A/N: I am just...so sorry about how long this took me to write. I had some terrible writer's block all throughout March, and then this chapter is nearly 55k (yes, you read that right, so pls take your time to get through it lol no need to rush) so it took me quite a while. I know those are just excuses but I thought I'd offer a bit of explanation after such a long, unplanned absence. Please forgive me! I don't expect to repeat that with the remainder of this fic, but I guess we'll see lol If I do, I'll try to give proper warning beforehand. 

* * *

- January 3, 2013 -

Riiiiing! Riiiiing! Rii-

Kibum squinted as his alarm abruptly shut off, his vision obstructed by Minho’s arm. He dropped the alarm clock, or maybe he threw it. Either way, it clattered to the floor, jingling half-heartedly. Minho slumped against him, his snore-like breaths tickling his neck as his arm stayed draped across his chest. Smiling, Kibum rested his chin on Minho’s head. “Sorry about the alarm, Min. I’ve got to get used to waking up early. Remember? School starts again on Monday.”

“Mm” was Minho’s only reply.

Kibum sniffed a laugh as he buried his nose in Minho’s hair, then kissed the crown of his head. “Which, you know, means I should probably get up soon.”

“Mm.”

“Which means you have to get off of me.”

“No.”

Grinning now, Kibum leaned back, trying to look at his face, but Minho was still too snuggled into his chest for him to be able to see Minho’s undoubtedly grumpy expression. He was just so clingy in the mornings. Not that he minded, of course, but it would make getting to class on time a tad more difficult.

“Don’t you want some coffee?”

“Not that much,” he mumbled into Kibum’s chest.

“Okay, well, I want coffee and I’m gonna go get some,” he said, though he didn’t move. “You can come with me if you want.”

“Mm.”

Minho sighed as Kibum kissed the top of his head again before he pried his arm off of him. He slid out from under him, shaking his head in mild exasperation as he hunted for some underwear and pajamas to wear for his quick trip downstairs. Once dressed, he made for the door and glanced back at Minho, who was now sprawled across his side of their tiny bed.

“Yes or no to the coffee?”

“Are you talking to me?” someone who wasn’t Minho asked, startling Kibum enough that he didn’t recognize that it was his roommate Nicole until he whipped around. She laid curled up on the couch, just her head visible as she tipped it back over the armrest.

“N-no.” He closed the door quickly, concealing Minho before he walked over to her. “When did you get back?”

“Last night, but I slept at Tyler’s.”

“Ah.” He came around to sit before her on the coffee table so she wouldn’t have to strain her neck to look up at him anymore. “How was your trip?”

She rolled her eyes with a small smile. “My sisters drove me ing insane, but that’s not news. How was your staycation? Get up to anything fun?” she asked with a cheesy, pointed wink.

Merlin’s beard...Kibum’s face heated to the roots of his hair and the tips of his ears. “Maybe…”

“When do I get to meet the Minho?” Kibum cleared his throat as she grinned. “The devastatingly handsome, the sweetest, the most kind--”

“I did not say all of that.”

“You say a lot of things when you’re drunk.”

“Oh god.” She threw her head back, laughing, and he shushed her with a glance to his closed bedroom door. “You can meet him when he wakes up.”

“He’s here?” Kibum’s brow knit together as he nodded, confused by the incredulity of the question. “Did you get Tiffany’s okay?”

Oh ...he knew he’d been forgetting something. Not that he had thought of it even once since Minho told him that Minseok lent him enough money to get back to him.

“Uh...no…”

“. Well,” she leaned forward, setting her mug down beside him, “I saw her downstairs like ten minutes ago, so maybe she’s still down there?”

“I’ll be right back.” He shot off of the coffee table, hurrying for the door. He cracked it open, looking back at the couch. “Need anything?”

“Nah, I’m good. Send Tyler up if you see him.”

“Okay.” He slipped outside and rushed down to the kitchen, disappointment settling in his shoulders when she was nowhere to be seen. “Have you seen Tiffany?” he asked the only other person in the kitchen, a drowsy girl with a remarkable case of bedhead who was staring blearily into the fridge as if she had forgotten why she was even there.

“She went back upstairs a few minutes ago.”

Lovely. This is just how he wanted to start his morning. With exercise.

He let out a long, exasperated sigh as he his heel and went back up the stairs to the third floor. He took a right instead of his usual left, heading to the dorm room across from the communal bathrooms and raptly knocking once he reached it.

“Yeah?”

“It’s Kibum,” he said in Korean.

“Come in,” she replied, and he opened the door.

Kibum peered in, finding his dorm supervisor lounging on her bed, all wrapped up in her usual morning look -- a fluffy pink bathrobe and her matching slippers. Her manicured eyebrows rose expectantly as he stepped inside, disappearing behind the pink sleeping eye past that had off ♡ embroidered in the silk. She smiled as he closed the door behind him, sipping her coffee and setting it aside as she cocked her head, inspecting him curiously.

“How can I help you?”

“I...well, I completely forgot to tell you that my boyfriend is here.”

“Oh? He finally made it over?” Kibum nodded. “How is he liking New York so far?”

“Pretty well, I think.” They hadn’t explored too much of it, yet. “But, um, he’s...he’s here. Like, he’s living in the dorms, and I didn’t even think of the rules…”

She had been reaching for her coffee again, but she froze mid-stretch. “He doesn’t have a hotel room or anything?” Kibum shook his head. She squinted at him, sitting back against the wall and crossing her legs. “He can’t stay here when term starts up again.”

Kibum let out a defeated sigh. “I know.”

She pursed her lips, frowning in sympathy. “I am sorry.”

“No, it’s okay. We should have planned better.” He cleared his throat and looked back, reaching for the doorknob. “We’ll figure out something before Monday.”

She nodded, leaning forward to grab her coffee again. “See you later, then.”

As soon as the door was closed behind him, he heaved a heavy sigh before he trudged back to his door, groaning as he slipped inside. Nicole sat up to look at him over the back of the couch. “He can’t stay?” He nodded and she offered him a small, sympathetic smile. “He’s up, by the way. A bit surprised to see me, I think.” She laughed when Kibum’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “Pictures don’t do him justice.”

“ing tell me about it. Where’d he go?”

“Downstairs. For coffee, I think.”

“More ing exercise,” he muttered to himself as he turned back around, heading down to the kitchen yet again.

Minho was there -- adorably rumpled from just having woken up -- but he wasn’t alone. No, he was accompanied by one of the girls from the floor below that Kibum barely recognized. They were standing beside each other, her hand lightly gripping his bicep as she pointed to one of the coffee cups on the top shelf of the cupboard. Kibum blinked in disbelief, staring openly at her when she laughed at something Minho mumbled as he went up on his tiptoes to get the cup.

It wasn’t that he was worried about Minho cheating on him -- especially not with some random woman. He knew better than that, given that he was as annoyingly in love with him and he was with him. But there was still a flare of jealousy niggling at the back of his mind. For a second, he stood frozen on the spot where the linoleum met the carpet of the lobby, watching them. The next, he glided forward, slipping his arm around Minho’s waist and tucking himself snugly into his side. He smiled up at him when Minho looked his way.

“Oh, there you are,” he said, his voice still thick with sleep.

“I was gonna bring you some coffee, love,” he said, smiling when Minho leaned in to give him a chaste good morning kiss. “But I got a little distracted.”

“It’s okay,” Minho said cutely before he leaned in for another quick kiss, seemingly forgetting about the woman beside him.

But Kibum hadn’t forgotten.

As soon as Minho leaned away from him, his attention finally turned to her, his expression shifting to a smug smile when he saw how shocked she was. “Do you want him to pour your coffee for you, too? Or are you good?”

“Bum -- “ Minho started to say as she set the mug down with a huff and stormed away. “Wha -- “

Kibum detached himself from Minho, reached for her discarded coffee cup as well as another from the cupboard and then for the steaming coffee pot. “Let’s wake you up, babe.” Minho kissed the top of his head before he made his way to the fridge. He leaned against the open door, scanning the contents for the cream as Kibum stirred a bit of sugar into the coffees.

“This must be the boyfriend.” Both of them looked up to find Tiffany strolling past them to set her empty coffee cup in the sink. Minho glanced at Kibum then at her again, his expression slackening as she smiled and held her hand out for a handshake. “Hi, it’s nice to meet you,” she said in Korean. “I’m Ti -- “

“Miyoung, right?” he finished for her.

Her eyes widened as she scanned his face. “I thought...your name, the pictures...I thought it was a coincidence.” She stepped forward, her brow furrowing. “Is it really you?” Minho nodded and she tried to card a shaking hand through her hair, only to encounter her sleeping mask. “Is she...how is…”

Kibum was sure if either of them looked his way, they would have laughed at his confused expression.

“She’s doing okay. She lives in Daegu now.” Sooyoung? Wait… Tiffany gulped. “She’s single, too, as far as I know.”

Kibum’s eyes widened. “Oh my god,” he muttered aloud, drawing both of their attention. All this time, he’d been with her...If he would have known, he would have said something, but --

Minho dug in his pajama pocket for his phone, tapping the down arrow furiously until he assumedly reached Sooyoung’s contact information. Then he held out for her to see. “I know she’d like to hear from you.”

She stared unblinkingly at the screen for several long seconds. “Are you sure?”

Both he and Minho nodded, though Kibum wasn’t sure why he did. He didn’t even know Sooyoung personally, but if the same thing had happened to himself and Minho, then, yeah of course he would have wanted to hear from him, no matter how long it had been. She worried her bottom lip until Minho passed her the phone so she could write the information down on one of the many Chinese takeout menus littering the counters. It took a few attempts to find a working pen, but soon she had the number.

She stared at it, her expression unreadable for a few seconds before she pulled Minho into a hug. She muttered something for only him to hear and he nodded, patting her back before she slipped out of his arms and left the kitchen.

“Good luck!” Kibum called after her, his attention shifting to Minho when she disappeared behind the wall.

“Which one is mine?” he asked as he stepped back beside him.

“It doesn’t matter.”

Minho splashed some cream into the mug closest to him and Kibum stirred it in as he returned the carton to the fridge. He passed him his coffee before he grabbed his free hand and led him over to the deserted lobby instead of just heading back upstairs. Minho smiled at him as Kibum leaned against the window, looking back at him. The sunny, cloudless day was reflected in his dark eyes, which widened as he took a tentative sip of his coffee. Sighing, Kibum lifted their joined hands and kissed Minho’s knuckles.

“So,” he said, pulling Minho a little closer to him, “We’ve got a bit of a problem.”

“Oh?”

Kibum nodded. “You can’t stay here at the dorms. I was...I was too excited about you coming that I didn’t think to arrange a place for you to stay when you got here.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

His face scrunched up in thought. It took a few more careful sips of his coffee before he met Kibum’s gaze again. “Well, what options do we have?”

“We?”

Minho blinked. “Aren’t we gonna stay together?” Kibum’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “What? Is that not an option?”

“No, it is…” It was bound to happen. Sooner rather than later, if they were lucky. But just the thought of them having a place to call home, after so long of living apart from each other, filled him with such joy that he couldn’t think of anything to say for a moment.

Which was a rarity for him.

“Bum?” Minho asked, laughing. “Were you listening?”

“Sorry, I’m...I’m just thinking. What’d you say?”

“We can use some of the money Minseok gave me and try to find a place to live. When do I have to be gone?”

“By Monday.”

Minho hummed and finished off the rest of his coffee. “Should we start looking today, then?”

There was that overwhelming surge of joy again. “Sure.”

They were bundled up and on their way out the door by ten, their joined hands swinging between them as they trudged through the knee-deep snow to the subway. Minho bought a couple of pumpkin pasties from Madge, who was on the complete opposite side of the street than she was the last time they came to the Boulevard, and they headed inside her shop.

“Oh, huh,” Minho said as he stepped through the wardrobe after Kibum, his mouth full of pastie. Kibum hummed in question as he held out his hand for Minho to take again. “I think they just use cinnamon. Grandma uses way more spices.”

“Yeah, it's not as good as yours.”

Minho smiled shyly, nudging him with his elbow. “Stop lying.”

“Why would I lie?” Minho shook his head, trying to conceal his grin with little success. Kibum smirked, closing the door to the closet and pulling Minho into the crowd around the Grafted Tree. “I only got them as often as I did because I missed you, but then it only made me miss you more.”

“You could have made them yourself?”

“With what oven?” Minho cackled, the sound turning heads as they headed for the exit. “And what recipe? Grandma didn’t share that with me, just you!” His laugh turned into a sheepish grin when Kibum his teeth at him, and it took all of Kibum’s willpower not to smile back. “Do you still remember how to make them?”

“Of course!” He pulled Kibum into the same compartment of the revolving door, placing his hand over Kibum’s as it hooked around his arm. “I made them for Sooyoung during my first visit and she fell in love with them so I had to keep making them for her whenever I visited.”

Kibum grinned, looking up at him as they stepped back out into the chilly day. “Well, good. I expect to get some as soon as we get an oven.”

“Just an oven? No apartment attached?”

“The apartment would be a bonus.” Minho laughed again, his breath pluming around his face for a second. “Come on, let’s head there first,” he said, pointing to the apartment complex that he and his parents had lived in before they moved to England. A sign hung just inside the window by the wooden double doors--a bright light spelling out VACANCIES over and over again with Inquire within posted below.

The building took up an entire block, the walls made of a rolling wave of red and white bricks and gleaming windows. Some were decorated for Christmas still, even if the holiday was a few weeks in the past, and others had plants on the sill in the hopes that they would soak up a little of the winter sun’s warmth. Gold and red sparks shimmered in a few of the windows--undoubtedly someone was practicing magic, but from this distance, Kibum couldn’t tell which spell it was. Hopefully not Expelliarmus...

Minho slipped a little once they reached the icy, assumedly magic-shoveled sidewalk directly in front of the Domum Apartments. “Watch out, love,” he said, tightening his grip on Minho’s arm and holding him steady as he stepped over the icy patch and onto the dry cobblestone. Minho followed suit, keeping their arms linked as they walked down the steps and, after stamping off the snow caked on their shoes, they headed inside.

“Where’s the office, do you think?” Minho whispered to him as soon as the door swung shut behind him.

“Not sure…”

The lobby was a long, thin room, several sets of escalating spiral staircases leading to different floors scattered around the richly furnished room. A crackling fire danced merrily in the car-sized hearth to their left with sepia-tinted photographs hanging haphazardly around it, from the floor to the walls to the ceiling. A massive dog lay curled up beside the fire, tail thumping as Minho broke away from Kibum to go pet it. After a second, Kibum joined him, crouching beside the fire and cooing at the elderly dog, who didn’t seem to want to move other than to wag its tail.

“Can I help you?” a woman from somewhere behind them asked, and Kibum braced himself on Minho as he turned and stood.

She was a stout, elderly woman, her expression reminiscent of Headmistress McGonagall’s when the student body wouldn’t shut up on the first day of school. Her steely look melted into a softer, kinder one as soon as Kibum met her gaze. He tapped Minho’s back before he drew his hand away and started for her. From the sounds of it, Minho was just a few steps behind him. She lifted her chin and stepped around behind the desk, the skirt of her high-necked robes swishing the floor.

Kibum leaned against the counter, watching her expectantly until Minho stepped up beside him, greeting the woman with a winning smile. He rolled his eyes, looking away from his boyfriend as he tried not to smile at his cuteness and back at the woman, who was glancing between them. “Are you here to visit someone?”

“Ah, no. Um,” he cleared his throat, “I lived here before when I was younger, and we need a place to stay--”

“I just moved here,” Minho added when Kibum paused to take a breath.

“Right, yeah, and we saw the sign outside advertising the vacancies, so...here we are?”

“Let me see…” She pulled out a book that was larger and thicker than A History of Magic, setting it down before her with a heavy thunk. “Two bedrooms, I assume?”

Kibum snorted and leaned into Minho’s side as he started to laugh, then sobered slightly when she looked up curiously. “No. Just one, or even a studio would be fine. I think we’ll be okay with tight quarters for a while.” Minho shot him an awkward smile that turned into a nervous look when the lady went back to flipping through the book. What? Kibum mouthed, but Minho just shook his head, returning his attention to the woman.

She only flipped a few more pages of the book before she closed it, looking back up at them. All the haughtiness had returned to her expression. Kibum blinked, his brow furrowing. “I’m sorry, it looks like the only vacancies we have are for two bedrooms and up. So unless you’re interested in those…”

“Uh--”

Minho bowed slightly to her. “No, but thank you for your time, ma’am.” She nodded to them as they turned to go, Kibum’s confusion only growing as Minho laced their fingers together, his grip tighter than he’d been expecting. “So, where now?” Minho asked as soon as the door closed behind them.

“Not sure, to be honest.”

Minho paused, waited for Kibum to step over the icy patch again before he joined him on the other side. “We can look around for other vacancy signs, I guess?”

The streets of the Boulevard were intertwining and confusing, both losing their sense of direction a few times as they walked along the streets, trying to make sense of it all. The few places with vacancies they found were either too cramped or too loud. Or both. They actually went to check out a particular apartment, but the music from below vibrated the floorboards and the yelling from above was too irritating even in the five minutes they spent there.

As they were on their way out, the office worker who showed them around told them that the rent, should they change their mind, would be five-hundred fifty Dragots a month.

“Five-” Kibum sputtered as they once again returned outside, both shivering as the chilly air embraced them. “That’s ing ridiculous. Can we even afford that?”

“I’m not sure…” Minho’s brow furrowed and he glanced around, no doubt trying to find his bearings. “Let’s figure it out over lunch.”

Kibum slipped his hand around Minho’s arm again, looking up at him with an eager smile. “Where do you wanna go?”

“Where do you wanna go?”

He hummed in thought, his attention shifting to the street again as he searched for a glimpse of the shopping center. “We haven’t gone to Gildong’s yet.”

“Yeah, sure, that works.”

Kibum squeezed his arm a little tighter, smiling as he looked around again. “Oh, there it is!” he said, pointing to the gleaming spherical shopping center. “Honestly, we should try to see if we can find a map of the Boulevard.”

“Do you think they’ll have that in there?”

Kibum shrugged. “Maybe? If we remember after lunch, I can ask.”

They fought their way through the crowd to the second floor, parting ways so Kibum could save them a seat in the crowded food court cafeteria while Minho went to order their food from Gildong’s. Above the din of the families chatting around them, Kibum strained his ears, listening to the music that filled the shopping center. It was one of the Weird Sisters’ old songs, “Magic Works.” He recognized it immediately, given that it was one of Dad’s favorites. He hummed along to it until it ended, breaking out into a grin when the next song began.

1:42 pm

Hey! Your song is playing in the shopping center again!

Crazy in Love, I think? It’s hard to hear over the crowd.

He set his phone down, tapping his thumb on the back of it until it vibrated.

Really? That’s great~ I’ll tell the others. How are things

going? I haven’t heard much from you since that

boyfriend of yours arrived

“‘That boyfriend of yours,’” Kibum said, rolling his eyes with a smile. “Honestly, Jonghyun.”

Sorry, I’ve been a bit preoccupied

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Have you now?

“What’s so funny?” Minho asked as he slid the tray of food between them.

Kibum blinked, staring wide-eyed at all the food. Not only was there a heaping serving of tteokbokki, but there was also a steaming bowl of what looked like doenjang jjigae that Minho was placing before him, and a plate of japchae bap that Minho took for himself.

Kibum grabbed one of the sets of chopsticks and the available spoon, breaking the chopsticks apart before he dug through the tteokbokki. "Jonghyun’s just being Jonghyun.”

Minho sniffed a laugh. “Ah, okay.”

He found a fish cake amidst all the rice cakes, pulling it free and eating it in one bite before he turned his attention to his stew. He glanced up at Minho, doing a double-take when he found him already watching him. “What?”

“Do you not like the rice cakes?” he asked, amusement coloring his voice.

Kibum shook his head, covering his mouth as he swallowed his first mouthful of stew. “Why?”

Minho shrugged, shaking his head and smiling as he grabbed another bite of his noodles. “It’s just cute, that’s all.”

“You have a very low standard when it comes to what it means to be cute.”

“When it comes to you, yes.” Snorting, Kibum stirred his stew, glancing up at Minho again when he cleared his throat. “Besides, it works out, because I prefer the rice cakes.”

“Oh, do you?” Grinning now, Minho nodded. “I suppose this makes us a perfect match.”

“Yeah. Maybe we should date or something.”

“Hm. Maybe.” Minho coughed a laugh, covering his mouth as he tried to swallow his food. “I don’t know, though. We wouldn’t want to rush into a relationship just because of that.”

“Yes, because we’re notorious for rushing into things.”

“Right,” Kibum said, smirking when Minho laughed again. "Well, I mean, we kinda are, if you think about it."

Minho's brow knit together as he wiped his lips with a napkin. "In what way?"

"We're moving in together after like...two weeks of you being here."

It was hard to keep from laughing as Minho's furrowed brow deepened. "Bum. We've been a couple for three years now."

"And? It took us four to actually confess. Maybe we should wait a while longer. Really figure out if this was the right move or not."

Minho's eyebrows rose as he looked back at his noodles. "You're right...I should probably move back to Korea while we think about it. I wouldn't want to influence your decision." He shot Kibum an amused look as he took another bite of his japchae bap.

Kibum started to respond, but he couldn't conjure up a sarcastic remark now. Just the thought of Minho leaving him again was nearly enough to knock the wind out of him. Not physically, obviously.

Minho glanced his way, looking again, concerned now at his expression. Kibum schooled his features, smiling again, though not as wryly now. "Do you think we'll be able to find a place today?"

Sighing, Minho reached out, grabbing a pair of tteok and stuffing them both in his mouth, chewing thoughtfully. "I hope so. We should try on the other side of the Boulevard."

Kibum nodded. "Maybe we'll have more luck there."

"Yeah," Minho said with a half-hearted laugh. "Hopefully they'll be more accepting."

"What do you mean?"

Minho's eyes widened as he met Kibum's gaze again. "You...you didn't notice?"

"Notice what?" He blinked once slowly, then several times rapidly. "Some of them didn't like that…"

"That we're a couple? No, they didn't."

Kibum's mouth popped open in surprise. "Which ones?"

"All except...the second, I think. I may be misremembering…"

"Should we, you know...try to not--"

"No," Minho said without hesitation, cutting Kibum off. "If we need to, we can try to find someplace outside of the Boulevard. But we're not gonna pretend to be something we're not."

Kibum watched him for several long seconds, just to make sure that he had nothing else to add. When he mutely stirred his noodles, Kibum nodded. "Okay. We'll try a few more places and then head back for the dorms?"

"Yeah." He smiled, scanning Minho's handsome profile for a few more seconds. "I asked for a job application at Gildong's."

"Oh?" Minho nodded. "You're gonna cook?"

Minho almost choked on his japchae. "God, I hope not. That'd be a mess."

Grinning, Kibum set his spoon aside as he leaned closer, his hand brushing against Minho's. "Dishwasher, then?"

"Yeah, something like that. Maybe a cashier."

"Do you want to try a few other places before we head back?"

Nodding, Minho looked over at him, a smile brightening his features. "I was thinking I could try Stein's...maybe the apothecary, too. They have a greenhouse back there, you know."

"Oh right." Kibum picked up his spoon, stirring what was left of his stew before he set it aside again. "Should we go now, then?" Minho shot him an incredulous look as he took another bite of his lunch. "Okay fine, you can finish eating first. Whatever."

He rolled his eyes, but he was unable to keep himself from smiling.

Luckily for Kibum's patience, Minho was a fast eater, and they were soon on the way down to the main floor, stopping off at the apothecary and the Quidditch supply store to get applications for Minho before they returned outside, heading to the right instead of the left.

It was a quieter section of the borough. There were a few charming little duplexes that caught his eye, but they all seemed occupied, judging by the yards full of children's toys and attempted snowmen. A block of apartments looked promising if a bit too small for the two of them. He may love Minho with everything he has, but he would still need his space…

Minho's grip tightened on his hand as he started them across the street, Kibum's attention swinging around to focus on the row of thin townhouses lining the other side of the street. There were several that didn't have smoke coming out of the chimneys, which possibly meant they were vacant. Kibum picked up the pace to keep up with Minho's longer strides.

"Do you think there's an office somewhere?"

"I hope so, these look cute."

Kibum nodded, glancing down the row and pointing to the one on the far end, where the tiny Office sign swung in the gentle breeze. "Let's check over here."

Minho let Kibum lead the way past the wrought iron fence and up the brick steps to the door. “Should we knock first?” Minho whispered as Kibum opened the door.

“Hello?”

No one responded.

Minho closed the door behind himself, stamping the snow off of his boots as Kibum meandered inside, looking around. “Kinda reminds you of Puddifoot’s, doesn’t it?” he asked, glancing back at Minho.

He nodded, looking around at the frilly pink decor and moving portraits. Were those kittens and puppies...dressed in Victorian-style clothes? No matter. Kibum stepped up to the counter as Minho flipped through an old book on a podium by the door. “Are we supposed to sign in or something?” Minho asked as Kibum rang the little gold bell by the bowl of dusty, unwrapped lemon drops.

Before Kibum could think of a response, the silvery ghost of a frail older woman shot out of the top of the counter. He jumped back in shock, cursing in Korean, and the ghost laughed merrily as Minho’s arms settled comfortingly around him. It took a second for his breathing to return to normal as Minho greeted her politely.

“Sorry,” she said, smiling as she floated through the counter towards them. “Today has been dull." She sighed happily, surveying the pair of them with an almost knowing eye. "My name is Bedelia Bronstein, and I own the happy little neighborhood. What can I do for you two?”

How long she had been dead, he'd never know, but given the style of her robes, and neatly curled hair, it had to have been quite a while.

“Uh.”

Minho cleared his throat. “We were wondering if there were any vacancies available here?”

“Oh, yes, we almost always have at least one vacancy here. My wife and I -- “ She continued to speak, but Kibum couldn’t focus on whatever it was she said. He breathed a sigh of relief, looking back up at Minho who, while still listening intently to the ghost, was smiling broadly. Kibum reached for his hand and Minho immediately interlocked their fingers. “And, come on, this way,” she said as Kibum tuned back into the conversation. She floated through them on her way out the door, both of them shivering involuntarily. “As I said, Bridget is quite handy with fixing things around the house, so if you ever encounter something that you’re not sure how to fix, just call the office and she’ll come to help you out.”

“Is she not a ghost, too?”

Kibum smacked Minho’s arm lightly as the ghost laughed once again. “Merlin, no, not yet. She’ll get there, though.”

Bedelia continued, her voice being carried slightly away by the breeze as she led the five townhouses down to the pale blue-painted one. She floated through the fence, Minho nearly walking into it to follow her. "Come on, let yourselves in. And be sure to knock the snow off your boots so you don't track water in."

"Yes, ma'am," they both murmured as they followed her up the steps, letting themselves inside after she had already drifted through the bright red arched door.

Minho turned the golden, filigreed knob in the center of the door, something clicking in the jamb before he pushed the door open and let Kibum inside.

It was a long, thin room, a flight of carpeted stairs directly opposite to the door and a narrow hallway on the other side of the banister. The walls leading away from the door and further in were also covered in moving portraits, though some of actual witches and wizards were intermingled with the animals. Minho closed the door, revealing a door in the wall just behind it. No doubt there for coats and shoes.

"Further in, my dears, further in," Bedelia's hollow voice called to them.

"Is she still downstairs?" Minho whispered in Korean.

"I think so."

After a second's hesitation, Minho stepped off the plush doormat and onto the cherrywood floor, which creaked under each step they took together since Kibum was peering out behind his shoulder. He couldn't help but glance at the portraits as they passed, some of which stared back, and others saying a cheery greeting. Minho waved at one of the young witches trapped in oil paints, and she ducked behind her mother's skirts, peeking out at them.

Kibum stopped at another door in the wall, grabbing Minho's arm to stop him too, and opened it to reveal an oppressively green bathroom. Floor to ceiling, tub to tile to sink, all varying shades of the same kelly green. Thankfully Minho had the strength to flip the light off because Kibum wasn't sure if he would be able to look away.

"Come on, babe," he said, amusement coloring his voice. Kibum let the door swing closed, though he didn't release Minho's arm from his vice-like grip.

Bedelia was waiting for them in what he assumed was the living area, given the couches and plethora of cushions that abounded the space. All a violent purple.

"Yes," she said, and when Kibum looked her way, he found her gaze penetrating him. "We do give our tenants free rein to decorate as they please. It's not as if this can't all be fixed with a flick of one's wand, correct?"

"Uh, yes."

She nodded, her smile returning. "Now, let's begin."

She took them through the entire downstairs, which held the crowded sitting room, a cramped kitchen, and the green bathroom. In the door through the back of the kitchen, she took them back outside, showing them the expanse of trodden-through snow.

"This is where we garden when the weather allows. You're free to grow and take as you please, as are the rest of your neighbors."

When they nodded, both shivering, she led them back inside and up the carpeted stairs. Kibum did his best to ignore the portraits here, but nearly got caught up in a game of what looked like wizarding beer pong between two of the portraits. But, Minho tugged him along, and Kibum followed.

It was much cozier, up here. More open concept, though still quite narrow. There was a bed against one way, a wide window overlooking a balcony that Kibum had noticed from the yard below, and two doors opposite the bed. One, a closet, and the other, another bathroom.

"Do either of you have your wand?" Bedelia asked. Minho produced his from the inside of his coat, and she beckoned him toward her. "See here?" she asked, Kibum hurrying forward to see the three little grooves carved in the ceiling that her transparent finger was pointing at. "Tap it and say Somnisca." Minho muttered the charm under his breath once before he wordlessly tapped the grooves.

A hatch opened and down tumbled a rope and plank ladder. Bedelia was already soaring through the opening, and Minho straightened out the ladder. "Wanna come up or stay down here?" he asked, but judging by the look on his face, he already knew the answer.

"I'll stay here. It's probably just an attic."

He nodded, and while he was still looking at him, he was distracted momentarily. Until that is, he leaned closer, cupping his cheek and brushing something away with the pad of his thumb. "Eyelash," he said, smiling when Kibum gave him a confused look. "Make a wish?"

Kibum squinted as Minho held his thumb out for Kibum to blow the eyelash away, his hand curling around Minho's, holding it steady as he closed his eyes. I wish...that...I wish that we'll find a place today. He blew on Minho's thumb, then opened his eyes with a small smile. "Go on, she's waiting for you."

Minho grinned as Kibum released his hand, and clambered up the ladder. Kibum watched until his feet disappeared, then looked back around the garishly orange bedroom. Yeah, whoever the lived here before had no respect for their eyes, whatsoever. He sighed, walking across to sit on the queen-sized bed. Hm, this was nice and soft, and bigger than any bed they'd ever shared before…

Wait, had they really only slept together in a twin-sized bed?

Kibum scooted back, lying stiffly on one side of the bed, glancing over at the wide expanse of space left for Minho. Now that would be a nice change… As much as he loved sharing a bed with Minho, it was a bit difficult to get comfortable with two men in a twin-size bed. They practically had to lay on top of one another to be able to fit.

His thoughts drifted to happy, more distracting times until Bedelia sank through the ceiling once more and Minho's feet appeared at the top of the ladder.

"I'll leave you two to discuss it now," she said as Kibum sat bolt upright in bed, but she floated past him. The bed sank a little as Minho sat beside him, and she looked back at them from the top of the stairs. "If you're interested, the rent will be two-handed fifty Dragots a month. Fully furnished for you to decorate at your discretion. Go ahead and stop on by the office again, if you want to get a lease set up!"

"Thank you!" Minho called after her as she glided down the narrow staircase. They waited a few long seconds until they were sure she was gone. "Well," he said, returning to speaking Korean. "What do you think?"

"I mean…" He cast his eyes about the carrot-stained room before he met Minho's earnest gaze. "It's good that we'll be able to change the decor."

Minho broke into a grin that Kibum couldn't stop himself from returning. Kibum scooted back, tugging off his boots as he stretched out on the bed. "Do you think" -- Kibum patted the place beside him when Minho's eyebrows rose in question.

"Do I think, what?" he asked when Minho's voice cut off abruptly. He huffed a laugh when Minho just looked at him, gaze incredulous and curious. "No, that's not what I'm saying. Just come sit by me."

It took Minho a second to unlace his boots, but soon he sidled up beside him on the bed, smoothing his hand over the plush comforter. "This is nice. Even if it's aggressively orange."

Kibum snorted. "What were you gonna ask?"

"No idea."

Sighing, Kibum scooted down a little, resting his head on Minho's shoulder as he looked down at their sock-covered feet. He tapped Minho's foot with his own, smiling when Minho returned the gesture.

"Two-hundred fifty Dragots isn't that bad, I don’t think. I get almost that every month from my job." In addition to the two-hundred dollars of No-Maj money, but that wasn’t important right now.

"Plus with what y...what we have in the bank, we should be set for a while until I get a job."

"Right." Kibum looked up, his nose brushing against Minho's cheek. "Do you think it's worth looking anywhere else? Or is this our new home?"

Minho's eyes crinkled as he smiled and Kibum just barely had to lean forward to kiss his cheek. "Our home." He whispered it with such reverence that Kibum's breath caught in his chest for a second. He turned his head, kissing Kibum's lips lightly. "I like the sound of that."

"Funnily enough, me too." Then Minho was kissing him for real, Kibum pulling him as close as he could, though it wouldn't ever be close enough. "Just, promise me," he said once Minho had pulled away, and he hummed in question. "Promise me we'll pick up a book on home decorating spells on the way back to the dorm."

Minho grinned, which made kissing Kibum again difficult, but he had always been the persevering type.

Within the hour, they had the lease signed, their first month’s rent paid, two secondhand books about renovating your home with charms, and dinner from Gildong’s. Which was just another helping of tteokbokki to share, since they were both still pretty full from lunch. It was hard to keep from flipping through the books on the subway back to the dorm and when they got back, given that Nicole and Tyler were hanging out on the couch.

“You guys can stay out here?” she called after them as they went through to Kibum’s room.

“No, it’s okay,” Kibum said, stopping before his bedroom door after Minho went in. “We want to get packed since we don’t have much t--”

“You guys found a place already?”

“Yeah! We’re moving in on--”

“Sunday,” Minho said when Kibum hesitated, trying to remember.

“Yeah, Sunday.”

“Oh , that’s quick. You guys must be excited?”

Kibum grinned, nodding. He was about to speak again when something loud thumped behind him. Concerned, he turned back to find that Minho had dumped out the contents of his backpack. “What are you doing?”

“Do you remember the spell for the Undetectable Extension Charm?” he asked, glancing up at him as he dug around in the inside pockets of his backpack.

“, no. Grandma always used that one nonverbally.”

“Didn’t Flitwick go over it in seventh year?”

“Uh…Babe, it’s been a while, I don’t remember.” Minho sighed heavily, though without a trace of exasperation. He crossed the room, taking his phone off the charger and checking the time. If it was six-thirty here, that would mean… “Do you think Mom will be asleep at eleven-thirty?”

Minho sputtered as he looked up at him. “She’s your Mom, how am I supposed to know?”

“Our Mom,” he said absently as he pressed the three key, speed-dialing her. “Hello?” he said when she picked up the phone. She said something but Kibum couldn’t hear her since Minho was shaking out his backpack again. He tossed a pillow at Minho to get him to stop. “Sorry, Mom, what was that?”

“I was just asking how you were, hon.”

“We’re good.”

“We found an apartment!” Minho called out, but Kibum shushed him.

“I was getting to that!”

“To what?”

He laid back on the bed, filling Mom in on the day they had had. Minho climbed in beside him and Kibum turned the speaker on so the three of them could talk together. Neither of them mentioned why they had been turned away at some of the other places. In fact, they barely mentioned them at all. Kibum had just finished describing the garish colors of their new place when Minho sat up to grab one of their new books, flipping through it for both of them to see as Kibum continued to chat with Mom.

“Anyways,” he said after Mom yawned for like the third time. “I don’t want to keep you up too late, we just had a quick question.”

“What is it?”

“Do you remember the spell for the Extension Charm?” Minho asked, setting the book down on Kibum’s stomach as he glanced at the phone resting on his chest.

“Capacious extremis. And the wand movement is just a circle around the object you want to expand. Are you guys packing?”

“Yeah, we want to try to fit everything in Minho’s backpack if we can.”

“Sounds good. Let me know if you need anything else from me.”

“We will, Mom,” Kibum said as Minho said, “Thanks, Mom.”

“Bye, you two. Love you!”

“Love you, too!”

She hung up and Kibum set the phone on the nightstand as Minho rested his head on his shoulder. “Do you want to pack or eat?”

“Hm...eat.”

They shared the tteokbokki, Minho pulling out the fish cakes from his side and setting it on top of Kibum’s side of the pile of tteokbokki. After they finished eating, however, they only got a bit of packing done before Minho found his applications in his coat pocket.

“Go ahead and get started on them,” Kibum said, taking the coat from Minho and leaving him with the three scrolls of parchment. “It’s mostly my stuff anyways.”

For the next two days, they packed and cleaned up Kibum’s room, double and triple-checking to make sure that they hadn’t forgotten anything. They only took breaks to eat and to drop off Minho’s applications. Both were hardly able to sleep from the excitement.

Kibum immediately silenced his alarm on Sunday morning, dashing out of bed to get them their last cups of coffee that they’d have in the dorms. Minho was awake, if only barely, by the time he returned.

“Are you ready?” Kibum asked as he slid back into bed, passing Minho his coffee.

“We can’t get the keys until noon, right?” Kibum nodded. “What time is it now?”

“Uh” -- he reached for his phone, checking the time -- “seven-ten.” Minho’s head thunked against the wall with a groan. Chuckling, Kibum switched hands, holding his coffee in his right hand as he the back of Minho’s head with his left. “I know, it’s way too long.”

Around nine, they couldn’t stand the waiting around anymore. They said their goodbyes to Nicole, Tyler, and Tiffany before they set out across the snow-covered campus to the subway. They lingered in the shopping center until eleven-forty-seven before they hurried over to Bedelia’s office. She appeared once again out of the counter when Minho rang the bell, but it didn’t surprise them this time.

She pulled out the watch hanging out of the front pocket of her robes. "Bit early, you two." For a second, Kibum thought she might be upset with them, but then she started to smile. "Here, come around," she said, gesturing to Minho. He readily obeyed, grabbing the ring of skeleton keys that hung from the ring that was labeled 25. "You know the way?" They both nodded again. "Then 25 Vista Avenue is all yours!"

Minho bowed to her as Kibum said a quick thank you, slipping his arm in Minho's on their way out the door. He was practically vibrating with excitement as they made their way down the shoveled sidewalk to the townhouse with the red front door. Then they were through the gate, and up the few quick steps. Minho passed him the twin keys as he hefted his backpack off of his shoulders and Kibum stepped up beside him, fitting the key into the lock.

"Wait, why do we even need keys," he said as he turned it.

"Oh, true." Minho laughed as Kibum pushed open the door, then stepped in front of him to set his backpack inside. He yelped involuntarily when Minho swept him up in his arms, covering his mouth with the hand that didn't immediately hook around Minho's neck. "It's tradition, isn't it?"

"Are you saying I'm the bride? You should have told me, I would have made a dress for the occasion."

Minho chuckled as Kibum let out an exasperated sigh. "What, you wanna try to pick me up?" Kibum leveled him with a haughty look that melted as Minho grinned. When Kibum slipped his other arm over his shoulder, Minho stepped over the threshold, being careful not to knock Kibum's head against the door jamb. "Welcome home, sweetheart," he said, his smile softening as Kibum met his eyes.

Kibum reached into Minho's coat for his wand, flicking it over his shoulder at the door, which then closed of its own accord. Then, he cupped Minho's cheek, drawing him into a tender kiss.

"Welcome home to you, too."

* * * * * * * * *

- January 24, 2013 -

“Kibum?”

“Yeah?”

“Can I borrow some of your clothes for my interviews?”

A loud crack filled their bedroom, Kibum appearing by Minho’s side as he dropped the sweater he was thinking about wearing. Kibum, however, didn’t notice. He started sifting through the clothes, squinting in thought. “We need to go clothes shopping for you.”

“Yeah…” Minho heaved a sigh, tearing Kibum’s attention away from their closet. He gave Minho a quick once over. “Just something simple, I think…”

Humming with a smile, Kibum looked back at his clothes. “See, I was gonna go with an haute runway look, but now I guess I can’t, hm?”

Minho grinned as he pulled Kibum into a back hug and rested his chin on his shoulder. “I mean if you think I can pull it off?”

“Love, you can pull anything off.”

“Anything?” he asked, and when Kibum didn’t answer right away, he nuzzled at his neck before kissing it lightly.

“Stop it, I’m running late enough as it is,” Kibum said, though his voice was smiling.

Chuckling, Minho rested his chin on his shoulder again, watching him pull out a pair of jeans. “What about the black sweater with those?”

“Which one?”

“The one on the floor.”

Kibum looked down but didn’t move to pick it up. “I guess, if you want to be boring.”

“I do, thank you.”

Kibum reached up, patting his cheek, and Minho took that as his cue to let go of him. “You’re heading to the apothecary first, right?” Minho nodded, smiling as Kibum went up on his tiptoes, kissing him gently. “Good luck” -- another kiss -- “Let me know how it goes” -- another one, lingering a second longer this time -- “I’ll see you after class.”

Minho wrapped his arms around Kibum, holding him against him as he kissed him yet again, the building anxiety for his upcoming interviews dwindling to almost nothing, as long as Kibum was in his arms. “Are we going grocery shopping after you get home?”

“Mhm.”

“Okay.”

Kibum cupped his cheek, scanning his expression. “Try not to worry too much, okay? You’re gonna do great.” One last kiss, and then Kibum stepped out of his embrace, Minho’s arms falling back at his side as he watched him go. “Love you! I’ll see you later.”

“Love you, too!”

A crack echoed downstairs as Minho bent to retrieve the sweater, and Minho glanced over to the stairs at the noise. Ah, he must be in an apparating mood today. Minho smiled at the thought as he grabbed the pair of jeans Kibum had picked out and made his wait to their bathroom. He squinted as he the light, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the acrid yellow of every surface.

They seriously needed to make time to employ the Color Changing Charm before they went blind. Kibum had been busy with school and Minho with unpacking and getting everything else set up around the house while Kibum was out...they were both too tired to even try. Hmm, maybe if he had time after the interviews, he could give it another go.

As grateful as he was to get the opportunity to try for both jobs he was interested in, he had been hoping that he would have been able to have the interviews on two separate days. Especially given that the apothecary one was going to be a working interview. Whatever that meant. At least it was first, he reminded himself as he zipped up his jeans. He’d be able to get it over with quickly.

After he pulled on Kibum’s sweater, he made his way downstairs, glancing around at the now blank colorful walls. The pictures proved to be quite annoying, chatting amongst themselves late into the night like the old friends they probably were. Luckily, they weren’t fixed to the wall like Minho thought they would be, so they were able to stash them up in the dark attic, which almost immediately eliminated the chatter, given that they could no longer see one another.

There was a cup of coffee waiting for him on the counter, already doctored up just how he liked it. Smiling, Minho took it to the back door, opening it and leaning against the jamb as he looked out over the snowy garden. Rain was falling, light and delicate. Probably forming a thin layer of ice over the frozen ground.

Minho sighed. He’d have to be careful on his way to the shopping center.

10:47 am

Hey, just letting you know I'm heading out. I'll let you

know when I get there.

He stuffed his phone in his back pocket as he stepped into the oppressively green bathroom to check that his hair was still laying flat after his shower earlier. Then, he slipped into his coat, taking his phone out of his back pocket, and fisted his hand around it as he tucked his hands inside his coat pockets and out of the cold.

Only...it vibrated as soon as he closed the door behind him.

Do me a favor and try not to be too charming

during your interviews. I'm not in the mood to

fight anyone for you today

Minho grinned as he pulled open his coat, making sure he had stuffed his wand in the pocket inside before he replied to Kibum.

Why not? Do you have a headache or something?

Should I pick you up some Wiggenweld on the way home?

This is exactly what I'm talking about.

Stop it.

Minho's laughter covered the sound of his crunching footsteps for a few seconds.

I'll try to hold back. For you.

It's the least you can do.

He ran up the steps to the shopping center, pushing his way through the revolving doors and squinting in preparation for the blast of hot air. It greeted him as expected, magically drying the rain off his hair and clothes. He shook his head, combing his fingers through his hair as he glanced around at the shops circling the Grafted Tree.

The pet shop drew his eye as it so often did, the Crup puppies bounding after him to the edge of their enclosure, tempting him like always to step inside for a quick visit. He crouched down before them, tapping the glass of the storefront window and grinning when their forked tails started wagging madly. With an effort, he moved away from the pet shop, glancing at the bookstore that he and Kibum had barely perused. Well, he hadn’t, at least. Kibum might have in the years that he had lived here already.

Minho made his way to the vine-covered doorway of Crowley’s Remedies. He slipped off his coat as soon as he stepped through, the humidity within nearly choking him. He let out a few hollow coughs as he glanced around at the plants above and around him. Leaves and vines and buds and flowers and roots covered nearly every surface. Little green jars of contained flames floated around the room, casting the room in an eerie verdant glow.

Every plant he could remember from school was there, and even some that he didn’t recognize. He grazed the blossoms of the starthistle with his finger, rubbing the glittery pollen between his fingers as his attention shifted to the center of the shop. He stopped there, at the Wiggentree, inspecting the vials of potions hanging like Christmas ornaments on the man branches.

"How can I help you?"

Minho whirled around, staring wide-eyed at the harried man who was wiping his stained hands off on his apron. He heaved a sigh, staring through Minho as he walked over to where he was. "I'm Cho -- Minho Choi? I'm here for m --"

"Oh, right. Right, the interview. Come with me," he said, turning on his heel and heading past the counter once more. "The name's Barnabas. Barnabas Crowley. You ever worked at an apothecary before?"

"No, sir."

Mr. Crowley grimaced, casting a glance at Minho as he pulled more of the vines back for Minho to step through. "Don't bother with that. Just Barnabas is fine. Crow, if you feel like it. Apron is right there, get one on."

There were much fewer plants back here, but what lacked in quantity was made up by the fact that they were some of the more dangerous plants Minho had heard of. Which, it made sense to keep them away from the general public, but he couldn’t help but be excited that he got to see them so close, even if it were just for this one day. In place of the plants, however, were shelves upon shelves of jars and boxes full of potions ingredients, the likes of which Slughorn would have died to get his hands on.

Minho blinked rapidly, hanging his coat up on the hook beside the door. He grabbed the nearest apron, getting caught up in the eroded fabric before he realized that Mr. Crowley was still talking. "Sorry, what?" he asked, tying the apron off as he hurried over to where he was.

"What experience do you have for this job?"

"Um, well, I went to Hogwarts, and Herbology was my favorite subject."

"Was it? How long have you been graduated?"

"Just a few years."

Mr. Crowley dragged his gaze over Minho before he nodded to the silver knife lying beneath the drooping vines of the venomous tentacula. “Get to work on powdering the mandrake root. I need it for my batch of Flu Remedy.”

Minho looked around, spotting one of the biggest cauldrons he’d ever seen in the corner, steam snaking across the surface of it. He picked up the knife swiftly, careful to avoid the tentacula as it stretched toward him. “I saw a lot of it on the Wiggentree in the front. Do you go through it quickly?” he asked as he pulled one of the dried strips of mandrake root toward him.

“Around this time of year, yes.”

He minced a few of the strips, the sounds of the bubbling in the cauldron, his cutting of the mandrake root, and the rhythmic snips of Mr. Crowely’s shears filled the silence. His hands shook as he dumped the mandrake into the large mortar to his left. The silence was unnerving, but he wasn’t sure what to say to break it. Should he talk about the plants? Ask him about what to expect from the job? Should he just wait for Mr. Crowley to speak?

He channeled his anxiety into the crushing of the mandrake, his arm aching by the time he had made a fine enough powder. In his opinion, at least… “Mr. Crowley?” he asked after clearing his throat, holding the mortar out for him to see. “Is this--”

“Oh, perfect. Add twenty grams to the cauldron and stir it five times.”

“Yes, s -- okay.” After a glance around, he found a scale and some weights on the counter next to some bubotubers that looked like they were about to burst from pus. “Would you like me to harvest the pus?” he asked after he had brought the scale back to where he had been working.

“You don’t mind?” Mr. Crowely asked, his eyebrows shooting up. Minho shook his head, arranging the correct weights before he started to spoon the powder on the other side. “That’s one of my least favorite things to do, as I’m sure you can tell.”

Minho bit back a smile but didn’t look up. Yeah, just from his glimpse of the bubotubers, that much was quite obvious. “Would you like it in vials, or…”

“Some, yes, but we’ll need to dilute some of it for sale.”

“Do people come here for potion ingredients?”

Mr. Crowley nodded, tightly rolling up the valerian leaves he had been collecting. “I’ve been supplying both potions of every variety and the necessary ingredients that the general public might need to make their own at home. Some people just prefer that, you know.”

“Yeah, my boyfriend is one of those types.” Mr. Crowley’s knife faltered for a second, but he had already continued cutting before Minho gathered up the edges of the paper with the powder. “I’m okay at potions, but he’s brilliant." He dumped the powder in, stirring it the five times that Mr. Crowley directed him to. "I'm not saying I cheated off of him in school or anything, but he would help me if I needed it."

"That was kind of him," Mr. Crowley said airily as if he were only half-listening to him. Oh god, he was probably talking way too much, huh? "So you're decidedly more comfortable with the plant side of healing and medicine?"

"Oh, yeah, very much so. That's not to say I can't do potions, because I can! But, I'm just more interested in plants."

"I see." He set his knife down, scooping up the leaves he had been cutting into thin ribbons. , he didn't get the job, did he… "Come with me, I'll show you where I keep the vials."

It took a while -- about an hour, if he had to guess -- for him to harvest all the pus from the bubotubers. He tried to keep as quiet as he could, ignoring the nervousness bubbling up within him with every passing moment of prolonged silence. Mr. Crowley filled it occasionally, with instructions on where to put the vials, or asking for help with moving the venomous tentacula.

In one of the briefly broken silences, Minho discovered that Mr. Crowley's daughter -- who was about his age -- had recently gotten married and had since moved to Arizona to be with her new husband. She had been his one and only assistant, which was why he was trying to fill the position. Unsure of what to say in response, Minho simply nodded, listening.

After an extensive tour of the shop and the adjoining greenhouse, Mr. Crowley sent Minho on his way. He shivered, slipping back into his coat as soon as he was free from the vines covering the threshold of the apothecary. He pulled out his phone once he reached the escalator, ignoring the messages from Kibum and instead speed-dialing him.

"Hello," Kibum said as soon as he picked up the phone, the greeting drawn-out cutely. "How's it going?"

Minho grinned as he glanced around the food court. "Good. I don't know how I did, though. Might have talked about you too much."

"Is there really such a thing? Can I be brought up too much?"

"Probably."

"Wow." Minho's eyebrows rose slowly at the long pause. "Just say you wanna break up, Choi. I can handle it."

Minho snorted. "Am I that transparent?”

Kibum sighed heavily as Minho perused the menu of PepperToni’s, the pizza place of the food court. Someone on Kibum’s end asked him what was wrong when he sighed again. “Oh, nothing. My boyfriend just wants to break up with me. After we just mov -- “

“Hey, stop lying,” Minho said, laughing. “I’m gonna order my food real quick. Please behave.”

“Hm, I don’t think I will,” he said as Minho lowered his phone. He could perfectly picture Kibum’s dimpled grin, just from the smile in his voice. Minho shook his head, grinning himself as he stepped up to the counter to order himself some pizza.

Kibum had to leave for class in the middle of Minho’s lunch, which probably was for the best, given that Minho could barely eat while they talked. The minutes ticked slowly by as he waited for his interview at Stein’s, even after he had dropped in at Polly’s Confectionery for some Everlasting Mint gum to get rid of whatever pizza breath he might have before his interview. He checked his phone a little too often, mere minutes passing between the times he checked it. Eventually, he gave up and made his way downstairs to Stein’s, once again getting distracted by the brilliant display of floating brooms in the window before he stepped inside.

It was a good thing he had even a modicum of self-control when it came to spending money -- gifts for Kibum were excluded from that, of course -- or else he would probably attempt to buy at least one of everything from the Quidditch supply store. It had everything he could ever dream of using, from broom models he’d never heard of but was now desperate to try, to wood polishes and stains, to twig shapers for aerodynamic flight, to all-weather flying robes, to sleek leather Quidditch armor, to gorgeous matching sets of Quidditch balls.

He was bent slightly, inspecting the delicate filigree on one of the Snitches in the set of balls when a worker made her way over to him. “Are you looking for anything in particular, sir? Or is there something I can help you with?”

“Oh! Um.” He straightened, looking down at her with what he was sure was a nervous smile. “I’m here for an interview, but I’m a bit early.”

“Oh, okay, let me go find Nance! I’ll tell her you’re here.”

“That’s okay!” he said, his voice trailing off as she bounded away toward what he assumed was the back room.

She didn’t return, but instead, a lithe woman with salt and pepper hair swept up into a loose bun came around the corner, greeting Minho with a warm smile. “You must be Minho,” she said, reaching out her hand to shake his. “I must say, you look vaguely familiar…”

“Do I?” He cleared his throat, glancing around the shop.

She nodded, before gesturing for him to follow her. “Let’s talk back here,” she said as she led him through the maze of aisles to the seating area by the changing rooms. “Do you have a resume, by chance?” He shook his head as he sat across from her. She waved her hand dismissively. “No matter. Tell me a bit about yourself, then.”

“Like, work experience?”

She nodded, adding, “And anything to do with your experience with Quidditch, please.”

“Ah.” He sat back a little in his seat, thinking back. “Well, it’s been a few years since I played, but I was on my House’s Quidditch team for almost the entire time I was at school.”

“Ilvermorny?” she asked, eyeing him curiously.

Minho shook his head. “Hogwarts.”

“Yeah, I thought I heard a bit of a British accent.”

Minho chuckled. “Yeah...I’ve played all the positions except Keeper, and I was considering trying that for my seventh year, but we ended up not playing Quidditch that year because of the Triwizard Tournament, which I participated in.”

“And won, right?” Minho nodded. “That’s why you look so familiar. News about the Tournament made it into the Oracle over here. So you’re very acquainted with a broom, then.”

“Yes.”

“And all the care and upkeep that goes along with it?” Minho nodded again. “As well as the different makes and models and the key differences?”

Minho’s brow furrowed. “I know the major British models, at least. Does America have different broomsmiths?”

Nancy laughed. “Of course. Probably more than England. But some brands are strictly regional while others sell nation or worldwide.” Minho nodded, fidgeting with his hands in his lap. “But don’t worry, I’m not expecting you to know all of this for the interview. I’m just explaining. Are you familiar with the process of retwigging a broom?”

“Yes, I am. I’ve had to have it done to mine.”

“Oh? Well, that’s a service we offer here. If you get hired here, you’ll be trained in how to restore dilapidated brooms.”

“Okay.”

“What about your previous work history?”

There wasn’t much to mention, other than his short-term job at Dwaejijip and his time in the Marines, both of which he explained briefly. Nancy then took him around the store, showing him the different sections before sending him on his way with a cheery goodbye and a promise to let him know if he got the job.

He pulled out his phone as soon as he pushed through the revolving doors, opening up his messages with Kibum.

Just got out of my interview. Heading home now

He slipped his phone back into his pocket, letting out a sigh that had been pent up since he stepped into Crowley’s Remedies. After a second of hesitation, he went straight ahead rather than turning left towards home, stopping in at Sandersons to get him and Kibum a cup of coffee for their trip to the grocery store. His phone vibrated in his pocket several times on the short walk from the coffee shop to home, but with both of his hands full, he couldn’t check the texts from Kibum until he made it inside.

How’d it go?

Do you think you did alright?

Do I need to fake being sick so you can call me?

Minho snorted, setting his coffee aside after his initial sip.

No, I’m fine, I can wait. I’m home now

Oh, okay

Hey, do you mind checking the grocery list to make

sure we don’t need to add anything?

Yeah will do. Also, you should probably pay a

bit more attention to class

Stop being so distracting then

No ^^

When Kibum didn’t respond right away, Minho grinned, pocketing his phone once more before he made his way upstairs, flopping down across the bed and staring up at the orange-tinted ceiling. What color did Kibum want to change it to? Basically anything but orange, which was obvious… Minho pulled his wand out of his pocket, swishing his wand through the air with a thought of Colorvaria.

The soft beige he’d been picturing blossomed on the ceiling where he was pointing his wand, expanding and consuming the orange wherever he directed his wand. Minho pushed up from the bed, going around the room to eradicate every last bit of orange he could see until it was finally, blessedly gone. Excited now, he hurried to the bathroom, then to the stairwell, then the hallway, doing the same there. He was halfway done with the bathroom downstairs when the knob turned at the door.

“Hello,” Kibum called as the door closed, drawing the word out. “I’m h...holy ?”

Minho poked his head out of the bathroom, grinning to find Kibum dumbstruck at the change in decoration. “Hey, babe, how was school?”

Kibum tore his gaze away from the now neutral walls and looked at Minho in surprise. “I don’t even remember now.”

Laughing, Minho turned back around and continued degreenifying the bathroom. He caught a glimpse of Kibum in the mirror as he came in, wrapping his arms around him and resting his chin on his shoulder. “I got you coffee from Sandersons. You’ll probably have to reheat it, though.”

Kibum went up on his tiptoes, kissing Minho’s cheek before meeting his gaze in the mirror. “How do you feel about your interviews?”

He shrugged with his unoccupied shoulder. “Okay, I think. We’ll see if I hear back this time.”

“I’m sure you will,” he said, rubbing his sides before pulling away from Minho. “Don’t let me distract you.” He patted Minho’s before he left the bathroom, leaving Minho grinning as he started clearing the green again.

“Oh , hey!” he said, raising his voice so Kibum could still hear him.

“Yeah?”

“I completely forgot to look over the grocery list.”

“That’s okay, I can do it now. Keep working on that.” Nodding as if Kibum could see him, Minho finished up that last little bit before he moved to the very purple living room. “Do you want anything particular for dinner?”

Minho glanced Kibum’s way, finding him leaning against the counter and scrutinizing the list that had been hanging on their icebox. “No, I’m not picky.” He swished his wand again, beginning to siphon off the purple of the walls.

“You’re no help.”

“Just make whatever you want.”

Kibum let out a huff of a sigh and Minho chuckled. He didn’t have to glance his way to know that he was shaking his head in exasperation. Truth be told, it had been a bit of a learning process for both of them to figure out how to cook. Minho knew some basics before this, and Kibum just a little more than that. Both were trying to branch out a little bit, which had produced some fairly epic fails in the few weeks that they had been living here. Aside from pumpkin pasties, cooking came a tad more naturally to Kibum, and Minho -- while he was more than willing to help Kibum as much as he could in the kitchen -- was happy to leave it to him.

“When you’re done with that, can you check and see if we have everything we need for pasties?”

“Yea -- “ Minho swung around, looking at Kibum in confusion. “Are we already out of them?”

Kibum glanced up from his list, inspecting the half-purple/half-beige walls behind Minho before he focused on him. “Yeah, I had the last one for breakfast this morning. Why?”

Minho shook his head, returning his attention to the living room. “I think we just need more flour, then.”

“Okay.”

As soon as Minho finished with the living room, he plopped down on the now-cream-colored couch and rested his head on the back of it, staring at the sliver of darkening sky he could see through the window. He looked up when Kibum sat beside him, his hand falling to Kibum’s shoulder without a thought. “Hi.”

Kibum smiled before he looked up from the list, his eyes twinkling as he met Minho’s gaze. He leaned closer, expectantly, and Minho closed his eyes with a small smile as they kissed. “You ready to head out?”

“Sure.”

Minho grabbed their coats while Kibum reheated his coffee with a flick of his wand, and soon they were heading out the door, hand in hand. “Okay,” Kibum said as the door swung shut behind them. “Tell me everything.”

He only made it to the description of the variety of plants by the time they reached the grocery store, but they were only deterred for a moment while they both grabbed baskets. Kibum asked him what his impression of Mr. Crowley was, what the set-up of the workroom was like, keeping Minho talking while they perused the shelves and got what they needed. By the time they were checked out, Minho had explained everything that he could remember about both the interviews.

“What about you? How was school?” Minho asked, shivering as they stepped out into the night.

Kibum shrugged, slipping his grocery-free hand in the crook of Minho’s arm. “It was alright. We were assigned a design project but I’m not sure what I want to do yet. I was thinking maybe dress robes, but…” He sighed heavily, his breath clouding the air before them. “I was assigned feathers as my design element and I just...I don’t know if that’s a good idea.”

“I could model it for you if you want. Whatever it is.”

“Really?” Kibum’s eyebrow turned up. Almost mischievously. “Whatever?” Minho nodded, smiling when Kibum’s grin dimpled. “Maybe I should do a dress now.”

“Okay, whatever you like.”

His grip on Minho’s arm tightened as he cackled, and he leaned closer, resting his head on Minho’s shoulder. “I’m excited now. This’ll be the best project ever.”

Minho turned, kissing the crown of Kibum’s head. “Happy to help.”

Soon, they were back at home, unloading the groceries. Minho worked on putting them all away while Kibum sat at the counter, tapping the tip of his wand against his lips as he read the recipe he would be attempting tonight. Carbonara, if he wasn’t mistaken. “Hey, babe, do you mind if I start the crust before you get in here?” Kibum shook his head, but Minho wasn’t sure if he heard him.

He was rubbing the butter into the flour mixture by the time Kibum got up, bringing the recipe book with him. “Do we want leftovers?”

“Uh” -- assuming that it would turn out alright -- “Sure.”

Kibum brought out the pot they had bought a few weeks ago, filling it with water then salting it before he put it on the stove to boil. “Cooking is like Potions, if you think about it,” he said with a laugh as he went on the hunt for something else. Ah, the cutting board. “I think that’s why I like it.”

“Probably. And that’s probably why I’m no good at it.”

Kibum scoffed as he withdrew the knife from the drawer. “Don’t discount yourself. It just takes practice, that’s all.”

He cracked the eggs into the bowl as Kibum started peeling the garlic, working them and the milk into the flour to make the dough. Then, after washing his hands, he wrapped it with a flick of his wand and set it in the icebox. “Anything you want me to do?”

“Yeah, you can get the broccoli ready.”

Mom...she always said that cooking was like a dance -- easiest when you find the right partner to do it with. While they may not know exactly what they were doing in the kitchen, they did know how to work together. That much was evident.

Neither of them had to ask the other to move out of their way. Kibum didn't have to ask him to pick up the spoon to keep stirring the cream sauce when he took the pasta off the stove to drain it.

Kibum stirred the sauce when he returned, turning down the heat a little as he brought the spoon up to his mouth, blowing on it a little before he tasted it. "Mm!" He glanced over at Minho, starting to hold the spoon out for him to taste only to pull back a second later. "What are you smiling at me like that for?"

Oh? Was he smiling? He hadn't even noticed. "Like what?"

"Like some sort of lovestruck idiot."

Minho's smile only grew as he leaned his hip against the counter. "Okay, maybe, but I'm your lovestruck idiot."

"Yes, and that better never change." Kibum started to smile as he held the spoon out for him to taste. "Is this too salty?"

Minho leaned down taking a sip of the now-cooled sauce, then shook his head. "No, it's perfect."

Truth be told, it was a bit, but it didn't matter. Not when Kibum beamed like that as he started to stir in the spaghetti.

They curled up on the couch with their dinner, Kibum sitting crossways, his legs thrown over Minho's lap, his socked feet rocking happily back and forth.

"I was thinking," Minho said, as he scraped his bowl clean. Kibum hummed in question, looking up from cutting into the last of his broccoli. "I could apply at some Muggle jobs if these don't work out."

"True. Yeah. A restaurant, again?"

"Probably. To start with, anyways."

Kibum nodded, stuffing the last bit of broccoli into his mouth and saying "That's smart" before he started chewing.

They both did the dishes, then Minho kicked Kibum out once the counters were cleared so he could get started on making the pasties, but Kibum didn't go very far. No, he set up his sketchpad on the counter and plopped down on one of the tall stools there.

Minho caught the occasional glimpse of his sketches, sniffing a laugh. He had improved much since their days in Hogwarts, where Minho had struggled to decipher even the smallest of doodles. Kibum didn't notice his amusement; he was too engrossed in his work. Minho watched him for a few more seconds before he remembered that he was making the pumpkin filling and returned to stirring in the spices and sugar.

Kibum didn't look up until Minho slid a finished pastie into his line of sight on a napkin. He sat up in surprise, his eyes adorably wide. "Already?"

"It's been like an hour, babe."

"Seriously?" He rubbed his eyes, setting aside his pencil and massaging his hand.

Minho finished washing his hands, drying them thoroughly before he turned Kibum's sketchbook toward him, eyeing the scrawl of a slinky red dress. "You're putting me in a dress?"

"Thinking about it." He hummed in amusement, looking up when he felt Kibum's scrutiny. "I can do anything else, Min, if you're not gonna be comfortable. Literally anything."

"I don't know," Minho said, shrugging as he looked back at the sketch. "Might be fun?" Kibum's expression brightened when Minho looked up. "Besides, when else will I get the opportunity?"

"Our wedding, obviously."

Minho coughed into a laugh. "Right, of course."

Grinning now, Kibum set the sketchbook aside and picked up the pastie, splitting it in half, passing Minho the larger portion. "I can get my own, K--"

Kibum his teeth at him. "We always share. Come here," he said, holding his hand out for Minho to take before he led him back to the plush couch.

Minho smiled when Kibum didn't release his hand once they were seated. He tucked himself snugly beside him, his head resting on his shoulder as he sighed. Minho buried his nose in Kibum's hair, inhaling the slight musk of his shampoo before he kissed the crown of his head.

How he had made it so long without Kibum beside him, he'd never know. Maybe it was the promise of their reunion that kept him afloat. The hope that one day they'd be able to exist like this.

Simply.

Happily.

At peace and at home.

Words ran dry as they often did, so Minho kissed Kibum's head once more, smiling when Kibum sighed. "This is nice," he murmured, and Minho humming in agreement as he took a bite of his pastie. "Almost makes me not want to go to bed."

"Why not?"

"Well, first of all, it's like eight o'clock and I'm not Grandma, so it's not my bedtime." Minho snorted, stuffing the rest of the pumpkin pastie in his mouth. "Secondly, today has been nice...I kinda don't want it to end."

"I mean, who says we have to sleep?"

Slowly, Kibum sat up, though he didn't move very far away. His gaze darted between Minho's eyes as the corners of his lips upturned in a beguiling lazy smile as he patted Minho's chest. "What would we do instead?"

Minho's eyes darted down when the swipe of Kibum's tongue wet his lips, lingering there for a second. "What do you have in mind?" he started to ask, but Kibum was already kissing him, the taste of pumpkin pasties on his lips.

Morning came, as it always did, all too soon. Minho became aware of his surroundings before he even opened his eyes. The encompassing heat of the blankets of their bed, Kibum snuggled right up against him, his head cradled in the curve of Kibum's neck and shoulder. He turned, his lips brushing the bare skin of Kibum's shoulder. Kibum shifted in his arms, no doubt trying to turn around so he could face him.

He opened his eyes as Kibum's rolling over shook the bed beneath them momentarily, meeting his gaze. His eyes were amber in the morning light, shining as he reached out to brush Minho's pillow-ruffled hair off his forehead. "You're awake early," Kibum said, a smile toying with the corners of his lips.

"Mornings are a lot more bearable when I get to wake up next to you," he mumbled, but his words were too muffled by the pillow for Kibum to make out, given how he let out a questioning hum. So, Minho lifted his head, repeating what he said.

Kibum's smile turned shyly dimpled as he averted his gaze, his outstretched hand resting on Minho's bare chest. Right over his heart. "Can you believe it's only been a month?"

"Since?" But his mind caught up before Kibum could answer. "I've only been in New York for a month?"

Kibum nodded, meeting his eyes again. "I don't know why it feels like it's been so much longer sometimes, but it does."

"It's weird."

"You're weird."

"Shut up and kiss me."

Kibum raised his eyebrows haughtily. "No, I don't think I will. I want coffee."

He started to slip out of his arms, but Minho tightened his hold. All pretense melted away with a laugh as Minho rolled over, pinning Kibum to his side of the bed. He stared up at him, eyes bright, cheeks slightly flushed, his smile growing as his gaze darted down to his lips before Minho leaned in to kiss him. Kibum's arms wrapped around him, pulling him closer still as he deepened the kiss.

"What time does your class start today?" he asked before he shifted his focus to Kibum's neck.

"Why are you asking me such a hard question right now?"

Minho sniffed a laugh, raising his head so he could meet his eyes. "Is it soon?"

Kibum his lips, shaking his head with a smile that Minho returned before he kissed him again.

They didn't make it downstairs for breakfast until the sun was decidedly up, Minho busying himself with making their coffee while Kibum lounged on the couch. When Minho returned to him, his brow furrowed at Kibum's curious expression.

"I was just thinking -- thanks, love," he said when Minho sat beside him, passing him his coffee. "Should we color the walls? Or should we hang up artwork? Or something else?"

Minho glanced around at the blank, beige walls, frowning. "I think artwork, but what?"

Kibum shook his head, returning his attention to the walls again. "Not sure yet. I'll keep thinking."

"I'm gonna go for a run after this," Minho said, sipping his coffee. "Wanna join me?"

"Do I look like I want to?"

Minho met Kibum's glare, hiding his smile behind his mug before he took another sip. "Not even a little bit."

"Then why the do you ask me every morning if I want to?"

"Because your reactions are cute."

Kibum rolled his eyes, turning slightly away from Minho on the couch. "You're infuriating."

"Thank you."

"You're lucky you're hot." Minho let out a sputtering laugh, covering his mouth to contain the coffee. "I wouldn't let you get away with as much as I do if you weren't."

"Wait, you let me get away with ?"

Laughing now, Kibum lightly kicked at his thigh, prompting him to stand. "Go on your ing run already."

Minho made his way over to the counter, leaning over it to set his mug in the sink. "I love you, too," he said in an annoying sing-song voice as he started down the hall. Kibum muttered something just quietly enough for him to miss it. He turned as he reached the hall, looking back at his boyfriend who was very much avoiding his gaze. "What was that?"

"I said 'Maybe you should act more like it, then."

"Oh, hon," he said, grinning when Kibum finally looked his way. "I don't think anyone wants to see that."

Even from where he was, he could see the amusement twinkling in Kibum's eyes as Minho winked and turned away. He hurried back up the stairs, changing into his warmer running clothes quickly. "I'll be back!" he called out when he reached the front door, and he let himself outside.

On his morning runs, Minho liked to explore a new part of the Boulevard. So far, in the two or so weeks that they'd lived there, he had yet to run down the same street twice. He greeted everyone he passed with a wave and a smile, most of them returning it cheerily. Once he reached the park -- and somehow, it was always the same park -- he stepped up onto the sidewalk, continuing his run on the path leading through the trees.

Ice coated the skeletal branches of the winter-stripped trees, providing no shade from the cloudless morning. Minho continued down the wooded path, grinning as he looked up at the glittering branches. It was pretty now, but he could only imagine how much more so it would be, come spring when the trees and the flowers were in bloom, or summer when the warm winds swept through the leaves, creating a symphony all its own, or autumn when the leaves changed and fell and the air was filled with petrichor.

He veered off the path, slowing to a jog, then a walk once he reached the snow-covered lawn. He stepped into the shade of the gazebo, leaning against the beam as he looked out over the river cutting through the woods as he caught his breath.

Kibum would like to come here...probably when the weather was warmer and Minho wasn’t on a run. He smiled at the thought, then shook his fringe out of his eyes before he mopped his sweaty forehead with his sleeve. After taking one last deep breath, Minho started again, heading home.

“Kibummie?” He called out as he closed their front door, but there was no answer. Did he already leave for school? Frowning, Minho checked his phone as he toed off his shoes. No messages… "Sweetheart?”

A door opened upstairs, drawing Minho’s attention. He started toward the noise.

Steam billowed out of the bathroom door and Kibum was standing in front of their closet, one towel loosely wrapped around his waist and another in his hair. He was distractedly drying it as he scanned his array of clothes. Grinning, Minho snuck up behind him, wrapping his arms around his stomach and leaning his full weight on him, then laughing when he gasped and stumbled.

“Hey, you surprised me!” he said, smacking Minho’s clasped hands, but he rested his damp head against Minho’s. “You’re all sweaty.”

“You don’t usually mind that.”

Kibum snorted, leaning away from him when Minho nuzzled his nose in Kibum’s neck. “I just got clean, don’t ruin it. Go shower.”

Minho huffed, smirking at the goose pimples that arose on Kibum’s neck and back as his breath ghosted over him. He released him, shedding his shirt and tossing it aside before he crossed into Kibum’s line of sight. He paused in the bathroom door, meeting Kibum’s gaze with a wink and smile, which earned him an eye roll, and he closed the door with a laugh.

He was halfway through washing his body when Kibum popped his head in the shower. “Hey, I have to go. I probably won’t be back until late.”

“Okay.” Minho moved toward him, bending slightly to kiss him. “Oh, sorry, you probably didn’t want to be wet.”

“I’ll survive. Somehow.” Minho grinned and, when Kibum tipped his head up expectantly, he kissed him again. “Bye. Love you.”

“I love you, too.”

Kibum’s eyes turned into crescents, his dimples appearing just as he slipped out of Minho’s view.

After he stepped out of the shower, he toweled off and changed into something comfy before he grabbed his wand from his nightstand and blasted his hair with a gust of hot air from the tip. He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror, laughing out loud at the way his hair was sticking up now. But it didn’t matter, he was home alone until who knows when.

Now that the walls were fixed, there wasn’t much to be done around the house. That he noticed at least. Everything was in working order as far as he knew, and he didn’t know what to check for in the first place, so he just plopped down on the empty couch, looking around for something to do.

Kibum’s sketchbook was laying off to the side, so he leaned over, grabbing it, and started to thumb through it. He recognized some of the sketches from the work-in-progress pictures he got while they were separated, or the descriptions he’d gotten over text or during a call. Even just looking at these, it was easy to tell that he went through different phases with his designs. Different colors, textures, patterns, inspirations...he knew very little about it, but that all stood out to him.

“Wow, really, you’re amazing, Kibum…”

He flipped to the back, about to close the sketchbook until one last sketch caught his eye.

A pair of dress robes, which was odd, given that the majority of the book had been Muggleish attire. One was colored a deep green and the other a sort of mustard yellow. Velvet was written beside the green, and something shimmery/gold was written beside the yellow. There were two suits, but they were basic designs. Minho stared at the drawings incredulously, his brow furrowing as he closed the book and set it back where he had found it.

Before he could think any more about it, his cell phone rang. He dug it out of his pocket, holding it up, half expecting to see Kibum or Minseok’s name on the screen. But it was an unknown number.

“Hello?”

“Is this Choi Minho?” a somewhat familiar-sounding woman asked.

“Yes? Who is this?”

She cleared . “Hi, Minho. This is Nancy Morrison, the manager of Stein’s Quidditch Emporium.” Minho sat up a little straighter. “I’m just calling to let you know that the job is available if you’re still interested.”

“I am!” he said, perhaps a touch too enthusiastically.

Nancy chuckled. “Great. If you have time today, you can head over and we can get your schedule figured out and send you home with a uniform?”

“Sure, I can go right now?”

“Oh, no, I’m about to take my lunch. How about in an hour?”

Minho nodded, but then remembered that she couldn’t see him. “Yeah, okay!”

“See you then. Goodbye!”

Minho hung up and stuffed his phone in his pocket on his way to the door. Sure, he had an hour, but why not just head to the Center now and wait for her there? He laced up his boots, threw on his coat, and was reaching for the door handle when he noticed a letting on the mat before the door. He stooped, turning it over to find his name scrawled neatly over a green wax seal. Curious, he tore open the letter.

Minho,

After giving it some thought, I think you are right for the position of my assistant. I think your knowledge and intuition with the plants will come in exceedingly handy and I’m looking forward to working with you.

With regards,

Barnabas Crowley

Crowley’s Remedies

“Oh.”

…

His heart thudded in his ears as he stepped outside, closing the door behind him. He pulled out his phone, scrolling through his contacts until he found her. Mrs. Kim. Raising the phone, he listened to the dial tone, his eyebrows shooting up when it clicked off. “I hope I’m not bothering you?”

“You’re never a bother,” Mom said, her smile evident in her voice. “What can I do for you, honey?”

“So, I’ve got a bit of a predicament...”

“Is...is it Kibum related?”

“No,” Minho said, scoffing. “We’re doing great -- “

“That’s good.”

“So, I told you I applied at some jobs, right?” She hummed her assent. “Well, I had two interviews yesterday and they both just got back to me. Um, they both want to hire me. And I really like the idea of both of them, so I’m not sure what to do.”

“Oh, so it’s a good predicament.”

“Yeah,” he said, chuckling.

“I mean, are you opposed to working two jobs at a time?”

He shook his head, glancing down both sides of the street twice before he crossed. “No, I don’t think so. It’ll be nice to have something to keep me occupied.”

She sniffed a laugh. “If the schedules are compatible, I don’t see why it’d be a problem, then.”

“True.” He stopped in front of the Center, looking up at the snow-capped glass Quaffle. “Thanks, Mom.”

“Oh, yeah, no problem, hon.” He smiled, his gaze darting to the revolving doors as a mom and her young kids bustled through it. He watched them head down the sidewalk until Mrs. Kim spoke again. “Will you two be calling me on Saturday like usual?”

“Yup.”

“Okay, I’m sure you want to get this sorted, so we can talk more then.”

“Okay, thanks again.”

“I’m always happy to help. Bye, son!”

“Bye!”

She hung up first and Minho stuffed his phone into his pocket once more, taking a deep breath as he did. This was it. Everything was finally coming together.

He let out his breath, walking through the cloud as he hurried up the steps to the revolving door.

- - - - - - - - - -

- June 12, 2014 -

“Babe, I think we’re gonna have to take a taxi to the airport!”

Kibum closed his eyes with a heavy sigh as he laced up his shoes, glancing at the empty stairwell. “We can just apparate there.”

“What?”

“Just come upstairs!” he called out, getting up off the bed to take the blazer he had picked out to wear off the hanger. When Minho’s footsteps sounded on the stairs, Kibum looked over again. “I said we can just apparate there. If we need to, we can take the taxi back. I can almost guarantee her luggage is minimal.”

“True.” Minho plopped down on the foot of the bed, watching him with a faint smile as Kibum adjusted his collar. “Do you have anything to do at school tonight?”

Kibum shook his head. “We did rehearsals yesterday, so we’re good until Saturday.” Minho’s smile grew, and Kibum couldn’t help but return it. “What are you looking at me like that for?”

He held out his hand, pulling Kibum in and wrapping his arms around his waist as Kibum’s hands settled on his shoulders. “I’m just really proud of you. Is that allowed?”

“I guess.”

“I mean, you’re graduating. You’re a costume designer on Broadway -- “

“Junior associate designer.”

“Still. It’s impressive.” Kibum’s smile turned shy under Minho’s unwavering gaze, and he huffed a laugh, looking away for a second. “You’re gonna do great things, I just know it.” Kibum started to shake his head, but then Minho stood, his hands not leaving Kibum’s waist. Instinctively, Kibum looked up, meeting his soft gaze. Minho leaned in for a quick, chaste kiss, pulling away with a smile and a pat on Kibum’s back. “Come on, let’s go pick up Mom.”

Kibum straightened Minho's collar before he withdrew his hands from his shoulders, then took Minho's left hand and the spot.

The colors of their surroundings them in, Minho's grip on Kibum's hand tightening as they shifted from beige and blue to silver and white with bright flashes of colors. They must be soaring through Time Square now if he had to guess. He'd been to JFK a few times when he was a kid and then his arrival for school and then seeing Mom off before his first term started.

He'd never been that great at directions, but he had a vague idea of how to get there. Didn't matter if he didn't know the exact path, though, the magic would see to that.

All at once, the wind stopped whipping through his ears, and he staggered away from Minho in the tiny Apparition Chamber set up outside the airport for this very purpose. Like, sure, the secrecy rules were more relaxed here in America compared to England, but that didn't mean arriving suddenly amid a busy airport would be a good idea.

"You good?" he asked, pushing himself off the wall and turning back to Minho, who looked a bit paler than he felt. Apparition had never been Minho's thing--the splinching in sixth year had made sure of that. He walked up to him, brushing his now-wavy hair off of his damp forehead. Minho offered him a weak smile as Kibum arranged his fringe. "Let's get you some water, hm? Then we'll see if Mom's arrived."

They stopped by the water fountains as soon as they spotted some, Kibum rubbing Minho’s back absently as he scanned the No-Majes milling about. “Do you see her yet?” Minho asked, wiping the water from his lips as he stood straight. Kibum shook his head. “Do we wanna wait at baggage claim or arrivals?”

Kibum hummed in thought, hooking his hand around Minho’s arm as they started to make their way through the crowd. “Arrivals, I think.”

They found an unoccupied pair of armchairs, and once they were sitting, Kibum rested his head on the back of it, staring up at the ceiling. Should they cook dinner at home or get takeout on the way back? Was everything clean enough for Mom to see? Not that Minho would ever let the place get too messy, but they were both busier these days, so cleaning could have gone to the wayside.

He sat up, looking over at Minho, who was watching the gate. “Did we remember to clean the bathrooms?”

“Twice.”

Nodding, Kibum rested his head back down, blinking a few times before his mind started to wander again. Had he remembered to ask for the time off from work? Usually, he was supposed to be there by now, but both he and Minho had decided to take a few days off…

As he was sitting up to ask Minho if they had, Minho stood, grinning broadly as he started for the gate. Mom was coming toward them in the steady stream of people on their way to baggage claim, and behind her came Jonghyun. Even from this distance, Kibum could see the mischievous twinkle in his eye.

Kibum’s mouth fell open as he stood, a few steps behind Minho. He reached them as Minho hugged Mom tightly, and he slipped around them to embrace Jonghyun, who dropped his bag at his feet to hold Kibum tightly. “What the ? I thought you were busy?” Kibum whispered, starting Jonghyun laughing.

“Don’t believe everything you hear, .”

They traded places, Minho hugging Jonghyun and lifting him off the ground with a boisterous laugh from both of them and Kibum hugging Mom. He closed his eyes as she kissed his cheek, smiling as she pulled away to look at him. “You’re looking well.”

“Thanks. You, too. How was your flight?”

“Not bad. Your brother knows how to make things interesting.”

Kibum smiled, glancing behind her for a second to see Minho using Jonghyun as an armrest, much to his chagrin. “We should probably go before they start bickering,” he said as he bent to pick up her suitcase. “Hey, guys, come on.” She took his hand, and Jonghyun stepped up beside Kibum before Minho could, which meant that he draped himself over both their shoulders as they followed the crowd to the exit.

"Get your boyfriend off of me."

"No." Mom chuckled, shaking her head and smiling fondly as she glanced over at the three of them. "Do you two have any other luggage? Or is it just your carry-ons?"

"Just these."

They made their way straight outside, then, heading over to the Apparition Chamber. Kibum hailed a Maji-Cab with his brandished wand, and once one materialized, they loaded the luggage into the trunk. Minho sat up front, giving the driver directions back home, and Kibum sat between Mom and Jonghyun.

Kibum braced himself as the cab surged forward, Jonghyun practically slamming into Minho's seat in his unpreparedness. "Oh. Okay. Knight Bus."

Snorting, Kibum nodded, closing his eyes as they zipped through traffic. It was decidedly his least favorite way to travel -- by car. Mom had always been a decent driver, so he didn't mind her, but even the normal New York taxis were a nightmare, let alone the accelerated version the witches or wizards liked to get around in. Which was why he apparated everywhere.

But for Minho? Well, he'd do anything for him…

Their arrival at Canal Street was much quicker than it should have been. He stumbled out of the cab, grabbing Minho's arm to steady himself after he straightened from paying the driver. Kibum grabbed Mom's bag, and Minho closed the trunk after Jonghyun got his, the four of them making their way past Madge and into the shopping center.

"Are we getting food here or eating at home?" Minho whispered to Kibum when Jonghyun and Mom walked ahead of them. She was pointing at something, her head leaning toward him as she explained whatever it was.

“What do you think?”

“Well, weren’t you planning on making some seolleongtang? I thought you already started on the broth?”

, true, he had… “But what if I it up?”

“We can obliviate them and order takeout.”

Laughing, Kibum slapped his shoulder, shoving a grinning Minho away. He pulled him back beside him, leaving his hand on Minho's arm as he started for Mom and Jonghyun. Together, they guided them through the crowd around the Grafted Tree and out into the Boulevard. "This way!" Kibum said, starting them toward the townhouse. "Minho will give you a tour, I'm gonna go check on dinner," he said as he unlocked the door with a tap of his wand.

"Here, we'll just leave your luggage at the door, for now," Minho said as Kibum kicked off his shoes and hurried for the kitchen.

Everything was smelling good, at least. He opened the pot, stirring and tasting the broth before he grabbed a bowl and a cup and hunkered in the pantry to scoop out some rice. After rinsing it thoroughly, he set it to cook before starting on the banchan.

"Oh, wait, tea," he muttered to himself, wiping his hands off on a nearby towel before he grabbed the kettle to heat it.

Minho returned to him as he was dishing up some homemade kimchi, and he didn't notice his arrival until his arm slipped around him. "Can I do anything to help?"

"No, I'll be fine."

"Do you want me to set the table?"

"Uh" -- The rice cooker dinged, distracting him for a second. -- "Sure?"

Minho kissed his temple before he moved away from him, dishes clinking as he grabbed them. “Jonghyun, can you bring out the table? It’s behind the couch.” He came back to grab the bowls with the banchan and rice as Kibum was testing the broth for the fifth time in a minute. “Do you want me to taste it?”

Kibum nodded and stirred it in the broth, bringing up a spoonful and blowing on it before holding it out to Minho. He sipped it, then his lips and squinted. “Is it bad?”

He shook his head, tasting it again. “No, it was just a bit warm. It tastes perfect, Bum, don’t worry.”

Sighing, Kibum grabbed the top bowl Minho had set out. “I preheated the oven for you, so you can put the pasties in whenever.”

“Oh, perfect. I’ll do that now.”

He moved away, returning a few seconds later with the pan of unbaked pasties he had made that morning with his nervous energy. Kibum moved aside so he could stick them in, and Minho grabbed two of the full bowls while Kibum carried the other two out to where Mom and Jonghyun were waiting.

By the time Kibum had settled beside Minho, Mom had already picked up her spoon, stirring the seolleongtang. He watched her for her reaction, his spoon poised just above the surface of the broth in his bowl. His eyebrows raised as she took her initial taste, and when she hummed in evident approval, he relaxed immediately, starting to eat for himself.

Jonghyun and Minho entertained them all with the discussion of either Nebulous Stardust’s tour anecdotes or some of the more difficult customers that Minho had had to deal with so far at his jobs. When everyone was done, Minho cleared the table and brought back some still-warm pumpkin pasties for dessert.

The thin glow of sunlight was all that was left of the day by the time he and Mom set out for her hotel. Minho and Jonghyun were staying behind to clean up from dinner, so for the first time in several years, it was just him and her. He glanced her way when she sighed, her grip on his arm tightening for a second. “Tired?”

“Mm, yes. Very. It’s a good thing I like the beds at the hotel.” Kibum sniffed a laugh, glancing around the darkened street and the dancing shadows from the lamps lining the cobblestone road. “I’m so glad you and Minho are doing so well.”

“Yeah? Did you think we wouldn’t be?” She chuckled, lightly slapping his arm, and he grinned, looking down at their feet.

“Have you given any more thought to what it is you’re going to do with your degree?”

He squinted and let out a clipped sigh. “Yeah.”

“Nothing coming to mind, yet?”

He shook his head. “Minho isn’t being much help, either. Sometimes I think he can be too supportive if I’m being honest.” She laughed aloud, and Kibum grinned. “Says I can do anything I put my mind to.”

“Well, he’s not wrong, is he?”

“No.” She pushed up her glasses, releasing Kibum’s arm as they reached the gate of the Cagimn Hotel. “You just have to be patient with yourself, that’s all.” She took her luggage from his hand, searching his gaze. “Will you still be working at Gerswhin?”

“For now, yeah.”

“Don’t stress yourself out too much, hon. The right opportunity will come along someday.” She smiled when he nodded then reached up to pat his cheek. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Around nine?”

“Probably. Love you!”

“Love you, too!”

He watched her go until she closed the door of the hotel lobby behind her, then he turned, shoving his hands into his pockets as he plodded back home. The thought of what the he was going to do with this degree had been plaguing him for months now. Like, it was fashion...and while clothes were important, were they really? Would he be able to do anything noteworthy? Did he even need to? Would he be stuck working behind the scenes of Broadway productions for the rest of his life, or would he do something more?

It wasn’t that he didn’t like his job, because he did. It was just...There had to be more that he was supposed to do. He could feel it, as stupid as that sounded. The seemingly unanswerable question, though, was what the something more was.

Maybe he should ask Minho again. Not that he’d have any groundbreaking advice to give or anything, but he always had a way of putting his mind at ease.

Kibum took a deep breath of the night air, his gaze flitting between the flames of the street lamps until he reached the gate in front of the house. He let himself inside, kicking off his shoes before he closed the door and followed the sound of Minho and Jonghyun’s voices to the kitchen.

“Well, did you tell him he was being ridiculous?” Minho asked, followed by the familiar exasperated huff of laughter from Jonghyun.

“Who’s being ridiculous?” Kibum asked, sitting beside Minho at the table again.

“Pierre,” Jonghyun said, rolling his eyes.

“Do you want some tea?” Minho whispered to Kibum, who nodded.

Jonghyun’s eyes trailed after Minho as he made his way to the kitchen. “What’d he do this time?”

“We had a bit of a fight before I flew back to England to meet up with your mom.”

Kibum’s brow furrowed and he glanced up at Minho as he sat back beside him, passing him his tea. “What about?”

He shook his head, dragging his fingers through his hair and squeezing his hand into a fist, leaving his hair sticking up at odd angles. “We had a gig in Munich that got canceled, you know, and since we didn’t have another one lined up until next week in Venice, I arranged it with your mom before telling Pierre and Phillipe that I would come here with her, because, you’re basically my brother, right?”

“Right.” Why was he asking him that? Of course, that was the case.

“And so he accused me of cheating on him.”

“With?” Jonghyun’s eyebrows raised as he met Kibum’s eyes. “With me?” he asked incredulously. “What is it with people thinking we’re a...a thing?”

Minho sputtered on his tea. “Hey--”

“Not you, love. You were just a kid. And like,” he said, meeting Jonghyun’s eye again. “He does remember that I’m with Minho, right? Unless he thinks I’m cheating on Minho, too?” Jonghyun cracked a mirthless smile, glancing between them for a second. “Wait…” A chill ran down his spine as he leaned a bit closer to Jonghyun. “Does he think…” He pointed at himself, then Minho.

“Wait, both of us?” Minho asked. “You didn’t tell me that part!”

“I hadn’t gotten there, yet!”

“Ew…”

Jonghyun leveled Minho with a faux glare. “Way to kick a man while he’s down, Minho. What, am I not y enough for you?”

Minho burst out laughing, and Kibum coughed on his tea, setting it aside so he didn’t spill it. “That’s so not the point, Merlin’s beard.”

Jonghyun cracked up then, laughing with them. “, why’d I land such a dumb boyfriend?”

Kibum started to pick up his tea again but quickly thought better of it. “Should have waited it out like I did.”

“I still say you two would’ve been just fine if you’d started dating earlier.”

Kibum let out a long sigh. “Probably, but that’s not what we're talking about right now.” He leaned closer to Minho, his head resting on his shoulder as he met Jonghyun’s gaze again. “Really, though, did you tell him he was being ridiculous?”

“Of course I did, don’t you know me at all?” Minho snorted. “That’s why we fought.”

“Did you two make up before you left or are things still tense?”

Jonghyun glanced up at Minho with a shrug. “No, but we’ll be fine, we always are. He just needs some time to cool off. He’ll be back to his normal self by the time I meet them in Italy.” He shook his head, looking between them again. “Looks like you two are doing great.”

Minho nodded, Kibum didn’t have to look up at him to know that. “We’re getting a divorce.”

Minho’s high-pitched laughter filled the living room, and Kibum cracked a smile as Jonghyun started to laugh as well. “Yes, clearly, you hate each other,” he said once he sobered up a bit.

“I’m glad it’s obvious. Did you get a room at the hotel, or--”

“Nah, I figure I’d just crash here. Don’t worry,” he added when Kibum’s eyebrows shot up. “I won’t be in your way at all. I brought along one of the beds we use during our tour if we can’t find a hotel. I’ll be just fine.”

“Well,” he said, squeezing Minho’s thigh below the table before he straightened beside him. “I’m sure you want to get some rest after that flight.”

“It’d probably be smart.”

Kibum nodded, gathering their mugs so that Minho could tuck their table away again to give Jonghyun some room to set up for the night. He dumped the remnants of their tea into the sink, and after saying goodnight to Jonghyun, he followed Minho up to their room.

Minho pulled off his shirt as soon as he reached the top step, bundling it up in his arms before he tossed it toward the hamper as if it were a basketball -- not that Kibum knew what that was...some Muggle sport that Minho would talk about sometimes. He flopped down on the bed, stretching his arms above his head before he crossed them beneath his head. “Well, that went well,” he said, smiling up at Kibum, who had stopped by his knee to his shirt.

“You think so?” Minho nodded, sitting up. His hand found Kibum’s hip and he pulled him a little closer, taking over the ing. “Not tonight,” Kibum whispered. “Not while he’s here.”

Minho nodded, slipping Kibum’s shirt off and wrapping his arms loosely around him, resting his chin on his chest as he looked up at him. “I just wanted to be closer to you, that’s all.”

Kibum smiled as he fussed with Minho’s fringe. “You’re so clingy.”

“Yeah? And?”

He shook his head, bending a little so he could kiss Minho’s forehead. “Let me go get changed for bed, will you?”

Minho scrunched up his nose before he let him go, heading to the bathroom as Kibum went over to the dresser, picking out some pajamas. By the time Kibum joined him in the bathroom, Minho had already finished his routine for the night. He smacked Kibum's on the way past him, spurring a laugh as he watched Minho walk out in the bathroom mirror. Shaking his head, he quickly went through his nightly routine, switching off the light.

"Hey," Minho said, his voice smiling as Kibum slid into his lap. "This is my side."

"Oh?" Kibum wrapped his arms around his neck, searching what he could see of Minho's face in the dim lights of the Boulevard. "We have sides now? This isn't our bed?" Minho grinned, his nose brushing against Kibum's. "Tell me, when did you start despising me?"

"It's been coming on so gradually now, I couldn't tell you when it started."

"That is a shame." He met Minho's gaze, smiling slightly. "Is there anything I can do to change your mind?"

Minho's eyebrows shot up and he whispered, "I thought you said not while he's here."

"I did, but" -- he leaned closer, his lips almost touching Minho's -- "I didn't say I wouldn't try to drive you crazy until we have the house to ourselves again." Minho leaned back, his head thumping against the wall. Kibum chuckled. "Unless you're not up for the challenge…"

Slowly, Minho sat back up, meeting Kibum's eyes again, shaking his head with a small smile. "Fine. Do your worst."

"Oh, honey, I fully intend to." He slipped out of Minho's lap with a smirk and rolled onto his side of the bed, laying down facing him. "I do have something to talk to you about, though."

"Am I in trouble?"

Kibum shook his head, scooting a bit closer to him. "You'd know if you were."

"Can't deny that. What's up?"

Sighing, Kibum shook his head. "I'm still just...not sure what I'm gonna do with myself. Now that school is over."

Minho found Kibum's hand in the dark. "I'm sorry that's still bothering you, Bum. Is there anything I can do to help?"

"I'm not sure. Unless you wanna read my palm or some ."

"Please...crystal balls are way more accurate."

Kibum cracked a smile, searching the shadows of Minho's face for a hint of his expression. "Yes, just what would you see in the gray mist for me?"

He scooted closer still, his slightly minty breath tickling his nose. "That you can do whatever it is you put your mind to, but you already know that."

Kibum's eyes slid closed as Minho's lips brushed against his cheek. "I do."

"I'd also see that you'll have me to lean on no matter what you'd end up choosing to do. As long as you need me."

Kibum smiled, opening his eyes and meeting Minho's gaze in the moonlight. "That long, hm?"

Minho nodded, wrapping Kibum in a tight embrace as his smile captured his own.

As usual, Kibum woke before Minho. And, like usual, he stayed laying beside him, his eyes half-drooping, a sleepy smile forming as he snuggled closer to him. He relished in it as long as he could stand it. Until the worries and priorities of the day creeping into his mind became too loud to ignore. So he left him with a quick kiss, and he hurried downstairs, unsurprised to find Jonghyun still completely passed out.

He started a pot of coffee, yawning and stretching as he opened the door to the garden. He let the door fall closed with a rattling bang and he sat on the top step. Bridget, their other landlord, looked up as he sat, waving to him through her ghostly wife, who was keeping her company as she tended to the tomatoes in the garden. Kibum waved back with a smile, watching them for a while.

If he did end up dying first, he would absolutely haunt Minho until he joined him. And he’d be as annoying as possible about it, too. He knew that for sure.

The door opened behind him, and Kibum turned, half-expecting for it to be Minho, but instead he watched Jonghyun until he was sitting beside him on the step.

“Morning.”

“Hm.”

“I have coffee going if you want some.”

“Yeah, okay.” But he stayed put, staring blearily at the garden. Silence enveloped them for several prolonged moments until Jonghyun cleared his throat. “You’ve got a nice life here.”

Kibum smiled to himself. “Yeah...Are you ever planning on settling down? Or are you guys gonna keep touring indefinitely?”

He shrugged, shaking his head. “I’m fine either way.” Kibum scoffed loudly. “What? I am.”

Kibum turned to him, eyebrows raised. “Really?” Jonghyun nodded. “Just last week you were complaining about how you guys never take any breaks.”

“We just like to keep busy, that’s all.”

“Yeah, well, if you ever need to relax, you’re always welcome to come here.”

Jonghyun scoffed. “Is Minho okay with that?”

Kibum’s brow furrowed. “Why wouldn’t he be?” Jonghyun shook his head, chuckling. “You think he’d still be jealous?”

“I mean, maybe not.” He sighed, his gaze trailing after one of the kids across the garden as they ran toward the cluster of apple trees, despite her mother’s scolding. “I didn’t think Pierre would be jealous.” Kibum patted Jonghyun’s back, earning a small smile from him. “Guys are dumb.”

“Agreed.”

Jonghyun nudged him, laughing quietly when he almost fell over. “You say that as if you didn’t completely luck out with Minho.”

Kibum tried to keep from smiling, but he couldn’t help it. “I did, didn’t I?” Jonghyun rolled his eyes, huffing a laugh when Kibum shoved him lightly. “Come on, coffee is probably ready.”

Before he could fully stand, the door swung open, revealing a sleep-ruffled Minho with three mugs of coffee in his hands. He mumbled something as he passed Jonghyun his, then sat down on Kibum's other side, kissing his cheek before he gave Kibum his. "What'd you say, love?"

"I said I don't remember how you take this. About coffee. Jjong's coffee." He rubbed his face with his free hand, squinting out at the garden, his attention snatched by the now-squealing children across the way.

"This is great! Thanks, Min!" Jonghyun said enthusiastically, earning a grunt and an attempt at a glare from Minho that turned into a violent sneeze.

Kibum smiled to himself as he took a sip of his coffee.

Cute.

Mom dropped in after breakfast, just after Jonghyun had made his way upstairs for a quick shower. After he was done, they went out on the town, heading to Time Square and Central Park and the Empire State Building and Ellis Island to see the Statue of Liberty. Mom, of course, brought her camera along, though she didn’t stop them for any impromptu photoshoots. That would probably wait until graduation tomorrow.

They stopped for a relaxing dinner at the Blue Ribbon Sushi bar in Rockefeller Center -- her treat -- before once again going their separate ways after the three of them dropped her off at the Cigamn. Instead of going straight back home, they stopped at the grocery store first, getting a chilled six-pack of alcoholic butterbeers. They drank them all, the buzz calming Kibum’s anxiety for tomorrow.

Though graduation didn’t start until noon, Kibum had them all at the auditorium on the campus by ten-thirty-five. He gave them a brief tour since they were so early. Unsurprisingly, Mom did stop them several times to get some pictures of him around the campus. It would have been fewer pictures, but Minho and Jonghyun kept making him laugh, ruining a fair few of the pictures she took.

They made it back to the auditorium in time for the graduates to start gathering in the backroom to await being called up for their diplomas. Mom and Jonghyun left to go find a good seat, but Minho kept holding his hand, squeezing it a bit tighter when Kibum sighed.

“How are you feeling?”

“A bit nervous. I’ll be fine, though. It’s just a few minutes of my life.”

Minho smiled, lifting their joined hands to kiss Kibum’s knuckles. Kibum met his smiling eyes, unable to keep from smiling himself. “I’m really proud of you, you know.”

“I do know that, yes.”

“Good.” He glanced behind Kibum, no doubt to the door he was supposed to go wait behind. He released Kibum’s hand with a small smile. “I’ll see you in a bit, then,” he said, winking before he turned around. Kibum watched him go, shaking his head slightly before he turned and made for the door.

He dug his phone out of his pocket, checking the time. , it was ten to noon. He had to hurry if he was gonna be able to find and change into his robes before the ceremony began. Quickening his pace -- but not running -- he reached the door, glancing over his shoulder for a glimpse of his family before he slipped inside.

* * * * *

"Merlin's beard, why are there so many of them?"

Minho sniffed a laugh, glancing Jonghyun's way. "We just got to the H's, relax. We're almost there." He tapped his thumb on his bouncing knee, looking between the graduates lined up at the door waiting for their names to be called. When Kibum poked his head out, he smacked Jonghyun's thigh, pointing.

"Are we embarrassing him?"

Minho cracked a smile, his eyebrow raising as he met Jonghyun's twinkling gaze. It may have been a few years since it happened, but he'd never forget that one Valentine's Day when Jonghyun sent the singing Howler that silenced the Great Hall.

"What'd you have in mind?"

He bent his head, listening to Jonghyun's stream of whispered ideas. He nodded occasionally, keeping half of his attention trained on Kibum's place in line.

"Justine Kendall."

Polite applause filled the auditorium, a few people a little louder somewhere behind them as she took to the stage, smiling at the woman who shook her hand and gave her the diploma. Her family, no doubt.

"Ready?" Jonghyun asked, but Minho had already scooted forward in his seat, watching. Waiting.

"Kibum Kim."

Jonghyun flicked his leg, and Minho shot up, cupping his hands around his mouth and cheering loudly. He was soon accompanied by Jonghyun and some muted laughter as a red-faced Kibum took to the stage. Soon, it was too hard to continue cheering with how broadly he was grinning.

But Jonghyun wasn't done.

"Kim! Ki! Bum!" he yelled, drawing out the last syllable as his voice dropped about an octave.

"Bum! Ki! K -- "

"Psst!"

Minho looked down as Mom tugged on his jacket, eyes widening slightly at her expression. He grabbed Jonghyun's shoulder, pulling him down with him. "Sorry, Mom," he whispered to her as the next name was called.

"No, it's okay," she said, chuckling. "I just didn't want you two to get even more carried away."

Nodding, he sat back in his seat, clasping his hands in his lap. Until Jonghyun held out his hand for a low-five, that is. He obliged him with another grin.

He'd probably have to pay for that later, but it'd be well worth it.

* * * * *

Kibum sank into the next available seat in the row, burying his scorching hot face in his hands. /Merlin's ing beard, I'm gonna kill them./ he squeezed his eyes shut, letting out a quiet laugh as he shook his head. Why had he been cursed to be stuck with the most over-the-top boyfriend and best friend?

Honestly.

His phone vibrated in his pocket, and he surreptitiously snuck it out from under his robe.

12:49 pm

Are you mad?

Kibum his teeth, shaking his head.

You two are a terrible influence on each other

He stared at his phone for several seconds, barely registering that someone else's name had been called out.

Am I in trouble? ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Kibum coughed to hide his laugh, glancing around to make sure he hadn't been discovered. Not that he was mad at him, not for this...but god, it's hard to stay mad at someone when you love them this much.

Yes ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) he texted back, and promptly stuffed his phone back into his pocket, forcibly returning his attention to the rest of the ceremony.

Minho pulled him into a tight hug when he found them in the teeming crowd after the ceremony ended, laughing when Kibum punched his shoulder. “I can’t believe you two.”

“You’re lucky Mom stopped us before Jonghyun started singing.”

“Merlin’s beard…”

Chuckling, Minho kissed his temple. “Come on, let’s head home.”

Mom and Jonghyun only stayed two more days, and they hugged them both multiple times before they went through security, promising to call as soon as they made it back home. Kibum watched them go, his chin resting on Minho’s shoulder as he waved goodbye until they disappeared behind the barrier.

“You still have today off, right?” he asked, looking up at Minho without lifting his head.

“Yup.”

“Interesting.”

Minho sniffed a laugh, glancing his way before he reached for his hand and led him out of the airport. He didn’t stop to hail a taxi like Kibum had been expecting. No, he took him to the Apparition Chamber, immediately pulling him into a kiss once he crossed the threshold. Kibum grinned, clinging to him as they stumbled together until Minho’s back collided with the wall. The hand that wasn’t holding Minho closer was roaming beneath his jacket, feeling for his wand. Once Kibum found it, he pulled it out, and without breaking the kiss, he turned them, and they were swept back home.

It took a few days for them to find their new normal, now that Kibum didn’t have to return to school. Which was the weirdest thought in and of itself. That stage of his life was just...over now. He’d never have to step foot in a school setting ever again if he didn’t want to.

“You have to admit,” he said to Minho one night as they strolled through the park after dinner, “it is a weird thought. Never having to go back to school.”

“Is it?”

“Isn’t it?”

Minho laughed, shrugging. “I don’t know, Bum. Maybe it’s just been too long since I’ve attended school.”

“True.”

“You’ll get used to it, I swear.”

Kibum shook his head, pouting. “Well see, now I don’t want to.” Minho grinned, pulling him off the path and towards the gazebo, his eyes glimmering in the sunset. Kibum sighed, shaking his head with a small smile when Minho made him twirl. “Are we dancing now?”

“Sure, why not?”

His hand settled on Minho’s shoulder as they started to sway. Minho’s hand on his back pressed him closer, and after a second, he rested his head on Minho’s shoulder, listening to Minho’s quiet humming, the rushing river, and the wind dancing in the leaves around them. Minho pressed his cheek against Kibum’s head, his sigh buffeting his hair as he stopped humming. “I know you’re still stressed about what to do with yourself now that you’re done with school, but there’s no rush to figure it out.”

“I just really hate not knowing what to do...I want to do something productive, but” -- Minho kissed the top of his head, and Kibum smiled -- “I’m just not sure which direction to go. And I don’t know why I can’t think of anything.”

“Well, as I said before, you’ve just got to be patient with yourself.”

“We both know that’s practically impossible for me.”

Minho chuckled, the low sound calming Kibum’s anxiety momentarily. “What might help is trying whatever ideas do come to your mind. One of them is bound to stick.”

“Robes for owls?” Minho stopped swaying, his laughter loud in Kibum’s ear as he straightened so he could meet Minho’s gaze. “What? Is that a bad idea?” he asked, trying and failing to keep a straight face. “I thought you’d support my every whim…”

“Usually, I would, but…” he shook his head, smiling down at Kibum. “It’s a very dumb idea.”

Kibum scoffed, turning away from Minho with an ill-concealed smile. “You just don’t want me to succeed.”

“, you’ve seen right through me.”

"I thought you were supposed to support me. In sickness and in health. In brilliant ideas and in stupid ones."

"You're right -- "

"Of course I am."

" -- Will you want me to sew the sequins on the robes?" Kibum smiled, then laughed, burying his face in Minho's shoulder again as he shook his head. He turned his head as Minho kissed the top of his head again. "It's getting dark, we should head back."

Kibum sighed. "Fine."

The streetlamps were flickering to life by the time they reached their street. Minho pulled Kibum to a stop at their mailbox, grabbing the few envelopes within before he let Kibum drag him up to the front door.

"Do you want some cocoa?" he called back from the kitchen when the front door fell closed. There was no answer. "Love?" He poked his head around the corner, finding Minho so engrossed in a letter that he had gotten distracted halfway through taking off his shoes. "Minho?"

He looked up, blinking slowly. "Hm?"

"What's that?"

He started toward him, realizing after a step that he hadn't taken off his other shoe yet. After he did, he hurried to Kibum's side, passing him the letter.

Was it from his parents? Had they found him after all this time? Did Minseok tell them where he was?

He straightened the parchment, scanning the flowery script.

To Mr. Choi Minho,

The time has come once again for the Triwizard Tournament to commence. As a former Champion and the winner of the last Tournament, your presence has been requested in the planning of the Tasks and the mentorship of the new Hogwarts Champion.

Please respond as soon as possible so that we can prepare for your arrival.

Sincerely,

Miranda Gilder

Head of International Wizarding Communications

Kibum lowered the letter as he looked up, immediately meeting Minho's gaze. They stared at each other for several silent seconds, until Kibum cleared his throat. "Well...that was unexpected."

"Honestly."

He averted his gaze, scanning the letter again. "What are you gonna do?"

He looked up again when Minho didn't respond right away to find him shaking his head. Then, he shrugged. "I guess...I guess I'll have to go, won't I?"

Kibum nodded absently, looking back at the letter, searching for any more information. "Yeah, I think you will."

* * * * * * * * * *

- December 24, 2014 -

"I swear on Merlin's stringy beard that I'm not gonna poke you."

"Again."

Kibum snorted. "Just stand still."

Minho let out a long, dramatic sigh, the corners of his mouth curling up when Kibum glared up at him. "Fine." He held his arms out like Kibum had directed him, watching him move out of the corner of his eye as he wrapped the measuring tape around his waist.

They had been completely packed for their trip to Beauxbatons for the Yule Ball, anxiously waiting by the teacup portkey that had been sent to them. It was then that Kibum panicked about a seam in Minho's suit that he had designed -- matching with his, of course, though not overly so -- not laying right. Which led them to this moment, the minutes until their departure ticking quickly by while their carefully packed clothes lay strewn about the living room.

"Oh." Judging by the tone, Kibum was deflating because of something. Though, from this angle, Minho couldn't tell what.

"Oh?" he repeated, his gaze trained on Kibum as he moved away from Minho, though his eyes were still on his waist.

"It was fine. I...I didn't need to -- " His brow furrowed, distracted now as he looked around at the mess his panic had created.

Minho cocked his head. "Do you want to try yours on? Just in case?" Kibum shook his head, stepping away from Minho, though his hand didn't leave his side. "Pack your travel kit, just in case."

"You doubt my work?" he asked, eyebrow quirking as a little of his usual amusement seeped back into his expression.

"Of course not." Kibum smiled at that, and Minho cupped his chin, drawing him into a quick kiss. "I just know you'll feel better if you have it with you."

“We should get packed again.” Minho nodded, smiling when Kibum kissed him again before moving away. “Get back into your travel clothes while I do that.”

“Okay.”

He pulled off his set of Kibum designed dress robes -- pitch-black velvet with threads of shimmering gold sewn asymmetrically across it -- and his suit -- which was all black with a faint criss-cross pattern. He passed them back to Kibum before he changed into his sweater and jeans, who folded them gently before placing them back in the suitcase beside his matching set, though Kibum’s were a deep green and silver instead of Minho’s black and --

“Hey,” Minho said, staring at where their robes had been before Kibum closed the suitcase over them. “How did I not notice that those were our House colors?”

“Are they?” Kibum asked as he sat back beside Minho on the couch. Minho looked his way with a frown, confused for a second as to how Kibum made them and didn’t realize that, but once he searched his amused expression, Minho shoved him half off the couch with a laugh. He righted himself, scooting back to sit beside him. “You’re so cute sometimes, babe.”

“Just sometimes?”

Before Kibum could answer, however, the teacup on the coffee table before them started to glow a faint blue. Kibum jumped up from the couch, grabbing their suitcases and passing Minho one before he stooped to pick it up. “No, wait, together.”

“Right, right.”

Minho’s hand brushed against Kibum’s as he reached for the rim of the teacup. “One, two -- “ On three, they both touched the cup, and they were torn away from their living room.

He didn’t think he’d ever grow accustomed to the sensation of traveling by portkey. Truly terrible. It was like...jumping out of the helicopters like he had done while in the Marines, except that it was as if he had been tethered around the middle and yanked upwards instead of down. Well, maybe it was more like prolonged bungee jumping, but he’d never done that. Nor could he imagine that Kibum would ever be game for that.

If they weren’t being magicked across the Atlantic Ocean, he would have laughed at the thought.

Soon, but not soon enough, they were dropped on a snow-dusted garden. Kibum swayed beside him, Minho holding onto him as he looked around. “It’s this way,” he said, guiding Kibum to turn around.

Twilight was setting in, casting the usually pale palace of Beauxbatons in the peach of the dying sun. Behind the palace were the Pyrenees, the snowy crags of the mountain range purple and indigo. The last bits of sunlight gleamed in the many windows. Puffs of glittering smoke billowed out of the row of chimneys along the roof. The garden around them was perfectly manicured at all times, though it was difficult to see in the snow.

He glanced down at Kibum when he slipped his hand in his, grinning when he found his gaze darting all around. Taking in as much of the sight as the waning sunlight would allow.

"It's so pretty," he said in an awed whisper.

"Yeah, it is," Minho said, though he didn't look away from Kibum.

It took a second for Kibum to meet his gaze, and when he did, his cheeks dimpled in a shy smile. "Why are you like this?"

"Do you want me to stop?"

Instead of answering, Kibum turned away with a smile, his attention once again falling back on the palace. "Let's head inside, I'm getting cold "

Minho brought their linked hands up, kissing Kibum's knuckles. "Fine." Snow crunched beneath their feet for a few steps before Minho asked "Do you want to head straight to my usual room? Or do you want to look around first?"

"Uh, we can drop our luggage off first and then look around."

Once they stepped through the gilded double doors of Beauxbatons Academy, Kibum stopped in his tracks, mouth slightly agape as he looked around. Where Hogwarts had all the charm of a Scottish castle, Beauxbatons had grandeur. Every surface gleamed--the walls and floors a polished marble, the fixtures all shining gold, the lights all glittering crystal chandeliers.

Minho looked back at Kibum when he didn't follow him, their arms stretched out until he tugged slightly, bringing Kibum back to the present. He met Minho's gaze with wide eyes, his hand leaving the handle of his luggage to slip around his waist as he returned to his side.

"This is so much different than I imagined it would be."

"I took pictures for you, though?"

"Yes, but--"

Kibum cut off abruptly, his wide eyes fixed on someone behind Minho. Minho turned, smiling when he saw the portly janitor, Monsieur Bourdais.

"May I take your bags, Monsieur Choi?" He asked, his voice thick with a heavy French accent.

"Oui, merci." Kibum sniffed in amusement as Bourdais stooped to pick up their luggage. "My usual room?" he called after him.

The man nodded, and Minho turned to Kibum, who was still half-embracing him. "Well, do you want the tour?"

Kibum slipped his hand around Minho's arm, his eyes shining as he met his gaze with a nod.

Minho took him everywhere he could think of. Everywhere he'd been so far. Turner had done the same with him and Miloni when they arrived for the initial planning meeting in July, explaining the history of the palace that he'd picked up during his years here. Minho, however, had not retained even a little bit of the information Turner had given them. He had been too enraptured with the pristine halls and quiet classrooms.

The Houses were at the four corners of the palace, all hidden just like the ones at Hogwarts were. Minho pointed to the painting of a very fat man at a table of sweets who was guarding Turner's old House--he couldn't remember the name--and the man swore at them in French. Or, at least Minho guessed he did, given the vitriol in his tone. It didn't have quite the effect that the man wanted it to, however, given that both Minho and Kibum laughed out loud as they turned away.

On their way back to their room for the night, Minho stopped by the kitchens, as he had had to every time he arrived at Beauxbatons and asked for their dinner to be delivered to his usual room.

"How long of a walk is it?" Kibum asked as they started up the winding marble staircase, his voice trailing off as he was distracted by the dangling crystals of the chandelier in the center of the stairs.

"Not far. Fifth floor."

Kibum let out an exasperated huff, which made Minho laugh hard enough for Kibum to punch his shoulder.

Once they reached the fifth landing, Minho took Kibum's hand, leading him down the long hallway to the ornately nondescript door--compared to all the other doors in the corridor, that is--that he had come to be familiar with. He opened the door, leaning in and looking back at Kibum as he ventured inside.

"Holy …"

It was like the fanciest of hotels had thrown up inside the room. A king-sized bed draped in royal purples and vibrant red sat prominently against the one wall with the gilded wallpaper. An elaborate vanity, a wardrobe, a chest of drawers and a chaise lounge, and a hearth with a fire crackling within were all arranged along the walls, drawing their eyes around the room.

'What's back there?" Kibum asked, gesturing to the door left ajar between the mahogany wardrobe and the lounge.

"Go see for yourself."

He watched Kibum go as he sank on the bed, smiling when he gasped. The room was accompanied by a bathroom all of their own, including a large porcelain bathtub that Minho had made use of whenever he came previously. Though, now…

His eyebrows shot up in question when Kibum came back out of the bathroom, his smile growing as he made his way across the room to him. "Do they have this sort of thing at Hogwarts?"

"No idea."

"We should go back and find out."

Just as Kibum reached him, his hand outstretched to brush Minho's hair off of his forehead, a knock rapped at the door. Kibum turned toward the noise while Minho sat up, looking around Kibum to the vanity, where two silver dome-covered plates were now sitting.

"Should we--"

But his voice cut off as Minho stood, brushing past him. "Where do you want to eat this?"

In the end, they decided on drawing up a few chairs with their wands and sitting beside each other at the vanity. Dinner was, as usual for Beauxbatons, a series of courses. The first was some onion and cheese tarts, the pastry flaky, the onions caramelized, and the cheese creamy. Together, it melted delightfully in their mouths, and when Minho replaced the dome and lifted it a second later, there was a steaming bowl of creamy lobster bisque. The following courses were ratatouille, coq au vin, and crepes stuffed with a chocolate mousse and topped with fluffs of whipped cream.

"I can't eat another bite," Kibum muttered, tossing his fork back on the vanity and leaning back in his seat. Chuckling, Minho ate the last few bites of the crepes on Kibum's plate before he too leaned back. "I know it's not that late for us but I just want to sleep now."

So, they got ready for bed, Minho wrapping up his nightly routine before Minho and crawling into the plush, oversized bed and watching the bathroom doorway. Kibum appeared within it a few moments later, pajamas donned and face glowing from his skincare products. He flicked off the lights on his way to Minho, bumping into the bed in the darkness before he slipped under the covers.

Minho felt for him, but he was too far away. "Bum?"

"This bed is way too ing big," he said, sidling up beside him and curling into his side. Minho relaxed almost immediately, his arm wrapping around Kibum as his head tucked into the crook of his shoulder. "It would be good to have if we fought a lot."

Minho sniffed a laugh. "I'm glad we don't. Not really." Kibum hummed his assent. "The bickering is fun, though," he said, kissing the top of his head.

"You would say that."

"Don't act like you don't ing enjoy it."

Kibum shook his head as he snuggled a bit closer to Minho. "So what if I do?" Minho kissed the top of his head again, and Kibum sighed. "What's the plan for tomorrow?"

"For you? Relaxing until the Ball. For me, I have to help McGonagall and the other Headmistresses with the final checks."

"That sounds boring." His voice was slightly slurred now--he must be on the verge of falling asleep.

"You're boring."

"I'll tell Mom that you said that."

"Go right ahead." Kibum didn't respond. His breathing shifted into his resting cadence, and after a few moments, was punctuated by the occasional snore. "There it is," Minho whispered with a smile.

His own eyes drooped closed after a while, the sound of Kibum's breathing lulling him to sleep.

When he woke, the sun was streaming through the balcony windows, and Kibum was nowhere to be found. With an outstretched hand, he found his side to be cool, too. Had he gone down for breakfast?

"Babe?" he called, his voice cracking from disuse.

"Oh good," Kibum said, Minho immediately turning to the ajar bathroom door. "You're up. Get in here." Frowning, Minho slipped out of bed, not even bothering to cover himself as he joined Kibum in the bathroom. He found him chin-deep in the periwinkle-colored water, his face red and glistening from the steam. "This tub is as big as that pool you used to work at." An over-exaggeration, but still, Minho started to smile. "I think I need a lifeguard to feel safe."

"Yeah?" Minho asked, climbing in on the other side as Kibum sat up with a smirk. "Do you need mouth-to-mouth?"

"The fact that you have to ask--"

"Just kiss me already."

Kibum pushed off from his side of the tub, settling in Minho's open arms. "Good morning, my love," he said softly before kissing him. Then, "And happy anniversary."

Instead of returning the sentiment with words, Minho kissed him again, and again...and again.

The day passed by lazily, the two of them not parting until Minho had to go downstairs to meet with the others. He helped Turner, Miloni, and the Headmistresses as well as the Beauxbatons professors as they put the finishing touches on the Great Hall. After a quick run-through with the Champions from the three schools and the host of Veela that were accompanying them for the first waltz, Minho hurried back upstairs to their room, eager to see Kibum and change into his robes in the five minutes he had to spare.

He made to pull off his sweater as soon as the door swung shut behind him, but he froze, hands on the knitted neckline, as he beheld Kibum.

As many times as he had seen Kibum in the robes, he'd never seen the completed look. And…god, he just looked good. The silver in his robes caught the light as he turned, eyebrow raising in curiosity. "Something the matter?"

Minho lowered his hands, shaking his head as he crossed the room and gathered Kibum up in his arms, kissing him before he could ask another question. Kibum kissed him back, just as fervently, clinging to his sweater even after he broke the kiss.

"You weren't gone that long--" But Minho cut him off again, relishing in the way Kibum's lips curled up against his own as he smiled. Until that is, he pressed his hand against Minho's chest, creating some distance between them. "Babe, please, we have to go."

"What a shame."

"It is, isn't it." He his lip, smirking as his gaze raked over Minho for a few prolonged seconds. "Ah, well." He pushed Minho away, checking in the vanity mirror to make sure his hair didn't get mussed. "Hurry. You'll be upset with yourself if you're late."

It was quite possibly the quickest he had ever changed in his life. Kibum helped him button up his shirt and straighten his suit and robes while Minho peered around him, slicking his hair back in the mirror. When Minho sank back on his heels, Kibum turned around, inspecting them both in the bathroom mirror.

He sighed heavily, slipping his hand in Minho's arm. "I'm just too good, aren't I?" Minho grinned at him in the mirror, waiting for him to meet his eyes again. When he did, Kibum bit back a smile. "Let's go down before we change our minds."

Minho kissed his temple, and with that, they left their room, descending the stairs arm in arm. They passed the Champions and their partners on the way in, both stopping for a second so that Minho could introduce Kibum to a very excited Freema Okena, Hogwarts' Champion.

He could feel Kibum's amusement when they left her to slip inside the Great Hall. "I may have mentioned you. Once or twice."

"Uh-huh."

Minho cracked a smile, glancing over at Kibum, who was looking around at the Christmas decorations adorning the hall and the myriad ice sculptures lining the walls, all somehow unaffected by the head of the fireplaces on either side of them.

"I'll come back after the feast," Minho said as he dropped him off at the table with Roselyn and her and Turner's children.

"Alright." Kibum presented his cheek, which Minho immediately kissed. It took him a few seconds before he remembered that he was supposed to let him go. "Don't have too much fun with McGonagall."

Minho snorted, rolling his eyes when Kibum winked at him.

He made his way over to where McGonagall was sitting at the head table, watching the students chat excitedly to each other while they waited for the Champions' entrance. He sat beside her, surveying the Hall for himself until she cleared . "Was that Mr. Kim I saw you with?"

"Kibum?" She nodded, and he smiled. "Yes, we're still together."

She smiled too, albeit faintly. "I'll have to go say hello to him sometime tonight."

Before Minho could respond, the music swelled, the chatter died down, and the double doors opened to reveal Charlene, the Beauxbatons Champion, and her partner. Minho straightened in his seat, fully attentive now as he waited for his cue to stand and start waltzing with McGonagall. The familiar song began as soon as Freema and her partner took to their places on the dance floor, the skirts of the girls' glittering dresses and the boys' black dress robes swirling together as they began to dance.

Madame Maxime and one of the Beauxbatons professors whose name Minho never caught took to the floor, followed swiftly by Headmistress Nakova. Minho then stood, offering his arm to McGonagall and leading her onto the dance floor.

It was always strange, no matter how many times they had practiced this particular waltz, to dance with a woman. Sure, Kibum let him lead more often than not when they danced, but that was just because he was taller than he was. That wasn't the issue...it was just different. He'd never be used to it, he didn't think…not that there would be many opportunities for him to dance with women in the future. And, to be honest, if there were, he would probably avoid them as best he could.

He caught Kibum's eye as they twirled past where he was sitting, but he just needed that split second to register his unadulterated amusement. Minho bit his lip to keep from smiling too broadly, glancing around at the Veela who had joined in on the dance.

They were funny, if a little confusing. The Veela. Turner had pulled him aside before they arrived at the first practice, warning him to be careful around them. And, when they did show up, he was standoffish at first until one of them came up and started chatting with him. She was undeniably charming, but not in the way that Turner had been describing. Honestly, he still didn't get it, but maybe it was just the straight men who were affected like that, given how the boys reacted to them.

When the dance concluded, Minho led McGonagall off the dance floor, back to their table. As soon as they were seated, the tables were filled with food--French delicacies that he could never have guessed the names of, each more delicious than the last.

And, once the last plate was cleared, Jonghyun, Pierre, Phillipe, and Turner took to the stage as they had at Hogwarts, though this time they were met with greater applause. Jonghyun grinned at them as he swung his microphone around, saying something in French that spurred a bit of a frenzy from the Beauxbatons girls around the Hall. As the first notes filled the room, students from all over hurried to the stage, waiting eagerly for the set to officially begin.

It looked as though it'd be a few more minutes before they began singing, though, so Minho excused himself and slinked around toward the stage, drawing Jonghyun's attention. The others continued to play as Jonghyun abandoned his microphone to bend down, presenting his ear for Minho to whisper into.

"When you start the slow songs, can you slip 'Put Your Head on My Shoulder' in there?"

Jonghyun nodded, and Minho returned to his seat to find it occupied by Kibum, who was chatting happily with McGonagall. He was fiddling with his ring while he talked, occasionally gesturing with his hands. Minho could barely hear over the noise of everything else, but he guessed their conversation had to do with what Kibum had gone to school for in New York.

Madame Maxime soon sat behind her, making Kibum stop talking long enough for her to ask McGonagall a question. Kibum sat back, his hand freezing as he twisted his ring and met Minho's gaze. "Do you want to go outside for a minute?"

Kibum nodded, then both of them made their way out of the Great Hall, the noise of the concert diminishing with every step.

The sky was clear tonight--cloudless and blanketed in a swath of stars that never would have been visible in the lights of New York City. Minho looked away from the night sky when Kibum kissed his hand, smiling down at him.

"May I have this dance?" Kibum asked, just like Minho had all those years ago.

Minho's smile grew slightly, glancing around at the golden light shimmering across the blanket of snow from the lights of the Great Hall. Once again, the mood of Nebulous Stardust's set had shifted to something softer. Jonghyun must have noticed them slipping out of the Hall since he could barely hear "Put Your Head on My Shoulder." He gathered Kibum up in his arms, starting to sway when he did.

"Almost exactly five years ago from right now, I was worrying about giving you that stupid letter."

Minho smiled, sighing. "It wasn't stupid. I still have it, you know."

"What?" Kibum met his eyes, his brow furrowed in disbelief.

"Yeah, it's in my wallet."

Kibum shook his head, hiding his smile by resting his head on Minho's shoulder. "You're so dumb."

"Yeah?" Kibum nodded against him, and Minho chuckled. "What are you gonna do about it?"

"I'll think of something. Eventually."

Minho kissed the top of his head. "If I hadn't said something first, do you think you would have given it to me then?"

"I like to think I would have...but I'm not sure. I was really scared." Minho nodded. Though he was several years removed from the anxiety of withholding his affections from Kibum, it was a hard thing to forget completely. "If I could go back in time, I would have told my little fourth-year self to just kiss you when my mind was screaming at me to do."

"Fourth year?"

"Mhm."

Minho hummed, then huffed a laugh. "There's no way we would have been able to keep our secret that long."

"True…" Kibum straightened, meeting Minho's gaze again. "You know, we've known each other for half of our lives, now."

"Is that why we're such an old married couple at the ripe old age of twenty-three?"

Kibum smiled, his attention shifting to the night embracing them. "Except for the married part, of course."

Minho stopped swaying, as did Kibum a second later. "Someday, we will be. When we can."

"Of course we will be. You're not gonna let a catch like me get away from you. You're not that dumb."

Minho's laughter rang through the night, the melody of it carried away on the chilly breeze. "I love you...just, way too much."

"Yes, well, it shows good judgment," he said as his arms looped around his neck, his fingers caressing the hair on the back of Minho's head. "Do we have to go back to the Ball?"

"I hope not."

Kibum went on his tiptoes, his lips almost touching his. Minho's lips parted in anticipation for a kiss that never came. "Let's head back inside, then," he whispered before he sank back down. The lights from the palace glinted his gaze as his hands slipped from around his neck, caressing his chest before he turned away and started for the palace again.

Minho grinned and, now that his unwavering desire once again ignited, was quick to catch up to him.

As the sun peeked over the snow-capped Pyrenees, they were once again back outside, this time accompanied with their luggage. Minho and Felicity had agreed on an early morning arrival at their house in Bromley to surprise his nephew and niece for Boxing Day. “Do you still have the teacup?” Minho asked, his teeth chattering as he slipped his wand out of his coat.

“Yeah,” Kibum said, digging it out of his coat pocket and passing it to Minho.

He set it on the fountain in the center of the garden once they reached it, then grabbed his phone and scrolled up to where Felicity had sent him their address. He cemented it in his mind before he tapped the rim of it with the tip of his wand, murmuring Portus. It flashed blue for a second, then the glow winked out.

“What time do the kids wake up?”

Minho scrolled back up in his messages. “Seven, I think. She wants us there at six-thirty at the latest.” Kibum made a non-committal sound as he brushed the snow off of the lip of the fountain and sat down. “Are you still nervous about meeting them?” Kibum shot him a glare, and Minho chuckled. “I’m sure you’ll do just fine with them.”

“I’ve never been around kids that little before...it’ll be weird.”

Minho sat on the other side of the teacup, not even bothering to brush away the snow. “I mean, I understand.” He picked up the teacup, twirling it in his hands. “But like, we’re gonna have kids someday, I’m sure.”

He looked up. “You’re sure?” Minho frowned, nodding. Kibum chuckled airily, looking down at his hands. “You don’t think I’d be a ty dad?”

“What makes you say that?” Kibum shrugged and Minho scooted closer, slipping his arm around his shoulder and squeezing lightly. “I think you’ll be an amazing dad. I’m so excited to start a family with you.” Kibum tensed, so Minho started rubbing his shoulder lightly. “No rush, though, Bum. I can wait until you feel ready.”

“Okay.” He gulped, glancing Minho’s way, but not meeting his eyes. “I appreciate that.”

Minho nuzzled his cheek, kissing his dimple when it appeared. “Of course, babe.”

Kibum looked as though he was about to say something else, but then the teacup glowed blue between them. Minho sat up, taking Kibum's hand in his as they both reached for the cup.

They were violently whisked away from the French countryside and dropped unceremoniously on a snowy London road. Surprisingly, none of the Muggles in the red-bricked houses seemed to notice their arrival. Minho pulled Kibum closer to him, blinking the snow out of his eyes as he looked at his phone again.

"Where to?"

"Um...Number Eighteen, Aldermary Road."

Kibum looked up, scanning the gold-plated numbers on the doors. "There," he said after a minute, pointing to the house a few doors down from where they appeared.

"Are you ready?"

"As I'll ever be."

Minho squeezed his hand. "If you need a break, just let me know." Kibum nodded, squeezing his hand in return. "Okay, let's go."

Minho's heart thrummed with excitement as they crossed the pavement to the entrance of Minseok and Felicity's yard. He'd only seen pictures of Dominic and Winifred, and ty cellphone pictures at that, so he was so eager to finally see his nephew and niece in person. Kibum trudged along beside him, either from the lack of sleep from like night or apprehension about interacting with the kids.

He'd be okay. If he needed to, Minho would just sweep him away on a walk or something to give him a bit of a break. Minho looked back at him, Kibum's expression brightening ever so slightly when he met Minho's gaze. Then, he knocked on the electric blue door.

Felicity answered the door, Winifred on her hip, after a second round of knocking. "Come in, come in, you two," she said with a tired smile, waving them in with her free hand. Minho followed her in, grinning at the disgruntled-looking Winifred. "Don't worry, she'll just take a minute to warm up to you guys," Felicity said, brushing Winifted's wispy black hair off of her little forehead. "How was your trip?"

"Fine. France was pretty nice," Kibum said, bending to unlace his boots. "The little bit we got to see anyways."

"Oh, yes, France is stunning. I've only been to Paris. On our honeym--" She broke off, her head snapping down the hall. "Oh, Merlin, my Pepper-up!"

"I can take care of that!" Kibum said quickly, moving past them. "Go ahead and relax for a bit." He touched Minho's arm lightly before he hurried down the hall and was swallowed by the swinging door.

"Does Dom still have a cold?" Minho asked, offering her a sympathetic smile when she nodded.

"Min has one, too. Now I've got three babies in the house."

Minho laughed, holding his arms out for the still frowning Winifred. "I can take her for a bit if you want to go check on the other two."

It took a bit of maneuvering, given that Winifred wanted to cling to her mother, but soon Felicity was bustling down the hall and Winifred was starting to wail in her absence. "Oh, Winnie, it's okay," Minho said softly, rocking her slightly as he started to walk down the hall himself. He smiled at her as her cries subsided, if only barely.

"It's okay. I get it. I'm big and scary and you don't know who I am." She sniffled, her big dark eyes staring into his, and pouted as if she were on the verge of tears again. "I'm Uncle Minho," he said, repeating it in Korean. "Do I look like your daddy?" he asked, in a slight sing-song. "You're very adorable, aren't you? Yes, you are!"

She giggled at that, which made him grin as he pushed open the kitchen door. Kibum looked up at them, he could feel his gaze on them as they drew nearer. "And that's Uncle Kibum," he said, directing her to look at Kibum. And she did, blinking uncomprehendingly. "Isn't she cute?" he asked, still in the higher-pitched, sing-song voice, though the question was directed at Kibum.

"Very."

Minho looked across the counter, searching Kibum's endearingly exasperated expression. "What?" His eyebrows rose as he shook his head, pursing his lips to keep from smiling. "Fine, be that way."

"I will." Kibum pulled two dried jewelweed blossoms out of their bottle and dropped them in the mortar and picked up the pestle.

Minho set Winifred on the counter. She wobbled a bit, so Minho supported her, pulling a face that made her giggle and Kibum sniff a laugh. When he looked up, Kibum's back was turned, stirring measures of powdered jewelweed into the bubbling cauldron.

He couldn't help but be a bit curious about Kibum's sudden apprehension about children. Well, maybe it wasn't sudden. They hadn't discussed the prospect of having a family of their own yet. It would probably come up later this week, or when they were safely back home. Whatever the reason, hopefully being around their nephew and niece for a few days would help his anxiety a bit.

Minho's smile grew and his attention shifted back to Winifred when she gurgled something to him, and he tapped her nose -- which made her face scrunch up in a smile -- then lightly pinched her chubby little cheeks.

If anything, this visit would only make him want kids of his own even more than he did before, but he could be patient. However long Kibum needed to be comfortable with the idea, though, he'd be more than willing to wait.

"Oh, there you are," Felicity said as she breezed in, a very sleepy Dominic on her hip. "I should have guessed. Dom…" He had lifted his head off her shoulder, glancing shyly between Minho and Kibum, who were both watching him. "This is your Uncle Minho and Uncle Kibum. Remember? We told you they were coming?" He buried his face in her neck, wrapping his arms tighter around her. "Sorry," she said with an apologetic smile. "He's usually more outgoing than this."

"Oh, it's okay."

"Yeah, don't worry about it," Kibum said, stirring in the mandrake root he just finished slicing. "This is almost done now, so he'll be feeling better soon."

"Where's Minseok?"

"Showering. He thought it'd make him feel better. He took some...uh…"

Minho glanced over his shoulder when he heard the distant stream of water. "Dayquil?"

"Yes! Hopefully, that'll help." Winifred grabbed at his ear with another cheery gurgle, and Minho turned back towards her, meeting her bright eyes with a smile. "Huh. She doesn't usually warm up this quickly to strangers."

"Maybe I remind her of Minseok."

"Probably."

Kibum cleared his throat, drawing both of their attention. "The potion is ready now."

"Already?"

"I can get some ready for Dominic?"

"Ah, wait." She hefted Dominic, repositioning him on her hip before she moved to fully join Kibum in the kitchen. "It needs to be diluted when they're this little." With her free hand, she dug around in the cupboard on the other side of the sink, producing a sippy cup. "One part potion, two parts water."

"Okay," Kibum said, taking the cup and filling it in the sink.

She took a deep breath, letting out a heavy sigh. "Merlin's beard, I wish you two lived here still. I didn't know you'd be so helpful."

Minho chuckled, glancing up at Kibum as he swirled the Pepper-up into the water before capping it again. "Aren't you worried about Minho spoiling them?" he asked as he passed her the sippy cup, smirking when Minho his teeth at him.

"Please, they get spoiled enough by their grandparents as it is. Here, Domni," she said, holding the sippy cup up for Dominic to drink out of. "Come on, love, you can have some pumpkin juice after." He took the cup in his tiny hands, taking an experimental sip as he looked over the lid at Kibum and then Minho. A little bit of steam started to shoot out of his ears as Felicity went on, "Your parents are worse than mine, I think," she said, nodding to Minho.

Minho sat back a little, repressing the urge to glance at Kibum when he felt his gaze land on him. He had refused every thought of his parents for the past three years. Ever since his and Kibum's reunion. But this? Hearing them brought up so casually, flippantly...it was a bit jarring.

"How...how are they?" Do they miss me? Do they mention me at all?

"Oh, they're good," she said, her eyes on Dominic as she held the sippy cup to his mouth. "They'll be here in February, I think. Whenever Chinese New Year is."

"Yeah, February," Kibum said curtly, and Minho finally met his eyes, shaking his head slightly. There was no need to get upset. She was just distracted by her sick son, she didn't mean anything by it.

"Do you...do you speak with them often?" Minho found himself asking, unable to keep it inside.

"As often as the time zones allow. We try to, um, Skype?" Minho nodded. "Yeah, Skype once a week. Your dad has been teaching them Korean…" Her voice trailed off as she looked up from Dominic, her eyes wide. "Oh, Minho, I'm sorry, I didn't mean--"

"It's okay!" he said quickly, placating her with a wave of his hand. "I know, it's fine." She worried her bottom lip, watching him with concern. "I'm okay."

Dominic coughed, dropping his sippy cup, and Minho reached out to grab it before it clattered on the counter. "Done," he said in his tiny voice, steam still curling from his ears as he twisted in her arms, evidently eager to get down.

Felicity returned her attention to her son. "Do you wanna play?"

"Yeah!"

"We can watch them for a bit if you need a break?"

She glanced between them, her eyes settling on Minho. "You don't mind?" He shook his head. "I'll get some coffee going for you. Or tea, if you'd rather."

"Coffee is fine," Kibum said before Minho could answer. "Thank you."

Minho scooped Winifred up off the counter with an exaggerated gasp that made her giggle. "Let's go, let's go," he said, slipping back into the sing-song voice as he followed Kibum and Dominic into the living room.

Kibum hunkered down in the middle of the floor next to the Christmas tree that the kids definitely helped to decorate by what looked like a plastic cauldron and some fake potion ingredients. "My present," Dominic said, grabbing the cauldron Kibum reached for.

"Do you like making potions?" Kibum asked him.

Dominic nodded. "Mama does. I help."

Kibum looked up at Minho as he sat behind Dominic on the couch, his eyes twinkling in amusement. "Yeah, I'm sure you do. Can you show me? I'm terrible at potions."

Nodding again, Dominic set the cauldron aside and grabbed the plastic mandrake, handing it to Kibum before he started digging around in the box for a plastic knife.

Minseok joined them just as Dominic was showing Kibum how to use the plastic mortar and pestle on the fake lacewings flies. His appearance in the living room sent Winifred into another crying fit as she looked back at Minho. , she really must have thought that he was her dad. Minseok reached for her, soothing her with practiced ease. He gave Minho a one-armed hug, then Kibum, before he and Minho both plopped back down on the couch.

Winifred looked at Minho, very confused for a moment. "I didn't think we looked that similar."

"Yeah, I didn't think I was that ugly," Minseok said, shaking his head sadly.

"Hey!" Minho punched his shoulder with a laugh, grinning when Minseok glared at him.

"You're setting a bad example for my children."

"You should stop lying, then," Kibum said, not looking up from his monitoring of Dominic's potion lesson. Minho smiled smugly at Minseok, who rolled his eyes before he turned his attention to his daughter.

Since Minseok's Dayquil seemed to kick in after they finished breakfast, all six of them bundled up and took the floo network to the Leaky Cauldron. Dominic, who had grown very attached to Kibum during their Potions lesson, took him by the hand and led him to the backroom that would let them out into Diagon Alley.

Minho hung back and reached out for Winifred, who was snuggled in Felicity's arms. "We can take the kids for a while if that's okay? I'm sure you two could use a bit of a break," he added with a chuckle.

"I mean if you want to." Minho grinned, directing his happiness at Winifred as she held her arms out for him, clearly having forgiven his iniquitous crime of not being her father. "Do you want to get a drink?" Minseok asked as Minho walked toward the entrance to Diagon Alley, but he had already slipped out of earshot before she could answer.

"Bum?" he called over the clattering of the bricks and Winifred's delight over the simple magic. "Sweetheart?"

"Over here, love."

He found Kibum and Dominic, Kibum watching Minho's approach and Dominic propped up on his hip to look at the Puking Pastilles display in Weasley's Wizard Wheezes shop window. Minho walked stopped at his side, leaning closer so that Winifred could leave tiny handprints on the self-cleaning glass.

"Are they coming?" Kibum asked, his head turned to the already reformed wall concealing the Leaky Cauldron.

"I think they're having a drink. Kids are ours for a bit."

"Ah." Minho's attention shifted from Winifred and Dominic's reflections to Kibum. He was frowning.

"It's just for a little while, babe." Kibum nodded, gulped, then turned back to the display, a faint smile brightening his features. "I'm sorry, I should have asked. I thought you were doing okay?"

"It's fine." Minho tore his gaze away from the reflection to look at the real thing, Kibum following suit a few seconds later. "Really, it's fine."

Minho leaned closer, Kibum inclining his ear so Minho could whisper, "I'm sorry, Bum, I didn't know you were this stressed about this visit. You're doing great with them."

"You think?" Kibum asked when Minho pulled away, to which he responded with a nod. Kibum smiled at that before he looked back at Dominic. "I thought you said you were gonna show us around the Alley...Are you ready to start our tour?"

Dominic wriggled to be let down, clutching for Kibum's hand as he started talking about the different shops that were nowhere near them. With his free hand, Kibum grabbed Minho's, and together they trudged through the light snowfall on Dominic's whim.

He took them all the way back to the Magical Menagerie so they could look at the cats in the window -- Minseok had kept Ember when Mom and Dad moved back to Korea, so Dominic kept pointing out each different cat, calling them Ember despite none of them looking anything like her. They stopped at the apothecary so Kibum could pick up some of the allergy remedy before they went back to the house. Minho distracted the kids with the potions display while Kibum paid for that, then they were off again, back to the Menagerie, only this time they went inside.

Kibum stayed outside for a moment before he followed them in. Judging by the fact that he was chewing something as he walked up to meet them, he had just been opening up his allergy remedy. Minho smiled at him as he approached, then looked back at Dominic, who was going up on his tiptoes to look at the cats.

"Does Ember need a friend?"

"Yeah!"

Kibum snorted as he picked up Dominic so he could see into the crate with all the curious little kittens. "Would your dad be upset if we got Ember a friend?"

"Noooo," he said, with a cute little giggle.

"Well, personally," Kibum said under his breath to Minho, "I would like to make it back home without Felicity killing one or both of us, so…" Winifred let out a string of babbling and reached for the bars of the cage as a ginger tabby kitten bounded over to inspect her. Kibum tapped Minho's arm, distracting him from the kids for a second. "I'll be over there for a bit."

"Okay."

Kibum left his side and walked across the shop. But then Dominic wanted up too, and Minho was back looking at the kittens. It was only when a high, excited yipping rang through the shop that Minho turned around again to find Kibum with his arms full of a fluffy, wriggling puppy trying to him all over his face. Grinning, Minho guided the kids over to where Kibum was, both now enraptured with the puppies as they had been with the kittens.

"Do you need help?" Minho asked, shifting Winifred in his arms.

Kibum laughed, his eyes smiling as he pulled the puppy away so he could look at it properly. "He's so cute, isn't he? Makes me miss having a dog.”

Minho frowned. “When did you--”

“Before, with my parents. When we were in New York.” Minho’s mouth opened in a silent O as Kibum scratched the puppy behind its floppy ears. “I’d love to get one again, I think.”

“Yeah? You haven’t brought it up before.”

Kibum glanced his way with a small smile. “Well, yeah. I just didn’t think you’d want one. You’re more of a cat guy.”

“That’s because my family has always had cats…” He glanced down at the puppy, who was now watching him with his big brown eyes over Kibum’s shoulder. His tail started wagging as Minho leaned in, at his nose when it was in reach. “Do you want this one?” Kibum sputtered in apparent surprise, and Minho straightened, meeting his wide eyes. “We could come back for him right before we take our portkey home?”

“Babe…” Kibum set the puppy back in the confinement before he looked back up at Minho. “As much as I love the idea, it won’t work right now. We’re both away from home too much.”

“I guess that’s true...Someday, then?”

Kibum’s bright dimpled grin was more of an answer than Minho needed.

Once they were able to pry the kids away from looking at the animals, they went back outside. The snow had started falling faster, heavier now. “We should probably find your brother and -- “

“Kibum?”

They both their heels at the sound of a very familiar voice. Analecia?

“Oi, over here!”

Gil? There they were, waving them over to Flourish and Blotts, both grinning broadly as Kibum picked up Dominic and they hurried across the busy thoroughfare toward them. “Are these your kids?” Analecia asked as Kibum pulled her into a one-armed hug.

Kibum laughed. “Oh Merlin, no.”

“They’re my brother’s and his wife’s. They’re around here somewhere,” Minho said, glancing around for a glimpse of them in the crowd.

“Hey, check this out!”

Gil hunkered down in the snow, scooping up a bit as he pulled out his wand. He stood again, holding it up for Winifred and Dominic to see as he tapped the pile of snow. Flakes started floating upwards against the falling snow. Dominic struggled to get down, Kibum bent to set him in the snow and as soon as he was free he scooped up some snow himself, holding his hands out for Gil to do the same spell. Only, this time, when Gil tapped the snow, it formed a little snowman. Dominic clapped his hands happily, squashing the snowman accidentally, but then both he and Gil were scooping up a bit more snow to do something else.

“Hey,” Minho turned at Analecia’s voice, finding her gesturing to Kibum. “Wanna go inside for a bit?”

He glanced over at Minho, eyebrows raised in question. “Yeah, we’re fine out here.” Kibum grinned in thanks, and Minho watched them go before he crouched in the snow so Winifred could see what Gil was showing Dominic.

* * * * *

The little bell above the bookshop door tinkled as Kibum let it fall closed behind him, and he shook the snow out of his hair before he looked over at Ana when she asked, “So, how have you been?”

“Oh, you know. Still figuring my out.”

“Aren’t we all.” She tossed her hair back with a smile, then reached up to card her fingers through the snow-dampened fringe. Kibum’s gaze caught on something glittering on her finger, and he reached out, taking her hand so he could inspect the ring. “It’s nice, isn’t it?”

“When did this happen?”

“Back in November. We took a weekend trip to the Isle of Skye and he proposed then. He cried,” she added in a whisper, then laughed. “It was really sweet.”

“I’m so ha -- “ he started to say, but then Analecia flipped her hand over, exposing Kibum’s couple ring that Minho had given him a few anniversaries ago. “No, we’re not engaged. Yet.”

“I was gonna say.”

“Yeah, someday he’d better.”

“You mean you won’t be the one to ask him?”

Kibum laughed. “Please, I don’t have to ask for things I want. I just get them.” Analecia snorted, nudging him away with a shake of her head. “You know how he is. He’ll want to be the one to ask me, I just know it.”

“That’s adorable.”

“It is, kinda.”

He smirked, following her gaze to where it had drifted back to their partners, both playing with the kids in the snow. There it was again, the uncomfortable pang. It had gripped his heart the second Minho mentioned wanting kids someday, reoccurring a little too often today for Kibum's liking. He just...Minho just looked so happy with them. And, well, Kibum had never really ever considered the idea. Of kids. And now that he was...why was he so uneasy at the very thought of it?

"Do you want to hear a secret?" Ana asked, her eyes following Gil as he was swinging Dominic back and forth in his arms, both trying to catch snowflakes. Oh, good, Minho and Winifred were doing it now, too.

"What?"

She glanced over her shoulder before she leaned in to whisper, "I'm pregnant."

Kibum's eyebrows shot up. "Oh, no, what are you gonna do?"

She laughed, her brow furrowing. "What do you mean? We're getting married, this isn't a bad thing, Kibum."

"Oh, right." Right, of course. What the was wrong with him? She eyed him curiously, he could feel her scrutiny. "Sorry, I--"

"Do you not want kids?"

That damn pang again. "I don't know." No. Not right now, anyway.

"Does Minho know?" Kibum shook his head, and Analecia let out a long sigh before she looked back outside. Minho and Gil were being joined by Minseok and Felicity, the kids being handed over to their parents. Kibum was about to move for the door when Analecia rested her hand on his arm. "I don't want to in, but--"

"Just speak your mind, Ana."

"It's an important conversation to have. You can't exactly compromise on having kids."

He averted his eyes, looking back at Minho, who was waving for them to rejoin them. "I know. I'll tell him soon."

"Good." Then, she smiled and pulled him toward the door. "Come on, our favorite es are waiting."

Despite the heaviness settling into his heart, Kibum grinned and followed her back out into the snow.

* * * * *

The impromptu dinner with Gil and Analecia filled the usually quiet Leaky Cauldron with laughter and raised voices. Analecia and Gil were filling Minseok in on their side of the story at Hogwarts since he had only gotten a fairly heavily edited version. They parted ways at the fireplace with promises of coming to their wedding before Gil and Analecia were swept back to their home in Hogsmeade.

A few moments later, Minho, Kibum, and Minseok and his family were taken back to Bromley via the floo network.

Almost as soon as they had dusted the soot off of themselves, Kibum pulled Minho to the oversized armchair, the wine from dinner and his exhaustion from the early start this morning making him a little clingier than usual. Not that Minho minded, of course.

"You're so cute," he whispered into Kibum's hair before he kissed the top of his head.

"Mm, I know."

Minseok and Felicity were both busy putting the kids to bed for the night, so for the moment, they were alone for the first time today.

Minho kissed his head again, earning a tired sigh. "Do you want to go to bed soon?"

"Mhm."

"Okay." Kibum wrapped his arms around him just that much tighter, snuggled that much closer. Minho smiled. "It was nice, wasn't it? Seeing Gil and Ana again." To Minho's surprise, Kibum tensed. Minho pulled slightly away, looking down at him in the hopes that he could read his expression. He couldn't. "Something wrong, sweetheart?"

Kibum shook his head, then cleared his throat. He might have said what was on his mind, but Felicity's voice drew nearer. "We can talk about it later."

She entered the room seconds later, sighing heavily and happily as she plopped down on the loveseat. "I liked your friends. They were sweet."

"It's cool that he took over for Filch," Kibum said as he sat up a little, though he didn't let go of Minho.

"Right?"

"Us in Ravenclaw, we had this theory" -- She scooted forward, her voice lowering conspiratorially -- "that Filch was a poltergeist, just Peeves' opposite."

"What? Really?"

She nodded, grinning. "I can't remember much else about it, but yeah, it's been talked about for years in the Tower." She looked up when Minseok trudged into the room, shaking her head with a small smile when he laid across the couch, his head resting on her lap. "Do you think you'll try to make it to their wedding?"

"I'd like to be able to, but I'm not sure how that'd work with our schedules."

Kibum nodded. "And he's busy with Tournament stuff on top of working two jobs, so…"

"Yeah, but I don't have any Tournament meetings in May. Well, not that week, anyway." Kibum hummed in thought. "Plus it's a Sunday, and we both get those off, so…"

"We'll see."

"Did you guys want some coffee? Or tea?" Felicity asked.

"No, thank you," Kibum said as Minho shook his head.

"We're both pretty beat, so we were wanting to go to bed soon anyway."

She patted Minseok's head, making him sit up. "Here, then, let me show you to the guest room."

Their luggage was already inside the cozy little bedroom, and after they said good night, Felicity closed the door, leaving them alone. Kibum sank onto the bed with a sigh and Minho pulled off his sweater before he started on his jeans. Kibum watched him for a second before he pushed up from the bed, heading for their suitcases. “I’ll be right back. Gotta wash my face.”

“No promises that I won’t be asleep by the time you get back.”

Kibum sniffed a laugh as he dug through the luggage, then was out the door again when he found his bathroom bag. Minho, however, crawled under the sheets on his usual side of the bed, his eyes drooping significantly as soon as his head hit the pillow.

What a nice day.

Honestly, he knew it would be fun, just being back with Minseok and his family. He also knew that it would make him want that for him and Kibum even more than he already did. And, of course, he was right about that. Just the thought of it… Granted, they were still young, they had their whole lives ahead of them to plan for having a family of their own. But that didn’t mean they couldn’t start thinking about it now?

Even though Kibum did seem to be nervous -- which made sense because he hadn’t ever been around kids that little before -- he was amazing with both Dominic and Winifred. A natural, really. And, sure, it would be different when the kids were their full responsibility, but judging by how easily -- no matter how apprehensive he seemed at first -- Kibum slipped into the pseudo-fatherly role, he’d be a great dad. An amazing dad.

The door cracked open, and Minho sat up a little to watch Kibum slip inside. “I thought you said you were gonna be asleep.”

“I wasn’t sure if I was going to be or not.”

Kibum pulled his sweater off, tossing it over to where Minho’s lay on an old trunk. “I can’t believe you’d just lie to me like that. Like it’s no big deal.”

“Come here and I’ll make it up to you.”

Kibum looked up with a smile, halfway through pulling off his jeans. “Let me get changed first.”

“Why do you need pajamas?”

He snorted. “Because I get too cold, you know this.”

“But I can keep you warm, though.” Kibum rolled his eyes with a heavy sigh, but stopped digging through their luggage and instead flipped off the light. The bed soon creaked as Kibum slipped in beside him, and Minho immediately latched onto him, pulling him closer to him. “See?” Minho kissed the back of his neck, then his shoulder as Kibum snuggled closer still. “You’ll be just fine.”

“Whatever.” Minho rested his chin on Kibum’s shoulder, listening to the sound of his breathing for a few seconds. “Listen, about earlier” -- Earlier? Oh, right, there had been something bothering him -- “Ana told me that she was...is pregnant.”

“Oh?” That’s great news, why was there an issue?

“Yeah, and...I...I just…”

“What?”

“It’s, and what you said earlier got me thinking...I’m not sure if I’m going to want to have kids.”

Oh.

Minho blinked slowly, staring at the darkness beyond his nose. That was...not what he was expecting. Maybe he should have been, but he just wasn’t. “Is there any, uh, particular reason?”

Kibum shifted and Minho pulled away so he could roll over and face him. “I’m...not sure. I just know the thought terrifies me.”

“I see.”

He found Minho’s hand, grasping it, kissing his fingers. “I’m sorry, love. I know you -- “

“It’s okay.”

“Min, I know you want kids.” Minho’s grip on Kibum’s hand tightened. “And I don’t know if this is a deal-breaker for us or not.” Minho’s brow furrowed as the implications of that statement settled into his mind. “I don’t want it to be, and maybe, someday, in the future, I might change my mind. But...but for now, I don’t see that happening?”

Minho cleared his throat, staring into the shadows where he knew Kibum’s face was. Was this a deal-breaker? Or was his desire for a family of his own selfish? It was a lot to ask from Kibum. The responsibility of raising children...he could see why it would be terrifying. It was, frankly, even to him. But the joys of creating a family with Kibum far outweighed his fears.

But that was the crux of it, wasn’t it? With Kibum. Kibum being out of his life was not up for debate. He was his partner, and he always would be. No matter what.

“I’m sorry, Bum. You probably felt like I was pressuring you all day today and -- “

“Oh, no, wait, my feeling this way isn’t your fault at all. I just...I just thought I should tell you before you got your hopes up too much.”

Minho nodded before he brought their joined hands up to kiss Kibum’s knuckles. “Still, I’m sorry. I promise I won’t bring it up again.”

“I mean, who knows, maybe in a few years, I’ll change my mind? I think...I think I just need to figure out what’s bothering me about it before I can even consider adopting. Or whatever.”

“Yeah.” That made sense. And for Minho’s part, he could do whatever he could to give him that space to think about it. “Either way you decide, though, you’ll still have me.”

Another stretch of silence, punctuated by a relieved sigh. “You mean that?”

“Of course I do, sweetheart. You’re stuck with me forever.”

Kibum scooted closer to him, his hand resting on Minho’s neck then drifting up to cup his jaw. His thumb caressed his lips before he leaned to kiss him. Minho smiled then, his arms wrapping around Kibum’s bare waist. “I love you, too,” Kibum whispered before he kissed him again.

- - - - - - - - - -

- April 17, 2015 -

Sunlight streamed through a crack in their bedroom window curtains, painting a thin strip of gold across the floor, the bed, the ceiling. Kibum stared at it as it wavered in the slight breeze of the open window. He sighed deeply, breathing in a bit of Minho’s familiar scent left on the pillow he was hugging.

The Tournament could not be over fast enough.

He had already checked their old notebooks for any new messages since the cell phone reception in Beauxbatons was pure . There were a few, mainly Minho saying that he would be gone most of the day, which meant that they’d probably not be able to talk much, if at all.

Kibum squeezed his eyes shut when his alarm sounded, then rolled back over to his side of the bed to grab his phone and turn it off. The picture he and Minho had taken for his lock screen stared back at him, Minho’s arm over his shoulders. A big grin for both of them. Kibum winking at the camera. It was both of their lock screens, actually. His screen went dark and he hit the power button again so he could look at Minho one more time.

He’d be back soon. Really soon, actually. Life would return to normal by the end of June with whatever the final task was. , he made it through two years of this, why was the occasional week so hard to get through?

“Okay, Bum, time to get up.”

He slipped out of bed and unplugged his phone, going up on his tiptoes as he stretched. Then yawned. He rubbed his eye as he started down the stairs, each step creaking under his feet. Were they always this loud? Or was the house just this silent when Minho wasn't around?

He made himself enough coffee for one, then reheated the second to last pastie that Minho had made before he had gone. Just one more day and he'd be home.

The only perk to not having an overly affectionate boyfriend around in the mornings was that Kibum was able to get ready in half the time as he normally would have. Although he was willing to make a few sacrifices for his career if Minho made him a bit late on occasion. He smiled at the thought of being waylaid like so right now, then blinked, snapping himself out of the reverie. He shook his head, grabbed his jacket, and made for the door.

Since he was earlier than usual, he stopped in at Sandersons for another cup of coffee before his trek into work. He waved to Madge as he slipped out of her shop and into the No-Maj New York and was caught up in the flow of foot traffic on his way to the subway.

Once he reached his stop, Kibum tossed his empty cup in the nearby garbage can on his way up the stairs and back into the unusually bright spring day. Squinting, he glanced both ways across the street, then moved through the crowd of tourists and New Yorkers on their way to work. He dodged the street performers, averting his eyes with a chuckle from the woman-swarmed Cowboy.

He sped up when he spotted the billboard for Wicked, ducking down the alley to head through the employee entrance in the back. The door swung closed behind him, enclosing him in the half-white, half-Elphaba green hallway. “Okay,” he said absently to himself as he made his way past the plaques with the names of the former cast members and started up the stairs to the Galinda -- or Glinda -- pink floor. Calls of greeting followed him as he passed the hair and makeup room, so he doubled back to peek inside to say hello before he headed to the wardrobe department.

“Hello, hello,” he said, closing the door behind him. "Oop, !" He backed away from the wall of fabrics, holding the bolt of sky blue fabric that he almost knocked off the wall.

"Good morning," Natasha, his coworker, said before she took another sip of her coffee.

Kibum shrugged out of his jacket, hanging up his bag on the back of the door before he followed it with his jacket. "Are we refitting Caroline today?"

"Mm, yeah I think so. Rouche wants to see you first, though."

Kibum's eyebrows shot up as he froze, halfway sitting at his workstation. "Am I in trouble?"

A manicured eyebrow rose in interest, and she shook her head with a small smile, her curled blonde ponytail bobbing. "I don't think so, but you never know with her." Kibum nodded, sitting in his seat without thinking. "You should probably go see her now, though, if you don't want to be."

"Merlin, yeah…"

He shot up, Natasha's chuckle following him to the closet. Kibum pushed through the racks of glittering dresses and robes and jackets and boots and --

For whatever reason, the red of the room always surprised him. It stained the walls, the floors, the cushions. It was obviously Madame's favorite color, given that she nearly always wore a shade of it. On the tenth anniversary of the first show, however, she had worn a lovely shade of green, much to everyone's surprise. Kibum stepped through the closet and as he drew further in, he caught a glimpse of himself in the wall of mirrors. He preened for a second before he called out, "Madame Roucheoux?"

"Come through, dear.”

He smoothed his shirt, making sure it was properly tucked in before he crossed the room to the ajar dressing room turned office door.

Madame Roucheoux sat at a desk that was covered in swatches of fabrics and spools of threads, needles and sequins, shears and measuring tapes. Not that she needed them at all. Not with her talent for fashionable magic. It was all part of the show -- this was Broadway, after all. They were all playing a part, whether they made it to the stage or not.

Her silver-streaked hair was tucked loosely into a hat that would have looked ridiculous on anyone else -- bulbous yet pointed with an asymmetrical rim. Red, of course, and a perfect match to the assumedly flowing robes she was wearing. Her hand glittered as she raised it to straighten her wand on her desk, the many rings adorning her fingers catching in the lights lining the vanity.

She gave him a thin-lipped smile as he quietly closed the door behind him. “Have a seat, darling,” she said, in her old Hollywood accent. In the few years he had been here, he wasn’t sure if she was doing her best Kathrine Hepburn impression or if this was her natural voice. At this point, he was going with natural, given that she had yet to break character. “Is your boyfriend still not back?” Kibum shook his head as he sat in one of the thinly padded armchairs. “Unfortunate.” She smiled, her dark eyes glimmering. “Do you know why I've called you here?”

“Uh, no.”

Her eyes twitched into the faintest of squints before returning to normal. “Have you not heard the rumor that I’m leaving Gershwin?”

Kibum blinked rapidly, his eyebrows raising as he slowly sat back. “I have, yes, but I didn’t put any stock in them. Given that it was a rumor.”

“Right.” She smiled again, then opened her drawer and pulled out a cigarette. “Do you mind?” Yes. Kibum, however, shook his head and hoped he wouldn’t start to cough. “Well, it’s true. I am. Gerald at Majestic wants me back to whip his wardrobe department back into shape. I’ve accepted.”

“Congratu -- “

“Which means,” -- Kibum cleared his throat, his brow furrowing. -- “I think it’s high time you got a promotion.” He stared at her in stunned silence. “Kat’s retiring, as you well know, unless you don’t listen to anything we say in the workroom…”

“I do, it’s just -- “

“And we both agree that you’re the best choice to take over for her as head of Elphaba’s wardrobe.”

Yet again, his eyebrows shot up. His mouth even popped open. “Me?”

“No, darling, the ghost of Irene Sharaff,” she said, gesturing behind Kibum. He almost glanced back, but luckily decided against it. “You’ll have your work cut out for you, but I’m sure you’ll be just fine.”

“When do you leave?”

“Next Friday, which means you have a full week to pester me with all the questions you can think of. And I highly encourage you to do so. However, for now...” She shooed him away, and he stood, though slightly confused. “Ms. Bowman, I understand, needs her Act Two dress to be refit before the show tonight. So, get to it.”

“Okay.” He turned, his mind spinning. Once he reached the door, he looked back at her, giving her a tiny bow when she looked up. “Thank you for the opportunity, Madame. I won’t let you down.”

“You’d better not.” She gave him another thin-lipped smile before she nodded for the door. “Go on, now, darling.”

Kibum nodded, bowed again, and hurried out of the room. It wasn’t until he glanced up at the wall of mirrors on his way to the workroom that he realized he was grinning.

"Were you in trouble?" Natasha asked as Kibum breezed through the room to his station where he gathered his pin box and measuring tape.

He shook his head, still grinning, and draped the tape around his neck before pocketing the box. "I'll be back in a bit," he said, slipping behind her and grabbing the Act Two dress for Caroline that he had started on yesterday.

As soon as the door was closed behind him, he did a quick little dance before he started up the mural staircase to the stars' dressing rooms. Kibum slipped his phone out of his pocket once he reached the landing, checking to make sure if the coast was clear before he called Minho.

The dial tone trilled in his ear. "Come on," he murmured, his eyes rolling as he started to pace.

"Hey, this is Minho. Sorry, I'm not available right now, please leave a message after the tone and I'll get back to you!"

Beep!

"Hey, love," Kibum said, glancing up the stairwell when he heard the click of footsteps. "I just got out of a meeting with Rouche and I have exciting news that I can't wait until you get back into cell service to hear. I'm getting a promotion! Yeah! I'm gonna be Elphaba's lead costumer..., I should have asked if this came with a pay raise. It probably does. But how ing cool is that? She's just...I'm...I'm just so relieved...Maybe this is what I'm supposed to be doing, you know?" He cleared his throat, scuffing his toe on the tile. It squeaked faintly. "I don't have time to ramble about that right now. I have to get back to work, but I love you, I miss you, and I can't wait until you're home again. Bye, babe!"

He made a little kiss sound before he hung up the phone, grimacing at that. "Ugh, why are we like this?"

But he didn't have time to answer that question. Instead, he started running up the stairs again, hurrying to Caroline's room. Once he reached it, he knocked lightly, waiting for her to call him inside. She did so quietly, and he peeked in to find Kara asleep on Caroline’s couch, with Caroline sitting at her vanity, her feet crossed at the ankles and propped up on the counter. She looked up, smiling at him in the mirror.

“Hey,” he whispered, so he didn't wake Kara. “Do you have time right now for a quick fitting? Or do you have to be in rehearsals soon?”

“Yeah, I have time. Stagehands are still working on set-up.” She slid her feet off the counter and turned to him as he stood. “Where do you want me?”

It took nearly all of the time before she and Kara left for rehearsals for Kibum to get everything pinned to his idea of perfection and her out of the now prickly dress. He carried it gingerly back downstairs, adding length with a swish of his wand, hand sewing the new darts himself as well as rearranging the way the cape laid. He adjusted Elphaba’s school uniform too, with his new measurements, and regreenified the skin suit she wore under her clothes with a thought of Colorvaria. He took all three items upstairs when the call for everyone to start getting ready came.

Caroline was getting her face painted and her wig and microphone on when Kibum slipped back inside, setting aside the uniform and skinsuit before hanging up the Act Two dress. Once her hairdresser stepped away, he carefully helped her into the skinsuit then her uniform, smoothing it out while her makeup artist started working on her hands.

Everyone followed her out when her musical cue sounded over the speakers in the hall, Kibum heading with the makeup artist to where she’d go for her quick change.

It was a long night, as show nights often were. Though, at least it wasn’t a double show night. That would be tomorrow. Even so, he shook some of the tension out of his shoulders and arms on his way to the exit, then sighed heavily as soon as the door opened.

Of course, it would be raining.

He held onto his bag as he forged out into the rain, hurrying toward the subway. He just couldn't wait to get home so he could celebrate in his empty house. He arrived at the station just as his subway was pulling away, and he grimaced after it. The grocery store in the Boulevard would probably be closed by the time the next one came through...so…

He glanced around, slipping his wand out of his jacket, and apparated to Madge's shop, once again getting drenched. Groaning his hello to the old ghost, he walked through her shop and into the barren Center, hurrying through to the main street.

Rain pelted him as he ran down the cobblestone lane to the very closed-looking storefront. Once he reached it, he latched onto the handle, jiggling it a little before he peered through the darkened glass.

Yeah, no, he was out of luck.

Kibum held his bag shut as he looked back out at the night, protecting the contents from the downpour. Sheets of rain continued to fall, the droplets glinting in the streetlamps. He sighed, glaring at them from below the awning of the closed grocery store. He probably should just go home and scrounge around for something to eat instead of getting some takeout from whatever shop was still open in the food court at the Center.

Although...technically he was celebrating his promotion, even if it didn't feel much like a celebration. Ah, well, the restaurants were probably all closed anyway.

Home it is, then.

With a heavy sigh, he twisted on his heel and reappeared at the entrance of his house. He started to set his bag aside so he could go change into something dry and warm when he heard...something moving.

No, someone.

Someone was definitely moving around in the kitchen. The soft falling of feet, the quiet clinking of dishes. Slowly, and wishing he were feeling braver, Kibum reached for his bag, blindly searching for his wand as he kept his gaze trained on the dark hallway. He carefully slipped out of his shoes and tiptoed down the hall, running through the hexes and jinxes he could remember.

He paused at the corner, gulped, his lips, then darted around it. "Petrificus totalus!" he said firmly, gesturing with his wand at the looming shadow in the room. It froze just as it should, then fell to the floor with a heavy thunk.

Hand trembling now, Kibum lit his wand with a thought of Lumos, and held his wand aloft to inspect the intruder.

Minho stared back at him with wide, slightly amused eyes as Kibum's mouth fell open in surprise. "What the hell are you doing back? I wasn't expecting you until tomorrow?"

Minho tried to speak, but his jaw was frozen shut.

", right. Hold on. Finite incantatem!"

The effect was immediate. Minho relaxed with a chuckle then propped himself up on his elbows, not breaking eye contact with Kibum. "Should I have called?" Kibum his teeth at him, then stepped forward, hand outstretched to help Minho to his feet. Minho's arms settled naturally around him, pulling him into a hug. "I came home a day early."

"I see that."

Minho sniffed a laugh. "I'm glad you can defend yourself, at least," he said as Kibum pulled away from him.

"Oh, off."

Kibum shoved his shoulder, but Minho caught his hand, pulling him back toward him with a broad smile. "I wanted to congratulate you in person."

"Really? Not because you missed me at all?" Minho shook his head. "Not even a little bit?"

Minho's eyes betrayed him by glancing down at Kibum's lips. "Nope."

"Well, good, because I didn't miss you at all."

"Clearly." He smiled then, so smugly, so cutely that Kibum wanted to kiss it off his terribly adorable face. "Well, I brought food. And wine. From France. So we could celebrate...I thought you'd like it." Kibum hummed absently, and Minho's smile grew. "We can always reheat it."

Kibum's eyebrow arched as he looked up into Minho's twinkling eyes. "Yeah?"

Minho barely had time to wink before he twisted and vanished from sight, only for a crack to resound upstairs. Kibum looked up at the sound, starting to smile.

Well, time to go make up for petrifying him.

Kibum pulled off his jacket with a grin, discarding it before he disapparated to their bedroom.

* * * * * * * * * *

- September 15, 2015 -

Dilute with two parts of castor oil and one part of the elixir and gently pat on the affected areas. Twice daily or as long as needed. Write back to Crowley's Remedies if you need more of the elixir.

I hope you have a lovely day!

Minho smiled at the small parchment label before he blew on the ink to dry it. Once it was, he tapped the back of it with his wand, charming a bit of adhesive onto it before sticking it to the shimmery purple bottle of Cure for Dragon Pox. He dropped it in its little mesh bag, then attached its receipt as he made his way over to the tree. He hung it on one of the branches, flexing his writing hand as he glanced over the myriad other orders he had labeled this morning. They all swung back and forth in the slight breeze from the fans set up around the room.

"Hey, Crow?" Minho called out, slipping out of his apron as he headed around the counter and into the greenhouse. Mr. Crowley was already looking up at him over the thin wire rims of his spectacles, his gaze expectant. "I'm gonna head to lunch, and then I have my other job after." His brow furrowed, and he pointed with the tip of his silver knife at the teaming mass of bubotubers that were fit to burst. "Yeah, I'll come back before I head home and do that."

"Thank you. I appreciate that." Minho nodded, hesitating to hang up his apron as Crowley went back to his slicing of a snargaluff pod. "You can go," he said drowsily when Minho let out what he thought was a quiet hum. "Give Kibum my greetings."

Minho started to smile. "Will do. See you Monday?"

Mr. Crowley nodded absently and Minho hung up his apron and dashed away. He pushed through the hanging vines and almost ran directly into Kibum.

"Watch out, babe!" he said, catching Minho around the waist. Sighing, Minho smiled down at him until Kibum went up on his tiptoes to give him a quick kiss. "How's your day so far?"

"Great, now that you're here."

Kibum rolled his eyes as he slipped out of Minho's arms, though his dimples were still prominent as he grabbed Minho's hand. “Lunch is on you for being so cheesy,” he said as he led him toward the escalators.

“Let’s be real…” Minho stepped onto it after Kibum, grinning up at him when he met his gaze. “I was always gonna be the one paying for it.”

“I don’t think you’d have it any other way if I’m being honest.”

Eh, he couldn’t deny that.

He hopped off the escalator, letting Kibum lead him to whichever restaurant he was feeling like today. Berlusconi’s, it looked like. They stopped in front of the Italian eatery, both inspecting the menu. Kibum hummed in thought, tilting his head slightly. “Something light, I think…”

“Don’t you have two shows tonight?”

“Yeah, but I don’t want to stress myself out by eating too much and feeling sick, you know?” He hummed again, then nodded. “The pesto one sounds good.”

“Okay, I’ll order if you want to go find us a seat?”

“Sure.”

Kibum released his hand and Minho watched him meander through the food court, turning back around when the cashier got his attention. Stepping up, he ordered the pesto alla Genovese for Kibum and the ragu Napoletano for himself. It only took a few minutes for the orders to be ready, and he carried their tray to the table Kibum was at, twisting it as he set it down so their dishes were in front of them.

“So, how’s your day been so far?” Kibum asked as he reached for one of the forks.

“The usual. Pretty uneventful.” Minho swirled his fork in his pasta. “It’s bubotuber day, so I have to head back after I’m done with Stein’s.” He smiled when Kibum scoffed, then took his first bite and nodded to Kibum. “What about you?” he asked after he swallowed it. “Get everything ready for the new Elphaba?”

Kibum smiled as he took a bite, then covered his mouth as he chewed. “Yeah, I wouldn’t be here otherwise. I’ll probably head back a bit early so we can go through final checks, but I finished her adjustments yesterday.”

“Hopefully it’s a smooth transition for you?”

“I mean,” he laughed, getting another bite of pasta ready. “She’s been Elphaba before this, so she knows what she’s doing. I’m not too concerned about it.”

“That’s a -- “ Minho’s voice cut off abruptly as he glanced behind Kibum. Nance, his supervisor at Stein’s, was running toward the food court, looking frantically around. Minho frowned, watching her, and in his peripheral vision, Kibum turned to undoubtedly see what had captured his attention. It was then that she spotted him, and she immediately made her way over to their table. “Is there something wrong?”

She sort of shook her head, but it came off as a kind of nod, too. Minho’s brow furrowed as she caught her breath. “Sorry to bother you, but can you come in a bit early?” He was about to ask why when she answered his question. “Wardwell,” she said breathlessly. “Mercy Wardwell, from the American National Quidditch Team” -- Minho’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. -- “She’s here. She needs us -- you -- to refurbish her broom before the game tonight.”

“What happened?”

Nance gave him an exasperated look. “She didn’t say. Please? I’d do it myself, but I have a meeting later that I can’t reschedule. I’ll pay you time and a half today for coming in early.”

Minho turned to Kibum, then. “Do you mind?” Kibum shook his head, setting his fork aside as Minho leaned across the table for a quick kiss. “Break a leg, then, sweetheart.”

“Thanks. Good luck to you, too.”

“See you at home!” he called over his shoulder as he hurried after Nance to the escalators. “What model does she have?”

“Firestorm 300, I believe.”

“Holy …”

He’d only seen the new Firestorm in catalogs and in passing in the display window at Stein’s. He glanced its way as they stepped into the shop, Minho hurrying after Nance on their way to the counter where a lithe black woman was standing, her hands on a hastily wrapped broomstick. She turned as Nance stepped around the counter, her gaze settling on Minho as he stepped up beside her.

He stared at her in awe. There had been many a day that he listened to the radio broadcast of her Quidditch team’s game while he worked on refurbishing people’s brooms. Mercy Wardwell, one of the best Chasers in the league, in his opinion...based on what the commentators said. She surveyed him curiously before looking back at Nance, who Minho only just realized was speaking.

“ -- And how much time do we have before the game?”

Mercy looked over Nance’s head at the clock, Minho following her gaze. “Our game starts at two.”

. It was nearly twelve-thirty… She unraveled the broom, and Minho’s heart sank even further. The stick itself had been gouged in several places, the deepness of the slashes potentially affecting the balance of the broom in flight. And that was nothing to say of the twigs, which had been cut extremely short to wreck the aerodynamics of her flight.

Whatever happened had been intentional. The actions of a crazed fan from an opposing team, perhaps. 

“Do you have, um, a reserve broom?”

She sighed heavily, her attention returning once again to Minho. “Just my old Firebolt, but I’d rather not use it if I can help it. Can you fix it?”

“I’ll do my best, Ms. Wardwell.”

He scooped up her broom, and with a nod and a goodbye, he swept away to his workroom, setting the poor broom gently on the stands. Then, he checked his station to make sure he had what he needed before he rushed around, grabbing another canister of the lingum paste, just in case, a fresh bundle of twigs, and the care manual for the Firestorm. As soon as he sat, he grabbed the already open canister of lingum paste and the spatula and got to work.

It took longer than he would have liked to fill in the gouges with the paste, but he had to get it done first so that it could cure while he retwigged the Firestorm. He blasted the stick with a get of hot air from his wand tip, slowly twisting the broom so that he got all of the gouges. Then he scooted down and let the sliced twigs free, tossing them into the nearby garbage can before he gathered up the bundle of fresh ones and arranged them around the base of the stick. He held them together with one hand and slid the first golden band around them to hold them in place before he repositioned the other two.

He pulled out his phone, checking the time. “One-o-five...you’ve got this, Choi,” he muttered to himself, setting his phone aside and taking up twig-shapers and the manual, finding the picture of the manufacturer model, and started trying to copy the shape. By the time he was finished, the paste had finished curing, the white of it transformed to completely match the natural look of the ash handle. He took up his sandpaper, smoothing the edges of the former gouges before he hurried around the room again to find the right ebony stain.

“Come on...come on,” he said under his breath as he blasted the drying handle with cool air, this time, in the hopes that he’d be able to dry the handle in time. It was one-thirty-two when the stair was no longer tacky, and Minho took up the broom and rushed back to the counter, where Valeria was helping another customer.

Nance was nowhere to be seen, probably in her meeting with the owner, but after a glance around the shop, he spotted Mercy perusing the different broom care kits that they had available, and he made his way over to her. She looked up at him, doing a double-take. “Finished already?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he said, handing it to her to inspect.

“Mercy, please,” she said absently as she looked over his work. “This...I wasn’t expecting you to be done so quickly. This looks great!”

“Thank you, I’m just happy I could help. If you come this way,” he said, gesturing to the unoccupied cash register. She followed behind him, still inspecting her broom as she stepped up to the counter. He did some quick calculations of his work, adding the rush order fee… “That’ll be two hundred Dragots,” he said, wincing internally at the price.

She nodded, seemingly unaffected, and grabbed the coin purse at her belt, and began counting out the silver octagonal coins. “You look familiar,” she finally said when Minho -- who had been counting the coins along with her, scooped them up. “What did you say your name was?”

He hadn’t mentioned his name yet, but -- “Minho. Choi Minho.”

“Choi…” She snapped her fingers, her eyes widening as she started to smile. “Triwizard Tournament. Went up against a dragon, didn’t you?”

“Uh,” he chuckled. “Yeah, that was me.”

“You used to play Quidditch, right?”

“Just for school, yeah -- “

“Look,” she leaned in so that only Minho could hear her. “I’m really grateful for this, so if you’re interested, I’d like to invite you to come scrimmage with my team sometime next week.”

Minho’s mouth dropped open, but he quickly recovered. “Are you serious?”

She nodded, grinning. “Here.” She pulled the parchment pad and quill Minho had used to calculate her total toward her and started writing. “This is where the stadium is located. Our next practice is on Sunday around noon, so -- “

“I’ll be there! But” -- ! -- “I don’t have a broom.”

“Really?” He nodded. “ You can use my old Firebolt if you want.”

“Okay!”

She smiled again, then winked as she backed away. “Thank you again, Minho, and I’ll see you soon!”

He waved goodbye to her until she disappeared from view, then staggered back to go clean up his workstation. Scrimmaging? With an internationally acclaimed Quidditch team? Him? Oh, Merlin, what was he thinking… He completed the rest of his tasks in a daze, traipsing back home before he fully snapped out of it.

He found his leftovers from lunch in the fridge -- Kibum must have dropped them off before he returned to work -- so he just reheated those before he went upstairs to hop in the shower. By the time he was done, Kibum was still not home, but then Minho checked the time, and he wouldn’t be back for another two hours at the very least. Sighing, Minho made himself some cocoa and settled on the couch, flicking on the TV. He skimmed the channels for anything interesting, finally settling on a black and white movie that he didn’t catch the name of but had just started.

Unfortunately, his mind was still whirring with nervousness and excitement so he wasn’t able to catch much of the plot. The only thing he had gathered by the time the front door opened was that the guy had thought his wife was dead, so he remarried, only to realize that she in fact was not dead. He sat up, though, at the sound of the door, craning his neck to catch a glimpse of Kibum as he trudged into the room.

“Hey,” he said, yawning as he dropped his bag on the counter and made his way to the fridge to get his leftovers. After he reheated his leftovers, he came over to Minho, dropping onto the couch and propping his feet up on Minho’s lap. “What are we watching?”

“I’m not sure.” He started massaging Kibum’s foot, who closed his eyes with a sigh. “How were the shows?”

“Fine. Went off without a hitch,” he said before he took a bite.

“Good!”

“Mm.” Kibum finished chewing, then swallowed before he said. “What about you? Were you able to fix the broom?”

Minho nodded and turned, the movie officially forgotten now. “She wants me to come scrimmage with the team. As a thank you.”

Kibum’s eyes blew wide, and he chewed faster so he could say “Really? That’s amazing!”

“I’m just...both so nervous and excited at the same time,” he said with a chuckle.

“Well, yeah, I’m sure. But you’re gonna do it, right?” Minho nodded silently for a few seconds before saying yeah softly. “Do you want me to come with you?”

He looked up, surprised. “You’d want to?”

“When have I ever missed a game of yours?”

Minho started to smile. Slowly, at first, then all at once. “It’s not a real game, though.”

“So what? When is it?”

“Sunday.” Kibum pulled his feet out of Minho’s lap, heading over to toss his takeout container and set his fork and Minho’s empty mug in the sink. He came back, settling into Minho’s side as Minho draped his arm around him. Then, he smacked Minho’s chest lightly out of nowhere. “Hey!”

“I can’t believe you’ve got me excited about Quidditch, of all things.” Minho laughed, then kissed Kibum’s head as he snuggled closer to him.

They set out for the stadium just after Minho finished an extremely light breakfast, both shivering in the sudden gloom. It had been sunny and warm when they disapparated from home, but the overcast sky cast what seemed to be a farm in such a grim gray that Kibum immediately clung to Minho’s arm. Before them lay the Quidditch pitch, and it was roughly the same size as Hogwarts’. The goalposts closest to them peaked out over the stands, watching them glance about the farm. Up on the hill was a Victorian-style mansion, draped in the shadows of the now-sunless day.

In the distance, pigs oinked. Cows mooed. Chickens roamed freely, one coming closer to peck at the ground near to Kibum’s feet. Pumpkins littered the yard, some carved with faces and lit from within. A black cat leaped onto the nearest one, watching them with amber eyes.

“This is...uh...not what I was expecting,” Kibum whispered, his eyes trained on the cat. “Do you think it’s an animagus?”

“I...I’m not sure.” The cat blinked, its tail twitching. “Let’s head inside. Unless you want to go home?”

Kibum his teeth. “No, I’m not leaving you alone to fend for yourself.”

“Yeah, get your wand ready so you can petrify anyone we see.” Kibum smacked his arm, but both chuckled, albeit nervously. Then, Minho stepped forward and led Kibum into the stadium.

As soon as they entered the hall, Minho relaxed. It was like being transported to Hogwarts, even if it looked completely different. It was lined with photos and trophies from the years past, going back to when Quidditch reached America. As curious as he was about looking at the different photos, he was becoming less anxious and more eager to see the pitch itself. And so he quickened his pace, Kibum’s hand slipping from his arm to grab his hand as he made his way for the open door.

“Do...do you think they grow crops here?” Kibum asked as he surveyed the pitch.

The ground did look freshly tilled. Minho hummed, then said, “Probably during the off-season.”

“Minho?”

They both turned, finding Mercy waving them over. “Do you want to come with me?”

“Of course.”

Minho’s hand tightened around Kibum’s, who smiled up at him, and together they made their way over to where the team was. “Hi,” she said as they drew nearer, her gaze settling on Minho. “I’m so glad you could make it!”

“Thanks, I’m excited to be here.” He glanced at the team, who were inspecting him curiously. “This is Kibum, my boyfriend.”

“I don’t play Quidditch,” Kibum said with a nervous laugh as all eyes turned toward him. “Though I’m sure you can tell that just by looking at me.”

Mercy bit back a smile, returning her attention to Minho. “Well, okay, you’ve met me, but here are the others.” Kibum released his hand so Minho could shake hands with Quentin and Arsenia, the other two Chasers, Pringle and Lucas, the Beaters, Susan, the Keeper. “Darius had to head to Arizona today because of a family emergency, so we were wondering if you’d want to fill his place? Have you had any experience playing Seeker?”

Minho coughed a laugh. “A little. Ages ago.”

“You’ll do just fine, don’t worry,” Kibum said quietly in Korea, and Minho relaxed marginally.

“Here, let me go get you the Firebolt.” She darted off, her locs swishing back and forth as she ran to the hall Minho and Kibum had come through.

“I think I’m gonna go sit up in the stands.”

“Okay.” Minho glanced down at him, smiling when Kibum winked cheekily at him before he disapparated. He appeared with a pop up in the stands. Funnily enough, it was right where he usually would have been sitting if they were at the Hogwarts pitch.

Mercy came running back out, the Firebolt in hand. She handed it to him, and he wasn’t sure if it were his hands shaking from excitement or if the Firebolt’s handle was thrumming. “Alright, let’s do a bit of warm-up before we get going.”

Kibum held his hands up when Minho looked back at him. It was hard to tell, but from this distance, it looked like he was giving him two thumbs up. Smiling now despite his nerves, he dropped the Firebolt. It hovered beside him at just the perfect height for him to mount. He reached for the handle, letting the tips of his fingers glide over the smooth wood before he gripped it tightly and swung himself on.

One of the others -- he couldn’t remember his name -- pushed off from the ground, and Minho was the next to follow suit.

The chill of the September morning tore through him as he was whisked away. His heart leaped, his chest tightened as he flew. Soaring around the pitch. He’d been able to fly on a Firebolt only once before, but that had been so long ago now. He’d been accustomed to his Cleansweep, and he loved it. But this? It was honestly astounding that the Firebolt wasn’t the best broom in the world, let alone in the pitch. He watched the others, who were easily outstripping him on their Firestorms, and couldn’t help but be curious what it would feel like to fly on one of them.

The Firebolt, however, was more than satisfactory. Given that this was the first time he’d flown since leaving Hogwarts, it would probably be best for him to get used to the sensation before mounting one of the fastest brooms in the world.

He bore down a little more, becoming one with the broom like Hooch always told them to do, and took another lap.

Someone, after he had finished another few laps, swooped down to release the Quaffle, the Bludgers, and the Snitch. Mercy shot up past Minho, pulling a whistle out of her sweatshirt. “Let’s run the Leviosa. Minho, just watch out for the Snitch!” He gave her a thumbs-up, and she blew on her whistle.

She immediately dived, Minho’s eyes widening as he followed her into the play, only to find that the team was accompanied by what seemed to be corporeal patronus versions of opposing Quidditch players. Were they ghosts? No, they weren’t transparent….

He dropped, dodging a Bludger, and turned to watch its return to the pitch. Before it came back, he flew up and away, watching the roiling play unfold. His mouth slowly dropped open as he watched them feint, then feint again, pass the Quaffle between them, all the while evading the corporeal Chasers. One of them dribbled the Quaffle on their broomstick while another shot ahead, not even looking back as the one with the Quaffle tossed it their way. It barely touched their hands before it was through the left-most hoop and the Chaser -- the other woman, Minho guessed -- swept back around for the next play to begin.

They made it look so easy. The twists and the falls and the dives and the passes. The trust they had to have in each other...something he couldn’t even imagine cultivating on a Hogwarts team. Like, sure, you practiced with your teammates as often as your collective homework assignments would allow, but the speed, the coordination that this team had would never be able to be achieved with teenagers.

Which, he felt, was a bit of an obvious statement, given that this was a world-renowned Quidditch team.

Both proverbially and literally, he was way out of his league.

Minho sighed, finding Kibum in the empty stands. Maybe they should just go home. He’d never be good enough for --

A glimmer of gold caught his eye, his muscles went taut as he followed it with his gaze. Then he dived. Plummeting to the ground at a speed that surprised even him. The Snitch shifted, darting up and away, and the Firebolt obeyed his direction with unfathomable ease. He soared over the play, over the tops of the stands, into the clouds, wholly focused on the Snitch ahead of him. It dipped out of the clouds and he followed, lurching forward on his broom, the handle now moist from the droplets in the clouds.

He slipped, lost his grip, and fell.

The Snitch was just before him, taunting him. He swung his left hand for it, snatching it out of the air, and felt for his wand. He’d have to remember to thank Kibum for insisting he bring it along today, but for now: “Accio Firebolt!”

The gasps from the others barely reached him as the broom hurtled toward him. He stuck his wand between his teeth and grabbed the Firebolt, his mounting it throwing them both off-kilter for a second before he righted his flight and held the Snitch up for the team to see.

“You’re ing crazy, man,” one of the Beaters -- Pringle, he thought his name was -- said with a chuckle as Minho flew to meet them.

“Do you do that often?”

He shrugged, then passed Mercy the Snitch when the rest of the team approached, but she shook her head, pushing it back to him. “You can keep it. You earned it.”

“Really?”

She nodded, her smile shifting to incredulity. “I thought you said you didn’t have a lot of experience as a Seeker?”

“I only played for two years at Hogwarts,” he said, watching the Snitch’s wings curl in on itself before he slipped it into his pocket. “I was ty, too. I was a much better Chaser, I thought.”

“Hey, dude, don’t come for my job,” Quentin said.

Minho laughed. “Oh, no, I didn’t mean -- “

“He’s just ing with you. Ignore him,” she said, kicking the handle of Quentin’s broom away. “Let’s run through it again. This time we’ll go with Riddikulus.”

They ran through five more plays before Mercy called for the end of practice. Despite the chill, Minho was covered in a sheen of sweat by the time he returned to the ground, though he was unable to wipe the smile from his face. His heartbeat pounded in his ears as he returned the Firebolt to Mercy and thanked her for the opportunity. She stopped him as he turned to return to Kibum, exchanging phone numbers so they could arrange another practice like this sometimes if he was willing.

“Can you believe that?” he asked Kibum as soon as he reached him. “They want me to come back for another practice.” Kibum nodded with a small, very amused smile as he fixed Minho’s windswept hair. “I wasn’t sure what to expect but it wasn’t this and, oh my god, that was so much fun, I can’t even be -- “

Kibum grabbed his arm, twisting on the spot and carrying Minho home. But not even apparition could derail him right now.

“ -- lieve that I had this opportunity, you know? I just feel so honored that they wanted me to come not just once, but now maybe twice? I just…” Kibum sank onto the bed, his smile endearingly fond now. “What?”

“Nothing.” He sighed, shaking his head a little. “You’re just so adorable when you get excited like this.” Minho took a deep breath, letting out a bit of his excitement as he exhaled. Then he stepped forward, Kibum’s arms slipping around him as he pulled him into a hug. Kibum nuzzled his torso, kissing him there before he looked up, propping his chin on Minho’s stomach. “You should take a bath.”

“Is this your way of telling me I’m sweaty and smell like ?”

Kibum grinned and slipped out of his arms. “If I wanted to, I’d just say that and you know it.” True. “No, you’re bound to be sore. The hot water will help. I can whip up some dinner and come back and give you a massage later.” Minho’s eyebrow raised in interest, making Kibum smirk. “I’ll take that as a yes. Get going,” he said, smacking Minho’s before he started for the stairs.

Minho watched him go until he dropped out of sight, then headed into the bathroom. He felt in his sweatshirt pocket for the Snitch Mercy had given him, the wings unfurling as he held it out in front of him. It flew beside him, hovering just over his shoulder until he brushed it away as he started to get undressed for his bath. Once the tub was filled, he slipped in, groaning as the hot water soothed his already-aching muscles.

The Snitch returned to him, hovering over the water. Seemingly staring back at him. He reached out, grabbing the Snitch again, and the wings reformed around the tiny golden ball, only for the side to open up. Minho sat up, the water lapping at his chest as he inspected the little cavity inside. How had he never known about this before? Could anyone open it? Or was it only him?

Could he hide something inside there?

He stuck his finger inside, feeling the smooth inner walls. His gaze caught on his ring, and he slipped it off his thumb, dropping it inside. It clinked around before it settled, the silver glinting against the gleaming gold.

Huh.

After a second or two of staring, he dumped his ring back into his palm and released the Snitch again, letting it fly free once more. He put his ring back on -- his ring finger, this time -- and sank back until his chin was level with the water again. He held his hand out, staring once more at the ring.

Was it finally time for the next step?

“Husbands,” he whispered, unable to keep from smiling. He liked the thought. He liked it very much.

They were basically an old married couple now. They were even before they started dating if he were being completely honest with himself. But, then, maybe Kibum was satisfied with how they were now. Why change if it was working, right?

He lowered his hand below the waterline again. No, it wasn’t legal for them, yet. He remembered now. The Magical Congress was still debating whether or not it was okay. Just because the No-Maj government decided it was fine for gay people to get married didn’t mean that the wizarding world agreed…

“Hey, love.” Minho looked up at the sound of Kibum’s voice, finding him in the doorway. “Dinner is ready whenever you are.”

“I’ll be right there,” he said with a small smile.

Kibum winked, leaving him alone with his thoughts once more. He started to drain the water before he slipped out of the tub, drying off completely before he looked around for some comfy clothes. He set his new Snitch in his nightstand drawer, then set his phone to charge before he hurried downstairs.

Life returned to normal the next day, the practice with the American National Quidditch team seemingly nothing but a very good dream. He still had the Snitch, yes, so it was real, even if it didn’t feel like it. He talked Crowley’s and his coworkers at Stein’s ears off about the experience, no doubt annoying them, even if they were too polite to say anything.

When the following Friday came and there was no call from Mercy, he tried not to let his disappointment ruin his weekend. Maybe they didn’t practice every Sunday? Maybe she just wanted it to be a team practice this time. That would make sense.

Try as he might, he couldn’t stop thinking about it by the time Kibum’s birthday rolled around. So, since he wasn’t sleeping, he figured he might as well head downstairs to work on Kibum’s birthday batch of pasties so that they’d be ready before work. He was just pulling the second pan out of the oven when Kibum trudged bleary-eyed into the kitchen, Minho’s phone in hand. He it at him on his way to the coffee maker, and Minho fumbled with it so it was the right way around as he held it up to his ear.

“Hello?”

“Hello, Minho?” a woman asked. Minho’s brow furrowed and he held his phone away, checking the contact. Mercy?

“Yes. Is there something the matter with your broom?”

“Oh, no. No, don’t worry about that. We...I…” She let out a long exhale, and Minho glanced over at Kibum as he grabbed one of the unglazed pasties from the pan on his way over to the counter stool. “There’s a different problem.”

“Oh?”

“See, Darius -- our Seeker -- “ Minho hummed. “He’s just informed me that he’s staying in Arizona. Indefinitely. Something with his mom…”

“Oh, no...Is she okay?”

She sighed again. “I’m assuming not. He wouldn’t say. But...that, um, leaves a vacancy on the team, and we don’t have a reserve Seeker.”

Minho frowned as he tucked his phone between his ear and shoulder and started to make himself a cup of coffee.

“So, I talked with the team to see if they were willing to sign you on.” He missed the mug entirely, pouring hot coffee on his hand. He winced audibly and set the mug down with a clatter, shaking the coffee off. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I...Are you sure you want me?”

“It was a unanimous decision, but ultimately, it’s up to you.”

Minho turned slowly, meeting Kibum’s curious, more alert gaze. “Can I call you back?”

“Sure..”

“Okay, thank you. Goodbye.”

“Bye.”

The phone clicked in his ear and he walked to stand across from Kibum. “Did you burn yourself?” Kibum asked, scooting forward to grab and inspect Minho’s hand.

“Bum.” He hummed in question, looking up at him. “She...she wants me to join the team.”

“Like, full-time?” Minho barely nodded, and Kibum sat back, still holding onto Minho’s hand. “Well, do you want to?”

“I-I mean, I already have two jobs.” Kibum squinted at him, no doubt holding back his thoughts. “But, this is...this is the moment of a lifetime. I--I’d be a fool to pass it up, wouldn’t I?” Kibum didn’t answer. Instead, he searched his expression. “Wouldn’t I?”

“Fool might be a strong word, but I do think you’d regret it if you did.”

That was...very true. But -- “This is crazy,” he said, his hands shaking as he pulled back from Kibum, pacing the length of the kitchen. “ing insane. Me? A professional Quidditch player? Who...I...I never would have thought. Unbelievable,” he muttered under his breath as he picked up his phone, hands trembling too much for him to dial. “Babe, help me…”

Kibum was on his feet and at his side, his hands enveloping Minho’s as he held his phone steady and found Mercy’s number again. “You ready?” When Minho nodded, he called her and set the phone to speaker, holding the phone up so they could both hear better.

“Hello?” Mercy’s voice rang through their kitchen. “Have you decided already?”

Their gaze met over the phone, Kibum giving Minho the slightest nod. “Yes. I’d love to be your new Seeker.”

- - - - - - - - - -

- November 2, 2016 -

Kibum sighed as he tapped the tip of his wand on his palm and glared at the mass of black fabric and sequins on his workstation. The jagged gash in the train of the Act Two dress stared back at him. Taunting him. If he could, he would hex the ensemble member who committed this atrocity. He sighed again when Natasha breezed into the room, smiling his thanks when she set a fresh cup of coffee by his sewing machine.

“Will you be able to fix it by tonight?”

He took in a deep, dramatic breath, letting it out before he said, “Of course. Was it the new kid, do you think?”

“Probably. It always is, isn’t it?”

“I hope for your sake that he doesn’t go near the Bubble dress.”

“Oh , me too.”

Kibum sniffed a laugh, returning his attention to the gash. Then, he waved his wand over it in a blocky spiral with a thought of Reparo and watched the fabric seamlessly mend itself. When the last thread weaved in, Kibum grabbed his seam ripper and started to get rid of all the loose sequins.

“Can’t you use your wand for that, too?” Natasha asked, setting down her coffee and picking up one of the replacement petals for the Bubble dress and the box with the compartments for all the different sequins for it.

“Yeah, but I have nothing else to do today, so I might as well drag it out.”

She snorted, picking up her needle and spool of sky blue thread. “Good luck with that.”

He was about a quarter of the way through his resewing of the sequins when his phone rang, startling him enough to drop his needle and thread. “Is it lunchtime already?” he murmured to himself as he searched through the folds in the fabric for his ringing phone. Once he found it, he answered it without checking to see who it was. “Sorry, babe, I’m not sure if I can do lunch today.”

“Babe?” a confused, tearful voice said, and Kibum immediately stopped looking around for the needle.

“Jonghyun?” A sniff and a stifled sob answered him, and Kibum pulled his phone away from his ear, frowning. Yes, it was Jonghyun, but why was he crying? “What’s wrong?”

Natasha looked up at him, no doubt reading the concern in his voice, even though he was speaking Korean. He shook his head at her and stood. “I’ll be back in a minute,” he told her before he swept out of the room and hurried downstairs. “Jjong?”

“Am I an idiot?” The furrow in Kibum’s brow deepened as he pushed the cast and crew member's door open. Snow fell gently around him, just barely starting to accumulate on the dumpsters and bags of trash around him in the alley. “I am, aren’t I? You can tell me, it’s okay.”

“What is this about?” But Jonghyun was just crying, his heaving sobs filling Kibum’s ear. “Jjong, did Pierre do something to you?” Once again, there was no response aside from crying.

He started to pace, his footsteps melting the little snow that had accumulated so far. The pavement was a mess of his footprints by the time Jonghyun composed himself. “He...he was cheating.” Kibum stopped walking abruptly, staring out at the foot traffic on the far end of the alley. “For over two years now. I-I...I caught him.” Kibum covered his mouth as it dropped open, a rash of ice pimples that had nothing to do with the cold blooming over him. “Said it was my fault,” Jonghyun said with a tense little laugh. “That he never would have done it with Philippe that first time if he hadn’t thought I was cheating first.”

“Cheating with me?” He didn’t have to see him to know that he was nodding. His free hand balled into a fist as he began pacing again. “Jjong, I’m…What can I do to help you? Aside from killing him, of course."

Jonghyun let out a choked laugh, his voice still warbling. "I'm not sure."

Kibum stopped walking when a cat darted across the alley, slipping between the theatres. "Would you want to come here? Stay with us for a while? Until you're feeling better?"

"I wouldn't want to impose on you guys." He sounded on the verge of tears again.

"You wouldn't be, don't worry." Kibum pulled his phone away, checking the time. It was almost time for lunch. "Let me check with Minho and I'll call you back, okay?" There was a long, quiet pause. Barely any sniffling on Jonghyun's end. "Jjong?"

"Okay, sure."

"Okay, give me like five minutes. I'll call you right back." Jonghyun gave him a weak goodbye and hung up the phone. Kibum shook his head as he speed-dialed Minho, resuming his pacing once more as the phone rang. "I'm gonna ing kill that piece of sh -- Hey, love."

"Hey, sweet...heart…" Judging by his tone, he was frowning. "What's wrong?"

Despite his current flash of anger, he smiled, pleased beyond words that Minho knew him that well. He gave Minho a quick rundown, smiling once again when Minho expressed his indignation.

"Of course, he can stay with us. If he wants to. Merlin, I…I can head home after practice and start working on constructing a guest room for him."

"Oh, you should probably let Bedelia or Bridget know beforehand."

Minho hummed, probably nodding. "You're right, you're right."

"Of course I am."

Minho sighed, and just from that, he could tell he was smiling. "I'll see you when you get home, Bum."

"Okay. I'll pick up something for dinner on the way home."

"Ooh...pizza?"

Kibum chuckled. "Sure. Whatever."

"Love you," he said, drawing the words out cutely.

Kibum rolled his eyes, his gaze landing on the graffitied brick wall on his left. "I suppose I love you, too."

"You adore me and you know it," he said with a laugh, then hung up before Kibum could snag the last word.

"Bastard," he muttered to himself, shaking his head with a growing smile.

If there was one thing in the world that Kibum knew, it was that Minho loved him too much to stray from him. Well, two things. The second being that he felt the same way about him.

Hopefully, Jonghyun would find his own Minho someday, too.

He raised his phone to his ear again, listening to the dial tone. "Hey, Jjong," he said when Jonghyun picked up. "Minho says he's okay with it."

"Just okay?"

"Well, technically he's insisting on it. Might pop over with a port key to bring you back himself."

Jonghyun let out a subdued chuckle. "Okay, uh, I'm at a cheap hotel for the night right now, so I guess I can come tomorrow?"

"Yeah, that works. Is there anything else we can do for you?"

"You're already doing more than enough." Kibum his teeth at him, and Jonghyun sighed. "I'll talk to you tomorrow, Ki."

"Okay. Take care, Jjong.”

He hung up without saying goodbye, and Kibum stopped pacing with a sigh. He sent a quick text to Minho, updating him, but he stuffed his phone back into his pocket without waiting for a reply. He was most likely back in practice, so he’d be out of reach for quite some time. Kibum carded his fingers through his now wet hair, getting all the accumulated snow out before he hurried back inside to get back to work.

His hand was stuck in the needle-holding position for at least fifteen minutes after he finished hand-sewing all of the sequins back on. It relaxed just in time for him to get Jennifer ready for Act One for the matinee. As soon as the second performance ended, Kibum inspected the outfits, relieved that there was no work to be done before the shows tomorrow. After staying his goodbyes, he left the theatre, starting his trek through snowy Time Square to his and Minho’s favorite pizza place before he apparated home.

“Honey?” he called out as soon as he was solidly back home. He tapped the pizza box with his wand, making it hover beside him as he unlaced his boots. “Babe?” he said, his voice a little louder now as he started for the kitchen. Was he not home yet? He paused mid-step as he walked into the living room, his gaze falling on the new doorway. The door was ajar, and there was a light on inside. Kibum set the pizza down on the counter before he hurried toward it, then warily opened the door. “Min?”

It was a small, cozy bedroom. The walls were painted in a pale teal, the bed covered in soft cream blankets, and lamps and candles were on every surface, filling the room with a warm, flickering glow. An empty bookshelf was in the far corner with an overstuffed armchair tucked right beside it. A matching chest of drawers sat on the opposite wall, and Minho lay on the bed, his wand at his side and the home decorating book they had gotten when they first moved in his hands. He lowered it to smile at Kibum as he came over to sit beside him on the bed.

“How was work?” he asked as Kibum leaned over him to kiss him in greeting.

“Not bad. My hand is a bit sore but…” he shrugged. “Bedelia was okay with this?” Minho nodded and Kibum kissed him again. “How was your day?”

“Good. Are you gonna be able to make it to the game on Sunday?”

“Of course.” Minho smiled, and Kibum kissed him yet again before settling into his arms, resting his head on Minho’s chest. “We should probably try not to be too...coupley when Jonghyun first arrives. I feel like it’d be really rude.”

“Yeah, that’s probably a good idea.” Minho sighed as he held Kibum a little tighter. “I feel so bad for him. I can’t even imagine…”

“I know.”

“I didn’t like him from the start. Neither of us did.”

Kibum snorted. “Yeah, I remember. But let’s not bring that up quite yet. Wait until Jonghyun’s ready.” Minho let out a quiet hmph, then a moment later, he hummed in thought. “What?” Kibum asked, sitting up to look at him again.

Minho lifted a hand to cup Kibum’s cheek and smiled as Kibum leaned into his palm. “I just love you so much.”

“I’m well aware.”

Minho’s smile grew. “Good.”

Kibum leaned in, kissing him again and lingering when Minho held him closer. “I did bring pizza, by the way,” he murmured when Minho finally released him.

“Hm, I don’t think I’m craving pizza right now.”

Kibum smacked his chest lightly, earning a laugh. “But you said -- “

Whatever he was about to say was cut off when Minho kissed him again. A small voice in the back of his mind reminded him that they were not in their bedroom but Jonghyun’s. So, with an albeit distracted thought of their bedroom, he turned, pulling Minho on top of him as they apparated the short distance between the bedrooms.

The pizza sat forgotten on the counter until morning when Kibum came downstairs for some coffee. The sight of it surprised him, as any thought of it had completely left his mind. He reheated it with a flick of his wand, eating a slice as he made a pot of coffee.

Snow was still coming down. It looked like it had been all night. The inner yard and community garden between the townhouses was completely covered in what seemed to be a thick layer of white. Kibum sipped his coffee, pulling his phone out of Minho’s sweatshirt pocket to check to see if Jonghyun had texted him yet. Still nothing. Maybe he should call him?

He leaned against the door jamb, coffee still in hand as he raised his phone. Some movement in the yard caught his eye as the dial tone rang in his ear. The twins from the corner lot and their big black poof of a dog were romping in the snow, their dad sitting on the porch and tying up his boots. He was so distracted by them that he didn’t register Jonghyun’s drowsy hello? at first.

“Oh, hey, how are you feeling?”

“Like absolute .” He let out a muffled sigh. “I think I drank an entire bottle of wine.”

“Are you feeling up to using a portkey?”

“Ugh…” One of the kids giggled when her dad scooped her up for throwing a snowball at him. He twirled her around, the dog jumping up and barking at him. Kibum looked away from them again when Jonghyun spoke again. “I think I’m gonna wait for my headache to go away before I do that.”

“So, like an hour?”

“Eh, more or less.”

“Okay, well,” Kibum said, pushing away from the back door window. “We’ve already got a bedroom set up for you to use when you get here.” He switched which hands he was holding his phone with, then crouched down to pull out his potion-making supplies. “Just text me when you’re on your way?”

“I will.”

“Bye for now, then.”

“Ki,” Jonghyun said, freezing Kibum in place as he had been about to hang up. “Thank you.”

“It’s no trouble, Jjong. Really.”

“I still appreciate it.”

Kibum smiled as he set his cauldron down as quietly as possible. “We’ll see you soon, then.”

“Yeah, okay...Bye.”

After a second, Kibum lowered his phone, hanging it up and setting it aside. He went to their pantry, checking his potions ingredients. “, no crocodile heart…” He grabbed the jars with the lavender, dried peppermint, and St. John’s wort blossoms. He set them by his cauldron before he hurried back upstairs, to shake Minho awake. Minho blearily turned over, squinting up at Kibum in the bright morning light with a questioning hum. “Can you run to the apothecary and get me some crocodile heart?”

Minho blinked at him for a few seconds, then rubbed his eyes as he started to sit up. “What are you making Calming Draught for?”

“For when Jonghyun arrives. I thought it might help.”

“Mm.”

“He’s gonna be here in, like, an hour.”

“Mm.”

“So I kinda need to start now.”

“Yeah, yeah...okay.”

“Thanks, love,” he said, leaning in for a good morning kiss. When he pulled away, Minho’s squint returned as he stared at him. “What?”

“You had the pizza without me.”

“We could have had some last night, but you opted out, remember? And don’t give me that look,” he said with a laugh, backing away from Minho. “We don’t have the time this morning.”

Minho sighed, looking much more awake now than he usually was this early. “What a shame. Just crocodile heart? Nothing else?”

“Yeah, I have everything else.” He scooted off the bed, glancing around to glare at Minho when he smacked his and found him grinning cheekily. “You're so annoying."

Minho's head bobbed a little in smug satisfaction, and Kibum shook his head, turning and heading downstairs to hide his smile. Five minutes later, Minho called out his goodbye, followed by the front door closing. While he waited, Kibum ground the herbs and blossoms, setting the correct measurements aside before he started the water boiling. Minho was back really quickly, dropping the heart off and giving Kibum a peck on the cheek before he went off on his morning run.

He pulled the heart out of the packaging with a grimace, running it under cold water to clean the blood and preservation jelly off of it before he began to slice it into thin strips. Then, he dropped a few into the boiling water, turning down the temperature a touch. Once they were all in and the water was simmering, Kibum added two measures of St. John’s wort, stirred three times, and left it to simmer while he went back upstairs to get ready for the day.

As soon as he finished washing his face, he hurried back downstairs, stirring the potion a few more times before he added the peppermint. The color changed from a mustard yellow to a bright, almost lime, green. He turned the heat back up, stirring slowly until it started to boil, then he added the lavender and went back upstairs to change out of his pajamas.

The Calming Draught was the correct shade of royal blue by the time he came back downstairs again. He poured some into a little vial and stoppered it before straining it through a fine-mesh sieve and into a larger jar. He twisted the cap on and labeled it before sticking it in the pantry, and cleaned the counter and now empty cauldron with a flick of his wand.

He took the little vial to Jonghyun’s new room, setting it on the nightstand that Minho had drawn up last night, and looked around to make sure everything was in order. Back in the kitchen, his phone dinged, and he rushed to pick it up. Yup, it was Jonghyun, right on time.

8:09 am

I’m ready if you are

Come on over

Kibum leaned against the counter, glancing around the living room. Would he appear in here? Or outside? The air before the couch started to shimmer, answering Kibum’s question. He pushed away from the counter, starting forward as Jonghyun materialized in the living room.

Jonghyun’s watery gaze met his, and he dropped his bag as Kibum pulled him into a very tight hug. He started to cry, and Kibum started welling up as well as he tried to comfort him. How long had they been together? Since before Kibum started fourth year, if he remembered right, so...over ten years, now. He rubbed Jonghyun’s back, starting to rock them back and forth slightly as he blinked away his own oncoming tears. He couldn’t even begin to imagine that level of devastation. A betrayal of that magnitude, after years upon years of mutual love and trust?

He really was so lucky to have someone as loyal as Minho as his partner…

“Can I get you tea or something?” he asked quietly when Jonghyun’s crying seemed to be subsiding. Jonghyun murmured something that Kibum took to mean /yes/, so he slipped out of his embrace, dried his tears with a few swipes of his thumbs, and started for the kitchen. “Your room is over there if you want to go unpack.” He pointed to the open door, and Jonghyun nodded, picking his bag back up and heading inside.

Kibum made some chamomile tea, setting the mug down on the nightstand beside the vial of the Calming Draught before he sat on the bed. Jonghyun’s back was to him as he put his few belongings in the chest of drawers. Why so few? Hmm, probably because they were always touring. It wouldn’t make sense to carry around a lot of things. Oh, speaking of…

“Is your guitar in your bag?”

Jonghyun scoffed, not turning around. “It’s a bit big for that, don’t you think?”

“Not if you use the Extension Charm.” Jonghyun shrugged but didn’t respond. Guess he didn’t bring it with him… “I made some Calming Draught for you. If you’d like, I can put some in your tea?”

“What’s it do again?”

“It’s good for, like, anxiety and emotional distress.”

Jonghyun didn’t say anything for several heartbeats, then, “Yeah, sure.”

Kibum unstoppered the vial, putting the recommended few drops in before he passed the mug to Jonghyun after he settled beside him on the bed.

It was strange, seeing him this subdued. Not that he blamed him at all; Kibum would be acting the same way, probably, if Minho had done what Pierre did. He stared blankly at the mug, watching the steam curl and dissipate. Kibum gulped, unsure of what to say now. Would any words actually be comforting right now? Or would he be better off left to sort through his emotions on his own?

Before he could think of an answer, the front door opened. Minho’s heavy breathing made even Jonghyun look up, and Kibum slipped off the bed. “I’ll be right back.”

He hurried to greet Minho, who grinned as Kibum met him in the hall. Kibum pressed his finger to his lips before he grabbed Minho’s arm and guided him upstairs. “What are you -- “

Kibum shushed him again and grabbed Minho’s wand from the nightstand. “Muffliato,” he whispered, gesturing with the wand toward the stairs. “Jjong is here,” he said, still quietly, even if Jonghyun wouldn’t be able to hear them now. Minho’s mouth opened in a silent /Oh/, and Kibum plopped down on their bed, fiddling with Minho’s wand. “I’m not sure how to comfort him...Like, should we give him space? Or prompt him to vent?” Minho was watching him with wide eyes, and Kibum let out a huff of a sigh. “I’m genuinely asking. I’m not sure what to do.”

“Oh, uh…” Minho pulled off his sweatshirt and was wearing a contemplative frown once he was free of it. “I’m not sure, to be honest.” His shirt was off next, and he patted his sweaty face with it before tossing the shirt into the hamper. “I think we should give him space, though. Let him come to us. You don’t like to be smothered when you’re feeling like , right?”

“No…”

“I’m gonna shower before I come back down,” he said, coming over to kiss the crown of Kibum’s head. “Just trust your instincts. You know Jonghyun well enough to anticipate what he might need right now.” Kibum sighed, looking up at him. Minho smiled, cupping his chin and drawing him into a kiss. “I won’t be long.”

“Okay.”

Reluctantly, Kibum lifted the Muffliato Charm, left him to pick out his clothes for the day, and started back downstairs.

* * * * * * * * * *

- July 28, 2017 -

“Is it always this loud in here?”

Minho chuckled, looking down at Jonghyun before he nodded for him to follow him. He led him out of Crowley's greenhouse and into the store, closing the door. “Sorry, he’s kinda hard of hearing, but he still likes to listen to his favorite radio show while he works.”

“Oh, okay.”

“I can teach you the front of the house first if you’d rather.”

About two weeks ago, give or take a few days, Jonghyun seemed to finally be ready to leave the house for more than a morning jog with Minho or the occasional trip to the grocery store with Kibum when Minho’s practice ran late. He was still more subdued than before, but that was okay. When he expressed a desire to try to find a job -- absolutely nothing to do with music, please -- Minho dropped in at Crowley's on his way to practice to see if he would be willing to have Jonghyun work there.

He even offered to train him so Crowley’s workday wouldn’t be disturbed, which was why he was showing him around the storefront now.

“And you said that he fills prescriptions for the hospital?”

Minho nodded, straightening the parchment used as labels for the prescriptions and setting it back in the drawer under the cash register. “That’s about half of what he does. People can also order different potions they don’t have time to make or magical plants from other countries that are difficult to get their hands on. Oh,” he said, leaning against the counter and looking down at Jonghyun, who was edging away from the infant venomous tentacula. “Before I forget, do you mind harvesting bubotuber pus?”

He wrinkled up his nose but shook his head. “Why?”

“He hates it.” Jonghyun chuckled, and Minho looked up when light from the Center cut through the gloom of the apothecary. An aged witch came around the corner, her eyes lighting up when she saw him. “Ms. Whitby!” He came around to greet her with a gentle hug, smiling down at her. “What can I do for you today?”

“I’m just here for my usual,” she said, her deep wrinkles turning her eyes to slits when she smiled. She set her little beaded bag and a copy of today’s Morning Oracle on the counter. She looked up at Jonghyun when Minho slipped up to the tree with all the potions, searching for her name among the receipts. “And who are you?”

“My name is Jonghyun,” he said, as Minho was making his way back to the counter. “Today’s my first day.”

“He’s a friend of mine,” Minho said as he started to ring her up for her. “I’m just training him for Mr. Crowley.” She turned her attention to Jonghyun, smiling at him as Minho made a copy of her receipt for Crowley’s records. “So, please be nice to him, because I know you can be a bit of a tyrant.” Jonghyun made a quiet choking noise, but Ms. Whitby’s smile just grew as Minho slid the bottle of her Solution for Joint Relief toward her. “Are you seeing the grandkids today?”

“I’m with them now. We’re shopping for their school supplies right now.”

“Oh, are they already starting at Ilvermorny?”

“The twins are, yes,” she said, scooping up her bag and receipt.

“Sounds like you’ve got your hands full. I’ll leave you to it, then.”

“Goodbye, dear! And it was nice to meet you, Jonghyun.”

He nodded to her with a tiny wave. “You as well.” Minho grinned, waving to her as she left. “Are you that friendly with every customer?”

“Merlin, no. That’d be exhausting.” Jonghyun chuckled. “I just have my favorites. She makes me and Kibum a birthday cake every year.”

“Is that where that came from? I thought you bought that for yourself like some kind of loser.” Jonghyun grinned as Minho laughed aloud. “What else is there to learn here?” he asked when Minho started to compose himself.

“Oh, I guess I can teach you how we write receipts and the proper...filing….” His gaze had landed on Ms. Whitby’s abandoned Oracle, which he picked up and started around the counter. “I’ll be right back.”

He darted through the shop to the hanging vines, bursting through them to the brightly lit center. Ms. Whitby and her family were nowhere to be seen in the teeming crowd. With a heavy sigh, he turned back, heading through the vines again as he glanced down at the paper and unfolding it as the word gay caught his eye.

The headline on the front page read:

MACUSA AFFIRMS GAY RIGHTS TO WED

Minho froze, unfolding the paper further, his vision blurring the longer he read.

NEW YORK -- This topic of debate since the No-Majes’ Supreme Court ruled in favor of same- marital unions has now been settled as of late last night. Same- couples in the wizarding world will now be able to wed and create families of their own if they so desire. MACUSA’s decision follows the United Kingdom’s affirmation in 2007, France’s in 2013, and all the Scandinavian nations.

“We just want to show the world that there is nothing abnormal about the love between two men or two women,” Snyder, the chosen advocate from the Wizarding Organization for Gay and Lesbian Rights, said during her plea to MACUSA yesterday afternoon. “It’s just as beautiful and fulfilling as any union between a man and a woman.”

Couples from all over New York, and undoubtedly the country, are rushing to their local >> see RIGHTS, pg 12A

“Minho?”

Minho looked up at the sound of Jonghyun’s voice, this throat tight with uncried tears.

“Are you okay?”

Somehow, Minho stepped toward him. He set the newspaper down for Jonghyun to pick up, his hands trembling. Jonghyun’s eyes widened as he took in the headline, then he pulled the paper closer to him to read the article for himself. Minho, meanwhile, took deep, calming breaths as he willed his heartbeat to return to normal.

They could get married. If they wanted to. Which he did. Of course, he did. It finally...it was unbelievable...they...he...he had to call Kibum. What if he didn't know yet? Should he just kidnap him from work and go off to get married right now, since they could?

He laughed aloud at the thought, covering his dumbfounded smile with his hand as Jonghyun looked up.

He didn't think this day would ever come.

There were no words.

"Minho -- " Jonghyun's voice sounded too far away.

Still shaking, Minho found one of the moss-colored chairs and sank into it, pressing his forehead into his still-trembling hands. He needed to calm down.

"This is good news, right?" Jonghyun eventually asked. Minho peered between his fingers to find him at eye level.

He could barely nod, and Jonghyun rubbed his side, his touch gentle. Soothing. "I feel like I'm having a panic attack, but in a good way." Jonghyun chuckled. "I just…" He took a deep, shaky breath. "I wasn't expecting this today." Jonghyun gave him a small smile, and Minho tried to sober himself. "I'm sorry, you're probably not in the mood to hear thi -- ow!" He started, frowning down at him when Jonghyun pinched his side. "What was that for?"

"Listen, you don't have to be careful around me. I know you two are. And don't deny it," Jonghyun said quickly when Minho opened his mouth to retort. "Just because I'm still sad about that piece of doesn't mean that you have to tamp down your happiness. I can take it. I'm happy for you guys, too, okay?" When Minho averted his gaze and didn't reply right away, he asked "Okay?" again.

"Yeah, okay."

"Also," Minho met his eyes, seeing a hint of that familiar twinkle in them again. "If you guys elope I'll kill you both." Minho laughed weakly and Jonghyun's eyebrows rose as he started to smile. "I mean it. If I'm not involved after everything you guys have put me through I swear I'll raze New York to the ground."

"Well, we can't have that," Minho said eventually, holding out his scarred pinky.

Jonghyun smiled, latching onto his pinky and pressing their thumbs together. "It's up to you guys."

"I'll pass the message along."

"Good."

Minho took another deep breath, feeling calmer once more. "Uh, what was I gonna show you?"

"Receipts, I think."

"Right." He patted his palms on his thighs, scooting forward to let Jonghyun know he was going to stand. "Let's get going, then."

Though he wasn't sure quite how, Minho was able to shift his focus from thoughts of Kibum to training Jonghyun until the Open sign was flipped at the end of the day. Maybe it was because Kibum himself didn't contact him at all, which worried him. Until that is, he remembered that it was a two-shot day as well as Jennifer's last day at Gershwin theatre, so he wasn't going to be back until late.

He and Jonghyun got dinner at the food court before heading back to the house. Jonghyun was paying very little attention to his sushi until Minho snapped his fingers before him. He covered his mouth as he laughed, and swallowed his mouthful before he said, "Sorry, I...is there a jewelry shop in here?"

"Oh." Minho's eyes went wide and he looked up with a nod. "Third or fourth floor...I can't remember. Didn't think too much of them, until now."

"I think it's time to start thinking about them, don't you?"

Minho smiled, he couldn't help it. "Wanna come with me?" Jonghyun's gaze lit up. "You'll have to keep it a secret."

"Oh, for sure. You can count on me." He squinted, then picked up another piece of sushi. "Don't look at me like that. You can't trust everything Kibum says about me."

Minho coughed on his sushi, earning a grin from Jonghyun. "Noted."

They made their way back to a dark house, as Kibum wasn't home from work or the afterparty or whatever, yet. Minho let Jonghyun shower first while he picked up around the house. As soon as Jonghyun passed him on his way to his room with a cheery goodnight, Minho headed up to shower himself.

He had been about to nod off when a pop! from downstairs startled him. Then, a heavy sigh, followed by plodding footsteps coming toward him.

"Hi," Kibum said softly, the greeting coming out more like a tired sigh as he trudged into the lamp-lit bedroom. "How was your day?"

"Pretty good," he said, a smile starting to curl his lips when Kibum slumped down on the bed beside him. He set aside his phone, leaning over him and giving him a slow, chaste kiss. "Are you tired, babe?"

Kibum's eyes were still closed, his nose bumping against Minho's. "Mm."

"You'll be upset with yourself if you skip your nightly routine."

He opened his eyes into a languid glare. "What if I feel like skipping it tonight?"

"You might think you do, but you don't."

"So you know me better than I know myself?" His scarred eyebrow quirked in amusement, Minho's smile growing.

"Maybe. I have my moments."

"Hm." Kibum turned away with a small smile when Minho leaned in to kiss him again. "I don't know about that." He rolled over, dragging himself to a sitting position, then standing. "I'll be right back."

He didn't pick up his game again. Instead, he settled into bed, flicking off the light. If Kibum was this tired, he'd probably want to head right to bed. He closed his eyes, listening as Kibum went through his routine. When the faucet a third time, he roused himself, peering through the darkness when the light of the bathroom filled the room. Kibum tossed his towel aside, running his fingers through his damp hair, and flicked off the light, flooding the bedroom in darkness once more.

"Did you hear the news today?" Kibum asked as he crawled into bed.

Minho smiled, rolling over to face him, even if he couldn't see him in the darkness. "What news?" He laughed when Kibum shoved his shoulder and fell back onto the bed. "Of course I heard." He rolled back onto his side again, finding the outline of Kibum, his eyes having adjusted to the lack of light. "Is...is that something you'd like?"

"Yeah," he said. He didn't have to light his wand to know that Kibum was smiling.

"Me too."

"It doesn't have to be right away, of course," Kibum said quickly, still smiling. "But...someday."

"Someday. Soon."

He could propose right now. Of course, Kibum would immediately say yes. But...but he was a romantic at heart -- they both were. He wanted the asking to be a surprise; he wanted to have a ring. His heart started to sink. He wanted to bring up the subject of kids again before he proposed. Just to see if Kibum's mind had changed. So they could take that next step as soon as possible.

Either way, he still wanted to be with him -- that would never change -- so wouldn't it be better to just clear the air?

He could ask right now.

He found Kibum's silhouette again, tracing the line of it as he settled on his pillow. "How soon is soon?" Kibum asked, his voice colored with excitement.

No, the kids' question could wait. He needed to figure out how to word his thoughts, anyway.

Minho laid his head on his pillow, making himself comfortable for the night. He relaxed when Kibum found his hand and smiled when he kissed his knuckles. "That'd ruin the surprise, wouldn't it?"

"When have I ever cared about that?"

Minho scoffed and Kibum, despite himself, chuckled. That question didn't need answering and they both knew it.

Kibum scooted closer to him, his still-damp hair a slight shock as he rested his head on Minho's shoulder and chest. He laid his arm across Minho, pulling him closer still. "I suppose that'll give me time to think about if I want to accept or not." He lifted his hand from Minho's side, covering his laugh when Minho made a sound of disbelief and started to sit up.

Smiling again, Minho settled back down when Kibum patted his chest. "Yes, please, think about it."

Kibum scooted up to kiss his cheek, then again when Minho smiled. "I will, baby, don't worry."

Minho sighed when Kibum settled back against him, snuggling closer. He held him a little tighter, pressing a kiss to his head with a thought of I love you.

They were going to get married. Finally. Smiling, he kissed Kibum’s head again, earning a soft little hum of appreciation. That happy day couldn’t come soon enough.

When he woke in the morning, it came as no surprise to him that Kibum was already awake. In the seconds that it took for him to come to, he lifted his head, glancing toward the bathroom and the sounds of running water. Yawning and stretching, Minho slipped clumsily out of bed and pulled on a pair of sweatpants before he traipsed inside. He doused his face in cold water, and when he dried it and his hands off on the towel, Kibum peaked out from behind the curtain.

“You’re up early,” he said after Minho came over to greet him with a kiss.

“I have to train Jjong some more.”

“Ah.”

“Do you want to meet us for lunch?”

Kibum grimaced. “I can’t today, sorry. I’ve got a meeting with the new Elphaba today, so I’ll probably be a bit late coming home.” Minho started to pout, which made Kibum grin before he kissed him again. “On second thought, I’ll just quit my job instead.”

“That works.”

Kibum’s face scrunched up cutely as he sniffed a laugh, and he shook his head as he slipped back behind the curtain to continue his shower. Smiling, Minho turned away to brush his teeth, only for his attention to be snagged by the rings in the bowl by the sink. Kibum’s rings, that he usually wore… Minho glanced at the shower curtain again before he quietly picked through them for the ring he had bought for him back in Korea. He tiptoed out of the bathroom as Kibum started to sing “No Good Deed” and hurried over to his nightstand for his wand.

“Geminio!” he whispered, flicking his wand at the gold ring and keeping his eyes on it as another one materialized right beside it on his palm. He pocketed the duplicated ring and slipped back into the bathroom to replace the original ring just as Kibum was singing the victims of his -- or rather, Elphaba’s -- good deeds. He didn’t have to look at himself in the mirror to know that his expression was fond as he looked over at the shower curtain before he started brushing his teeth.

Minho waited until Kibum was done with the song, then he spat out his toothpaste and rinsed. “Is the new Elphaba good?”

“Hm...not sure yet. I haven’t seen her perform.” The water stopped, and Minho glanced over at the shower again, abandoning his attempt at fixing his hair. “She probably is, though,” he said, ripping the curtain back and stepping onto the mat. “Why, is this your way of fishing for a free ticket again?” he asked as he started to towel off.

“So what if it is?”

Kibum sniffed a laugh. “I’ll see what I can do.”

Minho and Jonghyun headed out before Kibum finished his breakfast, the bright, summer sun beating down on them. It was entirely too hot for this early in the morning, and Minho was grateful that he didn’t have practice until the day would have already cooled off.

Jonghyun sighed heavily as soon as they passed through the revolving doors, throwing his head back in dramatic relief. “I’m so glad it’s cool in here.” Minho smiled and started them for the apothecary. “Are we looking at rings today?”

Minho’s eyebrows shot up as he glanced Jonghyun’s way. “Yeah, I think so.”

Work could not be over soon enough. He kept glancing at the clock, mere seconds or minutes passing between each time he checked. At lunch, he apologized to Jonghyun for being so distracted, but that only made him laugh. Before they went back to the apothecary, they went up to the third and then fourth floor, locating the jewelry shop there.

If anything, that just made his concentration that much worse.

Somehow, however, he was able to push through and continue training until Crowley gave him the go-ahead to flip the sign. They finished cleaning up and then they were off, both apparating to the fourth floor and hurrying to Plutus Jewelers. “Are you closed?” Minho asked the woman behind the counter once he reached it, Jonghyun a few steps behind him.

“No, sir, we’ve still got an hour and a half before then.” Minho let out his pent-up breath with a relieved laugh. “What can I help you find?” she asked, glancing between them.

“An engagement ring,” he said, finally looking down at the glass surrounding the glittering gold and silver finery. Everything below his hands was bracelets.

“This way, sir,” she said, gesturing for him to follow her around to the other side of the center display. There was a vast array of rings here. Some pure precious metals, most encrusted with a gem of some kind, and some, it seemed, were made of the gems themselves. “Do you know the size?”

“Yes.” He fished in both of his pants pockets for Kibum’s ring that he had duplicated that morning. “Here,” he said, handing it to her.

She waved her wand over it before passing it back to him. “A ten.” She gave him a strange look as she passed it back to him, then looked down at the variety of rings. “What sort of ring do you think she’ll like?”

“She?” Minho asked, and Jonghyun started to laugh, though he covered it with a cough.

“Oh,” she said, drawing the sound out as she started to smile. “That makes sense. The ring size threw me for a second.”

Minho chuckled. “I’m not quite sure what he’d like. I got this ring” -- He held up the gold one -- “for him a few years back, but if I can, I’d like to get something different, since I’m proposing.”

“Yes, I’d do the same, if I were you. What do you think would suit him?”

A very hard question to answer, given that Kibum could pull off whatever he wanted to. He frowned, glancing over at Jonghyun. “What do you think?” He shook his head slowly, then shrugged. “Some help you are.”

Jonghyun snorted, then sighed. “Something unique? Not necessarily unique to him, but...something that stands out?”

Minho hummed in thought, and the woman moved down the counter to the rings made from gems. “Do you think he might like one of these?” she asked as Minho and Jonghyun followed her lead.

“How are these made?” Jonghyun asked, and she started to expound, but Minho wasn’t listening.

He inspected each of them, tapping his thumb against his lips. The pure diamond one was pretty, but would Kibum want that one? Or would he prefer one that a lesser-used gem? Not an emerald or ruby or sapphire. Their colors were too distinct and would limit the outfits he could wear without them clashing. Which led him back to the diamond...but was that too boring? Or...he turned his head, his gaze landing on the opal ring, the myriad iridescent patches catching in the lights of the case as Minho moved closer to it.

It was slightly transparent, though still somewhat opaque. He fiddled with the ring on his thumb as he stared at it, his brow furrowing. Would Kibum like it?

“Did you find one?”

He looked up when Jonghyun sidled closer to him. “Hm, maybe.” He pointed at the opal ring. “What do you think?”

“I think it looks like rainbow sherbet. You should get it.” Minho burst out laughing. “What? It’s his favorite ice cream!”

“So?” he asked, trying to compose himself. “I’m not basing his engagement ring on his favorite type of ice cream.”

“Well, see, that’s just silly.”

The woman behind the counter smiled as she reached inside, taking out the ring for Minho to inspect. It was stunning, and he could picture Kibum wearing it. “It even can come in a set,” she said, pulling out another opal ring, though this one was black compared to the opaque white one that had caught his eye.

“How much are they together?” he asked, pulling the black ring closer to look at them side by side.

“I’d have to look to be completely sure, but I think they’d be around three thousand Dragots.”

“A piece?” Minho asked incredulously. They might be doing well for themselves now, especially now that Minho was a professional Quidditch player, but that was a bit high, even for him.

“No, no,” she said with a placating wave of her hand. “All together. You can also pay in installments if you’d like.”

“I think I need to...think about it some more.” Check their bank balance, see what they could afford right now. Because he’d much rather make one payment now rather than prolong his debt.

“That’s fine. I’ll be here when you’re ready.”

“Okay, thank you so much for your time.”

She nodded, then waved goodbye as they left the counter.

“Three thousand Dragots…” Jonghyun said under his breath as they reached the third floor.

“I know.” Minho looked around, finding their bank and heading for it.

He caught one of the tellers just before he was going to close up for the night, practically begging him to let him check his balance. As luck would have it, they had the money and lots to spare, thanks to Mr. Kim’s gift of Kibum’s inheritance all those years ago. Even still, Minho reluctantly withdrew two thousand of their accumulated Dragots before he hurried back upstairs with Jonghyun.

“You’re not gonna get both of them?”

Minho shook his head, slowing as they reached the jewelry shop again. "Isn't Kibum supposed to choose mine?”

"I guess so."

The woman behind the counter happily gave him a pamphlet for which spells to use to care for the ring, as well as a receipt for the purchase and the ring itself. He tucked all of them carefully inside his backpack, thanked her once again for her time, and walked with Jonghyun until they were outside on the cobblestone street.

“Feel good?” Jonghyun asked, smiling when Minho sighed.

“Yeah. You’re not gonna tell him, are you?”

“Of course not,” Jonghyun said indignantly.

“Okay. I’m gonna head to practice now. I’ll be back for dinner.” Then, he apparated away, heading to the stormy Quidditch pitch.

He barely noticed anything that happened during practice, let alone the fact that it was raining. It was because of the rain that Mercy ended it sooner than usual -- at least the season didn't begin until next month.

"I'm home," he called out as he materialized in the landing.

"Oh good!" Kibum called out from the kitchen, coming around to greet him. He smiled up at him before he kissed him, then took in his soggy state. "Are you gonna shower first?" When Minho nodded, he added. "Hurry, dinner is just about ready."

"Okay." Minho kissed him again, then took his backpack upstairs.

He peered down the stairs, checking to make sure that Kibum hadn't followed him, then ped his backpack and took out the ring box. The opal ring gleamed in the peachy sunlight of twilight. He smiled as he twisted it around, watching the iridescent flecks catch the light.

Where could he hide this? A ring box would be way too inconspicuous, especially now that Kibum was aware that this could happen at any time. So, where...oh, wait…

He closed the ring box and rolled across to his side of the bed to open his nightstand drawer. The Snitch rolled to a stop against the side and he picked it up, the thin silver wings unfurling against his palm. Then, the center opened once more, revealing the cavity within.

It was perfect.

He dropped it inside, the tinkling of gem against metal loud in the otherwise quiet bedroom. He clapped his hand over it to muffle the sound, looking over his shoulder, as if Kibum would appear upstairs at such a small sound.

Then, he lifted his hand, watching the gold melt over the cavity and concealing the ring. He let out a relieved sigh as he set it back in the drawer.

Where it would stay

Until he was ready.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

- October 9, 2017 -

"Good morning, sweetheart."

Smiling, Kibum looked up at Minho as he swept into the kitchen, taking him into his arms and kissing him. He didn't have to be looking at Jonghyun to know that he was rolling his eyes. Maybe it was the sigh that tipped him off. Kibum glanced Jonghyun's way after Minho broke the kiss. "What, would you like a good morning kiss?"

"I wouldn't say no to one."

Minho's eyebrows shot up as he looked at Jonghyun with wide eyes. "From me?"

"No, you two disgust me."

Kibum snorted and looked back up at Minho, his eyes smiling as he returned his attention to him. "You know," he said quietly enough for hopefully only Minho to hear. "Even though I'm holding you, I still want to hug you." Minho's smile grew as Kibum searched his gaze. "I don't think I'll ever get tired of looking at you."

Jonghyun scoffed loudly enough for Minho to look his way. "I never feel as single as I do than when I'm around you guys."

Kibum's brow furrowed and tore his attention away from Minho as he murmured sorry. "I thought you had another date with Mark lined up?"

"Me too."

"What happened?"

"His mother came to town and he's still not out to her and so instead of just not having me hang out with him while she's here he broke up with me."

"Sound logic."

"Hey, okay," Minho said, cutting off Jonghyun's retort. "Sometimes parents can be s about this. Not everyone was blessed like you two."

"Yeah, true," Jonghyun mumbled, his shoulders drooping as he looked back at the coffee mug in his hand that he was swirling anxiously. Kibum sat back down across from Jonghyun, his fingers toying with the edges of the Oracle as Minho took his place beside him. "It'd just be nice to find someone, you know?" Minho nodded and Jonghyun sighed again. "Someone who stays faithful."

Kibum offered him a small smile when he looked up. "You will, I'm sure."

"Oh my god!" Both he and Jonghyun looked at Minho, who grabbed the newspaper out of Kibum's hands and flipped through the pages. "The Harpies won!"

Jonghyun mouthed What? and Kibum shook his head dismissively. He'd explain later if it came up.

"That means we're playing them to compete for a spot in the playoffs for the World Cup!"

Or, you know, if he didn't explain right now.

"You know what that means, right?"

"No, what?"

Minho pointed to a section of newsprint, then read aloud. "The Hollyhead Harpies will be heading to New England in late November to play against the American National Quidditch team. The winner of that match will go on to compete against the winner of the Luxembourg vs. Uganda match in February."

"Congrat--" Jonghyun started to say, but Minho kept going.

"That means we'll get to see Minseok and Felicity and the kids again! I should head out, Mercy will want to start training," he added quickly as he hurried to the front door, still muttering excitedly under his breath.

"Be right back," Kibum said to Jonghyun, stopping by the fridge to grab the lunch that Minho had forgotten. "Min?"

"What?" He found him slipping into his jacket, and Kibum held out the paper bag for him. "Oh, thanks." He leaned in for another quick kiss, only for him to linger a second longer than Kibum was expecting. "Can we talk later?"

Kibum's eyebrows rose in curiosity. "What about?"

Minho chuckled as he kissed him again. "It's nothing bad. It's just...I've been thinking about it for a while and, well...we'll just talk later."

"Okay." His brow furrowing in mingled confusion and curiosity. "When will you be home?"

"Not sure. I'll text you before heading home."

Kibum squinted up at him, which made Minho smile. "Fine. Be that way."

"I will."

Kibum leaned forward again, kissing him one last time before patting his chest and stepping back so he could apparate. Minho winked before he the spot and was gone. Sighing, Kibum started back for the kitchen to find Jonghyun hiding behind the pages of the Oracle.

"I'm surprised you could bear to part with him," he said drolly, not bothering to set aside the morning paper.

"Shut up."

"What a cutting retort. How will I ever recover from such a wound."

Kibum snorted, shaking his head as he freshened up his coffee. "He just said he wanted to talk later. I'm not sure wh...at about," he said, faltering when Jonghyun immediately lowered the paper, staring wide-eyed at him. "What?"

"Nothing."

He tried to lift up the paper again, but Kibum stuck his arm out, holding the paper down. "Do you know what this is about?"

"I don't know a goddamn thing."

"Liar," Kibum said immediately, squinting as he searched Jonghyun's expression. "Don't make me use Veritaserum on you."

"You don't have any on hand and it takes too long to make."

"I'm sure I could figure out how to make some in thirty minutes. Don't test me." Jonghyun tried to lift the paper, but Kibum's hand was still immovable. "What do you know?"

Jonghyun started to smile as he glanced down at Kibum's hand but quickly quelled it when he met his eyes again.

Kibum stared at him until it registered in his mind. Then he slowly backed away, the hand that had been holding the paper down now clutching his sweater. "He's gonna propose?" he asked, unable to get his voice any louder than a whisper.

Jonghyun grinned unhindered now.

"How...how long have you known?"

“Since the day Congress legalized it,” he said, leaning toward Kibum. “I’ve been dying to say something but now that he’s gonna do it -- “

“Has he bought a ring?” Jonghyun nodded, his eyes alight with excitement. Kibum stepped closer to him. “Have you seen it?”

“I was there when he bought it.”

Kibum’s mouth popped open in surprise. “Since when were you so good at keeping secrets?”

“Hey…”

“What, you know you’ve never been able to keep a secret.” Jonghyun rolled his eyes, but Kibum looked away, eyes on the ceiling now. Was the ring in the house? In their room somewhere? No, he shouldn’t go looking for it. That should be a surprise, at the very least.

“You won’t tell him I said anything, right?”

“No, no, don’t worry.” He came around, his coffee forgotten now, and sat beside Jonghyun at the counter. “Should I make a special meal for us tonight?”

“Us? You don’t want me here, do you?” Kibum worried his bottom lip. Now that he thought of it, having Jonghyun here for a night like this might dampen the mood, though it seemed incredibly rude to say so. “You know what? No. I’m booking a room at the hotel. What’s it called again?”

“Cigimn,” Kibum said absently, distracted now by the thought of what to make for dinner. Minho’s favorite, obviously, but which favorite? The man liked way too many foods… “I think I need to go grocery shopping,” he said aloud, unsure and uncaring if Jonghyun was still in the room.

“Do you have a show to get ready for tonight?” Kibum shook his head. “I’m off today, do you want me to come with you?”

“If you want. I…” He pushed away from the counter and slipped off the stool. “I’m gonna go get changed.”

If Jonghyun responded, he didn’t hear it. His mind was still too full of the thought of Minho’s impending proposal to be able to focus. He tried to snap himself out of his sort of trance as he reached the top step. He’d have to act surprised; he didn’t want to ruin the reaction that Minho was undoubtedly counting on. Kibum meandered into the bathroom to finish getting ready, which really just meant he needed to fix his hair and brush his teeth, but he kept getting waylaid by practicing his surprised expression in the mirror.

His gaze landed on the nightstand on Minho’s side of the bed as he stepped out to grab his coat. Was it in there? Should he even look? No, no, he really shouldn’t...but if it were just the ring box and not the ring itself, that wouldn’t be a bad thing, right? His hand was on the knob before he fully realized it, and he slowly pulled the drawer open.

Kibum let out a huff of a sigh.

No ring box. Just one of his Snitches, his phone charger, and their box of condoms. He closed the drawer, the Snitch rolling around until it settled from being disturbed, and threw on his jacket before heading downstairs.

They wandered aimlessly through the aisles of the grocery store, Jonghyun doing his best to keep Kibum on task. The question was, though, what should he make for dinner? What would be classified as a romantic meal that he could reasonably make in however long he had left before Minho got home. Something Italian? Something French? Maybe some Korean dish, even though he’d never quite gotten the hang of Korean cooking...but it was Minho’s favorite.

No, making Korean cuisine tonight would probably stress him out a bit too much. He needed something simpler…

“Ah, yes,” Jonghyun said when Kibum stopped in the bulk section, inspecting the selections. “Nothing says romance quite like rice.”

“Risotto,” he corrected. “It’s a labor of love.”

Jonghyun sniffed a laugh as Kibum stepped forward to get some Arborio rice.

They spent about an hour and a half in the store, Kibum going back and forth, repeatedly checking his basket to make sure he had everything he needed to make the mushroom risotto, osso buco and polenta, and tiramisu, as well as some of the most expensive champagne and white wine he’d ever purchased.

But, it was a special night, right? If there ever was a time to splurge on a meal, it would be on a night like tonight.

Jonghyun offered to help him cook when they got back to the house, but Kibum declined. Instead, he kept him company, sitting at the counter and chatting aimlessly. Kibum was grateful to him, more than he could say. Just his presence was helping him remain calm and focused on the task at hand.

Once he had the osso buco braising and the risotto going, he started on the tiramisu. He offered Jonghyun the scraps of the sponge cake and spoonfuls of the creamy mascarpone filling as he assembled it between his stirring of the risotto. He was just setting it in the fridge when his phone vibrated on the counter, which made him nearly drop the pan of tiramisu.

“It’s Minho,” Jonghyun said as Kibum closed the fridge. “He’s on his way back.”

Kibum took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “Okay.”

“Should I leave now?” Kibum barely registered nodding. His whole body was tingling from nerves and excitement. Jonghyun grinned, sliding off the stool and coming around the counter to pull him into a hug. “I’m so happy for you, Ki.”

“Thank you,” he said, his voice tight now.

“No, no, don’t cry yet. Save that for later. Or I might cry with you.”

Kibum let out a watery chuckle, trying to compose himself. “We don’t want that.”

Jonghyun grinned as he pulled away from him. “I’ll see you in the morning, then. I expect to hear everything. Well, maybe not everything.”

Kibum laughed then, feeling a bit lightheaded. “I’ll editorialize.”

“I’d appreciate it.”

Before he could thank him for his help today, he the spot and vanished. Just in time, too, since there was an echoing pop from the front door. “Babe?”

“Yeah?” Minho called back as his footsteps sounded in the hallway. “It smells amazing in here,” he said as he stepped into the kitchen, hair askew from being on a broom all day.

“Thanks. Special meal tonight.”

“Oh?” He peered around Kibum at the stove, his eyebrows raised in interest. “Now I really have to shower, since you put in all this effort.”

Kibum smiled, his eyes slipping closed when Minho leaned in to kiss him. “Well, don’t take too long, everything is almost ready.”

“Just give me, like, five minutes.”

“Okay.”

Minho kissed him again before he turned and hurried upstairs, and Kibum, after taking several deep, calming breaths, started to set the table.

* * * * * * * * * *

The water was running, steam filling the small bathroom, but Minho hadn’t stepped in yet. No, he was staring at himself in the mirror, his knuckles white as he gripped the edge of the counter. “You can do this...it’s time,” he whispered to himself. “You’ve put it off long enough.”

Why he was so stressed about bringing up the topic of them possibly adopting in the future, he wasn’t sure. He just wanted to see if Kibum’s position had changed at all, right? It wasn’t like this was a dealbreaker for them. He just wanted to know where stood.

He squeezed his eyes shut, shaking his head for a second before he opened his eyes and pushed away to step into the hot stream of water. Mercy had even noticed that he was a bit out of it today, given how he couldn’t stop thinking about the conversation he was about to have. Her advice, when he broke and told her what was bothering him after practice, was good, he thought. That no matter what, it was good to figure this out before they got married, and to go into the conversation with an open mind and no expectations.

Which he was. Or, at least, he was trying to. Hopefully, by the time he was heading downstairs, any expectations he had would be obliterated.

As much as he wanted to linger, a very delicious-smelling dinner was waiting for him, as well as an obviously expectant Kibum. He couldn’t delay even if he wanted to. So, as soon as he was out, dried off, and dressed in something nice -- yet casual -- he started heading downstairs.

Candlelight filled the living room, and though it wasn’t nearly as small, Minho couldn’t help but think back to their study closet back at school. Kibum greeted him from the kitchen as he poured some glasses of white wine for them. “Go ahead and sit,” he said, picking up the glasses by the stems and following Minho out to the table. Minho sat at his cushion across from Kibum’s, smiling when Kibum kissed the top of his head before setting down the glass of wine by his plate. “How was your day?” he asked as he settled across from him and picked up his fork.

“Not too bad. I feel like we’re gonna be practicing a lot more often until the game, though, so sorry in advance.”

“We’ve done long-distance before, I’m sure we can manage.”

Minho sniffed a laugh, covering his mouth as he chewed his first bite of risotto. “Let’s hope so...This is really good, by the way,” he said, scooping up another forkful of risotto.

“Yes, I know.”

“What about your day? How was it?”

Kibum shrugged nonchalantly as he looked away with a small smile. “Hung out with Jjong and worked on dinner. Nothing too special.”

“Days off are nice.” Kibum hummed in agreement.

Dinner was, as he expected, absolutely amazing. The osso buco melted in his mouth as he ate it, and the creamy polenta was the perfect side to the veal. He scraped his plate clean before Kibum cleared the table, only to return with a plate of tiramisu and two clean forks. Kibum cut off a piece and offered it to him, smiling when Minho leaned forward to eat off of his fork before he cut off a piece for himself.

“Do you want my help with dishes?” Minho asked once they had finished the dessert. “Actually, no I can do them. You don’t need to.”

“No, it’s okay,” Kibum said with a chuckle as he set the plate and forks into the heaping sink. “I can get to them later. More wine?”

“Uh, sure?”

Kibum uncorked the bottle again, refilling their glasses again as Minho settled on the couch. “Oh, hey, I just remembered,” he said as he moved to join him. “You said you wanted to talk about something tonight?”

Oh. “Right.” There was no point in delaying it any longer. He watched Kibum get comfortable beside him, and he set his glass of wine aside as Kibum turned to him expectantly. “So, I have an important question that...well, I’ve been thinking about it for a while.”

“Yeah?”

He cleared his throat and took a deep breath. “Have you given any more thought about possibly adopting a kid together? Once we’re married, that is,” he added quickly when Kibum’s expression went rigid.

“Adopting.” His voice sounded hollow. Distant. Kibum set his wine glass aside, too, turning slightly away from Minho. “No, I can’t say I have.” Minho opened his mouth, about to speak again when Kibum slid off the couch. “On second thought, I should probably do the dishes if I don’t want to hate myself in the morning.”

“Ki -- “ But he had already swept out of the room, taking his glass of wine with him. Minho watched him, momentarily dumbfounded. The loud clatter of pots and pans brought him back around, and his brow furrowed. “Are you upset with me?”

“It sure does seem that way, doesn’t it.”

“Babe,” he said, freezing with Kibum leveled him with a glare. “What did I do? It’s just a simple question.”

“A simple question?” he said with a biting laugh. “I thought you said you weren’t going to bring it up again.”

Minho pushed off the couch, wine forgotten, and strode over to the counter. “And I haven’t. For several years now. I just wanted to know -- “

“Before you proposed?” Kibum asked through gritted teeth as he scrubbed at a particularly stuck bit of risotto.

“Well, yeah.” He watched Kibum in confusion, curious but knowing better than to ask why he was washing the dishes by hand rather than with magic. “Why is this such a bad thing?”

Kibum’s eyebrows shot up as he let out a huff of a laugh that was devoid of amusement. “I just wish you’d quit nagging me about kids, that’s all. I already said that I don’t want them, and yet -- “

“How…” He clenched his fists, holding himself back from swearing. No need to escalate this any further. “How have I been nagging you if I haven’t brought this up for almost three years.”

Suds flew as Kibum's hands plunged into the water. "Don't take that tone with me."

"I could say the same to you." Kibum looked up then, his eyes alight with something Minho had never seen directed towards him -- true anger. "Listen, I just want to know why you're so against having kids."

"Why? Does it need to meet your criteria for being a good enough reason? Because I don't know."

"You don't?"

"No. And I don't need a reason."

Minho's brow wrinkled with incredulity. "Well, I mean, it'd be nice to communicate such a thing to your partner, don't you think?" Kibum sighed, and even though he was looking down, Minho knew he was rolling his eyes. He gulped, backing away from the counter, his hands in his pockets. "Can't you think of a single, valid reason why you don't want kids?"

When Kibum didn't answer right away, Minho turned back around to face him. To watch him. To wait.

"Isn't the fact that I don't want them a good enough reason? Does there have to be a why?"

..., he had a point. Merlin's ing beard, what has he thinking?

"Why would I" -- Kibum dropped the osso buco pot into the water, sending soapy water sloshing over the rim of the sink. -- "want to raise any kids" -- He pushed his sleeve up to keep it out of the water before going back to scrubbing the residue out of the corners of the pot. -- "when I'm...ing cursed."

"Cursed?" Kibum shook his head. "What do you mean?"

Kibum dropped the now clean pot a little too loudly into the other sink. "Let's think back, shall we?" Minho opened his mouth to warn him to be careful when he grabbed one of the knives to start cleaning it, but Kibum interrupted him. "I've got a history of fatal cancer on both sides of my family. My dad died when I was barely nine and you think I'm gonna be arrogant enough to assume that the same thing couldn't...or wouldn't happen to me?" He set the clean knife in the other sink, his eyes bloodshot as he met Minho's gaze. "Why would I want to abandon my own kids? Why would I want to abandon y..." He took a deep breath when his voice cut off abruptly and he shook his head, averting his eyes again.

A tense silence filled the room. Minho gulped, his heart aching as he stepped closer to the counter. "I'm sorry for bringing this up, Kibum," he said when he found his voice. "I just...well, like I said, I just figured we should discuss it again before we get married."

Kibum sniffed, and Minho couldn't tell if it was a laugh. He doubted it. "Well. Maybe we aren't as compatible as we thought. Maybe...maybe we shouldn't get married if that's what you want."

A chill washed over Minho, the delicious dinner he had just finished turning sour in his stomach. "Bummie," he whispered, unable to keep the pain from coloring his voice. "You don't mean that."

Kibum let out a mirthless laugh now, shaking his head as he slipped the plates into the soapy water. "I don't say things I don't mean, Minho. We've known each other long enough for you know that." He cleared his throat, his eyes barely meeting Minho's again when he nodded for the hallway. "Go ahead and go to bed. I'll finish this and be up soon."

"I…" There were no words. His mind was completely blank. "I can sleep on the couch if you want." Kibum just pursed his lips and shook his head, not even bothering to look at him. "I'm sorry."

Kibum gave no indication that he heard him, not for several seconds. It took all of Minho's willpower to turn, to trudge down the hallway to the stairs. As he started dragging himself up them, he paused. There were no sounds of soapy water and clinking dishes any more.

No, there were just the sounds of Kibum's muffled sobs.

Tears sprang to Minho's eyes before he fully realized it. Everything, literally everything within him urged him to return to Kibum's side. To try to comfort him. To try to make up for his mistake. But, Kibum clearly wanted to be alone, so, with a great effort, Minho continued up, each step crushing his heart.

He grabbed a pair of pajamas before he closed himself in the bathroom, clutching the t-shirt to his screwed-up face as he started to cry. It took quite some time for him to be able to change out of his nice clothes and into his pajamas, and even when he was able to, he still hadn't fully stopped crying. He had, though, by the time he crawled into bed.

Minho lay there, numb to everything as he stared up at the night sky Kibum had charmed into the ceiling. The Boötes constellation was right above his head. Kibum's doing. His eyes started to well up again when the sound of Kibum's heavy footsteps filled the hallway. He tensed, barely turning his head to glimpse him as he made his way to the dresser, and then to the bathroom.

He closed the door behind him.

Minho listened, straining to hear every bit of Kibum's nightly routine. When the handle jiggled, Minho relaxed, resting his head back on the pillow as Kibum flicked off the light.

Kibum found his side with practiced ease, the bed barely dipping under his weight. He must be on the very edge of the bed. Minho's throat tightened as he tried to gulp.

"I really can sleep on the couch, if that would make you more comfortable," he managed to whisper.

"No. I'm fine. Good night, Minho."

Minho's heart plummeted, the unwelcome chill returning. "Good night."

He laid awake, staring up at the myriad stars until Kibum's breathing evened out. It was then, when Kibum was surely fast asleep, that Minho realized…

This was the coldest their bed had ever felt.