Insanity...In a Fun Way (Chapter 9)
Title: Insanity...In a Fun Way
Pairings: Yunjae, Yoosu and Changmin/OC
Genre: Angst, romance, drama, MPREG
Rating: From PG to NC-17
Summary: Utter Chaos breaks out in Dong Bang Shin Ki when two of the band memebers are expecting children at the same time.
Warnings: Yeah, this is a Mpreg story. That means that two guys are going to get pregnant and have children. Got a problem with that idea? Oh well, just don't read. Remember, I did warn you that this was Mpreg, so try not to be too traumatized by what you see. As always, none of my rated scenes will be marked. So read at your own discretion. Thank you!
“Jaejoong-Hyung looks angry.” Yoochun stated lightly, his eyes flickering towards Jaejoong quickly.
“Nope, he’s just feeling sorry for himself.” Changmin replied easily as he occupied the seat opposite Yoochun at the breakfast table.
“Sorry for himself…?” Yoochun questioned, brow furrowing slightly as he watched Yunho attempt to life Jaejoong’s spirits.
“Yep, he tried to scare me out of the room last night, but I was too smart for him--or course--and now he’s angry that he didn’t get to have a night with Yunho.” Changmin explained in a matter-of-fact voice, a smirk pulling at his lips.
“Yah, Jaejoong!” Yoochun called down the table, smirking in a devlish manner.
“Hmph, what?” Jaejoong turned dark eyes on Yoochun, his arms crossed over his chest to show his displeasure towards the younger male.
“I hear our dear Min managed to outsmart you last night.” Yoochun responded easily as he reclined in his seat.
Jaejoong’s gaze flickered towards Changmin to shoot him a dirty look before he turned back to address Yoochun again, “yeah, well that wouldn’t have been the case if you and Junsu hadn’t been hogging the larger room.” Jaejoong shot back, his chin lifting in a show of defiance.
“Tch, with how ADD Yunho is right now, I doubt you could have gotten much further then you did.” Changmin cut in, his eyes straying to Yunho who seemed to have forgotten the rest of the group when the decoration on the table caught his interest.
“Morning everyone.” Junsu breathed as he very nearly floated towards the table, that angelic smile pulling at his lips.
“Morning Chunnie.” He added as he leaned down and planted a soft kiss against Yoochun’s lips.
“At least someone’s happy.” Jaejoong muttered as he turned a dark look on his plate of untouched food.
Yunho lifted his head at Jaejoong’s words, a slight smile tugging at his lips, “don’t worry, Boo, I’ll make sure you’re just as happy by the end of this trip.”
“Promise?”
“I promise.”
“As touching as this little couple-moment is, could you not have it while I’m eating?” Changmin questioned, his forkful of eggs frozen in mid-air.
“Why ? Why me?” Jaejoong groaned as he let his head fall against the table with a soft thud.
Changmin laughed from across the table, his face seeming to become youthful as he watched Yunho trying to stay focused long enough to deal with his pouting husband.
“Poor Yunho.” He breathed, his head shaking as he turned his attention back towards his food.
“Changmin!” Yoochun growled in a whisper, his foot coming out to nudge the younger boy’s leg.
“I’m not playing footsy with you, Yoochun.” Changmin growled his body jerking slightly as he moved his limbs out of Yoochun’s reach.
Junsu snorted from across the table as he quickly covered his mouth to keep his orange-juice from spilling out onto the table.
“Not even in your dreams, Changmin.” Yoochun fired back, his eyes narrowing in a sharp glare. “I was just going to say that there’s a girl over there that is totally checking you out.”
Changmin sighed and sat back in his chair, his eyebrows arching as he gave Yoochun a calculating stare, “the last time you told me there was someone “checking me out” it turned out to the ugliest woman I’d ever seen.”
“I can’t help it if I don’t have good taste in women.” Yoochun pouted lightly, his lower-lip jutting out as it always did when he wanted to act cheesy.
His look gained a laugh from Junsu who quickly joined in by leaning towards his husband and sticking out his lower lip, “don’t be sad, Chunnie.”
“That’s disgusting.” Changmin interrupted loudly, gaining a few odd stairs from the people sitting near them.
“Excuse me…” A feminine voice caused all of the boys to lift their heads and stare at a girl who was standing behind Changmin.
“I was wondering if you’re Shim Changmin...?” The girl stated lightly, her hand coming up to brush away a few stray locks of her silky, black hair.
Changmin turned and blinked up at the girl for a moment, wondering why she had only addressed him and not the rest of the group as fans usually did.
“I’m Shim Changmin.” He responded in a formal tone, the one he always used when addressing fans or when in front of cameras.
The girl blushed and quickly looked away from Changmin, “you probably don’t remember me…but we went to high school together.” She stated in a soft voice, her eyes only flickering towards Changmin for a split second as she spoke.
“Eh…what’s your name?” Changmin questioned, finding the situation slightly awkward. Even though he was always sarcastic and snarky around his hyungs, he usually found himself feeling rather awkward in public situations. He usually didn’t talk much in interviews, at least he tried not to (he didn’t want to deal with an angry manager questioning why he’d said so little during the three hour filming).
“My name is Park Haneul.” The girl replied softly, extending her hand towards Changmin.
“Park Haneul?” Changmin questioned his brow furrowing slightly as he twisted in his chair to shake the girls small hand.
“I can’t remember anyone by that name.” He replied lightly, an unreadable look spreading across his face. It almost looked as if he was trying to cover something up.
“That’s okay, I didn’t think you would remember me. We had a few classes together…but we never really talked.” Haneul stated softly as she quickly removed her hand from Changmin’s grasp. She seemed to be slightly saddened by Changmin’s words.
“Oh. Well what brings you here?” Changmin questioned as his gaze strayed down the lithe form of the other's body.
“Oh, I…I work on the boat.” She replied lightly, turning so everyone could see the name-tag pinned to the front of her shirt.
“I’m sorry for bothering you, I just wanted to say hello. It’s not every day that I get to see the famous Shim Changmin.” The girl bowed at her waist before she turned and walked quickly away, her lengthy hair swaying lightly against her small shoulders.
“Aaawwkkkwwaaarrd.” Yoochun cut the silence as he leaned forward to watch the girl stride away. “Do you really not remember her?”
Changmin pursed his lips lightly, his eyes looking out the window that overlooked the ocean.
“The only person I can remember with the name Haneul was a guy.” Changmin replied before biting his lower lip in a thoughtful manner. “He was really quite and feminine. I was the only who really every talked to him.” Changmin explained as he turned his gaze back towards his food.
“There’s no way that was a guy.” Yunho cut in, craning his neck as he tried to catch another glimpse of the “girl”.
“Everything about her was feminine. Small arms and legs, soft voice, no facial hair…a girl through and through.” Yoochun added in a thoughtful voice.
“Sounds like you’re describing Jaejoong.” Changmin added absently, peaking at Jaejoong from the corner of his left eye.
“Yah! I am not that girly!” Jaejoong fired at DBSK’s youngest member, his eyes narrowing in a dark glare.
“At least I’m not the one getting stalked by some secretly gay guy.” Jaejoong shot back, his eyebrows lifting slightly.
“No. You’re just married to an openly gay one.” Changmin responded as if he’d known what Jaejoong was going to say.
“Maybe he had his gender changed.” Junsu suggested, pushing Yoochun--who was standing from his chair trying to spot the girl--back into his seat. “Sit down Yoochun, people are staring at you.”
“They’re just looking at me ‘cause I’m so sexy.” Yoochun stated with a smirk as he leaned in and placed a small kiss of Junsu’s cheek.
“Careful, your fat head might sink the boat.” Junsu shot back with a smirk as he pushed Yoochun away.
“Could we get back to the matter at hand, you two?” Jaejoong questioned as he leaned in towards Changmin.
“So did you two every do…anything?” He questioned, stressing the last word.
Changmin hesitated, his eyes straying everywhere but towards his hyungs.
“No!” The whole table chorused in shock as they watched a blush spread across Changmin’s cheeks.
“Tell us everything!” Jaejoong commanded.
“And don’t leave out the sordid details.” Yoochun added, a look of anticipation whispering across his face.
“We went out.” Changmin stated quickly, seeming to be very interested in his plate of cold pancakes.
“Out? As in a date?” Jaejoong cut in, his eyebrows lifting with a look of slight shock.
“Yes, I took him out on a few dates.” Changmin sighed as he sank further into his chair, a fresh blush creeping across his face.
“Pity dates?” Yunho interrupted, a displeased look spreading across his face.
“I was just being nice to him!” Changmin shot at Yunho. “He was so bullied in our school and the people treated him like trash. I was the only one who would take care of him. So I took him out on a few dates."
“Classic.” Yoochun breathed, nodding his head slightly.
“Did you guys ever kiss?” Junsu asked, a sweet smile pulling at his lips as he imagined Changmin with the smaller boy.
Changmin hesitated slightly, cursing as he felt another blush spread quickly over his face.
“Oh m gosh! You kissed him!” Jaejoong squealed, his eyes wide with excitement as he clapped his hands together like a small child.
“Did you guys go further than kissing?” Yoochun asked, waving his hand to silence the now rapturous Jaejoong.
There was a long pause before Changmin muttered the words, “I slept with him” towards the table top, his whole body seeming to shrink slightly as he got ready for the outburst from his hyungs.
Dead silence fell over the table as four jaws dropped open in tandem. Changmin…Minnie! The one who they had accused of being a virgin for all of thosw years…turned out to be the one who had been deflowered before the rest of them. It was almost too much for them to handle.
“I…can’t…believe this!” Jaejoong squealed, nearly falling out of his seat due to all of his excitement.
“Any of you, “ Changmin turned dark glares on all of them, “breath a word of this during any interview or concert or anything like that, I’ll spill all your darkest secrets to the world.” The youngest member threatened, making sure he cast a meaningful glance at Jaejoong, the notorious “loose-lips” of the group.
“We won’t breathe a word of it!” Junsu promised as he leaned in slightly, a soft smile pulling at his lips, “did you two continue to date after you slept together?”
“Did you fall in love?” Yunho asked with a dreamy smile.
“More importantly, did you sleep with him more than once?” Jaejoong asked, drawing attention away from Yunho who still seemed to be off in his own little world.
Changmin sighed as he ran a hand through his hair, his eyes shutting briefly before he began to speak, “yeah, I did fall in love with him, and whether or not I slept with him again, really doesn’t concern you.”
“Oh, they did it more than once!” Yoochun laughed.
“Yah, keep it down!” Changmin growled, reaching across the table to shove Yoochun.
“Did anyone at the school know you two were dating?” Yunho questioned, finally rejoining the group to interrogate Changmin.
Changmin relaxed into his chair, a long sigh pushing past his lips as he thought back to his time in high school. It had been a relatively normal part of his life until he’d met Park Haneul. Everything had spiraled out of control when he’d found himself becoming attracted to the smaller boy. Changmin recalled locking himself in his room whenever thoughts of the other boy filled his mind. He found himself becoming obsessed with the younger boy. He even went so far as to take extra classes just so he could see Haneul for longer periods of time.
When he’d finally worked up the guts to ask Haneul out on the pretence of “hanging out”, Changmin realized that just being friends would never be enough. So he confessed to Haneul and things unfolded from there.
“Changmin?” Yunho questioned, waving his hand in front of Changmin’s distant looking face.
“What?”
“Did the school ever find out about the two of you?” Yunho questioned again, his eyebrows arching slightly.
“Oh, no. Haneul understood that if anyone knew about us it would ruin my future as a singer. So we kept the relationship private and just told everyone we were friends. Granted, there were a lot, and I mean a lot, of rumors about us, but no one could ever find anything to back those rumors up. so it was never proven that we were in a relationship.” Changmin stated thoughtfully as he tried to recall every detail of his first relationship with a guy.
“That’s so romantic.” Yunho sighed, resting his elbow against the table before placing his chin in his palm.
Everyone cast Yunho a bemused look before they turned their attention back onto Changmin.
“Why did you two breakup?” Jaejoong questioned as he cocked his head to the left slightly.
“He moved to America and I debuted in DBSK; that’s the only reason things ended between us.” Changmin sighed, a sorrowful look spreading across his face.
“Oh my gosh! Why didn’t you say anything to him while he was here?” Jaejoong asked in a shocked voice, his eyes open wide.
“What good would it do?” Changmin asked in a dejected voice, his eyes shifting back to the table-top, “I don’t want to drag up painful memories and it’s not like there could ever be anything between us…not with me in DBSK.”
The table fell silent as everyone watched Changmin pull in a long breath and let it out slowly. They had never seen him so affected by anything before. It would seem that there little Min had gone through more trails in his life than he let on.
Pairings: Yunjae, Yoosu and Changmin/OC
Genre: Angst, romance, drama, MPREG
Rating: From PG to NC-17
Summary: Utter Chaos breaks out in Dong Bang Shin Ki when two of the band memebers are expecting children at the same time.
Warnings: Yeah, this is a Mpreg story. That means that two guys are going to get pregnant and have children. Got a problem with that idea? Oh well, just don't read. Remember, I did warn you that this was Mpreg, so try not to be too traumatized by what you see. As always, none of my rated scenes will be marked. So read at your own discretion. Thank you!
“Jaejoong-Hyung looks angry.” Yoochun stated lightly, his eyes flickering towards Jaejoong quickly.
“Nope, he’s just feeling sorry for himself.” Changmin replied easily as he occupied the seat opposite Yoochun at the breakfast table.
“Sorry for himself…?” Yoochun questioned, brow furrowing slightly as he watched Yunho attempt to life Jaejoong’s spirits.
“Yep, he tried to scare me out of the room last night, but I was too smart for him--or course--and now he’s angry that he didn’t get to have a night with Yunho.” Changmin explained in a matter-of-fact voice, a smirk pulling at his lips.
“Yah, Jaejoong!” Yoochun called down the table, smirking in a devlish manner.
“Hmph, what?” Jaejoong turned dark eyes on Yoochun, his arms crossed over his chest to show his displeasure towards the younger male.
“I hear our dear Min managed to outsmart you last night.” Yoochun responded easily as he reclined in his seat.
Jaejoong’s gaze flickered towards Changmin to shoot him a dirty look before he turned back to address Yoochun again, “yeah, well that wouldn’t have been the case if you and Junsu hadn’t been hogging the larger room.” Jaejoong shot back, his chin lifting in a show of defiance.
“Tch, with how ADD Yunho is right now, I doubt you could have gotten much further then you did.” Changmin cut in, his eyes straying to Yunho who seemed to have forgotten the rest of the group when the decoration on the table caught his interest.
“Morning everyone.” Junsu breathed as he very nearly floated towards the table, that angelic smile pulling at his lips.
“Morning Chunnie.” He added as he leaned down and planted a soft kiss against Yoochun’s lips.
“At least someone’s happy.” Jaejoong muttered as he turned a dark look on his plate of untouched food.
Yunho lifted his head at Jaejoong’s words, a slight smile tugging at his lips, “don’t worry, Boo, I’ll make sure you’re just as happy by the end of this trip.”
“Promise?”
“I promise.”
“As touching as this little couple-moment is, could you not have it while I’m eating?” Changmin questioned, his forkful of eggs frozen in mid-air.
“Why ? Why me?” Jaejoong groaned as he let his head fall against the table with a soft thud.
Changmin laughed from across the table, his face seeming to become youthful as he watched Yunho trying to stay focused long enough to deal with his pouting husband.
“Poor Yunho.” He breathed, his head shaking as he turned his attention back towards his food.
“Changmin!” Yoochun growled in a whisper, his foot coming out to nudge the younger boy’s leg.
“I’m not playing footsy with you, Yoochun.” Changmin growled his body jerking slightly as he moved his limbs out of Yoochun’s reach.
Junsu snorted from across the table as he quickly covered his mouth to keep his orange-juice from spilling out onto the table.
“Not even in your dreams, Changmin.” Yoochun fired back, his eyes narrowing in a sharp glare. “I was just going to say that there’s a girl over there that is totally checking you out.”
Changmin sighed and sat back in his chair, his eyebrows arching as he gave Yoochun a calculating stare, “the last time you told me there was someone “checking me out” it turned out to the ugliest woman I’d ever seen.”
“I can’t help it if I don’t have good taste in women.” Yoochun pouted lightly, his lower-lip jutting out as it always did when he wanted to act cheesy.
His look gained a laugh from Junsu who quickly joined in by leaning towards his husband and sticking out his lower lip, “don’t be sad, Chunnie.”
“That’s disgusting.” Changmin interrupted loudly, gaining a few odd stairs from the people sitting near them.
“Excuse me…” A feminine voice caused all of the boys to lift their heads and stare at a girl who was standing behind Changmin.
“I was wondering if you’re Shim Changmin...?” The girl stated lightly, her hand coming up to brush away a few stray locks of her silky, black hair.
Changmin turned and blinked up at the girl for a moment, wondering why she had only addressed him and not the rest of the group as fans usually did.
“I’m Shim Changmin.” He responded in a formal tone, the one he always used when addressing fans or when in front of cameras.
The girl blushed and quickly looked away from Changmin, “you probably don’t remember me…but we went to high school together.” She stated in a soft voice, her eyes only flickering towards Changmin for a split second as she spoke.
“Eh…what’s your name?” Changmin questioned, finding the situation slightly awkward. Even though he was always sarcastic and snarky around his hyungs, he usually found himself feeling rather awkward in public situations. He usually didn’t talk much in interviews, at least he tried not to (he didn’t want to deal with an angry manager questioning why he’d said so little during the three hour filming).
“My name is Park Haneul.” The girl replied softly, extending her hand towards Changmin.
“Park Haneul?” Changmin questioned his brow furrowing slightly as he twisted in his chair to shake the girls small hand.
“I can’t remember anyone by that name.” He replied lightly, an unreadable look spreading across his face. It almost looked as if he was trying to cover something up.
“That’s okay, I didn’t think you would remember me. We had a few classes together…but we never really talked.” Haneul stated softly as she quickly removed her hand from Changmin’s grasp. She seemed to be slightly saddened by Changmin’s words.
“Oh. Well what brings you here?” Changmin questioned as his gaze strayed down the lithe form of the other's body.
“Oh, I…I work on the boat.” She replied lightly, turning so everyone could see the name-tag pinned to the front of her shirt.
“I’m sorry for bothering you, I just wanted to say hello. It’s not every day that I get to see the famous Shim Changmin.” The girl bowed at her waist before she turned and walked quickly away, her lengthy hair swaying lightly against her small shoulders.
“Aaawwkkkwwaaarrd.” Yoochun cut the silence as he leaned forward to watch the girl stride away. “Do you really not remember her?”
Changmin pursed his lips lightly, his eyes looking out the window that overlooked the ocean.
“The only person I can remember with the name Haneul was a guy.” Changmin replied before biting his lower lip in a thoughtful manner. “He was really quite and feminine. I was the only who really every talked to him.” Changmin explained as he turned his gaze back towards his food.
“There’s no way that was a guy.” Yunho cut in, craning his neck as he tried to catch another glimpse of the “girl”.
“Everything about her was feminine. Small arms and legs, soft voice, no facial hair…a girl through and through.” Yoochun added in a thoughtful voice.
“Sounds like you’re describing Jaejoong.” Changmin added absently, peaking at Jaejoong from the corner of his left eye.
“Yah! I am not that girly!” Jaejoong fired at DBSK’s youngest member, his eyes narrowing in a dark glare.
“At least I’m not the one getting stalked by some secretly gay guy.” Jaejoong shot back, his eyebrows lifting slightly.
“No. You’re just married to an openly gay one.” Changmin responded as if he’d known what Jaejoong was going to say.
“Maybe he had his gender changed.” Junsu suggested, pushing Yoochun--who was standing from his chair trying to spot the girl--back into his seat. “Sit down Yoochun, people are staring at you.”
“They’re just looking at me ‘cause I’m so sexy.” Yoochun stated with a smirk as he leaned in and placed a small kiss of Junsu’s cheek.
“Careful, your fat head might sink the boat.” Junsu shot back with a smirk as he pushed Yoochun away.
“Could we get back to the matter at hand, you two?” Jaejoong questioned as he leaned in towards Changmin.
“So did you two every do…anything?” He questioned, stressing the last word.
Changmin hesitated, his eyes straying everywhere but towards his hyungs.
“No!” The whole table chorused in shock as they watched a blush spread across Changmin’s cheeks.
“Tell us everything!” Jaejoong commanded.
“And don’t leave out the sordid details.” Yoochun added, a look of anticipation whispering across his face.
“We went out.” Changmin stated quickly, seeming to be very interested in his plate of cold pancakes.
“Out? As in a date?” Jaejoong cut in, his eyebrows lifting with a look of slight shock.
“Yes, I took him out on a few dates.” Changmin sighed as he sank further into his chair, a fresh blush creeping across his face.
“Pity dates?” Yunho interrupted, a displeased look spreading across his face.
“I was just being nice to him!” Changmin shot at Yunho. “He was so bullied in our school and the people treated him like trash. I was the only one who would take care of him. So I took him out on a few dates."
“Classic.” Yoochun breathed, nodding his head slightly.
“Did you guys ever kiss?” Junsu asked, a sweet smile pulling at his lips as he imagined Changmin with the smaller boy.
Changmin hesitated slightly, cursing as he felt another blush spread quickly over his face.
“Oh m gosh! You kissed him!” Jaejoong squealed, his eyes wide with excitement as he clapped his hands together like a small child.
“Did you guys go further than kissing?” Yoochun asked, waving his hand to silence the now rapturous Jaejoong.
There was a long pause before Changmin muttered the words, “I slept with him” towards the table top, his whole body seeming to shrink slightly as he got ready for the outburst from his hyungs.
Dead silence fell over the table as four jaws dropped open in tandem. Changmin…Minnie! The one who they had accused of being a virgin for all of thosw years…turned out to be the one who had been deflowered before the rest of them. It was almost too much for them to handle.
“I…can’t…believe this!” Jaejoong squealed, nearly falling out of his seat due to all of his excitement.
“Any of you, “ Changmin turned dark glares on all of them, “breath a word of this during any interview or concert or anything like that, I’ll spill all your darkest secrets to the world.” The youngest member threatened, making sure he cast a meaningful glance at Jaejoong, the notorious “loose-lips” of the group.
“We won’t breathe a word of it!” Junsu promised as he leaned in slightly, a soft smile pulling at his lips, “did you two continue to date after you slept together?”
“Did you fall in love?” Yunho asked with a dreamy smile.
“More importantly, did you sleep with him more than once?” Jaejoong asked, drawing attention away from Yunho who still seemed to be off in his own little world.
Changmin sighed as he ran a hand through his hair, his eyes shutting briefly before he began to speak, “yeah, I did fall in love with him, and whether or not I slept with him again, really doesn’t concern you.”
“Oh, they did it more than once!” Yoochun laughed.
“Yah, keep it down!” Changmin growled, reaching across the table to shove Yoochun.
“Did anyone at the school know you two were dating?” Yunho questioned, finally rejoining the group to interrogate Changmin.
Changmin relaxed into his chair, a long sigh pushing past his lips as he thought back to his time in high school. It had been a relatively normal part of his life until he’d met Park Haneul. Everything had spiraled out of control when he’d found himself becoming attracted to the smaller boy. Changmin recalled locking himself in his room whenever thoughts of the other boy filled his mind. He found himself becoming obsessed with the younger boy. He even went so far as to take extra classes just so he could see Haneul for longer periods of time.
When he’d finally worked up the guts to ask Haneul out on the pretence of “hanging out”, Changmin realized that just being friends would never be enough. So he confessed to Haneul and things unfolded from there.
“Changmin?” Yunho questioned, waving his hand in front of Changmin’s distant looking face.
“What?”
“Did the school ever find out about the two of you?” Yunho questioned again, his eyebrows arching slightly.
“Oh, no. Haneul understood that if anyone knew about us it would ruin my future as a singer. So we kept the relationship private and just told everyone we were friends. Granted, there were a lot, and I mean a lot, of rumors about us, but no one could ever find anything to back those rumors up. so it was never proven that we were in a relationship.” Changmin stated thoughtfully as he tried to recall every detail of his first relationship with a guy.
“That’s so romantic.” Yunho sighed, resting his elbow against the table before placing his chin in his palm.
Everyone cast Yunho a bemused look before they turned their attention back onto Changmin.
“Why did you two breakup?” Jaejoong questioned as he cocked his head to the left slightly.
“He moved to America and I debuted in DBSK; that’s the only reason things ended between us.” Changmin sighed, a sorrowful look spreading across his face.
“Oh my gosh! Why didn’t you say anything to him while he was here?” Jaejoong asked in a shocked voice, his eyes open wide.
“What good would it do?” Changmin asked in a dejected voice, his eyes shifting back to the table-top, “I don’t want to drag up painful memories and it’s not like there could ever be anything between us…not with me in DBSK.”
The table fell silent as everyone watched Changmin pull in a long breath and let it out slowly. They had never seen him so affected by anything before. It would seem that there little Min had gone through more trails in his life than he let on.