Prologue

My mouth formed an “0” shape as my brain took a few seconds to realise I was deep trouble, my eyes looking around the room at the disproved faces of my teachers. Closing my mouth I saw my golden haired, blue eyed beauty of a roommate, Celia, sitting in the corner looking sad.  What was she doing here?

“Miss Kim?”

I turned my head to face the Dean, she pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose and clasped her semi –wrinkled hands in front of her.

“Do you know why I called you here?” She asked me, I shook my head slowly.

“Miss Kim, your music history teacher said that you wrote and submitted your essay yesterday. Why leave it to the last minute to do it?”

What the hell is going on? And why does she want to know that? Everybody in the room has expressions like I’ve done a bad thing or something. I cleared my throat before I spoke.

“I did have my essay finished last week but water was spilled onto my laptop so it didn’t work anymore. I didn’t save it to usb so I spent every day of the week going to the library trying to remember what I wrote so that I could submit something instead of nothing.”  I told them although I get the feeling that they all think it is a downright lie from the glares I’m getting.

My music history teacher, Ms Del Rei, and the Dean exchange quiet words while I take the chance to look at Celia, gone was her sad expression and was replaced by an expression I have never seen my roommate wear the entire time I’ve been here, she catches me looking at her from the corner of her eye and the edges of tilt into a smirk.

“Miss Kim, Celia claims that you plagiarised her essay and submitted her work in your name instead. The evidence, I’m sorry to say, is legitimate.”

“Celia? Are you serious? Tell me this is just another prank and we can laugh about it later.” I say laughing nervously, hoping that all of this was just one of her classic pranks but when no one laughed, my heart sank as reality kicked in.

I had zoned out as the Dean showed the two essays side by side and pointed out all the similarities between them. With a claim like this, I’ll be kicked out of Julliard for sure and sent back to Seoul University with a big X next to my name. Panic sets in, what will my parents think? All the time and money wasted to move me abroad, they will see me as a failure. I can’t go back home, seeing the disappointment in their eyes would be too much for me to take.

By the time I had focused back, the room was empty and a folder was in front of me with a “EXPELLED” stamped on the front in big red letters. I held back the tears as I took the folder, the urge to rip it up was, and left the Dean’s office, getting glares on my way back to my room. I ignored everything and everyone, when I got to my room, I quickly packed and left the premises of this school I thought was a dream come true but it became my nightmare instead.

My suitcase scrapped along the cement sidewalk as I dragged it behind me without a care, waiting for a taxi to drive by. I hailed one and got in, asking the driver to take me to the airport, once there I got on the first plane back to Korea, and all the while thinking what the frack I’m supposed to do when I got back because I was sure as hell ain’t going home.  

~

I took a deep breath of the cold night air as I stepped out of Incheon Airport, it felt good to be back on home soil. Although I can’t go back home, not yet anyway. By now the University would have called my parents with the sudden news of my expulsion. I will give my parents time to calm down before showing my face to them. I waved my hand to catch the attention of a taxi and went to open the door when another hand grabbed the handle and I was shoved into the backseat of the cab. I was momentarily stunned as a stranger in a hoodie got in too, shutting the door and telling the driver where to go.

“Sorry but I’m in a hurry, we can share until I get to my destination.” The hooded stranger said to me, I was still processing that I had been shoved into a cab by a random man.

I moved to the other side, putting the suitcase between us like a barrier of sorts and I notice that he is watching me. It was weird, he would tilt his head from side to side as if he was trying to figure me out. Who does he think he is, a mind reader?

“Close but no cigar.” He says with a grin that shows his two rows of pearly whites and my eyes widened. What the…? How did he know what I was thinking?

“Are you a physic or something, Ajusshi?” I asked, my eyes narrowing as I looked him up and down.

“I’m not and I’m definitely not an ajusshi either.” He replies in sudden annoyance and turns away to look out the window, I guess calling him an old man rattled his tail feathers a bit.

I paid no more attention to him and looked out the window on my side, we were on the Han River Bridge, I forgot how pretty the multi-coloured lights were. I smiled to myself as I watched the lights change, it almost made me forget the drama in my life. I peeked sideways at the stranger, his shoulders are slumped and his lips have formed a pout, it took me a second to realise that he was sulking. I bit back a laugh, how can a grown man like him sulk over something trivial?

“I think we got off on the wrong foot. I’m Jaeri.” I turned my body to face him, extending out my hand. He looked at me and then my offered hand, he carefully shook it, his hand was cold against my warm one.

“I’m Kyuhyun.” He mumbled still pouting.

I found him to be really adorable, the more I looked at him, the more I came to the conclusion that he must either be younger than me or slightly older. I opened my mouth to apologize for my ajusshi remark from before when the cab suddenly swerves out of control, I gasp in horror as the car crashes into the barrier of the bridge, completely busting through it and the car tilts, falling into the river. The cab driver, to my disbelief, climbs out before the car submerges underwater, leaving me trapped in the back seat with Kyuhyun. I take a deep breath as the car is now completely full of water, I tug on my seatbelt to free myself but it’s stuck.

My lungs are burning as I struggle to keep holding my breath, Kyuhyun frees himself with ease and comes to my aid. He pulls on the seatbelt, I know we are underwater but I swear I heard him growl and he manages to break it. The urge to take a breathe was too strong as my lungs filled up with water and I lost consciousness, the last thing I remembered was Kyuhyun pulling me into his arms.

~

“Have you lost your damn mind, Kyuhyun?!”

Voices

Why am I hearing voices? Aren’t I dead? How am I still alive?

The voices got louder, I kept my eyes shut as I noticed that they voices are not too far away from me. Instead I listened, my heart beating rapidly and my mind trying to make sense of why I’m still living and not at the bottom of the ocean.

“Do you have any idea of what you have done?”

“I couldn’t leave her to die, I can’t ignore humans like you can.”

“What happens when she wakes up, huh? Are you gonna be responsible for her?”

I think now is the time to wake up lest I hear things I prefer not to, my eyelids flutter open and blink as they get used the lack of light in the room. I sit up and feel my head throbbing in pain, it’s like I have a very bad hangover. I look up wondering why it was so quiet and expecting to find people in the room but nothing.

How is that possible? I clearly heard them as if they were next to me, this is freaking me out a little. I look around the room, there are no windows, and the walls are an off white colour, portraits and one cracked mirror decorated the walls. The only light in the room comes from the candelabras places around the room, a piano sits in the corner. My feet take me to the piano, I sit down and my fingers push down on the black and white keys, a gentle melody fills the room.

I finish playing not aware that I had an audience until I had gotten up and turned around. I was startled to see Kyuhyun and 8 other men standing behind him, they were all very handsome but for now my gaze was fixed on Kyuhyun. I would be lying if I said that I didn’t feel relief to see him before me, I walked to him until I was standing right in front of him.

“I don’t know how you did it but you saved me, thank you.” I wrapped my arms around him, I could tell he was not expecting me to hug him. He coughed awkwardly and I heard snickers coming from the men behind him.

“You’re welcome.” He said patting my back almost robotically.

“Um, could we maybe get introductions out of the way?”

I pulled away from Kyuhyun and turned my gaze to the one that spoke, he had a killer eye smile and dimples to match. Kyuhyun introduced them to me one by one.

“Dimples over here is Leeteuk, he’s the eldest.”

I’ll have to watch out for this one, he seems to be a lady killer.

“This is Yesung, second oldest.”

This guy is looking at me as if I’m dirt on his shoe, I think I’ll have to be patient with him.

“The chubby one is Shindong and the girly looking one is Sungmin.”

These two seem friendly enough although it kind of bothers me how pretty Sungmin is.

“The wannabe model is Siwon, the one that looks like a monkey is Eunhyuk and the fishy looking one is Donghae.”

He really does look like a model, this Siwon. Eunhyuk winks at me playfully, Donghae gives me a shy smile. Too cute for words.

“And last but not least is Ryeowook.” He pats the short male with kind eyes on the shoulder.

Ryeowook greets me with a bow and a gentle smile, Leeteuk and he look like angels sent from Heaven.

“I’m Jaeri and it’s nice to meet you all.”

I think it won’t be so bad if I stay here for a while and I do owe Kyuhyun for saving my life………..

 

 

 

A prologue before the actual story, there will be a time skip of a year maybe two. just so that it doesn't get boring. :)