"With the up and coming hit, the star of musical theater may find himself expanding to the big screen within the next year..."
"The reports of C&R's stock rising is only to be expected as the company expands to offer new services, as well as opening up to the possibility of offering a brand-new line of products for your feline friends..."
"Lololol has new DLC coming soon! Gather your forces now and achieve success with an all new armor set!"
Mirae Cheo, known simply as MC to her friends and family, let out a soft sigh as she stepped past the last screen, now all she had to do was board the train and ride it for an uncomfortable thirty minutes until she reached the new city. Moving on from living with her family had been a hard decision, but after graduation she couldn't find a job in her hometown. In the end the only job offer she received had come from two towns over, far from the home she knew and the family she loved. It would be hard, living on her own for the first time in her life. She was sure she wouldn't take care of herself like an adult should, even as she assured everyone she would. It was only rational, she was still in her early twenties, barely out of school, not fully ready to take on adulting quite yet.
"I am on my way~ just had to stop to pick up a new controller after class." MC stepped to the side as a blond made his way past her, talking quickly on the phone. "No I just grabbed some ramen, I didn't have time to cook this morning after the raid last night." He ignored her glance as he grabbed onto the railing to remain standing as the train began to move once again. Just one more stop and she would be in the city, and begin her new life.
MC leaned against the pole that she gripped in her hand, another sigh escaped her as she thought once again over her move. It would have to be a quick one, the job was due to start in two days which didn't spare much time to get accustomed to her new surroundings. Her things would come in a day, which meant really that she only had a single day to explore the city. It was daunting, but MC would have to make do until she had more free time in her schedule.
Her phone dinged, pulling her attention to her purse as she rummaged through it for the device. She narrowed her brows as she looked at the screen. Blackness only broken by lines of green numbers and text. She furrowed her brow, tapping the screen with her finger as the confusion built inside her head. She didn't have much downloaded on her phone, it was a brand new one after all, and she could think of no app that would open itself and look like that. At most she had a special calendar app and a few mindless games that she found the day before.
With one final tap, a loud buzzer sent her jumping in surprise. It wasn't her phone though, it was the signaling sound that the train had come to a full stop. The blonde, who was still on his phone, stepped past her quickly and disappeared into the crowd even before her feet touched the tiled floor outside of the train doors. She frowned at her phone as she weaved her way through the tightly packed bodies. The screen hadn't changed, even pressing the home button did nothing, it remained black with scrolling green numbers and text.
"What the..." She muttered as she waited for the traffic light to turn red so she could cross. Beside her, a woman with short brunette hair wearing a very sharp business suit complete with a pencil skirt was muttering softly to herself as she tapped away at her phone.
"...saving to the Zen folder..." MC quirked her brow at the woman's words but chose not to say anything as the white cross man flashed on the sign before her. She crossed the street quickly and glanced around herself, still tapping on her phone screen and hoping that something would change due to her efforts. Perhaps the phone was broken, after only having it for a short while the thought made her pout pitifully.
When her phone did change, it made her nearly jump out of her skin. There was no difference in the black and green background, but sitting before it was a single message.
Unknown:
...Hello...?
MC paused in her steps, her eyes locked on the message that had appeared on her phone. There was a simple looking text bar below it that showed her she could reply, but she wasn't sure what to say or who she was even talking to. She decided, after a long moment of debate, to reply to it in the best way to show her sheer confusion.
MC:
?
It didn't take long for a reply to come through, she was half expecting it to say something along the lines of 'oh sorry, wrong number' or for it to be an ad of some kind on a game that accidentally opened that was just simply slow loading. What she didn't expect was for the message to read out:
Unknown:
Can you see this?
Could she see it? She glanced around herself quickly. The street was packed with people coming and going, many with their eyes locked on their phones paying her no mind. There was a white haired delinquent looking guy standing across the street from her, she thought for a moment he could be messing with her. He did look her way for a moment before turning and saying something to a group of people who looked like his friends. The group laughed before moving on with him walking calmly along with them. The sight caused her to let out a soft sigh followed by an even softer huff as she reprimanded herself for suspecting someone based on looks alone.
Her bottom lip slipped between her teeth as she turned her attention back to the phone in her hands.
MC:
Who are you?
Unknown:
I'm sure you're surprised.
You don't know the half of it. She thought as she read the message. MC now leaned against the wall of a nearby shop as she tapped her thumbnail against her chin, who was this person?
Unknown:
It's not everyday you get a text from a stranger.
That was true at least. She shrugged her shoulders as she read over the message the stranger sent her. This definitely was no ad, but what was it? Did she download a weird messenger app and not remember it? It was a possibility with how hectic her life had become.
Unknown:
I'm a bit flustered myself.
I found a smartphone at the subway station,
but all it had on it was this messenger app.
She wasn't even sure how she got the app herself, so she could feel a bit of commonality with the stranger. However, that didn't change the fact that it was still a stranger messaging her, or the fact that no matter how she tried she couldn't seem to leave the chat room that now dominated the screen of her phone. As if sensing her unease at these facts, the stranger sent her rapid fire messages.
Unknown:
I want to find the owner,
but I don't see any contact info or call records...
I've been sending messages with this app but no reply...
All I see is and address and some important-looking numbers saved in notes.
I'd like to go there myself but I'm currently abroad...
She felt her brows pull tightly together over her narrowed eyes. What in the world did this have to do with her? And more importantly...
MC:
First... who are you?
That simple question unleashed another wave of rapid fire messages.
Unknown:
Me? Oh sorry. I didn't even introduce myself.
Unknown:
I'm just a student studying abroad. I'm Korean.
Unknown:
I could tell you my name, but it doesn't really matter.
Unknown:
You won't find me on search engines ^^.
Unknown:
But, anyways..
Unknown:
Can you help me find the owner of this phone?
Unknown:
I know you're surprised to have someone suddenly pop up and ask you a favor like this.
Unknown:
But still...
Unknown:
I'd appreciate it if you could help.
She frowned and glanced around herself once more, someone had to be messing with her. She could understand someone texting their own phone to get it back, that was normal. But, someone texting random strangers to get a phone to its owner then begging the strangers to help randomly... it was strange.