Forever Lockey 17

Things were back to normal in your relationship. You visited SHINee on the weekends if your schedule allowed, but most of the time you were practicing and filming for your debut which was only a month a way.



You stuck with MBLAQ through the rest of their promotions, cheering them on from the stage or back stage during lives. Then SHINee started promoting their follow-up track, a cute ballad called Hello, so you were there to cheer them on as well. Key was very busy, so you didn't see each other much. But those weekends with SHINee were fun. As normal, you would go out to eat or play soccer or play games, watch movies, or dramas inside the dorm, snuggle with Key and joke around with the other members.



It was great to be on good terms with everyone in MBLAQ again. Joon and the other members were happy to see you return to yourself, working hard while always being energetic and positive. Just like Key, you could brighten a room, though you were even more chic then he was and sometimes even more than MBLAQ, the chic-dols. Joon's feelings for you were gradually disappearing, being replaced more and more by feelings of kinship and devotion to Rina. The other members were just your usual, goofy, always supportive and full of energy friends. When their promotions were over, they got a short vacation but often came to spend time with the Cool Catz, watching them practice and giving feedback and support. The studio was your most favorite place in the world, with MBLAQ and your members who were really close to you now, besides being by Key's side obviously.



You felt a massive amount of relief when you told your friends and members everything about your history and how you got into a relationship with Key. To your surprise, none of them were shocked to hear you were dating the famous singer. It seemed news had spread quickly between them all. They said they were happy for you and would support you and keep the secret for as long as you wanted them to. But your members also said that they wanted to meet him and get to know the man that made their cool, charismatic leader turn into this cute girl that would blush and smile brightly at the mention of his name. You promised they would meet him soon as he was free and they would make a plan to go unnoticed. MBLAQ threw in that they had known him for a while and he was a very charismatic, funny and cool person with a difficult personality that rivaled yours, that you were like twins, and that Key was probably the only person that could handle you and vice versa. You wanted to chide them but it was all very true.



It turns out your members had a chance to meet him soon after when he snuck into the company  as a staff member one day. He came to the desk with flowers from a fan that needed to be delivered personally and since he looked so kind and innocent, he was let right in. He had disguised himself fairly well, even your members didn't recognize him when he asked them where you were and led him to the recording studio where you were putting last minute touches on the album. You were in the middle of singing in the booth when you looked out the window and saw your members with a tall man with square glasses, a baseball cap, and baggy clothes. He didn't have any make up on, he looked like an everyday college or high school student. You wondered how such a normal, though pretty good looking person, could manage to get this far and why he was holding flowers.



It didn't seem like your members knew him as they were gazing at him curiously, but he wasn't saying anything to them. Then his eyes met yours through the tinted window and that bright smile and cute wave caused you to stop mid-note. You saw your members ask the producer to step outside for a bit. You were still standing, mouth open at shock, staring at the handsomely pretty boy with glasses that was now laughing that loud, cute 'ha ha ha' you were so familiar with. Your members were looking at him with confusion, wondering what was so funny. He motioned for you to come out, mouthing 'hurry' to you.



Unable to control your excitement at seeing Key in your studio all of a sudden, you rushed out the room and jumped into his outstretched arms, nearly crushing the flowers. He ruffled your hair playfully and kissed you on the cheek. You turned to see your members with shocked and confused expressions. You just continued to grin widely, unable to hold back the girly giggling that was caused by your excitement, and nudged him to introduce himself. He bowed to them, his hand now holding yours, and greeted them formally with his real name and his stage name. Then he turned to smile brightly at you, raised your clasped hands, and said that he was the boyfriend who was crazy in love with their leader. Then he said happy birthday to you and kissed you passionately right there in front of your members. Blushing bright red, you punched him lightly but couldn't stop yourself from smiling.



Since you had only made plans for your birthday later, it was a pleasant surprise for you. That was the first time you'd ever seen him in such normal clothes and glasses, though you knew he had slightly bad eye sight. Seeing him looking like an adorable normal student was present enough, but he also gave you the ring that he had used and bought after filming the Hello music video. You got lunch with him and your members and you spent a couple hours chatting and joking, the atmosphere not awkward at all, and Key quickly gained the approval and friendship of your members. They told you later that after seeing his personality and how you acted together, they thought you were the cutest couple they had ever seen and nobody could suit you better. Jea and Maeri were curious as to how the other SHINee members dealt with such an energetic, extremely honest and outgoing person and what they were like.



Later that day, you met him at the practice room in SM, where he had said that he wanted to perform for his number one fan again. You decided you would come prepared and perform for him to, even though it was your birthday, because his opinion and critique was the most important to you. You also wanted to make him happy, to get him to laugh, and surprise and impress him. When you met him in the studio, he was in his red leopard-print outfit, his hair now grown out, died  a warm brown, and cut into a short, boyish style. He was adorable, though you felt your age difference looked even greater now. Key performed hello for you, a cute and funny version of H.O.T's Candy, and did part of the rap from his song with IU. You sang IU's part as best you could, though your voice couldn't compare to hers at all. He took roses from his helper Taemin(you weren't really sure where he'd come from)and gave them to you like he did in that performance. You applauded loudly when he was finished. When you shouted for an encore, all of SHINee came out and performed an altered version of your favorite song, Jojo.



As the other members finished giving you birthday wishes and hugs and were about to leave the room, you told them to all sit down for a minute. They looked at you puzzled, Key a little suspicious and excited, then obeyed. You thanked them all for their support and encouragement and lessons during the time you were a stylist. If it wasn't for them, you wouldn't have had the courage to pursue performing. You thanked them for being your seniors, your trainers, your friends, and Key for being your best friend. Meeting him and SHINee had changed your life so much and you weren't sure if you would ever be able to repay them for how grateful you are.



By the time you were finished speaking, you were crying and Key was rushing over to you to comfort you but you shook your head and motioned him to stay seated. He looked a little anxious but complied. You walked over and knelt in front of him, taking his hands in yours. You told him that you loved him more than anything and you didn't want to hide that from anyone anymore. In a choked up voice, you asked him to hold an interview with you and come out together after your debut. He smiled and nodded, choked up with his own tears. You took his face in your hands, pressing your forehead to his. You told him that you were fated, nothing would break you up and if you did you'd both die because you were each others oxygen. Always there, natural, easy to take for granted, and essential for life. You gave him a long, sweet kiss, the other members applauding and whistling loudly. Then you turned on music and performed sexy and funny versions of SNSD, causing all the members to roll on the floor with laughter, and a rap that would be on your first album, all of them commenting on how cool you were and joining in on beat boxing and clapping along.



Your debut was inching closer and closer. More teasers were released for your comeback and so far the interest was pretty high from everybody in the industry. The song you were promoting had some intense choreography and was very energetic and cool(similar to Clap Your Hands style). It was something you could enjoy watching, singing to, listening to or dancing to no matter where or when. In the music video you all showed your fun, flirty, cute and cool sides as well as your funky style, dance skills, and vocals. You had been entitled the main dancer and rapper along with your title of leader. It gave you a lot of pressure but you would honor and perform those duties well.



Your first couple of debut performances went nearly perfect. You were receiving a lot of love, support, and constructive criticism from your seniors and their fans. You're music video hit a few hundred thousand views in two weeks, so that was an achievement. You loved the stage and were enjoying being on television interviews for the first time. Your group started receiving some requests to be on variety shows and you figured it would be a fun way to get your group known. You weren't very good at variety, but Maeri was hilarious and she loved putting you in awkward situations where you ended up losing your cool image. You were given complements for being the most visually charismatic. Key was able to help you through your first month on stages and shows and such, and he always made sure to monitor how you were doing even though he was still busy with promotions. He'd see your performances and watch you on television and send you words of encouragement or advice. It was difficult because you would see each other backstage and want to be together or hug, but you had to be somewhat distant and formal since everyone was watching. It was obvious that you were close friends with SHINee and MBLAQ, but so far nobody was really suspicious of any romance. You and Key discussed it at length and made a plan to reveal your relationship soon.



Then SHINee hit a rough time in the middle of their promotions and the incident made you reconsider going public with your relationship. Jonghyun and Se Kyung were photographed together and rumors spread of them dating; then the company decided to officially reveal their relationship and details without asking them. The company protected Jonghyun as much as possible but Se Kyung received a lot of hate from his fans. She had to shut down all her websites from the massive amount of hate messages and was stalked and had cameras and mics thrown in her face wherever she went. Much more than just her acting or modeling talent or looks were commented on, most untrue and just plain cruel, and it caused her a lot of stress and hurt. Still, she didn't consider breaking up with Jjong, showing she really loved him and was much stronger than you had originally thought. But when Jonghyun's fans lashed out at him, booing or bringing the atmosphere down in concerts and causing Jonghyun to actually cry and hate being on the stage, it confirmed all your earlier fears. SHINee's and Key's fans would do the same or worse to you if you revealed your your relationship, especially with you just debuting and not being as known as him. Key could come to lose support and his love for the stage. And it wasn't like you had a solid fan base yet, so the future of your group in this industry could be in danger as well.


Key and the members of SHINee, MBLAQ, and your own group convinced you to go through with it anyway. Key insisted that everything would be okay and your friends said since you were in a serious relationship you shouldn't hide any longer. You made a video and wrote messages and released them all together, telling people you were officially dating and had been for a while and gave a simplified story of how you met and became close to each other and some reasons you liked each other. The other members and your friends all confirmed it was true and that they helped you hide it and said how great you were together and that they hoped everyone would support your love and honesty in coming forward.



Initially you did receive a lot of backlash from fans, even ones that had previously been supporting you on your site. They came up with the smallest, stupid things to pick on you or criticize you for. You did have to shut down your website and you were feeling down about it. But the company and other members didn't blame you, they supported you, and you took responsibility for it as a leader by making sure your performances were always perfect. Then Key addressed his fans through his twitter and an interview that an idol shouldn't have to choose between love and work or fans; that fans should be there to support them unconditionally and that they should love what and who those idols love as well, or at least respect that. He said that he had learned from what Jonghyun had been through and he wouldn't stay in the industry if he was forced to let go of the one he loved or sit back and watch her be slandered and criticized for caring about him. He insisted that the treatment of their fans towards Se Kyung and you be stopped immediately and your relationships accepted or SHINee may disband. That really upset and worried you, but it was obvious Key was very serious and set on his decision. He wouldn't be able to love his career if he watched you get sabotaged and he would feel guilty for life. The other members were upset by the entire situation but they felt that a battle with their fans on this issue was necessary as they would like to be able to have a relationship someday as well.



After Key's serious message to his fans and seeing him and Jonghyun upset and uncomfortable on stage, their fans realized they had been wrong and formally apologized to them. For the rest of yours and SHINee's promotions, things went well. SHINee received a lot more intense love and support with their new album and that love extended to your groups fan base as well. Your site actually started receiving a lot of kind messages from fans. Some formally apologized for treating you that way and said that they actually really respected you and your music and performances were really great so far. Some said things like 'Hi Unni! It's great to see Key have his first girlfriend. You look so cool on stage yet you are friendly and cute, I can see why he fell for you!!' or 'I saw the video you made together and you guys seem like twins! The story of how you met is so funny and romantic. I want to hear and see more from you!' or 'Unni~ take care of Bummie and make sure he eats well! He cares too much for others and forgets about himself sometimes, but I'm sure you know that already ^^'. You always responded kindly and thanked his fans for being so understanding and supportive. Sometimes you would jokingly complain or converse about him with the fans that really knew and understood his personality and habits.



You and Key actually became kind of a popular craze in the entertainment industry. Shows wanted you to come on together and fans loved to see you post pictures or videos together on your sites. Unlike Jonghyun and Se Kyung who liked privacy in their relationship even after the scandals cleared, you and Key loved letting other people know about and share in your love(not everything of course, but some of the fun and sweet moments). You would post funny or cute selcas or videos that fans would fawn over; you told some funny stories and discussed bad habits about each other in interviews, though you both made sure to check what you were going to say with each other beforehand. When your fans commented that you were both really charismatic, good at dancing and rapping, and had unusual voices and that they wanted to see you perform together someday, you worked together musically for the first time. You made a song in English(since you were both pretty good at it and really respected American artists)and your own choreography and did a small performance for your fans. You were even voted as best couple unofficially online. You sent out a cute video in response and thanks to the fans of you competing with each other in Karaoke and playing punishment games together. They commented with messages like 'Like best friends with a little romance,' or 'haha you guys never change! Some people might think you were holding grudges against each other. You show no mercy! You should be nicer to each other haha.' or' LocKey forever!' It felt great that your relationship was bringing you both closer to your fans and boosting the popularity of your group. Your group was pretty successful with their debut, as well, and the music industry was excited to see a group of cool females with strong personalities and various talents.



Shortly after your debut was over, the group had personal interviews. When asked if you felt apologetic or guilty about your relationship, you said that you had really developed a close relationship with SHINee's and Key's fans now. But playfully, you added that the only thing you were sorry about was to make the fans disappointed because you broke JongKey up. You even thought they made a good couple, but no way would you let Jjong have TWO of the prettiest people in the world. Then, laughing to yourself at your own cleverness, you said that Key was going to be mad at you as soon as that aired.














After all the promotions and scandals and press releases were over, you and Key really felt like you needed some time off and more time together, so you made a plan to have a date as soon as you were free. You thought it would be more fun if others joined you and asked your members and friends. Se Kyung and Jjong were like your besties now as you had went on double dates a few times already and spent the weekends together at the dorm with the other members.  So, they were a give in.



Taemin said shyly that he had someone he wanted to ask to come and meet them. That startled everyone in the room! Shyly, he told you and the members about how he'd gotten close to a fan that went to school with him. He had been crushing on her and wanting to ask her out but he hadn't felt that it was the right time to tell you with all the scandals going on. Everybody was ecstatic and wanted to meet her and began giving him advice on how to ask her out, except Key, who was feeling anxious as a 'mother' worried about his 'son' and afraid Tae was going to grow up and leave. Key insisted that he meet her now and that Taemin couldn't start dating until he had given his approval. You told Key to stop being a drama queen and Taemin to bring her over and you would handle overprotective Key-omma.



Although Minho and Onew suggested not going as they didn't want to be the seventh wheel, you had a plan. You told them you would just invite two of your single friends and it would be like a blind date. They immediately looked nervous but they were both curious and couldn't resist having a possible romance of their own. It had been Key's genius ideas and you knew just the girls.



That day, you convinced Jea, Maeri, Rina and Joon to join you and SHINee to hang out, explaining the situation. Rina and Joon seemed fine with it as their relationship was developing slowly but positively and Joon said if Key was comfortable with it then he would love to spend time with them again. Jea and Maeri were also fine with it, since they really wanted to meet SHINee and they didn't really care if it was a blind date for them. They were very fun-loving people that liked trying new things. You were the first to arrive at the burger place, followed soon by the rest of SHINee and Taemin a little later, with a small blonde-haired girl following behind him. He introduced her as Mckenna and though she couldn't speak Korean very well yet as she had come over from America only half a year before, she was very friendly and a little star struck to meet so many famous idols all at once.



You all introduced each other and ordered burgers and shakes. Minho and Onew seemed much more nervous and quiet than you'd ever seen them before and that rubbed off on Jea and Maeri at first. But as everybody was talking and getting to know things about each other, they loosened up and started talking to each other across the table. Key asked McKenna a lot of rather personal questions in English and Korean, making Taemin blush and look at you to save him. But Key's curiosity couldn't be sated even by you so the girl was on her own, and it seemed like Key was warming up to her as she was answering his questions honestly the best she could with the language gap.



You noticed that Minho was talking a lot to Jea, more than you'd seen him talk to any girl before. He seemed to be trying to impress her as he was much more confident and show-offish than usual. Jea seemed interested in what he was saying, though she was much shier than she usually was. It probably had something to do with Minho's smoldering eyes as he gazed at her intently, obviously interested and unable to keep his eyes off of her.



Onew was joking and laughing with Maeri. Maeri seemed to really love his clumsiness, body gags, and jokes. She even joined in with her usual crazy, goofy humor. They were the two clowns of the table. Onew looked like he was enjoying himself, as he was laughing rather than constantly being laughed at, though he seemed a little unsure of what to do with how forward Maeri was with her speech and actions, even offering to feed him french fries. It was cute how they couldn't stop smiling at each other.



Taemin and McKenna, when they weren't being tormented by your brat of a boyfriend, seemed very similar. Both kind of childish and innocent, with fun-loving, cute sides. They just seemed like friends when they were chatting with each other or playing with things around the table, but if Key asked anything about their relationship, they would both blush and look away from each other. They were still so young and cute, you thought, wishing a little that you and Key had been able to go through the awkward teen crush stage.



Rina and Joon were a mellow couple, though you'd never guess it was possible with how over-excited Joon usually was. Rina was very quiet around Joon but she hung on his every word, waiting to get him more food or answer his question or complement him. Sometimes Joon would say the wrong thing, as he had a tendency to do, and she could get pretty scary(part of the AB personality). But if it's one thing Joon knew how to do, it's to sweet talk and get her to forgive him and smile again. Because he could get overexcited and arrogant, Rina brought him down to earth. In turn, Joon made Rina laugh, which was something she didn't do very often.


As you were watching their interactions take place, surrounded by an atmosphere of budding love, you and Key glanced over at each other, sharing the same excitement. He grabbed your hand under the table, lacing his fingers with yours and giving a light squeeze. His eyes were warm and kind, his smile sweet. He said there was something strange and pointed across the street with a puzzled look on his face. Then when you looked away, he put whip cream on your nose. There was nothing there of course and he burst into laughter because you fell for an obvious joke. You turned to glare at him, which only made him laugh harder. It was his character laugh you loved so much. You know, the one where he claps his hands and laughs loudly with his mouth wide open in a giant smile and his feline eyes crinkle cutely. Often Key would be so genuinely amused he would laugh to the point of tears.


You payed him back double, laughing when he freaked out about whip cream in his hair. He turned to you with a pout on his face and whip cream on his cheeks, nose, and bangs. You and the others told him he looked really cute, to which he scoffed at and hurriedly wiped off the cream. You felt a little guilty and helped him. Then since he was still pouting, you tickled him to get him to smile. He shrieked and grabbed your wrists to get you to stop. He stopped laughing suddenly, staring at your nose that hadn't been cleaned off yet. Then he lightly nibbled and licked the cream off, causing you and everyone else to blush awkwardly at the open display of affection. His face was in a satisfied smirk, happy that he could still make you blush.



The others were obviously uncomfortable around their new found crushes and temporarily couldn't look at each other. Jonghyun was now snuggling up to Se Kyung and kissing her lightly, making the atmosphere even worse. Joon had a shy grin on his face while looking down at his food. Minho coughed lightly. Taemin and McKenna looked like tomatoes. Then Onew spilled his milkshake in his nervousness, causing laughter and a much lighter mood. Key teased the others unmercifully about their childish actions, ignoring that fact that he used to be just as bad as she thought back to the morning after their first night at his grandparents. Minho and Taemin threw their napkins at their obnoxious friend, still blushing a little. That started a mini-battle around the table.



You didn't know what would happen to you all after that day, but you felt like it was the start of close friendships and romances that just might last the rest of your lifetimes.



THE END