*******************************EDITED 31/05/2017******************************

Hi :)

Long time no see. I'm sorry about the inconvenience of my editing process but I ask that you please understand that its for the good of my story and the ultimate good of my readers. I hope you see how things have improved as you go along if your rereading this fic. If you're reading it for the first time then I hope you enjoy ^^

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Chapter two

It was perhaps two hours later that a man awakened from his well needed nap. A second was required for him to recall his location and once he did, he felt his heart jump with joy at the prospect of his travels. This particular man was sitting in a plane next to a dark haired stranger who stirred in his own slumber when the man made to stretch out his already cramped limbs and accidentally fisted the slumbering one on the forehead. It had been purely accidental, the man reasoned to himself.

He looked at the sleeping man to see if his assault had awoken him, he most certainly hoped not. If it was one thing the man hated it was rude and rowdy, inconsiderate commuters – be it on a train or a bus or even a plane- the man really couldn’t stand them. So he watched the sleeping man with big fearful eyes in hopes that he had not by any means disturbed him. The last thing he wanted was to be considered one of those inconsiderate commuters he hated so much.  
  However, the peacefully sleeping fella next to him stirred in his sleep yet again, to the quiet displeasure of the guilty party. He watched as the Asian’s head rolled from one side of his seat to the other and back again, his eyebrows knitting in what the man supposed was pain caused by his earlier, unintentional, assault. It was another three seconds before the now restless man began to open his eyes, one arm reaching up to his face so his hand could caress the sore spot on his face.

***

‘Yah…’ the other newly awakened man quietly moaned, still half asleep. He turned his head first to the left where the aisle was, and then to the right to face his assailant, his eyes instantly becoming wide as he realised his whereabouts.  Choi Minho sat up abruptly, his head pivoting away from the now familiar face of the man sitting next to him, arms landing on the armrests at his sides, hands squeezing on their hard surface. He took a moment to compose himself before turning his head slowly back to the now startled looking man. For a second he thought that he was dreaming; that he was seeing things and the gawking man didn’t exist in reality at all, only in his head, only in his dreams. It was only when the man reached out a hand and placed it on his own tense arm that Minho realised that this vision of a man was truly real.

‘Are you okay?’ the man quietly enquired, drawing his cheeks in to emphasise the guilty pout on his catlike face as he looked at Minho, though Minho barely heard him. He was too busy feeling the warm sensation of the other man’s hand pulsating on his bare arm. The sensation sent shivers up and down his spine. He had no idea why.  So instead of dwelling on the unknown reasons behind his bizarre bodily reaction to the other man’s body heat, he quickly jerked his arm away from the man’s touch and regretted it the moment he saw the affronted look that invaded his beautiful features before he looked away again.

Wait! Beautiful features?

  Why am I even thinking like that? He thought, reprimanding his brain for malfunctioning.

What the hell Choi Minho? He asked himself, yet another thought of reprimand.

 He subtly shook his head and dismissed his prior thoughts as the confusions of a newly awakened man. Even he could not control everything he thought in a state of half sleep.

Minho looked at the man who was still very much staring at him. He noted that the look of guilt that once consumed his face had turned into one of slight annoyance. He wondered why the man suddenly looked so annoyed before remembering that he’d asked him a question just a minute ago. Minho cleared his throat, slightly embarrassed at his reaction to the man and hoping he hadn’t noticed.

“Ah…” another second passed as he cleared the persistent lump from the back of his throat, hoping that it didn’t sound too wet and disgusting. “I’m fine.” He said to the now glaring man. He couldn’t possibly understand why this man’s attitude had so quickly changed from one of guilt to one of obvious annoyance in such a short space of time.  He shrugged his shoulders when the man pointedly turned around in his seat and looked out of the window instead of offering any form of acknowledgement to Minho’s declaration. Minho frowned, then smiled, comprehension dawning on him.

*

The man looking out the small window of the airplane felt slightly offended. No, not slightly, he felt greatly offended.

Just now, when he had asked the other Asian man if he was okay and introduced himself as Key, the Asian man had simply looked at him as if he was some form of extra terrestrial being, the assaulted man’s eyes wide and uneven, before he swiftly looked away from Key, not bothering to answer Key’s question and acknowledge his introduction.

Key didn’t care that he had answered just moments later. He didn’t care about the man’s well-being. He didn’t care about the fact that he probably owed the man an apology for him on the forehead just moments before. He didn’t even care that the man now almost certainly thought of him as a rude and rowdy commuter. He just didn’t care. All he cared about was the look he had received from the man not a minute ago. And then, to top it off, the man was laughing at him.

*

“Oh you’re so good.” Minho said, more to himself than to the man whose attention he had recaptured. He could see the man’s ears perk up at his statement and his eyes turned to glance at him from the corners attaching those slinky lids. Minho chuckled and faced the back of the seat in front of him, deciding to disregard the curious and annoyed look on the other man’s face.

Minho was a man of the world, a worldly man indeed, or so he considered himself, and he’d seen too much of the world and the people in it to fall for the act he was sure the man beside him was trying to pull on him. He recalled the scene that brought him to a halt earlier at the airport; the scene of a predator slowly luring in its prey. He had seen the glint in man’s eyes as his goal was about to be achieved; his prey just inches from his watering predator’s mouth. Minho knew his type, had killed his type, and he had no intentions of getting himself drawn into one of this particular predator’s schemes. No. He had no intention of letting the man in, no matter how he contorted his words and his face to draw him into his web of lies.

 Another chuckle escaped his mouth as he thought of why he was drawn to the man in the first place. It needed no thought, really. To him this all just looked like the beginning of a bad joke. Something that started like: “So…an assassin and a conman sit next to each other on a plane right…”

The thought of where it would go from there simply amused him. In fact, it amused him to the point where he found himself chuckling harder this time, his eyes never leaving the seat in front of him. The realisation that their meeting had no meaning brought him down from his tickled high. Just like the bad joke, their encounter was bound to end eventually.

“What are you laughing at?” The man next to him snapped, his irate face once again turning to face the chuckling man. Minho turned to him and unconsciously took a second to glance at the other man’s features before contemplating his response. He noted the way the man furrowed his brow at him while still managing to keep a pout on his M-shaped lips. He subtly observed the man’s defined cheekbones that lead to the hollows he was sure were dimples. He acknowledged the man’s perfectly shiny skin as an insignificant ray of sunlight caressed him from the other side of the airplane’s window. He recognised too, that he was staring and quickly jerked his head around yet again, not wanting to seem strange.

*

The man with the window seat was now undoubtedly aggravated.
  How could a person so blatantly insult someone without uttering a single syllable? He asked himself this as he pointedly glared at the other man. Staring is rude, full stop. And the fact that Key had no idea as to why the man felt the need to stare and laugh at him, well that just straight out pissed him off.

He cleared his throat (“Eh-Erm?”) to try and make his presence realised before officially moving in for the attack, which in his defence could be considered self-image-defence because he felt that by laughing at him and blatantly staring, the other Asian man had battered his self-image.  His ego was bruised and he didn’t even know why.

“Excuse me,” he started (far too polite for someone on the offensive), tapping the man on the shoulder with just his forefinger. “What exactly is your problem?” Key felt right in assuming that the other Asian man was Korean, he was certainly delicious enough to be Korean. He chortled at his silly hypothesis that Koreans were indeed the better looking of the Asian population, though by no means did he retract it because he was obviously right.
  The man next to the aisle slowly, almost reluctantly – in Key’s opinion, turned to face him once again, a knowing look on his face (which sent Key reeling with hypothetical rabid foaming at his mouth, because nobody knows him, NOBODY!- Except for Onew and his halmi of course). Slighted already by the mere fact that the man had a presumptuous look on his face and was directing it towards him, Key raised a brow in defiance as he awaited the man’s response to his question.

It didn’t come.

Key lost it for the second time this time ferociously turning his entire body in his seat (his forgotten seatbelt straining), to fully face the other man.

“Do you make a habit of ignoring people when they talk to you?!” he demanded cheekily at the other man, voice pulling with his angered tone. His eyes just about rolled back in his head as the other man simply gave him a deliberate smile while shaking his head in what, to Key, looked like reprimand.

What, THE HELL?! Key thought and turned back in his seat, brutishly ripping the seatbelt away before facing the back of the seat in front of him. Not knowing what that guy’s issue could be was really starting to irk him. Now he was convinced that the man next to him was the inconsiderate commuter, not him. He just wished that the would go back to sleep and stop giving him such nonsense meaningful looks that made him feel like he had something on his face that nobody was telling him about.

After half an hour of sitting there, doing nothing but rotating his head from the seat in front of him to the dull view of sky outside his window, Key finally decided to take out his laptop and do something with the remaining time on the never ending flight.

He pressed the on button and waited for his computer to start up, then entered his password (********) taking a moment to admire the picture of him and his best friend that covered his computer’s background.

*

Minho, curious as he was, couldn’t help but look over the man’s shoulder to see what he was doing on his computer. The first thing he saw was a picture of the conman (yes, he was still convinced the other was nothing but a scam artist) with a seemingly older guy who had a wide bright smile on his face and barely existent smiling eyes. Minho pouted as he saw how close the two men appeared to be, the older man (according to his never wrong assumptions) rubbed his knuckles into the hair of a fiercely defiant looking conman. The same man who was sitting next to him.

Minho jumped in fright as the other man suddenly slammed the laptop shut and turned to glower at him. Minho, in turn, just looked the other way as if he did nothing wrong. He was tempted to whistle to show just how innocent he really was but found himself unable to in a full plane; he was never one to be rude.

Nearly five hours into their flight, the Asian seated next to the aisle found himself tremendously bored and decided to start a conversation with the other Asian man, who was now  back to staring out the window next to him.

“So… What’s your name?” Minho asked. His body turned to face the other man. The silence that followed his question was uncomfortable for him, so he decided to give up his quest to venture into the world of the conman next to him and turned back around. It was needless to say that he was surprised when his hand was pinched by the man next to him as a soft “Key” was muttered in his direction.

“What?” the yet again assaulted assassin managed to ask, not having properly heard what the other man had said. He cautiously watched as the man next to him rolled his eyes and released a deep sigh.

“My name is Key,” he repeated, annoyance coating his words.

“Oh” was Minho’s response, offering him a little head bow of acknowledgement before looking away; no longer sure that speaking with this man was a good idea. He automatically moved his hand over the sore spot on his other hand and tried to rub the pain away. Nobody had ever pinched him like that before and he must admit that it was really sore.

“Sorry for that.” He heard from next to him. The soft tone in the man’s voice made him turn for the umpteenth time in the past few hours. He had no idea why he was finding it difficult to simply ignore him. His frown disappeared when he saw the man smile for the first time in the whole three hours they’d known each other. He was pleasantly surprised to see warmth radiating from his face.

“I’ve told you my name before and you ignored me.” The man said, no longer seeming bothered by their earlier interactions.

“S-Sorry, I didn’t hear you before.” Minho hesitated. He was unsure if the man was being genuinely nice or if it was just an act. His eyebrow rose as he took in the sight of the other man – Key – once again.

“You look tired… Key” he said matter-of-factly.

“I’m well aware of that thank-you-very-much,” Key said with a bit of attitude, his smile completely fading. “You really are the rude one, aren’t you?” He mumbled accusingly.

Minho looked at him with wondering eyes. “Why would you say that?” Key lifted his own eyebrow this time.

“I just introduced myself, again, and instead of returning the gesture and giving me your name, you tell me that I look tired. That, my dear, is what we in the rest of the world call rude.” He finished off with a hint of wryness in his voice.

 “Oh, um… I’m Minho.” Not bothering to take note of the subtle cheek in Key’s tone Minho continued. “Nice to meet you Key.” A pause, “What kind of name is ‘Key’? Don’t you have a Korean name?”

Key cringed at the question, it being one he really hated to answer. He gritted his teeth and pushed on. “Key is what my friends call me. I’ve gotten so used to it now that I rarely use my Korean name anymore. Oh… and it’s nice to meet you too Minho. Though I must admit you make quite a terrible first impression.”

Minho chuckled at the response, unsure as to how he was the one that had made a bad first impression.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I make a damn fine first impression. You… Wasn’t it you who hit me over the head earlier? Now would you call that a good first impression because I personally wouldn’t. And are you gonna bother to tell me your Korean name or not?”

Both men seemed to have a sprinkle of brashness in their tones as they spoke to each other, the one not wanting to be out-done by the other, though Minho was far more delicate in his brashness while Key couldn’t have been bothered to hide his cheek behind charm.  

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I had nothing to do with the lump on your forehead.” Key patently lied to the other, “and I really don’t think it’s your business, as someone I just met, to know what my Korean name is.’ He finished surely.
   “A-huh! I knew it. You are a conman.” Key’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets before he stopped them, unable to believe what he’d just heard.

“What?!” he said in incredulity. “Are you crazy? What does me not wanting to give you my real name have anything to do with being a conman?” he asked, he was almost certain that his expression was giving him away but he decided to continue with his act.

“It has everything to do with it.” Minho laughed quite condescendingly in Key’s opinion, “I know your type too well.”

“My type?! You don’t even know me .”

“Shhh!”

“Don’t ‘shhh’ me!” Key was beyond annoyed. He was offended that this stranger was calling him a conman, although he was one, without even knowing him. Who did he think he was anyway, right? Key crossed his arms furiously and looked in front of him, deciding to ignore this accusatory man. He wasn’t about to be insulted multiple times by one man in a plane all in the space of plus-minus three hours since they’d woken up.  To Key’ distaste, the man next to him simply decided to also look to his front and ignore him.

Key doesn’t like to be ignored.

“What do you care what I do for a living in any case?” Key solicited, body turning to face the other man. His brow furrowed at Minho’s victorious smirk. “So you’re not denying that you’re a scam artist?” he simply asked. Key fumed and cooled back down in the matter of a second, his body going slack in defeat in his chair.

“No, I’m not denying it.” He confessed for reasons unknown, eyes peeking at the other man from their corners. Minho simply kept silent, unnerving Key just a tad more than he liked to be unnerved.

“Wha-,” Key began and Minho turned to expectantly look at him. “So…  What do you plan on doing with this information?” Key asked, trying to hide the uncertainty in his own voice.

“I’m handing you in.” Minho said, a leer playing on his lips as he watched the others’ eyes widen in what seems like despair. He was close to hysterical laughter when Key spoke again, his voice revealing something close to fear.

“Y-you wouldn’t, would you?” Eyes wide, hands starting to shake, lips between his teeth, Key imagined how Onew would react if he got a call telling him that he was in internatiobnal police custody for being an alleged scam artist. Key’s eyes widen even further.

Onew would be very ashamed of him.

The thought rendered him immobile and for a split second, Minho started to worry that he literally scared him to death.

“Key…” Minho said, his voice barely audible, “Are you okay.” It was his turn to ask that question. Key didn’t answer. His eyes were still wide and his lips parted to form a big, quivering “O”.  Minho smiled at the cuteness of it before moving in to place a big fat flat palm on his forehead, his hand causing a slapping sound as his palm made quick contact with the other’s head.

“WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?” Key all but shouted, some of the other commuters turned to look at him questioningly. His face suddenly burned red in embarrassment.

“What the hell!” he said again, this time in an angry whisper. Minho gave him a charmed smile and then proceeded to lean in and whisper into his ear.

 “You looked scared there for a moment, you completely zoned out on me. I figured I’d give you a hand.” He lifted his hand in demonstration and Key flinched as Minho’s hand made its way back to his forehead, now rubbing the sore spot in little circular motions.

“That was sore.” Key complained trying not to enjoy the tingling sensation the other man’s hand created on his head.  

“Then call it even.” Minho smiled charmingly back at him.

  “Fine!”

“Fine.” The assassin agreed and then removed his hand from the other. Key gave him an underhanded look and then hurriedly darted his eyes back to his feet. Observant as he was, Minho didn’t miss it.

“What?” he asked the other, who resumed his earlier act with the look of a kicked puppy. Key folded his arms tighter and glared at the other, lips forming a pronounced pout. Minho laughed unbelievably at how adorable the other looked and despite his wiser-self warning him to tread cautiously around such deceptively appealing waters, the man’s softer side got the best of him.

“Are you really going to report me?” Key asked in a sulky voice, pout still prominent as hell. Another laugh escaped Minho before he shook his head ever-so-slightly in disbelief.

“No,” he said, finally turning back to face the seat in front of him knowing very well that he just let himself get caught in the net he had been keen to avoid just hours ago. He wasn’t sure how it was possible for complete strangers to become so quickly acquainted with one another but mind you, Minho was well aware of the danger in making fast friends. Key and Minho weren’t, in the least sense of the word, friends.

 They were just two people who had met in a plane on their way somewhere. Minho tried not to overthink his first impression of Key back in the airport. It had been a strange feeling for a man like him. Instant attraction was it? He didn’t really know, but whatever it was he was bound to be consumed by it if he wasn’t careful.

 Key beamed at the answer he received from the other man and a devious grin worked its way across his face. Minho looked at him with questioning eyes, he had a feeling that he knew what the other was thinking but he ignored that feeling, acting as though he didn’t know what next to expect.

“What?” he asked as Key continued to stare at him with that wicked smile playing on his face. For a second, Key was tempted to tell him all the ways he had thought of to swindle the hell out of him, but he didn’t. He simply made the decision to follow through with his plans before he could back down.

“Nothing” was his response when he noticed Minho’s brow furrow slightly. And when the man turned to face his seat again Key couldn’t help but to give himself a small pat on the back for his the new goals he’d set himself that he was certain he could achieve.

He had found his new prey.

***

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Keke....okay, so maybe my idea of fun isn't fun at all but I really liked their interaction. I always pictured them meeting in such a way. But... that's probably just me.

Any whoo, I'd like to know what you think so please don't hesitate to leave me a comment and tell me if you liked that or if you didn't. I think it went well... let me know.

Next chapt might take longer to arrive but I promise you some Key and Taeminnie interaction...
Can I say it's gonna be fun...??? :3 

lol, you can decide that on you own.

Byeeeeee :D