The episode has ended in a blur, between Seungsik's shrill voice and the power struggle caused by my comment over Hyanggi, Daha and Mari's excellent performance. I've got so distracted by the course of the events that Saeha is telling me the scores now.

Of course, Mari's group has got the full 50 points. To my mild surprise, Seoyoung, Saeha and I have been the second best performing group, managing to bag 30 points. 20 points for Hyewon and Boyeon, and just 10 for Daneung and Saesong, the worst performers of the day.

The latter bursts into tears, earning an unsympathetic reaction from Daneung, who turns her back at her and leaves her behind chuckling. I've had enough of that woman. She's so toxic.

Instead of wasting my energy on them, I focus on trying to cheer up an inconsolable Saesong. "I'm dead last! I'm toast! Just forty fucking points in three challenges. What the fuck!" she complains between a sob and another. I hold her in a tight hug and gently pat her head, like I used to do with my sister when we were younger.

I sing her a song I randomly come up with on the spot. 'They ain't worth your tears, they ain't worth your sighs, they can't see the signs, oh, oh, they revel in blindness. They ain't worth your words, no, no, ain't worth your thoughts, no, no-'

While the song itself has effect on Saesong and seems to lift her up, it also annoys some of the others. In particular, Hyewon clears her throat twice before telling me in a sharp tone, "Can you just shut up, Saerom? You aren't even that talented as a vocalist."

I see red. Too bad Hyewon is way older than me, otherwise I'd punch her snarky face. The way she talks to me gives me the ick. How dare she?

I don't even bother calling her out in a polite manner. I directly explode. "My name is Saesom! I've had enough repeating it to the same old dimwitted dipshits. At this point, you have to be mistaking it on purpose!"

Hyewon doubles down on her nasty attitude. She hisses. "So what? Who the fuck cares about your ridiculous name and your crying friend? You're nothing but dead weight, so don't you yell at me again. Do you know who I am?"

"I don't give a fuck, unnie. You're a contestant like the rest of us, so back down or fuck off!" She flips me the bird and leaves chuckling. I clench my fist and grind my teeth. My wish to punch someone would close to being granted if Saeha and Daha weren't here to calm me down.

I take a deep breath. I may have friends to count on, but it's also obvious I have a lot of enemies.

***

The moment we head to the studio for the next challenge, I feel butterflies in my stomach. The acting challenge has really put me to test. It was entertaining, but also really difficult and stress inducing. I hope the next one will be more relaxing.

Oh, how wrong I am! Seungsik awaits us with a diabolical grin. I know what it means. He must have something in mind to twist this show even further. "Welcome back, ladies! I hope you had a nice week away from cameras." I can hear sighs around me, especially from Saesong.

It has indeed been a rough week for her. Every time I'd defend her from bullying, those snarky bitches wouldn't relent. Instead, they'd push further. I've lost count of how many insults Hyewon has hurled at her, but also at me and Saeha. And let's not forget Mari's out of place comments—empathy is a concept she still has to grasp.

For being thirty-one years old, Hyewon is nothing but a petulant grown muppet. She isn't the only one, though. It's pretty obvious she, Boyeon and Daneung are good at disguising their shitty attitude on camera; when the lights are off, though, they show their true colors. I don't know who I stand less between those three and Seungsik.

Needless to say, he rejoices at the backstage drama. Yet, he doesn't want to delve into it just yet. "Well, there's no time to waste. Let's move on with the fourth challenge: a cross genre performance!" I wonder what it means. I hope it's nothing too difficult. However, we're close to halfway through the competition, so the level is bound to raise.

Since confusion reigns, Seungsik explains the rules. "Through your previous performances and your profile sheets, the panel judges and I have got to know what your comfort zone is." Wow, they keep tabs on us all the time. "If you want to rise to success, you have to step out of it." I think I've already started taking that direction, though... What does he expect me to do this time?

"Therefore, you'll be assigned a genre that's not your forte. You'll have to choose a song and perform it in a way that fuses both your usual genre and the new one. You'll work in pairs which, as usual, will be determined randomly." Oh, God. So far, I've only worked poorly with Mari, so I hope not to end up with her again.

The board shows the pairs that have to work together. It looks like things have been shaken up a bit. Boyeon will work with Daha. Daneung with Hyanggi, Saeha ends up with Hyewon, and Saesong with Seoyoung. This means that I, for the second time, will be paired up with... Mari. This is a disaster set in stone.

"Make sure you work together, because teamwork will be heavily taken into account in judging your performances. Two hours to prepare starting from... now!" That's it. Considering that Mari and I have literally opposite tastes, working together is going to be a challenge in the challenge. Hopefully, we'll both prove we've learned from our mistakes earlier on.

"Okay, this time you choose," says Mari, visibly annoyed at me. She doesn't look forward to being around me again, but she has to get over it. Either we improve our teamwork, or we're bound to be in the bottom again.

Especially because out assigned genre is... hip hop. Mari curls her nose in displeasure. I, on the other hand, am happy about it even though I know it execution isn't going to be easy. To break the ice, I try to ask Mari, "Is there a rapper you know?"

She crosses her arms and rolls her eyes. "No. Do you think I listen to that mass of gibberish?" The way she talks down on hip hop and rap makes me think she doesn't know it at all and her comments are dictated by prejudice.

Trying to keep myself from cursing at her, I suggest politely. "Maybe you should try and give it a chance. Hip hop is such a broad genre that can blend well with others closer to our taste and expertise."

"I don't think so." Her defeatist attitude doesn't make me budge. Instead, it fuels an even bigger fire inside me. I know for a matter of fact we can pass this challenge. That is, if we manage to work like a real team and not as two individuals pretending to have made an effort together while clearly half-assed.