Dangerous Secrets

Main characters:
Cameron Lee:
~ Sold to the Jade Dragon Organization at the age of five
~ Best friends with Changmin
~ Loves music and dancing
~ Great with kids
~ Holds a grudge against her father
~ Dreams of opening a kindergarten if she was not an assassin

Onew:
~ Birthname: Lee Jinki
~ A nobleman
~ Vows to seek revenge against the woman who killed his father- The Shadow Cat
~ Kind-hearted
~ Protects his friends and loved ones as best as he can
~ Smart and good at discussing over business issues

Side Characters:
TVXQ
Boa
Hyori
Super Junior
Other SHINee members
Mr Kim- Boss Of Jade Dragon Organization

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Synopsis:
Cameron Lee is a trained assassin, sold to the Jade Dragon Organization by her father who was in debt at the age of five. After completing her first mission, she was sent to do a second. Which was to befriend the son of a previous target of the organization- Onew Lee Jinki.

After completing her first mission, she was taken by the other members of the organization to celebrate her success by going clubbing. There, she was nearly kidnapped by a member from an enemy organization- the Black Bead Organization. But was rescued by the subject of her second mission, who happened to be at the club.

After that, the two became close friends. As the two became closer, sparks begin to fly. Then, the Black Bead Organization begin hurting the people closest to her. Why? Because of a secret that the boss of the Jade Dragon Organization has been trying to keep safe from everyone.

The guards walked up and down the stretch of wall, their eyes alert for danger and one of their hands kept close to their guns. The other hand clutched a torchlight that swept along the bushes, chasing away the shadows momentarily. As they walked pass, a slender figure stood up from the bushes that ran along the entire stretch of brick wall.

She wore skin-tight black pants and a long-sleeve skin-tight black shirt. On her hands were black leather gloves. She wore a gun holster around her small waist and a knife sheath on her left arm. Her tight black boots did not make any sound as she swung her self up onto the wall, a black shadow against the full moon.

She dropped to the ground soundlessly and quickly disappeared into a bush when she saw a couple of guards approaching. Her long black hair was done up into a tight bun at the back of her head. The top half of her face was covered by a cat-like mask.

The woman walked up the mansion, avoiding the light beams that swept over the huge garden and occasionally ducking into the bushes nearby to hide from the guards. She was lucky that the nobles were ignorant people, thinking that the Shadow Cat only killed and hurt royal people.

Otherwise the guards would be dragging a few guard dogs with them that would be able to sniff her out and ruin her mission. 'Fools! All of them!' she thought as she slipped into the darkened house with a key she had obtained from her boos before she had left to complete her mission.

A moment later, she reappeared from the house, slipping her knife back into its leather sheath after carving something into the wooden door. Then, she ran towards the wall as fast as she could, leaped over it and disappeared into the night. Tomorrow, what she had done here will be all over the news.

******

Onew stretched a little as he entered his private dining room that was directly across the hall from his room. He wore a royal blue silk bathrobe over his red and blue checkered pyjamas. On his feet were a pair of black bedroom slippers with a tiny teddy bears sewn onto each slipper. He barely noticed the maids and butler that bowed to him as he entered the room and sat down at his usual place.

Onew's actual name was Lee Jinki. But after his father had started calling him Onew as a nickname when he was six, Onew told everyone to call him that. All of them did except for his mother who insisted on calling him by the name she had given to him at birth, saying that his nickname sounded a little barbaric.

"Your breakfast, young master," his butler said. "Would you like orange juice or coffee, young master?"

"Orange juice," Onew replied, picking up a remote control that sat beside his food. He switched on the plasma television that was attached to the wall beside him, taking a bite out of the pancakes, not bothered with pouring syrup on them.

He started flipping through the channels until he reached the news channel. He placed the remote aside and took a huge gulp from the glass of orange juice that sat on the table beside his plate of pancakes. He yawned a little and was about to switch off the television when the news caster announced that Kim Il-Hwa, vice-president of South Korea, had been wounded while he was asleep. Onew nearly dropped his glass onto the floor.

"The extent of his injury is not known yet," the reporter on the scene reported. "But what we do know is that this is the report of the Shadow Cat as she was carved her mark into the door." A picture of a part of the door with the letters 'SC' carved deeply into it appeared on the screen above the reporter's head. Onew gripped the glass tightly in his hand.

Three years ago, this Shadow Cat had appeared. Her first victim was not someone Onew had known so he did not bother about her. But six months and three victims later, he knew the person whose life she took and he now knew how those people, whose loved ones was a victim of the Shadow Cat, had felt. His father was dead because of this Shadow Cat, who murdered him while he slept.

"YOUNG MASTER!" Onew jerked from his thoughts at the sound of the voice, feeling pain shoot up his hand and something warm trickling from his hand. He looked down and saw that he had gripped the glass so tightly that it had cracked in his hand and the glass bits had either dropped to the ground or cut deeply into his hand.

"Young master, are you alright?" the butler asked, his voice full of concern as he looked at Onew's injured hand. "We have to get a doctor to look at that. I will call the family doctor right away!"

Onew watched as his butler hurried off. He sighed and waved the worried maids away. The sudden death of his father had left a scar on him. A scar so deep that it seemed to eat away at him. He remembered what he had promised his father... "I promise to seek justice for your death!" the Onew two years ago had sworn as he stood before his father's grave.

******

"Good job!" the man at the table said, switching off the television. A seventeen year old girl who stood before him bowed a little. "But... I think you should have made the wound a little more fatal. A shot in the shoulder is not of much good..."

"But what if the victim continues sleeping?" the girl asked, her large, innocent-looking gray-blue eyes not blinking as the man met her gaze. She remembered clearly that the information in her mission file had stated that the man takes sleeping pills to help him sleep. "And what if he is alone in the room? In the entire house? He can bleed to death from such a wound."

"True..." the man murmured as if considering what she had just said, watching the girl.

Her long black hair hung to her waist, a single cold blue flower clip held her fringe from her face. She looked like an Asian except for her gray-blue eyes she would have passed off as one. She wore a sleeveless dark blue gown with a long neckline that gently hugged the curves of her body. a gold locket with a Chinese jade dragon design on it hung around her neck.

"Are you please with my work, sir?" the girl asked.

"Yes, you have done well," the man replied. "Seeing that you have completed your first mission without any mistakes. It is good."

"Thank you, sir."

"You have another mission."

"Sir?"

"Another client came to see me this morning before you came. And there is no one I would entrust this mission to other than you. Since that others are... Not the right age for this..."

"Sir?"

"He only told me part of what he wants me to do. Here! Take a look at the picture." The man pushed a big brown envelope across the table.

The girl picked it up and opened the envelope, looking slowly through the stack of pictures. There were lots of camera men in the background of each of the pictures, taking pictures of a group of smiling young nobles. The girl frowned as she studied the photos. A few of them were a close-up on one of the noble's face.She recognize who he was.

"Isn't he...?" the girl asked, the question dying on her lips.

"Yes," the man across the table replied. "You are going to placed in his school. You are to befriend him. Do you have any problems?"

"No, sir! But is that all I have to do?" She handed the photos back to him.

"Yes. Why?"

"This job... It sounds a little too clean..."

"It is only part of the job. The other part will be told to me another day. I hope you understand that, Cameron Lee."

"Yes, sir!" the girl bowed.

"I have already had four uniforms tailored and sent up to your room. Its up to you how you want to do your hair and wear what shoe with your uniform. The school books will be arriving later. You will be attending the school two days from now. I hope that you would be able to study a little during these two days."

"I will, sir." Cameron bowed and then turned around, walking towards the door. She opened the door and was about to go out but stopped when she heard the man give a small cough as if he wanted to tell her something else.

"Your father is proud of you," the man said.

Cameron took a deep breath and then walked out of the room, closing the door behind her. What did she care about the man who sold her to this organization? Who called himself her father but drank until he was broke so much so that he had to sell his own daughter! She sighed and walked down the corridor, pushing the last sentence the man had said to the back of her mind.

Onew swirled the glass that was half full with brandy that he was holding in his hand, watching the golden brown liquid move around inside the glass. The sound of the pulsing music in the background and the bodies squeezed tightly together in the small club barely disturbed the twenty year old from his thoughts. He took another gulp from the glass, feeling the liquid burn as it slid down his throat.

"Yo, bro!" Key greeted, slapping him on the back. "What are you doing here all by yourself?? You know that drinking should be together with friends. Not on your own!" Onew turned around and saw his group of friends standing behind him, all nobles like him.

"Yeah!" Junsu said, pouting. "You never even called us to let us know where you were going! What if something were to happen to you??"

"Luckily my parents own this place!" Minho said, leaning against the bar beside Onew. "Otherwise we would be going all over Seoul looking for you. Why did you come here? Don't like the old club we use to go to?"

"Anyo..." Onew muttered. "Just thought of being on my own for awhile... Besides, I needed a change of scene. The other club was starting to piss me off! Especially with those arrogant noble girls!"

"You can say that again!" Yoochun said, winking at a girl who sat on another bar stool not to far away. Onew thought he heard the girl giggle. "This looks like a better place to meet more decent girls. I will see you guys later." He walked over to the girl and whispered something into her ear before taking the girl off to the dance floor.

"What a casanova!" Onew muttered as he took another gulp of the brandy. The other guys nodded, agreeing with him. "Wait a minute... Where's Yunho? How come he is not here today?"

"He had a few things to do," Junsu answered. "That's what he told me..."

"Or maybe he is busy spying on that guy from his class..." Minho muttered. All his friends looked at him, making him turn red. "What?? You can see from his eyes what he thinks of that cold freak from his class! Not to say that I care since that Jaejoong does look a lot like a girl... Not a wonder if he is..."

"He is a guy, Minho..." Key said. "I saw his abs myself during gym lessons... Let's go party and forget about Yunho. He will turn up when he feels like it."

"Okay!" the other three said, heading off towards the dance floor with him.

******
"Where are we?" Cameron asked as the car pulled to a stop outside a place with pulsing music. A long line lead to the doors where two big muscle-men in suits stood with their hands crossed over their chests.

"The Heart Pulse," Boa answered, switching off the car engine. "We are here to celebrate you completing your first successful mission. They did the same when I completed mine."

"But I am underage..." Cameron murmured, pulling a little on the shimmery blue miniskirt that she wore.

"Don't worry, honey," Hyori said, holding a card in front of Cameron's face. "I have taken care of it! Besides, with all that make up on you, no one would notice that you are underage. I bet half the kids who are here are probably younger than you! So don't worry too much."

Cameron looked uneasily at the two guys who stood guarding the door to the club. Changmin noticed her expression and put a hand on her shoulder, saying, "Chill, Cam! Everything will be fine. I will be nearby you all the time, alright? Don't worry too much!"

"Oh... Kay..." Cameron murmured, relaxing a little.

Boa, Hyori, Changmin, Jaejoong, Jonghun and Taemin were all from the same organization as Cameron- the Jade Dragon. All of them, like Cameron, had been trained since they were about five or six years old. When Cameron had first stepped into the organization at the age of five, Changmin was the first person that helped her and actually befriended her. He was nine years old back then and actually completed his training at the age of twelve years old. The earliest and fastest so far. To Cameron, Changmin was like a big brother. She always listened to his advice.

"Shall we?" Jonghyun asked. Earlier in year, he had completed his first mission.

"How come Jaejoong doesn't like to come here?" Cameron asked, remembering the older boy's strong rejection to the invitation. Out of the six people in the organization, only four had decided to go. Jaejoong and Taemin were not among the four. Taemin could not go because he had not completed his training yet and Jaejoong... No reason she knew.

"Jaejoong hyung doesn't like such places with loud music," Changmin answered, shrugging. "Even when he completed his first mission, we had to go to a nice posh restaurant to celebrate. That was so boring! I even had to slick my hair back! Not to say that I minded... But having to sit in silence for so long in such a boring place with slow music is not an interesting way to celebrate!"

"Chill, Min," Boa said. "Let's stop talking and go party! Forget about Jaejoong, Cam. He is always like that."

"Remember, Cam," Hyori whispered to her as they got out of the car, a mischievous smile on her face. "Don't bother about which guy you do it with. Just go do it!"

Cameron frowned at first not understanding what Hyori was saying. When she finally understood, she turned red and said, "Unnie!" Changmin, who had also heard what Hyori had said, seemed to be glaring at Hyori with a look that said, "Noona, don't spoil her innocent mind!"

"Just kidding, dear," Hyori grinned. "Enjoy yourself tonight. But make sure that you don't accept drinks from anyone other than the rest of us. Unless we say that they are alright or are friends of ours. We have enough organizations out there who are out to take us down. They will be more than happy to kidnap a few of us to get information. So remember what I said. Arasoh?"

"Arasoh, unnie," Cameron replied. She and the others followed Hyori pass the line to the bouncers, watching as Hyori showed their fake ids. As the bouncers waved the small group in, one of them stopped Hyori and whispered something into her ear, making her giggle and nod in answer before following the others in.

"Who was that?" Boa asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Someone," Hyori answered with a secretive smile on her lips. "I will be coming home later tonight. Hope you guys don't mind."

"We will be fine, noona," Jonghyun said, winking at a nearby girl. "Just make sure you don't get pregnant and return in one piece. We don't quite need pieces of your returning back to the organization."

"Don't curse noona!" Hyori growled, boxing one of Jonghyun's ears. He yelped and rubbed the place where he had been hit, pouting a little.

"Oh! I see a table!" Changmin said, leading the group over to an empty table.

The table was in a corner with two rows of cushioned seats (where at least five to six people could sit in one row) surrounding it. There was a slightly smoky scent in the air around the table, making Cameron wrinkle her nose. She sat beside the wall with Changmin sitting beside her and then Hyori. Boa sat in the opposite seat from Cameron with Jonghyun on the outside.

A girl wearing a tight black to, with a low neckline that showed plenty of cleavage, a pair of dark blue micro-short shorts and black boots walked over to the table. She carried a tray that was half-filled with shots. Jonghyun smiled at her, getting to his feet and said, "Alicia!"

"Hi, Jonghyun," the girl said, kissing him on the lips. "The usual?"

"Ye-" Jonghyun answered.

"Not for Cam," Changmin said firmly. "She can only have a coke."

"But-" Cameron started to protest.

"No," Changmin cut her off. "I absolutely forbid you from drinking."

"Changmin, don't be such a spoilsport," Boa said. Then, to Alicia, she said, "The usual would be just fine."

Before the girl left, Jonghyun grabbed her arm and whispered something into her ear to which she replied loud enough for the occupants at the table to hear, "Once I come back with your drinks then we can go dancing." Then, she walked off.

Once she had gone, all of them started talking, either commenting on the current news or something else. Not too long after that, the bouncer who had been whispering to Hyori approached the table. As Hyori got up, she smiled cheekily at her friends before vanishing into the crowd with the bouncer. Soon after, Alicia came back with the drinks and then she and Jonghyun headed off for the dance floor. Then after, Changmin and Boa also left the table, finding their own partners.

Cameron remained at the table, taking a gulp from one of the glasses of strange purple liquid that Alicia had served to them. She could feel the burn as it slid down her throat. She felt slightly light-headed soon after and decided not to drink anymore. Not a single guy came to ask her to dance. After awhile, Cameron felt like using the toilet. She got to her feet and slowly squeezed her way through the crowd towards where she had seen the toilet sign earlier on her way in.

She sighed sighed in relief when she saw that one of the stalls were not being used. A few minutes later, she emerged back into the club. She was about to go back to the table when someone grabbed her arm. She turned and stared in shock when she saw who the person saw. She glanced down at the hand that held her arm and saw that there was a string with a single black bead tied around his wrist. The person who held her arm was Donghae, a top member of an enemy organization- the Black Bead Organization.

"Jade Dragon..." Donghae hissed, noting the locket Cameron wore around her neck. "You must be the new Shadow Cat, am I right?"

"Let. Go. Off. My. Arm!" Cameron growled, trying to make him release his hold on her arm. But that only made him tighten his grip.

"Let's go dancing. I have always wanted to see the flexibility of the Shadow Cats. Maybe you can show me how great you are. Unless you are like a fish out of water without your usual gear!" Donghae sneered, dragging her towards the dance floor. A slow song was playing. Donghae held her close to him.

Cameron's eyes darted over the crowd, trying to find her friends. But she could not find a single one of them. As if sensing what she was doing, Donghae hissed into her ear, "They are not here. Don't bother looking for them."

"Let go of me, you idiot!" Cameron hissed, trying to shove him away. But the guy just held her closer to him. She stopped struggling when she felt something (that felt a lot like a gun) pressed against her stomach.

"I can move very fast, Cam," Donghae murmured into her ear, his voice low and threatening. "Unless you don't want to die early, you will play along with what I am doing and what I am going to ask you to do like an obedient kitten. Just to let you know, I will not hesitate to kill you in front of all these people. After all, there are more than one member of the Jade Dragon."

Cameron bit her lip and forced her body to move along with his. But her eyes never stopped darting over the crowd, looking for her friends. At that moment, her eyes stopped on a guy whom seemed to be looking at her with concern. She recognize him as the guy that was suppose to be the subject of her second mission. They made eye contact and continued looking at each other.

"Let's go!" Donghae whispered into her ear. "There are people who want to meet you."

Donghae begin leading her out of the club. Cameron tried to slow him down, hoping that this would at least give her a chance to escape. Donghae growled and hissed into her ear, "Don't make me shoot you, Cam. Why don't you be a good girl and come with me?" He stood behind her now, still keeping a firm grip on her arm. Cameron felt him prod her back with the nuzzle of the gun. She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath before walking out of the club.

She felt the cool night air caress her face as soon as they stepped out of the club. She saw faces of people around her but her eyes did not quite concentrate on their faces, as if they were all a blur. She felt numb all over as Donghae begin to lead her further away from the club, as if Death had visited her and taken her senses away. Soon, they were walking along a deserted street.

"Get in," Donghae growled, opening the front passenger seat of a black Porsche with black tinted windows. Cameron was about to step in when a guy's voice yelled, "Stop!"

"Stop!" Onew shouted, walking towards the man and the girl. He could see the gun that the man had kept pointed at the back of the girl and looked at his friends whom had come with him, Key and Junsu. They nodded, indicating that they also saw the gun. "Release her!"

"You do know that I have a gun, right?" Donghae said, pointing his gun at them. His grip on the girl's arm tightened. They could see that the hand that held the gun was a little shaky, suggesting that the guy was a little drunk and there was a high possibility of his shots not hitting any of them. So, they begin to advance on him.

"Don't fall for that!" Cameron shouted, knowing what Donghae was trying to do. She had smelt his breath back in the club and knew that he had not drunk one drop of alcohol. But her warning came too late. Donghae aimed the gun at Onew and fired, followed by two more shots aimed at his friends. They managed to avoid the bullets because of reflex actions.

Donghae twisted Cameron's arm to her back and tried to force her into the car but she refused to move in, trying to fight him through the pain that lance up her arm. Then, she lifted her foot and brought one heel down on Donghae's foot. He yelped from the pain but did not drop the gun nor released Cameron's hand. The three boys moved in, thinking that Donghae was now distracted. Then, Donghae fired another shot in their direction.

Cameron screamed in horror when she saw Onew fall to the ground, dark red liquid spreading from the neck of his white suit to the rest of his clothes. At that moment, there was the sound of police sirens coming closer. Donghae released Cameron's arm and got into his car, driving off.

Cameron ran towards Onew, kneeling down beside him. With her shaking hands, she undid the top buttons of his shirt to look at his wound. She sighed in relief inwardly when she realized that his wound was not as bad as it seemed. The bullet had merely grazed against the side of his neck, taking a bit of skin with it. But she pretended to still be afraid and covered the lower part of her face with her slightly bloodied hands as if she was going to puke.

"Its alright," one of Onew's friends said, taking her a little further away and making her back face Onew. "If you feel slightly woozy from the blood, don't look. Arasoh?" Cameron nodded and pretended to cry. "Don't worry so much! Help is on the way." At the moment, people started rushing down the streets and a police car pulled up into the empty slot where Donghae's car had been earlier.

As the people surrounded Onew and his friends, Cameron quickly ducked into the crowd. She was about to run back to the club when someone grabbed her arm. She spun around to see who the person was, a flash of alarm running through her at the thought that Donghae or one of the other members of the Black Bead Organization had decided to try kidnapping her again. She sighed in relief when she saw that it was Changmin who gripped her arm so tightly.

She was about to hug him but stopped when she saw the dark look on his face as he regarded the crowd. After awhile, he begin to walk, pulling her along with him towards the club. Cameron had to run a little to keep up with his long strides. She was surprised when he walked pass the club and wanted to tell him that he was going to the wrong way but kept quiet when she saw how tensed his shoulders were.

Soon, he stopped walking and flung her arm away as if it was a poisonous snake. Cameron frowned, wondering what was wrong with him. Then, he spoke, "What were you thinking of doing?? Didn't Hyori noona tell you NOT to accept drinks from strangers??" All the awhile, his back still faced her.

"Changmin, I did not accept anything!" Cameron protested. "I swear!"

"Then, what were you doing outside the club??" Cameron could see that his body was shaking from anger. "Trying to find some guy to sleep with?? Are you a whore now?!?"

Cameron felt anger course through her entire body when he said that word. "What is wrong with you?? What did I do to make you so angry??In case you don't know, I was nearly kidnapped and my life was actually hanging by a thread! And all you can do is scold me?? Whose fault was it to leave me in such an alien place??" When Changmin did not answer, Cameron said, "Why do you care anyway? You only worry about the organization. And I will swear to then that I will never betray the organization!"

Cameron spun on her heel and was about to walk away when a pair of arms wrapped around her waist and she was pulled back against Changmin. She placed her hands on the pair of arms, wondering why Changmin was hugging her like that. Then, he said, "I am just worried about you, Cam... I don't want to lose the people I love and care for anymore. You don't know how worried I was when I heard the gunshots after I could not find you in the club..."

Cameron remembered that Changmin was an orphan. He had witnessed the death of his parents, murdered by an escape convict. For Changmin's first mission, he was to kill that convict whom had already been released after finishing his time in prison.

"Let's go..." Changmin murmured, releasing her. "The others would be worried about us..."

******

"Onew...?" Onew blinked his eyes but still could not see anything. "Onew?" Suddenly, a white light appeared before him. He closed his eyes a little as the light grew brighter and brighter. Then, Onew felt as if he was being shaken rather roughly. "Onew! Onew! Can you hear me??" he heard Key shout. Onew winced at the sound of his voice as if his hearing was a little too sensitive.

"Can you stop?" Onew croaked, opening his eyes. "My head hurts..."

"Onew!!!" Key shouted, happy. He flung his arms around the older boy and hugged him tightly.

"Are you alright?" Yoochun asked, sitting on the side of the bed. "We actually thought that you were going to die... You should have seen your bodyguards' faces when they saw you bleeding on the pavement. They actually looked as if they were wishing that the bullet was in them and not you!"

"I am fine, hyung..." Onew muttered, closing his eyes as his vision started to swim. Then, he remembered the girl with the unique-looking gray-blue eyes. He quickly opened his eyes and asked, "The girl? Is she alright? She didn't get shot, did she?"

"She disappeared, Onew," Junsu said. "When the police chased the crowd away, she was not there anymore. I don't think she was kidnapped... Probably she left because she could not stand the sight of blood... She did look as if she wanted to faint when she saw you bleeding..."

"Okay..." Onew murmured, settling down into the pillows. "How long have I been sleeping and where exactly am I?"

"You have been asleep for six hours," Minho answered. Onew looked at him when he stopped talking, expecting him to answer the second question. When the younger boy did not, Onew looked at the others, who all looked guiltily at him before avoiding his gaze. Then, the answer popped into his head. He was in the last place on Earth which he wanted to be in- Seoul Hospital.

He ripped the IV drip out of his arm and got up from the bed. He grabbed his clothes from where they had been neatly folded on the side table and walked towards the toilet, wobbling a little on his feet. Yoochun reached out and stopped him. "Onew, you are still weak." He sounded a lot like a very concerned big brother. "You should not get out of the hospital yet."

"I told you so many times, hyung," Onew hissed, shrugging off Yoochun's hand roughly. "I do not want to go to a hospital! Much less even be in one!!!" He stormed into the toilet, slamming the door behind him and locking it.

He placed his clothes on the marble counter beside the sink and then looked at his arm. There was still a little blood running down his arm from where the needle of the IV drip had been. He tore a long strip of cloth from his hospital gown and tied it over the wound, using his teeth as well. As he was doing that, tears begin to flow down his face and his hands shook uncontrollably.

He looked about the bathroom, remembering that the room his father had been in before his died had the almost exact same bathroom. He remembered what he had seen when he was the first to enter the hospital room with a basket of fruits for his father. His father had been in the hospital because he just had an operation to remove his gall bladder stone.

~Flashback~
"Dad! I am h-" Onew's greeting died on his lips when he saw the state the entire room was in.

The vases of flowers were on the floor, shattered into a millions pieces. The flowers and water that had been in the vases laid among the broken bits of painted glass. Even the table lamp on the side table beside the bed had been thrown onto the floor not too far away from the bed.

The IV drip that had been attached to his father's arm now lay on its side before Onew. Onew could see that the needle had dried blood on it and the metal stand for the IV drip was slightly bent as if someone had used it to attack or fend off another person before it got snatched out of his hands.

He stepped into the room, in shock at the sight. He was never prepared for the body that lay half in and half out of the toilet, face up. Blood soaked into the clothes and formed a puddle around the body. The eyes were glazed with death and stared up at the ceiling. Onew screamed his anguish, bringing people into the room. As they gently lead him out of the room, Onew saw the letters 'SC' carved into the door leading to the bathroom.

~End Flashback~

Onew wiped away his tears and then turned on the tap. He cupped the running water in his hands and splashed his face repeatedly until the whole front of his shirt was wet. Then, he leaned against the sink, clenching and unclenching his fists. he would kill that Shadow Cat. He will corner her and make her pay for what she had done.

Changmin stood outside Cameron's room. He knocked on the door before entering the room. Cameron sat on the side of her bed wearing a black polo-shirt-blouse, with a narrow strip of brown cloth sewn onto the sleeves and as her shirt collar and the school crest sewn into the left side of the blouse. She also wore a short brown checkered plaited skirt with a pair of black boots that covered up to her knees. Her long straight black hair covered a little of her face as she was looking as at something that was in her hands on her lap- a framed photo.

"Worried about school?" Changmin asked, making her look up at him. He stood beside the bed. Cameron smiled weakly before looking back at the photo.

"You are going to school today?" Cameron asked quietly, running a finger along the photo.

"Of course!" Changmin laughed. "Cam! You are in the same school as me! Jaejoong will be there as well. But the two of us will be in the higher form than you..." Cameron nodded a little and then continued staring at the photo. After awhile of silence, Changmin sighed and snatched the photo out of Cameron's hand.

"Yah! Give it back!" Cameron shouted, jumping to her feet. She tried to snatch the photo back but Changmin held it up above his head (He was a full head taller than Cameron!). "Yah! Changmin! Give it back before I kill you!" As if to emphasize her point, she pointed a knife at his stomach.

"Yeow! Where did that come from??" Changmin asked, staring at the blade coolly. But he still did not give the photo back to Cameron. "I didn't see a knife anywhere near you."

"Its best I don't tell you all my secrets," Cameron replied. "Now then, give me back my photo before I kill you!"

"I don't think you would kill me. You would never kill a best friend."

"Wanna try whether you guess is correct??" Cameron brought the knife closer to his stomach. "Because I would not mind sending you off. Either you give me back my photo or let me prove whether you are correct or not." Changmin was silent, thinking awhile. He seemed to be weighing his options.

"Alright then. Here," Changmin said, passing the photo back to Cameron.

She took the photo and placed it inside a drawer of her study table, locking it. "You know what, Min?" Cameron asked, her back still facing him. "You are correct though. I would never kill a friend." Then, she turned around and held the knife she had previously pointed at his stomach before his face. She placed her other hand on top of the blade and pushed it towards the hilt.

"A toy??" Changmin demanded, not believing that he had been tricked. "You threatened me with a toy??"

"It is the only way I could get my stuff back without hurting you... Besides, Hyori unnie gave this to me. I was thinking of how to use it until you did that today."

"That was so evil!"

Cameron grinned. "I am evil!"

"True... Then, would Miss Evil like me to do her hair for her? No tricks. I promise."

"Alright!"

******

Onew carefully buttoned his shirt and then did the tie around his neck, making sure that he did not do the tie to tight since the wound on his neck was still painful. He winced a little when the gauze rubbed on the still-healing spot. Then, he wore on his new black leather shoes. After making sure that he looked alright, he walked out of the room.

"Good morning, young master," his butler said, bowing,

Onew nodded and then walked down a flight of marble stairs. A couple of maids, who were heading upstairs, stopped and bowed to him before continuing their climb. Then, he spotted his mother's personal assistant waiting at the opened door of the house at the beginning of the row of maids. He sighed, taking his leather business-like school bag from a nearby maid.

"Your mother wishes for you to attend this dinner," Mrs Layla, his mother's personal assistant, said, pushing a cream-coloured card into his hand. "It will beheld tomorrow in the Golden Lotus Hotel. The president's daughter, Oh Haneul, will be turning 18 tomorrow. This is her birthday party you will be attending. You will be there to represent your mother, who will be overseas by that time tomorrow."

"What if I said that I don't want to go?" Onew asked, walking out of the door.

Mrs Layla ran after him. "Isn't Miss Oh your childhood friend, young master?"

"She is. Which is why I don't want to go." Onew stopped in his tracks, the car with its door open before him. "Listen, Layla. I don't want to go for the party if my mother keeps on trying to match-make me with Haneul. She is like a sister to me and she also told me that that is all she feels about me as well. Please don't make this be so difficult."

"This is what your mother wishes, young master."

"I will not go on my mother's behalf then. Besides, I have my own invitation. I do not need hers." He flung the card as far away from him as possible,not bothered about where it landed, and then entered the car. A servant closed the door behind him and the last thing Onew saw was Mrs Layla and a few servants searching the bushes for the card.

******
"Here is your class schedule," a bored, middle-aged lady said, handing Cameron a slip of paper. "And the key to your locker." The lady placed a key on the counter that was between her and Cameron. "Your locker number is 326. It is up to you how you want to personalize it. Just remember to keep everything in order and make sure that there would be no peculiar smell coming from it. Otherwise we would take the locker away from you. Understood?"

"Of course," Cameron said. "Thank you." The woman muttered something before turning around. Cameron stuffed her class schedule into her pocket along with the key and walked out of the office.

She was slightly stunned by the amount of people that walked up and down the corridors, the noise that seemed deafening at times. Eversince she had entered the Jade Dragon Organization, sh had never been to school. None of the other members, other than Jaejoong and Changmin, had either. They were tutored and trained under people who were geniuses or professors that were bound to the organization.

Cameron looked for Changmin, remembering his promise that he would wait for her outside. But he was nowhere to be found. Cameron bit on her lip and then moved to sit on the bench beside the door, hoping that Changmin would come and get her soon. At that time, a bell rang, making her jump a little at the sound. Students started walking off to their own classes. Cameron, not wanting to be left alone in the hall, got to her feet. She begin walking down the hall, trying to find her class. After awhile, she realized that she was lost.

'Stupid Changmin!' Cameron thought, looking about her. This part of the school looked very deserted. She felt afraid. 'Chill, Cam! You are an assassin! You are suppose to be fear itself!' she told herself, not noticing the sound of footsteps behind her. After awhile of walking, she stopped, trying to think about what she should do next.

"Yo, honey! You lost?" Cameron turned around and saw a group of four guys wearing the same school uniform but covered with tattoos and piercings walking towards her. She backed away from them and when they did not stop walking, she turned around and ran. She had not gone very far when she realized that she was at a dead end. she turned around, realizing that she had no choice but to fight.

"Do not get into fights! Noble woman do not get into fights, Cameron," Mr Kim's warning echoed again in her ears. 'It is either I fight or the other...' Cameron thought. 'I may as well fight before I give up!' She waited for them to approach her, pretending to look docile. As the first guy got closer to her, she lashed out at him, slapping away his hand from her face and then kicking his legs from underneath him. The guy fell to the ground in a heap, groaning.

The other three stared at her, shocked. Cameron used that opportunity to punch the second guy in the stomach. By then, the two remaining guys managed to collect their wits and tried to hit her back. But Cameron managed to dodge their attacks, even managing to land a few punches and kicks.

'Man! Even street thugs are better than them!' Cameron thought as another guy fell, groaning and moaning from the pain. She stared at the last guy standing. He seemed to be looking with concern at his friends before looking at her with bewilderment in his eyes.

He struck a pose, which Cameron thought looked like Taekwondo, and then charged at her. Cameron blocked all his kicks and punches before spotting a hole in his defense and kneading him hard in the crotch with her knee. He dropped to the ground like a stone. Cameron smoothened down her skirt, saying, "I am not even sweating yet!!!"

She heard a noise and turned around. She saw a man leaning against the door frame of a deserted-looking classroom. He was chubby and tall and had this awed expression on his face as he regarded the guys that were writhing in pain on the floor. Then, he looked at her and begin clapping his hands, walking towards her. He stopped about an arm's length away from her, stuffing his hands into his pants pocket.

"Not bad!" the man said. "I have never seen anyone kick butt like that before! Other than Jet Li of course... How did you do that? Are you a descendant of Jet Li?" Before she could say anything, the man looked at the fallen guys and said, "Could you get up and get to class?? And how many times do I have to tell you not to come to school wearing temporary tattoos and fake piercings???"

"But, Mr Kang-" the first guy started to say.

"Seungri, get to class!"

"Can't you write us a letter to excuse us from class?" the second guy asked, looking hopeful. "We are in pain..."

"No! Now go!"

"Aw... Alright, Mr Kang..." The four guys got to their feet (with much difficulty) and then walked/limped down the halls. Cameron did not relax until they had fully disappeared from sight. Then, she looked back at the man whom was called Mr Kang.

"I am sorry about their behavior," Mr Kang said. "Are you new here?"

"Yes..." Cameron murmured.

"Ah! So you are lost?"

"Isn't it obvious??" Cameron snapped. Then, she gasped and covered her mouth, realizing that she had just used her 'Are-you-blind?!?' tone to snap at a guy who is probably one of her teachers.

"Of course it is! Silly me!" Mr Kang started laughing. At that time, Cameron heard someone call her name and turned around. She saw Changmin, running towards them.

"Yah!" Changmin shouted, coming to a stop in front of them. "Where did you go?? I thought I told you to wait fro me!!!"

"Who ask you to go??" Cameron demanded. "And I waited there even after the bell rang! In case you did not notice!!"

"You should have waited longer! Come on! We are already late for class!" He grabbed Cameron's arm and begin dragging her away.

"Come here whenever you need to talk to someone!" Mr Kang called after her. "I will see you around, Cameron Lee!" Cameron gave a small wave before they disappeared around the corner.

Only when they were walking down a flight of stairs did Cameron remember that she had never told Mr Kang her name or even worn her name tag. She frowned, wondering how the teacher knew her name. 'Weird...' Cameron thought.


Author's Note:
Hey!
This is my first time posting here.
Please comment!

Onew rested his head on one of his fists, elbow on his table. His other hand held up a book in front of him. His eyes barely took in the words on a page before he flipped to the next page. Around him, his friends and classmates were either talking, flirting or just throwing stuff at each other.

Onew sighed and buried his head deeper into his book. He thought about Haneul and then what his mother had been trying to do. Eversince he turned eighteen, his mother had been trying to pair him up with Haneul. He could not understand why she was being like that. Even Haneul's mother was trying to do the same thing!If only his father were here, his father would stop this. If only his father were here... Onew dropped his forehead on the hard wooden table, knocking his head repeatedly on the table.

"Ow..." Onew heard someone groan. He looked up and saw Seungri, Top, G-Dragon and Daesung collapse into unoccupied chairs near his table. Onew was about to ask them what they were doing here since only Daesung belonged in this class, but stopped when he saw the bruises on their faces. Even the other students stared at them.

"Those are not fake, are they?" Junsu (who had come from the class across the hallway) asked, staring at the bruises. Everyone knew that the four always tried to dress and act like gangsters (to get them prepared for the winter musical play). But the bruises were a completely new thing to the outfit.

"No... We got beaten up..." G-Dragon said, wincing when Junsu poked a bruise on his cheek. "Can you don't do that?? It is painful!" Junsu murmured a quick apology.

"Who beat you up?" Tiffany, the class monitor, asked. G-Dragon did not answer, turning red a little.

"A girl," Seungri answered, ignoring the glares he got form both Top and G-Dragon. "We got trashed by a girl..."

"The new girl in school," Daesung added, massaging his sore jaw. Top and G-Dragon both slapped him since he sat between the two of them. He yelped and then looked at them. "What?? It is the truth!"

"Yo, people!" Taeyang said, entering the classroom. "I heard my peeps got beaten up! Where are..." His questions died on his lips when he saw his four friends with bruises sitting on chairs in the middle of a crowd of people. "Man! I knew your ideas of greeting new students were going to end in trouble one day! But I did not expect this to happen! What happened to you guys? Got a group of bodyguards that beat you up for scaring their charge??"

"No, hyung..." Seungri said. "But I know for one thing is that I am NEVER going to be scaring the new students again!"

"Tell me details," Taeyang said, sitting on a table near them. "I wanna know what happened!" The crowd pressed tightly around them, all eager to know what had happened. Onew got up from his table and walked to a further away table with his book, not bothered about such things. He sat down at the empty desk, propped the book in front of him and placed his head on the table. He had barely flipped another page when his eyes closed.

******
Cameron glanced around the classroom, feeling a little out of place. Everyone in the classroom had stopped talking and all stared at her. She could feel a few of the girls look up and down her, as if looking for any flaws in the uniform she wore. Changmin had left her after he had guided her to this class, kissing her forehead and then running off.

Cameron quickly walked over to one of the empty seats she saw (at the back near a window) and sat there. She heard murmuring going about the class but she ignored them, taking out a novel and starting to read it. After awhile, she heard the chair at the desk next to hers being pulled across the floor. She looked up from the book and at a girl with wavy hair, a dark blue ribbon tied part of her fringe to the side.

"Who are you?" the girl asked, there was no emotion in her voice. "Why are you sitting there?"

"Oh! Haneul, this is the new girl her name is-" one of the girls, who had been studying Cameron, said.

"Was I asking you anything??" the girl named Haneul snapped at that girl, cutting her off. Then, she looked back at Cameron, asking, "Who are you? What is your name?"

"I am Cameron Lee, the new girl," Cameron said, wondering whether she should get her bag and move.

"I am Oh Haneul," Haneul said, smiling. "Are you sure you are in the right class? You look very young."

"Yes, I am sure I am..." Cameron took out her class schedule and showed Haneul the class written at the top.

"So you are! But you don't look as if 18 years old."

"No... I am only 17 this year."

"Ah! You must be very smart then to be able to skip a grade!"

"I guess I am..."

At that moment, a teacher entered the class. Everyone hurried back to their seats and sat down. As the teacher wrote notes on the board, Cameron whispered to Haneul, "Thanks for letting me sit here."

"Your welcome," Haneul said, flashing another smile.

"You seem different from the other girls," Cameron murmured. "They were all studying me when I entered the class. You were different."

"Because I am different!" Haneul grinned. "Besides, I am only like that to people who are nice. And you looked like someone nice to me. Not like the other girls. Hey! Would you like to join me and my friends for lunch?"

"I don't mind!" Then, she remembered about Changmin and Jaejoong.

"You have plans?"

"Not quite... I just remembered my two other friends... They may want me to sit with them..."

"Oh... Why don't they join us as well? The table I sit at is quite big. Having a couple more people isn't going to be much of a problem!"

"I am not sure... They don't usually enjoy hanging out in big crowds..."

"Oh..."

"Maybe I can ask them if I could join you for lunch. Besides, they are both guys and not much fun to hang out with unless you enjoy talking about cars..."

"Ok then! Oh! Here!" Haneul passed her a card. "It is an invitation to my birthday party tomorrow. Come and attend if you can! You don't need to bring a gift or anything. Just yourself would be enough."

"Alright!"

******
"Made it through your first day of school?" Changmin asked, pushing himself off the frame of the door he had been leaning on.

"Yeah..." Cameron said, smiling in greeting at him. "Where's Jaejoong?"

"Getting the car," Changmin replied. "Our arrangement is like this: I drive to school, he drives back home. I would have preferred if it were the other way around so I could catch a few more minutes of sleep in the car but he did not agree with me on that and Mr Kim took his side so I have no choice..."

"Are we going out to eat lunch?" Cameron asked, surprised.

"Yes," Changmin answered. "Anyone can. But most people prefer the expensive food in the school cafeteria compared to the cheap food at the stalls nearby. After all, this is an elite school. You can't expect them to be eating at such stalls, can you? Come on!"

"Um..."

"Is something wrong?"

"I made a friend and she asked me to join her tomorrow for lunch... Is that alright with you?"

"Oh! You made a friend! That's great! I guess it should be fine... Who is she?"

"Oh Haneul..."

"The president's daughter??"

"Yes..."

"I guess that is alright... She will be wanting to eat in the cafeteria, right?"

"Yeah..."

"Oh! See me later tonight, alright? I want to show you something..."

"What is it?"

"A secret. So, you must promise to not tell anyone!"

"I promise!"

"Pinky swear?" Changmin held out his last finger.

Cameron grinned and pinky swore with him. At that moment, they were near the school entrance and Cameron bumped into someone. She hurriedly murmured an apology but otherwise paid no attention to the person she bumped into as she hurried down the steps with Changmin to the waiting car.

******
Onew frowned, thinking about what to buy for Haneul. He dumped his books into the locker and then locked it tightly before starting to walk towards the cafeteria. He was so deep into his thoughts that he accidentally bumped into someone, jostling him out of his thoughts. He barely caught a glimpse of the girl he had bumped into and barely heard her murmured apology.

He was about to continued his journey to the cafeteria when he realized that he had just seen the same gray-blue eyes on the girl he had bumped into. The girl's voice was the same as the one he had heard that night. He turned around and tried to find her, walking back the way he came. He was near the glass doors of the building when he saw her entering a car. Her hair was done in a different way and there was no make up on her but he could see that it was still the same face.

He yanked open the door and was about to call out to her. But she had already entered the car and it was driving off. He watched it until it disappeared from view. Then, he reentered the building, hoping that he had not made a mistake. He wanted to talk to her again and at least get her name. He sighed and then walked towards the cafeteria, an image of her smiling face as she entered the car in his head.

As soon as Cameron stepped through the door of the house, she heard something explode and thought it was a bomb. She braced herself for the effects of the bomb, closing her eyes. Then, she felt so many light stuff come falling down on her, some long, some short. She opened her eyes and saw brightly coloured confetti raining down on her.

"Surprise!" Cameron saw all the members of the organization standing in lines beside her, big grins on their faces.

"What is this for?" Cameron asked, surprised.

"To celebrate your first day completing school!" Hyori grinned. "Mr Kim let us mess the house to celebrate the occasion! Look! We even bought you a nice cake! And the cooks have cooked a banquet enough to feed a hundred people!"

"People would have thought you are joyful parents if you did this outside you know..." Cameron muttered, secretly pleased.

"Come on!" Boa said, pulling on Cameron's hand. "Let's go celebrate!!!"

******
Onew swirled his glass around. He took a sip and swallowed. He placed the glass on the table and watched as the ice melted in the brown liquid. His friends were off dancing with random girls they had managed to get. He thought about the girl. he had not seen the girl again after lunch break. He wondered why she was at his school. Maybe he was mistaken... But then... He hoped that he had not. Suddenly, he felt someone clap him on his back, startling him out of his thoughts. He saw Yunho lean against the bar beside him.

"Hey, hyung!" Onew said, smiling in greeting. "Finally decided to join us?"

"Yeah!" Yunho grinned. "Decided that I needed a short break. What's up with you? Usually you would be merry-making with the others but today you are sitting here by yourself. What happened? Last time you were like this was because of what happened to your dad... Did something happened to your mom??"

"Anyo..." Onew murmured, looking at the mirror (that was the back of the glass cupboard of alcohol). "I was just thinking..."

"I can see that! But is it so serious that you have to use alcohol while you think?" Onew did not answer him. "Or did your mom made you get engaged to Haneul??" Onew, who was taking a sip of the drink, spewed it out over the bar.

"ANYO!!!" Onew wiped the drops of the drink from his mouth using the sleeve of his shirt. "HYUNG!"

Yunho clapped him on the back. "I was just kidding!" He started laughing. "Seriously! So what were you thinking about?"

"I was thinking about..."

"About...?"

"This girl..."

Yunho looked at him with interest. "A girl...? Who is this girl? Anyone I know??"

"Anyo... I was thinking about the girl I rescued that day... I think I saw her today in school... But I am not so sure..."

Before Yunho could say anything, the other guys came back. "Yo, Yunho!" Junsu greeted, wiping sweat from his brow. "You are finally here! Not watching Jaejoong anymore??"

"How many times do I have to tell you that I am not gay??" Yunho demanded, an eyebrow raised.

"Then, why were you looking at Jaejoong with THAT sort of look in your eyes?" Yoochun asked, appearing beside Yunho.

"And why were you stalking Jaejoong the pass few days?" Minho asked.

"Guys, I am only stalking Jaejoong because of something else!" Yunho said, trying to protest his innocence. "I am still straight! I swear!"

"Right..." Minho rolled his eyes. "If you are, hyung, go sleep with a girl like what Yoochun has been doing. At least that will prove whether you are or not!"

"I don't want to do that, Minho..." Yunho muttered. "Besides, I like someone else..."

"Which belongs in your class, is a guy and his name starts with 'J'," Minho said. "Am I right?"

"No!" Yunho protested. "I like-" The other guys tried to fill in his sentences which ended up in more arguements.

Onew sighed and then looked back at his drink, pushing their voices out of his head as he tried to think. He wondered where that mysterious girl was. He wanted so much to see her again until he could not properly.

******
Changmin sat on the floor surrounded by piles of books. He was finishing the last of his homework when there was a knock on the door. He looked up from his work and at the door. Cameron walked into the room. She wore light purple pyjamas and a pair of white bedroom slippers. "You wanted to show me something...?" she said as she closed the door behind her.

"Oh! Yup!" Changmin said, getting up from the floor. He strode over to his desk and opened a drawer. Cameron could see him take out a small, wrapped box and an envelope. He beckoned her to come over. "This is from me." He passed her the box. "It is what I wanted to show you."

"But you said show," Cameron reminded. "Not give."

"Well... I guess I meant give..."

"They are two different words you know..."

"Whatever... Oh! This is from Mr Kim. He told me to give it to you. He just left for some trip to somewhere. I think he has a meeting with other friendly organization leaders... He dropped this off for you before leaving." He handed her the envelope. "And he told me to let you know that your must not let any of us know what is inside."

"Oh..." Cameron murmured, taking the box and the envelope.

"Since you can't open the envelope, why don't you open my present?" Changmin suggested. "I would want to see whether you like it or not."

Cameron shrugged and placed the envelope on the table. She opened the box that Changmin gave to her and stared at its contents. A silver necklace sat among the soft cotton that was stuffed into the box. Its pendant was a small pixie that looked as if it were dancing across the cotton with its wings behind it. There was a tiny heart underneath it. The pendant was no bigger than the size of her thumb.

"This looks so nice!" Cameron said, staring at it. Then, she looked at him suspiciously, "You spent a lot of money on it, didn't you??"

"Well..." Changmin said, looking up at the ceiling.

"Min, I told you I don't want anything expensive..." Cameron murmured, trying to give him back the gift but he refused to take it. "Changmin! Take it back!"

"I don't ever buy you gifts! Why don't you accept this as a gift for past birthdays and Christmas presents?"

"But I never get you one either..."

"Please? I can't return this..."

"Why not?"

"Because the shop is over in Paris. I got it when I was on my last mission there. Please take it, Cam..."

"Fine... But the next time we do go out to eat, I pay the bill!"

"Deal! Now, get going! I got a bit more work to finish up!"

Cameron was stuffing her books into her locker when she felt someone tap her shoulder. She turned around and came face-to-face with a smiling Haneul. The whole day today, people had come wishing Haneul 'Happy Birthday' and even giving her gifts. She was grinning very broadly because of that.

"Come on!" Haneul said. "I have a lot of people I want to introduce you to. And they have been wanting to meet you, Cam!"

"Ok..." Cameron murmured, not quite sure whether she liked the idea of what Haneul had said. But Haneul did not seem to hear the reluctance in Cameron's reply and continued talking happily. Cameron replied when she needed to, half her mind on the conversation and the other half elsewhere.

She thought about the envelope she had received from Mr Kim. There had been a credit card inside and the strangest note she had ever read accompanied the card. She did not understand why Mr Kim had told her to use the credit card and that he would pay for everything. The credit card was inside her purse in her pocket. The extra weight of it seemed like an annoying burden to Cameron. She really needed to ask Mr Kim about the credit card once he comes home from wherever he had gone to.

Then, she was startled out of her thoughts when she noticed a bright flash of colours before her eyes. She looked about her, her jaw dropping open. The place was like a restaurant with smartly-dressed waiters walking about, serving food or taking orders from the students. There were fresh flowers in vases on tables. Menus were placed at the side of plates of unoccupied tables. There were doors at the other end of the dining room with different marks on the doors.

"This way," Haneul said, not noticing the look on Cameron's face. She lead Cameron pass the tables and towards one the doors. A waiter rushed ahead of them and opened a door with a heart-mark on it. He bowed low as Haneul and Cameron walked pass him.

Beyond the door was a room that had an extra large table with many chairs surrounding the table. A large window, with its drapes pulled back, was across the door, showing a stunning view of the huge land at the back of the school that had been transformed into a golf course. Some of the chairs were occupied by people which Cameron had seen in the news but did not know personally. She stared at them and they back at her.

"Guys, this is Cameron," Haneul said after awhile, breaking the silence. Then, Haneul proceeded to pointing out the people in the room and their names.

A girly-looking guy was introduced as Heechul. A slightly big-sized guy was Shindong. There were two Japanese transfer students, who were singers on hiatus mode, were introduced as Miyavi and Akanishi Jin. There were three Korean girls whom Haneul introduced as Tiffany, CL and Go Ahra.

"There are suppose to be more people here," Haneul said, frowning. "But I guess they are running late... I will be right back!" She walked out of the room, leaving Cameron along among the people there.

"Come have a seat," Ahra said, patting on an empty seat beside her. "Don't worry! We won't bite you! Eventhough we have heard some rumours that you can..." Cameron turned bright red at that, remembering what had happened the day before.

"Do you want something to eat?" Tiffany asked, holding out a menu to her. "Here! Just order whatever you want. Haneul always pays for our food." She seemed to roll her eyes at that. "We keep telling her that she need not do that but she never listens to us!"

"Since when does she listen to anyone?" CL asked. "Unless it has something to do with a relationship she is in. But other than that, she does not. I think I will have the set meal today... It is the cheapest on the menu."

"What will you have, Cameron?" Tiffany asked, looking at her.

"I guess a salad will do..." Cameron said softly, looking up from the menu. The other girls stared at her. "What? I don't eat a lot..."

"Are you sure that's all you need to eat?" CL asked. "We did not mean to make you not want to eat..."

"Yes, I am fine," Cameron said, smiling.

"Do you girls hear yourself??" Heechul demanded, looking a little angry. "When we guys first came, you girls never bothered about us! Do you know I had gastric problems for a week before you girls even bothered about me??"

"That is not true!" CL argued.

"It is!" Heechul insisted. Then, the two started fighting.

"Ignore those two," Shindong said. "They always fight whenever they can. You should order more things, Cameron. You look very skinny."

"I don't have a huge appetite..." Cameron said softly.

"Which is why you are too skinny!" Shindong chided. "Tiff, order her the same set meal as the one CL will be having." Then, Shindong looked back at Cameron and said, "Why don't you tell us about yourself?"

******

Onew was about to get into the car when his cell phone started to ring. He sighed, pulling the phone out of his pocket. He read the caller id and sighed again. Junsu poked his head out of the car and asked, "Is that Princess Haneul by any chance? Make sure you calm her down before telling her where we are planning to go."

"Maybe you should get this call instead of me!" Onew muttered, not making any move to pick up the call. His phone stopped ringing but Onew knew that she would call back soon. "You seem to be the only one able to keep her blood pressure low." Then, his phone started to ring again.

"But not before I get an earful of shouting," Junsu pointed out. "Get the call. Then, hyung will pay for you lunch. Okay?"

"I doubt you would..." Onew muttered. He picked up the call, making sure to hold it an inch from his ear before he said, "Yoboseoyo?"

"Where the hell are you?!?" Haneul's voice came shouting down the line. "I thought I told you and the other guys to be here today!!!"

"Haneul, we-" Onew started to say.

"I don't want to hear your bloody explanations!!! You get your butt here right now, Lee Jinki!!!"Onew winced when he heard her use his name. The only time she actually called him by his full name was when she was seriously pissed off.

"Haneul, the other guys and me are going to the city to get some stuff for tonight's party. We-"

"You didn't buy my birthday present?!?"

"Anyo! Haneul, we need to get our suits done."

"You are a terrible liar, Onew! I wanted to introduce you to my new friend and you suddenly decided not to turn up!"

"Haneul, you can introduce her to us another time. She is going for the party, right? Why not introduce her to us tonight?"

"Fine... If you get me a lousy birthday present, I will never forgive you!" Then, the line went dead.

Onew sighed in relief and then slipped his phone back into his pocket. He stepped into the car, a jockey closing the door behind him. Yoochun looked at him, asking, "You manage to calm the little princess already?? Seems as if you just broke the record! You took seventeen minutes!"

"Yes, hyung..." Onew said, sinking deeper into his seat. "We will have to get her a very nice birthday present though... You guys got any ideas?"

"We have lots of time," Minho said, taking out a map. "I am sure we can find a great present before evening. Let's start here first!"

******

"Could you drop me off here?" Cameron asked. Changmin sat beside her, asleep with a book covering his face. Jaejoong looked at her, using the rear-view mirror.

"Why do you want to go here?" Jaejoong asked, pulling up at the side of the road. They had stopped beside a shopping mall. "I never knew you liked shopping..."

"I don't..." Cameron said, placing her books on top of Changmin's books. "I have a party tonight and I need to get a present..."

"Do you have enough money?" Jaejoong asked, moving to take out his wallet from his pocket. "Do you need some?"

"Anyo... I have enough, Jaejoong," Cameron answered, opening the door and getting out. "I will see you later. Arasoh? Don't tell Changmin where I am."

"Alright..." Jaejoong murmured. "Take care of yourself." Then, he drove off.

Once Jaejoong was out of sight, Cameron took out her phone and dialed Hyori's number. She waited until the other person picked the call. "Yoboseoyo? Are you here yet?"

"I am," Hyori replied. "And it is a wonder you can't see me when you have eagle eyesight yourself!" Cameron frowned and looked about her before her eyes settled on a figure that was walking towards her, holding a phone to her ear. The person waved, a large grin on her face.

"Shall we get started?" Hyori asked, stuffing her phone into her handbag. "It looks as if I have a lot to teach you today!"

Cameron tugged a little on the skirt of the black Chanel cocktail dress she wore. A new black clutch and a rectangular-shaped wrapped box lay on the seat beside her. She was wearing the necklace Changmin had given to her. When they had reached home after the shopping trip (the first one Cameron had ever had!), Hyori had applied make-up to Cameron's face, after subjecting her to a long spa, and even doing her hair! Cameron's hair was not wavy with streaks of golden brown in them and tied up into a ponytail at the top of her head. On her feet were a pair of black, crystal-strapped Jimmy Choo's that Boa decided to lend to her (after much persuation).

"Remember to call me when you want to go home," Changmin reminded when they were near the hotel. "I will come as fast as I can. Arasoh?"

"Arasoh, Changmin!" Changmin said, grabbing her clutch and the present. She was about to climb out of the car but Changmin grabbed her arm, stopping her.

"You look very beautiful," Changmin said softly. Then, he released her arm. "Don't go sleeping around. The Black Bead may have people at the party. Always keep your guard up. I don't want to receive a call from them to know that you have been kidnapped or anything."

"I won't," Cameron promised. "I will call you. See you later!" She quickly climbed out of the car, closing the door behind her.

There were other people also heading towards the hotel, dressed in expensive clothes like the ones she now wore, walking up the steps towards the entrance of the hotel. There were barricades and security guards that stood along the red carpet that was spread over the steps from the entrance to the bottom step. Reporters stood beyond the barricades and guards, taking pictures of the richly-dressed people that went up and down the steps.

Cameron took a deep breath and begin walking towards the hotel. She walked up the steps, not looking at the reporters. Just keeping her head high and looking ahead. As soon as she was inside, she took a deep breath of relief. She opened her clutch and took out her invitation, showing it to the security guard that had come up to her. The guard checked her invitation before letting her pass.

The doors to the ballroom were still closed. Everyone stood outside in the reception area, holding glasses of wine and talking. Cameron took a glass of champagne from the tray of a passing waiter and then looked about, hoping to spot either Haneul or one of the new friends she had made today. But she could not find them. She stood away from the crowd and in the shadow of a tall, thick pillar, feeling a little left out. She finished the contents of her glass and placed it on a table nearby.

"Fancy seeing you here," a voice breathed into her ear. She turned around and came face-to-face with Leeteuk, one of the top agents for the Black Bead. She begin to back away from him but he caught hold of her arm, pulling her closer to him. "Don't run. I just wanted to have a chat with you, my pretty little Shadow Cat. But I don't think you look like a cat tonight... You look more like an innocent little kitten."

"Let go of my arm!" Cameron hissed, not wanting to draw attention to herself.

"Aw... But I just wanted to have a small talk with you," Leeteuk said, looking a little upset. He made no move to release her arm. "Tell me, Cameron. How is little Minnie? Has my arch-enemy grown into a handsome young man? I heard from a few girls from the school that he still hits the books when he is free but has a nice body and a model-like face." Leeteuk stroke the moon-shaped scar he had on his neck with his free hand. During a previous battle between the Jade Dragon and the Black Bead four years ago, Changmin had given that scar to Leeteuk.

"Why don't you go to the school and see him yourself??" Cameron growled, trying to pry his fingers from her arm. "At least you can see the truth for yourself!" She winced a little when he tightened his grip, yelping a little from the pain.

"I am afraid I can't do that," Leeteuk said, looking thoughtful. "What if I receive another scar? One is good enough as it is." Then, he leaned close to her ear, whispering, "I heard about what happened to your mother. A pity I could not offer my condolences to you earlier. Why aren't you at her grave paying your respects? Unless you are happy that she left you two years ago. Is that why you are here to celebrate?" Cameron lifted her free hand to slap him but he caught hold of her hand before it came within an inch of his face, shaking his head.

"Don't you dare say that I don't care about my mother!" Cameron hissed, tears of grief and anger spilling out of her eyes.

"As you wish," Leeteuk said, shrugging. He released her hands. He cupped her chin in one hand and tilted her head so that she could look up at his face. He used his other hand to wipe away her tears. Then, he whispered, "Take care of yourself, little kitten. Next time we meet, I might not let you off so easily." He released her and walked off.

As soon as Leeteuk disappeared from sight, Cameron turned around and ran out of the reception area. She ran towards a pair of glass doors, pushing them open. She emerged out in the garden of the hotel. She was glad that there was no one around and collapsed on a bench, crying.

Her mother had passed away two years ago on the same day as today after she had received a bullet in her back. Cameron had visited her mother that time in secret and while they had been talking, that was when her mother had been shot. As her mother lay dying in her arms, her mother had pushed a titanium ring into her hand. It had been her mother wedding ring and there was a sentence engraved on the inner side of the ring that said, "Our destiny..." On top of the ring, there was a half-shape of the sun (right side) engraved into it.

Cameron hugged her knees and tried to take in deep breaths. She held up her left hand to the moonlight, watching the light glance off the ring she wore to remember her mother by. Then, she hugged her knees tighter, rocking back and forth as she cried. None of the other members back at the organization had seen her like this before since she always managed to remain composed in front of them until she was alone. Then, only she broke down.

Suddenly, she felt something warm and heavy being draped about her shoulders and looked up. She saw him standing there, looking very smart in the tuxedo he wore. His white coat was draped over her shoulders. He cupped her face in his hands and wiped away her tears using his thumb, saying, "Pretty girls should not cry. Are you alright?"

******

Onew climbed out of the limousine, followed by Yoochun, Junsu, Yunho and Minho. Onew ignored the reporters and hurried up the steps. He wanted to be as far away from the cameras as possible. Once he was at the top of the steps, he looked back down at his friends. Minho and Yunho were deep in conversation and did not seem to notice the reporters. Yoochun, on the other hand, stopped every now and then to pose for the cameras. Junsu stood beside him, trying to get him to hurry along.

"Hyung!" Onew called to Yoochun. "We don't have much time left! Hurry up or Haneul would kill us for being late!"

"Okay! Coming!" Yoochun said, running up the steps two at a time. As he passed Onew and through the entrance, he said to Onew, "Man! You just know how to spoil people's fun!"

"I don't, hyung!" Onew shouted after him. "It is just that you could take an hour posing and still not be done!" Yoochun turned around and gave him a grin before running off towards the reception area.

"The gift is all ready, right?" Yunho asked when he reached Onew. The two of them, Minho and Junsu begin walking towards the reception area together in one line.

"Yup!" Junsu answered. "But I had to bribe those hotel people to sneak it in through the back..."

"You guys are late!" Key said, walking up to them. "The princess was going hysterical in there! I had to assure her that you guys would be turning up for the party and not skip out on her."

"We had to get the present in," Junsu shrugged. "It is a little difficult to sneak in a-" Yunho covered his mouth with his hand.

"Yah! What if there are hidden microphones about us??" Yunho demanded. "Watch what you say, will ya?? We need to give Haneul a pleasant surprise!"

Onew shook his head as Junsu and Yunho started arguing whether there were hidden microphones around or not. He entered the hall and looked about, trying to see if he could spot any of his other friends. He took a glass of wine from the tray a waiter held out to him and then walked towards the crowd. He continued looking around and then his eyes landed on two figures that were standing in a deserted corner of the room.

From where he stood, he could only see the back of the man's head. Then, the man moved and Onew blinked twice, not believing his eyes. The girl he had saved the other day stood there and there were tears running down her face. Onew clenches his fists, not sure why he suddenly felt angry. He felt like going over there and punching the guy in the face. He was about to do that when the guy turned around and walked off. Onew could see that there was a satisfied smirk on his face.

Onew gritted his teeth together and looked away from the guy and back at the girl. He saw her run out of the room. Onew placed his glass on a passing waiter's empty tray and followed her. He bumped into someone and stopped to apologize. Then, he continued running.

By then, he had lost sight of her. He frowned and looked about. He spotted a sign above a pair of glass doors that said 'Garden'. The glass door was swinging shut. He walked towards the doors and pulled one of them open, his heart beating fast. The cool night air greeted him, the scent of flowers was strong. He looked about and spotted the girl seated on a bench, hugging her knees. Her shoulders were shaking and Onew knew that she was crying, eventhough there was no sound from her.

He walked towards her, taking off his coat. He gently placed his coat on her, making her look up at him. Usually, girls who cried looked ugly. But she still looked beautiful when she cried. Onew reached down and wiped away her tears, not sure why his heart ached at seeing her tears, using his thumbs and said, "Pretty girls should not cry. Are you alright?"

Cameron stared off into the distance. Beside her, on the same bench, sat Onew. He also stared off into the distance, thinking. Five minutes passed, they were still silent. Then, ten minutes. Cameron casted a glance at Onew. Then, she murmured, "Thank you for helping me the other day..."

"Your welcome," Onew replied. "I am glad that you are alright." They fell silent again. Cameron played with the hem of her dress. Then, Onew said softly, "I never got your name the other day..."

"My name is Cameron Lee," Cameron said, looking at him in the eye. Onew felt his breath catch in his throat at the sight of her gray-blue eyes.

"I am Onew Lee Jinki," Onew murmured, looking away from her. "But everyone just calls me Onew."

"Oh! Does your family own-"

"Lee Company? Yes."

"Ah... Are you here to attend Haneul's birthday party?"

Onew felt slightly surprised. "Yes. She is my childhood friend. Do you know her?"

"Of course! She is my classmate and friend."

"Classmate?? You are studying at Seoul High School?"

Cameron nodded, remembering the fake biography she was suppose to use whenever anyone asked something about her background. "Ye... I just arrived in Korea the day before yesterday. My foster father recently decided that I should join the rest of my foster family here in Korea while he continues working overseas. He thinks that it is time I have somewhere permanent to stay rather than move around with him. He is worried about my education and all..."

"Foster father?? What happened to your parents?"

"My mother passed away in an... accident..." Cameron felt her tears well up in her eyes at the thought of her deceased mother. She looked at the ground and blinked a few times, trying to will her tears to not fall down her face. She felt someone's arm around her shoulders and looked to her side to see Onew giving her a comforting smile.

"I lost my father as well..." Onew murmured. "I think about him often. Do you think about your mother often as well?"

"Yes..."

"What happened to your father? Is he still alive?"

Cameron clenched her fists when she thought about her father. "I don't know what happened to him. And I don't quite care. His drinking habits had left my mother and me in debts. It would be better if he just disappeared!" Cameron covered her face with her hands. "I don't understand why she loved him. Everyday she waited for him to come back. What did she ever see in him??" She started crying when she remembered the dazed look on her mother's face as she waited by the window for Cameron's useless father.

Onew watched her with concern. Then, he jumped to his feet, thinking of something that might cheer her up. Cameron looked up at him. Onew said, "Come! I know of something that might be able to cheer you up." He took out his cell phone and dialed a number, whispering something the person on the other line. Then, he hung up and placed his phone back in his pocket.

"Come on!" Onew said, holding out his hand to her. When she looked at him in confusion and did not take his hand, he grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet. He took out a handkerchief and passed it to her. "Wipe those tears away. Can you hold them back awhile? We will be passing through the hotel and I don't think you would want people to know that you have been crying."

Cameron took the handkerchief and quickly wiped the tears from her face. She sniffed a little and took a deep breath to try to get her emotions under control. When she finally felt that she was able to keep her emotions in check, she nodded to him and was about to pass him back his handkerchief. But Onew shook his head, saying, "You keep it. You look as if you need it more than I do. Come on. Let's go."

He took hold of her hand again and lead her back into the hotel. Cameron could hear the sound of music coming from the ballroom where Haneul's party was being held and stopped in her tracks. Onew looked back at her, wondering why she had stopped. When he noticed where she was looking at, he said, "She will forgive you if you don't attend. She would understand why. Come on." He gently pulled her away.

Onew pulled open a glass door and, as soon as he emerged from the hotel, he was greeted by flashes from cameras. Onew covered his eyes a little and then looked back at Cameron. Her other hand that held her clutch and a nicely wrapped present covered part of her face. Onew looked about and found a group of jockeys at the bottom of the steps. He walked towards them, not releasing Cameron's hand.

"Excuse me," Onew said to them. They looked at him. "Could one of you get Key's car?"

"Do you have permission to take his car?" a jockey asked. Onew guessed that he was a new person because an elder looking jockey hit him on the head, making him yelp.

"I will get his car right away, sir," the elder jockey said, bowing and running off to fetch the car.

"I need one of you to help deliver a gift to Miss Haneul," Onew said, taking Cameron's gift from her before she could stop him. When none of the jockeys moved, Onew pulled out his wallet and took out a few notes. "I will tip you for helping me." The first jockey quickly grabbed the gift and money from Onew and then ran into the hotel. At the moment, a purplish-blue Ferrari pulled up and the second jockey got out of the driver's side.

"Come on," Onew said, opening the car door for Cameron. Once she was inside, he closed the door and walked over to the driver's side and got in. Before he closed the door, he gave a huge tip (bigger than the one he gave to the other jockey) to the second jockey. Then, he started up the engine and drove off.

Cameron looked out of the side window, watching the passing scenery. The realization that she just told a total stranger about her feelings about her father and her breaking down in front of him was sinking in. She wondered why she found it so easy to talk to him.

"Hey..." Cameron was startled out of her thoughts at the sound of his voice. She looked over at him, reading the concern that was written all over his face. "Gwechana?"

"I am fine..." Cameron murmured, looking back at the scenery passing outside the car. "Where are we going?"

"Someplace..." Onew replied. "Don't worry. We are not going to a hotel. Just one of the malls my family owns. Do you have a curfew?"

"Nope." Then, they both fell silent again. Cameron thought about Haneul. She wondered if Haneul would mind that she was not there at the party. She remembered the joy that was written all over Haneul's face when Cameron told her that she would come.

"If you are worrying about Haneul then don't." Cameron looked at Onew. "Haneul is very forgiving. Don't worry alright? If she does scold you tomorrow, then let me know and I will talk to her." When Cameron did not say anything, Onew sighed and took out his phone. With one hand on the steering wheel and his eyes on the road, he dialed Haneul's number and then put his phone on loud speaker before placing it on the small handphone stand.

"Hey, Haneul!" Onew said when the other person picked up the phone. "How's the party going?"

"Oppa?? Where are you??" Haneul's voice came shouting down the line. Onew winced and could see that Cameron did as well. "Oppa, you do know that I am going to be very angry if you don't show up right? Where did you go?? Yunho told me that you arrived with him and then a jockey shows up with a present and tells me that you have taken Key's car and gone off! Where are you going with Key's car, Lee Jinki??"

"Haneul, I am with a friend of yours," Onew said. "We are just going out for a breather. That present is from her."

"Which friend??"

"Um..." Onew looked over at Cameron for permission and she nodded. "Cameron Lee..."

"Cameron?? You are not going to do anything to her, are you??" Onew and Cameron turned red. They looked at each other and then looked away, going even redder.

"Aniya! Haneul!"

"You are getting perverted thoughts, oppa!" Haneul's voice came singsong-like down the phone. "Is Cameron there? Can I talk to her?"

"You are on speakers, Haneul..."

"Opps! Sorry, oppa!" But Onew could hear the teasing note in her voice. "Cameron? Are you alright? Did something happen to you?"

"I am fine, Haneul..." Cameron said.

"Now that I think about it, the jockey did mention something about oppa having a girl with him... And she looked as if she had been crying... Cameron, why were you crying?? Please tell me! If Onew made you cry, I will kill him for you!"

"Anyo, Haneul... He did not make me cry..."

"Then, why were you crying? Tell me! Please!"

"Its nothing much, Haneul..." Cameron threw a glance at Onew, hoping that he would not tell Hanuel the reason to why she had been crying. The boy kept his mouth shut.

"Okay... Oppa, make sure you take good care of her. If she is hurt, I will kill you."

"I have never hurt a girl before!" Onew protested.

"I know," Haneul said. "But who knew whether Yoochun's playboy attitude has rubbed off on you or not. Oh! I have to go! I will see you during school next week!" Then, the line went dead. Silence descended onto the car again.

Cameron looked down at her lap, her hands playing with the edge of her dress again. Onew reached forward and turned on the radio. Immediately, the car was filled with the sound of instrumental music. They did not talk during the entire journey. After awhile, Onew turned off the road and pulled up in front of a mall that looked closed. Cameron frowned as she watched Onew unbuckle his seat belt and get out of the car.

"Come on," Onew said. Cameron unbuckled her seat belt and got out of the car. A man in a suit and an earpiece in his ear came up to them, taking the car key from Onew. Then, Onew grabbed Cameron's hand and begin leading her into the mall.

"Have you ever ice-skate before?" Onew asked.

"Anyo..." Cameron answered.

"Chincha??" Onew asked, looking at her with a surprised expression. "Looks like I have to teach you then!" There was a grin on his face now.

******

A figure watched the couple from where he stood hidden in the shadows. He had slipped into the building without any of the guards seeing him. His lips were in a thin line as he regarded the smiling and laughing couple below in the ice rink. His hands were tightly clenched. After awhile of watching Cameron and Onew, the figure turned around and vanished into the shadows.

"Thanks for teaching me," Cameron said, getting out of the car.

"Your welcome," Onew said, smiling. "Do you feel better now?"

"Ye..." Cameron murmured.

"Nice house," Onew whistled, nodding in the direction of the glass doors. "Your foster father must be very rich."

"He has a lot of businesses," Cameron replied, shrugging. "I will see you soon!"

"Yup! Good night!"

"Good night," Cameron smiled. Onew took once last glance at the house before driving off. He smiled when he saw her waving through the rear view mirror before stepping a little harder on the gas pedal.

Cameron watched as the car sped away. Once the car had disappeared from sight, she turned around and walked into the house. Except for the butler and a few guards, the place was practically asleep. She nodded to the butler and then walked up the steps to where the bedrooms were. She passed a slightly ajar door where light flooded through the small open crack and was about to enter her bedroom but stopped. She walked back towards the door, frowning.

Everyone should be asleep. So why was the room with the television, playstation and mini bar fully lighted? She pushed open the door a little more and peeked into the room. The television was on but the volume was low. Cameron's eyes settled on a figure that was sprawled over one of the couches. There were a few bottles of soju on the glass coffee table and a couple of empty ones on the floor. Cameron could see a half-empty bottle dangling from the hand of the tall man that passed out on the couch.

Cameron shook her head and went into her room. She placed her clutch bag on her study table and then rummaged through her cupboard for a blanket. She finally found one and went back to the room with it. She carefully placed the blanket on Changmin, making sure that he was fully covered so that he would not catch a cold. She took the remote control from the table and switched off the television, placing it back on the table. Then, she took the glass bottles that were on the floor and placed it on the table.

She turned her attention back to the bottle that was in his hand and slowly slit it from his grip, holding her breath. When she finally managed to get the bottle out of his grip, she sighed and placed it on the table. She stood up and turned off the lights and then went back to the couch Changmin slept on. She turned on the table lamp, dimming it a little. Then, she knelt down again and placed Changmin's hands under the blanket.

She stood up and was about to go when she felt something warm grab her hand. She turned around and saw Changmin sitting up. From where she stood, she could not see whether his eyes were open or not. She opened her mouth, about to ask him whether he was alright when she heard his raspy, drunk voice say, "Don't leave me... Please... Don't go..."

Cameron sighed, wondering what sort of dream he was having now. The last few times she had heard him talk in his sleep was when he had nightmares of what had happened to his parents. Cameron knelt beside the couch, trying to loosen his grip on her hand but that just made him tighten his grip. "Changmin. You are just dreaming. Release my hand, Changmin." She saw that his eyes were closed.

"Please don't go..." Changmin moaned. Cameron frowned. He had never acted like that before. She continued trying to pry his long fingers off her hand and finally succeeded. She sighed and gently pushed him to lie back down on the couch, adjusting the blanket and tucking him in.

She got up and turned to go. Suddenly, a pair of arms wrapped themselves about her waist, pulling her backwards. She lost her balance and sat on the edge of the couch, barely missing Changmin's body. She felt the other person place his head on her shoulder. She could smell the alcohol on his breath when he exhaled. She sighed, "Changmin..." She struggled to free herself.

"I love you..." Cameron stopped, stunned by his sudden confession. "I love you... Why do you enjoy hurting me? My heart beats only for you... Please don't leave me... Please..." Then, Cameron remembered that he was still sleeping.

"Changmin. You. Are. Dreaming!" Cameron grunted as she struggled. Finally, she managed to free herself and turned to see Changmin lying down on the couch. His eyes were still closed and he sounded as if he was softly snoring. Cameron shook her head and then tucked him in. She got to her feet and then left the room, closing the door quietly behind her.

******
Changmin opened his eyes as soon as he heard the door close. He listened, hearing Cameron's footsteps fade away and then a door closing. He sat up, feeling his tears stream down his face. He reached over for the half empty bottle of soju, taking one big gulp after another. When the bottle was empty, he just opened another.

Images of Onew and Cameron in the ice-skating rink flashed into his mind. He heard her laughter echoing in his mind. He saw her smiling face again and thought his heart would break at the thought that that smile was not reserved for him but was for another guy.

He was half way through a second bottle when his emotions became unbearable and he started crying. He hugged his knees, bottle still in one hand. His shoulders shook as he quietly cried out his heartache. I love you! Please don't go. Changmin thought. "Changmin, you are dreaming," her voice echoed in his head. Changmin cried even harder. Outside, it started to rain. It was as if the sky was crying for him.