There was a stiff pause.

"Ah," whoever had just entered finally made some kind of noise, "I thought I entered room 3? Am I in the right room?" Their shoes squeaked against the floor as the door clicked open, the person seemingly checking the number again. 

My head tilted in thought; a vague familiarity tugged on my mind.

I think I heard this voice before.

"Yuriy Itov?" The mystery supervisor interrupted Bai Yul's impending anger, revealing himself to be a middle-aged man as he heavily turned and draped himself over the back of the couch. His countenance looked...rough, in all the most literal meanings the word could have: sharp cheekbones, blunt chin, coarse skin, straight features. I couldn't find a hint of softness no matter how much I searched. 

Yuriy? I really recognized his voice? I didn't hear him speak much that time I saw him, though.

Only then did I tentatively turn my head, examining the newest stranger. Sure enough, a recognizable visage graced my vision, the manbun-wearing guy carrying a slight grin. It lost to Augustus's perfect smile, though; where the golden boy showed charm, Yuriy showed slyness. 

"Yes, that's me. Thanks for letting me join last-minute, Supervisor Ingram." Yuriy took a few quick steps forward, stretching a hand out towards the man on the couch. 

Supervisor Ingram looked at it for a moment, barely glancing up at Yuriy before slowly angling away, heaving a reverberating sigh and pushing himself up off the couch. 

"I didn't do it for you. Whether the team leader kicks you out later or not is on you."

"I'm aware."

Yuriy's untouched hand casually returned to his side, but not a hint of awkwardness could be seen on his face. The sly guy's small grin didn't wane, either.

We silently watched Mr. Supervisor rise to his moderate height, half-heartedly dusting his wrinkled white lab coat with a single swipe. 

He should be giving his formal introduction now.

"Right, well, I'm sure you all got the email. You know who I am." The man's pale eyes darted across us. He then gave a weak shrug and a nod, making his way towards the door. "I'll be back for your next meeting."

The door clicked shut behind him, his footsteps echoing across the corridor outside and fading away. The room plunged back into silence.  

I was too surprised to even comment internally.

Bai Yul seemed to awaken first, jerking forward in his seat, "Yuri-!"

Yuriy easily cut him off.

"Yohan Irwan, hello. I'm honored to be on your team! We're the green team, I believe - it's a great color!"

Oh, I finally learned my team's color. Green...That's not a primary color.

I frowned at the sudden thought. 

Since when have I been interested in color theory?

I couldn't help it when my eyes slid towards Yuriy. 

The recently reanimated scritching briefly stopped, Yohan's pen stilling. 

"Is that so?"

"Of course!" Yuriy bent his knees, leaning a bit closer to the masked guy. "You're quite popular, as I'm sure you're aware."

His smile was unchanged, his expression eager; his mannerisms were convincing

Is that why his voice is familiar?

I glanced at the eccentric.

Had he overheard that day?

"I see," Yohan made a lukewarm sound of acknowledgment, his pen scratching against the paper once again. The sly guy at his side continued watching him, although the more I observed Yuriy's brown eyes, the more...scrutinizing they seemed. 

I blinked, and the look disappeared as the student lightly hit the table twice, speaking in a happy tone. 

"Well, I am looking forward to working with you!" His brows rose as his gaze shifted towards the black-haired woman, the man gracefully stepping around Yohan's chair to approach her. "And you must be Milana Kinlissan, no?"

The villainess put her phone down a second later, leaning back into her chair and fixing a long, shiny earring. Her ornate hair accessory glinted at the movement. 

"You are very well-informed." 

Yuiry laughed, but he didn't deny.

"It's just hard not to recognize you, Miss Kinlissan."

"And what makes you say that?"

Is she genuinely curious? No - she must be gauging him. It's a test, isn't it? 

I accidentally glanced at the guy sitting to my left; Bai Yul was examining the scene with flat brows, but his mouth was pulled down into a noticeable grimace. 

"'A refined raven-haired student with impeccable style: Milana' - it can only be you!" 

Milana lifted her chin, her nose crinkling as she smiled proudly. 

"Indeed, it can only be me." 

...She was looking for praise. 

My head unconsciously dropped as I rested it on a propped-up hand. I tried not to stiffen in the next second when Yuriy's eyes landed on me, subtly skimming past the pale ring on my right pinky.

"And you are...?"

"Shion Maliki."

He seemed to think for a moment, then nodded, not sparing me another look as he walked back around Yohan to sit at his side. It was only then that I realized that Yuriy hadn't once looked at the bespectacled student at his right since he had entered. It was as if he was-

"Are you ignoring me?" Bai Yul sneered. 

"Are you worth my attention?" Yuriy smiled. 

Bai Yul leaped to his feet, the chair screeching. 

I jerked away, my eyes jumping to Yohan. He was still happily writing away!

Shouldn't you say something?!

"You snake-eyed piece of-!" 

"Fuck off!" Yuriy forcefully stood up. I winced, his deafening order still ringing in my ears. Hot anger radiated off of Bai Yul's frown. 

Team leader? Team leader! Yohan?!

"Don't fucking speak to me." Yuriy's sly expression barely remained, marred by the dark creases between his brows. Then, his grin morphed, his eyes narrowing; what little similarity it had with Augustus's expression was gone, overwhelmed by a cunning slant. "I heard that the newspaper's new members are still in a trial period? Aren't you worried you might not make the cut?" 

I reflexively glanced at Bai Yul, unexpectedly meeting his gaze. His frown was gone, and it was only after I had stared at his stiff brows for a couple of seconds did I recognize the accusation in his eyes. 

"Wait!" The word cracked, forcing me to clear my throat. "Wait, wait, wait! Wait-!" I couldn't help but shoot up, my head whirling between Yuriy and Bai Yul, the latter crisply grabbing his briefcase and ignoring my pleas as he stomped towards the door. I couldn't even make another sound before a harsh click cut me off. 

My wide-eyed stare stuck onto the closed doorway for some time.

I was still slack-jawed when I turned towards Yuriy, who shrugged.

"What was that all about?" He leisurely sat back into his chair.

'What was that-?!' Does he really not know?

He tucked a strand of dangling hair into his bun, shooting me an expectant look. I gradually returned to my seat, carefully inspecting him as I moved. 

I didn't tell him about Bai Yul's aspirations, so he shouldn't know about it from me. It doesn't seem like he knows what's going on. But...

The sly guy knocked on the table and shrugged again, his attention and wide grin shifting to Yohan.

I can't trust his expressions. 

"Anyhow, shall we commence? I believe our first order of business is popularizing our team." Milana set her phone down, her long nail tapping against the screen. 

"Great idea! What do you think, Yohan?"

Still, even if the bullet wasn't a stray, this shouldn't be a big problem for me anyway, right? Bai Yul already disliked me. What he did during the presentation was already payback for the threat.

"Yes." 

Actually, it was too severe for payback - way too severe. Threatening "livelihood" is different from directly impeding it. So actually it would be fair even if I had gone to Yuriy afterward. 

"Excellent," Milana raised her chin higher, "I was thinking of-"

"Not necessary. I'm planning it myself." 

There's really nothing for me to apologize for.

"Pardon?" The villainess asked after a short pause. 

"I am planning it myself," Yohan repeated, setting his pen down. His mask shined as he visibly reviewed whatever he was working on this whole time. 

...But I should clear things up nonetheless. It's better not to have undeserved enemies. And you're also a magnanimous human, Shion, a magnanimous human. Let's just chalk it all up to my magnanimous nature. 

I blinked, returning to whatever was going on in front of me.

"Yourself?" Milana snatched the paper, giving it a once-over. Her lips jutted out in recoil, the girl gawking at Yohan in disbelief. "Yourself?! This is...this is abominably dull!"

Yohan calmly pinched his scribbles out of her hands. "Your input is not necessary."

I suppressed my sigh as best as I could, tilting my head down and covering my eyes with a palm. 

To her credit, the villainess subverted my expectations: instead of loud shouts, the only thing I heard was the shrill sound of a chair being pushed back and the forceful click of heels hitting tile, followed by the door banging shut. The table shook at the slam.

It didn't take long for Yuriy to speak again, his tone light. 

"She didn't react well to that, did she?" The sounds of shuffling implied that he had stood up. "Then, I'll leave it in your capable hands, Yohan! Milana'll eventually realize that you're a great leader to follow."

A farewell left his lips as he swept past me, although I couldn't confidently say that it was meant for me. 

Nothing was said for a short time, the room filled only with bulky quiet and Yohan's writing. My palm eventually slid off of my face, although my sight didn't provide anything new. 

Do I still...need to be here?

Minutes passed, neither of us moving. My sense of misplaced uselessness finally became too hard to bear.

"I think...," I lowered my voice, "I think I'll be leaving now too, if you don't need any...help with anything."

My eyes widened, waiting for his response.

A second passed, then another...

Just when I thought he wouldn't even react, the man gave a small nod.

I nodded back, speedily gathering my briefcase and stepping towards the exit. When my fingers had grazed the door handle, I suddenly hesitated; my head turned, peeking backward.

Yohan still devotedly sat at the head of the deserted table, his shoulders straight as he worked in the empty room.