Chapter 1

            Slipping past unending crowds of clubbers and bouncers, Hyoyeon finally made it out of Got Seoul Night Club.  She laughed and gave a graceful twirl as she looked back at her favorite place to dance.  Not many people understood how wonderful it was to dance for hours and hours without choreography or direction.  But Hyoyeon appreciated the freedom.  She already planned her return as she stepped away and into a nearby alley.

            She never drove to these clubs.  The media and fans knew exactly what her car looked like, and she didn’t want to be mobbed by incredible amounts of people upon her arrival and departure.  Their SM Entertainment dorm wasn’t far away, so walking never seemed like much of a trouble.  But, as she continued down the dark, quiet alley, she started to revaluate her plan. 

            Most of the time, when she was walking back to the dorm, she was a little tipsy and unable to acknowledge the danger of her surroundings.  But the girls kept complaining about her drunken behavior.  They didn’t angrily reprimand her, but they often made fun of the ridiculous things she tended to do under the influence of alcohol.  Hyoyeon realized that she might accidentally flood the dorm or punch Sunny if she didn’t control her drinking habits.

            There was once a time when they weren’t so busy and would drink and act like idiots together.  Hyoyeon chuckled as she reviewed the memories, and she vowed to bring back those hilarious days.

            Her laughter was quickly stifled as she noticed just how dark the alley she walked through was.  Even her own shadow scared her more than a few times, and she wondered when the alley would end.  So many times she had walked down this alley, and she had never been afraid.  But now she wished she had taken even one martini back at the club.

            Her heart skipped a beat as a tall, thin stranger walked into the entrance of the alley.  His lanky appearance was more distinguished in the moonlight, and he seemed like a ghost or some ghastly creature. 

            She slowed her steps when he stopped suddenly.  He turned his head towards her, staring at her with eyes she guessed were beady and insidious.  Taking her phone out of her purse, she stopped in her tracks.  Nothing could make her go further towards this strange, dangerous man.  Even as she dialed 911, he stared, not distracted by anything.

            Her finger hovered over the call button.  If he turned out to be no threat, she would cause unnecessary legal issues, a lecture from Lee Soo-Man, and a potential scandal for the online forums to blow out of proportion.  But if he really was a threat, she would save herself from bleeding to death on the ground of this dirty alley, just steps away from her eight closest friends.

            Before she could finally press the call button, a hand came up from behind her and stole the phone from her hands.  As she turned to meet this rude thief, she was blindsided by a fist to her left cheek.  She flew against the alley wall, closing her eyes and desperately crying for help.  Reluctantly, she put her hand up to her swelling cheek and felt a terrible pain.

            Her assailant came up behind her and pressed her hard against the brick wall.  His hands gripped both her arms and twisted her exposed skin.  She couldn’t hold in a cry of agony.

            “My dear, what are you doing in this dark alley all by yourself?”  His voice was dark and gruff.  Hyoyeon cringed at the sound.

            “Let me go!” she cried.  “What do you want from me?”

            “You seem very wealthy.”

            She looked back and saw the tall stranger reach down to the ground for her purse.  He started taking out a number of things, mostly makeup and trinkets that Sunny and Taeyeon had given her.  She winced as he threw those precious keepsakes on the ground.

            “Kim Hyoyeon?”  He was holding her wallet and reading her drivers license as if it were an ancient hieroglyphic.  “The Dancing Queen from Girls’ Generation?”

            “What?”  The other thug squeezed her arms tighter as he looked back at his friend.  “This is Kim Hyoyeon?  One of Lee Soo-Man’s cash cows?  Well, I do believe she is worth more to us than whatever we find in her purse.”

            “I’ll give you all the money you want!”

            “Perhaps Mr. Lee will give more,” the thug grinned.  “Imagine if you were his niece, Soon-Kyu.  He would supply us with the world itself.”

            She shivered at his words.  “You want to hold me as a ransom?  So that Lee Soo-Man will pay you money?”

            “You’re a bright one.” 

The thug reached into his pocket and took out a roll of duct tape.  Hyoyeon screamed at the sight of it, hoping one last cry for help would be enough to save her.  She heard the ripping of the tape and dreaded the cold, sticky material on her already aching face.

“Charge!!”

Hyoyeon was suddenly released from the thug’s agonizing vice.  She slid to the alley floor and saw the roll of duct hit the ground.  Her head was spinning and her vision was blurred, but she noticed the faint glowing of orange and white in the subtle moonlight.  This colorful figure was sending the two thugs into a panic.  They were thrown against the alley wall, shoved onto the ground, and chased out of the alley without any worthwhile retaliation. 

“Hello?” she called weakly, slowly rising from the ground.  She peered down both ways of the alley without a glimpse of red or orange.  “Who is there?  Who saved me?”

“Hello!”  Hyoyeon jumped at the sound of such a perky, excited voice.  She quickly turned around and saw the orange and white blur before her.  As her vision returned to normal, she gasped at the sight of this hilarious creature.  She was an adorable girl wearing an orange polo with white track pants and sneakers.  A white helmet with two orange stripes in the middle adorned her small head, and her big brown eyes glowed brightly just below it.

“Thank you!” Hyoyeon smiled brightly, still studying the girl.  “Thank you for saving me!”

“It was no trouble, Kim Hyoyeon!” the girl replied, saluting with her right hand.  “This is why I’m here!”

“I’m very curious to know,” Hyoyeon started timidly.  “Who are you?  How do you know my name?  And how did you know I was in trouble?”

The girl laughed bashfully.  “My name is Way.  I am one of the few chosen to be a guardian of The Nine.  We watch over you when you may be exposed to harm.  I was perched upon this building right here,” she patted the alley wall, “if you must know.  I saw that you were confronted by criminals, so I acted to save you.”

“Way?  Chosen to protect the Nine?  Do you mean Girls’ Generation?”

“Indeed.”

“We’re only a pop group,” Hyoyeon explained.  “We are not politicians or important diplomats.  Why do we need protectors?  And who chose you to protect us?”

“I cannot disclose too much information,” Way answered with a mischievous grin.  “But I can tell you this: you are much more important than you think.”

“You must have more answers for me,” Hyoyeon sighed.

“Not at the moment, actually.”  Before Way could even finish her sentence, she was running away from Hyoyeon down the alley towards Got Seoul Night Club.

“Wait!”  Hyoyeon contemplated whether to follow her.  She had so many questions that needed answers.  But her body was aching terribly, and she didn’t want to waste anymore time in dark alleys.  She gave one last look towards her mysterious savior, grabbed her purse and all its fallen contents, and rushed back to the dorm.

“I wonder how drunk Hyoyeon will be when she arrives home tonight.”

Jessica and Yoona laughed at Seohyun’s worried expression as they sat in the dorm couch and shared a carton of ice cream.  Seohyun smiled playfully at her sisters, but she couldn’t wipe the anticipation off her face.

“I don’t know why you worry so much, Seohyun,” Jessica chuckled. 

“You’re not the one who has to take her wrath when she’s intoxicated,” Seohyun sighed.  “She often makes fun of the way I talk.”

“The alcohol gives her courage to say what the rest of us wish to tell you,” Sooyoung smirked, walking in from the kitchen with her own ice cream carton.  “Maknae, don’t take her seriously when she drinks.  Don’t take any of us seriously when we drink!  We make fun of each other when we’re sober too.  We just can’t control the severity of our words when we’re drunk.”

Suddenly, the front door swung open.  As it banged against the doorstop, Hyoyeon wearily clambered into the room, taking heaving breaths and dropping her purse to the floor.

“Hyoyeon!”  Seohyun dropped her spoon to the ground and rushed over to Hyoyeon.  The rest of the girls followed after her, frantically observing Hyoyeon’s swollen cheek.

“Oh my gosh!” Jessica cried in English.

“What happened?” Yoona exclaimed.

“I…I was mugged in an alley,” Hyoyeon explained, pushing past them and sitting down on the couch.

“Mugged in an alley?” Sooyoung gasped.

“I told you it was dangerous walking around the city this late at night,” Seohyun reminded, rushing into the kitchen to find an ice pack.

“What did they do to you?” Yoona asked, sitting down beside Hyoyeon and examining her face.

“They hit me in the face and threw me against a wall.”

“My gosh!”  All the girls turned and squinted at Jessica’s loud English.

Seohyun came back with a bag of frozen peas and gently pressed it against Hyohyun’s cheek.  “We ought to take you to the hospital.  I’ll call manger oppa.”

“It’s nothing major,” Hyoyeon promised, wincing at the bag of peas.  “My body is sore, though.  I probably won’t be able to practice with you for a little bit.”

“What’s all this commotion?”  Tiffany stepped in from the hall and threw her hand over as she witnessed Hyoyeon’s injuried.  “Oh my gosh!  What happened?”

Jessica grabbed her arm and started to discuss the incident with her in furious, rapid English.  The rest of the girls ignored them and tended to Hyoyeon’s wounds.

“How did you escape them?”  Yoona looked back at Hyoyeon’s purse on the floor.  “You still have your bag.”

“They…They left without taking anything.”

“Praise God,” Sooyoung sighed.

“And nothing else happened?” Seohyun asked, her innocent eyes staring at Hyoyeon with concern.

“Nothing else happened.”

“Are you sure?”

Hyoyeon looked around at her sisters.  She could hear Sunny and Taeyeon waking up in their room, about to come out and stare at her with confusion and concern.  This incident was already something incredible and unexpected.  Who would believe her if she tried to explain Way and the Guardians of The Nine? 

“Yes, I am sure.  I’m completely sure.”