Before They Were Bulletproof // OT7 BTS FF x OC ᵖʳᵒˡᵒᵍᵘᵉ

45. Countdown

Saturday

00:00

After I showed the song to the boys they decided it was fitting and asked if they could use it for their debut on Sunday. Of course, with everything that had transpired within the last 24 hours, I basically threw the song at them. The club would stay shut this weekend and instead, we set off to work straight away.

The clock was ticking and we didn't have long to try and miraculously pull a debut song, stage and choreography out of thin air. All of the boys as well as Pdogg and I had been at their agency studio for the past four hours. We'd nearly finished recording, and, after that producers can do editing and arrangements.

Then, the boys would need to start on choreography.

There was a lot to do. And the pressure we all felt was palpable. I helped with adjusting lyrics where I could, but, for the most part, Yoongi, Joon and Hoseok took care of the rap. Their skills when they worked together put my mind at ease, they knew exactly what they were doing and it was amazing to watch them work.

01:45

Hoseok left with a member from their choreography team to get started on the performance. The recording had been done except for a few last-minute harmonies and adlibs. My eyes felt tired as I watched Jungkook and Jimin inside the recording booth. As I gazed at everyone else I could tell that they were tired too. But, there is still a lot to do to prepare for tomorrow. We couldn't stop yet. We had to keep going.

03:22

I'd stayed in the studio with Pdogg and Supreme Boi to help with production. But, seeing as there wasn't much more that I could offer them I decided to go down to the practice room where the boys had started learning the choreography.

There was a stairwell inside the building that led down to the basement so I didn't have to use the outside door. A raw version of the track could be heard coming from below as I made my way down the stairs. When I reached the bottom I saw them all lined up in front of the mirrors, sweaty and dancing. They looked exhausted but, even from here, I can see their drive. They're pushing themselves. I could tell just how hard they had been working, even now, even though the odds were against them. Here they are, at three in the morning, dancing as if their lives depended on it.

Was there anything that I could do?

I couldn't think of much... But, a small idea came to mind. Maybe some coffee would help.

04:05

I went down to the 24 hours Starbucks and brought back some coffee for everyone as they took a short break. The boys sat quietly or lay down on the floor, mostly scattered and not talking to each other. They were probably trying to conserve energy. I sat quietly on one of the couches in the back corner, a tall man I hadn't seen before came and sat next to me. The boys had a few staff around and I didn't know most of them.

"Jia right?" The man asked.

"Yeah, that's me. Can I ask who you are?" I replied.

"Sure. I'm the boys' manager Sejin. Nice to meet you. I heard you're the one who helped with the last-minute song." He replied.

"Oh. It's nice to meet you too," I quickly stood up and gave a short bow before sitting back down, "I did... there was some trouble with the hard drive and I already had a song that they could use..." I explained.

"I heard what happened. These boys can be a handful. Always seem to get themselves into trouble, keeps me on my toes that for sure" Sejin sighed although it seemed like he held a fondness for the boys more than an annoyance.