.

I bit my lip, standing motionless in the middle of the room. Although it was true that going to a stranger’s dance recital was not the safest thing in mind, Taemin didn’t seem like a bad person. In fact, he sparked curiousity in my heart- I wanted to know him better. He was like a mystery that I wanted to solve. Shaking my head, I sighed deeply.

“I guess I’ll go,” I spoke to myself, and turned around to grab a pair of black shoes. I nodded in approval as I looked at my outfit (click) in the mirror, and grabbed my cream-colored handbag. It wasn’t wrong to say that I loved shopping, but it was more of a love of fashion. It was my passion, really; designing clothes and watching people’s smiles when they tried them on. My parents certainly disapproved of my choice, but then again, I could understand them. Parents only wanted their children to take the safest route- the route that would ensure a stable future for their children. But still… I wanted to be a fashion designer.

“No! Roo, where are you going?” My little brother burst through the room, flailing his arms.

“I’m going to watch a friend’s recital,” I answered, gently tucking a strand of hair behind his tiny ears. He pouted and blew up his cheeks, before pretending to be angry and stomping off. I grabbed a white scarf that was hanging on a hook that was attached to my door, struggling to loop it loosely around my neck. In a rush, I stuffed my iPhone into my jacket pocket and quickly flew down the stairs.

“Mom, I’m going to watch a friend’s recital!” I popped my head into the dimly lit room of my parents’ bedroom.

“Have fun,” She answered, although I couldn’t see her form at all. Shrugging, I slipped past the kitchen and into the entrance of the apartment room. I breathed in as I firmly gripped the doorknob, preparing myself for the onslaught of the winds outside. It wasn’t cold, but nights always gave me a bone-chilling feeling. I exhaled as soon as I took a step onto the mat outside the entrance of the apartment. In Korea, most people lived in apartment complexes; single houses were incredibly rare. In fact, I don’t think I ever saw any single houses. As I walked to the exit of the large apartment building, I noticed that there were less people in the lounge than usual.

“Excuse me, miss?” I tapped a woman on the shoulder.

“Yes?” She turned around, cocking her head.

“Do you know where there’s less people here today? Is something happening?”

“Ah, that! There’s supposed to be a thunderstorm tonight… loads of rain,” She quickly murmured, pointing to the T.V. that was attached to a wall. It was currently broadcasting a weather channel; a grumpy-faced man was currently reporting all the weather reports. I quickly thanked her and hurried outside of the apartment complex, taking one last look at the large building. Letting my hand fall limply to my side, I began to hurry into the busier parts of Seoul. Soon, I found myself sitting on a bench by the bus stop, waiting for the right bus to arrive.

Seoul was an incredibly busy place; it’s overwhelming buildings, the chatter of the large population, and the immense sky always made me feel small.

Small, indeed.

The line was incredibly long. I poked my head sideways for the hundredth time, only to frown when I saw the infinite number of waiting people in front of me. Crossing my arms over my chest, I humphed and impatiently tapped my foot. Taking a good look around this room, I concluded that this dance recital had to be an elite recital of some sort. Not only was there a shimmering chandelier hanging from the dark red ceiling, there were maroon-colored velvet drapes that covered some pieces of furniture. I scuffed the heel of my shoe against the expensive carpet, marveling at the smoothness of its surface.

“Here’s your programme, miss,” A man clad in a suit bowed respectfully to me, handing me a white program that was embossed with gold words.

“SM Annual Dance Performance, Where the Stars Shine,” I read out loud. SM? That name struck a bell in my head, but I couldn’t seem to fully remember where I heard it. Pursing my lips, I flipped open the program, revealing a list of names with their accompanying dance titles.

“Choi Jinri… Oh Sehoon… Lee Taemin!” I spotted his name and brought the programme closer to my face. Printed in small text were the words: Lee Taemin, Popping, “Again”.

Ah, so he did popping.

I didn’t know much about dance, but I could already infer that popping took much energy and practice. It was a powerful dance with many quick moves that could make an audience mesmerized in just a second.

“Miss, your ticket?” A uniformed woman with a puckered face sourly asked for a ticket. Wait… a ticket?

“Erm, I’m sorry, a ticket…?” I scratched the back of my neck. Taemin never mentioned anything about a ticket.

“Miss, this isn’t a free concert. SM’s prestigious concerts attract attention from all over the world. You can’t just storm in here for free,” The woman’s eyebrows drew in. "These tickets can only be bought in advance."

“Oh… I’m sorry,” I stammered, hastily walking out of line. That was odd; didn't Taemin tell me to bring money to buy a ticket? I tried to hide my face behind my hair- you know, to save the embarrassment? While I was sulking and meekly walking away, a familiar voice called from behind.

“Roori!”

I turned around, still ducking my head. An out-of-breath Taemin jogged over to where I was, panting as he tried to speak.

“So… this – huff- is where –huff- you were!” He took short gasps of air, running his hand through his hair. I patted him on the back, waiting for him to regain his breath. My eyebrow twitched when I heard a group of girls behind me, gaggling and pointing.

“Isn’t that Taemin?”

“Lee Taemin? The Lee Taemin?”

“Oh my gosh! Just look at his seductive features!”

“I’m his hugest fan!”

After a minute of silence between us, he straightened up and bowed. The squeals behind me slowly dimished as the girls hushed to listen in onto our conversation.

“I’m so sorry. I was planning to personally get you, so I didn’t give you a ticket…” He mumbled, an awkward smile on his face. "I completely forgot about the buy in advance thing."

“Er… personally?” I tilted my head, a bit confused.

“Ah, you see… to give you a better spot,” He blinked. “All the seats are sold out, but I wanted you to watch from the very front.”

“The very front?!” I squeaked. “Aren’t those usually V.I.P. seats?”

“But…” He bit his lip. “I invited you, so… agh. Just watch!”

Taemin tugged at the sleeve of my jacket, gently pulling me towards a door. I raised my head to see the sign “Employees Only”. I immediately squeaked in denial and tried to pull away from his grasp.

“Wait! Employee? What?!” I blurted out. He shrugged, and finally let go of his grip on my sleeve. I brushed my fingers over the sleeve of my jacket, smoothing out the creases.

“Here,” He led me down a bright hallway, ignoring the stares of employees and some rather pretty people. The sudden brightness didn’t adjust well on my eyes, and I nearly tripped over a cardboard box containing at least twenty water bottles. I accidently made eye contact with an astonishing pretty girl. A bit shocked, my eyes darted away on impulse. Taemin motioned towards a door labeled “Auditorium”. He opened the door, keeping his figure in the shadows. My mouth fell open at the sight of the hundreds of red, velvet seats that faced a giant stage. In fact, there were even balcony seats that loomed over the floor seats. He pointed towards an empty seat at the middle of the front row. I swallowed my amazement and unasked questions, quickly thanking him before fleeing to my seat. Oddly nervous, I fiddled with the tassels on my bag, trying to ignore the envious stares of some members of the audience.

“Refreshments, miss?” A worker with a rolling cooler pushed his cart in front of me. I was flabbergasted once I saw the menu- they even served margaritas and red wine! Most places offered sports drinks and water bottles, but this level of fanciness was surely new for me.

“Erm…” My mouth went dry as I pondered to myself. I wasn’t thirsty, but I wondered about Taemin. He would surely be tired after his performance- perhaps he would like a refreshment? I hesitated after I remembered the large cardboard box of water bottles that I nearly tripped over earlier. If I bought him something that he already had, the atmosphere would certainly get awkward.

Hmm.

(click your option)

Don’t buy water for Taemin

Buy a bottle of water for Taemin

IMPORTANT NOTE (read read read)

I'm putting in more longer chapters now, with more effort and detail.

Also, I've begun the process of editing/rewriting some chapters that I think are crappy, lol.

And this is where everything important starts- from this point, the choices will be harder than ever!

And don't rush us too much!

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