#eden.misc

She slouches over the kitchen counter, waiting for her coffee to brew. “I’d usually head around the corner to the cafe near our apartment, but it is four a.m. So I’m just gonna make a quick coffee and order breakfast when everything starts opening up.”

The video cuts to Eden kissing her fingertips, proceeding to press it against the top of a teddy bear. “Gotta give Younghui a goodbye kiss before I leave.”

She fastens her seatbelt before taking a sip of her coffee. “It’s kinda weird seeing me drive, right?”

“We’ve made it to the studio. I’ll see you inside!”

[WORKAHOLIC]

“I look back on my career and decisions I’ve made and always ask myself, “Is this really what I want? Is it worth it?” I may be a bit greedy, but is it so wrong to want more for myself?

“I just really wanted to interpret how young workers are faced with the dilemma of either working hard or enjoying life. So if you’re struggling, just know that I acknowledge you and all your hard work. If you’re not where you wanna be in life right now, that’s okay! Take it one day at a time, and make some changes! Lay out a roadmap in where you want to see yourself in a year and stick to it. Don’t be discouraged from reality and live in the moment. One day, I wanna hear all about it.”

[HAIR DOWN]

“I think this song is, in a way, a continuation of Workaholic. It’s more fun! Sometimes I just need to forget about my deadlines, let loose and live my life. Life is too short so you have to make the most of it.”

Eden has her hands on her hips, putting all her weight on one leg as the producer messes around with the mixing. She notices the studio door open behind him with her peripheral vision. She realizes it’s Jennie with takeout bags. Both of their faces light up when their eyes meet. Eden has to put her headphones on the stand before she can exit the recording room.

“Hey!” Eden hugs her member once she sets the food down. It had been a couple weeks since they last saw each other.

“How are you doing? Is everything comfortable for you here?”

“Oh, I love it. We’re getting a lot of work done.” She extends her hand, patting the back of his chair.

“I’ll let you two chit chat. I need to make a few calls.” He makes a few clicks with the mouse and then gets up to exit the room.

Jennie smiles towards her, opening the takeout bags and reaching in. “I know you’re working extra hard so I got us some good food.”

She hands Eden her favorite cold noodles, while also taking out her own order. They get themselves situated before sitting down and taking their first bite. The girls talk about how good the food is, while making small talk of what the day has offered to them so far.

“So what are you working on now?” Jennie wipes her mouth with a napkin.

“Well, let me show you.” Eden puts her chopsticks down, pushing herself towards the computer and finding a part in the song to showcase to her.

Jennie listens attentively, swaying her head back and forth. The instrumental and voice guide are the only things done but it still sounds very nice.

“And then I have two options for the second verse, one in English and the other Korean.” She clicks away and plays each version of the verse, watching Jennie’s reactions.

“I like it! They’re both very nice.”

“We haven’t decided which one to go for. Which do you like more?” Eden stops the playback, turning in her swivel chair to face the woman.

Jennie purses her lips for a second, pondering. “Well, they’re both very pretty, and I don’t know who’s all working on this one but I think the Korean verse would make it more ‘you’. Do you get what I’m saying?”

“I do.” Eden sighs and clicks her tongue, tilting her head before making more adjustments. “That settles it then.”

“You’re using the Korean verse?”

“Yep.”

“Don’t you have to discuss it with your team?”

Eden slides back over to her, smiling at Jennie. “You are my team. And I trust your judgment.”

They both smile at each other lovingly.

“I’m so proud of how far you’ve come,” Jennie squeezes her knee. “I’m so glad you have your freedom now. I’m just happy you’re doing what YOU want to do and it’s not being altered. I haven’t seen you this carefree in a while.”

“Jennie… Don’t make me cry.”

[CAFFEINE]

“The melody was the first thing to come from this song. I made it up in the passenger seat on the way home from a drive-in movie, actually. Do you ever just listen to music and think ‘this would be such a good song to play in the car, windows rolled down and feeling cool air through your hair’. That was my goal with this song. It feels very retro and nostalgic. I’m very happy with the end result.”

[SUNFLOWER GIRL]

Eden smiles, pulling her legs up on the chair to her chest and resting her chin on her knee. “I don’t really need to explain this one. It’s simple and genuine and full of love. And I’m happy. I’m really happy with how it came out.”

[HATE TO BE LAME]

“This song is about wanting to tell someone that you love them but are scared to. For me, a lot of it stems from my past relationships. You give a lot of yourself up when you say I love you for the first time. And the first time for me, it was very real. I thought it was very real for the longest time.

“The ideal way to feel when saying I love you is to be happy. But for me, I was filled with more fear and anxiety. It took a very long time to allow myself to love again. But even longer for me to express my love. I was extremely cautious about the next time I would tell someone I loved them.

“I always wonder what I would say to my past self who just finished writing this. She was so paranoid and small. But she was also very worthy of love, no matter how much she thought she was not. She didn't know that when the day finally came, it would be the easiest thing in the world. As simple as breathing.

“I wrote this many years ago so it’s just been sitting in my notes app, collecting dust. It wasn’t until earlier this year that I reached out to Finneas. I’ve always been a very big fan of his works. The first thing he sent me back was amazing and that’s the take that we use in the song. His verse was absolutely perfect and it really solidified the song as a whole.

{First time listening to Finneas’ take.}

Eden sets up the camera on the table, her hands shaking as she presses on the audio file. “I’m so nervous, I don’t know if I can press play.”

She takes a few deep breaths. “Okay.” She clicks on the play button, staring at her lap as his voice plays through the speakers. Her eyes widen as soon as it sets in that he’s singing along to the melody of her song with his own lyrics. She covers her mouth with her hands, squealing as the clip ends.

“Oh my god.” She replays it. “Oh my god.

“I gotta chill out, I can’t focus on his lyrics.” She stands to her feet, pressing her palms to her cheeks as she plays it once again. She has to replay it six times before it’s engraved in her brain. She looks at her producer friend, giving him a definitive look. “That’s it. Like it’s literally perfect. We just have to record our parts together and it’s done.”

[FIRST TIME]

Eden set up her camera at the kitchen table, soon rubbing her eyes with the palms of her hands. She let out a sigh and sniffled. “This song is from twenty eighteen or so, the darkest time in my life. I keep on forgetting it exists for obvious reasons. And I know I shouldn’t keep revisiting it if it keeps resurfacing past trauma, but I think in order to heal, I need to tackle it and make something of it. The whole concept of this album is to humanize myself and it would be wrong of me to just lock this song away. There could be someone out there that resonates with it as much as I do.”

She wipes her eyes with her fingers, nodding towards someone offscreen. A tiny smile appears on her face. “It was bothering me all day while recording and arranging, ‘Should this make the cut or not?’ but I think I just needed to catch my breath and think it over, get some reassurance. I feel much better now.