How had he not seen it before? Beauty could only excuse so much. The shoulders were just a little too broad, the neck just a little too wide. She was tall, but tall girls did exist, and being so tall would account for the slight masculinity.

But how could he have not seen it? All the times they talked together, walked together, held hands, kissed...

Taeyeon was a boy.

He fell in love with a boy.

Minho felt like ramming his head into the window, but refrained. Instead, he stood there, watching him. He went about his business, unaware that the man he had deceived was watching him through the window, trying to decide how to approach him.

He had convinced himself that he needed to see him. He needed to settle things. He needed to let him explain.

He watched him smile, and his heart almost melted, but he kept his feelings in check. That wasn't the girl he fell in love with. He had fallen in love with a lie.

Though Minho was reluctant, he forced himself to enter the small restaurant. The bell signaled his arrival, letting Taeyeon and anyone else working know he was there.

The pretty cross dresser and his blonde co-worker both looked his way. Taeyeon's smile immediately dropped. So did the co-worker’s, as if she knew something had happened between them. Minho wondered if she knew the truth, or if Taeyeon was deceiving them as well.

Minho decided not to waste any time. He walked directly up to him. "Can we talk?"

He answered him with a nod, then turned to the blonde, "Can I take my break now, Sunny?"

"Sure," she said. She glanced between then two of them, before giving Taeyeon an encouraging rub on the arm, then leaving to do her job.

Taeyeon walked passed Minho to the door and he followed him out to the side of the building. The waiter looked around briefly, to make sure there was no one around to overhear them. Minho stalked back and forth slowly, with his hands in his pockets, trying to figure out which question to ask first.

Taeyeon stood there uncomfortably, with one arm crossed over the other. "I thought you would have left town," he said, first to interrupt the long silence.

"I had considered it," Minho admitted. He stopped his pacing and turned to face the nervous waiter, noting his sullen expression. "Why didn't you tell me?" he simply came out and asked.

"I told you I didn't want anything serious. It was supposed to be one date. I didn't--" He stopped himself and sighed heavily.

"You could have told me sooner."

"I tried."

"When? The first date, or the fifth?"

"Every date. The first one, when we were in the car. And every time after that, I decided I would tell you...but then I couldn't bring myself to do it."

"Why?"

"I guess...I did like you, in a way." He stood there, staring down at the ground, lost in his guilt and sadness. As Minho watched him, he had the urge to feel sorry for him, but he also kept that feeling in check. "I liked how you made me feel. Like...something in my life was normal."

"I would hardly call this normal," Minho remarked.

Their uncomfortable conversation paused again. Minho thought back to their first date, how uncomfortable Taeyeon had been, how he had convinced him to go out with him again, how every time after that, he was still reluctant, still uncomfortable. He remembered their conversation in the car, then their conversation on the curb...he had tried telling him. Minho just never wanted to listen.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what else I can say."

"Do they know?" Minho asked, pointing to the restaurant.

"My boss knows, but he...doesn't get it. He just thinks I'm gay."

"And you aren't?"

"No," he answered immediately, "Most cross-dressers aren't."

"Well I must be," Minho grumbled to himself, annoyed.

He noticed Taeyeon smiling softly, but the moment he looked at him, he stopped.

"What are you going to do?" Taeyeon asked, after it was clear their conversation wasn't going anywhere else.

"I don't know."

"I should go back," he said, nodding toward the restaurant. He took a step closer to him and stood more confidently than before, looking as beautiful as ever. "Good bye, Minho." He turned and headed back, leaving Minho standing there alone.

"Is Taeyeon even your real name?" he asked, causing the waiter to stop.

"No.”

"What is it?"

He paused briefly, then answered very simply. "It's Taemin."