IDOL PRODUCER 2 - DISCONTINUED

13.

The dreaded rank re-evaluations results announcement came and we were all standing back again in the pyramid waiting for PD to come. I was right at the top, with my friend the cameraman as my only companion.

"You truly are the opposite of what you look like, you know?" Guan Yue suddenly told me.

"What do you mean by that?" I asked him confused.

"Just look at youself right now. You look rude and have a dark demeanour but just hours ago, when you were teaching Wang Jiayi, you were sweeter than a lollipop," he said.

"Did you just compare me to a lollipop?!" I exclaimed shocked. "And, by the way, don't judge a book by its cover."

"But your cover is like a black, hardcover one with intricate lettering while the inside is a children's book!" Casper pointed out.

Just then PD came in so I didn't have a chance to reply to Casper's comment. We all bowed and my heart sped up immediately, feeling as if I was having a heart attack.

"Hello. Now, the rank re-evaluation results are in my hands. Next, we will announce the results. First, starting from class C," PD said directly going for it. "One Cool Jasco's trainee Yao Mingming, please come forward to receive your rank re-evaluation results."

"He should at least get a B if not A," I muttered to myself.

He instead shocked us all when we saw him going back again to C rank. I was extremely confused because I knew he was really good, but I hadn't seen the video he had recorded, so I couldn't fairly judge.

"Feels like the evaluation got even stricter. Will there be any A's today?" I heard Guan Yue tell Jia Yi.

I was really worried, to be honest. I didn't want to drop rank but the re-evaluation didn't start exactly well.

The next six people had all dropped to D, so it again wasn't exactly a good sign. Hu Chunyang, Li Wenhan's little brother from Yuehua, was among them.

Lin Zhenyu, on the other hand, moved up to B rank. I hadn't spoken to him yet, but I had heard he was really hard working, so I was happy for him.

Another five people also moved up to B, which raised the chances of there being people also moving up to A. At least that was what I wanted to believe.

He Changxi and Feng Junjie were the next ones to be called. When they began going up, everyone was shocked but when they didn't stop at B rank I was ecstatic. They were the first two boys to get in A.

"Congratulations!" I told both of them. "I'm very happy for both of you!"

"Thank you," they both told me.

"I set a goal for myself. I said that if I didn't get an A, I wouldn't eat for three days. When I was standing at the bottom, I was really nervous, so during the past few days when I danced I really worked very hard. I hope that in the future I will continue to work hard." Feng Junjie said.

"After this you better eat like you have been starved, then," I whispered to him jokingly which made him chuckle.

The rest of the boys from C rank all remained there, which was honestly disappointing. Some of them really had the potential to move up at least a rank.

PD then began announcing D class's results. Four people moved up to B, ten people moved up to C, Qiu Bohan moved up to A and ten people dropped to F. The rest of them remained at their rank.

Next was F class. Only seven people had managed to move up: Bo Yuan, Zhuo Yuan, Li Zonglin , Ye Helin, Che Huixuan, Wu Ming and Fu Hongyi.

When Huixiang came to A rank he began crying and I couldn't help bit crouch down to give him a hug, which I knew shocked many of the boys there.

"The harder you work, the luckier you are, remember?" I told him with a smile. "You worked hard and the teachers saw it. Congratulations."

"Th- thank you, Yingyue," he said between sobs.

"Right now there are already four trainees in class A, plus Yingyue who's rank hasn't yet been announced. Class B is the class with the closest skills to Class A. Next, we will announce Class B's trainees' rank re-evaluation results," PD said. "First let's start with the ones who predict they will remain in class B."

Chen Sijian had dropped to C and Xu Bingchao to D. Xia Hanyu, on the other hand moved up to A.

I was extremely happy for him as I had rehearsed with him that same morning and saw myself how he was doing.

°°°
FLASHBACK

"Can we take five minutes?" Wang Jiayi asked me as we rehearsed. "I'm really tired."

"Yes, don't worry," I told him. "Tell me when you are ready."

I then sat down at the side and watched the boys rehearse while I rest. Hanyu, one of the boys who I hadn't ever really talked to was struggling with one of the steps, but he didn't ask anyone for help.

He then caught me looking at him and approached me, which honestly scared me a little.

"Can... Can you help me?" He asked me. "I saw you helping Wang Jiayi just now and wondered if you could help me with one of the steps."

"Yes, of course!" I said standing up. "Which one?"

He then told me which one it was and I immediately broke it down for him to make it easier to understand. It didn't take long for him to get it, so it had been easy for me.

"Thank you," he said smiling a little.

"It was no problem," I said smiling back. "Should we rehearse together for a while?"

°°°

"Hanyu!" I exclaimed as I hugged him when he came up. "Congratulations."

"Thank you, Yingyue. Really," he said hugging me back tightly. "I owe you one."

"Don't be an idiot!" I said hitting his arm slightly, which made him laugh.

"Woah, woah, woah!" PD exclaimed from his place. "Did we just see Hanyu and Yingyue smiling?! And in the same frame?!"