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Chapter Text

Roseanne Park (known to family and friends as Rosie) is a 20 year old New Zealand-Korean girl who grew up in Australia. She’s been passionate about music all her life and decided to find the higher education she wants to help fuel her knowledge of music. While she did look up institutes within Australia like The Australian Institute of Music, she always heard about one music institute that always tops lists, The Harmonic Hymn Institute. While her parents could be able to afford to fly her to America to attend The Harmonic Hymn, she wants to be earnest about her work and achieve those milestones herself.

Although she hadn’t enrolled in higher education, she had been going to a local production studio for songwriting and composing. She wrote songs that reflected what was on her mind and recorded demos upon demos. She wanted to release her music to the world but wanted to feel comfortable releasing her experiences in her personal art pieces, so all her recorded songs had been placed on the back burner until she was ready.

———

“Rosie! Rosie! Look what I have here.” It was early in the morning, Rosie was eating some toast as Alice came bolting into the kitchen.

“An envelope? For who?” She examined the envelope’s exterior, noting it’s off-white colour.

“It’s for you, silly!” Alice exclaimed as she placed it in front of her. It had Miss Roseanne Park written on the front.

“Wait….” Rosie remembered that she had an important letter that was coming so she teared it open, Alice eagerly stood behind her to read it with her.

Dear Miss Roseanne Park,

After your application for a scholarship and the reviewing videos and the record demos of your songs you have sent as samples of your work.

We are delighted to invite you to come enrol The Harmonic Hymn Institute under the Music Composition Scholarship.

A secondary letter will be mailed soon about the enrolment process, how on dorm campuses work and the selection of courses during your enrolment.

Congratulations on your acceptance into our scholarship program.

Kindest of Regards

Candolin Ward - Headmistress of The Harmonic Hymn Institute

She was in disbelief.  She had been accepted into The Harmonic Hymn Institute with her work. She wanted to cry tears of joy, so she leapt up and hugged Alice.

“I can’t believe it Alice! I’m going to Harmonic Hymn!” Rosie and Alice started jumping together. Her journey has just begun but she didn’t know what a ride it’ll be.

———

A few weeks later, she was walking down the international terminal of Melbourne Airport to her gate. She had such a tearful goodbye with her family and couldn’t wait until the break to come home and tell them about whatever happened during this time. While she had checked in her luggage, she was taking her guitar on board to ensure its safety.

She got to her gate and sat down, she looked at the plane that would be taking her to America. The plane started boarding a few minutes later and she got on, she would be leaving the city she called home for 13 years.

As the plane took off, she put in her earphones and let the flight blur through.

———

After her 14 hour flight, she had arrived in Los Angeles and walked through the airport doors. There was one problem, her semesters starts in about a week but she wasn’t given arranged transportation when she got to Los Angeles but she didn’t mind. She wanted to explore a little before heading to the campus but didn’t actually know what to do. She started to walk towards a taxi when someone tapped her shoulder, so she turned around to see a guy around her age. He had golden blond curls that weirdly reminder her of ramyeon. She pulled one earphone out.

“Hello?” She was a little confused why he tapped her on her shoulder.

He paused before finally saying something. “Are you by chance….going to The Harmonic Hymn Institute?”

Rosie forgot how much of a musician she looked like with her guitar case attached to her suitcase.

“Uh yes…..Are you also going to Harmonic Hymn?” He did a simple nod.

“Yeah, do you know if they bothered getting any chauffeurs here?” He seemed very impatient, expecting a car to come pick him up.

“It doesn’t look like it.” Rosie scanned the area. “But it’s fine for me since I wanna explore a little.”

“What, everyone has been to LA….” He stop to process how she spoke and realised she had an Australian accent. “Wait…are you Australian?”

“Yep.” She nodded before introducing herself. “I’m Roseanne, but you can call me Rose.”

“Well Rose, I’m Justin.” He proudly stated. “So Rose, what were you going to do?”

“Honestly, I wouldn’t have a clue what to do. I was thinking maybe getting an AirBnB and checking out local places before going to the campus.”

“Well….I guess I’ll see you next week since I’m heading to the campus.” Justin was annoyed with the lack of anyone picking him.

“Well, see ya Justin.” Rosie started walking to a taxi as Justin pulled out his phone. She only heard a few things like a name of J-something. She got to the taxi cab but it drove off before she could even ask for a ride. She was dumbfounded as the driver would’ve probably seen her through the rearview mirror, so she walked back to Justin.

“So the taxi just drove off for some reason…..how the heck am I supposed to get to the city?”

“Well my friend JC is coming to pick me up, so I’ll ask if he’s okay with dropping you off in the city.”

“Hopefully there’s enough room in the back if he is kind enough to drop me off.”

A few minutes later, a nice black car pulls up to the pick up zone and the driver side window rolls down.

“Yo Justin, nice to see you again.” JC fist bumped him before noticing Rosie. “And who’s this?”

“This is Rose, she is also a new student at Harmonic but she wants to explore LA. So could you help drop her off in the city?”

Chapter Text

JC took a moment to think, while Rosie is a fellow student and a new arrival to Harmonic Hymn, he also had to consider the amount of space in his boot. He knew Justin was one to overpack, seen by his two suitcases but Rosie had a guitar, something he didn’t want to damage if he was to give her a ride.

“Hey Rose, if you were to ride with us, would you be able to put your guitar on the passenger seats?” JC thought he and probably Rosie would be more comfortable having her guitar on the passenger seats.

“Of course, it would make for more room in the back considering.” Rosie looked to Justin then down to his suitcases.

“Geez, can’t a guy pack everything?” Rosie and JC chuckled at his annoyed comment. “But…can she come with us?”

“Of course.” JC got out of the car to help them load the suitcases in the back. Rosie detached her guitar from hers and placed it flat on the two spare passenger seats, next to where she was going to sit.

A few minutes later,  they were driving through the city.

“Hey Rose, do you want my number so I can pick you up to get to Harmonic Hymn?” JC’s question caught both Rosie and Justin off-guard.

“Are you sure? You’re already kind enough to drop me off in the city.” She didn’t want to take advantage of his kindness.

“Yep, don’t stress too much, navigating LA and the area is quite tough even for me sometimes.” JC’s tone was quite friendly so Rosie started to relax a little bit. “So Rose, what do you plan to do while in the city?”

“Maybe check out record stores and browse vinyls and cds and some maybe check out supermarkets.”

“Supermarkets?” Justin was slightly confused by the term.

“…Grocery stores.” Rosie quickly stated.

“Why grocery stores?” Justin was curious on why she would check out grocery stores.

“To see the big sized food packets.”

“What a strange thing to go see.” Justin was aware of how comically big products can get in America  but he never thought someone would actually browse them with curiosity.

“If you want to see big, go order a large drink at the fast food chains.” JC knew that would be a culture shock for her.

The car drifted into silence, Justin was dramatically leaning against the window and Rosie was searching for a decent AirBnB. She kept dud after dud until there was a place that interested her, it was about 120 a day and pretty close to the city’s centre.

“Jace, I’m hungry!” Justin whined which made JC laugh.

“What do you want then?”

“Can we stop by In-N-Out?” Rosie’s ears perked up, she has heard of In-N-Out but since it doesn't exist in Australia, she had no idea what is on the menu.

“Alright.” JC searched for directions to the closest In-N-Out.

———

“Welcome to In-N-Out, what can we get you?”

“Can I get one hamburger, one cheese burger….” JC turned to Rosie. “Do you want anything?”

Rosie thought for a moment before answering. “I’ll pass for now since I do have to exchange money at some point.”

JC nodded and turned back to finish his and Justin’s order, but did order an extra French fries so Rosie got something. As they were driving to the window, Rosie did have one question.

“Why did you ask for your chips to be well done?” Rosie would never in a million years ask for her chips to be well done with Australian chains.

“In-N-Out fries are quite soggy so we make sure to get them well done.” That line made her miss the freshness of Hungry Jack’s chips. Justin also picked up her use of chips instead of fries. “You call fries..chips?”

“Yeah.”

“So what do you call chips like Lays?”

“Chips.”

“So fries are chips and chips are also chips?” Instead of Rosie getting hit with culture shock, it was Justin.

“Well, they’re both made out of potatoes.” Justin’s face of pure realisation after her statement was priceless. She bursted into laughter after seeing his face in the rearview mirror, JC was also laughing quietly at Justin’s reaction.

———

JC and Justin had dropped off Rosie at her AirBnB. JC did give his number to Rosie so she can call him to get to Harmonic Hymn (after she gets an American SIM card). Rosie wheeled her suitcase in and placed it in a corner, she placed her guitar case at the edge of the bed. Her AirBnB was a small apartment with a kitchenette, a bed, a sofa and a TV. Rosie sat on the bed and pulled out her laptop to play around with different instruments on Logic Pro.

About an hour later, she locked up the apartment and went to go explore the area, she had noted a record store a few blocks down when they were driving to the apartment.

She gets there in a few minutes and started browsing through the vinyls. Some Michael Jackson, Paramore, Queen and many artists she loves. She did find a vinyl that caught her attention. TLC’s CrazySexyCool, an album she loved.

“Wow.” She was in awe of her find.

“Now that’s a cool find.” She turned around to see a girl who looked to be slightly older than her. “I love TLC’s music and how the messages they told.”

Rosie nodded before introducing herself. “I’m Rose.”

“I’m Beyoncé.” She smiled.

“Do you live around here?”

“I actually attend The Harmonic Hymn Institute.” Rosie’s eyes lit up with excitement.

“Really? Because I’m a student there too.” Beyoncé face read with a happy shock that she had encountered a fellow student in the wild.

“Wow, I’ve never seen you around campus.”

“Well…I did get to LA today.”

“And with that accent….you’re Australian.” Beyoncé had never encountered an Aussie until Rosie.

“Yep.”

Rosie and Beyoncé spent a while browsing through records and chatting before going to a café Beyoncé loves.

“How in the world are you getting to Harmonic Hymn? I can organise a chauffeur for you!” Beyoncé was still surprised she was exploring the city rather than going straight to the campus.

“Don’t worry, I met a guy called Justin at the airport whose friend JC was kind enough to drop me off at my AirBnB and gave me his number so I can call him to pick me up.” Beyoncé’s face reflected her realisation before having a warmth to it.

“Of course JC would help you.” Beyoncé took a sip of her espresso before continuing. “In typical JC fashion, he’s helping someone he just met for nothing. He really is a sweetheart.”

“Is he the school’s sweetheart of the campus?”

“Yes, he’s known for his kindness and compassion. The amount of charity events that he’s done is astounding. No wonder one of the cutest guys grabbed him.” Rosie was curious on who got JC’s heart.

“And that is?” She gestured with her hand in a circular motion.

“Brian, he’s a part of one of the school’s most popular groups. How they got together is still a mystery but they’re really adorable with each other.” Beyoncé took a another sip of her espresso.

Rosie took a bite of the custard tart (that Beyoncé bought for her despite her best efforts to politely decline her offer) and waited to finish chewing to speak again. “I can’t wait to get there, it sounds like fun place to be at!”

———

Around midnight, Rosie is lying down, she’s quite jet lagged but is ecstatic that was able to meet cool people right away from her school. She’s curious on what’s going to happen when she gets to Harmonic Hymn. She closes her eyes and falls asleep.

Chapter Text

In the 4 days after getting to LA, Rosie was able to get an American SIM card and open an American bank account. She had visited a lot of places like music shops, supermarkets (she did buy food and stuff she needed), some cafés and most importantly, a recording studio.  She had called JC the day before to come pick her up. She grabbed her suitcase and guitar case and headed out of the AirBnB she was staying in. She locked the door and place the key where she was asked and headed down.

JC was already waiting outside his car to help with her luggage. She got to the car and loaded her stuff in the back.

A few minutes later, they’re on the road and JC started some small talk.

“Did you get to know LA a little better?”

“Yeah, I loved the music shops and record shops.” She was smiling while reminiscing. “I also found a recording studio that I’ll probably go to for song making.” He gave a happy “hmm” before asking throwing in a comment.

“And met Beyoncé.” Rosie was a little surprised he knew but Beyoncé probably did talk about their encounter and how she mentioned him. “I didn’t realise you were such a gossip.”

“Hey! She told me one of the cutest guys grabbed you, she knew what she was saying!” Both of them laughed.

“But are you excited to get to campus?”

“Absolutely!”

———

The Harmonic Hymn Institute Campus is breathtaking. Words couldn’t even describe Rosie’s thoughts. Its gorgeous main building with its gothic architecture, the nicely kept rose bushes and the well cleaned stone paths.

“How is this place real?” Rosie felt like it was a movie set.

“Money.” JC playfully stated.

Rosie got her stuff out of the boot. But before she headed to reception, she gave JC a hug.

“Thank you so much for helping me out.” He was a little surprised from her hug but hugged her back.

“No problem, hopefully I’ll see you around campus.” They pulled apart and JC got in his car and drove off to the student parking area.

Rosie walked into the main building and tried heading to reception. After minutes of awkwardly looking around the main building, she found it. A woman at the desk gave her a warm yet professional smile.

“Hi there, how may I help you.”  Rosie pulled out her letters and some IDs to her. She checked the letters and her IDs and gave them back to her. “Welcome Roseanne, I’ll just grab all of your materials.”

The woman got up and went to the office behind the desk. She returned with a big folder.

“In here is your course textbook, school map, itinerary and temporary ID card.” Rosie did notice the lack of mentioning of her accomodation.

“And my accommodation?” Rosie asked politely. The woman swallowed, her smile faltering a little.

“I’m sorry Roseanne but with the price of your flight from Melbourne. Your accommodation funds were repurposed for your ticket.”

What………how is that even possible?……that I don’t have a dorm……

Rosie was speechless. She traveled so far to possibly the worst news she could receive on arrival. She did a bow to thank the woman before heading off.

What am I supposed to do now……..

———

She didn’t really know where to go, so she was walking around the campus with her earphones in until she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around and it was Justin.

“Good to see you here Rose.” She gave him a small smile but he noticed her demeanour. “Is something wrong?”

She took a deep breath in and stated what was wrong. “I don’t have a dorm to live in.”

He was stunned by her words. This shouldn’t happen, especially at a high ranking institute. “You don’t have a dorm? How is that possible? It’s like $1100 for a year.”

“Justin, I have a scholarship and those funds were used for my flight.” Justin paused as she sighed. “And apparently, areas that are supposed to be covered cannot be payed with the scholarship student’s own money.”

He was just in disbelief that she could’ve had a dorm if the school didn’t have that rule in place.

After a few minutes of standing in silence, Justin decides that she probably needs a break from walking, so he leads her into the one of the student accommodations. As they’re heading to the common room, dorm 112 has something strange. It lists her as an occupant, which makes them stop.

“……should I go inside?” She was perplexed. Why am I listed when her dorm fees wasn’t covered? Maybe I’m still listed because it was put up before they had to pay for my flight. Justin shrugged, he didn’t know what she should do in this situation.

The door swung open which caught them off guard. A blonde girl had opened it without knowing they were outside.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry but like..why are you standing in front of the door.” After getting back to their senses, Rosie introduced herself.

“Hi, I’m the Roseanne Park listed on the list.” The girl gave her a smile.

“Well, I’m Sabrina, come in!” Rosie went inside while Justin walked to the common room. “We were starting to believe you weren’t coming at all!”

“Well……”

Rosie explains what the receptionist lady told her, which made Sabrina’s jaw drop.

“Seriously? God that’s such a bad fuck up.” Sabrina was frustrated for the situation they put Rosie in. “The fact they can’t even be bother to allocate more funding to your scholarship like yeah, they want all the scholarship funds to be the same wth each student but them having to pay for your flight and sacrificing your accommodation is just so..ugh!”

“What do you think I should do? I don’t know what limitations I have as a student visa holder yet.” Sabrina was at a loss of words, she didn’t know the limitations of Rosie’s visa either but did think of a temporary solution.

“For right now, I think you should stay here until you find a place.” She gave Rosie a reassuring smile, which she appreciated but had a bad feeling of what the semesters holds for her.

———

Rosie was strumming her guitar in the common room, writing down lyrics about being lost on arrival to reflect her feelings about the receptionist encounter. A guy walked in and noticed her on the couch, so he walked over to her.

“Hey, I’m Jackson Wang and I’m throwing a party later.” She stopped strumming and looked up at him.

“Oh, what time?”

“About 7.”

She placed her guitar on the couch and stood up.“Well Jackson, I’m Rose.” She offered a handshake, which he accepted. “Who else is going to the party.’

“Everyone.” She was a bit taken aback.

“Everyone?” He was amused by her reaction. “Like the student body?”

“Yep.” He nodded. “I actually have an outdoor stage with a live band so we can have live performers to showcase their work.”

Well she wasn’t going to ask why he had a stage, this lit up a light bulb in Rosie’s head. She always wanted to do have a solo live showcase but never found the opportunity for it. “Would it be okay if I performed tonight?”

“Of course, meet me at 6 so I can give you a run down. I live in dorm 283.”

———

Around 6, Jackson hears a knock on his door. He opens the door, it’s Rosie and her laptop. She’s wearing red shoes, a black leather skirt with a studded belt, a white crop tank with a necklace with different charms and a studded leather jacket with her hair in 2 low buns.

“I would’ve never taken you as a punk girl.” Rosie playfully rolled her eyes. “But come on in.”

They walked to an audio input station since Jackson did want to pick out any if she didn’t have any of her own songs.

“Have you chosen any?” She opened her music app to reveal her recordings, he wasn’t expecting her to have such a collection of recorded songs.

“I have two, Hard to Love and APT.” As she played them, Jackson took notes mentally where the band could be incorporated. After both songs were done previewing, he gave her a nod.

“Now, we add the band and lighting to make you really pop.”

After trying different things and selecting, she created her performance. Rosie would start her set with an acapella intro of Hard to Love followed by the band kicking the instrumental off but would cut Hard to Love after the second chorus drop, she would follow it with APT which features one change in the middle to “drink baby, dance baby, freak baby” during the second verse.

Jackson complied a set list for the live performers for tonight, which included established groups and soloist as well as Rosie who would be the first performance of the night, she asked Jackson to list her as Rosé, a stage name she’s been thinking of using.

Setlist:

7:15: ROSÉ - “Hard to Love” + “APT.”

7:30: BACKSTREET BOYS - “I Want It That Way” + “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back)” + “Larger Than Life”

7:45: DESTINY’S CHILD - “Bootylicious” + “Independent Women Part I” + “Survivor”

8:00: SABRINA CARPENTER - “Espresso” + “Taste” + “Juno”

8:15: RIHANNA - “Only Girl (In The World)” + “S&M” + “California King Bed”

8:30: ONE DIRECTION - “What Makes You Beautiful” + “Story of My Life” + “She’s Not Afraid”

8:45: TWICE - “Cheer Up” + “Fancy” + “I Can’t Stop Ne”

9:00: BRUNO MARS - “Grenade” + “Runaway Baby” + “The Lazy Song”

As 7 approaches, Rosie does a final soundcheck and run through of her set before Jackson warns her that people have started arriving, so she goes to sit backstage until her set begins. Performers come to the back and out to check the setlist.

“Rose!” Beyoncé calls out, so Rosie walks over to her. She’s with two other girls. “Are you performing as Rosé?’

“Yep, I met Jackson while I was in the common room and he mention the live performances, so I asked him if I could do a performance.” Rosie gave a shy smile to Beyoncé, which she returned with a smiling nod.

“I love your outfit, so punky!” Beyoncé’s compliment made Rosie blush a little. “And I’ll like you to meet Kelly and Michelle, we perform as Destiny’s Child!”

After a few minutes of chatting with the three, Rosie mentally prepared herself as the lights dimmed. She got onstage with Jackson introducing her.

“Tonight’s first performance is someone who recently got to Harmonic Hymn as part of her dream to enhance her artistry, hailing all the way from Melbourne, Australia. Please welcome Rosé to the stage!”

The was an applause after Jackson’s introduction and in the silence.

“Ain’t no magic tool to fix it, you should keep your distance, I’m only telling you because I care.” As she starts singing,  The orange lights reveal her figure and finally her. The band starts accompanying her, the drummer hitting accent accompaniment to certain words with the guitar riffing.

“‘Cause I’m hard to love~.” After her held note, the song fully kicks in. She performs by moving around that stage since it’s only her. She finishes Hard to Love while walking to the centre with a final “Hard to Love” in the background. The drummer starts APT with the cymbals before the band kicks off the song with Rosie’s “Chaeyoung-iga joahanenun random game, Random Game, Game start!”

“Apateu, apateu, apateu, apateu, apateu, apateu! Uh, uh-huh!” She kicks off APT with a purple and pink hued lighting. As she gets to the second chorus, the crowd starts chanting apateu. By the third chorus, she’s fully jamming out with the crowd is bouncing off her energy.

“Hey, so now you know the game, are you ready? Cause I’m coming to get ya, get ya, get ya!” The crowd cheers during the start of the bridge, the band starts fully rocking out as Rosie jumps around before finishing the bridge. She delivers the final pre-chorus and by the final chorus, everyone is chanting apateu and with the final uh-huh, her set is over. She is met with big applause and cheer, she bows before descending backstage.

Jackson rushes to meet her.

“That was incredible, you have a knack for this.” He was surprised she was able to keep the energy so high for her first solo performance.

“Thank you so much for even letting me on stage!” Jackson laughed at her statement before patting her shoulder.

“You did amazing, you should be proud of yourself and also you should do more live performances.” Rosie chuckled at the last part. “I gotta announce the next performers, see ya.”

As he darts away, a group of guys come backstage.

“Hey, you’re Rosé right? That was an epic performance!” The guy in sunglasses states.

“Thank you! I wasn’t expecting everyone to start chanting apateu!”

Before he could chat with her, Jackson starts announcing them.

“Following Rosé’s energetic debut, we have a well known group from campus who have captured the hearts of many. Please welcome the Backstreet Boys!”

The Backstreet Boys dart up to the stage as the guitar starts strumming.

“Yeah.” The crowd starts erupts into cheering. “You are my fire, the one desire.”

Rosie moves to the stage front, wanting to watch their performance.

———

The party had died out after the final performance, it was around 12 and Rosie’s housing situation had floated back to her mind. She needed to find a place fast since she was only staying in the dorm until she found a proper place. She was helping Jackson clean despite him saying it was okay to leave.

“Rosé, you didn’t have to clean.” While he didn’t mind the help, no one really stayed to help him clean.

“Well, it’s the least I can do for you.” Rosie had swept and vacuumed as he was picking up all the rubbish.

“Well, I think we’re done.” He dropped the final rubbish bag in the bin., he turned to her and smiled “Thanks for your help.”

“No problem.....wait, where did you put my laptop?” Jackson went to his TV stand and pulled a draw out to grab it. He walked over to her a handed it to her.

“Goodnight Rosé.”

“Goodnight Jackson.”

She got to her dorm a few minutes later and opened the door. Sabrina was sitting on the couch, watching a movie. Rosie placed her laptop down and sat next to her.

“Why didn’t you say you were putting on a performance!” Sabrina playfully jabbed her.

“Well, I met Jackson like 3 hours before the.” Rosie shrugged.

“But that was an excellent debut performance. The energy, the vocals and that outfit!”

“Yours was so good, like I didn’t realise you were such a crowd favourite!” Rosie teased her.

“Well, that makes two of us!”

They continue chatting for a while until 3 am when Sabrina goes to bed.

———

Sabrina wakes up the next morning and sees Rosie passed out on the couch, she had her guitar and notebook out. Sabrina went to go snoop and she read that Rosie was writing a song called “dance all night”, very fitting for the night she just had.

Another roommate emerges from his room, confused by the sight of Rosie passed out on the couch.

“Is she alright?” Sabrina lifted her head up to look at him.

“Yeah, it seems we have a night owl writer here.” She sat on one of the adjacent armchairs.

Rosie starts to wake up and lifts her self up.

“Sabrina?” She says very groggily. “What time is it?”

“About 11.”  Rosie turns her head to the guy.

“Hey, aren’t you apart of the group that went after me?” He chuckled at her comment.

“Yeah, I’m Kevin.” As he introduces himself, Rosie stretches before her brain reminded her of the her problem.

“God, I have to go apartment searching today.” Rosie is still disgruntled over that.

“What? Don’t you live here?” Rosie sighed at his question.

“No, because my plane ticket used those funds since I’m here on a scholarship and apparently they’re similar prices so they sacrificed them to get me here.” Rosie bluntly stated. Kevin was flabbergasted that her scholarship funds were that poorly managed. “Do you have any ideas where I should go? Do 24 hours spas exist here?”

“Rosé! You are not staying a whole semester in a 24 hour spa!” Sabrina was shocked from that suggestion alone, but she sighed because she doesn’t know what a student visa can do here. “Kev, do you know how student visa holders work he?”

“No but shouldn’t she search it up.”

“I did, but since I wouldn’t have any credit history here, I would basically have to deposit large sums of money.” Rosie did have a decent amount of money saved up, she could potentially lose a lot from renting internationally.

“Wait, can you pay for your dorm with your money?” Kevin thought that would be the most obvious solution.

“I would but there’s a stupid rule saying scholarship students can’t pay for anything that’s supposed to be covered by the scholarship funds.” They all collectively sighed, such a simple solution blocked by the school’s own rules.

Kevin remembered something that could be useful and facepalmed himself for not remembering earlier.

“My cousin Brian is currently looking for a roommate since he opted out of living in a dorm.” While there was a question of why, Rosie had to jump on this opportunity.

“Can you give him a call?”

———

Brian lives about 20 minutes by foot, so Rosie walked all the way to his apartment with her stuff. She got to his floor in a few minutes and knocked on his door. He opened the door.

“Rosé right?”

“Yep, you’re Brian?” He nodded and extended a handshake, which she accepted.

“Kev told me about how the school……mishandled your funds.” Brian let her inside to check it out, it was a very small and cozy apartment. It had an open lay out with the kitchen in one corner and the bathroom door in another, two doors to the bedroom and a small living room area with a tv, small wood grain entertainment stand with a matching coffee table, a 2 seater brown couch and a matching brown armchair. “Good thing he remembered I’ve been looking for a roommate, despite it being a month’s search.”

“I’m surprised no one took it in the month.” She wondered why no one had taken such a good deal like this yet.“Like, it’s close to campus without being in a tacky neighbourhood.”

“Well, I prioritise safety, so I check through any potential roommate’s criminal history and their attitudes when they’re in here viewing.” Rosie was alarmed that he even had to that. “Because being gay has definitely made me a target.” Rosie was quiet, she didn’t want him to leap through so much hoops just for a roommate.

“Hey, you don’t have to worry if I’m your roommate.’ Rosie gave him a reassuring smile. “I think you should take down those flyer for a roommate soon.” Brian’s eyes lit up. “Where do I sign?”

———

While signing the lease was perfectly fine. Rosie was jumping through hoops with her bank for the deposit. It should’ve been a simple ordeal since she had researched it, but apparently CommBank was having issues sending it through. She had set up an American bank account but it was locked for “suspicious activities” despite it being only 2 days old. She was sitting on the couch, on hold with CommBank. Brian had made some coffee for both of them and placed them on the table before sitting down.

“Any luck?” Brian asked, hopeful someone would get to her.

“Nope, I just can’t believe both CommBank and Chase Bank have screwed me over!” She exhaled a dramatic sigh and leaned against the couch. “Money and accommodations, apparently not a good combo with me.” He laughed at her comment.

Minutes go by and both of them are getting tired of just waiting for Rosie’s bank to get back to her. 40 minutes later, Brian is cleaning the mugs as Rosie is strumming her guitar until….the call gets hung up. Rosie looks at her phone with disbelief. She takes a long breath before just sighing.

“What’s wrong with banks today?” Brian had given her a deadline for the initial deposit, but she needed to figure out why the banks have been going haywire, she could only scream one thing in her head.

Why banks, why now?!

Chapter Text

It was around 7 am when Rosie woke up, she slid out of her bed and headed out to the main apateu area. Brian was already up in the kitchen, brewing coffee.

“Good morning.” She greeted him as she sat, so he greeted her by sliding a mug of coffee to her.. “Thanks.”

“So, are you ready to have a flash mob.” She accidentally gained some traction after her performance at Jackson’s party, he chuckled as she let out a sigh. “I wonder what will happen if they learned you live with one of the Backstreet Boys.”

“Stalked, Brian, we’d get stalked.” Rosie bluntly said. “But anyway, can JC be at least more discreet when he’s tiptoeing out at 3 am.” A blush crept across his cheeks from her suggestion.

“..H-how do you know he sneaks out at 3 am?”

“I find inspiration during the night.” Rosie had the habit of staying up in her living room or studio very late and passing out in the early hours of the morning, which has lead to the phrase in her home studio “Make Sure Rosie Has Enough Blankets And Coffee When Working At Night” becoming a beloved poster with little coffee and blankets on it on her studio wall.

That explains to him when she had passed out on the couch with her guitar and notebook the morning after she moved in. “Maybe you shouldn’t be up at 3 am working on music.” He was more embarrassed by the fact that he had him over the weekend, he probably walked by Rosie without him realising she was even there at 3 am.

She just laughed it off, it was a bad habit but she actually came up with APT after a really bad day and thought a simple game of apateu would help her cheer up. “What’s wrong with venting at my notebook at 3 am for songwriting inspiration?”

He just shook his head. “God, I’ll probably have to let Josh know you’re on the couch at 3 am and he has to tiptoe out when you’re passed out.”

———

Jennie, Jisoo and Lisa were sitting by the tree hung out by. Jennie was planning a little get together with all three to celebrate her birthday.

“So, can we afford a cake this year or is it another year of chocopies stacked on top of each other?” It was a tradition for them to by chocopies instead of a cake due to the amount of money sent to them every few months.

“Jennie! It’s the thought that counts!” Lisa playfully punched her on the arm. “Chocopies are so good though!”

Rosie walks by them, they all watched her as she walked by until she’s out of view.

“I still can’t believe she wrote a song with the apateu chant and made it work!” Jisoo had loved the energy APT created on that night, with it being a celebration of the game.

“But it seems she loves the culture like we do.” Jennie chimed in. They moved on from her, but Jennie did want to learn more about who Rosie is.

———

Rosie’s first class was Songwriter’s Artistry. She awkwardly walked in a bit late because she got lost despite having the map on her, all eyes were on her and she recognised a few familiar faces in the class but scurried to a seat next to a girl in the back. She was quite a stunning girl and dripped charisma, which made Rosie a bit flustered. After the professor finished her introduction of the class, she had to duck out to quickly grab the task papers.

“Jennie.” Rosie turned to Jennie. “Rosé right?”

“Yeah.” She nodded.

“I’ve been wanting to talk to you after your apateu performance, I love how you turned apateu into a full fledge song that rocks.” Rosie’s eyes lit up at her compliment.

“Thank you!”

The professor came back in and she handed out tasks sheets for the class, it was a collaborative task to write a song with someone else in the class.

“Wanna work together?” Jennie’s signature gummy smile made Rosie’s heart flutter a little

“Of course.” And out of habit, she wrote ‘Rosie’ instead of ‘Rose’ or ‘Rosé’ on the paper.

“Rosie?” The way Jennie said her name itched something in her brain. “Is that what people call you.”

“Well, it’s a nickname that my family and friends call me.” Rosie was about to cross it out when Jennie wrote her name next to it.

“Well, how about I also call you Rosie if we’re going to write songs together?” Rosie such a rush of serotonin after Jennie’s declaration, something about Jennie ma

———

Rosie was walking through the tree-covered paths with leaves brushing against her feet, she had bought an iced tea but till pondered where or who to sit down with until a certain voice shouted her name.

“Rosie!” She turned around to see Jennie sitting with two other girls. Jennie was gesturing come over with her hands as Rosie moved in their direction. She sat down opposite of the tree she was sitting against. “I’d like you to meet Lisa and Jisoo!” The two girls gave Rosie warm smiles and waves, but something about Jisoo made Rosie’s heart skip a beat.

“It’s nice to meet you both!”

“Okay, before we get to know Rosie better…..should we include her in my birthday plans.” They both nodded, eagerly smiling to include Rosie for Jennie’s celebration. “Alright…..where do we want to go? My dorm? Lisa’s dorm? Jisoo’s dorm?”

“Maybe we can go to my apateu.” Their ears perked up. “Long story I’ll tell you guys later.”

“Oh, do you want me to get us some soju and beer?” Jisoo’s voice was very soothing yet elegant to Rosie. God, why is she so…..

“I’ll get the cup noodles!” Lisa eagerly offered.

“I’ll get the chocopies and candles!” Jennie was excited, her first birthday with a new person in the group. “Low five?”

The three placed their hands on top of each other so Rosie joined in.

“So Rosie, instead going up, we go down and say oh.” And on the count of three, they did their low five before cracking up of how depressing it always sound.

———

Sitting down in her final class, The History of Musicians. Rosie was trying scribble down notes but her teacher could rival Eminem from his fast flow and sometimes incoherent noises because of his horrific pacing. She was on the brink of giving up trying to understand what this man was trying to say when the guy next to her slid his notes to her. She looked at the guy with surprise but gratitude and started hastily jotting down the notes from his before sliding them back.

About 50 minutes later, it was the end of class and she was packing up her stuff into her bag. But she did have to say thank you to the guy who was kind enough to slide his notes to her. As he was about to walk pass Rosie, she tapped him on the shoulder which made him turn around.

“Hey, thanks for sliding me your notes earlier.” He gave her a smile.

“All good, you get used to his pace in a semester.” He held his hand out. “Jungkook.”

“Rosé.” She accepted it. “But you probably already know who I am.” He chuckled at her comment.

“Everyone knows who you are at this point, your performance was legendary!” Rosie couldn’t help feel a little flushed from the compliment. “And hey, if you ever need help with this class, you can ask me.” He said before walking out, Rosie left the room a few seconds after him.

———

Rosie unlocked the door to the apateu, she took off her shoes and carried them to outside of her room. She was tempted to take a cosy nap with her bed inviting her, but she simply but her bag on her desk chair and waddled back out and flopped onto the couch. She turned on TV and flicked through and decided to watch The Powerpuff Girls.

The guys were heading to the apateu for some writing for their next album. As they got to the door, Brian went digging in his jean pocket, then the other one, then the ones of the butt, then his jacket pockets, he even rummaged through his bag to discovered he had forgotten his key and he wasn’t even sure Rosie was home. So he knocked on the door.

“Who’s there?” Her slightly muffled shout traveled to the guys outside.

“Brian.”

“It’s unlocked.” Brian opened the door to find she was flopped onto the couch watching The Powerpuff Girls.  The guys didn’t question what she was doing and headed straight to the dining area and sat down. Rosie passed out on the couch about 30 minutes later in typical Rosie fashion.

Chapter Text

Jennie rose out of bed, she was finally 22. She walked into the common room while stretching her upper body. When she was done stretching and looked  forward, her dorm mates Irene, Tzuyu, Namjoon, BamBam and Kai were waiting on the couch with a cake with 22 candles stuck on it.

“Happy Birthday, Jennie!” She nearly jumped out of excitement and rushed over.

When she finally got to the group, they sung happy birthday for her and cheered when she blew out the candles.

“Thank you all so much! I wasn’t expecting such a lovely gesture this morning!” Jennie was still overwhelmed by joy of this being the first thing she saw after waking up.

“We wanted to celebrate with you since you’ll be hanging out with the girls tonight.” Irene smiled while BamBam started cutting the cake, he handed her the first piece and it was a chocolate mud cake, which everyone knew Jennie loved. She took one bite and her mouth was savouring every moment of the cake.

———

Jennie got tackled by Rosie into a tight hug the moment she stepped in their songwriter’s artistry class.

“Happy Birthday Jenchu!” Jennie returned the hug.

“Thank you Rosie!” Both of them laughing with pure joy as they pulled away from each other and Rosie pulled Jennie to their usual seats. Their classmates did feel giddy seeing the two so happy.  Their professor walked into class and started the lesson before making a quick shout out.

“Also, today is Miss Jennie Kim’s birthday, make sure to wish her a happy birthday!” Jennie felt her cheeks flush after the professor’s shout out.

———

While she had been receiving birthday wishes all day, she was excited for the little get together with the girls, which they dubbed themselves the Pinks. They had gone to the Asian store for their spiciest noodle cups, chocopies and grabbing some authentic soju and beer. Rosie lead the Pinks to the apateu, unlocking to reveal how cozy it was.

“Cozy like Rosie.” Jennie teased the blonde. “But damn, you got the best from that stupid dorm crisis.”

They headed to the kitchen and placed all the goods on the kitchen island.

“Chaeng, you’re on soju and beer mixing. Lisa, you’re on the noodle cups.” They both nodded and went to start preparing their dinner. “And Jennie, have a seat at the dining table!” Jennie made her way to the dining table, it was definitely meant for small groups with how small it was.

Jisoo and Rosie started placing the glasses of soju and beer for each girl before helping Lisa place the noodle cups.

“Should we toast?” Jennie held her drink up, followed by the three.

“Geonbae!” They clicked their glasses before each taking a sip.  They ate and chat for a while, eating through the collection of noodle cups they bought. Jisoo got up and headed back to the kitchen, she was unwrapping the chocopies and stacking them onto of each other.

Jisoo finished the stack and placed a candle in the top one before walking back over to the girls with the chocopie stack. She lit it and the girls started singing happy birthday.

“Saengil chuka hamnida, saengil chuka hamınida, sarang haneun Jennie, saengil chuka hamınida!” The girls cheered as Jennie blew out the candle.

———

Brian was quite disappointed with how everything went with this session, the guys had been stumped on music creation for months and it’s starting to affect their attitudes in the studio. They’re all getting on each other’s nerves and it feels like they could crumble apart if they continue like this. He sighs when he opens the door, wanting some rest.

“If you want to be a good girl, get yourself a bad boy.” He was greeted by the Pinks doing drunk karaoke to the one song the guys collectively hates.

They must have be having fun. He chuckled at his thought and headed to his room, letting them celebrate Jennie’s birthday chaotically. As long as the apartment isn’t trashed.

Chapter Text

Rosie was playing her guitar on the couch, it was about 3 o’clock in the afternoon and a relatively rainy day. She had tried writing songs but she felt uninspired today. A knock at the door broke her out of her haze, so she went to answer it. Opening it revealed a man who had slicked back brown hair, bright green eyes, a perfectly sculpted face, tall and built under his black suit.

“Does Brian Littrell live?” Oh shit, is he in trouble?

“Did he do anything….illegal?” The man laughed at her question.

“Ah, good one!” The man took a moment to compose himself. “I actually know him from Kentucky.” The man held his hand out. “Lachlan.”

“Rose.” She accepted the handshake. “Brian isn’t home right now.” She stated while letting go from the shake.

“Can you give him this.” It was a business card with his name and number, she nodded as he walked away. I wonder what he wants from him.

———

By 7, she went out to go grab some dinner. The Pinks had recommended her a little ramen shop on the shopping strip near the apateu. She was walking down the street when she spotted a familiar figure walking in front of her.

“Bruno?” He turned around, smiling as she caught up to him.

“Ah, Rosé, what are you doing down here?” The two started chatting as they resumed walking.

“I’m on my way to the ramen shop.” Bruno chuckled.

“I was heading there too, do you wanna get some ramen with me.” She nodded, accepting his invitation.

They entered the shop and sat down at a table, they sent in their orders and started talking again as their ramen is placed on the table.

“So, how’s your song with Jennie going?” Rosie rolled her eyes playfully.

“We both hate the song, like it’s probably good for what it needs to do.” Rosie continued to chow down on her ramen.

“It’s always like that, good for the class but terrible as a song.” She nodded in agreement.

They finished eating and headed out, still keeping the conversation until they got to the lobby of the apateu. They wished each other goodnight before Rosie got on the elevator.

Brian’s sitting at the dining table, he’s been trying to write any cohesive lyrics but he has been struck with the apateu writer’s block. He notices Rosie walk in.

“Hey, where have you been?” He asked since she mentioned not having any plans today.

“I was dying to get some ramen and I run into Bruno, so we had ramen together.” She was about to go into her room when she remembered the guy who stopped by. “By the way, some guy came by earlier.’

‘Who?” He cocked his head.

“A guy called Lachlan.” She walked over to the table. “He said to give this to you.” She slid the business card to him.

He could only nod at the card and contact information.

“I’m gonna be in my room, see ya.’ She walked and entered her room, she simply flopped onto her bed.

———

3 am rolls around and she’s not working on any music but watching some TV. The door opens and Brian comes stumbling into the apateu, she jumps up to her feet to go help her roommate. As she’s wrapping her arm around his shoulder to support him. As they start walking, he starts talking

“I met up with Lachlan….” Rosie could smell the alcohol in his breath. “….I gave that man my virginity…”

As Rosie was guiding him to the room, Brian kept rambling about his relationship with Lachlan. How Lachlan was the pastor’s son at the church, his gay awakening, first boyfriend, how he was 20 when Brian was 16 when they were dating. With each passing statement, his tears were streaming down his face. Rosie finally got him down on his bed, she pulled his shoes off and tucked him in.

“Goodnight Rosie.” He said it in a small voice that tugged at her heart strings.

“Goodnight Brian.” Rosie turned off his lights and closed the door, she sat down on the couch before dosing off.

———

It was around 10 am when the someone was aggressively knocking on the door. Rosie stretched before getting off the couch and headed to open the door.

“Is Bri okay?” Kevin’s face reflected his concern. “He was supposed to working on music with us.”

“Long story short, his ex Lachlan swung by the apateu. They met up later at night and he got piss drunk.”  Kevin sighed, knowing that when Brian had a hangover, he was an absolute mess.

“…..I see. Can I come in?” Rosie moved out of the way, which was followed with Kevin bolting straight to Brian’s room. Rosie sat back down on the couch and saw she got a message from Bruno.

Bruno: hey, do u wanna come over and write some songs?

Rosie: yea, I’ll be there soon

Kevin sat down on the adjacent arm chair, sighing.

“God, I wish I could punch Lachlan for being such a sleaze.” He was rubbing his temples just recalling what Brian had told him about last night. “Apparently Lachlan tried to get him shitfaced so he could take advantage of him but he got bawling eyes instead.” He saw the guilt wash over her from letting last night happen. “Rosé, don’t blame yourself for this. You didn’t know who Lachlan was and didn’t know why he wanted to meet up with Brian.”

“Is he alright?”

“He’s buried himself under his blankets.” He knew his cousin all too well, burying blankets is only the start of it.

“I have plans today but I don’t want to leave him like this.”

“If you’re that worried, I can stay with him.”

“Are you sure? I’m surprised JC isn’t the one who came running to the apateu.” Kevin sighed at her comment.

“They’re still a pretty new couple, so Brian hasn’t brought up Lachlan to him yet.” Kevin slumped against the chair. “But I would be happy to make sure Brian is okay.”

———

Bruno hears a knock at his door, he goes and opens it to reveal Rosie.

“Hey Bruno, ready to jam!”

Chapter Text

“Whoa, where did you learn how to shred an electric guitar like that?” Rosie laughed as she placed the guitar back on its stand.

“I kinda let the electricity flow through me.”

“That’s what I like to hear!”The duo had been doing a jam session for over a few hours at this point in time. Rosie had finally loosened up after the chaos that occurred in the apateu. Bruno enjoyed seeing this more energetic and wild Rosie, letting her embrace the messy yet beautiful chaos of a jam session. “How has your first few weeks at Harmonic been?”

“Definitely full of surprises, like accidentally gaining popularity and the whole dorm situation wasn’t really on my plan.” He chuckled at her response; he knew Rosie is full of potential. “But I’ve met so many cool people.”

“Hmm…any of them catch your interest?” Bruno playfully smiled.

“Kinda…..” A light blush crept onto her face. “I don’t know if it counts as a crush or not but I think Jisoo is so breathtaking.” She looked away from Bruno out of embarrassment.

“Good taste, she’s such a beauty.” Bruno agreed with her admiration towards Jisoo.

“If I’m gonna be honest….I’ve never questioned my sexuality until now. Like I’ve dated guys all my life but since I got here….Jisoo has been the one who caught my eyes.” She gazed through the window, appreciating the sunshine flowing through the trees. “I’m turning 21 in a few days, I’m hosting a small get together. Do you wanna come?”

“Absolutely.” His excitement radiated from his face. He headed to the fridge and grabbed two bottles of water. “Can you can catch?” Rosie nodded and he tossed her the bottle, she nearly dropped it but managed to grasp onto it. Both of them laughed at Rosie awkward catch.

———

She spent a few hours with Bruno, she was catching his drift and was happy that they bumped into each other while getting ramen. She unlocked the door and saw JC and Brian asleep while cuddling on the couch. She slid to her room gently since her door was in near the lounge area. After gently closing her door, she checked her phone. Kevin left her a message.

Kevin: I’m sorry this is such a serious message but if a guy called Patrick ever asks for Brian, shut the door immediately.

Rosie: oh boy, I don’t wanna know about this one

Kevin: I’ll just say Brian has a restraining order against him

Rosie: jesus okay

What Brian told her when he was showing her around was more alarming now if he had a restraining order against this Patrick guy. She dumped her bag on the ground and sat down at her desk, pulling out her notebook to work on songs.

———

Rosie was strolling around when a multistory arcade caught her attention. She walked it and it reminded her of the ones in Japan she’d visit on family vacations. It was crowded, with lots of neon lighting, chatter, laughter and energetic music. She also noted the karaoke rooms before exploring each floor. She headed for one of the karaoke rooms and selected “10 Minutes” by Lee Hyori.

After finishing her performance, she turned around to find a small crowd; watching with excitement at Rosie’s rendition of “10 Minutes”. They started chanting “Encore!”, which made Rosie flustered. So she did a few more songs, including singing with the crowd. This was one of those few performances where she could just let loose since the semester started as most of her class performances had quite the heft on her grade.

She started walking home, still high from the adrenaline of performing. She skipped along the sidewalk with her earphones in, bouncing with each drum kick and letting the guitar ’s rhythm colour her imagination. The neon shop lights contrasting the dark night sky with a light gentle breeze. She felt the memories of her getting home late from the studio rushing back her as she happily skipped back to the apateu.

Rosie finally got home to an empty apateu, she sat down on the couch and turned on the TV. It was nice to have these simple moments amongst the chaos of school.

Chapter Text

Rosie sat up in her bed after turning off her alarm. She was officially 21 today and she was ready to dance all night. She got out of her bed and walked into the main area of the apateu.

“Morning Rosie, happy birthday!” Brian slid a cup full of coffee towards her.

“Thanks Brian.” She picked the coffee up and started drinking it.

“How many people did you say were coming over tonight?”

“Well…..the girls, Bruno……that’s it….” She shrugged, she wasn’t advertising a party because that would require too much money and energy, things that slowly have been getting sucked out of her since the semester started.

———

The Pinks sat down at their usual tree, embracing the sunlight that hit the ground through the tree.

“Happy Birthday Chaeng!” Jisoo placed a small bag next to Rosie, which housed a box of chocopies and packs of instant pho.

“Aww, thank you Chu!” Rosie playfully squeezed Jisoo’s shoulder, despite the action causing a light tingle over her cheeks.

“Me next! Happy Birthday Rosie!” Lisa handed her a disposal camera. “I know you love shooting memories on cameras.”

“And from me.” Jennie lightly threw a Bubbles plushie at her. “Powerpuff!”

“Thank you Lisa and Jennie.” Her smile radiated with gratitude and exuberance. While she couldn’t properly celebrate her birthday with her family when she’s at school, The Pinks are her second family at Harmonic and she’s grateful Jennie found her in their songwriting class.

———

The girls were sitting at the dining table in the apateu. It was now a tradition for them to spend any birthday at Rosie’s since it was a lot more private than the open nature of the dorms. They already cracked open some of the beer and laid out their Chinese take out. Bruno promised Rosie he’ll come with a cake.

“So, Rosie. Any other chaotic events happen over the weekend?” Jennie asked before downing the rest of her cup.

“Nah, Lachlan was the most notable thing. I’m still curious how he even got our apateu address and number.”

Before they could start theory crafting, someone knocked at the door. Rosie zoomed to the door, opening it revealed Bruno holding a white box and a bouquet of roses.

“Happy Birthday again, Rosie.” He handed Rosie the bouquet and placed the box in the kitchen area. She pulled out a vase, filled it up with water and slipped the roses before heading back to the table and placed to vase on it.

“Wow! What florist did you get them from?” Jennie gently traced one of the petals, admiring the rich reds that saturated her eyes.

“The one that Tzuyu and Selugi work at.”

“Wait, isn’t it that the very expensive one?” Tzuyu always recalled stories from her job to Jennie, as most of their customers are from the rich side of L.A., not the celebrities but the well off class.

“Yeah, but Selugi gave me a discount since special occasion bouquets always sell out.”

“I’ll thank her next time I see her. These are absolutely gorgeous, Bruno.” Rosie shot him a smile.

After a few minutes of eating Chinese take out and cracking open some cold ones. Bruno finally gets the cake to the table, he pulled the box off to reveal a pink frosting cover cake with “rosie” written on top in red with matching red candles.

Jisoo lit up the candles and cued them to start the song.

“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Rosie, happy birthday to you!” Rosie blew out the candles, followed by cheers from the Pinks and Bruno.

“Now, can I start off the games, time for Rosie’s random game?”

———

As per Rosie, she’s passed out on the couch at 3 am. Bruno and the girls left around 1 due to dorm rules. For her first birthday away from home, it was a memorable one.

Chapter Text

It was a breezy day, Jisoo was heading to her acting class for the day. The wind gently blew her hair over her hair and strands flew over her face, which made her appreciate her scarf for keeping her neck protected from the breeze. She was immersed in her own little world with her earphones in, listening to her EDM playlist. It took a few minutes for Jisoo to get to the acting department as it was disconnected from the main building.

She walked in, pulling out her earphone out, with the chatter replacing the EDM beats. She sat down next to Mina, they’ve been a dynamic duo from the day they sat down next to each other. Mina was fiddling with her pen, clicking it in and out repetitively.

While their acting teacher tended to be a late occasionally, 20 minutes was a little ridiculous. Jisoo leaned her head against her hand, the room was still buzzing with chatter but now it was about where he is.

“20 bucks says he’s forgotten we had class.” Mina joked, poking at the corner of her book.

“Maybe, or he’ll walk in with a surprise.”  The acting teaching had the tendency to randomly surprise their class, whether it’s good or it makes them want to rip their hair out. Right after Jisoo finished her sentence, their teacher walked in on cue.

“Sorry team, the staff meeting went a little over.” He dumped his bag on the chair. “Okay, today I’ll be sorting you into random pairs.” He pulled shuffled around on his phone before finding the note. He was listing off the pairs, Jisoo listening intently for her random partner. “Jisoo and JC.”

After he finished listing off the pairs, the awkward shuffle began. Mina opted to move to her partner, Joy, with JC taking her spot as he moved towards Jisoo.  As he sat down, she couldn’t help but remember the random 3 am encounters Rosie told her, how JC was clumsily stumbling out of the apateu.

“Now that you’re in your pairs, I will hand out scripts in a few moments.” He rummaged through his bag, looking for his folder that contains the scripts.

He gave the J duo their script, it was about scene of a person about to murder someone who wronged them, while the wrongdoer professes their love for their love interest before being murdered. It was definitely wasn’t a scene either of them were expecting but it was an interesting script to work with.

“By the way, you will have a performance night for this in a weeks time; so chop chop!”

———

Jisoo was lounging on the apateu couch. All of the rehearsal spaces and even random parts of their campus had been taken over by their fellow classmates. So Brian and Rosie were happy to give them the space to work on their performance. JC was supposed to be here as well but he did message Jisoo saying he felt a tad bit sick and would see if he felt well enough to meet at the apateu. She was reading a light novel about 2 girls who are best friends falling in love when a text from JC drops down.

JC: i think i got a stomach bug

She presses the notification to open messages to reply.

Jisoo: oh no, please get some rest

JC: i will

Jisoo sighed as she opened her light novel app again. They both were stressed about the turn around time but their health was more important in moments like this. Jisoo could’ve gone home but Rosie promised lunch for the two of them. She got to the end of the her light novel chapter when Rosie opened the door.

“I didn’t know what to get for us so I got use some rice bowls.” Jisoo sat up as Rosie handed her the bowl container with a pair of chopsticks. They ate in a comfortable silence, just enjoying each other’s company and the rice bowls. They finish eating  in a matter of minutes, which lead to Jisoo starting the conversation.

“Chaeng, do you want to come to the performance night?” Jisoo asked her friend.

“Yeah, I’d love to watch you perform.” Rosie felt her face heat up a little.

“Okay, it’s this Friday.”

———

It’s the night of the performance night and a crowd arrived to watch their friends and family. Rosie was sitting with Brian, Justin, Jennie and Lisa in support of Jisoo and JC. It was the end of Mina and Joy’s performance and the crowd was applauding as the teacher was walking back.

“Next up, we have an incredible who have brought the scene of a murder about to happen come to life! May we welcome Jisoo Kim and JC Chasez.” The five of them cheered as Jisoo and JC took the stage.

“Now, that I’ve got you…..It’s time you pay.” Jisoo stopped in front of him and grabbed his shirt and pulled him close. Her facial expression read anger and bitter which contrasted JC’s scared and pleading face. Rosie couldn’t help but feel butterflies as Jisoo’s voice took on a raspy yet sinister vocal tone.

“Please….I’m sorry.” JC’s voice was laced with desperation and guilt, but Jisoo threw him to the ground.

“You don’t understand, you took everything away from me.” The rising rage and hurt in her delivery helped emphasis her character’s motivation.

“I…I…” JC was breathing heavily, his character not saying anything.

“Any last words?”

“Yes, I love Brian!” As JC professed his love for Brian, Rosie turned to him to see he’s completely pink before turning back to the performance.

“How cute…” Jisoo stated before lunging onto JC, the lighting cued to be red flashing intensely. The only thing heard was JC’s scream and the flashing lights stopped, it was the end of the performance. The applause started, with the five cheering loudly. The lights came back on as Jisoo and JC bowed.

Rosie stares at Jisoo for a little too long until Jisoo noticed and sends a smile back. Which made Rosie feel so flustered and…….

…….I like Jisoo……..

Chapter Text

Rosie hugging her knees while holding her notebook and sitting on the couch, another 3 am moment full of pondering and songwriting. Her recent songs are about the mystery of falling in love with someone you’ve only known for weeks. She sighed as she put down her notebook, nothing was coherent and it seemed it was tiring her out instead of inspiring her.

Maybe she was sucking herself dry of any ideas that came to mind. She uncurled and stretched a long the couch, letting her drowsy eyes shut.

———

Jungkook was staring out the window when he heard the soft thud of something being placed. He turned around to see Rosie, her eye bags were puffy and her hair was a frizzy mess despite her tying it up. She must’ve had a rough night.

As the day continues, everyone around campus is wondering what happened to her. Even Brian is surprised that one of her 3 am songwriting sessions ended up with her walking like a zombie.

She knew the reason. It was simple, keeping up with her work, meeting deadlines and songwriting had taken a toll on her. She normally could handle all of them but today seemed to be swirling around her psyche.

She sighed while slumping against the Pink’s tree, exhausted from her morning classes. She would’ve rather crawled back into bed to forget the world with her troubles for a while. She wasn’t expecting to be hit with a burn out this early on, but it was something rampant with how she was balancing her life.

Jennie and Lisa got there a few minutes later, Jisoo wasn’t able to be there since she had an acting audition for a potential role and the Pinks kept encouraging her to get it.

“Dude, what happened? The 3 am curse finally get to ya?” Lisa tried lightening the mood before Jennie playfully smacked the back of her head.

“Lisa! Let the girl be a walking zombie for a day!” That line earned a chuckle from Rosie. “But is everything okay Rosie? Anything been on your mind?”

Rosie was conflicted, she wanted to tell them since it was eating at her, however it had the risk of tearing the Pinks apart. She took a moment before she reluctantly nodded to Jennie’s question. “Yeah….would you guys judge if it’s about a crush I have.”

Jennie and Lisa shot each other glances before turning to Rosie, possibly knowing who the identity of Rosie’s crush is. Rosie took a breath in while running her fingers against the grass blades.

“It’s just, I feel so…….confused. Like I don’t know if I’m supposed to have these feelings but I have.”  Rosie leaned her head against the tree as her body slid down it. “Would you guys judge me if I told you who it was?”

“Of course not, unless it’s the most rattiest and vile creature you’ve laid eyes on.” Lisa teased her, Jennie rolled her eyes but agreed with her statement. Rosie laughed, it felt good knowing her friends would support her in whatever life throws at her.

“Alright alright, this person is quite the opposite of a vile creature.” Rosie took a breath in. “It’s Jisoo.”

Jennie and Lisa turned to each other before Jennie playfully shoved Lisa.

“You see, I was right!” Jennie saw Rosie’s cheek flush up before grabbing her hands. “Don’t worry Rosie, I promise that these feelings aren’t wrong.” She squeezed her hands. “But you better be a little less obvious since you do ogle at her…a lot.”

Rosie’s face lit up like a lighthouse, the heat radiating off of her face; what an embarrassing thing to be told.

———

It was a really long day, dragging herself around to her classes before unlocking the apateu, kicking her shoes off and flopping onto the coach. Today was one of those days were she couldn’t be dammed to even write a song lyric.

“Rosie, you good?” She looked up to see Brian, his face expressed his worry for her.

“Yeah.” She mumbled before letting her face sink back into the couch.

———

She peeled her face from the couch and it was dark, the hours must’ve flown by as she slept on the couch. She sat up, feeling quite groggy as her head was thumping. She stretched her arms and back but the tension was still looming.

She slugged over to turn on the lights, squinting as the light flooded through the space.

It had been a long day and all she wanted to do was to lie in the arms of her to calm the chaos in her mind.

But the question now is will she ever have those arms wrapped around her.

Chapter Text

“Wow, that’s one way to release your frustration.” Bruno was impressed and slightly worried for Rosie as she finished shredding her guitar with her pent up frustration and wallowing over the past few weeks.

“It’s that obvious?” She let the guitar rest onto its stand.

“Rosie, you find ways to express yourself beyond words. You shouldn’t be surprised that your guitar shredding is an expression.” As absurd as that line came across, he knew Rosie was one to let all her emotions out as a physical manifestation. “Is everything still rumbling around in your head?”

She sighed before nodding. “It kinda felt like I got hit by an earthquake and it’s still shaking inside me.”

“I get that….Hey! What if you turned it into a song! Feeling rattled over the uncertainty of this budding feeling!” Rosie caught onto his brainwave and her eyes lit with excitement.

“And how it hits me like an earthquake!…..Bruno, get your guitar ready!”

———

Jisoo was sitting at the Pinks Tree, waiting for the others to get here. She was scrolling through her feed, it seems random clips from Jackson Wang’s party back in January were resurfacing, especially Rosie’s performance. She couldn’t help but smile at her friend jumping around and bringing such energy for her first performance at Harmonic Hymn.

“Jichu!” She put her phone down as Jennie sat down next to her.

“Nini…..where’s Lili and Chaeng?”

“Lisa’s coming in few minutes but Rosie is jamming with Bruno.” The mention of Bruno made Jisoo feel irrationally jealous, she doesn’t know why she’s jealous but the thought of Rosie hanging out with someone else ticked her off. “Jisoo, you okay? You’re scowling.”

Jisoo tried relaxing her face but it seemed that her body wanted to signal her bubbling jealousy. She groaned in defeat and dramatically flopped onto the grass.

Lisa was more than confused at the sight, Jennie looking severely concerned and Jisoo lying on the ground dramatically. She guessed that some catastrophic event happened when she was in line for 6 minutes.

———

It was another shift for Rihanna, ensuring that the records were in pristine condition and with reasonable prices. She was setting some posters up as the door chime activated.

“Welcome to Pon de Records.” She patted the poster down before turning around. “Rosie! Bruno! How you two doing?”

“Not that bad, any interesting records came around?” Rosie’s eyes skimmed over the displays.

“Nah, mostly reissues of 70s stuff.” Bruno wandered off to go browse another section of the store as Rosie and Rihanna chatted. “My dad has been trying to get all the vintage stuff before the consumer craze dies out.”

“Y’know get those profits!” They both chuckled at the comment. “Did any Whitney Houston vinyls come in?” Rihanna shook her head, a disappointed face forming.

“Not for this wave.” Rihanna headed to the counter and got the coffee pot out. “I’m gonna brew some coffee, do you want some?”

Rosie nodded with a smile. Rihanna took around 5 minutes to brew the a fresh batch, she grabbed two mugs and filled them up before pushing one to Rosie.

“Thanks.” She smiled before picking up the mug and sipping its coffee. The rich bitterness flooding her senses with the hot temperature burning her pain receptors. She let out a satisfied “hmm” as she drink.

“I haven’t met someone who can just drink such scalding coffee until you.” Rihanna was impressed by Rosie’s resistance to the nearly boiling liquid, but was also concerned to Rosie potentially burning her taste receptors off.

“Yo Rihanna, how much for this?” Bruno placed a Michael Jackson Thriller vinyl on the counter.

“I’d say about 70.” She checked the database on the tablet next to the register. “Yeah, 77 dollars.” She turned back to him. “Do you still want it?”

Bruno scratched the back of his head. “Hmm…has MJ been selling recently?”

“It’s a King of Pop vinyl, what do you expect.” Her tone was playful. “It’s up to you really or maybe I can entice you with a discount. How about I knock off about 15 dollars?”

“Whoa, 15 dollars is a lot, are you sure about it?”

“Yeah, I’ll call it a friends and family discount since you guys have been such great patrons.” Bruno pondered for a moment before finally he caved himself into buying the vinyl.

“You’d be such a great business woman.” Rosie placed down the empty mug.

“Thanks, I was considering….wait, how did you finish your coffee so fast!” Bruno and Rihanna exchanged a glance before sighing. This was just typical Rosie behaviour.

———

Justin and JC were sitting on the couch in their common room, JC was consumed within his thoughts and Justin was very concerned for him.

“Earth to JC.”  Justin waved his hand infant of his friend’s face, trying to snap him out of his dazed state. JC blinked a few times before turning his head to Justin. “You alright man? You’re starting to scare me.”

“It’s just.” He sighed as he sank into the couch and started staring at the ceiling. “I feel like I’m a doing such a horrible job as Bri’s boyfriend.”

Justin shot up, he was caught off guard by JC being so doubtful about himself as a boyfriend. “Jace...” He grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. “I promise you that you’re doing awesome as Brian’s boyfriend.” He pulled him into a hug. “I’m here to talk, if you need it.”

JC wrapped his arms around Justin. While the doubts in his mind were still lingering, he knew he could count on Justin to be a somewhat stable part of his life.

———

Selugi was lounging on the couch in her dorm’s common area, just scrolling her feed when Jisoo plops herself onto the comforter next to the couch and sunk into it. Selugi knew she was pondering something every time she plopped herself nearby.

“What’s on your mind this time?” Selugi put her phone next to her and sat up to look at Jisoo.

“I don’t know why but I felt so jealous when Chaeng was hanging out with Bruno today.” Selugi’s eyes widen slightly, she wasn’t expecting to hear Jisoo admit feeling jealously over someone in a million years. “Like I just wanted her to hang out with us.”

“It’s normal to feel that way.” She stopped to ponder what she should say next to understand where Jisoo is coming from. “Do you trust Bruno with her.”

She nodded. “I do. Bruno is a great guy but…..” She sunk into the comforter. “Is it bad I just wanted her to be there?”

Selugi didn’t know how to respond. This was a Jisoo she had never seen and it seems that these unresolved feelings from her could be bubbling into something more than Jisoo expects herself.

———

“Bri, I’m home!” Rosie entered the apateu.  She had expected no one to be home when she sees Nick on laying couch, playing on Brian’s Switch. “Nick? Is Brian even home?”

“He ran out a few minutes ago, said it was some sort of emergency.” He nonchalantly stated while continuing to play Mario Kart.

“Wait, so he left you on our couch?” This wasn’t on her bingo card at all, having Nick just on their couch.

“Frick trusts me, alright.” He paused the game and sat up, looking towards her. “Are you comfortable with me here?”

“Well….throw me a controller, I wanna see who's better at Mario Kart!”

Chapter Text

Jisoo was staring at the roof, caught within her thoughts. It had been weeks since her initial jealously over Rosie and Bruno and it’s gotten even worse, even Brian being in the apateu would tick Jisoo off for no apparent reason.

And the worse part, she didn’t even know why it was only the guys who ticked her off. When she tagged along with Rosie to Pon de Records, she seemed relaxed about Rihanna talking with Rosie, but her own roommate isn’t safe from the side eyes despite the fact his boyfriend would probably be in the room, who also is a victim of her side eyes.

Sitting in her Studies of Devised Performances class, she was next to Mina as usual. Mina had noticed Jisoo’s unexpected jealously behaviours, along with everyone else that was near the Pinks.

“Earth to Kim Jisoo, I heard that Jackson Wang is hosting another party at the end of semester, you down to go?” Jisoo rested her head on her books while looking at Mina.

“Hmm….I guess but I’ll see how I feel in 2 weeks.” She fully relaxed her upper body onto the table.

A jealous, burnt out Jisoo is a spectacle to watch. Mina mentally commented.

———

In the apateu, Rosie is mindlessly strumming her guitar while staring blankly at the TV. It was one of those days where nothing made sense and the only thing she wanted to do is lie down and sleep the day away. Brian had a jam session so she was sitting in an empty apateu with her thoughts bubbling.

She had noticed a shift within Jisoo but she couldn’t understand what the cause was because it was a behaviour triggered by any guy interacting with her. Even within the apateu, she’s been irritated by Brian and JC existing within the apateu. It didn’t make sense why any guy with she had been with had been the target of glares or side eyes from Jisoo.

The past few weeks had been such a drag since they changed the exam timetable to be at the end of the year instead having both midterms and end of year. It was just non-stop assessments with no break and even the teachers were sick of the unbroken term.

Her phone screen lit up on the coffee table with a notification with a message from Bruno but its contents caught her off guard.

Bruno: Yo, have you noticed that Jisoo seems pretty hostile around me?

And she immediately grabbed her phone from the coffee table and responded to his text.

Rosie: obvi,

I don’t know why she’s acting like this

Bruno: Isn’t it obvious girl?

She’s jealous of you with any guy

Rosie: that I can piece together

but why would she be jealous

Bruno: again, it’s obvious

she wants you

She just stared at Bruno’s response, she wouldn’t have resorted to this answer immediately because Jisoo had never disclosed to her if she even had any interest with romance. Her phone pinged with Bruno trying to pull her back into the conversation but her brain was short-circuiting.

If Rosie was going to figure this mystery out, Jackson’s party seemed like the perfect chance to piece things together. So it was time to kick “Operation: Chu”  it into full gear.

———

Jackson was chilling in the common room, he’s had lots of people come up to ask about the party and try begging him for them to perform but he’s had one performer that he wants to get back on his stage. The universe must have agreed because in came Rosie, walking with determination.

“Hey Jackson, can I perform at your party coming up?” And a single beat later.

“Of course! When do you want to rehearse? The band is doing their initial set up today, I can squeeze you between Bruno and NSYNC’s rehearsal.”

“Yeah, that sounds good but…..who are NSYNC?” This was the first time Rosie had ever heard of ’NSYNC’.

“Oh, JC and Justin formed a band with their friends and they’re been pretty hot. They’ve been at odds with the Backstreet Boys recently and they’re both going to be performing at party.” That gave her context behind the awkward tension JC and Brian recently, how they seem tensed when cuddling within the Apateu.

“That…..makes so much sense but yeah, that’ll be great.” While cutthroat boyband competition in this decade wasn’t on her bingo card, she was ready to rock and importantly, the mystery of Kim Jisoo’s hostility.

———

As the band was setting up, Rosie had a devilish plan for “Operation Chu” and knew who to ask to help. Bruno was tuning his guitar, sitting on stage when Rosie walked on stage and leaned against the support

“Hey Bruno, can I ask for a favour?” She asked nonchalantly.

“As long as it’s not putting me in debt, what’cha need?” He looked up at her, noticing the mischievous glint in her eyes.

“Perform APT. with me.” He nearly dropped his guitar because this was such an unexpected favour. He didn’t realise how much it meant to him for Rosie to ask to perform with her. “It sounds silly but I think it’s about time to show the world how we rock!”

Brian was near the edge of the stage watching Rosie and Bruno’s interaction, wishing he could have that same electricity that the duo had. He was waiting for Nick to get back with their promised sandwiches but he must be getting the good ones since it’s been around 20 minutes.

“Bri.” He turned around to see JC standing on the grass below the stage. “How did your rehearsal go?”

“Not bad.’ He sat and slid off the edge of the stage and onto the ground. “A few kinks but hopefully we’ll smooth it out by Friday.” He did a quick glance around the yard. “I’m also waiting for Nick to get back with some sandwiches.”

“Isn’t the nearest 7/11 like a 5 minute drive?” JC crossed his arms and leaned against the stage edge.

“Well, Nick isn’t that great with directions. Remember when he called me because he drove all the way to Nevada because he set his route for a Burger King because he wasn’t paying attention the search results.” Both of them bursted into laughter, something they haven’t done in ages.

They calmed down but something felt so right, it was just them not as Brian and JC but as Bri and Josh. Maybe it was the electricity from Rosie and Bruno’s dynamic but Brian pulled JC close and kissed him. The adrenaline pumping throughout his veins while his mind felt like it was soaring through the clouds. JC’s body was flooding with this euphoric feeling, almost levitating him off the ground. If this moment could last forever, it would but there was unfortunate timing.

“Next time you get the sandwiches, all the 7/11 were out!” When he lifted up his head up from looking at the bag’s contents, he wasn’t expecting Brian and JC to be eating each other’s faces. “Umm, I can come back.”

The couple broke apart, slightly embarrassed that they started making out in front of a stage in an open backyard.

“No no! Thanks Nick.” Brian, face still flushed, grabbed the plastic bag with the sandwiches. The three were caught off guard by the iconic APT. intro as Rosie kicked her rehearsal off. “Geez, she knows how to kick a performance off.”

“Those 3 am sessions must do wonders for her.” JC and Rosie have grown so used to each other when he would stumble out at 3 am that it felt strangely proud to see her manifesting that energy while performing.

The trio were intently watching when Bruno came and joined her for the second verse, it was definitely a surprise but he matched the energy of the song and Rosie perfectly but Brian and JC shot each other the same look. They knew one person who wouldn’t be over the moon for this unexpected duo performance.

Jisoo.

Whatever Rosie is planning with this performance, she must’ve picked up on Jisoo’s hostility and decided to take the things into her own hands and performing with Bruno would definitely set Jisoo ablaze.

———

Finally, the term and semester were over and there was one way to end it off, Jackson Wang’s end of semester bash. It was a highly anticipated for two different reasons, it was the first massive party held by Jackson since January and the performers. It featured the hottest boybands like NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys, solo acts like Bruno Mars, Rihanna, Britney Spears and Rosé with Beyoncé’s solo debut.

Rosie was backstage applying her makeup when the setlist was propped onto one of the stage’s lower supports.

SETLIST:

7:15 - NSYNC - “It’s Gonna Be Me” + “I Want You Back” + “Here We Go”

7:30 - BEYONCÉ - “Crazy In Love” + “Naughty Girl” + “Dangerously In Love”

7:45 - BACKSTREET BOYS - “As Long As You Love Me” + “We’ve Got It Goin’ On” + “10,000 Promises”

8:00 - BRITNEY SPEARS - “…Baby One More Time” + “Toxic” + “(You Drive Me) Crazy”

8:15 - BRUNO MARS - “24K Magic” + “That’s What I Like” + “Uptown Funk”

8:30 - RIHANNA - “Pon de Replay” + “Unfaithful” + “Don’t Stop The Music”

8:45 - TAYLOR SWIFT - “You Belong With Me” + “Look What You Made Me Do.” + “Bad Blood”

9:00 - TWICE - “TAKEDOWN (JEONGYEON, JIHYO, CHAEYOUNG)” + “Strategy” + “Alcohol Free”

9:15 - ROSÉ - “JUMP” + “drinks or coffee” + “APT. (with Bruno Mars)”

The moment she saw the “with Bruno Mars”, she knew that her plan had the perfect setup. No one would expect Bruno to join her during APT. but she was ready to execute this stunt to finally learn why Jisoo was acting like this. There was the big question she needed to drop but it needed the right moment.

Everything became a blur. The loud music, flashing lights and cheering crowds until it was finally her turn. Twice was heading down the steps as Rosie was passing them before Mina stopped her by placing her hand on her shoulder.

“Rosé, I know what you’re doing and all I can say is good luck.” She gave a reassuring nod before walking down the steps. Rosie took a deep breath and walked onto the stage.

“Now, our final act of the night is a face who made a splash with her first ever performance and she’s back to perform! Put your hands together for Rosé!” The audience erupted into applause as the band started the extended intro for Jump before the pulsing bass and guitars strums built up until.

“I’m not that easy to tame.” Rosie was lit with flares exploding as she started singing. The crowd wasn’t expecting such a club-oriented song but the lasers effects and smoke built that atmosphere.

“Nun gamgo, hana, dul, set, ttwieo!” The beat drop caught everyone off guard. Rosie delivering a hardstyle song with a live band kicked the crowd into a frenzy. The Pinks were head-banging to Jump, it was energetic and bouncy but Jisoo focus was on beyond the performance but on Rosie herself. She could feel butterflies in her stomach with this side of Rosie, a girl who knew she was hot and ready to party. The sheer bodysuit with the shorts, the leather belt and tie with the knee high boots made Rosie stand out to Jisoo, someone who wasn’t afraid to express themself onstage.

Jump was such a blur for Rosie, the ending sounding like a eurodance remix but when it ended, the crowd erupted into loud applause and chanting “Rosé”. The LED washes changed to an orange colour before the beat of “drinks or coffee” started.

“Standin’ in a corner of a crowded place.” She began to walk around the stage, the song was playful and sensual that expressed what Rosie’s intentions were to the person she was singing about. Jisoo could feel the heat rising to her cheeks, she wasn’t expecting such a direct song but one line caught her off guard.

“I know that you want me.” That finally clicked what Jisoo was feeling about her friend, desire and pining. It made so much sense but she still felt like an idiot for not realising why she felt her irrational jealousy. Her feelings were confirmed when Rosie saw her in the crowd and made direct eye contact with her and god, she felt euphoric when it felt like it was her singing only to her.

After drinks and coffee, it’s time for her plan to kick into full gear.

“Chaeyoung-iga joahanenun random game, Random Game, Game start!” The staple APT. and “apateu” rhythmic chant fills the air, the crowd is already rocking to the song. Engaging the crowd immediately was good as she finished the second chorus, she looked to her right.

“It’s whatever, it’s whatever, it’s whatever you like!” Bruno appeared from the side stage, shocking the crowd before they erupted in cheering.

Jisoo was about to combust from her jealousy, she wasn’t expecting such a surprise appearance from Bruno but it had set her off. Jennie and Lisa noticed Jisoo’s reaction to the surprise and they knew that Rosie had planned this.

The performance was electrifying, the duo having fun bouncing around the stage as the crowd sung along with them, the pink and purples of the LEDs washing over the crowd. APT. finished and the crowd went crazy.

As they bowed, Rosie glanced towards Jisoo’s direction and she could sense how the veins had harden on her forehead. It was only a matter of minutes until she had to ask Jisoo the question.

The duo ran off the stage as Jackson was closing the live performers part of the party, she could still feel the adrenaline pumping but she wasn’t ready to let it go.

“Rosé!” Mina ran to her backstage. “Performance was so good! But I have a warning to give you, Jisoo is ready to pounce onto Bruno!” She seemed genuinely out of breath which wasn’t a good sign. “You should probably get to her soon.”

Those were Mina’s last words to Rosie before running off. It was go time.

———

Jisoo was searching everywhere for Rosie at the party. She didn’t care she came across as a madwoman but in this instance, the only thing she wanted to do is ask Rosie why she did it, why she performed APT. with Bruno and why didn’t no one know. She knew it was irrational but she didn’t care and if Rosie did pick up on her behaviours, why wouldn’t she have asked why Jisoo was acting like that instead of this surprise performance.

Her head felt like it was spinning rounds, nothing made sense anymore and all she wanted was Rosie. She was about to give up when an arm grabbed her and pulled her to a quieter area. She looked at the person who grabbed her and recognised that blonde hair.

Rosie.

“Chaeng!” She had so much that she wanted to say to her, condemning the surprise of Bruno performing APT., how she felt like an absolute idiot for not realising why she was acting like this but nothing came to her tongue, it seemed like her brain couldn’t even connect with her vocal cords.

“Jisoo.” Rosie interwove her fingers with hers. “Look at me.”

Jisoo met her gaze and she could see the uncertainty, desire and anger storming within her friend. It was now or never and she took a deep breathe to calm her nerves.

“Jisoo….do you like me?”

And time seemingly stopped.

Chapter Text

This is what short-circuited Jisoo’s brain, the bombshell question made any coherent thought melt into a slobbery mess. Her only instinct was to pull Rosie into a tight embrace and hold onto her like there was no tomorrow. Rosie wrapped her arms around her, it finally give her peace of mind knowing that these storming feelings for her friend were reciprocated.

The muffled music, the dimly light with blue washes covering them accelerated their hearts to be thudding thunderously in their chests. It was their moment of serenity with them both going through how a crush could lead to them badly spiralling. Rosie shredding her frustration and Jisoo expressing her jealousy through her eyes.

It was going to be something they talk about later. But right now, this was the reassurance that they both wanted and pined for each other.

———

Britney was at the food table, grabbing as much as she could because everything looked that great. She had been touring with her friend Christina for majority of the semester and was so ecstatic to comeback to Harmonic Hymn. Jackson’s parties were always blasts for her and seeing both the familiar faces and the newcomers made her remember why she came to the institute. One of her favourites was that “Apateu” song, that Rosé girl and Bruno seemed to really click onstage.

As she was finished grabbing her grub, she wandered around before finding a place to sit on the couch. She believed that after a good performance, some celebratory food was in order.

While stuffing her face, Nick came over and sat next to her. It had been ages since he actually chatted with Britney within the same vicinity.

“Hey Brit, you killed it up there!” She couldn’t give a proper response with a croissant shoved up her mouth but she demolished it to talk to her friend.

“Says you, Backstreet rocked it as usual.” They both chuckled. “But I will say, NSYNC could give you a run for your money.”

“They’re definitely clean, but they’re missing that je ne sais quoi that we have.” He sank into the couch. “Like, is it me or there’s something missing.”

“And I wondering what that would be.” Lance leaned against the couch, seemingly to have eavesdropped on their conversation. “Thanks for saying we’re clean though.”

“I don’t know man but is there some sort of..drama within your group?” Nick immediately regretted that comment, why would a member of said band would start confessing their problems to their a “rival” band member.

“There is but….promise me you won’t tell anyone this.” Both of them perked up at Lance’s word, exchanging a glance before looking at with a nod. He sighed before speaking again. “The group feels unbalanced, I get that Justin and JC are like the lead vocalists and songwriters but it feels like that me, Chris and Joey get sidelined frequently.”

It does make the dynamic of NSYNC clearer to Nick. While they did still care for each other, they weren’t as inseparable as the Backstreet Boys and you could tell in their performance dynamic alone.

“Maybe you should talk to them about this. I know JC is willing to listen but Justin is a tougher nut to crack, he needs time to adjust to change and hopefully you wouldn’t have to feel like this.” Britney had personal experience with dealing with Justin and his bratty attitude which made her empathise with Lance’s current feelings. He didn’t know if he even wanted to express this feelings incase it cracks the band but maybe it’s a risk worth taking.

———

Like his roommate. Brian had dragged JC to a quieter area. But it wasn’t a high stakes love confession, it was hunger and lust. Entanglement of their bodies, Brian’s hands along JC’s sides as he starts slowly bruising his neck with hickies. JC’s arms around Brian’s neck and thigh. It was hot, steamy and everything they haven’t done in ages.

The way JC’s breath hitches as Brian is necking him, the constant friction of their jeans and the tension building within them. It was only a matter of time before they would fully go down on each other. Were they shitfaced, yes but it didn’t matter because these desires and lust were raw. Straight from the heart and groins.

Would Jackson be pissed if they fucked right there and now, it wouldn’t be the first but he would expect that Brian and JC to have higher standards than fucking drunkenly at his party. But it hadn’t crossed their minds that literally anyone can walk in on this passionate display, which unfortunately a poor soul close to Brian did.

Kevin was caught off guard of his cousin and boyfriend essentially dry humping in a public party. He’d seen worse when Brian was with Lachlan all those years ago but the heat shimmering between the pair nearly repelled Kevin out the room. He quietly backed out of the room and gently closed the door, trying to give the couple some more privacy.

———

Jennie and Lisa were searching for Rosie and Jisoo. They’d been missing for nearly an hour and the duo were getting concerned about the whereabouts of their friends. They tried asking around but there wasn’t any luck since no one else had seen them after the APT. performance.

“God, this is hopeless! Where could’ve they gone? This place is only that big!” Lisa groaned, they had searched most of Jackson’s dorm (including accidentally spooking Brian and JC who were half naked, Kevin’s attempt of giving them privacy seemed to be thwarted by Jennie and Lisa ripping the place apart) only to find confused faces and Rosie’s drunk half-naked roommate with his boyfriend.

“I think we have our last chance over there.” Jennie looked over in the direction of Selugi, Mina and Tzuyu. The two nodded before approaching the trio. They were laughing uncontrollably as the duo got there. “Hey Tzuyu, have any of you seen Rosie and Jisoo?”

“No, but Mina should know.” Mina finished her shot as Tzuyu redirected the conversation to her.

“I did see them going into the eastern wing.” The duo exchanged glances, they had checked there but it seemed the pair had been long gone as they started their search mission.

“We already checked there but they were already gone.” Selugi collected any of her coherent thoughts before remembering what Jisoo had mentioned to her weeks ago about Rosie.

“I’d go to that ramen shop around the corner of Rosie’s apateu with her to tell her anything that was on my mind.”

“The ramen shop near Rosé’s apateu!” Selugi nearly shouted in victory.

“What are we waiting for? Let’s go!” Jennie stated before she and Lisa bolted out of the party. While they may interrupt something important, making sure that their friends were okay was their top priority.

———

Rosie and Jisoo were sitting in the ramen shop, the shocks of electricity had finally calmed down from the initial question. They had been discussing their feelings, how it affected them and what this means for them while waiting for their ramen. The tension had wavered into laughter, tears and most importantly, the relief of knowing that they felt the same about each other.

Jennie and Lisa got to the shop in record time, opening the door to see Rosie and Jisoo mid-conversation at one of the booth tables. Both of them were relieved that they seemed to be enjoying themselves.

“There you two are!” Jennie exclaimed while her and Lisa squeezed next to the pair on each side. “We were so worried about you guys!”

“Sorry we didn’t text or call but Jisoo wanted to take me here. Kinda unwind after the chaos.” As Rosie finished speaking, the pair’s ramen arrived; which made Jennie and Lisa hungry. “Anyway, you guys should get some ramen too! C’mon, girls night at the ramen shop!”

“Alright.” Lisa waved towards the waitress. “Excuse me, can we have two menus?”

———

Rosie opened the apateu door and immediately closed it. It seemed that Brian and JC were getting it on the couch and Rosie wasn’t ready to cockblock. But she lived there so she had opened the door, closed it and bolted to her room, not looking back. The pair didn’t notice Rosie zooming past since they were so engrossed with each other.

She flopped onto her bed, she’d do her night routine once the two lovebirds were done in the lounge. Now her mind can finally rest knowing that she and Jisoo are taking it one step at a time after so much stress and frustration building within her, but there was definitely something big coming soon.

———

AJ and Howie’s heads were absolutely killing them, maybe they drank a little too much this time around but whatever, a little alcohol never hurt them before. The two were piled onto their dorm couch as the energy to get to their respective rooms was exhausting enough. Chris was slumped on the adjacent arm chair. He got stoned out of his mind where he thought that the pool was filled with jello.

Jungkook walked out of his room, he wasn’t feeling fresh but was in a quite remarkable state compared to the guys in the living room area. He hadn’t seen his dorm-mates as wasted in a while. It seemed Rihanna had already gone to work despite the fact those sunglasses would be hiding her under eye-bags.

He felt a buzz from his sweatpants pocket and pulled his phone out, it was the Bangtan group chat which from the notifications, are equally hungover as his dorm-mates. If he knew how to control their social drinking habits, he would stop them but he can’t bend their wills to his command.

———

Justin and Joey barely made it five steps into their dorm before collapsing for the night, which they were unceremoniously woken up by the TV speaker being blasted with some soap opera.

Taylor was huddling her legs to her chest as her soap opera, The Rundown, aired its latest episode. Something about how this guy liked his best friend but due to the way he was brought up, had internalised homophobia while his best friend was dating this seemingly perfect girl who is clearly hiding something. This episode is about how the protagonist finds out she’s in a rock band that had toured the world.

How is she up at this hour? Watching a soap opera nonetheless. This was Justin’s only coherent thought before he got dragged up by Joey.

Chapter Text

It was quiet morning on the Harmonic Hymn campus, most of the students had flown home for the semester break to see their families. Beyoncé was waiting at the front entrance, waiting for her ordered Uber to the airport.

“Bey!” Kelly called out as she pulled her suitcase behind her. Beyoncé turned around and pulled Kelly into a hug once she caught up to her.

“You ready to get to Houston? My parents are absolutely excited to have us come visit!” Beyoncé excitedly exclaimed. It had been so long since she had gone with Kelly and Michelle to Houston for mid-year break. “Where’s Michelle?”

“I’m coming!” Kelly and Beyoncé snapped their heads over to the direction Michelle’s voice came from. She was seemingly dragging the world’s heaviest suitcase despite it being a two week break.

“Geez Michelle, you dropping out or what?” Kelly teasing remark earned her a glare from Michelle. “But why does your suitcase contain like your entire closet and furniture.”

“Because I wouldn’t know what to wear! Like would fur parkas and combat boots work?” Beyoncé bursted into laughter at Michelle feeling unsure what to wear.

“Michelle, it’s Houston. The thing you should be more concerned about is walking into a Walmart and seeing a 2 year old holding a gun.”Beyoncé cracked that typical joke, despite the fact this wouldn’t happen in real life. “The Uber said he’d be here around 10, and it’s 10:30.”

Right on cue, the Uber pulled up looking disheveled as hell.

“Huff Beyoncé Knowles? Huff” She nodded. “So sorry huff I had a little issue getting here.”

He got out of the car and helped them load their luggage into the boot. The trio got into the backseat with him getting the driver seat; Beyoncé noticed a notification drop down, it was message from “Lachy”.

Maybe this “Lachy” is why he’s a little out of it.

———

Rosie was in the apateu, Brian had gone back to Kentucky with Kevin for the holidays which lead her being in charge of the place. The Pinks were coming over soon for the world’s most chaotic sleepover, so she had been cleaning for about an hour. Humming to herself when she picked a photograph from the bookshelf.

She couldn’t believe that Brian had kept a framed photograph of him and Lachlan kissing. It looked dreamy with the sunset and the pinky-red sky in the background and the two were on the beach.

“Hang on, if they were secretly dating, who took the photo?” And the bigger question is for her was where the hell were they since Kentucky was in the middle of America. This whole photo just made any guesses of Rosie could piece together get thrown out the window.

She set down the photo frame, still confused but disregarded it in her efforts to clean the apateu.

———

“Okay, so I mentioned how I wanted to commemorate the first official Pinks sleepover, who wants to crack one of these open!” Rosie held up a 4-pack of soju.

“Oh Rosie! Can I say how much I love you!” Jennie playfully exclaimed. They all grabbed a bottle each before clinking them together.

“Jjan!” They all cheered at once.