red moon on the shore

Share With Me The Sun

“What’s cooking?”

Taemin tossed his sneakers at the entrance and put on fast the house slippers. The smell coming from inside the apartment wasn’t alluring, on the contrary. He wasn’t sure if someone had died or if it was the result of bad cooking skills. After stepping inside the kitchen and confronting the one responsible for the foul odor, he couldn’t help but laugh at the culprit’s expression.

“What?” Chanyeol removed the skillet from the fire. When Taemin got closer, he saw a dark goo still bubbling inside.

“What the is that?”

“Well, it used to be food.”

“Used to?”

“As you can see, Lee Taemin, I had murdered it.”

“That, I can see, queen Chanyeol.” They glanced at each other before bursting into laughter. “Well, good thing I got you covered.”

Taemin let Chanyeol deal with his victim while he put the bag on the table. Slowly rolling the sides, the smell of fried chicken danced with the goo’s stench until no one could decipher what in the world had been going on in there. Chanyeol opened a window to clear the air and then peeked behind Taemin’s shoulder, his hands busy with a towel.

“Dude,” he tilted his head until he almost touched Taemin’s cheek with his nose. “You’re truly a life savior.”

“I know,” Taemin got out the boxes of chicken and a bottle of coke. “What will you guys do without me?”

“To be fair, Heechul’s cooking is great.”

“I know, but you’ll starve by the time he comes home.”

Chanyeol wrapped his arm around Taemin’s shoulders and brought him closer to his chest, grinning like a fool.

“Worth it, your brother’s food is the best.”

His eldest brother, Heechul, had been living in Japan for a while. One day, he suddenly appeared at Taemin’s doorstep and announced he was returning to South Korea.

The only problem was that they had agreed long ago not to interfere in each other’s lives. It wasn’t something born out of necessity, like being incompatible when it came to living together. It had been brewing for years, mainly, from the moment Heechul abandoned them for what travelling offered. As much as he loved his brother and admired his courage of seeing the world at a young age, Taemin felt he had missed too much of his life to consider them close. They lacked that subtle understanding some siblings had. Taemin didn’t mind his presence in the apartment or that Heechul made sure he’d always have food ready in the fridge whenever he’d take a break from writing. Taemin was a terrible cook and terrible at eating too – he often forgot to get a bite or two before long writing sessions.

Their old arrangement eventually came back into the light when Heechul questioned Taemin’s lifestyle and the way he sacrificed it all for his novels. His brother had no idea of what he had gone through in the last couple of years because complaining to him had always made Taemin feel inferior, weak, the type of person Heechul would hate if they weren’t blood-related. He knew it wasn’t Heechul’s intention though – the other was too preoccupied with more important matters to observe the way Taemin looked up to him, begging for attention. Then too, Taemin wanted Heechul to see the kind of man he became and what circumstances led him to his present self, only to keep everything out of their discussions.

Soon after talking about it, Heechul found someone renting on a street not far away from Taemin. It looked shady at first and Taemin worried his brother might get in trouble, especially since his Korean was rusty. He insisted he accompanied him to the meeting. The one who posted the ad was none other than Chanyeol.

They had been close ever since. Maybe, not as close as Heechul had become with Chanyeol for the past year as flatmates, but close nonetheless. Enough for Taemin to know of Chanyeol’s plans and how he had been secretly putting money aside in a separate bank account, so he could properly propose to his girlfriend. Enough for Chanyeol to know that Taemin had an interest in the same , something he had been hiding from his family. It was strange how he could tell everything to his best friend, his acquaintances, former University colleagues and complete strangers. Yet, a wall stood between him and those that had loved him unconditionally since forever.

It was also strange how Chanyeol hadn’t been that surprised or hadn’t cut ties with him after the confession. He had a friend like that, he said. Not necessarily fully committed to a same- relationship, but half-half for sure. And that friend – Taemin still remembered well his words – had saved his life without knowing, so he owed him much more than anyone could imagine.

“Is my offering not enough, queen?” Taemin turned to the side, one eyebrow slightly higher than the other.

“It’s tempting, princess Taemin, tempting.” Taemin punched him, hard enough for Chanyeol to pull away from him, grab his chest and whine in a dramatic manner before slowly kneeling to the floor, hand reaching for the ceiling, towel still in grasp. “I have been hit, I have been hit!”

“Drama queen,” Taemin kicked his sides lightly.

“Oh, wee is my thread of destiny! This drama queen had been slaughtered by the mighty princess!”

“Oh my God, Chanyeol!”

“He wants my place! He does! Let this day remain as the one when the queen perished by the hands of your new ruler!” Taemin kicked his sides again. “Okay, I’m done.” Chanyeol whipped Taemin’s side with the towel. It had no effect, other than slight discomfort. When he was back on his feet, towering over Taemin and exchanging glances upon glances, their cheeks puffed at the same time, both straining their muscles to keep every fiber of their body from laughing like a pack of hyenas.

Chanyeol gave up first, followed by Taemin.

“You’re horrible.”

“I know, princess.” Chanyeol pointed the table with a quick turn of his hand. “Shall we feast in the honor of my death?”

“No can do, queen.”

“How so?”

“That’s for you two, I’ll go grab some noodles.”

Chanyeol pulled away from Taemin. He touched his chest again, faking a shocked expression with his mouth and eyes agape.

“How dare you, princess!”

“Yeah, yeah,” Taemin patted his arm and headed to the entrance, “enjoy your food!”

“Is it because of the ramen guy?” Taemin stopped against the wall, one slipper in his hand and his foot in the air. “Heh, I knew it.”

In the middle of the distance between Taemin’s and Chanyeol’s was a corner store they visited often, as it had everything they needed around the house and more. Taemin also bought cup noodles and ate there ever since he had moved in the neighborhood. It was his late night snack kind of thing. For a month or more, a guy he had never seen before took the makeshift table on the other side of the store and ate cup noodles too, usually, around the same time as Taemin. He’d always wear a coat he’d take off to reveal a sleeveless white T-shirt and Taemin might have had a couple of dreams involving his big, muscular arms. While Chanyeol and his best friend countless of times, he refused to say hi. So had he become the ‘ramen guy’. As much as Taemin didn’t want to admit, he might have started eating noodles more often only to secretly stare at his body.

“Is not!” It was about to throw the slipper at Chanyeol, but he knew better than to harm him. “I just feel like eating noodles.”

“Okay, then if it’s not about the ramen guy, you can totally go on a date with my guy.”

“Uh? Sorry, what have I missed?”

“A date, pretty boy,” Chanyeol wiggled his eyebrows as Taemin took his slipper back on. “I got you a date.”

Taemin wasn’t happy at first with Chanyeol’s matchmaking game. He had dates before, but nothing good came out of them. Most complimented his looks and didn’t give two damns about his novels or anything other than the way his face matched his makeup. He wasn’t sure what changed his mind. The way the other guy’s voice sounded over the phone must have been a definitive factor because Taemin’s interest sparked after their brief talk. It was deeper than he expected and warm, like the steam of hot chocolate in winter bringing that sweet scent to his nose. He also wondered whether the man had more to offer than anyone else he went out with, so Taemin embraced his proposal faster than he initially planned. He hadn’t regretted the decision much, mostly because the first thing that popped into his head was to get drunk and enjoy the rest of the evening through the alcohol’s lenses. If the date hadn’t gone crazy with his tipsy attitude by the end of the evening, he might had found someone who could handle him.

Taemin often mused he needed someone crazy enough to love his faults because they were too big for anyone other than a lecherous individual to accept. Staring at Jongin, he wasn’t sure if he had been one of those individuals and he was extremely good at hiding it. Or, if he had the qualities Taemin admired, yet could never obtain. Either way, the way he looked back at him from behind his glasses had amused him profoundly. Jongin was similar to one of his characters in a series he had been carefully writing for over three years. It wasn’t a surprise that Taemin ended up observing every little thing that made Jongin, Jongin. From the way he fixed his loose tie, to the way his fingertips touched the water glass as if he had been pondering whether it was good to drink or not in front of Taemin. Jongin’s gestures were precious.

“So?”

Jongin, again, fixed his tie, even if it was about to fall off his neck. Maybe his question hit a vital chord and Taemin wasn’t drunk enough to pay for the consequences. One of his feet tapped the side of Jongin’s ankle. He stopped fumbling with the tie.

“A punishment?”

“Yes.” Taemin rubbed the tip of his shoe up Jongin’s leg. It was weirding Jongin out, yet, he stayed silent. He wasn’t sure what to make of Taemin anymore. He still wanted to get on his good side, so he blurted out the only answer he could muster without sounding like a ert.

“Your book.”

“My book?” Taemin placed his foot back on the floor. “What about it? And which book?”

“I mean,” Jongin crossed his arms over the table and leaned over. “Your punishment, Mr. Lee, is to give me the title of one of your books and I will read it.”

“Doesn’t that make it your punishment?”

“No, since you’re the one embarrassed by it.”

Taemin scoffed. He drank his wine, put the glass away and poked Jongin’s arm.

“Do you really want to torture yourself with my narratives?”

“I’m sure it’s going to be pleasurable.”

“Mmhm,” Taemin drew a line with his finger from the spot he poked all the way to Jongin’s knuckles. His palm rested on top of Jongin’s hand as he leaned over too, getting up from his chair to reach him and whisper. “Red moon on the shore. I’m sure you’ll love it.”

He retook his seat and acted like nothing happened. At least, none ordered dessert, so he knew the date was almost over. If the guy had any thoughts of running away, Taemin gave him the opportunity to go to the moon and back with his little exhibitionism.

“Red moon on the shore,” Jongin repeated. “What is it about?”

“Where’s the surprise in that, Mr. Kim?”

“I see, Mr. Lee. You’re quite evil, aren’t you?”

Taemin nodded. “I hope to hear all about it at our next date.”

“Next date?” Jongin suddenly sat straight and flattened his shirt over his chest. “You want another date?”

“Yes, why not? Don’t you, Mr. Kim?”

“I do.”

“You do?”

“Yes. But, please, no more footsie next time.”

Taemin covered his mouth, his teeth visible as chuckles boomed deeply from his throat.

“I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Jongin called the nearby waiter, “I should have picked a better location too.”

They bickered who would pay the meal and while Taemin argued for going Dutch, Jongin eventually won the debate and paid for everything. When they hit the airy streets and the cool breeze of the evening crept under their coats, Jongin wondered if throwing even more money on the enigmatic Taemin had brought him anything in return. He had a financial mindset and he wasn’t afraid to admit it. However, the more they walked and talked about some other random things, like how Chanyeol accidentally spilled coffee on one of their administrative girls and got himself a fiancée instead of a slap, the more Jongin enjoyed Taemin’s presence and the possessiveness that washed him over in the restaurant came back in a second wave.

“Guess it’s goodbye,” Taemin smiled at Jongin. “Call me?”

“Wait,” Jongin grabbed Taemin’s hand. “Where should we go next time?”

“Surprise me, Mr. Kim.” Taemin winked and turned around. He grabbed Jongin’s other hand and caught a glimpse of him down his lip in expectation. “Goodbye, then.” Taemin let go and stepped backwards.

“Wait!” Jongin followed him. “Want a ride home?”

Taemin laughed and shook his head, stepping further and further away from Jongin.

“I’d usually say yes, Mr. Kim!” He turned around and waved from behind. “But I want that second date!”

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Totyfroty #1
Hi author-nim please update this masterpiece I miss it so much
chroma
#2
Chapter 15: I sighed loudly once I finished reading thus chapter. like, I know this is NOT the end but I assume finally putting a label on their relationship is already a big leap for them. I re-read the other 14 chapters too & just like how it was the first time I read it, i couldn't help but feel a lump in my throat in every word. The emotion is so raw my weak soft heart can't handle it ;________;
You once told me that Jongin wasnt any better than Taemin & I think I can finally start to see why. Yet I can't help but root for him because these two dumbos deserve love ;_______; look at me being mushy once again ;________;
And happy belated birthday to Koemi ^^
kimtaem
#3
Chapter 15: So glad to see that the comments section is finally open for this story again! I was very frustrated with both Jongin and Taemin in this chapter, but I guess the way they act around each other is due to their past relationships. I'm happy that they finally got together. ;;
rddenthusiast #4
Chapter 15: thank you so much for updating, I really enjoyed this chapter!! this is such a great story I can't wait to see how it progresses!
Taeyeon_ssJH
#5
Daebakkkk♡♡♡♡
SHINeeLove05
#6
Chapter 15: I really love the plot and it's pacing and the characters ㅠㅠ the way they're growing more fond of each other, but also having their unspoken misunderstandings and worries..want to see them get to know each other more and more..
they're so precious together, they need to be happy~
Totyfroty #7
Chapter 14: Yes, Mr. Kim <3 :):):) loved your update <3
SHINeeLove05
#8
Chapter 14: always so happy and excited for updates <3 love them so much, and want hem to be happy uwu