Let me start this off right with an apology. I'm sorry to my single subscriber and anyone else who might've been looking forward to or waiting for this. I wanted to post it earlier, but the time never seemed right and I just kept on forgetting, so yeah - completely my bad. 

Now that that's over with, let me go ahead and put this up before I forget or lose my nerve. Enjoy~! 

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Can I Have One, Too?

     “Okay, so let me get this straight,” I began, eyes slowly scanning the young men who sat in front of me from left to right. 

     All I managed to make out of their individual features, mostly because of their simultaneously platinum-dyed hair, were objects or characteristics of little to no significance to them as people: 

 

Fancy black medical mask. 

 

Airheaded look. 

 

Teasingly confident, seriously-bordering-on-annoying, smile. 

 

Perpetually tired eyes paired with slightly plump lips. 

 

Apple-shaped haircut accenting a nice set of cheekbones. 

 

     As I assessed them for defining features and racked my brain to collect my thoughts, they stared back silently, completely at attention as they waited patiently for me to begin my slow summarization of what they had just told me. 

     “You guys are aliens,” 

     “Yes,” they answered in unison. 

     “From another planet,” 

     “Yes,” unison again, except this time the one with the annoying smile, I think they said that he was the commander or general or something, ended it with a “Planet B124 AP224, also commonly known by its intergalactic codename: Mato.” 

     I paused a moment, considering whether or not to comment on the irony of pairing the long combination of English letters and numbers with such a short and completely unrelated-sounding name, but thought better of it. 

     “Who’ve come here, to Earth,” I continued, putting emphasis on my last two words and letting my eyes rove over each of them individually as I allowed the disbelief to seep into my voice, “to become idols so that you can collect the screams of fangirls as an energy source?” 

     “Exactly,” the Commander confirmed to the approving nods of the others. 

     I couldn’t help the look of incredulousness that crossed my face as I looked into the eyes of the 5 boys seated on and around the couch on the other side of my makeshift coffee table. Well, two of them looked old enough to be considered men, but that was beside the point. 

     They were all attractive...and all 100%, without a doubt, completely off the deep end. 

     Still, before I could even begin to entertain the idea of humoring them, just to see how deep into their delusion they had fallen, one more-or-less forced me into it. 

     “I know what you’re thinking, Earthling,” tired eyes, I believe they had labeled him as the war veteran-turned-group leader, began with a surprisingly deep voice. “How did such an impressive team of hard-working heroes begin such a trying quest?” 

     “Not exactly what I was thinking, or even how I would’ve put i---” 

     “Don’t worry, we shall sate your hunger and quench your thirst for knowledge,” he continued as if he hadn’t heard me, and I couldn’t help wondering whether or not I was on some type of hidden camera show. 

     I mean, this had to be some type of joke...right?

     I may not have been all that up-to-date on the trends of the music industry, but ‘dazed and delirious’ couldn’t have been what made school girls go crazy these days...could it? 

     “Oh boy...” 

     “You see, it all started when...” the leader began, and I braced myself for whatever other odd things ended up spewing from his mouth. 

     However, I ended up being pleasantly surprised. 

     The story wasn’t half bad. In fact, if anything, it could have made a pretty good sci-fi movie or fantasy novel, and along the way I ended up learning their names so that was more-or-less of a plus. Still, even after their little fairytale moment, there were a few things that puzzled me... 

 

1) Were these boys so blatantly out of their minds that they truly believed they were of the extraterrestrial kind? 

     I mean, this all had to be just a gag made up by their company that was taken way out of context...right? 

2) If all of that stuff was true and these boys really did come here from outer space, something that I still saw as being highly improbable, not only would this be irrefutable proof of the presence of intelligent life on other planets, but they themselves would serve as living, breathing examples of such existence. 

     Was it really so smart to be advertising their alien-ness in the way that they were, given the potential consequences? Then again, if they had really prepared for every possibility, they probably already knew that the human race was a very distrusting one and that a group of young men in their age range making comments like these weren’t going to be taken seriously. 

3) Was it bad that even though I knew that they must be crazy, at least to some degree, I found myself willing to indulge in their little fantasy and help them out? 

     Sure, they were definitely more than a few screws loose here, this I deemed irrefutable, but even so I kind of wanted to believe in them and help them. At least this way the screaming girls who lined street corners waiting for a few squiggles of ink and the teeniest of facial movements from their ‘oppars’ could be used for something other than just bad publicity and migraines. 

4) Was the concept of addition different on Earth than on other planets? 

     I mean, unless I had suddenly become much worse at math than I’d originally thought, something here just didn’t add up. Why did the leader, Yong Guk I think, keep referring to 6 members when there were only 5 guys sitting here? 

 

     At the end of the story, after taking a moment to absorb their cause and their alleged plans for world domination, the rapid sound of sneakers making their way across the hard warehouse floor pulled all of our attentions to the door where a tall flash of dark clothing and similar platinum blonde hair soon jogged until he was standing, actually bowing would have been more accurate, next to the coffee table. 

     “Sorry everyone,” he spoke, face toward the ground at the full 90^o as he bowed and tried not to let his soft panting interfere with his words. “I only had 5% battery left and was forced to recharge in the bathroom.” 

     Where I knew my own eyes were registering confusion, a sideways glance at the others saw them all nodding in understanding. 

     ‘Then I guess that makes this one Number 6..?’ I figured, automatically assuming from the matching blonde hair that he belonged to the band of lunatics across from me. 

     “It’s okay, Zelo, you came at the right time,” Jong Up, I think, spoke and then smiled. 

     Animatedly airheaded smile? Yep, that one’s definitely Jong Up. 

     ‘Zelo? What kind of name is tha---’ my thoughts froze as he stood at full attention, mind completely emptied by the face I found myself staring at with widened eyes and slightly parted lips. 

     Nothing had prepared me for what I was met with. 

     Large, wide eyes; smooth, puffy cheeks; slender, pouty lips; and a curly mass of hair at the very top of his head that spilled slightly into his face. 

     This boy was, by far, the most adorable human being I had ever seen in my entire life, and I made people look beautiful for a living. 

     “Yong Guk hyung and Himchan hyung just told Noh-shi about our plans, so now we have to wait for her decision.” 

     Apple-cut, I mean, Youngjae’s explanation snapped me out of my temporary trance and even my years of professional experience had a hard time suppressing the blush of embarrassment that wanted to bubble across my face like a nasty rash. 

     “Decision? What decision?” I found myself asking absentmindedly as I tore my eyes away from Zelo and found that face mask, err...Daehyun, could speak surprisingly clearly for someone who’s face was mostly covered. 

     “To help us,” he answered, slight Busan accent shining through and eyes surprisingly expressive, all things considered. “It wouldn’t be much, just a photoshoot or two for our album covers and song releases.” 

     “Promotional stuff,” Youngjae added, respectfully imploring with his eyes. 

     “We need good images to attract the Earthlings to our music,“ Yong Guk explained patiently, “and then---” 

     “Once they find themselves drawn in---” Youngjae interrupted, only to be interrupted in return. 

     “They’ll be compelled to release the frequencies of sound that we need to help power our planet,” Yong Guk finished. 

     “The company of humans who sponsor us would pay you for your services, of course,” Himchan added, a determined glint in his eye. “So what will it be?” 

     “Will you help us?” Zelo spoke up for the first time since his rushed arrival and I found myself internally enamored with his modestly shy demeanor, honestly more curious about him than their life-altering request. 

     “I have a couple questions of my own, actually. Is it alright if I ask before I make my final decision?” 

     “Yes, please, ask anything you want,” Himchan nodded, clearly taking the reigns away from Yong Guk. 

     Why wasn’t he the leader, again? 

     That’s beside the point. After deciding that the structure of this group was none of my concern, my eyes wandered toward Zelo and I let my curiosity take over. 

     “So, who is this one again?” I found myself asking. 

     “Zelo,” Yong Guk took the lead back, seeing as this seemed to be his area of expertise. “He’s our robot.” 

     “Wait, he’s the robot?” the emphasis on the word ‘he’ was not lost on them and I watched as said android’s smooth lips curved into a smile. 

 

     Dimples. 

 

     Pure, unadulterated, unadjusted dimples. 

     I thought I would die. Two words: Cuteness. Overload.

 

     “Yes,” Yong Guk again. 

     “And you made him?” 

     “Yes.” 

     “All alone?” 

     “Yes.” 

     “By yourself?” 

     “Yes.” 

     “Just for the hell of it?” my eyes abruptly switched from the cyborg to the leader and I could tell from the smile that slowly spread onto his face that my questions seemed more than a little amusing to him, but I couldn’t help it. 

     The thought of it all being a lie or company-made exaggeration completely left my mind and I found myself more intrigued and incredulous as the almost one-sided survey continued. 

     “No, of course not.” 

     Finally, a refusal. Maybe things would start making sense now. 

     “Investigating the music industry alone was hard work, so I built Zelo to help me out and make things easier,” he answered effortlessly, a look of proud reminiscence clouding his weary eyes. 

     ...okay, maybe not. Sense was on the other side of the planet lost in the middle of the Brazilian Rain Forest at that point, gone long before these boys entered my warehouse, but somehow that was okay. 

     I could deal with this kind of ridiculousness. 

     “Well then, I just have one more question and then we can take some sample pictures,” I announced with an almost tired sigh. “From there I can get a feel for what kind of photoshoots, concepts, and angles I might be taking of you all in the future.” 

     I watched their faces as a wave of understanding hit them at my thinly veiled decision. I would help them, they realized, and they soon lit up with shining eyes and excited smiles before realizing that I still had one more question to ask. Quickly, trying to hide their obvious enthusiasm, they all leaned forward in anticipation of my next question. 

     It really wasn’t that serious, or at least I didn’t think it was, but they acted as if the fate of the world rested on my next words. 

     ...and, if any of what they had told me in the last 20 or so minutes was true, it kind of did. 

     Just...you know, not MY world or anything... 

     ‘Oh god. I’ve been infected.’

     “Zelo, the robot that you built,” I began slowly once my mind was cleared of all unnecessary side-comments, my words cautious as I tried to hide behind carefully phrased sentences. 

     They nodded slowly, glancing between me and a very surprised looking robot in confusion, before bracing themselves for the worst. 

     My next few words were met with an unhealthy amount of surprise on their ends. 

     “Can I have one, too?” 

 

     ...and so it begins. 

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So...what did you think? 

I tried a different sort of writing style for once, one that's more or less along the lines of the way that I think (honest, sarcastic, straight-forward, abrasive-ish? idk, at least i tried, lol) so I'm kind of interested in what people will think of that and how I presented the boys. It is only a one-shot, and I'm not as familiar with them as I am with other groups (-cough, cough- DBSK, BIGBANG, etc. -cough, cough-) so I hope I didn't do too bad with this, especially since it's so short. That said, comments of all kinds are appreciated and encouraged (just as long as they aren't too malicious). So, until next time...

 

...Thanks & Stay Safe, 

DoMeSi [ - ] 

 

Posted September 8, 2012.