Tongue Tied (2Min Oneshot)

Lee Taemin felt sick to his stomach, feeling as if he would vomit at any given moment. His brother, Jinki, watched him from near the boys’ restroom door. He waved to Taemin, signaling that the one and only Choi Minho, the upperclassman that captured Taemin’s heart, was approaching. Taking a deep breath, Taemin held his small box of chocolates in his hands tightly, his palms sweating buckets. He took a few steps into the hall from his hiding place around the corner, face reddening at seeing Minho walking toward him.

Well, not toward him, but in the general direction. He kept his eyes low as the space between them seemed to evaporate. He bit his bottom lip, trying to contain his emotions as he glanced up, eyes widening. Minho had stopped to talk to a group of girls, flirting with them and causing them to nearly melt just by his voice. Taemin faintly heard the bell ring, students filing out into the hall, bumping and squirming into each other. Being shoved roughly in the shoulder, Taemin couldn’t help it when the chocolates tumbled from his hands, the box shattering against the linoleum tiles. He watched as his perfectly shaped heart and star chocolates were trampled.

Jinki rushed up to him, shoving his way through the crowd. “Yah, Taemin, are you okay?” he asked, worried that his brother had gotten physically hurt.

Taemin simply nodded, staring with teary eyes at the hard work he had put into his confession. Turning, he fled. He ran for the door, not caring that he still had classes or that he left a mess in the middle of the hall. He heard Jinki hurrying after him, calling his name to make sure he was okay.

“Hyung, I worked so hard on those. I put in hours to get them perfect! The house still smells like singeing chocolate!” Taemin whined, turning to hug his brother. “What am I supposed to do now? I can’t confess to him now.”

Patting the younger’s back, Jinki smiled. “Why not try again? Use something other than chocolates. Write him a letter!”

Taemin looked up at him, smiling as he thought of the idea. “A letter…that’s perfect!” He hugged Jinki again, pulling away and nearly jumped up and down. “A love letter is exactly what I need to confess to Minho!”

Taemin hurried away, Jinki following after him again. They went into a specialties store, Taemin picking out a packet of stationary with little lovebirds all over it. He picked up a box of envelopes and went to the checkout. He bounced in place as he thought of Minho reading it, his imagination running wild. After Jinki paid for his things, Taemin skipped home. He ran to his room, slammed his door and started writing.

The first few times had ended in failure. He crumpled another piece of paper up, sighing as he tossed it over his shoulder, the used up wads cluttering his floor. He chewed on the end of his pen as he tried to find the words to express himself. He smiled, snapping his fingers as he got to work. Within minutes, he was spritzing his favorite cologne on the paper. Folding it carefully, he slipped it in the envelope, sealing it. Scrawling Minho’s name across the front, he smiled, pecking the envelope as if he were giving Minho himself a kiss.

“Hyung, let’s go back to school!” Taemin shouted, turning off his light. He held the envelope carefully, as if it were some precious jewel that if handed improperly, it would damage it. Jinki waved to him, signaling that he should go ahead and start walking. “Okay. I’ll meet you there, hyung.”

Taemin took off, sprinting toward the school. He smiled wide as he noticed the school building coming into focus. He stopped at a light, waiting for it to be clear for him to cross the road. He spotted Minho and smiled brightly, hurrying across the road. He walked toward him, biting his lip again as he walked. Not paying attention to his untied shoelaces, Taemin stepped on them, being pulled forward by gravity to fall on his face. He felt his teeth sink into his lip, tasting blood as he watched his letter flutter through the air, sailing down into the grass. He smiled briefly, assuming his letter was safe on its bed of grass. A look of horror crossed his face as he noticed a lawnmower pushed right over it, the man operating it too consumed in his thoughts to look to see if anything was in his way. Taemin felt tears sting his eyes at seeing his letter in a shredded heap.

“Yah, are you okay?” a voice asked, the owner of it kneeling beside him. Taemin looked up, eyes wide, as they met the one person who indirectly put him through all the trouble.

Choi Minho, his mind screamed at him, is talking to me. He blinked, pushing himself into a sitting position. “I’m okay,” he mumbled, that coppery taste attacking his taste buds again. He reached his hand up, wincing at the slight pain. Looking at his fingers, he frowned as he saw them dotted red.

“You’re bleeding.” Minho reached out, fingers lightly touching Taemin’s chin, tilting his head to get a better look. “Your elbow and knee are scraped, too.”

Taemin looked at his elbow, frowning at seeing little beads of blood forming along the scratches the sidewalk left. Pulling his knee up, he brushed his fingers lightly over the torn skin, wincing as it burned. He watched Minho stand, offering his hand to help him up. Reaching out, Taemin took it, standing on shaky legs.

“Let’s get you to the infirmary.” Minho held onto his elbow, guiding him a few steps before Taemin stopped. Minho faced him. “What’s wrong?”

“My knee burns. I don’t know if I can walk to the infirmary. wouldn’t it be easier for me to–”

Taemin was cut off but Minho scooping him up. He wrapped his arms around the elder’s neck, face red at being carried into the school. He heard people gasp at seeing the two of them together, not sure what to think of it. Minho carried him into the infirmary, setting him on one of the cots. He pulled a chair up, snagging the first aid kit from the counter.

“The nurse went home already, but I’ve been trained in first aid, so I’ll patch you up,” he informed, opening the kit. He pulled out antibiotic ointment and some gauze, working on Taemin’s knee and elbow first. He discarded the dirty cotton balls into the trashcan before pulling a clean one out. “Let me see your lip.”

Taemin tipped his head, chin out a little farther than usual. He winced as Minho dabbed at the cut. After he was done, Minho cleaned up his things, sitting back down in the chair to face Taemin again. “Y-you can leave now. I’m okay.” Taemin felt like a little kid, embarrassment getting the better of him as he turned and buried his face in the pillow.

Minho frowned, his eyebrows knitting together. “Are you sure that you’re okay?” When Taemin nodded, Minho reached out, taking his hand and pulling him into a sitting position again. “Then why are you hiding your face and why are your eyes filling with tears?”

“Because this day has gone horribly!” Taemin blurted. “I was trying to confess to you the entire morning–I even made chocolates to do so–and they got trampled. So I wrote a letter and I tripped over my own feet, my letter shredded by the lawnmower. Why has it been so hard to just tell you that I like you?”

Minho blinked, watching as Taemin’s eyes widened and his face turned dark red at realizing he had just blurted out his feelings. Minho smiled. “You like me?” he asked.

“Am I not allowed to?” Taemin felt like vomiting again. He tried to turn away, but Minho cupped his face and kept their gazes locked.

“What do you think?” Minho leaned forward, eyes closed as he captured Taemin’s lips with his own. Taemin’s eyes were wide from shock before they slid closed, his arms snaking around Minho’s neck. When Minho pulled back, Taemin opened his eyes, blushing once again. Minho kissed him again, smiling into the kiss as he felt Taemin’s fingers thread into his hair.

Taemin pulled back, his face only a few inches away from Minho’s. “Will you walk me home?”

Minho smiled. “I’ll do better than that.” Taemin gave him a questioning look and squealed when he was picked up again, one arm hooked behind his knees, the other around his shoulders. “I’ll carry you home.”