Llana watched Momo closely as she sang her part, eyes fixed on her from start to finish. Halfway through the line, her brows slowly drew together. The note wavered just enough for her to notice, and she winced.
"Stop. Stop, unnie," Llana said gently but firmly. "You're going out of tune."
Momo cut herself off, blinking in surprise. "I am?"
"Yes," Llana replied without missing a beat.
"You start fine, but your pitch drops at the end. Don't let it fall. Hold it right here." She lifted her hand slightly, as if physically holding the note in place.
Momo pressed her lips together and nodded. Singing like this always made her tense. She shifted her weight unconsciously, looking more comfortable moving than standing still. Dancing was where her confidence lived.
Momo took a breath and tried again.
The room went quiet as she sang the line once more, everyone listening carefully.
"There," Llana said after a moment, her expression easing. "That's better. Keep it steady like that."
Momo let out a slow breath she hadn't realized she was holding. "Singing without music is really hard."
"That's exactly why we do it," Llana said calmly. "If you can stay in tune like this, everything else becomes easier."
Before anyone could respond, the door suddenly swung open.
"Yah! Everyone out. It's our turn to practice now!"
Jihyo stepped inside with confidence, Somi and Natty right behind her. The sudden noise snapped the room out of its focus.
"Is our time already up?" Llana asked, frowning as she looked at the clock on the wall.
"yes, its already 3:12 p.m.," Jihyo said, holding up her phone. "You're twelve minutes over."
"Really?" Chaeyoung said, already pulling out her phone to check.
"Yah, you don't trust us?" Somi said, clutching her chest dramatically.
"I just wanted to see," Chaeyoung replied with a small laugh.
Jihyo crossed her arms, eyes narrowing as she looked them over. "So what were you practicing? You all looked way too smug."
"You should get your eyes checked then, unnie," Tzuyu said calmly. "We weren't even smiling."
silence took over the room.
Then everyone burst out laughing.
"She got you, unnie" Natty said, laughing openly.
"Yah, go already," Jihyo said, shooing them away. "I don't want to see you anymore."
"Okay, bye everyone," Chaeyoung said as they headed out.
"Good luck," Llana added with a smile, following her team out.
"...So are we done practicing for today?" Momo asked, eyes shining with hope.
"We haven't even practiced enough yet," Chaeyoung cut in immediately.
"Sure," Llana said flatly, not even looking up.
Chaeyoung and Tzuyu both turned to her in disbelief. They hadn't even properly polished their vocals yet.
"Really?!" Momo asked, practically glowing. Relief washed over her. It felt like they'd been practicing for an entire day, even though it had only been six hours.
"Yes," Llana said.
Momo was already mentally celebrating.
Then Llana turned to her, smiling sweetly.
"After you sing the song without going off-beat or out of tune."
Momo's smile slowly disappeared. "…So we're not done."
Chaeyoung snorted.
"Pabo, Momo-unnie" Tzuyu commented calmly.
"Where are we supposed to practice now?" Chaeyoung asked, looking around.
"Ugh… that," Llana sighed. "Do you guys know anywhere we can use?"
"Other than our sunbaes' practice rooms, everything's already booked," Momo said, shaking her head. "And we can't use those unless we get approval from the higher-ups."
Llana sighed again. Her house crossed her mind for a split second, but she quickly dismissed it. It was too personal, and with them still in the middle of recordings, it would be a hassle. Not to mention how far it was from the company. Moving with the production team would be a nightmare.
After a moment, she straightened. "Wait. I'll try calling someone."
She stepped away from the group and pulled out her phone.
"Annyeonghaseyo, Mr. Byun. Ne, this is Llana," she said politely. "We're looking for a room to practice in. I was wondering if there's one available at the company…. Ne, ne. Thank you so much. Goodbye." She hung up and walked back.
"Let's go," Llana said casually. "We got permission to use our sunbaes' practice room. 2PM's room is empty, so we can use that."
There was a beat of silence.
"…Wow," Chaeyoung said. "Daebak. Who did you even call?"
The others leaned in, even a few staff members pretending not to listen but very obviously listening.
"The person who scouted me," Llana replied. "I still have their number."
Momo blinked. "Wow… that means the person who scouted you must be really influential."
Llana just shrugged. "I guess."
"Llana…" Momo started again.
"Unnie, we'll keep practicing until everyone can deliver their lines cleanly and stably," Llana cut her off without hesitation.
"Grrr~"
Everyone froze.
It wasn't anger.
It was a stomach. Momo's stomach.
Momo slowly raised a hand. "I just wanted to ask if we could eat first. We haven't had lunch yet. And I didn't even eat breakfast before coming here."
"Oh…" Chaeyoung paused, then nodded seriously. "Now that you mention it, yeah. I'm really hungry too."
"I'm hungry too, Llana," Tzuyu added softly as she moved closer, wrapping herself around Llana's arm.
Llana blinked, then laughed quietly, guilt flashing across her face. "I'm sorry, unnies. I got too focused and forgot."
She smiled apologetically. "Since I'm the reason everyone's starving, I'll treat you to lunch as a compensation."
"Really?!" everyone said at once.
Momo's eyes sparkled. "I forgive you."
Chaeyoung snorted. "That was fast."
"Gomawo~"
Llana laughed. " It's nothing."
Llana turned toward the production staff who was recoding them," Pd-nim, everyone, you should eat with us too. It's my treat."
The production team paused, clearly caught off guard. A few of them exchanged looks before instinctively turning to their director.
The director met Llana's gaze, then shook his head with a small smile. "It's okay. We'll cut the recording first. Just inform us when you get back."
"Are you sure?" Llana asked.
He nodded again. "We can't let a kid treat us to a meal," he added lightly, half-joking but firm.
The staff laughed softly in agreement, some waving their hands as if embarrassed.
"Yeah, yeah," one of them said. "Go eat properly."
Llana smiled back, nodding. "Okay. We won't take long."
"Yuhuuu!" Momo cheered, pumping her fist in the air.
With that, the group headed out, their stomachs finally winning over practice, while the production team watched them leave with amused smiles.