Minji x Reader x Hanni

ｃｈａｐｔｅｒ ｔｈｒｅｅ

"What are you doing?" Minji asks, her penetrating gaze fixing onto your gradually opening eyes. She sits there, expectantly awaiting a reply, her fingers poised on the strings of her acoustic guitar. Her bare face and annoyed expression say a lot. An early morning for her too, probably.

"Uh–" you attempt to clear your throat, trying to shake off the lingering drowsiness. "Hey.. Minji."

"Did you not get any sleep last night?"

Barely. How could you sleep when you need to make sure you're awake before people arrive for work.

"I did. Just enjoying the comfort is all."

She shoots you a skeptical look but decides it's not worth her time and resumes tuning her guitar.

You slowly sit up, rubbing your eyes as the room comes into focus. The rest of the group is here too. Danielle and Haerin warm up their vocals, while Hyein appears to be doing schoolwork, with Hanni assisting her. They're all sitting on a couch, up against a plastered gray wall, a few feet away from a complicated collection of studio equipment and computer screens. The entire studio feels much busier than yesterday, buzzing with activity and noise.

And in the midst of it all is Minji. You watch as she meticulously adjusts the tuning pegs before plucking a note, cringing at its slightly off-key sound. The process repeats: twist, strum, twist, strum... until her face finally reveals a subtle hint of satisfaction when it finally sounds right.

"What?" Her tone is passive aggressive, with irritation creeping in as she notices your gaze. The tension between you lingers.

"Y/n," Hanni calls out, now sitting in front of a huge mastering console. She beckons you with a wave of her hand, saving you from having to defend yourself.

"Sorry," you mutter apologetically to Minji as you rise from your seat and walk towards Hanni. You can't help but glance back at Minji who continues to fixate on you with an intense stare. It's becoming increasingly clear that she really doesn't like you...

You slump down into the chair beside Hanni. "Minji's annoyed with me again, I think."

Hanni can't help but try to hold a chuckle. "Don't tell her I said this, but..." she leans in and whispers, "She overslept today and didn't have time for breakfast."

Your response was anything but composed. You stumbled over your words, clearly taken aback by her sudden closeness. "Hah, n-no way," you managed to stammer out, your cheeks coloring slightly.

"Shoot. Sorry about that," Hanni quickly scoots back. The awkwardness lingers in the air, but is shattered as you both burst into laughter.

"..Ahem,"

You both turn around to Minji, but she's not looking, instead fixed upon a man stationed in front of an impressive array of computer monitors. The room is hushed into silence, which she breaks with authority. "Record the booth."

With the headphones snugly on, Minji begins her performance, guided by the steady click of the metronome counting her in. Her ethereal voice cascades, seamlessly intertwining with the melody that emanates from the surrounding speakers. Everyone's attention is drawn to her as they watch, absolutely captivated, through the glass separating the studio from the control room. Minji remains completely absorbed in her music, eyes closed and blissfully unaware.

As the music envelops the room, one of the audio engineers exchanges words in Korean to Hanni. "You've worked in a studio before?" She turns to ask for your assistance, but is also surprised herself.

"Yeah.."

Admittedly, you weren't a professional or anything– but you'd never say that out loud. In your previous stint working with that other group, you would help out with the bare minimum, spending most of the time lazing about. It's different now, you're in the same room as the idols. No longer are you just making demos and sending it off to some big name producer for them to label it as their own. This time, there's nowhere to hide.