Real Story - Infinite

Narrator's POV

"Please don't put too much makeup on her. Her face gets irritated easily," Donghae laid his arm on the stylist's shoulder. "Don't you think it's better if you don't put any makeup at all? I feel like she's a different person with all those cosmetics on her face," Eunhyuk added. When the stylist turned to iron her hair, everyone tensed. "WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR LUNCH? BURNED HAIR?!?" Heechul screamed.

"AND WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR DESSERT? MY FIST ON YOUR FACE?!" Siwon continued. "If you're all such better at it than her, why don't you do it yourselves then?!" Min Yu shouted, bending onto the stylist's defense. The members turned silent afterwards, realizing they were all just being jerks. "I think she needs more color on her eyes," Kyuhyun commented, earning grunts of approval from the others.

After enhancing her features with makeup, she was brought to the dressing room to change. "Can't I just wear these?" she asked, referring to the shirt and skin-tight jeans she was wearing. The assistant cringed at her statement, knowing how some artists overreact when it comes to clothes. But then here she was, suggesting to a simple attire for her interview. "Of course not. Your father would kill me," the assistant sighed and sifted through the different clothes on the rack.

A fist pounded on the door. "WHY ARE YOU TAKING SO LONG?" Sungmin yelled from outside. "NOONA, WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO HER?!" Eunhyuk added. There was the obvious hint of panic in their voices, but Min Yu just shrugged and ignored them. The assistant turned around and held a dress in front of her. "NO! Definitely not that!" she protested. "WHAT? WHAT'S HAPPENING! NOONA DON'T FORCE HER IF SHE DOESN'T WANT TO!!" Donghae's fist threatened to break through the door.

"Hurry!" the assistant ordered, and Min Yu could do nothing but agree. She changed out of her normal clothes, and settled in for this simple, yet not-for-her-liking dress. "Ah, jinjja~ you really take after your mother," the staff exclaimed, clapping her hands in delight. "You've seen my mom?" Min Yu raised her eyebrow questioningly. "Oh yes. Your father used to bring her picture everywhere he went, proudly showing it to everyone he met," she replied, to which she just smiled.

"HOW MUCH LONGER CAN Y--" Ryeowook was cut off when she went out. "Isn't it too short for her, noona?" Donghae turned to the assistant. "Oh come on, now. She looks great," Leeteuk elbowed him on the chest. "Now come on, I want you to meet Hyori," he pulled at her arm and led her to another dressing room. Super Junior's leader knocked gently on the door.

"Oh come in," a soft voice erupted from inside. Leeteuk turned the door knob and entered, the two of them being greeted by a charming woman on a swivel chair. "Annyeonghaseyo," Min Yu bowed and greeted politely. "So you must be Park Min Yu, then?" Hyori held her hand out, which the younger shook slightly. "How come you got along with Leeteuk, huh? That man's crazy," she replied. "How can you say that? I'm in the same room as you are!" Leeteuk exclaimed.

The two women just laughed at his reaction. "It's going to be my pleasure interviewing you," the older flashed her a smile. "I just agreed because you'll be the one to do it," Min Yu answered. "Thank you. You do realize it's going to be insane after this, right? People would start recognizing you. And it's your first time appearing on television, ever since your name became known to Super Junior fans," she continued.

"There are tons of questions left when your parents got married, you had the accident, and unconfirmed photos," she added. "Photos? Really?" Min Yu's eyes widened. Hyori just nodded. "There are numerous photos that you have to see later on. And rumors, of course, since none of the Super Junior members talked about anything. They never answered questions concerning you, so pretty much, you remained a mystery to many," she stated.

Min Yu's POV

Day 11

"Ahh~ I'm nervous. I'm nervous. I'm nervous. I'm DEAD nervous," my hands shook terribly and my eyes were out of focus. Kyuhyun just laughed at my frightened face, earning him a smack from Sungmin. "Well, you wanted this to happen. We never told you to do anything," the evil maknae snapped back at me. "You can back out anytime," Heechul held onto my wrists and was ready to drag me out if I say yes.

Eunhyuk and Yesung just nodded in agreement. "BUT MY FACE WAS ON THE FREAKING NEWSPAPER!" I defended loudly, earning stares from the TV crew. "Ruin your image, will you?" Kyuhyun laughed darkly. "Do you want me to tell them about how you used to kidnap me?" I threatened. "Ha! Not gonna work this time," he stuck his tongue out playfully.

I paused for a minute and rubbed my eyes a few times to make it red at the corners. "Ch-Cho K-Kyuhyun, you ask? W-well h-he used to h-hurl his l-lap-laptop towards my f-face when I asked him t-to help me w-with my M-Math homework," I stated with stuttering, appearing like a crying grown woman. Kyuhyun stood up and fished something out of his wallet. "Money? How much do you want? I'll pay you. Or do you want me to take you out on a date?" he blurted out, earning laughs from the others.

"Aaaand that's my cue to step in," Donghae pushed him away and hovered protectively. "Ugh. My throat hurts from all the pretend crying," I complained and gulped some of the water from the bottle in my hands. "Park Min Yu-ssi? We're airing in five minutes," a staff approached me with the reminder and walked briskly away. "DID YOU HEAR THAT? FIVE MINUTES?!" I shrieked in terror.

"Sssh. Don't freak out," he pressed my head against his chest to calm me down. "Where is she?" someone darted from behind. "Oh, she's with Donghae, already on the process of making your grandchildren," Ryeowook answered. "WHAT?" Donghae and I both asked in surprise. "There you are," Leeteuk rushed to my side. "So you pretty much know by now what you should and should not say, right?" he asked.

I shook my head no, to which he almost panicked. "Okay. No personal information, like address, phone numbers, etc. No bad-mouthing, especially, since it will make us all look bad if you were to describe us. Choose your words carefully, avoid profanities and vulgarity. Give respect, of course. And last but not the least, clarify and explain as much as possible, since you were here to do that, right?" he reminded.

"What if they ask about my accident and things that happened long ago?" I pressed, my hands trembling more as the minutes ticked by, my five minutes slowly diminishing. "You just say what you have to, but keep my instructions in mind, arasseo?" Leeteuk gave me a thumbs up. I pushed his hand away and hugged him instead. "If I do well at this, you have to buy me ice cream," I ordered.

"Good luck," my father patted my back and gestured to the waiting staff. "Will my face get removed from the newspapers after I do this?" I asked. "No. That's not the way it goes. Sometimes your face would even spread to the internet or something," he replied. "Thank you. That lessens my nervousness," I responded sarcastically. "You're 23. You should know better," he reminded.

Narrator’s POV

"So Min Yu-ssi," Hyori started amidst the loud cheering when they have both settled more comfortably on their seats, "do you want me to be gentle about this thing or do you want me to be straight forward?" "If you do it directly, I won't have time to lie," Min Yu smiled. Leeteuk and the other members gripped each other, afraid of what the host has to ask, and what the guest has to answer.

Hyori just nodded and clutched her chest while smiling nervously. "Aigoo. I'm so nervous interviewing you, do you know that?" she started. "Why?" Min Yu replied while twirling a lock of her hair in between her fingers, an action she usually does when bored, which caused the members to even be more nervous. "On past interviews, the members always say you speak harshly," Hyori stated.

Min Yu just laughed. "Well then, let's get to it. Your identity was first heard of when Leeteuk revealed about his engagement. You were 14 back then, right? How did you feel about your mother getting married to someone as famous as him?" she asked. "I was fourteen that time, and it wasn't really much of a big deal. My mother was, and still is, like my best friend. When she first told me that they were engaged, of course I was happy. Leeteuk never had a rough time with me while he dated my mom. He was outgoing and fun, like omma, and I never really had a problem with them," she answered.

"So you never really felt left out or jealous when they were dating?" Hyori pressed, resting her chin on her palm, suddenly interested. "No, nothing like that. My only problem back then was moving in with the members. It was seriously hard," her eyes widened to add effect. "Hard? Why? Isn't it fun living with tons of other guys? You're an only child, right? Normally, people with no siblings would jump at the opportunity to live with many other people they could get along with," Hyori commented.

"I won't say I'm a quiet person, because first of all, it isn't true. And second, the members would react violently," she answered, earning a laugh from the audience, "but then, it wasn't the number of people I was going to be with. It was their attitudes I was most worried about. When I first stepped in the dorm, they were chasing each other, walking half- around the house...it wasn't a pretty sight."

Hyori's face reddened as she laughed on continuously, but managed to maintain composure. "So, when did you have the idea that 'Ah~ I'm finally welcome in this house' or something like that?" she asked. "There was no thought about that. For me, I was welcome to go anywhere I want. It's not my problem if people don't like me. It was for my mother, anyway. But if there was a moment I realized I was fully welcome, it was when Kyuhyun and I played a prank on every member," she responded.

"What did you do?" Hyori demanded curiously. "We scared the hell out of Ryeowook, put water in Sungmin's mouth, just playing around with everyone," she nodded at her own statement. "And Super Junior practices a lot, don't they? One time they brought you along and you chanced upon meeting Teen Top. How was it meeting them?" Hyori interrogated. Min Yu gulped down hard before answering.

"I think she'll cry," Ryeowook tensed and was ready to stand up. "I'm on it too," Eunhyuk was on the edge of his seat. "Oh come on, you guys. If she cries, then my baby would be an award-winning actress...on a variety show context," Heechul slumped backwards on his chair. All their eyes were on focus to the girl sitting in front of Lee Hyori. "Back then, I didn't really want to meet them. Leeteuk just threatened to limit my privileges so I gave it a go. But now, I guess it was really worth it knowing them. We're friends up until now," she nodded with a smug smile.

Donghae clutched his heaving chest. "That was close," he sighed. "I nearly had a heart attack," Sungmin agreed. "After your parents' wedding, and all that fussing around, your name became the 4th most searched query for Naver because of the accident. What happened then?" Hyori glanced down at her cue card and stared back at her. "I think I remember that day clearly. Of course, who wouldn't forget something as tragic as that?" Min Yu started with hand gestures similar to Siwon's.

"SEE THAT?! SHE LEARNED THAT FROM ME!" Siwon exclaimed and pointed his finger menacingly at her. "Sssh! We can't hear her," Leeteuk shushed him up from his words. "That time, my mom was pregnant, and I felt kind of...jealous. I've been the center of attention for fourteen years and then suddenly, the news comes up. It wasn't that I was mad, just jealous," she explained objectively.

Hyori leaned forward with her lips slightly parted in anticipation. Min Yu stopped and giggled lightly at the host's reaction. "Oh, don't mind me! Continue! It's the first time you'd be narrating the story, since not one member of Super Junior really talked about what happened. It was either they would ignore the questions thrown by reporters, or they would request no subjects leading to it at all. This is pretty historic. The actual story being revealed after how many years," Hyori's eyes widened at the camera.

"Before I ran away, I've been a mess in school -- started a fight, disrespected the principal, cut classes...my parents were really disappointed. To me, it didn't really matter at all, and back then, I didn't really care. That night, I ran away. I think it was halfway through midnight that I felt the urge to come back home. I was in the middle of the streets, tired and feeling guilty."

"But I thought, I've come a long way just to come back, and then that idea pushed me to walk further and further away. I've seen homeless people sleeping on the bare concrete, some were children much younger than me. Then I kept walking, crossing streets until almost three in the morning. I saw a cheap Chinese motel just across where I was, and I decided to stay and sleep before I begin my travelling again."

"The sign board was written in Chinese characters. I started walking towards it while trying my best to understand what was written. I didn't really hear anything, and then I don't quite know what happened next," she narrated briefly. "While I was out, to me it felt only like I was dreaming. I remembered wondering how I got into bed without checking in at the front desk, or without entering the motel."

"I was really tricked into the thought that I was just dreaming. I tried waking up, but my eyelids had felt too heavy to open. There were voices around me, shouting incoherently and calling my name. I finally opened my eyes, but when I tried to sit up, there's was something holding me back. I pushed and pushed, and then I realized I was in some sort of a coffin. So then, I gave up, thinking maybe that was finally the end of me."

"When I woke up, they told me everything that happened, that I've just undergone almost eight hours of operation inside the operating room. My blood type was A, and the members with the same type donated blood for me. It turns out that besides the various cuts and bruises, not to mention my fractured right arm, my lungs were internally bleeding. Other than that, my liver was also damaged, but the doctors found out too late. Right now, there's a huge scar running from my chest to my stomach."

"And when Kyuhyun had the same accident back in 2007, they had said he only had about 20 percent chance of survival. His ribs were piercing his lungs and it was a crucial result from the incident. But when during my time, I had more or less 10 percent chance. It was risky and dead hopeless, if you think about it now."

There was a long stretch of silence, too much dead air for the show. The audience, including the host, were in awe just trying to imagine what it was like for her. "So...what did you do and who did you see when you woke up at the hospital?" Hyori pressed, as if wanting to just listen and not talk at all. "When I woke up, I saw Henry eating messily on the foot of my bed. I scolded him to clean it up, and that's how they realized I was already awake," she smiled.

The crowd burst out laughing, while the Super Junior members just nodded in agreement, since they were witness to that very event. "What about your mother?" Hyori demanded, voicing out everyone else's question. "My mom didn't know about anything at that time. Leeteuk was very careful to tell her gently, and he just told her the news after my operation. But she came to me and we talked about everything that had happened," Min Yu shifted in her seat to a more relaxed position.

"2012 had been your debut in forum sites, since it was the time your name had been finally revealed. After the wedding and the accident, your name was heard of again when Teen Top released a video with you as a special feature. What was that?" Hyori asked. "That day, I was still in the hospital. Since I was comfortable being with them, they would look after me whenever none of Super Junior could visit me."

"They came bursting through my door with a video camera in their hands. I hated the idea of getting me into it, since I had multiple cuts and bruises, with a broken arm to match. But they convinced me to get in with it, and it had been fun...though I never really knew it would make the cut into the mainstream," she replied. "From the release of that video and onwards, no one has ever heard of you again, though pictures of you and Teen Top's Chunji surfaced online occasionally. He never really spoke about it, neither did the rest of his group. Any clarifications? Or is something going on?" Hyori smiled knowingly.

Min Yu turned to her father quickly and sighed. "Chanhee's my boyfriend," she replied truthfully, earning shocked gasps from Hyori and the audience. "Is that 'Chanhee's' a Chanhee was or Chanhee is?" Hyori clapped her hands in delight. "Chanhee was my boyfriend. We've been together since my accident that 2012, and up until last July," she explained to avoid misunderstandings.

"Ah jinjja. She has really changed," Heechul shook his head. "What? Why?" Leeteuk asked, his eyes focused on his daughter up the stage, not once shifting his gaze away. "Well, she never really called him Chanhee," Heenim replied, almost as if counting how many times she had uttered the word. "But that doesn't really matter, anyway. Look at her, so straight forward with that poker face. She's obviously telling the truth," the older motioned to her.

"Anything you could say about him after that long stretch of time of being together?!" the host demanded. The people watching leaned closer, eager to what words would come out of , not that Min Yu herself wasn't aware, though. Everything that she would say could be used against her, she knew perfectly well how that works. "Chunji is a really great person. Even if I was to bad-mouth him, there really isn't anything negative to say," she shrugged.

"Wow...this is...this is daebak~" Hyori stared at Min Yu with wide-eyes, admiring such braveness. "Eight years were no joke. Ending something that special was never easy. But you know, we will always remain friends," Min Yu nodded convincingly at the still-taken-aback crowd. "What happened? I mean, he used to drop little hints on interviews about being in a relationship. So what made you decide to break it up?" Hyori cupped her face with her open palms.

Min Yu alternated her focus on the ground to her lap, sometimes to her feet. "I don't...I don't really want to talk about it. We still talk, we still see each other. We're still friends, but right now it's just until that point," she nodded to herself. "AH! I know it now!" Hyori exclaimed loudly at her sudden realization. "What? What is it that you know?" the curious guest asked.

"Lee Chunji of Teen Top could act really well, and he appeared on numerous TV series even until now. I was supposed to be on a drama with him, but he never really accepted it because there were scenes where he would have to kiss the girl and hug her, and all those things. Did you somehow have a say in his decision?" she asked. "Not really. I told him to go for some offers given to him, but in the end, it was still his own say and choice that would matter," Min Yu replied.

"Ah~ that was shocking, isn't it?" Hyori turned to the live audience who mumbled their approvals. "Anyway, just last June, your name resurfaced, not only online, but also on the news. What happened to you that time?" she turned back to her cue card.

"Right now, I'm a journalist for an international broadsheet. I was tasked to go underground and cover the nuclear activities in the North. I don't really want to state every single thing that led me there, but I agreed to it and did my job. The first night, I slept in a room together with a pile of dead bodies. It was awful, what happened in there, and when I woke up, I was already being dragged by armed soldiers."

"That day, I badly wanted to go home. They wanted me to confess and tell them I was a spy, someone sent by the government to see what they're up to in the North...but I repeatedly said no, although it was exactly what I was doing. Days passed, and I totally felt hopeless. Everywhere hurt, my own blood seeped through my clothes and dried for days...it was Hell in a true sense."

"I was nearly out of my mind. At nights, I would talk to myself, blabbering and worrying about how my family was doing back here in Seoul...it was crazy. Then some officials burst in through the door, wanting to talk to me. Leeteuk was there, and though I didn't remember quite clearly what was happening, I guessed they were negotiating. In the end, I had to give up my laptop and camera, where everything was stored, from pictures of broken-down shacks and children's dirty hands to the building itself with the information I was tasked to get," Min Yu stated.

"I never really remembered anything that happened after that. My parents told me I literally stared into space, and repeated sentences over and over again. They probably thought I was totally out of my mind at that time. It took a long time for me to recover, though I could tell I was really traumatized by what happened."

"It's really great and courageous of you to talk about it like it came out from a fiction novel or a short story. Not even your father stated a word from what happened. After your being held captive to your coming back home, you were never heard of again. Until recently, a picture of you and Super Junior's Lee Donghae, together with his questionable tweets online were published on a newspaper," Hyori's smile grew wider.

"Oh. It's actually what made me come here. I was sifting through random tabloids on a newsstand by the street, and I happened to chance upon my face, literally blaring on the page. I showed my father and presented him the news. I edit news articles that are going to be published on broadsheets, and there I was, seeing my own face printed on a tabloid. Can you imagine that?!" Min Yu exclaimed in utter surprise, earning a laugh from everyone.

"In the picture, you were holding hands with Donghae. You two used to be a big question mark for the media. And when he would get cornered by reporters somewhere, he would give indirect answers. So what's really happening?" Hyori braced herself for another mini heart attack. "He's my boyfriend," Min Yu nodded in agreement. "Aigoo~" Lee Hyori almost fell from her seat at the sudden revelation and the crowd cheered.

"How is he to you, then?" she interrogated. "Donghae? Hmmm~" Min Yu lifted her finger up to her lips, pretending to ponder deeply, earning a loud roar of laughter from the people watching. "I feel like I'm going to faint," Donghae whispered to Eunhyuk, who just laughed at his reaction. "He's an amazing person, all in all. And I really don't regret revealing everything on live television even if people would march to my apartment and send me hate mails and that sort of stuff," she smiled sweetly.

"How old are you again?" Hyori asked out of nowhere. "I'm 23," she nodded in response. "And Donghae's about ten years older than you. Is there any problems caused by that huge age difference?" the host demanded. "HE'S OLDER THAN ME?!" Min Yu stood up and yelled in surprise, with the crowd being taken aback by her reaction. "No, I'm just kidding. But it's because sometimes I feel like I'm the older one between us two," she explained, making the people erupt in chuckles.

Hyori slapped the armrest with her hands in rhythm with her laughter, "So if Chunji goes his own way with his career, but still keeps you in mind, what about Donghae, then?" "Back in 2012, Kyuhyun, Sungmin, Eunhyuk, and Donghae were about to go for We Got Married, right? I didn't talk to them for days, because I didn't really want them to go. And then, they didn't really agree to it. So in the end, I won~" Min Yu replied.

"You're so fun to interview. You give everything out. I wouldn't doubt if you'd receive tons of invitations from variety shows after this," Hyori commented. "I see no point in lying," Min Yu flashed an innocent smile. "You're lucky, aren't you? Such a lucky girl," the host thought out loud. "Not all the way though. It's hard being me too," Min Yu defended, "and PD-nim? Can you please quit it with that romantic music? It isn't working!"

"Ah~ I wish this interview would last for a really really long time~" Hyori said dreamily, "but let's play a game." "Sure. Why not?" Min Yu bobbed her head up and down in excitement. "I say a word, a phrase, or a name, and you tell me what comes first into your mind when I say it out loud. Don't think about it, just blurt out anything that you first think of, and then I'll just ask you to explain afterwards," Hyori explained.

"Fire away~" Min Yu gestured for her to start.

"Eunhyuk?" Hyori started.

"Eunhyukisthebestdancer," she replied.

"Okay, I'm curious. Why that?" the host pressed. "Oh. Is it wrong?" Min Yu turned to where Kyuhyun was. "Did he change it already? It's his laptop's password. Eunhyukisthebestdancer. But after a few weeks or so, he probably suspects that I use his computer, so he changed it to Eunhyukisthebestdancer123," she explained thoroughly. Leeteuk just face palmed himself while Eunhyuk was still in shock. "I'll change it to a sentence later!" he shouted in protest.

"Next word: childish."

"EXO!" Min Yu yelled without much thinking.

"Have you met them, already?" Hyori asked. "Yeah. We hang out and talk about anything. They're pretty much like Super Junior when it comes to personalities. Crazy, fun, playful...especially EXO-K. They're a complete family too, with a naggy mother-figure, a troublesome maknae...a perfect formula for a headache," she replied as-a-matter-of-factly.

"Okay, since we're running out of time, the last word is relationship."

"Leeteuk," she blurted out.

"Why him?" Hyori demanded curiously. "If not for Leeteuk, I wouldn't have a complete, happy family with him as my father, my mother, and my sister. I wouldn't have friends like Teen Top, Super Junior, EXO, and others. If not for him, I wouldn't be sitting in front of you. And I wouldn't be the same without a father's love," she answered whole-heartedly.

The audience, including the members, cooed a low "Aww~" at a daughter's appreciation for her father. Donghae laid a hand on teary-eyed Leeteuk's shoulder, knowing he had done a great job. "After being on near-death situations, numerous controversies, past relationships, and countless experiences, is there anything Park Min Yu fears?" Hyori rested her hands on her lap.

"If there was one thing I'm afraid of right now, it's disappointing my family. I worked my hardest and gave my best in everything I've done, and it's not the recognition that really matters. Them being proud of me makes it all worth it," Min Yu replied. "Despite all the accomplishments and respect you've gained, what is one thing you still haven't aimed?" she demanded.

"I still haven't graduated from law school, and I have one more year to go. That's all on my focus right now, but after I've passed through that phase, of course I want to have a family of my own," she answered after much pondering.

"And is Donghae in that goal?" Hyori challenged.

"I hope so," Min Yu smiled at her own response.