"So what?" (1/1)
When Eric entered the room, the rest of his members were waiting along with a few of the staff. They all glared at him in unison. "What the hell took you so long?" Minwoo asked angrily. Dongwan playfully rubbed his tummy. "I'm so hungry!" Eric forced himself to smile as he quickly thought of an excuse. "Sorry! Had to poop!" That broke the tension in the room as the staff broke out in laughter. Some said, "Oh, Eric" as they passed by. "We thought you ditched so we just chose to go with Korean barbecue for tonight," Minwoo filled him in. "Okay. Can't go wrong with Korean barbecue." Eric settled in a seat beside Junjin and watched people chattering casually as they left for dinner. If only we weren't celebrities... If only our lives weren't being so closely watched by the world... Dongwan walked over and massaged his shoulders. "Let's go, CEO nim! No time to sit around! I'm going to faint!" Someone pulled on his ear. "Hyung, you're okay, right?" Junjin asked thoughtfully. "You didn't look well during the shoot." "Yeah, you barely said a word today," Dongwan added. Eric stood up and rolled his right shoulder. With a smile, he told them, "Yeah, just really tired." He returned to being Shinhwa's leader, ready to say any lies to reassure his members. "And Hyesung said he couldn't come today," Minwoo informed the three of them. Eric sighed, already missing him. "What the hell!" cried Wannie, clearly disappointed. "Just the four of us! Jinnie will have to entertain us tonight then," Eric said to lighten the mood, pushing thoughts of Hyesung aside. He faked a grin that he often used to fool everyone around him. "Ah," Junjin started carefully, "I wish I could, hyung. But I actually have to leave early." "What!" Minwoo and Dongwan cried together. Junjin frowned at them. "Yeah, I promised to meet someone." "Another girl, Choongjae?" Dongwan asked stunned. "Isn't it time you settled down?" "Yeah, we're becoming ajusshis now," Minwoo agreed sadly, pointing to the wrinkles along Dongwan's eyes. Dongwan softly punched his shoulder. It was Eric who defended him. "Guys, go easy on him. He's still a year younger than us. He's still got time." He patted Junjin on the back. "Thanks, hyung," Jinnie smiled adorably at him. "But it's not a girl." "It's a boy?!" Dongwan and Minwoo said synchronously again. They looked at each other and started laughing. Meanwhile, blood was being drained from Eric's face. "G-guys, we should support him if that's what he wants," Eric said cautiously, trying to compose himself. Dongwan and Minwoo stopped laughing. "Unless you remain in the closet, Shinhwa's done. We're not the western world. Korea's still not that open to homosexuality." Minwoo was completely serious now. Eric felt like his heart was dropping down to his stomach. "But still, as your hyungs, we'll support you." "Nooo, Jinnie! Tell me it's not true!" Dongwan begged, shaking Junjin's shoulders. Would he be begging me, too, if he knew? Eric wondered. Junjin looked almost offended now. "Hellooo, I'm not gay! You've all seen me with like... a thousand girls!" Dongwan hugged him and he sincerely looked like he was going to cry. Would it be that big of a deal if you were in love with a man? Suddenly, Hyesung's reaction didn't seem so harsh anymore. Minwoo teased, "I think fifty thousand would be more accurate." Despite the joke, he seemed genuinely relieved as well. "So, what?" Eric blurted out, unable to control himself. So what if Jinnie was gay?! The three of them paused to stare at him with wide eyes. "So, what?" Eric repeated, changing his tone completely. He rubbed the back of his neck, feeling awkward. "Why are you leaving early then?" "I'm gonna leave after we eat dinner. I'm just skipping beer," Junjin explained. Dongwan pouted. "Drinking without Jinnie is no fun!" Minwoo ignored him. "But why?" he pressed. Junjin seemed hesitant then his gaze dropped to the floor. "The PD for Infinity Challenge wants to see me." At that, everyone brightened up. "Tae Ho hyung? Why, that's great! You might get a spot on the show again!" Eric cried, clapping his hands together. Dongwan patted him on the back. Jinnie didn't seem convinced. "I think it's just for old time's sake. I screwed up so badly back then, there's no way they could want me back." Shaking his head, Minwoo told him, "That wasn't your fault. You were going through a tough time. You're Shinhwa's variety king, Junjin. Of course they'd want you back!" Junjin smiled gratefully at him. "I just didn't want to give you guys false hope. I wasn't planning to tell any of you until things were final." "You mean 'any of you except Hyesung'," Minwoo said, disheartened. Eric almost jumped at the mention of his name. "Well, I tell Hyesungie hyung everything," Junjin answered apologetically. Hyesung and Junjin's brotherhood was something even Eric envied. Hyesung just looked so comfortable being around Jinnie, unlike when he was with him... "Stupid baby bird and mommy bird..." Dongwan muttered then asked, "Wait, why couldn't he come today? Maybe he has a secret meeting, too?" "Nah," Minwoo replied. "He actually sounded pretty bad. I even thought he was crying." "What?!" Eric shouted a little too loudly. No one seemed to notice his dramatic reaction. "Why would he be crying?" Junjin said, worried. "Chill," Minwoo told them. "I said I thought he was crying. Of course he wasn't, stupid!" That seemed to put everyone at ease. Everyone except Eric. "Okay, guys, not to be a douche or anything but can we please go eat? I'm not joking about fainting anymore," Dongwan whined and everyone remembered that they had a dinner to attend to. "Yeah, let's go," Eric said although he had just lost his appetite at the thought of Hyesung crying. Crying, no doubt, over the stupid things he had confessed.*** When Minwoo found his car in the parking lot, he reached into his pocket and took out his key and phone. While opening the door, he turned on his android and found an unread text message from Hyesung. It read: Make sure Eric doesn't drink a lot tonight. Thanks, Minbong. I trust you. "Okay, then," Minwoo muttered to himself, wondering why Hyesung would send him such a random message. Maybe he told Eric something private and doesn't want his tongue to slip? Whatever, I'll just bug him about it tomorrow. Just as he was about to type a reply, the sound of his ringtone filled his car. Andy, the screen read. "Hello, my cute maknae." "Hey, Minwoo hyung. Where are you now?" Andy sounded rather drained. "In the parking lot, about to go to dinner. Why, did you change your mind about ditching us?" "No..." Andy paused. "Can you just make sure Eric hyung doesn't get drunk tonight?" What the hell? Did Andy spill a secret to Eric, too? "I can't guarantee anything but I'll try. But only if you tell me why." "Hyung..." Andy paused again. "It's just that... He got upset that I wasn't coming tonight and threatened me that he would drink and drive." Bullshit. "What kind of messed up joke is that?" "I don't know. I was just worried. Please just promise me." Minwoo hesitated but he knew he couldn't reject Andy. "Fine," he grumbled. "I'll trust you, hyung! Thanks!" Everyone trusts me but not with their secrets. Minwoo heaved a sigh. "Okay. Rest up well." "I'll... try. Bye!" Andy hung up first. Now Minwoo knew something was up. All the Shinhwa members knew Andy was the worst liar of the group. Even Hyesung who had never acted before lied better than him. But then that was because Andy didn't lie. At least not to his Shinhwa hyungs. And definitely not to me, thought Minwoo. Whatever was going on, he was determined to find out. But first, he was going to have to keep his promise to Shinhwa's maknae.