Minho groaned softly as he finished washing his body. In the next stall, he could hear Taemin humming softly. The guys had insisted that he shower, as sort of an initiation into the world of the footballers. Minho grabbed his clothes and towel, changing in his stall as a chorus of whistles and whoops signaled that Taemin had stepped out of the shower. Minho felt the hair on the back of his neck bristle as Taemin laughed for them. Quickly, he stepped out of the shower, his hands adjusting his t-shirt and running along his jeans.

"Hey!" Taemin said cheerfully as he put on his jacket. His face was cheerful and care-free, and Minho couldn't help but smile back. He ruffled Taemin's hair, poking the younger boy in the forehead before dragging Taemin closer.

"Ready to go?" he asked, smirking as everyone in the locker room started whining that they also wanted shawarma. Minho threw his towel at them before grabbing his stuff and fixing his hand around Taemin's wrist. "Hurry! If we stay any longer, we'll be hunted down!"

"Ah! Minho, save me!" Taemin said with a fake sense of urgency. He ran as Minho did, his wrist slipping from Minho's grasp and his palm colliding with Minho's as they passed out of the locker room. For a moment, neither knew what to do with this sensation of the other's hand in their own, but then Minho's hand closed over Taemin's, and he pulled Taemin after him with a laugh tinkling out of his throat.

"Hurry!" he urged again, and even though he was so sore from running and tackling and all of that, Taemin seemed to lift a weight from his body. The two boys laughed as they rushed through the hallway, hand in hand, and with the smaller of the two gradually catching up.

"You hurry!" he taunted as he ran ahead of Minho, and the sophomore couldn't hold back his smirk as he picked up speed until they were running side by side, that enticing smile on Taemin's face and nothing wrong with he world as they saw it.

"You're so beautiful," Minho wanted to whisper as he squeezed Taemin's hand, but he knew that he could never really find Taemin beautiful, right? Taemin was cool and awesome and smart and funny and God, was he amazing, but to find him beautiful... Only women could be beautiful. Taemin was brilliant, dazzling, but not beautiful. He couldn't be beautiful to Minho. Minho wouldn't allow it.

"We're almost there!" Taemin said, rushing towards Minho's parked car. Minho laughed as they stumbled to it, and then they were pressed against the vehicle and Taemin's arms were around his neck and their laughter was so perfect.

"You're such a maniac," Minho teased into Taemin's ear, chuckling at the boy's reaction of hitting his chest. He caught Taemin's wrists and felt how slender they felt in his hands. He gently slid his palms up to Taemins' and let their hands press together like that before he realized how hard his heart was beating. He had been running too hard, right?

Right?

"Let's go," Taemin said brightly. He didn't care that Minho was rejecting him as a lover, as anything more than a friend. Just being with the one he was in love with was enough to make his heart feel so light and beautiful. He slid into the car, smiling as Minho got in too. Taemin was about to say something when they heard a buzzing.

"Is that your phone?" Minho asked, suddenly making Taemin aware of a vibration in his pocket. Blushing, he dug out the furious little device and flipped it open, holding it to his burning ear.

"Hello? Oh, Chang Sun!" Taemin said with a happy giggle. Immediately, Minho's blood pressure spiked. Who the was this Chang Sun guy that Taemin had to ing giggle when he answered the phone? Minho had to resist the urge to just grab the little piece of plastic and chuck it into the road. "Neh... I'm going to lunch, actually. Ani, with Minho-hyung." At this point, he said a lot of stuff in Korean, too fast for Minho to even begin to comprehend.

"Hyung?" Minho asked as Taemin hung up. The boy's face turned bright red and he shrugged, smiling sheepishly. He slipped the phone into his pocket.

"Do you not like it?" he asked, smiling sheepishly at Minho. The older shook his head, chuckling as he started the car and heard the engine purr affectionately.

"I like it," he assured. He got them onto the road, driving nonchalantly. He looked over at Taemin, who was smiling pensively. Minho cleared his throat for some attention. "So... What were you and Chang Sun talking about?"

"Nothing," Taemin said, smiling at the ceiling. Minho scowled. "Nothing" always meant something. The older boy bristled as he thought of the possibilities. It was horrible in his head. All he could think of was how Taemin must look during with that guy, disgustingly romantic and . His eyes half-lidded, probably out that bastard's name. Probably saying things that Minho didn't even want to think about.

"What? Were you guys planning when you'd again?" he snapped as he drove past rows of perfect ing white houses and little ing gardens and everything was just ing stupid. He saw green with... Something. He felt something. He just didn't want to know what.

"No," Taemin said with an appalled gasp. "Is that all you think I do? Screw around?" he demanded. Minho stole a glance and scowled more at the shocked, angry look on Taemin's face. It gnawed at Minho's insides in such an uncomfortable way that he actually wanted to punch something. He was feeling guilt, and he hated it

"Fine, I'm sorry," he said with a soft sigh. Taemin bit his lip and turned away, looking out of the window. Minho sighed as they stopped by a red light, not knowing what to do. He hated when he screwed up with Taemin.

"Jerk," he heard Taemin whisper. The younger boy was feeling guilt too. Guilt for feeling this anger towards Minho, but Minho had ing started it! Taemin was determined not to forgive him so easily. He just built up the all of cold silence. He was not going to just knuckle under!

"Taemin... Come on. You know I say stupid all the time," Minho murmured soothingly. Taemin looked at Minho halfheartedly and sighed as he sat up straight again, looking at his thumbs.

"We were talking about going to Jonghyun's house to celebrate the victory," Taemin mumbled. "I-I... I told him that I'd rather eat lunch with you..." Minho felt his heart twist with even more guilt than before. He was a real .

"Sorry," Minho mumbled. Without taking his eyes off of the road, he reached over and hooked his arm around Taemin's shoulder as they passed from suburban houses to small, family-owned restaurants. The traffic got heavier as they passed the local ice cream shop. The cheery building marked the passage into the small-business dominated Main Street.

"Don't say that kind of stuff anymore," Taemin mumbled, one hand reaching up to tangle with Minho's. The heat from Taemin's hand made it hard to breathe for Minho. He couldn't quite place why. He just knew that Taemin's hand on his felt so... Different.

"Okay," Minho whispered as he looked down briefly at Taemin. He smiled at the boy's soft grin and leaned his cheek on Taemin's soft head, sighing deeply. He could smell apples from the soft strands, making him hungrier than he remembered.

"Shawarma!" Taemin suddenly shouted, jumping up and pointing eagerly at the glowing side outside of a small Middle-Eastern shop. Minho chuckled as he parallel-parked, priding himself in the fact that he didn't break anything this time. He looked at Taemin and smiled proudly, earning him a joking pat on the head.

"Come on," he murmured, steeping out of his car and looking over to see Taemin's head over the roof of his vehicle. They joined at the hood, Minho's hand reaching around Taemin's shoulder. Taemin was his... friend. His friend. Just friend, though. Minho wasn't a f—homoual.

"Afraid someone might steal me?" Taemin teased, as if he could read Minho's mind. In some way, he could. He could see the possessiveness of Minho's actions, and if he weren't so in love, he might have believed that Minho wanted him too. Still, he was in love, and the heart of he teenage boy inside him told him that it was impossible.

Stupid adolescent insecurity kept him from even conceiving that Minho might have hidden feelings too.

"What kind of meat do you want?" Minho asked, inhaling the smell of roasting flesh and cold sodas as he entered the restaurant. Deliclious. He looked down at Taemin and saw the little pink flash of his tongue dart out to his plump lips.

"All of them!" the boy said enthusiastically. He grinned and leaned his head on Minho's shoulder. "You're paying, right?" he asked teasingly, a coy smile playing on his lips. Minho rolled his eyes.

"Evil child," he mumbled jokingly as he dragged Taemin to the front desk. The tanned woman looked up, the glitter on her eyelashes reflecting the fancy lighting. She examined the two boys and pursed her lips.

"Two?" she asked, getting an armful of menus. Minho smiled and nodded kindly at her. Taemin tried not to stiffen at the way the woman's eyes roamed Minho's face. Minho was his, damn it! His friend, only, but nonetheless, this woman couldn't have him!

"Come on," Minho said, tugging Taemin along by the shoulders. The boy followed Minho, passing a pair of dark-skinned men whose eyes seemed to follow them. Taemin looked back at them briefly, and they both gave him an enthusiastic thumbs up. Taemin blushed.

"They think we're dating," Taemin whispered to Minho when the older boy looked back too. Minho chuckled as he sat down, Taemin taking the seat across from him. This subject wasn't one that Minho wanted to discuss, so he made no comment as the woman put down their menus.

"Your server will be right with you," she assured, smiling sweetly at Minho and leaving, swaying her hips for the attractive boy. Taemin put on his poker face, ducking his head down to look at the options.

"You okay?" Minho asked, noticing how quiet Taemin was. Taemin couldn't be angry, right? Minho had already apologized for what he'd said before! What was there to be silent about? He reached over and tapped Taemin's hand, causing the boy to look up.

"I'm fine," he assured with a weak smile. Minho bought it, but just barely. Taemin chewed on his lip. He wished Minho would keep pressing the issue, but again, the older boy let it drop. They just looked at their menus, sighing.

"Hello, sirs. May I take your orders?" a voice asked. Minho looked up at the voice, his eyes wide with horror. He let out a strangled yell of fury and jumped out his chair, knocking over the wooden seat and pointing a finger at the waiter.

"YOU! YOU'RE THAT CLERK WHO WAS... YOU!" Minho roared, his face ashen. The waiter/clerk blinked before his eyes widened and he smiled with something akin to sadistic enthusiasm. Taemin looked from boy to boy.

"Oh my gosh! You're the dude with the physics book!" he exclaimed before turning to Taemin and smirking. "You, my exquisite creature, must be the tutor." He grinned and dropped to one knee, kissing Taemin's hand and caressing it. "You can call me Seunghyun."

"H-hello, Seunghyun," Taemin said, lost in the intensity of the other's eyes. The boy grinned, thin-but-full lips curling upwards as he kissed the back of Taemin's hand again.

"Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?

Thou art more lovely and more temperate.

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

And summer's lease hath all too short a date.

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,

And often is his gold complexion dimmed;

And every fair from fair sometime declines,

By chance, or nature's changing course untrimmed.

But thy eternal summer shall not fade

Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st;

Nor shall death brag thou wand'rest in his shade,

When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st,

So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,

So long lives this, and this gives life to thee," the boy said with romantic inflections throughout. Taemin's cheeks got red. Never in his life had he been so flattered.

"Sh-Shakespeare, sonnet 18. V-very good poem... You recited it well," Taemin whispered, blushing as Seunghyun's dark eyes lit up. The boy smiled with all the charisma in the world, oblivious to the shaking jock that stood three inches from him. "I-I'm Taemin, by the way."

"Forgive me if I seem rude, Taemin, but you are absolutely gorgeous," he murmured. Hearing his word used by this , Minho roared and pounced, shoving Seunghyun to the side and immediately wrapping his arms around a shocked Taemin.

"Get away from him, or I'll report you to your manager!" Minho snarled deeply. Seunghyun, unfazed, smirked and stood up, fixing his hair and winking at Taemin as he took the pair's orders.

"Ch-Chicken shawarma," Taemin stammered, watching Seunghyun's shapely fingers take down the order. The tall boy then turned to Minho, whose eyes were glaring daggers and whose hands were tightening around the menu.

"Beef shawarma," he hissed out. Seunghyun smirked, adjusting his apron and slipping his notepad into it before slipping the menu from Taemin's hands, mesmerizing the younger with his hypnotic eyes.

"I'll be right out with that," he said in a low, deep voice. Taemin felt short-of-breath, almost light-headed, and nodded. Seunghyun smirked before turning to Minho and trying to take the menu. Minho growled and jerked it away.

"I'll keep it, thanks," Minho seethed through gritted teeth. The older boy chuckled and shrugged, ruffling Minho's hair before disappearing into the kitchen. Minho's head snapped back to look at Taemin, who was fanning his red cheeks.

"Oh wow... That was impressive," Taemin said, flustered. Minho growled and played with his napkin, crushing it in his fist as he watched Taemin take a deep breath and calm down.

"Do you honestly like that -up?" Minho asked. Taemin's nervous giggle made his very skin crawl, and the napkin was crushed tighter. Disgusting, the blush on Taemin's cheeks.

"H-he's very charming, I'll give him that much, but I don't think I'm too interested in his personality," Taemin admitted. Minho couldn't explain the huge weight that was lifted from his chest. He just knew that he was glad that Taemin wouldn't walk off with Seunghyun. Those lips, that body, that heart wouldn't be Seunghyun's. Good.

"Is there anyone you do like?" Minho asked, a gentler tone slowly taking over his voice. The weight came crashing down as Taemin nodded shyly. The boy's fists tightened again, but he relaxed when he saw the happy look on Taemin's face, the dreaminess of his smile. How could he possibly be mad.

"D-do you like anyone?" Taemin asked, earning him an ambiguous shrug and a small smile. Minho didn't know if there could possibly anyone that he'd ever like. He couldn't see himself in love. He couldn't picture himself wanting someone so much, or being so devoted. He couldn't picture himself being so happy with someone, except...

Oh . He couldn't be in love with that person.

"Wh-who do you like? I could introduce you," he said hastily to wipe his thoughts clean. He couldn't, couldn't, couldn't. He tried, instead, to just forget about his own heart. It didn't matter anyway.

"It's not something you could help me with," Taemin said with some sort of smile that Minho couldn't name. Was it secretive or sneaky? Was it sly or just guarded? He swallowed at the inside information that he wasn't getting. Who had stolen Taemin's heart, and why wasn't he allowed to know?

"Is it..."

"Water," Seunghyun said as he poured tall glasses for the pair, causing both to jump. They looked up at their intruder, and the blush immediately overtook Taemin's face again. Minho's eyes narrowed as Seunghyun gave them both eye-smiles and walked away, having effectively ruining the conversation.

"You're staring at him," Minho observed, his voice dropping a few octaves with anger. Taemin blushed and shook his head, taking a huge gulp of water.

"I wasn't!" he insisted. Minho rolled his eyes and fixed them on Taemin's face, trying to be just as charismatic in his stare as that Seunghyun bastard. Taemin's eyes locked with his, and he tried for that charisma again. He tilted his head up ever so slightly, his hand on his chin and his fingers on his lips, gently curling over the soft pads. He'd used the same look on a date once, and he'd gotten laid in the back seat. Maybe it'd work on Taemin.

Taemin was trying not to look, but he knew that he was staring. He couldn't help it, with the y look Minho had on his face. It was so like the look he remembered when they'd both been drunk and Minho had...

Yeah...

Eyes on me, Minho couldn't help but think. Look at me, Taemin. I can do anything he can do, so don't leave. This is our lunch, right? So don't let your mind go to anyone else but me.

He didn't even want to wonder about why he cared so much. He just knew that he did and that was just enough.

"Food!" Seunghyun exclaimed as he rushed over, putting Minho's plate in front of the taller boy. Minho blinked down at the food, and when he looked up, Taemin's eyes were back on Seunghyun. The older boy was smirking at the slim kid as he set down the steaming dish. "Careful, it's hot." Clearly, there were ual implications.

"Yeah, he's not two. He knows what hot is," Minho snarled, glaring at Seunghyun. The boys traded venomous looked before Seunghyun scoffed and retreated, letting Taemin shift uncomfortably in his seat. He picked up the warm sandwich, blowing on it before sinking his teeth into it.

"It's good!" Taemin exclaimed with a surprised smile, his cheeks full of pita bread and chicken and onions and lettuce and oh, it was magnificent. He hastily took another bite, bouncing up and down with how good it was. Minho raised an eyebrow and took a bite of his own, immediately grinning.

"It's awesome," he said, smiling up at Taemin. The boy smiled back before washing down his mouthful with water and attacking his shawarma ravenously. "Your chicken can not possibly be as good as my beef."

"Here, try some," Taemin said, offering Minho a bite. Minho chuckled and let his teeth crunch down over the soft bread and meat. He smiled and shrugged, chewing thoughtfully and swallowing.

"It's not as... Meaty," he commented. He offered Taemin a bite of his lunch. Taemin took a gaping mouthful and chewed thoughtfully. He swallowed with ease and smiled.

"It's okay... Too smoky, though. Mine is perfect!" he said before taking in more and more of it. Minho chuckled as he watched a piece of lettuce cling to the corner of Taemin's mouth, pasting itself near his lips.

"Hey, you got a little thing here," Minho said, reaching over to wipe it off. Taemin froze so that he wouldn't accidentally bite Minho's finger. He smiled as he felt Minho's thumb wipe away a small, damp thing in his face.

"Thanks," Taemin said before going back to his feeding frenzy. Minho chuckled and worked on his own shawarma slowly, watching Taemin's mouth. That kid and his food...

They finished quickly, and they pushed their empty plates away at the same time. Taemin laughed softly as he patted his stomach, feeling the small bump that had formed from all the food.

"I'm fat," he complained with fake distress, pouting at his belly and rubbing it. Minho chuckled as he rubbed his own abs, drinking the last of his water and chewing the ice.

"You are definitely not fat," he assured. "I've never seen anyone so b—" He cut himself off. No, not beautiful. He couldn't say that. He just... Couldn't. It would be faggy and weird. He knew he shouldn't even think in terms of the word "," but it was a hard habit to break.

"So what?" Taemin asked, tilting his head obliviously. He was too absorbed by the feel of his tummy. He absentmindedly danced his finger on it, humming softly.

"I don't know what this guy was about to say, but I think you look absolutely ravishing. Nice enough that I'd like to take you out some time," Seunghyun cut in, giving Taemin a devilish grin as he collected the plates. Minho fumed at the ing open invitation. He couldn't even think straight. He glared at the tall boy, wiping his mouth before standing up and grabbing his check., getting into Seunghyun's personal space as he snatched the ing thing. Then, he turned and yanked Taemin up by the wrist.

"Let's go," he snarled, dragging Taemin to the front and ignoring he boy's babbling. He had to get the out of this building before he ended up stabbing someone. He paid in cash, slamming the bills down.

"Hey, why do you even care if I hit on your friend?" Seunghyun asked with a peeved tone. "It's not like your going out or anything. Come here, Taemin. I'll show you what a real date is like." His voice was so enticing. Too enticing. Minho couldn't risk it, seeing the conflicted look on Taemin's face. He couldn't risk Taemin walking to that bastard. He just couldn't.

"Who says we aren't dating?" he demanded, seeing red. He turned to Taemin, looking with an unmatched passion into the boy's wide eyes before he grabbed the back of Taemin's neck and pressed their lips together for a hard kiss. He let his mouth mold Taemin's lips to his, his hand tangling in Taemin's hair and his other hand on the counter.

Taemin couldn't believe what was happening. All he could see was Minho's jaw, the edge of his neck, and the shocked hostess behind him. His heart was beating too fast, and his hands were shaking as he slowly put them on Minho's chest. Minho's lips were warm against his as they wrapped around Taemin's mouth. Then, something in him melted and he closed his eyes, trying his best to match the pattern of Minho's lips.

He knew Minho didn't really love him, or even overtly want him, but just this was enough.

Minho couldn't comprehend why he even thought about kissing Taemin, other than the fact that he wanted Seunghyun to just shut the up. Yeah, that was it. Just wanted Seunghyun to back away from Taemin, with his blazing eyes and slick hair and stupid love poems.

And yet, Taemin felt so good with his lips layered between Minho's own and his hands curling into Minho's chest. Minho pulled away slowly, feeling Taemin's mouth release his and hear the light smacking sound of their lips disconnecting. Taemin's eyes opened and the boy gave Minho a look bordering on tears before turning and walking out of the restaurant. Minho didn't even bother with change. He just ran after Taemin. What had he done wrong now? He'd tried so hard to keep Taemin from walking away. Why was the boy doing it?

Why didn't he want Taemin to go?

Back in the restaurant, everyone was staring at Seunghyun, their eyes asking for motives and explanations. The older boy rolled his eyes and chuckled, clearing the table.

"What? We all know that they wanted to," he said. Murmurs of agreement rose to the air as the other customers turned back to their food. Seunghyun smirked.

It was fun to play Cupid sometimes.

A/N - <3 Choi Seunghyun, AKA T.O.P

More to come! Comments are love <3