Syncing Dream [Aespa x M!Reader]

1. New life...as what now?

It had been years since Y/n left the relentless grind of trainee life behind him. It was a chapter he thought they'd never revisit—especially not from the outside looking in.

His new life had a quieter rhythm.

No more sprinting to dance practices or losing sleep memorising lyrics. Instead, Y/n had been picking up odd jobs in the entertainment industry—small gigs, freelance work, and most recently, running errands for people still in the idol bubble. Heck, he even finished his mandatory services the moment he left his early days.

Y/n stretched, basking in a rare moment of peace as he sat in a quiet café. The iced Americano sweating in front of him was untouched, but that wasn't a surprise.

He weren't really there to drink coffee. More like he was trying to figure out what came next. The timeframe of unemployment is real...

Sure, there were opportunities, but nothing that screamed "this is it!"

Just as his thoughts began to drift into existential territory, their phone buzzed on the table.

"SM CEO."

Y/n's brow furrowed. SM? What could they possibly want? He hadn't stepped foot in that building since—

No time to dwell. He swiped to answer.

"Hello, sir?"

A crisp, professional voice on the other end greeted them, and Y/n immediately recognized it—the CEO he occasionally met during their trainee days. "Y/n, it's been a while."

Y/n nodded, as if the person on the phone could see them. "Good morning sir. What's up?"

"Ah, nothing too stressful. I just want to ask how would you feel about rejoining the team—"

Y/n's heart skipped a beat. "Wait, wait, wait," he interrupted, half-joking, half-anxious. "With all due respect, you're not trying to re-sign me as a trainee, are you? I don't think my back can handle another round of choreography."

The voice chuckled lightly. "No, no. Not as a trainee. We actually have a bit of a different proposition for you. It's related to aespa."

"aespa?" That name hit Y/n like a sudden gust of wind.

aespa. The super rookies who had been making waves all over the industry and one of the biggest girl groups leading the 4th generation of K-pop.

And Winter... his mind went there instinctively.

While they still regularly talked to each other, he remembered he was adamant about leaving his past trainee life behind and pursue blue collar jobs. Winter was someone Y/n had trained alongside before she debuted.

Y/n felt a pang of nostalgia—mixed with a little guilt. He didn't want to be a disappointment to his childhood friend. "what about them?"

-

"Wait, hold up... what?"

The words felt stuck in Y/n's throat, awkwardly lodged between disbelief and mild panic. The fluorescent lights above the SM CEO's office flickered softly, adding to the sense of surrealistic reality. Y/n's palms felt clammy as the director continued with that calm, almost amused smile, the kind that said, "Welcome to the deep end of the pool—good luck swimming."

"You're going to manage aespa," the director said again, this time like he was offering Y/n a cup of coffee, not rearranging his entire life.

Y/n blinked, their mind working overtime to piece together what was just said. "Manage... as in... manage manage?" He tried to keep their voice steady, but the end of the sentence squeaked out a little too much. It didn't help that the director just nodded, nonchalant as ever.