Gift for chocopieyj

Gift from ????

Title of the gift : Faded Memories

Pairing: Jaebeom and Youngjae (2jae)

Word Count: 3,757

Rating: PG

Warnings: None

Note to Charly Z: Merry Christmas, dear! Please excuse my lack of knowledge in model or fashion industry, and I put my own spin on your requested plot. Hope you will like it. Enjoy~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Faded Memories

”Don’t worry, I’ll find you. And I know, I will.” said the boy and before Youngjae can say anything, the boy slipped through his fingertips like a dust. Their surrounding slowly faded away and everything turned black.

He woke up with a start, his hand flying to his chest as he panted heavily and he could feel how fast his heart was beating as if he was running a full marathon and wondered if it was going to burst out of his chest. Slowly, after a good few minutes trying to calm down his erratic heartbeat, the familiar surroundings of his room came into view. His shirt drenched with sweat and it takes him a minute to realize that he is crying as he could feel that his cheeks wet with tears.

The memories of his dream were still there but began to fade with each passing seconds, almost leaving nothing behind except for the foreign and uncomfortable feelings that still lingered inside his heart. Messing up with his head. Moments later, an odd sadness pricked his heart, something that he had become accustomed to for the past couple of months.

Everything started after he accidentally stumbled upon a faded photograph in the attic. The picture may look normal to anyone who saw it, photo of young version him, maybe around 5 years old, posing in front of a Ferris wheel with a big grin plastered on his chubby face while holding a large cotton candy. It is indeed normal, but the only problem is, he doesn’t have a memory of the event. Not even a tiny bit.

When he thought that his day couldn’t get any worse, he was wrong. Apparently rock bottom has a basement.

“You will work with JB for your first fashion show.” The news came as a shock, throwing cold water on him.

“JB?” He blurted out without thinking that earned the-hell-you-mean-by-that face from his CEO, Mr Kim.

“I mean, how?”

“Used my connection to convince him to work with you and it’s not easy. We need him or else you can kiss your dream goodbye. You know how hard for a rookie designer like you to join NYFW, don’t you?

So, just do it. You can thank me later.”

And before Youngjae could protest, he cut him off, left Youngjae no room for argument. “Now, off you go. Got lot of things to do.”

On his way out, he met Bambam, the rising model in the industry and also one of his closest friend. Actually, his collection was inspired by the younger model, vibrant and full of life. Meanwhile JB is too sophisticated and elegant for his collection. Not that he’s complaining, but it just seems surreal.

“What!!” his voice came out one octave higher than intended. Too surprised on the news.

“Damn, Bam. Keep your voice down.”

“Okay, sorry. But.. JB?” He still can’t believe that Mr Kim managed to persuade the top model to work with Youngjae. He’s not trying to belittle his friend, in fact he knows that Youngjae is one of the talented designer, but he is still a rookie after all. Fresh from the oven.

“You caught a big fish, man!”

Yes. He is indeed one of the luckiest guy in the world right now. Getting JB as his main model in his first fashion show is like a dream come true for a rookie like him.

Im Jaebeom is one of the biggest name in this industry. He’s on different level compared to him, doesn’t need an introduction. Everyone knows who he is. His face can be seen everywhere. Magazine, fashion show, advertisement and the list goes on. It’s not surprised to see him at the top, with his look and talent. A complete full package. Except for one thing, which is bugging him right now.

“Well, aside from his personality”

And that’s it. The dark side of Im Jaebeom.

“Was it true?” Youngjae asked, leaning forward a little bit, so he won’t miss any important information that will come out from Bambam.

“As much as I’d love to satisfy your curiosity, I’m afraid I can’t..” his voice trailed off as he looked at Youngjae and after what felt like an eternity, he continued. “Because I don’t know”

“Dammit Bam” Youngjae hissed and laughter can be heard coming from the younger. Disappointment was written all over his face. He needed solid evidence right now, not just some romours floating around.

“Sorry. You should see your face just now” the laughter died down as he saw Youngjae’s serious face. “Okay, joke aside. Ask Jackson. He works with him before.”

Rumour has it, Jb had an explosive temper that one simply couldn’t guess and it’s pretty scary. Working with him was like you’re walking on eggshells because one mistake could lead to something bigger.

xxXxx

He is not a big fan of party. Never been and never will. Well, except for birthday party with lot of foods and cakes. He won’t say no to food. No one will. But being in this line of work, you need to socialize with people to broaden your connection in order to help you build your name and that means – PARTIES.

Party for him was like an examination in social skills, where your skills are being assessed on how to keep the conversation going and know when to stop.

People always get drunker, rowdier and noisier as the party going. Hence, the noise level become unbearable like you’re sitting on the TV’s remote volume up button except that you can’t find the remote.

And today was no exception.

An after party was held to celebrate the success of one of the biggest fashion show and it’s a perfect opportunity for him to meet all the top designers and models. Normally, he wouldn’t mind to mingle around for a while, but when it’s 1 am in the morning and he is ing tired, it wears thin pretty quick. If not because of his CEO, he will definitely leave this goddam place.

Oh, speak of the devil.

“Come, I need to introduce you to someone” Mr Kim said, motioning to him to follow. As he walked closer, he saw JB, the subject of his CEO’s interest, was there, having a conversation with someone that he only saw in the magazine.

“Hi. Sorry to interrupt. JB, this is Choi Youngjae, our rising fashion designer that will work with you in the NYFW.” Mr Kim said with a big smile on his face as he introduced Youngjae to the top model, earning him a nod from JB.

“And Youngjae, this is JB and I believe you know who he is, right?” Youngjae nodded and trying his best to put on his best smile as he contemplating either to hold out his hand first or wait for the older.

“Nice meeting you, Choi Youngjae.” He said, extend his hand as though he can read his mind.

After greetings have been exchanged, they were left alone by their manager and CEO, hoping that they could be friend or knowing each other since they will be working together for quite a long time. But, they were wrong. There’s no way they’ll be friend in real life.

The mood was somber between them the moment they were left alone and it was JB who broke the silence.

“Let me get this straight, Choi Youngjae. There is one thing that I need you to follow. Like it or not.” and before JB could continue assault and hurting his pride, Youngjae cut him off.

“I won’t dress you up. I won’t touch you, don’t worry. I know your rules, Im Jaebeom.”

“Good. Looks like someone did their homework.” And with that, JB walked away, putting on his usual smile, ready to charm everyone.

“What a great way to start.”

He let out a deep and long breath. Just thinking of the days that he’s going to spend with the top model made him tired and sick. He decided to call it a day.

And true to his prediction, working with JB is not an easy task. Just like what Jackson has warned him before. Everything needs to be perfect, need to follow his own idea of perfect and sometimes made him wondered if JB just used the excuse of perfection to procrastinate on the things he had done. It was bad enough when he’s not allowed to dress his model when that is his own collection, which he’d pour all his sweat and tears. And now, with the way JB treated him, his patience is wearing thin. Doesn’t know how long he can stand it.

Today is their first rehearsal for the NYFW and Youngjae was so nervous. He couldn’t stop pacing back and forth while waiting for JB, afraid that he might throw up if he stand still. His body went on high alert, even the sound of clock ticking seem unbearably loud for him.

From afar, he can see JB was walking towards him with a cup of coffee in his hand. Never crossed his mind that there will come a day where he was happy when he saw JB but right now that’s what he felt. He’s totally screwed up.

Thank God, the rehearsal went smoothly, just need to fix up few things. This is the first time he got a chance to see the model walked on the runway and it fascinates him, especially JB. Despite their love and hate relationship, he can’t denied that JB is definitely a head-turner.

Speak of the devil. There he is, sitting and relaxing like he didn’t have a care in the world. How irony. As he walked closer, he could hear JB was humming to a tune and it lured him in.

“What song did you hum just now?” Asked Youngjae, standing beside him. Too eager to care that they are not on good terms.

The younger’s question caught JB by surprise. “What?”

It sounds so familiar to him. Something twitched inside him, a memory nudging its way back to the surface. A sudden vision of a sunny day. Loud clanking sound of chains, a muffled siren ringing out somewhere in the distance. He closed his eyes, willing the fleeting to become clear.

However, as quickly as they had come, they were gone in a split seconds. Suddenly, sharp pain courses through the back of his head, making him staggered with his weight. Luckily, JB saw it coming and quickly lent a hand to get him sit on the chair before something terrible happened.

“You okay?”

Youngjae hissed at the discomfort and grabbed his head, trying to ease the throbbing pain. After a few minutes, the pain subsided. He looked up and saw a pair of worried eyes stared at him.

“Yeah. I’m good”

The silence between them lengthens. After a while, JB spoke.

“I always had trouble sleeping when I was a kid and my mom-“ he stopped for a while, looking at the younger to make sure he’s okay.

“She will hum this song until I fall asleep. It calms me down. And now, it became a habit to hum whenever I feel nervous or anxious.”

As the older looked away, Youngjae used the opportunity to glance at his side profile. He was aware that JB has the looks but looking at it up close, making him questioned the fairness of the world. How on earth someone can be this beautiful without even trying. He has a beautiful forehead, nose, strong jaw but one thing that draws him in is the twin moles. Involuntarily, his eyes trailing over the two beauty marks that sit beneath the model’s brow and out of nowhere he had the urge to touch it. And to his horror, his hand moved by itself, touching and caressing the twin marks before he could think. He swears to God that his hand has a mind of its own. Realization hit him and he swallowed thickly.

Think. Think. Think of an excuse you .

“Sorry, finger slipped” the only brilliant idea that he could come up with, made a mental note to punch himself in the face later for the lame excuse.

And JB burst into laughter and this is the first time Youngjae had seen him laughed out loud like this. Scrub that. He had never seen JB genuinely smile before.

“You really know how to kill the mood, aren’t you?”

“I didn’t mean to-“ JB patted his head and the action caught him off guard. He could feel the electricity running through his vein and went straight to his heart. His eyes widen in shock and then felt a blush working its way up his neck. Suddenly aware of their close proximity and it’s not helping when a simple touch could make his heart doing funny things.

“Be strong, heart.”

“Now, tell me why you asked about it?” JB asked, pulling Youngjae out of his train of thoughts.

“I don’t know. It sounds familiar, like..I’ve heard it before. Funny because I’m completely sure that I never heard of it and suddenly I’ve a flashback.”

“Flashback?”

“Yeah. But I can’t remember anymore. It’s gone”

JB looked at him but his expression is unreadable.

Their relationship is getting better after the ice has finally broken, in fact they got along very well, like they have been friend for their whole life. Something that he never thought when he first met the other. Beneath those sharp features, broad shoulder, confidence aura and not-to-mention his personality, lying a very warm hearted soul.

“Hey, you’re getting close with him, huh?” a voice stopped him in his tracks.

“Careful. There’s a rumour about him” she said that earned her a confused look.

Youngjae had enough of all the bull rumours and things that floating around JB. The same things that make him develop negative impression on the older without even knowing him, when JB is nothing but a very considerate guy. Scrub that. Not when you got on his bad side.

“Nah, don’t bother telling me that. Not interested.” Before he could walk away, she continued.

“Have you ever thought why he only want Mark to dress him up when that supposed to be fashion designer’s job?” She asked, grabbing Youngjae’s attention because honestly the very same question has been in his head for a long time but everytime he asked, no one seems to have the answer. He looked at her and saw a smirk appeared on her face. Luckily, she’s a girl and he, being a gentleman, doesn’t hit a girl.

“Now, I’ve got your attention.” She announced.

“Speak.” Trying to act nonchalant when underneath, only God knows.

xxXxx

Finally, the NYFW runway show has ended and he was experiencing mixed feelings at the moment. Some part of him was glad that it has ended but the other part, was hoping it’ll last longer because no one knows when this kind of opportunity will come again.

But the most important thing is his lifelong dream became a reality and he couldn’t be happier. All the hard works, sleeps that he lost and stress that he got for the past few weeks paid off.

With the adrenaline still in the system, he bounced happily along the hallway. Then, he saw light coming from JB’s changing room. That’s weird because he thought everyone has gone back and he’s pretty sure no one is around.

He opened the door but there is nobody there. He was about to walk away when he heard JB’s humming voice coming from the bathroom.

“Oh, he’s still here.”

He thought to himself as he walk slowly towards the voice, planning to surprise the model. But little did he knows, he’ll be the one who’s surprised. The bathroom door was slightly open, allowing him to take a peek what’s inside. And there he is. Shaving his non-existence beard and moustache... and shirtless.

Bloody hell.

Luckily, Jaebeom was facing the other way, giving him the opportunity to look at the older until it landed on his broad shoulder. Something has caught his attention and his mind wandered back to the conversation he had with that girl.

“He has a huge tattoo on his back, some sort of a gang tattoo and someone said that he’s actually a son of a very powerful but ruthless tycoon.”

But instead of a tattoo, there is a scar. A jagged line running down between his shoulder blade and it looks....painful.

Suddenly, he felt sharp pain stabbing his head, feeling the blood pulsing and his head started pounding vigorously as images popped up in his head, his mouth getting dry. A memory flashed through his mind.

“You will be okay..we’ll be okay.”

A boy was talking to him and hugging him tight. He can’t see anything. It’s too dark and he’s scared. He can feel his anxiety started to kick in as his body shook with fear. Before it could get any worse, the boy humming him a tune and rubbed a circle on his back and slowly calmed him down.

Wait.

It’s the same tune that JB was humming the other day. What the heck is happening right now.

He needs to get out of here before things is getting out of hand, afraid he could no longer control his mind with all the unknown memories coming back to him like a hurricane. Strong and unannounced.

And that is only the beginning of his worst nightmare. First, the amusement park, very happening and full of laughter. Then, came the heavy rain and storm. Everything turned dark in a split seconds with screaming and shouting can be heard in the background. People started running around aimlessly with no direction and it scared him. His dream felt so real that he could even feel the emotions, made him wake up at night soaked in sweat. No longer able to get back to sleep and it took a toll on his body.

Few days later, he bumped into JB on his way to meet Mr Kim. It’s been few days since he last saw the model and he wished it will stay that way for few more days or weeks until he can figured out what is happening to him at the moment. Because of that particular dream, he locked himself in his room, trying to keep himself mentally and emotinally sane.

JB’s scar, JB’s tune, everything that related to JB had triggered something inside him. A memory that he never knew he had.

“Hey, you okay? You look... terrible.” JB’s voice brought him back to the present.

He sighed. “M’fine. Can’t sleep.”

JB wanted to ask more but looking at Youngjae’s condition, he decided to keep it to himself. The younger looks exhausted. Miserable. The dark circles under his eyes getting worse and his face looked slimmer compared to the last times he saw him. His signature chubby cheeks had gone and so does his bright smile. What kind of things that bothering him right now.

JB wondered.

“JB..”

“I saw something that I shouldn’t have after the show. Your scar... how did you get it?” Carefully, he broached the subject that he’d been dying to ask.

Jb was surprised. He shouldn’t knows about that. No one should. The scar that reminded him of his painful past, was now exposed to the younger. He worked really hard to hide it from the world. He even made a rule that no fashion designer should dress him up or see him without shirt except for Mark. Mark is different. They’ve been friends since they’re young and he knows what exactly happened to him.

He met his gaze and for a long moment they fell into deep silence before JB broke it. “Unfortunate things happen when I was kid. Nothing much.” He said, trying to change the subject.

But what comes next from Youngjae had stirred up something inside him, deepened his suspicions of the younger’s background.

“I remembered things... which I don’t know if my mind playing tricks on me or it’s some unknown memory. I’ve been having the same dream for past months but it’s getting stronger after I saw the scar.”

“What kind of dream?” JB asked, looking at the younger.

“Few random things. Amusement park, storm, a boy and.. the exactly same tune you hummed before.”

The person standing in front him right now might be the person he’s been searching this whole time. He needs to confirm his suspicion.

“Choi Youngjae.. is your first pet a dog? A maltese?”

“Yes. But how-“

“And her name is Coco?”

For a moment, Youngjae was too stunned to say anything. He could only nodded his head to the question.

“It’s not a random dream, Youngjae ah. And to answer your question, I know because you told me when we were trapped by the landslide that happened at Amusement Park in Seoul almost 20 years ago. It was so bad. I still remember how everyone was screaming and running to save their life. Chaotic. And you were so scared, almost had a panic attack and I don’t know what to do. I was only 7 years old. So, I just hummed to the same tune that my mom used to sing to me every night while hugging you, in hope that it would calmed us down. I really thought we’re going to die in there.”

Before this, he was more than willing to do anything to find the answer to his dream, but now, when he had discovered the shocking truth of his past- when the dots have finally been connected, he doesn’t know how to react. The memories slowly came back to him and as he tried to digest the newly found information, a hush fell over them.

The silence lengthens.

Finally, Youngjae looked up and saw the older’s eyes were on him, waiting for him to say something. Anything. “And the scar?”

“Scratched myself when crawling out of the landslide.”

Another silence. Then, “Can I ask you something?”

“Shoot.”

“Why model?”

Jb hesitated for a moment,debating whether to answer the question or not.

“Because the cute little Youngjae wanted to be a fashion designer and I want to be his muse.”

xxXxx

They walked in silence, listening to the distant sirens, the slammed car doors and muffled arguments of the city – with their hands entwined. Random things that made him happy, finally free of the uncertainties that surrounded his life for the past few months.

“Finally, I’ve found you...”

-The End-