Listening to: Beautiful Stranger by f(x) aka the namesake of this story! :D

Taemin's POV

I’ve been trying to forget her all this while. Feeling so bad about leaving Zara for this while, I fought to keep her out of my mind. I couldn’t leave her for so long and then be having feelings for someone else. If it didn’t break her heart, it would break mine. But everytime I caught a glance at her-clad in his colors-my heart pounded a bit faster and I felt myself get flustered; my agility decreasing. Closing my eyes, I tried to clear my thoughts of the girl and exhaled all my thoughts of her. “Let me...finish...this mission...and then I can see...Zara.”

“Who’s Zara?” a cute voice asks me.

Opening my eyes, my steps stutter as I try to back away from her. “W-w-what?”

“Who’s Zara?” she walks toward me, her small hands on her equally small hips, her steps entrancing somehow.

“Who are you?” I ask, curiously. Though I knew I should be trying to remember which of the positions she filled, I was instead trying to slow down my heart.

“That’s for me to know and for you to wish to know,” she replies, a coy smile on her milky face.

I exhale again, my breathing suddenly shaking. “W-what are you d-doing here? This is SH-SH-SHINee headquarters,” I finally got out after a few times.

“Again, Taemin, you ask questions you could only dream of knowing the answers to,” she smiles again and I can’t help but think how smooth my name sounded coming from her lips.

“You’re not supposed to be here,” I say, finally getting my feelings somewhat under control. I still have a shaky feeling in the pit of my stomach as she continues to smile into me. Not at, into.

She starts to say something, but then a familiar hand grabs her delicate arm. “Yah, what are you doing here?” Key asks, eyeing her disdainfully.

Rolling her eyes at him, she shifts her weight to her other foot. She blows her bangs and they fall perfectly in place. I sigh.

“Didn’t you hear me? What. Are. You. Doing. Here?” he repeats himself.

She shakes out of his hold and struts off, head held high, as she disappears into the shadows.

I sigh again and try not to make it obvious that I watched her exit.

“Taemin, what were you doing talking to the enemy?” Key asks me.

“...” I swallow as I try to process why I was talking to her. “I’ve seen her around sometimes.”

His hand raises to his forehead as he shakes his head, disappointment written across his face. “Aish! Taemin-ah, why didn’t you tell me?” he continues to shake his head. “This is bad. This is really bad.”

“What’s wrong?” I ask, worried about my slight involvement.

“That’s Jungmi, leader of the Pinocchio.”

I back up with wide eyes. The Pinocchio were in alliance with his group, the Lucifer. If she had been around our headquarters for long enough, she could’ve gotten our top secret information.

Or worse. If I started to like her...worst things could happen.