Chapter Text
“And… cut!” The director's voice echoed through the set. Lights were beginning to dim and cameras slowly powered off. The room burst into applause and cheers as another scene was successfully shot.
“Great job out there!” the director of the scene announced. “Thank you all for your amazing hard work today!”
All around Mizi were various supporting actors wearing different costumes, ranging from aliens and human “pets”. Many of them began to saunter off to change rooms, converse with one another, or were waiting for feedback from the director. The room started to become livelier and louder.
“Hahh…! I’m so tired,” exclaimed Till, a fellow actor, in an exhausted voice. “Any more of that and I would’ve combusted.”
Till was the oldest and the most knowledgeable actor on set. He had short, gray hair and constant dark eye bags under his teal eyes. He was a well-known actor in Korea, in fact, he was one of the top 3 besides Luka and Ivan. In Mizi’s opinion, Till was a very impressive person— always so calm and collected… and maybe a bit intimidating.
The two of them had been recording Round 7 of the popular series Alien Stage for the past few hours. The scene had been long and difficult to record, making the two of them absolutely exhausted.
Suddenly, a short black haired girl came striding towards her with a bottle of water. “Mizi! You did so well!”
Mizi smiled and slowly started to stand up from her spot on the floor, a headache starting to form.
“Thank you, Sua,” Mizi replied as she brushed her fingers against the cold metal of the water bottle. She ignored her racing heart and the butterflies in her stomach, instead forcing her attention back to the moment. Sua was Mizi's closest and dearest girlfriend best friend. She had soft, violet eyes and short black-hair styled in a bob. Currently, Sua was dressed in a comfortable sweater and skirt as she had come to watch the scene be filmed, alongside Ivan. Both Sua and Mizi had known each other since childhood, supporting one another through thick and thin. But unbeknownst to Sua, Mizi had a massive crush on her. To Mizi, Sua was her everything. She was her god, her universe, the other half of her soul.
Sua flashed a smile at her as she said “You were like a shining star out there! I think short hair really suits you!”
Mizi rolled her eyes fondly and replied “Sua…You’ve been saying that since the ‘All-in’ episode was shot. Are you sure there isn’t an alternative motive here?”.
The culprit couldn’t help but smile wider before saying “I’m not wrong though…”
Mizi opened her mouth to respond but someone approaching the two of them in the corner of her eye. “Ah.. is something the matter?” Mizi asked curiously.
A guy in a filming uniform with black hair, and a slightly blurry face for some reason, walked up to them.
“Ah hello!” he said with a smile. “I saw you acting out there, you did absolutely great!”
Mizi shyly nodded her head and thanked him. Despite having the lead role in Alien Stage for quite some time, she's still pretty nervous about the position.
Sua also had a light smile on her face. “She really was amazing out there.” Mizi was slightly blushing from the compliment and tilted her head towards Sua in gratitude.
Afterwards, both Sua and Mizi started following the staff member towards the camera. In the background, she could hear Ivan and Till bantering with each other.
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU WANT TO GO SKYDIVING TO HEAR MY SCREAMS?!?!?!?!!?!?”
Till’s almost shrill voice echoed throughout the set. His face was an impressive red and he looked embarrassed, while Ivan was unsubtly leaning in closer. Though it was unsubtle to everyone else in the room, Till was freaking out too much and was the only one not to notice.
“Of course, I want to hear your screams~. Any sound from you is a melody to my ears.”
Mizi looked to the side in an attempt to feign ignorance. She quickened her steps and followed the staff member to the camera, subtly glancing her head in Sua's direction, who was gracefully walking right beside her. Sua is always so beautiful and so outstanding. So prefect in everything she does... But right now isn't the time to think about that stuff. She's still at work after all. Mizi tilted her head back forward.
Once the three of them reached the camera, the staff member flipped the camera back on and the recording started to play. As Mizi watched the footage, she noticed something strange with her expression. It seemed… off. Like it wasn't her. Her face, her eyes, her smile, everything wasn’t right. It was like watching a stranger. Her chest tightened up and a pressure started to build up in her chest.
“Stunning as always Mizi.” Sua smiled as she complimented Mizi. “Your facial expressions look so real and genuine.”
Mizi stared blankly at Sua. “Real..?” she hesitantly asked her. Does she think it feels real? Then why did it feel so off for her?
Suddenly, it was like the air had vanished. Her heart pounded into her ears, loudly, and frantically. She couldn’t breathe.
The room around her began to shrink. The walls were closing in and she felt as if she was being choked. She tried to ignore it, but it only made the feeling worsen.
I can't breathe.
Mizi gasped for air but it only made her headache start to worsen. She pressed the palm of her hand on her forehead, attempting to soothe it, but it didn't work.
I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe-
The throbbing pain was intensifying on both sides of her head, making it almost unbearable. Her vision blurred at the edges and her vision began to pulse to the rhythm of her throbbing head. She squeezed her eyes shut, but when she opened them again, she was no longer in the studio.
She was now lying on a firm white bed in an entirely white room. Strange creatures hovered over her—with characteristics too bizarre to be animal and too unordinary to be human. Their eyes were large and dark, and the intensity of their stares made Mizi want to shrink away.
Mizi blinked again. The creatures were gone. She was back in the studio, but now various staff members were surrounding her.
“Mizi! Mizi! Can you hear us?”
Sua’s voice was sharp with panic and worry, waking Mizi up from her dazed condition. Mizi almost wanted to close her eyes again, to escape the bright lights and loud chattering noises that made her eyesight darken and become shaky again.
Gathering the strength to widen her eyes a bit more, she noticed the extreme worry on Sua’s face and how gently she was holding her. If it were any other time, she would have blushed at the sight of Sua so close to her face. But right now, it just made the dizzying feeling inside of her intensify. Mizi opened her mouth to answer but no words came out. Her head felt like it was being squeezed on all sides and pounded even more aggressively. The world around her shifted as if she were sinking underwater—suffocating, slowly and heavily. Any thoughts she tried to make slipped out of her grasp like water and her vision began to waver even more.
Mizi closed her eyes for the final time.
Her body went limp and the world went pitch black.