Under the Willow Tree [DBSK jaeho and yoosu]

Chapter 1
Junsu’s POV

Pursing his lips and frowning in frustration at the much wrinkled piece of paper in his slender fingers, Junsu, the sweet faced tenor, was indeed trying his best to understand the characters on the page.

He was the only one lagging behind and the company had ordered him to attend extra Japanese language practice sessions. He was not really concerned with that fact, but he was peeved at the fact that the lessons took place on his off days while everyone else was able to gallivant around town.

“anata wo dake ni.. err.. aish! This is not getting into my head!”, crumpling the piece of paper between his nimble fingers, he threw it into a corner of the room and flicked his pencil in annoyance at the hard grey table.

He paced the room, occasionally glancing out the window, gazing at the warm afternoon sun lighting up every minute raindrop, making everything seem surreal and dreamlike.

Muted and shy, the autumn sunlight peeked out from behind the safety of her clouds and proceeded to shine her gold warmth, reawakening the landscape to her warm touch. In many ways, she resembled the young man trapped in the little study room at SM entertainment. He was a bright wave of infectious happiness that constantly spilled forth through his mirthful laughs to affect others.

Sighing in frustration, he ruffled his hair till it stuck up from the back. Shoving his phone into his back pocket, he walked swiftly out of the building. ‘Nobody should be kept indoors on a perfect day like this’, thought Junsu as swung his long, skinny legs clad in snug dark blue jeans over a sleek green and black bike.

Adjusting his cap and sliding his black sunglasses over his eyes, Junsu glanced around, making sure nobody saw him escaping afternoon practice. Especially by fanatical fans, screaming and lethally swinging placards around his head. Grinning at that thought, he sped out of the carpark with a roar.

[i know its kinda short but the story will get less wordy and more talkative along the way.. ^^]

Chapter 2
Yoochun’s POV

The sweet tinkling of musical notes could be heard melodiously as they drifted out from Yoochun’s little studio. He hummed along with the melody, closing his eyes as he savoured the peaceful moment, letting it seep into his skin, his hair, his breath until it saturated his entire being and he thrummed with the melody.

Sighing contentedly, like a purring kitten, Yoochun slowly lifted his eyes and gazed upon his recently completed piano script. A soft smile played at the edges of his lips as he felt pride and satisfaction bubble up from within.

Sighing he looked out the window, the exact same moment his fellow member gazed out the window at SM to witness the slow turning of the season as the hot summer gave way to the warm caress of autumn. The trees swayed in the gentle breeze and announced the arrival of autumn as they proudly displayed the warm, sepia tones of their leaves.

It was Yoochun’s favourite season of the year. Neither searingly hot as in summer, nor bone chilling as the fierce grip of winter. It would be a fine day to venture out for a cup of coffee.
Abruptly his smile faded and strong pang of loneliness gripped his heart as the tender memories of a certain autumn season he had shared together with a petite girl named Aiko. Her heart shaped face framed by flowy chestnut coloured hair. Her soft smiles as they talked together under the willow tree during the rare times that Yoochun could steal some precious free time from his busy schedule. Her peals of laughter that sounded very much like merry bells chiming together, to produce a melody unlike any other.

Her little nimble hands, as they fastened a silver necklace simply with a ring around his neck, for their first year anniversary. Unnoticed, Yoochun rubbed the ring between his fingers, feeling the familiar imprint of the skull design on his thumb. His heart ached for her familiar sweet scent, the feel of her petite frame against his as they hugged.

He started. He had felt something warm hit his hand resting on the windowsill. Glancing down, he realised it was a drop of water. Frowning, he flicked it off in annoyance but stopped short when he witnessed another drop onto the floor. The frown vanished from his features as he realised he had been crying.

In light of that revelation, he felt like a fool. Wiping away the wretched tears, he felt shame and anger battle amongst themselves within his heart. He was a man and did not cry to merit any pity. God knows he doesn’t deserve any.

With all of these conflicting thoughts competing for precedence within his mind, his anger and frustration finally won through. He grabbed his helmet and keys before leaving the apartment. He was out the door before it could softly click shut.

Chapter 3
Yunho’s POV

He hummed contentedly as he strolled along the company’s private park with his fellow member Jaejoong by his side. Autumn was presenting herself to Yunho in each browning leaf vying for his attention, as her gentle winds caressed his face.

He glanced towards his other member, who was in many ways a comfort to Yunho. His presence around Yunho never failed to calm him down. Jaejoong’s unique personality and mannerisms fit his like a glove and they shared a perfect coexistence and rarely disagreed on anything trivial.

His fellow member closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, enjoying one of their rare days off.
“Jaejoong ah, feel relaxed? I do. We finally get a break from all the rush. I'm enjoying it to the fullest.’’, Yunho said softly as he turned to look at the beautiful man standing next to him.
Opening his eyes softly, Jaejoong replied with a quirk of his lips, grinning, “Of course I do. I get to spend it with you. What more could I want?”. Smiling, he stretched and lay down underneath a willow tree next to a little stream quietly gurgling.

Yunho could not help but stare at his fellow member in wonder. How could a man be so insanely and infuriatingly beautiful yet masculine at the same time? His feminine features belied a hidden complex and mysterious creature which never failed to surprise Yunho no matter how deeper he fell.

His dark doe-like eyes, his straight nose and pouty red lips mesmerized Yunho. Suddenly he felt a strange overwhelming urge to taste those lips for himself, to feel if they were as soft and tender as they looked.

Noticing and absence of movement, Jaejoong opened his eyes and was surprised to find Yunho staring down at him. Giggling shyly he called out to Yunho, “what are you doing standing there with a goofy smile on your face? Sit over here with me. Today’s not a day to be wasted. Nope. Definitely not!”. He finished his last sentence with a pout. Yunho had a hard time keeping himself in check and to tear his gaze away from those lips.

Startled, Yunho snapped out of his reverie. Blushing, he realized he had been caught staring at Jaejoong. Giving out a hesitant laugh he settled himself next to Jaejoong. Close, but not quite touching.

Just then, a cold draft blew across the stream, causing Jaejoong to shiver slightly. Sensing his discomfort, Yunho removed his jacket and wrapped it around Jaejoong.

Jaejoong looked towards Yunho in surprise. “Aren’t you going to feel cold?” he inquired, tilting his head to the side, with puzzled eyes. Yunho's breath caught and his heart thudded within his chest.

‘Huh? I shouldn’t be feeling like this. We were friends for a long time. Just friends. Friends..’, Yunho thought frantically.

Confused, he replied, “Huh? Oh, uhh, I’ll be fine. No need to worry about me.” With that, he gave a smile to reassure Jaejoong and himself that he was not going crazy. Jaejoong simply nodded once and giggled softly before mumbling a shy word of thanks through the material of the jacket.
Deciding to act nonchalant and ignore his heightened sense of Jaejoong beside him, he gazed out across the little stream and heard a familiar roar of a motorbike. His head snapped up just in time to witness a green and black bike whiz out of the company’s basement carpark.

Sighing, he cursed himself inwardly for letting Junsu stay within the company unattended. He knew the cheeky guy could not resist the lure of perfect weather on such a day as this.

Chapter 4
Jaejoong's POV

A slight breeze blew across his face as Jaejoong breathed in deeply. It messed up his hair but he did not mind as he let the autumn wind softly wind her fingers through his ebony hair.
“Jaejoong ah, feel relaxed? I do. We finally get a break from all the rush. I'm enjoying it to the fullest.’’

Hearing Yunho's deep voice sent tingles down his spine and Jaejoong momentarily shuddered. Scolding himself for reacting at the slightest things his leader did, Jaejoong decided to cover his momentary lapse in self control by giving a flippant smile. Of course I do. I get to spend it with you. What more could I want?”.

He stopped short before his traitorous mouth blabbered more. Worried he had said too much and gone too far, Jaejoong nervously walked away and lay down under a willow tree bending its branches sorrowfully towards the beckoning water.

He smiled softly in contentment as he remembered the memories of their days together prior to debut, when they would all sneak out of the dorms to enjoy a late night supper underneath this very willow tree. Junsu's outbursts of giggles, usually in response to Yoochun's childish but endearing pranks and jokes, usually dominated these outings. Changmin, the youngest member, was surprisingly the most mature, sitting quietly contemplating to himself whilst occasionally gazing at the sky. He sometimes wondered what went on inside that boys head. Changmin was not antisocial by far, he was the most approachable and polite person amongst them, however his occasional bouts of reticence was accepted by the others as a part of his nature a long time ago.

Jaejoong halted his musings when he noticed that there was a cold empty space on both his sides. Flickering his eyes open, he startled at the sight of Yunho staring intensely at his face. Embarrassed, he giggle shyly and asked, “What are you doing standing there with a goofy smile on your face? Sit over here with me. Today’s not a day to be wasted. Nope. Definitely not!”. He pouted at the thought that the day would be wasted in the end.

Yunho straightened and blinked a few times. ‘How cute.’ Jaejoong thought to himself.
Yunho blushed slightly and hesitantly settled beside Jaejoong. ‘Is he shy as well?’, Jaejoong giggled inwardly at the thought. ‘Well, this is getting interesting.’

A gust of wind across the stream brought the cold chill of the water to Jaejoong and he shivered slightly. Suddenly he was snuggled into a warm jacket of fleece. Surprised, he looked towards Yunho, who looked slightly shocked, himself. ‘Well, I certainly wasn’t expecting this.’
“Aren’t you going to feel cold?”

Still looking slightly dazed, Yunho shook his head a little, as if he had water in his ears. “Huh? Oh, uhh, I’ll be fine. No need to worry about me.”, he flashed a smile at Jaejoong.

Inside, his heart fluttered and flitted about his chest as if it was a bird in a cage and Jaejoong could feel his cheeks burning. Frantically trying to hide them, he wrapped the jacket tighter about himself. “Thanks Yunho ah.”, he softly muttered.

‘I can smell Yunho's scent. . ’ This only made him blush even more and he hid himself deeper into the jacket.

With a sheepish smile, Yunho ran his hands through his hair nervously and looked across the stream towards the company. Just then, a roar of a motorbike could be heard far away and the smile that had graced his sharp features a moment ago instantly vanished. Instead, it was replaced with a frown and a resigned grim smile. Shaking his head, he commented to no one in particular, “I should have seen it coming. He can be so childish sometimes.”. He smiled humourlessly.

Chapter 5
Changmins POV

A loud roar filled the air and Changmin lifted his head in annoyance. That bloody irritating dolphin boy, always disturbing him at the most inopportune moments. Here he was trying to finish his term paper that the sadistic Mrs Park had set and Junsu just had to upset his concentration. He shook his head in resignation.

Sometimes, he itched to tie the boy down to a chair and never let him out of the room. Or, Changmin thoughtfully considered, he could just place Yoochun on the other side of the world. His other half would naturally follow. Changmin smiled ruefully at that thought.

Junsu and Yoochun had surprisingly developed a genuine friendship from the first moment they met at the airport. The entire ride back to their dorm from the airport was dominated with Junsu’s constant questioning, oblivious to the tired and heavy lids of their new member threatening to slide shut at any minute. Changmin had saved Yoochun then by shoving a whole red bean bun into the baritones mouth. That had finally shocked the member into silence and a small tired smile had quirked up Yoochun’s lips. Changmin had accepted that as gratefulness and smirked before going back to sleep on the long ride back to the company’s dorm, God knew he needed the sleep.

Sighing at the memory, he gazed out the window at the tree branches swaying in the slight breeze that was softly blowing into the room, creating a draughty chill. Shivering he stood up and walked over to the window.

As the window softly slid shut, Changmin’s sharp eyes made out a pair of figures sitting underneath their favourite willow tree. Squinting, he made out a head with familiar burnished copper coloured hair, recognition flashed across his features as he realized it was Jaejoong. The other tall, broadly built, well muscled person, was none other than their caring leader, Yunho.

Changmin should have known, on a beautiful day such as this, no one in their right mind would be stuck inside, except Changmin of course. Well, HE thought he was in his right sane mind and everyone else was just bonkers.

Obviously.

Shaking his head, he continued to observe the pair. The way they moved and shifted themselves to immediately accommodate the other’s presence was plain to anybody’s eyes, their annoying habit of trying to sneak peeks at each other when they thought others weren’t looking. He looked down in pity at Yunho as he suddenly blushed furiously at something Jaejoong did. Smirking, he knew Jaejoong had done something intentionally, to make the leader react like this.

Jaejoong possessed innocent orb-like eyes and a full pouty mouth, making him resemble a little kitten just tumbled from the litter basket. His gaze could capture any man or woman’s attention and drown them in his ebony depths. His innocent little smiles and abashed blushes transformed him into a fickle, shy creature, initiating a compulsive urge in others to protect him. This, he knew Jaejoong understood full well and unfortunately for Yunho, he knew how to employ them most efficiently as well.

Changmin was gratefully thankful that Jaejoong didn’t see fit to turn his charms on him due to his young age. Fortunately for him, Jaejoong was obviously much more preoccupied with other matters at this moment, as he witnessed Yunho draping a jacket over Jaejoong's slight frame.
He snorted to himself and ran his slim fingers through his soft hair. It made them stick out and Changmin shook his head to put them back into order.

Just then, the doorbell rang. Changmin turned his head in surprise, it was their day off and the members were sure to be off gallivanting, enjoying their well earned rest to the fullest, so who else could be seeking him out in his own little apartment in the SM dorms.

The pounding on the door became more incessant and Changmin hollered that he was coming.
Changmin peeked through the doorhole.

His eyes widened in surprise, it was Yoochun hyung. ‘What the hell is he doing here?’ Changmin wondered.

Frowning, he pulled open the door just when Yoochun was about to bang his fist again.
“Hyung? What the he. . I mean, what are you doing here on our off day? Err. . why do you look like crap too. . “, Changmin trailed off, not entirely sure why Yoochun eyes were dark and hooded and completely intimidating. Even his breaths were coming out in puffs, as though he had just ran a marathon.

Yoochun’s eyes flashed and instantly he had stormed into changmins apartment.
“Whoa whoa, hey there. . Watch out will you? I mean hyung. , Changmin hastily amended. Changmin frowned at seeing such an agitated Yoochun, poles apart from his usual jovial self.

“Where’s Junsu.” , Yoochun demanded in a low husky voice. His eyes burned with an intensity that frankly, unnerved Changmin.

“I think he just left the building. I heard his motorbike a moment ago. But I have no idea where he could have gone. Hyung, whats wrong. Are you ok?”, Changmin asked anxiously, concern etched into his features.

Sighing, Yoochun hanged his head in dejection and Changmin could see the man crumble under the weight of his sadness, wherever it was coming from.

“No matter.”, Yoochun suddenly muttered and in an instant his shoulders straightened with determination again and he whisked out of the room, leaving Changmin in a befuddled daze staring at the empty doorway where a frighteningly intimidating Yoochun had been standing a moment ago.

He needed some coffee.

His lack of sleep was getting to him.

Most importantly, he needed to do his work.