The bright morning sun shone down like a piercing hot stage light, heating the concrete sidewalk into such a temperature that it would burn bare feet or cook an egg. Even though it was early, the air was sweltering and muggy. Kim Heechul sat in front of a small café along the scorching sidewalk shielding his eyes from the sun with one slender hand and tapping the other on the black iron café table with growing impatience and nerves.

    Mornings were not very pleasant for Kim Heechul. He hated rising from his comfortable bed before the sun rose and brushing Heebum off the side as he shuffled into the bathroom down the hall and fumbled for the light switch. He hated staring at his sleep tossed hair and puffy face in the mirror before striping in the cold bathroom and stepping into a scalding shower. Though he hated mornings with a passion, he’d pulled himself out of bed before dawn and agonized through a cold shower just to make it to a secluded café and melt in the hot sun; all for a woman.

    Not only was the heat unbearable and the sun unkind to his milky skin, Heechul was filled with nerve he didn’t understand and other feelings he knew even less about. He was half asleep, yet wide awake. He was terrified, yet excited and he could swear the girl at the next table was staring at him. Someone watching him while he sat innocently at a table normally wouldn’t be an issue, Heechul was used to being stared at, but this morning he was going for discreet. If anyone saw him meeting her outside of work, rumors were sure to surface.

     Before he was able to assess if the lady at the next table recognized him behind his designer sunglasses or not, a flash of red caught his attention and he was staring up at a way too cheerful expression for such a hot day. Heechul’s heart hammered in his chest as he ran his eyes up a slender figure covered in a short red and white polka-dot dress and onto a cute face and short brown hair. She looked beautiful in the intense morning sun.

    “Cherry, Oppa!” Puff greeted him brightly, before taking a seat in front of him at the table.

    Heechul opened his mouth reply, but the words stuck in his throat and his mouth suddenly felt dry. It was so easy to speak when the cameras were rolling, but now that they were truly alone, he was out of words. Puff stared at him with a confused expression, her head tilted slightly to the side and a cute pout on her lips. This didn’t Heechul find his words, but hindered them further. Out of the corner of his eye, Heechul spotted the girl at the next table taking out her phone as if to snap a picture of them.

    Panic hitting him, Heechul shot up from the table and reached out and took Puff’s hand. She again gave him a confused look as he pulled her up from the table and proceeded to drag her down the broiling sidewalk.

    “Wait, Breakfast!” Puff argued in her simple Korean, but allowed Heechul to guide her around the corner of the building and towards his car. “Why?”

     “Picture,” Heechul answered in English, “Caught!”

     “Ok,” Puff agreed, knowing what he meant even if he’d only said two words. “Where now?”

     “My home,” Heechul replied, stated the first private place that popped into his head.

    Though they weren’t exactly allowed to bring girls over to the dorm, Heechul knew the building was well guarded and it was the safest place they could go without being spotted by fans, he’d just have to figure out how to hide from the cameras in the elevator. Puff slid into his car without question and just stared at him innocently as he pulled out of the lot and onto the street. She didn’t ask questions, only watched him as he drove and smiled softly.

    Heechul kept his eyes on the road and tried not the think too much. The short drive was full of silence, but somehow, it wasn’t awkward. There seemed to be a lot of silence between them lately, whether because of the language barrier, or Heechul slowly failing ability to speak, but it wasn’t awkward; it felt right. After nodding to the guard at the front gate and pulling his car into the underground garage, Heechul quickly slid out of the driver’s seat. Before he could even think to open Puff’s door for her, she was already out of the car and moving towards him.

    “Can we eat here?” Puff asked in clumsy Korean as she patted her stomach. “No breakfast.”

    “There should be cereal or something,” Heechul reassured and then added in English, “Like cereal?”

    “Yes,” Puff answered before reaching out and taking his hand.

    This gesture surprised Heechul, but he didn’t let this show. Instead, he smiled brightly and pulled her across the empty parking garage towards the elevator. They had been planning this meeting for a while now. After filming so many episodes of WGM with everyone staring and scrutinizing their every move, it felt nice to finally truly be alone together. There was a connection between them that Heechul could feel and see in the way Puff looked at him and in her smile. He’d seen that adoring look before in the eyes of women, but this time was different; this time he was looking back.

         Once they reached the 12^th floor, Heechul let go of Puff’s hand just long enough to open the door and take off his shoes. He then took hold of it once more and led her deeper into the dorm. The contact came natural between them, neither them afraid of a simple touch of caress. It had all started out as teasing, then turned friendship and affection. Now, each held hand and brush of skin seemed to mean more than either of them really understood.

    Opening his mouth to ask what Puff wished to eat, Heechul was interrupted as puff moved away from him and rushed over to where Heebum was lounging on the sofa. Heechul held his breath and waited for his cat’s reaction to her. Heebum wasn’t the friendliest of cats and was very picky about who he liked, much like his owner. Puff sat down next to the grey Persian and his back. Heechul leaned into her touch and purred softly before getting up and jumping lightly into her lap.

    “What’s his name?” Puff asked as she scratched Heebum’s head and the pick cat purred louder.

    “Heebum,” Heechul replied, “He likes you.”

    Leaving puff alone to play with Heebum, Heechul moved into the kitchen and started making coffee. Though he wasn’t a good cook, he knew how to make coffee and pour a bowl of cereal. As he worked to prepare their food, Heechul could hear puff talking to Heebum in Chinese. He wished he understood what she was saying. It was always frustrating being around people who spoke multiple languages when he only knew one fluently. HanGeng had been the same way, always speaking in Chinese to himself and never telling him what he’d said.

    “Looks delicious,” Puff complimented when Heechul returned to the living room and set a cup of coffee and a bowl of corn flakes in front of her.

    “Sorry we couldn’t eat at the café,” Heechul apologized.

     “This is better because you made it for me,” Puff told him in Chinese, though Heechul didn’t understand her.

    Taking a seat next to her on the sofa, Heechul took Heebum into his arms and watched Puff eat. Heebum’s eyes were also focused on her and they both stared like love struck school boys as she sipped her coffee. Puff seemed to sense their eyes on her and turned towards them with a soft smile. It was silent once more and Heechul could almost hear his heart beating in his chest.

     “Look!” Heechul began in his baby English, his voice a bit took loud as he shot up from the sofa and moved towards the large framed photo of Super Junior during their debut on the wall. “Red hair!”

    “Very pretty,” Puff complimented before rising from the sofa to look closer at the photo and adding in English. “Oppa, was so young. Very beautiful.”

     “Still beautiful?” Heechul asked in a teasing manner, gesturing to himself.

    “No,”

    “No?” Heechul repeated, a bit surprised by her answer.

    “Oppa is handsome,” Puff clarified, her eyes meeting his for a small moment and causing them both to freeze.

    A look was exchanged between them, one that they both understood, yet were frightened of. Heechul reached out and brushed the hair out of Puff’s face, his fingertips lingering a bit too long and causing them both to blush. Before anything else could transpire between them, the front door opened down the hall and Donghae Kangin’s voices echoed through the apartment. Suddenly a bit panicked, Heechul grabbed Puff’s hand and drug her out of the living room and down the hallway into his bedroom.

    “Heechul hyung, are you home?” Donghae called out, “Whose high heels are by the door?”

    “Mine!” Heechul called back as his bedroom door and covered Puff’s mouth with his hand. “I thought you had schedules?”
    “They got canceled,” Kangin shouted, “Why do you have high heels?”

    “I’m working on a cross dress for the next concert.” Heechul lied.

     “We’re going to order some food, want anything?” Donghae asked, his voice getting closer.

    “No, I already ate.” Heechul answered and then added, “I have a headache, so I’m going to take a nap. Leave me alone for a while!”

    “Do you need any medicine?” Donghae questioned, now standing on the other side of the door.

    “No, I already took something. I’ll be fine.”

    “Alright, sleep well, Hyung.”

    “That was too close,” Heechul grumbled as he let go of Puff’s face and their eyes locked once more.

   The same tension from earlier in the living room passed between them and before Heechul knew what was happening, Puff’s lips were on his. The kiss took him by surprise, but he didn’t push her away. It was soft and brief, but felt nice. Though they’d kissed already on camera, this one felt different. It was real, not staged or acted. Wanting more, Heechul placed his hand behind Puff’s head and pulled her forwards into a deeper kiss. She melded against the front of his body and allowed him to kiss her with his skilled lips and cat-like tongue. A spark shot between them that hadn’t been there when they’d kissed on screen.

    Breaking the deep kiss, they pressed their foreheads together and stared into each other’s eyes as their breath came out in soft pants. Heechul opened his mouth to speak, but Puff placed her finger on his lips and shook her head. He understood what she meant; words would ruin the moment. Before anything further could happened, the door to Heechul’s room opened and they jerked a part.

    “I knew he had a woman in his room!” Kangin chuckled, holding out his hand to Donghae, who was standing next to him. “You owe me five hundred won, Hae.”

    “Is that…,” Donghae stammered, “Hyung!”

    “I said I had a headache! Go away!” Heechul shrieked, furious about being interrupted and embarrassed that he had been caught making out with a girl by his dongsengs. “How many times have I told you to knock before coming in?!”

     “How many times has manager hyung told us not to bring girls over?” Kangin asked with a snort.

     “He must really like her then,” Donghae began as he dug out his wallet, “Heechul hyung has never brought a girl home before.”

     “Yeah, the last person we caught him kissing in his room was Siwon.”

    “Out! Both of you!” Heechul shouted, shoving his dongsengs out the door and slamming it behind them. “Puff, I’m sorry…, they…,”

    Heechul’s words trailed off as Puff burst out laughing. Her laughter made Heechul smile and soon he found himself laughing too. Their breakfast date had turned out to be somewhat of a disaster, yet neither one of them were disappointed.

    “Hyung, does your wife want anything to eat?” Donghae called from the kitchen, humor in his voice as she did so. “We still haven’t ordered the food!”

     “Let’s go eat with them,” Puff suggested in English, “Your friends are funny.”

     “I guess I should introduce my wife to her brother-in-laws,” Heechul teased, before placing a quick kiss on Puff’s lips and taking her hand in his.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

COMMENTS = LOVE & MORE HEEPUFF STORIES!