Onew blinks twice. “Wait. That sounded actually okay.”

“Of course,” Key snorts. “Who do you think I am?”

The boys roll their eyes as Onew works to put down the notes Key had just sung unto paper. “Do, mi, mi, sol, fa, do…” he mutters.

Both groups are hard at work as of the moment, coming up with an original song to sing for the contest. It is hard work for them, and the boys had been arguing about one single phrase of a line for the past fifteen minutes, and it hadn’t been until Key proposed a particular idea that the whole ordeal had been resolved.

“So, what’s next?” Jonghyun asks. “Are we going with that little jingle we thought up a while ago?”

“Well, with this, I think I’d say the whole music’s going a different way from it.” Taemin thinks on it a little more, and says, “It has a more mellow feel now, doesn’t it? Not as poppy as it was.”

Minho nods. “Very true. Anyone want juice?”

“What kind?” Taemin asks.

Key replies instead of Minho. “I think orange. We ran out of pineapple yesterday.”

“True, but I’m craving pineapple. Let’s vote one person to go and get some,” Jonghyun says.

Minho sighs. “Just get orange, hyung. No big deal.”

“But I’m really, really, really craving pineapple juice. C’mon, guys, you know how bad it can be.”

“That’s indeed true,” Onew speaks up. “I kind of want pineapple juice too, actually. Something sweeter than orange, at least.”

“Then it’s a vote?” Jonhyun brightens up. “I nominate Minho!”

“Me? Why?”

“’Cause you were all against pineapple juice, that’s why. Do I get a second?”

“I second!”

Minho’s head whips to the source of the second vote. “Taemin! Were we nothing more?”

He looks guilty, but still replies, “Well, better you than me? Besides, I always have to get all of everyone’s things! So not me this time.”

“Do I get a third?” Jonghyun hoots. He is obviously enjoying this.

“I third!” It’s the amusing voice of Onew that answers Jonghyun’s call. In response to Minho’s astounded stare, he says, “Well, we’re all busy except for you. You were just sitting there and laughing this whole time.”

Jonghyun shakes his head in mock sorrow. “Can’t argue with that, eh, sir Minho sir?” He looks around. “Key, you’re the last. Do you give us our fourth and final vote?”

“Of course!”

“So much for brotherhood, guys,” he glares.

Jonghyun stands up and saunters over to the glaring guy. “Bro, it looks like nobody told you, but this is exactly what brotherhood is. One for all, all for one!”

“One for all, all for one!” everyone (except a certain someone) choruses back.

“Now, git!” Suddenly a rough cowboy, at least in aura, Jonghyun pushes Minho off the couch and on to his feet, and then promptly takes his seat where Minho had been. “Back to work, folks.”

And just like it had all been planned out beforehand, the whole group excluding one returns back to their composing without looking as if they’d even stopped for a second.

Minho stares at the deeply conversing four, sounds a loud sigh to let the others know he’s not enjoying their work, and drags his feet to his room for his wallet. “Oh, woe is me!” he cries out, glancing at the working boys. They do not respond in any way, blithely ignoring him.

As he makes his way out of the apartment, he sticks out his tongue childishly at the people and haughtily walks out.

He doesn’t know that the moment the door closes behind him, his group mates are shaking in silent and then obvious laughter. In fact, he doesn’t know that this was all very carefully planned out by some serious shippers, and that by offering juice all by himself, he’d made it all the more natural.

Meanwhile, in the girls’ dorm, composition is taking place as well. Sorry, a mistake: the writer meant aruging is taking place as well.

The players involved in the fights switch around, and at the moment it is a heated fight of melodies between Sulli and Luna. Though both are quite sweet-hearted girls, when it comes to music they are serious.

"I'm telling you, if we go with that then the whole tone of the music is going to be messed up!"

"But if we go with yours, then it's so predictable! At least mine is a little better in that it gives a pleasant surprise!"

"This isn't even the main part. We shouldn't be giving the listeners any kind of surprise."

"We want to give the song a little more edge to show off to the judges, no?"

"Even so, this arrangement probably breaks all rules of music theory!"

"Why should I care?"

"Sulli!"

"Unnie, see it this way. There are probably going to be hundreds of other songs exactly like this one. We need the originality."

"I see that, but it doesn't necessarily mean we have to go with that, does it?"

"Still, it's better than yours."

Krystal cuts in right then. "Let's not get back into arguing," she says.

The two pause as well.

"We shouldn't," Luna reluctantly agrees.

Sulli nods, saying, "I'm sorry I got kind of irritated there. Truce?"

"Truce."

Smiling, Krystal pats the backs of the two girls. "Good job, we're a second family. No need to fight, right?"

"Yup!"

The five girls all smile at each other, feeling the warmth of love especially more because it had once been a cold, angry atmosphere just before.

Amber pipes up, "Do we have any bread? I want some bread."

"Randomly?"

She nods. "All this sudden variations in emotions is making me hungry."

They laugh, and Victoria says, "I think we don't. Can you wait?"

"Actually, maybe we can take a break right now? I think we deserve it," says Luna. Her arm is around Sulli's shoulders, signifying that their friendship is not lost at all.

"I agree," Sulli says.

"Let's have bread to go with that," adds the hungry girl.

The group can't help but laugh at that, and they agree as one heartily.

"Who wants to go buy some?"

"Not I!" Sulli, in response to Victoria's question, quickly places a finger on her nose. Seeing this, Amber and Luna also do so.

As Krystal starts to lift her hand up, Victoria 'accidentally' grabs it down and lifts her own hand instead.

"What? No fair!" she cries. Her eyes are disbelieving at Victoria's lack of fair play. "Unnie!"

"Sorry." The supposedly mature mother of the group sheepishly smiles, and says, "It's all good, right?"

The younger girl sighs dejectedly. "Guess I'm going?"

"Woohoo!" Amber crows. "Go Krys-tal! Go Krys-tal!"

The others take up the chant as well. "Go Kryst-tal! Go Krys-tal!"

Krystal's pout slowly melts into a smile, the type that says "what are these silly people doing?" but enjoying it all the while. "All right, all right, I'm fine."

To the cheers of the group, she laughs, and leaves to go.

And just like how it was in the boys' place, as soon as she leaves, the girls do an extra cheer-- this time for the success of their carefully laid out plan.

Aaand cut! Next chapter's obviously going to be some Minstal-filling chapter, because this chapter's not that long and the long-awaited moment is not in this. Sorry! :) I do want to constantly give y'all something to go on, because I was pretty horrible up until now. So here's this chapter, the next chapter hopefully not that far behind either. Cross your fingers! Anyways, thanks to the new subscribers (you know who you are) for, you know, subscribing and commenting and whatnot-- I really appreciate it! To the older, long-suffered subscribers, I send another bow of apology and hope that you will forgive me once again. A one-time sorry is not enough on my end! Everyone reading, I wish you a merry reading session and hope to see you in twentynine.! Until then.