Doojoon’s eyes widened and he tackled Yoseob, hitting the hang up button as everyone dived for cover.

Total silence descended as ears strained to hear what was happening outside.

“Yeobosayo?” A female voice was heard, though slightly muffled. “Hm. I wonder who called me.”

“IT’S HER!” Gikwang whisper-screamed.

The sound of the doorbell scared all six of them to death.

“Kwangie! You go,” Doojoon told him, lifting his head from the carpet. “It’s your place anyway.”

“But… but…” Gikwang protested, already standing up.

The doorbell rang again. “Just go!” His hyung hissed, then scooted back behind the couch.

Gikwang ran his fingers through his hair and scrubbed his face with his hands as he walked towards the door. Damn! He was still wearing the wife beater that he had slept in. Oh well; no time to change. Again the doorbell rang.

“Coming!”

***

“Coming!”

Da Eun jumped. After she had rung the bell the third time, she had thought that, maybe, there was nobody home. She had been just about to dial the mystery caller back; hence the reaction when the smooth male voice came through the door.

Nervous, she smoothed her hair and straightened her clothes. The guy’s voice was sorta y- Wait. This man could be her employer, she couldn’t think that way! Da Eun banished all unprofessional thoughts from her mind and waited for the door to open. When it did, she stifled a shriek.

Omo! The guy standing in the doorway was hot! And definitely not what she expected. For one thing, he seemed to be her age. Focus, focus, Da Eun told herself.

“Annyeonghaseyo, my name is Da Eun, and I’m looking to be hired as a housekeeper,” she introduced herself politely.

“Um… Annyeonghaseyo,” the man greeted her, then turned his head with a peculiar expression on his face.

“Is there something wrong, Mr…?” She asked, confused.

“Gikwang. Lee Gikwang. No, no, there’s nothing wrong,” he answered, seeming distracted.

***

Yes, there was definitely something wrong! Gikwang had no idea how to deal with the situation. If it had been an old or ugly prospective housekeeper, he would’ve turned her away with a curt no, but this girl was neither. He was at a loss for words for the first time in his life. He turned towards his living room couches, which were out of sight of the doorway. The pleading expression on his face sent the five boys into convulsions, but Yoseob couldn’t stand seeing his friend in such a dilemma, being the good Samaritan he was.

“Annyeonghaseyo,” Yoseob appeared suddenly next to Gikwang, who gave him a grateful smile and receded into silence. “I’m Yang Yoseob.”

“Uh, annyeonghaseyo,” the girl greeted him, bewildered.

She was pretty! He hadn’t gotten a chance to see under her curtain of hair as she ran past the other day, and he was caught speechless by her gaze. Her eyes were just as long lashed and doe-like as Seungie’s, Yoseob couldn’t help noting. He realized he was staring and coughed awkwardly, nudging Gikwang, who had been doing the same. “Yah…”

“Oh, um, what are you doing here?” Gikwang asked, fumbling for something, anything to say.

“I’m… looking for work as a housekeeper,” she repeated herself cautiously. She blanched as Junhyung came tailed by Hyunseung, shortly followed by a curious Dongwoon and a nonchalant Doojoon. “But, um,” she looked slightly scared and started backing away towards the elevator. “I’ll just go…”

“No, don’t,” Doojoon called pleasantly. “We were just telling Kwangie here that he needed a housekeeper. What a nice surprise that you showed up! Come on in,” he opened the door wide, beckoning as if he owned the place. “And by the way, I’m Yoon Doojoon, these two lovebirds are Jang Hyunseung and Yong Junhyung, and this is Son Dongwoon, our cute maknae. You already met those two pabos by the door,” he introduced himself and the others cheerfully. His presence was asive; Da Eun couldn’t help but hesitate and follow him tentatively into the penthouse.

As soon as she stepped over the threshold, though, she couldn’t stop herself from wrinkling her nose cutely in disgust. Little did she know that the boys were watching her every move, and the giggles they suppressed were because of her.

At least it didn’t smell, Da Eun sighed mentally. When she had come up to the penthouse, she had done so under the assumption that it would be inhabited by a stereotypical middle aged business man requiring little looking after, not by a gang of boys barely older than her.

“Sit down,” Doojoon cajoled, furtively swiping crumbs and empty chip bags off the couch. Da Eun flinched and eyed the dirty cushions.

“Um… I’d prefer to stand, if it’s all right with you,” she tried to refuse as politely as she could, but winced as her reply came out rather bluntly.

“No problem, we’ll just stand too,” the smooth talker brushed aside her curtness. The other boys, who had already sat down, fell over themselves to get up. Except for Junhyung. He remained where he was on the couch, coolly watching the whole spectacle unfold.

After some thought, Hyunseung sat down on the carpet, resting his back on Junhyung’s legs. Although the latter was the younger of the two by a few months, he had the more hyung-like personality, and so Hyunseung never really saw him as a dongseng. The boy in question smirked at him and jiggled his legs, making the other look back. “Merong,” he pouted.

A slight smile appeared on Da Eun’s face as she observed the two’s antics. Her expression brightened and the room fell silent as the boys watched, struck by the emergence of her beauty. Doojoon, as always, was the first to come to his senses. And as always, he was the first to attempt to make a move.

“So, how does such a pretty girl like you end up looking for housekeeping work here?” He smiled winningly, perching on the side of the couch.

“If I’m going to be your housekeeper, I’m going to have to stay on strictly formal terms with all of you,” Da Eun ignored him, speaking to the group as a whole. Her smile had disappeared, and she spoke dispassionately, but politely. There was no sign of her former shyness.

It was as if an arrow had gone through Doojoon. Shock grew on his handsome features as he gazed, struck, at the first girl who had ever, in effect, rejected him.

The other boys burst out in laughter, falling haphazardly in all directions.

“Oh please, do it again!” Yoseob cried from the carpet.

“Yah, Doojoon, how does it feel?” Gikwang smirked. He, of course, had never been rejected.

Even Junhyung, who rarely let loose in front of strangers, managed a grin as Hyunseung giggled, sending vibrations up his legs.

Dongwoon stood where he had been the whole time, clueless as to what was going on.

“Um, sorry about my hyungs,” he apologized nervously, fidgeting. Of course he had talked to girls before, but they weren’t as pretty as she was. “Kwangie hyung lives in the penthouse, but the rest of us live downstairs in our own flats,” he explained in a soft voice.

“Oh really? So would he be the one hiring me?” Da Eun asked.

“The thing is, hyung doesn’t want a housekeeper. Actually, none of us do,” he said, gradually becoming concerned as the girl’s face paled. “Um, noo- um, are you all right?” He asked, not sure whether she was older or younger than him.

“I’m fine,” she replied faintly, swaying. The toughness was gone from her voice and her expression, and instead she looked fragile and breakable. She looks like a doll, Dongwoon thought, like a porcelain doll with pitch black hair. It looks so soft- His thoughts were interrupted as Da Eun’s dark chocolate eyes rolled up and she fainted, falling forward into his arms.