Entitled (Beomgyu X Reader)

4

You felt like you were doing a drug deal. You answered the phone and decided to meet the person you were included in a scandal with, next thing you know, you're ushered away to a meeting room in a private location and then they've slid you a piece of paper as if it's a briefcase filled with money. There's way too many zeroes on it for this request to be something logical. There's way too many zeroes for you to even think about declining whatever they were going to request.

That is, until you heard about what they were requesting. A contract was slid in front of you, and naturally, you read every word of it. Well it was natural to you, but to some people it wouldn't be.

The more you thought about this illogical offer, the more you thought you were being duped. This was a scam and if you signed this very official looking contract your soul would be extracted in a very painful method and you would be damned to eternal servitude. The papers said nothing of the sort but you could see right through this possible scam.

Except for the fact that in your limited research on the man, you'd happened to stumble across some pictures of the guys manager and you were sitting right across from him.

  So this was the real deal. You read every word of that contract as if missing one would kill you on the spot. If you didn't understand a word, you searched it up, unafraid of the man sitting across from you. You sat across from him for an uncomfortable amount of time as you reviewed the contract more than once to ensure that you weren't mistaken.

  Before you looked to the manager, you looked once again at that number. When you first saw it, you believed it to be a phone number until you looked further and realized that it couldn't possibly be a logical phone number.

  "I don't understand," you told the man in front of you, flipping through the contract once again.

  The manager seemed almost as confused as you were, even though he had been given all the details. You felt like you were speaking to a lawyer as he prattled off these conditions regarding the situation. He began by describing the situation you'd been caught up in and the two ways they'd chosen to address it. Afterwards, he delved into your responsibilities should you accept the monetary compensation. A certain number of outings with staged and unstaged paparazzi, getting to know the idol beyond what was easy enough to Google search in case the relationship was questioned, how much you would be allowed to speak out on it, the time limit that had been set. All of these factors would play into the situation and as the manager spoke about them, he seemed displeased with how convoluted it was, just as you were.

  But those numbers...

  You weren't poor by any means. That being said, you did live paycheque to paycheque. Your grandmother was in a long term care facility and it was not cheap to keep her there, especially living on the kind of pay you make. If you accepted this deal, you could have ignored working as a whole. Not that you would... but you could.

"Could I possibly have some time to think about this?" She asked, closing the contract, folding her hands politely on her lap.

"Of course. This isn't an easy decision. Feel free to consult those close to you, just ensure that they are trustworthy and will not let the truth slip out should you choose to accept this offer," Soobin replied professionally. He knew his words were robotic, as were his movements, but he couldn't bring himself to be anything else. He was on the job and as much as he wished to caution her against it, he was obligated to deliver the will of his boss.

Next thing you knew, you were leaving the private meeting spot, heading straight for the long term care facility where your grandmother was. You had no one else to seek guidance from. Your grandmother was the wisest woman you knew. She'd been through her fair share of life and she learned from it each time. When you were in elementary school, your bedtime stories would be the stories of her life. Usually they were so interesting that you'd keep yourself up through them and she'd have to delve into some fairy tale to actually lull you to sleep, but you enjoyed them nonetheless. You hoped that despite her memory issues, her wisdom still remained.

  She had a room to herself, albeit a small one. It had a window behind her bed and a small closet. There was a television in the corner and a dresser for her other belongings. Beside her bed, there was a chair for any visitors, though you were the only one who visited her.

  She seemed nervous when you entered and she sat up as straight as she could with the propriety of someone you were meeting for the first time. Each time it broke your heart to see this, though it was easier when you were expecting it.

  "Good afternoon," she greeted, giving you a polite smile. "May I ask who you are?"

  "My name is (Y/N). I'm your granddaughter," you told her.

  The thing that hurt the most was seeing her face contort in confusion as she tried to remember. Of course it would be shocking to her. Having no recollection of any family at all and then suddenly being told that you have a granddaughter would be jarring. You waited patiently and you could see her searching for any memory.

  For a while when this all began, you held out hope. Sometimes she would remember. It was like remembering a name on the tip of your tongue. Her eyes would brighten when she remembered and her smile would grow. Eventually there came a time where her eyes stopped glowing. A time where she couldn't recall you at all. But when a stranger is allowed into your room and they say they're related to you, you paste on a smile and pretend like you know them, and that's exactly what she did.

  "The locket around your neck," you told her, pointing to your own neck as a gesture.

  Her hands moved to her neck and her eyebrows creased. Of course she didn't remember she had a locket on. She pressed the button to pop it open and inside was a picture of you as a child, and then a more recent one. Every time you changed your appearance in a major way, like if you cut your hair or anything like that, you would have her nurses update the picture. You hoped it would serve as something to take a bit of the fear away. When there's a stranger in your home, of course you wouldn't be calm. You'd be nervous and scared.

  "I just need some advice," you told her. She was still suspicious, but she listened as you spoke. "I've been offered... a job. A job that is offering to pay me a very generous salary. But after I leave this job, my life may change drastically," you explained vaguely.

  "I see," she nodded.

  "Any reputation I had may be ruined after I take this job. But it is a very generous sum of money that they offer," you told her.

  "Just follow your heart. What is more important to you? Money or your future reputation?" She asked, trying her best to pass on her wisdom. She was always nice to strangers and in this scenario, you were no exception.

  The question was a good one. It was exactly what you were looking for. You sat in the chair for a long moment, contemplating what she had asked.

  If you took this job, you would be offered heavy criticism and your face would be pasted all over the internet for anyone to see. Eventually, you would be known as the girl who broke up with an idol. You would receive endless hate during and after the duration of this job and you weren't sure if it would ever end. The amount of jobs you could work at would be limited and going out in public would be difficult. While you had this job, your actual job would be affected negatively. People would either show up to see you and ask you about your alleged boyfriend, or they would show up to spew hateful comments at you. You'd seen the power of people on the internet. They might even find out about where your grandmother lived and show up around her.

  Your savings had almost run out and your hours at the hotel were going to be cut. You weren't sure if you'd be able to pick up another part time job with your face being tied to controversy. After all, you were being seen as the one who had a one night stand with someone at your workplace. If you couldn't make up the money to keep your grandmother in the long term care facility, she would be back at home with you and you wouldn't have time for a job at all. Whilst the denial of the controversy would allow it to fade away with time, there were people who wouldn't believe a word that the agency says.

  It was a difficult decision. You weren't sure how long you'd sat in that chair, but when you stood up, your movement startled your grandmother.

  "Thank you for the advice. I'll be leaving now," you told her, bowing your head politely before leaving. You stuck around outside the door after you closed it and you listened.

  "Did I give that young lady advice?" She murmured to herself.

  You felt choked up as you left the facility, making your way back home to spend a sleepless night dwelling on your decision.