alone for a bit, but the two who had followed her were there for her every move, which was honestly a little burdensome.
“I'll be able to go back once this is done. You two could go rest in the car...”
“It's a hassle. I'll just stay here. It'll only take thirty or forty minutes anyway.”
Han Young-won insisted on sitting in an uncomfortable, backless chair and watching until the IV drip was finished.
“Don't mind us and just close your eyes for now. We'll wake you when it's done.”
Lee Ju-ha said, pulling the blanket up to her chin.
“Okay. Then, sorry, but I'll just rest my eyes for a bit...”
“Go ahead.”
Hye-sung closed her eyes and thought about the dream she had when she lost consciousness.
*It's strange. Yeon-woo's face that I saw then...*
