still thinking about this, because it stood out so much to me when i first watched the mv. in my last post with my thoughts on the mv specifically, i brought up how both hongjoong and seonghwa have similar necklaces; hongjoong's with a whistle, and seonghwa's with a key. a key that looks like the key in the tracklist preview. i'm curious if the key acts as a new cromer (remember the bluebird carrying away something red while the cromer was on the ground broken?). or maybe both necklaces are counterparts containing different aspects of the cromer? back in iomt, atiny pointed out how the arrangement ateez were sitting in aligned with chess pieces, with hongjoong as the king, and seonghwa as the queen (direct protector of the king). i kept wondering about how in lemon drop hongjoong wasn't just left in the car, he was locked in. the light around him could have a connection to the cromer, if his necklace does indeed carry an aspect of it. there's a flash of light at one point, and it transitions to him being in the elevator (where seonghwa also is), instead of being alone. another reference to the cromer? the reason i also bring up the protecting aspect is because in the tracklist preview, there's a car and a similar flash of light before the wave of destruction where the key is seen again right before "resetting" (time travel)... or jumping to another dimension? but in the lemon drop mv, the key isn't in the car; it's still with seonghwa. sopro has been brought up due to the colour, but it doesn't have the same abilities as the cromer, which is why i think the key (and possibly the whistle as well) are acting as the cromer. in the the upcoming tour poster, everyone has red detailing of some kind... except for hongjoong. this could be representative of sopro's influence or, again, the cromer. if we go back to the chess allegory, everyone else has a part in keeping the king (hongjoong) safe. so is that why he's left in the vehicle in lemon drop? are the other members planning something risky where keeping hongjoong (potentially a keeper of another vital part of the cromer) safe is vitally important? does he himself hold a special "key" in whatever mission they might be doing? remember all the way back at the "beginning", it was hongjoong's counterpart in halateez who gave hongjoong the cromer in the first place, setting off the potential cycle or loop of realities. and now the last track on the album is literally called "bridge: the edge of reality". where in the tracklist preview, the key is shown using its power. during both the tracklist preview and in lemon drop, there are things breaking; a breakdown of reality? timeline shifting? was something set off by the stream of events that we know about where a disaster occured (there are 8 lights before the collision) and now they're trying to set it right again? i have so many thoughts, but it's 5am and i'm struggling to word it all. does this make sense to anyone else? 😭 UPDATE: i just thought of it now, but are those hongjoong's boots in the trunk at the very end?? it looks like the same car, but the top is down and hongjoong isn't present. did something actually happen? is this further branching timelines? am i actually onto something here with the "protect the king" thought process??? #ateez #에이티즈 #hongjoong #홍중 #seonghwa #성화 #yunho #윤호 #yeosang #여상 #san #산 #mingi #민기 #wooyoung #우영 #jongho #종호 #larknotes