"Kamsamida," I tell the driver as he drove off, leaving me outside a tall building that looked like a pillar of glass. It was a rectangular building with glass doors and glass windows that transitioned from a white frosty colour to an alternating shade of aquamarine blue and ocean blue.

It didn't take me long to figure out where I was--I was at the SM Entertainment Headquarters-- home to Super Junior, Girls Generation, SHINee and my new housemates, EXO.

I sighed at the thought of them.

Two weeks back, I had imagined this day to be the happiest day of my life. I was meant to be in a state of euphoria; be giddy with excitement at the thought of being so close to meeting my boys, my biases, my BTS.

But that all evaporated along with my dreams of speaking face-to-face with them and cracking jokes together when I found out I was going undercover as a housekeeper. And not just any housekeeper-- it had to be EXO's housekeeper.

"Stupid Richard," I muttered to myself as I dragged my suitcases towards the entrance of the building. "And stupid Hyemi for breaking her damn leg."

Just as I was about to cross the road, I felt my phone vibrating in my pocket.

"Hello?" I answered without looking at the caller ID.

"Hey Mirei!" said the caller from the other line. It was Nikka. "Was your flight to Seoul okay?"

I let out a grunt to express my disdain. "It would have been better if I was actually doing the interview I was looking forward to doing."

I heard Nikka snicker from the other end. "Oh, c'mon. Are you still angry at me? You know I didn't have a choice. Richard asked me to do it."

"Yeah, but you could have said 'no'!" I half-shouted. "Honestly, why do you always get the good stories? It's so unfair."

"Life's unfair, honey," Nikka said in that oh-so patronising tone. "But hey, at least you'll be in South Korea for a year. You can treat it like a holiday."

"How can I treat it as a holiday if I'm a housekeeper?" I hissed. "And what's worse, I'll be staying with an idol group that's rivals with my fandom: it's like I'm betraying my biases."

"Stop being so melodramatic" I heard Nikka say casually. "They're K-pop idols and they look all the same anyway. Just think of how you can rub it in Hyemi's face when you get back to the UK."

"Hey, how dare you say my biases are in the same league as EXO!" I retorted. "I'll have you know that the BTS members are sooo much cuter than any other idol out there. Especially EXO."

Nikka sniggered, "Yeah, sure. Cute. In girl language, that translates to being on par with baby animals and children. Mirei, what you need is a man-- not a boy."

"Oh, shut up," I tell Nikka irritatedly. Nikka was one of those people who just knew how to wind you up. "I'm already in a bad mood because of Richard. Don't annoy me too."

"Ah, sorry, sorry, my bad" Nikka apologised. "But on a serious note, will you be okay with being undercover and all? I mean, last time we spoke you said your Korean was so-so."

"It is so-so," I answered exasperatedly. "I literally spent the past week trying to cram as much Korean in as possible. I'm so rusty-- you have no idea." I paused, "And that's another thing I hate you for. You don't have to do any extra work 'cause Rapmon can speak English!"

"I know" Nikka's voice sounded smug. "But surely the idols you'll be living with will know some English?"

I thought for a second. "To be honest, I'm not sure. I mean, I heard they had an English speaking member but, apparently he's already left the group."

Nikka was silent on the other end.

"Mirei" I heard Nikka say finally.

"Yeah?"

"You're so screwed."

"Hey. Don't say that. You're gonna make me panic" I complained.

"Well, you know what?"

"What?"

"YOLO!" Nikka shouted. "You can always pretend you're foreign or something. Say you're from China or Thailand--you look the part anyway."

"Haha, very funny," I answered unenthusiastically. "And FYI, I am foreign. Regardless of my ethnicity."

"Yeah," Nikka agreed. "But still, it's more believable than saying you're from Britain. Isn't that why Richard sent you?"

I shrugged at his comment. "I guess so. Well, he couldn't very well send you. You'd stick out like a sore thumb."

"Uh, correction. A beautiful sore thumb" Nikka added sassily. "Anyways, I just wanted to let you know that I'll be flying out to Seoul soon so, let's meet up, okay?"

I looked across the street and saw that there was a man looking around. Maybe he was the person I was supposed to meet?

"Yeah, I'll see you then," I replied, before hanging up.

"Excuse me!" I called after the guy in the best Korean I can muster. He was wearing a white polo shirt and skinny black jeans. They were fitted tightly onto him to reveal a relatively good build.

The man turned to my direction and gave me a questioning glance. "Yes?"

"Hi," I began with what I hoped appeared to be a friendly smile. "I'm here to meet EXO's manager."

The man had a puzzled look.

"I'm the new housekeeper" I further elaborated. Was I saying it right? There was only so much Korean a Rosetta Stone CD can teach you.

"Ah" The man managed to answer. "You must be Minami."

I tried my best to hide my astonishment. Minami? Again? Damn it, Richard.

He looked me up and down. I was wearing an oversized, plain, grey hoodie and my comfy yoga pants. My black hair was tied hastily in a bun and I probably looked like I hadn't slept-- which I hadn't-- since I'd been travelling for the past nine or so hours. Clearly, I wasn't what he was expecting.

"Y-yes. That's me" I replied.

The man looked like he didn't believe me.

"Er, I normally go by a different name" I hurriedly explained. "You know, a nickname. So it's been a while since someone called me by my full name."

"Oh? So what do you prefer to be called then?"

I thought for a quick second.

Should I just tell him to call me by my real name?

"Nami" I answered.

Oh well, might as well invent an alias for myself.

The man still looked doubtful. "Well, okay then, Nami. I'm one of EXO's managers. You can refer to me as Manager-nim like everyone else." He led me towards a car that was parked in front of the SM building. "Let's get you settled in the dorm."

~*~

The car came to a halt outside a tall apartment complex and Manager-nim led me to the third floor. He unlocked the door using a key-card. A green light flashed and the door magically opened.

As soon as I entered, I saw a pile of slippers and shoes scattered in front of the door. There were shoes of varying sizes and designs. Manager-nim didn't seem to mind the mess. He removed his shoes, slipped on a pair of slippers and continued to walk towards the end of the corridor towards what seemed to be the communal area.

"The EXO members won't be back until later in the evening" he explained. "So please, make yourself comfortable. It will be your new home after all."

I nodded in acknowledgement.

He gestured for me to follow him so I left my suitcases where they were and, following his example, quickly put on a pair of slippers.

The dorm would have been impressive. If... it didn't look like a rubbish heap.

As soon as I entered the communal area, I immediately saw rows of plastic water bottles and cans of what looked like energy drinks. There were piles of what looked like DVD or video game cases stacked in a high tower in one corner and music sheets, magazines and newspapers scattered all over the sitting area.

I turned my head and my jaw dropped.

The kitchen didn't look any better.

From where I was standing, I saw a pile of unwashed dishes left at the sink and takeaway boxes on the long dining table which was also nearby. There was also a weird pungent smell which reminded me a lot of boiled eggs.

Manager-nim saw my expression and said, "As you can see, the members are in real need of a housekeeper."

"You don't say..."

He gave me a quick tour of the apartment and quickly showed me where the bedrooms were. "There are six bedrooms in total," Manager-nim explained. "Most of the members share a room and since Lay is currently in China, you can stay in his bedroom. He won't be back until much later in the year."

"What about the bathrooms?" I asked.

Manager-nim pointed to one end of the hall and then to the opposite end, "There are only two bathrooms so you'll have to share with the boys." He gave me a reassuring smile, "Don't worry. You can lock the doors from the inside."

I nodded and followed him as he proceeded to go down the stairs.

"Like any other housekeeping job, you'll be responsible for keeping the dorm clean, cooking meals and generally looking out for the welfare of our idols." He paused as he turned to look at me. "You're a bit younger than I expected but I hope that you'll do a good job."

I gave him an amiable smile as he left the dorm, leaving me alone with my two suitcases and the smell of boiled eggs.

"What a dump," I said out loud. I'd been holding it in all that time. "Where do I even start?"

~*~

"All clean!" I exclaimed happily as I finished wiping the dining table to a shiny finish.

It had taken me longer than I expected but, I had finally finished cleaning the dorm to a satisfactory standard. I had washed the dishes, threw away the takeaway boxes and had put all the empty containers in plastic waste bags, ready to be recycled. Once everything was clean and tidy, the dorm actually looked like a pleasant place to stay. Not to mention that the smell of citrus detergent had replaced the smell of boiled eggs.

I stretched my arms and a yawn escaped my mouth. I was knackered. It was only turning seven in the evening but my body was already feeling heavy with fatigue. Must be my jet-lag catching up, I thought.

With my last ounce of strength, I hoisted my suitcases upstairs and searched for Lay's room-- whoever he was-- so that I can move in and get some rest.

But there was one problem.

Which one was his room again?

"Nope, not this one," I told myself as I tried another door. I had already tried the other five and all of them were locked.

As I tried the last door, the knob gave a satisfying turn and I was finally able to peer inside.

It was a neat room, tidily kept with simple, blue bed sheets and brown mahogany desk with a chrome lamp on top. There were some books on the shelf next to the bed and very little decoration.

I stepped into the room and looked around. It didn't seem like anyone had used the room recently.

"Better go and shower now," I told myself. I still hadn't washed away all the grime from travelling and cleaning.

I unzipped my suitcase and pulled out my towel and some fresh clothes as well as dumping some of my valuables, like my phone and the debrief folder, onto the bed.

"Oh, crap," I say out loud.

As I rummaged through my suitcase, I realised that I hadn't brought any shampoo or soap with me. "I guess I'll just have to use some of theirs..."

~*~

The bathroom wasn't fancy or anything. It looked like an ordinary bathroom. It had a shower cubicle with sliding doors with frosted glass and there was a white basin and a toilet. The taps had a silver chrome finish just like the ones in the kitchen. It was simple and functional. And this time, relatively clean.

"Woah," I said as I inspected the skincare products that were left in the shower cubicle. The labels were all in Korean but I could tell they were expensive.

"They won't mind if I use a bit, right?" I asked no one in particular. I opened a bottle of what looked like shampoo and sniffed it. It had a flowery smell.

I saw my reflection in the mirror and gave a sheepish grin. "Naaah, they won't mind!" And then I remembered what Manager-nim said, "Might as well get comfortable. After all," I point to my reflection, "this is your new home now."

~*~

Author's note:

Greetings everyone!

Apologies for not having much happening in this chapter. I know it's a little dull but it will become clearer in the following chapters why I had to put so much detail in this simple scene.

Please look forward to more of Our Little Dorm Mother.

I hope to update very soon!