“Hey, Hyoyeon! I haven’t seen you in sooooo long! How are you?” A cheerful girl came running towards the SM trainees.

“Oh my goodness, Kyuyang! It’s so good to see you again!” Hyoyeon’s worries were forgotten when she saw her best friend from the arts school. “Where’s the rest of the gang?”

“They’re lumbering here slowly. When I heard that announcer guy say ‘SM’, I knew you were going to be here and I speeeeeeeeeeeeeed all the way here.” The girl replied dramatically.

“Okay, now fill me in on all the gossip I’ve missed. Who’s going out with who and all that.” Hyoyeon demanded with twinkling eyes.

Onew smiled. It made him feel good when his princess smiled. Don't ever be sad again, it hurts my heart.

He left Hyoyeon to buzz with her friends, knowing how important this short exchange was to her and decided not to interrupt.

Soon, the rest of Hyoyeon’s friends found them and they began chatting animatedly about life and school in general, their conversation constantly punctuated with shrieks and laughter. The other trainees were surprised. They have never seen Hyoyeon behaving in such a carefree manner before.

All of a sudden, a little girl, no older than 9 years old came running to the group. “Unnies, Oppas, the witch is here, she’s here today!”

“THE WITCH IS HERE?!” The clique echoed in astonishment.

All the SM trainees turned to look in their direction. A witch?  Here in the auditorium? Where?

Hyoyeon’s friends started forming a wall around her, as if to hide her from someone, or something. Onew’s heart pounded faster. Was Hyoyeon in danger?

*******************

Jonghyun was telling the rest of Shinee a ghost story when he heard the chorus of “the witch is here”. He immediately stopped his story and turned to look, holding his breath, anticipating with horror the series of events he knew would follow.

The other members looked at one another confusedly. Who was the witch, and what has she done to instill so much fear, not only in Jonghyun, but in Hyoyeon and her friends as well?

*******************

Out of nowhere, an old but distinguished lady walked over, her steps deliberate. “Good morning, children,” she greeted the group in a clipped voice. “And good morning Hyoyeon. It is wonderful to see you again. Your attire today stuns me. Never would I have thought that sending you out into the society would cause you to throw away your dignity. I do not expect much of you, Hyoyeon, I never did. But dressing like a peasant in these cheap rags? You should know better than that.”

Everybody turned their attention to what the poor embarrassed girl was wearing. Decked in a cotton halter top and fashionable shorts, Hyoyeon looked more than presentable. What was this lady saying? Surely she did not expect a teenager to dress like her, in a starched suit and fancy expensive jewelry in this sweltering heat.

“Well, I beg your pardon, Mrs. Kwon, but it IS the summer and it definitely makes more sense to dress casually in comfortable clothes at this time of the year.” Kyuyang started defending her friend. “Furthermore, Hyoyeon isn’t part of the school anymore. You are in no position to dictate how she should dress.”

“You do not speak to the authority like that, young lady; it’s extremely unbecoming. And since you ARE part of the school, Miss Kyuyang, I have every right to punish you, to make you see what you’ve done wrong. 200 push-ups on just one knuckle. Get down immediately.”

Everyone froze. It felt like all the air was out of the room. Doing 200 push-ups is tough. Doing 200 on one arm is even harder. Doing 200 on a knuckle is impossible.

“Mrs. Kwon, that’s insane. You can’t restrict what anyone says, whether or not they’re under your care! Furthermore, Kyuyang broke her arm a year ago and haven’t been training much since; there’s no way she can do 200,” Hyoyeon protested.

“That’s it, young lady. I have had enough of this nonsense. Why don’t you do the push-ups on behalf of her? Since you’re so good, and you haven’t broken your arm, do 250,” commanded the scary lady in a condescending tone. “Do it, since you’re the one who’s dressed like a peasant. You were always the hero when you were in our school, weren’t you. Come on, little miss perfect, save your friend!”

By this time, people from the arts school have started crowding around, attracted by the happenings. They were all afraid of the fierce Mrs. Kwon and knew that she detested Hyoyeon ever since she joined the school when she was 3. Stay strong, Hyoyeon sunbae.

Under the stares of the crowd, Hyoyeon bent down slowly and got into position. One push-up, two, three, four, five, six; she just kept going. The SM trainees were amazed. They have never seen anyone do so many push-ups on one knuckle and certainly hadn’t expected a girl to do it.

After 7 minutes, Hyoyeon started to slow down. Her left knuckle were peeling and starting to bleed due to the friction between it and the rough floor, she started breathing heavily and the rate of push-ups slowed down. Everyone watched worriedly, occasionally stealing glances at the Witch, who seemed to be enjoying Hyoyeon’s pain.

Onew flinched every time he saw his sweetheart wince. He wanted to save her, to be her knight in shining armor, but there was no way. He didn’t dare to. Not in front of all these people, what if she rejects me? His heart broke when he saw her slipping because of the blood and sweat and couldn’t watch anymore. Sensing his hyung’s feelings, Taemin patted his shoulder, trying to comfort him.

“COME ON HYOYEON, YOU CAN DO THIS!” yelled a voice from in the crowd. It broke the spell of silence and almost immediately, the other students of the school started cheering and clapping enthusiastically for Hyoyeon.

This infected the SM trainees to, and before long, everyone was cheering and counting down loudly for Hyoyeon. “JUST TEN MORE! TEN! NINE! EIGHT! SEVEN! YOU’RE ALMOST THERE DON’T GIVE UP! SIX!” Sooyoung yelled.

Everyone caught on to the count down. “FIVE! FOUR! THREE! TWO! ONE! YAY! WELL DONE HYOYEON!”

Hyoyeon collapsed onto the ground, her tears flowing freely. They’re still cheering for me even though I’ve left them.

A bespectacled girl came up and dressed Hyoyeon’s wounds with a special pink bandage while everyone else congratulated her. It was hugs and kisses all around. Onew reached in and was about to hug her too, but that muscular jerk, the father of his girl’s son beat him to it.

Author's Note: Okay, so this chapter might not be the most believeable of my imagination (200 pushups on one knuckle who am I kidding) but it does help the story to build up, I promise. And I just read that Taemin's going to be on WGM like whut._. I feel so cheated. He must be laughing at me now like HAHAHAH YOU LOSER YOU DON'T GET ME. grrrrrrrrr. At least it's one more show for me to watch. I just hope he's nice and not be too bold (re-watches his dance segment with Shindong on Strong Heart and cringes).