Chapter 31

"Come in!" A voice called from inside. Luhan took a deep breath and twisted the door knob. Mr. Lee Soo Man looked up from the papers he were signing, "Oh, Luhan! Jus- who is this?" He set down his papers and walked up to them.

"Mr. Lee, this is my girlfriend, Kang Soomi." Mr. Lee looked at Luhan like he had gone crazy.

"Your what!?" He bellowed. Luhan stood firmly and looked him in the eyes, "She's my girlfriend."

Mr. Lee's eyes bugged out and he rushed over to close the door.

He motioned for them to take a seat and he finally sat down across from them. Soo Man put a hand through his almost gray black hair and sighed. "A girlfriend? Like a real girlfriend? Luhan, you realize that you have signed a contract with this company right? No dating or marriage until you turn 28, and until then, you must keep on with your schedules and comebacks. How in the world will you manage to keep a relationship like this?!"

He bellowed the last question and Luhan breathed out a huge puff of air, not wanting to get angry at his boss. Soomi's hand gripped on tighter to his and she bowed in apology. Luhan shook his head and stood up.

"I will be responsible for anything that happens ahead. I just wanted to let you know so you could handle it in case rumors broke out. Or you could help me tell my relationship out to the public."

"Responsible for anything? This one rumor can ruin your career! If she were an idol I would have no problem bending the details but she is a normal girl no one knows about!" Luhan sighed and Soomi pursed her lips. She didn't want to ruin his life or career.

Soo Man waited for an answer. Luhan let go of Soomi's hand, "Will you let Mr. Lee and I talk privately for a moment?" She nodded and proceeded to the door. Luhan made sure the door closed shut before looking into the older man's eyes.

"Mr. Lee, I know you're not so happy about this, but... I really do love her. Before debut I dated of course, but she's different. There's something about her that I need. The way she smiles, the way she thinks. I love her in any way. But if it is too much of a problem for you, I will tell the public myself. It won't matter if I lose my job because I love her. So if you and the company can't help me, I will leave myself." The older man stayed quiet.

Luhan stood up to leave to the door but before he could reach it, Soo Man stopped him. "Luhan, wait." He rubbed his forehead in frustration. Losing a member would cause even more problems!

"Okay. I will help. I'll let the news out and we will hold a press conference for this. Make sure that girl of yours comes with you and dont say anything stupid or else. If you two break up, you will handle that yourself. And your fans too. Leave now please. We will discuss this later."

Luhan grinned and bowed to him. "Thank you Mr. Lee, thank you!"

The man smirked and waved as Luhan opened the door, "She seems like a nice woman, treat her well Luhan-ah."

Luhan stepped out to see Soomi's head rested on Chanyeol's with a pout. She must be tired... He stood in the waiting room in front of Lee Soo Man's office. Luckily, they were the only ones there. Soomi looked up, "Oppa, is everything okay?"

He nodded with a smile. Soomi lifted her head and smiled back grabbing her arm around his. Chanyeol stood up and patted his Hyung's back. "Ay Hyung! Congratulations! I'm a bit jealous... Soomi noona is really pretty!"

"Why would you be jealous? Yah, she's mine, okay?! And you have Minhee anyway." Chanyeol turned red, and shook his hands wildly.

"I don't like her! She's just a friend! I'm serious, hyung!" Luhan gave him a doubtful look and Soomi slapped his arm.

"Yah, you don't want to hurt her feelings, do you?" Chanyeol shook his head, "But I really don't! And she doesn't like me! I--"

The couple stopped listening to him and laughed, walking down the hall towards the first floor. Chanyeol sighed and followed closely behind, feeling like the third wheel. Even though they got weird looks and a few whispers, the couple still trudged on.

3 Days Later, Streets of Seoul || 12:34 AM

She was released from the hospital that day, her body was healed, but for the time being she couldnt drink alcohol. Minhee's heels clacked on the road as Chanyeol shyly held her hand. They walked on the beautiful streets of Seoul, stores still showing their light. Earlier in the night, the two went to a restaurant and had fun together at the game stores. Now they were just strolling around.

After walking a few more steps, they stopped under a street light that shined for the small cars driving by. Minhee faltered and stared at her toes. "Ow."

Chanyeol worriedly looked at her feet. "What is it? Are you hurt anywhere? Should we go back home?"

"No, I'm fine." She reassuringly smiled and they continued to walk. Minhee stopped and made a sharp hissing sound.

She touched her heels and silently cursed under her breath. She wasn't very used to the high heels that made her almost Chanyeol's height. Smiling, Chanyeol led her to a nearby bench that was in the park and told her to sit.

Minhee silently obeyed and looked down to her toes. "Take those heels off." Chanyeol went down to her feet.

"No, it's fine. I need to learn! I can't understand how girl groups can dance in these, I can't even walk in them!" Chanyeol shook his head and chuckled, slipping then off her feet. Minhee breathed a sigh of relief. Her feet were finally not cramped in the high heels.

"It's obvious you're in pain, yeobo. Just walk barefoot for now." She hesitated and bit her lip.

Chanyeol smiled wide. "For me? I don't want you to hurt your precious feet.

Minhee blushed and lightly punched him. "Yah."

Chanyeol inspected her feet some more and scowled.

"See, I already see some blisters! You don't need high heels, just stay short."

"What?! I'm not short!"

"To me you are! Later I'll massage your feet. Oppa gives the best foot massages! I have big hands."

Minhee laughed and took her heels away from him. "Fine, arasso. Lets just get home." Chanyeol bent down and pointed to his back. "Get on."

"Oppa, I'm fine."

"Get on, silly! I don't want you to hurt your feet."

"I'm too heav--"

"You're as light as a feather! Just get on."

Minhee smiled at his offer and got on his back, leaning on his shoulder, heels in one hand. It seemed familiar, but she wasn't sure how. He was warm. Chanyeol began walking.

"Oppa?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm heavy, aren't I?"

"No, why would you think that?"

She laughed, "Just wanted to know. You're breathing kind of too hard, hah."

Suddenly, Chanyeol blurt out something. "You were pretty today." Minhee smiled and blushed.

"Thank you oppa," Minhee nuzzled up to his neck. They walked home silently and Chanyeol dropped her off without waking up her mother or Soomi.

After giving a quick goodbye kiss to Chanyeol, they separated and Minhee walked up the stairs to her room. "That's weird, the lights are on." She whispered under her breath.

Minhee suspiciously made her way to her door and opened it slowly.

Soomi was sitting on her bed, staring at her phone and typing away furiously. She looked up at her and widened her eyes. Soomi's face quickly turned into anger. "Yah! Where have you been all this time? Do you know how late it is?!"

Minhee closed the door silently behind her and looked guiltily at the older one. "Sorry unni, I was with..."

"Who were you with?!"

"Didn't my mom tell you?"

"No, she went to sleep before I could even ask! She told me not to worry about it but how could I not worry when my dongsaeng goes out this late? I mean there are really bad men out there."

"I was with Chanyeol." Minhee closed her eyes before looking up at her again and walked to the bed. She took Soomi's hand. "Sorry I didn't tell you."

"But, why would you be with him? Were you guys-- Wait--" Before Soomi could scream, Minhee covered . "Mom is sleeping, sh!"

Soomi forcefully took her hand away and stared at her. "You, Chanyeol, dating? Your his girlfriend? When did he confess? Or did you confess? What? Tell me what happened!"

"Don't be so surprised! I'll tell you and Hee Jin the details later, okay? Can you please not tell the members? Or anyone? Chanyeol and I promised to keep it a secret, but just for now. Can you do that for me?"

Soomi silently nodded. "Fine then. But tell me the details! And go to sleep, it's already one in the morning." She smiled and made her way to the door.

Minhee's House || 5:23 AM

Minhee had gotten a phone call that morning to get ready for something. She smiled as the doorbell rang and Chanyeol popped out from behind the closed door. He pointed to her shoes. "Give me your heels."

"Huh? Why?" She gave it to him. Chanyeol looked inside her heels and smiled, a plan forming in his mind. "Come on!"

He took her hand and they walked to the nearest, but smallest, shoe store. Chanyeol couldn't be noticed. They entered and Minhee looked at him in confusion.

"Oppa, why are we here?"

"Pick out some flats, oppa will buy them for you."

"What? But, why--"

He pointed to her heels. "You've worn them so much they're torn inside. Don't try to wear heels again without me, you'll hurt yourself. Sorry I took you to this small store, I just didn't want attention!"

"It's okay oppa, I can buy them for myself, you know! Why don't you chose some men shoes?"

"I won't take no for an answer. And our stylist noona picks out our shoes for us anyway. Go on, pick some out." Minhee bit her lip but then finally accepted the fact that he would make her.

She went down each aisle, choosing different flats, with the help of Chanyeol's opinion.

"Oppa, how about this one?"

"I don't really like it, but you look beautiful with anything. How about this one?" He held up a pair of pretty flats and grinned.

She slightly smiled then nodded. Placing the pair of green striped flats back, Minhee agreed with the one Chanyeol had chosen for her.

Chanyeol bent down in the street and took out the shoes. Blushing, Minhee looked at him. "What are you doing?"

"Putting these on you, you're just going to hurt yourself again wearing those heels. Put your right foot out."

Following his orders, Minhee stuck out her right foot and Chanyeol put it on for her. He did the same for the other foot and smiled at the light mint green flats. "What do you think?"

"They're pretty! Thank you Oppa!"

"If you want any more shoes, just ask me. Lets go!" Smiling, Chanyeol stood up and took her hand as they walked down the sidewalk.

"So, did you get your teaching license yet?"

"What? Oh... kind of. I'm a student teacher, so I can help the real teacher with the kids."

"Do you think I can come?"

"I don't know, I'd have to ask since I'm not in charge. Why?"

"I want to play with them of course! So when we have children--" Chanyeol stopped and she blushed. He scratched his neck in embarrassment, realizing what he had just said. Minhee raised an eyebrow at him.

"How many children do you want then?"

Chanyeol looked up, startled at her sudden question. Minhee waited for an answer. "Three or four would be good, we don't want to many or too much!"

Minhee eyes widened. "When did I say I was going to be the mom?!"

"Yah! Are you saying you're going to leave me then?" Minhee folded her arms and stuck out her tongue. "Maybe."

Chanyeol ran to get her and she screamed down the streets. It was still early morning so not many people were awake yet. "Got you!" His arms caught her around the waist.

"And I'm never letting you go."

Baekhyun closed the doors behind him and crashed onto the couch with the other members who were with him at Beatles Code. They went into their own separate rooms quietly, too tired to talk. Suddenly, the door opened again. A girl with long hair closed the door and set down her shoes, wearing a pair of sunglasses and carrying a few plastic bags.

She walked into the apartment as if it was her own and took off her glasses. Baekhyun was about to tell her to leave before he saw Hee Jin's face smiling brightly. "Oppa! You guys are back?"

He grinned and nodded pointing to the plastic bag. "What's in there? A present?" His eyes lit up. Hee Jin shook her head, giggling.

"It's breakfast! The members have been filming all night. There's barely anything in your fridge, how do you guys live?" She proceeded to the large kitchen and set down the bags of ingredients. Baekhyun shrugged, "We just order takeout!"

"That's not healthy. So I'm cooking for you! Can you get D.O. Oppa? And I heard Chanyeol is good at peeling fruits, get him too." Hee Jin motioned her hands for him to go and he sighed.

"Fine, fine. Kiss first?"

She sighed and shook her head, "Aigoo, always greedy for kisses huh? Go them first and I'll consider." Baekhyun pouted and got out of the kitchen to follow her orders.

D.O. walked into the kitchen casually and began to take out ingredients without question. Like a puppy, Baekhyun followed closely behind. He walked over to Hee Jin and smiled, "Chanyeol went somewhere with Minhee. Now can I get a kiss?"

She slightly rolled her eyes with a smirk before landing a quick peck on his cheek. "Happy? Now go wash these fruits for me." His shoulders drooped, hearing another command. He would have to get the kiss from her somehow...

EXO Dorm || 8:45 AM

Chanyeol walked through the doors of the dorm and quickly let go of Minhee's hand, not wanting any of them to suspect something. They heard some clatters in the kitchen and Chanyeol peeked around the corner. The large table was set up, along with two other chairs. "Oppa, what's up?"

Minhee tried to see what he was looking at. "Minhee! Is that you? Come in Chanyeol!" Hee Jin's hair was tied back, flipping pancakes in a pan. Baekhyun was fully concentrating on cutting the fruits, and D.O. was checking if the rice was ready. Minhee's face lit up seeing Hee Jin. "Oh, unnie, you were here?! Do you need any help?"

"Go tell the members to come, we're almost done with everything. Chanyeol, you go too." The two nodded and went to each room. Some of them were still sleeping, but as soon as they smelled breakfast, their eyes opened wide awake. They scurried to the dining room still in their pajamas and slippers, but food was the first thing on their minds.

"Yah, don't touch it!" Hee Jin smacked Baekhyun's hand away from the eggs and he sighed in defeat. She smiled brightly and looked at all the food she prepared. She decided to make an American-style breakfast, so pancakes, eggs, waffles, sausages, and orange juice was laid out on the table. And of course, rice. The boys looked at her, waiting for the word. Fresh fruits that Baekhyun had cut stood in the middle. "Okay, dig in guys! We made plenty more so dont fight over the food!"

"Thank you, Noona!" Tao said, food stuffed into his mouth. The other members grabbed eggs and the other foods with their chopsticks, stuffing it into their mouths like the food was from a gourmet restaurant. Suddenly, the two managers walked in, staring at the 11 boys and 2 girls eating together. It was a strange sight.

Hee Jin stood up and gestured to the two remaining seats. "Come join us, Oppas! There's plenty!" They bowed and nodded, sitting with them. One of the managers looked around the table as he grabbed an egg.

"Where's Luhan?" Chanyeol continued to eat. "He said he would be going somewhere with Soomi the last time I saw him. They probably slept somewhere else."

Hee Jin and Minhee exchanged looks. Where would she have gone with Luhan? Baekhyun nudged Hee Jin and held out a small peice of pancake to her. "Open your mouth, yeobo!" She smiled and giggled, covering .

She opened it and Baekhyun place it inside . Chen and Suho groaned at the same time, they didn't want to see this lovey dovey stuff in the morning. Hee Jin giggled even more and Baekhyun gave them a cute hard look. The only two most silent ones were Chanyeol and Minhee, who seemed uncomfortable sitting by each other and eating.

"Oh, Noona?! Why aren't you eating anything? You're usually smiling brightly and munching on everything. Chanyeol, you too!" Sehun pointed his chopsticks at the two.

"Well, we already ate togeth--" Minhee hit Chanyeol on the thigh under the table and he stayed quiet. Minhee smiled at Sehun. "It's nothing, we're just not very hungry right now." Chanyeol nodded in agreement, a little too fast. Sehun looked at them suspiciously before going back to stealing food from Tao.

"Luhan, where were you? Come on, you need to pack for L.A." The members were rushing around the room, packing their belongings in medium-sized suitcases. He scratched his head.

"For what?"

"KCON, if course. You didn't think it was next week, did you?" Luhan looked at the manager blankly and nodded. The manager shook his head and pushed him to his room. "Start packing, we're leaving first thing tomorrow morning! And say your last farewells to Soomi."

Luhan stopped in his tracks. 2 weeks without Soomi? He couldn't bear the thought. Luhan shook his head. "I'm not going, hyung."

He scoffed."Yah, Luhan. Now is not the time to get stubborn. You need to get to sleep early. It's your job, you can't just postpone the event, the tickets are sold out. Hello?! You have American fans too! And we have Skype so you can talk to Soomi all you want. Go." He pushed him through the door and Sehun waved up a pair of boxers.

"Hyung, can I borrow these?" Luhan laughed and nodded, grabbing a suitcase of his own. He quickly took out his phone and texted Soomi about his sudden departure.

"You're leaving tomorrow?! Hee Jin told me..." They both sat at the swing set just a block away from the dorm. Luhan sadly nodded. Suddenly, an idea popped up into Soomi's head. She held on to Luhan's hand tightly and smiled like an angel. "Can we come with you?"

"Huh? I don't know. I'd have to check with manager hyung. But how will you come with us? Lots of staff are coming with us."

"Exactly."

"Huh?"

"Hee Jin, Minhee, and I can act like staffs. It's the weekend anyway, so we don't have school. And we can get help from the managers and stylists, how bout it? Minhee is good with hair, and Hee Jin and I can help out with your clothes." Luhan processed the idea through his head. Could he live a week without her?