SHINee's Dreamgirl: United at last.

Chapter Twenty-Six

"I'm sorry that happened to you, you should have told us the day it happened" Megan says to me and pats my back.

"Poor Taemin, he must be worried sick" Yeong Chan says and Onew holds her hand.

"Don't worry about it. Ha Ni will be safe with us. I promise" he says and squeezes her hand gently and she looks relieved.

"But who could have done it?" Minho says and Key scoffs.

"Anyone could have done it! Our fans are crazy" key says and looks over at Jong who seems like he's thinking.

"But Ha Ni saw  a man's reflection from underwater, so that narrows it down right?" Jong says and looks over at me.

"Wait. Didn't you say that the CEO came to see you the other day? And that Soo Hi warned you about him?" Minho says putting his hands on his hips and raising an eyebrow.

"Yes but why would he do that to his own employee?" Jong says and Minho considers it.

"It doesn't make sense. Any of it" Onew says and Yeong Chan looks up at him.

"Let's not worry about this now. Taemin and Ha Ni have just started a new chapter in they're lives, let's just enjoy Beijing while we're here" Yeong Chan says to us and Onew wraps an arm around her.

"Yeongni is right, let's just enjoy our time here" Onew says and smiles at her.

"Yeongni? Are you serious!? Hahahahaha! You already gave her a pet name?" Key hollers and bends over in laughter.

Onew pouts and Yeong Chan blushes.

The boys take their duty seriously and never leave my side. Especially Onew, which is strange to me because he's more on the easygoing side. But lately he's been acting more seriously, more manly even. His expressions have changed. Yeong Chan seems to have noticed as well and so she does her best to keep him calm.

We're on our way to a famous temple and the girls are beyond excited. They play word games and laugh constantly. Onew sits beside me looking out the window. Yeong Chan sits in front of us and turns to check on Onew who looks forlorn. She looks at me with sad eyes and turns back around.

"Onew" I say and he turns his head.

"Are you feeling OK?" I say and he gives me a small smile.

"I'm fine, just thinking" he says. I look him in the eyes and can see that something else is wrong.

"Onew I know you. Don't hide it from me, what is it?" I press on and he sighs.

"When SHINee first debuted, the CEO invited us to his house for a party. Of course we went, we were ecstatic. But being as shy as I am, I stayed in the sidelines. At one point I heard a crash and went to see if one of the boy's had broken something. But I found a maid on the ground instead"

I try to listen to the story but don't understand what this has to do with anything now.

"The maid had been slapped.....by the CEO"

I gasp and put a hand to my mouth. So he's not just violent with Soo Hi.

"I helped her up once he left the room. Everyone was so busy with the party that they didn't even have a clue of what was happening. She thanked me for helping her up and told me how he had tried to rape her as well. I asked her why she didn't just quit, and she said that he had blackmailed her into working for him. Apparently he has a criminal history" he says and looks at me.

I don't know what to think. Could he have blackmailed Soo Hi into marrying him? Or did she really just do it for the money?

"He is dangerous Ha Ni. The only reason I didn't report him was because at that moment I didn't want to end the fairytale for the boys. As the leader I knew that it would be selfish to take their dreams away from them. Never in my nightmares did I imagine that one day it would come back to haunt me" he says and puts his head Down.

"You think the CEO pushed me?" I say and he nods.

"Think about it. He shows up randomly to meet you, Soo Hi calls to warn you, and then THIS happens"

I've never seen Onew angry. And now that I have, it frightens me.

His soft angelic features have turned hard. His fingers tense and his jaw tightens. His arm muscles bulge from under his shirt and I freeze up.

"Maybe he did, maybe he didn't. Just....dont worry about it now. What happened, happened. Just forget it" I say and his head snaps back my way. His dark eyes glimer under his thick eyebrows.

"If he touches you, or lays a finger on Yeong chan, or any of the boys.....I'll kill him"

The intensity in his voice and eyes tells me that he's not joking. He's not angry, he's furious. Since I don't know what else to do I lay my head on his shoulder. He sighs and pats my head gently.

"I'll protect my family. No matter what it takes" he says into my hair and kisses the top of my head.

I always knew Onew had a sense of responsibility, but I never knew how much he truly cared until now. He truly is an amazing leader. Gentle and honest, but strong and fear inspiring when needed.

We reach the base of the mountain and exit the car. The scenery spreads out before us like a beautiful painting. Mountains covered in a green and white blanket surround us on both sides. Stone steps lead up to the sacred temple. Thankfully not many Tourists come up here during winter so the boys didn't have to disguise themselves.

"Onward explorers!" Jonghyun yells and we laugh.

The journey up the mountain is exhausting.

"Ya! Stop! I. can't. take. it. any. more." Key wheezes and drops to the floor.

"Stop being such a baby, we're almost there" Anna says and rolls her eyes.

"My pretty feet weren't made for this torture!!!!" He whines loudly until Minho gets down on one knee in front of him.

"Oh thank GAWD! Carry me Minho" Key says getting on Minho's back. Minho growls but gets up with Key sticking onto him like a koala.

We continue upward until we reach the entrance to the temple, at the very top of the mountain. Minho collapses under Key's weight and we all drop to the floor to catch our breaths.

"Thank you Buddha for letting us make it" Key grunts and raises his hands to the sky dramatically.

We ignore him and enter the open air temple. The temple is a round establishment with a fountain altar in the middle surrounded by hanging chimes and bells. He bow low and do our prayers. We then walk over to the "Memory" wall where you write loved ones names.

Everyone looks concentrated writing down they're families names.

But for me, only one name comes to mind.

Soo Hi.

I have found my family and my happiness next to the man of my dreams. Now I will pray for her future to be as blessed as mine.

We finish writing the names and stand side by side on the balcony that looks out into the Valley. Mist covers the land and snow falls silently over us.

"FOR FAMILY, FOR US!" Onew shouts suddenly. We all look at one another and smile.

"FOR FAMILY, FOR US!" We all yell.

I will push on. For my family..... for me....and for Taemin