The Other Girl

Chapter 17 (Don't Force The Sun To Rise)

Taemin watched Key prep himself in front of their bedroom mirror the twelfth time that morning. It was entirely normal for Key to ransack through his whole wardrobe right before they went out in public, but this time was different. SHINee, and the other equally famous, globally known groups under the SM Entertainment label, was soon going to board a plane en route to Paris, France for their upcoming SM Town concert held in the fashionable French capital. It was necessary that Key arrived in style.

The fashion-savvy diva pouted for the umpteenth time and retreated back to his closet for a new set of clothes. Taemin probably didn't hear the knocking at their door, or his mind was too engrossed in Key's whole show of "what not to wear", because when Onew came over to tell him that someone was at the door for him, he looked surprised. The red-haired boy – who was dressed in an oversized, black shirt and formidably tight jeans – looked up at their wall clock. It was certainly too early to start receiving visitors in their dorm, if there even were any to begin with.

Onew remained blank-faced, as if he were trying to hide any indication of who had come by their dorm at 10 in the morning. Taemin doggedly got up and headed towards the front door. Key peeked out from the bedroom, curious to see who Taemin's visitor was.

The teenage boy strutted to the front door, but his entire statuesque demeanor was shot down at the sight of the figure at their dorm's entrance. And she was beautiful. Taemin's heart sat on a fence. A few days had already passed since they last saw each other, and he still did not have the guts to face her after how he treated her back at the hospital. But at the same time, her unprecedented elegance and beauty couldn't possibly drive Taemin away.

"Seo Hee-ah," Taemin cooed out so gently, as if every utterance would make her disappear forever.

Usually, when Taemin said her name in that delicate tone, Seo Hee would instinctively warm up and run into Taemin's arms, all of his wrongdoings undoubtedly forgiven. This time, however, she remained austere.

"Lee Taemin-sshi, we need to talk."

Taemin gulped. There was that dreaded "we need to talk" adage, and from what Taemin had learned from his well-seasoned hyungs (most notably Jonghyun and Key-hyung), it was that there were only two appropriate moments in a relationship in which that saying was applicable. Unless Seo Hee was pregnant with Taemin's baby, then it sounded like she wanted to break up with him.

And Taemin's instincts were right.

The two found a place to talk in the empty back staircase of their apartment building that led to their dorm's floor. It was a special place for them when they were dating, because it had been their only solace in the whole building when Taemin wasn't allowed to leave the premises. Descending down the steps to reach the fifth floor landing, Taemin's mind quickly triggered all the memories that were formed there during his and Seo Hee's time together. He remembered how he would always chase her up and down the stairs, laughing and running till they both collapsed in each other's arms. He remembered how Seo Hee would sneak in late at night when Taemin would send her a text begging her come over because "I'm so hungry jagiya~~ Feed me please? ><" and then she would arrive in ten minutes with a basketful of bread and strawberry marmalade. Most importantly, he remembered how he had kissed her good night, but ended up falling asleep in her warm arms. It was trivial moments like these that made Taemin's heart melt, and now that she was going to break up with him in their special place, he didn't know what else was good in the world anymore.

Seo Hee reached the fifth floor landing first, and Taemin stayed a few paces back, trying his hardest to prolong their final moments together. He heard Seo Hee sigh, and he could distinguish the genuine weariness in it. Taemin wondered if that weariness was universal; if she was really tired from everything.