It was a bright day.

            The birds chirped, the sky was blue, it was nice and warm, and Joon didn’t want to wake up.

            The bed was comfortable enough that he was considering camping inside under the sheets. It was a lovely plan, and he would have gone with it if he hadn’t been suddenly crushed under a pile of bodies.

            “Wh-what?” he cried, startled. He had to move his head to a weird position that would surely give him neck cramps to avoid having someone’s foot shoved in his mouth.

            Ewww, disgusting, he thought.

            “Give it back!” Sehun’s voice rang through the room, from where he was leaning on Taemin, who had flung himself on top of Joon while holding the other boy’s phone out of his grasp.

            “Jongin, get it!” Taemin called, and threw the phone across the room just in time before Sehun jumped on top of him too, causing Joon to nearly choke to death.

            The dark-skinned boy caught the phone mid-air, saving Mir (who had been roughly woken up too) from having a head concussion from the near-collision. “The hell, guys? What are you doing?” He said, shoving Kai away from him.

            “Good morning, everyone!” Kai smiled at the owners of the room. “Taemin and I are on a mission to know what had Sehunnie-baby smiling like an idiot a while ago.”

            “I’ve told you, it was the pictures from my birthday party!” Sehun said, looking frustrated. Well, hey, at least he didn’t have his poker face on.

            The boy threw himself at the other EXO maknae, finally getting his phone from the other boy’s grasp. “There, see?” He showed his boyfriend the photos he had been looking at in bed this morning, before the twins decided to bully him a bit.

            They stopped at a picture of Sehun, wearing a crown, getting hugged by both Kai and Tao, who had given the boy a teddy bear as a present but had taken it hostage afterwards (Tao liked cute things and he wanted the teddy bear because it was adorable, so he’d taken it to his own room), when Joon spoke:

            “And who’s that?” he said, pointing at Tao.

            The other four boys turned to look at him. “Don’t mind him, guys, he’s stupid”, Mir said, giving his fellow member a disapproving look.

            “That’s Tao, hyung.” Sehun said. He raised his chin and looked down at the dancer, feeling super offended. “I can’t believe you don’t know him.”

            Joon had the decency to look ashamed. “Well, there’s like a million of you EXO guys, how can you expect me to know all of you?” He answered, sheepishly.

            Minho’s voice rang from the main floor. “Taemin! Manager-hyung is calling for you!” He called.

            “Coming!” The maknae said, jumping from the bed and running downstairs.

            “Well, that was an interesting wake-up call”, Mir said, getting up too and starting to sort through his clothes. Kai nodded, “Well, that’s us. Now come on, hyungs. Get dressed and come down for breakfast.” He said, pulling Sehun by the hand and dragging him out of the room. The other boy said goodbye and tucked his cellphone in his pocket. 

            Q: How’s the living together going? Is it different from it being just your band mates?

            LJ: It was… (Stares off into the distance)

            -

            HK: I heard there was a boycott on Sehun’s phone this morning. Thankfully, they didn’t invade our room, so it was pretty much like any normal morning with Jonghun.

            -

            DH: It’s really cool! I’d never shared a room with Eunhyukkie, and it’s awesome! We can spend all day together now! It’s the best! (Smiles) But we’re kind of alone; everyone else is in the main house… That feels a bit lonely… But it’s okay, I guess! I’ve got Eunhyuk!

Yunho had slept like a baby the night before.

He’d slept all night, without anything to disturb his sleep and wake him at three AM.  He was happy for that.

He hadn’t been as happy when he’d woken up and noticed a black mop of hair next to him. Jaejoong was still asleep, so thankfully he wouldn’t get glared at for having thrown his arm over the other’s waist in his sleep.

He carefully lifted his arm and got up, got in the shower and then got dressed in a tracksuit to go for a run, like he did every morning (“One’s got to keep his six-pack, man”, Changmin had said the first day he’d dragged the leader up for a run).

Jaejoong had slept like a baby the night before.

He’d slept all night, feeling warm and comfortable. It made him remember those days when he had someone to share his bed with.

Of course, he’d woken up alone, like always.

He envied Junsu and Yoochun so much, for always having someone there for them. He didn’t even have his best friend Hyun Joong there to talk to. It .

But for some reason, the bed was warmer than usual.

Weird, he thought. That was when he remembered where he was, and who had he slept with. Ah, .

Yunho wasn’t there, and he didn’t hear the shower running, so he assumed his roommate wasn’t there. He got up, just before his cellphone went off. He had set up an alarm the night before, to remind himself of his schedule.

Butterfly, the alarm said. 5:30 AM.

Ah, yes. I’ve got the photo-shoot in an hour, he thought, grabbing a sweater from the feet of the bed. 

It was 7 AM when everyone, except for Jaejoong and Taemin, was sitting on the kitchen chairs having breakfast. Some, like Yunho and the Infinite maknaes, had been up since 5 AM or earlier, so they were already primped for the day. Others, like Jonghyun and Minho, still had to pay their stylists a visit.

It did show who were the busy ones and who were currently unemployed.

“Good morning”, Taemin’s voice called from the front door. “I’ve brought goodies.” He smiled, stepping in the kitchen and holding up a plastic bag. He set it on the counter and started taking koreanized-croissants from it.

Hyukjae looked up from his soup bowl. “Wow, hey, pastries!” He went to grab one. “I’ve tried countless times to get someone in our dorms to buy them, but no one listens to me.” He said, making Donghae turn to look at him.

“Well, excuse me, but you can go get them yourself, mister.” The fishy said.

“Yes, I could, but since you were the one doing a cake drama, you should know how to make these”, he waved the croissant in front of Donghae’s face.

Jonghun laughed. “A cake drama? What the hell is that supposed to mean, hyung?”

Taemin brought everyone’s attention back to him. “Anyway, I thought I’d bring you some (I stopped by the SHINee dorms to bring some to Onew-hyung) to celebrate that I’ve gotten cast in a new drama.” He smiled proudly.

Everyone turned to look at him. “Really?” Minho smiled. “Congratulations, Taeminnie” He went to hug him.

Everyone clapped to congratulate the boy. “You go, hyung!” Kai said, raising his voice over the clapping sounds.

“So, what is the drama about, Min?” Key asked when the applauses died down.

Taemin smiled smugly. “Ah, hyung, that’s a secret. I can’t tell you until all the main characters have been cast.” He said.

Key looked a bit disappointed. “Oh. Well, okay. Secret policy, I guess. But do you know who’s being cast, or do you not know anything?” He asked.

The maknae nodded. “I do know who’s being cast, but if I say it, it’s going to ruin the surprise for them.”

“So it’s someone here, isn’t it?” Yunho said, smiling gently. He always felt much better after a run, like he’d cleansed himself of any sadness or discomfort he might have felt during the night.

“Ah, no, hyung. Can’t tell.” Taemin smiled enigmatically.

Just then, Jaejoong’s voice sounded from the house’s entrance. “Can’t tell what?” He said, taking his shoes with one hand. “What are you talking about?”

Hongki, who still didn’t like Jaejoong much, frowned. “Nothing. Why would we have to tell you anything?” He said, defensively. Jonghun clamped a hand on his mouth just a second later, to stop him from saying anything more stupid.

The vocalist’s answer irritated Jaejoong. “What the hell? I was just asking.” He said. “Why are you being such an to me?” he continued.

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe because you nearly made Yunho-hyung cry two days ago and haven’t talked to anyone else until this morning. Why would you suddenly be interested in us now, hyung?” He said the last word with disgust.

Yunho, hearing Hongki talk about him, raised his eyes from the table. He noticed, when he looked at Jaejoong, that the singer had gone this morning and dyed his hair blond.

“Come on, guys, don’t fight” he said, still looking at Jaejoong. Eunhyuk and Donghae, who didn’t like to see his longtime friends fighting, nodded quickly in agreement.

Jaejoong turned to look at him. “And what is it to you if we fight?” He said. “It’s not like we’re anything to you, so shut up.” He continued. Everyone turned to look at each other, surprised.

No one ever told Yunho to shut up.

You just didn’t.

Sungjong noticed how everyone was frowning at Jaejoong (who, he’d noticed, was blond now, not that it mattered at the moment), but still, no one said anything. He supposed it was because no one really knew where the TVXQ members and ex-members stood, in terms of each other.

Well, someone did say something, actually.

Taemin did.

“Okay, okay. Stop it right now.” He raised his hands and went to stand between Jaejoong and the table where the rest of them were, including Yunho. Minho and Kai, both knowing what SHINee’s maknae was capable of saying, cringed, hoping Taemin didn’t make things worse.

“What the hell has crawled up your and died, Jaejoong-hyung?” Taemin said. “Because you’re acting like a for no real reason.” He continued. “Yes, Hongki doesn’t like you and he snapped, but you should tell him to shut up (no offense, hyung), not Yunho-hyung.”

“So what?” Jaejoong said. “He was trying to get into something that doesn’t involve him, like he always does.” He pointed at Yunho, behind Taemin.

“Oh, yeah. Like you know him any better than we do, right?” Taemin laughed. “Because you’ve seen him so much in these four years, haven’t you?”.

“And you know what?” The maknae continued, raising his voice. “It’s only been two days, but I’m fed up with how you’re treating Changmin. You’ve only seen him for two hours at best, and he didn’t even dare to get close to you because of your attitude.”

Jaejoong wanted to say something in response, but Taemin didn’t let him.

“No, I don’t care about what you say. If you want to know what we were talking about, I’ve been cast in a drama. Now. I’m going to tell you the plans for today. You’re going to go to your room and try to at least call a truce”, he turned to look at Yunho, who was included in the day’s plans too, “and when you do, both you and Hongki will apologize for snapping at each other, but you’ll only get his apology if you start acting like a decent person and stop making others cower the minute they see you. Changmin adores you, if you can’t already tell by yourself, but he’s also so scared of you that Minho and I have to make sure he doesn’t run for it every time he sees you, which, as I’ve told you, it’s only been two hours. Not enough for a proper reunion, if you ask me.” He moved to grab Jaejoong by his forearm and dragged him to his room.

The singer, rendered speechless, just followed him.

After leaving Jaejoong in his room, Taemin went back to the kitchen, where the shocked faces of everyone except for SHINee and Kai greeted him. “Yunho-hyung. Get your over there and sort things out. I’ll get the room’s keys from Sehun and lock you both inside if I have to, hyung. Now go.” He said, motioning the other dancer to get up. “GO!” He shouted, when he got no reaction from the other.

Yunho finally got up and went to the door. He turned, looking back at Taemin. “That wasn’t necessary, Taemin. I appreciate you looking out for Changmin, but this isn’t any of your business.” He said, frowning at the maknae but still keeping his voice disturbingly calm.

Taemin laughed. “Does it look like I care, if it’s any of my business? Because I don’t, hyung, not one bit. But I’m not going to let your emo attitude affect any of us”, he made a circling motion with his hand, indicating he was referring to the members from the other groups, “so if you don’t do anything about it, I will. And I’m doing it now.” He sat down and placed his feet on the table.

“Oh, and it is my business. Changmin is my family just as much as these guys are,” he pointed at the SHINee and Super Junior members, “so I’m going to get involved. You don’t like it?” He raised an eyebrow at Yunho. “Well, too bad. There goes the last I give about you not liking it.”

...

"It's way too early for this ", Jonghyun muttered.

“Stupid kid.” Jaejoong was mumbling when he heard Yunho open the door. “What do you want, now?” He said, not even bothering to look at the other.

Yunho closed the door behind him. “Taemin said we had to come to a truce or he’d lock us in here.” He said, attempting a smile. Jaejoong, who still hadn’t raised his head, didn’t notice.

“And we have to listen to what the brat says why?” Jaejoong still had to look away from the interesting floor tile.

Yunho laughed a bit. “You haven’t seen him in a while, but I have. He’s so going to do it if we don’t do what he says.”

Jaejoong turned to look at Yunho from where he was sitting at the feet of the bed. The other sat on the red cushioned stools that were in front of the bed. “Where is the shy Taeminnie that used to blink a lot when he got nervous?” He said to no one in particular, smiling lightly.

Yunho smiled too, liking the way Jaejoong’s face lit up, even just a tiny bit, when he smiled. Then he lost his smile and sighed. “Everyone’s changed a lot during these four years, Jae.” He said. The nickname slipped in without him even noticing it. “But if you must know, it’s because of Kai.” He smiled again.

“Kai? What about him?” Jaejoong asked. He’d never really talked with the MC, because even when the boy had appeared in one of TVXQ’s music videos, he’d been too shy to actually carry on a conversation with the idols.

Yunho laughed. “Well, they met, became best friends and, the moment Taemin turned eighteen, and Kai turned seventeen and a half, they both went crazy and wild.” He paused for a bit, remembering Taemin’s eighteenth birthday party. A full-on cake war had been initiated by the twins that day. It was the day that Changmin and Kyuhyun decided they wanted Taemin to join their evil maknae league.

“Yes, well, I don’t like it” Jaejoong answered, but his words were betrayed by the smile he had on.

“You know, he’s not the only one who’s changed.” Yunho said, looking at him. “Junsu would have never done Tarantallegra in SM.”

“Which is why we changed companies”, Jaejoong said, feeling a bit defensive. “We finally get to do the music we love, our own music.” Even if SM keeps screwing us up, he thought, but didn’t say it.

Yunho nodded, as if he was contemplating the idea. “Well, your music does sound very good, if you ask me.” He said softly, still in his own world.

Jaejoong looked at him suspiciously. “Really? You listen to our music? And you think it’s good?”

Yunho looked genuinely confused by the question. “Yeah, why not? Why should I not listen to your music?” He tilted his head a bit to the side, which made him look like a puppy. “Even though I gotta admit, I’ve been a bit fixated with Infinite’s music lately”, he laughed.

“Well, maybe because we abandoned you guys?” Jaejoong asked.

“But you didn’t abandon us, Jae. And even if you did, which you didn’t, I still would think your music is awesome.” Yunho said.

“If you say so… “ Jaejoong muttered. He didn’t like touching the topic of the break-up, so he changed the subject a bit. “Do you want to hear my new song?” He asked, hoping that would hide the fact that he thought the break-up was his fault. “I just finished recording it today.”

“Yunho looked at him, surprised. “Yeah, sure. I’d love to.”

So Jaejoong went to get his iPad and his headphones, and showed his ex-boyfriend his new song, Butterfly.

When the song ended, the only thing Yunho could say was “Wow”.

“So I’m guessing you like it?” Jaejoong smiled.

“This is amazing. Like, really incredible. Just, wow.” Yunho looked so amazed, which made Jaejoong laugh. Yunho found he still liked Jaejoong’s laugh. “You make it sound like I’m not capable of doing ‘incredible’ things” He said. “Which, by the way, is Junsu’s song, not mine.”

“Ha, ha. I know that.” Yunho said.

“I was going to make a lame joke about you knowing things, but I’ll shut up”, Jaejoong laughed.

“Ah, yes, please keep those kind of jokes to yourself”, Yunho said, trying and failing to sound severe. “But really, Jae, this song is so good.”

“Aw, thanks.”

“So, going back to Taemin, do you think we can try and call it a truce?” Yunho asked hopefully. He really didn’t want to spend his time feeling uncomfortable because of his history with Jaejoong.

“You know what? Yes, let’s call it a truce.” Jaejoong stuck his hand out for Yunho to shake it, which the other did. “So, we’ve got an agreement. That doesn’t mean I’ll stop bullying you sometimes, though” He said.

Yunho laughed. He did a lot of laughing when he was alone with Jaejoong, apparently. This hadn’t changed in the four years they hadn’t seen each other.

“Deal.”

“Wait, me?”

“Yes, Myungsoo. You.” His manager said.

He and Sungjong had gone to the training room in their company’s building like always to train with the rest of Infinite, but he’d been called away half an hour in the practice.

“Oh. Okay.” He said.

“Do you not want the job, Myungsoo?” The manager asked. “Because you can say so.”

“No, no, that’s not it. I do want the job. You know I love acting. I just thought they would get someone from SM, seeing as it’s produced by them.”

“Well yes, but our company is under SM, so they thought they would cast you too. Are you up to it?” His manager asked.

“Absolutely”, Myungsoo answered.

So I’m the one doing the drama with Taemin. I really thought it would be someone from SM, but yeah, it does make sense. Technically, we’re from SM now too.

“So, what’s the drama about?” He asked. 

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN, YOU’RE GOING TO HAVE TO KISS TAEMIN?” Sungjong shouted during dinner that day, jumping up from his chair and startling everyone.

            Joon’s fork dropped from his hand and he just stood there, with his mouth open like a Donghae fish. Yunho, who was talking to Jaejoong and Jonghyun, hurt his neck because he turned too fast to stare at Sungjong. Minho, who was pouring some water into Key’s glass, dropped the bottle and spilled everything on the table. “WHAT?” He shouted.

            Taemin sighed. “Aaaaaand… they know.”

Hello there!! Laura here!! 

Still haven't mastered the art of tabbing (is that the word?) the beginning of each paragraph, so Sorry Sorry for that.

Now, I wasn't that inspired for this, but I knew I wanted to write and so I did!! It's not as funny, though. I had some mumbo jumbo of thougths all in my head and well, this is what came out of it!! ^^ We're taking a day off in between competition activities!! :D And besides, I wanted to spread the word about Butterfly. Oh, Holy Shisus and Krisus, what a gorgeous song. I'm playing it on a loop since I listened to it for the first time not long ago. It's SO DAMN GOOD!! LIKE IT'S SINGER!! Just so freagging gorgeous!! >///<

Now, please don't hate me for making Jae have a bad attitude. It will get better, like you've seen here. Since I have absolutely no idea how long this fic is going to be, I don't know if that was too fast or not... Tell me what you think. BUT!! It's not over yet, the drama!! We still don't know (well, I do) what is going on with Changminnie (I LOVE HIM SO MUCH) or how Yunjae are going to tackle on the truce they've arrived to. Let's just hope for the best ^^

Well, I didn't make you wait long for this chappie, did I?? No, I didn't!! I'm so proud of myself!! YAAAAY!! It's about 100 words shorter than the last one, but on the good side... it's exactly 3333 words long!! And 3 is my favorite number!! YAAY!! 

There, now you know something else about me :D

I've annoyed you enough for this chappie with my ramblings, so BYE!!!!

xoxoxo

Laura