The sound of Minjae's na echoing in the café was like a lody in his ears. Minjae stood frozen for a second, his heart thudding against his chest.
It wasn't from nerves, but rather disbelief.
He was overwheld, knowing that everyone in the room was all here for him.
"Thank you all. I owe you a lot for coming." Minjae finally stepped forward, offering a slight bow, one that was filled with genuine gratitude.
"Oppa, you don't have to bow!" one fan said quickly, her hands waving a little. "You'll make us cry!"
Minjae let out a soft laugh, his expression was a mix of shyness and warmth. He straightened up, glancing around the cozy space again.
"This is… seriously crazy. I thought we were just getting coffee."
"That was the plan," Donghyun said, shalessly grinning as he sipped on a latte soone had handed him. "Surprise~"
Minjae shook his head in amusent, then turned back to the group. He felt that he should talk to the fans, knowing that they had made their way just to the café to et him.
"I… don't even know where to start. I didn't expect sothing like this. All I could say is that I'm really thankful right now. I hope you enjoy your ti today." Minjae smiled as he raised his hand into a fist, as if making a cheering gesture.
"Kyaaaa!"
"Did you see that? He did the cheering pose!"
"He's so cute, I can't—!"
"Oppa, we'll enjoy it as long as you're here!"
"Yes! Yes!
"We will surely enjoy it!"
The crowd answered in unison, followed by short laughters. A few fans even mimicked Minjae's fist gesture as if it was a team signal.
"We'll cheer for you forever!" soone shouted playfully, and the rest of the crowd chid in with a resounding.
"Fighting!"
Minjae couldn't help but laugh, genuinely entertained and touched at everyone's enthusiasm. He rubbed the back of his neck and said, "You guys are seriously the best. I didn't expect this much energy this early in the day."
"Only for you, Minjae-oppa!" a fan near the front declared boldly, earning so giggles from the people around her.
A small group of fans started handing out cupcakes decorated with tiny edible Minjae figurines and his initials in chocolate. One fan stepped forward with a small box and offered it with two hands.
"Minjae Oppa. This is a little sothing from our fan group. We pooled together to make you a scrapbook. It has ssages, photos, and even fan art that so of us created."
"Woah," Minjae took the box carefully, touched beyond words by it. He opened the lid and flipped through the first few pages. His eyes softened, and a small emotional smile tugged at the corners of his lips.
"This is… beautiful. Thank you so much."
"You always say you'll work hard, so this ti, we wanted to work hard for you," the fan replied with a bright smile, though her face was already red after seeing Minjae up close.
Minjae was handso. He looked even better because of the clothes that he was wearing. He looked like he didn't have any pores because of his smooth and flawless skin. He also slled good that even the people near him could agree to it.
"Minjae-Oppa… can we ask you a question?" Soone else raised their hand hesitantly.
"Of course," Minjae uttered in a soft voice as he gazed at the person.
"What's sothing you want to achieve this year? We want to know so we can support you even more!"
"Sothing that I want to achieve?" Minjae paused for a second, thinking of it. It took him a few seconds before he was able to answer.
"Honestly… I want to keep growing. Not just in my career, but as a person. I want to try more roles, work with good people, and most importantly… I want to make you all proud."
"You already do!" a fan called out.
"We will support you until the end!"
"We love you, Oppa!"
Minjae smiled again, a little more confidently this ti.
"Then I guess I'm off to a good start."
More cheers followed, and soone shouted, "Oppa! Can we do a group photo?!"
"Sure sure," Donghyun answered before Minjae could, already motioning to the staff who had quietly prepared a space near the big banner.
As they all gathered in, Minjae stood right in the center. He was surrounded by smiling faces. The people looked genuinely happy that they were able to get close to him. Soone even placed a soft flower crown on his head, earning laughs and "aww"s from the crowd.
The fans moved close, forming a semicircle around Minjae as he stood at the center. The banner "Welco, Minjae!" also hung just behind them, acting as the background of their picture
"Everyone, look this way!" one of the café staff called cheerily as they readied the cara.
Fans raised their mini banners and waved their tiny hand-drawn signs. A few playfully leaned in closer to Minjae, while others, who were clearly starstruck, simply smiled on the side.
"Three, two, one—say 'Fighting Minjae Oppa~!'"
"Fighting Minjae Oppa~!"
After the cara made a sound, people broke out into small laughter before they posed for another ti.
Minjae, who still wearing the flower crown on his head, made a playful peace sign. A few fans, who were staring at the back, giggled at how different Minjae looked compared to his polished image in campaigns and dramas.
They didn't know that Minjae could be this approachable and kind.
Another round of photos followed, until it went on for so ti.
So of the pictures were with small groups, with fans grouping themselves so they could take a closer picture with Minjae. At the end, Minjae decided to have a 1 on 1 picture with everyone.
Because of it, fans got even more excited. Still, they were respectful towards Minjae, keeping their boundaries. They didn't try to do anything, but just lean in slightly to be closer to Minjae for the picture.
Minjae appreciated it, knowing that there were really so crazy fans. He was also thankful since a lot handed him a small gift. The gifts varied to small hand-knitted keychains, small pouches, and letters sealed with stickers.
Everyone was really enthusiastic and supportive of one another.
After several pictures were taken, Minjae was able to settle down on the side. The fans understood that Minjae also needed so ti to rest, so they ordered first and talked among themselves.
It was also the fans' first ti eting one another, so there were a lot of things to talk about.
When Dnghyun saw that Minjae was finally alone, he walked up to him and gently patted his shoulder.
"Are you tired already?" He chuckled as he sat in front of minjae.
"Well, just a little hyung," Minjae uttered as he flashed a small smile. "Oh right , did the agency know about this?"
"Yup. I already inford your agency earlier," Donghyun said quietly as he gave Minjae a cold drink.
"So don't worry about any of this being a problem. They were okay with it, They said it's fine as long as you're happy and it doesn't interfere with schedules. They said it was also nice to interact with fans."
"I see," Minjae subtly nodded.
"Though, thanks, hyung." His voice was soft, but full of aning. "Really… thank you."
"Just enjoy this, alright? Monts like this are rare. Especially for soone who like you who's just starting." Donghyun gave him a small grin
Minjae nodded, slowly gazing back at the smiling fans who were now flipping through the scrapbook and taking photos of the food that they ordered in the cafe.
"I will. I definitely will."
A mont of silence passed between them before Minjae's smile wavered just slightly, his thoughts drifting to sothing.
In his last life, there were also tis when he would et his fans. However, since he was a bigshot, they were always big and were done in big concert halls. Because of that, he barely interacted with anyone, except those who were lucky enough or those who paid a lot.
Now, rembering this feeling, he realized that this was better. This one was more personal.
In here, he can act freely. He didn't need to prepare so formal speeches or performances just to make sure that everyone's money was worth.
The fans who were calling out his na were also not from behind barricades but from right beside him.
Minjae let out a small exhale. He had forgotten how good this felt.
Minjae leaned back slightly in his seat, allowing the coolness of the drink in his hands to calm his thoughts. The ice clinked softly against the sides of the cup as he brought it to his lips, letting the refreshing taste bring him back to the present.
Across the room, the fans were still surrounded by excitent.
A few of them were already comparing the gifts that they had brought for Minjae. So were even swapping contact info, already bonding over their shared love for Minjae.
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