Taemin shuddered as his fingers touched some slimy, unknown substance. Ugh. This was gross.

He hated washing dishes.

But in all honesty, it was not something he did very often. (Thank god.)

Usually, he could get by with persuading one of the other members to do it. (His puppy eyes and pout never failed to work on Jinki hyung and Jonghyun.) Or he would rope Minho and Key in to help him.

But today, no matter how hard he tried, he wasn't going to get any help facing his dreaded enemy.

Nowadays, the SHINee members didn't stay at their dorms very often. And if they did spend the night, it wouldn't involve any sleeping. Instead they would be busy working and practicing and fulfilling all a matter of responsibilities and duties that came with being an idol.

Tonight was one such night. SHINee was frantically adding the final touches to their latest album. Things had gone into overdrive as they usually did during the final days of preparation. But it was always worth it in the end when they got to see the fruits of their hard work.

But right now, Taemin had the glorious task of washing the dishes.

He heard serious voices drift into the kitchen from the living room. Taemin knew his hyungs were hard at work and his features softened a little at the thought of it.

As he resigned himself to his task and scrubbed vigorously at a particularly stubborn plate, he heard footsteps pad into the kitchen.

Lean, muscled arms wrapped around his waist and pulled Taemin close.

Taemin wrenched himself out of Jonghyun’s grasp. “Let go of me hyung! You’re getting in the way. And you’ll get water all over yourself,” he scolded him.

Jonghyun pouted, “I don’t care. And is it bad that I want to hug you? I miss you Taemin.”

Taemin rolled his eyes, “What do you mean, ‘miss me’? We’ve literally been spending every second of every day together preparing for the comeback.”

Jonghyun shook his head, “You know that's not what I mean.”

Taemin sighed resignedly. He knew what Jonghyun meant. They hadn’t gotten a chance to spend any time together outside of anything work related.

Seeing the other man's barriers cracking, Jonghyun smiled mischievously and wound an arm around Taemin just to pushed away. Again.

“Hyung, I have to finish this. And don’t you have work to do?” Taemin refused to look at Jonghyun, knowing that if he did, he would see the other man's pout and hurt expression and would start to feel guilty.

“Ahh Taemin-ah,” Jonghyun sighed, “Don’t you want me to take a break? I’ve been working non-stop for hours. I just needed something pleasant to take my mind off the stress.”

As he scrubbed away the old coffee stains on a mug, Taemin asked coldly, “And I’m something pleasant?”

Jonghyun grabbed Taemin again and nuzzled his face into the taller man’s neck. Taemin squirmed away. What was it with this man? It was like he fed off physical contact.

“Get your hands off me!”

“Taemin.” Jonghyun practically whined. “Don’t be like that. You know I love you, right?”

Taemin rolled his eyes, “As if you don't tell me that all the time.”

“But I do love you! More than you will ever know. And when I don’t get to spend time with you, it’s like a piece of me is missing.”

Taemin’s features softened. Jonghyun could be as annoying as hell sometimes, but he truly meant well. And he really did care for him.

“I know you love me hyung. And I love you too. I can come cuddle with you just as soon as these dishes are finished. Now maybe if you helped me…”

“Oh no.” Jonghyun shook his head and crossed his arms. “ You are going to do the dishes all by yourself for once. And besides I rather like watching you stand here, all pretty for me.”

Taemin could hear the smirk in Jonghyun's voice. And even as he scoffed at the older man, he could feel the blush spreading on his cheeks. Typical Jonghyun. Always flirting with him. The annoying thing was that no matter how much he did it, it still affected Taemin.

“Ah Taemin you’re so cute! Blushing like that for me.”

Taemin was annoyed. (And more than a little flustered.) “If you’re not going to help, then why are you here hyung?”

Jonghyun leaned in close and whispered in Taemin's ear. “I told you already. To see your pretty face.”

Jonghyun's hot breath on his neck, sent an involuntary shiver through Taemin.

Jonghyun noticed. He pulled back and smirked.

Taemin could feel himself being scrutinized under Jonghyun's gaze. He felt self conscious all of a sudden.

“You really need to go and get yourself a girlfriend hyung.” Taemin said, half jokingly, trying to escape the awkwardness.

There was silence. Taemin thought for a moment that maybe he said something wrong. Then Jonghyun answered.

“I don’t want a girlfriend. I want you .”

Taemin froze in the middle of scrubbing at a spoon. Those few words had a strange effect on him. It felt like his world had tilted off its axis.

After a moment he replied, “I don’t know what you mean.”

“I think you know very well what I mean.” Jonghyun answered.

Taemin had always known Jonghyun had liked him. Maybe even more than just liked . I mean, it didn’t take a fool to be able to tell by the way Jonghyun looked at Taemin when he thought no one was watching. The way his touch was so impossibly tender (to the point that it wasn’t normal). The way he always had something good to say about Taemin.

Jonghyun adored Taemin. But Taemin never seriously considered that it was anything more than just brotherly love.

Jonghyun’s disbelieving voice broke through his thoughts, “You really didn’t think that all I felt for you was brotherly love or something, did you?”

God it was like the man could read his thoughts.

Before Taemin could think of an answer, Jonghyun continued.

“We’ve always had something different, you and I. Something special. I thought you knew that.”

Taemin sighed and refused to look at the other man. He was afraid of what he would see on his face. Instead, he continued washing the unending pile of dishes in the sink. It gave him an excuse to avoid looking at Jonghyun.

Jonghyun patiently waited for Taemin’s answer.

After a while Taemin said, “Why are you telling me this now, Jonghyun?”

Seriously? Taemin mentally chided himself. The man just confessed his feelings for you and that’s the best you can think of?

As he glanced out of the corner of his eye, Taemin saw that Jonghyun had a resigned, even slightly impatient look on his face.

In an almost trembling voice that was full of- anger? regret?- Jonghyun replied, “Because it’s been eleven years, Taemin. Eleven. ing. Years. I don’t want to spend the rest of my life like this. I want you. I want us .”

Taemin didn’t know what to say to that. His heart broke a little at the thought that the other man had been holding in these feelings for so long. No one deserved to suffer like that. Especially not his Jonghyun.

Taemin finished fitting in the last dishes in the dishwasher. He turned it on and washed his hands.

As he dried his hands he said in a carefully controlled voice, “Why couldn’t you have told me earlier? There were so many chances. So many opportunities. Eleven years worth of them.”

Jonghyun sighed and ran his hand through his hair, “Trust me, I know. I’ve thought the same thing to myself, night after night. When I’m lying in bed and I can't sleep. When I’m staring up at the dark ceiling and my head is filled with these thoughts . These thoughts that I can’t escape. I ask myself why I’ve been such a coward. Why I couldn’t just say it outright, like a true man. Truth is, I love you so much Taemin . I didn’t want to ruin what we already had. I told myself that as long as you were happy then I would be fine. I’m not worthy of you Taemin. I-” Jonghyun's voice cracked and a tear slipped down his cheek.

Taemin finally looked straight at Jonghyun. Into the eyes of the man who had loved him for so long. Loved him in the dark. The man who hid his feelings for Taemin’s sake. His heart cracked even further at the thought of the pain that Jonghyun had been through all these years.

Jonghyun looked so painfully beautiful right there and then. Taemin wondered how he had never noticed. Sure he had thought that the other man could look unbearably y on stage or absolutely adorable when they were off stage. But never had he realized just how... beautiful the other man was. Jonghyun was always telling him that Taemin was beautiful. But Taemin disagreed. Jonghyun was the true beauty.

Taemin reached up with a trembling hand and wiped away the tears that were welling up in Jonghyun’s eyes.

“You’re more than worthy of me hyung,” Taemin whispered. “ I’m the one that doesn’t deserve you. You’re always showing me so much affection and love and how do I respond? With coldness and-”

Jonghyun cut him off, “What are you talking about? Just because you don’t show affection the same way I do, doesn’t mean that you don't have any! I know that you care for me when you offer to help me with my work or when you make sure that I eat and get enough sleep when I’m working myself to the edge.”

Taemin bit his lip, “You must have been hiding so much pain from me all these years.”

Jonghyun gave him a small, shaky smile. “What pain? As long as you’re by my side Taemin, there’s no pain. I don’t need you to love me back in the same way. It’s okay. I understand. Seeing you smile and laugh, it’s everything to me. Just as long as you're happy and are my friend, I’m okay.”

Those words did it for Taemin. He did something he never thought he’d do. He grabbed Jonghyun and pulled him close and pressed his lips tightly against the other man’s.

Taemin kissed him fiercely. Channeling all that he felt into something physical. And when Jonghyun opened his mouth and kissed him back, to Taemin, it felt like home. It felt... right .

They stood there, in that small kitchen and kissed and kissed and kissed. The world had shrunk down to just the two of them.

Taemin was painfully aware of every little thing, but at the same time, everything felt completely surreal.

Jonghyun’s lips moved against his and took Taemin’s breath away. He felt like he was in a dream. Like he was floating underwater.

In a strange way this sort of felt familiar . But completely different and new and breathtaking at the same time.

Taemin was loving it. And from the content moans that were starting to escape from Jonghyun’s mouth, Taemin figured he was too.

Jonghyun, the ever confident, ran his hands up Taemin’s back and neck and wound them into his hair. Taemin took this as a sign and he hesitantly let his hands wander up Jonghyun’s shirt. He couldn’t help it. He just desperately needed more contact with the other man’s warm skin.

Jonghyun pulled back a little, lips flushed red, looking so intensely beautiful, it almost blinded Taemin. The older man leaned in close to Taemin and whispered, “Baby, you’re so beautiful. So beautiful and innocent and sweet and talented. I wasn’t kidding when I said that you’re the inspiration for all my songs. I love you.”

As a response, Taemin just pulled the other man closer. He had wanted to be the one to tell Jonghyun that he was beautiful- for once. He wasn’t exactly sure he could express what he felt for the other man in words though. Taemin had never been very good with words. Jonghyun was the eloquent one in their relationship. And Taemin was okay with that. He could show Jonghyun how he felt with his actions.

Taemin leaned forward and captured the other man’s lips in another kiss. And they kissed, Taemin leaning back against the kitchen counter, hands on Jonghyun's chest. Jonghyun gripping onto his waist and biting at his lip. They were made for each other. They fit together perfectly.

After an eternity, (that felt way too short) Jonghyun and Taemin broke apart, breathing heavily. They heard snickering coming from the doorway. Both whirled around to see Key and Minho standing there, arms crossed, watching the pair with identical smirks on their faces.

Taemin imagined what he and Jonghyun must look like. Standing next to him, Jonghyun was flushed, eyes bright, and hair disheveled. Utterly beautiful. Taemin thought he probably looked about the same. Just less breathtakingly gorgeous.

As Taemin bit his lip and tried to come up with an explanation as to why him and Jonghyun were each other’s faces off in the kitchen, Key broke the awkward silence with a snarky, “If you guys are done making out for now, we have work to do in the living room.”

Minho raised his eyebrows, “I don’t know. I mean, I wouldn’t mind watching these two for a bit. It’s quite hot actually.”

Taemin shot his hyung a bewildered look. Minho just shrugged in response.

Onew called out from outside the kitchen, “What are you four doing in there? Do I need to come and drag you out?”

Minho cringed, “Ahhh, I can’t wait to see what you guys tell Jinki hyung about this.”

Key waved his hand at the (currently) silver haired boy, “I wouldn’t worry about it. I’m sure he already knows. He probably knew that Taemin was in love with Jonghyun before Taemin even knew himself .”

Minho nodded in agreement, “Actually, I'm pretty sure we all knew before Taemin did.”

And with that the two men sauntered out of the kitchen leaving Taemin and Jonghyun by themselves.

Taemin looked at Jonghyun who smiled his brilliant, white smile reassuringly back at him. His heart swelled with warmth and love at the sight of the beautiful man standing next to him. Jonghyun held out his hand. Taemin took it.

And together they walked out of the kitchen to join the rest of their family.

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