sox
محبت
- h
location
the grand banquet hall
date & time
july 23rd, 10pm (UTC+8)
weather
26°C/78°F, warm with a breeze and moderate humidity
attendance
all guests + event staff and security
ok!
nct u
the opening ceremony
...
past the point of rescuing, why'd i keep pushing my luck?
the hole i wore into your soul has got too big to overlook.
the hole i wore into your soul has got too big to overlook.
karina looked on from her lofty balcony seat, gazing down at the swirling mass of young bachelors and bachelorettes slow waltzing to the haunting tune performed by a world-class live band, and took a swig from her wine glass. "tell me, watanabe, when you peer over this railing at our lovely guests tonight, what do you see?"
one day, the only butterflies left will be in our chests,
as we march towards our death, breathing our last breath.
as we march towards our death, breathing our last breath.
she didn't spare her silent companion a single glance, continuing on with her train of thought before he could ponder her rhetorical question too deeply. "personally, i see a room brimming with untapped potential, yet schooled into a practiced artificiality bred for survival in a world of psychological warfare."
i thought we had a future, but we ain't got a chance in hell.
"lust. longing. admiration. jealousy. scorn. rage. such emotions rule every decision we make— the career path we choose, the music we enjoy, the people we fall in love with, the people we leave in our past. and yet, these young nobles are taught that they must be protected from such temptations, that they are dangerous, a mark of weakness."
so tell me, how is it gonna feel
without my arms wrapped around, wrapped around you?
without my arms wrapped around, wrapped around you?
narrowing her eyes, she savored another swig of her pinot noir in contemplation. "yes, it is not difficult to identify the danger. these emotions can become our most merciless enemy should they be left unchecked. should they bubble over into an unstoppable flood, it becomes far too easy to lose yourself amidst the current. the body follows the mind, after all, wouldn't you say, watanabe?"
bet it feels pretty real when your skin
starts to peel from the bone.
starts to peel from the bone.
"i cannot subscribe to the idea, however, that they denote an inherent weakness within our psyches. the ability to manage such a volatile typhoon, to harness that power into a motivating force that pushes us in a direction parallel to our core principles— this is more than a skill, is it not? this is an art. the art of not being at the mercy of my emotions, but rather dominating them, using them to maximize my enjoyment in this fleeting lifetime."
you were dead to the world, now i'm dead to you,
haunting your own house, nothing to lose.
haunting your own house, nothing to lose.
"feelings are something we have, not something we are; what feels like soul-crushing torment at dusk may be nothing more than a tender ache in the chest by dawn." the host sat back in her seat, a dramatic sigh leaving her cherry red lips as she swirled her glass with a smirk. "as such, i can only pray that our humble guests do not make any permanent decisions based on a fleeting emotion. we never know when our karmic debt might catch up to us, our history laid bare for all to see."
i let you sink your fangs so deep, ah—
you know you can't breathe on your own.
you know you can't breathe on your own.
watanabe's head jerked to face the unreadable woman beside him, bewilderment filling his gaze at this cryptic omen. "miss finn, by that, could you mean that the true identities of the guests—"
"秘密だから," karina responded without missing a beat, "誰にも言うなよ." a seemingly innocuous utterance in and of itself— 'it's a secret, so don't tell anyone'— her saccharine tone did little to hide the gentle threat behind her words.
the sun is setting on our love, i fear,
letting our loneliness out into the atmosphere
letting our loneliness out into the atmosphere
not needing a second warning to back off from his line of questioning, watanabe busied himself with pouring another glass for himself, a slight shakiness of the hands in his otherwise relaxed posture giving away his discomfort with the subject matter. if karina's hint really did foreshadow what he had interpreted it to, this aphrodisia would be the last of its kind, one final straw to break the camel's back before the world of geopolitics and international business descended into a state of chaos and reparations.
the tides have turned in on our chance to turn it 'round.
i never thought i'd see my fingernails fall out.
i never thought i'd see my fingernails fall out.
this was exactly what karina finn was hoping for; a social experiment that would not end once the final jet left its shores, but rather continue on to destroy the meritocracy that governed their wicked little planet. love and lust, heartbreak and betrayal; such emotions played vital roles in her game, the human vessels before her merely naive pawns in the chess board she'd created of the world. it was only a matter of time before she could pull that last trigger, and everything would fall into its rightful place.
love isn't in the air.
with the final performance coming to a close and the banquet hall of tipsy nobles savoring the last bites of their gourmet desserts, each guest was handed a small golden box. inside, they found a hand-blown glass flower attached to either a brooch or a cuff link and a small notecard explaining the rules to a game called "two-lips", which involved finding the other guest with the same flower and stealing it off their person without being noticed.
the lights dimmed significantly for a moment while each guest attached their flower in a location of their choosing, and then it was game time. within no more than thirty seconds, a chorus of giggles and cheers erupted as several guests already had their pins snatched off their lapels, inspiring the rest of the crowd to make haste in finding their partners. in one corner of the dance floor, the heiress of a smartphone corporation attempted to steal the cuff link off a tall, unsuspecting underboss, but was instantly spotted and pinned to the wall behind her. the security guard standing watch near them tensed at the sudden altercation, only to look away in disinterest upon catching a full view of the underboss' lips attaching themselves to the stretch of skin beneath the heiress' jaw in a show of dominance.
as the game continued on and the players continued to fall deeper out of sobriety, the stakes increased along with the intensity of their interactions. the range of challenges posed by partners who spotted each other at the same moment spanned from suspenseful rounds of rock, paper, scissors to classical dance-offs to on-the-spot fencing duels. the opening ceremony was unfolding exactly how karina finn knew it would, but the night had yet to reach its peak fervor.
this part, well, it was merely an appetizer.
♡coded by uxie♡
location: great banquet hall
date + time: july 23rd, 10pm (UTC+8)
weather: 26°C/78°F, warm with a breeze and moderate humidity
karina looked on from her lofty balcony seat, gazing down at the swirling mass of young bachelors and bachelorettes slow waltzing to the haunting tune performed by a world-class live band, and took a swig from her wine glass. "tell me, watanabe, when you peer over this railing at our lovely guests tonight, what do you see?"
she didn't spare her silent companion a single glance, continuing on with her train of thought before he could ponder her rhetorical question too deeply. "personally, i see a room brimming with untapped potential, yet schooled into a practiced artificiality bred for survival in a world of psychological warfare."
"lust. longing. admiration. jealousy. scorn. rage. such emotions rule every decision we make— the career path we choose, the music we enjoy, the people we fall in love with, the people we leave in our past. and yet, these young nobles are taught that they must be protected from such temptations, that they are dangerous, a mark of weakness."
narrowing her eyes, she savored another swig of her pinot noir in contemplation. "yes, it is not difficult to identify the danger. these emotions can become our most merciless enemy should they be left unchecked. should they bubble over into an unstoppable flood, it becomes far too easy to lose yourself amidst the current. the body follows the mind, after all, wouldn't you say, watanabe?"
"i cannot subscribe to the idea, however, that they denote an inherent weakness within our psyches. the ability to manage such a volatile typhoon, to harness that power into a motivating force that pushes us in a direction parallel to our core principles— this is more than a skill, is it not? this is an art. the art of not being at the mercy of my emotions, but rather dominating them, using them to maximize my enjoyment in this fleeting lifetime."
"feelings are something we have, not something we are; what feels like soul-crushing torment at dusk may be nothing more than a tender ache in the chest by dawn." the host sat back in her seat, a dramatic sigh leaving her cherry red lips as she swirled her glass with a smirk. "as such, i can only pray that our humble guests do not make any permanent decisions based on a fleeting emotion. we never know when our karmic debt might catch up to us, our history laid bare for all to see."
watanabe's head jerked to face the unreadable woman beside him, bewilderment filling his gaze at this cryptic omen. "miss finn, by that, could you mean that the true identities of the guests—"
"秘密だから," karina responded without missing a beat, "誰にも言うなよ." a seemingly innocuous utterance in and of itself— 'it's a secret, so don't tell anyone'— her saccharine tone did little to hide the gentle threat behind her words.
not needing a second warning to back off from his line of questioning, watanabe busied himself with pouring another glass for himself, a slight shakiness of the hands in his otherwise relaxed posture giving away his discomfort with the subject matter. if karina's hint really did foreshadow what he had interpreted it to, this aphrodisia would be the last of its kind, one final straw to break the camel's back before the world of geopolitics and international business descended into a state of chaos and reparations.
this was exactly what karina finn was hoping for; a social experiment that would not end once the final jet left its shores, but rather continue on to destroy the meritocracy that governed their wicked little planet. love and lust, heartbreak and betrayal; such emotions played vital roles in her game, the human vessels before her merely naive pawns in the chess board she'd created of the world. it was only a matter of time before she could pull that last trigger, and everything would fall into its rightful place.
with the final performance coming to a close and the banquet hall of tipsy nobles savoring the last bites of their gourmet desserts, each guest was handed a small golden box. inside, they found a hand-blown glass flower attached to either a brooch or a cuff link and a small notecard explaining the rules to a game called "two-lips", which involved finding the other guest with the same flower and stealing it off their person without being noticed.
the lights dimmed significantly for a moment while each guest attached their flower in a location of their choosing, and then it was game time. within no more than thirty seconds, a chorus of giggles and cheers erupted as several guests already had their pins snatched off their lapels, inspiring the rest of the crowd to make haste in finding their partners. in one corner of the dance floor, the heiress of a smartphone corporation attempted to steal the cuff link off a tall, unsuspecting underboss, but was instantly spotted and pinned to the wall behind her. the security guard standing watch near them tensed at the sudden altercation, only to look away in disinterest upon catching a full view of the underboss' lips attaching themselves to the stretch of skin beneath the heiress' jaw in a show of dominance.
as the game continued on and the players continued to fall deeper out of sobriety, the stakes increased along with the intensity of their interactions. the range of challenges posed by partners who spotted each other at the same moment spanned from suspenseful rounds of rock, paper, scissors to classical dance-offs to on-the-spot fencing duels. the opening ceremony was unfolding exactly how karina finn knew it would, but the night had yet to reach its peak fervor.
this part, well, it was merely an appetizer.
date + time: july 23rd, 10pm (UTC+8)
weather: 26°C/78°F, warm with a breeze and moderate humidity
———————————————
past the point of rescuing, why'd i keep pushing my luck?
the hole i wore into your soul has got too big to overlook.
the hole i wore into your soul has got too big to overlook.
karina looked on from her lofty balcony seat, gazing down at the swirling mass of young bachelors and bachelorettes slow waltzing to the haunting tune performed by a world-class live band, and took a swig from her wine glass. "tell me, watanabe, when you peer over this railing at our lovely guests tonight, what do you see?"
one day, the only butterflies left will be in our chests,
as we march towards our death, breathing our last breath.
as we march towards our death, breathing our last breath.
she didn't spare her silent companion a single glance, continuing on with her train of thought before he could ponder her rhetorical question too deeply. "personally, i see a room brimming with untapped potential, yet schooled into a practiced artificiality bred for survival in a world of psychological warfare."
i thought we had a future, but we ain't got a chance in hell.
"lust. longing. admiration. jealousy. scorn. rage. such emotions rule every decision we make— the career path we choose, the music we enjoy, the people we fall in love with, the people we leave in our past. and yet, these young nobles are taught that they must be protected from such temptations, that they are dangerous, a mark of weakness."
so tell me, how is it gonna feel
without my arms wrapped around, wrapped around you?
without my arms wrapped around, wrapped around you?
narrowing her eyes, she savored another swig of her pinot noir in contemplation. "yes, it is not difficult to identify the danger. these emotions can become our most merciless enemy should they be left unchecked. should they bubble over into an unstoppable flood, it becomes far too easy to lose yourself amidst the current. the body follows the mind, after all, wouldn't you say, watanabe?"
bet it feels pretty real when your skin
starts to peel from the bone.
starts to peel from the bone.
"i cannot subscribe to the idea, however, that they denote an inherent weakness within our psyches. the ability to manage such a volatile typhoon, to harness that power into a motivating force that pushes us in a direction parallel to our core principles— this is more than a skill, is it not? this is an art. the art of not being at the mercy of my emotions, but rather dominating them, using them to maximize my enjoyment in this fleeting lifetime."
you were dead to the world, now i'm dead to you,
haunting your own house, nothing to lose.
haunting your own house, nothing to lose.
"feelings are something we have, not something we are; what feels like soul-crushing torment at dusk may be nothing more than a tender ache in the chest by dawn." the host sat back in her seat, a dramatic sigh leaving her cherry red lips as she swirled her glass with a smirk. "as such, i can only pray that our humble guests do not make any permanent decisions based on a fleeting emotion. we never know when our karmic debt might catch up to us, our history laid bare for all to see."
i let you sink your fangs so deep, ah—
you know you can't breathe on your own.
you know you can't breathe on your own.
watanabe's head jerked to face the unreadable woman beside him, bewilderment filling his gaze at this cryptic omen. "miss finn, by that, could you mean that the true identities of the guests—"
"秘密だから," karina responded without missing a beat, "誰にも言うなよ." a seemingly innocuous utterance in and of itself— 'it's a secret, so don't tell anyone'— her saccharine tone did little to hide the gentle threat behind her words.
the sun is setting on our love, i fear,
letting our loneliness out into the atmosphere
letting our loneliness out into the atmosphere
not needing a second warning to back off from his line of questioning, watanabe busied himself with pouring another glass for himself, a slight shakiness of the hands in his otherwise relaxed posture giving away his discomfort with the subject matter. if karina's hint really did foreshadow what he had interpreted it to, this aphrodisia would be the last of its kind, one final straw to break the camel's back before the world of geopolitics and international business descended into a state of chaos and reparations.
the tides have turned in on our chance to turn it 'round.
i never thought i'd see my fingernails fall out.
i never thought i'd see my fingernails fall out.
this was exactly what karina finn was hoping for; a social experiment that would not end once the final jet left its shores, but rather continue on to destroy the meritocracy that governed their wicked little planet. love and lust, heartbreak and betrayal; such emotions played vital roles in her game, the human vessels before her merely naive pawns in the chess board she'd created of the world. it was only a matter of time before she could pull that last trigger, and everything would fall into its rightful place.
love isn't in the air.
———————————————
with the final performance coming to a close and the banquet hall of tipsy nobles savoring the last bites of their gourmet desserts, each guest was handed a small golden box. inside, they found a hand-blown glass flower attached to either a brooch or a cuff link and a small notecard explaining the rules to a game called "two-lips", which involved finding the other guest with the same flower and stealing it off their person without being noticed.
the lights dimmed significantly for a moment while each guest attached their flower in a location of their choosing, and then it was game time. within no more than thirty seconds, a chorus of giggles and cheers erupted as several guests already had their pins snatched off their lapels, inspiring the rest of the crowd to make haste in finding their partners. in one corner of the dance floor, the heiress of a smartphone corporation attempted to steal the cuff link off a tall, unsuspecting underboss, but was instantly spotted and pinned to the wall behind her. the security guard standing watch near them tensed at the sudden altercation, only to look away in disinterest upon catching a full view of the underboss' lips attaching themselves to the stretch of skin beneath the heiress' jaw in a show of dominance.
as the game continued on and the players continued to fall deeper out of sobriety, the stakes increased along with the intensity of their interactions. the range of challenges posed by partners who spotted each other at the same moment spanned from suspenseful rounds of rock, paper, scissors to classical dance-offs to on-the-spot fencing duels. the opening ceremony was unfolding exactly how karina finn knew it would, but the night had yet to reach its peak fervor.
this part, well, it was merely an appetizer.
Last edited: