[FIC] The Prestige [1/?]
Title: The Prestige
Pairings: Jaeho, Yoosu
Length: Chaptered [1/?]
Author: uknowandiknow
Rating: PG
Genre: AU: Humour, Angst and Drama, in different dosages though
Summary: Ever since his father's death, Jung Yunho has never gone near the art of magic. What happens then when he's made to work with a magician, whose very presence not only evokes memories from his past, but also new feelings from within him?
Everyone was in black, and he was thirteen again. His mother was standing beside him, her sobs the only audible sounds filling the quiet churchyard that Friday morning. He was holding her hand, whilst staring silently at the gravestone of his father. Yes, the world famous magician, Jung Dong Han was dead. Despite the joy and wonder that his acts had brought, not a single smiling face could be seen amongst those present at this sombre affair.
He felt utterly calm at the moment, as though it wasn’t his father’s body that was lying six feet under in the dirt, or that it wasn’t his family who was involved in the media’s speculation that his father’s death wasn’t accidental.
As the pastor read the last words of the blessing, many stepped forward to place a single rose on his father’s grave. He stood still as familiar faces walked up to him and his mother, conveying words of comfort, to which he gave the briefest of smiles, and offering a hug here and there before moving off. The media was there too, but for once they weren’t busy clicking away their photos, or hassling those present for an interview, choosing to respect the silent moment reserved for the highly revered illusionist.
“They were one of the reasons why you never had time for me…” he thought as he looked at his father’s smiling face on the tombstone.
Amidst the large crowd moving off, he saw from the corner of his eye, a boy who looked no older than him. He was dressed in dark jeans, and wearing a long hoodie that seemed too large for his frame. His face was obscured by a cap which was pulled down low, with only a hint of fringe peeking out. The boy was standing apart from the rest, still staring at the grave even as everyone was moving off.
“Must be one of Appa’s followers.” - there were many of them gathered- He thought to himself as he prepared to leave with his mother, whose crying had now subsided and was being led away by both his aunt and himself, his cousin following behind.
Later in the day he returned to the grave. It had been an eventful morning, and he wanted some time alone to figure out how he felt, and what he wanted to do next. He stood in silent contemplation, thoughts and questions filling his mind to the brim, so much that he didn’t see the figure that walked up behind him, sneakers treading the soft grass.
“Excuse me; you’re his son aren’t you?” A soft, yet deep voice sounded. He spun around, surprised that someone was there.
It was the boy from the funeral; the one who looked so out of place with his too-big hoodie and dark jeans. Even till now, he still couldn’t see his eyes, the brim of his cap pulled so low that only a shadow could be seen. He seemed to be holding something in hands as he walked closer.
“Yeah that's right. Who are you?” He replied, curious and yet wary at the same time.
“I have something…which I think should be given to you…” The boy said softly, not answering his question, his steps slowing down to stand in front of the grave, beside him.
“To me? Who are you?” He asked again. Ok, weird factor seriously going up here, he thought to himself.
The boy didn’t reply, instead, he took his hand and placed something small and cold in his palm, closing it before stepping away.
He looked at his closed fist, unsure of what to do. Curiosity was eating at him, urging him to look at the object. Yet, for some reason which he didn’t know why, he felt a strange sense of foreboding towards that object in his hand.
“Well, most people would have taken a look by now.” The boy’s voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts, jolting him back to reality.
Giving a sheepish look, and feeling a small bloom of heat forming at his cheeks, he looked down at his now open palm. What he saw in his hand made his heart stop.
It was his father’s ring. The one he always wore whenever he performed. His “second marriage” ring, as his father had jokingly called it, for he never took it off. This ring was special, as it was made up of two slim rings joined together. One layer had the word “infinitus” and the other, “laetitia” engraved on it which meant endless joy when put together.
It was the phrase constantly used by his father to describe what his work was to him, and what he had hoped to bring to others through his art. Upon reflection now, he realised that it had been missing among the items belonging to his father which the police had returned after his death.
Too surprised to speak, it was a while before he could find his voice. “How…how did you get this?” He looked up, wanting to question the boy further. However, he found himself staring at emptiness.
The boy was gone…-
“Brr-rrr-ring! Brr-rri-ing!”
Jung Yunho woke up with a start. Reaching for the alarm clock on his bedside table, he turned it off and took a look at the time. It read 5.45a.m.
Lying still on his bed, he stared at the white ceiling above him. It was that scene again, the one that had been haunting his dreams for the past few months. Somehow, it would always end with that mysterious boy disappearing before he would wake up for some reason or another. Then, regardless of the time, he would fail to return back to sleep, the boy, plus the image of the ring filling his thoughts.
Knowing that trying to get more sleep now would be impossible, Yunho sighed and got out of his bed. Walking to the kitchen he poured for himself a glass of water, before stepping out to the porch.
Hawaii was beautiful. Even though it was still dark, Yunho could already make out the palm trees swaying to the soft breeze, as well as the waves forming and crashing against the beach. He could smell the salt in the air, and its sharp tang helped to awaken his senses from the remnants of sleep. Further out, he saw tiny fisherman boats dotting the horizon, already reeling in the first day’s catch. The sun was starting to rise.
Looking at the scene in front of him, Yunho decided that it was a wise choice in choosing this hut-like cottage on the beachfront to stay in, even if it cost more with the sea view. After all, money was not an issue. Not when his father had been one of the world’s most famous illusionists. Furthermore, Yunho was self-sufficient on his own in his job as one of the top producers in Seoul’s most extensive media network.
Thinking about his father made his thoughts wander back to the dream. As he pondered over it and its increasing recurrence in his mind at night, Yunho wondered if there was a possibility that these dreams were a sign for something to come.
Yunho was no psychic, and neither did he believe in the existence of the supernatural. But, these dreams had to mean something, didn’t they? Perhaps it was because the date that marked his father’s 10-year death anniversary was drawing near, and his mind was subconsciously reminding him of it.
Sighing, Yunho wondered about that boy. Who was he? And how on earth did he come to possession of his father’s ring? In his memory the boy had no face, owing to the fact that Yunho never saw his face properly. But even then, Yunho would never forget his voice, or the conversation that had gone on between them.
Despite his many questions regarding the strange encounter, Yunho told no one about it. Who would believe him anyway? Who would believe that a mysterious stranger, and not Yunho, had initial custody of the famed ring of Jung Dong Han, and had willingly handed it over to Yunho? It was completely out of question to suggest such a thing. Jung Dong Han was decent, and so was his family, or so the media had said.
But they didn’t know everything… Yunho thought. They didn’t know about the quarrels that went on between his parents about him, or the countless times where Yunho wished that he had a normal family. But no, Jung Dong Han was a saint to the world, charming them with his awe-inducing tricks and bringing joy to his audience. Yunho couldn’t afford to subject his father’s reputation to speculation with that incident. And so, he told no one about the boy, not even his cousin, who was his closest friend on earth. But he couldn’t stop thinking about the boy, and why he kept dreaming about his father’s funeral.
Yunho was about to sigh again when he stopped himself, exhaling the air slowly instead. “Yunho-ah you’re gonna get winkles like Ji-Hoon hyung if you keep sighing like that, and the ones on his face can match a kid’s exercise book.” He told himself with a wry smile. He looked out at the sea again, the sun had risen while he had been busy with his thoughts.
Walking back into the room he took a look at the clock. It was now 7:00a.m. His flight back to Korea was in 3 hours time. He had better get ready, lest he miss the flight and get another nagging from his mother, cousin and even Ji-Hoon hyung.
He had been away for 3 months, and it was now time to return home.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“Dear passengers of Flight ICN0712 to Seoul, Korea. We are sorry to inform you that the flight has been delayed due to some technical problems. We seek your understanding and will inform you when the flight is ready.” The intercom system in KahluaAirport sounded, to the sighs and exclamations of “WHAT?! I need to return by today or else my pet chinchilla will die!” and the like.
Kim Junsu sighed. This was SO not the time for such a delay. He needed to return to Seoul quickly or else, HE would call again. Considering the number of times that HE had called during the whole trip, Junsu calculated that it would be about… 10 seconds before HE called again.
…
…7,
6,
5,
4,
3,
2,
1.
“High time get your groovin’ on……” Junsu’s phone rang as if on cue. Without even taking a look at the Caller ID he pressed the ‘Speak’ button and answered.
“Yes Chunnie?”
“SUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU! Are you boarding the plane soon? How long will you take to get here? Did you pack everything with you? Make sure you don’t leave your underwear behind like the previous time okay?” A loud, cheery and pleasant voice sounded over the phone. It was Park Yoochun, Junsu’s boyfriend of 4 years. They had been together since high school, but had liked each other since, well, forever. It had taken MUCH egging from friends (and even family) on both sides before they finally confessed to liking each other. (A/N: But let’s leave that story for another time shall we? :))
Yoochun was working as manager for Junsu’s brother, Jaejoong, who was a magician, performing under the stage name Youngwoong Jaejoong. Junsu was his brother’s illusion engineer and was transiting in Hawaii from Missouri, USA, where he had attended a seminar about the construction of the various props used by magicians in history.
Junsu cringed in embarrassment and looked around furtively, hoping no one heard Yoochun’s loud voice which was spilling over from the phone. Fortunately, nobody was looking at him, save for a young teenager, who looked bored out of his seat. Junsu flashed a quick smile before turning away and speaking into the phone.
“Aish Chun, not so loud! I don’t want everyone to know about last time you know. And considering that you called half an hour ago when I just landed from Missouri, nope, I haven’t boarded the plane.”
“Oops. Sorry Su. Then when are you boarding? I MISS YOUUUUU.” Junsu could almost imagine the puppy-eyed face his boyfriend was giving all the way back in Korea and smiled despite himself.
“Listen Chun. My flight has been delayed,” Junsu moved the phone away from his ear until he was sure the squawking on the other end had paused.
“There were some technical problems. No, I don’t think I’d be able to fix it babe, I deal with construction of props, not planes remember? And besides, do you think they’d actually let me go near the plane?” Junsu replied to Yoochun’s suggestion that he help fix the plane, so that he could return home earlier.
“Let my hyung know about the delay yeah? I’ll let you know before I board the plane. No, there’s no point calling me when I’m in the air, my phone will be off. How’s hyung’s publicity going? I miss you too. See you soon alright? Love you.” Junsu hung up after hearing the dial tone on the other end.
His boyfriend could be such a dork sometimes, he thought, recalling the time when he was at the seminar, and his phone had gone off in the middle of a serious explanation by one of the senior magicians, Yoochun calling; his third time for the day. Junsu had forgotten to put it on silent mode and was treated to numerous stares from everyone around him, including the speaker on stage. Oh how he’d wished he could just disappear under a trapdoor at that time.
Smiling to himself, Junsu turned to head to the information desk to check how long the delay would be, and was greeted with a rather amusing sight in front of him.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“WAAAAHHHHH!!!!...*sniff* Momm-*sniff*ieeee!!!”
Yunho stared at the crying child in front of him, who was red-faced from exertion and had tears streaming down his cheeks.
He had just gotten off the phone with his cousin, informing him about the delay in the flight when he turned around and accidentally bumped into the small kid who was standing right behind him. The boy had fallen flat on his bottom (rather cushy one actually, Yunho thought since he was wearing diapers) and proceeded to bawl his head off, crying for his mother, leaving Yunho completely helpless at what to do.
Looking around, Yunho tried to identify the toddler’s mother amidst the crowd waiting in the lounge. But there didn’t seem to be anyone walking towards them and the boy’s cries was now starting to draw curious stares from those nearby. Desperate, Yunho turned back to the child.
“Uhm…little boy, please…don’t cry?” Yunho spoke softly in English, while touching the boy’s shoulder gently. Maybe it was because Yunho’s heavily accented English sounded strange, or the boy didn’t like strangers touching him, but he carried on crying, even louder this time.
“God I feel like The Thing from Fantastic Four.” Yunho muttered to himself. He scanned around again, his face the perfect picture of desperation.
“Need some help?” someone behind him said in Korean. Yunho turned to see a young man, probably no older than he, with short and spiky black hair, giving him an amused smile.
AH! My saviour! Yunho gave thanks mentally before giving a quick smile and said, “Yes please! Could you make him stop crying? I don’t know what else to do, and I have no idea who or where his mother is.”
Junsu gave a small chuckle before walking towards the small boy and half-kneeling in front of him. Reaching into his jean pocket he took out a small piece of candy, unwrapped it and held it in front of the boy.
“Little boy, sshhh…please don’t cry anymore okay? If you stop crying I’ll give you this sweet. Hushh..don’t cry, big boys don’t cry, and you’re a big boy right?” Junsu used a soft, soothing voice and spoke in perfectly accented English (Yunho gave a small mental ‘Hmph’) to the kid, all the while using his other hand to stroke the child’s back.
Almost like magic, the boy’s crying receded. (Yunho’s mental ‘Hmph’ grew louder, “Must be the accent,” he thought) The child looked at Junsu with watery eyes and then at the offered sweet. Lifting a pudgy hand he took the sweet from Junsu and gave a small smile before putting the candy into his mouth.
“There, there, that’s a good boy. Everything’s better now. Little boy, can you tell me your name?” Junsu asked the kid, and gave his hair a small ruffle.
“Kee..ee..iith. My name is…Keith.” The boy said rather cutely, while looking at him hopefully, as though wanting to ask for another sweet but not daring to. Now that he wasn’t wailing away he was actually pretty adorable, staring at Junsu with his large, blue eyes. Junsu smiled before reaching into his pocket for another and unwrapped it, handing it to the boy who ate it greedily.
Turning to a now slack-jawed Yunho, Junsu smiled and was about introduce himself when a large, heavyset woman came running towards them, screaming in a shrill voice, “KEITH! KEITH! Oh KEITH THANK GOD YOU’RE SAFE! OH THANK GOD!” Moving past Junsu she scooped the small Keith up into her arms and gave him a big hug.
“Oh my dear baby where did you go to? I thought I lost you, are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?” The woman gave the boy a lookover before whispering softly to him, “Those men there didn’t do anything mean to you did they?”
“Excuse m-” Indignant, Junsu was about to interrupt her conversation when Yunho cut him off by quickly saying, “Actually MISS, little Keith here was crying and my friend over there,” he gestured over to Junsu who gave a supposedly friendly smile, although he looked more like a bear grimacing in pain, “managed to calm him down.”
“Oh, oh my. Then I must really thank you young men for being so kind. I was just talking on the phone and when I turned around he had disappeared.” The woman said, slightly flustered and embarrassed that she had been overheard by the both of them.
“It was no problem, he wasn’t much trouble actually.” Yunho smiled generously, causing the woman to blush and give a small giggle, much to Junsu’s horror. Any woman would of course, when a man as good-looking as Jung Yunho smiled at you.
“We must be going now, Keith honey, say goodbye to the nice young men.” Keith’s mother held Keith’s hand, while urging him to wave to the both of them.
“Buh-bye!” Keith, who was completely calm and smiley now, a huge contrast to his earlier behaviour, gave a small wave with his hand, before toddling off with his mother, his walk similar to a duck’s waddle.
Yunho watched mother and son walk away before letting out a large breath of air. Well, Thank God it’s over, he thought.
“Well, that was some slick charming. That woman was bowled over by your smile.” Yunho turned to see the other man who had helped calm the kid down and grinned, “You’re pretty good with handling kids yourself. Thanks for the help.”
Junsu grinned in return. “No bother, it’s a good thing I always carry sweets with me. By the way, my name’s Kim Ju-” The ringing of Yunho’s phone cut him off before he could complete his sentence.
“I’m so sorry but could you hang on for a sec?” Yunho smiled apologetically at Junsu before answering his phone. It was his mother, asking about the flight delay.
“Dear passengers of Flight ICN0712 to Seoul, Korea. We are pleased to inform you that the technical problems have been rectified and that the plane is now ready for boarding. Please proceed to Gate 13 to board the plane. We are sorry for any inconvenience caused and we wish you a pleasant flight.”
Junsu looked up upon hearing the announcement. Taking out his phone he typed a quick text message to Yoochun, telling him that he was about to board, and reminding him not to call while he was in the plane. He took a look at Yunho, who was still talking on the phone, and waved to get his attention. Pointing in the direction of the gates he did a flapping action with his hands and smiled at Yunho. He got a nod in return, and a mouthed “Thank you”. Picking up his bag he walked away towards the gates.
Now that was an interesting experience.
“…Yes Umma, no I won’t bully him by making him carry my bags. Umma I have to board now, they just made the announcement. Alright Umma, love you too. See you soon.” Yunho hung up quickly. The young man had already disappeared. What did he say his name was? Kim…something.
Oh well, it was nice meeting him anyhow. Yunho grabbed his bag before walking towards Gate 13.
Unknown to Yunho, he would meet Junsu again, under the most coincidental of circumstances, and Flight ICN0712 took off, bound for Seoul, Korea.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Incheon Airport was crowded, no wait it was OVERFLOWING with people. Flights in, flights out, flights in-between, you name it they had it. Yoochun took a quick scan at the screen displaying all the current and impending arrivals. The one stating “Missouri-Hawaii” had a blank space beside it, indicating that the flight had yet to land.
Why was it taking so long….? Yoochun thought, his hands itching towards his phone to dial that all-too familiar number.
No wait, Junsu said NO CALLING, or the radiation will make the plane’s systems go wonky. Yoochun blew his long fringe out of the way. Was he too early? Jae said that they were, but Yoochun had insisted. After all, arriving an hour before the expected arrival time WASN’T too early, it was just right, in Yoochun’s opinion anyway. Jae had chosen to stay in the car and wait, stating that the car was more comfortable to wait in.
OH WELL…might as well just wait it out then. Yoochun sat down on one of those uncomfortable plastic seats set up for those waiting and closed his eyes.
He must have dozed off, for the next thing he knew he felt a hand touching his shoulder, shaking him gently and heard a small, dolphin like laugh before a voice said, “Chunnie, wake up dear.” Yoochun blinked his eyes slowly, and Junsu’s smiling face came into focus.
Reacting quickly Yoochun stood up and wrapped his arms around Junsu, lifting him up and whirling around, at the same time exclaiming, “SUUUUUUUUUUUUU!”
Looking at him, one would think that it’d been 2 years instead of 2 weeks that they hadn’t seen each other.
“Put me down you dork.” Junsu laughed as Yoochun stopped spinning around and placed him on his feet, still refusing to let go. Looking around to check if anyone was looking Yoochun gave a quick peck on Junsu’s cheek, causing the other to blush and smile shyly.
“Where’s hyung?” Junsu tried to hide his embarrassment by changing the subject.
“Waiting in the car. Said that crowds weren’t his thing. Now how can that be possible, when he has to perform in front of one at least once a week? Anyway how was the flight?”
“That’s hyung for you. Let’s go get my bag and we can get out of here, and I can tell the both of you about the trip. I’m CRAVING for hyung’s cooking.” Junsu linked his arm with Yoochun, and they walked away together.
“I’m glad you’re back Su, I sure missed you.”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
While Junsu and Yoochun were having their sweet reunion moment, Yunho was at the other side trying to find his cousin amidst the large number at the arrival hall.
Ah-ha! He finally spotted his cousin standing at the nearby café, munching from a paper bag. I should’ve known, this is THE Shim Changmin we’re talking about. Yunho chuckled softly before heading over.
His cousin saw him from afar and quickly forced down the last piece of whatever he was eating before walking over to greet him.
“Hyung! You’re back!” Changmin opened up his arms and gave his cousin a warm hug.
Despite being 2 years younger than Yunho, Changmin was Yunho’s best friend and confidante. They were both working for the same network and even though Changmin was a writer, more often than not he would give Yunho ideas to further develop whatever project they were currently working on. The two had grown up together, and had become even closer after the death of Yunho’s father. Although one of Changmin’s favourite pastimes was to tease Yunho, he still held his hyung in high respect and looked up to him.
“I must say, hyung, the 3-month break did do you much good. You look better, well, at least better than before. How was the vacation? I'm sure you enjoyed it very much, considering that you didn't have to do ANY of that HUGE BUNCH of disorganized paperwork from the previous production that you left in my hands to deal with…and then Ji-Hoon hyung went all Hannibal Lector and started hounding me to tell you to get back soon as he had some great-and WHY ARE YOU LOOKING AT ME LIKE THAT? What, do I have something on my face?” Changmin stopped his a word a second rant when he saw the odd look his cousin was giving him and his hand went instinctively to his cheek.
“No, it’s just, did you grow taller again Min?” Yunho stared at his dongsaeng. 3 months ago, he could’ve sworn that Changmin was shorter than him. But now his cousin was towering over him just slightly, his lanky form set in a relaxed stance.
“Oh, was that all? I don’t know hyung, it just happened I guess. After all, I’m STILL a growing boy.” Changmin gave a small shrug of his shoulders before continuing and ignoring his cousin’s stunned expression,
“Anyway hyung I’m supposed to tell you that Ji-Hoon hyung wants you back at work on Monday. Apparently he’s got some new fangled idea about putting a new show together involving this magician who’s supposedly hot property in the industry now.”
“Magician? You're kidding.”
“Yes hyung, magician. Ever since J.K Rowling finished writing about Harry Potter and left us there the world’s just been waiting for something more. And I’m telling you hyung you should see this guy, he’s really good.”
“Really? Then how come I haven’t heard of him yet?”
“Aish, hyung you’ve been away for SOOO long I wouldn’t be surprised if Korea reunited and you didn’t know about it, since you were on, what did you say it was, ah a HIATUS, leaving me with that PAPERWORK, don’t think I forgot about it. Do you have any idea how long it took-”
“Min, what’s his name?” Yunho interrupted before Changmin could have a chance to complain further.
“The magician? Youngwoong Jaejoong, though his real name’s Kim Jaejoong. Anyway hyung all this talking’s made me hungry. Let’s go eat, and YOU pay, in return for all the paperwork you made me do.” The thought of food made Changmin walk faster, his long strides quickly eating up his path.
Yunho walked at a slower pace, thinking about what Changmin had said. He hadn’t seen or gone near the area of magic for the past 10 years. Youngwoong Jaejoong…well, this is going to be interesting, Yunho thought.
“Hyung! Hurry up! I’ve already decided what I want to eat!” A shout from Changmin who was in front disrupted Yunho’s thoughts. Estimating the size of the hole that his wallet was going to have by the time Changmin was done eating, Yunho sighed before walking quickly to join his cousin.
I should’ve just done the paperwork, or given it to someone else. But still, it feels good to be home.
End Chapter One~
Author's Notes: Hello everyone! I was really nervous about doing this and this is my first time writing a fic. Just plain lurking here and there. Hope you enjoyed the first chapter! Comments are loved and so is constructive criticism. =)
Just so you know, this has nothing to do with the movie The Prestige starring Hugh Jackman, though the meaning of the phrase gave inspiration for the fic.
Oh, also, I'm a COMPLETE noob at magic, so experts out there please rain advice on me and I'll love you always! X)
enjoy!
Pairings: Jaeho, Yoosu
Length: Chaptered [1/?]
Author: uknowandiknow
Rating: PG
Genre: AU: Humour, Angst and Drama, in different dosages though
Summary: Ever since his father's death, Jung Yunho has never gone near the art of magic. What happens then when he's made to work with a magician, whose very presence not only evokes memories from his past, but also new feelings from within him?
Everyone was in black, and he was thirteen again. His mother was standing beside him, her sobs the only audible sounds filling the quiet churchyard that Friday morning. He was holding her hand, whilst staring silently at the gravestone of his father. Yes, the world famous magician, Jung Dong Han was dead. Despite the joy and wonder that his acts had brought, not a single smiling face could be seen amongst those present at this sombre affair.
He felt utterly calm at the moment, as though it wasn’t his father’s body that was lying six feet under in the dirt, or that it wasn’t his family who was involved in the media’s speculation that his father’s death wasn’t accidental.
As the pastor read the last words of the blessing, many stepped forward to place a single rose on his father’s grave. He stood still as familiar faces walked up to him and his mother, conveying words of comfort, to which he gave the briefest of smiles, and offering a hug here and there before moving off. The media was there too, but for once they weren’t busy clicking away their photos, or hassling those present for an interview, choosing to respect the silent moment reserved for the highly revered illusionist.
“They were one of the reasons why you never had time for me…” he thought as he looked at his father’s smiling face on the tombstone.
Amidst the large crowd moving off, he saw from the corner of his eye, a boy who looked no older than him. He was dressed in dark jeans, and wearing a long hoodie that seemed too large for his frame. His face was obscured by a cap which was pulled down low, with only a hint of fringe peeking out. The boy was standing apart from the rest, still staring at the grave even as everyone was moving off.
“Must be one of Appa’s followers.” - there were many of them gathered- He thought to himself as he prepared to leave with his mother, whose crying had now subsided and was being led away by both his aunt and himself, his cousin following behind.
Later in the day he returned to the grave. It had been an eventful morning, and he wanted some time alone to figure out how he felt, and what he wanted to do next. He stood in silent contemplation, thoughts and questions filling his mind to the brim, so much that he didn’t see the figure that walked up behind him, sneakers treading the soft grass.
“Excuse me; you’re his son aren’t you?” A soft, yet deep voice sounded. He spun around, surprised that someone was there.
It was the boy from the funeral; the one who looked so out of place with his too-big hoodie and dark jeans. Even till now, he still couldn’t see his eyes, the brim of his cap pulled so low that only a shadow could be seen. He seemed to be holding something in hands as he walked closer.
“Yeah that's right. Who are you?” He replied, curious and yet wary at the same time.
“I have something…which I think should be given to you…” The boy said softly, not answering his question, his steps slowing down to stand in front of the grave, beside him.
“To me? Who are you?” He asked again. Ok, weird factor seriously going up here, he thought to himself.
The boy didn’t reply, instead, he took his hand and placed something small and cold in his palm, closing it before stepping away.
He looked at his closed fist, unsure of what to do. Curiosity was eating at him, urging him to look at the object. Yet, for some reason which he didn’t know why, he felt a strange sense of foreboding towards that object in his hand.
“Well, most people would have taken a look by now.” The boy’s voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts, jolting him back to reality.
Giving a sheepish look, and feeling a small bloom of heat forming at his cheeks, he looked down at his now open palm. What he saw in his hand made his heart stop.
It was his father’s ring. The one he always wore whenever he performed. His “second marriage” ring, as his father had jokingly called it, for he never took it off. This ring was special, as it was made up of two slim rings joined together. One layer had the word “infinitus” and the other, “laetitia” engraved on it which meant endless joy when put together.
It was the phrase constantly used by his father to describe what his work was to him, and what he had hoped to bring to others through his art. Upon reflection now, he realised that it had been missing among the items belonging to his father which the police had returned after his death.
Too surprised to speak, it was a while before he could find his voice. “How…how did you get this?” He looked up, wanting to question the boy further. However, he found himself staring at emptiness.
The boy was gone…-
“Brr-rrr-ring! Brr-rri-ing!”
Jung Yunho woke up with a start. Reaching for the alarm clock on his bedside table, he turned it off and took a look at the time. It read 5.45a.m.
Lying still on his bed, he stared at the white ceiling above him. It was that scene again, the one that had been haunting his dreams for the past few months. Somehow, it would always end with that mysterious boy disappearing before he would wake up for some reason or another. Then, regardless of the time, he would fail to return back to sleep, the boy, plus the image of the ring filling his thoughts.
Knowing that trying to get more sleep now would be impossible, Yunho sighed and got out of his bed. Walking to the kitchen he poured for himself a glass of water, before stepping out to the porch.
Hawaii was beautiful. Even though it was still dark, Yunho could already make out the palm trees swaying to the soft breeze, as well as the waves forming and crashing against the beach. He could smell the salt in the air, and its sharp tang helped to awaken his senses from the remnants of sleep. Further out, he saw tiny fisherman boats dotting the horizon, already reeling in the first day’s catch. The sun was starting to rise.
Looking at the scene in front of him, Yunho decided that it was a wise choice in choosing this hut-like cottage on the beachfront to stay in, even if it cost more with the sea view. After all, money was not an issue. Not when his father had been one of the world’s most famous illusionists. Furthermore, Yunho was self-sufficient on his own in his job as one of the top producers in Seoul’s most extensive media network.
Thinking about his father made his thoughts wander back to the dream. As he pondered over it and its increasing recurrence in his mind at night, Yunho wondered if there was a possibility that these dreams were a sign for something to come.
Yunho was no psychic, and neither did he believe in the existence of the supernatural. But, these dreams had to mean something, didn’t they? Perhaps it was because the date that marked his father’s 10-year death anniversary was drawing near, and his mind was subconsciously reminding him of it.
Sighing, Yunho wondered about that boy. Who was he? And how on earth did he come to possession of his father’s ring? In his memory the boy had no face, owing to the fact that Yunho never saw his face properly. But even then, Yunho would never forget his voice, or the conversation that had gone on between them.
Despite his many questions regarding the strange encounter, Yunho told no one about it. Who would believe him anyway? Who would believe that a mysterious stranger, and not Yunho, had initial custody of the famed ring of Jung Dong Han, and had willingly handed it over to Yunho? It was completely out of question to suggest such a thing. Jung Dong Han was decent, and so was his family, or so the media had said.
But they didn’t know everything… Yunho thought. They didn’t know about the quarrels that went on between his parents about him, or the countless times where Yunho wished that he had a normal family. But no, Jung Dong Han was a saint to the world, charming them with his awe-inducing tricks and bringing joy to his audience. Yunho couldn’t afford to subject his father’s reputation to speculation with that incident. And so, he told no one about the boy, not even his cousin, who was his closest friend on earth. But he couldn’t stop thinking about the boy, and why he kept dreaming about his father’s funeral.
Yunho was about to sigh again when he stopped himself, exhaling the air slowly instead. “Yunho-ah you’re gonna get winkles like Ji-Hoon hyung if you keep sighing like that, and the ones on his face can match a kid’s exercise book.” He told himself with a wry smile. He looked out at the sea again, the sun had risen while he had been busy with his thoughts.
Walking back into the room he took a look at the clock. It was now 7:00a.m. His flight back to Korea was in 3 hours time. He had better get ready, lest he miss the flight and get another nagging from his mother, cousin and even Ji-Hoon hyung.
He had been away for 3 months, and it was now time to return home.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“Dear passengers of Flight ICN0712 to Seoul, Korea. We are sorry to inform you that the flight has been delayed due to some technical problems. We seek your understanding and will inform you when the flight is ready.” The intercom system in KahluaAirport sounded, to the sighs and exclamations of “WHAT?! I need to return by today or else my pet chinchilla will die!” and the like.
Kim Junsu sighed. This was SO not the time for such a delay. He needed to return to Seoul quickly or else, HE would call again. Considering the number of times that HE had called during the whole trip, Junsu calculated that it would be about… 10 seconds before HE called again.
…
…7,
6,
5,
4,
3,
2,
1.
“High time get your groovin’ on……” Junsu’s phone rang as if on cue. Without even taking a look at the Caller ID he pressed the ‘Speak’ button and answered.
“Yes Chunnie?”
“SUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU! Are you boarding the plane soon? How long will you take to get here? Did you pack everything with you? Make sure you don’t leave your underwear behind like the previous time okay?” A loud, cheery and pleasant voice sounded over the phone. It was Park Yoochun, Junsu’s boyfriend of 4 years. They had been together since high school, but had liked each other since, well, forever. It had taken MUCH egging from friends (and even family) on both sides before they finally confessed to liking each other. (A/N: But let’s leave that story for another time shall we? :))
Yoochun was working as manager for Junsu’s brother, Jaejoong, who was a magician, performing under the stage name Youngwoong Jaejoong. Junsu was his brother’s illusion engineer and was transiting in Hawaii from Missouri, USA, where he had attended a seminar about the construction of the various props used by magicians in history.
Junsu cringed in embarrassment and looked around furtively, hoping no one heard Yoochun’s loud voice which was spilling over from the phone. Fortunately, nobody was looking at him, save for a young teenager, who looked bored out of his seat. Junsu flashed a quick smile before turning away and speaking into the phone.
“Aish Chun, not so loud! I don’t want everyone to know about last time you know. And considering that you called half an hour ago when I just landed from Missouri, nope, I haven’t boarded the plane.”
“Oops. Sorry Su. Then when are you boarding? I MISS YOUUUUU.” Junsu could almost imagine the puppy-eyed face his boyfriend was giving all the way back in Korea and smiled despite himself.
“Listen Chun. My flight has been delayed,” Junsu moved the phone away from his ear until he was sure the squawking on the other end had paused.
“There were some technical problems. No, I don’t think I’d be able to fix it babe, I deal with construction of props, not planes remember? And besides, do you think they’d actually let me go near the plane?” Junsu replied to Yoochun’s suggestion that he help fix the plane, so that he could return home earlier.
“Let my hyung know about the delay yeah? I’ll let you know before I board the plane. No, there’s no point calling me when I’m in the air, my phone will be off. How’s hyung’s publicity going? I miss you too. See you soon alright? Love you.” Junsu hung up after hearing the dial tone on the other end.
His boyfriend could be such a dork sometimes, he thought, recalling the time when he was at the seminar, and his phone had gone off in the middle of a serious explanation by one of the senior magicians, Yoochun calling; his third time for the day. Junsu had forgotten to put it on silent mode and was treated to numerous stares from everyone around him, including the speaker on stage. Oh how he’d wished he could just disappear under a trapdoor at that time.
Smiling to himself, Junsu turned to head to the information desk to check how long the delay would be, and was greeted with a rather amusing sight in front of him.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“WAAAAHHHHH!!!!...*sniff* Momm-*sniff*ieeee!!!”
Yunho stared at the crying child in front of him, who was red-faced from exertion and had tears streaming down his cheeks.
He had just gotten off the phone with his cousin, informing him about the delay in the flight when he turned around and accidentally bumped into the small kid who was standing right behind him. The boy had fallen flat on his bottom (rather cushy one actually, Yunho thought since he was wearing diapers) and proceeded to bawl his head off, crying for his mother, leaving Yunho completely helpless at what to do.
Looking around, Yunho tried to identify the toddler’s mother amidst the crowd waiting in the lounge. But there didn’t seem to be anyone walking towards them and the boy’s cries was now starting to draw curious stares from those nearby. Desperate, Yunho turned back to the child.
“Uhm…little boy, please…don’t cry?” Yunho spoke softly in English, while touching the boy’s shoulder gently. Maybe it was because Yunho’s heavily accented English sounded strange, or the boy didn’t like strangers touching him, but he carried on crying, even louder this time.
“God I feel like The Thing from Fantastic Four.” Yunho muttered to himself. He scanned around again, his face the perfect picture of desperation.
“Need some help?” someone behind him said in Korean. Yunho turned to see a young man, probably no older than he, with short and spiky black hair, giving him an amused smile.
AH! My saviour! Yunho gave thanks mentally before giving a quick smile and said, “Yes please! Could you make him stop crying? I don’t know what else to do, and I have no idea who or where his mother is.”
Junsu gave a small chuckle before walking towards the small boy and half-kneeling in front of him. Reaching into his jean pocket he took out a small piece of candy, unwrapped it and held it in front of the boy.
“Little boy, sshhh…please don’t cry anymore okay? If you stop crying I’ll give you this sweet. Hushh..don’t cry, big boys don’t cry, and you’re a big boy right?” Junsu used a soft, soothing voice and spoke in perfectly accented English (Yunho gave a small mental ‘Hmph’) to the kid, all the while using his other hand to stroke the child’s back.
Almost like magic, the boy’s crying receded. (Yunho’s mental ‘Hmph’ grew louder, “Must be the accent,” he thought) The child looked at Junsu with watery eyes and then at the offered sweet. Lifting a pudgy hand he took the sweet from Junsu and gave a small smile before putting the candy into his mouth.
“There, there, that’s a good boy. Everything’s better now. Little boy, can you tell me your name?” Junsu asked the kid, and gave his hair a small ruffle.
“Kee..ee..iith. My name is…Keith.” The boy said rather cutely, while looking at him hopefully, as though wanting to ask for another sweet but not daring to. Now that he wasn’t wailing away he was actually pretty adorable, staring at Junsu with his large, blue eyes. Junsu smiled before reaching into his pocket for another and unwrapped it, handing it to the boy who ate it greedily.
Turning to a now slack-jawed Yunho, Junsu smiled and was about introduce himself when a large, heavyset woman came running towards them, screaming in a shrill voice, “KEITH! KEITH! Oh KEITH THANK GOD YOU’RE SAFE! OH THANK GOD!” Moving past Junsu she scooped the small Keith up into her arms and gave him a big hug.
“Oh my dear baby where did you go to? I thought I lost you, are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?” The woman gave the boy a lookover before whispering softly to him, “Those men there didn’t do anything mean to you did they?”
“Excuse m-” Indignant, Junsu was about to interrupt her conversation when Yunho cut him off by quickly saying, “Actually MISS, little Keith here was crying and my friend over there,” he gestured over to Junsu who gave a supposedly friendly smile, although he looked more like a bear grimacing in pain, “managed to calm him down.”
“Oh, oh my. Then I must really thank you young men for being so kind. I was just talking on the phone and when I turned around he had disappeared.” The woman said, slightly flustered and embarrassed that she had been overheard by the both of them.
“It was no problem, he wasn’t much trouble actually.” Yunho smiled generously, causing the woman to blush and give a small giggle, much to Junsu’s horror. Any woman would of course, when a man as good-looking as Jung Yunho smiled at you.
“We must be going now, Keith honey, say goodbye to the nice young men.” Keith’s mother held Keith’s hand, while urging him to wave to the both of them.
“Buh-bye!” Keith, who was completely calm and smiley now, a huge contrast to his earlier behaviour, gave a small wave with his hand, before toddling off with his mother, his walk similar to a duck’s waddle.
Yunho watched mother and son walk away before letting out a large breath of air. Well, Thank God it’s over, he thought.
“Well, that was some slick charming. That woman was bowled over by your smile.” Yunho turned to see the other man who had helped calm the kid down and grinned, “You’re pretty good with handling kids yourself. Thanks for the help.”
Junsu grinned in return. “No bother, it’s a good thing I always carry sweets with me. By the way, my name’s Kim Ju-” The ringing of Yunho’s phone cut him off before he could complete his sentence.
“I’m so sorry but could you hang on for a sec?” Yunho smiled apologetically at Junsu before answering his phone. It was his mother, asking about the flight delay.
“Dear passengers of Flight ICN0712 to Seoul, Korea. We are pleased to inform you that the technical problems have been rectified and that the plane is now ready for boarding. Please proceed to Gate 13 to board the plane. We are sorry for any inconvenience caused and we wish you a pleasant flight.”
Junsu looked up upon hearing the announcement. Taking out his phone he typed a quick text message to Yoochun, telling him that he was about to board, and reminding him not to call while he was in the plane. He took a look at Yunho, who was still talking on the phone, and waved to get his attention. Pointing in the direction of the gates he did a flapping action with his hands and smiled at Yunho. He got a nod in return, and a mouthed “Thank you”. Picking up his bag he walked away towards the gates.
Now that was an interesting experience.
“…Yes Umma, no I won’t bully him by making him carry my bags. Umma I have to board now, they just made the announcement. Alright Umma, love you too. See you soon.” Yunho hung up quickly. The young man had already disappeared. What did he say his name was? Kim…something.
Oh well, it was nice meeting him anyhow. Yunho grabbed his bag before walking towards Gate 13.
Unknown to Yunho, he would meet Junsu again, under the most coincidental of circumstances, and Flight ICN0712 took off, bound for Seoul, Korea.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Incheon Airport was crowded, no wait it was OVERFLOWING with people. Flights in, flights out, flights in-between, you name it they had it. Yoochun took a quick scan at the screen displaying all the current and impending arrivals. The one stating “Missouri-Hawaii” had a blank space beside it, indicating that the flight had yet to land.
Why was it taking so long….? Yoochun thought, his hands itching towards his phone to dial that all-too familiar number.
No wait, Junsu said NO CALLING, or the radiation will make the plane’s systems go wonky. Yoochun blew his long fringe out of the way. Was he too early? Jae said that they were, but Yoochun had insisted. After all, arriving an hour before the expected arrival time WASN’T too early, it was just right, in Yoochun’s opinion anyway. Jae had chosen to stay in the car and wait, stating that the car was more comfortable to wait in.
OH WELL…might as well just wait it out then. Yoochun sat down on one of those uncomfortable plastic seats set up for those waiting and closed his eyes.
He must have dozed off, for the next thing he knew he felt a hand touching his shoulder, shaking him gently and heard a small, dolphin like laugh before a voice said, “Chunnie, wake up dear.” Yoochun blinked his eyes slowly, and Junsu’s smiling face came into focus.
Reacting quickly Yoochun stood up and wrapped his arms around Junsu, lifting him up and whirling around, at the same time exclaiming, “SUUUUUUUUUUUUU!”
Looking at him, one would think that it’d been 2 years instead of 2 weeks that they hadn’t seen each other.
“Put me down you dork.” Junsu laughed as Yoochun stopped spinning around and placed him on his feet, still refusing to let go. Looking around to check if anyone was looking Yoochun gave a quick peck on Junsu’s cheek, causing the other to blush and smile shyly.
“Where’s hyung?” Junsu tried to hide his embarrassment by changing the subject.
“Waiting in the car. Said that crowds weren’t his thing. Now how can that be possible, when he has to perform in front of one at least once a week? Anyway how was the flight?”
“That’s hyung for you. Let’s go get my bag and we can get out of here, and I can tell the both of you about the trip. I’m CRAVING for hyung’s cooking.” Junsu linked his arm with Yoochun, and they walked away together.
“I’m glad you’re back Su, I sure missed you.”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
While Junsu and Yoochun were having their sweet reunion moment, Yunho was at the other side trying to find his cousin amidst the large number at the arrival hall.
Ah-ha! He finally spotted his cousin standing at the nearby café, munching from a paper bag. I should’ve known, this is THE Shim Changmin we’re talking about. Yunho chuckled softly before heading over.
His cousin saw him from afar and quickly forced down the last piece of whatever he was eating before walking over to greet him.
“Hyung! You’re back!” Changmin opened up his arms and gave his cousin a warm hug.
Despite being 2 years younger than Yunho, Changmin was Yunho’s best friend and confidante. They were both working for the same network and even though Changmin was a writer, more often than not he would give Yunho ideas to further develop whatever project they were currently working on. The two had grown up together, and had become even closer after the death of Yunho’s father. Although one of Changmin’s favourite pastimes was to tease Yunho, he still held his hyung in high respect and looked up to him.
“I must say, hyung, the 3-month break did do you much good. You look better, well, at least better than before. How was the vacation? I'm sure you enjoyed it very much, considering that you didn't have to do ANY of that HUGE BUNCH of disorganized paperwork from the previous production that you left in my hands to deal with…and then Ji-Hoon hyung went all Hannibal Lector and started hounding me to tell you to get back soon as he had some great-and WHY ARE YOU LOOKING AT ME LIKE THAT? What, do I have something on my face?” Changmin stopped his a word a second rant when he saw the odd look his cousin was giving him and his hand went instinctively to his cheek.
“No, it’s just, did you grow taller again Min?” Yunho stared at his dongsaeng. 3 months ago, he could’ve sworn that Changmin was shorter than him. But now his cousin was towering over him just slightly, his lanky form set in a relaxed stance.
“Oh, was that all? I don’t know hyung, it just happened I guess. After all, I’m STILL a growing boy.” Changmin gave a small shrug of his shoulders before continuing and ignoring his cousin’s stunned expression,
“Anyway hyung I’m supposed to tell you that Ji-Hoon hyung wants you back at work on Monday. Apparently he’s got some new fangled idea about putting a new show together involving this magician who’s supposedly hot property in the industry now.”
“Magician? You're kidding.”
“Yes hyung, magician. Ever since J.K Rowling finished writing about Harry Potter and left us there the world’s just been waiting for something more. And I’m telling you hyung you should see this guy, he’s really good.”
“Really? Then how come I haven’t heard of him yet?”
“Aish, hyung you’ve been away for SOOO long I wouldn’t be surprised if Korea reunited and you didn’t know about it, since you were on, what did you say it was, ah a HIATUS, leaving me with that PAPERWORK, don’t think I forgot about it. Do you have any idea how long it took-”
“Min, what’s his name?” Yunho interrupted before Changmin could have a chance to complain further.
“The magician? Youngwoong Jaejoong, though his real name’s Kim Jaejoong. Anyway hyung all this talking’s made me hungry. Let’s go eat, and YOU pay, in return for all the paperwork you made me do.” The thought of food made Changmin walk faster, his long strides quickly eating up his path.
Yunho walked at a slower pace, thinking about what Changmin had said. He hadn’t seen or gone near the area of magic for the past 10 years. Youngwoong Jaejoong…well, this is going to be interesting, Yunho thought.
“Hyung! Hurry up! I’ve already decided what I want to eat!” A shout from Changmin who was in front disrupted Yunho’s thoughts. Estimating the size of the hole that his wallet was going to have by the time Changmin was done eating, Yunho sighed before walking quickly to join his cousin.
I should’ve just done the paperwork, or given it to someone else. But still, it feels good to be home.
End Chapter One~
Author's Notes: Hello everyone! I was really nervous about doing this and this is my first time writing a fic. Just plain lurking here and there. Hope you enjoyed the first chapter! Comments are loved and so is constructive criticism. =)
Just so you know, this has nothing to do with the movie The Prestige starring Hugh Jackman, though the meaning of the phrase gave inspiration for the fic.
Oh, also, I'm a COMPLETE noob at magic, so experts out there please rain advice on me and I'll love you always! X)
enjoy!