(A day later)

The number you have dialed is not in service. Please tr-

Victoria hung up, glaring at her phone angrily. She had called Onew for the tenth time, and got the same reply. He was busy. His battery was dead. He didn’t want to pick up. It was all the same to her. Resisting the urge to throw her phone at the wall, she decided to message Onew instead, thinking that maybe this time, he would reply her, instead of ignoring her again and again. *If he doesn’t reply, he’s dead* Victoria promised.

 

{From: Victoria

Onew-ah, it’s already 7.30am! Rise and shine~ if you’re late, don’t blame me for what I could do, ok? So don’t be late! >.< Namdaemun, 10am, got it? At the entrance. See you ^^ and I’d better see you, or else! XP

To: Onew~}

 

Groaning, Onew’s eyes snapped open, tired of ignoring all the vibrations from his phone. He took the phone out to see the messages. *HOLY ! 10 MISSED CALLS AND 2 MESSAGES?! And the messages are the same? Damn it…* Onew thought as soon as he saw the phone screen. Turning to look at the clock, his eyes widened. “It’s 8am already?! Better go change now…” Onew murmured to himself, grabbing the fresh set of clothes that Key had brought for him and tiptoeing to the toilet to change and brush his teeth before washing his face. He secretly thanked the hospital for having two free toothbrushes and tubes of toothpaste. *I forgot to ask Key to help me bring the toiletries…* Onew thought, wanting to face-palm himself.

By the time he got out of the toilet, at about 8.15am, the SHINee family, along with Mrs. Lee, was already awake. “Jinki-ah, where are you going?” Mrs. Lee asked, glaring at Onew somewhat deviously.

“On my date with Victoria noona… Like duh… I’m leaving in 45 minutes,” Onew stated bluntly, not bothering with formalities right now. He walked back to the couch, sitting down beside Key as Mrs. Lee scrutinized Onew from head to toe.

“Taemin’s in this state and you’re going on a date with that… that… ?” Mrs. Lee asked incredulously, not caring about her language while pretending to gasp in shock. Onew nodded, not caring about the elder’s opinion right now, causing Mrs. Lee to stand up in fake anger. *I can’t believe this… Even when I’m pretending to be angry, he doesn’t care! Does he have no respect for me at all?!* Mrs. Lee thought, really angry this time. “Do you not put me in your eyes, Jinki?” she asked furiously.

“It’s for his good, Mrs. Lee. If I don’t go, Victoria noona might not just get someone to shoot his leg. What if she orders someone to kill him? I can’t risk Taeminnie like that, Mrs. Lee, I really can’t. Just tell him where I am if he wakes up after I leave. I don’t want to lie to him. I’ll be back by 1pm, ok? I’m just going to get some breakfast before I leave for Namdaemun at 9am. Anyone wants to co-“ Onew was cut off by the sudden vibration of his phone from his pocket. Taking his phone out, he looked at the caller ID, mouthing ‘Victoria’ before answering the call.

“Yeoboseyo? Ah, Victoria noona, it’s you! I’m at SHINee’s dorm now, why? NO! You don’t have to meet me downstairs!” Onew told Victoria, panicked. “We’ll meet at the entrance to Namdaemun as planned. Breakfast? I’m eating now… Remember, I’m leaving at 12pm to go for SHINee World Concert rehearsal. Erm… Cause I have to? No, it doesn’t matter if our lead dancer’s leg is injured, we still need to practice our singing and stuff. I got it, I won’t be late. See you!” Onew exclaimed, heaving a huge sigh of relief as soon as he ended the call.

“So, Onew hyung. What were you saying before the call?” Key asked.

Onew thought about this for a while, trying to remember where he stopped. “Oh! Right! I was asking who wanted to come buy breakfast with me! So, anyone?” Onew asked, looking at the other people in the room.

“I’m coming with you! Jjong too! And you’d better come, or no skinship for a month. No kisses, hugs, anything! Mrs. Lee, Minho, manager hyung, what do you guys want for breakfast?” Key asked the three who wondered what they could eat in the hospital.

Mrs. Lee, the most familiar with the place, answered first. “Sandwiches for me! I’m not really hungry,” she told Key as she sat back down into the chair beside the bed. Minho and their manager nodded in agreement, deciding to eat sandwiches, too.

“Same here,” the two of them replied simultaneously. Key nodded, walking out of the room with Jonghyun and Onew behind him.

By the time they reached the hospital canteen, it was 8.25am, and Onew was in a rush. However, he kept his calm, wanting to find out the truth behind Minho kissing Taemin, although he could pretty much guess the reply from JongKey.

Turning to JongKey, Onew’s face turned serious. “Last night, at around midnight, I saw Minho kissing Taemin. Why? You guys know, don’t you? And don’t even try to lie to me cause, Key, you at that. Just tell me the truth or else,” Onew demanded angrily, causing the couple to gulp in fear, but they tried to hide their emotions as they thought of what to do, each eyeing the other warily. From time to time, they looked at Onew, but only to see if he really meant what he said, and he did, they could see it in the leader’s eyes.

*What the hell? Onew hyung knows?! Should we just lie? Onew hyung has never been this mad before… and I don’t wish for Minho to die, either… but this is… How could he do this to Taemin?!* Jonghyun thought, forcing the anger down and shrugging his shoulders casually. “No idea. Why don’t you just ask Minho? I mean, he must have a good reason, right?” Jonghyun asked the elder, looking at Key to make sure he got the plan.

“Cause, that’s just plain dumb!” Onew shouted, throwing his hands up in exasperation. Key sighed, putting a hand on Onew’s shoulder. He looked at Jonghyun sadly, not knowing what to do about this situation, yet not wanting to lie.

*Minho is such a… bastard! We helped him keep this annoying, guilty little secret of his, but he… this is too much, even if he loves Taeminnie! For heaven’s sake, Minho, Taemin is TAKEN. You should know that best…* Key thought, frustrated. “Hyung, just let it slide first, ok? I’m sure he has his reasons, like Jjong said. Although I’m not sure what they are, but let’s just wait and see, arasso?” Key persuaded in his ‘umma’ voice, not taking his hand away for fear that the leader would do something rash in a moment of pique.

“I’m not a baby… Fine, I’ll wait and see. But Key, I know that you’re lying. I mean, look at you! You’re sweating bullets… When I say that I’ll wait and see, I mean it. However,” Onew said, staring at the other members, “if he dares to stalk me this Wednesday, on my 1^st year anniversary with Tae, I’ll kill him personally. If and when he leaves the dorm after me, follow him, got it? And pass on my warning to him, cause I really don’t want to have to kill my dongsaeng. Let’s just hope that this is all a misunderstanding. Bear what I said in mind though, ok?” Onew instructed, seriousness more evident on his face than ever.

Nodding, JongKey sighed in relief. “We got it. Stalk him if he stalks you. Let’s get breakfast already. It’s like… 8.35am. Drinks, anyone?” Jonghyun asked, his gaze on the time.

“It’s 8.35am already?! Omo! I only have ten minutes to eat! Come on, let’s go buy the food already!” Onew said hurriedly, pushing this matter to the back of his mind.

“Chill… Coffee for all six of us. Three takeaway, three having here. Same for the sandwiches. I’m going to find a place to sit. Onew hyung, get the sandwiches. Jjong, get the coffee. Go!” Key ordered. Onew and Jonghyun nodded, walking off to buy their breakfast while Key went to find a suitable place to sit. Thing was, there was barely anyone in the canteen, and Key smirked to himself. *Idiots… there isn’t even a need to find a seat!* Key thought happily, sitting down at a random table that wasn’t near anyone else.

When the two finished buying the food, they sat down and started eating, Onew finally noticing the lack of people and chiding Key for being lazy. Key just smiled, not caring about what the leader thought as he continued eating.

Apart from Onew chiding Key, their meal was a silent one. By the time they were done, it was already 8.45am, and the three of them rushed back to Taemin’s ward as Onew didn’t want to be late for the date.

“We’re back~” Onew sang, putting the food down on the table before making sure that he was presentable, for the date.

“Hyung, you’re back!” Taemin exclaimed, making Onew jump a little in shock. Onew smacked his forehead, not being able to believe that he forgot all about buying Taemin’s breakfast. The worst part was, Key didn’t remember either, and this made Onew quite confused. Key never forgot anything, especially if it concerned Taemin.

“Hi Taeminnie!” Onew exclaimed cheerfully. Mrs. Lee, the manager and Minho each took their ‘breakfast set’, eating the food almost immediately. *Does the hospital provide Tae’s food?* Onew wondered, looking at Key.

“Key umma, where’s mine?” Taemin asked curiously, as if reading Onew’s thoughts. “Did you forget to buy breakfast for me?”

“The hospital provides your meals, silly. Don’t you remember?” Key asked playfully. Taemin thought about this and nodded, smiling at Key. He then looked at Onew, just noticing the change of clothes. Onew, upon seeing Taemin’s confused expression, knew what was going to come next, and sighed in defeat as Taemin opened his mouth to speak.

“Where are you going?” Taemin asked.

“Taeminnie, I need to go on my date with Victoria noona. You’ll understand, right? I don’t want you to get shot again…” Onew said cautiously, seeing Taemin nod in agreement. “I’ll be back from Namdaemun by 1pm, so don’t worry. It won’t be that long. Besides, your umma and the SHINee family will be here, at least till I get back, arasso?” Onew asked, trying to reassure Taemin as he knew what the maknae was afraid of.

*How’d hyung know that I was afraid of being alone, and more so of losing him? Guess this is what they call chemistry? And it’s only two hours, right? Namdaemun is about an hour’s travel from here… Fine, I’ll be nice…* Taemin thought, his mind already on another matter. “Oh! Erm… ok?” Taemin replied, not really concentrating on the conversation at hand.

“Tae, is something wrong? You seem a little… I’m not really sure… Confused? Unfocused?” Onew asked worriedly as Taemin smiled in assurance.

*Someone kissed me last night, I’m sure of it! But who was it? It couldn’t have been Onew hyung… it wasn’t the same… It definitely didn’t feel like him… much rougher… Minho hyung? Can’t be umma or manager hyung, he’s straight. I think. But if it was Minho hyung, which means… he wants 2Min? He wants US to be REAL?! Hell no!!! I don’t want to be with him!* Taemin thought in horror, masking his emotions perfectly. “Nah, I’m fine. You’re overreacting, hyung. I’ll see you by 1pm, ok?” Taemin asked, sounding fierce.

“Whoa, relax… I’ll be here on time, promise. It’s almost 9am… I got to go! Bye, Taeminnie! See you later~” Onew sang, kissing his lover lightly on the lips before waving to the rest and leaving the room hastily, not wanting to incur Victoria’s wrath.

“Definitely not Onew hyung…” Taemin muttered under his breath, glaring at Minho a little. Then, louder this time, he spoke to Minho. “Hyung, can you go back to the dorm and help me grab some clothes? Get manager hyung to drive you there, ok? I mean, if that’s alright with you, manager hyung,” Taemin asked, the manager nodding.

Taemin then grabbed his bag and took out two books, thankful that he was still trying to improve his Japanese. “Oh, and help me return these two library books. Remember the day out? Two days ago? I borrowed these from that mall. I’m quite sure they’re overdue… Do you mind helping me pay?” Taemin requested. Minho nodded without hesitation, the manager having no choice but to go along with him. “Kamsa hamnida!” Taemin thanked, beaming brightly as Minho grinned at the younger male, happy that he was approached, instead of JongKey.

*This is one of the only times I can help him, so of course I’ll grab the chance!* Minho thought happily, taking the books from Taemin. “Welcome! Manager Hyung, let’s go!” Minho exclaimed, walking out of the room with the manager following behind him.

Once the two of them left the room, Taemin went into serious mode, looking at the others intensely. “Who was the one who kissed me last night?” Taemin demanded, praying hard that it wasn’t Minho, and instead was Key or his umma.

*He and Onew hyung are way too similar… what should we do?* JongKey thought at the same time, contemplating on whether to tell the truth, or lie, as they did with Onew.

Mrs. Lee, however, was just confused. “You were awake?” she asked, Taemin nodding in reply. “Well, it wasn’t me… Are you sure it wasn’t Jinki?” she asked. Taemin shook his head confidently, already knowing what the answer would be by now.

JongKey looked at each other, and Jonghyun decided to speak, just in case Taemin saw through Key’s bad lying. “Taemin, I’m sure it was Onew hyung. I mean, who else would kiss you? No offence intended,” Jonghyun apologised. Taemin shook his head and waited for Jonghyun to continue. “Was it on the lips?” Jonghyun asked curiously as Key nodded in agreement.

Nodding, Taemin held back a scream, unable to believe that the JongKey couple would help Minho instead of him. *How could Key umma lie to me?! Am I less important than Minho hyung now?* Taemin thought, feeling a little sad but brushing it off, focusing on the matter at hand.

Pissed off, Taemin gave up on holding in his anger. “Oh for god’s sake, hyungs, STOP LYING! Why would you lie about something like this?! Especially Key umma!” Taemin screamed angrily, feeling betrayed. The other three in the room jumped in shock, never knowing that the fun-loving maknae of SHINee could be so angry.

Just then, Mrs. Kim walked into the ward with Taemin’s breakfast, her face filled with worry upon hearing Taemin’s scream. “What’s going on?” she asked while waving slightly at Mrs. Lee, who was still shocked by Taemin’s outburst. Putting the tray down, Mrs. Kim raised a questioning brow at her son, wanting to know what happened. Mrs. Lee, recovering from her shock, waved back belatedly while key gulped, knowing what his umma was capable of.

“Umma… Annyeong! Long time no see?” Key greeted, but it sounded more like a question to his mother. Taemin couldn’t believe that Key would go so far as to lie to his own mother just to help Minho, and decided that he would tell the truth.

Clearing his throat, Taemin opened his mouth to speak. “Mrs. Kim, you can ask your son what happened. I’m sure he knows the truth,” Taemin said politely.

When Key refused to say anything, Mrs. Kim looked at Taemin again, wondering what the maknae meant. “Taemin-ah, are you sure Kibum knows what’s going on? I was just asking for the reason that you screamed. Is it that hard to answer me upright?” Mrs. Kim asked in confusion. Key looked at Taemin pleadingly, not wanting the truth to be exposed.

*Taemin knows, doesn’t he? Damn it… Minho you ! Because of you, my relationship with Taemin is suffering!* Key thought, not wanting to protect Minho any longer, but at the same time not wanting Minho to lose faith in him.

“Yes, it is hard to answer you upright. You see, someone kissed me last night, and I’m quite sure the JongKey couple knows who it is. Problem is, they don’t want to tell me who it was. I have my suspicions, but I just want to make sure, you understand?” Taemin asked, still sounding civilized. Mrs. Kim nodded, looking back at her son and his boyfriend for the answer, Mrs. Lee doing the same. JongKey shot each other a brief look, Jonghyun about to speak when Taemin beat him to it, smirking evilly at the elder.

“You want to know why they won’t tell you, right. It’s only cause… oh, I don’t know. They’re lying for that son of a CHOI MINHO?!” Taemin shouted, finally exploding, all the while glaring at the JongKey couple accusingly. Mrs. Lee, not believing that her son would ever be so vulgar, walked up to him and slapped him on the cheek, hard. Taemin’s eyes started to tear as he held a hand to his stinging red cheek.

“LEE TAEMIN! DO NOT SPEAK ABOUT YOUR ELDERS LIKE THAT!” Mrs. Lee shrieked, almost fainting. She walked over to the couch, sitting down and glaring at her son.

Mrs. Kim, sensing the sudden tension in the room, walked over and put a comforting hand on Mrs. Lee’s shoulder. “Mrs. Lee, don’t be so mad. I’m sure Taemin has his reasons. I may not know what, but the Taemin I know? He’s a good boy. You know that, don’t you? And Kibum, what did you and Jonghyun do to make Taemin so mad? Are you really lying for Minho?” she asked, patting Mrs. Lee’s back softly as she cried.

“N-ne… umma… M-mianhae…” Key apologised, ashamed of himself for being so timid. Jonghyun looked at his boyfriend in disbelief, but bowed his head as well.

“See, Mrs. Lee? Taemin wasn’t being so rude for nothing. And Taemin-ah,” Mrs. Kim called. Taemin turned to the elder, his cheek still red, and tears were streaming down his cheeks as he sobbed lightly, not knowing what to do.

*Onew hyung… where are you when I need you? But I promised to be nice, so I’ll just wait till you get back. I miss you already…* Taemin whined in his head, wiping the tears away with his free hand. “Ne, Mrs. Kim?” Taemin asked.

“Next time, don’t be so vulgar, ok?” Mrs. Kim asked, Taemin nodding in reply. “Alright. People, chill. All I need to know is why JongKey were lying for Minho. And Mrs. Lee, please, stop being so mad. Taemin is your son, after all. Just forgive and forget, arasso?” she asked. Mrs. Lee hesitated, but sighed and nodded.

“We were lying cause… Taemin claimed that Minho kissed him last night and… we all know that he would never do that. Only Onew hyung would kiss Taemin, right?” Jonghyun asked, starting to get panicked, just as Key was.

“Taemin-ah, why are you so sure that it was Minho who kissed you, and not Jinki?” Mrs. Kim asked, still as calm as ever. Taemin sighed, not wanting to tell the entire truth.

“It just felt… different. I mean, the kiss was rougher, not like Onew hyung’s kiss earlier on. It was so much gentler, lighter, and softer. Not to mention the fact that the person who kissed me, his lips weren’t as smooth as Onew hyung’s. And,” Taemin said, trying to make a more dramatic effect, “I couldn’t taste ANY chicken. Not at all! Onew hyung kissed me just now, and it felt the same as all his other kisses. Not to mention I could taste chicken just now. I’m sure he didn’t eat any chicken this morning, the taste wasn’t that strong. He didn’t, right?” Taemin asked JongKey, who shook their heads in unison.

“The sandwich we got for everyone was basically egg and… cheese, maybe?” Key wondered aloud, Jonghyun and Mrs. Lee nodding in agreement.

“So, like I was saying, it was different, lips were rougher, the kiss, too, and it had no taste of chicken. Completely different from all of Onew hyung’s kisses,” Taemin verified. *If I tell them that I opened my eyes and saw Minho hyung walking back to the couch, what would they say? Will Minho hyung try to hurt Onew hyung when he finds out?* Taemin thought worriedly, deciding to leave this vital piece of information out first.

The two ummas gasped in shock as JongKey looked at each other, defeat evident in their eyes. “Minho would dare to… What?! But why?” Mrs. Lee asked in confusion.

*Seems that we can’t keep this a secret anymore… but should we tell? What will Minho say?*Key questioned himself, but what Jonghyun said next shocked even him.

“Minho, he loves Taemin,” Jonghyun stated, not wanting to keep something like this a secret anymore. “He told me yesterday, but he shouldn’t have done this! If he didn’t, I would have continued to keep mum about this,” Jonghyun admitted as Key, the two ummas and even Taemin gaped in shock, staring at Jonghyun as if what he said could and would never ever come true, but they knew that the truth was right in front of them.

“He WHAT?!” Taemin screeched, unable to believe his ears. Jonghyun just nodded regretfully, not understanding how things could ever get to this state.

“It’s true. Jjong told me yesterday, when Minho accidentally blurted this life-changing secret to him. Minho would do anything for you, Taeminnie. I just know it. Be on your guard against him, ok?” Key warned. Taemin nodded, not knowing what else he could say in an awkward yet terrible situation like this one.

“The problem is, Onew hyung already suspects something. He thinks that Minho will stalk you on your 1^st year anniversary date this Wednesday, and he told us to follow Minho if he does stalk you. Not to invade your privacy, but I have to agree with what Onew hyung is doing… That’s not the point though. I just wanted to ask if Onew hyung told you where he’s bringing you for the date. So?” Jonghyun asked, formulating a plan in his mind.

“Anio… he said that it was a surprise. f(x) told me that Onew hyung’s bringing me out for Valentines’ Day, too. That means he’s taking another day off from the ‘daily date’ thing…” Taemin said, causing Jonghyun to frown.

“This is bad… Victoria noona already hates you so much. What if she really decides to send someone to kill you?! Then Minho and Onew hyung would avenge you… But who knows? What if Minho kills OnToria? Cause he thinks that it’s partly Onew hyung’s fault? I can’t believe this kind of thing is happening within us…” Key sighed deeply, trying to convince himself that things had not, and will not, come to this state.

*What if… what I just said really comes true? Damn…* Key thought, looking at Taemin’s thoughtful expression, and then looking at Jonghyun who was thinking hard about this possibility. The two ummas, however, were just looking worried for Onew and Taemin, not sure of what Victoria was capable of.

“Let’s just… Aish, I don’t know! Maybe we can keep a close eye on Onew hyung? Whenever he brings you out, we’ll follow you. Speaking of which, how is he going to bring you out on Wednesday? I doubt you’ll be allowed to leave the hospital yet, right?” Jonghyun asked.

*Hyung’s right… maybe Onew hyung changed his mind and decided to just bring me to the hospital garden?* Taemin wondered, shrugging his shoulders. “No idea. Maybe he’ll beg Dr. Jang to let me leave for one day,” Taemin joked. Jonghyun glared at the maknae, causing him to sigh and apologise for the lameness.

“Taemin-ah, Kibum was right about Victoria. Just be careful of her, ok?” Mrs. Kim warned. Taemin nodded obediently, knowing that Mrs. Kim was just like her son, and would never take ‘no’ for an answer.

“It’s already 9.30am… Minho and your manager will be back in about half an hour. So… can we try to do something productive here?” Mrs. Lee asked.

“How’d you know? Did you like, stalk them or something?” Jonghyun asked. Mrs. Lee glared at him, and he realised his mistake, bowing his head immediately. “Mianhae… I didn’t mean to be rude. I won’t do it again,” Jonghyun apologised.

Nodding, Mrs. Lee replied Jonghyun’s earlier question. “Just calculate? Duh… Not to be mean or anything… Anyway, it’s cause I know which mall you went to that day, and roughly how long you take to get there. About 15 minutes, right?” Mrs. Lee asked. The three SHINee members nodded in unison, looking at Mrs. Lee for her to carry on. “That’s how. By the way, Taemin-ah, you better not let me hear vulgarities come out of your mouth again, alright?” Mrs. Lee warned Taemin who nodded, not wanting to get slapped again.

“So… now what?” Taemin asked after five minutes of awkward silence in the room. JongKey didn’t appear to hear him as they were taking a short nap, Key’s head resting on Jonghyun’s lap. Mrs. Kim stood up as Mrs. Lee shrugged.

“I have to get back to work. Mrs. Lee, can you return the tray later? I’m sure you know where to put it. See you guys tomorrow!” Mrs. Kim exclaimed softly, kissing Key lightly on the forehead before waving and walking out of the room to get back to work.

“Taemin-ah, eat your breakfast. It’s going to get cold soon. Aren’t you hungry?” Mrs. Lee asked. Taemin nodded as Mrs. Lee took the tray and passed it to her son.

“Kamsa hamnida! Oh yeah, umma, don’t you have to work?” Taemin asked curiously. *Please don’t tell me she took the day off…* Taemin prayed hard, his hopes crushed as his umma shook her head, smiling at Taemin happily.

“I’m taking leave till you’re discharged! Isn’t that great? We can have that quality mother-son time that we keep missing out on!” Mrs. Lee exclaimed excitedly.

Taemin held back a groan, faking a smile and pretending to nod enthusiastically. He then started eating his breakfast, his mother just watching him eat in silence.

By the time Taemin finished his breakfast, Minho and SHINee’s manager had returned to the hospital, and Mrs. Lee was returning the tray for Taemin.

“Taemin-ah, your books were over a month due, you know? I had to pay over 10000 won for each book!” their manager exclaimed in frustration, throwing his hands up in front of him. Minho glared at the manager briefly, not wanting anyone to scream at Taemin.

“Mianhae… And manager hyung, JongKey is sleeping, can you please be quieter?” Taemin whispered. The manager turned to look at the couch, nodding slightly and looking apologetic to the sleeping couple.

“No point saying that now. They’re already awake,” Minho told them, pointing at the two who rubbed their eyes sleepily.

“Minho, manager hyung, you’re back!” Key exclaimed, smiling at the two before frowning a little. “And… you woke me up.”

“Hi? Where’s Lee umma? Did she leave already?” Minho asked in confusion.

“She went to help Taemin return his breakfast tray, from the hospital,” Jonghyun told Minho, yawning and stretching tiredly.

“I see… So what have you guys been doing? And how long has she been gone?” Minho questioned, trying to start a conversation.

“Sleeping? Duh… And she’s been gone for… actually, I don’t know. I was asleep, after all,” Key rolled his eyes at the rhetorical question.

“She’s been gone for about four minutes. I think she’s coming back soon,” Taemin said, helping Key to answer the question.

“Ok… Oh yeah! Taemin, I left your clothes in manager hyung’s car! Sorry…” Minho apologised to the maknae who shook his head. *I’m a little TOO forgetful…* Minho thought, feeling quite depressed by this fact.

“You can go get it now. Umma’s going to be back soon, anyway,” Taemin suggested, just as Mrs. Lee walked into the room. “Oh, she’s here already. You can go now. But be quick, I want to bathe…” Taemin whined. Minho nodded, smiling at Taemin before holding his hand out for the key of the manager’s car. The manager put his hand in his pocket, pulling the keys out and passed it to Minho reluctantly.

“Don’t you dare steal my car!” the manager warned. Minho just nodded, running off to the lift immediately.

*I wish I could run…* Taemin thought sadly, looking at the door. “It’s only 10.10am now…” Taemin muttered to himself, wondering how long it would be before it finally reached 1pm, and Onew would be back from his date.

“Taemin-ah, I’ll help you bathe, ok?” Mrs. Lee asked awkwardly. “You are my son, anyway. I’ve seen you… , before,” Mrs. Lee said somewhat shyly, causing the others to laugh while Taemin blushed.

“Arasso…” Taemin murmured.

Meanwhile, at Namdaemun, Onew had met up with Victoria and was shopping for clothes with her. He spotted couple shirts, groaning as Victoria started to point at them excitedly. *No way am I going to wear those…* Onew swore to himself.

“Oh. My. God. COUPLE SHIRTS! Let’s go!” Victoria squealed, practically bouncing on the spot before dragging Onew into the shop with her.

*Those couple shirts aren’t even fun… They’re so different from me and Tae’s… While we buy clothes that relate to us, but these are just… horrible! They’re just the same shirts in a different colour! Aish! How do the prints on that shirt have a link to me OR Victoria noona? I mean, seriously, CATS?! Noona has no taste in couple shirts… Is this like, her first relationship?* Onew thought, laughing silently at the thought as they walked into the store. “Noona, is this by any chance your first relationship?” Onew asked boldly, causing Victoria to blush a deep red.

“Why the sudden question?” Victoria asked, her face still red from embarrassment, a dead giveaway answer to the question.

“I don’t know. Just that when you saw the couple shirts, although it didn’t link to us, you still wanted it. This is the first, isn’t it?” Onew asked again, sure of the answer already.

Nodding, Victoria sighed. “Yes, yes it is. But why can’t we wear couple shirts that have no link? Look at JongKey. Their clothes are quite random, too. That time at the airport, they were wearing this ‘washing machine’ related shirt. How does that link to them?!” Victoria demanded, not really understanding what Onew meant.

“Key and Jonghyun are the main ones doing our laundry…” Onew stated dryly. “And anyway, this really doesn’t link to ANY of us. If you want to buy couple shirts, noona, you have to get those that kind of links back to our personality, character, or whatever, ok?” Onew told Victoria, who just nodded, pouting slightly.

“What about these shirts? Are they ok?” Victoria asked, shoving a pair of clothes into Onew’s face. On the shirts were just chibi characters, one of a boy and the other, a girl.

“I guess so, but noona, why don’t you buy your own clothes?” Onew questioned, wanting to be free from Victoria.

“Nah… I’d rather buy more couple shirts! Victoria whined, causing Onew to look at her in disgust, but he hid it perfectly.

“But Key will kill me for buying so many clothes, and none are really for me…” Onew explained. Victoria thought about this for a moment, shrugging and smiling at Onew lightly. “So?” Onew asked, running out of excuses.

“Fine. How about this?” Victoria asked, holding a black jacket next to Onew to roughly see how it would fit him.

“I think I should choose on my own. Black is Yesung hyung’s colour, you know?” Onew reminded Victoria, chuckling softly before remembering that she was his enemy.

“Yeah, alright. I don’t really know your taste anyway. I think that I’ll just go find a few couple shirts before shopping for my own clothes,” Victoria planned aloud.

*Wow. She listened to me. Holy ! Maybe I can get a present for Taeminnie now. Then I’ll rush back to the dorm, put it down and get back to the hospital! But what should I get? And how are we going to celebrate when Tae’s leg is like this? Should I beg Dr. Jang?* Onew was lost in his train of thoughts until Victoria snapped her fingers in front of him, glaring at the younger male. “Oh. Sorry, Victoria noona. “Then I guess we’ll meet back here at about 11am? Then maybe we can go take some pictures and get our lunch. But remember, I have to leave at 12pm, and I’m getting lunch from Key, too. So I can’t eat too much with you…” Onew pretended to be sad, frowning as he didn’t really want to eat with her.

Victoria just nodded, eyeing another clothes store immediately. “Ok. I’m alright with that. I’ll go back to SM’s building with you?” Victoria confirmed with Onew, who nodded in reply. “Arasso. Let’s split up!” Victoria exclaimed, rushing to the store that she was looking at.

Onew shook his head at Victoria’s behavior, walking around to find a toy shop. *I wonder what I should get for Tae… it’s two days away… and seriously, how can we celebrate?  Maybe we should have a picnic of sorts, at the hospital. That works!* Onew exclaimed in his head. His thoughts were cut off when he accidentally banged into a taller male. “Excuse me…” Onew apologised, not bothering to look up.

“Onew? Is that you?” the man asked. Onew turned back, realising that it was Kyuhyun that he had banged into.

“Kyuhyun hyung? Hi!” Onew greeted, waving at his sunbae who waved back.

“Hi. What are you doing here?” Kyuhyun asked curiously as Sungmin popped out behind him, waving excitedly at Onew.

“I’m on my date with Victoria noona, but I managed to get her to split up and shop separately before meeting up at 11am. Although I’m not sure how… Anyways, why are you here? On a date with Sungmin hyung?” Onew asked suspiciously.

“Heechul hyung dragged me here… He turned my laptop off when I was almost going to win in Starcraft! Desperate much?! Yeah, so I had to come, or he would take my beloved laptop from me for a week. But Sungmin here, decided to follow,” Kyuhyun explained, not caring about calling Sungmin his hyung.

“Then where’s Heechul hyung? And hi, Sungmin hyung!” Onew greeted, waving back at Sungmin who had been waving the entire time he and Kyuhyun were talking.

“HI! HEECHUL HYUNG IS SHOPPING NOW. HE SAID TO MEET US HERE IN FIVE MINUTES. YOU WANT TO SHOP WITH US? AND KYU, IF YOUR LAPTOP IS BELOVED, WHAT AM I?” Sungmin asked loudly, causing Onew to block his ears with his hands.

“You are… erm… more beloved than my laptop? And sorry, Onew. He listened to music on the way here. Actually he blasted it with his earphones. Now he thinks that everything he says is soft. The weird thing is, he can hear others but not himself… Don’t you agree that it’s weird?” Kyuhyun joked, earning himself a smack on the head. “OW!” Kyuhyun shouted, but Sungmin ran away before Kyuhyun could get a chance to smack him back.

“It’s alright. Just… loud… Anyway, I’m going to find a dolphin stuffed toy for Taeminnie, for our anniversary this Wednesday,” Onew told the couple, having decided earlier on to buy a dolphin toy for Taemin.

“WHY?” Sungmin asked, just as loud as before. Onew winced at the volume, but kept his calm before answering the elder male.

“He once said that if he could be an animal, he wanted to be a dolphin. God knows why, though. He didn’t really tell me,” Onew explained to KyuMin, who nodded in reply. *Wonder when their anniversary is…* Onew thought, not realising that he had spoken the question aloud till Sungmin took the liberty of answering it.

“IT’S ON KYU’S BIRTHDAY. AND KYUHYUN, I CAN HEAR PERFECTLY FINE. I’M NOT THAT LOUD, AM I?” Sungmin asked. Onew nodded, his hands back at his ears, his answer causing the elder to pout sadly at Onew and Kyuhyun.

“Min, you know that you’re loud. Stop lying to yourself. Oh! Heechul hyung’s back. Good luck, Onew. He’s the same, if not worse, as Key. Just a friendly warning, cause he’s so going to target your clothes…” Kyuhyun warned his dongsaeng as Heechul walked towards them, carrying dozens of shopping bags.

“Hi! I’m back~ Onew? You’re here! Want to shop with me?” Heechul asked excitedly, passing the many bags to KyuMin. Onew shook his head as Heechul held his shirt up. “But… you’ve been wearing this shirt since DECEMBER! It’s been a month and a half already! Why don’t you just change it?!” Heechul asked, unable to comprehend how Onew thought.

“Well… Tae gave this to me as a birthday present… one of them, anyway,” Onew told Heechul whose eyes widened in shock, but nodded at the statement and let go of Onew’s shirt.

“Oh. Um… sorry, I didn’t know. But I know how you feel. Although I’m usually talking about how people shouldn’t keep clothes for more than two months, max, I still have all the shirts that Hannie gave me, before AND after he left. This,” Heechul said, pointing at his shirt, “is one of those shirts. But I think there’s still about… a few dozen more, at least.”

“Ok… After? Doesn’t that mean that he still sends you clothes from China?” Onew asked the sunbae who smiled sadly and nodded. “Oh. Alright. Anyway, I’m going to buy a dolphin stuffed toy for Taeminnie. Want to come? Then I wouldn’t mind buying some clothes, but I have to meet noona at 11am,” Onew said.

“Sure! Why not? Kyu, I want a bunny soft toy! And it HAS to be PINK!” Sungmin demanded, his voice back to its normal volume.

“Fine, fine. And guess what? You’re not screaming anymore!” Kyuhyun exclaimed, pretending to clap happily, resulting in Sungmin smacking his head. Again.

“I guess I’ll come along. KyuMin might just run off and, I can’t wait to buy some clothes for Teukie! He’s been really worn out lately… I’m worried for him…” Heechul admitted, showing his soft side. KyuMin nodded in agreement, both of them worried for their leader too.

“I think it’s cause… soon, he’ll have to go to the army. I think he’s just overstressed and he misses Kangin hyung…” Onew said sympathetically.

“Yeah, I guess so… When Kangin gets back from the army, Teukie will have to go… This is just sad,” Heechul sighed, not knowing how he could help the leader.

“I think we should try to lessen umma’s load by being more… obedient, I guess,” Sungmin suggested. Kyuhyun looked at his lover for a while, thinking about the consequences of this before nodding slightly, deciding that Leeteuk was more important than Starcraft. For now.

“Now that that’s over, let’s go!” Kyuhyun exclaimed, still a little disappointed by the fact that if he wanted to help Leeteuk, he probably shouldn’t play Starcraft so often.

They headed towards the closest toy store that they knew of, trying to find the desired stuffed toys. Walking in, the four of them practically ran towards the shelf with all the stuffed toys on it, ignoring the stares of the public.

“OH MY GOD. THERE’S A BLUE WOLF STUFFED TOY!!! HOW OFTEN DO YOU SEE THAT?! AND A PINK BUNNY!!! I OFFICIALLY LOVE THIS PLACE!!!” Sungmin screeched, his volume as loud as when Onew just saw them. He grabbed the two toys and ran to the counter, dumping the bags to Kyuhyun who struggled to carry them and follow Sungmin.

“Min, you are so damn weird. But then again, that’s why I love you,” Kyuhyun whispered into his lover’s ear, giving the older male a peck on the cheek as he paid for the stuffed toys. “Am I seriously going to have to carry all this?” Kyuhyun asked out of the blue. Sungmin grinned at his boyfriend, nodding in reply.

“Of course! Would you want me to carry them?” Sungmin asked sadly.

“I want Heechul hyung to carry them…” Kyuhyun complained.

“Aww… That’s too bad. Hyung’s too much of a diva to carry all these,” Sungmin gestured at the bags, “to carry them by himself.”

“Fine… I’ll do it. But no more forcing me to come out for the next seven days, ok? Especially if I’m playing Starcraft, got it?” Kyuhyun asked. Sungmin smiled and nodded, knowing that Kyuhyun would give in to his bubbliness soon enough.

Onew just walked around, still trying to find the dolphin toy before he finally spotted it on a rack, near the top. *Am I getting blind? It was just there! Damn it, I wasted so much time looking for that…* Onew thought in exasperation with himself, taking the toy and walking around to look for other things.

Heechul, on the other hand, was looking at the KyuMin couple in envy, missing the times when he bickered with Hankyung, and regretted the time that he got so jealous that he fought with Hankyung, and they didn’t talk to each other for a month. Or rather, he refused to reply when Hankyung tried to talk to him. Looking back, he felt so stupid for not treasuring the times he had with his beloved Hannie. When he realised what he had, it was already too late to take his words back.

 

[Flashback]

“Hannie! You cheated on me?!” Heechul shouted, angry at his lover for being so cruel to him. Hankyung shook his head furiously in denial, causing Heechul to scoff at the failed attempts to make it up to him.

“Chullie, you HAVE to believe me! You’re the only one whom I want to believe me!” Hankyung pleaded, refusing to give up on changing Heechul’s mind.

“How do you expect me to believe you?! I SAW YOU KISSING THAT WOMAN! The worst thing is, I don’t even know who she is!” Heechul shrieked at his lover.

Tears started to form in Hankyung’s eyes as he continued shaking his head, refusing to give up. “She forced herself on me! She spiked my drink when I was singing! You went to the toilet, remember?! And when you came back, she just forced herself on me! I SAW someone take my bottle of water… Chullie, it really wasn’t my fault… I swear, if I let you down, lightning will strike me down,” Hankyung swore. Heechul just continued staring at Hankyung, not caring about the explanation.

“And by the way, she was…well, I think she said her Chinese name was Song Qian. You know that trainee? She refused to tell me her Korean name,” Hankyung added, thinking that his efforts finally paid off as Heechul nodded. However, Heechul started walking up to his boyfriend and slapped him on the cheek, leaving a red handprint on his face.

“But you… did you push her away?! I didn’t see your efforts! And yes, I know her, but she looks like such a… ! I didn’t think that way before, but then she seduced you, and YOU FELL FOR IT!” Heechul screamed, tears streaming down the sides of his face.

“I DID PUSH HER AWAY!!! You ran away before I could push her away! Chullie, I really did… I didn’t fall for her… I’m really sorry, Chullie. Please forgive me…” Hankyung knelt down on the floor, desperate for Heechul’s forgiveness.

Wiping his tears away, Heechul shook his head angrily, glaring hard at his lover. “No. That incident happened a few days ago. Why didn’t you explain it to me then? Why did I have to hear it from other people’s mouths?!” Heechul demanded.

“I didn’t want THIS to happen! I only kept it from you cause I knew that you’d be disappointed and angry, like now!” Hankyung shouted, his voice nearly breaking at one point.

“It’s too late. I’m sorry Hannie, but I think that we have to spend some time away from each other, find out what we really want. Bye, Hankyung,” Heechul said coldly, walking away from the park near their dorm, leaving Hankyung there to cry his heart out.

*This was never supposed to happen to us…* HanChul thought at the same time, both crying helplessly for their lost trust.

[End of flashback]

 

“Heechul hyung, why are you crying?” Onew asked the sunbae, his voice filled with worry.

“It’s nothing… Just, erm… thinking of the past. Some sad memories, that’s all,” Heechul said, wiping his tears away and smiling slightly at the younger male.

“Oh. Ok. I’ve managed to find the dolphin,” Onew informed Heechul, holding the stuffed toy up in satisfaction. Heechul nodded, walking around to find something to buy.

*This is stupid. That happened four years ago. Why am I thinking of it now? Maybe it’s cause I feel that this is one of the reasons Hannie left SuJu… and me… Hannie, I miss you. I love you. I never wanted to shout at you like that. I’m sorry…* Heechul thought sadly, the image of Hankyung’s disappointed face on that day appearing in his mind. Heechul shook his thoughts off, looking around for something to buy. He spotted an angel figurine, picking it up and smiling to himself. “Teukie’s going to love this! And not to mention the fact that I finally remembered to buy a Christmas present for him!” Heechul exclaimed to himself, walking over o the counter to pay for it.

Onew was paying for the dolphin toy when Heechul walked up behind him, smiling somewhat eerily to himself. “Heechul hyung, are you buying that for Leeteuk hyung?” Onew asked, causing the elder male to jump in shock.

“Yeah. It’s his very belated Christmas present. Besides, he is the angel without wings,” Heechul told Onew, after getting past the initial shock.

“Oh yeah! Well, I’ll just go talk to KyuMin now. See you when you’re done~” Onew told Heechul, walking out of the store with a big bag in hand.

“Onew, you bought the toy already? Cool. And we are going to shop for clothes after this. You think that we’ll be fine leaving at 10.50am? I meant for you, anyway,” Sungmin asked, blabbering on and on about how bunnies are awesome as Onew nodded in confusion.

“Guess so. And you know what? Just now, I saw Heechul hyung crying. He said that he remembered some sad memories from the past. Wonder what it is though,” Onew whispered.

KyuMin thought about this for a moment, sighing as they knew it was because Heechul was thinking of Hankyung again.

Just then, Heechul walked out of the store, holding a plastic bag, much smaller than the other three’s, in hand. “What were you talking about?” Heechul asked.

“We were just telling Onew that you should get Hankyung hyung to send some of his Beijing Fried Rice over. A whole box, no less! Onew, it just tastes great!” Kyuhyun exclaimed, smiling at the younger. Heechul shook his head, smiling bitterly to himself.

*I remember when I last ate your fried rice, Hannie. It was last March, or was it April? Maybe May… But I miss it so much right now…* Heechul thought sadly, not wanting to think about how Hankyung looked when he was cooking, but his attempt failed miserably.

Images of Hankyung cooking his fried rice flooded his mind, and he tried his best to ignore the feelings that he felt at the moment. “Let’s go now! Shopping for clothes~” Heechul sang, masking his sadness well. KyuMin and Onew nodded, walking behind Heechul as Kyuhyun still struggled to carry Heechul’s many bags of clothes.

They walked to the department store, Heechul grabbing a random bunch of clothes and throwing them to Onew. “Try a shirt or pants, come out, go back in, try on another shirt or pants, and the cycle continues till you’re out of clothes to try, ok? And do NOT attempt to match the clothes together!” Heechul instructed Onew, who nodded in defeat. Heechul grinned in triumph, looking at KyuMin as Onew walked into a changing room.

Understanding what Heechul meant, Kyuhyun putting the bags of clothes down and catching the clothes that Heechul threw at him. Sungmin beamed to himself, grabbing all the pink clothes in sight. However, Heechul shook his head at the younger in exasperation.

“No, Sungmin, no pink! Only one set of pink clothes for you today!” Heechul told Sungmin, who sighed and nodded. He then put all the clothes down, choosing his favourite set of clothes and pushing Kyuhyun into a changing room, following behind his lover.

“Yah! Min! Not here! We’re in a department store, for god’s sake! NO! Ah…” the two idols outside heard Kyuhyun protest, apparently giving up in the end. Heechul smiled bitterly to himself, missing Hankyung more than ever.

On the other hand, Onew had changed into the first shirt and saw Heechul’s disappointed face. “Hyung, I changed already,” Onew told Heechul, smiling at the elder slightly. Heechul nodded, putting his feelings aside as he scanned Onew’s look, deciding that the shirt looked ok on Onew and nodded in approval.

“This is fine. Next!” Heechul shouted, as if Onew was a model on a runway. Onew walked back into the changing room, getting yet another shirt to change into.

Throughout the next twenty minutes, Onew walked in and out of the same changing room, Heechul approving of only eight out of the fourteen clothes that Onew tried on. Strangely enough, four of them were shirts and the other four were pants. Meanwhile, Onew and Heechul kept hearing from the changing room that KyuMin was in, recognizing the voice as Kyuhyun’s. As Onew laughed at the fact that KyuMin were probably making out in the changing room, Heechul just stared into space, thinking of what Hankyung could be doing right now, and who he was thinking of.

Anyway, as the store was practically empty, and no one really cared about the sounds, KyuMin was left undisturbed. By the time it was 10.50am, Onew and Heechul had finally finished matching the shirts and pants. Or rather, it was Heechul matching the clothes while Onew attempted to help. Whenever Onew tried to give suggestions on what to do and tried to show Heechul by moving the clothes together, his hand was smacked away by the diva.

Finally, the moment Heechul matched the clothes, smiling in satisfaction to himself, KyuMin walked out of the room, Kyuhyun’s face red from embarrassment. “Erm… hyung, the clothes are, um, ok,” Kyuhyun said awkwardly. He put the clothes down as Sungmin smirked to himself in triumph, knowing the power he had over Kyuhyun.

While Sungmin paid for his set of pink clothes, Heechul pulled Kyuhyun to the side, deciding to torment the maknae for a while. “Kyuhyun, did Sungmin seduce you in there? Sounded like you were ha-” Heechul paused as Kyuhyun clamped his hand down on the elder male’s mouth. Onew then walked over to the two SuJu members, smiling at his hyungs as he eavesdropped on their conversation.

“Hyung, this isn’t the kind of question you should ask now. You can ask me later in the dorm, alright?” Kyuhyun pleaded with Heechul.

“But you know how I miss Hannie, yet you do this kind of thing? Here, of all places, too?” Heechul asked sadly. Kyuhyun looked apologetically at Heechul, knowing that Heechul wasn’t joking about this matter.

“Mianhae, hyung…” Kyuhyun apologised.

“Sorry no cure. I’m telling Teukie!” Heechul exclaimed, taking his phone out and texting the leader. Kyuhyun tried desperately to reach for the phone, but was held back by Heechul. “But first, let me ask Sungmin.”

Sungmin, who had just walked over to Kyuhyun, was shocked at his lover’s depressed look. “Hyung, what did you do to Kyu?” Sungmin asked gently.

“Just asking, were you and Kyuhyun having… you know,” Heechul asked menacingly. Sungmin looked at Kyuhyun in confusion, debating whether to tell the truth.

“HYUNG! We were not having… *ahem* *ahem*… got it?!” Kyuhyun asked Heechul angrily, not wanting anyone to know what they did.

Sungmin, however, was just blur and blurted everything out. “But Kyu, we were having oral… . You didn’t like it?” Sungmin asked sadly, causing Onew to burst into spasms of laughter as Heechul smirked, feeling lonelier than ever deep inside.

Kyuhyun gaped at his lover, but nodded his head mechanically. “Knew it!” Onew and Heechul exclaimed, hi-fiving each other, Heechul texting the leader about his kids’ improper behavior immediately.

 

{From: Heenim

Teukie, your beloved kids, KyuMin, were having ORAL in the CHANGING ROOM of a DEPARTMENT STORE!!! Your decision on how to deal with them. I’m just an informant. Muahahahaha!!! X)

To: Leader Teukie}

 

At the SuJu dorm, Leeteuk read the message, shaking his head at their strangeness. Thankfully for him, he had Siwon and Shindong to talk to; the other couples were on a date too.

“Siwon, KyuMin are getting from bad to worse. They had freaking oral in a changing room!” Leeteuk exclaimed to the tall male who was apparently reading a bible. “How should I punish them?” Leeteuk asked the two members.

“I suggest… no skinship for a week! That’ll teach them to do ‘things’ in public again. And by skinship, I meant touching or hugging each other. None of those things for them at all!” Shindong suggested, but Siwon shook his head in disapproval.

“God would not want us to torture others,” Siwon said in a serious voice. Leeteuk shook his head at Siwon, not understanding how anyone could read a bible daily.

“Shindong’s right. That’s the best. But maybe I’ll just prevent it for three days. A week seems too harsh…” Leeteuk sighed, replying to Heechul’s message.

 

{From: Angel Teuk

Thanks Heechul! I’ll do that when they get back! But help me tell them: no skinship for the next 72 hours. By that, I mean no hugging, kissing, pecking, touching, sitting on each other’s laps. All other forms of touching included. Thanks! ^^ and KyuMin, serves you right! It’ll be worse if you do it again, ok? :) three days isn’t very long, anyway. I haven’t had skinship with Kangin for about a year already… D: Hope you survive the next three days! X)

Love, Angel Teukie hyung XD

To: Heedictator}

 

*Hannie… where are you?* Heechul thought, reading the reply. He was still masking his sadness as Sungmin grinned and kissed his boyfriend.

“What did I say that was so funny? Anyway, Heechul hyung, go pay for the clothes already. I’m done shopping for today. Kyu, come on,” Sungmin told Heechul, taking Kyuhyun’s clothes and passing it to Onew. Heechul then walked to the counter to pay for Onew and Kyuhyun’s clothes, Onew following behind him.

KyuMin walked out of the store, Kyuhyun carrying Heechul’s clothes again. “Min, why’d you tell them what we were doing? I mean seriously, you don’t have to go around announcing that we had ORAL you know?” Kyuhyun told Sungmin, sounded a little harsh. Sungmin shrugged, nodding in the end.

“We were doing it, and you got to admit, you like it. Your moans were louder than mine, for god’s sake!” Sungmin exclaimed in exasperation.

“Well, you didn’t have to tell them!” Kyuhyun told Sungmin.

“Aww… fine. Sorry, Kyu. I’ll wait till we’re in the dorm next time, ok?” Sungmin asked, grinning again. Kyuhyun blushed a bright red, not knowing how to answer.

“Arasso, arasso,” Kyuhyun said in the end, knowing that he could never beat Sungmin’s logic. Clapping to himself, Sungmin kissed Kyuhyun on the lips, but broke the kiss when he heard Onew’s cough.

“Thanks for the clothes! I got to go now! Heechul hyung, pass my clothes to me. Thanks again! Oh yeah, remember to visit Tae at the hospital. If you have time, anyway,” Onew said casually, the fact that no one apart from SHINee knew about Taemin’s hospitalization. The SuJu member’s eyes widened, thinking that it was Victoria’s fault again.

“Was it her fault? Oh, and KyuMin, no skinship for the next 72 hours. Your punishment from Teukie! But seriously Onew, was it her fault?” Heechul demanded as he passed his phone to the KyuMin couple to read.

“WHAT?!” KyuMin exclaimed in unison, equally shocked and saddened by this rule that Leeteuk set for them.

“Heechul hyung, it wasn’t her fault this time. Taemin knocked into a table edge when he was hopping to me in the room. Then it hit the exact injured spot so… yeah,” Onew explained. Heechul sighed and nodded as KyuMin called Leeteuk to complain.

“LEETEUK HYUNG! HOW COULD YOU?! COME ON! We didn’t mean to, but it was just so… tempting…” Sungmin pleaded, failing ultimately as he ended the call half a minute later.

“If we have the time, we’ll visit him. Wish him a speedy recovery for us! See you… soon!” Heechul said, waving to the hoobae as he tried to break KyuMin apart. The three SuJu members walked away, and Onew rushed to the meeting spot, realising that he had only five minutes left. Luckily, he made it there before Victoria did, and was catching his breath when she appeared in front of him barely a minute later, carrying as many shopping bags as Kyuhyun was.

“Noona, are you sure you still want to shop? Why don’t we just leave after taking some pictures and snacks?” Onew asked, wanting to get back to Taemin as soon as possible. “And which bags have my side of whatever couple shirts you bought?”

“This bag has it. There are two of them, so just wash them with the other clothes. Fine, I guess we can leave after that. But should I follow you to the dorm? I haven’t seen Taemin in quite some time, you know. Please? I won’t hurt him, I promise,” Victoria asked, genuinely wanting to visit Taemin, and she would definitely keep her promise.

“He’s out now. With Minho or Key, I think. We’re going to practice singing to please don’t disturb us… It’s going to end at midnight, earliest, so we’re sleeping at the place, in our car. Frankly speaking, I have no idea where we’re practicing… Manager hyung told us to meet him in the dorm by about 12.30pm, and then he’s going to cab to the place with us,” Onew lied blatantly. Luckily for him, Victoria fell for the lie and nodded sadly.

“Ne. Tell me when you’re both free. Maybe we can hang out?” Victoria asked. Onew nodded without hesitation, grinning at Victoria brightly.

“Arasso. Let’s go get neoprints! Here we come~” Onew sang, faking enthusiasm as he went to find a neoprints machine. After walking around for ten minutes, the two of them finally found an empty machine, posing for the pictures weirdly and somewhat cutely.

“I need my chicken…” Onew whined once they collected the pictures. Victoria sighed and nodded, waiting for Onew to lead the way.

“Yah! Lead the way, chicken maniac!” Victoria ordered when Onew didn’t budge. Onew stoned for a while, but went to find the closest chicken shop that he knew of.

“Three plates of fried chicken,” Onew ordered once they were seated. The waiter nodded, jotting the order down as he waited for Victoria to order.

“One medium bowl of ginseng chicken please,” Victoria told the waiter. He nodded, writing the order down before bowing and walking to the kitchen.

Fifteen minutes later, their food arrived, and they ate in silence. After another fifteen minutes, Onew stood up to pay for their food. They then hailed a cab and went back to SM’s building, another thirty minutes of silence.

“Bye noona! See you tomorrow! I think we should go to the park… or the gym. I need to work out…” Onew sighed at the thought of exercising, causing Victoria to chuckle silently before nodding. “Yah! I’m not kidding… Exercise… repels me…” Onew complained, holding the lift door open for Victoria before pressing ‘four’ and ‘six’ respectively.

“Arasso. Then let’s go to the gym! Burn off all the extra fats from eating chicken!” Victoria joked, sticking her tongue out at Onew.

“Aish… fine,” Onew said, giving in.

“How long can you go for? Two hours, maybe? From about 10.30am, at SM’s gym, ok?” Victoria planned. Onew thought about it, nodding.

“Ne. I’ll meet you at 10.30am tomorrow then!” Onew exclaimed, waving to Victoria as he walk out of the lift and went to SHINee’s dorm.

“Bye!” Victoria shouted back just as the lift doors closed.

Opening the door to the dorm, Onew went into the bedroom, not bothering to lock the door as he put the bags of clothes on his bed. *Better hide this somewhere… imagine if Minho finds it!* Onew thought worriedly, not sure of what Minho might do out of… whatever. “Let’s put it under my bed…” Onew murmured to himself, stuffing the bag under his bed before rushing out of the dorm and back to the hospital.

On the cab to the hospital, many thoughts flooded Onew’s mind, but the most important one was: Why did Minho kiss Taemin? Somehow, Onew just couldn’t understand the reason behind it. The only thing he could think of was that Minho loved Taemin, but what were the chances of that? Minho definitely knew that Onew was true to Taemin, so what exactly WAS the reason? Onew didn’t know, but he wanted to. His gut feeling just told him that Minho did love Taemin, the main reason behind kissing someone.

“Hello? We’re here already!” the driver shouted, penetrating Onew’s thoughts.

“Oh… um, thanks, ahjusshi,” Onew said, taking his wallet out and paying for the ride before getting out and walking hastily to Taemin’s ward. *Let’s not ask Minho about this just yet…* Onew thought, not wanting Taemin to get worried.

Onew reached Taemin’s ward, but was greeted by emptiness. “, where are they? They didn’t get kidnapped, did they?!” Onew muttered under his breath, already panicked though it had only been ten seconds.

 

{From: Onew ♥Chicken

Where’s Taemin?! And you guys, too! Don’t tell me you’re playing a prank cause it’s not funny… reply as soon as possible!

To: Key umma

       Mrs. Lee

       Manager hyung

       Minho

       Jonghyun}

 

Onew sent the message, panic rising by the second. He felt his phone vibrate in his hand, and he opened the message immediately.

 

{From: Kibum~

Hyung, Taeminnie’s at his checkup. Sort of a checkup, anyway. We’re at the room beside the counter. Three rooms to the right of Taemin’s. CHILL, OK? He’s been waiting for you :) see you! And the others are all here, so seriously, relax…

To: Leader Onew}

 

Sighing in relief, Onew ran out of the room to the area where Key said they were. Upon seeing the SHINee family and Mrs. Lee outside the room, Onew walked to them, catching his breath although it was only three rooms.

“I completely freaked out. I thought you guys were kidnapped! Next time this happens, please tell me beforehand…” Onew exclaimed, exasperated.

“Well sorry. Dr. Jang thinks that something might be wrong, so he just scheduled this last-minute checkup. It’s just to make sure, ok?” Jonghyun told Onew, rolling his eyes at the leader’s obvious anxiety over a simple matter.

“Yah! Don’t roll your eyes at me! Imagine if Key was injured, you left for a few hours, and then when you came back, he’s missing? How would you feel?! Huh? Why won’t you answer me?” Onew demanded from Jonghyun who hung his head, knowing exactly what Onew meant.

“Hyung, cut it out. I’m quite sure that Jjong didn’t mean anything when he rolled his eyes at you. It’s our fault for not telling you, ok? I thought that since you were probably going to arrive at about 1pm, we wouldn’t have to tell you,” Key explained, trying to prevent a fight from breaking out between the two eldest members.

“Fine, Key UMMA,” Onew stressed the word, causing even Key to sigh and roll his eyes. “What did Dr. Jang say might be wrong?”

“He said that there’s a possibility of Taemin never being to dance things like ‘Replay’, ‘Juliette’, ‘Ring Ding Dong’, all your power dances, anyway. And there’s a chance of his recovery taking longer than expected cause he’s a little stressed and somewhat depressed now… He said Taemin would recover faster if he’s better rested, happier, and less stressed about all the SHINee World Concerts and everything,” Mrs. Lee explained to Onew who nodded.

“So that means I have to spend more time with him? No problem, me and noona are going out for about two hours only, anyway. I can talk with him later,” Onew stated simply, ending the conversation as Taemin was wheeled out.

Taemin’s face brightened up as soon as he saw Onew, smiling at the leader happily, but frowned a little afterwards. “Hyung, you’re back! I’m sure someone told you about why I was here, right?” Taemin asked. Onew nodded, wanting to know the results. “Dr. Jang said that I might not be able to dance all the power dances anymore…. A 70% chance of that happening, too…” Taemin said sadly, pouting as Dr. Jang appeared behind him.

“However, if he’s kept happy, rested and unstressed, there’s about an 80% chance of full recovery!” Dr. Jang added, smiling at the others.

“Ok. Thanks, Dr. Jang. We’ll see you soon. Or better if we don’t,” the manager joked. Dr. Jang nodded, bowed and took his leave. The SHINee members then started bickering over who should wheel Taemin back to his ward.

“Let me do it. And shush, this is the hospital… Jinjja…” Mrs. Lee said, ending the squabble immediately.

“Taeminnie, do you need me to talk with you? Maybe in the hospital garden or something. Or maybe we can eat chicken!” Onew suggested, grinning at the thought of chicken, although he just had it two hours ago. The SHINee family, along with Mrs. Lee, had reached Taemin’s ward, and everyone had gone back to where they were sitting at the previous night.

“Later, after my lunch which is here,” Taemin told Onew as Mrs. Kim walked in with a tray, smiling at the others.

“Taemin-ah, your lunch. Is your face still red from just now?” Mrs. Kim asked in concern, scanning the maknae’s face.

“Nope. Thanks for the concern, Mrs. Kim. I’ll see you later!” Taemin said jokingly, waving the elder out of the room.

“I’m older than you, Taemin-ah. Show me some respect! But you are right. I have to get back to work. Mrs. Lee, you know what to do with the tray. See you tomorrow! I’m not taking the night shift today. Bye!” Mrs. Kim said, waving to the people in the room as she kissed Key lightly on the forehead, walking out of the room quickly.

“Bye umma!” Key shouted, knowing that she wouldn’t hear him from there.

“Tae, why was your face red?” Onew asked curiously. Taemin ignored the question, beginning to eat his lunch.

“Why was his face red?” Onew asked again, a little pissed off already.

“I slapped him cause he was being vulgar,” Mrs. Lee finally answered.

“But why?” Onew asked, confused.

“I told you. He was being vulgar,” Mrs. Lee replied tiredly.

“Oh… ok. Taeminnie, when you’re done, we’ll go to the garden,” Onew told the maknae, who looked up and nodded.

After half an hour, Taemin finished his food, and OnTae went to the hospital garden to talk about some random stuff.

“Hyung, how long are you going out for tomorrow?” Taemin asked curiously. Onew used his fingers to show ‘two’, lazy to speak.

“But I’m just telling you, you’ll get an awesome surprise on Wednesday, I promise,” Onew told Taemin who beamed and nodded.

For the next few hours, they just stayed there, Taemin trying to convince Onew to tell him about his plans for Wednesday, but being turned down continuously. When it was finally 5pm, the two of them returned to the ward.

“So, how was the talk?” Key asked.

“Good? I guess,” Onew replied, yawning. He went to sleep on the couch, and Taemin fell asleep too. The others shrugged their shoulders, JongKey deciding to go shopping for a while. Minho went to jog, and the manager stayed in the room, falling asleep along with Mrs. Lee.

When the clock pointed to 10pm, the other three members got back, tired from shopping and exercising for almost a quarter of a day.

At midnight, Minho stood up again, walking over to the bedside to steal another kiss from Taemin. this time, all the other SHINee members were awake, but hid that fact by closing their eyes almost completely, not moving an inch.

*How could he? I’m taken, hyung… holy man… Do you NOT understand what it means by ‘I’m taken’? It means you shouldn’t kiss me, cause I have a boyfriend!* Taemin thought in frustration. In the end, he just went back to sleep, not caring about Minho anymore, unless, of course, the older male did something worse than this.

*Minho you ! You’d better have a very, very good reason for this!* Onew exclaimed in his head, wanting to curse at the younger member but resisting the urge to.

*What the heck is wrong with Minho?! We should really warn him…* JongKey thought, sighing silently before they, too, went to sleep.

*YAY! ANOTHER KISS STOLEN FROM MINNIE!!!* Minho exclaimed excitedly, ‘Minnie’ being his new pet name for Taemin. But of course, he would only use it in his mind or if he got Taemin from Onew, which was virtually impossible. For now.

 

 

 

 

 

Well, this chappie's finally up ^^ enjoy~ and keep reading and commenting :) look forward to the next chapter kay? and by the way, this is the longest chapter yet o.O i'll probably update by the following friday!! :D and i dunno what's with the random HanChul and KyuMin... haha X) tell me what you think of the current plot!!! XD