"Alright, boys," Jay clapped excitedly. "I know you didn't have much time to prepare for the fansign because it was only announced two days ago, but don't worry too much and just enjoy it. You don't have to perform in front of them today. Just act like you're interacting with your friends."
"However, be sure to stay professional. These are still your fans," he quickly added.
"Got it," Jaeyong nodded, already having discussed this with his members last night.
"Now, go out there and have fun," Jay said, urging the members to go to the stage.
Despite their excitement, they were still a little bit nervous since this was the first time they were going to be interacting with their fans in such close proximity.
As Jaeyong led their group to the stage, muffled screams were heard in the small conference room.
The members waved at their fans, and even June, who wasn't a huge aficionado of fanservice, smiled at them.
It was strange how June could now see their faces up close. Unconsciously, he started looking for a familiar face in the room. All throughout his journey as an idol, there was one person who always seemed to support him.
Cindy's daughter.
June searched for Jia's face in the crowd, kind of hoping that she would be there.
He sighed softly when he realized that the girl wasn't in the room. She probably wasn't fortunate enough to be chosen along with the fifty fans.
"Why don't we sit down?" Akira exclaimed, acting as the host for their intimate fansigning event.
The astras couldn't help but gush at everything the boys did. Even when they were just sitting down and playing with the props laid out on the table, they couldn't help but find them cute.
"Thank you for coming here despite the short notice," Jaeyong said. "I know that some of you still came from far places."
"It's all worth it!" a girl at the back shouted, causing the group to chuckle in amusement.
"Well, before we start with the fansigning event, allow us to greet you first," Jaeyong said before starting their group introduction.
"Shoot to the Top! Hi, we're LEVEL-UP!" the group exclaimed in unison.
The room was filled with cheers once again.
After their greeting, company personnel went to their positions so the boys could start the event.
Fansign events were typically intimate events where fans get their albums signed by their favorite artists. Event-goers are picked on a lottery basis, where the fans who bought the most albums would be included in the roster.
It was a time for fans to have their albums or goodies signed, converse with idols for a short time, ask them for general favors, get a little bit of spoilers for their upcoming projects, and even get a chance to give them gifts based on the company's policy!
Each fan was given exactly thirty seconds with each member, and they would go to another member afterward. Once all members had been met, they would go back to their seats and wait until all other fans were finished.
It was a pretty simple concept, but many fans would die for an opportunity.
The fansign officially started as the first girl kneeled in front of Sehun. They were inversely arranged by their final ranking on Rising Stars, so June sat at the very end next to Zeth.
"Have you done this before?" June asked Zeth, who was excitedly bouncing his knees under the table.
"Of course," Zeth boasted. "I held mini-fan meetings even when I was in high school."
June rolled his eyes and played with the pen in his hands.
Finally, the first girl arrived before June, and he saw Casper's photocards displayed on almost all of her belongings.
"I see you like Casper," June said, signing the album as he started a casual conversation.
"Don't worry," the girl winked. "I like you and Casper together much, much better."
June's eyebrows furrowed as the girl stood just as the timer went off.
Alright, that was weird.
The next girl sat in front of him with trembling fingers. She handed June her album, but it clumsily fell from her hands, causing Zeth's drink to topple over.
"Oops!" she exclaimed with wide eyes, her hands shaking even more aggressively.
June calmly asked the personnel for some paper towels while he signed her album.
"Don't sweat about it," June reassured the nervous fan. "It's alright."
"T—Thanks," she stammered, standing from the seat to give way for the next person.
However, it seemed like her nervousness still shone through as her legs bumped into the long table, causing it to be displaced. The other members' drinks toppled over, causing yet another mini-disaster.
The girl profusely apologized as she zoomed out of the stage. The personnel behind June sighed in frustration as he instructed the other personnel to clean up the mess brought by the girl.
However, June continued to gaze at the fan to reassure her that it was all alright.
June could only imagine her nervousness on seeing her idols in real life, so he wasn't too mad about it.
He wasn't going to lie—it was still pretty strange, though.
Truth be told, almost all of the fans he met just now were a bit weird.
A familiar-looking girl with bangs and red highlights sat before him with a cool expression.
"Sup, June!" she casually greeted, even dappering him up naturally.
"What's up?" June greeted in an unsure tone.
"Can you sign two albums for me, yeah?" Bora asked. "The other one's for Jia."
June perked up with the mention of the familiar girl.
"Jia? You're friends with her?" June asked.
Bora nodded. "Yeah," she smiled. "Write something sweet for her, won't you?"
June chuckled at the young woman's proactiveness. June wrote two letters—one for Jia and one for herself—before handing them back.
Then, Bora brought something out of her pocket and slid it over to June.
"Here, by the way," she whispered. "Here's her number in case you want to use it," she winked.
However, before it could even reach June, the personnel had already captured it and placed it in his back pocket, shaking his head in disapproval.
Bora clicked her tongue and stood from the chair.
"Party pooper," she stuck her tongue out at the personnel. Afterward, she coolly waved at June before leaving the stage.
"Our fans are really…special," June muttered, a small smile on his face.
Then, a seemingly normal-looking boy sat before him. June smiled at him as he signed his album. From his initial approach, it seemed like June finally met a normal fan.
However, as the boy lifted his sleeve and showed his inked skin, June realized that a normal astra might not exist in this universe.
"June, look!" the boy excitedly exclaimed. "I have your face tattooed on my arm."
