2.06 ARTIFICIAL LOVE: Too Good

Beomseok finds himself arguing with the security guards and he's about to blow a gasket. His face is red and blood hums in his veins. Seriously. SERIOUSLY. Why won't anyone listen to him? He vaguely believes it to be his luck but anyways it all unraveled like this:

Some dumb bitch called him a molester in the middle of the square even though all he wanted to do was make a call.

He tried to calm her down but she wouldn't have any of it and proceeded to make a scene.

Security guards came and what do you know? Of course, they listened to the hysterical bitch instead of the chill dude trying to calm her down. His tattoos must have peeked past the hem of his collar because he caught the guys staring.

And the crowd had stared as well. And before Beomseok knew it, he was being ushered to the security guard's office so that he wouldn't cause too much trouble.

Fast forward some time and he's still there.

They had planned to let him off with a slap on the wrist but Beomseok wasn't having it, arguing with the guards about compensating him for his troubles.

"You bastard," he hisses, restless and fuming. The office is just a small box situated outside the building and there isn't much room. Even with two people, it feels cramped. "You falsely accuse me of shit all because of, I don't know? Poor as shit judgment skills? And you expect me to just walk away and think that this is okay? What about my rights, asshole!"

"I'm not trying to cause any problems," the guard sighs with a scowl. He's both agitated and apologetic. "But I pulled you out of that situation for your own sake as well."

If there were a table in the office then you bet, Beomseok would have flipped it. As it stands he can't do much aside from vent his frustrations at the poor guard who only wanted to do his job. Apparently, his job includes using discrimination to apprehend people before knowing the full story.

And during all this time, Beomseok still hasn't gotten the chance to make a call and find out just where in the world his poor cell phone was!

He's about to lose it for real and runs his hands through his hair because fuck.

But he's not two and not an idiot so he reigns in the injustice he feels and finally asks, "Then at least let me use your fucking phone!"

The security guard glares at him but after some explaining, the guy finally relents. Beomseok probably shouldn't feel so much like a winner but he does.

While he basks in momentary victory as he types in his own number, a sobering reminder comes to nag him. This might not even amount to anything.

Still, Beomseok has to try. He presses 'call' and puts the phone to his ear. The security guard loses interest in him at this point and finally gives him the space he deserves.

The call dials and Beomseok lets all the drama in his heart settle. It's been an absolute roller coaster of a day and Beomseok really doesn't want his first (and probably only) fansign experience to be tainted by this shit. He starts to pace in the tiny office while the guard takes a smoke break outside.

His heart almost leaps out of his chest when the call connects.

"…Hello?" There's a tentative voice on the other side.

"Hi! This is Lee Beomseok speaking— I mean," he sputters embarrassingly and runs a hand through his hair to calm himself down, "I'm the owner of the phone you have in your hands!"

"…Beomseok-ssi," the voice, male, is song-like and oddly familiar, "You caught me at a good time! Actually, I'm just wrapping things up right now. I can come meet you at a convenient location in about thirty minutes."

"That's great! Thank god, you're a lifesaver." Beomseok wonders if it's a bit too weird to ask for his savior's name and decides not to. They decide on a quaint little bubble tea cafe just on the corner of the street and Beomseok is infinitely thankful. He leaves the guard's office in a much better mood than when he first entered.

Dayoung is going to have a field day with him after he tells her what happened.

The sun has sunk below the horizon and the sky is painted a deeper shade of blue. Beomseok makes it to the bubble tea cafe and he's thankful that he didn't lose his wallet along with his phone. He orders himself an original flavor bubble tea along with a sandwich because his stomach is on the verge of collapsing in on itself.

The establishment is quite nice. It's quaint but the decorations are cutesy and pastel. There are large plushies leaning against the walls and tables and little hearts stuck all around in a perfectly aesthetic and cute layout. Despite the hour, there are couples littering the space and he's the only one there alone. Now that he thinks about it, it's a bit of a weird place to meet with a stranger to get his phone back but Beomseok decides not to think too much about it. At least he will get his phone back.

He finds a quiet corner to sit down in order not to draw too much attention and he's about to pull out his phone to browse social media only to remember that he can't. He sighs, but it's not a big deal. Beomseok pulls his face mask under his chin and sips on his bubble tea.

It's hard to tell the time elapsed since he doesn't have his phone and he feels kind of antsy to just sit there and do nothing. He hates that this entire ordeal muddied up what should have been the best day of his life.

Okay, backtrack a bit, that still hasn't changed. It's still the best day of his life because he got to meet the one and only Kang Siwoo, Oasis himself, saw him in the flesh and even got to exchange a few words. It was only for a minute, but he's going to cherish that single minute for the rest of his life.

That's when he remembers the signed album. Beomseok brims with excitement as he reaches over to his bag. He still hasn't had a chance to see what his idol has left him. Beomseok is in a nice little corner and no one's looking so he reaches into his bag and pulls out his new treasure.

His sexy Siwoo-hyung stares at him with a smoldering look from the cover and Beomseok might have stayed entranced for a bit too long. Because before he even gets a chance to open up the album he feels a presence next to him. Someone jogs right up to his table, dressed in black attire and panting.

Beomseok is startled, his hands fly over Oasis's new album and he snaps his gaze to the person beside him, only to freeze for an entirely different reason.

There's a black face mask covering the bottom half of his face and a cap over his blond hair but Beomseok can recognize those dark eyes anywhere. He thinks he's dreaming at first. But there's soon dread in his belly because Beomseok can't think of anything other than his weird, twisted fate.

"Beomseok-ssi?" Siwoo tilts his head. There's beads of sweat on his brow and Beomseok can't look away when his idol just casually slips into the seat opposite him. "Sorry, it took a bit longer than I expected," Kang Siwoo rambles like he might be rambling to an old friend. "The staff just wouldn't let me go! I don't really like how my managers think they can just bully me into submission..." he sighs and rotates his shoulder, relaxed and unguarded.

"…"

"Ah—" Kang Siwoo perks up and stops his monologue once he realizes that Beomseok isn't responding. Even if his mouth is covered, Beomseok can tell that he's smiling by the curve of his eyes. "Sorry, I ended up rambling. Um… Here's your phone." He reaches into his sweater jacket and pulls out Beomseok's phone. Nothing makes sense.

Kang Siwoo, Oasis himself, holds out Lee Beomseok's phone.

And Lee Beomseok is still staring like a deer caught in headlights because he's so stupefied and stunned at the entire situation. The bubble tea straw hangs comically out of his mouth and when he finally lets go of it he musters a single, "Oh."

Siwoo places the phone gently on the table and that's where the device sits because Lee Beomseok is still offline from shock.

Siwoo grins. "Hehe," he chuckles, "looks like I get to see your face after all. As I expected, Beomseok-ssi is just as handsome as I thought."

When Beomseok finally finds his voice again he bites out, "What. The. Fuck!?"

Siwoo just laughs and it's the same laugh that Beomseok has heard a hundred times on little backstage youtube clips and on Vlive streams. He thinks he's going insane, or maybe it's his life going insane or something. Because if something is too good to be true, it likely is.

And yet, even with his phone returned, Kang Siwoo merely smiles at him from across the table with no seeming intention to leave.

It's a scene right out of a shitty fanfiction and Beomseok doesn't know what to think.