△ TRACK BY TRACK.

1] WASABI

A smooth and sexy pop track oozes confidence and charisma. With the goal in mind of making listeners feel unstoppable, the girls delivered with sharp lyrics and a catchy chorus. For their debut song, they wanted a song that grabbed people’s attention, and they certainly succeeded.

Writing credits go to all three girls.

The line distribution for this song can be found here.

2] YEAH YEAH YEAH

Having been in the spotlight since before their debut, the girls have been receiving disapproving words from critics since their trainee days. This pop track is a direct response to those who don’t support them, basically saying that they aren’t listening.

Written by all three girls.

3] DOWN

With lyrics that are catchy and memorable, the S.O.T girls bring forward a dance track that would fit right into a club’s playlist. This song was created from Zim making up her own song on the fly while the three girls were dancing around their kitchen. The final product was polished up by producers and writers.

Writing credits go to Zim and Yen.

4] FUEGO

Another charismatic EDM track that focuses on being one’s own hype man. With fiery imagery in their lyrics, the girls instill listeners with confidence and hype.

Written by Yen and Nia.

5] WOMAN

One of the first controversial songs released by Triptych. This song takes a feminist perspective on their current society. The girls received a lot of backlash for putting out such a blunt song, but it remains a fan-favorite.

Written by all three girls.

6] PICTURE PERFECT

The last song on the mini album closes out with an upbeat poppy reflection on how far the girls have come since their predebut days and how they are finally seeing their dreams fold out right in front of them.

Written by all three girls.

△ THIS ERA.

First off, they had a good amount of hype surrounding their debut thanks to the highly successful HBH Trainees 2014 project that they were apart of. 

Nia was easily one of the most popular trainees, so her debut alone was enough to gather lots of attention from the general public.

Because of their dedicated pre-debut fanbase, they were able to score their first music show win just a week after their debut. 

Their debut music video gathered 3.5 million views within the first 24 hours, which was a lot for an HBH group at the time. 

Shortly after their debut, knets were quick to criticize the girls. One of the biggest things they got attacked for was being accused of copying EXID’s charismatic charm.

Even though S.O.T and EXID never had any personal beef, Leggos and Artychs used to not get along at all because of these accusations. 

However, the air was cleared greatly when S.O.T and EXID performed a collaboration stage together at MAMA 2015.

They went on Weekly Idol the day after they got their first win and it was very clear to viewers that Yen did not like Doni and Coni at all. A lot of reaction memes were birthed from that episode.

Speaking of episodes, their YouTube show, Triptych TV, kicked off this era! It showed fans a more relaxed and goofy side of the girls. 

Some episodes included the girls promoting their mini album at a cafe, designing each other’s dream rooms, and doing mundane activities like grocery shopping and cooking.

As far as individual popularity goes, Nia was easily the most popular, closely followed by Zim, then Yen. Yen was only not so popular because people thought she had a bad attitude(and she lowkey did oop)

Yen also wasn’t so popular because she seemed to hang around male idols quite a lot. People accused her of dating almost every male idol she was seen around. 

Zim also was also dealing with body-shaming comments around the time of her debut, as she gained quite a bit of weight since her brief hiatus during her trainee days.

On the surface, things looked pretty fine, but behind the scenes, the girls were not doing so well. All of them were taking a mental toll on the drama they got caught up in. 

Tensions were high between members for a while. There was a period of time where they straight up didn’t get along (and you can kind of tell by their earlier performances - their chemistry is totally off). 

But towards the end of this era, things started getting better. Their friendship strengthened, they got the recognition they deserved, and their fan base grew tremendously.

△ ERA FASHION.

Primary colors were a must. Each girl wore their representative color on stage all the time. There was a time where the company wanted them to wear their respected colors off stage (at variety shows, airport, etc.) but then they decided against it because that’s cheesy and controlling.

A lot of fake fur (”I would rather show up naked than wear real fur.” - Yen, 2015).

A lot of checkered prints.

Baggy cargo pants with boots.

As far as hair goes:

Nia had shoulder length black hair with bangs. They kept it really simple, yet recognizable for their leader and center.

Zim had black hair that faded into yellow. Her hair was so fried from having to re-dye it every other week that during TROMME’s debut period and S.O.T’s rest period, she had to cut her hair. 

Yen had long dark brown hair that was ALWAYS, and I mean ALWAYS either in dutch braids or pigtails. They tried to give her like the ‘bratty maknae’ look to match her bratty maknae personality.

△ FANDOM BEHAVIORS.

During fansigns, fans proved to be just as funny in person as they are online. 

S.O.T would always die laughing at every fansign, which gave some great photos for fansites. 

Artych’s formed a really great bond with the girls because they were always so respectful?

Like they would hold up red ribbons together at airports to prevent the girls from getting mobbed.

The only downside of Artychs this era was the beef that they had with Leggos online. It got pretty out-of-hand sometimes, giving Artychs a bit of a bad rep. 

The had found The Visionary Psychic Reading building a block or so away from the bar. When the folks back at the bar told Vice that Seokyu was seen leaving with a woman, Ji was convinced they had Seokyu mistaken for someone else. Seokyu was probably the biggest virgin Ji has ever met. He’d be way too anxious to have a one night stand with some random woman.

But the more Eunjoo talked, the more Ji realized that she really had met their Seokyu. She described him in an oddly specific way, right down to the three little moles under his eye.

“Miss Oh,” Minho steered the conversation back to the important things. “Did S- I mean Kyu- tell you where he was heading?” 

“Hm, let me think.” Eunjoo sighed, looking off into the distance. “His soul is so restless... I could feel his tormented energy when we made love. Tragic and beautiful, all wrapped into one, immaculate vessel. It was my pleasure to give him the best sexual healing experience he’s ever had, after the last one took a piece of his soul with her.”  The other six men fell into an uncomfortable silence. Geonwu arched an eyebrow and picked up the tea cup that Eunjoo had given them, taking a very audible slurp. “He told me that he was a college drop out. He wanted to experience the little joys before being forced back into the working world. He said he was clinging to his last strands of youth...” Eunjoo seemed to swoon a little, but Ji also figured that could be the high starting to come down. “He wanted to visit Yosu. He said he’s never been.” 

“Yosu?” Woodam repeated. “Why the hell would he go to Yosu?”  “To live!” Eunjoo said dramatically, as if she was reading off an indie movie script. Ji rubbed his temples and leaned forward in his chair. “Listen, Miss Oh, is there anyway that you can like... Predict where he is in Yosu? Maybe consult the tarot?” Ji asked, his patience growing thin with this woman.

Eunjoo gave an offended gasp. “The tarot is not a tool to use so freely!” “What about tea leaves? Cartomancy? Anything?” Ji asked. “You’re insulting my line of work!” Eunjoo huffed, turning her head away from Ji. “How dare I be made a fool of in my own space.” “Besides,” Eunjoo continued. “I have already consulted the tarot on Seokyu while he was here. He needs to travel on his own, to find himself. The cards expressed struggles with work and friendships and... love life.” The woman said the last phrase like it was soaked in vinegar. “The best thing you can do for your friend is to let him be free! Now, I have an appointment scheduled in thirty minutes and I’m hardly prepared!” 

The boy group left The Visionary and made their way to the street corner where Geonwu ordered an Uber Black to come pick them up to bring them back to Minho’s apartment to recuperate. 

The air was stale and musty, as if the bar had a “no air circulation” rule. The lack of fresh air seemed to have an effect on everyone inside. The old drunkards slouched on bar stools, their actions slow and lazy. The bartender leaned on the counter, talking to a pair of men, moving his hands around slowly as he spoke. When the bartender noticed the six strange men standing in his bar, he slowly stopped talking all at once. Geonwu had never felt more out of place in his life. Seokyu owed him big time for this.

Cyth walked over to the bar, clearly unbothered by the questioning looks they were getting. He knocked on the bar top, sliding onto a stool. “Have you seen this man?” Cyth asked, showing a picture of Seokyu and Cyth smiling on the beach. They took that this summer, after they all got discharged from military service. 

The bartender looked at the phone screen, then eyed each member carefully. Geonwu felt a chill when the older man’s eyes scanned him. “I only help customers.” The bartender responded slowly, leaning back and resuming his conversation with his friends.

“This is sort of an emergency, sir.” Cyth said shortly. 

“And I have a business to run. Either buy a drink or get out of my bar.” The bartender jutted his thumb towards the exit. Geonwu took that as a clear invitation to leave, but none of the other members moved.

“Fine.” Woodam huffed, digging in his pockets and pulling out a wad of cash. “Here. Six drinks. Please.” 

The bartender scooped up the cash, counting each dollar carefully. When he was satisfied with the payment he shoved the cash into his back pocket. Then he reached under the bar and placed six bottles of lukewarm beer onto the table. The Vice members took their drinks, but no one was drinking.

“So, have you seen this man?” Cyth repeated, showing the picture again. The bartender gave it another look, furrowing his eyebrows. “Hey, ain’t that Kyu?” One of the men that was sitting at the bar asked. “Kyu?” Kane asked under his breath.  The bartender nodded, rubbing his chin. “Oh yeah. Kyu performed here two nights in a row. Talented kid, he is. Well mannered too, never loitered.”  “Was he here last night?” Minho asked excitedly. The bartender shook his head. “Nah. I haven’t heard from him in at least a day.”  “Yeah, not since he ran off with The Visionary.” A man at the bar cackled into his drink. The other men at the bar laughed too, as if they all shared an inside joke.

To prevent any unwanted press and publicity, HBH hired their own personal investigator, Detective Min. Hak Bonghwa as well as Vice’s manager accompanied the detective to the apartment. After taking a quick sweep for evidence, the only thing collected was Seokyu’s cellphone.

“Well, I can take this in for finger printing and searching. Maybe there will be some evidence on his device.” Detective Min reported, although he sounded bored. “Unfortunately, there’s not much I can do.” “What do you mean?” Minho asked, not believing the words he was hearing. “I mean,” Detective Min addressed Minho. “If there’s no sign of struggle, which there clearly wasn’t, and there’s nothing that might suggest a break in, then right now I’m forced to believe that Seokyu ran away by sheer will. In that case, there’s not much I can do for a runaway adult.” “Ran away?” Kane asked. “Why would Seokyu run away?”  Detective Min shrugged, reaching into his suit pocket. “My guess is as good as yours. Hopefully, the testing we do on his phone might give us some answers. Until then, if you fellas have any further evidence that comes up, give me a call.” He handed out his own personal business cards before seeing himself out.

JANUARY 4TH, 2020

“They’re calling off the case?” Minho exclaimed, a look of anger and disbelief etched over his face. Hak Bonghwa sighed, tenting his fingers together in front of him.

“Detective Min couldn’t find anything on Seokyu’s phone other than train schedules to Suwon and photos of his grandmother. There are no convincing leads and they wont dispatch anyone to search for Seokyu without a strong lead.” Hak Bonghwa explained. “I’m sorry boys, but Seokyu must have just ran away.” 

“And you’re just going to let him? You’re going to let one of your best vocalists just get up and walk away?” Cyth asked furiously.

“Legally, he’s not under my concern anymore,” Hak Bonghwa reminded them gently. “He never resigned his contract, and by the looks of it, he’s not going to make the deadline on the tenth. For now, Vice will have to continue as six members. I hope you understand.” 

Anger and frustration radiated off the Vice members, each of them trying to get themselves under control before they said something offensive to their boss. Realizing that there was nothing more to be said, Minho thanked Bonghwa for his time and got his group out of his office.

“Now what? Are we just supposed to carry on without Seokyu?” Joongji asked, his voice tight. The members stayed silent as they made their way to the elevator and down to the garage. 

“There has to be something in his apartment.” Woodam pondered out loud as they walked across the garage to their respected cars. “I’m gonna swing by his place one last time, if anyone wants to join.” 

After hours of searching through Seokyu’s whole apartment, Kane emerged from his bedroom with a piece of paper in his hands.

“Guys! Check this out!” He called his groupmates over. The boy group gathered around the flyer in Kane’s hand. It was an advertisement for an open mic event at a bar in Suwon. The date, January 3rd, was circled. “Didn’t Bonghwa say that the police found train schedules to Suwon in his search history?” Kane asked excitedly. “The open mic was yesterday, he must have gone!” Geonwu snapped his fingers. “Everyone check twitter. Our fans must have seen him there!”  Everyone pulled out their cellphones and sneaked onto their fake stan accounts, searching their timelines to see if anyone had spotted their groupmate, but nothing was reported.

The last thing Eunha remembers before passing out was the look of concern in Injung’s eyes and the distant sound of his voice frantically calling for medical help after she passed out in the backstage hallway at one of their showcases right after B.A.D’s set. When she opened her eyes, she was staring at a hospital ceiling. She felt a hand in hers. She looked to the side, recognizing Yerin’s sleeping form folded in half onto the hospital bed Eunha was in. In the chair beside her was Injung, still in his stage costume.

“You’re awake.” He said, his voice tight, his eyes full of hurt. Eunha let out a sigh, looking at anywhere besides Injung or Yerin. She noticed the large basket of flowers on her bedside table. 

“What happened, Eunha?” Injung questioned, his voice brittle. Eunha still couldn’t look at him. What happened was she decided to not eat much this past week to look good on national television. What happened was she did a shitty job at hiding this. What happened was she probably blew her reputation. 

“Nothing. I’m alright.” Eunha responded, the answer was a reflexive lie. Something she was so used to saying. “Clearly, you are not alright!” Injung raised his voice, something he doesn’t do often. The noise woke up Yerin, who’s eyes went wide upon being woken up. The anxiety on her friend’s face shattered Eunha’s heart. She caused all this distress. Their manager, Hyunjung, who must have been standing outside the door, came in as well, looking equally as emotionally frazzled. Hyunjung closed the door behind her before crossing over the room and sitting at the foot of Eunha’s bed. 

“Sweetheart,” The manager said with sad eyes, searching her client’s face. Eunha looked away. Hurting her friends was bad enough, but Hyunjung was the closest thing to a mother figure that Eunha had.  “Don’t worry I’m-” Eunha started, but she was cut off.

“Eunha, the doctors told us that you passed out due to undernourishment and that your heartbeat was slower than typical.” Injung said steadily, but his voice was laced with pain. “They said... this is most common in people with eating disorders.”

When the words left his mouth, Eunha looked between her two friends and her manager, all waiting for her to say something. She opened her mouth to speak, but instead a squeaking noise came out. Tears started rolling down Eunha’s face in uncontrollable waves. Yerin gripped her friend’s hand tighter.

“Eunha, please… If you need help, we need to know. We don’t want to see you hurt like this. It hurts us too…” Yerin said softly, stroking the back of the trainee’s hand with her thumb.

Eunha felt like she’s been backed into a corner. She wanted everything around her to just stop. She screwed her eyes shut, shaking her head. Why did everyone suddenly care so much? Why did any of this matter to them? She cursed herself for not being more careful. Eunha jerked her hand away from Yerin’s touch.

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Eunha stated, her voice lacking the power she wish she had. She opened her eyes and gave the girl next to her a cold look. “And this isn’t about you, Yerin.” 

“Eunha-” Yerin started to plead, but Injung rose from his seat. Without a word, he stormed out of the room, closing the door abruptly behind him. Hyunjung sighed, her eyes trained on the last place Injung was seen.

“Yerin, go find Injung.” Hyunjung requested. “But-” “Yerin.” Hyunjung stated firmly. Yerin bowed her head and walked out of the room. Once the leader was gone, Hyunjung fixed her eyes on Eunha, a sad and stern look in her eyes.

Eunha took a deep breath, looking up at her manager. “I’m fine, Hyunjung, I swear I’m fine-”  “No. You’re not fine. I should have noticed sooner... You’ve been acting so distant lately... All the signs were there, I just...” Hyunjung shook her head before straightening up. “I’m not asking you to give me answers, but I do think you should take leave from the project to focus on your health.”  “What? I can’t! Hyunjung, you know I can’t.” Eunha pleaded. Pausing her training could put her back a step on her road to debut. She couldn’t afford to take a break now when her career was finally starting to take off.

“At this point, Eunha, you don’t have another option. You either get better or you die.” Hyunjung snapped. “Do you understand me?”   Eunha bit her lower lip, looking down at the white bedding around her. She knew she was running out of excuses and options. Hyunjung was right, it was either recovery or nothing. 

Hyunjung took a deep breath, collecting herself. “The doctors will be in to check on you soon. I’d better go find your friends.” 

Hyunjung left silently. Almost instantly, the doctors entered Eunha’s room, holding clipboards and laptops. Eunha sat through their evaluation of her, and answered all their questions truthfully. By the end of their questioning and evaluation, the doctors called Hyunjung back into the room to discuss options for out-patient clinics for eating disorder recovery.