Everything Happens For a Reason, Chapter 1
~ Prologue ~
Chapter 1
Jaejoong opened his left eye lazily and saw the sun started to shine through the window. He glanced at the clock at the bedside table, 6:30am. It’s still too early. He tried to go back to sleep but it seemed his body clock had been working too precisely and refused to shut off. Damn, and it’s the first day off after 2 months being on location for Yunho’s 1st historical drama.
After 15 minutes he gave up and turned around to see his lover & boss’s face still sleeping soundly beside him. Even after 3 years into the relationship, Jaejoong still found Yunho’s sleeping face sweet. He tried to pry Yunho’s fingers on his hips carefully as to not wake him up. He knew how exhausted he was that he even had to carry him from the car to the bed. And they hadn’t even had sex for 4 weeks now. The drama really drained them both.
Jaejoong tiptoed to the toilet to relieve himself and brushed his teeth before he went to the kitchen to make some coffee. They have planned to stay home all day and enjoyed each other’s company. Well, maybe some sex would be included and Jaejoong smiled mischievously in anticipation.
As he poured hot water into the coffee machine, he heard the doorbell rang. He wondered who might be coming so early but whoever it was, it must be part of the Jung’s household since they’re living in the pavilion next to the main house. But since the entrance was build facing another direction of the main house’s, they still have go around the main house to get to their place.
He opened the door and found a smiling Jihye with a box of bread.
“Morning Oppa! I didn’t wake you up did I?” she asked curiously after seeing Jae’s tired eyes.
Jae chuckled, “Of course not… I was preparing my own coffee but your brother’s still sleeping so you better not making any noise, he’s whipped after 14 hours of non-stop shooting.”
Jihye looked relieved, “Thank god… I saw the kitchen’s light from the dining room, so I took the liberty to bring my favorite brother in law some chocolate muffins that’s just being delivered from the bakery,” she smiled while offering him the muffin box.
“Thank you so much little sister, just what I need for my cup of coffee. Would you like to join me for breakfast now? With your muffins of course, and you can help yourself with some hot chocolate,” Jae told her and took the box.
“Nah, Umma already told me that today’s your first day off with Oppa after almost 2 months. You probably just want to laze around and sleep some more,” she gave him another smile, “Be sure to have some rest, Oppa. Umma said that you don’t even have to cook anything today, she’ll cook for both of you and I’ll be delivery girl again later, OK?”
Jae couldn’t help to reach out and pulled her head to plant a kiss there and held her for awhile, “Thanks again baby, I really appreciate it. Tell Umma that we’ll drop by the main house after lunch. I’m sure Yunho would have had enough sleep until then. “ Then he let go.
“Sure Oppa, I’ll let Umma know. Go back to bed after breakfast. I’ll see you later at lunchtime,” she said while walking back to the main house’s direction.
Jae was still smiling and looked at her until she disappeared beside the main house. He took a big sigh after closing the bedroom door silently. Sometimes he still couldn’t believe that it’s been 2 years from the day Yunho’s parents gave their blessing to their relationship and provided them with the pavilion to give them privacy. Yunho moved out from his room at the main house and Jaejoong moved in 4 months later after his apartment contract due. He highly appreciated Yunho’s parents’ attention & Jihye’s love to him. He had taken them as his own parents and a sister he’d been longing to have. He sure was one lucky guy. If not for losing his parents at the age of 15 and living alone since then, he wouldn’t have had taken management as his major for college - to get a jobs easily. And if not for a hard time to finance himself he also wouldn’t have taken the job as Yunho’s manager despite his limited knowledge of acting & entertainment world. He always wanted to have an office job, settled down & not worry about the bills. Well, maybe it was just a confirmation for him that everything happens for a reason. And his reason was Yunho.
He finished making his coffee with 1 block of sugar & 2 teaspoon of creamers. He sat down and took a muffin from the box. ‘What a perfect day off it is,’ he thought before taking a big bite.
* * * * *
Yunho felt warm. The soft mattress made him reluctant to get up. He wasn’t even sure how he got home, all he could remember was sitting in his made-up dressing room behind the set in the bamboo forest and thought of closing his eyes for a few minutes before he’d get up & leave the location with his manager. But apparently he just fell asleep like a log right away. Yes, he was exhausted like hell but he was hoping to hold on until they got home and had a little make out session with Jaejoong before they both crashed the bed until the next day off. He’d been missing him too much. The shooting & location changes really gave them no time for themselves or even a quickie in the morning. They usually got home around 3am, had a few hours sleep then left again as early as at 7am. He refused to stay in the accommodation near the set provided by the producer because that meant he wouldn’t be able to hold Jaejoong in his sleep.
As pathetic as it sounded, their relationship was still a public secret that only his family, their management’s CEO & a few close friends knew. There had been rumors of course, considering that Jaejoong always returned to the same place with him, but his management always told the media that it’s better for his super busy schedule to stay together, not to mention Yunho’s credit as a heavy sleeper and not even a bomb on his bedside could wake him up. Same house, different rooms, as long as Jaejoong could get Yunho in time according to schedule. And the management could also control him day to day this way. The media ate the statement though some stubborn reporters were still trying to find a clue or prove of them being together outside & inside the job. They were successful, thanks to his parents who put up a high gate around the residence so no one could ever peeked inside the housing complex. And his parents’ butler was always ready to answer any doorbell, real or just a way to get a glimpse of them from outside. He couldn’t have wished for better parents & sister.
Yunho yawned, opened his eyes & found his lover + manager in his arms. Jaejoong smelled like coffee… and chocolate? He must’ve woken up early and had his coffee before he returned to bed. Yunho kissed the side of Jaejoong’s head and felt him stirred in his sleep. Jaejoong turned around & sighed at him.
“Good afternoon… had a good sleep?” Jaejoong asked while smiling & gave Yunho a peck.
Yunho smiled back at him, “I thought I was dead and wouldn’t wake up. How did you get me to bed last night?”
“When I found you asleep in the dressing room I tried to wake you up to no avail. You didn’t even move a bit so I had to ask a light crew who was still around to help me carry you to the car. But of course I had to carry you inside by myself.”
“Why didn’t you ask the butler to help you when he opened the gate from inside?”
“I felt bad already to have to wake him up at 3am to open the gate for us almost every night for the past 2 months! So I told him I could handle it and tadaaaaa! You just woke up in your own bed, didn’t you?” Jaejoong gave him a mischievous smile.
Yunho smiled wider, “You’re just too nice Jae. And I love you for that.” He could see that Jae’s smile lingered after he heard what he said, and he’s happy to be the one who can give him that smile.
“What time is it now?” Yunho asked, “I better call Soon Mi to check if she’s okay, she hasn’t looked fine since 2 days ago, I wanted to make sure that she has more rest today.” He noticed the frowned that replaced the smile on Jaejoong’s face suddenly. “What’s up? What’s the frown?”
Jaejoong seemed to hesitate to answer him, but then he shrugged, “Nothing. It’s a quarter to 11 now. You don’t have to call her, I’ve told her manager to give me a call if she’s sick or anything happens. I hadn’t received any call today, so I assumed she’s okay.” He then got up from the bed and went to get his towel.
“Oh really?” Yunho asked him again, “I hope her manager is sensitive enough to check-up on her even on her off day. Are you sure you’re okay?” He couldn’t seem to disregard the deeper frown on Jaejoong’s face as he was about to enter the bathroom.
“Yeah, I’m fine… really… “ He gave him his smile again, though a bit reluctant. He didn’t want Yunho to questioned further. “Wanna join me in the bath?” he gave Yunho his best seductive look. Sex was always the best distraction, no matter how he felt, he still missed the touch of his lover. He felt he needed to satisfy his desire before JiHye return with lunch & they drop by the main house to greet Yunho’s parents.
“Do you have to ask?” Yunho got up slowly and walked over to where Jae was. “You know that I’ve been waiting for an intimate moment with you… I missed you badly too.” Yunho held him tight and gave him a hungry kiss before lifted him off his feet and into the shower. Jae was sure that it’s going to be a loooong shower for them.
* * * * *
Jaejoong understood that Yunho was a good guy. And since Soon Mi was his female leading role in the drama, he was being attentive to her to make sure that her health wouldn’t affect the shooting timeline. A delay would also cost a lot of money and as the main leading role, Yunho felt a bit of responsibility to ensure that his partner wouldn’t hold back the schedule too. At least, that’s what the crews believed on the set.
But other than that, Soon Mi was also a childhood friend of Yunho. He treated her like a sister, like he treated JiHye & their parents were also good friends even after her family moved to Busan 8 years ago when she was 13 and Yunho was 15. Their mothers called each other frequently & their fathers met up for golf at least twice a year. So when they found out that they were working in the same environment, their parents just had to call & made sure that Yunho also tooke care of Soon Mi, much to Jaejoong’s dismay. Especially now that they starred in the same drama for the 1st time.
He thought it wasn’t jealousy but somehow there’s a string that tug on his conscience everytime Yunho being (overly) attentive to Soon Mi (in his opinion). Or maybe deep in his heart he just felt inferior & terrified to lose Yunho. After losing his parents & lived alone for 6 years, being in a relationship with Yunho felt like too good to be true. Yunho was his 1st boyfriend, his 1st love & someone he’d spend his lifetime with. His parents weren’t replacement for his own, but more like a new set of parents he always longed for and JiHye completed his picture of a perfect family in his mind. He loved them wholeheartedly & sometimes he thought he didn’t have any more love left for anything else, even for himself.
Living alone for a long time had made him an independent person. And being 2 years older than Yunho also gave him more sense of responsibility. People always saw him as a strong person & someone they could rely on. But Han Soon Mi always seemed so fragile. The press nicked her “The Glass Princess”. Pale skin, long black hair that reaches her waist, big innocent pair of eyes & a slim figure. Her acting wasn’t so bad either, he found it hard to find her flaw. The press loved to pair them, not to mention the label of “childhood friend” that made them to expect something more behind the scene. Her weak image seemed perfect for Yunho’s manly built & mature figure. And Jaejoong felt that Yunho would lost interest in him soon, once he realized Soon Mi’s gaze of adoration for him - the thing that Yunho always considered JiHye-like, she just missed him as her Oppa.
His insecurities ate him up and added to his exhaustion during the 2 months shooting. He saw how Yunho acted around Soon Mi all the time (“My parents told me to make sure that she’s in good health.” He’d said to him), how he checked on her health every now and then (“You don’t want to have an extra & longer schedule if she misses 2 days take for being ill, do you?” Yunho would reply.), even offered her to stay at his house (the main house, that is) until the shooting’s over (“So my parents could also look up on her, I’m sure JiHye wants to see her too,”). Problem was, Soon Mi didn’t know about their relationship, so Jaejoong was able to persuade him not to give her the offer if he still wanted to keep their relationship a secret. If that ever happens, Jaejoong would be the one to move out of the house until it’s over. Yunho accepted his (lame) excuse. And he stayed.
Jaejoong really wanted to trust Yunho, he kept telling himself that he’s just jealous, insecure & he would annoyed Yunho if he ever found out. So even when deep inside he still felt uncomfortable, he shrugged it off & told himself to stay calm & be still. He prayed that nothing would change and Yunho would still be his reason to live. He closed his eyes and prayed silently when he dried himself in the bathroom and Yunho already exited. Let me be happy. Let me keep my family.
* * * * *
Chapter 2