Taemin refused to leave his room. He was upset, humiliated, and angry, to list just a few reasons. It had taken a little while for Minho to explain what exactly had happened, and when he was finished, Taemin had quite calmly pulled out his cell phone and sent a very simple text to Mir.

‘I hate you.’

Nothing more was said, and while Mir hadn’t responded, Minho had received a text from Thunder asking him to please have Taemin refrain from texting Mir. The boy was in enough trouble to last him a lifetime, and upon realizing the severity of what he had done he’d become completely inconsolable. Minho almost felt bad for his hyung - he really was just a dumb kid, but that idiocy led to his Taeminnie getting hurt, and that just wasn’t ok.

Key knocked on the maknae’s door, then pushed it open without waiting for a response. He took a seat on Taemin’s bed, and a moment later his baby was curled up in his arms. Taemin hadn’t cried much over it, but he had been struggling with some depression already because of the fans bullying him, and this only made it worse. He didn’t want to get out of bed at all, nor did he want to eat anything.

“Taemin?” Key whispered, and the youngest looked up at him.

“De, umma?” He responded, and Key pet his hair, obviously upset.

“You know he did this to a lot of the other maknae’s, right?” Key said, and Taemin nodded.

“Ren, Tao, Sehun, Kyuhyun-” Taemin started listing, and Key nodded patiently.

“Well...I think you need to know something.” Key said softly. Taemin looked up at him with a panicked expression.

“What happened?” He asked.

“Sehun...still hasn’t come out of it.” Key said softly. “I’m gonna have to spend some time down there, helping them watch him. None of them are in very good shape, and they don’t know how to deal with this.”

“Did anyone tell Mir?” Taemin asked. Key raised his eyebrows.

“Why would we?” He asked, and Taemin scrunched his face angrily.

“So he would know what he did!” Taemin said, his voice rising slightly.

“No, baby, no one told him.” Key said, and Taemin pulled his phone out of his pocket. He started typing out a text, and Key reached for his phone, almost getting it before Taemin yanked it away. “Taemin! What’s gotten into you? Why are you being so mean?”

“He was mean to us!” Taemin retorted. Key’s eyebrows went up. “He should know what he did!”

“Taeminnie...” Key said, more than a little shocked by the outburst. Taemin pulled away from him and finished typing his text before sending it. “What did you say?”

“I said...” Taemin pulled open the text again, then read it aloud. “I said ‘Sehun’s still seeing things. It’s all your fault. You should just behave.’ That’s it.”

Key raised a brow, looking doubtful. He reached out, snatching Taemin’s phone quickly. The maknae pouted adorably, but Key wasn’t giving in until he read the words on the screen. He wasn’t sure why, but he didn’t trust the maknae when he was this angry. He had been known to be quite spiteful in the past.

‘Sehun’s still seeing things. It’s all your fault. You should just behave. I hope you get fired.’

“Lee Taemin!!” Key shrieked. The boy’s face hardened. There was zero remorse. “I’m taking your phone for the day. You can have it back when you’re ready to apologize.”

“Then you should just keep it.” Taemin said, turning away from Key and throwing himself on the bed. Key was about to respond when his own cell phone began ringing in his pocket. He pulled it out, unsurprised to see Thunder’s name on the caller ID.

“Yoboseyo?” He greeted, sounding tired.

“Key...Taemin just-” He started, but Key cut him off.

“I already saw. I took his phone away.” Key said.

“...Thanks..” Thunder said, sounding like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders.

“Is everything ok?” Key asked, and Thunder sighed.

“Mir’s a mess.” He said. “I know I should still be angry with him, but...I just can’t find it in me to keep punishing him. He’s been hiding in his room ever since we got him home, and I just...I don’t know what to do.”

“Bring him some tea.” Key suggested lightly. “He’ll calm down. Just make sure he knows you love him, and that you’re not angry. You’re disappointed.”

“D...de...Thanks, Key.” He said, and the line went dead. Taemin was staring at Key with a betrayed expression.

“Taemin-ah, I-” He started but the maknae shook his head.

“Go check on Sehun. Leave me alone, Kibum.” He said, his tone harsh.

Key sat in stunned silence for a long moment, before slowly rising and heading out of the bedroom. He was met with questions, and a concerned pawing from Jonghyun, but he couldn’t bring himself to admit what had just taken place. Did Taemin...did he hate him?

Key collapsed on the couch, his eyes a little wide. Jonghyun sat beside him, Minho already on his other side because, well, he’d been there first. Onew crouched in front of him as Joon lingered uncomfortably in the doorway. He didn’t know what to do - it was his maknae causing all the problems and stress, after all.

“Kibummie?” Jonghyun called out softly, rubbing his dongsaengs back comfortingly.

“T-Taemin’s...” Key stuttered, trying to figure out how to say it without saying it. “When did he get so mean?”

“Key?” Onew prodded, and the diva looked at him with quickly moistening eyes.

“He texted Mir.” Key said. “He told him he hoped he got fired, and then Cheondoong called, because Mir was so upset, and he was so upset, and I was trying to give him advice, to calm them both down...and Taemin...”

“What did he say?” Minho asked, and finally a drop slid down Key’s cheek.

“He got so mad.” Key said. “He told me to go away. To leave him alone.“

“You know he doesn’t mean it.” Onew said right away. “He’s just really upset right now, and-”

“I know...” Key said, not moving as Jonghyun wiped at his love’s eyes.

“He’ll come around.” Jonghyun said softly, and Key nodded.

“I know.” Key said as more saline tracked down his face. He was vaguely grateful he wasn’t wearing make-up.

“Then why are you still crying?” Minho asked, and Key bowed his head.

“Because...even though I know it all...it still hurts.” He choked out. “I didn’t do anything. I’m just trying to help. He used to love me for it...”

“He still loves you, Key.” Jonghyun said, and Key brought his hands up to his face as a sob finally broke free from his lips.

“But it’s not going to be the same anymore.” Key whispered, and Jonghyun felt his heart break. “He doesn’t need me anymore.”