Choi Siwon. ER doctor. 28. Tall, handsome, dimples, nice body. Related to the family who founded Choi Hunting Industires. Mega rich.

"He's perfect I guess," I tell Xiumin and Lay after I came home from my date. We're sitting on the couch watching a music show that's on.

"Choi..." Lay says, tapping a finger to his chin as he thinks. "I know that name from somewhere. I know I do."

"You are the forgetful one," Xiumin jokes, wincing when Lay delivers a blow to his arm. "But does he seem okay?" I shrug.

"I guess," I answer uncertainly. "It's just weird that we were set up, you know? My parents already want to have dinner with his family and have me meet his parents. My mom even suggested that I should introduce him to all you guys." Xiumin and Lay shake their heads in unison. "He has fourteen best friends, I think he could handle you guys."

"They're not part canine though," Lay points out and Xiumin nods in agreement. "You don't realize this because they pick on you, but the guys are super protective of you."

"Yeah right," I laugh. "Except for a few, all you guys do is tease and try to pick a fight with me." Xiumin shakes his head.

"I told them about the arrangement possibility," he tells me, which he'd told me he did the morning after the thunderstorm. "They're not too fond of it. Like at all."

"If I could just marry one of you guys, I would," I chuckle. "But it's not that simple. Nothing about this is simple."

"I don't like it," Kai pouts when we're all at Suho's apartment the night before I'm supposed to go to dinner with Siwon's family. I ruffle his hair as he rests his head in in Kyungsoo's lap beside me. "I mean, what if this guy is like a complete psycho like the ones on those crime dramas or in those horror movies?"

"Yeah," Sehun, the tall, blonde maknae of the group agrees. "Sure, he's good looking and charming then-BAM!-you're locked up in his basement with a bunch of bodies-"

"What have you guys been watching?" I laugh at the maknaes theory.

"They watched Disturbia last night," Kris, the tall, light browned haired, "other leader" of the group sighs. I roll my eyes.

"We just don't want anything to happen to you," Baekhyun says quietly from beside me. He smiles weakly at me as I loop my arm through his and rests my chin on his shoulder.

"I'll be fine," I assure him and the rest of them. "I promise I'll be careful." I look around the room at the rest of the worried looks on their faces. Even Chanyeol who picks on me nonstop. "His family wants him to meet you guys. It doesn't have to be until you guys are ready, okay?" They nod.

"Alrighty," Tao chirps from the other side of Baekhyun. "But if he hurts you, we know how to take care of him." He flashes his red eyes at me and I shake my head.

"Well, we definitely know you haven't been around girls a lot because of how you sit in a dress," Chanyeol teases as I'm waiting for Siwon to come pick me up at the apartment. He works at a hospital nearby and offered to drive me home for the weekend. I punch Chanyeol in the arm and he cackles.

"Shut up Yeol," Kyungsoo says with an eyeroll. The doorbell rings and I jump out my seat, mostly out of nervousness. I shakily grab my duffel bag and walk towards the door.

"Stop fidgeting," Xiumin scolds lightly as I try and fix my dress and hair before opening the door. "You look great."

"Really?" I ask him. He chuckles and brushes a piece of hair out my line of sight.

"Really. You'll be fine and if you start having a meltdown or have the ovewhelming urge to excessively drink, just call me okay?" I nod and he gives me a tight hug before I open the door. Siwon has on a light blue dress shirt, a black tie, slacks and shoes. His black hair is styled back and he wears a warm smile.

"Ready?" he asks, taking my duffel bag. I nod, giving one last wave to the guys before exiting out the door.

Siwon and I talk on the drive there and realize we actually have some things in common. We both love being around our friends not matter how rowdy they can be. We like the same types of music, exercising, the same kinds of movies and both our parents disagree with our a career choices. How can anyone disagree with their son becoming a doctor? He said they'd wanted him to take over the family business, but he never liked the family business that much. He'd rather help people than sell things that can possibly be used to kill them.

The dinner goes as painless as it can with my family, which is as painless as stepping on a syringe. They like Siwon and his family. I was able to meet his mom, a sweet lady, but I didn't get a chance to meet his brother and his dad because they were out hunting. He said they were serious hunters and apologized for not being able to make it. Apparently this is the first time in a while that they've actually found time to hunt together with their conflicting schedules. I don't notice how much I miss the guys until Xiumin texts me Saturday night as I'm getting ready for bed after I went out for drinks with Siwon and my brothers.

Don't forget to take aspirin before you go to bed so you don't have a headache in the morning(: Good night!  I smile at the message and text him back good night...and take the aspirin because I really would've forgotten to do that. Sunday afternoon almost doesn't come fast enough and I'm excited to get back home.

"You're home!" Xiumin exclaims, pulling me into a hug as soon as I walk through the door. I laugh as I wrap my arms around him.

"I was only gone for two days, Min," I laugh as we pull apart. Siwon and Xiumin both nod at each other politely before he bids me good bye with an innocent kiss on the forehead.

"So, how's the future husband?" Chen asks me the next morning at work. I roll my eyes because do they really have to call him that?

"He's fine," I answer, handing a customer their coffee with a polite smile. "We're going to dinner this Friday."

"R-really?" Xiumin stutters from behind me. I nod.

"You were right," I tell him, causing him and Chen to both raise their eyebrows at me. "I've been stressed lately and I could use a distraction. Maybe it is time for me to start dating again." They both nod and there seems to be this weird tension in the air the rest of the day. It's closing before I know it and the pair is nowhere to be found. I stop right outside the supply closet door when I hear whispering coming from inside.

"You're just going to let her go?!" Chen whispers furiously. "Just like that? Without even putting up a fight?"

"What else am I supposed to do?" Xiumin hisses. "She'd be a lot better off with him anyway. I have nothing to offer." They're silent.

"But you love her, Min..." What are they talking about? More like who are they talking about. "You're my best friend and I love you, but for once, don't be the nice guy and go along with this if it's going to hurt you in the end." Xiumin chuckles bitterly.

"Nice guys finish last, right?" The knob turns on the closet and I dash away, pretending to be counting money in the cash register. They both smile at me and I smile back. I feel nauseous at the thought of Xiumin hurting and him not telling me about it. I don't bring the conversation up because when Xiumin is ready, he'll come and talk to me about it. He chuckles later on when I give him a hug, just because, and the thought that this is all I can to help him breaks my heart.

I start seeing Siwon more and more over the next couple months and I'm starting to like him. He's just the type of guy I would date, funny, smart, kind. He's perfect. What's not perfect, is that fact that if Siwon and I do end up getting married, my parents suggest by late fall/ early winter. That means Xiumin won't be the number one guy in my life anymore. I'd have a husband and usually that trumps best friend. I lull this all over as I pout into a bowl of ice cream late one night in the kitchen.

"What are you doing up so late?" Xiumin's sleepy voice asks me as he pads into the kitchen. He scoffs when he sees me eating ice cream. I whine when he takes the bowl away from me and places the rest of it in the freezer for later.

"Sugar gives you nightmares," he tells me with a lazy grin. "Plus, dairy upsets your stomach." I grin as he pours me a glass of water. "What's up? Why are you sulking?"

"If I go through with this, everything is going to change," I tell him as he sits on the counter with me. "My job, my friends, us. I don't know if I'm ready for all that. I mean, I like Siwon I really do. But I don't love him and I always thought that the man I'd marry would be the one I was sure I wanted to spend the rest of my life with." Xiumin sets his hand on top of mine and I sigh. "Why am I even going through with this?"

"Because you love your parents and you'd hate to disappoint them," he tells me calmly. "Granted this is a bit extreme, but..." I nod in agreement. "Do you still wear that necklace I gave you? The one with the snowflake on it?" I nod, pulling it out from under my nightshirt. I grin as he pulls the same necklace from under his tee shirt too. "We promised that we would never let anyone come between us when we got these, right?" I nod, remembering the day that we got these two years ago. It was an early Christmas gift, about five months early, after he'd been in a train accident and was in the hospital for two weeks. We found them in a little antique shop and the little, old lady just happened to have two of them. We haven't taken them off since we got them. "So, even when you do get a husband, we'll still be together, no matter what, alright?" I nod, grinning when he pecks me on the cheek. "I'm going to go back to sleep. Take some Lactaid before you go to sleep so you don't wake up with an upset stomach tomorrow. I had Luhan buy some more when he went to the store today."

"Thanks Xiumin," I tell him as he hops off the counter. He smiles before turning away and going to back into his room.

"There's too many people for this one apartment," I tell Siwon loudly over the bumping music when we're at one of his friends' houses. We decided to get our friends together and ended up finding out that Xiumin and his friends are basically the younger version of Siwon and his friends. Which makes for a loud, rowdy, group of guys that make even a fairly large penthouse apartment look small.

"I know!" he agrees. "Isn't this like a fire hazard or something?" I shrug. "Let's go out onto the balcony." I nod as he takes my hand and leads us outside to the balcony. It's a chilly early summer night, but the sky is clear and sprinkled with stars across it. We stand together, just talking about the party and the crazy things we've seen. Like Ryeowook and Kyungsoo hogging the kareoke machine from Baekhyun and Chanyeol, Eunhyuk, Donghae, Kai and Lay having a dance battle, Heechul and Kangin's antics along Tao and Sehun's mischeviousness and the amount to of alcohol that disappeared within an hour into the party. Everyone heads out around two but I stay behind to help Siwon clean up. I get home around three because the place was completely trahsed. I've never seen so many plastic cups in my life.

"It was fun," he tells me when we're standing on my doorstep. I nod in agreement. We're quiet and we look at each other at the same time. We both chuckle and he takes a step closer to me. In a smooth unhesitant motion, he leans down and kisses me. We pull apart and he says good night one more time before heading down the hall. I open the apartment door to Xiumin's sleeping form on the couch. I shake him awake as I sit on the edge of the couch.

"I fell asleep didn't I?" he asks and I can't help but laugh. "Did he kiss you?" I nod. "And?"

"Nothing," I sigh. "There was no heat, spark, nothing. Like it was nice and his lips-"

"It's too early for this," he groans, swatting his hands through the air as I start laughing. "Good night."

More dates, more laughs, and more kisses where I feel absolutely nothing.

"So, what's going to happen on your honeymoon night?" Chanyeol asks at the shop one morning. I roll my eyes and Xiumin smacks him upside the head.

"I mean, maybe I'm just a bad kisser," I suggest one night as Luhan, Chen, Xiumin, Suho and I are waiting for dinner to be delivered, my head dangling off the bottom of the couch as my feet dangle over the top.

"Trust me, you're not a bad kisser," Luhan says simply from the kitchen. He curses under his breath when we hear a glass shattering on the ground. "Obvisously you're not attracted to the guy so you should just call if off."

"He's got a point," Suho points out. I sigh as I backflip off the couch, getting worried gasps from him and Xiumin.

"I need to think," I tell them. "You guys can just put my food in the refrigerator when it gets here." I end up laying down and dozing off for a few hours. I only wake up when I hear my bedroom door opening. I grin when Xiumin pops his head in through the door.

"Nice nap?" he asks me, sitting on the edge of the bed. I nod as I sit up. He's quiet, but from the look on his face I can tell something is on his mind. "I think you should tell Siwon how you feel about him." I raise an eyebrow at him. "I know I said you should date him and now I'm saying you should break up with him. It's somewhat conflicting for me too,okay?" I laugh and he cracks a smile."You like him right?" I nod. "Then don't you think he deserves to know the truth? What if he's actually falling for you? You'd be stringing him along and I know you're the last person on the planet that would want to hurt someone else's feelings."

"Yeah, but by hurting Siwon's feelings I'm also hurting my parents because I'd be disobeying them," I answer truthfully. I've never once disobeyed my parents. Sure, I didn't take the career path they wanted me to and they're not at all fond of my living arrangements, but never in my life have I disobeyed them. Even when I really wanted to, I never did because I know I couldn't live with the guilt. As much as I want to say no to this whole arranged marriage thing, I know that my parents will never forgive me for it and I can't live with that. So, I just have to cope the best I can. Maybe I just haven't felt anything when I kissed Siwon because I don't really remember what I'm supposed to feel when you kiss someone.

"Then just kiss the last person you kissed," Xiumin suggests, as if reading my mind. I raise an eyebrow at him, shocked. "You said the last part out loud." Oh. "Just kiss Luhan. I'm sure he'll do it." I shake my head.

"That would be awkward," I answer. He sighs, a small pout on his lips. Lightbulb. "Min, can you do me a favor?" He looks at me with a skeptical look on his face. Realization flashes across his face and he shakes his head. "Min, please!"

"You thought kissing Luhan would be awkward. Why would you ask me?"

"Because you're my best friend and you'll help me. Plus, I've never kissed you before so I'll have no expectations." He's quiet. I give him my best puppy dog pout. "Just one kiss."

"I'm going to regret this," he mutters under his breath. Victory. "Just one and we never talk of this, got it?" I nod. I was expecting him to be super slow about it, but he just leans right in and kisses me. Wow, him using that chapstick all the time really makes a difference. I hardly notice when my eyes close, when shivers start running my spine and when our lips are moving shyly against each other instead of just being awkwardly smashed together. We pull apart and I can feel my heart racing. "Uhm..."

"T-thanks," I tell him with a nod. He nods and slowly stands and leaves the room.

What the hell just happened?

Three weekes have passed, so have four dates with Siwon and four more kisses. None of the times I've kissed Siwon have even remotely compared to the one time I kissed Xiumin. And if that didn't make things bad enough, Xiumin and I have barely been talking since we kissed. I don't know if I'm going to stay something stupid about it around him or just end up planting one on him. I guess the change in our behaviour is noticable because after dinner one night, Lay and Luhan sit us down to get to the bottom of the issue.

"We've just been busy," Xiumin lies easily with a shrug. I nod in agreement.

"Busy working in the same coffeeshop," Lay points out, crossing his arms. "Did something happened between you two? Did you fight or have a misunderstanding?" We shake our heads.

"Okay, we both know you're lying so you might as well just fess up," Luhan says hotly.

"Nothing happened," Xiumin says firmly.

"Bull, we know something happened," Lay presses.

"Damn it, we're fine," I snap. "If something would've happened, we would've straightened it out by now." They're quiet. "I have to pack to go home this weekend, so if we're done being interrogated, I'd like to leave." They both nod, lips pursed.

"I kissed Xiumin," I confess to Lay when we're picking up things at the grocery store later that night. He almost drops the glass bottle of olive oil he has as his eyes widen to astronomical size. "We were talking about how I didn't feel a spark when I kissed Siwon and he said maybe I should kiss the last person I kissed aka Luhan. But I said that would be awkward so I asked him because I never kissed him before but I didn't expect to feel anything but I did. I'm still supposed to marry Siwon but I don't know if I can do that-" He clamps a hand over my mouth, eyes closed in concentration. It just occurs to me that this isn't his first language and he still struggles to understand everything being said around him...especially when someone is talking at lightening speed like I just was.

"I didn't catch a portion of that, but I got the important part," he says slowly, opening his eyes and moving his hand. "Have you talked to him about it yet?" I shake my head.

"You're not even supposed to know but this was eating me alive and I had to tell someone." He nods. "Just, don't tell anyone about it okay."

"Secret's safe with me."

"I hate this place already," Chen whispers to me when we walk into Choi's Hunting Store Saturday afternoon. I didn't end up going home because my parents were going to be working and so was Siwon.

"I agree," Kris says as the three of us wander through the aisles. Guns, knifes, traps, tranquilizers, it's all here.

"Can I help you?" a too smooth voice asks from behind us, making the three of us jump. It's just Siwon's brother, Shin, who runs this particular store in the city.

"I just wanted to see the store that started your family's empire," I answer politely with a smile. He chuckles.

"Thank you. Since you're soon going to be part of the family, do you want to see our latest invention?" I nod and Shin guides us to one of the back counters. An aged black and white picture behind the counter catches my eyes. There are two men with shotguns in their hands and smiling. They look happy, but what makes my stomach drop is the dead animal lying at their feet. A wolf. I hear Chen gulp beside me as his eyes land at the bottom of the picture.

"Is that your grandfather?" Kris asks in a quiet voice, not taking his eyes off the picture.

"Yeah," Shin chuckles. "And my dad when he was younger. That was the first wolf my dad killed."

"F-first?" Chen stutters with raised eyebrows. Shin nods.

"Before it was outlawed," he tells us with a sigh. "My grandfather told me stories about wolves when Siwon and I were little. He'd seen his mother attacked by one when he was fourteen. It nearly killed her. He remembered the eyes, the were a glowing red. Six years later, two guys got into a fight when he was at a bar and one of the guys had crimson red eyes, just like the wolf. He followed the guy once he was kicked out and confronted him. He'd attacked his mother. The guy shifted once my grandfather threatened him and my grandfather shot him,but it didn't kill him."

"Then how did you kill the one in the picture?" I ask, curious. Kris and Chen are silent behind me.

"A bullet with a little bit of silver at the top," Shin answers. "Which brings us to this invention. We've never had the resources, but now we do." In his palm, he holds a silver bullet. "My father says we should be ready."

"Ready for what?" Kris asks carefully.

"A war," Shin answers with a nod. "There's believed to be a pack right here in the city. Twelve of them."

"I can't breathe," Chen wheezes when we get into the car. "A war? A frickin war?! Kris, you and Suho are alphas, did you know anything about this?" Kris runs a hand over his face, trying to collect his thoughts before shaking his head.

"I'll call Suho and tell him," Kris says whipping out his phone. "We need a group meeting ASAP."

"I knew I didn't like him!" Baekhyun says jumping to his feet when they all gathered at our apartment. "His family is a bunch of hunters-"

"That doesn't mean he is-" I point out.

"Are you honestly defending him?" Sehun accuses.

"Whose side are you on?" Tao asks.

"HEY!" Suho yells, getting them all to shut up. "We're not accusing anybody just yet." He looks straight at me. "Has Siwon told you about any of this?"

"He said he wasn't in the family buisness because he didn't like hunting," I explain. There are disapproving scoffs around the room. "Honestly, if he wanted to kill you guys, don't you think he would've just done it at the party? You were all there and tipsy, it would've been the perfect time to strike."  They're quiet, lulling this all over.

"She makes a valid point," Kyunsoo states. "That still doesn't mean he's completely innocent." There's more uproar around the room and I sink into the couch, rubbing my temples. I count the people around the room and that's when I notice Luhan and Xiumin are missing.

"Where's Luhan?" I ask Lay as he's staring at his phone, wide eyed.

"At the hospital," he says quickly shooting to his feet. "I just got a text from Xiumin hyung. He was shot."

It turns out that a black Mercedes-Benz had followed Luhan from the cafe he was at. He was jumped in an alleyway nearby and when his eyes glowed red, they shot him.

"Whoever it was had crappy aim," Luhan groans, looking at the bandage on his shoulder. "Damn this thing hurts. Do they know who it was?"

"We have an idea," Chen mutters. Luhan raises an eyebrow and that's when I realize nobody's told him about what the three of us found out today. I feel my stomach drop when Siwon comes into the room, locking the door shut behind him. All of a sudden, Baekhyun is turning on him with claws and teeth and Xiumin has to hold him back. Luhan shoots Chen a confused look, clearly asking for an explanation as to why his friend just tried to tear out Siwon's throat. "Siwon's family are hunters. Wolf hunters to be exact." Luhan's eyes turn red as soon as they land on Siwon.

"Look, you can interrogate me later," Siwon say quickly. "But-"

"But what?" Suho asks hotly. I've never seen him this mad before and honestly it is very frightening. There's no trace of the general kindness that's always in his eyes. It's all anger.

"They're going to be prepping Luhan for surgery and he's already starting to heal," Siwon anonunces in an authoratative voice. "I can discharge him, but you guys will have to get lost fast before any questions arise, got it?"

"How do we know that this isn't just a trap?" Lay challenges. "Your dad and brother can be right downstairs ready to shoot us down as soon as we come out of those doors-"

"You have to trust me-"

"Why the hell would we trust you-"

"Because I'm not completely human myself!" Siwon thunders, shutting us all up. I feel Xiumin grab my hand when Siwon's eyes glow a crimson red, just like theirs. He untucks his white dress shirt to show three long, angry scars across his right side. Claw marks. "My mom was attacked when I was ten and I tried to help her. You don't become a full wolf unless they bite you, but if you're scratched, you can still acquire some...characteristics." The room is silent as he tucks his shirt back in. "Now, Luhan's wound was deep, but after further examination, it was decided that surgery was not necessary. I sent you home with pain medication and for a follow up visit in two weeks." He takes a chart that's by the door and signs it. "The nurses will be here in half an hour to clean the room so I suggest you guys be gone in fifteen minutes." We nod at Siwon's orders. He glances at me with a weak grin before leaving the room. The car ride home is silent as we still try to comprehend everything that just happened. The rest of the guys are still trying to wrap their heads around it and it's only a matter of time before everyone needs a drink.

"Well, at least we can assume he's not a hunter," Kai says optimistically. Kyungsoo ruffles his hair with a warm smile. I'm sitting on the counter by myself until Xiumin comes to join me.

"It is only with my luck that this situation had to become ten times worse then it already was," I complain to Xiumin as I down the rest of my drink. "I mean, as if arranged marriage wasn't bad enough. My supposed future husband's family hunts the species that my best friend belongs to. What else could go wrong? Will I find out I'm actually a vampire and am supposed to kill you and all your friends too? Because in the sci-fi movie that is my life right now, I don't think that it's far from the realm of possibility."

"I think you've had enough to drink," Xiumin suggests, putting my glass in the sink right as I'm about to help myself to thirds. "You'll be fine. Every family has their secrets, some bigger than others. You just have to accept them." There's a knock at the door and when Lay answers it to Siwon the rooms falls quiet.

"Can we talk?" he asks me, shuffling uneasily in the spot in the door way. "I probably should explain a couple things."

"Yeah you should," Baekhyun mutters loud enough to hear as I slip off the counter. Xiumin catches my hand before I go get my coat.

"Be careful," he warns quietly. "I know you trust him, but just be on the look out for anything suspicious. I don't think I can handle another trip to the hospital tonight." I peck him on the cheek before nodding.

Siwon explains everything to me over coffee at a nearby cafe. He tells me about the attack and how he scratched. How his family has been hunting for years to get revenge on the wolves that hurt their loved ones. How he hid this secret from his dad and brother because he didn't know how they'd react to him, whether they'd still accept him as their son and brother or thinking he was one of wolves and killing him just like the rest of them. I think about what Xiumin said when the topic eventually strays away from wolves and hunting but to work and other trivial matters. Like the gentleman he is, Siwon walks me to my doorstep and says good night with a kiss. I pull him in by his tie for a longer kiss. There has to be something there. He's perfect, why wouldn't there be? I hide my disappointment when we pull away. He gives me a warm smile before wallking down the hall. I slide down the door onto the ground once I'm inside the apartment. I don't know when tears start falling, but soon sobs are wracking through my body as I bite a fist to keep them quiet. A sleepy Lay stirs on the couch, most likely from falling asleep while watching a movie. He motions for me to come over to the couch and he wraps me with him underneath the blanket.

"Still nothing?" he whispers to me. I nod. "I think you have to tell Siwon how you feel about him."

"You're probably right," I sigh in defeat.

"And Xiumin hyung too." I look up at Lay. "He also needs to know how you feel about him."

"What do you mean?" He sighs.

"I see the way you two look at each other and care for one another. You love him as more than a friend...and I think it's time you tell him that."