| Fan Fiction |
by Micah
“Yes, please,” Yoochun replied, not noticing that the smile was extra sweet. He obviously didn’t get Changmin’s hint.
“You like orange juice?” Changmin pulled Yoochun’s eyes away from Junsu’s disappearing back again.
“Yes, Junsu introduced me to it and I took a liking for it.”
“That’s…nice,” Changmin murmured.
“So, why is that your favorite picture?” Yoochun inquired, making friendly conversation.
Changmin blinked and looked at the picture in his wallet. “It symbolizes our long lasting relationship and…I take a liking to platinum blond hair.”
Yoochun wondered if modern people used ‘relationship’ as a synonym of ‘friendship’. After all, it wasn’t possible for two people of the same gender to have a ‘love relationship.’
Changmin was still staring at the picture, remembering that he never liked hair dye. But then Junsu had showed up that faithful day to class with platinum blond hair and Changmin had no choice, but to like it. Because of Junsu.
Both did not notice that Jaejoong had abandoned the Sudoku and was just doodling on the corner of the paper.
◙◙◙◙◙
“We’ll be attaching these to certain areas on your bodies. This will allow us to gather information about your body to see if there is anything out of the ordinary. There will also be a thorough physical examination. It’s okay if you don’t understand what’s going on. There will be experts instructing you along the way and feel free to ask questions,” Kibum explained to the two men in front of him.
Yoochun had informed Yunho about Kibum last night and Yunho, too, considered it a good idea to take advantage of Kibum’s assistance. The four of them (Yoochun, Yunho, Junsu, and Changmin) had arrived at Kibum’s mansion the next morning to discuss the matter with him.
As expected, Kibum did not doubt their words. However, it bothered Changmin that Kim Kibum did not look overly excited to be able to continue this experiment that had been put away for so long. He agreed to help, but made no promises. Yoochun, Yunho, and Junsu were the ones who thanked him. He did not thank them for giving him this opportunity to reopen this ‘case’. But then, he was so rich and had so many other inventions in the work that he probably didn’t care too much.
Now, later in the day they sat in a room filled with buzzing machines and guys in white robes were sticking circles onto their chests. It wasn’t anything out of the ordinary to be shirtless around a group of guys, but for Yoochun, it was slightly uncomfortable when Junsu poked at a freckle on his chest.
Junsu stood to the side while Kibum and his two employees in lab coats were hooking Yoochun and Yunho to the machines. Then he noticed that Changmin was not by his side.
Junsu walked out of the room to see Changmin outside, on the phone.
“Okay, but do me a favor and do not tell anyone about it yet. Just hold off until I tell you,” he spoke into the phone. “Thank you, good-bye.”
He hung up the phone and Junsu walked to his side. “Do you need to go back to your office?”
“No, that was just my friend. He’s the policeman in charge of investigating my threat note.”
“They found out who wrote it?”
“Yes, it was just an old employee being idiotic because I fired him. Nothing dangerous.”
“So…does that mean my boss will be closing your case and I’ll have to report to his office for another case?” Junsu inquired.
Changmin tilted his head slightly as he smiled at Junsu’s subtle pout. “I told my friend to not reveal the information yet and pretend that he still hasn’t found the culprit. That means I will still need you as my bodyguard.”
Junsu’s eyes widened as he stared at Changmin. “Really? But…I thought you always went by the rules. You’re really going to keep me on your case?”
“I’ve always played by the rules and that doesn’t seem to be getting me anywhere. I suppose I need to break some rules and make some changes before I lose any chances with you.”
“Changmin…” Junsu looked troubled.
“I broke my own rule by following you around for the past week when you’re the bodyguard who should be trailing me. But I guess you were too distracted by Yoochun…and Yunho to notice,” Changmin paused for three seconds too long before adding ‘and Yunho’.
Junsu frowned at that. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means I’m willing to break rules for you,” the taller man replied.
“No, you’re saying that I’m…”
That was when Junsu’s cell phone rang. He uncovered it from his pocket and looked at the caller ID. Just as he was about to flip the phone open, Changmin’s hand covered it, the cell phone nestled between their hands.
“Junsu, everything I do, I do for your own good. I’m willing to do anything for you because I love you,” he spoke, his eyes serious and Junsu was almost afraid to continue staring into his eyes.
“What’s wrong with you today?” Junsu frowned.
Changmin smiled. “Nothing is wrong. Answer your phone.”
He removed his hand and walked pass Junsu to reenter the lab room.
Junsu scratched the side of his head in confusion. Then he quickly answered his phone.
“Hello?”
“Su-ie!”
“What’s up, Jaejoong?” Junsu voiced, but he actually wanted to ask ‘Do you know what’s wrong with Changmin today?’
But there was no point in asking. Jaejoong wouldn’t know what was wrong with Changmin. He stopped knowing years ago when Junsu had come between Jaejoong and Changmin’s friendship.
“Just wanted to tell you that I won’t be able to make it back for dinner so just have Changmin drop Yunho off later tonight.”
“Wait, why? Weren’t you supposed to come here after work? How was your first day at work?” Junsu questioned.
“It was great. I have something to do after work. Gotta go, Su-ie. Love you, bye!”
◙◙◙◙◙
Changmin dropped Yunho off and when he entered the house, he noted that Jaejoong was not home. He had not seen Jaejoong all day because the beautiful man had headed out the doors early for work.
Uh…‘man’. Just ‘man’. Not ‘beautiful man,’ Yunho reminded himself.
He turned on the lights and realized that today was an awkward day. It wasn’t because he was introduced to Kim Kibum, because he had been hooked up to a buzzing machine, because he had to pee into a cup, or because of whatever else. It was an awkward day because he hadn’t heard Jaejoong’s voice or seen any of his weird antics. It just wasn’t normal for Yunho to go a day without looking at Jaejoong as if the man was the weirdest creature on Earth.
Yunho wondered why he felt this way.
He wasn’t one to mind anyone’s business, but his own. Yet Kim Jaejoong brought out all curiosity in him.
He wasn’t one to step out of his comfort zone and talk to anyone except Yoochun (because he’d grown up with Yoochun). Yet Kim Jaejoong had evoked more words from Yunho than any other stranger when they would sit in the kitchen in the middle of the night for the ‘late, late second dinner.’
It was simply because Kim Jaejoong was different from anyone Yunho has ever met. That was the reason, simple…and uncertain.
“I’m home!” he heard the voice from outside and found himself running out of his room.
But Yunho stopped himself in time. He stood in the middle of the hallway, angry at himself for reacting like that and calming his nerves. Then, casually and coolly, with eyes of indifference, he walked the rest of the way to the living room.
He couldn’t act calm and indifferent when he saw Jaejoong.
“What happened to you?” Yunho blurted out as his wide eyes remained on Jaejoong’s hair.
“Do you like it? It’s called platinum blond,” Jaejoong fidgeted with his bangs.
“But…how? Are you…secretly a martial artist too? Which sect are you learning from? Who is the powerful master that you are learning from?” Yunho interrogated.
“What? No, no, I don’t know martial arts. I’m not under any sect or cult or whatever either. All that weird martial-arts-skill stuff isn’t what turned my hair from black to…”
“…white.”
“It’s not ‘white’. It’s platinum blond.”
“Platinum blond?” Yunho pronounced carefully.
Jaejoong had taken off his shoes and walked to sit on the couch. “Yep. I went to get it done after work today. It took a little longer than I expected, but the people at the shop were willing to close late to get it finished for me. Do you like it?”
“Is there a reason why you went to…get that done to your hair?”
Jaejoong’s expression said that there was a reason, but he would lie about it, “Nope, no reason except that I felt like it.”
Yunho wanted to push further, to know why Jaejoong was lying. He didn’t know why he felt like Jaejoong was lying, but he felt it.
But he didn’t push further. He always spoke with finality in his tone, never telling the others anything about himself. So he had no right to be forcing Jaejoong to open up to him.
It was only fair; even if it bothered Yunho to no end.
◙◙◙◙◙
“Give me your money!”
“No! Please! We barely make enough to cover our expenses!”
“That’s your problem!” the large, bearded man grabbed onto the skinnier man’s shirt and lifted him off the floor.
Junsu sighed as he and Yoochun walked pass that scene. A bully was demanding ‘territory money’ from the store owner next to the little restaurant they were at.
The shopkeeper handed them the take-away food that Junsu had ordered. Junsu paid and checked the change that the shopkeeper returned to him. When he had the food and the correct change, he tugged at Yoochun’s arm, “Let’s go, Yoochun. Yunho’s in the car waiting. We need to get you two to Kibum so I can head off to Changmin’s place. He has a meeting today.”
Yoochun didn’t budge. Junsu saw that he was watching the bullying.
“From the end of the street, I have heard the bully’s voice, demanding money from every shop in his path,” Yoochun spoke in that deep voice of his.
“That’s how it is in this area. The only reason I come is because the food here is awesome,” Junsu explained.
“Why is it allowed to continue?” Yoochun said again, his eyes still watching the scene in the shop.
“We…we don’t have the money. Please, just give us another day,” the skinny store owner begged the large bully.
“Because the police haven’t caught him yet and because he’s a giant. No one will stand up to…”
Junsu was wrong. Yoochun, who looked puny compared to the bully, would stand up to him. Junsu was throwing cuss words in his mind as he wondered if he should follow Yoochun or find something to knock him out with.