♦Sleepy Idols♦

04.

All was quiet within the dorm, the deep, even breaths of sleepy boys blending into the background hum of cars rushing by outside, drivers on their way to work in the early hours of the morning.

SHINee was quite happy to stay tucked beneath the covers and sleep away the day, lulled into peaceful dreams by the calm atmosphere.

The morning peace didn't last very long when a certain impatient member strutted out from the kitchen, raising two woks above his head and bashing them together in a chaotic clang of resonating metal that bounced from the walls and hit every closed door.

“Rise and shine you bunch of lazy sloths! When I tell you to get out of bed I mean it!”

Key stepped over to one of the shared rooms and proceeded with the ear splitting noise pollution, only this time he was banging both woks directly on the wooden door.

An infuriated shout came from inside, a loud thump soon followed by a sudden crash of objects falling from who knows where. Finally, the bedroom door opened to reveal a very angry dinosaur glaring up at him with killing intent.

Jonghyun's twitching eyes were bloodshot, his ash blonde – almost grey – hair looking like a bird nested in it and his clothes crumpled from a restless sleep. His hand clenched around the side of the door in a messy fist, white knuckles protruding from the pale skin stretched across them.

Key didn't find him the least bit intimidating. He smirked victoriously down at the fuming member before turning on his heel to stalk towards the next victim, throwing a quick, “Make sure to wake Taeminnie up.” Over his shoulder.

Jonghyun glowered at the diva's back as he strutted away, short nails raking the varnished door before shutting it with a slam and stomping back to his bed. The figure sprawled out on the adjacent single bed twitched at the sudden noise, sleepily as he rolled onto his stomach and pulled one leg up, lazily lifting his ruffled head from the blankets as he peered around the room with bleary eyes.

“Kibum wants us up.”

Taemin exhaled a huffy sigh before dropping his face back to the bed, clumsily pulling his pillow over himself in an effort to hide.

“Good idea,” Jonghyun yawned as he stretched out his arms, falling back into his own blankets with a bounce. “Five more minutes won't hurt.”

Key continued his banging on the other door, brow twitching at being ignored by the heavy sleeper on the other side. “Minho, I swear to god if you don't get up this instant I will kick your door in!”

No response. The diva growled and gave the innocent hinged wood one last whack before reluctantly moving onto the next room, taking his frustrations out on the oblivious leader this time.

“Onew hyung! Up, up, up!”

Their Manager had once again left the dorm early, so the last room was conveniently left unlocked. Key wasted no time inviting himself in and jumping on the sleepy figure wrapped up in his blanket like a burrito.

Onew mumbled nonsensical words and tried his hardest to roll towards the wall, though he was unable to under the weight of his insisting member.

“Stop complaining and get dressed, we have somewhere to be and I know how long it takes you to get ready.”

“You're the one who spends the most time in front of the mirror.” Came the leader's grumbled response, voice low and heavy with sleep.

“Because I'm the only one who does my own make-up,” Key defended haughtily, swiftly delivering a sharp jab to the eldest's shoulder before getting to his feet. “Now get up!”

Onew faked a cry of pain and grasped the wounded area, writhing around on the single bed. Key scoffed at the sight, barking out, “Keep doing that and you'll fall off.” Before leaving the room.

He glared at the still locked door of Minho's room, deciding to leave his dongsaeng for the time being while he went to check up on the raging Jonghyun.

The door was shut and all was quiet, indicating the midget had dozed off again.

“Jjong, if you're not out by the count of three I'll drown you in the cold water from the fridge~” Key threatened in a sing-song voice, rolling back his thick grey coat sleeve as he counted down the seconds on an imaginary wrist watch.

“One.” A muffled complaint.

“Two~” Something being thrown at the other side of the door in a weak effort to silence human timer.

“Thr-”

“Okay, okay, just shut up!”

The door swung open with such force that a gusty breeze which swept over the waiting figure. Jonghyun glared at the celebratory smile on his friend's face.

“Well done. Now get dressed like a good doggy.”

The singer growled at the offending hand ruffling his already messy hair and slapped it away with as much force as he could muster, mumbling a list of profanities under his breath that were directed towards the nagging umma as he trudged towards his closet.

“Taemin ah, you better get up too before he comes back.”

The maknae mumbled something incoherent into his pillow, only lifting his head to repeat himself at his hyung's request. “Five more minutes.”

Jonghyun sighed tiredly and rubbed at the crease between his eyebrows, snatching up a set of clothes before tossing them to his bed. “Those five minutes will be your last on this Earth.”

Taemin whined pitifully, squirming around half-heartedly as he struggled to find the energy to get up.

“I'm pretty sure there's still some banana milk in the fridge,” Jonghyun informed his dongsaeng in as casual a tone as he could, pulling his pyjama bottoms off and replacing them with dark skinny jeans. He looked over to see Taemin's head cocked curiously to the side, listening intently despite his closed eyes. “If you get ready I'm sure Kibum will give it to you before we leave.”

Taemin was up not a moment later, muffling a lion sized yawn as he wiped sluggishly at his sleepy face.

The two idols walked out of their shared room once they were both dressed, a hair brush clasped loosely in the maknae's grip as he swung his drooping eyes towards the kitchen where Key was currently set on making them all breakfast.

“Hyung, where's my banana milk?”

Key glanced over his shoulder at the black haired boy hovering in the doorway, his drowsy features reminding him of a reluctant child just woken up for school. He bit back the growing smile as he turned to the stove. Taemin definitely lived up to his “cute maknae” title whenever he was half asleep.

“Later, Taeminnie.”

“But hyung...”

“Stop being so frugal and give the kid his milk, what does it hurt if he drinks it now?” Jonghyun spoke up as he shouldered his way into the kitchen, heading straight for the fridge.

“It wouldn't kill him to wait a few more minutes.” The diva retorted, waving the chopsticks in his hand menacingly at the trespassing idol.

Jonghyun dove for the banana milk in the side door before quickly running for the exit to avoid having something thrown at his head.

“Here, Taemin ah!”

The youngest mumbled his thanks around the plastic straw in his mouth, seeming a little more awake now that he had his favourite drink. Key suddenly caught sight of a tall boy standing behind the maknae, the brush Taemin originally had now in his large hands as he worked at smoothing out the tangles in the head of silky hair before him.

He rolled his eyes at the sight, transferring the prepared food to its respective bowls. “Of course he'd come out at the sound of Taemin.”

Minho gazed down at his friend with a sleepy expression, eyes half-lidded as he worked the borrowed brush through Taemin's hair. The dancer made no signs of complaining, seeming quite happy to have someone else taking care of something he was always reluctant to do in the morning.

Onew came out soon after, still wrapped from head to toe in his duvet as he wriggled his way through the dorm like some deformed caterpillar .

Everyone took their seats at the table as Key laid out the food, taking up his own chair and digging in eagerly to his own cooking once they all said their thanks.

Minho placed the brush beside his bowl, pausing in his grooming long enough to take a few large mouthfuls of rice before turning back to pampering Taemin.

“Why are we up so early again?” Jonghyun mumbled around a lump of food.

“Because today's the day we start that new reality show, and we need to be at the airport in a few hours to pick up the foreigner.”

“Wait...that's today?” Taemin jumped into the conversation, surprise momentarily wiping away his fatigue.

“That's what I said.” Key shovelled more food into his mouth.

“I thought it was next week.” Onew added, seated rather awkwardly on his chair with his arms wiggled out of his blanket enough to be able to use his chopsticks.

The diva exhaled his inner annoyance at s obliviousness, sending a sharp look Jonghyun's way in case he wanted to say anything more. “Am I the only one who memorises our schedules around here?”

“Why would the rest of us need to when we have you?” Jonghyun chimed in, completely missing the silent warning his friend gave him.

Key's jaw clenched, along with the hand holding onto his utensils.

The singer yelped as something sharp was suddenly jabbed into his side, his chair rocking back at the sudden shift of weight as he jerked away from the offending object. He glanced up at his attacker with wide eyes, holding his side and leaving his own chopsticks discarded on the tabletop in his surprise.

“Yah! What was that for?!”

“I'm not your Manager! I shouldn't have to be the one who does everything around here!” Key complained, watching with mild satisfaction as the dino boy bristled with being yelled at so early in the morning.

“Oi! What's all this screaming about?” All five boys turned hurriedly in their seats to see their Manager standing with folded arms in the doorway, voice gruff as he shifted his narrowed eyes from each member. “Do you realise just how loud you are? I can hear you all from outside!”

They fell silent and went back to wolfing down their food instead of continuing the argument, flicking cautious gazes up every once in a while to see if Manager Choi Jin was still watching.

The man turned around with a satisfied smile, returning to his shared room with Onew to get himself ready while the group finished their meal.

Taemin was the first to finish, as always, followed quickly by Minho. The two carried their bowls into the kitchen, discarding them in the sink before dragging themselves to the living room.

Minho still had the brush in hand, using it to work at his own hair. Taemin fell onto the lounge with a grunt, exhaling heavily as his chest hit leather.

The rapper sat quietly beside him, watching the sleepy boy as his eyelids wavered every now and then, chocolate brown eyes becoming unfocused whenever he was just about to doze off before quickly shaking himself awake again.

It was obvious the dancer hadn't listened to Minho and stayed up late to practice in the dance room last night. It's something that's becoming a frequent habit of the maknae.

Taemin was always the one to hang back after practice and keep working during their Trainee days, but it seems that lately he's been reverting back to his old ways, and Minho isn't sure how to snap the hard working idol out of his workaholic spree.

The members slowly migrated to the bathroom once the dishes were done, the rapper having to drag a reluctant dancer by the wrist behind him while handing off his brush.

Key immediately set to preparing his face, splashing and patting branded products all over himself by the dozen that none of the other boys cared to take part in.

Jonghyun reached for the brush he'd placed on the edge of the sink, only to have his wandering fingers meet the cool edge of the basin and turn up empty. His eyes fell from the rectangle mirror to track down the missing brush, quickly noticing it was already in the hands of the giant.

He sighed and sent Minho and exasperated look, droopy brown eyes catching sight of the infamous brush that belonged to the one and only diva. Ever so slyly, the tiny idol sidled up to his friend's side ever so casually, oozing nonchalance as his twitching fingers slowly eased towards the silken handle.

The instant snap across his knuckles sent Jonghyun reeling back in pain, the deafening crack resonating in the tiny room like someone just whipped him.

“Don't even think about it, pabo.”

“Yah! I was just going to wash my hands,” The singer flinched at the raise of the deadly flat iron in Key's threatening hand, a big contrast to his harsh tone. “Who would even want to use that thing in their hair anyway?”

“Dogs who don't learn their lesson the first time, apparently.” The diva drawled, returning to styling his hair as he curled another blonde lock around the width of the heated object.

“Shut up,” Jonghyun grumbled, glowering gaze shifting towards an unsuspecting Minho as he his dongsaeng to release his frustrations. “And give me back my brush!”

Minho gawked at the sudden shout from his hyung, silently handing over the borrowed possession to the little fuming dinosaur. He gladly accepted Taemin's hairbrush once the maknae was done with it, purposely ruffling the younger ones head in thanks.

The two idols shot playful glares at each other in the mirror, Taemin reaching up to cover his head with his hands and pull his fingers down till they rested at his cheeks, successfully flattening his hair again.

“Oi, that's mine!” Key snapped, effectively drawing all the attention to him as he snatched a black cologne bottle from the leader's hands.

“What? Isn't it mine?” Onew reached for the confiscated bottle, only to have his hand slapped away.

“Are you colour blind? Yours is the midnight blue one.” The diva quickly spritzed some of the potent fragrant onto his wrists before tucking the petite bottle safely away in the back of the mirror cupboard. He his heel to leave the bathroom, wiping his wrists along the lines of his neck. “You're all a bunch of rotten thieves.”

He paused, reaching back long enough to tussle the maknae's head before making a swift exit. “All but my precious Taeminnie.”

“Hyung!” Taemin wasn't fast enough to push away the offending hand, groaning as he once more ran his fingers through his dishevelled hair.

The rest of the group soon followed the other idol out, moving to slip their respective shoes on and double check they had everything they needed on them.

“What do you think the foreigner will look like?”

Jonghyun paused in tying up his shoelace to mull over Taemin's question. He his bottom lip between his teeth as he bent down again to resume fussing over his shoe. “Blonde? Long hair?”

“Blue eyes, probably.” Key added, turning to the thin wall mirror pinned to the inside of the small closet door to fix his coat as they all stood around the entrance of their dorm.

“She might be tall.” Onew joined in, waiting off by the wall for everyone else to finish getting ready.

Minho stood back up after slipping on his last shoe, hands dusting their way down his black jeans. “Who's to say it'll be a girl? We could get a boy.”

“A short boy.” Jonghyun mumbled hopefully, earning a comical snort from Key somewhere behind him.

“No foreigner would be shorter than you, Jjong.”

Key yelped as the back of his scarf was roughly pulled, turning away from the mirror long enough to smack his friend's shoulder, who'd been expecting such a reaction and was quick to dive out from the attack.

“We ready to go?” Onew asked the group, earning a collective yes.

“Sure you've got everything, Tae?” Minho pulled the maknae to his feet with an offered hand.

“Yep,” Taemin made a show of patting down his pockets for emphasis, but it did nothing to quell the doubtful looks of his friends.

“You're certain..?” Key pressed, shooting the dancer a pointed look as he adjusted the puffy scarf around his neck. “We all know how this'll end.”

“I'm positive. Let's just go, guys.” Taemin insisted, giving a reassuring smile in hopes that it'll get everyone moving.

The boys reluctantly let the matter drop and shuffled towards the door, bracing themselves against the chilly air of the unheated hallway.

Onew lead the way out, followed by the other members while Key trailed at the back in order to lock up.

Taemin lagged behind while Minho stepped in line with Jonghyun, the two quickly picking up conversation while their maknae's feet came to a stand-still. Realisation dawned on his face as his hand brushed across the empty side pocket of his jeans.

“Hyung, wait!”

Key sighed, fingers pausing in the crack of the closing door before it could shut completely.

“Yes, yes, hurry up and get it.”

Taemin wasted no time with diving back into the dorm, searching frantically around the entrance until he stumbled on the phone he'd put down so he could slip into his boots.

“All right, now we're good to go!”

Key shook his head with resignation, a helpless smile dusting his sharp features as he pulled his maknae beneath his arm once Taemin was out again.

The two quickly caught up to the rest, SHINee climbing into the waiting elevator as one while they discussed the possible appearance of their soon-to-be-arriving foreigner.

A/N: It's been about a month, a little over even, since the last oneshot. Sorry!

This is again a not-so-subtle nod towards what'll be coming up in the future. It's still in the works right now, it's taking me a little longer to find the pacing than it usually does, but hopefully I'll have something to show for it soon enough.

And I'm a little late on this, but did anyone watch Taemin's performance on Hit The Stage? And he won too! I was so proud of him and could barely contain my excitement, he deserved that win so much! I'm so happy for Tae, you could practically see the genuine shock on his face after finding out he'd won HtS.

This oneshot is quite a bit shorter than the last one, but I don't really set word count goals for these. I prefer to write until I feel there's a good point to end it, rather than set myself a bar which I might not be able to meet. Hope that doesn't bother anyone!