“Oh?” questioned Nini as she quickly pocketed her phone. “He’s just a friend.”

 

“A boyfriend?” questioned Changmin mischievously, wiggling an eyebrow for emphasis.

 

“Not in this lifetime,” laughed Nini with a shake of her head before she instantly changed the subject. “What did you want, Minnie?

”

“I wanted to talk to you about something,” answered Changmin, somewhat awkwardly. “Do you have a few minutes to spare?”

 

“How much time to do you need?” she questioned as she glanced down at her watch. “You don’t have a lot of time before that interview.”

 

“That’s right.” sighed Changmin, realizing that his one-track mind had simply forgotten about it. “How about later then?”

 

“Is it that urgent?” she questioned, a little confused about Changmin’s insistence.

 

“Urgent?” questioned Changmin quietly to himself. “Yes, I think so.”

 

“There’s just something I need to tell you before we go back to Seoul.” clarified Changmin, his face seeming almost sad at the thought of what he had to tell her. “It’s something that you need to know about Yunho and Me.”

 

“I assume that it’s something private then?” she questioned knowingly.

 

“It is,” replied Changmin.

 

“Alright then,” agreed Nini, with a nod. “I will be home after seven tonight. If you want to stop by around eight o’clock…that would be ok with me.”

 

“Are you sure you want me to come there?” questioned Changmin. “I mean it’s not very appropriate for someone like me to come to a single woman’s apartment. And, what if someone sees me?”

 

“That won’t be an issue,” she smiled with a dismissive wave. “The Company was nice enough to give me a very beautiful and safely guarded apartment on the top floor of my building. It comes with a private elevator you can access from the parking garage, underneath. You just need a security code to operate the elevator.”

 

“You’re really sure?” questioned Changmin. He wanted to talk to Nini in a private setting but the thought of being caught going into a strange woman’s apartment by the press made him a little nervous.

 

“Of course,” she nodded. “Just, have your driver bring you to my place and text me when you get there. I will give the code for the elevator, then.”

 

“Ok.” agreed Changmin, with a smile.

 

“Ok.” she smiled as she glanced over Changmin’s shoulder and noticed Yunho coming out of the café. “You should get going now, you’re going to be late for your interview if you don’t hurry.”

 

“See you later then, Noona.” smiled Changmin with a wave before he turned around and headed out.

 

“See you,” she replied gently.

 

As Nini watched Changmin and Yunho get into their car, her smile quickly faded.

 

“Damn that was close,” she breathed out in relief as she pulled her phone out of her pocket and hit the redial button.

 

 

[Hours later]

 

Sipping on a glass of Pinot Noir, Nini sat quietly on her living room sofa with her nose buried in an old book as she waiting for Changmin’s text. After their conversation that afternoon, she had felt a little apprehensive about their meeting tonight. The way Changmin spoke, the tone of his voice, and the look he had on his face at that moment made her feel very wary. She wasn’t sure what exactly Changmin was planning to tell her but she could tell that it wasn’t something happy. If it had something to do with both Yunho and Changmin, and it was something she needed to know before they went back to Seoul, then it most definitely had something do with their past. That, she was undoubtedly sure of but what it really entailed, she had no clue and it worried her. She didn’t like the look on Changmin’s face at all.

 

As she turned the next page of the tattered old book in her hand, her phone buzzed across the surface of the small end table beside her.

 

“That must be Min.” she sighed as she reached out and grabbed her phone.

 

[Baby Min]
“I’m here. What’s the code for the elevator?”.
 

 

With a smirk, she began to type.

 

“Let’s just see how smart he really is.” she chuckled as she hit the send button.

 

Changmin waited quietly in the car for Nini’s response and immediately smiled when his phone chirped.

 

[Precious Noona]
“12-25-03”
 

 

“You’re not very subtle, are you Noona?” chuckled Changmin as he instantly recognized the numbers.

 

Looking around to see that there was no one in the parking garage, Changmin quickly got out of the car and made a beeline for the elevator. Punching in the code quickly, he was a little surprised when the doors immediately opened. Stepping in and looking to press a button to go to Nini’s floor, he gasped softly when he noticed that there were no other buttons save for the one for her floor and the parking garage.

 

“She wasn’t kidding when she said private elevator.” scoffed Changmin a little disbelievingly.

 

As the elevator doors closed and it slowly began to rise, Changmin thought about what he was going to say to Nini tonight. He knew he should be totally forthright, telling her ever little detail, but he knew he couldn’t tell her everything. She had a right to know about that part of their past. She was not only their PR manager but also their friend and the more Changmin thought about her not knowing the more unsettled he felt. Not telling her would be bad, he believed. He knew that the company would never offer up this kind of personal information to her and while he was glad about that, he didn’t want to leave her in the dark either. He didn’t want her walking into something accidentally, not knowing what it was really about, should something happen while they were in Seoul. But he wasn’t sure if what exactly he should tell her or not either.

 

Changmin was at a loss. He had to make sure that Nini knew what she was getting herself into when it came to them and Korea but he also knew that he had to be very careful of what he said to her as well. He didn’t want to betray Yunho but he could just stand idly by and continue to let Nini be oblivious to what really happened back then.

 

When the elevator doors open, Changmin smiled. The elevator opened up into a small foyer decorated with potted plants and pretty blue walls trimmed in white. In the middle of the foyer stood one single solitary door with the apartment number, 1225, printed on it in shiny silver lettering. Stepping up to the door, Changmin rang the buzzer and waited for his precious Noona to answer. A few seconds later, the door opened to reveal Nini, dressed in a light pink cotton shirt and white house pants, smiling back at him.

 

“You made it,” she snickered. “Come in.”

 

“You think you're pretty clever, don’t you Noona?” answered Changmin with a suspicious smirk as he stepped into her apartment.

 

“I’m sure I don’t have the foggiest idea what you’re talking about,” teased Nini with a smile as she closed the door behind him.

 

“Yes you do,” replied Changmin.

 

“I guess I got caught, huh?” she laughed, knowing full well that Changmin was definitely as smart as she had originally thought.

 

“It was pretty obvious, Noona,” laughed Changmin. “So did you change the code when you started working with us?”

 

“You could say that,” she smiled as she walked up to him and motioned him to follow her into the kitchen.

 

“What’s all this?” questioned Changmin as he glanced at the kitchen table and saw a few plates of snacks. “Did you do this for me?”

 

“That’s a silly question,” smiled Nini as she swatted him gently on the shoulder. “Who else would it be for?”

 

“Why don’t you go sit those plates on the living room table and I will get us something to drink,” she added as she opened up the refrigerator. “What do you want? I have milk, water, juice, beer, wine and a little bit of Soju left.”

 

“I haven’t had a beer in a while,” stated Changmin. “I take one of those.”

 

“Sounds good,” she nodded as she reached in a grabbed a can before following him out into the living room.

 

Nini watched as Changmin placed the plates on the living room’s square glass top coffee table and sat down. Even though the mood seemed a little tense between them at the moment, she could tell by Changmin’s body language that he was far more comfortable being around her in a private setting than she had expected. Changmin has always been a little shy, though most people wouldn’t have noticed it from his outward persona he projects to the public. Knowing that fact, she had tried to make her apartment as inviting as possible for the young singer and even went to the trouble of preparing some food for him so he would feel more at ease.

 

“Here,” offered up Nini as she opened the can in her hand and gave it to Changmin.

 

“Thanks,” said Changmin as he took the can and subsequently took a sip.

 

“You look a little nervous Min,” she observed as she sat down on the sofa beside him with a smile. “You know there is no need to be, right?”

 

“I know, Noona.” nodded Changmin, taking another sip of his beer and sighing softly.

 

“I tell you what,” said Nini with a smile. “It’s obvious that whatever you need to tell me is something difficult to say, so why don’t we just do something fun instead? Like, maybe, watch a movie or something...Until you feel more comfortable talking with me that is.”

 

“I do feel comfortable talking with you, Noona. From the first moment, I met you… I always have.” defended Changmin caringly as he placed his beer can on the table. “It’s just…it’s hard to talk about. We don’t even talk about it between ourselves anymore because it just hurts too much.”

 

“Then, I take it, it must have something to do with them,” she concluded gently, dropping her eyes to the floor sadly, and wringing her hands together nervously.

 

“How much do you know, Noona?” started off Changmin hesitantly. “About what happened back then?”

 

“Min, I really don’t want to speculate about something like this,” she answered sadly. “There were so many rumors running around about that time in your life that I honestly don’t know how to make heads or tails out of it.”

 

“And to be perfectly honest, I am not sure if I ever really want to know the real truth behind it,” she added with a deep sigh.

 

“Why?” questioned Changmin.

 

“I’ve told you before, that before I started in this business, I was a fan of all five of you right?” questioned Nini as she looked up him and saw him nod in agreement. “So, it goes without saying, that I was around for all that chaos in 2009, too.”

 

“Yeah,” sighed Changmin regretfully.

 

“I know it was the most difficult time in your lives, Min. Your lives were falling apart right in front of your eyes and there was nothing any of you could do to make it stop. Everything you loved and cared about was falling to pieces in a flash, ” she continued. “But even with all that pain and anguish torturing the five of you every minute of every day, I’m sad to say that it was the devastation it caused within the fandom that was even more monumental and frightening for me.”

 

“I don’t think any of you really understood, or will ever understand, what really happened to the fans that year,” she added softly. “For us…It was just one nightmare on top of another nightmare on top of another nightmare. Over and over, as if we were trapped in a long dark tunnel with no light at the end, and there was nothing we could do to help any of you. Disparity engulfed everyone and to the fans, their world changed forever.”

 

“For us, it was so hard to understand why it had happened.” sighed Nini as her eyes began to slightly water. “And the worst part of the whole thing was that we had no choice but to stand back and watch. We were so hurt and lost that we lashed out at everyone, even our closest friends."

 

"Fans that had been the best of friends for years, true sisters in the fandom, were suddenly at each other’s throats –arguing about who was at fault and who was to blame. It was nothing but chaos.”

 

“They blamed Yunho and I, didn’t they?” questioned Changmin as he tried to hold back his own tears.

 

“You want the truth?” questioned Nini sadly as she looked up at him once more.

 

“Tell me,” begged Changmin softly.

 

“It was Yunho and the company that got the most blame. You, unfortunately, were lumped into the mix. Guilty by association, I guess you could say. Considered a betrayer, right alongside Yunho.”  

 

“I see,” nodded Changmin knowingly. “And what did you think, Noona? Personally, I mean. Did you think Yunho was to blame as well?”

 

“I could say that a part of me believed that Yunho had some part in all of it, as did you all,” sighed Nini honestly. “But, for the most part, I blamed the company for what happened.”

 

“I knew that the others wouldn’t have left the two of you for no good reason.” she continued. “But I also knew that there had to be something more to the story than what we were all told. Everyone was keeping us in the dark and we didn’t know what to do except cry and mourn the loss of such a great brotherhood.”

 

“And…” she added as she shot a glance at Changmin’s face disapprovingly. “You two keeping quiet about the whole thing didn’t help either.”

 

“We had no choice.” defended Changmin sadly.

 

“I know,” replied Nini as she flashed a reassuring smile at him. “We all knew that the company had something to do with why the two of you stayed so silent. And, truthfully, while it made others blame you two more for what happened, thinking that it made you two look even guiltier, for me, it just proved that there was something we were truly missing in the whole deal.”

 

“Knowing you two as I do now,” added Nini. “I know that if you could have, you would have defended them to the last.”

 

“That is one of our deepest regrets, Noona.” sighed Changmin with a disapproving shake of the head. “We let them get vilified and treated like vermin after they left and we couldn’t do anything to protect them. Even when we were still angry at them, we still wanted to make sure they were safe and happy but our hands were literally tied.”

 

“We had kept a lot of what happened back then a secret,” admitted Changmin. “And, those secrets –at least a few of them, is why I wanted to talk to you tonight.”

 

“So…” she sighed brokenheartedly. “Is this where you’re going to tell me the rumors about Jaejoong and Yunho are real?”

 

Suddenly surprised by Nini’s question, Changmin propped his elbows on his knees and buried his face in his hands. Taking in a deep breath and trying to steady his nerves, Changmin contemplated for the first time in a very long time on whether or not to answer that undying question truthfully. He knew the second he answered that question, their world would change again and he was still afraid of what might happen. But, he trusted Nini. He wasn’t sure why he trusted her but deep down he knew he really did.

 

“What would you say…” questioned Changmin softly as he pulled his hands away from his face and stared intently at the floor beneath him. “If I said yes?”

 

“I wouldn’t be surprised,” answered Nini immediately.

 

“Really?” questioned Changmin instantly, looking back up at her completely perplexed.

 

“Really,” she replied as she rolled her eyes in disbelief. “Shim Changmin, haven’t you figured your Noona out by now? I’ve told you before; I am an open book you only need to take time to read. You know how I feel about those kinds of relationships. Do you honestly think I would think less of them or something?”

 

“You should know me better than that by now.” she scoffed disbelievingly.

 

“As far as I am concerned…” she added with a smile. “What any of you do with your love lives…first of all isn’t really any of my damn business and second of all…All I’ve ever wished for the five of you were for you all to be happy. If you fall in love with a man, I’m happy for you. If you fall in love with a woman and have a slew of little Mins running around, I am happy for you. Hell, even if you married an elephant, I personally wouldn’t care –as long as you were happy. And the same thing goes for Yunho, Yoochun, Jaejoong, and Junsu.”

 

“Your happiness and their happiness is all that’s important to me, Min.”

 

“Thank you for that, Noona.” smiled Changmin. “Not many of our fans feel that way.”

 

“More than you think, actually.”  corrected Nini, smiling and nodding at him sharply. “You’ve guys have just lost touch with most of your fans over the years. If you really knew how most of them felt, it would make you feel so loved that it would bring you to tears.”

 

“What really bothers me though…is…If the rumors from back then were really true,” she added with a brokenhearted sigh. “And they really were in love, then my heart aches even more for Jaejoong and Yunho.”

 

“Why?” prompted Changmin, almost shyly.

 

“Love shouldn’t have to fight against the whole world simply because it’s different,” answered Nini with a saddened look.

 

A moment of silence descended awkwardly around them as Nini and Changmin both thought over what they had discussed so far. From the look on Nini’s face, Changmin could tell that talking about the past with her was making her feel everything all over again just like he was. He had never really understood how much Nini had cared about him and his brothers until now. She had always said that she loved all of them but this was the first time he could truly see it in her face and hear it in her voice and it made him hate himself a little more than he had ever before. Changmin had always felt guilty for what they had done, not only to themselves and the fans but now he felt even guiltier for what they had ultimately done to his precious Noona without even knowing it.

 

“I’m sorry, Noona.” sniffled Changmin softly.

 

“Don’t you dare,” ordered Nini instantaneously. “You have no reason to apologize and neither do your brothers.”

 

“Don’t we?” questioned Changmin as he looked up at her with worried eyes. “I mean…after what we put you all through…shouldn’t we apologize for it?”

 

“Some may want an apology from the five of you…” answered Nini. “But, I most certainly do not.”

 

“No one should ever have to apologize for falling in love,” she added with a slight frown. “And no one should ever have to apologize for losing the one they love either.”

 

“So don’t you ever say that to me again, ok?” added Nini with a reassuring smile.

 

Changmin nodded gently, elated that Nini was such an understanding person.

 

“Do you really want to keep talking about this, Min?” questioned Nini after a gentle pause. “Why don’t we just stop for now and do something a little less depressing?”

 

“No,” answered Changmin with a sigh. “You need to know some of the truth anyway. It’s better, for me to tell you now than to have you find out later –in the worst possible way.”

 

“Alright,” she answered.

 

“Well…” admitted Changmin hesitantly as he took a deep breath and tried to settle his nerves. “I can say that there was a little truth to some of those rumors.”

 

“I see,” replied Nini as she leaned back against the back of the couch and sighed. “Then, I take it, that their relationship had something to do with 2009 then?”

 

“Partially,” answered Changmin before clarifying. “But…what they said about leaving the company because of not getting paid was the main reason.”

 

“So…” she offered up. “Would it be safe to say that something happened between Jaejoong and Yunho that; basically; sparked the whole thing? Or, maybe, more precisely it was; literally; the straw that broke the camel’s back?”

 

“I’m not actually sure about that, even to this day. I really think it was caused by a lot of things,” admitted Changmin. “I was still pretty young and they kept things from me a lot. But, what I do remember…it’s a little vague. It had something to do with them getting into a fight about money, and opportunities, and how the company was trying to keep them apart. And there was also something about their parents meddling in their affairs with the company and their relationship, too."

 

"The details are a bit fuzzy but I do remember the screaming. There was always lots and lots of screaming.”

 

“I see,” acknowledged Nini with a deep sigh.

 

“It wasn’t long after the fighting started that they stopped talking to each other altogether. Soon after, they filed and left,” concluded Changmin. “But it wasn’t what happed before they left that I wanted to talk to you about. It’s about what’s happened since.”

 

“Since you’ve been a fan for so long, and you basically watched us all grow up in this business,” started Changmin hesitantly. “Have you noticed anything different about Yunho?”

 

“You mean like the fact that he practically blows off anyone, man or woman, that even shows the slightest bit of romantic interest in him?” she questioned almost sarcastically. “Or the fact that he practically runs himself into the ground, even on his days off? Or perhaps, you might mean the fact that when Yunho thinks he’s alone he stares off into space and seems to be torturing himself purposefully?”

 

“So you have noticed,” answered Changmin, a slight chuckle lacing his words.

 

“I’m not anything, if not observant,” replied Nini with a weighted chuckle of her own.

 

“The change in Yunho,” offered up Changmin reluctantly “Has everything to do with Jaejoong.”

 

“I figured as much,” admitted Nini. “If their relationship was even remotely as close to the way the fans saw it, I can understand how heartbroken he must feel –even now. I mean…it’s not like a usual break up is it? When you break up with someone, if you’re lucky, you never see them again. But, in their case, that’s kind of hard not to -given your occupations.”

 

“Honestly,” offered up Changmin with a long-drawn-out sigh. “I don’t think they ever actually broke up…At least…not in the literal sense.”

 

“And, I think that’s the real issue here,” added Changmin. “They never got the closure they should have.”

 

“Because of that,” he continued. “Yunho has pretty much just cut himself off from ever really getting involved with anyone else. The company even tried to set him up with one of their female artists, just as a distraction for him, and he wouldn’t have any of that. He got fairly pissed off about it, as a matter of fact, and ended up hurting the girl’s feelings in front of a room full of people.”

 

“To be completely honest, I was actually surprised that he warmed up to you, Noona,” admitted Changmin. “Don’t get me wrong, you’re a completely lovable and likable person, it was just so…so out of character for him, you know?”

 

“I was surprised too,” admitted Nini sincerely. “The last few years, Yunho just seemed to radiate this cold aura around him that made me a little apprehensive to meet him. But, when I met the two of you, he didn’t seem like that at all. It was…confusing I guess you could say.”

 

“My point in all of this, in telling you all of this.” continued Changmin. “Was to warn you about what could happen when we get back to Seoul and the things that you need to be aware of.”

 

“Go on,” she prompted.

 

“The company has a standing order to make sure that the two of them never see each other,” said Changmin flatly, finally getting to the point. “His schedule is always tailored so as to avoid any contact with Jaejoong or the other two and all of the staff have been instructed to censor everything he sees –just in case.”

 

“Why?” questioned Nini, slightly confused. “It’s been years, Min. Do they really think that kind of outlandish behavior is still necessary?”

 

“They do,” admitted Changmin. “The higher-ups are convinced that Yunho will just leave one day and never come back because of them and they are afraid. They know that if Yunho gets it in his head to leave, there won’t be a way to stop him. And, they know that I will follow him no matter where he goes. So, in essence, they are trying to protect their bottom line by keeping Yunho in the dark.”

 

“I knew there was a reason why I despised them.” thought Nini spitefully.

 

“Because of all this, Yunho really had no idea what the group has been going through –save for the bull the company has told him.” he continued. “As far as Yunho knows, their careers are in the toilet and Jaejoong…well…”

 

“What about Jaejoong?” Nini immediately prompted when he hesitated.

 

“He basically thinks that Jaejoong has been around for the last few years…sleeping with everything that moves.”

 

“You have got to be kidding me, Min! Please, tell me your kidding.” sighed Nini completely aghast. “You can’t honestly be telling me that they have been spoon-feeding Yunho that kind of bull all this time.”

 

“They have and they will continue to do so for as long as the company deems it necessary,” answered Changmin.

 

“Bastards,” grumbled Nini softly under her breath.

 

“And what about you, Changmin?” she asked accusingly. “Have you been propagating their lies, too?”

 

“Noona…” he winced dejectedly.

 

“Fine…fine.” she admonished getting the point without him having to explain. “I get it. You really had no choice or say in the matter.”

 

“So,” hesitated Changmin slightly. “I need to know…”

 

“I need to know what you plan on doing about all this,” stated Changmin bluntly. “Are you going to keep him in the dark, too?”

 

“Absolutely not!” spat Nini, the disgust in her tone quite evident as she shot up from the sofa angrily.

 

“I could never treat Yunho in such a despicable way,” she added. “And the fact that the company dared to keep me in the dark about their espionage against Yunho, just pisses me off even more.”

 

“I was wondering why Director Choi asked me not to rock the boat.” she scoffed slightly. “I guess this is what he was hinting at.”

 

“I promise you, Min,” she said earnestly. “There will be no filtering of Yunho’s life from now on. I will see to it personally. And if any of your staff objects, I won’t hesitate to fire them.”

 

“You have no idea how happy it makes me, to hear you say that, Noona.” breathed out Changmin in relief. “I knew you would understand how I felt without me having to tell you outright.”

 

“Of course I do,” she smiled brightly, he anger melting away instantly.

 

“I’m your Noona, after all,” she added with a playful wink.