Chapter One

Taeyeon had gotten a call from Lee Soo-man half an hour ago to meet him in his office.

She was a bit worried, honestly. She never really got called down for anything. He sounded serious. She left the dorm quickly with SNSD’s manager and held her breath the entire car ride.

It was her first week back in Korea. SNSD had just finished promotions in Japan and all the girls were happy to be back home.

There wasn’t much time for relaxing, though. They already had to start planning their Korean comeback. It was time for trips to the recording studio...again.

Despite the fact that she would be getting around five hours of sleep every night, Taeyeon liked recording. Singing was something she had always liked to do, ever since she was a child. She knew she wanted to be a singer since...well, almost forever.

She felt the car stop and her manager open the door for her. She stepped out and gazed at the SM Entertainment building for a few seconds, taking everything in. It was exactly as it was in all of its glory. There were many cars parked around, despite the early hours.

Her manager led the way to Lee Soo-man’s office. Taeyeon bit her lip nervously as they turned down another hallway. A big set of double doors lie ahead. Her manager wished her luck and her heel, leaving Taeyeon alone.

She took a big breath and knocked on the doors politely.

“Come in.”

Pushing open the doors, Taeyeon noticed immediately that she was not alone. Her good friend and leader of Super Junior, Leeteuk was already seated in one of the comfortable chairs.

She bowed ninety-degrees exactly, to Lee Soo-man. Proper manners were very important.

Upon noticing Taeyeon, he looked surprised. “Taeyeonnie? What are you doing here?”

“I was just about to ask you the same thing!” Taeyeon laughed, taking a seat next to him. Things were a bit more comfortable now that she had a friend around.

But what did Lee Soo-man need to tell her? And more importantly, why was Leeteuk also present?

“Now, I’m sure you’re both wondering what I sent you both down here for.” Lee Soo-man leaned forward in his chair and folded his hands.

Taeyeon and Leeteuk both nodded.

“Do you two remember the scandal you were both involved in a year ago?” he eyed them both carefully.

Taeyeon reached for the heart-shaped necklace she was currently wearing--by chance, of course--that reminded her of the incident. It was purely coincidental. Yet, she wondered why she still kept the necklace.

Leeteuk nodded slowly. “Yes, I remember. Why are you bringing it up?”

“Well, it gave not only SNSD and Super lots of publicity, but SM as well.” Lee Soo-man unfolded his hands and placed them flat on his desk. “We’re thinking of trying to start a new scandal.”

Taeyeon frowned. “Why?”

“Merely for publicity,” Lee Soo-man said, waving his hand in the air. “It won’t hurt anyone, I assure you both.”

“And you want it--this scandal--to be revolved around us?” Leeteuk gestured to himself and Taeyeon, slowly trying to take in the new information.

“Yes,” the boss nodded. “We considered some other people, but we’ve looked into this more and it seems you two best fit for the roles.”

Taeyeon wasn’t sure if she should have been honored or appalled. What was this scandal exactly? Why her? And with Leeteuk?

Just her luck...

He was a good friend, another worker in the building, really. She took a quick glance at him and saw him deep in thought.

“Well, would you like to hear about the scandal now?” Lee Soo-man asked, gaining Taeyeon and Leeteuk’s attention.

“Yes, please.” Taeyeon gulped, looking expectantly at her boss.

“We want you two to pretend you’re dating.”

Taeyeon’s eyes widened to the size of golf balls and she thought she heard Leeteuk make a choking noise.

“Excuse me, what?” Leeteuk coughed out. “Everyone knows that we idols can’t have relationships with other idols!”

“Yeah,” Taeyeon added, “Plus, no one’s ever gonna believe it! I’m a terrible actor.”

“You are,” Leeteuk leaned back in the chair, smirking.

“Shut up,” Taeyeon folded her arms, sticking her tongue out childishly.

Lee Soo-man’s eyes crinkled together as he smiled. “You are smart, Leeteuk. Yes, idols cannot date, which is why this scandal will be so big.”

“I’m sure you two will be able to pull it off. Everyone in SM is counting on you two to bring a lot of publicity to the company.” Lee Soo-man said firmly.

“Besides,” he started chuckling, “Many fans do support you two together.”

“It’s just fan...stuff.” Leeteuk said lamely.

Taeyeon bobbed her head up and down, agreeing. “Please, I don’t want any part of this. Get Sunny and Sungmin or something! They have tons of chemistry!”

Leeteuk nodded along with her. “Yeah, they’d do way better than us.”

Lee Soo-man shook his head and Taeyeon and Leeteuk’s faces fell. His decision was final. “I want you two to spend the day together. Both of your schedules have been cancelled. If fans see you together, then let it be. That means that the plan is working.”

Leeteuk stood up. “And how long will we have to keep us this little act?”

Lee Soo-man shrugged. “It all depends.”

“And one last thing: Tell no one.”

They both thanked him and exited.

Once outside, Leeteuk let out a groan of displeasure. “I can’t believe this.”

“Well, where should we go first?” Taeyeon asked, looping her arm with his. She felt her mood change instantly once she realized that Lee Soo-man was giving her time off.

He looked confused. “What?”

“We have to spend the day together, remember?” Taeyeon reminded him. “Besides, I haven’t had any relaxation time and neither have you. Now we’re getting some, so stop being whiny!”

Leeteuk smiled and Taeyeon noticed the cute dimple in his left cheek. “Yeah, I suppose. I guess the members were right when they said I’m too uptight.”

Taeyeon suddenly stopped. Did she just think that Leeteuk was cute? Is that what she thought of her co-worker? “No, no, I’m just saying things.” she mumbled to herself.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“Uh, nothing!” Taeyeon responded cheerfully with a goofy grin.

He rolled his eyes at her and pulled her ahead, their arms still looped together. “So where do you wanna go?”

Taeyeon gasped and her eyes lit up. “The Han River! I’ve been back to Korea for a week, but I haven’t even seen it yet. Barely.”

Leeteuk smiled, agreeing. “Alright, fine, I’ll take you there. Should we take a bus?”

“That would attract too much attention.” the kid leader pointed out.

“Aren’t we supposed to?” Leeteuk laughed. Taeyeon laughed with him, upon hearing his unique laugh.

“Yeah, you’re right. You’re paying for the bus fare!” Taeyeon declared, poking him in the arm. Her grin faltered upon touching Leeteuk.

“What’s wrong?” he frowned.

“When’d you get so...buff?” Taeyeon continued poking his arm, feeling the hard muscles. She wore a face of pure confusion.

“Oh, you know, I’ve been working out...”

Taeyeon cracked up. “You have not! Don’t lie!” she saw a bus stop up ahead. “Let’s sit there and wait!”

“Aish, but it’s so hot out today...”

“You sound like an ahjussi.” Taeyeon snorted, taking a seat on the bench.

“Funny, coming from the ahjumma,” Leeteuk shot back with a grin.

As they were sitting, Taeyeon noticed that many cars passing by honked and shouted out the window and basically ogled them. It wasn’t every day that you saw two very famous idols waiting for the bus.

“Is this a good thing?” Taeyeon pointed to the cars honking loudly at the traffic light.

Leeteuk shrugged and eventually nodded. “I guess so.”

A large blue bus pulled up to the stop. Many of the passengers on the bus started screaming and getting excited.

Taeyeon laughed and waved. “Annyeonghaseyo!”

More screams, mostly male, emanated from the bus.

Taeyeon thought she saw Leeteuk glare slightly at the males. He shoved her lightly in the arm. “Don’t provoke them.”

The bus doors opened and the driver was all smiles. Taeyeon thought he was about to pass out. “Super Junior and Girls’ Generation! W-Where can I take you? No charge!”

“Pay him,” Taeyeon whispered.

“Why me?” Leeteuk muttered.

“I’m the girlfriend.” Taeyeon retorted proudly.

He rolled his eyes, but smiled and deposited some money into a box.

“No, that’s not necessary!” the driver exclaimed, waving his hands like a madman.

Leeteuk shook his head. “It’s fine, honestly.”

The new “couple” took a seat in the front. The other passengers began crowding them and taking pictures. Taeyeon heard whispered questions.

“Taeyeon and Leeteuk?”

Taeyeon almost nodded to confirm that yes, they were themselves.

“Are they together?”

Maybe, maybe not...

“Why are they riding the bus?”

Taeyeon felt a bit ashamed because she hadn’t ridden the bus in years. This comment brought back that shame.

“Is this part of a reality show?”

Did the girl see Boom anymore? Cameras? Nada.

“Am I gonna meet SHINee?!”

The leader of SNSD almost burst out laughing. What SHINee had to do with them exactly, she had no idea.

“They’re so cute!”

Well, the last one wasn’t technically a question, but Taeyeon heard it.

Many times.

It also wasn’t uncommon for the usual flash of a camera to go off. Taeyeon just smiled and nudged Leeteuk a few times to get him to play along, too.

“Where can I drop you two off?” the driver asked, fixing the hat on his head.

“The Han River, please.” Leeteuk answered.

The bus seemed to be moving quicker. The driver seems eager, Taeyeon observed, sitting back in the blue seat.

She found herself extremely close to Leeteuk. The seats weren’t that big and when the bus turned, she almost fell into his lap.

Thank goodness, that didn’t happen. If it had, surely a riot would have started.

“This is the farthest I can take you, I’m afraid. I’m so sorry--”

“It’s perfect. Kamsahamnida!” Taeyeon lowered her head in thanks. Leeteuk followed suit.

“Oh, my pleasure! Please feel free to ride any time you wish!”

“We’ll keep that in mind.” Leeteuk smiled, getting off the bus.

The bus drove away at rapid-fire speed, much to the dismay of all the fans.

“Here we are,” Leeteuk made a big gesturing motion with his arm, “The Han River."

A/N: The first chapter! I hope there aren't any grammatical errors or anything. I looked over this a couple times and I could've missed something. Reviews are always nice. :]

- Jessica