Focus: Nicholas, Maki, Jo
Vibe: Unhinged fluff, off-day bonding, chaotic friendship energy
Quote Highlights:

*****
"That mic is dead because of you, Nicholas."
"No, it's dead because of your pitch, Jo."
"I was being expressive!!"
*****

2:37 PM — A Random Off-Day, Somewhere in Seoul

The moment they stepped into the private karaoke room, Jo had one rule:

"No broken furniture, no screaming into the mic, and no sabotage."

Two hours later, the mic was fried, the remote had disappeared, and Nicholas had pulled a muscle trying to hit a falsetto note while body-rolling.

So... yeah.

Perfect day off.

It had started innocently enough.

Nicholas had found the place online and dragged Maki and Jo with him, insisting that "we deserve to scream into voids melodically."

Jo had reluctantly agreed, mostly because he didn't trust the two of them alone in public without supervision.

Maki just wanted to rap without being judged by the hyung line.

Mistake number one: trusting Nicholas to pick the songs.
Mistake number two: letting Maki near the rap sections of anything.
Mistake number three: thinking Jo wouldn't combust under pressure.

2:45 PM — Warm-Up Song

Nicholas picked the first track: "Love Scenario."

Simple. Nostalgic. Chill.

Except Nicholas turned the mic volume up to 11, got on one knee, and serenaded the wall like it was a lost lover from a K-drama.

Jo stared. "You're doing too much."

"It's called passion," Nicholas said, dramatically clutching his chest.

Maki clapped. "Hyung, that was beautiful. But maybe tone it down before the speaker catches fire."

3:05 PM — Maki's Rap Debut (ft. Regret)

Maki took the next round. He chose "Daechwita" because, in his words, "I was born to command a room."

He promptly forgot half the lyrics, added ad-libs that didn't exist, and invented new hand gestures with Nicholas hyping him up like a DJ.

At one point, Maki yelled, "MAKE SOME NOISE!" to an empty room and Jo almost choked on his soda.

"Your stage name is now MC Menace," Jo declared.

"Thank you," Maki beamed, clearly taking it as a compliment.

Nicholas: "Can I be your hype man forever?"

3:22 PM — The Ballad War Begins

Jo finally caved and picked a ballad — something gentle, heartfelt, classy.

Halfway through the second verse, Nicholas grabbed the second mic and launched into the harmony off-key and dramatically off-beat.

Jo glared.

"That was my moment."

Nicholas grinned. "And I enhanced it. You're welcome."

Jo paused the track.

Maki, sensing danger, ducked behind the tambourine bin.

3:31 PM — Group Song: Chaos Edition

They picked a K-pop group anthem next.

Everyone got a part. Mics were passed around. Maki took the rap again (why?). Jo sang with surprisingly emotional eyes. Nicholas added background vocals even when there weren't any.

By the chorus, they were all standing on the couch.

Yelling. Jumping.

Jo's mic cut out mid-high note and he froze.

"...It's dead," he whispered.

Nicholas held up the mic like a fallen comrade. "That mic is dead because of you, Nicholas."

"No, it's dead because of your pitch, Jo."

"I was being expressive!!"

Maki wheezed. "Rest in pitch, mic."

3:45 PM — Remote? What Remote?

When they finally sat down to catch their breath, they realized something horrifying:

The karaoke remote was gone.

It had vanished.

Vanished into the void.

"I left it right here," Nicholas said.

"Did you sit on it again?" Jo asked, pointing at the couch cushions.

"I'd feel it—OW."

Nicholas pulled the remote from beneath him, looking vaguely betrayed.

"Yup. Still warm," Maki said casually.

Jo nearly screamed.

4:00 PM — Ending on a High Note (Literally)

They had 15 minutes left.

Nicholas picked "Into the Unknown."

Maki begged him not to.

Jo whispered, "We're not ready."

Nicholas stood in front of the screen, raised the mic with solemnity, and whispered:

"This is for every dream I've ever had. This is for the mic we lost."

He hit the first note like a power ballad veteran.

The second note cracked.

The third note shattered reality.

Jo screamed. Maki covered his ears.

Nicholas finished the song, bowed, and collapsed onto the floor.

"I gave everything I had," he gasped.

Jo patted him on the head. "Please never do that again."

4:25 PM — Post-Karaoke Debrief (and Mild Panic)

They left the building wheezing with laughter, voices hoarse, shirts slightly damp from pure chaos.

"Should we tell the staff we broke the mic?" Maki asked.

Nicholas: "Let's just... not go back for a few weeks."

Jo, scrolling through photos: "This one of you mid-note looks like a man in pain."

"I was in pain," Nicholas said. "Art is pain."

Maki: "The pain is us having to hear it."

Jo: "I'm framing this."

Nicholas: "I'm unfriending you."

Maki: "You're literally hugging me right now."

5:00 PM — Dorm Return

They burst into the dorm, laughter echoing.

K raised an eyebrow. "Why do you look like you survived a thunderstorm?"

EJ looked up from his laptop. "Did someone scream 'LET IT GOOOO' outside three times?"

Nicholas, flopping onto the couch: "We lived. We laughed. We left our dignity in a karaoke room."

Jo tossed a photo onto the table. "Group chat profile pic."

It was all three of them — blurry, sweaty, screaming into mics, mid-chaos.

Maki whispered, "Beautiful."

The End.
(Because sometimes, bonding happens through broken mics and bad falsettos.)