Chapter 1:

Shivering in the cold weather, Yuri rubbed her hands over her arms, pulling her jacket closer to her body. Today was a lot colder than it normally was, and she had been unable to listen to the weather forecast last night. Well, whether she did or she did not hardly made a difference, because her job did not exactly welcome too many articles of clothing, and some clients were picky, but Yuri always managed to charm them enough. She was beautiful, a fact no one dare challenge, but she was stuck. And this was all she's ever known.

"Are you all right?" a youthful voice piped.

She turned to the source of the voice and came face to face with a young man in a comfortable outfit, brown hair falling softly over his eyes. There was a steaming cup of coffee in his hands, which he offered to her.

"You seem cold," he said. "Would you like some? My brother decided to forgo drinking it today for some reason, and his poor secretary had no one else to give it to. I'm sorry, do you drink coffee?"

"Y-yes," she stuttered, still shocked that he'd talk to her and actually offer her something in the middle of such a busy street. He seemed busy as well, with his university jacket hoodie pulled over his head and his backpack hanging neatly off his back. "It's all right, don't worry about me."

"But I think I should," he insisted. "Don't worry, this coffee has nothing in it, but I'm just worried about you. It's too cold today, and you don't seem to be dressed for the weather."

Not dressed for the weather was quite a gross understatement, as her dress was short, revealing her long creamy legs, and her feet were clad in flimsy heels, alluring, but not exactly safe in this sort of weather. Her coat wasn't quite thick as well, and neither was it long. Suffice to say, it wasn't any sane person would be wearing at the brink of winter.

Yuri hesitated, but he urged her gently, and she reluctantly took it. She took a sip under his eager gaze, and he asked, "Better?"

She nodded. "Thank you."

"No problem, though I do hope you'll dress for the weather better," he commented. "It's not good for a lovely lady like you to be freezing in the weather. My friend told me that boots were a good alternative to help keep yourself warm when you want to wear shorts or skirts in times like these. Please take care of yourself better, uh..."

"Yuri, Kwon Yuri," she provided.

"Ms. Kwon Yuri," he repeated with a nod, as if committing her name to memory, as he extended his hand to shake hers. "Jung Taemin. Pleasure to meet you, Ms. Kwon-"

"-Yuri, please," she offered, feeling overwhelmed by the knowledge of who this young man was.

"Very well, Ms. Yuri," he said. "Would you like a lift? My brother will be by in a short while, is there somewhere you'd like to go? Maybe we can help."

"Oh, no, you've helped enough-"

A sleek, black car pulled up beside them, hazard lights blinking as one of the windows rolled down. A man peered out of the window, clad in a black suit.

"Sorry it took a while, kiddo," he said, then he noticed Yuri, "Good afternoon. Will you be joining us?"

"Will you?" Taemin asked, hand on one door, ready to open it for her.

She shook her head. "I have somewhere to go. I'll just wait here for the bus."

"I insist," Taemin said. "Right, Yunho-hyung?"

His brother simply chuckled, and motioned for them to enter the car. "Come on, we're going to be obstructing traffic soon even if this is a legal loading and unloading point."

"Come on," Taemin said, opening the door to the back and waiting for Yuri to get in safely before closing it behind her.

"Where to, Miss Kwon?" Yunho asked, beaming at her through the mirror at the back.

She bashfully gave him an address, then thanked them.

"Take care, Miss Yuri!" Taemin greeted when she was dropped off. "Dress appropriately for the weather, understand?" he reminded with a tinkling of laughter.

She laughed, but nodded anyway. She watched as the car drove away until she removed the smile from her face and began to trudge to her destination.

Kwon Yuri did not believe in helpful people with genuine intentions, but that smiled that was permanently plastered onto Taemin's face throughout the journey, and Yunho's chivalrous air made her falter for a moment. That is, until she reached her destination.

In this place, as her limbs tangled with another, a man who had called for her services, the image of the brothers lingered at the back of her mind. It was either that they were an exception or they were masquerading, for she knew no man who wanted something more from a woman other than her body. And so far, no one has resisted the beauty that is Kwon Yuri.

~°~

"I worry," Taemin said. "for Yuri. Do you think she will be alright, Hyung?"

"She seems like an independent woman, Taemin. You gotta trust that she can do things on her own; people aren't helpless, but it's always nice to give a helping hand every now and then," he said as he slid the car into their garage. "Though I would like to remind you to be careful with the friends you pick. Not everyone's nice inside and out."

"I know, Hyung. Don't worry, I know," he assured his brother.

~°~

Taemin jogged to his university as Yunho had been unable to drop him off, and his other brother, Siwon, was the one who had sent him to school. An emergency at the company deprived the brothers of their time together, and now, he was running late.

"You made it!" Sungjong exclaimed, beaming at his friend as he took a seat breathlessly beside his friend.

"Yeah," he replied, trying to catch his breath. "I really need to learn how to drive."

"Just take the bus," Sungjong said with a brow arched.

Taemin shook his head. "If my Dad finds out, he'd kill me."

"Why?"

Taemin looked at his friend with a curious stare.

"Oh, right. But hardly anyone recognizes you, Tae. It's only your brothers that are superstar businessmen like your Dad," Sungjong offered.

Taemin laughed along with his friend.

"Do you want to come over to the company later, 'Jong?" Taemin offered as they walked out of their last class and headed to the library.

"Your Dad's office, Yunho-hyung's or Siwon-hyung's?" he asked.

"Yunho-hyung," Taemin replied with a smug grin on his face.

Taemin's Dad was quite a busy person. Although they were always welcome in his office, the two of them pretty much spent more time staring at papers than interacting with Taemin's father, but on weekends, the man was as free as a bird for his family. Yunho was the brother that always welcomed them with open arms, making them participate in any of the activities he had at hand, claiming their presence added vitality to the project, putting in fresh input that only 'youth' had, something the two always raised their brows at. Siwon, on the other hand, was worse than their father. He was a workaholic and a perfectionist. The two spent their time conscious of their smallest movements lest they disrupt something, and cause the explosion of ‘Mt. Siwon’.

"He's picking you up?"

Taemin shook his head. "Ailee-noona is going, she asked to meet her at her café."

"She is? Nice," Sungjong commented. Ailee was Yunho's girlfriend, and the two really liked her; she shared this playful atmosphere with them, but there was a sense of 'work is work', and they always get something done in a fun way when she was around.

After checking out the books they needed for the moment, the two headed to Ailee's café, a quaint little place in the middle of the bustling city. How she managed to do that, neither knew, but business was good despite quiet atmosphere within.

"One hot chocolate and one coffee please," Taemin ordered on reflex.

"Coming right up," Ailee replied with a wink, shocking the two. She usually wasn't behind the coffee machines...

"What are you gawking at?" Victoria asked with a tinkle of laughter in her voice. She had a tray in her hands.

"You've changed shifts?" Sungjong asked.

"Nope," she replied, slipping to her place behind the counter. "Would you like that mixed?"

"As always, please."

"Good. Ailee, will you be heading out with these rowdy kids?"

"Yes, Victoria. Geng and Mi promised to be here in five minutes, until then, I'm sticking around," she replied as she mixed their order with deft hands.

"They're not bringing Henry?" she asked, receiving Taemin's payment.

"Didn't say."

"We're here," Hangeng announced as the door's bell tinkled the arrival of the two boys.

"Good. Time to go," Ailee sang as she finished their order. "I leave it to you?"

"Yes, now scurry off before your boyfriend gets worried you kidnapped his beloved brother," Zhoumi replied, getting into work mode.

"Thanks," she said, before slipping into the backroom to change. Victoria slid the two their order.

"Business is good?" Sungjong offered as they sipped their drink. "This is good."

"As always," Victoria provided. "It's quiet but it's good. It's always good to be just like this.”

Taemin nodded. "Will you be coming as well?" he asked.

She shook her head. "Your brother has some things he'd like for us to do here, and Yoochun's dropping by later to make sure nothing goes wrong."

"Just like Hyung," Taemin replied with a shake of his head. "I just hope Kyuhyun-hyung isn't coming over to bother Changmin-hyung."

"I hope so too unless you want disaster date to film it," Sungjong added, making a face. They simply adored Changmin as a hyung, but dreaded Kyuhyun. Even with five years between them, the latter always managed to act younger, much to a lot of people's dismay.

The sound of the bell rang again, and Hangeng greeted the newcomer cheerfully.

"I'd like a cup of hot choco-banana, please," she asked. Taemin recognized the voice, and sure enough when he turned to look, it was Yuri.

"Miss Yuri!" he called, and waved at her.

She bashfully waved back, and a smile grew on Victoria’s lips. “Who is she?”

“She must be the girl you met yesterday, isn’t she?” Sungjong asked.

Taemin nodded. “Excuse me for a bit.”

Yuri seemed healthier today, perhaps because of the warmer weather. She had a smile on her face as she greeted Taemin, and they seemed like two familiar acquaintances meeting again after quite some time unlike the reality that they had simply met the day before.

Sungjong watched his best friend converse with Yuri. The woman seemed as youthful as Taemin now, but just a while ago, she looked like she had the world on her shoulders. Soon, he saw Taemin typing something onto her phone and a quick good-bye as Ailee called them.

She waved at Taemin, then reluctantly retracted her hand again.

"Captured?" Victoria offered, giving their customer a warm smile to boot.

"Ah, no, I..." she stuttered.

Victoria chuckled. "Taemin has that effect on people, just like his brothers. He takes good care of his friends," she assured her before going off to serve newly arrived customers.

Friends. Somehow, the word used to describe a boy sounded foreign to Yuri's ears, and now that she was alone, she felt like a monster standing beside an angel.