“Taemin! Minho! Come on! Two more minutes until New Years!”

“Aish!” The maknae gasped. “Coming!” 

But before the youngest SHINee member could enter the living room, a large hand grabbed his arm and pulled him back into the hallway.

“Wha—”

“Taemin.” a deep voice interrupted him before he could scream, and Lee Taemin instantly relaxed at the familiar baritone.

“Ah, Minho-hyung. What is it?”

“Come with me?” He didn’t really give the boy time to answer, as he pulled him into their dorm room. 

“Hyung?”

Those big hands cupped his face and Taemin found himself unable to look anywhere except into Minho’s eyes. His cheeks flushed and his eyes tried to look anywhere else. What was with Minho-hyung? This wasn’t good, this was too close for Taemin’s sanity. He’d thought Minho was handsome from the moment he saw him, but he didn’t know when the thought of “Ah, Hyung is so handsome,” changed to “I’d give anything for him to really love me.” Lately it was difficult to spend any time alone with the athlete, because every time he seemed to blush like a girl and make a fool of himself. And now, he was alone in the bedroom all of them shared, and Minho was staring directly at him.

“Taeminnie! Minho! You’re gonna miss it!” Key-hyung’s voice called from the living room, obviously wondering why they weren’t there yet.

“Ah~ Key leave them alone.” Jonghyun laughed, and Taemin wondered if he knew something he didn’t.

“Taemin,” Minho called softly, and the younger looked up at him. 

“Hyung?”

“You’ve never…” he paused, looking down at their feet, grinning awkwardly. 

“Minho-hyung? We’re gonna miss—”

“You’ve never had… a New Year’s Kiss, right, Taemin?”

The maknae was too stunned by the sudden question to answer right away, but when it caught up to him he flushed and tried to step away from Minho. “Aish! What’s that got to do with anything! Don’t make fun of me, hyung!”

Somehow, Minho knew Taemin would react this way, but there wasn’t any other way to ask. “No, no, no, Taemin! That’s not what I meant.”

Taemin glared back at him, silently asking what this was all about. They could hear the others in the den counting down from fifty.

“Whatever hyung,” and he turned, intending on making it back to the others before the New Year came, but the same hand that brought him here stopped him. Minho’s grip on his arm tightened and he was pulled back. His head was pressed against his warm chest and strong arms encircled his waist. 

“Taemin, look at me.”

The gentle voice near his ear made him want to melt and all of the inappropriate thoughts he ever had came coming back in a rush. These moments weren’t going to help him, he thought, they’d be replayed in his head every night as he tried to convince himself Minho just thought of him as his dongsaeng.

“Taemin, please?”

And he had to listen, because what else was there he could do? Looking up, Minho’s face was much too close for a normal conversation, and this hug seemed to intimate, but he didn’t really want to step away.

“Truth is,” Minho muttered, “I’ve never had a New Year’s Kiss either.”

Taemin was sort of shocked, but pleased to hear this either way.

“Twenty, nineteen, Taemin! Eighteen, Minho! Seventeen—”

Minho’s grip around his waist got tighter as the diva called their name. Minho wanted to make sure Taemin didn’t run away.

“I have a confession, Taemin.” he announced. “The only New Year’s Kiss I want… is with you.”

What was he saying? Does that mean Minho liked him too? Was he admitting it? Now? Here? The questions filled Taemin’s head and he couldn’t react in anyway, he was frozen.

“Eleven, ten, nine, eight—”

“Taemin,” Minho whispered, his face coming closer until their noses touched and the younger couldn’t see anything except his eyes.

“Five, four, three—”

“Minho-hyung,” 

“Saranghae, Taemin.”

“Two, one, HAPPY NEW YEAR!”

When their lips touched, it was as if time froze for a second, as cliché as that sounds, and sounds from the others faded and it was just them, on New Years, in their room. 

Pulling back—but still close—Minho grinned hugely and Taemin laughed at his expression. “Happy New Year, Taemin.”

“Happy New Year, hyung…Saranghae. He replied, and if at all possible, the elder’s smile got even larger and he kissed the boy again lightly. 

“Come on, Minho-hyung. We missed it with the others, they’ll already wonder. Key-hyung will come look for us.”

“Would you rather be with them, or have your New Year’s Kiss?”

“Of course I liked this better, hyung, but Key will come looking!”

Minho laughed and allowed the maknae to pull him toward the living room. Lacing their hands together they entered the room with the others. Key and Jonghyun were on the couch, seemingly cuddling, and Onew was sprawled on the floor in front of the TV, watching the announcer talk about the new year.

“Happy New Year!” Taemin declared.

Key looked up, about to comment on their lateness, when he noticed their hands. Jonghyun noticed too, because he grinned like a maniac and said, “At least you had the guts to do it, Minho!”

“What? Do what?” Key asked, clearly oblivious.

“This,” and Jonghyun pulled Key into a kiss, much longer than the one Minho and Taemin shared and the youngest SHINee member blushed at their outright affection and looked away. Minho chuckled and ruffled his hair.

“What is this?” Onew asked. “New Year’s Love Fest?”

Jonghyun pulled away to reply, “You’re just jealous, hyung, because you don’t have any one to kiss on New Year’s.”

Onew snorted and turned back to the TV, grumbling something they didn’t understand.

Key looked about ready to burst from embarrassment and he hit Jonghyun lightly on the arm, muttering “Yeobo…” Jonghyun just grinned and threw an arm around his shoulder.

Minho spoke up after a minute of quietness. “My New Year’s resolution is to make sure SHINee get’s many awards and the fan’s will continue to cheer for us.”

“How nice, Minho.” Jonghyun joked. “Mine is to get better and dance for the fans on stage again!”

“Mine was the same as Minho’s,” Onew agreed. 

“You’re the leader, of course that’s your’s too, Jinki.” Key told him. “Mine is to make sure SHINee comes out with many new songs.”

“Mine is to learn new dances and surpass other great dancers.” Taemin said, and Minho wrapped an arm around his shoulder.

“I’ll still be better at the girl group dances,” Key teased.

“I hope so.”

“Eh?! What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing, hyung.” He said that, but he was grinning. “Happy New Year.”