Why am I different?

Chap 9: Because he is mine!

Taecyeon pulled down the door handle and pushed open the car door. Almost immediately, he was welcomed by a thousand and one flashes of light from various kinds of cameras- smartphones all the way to expensive professional cameras. He would have been blinded if not for the shades protecting his eyes. With a heavy sigh and the weight of the world on his shoulders, he placed a foot on the ground and stepped out. His ears were soon assaulted by the deafening shouts and screams which accompanied the camera flashes in a jumbled mess of compliments, confessions and questions regarding schedules or the other members. He tried his best to drown them out, his migraine, which had grown in its intensity from the moment he had awaken, worsening. Yet, one comment struck him hard.

"Taecyeon-oppa! Your outfit looks nice today!"

A pang of regret. Of course he had looked exceptionally fashionable that day. After all, it was Minjun who had picked out his outfit for the day. Although now, he would not even get the chance to see him in it.

He looked around him, searching for his only companion. His manager was suddenly beside him before promptly moving ahead to lead the way through the crowd. He followed, ignoring the greetings screeched his way or gifts pushed in his face. It was unlike him to disregard his fans so but he could not help himself since he was too preoccupied with self-pity as he recalled his conversation with Nickhun just this morning.

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO?!" Nickhun's furious holler greeted Taecyeon the moment he pressed the answering button in his cell.

He had debated over not answering the call since he was not in the mood for any form of human interaction. The fight he had with Minjun just a few minutes before the call had drained all his energy and motivation for the day. It was bad enough that he had to force his dispirited self to pack a bag for their trip to Japan, he had no energy left to entertain a call.

"What are you talking about?" Taecyeon asked in a deadened tone. He was confused of Nickhun's sudden outburst but it was not enough to perk his interest or his mood.

"Don't act like you don't fucking know! Look at your Kakao." His stern voice was enough to push Taecyeon to switch his screen to the Kakao Talk app.

One notification from 'THE2PMBROTHAS!!' group chat, the cringe-worthy name courtesy of Minjun. Unsurprising, since he was the one who started the group and relentlessly posted in it, even though he did not get much reply from the others. Taecyeon sighed. He did not need another reminder of the morning's events. Pushing the dark thoughts away, he clicked on the chat group to reveal the message. It was not Minjun who posted in the group this time.

Lee Junho: OK TAECYEON! YOU BETTER NOT APPEAR IN FRONT OF ME OR JUN-HYUNG OR I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU!!!

"So? Tell me. And don't leave out even the tiniest detail," Nickhun demanded in a tone of voice that barely hid his attempt to hold his fury in check.

Taecyeon was tempted to just end the call. It was too much of a hassle to be explaining himself in his current state. Agitated, he paced the length of the room while mussing up his hair and scratching his chin. Then, he threw himself on his bed where he started punching his pillows and kicking his clothes and bag off the bed, causing its contents to be strewed all over the floor, all the time snarling in frustration. Finally, he decided to get the ordeal done and over with since he figured he did not need another target on his back, anyway.

On the other side of the line, Nickhun felt his control slipping. Just as he was about to hurl abuses at the person whom he was seriously beginning to doubt as his brother, Taecyeon spoke.

"I saw Minjun naked in his bed this morning," his tone resigned.

Of all things, Nickhun did not expect that since it did not sound like the Minjun he knew. The Minjun he knew was too self-conscious to reveal even the littlest bit of skin that he was always seen in long-sleeves even during the summer. For their ADTOY promotions in which he had to wear a low v-neck and sleeveless top, he would be seen either trying to cover his chest or rubbing his exposed arms in embarrassment. Merely taking off his top for his solo Think About You album took a lot of courage from his part and reassurances as well as encouragements from the other members to boost his confidence. Junho once mentioned that in all the time they had been together, Minjun's solo promotion was the first time he had seen his Jun-hyung topless for that long. Nevertheless, during his live performances, he only took his jacket off while still having a sleeveless top on when he was supposed to be completely topless if he were to follow his music video. It was a huge relief to them all when he finally got used to wearing sleeveless without asking if his arms looked fat. Granted, he did habitually go to bed topless since he admitted that it was more comfortable that way, but he would scurry under the blankets right after taking his shirt off, afraid of others seeing his body. He would never be totally naked since he always had a pair of pants or, at least, boxers on.