It was when his sister finally gave up on receiving information from him that he took his phone out again, scanning over the message a numerous amount of times as his bit his lip in concealed excitement. So Kibum hadn’t forgotten about him, after all. He had merely been at school, and Jonghyun had been worrying all day for absolutely no reason. With that assuring thought in mind, he hastily typed a reply, reading it over quickly before pressing send and screwing his eyes shut in anticipation.

‘Hey, Kibum! How was school today? I enjoyed yesterday very much also, and can’t wait to catch up soon! Of course we’re still on for our coffee date, I haven’t stopped thinking about it :’) How does Wednesday afternoon sound to you?

Your Idol, Jonghyun ;)’

Jonghyun practically squealed into the cushion before hopping off the couch with a large grin to head towards his bedroom. He pushed open the wooden door with ease and closed it behind him softly, sitting at his small desk and pulling out his beautiful guitar. He strummed a few chords gently to check if it was in tune before he began to play ‘Hallelujah’.

Previously, he had written the song with an imaginary person in mind, never really using his full emotions when he sang it. Now, however, as he sung it with Kibum in mind, he realised he sounded better than ever, channelling all of his emotions into his voice.

Jonghyun didn’t know how long he sat there singing for, but he was broken out of his reverie by a knock at the door.

“What is it, Seodam?” he called, placing his guitar back down carefully to where it belonged.

“It’s not Seodam, sweetie.” replied the voice of his mother, causing Jonghyun to look down at his watch in surprise.

He had been singing for 2 hours straight? How had the time gone by so quickly?

“Hi, umma! You can come in, if you’d like.”

His mother opened the door and poked her head in donning a sweet smile.

“You sounded really good just now, ‘Hyun-ah. I just thought I’d let you know that dinner’s ready.” she spoke gently, her fatigued face seeming young and youthful as a care-free grin covered her features.

“Thank you, umma. I’ll be down in a sec,” he responded, standing up and following his mother back down the hallway and into the dining room.

As he walked inside, he noticed the pointed look his sister was giving him, but chose to ignore it and sat straight down in his chair, keeping his gaze directed down at the chipped table top.

“Here we go! Chicken, kimchi and rice. It’s not much, but it’ll do,” announced Jonghyun’s mother, placing the dishes on the table and wiping her hands on her apron.

“It’s fine, umma. It looks delicious!” reassured Jonghyun, Seodam nodding along eagerly in agreement.

“Thank God…well, eat up!” she exclaimed happily, taking her own seat at the table and dishing a serving onto her plate.

Jonghyun and Seodam followed her vigorously, digging into their meal with impatience to quench their hunger for the night.

“Mmm, it tastes even better!” commented Seodam as she swallowed her first mouthful, earning a scolding look from their mum.

“Seodam, what have I told you about talking whilst eating?”

“Not to do it…” Seodam replied, blushing brightly and shoving more kimchi into .

Despite the fact that Seodam was 23 and Jonghyun 21, the two were very close to their mother as their father had left at a young age. They cared for her more than anything and were grateful to her for providing them with so much love as they grew up. And whilst it may seem that the two were very immature for their age, they were merely young at heart, taking after their mother who didn’t act a day over 25.

As the family of three were stuffing their faces joyfully, Jonghyun’s phone all of a sudden went off loudly, causing everyone’s head to face him in surprise.

“Ah…one second, sorry umma.” apologized Jonghyun, tugging his phone out of his pocket hurriedly.

‘My idol? You wish! School was…average, I suppose. How’s your day been? Written any new songs? Ehe ^.^ Wednesday sounds great, by the way! Pick me up from Jawoon High School at four :’) See you then, dino Jonghyun!

Your Number One Fan, Kibum’

Jonghyun couldn’t hide the inevitable grin that spread over his face, smiling brightly at his phone as he read the text message.

‘Dino Jonghyun?’ he thought to himself, chuckling quietly as a red hue shaded his cheeks.

Seodam raised an eyebrow in his direction, smirking knowingly at the light blush and smile on Jonghyun’s face.

“I wonder who that is?” she asked sarcastically, poking her tongue out at Jonghyun mischievously as he shot a glare in her direction.

“Shut it, Seodam.”

Jonghyun’s mother frowned at him from across the table in disappointment; however a curious glint still glazed her eyes. “Don’t talk to your sister like that, Jonghyun. But I’m curious too…I haven’t seen you blush like that in a while.”

“Muuumm,” he whined, pouting slightly as he dejectedly lowered his phone.

“Ah, just kidding honey. Quickly text the girl back and then leave it alone. This is family time,” she spoke kindly, although giving him a reprimanding look from the corner of her eye.

Seodam laughed quietly to herself, using her hand to shield the majority of her giggles. “Girl? Who ever said anything about a girl?”

The older woman tilted her head to the side confusedly, completely lost in the hidden conversation occurring between her two children.

“…I’m not following,” she spoke slowly, thoughtfully chewing on her rice as Seodam laughed loudly to herself.

“Our Jonghyun’s not talking to a girl. He’s talking to Kibum…a supposedly ‘very pretty boy.’”

Her eyes widened considerably, a shocked (yet not disappointed, per say) look upon her face. “Jonghyun-ah! Why didn’t you tell me you were gay? I’m your mother!”

Jonghyun blinked once, staring at his family with a dull, gobsmacked look upon his face. “For the last time, I’m not gay!”

“Who is this Kibum boy? I have to meet him! Oh my gosh, this is too adorable, our Jonghyun has a boyfriend!” she sang happily, meal forgotten as a tick gradually appeared on Jonghyun’s forehead.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he muttered to himself, half-heartedly shoving a chicken drumstick into his mouth.

The rest of dinner passed with an annoyed Jonghyun blocking out the women’s excited conversation, eating his food quietly yet hurriedly in hopes of texting Kibum later without interruption. “Thanks for dinner, umma. It was delicious.”

Just as Jonghyun went to stand up and place his dishes in the sink, he was interrupted by his mother’s hand on his arm.

“But aren’t you going to tell us about Kibum?” she asked softly, looking genuinely curious as she questioned him.

Jonghyun sighed wearily, running a hand through his hair in resignation. “To be honest umma, I just met him the other day. I’m not dating him, but I’d be lying if I said I don’t find him attractive. I’ll update you if anything happens though, okay?”

The older woman nodded kindly with a large smile, and the joy that rose inside of Jonghyun was inevitable. Sure, he hadn’t planned for his family to find out like this, but why not? They weren’t treating him any differently…If anything, they were happy for him.

 Jonghyun smiled in response and took his plates to the sink to give them a slight rinse before making his way back to his bedroom with a skip in his step. Falling onto his bed softly, he whipped out his phone and quickly composed a message.

‘To: My Number One Fan

Of course I’m your idol ;) You do happen to know many of my songs off by heart, after all. And school was just average? Poor Kibum :’( My day has been very good thank you, however unfortunately I haven’t written any new songs yet :3 I’ll see you at 4 on Wednesday, Kitten Kibum ^.^

Your Idol, Jonghyun’

Clicking send, Jonghyun rolled over happily and turned off his phone, smiling widely into his pillow as thoughts of the pretty boy ran through his head.

‘For goodness sake…I’ve only met him once. Get a hold of yourself.’ he reprimanded mentally, however his heart wasn’t really into it and so the large smile on his face only grew as the minutes went by.

Kibum chewed on the end of his pen thoughtfully as he stared at his math textbook, practically glaring at the page as he attempted the problems in his head. What was the point of doing all of these stupid questions? It wasn’t as if he wanted to become a mathematician after he graduated. Jotting down the first answer that came to his mind, he was (gratefully) interrupted as his phone buzzed from beside him.

Kibum read the message from Jonghyun impatiently, blushing bright red at the concern and humour of the other boy. He knew it would be near impossible to finish his homework now; however he probably wouldn’t have completed it anyway. He sent a smiling emoticon in response, before attempting to return back to his studying. Let’s just say Kibum failed miserably at that specific task. Unable to heed his thoughts of the older boy, he eventually just gave up and opted for listening to music on his phone instead.

He didn’t realise he had fallen asleep until the next morning, waking up with an uncomfortable crick in his neck and forgotten homework lying open on his desk. Kibum grumbled whiningly and stood up with a crack or two, grudgingly making his way to the bathroom and going through his daily routine. He was awake earlier than usual, and so he had around an extra hour to complete as much work as possible and eat breakfast properly at the table. Of course, his parents weren’t home because of work, however Kibum was used to their prolonged absences and didn’t blink an eye at the lonely atmosphere his house beheld.

He began the usual trek to school, sighing at the day that he knew was to come. The only beneficial parts of his school day were when he got to talk to Amber, and when he was lucky enough to have the dance room to himself at lunch time. But that was a rarity now that Taemin was a 1^st year. He reached the school gates within around fifteen minutes and trudged his way inside begrudgingly, eyes downcast. Staring at the newly renovated asphalt beneath his feet as he walked, his mind wasn’t focused on the path ahead of him, and Kibum wasn’t prepared for the body his own was suddenly met with.

“Oh- I’m so sorry!” he began apologizing hurriedly, the person he had collided with now ungracefully sitting on the ground.

“No, I’m sorry. It was my fault-“ stuttered the boy, standing up with what looked like a struggle and lifting his gaze to meet Kibum’s.

“Kibum?!”

“Taemin?!” they exclaimed simultaneously, eyes widening considerably as they realised whom they had bumped into and whom they were apologizing to.

Kibum’s eyes narrowed in the slightest, however just as he was about to conjure a snarky comment, his eyes ran over the deep brown/purple colouring around Taemin’s eye. Kibum’s eyes glazed over in concern, causing Taemin to flush brightly in embarrassment.

“What happened?” he questioned kindly, all previous snarky comments having flown out of his mind in an instant.

Taemin bit his lip in embarrassment, staring down at his shoes as though they were the most interesting thing in the world. “I fell.”

Kibum merely snorted in response, taking a step towards the younger boy and moving his hands towards his face. Taemin flinched, and his hands automatically came up to shield his face, causing Kibum to sigh in worry.

Kibum inched his hand forward slowly and brushed Taemin’s hair gently out of his eyes. “I’m not going to hurt you. And I know for a fact that you definitely didn’t get this black eye by ‘falling’.”

The older boy examined the bruise carefully, the red hue on Taemin’s cheeks only intensifying at Kibum’s gentle care.

“Who did this?!” Kibum exclaimed angrily, removing his hands and allowing Taemin’s hair to cascade gently over his face.

“J-just some mean guys in my year level…It’s no big deal,” he stuttered in response, flattening his hair across his face so it covered the bruised section around his eye.

“No big deal? This is bullying, Taemin! Why would they do this to you?”

Taemin bit his lip nervously, rocking back and forth on his heels as he avoided eye contact with the older boy. “They just do it ‘cause I look like a girl…” he whispered pathetically, voice breaking slightly.

Kibum let out a large exhale of air slowly, brows furrowed in complete disbelief. “Those bastards…teasing you because you’re pretty. That’s pathetic.”

Taemin nodded jerkily in agreement, before his eyes widened considerably as Kibum’s arms wrapped around him in a comforting hug.

‘What on earth am I doing hugging this little ?’ Kibum asked himself, however his arms made no movement to remove themselves from around the pretty boy.

Taemin sunk into the embrace gently, and the two stayed like that for a few more seconds before pulling away gently.

“I’m going to hang out in the dance studio today,” began Kibum, not quite believing what he was saying. “You’re free to join me, not that you care for an invitation other days, but you know…”

Taemin nodded happily, a cute grin spreading across his cheeks. “I might come…I’ve been hanging out with a new friend lately though, and the mean guys are pretty scared of him. So we’ll see.”

Kibum nodded, half happy at the decline yet a feeling of loneliness still sitting at the bottom of his stomach.

“Yeah that’s fine…I’ll see you around, Taemin.” Kibum waved, smiling gently at the other boy before making his way towards the 3^rd year classrooms.

Class went by unevently, as per usual, and before he knew it Kibum was back in the dance studio eating his lunch quietly to himself. He hadn’t really expected for Taemin to be there, but that didn’t necessarily mean he wasn’t disappointed at the younger boy’s lack of presence.

Kibum sighed dejectedly. He should have been used to this by now. However, just as he was about to give up hope of the younger appearing and divulge in the delicious lunch before him, the door opened and in walked Taemin, a taller boy trailing behind him stoically.

“Hey, Kibum! I came…and I brought my friend along too.” Taemin chirped happily, a vast contrast to the boy’s arrogant attitude yesterday.

If Kibum had decided to take a bite of his food at that moment, he would’ve found it sprayed all over the ground before him. Thankfully however, he hadn’t yet begun his lunch and was only sporting a dropped jaw.

Taemin’s friend…was Choi Minho? Captain of the soccer team? The school hunk? How on earth had Taemin managed to befriend him? Minho was two years older than him, for goodness sakes!

Kibum quickly picked up his jaw and smiled politely in their direction. “Hey, Taemin…Minho.” he greeted.

“Hi, Kibum.” Minho greeted back deeply, facial expression not changing in the slightest.

Taemin, not noticing (or not caring in the slightest for) the awkwardness, happily strolled over to Kibum and sat down across from him, gesturing for Minho to do the same. Kibum didn’t know what he was going to burst from first: happiness or shock.

Minho sat down next to Taemin, and if Kibum wasn’t already so surprised he would’ve died from a heart attack as Minho smiled slightly at the younger boy.

Kibum took an awkward bite from his rice, hoping to God that Taemin would start the conversation. Minho may have been in his year level, but he sure had never talked to the taller male, and had never really planned to…until now.

“Kibum is in your year level, right hyung?” asked Taemin with a large grin, looking up at Minho as though he was the most interesting being in the universe.

“Neh…we haven’t really talked before though.” responded Minho deeply, giving Kibum a quick glance. “Don’t you hang out with Amber?”

Kibum nodded softly, smiling at the thought of his best friend. “Yeah…we don’t really hang out at lunch though. She has a lot of other friends.”

Minho nodded in agreement; lips twitching up slightly at the ends in what Kibum assumed was a smile. “Yeah…she’s the only girl on our soccer team. Pretty good, if I must say.”

Taemin’s grin was nearly off of his face by this point, so large that Kibum thought his face might split. “I know her! Kibum, why don’t you ever hang out with her friends at lunch?”

“Oh you know…I’m not very sociable if you can’t already tell. And besides, I don’t think they like me too much.” replied Kibum, giving a nonchalant shrug despite the fact that it bothered him more than he let on.

“Oh.” spoke Taemin, air suddenly thickening around them in awkwardness. “It’s alright, Kibum! I’m sorry I was little rude to you before…but you’re my friend now! I didn’t realise you were so nice...”

Kibum laughed a little at the cuteness of the younger boy, having the strangest urge to move forward and pinch his cheeks. “Thanks, Taemin…But don’t think I’m forgiving you for all of your arrogance, you little .”

Minho snorted in response. “He can be a little , can’t he?”

Kibum laughed, nodding enthusiastically in agreement. “Definitely.”

And at that moment, sitting in the dance studio with his lunch and laughing with his friends, Kibum felt happy. He felt like he belonged.