Taemin's mind was running a million miles a minute.

He couldn't believe that he let Jinki make his own choice. Every fiber in his being wanted to beg the older man to stay, to choose him, to choose a life with him. Taemin knew that they could build a life together... And that they could finally have a shot at being happy for once in their lives. But the choice wasn't his. All he needed to do was lie in wait, but even that was enough to drive him insane. 

Being alone with his thoughts right now was not an ideal situation. 

He couldn't help but feel like he was a terrible person for all the choices he had made so far. He knew that he had lost a good friend in Minho, so much so that he couldn't even bring himself to face him at work. Not only did he break one person's heart, but two. It didn't take a rocket scientist to know that there was definitely something going on between Jinki and Key, and that he was coming in between them. Taemin meant well, but he couldn't help but feel like he was judging Jinki's lifestyle for making him choose to be with him instead. Maybe he should have said that he would be willing to consider leaving his safe life to join Jinki--but he didn't. 

All things considered, Taemin felt like the whole world was closing in on him. He needed to talk to the one person in his life that he knew loved him no matter what.

"Appa?"

Taemin enters his father's dark house with a bag of food in his hands. 

"Son... What are you doing here? Don't you have work today?"

"Hey, Appa... I called in sick for a couple of days..." he says, taking the food out of the bag and setting it before the TV table in front of his father. "Don't worry, I'm not really making it up... I do really feel sick to my stomach."

"What's wrong?" Mr. Lee asks, knowing for sure that there is something bothering Taemin. 

"Appa... I'm a good person, right?" the young man asks, taking a careful seat beside his father.

Taemin's father scoffs at the question, as if it is the most ridiculous thing he has ever heard in his life. "Son... You dedicated your life to saving other people for a living... And no one takes care of me but you... I haven't seen such goodness in anyone since your Eomma."

"Thank you, Appa," Taemin says, trying really hard to choke the tears back. "I started to believe that I didn't need to hear that anymore."

"Now, tell me what's really the matter..."

Taemin couldn't hold it in anymore. In one instant, the sheer terror of losing Jinki for good washed over him and he fell into his father's arms weeping. "Appa... I don't know what I'd do if I lose him..."

"Oh, Taemin..." Mr. Lee says, holding his son close, tears falling from his own eyes. He immediately recognizes the pain his son is going through and it breaks his heart that he can't to anything to stop it. All he can do now is to sit in this moment with him, letting him know that someone loves him and that someone understands. "I know how it feels, Son... I miss your Eomma everyday."

*****

Jonghyun was completely confused by everything that was going on in the station. In the blink of an eye, the two people that he had relied on more than anything in the world were nowhere to be found. He was fine working with the subs that the other teams had sent over, but Minho and Taemin were definitely more than just teammates to him--they were his family. 

He leans his head back into the sofa, wondering how it all came to this.

"E-excuse me... Jonghyun Sunbaenim?" That substitute named Jongin was really careful in coming up to him and interrupting his train of thought. "There's a phone call for you, from headquarters..."

"Thanks," he replies, lazily getting up from the couch. He really couldn't handle any more drama right now. He just hoped that he wasn't in some sort of trouble. He reaches the phone and holds the receiver up to his ear. "This is Kim Jonghyun, good morning."

"Hello, Jonghyun-ssi," says a voice on the other line. "This is Kim Junmyeon from the head office and I'd just like to check in with you about what's going on with your team. I hope you're doing well with the substitute EMTs..."

"Hello, Kim Junmyeon-ssi... Yeah... They're new alright, but they're nice and hardworking guys... Really eager to learn..."

"Glad to hear it. So... You should expect Lee Taemin to be back in two days, but I have to talk to you about the vacancy that Choi Minho's transfer will create."

Jonghyun almost drops the phone at what he hears. "S-Sorry... Did you say transfer?"

"Yes... Choi Minho-ssi filed for a two-week leave and simultaneously applied for a transfer to a different team in the next district. I assumed you knew."

His mouth is dry and his heart sinks as he processes this information. So that's what Minho said about him taking care of things here. He wasn't even given a chance to talk his friend out of leaving the station for good... But he also knew Minho well enough to know that once he had made his mind up about something, there was no turning back. He remembers that there is someone on the other line waiting for a response from him. "No... That's news to me..."

"Well, that being the case, his departure leaves a vacancy, and we would like to offer you the position of team leader--with a pay raise, of course. You have to drop by on one of your off days to discuss contracts and your modified job description. Are you up for the challenge?"

"Uh... Y-Yes... I guess, I am."

"Great! I suggest you keep a close eye on your substitutes from now on. You have to select one of them to become a permanent part of your team. See you the day after tomorrow."

"Yes, see you then, Kim Junmyeon-ssi... Thank you. Thank you very much."

*****

Kibum comes home from work and is surprised to find that some of the lights were left on. Minho's bedroom door was slightly open, and the older man thought that his new roommate was home. He shyly peeks his head in to say hello, but there was no one there. All he saw were some of his drawers askew and a few clothes strewn across the room, when Minho usually kept everything tidy. It was a strange sight to say the least. What was even more strange was that the whole house looked completely different. The television somehow found it's way onto the kitchen wall, and the couch and some other things were squeezed into the already tiny hallway.

"What the hell," the young man says, under his breath. He made his way toward a huge divider in the middle of the space that wasn't even there when he left earlier in the day. He finds a handwritten note stuck on it. 

Kibum,

I just need time away. Take care of the place; this is your home now too.

I did my best. Let's just figure it out when I get back.

Hope you like it.

Minho

Kibum clutches the note in his hand, not really knowing what was going on. There were so many questions running through his head but all of them came to a complete stop once he walked through and into an unfamiliar space. 

A gasp escapes his lips when he enters.

"Oh, . Minho... What the hell did you do..." 

Kibum slowly enters what was previously Minho's living room and hardly recognized it. It was empty, save for a dresser and a stool, a small cloth cabinet and a makeshift bed. In an instant, he knew. This was his space now. This was supposed to be his bedroom.

His heart started beating ten million times a minute as he realizes that this is Minho's way to tell him that he can stay. Kibum takes small and careful steps as his hand touches the few pieces of furniture in the room. All of his things were carefully laid out on the dresser and his clothes were likewise hung up in the closet. The bed was covered in soft linens and felt softer than any bed he had ever slept on before. 

All his life, he had never had a space to call his own before... And now he did. 

Kibum smiles to himself and breathes deeply. He could feel it in his bones... This was the fresh start that he had been waiting for.

*****

"Busan station, final stop. Busan station."

Minho wakes up startled, forgetting for one minute where he was. He opens his eyes and looks around at the people filing out of the bus. Busan wasn't very far away but it was a good enough place for him to regain his bearings. He slowly stands up from his seat and gathers his bags from the overhead storage.

A chilly wind greeted him the minute he stepped off the bus, and it hit him that he was actually here... Alone. He had always wanted to visit this place with Taemin, but instead he found himself coming here to learn to let him go. 

"Maybe it's just better this way..."

It was hard for him to imagine a life without Taemin. For the past two years, all he had known was to pine for him every minute of every day. He was starting to realize that not having the younger man in this way created a space in his heart. Sure, it hurt like hell, but now he had a place for something else. 

The fresh breeze and the beautiful scenery reminded him of something that he had forgotten about himself a long time ago: He didn't need anyone to be happy. He had known this truth in back of his head, but maybe this was the right time and place to sear it into his heart.

As he was walking down the street, on the way to his hotel, something brushes up against his shin. He looks down to see the most adorable pair of eyes staring back at him. The cutest stray pup had somehow taken notice of him and didn't leave his side. 

"Hey, Buddy..." he says, crouching down to get a closer look. "Are you hungry? Here you go..." Minho takes a few leftover snacks from his backpack and offers it to the hungry puppy, who chows down on it immediately. The young man couldn't help but the puppy's fur as they both had a sweet moment at the side of the road.

Just then, Minho feels his phone vibrate in his jacket pocket. "Hello?"

"You're crazy," Kibum says on the other line, doing a horrible job of hiding the excitement in his voice. 

"What? I thought you said that you needed a place to stay?" Minho replies. Hearing Kibum this way was making him smile.

"I do, but... Minho..." 

"I know, I know. It's not glamorous enough, right? I was really pressed for time. Don't worry, that's just temporary. When I get back, we'll do it properly; build a wall in and everything. We'll fix it up just the way you like it, so think about exactly what you want okay?"

For the first time in a long time, Kibum was left speechless. This was the grandest gesture of kindness he had encountered in a really long time. He is completely overwhelmed as a tear starts to roll down his cheek. "Thank you, Minho..." Kibum replies. He wipes the tears away and clears his voice. "Where are you? And when are you coming back?"

"I'm in Busan... I'll be back in  a couple of weeks... I just need to clear my head," the younger man replies, already having the time of his life with his new furry friend. With a new post and a new friend by his side, he could already tell that it wasn't going to be so bad. Suddenly, the puppy turns over and shows Minho his belly to be scratched. The young man could not help but oblige. The peace in Minho's heart in this moment was unlike anything that he had felt in a long time. Maybe there was room for two new friends. "Oh, Kibum? I'm not coming home alone."

*****

The hours went by so slowly. 

Jinki was supposed to be at Heechul's by now, making sure that the new shipment coming in was properly received and accounted for. But his feet were only able to take him halfway there. Everything that Taemin had told him back at the apartment had been replaying in his mind.

It may sound incredible, but all those things had never occured to him before. He had never considered the possibility of ever having a "normal" life--until now. 

The clock was ticking, and he had to make a choice. Jinki knew that the choice he made would let the option go forever. 

He looks over to his left and finds the alley that he bled on not too long ago. It was hard to think of himself in that position again, clinging to life and not knowing if he was going to live to see another day. Remembering how it felt also took him back to the thoughts that he had running through his head at that exact moment: Regret. The regret that he felt was not about the money that he didn't make or the jobs that he had turned down. It was the regret that he had gone through his entire life never knowing what it truly meant to love someone and be loved in return.

Taemin.

Every thought that Jinki has of him were the happiest ones that he had ever had in his life. No one had ever believed that he could be anything more than what he was at this moment, other than Taemin. The young man saw all the good in him, when he couldn't even see it in himself. There was no denying that Taemin made him want to be better, and that his love could make that a reality.

At the moment Jinki finally understands that there was only one person who could satisfy the longing in his heart. He knew exactly what he needed to do.

*****

Taemin's eyes are puffy and swollen--a small price to pay for the ache that he feels in his heart. Spending that time with his Appa didn't really help much, other than realizing that he really was in love with Jinki. He was in love with him, and there was nothing more that he could do about that. He did his best, but Taemin had resigned himself to the thought that there was absolutely no way that Jinki was going to choose him. That life was too glamorous and exciting to pass up. Jinki could have anything he could ever want from a life with Heechul--excitement, riches, travel, power. He and his simple life could never compete.

But, still, Taemin loved him. He knew that trying to live his life normally for the next couple of months was going to be hell, and he wasn't in a particular hurry to start it.

The young man was so lost in his thoughts of despair that he didn't even realize that he had already walked up the flights of stairs leading to his apartment. He snaps out of it as he realizes that he was standing right in front of his apartment. Taemin dives into his pants pocket for his keys, but his forehead crinkles when he notices that his front door was slightly ajar.

He slowly enters his apartment, and is surprised to find large bags on his living room floor. A familiar tuft of soft-looking blonde hair is peeking from behind his couch, and Taemin's heart starts to race uncontrollably. His eyes are seeing something that his heart is grappling to believe. Is it really him?

Taemin drops his keys on the wooden floor, making the older man in his living room spin around. 

"J-Jinki..."

Jinki spins around and sees the Taemin standing here, his eyes wide and mouth agape. The older man stands up wordlessly and walks up to Taemin with the most beautiful smile on his face. The older man holds up his index finger to Taemin's lips and immediately signals him to stop talking. His strong hands cup Taemin's face gently and the two of them move towards one another. Their lips touch gently, and it takes both of their breaths away. Never had a single kiss carried so much love and emotion, and at that moment they knew that their hearts beat as one. Tears fall down Taemin's eyes as Jinki holds him closer and whispers in his ear.

"I love you, Taemin. I choose you. I'm home."

xxxxx

Hey, fam! <3

So, that concludes another series. 

Hope you guys enjoyed reading this one as much as I enjoyed writing it!

This was an interesting process for me because it gave me a chance to explore darker themes and play around with scary-ish storylines. To be honest, it was exciting to write our boys in a more badass or messy sort of way--they're not perfect in this story and certainly made some [a lot of] mistakes. Let me know in the comments if you enjoyed this type of genre and if you want to see more of it in future stories!

Also, just generally hit me up in the comments! Who was your favorite character?  Was the ending satisfying for you? What would you have wanted to be different? Just tell me your thoughts in general! I really love hearing about what you guys think. 

Working on some new stories at the moment and, of course, also working on the continuing ones, such as Fearless and Lonely.

Thank you soooooo much for coming along with me on this journey.

Til next time!

- Belle

xxxxx

--== for iane ==--