Let's Play Pretend - Chapter 17
Title: Let's Play Pretend - Chapter 17
Genre: Romance, fluff, slight angst
Pairing: YunJae
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Jung Yunho finds himself stuck in a fake relationship with another man when he is very much straight and is secretly dating a very famous actress.
Prologue I [ 1] [ 2] [ 3] [ 4] [ 5] [ 6] [ 7] [ 8] [ 9] [ 10] [ 11] [ 12] [ 13] [ 14] [ 15] [ 16]
Pushing on a String
“Where is he?” he mumbled to himself. Yoochun anxiously drummed his fingers against the steering wheel, a lit cigarette nestled in between his lips. His eyes constantly darted towards the building’s entrance on the other side of the street, body jolting upwards in nervousness every time a person comes out.
He was enraged to have learned of this reporter’s involvement and showed more than an inclination to deal with the swindler in every way possible. This plan of Jaejoong, however, he never expected coming. He wouldn’t have escorted him here and locked him in the apartment had he known of it. Jaejoong of course anticipated how Yoochun would react to this and thought it necessary of telling him only when they were already at the club’s parking area.
“Keep the engine running,” Jaejoong told him as soon as they were parked.
“What? I thought we’re gonna go drinking?” Yoochun shot a glare at his friend. He received a call from Jaejoong earlier that afternoon and invited him for a drink. Yoochun obliged thinking his friend could use a little company after what happened.
“Yes, we are, Chun. Just let me have a quick talk with someone first.”
Yoochun pursed his lips in annoyance. “Then you should have just gone out with that friend of yours instead of dragging me out here. I hate waiting in the car, it makes me feel like a puppy!”
Jaejoong grinned at him. “But you’re my safety precaution for tonight, Chunnie. You’ll keep me safe if I get in trouble.”
Yoochun eyed him suspiciously. “I’m not letting you go in there if you don’t tell me what’s really going on.” Something was up and he was starting to feel troubled about it. He could tell just looking at the spark of mischief playing in his friend’s eyes.
Jaejoong huffed in response.
He let Yoochun in on the plan anyway and began a quick walkthrough of the details. “You got that, right? Hey, Chun!” He coaxed, snapping a finger in Yoochun’s face who was gaping at him in complete bafflement and looking like he was about to faint. “Did you even hear a thing I said?”
Yoochun didn’t remember agreeing, but when he snapped back to his senses, Jaejoong was already walking away. There was nothing he could do but go with what the daredevil that he considered a friend told him and could only hope nothing would go wrong.
He waited until he saw his cue, eyes narrowing on Jaejoong’s form with Shirota’s arm on his shoulder. They were going inside a car parked three slots away. He scowled at the man’s perverted face, puffing a nervous breath as he watched the car start up. And when it drove away, Yoochun made sure to put a safe enough distance between them but not much to lose sight of the car.
Nearly 20 minutes passed since Jaejoong disappeared into the building, and Yoochun was already debating in his head whether to just run up to the apartment. Jaejoong specifically asked to give him at least 30 minutes.
30 minutes... Oh to hell with it. He was going after him. He looked at his phone and checked the apartment number Jaejoong texted earlier.
But damn it, he didn’t even know what to--
Yoochun yelped in surprise when the door to the passenger side flew open. Jaejoong slipped inside, grinning triumphantly at him. “Where are you going?”
“Jaejoong!” Yoochun exhaled, an insuperable sense of relief trounced upon him. “Are you hurt? He didn’t do anything, did he?”
“I’m fine, Chun.” Jaejoong waved casually.
Yoochun glowered, annoyed at Jaejoong’s nonchalance. “I still can’t believe--You... You’re crazy, you know that?!”
“That’s what he said,” Jaejoong chuckled. “Come on, how about that drink?”
“You can’t ever pull something like that again,” Yoochun said, his tone serious. “That was dangerous! What if something happened to you? ‘my god Jae! Yunho will murder me if he finds out.”
Yoochun fought the urge to facepalm for mentioning Yunho’s name too soon. Seeing the merriment in Jaejoong’s features quickly replaced by hostility was ample enough reason to feel great regret of what transpired between the couple.
“Jaejoong-ah, I could talk to him for you.” Another mistake, Yoochun realized, when his friend’s beautiful eyes lit with fire at his suggestion.
“Don’t bother, Yoochun,” Jaejoong snarled. “As far as Yunho’s concerned, he’d rather throw everything away than listen to my side on this matter. If that's how he prefers it, then let him believe what he wants to believe... I don’t fucking care anymore.”
Yoochun wanted to reason out with him some more, but before he could speak another word out, Jaejoong stopped him with a raised hand and spoke calmly this time. “Please, Yoochun-ah. I don’t want to talk about it right now. Let’s just get out of here, okay?”
“Okay.” Yoochun sighed, letting it go... for now. “Did you find out anything?” He asked, revving up the engine, before speeding away.
Jaejoong hummed in affirmation, a devilish spark of humor materializing back in his dark eyes. “Um, I need Soojin's schedule for this month. I’d really appreciate it if you could buddy up to her manager and inquire about it for me. Please?”
Yoochun uneasily shifted in his seat, slowing their speed a little before glancing to his side. “What are you going to do this time, Jae?”
“Nothing, I just want to pay her a visit.” Jaejoong shrugged, amusement playing on his lips. A visit... right. Yoochun sighed knowing full well that it wasn’t going to be a friendly one.
After a couple of drinks, Yoochun called it a night and dropped Jaejoong off at his apartment. He felt sorrowful all of a sudden as he watched Jaejoong drag his feet out of the car like the world had just ended. His friend could try to fool anyone with that devil-may-care attitude, but Yoochun wasn’t buying it.
He could tell by just looking at those eyes. They looked well-guarded yet possibly the loneliest pair that Yoochun had ever seen.
Jaejoong had been successful of avoiding Yunho for the past three days. He could hide for as long as life would permit but the chances of not seeing each other was highly doubtful. Living in the same building seriously had its disadvantages to his plan of hiding until his heart grew numb and didn’t care anymore.
Ding ~
Jaejoong bit his lip when the elevator stopped at Yunho’s floor. At least there was another person inside to make it less awkward just incase. He held his breath in, and silently prayed he wouldn’t see him yet. Please. Not yet.
But of course fate had a knock for intervening and screwing him over. Out of all the elevators available, Yunho just had to pick this one.
He scooted to the side, his silly attempt to hide behind the lady who was standing in front of him. Although, the surprise look in the other man’s face told him that hiding was rather pointless now. Their eyes met for a brief second but Jaejoong looked away before he’d lose himself again. Jaejoong felt proud of himself because he honestly had no idea how he managed to feign nonchalance despite the state of inner turmoil within him.
You can do this. He mentally commanded himself.
But as soon as the elevator chimed and came to a stop when they reached another level, Jaejoong’s knees almost gave out when he realized the lady was already walking out, leaving him alone with... ‘No, this can’t be happening!’, he panicked.
“Jaejoong...”
He heard that familiar voice whisper his name, but Jaejoong would have none of it. Before the metal door could close, he slid out of the elevator without looking back and ran to the nearest fire escape.
So hard to breathe.
He sat himself on the stairs, one hand clutching at his chest. It was easy to hide himself away from Yunho and from the rest of the world, but who would protect him from the pain? He was helpless in that moment and hated how broken he was once again.
***
132 hours, 33 minutes, and 22 seconds. Yunho felt pathetic. He’d been counting down the hours since he last talked to Jaejoong.
Damn. Why was it so hard?
Admittedly, that night, Yunho knew for himself that he’d said things he shouldn’t have. It was all out of anger and frustration, much to his shame and regret. He just felt so deceived and Jaejoong confirming it was a major blow to his self-esteem... to his heart. His mind refused to understand, to hear reason besides the fact that he was played. He thought it was hatred that led him to act that way, but it was that sinking feeling of vulnerability to pain that his natural instinct told him to leave and protect himself.
‘I fucked up so bad’, Yunho thought, having no clue for how long he’d been in his bed with eyes just staring blankly into space. After he’d given it much thought, he felt remorseful for allowing his stubbornness to impair his judgment. No, he couldn’t blame Jaejoong for what he did no matter how much he wanted to. He also made mistakes in the past, didn’t he?
His best friend even berated him for being so fickle-minded. “Maybe if you listen for a change, you’d realize how wrong you are about him,” Yoochun mentioned. And as if that wasn’t enough guilt-tripping to last him an entire lifetime, Yunho’s mind recreated visuals of Jaejoong crying, asking for him to listen.
All he had to do was listen.
How could have he denied him that?
Thinking back to that night, Yunho was both shaken and mystified by the fact that Jaejoong could evoke such intense emotions from him just as easily as he could stir Yunho’s passionate need to dominate him, make him beg, and whimper under his touch.
A curse slipped under his breath, shaking his head to melt away the mental images. Even after everything, Yunho’s ultimate need for Jaejoong was proving to be a difficult task to overcome. That encounter at the elevator yesterday was proof enough--how he didn’t have it in him to resist and was already calling out Jaejoong’s name before he could stop himself. He wanted to hold him, take the hurt away that he caused.
He got one thing right, life without Jaejoong was living in nothingness. There was no way out and the thought scared the hell out of him because it had only been... what, five days of not talking to each other?
5 days and 6 nights since I last held him. Yunho corrected himself. Oh God, he really was pathetic.
He jerked in surprise when his phone blared in the silence. He sat up with a grunt and lazily reached for the device. “What is it?” As Yunho listened to his friend mutter the situation in hurried breaths, he was already up in a speed of light, pulling a shirt over his head before his friend could even finish talking.
“I’ll be right there.”
Yunho rapidly made his way to the club after the frantic call from Yoochun. He spotted his friend by the table, gazing up worriedly at--
Mother of...
It was Jaejoong dancing drunkenly atop a marble table with some guy.
Yunho’s eyes radiated fire as he watched Jaejoong wrap his arms around the man’s neck, giggling as they teasingly rubbed their hips against each other. A small crowd below was gathered around them in a circle, perverted faces eyeing him like meat, obviously waiting for their turn to go up and dance.
Everyone within the enclosed space, both men and women, would give their eyeteeth for a piece of that beautiful creature up there but God help him, he would kill who ever tried and would break a neck before he’d let anyone get to his Jaejoong.
Yunho approached them in long, quick strides, and then swiftly tugged at the stranger who tumbled backwards with a howl of pain as his behind hit the concrete floor.
“What the fuck man? Wait for your turn!” The man grumbled as he approached Yunho, but one look was enough to send him scurrying away.
Yoochun looked at him apologetically. “S-Sorry Yunho. I tried to stop him but he threatened to do a strip tease!” he explained in a nervous voice. Yunho ignored his rambling, and instead turned his attention back to the drunken beauty who was still oblivious to the riot he was causing.
“Jaejoong!” he hissed. “Get down from there!” Yunho stretched out a hand but the other only looked at him with a teasing smile before leaning forward.
“Why? Do you want to dance with me, stranger?” Jaejoong whispered sensually but his eyes were vacant of the usual warmth that Yunho saw in them.
Yunho scowled. “You’re drunk. Come on, let’s get you home,” he encouraged, grabbing the man by the hips. But his hand was roughly brushed away.
“Fuck off!” Jaejoong garbled before straightening back up to entertain the onlookers with another move of his hips. Yunho having greater leeway now that Jaejoong’s attention wasn’t on him, he took the chance to snag Jaejoong by the thighs and threw the flailing man over his shoulder.
“Put me down you bastard!” he screeched.
“You’re coming with me whether you like it or not.” Yunho winced as he was answered by Jaejoong’s fist pounding at his back. “Stay still!”
“Let me go!”
Not a chance. Yunho couldn’t deny that he loved Jaejoong too much to let him go. He was definitely willing to forget everything Jaejoong did as long as the man stayed next to him and promised never to leave.
But you left him first. Yunho’s brows knitted together at the reminder of how big of a fool he was.
They were attracting attention as Jaejoong was yelling at him, and trying to wriggle out of his hold. The reporters would have a field fest if they caught any of this so Yunho directed them to the club’s restroom. When he made sure it was empty, he locked the door behind him and settled Jaejoong on the countertop.
“Let’s talk--” Yunho staggered backwards in shock, the force of Jaejoong’s fist colliding with his jaw nearly made him lose his balance. Fuck. That hurt.
“How dare you embarrass me in front of everyone like that!” Jaejoong snapped.
Yunho spat blood on the floor who was now sporting a broken lip. “Throwing yourself around wasn’t embarrassing enough for you?!” He took a step forward but halted when Jaejoong raised his fist at him.
“Come near me and I’ll fucking punch you again,” Jaejoong muttered in a dangerous tone. Just as he was about to jump off the counter, Yunho stepped in between his thighs and swiftly caught his hand before he could throw another punch and then twisted his arms behind his back.
A soft whimper escaped Jaejoong’s mouth as he was roughly pushed towards Yunho’s chest.
“Will you calm down for a moment?” Yunho hissed, pulling Jaejoong closer to him. Suddenly becoming too aware of the close proximity, a smear of sweat began to form along his hairline. Oh God. He fell silent as his eyes lingered at those flushed cheeks and mussed up hair. How could one look so beautiful?
“I’ll kick you in the nuts if you don’t let me go.” Jaejoong glared menacingly, throwing a sputter of profanities at him but fell into deaf ears as Yunho only continued to stare.
Yunho conceded defeat for he was truly aware now how Jaejoong could drive him crazy in just a snap of a finger. This man right here definitely had full control over him like a puppet on a string, and Yunho, as hard as he tried to escape it, was visibly doomed to submit to his every sway.
“We need to talk,” Yunho whispered, hoping he could still fix what he’d broken. He was desperate after he realized his mistakes, but knowing how badly he dealt with the situation, what he gained back didn’t surprise him.
Jaejoong’s voice was sharp as he said coldly, “It’s too late for that now.”
And with that curt reply, Yunho found out how it felt like to crash and burn.
***
Free Counters
A/N: I hope this chapter didn't bore you. So how do you think the YunJae talk will go? hehe look forward to the next one and please leave comments if you have time. Thank you! :)
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