CHAPTER 69
"Welcome back to the X Factor! The result lines are closed and the results are in! It's time to find out who is safe and who is not! Let's welcome back the judges and their acts! Firstly, Tulisa and the girls… Lucy, Ella and Jade!"
The four ladies walked on stage together, hand in hand, and stood at the far left corner of the stage.
"Louis and the over 28s! Melanie, Christopher and Kye!"
The four of them marched on stage like they were about to be sentenced to an execution or something.
"Simon and the groups! One Direction! Little Mix! And MK1!"
12 people walked on stage together - Finn and the 5 members of One Direction, 4 members of Little Mix and 2 members of MK1.
"And finally, Nicole and the boys! Jahmene, Rylan and Matt."
The four of them stood at the center of the stage amongst the other competitors, awaiting their fate.
"Ok, the public have voted, and I'm about to reveal the 10 acts that are safe from elimination and are definitely going through to next week's show. Good luck to everyone!"
Tension was palpable, and pretty much everyone on the stage was trembling with anxiety and anticipation.
"In no particular order, the first act returning next week is… Kye!"
Kye leapt in the air with joy and hugged Louis - his mentor. Kye then walked to the side of the stage, where he watched and waited to see who else was through. All of the mentors and contestants politely clapped although inside, they were getting more and more worried. There were now just 9 spots left.
"Also through to next week's show is… One Direction!"
"Let's go!" The boys shouted, overwhelmed by the fact that they were going through. The boys all pulled each other into a group hug, and then walked to the other side of the stage to join Kye. names started to come faster and faster.
"Little Mix!"
"Ella!"
"Lucy!"
"MK1!"
"Jahmene!"
"Jade!"
"Matt!"
There were three people left on stage - Rylan, Christopher and Melanie - and everyone knew that Christopher was probably going to be the final safe act, leaving Rylan and Melanie to battle it out. Not great odds for Rylan - he was going up against one of the strongest voices in the competition. The only reason why Melanie didn't receive too many votes is that she didn't really connect with a certain age group or gender in the competition, but that wouldn't be an issue when the judges voted for who goes home. Sure enough, the final name was read a moment later, and it was…
"Christopher!"
Christopher celebrated, but everyone was thinking and debating about who was going to win the upcoming showdown with Rylan vs Melanie.
"After the break, Rylan is going to take Melanie in the final showdown. Then, they're going to be at the mercy of our 4 judges." Dermott said.
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"Back to the X Factor results show. A couple of minutes ago, we found out that Melanie is going to be taking on Rylan. They will each be singing a song that they believe will keep them safe in the competition. Then, it's over to the judges to decide their fate. So, please welcome back Melanie and Rylan!"
Rylan and Melanie walked on stage together, and the crowd shouted the name of their favourite. Rylan was the fan favourite, but at the end of the day, this time, it doesn't come down to fans.
"Rylan will be singing first. Melanie come and join me please." Dermott said from the side of the stage, and Melanie quickly joined him. "Nicole, please introduce your act." Dermott asked.
"I can't believe that he's in the bottom two. I believe in him, I love him, I know he's going to sing his heart out right now. This is the gorgeous, fearless Rylan Clark!"
You want all my love and my devotion
You want my love and soul, right on the line
I have no doubt that I could love you, forever
The only trouble is, you really don't have the time
You've got one night only, one night only
That's all you have to spare
One night only
Let's not pretend to care
One night only, one night only
Come on, big baby, come on
One night only
We only have 'til dawn
In the morning this feeling will be gone
It has no chance going on
Something so right has got no chance to live
So let's forget about chances, it's one night I will give
One night only, one night only
You'll be the only one
One night only
Then you have to run
One night only, one night only
There's nothing more to say
One night only
Words get in the way
One night only
One night only
One night only...
Although Rylan's voice wasn't the greatest, as it was established from the very beginning of the competition, he made up for it in enthusiasm and flair. Rylan was probably the best 'performer' out of all of them, even if he wasn't the best singer.
After Rylan finished singing, he bowed.
"Well done, Rylan!" Dermott said. "Melanie, please take your place."
Melanie and Rylan switched places so Melanie was by the mic and Rylan was at the side of the stage.
"Louis, introduce your act please." Dermott asked. Louis nodded.
"I'm devastated to be saying this. Please welcome back the supremely talented Melanie Masson."
(originally by Lorraine Ellison)
(from "The Boat That Rocked" soundtrack)
Where did you go, when things went wrong, baby
Who did u run to; find a shoulder to lay your head upon
Ooh wasn't I there, didn't I take good care of you
Oh no can't believe, your leaving me
Stay, Stay With Me Baby,
Stay With Me Baby,
Please Stay With Me Babe,
I can't go on
Where did you go, in search of tenderness?
Didn't I give you everything in return for a memory?
Ooh wasn't I there, baby I, maybe I was too good for you
Oh no can't believe, your leaving me
Stay, Stay With Me Baby,
Stay With Me Baby,
Please Stay With Me Babe,
I can't go on
Oh remember, you said you'd never leave me
Oh remember, you said you would always need me
Remember, Remember
I'm asking you, begging you, begging you
Ooh Stay with Me Babe,
Please Stay With Me Baby,
Oh please stay with me babe
I just can't go on
No stay, stay
I'll stay, stay, so don't go
Stay with me babe
You know I Can't go on, can't go on
Can't so, can't so stay please, stay
"Well done Rylan and Melanie. So, they have done everything they can, but only one of them can return to sing again next week." Dermott said. "One of them will be leaving the competition tonight. That decision is in the hands of Louis, Tulisa, Simon and Nicole. I'm going to ask each of them who they want to send home tonight. In the event of a tie, we revert to deadlock, where we revert to the public vote. Judges, it's time to judge. Nicole, coming to you first. The name of the act you're sending home."
"Melanie, you are a beautiful and effortless singer and I respect your style, but obviously I have to stick with my boy because I do believe in him. So the act I'm sending home is Melanie."
"Louis, coming to you next. The name of the act you're sending home."
"Melanie, thank god you got to sing like that because that makes this decision incredibly easy for us judges. Rylan, I'm glad you learnt the trick that if you pull the microphone away, we don't hear your awful singing..."
Wow, that was harsh! The contestants watched from backstage. Although Finn and the boys had nothing against Melanie, they all wanted Rylan to win as he was a lot more entertaining. However, by the looks of things so far, Rylan was probably going to be the one going home.
"I'm truly happy to say that the act I'm sending home is Rylan." Louis finished.
1-1, and two judges left.
"Tulisa, coming to you next. The name of the act you're sending home."
"The truth of the matter is that I absolutely love Rylan as a performer and as an entertainer. Every time he steps on stage, I am entertained. And with Melanie, I think she has an amazing voice, and the reason she's in the bottom is because there's so many other amazing voices in this competition. But at the end of the day, this is a singing competition so, and it truly pains me to say this, the act I'm sending home is Rylan."
"Ok Simon. Here's the situation… if you opt to send Rylan home, he goes home. If you go with Melanie, we go to a deadlock." Dermott said, turning to Louis.
"Melanie, I love your voice, and I love watching you sing. You've sung your heart out. Rylan, you're the entertainment factor. This is so hard. Um… the act I'm sending home is… this is really difficult! I love Melanie's voice, but I love watching Rylan entertain us! Um… I want to take it to a deadlock!"
"So, two votes each. We're going to a deadlock." Dermott announced. Louis turned to Simon, pissed.
"Why, Simon, why?" He snapped. Simon shrugged.
"I had to. I couldn't choose." He said, and Louis scowled and turned back to face the stage.
"So…" Dermott said. "The judges have failed to reach a majority verdict so they've lost their power to decide. We'll now revert to the earlier public vote. The one with the fewest votes will be going home."
Dermot opened the envelope and read the name inside.
"OK, Rylan, Melanie, this is it. The act who received the fewest votes and will be leaving the competition is… Melanie!"
As soon as Louis heard the name, he got up and walked off stage in an angry huff. He pushed the cameras away from him as he stormed into his dressing room. Melanie, however, handled her defeat with much, much more dignity. Her and Rylan hugged, and she waved at the audience before walking off stage with Rylan.
Rylan was through! Finn was sad that a great artist like Melanie was out of the competition, but he was really happy that Rylan was still in the running. When Rylan appeared in the greenroom, everyone walked over and hugged him. They knew how crappy Rylan must have been feeling, but there was no time to dwell on the past. In less than 6 days, they were back on the stage singing their Week 2 song. Just before the night came to a close, the second theme was revealed… Love and Heartbreak.
So many options! Literally 99% of songs in the world were written about those two very things. That night, after a small celebration with the other contestants, and a long call with Caitlin, Barry and Cisco who had just watched the show and wanted to congratulate him, Finn fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow, different love and heartbreak songs rushing through his head like rapids…
