Chapter 2: 2015 - Because Sometimes One Needs Protection from the Protector Himself

Breathe in, breathe out. He looked at himself in the mirror, wishing he could erase that strain from his face.

Something curled at the bottom of his stomach, at the prospect of what he might face later this evening, but quivering in fear wouldn't help anyone, much less himself. He shoved that deep guttural nerve away and fixed the collars of his white suit, looking at his own eyes in the mirror. He had no reason to avoid anyone, he did not owe anyone anything.

His makeup artist fussed around him, currently fixing the foundation on his neck with setting powder before blending it with a large brush.

"Are you sure you want to attend the award show?" Geunsuk, his manager cringed as he read the invitation card over and over again on a round table at the corner of the private salon room.

Jaejoong sighed; he was nervous enough as it was without Geunsuk adding oil to the fire. "It's the first invite I've got in months, Suk." Never mind the fact that he had no work in the particular field that could warrant such an invite.

"I don't know..... I just, I've got a bad feeling about this," Geunsuk looked at him, looking every bit as nervous as Jaejoong secretly was. He knew that Geunsuk was thinking the same thing; that it was fishy that every other award shows had neglected to invite him, except for this one. Especially since the award catered to the film industry, which means that he, inarguably the biggest action star in the past decade, would be there, and would most probably be lifting the Daesang at the end of the award show. Jaejoong inwardly groaned, imagining the camera rudely panning to his own face to showcase his reaction to the entire country; where every range of reaction, be it polite joy or calm indifference would earn him another round of scolding from Jung Yunho's legion of fans. Perhaps, that was the reason why the organisers bothered inviting him on the first place.

It had been six months since the shocking divorce and people were dying for the follow-up drama.

Geunsuk drove him to the venue, where his car waited in line to reach the red carpet that he would walk upon.

Flashes of cameras and the sound of cheering of fans overwhelmed the patch of road in which celebs' cars were now lining on. The venue, the National Theatre of Performing Arts stood imposingly at the end of the road, brightened by artificial lights.

And right there, by the gate leading up to the entrance of the building was the assembled red carpet.

Their black van, flashy during the day but rightly discreet at night queued up behind other celebs' cars. Geun Suk babbled about everything as they waited for their turn to walk the carpet; from the sleeper hit indie movie that had gained critical acclaim and was likely to win big to the dramatic love triangle between an idol-actor and his on-again-off-again-and-currently-on-the-off-part ex and his new girl, a newcomer actress. Jaejoong zoned him out discreetly, his nerve jittering the longer he waited. Like Geun Suk, he too was suspicious of this invitation. Why had they invited him? Was it really because they wanted to profit from the scandal, or was there something more sinister behind this? What if he got on to the red carpet only to be told that he wasn't invited on the first place, that too, right in front of the legions of reporters waiting like vultures? Just imagine the headlines tomorrow. He would look like a fool in front of the entire nation; or worse, a gate-crasher. And netizens hated nothing more than an attention-seeking gate-crasher.

When his turn came, he took a deep breath (while Geunsuk fussed about his hair) before getting off the car. The flashes from the camera grew wilder when people realized who he was.

"Jae, over here!" a reporter he knew from Mid-day News called.

"Over here!" a stocky reporter called.

"Are you here with a date?"

"What do you feel about the rumors of your ex dating Bae Ri Na?" a notorious reporter from Entertainment Metro bravely asked.

"Did he cheat on you? Was that why you divorced him?"

"Do you any new projects lining up?" asked a tall reporter wearing a glasses.

Jaejoong paused momentarily at the sight of him, before walking ahead while bowing with a diplomatic smile, "My representative will release statements for my upcoming projects in due time."

Jang Geun Suk waited for him at the entrance of the venue, flashing him a thumbs up.

Jaejoong joined him as they walked into the venue. Now that he had passed one hurdle, his stomach clenched at the prospect of facing another.

~~~~~~~~~~

"'Do you have a new project coming?'" the senior reporter mimicked him, except his voice a few pitches higher like a school girl. "The guy just gave us the biggest bloodiest scandal in the history of the industry and this is his first public appearance ever since said scandal and that was what you asked him?! You stupid bas*ard!" The senior hits him in the head angrily.

Shim Chang Min hung his head low, scowling when the senior smacked him in the head.

"What? Did it hurt? You should've asked him a proper question! I thought you went to school together, why were you holding back! Ask him about the divorce! Ask him if he caught Jung Yunho cheating on him! Ask him for something eye-catching, something scandalous! Why did you ask him about his next projects? They would have told us that in due time even without us asking! If you are going to be this way, you should go to the World Affairs or Economy! You are not suitable for Entertainment! Ah- this useless kid. Your's was the only question he answered too," the last part was muttered to himself as the senior stormed off angrily.

Chang Min scoffed as he looked at the senior's retreating back, taking off his glasses in frustration, "Ah, why is he getting angry at me? If he wanted to talk about the divorce, he would have, even without me asking!"

Then, he turned towards the theater, his face slowly softening. It had been a while.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Jaejoong tried his best to maintain a poker-face, despite the amount of interest he was garnering from everyone he was passing by.

His stomach clenched tighter as the door to the venue hall loomed closer. Dread filled his heart, which he was sure, showed on his face. He was never a good actor.

Geun Suk pushed open the door, which led to a huge auditorium bustling with people and staff. The camera crews were waiting on standby for the ceremony to begin; some of them turned towards him when he entered, even the PDs. Fans have already filled the seats. This was a sight he never thought he would miss.

"You will be sitting on Table 13, with the actors from 'The Reckoning'. Park Hyunwoo, you personally know him right? The kid who cheated on his ex-girlfriend with his new girlfriend, or is it the other way around?" muttered Jang Geun Suk thoughtfully.

Jaejoong naturally knew him. In fact, they had been gossiping about him just minutes before, inside their car. He was popular amongst teenagers for his gentle-handsome face and soft charms. He remembered the kid overzealously greeting him years back, when the kid had just debuted, bright-eyed, spring-in-the-steps and all.

"Anyway, I will be waiting back-stage. Message me if you need anything," said Geun Suk. Jaejoong nodded at him.

An older actor was already sitting on Table 13, a supporting character from 'The Reckoning'.

Jaejoong bowed to him when he reached the table, one that the senior courteously returned.

"It's been a while," the good-natured senior actor, Pyo Kang Soo remarked as he sit back