Episode 17: Your Honor, We Were Silenced
Courtroom flashes lit up Seoul like a concert.
The lawsuit became national news.
AX1 vs. Orion Entertainment.
On the first day of the trial, Seon stood in a navy suit, wrists tight at his sides, staring down a company that once called him "family."
AX1 sat behind him in the gallery — Jaewon's hand brushing against Seon's, just enough to say I'm here. I'll always be here.
Director Yoo, cold and composed, sat with her lawyers.
The judge entered. Silence fell.
> "Let the record show: this is a defamation suit filed by Orion Entertainment against former artist and current AX1 member, Han Seon, for alleged malicious falsification and damage to corporate reputation."
The gavel hit. The trial had begun.
---
Flashback: Three Years Ago
Seon, eighteen, in a hospital gown.
Jaewon, panicking beside him.
A bruised wrist. A swollen lip. No official record.
> "Tell them it was an accident," Orion's manager had said.
"It'll ruin you if you speak up."
Seon never spoke up.
Until now.
---
In Court
Jaewon testified first.
He recounted the night Seon was blacklisted. The fake evidence. The threats.
The opposing lawyer interrupted constantly. "Speculation. Hearsay."
But Jaewon remained calm.
> "You can fake a message. You can forge a photo. But you can't erase memory."
Then it was Seon's turn.
He stood before the room, gaze steady.
> "I loved music more than anything. I still do. But the industry didn't love me back. It punished me for being honest. For being different. For being loved."
He looked at Director Yoo.
> "You told me I was disposable. That no one would believe me. Let's test that."
Gasps echoed through the courtroom.
The judge raised a hand. "Order."
But the spark had caught fire.
---
Back at the Dorm
AX1 tried to carry on like normal. Rehearsing, eating together, pretending not to scroll Twitter for updates.
Minho broke the silence. "We should do a comeback. Now. While it matters."
Seo-jin frowned. "But the agency—"
Jun interrupted. "Screw the agency. We're trending. The world's watching."
Jaewon nodded. "We make the music. We drop it online. No one owns our truth."
They called their producer friend — an ex-trainee too — and by midnight, they were recording.
A ballad.
Raw. Gritty. About silence, betrayal, and love that outlasts everything.
---
Online
The song, titled "Mute Heart," dropped at 2AM.
Within an hour: 500k views.
By dawn: 4.2 million.
The chorus was everywhere:
> "I sang for you in shadows / but shadows only lie / now hear me in the thunder / even silence learns to cry"
---
Back in Court, Next Session
The judge paused the hearing.
> "There is now a federal investigation into Orion's past conduct, based on new digital evidence submitted by whistleblowers. The suit is on hold pending criminal review."
Director Yoo paled.
Seon didn't smile. He didn't cry.
He just breathed.
---
To be continued…