(A day later)

“Hyung?” Taemin groaned and sat up slowly. Looking around the room, he remembered what happened the previous night.

*How did tickling turn into this? Aigo…* Taemin sighed mentally and stretched his arms.

“Gyeongshik hyung?” Taemin called out. Gyeongshik yawned, blinked a few times and looked at Taemin sleepily, his brain still trying to process the information.

“Taemin, you’re awake. Do you need me to get you anything?” Gyeongshik asked, propping the pillow properly for Taemin to lean against. The maknae smiled and shook his head.

“Maybe later. I just wanted to ask where the hyungs are. And does my umma know about this? That it’s partially Onew hyung’s fault?” Taemin asked worriedly.

“Taemin-ah, you have to start thinking about yourself more. But no, your umma doesn’t know and she definitely doesn’t know that it’s Onew’s fault, arasso?” Gyeongshik asked.

“Ne! Then where are the hyungs?” Taemin asked again.

“They’re in the dorm. Onew wanted to come here after the Japanese lesson but we wouldn’t let him. And Victoria left at around midnight. She left this note for you,” Gyeongshik said, grabbing a piece of paper from the bedside table. “She told me not to read it.”

Taemin gulped slightly, unfolded the note and read it. On it were words, written in red: ‘Watch out. You never know what’s going to come next.’

“H-hyung, did Victoria noona seem a little out of s-sorts yesterday?” Taemin asked, his voice quivering slightly. Gyeongshik thought about this and shook his head.

“When I got here, she was pacing around in front of the operation room. Once Dr. Jang said that you were fine, she heaved a huge sigh of relief. But I heard from f(x) that she was a little strange during Inkigayo. Why?” Gyeongshik asked, oblivious to the dangers that Taemin could be in.

“Never mind,” Taemin replied, trying to be as calm as possible.

*What did any of the hyungs do to make noona change so much? Minho hyung, he must have tricked her!* Taemin thought angrily, but decided to forget the matter.

“Taemin! How are you?” a familiar voice asked, the speaker’s head popping past the door; Heechul.

“Chullie umma!” Taemin exclaimed, forgetting about the note for the moment. Heechul smiled and went to hug Taemin, followed by the other SuJu members. Gyeongshik smiled at the sight and left them to talk amongst themselves.

“So when are IU, G.Na and 4Minute meeting us and where?” Leeteuk, being the leader, asked.

“I don’t know. They’re all free this evening, that’s all I know,” Taemin shrugged.

“Care to elaborate on what happened that day?” Sungmin asked politely. Taemin nodded.

“It started when Seob hyung and Doojoon hyung went to sit at DBSK’s table while waiting for SHINee to get back from our trip to the salon…” Taemin began.

 

[Flashback]

“Seobie! Yah, weren’t you hungry?” Doojoon asked, confused.

“B-but it’s so BIG!” Yoseob pouted. Doojoon shook his head and went to take food for both of them; Ramen for Yoseob and fried chicken for him. Of course, he took coke for himself too.

“Yang Yoseob, come here and eat before you starve,” Doojoon instructed. Yoseob sighed, nodded and headed towards the table that Doojoon was at. It was then that he realised they were at DBSK’s table. Yoseob stared blankly at the tag for a few moments before poking Doojoon.

“Joonie, are we supposed to sit here?” Yoseob asked, pointing at the tag in confusion.

Doojoon looked at the tag and ignored it. “It’s alright. They won’t kill us, will they?” Doojoon asked. Yoseob shrugged his shoulders as he dug into his ramen.

“Doojoon? Yoseob?”  Changmin asked, getting the two boys’ attention. “Why are you here? And at our table, too.”

“Hyung, hi! Long time no see?” Doojoon tried to be cheerful.

“Answer me or I’ll kick you out of this place,” Changmin warned. He seemed to be in a relatively bad mood today. Who knows why though? PMS much, maybe?

“We’re waiting for SHINee?” Yoseob answered, unsure of what to say.

“Then sit at their table, dammit. I need space to eat and as you can see, our table only has four seats. That isn’t enough space for me cause I’m hungry. Shoo,” Changmin told them.

“Ne,” Doojoon said and grabbed their stuff before walking off to find SHINee’s table. It had six seats, so the two of them just sat down and ate quietly, still shocked by Changmin’s random outburst.

“Joonie, I told you. We should have moved when we had the chance,” Yoseob pouted and began to sob. Doojoon’s eyes widened and he patted Yoseob’s back gently.

[End of flashback]

 

“Changmin did that? Shim Changmin?” Siwon asked, raising his brow. Taemin nodded.

“And after that…” Taemin continued.

 

[Flashback]

“Whatever. I’m sorry for shouting at you, Yoseob,” Changmin said sarcastically. Yoseob blinked a few times, sensing the tone behind it and ran off to the toilet to cry again.

“Changmin hyung, you’re usually fun. What’s you problem today?” Taemin asked, hobbling to the toilet with his crutches to find Yoseob. Doojoon followed Taemin, helping the younger male along the way. Key nodded in agreement with Taemin.

“You’re being a jerk today. Think about it,” Key said in went with Taemin and Doojoon.

“What? I’m always like this if I’m in a bad mood,” Changmin told them and walked away.

“Changmin hyung, yah! Insensitive!” Minho shouted.

Onew looked at Minho. Wasn’t Changmin like a brother to Minho? “Hyung, why don’t you stop being so mean?” Onew suggested.

“I don’t care,” Changmin said as he walked back to his table.

Jonghyun sighed and went to stop Changmin. “Hyung, you’re not usually like this. Just stop it, ok? It’s not nice to make others cry,” Jonghyun told Changmin.

“Like I said, I don’t care. Let go of me,” Changmin pushed Jonghyun away and sat down to continue eating. Those at the table were staring at him.

“What. Did. You. Do. To. Seobie?” Hyunseung said between gritted teeth. He had seen the baby-faced boy run off and was really pissed right now.

“I apologised. Not my fault if he cries again,” Changmin retorted.

Gikwang and Jonghyun went up to JunSeung and told them what happened.

“You what?!” Hyunseung screeched. All the people in the canteen turned to face them, attracted by the commotion.

“You’re way too much, you know that? Seungie, let’s find Seobie,” Junhyung grabbed Hyunseung’s hand and went to the toilet to find the crying boy.

“What happened?” Yunho asked.

“Seobie cried again cause he,” Gikwang pointed at Changmin, “was being sarcastic when he apologised. And he called Dongwoon a babo for being concerned about Seobie. Jerk,” Gikwang spat.

“I completely agree. Let’s go,” Jonghyun said and they ran to find Yoseob as well.

Onew and Minho looked at each other, then Changmin, and they went to find Yoseob too. Changmin had gone way too far this time.

[End of flashback]

 

“What in the name of hell…?” Shindong asked in disbelief.

“I can’t believe Changmin did that!” Donghae exclaimed and shook his head.

“Well, he did. From what Seob hyung and Doojoon hyung told me, that’s what happened. Now we need to get back at Changmin hyung. Any ideas?” Taemin asked.

“What about pranking him?” Eunhyuk suggested.

“Like how?” Donghae asked. Kyuhyun and Heechul exchanged evil glances.

“Steal his food!” they both said at the same time. It was a well-known fact that Changmin’s fear was his food being taken away from him.

“But he keeps his personal storage somewhere. Somewhere that needs a key,” Taemin reminded them. They two of them thought about this and snapped their fingers.

“We’ll get Jaejoong or Yunho to ask him!” Heechul exclaimed.

“I think Jaejoong hyung would be a better candidate to ask though,” Kyuhyun added.

“Jaejoong hyung was on Seob hyung’s side that day. Yunho hyung wasn’t. Ask Jaejoong hyung then!” Taemin decided. The others nodded and Leeteuk took his phone out to call the younger male.

 

“Leeteuk hyung? I’m at the salon now. Trick Changmin into telling me where his key for his personal storage of food is? Why? Ah, revenge for Yoseob. I get it. I totally understand that it’s Changmin’s fault. Don’t worry, I’ll talk to him soon. Maybe later. Bye,” Jaejoong said and ended the call.

“What is it now?” Junsu asked Jaejoong.

“The same one as last time. The problem with Changmin and Yoseob. I’ll call Changmin now,” Jaejoong announced and scrolled through his contacts.

“Yeoboseyo? Changmin-ah, its Jae umma here. I wanted to ask where the key for your personal store of food was. Because… I want to check how food much you have left. Then I can decide on whether I should buy more food for you. It’s at the first drawer, under all your clothes? Arasso. I’ll go when you’re not home. Kay, bye!” Jaejoong ended the call, smiling in satisfaction.

 

{From: Hero Jae :D

Leeteuk, the key’s under Changmin’s clothes in the first drawer of the bedroom. The mahogany-colored one. Go on a day when he’s not home. And his food is hidden in a chest under his bed. It’s the one with a more childish bed sheet. Good luck :)

To: Leeteuk}

 

Jaejoong shut his phone and kept it. *This is what you get for messing around with B2ST, Changmin-ah. I’m not against you or anything, but you deserve it. Good for you then!* Jaejoong thought.

 

“Now that we know where the key is, all that’s left is the discussion of when and how we’re going to do it,” Leeteuk said.

“Wait till tonight then. I’ll tell the B2ST hyungs to inform the noonas of where to meet. It’s alright to discuss everything here, right?” Taemin asked. The SuJu members nodded.

 

{From: Taeminnie :D

Hyung!!! Tell the noonas (IU, G.Na, 4Minute) to meet at the hospital, room 718. I’m in here. Again… :( if you can, come visit me, arasso? XD

To: Seob hyung
      Doojoon hyung
      Dongwoon hyung
      Gikwang hyung
      Hyunseung hyung
      Junhyung hyung}

 

“Done! Now what?” Taemin asked, feeling bored already.

“Did you eat lunch yet?” Donghae asked. Taemin shook his head.

“What are we waiting for? Let’s go! Come on, Taemin, I’m sure you can go to the canteen,” Sungmin said. Taemin pouted slightly.

“But Dr. Jang told me not to move around…” Taemin sighed.

“Then we’ll get it for you. Kyuhyun, Siwon, come on,” Shindong said.

“I want sandwiches!” Taemin shouted. Shindong nodded and walked out of the room, knocking Onew down.

“Ow… hyung?” Onew asked, rubbing his painfully.

“Onew, hi! We’re buying breakfast for Taemin!” Shindong said cheerfully.

“What do you mean by ‘we’? I only see you,” Minho stated, confused.

“No, Kyuhyun and Siwon are coming with… eh? Aish, those kids!” Shindong sighed and walked back into the room, reemerging with the two of them behind him, sulking.

“Right… let’s go in,” Jonghyun said and opened the door.

“SuJu hyungs?” Key asked. The few of them waved at SHINee at went back to talking.

“Taeminnie, I’m sorry… it’s always my fault, isn’t it?” Onew apologised.

“Hyung, I don’t blame you. Although it kind of was…” Taemin reconsidered his decision.

“Yah! Anyways, here are the notes from yesterday’s class,” Onew said and passed Taemin a file.

“I completely forgot! Thanks hyung!” Taemin said and opened the file.

“It’s my notes, not hyung’s, by the way,” Key boasted.

“Thanks umma! But why did you learn so much yesterday?! I can’t absorb all this…” Taemin whined.

“Even I did! Hwaiting~” Onew sang and pumped his fist into the air. Taemin smiled at his hyung and started going through the notes.

The others just chatted about what they would be doing for the rest of the day.

“We’re back!” Shindong shouted and set the food down on the table. Bags of them.

“Hyung? Don’t you think that’s a little… extreme?” Ryeowook asked.

“Wookie, you have to remember that it’s Shindong we’re talking about here,” Yesung said.

“Ah… yes, I get it,” Ryeowook joked.

“Yah! You want to die?” Shindong warned. Yesung sent the dancer a glare that shut him up instantly.

“Don’t you dare,” Yesung cautioned. Shindong held his hands up in surrender.

“Fine, I won’t threaten Ryeowook. Protective much?” Shindong rolled his eyes.

“Hyung, don’t say that about Sungie hyung. I’m sure you would do the same if you were in his shoes,” Ryeowook told Shindong who just sighed and nodded in defeat.

“Yeah, whatever. Let’s eat!” Shindong put his palms together and passed the sandwiches to Taemin before taking a bag of chips out for himself.

“Shindong hyung, stop eating so much,” Sungmin chided. Shindong ignored the younger male and opened the chips, munching on them immediately.

“Oh, thanks hyung. I’ll eat once I’m done reading these notes,” Taemin mumbled, not even looking up from the book. Onew shook his head in disapproval and opened the packet of sandwiches.

“Tae, say ah,” Onew instructed. The maknae did as told and opened his mouth, still reading the notes. Onew sighed and tore a piece of bread and put it into his lover’s mouth.

“Thanks hyung,” Taemin repeated and kept reading the notes.

“Stop reading the notes and eat already,” Key told Taemin, snatching the file from Taemin and placing the packet of sandwiches in his hand. Taemin pouted.

“But… I need to know what you learnt!” Taemin whined.

“After you eat,” Heechul said, supporting Key.

“Fine…” Taemin complied and took the sandwich from Onew, eating it as quickly as possible.

“Slow down,” Minho told Taemin worriedly.

“I need to go back to reading notes!” Taemin retorted and stuffed more bread into his mouth.

After a minute or so, Taemin had finished his sandwiches and was reading the notes again. Key, Onew, Heechul and Minho face palmed themselves.

*Why is he so hardworking?* they thought, unable to comprehend how the maknae thought.

 

“Taemin oppa!” Sulli exclaimed as her head peaked through the door, followed by the other f(x) members except for Victoria.

“Sulli, Amber, Luna, Krystal, hi!” Taemin greeted cheerfully. He had somehow managed to understand the several pages of notes within an hour.

“This is for you,” Krystal walked in and put the fruit basket on the table.

“Unni wanted us to pass this to you,” Luna said and took a note out of her pocket, similar to the one that Taemin got in the morning.

“What’s that?” Siwon asked curiously. Taemin shook his head and grabbed the note, putting it into his pocket hastily. “Why can’t we see it?”

“It’s private. Noona already told me that she’s passing something to me. This should be it,” Taemin lied. The others just believed him and dropped the matter.

“What brings you here?” Leeteuk asked.

“We heard from unni that Taemin was in the hospital so… yeah, we decided to visit him,” Amber explained. Leeteuk nodded in understanding.

“Wait, Victoria was here?” Sungmin asked, being the alert person he was.

“Last night. I told her about Taemin getting injured and she rushed over as soon as she could,” Jonghyun said, still not knowing that Taemin could be in a lot of danger.

The SuJu members looked at each other and dragged Onew to the staircase, Key following behind.

“How could you let Victoria know about this?” Heechul hissed.

“But hasn’t she changed?” Ryeowook asked naively.

“She… she knows something that she shouldn’t,” Onew admitted.

“What’s that?” Yesung asked, wanting to find out the full story.

“Let’s just say that she found out about me going back against our compromise,” Onew sighed.

“But how?” Donghae questioned.

“Minho brought her to stalk me and JongKey yesterday afternoon. She saw everything,” Onew sighed again. Key patted his hyung’s back in comfort.

“It wasn’t your fault, hyung. Blame Minho,” Key scoffed.

“What exactly was the compromise?” Eunhyuk asked curiously.

“That I, um, don’t…” Onew hesitated.

“That hyung doesn’t propose to Taeminnie,” Key helped Onew.

“What?!” the SuJu members screeched. They were shushed by a nurse who seemed really familiar to Onew and Key. The two of them frowned at the person who had also returned to look at them.

“Umma?”

“Onew? Kibum?”

“Mrs. Kim?”

The three of them pointed at each other and asked.

“What are you doing here?” it was Mrs. Kim who spoke this time.

“Let’s just say Taemin got into a little accident. Again,” Key said. “And please don’t tell Mrs. Lee, ok?”

“I wouldn’t tell her, but aren’t you forgetting something?” Mrs. Kim asked. Key raised his brow.

“Huh?” he asked, not understanding what she meant.

“Annyeong haseyo, Mrs. Kim,” Onew greeted, nudging Key lightly.

“Oh… hi umma,” Key greeted and scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

“Right. Hi. Annyeong haseyo, Mrs. Kim imnida. I’m Kibum's umma,” Mrs. Kim introduced herself.

“Annyeong haseyo, we are Super Junior,” the ten idols greeted.

“I know,” Mrs. Kim said and smiled at them. “Anyway, I’d better get back to work. Jinki, I suggest that you don’t let Taemin’s umma find out about this,” Mrs. Kim warned.

Onew nodded. “Of course. See you next time!” Onew waved to Mrs. Kim.

“Bye then!” Mrs. Kim bid her goodbye and went back to work.

“Back to the main point: PROPOSE?!” Kyuhyun yelled.

“Yeah well… she saw me going to buy a ring with JongKey… it’s all Minho’s fault,” Onew said.

“I agree. Let’s hope that nothing bad happens to Taemin. Does she know when you plan to do it?” Heechul asked. Onew shook his head.

“Only Key knows,” Onew confirmed. Key nodded in agreement.

“So what can we do about this?” Sungmin asked. Onew shrugged, but it was obvious that he was worried. He just didn’t want to show it.

“We have to keep a close eye on noona. She passed something to Taemin. I think that it’s a warning. But Taemin knows nothing, does he?” Leeteuk asked. Onew shook his head.

“I can’t let him know! Hyung, are you MAD?” Onew asked incredulously. Leeteuk shrugged.

“I don’t know. Come on. Let’s get back. I’m sure Taemin’s worried,” Leeteuk said and returned to the hospital ward. The rest of them followed behind him.

“Taemin, what’s that?” Jonghyun asked. The f(x) members had left for their schedule already, so there was only Jonghyun, Minho and Taemin left in the room.

“Nothing. Noona told me to read it in private,” Taemin lied. Jonghyun, trusting as he was, bought Taemin’s story immediately. Minho, on the other hand, knew what was going on.

“You sure?” Minho asked, raising a brow suspiciously. Taemin nodded slightly.

“Why would I lie to you?” Taemin retorted in a whisper.

“Don’t know. The hyungs are back,” Minho pointed at the door.

“What’d you guys go off to talk about?” Taemin asked curiously.

“Just… discussing something. Anyway, what’s with that note?” Heechul asked, wanting to snatch it from Taemin there and then.

“Hehe, noona just wanted to remind me not to walk around too much,” Taemin bluffed.

“f(x) left already?” Eunhyuk asked. Minho just nodded at the elder male.

“So… it’s noon. What do you want to do?” Sungmin asked awkwardly. Silence filled the room as the idols looked back and forth from each other, unsure of what to say.

“What about filling the SHINee boys in on our plan?” Donghae suggested.

“Why not?” Siwon said. “So we were thinking of pranking Changmin by stealing all of his food. The ones he uses for emergencies, under his bed. We found out where the key’s kept, so now all we have to do is get him and Yunho out of the dorm. We’ll get the others to do that.”

“IU, G.Na and 4Minute? I think that works,” Jonghyun commented, nodding to himself.

“Then it’s set! We’ll discuss something tonight. Right now, let’s go back to the dorm. I’m beat…” Leeteuk said and walked out. EunHae, YeWook, KyuMin and Shindong followed him.

“Siwon hyung, you’re staying?” Taemin asked in confusion.

“What? Oh! See you later, Taemin! The others too! Hyung, wait for me!” Siwon yelled and ran out of the room, keeping his pocket bible in his bag.

“Siwon is just… way too devoted. Taemin, you want to get anything?” Heechul asked.

“Can I go to the park? Hyung, can we go?” Taemin turned to Onew and asked cutely.

“Dr. Jang told you to stay in bed, didn’t he?” Onew scolded. Taemin pouted and hid under the blanket. Onew sighed.

“You’re mean!” Taemin shouted from under the blanket.

“Taemin, Chullie umma will bring you there. Come on out,” Heechul said. Taemin peeked from the top of the blanket suspiciously.

“Jinjja?” Taemin asked warily. Heechul smiled and nodded.

“Yes. Now come on, the wheelchair’s here. Careful,” Heechul helped Taemin onto the wheelchair and pushed him out. Frustrated, Onew followed the two of them.

“Tae! I was just listening to Dr. Jang’s instructions. Don’t be angry, please?” Onew asked. Taemin just ignored the elder male and looked around the garden.

“Chullie umma, there’s another garden at the back. That one’s nicer,” Taemin said. Heechul nodded and wheeled Taemin to the other garden, Onew still following them desperately.

“It’s right there!” Taemin pointed to the right excitedly.

“This is… beautiful,” Heechul said in awe. The garden hadn’t changed at all, except for the newly grown plants. “Why didn’t Hannie bring me here a few years ago?” Heechul complained.

“This garden is relatively new, hyung. Maybe three years?” Onew informed Heechul.

“Aish… I was injured five years ago. Sad,” Heechul sighed. “That flower looks awesome!” Heechul said, pointing at an aster.

“It symbolizes love and delicacy,” Taemin told his ‘umma’, smiling proudly.

“And how do you know that?” Heechul asked. Taemin pointed at Onew.

“Yeah well, I brought him here the other time so… yup,” Onew said.

“Oh those daisies look nice too!” Heechul exclaimed. “What are those?” Heechul asked, pointing to three different flowers.

“A yarrow, eremurus and lucerne. I can’t quite remember what they symbolize though,” Taemin said.

“It’s ok. All I know about flowers is that Hannie gave me a Globe Amaranth and a Forget-Me-Not before. Guess where those went when he left?” Heechul asked, laughing to himself coldly.

“But he left not for other women or men, but for himself. Hyung, you have to forgive and forget. I’m sure he still contacts you, right?” Onew asked. Heechul just nodded blankly.

“But he left me… you heard him, didn’t you? He promised NEVER to leave me…” Heechul bit his lip.

“Not on purpose. But I kind of know how you feel, umma,” Taemin said in understanding.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Onew asked incredulously.

“I meant that with noona around, you pay less attention to me. Dammit hyung, why do you have to care so much about noona’s opinions?!” Taemin shouted, finally breaking.

“I don’t want her to hurt you!” Onew retorted. Heechul broke out of his trance.

“Yah! Stop fighting. This is probably one of the reasons why Hannie left!” Heechul told them.

“I just… forget it, you won’t understand…” Taemin sighed, thinking about the second note that Victoria had given him. On it was written, in red again, the few sentences: Onew is mine. Don’t even think of stealing him from me. I’m warning you, stay away from him. He already told me that he’s in love with me, so stop deluding yourself. Have fun in hell.

What the heck was Victoria’s problem? Like seriously… Taemin couldn’t understand her motives for warning him like this. Why would he even care? Yes, he was scared. No, he would not back off.

“Taeminnie, I’m sorry, arasso? It’s my fault for not being understanding enough,” Onew apologised as he rubbed the bridge of his nose.

“Whatever? Yeah, well I’m sorry too,” Taemin sighed.

“Good for you two! Anyone hungry?” Heechul asked. “I feel like having fried rice. Hannie isn’t here to cook it but I learnt from him!”

“Chullie umma, I’m afraid of your cooking… and where can you cook? In the hospital canteen and make all the female cooks faint in the process? Bad idea,” Taemin shook his head.

“Fine, sheesh…” Heechul rolled his eyes, making Taemin smile.

“Why don’t you just ask to borrow a stove? Then you can borrow a pot and the ingredients and maybe cook it in Tae’s room?” Onew suggested. Taemin shot his boyfriend a glare.

“Um, hyung, I doubt the doctors will allow it…” Taemin said. Onew raised a brow, not getting why Taemin was suddenly hostile to him.

“I can always bribe them,” Heechul smiled evilly. Taemin gulped. He did NOT want to die young.

“Right… let’s get back first and you can go ‘convince’ the staff to lend you the stuff you need. And probably to let you cook in the room,” Taemin said.

“Sure. Let’s go,” Heechul said and pushed Taemin into the room.

“You’re back! Heechul hyung, where are you going?” Minho asked.

“To get something from the staff. Be back soon,” Heechul said and left the room.

 

“Heechul oppa!” some nurses squealed. Heechul just smiled and waved at them and walked into the kitchen. The female staff froze while the male staff stared at him weirdly.

“Do you need something? You are aware that you’re not allowed in here unless you’re a staff, right?” the head chef asked. Heechul shrugged.

“I need some ingredients for Beijing Fried Rice, along with the utensils and cutlery. I’ll also need a portable stove,” Heechul stated, trying to be as polite as possible.

“We don’t allow people to cook food here unless they’re staff,” the chef repeated. A few female staff turned to him and glared at him, one of them even elbowing his stomach.

“Do you have any idea who I am?” Heechul asked incredulously. He was hungry and he wanted to cook. Kim Heechul always gets what he wants.

“No, I don’t,” the chef replied.

“Oh, well then. I’m Kim Heechul, a member of Super Junior. Nice to meet you,” he held his hand out.

“And I’m the head chef here. If you don’t mind, get out. We need to prepare food for the patients.

“I need to prepare food for ONE patient. Give it to me NOW,” Heechul warned.

“Head chef, just lend him the things. It’s not often he cooks for someone. I’m sure we can spare some of the ingredients,” one of the female staff said.

“No,” the head chef said. The female staff ignored him and started taking some food out. Some others, obviously ELF, followed after her. The head chef just stared at them, dumbfounded. Even as they passed everything Heechul asked for to him.

“Thanks girls~ I’ll leave a signature. Got a pen and paper? How many of you helped me?” Heechul asked, back to his usual state.

“Four, oppa,” one of them replied. Heechul nodded and hurriedly jotted down a short note and his signature, handing one to each of them.

“I got to go. Maybe I’ll see you again!” Heechul exclaimed and went out. It was only then that the head chef snapped out of his trance.

“Yah! Get back!”

Heechul smirked and quickened his steps on the way back to Taemin’s room.

“I’m back!” Heechul announced and set the things on the floor.

“Hyung… what’s that for?” Jonghyun asked.

“I’m cooking Beijing Fried Rice for Taemin. Want to eat?” Heechul asked. Jonghyun shook his head.

“I’ll go to the canteen and grab some food,” Jonghyun lied and rushed out. Minho followed behind the singer quickly.

“Strange. Key, come on. Want to help?” Heechul asked.

“Nah. I don’t know how. I’ll just get some food with Jjong and Minho,” Key said and ran out.

“I’ll just start then. This won’t take too long,” Heechul reassured the couple and began to prepare the food. Taemin sighed. This was not good.

*I wish it would take longer…* Taemin thought and shook his head.

“Taeminnie, is something wrong?” Onew asked worriedly. “You look pale.”

“Huh? Oh, it’s nothing. I’m just hungry…” Taemin lied and bit his lip. *Yeah right. Not even close!*

“Ok. I’m sure hyung will be done soon, right?” Onew asked.

“Yeah. This won’t take longer than half an hour,” Heechul reassured Taemin who held his breath.

“Tae? Hello? Breathe already!” Onew yelled at the maknae who blinked rapidly and came back to his senses. He breathed in the air that his lungs desperately needed and managed a small smile.

“You called me? Sorry, I was blanking out,” Taemin apologised.

“I was wondering why you weren’t breathing…” Onew sighed and shook his head. “Never mind.”

“Can you smell that? It’s good, isn’t it?” Heechul asked. Taemin breathed in and coughed.

“What’s wrong this time? Wait…” Onew breathed in and started coughing as well.

“Are you two alright? Do you need me to call Dr. Jang?” Heechul asked, not noticing how much black pepper was being put into the food.

“Hyung, stop!” Onew shouted. Heechul got a shock and his hand released the bottle of black pepper which had spilled all over the rice.

“Chullie umma…” Taemin began, but was cut off by Heechul.

“I can scoop it out! It’s still edible!” Heechul insisted and used a spoon to get as much black pepper out as possible.

“There!” Heechul said and put the extra black pepper onto a plate. He then continued to cook as if nothing had happened. The only problem was that there was still too much pepper. Three times the usual amount, from what OnTae could see.

*Now I understand why Tae was so hostile… it was this he was afraid of, wasn’t it? We’ll all be dead by the time the other three get back…* Onew thought fearfully.

The next twenty minutes passed in silence, Onew and Taemin coughing every now and then.

“I’m done!” Heechul exclaimed proudly and put the rice on three plates. There was still extra so OnTae guessed that the other members would get some too. Let’s hope they survive.

Heechul passed a plate to Onew and Taemin each before digging into his own. “It tastes great! As good as Hannie's, I must say!” Heechul complimented himself. He wasn’t faking it; he really was enjoying the rice he had cooked.

Onew and Taemin slowly took a small bite and tried their best to swallow it.

“Hyung…” Onew started, wanting to complain. Taemin could read his boyfriend’s mind and stopped him by nudging him slightly. “What?”

“What hyung wanted to say was that you rice tastes GREAT,” Taemin glared at Onew, who got the hint. “Hyung, mind helping me into the toilet?”

“Sure. Let’s go. We’ll continue eating when we’re out,” Onew told Heechul who just nodded.

“This is not the time to protect hyung’s feelings!” Onew hissed once they locked the door.

“I know, but he looks so happy. Let’s not burst his bubble and just eat the rice well,” Taemin said.

“Aish… fine, but only for you,” Onew said and gave in.

“Thanks hyung! Saranghae~” Taemin sang and kissed Onew on the lips.

The two of them went out and were shocked to see more rice on Heechul’s plate. They just said nothing, taking their own plate and eating it slowly.

“Hi people~ we’re back!” Key announced gleefully, thinking that he had escaped.

“Good. Here, this is for you. Jonghyun, Minho, take a plate too,” Heechul said with his mouth full.

The three of them looked at the rice reluctantly, then at OnTae who were smiling and gave them a thumbs-up. Thinking that it was safe, they started to eat before nearly choking.

“Heechul hyung, this rice is just…” Jonghyun said when he could speak.

“…fabulous!” Taemin finished, shooting the singer a look that could kill.

“Taemin, are you sick? This rice isn’t fabulous, it’s…” Key said.

“…fantastic! The best thing that I ever ate!” Onew ended.

“Is there something wrong with you two? How could you call this rice fabulous and fantastic? It’s plain…” Minho frowned and said.

“…awesome!”

“…wonderful!”

Onew and Taemin said in unison. The three members stared at them in disbelief.

“Aww, you thought so well of my rice? Thanks Onew, Taemin!” Heechul said gratefully and kept eating. The SHINee members nearly choked on nothing.

“Sorry hyung, can you excuse us?” Key asked politely. Heechul smiled and nodded.

Dragging OnTae out, the three members stared at them as if they were mad.

“Fabulous? Fantastic? Awesome? Wonderful?” Key questioned.

Jonghyun felt both of their foreheads. “No fever…”

“Are you INSANE?” Minho asked. Even this was too much for him.

“Oh come on… hyung was so happy. Don’t ruin the moment for him,” Onew told them.

“But we’ll probably get sick tomorrow if we really finish the whole plate. See? You and Taemin are already looking somewhat pale,” Key told them worriedly.

“If it makes Chullie umma feel better about himself, then it’s worth it. To me, anyway. This is one of the best ways that he can remind himself about Hankyung hyung and even if it really is horrible… I don’t care anymore,” Taemin told them.

“Taeminnie’s right. If you guys really want to make him upset about himself, make him think that he’s useless, go ahead. The two of us are going back to finish our rice,” Onew said and helped Taemin back in. The three members looked at each other in confusion.

“So now what?” Jonghyun asked. Key shrugged.

“The two of them were right. We’re being insensitive jerks. What right do we have to tell hyung that his food doesn’t taste nice? We should be glad that he even cooked for us. Let’s go back in,” Key said.

“I agree. We shouldn’t take Heechul hyung for granted. Come on,” Minho said, agreeing with Key.

“If we get sick tomorrow… don’t say I didn’t warn you. But fine, I’ll go,” Jonghyun gave in and walked in, grabbing his rice. The other two followed and continued eating as well.

After an hour, OnTae had managed to finish their plates of fried rice and successfully refused a second without hurting Heechul’s feelings.

“Why did you take so long, anyways?” Heechul asked the couple.

“We weren’t very hungry so we just took our time. No rush, since we don’t have schedules today,” Onew explained hastily. Taemin just nodded in agreement.

“And you three?” Heechul turned to Key, Jonghyun and Minho who were trying their best to stomach the nearly inedible food.

“We ate at the canteen just now, remember?” Minho replied, attempting not to start coughing.

Heechul nodded and just sat there, looking at the remaining rice. “I should go find Shindong or Hyukkie. I’ll be right back,” Heechul said and went out of the room to call Eunhyuk.

“I thought he was never going to leave! Holy crap I’m going to be sick…” Jonghyun said and lay down flat on the floor, not caring about hygiene anymore.

“Jjong… if I die, I just want to tell you that… I’m not going to wash those clothes of yours,” Key said and groaned, holding onto his stomach and leaning against the wall.

“I’m never eating Heechul hyung’s cooking AGAIN…” Minho complained and plopped onto the floor too. “Ugh, the floor’s cold… I’ll just get up. Anyone wants to eat this for me?”

“No. Freaking. Way. I’m going to puke soon…” Taemin said and hugged the bolster on his bed.

“Same here. I think we’ll die tomorrow. No kidding,” Onew sighed and texted their managers.

 

{From: Onew dubu

Gyeongshik hyung, Youngmin hyung, Choi Jin hyung, I don’t think any of the boys can make it for our schedules tomorrow… we’re all having a bad stomachache…

To: Gyeongshik hyung
       Choi Jin hyung
       Youngmin hyung}

 

Onew looked at the others, deciding to join Minho and Jonghyun on the floor.

 

“A stomachache? At the same time?” Choi Jin asked incredulously. He thought that it was all a plan to skip their schedules and get more rest, but Gyeongshik knew better.

“I’ve been with the boys since before debut; I should know when they’re lying. Onew won’t text like that if he’s trying to lie. Since they should still be at the hospital, let’s go check on them,” Gyeongshik suggested. Youngmin nodded in agreement and grabbed the car keys.

“Fine, come on then. I bet you 10k won that they’re lying,” Choi Jin said.

“I bet you 100k won that they’re not,” Gyeongshik shot back. Youngmin sighed.

“Hurry up, you childish managers. We need to get them to the doctor ASAP if they really are sick,” Youngmin said and opened the car door, getting in immediately. The other two followed. The rest of the journey was a pretty silent one, except for some jokes that Youngmin tried to crack to lighten up the mood. Those failed though. Pretty badly, too.

By the time the managers got to the hospital, all of SHINee had finished their respective plates of rice and really felt like dying. OnTae had already gone to puke once, and Jonghyun felt like doing so too. But they still didn’t reveal the truth to Heechul. Not yet.

Meanwhile, Heechul had managed to get both Eunhyuk and Shindong back to the hospital to eat. Usually, he didn’t accidentally pour in three times the supposed amount of black pepper, so they wrongly assumed that it was safe.

When they each took a bite out of the rice, their eyes widened and they struggled to swallow.

“Hyung?” Shindong called out, looking at the state of the SHINee members. Taemin, who was nearly dead already, still managed to glare at Shindong.

“Yeah? Is something wrong?” Heechul asked. Shindong shook his head.

“This is just awesome. Keep up the good work. I think I’ll eat this in the canteen first. You can pour all the rice into one plate and I’ll bring the other stuff back for you,” Shindong offered. All he wanted to do was pour all that horrible rice away.

“Hyung, I’m coming along. I doubt you can carry so many things alone,” Eunhyuk said, catching on rather quickly. They both had the same thoughts about the rice.

“No problem,” Heechul said and transferred the rice before passing all the utensils and cutlery to the two members who sped off right as they took the things.

“Shindong? Eunhyuk?” the managers asked. Shindong and Eunhyuk stopped and stared at the three men, tilting their heads to the side in confusion.

“We’re SHINee’s managers,” Choi Jin explained.

“Right. What’s up?” Eunhyuk asked.

“You guys just came out of Taemin’s room right? Are the kids really having a stomachache? If yes, then why?” Gyeongshik asked. Shindong held the plate to the managers, gesturing for them to try it.

After a mouthful of the rice, the managers understood.

“They ate a full plate, each. Please understand what they went through,” Shindong said.

“I see. Choi Jin?” Gyeongshik held his hand out for his money which Choi Jin reluctantly handed over.

“I say we bring them to the doctor now. Or maybe we should get Dr. Jang. Choi Jin, go, hurry. We’ll check on them,” Youngmin said. The latter complied and ran off as he could.

“Good luck to you but don’t tell Heechul hyung that it was his fault. He really thinks that the rice is good and ate two plates without a problem. Taemin will kill you if you make hyung sad,” Eunhyuk warned. The managers nodded and sped off to Taemin’s room.

“Heechul, can you go out for a while? We need to talk to the kids privately,” Youngmin said.

“Sure. See ya!” Heechul said and waved to SHINee. Once Heechul was out of earshot, the managers broke into panic mode.

“I’m going to the toilet…” Key groaned and pushed himself off the ground. Minho followed behind the diva and they both puked in the toilet.

“Holy … where’s Choi Jin?!” Youngmin shrieked. He was freaked out by how the kids even managed to finish one bite of the rice, much less an entire plate.

“I’m here! Dr. Jang, they’re really sick and they need help NOW,” Choi Jin shouted at the doctor.

“What the hell happened to them? I need nurses!” Dr. Jang shouted out of the door. A few nurses ran in with a stretcher, only to run out and get four more.

The nurses and Dr. Jang helped the five SHINee members onto a stretcher each and the nurses pushed them out of the room.

“I hope they’re alright… But I’d better call to cancel their schedules,” Youngmin sighed and took his phone out to inform the producers of various programs that SHINee was supposed to be on.

“Where were the nurses pushing them off to?” Heechul asked when he walked back in.

“They just had a bad stomachache. Probably ate something wrong,” Gyeongshik shrugged.

“Maybe it’s cause of my rice? But I’m completely fine and it really tasted delicious!” Heechul said, more to himself than to others. The managers looked at each other weirdly.

*Is Heechul mad?* they all thought, shaking their heads.

“We’ll find the kids first and make sure they’re ok. I guess you should join Eunhyuk and Shindong in the canteen?” Gyeongshik said, unsure.

“Yeah, alright. I hope they’re safe!” Heechul said and went out. As soon as he did, he bumped into a strangely dressed man. “Sorry,” Heechul apologised and walked off.

“Are you in charge of Taemin?” the man asked the managers. He noticed that there wasn’t anyone from SHINee there. This wasn’t his job.

“Yes, and you are?” Choi Jin asked the man.

“Just call me Victor. I’m here to pass this note to Taemin. Don’t read it unless he allows you to,” the man said, passing a piece of paper to the managers before leaving hastily.

“His accent seems familiar… and his name… Are you really going to wait till Taemin gets better?” Youngmin asked, referring to the note.

“Heck no. I’m reading it now,” Gyeongshik said and opened the note up. He really wished he hadn’t.

On the note was printed, no longer written, in red. The words were in bold, too.

You won’t win, Taemin. Give up.

The managers looked at each other in both confusion and horror. Who sent this? Most importantly, why?

 

 

 

 

hi~~ finally updated ^^ guess who Victor is? and who sent the note? i really dunno where i'm going with this story but thanks to all my readers and suscribers :) comments are loved and sorry for the late update >< school hols are making me have worse writer's block than i already had... look forward to the next update :D