To: Key

From: Woohyun

How about Sunday? I’ll be free for the whole day.

.

  Key stared at his phone as it buzzed. His fingers were itching to type back a reply, to agree to the request, but he didn’t want to make a fool of himself by caring too much about it. He didn’t want to come off as too desperate.

  “Looks like there’s some serious thinking going on in your head over there,” Onew commented airily.

  When Key made no move to respond, Onew continued.

  “I’m hungry now. Are you going to make me dinner? Can I - Hey, why aren’t you answering me? Key? Are you ignoring me? Hey!”

  “Please stop trying hyung,” Taemin sighed. “He’s not going to answer you. And let me have my peace. It’s so hard when Jonghyun hyung and Minho hyung are here. Now that they’re gone, I want to rest. Or do you want me to shut you up with more violent means? Because that’s fine too.”

To: Woohyun

From: Key

Ok.

.

  He kept his answer simple and to the point. After all, they weren’t so close that he could actually talk. They had been, but not anymore. His face betrayed none of his emotions because Onew and –

To: Key

From: Woohyun

I’ll come pick you up. Dress nicely okay? <3

.

With a small smile, he placed his phone onto the table beside him and turned to Onew.

  “Yes?” he asked very sweetly.

  A small smile appeared on Onew’s lips and he said, “Can you cook dinner for me? I’m hungry. I’m very, very hungry.”

  “Okay,” Key answered. “I’ll make you food. And because I’m nice, I’ll make the roasted chicken that you used to like so much. I’m going to guess that you still like it.”

  By looking at his expression, Key could tell that he guessed right. After all, he was in a good mood (Woohyun always did that to him) and Onew was cute (didn’t matter that he was older – never did, actually).

  With a spark in his eyes, Key left the room and entered the kitchen – or as he preferred to call it, his safe haven. Of course it wasn’t his, but no one really dared to interrupt him when he was cooking.

  So he had every right to be annoyed at Kim Jonghyun at that moment.

  Key felt fire flowing in his blood, and he wondered if he could burn the guy with it. Before introducing SHINee to him, Onew had told him about their various behaviors: (“Jonghyun is a jerk, but he’s really nice too. If you ignore his thing, then he’ll make a good person to talk to.”) Key could only see the jerk side of Jonghyun.

  The kitchen was where he did his magic. Well, there was dancing too, but cooking was something he did from young. What Jonghyun did was unbelievable. Maybe Key would have forgiven him if he had apologized, but no.

  Kim Jonghyun had to be the best; he had to get whatever he wanted. There was nothing Key hated any more than that attitude.

  He had come, waltzing into the kitchen when Key was roasting the chicken, happy with his life, and said very suddenly, “Go out with me.”

  He said no, because Woohyun asked him out, and proceeded to tell him very politely that he should back off.

  “I don’t want to see your stupid face in the kitchen now, please. I’m making dinner right now.”

  Okay, perhaps it was a little harsh, but at least he said “please”, right?

  Right.

  Then Jonghyun had the nerve to say that Woohyun would never be right for him, and that he was the one Key wanted in life, and –

  And Key hit him with the frying pan that he was taking out.

  He should have gotten Jonghyun’s nose instead of his shoulder.

  “Hyung?” a small voice called out; Key softened almost immediately.

  Taemin had an aura that made him seem so fragile, even though he wasn’t. Taemin was fine with being independent, but his eyes were so open to the world that Key actually feared for his life.

  “Yeah?” he asked.

  “Are you still mad at Jonghyun hyung? I mean, yeah, he’s sort of arrogant and all that, but he’s a nice person? He doesn’t know how to filter his mouth. He doesn’t know how to act in different situations. Please don’t be mad.”

  Aw, how cute!

  There was just something about Taemin’s plea that melted Key, and he was compelled to go out.

  It wasn’t as though he was mad at Minho, Taemin or Onew anyways.

  “I’ll come out,” he said through the door. “You don’t have to wait for me to eat.”

  When he finally exited the dark room, he was greeted with Jonghyun’s guilty face. Ignoring him, Key settled onto the sit next to Minho.

  “So,” he said. “I heard that you’re going to star in a drama soon?”

  “Look, I’m really sorry about just now – “

  “Shush, be quiet.” Key glared at Jonghyun. “Can’t you see that I’m talking to Minho now? Where are your manners? Aren’t you, like, the second oldest here? Act like your age.”

  Then, turning back to Minho, he smiled dazzlingly. “So?”

  “Yep, the company thinks it’ll be good publicity. Though it’s kind of nerve-wrecking: I’ve never done acting before…”

  “Don’t worry,” Key placed his hand on Minho’s arm. “I’m sure you’ll do very well. You’re Choi Minho, after all. Of course you can do it!”

  Gritting his teeth angrily, Jonghyun swallowed the urge to slam his fork onto the plate. He had no wish to be called childish by his crush again.

  He could smell Minho’s internal laughter from there, and it was terrible. Minho knew exactly what he was doing – gaining Key’s sympathy to win him over. Knowing him, he would win Key over easily with that technique. Not to mention that Jonghyun was pushed back by his earlier words.

  Jonghyun may be the charmer in SHINee, but Minho wasn’t all that bad either. Key was very different from all the others that he had sweet talked to.

  He was feisty, he dared to talk back, and he was not afraid to speak out. Sort of like Onew, but sharper, harsher.

  He had no idea why, but he liked that.

  Maybe the fight for Key meant something more than just a competition? 

I am so, so, sorry. I have absolutely no excuse as to why I'm updating so late. I just. I looked at this and wondered why I was writing this, and I lost my inspiration. I just couldn't write anything. But I think I've found it again. 

Why are you guys still subscribed to me.

I will be editing the first few chapters - nothing major, just small stuff.

And to shiningstar1116: I'm so sorry! I said that I would update "by the weekend", and then it became one month, and then it became months.

I hope you like this chapter. If not, feel free to unsubscribe. (I don't keep grudges)