“Taemin-ah, who was your first kiss?”

The leader-maknae pair laid lazily on the dorm couch, trying to concentrate on Jinki’s debut drama amidst little pokes and butterfly touches. His boyfriend wasn’t the main character, and he didn’t appear in this episode they were watching now either, but Taemin was eager to catch the series anyway.

“Hmm,” Taemin replied loosely, half-distracted with the soldiers on his screen, “Some guy. During high school.”

“It was our Hello era, I think.” He added after a pause. The younger sat up straight now with his legs crossed on the couch, feeling the need to explain more without peeling his eyes off the screen, “I don’t know…I mean, I had a crush on him before…but I remember it was that period because he said I looked cute in our MV.”

Jinki but his lower lip; Damn was he right. Taemin was so ing cute then. He's always cute, but Hello was the bomb.

Though he didn’t interrupt - he wanted to hear this. He wasn’t sure why that question popped up but now he wanted to know this part of Taemin’s life he never asked before.

“He was graduating that year and that summer I had a feeling of melancholy.” Taemin laughed quietly, now positive that he was really silly then, “It was then I realized I had a special preference for boys.”

Taemin wriggled his eyebrows at Jinki, which made him chuckle, infecting the maknae to let out his own set of giggles. “It was weird, looking back now. I haven’t even spoken to him, I just kind of stole glances of him whenever I passed him along the corridor, sometimes outside his classrooms, maybe once or twice in the toilet…and okay, I admit: a lot in the cafeteria.”

He was now officially off the drama (since Jinki isn’t even in it). “Not even a week after the release of the MV,” Taemin couldn’t decide if he was feeling amused or disgust, though he only wanted to burst out laughing as the memory played out, “He, one day out of nowhere, cornered me in the school dance studio and kissed me against the mirror.”

“I thought I was going to die of bliss then and there.” Taemin was now openly laughing, “But it was really only a peck.” He sighed with a small smile; it was just one of those embarrassing teen experience he knew would come back to bite him, like today.

The younger risked to steal a look at the current love of his life, and only met with the intense stare of the other. The whole storytelling was pretty hilarious to him at this point, and it hadn't crossed his mind what had to be going through his boyfriend’s head now. He just kept going with the silly grin fixed on his face, almost sure that Jinki has got to be finding this just as funny as he did.

“Then it all went downhill from there; he brought me out multiple times, always to meet his friends. It was never us alone.”

“Then I started to realize that every single time they were girls, both from our school and outside. They were always different, too.”

“I haven’t thought too much about it at first - him being so close with the girls. He was usually walking alongside with them, and I would trail behind. Well, he sometimes held my hand. I thought I was content with that.” That revelation that Taemin was only the bait for luring those superficial girls out.

“One time...” Taemin choked, from hurt or still from the hilarity he couldn't tell. Jinki felt the need to scoop the maknae to his side now, noticing how he paused to take a deep breath. “One time, I worked up all my courage, thinking I was being cute and all, I took the initiative and a tiptoe to meet his lips...only to be pushed away.”

Taemin was grateful for the quiet embrace and he held onto Jinki’s free hand to calm his somewhat stirred emotions, “He said exactly: your breath stinks.”

The younger did a perfect impersonation of how his ex-crush had said that, and then broke out in laughter to ease the focus on how a stray tear slipped from his eye. He stopped when Jinki hadn't laughed along with him. Taemin tugged his shirt at the gems and adjusted himself back into his boyfriend’s cuddle, coughing away the awkward outburst.

Jinki himself was offended; Taemin then was popping a candy in his mouth every other minute. If anyone’s breath should stink, it should be that jerk’s! His mouth must taste like cotton candy, and if it was up to me I’d be sitting at home with him stealing his lips and kisses every chance I get. Exactly like now. Jinki’s face made an array of expressions from frowns go smirks and back to a look of disgust, but he never commented.

“Then…” Taemin started again but this time Jinki answered, “It was that night you came back, curled up in this exact spot you're in now. For me to find you crying alone and that was the first time my heart broke like it did then.” The younger giggled at the heartwarming statement and blushed.

“Argh!” Jinki let out a frustrated growl, struck with red and green, “I hate to imagine you had your first kiss stolen by that bastard!” He detached himself from his boyfriend, slumping back into the couch with his hands gripping the ends of his hair and his eyes shut tight.

“Well.” Taemin smiled sweetly, “I must say that i’m sort of thankful for him actually.”

Jinki peeped his left eye open, wondering if the maknae had in fact said what he thought he did.

“He...made me realize that there was someone better for me. That someone loves me for who I am as an ordinary person.” Taemin smoothed Jinki’s hair that the latter had so carelessly messed up, “I was lucky that you were by my side that time, the whole time since before. You comforted me, and then you confessed the same night.” The dancer blushed awfully, almost mumbling as he spoke.

“He was the passing storm in my life and you were my beautiful rainbow. He was my first crush but you were my first one true love. At the very least, just know that my first french kiss was with you.” Taemin slapped his hands over to cover his face, too flustered by his words.

“You are so cheesy, Taem.” Jinki couldn't help the grin plastered on his face now. He reached to pinch the bridge of his lover’s nose, “But I love you all the same. I love you so very much.”

“I...love you too, hyunggie.” Taemin whispered his heartfelt feelings with a playful aegyo so he doesn't shy away from saying it out.

“So...hyung, who was your first kiss?”