After they got off of the bus, the four teenagers piled into the bowling alley. Without wasting any time, they all went to the snack bar to get something to eat. After receiving their orders, they brought their food to a table and sat down, collectively staring at their dinner. There were easily enough french fries to feed an entire country. Once they settled themselves, they began to eat and Yoochun started the conversation.

“So Boa, how’s everything with you and Taeho hyung?” He asked. Jaejoong, who had taken a sip from his water bottle, suddenly choked. He had no idea that Boa was dating Yunho’s older brother. As he coughed, Yunho patted him on his back, hoping that it would help. Once he stopped coughing, Yunho gently rubbed his back as Jaejoong managed to spit out the question on his mind.

“You’re dating Taeho hyung?” Jaejoong exclaimed as his eyes watered. Boa just sat chewing on a french fry and Yoochun tried, but ultimately failed, to stifle his laughter. Yunho let out an exasperated sigh and the others immediately turned their attention to him.

“Seriously Jae, why can you call my brother and sister by their names but not me?” He asked, looking at Jaejoong the entire time. The older boy looked back at Yunho, his face unreadable. Boa and Yoochun just watched them. Yunho just kept looking at him, staring directly into his eyes. If Jaejoong was feeling anything, Yunho couldn’t tell. His expression was very unreadable.

As Boa watched the staring match in front of her, she curved her lips into a knowing smile. In an effort to get the conversation going again, she looked at Yoochun and answered his question.

“Things have been going really well.” She said with a smile. The three boys sitting at the table looked at her, all of them interested in what she had to say. “I haven’t seen him that much lately since he’s preparing to enlist and everything.” Her voice dropped as she expressed her disappointment.

“How long have you two been together for?” Jaejoong asked cautiously as Boa took a bite from her hamburger. She chewed what was in her mouth for a few seconds before swallowing it.

“Well, we started to talk more after my sixteenth birthday and we went on a date just before Christmas.” She told Jaejoong before stopping to think. “I guess we made it official on New Years. So almost a year?” She finished. Yoochun and Yunho couldn’t help but chuckle at how attentive Jaejoong was being.

“Did you really not know Jaejoong?” Yoochun asked his stunned friend. Jaejoong looked at him and shook his head.

“I honestly had no idea.” He told him before Yoochun smiled and chuckled.

“Oh yeah, guess who’s coming to visit during winter break?” Boa said after finishing the last of her hamburger. The boys returned their attention to her as they wracked their brains for a possible answer.

“Who?” Yunho asked. Boa smiled and looked into Yunho’s eyes. The young prince didn’t look away as Boa answered.

“Kumiko.” She answered with a smile on her face. Yoochun jumped out of his seat in excitement as Yunho’s jaw dropped. Jaejoong looked at his friends, once again feeling confused and left out. Why does that name sound so familiar? He asked himself as he found himself gapping.

“I’m sorry for this, but who’s Kumiko?” He asked, immediately regretting asking once he finally clued in to whom they could possibly be talking about.

“She’s the crown princess of Japan, someone else you can call by name to annoy Yunho.” Yoochun answered, garnering laughter from Boa and Jaejoong. Unlike the other two, Yunho scowled at him instead.

“Is she staying for the entire break?” Yunho asked and Boa simply shrugged.

“I know that she wants to, but it all depends on what her parents let her do.” She answered. Yunho nodded as he finished eating his french fries.

“You know she’s going to stay as long as she wants whether her parents like it or not.” Yoochun stated matter-of-factly. Jaejoong couldn’t help but chuckle at the statement. Even though he had never met her, it seemed like something she would do based on what Yunho had told him.

“Either way, I can’t wait to see her again. It’s been too long.” Yunho said. Boa and Yoochun nodded in accord as Jaejoong sat quietly, gathering his garbage.

“I can’t wait to meet her. I’ve heard so much about her.” Jaejoong said. Yunho looked at the raven-haired boy and smiled.

“Just be careful, she might become jealous of you. You are prettier than most girls after all.” Boa said as a smirk spread across her lips. Anyone that knew Jaejoong knew that it bothered him to be called beautiful. Jaejoong furled his brow, grimacing at Boa. Yunho couldn’t help but laugh.

“Careful Boa, you know how he gets.” Yoochun said, teasing Jaejoong as much as he could. There was nothing he enjoyed more than stirring the pot. Jaejoong shifted his attention from Boa to Yoochun.

“Come on!” He whined loudly. “I’m a guy. Why can’t any of you ever call me handsome?” He asked. Yoochun smiled in satisfaction while Boa and Yunho held back their laughter.

“Oh yeah! My first home game is next week, are you guys gonna come?” Yunho asked, deciding a change of subject was in order, especially if he was going to keep himself from laughing.

“Of course we’ll come, what kind of question is that?” Boa answered the young prince. Yunho smiled at her, his excitement building. Suddenly, Yoochun lifted his arms over his head and yawned.

“Are we gonna play or what?” Yoochun asked as he settled his hands behind his head. Jaejoong immediately looked down at the table, despair written on his face.

“Come on Jaejoongie, it’ll be fun.” Yunho said as he placed a reassuring hand on the sullen boy’s shoulder. Jaejoong looked at Yunho and sighed.

“Alright.” He said, standing up with his garbage in his hands. The other three followed suit as they disposed of what was left from their dinner and walked over to rent some shoes and procure a bowling lane.

~~~

“Come on Jaejoong-ah, you’re doing fine!” Boa shouted, trying her best to encourage the brooding male.

“Boa, it’s no use. I suck at this.” Jaejoong whined. Boa stood from where she was sitting to walk up to Jaejoong.

“Don’t take this so seriously, we’re all just having fun.” She told him as she rested her hand on his shoulder. Jaejoong looked at her with distress in his eyes.

“That’s easy for you to say, you’re winning.” Jaejoong mused, making Boa sigh.

“Come on Jaejoong, just have some fun with it. I’ll keep Yoochun quiet.” She said with a smile. Yoochun had been making comments since the game had started. Jaejoong sighed and decided to listen to Boa’s advice. He nodded and she walked back to her seat.

“What did you say to him?” Yoochun asked. Boa turned to look at him.

“I told him to have fun and that I’d make sure you keep your comments to yourself.” She explained, finishing with a sarcastic smile. Yoochun chuckled at her expression.

“Ruin my fun why don’t you.” Yoochun stated with a smile on his face. Yunho looked at him, his expression pleading.

“Please Yoochun, give him a break. He didn’t even want to go bowling but he agreed because the rest of us wanted to.” He said, his tone more gentle than usual. Yoochun stopped smiling and nodded. Just as Jaejoong released the ball he had been holding in his hands, the three friends looked to see Jaejoong knock down eight of the ten pins. They all jumped up and started to cheer for their friend. Jaejoong turned around, shock and excitement both clearly expressed on his face. Yunho went up to him and the two shared a celebratory hug.

“Did you see that?! Did you see that?!” Jaejoong exclaimed, full of excitement. That was the best he had done all game. Still hugging Yunho, he lifted his hands over his head. Yunho was laughing at how happy Jaejoong became. They pulled apart before Jaejoong shared a celebratory high five with Yoochun.

“That’s the spirit! Now go get that spare!” Yoochun said, encouraging Jaejoong. The raven-haired boy smiled as he walked over to pick up another ball. The other three stepped back and watched in anticipation.

Jaejoong picked up a ball and walked to the line that marked the end of the lane. The others looked at him with confused expressions, all of them tilting their heads to the right. Jaejoong then spread his legs past his shoulders’ width and began to swing the ball between his legs. While Yunho and Boa still looked confused, Yoochun let out a muffled chuckle. Just then, Jaejoong swung his arms forward and released the ball. The other three watched attentively, curious to see what would happen. As the ball rolled towards the pins, everyone was sure that Jaejoong was going to knock down the remaining two pins. Then, at the last minute, the ball curved and rolled to the right, directly into the gutter. Yoochun couldn’t help himself and let his laughter rip through the alley. Boa and Yunho watched Jaejoong, waiting to see his reaction before reacting themselves. The older boy collapsed where he had been standing and rolled onto his back, yelling in jest. Boa and Yunho didn’t even care if they shouldn’t be laughing as they laughed along with Yoochun. Jaejoong got up and bounced back to his friends.

“Am I good, or am I good?” He asked with a goofy smile on his face. Boa reached up and wrapped an arm around the boy’s shoulders.

“That’s the spirit.” She said loud enough for only Jaejoong to hear her. He turned to look at her and smiled.

~~~

After a couple of hours, everyone was ready to head home. Boa called one of the drivers her father employed to pick her up while Yoochun decided to walk home. His family’s home wasn’t very far from the bowling alley. The remaining two boys decided that they would take the bus home together.

“Well, I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.” Yoochun said before leaving. Boa and the boys lifted a hand and waved goodbye before Yoochun turned his back and walked away, putting his hands in the pockets of his uniform pants. Yunho and Jaejoong stayed with Boa until her car arrived since they didn’t want to leave her alone. Once the driver pulled up, someone stepped out from the passenger side door and walked to the back of the vehicle to open the door for Boa. The girl turned around and looked at the two tall males.

“Are you sure you don’t want a drive home?” Yunho answered for them, shaking his head.

“We’ll be fine. Taking the bus will keep me out of the house longer.” He told his friend. She smiled back and him before looking at Jaejoong with the same smile. She gave him a wink before turning around and sitting in the car. She waved at the boys before the door was closed. As the car pulled away, Yunho and Jaejoong walked to the bus stop in silence.

Once they got there, they immediately boarded the bus just as it had arrived. After paying their fares, the two walked to the very back and sat beside each other. They were quiet at first, but Jaejoong changed that.

“Hyung,” Jaejoong called quietly as he looked at the young prince. Yunho turned his head and looked at Jaejoong. “You can speak Japanese fluently, right?” He asked. Yunho nodded.

“I can. Why do you ask?” Jaejoong smiled sheepishly as he looked away from the prince.

“Would you be willing to teach me a little bit for when Kumiko comes? I want to be able to talk to her in her own language.” Yunho smiled.

“Of course! How about this Friday? I don’t have practice because Coach wants to give us a break before our first game.” Jaejoong looked at Yunho and smiled back appreciatively.

“Thank you, Your Highness.” He replied, excitement in his voice. Yunho stopped smiling and sighed loudly before leaning back in his seat, his head against the back of the bus.

“Jaejoong, you can call me Yunho. It’s not as wrong as you think it is.” He said, closing his eyes. Jaejoong looked to the back of the seat in front of him.

“I know it’s not that bad, but the way you react makes it so much fun.” Jaejoong told his friend. Yunho laughed languidly before falling silent again. After a few minutes, Yunho’s head fell to the side and settled on Jaejoong’s shoulder. The older boy looked at Yunho’s face and noticed that he had fallen asleep with his mouth hanging open. Jaejoong smiled and shifted his body to try and make it more comfortable for the young prince before reaching out and closing his mouth. Yunho shifted ever so slightly to get comfortable, moving his head closer to Jaejoong’s neck. The fair skinned boy heard a light snore come from Yunho, making him laugh to himself.

A few minutes later, they arrived at their stop. Jaejoong nudged Yunho awake and once he came to, the boys got off of the bus and headed to the royal family’s home.