He calls her right after an interview and during lunch because he figures there’s no other perfect time for him to do so than when her face is probably buried in a bowlful of ramen and takoyaki. He chuckles to himself when Yoona answers the phone with a furious rant telling him to ‘make it quick or else he’ll be the one paying for her birthday lunch next year’. It doesn’t disturb him all that much because she’s always said that over the years but she never ever came to collect. Usually she’d be the one to burst into their practice room door with smiles and goodies filling her arms while enthusiastically cheering ‘Go Minho! Go Taemin! Go Jinki! Go Kibum! Go Jonghyun! Go SHINee!!!’ at the top of her lungs, no matter how small the event he and his team were practicing for.

Im Yoona is just that kind of person. She is such a wonderful noona – he dares and says that she’s his favorite one – because no one else could lift up his spirits better than she can (with her laugh and her smile, with the way her hair fell on her face and she would brush it back behind her ear). And she’s done so a million times that Minho’s actually lost count.

“Is that how you say hello to your favorite dongsaeng?” He replies cheekily, smirking to himself when she lets out a mock-haughty scoff.

He could just imagine her rolling his eyes at him before nodding gravely, because conceited as the thought may be, he’s dead sure that he was at least miles higher in her ‘best dongsaeng’ poll than Taemin will ever be with his cute smile and sweet demeanor. Noona wasn’t nearly as competitive as him but she liked a good challenge – and who else was perfect to challenge amongst the SHINee boys that Choi Minho himself?

“Oh right… because the noona has to be the polite one in the conversation.” She says sarcastically, her voice light and friendly despite the palatable command in her tone. He choked back a laugh because it’s fun to over the phone like this – where she couldn’t pummel him with her enormous strength (even though, secretly, he liked the attention she showered him when he did because then she’d be close enough for him to smell the lavender soap she liked to use).

No one is really the same once they’ve fought Yoona and her mighty fists and he knows this (because he’s witnessed it first hand; how his hyung had stared after her when she fought back, waking him up from his groundless trance and bringing him back to them finally) all too well.

“We should have an arm-wrestling tournament when we all go back to Korea. I want to see if I can beat you with these guns of mine.”

“Guns of steel? Really, Minho? You’re a flimsy stick compared to me!” she exclaims, the essence of a showdown evident in her voice and he grins, knowing that it’ll be a fight to the death and he was more than ready to fire it up.

“Noona, have you seen yourself lately? You’re even skinnier than usual! You’ve got nothing on me!” He replies and smirk when she does that mock-haughty scoff once again. A challenge is a challenge and Im Yoona would never back down (he liked that part of her the most; the faith in her spirit and confidence in her strength. She was a lot of things, but she was never a quitter).

“Maybe, but I have faith in HimYoona’s majestic return so you should watch your back!”

Minho likes to wish for a lot of things for his friends (patience for Key, maturity for Onew, a less evil mind for Kyuhyun, tact for Heechul, a bit more bravery for Changmin) but for today – for her special day – he simply wished for that faith in herself to last forever. If there was anyone who would go the distance in this industry they were in, Minho knew it would be her. Im Yoona was special after all, his favorite noona.

“Kidding aside, let’s hang out for dinner soon, okay? The whole gang together; the Y2K1 trainees: You, me, Kyuhyun, Jinki, Changmin… promise you’ll make time?”

He nods and smiles, because she’s lifted his spirits again without knowing it.

“Anything for you, Noona.”

A/N: Dedicated especially to Candy (candyredhearts).