“I can’t believe it. Yeri’s hunch was right” Juhyeon thought to herself. She couldn’t believe the fact that she had kept a superstar in her house for 2 days now. She couldn’t believe that the bloody man she rescued a few nights ago was no ordinary guy. She didn’t know what to do or say. She was just so stunned. It just doesn’t sink in. It was just so surreal. No wonder Taemin appeared to be so different from the other guys. No wonder why he was so beautiful and looked well taken care of. No wonder why her friends went crazy as soon as they set eyes on him; even went ballistic after they knew his name. The first guy she actually became friends with was actually someone really important in Seoul. Juhyeon started to feel sort of ashamed that she had no idea who Lee Taemin was and how big of a superstar he was. She felt like an uncivilized old lady who lived under a rock.
 

“J-jeongmal? (really)…” said Juhyeon and staring at Taemin with a blank expression.  She wanted reassurance. She didn’t exactly know what to feel; there were just too many feelings that were mixed up inside her. As she stared at Taemin, she saw how Taemin looked sort of disappointment and frustrated. It seemed to Juhyeon that Taemin didn’t want anyone to know who he was. It now made sense to her why he had to dirty face when Joy came. She thought that her conversation with Yeri about Joy must’ve given him a hint that she knew who he was.

“N-neh eonnie, look here” said Seulgi and handed her phone to Juhyeon. Juhyeon took the phone and saw Taemin’s recent concert video playing on it. She watched and saw the same guy beside her, but more decorated. He was all dressed up in fancy stage clothes and he moved like no other. His voice was so powerful and flawless. She saw how different Taemin was on stage and how the audience went wild for him. This was no joke. Juhyeon looked back at Taemin who was biting his lips as he leaned against the living room wall. “Wow it really is him. The occasionally clumsy guy I kept in this house was actually someone so cool” Juhyeon thought to herself. Juhyeon felt heavier about keeping Taemin in her house. Now that she knew who he really was, she had a burden to take extra care of him. She felt that if something goes wrong with Taemin, she might be held responsible. The possibilities started to scare her.
“Lee Taemin…?” Juhyeon called out to Taemin softly. Taemin lifted his head and faced Juhyeon. Juhyeon stared at him and saw that his eyes looked tired; they were filled with worry.
“That’s me..” said Taemin then forced a smile. The 4 other girls then let out muffled squeals.
“When you said you wanted to escape the city life, did you really mean you wanted to escape the idol life?” asked Juhyeon. The girls kept quiet and listened carefully to the conversation between the two, as if watching a K-drama.
“I worked my off for these past months for that concert that’s playing on the phone. I was starting to get burnt out even if I was used to always working. Luckily for me my past 3 concerts were a success, my company granted me a month of rest. Though I thought that would be enough to relax me, I was wrong. I was still restless. Sasaeng fans crowd outside my home daily and if I go out, I’d be harassed. I planned to escape Seoul to feel like an ordinary boy like before and figured to stay in a place where I wasn’t as widely known. I just wanted a taste of the normal life again, just for peace of mind”  thoroughly explained Taemin. He wanted to make sure that he sounded reasonable to Juhyeon and her friends.
“Oppa-ya, why didn’t you tell me earlier? I would’ve understood right away..” said Juhyeon, giving him a stare of reassurance.
“That’s the thing Juhyeon-ah. I figured it was better if you didn’t know who I am in Seoul. I thought it was better if nobody knew that I was a singer for a while. It’s not that I hate being an idol, I chose this life after all, but sometimes I just needed a break from it all. Not telling you did me more good than just being able to relax. Because you didn’t know I was a celebrity, we were able to talk like normal people. We were able to become friends. I wanted to make friends as Lee Taemin, not as SHINee’s Taemin” said Taemin. What he just said had made the girls’ (especially Juhyeon’s) hearts flutter. Joy, Wendy, Seulgi and Yeri melted in their seats while Juhyeon melted on the inside. Juhyeon was speechless. The truth is, Juhyeon wasn’t only charmed by what Taemin had said but she also related to it. What Taemin didn’t know about her was that she is a well-known ulzzang around Daegu and was known as “Daegu’s Princess”. The difference between Taemin and Juhyeon was the fact that Taemin is a performer and he’s bound to be seen by everyone while Juhyeon was a very timid girl who didn’t want much attention. All her life, guys tried to impress her in however way they can and it harasses her. Knowing that Taemin chose to humble and hide himself instead of using his reputation and credibilities to try to impress her made her heart skip a beat.
“That’s why it really worried me that you guys found out. I might not get the getaway I envisioned. I knew that sooner and later, you would find out but it was best if you didn’t. Especially that I’m going to stay here in Juhyeon’s house for quite some time” said Taemin. Hearing Taemin’s struggle for privacy, the 4 girls started to feel regretful of spazzing and squealing over Taemin earlier.
“Taemin oppa” said Joy.
“Neh?..”
“Is that the reason why you looked dirty this morning? Did you do that on purpose so I couldn’t recognize you?” asked Joy.
“Neh. I used a pen to look older. I thought an Iron Man disguise would be good” said Taemin then laughed at himself after realizing it was such a temporary silly idea.
“Eonnie, we talked about you this morning. Oppa must have heard that you used to love him back in high school” said Yeri.
“Ah, jinjja? Haha neh, I really liked oppa” giggled Joy, while muffling Yeri’s mouth with her hand. Though she let out a seemingly straightforward and honest response, she was quite embarrassed that Taemin had to hear that even if she knew that he was very much used to compliments like these.
“Ya ya! I didn’t know he was the same Lee Taemin okay??” said Yeri after struggling out of Joy’s grip. Taemin chuckled in response and Joy just blushed, smiled while moving around to shake off the humiliation she felt.
“Lee Taemin-ssi” called out Seulgi.
“Neh?” replied Taemin.
“I have been a huge fan of yours since your debut. I know how much you guys had to struggle with sasaengs so as your fan….I would like to let you know that I want to respect your privacy” said Seulgi.
“We promise we won’t tell anyone you’re here” added Wendy, giving Taemin an assuring smile. Taemin felt warmly welcomed by Juhyeon’s friends. He felt so comfortable in their company. These girls are nicer than he thought; they were nothing like the other spoiled kids that pestered him back in Seoul. They were willing to protect his privacy and because of that he didn’t feel so nervous anymore hanging around with them for the rest of the day.

“Kamsahmnida…..Jeongmal kamsahamnida (thank you very much), your willingness to help keep quiet means a lot to me” said Taemin. Even though Taemin let out his word of thanks to them, he felt like this was not enough to show gratitude towards them who wanted to help keep his secret. Although his cover up didn’t last as long as he intended it to be, it started not to matter anymore.
“Sorry if we freaked out it’s just that---”
“Juhyeon never interacts with guys and so seeing a male idol in her house is really impossible for her? I know hahaha” cutted in Taemin, to somewhat put an end to the redundant explanations that had been going on and on ever since he came in to Juhyeon’s life and met these girls. The girls (except Juhyeon) exchanged giddy smirks to each other after hearing that Taemin knew something about Juhyeon after just 2 days of meeting. It seemed to them that Juhyeon became more open than her usual restrained self.
“Ah, yeah that’s it” replied Seulgi, while trying not to smile.

Juhyeon was filled with delight seeing how her girls had a change of attitude after hearing what Taemin had to say. She was so proud that they grew to be prim and proper young ladies. Even if they fangirled a bit at first, Juhyeon was glad to see that they were able to show respect towards Taemin. She thought that now that the girls gave him a great welcome, Taemin’s mind could be distracted from the growing worries he had earlier.
“Oppa-ya, how’s your head now?” asked Juhyeon, as she remembered that Taemin wasn’t feeling so well.
“I’m feeling better especially now that I let go of such a heavy feeling. Keeping my identity to myself was burdening me” laughed Taemin.

“Oh. My. Gosh. You guys are so cute together” said Wendy with her jaw dropped.
“Omo! K-pop prince with Daegu’s princess!” added Seulgi excitingly.

“Daegu’s princess??” said Taemin and faced Juhyeon.
“M-mwo?? A-aniya” denied Juhyeon with her eyes blinking uncontrollably and her hands shaking about.
“Neh, that’s what the people around here call her” said Joy.
“It fits her but I think peaceful goddess fits her more” said Taemin, causing another round of suspicious stares between the girls. They knew that even if Juhyeon was indeed a ‘peaceful goddess’, she could also be the most playful kid to the point that she turns into the maknae of the group.
“It does!” replied Wendy in order not to leave Taemin hanging, because the rest of the group weren’t fully agreeing with the “peaceful goddess” title.
“Ooh! Ooh! Let’s think of a couple name for them!” said Yeri.
“Ya andwae, no you won’t kiddo” said Taemin then grabbed Yeri by her pigtails to give her a double cheek pinch causing the little girl to whimper in pain. The rest of the girls laughed but Juhyeon was starting to shy away again so Joy stood up to backhug her in order to stop her from leaving the place.
“Stay here eonnieeeee” said Joy.
“N-neh” said Juhyeon as blood began to rush to her pale white cheeks.

“Hey guys, what movie are we watching today?” asked Seulgi in order to tone down the growing chaos of the teasing.
“Horror movie please!” said Joy then gave Yeri a wink. Yeri relayed the wink to Wendy and she immediately got the message of it.
“Great idea!” said Wendy.
“I have The Ring in my hard drive” said Seulgi.
“Perfect!” said Yeri.
“That sounds fun, what do you think Juhyeon-ah?” added Taemin.
“Y-yeah, I think that’s good” said Juhyeon hesitantly. Juhyeon didn’t really like horror movies and her friends knew this. Juhyeon was easily scared and sometimes even the slightest sudden movements and noises startle her.  But since it seems like everyone already agreed to watch a scary movie, she had no choice but to just go with it. She could always muffle her ears and close her eyes anyway.
“Alright, let’s watch after dinner. Wendy, I think it’s time you order for the pizza. It’s 5:30 pm and starting to get pretty late” said Seulgi.
“Oh right!” exclaimed Wendy then grabbed her phone to call for pizza delivery.

After that, the six of them just sat down waiting for the pizza that was scheduled to arrive in an hour and a half. To keep them from being bored while waiting for pizza, Wendy thought of starting a topic that would pique the interest of the whole group. She started by asking Taemin questions about what it’s like to be an idol and Taemin gladly shared his thoughts. He told them how things runs for them and how he managed to get where he was. Seulgi, being a performer as well, was very caught up in the topic and listened carefully to everything that Taemin said. She asked as much as she could and Taemin gladly answered. Joy did the same, after Seulgi brought the topic that Joy was very active in singing contests when she was in school. Joy just freshly graduated and was considering a singing career, but being in Daegu was a bit of a hindrance to it. The only she has of singing for a living was to work with Wendy and perform at Jazz bars, which didn’t seem so bad. Yeri and Juhyeon just listened quietly as the conversation kept on going. While Juhyeon was braiding a portion of Yeri’s pigtail as they listened, a thought popped in her mind. What her friends didn’t know was that Juhyeon loved singing and dancing as well. She loved performing in talent shows when she was very young. Her parents gave her their full support each and every time she participated in such. Hearing about Taemin’s idol life and how her friends were very interested in it, she started to wonder how her life would be if limitations didn’t block her way. If only her mom and dad didn’t have to die, maybe she would’ve been able to continue performing. She had to stop a lot of her activities early because she had to carry herself and everything else, alone. She had to carry her world on her tiny frame. From time to time, she still sang melodies; she still swayed a little whenever she’s alone. But every time she thought of this little dream that she kept to herself, she tells herself that it’s all too late now. She thought that maybe working at the flower shop was the life that was meant for her. On that moment, she felt quite jealous that her younger friends had more chances of pursuing their dreams.

The time has passed by and all of them didn’t know how long they have already been talking. Taemin liked the questions that these girls were asking. They weren’t nosy; they didn’t try to snoop into the personal details. He didn’t feel invaded. The girls asked questions that showed how they were just really interested on what it was like to be an artist in the industry. They asked question that had sense. Taemin started to wonder why they were so enthusiastic about this matter.
“You guys seem very interested about this. How come?” asked Taemin.
“I’m a singer-songwriter, just wanted to know about the industry in Seoul. There might be better jobs there for me” said Wendy.
“Same. But I’m a dancer and choreographer, I wanted to do something more than just being a dance teacher” said Seulgi.
“Um, I just graduated high school. I love to sing and I wanted to know if I could do it for a living” said Joy.
“Joy?? Why didn’t you tell me?? I could’ve gotten you a job if only you let me know that you wanted to use your beautiful voice to make money!” responded Wendy.
“Um ah, hehe mian. I felt shy asking you, you seemed so busy seeing all your gigs posted up on sns” said Joy while shrugging.
“Jwoyi, haven’t I told you not to ever hesitate to talk to me---”
“Ah, neh eonnie I remember” said Joy.

*ding-dong!*
“Pizza delivery!”

“Ah pizza’s here!” said Wendy and grabbed her wallet from her bag. She stood up to open the door, receive the pizza and pay the delivery guy. After closing the door, Yeri immediately scooted behind her and grabbed the pizza boxes. Yeri ran to the kitchen with the pizza boxes in her hands. She told everyone else to hurry and eat so they could start watching the movie.