"Ambition is the path to success. Persistence is the vehicle you arrive in."
— Bill Bradley

Just then, Su Min's thoughts were fortunately interrupted by Woojin's arrival.

EXO's manager casually strode in the room carrying a stack of papers in one hand and a half-eaten potato hash in the other. "Morning," he mumbled with chipmunk cheeks as he made his way over to her. He handed Su Min the pile then proceeded to his own seat, still munching away. "I think it's best if Su Min takes over this one for me," he suggested, his attention focused on the food in hand.

Immediately, the nine guys glared at him.

"Hyung," Chen started, rolling his seat closer to the table. "Did you and Su Min somehow switch positions and didn't bother to tell us? Lately, she seems to be doing all of your work for you," he commented, forcing their manager to be on the defense.

It was true Su Min had been doing a lot of work outside her job description, but Woojin hadn't been slacking off. Maybe I should clarify. She thought, but just as she was about to, Woojin did it for her.

"Why, you—that's not true!" he protested, pushing the last bit of his breakfast in his mouth and swallowing quickly. "I'll have you know I haven't slept a wink for the past two days. Do you see these bags?" he justified as he pointed to his dark circles, causing EXO to laugh.

But before the jokesters could drag their accusations longer, Woojin quickly directed their attention to the more pressing matter.

With all eyes on her, Su Min made her way to the front of room, keeping a straight face while trying to hold in her overflowing excitement. "I'm know this won't be your first time going to such event, but I can assure you, this will be, by far, the biggest one yet," she began confidently as she handed each member a packet of their own, "It'll be bigger than Lollapalooza—bigger than Coachella."

"Due to its size, a limited number of groups and individuals from various countries were invited to attend. It might be a little confusing and slightly intimidating, but—" she continued as she flipped to the first page. Su Min smiled at the nine men whose eyes were now glued to the signed contract copy in front of them. Taking a moment, she happily examined their expressions before ending her short introduction, "What do you say EXO? Are you ready to take on Music Atlas, New York's first ever international music festival?"

"Are you kidding me? Is this for real?" Suho asked aloud, looking up from the packet in his hand. Sure, EXO had done multiple world tours and participated in past festivals, but Atlas was on a whole nother level. He couldn’t help but feel ecstatic yet doubtful to know that EXO had been selected as one of the few entertainers to represent Korea.

Su Min looked at him and tilted her head in question. "I'm sorry, did you not want to? If that's the case, then I'll just go ahead and make a call to cancel—" she joked as she reached for her phone. Teasing them always helped brush some of her anxiety away.

"No!" the nine idols yelled together, practically jumping from their seats and leaping on top of the table to stop her.

She, along with Woojin, let out a loud chuckle. There was no way they, nor EXO, would let such a big opportunity slide.

With the joke aside, she flipped to the second page of the contract, ready to resume their meeting. But before she could utter a word, she was once again interrupted. This time by Chen.

"You're really not just playing with us right?" he pushed on as he slides back to his seat, still a bit hesitant.

The remaining eight members settled their eyes on her, hoping for a second confirmation.

Why can't they just trust my words? She thought, before giving them a wide smile and shaking her head.

"No, I'm not," she answered happily, and reminded them of the obvious, "I mean, come on, the signed contract is right in front of you!"

With that, the nine men finally unleashed their restrained excitement. They jumped and yelled, and jumped and yelled, then jumped and yelled some more. And why wouldn't they? Being invited to perform along with other well-known artists from around the globe further proved they had made it to the top—not just in Korea nor Asia—but on an international scale.

|| …………… ||

Unable to withhold it any longer, EXO exploded in another round of happiness the second Su Min finished going over the details of the weeklong event and its tentative schedule.

Loud cheers bounced from wall to wall, enveloping the room as they congratulated one another and once again passed high-fives around. After a celebratory group hug, the nine overly excited idols turned to Woojin, who was sitting comfortably on his chair.

"Hyung, thanks so much!" they exclaimed, politely bowing one after another.

Their manager coolly shook his head along with a wave of the hand. "Nah," he began. "Though I'd love to take credit, Su Min was the one who pulled all the strings to make this happen," he confessed, giving full credit to the rightful owner.

"Really?" they all asked in unison as they turned their heads toward her.

Su Min flashed another one of her (hopefully) charming smiles. "Just a little thank you for welcoming me into the family," she told them.

Hearing that, Baekhyun gawked at Wooj