idticd

Doc.

idticd — Sat, 20 Sep 2014 20:00:06 GMT

Pairing/Characters: jinyoung x gongchan (with cnu and baro)
Rating: PG
Word Count: 9500+
Summary: As a Documenter, Jinyoung prides himself in knowing and seeing everything about everyone and using his given powers to get away with it. The one thing he doesn't know is that Chansik is the only one who can fix that, with or without all of the wibbly-woobly magic going back and forth.
Note: Originally written for b1a4ss 's 2014 summer exchange (reposted with a few small edits)

Jinyoung sighed as he stared at the doors to the library, contemplating his life choices. It wasn’t like him to be an actual student and be caught at the library, but it also wasn’t like Dongwoo to leave a voicemail asking to meet up. He already saw some of the girls from his school gawk as they walked past him and began to gossip, and pulled his pager out to glare at it, as if it was going to send that glare right back at Dongwoo.

Truthfully, Jinyoung was a popular and well-liked guy at school, even though he had no real friends. If he did, then someone would have realized that he had better things to study after school.

Jinyoung opened the doors and walked with long strides, as if it was his tenth and not his first time in the library. He ignored the gawking of the group of girls that were sitting by the door, but made a mental note to look at the notes for the math test tomorrow, and to use Sakyung’s banana milk addiction against her the next time she decides to throw a paper airplane at his head. He saw the glint of petty jealousy from the group of boys sitting by the pathway, and casually hopped to avoid the foot that blocked his path while stealing someone else’s apple. He turned the corner and dropped the apple onto Heesung’s lap as a sign of gratitude for finding his notebook last week, and was feeling confident right as he casually slid into the seat next to Dongwoo’s.

Was.

“So Doc, when is the expiration date on Sakyung’s banana milk?” Dongwoo casually asked without a glance in his direction.

“Saturday.” Jinyoung replied back and started their little game, though the audible sigh at the front of his reply made him sound a bit more agitated rather than casual.

“How many dents were in that pear Minwoo had?”

“Two.”

“Do you have your notes for that math test tomorrow?”

“Yep.” Jinyoung looked up and smirked at Dongwoo. Although they were almost the same age, Dongwoo looked years older thanks to his baggy jeans and unbuttoned collar shirt.

Dongwoo looked up from his book and raised an eyebrow at Jinyoung.

“How about the history test?”

Jinyoung’s jaw went slack, and Dongwoo softly smiled, pushed his glasses up to the bridge of his nose, and went back to reading his book.

"I hate history", Jinyoung muttered as he glanced around the library to try and debunk Dongwoo. Jinyoung knew that in their business as Documenters, they're supposed to see and know everything about everyone and everything and Document it (and the Agency swears that they don't do anything with the billions of bits of information that they get every day). But that didn't mean he was going to change his approach to school.

His trained stare landed on a quiet boy in the corner, biting his pencil. Jinyoung guessed that the boy was in high school and a few years younger, based on the black mop of hair and the way his eyes were concentrated a little bit too hard on the book that he was reading. What was even more peculiar was that it was a Wednesday before the last exams of the school year, yet this boy just seemed to be casually reading through the stack of books that surrounded him, and wasn’t even wearing a school uniform.

Perfect.

“Fine, then what’s the documentation on him, know-it-all?” Jinyoung whispered before glancing back down at his notebook.

“Librarian cleared him. He’s homeschooled. Parents are in town for business. While they work, he’s in here studying from day til night. Some of the girls have talked to him, and they think he’s cute though, so he’s not completely out of the limelight.”

“Name?”

Dongwoo’s eyebrows scrunched together. “You never care about their names unless you talk to them.”

Jinyoung blinked and tore out the selected pages of his notebook. “I know, I just had a feeling it might be important,” he said as he gave Dongwoo the pages.

Dongwoo accepted them, and shook off whatever feeling he had. “Yeah. She refused to give me that, and I didn’t see any document on him that indicates any identity. But he’s clean, so he’s not on our priority list right now. You can get his name later if you care that much,” he said teasingly. Dongwoo stuffed the papers in an envelope and glanced around the room, even though Jinyoung knew that, as Documenters, they had eyes on every single mass within a five-kilometer radius. However, what Jinyoung lacked in intelligence and deduction, he made up for with street smarts.

He grabbed Dongwoo’s wrist before he could summon a portal and turn in Jinyoung’s paperwork on the gang that he accidentally came across (he expects the Agency to send a tip to the police by the time he gets to bed, since those are anonymous and no Documenter gets Documented themselves).

“The girls are still keeping their eyes on me. Just turn them in after I leave. They won’t bother looking at you.

Dongwoo nodded and put the envelope down. “By the way, you’re moving back to the docks.”

Jinyoung’s nose crinkled at the thought of it. “Why? I just started liking the block the Agency assigned me to. And I even wrote down my details that were better than-”

“Don't. Even.” Dongwoo glared at him, but Jinyoung turned away at the reminder of the incident, rather than Dongwoo's terrible attempt at intimidation. “But we still haven’t found out where that new stream of energy is coming from, so they just decided to send everyone back to their bases and keep track of life there.”

Jinyoung felt something odd about this announcement, but the dreadful thought of going back to the old port and all of the smells associated with it were distracting him at the moment.

“Well, at least I actually bothered to befriend my tenant there for once.”

~~~~~

Jinyoung grumbled as he wandered the port for the second time that night, though he wasn’t grumbling about the fact that he had to play the part of a village fool in order to gain access to people’s lives. Sure, being a Documenter meant that he was gifted with enhanced senses and awareness, but because he was relatively new to the business, he still had to rely on normal human networks in order to properly record everyone for the Agency to study, even if they failed him.

And this time, his network definitely failed him.

“I can’t believe they sold my shed to some artist who isn’t even home half of the time, those greedy little real estate-.”

“Jinyoung! You’re back!”

He turns around as some of the neighborhood kids stop to tackle him with a hug. While he pushed them off and greeted them (while taking notes on how tall they had gotten), Jinyoung got distracted by the boy rounding the corner and looking in his direction.

Or, maybe at the kid who was carrying a black backpack in his hand while he was already wearing his own backpack.

Jinyoung quickly grabbed the extra black backpack and tipped over a nearby box of fruit for the kids to trip over. Sure enough, the ensuing mess caused enough commotion to take all of the attention off of Jinyoung, the backpack, and its owner (although that probably meant he wasn't going to get any favors from the fruit vendor anytime soon). He walked away from the chaos and towards the stranger, handing him the small, but heavy, bag.

“Thanks,” the boy sheepishly grinned.

“No problem,” Jinyoung casually replied. It suddenly occurred to him that this may be a citizen that he had never documented before. “Are you new around here?”

The boy seemed to be surprised that Jinyoung was inquiring, and Jinyoung silently cursed social norms for the tenth time that week. Regardless, he still smiled and replied in a soft voice. “Yeah, my parents have business here, so I just came with them.”

The boy bit his teeth in nervousness while he swept the mop of hair on his head out of his face. Some alarm in Jinyoung’s head went off, but for once, he chose to ignore it. “That explains why I haven’t seen you around.”

The stranger tossed his own backpack over his shoulder. “You know everyone here?”

“Most of them,” Jinyoung shrugged his shoulders. “I just came back today. I’ll probably be hanging around, smelling like the sea, 24/7.”

“You seem to really know how they work too,” he casually noted as he started to shuffle away.

Jinyoung nodded proudly, and if Dongwoo was in range, he’d probably be giving Jinyoung one of his trademark disapproving looks. “People are easy to read once you figure them out.” Before he could brag, his Agency-issued pager suddenly went off, and he winced at the sound.

“Sounds important,” the stranger commented as Jinyoung hastily switched it off.

“I’ll look at it later.”

“Well, I have to go, but thanks for getting my backpack back. I would have been a goner without it.” The stranger started backing away and grinned, and something about the way he smiled made Jinyoung’s heart skip a beat.

“Wait,” Jinyoung blurted out before the boy turned around. “What’s your name?”

The stranger stared at Jinyoung as he pouted his lips, as if he was choosing what ice cream flavor to buy. “Why?”

Jinyoung casually shrugged as he went through the standard protocol of deflecting that question. "I like knowing the people that live here."

He smiled, and Jinyoung had to remind himself multiple times that this was purely business.

“And I’m Jinyoung, if that helps.”

"Jinyoung.... " He tilted his head slightly to the side, reminding Jinyoung of a lost puppy he once had to rescue. He opened his mouth, as if he was about to say something, but then shook his head and decided against it. “Call me Chansik.” Chansik bowed, and awkwardly shuffled backward as he smiled at Jinyoung one more time and rounded the corner. Jinyoung almost waved to him before realizing that he failed to question Chansik anymore. Sighing, he figured that one missed encounter wouldn't get him penalized, and so he went back to work.

It wasn’t until he was writing up his documentations that night that he realized that Chansik was the library boy, and he didn’t use any of his superpowered senses to figure out Chansik. Now that he thought about it, there were things about Chansik that were peculiar, but he was so distracted- err... thrown off by his smile that he had to shut down all of his senses.

“Yeah. Thrown off. That’s it," he muttered to himself.

Though it could be punishable, he left Chanisk out of the reports completely. He didn’t want the Agnecy to send someone because Jinyoung didn’t follow protocol and do his job right. He can just tell Dongwoo he’s doing… a follow up. To make sure the documents are right. And then he’ll send the real ones.

Right.

~~~~~

"Is that... Jung Jinyoung???"

"At the library?"

"For the second day in a row?"

Jinyoung groaned when he heard the girls' conversation and shoved it to the back of his mind. He already had to deal with an angry fruit vendor this morning (though he finally managed to get a room at their building) and gossip was the last thing he needed.

"Have you seen that kid before?"

"No, but I wonder why he's there. No one goes that far into the library."

Thank goodness teenage girls love to gossip.

He still didn't know the structure of the library, but two minutes later, Jinyoung was making his way through the empty sections where he knew no one was around. He backtracked when he found a boy with a black backpack and books all over the place hunched over a notebook and a light.

"Studying a lot... Bad eyesight... Seems not to want any social interactions... Looks like I'll have to take the casual approach," Jinyoung decided. He quietly entered the space, making sure not to be too loud (while being as obvious as he could be), and decided to grab an old thick book and flip through it as loud as he possibly could. He happened to grab a book on a study of Gumiho myths, and a detailed drawing of a nine-tailed fox feasting on its victim was on the cover.

As it turns out, dropping a book attracts a lot more attention than flipping through its pages.

Chansik looked up, and Jinyoung looked truly apologetic as he scrambled to put the book back in its place, not noticing that Chansik turned his flashlight off and slipped it into his own pocket.

"Are you okay?" Chansik asked.

"Yeah I'm fine," Jinyoung quickly replied as he tried to get the image out of his head.

It took a second before Chansik made the connection. "Oh! You're the guy that got my backpack yesterday, right?"

Well, that was easy.

"Yeah, that's me. Sorry about the interruption."

"No it's fine. But you still seemed a little freaked out." Chansik closed his book, and Jinyoung had to stop himself from backing away when he saw the cover. Noticing this, Chansik looked down at his own book of gumiho myths with its own violent cover.

"You don't like animal violence?"

Jinyoung furrowed his eyebrows together. "What?"

He raised the book. "You flinched again. Though, it's weird that you managed to live at the ports, you know, with all those fish markets and stuff."

"Oh, no, the legends are cool and all. It's just that... Err... I guess I kinda have a phobia?"

"Of what? It's not like gumihos actually exist. Although, this book of supposed first-hand encounters is pretty cool. People's minds really know how to warp the truth."

"Well, yeah, but it's not that." Jinyoung stuffed his hands in his pockets and avoided Chansik's gaze. He didn't see it as Chansik looked at his cover and made the deduction.

"You're afraid of foxes?"

"It's something about their eyes- I don't know!" Jinyoung blurted out, a little embarrassed. But when he looked up, Chansik wasn't laughing at him, or judging him. Instead, he nodded, and genuinely smiled at Jinyoung.

He didn't know how to feel about that.

"You know, you kinda look like one," Chansik's eyes crinkled together, and Jinyoung couldn't help but smile.

"You're not the first who's told me that. Has anyone told you that you look like a puppy?"

"Yeah, but not from another teenage guy."

Jinyoung rolled his eyes to hide his embarrassment. Did I really say that? "Other guys aren't that bright, believe me. Especially the ones in this town."

"How do you know that?"

"They can't even make eye-contact with any of the teachers or girls that they like, unless there's something up their sleeve."

"Maybe you should let them tell you their story first. Not everything is in the eyes."

And for the first time since he became a Documenter, Jinyoung didn't know how to read one of his citizens.

Chansik smiled and shut his book. "I think my job here is done."

Jinyoung looked at him. "Where are you going?"

"I think that's enough history for me today, so I'll head out. I still want to see the town, since I'm not going to be here forever."

He turned the corner right as Jinyoung realized that he should probably follow him. The problem was, Chansik disappeared into thin air, and Jinyoung didn't figure out where he went until he heard the front door close.

He wasn't sure if his face was heating up from confusion or embarrassment, until he was hit by a paper airplane.

"Those boys are so mean."

"Yeah, now I see why you broke up with him, Sakyung."

... Wait, was I not listening to their conversation?

~~~~~

And that's how Jinyoung finds Chansik everyday. Apparently, Chansik likes to study historical events, so Jinyoung is usually able to narrow down his search and not spend twenty minutes looking around. Chansik doesn't mind the company, and as the days passed and his visits became longer, Jinyoung didn't mind listening and staying. For some days, Chansik will be obsessed over one huge event, and attacking it from all sorts of angles- from the people, to the places. Other days, he'll focus on the people and the places, and how they developed from that past until now. Sometimes, he'll even ask Jinyoung to look through the books with him, but Jinyoung never had the heart to tell him that he hates history.

Still, Jinyoung found the way Chansik told the stories so interesting and detailed, yet somehow simple and more realistic than how Jinyoung's textbooks covered it. But Chansik always made it a point to talk about the people, and how they responded to events. It made Jinyoung feel as if he was watching the events unfold for the first time. It was in the way that Chansik told these stories, rather than what he actually talked about, that both fascinated him and gave him chills.

And yet, even though he had every reason in the (unwritten) rule book to document the adorable and innocent mop-head whose eyes hinted that he knew more than he should, Jinyoung still couldn't bring himself to file a new resident form when he sat down at the end of the day.

He still didn't even know Chansik's last name. (At least, that’s what he told himself.)

~~~~~

He asked Chansik to grab lunch with him while he was preoccupied with the history of Russia's economy ("I finished Korea's economy a few weeks ago!"), and though it took a minute, Chansik graciously accepted.

It would have been a good thing for Jinyoung, had he gotten any important information about Chansik. Even though Jinyoung did most of the questioning and initiating, Chansik would only give him short answers and all Jinyoung managed to get was his last name (Gong). What was even more bizarre was that, at the end of their meal, Jinyoung realized that he had shared a lot more about himself than he was planning to ("You don't like squash?" "There was an incident in the sixth grade.") and Chansik was doing that thing again where he managed to figure out something about Jinyoung ("You know, maybe that's why you shouldn't mess with your nanny like that before she goes to the market.")

How could he take Chansik's advice, when Chansik's eyes spoke volumes more than his actual answers?

Chansik’s gaze never wandered, unless he was thinking of something to say or reply. When Jinyoung talked, he was looking at him, nodding and fully listening. When Jinyoung made some sarcastic or hilarious remark, Chansik’s eyes crinkled together, like the first day they met.

Jinyoung later decided not to send in any of his five drafts after realizing that he never mentions one person's eyes thirteen times in reports.

~~~~~

Dongwoo was going to kill him for double-tasking once again, but he figured he would be fine. It would be hard for the normal person to keep tabs on all 200 citizens within the radius and pay full attention to the conversation with person you’re walking next to, all while trying not to trip on your own feet.

“So, you don’t have family?”

Jinyoung shrugged. “I do, but my parents just travel and left me with my nanny. But then life happens, and now I just go to school here and do chores for the locals. No big deal.”

“Wow.”

And that was when Jinyoung realized he just told Chansik something that resembled the truth rather than the standard statement that the Agency drilled into his head.

“Actually,” he stops, and Chansik stops to look at him. “You’re the first one I’ve told, so I’d appreciate it if you could keep it a secret.”

Chansik nodded, and his smile softened, as if he was grateful to be trusted with a secret. Jinyoung avoided his gaze as his face warmed up and kept walking.

“Oh, my home is over here, so I guess I'll see you later?”

Jinyoung turned around to look at the branch of the pier that even he rarely visits, because of the old abandoned beach house that stays abandoned when teenagers aren’t using it to frighten their friends. It was a two-story wooden house, and though it was still a functioning building, it was also old enough for the locals to come up with stories and myths that center on it.

“Your parents bought that house?”

“Yeah…” he nodded, and then turned to Jinyoung. “But it’s okay. We cleaned it.”

“Interesting…” Jinyoung trailed off.

“Yeah… well, goodnight," Chansik nodded, not knowing what else to say, and walked away.

“Hey Chansik.” Jinyoung suddenly said, and Chansik turned around a little faster than expected.

“Yeah?”

Jinyoung waited a minute, but he needed to know that he could trust Chansik. “I was serious. You can’t tell a soul.”

“I know. You have my word.” He held up a pinky, and so did Jinyoung.

He stayed there for another minute, staring as Chansik’s back got smaller and smaller, with his pinky still in the air.

~~~~~

“There are pagers, and it’s 2010, Sunwoo. How can you guys not find me yet?”

“You'd be surprised. Other time tracks don't even have proper electricity outlets, so you count your blessings that your phone is still running. Besides, Junghwan isn’t back yet, and he’s the only one in our section that can understand these angry voicemails I’ve been getting and read half of the signs near the tracks you were last spotted,” Sunwoo said. It was obvious that his blonde hair was getting longer when even the transmission was able to deliver the sounds of him blowing it out of his face.

“Wow, how is it that you're my superior again?”

In truth, the boy in the kitchen was actually starting to miss seeing Sunwoo and correcting him. He could imagine it as Sunwoo rolled his eyes at the sarcasm in his voice and smiled.

“There’s no Wi-Fi here, I’m getting antsy in the library.”

“Well, not even every single famous name that you brought up could help me find you. Got anything else?”

He suddenly felt a bit paranoid, so turned to the window to look at the ocean view and relax. “Well… I mean, I met a Jung Jinyoung that looks eerily similar to that one idol that that-“

“Unless you got stuck in America, that info isn’t going to help me at- wait, met? What do you mean met?”

“He saw me and I talked to him.”

“Oh geez, ok, that’s not good.” Sunwoo began to panic. “You’ve been there way too long.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning that you’re already setting off new branches of tracks no matter what you do. Ok, you know what? Just wait, ok? Try not to leave any hints, photographs, articles – you know – indicating that you were ever there, or existed. Cut off contact with him. You know the drill. Why am I telling you this, you’re one of our newest best agents.” Sunwoo blabbered on.

“But-“

“Oh crap, I gotta go. A time general just checked in downstairs. In the meantime, please don’t set up the chain of events that will lead to World War III. Our jobs are already complicated enough.” Before he could argue anymore, Sunwoo hung up, leaving him to stare at his smart phone and scoff.

“No promises.”

~~~~~

Suddenly, Chansik stopped showing up to the library. Jinyoung thought it was for one day, but he keeps checking back for the next few days until the librarian threatened to kick him out for distracting the girls (and informs him that she has no idea where Chansik is either). One day, Jinyoung saw him walking the wooden path to his house, but when he shouted, Chansik didn't seem to hear him. The next few times he saw him, Chansik was always on the other side of the port, and Jinyoung always missed him.

Jinyoung has had his cases of citizens who took ages to document, but none were like Chansik. He has spent so much time talking to him, asked him all sorts of questions, and got nothing more than a name and personality out of him.

He swears his forehead is hurting from all of the head-desking he’s done trying to figure this out.

~~~~~

Jinyoung didn't cave completely, but he knew something was wrong when, after a week of no Chansik and multiple other documentation and networking in his place instead (and trips to the library, though he wouldn't admit that), he realized that no one on the port really knew the history behind the house. He began to wonder if Chansik was purposely avoiding him, and it didn’t help that Chansik didn’t have a pager or a phone.

So, Jinyoung caved.

"I finally checked out the house yesterday," Dongwoo came up to the edge of the docks where Jinyoung was sitting.

"What, no games today?"

Dongwoo rolled his eyes.

"This used to be your favorite spot too, when you were my ranking." Jinyoung gave him a lazy smile. "Now spill."

"The good news is that your friend is still in that house, and it looks like a normal beach house from what I saw. Didn't see any parents though, even though I checked it out last night. And I think I know what's causing the energy disruptions."

Jinyoung nodded, before he realized something. "Wait, why is there bad news?"

"Well, I think it's bad news, but since you insisted that it's your case, you can call it."

"Dongwoo."

"He was talking on some weird rectangle device and mentioned your name, but I couldn't listen in because I think he saw me."

"Oh," he curtly answered, focused more on the fact that Chansik was even talking about him rather than the fact that Dongwoo- the engineering fanatic- didn't recognize the device. "Is that it?"

Dongwoo was momentarily confused by Jinyoung's change in attitude, but he pretended to ignore it. "Well, that and my powers got temporarily deactivated. So I think your friend is the one who's causing the energy disruption and I have to-"

"No you don't!" Jinyoung stood up and clamped his mouth shut with his hand, before realizing what he did. He slowly put his hand down at an awkward pace, leaving Dongwoo to just blink at him. "I mean, it's still my case. I'll figure it out, and decide."

"Jinyoung."

"Please?"

Dongwoo hesitated. Jinyoung never says please and means it, especially to him. "... Fine. But can I ask why?"

"I think there's something important he's not telling me. That's probably the one question I haven't asked him yet."

~~~~~

Jinyoung preferred to do his work in crowds so that no one would notice him. But because the path was so open, he had to wait until nightfall to sneak over to the house. It was smaller than he thought, though he still had to circle the building twice to find an entrance. He glanced at a window and saw a pan hovering over a stove.

He nearly had a heart attack when he realized that no one was holding the pan.

Jinyoung decided to peer inside, and he immediately regretted it when the headache set in.

Everything in the kitchen was flying through the air. Not falling, not being thrown, but actually flying in circles and loops. And no one was in the room controlling it.

Amazed, Jinyoung looked at another room. Cutlery. Furniture. Lamps. They were all flying, and Jinyoung didn’t know how to react until a vase came flying out the window and nearly knocked his head off.

"Nope. I am not doing this." He stood up and started walking away away. "I saw nothing, I am quitting now, I did not sign up for this, Dongwoo can go-"

It then occurred to him that he saw Chansik’s knife set flying around the kitchen.

"I really didn't sign up for this."

Jinyoung turned around and ran towards the house, using his momentum to kick the side door open. He heard a buzz go off somewhere in the house, but he was too busy avoiding the coffee table that was about to attack him from the side. He dodged it, only to nearly come face to face with a frying pan.

“Seriously?” he yelled at no one in particular as a chair nearly tackled him from behind. But just as he rolled out of the way, he suddenly sensed a pair of scissors coming towards his neck.

“Get down!”

Jinyoung quickly followed orders and covered his head, and the next thing he knew, the entire building was captured in a flash of light. When he opened his eyes, gravity had taken over again, sending everything raining down, and a figure on top of the staircase was putting away a silver disk. Before he could process what was going on, he was staring at the stranger’s green long johns as he stood in front of him and crouched down to his level. His disheveled hair made him look as if he had just woken up from his sleep, but that was the least of Jinyoung’s concerns when he saw the face of the stranger and saw how odd a serious and imposing demeanor looked on his face.

“Jinyoung?” Chansik said in disbelief. He looked down and saw the black notebook that Jinyoung was holding in his hand, and his eyes widened as something in his mind clicked. “Are you a… a Documenter?”

Jinyoung’s question froze in his mouth. How did Chansik know what he was? He hasn’t told a single human soul what he did for a living (Dongwoo doesn’t count).

Not knowing what to say, he nodded, and Chansik’s eyebrows only scrunched together even more.

“But… Documenters aren’t… oh no.”

Jinyoung quickly scrambled to get up and looked down at Chansik. “Wait… I’m not what? How do you know who I am? What is that supposed to mean?”

Chansik got up just as quickly. “No! Nothing! I mean, it’s not nothing-“ he quickly added and tried to spit out a more coherent answer. “I mean, it’s not bad for you! It’s bad for… for me.”

Jinyoung raised an eyebrow in disbelief. “What?”

Chansik took a deep breath and turned around, taking a few paces. He ruffled his own hair before turning back to Jinyoung, and Jinyoung almost showed some form of sympathy for him. Almost.

“It means that I’m on a completely different time track.”

~~~~~

“So… let me get this straight. You’re a time traveler?” Jinyoung massaged his temple, and he wasn’t sure if it was the long-winded explanation from Chansik or the coffee that Chansik gave that was causing it.

“Essentially. I guess you could say that I’m more of a time… fixer.” Chansik answered as he paced the kitchen.

It wasn’t a difficult concept, at least, Jinyoung knew that was what Chansik was implying. Chansik traveled on railroad tracks that spanned space and time, and every time he stopped, he would end up at a different point in time. He also understood that something happened, and now Chansik’s ship and most of his equipment was broken and on the fritz, which explains the random bursts of energy that managed to turn off gravity in his house.

That much Jinyoung understood. But then Chansik started explaining how the cause and effect of events creating multiple forks in the tracks and therefore new timelines and dimensions, and why his equipment was causing the energy bursts.

And Jinyoung thought he felt stupid when he first heard about the Agency.

“Ok, so if you travel on railroad tracks, where’s your train?” Jinyoung asked jokingly.

“It merges with the first large structure that it detects. So, you’re sitting in it.”

And that was when Jinyoung finally realized that the creepy old house didn’t have a single squeaky board, even on the wooden path leading up to it.

It probably wasn’t the coffee. Maybe it was just Chansik.

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Jinyoung knew that Dongwoo was going to want to know about this, but he was pretty sure the last thing Chansik needed was to deal with more people while he fixed a time machine beach house … train… thing.

“Ok… I think if we can get you home fast enough, they won’t notice and send any higher-ups to come and chase you… or me… down.”

Now it was Chansik's turn to look at Jinyoung as if he was the alien. "You're not going to document me?"

Whoops.

"Yes, no- I mean I... Err. Well. Actually I should have done it a while ago. But I didn't. Because I forgot. So yeah. You don't have documents here." Jinyoung was normally good at lying, but somehow Chansik reminded him of one of those adorable kids that would tell on you if you did something wrong.

"Really?" Chansik said, not seeming to believe him.

"Yeah... Honestly."

"Oh... Thanks!" Chansik looked at him for a bit, but a small smirk crept up on his face, and Jinyoung tried to change the subject before his face heated up.

“Are you sure you can get home soon?”

Chansik sighed. “Fixing my equipment is only half the battle. I need to give the base more events so that they can figure out what part of history I landed in, and open the portal to get me out of here.”

And for the first time that evening, Jinyoung cracked a smile. “If only you knew someone with access to the data of every single person who's ever lived.”

~~~~~

“Give that back.” Chansik hissed as he snatched his smart phone away from Jinyoung. “You can’t touch that. You’re lucky I’m letting you see it.”

Jinyoung knew that they couldn’t attract any more attention in the library, even though they were hidden somewhere deep in the library in between a few bookcases. But he couldn't help but stare at the screen that Chansik was now quickly tapping away at.

“It’s a television screen. On a phone. That you can touch.” He blankly stated.

“What, you expected me to keep using a pager? That’s so 90’s,” Chansik smiled, and Jinyoung unconsciously raised a hand to shield his pager on his belt.

It had only been three days since the flying scissors incident, but Jinyoung had somehow gotten used to the time jokes, even though he learned that Chansik was only originally from 2014. The technology and lingo, however, were an entirely different boat.

“Well, how long are we going to have to wait for that technology?” He asked, a little to eager for the answer.

Chansik looked up from his phone. "Well, it happened relatively fast. But seeing as it’s 2010, and Korea still doesn’t have Wi-Fi, let alone public internet access, then I’m not sure.”

“Why-what?” Jinyoung blinked.

Chansik shook his head and handed Jinyoung another book and one of Jinyoung’s notebooks. “Never mind. Here. I need you to start checking on the history of Russia. I’ve already covered most of the Asian countries, and I’m moving east towards the Americas. You move west.”

In between the snarky comments, the phone-staring, and the vast amount of reading, Jinyoung was lucky he got to Kazakhstan by the time the library closed.

“So what exactly are your powers?” Chansik asked as they walked back to his house.

The question still took Jinyoung aback, but he had to remind himself that nothing was out of Chansik’s understanding. He might be older than Chansik, even without the time traveling aspect, but Chansik had years of experience to back him up. Literally.

“I’m aware of everything in a five-kilometer radius. So, enhanced senses, and awareness, I guess. I’m still a rookie, but I do have better connections than most. It helps with the documenting,” he replied as he looked down at his notebook.

“So... Is that why you hung out with me everyday?”

Jinyoung stopped, and Chansik turned to look at him.

“What?”

“Is that why you hung out with me? Because it's your job to get to know people?” Chansik asked, and Jinyoung could not figure out why there seemed to be a subtle shift in Chansik's attitude.

"Ummm... I mean, it is my job, so I guess so?"

"Oh,” Chansik said curtly.

Oh.

"Wait no, that's not what I meant!" Jinyoung blurted out. Chansik's expression didn't change, but his arms were crossed, as if he was waiting for an explanation.

Until they were interrupted by an odd, buzzing sound.

“My house!”

Chansik looked at his phone, alarmed, and Jinyoung was still trying to figure out where the buzzing came from. “What about it? What is it?”

“Someone broke in and triggered the alarms!” Chansik suddenly broke into a run, and Jinyoung followed behind, suddenly cursing himself for skipping gym class.

“Was that what was buzzing when I did?”

“Yeah, and now my ship is trying to trap them!”

“What kind of security system is that?” Jinyoung screamed as they rounded the corner and ran straight down the path to Chansik’s house.

“You'd be surprised how many criminals the ships attract. Shield your eyes!” he screamed back as he pulled out a silver disk from his backpack. As they entered the house, Jinyoung did as he was told, and Chansik yelled the same command before activating the light. As everything came raining down, Jinyoung felt someone get up, and he quickly scanned the room before seeing someone underneath the doorway. “There!” he pointed. Chansik pointed his disk at the intruder, even though the two of them knew the disk could do no harm.

“Wait! Don’t shoot! I’m not going to hurt you!” he said, raising both of his hands. “I just want to know who you are!”

“Dongwoo?”

Chansik turned around, and Dongwoo dropped his hands, to look at Jinyoung.

“Dongwoo, what are you doing here?” Jinyoung stepped forward.

Dongwoo stepped out of the doorway and towards the pair, though he still kept his distance. For the first time since Jinyoung had met him, he looked out of breath, some of his long hair was out of place, and he seemed a bit frazzled and confused. “Shouldn’t I be asking you the same? You haven’t been answering my calls, so I had to cover for you and investigate the pier myself.” He looked at Chansik, then back at Jinyoung. “You know the Agency is going to want to hear about this.”

Chansik abruptly stood between them and flashed a bright smile at Dongwoo. “Let’s not.”

Dongwoo blinked, and then looked at Jinyoung once again, “So, who is he?”

Jinyoung looked between the two of them, and realized this was going to be another long night. He shrugged his shoulders, and tried to match Chansik’s level of “innocence.”

“Umm… A time fixer?”

~~~~~

“I correct kinks in the timelines.”

Jinyoung could see as Dongwoo’s facial expression bordering between confusion and disbelief. “What’s wrong with time?” Chansik sat across from Dongwoo, who was on the only sofa in the house, and Jinyoung stayed at the front door, watching Dongwoo carefully.

“From our front… time looks like a train track, where one small event can split the entire track into two new and different paths. As a fixer, we hop back and forth to do random assignments and straighten time out to follow a less dangerous pattern, by interfering, somehow.”

“And you know about our job… how?” He looked at Jinyoung, and Jinyoung just shrugged.

“We study up on other enforcers across timelines in case of an emergency, so at least we know what part of history we’re at when we get lost. Unfortunately, they still haven’t set up the Korean base on all the tracks yet- the Korean base is one of the newer stations.”

“How did you wind up here?”

“Someone messed with our paths and knocked me off course. The problem is, I’m so far from my planned path that they can’t find me. On top of that, most of my equipment has been damaged, so I have to go and research life as we- err, you- know it so that they know what part of history I landed in.”

Dongwoo shook his head as he struggled to keep up. This was the most ridiculous thing he had heard since he found out that Jinyoung had actually been accepted by the Agency, and it didn't help that all of this knowledge was coming from a guy who looked and was physically younger than him.

“Look, deny it all you want, but you know I’m telling the truth from the sound of my voice, right?”

Dongwoo looked up. Chansik was looking very stressed about this situation, and Dongwoo couldn’t deny it, powers or not. How in the world was he going to write this one up?

“Please don’t write me up,” Chansik said, and Jinyoung snorted as Dongwoo nearly jumped. “It’s bad enough that my invisibility ran out, but if I leave any more proof behind that I was here, it’s only going to cause more trouble." He approached Dongwoo and bowed down to his eye level. “I’m just trying to get home.”

Dongwoo cleared his throat, and abruptly stood up. “Well, at least I figured out the cause of the random energy bursts that were disrupting our systems.” Chansik stayed frozen in place, not knowing whether or not to chase after Dongwoo.

“Dongwoo,” Jinyoung rolled his eyes as he walked towards him. “You know you’re not going to.”

“Of course I am,” Dongwoo stated. “His energy has been blocking your powers- that’s why you haven’t been documenting him and reading him correctly. And now he’s blocking mine too.” He tried to walk out, but Jinyoung blocked him and looked him straight in the eyes. Dongwoo’s gaze wavered, and Jinyoung knew he was right.

“No you’re not.” Jinyoung smiled. “I know that, and you know that. I know you, Dongwoo. My powers work perfectly fine when it comes to you.”

Dongwoo looked at him and sighed. “I hate it when you do this.” He leaned closer to Jinyoung. “Just try and fix this soon. You know how Sandeul is with this kind of thing.”

“I’m still here, whether you want me to be or not.”

The two of them turned to face Chansik, and Dongwoo cleared his throat. “Fine. As long as you get out of here fast, then I’ll be able to figure out some way to excuse you. Just one more question.”

“Anything,” Chansik stood up straight.

“How have you not set off a black hole or a rip in the space-time continuum? I know you’re not that far off into the future, but don’t you already have some trace of your presence here that might mess with things?”

For some reason, Jinyoung didn’t feel so good about what was coming.

Chansik hesitated, but proceeded to answer. “No. I don’t.” He glanced at Jinyoung, but seeing the look on his face made him direct his gaze at Dongwoo so that he wouldn’t see his reaction. “As fixers, we’re only allowed access to tracks where… we don’t exist. There was a freak accident on the later tracks, so we avoid our alternate selves altogether so that we don't create any more of those accidents, or whatever you call it.”

“So now that you exist here... once you leave…” Dongwoo looked at Jinyoung, but he averted his gaze away from them, knowing exactly what it meant.

“I'm not coming back.”

Jinyoung gruffly excused himself and went outside. Chansik plopped down on the couch, suddenly exhausted, and Dongwoo looked between the two of them, looking as lost as they felt.

~~~~~

Jinyoung looked through his notebook to double-check events. Even though he was still mad at Chansik for bringing Dongwoo into this, at least they managed to get the information they needed for Chansik’s home base to find him. All that was left was for Chansik to fix his equipment and clean up. Jinyoung was refusing to help him out, and even though they didn't have a conversation about it, Chansik understood.

If he did, Jinyoung would probably sabotage everything so that Chansik would never have to leave.

“So… is that why you were avoiding me?” Jinyoung knew that Chansik could figure out exactly what he was talking about. With a sigh, Chansik sat up straight from his repair work and looked at him.

"Yeah, but it was too late for that." Chansik nodded. “I was hoping you wouldn’t notice if I stopped seeing you after a while. At least, until you broke into my house.”

Jinyoung acknowledged it, but he still wouldn’t let the nagging feeling go.

"You know, you never really answered my question earlier. But according to Dongwoo, you're pretty popular no matter where you go, and yet you don't really talk much with people, even Dongwoo."

Jinyoung refused to look up, but Chansik still smiled at his stubbornness.

"So I guess it was more than a job, then?"

Jinyoung looked up, and seeing the smile on Chansik's face made him feel safe, as if he could open up a little more about his life.

If only.

"Yeah, but now it doesn't even matter... why did you still let me hang out with me after all of that?” Jinyoung asked.

“I figured if you saw who I was, then it was already too late.”

“Because I’m a Documenter?”

“No,” Chansik smiled, and then stood up and dusted his pants off. “Because it meant that I was already a part of your life, whether we liked it or not.”

“Well, I liked it,” Jinyoung blurted, and he immediately wished he could take it back.

Chansik sat down next to Jinyoung, placing a hand on his shoulder. “I liked it too. Or rather, like it. We’re still in the present tense, remember?”

Jinyoung smiled at the contact, and closed his notebook to try and read Chansik’s eyes. “Are you going to have to fix this part of the tracks too?”

Chansik’s gaze wavered, and Jinyoung knew he shouldn’t be disappointed, even though he knew nothing was guaranteed. Chansik may be the more powerful and trusted of the two, but at the end of the day, Chansik was still at the bottom of the totem pole, like he was.

“It’s hard to say,” Chansik finally said. "I've been here too long for this to be a simple fluke that someone can fix, but you never know with these things."

Jinyoung laughed, though it sounded a bit more pitiful than he wanted it to sound. "Just my luck. The one time I let another person into my life and he isn't even supposed to exist."

“Hey, you know, it could be worse,” Chansik said.

"Yeah, I guess. You could probably be an alien here to dissect me.”

Chansik laughed at his attempt to lighten the mood. “Okay. I'll take that."

"Why, because you are one? I mean, you have your own ship and you said that this isn't really your world!"

"Oh, shut up," Chansik shoved him lightly when he saw Jinyoung's gummy grin. Whatever tension was there between the two of them was alleviated, and they sank back into a comfortable silence.

"You know," Chansik said after a moment. "There's probably a million other time tracks where I would have left earlier or we had never met, and yet, here we are. Me, the Fixer, and you, the Documenter. And as long as you know what happens to you here and now, then those alternates and what-if's don't even matter."

Jinyoung placed his hand on top of Chansik’s. “Then maybe we can just take a break and forget about all of this stuff about powers and documents. I want to hear about your life. Not just as a Fixer, but as Chansik. And I mean all of it.”

Jinyoung never thought Chansik’s smile would get any wider…

~~~~~

One hour later, Jinyoung went out to grab groceries (“I might be a terrible cook, but I know how to make a mean pasta!”) and when he came back, Chansik had just finished setting up a few crates he found in the living room to use as tables and chairs. They cooked, they got messy, and when they were done, Chansik surprised Jinyoung by turning off all of the electricity, lighting their dinner with a few candles placed around the living room.

For the first time, the two of them never stopped talking. Jinyoung talked about all of the people who live on the pier, and even opened up a little bit about his family life. What surprised Jinyoung was that Chansik talked about everything. It ranged from his personal life (“I really thought you were a high school student when I first saw you.”), to what time was like in the “future” (“Pagers are so old that they’re in museums.”). He even got Chansik to open up about his travels (“Dongwoo actually reminds me of this one pop idol I met.”“Him??!? But he can't sing... I think.").

Some conversations, however, just aren’t meant documented. And the two of them liked it that way.

~~~~~

“Hey, remember when we first talked?”

“When you got my backpack back, or when we were in the library?” Chansik asked. They sat side-by-side on the edge of the property, after the extra pasta was put away and the desert had been eaten. They were barefoot, and their feet were hovering above the cold ocean water as the moon watched over them, almost as if it was keeping the other boats in the area away from them.

“The backpack,” Jinyoung smiled before venturing on. “You didn’t really seem like you wanted to talk to me, and yet two days later, you're telling me about the history if the Mongolians.”

“Of course I remember that.”

“But why did you do that?”

Chansik seemed to think about the answer for a little bit. “I don’t know,” he finally replied. Suddenly, he had a blank look on his face and blinked, as if he just realized something. He sat up to face Jinyoung. “Wait, why did you talk to me in the first place?”

Now it was Jinyoung’s turn to look a little confused. “Because I like to know people?" He replied, then realized what he had said. "Sorry, force of habit."

Chansik began to smile again. “I’m pretty sure you don't mean that standard protocol phrase.”

At this Jinyoung laughed. “Yeah, I don’t know either.” They sat in silence for a little bit, looking out at the night sky. Jinyoung caught their dim reflection in the waters, and wished that they could stay like that forever, not worrying about powers, or mysteries, or responsibilities.

“Maybe,” Jinyoung ventured. “Maybe it’s because you were the first person to actually try to figure me out? To know that there was something about me that wasn’t what everyone thought I was?”

Chansik didn’t react, so Jinyoung continued.

“I mean, honestly, everyone knows me and they see me. That’s why they let me be a Doc. It’s easy for me to get information on everyone. But…”

“… no one has information on you?”

It took Jinyoung a second, but he nodded. “No one’s even tried.”

Chansik patted his shoulder as his gaze landed on their reflection and smiled.

“Well, then my answer isn’t as complex as yours.”

“What do you mean?”

“For as long as I can remember, whether or not I had to be seen and take part in something that fixes history, you’re the only person who ever saw me as Chansik, and not with another title. And I wanted to know why.”

Jinyoung nodded, and Chansik turned and looked at him expectantly. It took him a minute before he realized that Chansik was waiting for an answer.

"Oh. Umm... I don't know either," Jinyoung said, realizing that there were a lot of things that happen to him when it came to Chansik, but he could never figure out why these things happened. Chansik made him happy. Chansik caused him to move almost all his attention onto him when they were together. Chansik wanted to know who Jinyoung really is, and not cast him away as a stereotypical "cool guy". And Chansik has an amazing smile.

Oh. Well, that was really easy.

Jinyoung looked at Chansik, and decided to move closer to him, as if warning Chansik about his decision. Puzzled by the shift in their reflection, Chansik looked up and was met with Jinyoung's face, as if he had a brilliant idea.

"Well, maybe we don't need superhuman ideas or powers to explain it. Maybe I just like you. A lot." Jinyoung smiled, and he didn't feel a bit ashamed.

Though he thought he would have to eat his words once Chansik rolled his eyes.

"Do you know how many couples I've ran into during my adventuring? I'm pretty sure I've met the inspirations for the most famous and ridiculously cheesy romantic stories."

Jinyoung knew that wasn't his real answer, but he looked at Chansik in hopes that there would be a follow-up.

"But maybe, I like you too. A lot."

Jinyoung grinned and moved closer to be shoulder-to-shoulder with Chansik. "Do you really?" He asked.

"I think so. I know so."

"Is it really that simple?"

"Probably."

"Our lives aren't that simple though."

"We can make it work," Chansik said, his voice turning into a whisper as Jinyoung smiled, despite the aching feeling in his heart.

"So do you want to go on a date with me?"

Chansik smiled, though the lack of strength gave it a hint of sadness, especially in the moonlight. "When?"

"Who knows?" Jinyoung laughed, and leaned his head on Chansik's shoulder. "For all I know, we probably have all the time in the world."

Even if you were never supposed to be mine in the first place.

~~~~~

Sometimes, when he knows Chansik isn't going to be back for a while, Sunwoo goes into the deeper records and checks up on Jinyoung. He's never told Chansik that he does this or has the ability to do this, for his safety. Sunwoo tells his higher-ups that it's all business, but he does this just just so he knows that Chansik can have a peace of mind. Sometimes he puts in a request to send another Fixer over when he sees something that goes awry, but most of those time tracks turn out the same way.

Jinyoung never writes up the activities in following month when they hangout like normal people. He doesn't document the times where he and Chansik debate on what happened in historical events, or Jinyoung brings him to "work", or when he and Chansik cook dinner.

He also doesn't document the simple gestures, his smile, their banter, or their first (and many other) kisses.

And he definitely doesn't document the one night where Chansik knew that he was leaving any moment because everything was ready, yet they both acted as if nothing would change. Even though they were both crying as they said goodbye, a rare thing for the two of them, and Jinyoung refused to leave.

Jinyoung was reassigned farther inland as soon as Chansik left. Gong Chansik doesn't have any Documentation, and therefore has not, does not, and will not exist in that world.

This time, Sunwoo spots a new branch, and decides to send in one more request, with a package. For all of them.

~~~~~

Despite the terrible paperwork, shortcuts taken, and excuses, Jinyoung didn't get in trouble, though it took a lot of judging (but very concerned) looks and cooperation from Dongwoo and overtime work that took up most of his summer vacation. As much as he tried to avoid it, it only took a month before Jinyoung was reassigned to the docks, but it took Dongwoo an additional two weeks before he could convince Jinyoung to go back to the house and revisit it. (“It’s not his actual ship, and the teenagers aren’t pulling another prank for another month.”)

Jinyoung stood outside, debating if he should break in or not, since he knew that there weren’t going to be flying chairs attacking him and that he didn’t really need to listen to Dongwoo.

Finally, he decided to open the front door. He carefully crept in as the wooden boards below him creaked with every step, though he knew no one was around to hear him. He looked around the house. It was old and dusty, and completely unfurnished, but he could imagine Chansik everywhere he looked. He doesn't cry anymore, though Chansik told him it made him look a bit more honest. Instead, he smiles, imagining all of the time-related jokes he and Chansik shared.

As he finished, he walked towards the front door, but not before seeing a child-like painting of a blue train hanging above the doorway. It was a simple painting, but the conductor was a black-haired puppy that stuck his head out the window and waved. In the car behind, he could see a red-haired fox also waving at him, and for the first time, Jinyoung didn't flinch at the sight of a fox. He smiled at the conductor, and waved back before he walked out of the house and locked the door for the last time.

Jinyoung was okay, and so was Chansik, where ever he was, and he was safe. They both were.

These were the things that he knew, and that was all that mattered.

10-Song Playlist Challenge

idticd — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 23:27:17 GMT

Date Attempted: 12/17/2011
Media: iTunes
Playlist: Music Library
[A/N]: To celebrate my first post here, I attempted the drabble-song challenge for the first time. And also, I don't listen to half of the songs in my library. Here we go.

1. No PlayBoy- Nine Muses [G.NA/Guy OC]

G.NA walked in the club as the bass started beating. She had had enough of it all. She loved her work- there was that. And she loved her life. It’s just with her first love. She had thought that they were a pretty solid couple. But he had gotten so annoying lately. And she had gotten the feeling as if he was cheating on her. Or doing something behind her back and not telling her. What it was, she had no idea. But it was enough to break her down.

She just wanted to let go.

Which is how she found herself at the club in a black mini dress. Ready to let go, to drink her worries away and not have to care about boys.

Until a gentleman tapped her shoulder.

2. Afternoon of Konoha- Toshiro Masuda [Baro]

It was a lazy afternoon as Baro walked around the Konoha, hands behind his head. He smiled as the sun tickled his skin, happy that he didn’t have to go to the Academy today. No training, no getting humiliated.

That’s usually a bad idea. Give Baro a lazy afternoon, a few mischievous ideas, and all hell will break loose.

3. Superhuman- Chris Brown and Keri Hilson [SHINee/Girl OC]

“Shhh! She’s coming.”

SHINee ducked behind the couch as she walked into the studio. She didn’t seem like her confident self. She seemed weaker. She plugged her iPod into the system and played whatever song shuffle set it to. She started dancing with her usual passion and energy, but Taemin noticed something different about it.

“She’s… dancing with her emotions. She’s dancing from the heart.”

The elder boys looked at their dance machine with the utmost respect, curiosity, and as if he was delusional. Until they understood when he spoke the last words.

“She’s hurt.”

And then she collapsed as the harmony rang out.

“You changed my whole life.”

4. One Time- Justin Bieber [Henry/Girl OC]

Henry slid down the stairs as his friends started setting up the sodas. He knew that in a few hours that everyone in the neighborhood would be at this party, like every other weekend, have a good time and be talking about it when school was in session on Monday.

Just another weekend.

Until she showed up at the party. This was the one time she showed up. The first time he’s ever seen here- shocking since only the locals knew of his awesome parties.

He wanted her close. He wanted to make her laugh. In that one second, he wanted to forget it all, and show her that he loved her.

5. A Place in this World- Taylor Swift [Junghwan... aka Sandeul]

This was the fifth time this week he wanted to throw his glasses to the ground. Sure, when his were around him and making fun of him, he would laugh along, but when he was alone, he was hurting. Junghwan couldn’t do anything as he turned on the kitchen radio and stared out the window. He was alone in the house, a perfect time to sing by himself. He didn’t know why he was here. He wasn’t good looking, or very smart. He looked like an idiot- everyone said that, and he believed it.

It was this prompt that made him put even more emotion into his singing on this particular sad afternoon.

It was this emotion that caught the attention of a passerby below his window, making the young scouter look up and wonder where that sweet voice came from.

6. Stop Crying Your Heart Out- Leona Lewis [Sunkyu/Taeyeon]

Sunkyu plopped down on the bed right next to her elder. This was getting ridiculous. Even though she was younger, and even though they had just met and started training together, they were still awkward with each other. Especially since Taeyeon was freaking out and getting on everyone’s nerves a lot more. That’s when Sunkyu had enough.

Until she heard the sniffles.

“Unnie? Are you okay?”

“I miss him.” She heard a mumble.

“… A boy?” She was genuinely concerned.

Taeyeon nodded, and Sunkyu turned her around. She smiled at the elder as she pinched her cheeks and wiped her tears away. The elder was shocked, but Sunkyu could care less.

7. Passenger Seat- Stephen Speaks [Jinyoung/Girl OC]

The vibrations of the guitar strings felt nice to Jinyoung as he strummed them lazily. He didn’t really want to practice. He just needed time to think. To daydream.

Naturally, about her.

He couldn’t help but think about her. He was smitten. No, not that. That would mean that Jinyoung was infatuated. But as he watched her drive away that morning, he wished that he could have been the one to drive her. He loved her that much. Even if she was his one and only distraction, he liked that about her. He was studious and focused- that’s how he became class president- but with her, he was the laziest bum around.

And that’s what made her so special to him. She could lead him.

8. Beautiful- Christina Aguilera [Tiffany/Jessica]

She stared at herself in the mirror again. Tiffany couldn’t help but break down. This wasn’t what she was asking for when she came to Korea to become a singer. She didn’t expect to be so lost, so alone, and yet sneered at and inspected like she was a piece of meat. She knew that she was ugly, but the people here made her feel like a wart.

“Steph?” Her one and only friend here, only because she spoke English, entered the bathroom without a prompt.

“Oh honey. Please don’t cry. You’re better than that.” Jessica wiped her tears.

“You’re beautiful. Remember that.” Tiffany couldn’t help but smile as Jessica’s icy exterior broke into a comforting smile. “And one day, everyone will see that. Like how I do right now.”

9. Summer Love Set the Mood Prelude- Justin Timberlake [Eunhyuk/Taeyang]

Eunhyuk stood in the studio, trying to see how many times he could incorporate the claps of the dance into his choreography. He was good at dancing- no doubt about it. Well… he was an amazing popper.

Grooving? Eh… he could use some work on it.

“No, like this.”

For some reason, he and Taeyang had run into each other and started talking about his dance dilemma, and Taeyang had offered to give him some pointers. Which is how they ended up in the studio (at an undisclosed location) grooving and dancing.

“What is it with SM and poppers? No offense.”

“None taken. I’m the only one that struggles with it though. The other dancers can really groove.”

“Well,” Taeyang said just as the next song popped up. “Grooving is just really smooth, like this song. You gotta feel it, the same way you feel how you pop. Just give it a try.”

Eunhyuk stood up. Was he sexy? No way. But can he feel it? He could try.

10. Sparks Fly (Live)- Taylor Swift [Min]

Min stared at the TV in awe. Sure, she was an idol that was on the stage every week, just like this girl, and could sing, just like this girl. She could probably dance better than her, and Min gets so much less flack from the media than she does.

But she couldn’t help but admire the way Taylor Swift sang her heart out, her shiny guitar and matching dress backed by her band during this concert airing on the local channels.

Maybe it was the way that she meant what she wrote. She had heard that she wrote her own songs. Min eyed the piece of paper and pen next to her. She had never been a musical prodigy. But what harm would it do to at least try?

The last note played and the crowd cheered as an idea suddenly popped into her head.