Lgc:lgcvss - Blog Posts

she turns around to gag, the overwhelming smell of chicken shit may  have gotten to her. this was absolute torture — she had no idea how yoomi was doing that, eyes taking in the way the other drops the last remains of dirt into a bin; nearly jumping out of her skin when she sees some of it scatter into the air from the abrupt collapse of weight into such a compact place. 

lili tries to wipe the grimace from her face but she fears it only further enhances the look of wariness that rides along a chagrin smile. she was convinced their management hated them — why else would they drop them into the middle of nowhere doing manual labor when there were far more appropriate ski resorts, zen retreats and water parks to otherwise spend more engaging and family-friendly variety time at? 

farming was so boomer.

“hm.” is lili’s only response, lest she say something she knows she shouldn’t.  from today, lili did not have hopes for tomorrow. picking up a nearby rag by the tip of her forefinger and thumb to place it in the bin they were to wash later that day.

“anything would be better than this.” she returns, trying to swallow another gag as she stands to yoomi’s left. god, when they said they were going to get some fresh air — lili did not think getting poisoned by a chicken’s excrements would be a part of that definition. "i wonder if my career as an idol doesn't work out, i guess i could moonlight as a farmer." she tries to joke, even though, deep down lili knows the last place anyone would ever find her would be on a farm.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ bock bock b***. ࿐ྂ

@lgclili

being forever the optimist, losing wasn't something that ever really bothered yoomi. now, they didn't technically lose anything, but it felt like her team had gotten the more strenuous of two tasks as she cleaned out the chicken coops with the rest of her fellow trainees.

sure, yoomi would've much more preferred to pick fruit from tree than be scooping up chicken poop right now, but she was simply grateful that this wasn't her daily life and that once this show was over, everyone could go back to their chicken poop free lives.

she and lili had finished taking out all the old bedding, all they needed to do was clean out the poop, sprinkle the powder they were given to ward off pests and put in fresh new bedding. "c'mon lili, we can do this! we're almost halfway done. after this we'll never have to think clean another chicken coop in our life!" yoomi flashes her friend a bright smile, trying to keep her spirits up as she swept up all the dirt and poop they had discovered under the bedding.

"yummy." yoomi sarcastically thought as she emptied the last of the dirt into a nearby bin. "okay i think that was the worst of it, let's change all the bedding now and pray that we get a better task tomorrow." she nods, laughing softly as she swiped sweat that was building up on her forehead.

she doubts it — but lili should be thankful for zoe’s optimism. it might be the only thing keeping her hopeful for the rest of the day until the ride home. just a couple more hours and they were home free — at least, this is what lili thought.

lili was not a work with what’s available but god told her beggars could not be choosers — and it is only today that she realizes the truth of those exact words. with a grim smile and a hand to hide it she feigns a dramatic sigh before falling onto zoe’s shoulder, “don’t worry, zoe, once we get back, you’ve got a ginseng chicken soup with your name on it on my dime, i swear it.”

only a couple more hours, she tells herself, and lili is near ready to  buy their whole dormitory soup if she needs to speed up the process. sitting up straight, she raises a brow, genuinely pondering what part of the weekend that she enjoyed — sparingly — there were times here and there she liked, if she truly could get out of her nitpicking ways to admit it. 

“mm,” she thinks for a minute longer because it was genuinely that hard for her to find some part of the weekend she actually found enjoyable — because knowing lili, this weekend was not her top ten — nor top one hundred — best picks of a good time. “spending time with you and jiah, i guess. but like —“ she lowers her voice to a whisper, a hand raised to cover her lips lest their be lip-readers in their midst. “i already hang out with you guys back home and at least there we have cell service.” before dropping her hand. “but i guess the chickens were kinda cute — smelly, but cute. kinda like you.” she laughs before pinching the other’s cheek, “kidding but you definitely did stink after friday.” 

— 🐰 » 

Zoe watched Lili with a mix of amusement and concern, noting the exhaustion etched in her friend's features despite her attempts to maintain a smile. Being on their feet for hours wasn't easy, especially when trying to promote something as seemingly mundane as soap bars at a fair.

"Grace, indeed," Zoe replied, her accent softening with empathy. She could sense Lili's frustration, the subtle strain in her voice as she talked about luck. Zoe leaned more toward believing in hard work, but she understood how luck could sometimes sway things.

Zoe chuckled and shook her head. "Well, you're so right there, but I guess we'll just have to work with what's available. Who knows, maybe we'll be pleasantly surprised today," she said optimistically to Lili's mention of the disappointing food, though she shared her doubts about the culinary offerings.

The mention of ginseng chicken soup brought a wistful smile to Zoe's face. "That does sound amazing," she agreed, imagining the warmth of the soup on a chilly day like today. "But hey, even if the food isn't great, at least we have each other's company," she added, playfully nudging Lili.

Zoe's gaze softened as she looked at her friend, silently offering her support. "Hey, amidst all this chaos, did you manage to enjoy any part of the day?" she asked, genuinely interested in hearing Lili's perspective.

໒꒱ .  TRAINEE MISSION # 16 、INTERVIEW .

lili had never been the spill your guts, vulnerable in front of the camera kind of person.

but she likens this scenario as a part to play. a role she must succeed to in order to get to where she must. and where that place is is where people liked that vulnerable in front of the camera, spill your silly guts kind of crap. 

so, lili does what she can — musters up the silly little guts that would get her somewhat of a good standing and puts on that darling, pretty smile her grandma loves.

WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOMENT FOR TODAY ?

“my favorite? it has to be —” she racks her brain for something memorable that happened today: she had almost fell in chicken shit — it literally was everywhere, it was probably all up in the grooves of her boots — the smell was permanently stuck in her nose no matter what jaekyung had tried, she was tired — lili did not want to revisit such a memory. and yet, here she re-tells the tale like it was some funny comedic sketch that had brought her to her tears in joy and jest. a darling smile brought to her lips even if the only thing she wished to say was that she was thankful that the day was finally over. “getting to see all the cute chickens, we even got to see some eggs hatch in the incubator, it was really cool. i’ve never seen that before.”

HOW DID YOU FEEL ABOUT THE CHALLENGE GIVEN TO YOUR TEAM ?

“hard.” probably the most truthful thing she’ll utter this weekend — and it was only friday. despite grinning and bearing it for what she could, today had really done a number for her. “bearing through the chicken coop was … an experience, i was honestly kind of scared — i thought the chickens would attack us. can you imagine getting chased by a chicken?” she shudders at the horror of the thought, for effect.

WHO DID YOU FEEL YOU GOT CLOSER TO ?

she pauses, thinking about it for a good second. even if most of the day she had stuck herself, like glue, to jiah, lili couldn’t deny that there had been quite a number of trainees she had inadvertently gotten closer to. not that she could help it, in between biting her tongue at the complaints that wished spill from her tongue, she knew the others could tell she was having a hard time and, in the end, was thankful for those who helped to make her dire experience even just a sniff better. “i’d say jaekyung? she even offered her towel to me when she saw that i was struggling.” sure, lili was being a tad bit dramatic but the stench was truly nauseating, the viewers would be glad they’d didn’t see lili hurl.

WHAT WAS ONE LESSON YOU’VE LEARNED FROM THIS EXPERIENCE ?

nothing. lili learned absolutely nothing — she wished to say, but knows that isn’t what they came here for. that that wasn’t what the viewers wanted to hear. so instead, lili works the courage of what a menial, less troublesome, more humble person would think: she knew no one of this manner so she was struggling but she makes do — “that it’s good for all of us to take a moment to slow down and feel the wind in our hair.” something like that, right?

“all the aunties here were super cute, too, maybe their fashion sense here is another lesson to remember.” 

lili had never thought her social battery was one with a limit — but today, it seemed to exist in bursts. teetering on its last legs as she lets zoe’s drawl come in one ear with a nod and a small, passing smile when it goes out the other. it wasn’t that she was tired or anything but there was only so much energy could exert and unfortunately, much of it had been placed on emphasis when for the first time in the last four hours she had finally tried to try her luck in selling these goddamn soap bars that just were not their consumer’s target product today.

soap — she thinks, while sipping on the cup of juice she had snatched up from emi earlier — why had it been soap?

“mm,” she says in reply, setting her cup beside her on the bench. biting her tongue when zoe mentions luck — and sure, maybe the others did have luck on their side. even if the unspoken advantage was a tell-tale sign of it all. 

“grace, huh?”

losing with grace had never been her style but lili liked that that was how it seemed despite everything. 

“i wouldn’t be hyping up the food too much, if it’s anything like yesterday, the food will probably not be to the best expectations.” again, lili was not looking forward to being dressed to her elbows in misplaced vegetable chunks that did not make it onto the cutting board. her heel kicks gently at the ground with a small wry laugh, “you’d think because it’s our last day they’d treat us to a nice meal, i could really go for some ginseng chicken soup.” 

she didn’t want to complain — scratch that, this was lili — all she did was complain. 

♥︎ ╱ ꜱᴜɴᴅᴀʏ - ᴡʜᴏ ᴡᴀɴᴛꜱ ᴊᴜɪᴄᴇ? ⤿ ꜰᴛ. @lgclili

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀♥︎

Zoe leaned back against the weathered wooden bench, relishing a moment of calm amid the bustling marketplace. The frenetic energy of the morning's sales still echoed in her mind, but now, with a satisfied smile, she turned her attention to Lili. She had seen her around Legacy before, so Zoe was grateful to get a chance to talk with her really.

"Can you believe how quickly today flew by? Team Juice really nailed it!" Zoe exclaimed, a glimmer of triumph in her eyes. She felt a swell of pride for their team's success, knowing they had earned a well-deserved break while the other teams took over the cooking duties.

Glancing at Lili, Zoe acknowledged her friend's efforts. "I guess luck was just on our side today," she remarked, reaching for her water bottle to quench her thirst. "But hey, don't stress too much about it. You did fantastic out there, and now we get to enjoy a scrumptious meal thanks to Team Soap Bar!"

Zoe's curiosity got the better of her as they continued chatting over their lunch. "By the way, how was your challenge with selling soap bars?" she asked, genuinely interested in Lili's experience. "I know it was a tough crowd out there, but you always handle it with grace."

any other day, one where the sun wasn’t in her eyes or the wind wasn’t messing up her hair — or where lili wasn’t paranoid that chicken shit had gotten underneath her fingernails — maybe lili would have tickled her competitive bone. but no, apparently that day was not today. and lili knew a losing game when it’s been had and from the get go — soap? was no winning contender in anyone’s book.

it wasn’t as if the people around here went through soaps as quickly as they would water — they couldn’t be that dirty, could they? she sniffs, trying not to appear too miffed by the idea before turning back to emi.

“surprised — why?” she feigns her own little raised brow in confusion, a smile playing on her lips as she looks at the juice cups. her finger dances in the air around them as she tries to choose, “which do you recommend, you’ve been here all day — which has been selling the most?” 

she swore, just when she thought she had legacy figured out, they wanted to throw another curveball-- like sending them out into the country, having them feign for themselves, or at least it felt that way sometimes. really though, all mimi could do was cackle at the different shenanigans they had been put through. it was all in a good fun, and honestly, she hadn't realized how sick of the practice room she was until they were heading far far away from it.

fresh air would do her some good anyway, it had been a rough couple of weeks.

and she liked competing. it was fun, it lit a fire under her, even more so when she realized she was losing. so to say this weekend had been... eventful was an understatement. it was nice to get closer to the trainees and unnies, though.

sometimes, this makes it easier to feel like she fits in.

juice selling was going well, and the team was excited, hushed whispers around their future spoils of vicotry when the voice rings through and emi turns, blinks a bit at lili as she tries to hide her snort. she takes the bill with ease, moving to get change, and gestures to the juices. "take your pick, take your pick. i am a little surprised you wanted to get one from us, though." she admits with a chuckle.

ON ENEMY LINES. soapsuds will never quench her taste buds  —  @lgcxmimi

part of her wonders where the hell was this soap when she was surrounded by nothing but chicken shit. ugh, talk about timing — the stench of the herbal suds were giving her a headache, a migraine, whatever that now seemed to cease the further she got away from the numerous boxes that were currently hoarding the unsold bars. 

what was more aggravating than the overwhelming smell was how unfair the sales were. how the fuck were they supposed to even sell soaps? if these village hicks couldn’t sell it, did they think some city dwellers who spent their days dancing hours on end in the basement could? 

she frowns, they really must have hit the rock bottom of variety television.

chancing upon one of the younger girls, she reaches out with her own bill to them. not caring if she was aiding the ‘enemy’ — she needed a drink, and at least theirs would give her a temporary quench to whatever ailment she was suffering from.

“can i get one?” her head tilts to the jug at the side.

“and it doesn’t bother you at all?” insane. absolute insanity. country folk were definitely built different, lili thinks.

“a bit.” she mumbles, even if she could still smell the horrible stench of chicken poop, it did help a little — enough that lili couldn’t keep herself from winding her arms around the other girl out of gratitude, as if the smallest gesture had somehow warmed lili’s frozen heart in a matter of seconds. 

she wouldn’t call the other her life savior but it was a start, wasn’t it?

she smiles beneath the cloth, a laugh teetering at the tip of her tongue. “what would i have done without you?” probably suffered the rest of the day and then some, but she cuts to the chase. pulling herself off the other girl as she stabilizes her squat and stares into the dirt. “i just wish there was something i could spray into it, though. maybe it would help it.”

[ ♥ ]

jaekyung was a perceptive person. she could tell that some took to their variety location less enthusiastic than others. if she'd been a born city girl, perhaps she'd been the same. however growing up on a farm on the country side equipped her with skills that fortunately lead her to approach this outing with a feeling of nostalgia and joy while breathing through the tasks with an ease only someone familiar with the tasks could portray.

"I'm used to it," she thus tells lili as the girl falls down into a crouch beside her. exhibit a of classic city girl. "I grew up on a farm. so this isn't anything new for me," the girl continues to reason with a grin on her lips.

she did however take pity on the poor female who was obviously having a bad time. not wanting her to receive potential bad feedback from the moment this went live, jaekyung decided to help her out. "come here. I have an idea." taking her gloves off she made use of the towel that hung close by, sure to do a quick sniff test before she tied it in a way that would allow lili's nose to remain covered and hopefully kill some of the smell. "better?"

appalling.

lili could only look even more worse for wear as jiah remarks on these pink gloves that lili does not even remember being offered to her — she feels her jaw go slack. “and you didn’t think to even offer me a pair? you traitor.” she wrinkles her nose, using the water from the faucet to flick some drops onto her roommate from the side before finally turning off the faucet. grabbing one of the spare kitchen towels, she dries her hands before turning to the other with another look of disbelief.

“don’t even joke — if you come into our room smelling like garlic, you’re going to sleep on the couch.” her hip bumps into the other’s before turning to glance at one of the older ladies who had accompanied them into the kitchen, turning to jiah when the woman begins to dictate to them about the meal plans. and while lili prided herself when it came to learning korean in such a short span of time — the woman’s accent was definitely interfering with lili’s comprehension. 

“what did she say?” lili asks when the older woman finally leaves them, again. 

Jiah is having a blast. It feels refreshing to go to the countryside and be surrounded by nothingness and the elderly who seem to like her well enough despite just meeting her for the first time. It's just like when Jiah and Jino visited their grandparents, and the neighborhood association doted on them for being one of the few young people around there. She feels at home.

The same can't be said about Lili, whom Jiah likes dearly, but also thinks it's so entertaining how she isn't fit for the environment they are in. Of course, one can learn to adapt, but they'll be around only for three days, and Lili doesn't look like someone who's enjoying themselves. It's a shame, but it's also kind of funny. Jiah doesn't even have the good sense to hide her smile when Lili addresses her. She just raises an eyebrow at her friend and checks her hands for any signs of dirt. "I used the gloves they had available, Lils. You know, the bright pink ones. How did you miss that, love?" To Lili's credit, being in a big group and having cameras on them doesn't make this any easier. Jiah was lucky that one of the ladies they were working with liked her enough to remind her to put the gloves on.

"I seriously hope I don't because the food would taste awful, but if they ask me to, I will have to, no? I mean, it could be fun. I could smell like garlic for the next two weeks. Who knows?"

CHEF BOY ARE WE FUCKED. where lili is no chef and @jiahlgc knows.

lili could feel it in her bones: exhaustion.

and it wasn’t even the good type of exhaustion — the one you usually get after a good dance practice, or after a hot stone massage. no — it was the one where every part of your body ached, even just moving a finger seemed to hurt. she frowns, pulling on the tap to turn on the hot water, ready to scrub her hands raw — as if doing that would clean them well enough to do their next task: cooking.

ugh, it never seemed to end, did it?

were they supposed to be variety stars or manual laborers?

“ugh, my fingernails are filthy.” lili mutters, more to herself than to anyone really. though, it doesn’t really hurt that the only one in earshot happens to be her roommate, who she is sure is already used to lili’s dramatics — if one could call it that.

her eyes pass from where she was currently brushing, hard, at her fingertips to jiah’s pretty manicure. “how’d you clean your nails so fast?” 

and then, after a long pause, with a hint of disbelief at the sight of her roommate: “— wait, you’re not seriously going to cook are you?”

two girls, one chicken coop  —  @lgcjaekyung

lili is no countryside girl.

she doesn’t even remember a time where she had voluntarily stepped out of the city — let alone, wanted to do so. pray tell, why would she want to leave the comforts and efficiency of a concrete jungle for the — pardon her ick — hovel that was the rural village they had currently been dropped in.

even though she was grinning and trying to bear it — the feigned laughs and smiles were starting to create an ache in her cheeks and make her voice hoarse — the smell was atrocious and lili was in dire need of an evian spritz or a d-air diffuser, stat.

was she starting to feel faint — she could feel herself waning.

then she stumbles, barely catching herself before she almost falls face-first into the dirt that she isn’t sure is just dirt or a mix of the compost and chicken poop that littered the area. fuck, even the rubber boats they had given her were falling apart from the smell — or so she thinks. 

she groans, immediately falling to a crouch beside a girl — was it jae … something … jane? june? jake? — all but a heap of defeat as she tries to muster a grin despite the stench strangling her nose out of her senses. “how are you able to do this — isn’t the smell killing you?” she whispers, honestly in awe at the other. lili may be in the worst mood ever but she had to give her appreciation where it was due. she sniffs, once — twice, trying to find a way to rid herself of the stink.