When Lee Jinki returned to his dorm after his last class for the day, the first thing the 22 year old noticed was his miraculously empty laundry basket and that was enough of a sign to tell him that Kim Kibum had entered his room with the spare key he had passed to him before for emergency purposes. True enough, as he shifted his vision to look further into his room, Jinki saw Kibum sitting on his bed, looking very much at home, with a bright smile on his face.

“Hi hyung!” Kibum greeted with a wave and moved to sit on the edge of the bed, “Your clothes are drying outside. Don’t have to thank me for doing your chores for you. Take it as my way of saying thank you for all your help.”

“Just so you know, I wasn’t going to.” Returning a smile, Jinki dropped his bag at the bottom of his desk and plopped himself down onto the chair. “I am curious though, about why you’re so free today, because the last time I heard from you was almost 2 weeks ago when you called me and announced you got a job as a personal assistant… so I take it that you’ve been busy with your new job?”

“Busy is an understatement.” Kibum immediately replied, all ready to complain as he threw his hands up and groaned. “It’s been hell, hyung.”

“Why?” Jinki raised an eyebrow and joked, “Are you the PA to the president or something?”

“President, no.” Kibum rolled his eyes and sighed. “But an actor, yes.”

“Actor?” Jinki repeated to confirm that he had heard Kibum correctly. “As in a celebrity?”

Kibum nodded and then asked, “Have you heard of Choi Minho before?”

Jinki’s eyes instantly widened with recognition. “He’s all I hear the girls in my course talk about, or more like, gush about! I don’t know him, but I’ve heard of him, seen his photos, and that’s saying a lot since you know, I don’t pay attention to stuff like that. How on earth did you end up as his PA?”

“Hyung, if I knew I was, I’ll probably not even apply for the job.”

“Why? Is the work tough? Or is Choi Minho a demanding boss? So it’s true that celebrities are hard to handle?” There were too many questions surfacing in Jinki’s mind especially since this was something completely new to him. Let’s face it, it’s not every day you get to know someone who’s the personal assistant of a star.

Kibum paused, thinking to himself and reflecting on the two weeks he had been on the job for a moment, before he came to a conclusion, “Actually, I can’t believe I’m saying this but Minho’s not a bad boss, it’s his schedules that are the problem, it’s too hectic and that means I have to run around with him too… which explains why I disappeared for two weeks.”

“And I’m guessing the reason you’re free now is because he’s free?” Jinki could put two and two together, understanding that Kibum’s life practically revolved around his boss now.

“Yupp.” Kibum replied, coming across to Jinki as somewhat powerless in his position as a personal assistant. “I am still entitled to off days though… the job pays extremely well, and what’s more, I have a place to stay so I really can’t complain.”

“As long as you know what you’re doing…” Jinki looked at Kibum with concern.

“I do.” Kibum smiled and nodded, “What I still haven’t figured out is what I truly want to do in life so till then, I’ll stick with the job I have now.”

Thinking back on the day Kibum broke the news to him, Jinki let out a breath and shook his head. “I still can’t believe you quit school just like that… I don’t think I’ll ever have that kind of courage.”

“Well hyung, if it helps, I have the courage to quit school… but I have none left to face my parents.” Kibum bit on his lip nervously just thinking about coming clean to his parents.

Jinki scrunched up his features in an exaggerated horrified expression. “Your father will murder you.”

“He’ll skin me alive first.” Kibum gulped at the thought of his father’s reaction.

Jinki shivered. “What are you going to do?”

“Do I look like I know, Jinki hyung?” Kibum raised an eyebrow at Jinki and without waiting for an answer, shook his head and released a sigh as he glanced at the time on his watch. “Anyway, I don’t have the time to think. I have to run now… thanks again hyung, I’ll see you around?”

“Aren’t you off work?” Jinki stood up, almost pouting when he saw Kibum grab his backpack and walk towards the door. “I thought we would have dinner together.”

“Sorry hyung, only for half the day, Minho has an event to attend tonight so I’ll have to be with him as well.” Kibum explained as he gave Jinki a quick hug and then opened the door to leave. “Jinki hyung, try to make some friends besides me, it’ll do you good.”

“Aish, you punk! I have friends.” Jinki pushed Kibum on his shoulder and waved him away. “Get lost.”

Kibum laughed and flashed a peace sign. “I’ll call you soon to make sure you’re alive. And don’t forget to collect your clothes back!”

“Yeah yeah.” Jinki answered with a roll of his eyes and as the two friends shared a smile with each other in a way of saying goodbye, Kibum turned around, left the dorms and caught a cab to his next destination – Minho’s apartment.

On the ride towards Minho’s place, Kibum thought back on his conversation with Jinki and it struck him that he had actually come to Minho’s defence when Jinki asked if the actor was a difficult person to deal with. Although they never did stop going head to head with each other, Kibum had to admit that Minho wasn’t a bad boss. It took a couple of days for him to understand Minho’s likes and dislikes along with his work habits, and another week to get used to the job and settle down but with his capabilities particularly his ability to adapt well to the fast paced working environment, it was nothing Kibum couldn’t handle. This is also when Kibum had to be honest and confess that Minho actually played a part in making things easy for Kibum to manage.

Simply put, Minho wasn’t a difficult boss. His demands were simple, his needs and wants easy to satisfy; sure, he had things he was particular about like how he should never be disturbed when he was playing his PSP or how he detested sweet and creamy food (both of which Kibum could not understand) but that was only human and Kibum couldn’t find fault in that. Other than that, the actor rarely bothered Kibum unless entirely necessary and he gave Kibum the flexibility to do whatever he wanted when he didn’t need his assistance. In fact, Kibum even had to force Minho to give him errands to run because the actor was reluctant to depend on him during the first few days on the job. It took a “Stop being such a baby about it!” along with a “Are you worried that you’ll become less chauvinistic if I helped you out with your personal matters?” from Kibum to convince Minho to allow his newly assigned assistant to deal with his personal matters.

And as he watched Minho work from the side lines, it was clear to Kibum why the media had called his boss a promising actor. Because when Minho was at work, he was seriously at work. He was dedicated, committed and devoted to his job, and Kibum had to say, Minho was damn good at it as well. His efforts were obvious and it definitely paid off because even Kibum, the critic and cynical one, was convinced by his acting. Kibum could see the passion when Minho worked, not only when he was filming but also when he attended to other schedules like interviews, events and shows. As the days passed, Kibum couldn’t deny that he was thoroughly impressed by Minho. He would never tell Minho this though, because they still behaved the same around each other. Kibum never watched his manners when Minho was out to annoy him, making Kibum his personal source of entertainment especially during the long waiting times on set when he could get so bored. Kibum knew this because he had to experience those lengthy hours of waiting as well. He himself could get extremely bored and restless in the waiting room too that he would play along with Minho and bicker with him to no end, just to pass time, until they both felt like killing each other. Yet, their relationship worked perfectly like that. Outsiders would never understand, some of Minho’s castmates even giving Kibum the evil eye and constant looks of disapproval for his attitude towards his boss, but both Minho and Kibum had developed a mutual understanding that their ‘attacks’ weren’t personal (okay, maybe some of them were but definitely not all). It was just the way they rolled. Of course, they couldn’t constantly be bickering. There were occasions where they would sit down like the 21 year olds they were and chat about anything under the sun, getting to know a little more about each other, but then again, those times were rare and could be counted on one hand.

It was only two weeks’ worth of working together but Kibum felt that Minho and he had already found a rhythm that worked well for them. And as the cab pulled up to Minho’s apartment, Kibum decided that he could very well get used to this job of his. Kibum didn’t lie; it was indeed hell, having to go through Minho’s hectic schedules together with him, but come to think of it, Kibum knew no one could feel it any worse than Minho himself. And if Minho could get through his activities day after day, Kibum was in no position to complain or for that matter, quit. Besides, life was interesting being the personal assistant of a celebrity. If all else goes wrong, at least Kibum could consider the option of publishing a biography of some sort, exposing juicy stories of the entertainment industry. Of course, Kibum hasn’t seen much yet… perhaps seeing the inside of Minho’s apartment and how the actor lived was the only thing worth something now. His first visit had occurred when Minho had left his phone at his house and Kibum had to make a trip to get it for him. However, the first visit was rather rushed but at least Kibum scored a quick tour of Choi Minho’s apartment. Maybe this time round, he could get a little something more…

Arriving at the door to Minho's apartment earlier than the arranged time, Kibum pressed the doorbell, just for courtesy's sake, since he had already been informed of the code by Minho himself when he first visited the place. Yet, when he got no response, Kibum didn't have the patience to wait and he went ahead with entering the code to successfully unlock the door and let himself in.

“Minho!” Kibum did a quick scan of the area as he called out for his boss, at the same time, announcing his presence.

The house was silent. The living room was empty, and so was the dining area and kitchen so when he saw that the door to Minho's room was closed, Kibum instinctively knew he would find Minho inside. It would have probably been a good idea to knock before entering first though because then, Kibum wouldn't have opened the door to find Minho clad only in a white towel that hung loosely around his hips, his short cropped hair still dripping wet, and the water droplets running down his tan skin. Kibum froze, his hand gripping the door knob, his feet stuck at the door way, his mouth open unattractively, his brain ceasing to operate and his breath caught in his throat. If Kibum had seen how he looked now, he would have pointed a gun to his head and shoot himself.

Minho had raised an eyebrow at a statue-like Kibum, and looked down at himself, shrugging his shoulders showing that he was not at all bothered by the fact that he was standing practically in front of his personal assistant. After all, both Kibum and he were guys who had the same body parts. What’s more, he had already done many photo shoots that required him to reveal his upper body in front of strangers who he would only work with maybe once or twice in his career, not to forget the fact that the photos would ultimately be exposed to the eyes of the public, so it was understandable that he was indifferent to the situation.

As calm as can be, Minho cleared his throat and said, “Kibum, if you're done staring, could you please remind me what outfits I have worn previously for the events I attended in the last two weeks so I don't pick the same outfit to wear tonight?”

As Minho’s words registered in his mind, Kibum instantly snapped out of his reverie, clearing his own throat to speak before he regained his composure and returned to his normal self.

“Don't flatter yourself, Choi Minho, I wasn't staring. I was judging you, and here’s a little advice, you should probably start working harder at the gym because having abs to flaunt is a plus point in this industry.”

“Excuse me, I have abs.” Minho was honestly offended by Kibum’s statement.

Looking every bit unconvinced, Kibum corrected Minho’s retort. “You mean you had abs. Hate to break it to you boss, but they aren't that noticeable anymore.”

“What?” Minho looked down at his obviously visible toned stomach and felt his famous chocolate abs as declared by his fans. “You're lying. I have not lost my abs!”

Without warning, Minho walked towards Kibum, immediately reaching out to grab his personal assistant's hand and directed it to trace the outline of his abs. “See? Now can you feel it?”

With the feel of Minho’s toned muscles against his very fingertips, Kibum went into shock again but this time, he was quick to recover as he pulled his hand roughly out of Minho's grip and shouted, “I have no interest whatsoever in touching your body!”

Surprised at Kibum’s sudden outburst, Minho stared at him weirdly. “Okay okay, I get it. Don't need to scream like a violated girl.”

Shrugging to himself, Minho then turned around and stepped towards his walk in wardrobe. “Anyway Kibum, we don't have the luxury of time, help me quickly with choosing my outfit for tonight.”

Kibum huffed, taking in a couple of deep breaths to force his rapidly beating heart to slow down. Frankly, he couldn’t comprehend what had just happened for the last ten, fifteen minutes of his life. And indeed, he didn’t have the luxury of time to think about it because Minho was now calling for him.

“Kibum!”

“Alright alright, I'm coming!”

By the time he entered the walk in wardrobe, Minho had already worn his boxer briefs, the white towel now hanging around his neck, and was in the midst of pulling on a pair of black skinny chinos.

“Never pegged you as the type to be so open and comfortable with his body…” Kibum muttered as he averted his eyes to the fashionable clothes neatly displayed in the wardrobe.

“Sorry? Say that again.” After buttoning his pants, Minho looked up at Kibum and asked, unsure of what Kibum had said.  

“Nothing important.” Kibum shook his head and began sifting through the hangers of clothes in search of the perfect top for Minho. “How much attention do you want tonight?”

“Minimal please.”

“Alright.” Kibum’s fingers stopped at a light blue slim fit oxford shirt and took it out of the wardrobe, passing it straight to Minho. “This will do. Simple enough, and if you want, you could throw on a blazer.”

“No blazer tonight.” Throwing his towel aside, Minho ed the shirt and removed it from the hanger before putting it on and carefully buttoning it up again but purposely leaving the top two buttons undone.

Minho then turned towards the full length mirror and propped the collar up while he checked himself from head to toe. “How do I look?”

“Decent.” Kibum answered half-heartedly.

“Are you thinking about how I look better without clothes?”

Not expecting Minho to suddenly throw a question of that kind at him, Kibum choked on air. But Minho didn't know that (at least that was what Kibum hoped) so the personal assistant made it seem like he was pretending to gag instead. He even shot a look of disgust at Minho to make his act all the more convincing.

“Watch your words.” Kibum warned. “If I take it the wrong way, you might just be close to verbally ually harassing me.”

Contrary to Kibum’s serious demeanour, Minho chuckled, very much pleased with the fact that he had once again successfully pissed Kibum off.

“Alright, that’s enough rubbish for one day. We got to head to the salon first. Manager hyung should reach in 5 minutes.”

And with that, as Kibum followed Minho out of the room towards the main door, the personal assistant concluded that working under Minho wasn’t that bad… in fact, it was kinda fun and Kibum had to eat his words, because even if he knew he was applying for the job as Minho’s personal assistant, he would still have probably gone ahead with it.

Author's Note: surprise? heheh, cause i'm updating earlier than i thought i would! well, inspiration came like a slap across the face. i'm swarmed with assignments but avoiding reality and writing to relieve the stress. thoroughly enjoyed writing this chapter so i hope you enjoyed reading it as much as i did! plus you know, OT5's back, and minkey's reunited. all the feels. life is wonderful in the shinee world. hehe. anyway, thanks for reading! and thank you for all your lovely comments for the last chapter. keep them coming in~ till the next update, have a nice weekend lovelies! ♥