“You’re familiar with the group called 360, right?” Jaebeom asked as he leaned back in his chair, arms crossed and a smirk plastered on his face. 

                Youngjae furrowed his eyebrows.  “Yeah, it’s that little teeny bopper duo that Daehyun was managing before, right?”

                “Right.  Jongup and Junhong- though, you probably know them as Moon and Zelo.  Well, anyway, Daehyun got assigned to them when Matoki was ready to start with their debut.  He did a good job- everyone at the office would sing his praises about how he was just perfection incarnated.  And he also managed to keep those two in line so well because he had such a good relationship with the boys.  But then, starting almost a year ago, his relationship got a little too good with Junhong… if you catch my drift.”  Jaebeom tried to contain his smirk from growing into a full-fledged grin when he saw the way that Youngjae’s eyes widened and his jaw dropped open.

                “You can’t be serious.  He… and Zelo… the sixteen year old?”

                “Well, he was seventeen by the time that something started between them.  Apparently they were madly in love and stopped being able to hide their feelings and affections.  Rumors started to spread and eventually they were caught.  The president was furious, but he had to keep it on the down low- I mean, how bad would it look if it came out that they allowed their 29 year old manager to fool around with their seventeen year old talent?  The scandals would override anything they’d ever accomplished.  So Daehyun was forced to leave and I took his place.”

                Youngjae sat there.  He could only gape at the man across from him as his mind processed everything he had just heard.  He felt a tight and painful squeezing in his chest and he knew exactly what it was.  ‘Apparently they were madly in love’.  So Daehyun had been in love with this kid?  Was he still in love with him? 

                “I know it’s not something that you wanted to hear, but I thought that you needed to know.  I saw the way you were looking at him at the party, but… I don’t think he’ll ever be able to return that look.  Not while his heart belongs to someone else.”

                Jaebeom’s words stabbed in his gut and he fought to breathe.  Youngjae stood up from his seat, chair falling back behind him, and clutched his chest as he struggled to catch his breath and clear his head.  “I… I need to get back,” he barely managed to whisper.  He turned toward the exit, but a strong grip caught his arm and he was pulled back.

                “Let me go back with you, I’m worried about you wandering around while in shock.  There’s something else I need to pick up from Daehyun’s office as well.”  Jaebeom couldn’t contain a smile as Youngjae nodded his head.  Perfect.  Now he’d be able to show up in front of Daehyun with Youngjae and piss that miserable overachiever off.  It’d just be the cherry on the icing to his already fabulous day.  The only thing he could think of was just how much he wanted to take something else from that who had always overshadowed him, who had always taken what was supposed to be his.  Even though he had been working at Matoki much longer, Daehyun had been given the manager job over him and he was never going to let the other live that down.  He’d make him pay.

                When the plump lips pressed against his again, Daehyun finally snapped to his senses and pushed the younger boy away.  “Junhong! What are you doing here?!  You know you’re not supposed to be here- we could both get into serious trouble.”  He looked at the tall boy before him and observed his changed appearance.  He had gone from blond, curly hair to silver, straight hair.  He had also grown considerably, though Daehyun never would have thought that possible since the young rapper had been towering over him since even before debut.  All in all he had grown and aged and he looked much more like a man than he did several months ago.

                “Hyung, did you forget what today is?”  The boy pouted out his bottom lip and Daehyun instantly took back what he said about the boy looking grown up.  He felt a pang in his chest as he looked at those adorable features, but he shook it off.  He couldn’t be thinking about those things right now.  Instead he racked his mind, trying to remember what exactly today was.

                “Don’t tell me it’s…”

                “You did forget!” Junhong pouted even more, aiming a sharp and painful punch to Daehyun’s shoulder.  “You’re horrible, hyung!  How could you forget my birthday?”

                “Your birthday…” Daehyun’s voice came out as barely a whisper as he tried to process what had just been thrown at him.

                “My eighteenth birthday, hyung… I’m legal.  They can’t keep us apart anymore.”

                “Junhong, I-“  A different face was flashed in his mind as lips were once again colliding with his.  The image of the chocolate haired actor when they first kissed was clouding all of his senses- he couldn’t think about anything else, not even who was in front of him.  He raised his hands, ready to push the boy off to talk, but a loud shout of “WHAT THE HELL?!” distracted them both.  Daehyun and Junhong jumped apart and looked at the perpetrator. 

                Youngjae and Jaebeom were standing in the office doorway, two very different expressions plastered across their faces.  Jaebeom looked angry.  He was visibly seething and that had obviously been his shout.  But looking at Youngjae, Daehyun felt his stomach plummet.  There was no other word to describe his expression but hurt.  The actor’s eyes flicked between the two, noting their close proximity, and Daehyun quickly took a step back.  But this only seemed to upset Junhong, who took a step forward and grabbed onto him again.

                “Who is that, Hyung?  Is that the random guy you’re working for now?” Junhong shot Youngjae a look of disapproval.  But Daehyun couldn’t answer.  Right now he was too lost in his own head, trying to comprehend everything that was happening, everything that he was feeling.  Junhong was suddenly in his office, kissing him, on his birthday.  But then there was Youngjae, standing there looking hurt.  Not to mention who exactly was standing next to Youngjae.  Despite everything else going on, Daehyun couldn’t help the aggravation of seeing Jaebeom standing so close to the younger man.  What were they doing together anyway?

                Before he could make sense of anything, Youngjae was out the door.  Daehyun moved to chase after him, but a strong grip quickly pulled him back.  “Where are you going, hyung?”

                “Junhong, what the hell are you doing here?!” Jaebeom growled, eyes narrowed as he looked at the two.  This was definitely not what he had been expecting to find when he came back to the office.  “You know you’re not supposed to be talking to his e.  Go home right now.”

                “You can’t make me!” Junhong shouted back, his grip on Daehyun never relenting.  “It’s my birthday today!  I’m eighteen and you can’t make me do anything anymore!  I can be with Daehyun hyung if I want and you can’t stop me.”

                Jaebeom let out a low growl, ready to rip into the kid in front of him.  Though he’d never admit it out loud, he was definitely feeling threatened seeing the two of them together again.  He had worked hard to get Daehyun’s job and he wasn’t going to let the take it back.

                “What were you doing with Youngjae?” Daehyun’s voice caught his attention and he snapped back.  His smirk reappeared when he noted how agitated the other sounded.  Good, at least that was going right.

                “I was bringing him back from our date.”  Daehyun’s eyes widened as he stared at the blond in disbelief.  “I should go give him a kiss goodnight.  Junhong, you need to go home.”  Before either could retort, Jaebeom was back out the door.  Daehyun moved to follow again, but Junhong refused to let him go.

                “Hyung!” The younger cried and Daehyun’s attention finally turned back to him.  Junhong looked close to tears with his watery eyes and trembling lip.  “Why were you looking after that guy like that?” 

                “I-“

                “Youngjae?”  Jaebeom stuck his head into dressing room and spotted the actor curled up on the couch.

                “Go away,” Youngjae sobbed, but Jaebeom didn’t listen, and stepped inside the room instead.  He moved over to the couch and kneeled down next to Youngjae, placing a hand on the crying boy.

                “I’m so sorry that you had to see it like that, but… now you know why Daehyun could never love you.”  Jaebeom tried to make his voice as soothing as possible, but inside he was seething.  What was Junhong doing here?  Since they had all been on break he had forgotten that it was the brat’s 18^th birthday today.  But like hell was he going to let Daehyun get the upper hand on him again- he had worked too hard to get rid of him the first time.   As he looked down at the boy crying on the couch, he realized that he might have a chance to ruin that bastard for good and get his own chance in the spotlight.

                “What’s your relationship with him, Hyung?”  Junhong’s expression was full of confusion and betrayal and Daehyun couldn’t stop the wave of guilt that washed over him upon seeing it.

                Junhong may have been young, but he wasn’t stupid.  He recognized the look on Daehyun’s face when he looked at the actor and it made Junhong sick.  He had been in love with his hyung ever since 360 had been formed and Daehyun was assigned as their manager.  Even though Daehyun was significantly older, he had never seemed it.  Ever since the get go, he had been fun and had been able to relate to the young stars in ways that none of the other workers had.  Junhong had been going through a hard time- he had been taken away from his family and moved into the dorms at such a young age.  But whenever he had cried or felt down, Daehyun had been there to support him and cheer him up. Even though he was close friends with his partner, Jongup, it just wasn’t the same as having someone older and wiser sit with him and tell him all the things that he needed to hear and let him cry on their shoulder. Soon, his heart would pound whenever the older man was near and he worked as hard as he possibly could to become a better dancer and rapper, all to make Daehyun proud.  Although performing had always been his passion and had filled him with joy, he found that it started to lose meaning unless Daehyun was there to smile and praise him.  His manager had become his raison d’etre, his everything.

                It had taken well over a year for him to convince Daehyun to see him as someone other than his kid brother.  He had worked hard to stop seeming so childish and immature.  Instead of spending their evenings together crying about missing his family, Junhong instead tried to talk about more mature things and to woo him.  It eventually seemed to work as brotherly pats on the back became soft caresses down his shoulders and arms and Daehyun started to sit just a bit closer so that their thighs touched and he would softly brush the curly hair from his forehead.   Junhong had eventually confronted him about it and confessed.  He was initially devastated when Daehyun looked and him with horror and immediately turned him down, but Junhong wasn’t one to give up on anything and pushed forward.

                  But even after Junhong had forced Daehyun to come to terms with his feelings and confess to seeing him as something more, it had taken the elder far too long to actually do something about it.  Daehyun had been obstinate that this wasn’t right- he was far too old for Junhong (illegally old), he had said, and he also didn’t want to jeopardize their business relationship.  There were too many dangers, too many futures at stake, and Daehyun was too sensible and moral to give in, no matter what his personal feelings were.

                Junhong had finally pushed him past all of that, however, and finally won him over.  Daehyun had given him his first kiss in a back dressing room after an awards show.  It had been magical- everything Junhong ever dreamt it would be.  They had just won the award for Best Male Artist of the Year and everyone was ecstatic.  They had all been backstage celebrating afterwards when Junhong felt a light tug on his hand and he was pulled away into the empty room.  Daehyun had congratulated him and told him that he had never been prouder before lightly cupping the boy’s cheek and leaning up to press their lips together.  The feeling had sent sparks through Junhong’s body and he grabbed tightly onto the elder to ground himself from swooning.  He finally had the love of his life and he had never intended to let him go.  Unfortunately the ending had come soon afterwards when the assistant manager, Im Jaebeom, barged into the room and found them.  They had pleaded with him to keep quiet about the incident, but he refused and had even taken a picture for evidence.  He accused Daehyun of being a e and that he’d make sure that he never worked in the entertainment industry again.

                Jaebeom had kept true to his word and reported the incident to the president of Matoki Entertainment.  Daehyun’s punishment probably would have been much worse if a trusted senior manager, Kang, hadn’t stepped in on Daehyun’s behalf.  In the end he was “asked to resign”, but promised that the incident would never be leaked.  This was even more for the benefit of the company to avoid a scandal than for Daehyun’s benefit, but he also had to promise to never speak of it and to never contact either of the boys while they were still underage again.  

                And so Daehyun had disappeared without another word and Junhong had been left heartbroken, his first love had been completely torn away from him.  He had fallen into a bout of depression that not even his best friend and partner, Jongup, could cure and the company had put them on a break when he refused to do any work or practice.  His only solace had been discreetly keeping up with Daehyun’s whereabouts through Kang, as well as counting down to his birthday when he would no longer be underage and the company ban would have no more effect.  He had hoped that Daehyun had been doing the same.  Honestly, he had waited until midnight, completely certain that Daehyun would show up at the door and take him in his arms when the clock struck twelve, but the man never came.  Junhong had waited and waited- not even sleeping- until the evening came and he realized that the elder might not come.  He rationalized that Daehyun was busy with his new job now and decided to come surprise him instead.  In his heart he knew that there was no way Daehyun could be anything other than thrilled to see him.  But now he was realizing just how wrong he might have been.

                “Do you like him, Hyung?”  Junhong’s stomach tumbled and plummeted as he watched the strained expression crossing his hyung’s face.  The man was supposed to deny it, to scream ‘NO!’ at the top of his lungs.  But instead nothing was coming out.  Just an ashamed expression on his face as he averted his eyes from the taller boy. 

                Daehyun stared up at the rapper, unsure of what to say.  What were his feelings?  He’d be lying if he said that there wasn’t anything there for Youngjae- Lord knows he had tried plenty of times.  But now, seeing Junhong standing here in front of him again, everything was becoming more muddied than before as his old feelings that he had tried so hard to suppress were rising once more.  “I…I…”

                Junhong furrowed his eyebrows as he looked down at his hyung.  “No.  I already lost you once, Hyung.  I’m not going to do it again.  I’m not giving you up to him.”

                “Junhong, you can’t-“

                “I’m eighteen now, Hyung.  No one can tell me what to do.  I’m not letting you go again- I can’t stand it.  I’m going to stick around until you come back to you senses.  I’m not leaving until you fall in love with me again.”

                Youngjae trudged into the office the next morning.  He had wanted nothing more than to take the day off but his recent string of truancy had not gone unnoticed and he had important filming that he had to get done today or else he would lose his part.  He hadn’t slept at all last night and he knew the make-up artists were going to give him hell about it.  The only thing he could do all night was toss and turn, with images of the pair he had seen yesterday plaguing his mind.  The images had started with the kiss, which was bad enough, but by the morning they had traversed into very unwanted territory with imagined scenes of the two tangled in a set of bed sheets, and eventually even the two raising a brood of outrageously tall, silver haired children with comically oversized lips and arms.  Even seeing his usual comfort, Joko, had made him want to throw up and he had had to hide the rabbit in the closet to get it out of sight.  He had toyed with the idea of texting Himchan multiple times, but the whole thing was just too embarrassing and he couldn’t bring himself to actually bring the words out and make them visible.

                                After seeing the two together and hearing Jaebeom recount their history, he couldn’t fathom any other explanation to his and Daehyun’s short lived tryst other than that Daehyun had been broken hearted after being torn away from his star crossed lover and that Youngjae had been an easy substitute lay.  But now the brat was back and Youngjae might as well give up any hopes he had ever had of winning the elder over.  Although his feelings had been serious, Daehyun’s obviously hadn’t been.

                The giggles and coos met Youngjae’s ears before he turned down the hall and he turned the corner b with curiosity over what in the world everyone was so excited about.  His blood ran cold and his nails dug into his palms when he saw not what but who it was.  All of the women of the office were circled around that snot nosed, overgrown brat, and standing on tiptoes as he bent down so that they could pet his fluffy hair.

                “I can’t believe it’s really Zelo!”

                “He’s so much cuter in person! Omo! I can’t believe it!”

                “I just want to scoop you up and nibble all over your plushy, wushy, squishy face, yes I do~”

                “Well, I intend to be here for a while, so please take good care of me, Noonas!” The boy giggled and Youngjae secretly hoped that all of the women fell over and broke their faces as they swooned.  Junhong turned his head and when his eyes fell on the older actor, his expression fell.  “Oh.  It’s you.”

                Youngjae growled low in his throat with contempt.  Seriously, who did this kid think he was?  YOUNGJAE was the one who worked here, not him.  Who was he to come here and chum up to everyone and act like he owned the place?

                “What are you doing here?” Youngjae managed through gritted teeth.

                “Waiting for my boyfriend,” Junhong sneered before his attention was caught by something behind the actor.  “Daehyunnie Hyung!”  Before Youngjae could protest, the rapper had bounded past him and tackled the brunet manager who had just appeared.  Youngjae couldn’t bear the sight of the two canoodling and thus took off for his dressing room without a second glance back.

                “Junhong, what are you doing?” Daehyun snapped as the boy glomped him once he stepped onto the floor.

                “I came to work with you today!  I told you that I’m going to stick around with you.”  Junhong grinned ear to ear as he kept his arms tight around Daehyun’s neck.

                “I…uh…I don’t think that’s allowed,” Daehyun replied as he tried to gently pry the boy’s arms off of him, but they wouldn’t budge.

                “It is! I already got the ok from the president.”

                Daehyun gave a sigh.  It wasn’t that he didn’t want the rapper around him, it was just that he needed some time alone to think through all of this- through all of his feelings for the two very different boys.  But that didn’t seem to be happening anytime soon as Junhong dragged him down the hallway toward his office, chattering away about all the plans he had for them.

                Youngjae slammed the door behind him and let out a guttural growl.  What the hell was wrong with him?  Why hadn’t he ripped that little punk’s throat out like he should have?  And even worse, why was he letting someone like Junhong or Daehyun make him feel like this?  What was happening to him?

                He flopped down on his couch and rested his face in his hands.  What was he supposed to do?  The stubborn part of him refused to go down without a fight.  He should just tear the silver haired boy to shreds and tie Daehyun up in his apartment if he had to.  After all, what Youngjae wants, Youngjae gets.  But then, the even bigger part of him was terrified of putting himself out there, letting his feelings be known, and then just be rejected and laughed at.  If he called it quits now, he could end this on his own terms and come out with at least a little dignity left intact.  Maybe it was just better to hand Daehyun over like it didn’t matter…

                He was pulled from his thoughts when he looked up and saw two objects on his coffee table.  His hand went to the large, heart-shaped box and he opened it to reveal an assortment of chocolates and a note taped to the inside.  He set the box in his lap and detached the note.

                Dear Youngjae,

                I’m so sorry for everything yesterday.  I never meant for you to have to see what you did.  But if you ever need anything, you can always rely on me.  I hope to get closer with you in the future.

                Yours truly,

                Im Jaebeom

                Youngjae closed the box and set it back down on the table.  He wasn’t naïve, he knew that Jaebeom was trying to make a move on him.  Normally he’d shut down such gestures but right now the attention was nice and what he needed for his horrifically bruised ego.  He pulled out his phone and penned a quick text to the elder.   

Thanks for the chocolates.  I definitely needed those today.

Once sent, he pocketed his phone and then turned his attention to the other item on the table.  He picked it up and his heart stopped when he recognized the familiar envelope and the familiar print.  His fingers lingered over the seal.  Should he open it or just throw it away?  His curiosity won out and he ripped open the top.  He unfolded the letter and his eyes scanned over the typed words.

                My Dearest Youngjae,

                My heart hurts when I can see how upset you are.  Why are you letting someone like that piece of trash hurt you?  You don’t need him when you have me.  I’ve always been there for you, haven’t I?  Forget about him.  I’m the only person you’ll ever need.  We’ll be together soon enough.

                Youngjae ripped the letter into pieces before tossing it in the trashcan.  He wanted to run to Daehyun to tell him about it but then the thought of that brat being in there, hanging all over him, made him stop.  He couldn’t deal with seeing that.  Not to mention, what would Daehyun care anyway?  Now that he was back with his boy toy he couldn’t care less about Youngjae. 

                In the end he just sat back down on the couch, deciding that it wasn’t worth it.  He picked up his phone and read the reply from Jaebeom.

                Can I treat you to dinner tonight?

                Youngjae’s finger lingered over the reply button.  Jaebeom was obviously coming onto him, and while he enjoyed the attention, was it actually something that he wanted to encourage?  There was no denying that the man was incredibly attractive- he’d have to be blind not to see it- but… he couldn’t look at the blond without imagining a certain brunet instead.

                But then the silver haired boy kissing Daehyun came to Youngjae’s mind and he gritted his teeth.  Yoo Youngjae was not going to let himself pine over someone- especially not someone who didn’t seem to want him in return.  He had too much pride for that.  So he clicked the reply button and typed in Sure, I’ll see you at 7 before pocketing his phone once more and heading off to film.

                “That’s right, just like that, Youngjae,” the director called as Youngjae posed for the CM.

                Youngjae struck his pose, staying in place while everyone finished adjusting the lighting and cameras around him.  It was a pretty easy job- just a few lines for Skin Food’s new face scrub and mask.  Everything was set in place and the director called at him to get himself ready to start rolling.  Youngjae took a few breaths, ready to get into the zone, when he noticed a certain brunet manager strolling onto set, a silver haired giant not too far behind.

                The sight of the two standing there, staring at him, made his jaw clench and he never even registered the director yelling “ACTION!” at him.  He just stared, giving his best death glare to the duo as Daehyun fidgeted uncomfortably and Junhong returned his look with a smirk.  “CUT!” This brought Youngjae back to his senses and he turned his attention to the director.  “Youngjae, what are you doing?  Come on.”

                Youngjae muttered his apologies and got into place.  He couldn’t let those two distract him.  The director yelled action again and Youngjae gave his rehearsed lines.

                “CUT!  Cut cut cut!” The director shouted again, clearly exasperated.  “Where’s your head at, Youngjae?  That’s not how we rehearsed it at all.”

                “Right, I’m sorry,” Youngjae sighed again, giving his head a shake to clear it.

                “Hyung, you seem so tense,” a sickeningly sweet voice said and he looked up to see Junhong pushing past Daehyun and coming onto set.  “You should say it more like this.”  Junhong grabbed one of the extra jars of facemask and held it in front of the camera.  He flashed his cheekiest grin and recited the line perfectly, adding a vomit inducing wink at the end that had all the females on set cooing and squealing.

                “That’s perfect!” The director praised, his eyes gleaming as he looked at the rapper.  “How about you guys do the CM together?  Youngjae, you stand there holding it, and Junhong can say the lines.”

                Youngjae’s face blanched.  “NO.  Absolutely not!  I am not working with this oversized imp.  I. WILL. NOT.”

                “What if we just had Junhong do it, sir?” The assistant director piped up.  “I mean, there’s no need for more than one person for this CM and Junhong does have the paler, more youthful looking skin of the two.”

                Youngjae saw red as he hurled the jar in his hands towards the assistant director.  The crew screamed- it had been a long time since Youngjae had lost his temper on set and they weren’t used to it anymore. He heard someone shouting at him, but he couldn’t have cared less as he stormed off the set.

                 “Youngjae, wait!” The last voice he wanted to hear called for him but he ignored it.  He couldn’t face him right now.  He tried to keep going, but a strong grip caught his wrist and jerked him around.  “What’s wrong?”

                Youngjae’s stomach twisted as the question left Daehyun’s mouth and his forced his watering eyes to meet the elder’s concerned ones.  “Do you really have to ask me that?  What the do you think is wrong?”

            “Youngjae, I-“

            “I’m really that easy to replace, aren’t I?”

              “You know it’s not like that-“

                 “You couldn’t wait to get rid of me and get back to him.  And now everyone here is much happier with him around.”

               “Youngjae, please.  You know it’s not like that.  It’s just confusing right now…”  Daehyun tried to meet  Youngjae’s now averted eyes, but the younger merely scoffed as he attempted to jerk his arm free.  Daehyun wasn’t letting him go, however, and gripped on tighter.  He hated seeing Youngjae like this, and hated even more that he was the cause of it.  He knew he was in the wrong, but he didn’t know the right way to fix it.  “Please, just listen to me.”

              “I don’t have time for this.  I need to go get ready for my date with Jaebeom.”

                 The words hit him and caused Daehyun’s grip to loosen as his face went white and fell slack.  Were Youngjae and Jaebeom a thing now?  No matter what was going on, no matter how in the wrong he was, this was something that he absolutely couldn’t accept.

               Youngjae took the opportunity of Daehyun’s shock to pull his arm free and took off down the hall for his dressing room.   He made sure to lock the door behind him before he fell down on the couch, tears streaming from his eyes.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Author’s Note:

           Hey guys!  I want to sincerely apologize for my delayed absence and this shorter chapter.  As I stated at the end of the last one, my best friends were here from America and we had an AMAZING time.  I can’t even get into all the amazingness that was had (I even converted one into a BABY while they were here!  She’s officially Yongguk biased.) So I didn’t have any time to write while they were here.  Then they left a week ago, but I fell into a pretty bad depression about it and was completely listless and just came home from work and slept all the time.

                I tried to work on this, but it was hard.  I wanted to write more but I knew that it would take me a few more days.  I’m feeling a bit better now and my schedule is going to be HELLA free starting the week after this upcoming one, so expect better and properly timed updates.

                This was mostly background, sorry if it was boring for you. I promise to get back into the swing of things.

                Also, for “my competition”… I have picked commenter #111! (because it’s a fun number) and that person is  gingerlovesasains69!  I’ll message you separately as well for your one shot request.

                As I said earlier, starting soon my schedule’s going to open up considerably, so expect more things like this as I try to keep myself amused at work with  nothing to do.

                Thanks for all your comments and support and waiting so patiently for me.  I love you all!

Until next time,

Dani <3