You plopped down on the spare bed in Onew’s room, slumped forward in a graceless heap as you bounced a little with the impact.  You threw yourself backward to lie flat, , “I’m so TIRED.  Aigoo, everything aches!”

The clean-up effort from what you had decided to term the “CHOCOLATE HORROR” had been epic, for several reasons…

Jonghyun really had posted the picture of a shocked Minho sitting in a big chunky chocolate pile of cake on Twitter, laughing like crazy the whole time.

Minho had roared and lunged, successfully tackling Jonghyun to the ground, but also sending pieces of cake and icing flying- splattering the white couch and everyone sitting on it.

One of the larger pieces hit Key smack in the middle of his forehead, before inching down over his face and landing with a disgusting ‘splat’ on his lap- which meant his designer jeans, his FAVORITE jeans, were desecrated by chocolate and strawberry juice. First, he was devestated.  Then, he got MAD.

Key jumped up from the couch to begin punching the boys still wrestling for control of the phone on the floor, while managing to totally ignore the fact that chocolate icing was being beaten into the carpet like it stole something.  Poor carpet. You were amazed that his scream of outrage didn’t break the windows, and mystified that it didn’t instantly shatter the glass of water that Onew still held.

Taemin was laughing, while picking bits of dessert off his face and tasting it- “Noona, so delicious- we picked a great cake!”  *giggle*

You and Onew looked at each other and by some sort of telepathic communication both agreed to head for the cleaning supplies.  Returning from the kitchen, you both stopped and stared at the spectacle.

Minho had somehow gained possession of the phone and was taunting Jonghyun by backing around the room in circles while holding it just out of reach, continuously mocking him about being the “shorty”, even as Key continued following Jjong around, scolding both him & Minho at the top of his lungs.  Taemin was still giggling over on the couch.

<--sorry for slight bad language, but LOL

Getting everyone separated, calmed down, Key mollified, and the phone returned had  taken close to two hours, but getting all the chocolate up was another task entirely.   Thankfully, Onew had put on his rare, but highly effective, stern leader look and reminded the members that they should be sorry that your cake was ruined, and that helping clean up the mess was the LEAST they could do.

One thing you could say about SHINee: when they were given a task, they all put in their best effort, working harder than just about anyone you’d ever seen.

Well, I doubt that those stains are coming out without the help of a professional cleaning crew.  I hope they manage to fix it before their manager sees it, or they’ll all be in big trouble.

You let out a small groan of relief as the muscles at the small of your back finally relaxed. 

“Sooooo gooooood!”

“Are you talking about the cake, the bed, or the possibility of a hot shower & then sleep?”

Your eyes popped wide at the sound of Onew’s voice near you, and you would have sat up, but he was hovering at the side of the bed beside your head, bent over at the waist, which put his head aligned with yours, but upside down. 

“Ummm…my b..b..back, actually.  But a hot shower sounds WONDERFUL- never in a million years did I think that the smell of chocolate would make me sick, but that tragic day has arrived.”

He straightened, moved around the end of the bed and offered a hand to help you stand. 

“Ow. ow, so sore,  is this what old ladies feel like everyday? So pitiful,” you moped. 

“You’ll be fine once you get under the hot water, _____.  No worries- I’ll bring you a spare set of pyjamas to wear.”

The shower was every bit as good as you thought it would be, even though you had to wash your hair three times to get all the dried chocolate rinsed out.  The pyjamas, in a cute pattern of polaroid puppy pictures that had to belong to either Key or Taemin, were a little snug through the chest, but extra comfy and warm.

<-- your pjs

You went back out to the main room to comb out your hair, and to let the guys get a shot at the shower.  You blushed as you glimpsed Minho in pj bottoms, his abs (*mental snicker* his CHOCOLATE abs *mental snicker*) flashing by as he darted down the hallway to his room.  Taemin appeared in pjs matching yours only with a blue background, solving that mystery. 

“Hey, are we dating now, noona? COUPLE PJS!  So cute!”  He ran to grab a camera and started snapping some selcas with you, urging you to do cute poses along with him.  “One for you, ten for me,” he laughed, handing you a shot showing your heads pressed cheek to cheek, each holding one hand up to make a “heart” sign just below your chins.  You smiled at how adorable he was.  God, he is so ridiculously photogenic! 

For the moment, it was just you and him.  “So how’s life, Tae?’

“Well, we’ve been working hard, Japanese isn’t that easy to learn, but I’m okay at it.  The schedule has been pretty packed for us, and the new album is starting to take up a lot of time too.”

Suddenly, he looked very serious, and you could see the tiredness usually hidden behind his shy smiles and cute image.  His eyes looked a bit…sad.  Moved to see him look so exhausted, you reached out and placed one hand on his cheek- “You amaze me with your dedication. Really.  I’m so proud of you, Tae, from what I’ve managed to catch on TV, your performances have been outstanding.  Plus, you’re voice has improved so much- I nearly cried when I saw that Immortal Song episode…”

He looked surprised at your touch, but ended up blushing then leaning into your hand the tiniest bit.

“Thanks, I really needed to hear that from someone NOT one of my hyungs, and not a die hard fan either,” he whispered softly, "they always tell me I'm doing better and it gets harder and harder to believe."  His hand covered yours, pressing it into his face for a second before moving them away, giving your hand a quick squeeze before you pulled it back.  You smiled at happily at each other.

Key leaned in at the arched doorway, along with Onew, to say, “Taeminnie- time to sleep.  You too, hyung, we need to be up early for our photoshoot tomorrow, and then the rest of our schedules.”  Taemin sprang up, his tired look hidden once again as he bounced over to his hyung.  Key smiled,“Nice seeing you, _____-ssi, we’ll talk tomorrow, Ne?  I definitely want some input on this stylist thing.”

“Ne,” you answered, “and sorry about those jeans- I’ll have to get you something even hotter to wear.”

“You’d better!  Sweet dreams,” he called over his shoulder, herding Taemin along in front of him.

Onew was still leaning against the doorframe.  “I’d ask what that was all about, but it looked like something that Taemin needed to hear, and it’s private, so I won’t ask.”

You shook your head at his poorly concealed curiosity. “You’re right, it was private.  So thanks for not asking.”  You grabbed the comb from your lap and walked over to meet him at the door. 

“So I’m sleeping on the spare bed in your room,” you questioned.

He straightened and crossed his arms.  “Are you okay with that? Me being in the other bed, I mean?  If not, I can sleep out here on the couch.” 

You tried to take an unobtrusive deep breath.  You can do this, ____.  Bury it deep, bury it deep, it’s just sleep. This is the first test, don’t screw it up.   “Of course it’s fine.  It’s not like I haven’t shared a room before.  Besides, you need beauty sleep for your shoot tomorrow.  I wouldn’t forgive myself if you slept all weird out here and looked like a zombie in the morning,” you said casually.   “I’ll go first.”

You headed on down the hall without waiting for his reply, preventing further argument.

Behind you, Onew frowned before running both hands through his hair in frustration.  He blew out a quick, heavy breath, and stated quietly “You can do this.”

A/N: the next chapter...oh boy.  that's all I'm saying.  Plot thickens.

You guys are the coolest- you'd actually read 93 chaps? crazy but loyal- just the kind of subbers I love! :D

Hey out there, silent readers, I love you too :D  hope you are enjoying this!