Morning — Dorm Kitchen
Zayn poured himself a black coffee, grimacing. "I'm not sure if I slept, or if my dreams were… some kind of warning." He stirred, eyes on Jiwon. "Hyung, you feel it too, right? Don't lie."
Jiwon didn't answer immediately. He leaned against the counter, jaw tight, hands folded over his chest. "I feel it," he said finally. "But it's… complicated. Nothing we can fix with coffee or schedules."
Min slid in quietly, grabbing a granola bar without asking. His gaze was distant. "Complicated is… light. That… pull last night? It felt alive. Not just them. It touched me. Every beat of my heart, every thought. I can't… unfeel it."
EO, perched on the table edge, whispered, "I can still feel it behind my eyes. Like someone's staring at me through mirrors I didn't know I had."
Kai laughed nervously, throwing his arms up. "I can feel it in my stomach! And my chest! And maybe my soul! What do you want me to do with that, exactly?!"
Jiwon's eyes flicked to him. "Not panic. Yet."
Kai groaned, plopping onto the couch. "Yeah, that's… helpful advice."
Afternoon — Practice Room
The beat of their latest track reverberated through the studio, but the members moved sluggishly, minds elsewhere.
Min paused mid-spin, hand hovering near the mirrored wall. "It's watching," he murmured. "Even here. Even now."
Zayn corrected his foot placement sharply, shaking his head. "No, Min. You're reading too much into—" He froze. "Maybe not."
EO hummed a note softly, almost imperceptibly. "I can feel them too. The energy. The… pull. Not physical. Something else."
Kai spun, flopping dramatically to the floor. "I swear, if I start glowing or sprouting feathers, someone's taking a video. I want royalties."
Jiwon didn't smile. He studied them all carefully, silent, watching the subtle ways the pull affected each of them: Min's hands trembling, EO's pitch bending slightly, Kai's restlessness, Zayn's tense jaw.
"Focus," Jiwon said finally, voice low. "It's not them. It's… us reacting. Don't let it take over."
Evening — Dorm Balcony
Zayn leaned against the railing, eyes on the city. "I don't like this," he muttered. "It's… too much. Even for us."
Min joined him, shoulders tight. "I keep hearing… whispers. Not real words. Just… warnings. Or invitations."
Kai appeared behind them, snack in hand. "I think it's trying to drive me insane. Which, honestly, might be fun."
EO stepped forward hesitantly. "I… like it. The danger. The pull. But I also feel… weight. Like something is sitting on my chest."
Jiwon watched quietly from the doorway. His eyes were fixed on the horizon, thinking of Yul. The pull. The resonance. He could feel it threading through his blood, into his pulse, and he understood one thing clearly:
This wasn't just a rooftop meeting. This wasn't just music.
It was the beginning of something far older than any of them.
And Monarch had already been caught in it.