?June thought they had this one in the bag.
It was a mistake on his part to act so confidently when nothing was really certain.
He turned to his teammates and saw the disappointed looks on their faces.
It felt like everything they had worked hard on for the past few days went down the drain as Minzy announced her final verdict.
June sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, leaning against the couch.
For once, he didn't know what to say.
Jay cleared his throat as he didn't pay the rejoicing Ted on the other side of the room any attention.
"Is that the only reason why you think the song shouldn't be the title track?" he asked, making Minzy silent.
She sighed and thought about it for a while.
There's really…something about the song that she couldn't really pinpoint.
It was the first time a song had left her speechless—and she wasn't sure if it was in a good or bad way.
Minzy still stood by the belief that it wasn't fit to be the title track because of its simplicity.
Moreover, it really didn't fit well with the rest of the songs on the album.
However, as she gazed at the members, pity swelled in her heart.
She had faced plenty of rejections before, and some of them didn't feel deserved.
Now, Minzy felt like she was on the other side of the spectrum—the one making others feel undeserving.
"It may not be worthy of a title track," she started off, causing the members of EVE to lift their heads.
Ted also stopped rejoicing in his seat, slowly calming down when he realized that Minzy still had something to say.
Minzy hesitated to say the next words but ultimately decided that it was for the best.
"However," she added. "I think it's a song we can't miss out on. Let's put it into the album."
The members looked at each other, all surprised by her sudden change of decision.
They still felt disappointed since they wanted it to be the title track of their new album, but they also knew the limitations they had as artists under a company's contract.
Ted quietly clicked his tongue since he wanted the song to stay away from his masterpiece.
However, he still learned to accept it since it was only going to be a part of the album anyway.
Minzy sighed, still appearing to be in deep thought.
"On second thought," she quickly said.
"Let's make this the B-side track that you'll be performing along with the main song," Minzy decided.
June's eyebrows raised in surprise. He was already coming to terms with the disappointment of the song being rejected for the title track.
Although a promoted B-side track wasn't as exposed to the public compared to the title track, it is still the second song in the album to be given the most exposure.
So, June felt like he was being brought to life when Minzy decided that they'd be making it the promoted B-side track of the album.
"Are you sure about this?" Ted asked, standing from his seat.
"It's already decided that the promoted B-side track is 'Baby, Good Night' by my dear friend Doug," he countered.
"That isn't final," Minzy said. "I think we should give the boys a chance to showcase their talents not only in performing but also in producing. I already gave you the privilege of having the title track; give this one to the boys, won't you?"
Jay smirked and stuck his tongue out at Ted once again.
Ted pointed at him with wide eyes, about to reprimand the immature manager, when Mari held onto his shoulder.
"That's fine with me! EVE did a really good job with this song," she complimented, giving the group a thumbs up.
June smiled gratefully as the members' moods began to rise. Again, they were still pretty disappointed that they didn't achieve their main objective; however, a promoted B-side track wasn't too bad either.
"But, Mr. Ong—" Ted tried to counter, but Minzy cut him off before he could even finish his statement.
"I'll talk to my father," Minzy said, shutting down the entire conversation.
Ted pursed his lips and didn't talk any further.
Minzy then turned to the members of EVE and smiled.
"Congratulations to all of you," she said. "It's my first time hearing such a complete song made by a K-pop group. It's impressive how I didn't find anything I wanted to revise in your song."
Jaeyong stood and bowed at her gratefully.
"Thank you for giving the song a chance. We'll make sure to give it a great performance during our comeback season," he said.
"Well, I should have asked this from the very beginning—but have you thought of a title for it?" she asked.
Jaeyong turned to his members for confirmation before shaking his head.
"It's a work in progress," he honestly responded.
Minzy nodded. "That's alright. The title will be the least of your worries. The lyrics are already good, but I think you can make it even better. I like the cute, romantic aspects of it. I'm looking forward to seeing how you guys are going to perform it," she said.
"Although I might not even be here to see it," she whispered, causing Jaeyong to lean closer.
"What was that?" he asked.
Minzy smiled and shook her head. "Nothing," she smiled. "The lyrics—improve it further."
"That is duly noted," Jaeyong said, being one of the members who had experience in songwriting.
"Well, I guess I'll go now. I still have another schedule to attend."
The other members of EVE stood and bowed to the talented producer as she left the room.
Then, when she was a few meters away, she looked back to see if anyone was following her.
When she saw that the coast was clear, she quickly changed her direction and went to Mr. Ong's office instead.
She opened the door and saw Mr. Ong, a.k.a. her dad, on his chair, spinning around like a lunatic.
When he heard the familiar footsteps of his daughter, he quickly lifted his head, a wide smile emerging on his lips.
"There's my princess!" he exclaimed, opening his arms and rolling to where she was.
However, Minzy quickly sat and anchored her legs under the table to escape her father's grasp.
Mr. Ong clicked his tongue and rolled to the front, interlacing his fingers and placing them on top of the table instead.
"Well, what can I do for you?" he asked, his voice still sounding excited despite the blatant rejection from his child.
"I did what you told me to do," Minzy said, making the atmosphere more serious.
Mr. Ong's smile turned into a smirk as he leaned against his chair.
"The title track was already decided anyway. This will be Ted's big break, I'm sure."
Minzy sighed impatiently as she leaned closer to the table.
"That's not what I came here for. I want to see if you did as you promised."
Mr. Ong clicked his tongue and brought out some papers from underneath the table.
"You're always in a rush to leave your father, aren't you? You're really just like your mom," he deadpanned.
"Thank goodness," Minzy whispered, thankful that she took after her beautiful mom instead.
She started reading the contents of the paper. Then, when she realized that her father had kept her word and severed her seven-year contract affiliation with Azure Entertainment, a loud sigh of relief escaped her lips.
"You also look really happy to be leaving this place," he noted.
'That's because I am,' Minzy thought.
"Whatever," Mr. Ong brushed her off. "I already have a new head producer to replace you anyway—Ted. So, I guess your presence isn't very needed in the company anymore."
"I don't even get why you had to make me choose between the two of them anyway. It was already obvious that Ted's song was going to be the title track anyway," Minzy deadpanned.
"That, my dear, is business," Mr. Ong smiled.
"EVE is a bunch of rowdy boys—too rowdy, in my opinion. They always speak their mind, and they never want to settle for less. Somehow, they always seem to have an opinion."
"That isn't good as artists," he continued. "When you're too free, you're looking down on your company. So, I needed to make them compliant—and what else would make them accept the result better than being judged by an acclaimed producer?" he smirked.
Minzy shook her head in disbelief, standing from her seat.
As always, her father merely used her to his advantage.
"I'm going," she said, heading to the door.
However, she halted when she heard her father's words.
"I know you gave EVE the privilege to use their song as the promoted B-side track," he started off.
"What a naughty, naughty girl you are…very smart too. I tell you not to give them the title track position, but you give them the promoted B-side instead."
"However, since I'm in a good mood, I'm letting this one go," he said, all humor leaving his voice. "Just think of it as my parting gift to you, my daughter."
"EVE's song," Minzy started off. "Watch out for it."
Mr. Ong chuckled. "Watch out for what?" he asked. "I heard from Ted that it is very...very simple. Maybe, this will teach them a lesson. Their own insistence will lead to the downfall of that B-
side track. Just wait and see."
Minzy tried searching her mind for the answer. However, in the end, she kept silent.
Even now, she still doesn't know why she feels strange about the song.
