deeper conversation: chapter 1
deeper conversation: chapter 1
yunho ♥ jaejoong | yoochun ♥ junsu | past!jaechun
chaptered | AU | pg-13
a/n: title inspired by Yuna's Deeper Conversation, and u could say that this fic is somewhat related to song's lyric. Yuna is a Malaysian independent artist and she writes and sings amazing songs. :D check her other stuffs out here. okay enough ads. off u go to the fic. 8D
--
“Jaejoong-sshi, they are here.” Annie’s voice called up to me, as I swiveled around in my chair and looked up at the approaching group, Annie at the front gesturing them into my office. I smiled a disarming smile towards them, glasses perched on the bridge of my nose - an intellectual, detached smile of an experienced high-school teacher, something that I had practiced religiously but not quite getting there.
“Hey all. Welcome to ChungJu High and as you guys might have already know, my name is Kim Jaejoong and I’m going to be your supervisor while you’re here. Aside from showing you what teaching really is, trust me it’s very different from what you’ve been learning so far, I’ll also be doing assessable exercises with all of you. In simpler words, I’ll teach you as well as give you assignments that will count towards your final grades.” There is a general tense-up among them, and I think I heard someone groan ever so discreetly. I smiled, remembering the difficult time I had when I was a student-teacher and sadistically enjoying this little mental torture I managed to pull on these youngsters. Karma is a bitch, and they have yet to learn how to appreciate it like I do.
I stood up, brushing off the creases of my black slack to perfection as I smiled to the wide-eyed group. They all looked so nervous that I could almost laugh.
“Don’t worry, I’ll also make sure you’ll have a good time here. Try to make as much experience as possible from this practicum, and don’t forget to take notes. Always, always bring your note books wherever you go because you won’t know when you’ll get a good advice.” A girl took out a pen and her notebook, jotting down my words, “Ah, someone’s already listening to me. Good, I’ll give you extra points for quick action.” The girl smiled sheepishly when she was singled out and the group laughed nervously.
I took off my reading glasses and blinked a few times, trying to adjust my eyes to the change in perspective. The group has visibly relaxed, and I was glad because I did not plan to be an uptight supervisor who is unapproachable and stern. It just isn’t me. I might be tough on the grading (students complained I mark them too harshly at times - but I can’t help it if I’m just anal about things done perfectly and halfhearted essays are just not acceptable in any way), but I want my supervised student-teachers to be able to come to me with questions without fearing that I’d bite their heads off.
“You can call me Jaejoong if you’d like to, I’m not really big on the whole honorifics thing, but you might want to call me Jaejoong-sshi in front of other teachers and the students because it would make you guys seem more polite and of course, make me look good.” They all laughed goodnaturedly now, chiming a sort of practiced ‘thank you Jaejoong’. This is a nice group of students, I thought, they are relax enough to actually learn yet not too relax until they forget where they stand. Although I said honorific is not an issue for me, it really isn’t, but respect is something I really value and I’m glad that they understood where I’m coming from.
I glanced through the nervous group to try and remember their faces. They were about 23-24 years of age, if I had recalled correctly from their profiles, so much younger than I am. After all, they are going to be with me for a while, at the very least for a good early part of the six months’ practicum. There were seven of them in all, five girls and two guys. Ah, there have always been a shortage of males in teaching profession, and this year proved to be another setback in the scant number there is. The girl nearest to me smiled so wide I could almost see her cheeks twitching, and someone in the group wore an expensive branded perfume that reminded me of spring coming too soon. A particular black-haired boy stood out to me, his eyes squinty, lips tight and unsmiling, and face too small in comparison to his broad chest and tall build. I can’t help but glanced at his fingers that were clutching his bag and file so tightly, and I noticed that they were long and beautiful, not manicured but beautiful nevertheless. He noticed me looking at him and looked away, and I was not sure either to feel embarrassed or to be mad at his reaction.
My mind made a quick comeback from that little detour as I told the group to introduce themselves one by one. The girl with the notebook was Gum Jandi, the girl nearest to me was Ahn Sohee, next to her was Park Yeeun, behind them were Lee Sunmi and the other guy in the group, Lee Donghae, who I finally recognized as being the one with the expensive perfume. The handsome boy I was slightly ogling earlier (oh Jaejoong where were your manners?) was the last one to introduce himself, a little removed from his peers, and his name is Jung Yunho. I had to bit the inside of my cheek to stop myself from trying out his name on my tongue and embarrassed myself some more.
After the introduction session, I ushered them all out of the office and took them on a tour of the school, showing them a meeting room which will be our project room from now onwards. We met my colleague Kim Heechul on our way to the library, and the man just nodded and continued on his way, not bothering to stay a bit and give a proper introduction of himself. Now don’t get me wrong, Kim Heechul is a good person and a great Maths teacher, but he is very particular about students and teachers’ relation - he thinks that it is better if there is a sort of professional distance between teachers and students, and that extends to student-teachers as well. I don’t disagree with him totally - he has a point with what he was saying, but our definition of ‘professional distance’ differs greatly. His students were absolutely scared of him because he never smiles in front of them, and he’s more ruthless than me when it comes to grading students’ works, often making students cry over Cs and Ds, and sometimes, the dreaded red Es and Fs. He really lives up to his namesake, Heechler - a combination of Heechul and Adolf Hitler.
Halfway into the library, we met my other colleague from the Science department, Choi Siwon. Siwon was the extreme opposite of Heechul, a flirty man who knows nothing of ‘professional distance’ between anybody. He even stood so close to one of the girls (Sunmi I think, I still have difficulty to differentiate between her and Jandi because they have the same bobbed hairstyle) and almost make her squirm and probably at verge of running away and crying at the blatant invasion of personal space. I had to resort to pulling Siwon to my side to keep my girls safe, and regretted it immediately when he managed to grope my ass just as my group moved towards the inner part of the library, me being the last one in line. I threw a scathing look at him and hoped that my disapproving stare burned a hole through his disgusting, leering face, but unfortunately I was no superhuman with laser beams shooting through my eyes. He got away with an annoying smirk on his lips and an added lilt to his walk.
When I looked back to my group of student-teachers, I saw a particular Jung Yunho staring past me towards Siwon’s retreating back, a hard gaze in place. I looked at him with an uneasy smile and he looked back at me, no, stared at me, and his lips were contrite, and he did not smile back. I could not say I was surprised because it was such an understatement, but mostly I was embarrassed again because apparently this Jung Yunho had seen Siwon’s degrading act and I knew I had blew it with his first impression of me. It was not good if Yunho thinks that a victimized teacher was going to be his supervisor, and I was a bit worried that he might lose his respect on me.
I pushed the thought aside as I gathered the group again, who during my little accident with Siwon’s harassment and Yunho’s stare had managed to fall into a gossip session. I caught bits of ‘he’s so handsome!’ and I wondered whether they were talking about that shitty Siwon or someone more deserving.
“This is our school library. There is quite a number of good readings and references here if you’d like to look through, and I suggest you all start with the educational journals over there. It’d be good for you to catch up with recent issues in our education system, and refresh your ideas of what’s happening in our schools now. Those theories you learnt for three years are going to help you understand what’s going on, and I’d be impressed if you guys can tell me what and how our educational agendas came into place and what theories and ideals are involved in molding it as it is. Be critical when reading, don’t just accept what you read without judging of the pros and cons of the things written. You will be influencing a lot of students with your thoughts and actions, one word from your mouth could affect them for the rest of their lives. I know I’m just repeating what your lecturers had told you before, but it is important now than ever because you are going to step out in your teacher’s shoes in a few short months from now.”
The group looked down, some biting their lips as they dwelled in thoughts, just what I expected them to do. It took sometimes for them to adjust to the idea of actually being a teacher and not studying to become a teacher. For most, being a teacher seems like an easy profession, but for those who are about to be one, it is a scary thought. Tougher still was the idea of influencing others and the power you had on another person’s life. Teachers might not cure diseases or invent machines that make things easier, but we educate the people who will eventually cure diseases and invent machines.
I sent them all off to do some reading, and taking some time to sort my thoughts of the plan for the day. It was nearing lunch time, and I decided that I will take them to try our staffs’ cafeteria’s food for the first time. I’d probably scare their taste buds a bit with the weird ham and cheese sandwich that the café insisted on stocking without failing, but I was determined to introduce them to the marvelous coffee available to make up for that. I remembered the pile of students’ essays I have yet to mark, and made a mental note to let the group off early today so I can finish up at least half of the pile before going back.
*
The cafeteria was already full when our group arrived, but Donghae was quick to spot an empty table near the end of the hall, which unfortunately was near the opened entrance. I swear I could almost feel all eyes looking at us as we passed the tables, and I knew that this might unnerve the students a little so I grinned at them to reassure it was alright. This was not much different to the politics of high schools’ students, although fortunately, petty name-calling and food-fights were near impossible to happen here. As the student-teachers ventured to the food counter, I sat in our table, playing a safekeeper. I rubbed my palms together to generate some heat and was glad that I remembered to wear my jacket this morning. It was really too cold without the jacket on.
I saw Heechul sitting with other senior teachers; there were Kim Yongmi from Science department, Ok Hyunbin from Arts, Stella Wilson from History, and Tae Jihoon from Physical Education - most of them with years of teaching up their sleeves, highly experienced and respected. On the next table was their assistants (heads of the departments have one each), and from my spot, they really made an intimidating group of ten. I was never in the circle because I usually have lunch in my office since I detest the food here and fussily pack my own lunchbox everyday. I was a bit sorry to Annie because she missed the chance to be in the group of the head of department’s assistants, although I don’t think she cares so much about office politics, at least not more than I do. There were days when Annie and I would eat together over the mess of papers and students’ essay, and I’d patiently listen to her stories on her kids’ antics and asked her advices on child-rearing. Today would be an exception because this was my first meeting with the student-teachers in my care, though I was not thinking of eating anything here other than getting a cup of coffee.
I looked back at my group, and saw Jung Yunho at the end of the line, fidgeting a little with his shirt and tie. I smiled a little at seeing the scrunched up face he made when he had fussed over the loose knot of his tie, and made a note to tell him and Donghae that it was okay for them to wear shirts without ties next time, as long as they look tidy and smart. No jeans though, I did not want them to run into problems with other teachers and the too-smart kids at this school. Ah, I was getting too attached to my group already - my habit of mother-henning people under my care something I find hard to kick off.
No wonder Yoochun had insisted that our child called me ‘Omma’ back then, and I was fortunate Jinjoo was born a genius to know that calling me ‘Daddy’ was a much better option to discourage my bad habit.
My mind flew to my ten year-old son, Park-Kim Jinjoo, who’s staying with his father (my ex-husband, Park Yoochun) and stepfather (my ex-husband’s new husband, Kim Junsu). I met Jinjoo once a week, and he usually stays over at my place during the weekends. My divorce with Yoochun was one without much drama - we parted not because the love wasn’t there anymore, but because it was there but we can’t feel it for each other the way we used to. Yoochun met Junsu and it all went down south from there, he didn’t cheat on me yet I had felt him slipping away - our love not a solid foundation to make him stay rooted and loyal to me. I didn’t blame him; I haven’t been able to pull on my side of the relationship myself. We kissed and the spark died before it even began, and I was the one who suggested we parted ways before it turned too ugly for either of us to handle and for the sake of our son.
We practically agreed since the beginning that Jinjoo would stay with Yoochun since his house is nearer to the school that we decided Jinjoo would go to and he was less busier than I am, working as novelist surely afforded him lots of time to spend with our growing boy. After Yoochun married Junsu three years ago, two years after our divorce, it made it more logical that Jinjoo stayed with them, since two parents are better than one and Junsu seems to help Jinjoo so much with his studies. It might have looked like I neglected my job as a parent and I regretted that bit sometimes, but I do try to catch up with Jinjoo’s academic progress and I make sure that my weekends with him is filled with father-son bonding activities so he would not forget that I am still his father and that I love him more than anything in the world.
My thoughts of Jinjoo were rudely interrupted when I heard a loud crash. My head snapped to the commotion roused, and I saw Yunho picking up his scattered lunch and tray and apologizing profusely to the café’s cleaner, Auntie Yoon, who just chuckled at him and kept saying it was okay and it happened all the time. I stood and walked to them, ushering the others to proceed to our table before I tried to stop Yunho from making more mess with his meddling of Auntie Yoon’s work.
“Yunho…”
Yunho kept rambling apologies and seemingly unaware of my presence next to him. I touched his shoulder and he almost jumped, startled, and the face he showed me was so comical that I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Hey, it’s okay…let Auntie Yoon do her work. You’re not helping at all with your dirty hands.”, I teased him and reveled in the blush crawling across his cheeks. Even his ears were beet-red, and I was sure he did not need to feel more embarrassed than that as I told him to follow me to the nearest toilet to clean up. His shirt was all smeared with pasta sauce, and while he tried to clean it as best as he can, I ran up to my office (which was luckily not that far away) and grabbed a spare long-sleeve shirt I kept in my drawer for unfortunate incidents like these. Not that I have many of this kind of things happening, but when one is teaching high-school kids which always managed to find themselves in a deep shit that one has to wonder how they even manage to do that, one can never be too careful or too prepared.
“Wear this. Your shirt is soaked, and it’s cold outside. We don’t want you catching pneumonia.”, I smiled as I handed him my shirt, and he looked at me awkwardly for a second or two before he blushed a glorious shade of red, mouthing a really quiet ‘thank you’ and quickly proceeded to change in one of the cubicle.
I thought Jung Yunho hated me, but at that very moment, I realized that he was just super nervous, very clumsy and extremely shy, who tried to be as unnoticeable as possible but managed to do nothing of sorts. I chuckled inwardly, looking at the closed door of the loo where I could hear the sound of something knocking the toilet seat and a not-so-silent ‘ouch’ that followed. What an interesting guy.
--[TBC]
yunho ♥ jaejoong | yoochun ♥ junsu | past!jaechun
chaptered | AU | pg-13
a/n: title inspired by Yuna's Deeper Conversation, and u could say that this fic is somewhat related to song's lyric. Yuna is a Malaysian independent artist and she writes and sings amazing songs. :D check her other stuffs out here. okay enough ads. off u go to the fic. 8D
--
“Jaejoong-sshi, they are here.” Annie’s voice called up to me, as I swiveled around in my chair and looked up at the approaching group, Annie at the front gesturing them into my office. I smiled a disarming smile towards them, glasses perched on the bridge of my nose - an intellectual, detached smile of an experienced high-school teacher, something that I had practiced religiously but not quite getting there.
“Hey all. Welcome to ChungJu High and as you guys might have already know, my name is Kim Jaejoong and I’m going to be your supervisor while you’re here. Aside from showing you what teaching really is, trust me it’s very different from what you’ve been learning so far, I’ll also be doing assessable exercises with all of you. In simpler words, I’ll teach you as well as give you assignments that will count towards your final grades.” There is a general tense-up among them, and I think I heard someone groan ever so discreetly. I smiled, remembering the difficult time I had when I was a student-teacher and sadistically enjoying this little mental torture I managed to pull on these youngsters. Karma is a bitch, and they have yet to learn how to appreciate it like I do.
I stood up, brushing off the creases of my black slack to perfection as I smiled to the wide-eyed group. They all looked so nervous that I could almost laugh.
“Don’t worry, I’ll also make sure you’ll have a good time here. Try to make as much experience as possible from this practicum, and don’t forget to take notes. Always, always bring your note books wherever you go because you won’t know when you’ll get a good advice.” A girl took out a pen and her notebook, jotting down my words, “Ah, someone’s already listening to me. Good, I’ll give you extra points for quick action.” The girl smiled sheepishly when she was singled out and the group laughed nervously.
I took off my reading glasses and blinked a few times, trying to adjust my eyes to the change in perspective. The group has visibly relaxed, and I was glad because I did not plan to be an uptight supervisor who is unapproachable and stern. It just isn’t me. I might be tough on the grading (students complained I mark them too harshly at times - but I can’t help it if I’m just anal about things done perfectly and halfhearted essays are just not acceptable in any way), but I want my supervised student-teachers to be able to come to me with questions without fearing that I’d bite their heads off.
“You can call me Jaejoong if you’d like to, I’m not really big on the whole honorifics thing, but you might want to call me Jaejoong-sshi in front of other teachers and the students because it would make you guys seem more polite and of course, make me look good.” They all laughed goodnaturedly now, chiming a sort of practiced ‘thank you Jaejoong’. This is a nice group of students, I thought, they are relax enough to actually learn yet not too relax until they forget where they stand. Although I said honorific is not an issue for me, it really isn’t, but respect is something I really value and I’m glad that they understood where I’m coming from.
I glanced through the nervous group to try and remember their faces. They were about 23-24 years of age, if I had recalled correctly from their profiles, so much younger than I am. After all, they are going to be with me for a while, at the very least for a good early part of the six months’ practicum. There were seven of them in all, five girls and two guys. Ah, there have always been a shortage of males in teaching profession, and this year proved to be another setback in the scant number there is. The girl nearest to me smiled so wide I could almost see her cheeks twitching, and someone in the group wore an expensive branded perfume that reminded me of spring coming too soon. A particular black-haired boy stood out to me, his eyes squinty, lips tight and unsmiling, and face too small in comparison to his broad chest and tall build. I can’t help but glanced at his fingers that were clutching his bag and file so tightly, and I noticed that they were long and beautiful, not manicured but beautiful nevertheless. He noticed me looking at him and looked away, and I was not sure either to feel embarrassed or to be mad at his reaction.
My mind made a quick comeback from that little detour as I told the group to introduce themselves one by one. The girl with the notebook was Gum Jandi, the girl nearest to me was Ahn Sohee, next to her was Park Yeeun, behind them were Lee Sunmi and the other guy in the group, Lee Donghae, who I finally recognized as being the one with the expensive perfume. The handsome boy I was slightly ogling earlier (oh Jaejoong where were your manners?) was the last one to introduce himself, a little removed from his peers, and his name is Jung Yunho. I had to bit the inside of my cheek to stop myself from trying out his name on my tongue and embarrassed myself some more.
After the introduction session, I ushered them all out of the office and took them on a tour of the school, showing them a meeting room which will be our project room from now onwards. We met my colleague Kim Heechul on our way to the library, and the man just nodded and continued on his way, not bothering to stay a bit and give a proper introduction of himself. Now don’t get me wrong, Kim Heechul is a good person and a great Maths teacher, but he is very particular about students and teachers’ relation - he thinks that it is better if there is a sort of professional distance between teachers and students, and that extends to student-teachers as well. I don’t disagree with him totally - he has a point with what he was saying, but our definition of ‘professional distance’ differs greatly. His students were absolutely scared of him because he never smiles in front of them, and he’s more ruthless than me when it comes to grading students’ works, often making students cry over Cs and Ds, and sometimes, the dreaded red Es and Fs. He really lives up to his namesake, Heechler - a combination of Heechul and Adolf Hitler.
Halfway into the library, we met my other colleague from the Science department, Choi Siwon. Siwon was the extreme opposite of Heechul, a flirty man who knows nothing of ‘professional distance’ between anybody. He even stood so close to one of the girls (Sunmi I think, I still have difficulty to differentiate between her and Jandi because they have the same bobbed hairstyle) and almost make her squirm and probably at verge of running away and crying at the blatant invasion of personal space. I had to resort to pulling Siwon to my side to keep my girls safe, and regretted it immediately when he managed to grope my ass just as my group moved towards the inner part of the library, me being the last one in line. I threw a scathing look at him and hoped that my disapproving stare burned a hole through his disgusting, leering face, but unfortunately I was no superhuman with laser beams shooting through my eyes. He got away with an annoying smirk on his lips and an added lilt to his walk.
When I looked back to my group of student-teachers, I saw a particular Jung Yunho staring past me towards Siwon’s retreating back, a hard gaze in place. I looked at him with an uneasy smile and he looked back at me, no, stared at me, and his lips were contrite, and he did not smile back. I could not say I was surprised because it was such an understatement, but mostly I was embarrassed again because apparently this Jung Yunho had seen Siwon’s degrading act and I knew I had blew it with his first impression of me. It was not good if Yunho thinks that a victimized teacher was going to be his supervisor, and I was a bit worried that he might lose his respect on me.
I pushed the thought aside as I gathered the group again, who during my little accident with Siwon’s harassment and Yunho’s stare had managed to fall into a gossip session. I caught bits of ‘he’s so handsome!’ and I wondered whether they were talking about that shitty Siwon or someone more deserving.
“This is our school library. There is quite a number of good readings and references here if you’d like to look through, and I suggest you all start with the educational journals over there. It’d be good for you to catch up with recent issues in our education system, and refresh your ideas of what’s happening in our schools now. Those theories you learnt for three years are going to help you understand what’s going on, and I’d be impressed if you guys can tell me what and how our educational agendas came into place and what theories and ideals are involved in molding it as it is. Be critical when reading, don’t just accept what you read without judging of the pros and cons of the things written. You will be influencing a lot of students with your thoughts and actions, one word from your mouth could affect them for the rest of their lives. I know I’m just repeating what your lecturers had told you before, but it is important now than ever because you are going to step out in your teacher’s shoes in a few short months from now.”
The group looked down, some biting their lips as they dwelled in thoughts, just what I expected them to do. It took sometimes for them to adjust to the idea of actually being a teacher and not studying to become a teacher. For most, being a teacher seems like an easy profession, but for those who are about to be one, it is a scary thought. Tougher still was the idea of influencing others and the power you had on another person’s life. Teachers might not cure diseases or invent machines that make things easier, but we educate the people who will eventually cure diseases and invent machines.
I sent them all off to do some reading, and taking some time to sort my thoughts of the plan for the day. It was nearing lunch time, and I decided that I will take them to try our staffs’ cafeteria’s food for the first time. I’d probably scare their taste buds a bit with the weird ham and cheese sandwich that the café insisted on stocking without failing, but I was determined to introduce them to the marvelous coffee available to make up for that. I remembered the pile of students’ essays I have yet to mark, and made a mental note to let the group off early today so I can finish up at least half of the pile before going back.
*
The cafeteria was already full when our group arrived, but Donghae was quick to spot an empty table near the end of the hall, which unfortunately was near the opened entrance. I swear I could almost feel all eyes looking at us as we passed the tables, and I knew that this might unnerve the students a little so I grinned at them to reassure it was alright. This was not much different to the politics of high schools’ students, although fortunately, petty name-calling and food-fights were near impossible to happen here. As the student-teachers ventured to the food counter, I sat in our table, playing a safekeeper. I rubbed my palms together to generate some heat and was glad that I remembered to wear my jacket this morning. It was really too cold without the jacket on.
I saw Heechul sitting with other senior teachers; there were Kim Yongmi from Science department, Ok Hyunbin from Arts, Stella Wilson from History, and Tae Jihoon from Physical Education - most of them with years of teaching up their sleeves, highly experienced and respected. On the next table was their assistants (heads of the departments have one each), and from my spot, they really made an intimidating group of ten. I was never in the circle because I usually have lunch in my office since I detest the food here and fussily pack my own lunchbox everyday. I was a bit sorry to Annie because she missed the chance to be in the group of the head of department’s assistants, although I don’t think she cares so much about office politics, at least not more than I do. There were days when Annie and I would eat together over the mess of papers and students’ essay, and I’d patiently listen to her stories on her kids’ antics and asked her advices on child-rearing. Today would be an exception because this was my first meeting with the student-teachers in my care, though I was not thinking of eating anything here other than getting a cup of coffee.
I looked back at my group, and saw Jung Yunho at the end of the line, fidgeting a little with his shirt and tie. I smiled a little at seeing the scrunched up face he made when he had fussed over the loose knot of his tie, and made a note to tell him and Donghae that it was okay for them to wear shirts without ties next time, as long as they look tidy and smart. No jeans though, I did not want them to run into problems with other teachers and the too-smart kids at this school. Ah, I was getting too attached to my group already - my habit of mother-henning people under my care something I find hard to kick off.
No wonder Yoochun had insisted that our child called me ‘Omma’ back then, and I was fortunate Jinjoo was born a genius to know that calling me ‘Daddy’ was a much better option to discourage my bad habit.
My mind flew to my ten year-old son, Park-Kim Jinjoo, who’s staying with his father (my ex-husband, Park Yoochun) and stepfather (my ex-husband’s new husband, Kim Junsu). I met Jinjoo once a week, and he usually stays over at my place during the weekends. My divorce with Yoochun was one without much drama - we parted not because the love wasn’t there anymore, but because it was there but we can’t feel it for each other the way we used to. Yoochun met Junsu and it all went down south from there, he didn’t cheat on me yet I had felt him slipping away - our love not a solid foundation to make him stay rooted and loyal to me. I didn’t blame him; I haven’t been able to pull on my side of the relationship myself. We kissed and the spark died before it even began, and I was the one who suggested we parted ways before it turned too ugly for either of us to handle and for the sake of our son.
We practically agreed since the beginning that Jinjoo would stay with Yoochun since his house is nearer to the school that we decided Jinjoo would go to and he was less busier than I am, working as novelist surely afforded him lots of time to spend with our growing boy. After Yoochun married Junsu three years ago, two years after our divorce, it made it more logical that Jinjoo stayed with them, since two parents are better than one and Junsu seems to help Jinjoo so much with his studies. It might have looked like I neglected my job as a parent and I regretted that bit sometimes, but I do try to catch up with Jinjoo’s academic progress and I make sure that my weekends with him is filled with father-son bonding activities so he would not forget that I am still his father and that I love him more than anything in the world.
My thoughts of Jinjoo were rudely interrupted when I heard a loud crash. My head snapped to the commotion roused, and I saw Yunho picking up his scattered lunch and tray and apologizing profusely to the café’s cleaner, Auntie Yoon, who just chuckled at him and kept saying it was okay and it happened all the time. I stood and walked to them, ushering the others to proceed to our table before I tried to stop Yunho from making more mess with his meddling of Auntie Yoon’s work.
“Yunho…”
Yunho kept rambling apologies and seemingly unaware of my presence next to him. I touched his shoulder and he almost jumped, startled, and the face he showed me was so comical that I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Hey, it’s okay…let Auntie Yoon do her work. You’re not helping at all with your dirty hands.”, I teased him and reveled in the blush crawling across his cheeks. Even his ears were beet-red, and I was sure he did not need to feel more embarrassed than that as I told him to follow me to the nearest toilet to clean up. His shirt was all smeared with pasta sauce, and while he tried to clean it as best as he can, I ran up to my office (which was luckily not that far away) and grabbed a spare long-sleeve shirt I kept in my drawer for unfortunate incidents like these. Not that I have many of this kind of things happening, but when one is teaching high-school kids which always managed to find themselves in a deep shit that one has to wonder how they even manage to do that, one can never be too careful or too prepared.
“Wear this. Your shirt is soaked, and it’s cold outside. We don’t want you catching pneumonia.”, I smiled as I handed him my shirt, and he looked at me awkwardly for a second or two before he blushed a glorious shade of red, mouthing a really quiet ‘thank you’ and quickly proceeded to change in one of the cubicle.
I thought Jung Yunho hated me, but at that very moment, I realized that he was just super nervous, very clumsy and extremely shy, who tried to be as unnoticeable as possible but managed to do nothing of sorts. I chuckled inwardly, looking at the closed door of the loo where I could hear the sound of something knocking the toilet seat and a not-so-silent ‘ouch’ that followed. What an interesting guy.
--[TBC]