Chapter Two

"Annyeonghaseyo!" Taemin chimed joyfully as he approached his new friends; Minho, Jonghyun, Key and Onew in front of the school building, like they had been doing for the past month. His brown eyes were twinkling with excitement. Glee was simply radiating off of his young body, warming the chilly air in which surrounded the five. He wore a bright smile, which simply lit up the atmosphere of this gloomy, chilly afternoon. It brought a smile to the faces of others, as well.

"Why so excited?" Minho asked his friend in amusement, a childish grin sneaking up on him, lighting up his face. He brushed a few stray strands of hair out of his deep eyes before rubbing his hands together to gain some friction, warming his chilly palms.

"Look!" Taemin said ecstatically, childishly shoving a paper in Minho's face. The older male laughed and took said paper, reading it with interest. The other three boys crowded around, peering over his shoulder. "I scored 100% on my math test! And it was all thanks to you, Minho hyung! You're the one who guided me through it, after all …" He said, looking away sheepishly. "I'm really grateful …" He murmured, tearing his gaze from the chasm of empty air in which he was previously staring into, casting it onto Minho. "Gamsahabnida."

"No need to thank me." Minho chuckled, handing the paper back. "You did really well, Maknae. I told you that you would." He received a mere shrug in response, followed by a cute, boyish smile.

"How was your day, hyungs?" Taemin asked to the group of older boys standing idly in front of him. "Anything new?"

Key shrugged. "Same old, same old, I guess … Onew tried to con an old lady today …" He glanced at the eldest male, a smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. Onew simply looked away innocently, running a hand through his light brown locks, before he idly began whistling a simple tune.

Taemin looked appalled. "Hyung!" He scolded in disbelief. "Why would you do that?"

"She wasn't really that old … A middle-aged woman ..." Onew muttered.

"That doesn't mean it was okay. What possessed you to do that, Onew hyung?"

"Well, I simply thought that five hundred won was a bit much to pay for a box of chicken so …" Taemin raised a hand to silence him, giving him a disapproving, yet slightly amused look.

"You conned her for chicken, hyung?" When Onew nodded, Taemin chuckled and rolled his eyes, patting him on the back. "You never change …" A playful smile crept forward and he wrapped an arm around Onew's neck. "So, what are we going to do today?" He asked the group, the excitement from earlier slowly wearing off.

Jonghyun spoke up for the first time. "Well, the carnival's in town, and we all wanted to go so we-"

He didn't even get to finish his sentence before Taemin was bursting with joy. "I'd love to go!" He said joyously. It appeared as if nothing could dampen his spirits, even on a dull day like this. He was in a total state of bliss for the first time in a long while. He wasn't stressed, he wasn't tense, he wasn't paranoid, he wasn't feeling anguish … he was completely and utterly happy, inside and out.

The four elder boys laughed light-heartedly, and Minho wrapped an arm around the young Maknae's neck. "I guess we're going to the carnival, then!" He announced, receiving an ecstatic grin from Taemin. With that, the quintet headed off towards town, where they were sure to join in on all the fun and excitement of the carnival. The whole time, Taemin was bubbling with eagerness, dreaming of all the yummy rock candy and soda-pop. All the games and stuffed prizes… Perhaps though, what he looked forward to the most was the circus act.

He simply couldn't wait to see the elephants balancing on a stool, doing tricks for peanuts, or the tigers that would jump through hoops set ablaze by a crackling fire. He couldn't wait to see the clowns pour out of a tiny car and pull pranks on one-another, tripping over their large shoes and spraying each other with water, or stepping on whoopee cushions. It was enough to widen his smile – if that were physically possible at that point. But the best part was; he'd get to enjoy it with his new friends.

He still couldn't forget the first time they met. He was antsy and couldn't wait to get home. Minho had grabbed his shoulder to speak to him, and Taemin reacted by knocking him out cold. Of course, the young Korean had to take responsibility for his mistake, and brought the quartet to his home, nursing Minho until he woke. The dark haired boy certainly seemed a little upset when he woke, but he was still kind enough to help him struggle through his mathematics homework. He had explained it perfectly, and for the first time in a long time; Taemin was able to complete his math assignment worry free.

Minho had worked as Taemin's tutor since then, and he'd never gotten worse than a C on a test and never worse than a B on his homework. He wasn't quite sure but, it was something about the way Minho explained things that made sense to Taemin. The night when he first met the boys, for instance, he was struggling with a simple algebraic equation; which was quite degrading, considering Taemin was now a freshman in college …

"It's simple, you have to solve for Y, meaning, you need to get y by itself of the left side of the equals sign." Minho began that night." What you do to one side, you do to the other." He had explained, "So, 6x minus 9y equals 15 … See here, just subtract 6x on both sides, and you get -9y equals 6x ... Then, divide by -9 on both sides … Now, what is your answer?"

"… Y equals 6x plus 1.666. And 1.666 simplifies to two if you round it?" Taemin had questioned, doubting himself greatly.

"Exactly." Minho had praised. "And you said you were having trouble with this …" He then raised an eyebrow. "I told you it was nonsense, Maknae."

At that moment, Taemin had never felt more proud of himself, and had never felt so much gratitude for another person. The memory still brought a small, genuine smile to his lips.

"We're here!" Jonghyun announced, snapping Taemin out of his thoughts. They blonde's eyes lit up and he let out an excited squeak. As the intoxicating scent of carnival food hit his nostrils, his mouth began to water. He hadn't been to a carnival since he was nine, and he had wanted to return for years. He gazed around in awe as they entered through the gate, all the wonderful sights and sounds captivating him, beckoning him forth.

The group of five simply bypassed all the rides and games first, merely looking around, taking in all the marriment of the carnival. Taemin was b with joy, gazing at all activities like an awestruck baby taking his first look at the outside world. That's when he spotted the Ferris Wheel. He stopped in his tracks and gazed up at the spinning contraption, his mouth open. Teh other four abruptly stopped walking and turned to look at Taemin, who was still gawking. An amused smile graced their features as they mummbled among one-another, playing a quick game of rock-paper-sissors. The first try was a tie, but on the second try, Minho was singled out, losing.

His friends ushered him toward Taemin, shoving him into the young boy. Taemin looked excitedly at his brunette friend, taking his hands in his. "Oh please hyung, can we go? I haven't been on a Ferris Wheel since I was nine!" He pleaded. "Please ride with me, hyung!"

Minho chuckled. "Actually, I was just going to ask if you'd like to ride." He said with a small smile. Of course though, his other friends had literally forced him to ride with Taemin, though he'd never admit that. None of them really cared for heights ...

"Oh, really hyung?" He asked, throwing his arms around the elder's neck. "Thank you, thank you!" He said before grabbing his wrist and tugigng him towards said ride. Jonghyun, Key and Onew on the other hand, just watched the two in amusement as the over-excited eighteen-year-old tugged the almost-willing Choi Minho towards the Ferris Wheel. They looked at each other, and after a little deciding, they hurried off to go play a few games while they waited.

Taemin and Minho boarded the ride, Taemin b with excitment, Minho a little hesitant. "Now Maknae, I must warn you, I'm not that good with heights ..." He murmured as the ride started and they began rising higher in the air.

"Don't worry, hyung." Taemin reassured, laying his fragile hand delicatley on Minho's own. "I'll protect you~" He smiled boyishly and squeezed his friend's hand lightly, before turning his gaze on the sight in front of him, watching intently as the rose higher and higher in the sky. His brown eyes sparkled as they reached the top. Granted, the carnival really wasn't much, but it amazed him how much things could change over the years. He looked at Minho, whom appeared to be slightly nervous. He laughed light-heartedly. "It's okay hyung, we won't fall."

Minho looked at him and gave him a skeptick smile. "I know ..." He sighed, trying to relax, depsite the anxiety that was slowly eating at him. As if sensing Minho's distress, Taemin frowned, wrapping an arm around his elder's shoulder and pulling him close.

Minho simply looked at Taemin, his cheeks coloring slightly. Though he could honestly admit, he was feeling safer in Taemin's grasp.

Once the ride ended, Taemin immediatly released Minho and hopped out of the cart, Minho following. The blonde glanced around, looking for the others, when they were no where to be found, Taemin turned and face his companion. "Minho hyung, did the others tell you where they were going to go?" When Minho shook his head, Taemin scowled in dismay. "I hope they don't expect us to go looking for them ..." He muttered. After a while, he sighed and took minho's wrist. "Let's not let them worry us. Why don't we just go by ourselves and hope we run into them?"

Minho hesitated for a few moments, before he finally gave in and nodded. He honestly didn't want to be stuck alone with Taemin. It wasn't because he didn't like him, or he thought taemin would be too much to handle - being the youngest, but because he was afraid he would hurt him. The scent coming from the young boy's neck was - quite litereally - making his mouth water, and he was afraid he might do something to ruin their friendship. He simply slid his tongue over his teeth and tried to stifle his growling stomach. The male glanced at Taemin as trotted off down the road, hoping with all of his heart Taemin did not hear the growling coming from his abdomen.

Taemin looked at him and smiled warmly, slowling his pace so it matching Minho's own. "What should we do first, hyung?" Minho thought for a few moments, glancing around at all the rides. That's when he spotted something that caught his interest. Without a word, he tugged Taemin towards said ride. "Hyung?" Taemin questioned, but his eyes lit up when he saw what exactly Minho was tugging him towards. "Bumper Cars!" Minho laughed at Taemin's sudden excitment as they entered the ring.

They and two others - Noonas, to be exact - were the oly one in the ring at the time. That being said, it was going to be a two-on-two for victory. Taemin smiled challengingly at the girls, who in turn looked at each other and giggled. "You're so going down!" They taunted as the ride began.

Taemin exchanged a glance with Minho and grinned.

Soon afterwards, their time in the bumper cars came to an end, and they had to say their goodbyes. Minho was almost afraid to admit how much fun he actually had - almost. "You're a wonderful driver, Maknae." He praised Taemin as they walked away, waving goodbye to the Noonas. "You certainly showed them who was "going down.""

Taemin looked away sheepishly. "You're far better than I am, hyung." He then caught sight of a rollar coaster. He looked hopefully at his friend, who raised an eyebrow, as if to say you really expect me to get on that. Maknae? When Taemin never tore his gaze from Minho, he sighed and nodded. The blonde squealed in excitment and tugged Minho along.

They waited in line for what felt like ages to Taemin, and mere seconds to Minho. The two males took a seat in the front, one more hesitant that the other. Taemin noticed minho's hesitance and grimaced. "Oh hyung, don't tell me you're afraid of Rollar Coasters too!" When Minho didn't reply, Taemin's voice softened from dibelief to understanding. "If you don't want to ride, it's not too late to get off ..." he said, with a smile.

Minho looked at Taemin and shook his head. "No, don't worry." He grinned. "I'll be fine. i just want you to have fun." Taemin gave him a skeptick look, as if to say; Are you positive? Minho merely brushed the look off and stared straight ahead as the ride began. Fear was clawing at him, but he merely squeezed his eyes shut and waited it out. As they gained speed, he felt soft hands wrap firmly around his arm. he peeked an eye open to see his blonde companion was actually looked scared himself.

Taemin had squeezed his eyes shut and appeared to be holding his breath. This caused minho to laugh. "Seems like I'm not the only one afraid of rollar coasters ..." He said, poking the blonde's hand. His heart lept as they went through several loops in the track, but he didn't comment on it. he was sure the terrified look on his own face said it all.

Taemin's eyes flickered open and his scowled. "Shut up ..." He muttered, pursing his lips. As the ride climbed up a rather large hill, his grip on Minho's arm tightened. A small whimpering noise acummulated in the back of his throat and he shut his eyes once more, burying his face in Minho's arm. A small frown crept onto Minho's features and he placed his free hand on the top of taemin's head, ruffling his blonde locks.

As they desceneded down the hill, Minho saw a small flash out of the corner of his eye, and assumed it was one of those rides where they took your picture near the end. Minho gave a small roll of his eyes and toughed the ride out, keeping his dark gaze locked on his companion the entire time. As the ride came to a halt, Taemin unravled his hands from minho's arm and stumbled out of the rollar coaster. He was shaking a little and his face had paled considerably.

Minho chuckled and shook his head, placing a caring hand on Taemin's back. He led the younger boy towards the booth in which they would find the image that was taken of them. Minho spotted it immediatly, and couldn't help the amused smirk that crept forward. taemin spotted it next and flushed, looking away, for in said image, his face was buried under Minho's arm, an unapproving scowl was stuck on his face, and he looked simply terrified.

"Let's go ..." He muttered, tugging his friend away. That's when his stomach growled relatively loudly. His cheeks flushed a light pink and he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Ehehe ... Hyung, what time is it?"

Minho glanced at his watch, a knowing smile etching its way into his features. "Why Maknae, are you hungry?" He chuckled. "It's six ... Do you want me to get you something?" When Taemin gazed up at him hopefull, he laughed once more. "I'll take that as a yes." he grabbed Taemin by the hand. "Come on, then."

Once they got their food, they sat down at a picnick table that was positioned in the middle of a gazeebo, sheltering them from the elements. They ate in silence for a few moments, before Minho finally spoke up. "You really were scared, Maknae ..." He teased, "You were like a little girl."

Taemin abruptly stopped chewing and looked up at Minho. The elder was grinning, indicating that he was joking, but taemin certainly didn't take it that lightly. He finished chewing and then spoke up. "Well, at least I'm not afraid of the Ferris Wheel." He countered. "Honestly, who would be afraid of something like that? At least mine's dangerous."

"Hey, a Ferris Wheel can be deadly! A bolt could rust and fall off, making your cart tip to one side, making you fall. or you could lean over the saftey bar too far or-" Taemin rose a hand to silence his friend.

"Alright, you're right ..." He sighed. "Sorry, I just don't like to be called a girl ..." He turned his head to the side. "It's happened before, you know. Someone mistook me for a girl a couple of years ago ... I'm just touchy ..."

Minho grimaced and placed his hand on Taemin's. "'S nothing to be embarrassed about ... I actually find it kind of cute." Once those words were out of his mouth, he regretted saying them. "N-not that I think of you like that. It's just ..." He became flustered when he felt Taemin's brown gaze fall onto him, causing a light blush to coat his face. he was quite surprised, really, to find that Taemin began to laugh. "Wh-What's so funny?" He asked in defense, looking at the laughing male.

"Oh, hyung, you got so flustered so quickly!" He said in between laughs. "It was ... Cute!" He snorted a little, which caused him to laugh even harder, and this time; Minho joined in. "Pfft Hah! - I've never ... Done that before ...!" Once their laughing spell was through and their sides began to hurt, Taemin smiled, wiping a tear from his eye. "Oh gosh ..." Another giggle escaped his lips. "Remind me never to do that again."

Minho nodded and took another bite of his meal. Though it was sustaining his hunger for now, it simply wasn't enough. His brown gaze kept drifting towards taemin's neck, eyeing the pulsing jugular vein that lurked below his skin, making his mouth water. He just tore his gaze from the younger's neck and focused on his meal.

Once the both of them were full, they started to walk around once more. They simple chattered among each other, talking about everything and nothing. Then, Minho spotted a small balloon-popping game. What really caught his eye though, was a large stuffed panda plushie holding a small plush bamboo stem. He didn't say anything though, and just kept walking. Finally, Taemin stopped. "I'll be back Hyung," he announced when he found a bathroom. Without another word, he whisked away into it.

Minho took off, heading back towards that game with the pand prize once more. He looked at the owner of the stand. "How many do I have to pop for that?" He asked, pointing to the plushie. When the stand-owner tiredly replied; "ten", he handed seven hundred won, giving him exactly ten darts. He aimed very carefully, before throwing his first dart ...

When Taemin exited the bathroom, Minho was nowhere to be found. He grimaced and glanced around hastily, screeching a bit, for Minho seemed to appear out of no where, standing behind him. "Hyung!" He choked on a gasp. "You scared me!" He raised a brow when Minho grinned childishly. "What?" The male cocked his head to the side and winked. i"What?"/i Taemin pressed.

The elder male took his arms from behind his back and a plush panda bear in front of Taemin's face. "For you." He said simply. Taemin's eyes sparkled and his mouth hung open slightly. He took the plushie out of Minho's grasp and a small smile graced his porcelain features.

"Th-thank you ..." He said quietly, burying his nose in the stuffed bear. "It's so cute~" He held the panda close to his torso, looking up at Minho gratfully. "Really, thanks. I love it."

Minho smiled. "Welcome. Just thought you'd like to have it, since you like Pandas and all." He shrugged, remembering their conversation from earlier. When Taemin was about to say more, Minho simply wrapped his arm around his shoulder and chuckled. "Say no more, Maknae, it was my pleasure." Taemin just nodded and looked sheepishly at the ground as they began walking once more.

That's when Taemin remembered he wanted to go see the circus act, as well, though it was far too late for that. Though, the young male didn't let it dampen his spirits. He just mentally sighed, feeling a tiny bit of remorse, but not leting it show. That's what he was looking forward to the most, yet he didn't get to see it. He then cast a glance at Minho and smiled. Maybe it wasn't a total loss ... I did have a bunch of fun with Minho hyung ... He then let out a contented sigh and rested his head on Minho's shoulder. He was feeling rather sleepy.

Minho looked at Taemin and nudged him in the side. "Don't tell me you're tired already?" When Taemin gave a rather lethargic nod, Minho sighed. "Well, we sill have one more thing to do ..." When Taemin raised an eyebrow and looked at him in confusion, all Minho said was; "You'll see." Taemin sighed and nodded. They walked through the carnival, passing all the games, food stands and rides, when they finally approached a clearing blocked off by a fence.

"What are we doing here?" Taeming asked sleepily, squeezing his Panda to his chest. When Minho refused to answer, Taemn rolled his eyes and huffed. That's when Minho sat down, patting a spot beside him, coaxing Taemin to do the same. The blonde shrugged and occupied the place next to the elder, leaning on his and resting his head on his shoulder. He let out a rather large yawn. "Now will you tell me?" He asked through said yawn.

"Look."

Taemin shifted his gaze towards the blackened sky which was suddenly set ablaze by thousands of little lights, a loud bang vibrating through the stillness of the night. Fireworks. So that's what Minho was planning. A smile lit up Taemin's features and he sat up, watching as light filed the sky, turning it beautiful shades of different colors. "It's beautiful ..." Taemin said in awe, simply captivated by the show.

Minho however, wasn't so interested in the fireworks. He kept his brown gaze fixed on Taemin's neck. Minho his lips and leaned in slightly, scenting the ari around Taemin. His mouth watered as he caught the subtle scent of Taemin's bodywash - lavender, how surprising - mixed with the tantalizing, metalic smell of blood. Minho opened his mouth, displaying two fangs protruding from his gums. He chewed his lwoer lip for a few moments in hesitation, when he slowly wrapped his arms around Taemin's neck, pulling him close.

"Hyung?" Taemin questioned at the sudden onslaught of contact. Minho didn't reply, as if he were in a trance. He slowly along Taemin's neck, the beating of his Jugular Vein almost sending him into a frenzy as it thumbed dully against his tongue. "Hyung, what are you doing?" Taemin asked, his voice now panic-stricken. Minho still didn't respond, opening his mouth and letting his fangs graze against Taemin's soft flesh. The younger boy squeaked and writhed in is grasp trying to get away, to no avail. Minho simply tightened his grip. "Hyung, let go!" He demanded. "I-I'm scared!" His voice came out like a mewl, sounding defenseless, like a little child.

Minho slowly penetrated Taemin's skin, slowly drawing blood, letting it drip leisurly onto his tongue. Taemin squirmed even more at this, finally ripping out of the male's grasp. He stumbled a few steps and fell to the ground, whipping around and backing up a few paces, grasping his now bleeding neck. Taemin's eyes were wide with fear and horror, andhe appeared as if he were about to cry. "Minho hyung ..." He whispered in disbelief. A few stray tears trickled down his cheeks, and Minho immediatly snapped out of his trance.

"Taemin ..." He whispered, reaching out towards Taemin

Thank you for reading chapter two c:

Now, real quick, in the first chapter, I had based the SHINee boys appearences off of the Lucifer Music Video. Now, since there was a time-skip of about a month, their appearences have changed a bit ...

Now, their appearences are based off of the SHINee 2011 Calender :3

Thank youu~