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I turn to Bora, and really, I should have seen it coming. Instead of looking me in the eyes like the other judges, Bora stares down at her mic as she says, “Miss Shin, you already know my opinions about your dancing. Youaretalented, yes. But I frankly think you ruined this choreography.”

I wait for her to explain herself, but she doesn’t. And honestly, I’m relieved. Her reasons are probably the same crap she said after my audition.

“Miss Shin,” says Mr. Park. “Well done. I look forward to seeing you in the next round.”

I’m still thinking about Bora’s words when I’m dismissed from the stage, but instantly forget about them when I see Henry Cho standingshirtlessbackstage.

Henry’s bodyguard is standing in a way that blocks the view of all the cameras as his manager sprays something over his bruising skin. From where I’m standing, I catch a glimpse of Henry’s broad chest and chiseled abs.

Holy crap. How is that even real?

At that moment, I fully understand why Henry’s inability to go on shirtless shoots would be a major concern. Heck, a part of my brain is even convinced that it’d be an international crisis.

“Like what you see?” Henry says with a little quirk on his lips.

“Yeah—I mean, no,” I stammer as I avert my eyes. “Okay, yes, but sorry! I was totally invading your privacy.”

Henry laughs, his face completely lighting up for a splitsecond before he winces in pain. “Ow, guess I should avoid laughing for the time being. But yeah, it’s fine. I don’t mind.”

“Of course you don’t,” I grumble. “Freakin’ models.”

Henry’s manager finishes spraying him, and he grins as he puts his shirt back on.

“So,” he starts. “I—”

But before he can finish, Tiffany rushes over with her group in tow. Since I was busy getting ready, I missed Tiffany’s group performing. But I heard whispers in the hallway about how amazing they were. Apparently, they were total goddesses in their rendition of GFRIEND’s “Love Whisper.”

“Skye!” Tiffany exclaims. “Thank God you made it. I was worried for a second.”

“Yeah,” I say. “I don’t think I was ever in any real danger of getting eliminated, though, since I had Gary’s and Mr. Park’s votes. Bora just wanted to give me a hard time. Either that or she just wanted to make things extra dramatic for the show.”

Tiffany rolls her eyes. “Probably both.”

“Yup. Everything turned out okay, though. I mean, Henry got hurt, but I think he’s okay...”

I trail off when I realize that Henry’s no longer behind me. He and his team must have left while I was talking to Tiffany.

That’s it, then?I think.I’ll just see him next week?

I know it’s silly, but I can’t help but feel a little hurt that he left without saying bye. Even though we didn’t interact that much, we still practiced together for several hours last week. He could have at least waved before he left.

It’s for the best, I tell myself.At the end of the day, he’s just another person you have to beat.

Tiffany raises an eyebrow at me but thankfully changes the subject. “So, the girls and I are going to grab some cupcakes at Sprinkles. Wanna come? Lana’s getting the car right now.”

Cupcakes sound absolutely perfect after the day I’ve had.

“Sure,” I say. “I’ll go see if Imani’s still around and ask if she wants to come.”

“Perfect, meet you at the front!”

Shaking away all thoughts of Bora and Henry, I head farther backstage.

Chapter Ten

GRABBING CUPCAKES WITH THE OTHER GIRLSturns out to be so much fun that I almost forget that we’re supposed to be competing against each other. We all exchange numbers, follow each other on Instagram, and promise to boost each other on social media once the show premieres next month.

In a way, it’s nice. I didn’t go into this competition looking for new friends, but I’m really enjoying the fun little moments I share with Lana, Tiffany, and Imani. Throughout the week, Lana sends me links to #positivity posts on Instagram and gorgeous shots of the beaches she and Tiffany are frequenting, while Tiffany sends out hilariously relatable memes in our group chat. Imani and I bond over our favorite choreos and music videos, as well as the new restaurants popping up in LA.