The Omega Camp had officially wrapped just hours ago. The commemorative program was full of standing ovations, quiet tears, and lingering embraces—one last group photo, one last message from the producers, one last bow.
Lexie barely remembered how she got to Junny's studio after that. Her body moved on autopilot, legs taking her to the one place that had become her quiet space in the chaos. Eunjae was already curled up on the studio couch with her shoes off, while Junny hummed softly, scanning through his endless playlists for something that didn't make them feel like the world was ending.
It was always like this after a high. The silence hit harder than the applause.
"I don't want to open my inbox tomorrow," Junny groaned, slouched in his gaming chair.
Lexie spun in slow circles on his desk stool. "You love deadlines."
"I love pretending I don't," he retorted, flinging a small plush at her. It bounced off her shoulder and landed in her lap.
Eunjae passed her a wrapped sandwich, one of the few leftover from the camp catering table. "Eat before your brain eats itself."
Lexie smiled, murmured a thanks, but barely touched it. The jazz music Junny had chosen barely filled the space between them—mellow saxophone notes laced with post-camp fatigue.
Then came the knock.
A single, soft rap on the door.
Junny raised an eyebrow. "You expecting someone?"
Lexie shook her head.
When he opened the door, they all froze.
Kenzie stepped inside—not in the poised, polished way she carried herself during camp lectures or creative roundtables, but more like... a friend. Her hair was tied back messily, and she held three iced americanos in one hand and a slim folder tucked beneath her arm.
"I should've texted," Kenzie said, smiling sheepishly. "But I figured... why not go full drama mode?"
Junny straightened. "Wait. Is that..."
Kenzie nodded. "A contract."
Lexie blinked, frozen. "What?"
Kenzie stepped fully into the room and set the folder gently on the center table. The top sheet, crisp and official, read:
Alexandra Haerin Jung
a.k.a L:EXIE
"SM Creative would like to keep working with you," she said, voice softer now. "Not just as a camp guest. This is a formal offer—for you to be part of our independent creators pool."
Lexie's throat dried. She didn't move.
"You'd have mentorship, regular projects—collabs, co-writing, music and demo production. You wouldn't be tied to one artist or group. It's flexible, organic. And if you want," Kenzie added gently, "we'd also start nurturing you towards releasing your own material. When you're ready."
Silence filled the room.
Not awkward.
Just... heavy.
Eunjae put her sandwich down.
Junny's mouth opened, then closed. Then opened again.
"Bestie," he whispered, eyes wide. "You're gonna be on the SM payroll."
Eunjae let out a muffled scream into the nearest pillow.
Lexie didn't react. Not at first.
She just stared at the folder.
At her name.
At the very thing she used to dream about during sleepless nights, when she was just a girl mixing beats in a basement in Manila—wondering if she'd ever get a shot like this.
But now that it was here, it didn't feel like a victory parade. It felt like... gravity shifting.
She touched the edge of the folder like it might burn her. Her fingers trembled, but only slightly.
"...Can I think about it?" she asked quietly, eyes not lifting from the paper.
Kenzie nodded immediately. "Of course. Take all the time you need. But... I really hope you say yes."
Lexie exhaled shakily and gave a small nod. No words. Just a breath.
Junny got up, walked over, and slung an arm around her shoulders. "Hey," he said gently. "You didn't just survive Omega. You owned it. This? You earned this."
Eunjae joined them and leaned in from the other side, like some chaotic group sandwich. "Also, if you don't say yes, I'm telling all the producers you like pineapple on pizza."
Lexie finally laughed—a short, startled sound—but the kind that made her eyes glisten immediately after.
"I think I'm gonna cry," she whispered, pressing her palm to her face.
"Do it," Junny encouraged. "We'll make a lo-fi track out of your sobbing. Title it Pink Blood Tears."
Kenzie chuckled, but her eyes were warm. "Whatever happens next," she said softly, "you've got a room full of people who believe in you."
Lexie looked down at her name one more time.
Not a dream anymore. Just a choice.
And so, she signed.
* * *
Lexie had barely slipped into her car when the passenger door swung open and Haechan slid in, banana milk in hand and a suspiciously smug grin already forming on his face.
"You signed it," he said, like it was a fact written in the sky.
She blinked, hand frozen on the keys. "What the hell—how did you even—?"
"It just happened," she muttered, brows furrowed. "Like. Just happened. Are you tapped into HR's CCTV or something?"
Haechan leaned back in the seat with a satisfied hum. "Not CCTV. I've got better sources."
"Define better before I report a security breach," she said, deadpan.
He wiggled his eyebrows. "Let's just say, the moment your name hit the system, Kenzie texted a period. Just a dot. No context. That's how I knew."
Lexie stared at him, dumbfounded. "So you're telling me Kenzie sending a period means I've been officially dragged into the abyss?"
He raised his banana milk like a toast. "Welcome to the darkness, my friend."
"You're a menace."
"And proud."
She narrowed her eyes, suspicion still swimming. "Wait—how do you even have pull in HR stuff?"
That's when he stopped smiling for just a beat — a blink of sincerity slipping through.
"Because I'm one of the people who pushed it through," he admitted, tone quieter now. "Your demos? They didn't just sit in some inbox. I made sure someone actually heard them."
Lexie's lips parted slightly. "Wait... you did?"
He nodded, a small shrug following like it was no big deal. "Told them it was their loss if they didn't grab you. And I don't like being wrong."
She blinked at him, still stunned. Then slowly, a smile tugged at the corner of her lips — but her voice came out dry.
"...So that's why I feel like I was tricked into signing a contract."
Haechan feigned offense. "Tricked? Excuse me, we call it strategic encouragement."
"Strategic my ass. I didn't even get a second to process the offer before you're suddenly acting like I committed to a ten-year blood pact."
"You kinda did," he grinned. "Minus the blood. But still, feels official now."
Lexie groaned and leaned her head back against the headrest. "You're unbelievable."
"And yet you love me."
She exhaled a laugh and shook her head. "Unbelievable."
"And yet you adore me."
There was a beat of silence between them, the kind that felt more like comfort than quiet.
"Wanna celebrate with me tonight?" Lexie asked, voice softer now. "I made japchae."
Haechan slouched back in the seat. "Tempting. But... not in the mood to party. The hyungs are throwing something at the dorm, and I'm just... drained. Think I just need to crash somewhere quiet."
Lexie glanced at him and said casually, "I've got a spare room, y'know. You can crash there tonight if you want."
Haechan blinked, as if caught off guard by her quiet offer. No dramatics, no lecture—just Lexie being Lexie.
She added with a small smirk, "Door's always open. Just don't expect room service."
Haechan turned to look at her with a grateful smile — not the smug or dramatic one, but something quiet and real. The kind that said thank you without needing to say it at all.
"Thanks, Lex."
"Anytime, Hyuckie."
✦✦✦
He should've been asleep by now. That was the original plan — crash somewhere quiet, stay out of the dorm party chaos, and catch up on the rest his body had been screaming for.
But Lexie had offered her place.
And somehow, the idea of turning down a homemade japchae and a cozy guest room was suddenly not in his DNA.
He glanced sideways, watching her drive with one hand, hair tucked lazily behind one ear, that slight post-celebration daze settling over her face. She still looked like she hadn't fully processed the fact that she'd officially joined the company. SM Entertainment. The company that people would kill just to walk into.
She was trying to play it cool, but he could tell—Lexie was shaken, thrilled, overwhelmed, and utterly herself all at once.
He stifled a grin and subtly pulled out his phone.
📸 click
The angle was ridiculous — Lexie mid-drive, brows slightly furrowed, lips pursed in focus.
Another snap, this time of her hand gripping the steering wheel. Then the car stereo screen, where a chill R&B track was softly playing, followed by a quick blurry selfie of him with the faintest smug smirk.
이민형 MakkeoLee 🍁
☀️☀️☀️이동혁 sent an image
guess who's driving me? Ur fave
and yesss, i stole her japchae 😈
but i'm sleeping over, no funny business
C.H.I.L.L. bro
He locked his phone again, hiding his snort.
Mark never admitted much — but Haechan knew. He saw the little shifts in Mark's voice whenever Lexie's name came up, the silence that lingered just a beat too long when she was mentioned. He'd known even before Mark did, and like the excellent little menace he was, he chose to say absolutely nothing.
Just poke. Tease. Stir the pot slowly.
As soon as Lexie parked outside her unit and killed the engine, Haechan sprang out of the car, grabbing the takeout container like it was a trophy.
Lexie gave him a look.
"I thought you weren't celebrating," she said, squinting at him while pulling out her keys. "Didn't you say — verbatim — you were tired and just needed a place to crash?"
"I am tired," he replied without shame, following her inside. "But food heals. Japchae heals faster."
"You traitor," she muttered as she unlocked the door. "I should've left you in the car."
"But you didn't." He waltzed past her like he owned the place, slipping off his shoes with practiced ease. "Because you love me."
"Keep telling yourself that."
He flopped onto the couch, poking around the japchae like it was sacred. "Mmm. Smells like music prodigy energy and crushed dreams."
Lexie dropped her bag by the hallway and raised an eyebrow. "That's the most Haechan compliment I've ever heard."
"You're welcome."
She grabbed two glasses of water from the kitchen, tossing him one. "Seriously though, thanks. For... everything. You didn't have to push so hard."
He paused mid-bite, and for once, didn't respond with something cheeky.
"You're meant to be here," he said instead, quietly. "We just helped speed up the timeline."
Lexie blinked at him, taken off guard.
Then, recovering, she smirked. "You're really soft when you want to be."
He pointed his chopsticks at her. "Don't expose me. I have a menace reputation to maintain."
The room had gone quiet save for the occasional clink of chopsticks on porcelain and the distant hum of the fridge. Lexie had excused herself to take a quick shower, saying something about still smelling like the rehearsal room. Haechan had made himself far too comfortable — legs sprawled, TV remote in one hand, the empty japchae container in the other.
His phone buzzed just as he was debating whether to raid her fridge or nap on her couch.
이민형 MakkeoLee 🍁
Hyuck. Don't be annoying.
Did she really sign it?
yup. pink blood lexie is real now
ur loss if u keep freezing around her tbh
she's cooking-tier level of girlfriend material
Three dots blinked at the bottom of the chat window.
Then stopped.
Then blinked again.
Then stopped.
"Classic," Haechan mumbled with a mischievous glint. Mark would probably spend the entire night thinking of the perfect nonchalant reply and end up saying nothing.
Idiot's totally gone for her, he thought, glancing toward the hallway where faint sounds of water running still echoed.
And he was letting her slip right through.
Again.
He sighed dramatically, tossing his phone onto the couch cushion beside him.
Mark could keep pretending all he wanted. But Haechan?
He was already deep in the front row — popcorn in hand — ready to watch this drama unfold.