Serin lifted her gaze to meet Taemin’s eyes. He was handing her the test he completed.

“Why did you do that?”

He snickered. “It solved your problem, didn’t it?”

She decided to let it go. It looks like Taemin only decides which questions he wants to answer. Besides, she’s just a mere employee. 

The afternoon proceeded with a short recap of English basics, and a run through of the things she’s planning to teach him. When it was over, she felt tired. The day seemed so long. 

“Oh before you leave, I need to give you something. Wait here.”

She watched as Taemin leisurely made his way to one of the rooms. When he came out, he was holding the precious beanie in his hand.

She was surprised when he handed it to her. 

“Consider it yours. For your chivalry.” She said.

“I’m everything but that, seongsaengnim.” 

Serin swallowed, tongue-tied and a little surprised that he’s calling her “teacher” now. Maybe that’s what he wants. Setting boundaries. No “how are you doing today” or small talk during classes.  For all it’s worth, Lee Taemin is harder and harder to understand by the hour. 

“No. Take it.” 

He probably saw her open , ready to protest. 

She took a deep breath and nodded. It’s not easy to win against this man, so she decided to concede, putting the beanie in her bag  before saying goodbye and letting herself out.

**

Three months passed and Serin can say without hesitation that it’s the best money she’d earned in such a short span of time. She was worried during her first month because Taemin barely scheduled classes with her. Apparently this guy is such a workaholic. He was so busy with his new album, he had time for nothing else. For a moment she thought she was not gonna get paid much but her pay stayed the same monthly wage she was promised in her contract. He would even habitually give her his black card for any expenses related to work. 

The work is fairly easy too. Aside from her classes, she’d only get a few things to translate, mostly for his social media posts. Sometimes he’d ask for help whenever he goes live to greet his fans. She noticed that Taemin is particularly keen on keeping his fans happy, and the first time she watched him go live on v-live was a revelation. It was almost like a different person. She wondered how he can flip a switch like that, but then that is who these guys are: entertainers. They make people happy for a living. 

Apart from that, she’s free and she’d hate to admit it, but working for Taemin wasn’t so hard after all. 

One day, she got a call from Taemin’s manager, telling her to book a flight to Manila. SHINee is having a fanmeet there and Taemin thought she could help translate for them.

“You speak Filipino, right?” 

Serin was surprised that Manager Euisoo knew. “U-uh, yes. My mother was born and raised in Manila. How’d you know/”

“I didn’t. Taem did.”

Manager Euisoo hung up after repeating the details of the trip and Serin proceeded to book herself a flight, feeling excited to see her mother’s homeland after such a long time. 

It was a whirlwind from then. She was a last minute addition to the group that will be traveling with SHINee but luckily she was able to book a ticket on the same flight. Taemin asked her to charge it using the “company card” - meaning his own card, since she’s traveling as his staff. 

The airport was crowded and a lot of fans were already waiting for the SHINee members before they even got there.

“Serin-ssi!” 

Minho’s big eyes and wide smile greeted her. He was so calm despite the commotion around him. Her eyes noticed that he was holding on to a pearl aqua green paper bag and some envelopes as she jogged towards their group.

“Ah..these are gifts from the fans..” he mentioned, noticing her curious look.

formed an “o” as she nodded back. She was starting to notice that among all the SHINee members, Minho is the warmest. Even to her, who’s not exactly a staff for everyone. 

Manager Euisoo and the other Managers ushered the members quickly towards immigration before the fans could come nearer.

The flight was pleasant, especially for her. She was too shy to admit it but she was excited. It was her first time flying in business class. As she looked at her view from the window, thousands of feet above the ground, a smile started forming on her lips. 

Ah Manila. 

Serin has a complicated relationship with her ancestry. Her dad is Korean, her mother is of Spanish-Filipino descent, but she connects more to her Filipino side because they stayed in Manila for a good number of years when she was a kid, especially when the financial crisis hit. Those were tough times but she remembered vividly how she and her cousins would stay outside all afternoon until dark, playing piko, tagu-taguan and agawan base. Mornings meant tsokolate and bibingka, especially when her grandma is around. She even transferred to one of the local art high schools before they moved to the US when a promising opportunity arose for her mother who was a nurse. That was where she learned to speak English, and also where she met Bo Hyun for the first time. 

Manila is both special and a sore memory. But either way, she’s excited. 

From the airport, they drove to a fancy hotel where the members were checked-in. Manager Euisoo motioned, asking to talk to her when everyone was getting ready to go to their respective rooms.

“Taemin is on the 20th floor. I requested to have your room on the same floor with us, just in case he needs you.”

That made her wonder because all the other members were staying on the 15th floor, but she didn’t want to pry. 

There was no activity for the entire day and everyone was free to do whatever they wanted. The members just stayed, including most of the staff but she had a different plan. 

Her stomach was almost devouring itself at the thought of the food she was daydreaming about since the trip was announced. Serin booked a grab to a famous Tapsihan in Quezon City. 

She sniffed, letting the aroma fill her nostrils, before approaching the counter to order her food. It didn’t ta