“Yah Tae, you slept in! Hurry up or we’ll be late!” Key shook Taemin and pulled him from his bed. Taemin yawned and rubbed his eyes, looking around to see that he was in his bedroom. Key looked at Taemin with worried eyes. “Are you feeling ok? You look a little pale.” Key put the back of his hand on Taemin’s forehead, his eyes widening with concern.

“I’m fine. I just had a really bad dream.” Taemin tried to walk to the bathroom, but Key quickly pushed him back into his bed, wrapping the covers tightly around him. The younger singer groaned as Key started to mother him.

“You’re not fine at all. Your temperature is high, but you look pale as ice. I’m gonna call manager hyung and tell him to cancel your schedule for the day.” Key took out his phone and started dialling, calling the other members into Taemin’s room.

Minho, Jonghyun, and Onew quickly ran into the room, crowding around their maknae. “What’s wrong with our Taemin?” Jonghyun Taemin’s hair as Key held the phone to his ear. Taemin tried to protest, but his hyungs insisted on him resting.

“He’s pale and got a very high temperature. I’m calling our managers now, there’s no way that Taemin can take part on ‘Running Man’ today!” Key walked out of the room and spoke to the manager, while the other members took care of Taemin.

“Ah what a shame, he would have liked being on ‘Running Man’ too. I was really looking forward to going on with all of us today.” Minho sighed and pouted, pinching Taemin’s cheek. “There will be a next time.” Taemin coughed, a sharp pain shooting down his body.

“Hyungs, can’t you stay here today?” Taemin grabbed onto Jonghyun’s wrist, pulling him closer to him. “I don’t want to be left alone today.” Jonghyun sat on Taemin’s bed and his hair, raising an eyebrow.

“It’s too late to cancel now Taemin. The cast and staff will be waiting for us at the location in a few hours. Cancelling will mean the show will miss an airing date. You know how much hassle that can create.” Taemin whimpered and sat up, hugging his hyung snugly.

“What’s the matter with you Taeminnie? Do you feel really bad? Do you want me to call the hospital?” Onew held Taemin’s hands and looked at the maknae, biting his lip as the younger idol suddenly burst into tears.

Minho quickly sat next to Taemin, hugging him in his protective arms. “Tae what’s wrong? Why are you acting like this? Is something bothering you?” Taemin sat between his three hyungs, slowly nodding his head as Key walked back into the room.

“Our manager said that he will ring for a doctor to look after him while we film.” Key looked at Taemin with concern, seeing how he was starting to shake. “Taemin you need to rest, we will be back soon. Just take is easy, neh?”

“Tae said something is bothering him Key. Maybe we should take him to see someone.” Jonghyun rubbed Taemin’s back, watching as the maknae rubbed his puffy eyes.

“I had a really bad dream hyung. You were all there, and so was TVXQ, all five of them. W-We got caught and hurt by Lee Soo-Man!” Taemin hugged Minho, sobbing in fear. He never wanted to have that horrid dream again.

“Lee Soo-Man? But he was fired years ago. Why did you dream about him all of a sudden?” Onew cooed Taemin, who shrugged as he clung onto Minho.

“I-I don’t know. It was horrible! He wanted revenge on TVXQ for destroying his career, so he hurt Jaejoong hyung. He beat, and almost killed me!” Key quickly ran to Taemin, pushing Onew to the side, embracing Taemin in a comforting hug.

“It was only a dream sweetie! No one will harm you while we are here. I promise you of that!” Key whispered into Taemin’s ear, the young idol’s soft hair. Taemin nodded, biting his lip to comfort himself.

Jonghyun looked at his phone, receiving a text from their manager. “Guys, the car is waiting for us, and the doctor is at the front door.” Jonghyun quickly kissed Taemin on the cheek, and ran to the front door, letting the doctor in.

“We won’t be long, and we will win just for you Taeminnie.” Onew ran out after kissing Taemin on the forehead, bowing to the doctor as he walked pass.

“And if we don’t, we will shower you with bottles of banana milk!” Minho and Key kissed Taemin on the cheek, walking out of the bedroom, leaving the maknae alone.

“I love you hyungs!” Taemin smiled as he climbed into the bed, looking out of the window to see his hyungs wave at him, before getting into their car.

“Lee Taemin, I hear you’re not feeling too well today.” Taemin froze as a harsh voice came from his door. The doctor walked into the bedroom and placed his bag on the dressing table.

Slowly Taemin looked around, seeing the horrible figure he had dreamed about just a few minutes ago. Lee Soo-Man smirked as he took an item from his black bag, walking to the terrified boy. “W-Why...I-It can’t be you! What are you doing here?” Taemin backed into the wall, looking down through the window. The band was still in the car. Maybe he could get their attention quickly.

“What’s wrong Taemin? Not going to fight? Go on, cry like you always do. Nobody can protect you now.” Soo-Man walked closer to the horrified boy, holding a black remote firmly in his hand.

Taemin looked at the remote, then at his ankle that was chained to the bed post, meaning he couldn’t run away. Seeing the evil in Soo-Man’s eyes, Taemin started to panic, knocking on the window violently to get his friend’s attention. “HYUNGS HELP ME! SOO-MAN IS HERE! DON’T LEAVE ME ALONE!” Taemin screamed at the top of his lungs, breaking into another round of tears. How could they just leave him alone with this fiend?

Soo-Man wickedly chuckled as the car drove away, causing Taemin to scream again in panic. “Taemin, will you ever learn to fight your own battles?” Taemin turned around to see Soo-Man smile evilly. “When will Taemin become Taeman?

Taemin screamed in agony as Soo-Man pushed a button on the remote, sending a horrible shock into his body. The pained seemed to go on forever, until he finally fell into darkness.

“PLEASE DON’T LEAVE ME!” Taemin quickly opened his eyes, yelping in pain as his body ached, receiving a short electric shock from the chain around his ankle. He was already sweating, probably due to the nightmare he had just had.

“Taemin, we are right here. We haven’t gone anywhere.” Minho cooed from afar, watching the younger idol hug his leg, biting his lip.

“Taemin are you ok?” Onew looked at the maknae worriedly. He desperately wanted to break free of the chains and comfort the young band member.

Taemin looked around to see his friends waking up, some rubbing their legs where they had got a shock from. “I-I’m fine... Are you ok hyung?” Onew nodded, looking at Jonghyun, who was hugging the sobbing Key.

“What’s the matter Taeminnie, did you have a nightmare?” Soo-Man through the speakers, laughing as Taemin looked away, hiding his face from the camera.

“Why do you have to treat us so badly? Isn’t it bad enough that you’ve broken us?” Jonghyun spat at the camera, holding Key tightly. He wished Soo-Man was in the room right now, he would quickly kill that .

Soo-Man laughed. “Broken? You’re far from broken my dear boy. But don’t worry; you will get there sooner or later.” Soo-Man turned off the camera and speaker, walking to his bathroom to get ready for breakfast. “Let the games begin...

“W-Why can’t he just leave us alone?” Key looked at s, rubbing the tears from his eyes.

“Don’t worry Key, as the team leader I promise that we will get out safely.” Onew looked at Taemin, who was hugging his knees, hiding his face.

“I’m sick of his bull...” Taemin looked at his hyungs, his eyes full of anger. “IF HE THINKS THAT HE CAN BOSS US ABOUT, THEN HE HAS ANOTHER THING COMING!” Everyone sat in silence, shocked about Taemin’s sudden outburst.

“Taemin keep your voice down! He may still be listening to us!” Jonghyun warned Taemin, who just scoffed and looked at the camera.

“So what if he is? He should know what a huge jerk he is! YOU HEAR ME? YOU CAN DO WHAT YOU WANT, I DON’T CARE!” Taemin shouted at the camera, slightly revealed when no shock came through his chains. He was mad, but he didn’t want Soo-Man to hear his rage, it would make him think that he had got to them.

“Taemin just calm down, remember what happened the last time you tried to rebel? We almost lost you!” Minho looked at the maknae with pleading eyes. Taemin slowly began to calm down, holding his stinging ankle.

The peace was quickly broken as the door was opened, allowing a group of guards to storm in. The colour in Taemin’s completely faded as he backed into the corner, staring blankly at the guards that were walking towards him. He was quickly forced to his feet by guards holding his arms, and the chain was unlocked, allowing him to walk freely.

“W-Where are you taking him? Can’t you just leave him here?” Key stood up from on the edge of the bed, but was pushed back down by some guards.

“Soo-Man’s orders: the kid stays separate from you until he says otherwise. You got a problem, you talk to him.” The guard smirked as the rest of the band tried to fight past the guards to get to their maknae.

“Just let us comfort him at least!” Onew tried to reason with the guard, panicking when he saw Taemin trying to pull away from the men who were pulling him out of the room.

“You can’t do this to him! Can’t you see how scared he is?” Jonghyun tried to push a guard away, but the guard responded with a harder shove, pushing him to the floor. Jonghyun grunted in pain, falling agonizingly on his sore ankle. Key kicked about as he was held on the bed, the guards grabbed his chained ankle, making the singer bite his lip, fearing another electric shock.

“Jonghyun hyung are you ok?” Taemin looked around at his band members in fear, giving enough time for the guards to lift the young singer a few inches off the floor by him arms, and carry him out of the room. Taemin struggled and kicked about, but his actions were all in vain, soon he was being dragged down the halls into another room.

“But you can’t keep dragging him away like this! He’s learnt his lesson already! Stop being complete asses!” Minho shouted in a guard’s face. The guard ignored him, holding him tightly as another guard unlocked the chain from his ankle.

After the men had unlocked the band from their chains, they pushed them away, heading back to the door. “You have 30 minutes to get ready for breakfast. Shower and get dressed in the clothes that are in your drawer. We will come get you when its time. No funny tricks.” The guards calmly left, locking the door.

“YAH, YOU CAN’T TREAT US LIKE THIS! SOONER OR LATER, SOMEONE WILL NOTICE THAT WE ARE MISSING!” Minho ran to the door, pulling fiercely on the door handle trying to open it. Key and Onew helped Jonghyun to his feet, supporting him by gently holding him under his arms.

“Minho, stop it.” Jonghyun said coldly, glaring at Minho as he turned around. “You think we can stop them by just yelling? Right now we are in no position to fight, so just stop trying to rebel. You could end up dead if you do.”

Key looked at Minho, nodding with what his hyung was saying. “I know that you are beyond pissed off right now, we all are. But let’s put our safety first and co-operate with them.”

“They are right. We have to do as they say, for now. Just trust us ok?” Onew looked at Minho with great sympathy. He knew how worried Minho was about Taemin.

Minho nodded and wiped his eyes. “Neh hyung, I trust you. I’ll go run a bath for Jonghyun; he will need help with that ankle.” Onew nodded and watched Minho go to the bathroom.

Jonghyun stood frozen on the spot. “W-Wait a second, what do you mean by h-help? You’re not gonna bathe me! Hell to the no!”

The nine idols sat at the long wooden table, waiting in anticipation for Soo-Man and Taemin to arrive. Yunho looked at Jonghyun, noticing him leaning to the side to rub his ankle. “Jonghyun are you ok?”

Jonghyun quickly looked up, trying to act like nothing happened. “I’m fine hyung. Why would you think I’m not?” He bit his lip as another sharp sting travelled up his leg, the ankle was quickly beginning to swell up.

“I saw you limping as you came in before. You’re not alright. What happened to you last night? Where’s Taemin?” Changmin asked, staring at the four members in curiosity and worry.

“We kinda had a rough night... It’s nothing much. Taemin slept in the room with us, but he was taken from us this morning.” Onew looked down, sighing heavily.

“What do you mean by rough night? Did he hurt you guys?” Jaejoong looked at his friends, feeling guilty about his friends being in this horrible situation. He led them to his after all. Why was he so selfish?

Key bit his lip, trying to hide tears. “He put these chains on us and...”

“Morning everyone, did you sleep well?” Soo-Man walked through the doors, and sat on the same chair as last night. Everyone looked at the man, muttering greetings to him. Soo-Man smiled, looking at the idols in their plain white attire. “It seems we are missing one. Where is Taemin?”

Minho clenched his fists, glaring at Soo-Man. “You tell us! You told your guards to drag him away from us!” Onew placed his hand on Minho’s, shaking his head to tell him to calm down.

The doors quickly opened and Taemin stumbled into the room, followed by two tall guards. The maknae looked at his friends, wanting desperately to hug them.

“There you are Taemin, we were wondering where you were. Care to explain why you arrived after me?” Soo-Man stood up from his chair, folding his arms as Taemin was pulled towards him. Soo-Man raised an eyebrow, watching Taemin look down in fear. “Well?”

“I-I... I’m sorry for being late...” Taemin stuttered as Soo-Man lifted his chin up with a single finger.

“That’s not good enough. Next time you will be here on time. Understood?” Soo-Man walked back to his seat, pointing at the floor beside him. Without a single word, Taemin sat on the floor beside the chair, hanging his head low in shame. When was his humiliation going to end?

“Making him sit on the floor, seriously? Don’t you think that’s~” Junsu quickly shut up as Soo-Man glared at him.

“You want the same treatment as your friend here?” Soo-Man threatened, watching Junsu quickly shaking and bowing his head in apology. The wicked man filled a small bowl with rice, and passed it down to Taemin, who quickly ate as much as he could.

“Hyung, don’t you think you are being unfair? You should treat us a little better! We are all humans!” Jaejoong pleaded, but lowered his head when Soo-Man replied.

“I can treat you little s how I want to treat you! I choose where you go, what you do, when and what you eat. If you have any problems, then keep them to yourself. You think I care?” Soo-Man grabbed the bowl of rice away from Taemin, smirking as the idol whimpered from the loss of food.

Taemin tried to grab the food back in desperation, but quickly pulled his hands away when Soo-Man held his fist up in threat to him.

“You can’t starve him like this!” Yoochun suddenly spoke up, earning a glare from the man.

“I won’t starve you, like I said; I need you alive. I will just give you enough to live. Speaking of which, I’d eat if I were you. There’s no snacking during the day. So eat while you can.” Soo-Man grinned as his prisoners quickly began to eat. “After you are done, SHINee will be put back in the basement, and TVXQ can roam free for now. Once I get the statements for the trail, I expect you to learn the facts quickly.

The idols nodded and agreed to his orders. There was no point in trying to protest now, it was too risky. Soo-Man pulled Taemin up by the hair, dragging him out of the room. Taemin tried to pull the firm hand away, but quickly stopped trying when the grip tightened on his hair.

“STOP HURTING TAEMIN, JUST LET HIM GO!” Key stood up and shouted at Soo-Man, who ignored him and dragged him out of the room. Key was forced back in his seat by the guards, who pointed at the clock, telling him that he only had a limited amount of time to eat.

SHINee grunted as they were thrown into the basement again, hugging each other for comfort. “You know the drill; get your asses off the floor!” One guard grabbed Key by the collar, yanking him towards the wall. Jonghyun held on to Key’s waist, not wanting to part with his friend. The guard smirked and kicked Jonghyun’s swollen ankle.

“AISH! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?” Jonghyun quickly placed his hands on the ankle, wanting to make the pain stop. His whole ankle was becoming blue from the bruising, and pain was travelling all the way up his body, making him want to vomit.

“Jonghyun hyung, are you ok?!” Key didn’t keep his eyes off his hyung, watching him being dragged across the floor into the bared cell. Key bit his lip as the cold chains clamped around his wrists, catching the worried singer off guard.

Soon the guards chained the other two members to the wall, smiling as the members stood in fear, all apart from Jonghyun, who was sat in his cell, leaning over to carefully hold his ankle. Onew looked at him in concern, trying to get the guards to look at the suffering member. “Something’s wrong with Jonghyun! You gotta look after him! Please do something, he’s in pain!”

The guard’s looked at Jonghyun, before heading to the door, ignoring the other members who shouted at them in desperation. “WAIT! YOU GOTTA LOOK AFTER JONGHYUN!” Minho called to them, getting one of them to turn around.

“We were given the order to lock you in here, not mother you. Nothing we can do.” The guard casually responded and walked out of the room, leaving the band to panic over Jonghyun.

Key looked at Jonghyun, who was now breathing slowly and heavily. “Jonghyun, are you ok? Please say something!” Key started to panic, tears running down his cheek.

Jonghyun looked up with heavy eyes, struggling to keep his head up. “N-Neh, I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.” His head quickly sank into his knees.

“You’re not ok! You need help!” Onew pulled at the chains, hoping they would break from the wall.

“I...I said I’m f-fine...” Jonghyun’s eyes suddenly closed, his body fell to the side, and Jonghyun lay on the floor pasted out from the pain.

“JONGHYUN, WAKE UP! JONGHYUN, PLEASE SAY SOMETHING!” Key screamed at the top of his lungs, but Jonghyun didn’t budge.

Minho lost all control and started thrashing about, trying to get the guards’ attention. “SOMEONE HELP! JONGHYUN FAINTED! PLEASE YOU HAVE TO HELP HIM!”

Taemin stood silently as Soo-Man poured a drink of water for him. Taemin looked around the large room, it had black leather sofas, a large TV, a black grand piano, bar, and other luxury items. How could Soo-Man say he had lost his fortune? It seemed to be right here in the house.

Soo-Man walked to Taemin, who was staring at the piano in awe. “You play piano right Tae?” Taemin quickly looked at Soo-Man and slowly nodded. “Well, play for me then.” Soo-Man pointed at the instrument, and watched Taemin sit at it.

“O-Ok hyung...” Taemin placed his fingers on the polished keys, taking a deep breath, and began playing ‘the river flows in you’.

Soo-Man smiled as he watched the younger play, slowly walking closer to him. When Taemin was done, Soo-Man placed his hand on Taemin’s shoulder, slightly smiling when he jumped in surprise. “That was very good Taemin. I knew you were talented, but that surprised me.”

Taemin turned around and looked in surprise. “It’s not a hard piece to play hyung...” Taemin looked down and thought carefully about his next sentence. “Why did you bring me here? I don’t plan on being your entertainer.” Taemin bit his lip as Soo-Man rolled his eyes and sighed.

“I wanted to talk to you personally. I feel that I have been somewhat harsh on you.”

“Somewhat? You’ve put me through hell!” Taemin suddenly spat out at Soo-Man, instantly regretting it.

Soo-Man nodded and rubbed Taemin’s back. “I know, and I’m hoping that you can forgive me. I’m not a bad person, just misunderstood.” Taemin raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to continue. “I’ve lost a lot over the years due to the lawsuit. I lost my family due to it, something that never stops hurting my heart. So I want to ask something of you Taemin.”

Taemin slowly nodded and gulped as Soo-Man’s face got level to his. “I’m listening...”

“After this is over, stay with me here. I’ll treat you respectively, give you anything you want. Just stay here and call me Appa!” Soo-Man put his hand on Taemin’s shoulder, looking at him pleadingly in the eyes.

Taemin stared back in pure shock. “W-What do you mean call you Appa?”

“I mean I adopt you Taemin.” Soo-Man responded calmly.

Taemin couldn’t believe what this mad man was actually suggesting. Why would he want to live with him? Why would he give up the life he had, just because some guy asked for it? “N...No.” Taemin felt a burning lump in his throat as Soo-Man’s caring face turned into pure anger.

“What did you say?” Soo-Man gripped Taemin’s shoulder tighter, making the younger idol whimper.

Taemin quickly gained the courage to speak again; there was no way he was going to let Soo-Man get the better of him. “I SAID NO ! I WILL NEVER CALL YOU APPA, EVEN IF MY LIFE DEPENDED ON IT!” Taemin slapped the hand away, and stood up from the seat, backing away as Soo-Man kicked it away in anger.

“I know you’re just tired and hungry, so I’ll let that one pass this one time. Just have a drink and let us talk about it.” Soo-Man offered the drink of water to Taemin, but after he refused to drink it a few times, Soo-Man grabbed hold of Taemin’s hair, trying to force him to drink it.

Taemin instantly knew that something was wrong, and kicked Soo-Man in the leg, taking the glass and throwing it at the wall. Soo-Man looked at Taemin furiously as the glass smashed into hundreds of pieces. “I’ll give you one last chance... What’s your answer?”

“Same as last time; I’ll never, ever call you Appa!” Taemin spat back at Soo-Man, who grabbed him by the collar and threw the maknae to the floor, sending a kick to his gut.

“You spoilt brat! You don’t want me to look after you? Fine, you will experience the true meaning of hell! You will rot in this house just like your ing pathetic friends!” Soo-Man picked up Taemin by the collar, twisting his arm behind his back to ensure he didn’t run.

“Go ahead! I don’t care anymore!” Taemin shouted back at Soo-Man as he was dragged through the halls. He was in deep trouble now, but he didn’t care. What more could this do to them?