to say she wasn't nervous would be a lie. niko felt she was bordering on the verge of panic as she rode the elevator up to the 16th floor, where all the meetings took place. at least the receptionist had been sweet—she'd even complimented niko's freshly pressed coal-gray pantsuit, courtesy of kay.

the doors dinged before opening, and niko sucked in a deep breath before stepping through. she'd been instructed to go to room 36 to meet with "mr. kim", who she assumed would be conducting the majority of the interview.

when she reached the room, niko gave two sharp knocks before poking her head into the room, careful not to chip her freshly shaped and styled nails. the room was larger than she expected it to be, large enough to fit a full conference table, along with a comfy couch set up, and a giant, wooden desk in front of the wall of windows directly across from the door.

niko clamped her open mouth shut when she spotted a man seated at the said desk, looking up at her with an amused smile. the girl instantly cleared her throat and straightened her shoulders as she stepped into the room, offering him an impressed eyebrow raise in return.

"this is quite the setup you've got," she tried, pursing her lips before fixing her jacket and taking a step toward the man. "i'm niko tsukina. here for the interview?"

the man smiled, not as intimidatingly this time. "ah, yes. kim junmyeon." he offered her his hand. "it's nice to finally meet you."

niko took his outstretched hand and gave it a firm squeeze as she shook it, showing him that she wasn't going to be a pushover. she'd dealt with his lawyers, she knew how they liked to play here. "you as well." he looked young, too young to be the ceo of, well, anything.

there was another knock on the door, and both niko and mr. kim looked up to see a head of fiery red hair. lee taeyong, the girl quickly guessed. when taeyong spotted them both, he instantly smiled and strolled right into the room as if he'd just walked in on an old friend reunion. "boss! i see you've met miss tsukina."

mr. kim chuckled at the boy's enthusiasm and released niko's hand, folding his own behind his back. "yes. and it seems you have, as well."

"not in person," the girl interrupted swiftly, lifting her chin as she scanned the bassist in person. "you're taller than i thought you'd be."

the boy's face instantly dropped, and his reaction caused mr. kim to burst into a sudden fit of laughter. "i think you'll fit right in, miss tsukina!"

"do i look short..?"

a few minutes passed before the three found themselves seated in the comfy couch area, waiting for the other members to arrive. jeno appeared a little after taeyong, introducing himself to niko, and yuta was running late. haechan wouldn't be able to make it due to a photo shoot scheduling conflict, and mark was—

"sorry, i'm late!" a frantic, familiar voice shouted. niko went frigid, frozen in place.

looking up, she forgot how to breathe.

he was staring down at her from his spot in the doorway—large, obsidian eyes holding her captive as he searched every inch of her face. his lips were slightly parted in shock, clearly wanting to speak but unable to make a sound. they hadn't seen each other in person since high school.

niko found it funny how he looked exactly the same as he had when she knew him, despite how his features matured. he was taller now, buffer in build with sharper angles to his face. she'd noticed in posters and on television, but being this close to him felt entirely different.

"mark, please take a seat." mr. kim greeted as he gestured toward an open chair next to the drummer. niko tried to control her breathing, taking slow, shallow inhales as she did everything in her power to avert the eyes of the boy from her past.

the sudden silence that fell on the group came unexpectedly, catching the fellow vybe members off-guard. it was taeyong who tried to break it, clearing his throat as he said, "well... this is quite the reunion!"

it felt like an eternity of silent studying was happening between them, as if no one else in the room existed. niko failed in her attempt to keep her gaze off of the boy with bright turquoise hair and was now unable to look away.

"so, niko. tell us about yourself. where did you graduate?"

"i..." niko cleared her throat as she tore her eyes from mark, blinking rapidly in an attempt to keep herself calm. "i actually dropped out of university to work. i couldn't afford to do both anymore and needed to take care of my sister. but i was studying to become a producer."

"a producer!" mr. kim exclaimed, a bright smile spreading across his face. "so you have experience! what made you want to apply for this lyricist position?"

niko's stomach twisted violently. she couldn't throw mark under the bridge due to the fact that she might lose this job entirely, but if it was ever found out that he was benefiting her, she wouldn't think twice. "i, um, i write a lot." she pulled her lip between her teeth to stop it from shaking as she reached into her bag and revealed a book so old and fill that it was splitting at the seams. "here. my work."

she didn't have to turn to know that the color had drained from mark's face, but niko wasn't stupid. she made sure that none of the stolen lyrics were there, because even though they were hers, she doubted mr. kim would believe her after one introduction.

before she could forget, niko pulled her phone out as mr. kim flipped through the book, haechan and jeno looking over his shoulders to read the work. "i have a demo for a song," she swallowed hard. "1999."

her heart was beating so loud in her ears that niko almost didn't hear taeyong say, "let's hear it! these lyrics are amazing, ms. tsukina." niko showed him a brief, thankful smile, but didn't speak anymore.

"were you born in 1999?" a voice suddenly asked, and niko looked up to see one of the members, haechan, looking at her expectingly. hesitating, niko nodded. "wow, you and mark can be same-age friends!"

niko knew he meant well, but she felt nauseous. she thought back to high school when she had a best friend. a best friend with thick glasses and a stupid cowlick that would not go down no matter how hard he tried or how much product he applied. a best friend who she believed would never hurt her.

a best friend who no longer existed.

the girl was brought back to reality when her song started playing. it wasn't much, just a beat she'd produced with her guitar, but it was enough. mr. kim tried to keep a blank expression, but the others looked impressed.

niko realized then that she was so focused on mark that she didn't even realize they'd started without all the members. yuta; she remembered him from gaeul's wall. she'd have to wait until he arrives to leave, and her fingers were already trembling.

"you said i fucked up and ruined your life," niko squeezed her hands into fists as she listened to her own voice over the recording. "but little did you know you ruined mine."

she looked up without meaning to, his gaze too intense to avoid. mark was staring at her, watching her face for any movement or expression. she couldn't look away, even as her eyes began filling to the brim with pained tears.

"nik—"

the girl was on her feet in a flash, spinning toward the door and forcing it open with her shaky hands.

"niko, wait!" she heard him call from the room as she hurried down the hall, doing her best not to run and gain any more attention from any potential onlookers.

squeezing her eyes shut, niko continued forward wordlessly. she didn't look back, not when mark called her name, not when taeyong scolded the said boy, not even when mr. kim expressed his concern about what the strain on their relationship would mean for their future work.

there was no relationship. and now, because of her, there'd likely be no future work.

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