Jaejoong stared at Yunho as Yunho bit his lips nervously, the phone clutched tightly within his grasp.

"Hello Changmin ah?" he watched him uttered to the phone in fear, "It's me Yunho hyung-"
 

"Ah. Yunho hyung, you say? You mean the Jung Yunho I know? Ah, I see." Changmin butted in, "I forgot who you were for a second there."

 
"Changm-"

 
"Oh. It's okay. Don't bother explaining. I perfectly understand that you just had an insane urge to run out of the hospital without informing any one since it's an extremely normal thing to do. Oh. Go ahead. Follow your instincts. It's what you're trained to do right?"

 
"Chang-"

 
"Don't," Changmin's icy tone freezing Yunho in his tracks, "Don't you dare interrupt me."

 
Yunho clamped his mouth shut, his tail tucked between his legs.

 
"Say hyung, do you not think before you act? Or do you not think at all?" Changmin fired off, leaving Yunho no space to answer, "Do you know how worried Eomonim was about you? How can you leave just like that?"

 
"I'm sorry."

 
"Sorry?" Changmin scoffed, "What's an apology worth if you repeat the same mistake again?"

 
Yunho sighed, the frown on his face deepening.

"I'm sorry." he repeated himself, his head bowed as Changmin's scoldings continued in the background, never stopping once to take a breath. At that instant, Yunho knew; Changmin's lungs’ capacity for air was really legendary. Laughing at his lover's apologetic yet exasperated face, Jaejoong took the phone away from Yunho, mouthing to him that would take care of this.

"Changmin ah," he spoke into the receiver, "Yunho's with me now."

 
"Hyung you really… Eh? What?" Changmin screamed into the receiver, "Hyung's with you now?"

 
Jaejoong paused uncertainly, shocked by the exaggerated reaction of Changmin, "Yes. He's with me now. Is there something wrong?"

 
Changmin remained silent for a while. 

 
"Hyung, you and him..?" he questioned, allowing the words to trail off his tongue.

 
"Yes. We're... Yes. We're together now." Jaejoong stuttered, his cheeks turning scarlet red, confirming Changmin's doubts.

 
Immediately, Changmin cackled; his booming laughter heard over miles away.

 
"And who was the one who hung up on hyung a few days ago huh?" Changmin teased, "And now you're professing your love for him already? I thought you were insisting on your stand?"

 
"Changmin!" Jaejoong protested.

 
"Okay, fine." Changmin stopped his teasing, the smirk still present in his voice, "I'll leave you two lovebirds alone okay?" He laughed.

 
"Just remember, safe is better than unprotected ones."

 
"SHIM CHANGMIN!"

 
"Yes. Yes, I got your meaning," Changmin replied, ignoring the fuming Jaejoong on the other end, "I shall say my fateful goodbyes now. Just remember hyung, take good care of Yunho hyung okay? Especially for tomorrow..."

 
"Tomorrow?"

 
Jaejoong only had the time to repeat after Changmin foolishly before the dial tone rang in his ears, signifying that Changmin had hung up on him. Sighing, he threw the phone back to Yunho whose face had turned a shade darker at the mention of the word "tomorrow". Jaejoong knitted his eyebrows. There it was; another secret present, another thing that he did not know of. It was like the past was haunting him all over again. How many things of his lover that he had no knowledge of? How many things were kept from him, hidden from the light? He frowned. It had always been like that has it not? Yunho had always refused to tell him anything, bearing all the pain to himself, and he, out of spite, had done the same to him, his mouth sealed shut. Jaejoong sighed. They had to move on now. They had to change their actions or the past would just re-enact itself and they would be separated once more because of nothing but selfishness. It was such an irony really! The famous YunJae couple breaking up not because of dying love but overwhelming love. It was a downright contradiction!

 
"Spill it." Jaejoong commanded, catching the look on his other half's face, "What's going on tomorrow?"

 
Yunho flinched at Jaejoong's tone.

 
"Nothing." He denied, acting exactly like what Jaejoong would predict he would do.

 
"Nothing?" Jaejoong mocked, "ing nothing?"

 
Without a hesitation, he stormed to Yunho and looked directly into his eyes. Placing both of his hands on Yunho's shoulders, his gaze bored into Yunho's, leaving him with no space for escape.

 
"I'll ask you again," Jaejoong glared at Yunho, his fury rising within him, "what's going on tomorrow?"

 
Nothing.

 
Staring into Jaejoong's eyes, Yunho desperately wanted to enunciate that single word that echoed deeply inside his heart. Yet, he could not bring himself to lie to Jaejoong, not when Jaejoong was looking at him like that. He sighed. How was he supposed to say it? How was he supposed to even begin? It was a mess of feelings. It was the end of a life. It was the funeral ceremony of his deceased father. How the hell was he supposed to explain to Jaejoong what he did not want to face the most? 

 
His appa was dead on the hospital bed. The face that once glared at him sternly now gone forever! His beloved appa... How was he supposed to articulate those dreadful words? How could he even?

 
"Yunho? What's wrong?"

 
He was the father he had loved the most, the father whom had provided him with everything, the father who had believed in him and the father who had given him hope in what was the weakest moments in his life. How was he supposed to summarise it all into words? He whom had provided him with his love, and he who had rejected and scorned it, how was he to make Jaejoong understand? How was he to even face himself? The crime he had committed was too huge for him to bear, what right did he even have left in living?

 
"Don't," Jaejoong murmured abruptly, hugging Yunho closely and breaking him out of his train of thoughts, "Stop what you're thinking. Don't think. Just stop."

 
"J-Jae," Yunho spoke softly as though he just realised his lover was beside him, "Jae, do you think I'm a horrible person?"

 
"Yunho."

 
"Do you think I deserve to die?"

 
"Yunho! Please."

 
"I just don't know what I am anymore." he spoke monotonously, all the life gone from his voice, "I hurt everyone no matter how hard I try to protect them. I'm dragging everyone down with my problems. I'm causing so much people endless worry. Jae, don't you think it's better if I just die? Everyone would be happier if I'm just gone, right?"

 
"Jung Yunho, Jung ing Yunho, I dare you to say that again."

 
"Jae?" Yunho turned to look at him in shock, his eyes widening at the waves of fury emitting from Jaejoong's being. "Why are you...?”

 
"Why am I what? You idiot! How can you even dare think what you just said? Don't you know how much people love you out there?" Jaejoong jabbed his fingers into Yunho's shoulders, "How can you even think those thoughts of dying? How can you?"
 

"Jae."
 

"How much people out there are struggling to live every day? How much people out there are dying to have your life? How much? Do you even know? How can you devalue life so? Don't you know that the most important thing in life is life itself?"
 

"You listen to me well and hear me carefully. You, Jung Yunho, are not to ever say nor think thoughts of suicide or death ever again you stinking idiot! Have you thought about me? ! Have you ever thought about your other loved ones? What are they to do if you die, Jung Yunho? How can you be of use to anyone if you're six feet under?"
 

"Jae." Yunho uttered dumbly, his mind numbing with shock, "You...”
 

"Shut up! Just shut up! Don't say anything if you're gonna be spouting this nonsense. I rather you not speak at all. Just shut the hell up!"
 

Jaejoong…
 

Yunho's lips curved into a smile at the infuriated man before him.
 

 He still cares for me so much. He still loves me despite all that I did to him. He, who has every reason to hate me, chose not to do so. He, my Jaejoongie, my love... My life...

 
The smile dissipated just as the tears that were welled up in his eyes fell and hit Jaejoong's shoulders. The embrace was snug as Yunho clung to Jaejoong for support, his fingernails digging into Jaejoong's flesh, the desperateness radiating off that single action.
 

"He's dead." Yunho mumbled into Jaejoong's neck, breaking the silence between the pair as Jaejoong struggled to hear Yunho's voice that seemed to escape with the air, "He's dead and I wasn't even there when they pulled the plug."

 
There was utter silence. Staring at Yunho's face of regret, Jaejoong did not ask who, nor did he ask why. Without a word, he simply tightened the arms encircled around his lover as Yunho cried on his shoulder, the overwhelming grief consuming him. It had stunned Jaejoong; the fact that his lover's heart was so fragile and broken and that had evoked all the protective and possessive urges in him. In that instant, the air had shifted and as the night passed on with the silence occasionally broken by Yunho's sniffles, Jaejoong vowed that he would never let Yunho cry like this again.

 
It's no longer you protecting me and shielding me from harm like it was in the past. From now on, I shall do the same for you. You are my other half and the love of my life. You are Jung Yunho and I, Kim Jaejoong, swear to protect your heart for the rest of my life.

Author's Note: Oh gosh. Finally an update right? Geez. I procrastinated for so long even I feel like slapping myself. By the way, next chapter's gonna be the last chapter guys. I hope you guys enjoy this story as much as I do haha. God knows I didn't expect it to garner 200+ subscribers so thank you all who subscribed to my story or/and voted it. :D You have made this lazy person here extremely happy. ^^ As usual, comments are much appreciated and thanks for waiting guys! Love ya. :) (Thanks to betas fairytael and _caxiAhtic_ once again)