Meant For Someone Else, Chapter 13

Dec 13, 2009 17:32

Title: Meant For Someone Else
Pairings: YooSe but after much deliberation, all pairings are now regarded equally.
Genre: Angst, Romance
Rating: Pg-13 for language
Summary: Kim Corporation and Park Enterprises are two of the most powerful businesses in South Korea. What happens when the heir to one empire gets married to the daughter of the other? Worse yet--what happens when the groom doesn't fall in love with the bride...but with her BROTHER?

A/N: a shout out to redorangeako for being such a sweetie recently. You’ve been so encouraging recently that I just had to post! :D



CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Today was a very big day, Junsu couldn’t help but think. As he stood staring at his reflection in the mirror of the private bathroom of his office, he was mildly surprised at the very few thoughts that entered his head. This was a milestone for the company, as well as for him. It was the first major decision he’d be making as the President of Kim Corporation and he’d worked very hard to make it a good one. Most people would wonder why a hotel chain would merge with an electronics manufacturer, but Park Enterprises hadn’t been Junsu’s first choice. His father was a tried and true businessman, and Junsu would think twice before questioning his suggestions. Still, it was his name that was now engraved on the heavy copper nameplate, as well as on the door, and he’d do his best to be worthy his title.

Junsu stared critically at his reflection, noting the dark eye circles and slightly haggard appearance. Fatigue and stress were a few things that money and an expensive suit could never hide. To think, it was only the beginning. Preparing for the transfers was one thing, but having it actually done and getting people settled into their proper places would be another migraine added to the one already making itself known at the back of his head.

In his own way, he’d always enjoyed business. It was a family thing, and over the years, he believed it had become his calling. He was good at it, to an extent, could manage the inner workings of a company as competently and efficiently as any old timer in the business. However, there were times when he couldn’t help but think that maybe he just wasn’t cut out for the office. He remembered a time growing up when budget meetings and financial reports weren’t his priority, but more of a hobby. He remembered soccer, and music, and video games, and doing nothing but still dreaming big.

Now, there was responsibility, and family duty, and not just himself to think about. Those things he didn’t mind, didn’t resent because he knew his place, knew what had to be done and willing to do it. But he couldn’t help but…wish sometimes. Wish for what, he didn’t know, but he saw Park Yoochun-no, just Yoochun now-and couldn’t help but think that somewhere along the way, he’d missed something. Something important, something like the key to his happiness or maybe the cure for his discontent. Maybe that’s why he didn’t like the other man. Not because he was rude and hostile first. Not because he had the lazy disposition of someone who got everything he wanted without working hard. But because Junsu looked into those dark, mysterious eyes and saw something he hadn’t seen in himself for a long, long time.

If Park Yoochun was half-full, then surely, Kim Junsu was half-empty.

--

“I hate you.”

And that was Jaejoong hyung for you, Yoochun thought. Direct to a fault. “I’ll take that as a compliment. I’ve seen how you treat the people you love.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” the elder glared, dark eyes made more piercing against his pale face and light suit.

“It means that Changmin’s One -Touch means more than just one touch.” Yoochun scampered away before the other man could respond with a one-touch of his own. There were desks and chairs in the way however, so he didn’t have far to go. He’d leave Jaejoong’s office if he could, but there’d be hell to pay if he didn’t help pack, the older man still mad at him for the transfer.

“I will ignore that comment and spare your life for the betterment of the company and my child.”

“Exactly,” Yoochun grinned, packing a few more of Jaejoong’s personal effects into a medium-sized box on his desk. “Think of the child, hyung.”

“Less with the talking and more with the physical labor,” Jaejoong commanded, watching gleefully as Yoochun hurriedly complied. “We wouldn’t even be having this conversation if you hadn’t let your brain rot with the horrendous amount of caffeine you imbibe. What possessed you to transfer me anyway?”

Yoochun shrugged, the movement akward as he did while bending over to pick up more stuff. “It was either you or me, so it’s you.”

“Was that supposed to make sense?” the older man said sardonically after a moment’s pause. “Did it not occur to you that I have a child, and that by transferring me you would be uprooting the delicate balance of our daily life?”

“Was that supposed to make sense?” Yoochun scoffed. “I’m pretty sure that’s a run-on sentence in the making.”

“You didn’t answer the question.”

“Did it occur to you that maybe that was the point? Look, hyung,” Yoochun straightened, weariness lining his usually untroubled features. “I know it’s a big adjustment, and I know it’s going to be hard for you and Ji Yool. But you and I know that I’ve got to stay with the company. We can’t make it look like we’re weak, or else our competitors are going to think up more crazy-ass rumors like I’m sleeping with the Head of Security at Kim Corporation or whatever. Most of them already think we’re fucking half the industry. We just can’t have any more of those rumors flying around. It would hurt the merger and make it completely pointless if we don’t gain anything financially.”

“If only financial status was the only thing we’re looking at.” Jaejoong pinned the younger man with a piercing glare, knowing laced with his own irritation strengthening the angry gaze. “But both you and I know that that isn’t the case. Face it Yoochun, you’re treating something that should have been a simple business transaction like it’s the fucking end of the world. You forget soulmate, that I know you better than yourself. Do us both a favor and stop lying. To me. To you. To whoever. But if you’re really thinking about the betterment of the company, then get your head out of whatever delusions you’ve spun for yourself.”

A silence ensued, one of those awkward moments where words don’t belong. It’s a rare one between them and it didn’t feel right-shouldn’t feel right, not between them. They’d been through too much shit together for things like that-soulmates. But over time, they’d kept more and more from each other and right now, they were no longer on the same page. It made that instant premonition between them weak and not as potent. It was a shame and it ached, but Yoochun knew he wasn’t blameless. Neither was Jaejoong.

His hyung was right of course. He’d taken things too seriously, didn’t think things through, hadn’t based his decisions for the good of the company. But it didn’t mean he had to talk about it. Didn’t want to and shouldn’t have to, no matter how well-meaning Jaejoong might have been.

“Did you want anything else to go into this box?” he asked, making to close the cardboard and looking anywhere but at the other man.

A heart beat. And then, “Yoochun-”

“If there’s nothing else, I think I’ll go find someone who can take these down,” Yoochun said abruptly, straightening and trying not to meet Jaejoong’s prying gaze. He sent a look of his own, hoping the elder understood. Not now, please.

Nothing else was said as he left the room and Yoochun didn’t look back. There were just some things you didn’t talk about, and for Yoochun, this was one of them. It was a touchy subject for him, rubbed raw with more than a little guilt and other things he couldn’t even begin to face. He needed time: time to get over himself, to sit back and regroup, rethink his decisions so that he could mend the mistakes he’d made and make better choices with a cooled head.

It was one of the reasons he’d decided that Jaejoong should go and for Changmin and himself to stay. It’s not that the older man wasn’t trustworthy-if anything happened to Yoochun, Jaejoong was more than capable of running the company single-handedly-it’s that Yoochun wasn’t.

He didn’t trust what he’d do in such close vicinity with the object of his current obsession. He might make more decisions that would jeopardize the company and that was something Yoochun didn’t want to do. His people depended on him, worked and appreciated his efforts to make their jobs as fulfilling and worthy as possible. It was a faith; a trust he never wanted to break. And he’d be damned if he let a nearly-fanatical preoccupation with Kim Junsu get in the way of his obligations.

But they were.

And so Jaejoong hyung it was.

The older man, no matter how blunt and daunting his demeanor, was tender of heart and if Yoochun was a little more honest with him like he was in the past, he knew Jaejoong would move planets and the universe just to help him. If only he could understand that Yoochun had to do this alone. It was time he stopped depending on his soulmate so much. No matter how alike they were, they were still different. They had different obligations and priorities that the other just wouldn’t understand. If Jaejoong stayed, Yoochun would be babied, cajoled into telling the man what exactly was troubling him-and he couldn’t do that. Not when Yoochun himself knew.

But if Jaejoong went…he’d be stuck with Changmin, the ever blunt dongsaeng who would take none of his crap. Who didn’t have the patience for his antics, who wouldn’t condone any of his vices. Yoochun needed someone who could whip his ass into line, someone who’d never give him an inch, simply because he knew Yoochun would take a mile. It was exactly what Yoochun needed. Changmin would unknowingly provide him with the focus and determination to put himself back into place and get everything back into perspective. At least he hoped Changmin would. Because if he didn’t, then the fate of more than one company (and Yoochun’s sanity) would be on the line.

--

“Knock, knock,” Hye Bin called, eyes searching amid the stacks of boxes for a familiar head. “Oppa?” She entered sure of her welcome but uncertain if anyone was there. She let her eyes wander, taking in the large office, decorated in muted colors. It looked much like any other office, equipped with a desk, chairs, a small chaise, and a view of the city. It was bigger than the rest, but not as big as Junsu’s. It was on a different floor too, right below the executive level, so she didn’t need an appointment or cleared access just to get in.

The place was still in a state or organized chaos, but she nonetheless noticed the little things that made just an office into Jaejoong’s office. Piles of bubble wrapped frames were on the desk, no doubt countless pictures of friends and family. Small trinkets clumsily, yet lovingly made with tiny hands dotted the shelves, filling them up with remnants of home rather than business accolades and certificates. A vase she’d personally handpicked years ago was filled with an arrangement of lovely white roses. The flowers stuck out from the subdued colors of the office, a splash of stark white in the midst of all that dark. She liked it, the contrast mirroring the office’s new occupant perfectly.

A sharp rap against the open frame of the door had her spinning around, feeling caught, like she shouldn’t have been in there.

“Hye Bin-sshi?” Yunho said, surprised to see Junsu’s pretty wife. “Is Jaejoong-sshi here?”

“No, I don’t think he is,” she said, cringing inwardly after a second to realize she was stating the obvious. “Are you looking for him too?”

“Yes,” Yunho nodded, coming further into the room. “There’s a small gathering in the employee’s lounge to welcome him. Everyone’s invited, you should go too.”

Hye Bin made a noise of consent, willing herself to go, but reluctant to leave her reminiscing. It had been such a long time since she’d seen a familiar face and now, just being surrounded by Jaejoong’s presence made her nostalgic for old times.

“He’s very neat isn’t he?” Yunho commented, noticing Hye Bin’s hesitance to leave.

Hye Bin smiled, looking around at the mounds of bubble wrapped belongings grouped at different corners, waiting to be sorted later. “That’s an understatement. He cleans better than most women I know.”

It was an odd thought, one that Yunho couldn’t seem to match with the pale beauty with cold eyes and a freezing stare he’d dined with. His first impression of Kim Jaejoong had been a searing phone call full of innuendos and silent, half-made promises. His second impression of the man, watching him eat stoically across a table, made Yunho sure that it was all just in his head. And now, Yunho didn’t know what side he’d be faced with.

“Why thank you,” a new voice sounded from the door, surprising both of them. “Although, I don’t know if I should be flattered or insulted.” Jaejoong sauntered in, expression curious but amiable. “I thought the party was in the lounge; what are the two of you doing in here?” The question wasn’t addressed to anyone in general, but Yunho had a feeling it wasn’t directed at him. The handsome man enveloped Hye Bin into a warm hug before turning cool eyes onto Yunho’s person.

“Ah, Jaejoong-sshi, I came to tell you about your welcoming party at the lounge. Everyone’s expecting you.” With a tiny bit of difficulty that he’d never admit to, Yunho met Jaejoong’s unreadable stare with one of his own. While the other man was in no way projecting hostility, Yunho couldn’t help but be wary around him. Kim Jaejoong was too mysterious and unpredictable for Yunho’s liking.

“I know about it now, so shall we?” he gestured towards the door, the movement more fluid rather than graceful. Hye Bin followed without a second thought and completely missed the way Jaejoong’s eyes never left Yunho’s face. Yunho, on the other hand, was aware and would have been uncomfortable with it-if he wasn’t so captured, that is.

There was something in the way their gazes never wavered, how Jaejoong’s eyes lingered on his before leading the way out the door. Like there were secrets in those dark eyes, beckoning for Yunho to come and uncover them. If it had been anyone else, Yunho would have taken it for a blatant invitation. Then again, this was Kim Jaejoong and Yunho still didn’t know what face he was being given.

But it wouldn’t stop him from trying to find out.

A/N: so. I haven’t updated this fic in the longest time and I feel so guilty! I used to update regularly, but…idk, I guess RL caught up with me. I used to be a bum, srsly, but I’ve started college now and it’s a lot more time consuming than I thought -_-“ err-so, this chapter has been written for a while now, but I never got to post it. It completely slipped my mind. But the next one is already half way done.

Exams are like, this coming weekend and then after that its Christmas break, so I should have plenty of time to update all of my fics and possibly post a one shot that I’ve been working on. It’s somewhat a sequel to another one of my one shots, so if you ship HoMin and have read some of my works under that pairing, then here’s the heads up ^^ as always, comments are love :D

chaptered, !meant for someone else, yoochun/junsu

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