One Man Band System

About an hour later, Eric walked inside. He was shocked to see Heidi kneeling on the floor in the far corner of the meeting room. Monica, Emma, and Priya looked like they had just finished throwing a massive fit, while Chloe and Laura stood behind them with hopeful expressions. Then he spotted Ruby, who was visibly trying to turn her face away and struggling to hold back her laughter.

"What’s going on here?" Eric asked.

All six girls spun around to look at Eric, while Ruby still didn’t dare make eye contact with him, trying desperately to shift her face back into a sad expression. Spotting Eric, Heidi immediately scrambled up and ran for cover behind him, her hands trembling as she held onto his arm.

"Alright... nothing’s going on... come over here, Heidi," Monica said.

"Yeah... over here... come on," Priya added.

"Drop it... as long as you’ve learned your lesson, come on," Emma added.

All three of them were smiling, but it was crystal clear that their faces were fuming. In the end, Chloe and Laura ran behind Eric as well, then coaxed Heidi into rejoining the group. Seeing this unfold, Eric was completely bewildered and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Seriously, what is going on?" Eric asked.

"It’s nothing... So how did it go? Is your business taken care of?" Emma asked.

"Pretty much... What about you guys? Are you all doing okay after what happened at school earlier?" Eric asked.

"We’re fine... We’re safe since the police escorted us here," Monica said.

"Yeah, that’s right, don’t worry," Priya added, giving a thumbs-up.

Then Eric turned to look at Chloe, Heidi, and Laura, who looked disheveled standing behind Emma, Monica, and Priya. He walked over toward the three of them.

"You guys... what’s wrong?" Eric asked.

"No... nothing, don’t worry about it," answered Heidi, who had already bounced back to her usual self—whether it was genuine or just an act.

"Yeah... that’s right," Chloe added.

"Don’t worry," Laura added.

Eric still felt like something was off, but he ultimately brushed the feeling aside and turned to look at Ruby.

"Are you alright?" Eric asked calmly.

"I’m fine," Ruby answered.

"Good then. Alright, let’s head home. It’s not safe enough here for now," Eric suggested to the six girls. "I’ll drive you to your apartment," Eric said to Ruby.

"Um... I have my car, and besides, I already asked Tania to come here," Ruby said.

"Hmm... in that case, let’s wait for Tania," Eric said.

He then pulled out his smartphone and sent over the melody he had just been working on by the roadside. Ding, the smartphones of Emma, Chloe, Priya, Heidi, Monica, Laura, and Ruby went off simultaneously as they received the notification. Opening their phones, they found an audio message and immediately turned to look at one another.

"What’s this?" Emma asked.

"A new song for Nobelia," Eric answered with a smile.

"Oh... really?" Emma asked.

She hit play, and instantly Eric’s singing voice rang out, accompanied by the sound of a keyboard. It seemed that before coming upstairs, he had stopped by the recording booth downstairs to track it. The entire meeting room filled with a bright, cheerful melody at a fast tempo, though the lyrics and weight behind it carried a bit of depth.

The song told the story of four girls who loved the same man, each expressing it in different ways without clashing. One loved him like a brother, one as a partner, one as a best friend, and one as an idol, creating a dynamic of four singers calling and responding to one another, rivals, yet lifting each other up.

Ruby, Emma, Chloe, Priya, Heidi, Monica, and Laura all fell silent listening to it. Without exception, their faces gradually flushed red. When the melody came to an end, the atmosphere inside the meeting room turned dead quiet. Eric looked at the seven girls in the room one by one, shocked to see their faces filled with remorse, embarrassment, and pure joy all at once.

Then, something that caught Eric completely off guard happened right before his eyes. Emma, Priya, and Monica immediately approached Chloe, Heidi, and Laura, pulling each other into group hugs and exchanging apologies. Not only them, but Ruby stood up and walked over to the six of them as well to apologize, and the six girls apologized to Ruby in return.

"Hold on a second... this song wasn’t supposed to be sad or about apologizing. It’s supposed to be cheerful, passionate, and full of energy," Eric said, utterly confused.

"It’s a long story... Thanks to your song, we finally get it. But don’t ask any more questions, okay? This is girls’ business," Emma said.

"Oh... okay," Eric said.

Then, without saying another word, all seven girls filed out of the meeting room and shut the door tightly behind them, leaving Eric all alone and deep in thought. He replayed his song and listened to it again by himself. Once the five-minute melody came to an end,

"Gosh... I thought this song was good... Did they not like it... or am I the only one who likes it... Man... this is getting confusing... Do I need to compose a new song?" Eric wondered in his head, starting to get worried.

Click.

Suddenly, the door swung open. "Huh?" Eric turned to look at the door and saw Tania walking in, looking bewildered to find Eric sitting all by himself inside. Tania walked in, closing the door behind her, but then she flinched upon noticing the disappointed look on Eric’s face.

"Wait... what’s wrong with you?" Tania asked.

"Give this song a listen," Eric answered.

He replayed the song. Tania pulled up a chair next to Eric and sat down to listen. Her face grew tense and flushed bright red as the music played, but her eyes sparkled, and her hand even tapped against the table as if playing a piano with one hand.

Eric closely observed Tania’s gestures beside him, though her expression still left him utterly confused. Once the melody wrapped up, Eric set his smartphone back down on the table and turned to Tania. But before he could utter a word,

"Wow... that song just now... is it new? Awesome... it’s seriously awesome! I love it. What’s the title?" Tania asked, her eyes gleaming.

"Oh... the title is All Kinds of Love... I composed it for Nobelia," Eric answered.

"Wow... really? Does that mean Emma, Ruby, Jade, and I are going to sing this together?" Tania asked, her eyes sparkling with a massive smile across her face. She leaned in so close that her face was right next to Eric’s, her pigtails flying out behind her.

"Um... yeah, that’s the plan," Eric said, raising both hands with an awkward smile. "Um... could you back up a little bit?" Eric asked.

"Oh... sorry," Tania said, stepping back right away. "Have you given the song to Ruby, Jade, and Emma yet?"

"Yeah... just now," Eric said sluggishly.

"Where are they? How come you’re all by yourself here? Now’s not the time to be sitting around, is it?" Tania said, standing up and glancing toward the door.

"I don’t know. They were just here a second ago and just walked out," Eric answered.

"Hmm... yeah... this room still smells like their perfume. I’m gonna go look for them outside," Tania said.

"Was the song really that good?" Eric asked.

"Extremely... it’s perfect for Nobelia’s debut... Hold onto my bag, I’m gonna go find them," Tania answered.

Then Tania walked out of the meeting room, closing the door behind her. Eric was left all alone once again. He sat in quiet reflection, picturing the faces of all seven girls and Tania. They had all worn the exact same expression when listening to the melody, yet only Tania had actually told him it was good.

"Man... I really don’t understand girls at all... Which reaction is the real one? Do I need to start over and write a new song or what?" Eric wondered, his self-confidence taking a slight hit from the girls’ antics.

***

Meanwhile, one floor above the meeting room, inside the still-vacant CEO office,

"Alright... sign right here, please," Chloe said, handing a contract to Emma, Monica, and Priya.

The three of them took the contracts and read through them, their faces flushing bright red. But then they flipped to the final page and pulled pens out of their bags. Right after, each of them signed the documents in duplicate before returning all the files to Chloe, who handed them back their respective copies.

"Alright... deal’s locked in," Chloe said, stowing the contracts away in her bag.

"Hey,"

Emma, Monica, Priya, Heidi, Laura, and Chloe turned to look at Ruby, who was sitting in their midst with a baffled expression.

"What is wrong with you guys? You’re literally just making a schedule to sleep with Eric, so why the hell are you drawing up actual contracts? Aren’t you embarrassed?" Ruby asked in total confusion.

"It’s better this way. Otherwise, things won’t be fair," Emma answered.

"Exactly. You heard Eric’s song earlier, right? We’re going to support each other," Chloe added.

"Yep... it’s not like we have to love Eric as a boyfriend, but sleeping with him is a biological need, which is why a contract is necessary," Heidi added.

"Agreed. That way the six of us stay friends, support one another, and keep things completely baggage-free," Priya added.

"Just make sure no one breaks the rules, consider this a reminder," Laura added.

"Relax, don’t worry about that," Monica replied.

Ruby, staring at the six of them, could only rub her face in utter disbelief. She couldn’t begin to comprehend what was going on in her friends’ heads.

"This is... mind-boggling. I’ve never met friends like them in my life... but... it’s pretty entertaining, honestly. Whatever, let them do what they want," Ruby muttered in her head.