-Zhang Li Yin-

I sat down quietly beside the window, staring at the blue sky above the plane. I felt my hands still shaking, surprised that Junsu and Eunji actually came to the airport. When I saw them together, all the memories that I’ve been trying to forget has come back to me. I tried to calm myself down, it seemed to have worked. I wasn’t as mad as I was before. Was I starting to forgive them? Memories of Junsu and I started to flood my mind as people started to pile into the plane. I was still focusing out the window, not knowing that someone took a seat next to me. I turned around and was surprised.

“Jaejooooonnnggg?!!” I screamed.

All Jaejoong did was just smile back at me as he was supposed to be sitting down next to me. I was shocked to see Jaejoong taking a seat down next to me when he should be on his way back to the hotel. He never told me anything about getting on the same plane as me.

“What are you doing here?!” I asked him.

“I felt like I needed a break. And since I’ve never been to China before, might as well as follow you there.” He simply said as the plane started to lift off.

“What about your company and your hotel? Without a boss, the place is going to corrupt.” I stated.

“I’ve already got that handled. Junsu will be taking care of business for me while I’m gone.” He smiled.

“Right! I still haven’t asked you. Why did you tell them I was leaving?!” I asked with a angry tone.

“They have the right to know. And plus, the reason to why you are going back to China is because of them. I don’t want you leaving here without saying good bye.” He answered.

“But…but… you know I don’t want to see them.” I whined.

“You didn’t look as bad as I thought you would. It seems like you’re almost over them. I thought you would have shouted and broke down crying in the airport, but you seemed like you controlled yourself pretty well.” He said it like it was something to be proud of.

In a way, I guess Jaejoong was right. I seemed like I handled the situation pretty well. And it didn’t anger me as much as before.

“I still hate you for telling them.” I pouted.

“That’s too bad, because I’m going to be with you for the entire trip, so you better get used to it.” He smirked before covering his eyes with the sleeping cap.

I let out a sigh as I turned to face the window once again. Four hours until we reached China. That meant four hours for me to think things over and think of an excuse to tell my grandma why I’m bringing a boy home.

“This is great...” I mumbled as I saw Jaejoong’s chest heave up and down in a continuous beat.

-----Arrival in ShenZhen, China-----

“I still don’t know what I’m going to tell my grandma when she sees you with me.” I groaned as we carried our luggage towards the parking area where we would catch a taxi.

I heard Jaejoong chuckle as a taxi stopped right in front of us. The driver helped us put our luggage into the trunk of the taxi while Jaejoong and I got into the car.

I told the driver the location of our destination and off he went. Along the way, Jaejoong was taking pictures of my beautiful hometown, ShenZhen. It seemed like it didn’t change. Everything was still the same when I left. I think the only thing that changed was me.

When we arrived right in front of my house, I paid the taxi driver and got out to grab our belongings.

“Thank You.” I thanked the driver in my native tongue.

“Wow, your house looks so homey.” Jaejoong commented.

“I know, I’ve been living here for almost my entire life. It really is home. And I’ve missed it, a lot.” I told him with a smile as I grabbed my stuff and walked towards the door. I want to see the happy face on my grandma when she finally sees me back. I still haven’t told her I’ve came back. I wanted it to be a surprise. I took out my keys so I could unlock the door.

“Grandma, I’m back!” I shouted into the house.

I could hear the sound of my grandma’s slippers making its way. When she turned the corner, she was surprised to see me standing by the door with a big smile on my face.

“LiYin… You’re really back. I’ve missed you so much. But why does it seem like you’ve lost a lot of weight? Did something happen when you were in Korea?” She walked to me with her hands against my face, caressing the pale skin that was attached to me. I could see her eyes getting teary as she realized I was finally back.
“Grandma, I’ve missed you too. Don’t worry, I had a great time in Korea.” I laughed to assure her. As I finished my sentence, my grandma looked to my right and finally noticed there was a male species in the house.

“LiYin, this gentlemen is…?” She pointed to Jaejoong. Jaejoong quickly bowed to show respect to my grandma.

“Grandma, this is Kim Jaejoong, he is my friend who I met in Korea. I was wondering if he could stay with us for the time being. Since he has no other people in China.” I spoke carefully.

My grandma took a good long look at Jaejoong before showing a big grin on her face. Jaejoong turned to me with a confused look while I gave him a shrug.

“Yes, of course he can stay. Stay as long as you want Jaejoong.” My grandma said as she continued to stare at Jaejoong with a huge grin.

“Um… grandma, if it’s alright, I’ll bring Jaejoong to the guest room upstairs.” I helped Jaejoong escape.

“Oh yes, go right ahead dear.” My grandma said as I grabbed my stuff and urged Jaejoong to follow me up the stairs.

“You grandma’s cute.” Jaejoong commented once I led him inside the guest room, which was right across from mine.

“Thanks. But she can get creepy at times. I hope she didn’t scare you.” I chuckled.

“She didn’t scare me.” He laughed.

“Well, this is your room. I hope you don’t mind that it’s not very cozy. No one really uses this room unless we have a guest over.” I said as I looked around the room. It was still the same as when I left. Seems like my grandma cleaned it often.

“I don’t mind. And plus, I should be saying thank you.” He smiled as he took a seat on the bed.

Suddenly there came a knock on the door and my grandma stuck her head in with a smile.

“LiYin, can I talk with you for a minute?” She asked.

“You unpack your stuff. I’ll go see what she’s up to.” I said as I left the room and followed my grandma down the stairs.

“That Kim Jaejoong, how did you meet him?” She was eager to know.

“He and his friend lived beside Eunji’s place. And he’s my boss now. He’s also a good friend of mine.” I told her with a little smile. When I said Eunji’s name, I didn’t feel sad at all.

“Ahhh, Eunji… I remember when you two were younger, you’d bring her home almost every and you two would stay up in your room talking about boys rather than doing homework.” She chuckled. I remembered those memories when Eunji would walk home with me and we’d spend the evening talking about boys and school. Those were the best times. Thinking back, I realize how much I miss those times.

“Grandma, those times were way back. It’s all about the future now.” I smiled as I went and grabbed myself a cup of water from the kitchen.

“Future? Oh I can see your future alright. You and that Kim Jaejoong… There must be something more. Why else would he come to China with you?” She gave me a little smirk.

“There’s nothing between us too grandma. He just wants to have fun, since he’s never been to China before.” I smiled at her as I took a seat down next to her on the couch.

“He seems like a nice guy. And he’s really handsome too. You should consider.” She chuckled.

“Haha, yeah right.” I joked along with her.

“Anyways, I’m a bit hungry, how about we go out for dinner tonight instead of staying at the house?” I suggested, trying to change the topic.

“Oh dear, I can’t spend today’s dinner with you. I already have myself booked with the other seniors on the block. You should take Jaejoong out for dinner tonight, show him around. Your car is still in the garage.” Grandma excused herself from having dinner with me tonight.

“Fine, that’s alright.” I smiled as I gave her a peck on her cheek before getting up and going upstairs to tell Jaejoong to get ready for dinner.

“Hey Jaejoong, I’ll take you out for dinner tonight. Grandma says she’s already got somewhere to go.” I knocked on Jaejoong’s door before going in.

“Okay, sounds good to me. I’m getting hungry anyways.” He responded.

“Alright then, I’ll meet you downstairs in half an hour.” I said before shutting the door and going back to my room.

As soon as I opened the door, I remembered the scent. I’ve missed my room so much. I walked up to my wall beside my bed to see all the Polaroid pictures I took back in high school. Each and everyone one of them were pictures of me and my friends smiling and having fun. Many of them consisted of Eunji.

Everything in my room was still the same as when I left. I noticed that my grandma had kept it really clean and tidy.

After grabbing a change of clothes and my towel, I went straight into my washroom to take a quick shower before going out for dinner. When I was done, I blow-dried my hair and went downstairs to wait for Jaejoong. In my surprise, Jaejoong was already sitting down on the couch, waiting for me and talking to my grandma.

“Oh LiYin… I’m sorry you were treated like that in Korea. That man does not deserve you anyways.” Grandma consoled me.

“Grandma, I’m fine. See, I’m not sad. Don’t worry about me.” I calmed her as I glared at Jaejoong.

“I think it’s about time we left for dinner now grandma. And don’t worry, I’m perfectly fine.” I laughed as I kissed her cheek before grabbing my car keys and heading to the garage with Jaejoong right behind me.

“Take your time dears.” My grandma smiled before I drove off.

“Why’d you tell my grandma about Junsu?” I asked Jaejoong once we were on the streets.

“She asked me if something was wrong with you. And since she’s a senior, I can’t lie. I just told her the truth.” He replied.

I stayed silent as I drove to my favorite Chinese restaurant. I wasn’t exactly mad at Jaejoong, but I didn’t want my grandma to be worrying about me.

“Don’t be mad LiYin.” He said with a baby face.

I turned to look at him and couldn’t help but laugh. The baby face certainly worked on me. I’m pretty sure no one could stand holding a grudge against Jaejoong.

“Alright, fine. In that case, you’ll be paying for dinner tonight.” I laughed as we arrived at our destination.

“Finally, normal food.” He smiled as we entered.