Two in one day - amazing progress if I do say so myself.

AND IT'S KEYTAE!!!!! Been awhile since we've seen that!

Chapter 7

“Hyung!   Hyung slow down!  Key!”  Taemin kept pulling on his arm that Key was leading him to the building’s exit by but Key didn’t seem to hear him.  “KIBUM!” Taemin yelled, planting his feet in the hallway so that the other would have to stop.

Taemin winced a bit as his shoulder twinged from Key trying to continue forward while his own body determinedly remained behind.  But, in the end his hand slipped out of Key’s grasp and his boyfriend finally stopped to turn around. 

Key looked pained beyond anything Taemin had ever seen out of him before.  Key sort of half-collapsed against the wall.  To others it might look like he was just leaning against the wall, but Taemin, knowing his hyung and what had just happened, knew that there was more to it than that. 

Taemin moved quickly to Key’s side and put his arm around Key’s shoulders and led him all the way down to the ground.  “Kibum…are you alright?” he whispered to the one he loved.

Key dropped his head to his knees, which he was holding almost protectively around his body.  He didn’t speak, but did shake his ahead in the negative.  Taemin knew that Key was struggling not to cry, that he wanted to be strong here to make up for the night before, but the frustration at the whole situation was too much for him to be able to suppress it all if the shuddering breath that Taemin just heard was anything to go by.  He slowly rubbed circles on Key’s back, letting him know that he wasn’t alone. 

After a few minutes when it was obvious that Key had calmed down, the dancer tried to lighten the mood, “Well, if nothing else it was an interesting way for you to come out…”

Key snorted into his lap and finally raised his head.  Taemin could see the redness and puffiness that told him that he had been right in assuming that Key was crying, but he could also see the slight smirk on his hyung’s face, that made everything alright again.  Key sort of shook his head a little and said, “Yea well, that was not planned.  None of that was…but it all came out anyway…”  He ran his fingers through his hair; something Taemin knew Key to only do around those that he was comfortable with.  On TV he might straighten his hair or more likely smooth it down around his head, but those who could see him mess up his hair where those that he didn’t care knew that he wasn’t perfect.  Taemin was honored to be counted among the few, that didn’t even include all the members of SHINee. 

Taemin smiled a little and grabbed one of Key’s hands, slowly running his finger along the lines of Key’s palm.  “Intentional or not, it was spectacular.  Total Key Style.”  He laughed a little bit as he looked at Key. 

Key smiled slightly again, sighed and closed his hand around Taemin’s still meandering finger.  “I love you Tae…”  He said, looking deeply within Taemin’s eyes. 

Taemin smiled, “I love you too Kibum.”

“I know,” and he sighed before continuing, “As mad at him as I am, and as much of an as he’s being, he has a point about this effecting all of us.  If this gets out to the public it could spell the end of SHINee, and that’s not fair for the guys.”  He hit his hand on the ground in frustration, “But being forced to hide something like this isn’t fair to us. I…”

Taemin placed a finger against his boyfriend’s lips, effectively silencing him for the moment.  He turned the older man and, facing him, embraced him.  “We knew that it wasn’t going to be easy, but we’ll figure this out.”

He pulled back slightly and placed his hands on Key’s shoulders.  “Now, we should probably go back and see if we can salvage anything.  Besides, I’m acting too much like the hyung here so you better shape up and get your act together!” He joked, even wagging his finger at Key at the end. 

He couldn’t help but to smile, Taemin always knew how to cheer him up.  He was a lot stronger than most of them gave him credit for.  It was one of the things that Key loved about him, and one of the privileges that he felt he earned by being the dancer’s boyfriend was having the opportunity to see Taemin without any of the façade that he puts on for everyone else.  Just Taemin and just Kibum.  When they are together it’s about each other as people, not as idols, and not as members of the same group, but just as two people in love.  And that was the best thing of all.

“Yea, we probably should go back.  This isn’t something that we can flee from; we have to fight for this.”  The both got up and hand-in-hand walked back towards their dorm.