There were so many things that I was finding out about Onew that I really liked.

“Onew hyung, do you want a cup of coffee or tea?” I asked as I put all the papers into their folders, making sure they were all labelled properly. “I can make one for you if you want. I think I’m going to get a tea for myself.”

“Taemin, if you want you can use my real name,” he said. “It would be great if you could.”

“Um.. Jin..ki hyung?” I said, biting my lip. “You want me to call you Jinki hyung?”

“Yeah,” he said, looking at me nervously. “Is that okay? I’m sorry it’s just.. Onew is a nickname that I use professionally and I just feel so close to you that I would really like it if you used my real name. Only Taeyeon and my parents call me Jinki.”

“And you want me to call you Jinki too?” I asked, feeling incredibly special.

“Yeah. Because you’re important to me,” he smiled, eyes crinkling.

I was important. He didn’t seem to have much friends, or if he did he never made any indication he had any. He spent most of his nights with me in my apartment, unlike Joon who used to meet with his friends a few times a week. He confessed that he liked doing things by himself and he wasn’t very social. It was good, because I had no friends too.

He always made me feel like he was trying to give me his all, like he really was falling for me. He made me feel like he liked me more than I liked him, which I thought was impossible.

For letting me in, and for giving me that feeling, it made me really like Onew.

“This is fun,” I mused as we were sprawled out in the park underneath a tree, pink petals occasionally wafting down around us. We had chosen a secluded space to lay down our picnic blanket, especially empty since it was a working day and the playground was far away.

“This is so cliché,” Jinki chuckled, catching a pink petal. “I feel like we are in an anime,” he said as he gently pressed the petal into my hair.

“Stop,” I said, weakly pushing at his chest.

Lying at Onew’s side as our quiet conversations would lead to comfortable silences while we listened to the slight breeze rustle through the leaves and the sun shone tenderly on the park. The birds were singing, the flowers were blooming like if they were feeling like I was feeling, and it felt like a dream. I told Onew this.

“Why?” he asked.

“Because I’m so happy hyung,” I said as cupped his cheek and looked into his brown eyes. “I’ve never been on a picnic before, and I feel like I’m in a movie. I feel like my life can’t get any better.”

“You’re pretty and silly,” Onew said, gently bumping his nose against mine and rubbing my belly affectionately. “Is there any more pizza left?”

“Nope,” I giggled, nuzzling into his crisp shirt. “I ate the last piece.”

“Fat ,” he teased as he patted my , and I quietly giggled.

It just felt so surreal. How could life be so peaceful and nice? I was just… happy. It wasn’t like a burst of euphoric happiness, but rather like I was floating in a bubble. Anything that used to stress me out before, I didn’t care. Nothing could make me upset, because as long as I had Onew, I would be fine.

“I don’t deserve this,” I said through closed eyes.

“Stop,” Onew said as he flicked my forehead lightly, before laying a kiss on the spot.

“But you make me so smiley that I can’t let go. You’re like, sunshine.”

“What did one cheese say to the other when it said ‘I love you’?” asked Onew randomly.

“What?” I frowned, confused.

“That’s cheesy.”

I groaned, throwing my arm over my eyes. “Jinki hyung, why are you letting your jokes out again.”

“What happened to the grape when it was stepped on?” he asked again.

I shook my head, mock ignoring him.

“It let out a little whine.”

I tsked before turning onto my side, feeling him laugh as he threw his arm around me and held me from behind.

“My love for you is like diarrhea,” Onew said as I screeched an “ew!”. “I just can’t hold it in.”

For making me laugh until I thought I was going to pee my pants, it made me really, really like Onew.

“I haven’t had chicken in aageess,” complained Onew as we were deciding what to eat for dinner.

“I’m sure I have a flyer for chicken somewhere,” I said as I looked through all the advertisements for the takeout stores close by in my drawer. “I just saw it last week.”

I kept flicking through the different advertisements, getting more and more frustrated that I couldn’t find the right one.

“Relax Taemin,” said Onew, hugging me from behind.

“I’ll just google it and find the flyer later,” I said, slamming the drawer shut although it was really bothering me. How could I lose it? I was sure I put it in the drawer. It was there. It had to be there.

The takeout chicken store didn’t seem to have a website and I frowned as I kept going through the different hits to see if anyone had put up the details.

“Taemin, do you know where this place is?”

“Yes,” I said,  frustrated. “It’s just a few streets over. It even has it’s number hanging in the front, but I can’t remember it.”

“Is there places to sit?”

“Yeah, it’s pretty big,” I said, clicking out of a page that was talking about a different chicken restaurant. “They do all sorts of different chicken, and you can drink beer in it.”

“Then let’s go, then.”

“What?” I asked, looking back at him. “Go... and eat at the restaurant?”

“Yeah. Do you have a problem with that?”

“No but… aren’t you afraid of going out with just me? Aren’t you scared someone who knows you might see us together?” I asked. “What do you even tell Taeyeon every night that you come back late or don’t even come home at all? I’ve been meaning to ask.”

“I tell her that I’m with you,” he shrugged, and I nearly choked on my spit.

“Excuse me?” I spluttered. “She doesn’t mind?”

Now it was Onew’s time to look slightly uncomfortable. “I told her I have a really big project on my plate at the moment, and that since its my first project for the company I want to work extra hard. I tell her we normally go to your house to work on it, and I sleep in your guest bedroom. Since I don’t come here in weekends, she’s fine with it since that’s when I look after our baby.” He uncomfortably cleared his throat. “So if someone does see us, my story is easily backed up.”

“Oh uh,” I said, a little dazed. “That’s smart.”

“I’m sorry Taemin,” he said mournfully. “I’m so sorry.”

I frowned, watching him kiss the knuckles of my hand that he had picked up in his own.

“There’s nothing to be sorry for,” I said, but I still felt a little bit weird.

“Let’s go out,” Onew said. “I’m starving and we need to eat some fried chicken.”

We hadn’t held hands when we walked there but he had slung his arm around my shoulders during it, and it was strangely intimate as we sat at a table facing each other.

“Aah, Taeminnie,” said Onew, a drumstick covered in sauce on his chopstick. “Tell me if it’s yummy.”

He lifted the piece to my mouth and I took a bite, juicy, tasty and crispy chicken erupting on my tastebuds.

“It’s so delicious,” I said, covering my mouth as I chewed. “We should get chicken more often.”

“Amen to that,” said Onew, using his thumb to wipe away sauce from the corner of my mouth and then it off.

I raised my eyebrow, and he seemed to just realise what he had done.

“Oh my god, I’m sorry,” he blubbered. “It’s a habit from looking after my daughter. When I feed her I just end up eating all the bits that don’t make it to .”

“It’s fine,” I said, giggling. I thought it was cute, and he flashed me his trademark smile.

I seemed to have underestimated his love for chicken as I watched him practically inhale a 12 pack of wings and then ordered more.

“I just love chicken,” he said as I sipped at my beer, amazed. I had only managed to eat 10, and had given the remaining wings to Onew, who had gobbled it up.

“I can see that,” I laughed and he moved to ruffled my hair. I squirmed away. “I don’t want your greasy fingers in my hair,” I complained.

“You will accept my affection, goddamnit,” he said, puckering his lips up to me. I fake screamed as he threw his arm around me and tried to pull me in to kiss my cheek.

It was so weird, because it was so public. I guess we looked like friends messing around, because no one could hear my heart thumping. And no one could hear the whispered “good boy” in my ear as he fed me a piece of radish and I blushed as red as the bean paste sauce. He made me forget all about how I had lost my chicken flyer as he decided to see how many chilies he could eat before he couldn't. 

I would never ask him to tell his wife the truth, but he had gotten so close to it that he wasn’t exactly lying to his wife either. I felt like I was acknowledged and Onew didn’t feel ashamed to talk about me. And his actions at the restaurant were like telling the world that I was his. I was almost fooled into thinking we were in a healthy and normal relationship.

We got into my apartment and it was so muggy- Onew had accidentally turned the air conditioning off when he had turned off the lights.

I hugged Onew tightly when we got through the door despite the heat, as he had been stealing kisses the whole walk back when we were sure no one was near us and the street was too dark. He held me back and I felt so safe in his arms, the feeling stronger than anything I had felt before, and yet so new.

It feels like we’re slow dancing,” chuckled Onew as we started to naturally sway because I was hugging him so tight.

“I like you so much hyung,” I said, resting my head onto his shoulder. “I feel like every day I like you more and more.”

“I like you so much too, Taeminnie,” Onew said back in that deep tone that made me shiver with sincerity. “I’m so glad I met you.”

For all the other times that made me like Onew, this was the time that made me like Onew the best. When he felt like he was all mine.

A/N After thinking of John Mayer last night, I couldn’t resist them slooww dancing in a burrrrnning room hahahahahahaah. And don't you think the Marina and the Diamonds lyrics that I use for every chapter title is oddly appropriate to each chapter even though I didn't base it off her song? I think it's pretty cool.

I feel like this story is moving so slowly. But important things will be happening soon! Does Taemin want Onew all to himself?? Have I told you that things aren’t supposed to go nicely? Well here is your foreshadowing haha. Also, I decided not to start calling Onew Jinki in Taemin’s head, because I figure that would disrupt the flow of the story, but Taemin does when he is talking.

Why must you Onew look you in the eye Taemin? :)

Thank you so so so so so so much for voting and commenting! It makes me write faster haha. Please keep doing it, I love talking to you all and seeing that people are actually reading this fic! It amazes me. If you’re in America, hope you had a great Thanksgiving. Eat some of the green bean casserole and slather everything in gravy for me. God I love gravy and Thanksgiving food. What a shame NZ doesn't have an equivalent holiday :( The first time I had turkey was when I was in the States last year.

 And happy birthday Chanyeol for yesterday-  because I’m 10000000% sure you’re out there reading this message, on Asianfanfics on a fic about another band that’s not yours but in your company and in English, and I hope you’re touched.