The next day was uncomfortable, to put it lightly. Taemin and Kibum were still tense from the night before and riding  fines line between awkward gazes, trying to avoid each other, and each trying to apologize to the other before backing out at the last second. Jonghyun could sense the stress emanating off the other two and after allowing them both to wallow in their respective bubbles of guilt for the entire morning, he decided to be the one to break the ice between them and put an end to the awkwardness when he figured Taemin would probably bolt for his own apartment if he didn't.

So he did the logical thing and called them both to the living room, seating them down on the now well worn  white leather couch as he stood in front of them with crossed arms like a disappointed father about to chastise his sons for bad behavior.

"Um, Jonghyun hyung, is something the mat-"

"Give me a sec, Taem. I know you two have been dancing around each other all morning, would you care to explain?" Kibum gave Jonghyun the best stink eye he could before opening his mouth.

"You know, we're obviously not really in the mood to talk about it, so if you could just let it slide-"

"Kibum," Jonghyun's eyes were hard, his voice surprisingly stern; a far cry from his usual humorous self, "this is important. I want to know why you guys argued." Kibum was silent for a moment before he turned to Taemin, the other boy's short curt nod signaling Kibum to explain.

"I guess we just had another little argument last night. You know, about the tenth world stuff. We argue sometimes because in reality, neither of us knows what it's like and well, sometimes we're afraid it's a farce or something. Like everything we're working towards is going to amount to nothing in the end." Kibum's voice wavered slightly as he trailed off, Taemin's hand automatically reaching over to soothingly pat his leg.

"We're just scared," the younger boy continued, "that maybe...we won't be able to actually meet." The two laced their fingers together on Kibum's thigh and smiled softly at each other, as though willing the bad feelings away. Jonghyun's heart clenched watching them, so he cleared his throat to get their attention and revealed what he thought he'd never have to talk about again.

"It's not a farce. It's real. And I have proof."

***

"So, why did you never tell me about this before?" Kibum huffed, flipping through the small, battered up journal Jonghyun had handed him a few moments ago. "I mean, isn't this against the 'no secrets ever' code we set up when we moved in together?"

"I know, I know, but I was only doing what I had to do to respect him."

"Okay, so start over again because I'm still a little lost and I'm trying to process all of this here. So Jinki was your friend?" Taemin started.

"Who somehow managed to teleport himself into Taemin's 'real-world' dimension?" Kibum finished for him, still scanning the pages of the journal.

"Yeah, basically, hold on a sec, give me that." Jonghyun reached over to snatch the journal away from Kibum, inspecting it for a moment to check for any wear and tear Kibum might've accidentally caused, before holding it up to the both of them. "So my best friend in elementary school before Kibum was Jinki. We were the same age so we became friends pretty easily and well, friends share all their secrets, right? We'd already known each other for a few years before he told me he'd started researching how to get into 'the other world'. That's what he called it at least."

"So he meant my world?" Taemin piped up.

"Yeah, exactly. I'm hoping so at least because my brain can barely keep track of my own dimension let alone two. I'll be damned if there's tons more. So anyway, Jinki told me he was planning on escaping this place. So I asked him what he was talking about and he said he'd been researching some restricted sections in some of the older libraries back in the day from before they got torn down for housing information that violated the sweepers' codes. Information like what Jinki got his hands on. He told me he was finding some pretty interesting stuff, so naturally I inquired about it.

"I realized Jinki was talking about escaping our dimension only after he took me with him to some of those old libraries. He showed me a bunch of websites he'd been visiting, too. Jinki was smart, he knew he had to wipe his drive every time he used his computer to research that stuff."

"Why's that?" Taemin wondered aloud.

"Remember how when you first came here, we told you about the dickbots?" Kibum asked him. Taemin nodded. "Well that was probably why. I know for a fact that if you use electronics to look up some questionable stuff, they can trace your IP address and find you. It's not hard to exterminate you after that. They literally get rid of anyone who they feel could be a threat to the way of our world. Don't they have something similar in your world?" Taemin thought briefly to the masses of security his parents always had patrolling their estate and of police and SWAT teams before he shook his head at Kibum. Taemin didn't think any of the forces in his world were that terrifying.

"That's exactly why," Jonghyun continued, "Jinki already knew he was going about some dangerous business, but he never told me exactly how dangerous until he'd already started formulating his plan for escape. I knew it was strange research, and I probably shouldn't talk to anybody about it, but I was naive as ever, I was probably what, 15? 16 tops? I think Jinki knew that too, that I wasn't fully aware of the situation, so he used that to his advantage. Some days I'm still mad that he kept me in the dark about it for so long. So when he'd thought up a rough blueprint for his escape, he finally told me everything. He told me about all the secret research he'd been keeping from me - that no, it wasn't just for leisure, that he wanted to change his life.

"He told me his main reason was because he always felt like he was living in a prison with the sweepers, what with them not allowing curiosity and sending everyone to - well basically hell if they so much as asked a question that seemed too curious. He told me he wanted to get away from the strict authorities so he could stop having such a short leash around his neck. To be honest, I'm still not quite sure that was the real reason, or at least not the entire one. But Jinki was definitely curious by nature and I guess something like that really did bother him inside. Jinki was probably made to be an inventor or explorer or something, something that requires a lot of dedication to expanding your knowledge. Something he definitely couldn't do here."

Jonghyun trailed off for a moment, seemingly lost in thought. Taemin and Kibum waited patiently without interrupting him. Kibum just squeezed Taemin's palm a little tighter and Taemin glanced over at him through the corner of his eye. Kibum had known Jonghyun way longer than Taemin had, and now, to learn that someone had known Jonghyun so well even years before either of them? Taemin could see how much Jonghyun loved Kibum. He could only imagine how much he must be missing a friend he shared even more of his life with.

Eventually Jonghyun came to and continued his story. "Right, so when Jinki finalized his plans he ran them by me. It seemed dangerous to be honest because he was basically going to deprive himself of his being in his dimension to try to materialize himself in the next. I don't know what the hell he was smoking when he came up with that theory, but he told me he was going to use a lot of meditation and isolation to distance himself from this world, first. Even I couldn't be allowed in the chambers he holed himself up in. He cut off contact with everyone and then he started some sort of self hypnotization or something. I'd say meditation but I think meditation is supposed to be peaceful.

He didn't eat or drink anything and kept himself locked in there for days, in some hypnotized state. I think the idea was to completely lose touch with reality in this world - essential disembody himself from his form in this dimension. I worried about him so much, I remember banging on the door so many times but there was never any answer. So one day as I was hanging around outside I heard some insane noises from inside and I was so scared that Jinki had run himself mad so I tried to open the door and the door actually opened and I ripped it open so fast I remember I thought I was going to wrench it off its hinges."

At this point, Jonghyun closed his eyes briefly before reopening them and staring off to the side a little, as though remembering the moment in his mind, replaying the scene again as he told it. "All I remember seeing was an odd flash of white light...or was it blue? Honestly I couldn't tell and it's been years so maybe my mind's just foggy. But I just saw what looked like Jinki's leg and I thought the light was him in or something and I was just terrified so I ran to him - or tried at least, but I felt like I couldn't reach him. Then the light disappeared so fast I thought maybe I had imagined it or something. It was so fast I can't even explain it, less than the time it took me to blink. And then Jinki wasn't there. He was just...gone."

Taemin felt a chill run down his spine. He thought about the points in Jonghyun's story that stood out to him the most. Isolating himself from society? Keeping secrets? Obsessed with a different world? Those were all symptoms Taemin already knew he had fallen prey to. He wondered how long it would be before he came up with a crazy idea like Jinki's. He wondered how long it would be before he was crazy enough to go through with it.

"So what did you do then?" Kibum asked, his voice a small whisper. As though he was afraid to ask but he just couldn't stop himself. As though asking as quietly as possible would somehow cushion the weight behind the question.

"If I'm being honest, immediately afterwards I cried. I was just so scared and confused and I had no idea what had just happened. I just sat on the floor and screamed and cried for a while, until my throat was raw. I remember, because it hurt like a afterwards and I had a sore throat for two days. Then I actually looked around because it was the first time I'd been in Jinki's - dare I call it his lair? And that's when I found this envelope."

Jonghyun withdrew from the back of the journal a small white envelope laden with crease marks from the innumerable times it had been folded and handed it to Kibum's outstretched hand. The seal looked like it had been torn with haste, ripping down the envelope in some places as though the reader couldn't wait to get to the contents inside.

"I found that with my name addressed on it on a chair in the room. I figured he wrote it before he locked himself in there and just left it there for me to find. I was the only one who knew of his hideaway so I guess it was guaranteed I'd get it. Jinki was always one for big, intricate plans. And even if he wasn't there to see it through he always knew it'd go the exact way he planned..." When Jonghyun trailed off, Taemin and Kibum quickly busied themselves with opening and unfolding the letter, pretending not to notice Jonghyun swipe quickly at his eyes with the back of his hand.

Kibum carefully unfolded the letter, the page so worn it was slack in his hands, and spread it across his lap.

"This thing has definitely seen better days." Taemin commented, angling his head better to view the letter clearly from where it lay on Kibum's thighs.

"My dearest Jonghyun," Kibum began aloud, "If you're reading this, it means my plans have succeeded. I've made it past the bounds of this world and into a new one. I know you will most undoubtedly be mourning my departure. I am too, I promise you. I thought of you the entire time I went through with this. But I know you will be happy for me because you and only you knows how much I wanted this. I really wouldn't have made it anywhere stuck here and we both know it. There is so much more potential out there for me, you know? I must go explore it and map all the worlds I can. There is so much more than what we are tied to, here. I have already left a short apology note to my family explaining my absence. A short lie about trying to go abroad in search of my true calling. In a way, it's not entirely a lie, is it? I trust you to keep my secret. Revealing what you know will only get you a one-way trip to Tinker Town, anyways. You've always kept our secrets well, and this is one you must never reveal to anyone untrustworthy of it.

My Jonghyun, in my study you will find my journal. The brown leather-backed one you always teased me for scribbling in day in day out like a girl? That one, you will find it in the first drawer by my bedside in my study. There is a key I have left for the journal and I want you to always keep it with you. That journal holds all my research, all the ideas I had whilst concocting this getaway trip. It also holds the final blueprints of my plan as well as reference names of sources I used while searching for information. I would've taken it with me, but I'm not sure how this new world will be. If it will be safe to have it with me. But alas, I cannot burn it, Jonghyun. I cannot rid myself of the months of hard work I put into this. All that information I have stored in my brain, but I want you to keep the original copy. I have no way of knowing if I will ever be able to contact you again, but if I shall ever need that information again and I do find a way of reaching out to you, you will have it with you. Keep it safe for me, and out of sight. I trust you will not disappoint me. You never have.

My Jonghyun...how bitter it is to leave you behind. I truly love you like my own brother and it hurts me so to let you go like this, but I could not bring you. We do not feel the same way about escaping this life and it would be a crime for me to rob you of your future because it does not match mine. I hope to forever stay in your heart, Jonghyun. I promise you, until the end you will forever reside in mine.

Much, much love and 'till we somehow meet again, your dearest Jinki."

Kibum was struggling by the end of the letter to keep his tears at bay. His eyes were swimming with pools of clear water and he fumbled over his words as he tried to get to the end, his vision no doubt blurred by the onslaught of tears surely about to take him. Taemin chanced a glance up at Jonghyun but the elder's face was serene. Taemin realized Jonghyun must have read the letter hundreds of times by now, he probably even had it memorized. He wasn't sure if Jonghyun could even cry over it anymore. But Kibum's tears were already spilling over his eyelids as he fought to keep his hiccups quiet and tried to keep his sobs from tearing through his body. Taemin reached out to rub Kibum's back and he realized he had thin streams of tears running down his own cheeks as well.

"Jonghyun hyung..." Taemin croaked out, "I had no idea. I'm so sorry...and me showing up must've been such a trigger..." He trailed off when he felt Jonghyun's thick arms wrap warmly around him and Kibum. Upon feeling the embrace, Kibum began hysterically crying and wailing in Jonghyun's arms, his shirt and dirty sobbing so loudly Taemin barely heard Jonghyun mumble, 'it's okay, it's good to remember.'

When Kibum had finally quieted down enough to speak coherently, Jonghyun resumed speaking. "I got this out because I overheard you two last night. I know you're both very stressed about whether or not passing through different dimensions is a reality or not but I can assure you that it is. The proof is right here. Jinki made it into what I'm assuming is Taemin's world. None of us can know what happened to him, but we do know that he made it." Taemin nodded slowly, eyes focused on the letter that had been refolded and placed back inside the envelope. It lay sitting on the table next to the journal, and it felt like a beacon of light. It held so many answers, and Taemin hadn't even begun to look through the journal yet. Who knew what kind of answers lay in there.

"I'm gonna do it." Taemin suddenly whispered. Kibum looked up at him, eyes red and face smudged and swollen-looking. Taemin had to restrain himself from planting kisses all over his cheeks to soothe him.

"You're gonna what?" Jonghyun asked. Taemin locked eyes with him

"I'm going to read that entire journal, cover to cover. Then I'm going to study it and try to absorb any piece of information I can that can help me learn how to pass through the dimensions between our worlds. I'm going to do it." Taemin reached over suddenly to clasp Kibum's hands in his, kissing his knuckles gently. The other boy's eyes widened a little in surprise before softening and smiling at him. "I'm going to do this, Kibum. I'm not backing down." Kibum smiled wider at Taemin's enthusiasm and Jonghyun, albeit still a little sad, smiled too, aching all over with pride.

Jonghyun felt like a waterfall of emotions as he looked at Taemin and Kibum together but he was happy inside. Jinki had wanted him to save the information for when he really needed it. Jinki entrusted Jonghyun with his precious research for him to utilize when Jonghyun knew he had to. And looking at Taemin watch Kibum like he was everything to him made Jonghyun realize he picked the right moment to share the journal.

Jinki would be proud.

***

Later, in bed that night, when Kibum had just dozed off and fallen asleep, Taemin's game screen lit up with a level up banner. He was one giant leap closer already. He gazed down at Kibum's sleeping form next to him, his back rising and falling with even breaths.

I'll be with you soon, Kibum, he thought, just you wait.

Hey guys, LifeisSHINee, here! I feel like it's been forever since I've written although it's only been a week. My updates are getting a little slower, but the story is progressing well and should be over soon; I plan to stay within the bounds of 15 chapters like I planned. I may not even get all the way to 15 chapters, because to me it feels like another 2 or 3 chapters should do it, but we'll see. Much more Taekey to come, and I plan to write another birthday in for Taemin in honor of today being Taemin's 22nd birthday! It's quiet late where I live and in Korea Taemin's birthday must be long over by now but please wish him happy days and a successful future ahead of him, and give him all the love you can! I'm sure he appreciates it very much. Anyways, have a great day and as always, take care!