OPEN YOUR EYES (BLIND I) - MUSIQ SERIES PART 2

75. LIVE THE LIFE YOU TRULY WANT

Despite Heejin's efforts, as soon as the cameras stopped filming and the fans left, Onyx's mood was so down that they did not even want to talk to each other. Sapphire was celebrating their victory and thinking about how they wanted that last task to look like already, but they were just sitting in a corner backstage after changing into more comfortable clothes. Alix, Lin, Soojin, Minho, Hyunjin and Felix were there along with the mentors and C1K, but they did not want to talk to them either. They would recover soon and get to work, but they needed time to reflect on what had happened.

"My beautiful lady~" Duyi said in a sing-song voice and sat down beside Juiyu, pulling her on a side hug. "Do you want to have some hot chocolate with me?"

"I appreciate the effort, but stop trying," Juiyu told him, hugging him back. "I just need some time off."

"A for effort, though?" he said playfully, hoping to at least make her smile faintly, which he managed.

"Yes, A for effort."

They did not even know why they were reacting to the news like that. On other tasks they had not cared as much, but that day it felt too real. It felt like the final when it was not, and they still had road ahead. Nothing was settled in stone, but the announcement just hit them too hard. Jisoo's voice announcing Sapphire had won had engrained in their minds and they could not get it off.

"Heejin!" Iku called her excitedly and approached her. "We already have so many ideas for the song for the final task! Can we tell you about them?"

"What? Oh! Y-yes-?" Heejin answered, very clearly startled.

"Sorry, Iku, but perhaps you can tell her in another moment?" Alix said, approaching them as she had heard Iku. "Right now isn't the right moment."

"O-oh! Yes, sure... I'll tell you at the dorms, then!" Iku said with a smile and left with the rest of her team.

"I get that they just won, but can they not see it's not the moment?" Eunae scoffed. "Seriously, I'd like to see them if they were the ones losing."

"Eunae, calm down," Heejin warned her. "They have the right to be excited just like we have the right to be mad."

"Although that is true, I think I must side with Eunae this time," Alix said. "You did them the favour of putting time aside to prepare their song and this definitely is not the time to talk about the next one, especially since I don't think they asked you if you would do it and just assumed."

They indeed had not asked her, but Heejin also assumed she would be the one making it because whenever they needed someone to make a song they always went to her unless they explicitly said otherwise. Making «Eleven» had definitely made her lose practice time, but she did it to help. Then again, none of them had said more than a small thank you the day she showed them the song.

"Heejin, their budget includes composers too, you know? You don't need to do it, even if it's just to help them. We are talking about the final this time, and every single minute of practice counts," Alix told her and turned to the side to see if anyone was recording them, which they were. "Look, they are filming us now, so everyone will know I'm the one who told you this and it wasn't your idea, so don't worry about it."

But how could she not? They were going against each other, but to her they were still her friends and she wanted to help them with what she could.

"I'll do it," Axel said as he approached them. "I'll make their song. I worked with Heejin on «Eleven» and know more or less their styles, so I can do it."

"But they are meant to hire a composer, Axel," Alix reminded him.

"I don't mind getting paid, if that's what you are telling me," he joked, finally making the girls crack a laugh. "I'll do it, seriously. We will only be performing «Anyone» in a couple of music shows, so I have more than enough time to do it."