It was his internal clock that woke him up early the next morning. Minho reluctantly rolled out of his warm haven of blankets, groaning in stiffness as he did so. The cold air of his apartment hit his bare arms and caused goose bumps to trail over his body. Having only slept in a wife beater and a pair of sweatpants, the somewhat broken heater of his home was an unwelcomed feeling to wake up to.

He mumbled incoherently, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he glanced at the digital clock that sat atop a nightstand. His tired eyes widened at the number that shone back at him.

“I’m going to be late!” he shouted to his empty apartment, shooting off of his bed and rushing to the bathroom.

He stripped off his clothes, shuddering as the air hit the previously covered parts of his body, and the water of the shower.

It was to his pleasure that the water didn’t take long to heat up and he stepped into its warmness, sighing contently as the goose bumps that ran over his body dissipated.

After washing up, he hastily, albeit begrudgingly, stepped out of the shower and dried himself off. He hurried back to his room and flicked his eyes to the clock as he made his way to his closet.

“Why didn’t my alarm go off this morning?” He grumbled, narrowing his eyes at the object as if it had malfunctioned in spite of him.

Pulling a fresh white tank top over his head and tugging a pair of black slacks over his legs, he paused.

“I don’t have work today, do I?” he asked himself, his hands pausing at the button of his pants.

He thought back to the day before, where his boss had fired him and he had been left to wander the streets pointlessly.

“Aish,” he growled. “So I woke up early for nothing? And now I’m talking to myself. That’s just great,” he sighed. “Well as long as I’m up, I might as well try to find a job today,”

He replaced his tank top with a plain white shirt and a long sleeved button down. If he was looking for a job, he should probably at least look somewhat decent and not casually in jeans. Grabbing his wallet and phone, he slipped on a pair of nice looking but comfortable black shoes and a jacket and exited the apartment.  

He shivered harshly as the early morning bitter cold nipped at him, zipping his coat up as far as it would go and burying his chin within it. Making his way to the bus stop he used every day, he sat on the bench, his eyes trailing over the deserted area. Of course no one would be there but him. No one wantedto be there. It was nearly eight in the morning, the sun hidden by the once again grey skies and casting a gloomy glow over him.

It took a mere moment or so for the bus to appear, its rickety engine roar screeching as it pulled to a stop in front of him. He pushed himself off of the bench and boarded the bus, dropping a few won into the slot at the front of the bus and tossing the driver a half hearted smile.

Like usual, the bus was only occupied by a few people. The same few people, he noted, that took the bus every day. And it wasn’t much of a surprise to him; he thought as he took his usual seat, that most of them looked absolutely miserable. He was in no position to disagree with that, being so very opposed to the chilling air that circled the outdoors himself.

In what Minho knew to be about twenty minutes of silence-filled minutes later, the bus creaked to a stop in front of the quaint outskirts of Busan. Minho wasted no time in getting off the bus, the worn out faux leather seats and completely broken heater far too unpleasant to bear with for more than necessary.

Taking a quick look at the time on his cell phone confirmed that it was five minutes to eight thirty and all of the shops in the district would in fact be open.

He started in a random direction, passing by few company buildings and an elementary school before the familiar comings of vintage boutiques came into view. As he passed each shop, he took a quick side glance into it, deciding if he would even consider working there. He grimaced at the myriad of dress and shoe stores, not having realized until then that there were so many in the area. Idly, he wondered how all of them stayed in business.

The bare trees lining the sidewalk swayed as a breeze came by, causing Minho to shiver harshly. He passed a jeweler’s store, its display window heading huge sales. He grinned. Maybe I can work here, he thought. With the sales more customers come and I’ll be able to get so much more money, he reasoned to himself.

He pulled open the door, wincing just slightly at the feeling of the cold metal on his hands. The moment he entered, a humid kind of heat enveloped him. The store was musky and damp despite being perfectly dry. At the sound of the small chime that rung when the door opened, an elderly man who was seated on a stool in front of a register looked up at him.

“Can I help you?” He asked, smiling warmly at Minho.

“Yes. Actually, I was wondering if I could get a job here?” he asked politely, or as politely as his informal speech could take him.

The old man shook his head as his smile turned sad. “No can do. Sorry boy, but this place is closing down soon. If I hired you, you wouldn’t get more than a few days before being fired again.”

Minho nodded in understanding. Judging from his facial expression, this shop was sentimental to the man, and even though he couldn’t help but wonder why, he wasn’t about to ask.

“But,” the man began again, gaining Minho’s attention. “The shop next door might need help.”

Minho’s eyes lit up at the fact that he might not have to go hours on end looking for a job. “Really?” He exclaimed. And then, remembering his manners, he cleared his throat. “I mean, thank you.” He bowed.

The man chuckled at his speech. “No worries,” he said and gestured towards the door. “Now go on and get yourself hired.”

Minho nodded and bowed again before exiting the shop. He walked the few feet to the place next door and opened the door.

Immediately, an air of familiarity filled him as he took a look at a fireplace burning in the back of the shop. The smell of cinnamon and peppermint was still faintly in the air, most of it gone with the night but sure to return later in the day when more people came to the shop.

“Would you like to be seated?” A voice broke him out of his thoughts. His eyes stopped trailing over the café and he snapped them to the man who had spoken to him. The boy looked about his age, probably older than him by a year or two at most, with soft light brown hair and pale skin.

“Uh, actually, I’m here to find a job.” Minho stated.

The boy’s smile grew wider, his brown eyes crinkling at the edges. “Really? We’ve been needing an extra worker for quite some time now. Let me just take you to my boss and we’ll see from there,” he said.

Minho nodded and followed the boy inside the coffee shop. He led him towards the barista counter and opened a door that stood right beside it.

“Yunmin, we have a job applicant,” the boy said he swung the door open. Minho peered over his shoulder to get a better look at who he was talking to.

“Oh really?” the man called Yunmin asked, standing up from a chair at a desk.

The boy moved out of Minho’s way and gestured for him to come inside the office.

“Annyeong haseyo,” Minho bowed politely. “I was wondering if I could apply here.”

The man in front of him laughed, and Minho looked at him to take in his features. He had thinning black hair that was scattered with threads of white and twinkling brown eyes. “No need to be so polite,” he said, his somewhat chubby face pulled into a huge smile.

“Ah, okay, ajusshi-” Minho started but was cut off by a slight shake of the elder man’s head.

“No, no. Just call me Yunmin. I don’t like feeling old,” he smiled.

Minho smiled back, genuinely liking the elder’s personality.

“Thank you for bringing him Jinki.” Yunmin said turning to the boy behind Minho.

“You’re welcome,” Jinki said before bowing and exting the office, closing the door behind him.

“Come, sit.” Yunmin said, gesturing at a chair in front of his desk as he sat back down.

Minho took a seat, sitting up straight just for good looks.

“You’re probably expecting an interview and a job process as other shops provide, am I right?” Yunmin asked. Minho nodded. “Well, while that may be the standards, we are in severe need of a new worker, and no one has come in looking for a job for quite some time. So, just as long as you don’t mess things up, you’re hired. And actually, you can start now if it’s to your convenience to do so.”

Minho smiled. “Chincha?” Yunmin simply smiled back.

“There are some waiting uniforms in the dressing room, different sizes too. I hope you can find your own. Now, get to work, and have Jinki show you around the shop.”

Minho smiled, grateful for the immediate job opportunity and a chance to work with nice people rather than the stuck up and strict partners he had before. “Kamsahamnida,” Minho bowed, standing up again as he left the office.

“So…?” asked an inquisitive voice as he closed the door when he stepped back into the main café.

Minho looked him to see Jinki standing in front of him. “I’m hired.” He smiled, not sure why exactly he was so happy to share the news with someone he barely even met.

Jinki’s smile grew wider, and Minho found himself grinning along with him. Maybe that’s why I’m in such a good mood, he thought. Their attitudes are infectious.

“And Yunmin asked you to show me around the shop, Jinki hyung.”

Jinki shook his head. “Call me Onew. Everyone else does.” Minho nodded.

“So what’s your name?” Onew asked.

“Minho,” he informed him.

Onew nodded. “Nice to meet you, Minho. Now, for the tour. This is the barista counter, as you can probably already tell. Jonghyun and Key are stationed there. You’ll meet them later, since they should be coming in soon.”

Before Onew could direct him at anything else, however, the door opened. “Oh, a customer’s here. I’ll finish the tour later, just change into a uniform for now. Dressing room’s down the hallway next to Yunmin’s office; right in front of the bathrooms.” He waved slightly before walking towards the woman waiting at the entrance.

Minho sighed, the events of the early morning just slightly catching up with him. He now had yet another job, and no time to rest. Well, might as well make the best of it and start now.

He made his way down said hallway and found the dressing room door with ease. He opened it and found himself staring at what looked to be a small locker room. Entering, he looked around for any hints of where a uniform might be stored.

If I were a uniform, where would I be?  He found himself wondering, and then shook his head and chuckled softly at the childishness that was so unlike him.

As he spotted a closet, he opened it and grinned in victory at the myriad of uniforms hung up and folded in all sorts of manners.He raked through the clothing, stopping when he found his size and plucking it off of the hangers.

Making quick work of it, he slipped out of his clothes and replaced it with the oh-so familiar waiting uniform, skimming the room for an unoccupied locker and shoving his worn clothing inside of it. He exited the room after glancing in a mirror and fixing a few cowlick spots that stuck out of his spiked jet black hair.

“Jonghyun! One peppermint mocha!” Minho heard Onew’s voice echo from the hallway. He walked into view of the barista counter and caught a glimpse of a boy with ash brown hair wearing jeans and a hoodie entering the barista counter.

“Key, go change so you can take over after this order,” the boy called to someone that Minho couldn’t see from his position at the edge of the hallway.

“Arasso,” confirmed a voice as another boy stepped into his view. He had blonde hair that was dyed navy blue at the tips. But it wasn’t so much his hair that caught Minho’s eyes than his extremely tight black jeans and black shirt embroidered with bright, hot pink. When his eyes laid on Minho, he let out something between a squeak and a yell of excitement. “You’re the new guy Onew was talking about!”

“What? The new guy’s here? I want to see him!” The boy with the ash brown hair said, spinning around to face him.

“I’m Kibum,” the blonde said, holding out his hand. “But call me Key.” Minho nodded and shook his hand.

“I’m Jonghyun,” The boy with brown hair said, offering a slight wave as he went back to making coffee.

“Just relax, we don’t bite,” Key smiled before walking off towards the dressing room.

Minho moved out of the hallway, now fully inside the main café. “So, uh,” he started, gaining Jonghyun’s attention. “What exactly am I supposed to be doing?” He asked dumbly, absolutely resenting how horrible of an impression it must be leaving to his fellow coworkers.

“There aren’t too many customers here, but for now you can help Onew at the front.” He said, barely glancing up at the taller male as he concentrated on the drink he was mixing.

Minho nodded regardless and sauntered off to stand next to Onew at the front. Before he could even get halfway across the café however, the door opened and Onew’s figure immediately tackled whoever was at the door in a giant hug.

“Taemin’s here!” he called out to the rest of the shop. Minho froze.

Taemin? Isn’t that…

As the blonde boy finally managed to pry Onew off of him, he looked up and met Minho’s eyes. “Ah! Minho!” He said, pointing to the older man.

“Hi Taemin ah,” Minho said awkwardly, his hand coming up in a slight wave.

“Wait… you two know each other?” Onew asked from the door.

“We met yesterday,” Taemin chirped happily, as if the situation was perfectly normal.

“Taeminnie!” yelled Key as he suddenly came out of the hallway, now fully dressed in his waiting uniform.

Taemin laughed as he was tackled into yet another hug.

Minho stood somewhere in the middle of all the warm greetings towards the boy, awkwardly wondering if he even belonged in such a heartwarming scene.

It was about fifteen minutes later that Minho was instructed to the pastries with Taemin, the coffee shop only having one worker to bake and in need of another.

As Minho stood in the kitchen at the back of the café, rummaging through the fridge for the necessary ingredients for the recipe in front of him, a voice spoke up.

“Is this a habit?” Taemin chuckled, lightly referring to the same line Minho had used on him the previous day.

“Is what a habit?” Minho asked curiously as he plucked out what he needed and closed the fridge, setting the materials on a nearby countertop and turning his attention to the blonde in front of him.

“To start working at the same place someone else does just because they talk to you. Sounds kind of stalkerish doesn’t it?” He grinned.

Minho sputtered. “I didn’t…” He started, but didn’t know what to say exactly to that.

Taemin just laughed. “Come on, Minho. Let’s bake some muffins!” He said in over exaggerated determination, rolling the sleeves up on his white dress shirt.

“Hyung,” Minho said. Taemin glanced at him. “Call me hyung,” he smiled.

It was an entire day of grueling laborious baking later that the café finally closed. It closed earlier, Minho noted, than the other place he worked at, this one only having five workers to keep the place running for hours on end and giving them a much needed break.

After Minho finished organizing the kitchen, he made his way back to the main café.

“See you tomorrow Minho,” Jonghyun said, nudging him with his elbow and smiling at him.

“Bye Minho,” Key said, as he exited the coffee shop.

Over the course of the day, Minho had gotten to know them just slightly better, now fitting into the family of workers instead of being the odd one out.

“Minho hyung,” Taemin called from near the entrance of the café. “Let’s go,” he smiled.

Minho nodded, and waved a goodbye to Onew who was, at the moment, still cleaning the tables.

As soon as they exited, Minho’s mood instantly dropped. In the course of the day’s events, he had completely forgotten that it was still winter outside, the café feeling infinitely warm and welcoming. He shivered as the air penetrated his layers of clothing, the air being the kind the seeps into your skin and chills you to the bone.

Taemin smiled. “The winter is so pretty, don’t you think?” He asked as they walked along the streets. It was still too early for the bus back to the center of Busan to arrive, and he and Taemin both had some time to kill.

“Not really,” Minho replied, utterly hating how plain and bare the outdoors looked.

“What? Seriously?” Taemin asked incredulously, spinning around in the middle of the sidewalk to face him.

Minho just stared at him.

“You… you don’t like the winter?” Taemin asked.

“Nope,” Minho shook his head.

“Why not?” The blonde demanded.

Minho sighed. “It’s too cold, the trees are bare, and everything’s grey and gloomy.” He replied dully, having repeated the same thing to himself his entire life.

Taemin shook his head.  “That’s what you think about winter?”

The elder nodded.

“But I love the winter,” he said, throwing his hands up to gesture at the nature, or lack thereof Minho thought, around them.  “It’s so pretty!” Taemin went on.

“But it’s just grey,” Minho found himself arguing, in complete disbelief that someone could find the horrid season wonderful.

Taemin shook his head vigorously. “No, it’s not.”

“Yes it is,” Mino sighed, “which is why I like spring, because of the flowers and color. Winter is just damned grey.”

Taemin huffed. “I’ll show you the colors of winter,” he said after a moment.

Minho snorted.

“I promise, I will.”

And so it began.

Anneyong~~

So. I think i just kind of like... completely ruined this fic OTL like seriously, I have no idea what this is -____-

ANYWAYS, I hope you guys like it~~ Because I'm still sticking with it.

And look, there's the rest of SHINee. Lol. I was debating whether or not I should put them in this fic, but then I realized that NONE of my SHINee fics have Onew in em ._. And so I was just like "Hell with it" and...  there they are. Ta Da? :3

Until next time~

xoxo