Taemin's mother opened the door to his room and peered inside at the mass under the covers, sighing lowly.

"Taemin. We have to leave in twenty minutes, why are you still in bed? I thought I woke you up half an hour ago." Taemin shifted around and groaned for effect.

"I told you I wasn't feeling well, mom. I need to stay home."

"Taemin, you've missed the last two lunches, and the Dean's birthday dinner for god's sakes, you can't miss another. Up. Now." Taemin scowled, she wasn't being easy this time. Time to pull out the big guns. He pulled the blanket down to his chin and looked up at her with large, doe eyes.

"But mommy...I'm really not feeling well, I need to stay home. It's not my fault if I feel sick, is it? Can't you tell the Dean that I'm sorry and I'll try to make it next time?"  Taemin's mother eyed him warily before her composure dissolved, and she reached over to run a hand through his hair.

"You don't feel like you have a temperature..."

"It's my stomach."

"Alright, Taemin. You can stay home. Next time, though, you're going, understand?" Taemin beamed up at her and her strict expression faded, "get some rest. I love you."

"Love you too, mom!" She turned and left the room and Taemin waited until he heard her and his father leave the house and back out of their driveway before dashing the covers aside and jumping out of bed making his way to the gameroom.

***

Taemin hadn't had a nanny since last year when he finally turned fourteen because he was, as he so delicately put it, 'a teenager now, so I don't need a babysitter'. He was still young and liable to get himself into mischief but Taemin persisted and his parents had eventually given in. That's how they always are, Taemin thought as he made his way through the halls of the large house, making his way up the stairs on the east side, they always give in.

Taemin had known he had his parents wrapped around his finger at a small age. At first, he had been careful using his newfound power, there was only so much he could get away with during his younger years. But being the only son of a couple who hadn't been able to conceive for several years, terrified they wouldn't have an heir to their business in the future and absolutely elated when a baby boy was born...well, let's just say they were only too eager to attend to Taemin's every whim and wish.

Taemin had been barely ten when he started putting his power to good use and began demanding things left right and center. His parents never bat an eyelash, buying him every pair of shoes, every bike, book, electronic, jacket, animal, and piece of jewelry he could ask for. He even had a car in one of their many garages, waiting for the day he turned sixteen. Taemin just kept asking and they kept buying.

Taemin had been thirteen when he'd asked for the game.

He'd seen it advertised in a shop window in a closing store in the upper part of town. Taemin's family had been walking the streets running errands and he'd seen a large poster promising 'a whole new world', beckoning him inside the shop. There had only been one copy of the game left, as expected of a closing sale, and a separate console needed to be purchased to play it on, but Taemin had only to smile his pretty smile and the money was being handed over and the packages placed in Taemin's hands. He had to admit that he'd forgotten about it for the first month or so of owning it, only to be reminded of its existence upon digging it up from the overflowing closet of toys he owned. Curious as he was, he'd set it up in his gameroom, plugging it into the largest TV in the room, waiting impatiently for it to boot up and settling down in front of it when the screen flashed on.

The game had not been as fantastic as Taemin had expected. The low quality graphics and fairly irritating lag had nearly caused Taemin to shut it off but he thought back to the poster in the shop that granted him access to 'a whole new world' and that was the only motivation he needed to continue exploring the game.

He found that you could play the game in several different maps, each of them their own 'World'. There was The Dock, which was exactly that. A small docking map where you could ride skidoos, boats, jet-skis and wakeboards in the water, and if the day was nice, you could surf. It was all virtual, but it was pretty cool. There was also The Candy Emporium which Taemin liked because it was a World that seemed to be made out of sweets and edibles and had a fantastical air about it that Taemin enjoyed. The Green Room was another World that consisted of a lot of floral wildlife and plant species Taemin wasn't sure if he'd just never seen before or if they were simply authentic to the game. You could grow all sorts of crazy plants there that varied in growth times and seasons (which surprisingly, the game had. In winter, The Dock closed down in favor of being converted into The Rink; a giant skating rink that stretched on for miles, and another Winter Wonderland world opened up during the season for snowboarding and skiing). As you advanced into the game and gained EXP, new Worlds were unlocked and you could continue to explore what seemed like an endless series of maps.

Taemin's favorite, however, was Paradise Planet.

After playing the game for a few months, Taemin had gained enough EXP to unlock a Fourth level World, Paradise Planet. The map was beautiful in the sense that it was as though it was a normal world with buildings, parks, eateries, tourist attractions and friendly animals, but what Taemin found the most interesting about Paradise Planet was that it had people.

Taemin always received a message in the game upon unlocking new worlds that explained the general outline of the map and listed new features. Most of the First level Worlds were empty worlds where the closest things to life were plants and bugs. Second and Third level Worlds increased in plant and animal life and a few particular Third Worlds actually had some androids that you could interact with to a limited extent; they only offered you advice about how to level up and navigate the World, fun things you could do, the best places to visit in the map, and any other tidbits of information you might need. Taemin had figured that was the closest he'd get to other players in the game so he hadn't given much thought that there could be other users so he was excited to say the least when he found people roaming around in Paradise Planet.

Some of the first people he saw were dressed averagely and going about doing normal things. There were kids swinging on swingsets in the parks, dogs chasing frisbees thrown by owners, couples walking hand in hand through the streets, and happy vendors selling fruit from stands outside shops. Taemin had been walking through the streets when a woman wearing a bright orange t-shirt with the words "Paradise Tech" on it in capital white letters had approached him, smiling eagerly. Her short, light brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and Taemin could see the wisps of smaller pieces of hair escaping the visor that was on her head. She even had green eyes and freckles and Taemin thought maybe he was wrong to have judged the graphics of the entire game based on just the First World levels.

When she got close enough to gain his attention, she raised a tablet she carried in her hands up and threw it in the air. Taemin was shocked when it stabilized and hovered by her shoulder, a screen popping up on it.

Hello, my name is Sandy and I am Tech Support of Paradise Planet. Nice to meet you! What is your username?

'Taemin', he typed on his keyboard. Taemin was pretty impressed. On the Third level worlds, the androids never approached you first. You always had to walk up to them, press A to speak, the usual. This was new.

Hello, Taemin! I will be your host for his world. You have finally unlocked a Fourth level World, congratulations!

'Thank you', he typed out.

Here's what you will need to know for this World: citizens of Paradise Planet are free to roam to other Worlds you may visit only on the Fourth level. Citizens may not travel back to First, Second, or Third Worlds, but they may travel to higher Worlds should you advance to further levels. The screen paused it's typing, and she stood, smiling at him. Taemin took it as his cue to answer her.

'I understand.' The tablet resumed typing.

Citizens of Paradise Planet are very friendly and may interact with you at any time. Please feel free to communicate with them politely. You can report citizens should they express behavior you are unsatisfied with. You can do this by reporting their citizen number to me. The citizen number can be found on a citizen's upper left arm at all times. Sandy gestured to her left bicep where her orange t-shirt sleeve displayed the code SANTECH. She lifted her sleeve to reveal her bare arm, and the same code was imprinted on her skin, like a tattoo. The screen resumed typing: Since I am Tech Support of Paradise Planet. I am the only resident of this World with a letter code. All other citizens can identified with their numbers.

Taemin typed out a question, 'Can they have names like you?' Sandy grinned.

Yes. They may or may not identify with other names. This is okay. Citizens are allowed to express individuality. Citizens can always, however, be identified with the citizen number if need be. Taemin typed an affirmative response and the screen continued to type; You can communicate with citizens using the voice feature upgrade Fourth Worlds offer. Please select a response.

Taemin was presented with a game option from the screen; A for 'I have activated the voice feature', B for 'I have not activated the voice feature', and C for 'what is the voice feature?'. Taemin tapped C and Sandy's screen immediately began typing again.

The voice feature is an extra feature Fourth Worlds offer. Other Worlds may offer more advanced features with the more EXP you gather. The voice feature allows you to use your voice to communicate using speech to citizens of Paradise Planet. You can toggle this option on or off in the settings menu. Toggle on requires a headset.

Taemin groaned. He hadn't purchased a headset when he'd bought the game, and he quickly typed out 'I don't have a headset'.

Any headset is compatible with the game. Once a headset is acquired, this code will be required to activate the voice feature and enable speech. A 9-letter code appeared across the screen and Taemin quickly dashed across the room for a pen and paper to scribble it down. Once a headset is required, you will be able to speak to citizens.

'I can't talk to anyone until I get the headset?'

No. I am the only resident who can communicate by typing. I can also communicate through speech while other citizens cannot. Toggling the voice feature off will decrease the amount of interactions between yourself and citizens as you cannot communicate. Taemin wracked his brain with the new information. He had to use the voice feature. Sandy resumed typing and Taemin's attention diverted back to the screen. The headset required for Fourth Worlds differs from the headsets required for Fifth and Sixth worlds. Taemin's interest perked.

'How do I know which headset to get for those worlds?'

I am limited in information about higher up Worlds. Only once you reach the higher level Worlds will I be able to answer your questions.

'Can I use the same headset I use for this World for higher level Worlds?'

No. Damn, this game was going to get pricey. Money wasn't really an issue for Taemin's filthy rich family, but he hoped the game wouldn't require him to take too many trips to the store. Taemin's invincible only-child powers may only last him so long.

'How many Worlds are there?'

World Ten is the highest level World.

'What's on World Ten?'

Virtual Reality. Taemin nearly choked with excitement.

'I can enter the game?'

Yes. Provided you have the correct gear.

'What kind of gear?'

I am limited in information about higher up Worlds. Only once you reach the higher level Worlds will I be able to answer your questions. Taemin guessed that was the capacity of information she had to offer him for the time being, so he just typed an affirmative and awaited her response.

Thank you for entering Paradise Planet, I hope you enjoy this World and continue to upgrade. Enjoy the game.

Taemin would.

Hey guys, LifeisSHINee here! Woo, this is my first chaptered fic! It shouldn't be too long and I'll try to update regularly although I'm not sure I can promise, but for now I will definitely try. Please leave any feedback if you can, this is my first chaptered fic so I'll need any comments I can get. As always, take care!