“Ah, h-hi, Johnny, I am so so sorry!” you nearly shrieked, scuttling back and lightly patting his chest to smooth the tight wine-red silk shirt he was wearing. You stood, in awe, admiring how him from the top down as he stood, sculpted perfectly in the blouse, his long legs so lean in his tight black skinny jeans, and his fashion sense complete with patent leather boots. “You weren’t wearing this earlier?” you pointed out, confused and desperate for anything to say as you continued to stare at him despite Mark’s piercing glares.

            “No, I thought I would freshen up a bit for you. You don’t like it?” he asked, a slight pout forming.

            “Oh, no! I like it! You look good! You just don’t have to go to such lengths to impress me,” you stammered.

            “Oh, but I do. It’s not every day that I get such a kind soul with a cute face like yours walking through these halls. I’m just so used to my bros, like that one over there who can’t seem to turn his sour frown upside down,” Johnny explained, nodding his head at the vexed Mark, whom, to be frank, you had nearly forgotten about in those few seconds.

            “Ah, I’m sure he’s just a little confused to see you here,” you assured him, trying desperately to do damage control though the situation was already far from saving for Mark.

            “Yeah, you were kind of interrupting something, hyung,” he hissed as he side eyed his elder.

            “Ah, I see. Olivia, if you want, I could always catch up with you later. Maybe go out for a night on the town after a nice dinner at this great late-night ramen shop I know,” he offered, knowing he wasn’t going to be able to take you away from Mark this time. You glanced at the younger boy who what conflicted. He didn’t want to let you go, but he also wanted you to have fun. His dismay merely dissolved into resignation as he looked at you to make your choice.

            “I still have so much more to see here, but I would like it if I could rain check until tonight. Business first before I can start having crazy fun with you and the others,” you accepted politely.

            “Of course. You’re a smart girl,” Johnny beamed proudly before taking your hand and kissing it, to Mark’s disgust. “Well, then I’ll meet you at the main entrance at 9?” he suggested. You nodded excitedly, trying not to blush at the skinship. “Great! I’ll see you later, Olivia~” he chimed as he took his leave, nearly strutting down the hallway, his hands in his pockets and a smile on his face. “O and Mark~” he sing-songed, spinning around gracefully as he was halfway down the hall. Mark only scoffed in acknowledgment. “Try not to mess it up,” he advised sarcastically, chuckling to himself as he walked away. Mark only managed to stick his tongue out before his elder disappeared around the corner. You stopped yourself from tittering at Mark’s childish behavior though your heart was racing from how suavely and quickly Johnny was trying to take your heart.

            “Ah, don’t worry about him. I still have the rest of the day to you! So, where to next?” you assured him, quickly changing the subject.

            “Well, there are a whole lot of dorms around here. I should probably take you to go see the other groupmates, but I also don’t want you running into him any time soon. You should even reconsider tonight,” he warned.

            “I’ll be fine! It’s just a friendly welcome. Don’t tell me you’re jealous already!” you teased, nudging him lightly. “You did guarantee I was going to fall for you by the end of the year. You can’t give up so easily,” you reminded him with a bright smile. He pursed his lips and nodded his head in complete agreement.

            “Well, if you promise you won’t fall for him, I guess I shouldn’t have any problems.” You nodded. “Well, I suppose I should take you to meet the others. You may be my personal assistant, but I know you’ve got to be dying to meet the others. Just look only to me, though, no one else.”

            “Your personal assistant? I thought I was everyone’s assistant?” you inquired, baffled.

            “Oh, that’s way~ too much for one person, let alone an intern like you, to handle! That would just be flat out Hell. No, no, no, let me explain. Almost every member here has their own personal assistant, or there are at least three or four assistants per subgroup since there are just so many things to keep track of. There are always overlapping schedules, promotions, activities, the whole of it so to put that all on person would just be ridiculous!” he elucidated. “Look, SM might be snakes at time, but they’re not sadists at least. They just want their money and to avoid scandals and if that means hiring more staff to make sure their artists are happy and not dying, so be it,” he whispered seriously. You weren’t surprised and rather, you felt a wave of relief wash over you as you realized you wouldn’t have the world on your shoulders, only your world, Mark.

            “Oh, but still, what am I supposed to do as your personal assistant then?” you probed, scratching your head.

            “Anything I want. You have to keep me happy, remember?” he smirked mischievously as he ran his hand down your arm, his eyes enticing and his voice low. You shivered, your heart continuing to speed as your cheeks warmed. “I’m just messing with you! Lighten up!” he guffawed. “What kind of monster do you think I am? Although how you were inside with the Dreamies and how cute you look right now is making me a bit crazy,” he admitted. Your eyes darted across the hall, trying to focus on anything that wasn’t him out of fear you would melt under his charming gaze. “Ah, I’ve made you nervous. I’m sorry,” he apologized, noticing your demeanor though he secretly and thoroughly enjoyed seeing you like this.

            “No, no, you didn’t. It’s no big deal,” you muttered, still refraining from eye contact as you attempted to regain your composure in vain.

            “Well, if I didn’t, what do you want to do next? You want to go check out the dorms like I suggested?”

            “Yeah, yeah, anything,” you agreed entirely too quickly and shakily. He smirked to himself, ghosting his hand down your arm again to grab your hand.

            “Well, let’s go. Then after, you and I can get to the fun stuff,” he winked as he nearly dragged you away.

            “Ah~ your groupmates are just so amazing! They’re so much nicer than any program or broadcast can make them look!” you exclaimed gleefully as you left the last dorm, Ten’s cologne still lingering on your skin after his tender, welcoming embrace. Mark nodded, proud of his groupmates. You noticed. “And they’re all so gorgeous~ Ten is nearly a god,” you hummed, side eyeing Mark to gauge his reaction. His smile dropped immediately as he grabbed for your arm, more forcefully than you expected. He looked at you and bit his lip, his eyes smoldering with a dangerous mix of attraction and jealousy. He opened his mouth to say something, but quickly decided against it and shook his head. He looked away, pained. You were going to be harder for him to convince and keep than he thought. That was all you needed. “I-I was kidding,” you whispered sheepishly, your heart sinking. “You don’t have to be so jealous…” you trailed off, avoiding eye contact once more.

            “I’m not jealous, just remember that you’re mine and all mine. You may not be mine yet and you may not even be mine by the end of the year,” he started gravely, “But you are mine and I will do everything in my power to keep so don’t get too close to anyone, but me,” he sighed, his tone haunting. Any other time, you would be upset at such possessive behavior, regardless of how attractive the person was for you were not to be owned or claimed but surprisingly, you sympathized with Mark, feeling that he was aching. He wanted you to be so much more than a personal assistant. With a schedule like his and constantly bouncing between groupmates, staff, and venues, he was too busy to have friends outside of these walls and halls. He wanted you to be an outside source, a friend who didn’t grow with him through training, who wasn’t doing the same thing as he was, but just someone different. You wanted to be that for him. You would strive to be more than a company-hired interning personal assistance. You would be his assistant on all levels, someone to take the edge off and someone he could trust.

            “I won’t, I promise,” you assured him, rubbing your palm against his cheek, your will unwavering and your eyes full of assurance. You bit your lip, unsure of what to do next. You wanted to take him in your arms and never let him go, let him endure all the emotions that were gnawing at him and be there to pick up the pieces if there were any. You wanted to let him breathe, let him cry, let him rejoice, let him do whatever he needed, but you knew here and now was not the time. Unfortunately, you still had so much to do. “Mark,” you whispered. He hummed, leaning his head into your hand as he held his own over your hand. “There is still so much to do,” you reminded him reluctantly. “Where to, now?” He sighed, not wanting to leave.

            “Ah, I guess we can go get all the boring stuff out the way. I can show you around the studios and what not,” he whispered, drifting away into contentment at your prolonged touch. You continued to stare at him, your heart softening and lightening. He was comfortable with you. That was a start.

            “Ah, then so be it. Let’s go,” you smiled softly, carefully pulling your hand away only to take his again as you started down the hall.

           

 

            “So, most of the time, you won’t have to be in here because we do all of recording with our sound engineers and what not, but I figured it would be nice to at least show you the studios. I saved the best for last, though,” he announced as he swung open the door of his favorite studio.

            “And why is this the best?” you queried, looking around, amazed. “Plus, I thought you said we were doing boring stuff. So far, nothing has been boring, and this place looks pretty cool.”

            “Well, this is my favorite studio. This is where I get to lay down some bars for whenever I’m feeling just some type of way, you get me,” he answered calmly as he walked behind you.

            “Don’t worry, I won’t touch anything. I don’t want to get fired on my first day ‘cause I broke something,” you assured him.

            “You didn’t have to touch anything in here. You already have,” he whispered as he s his arms around your waist from behind and rested his head on your shoulder. “I want to kiss you so bad right now, but that would be a bad idea, huh?” he admitted blatantly, his voice seductive and his breathing calm as he held you tighter. “I could just stand right here and melt. You’re so comforting, Olivia,” he sighed, reveling in pure content and warmth.

            “M-Mark,” you managed meekly, your voice nearly cracking as you assessed the situation. You couldn’t lie, you were indeed attracted to Mark, but this was all too much, too fast. You still had so much to do and above all, you didn’t want to take advantage of Mark like this. You wanted to be his friend first, be there for him to air his problems, concerns, fears before moving on to anything more serious. Moreover, you being with him now would cause too much of an uproar with the fans, his groupmates, and the company. You had a job to do first, a friend to care for second, and a heart to quell last. You didn’t want to rush anything despite wanting nothing more than to indulge in the sweet boy that was humming sweet nothings in your ear and melting at your touch.

            “Yes~” he nearly moaned.

            “Did you bring me here just so we can do this? Isn’t there something else we can do?” you nearly whimpered, not wanting this moment to end, but knowing that it should.

            “Well, I just wanted to bring you somewhere I was the most comfortable considering I feel like this with you now.”

            “Feel like how?” you asked, swallowing hard.

            “Comfortable,” he replied simply.

            “But Mark~ you know we can’t stay like this,” you objected.

            “Says who?” he challenged.

            “We have other things to do and what if someone catches us? You want me to get fired?”

            “I would protect you, baby girl. I just, I just can’t lose this moment. Don’t take it away from me,” he whined, his voice slowly eroding your willpower.

            “So, how about you live in the moment. You said you like making music when you feel a certain type of way. Let me hear that,” you proposed, mad at yourself for being responsible.

            “You know what, baby girl, you’re right. I got this,” he asserted confidently as he pecked your cheek and dashed into the recording room, nearly tripping over the small trash bin. “Put the headphones on so you can hear me. If you want to talk to me, just press the red button in the corner, nothing else!” he advised before he closed the door and put on his own pair of headphones. You carefully took your seat behind the sound board and put your headphones on, anxiously anticipating what he would say. Whatever it was, you felt honored to be there experiencing his feelings with him, even if you couldn’t grasp what they meant or grapple with your own.

            “Alright, I’m gonna do it raw. No music. Listen to this, babe,” he declared excitedly. You nodded, biting your lip and holding your hand to your heart, trying to calm it.

           

Check it,

Not too long ago, was tossing in my sleep, wondering what this all was for.

I got my boys and my music everyday keeping me through it.

But something was missing ‘till I saw her stumble right through my door.

Welcome to my world, where we live off glam, glitz, and all the hits,

Always looking for something else, something new, just for yourself.

Done so much I’ve really almost gotten bored.

But I’m trying my best only for her. Hope she don’t just put me on the shelf.

Wanted her to fall first, just for me, no thirst, but think I’ve already sunk.

Please, just help me, Lord.

She reminds me of someone I used to know. Got me thinking ‘bout the old me, the new me and all the in between.

Just want her to be there for it all.

So cute, so cool, perfect in every way. I’ll admit it was easy, not too hard for me to fall.

Can’t say a word, but that’s just how it be.

But none of that matters ‘cause now I’m right where she wants me.

“So, what did you think?” he asked nervously as he took off his headphones, panting, gauging your reaction. You couldn’t say a word. His face sunk even further as he was afraid you didn’t like it. You reached for the button, but decided to beckon for him. He rushed out to meet you, “So?” he repeated, anxiously. It was now or never.

“Mark,” you whispered before pulling him down by the collar of his shirt and pressing a passionate, but chaste kiss against his smooth lips.

“Olivia?” he muttered after you pulled away, stunned.

“I’m here for you, alright? I want more of that. I want more Mark whenever I can get him, ok?” His eyes widened as he nodded earnestly.

“And I want more Olivia,” he whined, leaning in for another kiss as he placed his hand on your thigh. You smirked before pressing an index finger to his pursed lips, making him pucker even stronger.

“Not like this. Let’s take it slow. I want to be there for you and all of you first,” you advocated. He bit his lip but nodded in agreement.

“You’re such a tease,” he pouted, lightening up before folding his arms across his chest.

“What can I say? You drop some bars like that and expect me not to do something I’ve been wanting to do all day?” you rebutted. He shrugged, proud of himself, proud of what he had done to you.

“So, what now? Can we…?” he trailed off, looking down at you, his eyes clouded with an intoxicating mix of lust and pure affection. You pulled yourself away from his stare to check your phone.

“I~ have to go to a meeting with the other new staff now, so I will just have to see you later, maybe tonight after Johnny?” you chimed, standing from the chair and brushing past him playfully to make your way to the door.

“You’re still going with him?!” he pouted.

“Of course, he wants to welcome me to the SM family, too! It would be rude of me to decline!”

“I don’t like it,” he protested.

“You don’t have to. Just know that I like you. That’s all you need to know. Now stop being so darn jealous or you won’t get to see me tonight,” you warned halfheartedly, reaching for the handle.

“You know that would hurt you as much as it would hurt me. We got a vibe going, baby girl; don’t let it die.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it. Bye… babe,” you assured him with a pure smile as you exited the room, your hands shaking, your mind racing, but your heart content.