entwined
entwined
Jaejoong/Changmin
The second time they meet, they're swept off their feet and they don't even realize it.
For mrsedjack.
-
1.
The first time they meet is under a dark night sky that's hung-over with clouds and patches of heaven. Jaejoong's soaked and Changmin has an umbrella but he doesn't offer it because they're strangers and that's not the sort of thing strangers do. They wait at the bus stop together, two people with different destinations, and by accident their eyes meet. There isn't anything like there is in the movies - no electricity between them or spark of sensation or any sort of recognition. Changmin thinks absently about what he's going to have for dinner and Jaejoong wonders if it would be strange if he asked to borrow Changmin's umbrella for a bit. Neither one of them speaks and they get on the bus when it arrives five minutes later than it is supposed to. Jaejoong gets off first and their thoughts are already moving on - they're forgetting, forgetting, forgetting, forgotten.
2.
They're introduced to each other through Yunho, Yoochun and Junsu - Yunho is Changmin's friend, Yoochun and Junsu are Jaejoong's, and somehow they all connected by leaving Jaejoong and Changmin out. Yunho insists on Changmin taking a break from studying and Yoochun and Junsu drag Jaejoong to meet their friend and his friend, and he doesn't protest because he has nothing better to do, anyway. That is how they meet.
They don't recognize each other but Changmin thinks there is something familiar about the dark blond hair and Jaejoong feels like he has seen that umbrella before. The others laugh and talk and Jaejoong joins in occasionally, easily warming up to the group, but Changmin is left quietly stirring his straw in his Coke. Jaejoong notices but doesn't comment and Changmin doesn't notice that Jaejoong has noticed.
Junsu suddenly reveals that he has bought tickets for the carnival nearby and after little coercing, Yunho and Yoochun agree to go (although Yoochun makes them promise not to say a word about the Ferris wheel). Jaejoong agrees straightaway and Changmin doesn’t say anything and follows quietly, trailing a few meters behind the four of them, who glance back a bit and decide to leave him alone - if he isn’t in the mood, they aren’t going to bother him. Then Jaejoong breaks this silent agreement when the other three run straight toward the cotton candy, giddiness characteristic of Yoochun and Junsu and uncharacteristic of Yunho fixed on their faces. He stays behind and grabs onto Changmin’s hand, pulls him forward with a surprisingly firm grip. Changmin stares at their linked hands in surprise, but lets himself be dragged.
(Let me read your palm, Jaejoong insists, I’ve learned from Junsu. Changmin reluctantly passes his hand over. Jaejoong examines with narrowed eyes and Changmin suppresses the oddest urge to laugh. You’ve got a long life ahead of you, lots of children, a beautiful house and wife, but your car’s going to suck. There’s an awkward silence until Changmin quirks his lips a little and asks Jaejoong if he’s making it up. Only a bit, he admits sheepishly. The moment is gone as he laughs and Changmin memorizes the sound and takes a snapshot in his head, in case he needs to remember what it’s like to be happy sometime in the future.)
It’s only afterwards, when they’re out of breath from running back and forth, tent to tent and booth to booth and ride to ride, when Jaejoong’s fingers are still entwined in Changmin’s, that Changmin laughs at last, hair swept at odd angles and eyes bright and a real happiness etched on his face. Jaejoong almost stops to stare because the differences between the Changmin he met and the Changmin whose hand he’s holding are breathtaking. Then he remembers himself, smiles back and tightens his hold on Changmin’s hand, and whispers words that are lost in the breezy spring wind. I’m glad to have met you.
3.
Jaejoong’s dieting again even though he doesn’t need to and Changmin asks if he can come over to his apartment complex, a barely-veiled excuse so Changmin can find a way to feed him (force him to eat if it’s necessary). Jaejoong opens the door and he goes in with little reluctance, and Changmin is glad he’s developed an almost-immunity to Jaejoong’s smiles.
Later, after Changmin has made Jaejoong eat actual food instead of celery sticks, and he is laid out on the couch and reading a fashion magazine and wondering why these things sell, anyway, he’s startled from his thoughts by a shout from Jaejoong’s small balcony. He panics, wonders if Jaejoong fell or something worse, and nearly trips in his haste to get out there.
He’s annoyed but relieved when he sees that Jaejoong is okay, but Jaejoong half-turns towards him and his eyes are wide and excited. It’s snowing! And Changmin sees that it is, but he doesn’t understand Jaejoong’s enthusiasm. Jaejoong grins and runs inside and then out, into the thin driveway, and Changmin feels laughter coming up his throat when he tries in vain to catch snowflakes on his tongue.
Jaejoong throws his head back and laughs, free and exhilarated, and the moment freezes in time, another snapshot for Changmin to take, but then it’s shattered when Jaejoong’s looking up at him and not at the car that has appeared behind him. Changmin is horrified, the laughter frozen in his face, and Jaejoong’s still smiling, but then there’s a strange sort of shock in his smile when he’s hit. Changmin unfreezes and does not remember sprinting out of the apartment to where Jaejoong is, but that is what he does. He’s shaking Jaejoong, angry at him for not waking up, and suddenly there are people all around him and someone’ s shouting for an ambulance.
The ambulance arrives and Changmin grips Jaejoong’s hand tightly right until they get to the emergency room, and then he only lets go because he’s forced to. He sits stiffly, back painfully straight and eyes staring a hole into the wall in front of him, and the only thing that he can think of is, He’s alive, he’s alive, he’s going to be okay, he’s going to be okay. The thought is firm but it’s a prayer and before he realizes it, there’s an odd burning sting at the back of his eyes and wetness on his cheeks, and he’s crying because he’s scared, so scared.
It feels like it’s been forever, eternity, infinity, even though it’s only been a few hours, when the door opens and he’s allowed to go in at last. His body is moving too fast for his brain to keep up with because the next thing he knows, he’s standing over Jaejoong’s too-white bed, staring down at his too-pale face. Jaejoong’s awake and he looks tired, but he struggles to sit up and Changmin pushes him down gently but firmly. He tries to give a weak smile to Changmin but something about it makes him gasp a bit in pain and Changmin bites the inside of his cheek to stop himself from doing something stupid, like hitting Jaejoong or crying again.
He doesn’t know where to sit but settles for the edge of Jaejoong’s bed, and there’s a silence, the first uncomfortable one they’ve had for a long time. Jaejoong’s fingers have slipped into his again and there is so much that Changmin wants to say, but the words are caught in his throat and he just chokes on them. Jaejoong looks down at their hands and traces an absent pattern on the bed with his other, and then he says quietly, Thank you. He doesn’t say what he’s thanking Changmin for, and he doesn’t apologize, but it’s okay because there was never anything to forgive in the first place and Changmin doesn’t care what he’s being thanked for, anyway - they don’t need thank you’s between the two of them.
Changmin falls asleep with his head on Jaejoong’s stomach and the rest of his body curled up uncomfortably on the bottom of the bed. Their hands are still tangled when he wakes up first in the morning (wonders why he wasn’t kicked out of the hospital but decides not to question). He notices that there is a curve to Jaejoong’s lips, sweet and soft, and Changmin’s eyes linger before he slips away.
4.
Changmin is tired from studying and due-dates and is almost glad for the reprieve when Yunho calls him with an invitation to his flat because it’s Yoochun’s birthday and they decided to surprise him. He arrives later than he is supposed to but Junsu and Yunho are still decorating and he tries to help them without getting in the way. He is distracted by the front door opening and is about to alert his companions of the new presence - it might be Yoochun, he thinks - but it’s only Jaejoong and he closes his mouth before he’s caught gaping. Jaejoong is laden with groceries and asks lightly for Changmin to help and Changmin hastens to do so, while Junsu laughs behind his hand and Yunho smiles.
He helps bring the food into the small kitchen and Jaejoong adorns a pink apron and sets to work. Changmin asks whether he can help a little reluctantly (he has had bad experiences in the kitchen) and is rather glad when Jaejoong kindly tells him to help Yunho and Junsu instead, he could handle this on his own.
Later, he is asked to go pick Yoochun up from his brother’s place because he’d totalled his car last week, and when they arrive back at Yunho’s flat, Yoochun jumps when he flicks on the light and everyone shouts, Surprise! in classic surprise-birthday-party fashion. It’s not much of a party, to be honest, with only the five of them, but it’s enough because they’re all smiling and glad to be together.
Yoochun blows the candles on the cake Yunho bought and Junsu gives him a sloppy, happy kiss on the cheek, and they’re all enveloped in the famous Yoochun Bear Hug, complete with the Yoochun Tears (and the Yoochun Snot). Yoochun shouts for dinner and Jaejoong brings the food out, and nobody notices that the dishes are all Changmin’s favourites, not Yoochun’s.
5.
Jaejoong kisses him on a Friday night when they’re settled on his couch and in the middle of watching a corny movie whose name neither of them can remember. Changmin is startled but forgets that he is because Jaejoong tastes like sleep and sweetness and himself, and Changmin finds himself thinking that he might forget how to breathe if he stays like this for too long. An awkward first kiss is what would come to mind to anyone who saw it, because their faces are tilted uncomfortably as if they almost don’t know which way to go. There’s a backdrop of cheesy music and a flickering television screen sending lights over the walls and their faces. It’s not perfect, but something about it makes Changmin think the opposite.
(It’s a little past midnight and they’re both lying spread-eagle on the hill close to Changmin’s house, staring up at the stars. Jaejoong thinks that his butt might fall off he’s so cold and Changmin thinks that even if this was a stupid idea, at least he gets to be stupid with Jaejoong. Then he thinks back to the first time they met - it was the second time but he doesn’t recall the first - and he remembers Jaejoong’s palmistry predictions. He rolls over on his side and smiles, thinks that he doesn’t need all that when he’s got this.)
2008-06-26
Jaejoong/Changmin
The second time they meet, they're swept off their feet and they don't even realize it.
For mrsedjack.
-
1.
The first time they meet is under a dark night sky that's hung-over with clouds and patches of heaven. Jaejoong's soaked and Changmin has an umbrella but he doesn't offer it because they're strangers and that's not the sort of thing strangers do. They wait at the bus stop together, two people with different destinations, and by accident their eyes meet. There isn't anything like there is in the movies - no electricity between them or spark of sensation or any sort of recognition. Changmin thinks absently about what he's going to have for dinner and Jaejoong wonders if it would be strange if he asked to borrow Changmin's umbrella for a bit. Neither one of them speaks and they get on the bus when it arrives five minutes later than it is supposed to. Jaejoong gets off first and their thoughts are already moving on - they're forgetting, forgetting, forgetting, forgotten.
2.
They're introduced to each other through Yunho, Yoochun and Junsu - Yunho is Changmin's friend, Yoochun and Junsu are Jaejoong's, and somehow they all connected by leaving Jaejoong and Changmin out. Yunho insists on Changmin taking a break from studying and Yoochun and Junsu drag Jaejoong to meet their friend and his friend, and he doesn't protest because he has nothing better to do, anyway. That is how they meet.
They don't recognize each other but Changmin thinks there is something familiar about the dark blond hair and Jaejoong feels like he has seen that umbrella before. The others laugh and talk and Jaejoong joins in occasionally, easily warming up to the group, but Changmin is left quietly stirring his straw in his Coke. Jaejoong notices but doesn't comment and Changmin doesn't notice that Jaejoong has noticed.
Junsu suddenly reveals that he has bought tickets for the carnival nearby and after little coercing, Yunho and Yoochun agree to go (although Yoochun makes them promise not to say a word about the Ferris wheel). Jaejoong agrees straightaway and Changmin doesn’t say anything and follows quietly, trailing a few meters behind the four of them, who glance back a bit and decide to leave him alone - if he isn’t in the mood, they aren’t going to bother him. Then Jaejoong breaks this silent agreement when the other three run straight toward the cotton candy, giddiness characteristic of Yoochun and Junsu and uncharacteristic of Yunho fixed on their faces. He stays behind and grabs onto Changmin’s hand, pulls him forward with a surprisingly firm grip. Changmin stares at their linked hands in surprise, but lets himself be dragged.
(Let me read your palm, Jaejoong insists, I’ve learned from Junsu. Changmin reluctantly passes his hand over. Jaejoong examines with narrowed eyes and Changmin suppresses the oddest urge to laugh. You’ve got a long life ahead of you, lots of children, a beautiful house and wife, but your car’s going to suck. There’s an awkward silence until Changmin quirks his lips a little and asks Jaejoong if he’s making it up. Only a bit, he admits sheepishly. The moment is gone as he laughs and Changmin memorizes the sound and takes a snapshot in his head, in case he needs to remember what it’s like to be happy sometime in the future.)
It’s only afterwards, when they’re out of breath from running back and forth, tent to tent and booth to booth and ride to ride, when Jaejoong’s fingers are still entwined in Changmin’s, that Changmin laughs at last, hair swept at odd angles and eyes bright and a real happiness etched on his face. Jaejoong almost stops to stare because the differences between the Changmin he met and the Changmin whose hand he’s holding are breathtaking. Then he remembers himself, smiles back and tightens his hold on Changmin’s hand, and whispers words that are lost in the breezy spring wind. I’m glad to have met you.
3.
Jaejoong’s dieting again even though he doesn’t need to and Changmin asks if he can come over to his apartment complex, a barely-veiled excuse so Changmin can find a way to feed him (force him to eat if it’s necessary). Jaejoong opens the door and he goes in with little reluctance, and Changmin is glad he’s developed an almost-immunity to Jaejoong’s smiles.
Later, after Changmin has made Jaejoong eat actual food instead of celery sticks, and he is laid out on the couch and reading a fashion magazine and wondering why these things sell, anyway, he’s startled from his thoughts by a shout from Jaejoong’s small balcony. He panics, wonders if Jaejoong fell or something worse, and nearly trips in his haste to get out there.
He’s annoyed but relieved when he sees that Jaejoong is okay, but Jaejoong half-turns towards him and his eyes are wide and excited. It’s snowing! And Changmin sees that it is, but he doesn’t understand Jaejoong’s enthusiasm. Jaejoong grins and runs inside and then out, into the thin driveway, and Changmin feels laughter coming up his throat when he tries in vain to catch snowflakes on his tongue.
Jaejoong throws his head back and laughs, free and exhilarated, and the moment freezes in time, another snapshot for Changmin to take, but then it’s shattered when Jaejoong’s looking up at him and not at the car that has appeared behind him. Changmin is horrified, the laughter frozen in his face, and Jaejoong’s still smiling, but then there’s a strange sort of shock in his smile when he’s hit. Changmin unfreezes and does not remember sprinting out of the apartment to where Jaejoong is, but that is what he does. He’s shaking Jaejoong, angry at him for not waking up, and suddenly there are people all around him and someone’ s shouting for an ambulance.
The ambulance arrives and Changmin grips Jaejoong’s hand tightly right until they get to the emergency room, and then he only lets go because he’s forced to. He sits stiffly, back painfully straight and eyes staring a hole into the wall in front of him, and the only thing that he can think of is, He’s alive, he’s alive, he’s going to be okay, he’s going to be okay. The thought is firm but it’s a prayer and before he realizes it, there’s an odd burning sting at the back of his eyes and wetness on his cheeks, and he’s crying because he’s scared, so scared.
It feels like it’s been forever, eternity, infinity, even though it’s only been a few hours, when the door opens and he’s allowed to go in at last. His body is moving too fast for his brain to keep up with because the next thing he knows, he’s standing over Jaejoong’s too-white bed, staring down at his too-pale face. Jaejoong’s awake and he looks tired, but he struggles to sit up and Changmin pushes him down gently but firmly. He tries to give a weak smile to Changmin but something about it makes him gasp a bit in pain and Changmin bites the inside of his cheek to stop himself from doing something stupid, like hitting Jaejoong or crying again.
He doesn’t know where to sit but settles for the edge of Jaejoong’s bed, and there’s a silence, the first uncomfortable one they’ve had for a long time. Jaejoong’s fingers have slipped into his again and there is so much that Changmin wants to say, but the words are caught in his throat and he just chokes on them. Jaejoong looks down at their hands and traces an absent pattern on the bed with his other, and then he says quietly, Thank you. He doesn’t say what he’s thanking Changmin for, and he doesn’t apologize, but it’s okay because there was never anything to forgive in the first place and Changmin doesn’t care what he’s being thanked for, anyway - they don’t need thank you’s between the two of them.
Changmin falls asleep with his head on Jaejoong’s stomach and the rest of his body curled up uncomfortably on the bottom of the bed. Their hands are still tangled when he wakes up first in the morning (wonders why he wasn’t kicked out of the hospital but decides not to question). He notices that there is a curve to Jaejoong’s lips, sweet and soft, and Changmin’s eyes linger before he slips away.
4.
Changmin is tired from studying and due-dates and is almost glad for the reprieve when Yunho calls him with an invitation to his flat because it’s Yoochun’s birthday and they decided to surprise him. He arrives later than he is supposed to but Junsu and Yunho are still decorating and he tries to help them without getting in the way. He is distracted by the front door opening and is about to alert his companions of the new presence - it might be Yoochun, he thinks - but it’s only Jaejoong and he closes his mouth before he’s caught gaping. Jaejoong is laden with groceries and asks lightly for Changmin to help and Changmin hastens to do so, while Junsu laughs behind his hand and Yunho smiles.
He helps bring the food into the small kitchen and Jaejoong adorns a pink apron and sets to work. Changmin asks whether he can help a little reluctantly (he has had bad experiences in the kitchen) and is rather glad when Jaejoong kindly tells him to help Yunho and Junsu instead, he could handle this on his own.
Later, he is asked to go pick Yoochun up from his brother’s place because he’d totalled his car last week, and when they arrive back at Yunho’s flat, Yoochun jumps when he flicks on the light and everyone shouts, Surprise! in classic surprise-birthday-party fashion. It’s not much of a party, to be honest, with only the five of them, but it’s enough because they’re all smiling and glad to be together.
Yoochun blows the candles on the cake Yunho bought and Junsu gives him a sloppy, happy kiss on the cheek, and they’re all enveloped in the famous Yoochun Bear Hug, complete with the Yoochun Tears (and the Yoochun Snot). Yoochun shouts for dinner and Jaejoong brings the food out, and nobody notices that the dishes are all Changmin’s favourites, not Yoochun’s.
5.
Jaejoong kisses him on a Friday night when they’re settled on his couch and in the middle of watching a corny movie whose name neither of them can remember. Changmin is startled but forgets that he is because Jaejoong tastes like sleep and sweetness and himself, and Changmin finds himself thinking that he might forget how to breathe if he stays like this for too long. An awkward first kiss is what would come to mind to anyone who saw it, because their faces are tilted uncomfortably as if they almost don’t know which way to go. There’s a backdrop of cheesy music and a flickering television screen sending lights over the walls and their faces. It’s not perfect, but something about it makes Changmin think the opposite.
(It’s a little past midnight and they’re both lying spread-eagle on the hill close to Changmin’s house, staring up at the stars. Jaejoong thinks that his butt might fall off he’s so cold and Changmin thinks that even if this was a stupid idea, at least he gets to be stupid with Jaejoong. Then he thinks back to the first time they met - it was the second time but he doesn’t recall the first - and he remembers Jaejoong’s palmistry predictions. He rolls over on his side and smiles, thinks that he doesn’t need all that when he’s got this.)
2008-06-26