✓ odds.

nine

bottom of the ocean — golden child || 3:11
feels like i'm lost in sea

— 🎶

a few months passed with talks, jihoon and soonyoung growing closer than before as the gossip slowly arose but didn't bother soonyoung. in fact, it was like he didn't care about them whenever he was with the young producer.

currently, it was the winter break, but getting an email by one of the teachers here gave hard-working students like jihoon a heart attack.

"you want me to do what?" jihoon asked the teacher who just smiled, repeating his words to the boy who was frozen in his seat.
"just a three minute performance for the annual school festival after the summer break, with anyone in this school or out of the school." it was only december now, why after the summer break, that's like.. in six months.
enough time to prepare everything just for a three minute performance with whoever he picks.

"anyone?" woozi uttered, bumzu nodded as he gave the list of songs. and just like jihoon guessed, it was all divided by girl groups and boy groups, the songs listing from the years twenty-sixteen to twenty-seventeen.
jihoon grabbed the piece of paper with bumzu's handwritten songs from five different girl groups, five songs from five different boy groups and an option to create a whole different song.

jihoon decided to pick a song from the girl group section, aside from the groups, there was a song that his own cousin sang in as he scanned through the songs available.
immediately standing up from his chair and exiting through the door in style, he fished out his phone and searched for his close cousin's name.

"pick up, pick up, pick up.. goddamn it, is she still asleep?" he uttered, impatient running down his body as he waited to not hear the long ringing sound of his phone and awaited for the voice of his cousin.

"what the fuck did you call me for jihoon.. it's like ten in the morning, give me a break until like next year." hyejin answered, her morning voice entering the call with her younger cousin.
"look hwasa, i just need help."
"with what?" her voice peaked up, genuinely interested in what jihoon wanted help with, since he never asked for help ever.

"i have to ask more than—" he reads the number of people needed, "five people to sing this song with me, now pick a song from either your group or a song from girls' generation."

"obviously, our group," she answered with pride and felt proud that her own group made it into the selected list.
"okay, then, could you meet me in school in like an hour?"
"yeah sure, gives me enough time to prepare, i'll see you soon hoon,"

• • •

arriving at the university with her mask and a cap to cover up that she was an idol, she waited for her cousin and internally cursed at the fact that his school-mates loved staring at the obvious-idol called hwasa. even the mask or cap or even glasses could cover up her privacy.

sometimes, fans just love finding out personal information. to the point she couldn't have a normal outing with her close cousin, and speaking of cousins.
"hyejin," jihoon called out, immediately pulling her by her wrist and entering the practice room.

"uh.. jihoon.." hwasa pointed out the boy with his blonde hair staring at the two.
"soonyoung, hello.." jihoon's voice decreased as he noticed the boy's eyes lingering on his hand. jihoon mouthed cousin and soonyoung understood.

"you can use the practice room, i was just about to leave-"
"no wait, you can stay." that questions both the idol and the dance major.
"he can.. stay..?" hyejin, or known as the vocalist of mamamoo and pro mukbang eater, hwasa, questioned her cousin who made both of them sit down on the polished wooden floor of the university's own dance room.

jihoon placed the piece of paper with a few dents and crumpled edges on the floor as and shows hwasa the song selection.
it was mamamoo's décalcomanie.

"this song?" hwasa questioned, her finger tracing on the handwriting from bumzu as soonyoung used his phone to search the song and saving it to his watch later to listen.
"décalcomanie's a bit like- a little strong with vocals during the chorus," she takes the pencil from jihoon's grasp and starts to write before the chorus that it needed to be sang in a strong voice who could handle singing in a way.

the lyric paper was brought by hyejin as she somehow saved all lyrics in her phone and made sure that jihoon printed the lyric paper before discussing.
"or i could just.. ask my friend group for help with the amount of people performing,"
"lee jihoon, i'm literally talking about the lyrics, not the members."
"ahn hyejin, i'm thinking, let me think."
"lee jihoon, you called me here???"
"shush,"

jihoon had it planned out actually.
in his head, it could work.

"hoon, what are you thinking?"
"give me like two weeks to gather our members, and make sure we have a choreography by that time." jihoon spoke, determined to make this performance work as soonyoung felt his ears burn once he heard the words our and we.

"yep, got it hoonie,"
i'm a third wheel, aren't i, hyejin thought as she continuously blinked at the two in-front of her.
"nice.. i should get going now. bye jihoon, text me later or in the next year, i don't really know, bye lovebirds."