I stared at the leader of A. in the dim light. Manager nodded at me quickly, but remained silent. Tae Kyung watched me, measuring me in a way. Shin Wood did the same, while Jeremy shifted nervously from one foot to the other. I bit my lip and stared at my feet. All of the songs that I knew had evaporated; marooned me; left me for dead. Tae Kyung raised an eyebrow at me as I racked my brain for something to sing.

On surfaced the chaos, freezing me.

Shortly after, a safer song turned up. I hummed the tune before shutting my eyes and singing.

"I saw a picture of you
Hanging in an empty hallway
I heard a voice that I knew
And I couldn't walk away
It took me back to the end
Of everything
I tasted all
I tasted all the tears
again

Outside the rain's falling' down
There's not a drop that hits me
Scream at the sky but no sound
Is leavin' my lips
It's like I can't even feel
After the way you touched me
I'm not asleep but I'm not awake
After the way you loved me

I can't turn this around
I keep running into walls that I can't break down
I said I just wander around
With my eyes wide shut because of you
I'm a sleepwalker walker…"

My voice faded out softly on the last word. I kept my eyes squeezed shut as I tried to maintain control over my calmness. My brain had decided that the safe song wasn't worth it and had my mouth spew the other one out instead. I felt cold and numbed by the four sets of eyes that were trained on me, even if I couldn't see them.

Jeremy whistled and began to clap. I peeked at him. Even tough I had sung in English, I was certain that they had understood every word. Manager was the only person who knew the back story, so they were just words to everyone else. Shin Woo then joined in the clapping, smiling slightly at me. Tae Kyung nodded at me once, and then ignored everyone. His face was blank, as if he were hiding some previous emotion.

The lights came back on and he put his cell phone away. The elevator spluttered back to life. It's sudden rising caused me to stumble ungainly, but I recovered without too much embarrassment.

Apparently – judging by the supportive and pleased looks on the faces of people I passed by – my performance in the elevator had been broadcasted through the building. Since one would need electricity to do such a thing, I decided that the elevator's power cut hadn't been by accident. In other words, a hoax; one that Manager hadn't known about.

She stomped alongside of me, spewing flames in the form of words. It saddened me that her silence had been so short lived, but it was really no surprise. Her constant stream of words was natural. Along with it, the sound of her noisy heels clacking against the ground almost drowned out the sound of three pairs of footsteps following behind us. I tilted my head to get a better look without actually turning my head around when an arm was slung around my shoulders.

"You were really good." Jeremy praised; a goofy smile on his face. "I'm glad that President Ahn chose you. That song came from here," he continued, lightly patting my chest before pounding his own. "And it hit right here."

"Um…Thank you…"

He beamed at me and looked over his shoulder. "Tae Kyung might be frowning, but he thought it was great too. You'll get used to him being grouchy eventually."

I nodded, swallowing to try and dispel my nervousness.

Shin Woo matched his pace with mine, "I've not heard that song before. Was it original?"

I shook my head and tried to focus on my Converse clad feet. I watched out for the air that I might trip on, and the nonexistent dust. "It's by Adam Lambert."

"Still, the way you sang it; it sounds like it holds some meaning to you." I stiffened a little at the perception in his comment. "I liked it, though. It made it real. If you can do that with any song then you'll go far in this business."

"Thanks." I said, looking up and smiling slightly at his trusting face.

"Arisu, come on!" Manager snapped, already at President Ahns' office.

"We'll see you later!" Jeremy said, quickly hugging me before letting me go. Shin Woo waved, but Tae Kyung continued to keep his mask in place. I would soon learn that he always kept his emotions behind the mask, but it would be longer before I understood why.

Manage wasted no time in chastising President Ahn for the elevator hoax. I sat on the couch next to her, feeling my face burn with embarrassment. President Ahn sat across form us, taking the whole thing in stride.

"That was extremely unprofessional, especially for a man of your stature! If you had warned me, then I might have been able to get her to warm up her vocal chords in the car. And don't even get me started about it being broadcast building wide!" Her voice raised at least an octave on the last syllable. Because of this I cringed visibly. She fell silent almost immediately, casting concerned eyes over me.

"Thank you, President Ahn, for choosing me out of the many others to join A.. It is truly an honor, as was performing in the elevator for the entire company." I dipped my head a little after speaking. Manager kept her eyes fixated on the coffee table between us and President Ahn.

He leaned forward to clap me on the shoulder, grinning from ear to ear. "You are most welcome, Arisu Moon. Finding you was like getting the jackpot!" His grin toned down to a serious smile. "Here is your contract. Read it and sign it so that we may talk about the living arrangements."

Basically, the contract stated what was expected of me and that when I signed, the contract would bind me for two years.

It seemed like a long time, but I was ready.

After I sealed the paper with my signature, A. was called into the room. Jeremy plopped himself next to me, using such force that his hair lifted for a few seconds. Shin Woo seated himself next to President Ahn gracefully. Although seats were available, Tae Kyung remained standing. He was close, but also distanced.

Manager nearly burst a blood vessel when President Ahn admitted that construction on the new wing of the dorm that would be mine was not complete yet. When he told her that there was a room in the dorm for me, as it was, I think she did. After a few minutes of her rantings, I spoke up to try and diffuse the situation.

"President Ahn, how long until the new wing is finished?" I asked with my politest voice welded in place. I wasn't excited about the prospect of sharing a dorm with three guys, but what choice did I have really?

"Four to five months, I think."

I turned to Manager. "I'm not willing to stay in a hotel that long."

"Your parents would not approve of this if they knew."

"Certain events from my past will prevent me from doing anything to dishonor them. Anyway, I am able to take care of myself."

"Are you certain?" She asked quietly. I nodded, knowing that my will was stronger than hers. "Fine, President Ahn? The dorm sounds perfect.

Author Note:

This is pretty much the first in depth meeting of A.. I hope you liked it! Please review!