“Minho !”

 

Minho should have known that Taemin’s plan would fall back on him sooner or later. Jinki was angry, very angry. He could hear it in his voice.

 

“Jinki ? What’s going on ?”

 

As if he didn’t know what was going on… Perhaps he shouldn’t have said that either, seeing how Jinki talked to him next.

 

“Can you explain to me why there’s currently in my living room a young man who claims he has been paid to spend the weekend with me ?”

 

He was wondering how the hell he would justify himself when Taemin grabbed the phone from his hands and put it on speaker.

 

“Jinki ! Is he here ? What do you think ? He’s perfect, isn’t he ?”

 

“Taemin, did you hire him ?”

 

“Yes, I did !”

 

Minho was sure Jinki was about to kill his boyfriend. He was so happy to not be in the same room as Jinki right now. His best friend may have been disabled, but he still could be terrifying when he was angry and the wheelchair didn’t stop him from kicking the of anyone who got on his nerves.

 

“You’re going to call him right now and tell him that this whole thing is a misunderstanding and that he needs to leave.”

 

“No.” Taemin said, shrugging.

 

“I beg your pardon ?”

 

“You heard me, I said no.”

 

Taemin had just signed his own death warrant.

 

“It was not a question.”

 

“Oh I know. But the answer’s still no.”

 

“Taemin, he can’t stay !”

 

“Listen to me, Jinki, he cost us a fortune so he stays at your place and you stop complaining about it !”

 

Minho was very impressed by his boyfriend. He had some guts to stand up to Jinki.

 

“I don’t care how much he cost you, he will not stay !”

 

“Why not ? You don’t like him ? Is that it ?”

 

“That’s not the point here !”

 

“Ha ! So you like him !” Taemin said with a victory smile.

 

‘I never said that !”

 

“But you didn’t say you didn’t like him !”

 

“Taemin, that’s enough.”

 

“I agree, that’s enough. If you don’t want to have with him, then don’t. But it doesn’t cost you anything to let him spend the weekend with you.”

 

“Taemin, I said no.”

 

“Here’s the deal : if you let him spend the weekend at your place, Minho and I promise never to tell you to meet someone again. But if you kick him out, Jinki, I swear I’ll keep sending people at your place forever !”

 

The ‘forever’ might have been a bit exaggerated, but at least Jinki knew he wasn’t joking.

Jinki seemed to take a little longer to answer and Minho’s eyes widened. Did Taemin actually succeed in convincing him ?

 

“Deal.”

 

“For real ?” Taemin asked, a huge smile on his face.

 

“But only if you two promise never to tell me to meet someone again.”

 

“I promise !”

 

Minho took the phone back to promise as well and Jinki hung up. Taemin couldn’t stop smiling and Minho smiled back. They both hoped this weekend was enough to change Jinki’s mind.

 

………………………

 

Jinki went back to the living room to talk to the young man. He was sitting on the couch, his eyes looking down at his phone. He looked up when he saw Jinki and stood up.

 

“It wasn’t a mistake after all...”

 

“Oh. Alright.”

 

He seemed a bit confused but he didn’t ask further questions and Jinki was very grateful for that. He didn’t want to explain that it was actually his friends who had hired him, and that the only reason why he didn’t tell him to leave was so that his friends would finally leave him alone.

 

“Follow me.” Jinki said.

 

He led him to the spare bedroom without a word.

 

“This is the guest room.”

 

“The guest room ?” Key asked, surprised.

 

“Is there something wrong ?” Jinki asked.

 

“No, but-”

 

“Good. I have work to do. Do whatever you like, I don’t care.”

 

Key threw him a questioning look but he didn’t say anything and just nodded. He was certainly paid to respect his customer’s wishes anyway.

Jinki quickly went away, still feeling Key’s eyes on him.

 

…………………..

 

He put his bag down on the bed and started putting all of his clothes and toiletries away. He was there for the weekend, after all, and he had a feeling he would have a lot of free time.

Seeing how his customer had reacted, he obviously hadn’t been aware of his arrival. Someone else must have hired him. It wasn’t the first time something like this happened to him, but it was definitely the first time he had a disabled customer. He couldn’t have hidden his surprise when he had seen him. Not very professional, he thought. Was this why his customer had told him to settle in the guest room ? He needed to make up for it. He couldn’t afford to give a bad impression. He had a reputation to keep, after all.

 

After putting away his stuff and checking if his hair looked nice, he walked out of the room to explore the house. He had noticed that someone rich was living here right away. The furniture looked pretty and expensive and many works of art decorated the rooms. He had to admit his customer had good taste in these kinds of things. Key had always loved art and he knew a bit about it.

 

He wandered in the house, looking at each painting and each statue carefully like he would do in a museum. He went outside to see the gardens, and met a man there - certainly the gardener - who greeted him, he greeted him in return before going back to visiting. The gardens were as large as the house itself, which was pretty impressive considering that the house was in the city. He walked up the stairs and looked around. There was a lift right next to the stairs. Being rich and disabled seemed to have its perks, at least he had enough money to make all the changes he needed in the house.

 

Key walked by an open door and walked in. It was the library. The walls were covered by bookshelves and two large windows without curtains lit the room. Two expensive-looking armchairs were standing in the center of the room, as well as a coffee table between them. He walked to the bookshelves and grabbed a book randomly. Shakespeare… A classic, he thought as he put the book back. All of the books seemed old, very old. They must have cost a fortune, like everything inside that room.

 

“Hello.”

 

The voice made him jump and he quickly turned around. A woman was standing by the door, a small smile on her lips.

 

“Hello.”

 

“You’re a friend of Jinki’s ?” She asked, walking closer.

 

“Oh, I…”

 

“Everyone was starting to believe he wouldn’t meet anyone ! Jinki is very lonely and he has very few friends, I’m happy that he got to meet someone new !” She said with a huge smile.

 

He smiled back politely.

 

“You are… ?” He asked a bit later.

 

“Oh ! Where are my manners ? My name is Sohye, I’m Jinki’s personal assistant.”

 

“Nice to meet you, I’m Key.”

 

“It is very nice to meet you, Key ! I’m sorry, I have to go, but maybe we’ll meet again later.”

 

“Yes.”

 

She was about to leave but she suddenly stopped at the door and turned to Key with a serious expression on her face.

 

“Jinki tends to be wary of people who are interested in him… So, if he’s avoiding you… Know that it’s nothing personal, it’s just how he is.”

 

He nodded and she walked out with a smile.

 

This ‘Jinki’ definitely seemed very different from the regular customers.

 

………………..

 

A bit before eight, Jinki went to the dining room for dinner. His eyes fell on the second plate resting next to his own and he frowned. He went to the kitchen and saw the cook, he was about to finish cooking the meal.

 

“Ah, Mr Lee ! You’re right on time, as always.”

 

“I’m sorry to disturb you but… Are you joining me for dinner tonight ?”

 

“Oh no, I’m leaving at the same time as usual, why ?”

 

“You set the table for two people.”

 

“Ah, yes ! Sohye told me you had a guest.”

 

Oh no. Sohye had met Key ? Was she aware of the reason why he was spending the weekend here ? If she found out… All of this was Minho and Taemin’s fault !

The cook served the meal and went back home after politely bidding Jinki good night. All of his employees had gone back home by now, except Sohye who had taken her evening off and who would be coming back in an hour or two. It was just him in the house, well, almost…

 

The clock hanging on the living room wall struck eight and Jinki heard someone walk down the stairs with light footsteps. He didn’t turn around and focused on his food. He started eating while Key sat next to him. They were eating silently. Jinki feared the moment when Key would break that awkward silence to ask a question but he didn’t. It picked Jinki’s curiosity and he looked up from his plate, glancing at the young man. His eyes, however, wouldn’t look away. He had changed and was now wearing a simple silk burgundy red robe he had tied loosely around his waist and that showed his delicate neck and collarbones. Key looked up when he felt him staring and the latter looked away, although not missing the mischievous smile on Key’s lips. Jinki hurriedly finished his dinner and went to put his plate and his knife and fork in the kitchen sink before going back to his office.

 

“Wait ! Mr Lee !” Key called.

 

Jinki stopped reluctantly and turned around. He had tried really hard to avoid him and he probably would have succeeded if he hadn’t stared at him. Great, Jinki. Awesome.

 

“Yes ?”

 

“I… I’m sorry if I disrespected you in any way.”

 

Jinki looked up, surprised. Why was he apologizing ?

 

“You didn’t disrespect me.”

 

“When I saw you I... “ He started, lowering his eyes. “I stared at your wheelchair.”

 

“Oh.”

 

He hadn’t seen that as an act of disrespect, he had just been surprised. Many people had stared at Jinki in a disrespectful manner - in disgust, even -, and he knew that Key hadn’t meant it that way.

 

“I-I was surprised. I never had a customer... like you before.”

 

“You mean, someone disabled ?”

 

Key simply nodded.

 

“You’re the first.”

 

Jinki came closer.

 

“You’re the first I ever met.” Jinki admitted.

 

Key looked up and his cat-like eyes met Jinki’s.

 

“Well... Good night.” Jinki said, turning in direction of the bedrooms.

 

“Mr Lee ?”

 

Jinki turned his head toward him again.

 

“Do you want me to spend the night with you ?”

 

“No.” Jinki answered in a cold voice. “You sleep in the guest room.”

 

He heard Key bid him goodnight and he quickly left.

 

……………………

 

The next morning, Key woke up in the guest room and got up to open the curtains. He could hear the birds singing outside and there were no clouds in the sky. The windows of the bedroom were so tall they were almost the same size as the wall itself, and both of them led to a small balcony with a beautiful view of the garden. He opened the windows and leaned on the railing of the balcony, closing his eyes. The sunlight was warming his skin while a morning breeze gave a pleasant fresh feeling to the sunny weather. A small smile appeared on Key’s lips. The weather was perfect ! If Mr Lee didn’t require his services today, he will probably take a walk in the gardens.

 

He reluctantly came back inside and went to take a bath in the bathroom. The room looked more like a four-star suite than a simple guest room. The furniture was the same as the rest of the house : expensive and well laid-out. The bed was one of the most comfortable bed he had ever slept on, and that meant something, considering how much time he spent in rich people’s houses. The bathroom had a similar style to the rest of the house. It was composed of a huge walk-in shower and Key wondered why they made showers this big… There was enough space to fit six or seven people in that thing ! He understood the usefulness of a shower big enough to fit two - or even three - people inside, but seven ?! It was too much, but he wasn’t that surprised. Many rich people liked to show how rich they were, and it often resulted in them having huge rooms or furniture.

 

He thought for a moment about what clothes he would be wearing and opted for a pair of short black shorts and a big white t-shirt which showed his collarbones nicely. He had seen Mr Lee stare at him yesterday and he believed he would like this outfit. He put on black socks that stopped under his knees and a pair of Creepers before checking his outfit one last time in the mirror. He put on some makeup and left the room to go in the gardens. He noticed Sohye speaking with the gardener and he walked to them.

 

“Oh ! Hello, Key ! You woke up early !” She said, smiling.

 

“Hi, Sohye. Yes, the weather is way too sunny to stay in bed today.”

 

“Ha ! Tell that to Jinki !”

 

“He’s still sleeping ?”

 

“That, he is ! He never wakes up before nine ! I’m trying to let him sleep as much as possible because he suffers from insomnia, but he can’t sleep in everyday. I should go wake him up right now actually, the physio should be here soon.”

 

She said goodbye to Key and the gardener and left quickly.

Key spent the whole morning walking in the gardens and talking to the gardener. Mr Lee would probably be busy all morning anyway.

 

………………………..

 

Jinki’s morning routine was the same as usual. Get up, exercise with the physio, take a shower, get dressed, eat quickly and go to the basketball court. Sohye was driving him, since it was impossible for him to drive. However, this morning, memories of what happened yesterday invaded his mind. He could still see Key, standing a few feet away in his silk robe only, asking if he wanted him to spend the night with him. He had said no, and he had answered honestly. There was no way Jinki would spend the night with a stranger, even if he was attracted to him.

 

When the basketball practice was over, the players congratulated themselves and went to the changing-rooms. Jonghyun tapped Jinki’s shoulder, his eyes fixed towards the bleachers next to the court.

 

“Wow… Take a look at that.”

 

Jinki followed Jonghyun’s eyes and his own eyes fell on Key. He was standing in front of the bleachers, his eyes looking around. His blond hair were neatly parted to the sides and his makeup highlighted his feline eyes. He was wearing a pair of shorts which showed his legs nicely and a t-shirt a bit too big which showed his milky skin. It was very hard for Jinki to look away.

 

“Now that’s what I call a gorgeous creature.” Jonghyun said with a dreamy smile.

 

He went to Key and stopped right in front of him.

 

“Hello, baby. What’s a beauty like you doing here ?” Jonghyun said with his most charming smile. “Come to check the athletes out ?”

 

Key’s cheeks turned to a light pink and Jinki came closer.

 

“Jonghyun…”

 

“Hey, maybe you wanna stay alone for the rest of your days, but I don’t !”

 

Key chuckled and Jonghyun turned back to him. He was about to speak again when Jinki cut him short.

 

“What are you doing here ?” He asked Key.

 

Jinki’s voice was cold and Key’s smile faded. Jonghyun’s eyes went from Jinki to the other man and he frowned. They knew each other, apparently. Jonghyun quickly understood what was going on.

 

“I… Sohye parked the car in the parking-lot and she asked me to come get you.”

 

“She shouldn’t have.”

 

Jinki turned around and went to the changing-rooms. Jonghyun noticed the sad look in Key’s eyes and he took his hand in his.

 

“Don’t worry, baby. You did nothing wrong, Jinki’s the one acting like a jerk. Go on, go back to the car, I’ll talk to him.”

 

Jonghyun grinned and winked. Key smiled weakly in return and left.

 

Jonghyun quickly met Jinki in the changing-rooms and the latter didn’t even look at him.

 

“I thought you hated the idea of hiring someone.”

 

“I didn’t hire him, Taemin did.”

 

Ah, that’s what it was.

Jonghyun had immediately noticed something was off when he had heard Jinki’s voice when he talked to the young man. He tended to run away from people or avoid them, but he was never rude with them. No, Jinki was way too well-manned for that. The fact that he was that hostile toward the boy only meant one thing… In a way, Jinki liked him. And Jinki was scared to death at the idea of liking someone.

 

“You shouldn’t be that mean to him, he’s only doing his job.”

 

“I only agreed for him to stay so that Minho and Taemin would leave me alone.”

 

“It doesn’t mean that you have to act like an with him ! Jinki, where are your manners ? He’s paid to do anything you want him to, he won’t do anything to make you uncomfortable !”

 

“I’m not so sure about that… Yesterday he asked me if I wanted him to spend the night with me.”

 

“And you said no ?!” Jonghyun said loudly with wide eyes.

 

Jinki glared at him and Jonghyun started again.

 

“I mean… Have you even tried to explain to him that you didn’t want that kind of relationship ?”

 

“No.” Jinki answered a few seconds later.

 

“Then how the hell do you expect him to know how to act around you ? You need to talk to him.”

 

Jinki had to admit Jonghyun was right.

He needed to talk to Key. They still had a few days to spend together, after all, it would be better if they got along.

 

......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................


Hi everyone ! So that was the second chapter... I hope you liked it !
Don't hesitate to comment ! :D I wanna know what you think about it !