Daffodil Summer (1/?)
rating: pg (this chapter); nc-17 overall
pairing: yoochun/changmin
length: ~5800 wc (this chapter)
summary: Yoochun was born and raised in the U.S. and had never traveled outside of it. That changes when he graduates high school and he goes on a trip with his mom to Korea where he meets family, friends, and the boy-next-door named Shim Changmin.
CHAPTER ONE
The bell rang, signaling the end of the last day of school at Fairfax High School and the beginning of summer vacation. Kids poured out of the building and the campus buzzed with chatter. The air was thick with humidity and excitement for the upcoming summer break. Yoochun found his way through the crowd, waving goodbye to his friends. Yoochun was officially done with high school, and, as he glanced up at the blue sky dotted with clouds all around him, he realized he couldn’t be happier that weight was now off his shoulders. In the fall, he would start college. A new adventure awaited him.
“Hey Micky, wanna hang out? Me and Dylan are going to the skate park later,” asked Yoochun’s friend and (now former) classmate, Chandler.
Yoochun snapped out of his reverie to answer. “Man, I’d love to but I have to go straight home today.”
Chandler nodded in understanding, his dirty blonde hair swishing over a tanned brow. “Aw, that’s too bad. Well, see you tomorrow then,” he said with a wave, and then stepped on his skateboard and rolled away.
Yoochun watched him for a moment, listening to the whirring of the skateboard’s wheels against the pavement, and then plugged his earbuds in and began the short walk back to his house. He hummed along to The Temptations as they sang to his soul all the way home.
“Mom, I’m back,” Yoochun called, taking off his shoes at the entrance.
“Hey sweetie.” His mother responded from the couch in the living area. She always spoke Korean with Yoochun. Yoochun didn’t mind, though he responded in English most of the time.
“So, I have good news!”
Yoochun raised an eyebrow as he set down his bag. “What is it, mom?”
“We’re going to Korea this summer! You and I are going to go see your grandparents and cousins and aunts and uncles and my old friends!”
“O-oh, that’s um, great! Uh. Yeah. Awesome.”
His mom smiled sympathetically. “I’m sorry, I know there might have been other things you wanted to do this summer. But I think we’ll have a really good time together.”
Yoochun smiled. He didn’t get to spend much time with his mom because of school and just being a typical American teenager with friends (and the occasional secret skateboarding competition). He felt bad about it, especially since she didn’t have a husband to spend time with anymore. Yoochun had gotten over his parents’ divorce (or so he liked to think) but he had a creeping guilt that his mom was lonelier now because of it.
He put on his bravest face. “I think so too, mom-or, uh, umma.” He grinned, and his mom laughed.
“That’s right, you’re going to have to practice speaking Korean more now.”
Hearing his mother’s laugh made Yoochun happy. He’d try his best for her.
“Um, what about Ricky though?” Yoochun asked. A trip to another country would be okay as long as he had his younger brother by his side.
At that, his mom’s face fell. “Sweetie, Yoohwan can’t come with us.”
“Why not?”
“He got accepted into a very prestigious summer volunteering program at the hospital near downtown. He’s going to stay with your father while he participates in the program this summer.”
“He’s what? He’s going to stay with him?”
“Yoochun-ah…”
“No. That’s not okay.” Yoochun could feel his voice rising, could sense the blood rushing into his face, reddening his cheeks with the heat of anger. “Dad is crazy, if Yoohwan’s staying with him I’ll stay with him, too. I can’t let him do that alone.”
At that point Yoohwan came out of his bedroom. He made his way to Yoochun and looked between his brother and their mom.
“Hyung,” he said, and Yoochun already felt his anger beginning to dissipate. There was only one Korean word their mother insisted on them using in the household, and that was for Yoohwan to properly address Yoochun as his older brother. “Hyung, I’ll be fine. I promise. You should go and have fun.”
Yoochun looked at him in disbelief and felt his heart clench. “How can you say that? What if he yells at you all the time? What if he makes you sad?”
The younger brother smiled and shook his head. “Idiot. It’s just three months. I’ll hardly be home anyways. The volunteers get three meals a day because the shift is so long. I’ll pretty much only be home to sleep.”
“Then why don’t you just stay here by yourself?!” Yoochun cried, exasperated.
“Mom thinks I’ll invite girls over and get them pregnant.”
They both looked at their mom pointedly. “I don’t think that specifically! It’s just not appropriate for a teenage boy to be by himself for so long, okay?”
Yoochun sighed. “Will you really be okay, Rick?”
“I really will be.”
“I already bought our plane tickets…” their mom said softly.
Yoochun closed his eyes and scrambled to gather his emotions. “Alright. Fine. But you,” he looked his brother in the eye, “if anything happens, even if it’s minor-if he says weird shit or he’s being mean to you or he makes you feel like crap and you need to talk, call me, okay?”
“You got it, hyung.”
Yoochun packed light. One suitcase to check in and a backpack to take on the plane. He’d had a hard time packing for this trip because he’d never traveled abroad before. At one point his brother caught him packing his desklamp for nightreading and laughed at him until Yoochun put it back, embarrassed.
The day after Yoochun’s graduation ceremony, he and his mother got a ride to the airport from a kind neighbor. After checking in their luggage, printing their boarding passes, trudging through security, and walking the long distance to their gate, all that was left to do was wait. Yoochun wanted to pass the time by listening to music, but decided against it to save battery on his devices for the actual flight. Instead, he read the one book he had brought with him, but his excitement was so overwhelming that he couldn’t even concentrate long enough to get through a single page.
Finally, after what seemed like hours, the airline employee announced that it was time to board over a staticy intercom. Yoochun seized his backpack and stood in line patiently with his mother. The line moved swiftly, and before he knew it the airline employee was scanning his boarding pass and sending him onto the plane.
It was a huge Boeing 747 aircraft. Air hosts and hostesses greeted him as he stepped in and made his way down the aisle, looking down at his boarding pass and back up at the seat number markings alternatively. Finally, when he located his row, he stashed his mother’s carry-on in the overhead compartment, then sat down. Thankfully, he had a window seat. It was going to be a long flight, so he was glad for the view, especially since this airline really skimped on legroom and didn’t have a great selection of films to watch. Just before takeoff, he texted his brother.
About to take off. Turning off my phone. Miss u already rickster. Be safe and remember to call me :-)
Yoochun wasn’t really huge on going to church and all that, but he figured now was a good time to ask God for protection and safe travel, so he did. Then he plugged in his earbuds, leaned back in his economy class blue fabric seat.
He drifted in and out of sleep throughout the flight. Movies and music could only keep him awake for so long before his body caved in to its need for rest, though the cramped space didn’t allow him to sleep for too long at once. More than once he lifted the window shade and looked out.
Oceans and twinkling cities sprawled beneath him, and he gazed in wonder at the wide world. There was still so much for him to discover. Excitement thrummed in his veins as he stared at the dimming periwinkle-pink sky, imagining just what this summer might have in store for him.
At Incheon airport, Yoochun followed his mom closely as he looked around, trying to make sense of his surroundings. He’d never been outside America before, and his area in Virginia was fairly diverse. It was no New York City or Houston, but there were some black kids, some Asian kids, some Latino kids and so on in his classes and around his neighborhood. He’d really never seen such a huge crowd of people all with the same jet-black hair color, the same Korean features. It would take getting used to.
“Sis!” his mother called out, her voice ringing with happiness.
“Ah! My little sister has returned,” came the voice of a lady who Yoochun knew to be his aunt, Mina. “And there he is, Mr. Park Yoochun. Oh my, what a handsome boy you’ve become. Your mother hasn’t sent me photos in ages so I had no idea you’d grown up to be this dashing.”
Yoochun managed a sheepish smile, a bow, and a heavily accented greeting. His aunt laughed kindly. “Jaejoong-ah! Come take your cousin’s bags.”
Oh. That name sounded familiar. Jaejoong was one of his many cousins that Yoochun had never met, just talked to a few times awkwardly over the phone on a poor quality international call.
“Um, hi. I’m Yoochun. Nice to finally meet you in person, Jaejoong.”
Jaejoong smiled. He was good-looking in the way American boys never were-he was pretty where boys in America were ruggedly handsome. Yoochun could tell that Jaejoong applied light makeup and took care of his hair, skin, and clothing. Yoochun suddenly felt very frumpy in his baggy jeans and holey t-shirt.
“Hi there, nice to meet you too.” Jaejoong smiled. “Looks like we were born in the same year, so you don’t have to call me hyung or anything.”
Oh yeah, honorifics. Yoochun had almost about those. “Oh man,” he groaned as Jaejoong took his suitcase.
“What’s up?”
Yoochun began explaining that his Korean sucked, and frankly, he had no idea how he wassupposed to act around elders and stuff since he didn’t have any Korean friends or family in the States.
By the time they were getting into the huge family van to go to Yoochun’s aunt’s house, Jaejoong had an arm slung around Yoochun’s shoulders. “Don’t worry, Yoochun-ah. Hyung’s going to take good care of you.” Yoochun, though still shocked by his surroundings, found it easy to laugh and relax into his cousin’s embrace.
It turned out that Jaejoong and Yoochun were perfect for each other. They became fast friends despite the slight language barrier. Jaejoong just laughed at Yoochun’s accent and helped him fill in the words he didn’t know in a way that didn’t make Yoochun feel too stupid. Once they got past the communication issue, the two cousins had a million and one things in common like music, video games, and a secret hobby of song-writing, despite being brought up in totally different countries.
Jaejoong’s room was nice. He had a tall bookshelf that had more CD’s and casette tapes than it did actual books, which Yoochun related to and approved of whole-heartedly. The desk looked “neat” in that tried-to-clean-quickly-before-the-relatives-got-here kind of way. Yoochun felt right at home.
“So, you’re going to be here the whole summer, huh?”
“Yeah, seems so. Sorry man, I hope I’m not bothering you. I don’t know how I’d feel if I had to share my room with someone else for my whole break.”
Jaejoong shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. At least you’re a guy. Probably won’t be as bad as sharing a room with one of my sisters.”
“Haha, I guess so.” Yoochun leaned back against the wall and turned over a CD in his hands. “So, do you have a girlfriend?”
Jaejoong grinned. Now they were getting to the good stuff. “No. Had one, didn’t really…enjoy it.”
Yoochun’s eyebrows pulled together in confusion.
“What about you?”
“Nothing serious. I’ve gone on dates with a few girls. Sometimes several dates with the same girl. But uh, yeah, no actual relationships.”
“Boyfriend?”
Yoochun felt heat creep up his cheeks. “Uh, no.”
Jaejoong laughed. “I think we’re going to get close this summer. I’m looking forward to it.”
Yoochun found a corner in Jaejoong’s closet for his suitcase and a hook on the wall over his roll-out bed for his backpack. After his long, exhausting travel, Yoochun wanted nothing more than a hot shower. But first, he sent a text to Yoohwan.
I miss you D: my Korean sucks and I feel like an idiot. Come to meeee
The reply came quickly.
Hyung, you’re smart, you’ll pick it up really fast. I miss you too!
Smiling, he grabbed a towel and a pair of sleeping clothes from his suitcase and headed toward the bathroom.
He knocked on the door and one of his cousins yelled back angrily: “I’m not done yet!”
“S-sorry!” he stammered.
Eventually, Eunha came out of the bathroom and when she saw it was Yoochun, the guest, and not one of her siblings she apologized profusely. “Oh gosh, sorry I yelled! I didn’t mean to. Um, here, lemme show you how to use the shower.”
Yoochun smiled and nodded politely and struggled desperately to understand what she was saying, but it was rather difficult because she didn’t speak calmly like Jaejoong or his mother; instead she had some kind of teenage girl dialect affecting all her words and intonations. Yoochun tried to pay close attention as she explained how to adjust the water’s temperature and how to turn the shower head on and off.
“You got it?”
“Uh-yeah! Thank you!”
She smiled. “No problem.”
Eunha left the bathroom and Yoochun sighed in relief. He set down his clothes on the counter and stared at the shower head, scowling at it as though it were offending him by being so complicated.
Eventually, he got it, and it was the sweetest relief. He closed his eyes and allowed the hot water scald off all the grossness that comes with traveling on a closed cabin for fourteen hours and relax him. Without meaning to, he let the sound of rushing water to take him back to the times he’d borrowed his mom’s car on the weekend and drive down to the beach. Sometimes with his brother, but mostly by himself. He’d get up early Saturday morning and drive two and a half hours to see the ocean. He’d go there and just sit by the water, watching it. It was strange-he’d only been in Korea for a few hours and yet he already missed home.
He finished washing up, put on his sleeping clothes and headed to the kitchen in hopes of finding his mom and quietly telling her a quick ‘good night’ so as to not disturb anyone else in case they were already in bed. But what he found was her, along with his aunt, uncle, grandparents, and all 9 cousins spread around the dining and living areas, eating a huge dinner and passing around bowls for dessert.
“Yoochun-ah!” called all his relatives at once. He blinked.
“You must be so tired after your travel. Good thing you already bathed. Here, come and eat and then go to sleep!” said his aunt.
“Yoochun, first come greet your grandparents,” said his mom.
He walked up to them and bowed politely and said hello. They laughed and pulled him in for a gruff hug. It warmed his heart. He felt welcomed.
“Poor boy, you must be so exhausted. Don’t sleep on an empty stomach though! You won’t sleep well. Here, take this,” said his grandfather, already building a plate of mountains of rice, grilled vegetables, grilled beef and various sides for him.
“Ey, what are you doing! He’s not going to be able to stomach all that right now; he just came from America! Just give him rice,” his grandmother snapped. They seemed to be the typical old married couple.
Yoochun chuckled. “Thank you. I’ll eat well.”
“Your Korean’s so good,” his aunt praised. Yoochun bit back a laugh. He’d only said a few words and they were already flattering him. It made him feel really good.
He made his way over to the living area where all his cousins were on the couches, floor, or seated around the center table, eating and talking.
“Oh, Yoochun-ah! We’re going to play card games after dinner, maybe watch a movie. Wanna join us?”
From the dining table, his aunt yelled: “HEY! The boy’s just traveled halfway across the world, let him rest!”
Yoochun laughed out loud. “It’s okay Auntie, I think I can stay up for one game.”
“Yesss!” echoed several of his cousins. Yoochun smiled. This summer was going to be great.
The next day, Yoochun woke up at two in the afternoon. Jetlag was going to be a problem for a while. He quickly changed and brushed his teeth and then found Jaejoong playing video games in the living room.
“Hey, you’re up!”
“Yeah, finally. Sorry.”
“No need to apologize. Wanna do anything today?”
“Sure, like what?”
Jaejoong grinned. “There’s a lot of things you need to eat while you’re here. Number one summertime treat: patbingsu.”
Yoochun tilted his head to one side in question. “Never heard of it. What’s that?”
Jaejoong clutched his chest and fell to the ground dramatically. “It’s heaven, that’s what it is! Sweet, icy, heaven.”
Yoochun laughed loudly at his cousin’s antics. “Alright, alright! Sounds good.”
“Great, lemme get ready.”
When Jaejoong went into his room to change, Yoochun went to look for his mom and found her sitting on the balcony with her sister.
“Mom, Jaejoong and I are going out.”
“Oh wow, already? Alright, have fun. Be safe, sweetie.”
Jaejoong came in and grabbed his arm. “Let’s go!”
“Jaejoong, take Changmin with you two,” said Yoochun’s aunt.
“Huh? Why?”
Mina frowned. “He’s your friend, too, right? You shouldn’t abandon your friends just because you’re on break!”
“Mom…he lives next door. I can literally see him any time.” Jaejoong sounded more genuinely confused than he did annoyed.
“Then that’s even less of an excuse to not meet up with him!”
“Alright alright, I’ll ask if he wants to come!” Jaejoong said. “Come on Yoochun, let’s go. You have money, right?”
“Oh, yeah, I exchanged some at the airport. Should last me the first few weeks.”
After they left, Yoochun’s mom turned back to her sister. “What was that about?”
Mina sighed. “Oh, Inju…what can I say? Shim Changmin is the oldest son of the family next door. He’s a wonderful kid, really. And he’s been having a hard time since his father fell ill. I just thought it’d be good to look out for him, you know, make sure he still has a chance to go out and do things kids his age should do.”
Inju smiled sympathetically. “That’s nice of you to look out for your neighbor. Hopefully he and Yoochun can get along, too. I’d like for him to make some Korean friends while he’s here.”
Mina nodded. “Yes, he should. In fact, he should make so many that he never wants to go back and I can keep him and you here with me forever.”
They laughed together, happy to be in each other’s company again after so many years of being oceans apart.
“So, who’s this Changmin kid?”
Jaejoong and Yoochun walked side by side, heading to the neighboring house. “He lives next door to us, goes to my school. He’s two years younger than me.”
“Oh, so a year and a half younger than me. About my brother’s age.”
“Sucks your brother couldn’t come, they could’ve become friends. Are you guys close?”
Yoochun grinned as they stepped up to the door to Changmin’s house. “Yeah, we’re really close. I miss him.”
Jaejoong returned the smile and rang the bell. A girl, Changmin’s sister, answered.
“Oh, hi Jaejoong-oppa. What’s up?”
“Hey Sooyeon. Is Changmin home?”
“Yeah, let me get him, hang on.” Jaejoong motioned at Yoochun to cover his ears. Before he could comprehend and follow the warning, Sooyeon yelled into the house: “HEY! JAEJOONG IS HERE!”
“I thought you said you’d go get him!” Yoochun grumbled, rubbing his ear. Jaejoong shook his head, letting Yoochun know that this happened often.
Then Changmin came into view. He was tall. Really tall. I didn’t know Koreans could be this tall, Yoochun thought to himself. Wait, dammit, that’s racist. Wait, can I be racist to my own race?
“Oh, hi Jaejoong-hyung. What’s up?” Changmin smiled, then glanced at Yoochun. “Um, hi, I’m Changmin. Hyung, who’s he?”
“He’s my cousin from the states, Yoochun. He’s your hyung, too.”
“Oh, no, it’s okay, you don’t have to call me hyung if you don’t want to,” Yoochun responded sheepishly, still not used to the hierarchy of ages here.
Changmin raised an eyebrow. “Seriously? Cool. Nice to meet you, Yoochun.”
“I’m showing Yoochun around today. We’re going to get patbingsu. Wanna come with?”
Changmin’s eyebrows drew together. He glanced back into the house and then bit his lip. “Uh, I’m not sure…”
“Oh, come on now. It’s already been a week of break and you haven’t gone out at all. Go ahead, I’ll stay in today,” said Sooyeon, who’d been lingering at the doorway.
Changmin frowned. “Are you sure?”
She rolled her eyes. “Yes, I’m sure.”
“Okay then…uh, let me get ready really fast,” Changmin said, and raced upstairs to change his clothes.
Sooyeon went back into the house, leaving Jaejoong and Yoochun lingering at the door.
“Are you two friends?” Yoochun asked.
Jaejoong shrugged. “Yeah I guess. He’s nice, I like him, but he’s kind of shy and I’m kind of…out there so we usually don’t have too much in common. I sometimes dote on him, but since he’s the oldest in his family he’s not really used to that, haha.”
Yoochun nodded. A few minutes passed and Changmin came back down in day clothes.
“Let’s go!”
Yoochun, Jaejoong, and Changmin walked ten minutes to the nearest subway station. It was wicked hot out. Yoochun was only wearing a light t-shirt but he could feel sweat forming at his brow as the sun beat down on him. Jaejoong had probably applied some sort of sunscreen skin product before they left the house, and Changmin was wearing a cap. Yoochun would have to remember to do one of those things before he left the house next time or else his mom would probably get mad at him for letting himself get sunburnt.
When they got to the subway Jaejoong helped Yoochun purchase a transportation card. They went up to the guy at the window and Yoochun asked for “one transportation card, please” in his halting Korean. The guy’s lips quirked in a half-smile at Yoochun’s accent and accepted his money for the transportation pass.
First real life interaction using Korean, down. That wasn’t so bad, Yoochun thought.
The three boys hopped on the subway, just making it in before the doors shut with a swish behind them, and rushed into the few open seats. Jaejoong kept asking questions about life in America, and Yoochun didn’t mind answering. He liked that Jaejoong was trying to get to know him, and he felt good that he could provide information to someone without that knowledge.
Changmin glanced at the subway map. “Hyung, why are we taking the subway just to go for shaved ice? Couldn’t we have gone somewhere closer, like, just taken the bus a few stops down?”
“Yeah, but I wanted to take Yoochun to a cool place.”
“Oh, I see. Yoochun, do you like it here so far?”
Yoochun blinked. The kid sounded so mature for some reason. Definitely older than himself or Jaejoong. “Yeah, I do. Everyone’s been so nice. I feel really welcomed. I miss my brother but when I’m at Jaejoong’s house it’s like I have 9 more siblings to make up for it.”
Changmin smiled. “That’s good. I hope you enjoy your time here.”
“Thanks.”
“Our stop’s here,” Jaejoong said, pulling on Yoochun’s sleeve. “Let’s go!”
“I love patbingsu,” Yoochun said. His lips had turned pink from the icy treat covered in mangos, strawberries and drizzled with condensed milk, and his eyes were wide with the revelation of sweet delight.
“It’s amazing, isn’t it?” Jaejoong said, grinning from ear to ear. Yoochun must have looked pretty stupid with his eyes bulging and mouth hanging open because even Changmin was laughing at him, his gums exposed and eyes mismatched.
“It’s so good. Can I have another one?”
“Yeah dude, of course.”
Yoochun ordered another, this time with lychees on the side and more condensed milk poured over the top.
“You really like sweets, huh?” Changmin giggled.
“Mhm,” Yoochun managed with his mouthful of ice. Then he seemed to remember he was with company, and held out the next spoonful for Jaejoong.
“Want some more?”
“Sure, thanks,” Jaejoong said, closing his mouth around the spoon.
“And, uh, Changmin too?” Yoochun asked just to be polite, even though it was kind probably kind of weird for him to spoon-feed a kid he’d just met today.
“Oh, um, no it’s okay, I’ve had enough. You eat.”
Yoochun nodded and put the spoonful of shaved ice, chilled lychee, and sweet condensed milk in his own mouth. From the corner of his eye, he thought he saw Changmin take another glance at his lips as they closed around the spoon.
They walked around the area, glancing into shops and enjoying being in a place where the atmosphere was so lively. They talked as they walked, about anything and everything. About their favorite singers, foods, living in the states and how it was different from Korea. Changmin was slowly engaging more in the conversation, asking questions and responding and offering his own opinions. It was nice. Yoochun felt really happy. He never thought he’d be able to feel so comfortable during just his first few day in another country.
Of course, his Korean still sucked. He’d often have to use the English word, which Changmin would usually be able to pick up (and Jaejoong usually would not) and then Changmin would try to translate. It was frustrating and tiring and the other two laughing at Yoochun took some getting used to, but it was a small price to pay for the excellent company.
After an hour or so, the three walked into a coffee shop and ordered drinks. Jaejoong was just about to sit down when someone called him from behind.
“Jaejoong!”
He turned around. “Junsu! Hey, what are you doing here?”
Junsu made his way over to their table. “I was actually about to meet Yunho. We were going to go to a movie with some of the people in our class. Um, but, who are your friends.”
“Oh yeah, this is Changmin. He goes to our school.”
“That’s right, I’ve seen you around. But for some reason I never met you…?”
“I’m in the grade below you, that’s why.”
“And this is Yoochun, my cousin. He’s from the states.”
“Oh, cool! Nice to meet you.”
“Likewise.”
“Hey,” Junsu said, “you guys should join us for the movie tonight. If you want to.”
Jaejoong looked to Yoochun. “Do you want to? We can call and ask our parents if it’s okay to stay out a bit later.”
Yoochun bit his lip and looked toward Changmin who already looked like he was going to say no.
“You know, that’s really nice of you to invite me but I just got here yesterday. I wanted to spend some time with my cousins and grandparents. But I’ll be here all summer, so many next time, yeah?”
Junsu nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah, I totally understand! Next time, then.”
Their buzzer rang. Jaejoong went to go get the drinks and a guy, Yunho, walked in through the door. Junsu waved him over and introduced him to Yoochun.
“Nice to meet you, Yoochun,” Yunho said with a thousand-watt smile. “Sorry, by the way, is my accent hard to understand?”
Yoochun tilted his head to one side. “What accent?”
There was a beat of silence, then Changmin, Junsu, and Jaejoong, who’d just come back with their drinks, all burst into laughter.
“Dude,” Jaejoong said, “now I understand the effect of not being around Koreans all your life. You really can’t hear it?”
“No?” Yoochun said, pouting slightly.
“This guy,” Junsu said, pointing at Yunho, “is from the countryside. Gwangju. He just moved here a couple of years ago.”
“Oh.”
“Okay,” Changmin said, trying to speak through his peals of laughter, “our goal by the end of the summer is to make sure Yoochun can tell the difference between a city and country accents.”
Yunho pouted, which was an odd, yet endearing site to see. “You guys are so mean. It’s not even the countryside! It’s a city, you know!”
“We need to educate the ignorant American.” Changmin said, eyes mismatched once more from bubbling laughter.
“I’m on Yunho’s side, you guys are mean,” said Yoochun, but he was laughing too.
After that, Yunho and Junsu left to go meet up with their other friends, and the three sat and drank their coffee.
“How can you drink it black? I thought you like sweet things!” Changmin said.
Yoochun winked. “I’m a man of many contradictions.”
Changmin looked unimpressed. “How do you know the word ‘contradictions’?”
“My mom uses it when she’s yelling about my good looks and horrible dressing.”
“Oh, yeah, about that,” Jaejoong said, tongue swiping out to gather foam from his drink that had gathered on his lips, “if you don’t mind, we should probably go shopping some time while you’re here. I can’t be seen with you if you’re going to dress like that.”
Yoochun supposed he should be offended but instead he found himself laughing so hard his eyes were tearing up. “Yeah, sure, we can shop for clothes.”
“Thank God.”
They took the subway back to the stop closes to their neighborhood, but before they went home they stopped at a convenience store.
“Let’s get some snacks!” Jaejoong said. “We can eat them if we stay up playing games or whatever.”
Changmin nodded in agreement. He was always in the mood for food.
They ended up buying cup ramyun, chips, jellies, sodas, chocolate-covered candy sticks and a bunch of other stuff. It only ended up being around ten dollars. Yoochun was in heaven.
Changmin paid for his stuff, juggling two armfuls of various snacks. He looked like a kid then, smiling with excitement for his treats. It was kind of endearing. Yoochun wondered why, except for that moment, Changmin always seemed so adult-ish. He was oddly glad that there were a few moments where the kid could…well, be a kid.
Just as Changmin was finishing paying for his things, Yoochun turned to the cashier again. “Oh, I almost forgot. I’d like a pack of cigarettes, please,” he said, fishing out another few bills from his pocket.
The cashier eyed him. “Which brand?”
“Just give me that one,” he said, pointing.
Then he heard a loud clattering and noticed Changmin, who was staring at him with eyes distant and expressionless. His snacks had been dropped onto the floor.
“Are you okay?” Yoochun asked.
“You smoke?”
“Uh, yeah, sometimes. Why?”
“Why do you smoke?”
Yoochun winced inwardly. “I don’t know, I don’t do it that much. Doesn’t everyone here smoke?”
Changmin looked ready to scream. “Yeah,” he replied, his tone sharp and unforgiving. “Everyone here does. Somehow I thought an American kid would be different.”
Yoochun felt anger swirl in his gut. “Yeah most kids back home don’t but since I’m obviously ill-mannered gutter trash, I do. If you don’t wanna hang out with me because of it then that’s fine, I don’t really give a fuck.”
The air went still between them.
“Sir, here’s your cigarettes,” the cashier said. Yoochun grabbed it, stuffed it in one of his bags of snacks and called out to Jaejoong. “Let’s go,” he said, and walked out.
Yoochun was silent and brooding the whole walk home. Jaejoong didn’t know what to do to make his cousin feel better because he’d only known him for a day.
The whole family ate dinner together, the cousins played board games together while the grown-ups settled down for tea, and then it was time to go to bed. Yoochun washed up and changed into sleeping clothes, then slipped outside, taking his cigarettes with him.
He’d smoked through half of one stick before he heard the door open and close behind him.
“Hey,” said Jaejoong.
“I hope you’re not about to lecture me.”
“Actually, I was going to ask if I could have one. I just ran out.”
Yoochun raised an eyebrow. “You smoke?”
“Just like you said, everyone here does.”
“Except Changmin, apparently.”
“There’s a few kids like him. Junsu doesn’t either. Yunho rarely does, it’s more of a social thing for him.”
Yoochun handed one to Jaejoong and passed him the lighter.
“Thanks.”
“Yeah.”
“Listen, Yoochun, about Changmin…”
“I don’t really wanna talk about that kid right now,” Yoochun whined, petulant.
“No, you have to hear this. There’s a reason he’s kind of anal about people smoking. His dad’s been a heavy smoker for decades and he just got diagnosed with lung cancer a few months ago. Changmin’s a smart kid, you know? He knew the dangers and would always beg his dad to quit, or at least cut back. Anyways, his dad’s probably going to die pretty soon because he’s freaked out by cancer treatment and refuses to do anything other than take weak traditional medicines.”
Yoochun’s jaw dropped. “I didn’t-I had no idea.”
Jaejoong shook his head. “I know. It’s not your fault. But Changmin’s a sweet kid and you were kind of harsh. He didn’t mean to offend you.”
“Ugh, I’m sorry. God I always mess shit up.”
Jaejoong slung an arm around his cousin’s shoulders. “Chin up, buddy. Tomorrow’s a new day. You can go apologize to him in the morning then you, me, Changmin and whoever else wants to come can go do some sightseeing. There’s a bunch of cool historical stuff here that I’ve never visited because I’m a native, but now that we have an alien there’s an excuse!”
Yoochun laughed and nodded. “Sounds good. Thanks Jaejoong.”
They finished their cigarettes in comfortable silence, exhaling puffs of white smoke into the clear summer night, and then headed back inside together to sleep.
a/n: HELLO! i've been working on this fic for a while and it's the longest thing i've ever written. there will be several chapters, but i'm not sure how many. anyways, i hope you enjoy~ if you did, PLEASE leave a comment! they encourage me and make me feel that the hours of writing are not hours wasted!
and to my yoomin tlist.....this is dedicated to you all ♥ merry christmas ♥
be my friend! twitter | k-pop tumblr
pairing: yoochun/changmin
length: ~5800 wc (this chapter)
summary: Yoochun was born and raised in the U.S. and had never traveled outside of it. That changes when he graduates high school and he goes on a trip with his mom to Korea where he meets family, friends, and the boy-next-door named Shim Changmin.
CHAPTER ONE
The bell rang, signaling the end of the last day of school at Fairfax High School and the beginning of summer vacation. Kids poured out of the building and the campus buzzed with chatter. The air was thick with humidity and excitement for the upcoming summer break. Yoochun found his way through the crowd, waving goodbye to his friends. Yoochun was officially done with high school, and, as he glanced up at the blue sky dotted with clouds all around him, he realized he couldn’t be happier that weight was now off his shoulders. In the fall, he would start college. A new adventure awaited him.
“Hey Micky, wanna hang out? Me and Dylan are going to the skate park later,” asked Yoochun’s friend and (now former) classmate, Chandler.
Yoochun snapped out of his reverie to answer. “Man, I’d love to but I have to go straight home today.”
Chandler nodded in understanding, his dirty blonde hair swishing over a tanned brow. “Aw, that’s too bad. Well, see you tomorrow then,” he said with a wave, and then stepped on his skateboard and rolled away.
Yoochun watched him for a moment, listening to the whirring of the skateboard’s wheels against the pavement, and then plugged his earbuds in and began the short walk back to his house. He hummed along to The Temptations as they sang to his soul all the way home.
“Mom, I’m back,” Yoochun called, taking off his shoes at the entrance.
“Hey sweetie.” His mother responded from the couch in the living area. She always spoke Korean with Yoochun. Yoochun didn’t mind, though he responded in English most of the time.
“So, I have good news!”
Yoochun raised an eyebrow as he set down his bag. “What is it, mom?”
“We’re going to Korea this summer! You and I are going to go see your grandparents and cousins and aunts and uncles and my old friends!”
“O-oh, that’s um, great! Uh. Yeah. Awesome.”
His mom smiled sympathetically. “I’m sorry, I know there might have been other things you wanted to do this summer. But I think we’ll have a really good time together.”
Yoochun smiled. He didn’t get to spend much time with his mom because of school and just being a typical American teenager with friends (and the occasional secret skateboarding competition). He felt bad about it, especially since she didn’t have a husband to spend time with anymore. Yoochun had gotten over his parents’ divorce (or so he liked to think) but he had a creeping guilt that his mom was lonelier now because of it.
He put on his bravest face. “I think so too, mom-or, uh, umma.” He grinned, and his mom laughed.
“That’s right, you’re going to have to practice speaking Korean more now.”
Hearing his mother’s laugh made Yoochun happy. He’d try his best for her.
“Um, what about Ricky though?” Yoochun asked. A trip to another country would be okay as long as he had his younger brother by his side.
At that, his mom’s face fell. “Sweetie, Yoohwan can’t come with us.”
“Why not?”
“He got accepted into a very prestigious summer volunteering program at the hospital near downtown. He’s going to stay with your father while he participates in the program this summer.”
“He’s what? He’s going to stay with him?”
“Yoochun-ah…”
“No. That’s not okay.” Yoochun could feel his voice rising, could sense the blood rushing into his face, reddening his cheeks with the heat of anger. “Dad is crazy, if Yoohwan’s staying with him I’ll stay with him, too. I can’t let him do that alone.”
At that point Yoohwan came out of his bedroom. He made his way to Yoochun and looked between his brother and their mom.
“Hyung,” he said, and Yoochun already felt his anger beginning to dissipate. There was only one Korean word their mother insisted on them using in the household, and that was for Yoohwan to properly address Yoochun as his older brother. “Hyung, I’ll be fine. I promise. You should go and have fun.”
Yoochun looked at him in disbelief and felt his heart clench. “How can you say that? What if he yells at you all the time? What if he makes you sad?”
The younger brother smiled and shook his head. “Idiot. It’s just three months. I’ll hardly be home anyways. The volunteers get three meals a day because the shift is so long. I’ll pretty much only be home to sleep.”
“Then why don’t you just stay here by yourself?!” Yoochun cried, exasperated.
“Mom thinks I’ll invite girls over and get them pregnant.”
They both looked at their mom pointedly. “I don’t think that specifically! It’s just not appropriate for a teenage boy to be by himself for so long, okay?”
Yoochun sighed. “Will you really be okay, Rick?”
“I really will be.”
“I already bought our plane tickets…” their mom said softly.
Yoochun closed his eyes and scrambled to gather his emotions. “Alright. Fine. But you,” he looked his brother in the eye, “if anything happens, even if it’s minor-if he says weird shit or he’s being mean to you or he makes you feel like crap and you need to talk, call me, okay?”
“You got it, hyung.”
Yoochun packed light. One suitcase to check in and a backpack to take on the plane. He’d had a hard time packing for this trip because he’d never traveled abroad before. At one point his brother caught him packing his desklamp for nightreading and laughed at him until Yoochun put it back, embarrassed.
The day after Yoochun’s graduation ceremony, he and his mother got a ride to the airport from a kind neighbor. After checking in their luggage, printing their boarding passes, trudging through security, and walking the long distance to their gate, all that was left to do was wait. Yoochun wanted to pass the time by listening to music, but decided against it to save battery on his devices for the actual flight. Instead, he read the one book he had brought with him, but his excitement was so overwhelming that he couldn’t even concentrate long enough to get through a single page.
Finally, after what seemed like hours, the airline employee announced that it was time to board over a staticy intercom. Yoochun seized his backpack and stood in line patiently with his mother. The line moved swiftly, and before he knew it the airline employee was scanning his boarding pass and sending him onto the plane.
It was a huge Boeing 747 aircraft. Air hosts and hostesses greeted him as he stepped in and made his way down the aisle, looking down at his boarding pass and back up at the seat number markings alternatively. Finally, when he located his row, he stashed his mother’s carry-on in the overhead compartment, then sat down. Thankfully, he had a window seat. It was going to be a long flight, so he was glad for the view, especially since this airline really skimped on legroom and didn’t have a great selection of films to watch. Just before takeoff, he texted his brother.
About to take off. Turning off my phone. Miss u already rickster. Be safe and remember to call me :-)
Yoochun wasn’t really huge on going to church and all that, but he figured now was a good time to ask God for protection and safe travel, so he did. Then he plugged in his earbuds, leaned back in his economy class blue fabric seat.
He drifted in and out of sleep throughout the flight. Movies and music could only keep him awake for so long before his body caved in to its need for rest, though the cramped space didn’t allow him to sleep for too long at once. More than once he lifted the window shade and looked out.
Oceans and twinkling cities sprawled beneath him, and he gazed in wonder at the wide world. There was still so much for him to discover. Excitement thrummed in his veins as he stared at the dimming periwinkle-pink sky, imagining just what this summer might have in store for him.
At Incheon airport, Yoochun followed his mom closely as he looked around, trying to make sense of his surroundings. He’d never been outside America before, and his area in Virginia was fairly diverse. It was no New York City or Houston, but there were some black kids, some Asian kids, some Latino kids and so on in his classes and around his neighborhood. He’d really never seen such a huge crowd of people all with the same jet-black hair color, the same Korean features. It would take getting used to.
“Sis!” his mother called out, her voice ringing with happiness.
“Ah! My little sister has returned,” came the voice of a lady who Yoochun knew to be his aunt, Mina. “And there he is, Mr. Park Yoochun. Oh my, what a handsome boy you’ve become. Your mother hasn’t sent me photos in ages so I had no idea you’d grown up to be this dashing.”
Yoochun managed a sheepish smile, a bow, and a heavily accented greeting. His aunt laughed kindly. “Jaejoong-ah! Come take your cousin’s bags.”
Oh. That name sounded familiar. Jaejoong was one of his many cousins that Yoochun had never met, just talked to a few times awkwardly over the phone on a poor quality international call.
“Um, hi. I’m Yoochun. Nice to finally meet you in person, Jaejoong.”
Jaejoong smiled. He was good-looking in the way American boys never were-he was pretty where boys in America were ruggedly handsome. Yoochun could tell that Jaejoong applied light makeup and took care of his hair, skin, and clothing. Yoochun suddenly felt very frumpy in his baggy jeans and holey t-shirt.
“Hi there, nice to meet you too.” Jaejoong smiled. “Looks like we were born in the same year, so you don’t have to call me hyung or anything.”
Oh yeah, honorifics. Yoochun had almost about those. “Oh man,” he groaned as Jaejoong took his suitcase.
“What’s up?”
Yoochun began explaining that his Korean sucked, and frankly, he had no idea how he wassupposed to act around elders and stuff since he didn’t have any Korean friends or family in the States.
By the time they were getting into the huge family van to go to Yoochun’s aunt’s house, Jaejoong had an arm slung around Yoochun’s shoulders. “Don’t worry, Yoochun-ah. Hyung’s going to take good care of you.” Yoochun, though still shocked by his surroundings, found it easy to laugh and relax into his cousin’s embrace.
It turned out that Jaejoong and Yoochun were perfect for each other. They became fast friends despite the slight language barrier. Jaejoong just laughed at Yoochun’s accent and helped him fill in the words he didn’t know in a way that didn’t make Yoochun feel too stupid. Once they got past the communication issue, the two cousins had a million and one things in common like music, video games, and a secret hobby of song-writing, despite being brought up in totally different countries.
Jaejoong’s room was nice. He had a tall bookshelf that had more CD’s and casette tapes than it did actual books, which Yoochun related to and approved of whole-heartedly. The desk looked “neat” in that tried-to-clean-quickly-before-the-relatives-got-here kind of way. Yoochun felt right at home.
“So, you’re going to be here the whole summer, huh?”
“Yeah, seems so. Sorry man, I hope I’m not bothering you. I don’t know how I’d feel if I had to share my room with someone else for my whole break.”
Jaejoong shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. At least you’re a guy. Probably won’t be as bad as sharing a room with one of my sisters.”
“Haha, I guess so.” Yoochun leaned back against the wall and turned over a CD in his hands. “So, do you have a girlfriend?”
Jaejoong grinned. Now they were getting to the good stuff. “No. Had one, didn’t really…enjoy it.”
Yoochun’s eyebrows pulled together in confusion.
“What about you?”
“Nothing serious. I’ve gone on dates with a few girls. Sometimes several dates with the same girl. But uh, yeah, no actual relationships.”
“Boyfriend?”
Yoochun felt heat creep up his cheeks. “Uh, no.”
Jaejoong laughed. “I think we’re going to get close this summer. I’m looking forward to it.”
Yoochun found a corner in Jaejoong’s closet for his suitcase and a hook on the wall over his roll-out bed for his backpack. After his long, exhausting travel, Yoochun wanted nothing more than a hot shower. But first, he sent a text to Yoohwan.
I miss you D: my Korean sucks and I feel like an idiot. Come to meeee
The reply came quickly.
Hyung, you’re smart, you’ll pick it up really fast. I miss you too!
Smiling, he grabbed a towel and a pair of sleeping clothes from his suitcase and headed toward the bathroom.
He knocked on the door and one of his cousins yelled back angrily: “I’m not done yet!”
“S-sorry!” he stammered.
Eventually, Eunha came out of the bathroom and when she saw it was Yoochun, the guest, and not one of her siblings she apologized profusely. “Oh gosh, sorry I yelled! I didn’t mean to. Um, here, lemme show you how to use the shower.”
Yoochun smiled and nodded politely and struggled desperately to understand what she was saying, but it was rather difficult because she didn’t speak calmly like Jaejoong or his mother; instead she had some kind of teenage girl dialect affecting all her words and intonations. Yoochun tried to pay close attention as she explained how to adjust the water’s temperature and how to turn the shower head on and off.
“You got it?”
“Uh-yeah! Thank you!”
She smiled. “No problem.”
Eunha left the bathroom and Yoochun sighed in relief. He set down his clothes on the counter and stared at the shower head, scowling at it as though it were offending him by being so complicated.
Eventually, he got it, and it was the sweetest relief. He closed his eyes and allowed the hot water scald off all the grossness that comes with traveling on a closed cabin for fourteen hours and relax him. Without meaning to, he let the sound of rushing water to take him back to the times he’d borrowed his mom’s car on the weekend and drive down to the beach. Sometimes with his brother, but mostly by himself. He’d get up early Saturday morning and drive two and a half hours to see the ocean. He’d go there and just sit by the water, watching it. It was strange-he’d only been in Korea for a few hours and yet he already missed home.
He finished washing up, put on his sleeping clothes and headed to the kitchen in hopes of finding his mom and quietly telling her a quick ‘good night’ so as to not disturb anyone else in case they were already in bed. But what he found was her, along with his aunt, uncle, grandparents, and all 9 cousins spread around the dining and living areas, eating a huge dinner and passing around bowls for dessert.
“Yoochun-ah!” called all his relatives at once. He blinked.
“You must be so tired after your travel. Good thing you already bathed. Here, come and eat and then go to sleep!” said his aunt.
“Yoochun, first come greet your grandparents,” said his mom.
He walked up to them and bowed politely and said hello. They laughed and pulled him in for a gruff hug. It warmed his heart. He felt welcomed.
“Poor boy, you must be so exhausted. Don’t sleep on an empty stomach though! You won’t sleep well. Here, take this,” said his grandfather, already building a plate of mountains of rice, grilled vegetables, grilled beef and various sides for him.
“Ey, what are you doing! He’s not going to be able to stomach all that right now; he just came from America! Just give him rice,” his grandmother snapped. They seemed to be the typical old married couple.
Yoochun chuckled. “Thank you. I’ll eat well.”
“Your Korean’s so good,” his aunt praised. Yoochun bit back a laugh. He’d only said a few words and they were already flattering him. It made him feel really good.
He made his way over to the living area where all his cousins were on the couches, floor, or seated around the center table, eating and talking.
“Oh, Yoochun-ah! We’re going to play card games after dinner, maybe watch a movie. Wanna join us?”
From the dining table, his aunt yelled: “HEY! The boy’s just traveled halfway across the world, let him rest!”
Yoochun laughed out loud. “It’s okay Auntie, I think I can stay up for one game.”
“Yesss!” echoed several of his cousins. Yoochun smiled. This summer was going to be great.
The next day, Yoochun woke up at two in the afternoon. Jetlag was going to be a problem for a while. He quickly changed and brushed his teeth and then found Jaejoong playing video games in the living room.
“Hey, you’re up!”
“Yeah, finally. Sorry.”
“No need to apologize. Wanna do anything today?”
“Sure, like what?”
Jaejoong grinned. “There’s a lot of things you need to eat while you’re here. Number one summertime treat: patbingsu.”
Yoochun tilted his head to one side in question. “Never heard of it. What’s that?”
Jaejoong clutched his chest and fell to the ground dramatically. “It’s heaven, that’s what it is! Sweet, icy, heaven.”
Yoochun laughed loudly at his cousin’s antics. “Alright, alright! Sounds good.”
“Great, lemme get ready.”
When Jaejoong went into his room to change, Yoochun went to look for his mom and found her sitting on the balcony with her sister.
“Mom, Jaejoong and I are going out.”
“Oh wow, already? Alright, have fun. Be safe, sweetie.”
Jaejoong came in and grabbed his arm. “Let’s go!”
“Jaejoong, take Changmin with you two,” said Yoochun’s aunt.
“Huh? Why?”
Mina frowned. “He’s your friend, too, right? You shouldn’t abandon your friends just because you’re on break!”
“Mom…he lives next door. I can literally see him any time.” Jaejoong sounded more genuinely confused than he did annoyed.
“Then that’s even less of an excuse to not meet up with him!”
“Alright alright, I’ll ask if he wants to come!” Jaejoong said. “Come on Yoochun, let’s go. You have money, right?”
“Oh, yeah, I exchanged some at the airport. Should last me the first few weeks.”
After they left, Yoochun’s mom turned back to her sister. “What was that about?”
Mina sighed. “Oh, Inju…what can I say? Shim Changmin is the oldest son of the family next door. He’s a wonderful kid, really. And he’s been having a hard time since his father fell ill. I just thought it’d be good to look out for him, you know, make sure he still has a chance to go out and do things kids his age should do.”
Inju smiled sympathetically. “That’s nice of you to look out for your neighbor. Hopefully he and Yoochun can get along, too. I’d like for him to make some Korean friends while he’s here.”
Mina nodded. “Yes, he should. In fact, he should make so many that he never wants to go back and I can keep him and you here with me forever.”
They laughed together, happy to be in each other’s company again after so many years of being oceans apart.
“So, who’s this Changmin kid?”
Jaejoong and Yoochun walked side by side, heading to the neighboring house. “He lives next door to us, goes to my school. He’s two years younger than me.”
“Oh, so a year and a half younger than me. About my brother’s age.”
“Sucks your brother couldn’t come, they could’ve become friends. Are you guys close?”
Yoochun grinned as they stepped up to the door to Changmin’s house. “Yeah, we’re really close. I miss him.”
Jaejoong returned the smile and rang the bell. A girl, Changmin’s sister, answered.
“Oh, hi Jaejoong-oppa. What’s up?”
“Hey Sooyeon. Is Changmin home?”
“Yeah, let me get him, hang on.” Jaejoong motioned at Yoochun to cover his ears. Before he could comprehend and follow the warning, Sooyeon yelled into the house: “HEY! JAEJOONG IS HERE!”
“I thought you said you’d go get him!” Yoochun grumbled, rubbing his ear. Jaejoong shook his head, letting Yoochun know that this happened often.
Then Changmin came into view. He was tall. Really tall. I didn’t know Koreans could be this tall, Yoochun thought to himself. Wait, dammit, that’s racist. Wait, can I be racist to my own race?
“Oh, hi Jaejoong-hyung. What’s up?” Changmin smiled, then glanced at Yoochun. “Um, hi, I’m Changmin. Hyung, who’s he?”
“He’s my cousin from the states, Yoochun. He’s your hyung, too.”
“Oh, no, it’s okay, you don’t have to call me hyung if you don’t want to,” Yoochun responded sheepishly, still not used to the hierarchy of ages here.
Changmin raised an eyebrow. “Seriously? Cool. Nice to meet you, Yoochun.”
“I’m showing Yoochun around today. We’re going to get patbingsu. Wanna come with?”
Changmin’s eyebrows drew together. He glanced back into the house and then bit his lip. “Uh, I’m not sure…”
“Oh, come on now. It’s already been a week of break and you haven’t gone out at all. Go ahead, I’ll stay in today,” said Sooyeon, who’d been lingering at the doorway.
Changmin frowned. “Are you sure?”
She rolled her eyes. “Yes, I’m sure.”
“Okay then…uh, let me get ready really fast,” Changmin said, and raced upstairs to change his clothes.
Sooyeon went back into the house, leaving Jaejoong and Yoochun lingering at the door.
“Are you two friends?” Yoochun asked.
Jaejoong shrugged. “Yeah I guess. He’s nice, I like him, but he’s kind of shy and I’m kind of…out there so we usually don’t have too much in common. I sometimes dote on him, but since he’s the oldest in his family he’s not really used to that, haha.”
Yoochun nodded. A few minutes passed and Changmin came back down in day clothes.
“Let’s go!”
Yoochun, Jaejoong, and Changmin walked ten minutes to the nearest subway station. It was wicked hot out. Yoochun was only wearing a light t-shirt but he could feel sweat forming at his brow as the sun beat down on him. Jaejoong had probably applied some sort of sunscreen skin product before they left the house, and Changmin was wearing a cap. Yoochun would have to remember to do one of those things before he left the house next time or else his mom would probably get mad at him for letting himself get sunburnt.
When they got to the subway Jaejoong helped Yoochun purchase a transportation card. They went up to the guy at the window and Yoochun asked for “one transportation card, please” in his halting Korean. The guy’s lips quirked in a half-smile at Yoochun’s accent and accepted his money for the transportation pass.
First real life interaction using Korean, down. That wasn’t so bad, Yoochun thought.
The three boys hopped on the subway, just making it in before the doors shut with a swish behind them, and rushed into the few open seats. Jaejoong kept asking questions about life in America, and Yoochun didn’t mind answering. He liked that Jaejoong was trying to get to know him, and he felt good that he could provide information to someone without that knowledge.
Changmin glanced at the subway map. “Hyung, why are we taking the subway just to go for shaved ice? Couldn’t we have gone somewhere closer, like, just taken the bus a few stops down?”
“Yeah, but I wanted to take Yoochun to a cool place.”
“Oh, I see. Yoochun, do you like it here so far?”
Yoochun blinked. The kid sounded so mature for some reason. Definitely older than himself or Jaejoong. “Yeah, I do. Everyone’s been so nice. I feel really welcomed. I miss my brother but when I’m at Jaejoong’s house it’s like I have 9 more siblings to make up for it.”
Changmin smiled. “That’s good. I hope you enjoy your time here.”
“Thanks.”
“Our stop’s here,” Jaejoong said, pulling on Yoochun’s sleeve. “Let’s go!”
“I love patbingsu,” Yoochun said. His lips had turned pink from the icy treat covered in mangos, strawberries and drizzled with condensed milk, and his eyes were wide with the revelation of sweet delight.
“It’s amazing, isn’t it?” Jaejoong said, grinning from ear to ear. Yoochun must have looked pretty stupid with his eyes bulging and mouth hanging open because even Changmin was laughing at him, his gums exposed and eyes mismatched.
“It’s so good. Can I have another one?”
“Yeah dude, of course.”
Yoochun ordered another, this time with lychees on the side and more condensed milk poured over the top.
“You really like sweets, huh?” Changmin giggled.
“Mhm,” Yoochun managed with his mouthful of ice. Then he seemed to remember he was with company, and held out the next spoonful for Jaejoong.
“Want some more?”
“Sure, thanks,” Jaejoong said, closing his mouth around the spoon.
“And, uh, Changmin too?” Yoochun asked just to be polite, even though it was kind probably kind of weird for him to spoon-feed a kid he’d just met today.
“Oh, um, no it’s okay, I’ve had enough. You eat.”
Yoochun nodded and put the spoonful of shaved ice, chilled lychee, and sweet condensed milk in his own mouth. From the corner of his eye, he thought he saw Changmin take another glance at his lips as they closed around the spoon.
They walked around the area, glancing into shops and enjoying being in a place where the atmosphere was so lively. They talked as they walked, about anything and everything. About their favorite singers, foods, living in the states and how it was different from Korea. Changmin was slowly engaging more in the conversation, asking questions and responding and offering his own opinions. It was nice. Yoochun felt really happy. He never thought he’d be able to feel so comfortable during just his first few day in another country.
Of course, his Korean still sucked. He’d often have to use the English word, which Changmin would usually be able to pick up (and Jaejoong usually would not) and then Changmin would try to translate. It was frustrating and tiring and the other two laughing at Yoochun took some getting used to, but it was a small price to pay for the excellent company.
After an hour or so, the three walked into a coffee shop and ordered drinks. Jaejoong was just about to sit down when someone called him from behind.
“Jaejoong!”
He turned around. “Junsu! Hey, what are you doing here?”
Junsu made his way over to their table. “I was actually about to meet Yunho. We were going to go to a movie with some of the people in our class. Um, but, who are your friends.”
“Oh yeah, this is Changmin. He goes to our school.”
“That’s right, I’ve seen you around. But for some reason I never met you…?”
“I’m in the grade below you, that’s why.”
“And this is Yoochun, my cousin. He’s from the states.”
“Oh, cool! Nice to meet you.”
“Likewise.”
“Hey,” Junsu said, “you guys should join us for the movie tonight. If you want to.”
Jaejoong looked to Yoochun. “Do you want to? We can call and ask our parents if it’s okay to stay out a bit later.”
Yoochun bit his lip and looked toward Changmin who already looked like he was going to say no.
“You know, that’s really nice of you to invite me but I just got here yesterday. I wanted to spend some time with my cousins and grandparents. But I’ll be here all summer, so many next time, yeah?”
Junsu nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah, I totally understand! Next time, then.”
Their buzzer rang. Jaejoong went to go get the drinks and a guy, Yunho, walked in through the door. Junsu waved him over and introduced him to Yoochun.
“Nice to meet you, Yoochun,” Yunho said with a thousand-watt smile. “Sorry, by the way, is my accent hard to understand?”
Yoochun tilted his head to one side. “What accent?”
There was a beat of silence, then Changmin, Junsu, and Jaejoong, who’d just come back with their drinks, all burst into laughter.
“Dude,” Jaejoong said, “now I understand the effect of not being around Koreans all your life. You really can’t hear it?”
“No?” Yoochun said, pouting slightly.
“This guy,” Junsu said, pointing at Yunho, “is from the countryside. Gwangju. He just moved here a couple of years ago.”
“Oh.”
“Okay,” Changmin said, trying to speak through his peals of laughter, “our goal by the end of the summer is to make sure Yoochun can tell the difference between a city and country accents.”
Yunho pouted, which was an odd, yet endearing site to see. “You guys are so mean. It’s not even the countryside! It’s a city, you know!”
“We need to educate the ignorant American.” Changmin said, eyes mismatched once more from bubbling laughter.
“I’m on Yunho’s side, you guys are mean,” said Yoochun, but he was laughing too.
After that, Yunho and Junsu left to go meet up with their other friends, and the three sat and drank their coffee.
“How can you drink it black? I thought you like sweet things!” Changmin said.
Yoochun winked. “I’m a man of many contradictions.”
Changmin looked unimpressed. “How do you know the word ‘contradictions’?”
“My mom uses it when she’s yelling about my good looks and horrible dressing.”
“Oh, yeah, about that,” Jaejoong said, tongue swiping out to gather foam from his drink that had gathered on his lips, “if you don’t mind, we should probably go shopping some time while you’re here. I can’t be seen with you if you’re going to dress like that.”
Yoochun supposed he should be offended but instead he found himself laughing so hard his eyes were tearing up. “Yeah, sure, we can shop for clothes.”
“Thank God.”
They took the subway back to the stop closes to their neighborhood, but before they went home they stopped at a convenience store.
“Let’s get some snacks!” Jaejoong said. “We can eat them if we stay up playing games or whatever.”
Changmin nodded in agreement. He was always in the mood for food.
They ended up buying cup ramyun, chips, jellies, sodas, chocolate-covered candy sticks and a bunch of other stuff. It only ended up being around ten dollars. Yoochun was in heaven.
Changmin paid for his stuff, juggling two armfuls of various snacks. He looked like a kid then, smiling with excitement for his treats. It was kind of endearing. Yoochun wondered why, except for that moment, Changmin always seemed so adult-ish. He was oddly glad that there were a few moments where the kid could…well, be a kid.
Just as Changmin was finishing paying for his things, Yoochun turned to the cashier again. “Oh, I almost forgot. I’d like a pack of cigarettes, please,” he said, fishing out another few bills from his pocket.
The cashier eyed him. “Which brand?”
“Just give me that one,” he said, pointing.
Then he heard a loud clattering and noticed Changmin, who was staring at him with eyes distant and expressionless. His snacks had been dropped onto the floor.
“Are you okay?” Yoochun asked.
“You smoke?”
“Uh, yeah, sometimes. Why?”
“Why do you smoke?”
Yoochun winced inwardly. “I don’t know, I don’t do it that much. Doesn’t everyone here smoke?”
Changmin looked ready to scream. “Yeah,” he replied, his tone sharp and unforgiving. “Everyone here does. Somehow I thought an American kid would be different.”
Yoochun felt anger swirl in his gut. “Yeah most kids back home don’t but since I’m obviously ill-mannered gutter trash, I do. If you don’t wanna hang out with me because of it then that’s fine, I don’t really give a fuck.”
The air went still between them.
“Sir, here’s your cigarettes,” the cashier said. Yoochun grabbed it, stuffed it in one of his bags of snacks and called out to Jaejoong. “Let’s go,” he said, and walked out.
Yoochun was silent and brooding the whole walk home. Jaejoong didn’t know what to do to make his cousin feel better because he’d only known him for a day.
The whole family ate dinner together, the cousins played board games together while the grown-ups settled down for tea, and then it was time to go to bed. Yoochun washed up and changed into sleeping clothes, then slipped outside, taking his cigarettes with him.
He’d smoked through half of one stick before he heard the door open and close behind him.
“Hey,” said Jaejoong.
“I hope you’re not about to lecture me.”
“Actually, I was going to ask if I could have one. I just ran out.”
Yoochun raised an eyebrow. “You smoke?”
“Just like you said, everyone here does.”
“Except Changmin, apparently.”
“There’s a few kids like him. Junsu doesn’t either. Yunho rarely does, it’s more of a social thing for him.”
Yoochun handed one to Jaejoong and passed him the lighter.
“Thanks.”
“Yeah.”
“Listen, Yoochun, about Changmin…”
“I don’t really wanna talk about that kid right now,” Yoochun whined, petulant.
“No, you have to hear this. There’s a reason he’s kind of anal about people smoking. His dad’s been a heavy smoker for decades and he just got diagnosed with lung cancer a few months ago. Changmin’s a smart kid, you know? He knew the dangers and would always beg his dad to quit, or at least cut back. Anyways, his dad’s probably going to die pretty soon because he’s freaked out by cancer treatment and refuses to do anything other than take weak traditional medicines.”
Yoochun’s jaw dropped. “I didn’t-I had no idea.”
Jaejoong shook his head. “I know. It’s not your fault. But Changmin’s a sweet kid and you were kind of harsh. He didn’t mean to offend you.”
“Ugh, I’m sorry. God I always mess shit up.”
Jaejoong slung an arm around his cousin’s shoulders. “Chin up, buddy. Tomorrow’s a new day. You can go apologize to him in the morning then you, me, Changmin and whoever else wants to come can go do some sightseeing. There’s a bunch of cool historical stuff here that I’ve never visited because I’m a native, but now that we have an alien there’s an excuse!”
Yoochun laughed and nodded. “Sounds good. Thanks Jaejoong.”
They finished their cigarettes in comfortable silence, exhaling puffs of white smoke into the clear summer night, and then headed back inside together to sleep.
a/n: HELLO! i've been working on this fic for a while and it's the longest thing i've ever written. there will be several chapters, but i'm not sure how many. anyways, i hope you enjoy~ if you did, PLEASE leave a comment! they encourage me and make me feel that the hours of writing are not hours wasted!
and to my yoomin tlist.....this is dedicated to you all ♥ merry christmas ♥
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