Chapter 16: The Middle of the Party: The Innocent Boy Officially Introduces the Innocent Girl to the Boys and the Free Spirit Gives the Innocent Boy Some Advice


Junsu was well-prepared for this moment. He wore the best-looking suit that he had bought straight off of the store’s mannequin and also sprayed some Hugo Boss cologne that he secretly borrowed from Rhett. Rhett would never notice that small decrease in liquid. Hopefully not.
Now, he had managed to gather all the boys to the living room to officially introduce his girlfriend. She, too, was well-dressed. In fact, Junsu had discovered that she was too well-dressed; her dress was leaning towards the revealing side. Her taupe satin dress had a deep V neckline with tonal beading on wide shoulder straps. There was criss-cross ruching detail on her chest region, which was accented by the pencil skirt of her dress.
Just before he introduced her, Junsu took off his black blazer and considerately offered, “Here, wear this. I don’t want you catching a cold.”

She eyed him with a smile. “But I’m not cold.”
“I . . . I don’t want others seeing you dressed like that,” Junsu mumbled.
She giggled and nudged his arm. “You worry too much Junsu!”
“B-but—“ He tried to reason, but was cut off by Jaejoong, who kept waving his arm back and forth.
“Hey, Junsu! I see her! I see your girlfriend.” Jaejoong winked and patted Junsu’s arm. Jaejoong then posed to her, “Would you like to be a star?”
Junsu glared at Jaejoong and elbowed him. “Don’t do that!”
She bubbly grinned and held Junsu’s hand tightly. “It’s okay, Junsu. Your friend is only joking. I don’t mind.”
Yoochun noticed the tension building up between Junsu and Jaejoong, so he quickly suggested, “Junsu, why don’t you introduce your girlfriend to us? We don’t even know her name yet.”
Junsu regained his composure and cleared his throat, “Guys, this is Naomi Nishio.” She stepped forth and gave them a nod and a gentle smile.
Rhett prodded Changmin, who was still preoccupied with eating his raw oysters. Jaejoong had bought fresh oysters to prepare for a nice appetizer to welcome Junsu’s girlfriend, yet Changmin had still found the delicacies hidden in the fridge and was now devouring them with such joy. “Yeah, Shim Changmin! Pay attention! It’s Junsu’s girlfriend here!” Rhett shouted.
“Hey, cut that out! Can’t you see that I’m—“
Changmin growled at Rhett for making him choke, but once he saw Naomi, his clamor had faded. In fact, Changmin almost dropped the overfilled porcelain plate of seafood. Thankfully, Jaejoong had
prayed to the gods, and by chance, Changmin’s hand regained its balance.
Rhett asked, “You okay?”
Changmin wiped his mouth with a napkin that he held in his hand and answered, “Yeah, I just needed to recover from almost choking to death because of someone. . .”
Rhett stuck out his arm in a defensive position. “Don’t make me use a shoulder throw on you.”
“Show off,” Jaejoong scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Let’s ignore these two idiots. So tell me, why would a pretty girl like you pick someone like Junsu?”
Yoochun barked, “Jaejoong, don’t say that in public!”
Naomi giggled and lovingly looked at Junsu before replying, “Well, I actually asked Junsu out. I usually ate at his father’s restaurant, and Junsu was my server.”
Jaejoong continued to tease, “Junsu! You’re never the waiter unless it’s for some hot chick, huh?”
Naomi noticed Junsu’s face completely flustered, so she added, “Is that so, babe?”
Rhett, Yoochun, and Jaejoong all stared at each other in absolute bewilderment. Babe? Even Yoochun’s ladies never called him babe. Only Changmin managed to state, “Junsu isn’t like that. He’s very faithful, so you don’t have to worry about him cheating. I do wonder about you though.”
Rhett butted in and smacked Changmin’s back a few times, “Don’t mind Changmin here. He’s too outspoken at times. He’s a good guy though.”
“I know.” She put up with a smile. “I know Changmin is a good guy.”
Everyone else was relieved that she had an open heart, except for Changmin and Yoochun. Yoochun felt that her expression towards Changmin was rather odd; her tone was as if she had known Changmin for years. Yoochun knew he had to speak to Junsu privately. No one wanted Junsu to suffer. Almost as soon as the group conversation was over, Yoochun pretended to invite Junsu for a drink over at the bar. Handing Junsu a half glass of wine, Yoochun first congratulated, “Cheers!”
“Cheers,” Junsu lifted his glass and then gulped the whole liquid down.
“You never change, do you?” Yoochun chuckled before plummeting to the sensitive topic. “Junsu, don’t get mad if I say this, but I think you should be careful.”
Junsu shrugged his shoulders and pondered, “Worried about what?”
 Yoochun was hesitant to state his potential findings. After all, there was a high chance that he was being too perceptive, overanalyzing actions and expressions again. If he didn’t say anything, however, he was sure that he would be regretful. Junsu was one of his best friends. How could he knowingly let a close friend plunge into a possibly agonizing situation? How could he foment an inkling of disloyalty based on one rendezvous? Tormented by this enigma, Yoochun decided to finish his drink first. It was better not having an extremely conscious mind to say words of uncertainty.
He was up to his third glass when Junsu grew impatient and mentioned, “So . . . what were you going to say?”
Yoochun then bellowed, “I’m worried that Naomi is not suited for you.”
“Why are you saying these things all of a sudden?” Junsu questioned. He was already quite bothered by some of his friends’ attitudes, particularly Changmin’s. Sure, Changmin was never a man of enchanting words, but there was no need for him to show contempt.
Breathing in a gasp of fresh air, Yoochun carried on explaining, “I don’t think she’s sincere. There’s just something about her that doesn’t—“
“Yoochun, if you’re going to be disrespectful, then cut it out,” Junsu interrupted. He began to march away from Yoochun, who still held onto the glass of wine. However, Junsu halted and asserted, “Man, I always thought . . . that you’d be the supportive one. You haven’t changed either. You’re still so bitter about love.”
Although Yoochun craved to correct Junsu’s statement, Yoochun still remained silent. It was unnecessary to argue with someone in love. Only positive aspects of the lover dwelled in that person’s mind. Yoochun knew that was true for he was culpable of that crime. He just wanted to save his friend with a warning. Warnings, however, resembled the terms of agreements of a forum, often overlooked and ignored until an offense had been committed. By that time, it was too late to be remorseful and only punishment awaited. Yoochun just hoped that he was wrong and that he was actually being bitter about love. He knew though that he had already begun to advance to the present.