After chatting about this and that in the cafeteria and eating lunch, they returned to the recording studio.
In the recording studio, after Evelyn, Ash and Julian also finished recording their lines for the main song and they all began preparing to go home.
But Ivan and Kian asked her at the last minute, saying they wanted some vocal feedback from her. Even though Evelyn insisted she wasn't skilled enough to give anyone advice, she had no choice but to accept once Angelo joined them as well.
They informed the staff that they'd be leaving the company late at night, so the staff notified security accordingly. Also, Ash, Raven, and Julian had left the company without waiting for them.
Sitting in the recording studio, Evelyn clasped her hands and placed them on her thighs. She was excited because she hadn't given anyone vocal feedback in a long time.
From a young age until the end of high school, she had taken vocal lessons and lessons for several instruments. So she wasn't completely inexperienced, but she wasn't an expert who could evaluate someone either.
Still, after seeing how persistent they were, she couldn't turn down their request.
Kian sat beside Evelyn and handed her a fruit juice. As soon as she took it, she was surprised that he knew she liked mango flavor.
When that surprise unintentionally showed on her face, Ivan —who had just joined them— laughed at her expression.
"You're the one who lost your memory, not us, Eve! Of course we know what you like," he said, offering her the grape muffin in his hand.
Being presented with her two favorite snacks at once filled her with a warm sense of happiness.
"Thank you," Evelyn said, and then smiled as something occurred to her. "But if you're giving me these so that I'll go easier on you when I point out your mistakes in a bit, then don't."
Ivan and Kian clearly hadn't expected to hear that from Evelyn, because they went silent for the first few seconds. Then they suddenly burst into laughter, and Evelyn joined them. Meanwhile, Angelo approached with a small smile.
"You've already started having fun without me…"
When Ivan heard him, he slung an arm over Angelo's shoulder and spoke.
"There's no need to be jealous. Everywhere without you already feels incomplete to me."
Kian put a hand to his lips to emphasize his surprise.
"Damn, that was smooth. We need to add that line in one of our songs!"
After they all spent a while laughing at the funny exchange between the duo, Evelyn cut in with a small clap.
"Yes, we're having fun, but come on, let's start your vocal lessons. Otherwise it'll be really late by the time we finish."
With Evelyn's warning, Ivan cracked a few more jokes, but eventually they all grew serious and took their places in the recording studio.
Ivan stepped up to the microphone first while the others listened from the other side of the glass.
Even though Ivan and Kian were rappers, they also wanted to improve their vocal skills. But as Ivan had mentioned before stepping up to the mic, neither he nor Kian were as good at vocals as they were at rap.
Angelo, being the lead rapper, actually had better vocals compared to them.
Ivan decided to sing Ash's lines in the song.
Since Ash was the lead vocalist, he had a few long sections he sang before Evelyn in the main track.
Evelyn and the others listened to him carefully. The moment Evelyn heard his vocals, several suggestions immediately came to her mind. After letting him finish his parts completely, she started giving her feedback.
"I really liked the energy in your voice. You reflect your personality in what you do. But as you know, our title track is a bit depressing. So you need to slow down a little. Pretend you're counting the metronome in your head. Take a one–second breath before each line, it'll help you settle into the rhythm."
Ivan had been able to notice the change himself —just like everyone else— after doing a few more takes while following Evelyn's advice.
When it was Kian's turn, she told him to bring his voice a little more forward and add more emotion.
Angelo, on the other hand, was quite talented, but he couldn't find the courage to reach the higher notes. Evelyn tried to encourage him for quite a long time, and in the end they managed to get a better take out of him.
Angelo, who was very pleased with the outcome, walked back to Evelyn and the others with a big smile on his face, while Evelyn checked the phone she had taken out of her pocket. It was a little past midnight.
"Time is passing way too fast," she murmured as she looked at the time. Ivan and Kian leaned in from both sides to look at her phone.
"Woah! I didn't even notice…" Ivan said, pulling back and taking out his own phone. As soon as Kian saw the time, he yawned and spoke.
"We haven't even had dinner yet…"
While checking the notifications on her phone, Evelyn saw that Ash had called three times and Julian had sent six messages. Her eyes widened in surprise as she opened Julian's messages.
[How's rehearsal going?]
[Your favorite show was on today, you're missing it.]
[Buy some fried chicken on your way over.]
[Never mind, don't. Ash says he's coming over because you haven't answered your phone. Should I stop him?]
[Why aren't you answering?]
[Call me when you're done.]
"Woah, Julian sounds pretty angry that you didn't reply to his messages."
Kian said as he looked at Evelyn's phone screen. Evelyn ignored how close Kian was standing next to her and called Ash, bringing the phone to her ear. The call was answered in less than two seconds.
"Evelyn, where are you—"
Ash didn't even get to finish his sentence before the call was cut off. When Evelyn heard nothing more from him, she pulled the phone away from her ear and looked at the screen, only to realize the battery had died.
"Of course it dies now…" she muttered.
Then she turned to Kian. When he looked back at her, she added, "Can you call Ash? Tell him we're about to head out."
Kian took a moment to study her face from their very close distance before finally stepping back.
"Sure, I'll call him in a bit."
Meanwhile, everyone began getting ready to leave the studio. Evelyn shut down the computers, and Angelo helped her by turning off the recording equipment. In a short time, they left the studio and then the company building.
Even though it was already late, there were still plenty of staff members around, as well as a few trainees Evelyn didn't recognize. But she politely returned the greetings of anyone who greeted her.
Then they reached the parking lot, and they began looking for the car they were supposed to get into. According to what Ivan said, their manager had come back to the company to pick them up.
Hearing that made Evelyn feel a bit embarrassed because they had kept him waiting a little too long by staying at the company until late, but there wasn't much she could do about it.
Once Ivan spotted the car, he called out to them. Evelyn and the others were about to head over, but Evelyn suddenly realized something.
"Oh, no… I left my bag in the studio."
When Angelo heard her, he stopped and came back to her side.
"If you want, I can go get it," he said, watching Evelyn press a hand to her forehead.
Realizing her mistake made the headache she already had throb even sharper.
"No, it's okay… You guys will wait for me in the car, I'll be back in less than five minutes," she said, and ran off toward the studio, leaving Angelo behind.
She reached the studio quickly, but on the way —inside the elevator— she encountered a strange man.
The man had gotten in on the first floor after her and stood motionless in the far corner of the elevator.
His face was hidden by a mask and a black baseball cap, making it impossible for Evelyn not to compare him to the stalkers or serial killers she'd seen in the dramas she watched.
Trying not to think about the mysterious man's unsettling appearance, she grabbed her bag and hurried back to the parking lot. When the car came into view, she noticed Angelo standing outside, waiting for her.
As soon as he spotted her, he waved, and Evelyn smiled, quickening her pace toward them. The closer she got to the car, the clearer it became that someone inside looked a lot like Raven.
She'd made it halfway across when the parking lot lights suddenly began shutting off one by one, forcing her to slow her steps.
And when the final light went out, she couldn't see anything at all.
"What…" she whispered. A few seconds after the lights vanished, she heard Angelo's voice.
"Eve! Can you hear me? Just come toward my voice."
Evelyn felt her heartbeat quicken, but she did as Angelo said and began moving toward him. She wouldn't say she was afraid of the dark, but not being able to see anything right now was starting to scare her.
As she took very slow steps, she began to hear Raven's voice more clearly the closer she got to the car.
"What the fuck... One of the biggest entertainment companies in the country is having a fucking blackout? These bastards must be joking."
Hearing Raven's deep voice made Evelyn feel safe despite everything.
Yes, I know, he might be swearing right now, but at least she could feel his presence so that made her safe.
She was laughing at what he said but her smile suddenly faded as a white light flashed across her face.
At first, she thought the power had come back on.
But then she realized the light was coming from the headlights of a car speeding toward her from the right.
Frozen, she watched the black car rush straight at her, unable to decide what to do, while the pain in her head intensified to an even sharper level.
Even though she heard someone calling her name, the pain in her head became so unbearable that she lost the ability to think altogether.
What the hell… Why isn't this car slowing down?