Jaejoong lay still, an arm resting over his head as he waited for the minutes to tick by. The ticking of the clock was clearly audible, as he patiently waited.

He waited for the breathing of the two sleeping forms beside him to go slow and even, waited for the tense muscles to relax. And even then, he waited some more, hoping that the two of them would fall into a deeper sleep, one that would not wake them so easily from simple, light movements.

The minutes slowly ticked into hours, and still Jaejoong waited, staying perfectly still. He was patient, he always was, and always had been.

He had waited for this reunion for a very long time, four years to be exact.

And so he was perfectly fine with waiting a bit more, waiting for the right time to move.

When he calculated that the time was right, Jaejoong slowly got up, careful of making any sudden movements that might wake Yunho, ever the light sleeper.

Succeeding in sitting up, he slowly moved to stand. The action made Yunho stir in his sleep, as the hand he was holding onto was suddenly no more. Jaejoong froze, holding his breath in apprehension. Did he wake him?

Yunho shifted in his sleep, turning over to face Yoochun before he thankfully stilled and was off in his own Slumberland. A sigh of relief was made from Jae, and he quickly moved to slip out of the room.

Walking down the hallway, Jaejoong made a time check. Five in the morning.

It was amazing that he didn't feel the least bit sleepy or tired, though he knew perfectly well that he was running on an adrenaline rush. He would probably drop down dead tired once the rush passed him, but right now, Jaejoong had yet a hoot to care.

He continued walking, no particular destination in mind. He passed by several rooms and turned several hallways. Despite this being his sister's clinic, he had no idea of his way around the place. His constantly busy schedule had effectively prevented him from catching up with his family, and this was only about the fourth time he had ever been here.

He walked around some more, just to waste time, waiting for the right time to come.

The sun rose, sunlight streaming through a window he was passing by. It caught his eyes, and he squinted fractionally at the light. The scenery around here was really something, he thought, as the sun illuminated the mountains and forests around them.

Time check. 6:25am.

He would probably be awake by now, Jaejoong guessed. Walking forward, he decided to find some place private, somewhere he wouldn't be interrupted. After all, this would take all his wits.

He found an empty room, with windows that faced the scenery and several beds that were probably used for patients. This was good. Private, quiet, and there was a view to calm him down or clear his head should the need arise. Whipping out his phone, he dialed the number.

A number he had been calling a lot lately.

There were a few seconds of silence, as the call attempted to get through. Jaejoong steeled himself when the ringing started. Barely three rings later, there was an answer.

"Ne." was the curt answer, almost as if he had been expected.

If he wasn't so nervous now, Jaejoong would have laughed. Once again, as always, he ended up falling into this man's hands. As always.

"You were expecting me." The words slipped out of his mouth before he could stop himself.

There was silence on the other line, before an answer.

"Yes."

A sigh escaped through Jaejoong's lips, clearly audible on the other line.

"Jaejoong, about yesterday --"

"No," Jaejoong interrupted before the older man could continue. "I don't want to hear your opinion, your defense, not even your denial. It's over. What's done is done. Time can't be reversed, so let's just leave it be. I don't want to continue."

He probably sounded a bit too rude right then, but Jaejoong was tired of restraining himself, tired of suppressing his true feelings, tired of putting a clamp on his mouth so others could be heard. He had enough. He was going to be heard, whether anyone liked it or not.

Silence on the other line once again, before Soo Man continued.

"Then what is it you want?" He sounded extremely cautious, almost as if he was walking along a landmine. He could sense the instability of Jaejoong at this point, and thought it was better for the younger to just be heard.

Jaejoong took a shaky breath, almost as if he was preparing himself for what he was about to say.

"You were right." was all he said, confusing the elder.

"Thank you. But... about what?"

Silence once more, before Jaejoong dropped a big enough bomb to shake the very foundations of Earth.

"I want to come back."

On the other line, Soo Man's eyes bulged almost comically, not really believing what he was hearing.

"Excuse me, w-what?"

"You heard me right. I'll come back. I'll come back to SM." The anguish in Jaejoong's voice was clearly evident.

How could he not be?

What he had fought so hard to get away from for the past four years, he was now coming back to so easily. All he had endured for the past four years could so easily be flushed down the drain now. It was all just a waste.

He was coming back to his cage in the end.

Like a scared bird that would rather feel the safety of his four caged walls than the freedom of the unknown world.

Soo Man was so shocked he was winded. Was what he was hearing true? Was it all going back to square one so easily? He could only say the first thing that came to mind, and that was simply,

"Why."

A sigh, before Jaejoong answered.

"You were right all along. Yunho and Changmin aren't getting any better, and I need to be there for them. I would rather die than let them suffer in their own warped world alone. And if the only way that I can stand by their side is to rejoin SM, then so be it. That will be the path that I'll take."

For a while, Soo Man was stunned into silence. He had to respect Jaejoong right there and then. The sacrifices he was willing to make for the people he loved were simply incredible. How could he not respect an individual like this?

"Did something happen in your absence?"

He guessed correctly, thought Jaejoong with a wry smile.

"Yeah. Changmin apparently suffered from a seizure, while Yunho had a nervous breakdown. Both are fine now, they're asleep."

Soo Man was *this* close to choking on his own spit. Why was it that bad news seemed to greet him whenever he asked Jaejoong on Changmin and Yunho?

He had no idea things were getting that bad between the two of them. Maybe it was about time he started serious therapy for them.

"How are they now?"

"They're okay. All five of us are at my sister's clinic. She's placing Yunho and Changmin under supervision."

Soo Man was silent, contemplating.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked, switching topics. "You've been fighting for the past four years. You're dropping everything you've worked for, you do realize that, right?"

"I know," Jaejoong replied. "Honestly, I'm pretty unsure of myself. I don't know whether this will be the right decision, or just be one that I'll regret later on. But right now, the only priority is Changmin and Yunho. Their safety and wellbeing is everything to me. So yes, I will do this. I'll come back."

"Your friends here at SM will be happy to hear that. They've missed you. BoA, Leetuek, Sungmin and the rest. Things have changed here. I'm sure you'll be happier."

"Maybe," Jaejoong answered, forcing a smile as he thought of all the people he saw at the academy a few days back. It really did seem like they missed him, and he probably missed them too.

"If you're quite sure of your decision, and think that that's the right thing to do, then call me again in the evening. We will settle everything face to face."

"I understand."

"Jaejoong, we will welcome you back with open arms. Yoochun and Junsu as well, if they choose to follow along with you. You will have everything you were deprived of these past few years. And you will get to be with Yunho and Changmin. It will be for the best."

"I see. I'll call you back later, sunbae-nim."

Jaejoong hung up before Soo Man could continue throwing anymore bait, leaning his forehead against the cool glass of the window pain. He sighed out loud, his breath fogging up the glass.

"Did I just do the right thing?" he wondered aloud.

He looked over his shoulder, seeing, as he expected, his sister leaning against the doorway to the room he was currently in.

Jaera smiled softly as she entered the room, the soft clacks of her heels resounding around the concrete walls.

"You knew I was eavesdropping?" she asked as she came to stand beside him, facing the window.

"You're my sister. I can sense you from a mile away," Jaejoong answered, as he took a few steps back to sit on the bed behind him.

"What did Soo Man want?"

Jaejoong quirked an eyebrow at her lack of formalities.

"On a first name basis already? That was quick."

She gave him a wry smile in return.

"I don't know the dude. I can call him whatever I want."

Jaejoong let out an amused chuckle, as Jaera came to sit beside him.

"So what did he want?"

Jaejoong tilted his head slightly and let out a soft hum.

"Hmm... It wouldn't really be what he wants from me, but rather what I want from him."

Jaera nodded her understanding.

"I overheard. You want to come back to SM, huh?"

At this, Jaejoong brought his legs up to cross them lazily on the bed.

“’Want’ would be more of an overstatement. I'd prefer 'unavoidable circumstances bringing to the inevitable'."

"That's a pretty long verb."

Jaejoong gave a soft shrug, showing that he wasn't really all that amused.

"Why would you want to come back to SM?" Jaera asked, after their silence started growing in length. "I thought you said you were tired of that place."

"I am," Jaejoong agreed. "And believe me when I say, I'm only doing this because I have to."

Jaera gave her baby brother a soft nudge on the shoulder, as she smiled softly.

"Don't say that. I'm sure you have a lot of fond memories from that place."

At Jaejoong's silence, Jaera took it to her own accord to continue.

"Remember that night twelve years ago? That night when you suddenly said that you were going to pursue your dream in Seoul. You literally dropped a bomb on all of us. You remember that?"

Jaejoong let out a soft laugh and nodded. How could he forget?

"Yeah, I remember. All eleven of you sent me to the train station. You were crying so hard and everyone was practically smothering me in their embrace."

"Yah, how could we not. You were fifteen at that time. I was this close to jumping into the train with you." Jaera laughed to herself at the memory. Truthfully, that was one of her saddest and most painful memories she had, seeing her baby brother travel to the city alone with barely anything other than a small backpack and money that could barely last a week. "But you made it. And when you did, you made it big. I remember the headlines; 'Rising Gods of the East riding the K-pop Wave'. You were so huge. You were everywhere."

Jaejoong smiled once again. Those hard times grew to be fond memories.

"Was it worth it?" Jaera asked, looking at him with a tilt of her head.

She watched her baby brother nod, a certain wistful look in his eyes.

"It was," he replied.

"Then if all that pain, all those hardships were worth it... it shouldn't be that painful to come back to that place now, would it?" Jaera placed a hand on Jaejoong's knee, squeezing it gently in reassurance.

"I know you think of that place as your hellhole, but it was that hellhole that made you and molded you into the person that you are today. It was that hellhole that introduced you to your members; to the people you call your brothers. It was that hellhole that brought you to where you are now."

Jaejoong stayed silent, contemplating and carefully thinking through her words.

"So I guess that would make it a pretty awesome hellhole."

A laugh escaped through Jaejoong's lips, unable to stop it. Jaera's lips broke out into a smile at this, glad that she had at least broken the tension filling him.

"So do you really think I should come back?" Jaejoong asked her, having a more relaxed manner.

Jaera gave a sigh, as she brought her legs up to cross them under her, similar to that of her brother.

"I wouldn't want to encourage you or prevent you from making your own decisions, Jaejoong. Ultimately, the person who will face everything will be you, not me. I'm just assuming what I would do if I'm in your shoes. But in, reality, I'm not, and I will never be."

Jaejoong gave a sigh of frustration as he collapsed on his back onto the mattress. Jaera took to lie down beside him as well, remarkably easily for someone so far on into her pregnancy.

"What's so difficult, Jaejoong? Why are you so at war with yourself?"

"I don't want to come back, noona," he easily confessed to her. "I don't want to come back to SM. I've been avoiding them for nearly five years, and to come back just like that would be pouring everything I have worked for for the past half decade to waste. I don't want to be bound down by them. I don't want to be a caged artist."

"Easy. Then don't come back," was Jaera's unhelpful reply.

Jaejoong shook his head.

"I can't. Changmin and Yunho are still under SM, and unless I'm under it too, I can never be truly there for them."

Jaera stayed silent for a few moments.

"You mean... Unless you rejoin TVXQ, you can never be with them 24/7."

Jaejoong winced on the inside. Rejoin TVXQ made it sound so... raw.

"Yeah. Unless I rejoin TVXQ."

Jaera was silent for a few moments, and Jaejoong could sense the question burning her tongue before she even voiced it out.

"Is it okay if I ask you this?"

"Fire away."

"You always said that TVXQ was so important to you. You called them your brothers and said you would drop everything for them. But then... why did you leave TVXQ?"

Silence once more, before Jaera could hear him answer in a voice that was whisper soft.

"I don't know."

Carefully, Jaera treaded forward.

"Were Yoochun and Junsu more important than Changmin and Yunho?"

"No," Jaejoong answered, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Was your artistic freedom more important than your TVXQ?"

"No," Jaejoong answered once again.

Jaera stayed silent this time, as she saw the tears stream down her brother's face. Slowly, she brushed them away with her thumb.

"Sometimes I don't understand the decisions you make. But I trust you completely. I know you'll make the right one in the end. I didn't understand why you chose to form JYJ, but I know you were doing what was right. It was only until I read the articles that I truly understood what you were trying to do. You're a hero to many, Jaejoong. So I trust that whatever decision you make will be the best, maybe not for you, but for everyone."

Jaejoong forced a smile as he turned his head to look at her.

"I guess that means I'm really coming back, huh?"

Jaera let out a chime-like laughter.

"I suppose so."

Jaejoong broke into a real grin and for a few moments, the siblings stayed like that, staring at each other with silly grins on their faces.

"Thanks, noona."

"For what?"

"Hmmm... For being an awesome sister?"

"Ah... Genetics. Thank your mother later on."

Jaejoong laughed once more, before he stilled, and closed his eyes.

"I'm lucky," he said.

"You're lucky?"

Jaejoong nodded, his eyes still shut.

"Why?"

"I just am," he answered.

Jaera laughed, before gently flicking his forehead. He surprised her once more, when he suddenly cuddled into her side, his arm slung over shoulders, and their heads touching lightly. Jaera stayed still, a sudden feeling of déjà vu enveloping her.

"Remember when I used to do this?" Jaejoong asked, emphasizing his hugging action by fractionally tightening the hug. "I must've been, like, five or something. Whenever I didn't have a good day, I used to wake you up when you were asleep just to hug you like so."

"Yeah..." agreed Jaera with a smile, "You were a lot smaller back then, if I can recall. And a lot cuter."

"Don't ruin the moment," Jaejoong growled.

A laugh escaped her lips once more, before the two of them fell into silence.

"I used to find your huge arms so comforting..."

"Hey!"

"And your loud snores that would always lull me to sleep..."

"Yah!"

"And how I could sleep on your flabby tummy without waking you..."

"Are you calling me fat?!"

"Don't ruin the moment..." Jaejoong sighed contentedly as he closed his suddenly heavy eyes.

Jaera made a childish face as she stuck her tongue out at him. Perfectly acceptable behavior for a woman her age.

It was all quiet in the hospital once more, save for the silent whir of machines, as all its inhabitants fell asleep, tired and most certainly needing the rest from all the drama of the past few days.

 

Darkness. One that was so thick it almost choked him. He held out his arms, blindly reaching forward for anything within his grasp. Nothing but empty air.

There was nothing here. Nothing at all.

Fear crept up to him.

Where was everyone? Where was he? Why was it so dark?

Was he... alone?

Was he?

The very idea that he was alone here, with no one by his side, shook him to his core.

No. He couldn't be alone here. There had to be at least SOMEBODY around. It was impossible for him to be completely alone. Impossible.

He took several shaky steps forward, calling out random names. Anyone who popped up in his mind, he yelled it out. Yelling and yelling, his fear intensified.

He started jogging, still calling out, before his fear got the better of him, and he went into a full blown run.

Yelling till his voice ran hoarse, he stopped to catch his breath, aware of the tears streaming down his cheeks.

Tears of fear.

It had been sometime since he had actually cried from being so scared. He vaguely remembered the last time he had cried when he saw what he thought was a ghost in one of the old dorms.

That was what, eight years ago?

He could feel the ache and muscle cramps slowly getting to him from all that running, and once again, his fear intensifies. What if he was stuck here forever?

No.

No!

He ran once again, blindly going forward, till he could feel no floor.

As in, literally no floor.

He was falling. Falling into a pit of darkness, of pitch black. Of nothingness.

 

Nine in the morning and all was still quiet. Practically no one was awake; the clinic wasn't even open yet, although it was supposed to be in another half hour. In all its stillness, Yoochun suddenly sneezed in his sleep, the action waking him with a start.

He blinked repeatedly in surprise and confusion. What time was it? He thought as he glanced at his watch. Oh, it was still early. He snuggled deeper into the blanket he was wrapped in, content to just lie there and stare into nothingness.

Without really meaning to, he found his eyes wondering to Junsu, who looked like he was enjoying his sleep very much. Although Yoochun predicted that the younger was probably going to have a bad back later on from sleeping on the couch.

Almost as if what he thought turned into reality, Junsu suddenly opened his eyes and sat up, his back straight as an arrow.

A queer way to wake up, Yoochun thought, as he stared at the strange Junsu. For a few seconds, Junsu just stayed that way, staring dead ahead and completely rigid, before he sighed loudly and relaxed, slouching.

"Hey," Yoochun said, grabbing his attention. "You okay?"

Junsu spun around to face him, before he broke into a smile. He formed an okay sign with his hand, before he clutched his back, stretching lightly.

"What time is it?" the younger asked.

"About nine. You have any schedule today?"

With a sigh, Junsu nodded.

"Recording at around three. It'll probably extend to night or something. You?"

"Filming later on. I might skip it though."

Junsu widened his eyes comically.

"You can do that?"

"No. But I want to," Yoochun answered in a grumble.

Junsu slowly realized this as his lips formed an 'o' in understanding. He rested his chin on his propped up elbow as he pouted sadly.

"So do I... But I can't."

Silence between the two, before Yoochun realized something amiss.

"Hey, where's Jaejoong?"

"Hmm?" Junsu asked, his eyebrows raising in question. His eyes roamed the room as well, before he shrugged lightly.

"Probably with his sister?"

"Nah, I'm right here."

The both of them spun around to look at the source of the sound, seeing Jaejoong leaning against the doorway, arms crossed and sleep in his eyes.

"Oh, Jaejoong hyung. Good morning," Junsu greeted.

"Morning," Jae answered as he covered his mouth from his yawn.

"Where were you?" Yoochun asked.

"Just with Jaera noona. I fell asleep. Had any breakfast?"

At the shake of both of their heads, Jaejoong motioned them forward with his hand.

"Good. Let's go have some breakfast. I need to talk to you two anyway."

 

Despite Junsu's protest of wanting to wait for Yunho to wake up for him to come along too, Jaejoong had pulled the two of them to breakfast, explaining that they needed someone to watch over Changmin while they were gone.

Of course the ever cynical Yoochun had mentioned on the irony of leaving Yunho to protect Changmin, but he had been forced into silence when Jaejoong gave him a certain threatening look with his eyes.

So here they were at a cafe, silently sipping their coffee and eating their breakfast as the world passed by them, unaware of the celebrities inside.

For once, there was a sense of normality between the three of them. It really felt like three friends coming together for coffee, rather than three superstars gobbling up their breakfast as their driver waited outside the restaurant, honking every few seconds for them to hurry up. For once, Yoochun wasn't practicing his lines, Jaejoong wasn't composing and Junsu wasn't preparing for yet another song.

For once, they could just sit down, no work, no sasaengs, no worries.

At least for these few hours.

"So... What was it that you wanted to speak to us about?" Yoochun asked, as he daintily wiped his mouth with the napkin, before looking up at Jaejoong.

The said person slowly put the cup he was sipping back on the saucer, before he looked up at Junsu and Yoochun with eyes that held steady.

"Have the either of you been reading the news lately?"

"No," Yoochun answered, "I barely keep up to it."

"Same here," Junsu agreed. "What's up with it?"

At their answer, Jaejoong got up and retrieved the current day's newspaper which he had glanced at when they had entered the cafe. With his eagle eyes, he had easily noticed its headlines and what they practically screamed.

He sat back down, and slid the newspaper to the two of them, so its headlines were facing the two.

"This is what's up."

Both Yoochun and Junsu read the headlines with fairly passive faces, which slowly formed into one of surprise and confusion.

"What's with the headlines..." Yoochun mumbled, as his eyes skimmed over to read the report.

"That's not all," Jaejoong said, as he took out his tablet and showed them the online reports.

Junsu and Yoochun were both silent as they skimmed through all of them, Yoochun's eyebrows slowly coming together in a frown as Junsu's face became passive again, though Jaejoong knew he was getting pretty deep in thought.

"Those paparazzi are seriously..." Yoochun mumbled as his finger swiped through the online articles again and again.

The headlines were surprising, to say the least.

There were the vague headlines that were simply fanaccounts of seeing them the past few days, then there were the articles made by delusional fan girls gushing about a reunion between the five from microscopic clues they picked up. The forums were of a more serious topic, as well as the stalker pictures of them splashed everywhere.

Of course, for these to come up on the paperback news, as well as on front page headlines, was something to seriously worry about.

"God..." Junsu mumbled, "Where do they even GET these pictures?"

There were many pictures of 'interest' for them, including a flash shot of the back of an ambulance that supposedly had Changmin inside (this was true, really. But the assumptions on the online forums were crazy), a several snapshots of Jaejoong and Lee Soo Man together, stalker pics of the time Jaejoong and Changmin were at the grocery store together, as well as one with Junsu and Changmin in the car at a stoplight (Junsu swore he had no idea he had left his window wound down).

Yoochun silently handed the tablet back to Jaejoong, before Junsu could get his hands on it and start playing Anipang.

"It's like... The whole world is expecting our comeback," Junsu wondered aloud.

Jaejoong nodded as he leaned back into his chair.

"Which is one of the reasons I've been wanting to speak to the both of you." The two of them looked up at this.

"I've been wanting to discuss this with you guys since a few days back but..." Jaejoong scratched the back of his head awkwardly as he looked out the window to avoid eye contact. "I just don't know how to start."

"You want to get back to SM, don't you?" Junsu guessed, pretty bluntly accurate.

Jaejoong whipped his head to look back at him, surprise in his eyes. It took a few moments for him to compose himself, before he spoke.

"H-how did you know?"

Junsu shrugged lightly at this.

"You met with Lee Soo Man... You spoke to me about how you'd want to protect Yunho and Changmin... It's not really that hard to guess, hyung."

Jaejoong could feel himself relaxing. The point had gotten through, and that was enough.

"We'll still support you, hyung," Junsu continued. "Even if you want to go back, we'll understand. Changmin and Yunho are the priority right now. You should go to them."

Jaejoong's eyebrows creased for a bit. Wait, what? He didn't really get where this was going...

"If being with them is for the better, then you should go. We'll be okay."

..... what?

"Wait, wait, Junsu. What are you saying? That I'm going to leave the two of you? After all we've been through? You think I would just leave you guys hanging?"

Junsu's mouth seemed to gape for a bit as he was about to say something, but decided to hold it back.

"I don't want to leave you guys. You're my friends, my members, my BROTHERS. I would never leave you."

It seemed to be Junsu who was confused now, as he watched his hyung, waiting for him to continue.

"I want us to come back together. All of us. The five of us. As one."

There was silence between the three of them, as Jaejoong looked expectantly at the younger members, with Junsu looking very shocked.

"Y-y-you want us to come back... Together?" At Jaejoong's nod of his head, Junsu slouched lightly. "O-o-oh..."

Awkward silence once more.

 

 

*************************************************

 

Timecheck; 1:45 am, 13 January 2013

 

Hey look guys! I updated! x.x

Haha I'm feeling pretty tired now. I'm sick with flu and pretty sleepy but I really wanted to complete this update on today. Why, you ask? BECAUSE I HAVEN'T BEEN UPDATING THIS FIC IN OVER TWO MONTHS, THAT'S WHY.

I just felt really bad about leaving this hanging. There just wasn't any inspiration hanging around me, so today I was literally like, you know what? You're gonna sit down and do this!!

And I did. SO here's the update.

Ahahahaaaaaaaaaaa

On a side note, my other fic,

LOVE, HATE, DEATH

(Click to view!)

Finally, finally, finally reached over a hundred subscribers!! :'DD

I'm SO happy because this is the fic I ENJOY updating the most (not that I don't fancy the rest) and it was also one of my older fics which I started about a week after Unwanted Reunion (which now has 200+ subs (THANKS SO MUCH FOR THAT TOO!!!)

My Birthday's coming up too, so I'm happy!

Haha hope you enjoy this neglected update. Stay loyal to me! *throws hearts*

Alright to bed I go.