Chapter 9 (1/1)

"Can we turn the music up a little higher please?" Yunho appealed to the audio team and motioned with a finger pointing upwards. With the backing track hitting his ear, he adjusted his earpiece and deliberately stepped back to his original position alongside his members. Even for rehearsal purposes, the dancers remained alert and moving naturally to the rhythm as they sang in a rich and mellifluous manner to the vacant open venue — a venue that was certainly going to be maximized by the time night falls. For their weeks turned abruptly into months, the rising stars were often seen rushing from one setting to another, absorbed with their frantic schedules and sparing less time for themselves. Today was one of those days where they could no longer make sense of time for their planned events began to jumble up in their heads, mainly due to their lack of sleep. But the boys never wavered. They put their noses to the grindstone and promoted their group in every possible ways. From music shows to variety shows, they thrived and exerted great efforts to make a name in the music industry and to be recognized as the door to a new era. As a result of their great endeavors, TVXQ had managed to earn many supporters who stuck closely by them and projects in which no other artists had been proposed to. They broke records here and there, going beyond everyone's expectation, including theirs. "Well done, you guys did great!" Yongjun shared his praises, handing each of them a bottle of water as they made their descent down the stage. They exchanged looks when they found teenage girls behind their manager and suppressed a laugh when they heard them squealing each time they stole a peek. "Come here, why are you acting so shy all of a sudden?" Yongjun gestured for them to get closer, earning another shrill from the shorter one. "These three are the daughters of the stage director. They stopped by just to see you. They were so eager to meet all of you that they didn't even bother acknowledging their father, so consider yourselves lucky." The girls whined simultaneously and the manager avoided light punches headed his way. The members laughed lightly and took that moment to greet them with a respectful bow, causing the trio to nearly faint on the spot. Two of the sisters went around to get their albums signed, but the oldest sibling aimed for Jaejoong, the hint of excitement still evident on her voice despite her lowered head. "I made these earlier in the morning. I hope you'll enjoy them," she said almost shrieking as she handed him a pouch of heart biscuits. Jaejoong hid a bashful smile and thanked her for the lovely gift before turning to Changmin who was playfully grouching through his pout."Where's mine?"They all laughed along, with Jaejoong feeling genuinely euphoric from the attention he had just received. This was becoming a common occurrence lately, where people would admit to being a fan, putting all the past misconceptions behind and giving him another chance to prove himself. He thought it over and over and can only conclude that it may have been his strong dedication or maybe even his perseverance that caused people to cheer for him. He even embraced the huge possibility that it may have been due to the leader's assistance, with his little amicable performances he was executing in public. Either way, his supporters may be a lot less than the others but the change in numbers was very obvious and Jaejoong couldn't be anymore appreciative. The girls captured the memorable time with their cameras, the group bidding their goodbyes when the sound director took them aside for more guidance. They crowded around the man and processed his commands for the subsequent stage. Jaejoong directed his full attention to his orders as he made sure that nothing was missed. He played with his hair and pulled it slightly when the instructions became a handful to carry. He felt a gentle rub on his shoulder and nearly melted in those calloused hands before registering who it was. "Tired?" A deep baritone voice distracted him from his mindfulness. His entire body stiffened as it recognized the familiar deep tone ringing in his ears. He turned around and found Yunho's smile with the corner of his eyes creasing with charm. Those hands continued to knead his back and then his neck, making sure to apply added pressure along those pesky knots. He recognized a muffled shriek in the distance and realized that the previous fans had yet to leave their spot. He glanced over Yunho's shoulder and noticed that they had their eyes prying their moves. 'Oh,' he discerned the sudden proximity, shaking the feeling of discontent lingering at the bottom of his stomach. He smiled an acknowledgement that never reached his eyes before moving his head around. He remarked the lessened movements behind him and noted the growing distance between him and his roommate, and those hands leaving his skin. He turned slightly and his eyes faltered downwards for he had realized that the girls were no longer there. Jaejoong brought his attention back to the director and ignored the melancholy that was consuming his heart. Yunho's feigned acts had broken him many times, hitting him hard as a reminder of reality. No matter the number or intensity, Jaejoong just couldn't get used to them. Not because they made him uneasy or uncomfortable, but because he knew that they were never genuine — that they were far from reality and simulated to put on a show . But everyday he cursed himself for silently wishing for that sincerity to appear at his door. Months had passed but the acceptance and approval of the leader never came which left him with the disappointment he could no longer disregard. He released a hushed bitter laugh and shook his head for his desperate longing..............................................................................................Feeling satisfied with the rehearsal, Yongjun gave the boys some time to flee from the unbearable summer humidity and the permission to return to their rooms for the meantime. For a moment, Yunho and Jaejoong were deserted in the elevator and exchanged looks of bewilderment for the youngest had bolted out of the box as soon as the bell crossed his ears. Changmin barged into their shared hotel room and jumped for the air conditioning unit. He lifted his shirt covered with sweat stains and plopped into the cooler causing his body fluids to slowly drain into the vents. He moaned in delight as cold air stroke his damp skin and reminisced about the old winter days, and wishing for summer to end quickly. "Stop that, you're going to get sick," the leader expressed his concern as he made his entrance. "I don't care," the other replied with his voice sounding muffled on the carpeted floor. "Well I do, because I'll be the one getting reprimanded for your carelessness." "Ugh, why do you have to ruin everything for me?" "Because that's part of my job," Yunho answered easily and moaned as he crawled to his bed."Because that's part of my job," Changmin separated himself from the unit and rolled away as he repeated his hyung's words in a mocking tone. He studied the ceiling and enjoyed the moment of silence before glancing at the leader who had stopped stirring on his bed. "You can't nap on your sweat, you're going to get sick," Changmin copied Yunho's previous words. "I don't care," the leader replied in a similar way. So he wasn't asleep yet, Changmin realized."Well I do, because a sick leader is such a pain in the ass," "Right," "I hate you. Why is the world so unfair?" the youngest member grumbled while tugging on Yunho's blanket. "I love you too. Now shut up, your hyung is sleeping," Yunho muttered weakly. "No you're not, you're ordering me around.""I meant your other hyung." "Oh," Changmin said when he rose to a sitting position and peeked at Jaejoong laying comfortably on their shared bed. He slowly laid back down and stayed quiet for awhile with only the sound of the air conditioning rattling across the room. "So what's your deal," he broke the silence but remained hushed. "One minute you're acting all nice and whipped, the next you're indifferent towards him. What's the truth?" "I get that you're still playing one of your shows, but I could've sworn that you sounded concerned just now." "Are you that scared to admit that you care? Because if you really think about it, there's nothing for you to lose if you were to show him some love... I don't know, just letting it out there," he whispered the last part.Changmin waited meekly, for a part of him wished for an answer but another dreaded to hear what the older man had to say. Yunho's response never reached his ears, not even a single movement from the leader told him that his words w