The girls from Team B were so excited after getting the compliment from Dylan. Bella and Anna bounced up and down on the stage. Thea exchanged a look with Beth and high-fived Luna.
Paris scoffed secretly before she started to comment again, “I think, first of all, for a girl band, the most important thing is the members’ actual skills. You have to be amazing overall, and you can’t have any shortcomings.”
“But Paris, being same-levelly good in every aspect also made you less standing out,” Dylan smiled.
“I agree,” Adam nodded.
“Well… Don’t forget that we’re making a girl band here,” Wendy said flatly. “Teamwork is everything. Being overall amazing would never be bad.”
“But helping your team members to hide things they’re not good at and helping them to shine on the stage sound more like teamwork to me,” Dylan shrugged.
Even the opinions of the judges were tied. However, with the help of online audience voting Team B still won.
And then, it was time for the judges to decide which member to go to which class.
Beth was so nervous as she held Thea’s hand on stage. Thea smiled at her and squeezed the back of her hand.
“Thea can’t dance. That is a deadly weakness for a member of a girl band. At least, it goes against our concept. Our goal is to build an international girl group that can dance and sing. I think we should distribute Thea to Class F. That is only fair for other competitors with the talents required,” Paris forcefully suggested.
Dylan frowned, “I don’t think so. Thea can sing beautifully, and she always has the power to touch the audience. Isn’t that everything you need from a performer? I admit that she can still work on her dancing performances. But she should at least go to Class B.”
“Class B?” Paris’s faked, sweet voice suddenly went sharp before the camera. She cleared her throat and hid her real voice instantly, “How could she get in Class B? Class B is for potential winners of the competition. Thea doesn’t have the skills required. This is a live-stream competition. We need to be fair and open.”
Wendy nodded, “I agree with Paris.”
Adam had been quite silent the whole time. Then, he somehow decided to speak up all of a sudden, “I don’t think it’s necessary to be that strict. The choice of the members is not entirely up to us. The audience also decides it. Our audiences know what they like. And I believe Thea is one of the most popular competitors among all the girls. Based on her ability to attract audiences, I think we should send her to Class A.”
“Come on, Adam,” Paris looked at Adam with an incredulous look on her face, “You’ve got to be kidding.”
“I meant what I said,” Adam frowned, “I don’t need you to translate my words. Thank you very much. Our show is different from other talent shows. We aim to choose a pop girl group, and their lifeline lies in our audiences’ hands. You can’t tell me that I was wrong for considering the audiences’ opinions. Their opinions are our priority. Am I right, Dylan?”
Dylan quickly agreed, “Yeah. That’s no doubt our priority. Besides, we really should stop arguing. We don’t have much time left. We need to make our decision right now. Let’s send Thea to Class B. If she still can be so amazing, she’s surely moving to Class A. But if she fails her future audiences, we can pitifully send her to Class F by then. What do you guys think?”
Paris still wanted to argue. But Wendy cut her off, “Class B sounds fair to me. Thea is not entirely untalented. Those high notes are perfect. Sending her to Class A will make other competitors feel unfair. But sending her to Class B will solve the problem.”
Paris was lost for words. She tried to eliminate Thea, but she failed. Paris was sulking silently after the decision of the other judges.
Ultimately, Luna, Bella, and Beth went to Class A. Thea, and Anna was distributed to Class B.
Thea and the other girls went down the stage. Thea felt exhausted after the performance. She wanted to get to Class A, but she could also settle with Class B. This was still the first round, and she still got a lot of chances in the future. She would never blame herself since she had tried her best.
It was just that she really needed to improve her dancing skills. She didn’t want to give Paris any excuses to eliminate her in the future.
“Hey, Thea. You should check out those comments online. People absolutely adore you.”
“Really?” Thea went back to her dorm and fetched her laptop.
****
She was welcomed with flooded comments online.
“Thea is the best!”
“She’s so beautiful.”
“Wow, Thea can do makeup? How talented is this girl exactly?”
“Wait… What?! Those are high notes!”
“I didn’t know she could sing!”
“DIVA!”
“Can Thea’s fans stop? It’s a bit annoying.”
“I don’t even think she’s that good. Tiffany’s clearly way better than her.”
“Eww… Tiffany is pretentious.”
“Thea’s kind and funny. I like her.”
“Paris is right. Thea can’t dance. She’s only lucky to get in the second round.”
“Are you guys deaf? Can’t you hear the way she sang? She has the PERFECT VOCAL!”
“I support Paris. I think she’s right.”
“Paris is an actor. She can’t sing. What is she even doing here?”
“Paris is the Queen!”
“Paris Dunn is so annoying, like my math teacher.”
“Dylan is so hot!!!”
“Did Adam just say the audiences loved Thea? Why don’t I know?”
“Is Dylan out of his mind? How could he send Thea to Class A? She’s not even that talented.”
“Why is everything about Thea? I still want to see other girls,”
“Why? Thea just has the ability to get all the attention. The girl is born to be a star. Does that bug you?”
“Guys… Let’s not argue. Just enjoy the show.”
“Can’t you guys be nice?”
“Thea is overrated!”