For Jonghyun, it was easy to be around Onew. The jokester and the gagman, dumb and dumber, the lead vocalists, the SHINee 'elders,' whatever you wanted to call the pair. They had enough in common that they could strike up a conversation at any time, and they had such a similar sense of humor that they could make a joke out of anything, when they were together.

For Jonghyun, it was easy to be around Key. The two had been good friends even before SHINee's debut, and their friendship had only grown stronger since then. They were so comfortable around each other that they could be married. Key would nag Jonghyun, and Jonghyun would tease Key in response, frustrating the diva, which made the vocalist laugh.

For Jonghyun, it was easy to be around Minho. They were the 'manly men' of SHINee. They often went to the gym together, and although not much talking occurred there, the sharing of towels, water bottles, and taking showers in the gym's bathroom had definitely deepened their bond. They had started sharing a room as well, because it was so easy and relaxing for the pair to be around each other.

In his band, there was only one member that was difficult for Jonghyun to be around. Taemin. Not because Jonghyun didn't like him, no, not at all. Quite the opposite in fact. It was because he loved him. During their debut days, Jonghyun unconsciously expressed this love by caring for Taemin, always watching over him, smiling when he smiled, laughing when he laughed, giving Taemin strength by patting him on the back whenever he was nervous, little things like that. Taemin had really come to admire his hyung because of his kindness. Through this admiration, the maknae began to see other traits of Jonghyun that he liked. "He's a smart hyung," Taemin had once said. No one noticed, but it had made Jonghyun giddy with happiness.

Just like this, Jonghyun continued to care for Taemin from afar, his love and adoration growing stronger all the time, and Taemin's admiration for his hyung growing all the while as well.

Though they cared for each other deeply, the could never seem to become closer. Jonghyun believed this was because they were on two different levels. Taemin was young, innocent, and naive, while he was older, experienced, and he had less faith in the world. Sometimes Taemin would cry because kids at school were mean to him, or because something tragic would come up in the news that he could do nothing about. Jonghyun didn't want for Taemin to have to learn the hard way that this world was actually full of betrayal and tragedy, but he didn't have the heart to tell him, and he didn't know how to comfort the crying boy, so he was just watch form the shadows, crying from his own heartbreak that occurred when Taemin was unhappy.

Jonghyun knew that he should try to become closer to Taemin, but he didn't know how do that without making Taemin feel uncomfortable. Each day, he would ask himself, "What can I do to make him happy?" but he could never find an answer. Before Jonghyun knew it, Taemin had grown up right before his eyes. And in the time Jonghyun had been pondering how to get closer to Taemin, the maknae had already grown closer to his other hyungs, making the relationship between the two seem even weaker in comparison.

But none of the other members would ever care for Taemin as deeply as Jonghyun did. That's why, as he and Jonghyun drifted apart, Taemin grew more lonely. He missed seeing his hyung's calming smile, feeling his hand going through his hair, missed the way Jonghyun used to call, "Taeminnie," in a voice full of adoration. Jonghyun was growing lonely, too. He missed Taemin smiling up at him, or teasing him lovingly. But neither of them knew what to do about it.

Months went by, and because he was deprived of the care that only Jonghyun could give him, Taemin was turning into a bitter and tired man. His dark eyes that used to resemble ink, a lukewarm liquid, were now serious and unrelenting, like obsidian, a cold, black stone. He used to wear a happy smile no matter what, but now, his smiles were rare, and even then they were forced. He was frightening. SHINee's worldwide fanbase was worried about Taemin, as were the other members.

One night, long after Taemin had fallen asleep and began snoring softly, Key tiptoed into Jonghyun and Minho's room, dragging a sleepy Onew behind him. Key closed the door behind him and Onew, then the light and woke up the sleeping boys.

"What do you want, Kibum?" Minho muttered, turning away from Key. "It's 3 in the morning, go to sleep."

Onew sat down in a chair in the corner of the room while Key continued trying to wake up Minho. 

"We need to have a family meeting. Wake up, Minho! It's about Taemin. I'm worried about him."

As soon as Key said the word 'Taemin,' Jonghyun and Minho sprang up from their beds, and Onew perked up in his chair as well. Key huffed in relief. "That's better," he said.


The four oldest members of SHINee sat at the small table in the corner of the bedroom, looking down at their hands in silence. Onew was the first to break the silence.

"So..." Onew said miserably, "Taemin..."

And then Key broke down sobbing. 

"What am I doing wrong?" he cried. "My son is so unhappy. Am I not giving him enough love? I know I feed him well. Is he lonely? Does he want a girlfriend? Did someone hurt him? I'll kill anyone who dares make my baby unhappy. But why... why is Taemin so bitter these days?"Key put his head down in the table and buried his face in his arms.

Minho put an arm around Key and gave his shoulder a squeeze. 

"You're not doing anything wrong, Kibum. Taemin's just... tired," he said, trying to calm down the crying boy, but it gave him no comfort. 

"He talks to you the most, doesn't he Key?" asked Onew.

"I guess so," said Key, sniffling. "When he's in a good mood, we'll talk and laugh and have fun together, but something's always off. When something funny happens, he'll laugh freely for a minute, but after the laughing dies down, his eyes will narrow and he'll make a snide remark under his breath. It's so scary. When I ask him if he's alright, he'll put a smile back on and laugh and say, 'Why wouldn't I be?' but I can tell it's forced. And when he's in a bad mood..." Key's lip trembled at the though, and he starts crying harder. "Yesterday... Taemin was exhausted, and when I asked him if he needed anything... he said he needed me to get out of his life." Key spoke between sobs.

Jonghyun sat there silently the whole time, each word like an arrow piercing his heart. 

What should we do?" Onew asked.

"I think," began Minho, "tomorrow he won't be getting home until 11 p.m. That's later than all of us. Why don't we wait until he gets home, then, calmly and lovingly, we'll tell him that we're worried about him, and that we're always here for him, and that we love him, and hopefully, even if not immediately, he'll warm up to us."

Onew nodded in agreement, and Key stopped crying long enough to say, "That's a good idea."

"And you, Jonghyun?" Minho asked.

"Huh? Oh... yeah. Sounds good," he responded blankly. Key glared at Jonghyun with fierce eyes.

"Look Jonghyun. If we're going to do this right tomorrow, then we're going to need your full attention. I don't know how much you love our little Taemin, but you're going to have to pour out all your affection tomorrow."

Jonghyun met Kibum's glare.

"I love him more than you know, Kibum. Don't worry, I'll do my best tomorrow," he said icily. Jonghyun stood up and said, "let's go back to bed now, shall we?" and laid back down on his bed. He heard Onew and Key leave to go back to the bedroom they shared with Taemin, then heard Minho climb into his bed, and after a few minutes, soft snoring. But it wasn't the snoring that kept Jonghyun up all night.


The next day at 10:55 p.m., the four SHINee members sat int he living room, waiting anxiously for their maknae's return. Minho and Key sat on the floor, backs against the couch, legs outstretched, hand in hand. Key kept fidgeting with his clothes because he was nervous. Jonghyun and Onew sat on opposite ends of the couch, the oldest with his head resting on his tucked-in knees, the second oldest resting his head on a fist. At 10:58 p.m., Taemin reached home.

He slammed the door shut behind him, kicked off his shoes, mumbled a quick 'hello' through gritted teeth, then proceeded to rush past the living room where his hyungs sat toward his own room. Minho stood up and blocked his path. Calmly, he put his hands on Taemin's shoulders, but immediately they were shaken off violently by a very irritated maknae. 

"What do you think you're doing, hyung." Taemin hissed. 

Key already looked like he was going to cry.

"We just needed to talk to you about something, Taemin, that's all." Onew said in a voice that did not indicated any seriousness. Taemin, his back still turned to the 3 oldest members, in a few big breaths through his teeth to calm himself down.

He turned around slowly, his posture slumped so it looked tired, but tensed so it seemed defensive. Minho stayed standing behind him just in case Taemin tried to make a run for it.

"What do you need to talk about." the question came out as a statement. Key sniffled once, then spoke in a trembling voice.

"We... we are all very worried about you Taemin." 

Onew nodded in agreement. Jonghyun stayed silent, just watching Taemin. The maknae's face did not soften on bit. He looked like he was trying to hold back his anger. Key swallowed the lump in his throat and continued.

"You just seem so tired these days, and you never talk to us, even me, about it. Not that you have to... but whenever I ask you if you're doing okay you either fake a smile and say yes or you snap at me and--" Key choked on a sob and a single tear spilled over. "And we just want you to know that we love you, we're always here for you. To talk to you, or just to be with you. I don't know about the others... but I've always thought of SHINee as my family. And I really can't stand to see any of you in pain. For some reason, especially you, Taemin. I'm not saying you have to be happy 24/7, anyone would get annoyed by that, it's okay to be angry or sad sometimes, I know I nag you all the time, but I just... I just--"

"Enough." said Taemin.

Taemin no longer looked enraged. His face was now contorted with pain; with agony.

"Enough." he said again, softly this time. He hung his head. Everyone watched in silence as Taemin balled his hands into fists and looked up again. His expression was so tortured that it was painful to look at. He looked at Key first.

"I'm really fine, you don't have to worry," but his voice was on the verge of breaking. He looked at Onew, who was sniffling like an idiot. 

"I'm sorry for making you worry, however, you really don't have to," but his eyes were wide open and wild-looking, nearing insanity. Taemin glanced over his shoulder to look at Minho. 

"I think of you all as my family as well, I would tell you if something the bothering me," but the smile that he forced out right then turned into an ugly grimace that was also painful to look at. Lastly, Taemin turned to Jonghyun, the agony in his eyes hurting Jonghyun's heart.

"I love you, too."

Then Taemin bit his lip and turned away from Jonghyun, looking down again. His knees started shaking, and a single tear it the floor by his foot. Without another word, Taemin walked out of the living room towards his own room. As soon as the door to the bedroom opened and closed, Key broke down in sobs. Minho walked over to him and attempted to comfort him, but he was too busy holding back his own tears to do much good. 

"My baby, my son," Key cried. "Someone help him. Someone make him happy, please."

Everyone was silent.

"I'll go." 

All eyes turned to Jonghyun as he rose off the couch and headed towards Taemin's bedroom.

"Wasn't expecting that one," Onew murmured. "Be kind to my son, Kim Jonghyun, or I won't forgive you!" Kibum called after him. Jonghyun stepped inside Taemin's room, closing the door behind him.


Taemin was in the corner of the room, crying hysterically. His back was to the wall, knees brought up to his chest. His elbows were on his knees, hands gripping his head. He was crying so hard that he had to gasp deeply for air every few seconds. As soon as Taemin saw that Jonghyun had entered the room, he shouted at him, "Get away! Get out of my sight!" and started throwing things at Jonghyun. A book, a pen, a dirty t-shirt, anything that was in his reach. Jonghyun caught them all one by one and dropped them on the floor as he crossed the room.

Jonghyun knelt down in front of the crying boy. Gently, he brushed the golden locks out of Taemin's face. 

"We really do love you, Taemin. We're more than willing to carry your burden for you, so please, share your pain with us. Let us make it easier for you." Taemin looked up at Jonghyun from under his wet eyelashes.

Taemin couldn't find his mouth to speak. He just stared at Jonghyun silently, trying to form words, but they only came out as sobs. 

"Shh," Jonghyun cooed, continuing to run his fingers through Taemin's hair. 

"Let us take away your pain. The last thing I want is to see you unhappy."

It struck Taemin that Jonghyun had said 'I,' and not 'we,' but before the surprise could register, Jonghyun leaned in and kissed the top of his head. Softly, like a father or an older brother would do. Letting instinct take over, because he couldn't tell right from wrong or up from down anymore, Taemin held out his arms to Jonghyun like the frail little boy he was. Jonghyun smiled sadly; faintly, and pulled in the fragile child gently, so that he was cradling Taemin in his lap, head resting against Jonghyun's chest. They stayed like that for a few minutes, before Taemin calmed down, and finally spoke.

"Hyung?"

"Yes, Taemin?" Jonghyun asked. His soft, melodious voice calmed the crying child.

"We fly back and forth between Japan and Korea almost every day. And then at the very least, once a month, we go somewhere else. We're traveling the world, but we're not really seeing it. It's so frustrating. We only go the places we go to make money. Of course, it means more to us. The fans are everything to me. But to be this popular internationally... I can't handle it. I would have been happier as a member of H.O.T., I think. Always staying in Korea, but still, famous as one can be. Loved by the country. Putting a smile on people's faces. Dedicating all our time to one country. Now, people are demanding us from every corner of the world. I miss our debut days when all we were focused on was becoming popular in Korea. We had time to perform in small towns here, but now, it's rare for us to even have a concert in Seoul. I suppose you could called it homesickness..." 

Jonghyun held Taemin closer, staring into his eyes, mesmerized by the way they were melting. From cold and stony, back into warm and inky. Taemin stared back, mesmerized by the light of happiness in his hyung's eyes. That light gave Taemin strength, and he continued.

"I guess the reason that I never told anyone was because I never realized why I was so sad. The traveling and lack of sleep always became worth it when the fans enjoyed our performance, or just our presence. But I guess that it finally got up to me, all the built up sadness."

Jonghyun nodded, indicating that he understood everything. He leaned in close to Taemin's face, his cheek. 

"Poor baby. So much sadness you carried around with you for such a long time." Taemin gulped as as Jonghyun let their foreheads touch. "Thank you for letting it out and telling me, it means a lot to me that you trust me enough to do so. I'm glad you stopped crying," he said with a soft smile, wiping a stray tear off Taemin's face. Then Jonghyun sat up straight, looking at the wall, but still holding onto the young boy. 

"You know Taemin, you're really young. I know you hear that all the time, but it's true. Minho would have been our maknae if you hadn't come along, and you're a whole 2 years younger than him. You were so young when we debuted, and even younger when you auditioned. Back then all you wanted to do was dance. It was your passion. You didn't know what you had signed up for. I bet you feel cheated because of that." 

Taemin clung to his hyung's shirt, but stayed silent, because all of this was true. Jonghyun kept Taemin's face, looking at the wall, and continued. 

"Remember what Changmin hyung told us? He said that it will be hard being in Japan so often at first. A new country, a new language, new people, new culture, different food. But the people there, our beautiful fans, will always be there supporting us. And soon, Japan will become our second home. As for the rest of the world..." Jonghyun looked down at Taemin. "We always want what we can't have Taemin. The world wishes they could be in your shoes. And I know you would gladly trade places with them, but to our fans, you are irreplaceable. We really have to be grateful for what we have. I know there are days where you just feel like giving up. But just remember, the world loves you. That thought always gives me strength, and I hope you can gain strength from it as well, Taemin."

The maknae broke his gaze away from Jonghyun; he was lost in thought. "Words have power, and I hope mine have had some impact on you, but is there anything else you need, Taemin? Something that will make life easier for you? I'm willing to give it to you, just tell me what it is you need."

Taemin looked at Jonghyun for a long moment. Then, he locked his arms around Jonghyun's neck, and whispered in his ear. "There's someone that I need. I've always admired him, and over time, I came to love him. I never thought he loved me back, because he was never the one comfort me. But now, in my time of need, he told me exactly what I needed to hear." Jonghyun's heart started beating harder.

"Tell me who. I'll make sure you and this lucky person get together and stay together for as long as you want," Jonghyun said, a little confused. The description sounded like him, but Jonghyun couldn't be sure...

"I need you, Jonghyun hyung. I need you to be there for me always like you are right now. It can't be anyone but you," whispered Taemin.

Jonghyun gently pulled Taemin back so he could look him the eye. He cracked a smile and then bit his lip. He felt tears of happiness sting his yes. 

"I thought you'd never ask," breathed Jonghyun. 

He slowly closed the inch-wide space between them and met Taemin half way for a slow kiss.

Jonghyun could taste the saltiness of Taemin's tears. He it away and then Taemin's mouth opened to meet Jonghyun's tongue with his own. They tasted each other's mouths, playfully at first, but as Jonghyun's heart swelled with love and lust, he gently laid Taemin down right there on the hardwood floor, positioning himself on top of the maknae, winning the fight for dominance with his devilish tongue as Taemin submitted to Jonghyun completely. 

"You're mine," Jonghyun purred into their kiss.

"I love you," Taemin moaned.

Although it tasted salty because of tears of happiness, their kissing was sweet. There was no rush or urgency to it. It was full of love and care and happiness. The soft sounds of their lips twisting together were lost in the darkness of the bedroom. Jonghyun's hands found the bottom of Taemin's shirt and began to pull it off the younger boy's body. His hands pushed up on the fabric, touching every part of Taemin's front side on the way up. They broke the kiss for a fraction of a second as Jonghyun pulled Taemin's shirt off him, and then resumed it as soon as it was gone. The hardwood floor was cold to Taemin's back at first, but not for long as their bodies began to heat up from sweet passion.

Taemin's hands that were locked behind Jonghyun's backed began to pull up his shirt as well. It was off in some corner before either of them knew it. Jonghyun broke their sweet kiss to on other parts of Taemin's milky skin. He used his whole mouth: lips, tongue, teeth, and all on Taemin's slender neck. Then he moved to the collarbone, leaving a trail of kisses. He the skin there, and then moved to the shoulder and bit it softly. All Taemin could do under Jonghyun was enjoy and trace lines on his hyung's tan back. He moaned and purred at every , kiss, bite, and touch.

Jonghyun had made his way halfway down Taemin's chest when the younger boy really started loudly and panting. Jonghyun slowly made his way back up and kissed Taemin again, every so sweetly. He moved their mouths together, but gradually decreased the speed of their kiss. When the kiss finally ended, Taemin locked his arms around Jonghyun's back once again, and moved him so that they were on their sides facing each other. Taemin kept a hand on Jonghyun's back, and Jonghyun kept a hand on Taemin's head, playing with his golden locks. It was around midnight now, and they lay there in the dark smiling at each other.

"I would've gone all the way, but I value your innocence too much, even if you are of age now," Jonghyun half-joked, smiling.

Taemin giggled. "Can't say I disagree," he whispered.

"But one of these days, I might lose myself..." Jonghyun hinted mischievously. 

"Can't wait," Taemin said, excitement showing in his voice.

"One day, we'll be in a fancy 5-star hotel somewhere in the tropics after a concert, and we'll have fun in a fancy canopy bed that night. All night." Jonghyun fantasized aloud.

Taemin giggled again, shyly. "I think I can get over my 'homesickness' that way." 

Jonghyun smiled widely. He pressed one kiss to to Taemin's temple, then lingered by his ear. "I belong to you and no one else. I love you, Taemin." 

The maknae tightened his grip on Jonghyun's . "I love you, too."


When Onew, Key, and Minho entered the room one hour later, they found Jonghyun and Taemin sleeping next to each other on the floor, holding hands. Taemin had a smile playing on his lips. Onew draped a blanket over the sleeping boys. 

"My baby," Key whispered, "he looks happy." 

Minho laughed silently and nodded in agreement. "Come on," he whispered, "Onew hyung, Kibum, let's sleep in my room tonight. Let these two be alone." 

The 3 boys stepped out of the room, leaving a no-longer-bitter Taemin and a happier-than-ever Jonghyun to sleep together in peace. 




A/N: I love this pairing and I was deprived of Jongtae so I just wrote this. lmao, i hope you liked it :)