1.
Nice To Meet You. [contest entry for eexiee]
Lee Jinki placed the final box on the top of the makeshift pyramid. "Ah, it took forever...but it's finally done."
Jinki looked up at the stacked boxes that were filled with apples.
"Yah! Jinki! Go home already, your shift is over!" Jinki turned his head towards the sound of his manager's voice.
"Deh Manager Yoochun, I'll go home." Jinki grinned at the older man before he took off his dark blue apron and went to the back room of the store.
~~~
Although it was in the early afternoon, Jinki had been working since the early hours of the day in the small market.
Lee Jinki walked home quietly. The only sounds that he heard were the cars that would pass by on the streets and the occasional conversation whenever he would pass a park or store.
"Please sweetie, just eat your veggies alright?"
"ANI!"
----
"Jagiya, does this look nice with this skirt?"
"Of course it does. Now let's hurry and go home."
----
Jinki smiled at the everyday conversations that he heard. The little bits of other people's lives that he witnessed as he walked down the streets to his apartment complex.
~~~
Jinki finally arrived at his apartment and he walked up the few flights of stairs before he got to his door.
"542. Home sweet home." Jinki said to himself as he unlocked the door and flicked on the lights in the apartment.
He looked around the small living room before throwing his backpack on the old couch. His apartment wasn't too shabby, but it wasn't luxurious either.
Jinki didn't mind. Jinki never asked or really wanted something more, he was fine being alone according to him. That was just one of the benefits of living alone. No one else to please but yourself.
He trudged over to his bedroom door before nudging it open with his foot.
Jinki stood by the foot of his bed before he completely knocked out, his body thudding against the mattress.
~~~
"Jinki!" Manager Yoochun's voice echoed in the practically empty store.
"Deh?" Jinki said back, putting down the stack of vegetables he was moving.
"Come here! Their's a customer that needs help!"
Jinki sighed and scratched the back of his neck before walking towards the front of the store.
He ran his hands through his brown hair, trying to let it look a bit more decent in front of one of their customers.
"Jinki! There you are! Here's the customer that need assistance, please tend to him."
Yoochun stepped aside to reveal the customer to Jinki.
Jinki's eyes lazily looked up before they almost bugged out of their sockets.
Standing in front of him was the most beautiful human he had ever laid eyes on. If he were straight before, this man changed everything.
~~~
"Uh..er... what can I help you with?" Jinki's mouth felt like cotton as he looked at the person, no. Angel in front of him.
'How the hell does he look like he's glowing?!' Jinki tried to calm himself down.
'Inhale...exhale...he's just a customer...you can do this...'
"Oh I needed help finding something in the store actually."
'Oh sweet Jesus his voice is heavenly..it sounds like silk...' Jinki's mouth was open slightly before he caught himself.
"Ahem, what did you need help finding sir?" Jinki had to use most of his energy to keep his voice at a steady level.
"I couldn't find where you guys keep your toothbrushes and toothpastes actually.." The man chuckled to himself, and Jinki had to restrain the noise that threatened to escape his throat.
'Ugh his voice...I can't...I need to calm down!'
"Ah it's fine sir, right this way." Jinki his heel and he heard the soft padding of the stranger's feet behind him.
Jinki had to calm himself as he continued walking to the aisle that he had to lead the stranger to.
"Erm..so are you new in the neighborhood?" Jinki asked over his shoulder, curious about the man.
"Yeah. Actually I just moved in earlier this morning, in an apartment complex by here."
"Oh I see then, what's the reason for moving?" Jinki asked again.
"........ I don't feel comfortable talking about it..sorry." The man's voice behind him sounded as though it had a hidden meaning, and Jinki was suddenly curious about his reasons.
But he was still a decent person.
"That's fine, I have things I don't like talking about either." Jinki smiled at the man behind him, trying to give him comfort.
Jinki had no idea why he was talking so much...he was usually quite the introvert when it came to customers. It was usually lead them to the aisle, then get back to work. But Jinki had the urge to keep talking to this person.
To just sit down with him somewhere and just....talk. About anything, about everything.
"Here's the aisle sir. They should be towards the end, next to each other." Jinki pointed towards the back of the aisle.
"Thank you for your help, I'll probably see you around more often...Lee Jinki." The man read Jinki's name of his apron and grinned.
Jinki gulped and clenched one of his fists.
"Of course, no problem....." Jinki tried to find another name to use besides 'sir' for the man he just met.
"Taemin. Lee Taemin. Nice to meet you Jinki." Taemin let his hand extent towards the other.
Jinki looked down at the hand before awkwardly shaking it.
"Likewise, Taemin." Jinki's voice managed to crack and he had to keep from smacking himself in the face when he walked away from Taemin to get back to work.
~~~
Their meetings were very clockwork, to say the least. Taemin would come into the store exactly at 9 am and 7 pm. Never late, never early. These also happened to be the times that Jinki would be at the front of the store for cash register duty.
Jinki managed to smile at the young man whenever he would come to the register, before he had to work to control his erratic heart beat.
Every morning and night when Taemin would walk into the store, Jinki would feel his palms get clammy and the urge to run to the storage room at the back of the store to hide.
But he had to stay, it was his job.
"Hello again Jinki." Taemin smiled warmly at the older man.
"H-Hi Taemin." Jinki struggled to say his name so casually, like Taemin would to him.
"How's the night shift hm?" Taemin put a package of banana milk and some apples on the counter as he leaned on it.
Jinki avoided his gaze by looking down at the items on the counter as he scanned them. "It's fine. Always the same, you're the only one that usually comes at this time anyway."
"Really? I would think that others would be here...but I guess not." Taemin shrugged his shoulders lazily.
"$7.32." Jinki pressed a few buttons on the register as Taemin reached into his sweats for his wallet.
Taemin handed the money to Jinki and put the wallet back into his sweats. Jinki reached down for the plastic bag to hand it over.
As Taemin reached for it, their hands touched and Jinki's heartbeat accelerated.
"Hey...how about we hang out sometime?" Taemin squeezed Jinki's hand that his was overlapping on the bag.
Jinki quickly let go and swallowed thickly.
'Dammit Jinki. Answer him!'
"S-Sure. That sounds nice!" Jinki smiled and waved as Taemin walked out of the store.
Jinki slumped against the counter and looked at the hand that touched Taemin's. There was a... sticky note?
"Here you go.." Jinki read the note along with the phone number that was scribbled onto it.
"Oh my god. It's his number." Jinki stared at the note on his hand until a loud voice made him jump.
"JINKI! YOUR SHIFT IS OVER, GO HOME!" Yoochun hollered from the opposite end of the store.
"Yes Manager!" Jinki yelled back and went to the cabinet next to the cash register to get his backpack.
He went over to the doorway and yelled over his shoulder. "You go home soon too!"
Jinki smiled to himself before he made his way to his one-person apartment.
~~~
"What do I do...what do I do.... I have to do something...."
Jinki paced around his living room, the small sticky note in hand.
"Do I call him? Or wait until tomorrow? Or what?!" He yelled at himself angrily before plopping down onto his couch.
"Why...why.... I DIDN'T ASK FOR THIS!" Jinki grabbed a pillow that was on his couch and smushed his face into it.
/knock knock
"Eh?" Jinki lifted his head up from the couch and looked over at the door.
"What the hell...I didn't order pizza.." Jinki groaned as he walked over to the front door, expecting one of those door-to-door salesmen or something, even though it was almost 8.
"Hel-" Jinki's eyes intantly widened at the person at the door.
"Evening Jinki. I thought we could hang out now." Taemin grinned as he held up a plastic bag.
'Oh. My. God.' Jinki gulped and motioned for Taemin to enter the apartment.
Taemin slipped out of his shoes and walked into the small apartment.
"Wah, nice place you got here. Mine isn't nearly as clean." Taemin sat down on the the couch as he put the plastic bag onto the coffee table.
"How..when..why.." Jinki pointed to the front door then back at Taemin.
"I live across the street from the convenience store, so I can see you walk out of the store every night. I was already outside with my stuff when I saw you. I knew you wouldn't know when to call me, so I decided to make a house call instead."
Taemin said everything so casually, as if he was telling Jinki the time or that the sky was blue.
Taemin reached for the bag and took out beer, as if it was normal for him to go to someone's house(someone he barely knew) and start drinking with them.
Taemin opened the bottle and took a swig before Jinki spoke.
"So.....you stalked me."
Taemin practically choked on his sip and he started coughing and sputtering.
"Wha-"
"It's true. Technically what you did is considered stalking." Jinki looked blankly at the younger man on his couch.
"Pfft, I gues so." Taemin chuckled and patted the space next to him on the couch.
"Join me. I'm not drinking this whole case myself." Taemin grinned widely.
Jinki shrugged his shoulders and sat next to Taemin, accepting the outstretched drink in his hand.
~~~
"I *hic think you shoubd gib me *hic anoder *hic boddle.." Taemin swung his arms towards the beers before Jinki handed one to him.
"You should've at least warned me about how you can't hold your alcohol." Jinki calmly replied to him before taking another swig of his beer.
He glanced over at his wall clock to see that it read 10:30.
"I think you should go home soon Taemin." Jinki started to stand up before he felt something tug on his sleeve.
"But I dun wannnaaa~" Taemin whined and pulled on Jinki's sleeve, making him topple over to land on top of him.
Jinki looked down with wide eyes at the younger boy underneath him.
"Uh..er, Taemin.. I have to get u-"
"No." Taemin said this to Jinki, their eyes locked.
Taemin's eyes looked straight upwards at Jinki with a pouted lip before he pulled Jinki into a hug.
Taemin buried his face into the shoulder of Jinki's shirt.
"You're waaarmmm~" Taemin drawled, a smile forming on his face.
Jinki, however, blushed furiously and stayed still hoping that Taemin would release his grip.
Taemin pulled him down so that they laid side by side on the couch. Jinki was mere inches from Taemin's flushed face.
"Hey Taemin." Jinki thought this would be a good time to ask some questions that were pestering him about Taemin.
After all, a drunk person's heart is the most honest..right?
"Hmmmmm?" Taemin's eyes stayed closed, but his breathing continued steadily.
"..Why did you move? Honestly?" Jinki mentally crossed his fingers, hoping he would finally get answers.
"Me? Ah.. umma dibnt wan me home anymore, so I left.." Taemin's eyebrows furrowed for a moment before he continued smiling with his eyes closed.
'Umma?...Family problems?'
"Ah I see...you should go to bed Taemin. I don't think you can walk home in this state." Jinki grabbed his sweatshirt that was on the back of the sofa and he covered Taemin's body with it.
"I'll sleep.. good night kiss first." Taemin said this quickly before his eyes opened.
Jinki wasn't able to think about what he said until he felt Taemin's lips on his. His heart rate skyrocketed and all he could think about was how good it felt to be connected to Taemin like this.
All too soon, Taemin pulled away and turned to face the back of the couch.
Jinki blinked a couple times, trying to figure out why the sensation of floating dissappeared so suddenly.
"Night." Taemin's muffled voice caught Jinki's attention.
"But.. hey Tae-"
"Shh. I'm sleeping now."
With that, Jinki realized how hard he fell. Not in what Taemin said, or what he looked like...but just... Taemin. It was something Jinki never thought he would experience in his lonely life. How he lived day by day, alone but blindly content.
Until Taemin happened. Jinki felt as though with his new revelation he would hug and kiss Taemin like there was no tomorrow.
But that would have to wait until at least morning.
"Night then." Jinki felt a grin spread across his face as he snuggled closer to Taemin's back, feeling the warmth radiate from the younger.
~~~
(forward a year)
"YAH JINKI!" Yoochun yelled from one of the cash registers at the front of the store.
"Deh, I'm coming!" Jinki wiped his forehead with the back of his hand as he jogged up to the counter Yoochun was at.
"Hmph, even though your assistant manager now I still want you to be just as hard working as before." Yoochun narrowed his eyes as Jinki.
Jinki smiled and bowed. "Of course, Manager." Jinki stood upright at grinned at Yoochun.
Yoochun looked at Jinki and chuckled. "Aishfine. Stop looking at me like that! You can have your break now."
Jinki's features lit up. "Chincha? Thank you!"
Jinki started to take off his apron as he walked towards the employee room at the back of the store.
"Yah, tell your boyfriend to clean up before he leaves the employee room again!" Jinki turned towards Yoochun's voice before replying.
"Deh Manager!"
Jinki turned and pushed open the back down with his shoulder.
"Ah." The younger man was holding up a large box as he pushed another on the floor.
"Tae! You should've asked for help!" Jinki panicked and grabbed the large box out of Taemin's extended arms.
Jinki quickly put everything aside and looked at Taemin.
"Yah. Don't do that again, alright? What if the box fell-!" Jinki started to scold Taemin.
Taemin knew that the only way for it to be peacefully quiet was if he found a way to get Jinki to stop talking.
And he did so.
Taemin pulled away from their kiss with a smile on his face.
"Mianhe..did Yoochun say we can have our break now?" Taemin's eyes glimmered as he thought of his well deserved break time.
"Deh...juts make sure you clean back here first.." Jinki mumbled as he touched his lips with his fingers.
Taemin nuudged Jinki's hand away before chuckling. "You think that after a year you would've gotten used to me kissing you when I want.."
Jinki blushed and covered it up with one of his hands.
"S-Shut up! Just...meet me outside later..." Jinki turned to go back towards the door when he felt a pair of thin arms encircle his waist.
He shivered a bit when he felt Taemin's warm breath on the nape of his neck.
"But your treating me today..right?"
Jinki gulped and nodded his head slowly before the arms moved. Jinki let out a relieved sigh.
"Yay! Make sure you get me a strawberry banana milkshake and a scoop of vanilla ice cream this time!~" Taemin sang as he went back to stacking the boxes on the side of the room.
Jinki smiled and nodded. "Of course... jagiya."
~~~
And they spent their break eating ice cream and sipping on milkshakes at a local ice cream parlor.
They would share their drinks and their frozen treats, smiling as they fed each other.
Taemin took the opportunity to scoop ice cream into his mouth and kiss Jinki, just to watch his reaction.
Which turned out to be pretty adorable, according to Taemin.
~~~
"Promise you kid, I'll give more than I get. I just haven't met you yet."
A/N: Ugh.. sorry that this took so long... I hope you enjoyed this story! (Although it was kind of short)
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