"Wow! What a talented group of girls we have just witnessed!" spoke Chu.

"Yes we have haven't we?" agreed Sunmi as she twirled a pen in her hand.

"Twelve of the lucky girls have successfully made their way into the I-LAND, whilst the unfortunate other 16 have been placed in the GROUND."

The hosts hummed in mutal agreement.

"Do you have a favourite yet Chungha?" questioned Chu.

"I think all the girls have made a special place in my heart," the beautiful host chucked holding her palm against her chest.

"But if I had to choose, I'd say applicant Park Soojin."

Sunmi and Chu nodded in agreement.

"We loved her visual as soon as she made her first appearance, and did not disappoint with her passionate performance of 'Boss'."

Sunmi laughed to herself before making a comment.

"I think it's quite obvious we have found a favourite applicant among the hosts haven't we?"

The two other girls giggled in accord as the show panned it's way to the next segment.

•••

The tense atmosphere followed the girls as those who passed made their way into the egg-like structure.

One last tear escaped my eye as I watched my friend smiling and waving at me from a distance.

"Fighting Soojin!" Chohee cheered out loud as drops of water stained her plump cheeks.

My vision of her soon faded away as the egg soon enclosed the I-LANDERS.

The air was thick as we all bunched up together in the small space, everyone still visibly shaken from the separation of the others.

After what felt like forever, the egg soon revealed an opening where lived the most breath-taking facility I'd ever seen.

My eyes caught the attention of 12 grand chairs gathered in the centre of the area. Each chair was numbered 1 to 12.

I'm guessing we'll be ranked?

Geez this is intimidating.

White marble and brown stone accented each piece of furniture giving off modern yet medieval vibes.

My gaze roamed the outskirts of the facility as I locked eyes of what looked like the most immense practice room I've ever laid my eyes on.

It was lit up with dozens of bright lights and surrounded by glistening mirror walls.

It was idol heaven.

One by one the girls exited the egg and bounced their way straight into the facility.

"Woah! There's a second floor!" squealed one of the girls as she pointed excitedly to the brightly shining metal stairs.

Everyone squealed as they rushed their way up the stairs, myself following curiously behind.

The girls soon accessed their way into the bedrooms as gradually each room was being vacated by the applicants.

Being the slow person I am, I ended up with the last empty spot at the very end of the hall.

As I entered I was greeted with extravagant splashes of green paint, covering the opposing wall and bedsheets.

The room displayed four single beds as well as a door into a shared bathroom.

Sitting on the beds were three smiley girls arranging their belongings neatly.

"No way! We're rooming with Park Soojin?!" gasped one of the girls as she shot her gaze at me as if I was a ghost.

The two other girls wheezed in shock as they brought their attention to my awkward figure at the door.

"Nice to meet you Soojin!" they sang in harmony.

"Nice to meet you too." I bowed, surprised they already knew my name.

"My name is Hwang Jiwoo." bowed the girl who first noticed me.

She practically ran to where I was and grabbed my hand, shaking it vigorously.

"This is Lee Jiha and Park Haewon."

The girls bowed with enthusiasm.

"Ne, I recognise you guys from your performance earlier. You guys were amazing." I spoke.

The girls turned to each other in disbelief as they soon fangirled with one another.

"Are you serious! Park Soojin knows us?!" Haewon gawked in shock.

What the heck.

Why are they treating me like some celebrity?

"You have no idea how much we want to be friends with you. You are known as the ace among the girls!"

Huh?

Me...ace?

Outwardly displaying my utter confusion the girls got the message and apologised.

"Sorry Soojin, you probably are not used to this."

The girls led me to the bed as we all sat down together.

"Sorry we can be a bit much sometimes, but please don't feel uncomfortable. We would love to be your friends!" chimed Jiwoo as she grabbed my hands.

They want to be friends with me?

"W-wha- I mean of course! You don't even need to ask!" I stuttered a bit taken back by the unfamiliarity of the situation.

The girls squealed in accord as they quickly began bombarding me with questions.

"What's it like being the ace of the show?"

"Do you ever get tired of being pretty?"

"Can you speak some english for us?"

I laughed as the flattering questions overwhelmed my ability to answer them.

We continued to chat for a while before a familiar booming voice sounded the facility.

"Applicants, please make your way to the lounge for an announcement."

•••

We all gathered onto the couch making ourselves comfortable as we waited patiently for further instructions.

Soon after, the tv screen opposite us turned on, revealing one of the shows hosts.

"Hello applicants," the beautiful lady spoke softly,

"My name is Chungha and I will be one of your hosts for I-LAND Season 2."

The girls shrieked in excitement, looking as if they've seen this woman before.

She's probably an idol, I'm guessing

I sighed.

This whole K-pop thing is going to take a while getting used to.

My mind was brought back to the screen as Chungha continued to speak.

"As a welcoming present to you all, we have special guests coming to visit you."

Everyone beamed with anticipation at her words.

"They will be investing time to come visit you regularly and help guide you as mentors here at I-LAND."

I suddenly felt a pull at my shirt.

"Soojin, who do you think they may be?" Haewon asked with enthusiasm.

I shrugged calmly, predicting that there will be a slim chance that I know them.

"Boy I hope it's BlackPink!" she spoke holding her hands together.

"Your guests are waiting for you downstairs, please proceed to the lobby.

Like ants at a picnic the girls rushed down the stairs stomping like impatient elephants.

Unlike them, I slowly made my way down the steps, making sure I didn't fall onto my face.

By the time I reached the lobby, it looked like the girls had already met with the guests as I heard high- pitched screams and 'oh my gosh's.

Unable to see their faces because of the crowd, I tip toed as tall as I could and locked my vision on a group of seven boys.

"Hello," they greeted bowing,

"We are ENHYPEN."

On command the girls erupted once again in hollers and squeals as I laughed at their reactions from afar.

Ah so they're idols.

That makes sense.

"We look forward to meeting you all," spoke a boy with a young voice and fox-like eyes.

The boys then started walking closer to the crowd of girls and began introducing themselves personally.

I was naturally excluded from the crowd as I watched the girls stick themselves to the boys like magnets.

A grin wiped over my face as it was entertaining to see people in such excitement at once.

As I was watching the interactions in the corner I jumped as I felt a light tap on my shoulder.

"Hey, why all you all by yourself? Come join the rest!"

I turned my head to the voice and locked eyes with a familiar boy.

I stood in thought for a bit before pointing my finger up in realisation.

"Ah you're puppy boy!" I blurted out unintentionally.

The boy laughed outwardly holding his chest to breathe.

Finally becoming aware of my embarrassing outburst, I looked down at the ground biting my lip as I felt my cheeks burn.

"Uh thankyou?" he responded teasingly after catching his breath,

"I have been told I looked a little like a dog but never before have I been called puppy boy!"

The boy giggled as he noticed my embarrassment.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to say that!" I spoke quickly, forgetting to speak in Korean.

The boy's smile suddenly faded as his eyes widened in shock.

"No way...are you perhaps Australian?"

I lifted my head as my ears picked up the once soft Korean voice transform into a fully bogan Aussie tone.

I nodded at the boy in confusion yet excitement of the familiarity of an Australian accent.

"Yo that's insane! I'm Aussie too!" he exclaimed opening his arm out for a bro hug.

I accepted it openly, locking my fingers with his and leaning into his broad chest.

"My name is Soojin by the way." I stated feeling a little more at ease around the boy.

The boy smiled gently lingering his fingers in mine.

"Nice to meet you Soojin,

I'm Jake."