My eyes widened. “Why would you want to do that? I’m not a very interesting person! I work three jobs to sustain myself, and I can’t even find enough spare time to truly pursue the career I abandoned my family for. That’s all there is!”

He grinned cheekily and tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. “That is never all there is.” My cheeks burned as he pulled away. “There are thousands of things that make a person. Like the fact that spicy food makes you sick, or the fact that you enjoy classical music more than any other genre.”

I backed up a bit. “How do you know that?”

“Your music score you were working on was laying on the floor, and every CD on your shelves are either orchestral or chamber ensembles.” I looked at the notebook that was now lying neatly on the end table.

“That’s private.” I turned to make my way to my bedroom. “If you really want to get to know me so much, I guess I can let you take me to work. Just… Don’t be too shocked by it or anything, okay?”

“I already said I want to learn everything about you, and I doubt anything you do could shock me.” He looked at me, grinning and leaning against the entry column.

I hurried into my bedroom -- well, as fast as one can hurry while on crutches -- and went straight to my closet. I grabbed a black pencil skirt and a white peasant top, quickly slipping them on before grabbing my cropped black vest and buttoning it up. I swung back out to the front, and noticed Changmin holding my coat. He helped me into it silently before leading me to his car.

He opened and closed the door for me as well as placing my crutches in the backseat. The ride was shockingly quiet besides me giving directions. I had halfway expected him to pepper me with questions to get to know me, but he seemed much more relaxed about the entire situation.

When we arrived at our destination, he pulled into one of the nearby parking spots. He pulled the key slowly from the ignition, turning to look at me. “You work in a night club? In this part of town?”

I opened the door and exited the car without replying. I hobbled towards the backseat and was struggling to pull the crutches out when I felt a warm hand on my elbow. My back stiffened, and I looked at the ground. “Bartending pays well, and the schedule was ideal considering my other jobs. It may not be the safest part of town, but I know self-defense and I never go anywhere alone.”

He handed me the crutches with an angry look in his eyes. “You shouldn’t be working here. Whether or not you know self-defense, this area is too dangerous for you to work in. Especially now that you’re injured.”

I stared at him in shock. “Just who do you think you are to tell me what to do?! I don’t know you, and I certainly don’t owe you anything! You have no right to try to control my life.”

“We’ll talk about it later, but I promise you, this will be your last night working in the club.” I scowled at him, but he seemed completely unaffected as he cleared a path to the doorway for me.

A few hours later, I had found a comfortable method to make it easier for me to still bartend without applying pressure on my ankle. Changmin had merely sat at the darkest corner of the bar for the entire time, head bowed as he tried to avoid everyone in the club. I hobbled over to him, and leaned against the counter. “Are you sure you don’t want anything? Not even a Coke?”

He frowned before agreeing to a Coke, so I grinned before turning to get it. When I returned, he was slumped over the counter. I poked his forehead lightly, and he stirred. “I wasn’t asleep!” he exclaimed as he awoke.

“Sure you weren’t,” I muttered, giggling. “If you’re that tired, you should go home, Changmin-sshi. There are plenty--”

“Oppa. Just call me Changmin-oppa.” I blushed before shaking my head. He placed a hand over my mouth before I could retort. “I really want you to call me oppa, and, as I’ve stated before, I want to get to know you. How are we supposed to be comfortable with one another if we still act all polite with each other? It doesn’t exactly encourage being personal.”

As he removed his hand, I quickly snapped, “Well, if we’re supposed to get to know each other I guess there’s one really big factor that’s still in play.” He looked curiously at me. “When we first met, everyone assumed I would know who you were, but I have no clue. Why does everyone know who you are?”

He paled considerably and swallowed. He attempted to stutter a reply, but it was a horrible try that only ended up leaving him tongue-tied.

“You want to know everything about me, but you won’t let me know what I’m guessing is the biggest thing to know about you. How is that fair?” I barely recognized that the DJ had changed songs as I turned away from him.

Warm, slender fingers grasped my elbow and pulled me back. “You really want to know?” I nodded. “When does your shift end?”

I glanced curiously at him before looking at my co-worker, who flicked her hands at me. “I can leave whenever… Kim-sshi says she’ll cover for me.” With that, he practically dragged me from behind the counter and sat me on the barstool he had previously occupied.

“I’ll meet you around the back corner of the building in fifteen minutes.”

“Wait! What’s going on?” I held his wrist in a vice-grip -- well, as much of a vice-grip that a scrawny girl could have. “I don’t understand.”

“You wanted to know why everyone knows who I am. I’ll show you.” With that, he pulled out of my grip and went far enough away from the bar to be seen, but still close enough that I would be able to see him.

Whispers spread through the club like wildfire before silence overtook the club. The DJ stopped the music and looked where everyone was pointing, and I realized it was straight at Changmin. I focused in on one of the nearby groups of whispering women.

“Is that really…?”

“Oh. My. God. That’s Shim Changmin!”

All of a sudden, chants of “Max! Max!” erupted from the crowd, and I realized they only quieted as Changmin turned in circles, signaling for everyone to get quieter. When everyone was finally quiet, he nodded to the DJ, and a familiar song started pouring out of the speakers.

We play this song every other night at least… Why play it now?I quickly realized just why it was being played now as the volume went down, and Changmin started singing along. He’s a singer! I fiddled with the bottom edge of my skirt, nervousness suddenly spreading through my body. From what I’ve heard from different people in the club, he’s known throughout Asia!

After the song was over, Changmin bowed and signed a few autographs before escaping the club. “You didn’t know he was famous, did you?” I whipped around, heart thumping out of my chest before I realized it was my co-worker. “You’re really tense all of a sudden, but you were completely at ease with him earlier. That and you look similar to a deer getting caught in the headlights of an oncoming car.”

“I don’t really pay attention to this kind of music. You know that… I just…” I shook my head. “I had no clue.”

“How’d you even meet? You’re not really one for mingling.”

“He came to the restaurant for dinner yesterday, and things sort of spiraled out of control. I ended up fired because one of the waitresses pushed me into him, and then I tripped on a crack in the sidewalk and sprained my ankle.”

She was clutching her sides to control her laughter and I pouted, turning away. “Mian, mian… That’s so you, Sooyun.” She patted my shoulder before hurrying to tend the customers once more. “Annyeong, Sooyun-sshi! Enjoy your evening~!” She winked at me as I grabbed my crutches. I felt a furious blush spread across my cheeks as I maneuvered through the crowd to the employee exit.

As I reached the back corner of the building, I realized the dark figure leaning against the corner was Changmin. He was looking in the opposite direction, so I snuck up behind him and whispered, “You could have just told me, you know?”

He jumped, turning around completely at the same time. His hand to his chest, he chuckled lightly. “I’m Max, not U-Know.”

I scrunched my eyebrows as I looked at him in confusion. “What are you talking about?”

He pinched the bridge of his nose before guiding me to the car. “I forget that you know absolutely nothing about us. U-Know is my band mate’s stage name.”

I cocked my head to the side. “Really?” I ducked into the car and allowed him to put the crutches in the back seat as there really wasn’t a reason to fight with him about it anymore. “That’s kind of a strange name.”

He chuckled as he got into the driver’s side. “His real name’s Yunho, and he thought it was clever. U-Know, Yunho?!”

I laughed lightly. “Why did you pick Max for your stage name?”

“I want to be the top of the industry, so I chose Max.” He started the car and swiftly pulled out of the parking spot.

“I like your reasoning a lot better.” He laughed, a rich, full laugh that urged me to smile and laugh with him. “You’re really busy as a singer, though, aren’t you?”

He caught what I meant and glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. “I only had a photo-shoot this morning, so my afternoon was entirely free. I couldn’t stop worrying about how you were doing so I decided to find out where you lived and see how you were.” He reached up and tucked a stray piece of hair behind my ear. “Don’t worry. I’m not in any kind of trouble for skipping work to see you or anything like that. The closest I’ll get to being in trouble is being spotted at the club.”

I gasped. “You really didn’t have to do that if it might get you in trouble! You could have just told me what you did rather than showing me by using everyone in the club as your examples.”

“You wouldn’t have believed me.” I glanced out the window. I probably wouldn’t have. We were silent for the rest of the ride home, and he helped me out of the car once we arrived.

“You should probably head home. I’m sure you probably have a lot of work tomorrow since you had time off today.” I looked at the ground, stomach twisting at the thought of saying good-bye already.

“Is it alright if I see you again?” His breath ghosted across my bare neck, and I snapped my head up. He had placed a hand on the roof of the car on either side of me, and was leaning close, his body heat keeping me warm in the cooling night. His face was only inches from my own, and my heart sped as I realized the distance between us.

“Ah… Um… Just so long as it fits into your schedule, I don’t really have a problem with it.”

He leaned in closer, our foreheads brushing against one another’s. “Good. I wasn’t going to take no for an answer, but I thought I should give you the chance.”

I opened my mouth to snap a retort at him, but found myself silenced, his smooth lips engulfing mine. Tingles raced down my body, and I leaned further into him, eyes closing and hands straying to his waist, clinging onto the defined muscles beneath his shirt. My heart was pounding in my ears, and my body felt much warmer than it had before, the cool night no longer affecting it.

His tongue brushed across my bottom lip, and I gasped, eyes shooting open as his tongue swept into my mouth. I groaned at the foreign sensation, eyes fluttering closed as I slowly responded. After what felt like forever, he eventually pulled away, leaning his forehead against mine once more.

“Mianhae… if I was too forward.” His gaze burned into mine, and our panting breathes left small puffy clouds in the air. “I’ve wanted to do that all night.” He leaned away and handed me the crutches. He escorted me to the front door of the apartment building. “My cell number’s on the table, and… I’ll understand if you don’t call.” He swiftly turned around and returned to his car, quickly disappearing into the night.

I would love any ideas for any stage of their romance~! I will try to incorporate as many as I receive so long as they fit into the plot line. ^^