Saranghae | Pt. 10 Tangle
Feb. 7th, 2015 01:32 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
owned_by_a_catTitle: Saranghae 
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: YunJae/JaeHo, Sidepairing: YooSu
Genre: Suspense, AU, Angst, Romance, Fluff, Chaptered
Warning: none at present
Summary: What happens when Yunho and Changmin run a security company and are hired to look after rock god Kim Jaejoong
A/N: Thank you so much for all your comments on this and the experimental Tower story I posted a couple of days ago. I love all the different ways you have of looking at the same piece of writing and coming up with ideas for what's going on. It is totally riveting, and it gives me ideas too. So, thanks a lot... and I hope you like where this is headed.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9
"You're looking green," Junsu remarked, still typing. "Are you okay?"
Changmin drew a deep breath and shook his head as if he was waking from a nightmare. "Shock, I guess," he admitted gruffly. "I just didn't…"
"You realise this hasn't really anything to do with Yunho, right? He's just in the way."
"Maybe that's what worries me."
"Don't let it." Junsu was pragmatic. "If this was put in place in a hurry since he rescued Jaejoong last night, it will unravel just as speedily."
"And if it wasn't?"
Junsu didn't get a chance to answer, since Changmin's phone rang again. The caller display was blank and Changmin lifted the phone to his ear with something close to trepidation.
"Yes?"
"Min."
The table rattled under Changmin's unexpected flinch and Junsu's laptop lurched over the smooth surface. "Yunho, where are you? How are you?"
"Fine. Listen carefully."
Yunho's voice was barely recognisable. Gone was the soft friendliness that, on a normal day, bought him so much cooperation from everyone around him. In its place was darkness and focus and a tone so stark and emotionless, it chilled Changmin's soul. He'd never heard Yunho sound so raw before. Not after he'd jumped from a twelfth-floor window to escape a crazed fan, with a terrified actress in his arms. Not even on the roof in the rain, when he'd been soaked in his lover's blood and screaming his grief to the heavens.
If nothing else, that raw urgency in Yunho's tone made him listen.
"Kyu's team is at the hospital and they are sitting tight on Yoochun and Jaejoong. Get over there now. Get the two out of that place as quickly and quietly as you can. You remember where to take them. Kyu will stay behind as decoy. Is that clear?"
"Yes. I'll go right away." Changmin wanted to ask a million questions, but he took his cue from Yunho. There was no way for him to know if Yunho's end of the conversation was overheard.
"Watch your back and take precautions along the way," Yunho said, more quietly now. Changmin reached for change to pay for his drink and almost missed the words Yunho whispered before the line went dead: "Make sure Jae is safe."
"Yunho?" Junsu guessed.
"Yes. I need to get to the hospital. Can you—?" He wasn't entirely sure what he wanted to ask, but Junsu understood anyway.
"I'll work out what's been happening. You're taking Yoochun with you?"
"Yes. Yunho wants them both guarded. He has a place… "
Changmin trailed off, suddenly unsure whether it was safe to speak, but Junsu merely nodded. "I'll see you there."
Changmin's hand shot out before Junsu could resume his typing. Junsu tried to snatch it out of the way, but he'd underestimated Changmin's reach.
"I'm an idiot," Changmin said, very softly, when he had exposed Junsu's left forearm.
"Hardly." Junsu dragged his sleeve back down as if nothing out of the way had occurred. "Go get Jaejoong and Yoochun. I'll meet you when I've found out what's going on."
Changmin came through the door like an angry battering ram and Jaejoong immediately slid from the bed, where he'd been curled ever since four armed police officers had taken Yunho away. Jaejoong had no idea why it had affected him so much to see Yunho in handcuffs, he only knew it had. Almost as much as Yunho's instructions to keep quiet, pretend to be weaker than he was, and go with no one but Changmin, that Yunho had breathed in his ear before the handcuffs clicked shut around his wrists and he was led from the room.
Jaejoong was sure that tiny, metallic snick would haunt his dreams for weeks to come and Yoochun seemed to understand without Jaejoong having to explain. He hadn't moved from Jae's side since Yunho had been taken.
"Have you seen him? Is he okay?" Jae asked eagerly as soon as the door closed behind Changmin.
The tall security specialist shook his head. "He called me," he said tersely, then looked Jaejoong up and down. "How are you feeling?"
"Don't worry about me! It's Yunho we need to worry about. I was thinking of calling my attorney and posting bail, but I first need to know where they've taken him and they didn't say any—"
"Shut up and listen," Changmin snapped and Jaejoong bit his lip. That wasn't a tone he was used to hearing from Yunho's second-in-command. The man sounded totally stressed. And as worried as Jaejoong.
"How do you feel? Are you fit to travel?"
"Yes."
"Then grab your stuff. You too, Yoochun. Yunho told me to get you two out of here as quickly and quietly as I could. You're gonna dress up like MinHo Security and walk out of here with me, okay? Kyu will continue to stand guard outside, pretending you're still here." He pulled two dark polo shirts, stamped with the MinHo logo from the inside of his leather jacket and handed them over. Two baseball caps appeared next. "I'm hoping you have sunglasses on you?"
"Sure."
Jaejoong was glad for his rigorous training that allowed him to keep his emotions tightly under wraps. He didn't admit that he felt like shit, that he felt he'd pass out if he had to remain upright for much longer. He didn't mention that his insides hurt as if someone had taken a butcher's knife to them and that it would be a miracle if he made it out of the room and down the stairs under his own steam.
Yunho had told Changmin to get them out of the hospital. So he'd find a way to leave.
It was as simple as that.
He settled on the edge of the bed and managed to drag on the dark jeans Yoochun pulled from his bag. He'd brought a stash of clothes to the hospital after Yunho had called him and Jae was grateful for that, too. At least he didn't have to try to sneak out wearing a hospital gown. If his fans got wind of that one, he'd never live it down.
"Good to see you smile again," Changmin said softly. "Yunho was more worried about you than himself."
The thought warmed Jaejoong and he made a special effort to stand, tuck his shirt in and do up his belt, before his strength gave out again.
"You're not really up for this, are you?"
It was Yoochun asking this time and Jae knew that he might be able to fool Changmin, but never his best friend. "We have to get out," he said simply.
Changmin said nothing. He knelt and fastened the buckles and laces on Jaejoong's boots, then pulled him to his feet. "Glasses?"
Yoochun handed them over, then wrapped an arm around Jae's waist. Changmin slapped a baseball cap on Jae's head and took his weight on the other side until Jaejoong felt stable enough to take a step. He would make it out of this hospital. He would.
"Just hang on until we're in the car," Changmin said. "We'll take the service elevator and if anyone asks we say you have a stomach bug. You can sleep more in a little while, okay?"
Jaejoong pictured Yunho, handcuffed and surrounded by armed police. He was sure Yunho could have done something to stop the arrest, could have fought the officers if it had come to it. But he'd done nothing, had let himself be cuffed and led away because Jaejoong wasn't safe where he was. And now he had sent Changmin to get them out.
"I've performed with a fever and a broken bone in my foot. Don't worry about me," he said and gritted his teeth.
Junsu was already installed in the living room, surrounded by three computers, when they made it to the apartment an hour later. And from the quick, appraising stares he sent through his lashes at Yoochun, it was obvious that he had been much more concerned than he was showing.
Yoochun noticed that, too. He smiled widely and flopped on the couch beside his boyfriend. "Miss me?"
"Like a sore tooth," Junsu replied, but then he leaned in for a quick peck. "How's Jae?"
"Jae is fine, thanks for asking," Jaejoong said from beside the door, still fighting with the buckles on his boots. He swayed a little once he'd managed to get rid of them, and he wasn't entirely steady on his feet as he crossed the room, but he made it to the large sectional sofa and settled down on Junsu's other side. "My guts feel as if someone's used them for a punching bag," he admitted under Junsu's tight scrutiny and Changmin, who'd been hovering in the doorway ready to catch Jaejoong if the singer's supply of stubborn cussedness ran out, promptly turned towards the kitchen to brew tea.
"Can you remember what happened during your dinner with Yin Tae Hoon?" he asked as he handed Jae a big mug a few minutes later.
Jaejoong pouted, clearly uncomfortable. He sipped the tea for a while, then sighed and looked up. "It's blurry and I'm not convinced that everything is in the right order, you know? We were eating dinner when he asked me to strip."
"He… what?" Junsu squeaked, eyes wide.
Jaejoong just shrugged. "Happens more often than you might think," he commented wryly. "I think I kept it polite, but he was insistent and so I decided to leave. I think… I think I drank a last shot… but then he had me up against a wall and everything spun and… then I woke up in the hospital." He looked between Changmin and Junsu and pouted. "Sorry. It's not much good."
"Don't worry too much about it," Yoochun said from Junsu's other side. "The doctor said your memory will come back once all that crap's out of your blood stream."
"Yeah, he did." Jaejoong didn't sound convinced, and—truth be told—Changmin wasn't either. But neither of them bothered to contradict Yoochun. Jae set his empty mug on the table and curled into his corner of the couch. Changmin made himself comfortable in the armchair and kept half his attention on Junsu and the other half on Jaejoong.
"Yunho!"
The shout, alarmed rather than relieved, jerked Changmin upright. He scrubbed both hands across his face and rubbed his eyes so hard his vision blurred, annoyed that he'd actually dozed off. Yunho stood in the doorway with one dark-haired rock star plastered to his chest. He had to lean against the door frame for support, and looked as if his face had lost a conversation with a meat grinder. But while Changmin watched, a tiny smiled lifted the corners of his lips and then he wrapped his arms around Jaejoong and returned the embrace.
Changmin would have loved to point out that Yunho had needed a beating before he was prepared to admit his attraction to the singer, but he didn't think either of the two deserved the ribbing when they'd both been through the wars. They even sported almost matching bruises.
The swift embrace didn't last long. Jaejoong unwrapped his arms before Yunho was ready to let go and stepped back, glaring. "If you ever do this again, I'll wear clothes that will make your eyes fall out," he threatened. "In public. Got it?"
Yunho's grin was pained, but it was a grin. "Got it."
"Come and sit down. You're a mess." Junsu came back into the living room with a handful of ice cubes wrapped in a dishcloth, which he pressed gently to Yunho's bruised face. "Did you argue?"
"Didn't have time," Yunho mumbled, accepting the makeshift ice pack. "Lights were out and cameras switched off as soon as I stepped into the interrogation room."
"Interesting."
"I should say so." The cold compress seemed to revive Yunho a little. He smiled more easily as he looked around the room. "Gosh this takes me back," he said, and for just a moment his gaze took on a faraway quality, as if he fondly remembered an event he knew had never actually happened. "I think we should call," he said after another moment.
Junsu's eyes slid sideways to where Jaejoong was curled against the far side of the sofa again. "Do you really want to do this?"
"I may not be able to rely on you next time. So… yes."
"It's not Yin Tae Hoon," Junsu warned in a voice so low that Changmin couldn't help but turn his head and stare.
Yunho merely nodded. "I know."
Part 11: Watching and Waiting
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: YunJae/JaeHo, Sidepairing: YooSu
Genre: Suspense, AU, Angst, Romance, Fluff, Chaptered
Warning: none at present
Summary: What happens when Yunho and Changmin run a security company and are hired to look after rock god Kim Jaejoong
A/N: Thank you so much for all your comments on this and the experimental Tower story I posted a couple of days ago. I love all the different ways you have of looking at the same piece of writing and coming up with ideas for what's going on. It is totally riveting, and it gives me ideas too. So, thanks a lot... and I hope you like where this is headed.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9
Part 10: Tangle
Without another word, Junsu pulled his laptop closer once more and started to type at furious speed. The twinkle lights that were strung along the wall behind the bar cast an ever changing glow across his face, and the thump of the music had to be distracting, but Junsu didn't give any sign that he would have preferred a quieter place to work. He was focussed on his screen, reading, typing and reading some more, expression never changing. Changmin watched him work with his heart in his throat, one of the few times he'd ever been shocked speechless. Events were moving at a pace too fast for him to process and Changmin hated feeling out of the loop. It made no sense at all for Yunho to have gotten arrested. Jung Yunho was the most honest person Changmin knew. Not even in his most cynical mood could he imagine why Yunho would ever come under scrutiny. The man didn't even doctor petrol receipts, for crying out loud!"You're looking green," Junsu remarked, still typing. "Are you okay?"
Changmin drew a deep breath and shook his head as if he was waking from a nightmare. "Shock, I guess," he admitted gruffly. "I just didn't…"
"You realise this hasn't really anything to do with Yunho, right? He's just in the way."
"Maybe that's what worries me."
"Don't let it." Junsu was pragmatic. "If this was put in place in a hurry since he rescued Jaejoong last night, it will unravel just as speedily."
"And if it wasn't?"
Junsu didn't get a chance to answer, since Changmin's phone rang again. The caller display was blank and Changmin lifted the phone to his ear with something close to trepidation.
"Yes?"
"Min."
The table rattled under Changmin's unexpected flinch and Junsu's laptop lurched over the smooth surface. "Yunho, where are you? How are you?"
"Fine. Listen carefully."
Yunho's voice was barely recognisable. Gone was the soft friendliness that, on a normal day, bought him so much cooperation from everyone around him. In its place was darkness and focus and a tone so stark and emotionless, it chilled Changmin's soul. He'd never heard Yunho sound so raw before. Not after he'd jumped from a twelfth-floor window to escape a crazed fan, with a terrified actress in his arms. Not even on the roof in the rain, when he'd been soaked in his lover's blood and screaming his grief to the heavens.
If nothing else, that raw urgency in Yunho's tone made him listen.
"Kyu's team is at the hospital and they are sitting tight on Yoochun and Jaejoong. Get over there now. Get the two out of that place as quickly and quietly as you can. You remember where to take them. Kyu will stay behind as decoy. Is that clear?"
"Yes. I'll go right away." Changmin wanted to ask a million questions, but he took his cue from Yunho. There was no way for him to know if Yunho's end of the conversation was overheard.
"Watch your back and take precautions along the way," Yunho said, more quietly now. Changmin reached for change to pay for his drink and almost missed the words Yunho whispered before the line went dead: "Make sure Jae is safe."
"Yunho?" Junsu guessed.
"Yes. I need to get to the hospital. Can you—?" He wasn't entirely sure what he wanted to ask, but Junsu understood anyway.
"I'll work out what's been happening. You're taking Yoochun with you?"
"Yes. Yunho wants them both guarded. He has a place… "
Changmin trailed off, suddenly unsure whether it was safe to speak, but Junsu merely nodded. "I'll see you there."
Changmin's hand shot out before Junsu could resume his typing. Junsu tried to snatch it out of the way, but he'd underestimated Changmin's reach.
"I'm an idiot," Changmin said, very softly, when he had exposed Junsu's left forearm.
"Hardly." Junsu dragged his sleeve back down as if nothing out of the way had occurred. "Go get Jaejoong and Yoochun. I'll meet you when I've found out what's going on."
***
Changmin came through the door like an angry battering ram and Jaejoong immediately slid from the bed, where he'd been curled ever since four armed police officers had taken Yunho away. Jaejoong had no idea why it had affected him so much to see Yunho in handcuffs, he only knew it had. Almost as much as Yunho's instructions to keep quiet, pretend to be weaker than he was, and go with no one but Changmin, that Yunho had breathed in his ear before the handcuffs clicked shut around his wrists and he was led from the room.
Jaejoong was sure that tiny, metallic snick would haunt his dreams for weeks to come and Yoochun seemed to understand without Jaejoong having to explain. He hadn't moved from Jae's side since Yunho had been taken.
"Have you seen him? Is he okay?" Jae asked eagerly as soon as the door closed behind Changmin.
The tall security specialist shook his head. "He called me," he said tersely, then looked Jaejoong up and down. "How are you feeling?"
"Don't worry about me! It's Yunho we need to worry about. I was thinking of calling my attorney and posting bail, but I first need to know where they've taken him and they didn't say any—"
"Shut up and listen," Changmin snapped and Jaejoong bit his lip. That wasn't a tone he was used to hearing from Yunho's second-in-command. The man sounded totally stressed. And as worried as Jaejoong.
"How do you feel? Are you fit to travel?"
"Yes."
"Then grab your stuff. You too, Yoochun. Yunho told me to get you two out of here as quickly and quietly as I could. You're gonna dress up like MinHo Security and walk out of here with me, okay? Kyu will continue to stand guard outside, pretending you're still here." He pulled two dark polo shirts, stamped with the MinHo logo from the inside of his leather jacket and handed them over. Two baseball caps appeared next. "I'm hoping you have sunglasses on you?"
"Sure."
Jaejoong was glad for his rigorous training that allowed him to keep his emotions tightly under wraps. He didn't admit that he felt like shit, that he felt he'd pass out if he had to remain upright for much longer. He didn't mention that his insides hurt as if someone had taken a butcher's knife to them and that it would be a miracle if he made it out of the room and down the stairs under his own steam.
Yunho had told Changmin to get them out of the hospital. So he'd find a way to leave.
It was as simple as that.
He settled on the edge of the bed and managed to drag on the dark jeans Yoochun pulled from his bag. He'd brought a stash of clothes to the hospital after Yunho had called him and Jae was grateful for that, too. At least he didn't have to try to sneak out wearing a hospital gown. If his fans got wind of that one, he'd never live it down.
"Good to see you smile again," Changmin said softly. "Yunho was more worried about you than himself."
The thought warmed Jaejoong and he made a special effort to stand, tuck his shirt in and do up his belt, before his strength gave out again.
"You're not really up for this, are you?"
It was Yoochun asking this time and Jae knew that he might be able to fool Changmin, but never his best friend. "We have to get out," he said simply.
Changmin said nothing. He knelt and fastened the buckles and laces on Jaejoong's boots, then pulled him to his feet. "Glasses?"
Yoochun handed them over, then wrapped an arm around Jae's waist. Changmin slapped a baseball cap on Jae's head and took his weight on the other side until Jaejoong felt stable enough to take a step. He would make it out of this hospital. He would.
"Just hang on until we're in the car," Changmin said. "We'll take the service elevator and if anyone asks we say you have a stomach bug. You can sleep more in a little while, okay?"
Jaejoong pictured Yunho, handcuffed and surrounded by armed police. He was sure Yunho could have done something to stop the arrest, could have fought the officers if it had come to it. But he'd done nothing, had let himself be cuffed and led away because Jaejoong wasn't safe where he was. And now he had sent Changmin to get them out.
"I've performed with a fever and a broken bone in my foot. Don't worry about me," he said and gritted his teeth.
***
Junsu was already installed in the living room, surrounded by three computers, when they made it to the apartment an hour later. And from the quick, appraising stares he sent through his lashes at Yoochun, it was obvious that he had been much more concerned than he was showing.
Yoochun noticed that, too. He smiled widely and flopped on the couch beside his boyfriend. "Miss me?"
"Like a sore tooth," Junsu replied, but then he leaned in for a quick peck. "How's Jae?"
"Jae is fine, thanks for asking," Jaejoong said from beside the door, still fighting with the buckles on his boots. He swayed a little once he'd managed to get rid of them, and he wasn't entirely steady on his feet as he crossed the room, but he made it to the large sectional sofa and settled down on Junsu's other side. "My guts feel as if someone's used them for a punching bag," he admitted under Junsu's tight scrutiny and Changmin, who'd been hovering in the doorway ready to catch Jaejoong if the singer's supply of stubborn cussedness ran out, promptly turned towards the kitchen to brew tea.
"Can you remember what happened during your dinner with Yin Tae Hoon?" he asked as he handed Jae a big mug a few minutes later.
Jaejoong pouted, clearly uncomfortable. He sipped the tea for a while, then sighed and looked up. "It's blurry and I'm not convinced that everything is in the right order, you know? We were eating dinner when he asked me to strip."
"He… what?" Junsu squeaked, eyes wide.
Jaejoong just shrugged. "Happens more often than you might think," he commented wryly. "I think I kept it polite, but he was insistent and so I decided to leave. I think… I think I drank a last shot… but then he had me up against a wall and everything spun and… then I woke up in the hospital." He looked between Changmin and Junsu and pouted. "Sorry. It's not much good."
"Don't worry too much about it," Yoochun said from Junsu's other side. "The doctor said your memory will come back once all that crap's out of your blood stream."
"Yeah, he did." Jaejoong didn't sound convinced, and—truth be told—Changmin wasn't either. But neither of them bothered to contradict Yoochun. Jae set his empty mug on the table and curled into his corner of the couch. Changmin made himself comfortable in the armchair and kept half his attention on Junsu and the other half on Jaejoong.
"Yunho!"
The shout, alarmed rather than relieved, jerked Changmin upright. He scrubbed both hands across his face and rubbed his eyes so hard his vision blurred, annoyed that he'd actually dozed off. Yunho stood in the doorway with one dark-haired rock star plastered to his chest. He had to lean against the door frame for support, and looked as if his face had lost a conversation with a meat grinder. But while Changmin watched, a tiny smiled lifted the corners of his lips and then he wrapped his arms around Jaejoong and returned the embrace.
Changmin would have loved to point out that Yunho had needed a beating before he was prepared to admit his attraction to the singer, but he didn't think either of the two deserved the ribbing when they'd both been through the wars. They even sported almost matching bruises.
The swift embrace didn't last long. Jaejoong unwrapped his arms before Yunho was ready to let go and stepped back, glaring. "If you ever do this again, I'll wear clothes that will make your eyes fall out," he threatened. "In public. Got it?"
Yunho's grin was pained, but it was a grin. "Got it."
"Come and sit down. You're a mess." Junsu came back into the living room with a handful of ice cubes wrapped in a dishcloth, which he pressed gently to Yunho's bruised face. "Did you argue?"
"Didn't have time," Yunho mumbled, accepting the makeshift ice pack. "Lights were out and cameras switched off as soon as I stepped into the interrogation room."
"Interesting."
"I should say so." The cold compress seemed to revive Yunho a little. He smiled more easily as he looked around the room. "Gosh this takes me back," he said, and for just a moment his gaze took on a faraway quality, as if he fondly remembered an event he knew had never actually happened. "I think we should call," he said after another moment.
Junsu's eyes slid sideways to where Jaejoong was curled against the far side of the sofa again. "Do you really want to do this?"
"I may not be able to rely on you next time. So… yes."
"It's not Yin Tae Hoon," Junsu warned in a voice so low that Changmin couldn't help but turn his head and stare.
Yunho merely nodded. "I know."
Part 11: Watching and Waiting
