It had been a year. A year since he had been admitted to the hospital. The pain was still clear in his mind as he thought about it. He shook his head, walking straight to the office that had become familiar to him. He felt stronger, but only because the muscles rolled under his skin now. He rolled his head, releasing the tension in his neck.

"Jaejoong! You're back." The man smiled at him, holding his hand out. Jaejoong took it, bowing respectively. He hadn't seen this man in an entire year. His past manager who had looked after him all this time. He had respect for this manger, it was almost as if he were his true father. He smirked at the thought. His real father...the man who had trapped him. The man who had...no. He shook his head. That man was in prison.

"You look great! I've heard a lot of good things. Your recordings were great too!" The man continued to compliment him. He broke a grin, proud that he had done good work since he had been alone. "I bet your excited to see them again. I wont keep you any longer...they are in their usual spot."

He bowed respectively, not saying a word as he backed out of the office. He thought he was prepared to meet his old friends. He had spent a lot of time preparing himself for this, but he never knew what to expect. He walked slowly, finally beginning to dread what he might find. He took a deep breath before slowly opening the door. He was in luck. They were in a middle of a dance, not even noticing that he slipped to the side of the room. Two managers cracked smiles at him. He nodded his head, bowing slightly at them.

It was the dance. Tri-angle. The dance that they were supposed to have debuted to a long time ago. If only everything hadn't gone all wrong. They must have wondered why they weren't debuted yet. Why did they have to wait such a long time? He apologized silently as he dropped his cargo bag to the floor, stripping himself of his coat.

He waited for the perfect moment before slipping into his own spot, the spot they had unknowingly saved for him. The dance was so familiar, as he had practiced it over and over. He wondered what it would be like to dance with them like this again. It was a relief to him, even as his friends began to get confused at his sudden appearance. He was sure he was almost unrecognizable. His body was different, along with the now blonde hair.

"Jaejoong!"

The dance was over all too quick when Junsu yelled his name, causing everyone to stop what they were doing. Jaejoong moved to the side, avoiding Junsu's hug cleanly. He bowed deeply to everyone, avoiding eye contact.

"I'm back..."

He was sure his voice sounded different too. It was cold and distant. It was the result of spending long days and nights alone as well as all the memories he suffered from. He bowed deeply, holding the position for a few seconds longer than what was probably normal.

"Jaejoong..." Junsu's voice was shy, almost as if he was asking a question. He straightened, his eyes finding Junsu first. His loyal friend, who had done his best for him in the past. He gave a weak smile, forcing it out. It had been a long time since he smiled, since he could laugh and have fun. He was still grieving, and knew that going back to how he was....it was impossible

"Is this all you have to say? No explanation?"

He sighed at the words, knowing exactly who it was. He turned his head slowly, meeting the tanned skin and handsome man. If anything, he was hotter than ever. The v-neck showe off his upper body. He stared at it for a moment before lowering his gaze.

"I'm sorry." He was sorry. He wanted to apologize to this man a hundred, a thousand, even a million times...but it would never be enough. It would never be enough to give him what they had lost. He bowed his head, blinking his eyes. Now he really wasn't sure if he was ready for this.

"You're sorry?" The man laughed, his hands on his hips as he turned away.

"Yunho!" Changmin warned, even though he was younger. He then smiled brightly at Jaejoong, nodding his head in understanding. "Welcome back, Umma..."

Jaejoong froze at the words, the breath catching in his throat. He could feel his knees go weak, and he had to lean back against the wall to support himself. He took a deep breath before meeting his maknae's eyes.

"Changmin?"

"Umma?"

He had nothing else to say, but he could feel the joy at the word. Something he had longed to hear since he had left. Even though he couldn't express it, he could feel the happiness at the edges of his heart. It was a strange feeling after so long. However, his friends seemed to be the true medicine that he needed.

"Where have you been? We've all been looking for you. What have you been up to? Tell me!!" Junsu begged for answers. Jaejoong glanced toward the managers, asking for help. He wasn't ready to answer any of the questions that he was sure they had. Especially Yunho...although he wasn't sure if the man would ever be calm enough to ask him any.

"You can ask those questions another time. It's time for you all to get back to work. You'll be debuting in a week." One of the managers stated with a smile. Everyone turned to him. Although Jaejoong already knew, it seemed like none of them did.

"Debut...in a week?" Yoochun asked, a smile placed firmly on his lips. He had been the only one who hadn't said anything yet. Jaejoong respected him, he was the one that was closest to his personality. Quiet, yet cherished in every way. Everyone seemed to jump in excitement except Jaejoong and Yunho.

"And I suspect that Jaejoong is debuting with us?"

The manager looked at Yunho, nodding at him. Jaejoong went over to his cargo bag, taking out a bottle of water. He wanted to distract himself from whatever Yunho may say.

"He's worked really hard this past year. You might be surprised."

"So you've known about this. You've known where he was all this time?"

"We were the ones to send him away."

Yunho turned, finding Jaejoong by the opposite wall. His eyes dug into his, asking for answers even though it was obvious he was anger.

"Anyway, let's run through it again."

Jaejoong dropped his water bottle, casually finding his spot. Changmin nudged him once just before the music started.

By the time practice was done, he felt the relief to have his friends around him. However, he couldn't stick around for much longer. He packed up his bag, throwing on his coat.

"Let's go to halmoni's shop to eat! She'll be so excited to see you." Junsu jumped excitedly in front of him. His heart ached. He also wanted to see Halmoni, but one glance from Yunho told him he wasn't exactly welcome. He looked away.

"Maybe another time, Junsu. I have to go somewhere...I'll see you at the apartment later."

He didn't waste anytime to leave the room.

"He has changed, hasn't he?" Junsu voiced the question they were all wondering.

Yunho refused to let him leave just like that. He grabbed his coat before running out after Jaejoong.

Instead of wanting to stop him, he wanted to follow him. He wanted to know what Jaejoong was up to. What was he doing? Not going home right away and not eating...what else did he have to do?

He followed Jaejoong quietly, even on the roads he made sure to stay a safe distance away so that he wasn't caught easily. He stopped a block a way as Jaejoong parked, and went into a flower shop. He came out carrying a bouquet of flowers.

'A date?' Yunho wondered, feeling his anger even more. He dared to come back, yet he had enough time for a date? He followed a little closer when they were back on the road. This time Jaejoong stopped in a place that wasn't very popular. It was right out of the city, portraying a lovely sundown as Jaejoong walked into the cemetery.

'Cemetery? Why...?'

He sat still, wondering who it was he wanted to see. He had seen the news that both of his parents were in prison, HyunJoong had went oversees once again. Who else did Jaejoong know?

He waited and waited, and even the rain started but Jaejoong didn't return. He couldn't wait any longer. He had to see what was going on.

He raced into the cemetery, finding that it was one huge maze to try and find Jaejoong. He walked swiftly to his right, looking up and down every row. He swore he walked about 5000 blocks before he found someone crouching down. He raced towards him, falling to his knees beside him.

"Jaejoong? Jaejoong?"

His body was cold, soaked through due to the rain. Even the tears were visible because of his red, swollen eyes. Yunho glanced at the plate, and found the name neatly encrusted onto it.

"Kim SooYun

December 19th, 2011"

He picked Jaejoong up, running back to his car so that he could get Jaejoong home.