Hi everybody, I'm back. Thank you for waiting for so long. I hope you'll enjoy this chapter.
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Key slammed the door shut behind and threw himself on the bed. No one had made him so angry since his father had gone to prison. How often had the guys he'd slept with acted like they had a hangover? Just so they could pretend nothing happened. Until now, he was fine with it. Yes, he was even glad every time he could avoid an embarrassing conversation. However, he hadn't expected Jonghyun to be one of them. Especially not after Jonghyun had confessed to him. It was just another lie to get into his pants. Sex didn't matter to him. It was just sex. Yet, lying and playing with his feelings was unforgivable. He should have punched that jerk much stronger.
Still hearing Jonghyun's voice through the closed door, Key put on his headphones to block any upcoming lies. He stared at the ceiling, thinking about the next step. In the end, he decided upon an early return. Tomorrow morning, he would call the airline and book the next flight home. The music in his ears soothed him and without noticing, he fell asleep.
When the wind flung open the window, the slam ripped Key from his sleep. "It's raining," Key thought of the obvious. He carefully approached the window and closed it, after making sure that no one or nothing was standing outside. Nightly thunderstorm on the beach was kind of creepy.
He was about to go to the living room to check the other windows as he found Jonghyun right next to the bedroom door. The older one was sitting on the floor with his hands behind his neck and his face looking down. He looked like a criminal who had been caught and was now waiting for his interrogation.
Immediately, Jonghyun noticed Key. He was silent, but his eyes were like those of a puppy when it asked for a treat.
"You were here the whole time?" Key asked, trying to avoid those eyes.
"Please listen to me." Jonghyun pleaded.
"Why? So you can tell me more lies? "
"I never lied to you. I really forgot what happened yesterday night and it seems like we had slept with each other. But I didn't want to draw premature conclusions. That's why I ask you if we did? "
"I understand," Key replied. His voice was calm. Yet inside, he was burning in anger.
"Well, you know, sometimes there are situations that are not what they look like. And yesterday ..." Key paused. Yes, he had to admit he was a drama queen.
"It was exactly what it looked like." Key saw clearly how hope returned in Jonghyun's eyes and how it was immediately extinguished by his words. Even though he felt a touch of bad conscience, it was still a pleasure to punish Jonghyun. Suddenly, he was afraid of himself. Was he a sadist? A psychopath? When Jonghyun didn't know what to say, Key saved him from his suffering.
"You know what? Let's just pretend nothing had happened. You go your way and I go mine. "
"But that's not what I want." Jonghyun finally said.
"Then what do you want from me?"
"I want to know what happened. I want to know what to do. "
"Oh, and before you know that, you've decided to act like an ass?" Key roared.
"I was wrong, I know. But I really don't know what happened after the kiss. I want you to tell me. I don't want to pretend nothing happened between us." Jonghyun explained.
"You didn't forget the kiss?" Key asked in amazement. Now it occurred to him, Jonghyun hadn't had a chance to speak at all.
"No, I didn't, neither the kiss nor what I said before. Was that the reason you're so mad at me?"
"Well ... yes," wasn't it obvious? Everything seemed as if Jonghyun had only confessed to get Key into bed; and the morning after, he chose the easiest way to get out of the mess.
"Key, I'm not that kind of man."
"If you'd know how many times I've heard that."
"Would I ask you to tell me everything if I wanted to pretend I had forgotten everything?" Jonghyun mounted the decisive argument. For a brief moment, Key relaxed. Just then, something came back on his mind.
"And what exactly do you expect from me?" He asked curiously. By that Jonghyun breathed in deeply, as if he were afraid to ask the coming question.
"Do you regret it?" He asked.
"Do you regret it?" Key returned the question.
"No," Jonghyun answered without hesitation. "I mean, I can't remember, but I'm sure wouldn't regret it."
"Good, because I don't either," Key replied. Finally, an answer that made them both happy.
"So, that was 'Much Ado About Nothing'?" Jonghyun asked. This was less a question than a statement. The whole argument suddenly seemed ridiculous.
"Excuse me?"
"Oh, nothing. I just meant I should have said it all from the start. Then, we probably wouldn't have fought. Can you forgive me? "
To be honest, anger can't fade so quickly. However, Key was also a reasonable person. There was no reason to continue being angry at Jonghyun. Even if, he wouldn't be able to say no to these puppy eyes.
"Of course." Jonghyun felt stones fall down of his shoulders.
"Thank you," he said.
"That was our first fight as a couple ... well, a couple on a test run" Key pointed.
"You're right."
"Do you know what's the best thing about fighting?" Key asked with a deeper voice as he approached Jonghyun.
'Please say, make-up sex ', Jonghyun thought. He wanted to be a gentleman. But even a gentleman had a desire.
"Make-up sex," Key whispered in his ear. Even without looking, he knew Jonghyun was smiling. The next minute eerily passed as Jonghyun pulled him in for a kiss that took away his breath. Next thing he knew was lying on the bed, between Jonghyun's legs. Jonghyun, kneeling over him, bent down to give him another wet kiss on his neck.
"Should I tell you something about last night?" Key said breathlessly. Jonghyun let out a sound as a signal that he was listening. His attention, however, was focused on Key's flawless skin.
"I was very surprised. I didn't think you would be so wild." Key said and conjured a smirk on Jonghyun's lips.
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Taemin opened his eyes as his cell phone didn't stop vibrating. He hated this sound. Since he slept with music, he always set his alarm on vibration so that he could separate the sounds. Whoever was woken up by this noise for years would also hate it. With half-opened eyes, he looked at his phone. He'd just missed the call by a second. Including it, he had 15 missed calls, 5 kakaotalk messages, 3 SMS as well as notifications that he had new voicemails. And all were from Jinki. Sometimes he wondered if Jinki was really only six years older than him. SMS was still acceptable, but Voicemails? Who still used the mailbox nowadays?
Taking a look at the clock, Taemin couldn't believe it was already after 11. He almost missed half of the day. After the long call with Jinki, he clearly felt the need for a glass of water for his dry throat. It wasn't easy to convince Jinki that he was fine; apart from the broken leg, of course. It was also not easy to explain to him that everything was just an accident. In the end, Taemin still didn't know if Jinki believed him.
Step by step, he walked toward the door. He paid attention, not to put too much pressure on his left leg. Fortunately, he already had some exercises in it. This wasn't the first time he had broken his leg. It was his right leg last time though. As he stood on top of the stairs, looking down, he realized for the first time how high it was. Taemin couldn't help but felt a little dizzy.
"Don't be a wimp. You won't be afraid of stairs. "
After he took the first step, the next ones seemed to be no problem until he, suddenly, tripped on thin air. It was difficult to keep balance if you could barely feel your leg. Taemin, however, didn't panic. He knew he wouldn't fall as long as he wouldn't loosen his grip on the stairs. Yet, out of the blue, he felt a strong arm around his waist. In shock, he let go. Shit, he thought; this time he'd fall. Instead, he only sensed those strong arms pulled him closer to the man behind him. Even without moving his eyes, he knew it was Minho. He had immediately recognized Minho's unique perfume. The scent was fresh and intense. It reminded Taemin of a Tom Ford cologne he had a few years ago, but still, it was different.
"What the hell are you doing?" Minho asked, without intending to let go of Taemin, although the younger was now standing on his own feet. Taemin had to admit, he enjoyed Minho's warmth.
"I wanted to get myself something to drink." He answered and turned his head to Minho. At that moment, he realized how close they were. If he were standing one step higher, their lips would touch.
"You should have called me."
"You would have helped me?" Taemin tried not to sound too surprised. But in fact, he was. Minho didn't answer and Taemin took his silence as a confirmation. He hadn't shared a house with Minho for a long time, but he could already notice some habits Minho had. For example, he always read something on his iPad while eating; he disappeared every day for at least 3 hours in the training room, and he'd keep silent when he was embarrassed. Taemin didn't want to push his luck.
"You can let go of me. I can walk by myself." He changed the topic.
"Yes, you can, but you shouldn't," Minho replied and bent down to lay his arm behind Taemin's knee. The next moment, he lifted Taemin up and embraced the injured young man tightly as he screamed with fright.
"It's all right, I won't let you fall."
"Even if you're heavier than you look." Taemin wasn't sure if Minho had actually made a joke until he saw Minho's smile. He didn't understand why someone would want to hide such a beautiful smile. It took Taemin a whole minute to realize that he was staring at Minho and his heart began to pound violently. He feared Minho could hear his heartbeats or even feel it, as close as he held Taemin to his chest.
"I do sports," he replied, looking away.
"Not in the next days."
"Are you worried about me?"
Minho kept silent. This side of the boss, the one everyone was afraid of, Taemin liked it. It was nice to know that he lived in a house with a man and not a cold machine. Minho laid him on the bed with caution and went into the kitchen without a word. He came back with an empty glass and a water bottle.
"I'll fill it when it's empty. You stay in bed today." Minho put the glass on the nightstand and poured the water in.
"Here, drink. I'll tell my men to get you something to eat." With that Minho disappeared just as suddenly as he appeared. Taemin wondered why Minho was so caring today. The older must have a terrible bad conscience. Taemin knew he should tell Minho that he forgave him. However, he wanted to be spoiled for a little longer, as an act of revenge on Minho for treating him so badly at the beginning. He remembered what Jinki used to say about him; that he was passive aggressive.
Tae , I'd never want to mess with you, Jinki always said.
It barely took Minho 30 minutes to return with a tablet full of foods. Taemin loved the idea of Minho as a nurse, but when Minho tried to feed him, he had to protest.
"Please let me eat by myself, okay? My leg is broken, not my arm. "
"Fine," Minho said, handing him the spoon. After that, he didn't move but watched as if to make sure that Taemin really ate. This was an unfortunate habit he owed to his younger brother. Yoogeun was often sick and every time, he refused to eat when Minho wasn't there. Thus, Minho had to go home every single time the little one caught a cold, only to take care of him. He hated visiting his father and his third wife, but he loved his half-brother ... his younger half-brother. He hated the older one. Since Yoogeun was sent to boarding school, he missed him every day. The only advantage of this was that the contact to his father was restricted to business matters.
A small punch on his arm brought Minho back to reality.
"Did you say something?" He asked.
"I was just wondering why you don't have a housemaid?"
"I do. But she only comes to clean once a week." Minho explained.
"Why? Isn't it more complicated that way? To have the food delivered. "
"Because I don't like having strangers in my house. And the cook only works for me. He just doesn't live here. "
"I see," replied Taemin. Actually, he had the suspicion that Minho wouldn't trust anyone. Even his security personnel only went into the house in case of emergency. In some regard, Minho's paranoia was quite similar to his mothers.
"Why don't you eat?" Minho asked as he noticed that the spoon was still empty.
"Well, I can't eat when I'm looked at," Taemin answered honestly.
"Understandable," Minho said. "Then I'll let you eat in peace."
Minho went back to his office. He sat down on his chair and leaned back. The thought of Taemin's sight as he tried to walk down the stairs appeared on his mind. He could see the pain on Taemin's face. He shouldn't have been so harsh yesterday.
When he saw the LED lamp on his phone light up, he knew he had missed a call. Onew had tried to contact him. Quickly, he called back. Perhaps Onew had found out something about Woobin.
"What do you get?" He asked impatiently as someone picked up.
"Minho?"
"Yes, you called me."
"Oh, yes, I just wanted to ask if you're sure I shouldn't pass by," Onew said.
"Yes, I am. Don't show up the next week either and until then you better get something about my brother." Minho commanded and hung up without waiting for an answer.
Actually, he liked Onew, but since he had entrusted Taemin to his care, he began to like Onew ... less. He hated the imagination of Onew followed Taemin's every step and nursed the younger. Yet, following and protecting was exactly the job Minho had given to him. Minho wondered, since when did he act so irrational? And why?
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The rain had already stopped and the moon had shone again in the night sky. The two gasped as they dropped themselves on the soft bed.
"Don't you dare to forget tonight too," Key said breathlessly.
"I would never forget this," Jonghyun replied.
"I'm looking forward to our next fight." He added, laughing.
"Me too," Key lied. He doubted that there would be another fight.
Jonghyun's sight made his heart hammer even louder than it already did. That was the second he realized that the farewell on the tenth day would kill him, like the cigarettes cold turkey three years ago.
"It's my own fault," he murmured, kissing Jonghyun while his hand found its way down Jonghyun's body.
"What are you doing?" Jonghyun asked in disbelief.
"Enjoying my last cigarette," Key replied.
The remaining days flew by. Their fake honeymoon turned into a real one, in every respect. The next day, Jonghyun had even bought this bucket with tools for building sand castles. Oh God, how glad Key was that they had a private beach where no kids could give them strange looks for playing a children's game. Last day, when they returned, Key insisted on taking the toy bucket home.
Finally arrived, they both were so tired that they didn't even have the strength to look at their new home. Jonghyun had chosen the building, but he hadn't seen it equipped with furniture yet. After the shower, all they wanted was to sleep. It didn't take long until Jonghyun fell deeply asleep. Key gently kissed the young man next to him and freed himself from his embrace.
"I hate myself," he thought as he got dressed and grabbed his bag.
When he was standing at the threshold, only one step away from leaving, his legs felt incredibly heavy, as if they couldn't move forward. He took a last look at the sleeping Jonghyun.
"Thanks for the memories," he mumbled quietly and forced himself to move on.
Two blocks down the road, he got into a taxi. Only when the driver asked him if everything was all right, did he notice the tears on his cheeks. He had to wake up. This dream had ended. The prince wasn't his.
Before you leave, I'm just curious which couple do you ship? ONLY 2Min / Jongkey or both.
And if you ship only one couple, do you read the other couple's part?
Thank you for reading. Please comment and vote, if you liked this chapter :)
See you next time.
PS: The story is not over, I'm only on a short hiatus.