❛ 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐞. 𝗌𝗄𝗓 𝖺𝖽𝖽𝖾𝖽 𝗆𝖾𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋

❛ :: 𝖼𝗁𝖺𝗇'𝗌 𝗋𝗈𝗈𝗆 𝗌𝗎𝗋𝗉𝗋𝗂𝗌𝖾 𝗀𝗎𝖾𝗌𝗍

IT'S A KNOWN FACT that Bae Cheolmin has a distaste for solo posts. His online presence is the weakest amongst his group, making it a challenge to be a Charlie stan. This means that getting a live broadcast from him alone is rarer than witnessing a solar eclipse.

If Stays are lucky, he'll make an appearance in his members lives, although those are few and far between. Getting him in Chan's room? That seems practically inconceivable. Joking about kidnapping him has become a running gag among Stays and Chan since he's the only member who hasn't shown up yet.

Like in every other episode, Chan went about his usual routine, completely unaware of the special guest he was about to receive. Charlie had woken up feeling particularly cheerful and got the sudden impulse to connect with Stay — he had already set up for his own live when he saw that Chan's Room was in progress and thought it'd be a pleasant surprise for him if he joined.

The door was kicked open with such force that it almost splintered in half. Chan gave a startled yelp, his viewers equally shocked and confused. Then Charlie entered, remaining off-camera as he stood still like a statue in the doorway. His sudden appearance taking everyone by surprise.

"Why would you do that? You just nearly gave me a heart attack!" Chan held a hand to his heart, trying to regulate his breathing. On the chat, people speculated about who Chan was referring to. Some suspected it had been Lee Know, given that the kick was a very Lee Know move, while others added other names of those in their company.

Not one person suspected Charlie, so imagine their excitement when the familiar frame suddenly sauntered into the room, nonchalantly dragging a chair and planting himself in it as if his arrival was no big deal.

"Funny," he replied bluntly, getting himself all comfy before gesturing to the live. "Why are you gaping at me like a fish? Carry on as you were."

Chan starts spluttering, in a state of shock. "I didn't think you were staying..."

"Oh. Shall I leave?"

"No!" Chan bellowed, holding him down by the shoulder before he could even try getting up. "Do you know how huge of a deal this is? Of course you can't leave, this is a highly anticipated moment! I just wasn't expecting it."

Charlie let out a hearty chuckle as he patted Chan's arm. "Alright Wolf boy, settle down now. You don't want to give yourself a heart attack at your age, you know they can do a lot of damage."

"You're older than me!" Chan whined.

Charlie simply shrugged, an indifferent expression on his face. Chan sighed in exasperation, returning to his set up with a jolt of surprise.

"Whoa, looks like a ton of people just joined in," he exclaimed, quickly grabbing his phone and opening twitter. "You're trending- it feels like someone just spotted a mermaid the way people are reacting! This is really nerve-wracking..."

Charlie couldn't help but let out a self-satisfied smirk. "It's no surprise," he said coolly, "I'm a highly sought after individual."

Though he was confident, there was an undercurrent of anxiety that lingered within him. This was why Charlie preferred not to do lives by himself, feeling nervous and out of his depth. He had never considered himself particularly interesting, and he often doubted he would have anything worthwhile to say on the live. He knew how eagerly people anticipated his posts online, and it scared him that he might just let them down if things didn't go well.

The attention was a lot of pressure, and he found it a lot easier to handle when there was another member alongside him. They'd be able to carry the brunt of everything and he'd bounce off them, Chan knew this of course and quickly deterred from the topic upon sensing Charlie's rising anxieties. It had taken a lot for Charlie to do this, and the last thing he wanted was to scare him off.