"Hello," Taemin said with a bright smile on his face.

 

"Hey," Laura said with much less enthusiasm than Taemin had an a much more dull smile.  

 

"Oh Laura you're never gonna believe what happened in practice today!  We were running the dance when Onew-"

 

Laura had tuned out; something she had never done.  Taemin told a long story about practice, but all Laura got from it was that Onew messed up the dance and Minho may have broken the door to their practice room.  She always listened very closely to Taemin's words, but her mind was just stretched a bit too thin to pay attention properly.  

 

"Isn't that hilarious," Taemin finished with a smile on his face.  

 

No answer. 

 

"Laura?"

 

"Oh, yeah.  Sorry Tae, that is hilarious", she tried to say with complete sincerity, but she was never good at faking or hiding emotions.  

 

"Laura, are you okay?  Answer me honestly, alright?"

 

"I'm just a bit stressed; that's all."

 

"I asked you to tell me honestly, we both know there's more than just stress going on." 

 

Laura felt tears making their way into her eyes and down her cheeks before she even got the chance to wipe them off.  She had only cried in front of Taemin before once; this time, it was a lot worse.  She was sobbing and couldn't bring herself to speak; she just sat there crying, with Taemin looking at her threw the phone, wishing he could wipe her tears himself. 

 

"Laura, it's okay.  Calm down and tell me what's going on," Taemin said with concern evident in his voice.  He hated seeing her upset.  She finally calmed down enough to explain her situation, it really was stress, but because of many different things.  It was because of her niece, her job, her family, her being alone, it all played a part. 

 

"I really miss you," Laura managed to say threw the tears, "I wish you were here, with me, but I know you can't cause of your schedule.  I'm sorry I'm being so emotional, I just really need somebody right now and that somebody is you...."

 

"I'm sorry, Laura.  You know how hard it is with my schedule; I try to get out of it, but I can't.  I'm so sorry."  

 

"It's not your fault Tae, I understand."

 

The two said their goodbyes and Laura quickly fell asleep, feeling exhausted from all the crying she had done. 

 

~~~~

 

It was two days later and she heard a knock on the door; she was shocked because not many people visit her.  She opened the door and when she did, she saw Onew, Key, and Jonghyun.

 

"Hello, Laura," Jonghyun greeted her with a bright smile.  "Come with us."

 

Jonghyun grabbed her hand, pulled her out of her house and into the car they had driven in.  She got in the car and Minho was in the drivers seat. 

 

"Where are we going, and where is Taemin," Laura asked while Key forcefully buckled her in.  

 

"Just relax, you'll see soon," Key assured her.

 

"You know kidnapping is illegal right?"

 

"Yes, but you aren't protesting, so it's technically not kidnapping."

 

"You're such a smart ."

 

"I could say the same for you."

 

Laura decided it was better to not bicker with Key and just relax.  They drove for a while before stopping near a second hand shop.  Laura and the 4 boys got out of the car and walked towards the entrance; as soon as she walked through the door she saw Taemin, standing there with a teddy bear and flowers.  

 

"These are for you," Taemin said to Laura as he walked towards her.  "After some begging, I got the day off of practice and decided to make you feel better; or try." 

 

"Thank you so much," Laura said while hugging Taemin, "but why are we at a second hand shop?"

 

"Because, I'm here to get you a doll."

 

Taemin knew how much Laura loved old dolls; he knew it would cheer her up.  The 5 boys and girl walked through the shop, looking at random items, until they found the dolls.  It took Laura a while to find out which one she wanted, but once she did, she was very happy with it. 

 

"I'm getting this one," she said while showing it to Taemin.

 

"It's probably haunted you know; old dolls usually are," Key said while making ghost noises and wiggling his finger. 

 

"You're so obnoxious, leave them alone," Onew said while grabbing Key's arm and dragging him off.

 

"Ignore him," Taemin said with a big smile on his face.  He pulled Laura in and kissed the top of her head. 

 

"You're doll is gorgeous; just like you."