Every Human Love VI: The Dreaded Cards
Series: Every Human Love
Part I Part II Part III Part IV Part V
Title: The Dreaded Cards
Character: Changmin
Rating: G
Summary: "Changmin sees Jaejoong for the first time the way everyone else does."
Changmin sees Jaejoong for the first time the way everyone else does, as a statue no taller than his palm on Yoochun's desk, standing just below the windowsill with the sunshine striking off it. Changmin recognises what it is the moment he sees it, but doesn't know how to ask. He's so used to not talking about the things he sees that the habit is hard to break, and he doesn't even know whether he should try.
Months later, Changmin is at Yoochun's computer, making last-minute changes to his project while Yoochun does something arcane in the kitchen. (Changmin asked Yoochun where he learned to cook once. "From a friend," Yoochun had replied, his gaze straying towards the window.) Changmin jumps when Yoochun touches his shoulder. "Dinner's ready," Yoochun says, and Changmin turns the chair so he can look at Yoochun.
"Thank you," Changmin says.
"Well, I know how important food is to you." Yoochun's face is perfectly serious, but his eyes are laughing. Changmin sticks out his tongue and then Yoochun's hand is on his shoulder and Yoochun is kissing him.
Changmin kisses back for a few seconds before he realises what he's doing. "Wait," he says, pulling away as much as he can with the desk at his back. "What about..." his eyes slide to the figurine on the desk, too caught up in the moment to wonder if it's the right question, to think of how he's going to explain himself.
Yoochun's eyes are wide, as shocked as Changmin's. "How..." he asks, and then can't seem to think of a way to finish the question.
"I see things," Changmin says, smiles without any humour in it. "I sound crazy. But I know Jaejoong's not just a statue." (They've talked about him before, in the strange roundabout way Yoochun does; Changmin's learnt to read even further between the lines than is usual for him.)
Yoochun laughs, a little bitter, a little amused. "He thinks you're good for me."
"Oh," Changmin replies. He doesn't quite know what to do with that statement, what the right thing to say is.
"Well," Yoochun says, "at least now I know what he meant when he talked about you having secrets to tell too." He reaches across Changmin to Jaejoong, picks up the statue and puts it gently on the floor. "Jaejoong?" he asks.
Changmin watches, intrigued at the way the statue shifts and changes, and how suddenly another person is standing there in its place. He's beautiful, Changmin realises, beautiful as the statue was, and strange.
There's an awkward silence as they all look at each other, and then Jaejoong laughs and Changmin could almost mistake him for just another ordinary human being, save for the way Jaejoong's eyes shift colour, the way his hair seems to catch more light than is cast by the single overhead lamp. "This is ridiculous," Jaejoong says after a minute. "Hi Changmin, I'm Jaejoong."
Changmin smiles back; he can't help himself. "Hello," he says, "Nice to meet you finally," and then shakes his head at the inanity of his words.
Jaejoong shrugs in reply as if to say, 'What else can you say?' and Changmin thinks that maybe this can all work out. So far, it's easier than he would have imagined.
"You see him?" Yoochun asks, and when Changmin tears his eyes away from Jaejoong to look at Yoochun, the wonderment on Yoochun's face makes something go squishy and strange in Changmin's chest. He reaches for Yoochun's closest hand as Jaejoong takes a step forward and reaches for the other.
"I see him," Changmin replies, closing his fingers around Yoochun's.
"Really real," Jaejoong says, and wipes at Yoochun's face with his free hand.
Part I Part II Part III Part IV Part V
Title: The Dreaded Cards
Character: Changmin
Rating: G
Summary: "Changmin sees Jaejoong for the first time the way everyone else does."
Changmin sees Jaejoong for the first time the way everyone else does, as a statue no taller than his palm on Yoochun's desk, standing just below the windowsill with the sunshine striking off it. Changmin recognises what it is the moment he sees it, but doesn't know how to ask. He's so used to not talking about the things he sees that the habit is hard to break, and he doesn't even know whether he should try.
Months later, Changmin is at Yoochun's computer, making last-minute changes to his project while Yoochun does something arcane in the kitchen. (Changmin asked Yoochun where he learned to cook once. "From a friend," Yoochun had replied, his gaze straying towards the window.) Changmin jumps when Yoochun touches his shoulder. "Dinner's ready," Yoochun says, and Changmin turns the chair so he can look at Yoochun.
"Thank you," Changmin says.
"Well, I know how important food is to you." Yoochun's face is perfectly serious, but his eyes are laughing. Changmin sticks out his tongue and then Yoochun's hand is on his shoulder and Yoochun is kissing him.
Changmin kisses back for a few seconds before he realises what he's doing. "Wait," he says, pulling away as much as he can with the desk at his back. "What about..." his eyes slide to the figurine on the desk, too caught up in the moment to wonder if it's the right question, to think of how he's going to explain himself.
Yoochun's eyes are wide, as shocked as Changmin's. "How..." he asks, and then can't seem to think of a way to finish the question.
"I see things," Changmin says, smiles without any humour in it. "I sound crazy. But I know Jaejoong's not just a statue." (They've talked about him before, in the strange roundabout way Yoochun does; Changmin's learnt to read even further between the lines than is usual for him.)
Yoochun laughs, a little bitter, a little amused. "He thinks you're good for me."
"Oh," Changmin replies. He doesn't quite know what to do with that statement, what the right thing to say is.
"Well," Yoochun says, "at least now I know what he meant when he talked about you having secrets to tell too." He reaches across Changmin to Jaejoong, picks up the statue and puts it gently on the floor. "Jaejoong?" he asks.
Changmin watches, intrigued at the way the statue shifts and changes, and how suddenly another person is standing there in its place. He's beautiful, Changmin realises, beautiful as the statue was, and strange.
There's an awkward silence as they all look at each other, and then Jaejoong laughs and Changmin could almost mistake him for just another ordinary human being, save for the way Jaejoong's eyes shift colour, the way his hair seems to catch more light than is cast by the single overhead lamp. "This is ridiculous," Jaejoong says after a minute. "Hi Changmin, I'm Jaejoong."
Changmin smiles back; he can't help himself. "Hello," he says, "Nice to meet you finally," and then shakes his head at the inanity of his words.
Jaejoong shrugs in reply as if to say, 'What else can you say?' and Changmin thinks that maybe this can all work out. So far, it's easier than he would have imagined.
"You see him?" Yoochun asks, and when Changmin tears his eyes away from Jaejoong to look at Yoochun, the wonderment on Yoochun's face makes something go squishy and strange in Changmin's chest. He reaches for Yoochun's closest hand as Jaejoong takes a step forward and reaches for the other.
"I see him," Changmin replies, closing his fingers around Yoochun's.
"Really real," Jaejoong says, and wipes at Yoochun's face with his free hand.