To say Jongin was upset would be an understatement. The first few days were worse in terms of tears and tantrums, but the more he grew used to not having Sehun around, the more he just retreated into the safety of his bedroom. He didn't starve himself - his mother wouldn't have him looking tardy for his wedding anyway - and he didn't neglect his health. He just became much more reserved than even he thought was possible.
He turned down any invitations to go out, and he barely left his room. His parents realized that he'd just ignore them if they pestered him too much to come out and join them for meals, so while they were annoyed with having such a petulant child suddenly, they had everything delivered to his room instead. All he wanted was to be alone for a long, long time.

It was a Thursday afternoon, around 4 PM, and his lace curtains danced in the gentle breeze that tiptoed around his room. He was in front of the large window that invited the golden sunlight in, a few books in front of him; he began studying more often, but not because he wanted to. It kept his mind off of things, and a distraction was exactly what he needed right now.
He breathed in the fresh air that arrived from the open window only to let that same breath out again as a sigh as he stared outside. Everything seemed to move in slow motion these days; the leaves scampering along the ground, the gardeners snipping away at the bushes to have them form a certain shape, and even the sun seemed to take forever to slink down behind the horizon and to rise again eventually.
It was relatively silent - that, or his mind had just muted everything - and that's why the sound of a key jingling in the keyhole of his locked door caught his attention so quickly. No one invaded his privacy like this, so this had to be for a good reason.

The door opened, and there stood Mrs. Li with one of the telephones in her hands. Jongin was sure his parents hadn't relieved his punishments even a little bit, thus creating a look of confusion on his face as he saw the maid approach and leave the object beside his bed.
“Call him,” She was always a woman of little words, and when Jongin gave her a frown, she simply shook her head with a knowing smile. She knew the look of heartbreak too well, especially in young people, and while she would have to answer to one of her bosses as to why their son had his telephone back, she didn't mind that too much.

As quickly as she arrived, she disappeared.

Jongin stared at the phone for some time as he listened to his door being locked once more, then turned back to his books. It should've had more of an impact on him; he should've been rushing for the phone, dialing that number he had just about memorized by now, but he just felt numb to the idea of seeing or hearing or being reminded of Sehun. He suppressed the sadness he originally felt, and while it wasn't healthy and was certainly bound to come out in a harsh explosion eventually, it helped him feel better in the moment.
He'd call Mrs. Li to take the phone away later. Sehun didn't want to hear from him anyway.

“So you haven't called him, and he hasn't called you? That's something I didn't expect. You two have always been attached to the hip,” Chanyeol's deep voice rang out in Sehun's ears while he sat by the window. There was a lit cigarette in his hand, which was very common these days, and in an ironic way, he was glad his parents were too busy organizing his wedding to be around. He'd definitely get busted for smoking, but he didn't really care that much. What else could they do to him that would be so bad? Even if they thought something up, they wouldn't be around to enforce it anyway. He wasn't afraid.

“Things change. What about you and Baekhyun? Last time I heard, you two were constantly on and off,” Sehun changed the subject almost immediately. He had confided in Chanyeol the night he broke up with Jongin, and even now they still spoke about it, but he just wasn't in the mood to be reminded of Jongin. There was nothing negative to it, his heart simply ached too much with what-ifs and subtle regrets.
“Eh, same-old, same-old. He dates me for a week, then we date other people for another week, and then we go back to each other. Back and forth like that,” Chanyeol shrugged as if this wasn't a big deal. Which, to him, it wasn't. Sehun couldn't imagine being like that with someone he liked so deeply - wasn't it toxic somehow?
“And you allow it?” This was his question every week (or every time they spoke about Baekhyun), and the elder one hummed out distractedly as he peeled a mango.
“What am I supposed to do? In a way, it suits me just fine. He doesn't get on my nerves when I'm seeing someone else, and I don't annoy him about his guys either. It's a win-win,” He said as he offered a piece of the orange fruit to Sehun, only to eat it when the younger one declined. He wasn't sure how cigarettes and mangoes would taste together.
“But what if you want to marry him one day? Are you just going to let him have an affair without caring about it?” He asked as he killed the cigarette in between his index and middle fingers that had since burnt down to the end.
“Who says I even want to get married?” Chanyeol roared with laughter, “I'm just fine as a bachelor for the rest of my life,”
“Yeah, that's what I also said...” Sehun muttered under his breath, and then sighed as he leaned his head against his windowsill.

As time went on, Jongin's mother only grew more and more excited for her son's upcoming wedding, and she'd gush about it endlessly when Jongin found it in himself to join them for dinner. However, he only stayed for five minutes, then complained about a headache so that he wouldn't be forced to listen to the excited chatter that made him sick to his stomach. At least there was the positive side of never being bothered about his measurements for a tux or what he wanted his wedding to look like - his mother knew all his measurements, and she had thousands of ideas as to how the wedding could and would look. Jongin was sure this was her way of planning her own perfect wedding since she didn't get much choices when it came to her wedding to his father. It would've made any normal person mad, but Jongin just didn't have the energy to get angry anymore. He had been walking around sulking for the longest, and now he just wanted everything to pass as if he was just in some wicked nightmare.

“Jongin! Get ready! We're going out to meet your future husband and in-laws,” Mrs. Kim called out from the door, and if it was unlocked, she surely would've just barged in.
It had been an ordinary day until now, Jongin doing what he usually did outside of studying; curling up beneath the sheets while trying to sleep the whole day. Not that it really ever worked like that.
He groaned, refusing to move, and called out instead, “can't I just stay here? I'll meet them at the wedding!”
“Absolutely not! Come on and get ready. I'll be expecting to see you downstairs in fifteen minutes. If not, I'll have one of the maids unlock your door so I can dress you myself! And make sure to wear something nice,” She exclaimed, and he heard her footsteps fade away as he curled into himself a little more. He felt no excitement or eagerness whatsoever - he didn't even feel like getting up! How was he supposed to pluck up the energy and motivation to meet a man and his family that Jongin hadn't even wanted to be involved with in the first place? However, he didn't want his room to be raided by his mother (his bedroom wasn't as neat as expected or as usual, and she would definitely have something to say about that), and he certainly didn't want her to dress him like he was a toddler. She was just that much of a control freak.

Although it took him about five minutes, he dragged himself out of his warm and inviting bed to dig around in his closet for the fanciest clothes he could find. It was hard, but he knew that once he got over this hurdle, he'd be free for a while. The big obstacle was the wedding - or was it the life after that? The chances of him loving this actor were slim to none, and Jongin was always such a lovable person! To live in a loveless marriage was one of his greatest fears. And to not be able to get out of it made it even worse. He didn't want to turn into his father who didn't care whether or not his spouse was having an affair because he had learnt to live with someone instead of learning to love them. Jongin didn't want to wake up every morning and feel as if it would be a chore just to make conversation with his husband, and he didn't want to force himself to kiss the man or speak well about him for the cameras. He didn't want to fake every smile, every laugh, every emotion that should've been real. But really, how was he supposed to cope? By running away to the Bahamas for a year, only coming back when the press needed an interview and he had to put on the happy family image? Jongin wanted kids too, but he'd never adopt or have a surrogate bring children into a world where their parents didn't love one another unconditionally. It was just cruel.

“Ah, you decided to wear that blouse I bought for you once upon a time. You look wonderful! First impressions are always the most important,” Mrs. Kim said as if she was telling him the wisest piece of information anyone could come up with, smiling at Jongin. He had chosen a pale pink blouse with sequins in the chest area and a light, airy material for the sleeves. He wore matching milky pink trousers which came up to his waist, his blouse tucked inside of his pants to accentuate his waist. He felt weird dolling himself up for someone again after such a long time, but in a way, it cheered him up. Just because Sehun didn't want him anymore didn't mean every other man would turn away from Jongin too. It was a little silly, but Jongin used this thought to fuel him today; with some kind
of motivation like this, he'd get through the day.

“I don't know why I have to be here for this business meeting. What does it have to do with me? I thought we agreed I'd go into the modeling field,” Sehun grumbled as he adjusted the buttons of his suit shirt time and time again, glancing at the clock as well. Chanyeol had left a few hours ago, so Sehun was left bored for a long time.
“It's not a business meeting. I just told you that to get you down here. Lord knows you don't leave your room otherwise,” His mother said wryly with a roll of her eyes.
“What, seriously? I could've been doing something else! I could've been-”
“Doing what? You're grounded. You can't go out, you don't have a phone, and you don't watch TV. What exactly could you do that's more important than this?” She took him on, and he immediately fell silent with a dismissive hand. She was right, but he'd never admit it, even if she was his mother.
“I don't ask much of you, but please, don't make this into something awkward and uncomfortable for everyone because of your sulking!” She cried out, her pink lips pressing together, “you may not like it, but this marriage will happen regardless of your feelings,”
He understood this, but it still made him angry to hear it said so blatantly. They didn't care whether he'd be happy in the long run or not. All his parents wanted was a good image for their business, a business Sehun wasn't interested in to begin with! It'd go to the highest shareholder when his father passed away or stepped down, so why did Sehun have to contribute to the popularity of the company?

He kept quiet. He didn't care to meet whoever it was that he'd be meeting, and he certainly didn't care what they thought about him. If they didn't like his silence, then they'd have to find a way to deal with it. His mother could scold him and complain about him all she wanted, but Sehun had never been a kiss-, and he wouldn't start now.

The doorbell chimed, indicating the guests were here, and Sehun sighed heavily as he slouched in his chair.
“Sit up straight!” His mother hissed, kicking his shin slightly, and he grumbled under his breath. He felt like a sullen child that had to sit through a boring meeting, which was the truth to an extent. He had no idea how he'd pretend he was listening for more than an hour.

Jongin followed the maid through the large house with his mother right beside him - this mansion seemed bigger than his own house, and there were luxuries everywhere. Paintings, sculptures, statues, everything. Jongin wondered what the networth of the house was.

“Now remember; be kind, don't speak unless spoken to, and don't talk too loudly,” Mrs. Kim said under her breath as if she hadn't drilled it into Jongin's head in the car. He nodded.

The maid opened the double doors leading to the sitting area - a very spacious room with wooden floors and various paintings and lamps all around a beige and gold color scheme. It was pretty. He felt as if he fitted right in with the elegance of the environment around him.

He had been pleasantly surprised throughout the five minutes he had been here, but his stance towards the marriage and the man he'd be meeting now didn't change. He was still very apprehensive, and he gulped down all the nerves he had. As always, he was afraid of what he'd encounter.

However, he was once again pleasantly surprised when he saw who was in front of his mother and himself.

He opened his mouth to speak, but his mother beat him to it.
“You two are looking wonderful as always! We've been waiting for this moment for so long. Jongin has been absolutely thrilled,” She said, and he blubbered like a fish as he stared at the man in the seat in front of him. He didn't even care that she was lying straight through her teeth right now.
“I'm glad to hear it. Sehun here has been just as excited,” Mrs. Oh said, her pink lips turning up into a sly smile, and both pairs of the men's eyes met one another hearing their names.

“Sehun?” Jongin breathed out so loudly it caught the mothers’ attention.
“Jongin?” Sehun answered in such shock, he sat up so straight it looked like he had a steel rod in his spine, and they both glanced over one another before looking at their mothers.
“He's the one I'm marrying?”
“Yes. Kim Industries have recently paired up with our businesses, so it only made sense to arrange a marriage. Why? Do you know each other?” Mrs. Oh seemed pleased with the reactions, but Jongin was quick to speak before Sehun could again.
“No. No, not at all. I mean, we might have heard about one another in the newspapers, but we've never met,” He said - they both knew their parents were less than thrilled to know why their kids weren't in college right now, and if they knew these two were originally together, they'd probably call off the wedding.
“Right,” Sehun added with a slight gulp, grateful Jongin had saved them both with his good memory.
“I've seen Sehun in a few articles about his modeling career. I didn't know he wanted to go into acting, though,” Jongin said with a small smile as he looked at the other one, and Sehun glanced away sheepishly. He didn't really want to go into acting - it was his parents who wanted that - so he hadn't mentioned it.
“Yes, it'll be taking shape soon. So, who would like some tea? Will you be staying for lunch?” Mrs. Oh asked. Now that the men seemed to show some signs of chemistry, she hoped the Kims would stay there longer.
“Oh, I think we'll be-”
“Staying. Right, mom?” Jongin cut in, an excited smile on his features; now it was her turn to be pleasantly surprised. She thought he hated the idea, but now he seemed happier than ever.
“Yes. We'll be staying,” She nodded at the mother and son in front of her, and Mrs. Oh quickly called for some tea.