I heard the hotel's chaos as the movie's cast and crew moved in, taking up much of the space. But apparently it didn't cost anything since the hotel was sponsoring the movie, and we'd also be using it for the shoot.

I didn't even take the time to book a hotel room. I went straight to the room number I'd been texted, cat and all, like I was being pulled towards my destination. Nobody seemed to even see me. I'd slipped under the radar, the press all hyperexcited to see Liam Hemsworth and Shay Mitchell arrive that they never even realized I wasn't with them. Because I'd come early, already there. I'd snuck in with a group of tourists.

I knocked on the door, wondering if the other members would realize I was there. I hoped not.

The door opened, and I looked up.

"Niuwang... you look like Hell."

"You're so romantic," I scoffed, rolling my eyes. "At least I've showered recently. Over the past few months, you should be glad of that."

He wrinkled his nose. "That's gross."

I sighed, feeling exhausted. "You're telling me. Now are you going to let me in, or do you have a girl hidden in there?"

"How could you say such a thing?" he laughed, grabbing the cat carrier from my hands. "KyuMin, I don't think your mother trusts me."

"I trust you. By the way, when the cab arrived, he said he'd already been paid. You wouldn't happen to know..." the guilty expression on his face said it all. "Mimi! You don't have to pay for me!" But I couldn't deny that it made me feel warm and fuzzy. 

"Just trying to help," he said, trying to look cool, but then he tripped over the edge of the bedspread. I laughed, and he straightened up, embarrassed.

I suddenly felt really tired, and he looked up, concerned. He opened his arms, waiting. "Come here. Now."

I obliged, folding myself into him. Instantly, I felt my whole body relax. I hadn't even realized it'd been so tense.

He my hair, even though it was so much shorter than it had been the last time I'd seen him. He didn't even seem to notice. "There. Is that better?"

I wrapped my arms around his stomach, burying my face in his shoulder, taking him in, feeling all of the muscles I'd spent so much work on getting dissolve in moments, in that embrace. "I stole your blanket."

He laughed. And then we were both laughing, and I was pushing away from him and sitting down on the corner of his bed, kicking off my shoes. He sat down next to me, and I told him about filming the movie, the climbing wall, first meeting Liam, and confessing that there might have been a flutter there, but it quickly evolved into an obsession with poking him with my tail when I wanted to . I told him how much better it was this time, how I was tired all the time, but never really felt tired, because I never gave myself the chance to relax. How every day was exciting, and how amazing my character was, and how much I loved singing with Liyin and BoA.

And Zhou Mi told me about the transfer back to China, about Henry trying to drive and getting them lost in the red light district, and how Manager Kim disappeared for a while, and then declared that he was never, ever, ever going to let Henry drive again. He told me about songs and phone calls, and about getting an offer to be in another drama, that he was thinking of accepting. He told me about his new favorite fashion lines, and visiting his family, and how I should go and see them, now that I was back in China. 

"The clothes, or your family?" I asked, my eyes drooping. Not that I wasn't interested- I was hanging on his every word- but I was just so tired. Somehow over the hour, I'd ended up in his arms again, my feet twisted in the blanket.

"Both," he laughed. "Maybe you should go to sleep."

"Mmmmmph..." I grumbled, holding onto his shirt.

"Not going to leave?"

"I forgot to check out a room," I admitted. Next to me, I felt a furry lump brush against me. I patted it, thinking it to be my cat, but its hair was curly. Ni Qiu.

Admirably, the cat and dog seemed to be getting along well. KyuMin stayed up on top of a table or a bed, glaring down at Ni Qiu, who generally stayed on the floor. 

"How can I leave? There's a puppy," I joked, picking up Ni Qiu. 

"Excuses, excuses."

"Gongju's prettier."

He rolled his eyes. "You and Kangin's dog..."

"Not Choco, though. Choco's a fluffy rat."

"I'm going to tell Eunhyuk you said that."

"Fine. I don't work there anymore. What's he going to do? Fire me?"

He laughed, then reached over to the lamp and turned the lights off. Generally, I don't like the dark. Without light, I can't see, so my ears go on hypersensitive, picking up the slightest creaking in the floor and interpreting it as some mass murderer in the room. Not the case, this time. The darkness enveloped me like a shield, and I sank into the arms that were holding me, falling asleep with a smile on my face.

 "Where were you last night?" Mei Jong asked, a little bit of congee on the edge of her lips.

I smiled down at the script, pretending I didn't hear her, so she continued. "Because we were going to go work out together, but when we asked down at the desk, they said you never checked out a hotel room. But then you were eating breakfast with us, so..."

I smiled to myself, mouthing the words of the script to try to get them into my head.

"Why do you keep smiling like that? You weren't--?!"

"Queen Be! Do you have your lines well enough?" the director called, getting my attention. I was back to my dirty self, even more so than usual, since we were at the earlier part of the movie, when Lawrence and Andrea first wake up to find themselves in one of the lower parts of Hong Kong, realizing they'd been captured by the Zodiac, of whom Rat was the leader.

"Yes, sir! I'm ready to film!" I replied, jumping to my feet.

He seemed surprised. "You're awfully energetic today, Queen Be."

I laughed. "Aren't I usually?"

He shrugged, motioning me over to the part of the room I'd be starting in. I walked over, then looked back at the director. "Hey, can I be the one to tie Liam to the post?"

"That's !" Xun Lin yelled in Chinese, making the others who understood the language laugh, while our main director and the main characters didn't understand. I just winked at him.

I tied Liam's hands tightly, trying not to scratch his skin with my long fingernails. "I dare you to try to get out of this. We used to tie our friend James to the stairway and challenge him to get out. Of course, he got out every time, but we did learn some pretty fun knots."

I stood up, looking down at him. "There. Now I'm in character."

"You're enjoying this too much."

"Of course I am. Want to take a picture? It's going up on Twitter."

Lawrence slowly opened his eyes, wondering who had hit him over the head. It hurt, and hurt even more to turn to try and see if they'd got Andrea, too. They had. She was starting to stir, too, opening her eyes and looking up at him with panic.

Suddenly someone grabbed his chin, and he found himself looking at a short, dirty blonde girl, not Asian at all. She was young, younger than him. She couldn't have been more than twenty. She had his chin in her hand, and was tilting his head back and forth, but he couldn't stop her, with his hands bound tightly behind his back. She had huge eyes, perpetually tilted up at the corners, like she was planning something nefarious.

She grinned, then shouted something in what sounded like Chinese to a man behind her. The man, he could see as he came closer, was huge, a t-shirt stretched tightly over his large belly, skin hanging from his neck in flaps. He walked over, picking up Andrea. She squealed, trying to hit him, but he didn't even seem to notice. She tried to shout a spell at him, but it dissipated at her fingertips.

"What are you doing... with Andrea?" Lawrence finally pushed through his throat, and the blonde girl looked back at him with interest. She said something to the big man in Chinese again, and he put Andrea back down. She leaned over to look at Lawrence, smiling.

"So you're the Collector, huh?" she retorted in perfect American English. "Looks like they tried to make your looks compensate for a lack of ability."

"Where are we? Who are you?" he asked, demanding answers. She straightened up, and for the first time, he saw the pink-gray tail wiggling behind her. It made him want to vomit.

"The name's Rat."

"Because of the tail?"

"No. The tail's just for effect. It's short for 'street rat'."

"What kind of name is that?"

She grinned at him. "The only name you need to know. You're our prisoner, and you're going to help us find the Crystals. Since you're apparently the Collector."

"Our? Who's 'our'? Lawrence asked suspiciously, trying to struggle against his bonds, but they were tied tightly.

"The Zodiac. Right now me, Boar, and Snake are the only ones here, but Rabbit's coming back from scouting duties soon. So you might as well get comfy."

"What are you, some kind of Chinese spirit creatures or something?" Andrea squeaked, shying away from the Chinese man Rat had pointed out to be "Boar".

Rat looked at Andrea coldly. "No. We're just people. Just like you happen to be a person. You just manage to have weak powers. But you at them." 

"You don't even--" Andrea began, but Rat poked her with her tail, looking back at Lawrence.

"Welcome to Hong Kong, Collector. We have your friend. Josh, right? He's our prisoner, too. So what do you say? You want to help us, or not?"

"Someone take that tail away from her," Shay demanded, standing across the room from me. "She's enjoying it way too much."

"What? I think it's cute," I remarked, pulling it up from behind me and wiggling it in her direction. She looked like she was about to gag.

"That is not cute. That's gross."

"Well, considering you're the one that gets thrown over Xun Lin's shoulder, I don't think you have reason to complain."

"Queen Be, come over here and untie Liam. No one knows what the hell you did," one of the staff called to me, and I bounded over to him, grinning. "Aw, come on, Liam. Sucha big movie star, and you can't get out of a simple knot like that one? James was out in a couple minutes."

"Most people don't spent their childhood tying their best friends to posts."

"Why not? It's real-world experience. Now hold still." I worked under the knot with my fingernails, pulling it apart strand by strand. "There. You're free. But only until we move on to the next location.

"So what's your real name?" Andrea asked me, ducking under a bar sign. I grinned, not even looking at her. 

"Rat."

"Seriously."

"Seriously. It's Rat. Unlike the other members, I don't have another name. I woke up in a hospital bed in Hong Kong, the doctors telling me that both of my parents died in a car accident, and that I had survived with minimal brain damage. But I lost all of my memory. No living relatives stepping up to claim me, they were going to put me in one of those awful orphanages and leave me to rot. I wasn't about to do that, so I ran away. I've been living in the streets ever since."

"That's so sad..." Andrea crooned, like she was about to cry, almost careening into a garbage can, had Snake not stopped her. 

"It's not so bad. Once I met the other zodiac members, I had a family. Lao Ban helped us find each other. We run this town."

"Why the Zodiac, though?"

"Why not? I was a street rat. Boar was a big man who ate too much, and got kicked out of his house by his older brothers. Rabbit came here all the way from Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam, escaping a family that abused and neglected him, then suddenly were desperate to find him when he ran away. We all have a story. Our new names of animals in the Zodiac gave us a new identity. A new life."

Lawrence turned to look at Boar. "So why's she in charge?"

Boar didn't say anything. I just laughed. "None of them speak English but me. So unless you know Japanese, Chinese, and Korean, good luck. We come from all over Asia. Which is where we're going. But we're going to need some money to get some food."

"Can't you just use magic?"

I laughed. "Because that's not obvious at all. We're better off working. Small jobs shopkeepers need done, but don't ask questions for. You live here long enough, you learn."

The fish market, tossing huge tuna to Andrea, who almost dropped them, too afraid of their big eyes. Walking through the streets, saving a young girl from getting attacked by a gang. Getting paid by a gang to clear out one of their haunts, watching Lawrence look at Monkey in awe as she swung herself across roofs and into windows, coming out with stolen canned goods. I laughed, watching those Americans, how easily amazed they were.

Meeting Dragon in a noodle shop, telling her about having the Collector prisoner, how Lao Ban was going to be so proud of us. How we'd be heading to Korea soon, to meet Rooster, Horse and Ox. 

"Why don't you just get steady jobs?" Lawrence asked, wiping fish guts off of his shirt. Rabbit and I looked at each other and laughed. "What kind of employer wants to hire a bunch of homeless kids with no government records? It doesn't matter if we only stole because we needed food. They don't care. They don't hire thieves, simple as that."

"We filmed an action scene today," I replied to Zhou Mi's question of why I smelled like gunpowder. I fell backwards onto the bed, feeling wide awake still. We went to a bazillion places today, then got 'attacked' by a bunch of people in costumes.

He sat next to me and handed me a book. "Will reading this help you feel better?"

I looked at the cover, a compilation of poems by Robert Frost. "You want to hear it?"

He sat down next to me, stretching out. I tossed one leg over his and opened the book, smiling. "Alright, the most famous poem ever. 'The Road Less Traveled'..."

"Actually, one of us was able to forge his way into school. Got his flight license in South Korea. We sneak in and act as his 'flight attendants' if we want to go somewhere. Behold, Rooster's plane, 'The Flying Chicken".

Lawrence looked at me like I was nuts. I rolled my eyes, explaining, "he gives rides to people who have the money to fly, but don't want anyone asking questions. So we sneak on board." I waved to the pilot, who waved back, ushering us up. He couldn't have been past twenty-five years old.

"And you're the leader?" Andrea asked.

"For the last time, YES. I'm the leader. It just happened that way. And Lao Ban trusted me the most. He's like our father. Without him, we'd be nothing. We would have never come together."

Andrea scowled. "do you ever wonder if maybe he's just using you?"

I gestured to her wrists, and her cuffs started glowing, reminding her that they were still there. "Say something like that about Lao Ban again, and you're never getting out of those."

Suddenly, there was a clamor behind us, and dark shapes were plowing through the airspace, coming towards us, knocking people out of their way.

I felt my eyes widen, and Dragon, Rabbit, Tiger, Snake and Boar all joined me in a line, in front of Lawrence and Andrea. "Get to the plane," I demanded of the two Americans. "Get to the plane, NOW."

Next to me, I saw Dragon's muscles tighten, ready for the attack. "Tiger, Rabbit, go with them, Snake, Dragon, Boar and I will fend them off."

They didn't question it, just grabbed Lawrence by the arm and pulled him away, towards the Flying Chicken.

"I have to go to Beijing now," I said to Zhou Mi, packing up my bags. I hated those words. We would be filming the end of the movie soon, where Rat's charm comes to an end. But I didn't want to leave Hong Kong. Had it really been over a month? Had it really gone from August to November in such little time? 

"You're not going to visit my parents?"

"Maybe when I come back... whenever that is." I straightened up, impatiently blowing my bangs out of my face. "Unless you're coming along."

He paused for a moment, thinking. "I'm sorry... I can't."

I tried not to look disappointed. "A lot of the filming takes place in Beijing. And then we go to Seoul to finish up. But you aren't going to Seoul... are you?"

He shook his head. "I'm going back to Wuhan. To visit my family. I wish you could come."

They didn't like me. I know they didn't. They never got the chance to know me, and they didn't like me. They didn't see how much I adored their only son, yet they didn't like me. But I wanted them to. It shouldn't have mattered, but I wanted them to approve of me. "I wish I could, too."

I reached up, to graze my fingers over his cheek. "It'll be a while, Mimi. Until I come back. Just... stay okay, alright? Take care of Henry. And drink lots of tea, for your voice. Because, you know..."

He leaned down to kiss me, and I forgot all of what I was saying. My phone buzzed on the lamp table, but I didn't even hear it. I wrapped my arms around his neck, giggling when he lifted me into the air, setting me back down.

I looked up at him, cheeks pink. "I... I'd better leave..."

"What? Why? DId I do something wrong?"

I kissed him, just a light graze over the lips. "No. Because if I stay much longer, I'll never leave. And, you know, I have a career in acting to worry about." I kissed him again, but longer, wanting to take it into my memory. I pulled away, still feeling giddy. "I love you, Mimi."

He embraced me, smiling against my hair. "I love you, too, Niuwang."

 I sat down on a bench in the airport, still stuck in my memories. Bodyguards stood by, keeping fangirls and boys from getting too close to us. Honestly, in the United States I'd barely worried about being overwhelmed by fans at all-- I had Liam for that-- but in Japan, and again, in Hong Kong, I found myself as the one that was frequently overwhelmed. Shay and Liam were almost ignored, while I waded through fans, trying to reach the gate, like I was walking through a rice field. 

Suddenly, I wasn't very eager to go to Beijing. I didn't feel like it. I knew Zhou Mi was on a plane to Wuhan. And filming wouldn't start for another day...

I got up from the bench, talking exclusively to the director before disappearing into the airport, fighting through fans on my own.

 I sat down quietly next to the tall, thin Chinese man with a book sitting over his face, like he was ready to go to sleep. I peeked at him, leaning back in the chair. I deepened my voice a little, wondering what the reaction would be.

"Tired, huh?"

He grumbled from underneath the book.

"I'm sorry, what? I couldn't hear you."

"Go away."

I fought the urge to laugh. "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to bother you... this was just the seat I was given..."

"Please, just leave me alone."

"Geez, did you say goodbye to your girlfriend or something? Don't sound so grumpy."

"How did you--" He sat up, the book falling from his face into his hands, and finally he was looking at me, wide-eyed, open-mouthed. "Niuwang, you--"

"I didn't know you could be such a sourpuss."

"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be going to Beijing?!"

"I figured that Wuhan's about right in the middle between Hong Kong and Beijing, and I feel bad not paying Mimi's Ma and Ba a visit. So I just switched planes. I saw Ahjusshi do it once on We Got Married."

He leaned back in his chair, looking up at the ceiling and laughing. "You're something, Niuwang. What you are, I don't know, but you're something."

I fastened my seat belt as the plane began to ascend. "I'm very persuasive. I don't feel good knowing Mimi's parents don't like me. I want them to give me a chance."

He put an arm around me, still laughing to himself. "Thank you, Niuwang."

"Don't thank me yet. I have to leave by midnight. Like Cinderella."

"Am I going to find a glass slipper?"

"Yeah, right. I walk too harshly to wear a glass slipper. It'd break into a thousand pieces and rip my feet to shreds."

"That's an awful picture."

"But if you want, I can probably leave something behind at your parents' house."

I took Zhou Mi's arm, careful not to let my fingernails scratch him. "Are you ready?" he asked me. To my surprise, he sounded nervous, too."

I smiled as confidently as I could. "I'll be fine. I can talk my way out of most anything."

He knocked on the door, then opened it, calling up, "Ma? Ba?"

I looked around. It was quaint, and well taken care of. A nice house, good for a child to grow up in without any siblings. Still, it was hard for me to imagine what my life would have been like without my sister or brother. Without them, I wouldn't have always had to share, wouldn't have to fight for my parents' attention. 

"Oh, Zhou Mi, you're back! I knew you said you'd be coming home, but I didn't think you meant so soon!"

She wrapped her arms around his neck, embracing him tightly. Her hands were weathered, but not quite as much as "Mama Han's" had been. When she let go, he stepped back, pulling me forward. "Ma, Niuwang wanted to come today. You remember her, right?"

She looked at me a long time, making me cringe a little, but not enough to be visible to her. I bowed a little, hoping that was the right thing to do, since we were in China, not Korea or Japan.

"I was just admiring your house," I said, smiling as charmingly as I could. "It's very comfortable."

She smiled tightly. "Well, I saw that documentary you all did. I'm sure it's not as nice as your own house in America. It was quite lovely."

"Thank you," I replied, blushing. 

"Now, Zhou Mi, why don't you show your guest around. I'll try to find your father."

I smiled at her, relieved when she walked away. "Wow... she was... nicer than I expected."

"You'll be fine, Niuwang," he asserted, pulling me towards a certain direction.

"And this is my room," he said, gesturing around.

I walked in, exploring. After all, I'd been in his dorm in Korea countless times, one more uninvited invasion of space was hardly unexpected. It was smaller than my room in Wisconsin, but, then, he lived closer to the city, and there wasn't as much room to spread houses out. 

It was much cleaner than the room I had seen in Korea, but I assumed that was because he didn't use it much anymore. Still, evidence of his youth was obvious-- posters on the walls, a computer in the corner, old clothes hanging up in the closet. 

I went to the closet and pulled out the first thing that caught my eye.

"Oh my-- a school uniform!" I held it up, grinning. "Now this, I would have paid to see."

He grabbed it from me, hanging it back on the rack, with an obvious pink tint in his cheeks. "That was a long time ago."

I clicked my tongue, then laughed. "Aw, you're no fun... I'm sure you looked handsome."

"What makes you think that?"

"Well, why wouldn't you?" I challenged, looking up at the uniform again. "But, what would I know? I never went to a private school in the U.S. We didn't have uniforms. I wore t-shirts and jeans with holes in the knees. And sweatshirts, when it was cold."

"Never any skirts?"

"Look who you're talking to, Mimi. I didn't wear skirts unless I had a super important event. Not to mention that it was usually a bit cold."

He started to say something, but behind him, his mother appeared in the doorway. "I know this a lot to ask, Zhou Mi, but could you please go to the store and get us some fresh vegetables? I need more if I'm going to make supper for all of us."

He looked at her, then at me, seeming worried. I smiled, and nodded, mouthing that I'd be fine. I squeezed his hand, following them until he went out the door. When he was gone, I turned, to find both Mother and Father standing there together.

I smiled. "I apologize; I can't stay too long. I have to be on my way to Beijing by midnight. But, if you want, I can help you cook dinner. Most of Zhou Mi's friends say that I'm a good cook."

She smiled, looking at her husband, who still seemed to be regarding me seriously. "Your hair is much shorter than when we last saw you," he said, breaking the silence.

Awkward. Awkward. "I had to cut it for the movie I'm working on right now."

"Oh yes, that's right. I don't know if our son told you, but Niuwang is working on a Hollywood movie right now. That's why she has to go to Beijing."

Keep it together, Melissa. Breathe. What are you willing to do for him?

"Look, I- I wish you could look at me and not just see my blonde hair and gray eyes... see past that I'm American. I... I have a full high school education. I didn't drop out. I was third in my class at Incheon International High School. And... I worked single-handedly for all of the money I have right now. And I don't waste it-- I save it. I just hope... you think I'm worthy of your only son. I'd like to say I'm not asking much of you, but I know I am. At least my parents have my sister and my brother, but... you only have your son. And... I know how precious he is..."

Suddenly his mother was embracing me, her rough hands against my back. "Oh, dear, we were already bragging about you." She urged her husband to join, and he embraced me, too. I was going to cry.

She broke away, straightening up. "Now, I think we'd better cook some dinner. Our Zhou Mi is very good at eating."