The last wave came and SaRang narrowed her eyes, grinning at the anticipated win. She pressed the keys furiously, muttering to herself as her eyes were glued to the screen of her laptop- and as the game ended, jumped up, pumping her fist in victory.

 

“Haha! it! 3 games in a row, man. I’m unbeatable.” SaRang smiled, snapping the lid of her laptop closed. Gaming was a little secret of hers, a small guilty pleasure that she loved to turn to for relaxing- and to simply get her mind off of things. It calmed her down, something that no amount of emergency ice cream or relaxing baths could do.

 

SaRang glanced at her phone when it beeped, alerting her of a text message.

 

“EMERGENCY MEETING!!! WE’RE IN HUGE TROUBLE GUYS! COME QUICK ADSJFUGIOk”

 

She shook her head, smiling at her friend JiNa’s scrambled yelling via text. “Aish.” she muttered, grabbing her backpack starting on her way to the band’s practice room.

 

. . .

 

“We no longer have a lead singer. ” JiNa blurted as the last of the members arrived. Everybody froze, wondering if they heard correctly.

 

“But… JungSung oppa…” SaRang trailed off.

 

JungSung himself spoke up, sighing.  “My dad has fallen extremely ill. He needs to go to America to receive treatment, and the whole family is moving with him- including myself. It’s likely we won’t be returning to Korea for many years, maybe forever… I’m really sorry guys. I’m letting you all down, big time.” He looked at the floor.

 

“Don’t think this is your fault, oppa. It can’t be helped, right? Your dad needs you more than we do.” SaRang smiled worriedly.

 

However, losing their only (extremely talented) lead singer was something the band couldn’t afford at such a crucial moment. They were set to compete in a national high school music competition in a few weeks. It was an opportunity of a lifetime to have qualified, and without their singer, they would be in quite a tight situation.

 

“Really, JungSung,” Kris, the bassist, gave him a pat on the shoulder. “We hope your father gets well soon. Don’t worry about us, bro. Do what you need to do.”

 

“Thanks guys…” Jung Sung gave a watery smile. “I appreciate it. Tell me how you guys do, alright? I guess… goodbye. We’re about to leave for the airport right now.”

 

They sent him off with hugs and promises of phone calls with updates. Waving goodbye, JiNa turned to the rest of the team.

 

“What do we do, guys?”

 

SaRang pressed her lips together determinedly. “What else? We find a new vocalist. And fast.”

.          .          .

The news spread like wildfire through the school. By Wednesday, everybody knew that the school’s most popular band, the Rebel Hearts, was looking for a someone to take the coveted position of lead singer. It didn’t hurt that the band included three of the hottest guys in school- class president Siwon as a guitarist, mysterious cool guy Kris as bassist, and cute, cheerful drummer Chanyeol.

 

The cafeteria and hallways were abuzz with anticipation- full of hopefuls frantically preparing for auditions, or people simply interested in who would qualify to take the place of previous genius singer JungSung.  Was there really anyone good enough to get in? And would they be able to keep the Rebel Hearts up in the ranks as one of the best highschool bands in the city?

 

SaRang puffed her cheeks, blowing out air as she reached up on her tiptoes to tape the audition poster onto the wall. The hype they were getting was a good thing, she thought to herself. She just didn’t fancy having to sit through hours of auditions. Hopefully there would be someone promising, at least- though she doubted they would ever encounter a singer as jaw-droppingly talented as SungJung oppa.

 

“Need some help with that?” A voice from behind her asked. SaRang started, losing her balance, but an arm shot out to steady her.

 

“Oh, Siwon oppa?” she turned and smiled at him.

 

He raised his eyebrows at her, taking a paper from her hands and reached up to tape it on. “You better leave the poster-taping to the more qualified professionals, shorty,” he winked. “JiNa says she needs you to go pick up more flyers from the printers to hand out.”

 

“Ah, crap! I forgot! Thanks, oppa!” SaRang called behind her as she rushed down the hall.

 

As she turned the corner, she collided into a group of guys, nearly toppling to the ground. She braced herself for the impact, but felt a pair of strong arms wrap around her, catching her just in time.

 

A pair of big brown eyes stared back at her from behind large glasses, slightly worried.

 

“Sorry, are you alright?” he asked.

“Ah,” SaRang broke from the embrace and righted herself to her feet, smiling sheepishly. “Sorry, that was my fault.”

 

Kyuhyun pinked. He had just caught the girl on impulse, and it was the right thing to do. Gosh, she was pretty, though.

 

“Oh! The flyers!” she gasped cheeks flushed, and started down the hall again, her long hair flowing behind her as she ran.

 

Having witnessed the whole thing, his friend Ryeowook grinned, giving Kyuhyun a playful shove.

 

“Smooth, man. Who knew you were so good with the ladies?” he joked.

 

Woohyun scoffed. “You think you have we have a chance at getting such a pretty girl? She’s SaRang, the Rebel Hearts’ guitarist. No chance.”

 

Kyuhyun rolled his eyes at his friends’ comments, but the stubborn pink on his cheeks wouldn’t fade.

 

Lay bent down, picking a piece of paper off of the floor. “What’s this? The girl must have dropped this…”

 

“The Rebel Hearts are looking for a lead singer. Auditions next Monday…” Woohyun read over Lay’s shoulder, trailing off as the group silenced.

 

“What?” Kyuhyun asked when all three of his friends turned their heads to stare meaningfully at him.

Woohyun smiled, eyes still on Kyuhyun. “I know just the man.”