NaRi sat in her chair, not really sure how to feel after seeing Geonu for the last time in who knew how long.

stray tears fell from her eyes, the feeling of sadness not leaving her body no matter how much she begged it to.

as the 12 flags dropped revealing their new rankings, NaRi let her mouth lift into a small smile. she put on her badge, put her nameplate on the 2nd place chair, a sense of relief washing over her.

"AHH i get the nice room! move!" she exclaimed as the began rushing up the stairs, pushing the boys out of her way. she walked in ahead of the boys, already opening a bag of snacks when they walked in. [a/n: 1,2,3,4 aka HeeSeung, NaRi, JungWon, and SungHoon will be in this room!!]

"oh? what's this?" she heard JungWon suddenly ask, making NaRi rush over to where he was.

"the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place I-LANDERs get to have a day of freedom." JungWon read aloud, making NaRi's mood spike up.

"WOOOOOOO!" she shouted, bursting into a dance.

"NaRi, stop twerking." the viewers heard HeeSeung say, out of frame.

once the other I-LANDERs left the room, the four began to celebrate their advantage. "i don't know dude i just wanna go outside of this place!" she said to no one in particular as the boys were planning what they'd do for their time out.

the next morning, the three boys had to work as a team to get NaRi out of bed. after five minutes, they left her alone to play with the mist Sunoo had talked so greatly about. she drowsily ate her breakfast with the boys, suddenly remembering the next test.

she slowly walked down the stairs as to not trip, for some reason feeling all the tiredness in her system finally taking its toll on her. however, when they all noticed the unfamiliar props in the practice room, her excitement overtook her tiredness. she walked to the room, hiding behind the curtains to suddenly pop out and yell "magic!"

she sat in her chair, excitedness now being the only thing she felt. '케미 테스트' "chemi test?" she asked aloud.

"flicker" she read, curiosity growing at a rapid speed. her eyes widened as the video popped up on screen— immediately falling in love with the song the more she listened to it.

i want it i want it i want it!!!!

NaRi absolutely fell in love with Flicker; nothing was going to change her feeling of need for that song. although, when the second song started... maybe her mind was going to change a tad bit. as she watched the choreography video more, she decided she didn't mind what team she was put into— she could just change her vibe to match it as she'd always done.

the teams were split evenly into 6 & 6 AND the final scores were going to be decided from global votes. well im pretty okay at both of the vibes in this test so i just gotta look better towards the viewers... viewers if you can somehow hear me pls vote for me :[

"I-Land Part 2, the second test will be in six days." great, six more days of putting myself through

torture. "each unit's limited capacity is 6 for 'Flicker' and 6 for 'Dive Into You'. since a higher individual ranking results in more benefits according to the rules of I-Land Part 2, the current 1st place I-LANDER will be given priority to select both song and unit members."

NaRi's mouth fell agape, quickly turning her head to lock eyes with her best friend. she maintained eye contact with him, later cocking her head to a side and sending a wink to the older, as if telling him 'you better pick me first'. she laughed with him, later going on to do the famous "PRESSURE!" JunHui (SEVENTEEN's 준) move after Jay said the word.

"now, first place I-LANDER, please choose the song and members you want."

as HeeSeung stood up to look around the room, NaRi made sure to keep her eyes on him and only him.

"for this chemi test, i'll choose the song 'Flicker'."

she watched as HeeSeung's picture appeared on the screen, internally pleading him to choose her first.

she appeared on the screen, "i really don't mind what song or team i get, i know i'll be able to fit into the song no matter what." she said with a small smile.

"the first member i choose is... Park SungHoon."

as he said this, NaRi's mouth fell. ugh, i can't believe he wouldn't choose me first... *rolls eyes*... maybe hehehe. wow if viewers could hear me they'd think i'm a total bi-

"the second member... i choose Kim NaRi." he said, looking back at the girl with a small, teasing smile. she smiled back, happy her hyungie hadn't truly betrayed her.

"i could see me and NaRi performing part 1 & 2." he spoke to the camera. the older then went on to choose Jake, JungWon, and K.

NaRi watched with amusement as Jay and HeeSeung played rock, paper, scissors to choose the practice rooms.

if Jay looses this will be so funny.

she held her breath as they threw their choices, celebrating with her members after HeeSeung won the game. she then crashed onto the floor laughing as she watched Jay's anger burst out, then going over to hug the older as an 'apology.' she hid her amusement, well.. tried to hide her amusement as Jay loudly pitched his fit, stomping up the stairs like a toddler. she once more fell onto the ground in the practice room, holding her stomach.

she laughed along with the boys as her unit kept poking their heads out of the props, genuinely happy with HeeSeung's choice in unit members.

*cue Jay's honey scene*

NaRi sat with her unit, sitting quietly til she was assigned a part. as the boys said which parts they'd like, NaRi quietly spoke. "i want part 1 because it harmonizes with everyone and i can do that..." her voice slowly died out, not entirely sure of what exactly she was saying. while K slightly shook it off and didn't respond to her, HeeSeung lightly smiled at her while nodding, as if letting her know he listened.

the boys eventually got quiet, tension heavily present in the room. NaRi looked at each of their faces, noticing they were all unsure of what do say next.

she cleared her throat, "wellllll i think i could do part 2 well with whoever, so..." she quietly said, looking at everywhere but K's eyes.

truth is, ever since he scolded Ni-Ki, she hasn't been able to be her true self around the older boy— she feels this strange fear towards him she badly wishes she could get rid of. she continued feeling uncomfortable in the room, looking down at her fingers to play with them in order to distract her.

"NaRi?" Jake suddenly asked, she quietly hummed in response. "you're okay?"
"yeah, of course!" she responded in the most convincing voice she could muster, lying straight to his face. he seemed to buy it though, which made her relieved.

she sat in the middle of the group hug, still feeling content with her unit.

the girl proceeded through practice quietly, solely following along with whatever moves the group was going over.

when SungHoon asked if they had to turn their shoulder once or twice, NaRi whispered "once", not being heard. she held in her laugh as K realized his mistake— not wanting to cause any trouble, she turned back to the mirror, going through the choreography as she'd watched earlier.

she silently walked up the stairs with HeeSeung and JungWon, still scared of saying something wrong in case K were to hear her.

[midpoint evaluation day]

NaRi watched the Dive Into You performance with a straight face, internally yelling all of their names because of how impressed she was.

she carefully watched each member to see if anyone got out of time, but no one seemed to really stand out. man i kinda wish i got to do that song.. once it came time for Flicker unit to perform, NaRi danced just as she'd practiced, as always. after the producers left, she stayed in the practice room to help Jake perfect his part, not wanting him to feel so behind.

as I-LANDERs woke up, they all found a bag next to their beds.

when the boys opened them, they found various pieces of clothing, and an accessory — whether it be a ring or necklace.

once they all realized, they quietly walked into the 1,2,3,4 room, where HeeSeung, NaRi, SungHoon, and JungWon were all asleep.

NaRi, being the heavy sleeper she is, didn't wake up until Jay yelled in her ear, making NaRi's head suddenly shoot up from under the covers of the bed her and HeeSeung slept in. Jay flashed her the new ring he wore on his finger making NaRi burst out into a smile.

she sat with HeeSeung, head leaning on his shoulder as they began walking the 9 through their day.

[the day before]

NaRi's eyes lit up as the screen told them it was finally their day off. she stood by the bed for a while, contemplating what to wear.

she decided on a white shirt, light brown skirt, and an oversized flannel. Sunoo looked at her, brightly saying "you look cute, NaRi!" which, highkey, brought her mood up.

she said goodbye to the I-LANDERs, grabbing hold of HeeSeung's hand as they walked out of the building. "waa, it's so nice out here!" she exclaimed excitedly. she sat in the seat next to HeeSeung in the van, him being the only one who knew of her habit of having to grab someone when in a car.

she cautiously walked into the Pet Café, not wanting to hurt the dogs accidentally. once she caught sight of one, her eyes lit up like a little kids.

"woahh!" she said, crouching down to pet one. the camera panned over her, the brightest smile viewers have ever seen on NaRi perfectly adorning her face.

next was VR, the viewers heard NaRi's loud laugh as she watched SungHoon struggle with the game.

then was ice skating, something NaRi was fairly okay at. she watched as SungHoon stepped out into his natural habitat, something she'd only seen online.

she watched with a smile as several exclamations like 'woah' 'waa' 'wow' left her mouth, fascinated at the older's skill. as SungHoon returned to the three, NaRi lightly clapped, exclaiming "ice prince!", making the older visibly flustered at the cute nickname. she was then shown on the ice with the boys, spinning a few times, doing whatever she could do.

as she stepped into the store to buy the boys gifts, she decided on buying everyone one of her favorite things: jewelry. she helped the three decide what to get for the others, suddenly excited since she always loved giving.

as the Flicker unit began their group practice, NaRi was the only one really heard singing live. she harmonized along with the lyrics, taking mental notes as she went along.

as vocal director Kim Sung Eun suddenly walked in the room, NaRi quickly shut up, not wanting to get in trouble for not singing well. as the unit began singing for her, NaRi was the only one with the lyrics memorized. hmph helps having a big head sometimes doesn't it?

as the air in the room became heavy, NaRi stayed quiet as she knew she was the only one who'd practiced the song fully detailed. man i sleep more than you all why have i done this and y'all haven't? she was seen fidgeting with the sleeves of her hoodie, simultaneously biting her bottom lip from anxiousness.

as the top 4 layed in their room, HeeSeung suddenly asked a question.
"what can we do to have a better team balance? i don't think it's good just because everyone in the team is good. honestly, 'Flicker' doesn't have a good team spirit. when i think about ways or ideas to improve, it's hard to talk to K hyung about them." he finished.

NaRi, having hummed in agreement the entire time, finally spoke up. in a drowsy voice, viewers heard her say "then let's stop listening to K hyung. he's only made the vibe tense and we've been lacking because of that."

right after she said that, HeeSeung felt her breathing become more regular, signaling she'd fallen asleep.

she once again found herself sitting silently with her unit, not wanting to do or say something to make K yell at her.

as the boys expressed their true feelings, NaRi kept her head hanging low— although, when she saw K pull up his hood, she knew it wouldn't end well. she silently crawled over to where he was sitting, lightly placing her head on his shoulder as he began to cry. she watched as he silently walked out of the room, shortly following after him.

she followed him to the lounge, cautiously going over to his side. she never spoke a word, only being there in case he needed someone during this strange time. thank God he didn't punch me to go away that would've been bad

she looked back as the rest of their unit arrived at the lounge, sending them all a light smile as they sat. as he apologized, just watching him cry even more made NaRi's heart shatter. "it's okay," she whispered in his native language, "don't cry." she told him, wiping a stray tear that accidently slipped from her eye.

for the next three days, NaRi practiced non-stop. she barely slept or ate, spending almost the entire 72 hours in a practice room.

for the performance, she wore close to the same thing as the boys; a burgundy-colored skirt, a black turtle neck, and a suit jacket (ish) with stacked necklaces and rings. she anxiously watched as the countdown came to it's end, meaning it was almost their time to go on stage.

"the second test that holds the twelve members' fates. the 'chemi test' performances will begin." she watched the screen intently, anxiety beginning to rise as each second went by.

she returned her badge, placing a kiss on it with her fingers. "the first team up for global evaluation is.." NaRi held her breath, "...Flicker." she forced the breath out, stress immediately rising. ugh ugh ugh ugh okay NO! you know what, you're not gonna be nervous! nope! you'll do amazing!

she closed her eyes, telling her mind to slip away into it's performance mode. she stepped out of the egg first, leading the unit. (twitter went CRAZY over her visuals, btw)

"2, 3, hello!" they all said together, "signal~" HeeSeung and NaRi sang, harmonising with one another. *snap* "we're the 'Flicker' unit." the six introduced themselves, small smiles adorning their faces.

she got into her beginning pose beside HeeSeung as the music began, the song being the only thing on her mind. since her part had to continuously harmonize with the other parts, she had no breaks in singing. she continued the performance just as she'd practiced, earning compliments from the producers on her facial expressions.

after the performance ended, she smiled along with the producers, thanking Bang for his "you deserve the title of 'Avengers'" compliment towards the group.

"and NaRi, as well!" they began, "yes?" she answered, ears suddenly perking up.
"very, very well done. i liked your presence in this song a lot." her smile widened, "thank you, sir!"

she brought the boys into a group hug as they returned to the egg, content with their performance. she sent a quick 'good luck' to the next unit, all stress that'd accumulated over the past week suddenly vanished.

she laughed loudly as the Dive Into You unit individually introduced themselves, exclaiming "cute!~" when Ni-Ki's turn came. she cheered for the unit as their performance started, genuinely excited to see what they'd prepared.

her mouth fell agape as Jay and Ni-Ki began the song, NaRi already knowing it'd be a good performance. "waahhh! hyungies so cool~!" she said as the performance ended. she clapped for the boys as they returned, sending quick words of encouragement to the six.

as the card to show the first rank of the Chemi Test appeared on screen, NaRi's eyes once again fell wide. i don't think they'd give me first place, no way.

"i think it's Jake!" she suddenly exclaimed, looking at the Aussie boy. she watched as the first rank was announced, clinging onto Jake's arm. "it's gonna be you~" she quietly whispered towards him, feeling deep down it'd be him. she held her breath as they awaited the announcement, screaming an "I TOLD YOU!" to the older boy as she brought him into a quick hug.

NaRi watched as the 11 flags suddenly dropped, anxiety beginning to rise. please, please don't get me eliminated. i'll buy the viewers all rings if they don't!

🦇  ...  I-LAND 9화, 끝!