Jongin had to sit through an hour-long lecture when he got home by both his parents. He knew they were upset because this could somehow leak to the press and make the whole family look bad, but he also knew they were just worried about his education. It was true that this college was a well-known one for its rules as well as its high success rates, but considering he was already set for life in terms of wealth, why was it so important that he get an office job? He could become an author, an editor, a fashion designer - anything he wished. He had the financial backing for it, and even if it didn't work out, they'd still have a lot of money left coming in from investments and real estate. Still, he wanted to keep his parents happy considering how much they had done for him, so he agreed to behave himself more from now on.
𝐼𝑡'𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝐼 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑎 𝑐ℎ𝑜𝑖𝑐𝑒 𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑆𝑒ℎ𝑢𝑛 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡, Jongin thought to himself.

“I'm glad that boy you got in trouble with is gone now. You'll be able to focus much more now,” Jongin's mother said as they ate dinner together. Well, his parents did, he mainly picked at his food.
“He wasn't the problem,” He mumbled and then sighed, putting his fork down. He was already beginning to miss the Korean food back at the college - at home, his parents wanted American and European delicacies and foods more.
“That's what I thought you'd say. But you'll see, Jongin, that I'm right. Your studies will go much smoother now that you don't have any distractions,” His mother continued, and he felt his stomach churn and his throat burn as he was reminded of the situation.
“You don't know him, okay?! You don't even know his name,” He spoke loudly, but his voice died down towards the end as he slumped against the chair once more, the defeat evident on his face. It didn't matter what he said to defend Sehun since his parents had already made up their mind about him.
“You say it like you were more than friends,” She said, a little flabbergasted, as she drank some of her wine.
“We are...” Jongin clenched his jaw. He refused to acknowledge they were over.
“Well, not anymore. You are never to see him again, do you understand me? You won't get your phone back either. Not until next vacation,” His mother continued with a dismissive wave of her manicured hand, and he slammed his hand down softly, “what?!”
“Your mother is right. You know you are not supposed to have relationships. Not with your arranged marriage coming. What will your husband think, hearing all your shenanigans with some boyfriend of yours?” Jongin's father spoke for the first time, and Jongin felt as if he was turning into a teenager once more. This reminded him that he had no say in his own future; it was fun and games being a rich kid until this point. Without a proper education, he didn't get to have an opinion about what his parents did. They could kick him out and he'd have no money, no place to stay, and all their connections would turn their back on him. It wasn't as easy as most people thought coming from a rich family, but it definitely wasn't as bad as coming from a poor one.

“I don't care what he thinks! I don't even want to get married. This is all for you, not for me! How can you expect me to love someone I don't even know?” Jongin demanded - it was one of the rare times he spoke up for himself, and he was sure it wouldn't get him anywhere, but he had to try.
“You will grow accustomed to it,” His father said with such a voice of authority, it made Jongin fall silent immediately, “you 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙, Jongin,”
It sounded more like a threat than an assurance.
“But I-” He opened his mouth again, but his father flicked one hand.
“Enough of this,” And with that, the topic was immediately closed.

He didn't eat much of his meal, only taking a bite here and there to keep his parents satisfied, then asked the chef to keep the leftovers in the fridge for tomorrow. He knew his parents routine well - they'd eat dinner, then retire to their separate rooms to do something. His father would go to his office for an hour or two, and his mother would move to the music room to enjoy some classical piano music from one of the butlers. Jongin once thought they were having an affair, but whether it was true or not, he didn't know. If his father knew, he didn't care enough to do anything about it, or just didn't want to make a scene.

Jongin took this time alone to get to the one house phone; there were several scattered around the house. One was connected to the wall in the kitchen, another on the bedside table beside his parents’ bed and one in the living room on the table beside the lamp which Jongin would use now. He had one in his room for private calls, but he noticed it had been taken away, probably as part of his punishment.

He slid the piece of paper out of his trousers pocket, unrolling it carefully to dial the number. He hoped and prayed Sehun's parents wouldn't pick up - if they did, he'd just put the phone down quickly. However, he needed to talk to Sehun at least once so he'd get an approximate time of when it would be good to call, and he also missed hearing his voice already.

“Hello?” It was Sehun on the other side.
“Sehun! Oh, I thought your parents would pick up,” Jongin sighed from relief, immediately feeling much better now that he knew he could still keep in contact with his boyfriend.
“No, they're out at a dinner party or something. They don't care enough about me to stick around for more than an hour,” Sehun was kidding now, but they could both hear the sadness in his voice. It was thin and quiet, but it was still there.
“What about you? Didn't you say you'd get your phone taken away?” He continued before Jongin could ask anything about his previous statement.
“I did. My personal house telephone in my room was taken away too, but we have a few lying around the house anyway. You can't get rid of me that quickly,” Jongin laughed softly. Even though it was stiff, it was certainly something. He felt happier now, and he hoped it would last for some time after they stopped talking for the night. It wasn't the same as when they were together, but it would do for now.

They spent nearly an hour talking, and Jongin reminded himself of a teenage girl the way he'd lay on his stomach on the couch and cross his ankles in the air while speaking to Sehun. He even began twirling the cord of the telephone around his fingers sometimes, and for just a short while, he could relax and calm down after everything that had happened. This served to clear his head a little bit, and while it was only a temporary fix, it still lifted him up much more than it would've if they'd just cut contact completely. It surprised him how much they had to say to one another - they'd only left the college a few hours ago and yet they were chatting like they hadn't seen each other for years!
Eventually, they ran out of things to say to one another, so they agreed to talk at the same time tomorrow; 7:30 PM.
“Hey, Jongin?” Sehun asked before Jongin could put the telephone down.
“I love you,” He said when he heard the shorter man's hum, and Jongin grinned sheepishly.
“I love you too,” Especially now, he felt like a teenager falling in love for the first time.

As he sat up on the now warm couch, he caught the eye of one of the elder maids in the house - yes, they had more than one - with grey hair tied back in a tight bun. Mrs. Li.
He thought for sure she'd run off and tell his parents (Mrs. Li and him hadn't been friends ever since he was born, mainly because she was very strict and didn't let him do anything that was against the rules), but she simply smiled and shook her head as she returned to cleaning. Perhaps she wasn't so bad, after all.

Jongin lived out the days of his suspension in boredom; to no one's surprise, he was grounded. With no phone, no computer and strictly forbidden against using the house telephones (not that he cared), he couldn't really do much except for loiter around the house and occasionally play video games before he was told to stop. He felt as if he was in purgatory. This really was punishment!
However, he never missed a day when he had to speak to Sehun. Each night at 7:30 PM sharp, he'd find a free telephone furtherest away from everyone, and speak to his boyfriend for an hour or more. Sometimes, Mrs. Li would catch him, and his heart would pound and his cheeks would flush red, but then she'd walk away like she hadn't seen anything at all. His parents never said anything, so he was sure she hadn't been telling them either. He still couldn't quite understand why she was letting him do this considering their sour and bitter relationship over the years, but there was no extravagant reason - she just knew the joys of first love as well as the aggravation that came with boredom, and she didn't want to be such a warden to get him in trouble in a time like this.

“We've finally found a match for you!” Jongin's mother squealed one day at dinner, and he nearly choked on the lobster they had been served. In fact, he did when he drank some water right after.
“Oh, I know you must be so thrilled. I know I am!” She exclaimed, misreading his reaction entirely, and he gaped at her. Had she not listened to his outburst before? Didn't she remember the scene he made right here in this spot at the dinner table?
“Personally, I don't see why your father would choose him. He's so cold and abrupt. He's so quiet, too! Definitely the opposite of you,” She continued, and Jongin nearly covered his ears like a child.
“He's going to be an actor soon, and everyone knows publicity like that is good for our businesses,” His father said with a satisfied nod; Jongin didn't expect that he'd be the one that chose the match, but then again, he never knew what his parents were thinking.
“He's such a respectable young man, Jongin. You'll love him. Although I do think he's hard to approach...he's rather intimidating. I hope you won't mind it too much,” She said with a nod, “we met his parents earlier!”
Jongin felt himself slump in his chair. He wondered what sort of rich, arrogant, probably short, man was waiting for him. An up-and-coming actor? Jongin couldn't even begin to guess who that would be! Actors would never even begin to compare to Sehun the supermodel and his popularity! Not to mention they'd never be able to rival his good looks.

He said nothing, and instead ate quickly so he could get to a phone. Even though he was sure the phone bill would be much higher than usual at the end of the month, he knew his parents wouldn't look into it; they didn't even see what they paid for majority of the time since the bills were paid electronically. They just deducted the amount off and it was done.

“They found a match! They say he's an actor and he's cold and mean and intimidating!” The words spilled out of Jongin's mouth uncontrollably the moment Sehun answered the telephone, and the taller man frowned.
“What? Hold on, slow down and talk clearer,” He shook his head as if the other one could see it. Ever since they started talking over the telephone, Sehun sat by the phone and waited patiently for the phone call at 7:30 PM. Jongin was never late, which was nice, and Sehun never let the phone go on longer than two rings.
“My parents,” Jongin sniffled now, “they've found a match for me, and he doesn't sound nice at all. He's an actor!”
He said it as if it were the end of the world that he was to be married to an actor.
“There's nothing wrong with an actor, Jongin. What, did you date one already that you know they're so terrible?” Sehun was full of jokes again - the outcome of speaking to Jongin every day - and the shorter one giggled through his tears.
“Still! He doesn't sound like a good man. He sounds like a bully,” He replied.
“Well, if it bothers you so much, then how about we meet up sometime and you can tell me all your conspiracy theories about this man?” Sehun offered, and Jongin wiped the little bit of tears that leaked out, “really...?”
Sehun hummed. He still wanted to know who his competition was and if he should be concerned or not, but he also wanted to meet up just to spend some time with his boyfriend again. It had only been a few days, but he couldn't handle it anymore.
“If you can get out of that dungeon, that is,” He added afterwards, and Jongin let out a slight huff. He'd never even consider sneaking out before he met Sehun, and now he was already thinking of the times he could leave and come back undetected.
“Of course I can! For you, I'd do anything,” It was certainly cheesy, but it was the truth.
“Good, then,” Sehun said, flustered at this sudden declaration, “we'll set up a good time for us both as well as a safe place. How's that?”
“Mhm, I like it. Just let me know,” Jongin smiled, twirling the cord around his fingers as if he wasn't plotting on breaking one of the biggest rules in the house.

Jongin had to observe his parents’ movements before he made any official plans with Sehun; he didn't want to get caught and have even more problems than he already had. Sehun's parents, as always, were never around, so he never had to worry about getting caught leaving the house. It was odd, really; he was supposed to be getting punished with several rules and bans, but his parents were never there to reinforce them. The maids and chefs didn't care that much either, so he felt as if he was home for vacation. His worst punishment was Jongin's parents.

Over the course of the week, Jongin kept a careful eye on his parents’ movements. What time they left and returned, what they usually did at certain hours, and especially what the maids did. There was a higher chance of them catching Jongin than his parents, but he was wary of both parties.

“I think we're all good for sometime next week,” Jongin babbled with enthusiasm when his boyfriend answered the phone, “my parents should be away for a day or two!”
Needless to say, both men were absolutely thrilled at this update.

Jongin waited for the days to pass by, and nothing could get him down. He'd eat dinner with his parents each night (although on some rare occasions one or both would be missing from the table), and no matter how much his mother blabbered on about how grand the wedding would be and how wonderful his future husband was, Jongin didn't let it affect him. Most of the time, he didn't listen. It was all just white noise to him at that point; he heard it, but he silenced the alarm bells disguised as wedding bells instead of listening to them.

Still, every night he wanted to pass was another one closer to his wedding day. And that wasn't far away at all.