by J. S. Lee
JongB shifted and gave me a look of disbelief. “You know Batman isn’t Marvel, right?”
“That’s the thing you pick up on?” Jiwon asked. The next thing I knew, thanks to JongB making the mistake of sitting at Jiwon’s feet, the younger member went sliding off the bed.
“I love you too, even if you don’t know the difference between Batman and Iron Man,” JongB cried from the floor at the foot of the bed. “Jiwon, on the other hand, I don’t love.”
“Yeah, I’m gonna go cry myself to sleep,” Jiwon retorted, rolling his eyes.
제 14 장
Whisper
A mass of entwined bodies.
That was what I woke up to.
I was sandwiched between Youngbin and Xiao (not a bad place to be, trust me), while CX was using my thigh as a pillow, curled up around JongB who was snoring softly. And we were all still fully clothed. I was hot, and I could feel the damp spot on my lower back, but I had absolutely no desire to move.
I blinked a few times, finally rubbing the sleep from my eyes as I tried to work out what it was that had awoken me.
Penis.
Two of them.
Xiao’s thick cock in my back, and Youngbin’s against my belly.
Xiao shifted in his sleep, an arm wrapping tightly around me, pulling me closer, rubbing up against my back.
The movement had Youngbin’s eyes fluttering open, and he gave me a sleepy smile. Fuck me, that boy looked beautiful when he had just woken up. “Hi,” I whispered at him.
Youngbin’s reply came in the form of a kiss, his tongue already teasing at my mouth. Who the fuck was I to object? As his tongue slipped in, a hand ran up, under my pajama top, grazing against the bottom of my breasts. As Youngbin’s kiss swallowed my moan, a palm settled on my cheek. It wasn’t until the hand massaging my breast found my nipple, teasing it roughly between a finger and a thumb that I realized the hand didn’t belong to Youngbin.
Oh, holy fuck.
There was a rush of warmth between my legs and I swear I had to use every bit of willpower I had not to writhe in pleasure between them.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake!”
Youngbin pulled back, and although Xiao didn’t take his hand off my breast, he did stop playing with it. Unfortunately…
We, along with CX and JongB who had been awoken at the outburst, turned to the source: Jiwon. His voice was deep, husky, and his words lost under his thick accent as he ranted at us. I stared at him, my eyes wide, Xiao slowly removing his hand.
“How many times do I have to tell you, I don’t want to see that shit?” It was JongB translating what Jiwon was saying for me as he sat up.
Jiwon looked at me. “We said be honest. This is me being honest. I don’t give a shit what you get up to, just not when I’m in the same room.” He was speaking slower and clearer for me.
“Technically, my room’s free,” JongB piped up, cheekily.
Jiwon threw a sweater at JongB’s face. “I’ll be at breakfast.” Without listening to JongB’s apologies, Jiwon stormed out of the room.
I blew out a breath, the mood gone, then tried to sit up. “Look, I’m pretty willing to try most things, but if Jiwon isn’t comfortable with it happening in front of him, it’s not happening in front of him,” I said, firmly.
“How willing?” JongB asked.
I rolled me eyes. “That’s not the important part there, dude.” I watched as JongB found CX staring at him with an arched eyebrow, then returned the look with a nonchalant shrug.
Xiao nodded. “If someone’s not comfortable, we speak up, and the rest of us respect that.”
“Fine!” JongB exclaimed with a melodramatic sigh. “I won’t watch Jiwon.”
“Don’t even think about watching me,” Youngbin told him firmly.
I thought that would be the end of it, but slowly, JongB turned to look and stared at Xiao, tilting his head a fraction. I watched as Xiao considered it, and then shrugged. “I’m not against it.”
OK… I wasn’t expecting that.
I also wasn’t against that idea, either…
Before JongB could get a response from CX, there was a knock at the door. “Jiwon probably forgot his keycard,” Youngbin muttered, getting off the bed and padding over to the door. All of a sudden, he was charging back towards the beds. “It’s Manager Sungmin!”
My stomach felt like it had dropped out of me as we all jumped off the bed, trying to work out what to do.
“Get under the bed!” JongB hissed at me.
“It’s a fixed bed,” Xiao said, shaking his head. “No one can get under it.”
“The bathroom,” Youngbin said, his voice low and urgent as Sungmin knocked at the door again.
I was halfway there when JongB stopped me. “What if he needs to take a leak?”
“When has Sungmin ever come in to use our bathroom?” Youngbin asked in disbelief.
“When has Manager Sungmin ever come into our rooms before the alarm, if he didn’t need to see one of us?”
“I’ll go in with her,” CX said, suddenly. “If he asks, tell him I didn’t want to wake MinMin up.” He leaped over to me, grabbing my hand and tugging me towards the bathroom.
“You can’t just turn the shower on as I open the door,” Youngbin disagreed.
“Then tell him I’m taking a dump!” he hissed, pulling me into the bathroom, shutting the door behind us and locking it.
The bathroom was pitch black apart from the tiny sliver of light poking through beneath the door. We hadn’t thought to turn the light on before jumping in, but as Youngbin was already opening the door, it was too late to do anything about it.
I clung onto CX, my heart pounding in my chest, trying not to move, just in case I made a noise and alerted Sungmin to my presence.
“Ah, JongB, there you are,” I heard Sungmin say.
“Wassup, hyungnim?”
There was a moment’s pause. “I was looking for you… why are you and Xiao in here? Did someone swap with CX?” their manager let out a long-suffering sigh. “Why can’t any of you ever stay in the rooms you say you’re going to?”
“We’re in Chicago!” JongB exclaimed. “It’s my home city. I’m excited.”
Somehow, Sungmin wasn’t able to tell there was a little too much enthusiasm in JongB’s statement. “Actually, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about. That, and Kate.”
“What’s wrong with Kate?” Youngbin, Xiao, and JongB all seemed to say at the same time.
But I wanted to know the answer too.
“Nothing.” There was another sigh, and I could almost see the annoyance on Sungmin’s face. “What is it with you and that girl?”
“She’s part of the team,” Xiao answered.
“If something happened to any of the team, we’d be concerned,” Youngbin agreed. “The fact she has been attacked, twice, has us worried.”
I stood there, only able to hear my blood pumping in my ears, as a long pause seemed to settle again. I was sure Sungmin wasn’t buying any of it. Then, as CX gave my hand a gentle squeeze, pulling me closer to the door, I realized Sungmin had just lowered his voice.
“… Police involvement. I’m going to call Atlantis shortly, but we need to have our eyes peeled. He could follow her to any of the other dates. I’m going to speak to Kate later and get a photograph of him so that we can all be on the lookout. I don’t want anything happening to her, but equally, I don’t want anything happening to you…”
I leant back against the wall, allowing it to take my weight as I tried not to make any noise, but equally needed the support to stay upright. Damien showing up in L.A. hadn’t been my fault, and I highly doubted he was going to come to Chicago, but in the back of my mind, I had been worried they were going to replace me.
In the dark, CX sought out my other hand, instead finding my hip. When he realized what he was touching, he released the hand he held and placed it on my other hip. He stepped right up to me, barely leaving any room between us. “Are you OK?” he
murmured in my ear.
I nodded, even though he couldn’t see me. “Yeah,” I whispered.
“… I don’t care, Youngbin,” Sungmin suddenly said, making us both freeze. “I don’t want to see anything happen to Kate, but my responsibility is to you, and if her being here puts you in harm’s way, I will have her replaced.”
“You can’t do that! She’s ours!”
JongB’s outburst was in English, for which I was grateful. Sungmin wasn’t fluent in English and he probably wouldn’t translate that how JongB meant it. It didn’t mean my heart didn’t almost stop beating.
“Stop listening,” CX told me, trying to pull me away from the door. “Sungmin isn’t going to drop you like that.”
“I know she’s family,” Sungmin snapped at him. “Calm down, will you?”
I was breathing as shallowly as possible, trying to hear the conversation. I almost jumped out of my skin as CX went to kiss me. In the dark, he nearly missed my mouth, but he quickly corrected himself, his hands gently cupping my face.
Now was really not the time for this.
I pushed him back. “What are you doing?” I hissed.
“Whatever they’re talking about, I promise you Youngbin and Xiao won’t let Manager Sungmin fire you.”
“Look,” Sungmin snapped. “I just want you all to be vigilant and keep an eye out. I don’t want anyone – Kate included – to be put in any unnecessary danger. I don’t want any of you being alone with her out there. I recognize you’re all a similar age and have become friends, and I’m not telling you that you shouldn’t be spending time with her, against my better judgement I might add. Just stay safe.”
I made a noise, somewhere between a sniff and a snort at that. That wasn’t what I was expecting at all.
“I told you so,” CX murmured, as conversation switched to the concert later. “Now, I have a more important question for you.”
“What?” I asked, wondering what on earth was more important than-
“How quiet can you be?” he whispered in my ear, as his hands simultaneously pulled my pajama shorts and underwear down.
Before I could stop him, he was on his knees in front of me, his head between my legs as his hands firmly encouraged my knees apart. “Yongsik!” I hissed, clamping my hands over my mouth as his tongue ran between me.
Fuck. A. Duck.
I wanted him to stop.
That was a lie.
I really didn’t want him to stop.
I just didn’t trust myself because… fuck me!
His lips latched onto my clit, sucking hard while, at the same time, his tongue played with the exceptionally sensitive and turned on bundle of nerves.
“Oh god. Oh god.” My hands flew backwards against the door to steady me. Even though I’d somehow managed to smother my cries, I couldn’t stop the small thud.
“What was that?” I heard Sungmin ask.
“CX,” Youngbin responded, dryly.
“What is CX doing in your bathroom?” I could hear footsteps approaching and then suddenly there was knocking right behind my head.
CX pulled his head away and stood up. My eyes, now accustomed to the dark, could just about make out his eyes glinting up at me in the little light there was. “Yeah?” He bent in towards me, nipping at my earlobe. “Now comes the real test,” he whispered, slipping two fingers inside me before I could stop him.
I was going to kill him.
His thumb teased at my clit and I arched into his hand despite myself as a gasp escaped me.
“What are you doing in there?” Sungmin asked. “What’s wrong with your own bathroom? How many times do you guys have to be told? This isn’t a holiday camp!”
My heart was pounding, yet, as terrifying as this was, it was exhilarating, and I’ll be damned if I wasn’t so incredibly turned on at this. I grabbed at CX’s shirt, twisting the fabric between my fists.
“I came to chat with my hyungs, and then I needed a dump,” CX called back.
I had no idea what was going on in my life. That was the most unromantic thing that could have come out of his mouth at that moment, but his fingers didn’t let up once. My teeth bit down on my lower lip so hard I was sure I was going to draw blood in my attempt not to make a noise.
Behind me, Sungmin said something, but I didn’t catch it, nor CX’s response. I was trying my hardest not to have the orgasm I really needed. “Yongsik, I’m …” Still clutching onto his shirt like it was the last line of defense against Sungmin finding us, I jerked him to me, narrowly missed our noses colliding, and pretty much stuck my tongue down his throat in an effort to mute whatever the hell wanted to come out of my mouth as I came around his fingers.
My head went backwards, but CX went with me, keeping his mouth clamped over mine.
When he finally did pull away, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to do that again, or if I wanted to kill him.
“I guess you can be quiet,” he whispered.
“Are you crazy?” I demanded. “What would you have done if he’d have heard me?”
CX shrugged. “But he didn’t.” He gave me a cheeky kiss, then ducked back out of the way as I tried to swipe him. “Don’t pretend you didn’t like it. I felt that orgasm. Besides, I thought you said you were willing to try most things.”
“I am not willing to risk your damn career,” I hissed at him. “It doesn’t matter how fucking amazing that was, it’s not worth it. And you’re the one who said you had more to lose.”
CX fell silent.
“I’m sorry, that was a low blow,” I muttered, guilt taking over. “But you can’t do shit like that with Sungmin.”
“I trust you,” he said, simply. “Besides, you were too busy enjoying my fingers to realize Sungmin left.”
I reached out and punched his arm. “Not cool.”
“But it was hot, right?”
I folded my arms. “Do you have any idea how infuriating you are?”
“I’m the youngest. That’s my job,” he retorted cheekily.
I didn’t care if he could see me or not, I flipped him the bird. “You’re the youngest,” I repeated. “You’re supposed to be the most innocent.”
“I was one of the oldest in Bright Boys. And I don’t know what weird image of me you have in your head, but I’m not innocent.”
Thank fuck there was no light on in there, because my face was flaming. I ducked down, scooping up my pajama bottoms, trying not to trip up as I put them back on. I had just pulled them up when someone hammered on the door.
“What exactly are you guys doing in there?” Youngbin yelled through the door. “Sungmin has gone.”
CX brushed past me, unlocked the door and pulled it open, walking out. He just shrugged at Youngbin as he walked past him. JongB suddenly appeared beside Youngbin, his eyes going wide as he looked at me. “I know that face.”
“No, you don’t,” I told him, stepping out.
JongB ignored me, hurrying over to CX to high-five him. “I can’t believe you just did that.”
In front of me, Youngbin shot me a look of disbelief. I held my hands up, saying nothing.
“Your pajamas bottoms are on backwards,” he said, dryly. A gave him an awkward shrug, then started to walk past him. Youngbin stuck his hand out, his arm blocking my way. “You’re forgetting something,” he said, nodding his head at something behind me.
My panties.
I turned, scooped them up, and then folded my arms. “I should probably head back to my room. Can you check the coast is clear, please?”
Youngbin let out a long and suffering sigh. “Kate, I don’t care what you get up to with the other members, but I do care if Sungmin – or anyone, for that matter – catches you. I don’t care how quiet you are, if you’re caught with CX’s dick in you, if we’re all in the same room, we’re all in trouble. I don’t particularly want any of us getting caught, but it’s a hell of a lot easier to explain one person than five.”
“It was me, not Kate,” CX told his leader, instant
ly jumping to my defense.
I shook my head. “I was more than willing, so, let’s say what it is. And Youngbin is right,” I added. “I’m sorry.”
“Go get dressed,” Youngbin sighed. Before I could say anything else, he had opened the door and was peering down the hallway. He stepped back a moment later, holding the door open for me. I gave him a small smile, then left.
제 15 장
Surprise
The Rosemont Theatre was just on the edge of Chicago, right by the O’Hare Airport, where we had flown into the night before. Like the previous venues, it was a good size, and sold out. Fans were already standing in line, despite the fact it was cold, windy, and raining.
After Onyx quickly changed and got their makeup done, Sungmin whisked them away for interviews. I was left to get my lighting checks done, explaining to the lighting guys what I’d need when it came to the group photos at the fan meeting.
It was the excited squeal of a child which had me turning around, just in time for something to collide with my legs. I looked down, finding the owner of the squeal, clinging onto my ripped jeans like she was a koala bear.
“Mina!” a small woman called, hurrying over.
I knew the second I laid eyes on her that she was JongB’s mother. They had the same smile and the same eyes. “Oh!” I exclaimed in surprise.
“I am very sorry,” she was apologizing, in English, as she tried to pull the little girl from me. She managed to wrap her arms around Mina’s waist and pull her away. Mina promptly burst into tears, reaching out for me.
Somehow, the whole thing made me feel guilty, and I allowed the strap of my camera to take its weight, tucking it under my shoulder, out of the way. I reached out, taking the child off her mom. She promptly stopped crying and reached for my hair. “It’s pretty.”
“I am very sorry,” JongB’s mother repeated as she was joined by a man who I assumed was JongB’s father. The man shared the same looks as the young boy at his side, but I couldn’t really see JongB in him.
