***MONDAY***

Key entered the restaurant. It didn’t take long to find Minho, who waved to him from a booth in the corner. It was easy to spot him with his red and white striped jersey. He had a gym bag with him on his side of the table.

Key settled into the opposite side, placing his bag down while removing his coat and face mask. “What’s the shirt for?”

“What? You don’t recognize Torres?” Key shook his head. “He’s a soccer player from Spain.”

Key chuckled. “I guess you like soccer?”

“I do! My dad’s a soccer coach and used to take me to games all the time. I used to want to be a soccer player when I was a kid.”

“Makes sense. They get paid pretty well, too.” A waitress arrived at their table to take their orders. After she left, Key resumed the conversation. “Why did you decide to be a singer instead?”

Minho sighed, then grinned in acceptance. “My dad thought it would be too hard on me. But I play with his team a lot for fun. And I also play with him and my brother from time to time. We still go to games, too! And whenever I travel for festivals and tours, I watch games between teams from other countries!”

Key couldn’t care less about sports, but there was something about Minho’s unbridled passion for it that made him smile. “Do you still dream about becoming a soccer player?”

“Not really. It would still be really cool to play for the national team, but I’m not seriously considering it, you know? I think I’ve settled into being a singer. Plus, I can still play soccer for fun and explore other hobbies. Like lately, I’ve really been enjoying golf with my roommates.”

Key deadpanned. “Golf? Seriously?”

“What’s wrong with golf??”

“You hit a ball really far and then spend most of the time just walking to find it.”

“It’s more than that! You get to be outside! And you can hang out with your friends while going at your own pace! Maybe you’d like it if you gave it a try. I could take you sometime!”

“No way! The most I’ll do is ride the golf cart.”

Minho laughed. “Not a sports person, I take it?”

“I like water-skiing when the weather’s good. Besides that, and dancing, I’m not athletic.”

Minho’s eyes widened. “Really? You? Water-skiing?”

“That’s right! I was on a team in middle school. We even won a competition.” Key motioned toward Minho’s phone. “You can look it up if you want.”

Minho exhaled, astounded. “That’s really cool! Is it hard?”

“It’s not as easy as it looks. You need to have good balance for stability. There’s a cool place by the river. If you want, I could show you the basics.”

“Let’s do it!” Minho smiled in appreciation at the offer. Key caught himself staring at his smile, so he sipped his water to distract himself. “I never would have guessed. Did you dream of skiing professionally?”

Key shook his head. “No, my dream was always to be an idol, like BoA.”

Minho smiled. “And look at you now! You’re just like her.”

Key rolled his eyes at the undeserved praise. “I wish. No one can compare to BoA.”

“True, but no one else can compare to you. Especially when it comes to girl group dances.”

He nearly choked on his water. “You know about that?”

“Of course! Everyone knows you’re one of the best dancers. We’ve all seen you on Amazing Saturday. You do a new dance every week! How do you learn all those so quickly?”

“I memorize choreography pretty well. And I have fun learning girl group dances, so I just keep doing them.”

All Minho could do was marvel at him. “Daebak. You’re seriously amazing.”

 “…Thanks.” Key found himself blushing and tried to switch gears. “And you, you’re still quite the athlete, like you dreamed before. You have an athlete’s body, too.”

Minho rolled his eyes and shook his head. “I guess? I don’t think that’s something to be proud of.”

Key raised an eyebrow. “Why? Because you’re not an athlete full-time?”

“No, that’s fine. The downside is that people are more focused on my visuals, not as much on my talent. I mean, I work hard on my visuals too, but that’s something I do more so for myself. I like exercising, but for work, I really care about singing and dancing. And songwriting, too. I feel like that gets overlooked when everyone’s just talking about my face or my body.” Minho looked down at the table while he vented. Clearly this was something that weighed heavily on him.

Key nodded in understanding. He felt the same way whenever people called him ‘pretty’. “You sing really well though.” Minho looked up, not believing what he was hearing. Key continued. “Your voice is easy on the ears. You have a really nice low register, and you use it well in your songs. Not many singers do that nowadays. It makes you stand out. You dance pretty well, too.”

Minho tried to brush it off. “I try. I’m not a ‘dancer’ dancer like you. Dancing doesn’t come naturally to me. I take some time to learn choreography. I try to learn other groups’ dances to keep up with the latest challenges, but I can’t do it as cleanly as everyone else.”

Key tilted his head to the side. “For someone who’s not a ‘dancer’, you never miss a beat on stage, and you have charisma when you perform. Don’t beat yourself up.”

Minho chuckled at Key’s compliments. “You really think I have charisma on stage? You’re not just trying to be nice now, are you?”

Key gave a cold glare. “Why would I do that? I don’t need a favor from you.”

Minho cackled, not expecting such a frank response. Key chuckled, relieved to see Minho smiling again. He really did have such a beautiful smile.

When his laugh died down, Minho gazed fondly at Key. “Thank you. Really. You don’t how much that all means to me.”

Key smiled back warmly. For some time, they gazed at each other comfortably, without speaking. It was wild to think that just a few weeks prior, they were strangers with misguided jealousy and mutual dislike. And now, they were lifting each other up by reminding the other of their best qualities.

At last, the waitress brought their food to their table, along with two bottles of soju and some shot glasses. They poured each other a shot and raised their glasses for a toast.

“Here’s to the end of our promotions and our accomplishments!” Minho announced.

“To us! And to having a good meal!” Key proclaimed.

They clinked their glasses and downed their shots before digging in. After weeks of restricting their food intake, it felt cathartic to eat such a hearty meal. The two idols talked little as they focused on their meal, aside from some offhand comments about how delicious everything was. They both moaned loudly as they ate, as they failed to hide their appreciation for good blood sausage soup. They sweated quite a bit as they ate. Everything from the broth to the sausage to the soju hit just right.

As they were close to finishing, Key sighed in relief. “This is exactly what I needed after this schedule. You have no idea how good this feels after being on a diet.”

“I’m with you there. I know the feeling.”

“You mentioned before you weren’t dieting this time. Can I ask why that is?”

Minho sipped a spoonful of broth. “I used to diet for my first three years like everyone else, trying to be as skinny as I could. When I started acting, I needed to grow more muscle for the role. My boss realized that athletic body types were becoming just as popular, and people liked me more with muscle. From then on, he pushed me to keep exercising. Now, for the most part, he lets me eat more to maintain my form. I still cut back on sweets and carbs, though. My metabolism also happens to be really high, so it all balances out.”

Key pouted. “I wish my body could do that. I feel like even if I did eat more and exercise, I wouldn’t be able to grow big muscles like yours.”

“I think you can, with a balanced diet and regular exercise. But you don’t have to grow muscle if you don’t really want to. You’re already beau– I mean… you already have good visuals.”

Key paused mid-bite to process the unexpected compliment. He stared blankly, then covered his mouth to laugh. “Where did that come from?”

“What? I’m just saying you already look good! People talk about it all the time. And I figured you wouldn’t like exercising anyway since you don’t like sports.”

“Hey, that’s different! I don’t need to be sporty like you. And I’m not going to exercise as much as you. I’d do just enough to get muscle.”

“Maybe we should go to the gym together.”

Key scrunched his eyebrows. “I feel like my arms would fall off if I went with you.” Minho suppressed a laugh. “Whatever, you’re right, I don’t need to become buff like you. I’m already handsome. I blow everyone’s socks off on stage every time.”

“That’s the spirit!” They chuckled together as they finished their food, along with the remaining soju.

After Minho paid the bill, they put on their coats and exited the restaurant. They stood by the entrance to say goodnight.

“Thanks for suggesting this.”

“Of course! My thanks to you for the other day. Speaking of which…” Minho zipped open his gym bag and reached in. He pulled out Key’s black scarf and handed it to him. “The other reason we met up in the first place. First this. And also…” He searched around his bag while Key placed the scarf in his own bag. Minho searched every corner and finally pulled out a stylish black baseball cap. His smile dropped as realization dawned on him. “….”

“What?”

Minho sighed, mildly frustrated. “I was in a hurry and must have confused my hat with yours. Your bucket hat is still at my dorm.” He put the baseball cap back in the bag, zipped it up, and turned toward Key. “My dorm’s only a few minutes from here. Do you need to drive back?”

“What? No, I walked here. You can hold onto it a bit longer. Besides, won’t your roommates be suspicious if they see me?”

“They’re all touring, so there’s no one there. Come on. For something as small as this, we can just swing by and pick it up.”

Key hesitated, but gave in since it was still early. “Alright, lead the way.”

It was a short, quiet walk to Minho’s dorm. They went up to the eighth floor of a high-rise building. As they approached the door, Key wondered, “How is it that all your dorm mates happen to be on tour at the same time? Just pure luck?”

“I guess you could call it that. They’re all in Super Junior together.”

Key’s jaws dropped. “No way. What’s that like?”

“They’re rowdy, and the dorm can be a mess, but we get along great. They mentored me a lot when I was a trainee, and when I was still a rookie, so it’s like I’m living with cousins.”

Minho unlocked the door. They both removed their shoes and stepped into the living room. It was much cleaner than Key expected for a six-person dorm.

While Minho easily spotted the bucket hat on the coffee table and went to pick it up, Key looked around at the familiar layout of the living room.

“This takes me back…”

Minho placed his gym bag on the side of the sofa and returned to Key with his hat. “Here’s your hat.”

Key snapped out of his awe and took the hat. “I thought you said it was messy in here.”

“It usually is when the others are here. I prefer to keep my space spotless, so while they’re gone, I try to keep the common area clean.”

“Don’t you have a housekeeper?”

“We do. Still, I try to do my part.”

Key and Minho made their way to the sofa, the former now not interested in leaving – at least, not yet. He sighed. “I could use a housekeeper. I try to clean my place regularly, but most of the time, I just want to relax at home, and everything piles up, so I’m messier than I’d like to be.”

“Oh yea, I remember.”

Key scoffed and playfully slapped Minho’s arm. “Shut up.” Minho laughed, and Key went back to looking around in awe. “I didn’t think I’d be feeling this nostalgic so soon after moving out.”

Minho presented his hand. Key eagerly obliged, removing his coat, and giving it to Minho. While the latter draped their coats in the side closet, Key placed his bucket hat in his bag, and dropped his bag beside the couch.

Key made himself comfortable on the couch, folding his legs as he sat. “Your couch is so much more comfortable than what I had.”

Minho plopped down next to him. “Do you miss being in the dorm?”

“It was nice while it lasted. I got along well with my dormmates, but you know how noisy it can get. Honestly, I was ready to move out and get my own space pretty soon after I debuted, but waited until I had enough money. It’s easier on my dogs, too.”

“Are you still close with your dormmates?”

“I don’t see them as often, but we still keep in touch. They actually just debuted. They’re all members of NCT.”

Minho widened his eyes in astonishment. “No kidding.” He leaned back against the couch. “I’m excited to get my own place, but I like being able to live with my friends. It’s never boring around here. Well, except for now when they’re out, but when they’re here, every day is different.”

Key shook his head. “I can’t go back to that. I need my own space. I like my privacy.”

“I get that. It’s also easier to bring your date home.” Key shot him a confused look, but Minho clarified. “I mean, I’m just saying. If you were dating, you wouldn’t have to worry about other people’s mess, or the twin sized bed.”

Key smirked in agreement. “And you wouldn’t have to wait until your roommates were all out at the same time…”

They looked at each other, and then laughed.

Minho added, “It would probably be easier to date in secret, too. You could probably have kids if you really wanted…” His voice trailed off longingly, his gaze wandering the ceiling above.

“I guess it would be a bit easier. Though I don’t know if you’d be able to take them places. Or if you’d be able to drop them off at school if there are cameras following you everywhere. Right now, though, I’ve got my dogs to deal with, and that’s enough for me.”

Minho didn’t respond. He was lost in his thoughts. Key turned his head to see what was going on. “You okay?”

“…I really want to be a dad.”

Key didn’t know how to react, so he opted to stay quiet and let Minho speak on his own.

The latter looked down at his hands. “I know it’s idealistic but… I’ve always dreamed about having kids someday. Playing with them, teaching them soccer, taking them to games and concerts…” He held his ring finger and rubbed it with his other hand. “I know now that I can’t really do that as a singer. Maybe in the future, when I’m older… but even if things change and it’s okay to marry and have kids, I don’t know how it will affect them. Other students might bully them, and cameras might follow them. I know, logistically, it wouldn’t work out. But still, a small part of me wishes for it…”

He shook his head. He tried to laugh it off, but Key could see through his sad smile.

“Sorry, that all came out of nowhere. It sounds dumb, doesn’t it?”

Key shook his head and spoke softly. “Not at all.”

Minho dropped his smile, relieved that he could give up the façade. Key leaned back onto the couch and stared blankly at the coffee table. He took a deep breath, briefly relishing in the silence before sharing something he had never told anyone.

“I still sometimes think about planning my wedding.” Minho looked on with empathy as Key continued. “I have different ideas for where I’d want to have it, who I would invite, all the cute wedding photos I’d want to take, what my outfit would look like… I have so many designs in mind. Not that I’m ever going to use them.” Key scoffed. “Not with this job. Career and attention aside, I have to meet someone first.”

Minho smirked. “Who wouldn’t want to date you?”

Key chuckled softly. “You know how hard it is to find someone in this industry without getting caught. And it’s not just that. I know that personality matters more than looks. But here, in this industry, looks do matter. I like the way I look; I know I’m pretty, but… so is everyone else. I don’t stand out or naturally have muscle like you or other guys.”

Minho couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He understood how Key felt, but he was dumbfounded that those words were coming out of his mouth. “It’s funny you say that. People at T.M. can’t stop talking about your looks. So much so that I…”

“What?” As Minho hesitated, Key listened intently, all the more curious about what Minho wanted to say.

“…I started beefing up my body… so I could compete with you.”

Key raised an eyebrow. He couldn’t think of a witty comeback. “B-But I don’t—”

“You don’t just sing well; your voice is unique, and you have great control. You’re not just another dancer; you’re versatile. You can do both soft songs and powerful dance tracks. My staff and managers won’t stop talking about you. When we all decided that I would work out more and build up my muscles, I guess… I felt like this was the one thing I could have over you. Even still…”

Minho leaned forward and rested his elbow on his knees, still avoiding eye contact.

“You really are beautiful. Everything about you is. Not just your looks.”

He said it in a matter-of-fact way, a hint of defeat in his voice.

The two of them sat in silence with the information Minho had just dropped.

Minho took a deep breath, relieved to have it off his chest, albeit now a bit embarrassed.

After some self-doubt, Key inched closer and broke the silence. “My bosses pushed me to work out more, but they also wouldn’t let me eat enough to get muscle. They told me that people were talking about you more, so I had to up my game. Since I couldn’t get my visuals on par with you, I spent even more time practicing and dancing to try and keep up with you.”

Minho snapped his head up to face Key. He raised his eyebrows in surprise. “Keep up with me?” Key nodded. Minho looked as if he had never received a compliment in his life. “But you’re already a dancer.”

“It’s not just about the dancing for them.”

Minho scoffed. “Man, our labels .”

Key giggled. He wasn’t the kind of person who would rattle off a list of compliments, so he looked directly at Minho and put it simply, “I told you before. You work hard, on your visuals and your performance, and it shows in your stages. You also look out for other people and have their trust; visuals can’t accomplish that.” He said in a lower voice, “You are handsome, but you’re also way more than that.”

In spite of some hesitancy, their faces slowly moved closer. Feeling the familiar warmth of each other’s breath, they closed their eyes and shared a soft kiss.

They sat there staring for another moment, their minds thinking alike. They went in for another gentle, slightly deeper kiss. Without breaking apart, they both turned to kneel on the couch, fully facing each other.

When their lips naturally parted, Key pulled back slightly. He opened his eyes, but looked away from Minho. He remembered that, though they weren’t drunk like before, they were still slightly loose from the soju at dinner.

“I’m sorry, I’m not interested in another one-night stand.”

Without a second thought, Minho replied, “It doesn’t have to be one night.”

Key snapped his head up. “Huh?”

Minho caught himself, realizing what he had just said. “I mean, we don’t have to do it once and forget. We could… do this again… if you want. We could meet up whenever and… do whatever we want…” Minho’s voice trailed off, not sure if he was wording his thoughts correctly.

Reassured by Minho’s cute nervousness, Key caressed his jaw.

They kissed again, and again. Unlike that night, they didn’t rush anything. They were relatively sober and conscious, intentionally savoring each kiss.

Key moved his hand down to Minho’s neck. Minho returned the gesture by caressing Key’s shoulder. As they kept kissing, Key inched closer, wrapping his arms around Minho’s neck; at the same time, Minho hugged Key’s waist close, making the latter straddle his lap.

Their tongues slipped in, but their kisses remained passionate and slow, not sloppy like before.

When their lips needed a break, they paused and pressed their foreheads together, panting calmly to catch their breath. Minho’s hands glided down Key’s back to his hips. As they continued panting, they looked down at his hands, watching as he slid one across the waistline of Key’s jeans, and stopped at the button. He looked up at Key.

“Is this okay?”

Key’s breathing sharpened as he sensed Minho's knuckle so close to his own stomach, yet not quite touching. He looked up to meet Minho’s gaze and nodded. Minho smiled warmly and undid the button with just two fingers.

Key grabbed Minho's jaw again and pulled him into another kiss – this one more aggressive than before. Minho hugged to close the space between them, letting Key grind on him. His hands went under Key's shirt and slid up his back.

Minho leaned forward; Key instinctively followed suit, lifting himself off of Minho’s lap and leaning away. Minho continued forward until he was hovering directly above Key, and Key was fully lying on his back. They gazed at each other for a moment to catch their breath before Minho leaned down and reconnected their lips. Key gently grabbed onto Minho's hair. Minho slid one hand up Key's side, lifting his shirt until his stomach and rib cage were exposed. Key liked how Minho's hand felt against his bare skin. He started to quietly moan into the kiss.

Minho kissed Key's forehead, then his cheek, then his neck, and his chest. He kept his grasp on Key's bare hip; the other hand caressed his clothed thigh. Minho's lips continued down Key's exposed torso and stopped at his waist, just above his jeans. He was now breathing directly onto Key's crotch. Key stared up at the ceiling and moaned in anticipation of what was to come. Minho ped Key's jeans.

Before he could move further, they were interrupted by an impatient knock on the door.

“Minho, are you in there?”

They immediately sat up and gasped. In contrast to their laid-back rhythm from a second ago, they now looked around in panic.

“. I think that's my manager. What's he doing here?” He got up to answer the door.

“Should I hide?” Key frantically fixed his shirt and zipped his jeans.

“I’ll try to send him off.” Minho fixed his hair as he approached the door. He opened it just enough to show himself to his visitor while masking the view of the living room.

As he suspected, it was his manager.

“Minho! What gives? You didn't answer any of my texts. And I called you three times!”

“I'm sorry, I must have left my phone on silent. Is everything okay?”

“You tell me. I’ve been trying to get in contact with you. Will you let me inside?”

Minho tried to keep his manager from entering the room and seeing Key. “Can’t we just talk about it out here? Or talk about this tomorrow?”

“We don’t want to disturb the neighbors. And we definitely don’t want word of this getting out.”

“Word of what?” Minho was now curious, but still more desperate to keep his manager from coming in.

“Minho, just let me inside!” The manager pushed his way through, to Minho’s chagrin. The latter, realizing it was too late, closed the door behind him. “Alright, that wasn’t so hard. Can you get me some water so we can dis—” He paused when his eyes landed on Key, who was now sitting neatly and properly on the couch. “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t know you had a guest over… wait, are you…?”

Key rose and bowed to greet him. “Annyeonghaseyo~ I’m Key. It’s nice to meet you.”

The manager smiled briefly and greeted him in response, then blinked in realization. He turned to Minho with a concerned look.

“So, the rumors are true?”

“Rumors? Hyung, what are you talking about?” Minho placed his hands on his hips. Key stayed by the couch, unsure if he should meddle.

“There’s a photo of you two that’s going viral online!”