Chapter 16
The seven of them arrived back at the apartment quite late that day. They had decided that dinner needs to be consumed prior to going home since there would be no time for Jaejoong to prepare dinner, at least not before Changmin claimed he would die of starvation.
“Oh my gosh! We totally forgot our disguises!” Aveline exclaimed, surprising the others out of their semi-slumber state. “We left so early in the morning that the fans weren’t outside and we didn’t even bother putting anything on. What should we do?” Panic spread around the van as the realization sank in. Yoochun glanced out of the window.
“It’s okay guys! There isn’t anyone out there, for once… HEY!!! How come there isn’t anyone out there today? That NEVER happened before. Are we losing our touch or something?” Despite the accusations, as well as self proclamations, of Jaejoong being an attention-seeker, Yoochun was actually a closet attention-hogger. Changmin sighed in relief,
“Oh goodie, I was even starting to think to let noona borrow my sweater or something.”
“Aww… That’s so sweet of you.” Adelle ruffled his hair affectionately, causing Junsu to send darts of jealousy to Changmin with his eyes. Aveline was indignant.
“Hey! What about me, huh? You’re totally not fair!”
“Well, I only have one sweater. What? Would you like my shirt then?” Changmin shuddered, thinking about how cold it would be to walk out of the van bare-chested. Jaejoong whipped out his phone. “No hyung, I’m just kidding. You can put away the cell phone and no you’re not going to get a candid picture of me bare-chested…again.”
“Awww…but Changmin, the fans love these. They’ll be having a field day if they see a picture of you.” Jaejoong pouted. “And we’re always trying to please the fans, am I right?” Changmin’s mouth twitched slightly, indicating the early signs of ‘scary Changmin,’ and Jaejoong dropped the subject and quickly turned his attention to Aveline. “You can always use my sweater, Aveline.” The van reverberated with masculine laughter from the four guys. Jaejoong smacked the head of every single one of them. Ah, the perks of being the oldest with no leader responsibilities.
“Umm, guys? This is nice and all, but do you think that we can like… continue this inside the apartment?” Yunho, always the voice of reason, piped up. The rest muttered their consent and one by one climbed out of the cramped van.
They were still chatting happily in the elevator until they finally reached their floor, revealing two men that Adelle unfortunately recognized; Aveline too, apparently, judging by her gasp. Junsu could feel Adelle stiffen next to him but was unable to provide any comfort after seeing the expression on her face. Her eyes became cold and uninviting, her demeanor losing its gaiety. It was as if she was a different person and it unnerved him. He had never seen this side of her before. He did not think she was capable of being this way.
“Boys… where is she?” Even her voice sent chills down his spine now. Not once did Adelle look at Junsu since they saw the two men. One of the men pointed inside the Dong Bang apartment and the look of indifference in Adelle’s face quickly turned into anger. She marched toward the apartment, with the others trailing uncertainly behind her.
They entered the living room to be greeted with two more men in black suits and an elegant lady sitting on the couch. She lifted her head from the newspaper she was reading and regarded the seven people in front of her by nodding ever so slightly. The boys and Aveline bowed carefully to the lady as a means of respect to an elder while Adelle continued to glare at the sitting form.
“Hi, Auntie Liz,” greeted Aveline meekly. Five heads simultaneously whipped around to stare at each other. Before the woman opened her mouth to reply, Adelle cut in.
“What are you doing here, mother?” The iciness in her voice made everyone in the room, besides her mother, cringe. There was no questioning where Adelle got her beauty and calmness from. She was almost an exact replica of her mother, only younger. “How did you know where we live?” Her mother frowned at Adelle’s tone and stared into Adelle’s eyes with an equally cold stare.
“I’m here to pick you and Aveline home, if she is willing. You, on the other hand, don’t have a choice. I’ve already packed all your things and if there is anything I’ve forgotten, well… we can always get a replacement. Come on.” She rose from her seat and headed toward the door, the two men holding Adelle’s and Aveline’s suitcases while waiting for the two young women to leave. Adelle’s mother turned around once more and looked at Aveline. “Oh, Aveline darling, I’ve talked to your mother, she told me that you have already gotten her permission to be here, so if you would rather say, I don’t have the power to do otherwise. However, it is probably advisable if you come with us. I’ve taken the liberty of packing your belongings too.”
Aveline nodded. “Umm, Auntie Liz? Is it okay if I go to my room first? My diary is hidden in the room and I just need to get it.” Her aunt agreed while Aveline dashed to her room, giving the guys the ‘emergency-meeting-in-my-room’ look. They slowly tiptoed out of the living room, realizing for the first time that they had not been addressed to at all and Adelle had not moved from her position, still fixing her glare at the woman she had to call mother.
In the room, Aveline was immediately interrogated. She tried to answer every question as quickly as possible, ranging from “who is that crazy woman?” to “what is going to happen to you girls when you get home?” Aveline looked grim at the consequence of this situation. She felt guilty for not stopping Adelle from coming here, suspecting that something like this would happen. She gave each of the guys a hug goodbye and lingered a split second more when she was with Jaejoong, giving him a slight peck on the cheek. She also had managed to write her e-mail address as well as her cell number on a piece of scrap paper to hand to him. Her smile as she left was the saddest that any of the boys had ever seen, as if it would be the last time they will ever see each other. Perhaps it was.
They left the house a few minutes afterwards, Adelle still too stunned and angry to move or speak. Aveline had to gently lead her to the elevator and down to the lobby as they went to catch the plane ride home. She did not even get a chance to say goodbye.