CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Realigning The Lost Stars.Interrogators.
MID SEPT 2011
YOONA'S POV.
It was a beautiful peaceful autumn morning; the warm gentle sunray flittered through the sheer day curtain into the quiet SNSD household as the birds began chirping a soft melodious tune. Nestled under the comfy comforter, I was somewhere in between the exquisite state of blissful sleep and being conscious, perfectly contented to spend my whole morning snuggling in bed. Today was one of the rare days where I was completely free of schedules and I had the perfect plan for this godsend break; a good part of the day was to be spent simply lazing in bed along with a good read and a cup of hot tea before going back home in the evening to have dinner with my family... At least, that was the plan until a certain diva called and demanded for me get out of bed instantly to join him for brunch at some restaurant.
"Finally, I thought that I was going to die starving while waiting for you." complained the idol the minute he saw me trudging up the flight of stairs that led towards the private, more secluded second floor of the restaurant.
I scowled slightly at the diva who was comfortably seated at the corner booth, away from any potential prying eyes. "Yah, just be thankful that I'm actually willing to meet you despite the short notice, Heechul oppa."
Rolling his eyes, Heechul merely waved his hand as a gesture to dismiss my previous comment, "Blah blah blah. You're the one that should be thankful that I chose to meet up with you on my precious break from the army. Eat up, this place serves the best American breakfast and muffins."
"Speaking of the army, are you coping well oppa? And, are you sure we're able to finish everything? This is a whole lot of food." I asked the seemingly unbothered man as I eyed the plates of food on the table, as much as I was an avid food monster, the amount of food on the table seem a tad overwhelming for a party of two.
"Oh, we'll be able to finish it alright. Come on, dig in. You're gonna love the food." answered Heechul lazily with a smirk.
Heechul was right; the American breakfast here are to kill for, I was onto my second serving of scrambled eggs when a familiar handsome man sporting a neat but stylish hairstyle plopped himself down onto the seat beside Heechul.
"Sorry about being late, the drama filming ended really late last night so I overslept."
I choked on my scrambled eggs upon the intrusion of the newcomer while Heechul merely waved his hand lazily in a dismissive gesture.
"Omo, are you okay Yoong?! Water, drink some water!" Jaejoong flew to my side immediately, bringing a cup of water to my lips as he gently patted my back, his frantic mother hen mode on full swing.
"How-How... you two... friends... when?!" sputtering between breaths as I struggled to swallow the eggs that I choked on.
"You didn't tell her about the meet up today?" questioned Jaejoong with a disapproving frown, knowing that Heechul's little act was deliberate.
"And spoil the fun? No way." replied Heechul with his trademark Cheshire cat-like grin.
"You are impossible. I am going to the loo, get Yoona another glass of ice water would you?"
I stared disbelieving at Jaejoong's retreating back before turning to the mischief-maker whose mouth was quirked up in an amused smirk.
"How...When...?"
"You mean when were you planning to tell me that you and Jae made up? Or the fact that you met with Junsu two months back?" retorted Heechul, his amused expression changing to a solemn one, a facial expression reserved only when the latter was absolutely serious or livid.
"I-I..."
"Why didn't you tell me about that April night? I've been waiting for you to come to me on your own for close to five months now. Could it be its because you couldn't trust me enough to keep that secret for you?" asked Heechul softly, a pinch of hurt evident in his tone.
"Ani! Its just... I don't know, I didn't know how to bring up the topic and I wanted to reduce the chances of the CEO finding out. I only told Soshi, I didn't mean..." my voice trailing off towards the end, well-aware how much of a feeble excuse my explanation sounded despite it being my honest initial intention. My guilt intensifying since I knew from the bottom of my heart that I should have told Heechul not only because he is one of my most trusted friends but also because Heechul is someone who is anything but a blabbermouth and to keep such a huge secret from him... "I'm sorry oppa."
I kept my eyes on my plate as I speared my food in silence, reluctant to witness the disappointed look on Heechul's face only to look up when I felt someone ruffling my long locks.
"Hey, don't give the hurt puppy dog look. I'm not angry, I just... well, just worried and hurt. I mean, can you imagine how Teuk hyung and I are going to feel when we hear this news from others rather than to hear it from you personally? Also, who's going to bail you from any potential sticky situation with the CEO if you're planning to keep this from us? Especially since I'm in the army, I can't protect you as much now."
"Do Teuk oppa and Eunhyuk oppa--"
"Nah, Teuk hyung doesn't have a clue but Hyukjae knows about Junsu. And to answer your question, yes, he's waiting for you to come clean to him too."
I bit my lower lip in response, dang, talk about guilt-tripping at its finest.
"Look, I'm not saying this to make you feel bad... okay, maybe a little. But, I'm just looking out for you yknow? You need the help of others apart from Soshi and what better candidate than Teuk hyung and HyukJae? Considering that I'm positive that you don't exactly have plans to tell both Yunho and Changmin." said Heechul, folding his arms together as he shot me a knowing look; emphasizing it with a raised brow.
I cringed a little at his statement, knowing that I've got caught. Speaking of Yunho... "Jae--"
"I'm SM nutcase rebel remember? I live to drive the bigwigs crazy. Jae and I have never stopped contacting each other, though I gotta admit, we were extremely discreet. SM will never let me get away with it in 2009 nor in 2010, they won't risk anything that might cause them to lose Yunho and Changmin then. You have no idea how difficult it was to be the secret-keeper for the both of you; allowing Jae to continue misunderstanding then to protect you from the CEO, lying about not knowing what Jae is up whenever you asked about him in the past. Not to mention the number of times I had to be there for Jae whenever he gets way too depressed."
"But Yunho oppa..."
At the mention of Yunho's name, Heechul exhaled a long weary sigh, "Yunho knows about my friendship with Jae, I've been completely honest with him from the start, but... we don't talk about Jae, it makes him upset. Same goes to Jae, I don't talk to him about Yunho, partially because Yunho doesn't want him to know about how he and Changmin are doing but also because I've seen how crazy Jae can get whenever he misses them, especially Yunho. Now that Jae's getting more sane, accepting reality and moving on... I-I just don't want to risk upsetting him unnecessarily again yknow?"
I nodded my head understandingly, this was how I was like with Jaejoong too; we would talk about almost everything but we were careful to never mention Yunho or Changmin or anything about DB5K, although sometimes I do get the vibe that Jaejoong wanted to ask about them, only to stop himself before he could do anything that he'll regret.
Sighing, I was about to speak when Heechul interrupted rudely, "Oh no no no, I don't like that look on your face at all. Whatever it is that you're about to say or ask, don't."
"Do you think it's possible though? Despite everything..."
"Possible? Of course it's possible, I mean it's not easy being as fabulous as I am but I believe with a little work, you could be as gorgeous as me Yoong--"
"Oppa." I called out warningly, knowing that the latter was playing dumb on purpose.
The diva shot me a incredulous look in return, "You can't be possibly be thinking of bringing them together at this timing Yoong! They'll end up killing one another if they meet, and think of the amount of trouble you'll get into."
"I know..." I sighed in a defeated tone, "I won't do that, not when everyone seem to have come to terms with the whole split issue. I can't bear to rip open any of their wounds and leave them bleeding all over again. It's just that... they were so perfect, their friendships were so precious and to see it in this state..."
"I know, I know but honestly, I simply don't see it happening anytime soon, not when things have gotten so ugly. The most we can do is wait and pray for them and when the time comes for their paths to cross again, we'll just have to make sure we'll be there to push them along in the right direction."
I hummed in acknowledgement to Heechul's words, knowing that it is for the best before attacking my long-forgotten meal. The false sense of security, however, faded into immediate wariness the minute the idol cleared his throat forebodingly, "So... speaking of killing people, is there a particular boy I need to murder?"
"Murder? What murder? Heechul, you need to stop giving death threats, people can sue you for that. And where is that cup of ice water I asked you to get for Yoona?" commented Jaejoong who had once again materialized out of nowhere beside Heechul.
Every fiber of my being was blaring in alarm at the sight of Heechul grinning, looking very much like a sadistic cat who had his prey cornered, "Kwon. Ji. Yong."
I let out a little yelp of terror as I watched Jaejoong caught onto the former's words before turning to face me with an exceedingly charming yet utterly unnerving smile, "Right... Jiyong. I've been meaning to ask you about that Yoona-ah. So, GDragon huh? Is there anything you would like to tell us?"
Groaning inwardly at the sight of both divas smiling sinisterly, I tried to fight against the blush as I recalled that August night...
YOONA'S FLASHBACK
The 'dinner date' was scheduled approximately a week after Jiyong's birthday. How did I know about Jiyong's birthday? Hyoyeon and Tiffany had the courtesy to google everything about the mentioned idol after Sooyoung 'kindly' informed them that I had accepted Jiyong's invitation to dinner (Jessica and Yuri gave a little squeal the moment Jiyong popped the question, my dearest leader had an amused look on her face while Sooyoung chanted a hushed "Say yes! Say yes!". It was one of my most flattering yet embarrassing moment of my life to say the least). Needless to say, there was loads of squealing and shrieking amongst the girls, despite the countless times that I'd said that it wasn't a date but just dinner with a friend, and the fact that some of the girls were GDragon's fangirls did not help. In fact, Hyoyeon, Yuri, Sunny and Tiffany took it as their lifelong mission to accompany me to shop for Jiyong's birthday present.
"You HAVE to get him a present, it is only right for you to do so especially after everything he had done." insisted Sunny as we went shopping in a men boutique.
"Yes yes, I mean he IS G freaking Dragon. You got to get him something." second Tiffany whom was holding onto my other arm.
"Too bad that we can't wrap Yoona up in a pink ribbon and give her to him. I bet he'll love it." suggested Hyoyeon slyly as she wriggled her brows, none of us missing the implied innuendo.
"UNNIE!!"I shrieked in disbelief, blushing as the mental image of Hyoyeon's words surfaced into my mind while the rest of the girls hooted with laughter.
Finding a gift for the famous celebrity was one of the most tiring thing I had done in my entire life; apart from being dragged from store to store, I had entirely no idea what were Jiyong's preference, much less than what the idol actually needed since he lacked virtually nothing considering how rich he was. Dispirited, I was convinced that I wouldn't be able to get Jiyong anything to convey my gratitude nor congratulate him on his birthday when a pink scarf resting on a mannequin caught my eye. My decision to get the pink scarf sparked a little debate amongst my companion; Sunny and Hyoyeon thought it was too simple and girly while Tiffany (an avid pink lover) and Yuri countered that pink is no longer just for girls and that something simple might just be what Jiyong needs. A grueling half an hour later, Sunny and Hyoyeon relented and I was thankfully able to conclude my gift-shopping with the pink scarf wrapped in a creamy white box along with velvet red ribbons.
If I thought the gift-shopping was tiring enough, it was pale in comparison to the preparation the girls undertook as they got me ready for, and I quote, 'date of a lifetime'. Taeyeon and Sunny were rambling on and on about the do and don't-s for dates, Tiffany and Sooyoung were fussing about my hairdo, Yuri and Jessica took it upon themselves to choose the 'perfect-date-outfit' while Hyoyeon simply threw me a telling me I should be prepared for all kinds of scenarios on how the 'date' would end, which ultimately resulted a pillow to get thrown into her face by the courtesy of me. Praising the lord, I had at least one sane member; Seohyun, whom managed to kick everyone out of my room, leaving only my roommate Yuri as her assistant. By the time the duo were done with me, I was wearing a pale blue dress that reached my knees with a beige cardigan, leather ankle boots and brown bag to go along with, my hair curled slightly and left to flow naturally down my back with minimal makeup applied. The girls went all teary-eyed the minute I emerged from the room, going on and on about how their baby girl is all grown up now... Really, as if they hadn't seen me go on a date before.
The location of the dinner was at this homey cozy Japanese restaurant that had a private feel about it, I fell in love with the décor immediately and was extremely glad that Jiyong didn't chose a fancy French restaurant which would have probably made me feel really awkward and burdened. I was expecting to be the first one to arrive since I was five minutes early and was a tad worried about Jiyong's choice of outfit, knowing how much of fashionista the latter could be, only to be pleasantly surprised when I saw Jiyong already waiting at the table. What surprised me more was how normal Jiyong looked; dressed in a simple plain long-sleeved tee, black ripped jeans, a pair of nerd glasses as an accessory, coupled with his fringe being styled up, the Kwon leader gave the impression of a boy-next-door; a really good looking and suave boy-next-door.
I stood gaping a distance away, half admiring Jiyong's good looks, blushing and feeling extremely shy when the idol gave a cheery wave and dazzling smile the instant he saw me. "Keep your cool Yoona, it's just dinner with a friend." I chided myself quietly as I made my way over.
It would be a lie to say that the dinner didn't start out awkward with its fair share of pregnant silence, considering that we weren't exactly close friends to begin with. However, that didn't mean I didn't enjoy myself that night. Awkwardness aside, I think I speak for the both of us that the dinner was an enjoyable and comfortable affair, we warmed up to each other pretty quickly, joking and chatting as if we've been pals for years. I chose to give my gift when we were waiting for our desserts to arrive, and my heart did a little "Awwwwww" at the gummy smile on Jiyong who resembled a boy whom got his Christmas gift early.
"Wow, this scarf is really gorgeous! You have good taste Yoona-ssi." beamed Jiyong.
"It's really nothing much and I didn't exactly know what to get you... I hope you like it. And... you can call me Yoona if you want, Yoona-ssi sounds so awkward when we're supposed to be friends." I murmured shyly while fiddling with the hem of my cardigan.
"I love it! I honestly do Yoona! I'll prove it to you by wearing it now. And... you can call me Jiyong, or Jiyong oppa. Also, to tell you a secret, I may have a little obsession with the colour pink." replied Jiyong with a staged whisper before laughing out loud as he proceeded to wrap the pink scarf around his neck.
Good-naturedly, I gave a double thumbs up as he showcased the pink scarf, "He looks really good with abit of pink on him."I thought as I watched the former fuss a little on how to arrange the scarf.
That, however, wasn't the main highlight of the dinner... The highlight came in the form of four suspicious boys huddling together in a corner, using the menu to cover their faces in a vain attempt to appear inconspicuous. Amused, I pointed a finger towards their direction, figuring that Jiyong probably couldn't have seen them since his back was facing them, "Erm... Jiyong oppa, over there..."
The idol's gaze followed the direction of my finger before groaning aloud and face-palming himself, "Idiots." muttered Jiyong as he shot a dirty look towards the four whom immediately yelped, knowing they got caught and used the menu as a shield against Jiyong's glare.
Peering behind me, something must have caught the former's attention for Jiyong gave a little laugh before pointing towards my back, "Yoona, you, er, might want to take a look over there."
I groaned inwardly, it can't be right? Please tell me it's not going to be who I think it's going to be... Turning backwards, I let out a half-hearted groan at a group of eight girls whom were also using the menus to cover half their faces. Being aware that they were caught, they gave a sheepish "Oops" face whereas Hyoyeon simply beamed and waved at us, along with Sooyoung and Sunny that gave a thumbs up sign.
Embarrassed, I reverted back to my original sitting position facing Jiyong, only for us to burst out laughing the moment our eyes met. Dinner was concluded shortly after and to our crowd's delight (menus abandoned, the lot of them were openly waving goodbye with matching grins and smiles), Jiyong was to send me home in his car. Like a true gentleman, Jiyong opened the door for me regardless if it was when I was getting in or out of the car.
"Thank you for the dinner, I really enjoyed myself and sorry about my unnies."
Jiyong gave a low chuckle, "No worries, Big Bang did the same thing as well and it was actually pretty hilarious come to think of it. Anyways, I enjoyed the dinner too."
"So... I guess this is it. We've already exchanged numbers and, er... so, erm goodnight. Drive safely." stammering a little as I realized how dashing Jiyong looked under the pale moonlight.
"Hey, wait--"
I paused a little, standing on the stairs as I turned to stare at Jiyong questioningly.
"I erm, I hope that I'm not going to scare you off by saying this but... I like you. I like you a whole lot. I know you that you might not feel the same way but I just thought that you should know... I mean, it's not as if we need to get together this instant or for you to accept my feelings, I-I just want a chance? For us to continue hanging out and see how things go? I guess, well after a couple more dinners and you think that you can only still see me as nothing but a friend, we can just stick to being friends, no problem. So, yeah. I hope you don't feel burdened by this, just be like how you were earlier during dinner. Erm, yeah, that's all. Goodnight." With a quick peck on my cheek, the idol scurried back to his car, driving off after giving me a bashful wave from the driver's seat as I stood blankly at the same spot, trying to come to terms with everything that happened in the past minute.
"Hellooooo, Earth to Yoona~ Are you planning to ignore us for good?" questioned a bemused Jaejoong.
Snapping out of my reverie, I felt my face grow warm before spurting a lame excuse of needing the loo as I scurried away to buy myself some time prior to the impending interrogation session.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
JAEJOONG'S POV.
I watched in amusement at Yoona's retreating back, not missing the faint blush on her cheeks earlier.
"You know, I really think she has it bad for Jiyong. She wasn't even like this when we questioned her over Kibum years ago, and Kibum was her first boyfriend then." smiling softly to myself at the flustered state of Yoona. Hehe, cute.
"Do you think he's serious about her though?" asked Heechul as he munched on a blueberry muffin.
Spearing a strawberry, I pondered a little before giving my reply, "Hmmm, from what I heard from Seunghyun, Jiyong seems pretty crazy over her. I think he's a pretty decent guy essentially... just that his choice in clothes can get really eccentric sometimes. Wae?"
"They aren't dating yet right?" questioned Heechul.
"Well, not now they aren't. But I heard Jiyong's currently in the midst of courting Yoong and given how she reacted earlier, I'd say that his chances are looking pretty good."
"Hmmm, I wonder~"
"Bowh?" I asked, curious over the diva's cryptic reply.
"Just wondering how he'll react should the day comes when Jiyong and Yoong get together. Judging by how things are progressing, I'll say that day isn't that far away, half a year tops."
"Who's he? Leeteuk? He'll probably just go all dramatic, joking how Yoona went against their promise of getting married again before having the usual talk on the 'scary-guys-out-there'. Or are you talking about Donghae? Say, is he is still crushing on Yoona?"
Smirking a little, Heechul merely sipped on his iced coffee as he causally replied, "I'm talking about your precious baby maknae."
I stiffen slightly on reflex, "Maknae? You mean Junsu? Nah, he doesn't see Yoona that way, she's--"
"You know jolly well who is the maknae I'm referring to and Junsu isn't him." interrupted Heechul deadpanned.
Exhaling a sigh, I faced Heechul with a scowl, "Fine, I knew you were talking about Changmin. There, happy?"
"Although... What do you mean? Does Changminni-- I mean, Changmin like Yoona? Has he confessed or something?" I enquired curiously, my heart hammering involuntarily at the mention of Changmin. It's been so long since I've heard anything about him, and as impulsive as it was, I couldn't resist the urge to ask, aware of the possible emotional turmoil I've to deal with later.
"No, he didn't confess or anything. It's just something Teuk hyung and I have been speculating for a while now, you should see the way he looks at her sometimes. Though, I'll definitely peg him in the severely denial stage."
I gave a wistful smile at the thought of Changmin being in love with Yoona; it would almost be like a dream come true, two of my favourite dongseangs getting together....
"Careful Jae, your old motherly affection towards your missing son is showing on your face again."
I shot the teasing prankster an irritated look, "Shut up. Explain more about the whole Changmin reaction thing."
"Your baby boy, despite being in denial, is indeed in love with Yoona. At least, that's what I honestly think and you know I'm rarely wrong over such stuff. I mean, I am smart and intuitive and--"
"Conceited, arrogant, obstinate, blah blah blah, carry on."
Directing an indignant look towards me, Heechul let out a huff, "In conclusion, knowing Changmin, this isn't going to end well. That boy is just going to hold all his feelings in and end up going ka-booooom on Yoona, which because everything is going to snowball and get all ty."
"Heechul's right. Denial and jealously is definitely not a good combination to sit by Changmin."
"Why are you telling me this, Heechul?" sighing as I nibbled on a bagel.
"Just thought you might wanna know." shrugged the diva carelessly as he proceeded to steal a bacon off Yoona's plate. I wasn't convinced by Heechul's words. Knowing Heechul, there must be a reason for him to bring up this matter, but I was more preoccupied over the pressing issue on hand...
"Yoona. Changmin. Jiyong. Together with jealously and denial. Throw in years of friendship, love, twisted fate and competition between two alpha males. Factoring in Changmin's protectiveness and his explosive temper especially whenever he's confused..."
I groaned inwardly, "The perfect recipe for a disaster."
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Annyeong Yoroboon!
I've actually attempted to write a chap just on Gyoon's first 'date' but the chap just seemed thin & crappy; I seriously
at descriptive narrative stuff so I ended up deleting the drafts & writing it in another fashion.
That and I kinda miss Heechul. Hehe.
Anyhoo, thank you: SaBaBaRiNa, cuteyoongfan, JaneJung, wawa123, yoonhaefever & lorilei10 for subscribing & to cuteyoongfan, foxykitty, gonedragon, fantacy, GhyHwang, xiahtic_ducky, yoonda & sarahleto as well for commenting! ^^
Poppymore, Kumawo for the upvote! ♥
Just curious thou, are my chaps getting too long? My word count seem to be increasing in general.
Sending my love,
xoxo, againhello.
08/12/17: Yes, it’s a legitimate chapter update. Trust me, I’m as surprised as you are. Enjoy!! :))
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