Hyeyoon ended up staying way past her workday. The boys bought a lot of meat and everyone, except Taeyong who was still in the studio, gathered at the 10th floor dorm for the “welcome party dinner”. She found herself enjoying being with the group. They were so warm and friendly to her. Plus, they were funny and very easy-going. She was smiling and laughing with everyone.

It’s been years since she got to hang out like this because she spent all most all of her teen years taking care of her dad. It feels like she was making up for the lost time that she didn’t get to live as a normal teenage girl.

Hyeyoon received a text from Hyerim, her older sister, asking her where she was. She checked the time, it was almost 9 p.m. She didn’t realize it was already late, she was enjoying herself way too much that she lost track of the time. She thought her unnie must be very worried for her. She was supposed to be home before 5 pm.

“Everyone thank you for the dinner. I have to get going now,” she starts to get up.

“You’re very welcome noona!” Haechan says.

“Is your home far from here? Do you want me to take you home?” Doyoung says getting up as well.

“No, let me take her home,” Haechan protests and gets up too.

“I can go home by myself.” Hyeyoon bows and rushes out before anyone could stop her.

Haechan and Doyoung briefly looked at each other intensely before they sat back down. Johnny laughed at the two and bluntly says, “do you two like her or something? Cause you’re being too obvious it’s funny!”

Doyoung gets taken aback and blushes. He takes a sip of his drink, trying to hide his face. Meanwhile, Haechan sits straighter and says, “yeah, I like her.”

Doyoung spits out his drink.

 

 

 

Hyeyoon zips her jacket all the way up as she exits the building. She felt the night air rush to her as soon as she walked out the doors. Somehow, she feels as if Seoul is colder than her hometown. Despite how cold she felt, she smiles as she thinks about what happened to her today.

Honestly, Hyeyoon thought working for idols, especially a boy group, would be tough. She expected to be ignored and she thought she would have a really heavy workload considering that she’ll have to clean up after nine celebrities plus a manager.

NCT 127, she can now perfectly remember their group name, is the opposite of what she expected. They feel like guy friends that Hyeyoon has never had. Although, her heart flutters almost all the time whenever she looks at their handsome faces. She’s never experienced these “heart fluttering” moments before so she doesn’t know what to do.

She’s already walking in the parking lot beside the building. The place was dark and Hyeyoon felt a bit scared that someone dangerous could be lurking in the shadows. Her older sister warned her to be careful on her way home since Seoul is not like her hometown; she can’t just walk anywhere since the streets aren’t safe.

Hyeyoon looked around and quickened her pace. Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder which made her scream in fear. She pushed away the person that touched her and ran as fast she could. But she tripped and fell hard on the ground.

She looked behind her to see who the person was. It was a man with pink colored hair that seemed familiar but because the place wasn’t well-lit, she couldn’t see his face.

“Ple-please don’t! Don’t hurt m-me! I don’t have any any m-money to give give you!” Hyeyoon says as she tries to get up from the ground. Her knees and ankle hurt but Hyeyoon bites her teeth through the pain.

“Ms. Han, it’s me. Taeyong,” the man says. He was approaching her slowly, as if he was trying not to scare her.

Hyeyoon was too scared to think properly and she didn’t believe him. She tries to walk away but falls back to the ground. Luckily, the man was fast enough to catch her. His face was finally close enough for her to see clearly, and he really was Taeyong.

Taeyong was going home from the studio when he saw Hyeyoon walking. He parked his car and ran up to her so he could offer to give her a ride home but he didn’t expect that this would happen.

He had an arm around her waist and another on her shoulders so she wouldn’t fall. He looked at her straight in the eye with a face filled with worry, “are you okay? I’m so sorry if I scared you.”

Hyeyoon has never been held this way by any man, let alone a very handsome man. She thought Taeyong’s face resemble those handsome male heroes from animated movies and games.

He held her so close she could smell his perfume. It reminded her of the smell of the woods after a light rain. She used to take a walk whenever she could to a woodland near her house in her hometown. His smell made her feel calm and at ease but being held this way and seeing his face this close, her heart beat was going insanely fast.

“I’m okay… it was my fault for thinking you were a robber or something,” she says looking away from him.

He must have noticed that she was getting uncomfortable from their close proximity so Taeyong lets go of Hyeyoon’s waist but keeps an arm on her shoulders so he could support her. He was worried she might fall again. He hopes she’s not seriously injured.

“Were you on your way home from working in our dorm?”

She nods while squeezing her eyes shut from the pain she feels on her legs. Her knees feel like they were burning, she probably scratched them badly when she fell. Taeyong could see she was trying to hide that she was in pain.

“Let me drive you home,” Taeyong says. He suddenly carries Hyeyoon in his arms, bridal style, and starts walking towards a black car parked nearby.

Hyeyoon didn’t know it was possible for her heart to beat even faster than it already was. She was afraid he could hear her erratic heart beating but Taeyong’s mind was occupied with thoughts of concern for Hyeyoon. He was very worried that her injuries were bad. He blames himself for causing this to her.

“You don’t have to…” Hyeyoon says but Taeyong didn’t say anything and kept walking.

He unlocks the car and opens the passenger door, all while carrying Hyeyoon in his arms. He gently places Hyeyoon in the seat, being very careful not to cause her anymore pain. He turns the light on inside the car then he kneels beside her to have a look at her injuries.

The knee parts of her jeans were torn and he could see small but very red scratches through the fabric. Those kinds of wounds sting very badly. She’ll feel like her skin got burned, he thought to himself. He moves on to examine her ankle by very gently moving them.

She in her breath from the pain the movement caused but she was able to move her foot around. Upon seeing that she could move her foot, Taeyong was relieved that her ankle bones weren’t broken. At the most, they were probably strained but she’ll need to rest and put ice on them.

Taeyong smiles and looks up at Hyeyoon, “looks like nothing’s broken.”

Her mind was spinning with thoughts of Taeyong holding her and at the same time, the pain she was feeling. She just nods and tries her best to keep herself calm from the sweet gaze that he was giving her.

Taeyong adjusts Hyeyoon in the seat so her legs were inside the car and puts on the seatbelt for her. He closes the door and hops in to the driver’s seat.

“Where do you live?” he asks while starting the engine.

Hyeyoon tells him her address and he quickly types it in the screen on the car. She’s never had a ride in a car this fancy and high tech before. It’s amazing how advanced everything seems to be in the city, unlike in her provincial town.

“Let’s stop by a pharmacy first before I take you to your house,” Taeyong speaks as he drives.

Hip-hop music is playing in the car. Taeyong was now relaxed knowing that Hyeyoon wasn’t badly hurt. She peeked at him whenever she could and she’d occasionally see him bopping his head to the beat of the music. He looked so cute that it’s easy to mistake him as one of the younger members in NCT 127.

“I actually composed this song, but it hasn’t been released yet,” Taeyong suddenly says with a small smile.

“It sounds great,” Hyeyoon tells him. This makes Taeyong smile even wider.

He takes a quick look at her and says, “really?”

Taeyong looks back on the road but continues talking, ”you’re the first person to hear this song. I was worried you wouldn’t like it but I feel happy to know you think it sounds great.”

The song ends and another one begins. The song reminds Hyeyoon of old arcade games she used to play with her sister when they were kids. It sounds very unique.

Hyeyoon picked up the voices of the members singing and rapping. She could tell right away that Taeyong and Mark were the ones rapping in the song. She thinks it’s really cool that their whispering the lyrics instead of just typically rapping.

“This is our newest song, Punch,” Taeyong tells her. “We’re going to release it soon.”

Hyeyoon could hear the excitement in Taeyong’s voice. He would sing the English part of the chorus with a facial expression that reminds Hyeyoon of an excited puppy. This guy is too cute.

The song finishes in time for them to arrive at the pharmacy. Taeyong parks the car infront of the shop.

“I’ll be right back,” he says giving her a gentle smile before he leaves the car. He buys an ice pack and other stuff that he knows she will need for her wounds.

He comes out of the pharmacy and walks to the passenger door. He opens the door and gently places the ice pack on Hyeyoon’s injured ankle. Then, he puts an anti-septic cream on Hyeyoon’s wounds. After that, he covers them up with band aids.

Hyeyoon felt very conscious of Taeyong’s hands on her legs during the entire time he tended to her wounds. She did her best to keep calm by concentrating on her breathing but she couldn’t control her hyperactive heart.

Taeyong smiles at Hyeyoon one more time before he closes the door and moves back to the driver’s seat. He drives the car to Hyeyoon’s place. They were silent during the entire car ride, with only the music filling the silence. But, they both felt the silence in the car wasn’t awkward at all. It was comfortable.

“Is this the right place?” Taeyong asks as he stops the car infront of an old apartment building. It looked like it had seen better days but the place looked sturdy and clean.

“Yes, thank you for driving me home,” Hyeyoon says while she unbuckles the seatbelt.

Taeyong steps out of the car and opens the door for her, “I’ll walk you to your apartment.”

“Oh no, you don’t have to…”

“No, I insist Ms. Han. What floor do you live? I don’t want you to fall on your way there,” Taeyong says as he helps her out of the car.

“I live in the 7th floor,” Hyeyoon answers.

Since the building doesn’t have an elevator, she knows it would take her ages and a lot of pain to get to her sister’s apartment. She guesses she’ll just allow Taeyong to help her.

“Do you live with auntie? Is she at home?” Taeyong asks as they climb the stairs.

“No, I live with my sister. Auntie’s actually resting in my hometown, with my mom,” she answers.

Taeyong’s arms were around her shoulders as they climbed the stairs. It took quite some time for them to get to up the floors because Hyeyoon struggled to walk. Taeyong thought it would be better if he just carried her.

When they reached the third floor, he tells her “I’ll carry you Ms. Han, it would be faster and more comfortable for you that way.”

He doesn’t wait for her to respond and immediately carries her bridal style again. Hyeyoon feels flustered that she doesn’t know what else to do or say. She continuously apologizes for causing him this much trouble but Taeyong shakes his head.

“I should be the one apologizing to you Ms. Han, your body’s probably already tired from cleaning our dorms all day plus the harsh way Doyoung kicked you out this morning!” he says, laughing a little bit when he remembered Doyoung’s face.

Hyeyoon has nearly forgotten everything that happened today because of this moment she’s sharing with Taeyong right now. At first she thought he seemed like he needed to be taken care of, but here she was being taken care of by him.

“Ms. Han, can you wrap your arms around my neck?” Taeyong asks.

Hyeyoon blushes and asks him why. If she puts her arms around his neck, she thinks it would be more intimate and it would seem like she’s hugging him.

“It would be easier for me to carry you,” he tells her with a gentle smile.

“Am I too heavy?” she worries.

Taeyong shakes his head. He actually felt like he was just carrying a heavy box, she was very light.

“Okay…” she slowly wraps her arms around his neck, blushing even harder.

For Taeyong, it feels comfortable having her in his arms like this. He adjust her and then he starts going up the stairs.

“By the way, what happened to auntie?” he asked as he walked.

“She got pneumonia and her lungs are weak so her doctor told her she needed to rest for six weeks,” Hyeyoon answered.

“Ah, so that’s why you’re our temporary housekeeper?”

Hyeyoon nodded and Taeyong gave her another smile. He looked like he didn’t have any difficulty carrying her.

After multiple flights of stairs, they arrived on the 7th floor. Taeyong felt a bit winded out but he was used to it. The tough choreography NCT usually does comes in handy during this time.

As he puts Hyeyoon down, Taeyong’s body feels empty. It was warm and comfortable when he could feel her wrapping her arms on his neck. He doesn’t want to let go of her. His arm lingers on her waist for a bit before he fully lets her go.

“Is this your apartment, Ms. Han?”

She nods and bows 90 degrees, “thank you very much.”

Taeyong shakes his head and says, “no, please don’t bow like that Ms. Han. I should be the one bowing and apologizing!”

Hyeyoon laughs awkwardly and starts opening the door.

“Um… should I introduce myself to your sister? I should tell her about what happened and apologize for causing this to you.”

Hyeyoon panics, “no!” she says a bit too quickly.

Taeyong notices the panic in her eyes which he finds adorable. Ms. Han is so cute and pretty, he thinks to himself.

“I mean, I think my sister is already asleep since it’s already a bit late…”

“Really? Oh, I guess I’ll introduce myself another time. I’ll go now then.”

“Bye, drive safely Mr. Taeyong.”

“Wait, I almost forgot to tell you that it’s okay if you don’t come in to work tomorrow,” Taeyong tells her.

“I’ll explain everything to the company. You should take the day off tomorrow to rest so your injuries can heal.” He waves goodbye and heads down the stairs before she could say anything.

Taeyong gets in his car and drives home. He takes a look at the passenger seat and smiles. I don’t know much about Ms. Han but she seems like a very nice person. I want to spend more time with her and get to know her more, he thinks.

 

 

 

Hyeyoon sighed, it’s only her first day as NCT 127’s temporary housekeeper but she somehow got mistaken as a trespasser, got kicked out, met the most handsome men she’s ever laid eyes on, had a samgyupsal party with these handsome men, got injured, and got carried like a bride by a guy who looks like he stepped out of the fantasy world, all in ONE day.