#512: my heart is pulled to you
Prompt: #512
Title: my heart is pulled to you
Pairing: Chen/Suho
Rating: PG-13
Word count: 3962 words
Summary: Junmyeon is the most beautiful person Jongdae has ever laid his eyes on.
Author's note: This prompt is absolutely one of my favorites! I actually kind of deviated from the original prompt, but I hope you guys enjoy this fic nonetheless! (I rushed the ending, but a sequel is on its way!)
Jongdae thinks his eyes are playing a cruel trick on him. Because the extremely attractive boy that caught his attention a week ago at his Seoul concert is there again, with his camera pressed closely to his face and his eyebrows scrunched cutely in concentration. This time he’s at Jongdae’s concert in Tokyo. And Jongdae can’t find himself to believe it. He has a fanboy. A fanboy who he assumes is a fansite master. A fansite master who flew all the way to Tokyo to watch another one of his concerts. And did he mention that fansite hyung (he assumes it’s a hyung?) is absolutely handsome, beautiful? And definitely his type?
Did he save the universe in a previous lifetime? Because this is too good to be true.
Jongdae isn’t the type to fall easily. His type is very specific. Cute, but also hot. Not really tall, but not short either. Charming and charismatic. An angelic smile. He doesn’t care if the person’s a bit awkward or something, as long as he likes Jongdae a lot. And looking at fansite hyung, he seems to have everything Jongdae wants (and probably more).
He tries to hide the giggle brewing in his throat, but it ends up escaping. The sound resembling something that would come from an overexcited schoolgirl. The crowd coos at him, his fans obviously finding the slip up very endearing.
Usually, he’d start getting shy at this point. He’s known for his cool image (although his die-hard fans know that he’s anything but that off-stage), and it’s very seldom that he does aegyo or anything similar to it. He keeps his actions minimal, focusing on his voice and appeal. But when he takes a side glance at fansite hyung, he sees a wide, bright smile on the boy’s face.
And that smile is doing weird things to him. He feels his heart skip a beat and butterflies fill his stomach. He finds the feeling very foreign. He hasn’t exactly fallen in love before. And if he were to be completely honest, the only crush he had was on a cute barista. And that was about 4 years ago. It was barely even a crush. He just found the boy’s smile endearing and his sparkly eyes really pretty, plus the coffee he made was to die for. (That same barista ended up dating his manager, but that’s a different story.) Jongdae is not exactly an expert in the love department, but one thing’s for sure, he wants to see that smile a lot more.
So for the first time in his entire 3-year career as Chen, he does full-blown aegyo onstage, shocking everyone in the arena. He does the bbuing bbuing about 4 times while singing XOXO, shoots love bullets to the fans during 365, and plays around the stage like a pre-schooler with his back-up dancers while singing Run - earning him eager screams and cheers.
He’s glad he’s making his Japanese fans happy, after all, it’s been awhile since he had a solo concert in the country. His ulterior motive is to make fansite hyung smile, but he hit two birds with one stone, so it’s a win-win situation.
During all his performances, he made sure that he would direct a smile or a wink at the area where fansite hyung was. It wasn’t much, but he hopes that he made the boy (and the other fans) really happy.
“Did everyone enjoy today?” he asks the crowd, his eyes taking in the sight before him.
It was his first sold-out overseas concert, and looking at the full arena makes him really happy. There were huge banners and posters with his stage name, Chen. And he even spots some that have his real name. He remembers fighting for his name when he was in talks about his debut. He wanted to use Jongdae, but the company said that Chen would make it easier for him to be recognized and remembered internationally. He reluctantly agreed then, but he could see now how impactful the decision was.
“Thank you so much for all your support! I love you all!”
He roams around the stage once again, taking his time in bowing at each of the sections to show his gratitude to all the people who watched his concert. It’s overwhelming really, that after just 3 years in the industry, he has been able to fill an arena as a solo artist.
But because of his blind determination to reach his dreams, there have been a lot of things he’s been missing out on. And as he takes his final bow in front of section 2A, he realizes that, love, he has never fallen in love. But maybe, just maybe, now is the right time.
♥(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)
It’s been a week since he got back from Japan, and for the first time in a half a year of preparations for his concert, he’s given a day-off. It’s been awhile since he last had one, and he’s just really grateful for the break.
“Minseok hyung~”
“Okay, what do you need from me again, Jongdae?”
Ever since his Tokyo concert, despite his busy schedule which included fansigning events, interviews, and photoshoots, not once has fansite hyung left his mind. It’s really quite a revelation to him. That he’s actually capable of feeling that much for someone he doesn’t even know. But he’s planning on changing that.
“You’ve met some of my fansites, right hyung?”
When he debuted, he expected it to be harder for him to gain fans because he was a solo artist. It was a given fact, that in an industry dominated by idol groups, a balladeer needs to stand out somehow in order to be noticed. And he did. The people loved his voice, and his following constantly grew as he went along his career. As he grew, his music also evolved, giving a chance for his fanbase to grow as well.
What he didn’t expect were the fansites. He never expected that there would be people who would dedicate their time and efforts in following him to all his schedules to take photos and cheer him on. Up to this point, he’s still amazed at how dedicated these people are. And he’s always been thankful to them, even if he hasn’t met them formally yet. But he thinks, his manager, Minseok has.
“I have, of course. They’re all very nice ladies, funny too.”
“Ladies?”
His hope deflates a little, because maybe his assumptions were all wrong. That the hyung he’s been thinking about wasn’t even one of his fansites. He could’ve been a photographer for a magazine or something.
“What, are you looking for someone in particular? A certain boy perhaps?”
His eight years of friendship with Minseok has long reached the point wherein they couldn’t even hide anything from each other even if they tried. They basically grew up together. Their mothers were best friend since college, and since both of them didn’t have siblings, their mothers made sure that they would treat each other like brothers. So when the company asked him if there was someone he’d recommend as his manager, he immediately knew who it should be.
“Yes… I mean I thought he was a fansite master. He watched both the Seoul and Tokyo concerts so I just assumed.”
Minseok smiles slightly, taunting even, and Jongdae knows he’s got something.
“Well there’s a boy they always talk about. He takes photos for a fansite. I can’t remember which one, but I remember them saying that the boy doesn’t talk to them much. But he’s really polite and really handsome too. Most off the ladies have a crush on him, actually. But they’re not sure if he actually owns the fansite or is just hired. Apparently, the fansite he’s part of sends you really extravagant gifts.”
Minseok pauses for a while, seemingly trying to remember something.
“Oh right, the fansite they were talking about was the one who sent you that human-sized Pikachu stuffed toy, named a star after you, and bought you that scooter.”
Jongdae’s immediately turns his head to face the other side of his living room where the said Pikachu plushie and mint green scooter were. There’s a sudden flux of happiness that he immediately dismisses, because he knows he shouldn’t assume anything. He shouldn’t set himself up for disappointment. And he shouldn’t be displeased in the first place. He should be happy, but not that hopeful. Because even if the person the ladies were talking about wasn’t who he was looking for, and if he’s just a hired photographer, there’s someone who’s supporting him that much.
“Hyung?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you think he’ll watch the encore concert next month?”
“Maybe? Do you want me to ask around about him?”
He simply nods, because the whole situation is still overwhelming to him. There’s something about this boy that makes his insides flutter. And it’s something he can’t ignore.
“Oh, you know what, if you want sure answers, you can try looking through this blog. They collate the photos your fansites take, maybe you could recognize the angle or something? Because it might take time for me to find him.”
He thanks the universe for gracing him with a person like Minseok who somehow always knows what to say or do. It’s a great idea. Tedious, but it would help him narrow down and find fansite hyung.
Minseok bids him goodbye, saying he still has a date with his barista boyfriend. He’s left alone in his living room and starts his quest.
He takes out his laptop, a gift from one of his fansites. He’s not a very techie person, but he knows that the laptop is quite pricey. It’s very seldom that he uses it though, because he doesn’t really have that much free time. He’s not that fond of online gaming either, and he’d rather browse the internet on his phone. But he feels that a very thorough research would be sped up if uses his laptop instead.
The site Minseok gave him is called chenchenchen. He finds the name very cute, but the layout is even cuter. It’s Pikachu inspired, yellow background and black details. He thinks it’s really funny how his fans coined the nickname Pikachen just because his smile resembles Pikachu’s.
He browses through the photos meticulously, checking the angles and backgrounds well. Most of the photos were just previews which made it hard for him to tell the angle because the photos were very grainy. But after browsing through about 23 pages, he sees a photo of himself, at his Tokyo concert, a huge smile directed at the camera.
Orange Bliss.
♥(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)
The name of the fansite is Orange Bliss. He laughed at this, because ever since his debut, the amount of jokes directed at him about a certain citrus fruit have been abundant. It started with the Chinese and Korean fans, but his international fans have caught on. And he’s now associated with a round annoying fruit.
It’s been a week since he found the site, and Minseok has set-up a private meeting with the said fansite through email, saying that the company wanted to talk about a possible partnership. It was a move questioned by management, but they ultimately agreed because Jongdae seldomly requested anything from them.
But they have prohibited Jongdae from attending, which is the reason why it’s Minseok who’s meeting the fansite master.
The meeting should be done by know, and Jongdae is feeling antsy waiting for updates from Minseok. He’s been holding onto his cellphone every since his manager left his apartment. The wait has been torturing him, because he really wants to know now.
Minutes pass by, and there’s still no message whatsoever from Minseok. It’s so unlikely of his manager hyung to forget, especially when he’s been yapping about this fansite hyung for the past few weeks.
So something must be up. Minseok has only done this once. After meetings, Minseok usually texts him the important bits right after, then his manager just explains the other details to him when they see each other. The only time he’s done this was when the company denied his request for a Christmas vacation. That was the year before his debut, and it’s the first time he spent Christmas away from home. Minseok refused to tell him that through text, because the older thinks that things as important as that should be relayed personally.
So even though his nerves are getting the best of him, he tries his best to wait patiently. Because he trusts Minseok, and he believes that the other boy knows what he’s doing.
“Jongdae…”
His front door opens, and a solemn looking Minseok enters the room. And Jongdae just knows. Bad new is coming.
“So I met with the fansite master a while ago… She was very enthusiastic about it.”
All the hope Jongdae has left deflates. And it took one word, just one word to burst his bubble.
♥(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)“Jongdae, you have to get up.”
He doesn’t want to. Really. He knows he’s being bratty and whine-y and illogical. But this technically is his first heartbreak, so shouldn’t he be allowed at least a week of sulking?
“Hyung, please don’t make me,” he replies, while he wraps himself with comforter again.
But Minseok is persistent, turning off the aircon and making him sweat under the covers. It’s summer, and it’s very difficult to fall asleep again in that heat.
“Fine, fine. I’ll get up,” he says, realizing he can’t get away with sulking in his room for another day. His encore concert is a week away, and he knows he should be excited because it’s another sold out performance, this time with his Korean fans. But he can’t help but feel disappointment and heartache, because fansite hyung might be just a hired photographer, not a fansite, not a fan. And he’s not quite sure why he’s feeling this way, but he does.
“Good, we’ll discuss something important over breakfast~”
He’s lying if he says he isn’t mildly creeped out by Minseok’s sudden enthusiasm, but he welcomes it, because he could totally use some good news at the moment.
He’s greeted by a tall stack of fluffy pancakes and a huge pile of bacon. And he’s sure there’s something big up.
“So… There are two things I need to tell you. First, the boss called me in yesterday. You’re going to be one of the ambassador the Seoul tourism campaign!”
His eyes grow wide, because it’s a big deal. Only the big stars get the privilege of actually being tourism ambassadors, and being chosen means that the government acknowledges his popularity, deeming him capable of attracting people to visit Seoul. It’s good news, really really really good news.
“Not only that, but I did some snooping for you. And I found out from Sunyoung, the owner of Orange Bliss, that there was a contributor that came in September last year, in time for your birthday. He donated a huge sum of money, and personally chose the scooter. She said he started contributing photos during your concert tour, but he’s on an indefinite hiatus right now.”
And that’s even better news. He really wants to hug Minseok, because the older boy has done so much for him. So he does. He rests his chin on top of Minseok’s head and wraps his arms around the boy’s shoulders.
“Thank you, hyung. So much. Thank you for everything!”
Minseok laughs and pushes him away, “But she doesn’t have his contact details, because he’s a very private person. Not even his real name, only a code name, Suho. The only thing she has is the email he uses to send the photos.”
Jongdae pouts. He really should stop getting his own hopes up all the time. This has happened twice, and it’s kind of emotionally draining already.
“Yah, don’t be sad! He’ll probably be back in time for your Seoul concert, don’t worry!”
This brightens up his mood a bit, knowing that there’s a huge chance he’ll see fansite hyung again. But he presses the feeling down, because excessive hoping has caused him nothing but emotional stress and heartache. So he just lets go, letting fate decide.
♥(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)He’s usually very calm during events like these, because he usually stays in the background, only speaking when spoken to. But this time, he’s going to be introduced as a tourism ambassador, and he can’t find it in himself to stay calm.
He’s in the dressing room with Minseok and Baekhyun, his make-up artist and hair stylist. And he’s been pacing the four corners of the room since he got into his suit and finished fixing himself. It’s a very long thirty minutes if you were going to ask him. He feels so pressured, especially when he’s performing a duet with IU, who was chosen to be an ambassador as well.
Five ambassadors were chosen that year. Two actors, two singers, and an idol group.
The actor and actress pair is Park Shinhye and Kim Soohyun. The idol group is Big Bang. And the other singer is IU. When he found out about this, he had panicked.
Those people were household names. And he’s not sure how he even got a chance to be with them. But Minseok said he was chosen because of he has quite a huge international following.
He’s still apprehensive, up until the very last minutes. He’s afraid he’ll mess up at such a big event, but Minseok and Baekhyun assure him that he’ll do well.
So when he steps onstage, he gives it his all, just how he always does.
When they finish, IU approaches him and shakes his hand, “You did well, Chen.”
He almost faints, because it’s IU who just praised him. And it feels surreal still. Even though he’s been in the industry for quite some time, getting praise from seniors still makes him giddy and overjoyed.
But before he could properly thank her, they’re swept into the crowd of benefactors, politicians, and celebrities who want to congratulate and chat with them.
He’s not that good with communicating with people he just met, but he tries. He does his best to be personable, because some of the people he’s meeting are diplomats, whose opinions matter a lot.
“Chen!”
It’s Mr. Kim Jongwoon, the Mayor of Seoul. They’ve meet briefly at a past meeting, but they couldn’t talk much, because the mayor had a tight schedule.
“Yes sir? It’s nice to see you again!” he says, as politely as he possible can.
The mayor smiles and pats his back, “It’s good too see you too, boy. I actually am supposed to introduce you to my son, he’s a fan.”
The mayor pauses and scans the crowd. It gives Jongdae a minute to calm his nerves and grab a drink from one of the servers. It’s champagne. Something he doesn’t really drink, but he needs the buzz right now, so he drinks a glass in one go.
“Junmyeon!” the mayor calls.
A man turns around, and Jongdae gets the shock of a life time.
It’s fansite hyung.
♥(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)“Oh my god, Minseok hyung, I still can’t believe he’s the son of the mayor. I- I- just-”
The days leading up to his Seoul encore concert have been very busy. Voice rehearsals, dance rehearsals, interviews, photoshoots. But amidst all the chaos, he just can’t stop thinking about Kim Junmyeon and his perfect face, perfect hair, and perfect everything.
Their meeting was brief, and Junmyeon refused to look him in the eye, but Jongdae is happy. He sincerely is, because at least there’s a name to match the face now.
And the name is as beautiful as it’s owner. He thinks he probably is starting to sound like a lovesick fool, which he probably is. But either way, he’s been hoping since then, that Junmyeon will decide to watch his encore concert.
It’s now or never. All the staff of the concert are preparing the final details, because he goes onstage in an hour.
“Jongdae... You’re mumbling again,” Minseok says, noticing that his words have been coming out as incoherent sentences and bursts of emotion.
“Sorry hyung, I’m just really excited and nervous! I mean, who wouldn’t be excited right? It’s a sold out concert! And I’m mumbling again aren’t I?”
Amidst the backstage madness, he still finds time to think and talk about Junmyeon, which is crazy since his floor directors and stage managers are all going nuts.
“You’re going on stage in 30 minutes, get ready.”
But as he’s seated for final make-up and hair touches, he thinks about Junmyeon. Will he watch? Will he even bother going? What is this feeling?
When the stage head calls for the final huddle of the tour, he still thinks about Junmyeon. Does he like me too? Does he like me the way I like him?
It’s crazy, but it’s real. It’s how he really feels.
Good lucks and hugs are thrown around. The music in the arena starts playing, cheers erupt, making his heart swell with so much pride and happiness.
“I know you’ll do great,” Minseok says, squeezing his hand as reassurance.
He smiles at his hyung, thankful that the older has never given up on him. Even going as far as saving his love life.
He’s brought to the stage lift, and the countdown begins.
The night before the concert, he asked for a sign that will decide his fate with Junmyeon. It’s a difficult sign, and the odds are not in his favor, but if it’s meant to be it will be.
The lift moves, and little by little, he’s on the stage. Face to face with thousands of people who support him. He sees the smiles on their faces, the tears on the some, and he simply feels so much joy.
So he repays them, their love and support, by performing and doing his best.
He sings 4 songs straight, 2 having very difficult choreographies. He tires out easily, but he doesn’t show it. The way the crowd sings with him through all the songs fuels him to do even better.
“Hello everyone! Are you happy?” he shouts, feeding off from the energy of the crowd.
They shout back, and he takes his time to scan the crowd. None of the seats are unoccupied, and he’s just grateful to every single one of the people who came to support him.
And one important person catches his eye.
Junmyeon. Junmyeon is there. And the sign. The universe gave him the sign.
There’s no camera in Junmyeon’s hands, but there’s a light stick instead. It’s the sign.
“Thank you all so much for being here with me today! You know I love you all right?” he says, acting cutely and doing aegyo, “But there’s someone here… And I want to dedicate this song to that person.”
“Thank you for smiling brightly, please continue on doing so. It’s beautiful, and I want to keep seeing it.”
The cheers get even louder, and he’s just thankful that his fans are quite different. While other fans hate seeing their idols date, his fans want him to date. They even went as far as petitioning for him to join We Got Married, an idea that was immediately shut down by his company.
He starts singing a new song, a song the fans haven’t heard. A song that he wrote thinking of Junmyeon.
You came to me at the end of a hard day
The desperate prayers of a small boy have reached you
Without color, scent or sound, you came into my heart
Like the color of the clear street after the rain
Beautiful, beautiful. Junmyeon is. And Jongdae hopes the message is clear.
Title: my heart is pulled to you
Pairing: Chen/Suho
Rating: PG-13
Word count: 3962 words
Summary: Junmyeon is the most beautiful person Jongdae has ever laid his eyes on.
Author's note: This prompt is absolutely one of my favorites! I actually kind of deviated from the original prompt, but I hope you guys enjoy this fic nonetheless! (I rushed the ending, but a sequel is on its way!)
Jongdae thinks his eyes are playing a cruel trick on him. Because the extremely attractive boy that caught his attention a week ago at his Seoul concert is there again, with his camera pressed closely to his face and his eyebrows scrunched cutely in concentration. This time he’s at Jongdae’s concert in Tokyo. And Jongdae can’t find himself to believe it. He has a fanboy. A fanboy who he assumes is a fansite master. A fansite master who flew all the way to Tokyo to watch another one of his concerts. And did he mention that fansite hyung (he assumes it’s a hyung?) is absolutely handsome, beautiful? And definitely his type?
Did he save the universe in a previous lifetime? Because this is too good to be true.
Jongdae isn’t the type to fall easily. His type is very specific. Cute, but also hot. Not really tall, but not short either. Charming and charismatic. An angelic smile. He doesn’t care if the person’s a bit awkward or something, as long as he likes Jongdae a lot. And looking at fansite hyung, he seems to have everything Jongdae wants (and probably more).
He tries to hide the giggle brewing in his throat, but it ends up escaping. The sound resembling something that would come from an overexcited schoolgirl. The crowd coos at him, his fans obviously finding the slip up very endearing.
Usually, he’d start getting shy at this point. He’s known for his cool image (although his die-hard fans know that he’s anything but that off-stage), and it’s very seldom that he does aegyo or anything similar to it. He keeps his actions minimal, focusing on his voice and appeal. But when he takes a side glance at fansite hyung, he sees a wide, bright smile on the boy’s face.
And that smile is doing weird things to him. He feels his heart skip a beat and butterflies fill his stomach. He finds the feeling very foreign. He hasn’t exactly fallen in love before. And if he were to be completely honest, the only crush he had was on a cute barista. And that was about 4 years ago. It was barely even a crush. He just found the boy’s smile endearing and his sparkly eyes really pretty, plus the coffee he made was to die for. (That same barista ended up dating his manager, but that’s a different story.) Jongdae is not exactly an expert in the love department, but one thing’s for sure, he wants to see that smile a lot more.
So for the first time in his entire 3-year career as Chen, he does full-blown aegyo onstage, shocking everyone in the arena. He does the bbuing bbuing about 4 times while singing XOXO, shoots love bullets to the fans during 365, and plays around the stage like a pre-schooler with his back-up dancers while singing Run - earning him eager screams and cheers.
He’s glad he’s making his Japanese fans happy, after all, it’s been awhile since he had a solo concert in the country. His ulterior motive is to make fansite hyung smile, but he hit two birds with one stone, so it’s a win-win situation.
During all his performances, he made sure that he would direct a smile or a wink at the area where fansite hyung was. It wasn’t much, but he hopes that he made the boy (and the other fans) really happy.
“Did everyone enjoy today?” he asks the crowd, his eyes taking in the sight before him.
It was his first sold-out overseas concert, and looking at the full arena makes him really happy. There were huge banners and posters with his stage name, Chen. And he even spots some that have his real name. He remembers fighting for his name when he was in talks about his debut. He wanted to use Jongdae, but the company said that Chen would make it easier for him to be recognized and remembered internationally. He reluctantly agreed then, but he could see now how impactful the decision was.
“Thank you so much for all your support! I love you all!”
He roams around the stage once again, taking his time in bowing at each of the sections to show his gratitude to all the people who watched his concert. It’s overwhelming really, that after just 3 years in the industry, he has been able to fill an arena as a solo artist.
But because of his blind determination to reach his dreams, there have been a lot of things he’s been missing out on. And as he takes his final bow in front of section 2A, he realizes that, love, he has never fallen in love. But maybe, just maybe, now is the right time.
♥(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)
It’s been a week since he got back from Japan, and for the first time in a half a year of preparations for his concert, he’s given a day-off. It’s been awhile since he last had one, and he’s just really grateful for the break.
“Minseok hyung~”
“Okay, what do you need from me again, Jongdae?”
Ever since his Tokyo concert, despite his busy schedule which included fansigning events, interviews, and photoshoots, not once has fansite hyung left his mind. It’s really quite a revelation to him. That he’s actually capable of feeling that much for someone he doesn’t even know. But he’s planning on changing that.
“You’ve met some of my fansites, right hyung?”
When he debuted, he expected it to be harder for him to gain fans because he was a solo artist. It was a given fact, that in an industry dominated by idol groups, a balladeer needs to stand out somehow in order to be noticed. And he did. The people loved his voice, and his following constantly grew as he went along his career. As he grew, his music also evolved, giving a chance for his fanbase to grow as well.
What he didn’t expect were the fansites. He never expected that there would be people who would dedicate their time and efforts in following him to all his schedules to take photos and cheer him on. Up to this point, he’s still amazed at how dedicated these people are. And he’s always been thankful to them, even if he hasn’t met them formally yet. But he thinks, his manager, Minseok has.
“I have, of course. They’re all very nice ladies, funny too.”
“Ladies?”
His hope deflates a little, because maybe his assumptions were all wrong. That the hyung he’s been thinking about wasn’t even one of his fansites. He could’ve been a photographer for a magazine or something.
“What, are you looking for someone in particular? A certain boy perhaps?”
His eight years of friendship with Minseok has long reached the point wherein they couldn’t even hide anything from each other even if they tried. They basically grew up together. Their mothers were best friend since college, and since both of them didn’t have siblings, their mothers made sure that they would treat each other like brothers. So when the company asked him if there was someone he’d recommend as his manager, he immediately knew who it should be.
“Yes… I mean I thought he was a fansite master. He watched both the Seoul and Tokyo concerts so I just assumed.”
Minseok smiles slightly, taunting even, and Jongdae knows he’s got something.
“Well there’s a boy they always talk about. He takes photos for a fansite. I can’t remember which one, but I remember them saying that the boy doesn’t talk to them much. But he’s really polite and really handsome too. Most off the ladies have a crush on him, actually. But they’re not sure if he actually owns the fansite or is just hired. Apparently, the fansite he’s part of sends you really extravagant gifts.”
Minseok pauses for a while, seemingly trying to remember something.
“Oh right, the fansite they were talking about was the one who sent you that human-sized Pikachu stuffed toy, named a star after you, and bought you that scooter.”
Jongdae’s immediately turns his head to face the other side of his living room where the said Pikachu plushie and mint green scooter were. There’s a sudden flux of happiness that he immediately dismisses, because he knows he shouldn’t assume anything. He shouldn’t set himself up for disappointment. And he shouldn’t be displeased in the first place. He should be happy, but not that hopeful. Because even if the person the ladies were talking about wasn’t who he was looking for, and if he’s just a hired photographer, there’s someone who’s supporting him that much.
“Hyung?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you think he’ll watch the encore concert next month?”
“Maybe? Do you want me to ask around about him?”
He simply nods, because the whole situation is still overwhelming to him. There’s something about this boy that makes his insides flutter. And it’s something he can’t ignore.
“Oh, you know what, if you want sure answers, you can try looking through this blog. They collate the photos your fansites take, maybe you could recognize the angle or something? Because it might take time for me to find him.”
He thanks the universe for gracing him with a person like Minseok who somehow always knows what to say or do. It’s a great idea. Tedious, but it would help him narrow down and find fansite hyung.
Minseok bids him goodbye, saying he still has a date with his barista boyfriend. He’s left alone in his living room and starts his quest.
He takes out his laptop, a gift from one of his fansites. He’s not a very techie person, but he knows that the laptop is quite pricey. It’s very seldom that he uses it though, because he doesn’t really have that much free time. He’s not that fond of online gaming either, and he’d rather browse the internet on his phone. But he feels that a very thorough research would be sped up if uses his laptop instead.
The site Minseok gave him is called chenchenchen. He finds the name very cute, but the layout is even cuter. It’s Pikachu inspired, yellow background and black details. He thinks it’s really funny how his fans coined the nickname Pikachen just because his smile resembles Pikachu’s.
He browses through the photos meticulously, checking the angles and backgrounds well. Most of the photos were just previews which made it hard for him to tell the angle because the photos were very grainy. But after browsing through about 23 pages, he sees a photo of himself, at his Tokyo concert, a huge smile directed at the camera.
Orange Bliss.
♥(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)
The name of the fansite is Orange Bliss. He laughed at this, because ever since his debut, the amount of jokes directed at him about a certain citrus fruit have been abundant. It started with the Chinese and Korean fans, but his international fans have caught on. And he’s now associated with a round annoying fruit.
It’s been a week since he found the site, and Minseok has set-up a private meeting with the said fansite through email, saying that the company wanted to talk about a possible partnership. It was a move questioned by management, but they ultimately agreed because Jongdae seldomly requested anything from them.
But they have prohibited Jongdae from attending, which is the reason why it’s Minseok who’s meeting the fansite master.
The meeting should be done by know, and Jongdae is feeling antsy waiting for updates from Minseok. He’s been holding onto his cellphone every since his manager left his apartment. The wait has been torturing him, because he really wants to know now.
Minutes pass by, and there’s still no message whatsoever from Minseok. It’s so unlikely of his manager hyung to forget, especially when he’s been yapping about this fansite hyung for the past few weeks.
So something must be up. Minseok has only done this once. After meetings, Minseok usually texts him the important bits right after, then his manager just explains the other details to him when they see each other. The only time he’s done this was when the company denied his request for a Christmas vacation. That was the year before his debut, and it’s the first time he spent Christmas away from home. Minseok refused to tell him that through text, because the older thinks that things as important as that should be relayed personally.
So even though his nerves are getting the best of him, he tries his best to wait patiently. Because he trusts Minseok, and he believes that the other boy knows what he’s doing.
“Jongdae…”
His front door opens, and a solemn looking Minseok enters the room. And Jongdae just knows. Bad new is coming.
“So I met with the fansite master a while ago… She was very enthusiastic about it.”
All the hope Jongdae has left deflates. And it took one word, just one word to burst his bubble.
♥(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)“Jongdae, you have to get up.”
He doesn’t want to. Really. He knows he’s being bratty and whine-y and illogical. But this technically is his first heartbreak, so shouldn’t he be allowed at least a week of sulking?
“Hyung, please don’t make me,” he replies, while he wraps himself with comforter again.
But Minseok is persistent, turning off the aircon and making him sweat under the covers. It’s summer, and it’s very difficult to fall asleep again in that heat.
“Fine, fine. I’ll get up,” he says, realizing he can’t get away with sulking in his room for another day. His encore concert is a week away, and he knows he should be excited because it’s another sold out performance, this time with his Korean fans. But he can’t help but feel disappointment and heartache, because fansite hyung might be just a hired photographer, not a fansite, not a fan. And he’s not quite sure why he’s feeling this way, but he does.
“Good, we’ll discuss something important over breakfast~”
He’s lying if he says he isn’t mildly creeped out by Minseok’s sudden enthusiasm, but he welcomes it, because he could totally use some good news at the moment.
He’s greeted by a tall stack of fluffy pancakes and a huge pile of bacon. And he’s sure there’s something big up.
“So… There are two things I need to tell you. First, the boss called me in yesterday. You’re going to be one of the ambassador the Seoul tourism campaign!”
His eyes grow wide, because it’s a big deal. Only the big stars get the privilege of actually being tourism ambassadors, and being chosen means that the government acknowledges his popularity, deeming him capable of attracting people to visit Seoul. It’s good news, really really really good news.
“Not only that, but I did some snooping for you. And I found out from Sunyoung, the owner of Orange Bliss, that there was a contributor that came in September last year, in time for your birthday. He donated a huge sum of money, and personally chose the scooter. She said he started contributing photos during your concert tour, but he’s on an indefinite hiatus right now.”
And that’s even better news. He really wants to hug Minseok, because the older boy has done so much for him. So he does. He rests his chin on top of Minseok’s head and wraps his arms around the boy’s shoulders.
“Thank you, hyung. So much. Thank you for everything!”
Minseok laughs and pushes him away, “But she doesn’t have his contact details, because he’s a very private person. Not even his real name, only a code name, Suho. The only thing she has is the email he uses to send the photos.”
Jongdae pouts. He really should stop getting his own hopes up all the time. This has happened twice, and it’s kind of emotionally draining already.
“Yah, don’t be sad! He’ll probably be back in time for your Seoul concert, don’t worry!”
This brightens up his mood a bit, knowing that there’s a huge chance he’ll see fansite hyung again. But he presses the feeling down, because excessive hoping has caused him nothing but emotional stress and heartache. So he just lets go, letting fate decide.
♥(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)He’s usually very calm during events like these, because he usually stays in the background, only speaking when spoken to. But this time, he’s going to be introduced as a tourism ambassador, and he can’t find it in himself to stay calm.
He’s in the dressing room with Minseok and Baekhyun, his make-up artist and hair stylist. And he’s been pacing the four corners of the room since he got into his suit and finished fixing himself. It’s a very long thirty minutes if you were going to ask him. He feels so pressured, especially when he’s performing a duet with IU, who was chosen to be an ambassador as well.
Five ambassadors were chosen that year. Two actors, two singers, and an idol group.
The actor and actress pair is Park Shinhye and Kim Soohyun. The idol group is Big Bang. And the other singer is IU. When he found out about this, he had panicked.
Those people were household names. And he’s not sure how he even got a chance to be with them. But Minseok said he was chosen because of he has quite a huge international following.
He’s still apprehensive, up until the very last minutes. He’s afraid he’ll mess up at such a big event, but Minseok and Baekhyun assure him that he’ll do well.
So when he steps onstage, he gives it his all, just how he always does.
When they finish, IU approaches him and shakes his hand, “You did well, Chen.”
He almost faints, because it’s IU who just praised him. And it feels surreal still. Even though he’s been in the industry for quite some time, getting praise from seniors still makes him giddy and overjoyed.
But before he could properly thank her, they’re swept into the crowd of benefactors, politicians, and celebrities who want to congratulate and chat with them.
He’s not that good with communicating with people he just met, but he tries. He does his best to be personable, because some of the people he’s meeting are diplomats, whose opinions matter a lot.
“Chen!”
It’s Mr. Kim Jongwoon, the Mayor of Seoul. They’ve meet briefly at a past meeting, but they couldn’t talk much, because the mayor had a tight schedule.
“Yes sir? It’s nice to see you again!” he says, as politely as he possible can.
The mayor smiles and pats his back, “It’s good too see you too, boy. I actually am supposed to introduce you to my son, he’s a fan.”
The mayor pauses and scans the crowd. It gives Jongdae a minute to calm his nerves and grab a drink from one of the servers. It’s champagne. Something he doesn’t really drink, but he needs the buzz right now, so he drinks a glass in one go.
“Junmyeon!” the mayor calls.
A man turns around, and Jongdae gets the shock of a life time.
It’s fansite hyung.
♥(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)“Oh my god, Minseok hyung, I still can’t believe he’s the son of the mayor. I- I- just-”
The days leading up to his Seoul encore concert have been very busy. Voice rehearsals, dance rehearsals, interviews, photoshoots. But amidst all the chaos, he just can’t stop thinking about Kim Junmyeon and his perfect face, perfect hair, and perfect everything.
Their meeting was brief, and Junmyeon refused to look him in the eye, but Jongdae is happy. He sincerely is, because at least there’s a name to match the face now.
And the name is as beautiful as it’s owner. He thinks he probably is starting to sound like a lovesick fool, which he probably is. But either way, he’s been hoping since then, that Junmyeon will decide to watch his encore concert.
It’s now or never. All the staff of the concert are preparing the final details, because he goes onstage in an hour.
“Jongdae... You’re mumbling again,” Minseok says, noticing that his words have been coming out as incoherent sentences and bursts of emotion.
“Sorry hyung, I’m just really excited and nervous! I mean, who wouldn’t be excited right? It’s a sold out concert! And I’m mumbling again aren’t I?”
Amidst the backstage madness, he still finds time to think and talk about Junmyeon, which is crazy since his floor directors and stage managers are all going nuts.
“You’re going on stage in 30 minutes, get ready.”
But as he’s seated for final make-up and hair touches, he thinks about Junmyeon. Will he watch? Will he even bother going? What is this feeling?
When the stage head calls for the final huddle of the tour, he still thinks about Junmyeon. Does he like me too? Does he like me the way I like him?
It’s crazy, but it’s real. It’s how he really feels.
Good lucks and hugs are thrown around. The music in the arena starts playing, cheers erupt, making his heart swell with so much pride and happiness.
“I know you’ll do great,” Minseok says, squeezing his hand as reassurance.
He smiles at his hyung, thankful that the older has never given up on him. Even going as far as saving his love life.
He’s brought to the stage lift, and the countdown begins.
The night before the concert, he asked for a sign that will decide his fate with Junmyeon. It’s a difficult sign, and the odds are not in his favor, but if it’s meant to be it will be.
The lift moves, and little by little, he’s on the stage. Face to face with thousands of people who support him. He sees the smiles on their faces, the tears on the some, and he simply feels so much joy.
So he repays them, their love and support, by performing and doing his best.
He sings 4 songs straight, 2 having very difficult choreographies. He tires out easily, but he doesn’t show it. The way the crowd sings with him through all the songs fuels him to do even better.
“Hello everyone! Are you happy?” he shouts, feeding off from the energy of the crowd.
They shout back, and he takes his time to scan the crowd. None of the seats are unoccupied, and he’s just grateful to every single one of the people who came to support him.
And one important person catches his eye.
Junmyeon. Junmyeon is there. And the sign. The universe gave him the sign.
There’s no camera in Junmyeon’s hands, but there’s a light stick instead. It’s the sign.
“Thank you all so much for being here with me today! You know I love you all right?” he says, acting cutely and doing aegyo, “But there’s someone here… And I want to dedicate this song to that person.”
“Thank you for smiling brightly, please continue on doing so. It’s beautiful, and I want to keep seeing it.”
The cheers get even louder, and he’s just thankful that his fans are quite different. While other fans hate seeing their idols date, his fans want him to date. They even went as far as petitioning for him to join We Got Married, an idea that was immediately shut down by his company.
He starts singing a new song, a song the fans haven’t heard. A song that he wrote thinking of Junmyeon.
You came to me at the end of a hard day
The desperate prayers of a small boy have reached you
Without color, scent or sound, you came into my heart
Like the color of the clear street after the rain
Beautiful, beautiful. Junmyeon is. And Jongdae hopes the message is clear.