If I Could Be (I Would Be Yours) [1/3]
Title: If I Could Be (I Would Be Yours) [1/3]
Author: Sum3r
Pairing: Yunho/Changmin
Rating: G - NC-17
Disclaimer: Plot is mine. Characters aren't. All terms/references from dictionary.law.com
Summary: Yunho is one of Seoul's top lawyers ever since he graduated from law school. Now, four years later, he's about to take on a case with an opposing lawyer who's quickly rising on top and making him question what and who he's fighting for.
Inspired by:
kurogoma who gave me this idea of a lawyer!fic with opposing sides and it just got me hooked. It's completely her fault.
Beta'd by: the amazing
sly_pantera (thank you!)
[A/N]: Now let's all pretend that Seoul's law system is similar to the U.S.... :D!
If I Could Be (I Would Be Yours)
“Now, in this contract-let’s label it exhibit A-did she or did she not sign and date it underneath your signature?” He showed the contract-stupid, stupid piece of paper-to both the jury and the judge before passing it to the bailiff. Yunho gritted his teeth as Changmin smiled, a smug, upward lip I-won smirk that grated on his nerves, before turning back to the witness.
The man leaned forward on the stand, sneering, and simply said, “She did.”
“Nothing further said.”
--------------------------------------
“Fuck!” Yunho slammed the glass door behind him as he threw his papers on his desk, slipping off into the wastebasket and onto the floor. He rubbed his temples as he began pacing back and forth, the worn markings on the carpet indicating his habitual act. He tried to calm down but thoughts of that fucking jackass invaded his mind like some sort of disease, spreading and overriding his normal thought processes until his blood boiled and all he could come up with were ideas on how to demolish his composed and nonchalant demeanor.
Junsu slipped through the doors silently, drink in hand. As Yunho turned around sharply, the younger man thrust the drink into his hand, making a drinking motion with his own hands in the hope that Yunho would follow. Taking the hint, Yunho threw back his head and drank it in one shot, wincing at the bitter taste.
Yunho wanted to ask him what he had just drunk, but he didn’t think he could talk without cursing every other word. He breathed deeply instead, closing his eyes as he focused on in and out, in and out, in and-
[Flashback - 3 Weeks Ago]
Yoochun clasped Yunho’s right shoulder and pressed down as he said, “Don’t sweat it, okay? Just relax; you’ve got this one in the bag.” He patted Yunho’s shoulder once more before walking out, leaving Yunho in front of the closed doors of the courtroom to wait for his client. He fidgeted for a moment, fixing his tie and smoothing down his suit jacket, until he heard footsteps from down the hall.
He expected his client as he turned around, but Yunho was almost surprised as the opposing attorney walked down the hallway. Because of his tailored suit, Yunho could tell that his body was lean and his chest was wide, tapering down to narrow hips and long legs that made up more than half his body. His hair was close cropped to his head, and his eyes were obscured by dark plastic eye glasses that perched just at the bridge of his nose. But it was his lips that affected Yunho, lips turned up at one end in a smirk, exuding confidence as though he had already won the case.
The silence was still, and the air around them almost crackled as it sparked with tension. Neither of them was willing to break eye contact as they sized each other up. Yunho bristled with poorly-repressed anger as Changmin’s usually impassive face now seethed with annoyance.
It wasn’t until a gentle hand touched Yunho’s clenched fist that they broke apart from their strange game. He glanced off to the side and noticed his client and her daughter watching him.
His client smiled softly, nodding to the closed doors as if asking for permission. Yunho immediately took it upon himself to open the doors and let her in, with Changmin and his own client following close behind.
--------------------------------------
“Objection, your honor!” Yunho slammed his palms on the desk, and Changmin hardly spared him a glance, his entire focus on the witness on stand.
“Objection overruled.” The judge waved a passive hand at the older man as he watched the proceedings with a keen eye. Gritting his teeth, Yunho sat back down, his left leg bobbing up and down as he covered his chin with his right hand and watched the younger boy.
“Now,” said Changmin, his voice gentle as if he were coaxing a child, “you’ve been together with your wife for how many years? Eleven, is that right?” The man nodded, glancing over to his wife, her face pale and her lower lip trembling, sitting next to Yunho.
“And on the day of October sixteenth, at eight pm, where were you?”
“In the kitchen, making a sandwich, which of course she couldn’t do, using the excuse that she was tired or some shit like that.” His wife turned to Yunho, shaking her head and mouthing no. Her eyes were filled with unshed tears. Yunho merely nodded reassuringly, but a part of himself became anxious that he might just lose this one.
“You were taking care of your child, am I correct? Min-sung? So while Min-sung was watching television, and you were making a sandwich, your wife came in and…
“…And she lifted up the kitchen knife and almost fucking killed me, that bit-”
“That’s enough,” Changmin interceded, stopping the man from talking any further. “Thank you for your time.”
By the time the court session had ended, Yunho was ready to kill something. Had he reflected further, he might have realized that, in the four years he’d been in his field, that had been the first time he was truly angry. His client, withdrawn as she shakily wrapped her shawl around herself, had shed a tear or two by the time they had stormed out.
“He was beating her-I couldn’t just let him treat her the same way he treats-”
“Shhh.” Yunho gently touched her arm as she leaned towards him. “I know,” he continued, “but the evidence isn’t enough and since your daughter won’t testify-”
“I can’t,” she whispered, turning to face him as she stood before her car. “What mother would have her daughter throw her father in prison, no matter how bad he is? She’s only ten, Mr. Jung, and I just-”
Yunho covered her clasped hands with his own, noting the way her hands shook. “I will do my best,” he assured softly. “If we can’t push this case, then we can re-file and try second-degree murder, but we will find him guilty and assure that you-”
She shook her head, cutting off Yunho’s words as she told him, “I don’t care about myself. I just…I just don’t want her to end up with him. If he takes custody of her, then I don’t-I don’t know what I’d do…”
Yunho grimaced, his hands still covering hers, as thoughts and plans and ideas about the case raced through his mind.
[End/Flashback]
Yunho opened his eyes and watched Junsu shuffled in and out, setting down boxes and files all over his room.
“And this,” he said, breathing heavy as he laid down a large cardboard box, “is everything I could find on second-degree murders, emancipation, and parens patriae, which I think you could still use, since her asthma counts as a disability.”
Yunho took one of the files laying on his desk and began to flip through it, concentrating on the subject at hand. “We can’t-not enough substantial evidence that her well-being as an asthma patient is in jeopardy.”
Junsu snorted, sitting on the floor as he began opening up the boxes and taking out the files. “Being with that asshole of a father is being in jeopardy, let me tell you that,” he muttered under his breath.
Yunho barely heard him, his eyes taking in page after page of files and cases and official statements. “We’ve already had two court days, and we only have two more to go before we do a closing statement. We need to find something, and we need to do it fast.”
Hours later, Yunho was still sitting in his chair, files scattered all around him, hands covered with black ink. His mug was half-filled with black coffee, and his dinner was left cold, perched on the corner of his desk. Junsu came in occasionally as the night wore on, mentioning different cases, refilling his mug with coffee, or simply massaging his shoulders.
[The Next Day]
“Sir.” Yunho shifted, mumbling something unintelligible as he sunk deeper into the couch and turned his back to the noise. Junsu leaned over him and shook his shoulder again. “Sir,” he said more urgently, “Yunho!”
“Wha-Did…?” Yunho jerked up, eyes half-lidded in sleep. He wiped the saliva on his cheek and rubbed his face with his hands in a futile attempt to wake himself up.
Yunho shifted and stood up on unsteady feet, yawning as he stretched. He’d hardly gotten any sleep; his crinkled suit and the dark rings beneath his eyes were evidence of that. He only opened his eyes when he reached out blindly, and Junsu pressed a mug of fresh coffee into his palm.
“Have I ever told you how amazing you are?” Yunho asked. His voice was hoarse and deep as he took a sip from his mug, and his shoulders visibly relaxed as he inhaled the distinct scent. But with each sip, Yunho regained a little more of his senses, and his shoulders began to tense up again at thoughts about the case, the subject, and-
“Every day,” Junsu replied, grinning as Yunho followed him out the door. He was heading to his own desk outside Yunho’s office when he heard the older man’s voice.
“I want everything and anything you can find out about Shim Changmin-and I want it on my desk by this afternoon.”
Junsu raised an eyebrow at his employer, but Yunho ignored him as he slammed the door shut.
[A Few Hours Later]
“Shim Changmin, age twenty-four,” Junsu recited, watching Yunho with a small smile. Yunho merely eyed the computer screen as Junsu continued to list facts. “Graduated last year, has been on only a handful of cases, and has won every single one. LSAT score was 17…”
“Yes, yes,” Yunho snapped, cutting off the rest of Junsu’s words, “so he’s a clever rookie with a lucky streak, so what?”
Junsu sniffed, spinning his chair around to turn his back to the older man. “Don’t get snide with me. I’m on your side. Plus,” he said, and he whirled around again, facing Yunho with an infectious grin, “I’m not the one having romantic issues around here.”
“It’s not a romantic issue,” barked the older man, turning away from Junsu’s desk. “The kid just gets under my skin, that’s all. Cocky mother fucker-”
Junsu returned to work, his smile widening. “Whatever you say, boss. Whatever you say.”
--------------------------------------
To claim Shim Changmin always knew what he was doing was a complete lie. However, to say that he was intelligent, that he won his first few cases through hard work and determination rather than beginners’ luck, and to say that he walked out of his house everyday with sheer self-confidence was the absolute truth.
He was idealistic. It was reality that made him who he was today, reality with its clear cut conclusions and its harsh condemnations that made him turn to Plato when Socrates and his idiotic questions couldn’t help him.
But for some reason Changmin just couldn’t get him out of his mind. Where’s Plato when you need him? Oh wait-maybe he’d just say that he was an illusion of his ideal self and not worth thinking about…
“Changmin? Changmin…?” Bom snapped her fingers in front of the younger man’s face. “Changmin!”
“Wha-?!” Changmin immediately broke out of his thoughts, and he turned to look at his assistant.
“Pay attention,” she said sternly, “I haven’t seen you this lost in a while. Are you sure you’re alright?” She’d been with him ever since he joined his firm, and everyone in the building knew that she took care of him like a little brother.
“I’m fine,” Changmin replied irritably, as he glanced down at the files, still unopened, on his desk. “It’s just-he looks at me like…like…”
“Like every other college student did when you graduated with top marks? Or the assholes in this firm who still think you don’t belong here?” she supplied. Changmin scowled but nodded, knowing full well that she was right. She smiled to herself, shaking her head as she picked up the coffee pot and poured some into a mug before adding milk and sugar. “I thought you treated him like you treat every opposing attorney?”
“I did,” he said, “but he’s exactly the type of person that I hate-he probably thinks the law can be easily bended to his whim. I bet he’s laughing to himself right now, thinking he’s going to win this one without breaking a sweat.” Irritably, Changmin ran a hand through his air as he mumbled, “…not gonna let that happen though… asshole’s going to break more than sweat after I’m done with him…”
Bom sighed, setting the cup on the desk only for it to be picked up by Changmin a second later. Lost in the files before him, Changmin barely heard the door closing as Bom let herself out of his office.
--------------------------------------
*Second Degree Murder: A non-premeditated killing, resulting from an assault in which death of the victim was a distinct possibility.
*Emancipation: Freeing a minor child from the control of parents and allowing the minor to live on his/her own or under the control of others.
*Parens patriae: The term for the doctrine that the government is the ultimate guardian of all people under a disability, especially children, whose care is only "entrusted" to their parents.
[A/N]: Well, this was certainly interesting to write :D! I researched most of the references, but if there's anything I'm mistaken about, please don't hesitate to tell me. Comments and questions/critiques are loved :)!
Author: Sum3r
Pairing: Yunho/Changmin
Rating: G - NC-17
Disclaimer: Plot is mine. Characters aren't. All terms/references from dictionary.law.com
Summary: Yunho is one of Seoul's top lawyers ever since he graduated from law school. Now, four years later, he's about to take on a case with an opposing lawyer who's quickly rising on top and making him question what and who he's fighting for.
Inspired by:
kurogoma who gave me this idea of a lawyer!fic with opposing sides and it just got me hooked. It's completely her fault.
Beta'd by: the amazing
sly_pantera (thank you!)
[A/N]: Now let's all pretend that Seoul's law system is similar to the U.S.... :D!
If I Could Be (I Would Be Yours)
“Now, in this contract-let’s label it exhibit A-did she or did she not sign and date it underneath your signature?” He showed the contract-stupid, stupid piece of paper-to both the jury and the judge before passing it to the bailiff. Yunho gritted his teeth as Changmin smiled, a smug, upward lip I-won smirk that grated on his nerves, before turning back to the witness.
The man leaned forward on the stand, sneering, and simply said, “She did.”
“Nothing further said.”
--------------------------------------
“Fuck!” Yunho slammed the glass door behind him as he threw his papers on his desk, slipping off into the wastebasket and onto the floor. He rubbed his temples as he began pacing back and forth, the worn markings on the carpet indicating his habitual act. He tried to calm down but thoughts of that fucking jackass invaded his mind like some sort of disease, spreading and overriding his normal thought processes until his blood boiled and all he could come up with were ideas on how to demolish his composed and nonchalant demeanor.
Junsu slipped through the doors silently, drink in hand. As Yunho turned around sharply, the younger man thrust the drink into his hand, making a drinking motion with his own hands in the hope that Yunho would follow. Taking the hint, Yunho threw back his head and drank it in one shot, wincing at the bitter taste.
Yunho wanted to ask him what he had just drunk, but he didn’t think he could talk without cursing every other word. He breathed deeply instead, closing his eyes as he focused on in and out, in and out, in and-
[Flashback - 3 Weeks Ago]
Yoochun clasped Yunho’s right shoulder and pressed down as he said, “Don’t sweat it, okay? Just relax; you’ve got this one in the bag.” He patted Yunho’s shoulder once more before walking out, leaving Yunho in front of the closed doors of the courtroom to wait for his client. He fidgeted for a moment, fixing his tie and smoothing down his suit jacket, until he heard footsteps from down the hall.
He expected his client as he turned around, but Yunho was almost surprised as the opposing attorney walked down the hallway. Because of his tailored suit, Yunho could tell that his body was lean and his chest was wide, tapering down to narrow hips and long legs that made up more than half his body. His hair was close cropped to his head, and his eyes were obscured by dark plastic eye glasses that perched just at the bridge of his nose. But it was his lips that affected Yunho, lips turned up at one end in a smirk, exuding confidence as though he had already won the case.
The silence was still, and the air around them almost crackled as it sparked with tension. Neither of them was willing to break eye contact as they sized each other up. Yunho bristled with poorly-repressed anger as Changmin’s usually impassive face now seethed with annoyance.
It wasn’t until a gentle hand touched Yunho’s clenched fist that they broke apart from their strange game. He glanced off to the side and noticed his client and her daughter watching him.
His client smiled softly, nodding to the closed doors as if asking for permission. Yunho immediately took it upon himself to open the doors and let her in, with Changmin and his own client following close behind.
--------------------------------------
“Objection, your honor!” Yunho slammed his palms on the desk, and Changmin hardly spared him a glance, his entire focus on the witness on stand.
“Objection overruled.” The judge waved a passive hand at the older man as he watched the proceedings with a keen eye. Gritting his teeth, Yunho sat back down, his left leg bobbing up and down as he covered his chin with his right hand and watched the younger boy.
“Now,” said Changmin, his voice gentle as if he were coaxing a child, “you’ve been together with your wife for how many years? Eleven, is that right?” The man nodded, glancing over to his wife, her face pale and her lower lip trembling, sitting next to Yunho.
“And on the day of October sixteenth, at eight pm, where were you?”
“In the kitchen, making a sandwich, which of course she couldn’t do, using the excuse that she was tired or some shit like that.” His wife turned to Yunho, shaking her head and mouthing no. Her eyes were filled with unshed tears. Yunho merely nodded reassuringly, but a part of himself became anxious that he might just lose this one.
“You were taking care of your child, am I correct? Min-sung? So while Min-sung was watching television, and you were making a sandwich, your wife came in and…
“…And she lifted up the kitchen knife and almost fucking killed me, that bit-”
“That’s enough,” Changmin interceded, stopping the man from talking any further. “Thank you for your time.”
By the time the court session had ended, Yunho was ready to kill something. Had he reflected further, he might have realized that, in the four years he’d been in his field, that had been the first time he was truly angry. His client, withdrawn as she shakily wrapped her shawl around herself, had shed a tear or two by the time they had stormed out.
“He was beating her-I couldn’t just let him treat her the same way he treats-”
“Shhh.” Yunho gently touched her arm as she leaned towards him. “I know,” he continued, “but the evidence isn’t enough and since your daughter won’t testify-”
“I can’t,” she whispered, turning to face him as she stood before her car. “What mother would have her daughter throw her father in prison, no matter how bad he is? She’s only ten, Mr. Jung, and I just-”
Yunho covered her clasped hands with his own, noting the way her hands shook. “I will do my best,” he assured softly. “If we can’t push this case, then we can re-file and try second-degree murder, but we will find him guilty and assure that you-”
She shook her head, cutting off Yunho’s words as she told him, “I don’t care about myself. I just…I just don’t want her to end up with him. If he takes custody of her, then I don’t-I don’t know what I’d do…”
Yunho grimaced, his hands still covering hers, as thoughts and plans and ideas about the case raced through his mind.
[End/Flashback]
Yunho opened his eyes and watched Junsu shuffled in and out, setting down boxes and files all over his room.
“And this,” he said, breathing heavy as he laid down a large cardboard box, “is everything I could find on second-degree murders, emancipation, and parens patriae, which I think you could still use, since her asthma counts as a disability.”
Yunho took one of the files laying on his desk and began to flip through it, concentrating on the subject at hand. “We can’t-not enough substantial evidence that her well-being as an asthma patient is in jeopardy.”
Junsu snorted, sitting on the floor as he began opening up the boxes and taking out the files. “Being with that asshole of a father is being in jeopardy, let me tell you that,” he muttered under his breath.
Yunho barely heard him, his eyes taking in page after page of files and cases and official statements. “We’ve already had two court days, and we only have two more to go before we do a closing statement. We need to find something, and we need to do it fast.”
Hours later, Yunho was still sitting in his chair, files scattered all around him, hands covered with black ink. His mug was half-filled with black coffee, and his dinner was left cold, perched on the corner of his desk. Junsu came in occasionally as the night wore on, mentioning different cases, refilling his mug with coffee, or simply massaging his shoulders.
[The Next Day]
“Sir.” Yunho shifted, mumbling something unintelligible as he sunk deeper into the couch and turned his back to the noise. Junsu leaned over him and shook his shoulder again. “Sir,” he said more urgently, “Yunho!”
“Wha-Did…?” Yunho jerked up, eyes half-lidded in sleep. He wiped the saliva on his cheek and rubbed his face with his hands in a futile attempt to wake himself up.
Yunho shifted and stood up on unsteady feet, yawning as he stretched. He’d hardly gotten any sleep; his crinkled suit and the dark rings beneath his eyes were evidence of that. He only opened his eyes when he reached out blindly, and Junsu pressed a mug of fresh coffee into his palm.
“Have I ever told you how amazing you are?” Yunho asked. His voice was hoarse and deep as he took a sip from his mug, and his shoulders visibly relaxed as he inhaled the distinct scent. But with each sip, Yunho regained a little more of his senses, and his shoulders began to tense up again at thoughts about the case, the subject, and-
“Every day,” Junsu replied, grinning as Yunho followed him out the door. He was heading to his own desk outside Yunho’s office when he heard the older man’s voice.
“I want everything and anything you can find out about Shim Changmin-and I want it on my desk by this afternoon.”
Junsu raised an eyebrow at his employer, but Yunho ignored him as he slammed the door shut.
[A Few Hours Later]
“Shim Changmin, age twenty-four,” Junsu recited, watching Yunho with a small smile. Yunho merely eyed the computer screen as Junsu continued to list facts. “Graduated last year, has been on only a handful of cases, and has won every single one. LSAT score was 17…”
“Yes, yes,” Yunho snapped, cutting off the rest of Junsu’s words, “so he’s a clever rookie with a lucky streak, so what?”
Junsu sniffed, spinning his chair around to turn his back to the older man. “Don’t get snide with me. I’m on your side. Plus,” he said, and he whirled around again, facing Yunho with an infectious grin, “I’m not the one having romantic issues around here.”
“It’s not a romantic issue,” barked the older man, turning away from Junsu’s desk. “The kid just gets under my skin, that’s all. Cocky mother fucker-”
Junsu returned to work, his smile widening. “Whatever you say, boss. Whatever you say.”
--------------------------------------
To claim Shim Changmin always knew what he was doing was a complete lie. However, to say that he was intelligent, that he won his first few cases through hard work and determination rather than beginners’ luck, and to say that he walked out of his house everyday with sheer self-confidence was the absolute truth.
He was idealistic. It was reality that made him who he was today, reality with its clear cut conclusions and its harsh condemnations that made him turn to Plato when Socrates and his idiotic questions couldn’t help him.
But for some reason Changmin just couldn’t get him out of his mind. Where’s Plato when you need him? Oh wait-maybe he’d just say that he was an illusion of his ideal self and not worth thinking about…
“Changmin? Changmin…?” Bom snapped her fingers in front of the younger man’s face. “Changmin!”
“Wha-?!” Changmin immediately broke out of his thoughts, and he turned to look at his assistant.
“Pay attention,” she said sternly, “I haven’t seen you this lost in a while. Are you sure you’re alright?” She’d been with him ever since he joined his firm, and everyone in the building knew that she took care of him like a little brother.
“I’m fine,” Changmin replied irritably, as he glanced down at the files, still unopened, on his desk. “It’s just-he looks at me like…like…”
“Like every other college student did when you graduated with top marks? Or the assholes in this firm who still think you don’t belong here?” she supplied. Changmin scowled but nodded, knowing full well that she was right. She smiled to herself, shaking her head as she picked up the coffee pot and poured some into a mug before adding milk and sugar. “I thought you treated him like you treat every opposing attorney?”
“I did,” he said, “but he’s exactly the type of person that I hate-he probably thinks the law can be easily bended to his whim. I bet he’s laughing to himself right now, thinking he’s going to win this one without breaking a sweat.” Irritably, Changmin ran a hand through his air as he mumbled, “…not gonna let that happen though… asshole’s going to break more than sweat after I’m done with him…”
Bom sighed, setting the cup on the desk only for it to be picked up by Changmin a second later. Lost in the files before him, Changmin barely heard the door closing as Bom let herself out of his office.
--------------------------------------
*Second Degree Murder: A non-premeditated killing, resulting from an assault in which death of the victim was a distinct possibility.
*Emancipation: Freeing a minor child from the control of parents and allowing the minor to live on his/her own or under the control of others.
*Parens patriae: The term for the doctrine that the government is the ultimate guardian of all people under a disability, especially children, whose care is only "entrusted" to their parents.
[A/N]: Well, this was certainly interesting to write :D! I researched most of the references, but if there's anything I'm mistaken about, please don't hesitate to tell me. Comments and questions/critiques are loved :)!