Chapter 14
The doorbell rang once.

The doorbell rang twice.

The doorbell rang three times.

Leeteuk tossed on the bed and turned to Angie, who had her arm resting on his bare waist. “Baby,” he groggily called as the doorbell started ringing again. “Baby,” he repeated, nudging her lightly.

“Hmm?” Angie mumbled, snuggling closer to him.

“There’s someone at the door,” he muttered, giving her nose a kiss.

“So you get it,” she said, not bothering to open her eyes. But she could already clearly hear the doorbell ringing incessantly.

“Aish,” he growled, finally getting up to get the door. He put some clothes on as he wasn’t wearing any due to some activities with his wife the previous night (or a couple of hours earlier), and got ready to smack whoever it was that was visiting them at 1:30 in the morning and on a day when he was supposed to be sleeping in too.

Leeteuk padded through the house, his face set in a scowl, half sleepy and half angry with their untimely visitor. He harshly opened the door and opened his mouth to yell at whomever it was when the words died in his throat.

“Baby, who is it?” Angie asked, following after her husband, now wearing a robe. She looked at the doorway. “Kyuhyun!” Angie exclaimed, shocked to see Kyuhyun outside their house. He was drenched from head to foot. He looked like he had been standing under the rain, which had just stopped, for hours. “Come in!” She pulled him inside, not bothering whether her spick and span marble floor was going to be wet and mucky.

They led the magnae to the living room and had him sit down, despite his clothes being soaked. Leeteuk sat down across from him, while Angie left to get a towel and a mug of coffee, as well as to dress more appropriately.

“Kyuhyun, what happened? Where have you been?” the older male calmly asked.

Two days ago, Kyuhyun had come to the office, seemingly normal. He attended the group practice, attended his solo rehearsals, and went to the last shooting day of the music video for Ryeowook’s song.

At around 1 AM the day after that, Leeteuk received a call from Zhoumi, while Angie received a call from Taeyeon. They relayed that Jin Ri was very worried. Kyuhyun still wasn’t home and wasn’t answering her calls. Both relayed the information that Jin Ri told them. They had a major fight, she told him to leave and he left. Apparently, she hadn’t seen her husband since the fight.

Kyuhyun missed his schedules that day. No one had seen him since, not until now.

“I messed up, hyung,” Kyuhyun brokenly confessed, looking at the leader through watery eyes. He bent his head down and ran a hand through his damp hair. “I didn’t know where to go,” he continued, meeting his hyung’s eyes once more. “I just thought…”

“Of course you’re welcome here,” Leeteuk said at once, but looked stern. “But you have to tell me where you were. Everyone was worried sick about you. Jin Ri was—.”

“How is she?” Kyuhyun asked, interrupting him.

“You should be the one to know that first and foremost,” Leeteuk scolded him. He calmed down a bit when he felt Angie’s hand on her shoulder. He leaned back on the seat and closed his eyes for a second so that he wouldn’t start yelling at Kyuhyun.

“Kyu, you should change,” Angie told him, handing him a towel and a clean set of clothes.

Kyuhyun stood up after thanking her then headed to the bathroom. When the door had clicked shut, Angie turned to her husband, whom she could tell was doing his best not to burst out at Kyuhyun.

She knew how conflicted her husband was. When they had visited Jin Ri and saw her the day that Zhoumi and Taeyeon called, they could already feel how heartbroken she was. They knew that the couple had been fighting a lot, but it seemed that this fight trumped all the others that they had had.

“Someone should tell him that what he did was wrong,” Leeteuk said before his wife could say anything. “He should have never left and he should have come home. Fighting is never resolved when the other walks out.”

“Do you remember the way we fought when we were newly married?” Angie reminded him, smiling thoughtfully as she played with her husband’s hair. “You and I walked out on each other a lot.”

He sighed and pulled her towards him so that she was sitting sideways on his lap. “I remember,” he established, kissing her cheek. “But I also remember how wrong it felt every single time.”

“I’m sure Kyuhyun knows that now,” Angie responded soothingly. “But they’re young and they’re newly weds. They don’t know how to deal with fights and misunderstandings.”

“But walking out never leads to anything good,” he muttered regretfully. He looked at his wife.

She frowned when she saw dread in his eyes. “Baby, what is it?” she asked, touching his cheek.

“The way Kyu looked, the way he talked…” He trailed off and looked away, not wanting to say what he was actually thinking. He wanted to believe that he was wrong. But he knew Kyuhyun very well, like he knew each and every single one of the members well, and he had this feeling that the magnae did something... something worse than him not coming home.

“Jungsoo, what are you talking about?” she worriedly asked, touching her husband’s chin so that he would meet her eyes once more.

He then shook his head, giving her a weak smile. “Let’s just call Mi or Hae to pick him up and bring him home,” he told her, avoiding the question.

“You should just call Donghae,” she replied, giving him a curious look, but deciding not to push him for details any more. “It would be good for him and Kyu to talk on the way.”

~ * ~

“I should really hit you, you know.”

“You seem to be in the habit of hitting people these days, hyung.”

“Well the people I hit usually deserve it,” Donghae grounded, glaring at Kyuhyun as he steered the car towards the left to turn a corner.

Kyuhyun sighed and leaned his head back on the headrest of his seat. When he had walked out of the bathroom, freshly showered and dressed, Donghae had already arrived. He had immediately driven over as soon as he got Leeteuk’s call. He firstly felt relieved that their magnae was okay and then he felt angry with him when he remembered what the magnae had done.

“I’m sorry, hyung,” he quietly stated, closing his eyes. He knew he disappointed everyone with his actions. By not coming home, he had shown everyone, especially his wife, how easy it was for him to leave and walk away. He silently berated himself for what felt like the millionth time since he hadn’t come home. He had promised her again and again that he was never going to leave her side but, at the first sign of a problem, he had swallowed all those promises up in one go.

“You shouldn’t be saying that to me,” Donghae retorted, shaking his head. “Did you even ask Jin Ri what really happened?”

“I didn’t have to,” Kyuhyun shot back stubbornly. “Pictures speak a thousand words.”

“So you believe photos someone else gave you rather than your wife,” Donghae summarized, scoffing. “Who gave you those pictures anyway?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Kyuhyun mumbled, looking out of the window, watching the raindrops slide down the glass.

“Of course it matters,” Donghae argued. “You obviously trust this person more than you do your wife, which is saying something, because your number one person should always be your wife.”

“What do you know? Seeing as you don’t even have a girlfriend because you can’t even properly express your feelings to Jessica, who has always been in love with you by the way,” Kyuhyun snapped.

Donghae pursed his lips and gripped the steering wheel tightly as he lightly pushed the brake to put the car to a stop. He watched the stoplight turn from green to yellow then to red, choosing to take the high road and not bite Kyuhyun’s head off.

Kyuhyun bit his lip and mentally admonished himself as soon as the words left his mouth. He knew that it had never been easy for Donghae to express his feelings. Donghae was always afraid of people leaving ever since his father died, hence he was afraid of expressing feelings and have those feelings turned back on. He should have known better than to tell him off on something so sensitive and personal.

“Just so you know,” Donghae, a little too steadily, declared before Kyuhyun could even begin to apologize, his gaze straight ahead as the car started moving again. “Keiji forced Jin Ri into the kiss. She didn’t willingly submit herself to him like you’re thinking. Jessica found them and she stopped him by punching him.”

Kyuhyun squeezed his eyes shut as Donghae recalled everything that had happened. Every word that came out of his hyung’s mouth ingrained in him how stupid he was and how unworthy he was of Jin Ri and her love for him. He believed that she cheated on him when time and time again she showed and told him how she would never do that to him.

Donghae watched, at the corner of his eyes, as Kyuhyun stiffened as he told him what had really happened. He couldn’t help but pity the magnae. Regret wasn’t a fun feeling and he knew that it was eating Kyuhyun up.

Suddenly, Kyuhyun grabbed Donghae’s arm. “Hyung, pull over,” he dictated. When Donghae merely gave him a startled glance, he repeated, “Pull over.”

Donghae complied, hearing the demanding and desperate tone in the younger male’s voice. As soon as the car stopped moving, Kyuhyun got out and stood on the sidewalk. Donghae, not knowing what else to do, got out of the vehicle as well. He approached the magnae and gave him an apprehensive look.

“Kyuhyun, what’s going on?” Donghae cautiously asked. He was confused and a bit worried as to why he was acting in such a way. He was usually so calm about everything.

Kyuhyun faced Donghae, hands on his sides, clenched tightly. “Hit me,” he demanded in a low voice.

“What?” Donghae asked, surprised at his request.

“Just do it,” Kyuhyun insisted. “Hit me, hyung!”

“I… why? I don’t understand,” Donghae stammered, even more baffled as to why his dongsaeng was acting that way.

“I deserve it, hyung,” Kyuhyun told him. Donghae merely blinked. “You said you hit people who deserve it—I’m telling you I deserve it,” he asserted.

Donghae stared at Kyuhyun. The younger male seemed to be struggling to keep himself together. He kept on clenching and unclenching his fists. He bit his lower lip to stop it from quivering. His whole form seemed to be trembling.

“Kyuhyun, what’s wrong?” Donghae wanted to know, taking a step towards him and putting his hands on his arms. “Why are you talking like this?” From what he was seeing, there was something else that had happened that put Kyuhyun on edge.

~ * ~

It was 6 o’clock in the morning and Jin Ri was still awake, waiting for the sunrise. If the dark circles under her eyes were any indication, it seemed that she hadn’t slept since she and Kyuhyun had fought. She didn’t want to sleep because she wanted to be awake when Kyuhyun got home… if he had any plans to. That, and she was afraid of sleeping and then waking up without him.

After a long while of just standing there, the phone started to ring. Grudgingly, she pushed herself off of the railing and moved back to the bedroom to pick up the cordless phone.

“Ri?” the soothing voice of Donghae came through the line.

“Oppa,” Jin Ri greeted without much energy. “You called?”

“I just wanted to ask how things are going,” he asked. “Is Kyuhyun okay?”

“He’s still not home,” she told him with an audible sad sigh.

“What?” he practically yelped. “But we were there at around 3 AM! You mean he hasn’t come inside?”

Jin Ri turned towards the door as soon as she heard it open.

“He’s here, oppa,” she told Donghae and hung up as Kyuhyun walked into the room. Replacing the cordless phone back to its cradle, she took a step towards him and stopped as she took a good look at him.

Kyuhyun looked awful. He was still wearing the same clothes he had on for his schedule two days ago. His shirt was untucked and his hair was a mess. His eyes were red-rimmed, as if he’d been crying or been awake for too long. But what really got to her was the haunted look that was evident in his eyes.

They said each other’s name at the same time. Jin Ri’s Kyuhyun was said in a worried but uncertain whisper, while Kyuhyun’s princess sounded so forlorn.

She took a couple more steps until she reached him. She reached out to touch his cheek, giving him a small but uncertain smile. Seeing him kiss another girl really broke her heart. But she can never stand being in a fight with him for so long and not seeing him for two days. So, even if she still wasn’t over the fact that her husband kissed someone to get revenge on something she didn’t even do, she would make things right with him.

“I’m sorry, Kyu,” she whispered, putting her hand down and staring at their feet. “I shouldn’t have told you to leav—.”

He cut her off by hugging her rather fiercely. He closed his eyes tightly and just pressed her against him, his face resting on the crook of her neck. She gave a quiet chuckle at this and struggled a bit to pull away.

“You don’t have to apologize for anything,” he told her through her neck. “Everything is my fault.” He pulled away and looked at her through teary eyes. “I know what really happened. Donghae hyung told me. I’m so stupid, princess. I’m so stupid.”

Suddenly falling on his knees, he knelt in front of her and wrapped his arms around her legs, burying his face in her stomach. It was then that she felt him shaking as he tried to suppress the sobs that were coming out of his mouth. This greatly worried her so she knelt down in front of him, cupping his face with her hands.

“Seobang, what’s wrong?” she asked, her heart breaking even more at the sight of Kyuhyun looking so afraid and lost. He merely continued sobbing, bowing his head to avoid her gaze. “Kyuhyun, please tell me,” she pleaded, feeling more worried.

“I’m so sorry, Jin Ri,” Kyuhyun sobbed, grabbing both of her hands and kissing them. “I’m so sorry,” he pressed, this time in a whisper.

Kyuhyun had stopped calling Jin Ri by her name ever since they got together. So him calling her that now sent warning bells in her head. And the fact that he was crying so much… Choosing to ignore it, she leaned closer to him and leaned her forehead on his.

“I know you didn’t mean it,” Jin Ri tried to calm him down. “I know you and Hyo Sun are just friends. I believe you. I mean, what’s a kiss right? It’s just a kiss. That’s all.” She moved forward and hugged him tightly then pulled away for a bit so she could kiss him.

He turned his head away, dodging her lips.

“That’s not all,” he said very quietly that if one weren’t paying attention, they would’ve missed it.

But she heard it. Very clearly.

That’s not all.

Slowly, she stood up. This wasn’t something she was prepared for and the first thing that popped in her head was to run. She had moved to turn away, but he stopped her by standing up and grabbing her wrist. There was a desperate look in his eyes, one that begged her not to walk away.

“I didn’t mean it,” he implored, his hand on her wrist tightening.

She closed her eyes and willed herself to believe him.


“You cheating bastard!!!” she screamed and slapped him hard so hard on the face that his head practically twisted around. “How could you do this to me?”

“I didn’t mean it,” he reasoned, grabbing the hand that had come into contact with his face. “I swear. It was an accident.”

Kyuhyun scoffed and Jin Ri turned to him, lightly slapping his arm.

“What are you scoffing for?” Jin Ri demanded with a frown, but a twinkle in her eyes.

“How can you cheat without meaning it?” Kyuhyun asked, giving a furtive glance at the couple who was fighting a couple of feet away from them.

Jin Ri rolled her eyes at her husband and grabbed his hand so she could get away from there before the couple realizes that they’d been watching their fight.

“I don’t think everyone who cheats means it,” Jin Ri stated for the sake of argument, secretly believing Kyuhyun’s words.

Kyuhyun seemed to think about it then finally responded. “I guess,” he said. Then he shrugged nonchalantly. “Doesn’t matter. It’s never going to happen to me. I’m never going to cheat on you.” He grinned cheekily at his wife as he took her hand in his and squeezed it gently.

“You always blurt things out so surely, Kyu,” she chastised him with a chuckle.

“You don’t believe me!” he accused her, frowning a little.

“I know you love me no matter what,” she amended, smiling at him.


When Jin Ri finally opened her eyes, it was filled with tears.

“Please believe me, princess,” he entreated, cupping her face with his hands, forcing her to look into his eyes and see how sincere he was. “I didn’t mean it.”

I didn’t mean it.

Jin Ri looked at Kyuhyun, her husband, the man who was loved by fans all over the world, the man she loved and forced every bone in her body to believe what he said.

She had never loved anyone the way she loved Kyuhyun. He was the person who made her believe in love, that love was enough, that it was worth fighting for. She loved him with all of her being, with her heart and soul.

But loving him and believing him, at that point, were two different things. She couldn’t stomach the fact that he could do such a thing to her when he’d whispered so many promises in her ears even before they had gotten married.

“Princess,” he pleaded.

“How can you cheat and not mean it?” she responded in a voice that was surprisingly steady, throwing his words back at him.

Before he could respond and move, she pushed him away and ran to the bathroom, slamming the door and locking it.

“Jin Ri,” he begged, rattling the door knob and knocking on the door.

Kyuhyun leaned against the door and slid down to the floor when it was clear that his wife wasn’t going to open the door and let him in, burying his face in his hands when he heard her sobbing and throwing up.

He lifted his head up, rested it against the door and stared at the sky through the balcony.

It was nearly 7 AM and the sky was still dark.

He wondered when the sun would rise.

===

If anyone's confused with days after Jin Ri and Kyuhyun's fight, here's something to, hopefully, make things clearer (coz even I got confused as I was writing it--I'm slow like that at times).

Day 1: (evening) Kyuhyun and Jin Ri fights.
Day 2: Kyuhyun goes to schedules normally but doesn't come home.
Day 3: Zhoumi and Taeyeon call Angie and Leeteuk to let them know. Kyuhyun misses his schedules that day, seemingly disappearing.
Day 4: Kyuhyun appears at Angie and Leeteuk's doorstep. Donghae picks him up and takes him home.

So Jin Ri hadn't seen Kyuhyun for two days.

Thank you so much for reading and commenting!!! *huggles everyone*

I HOPE YOU GUYS DON'T HATE ME FOR WHAT HAPPENED. /runs away