“Five minutes, guys!”.

Jongin took a deep breath. He wasn't sure whether he was nervous or excited, maybe both. Either way, he had butterflies in his stomach. He just didn't know whether they were the fluffy kind, or the carnivorous kind.

After busting his precious behind for weeks, D-day was finally here. Their big performance. Taemin and Sehun were taking part too, along with all the best dancers the school had to offer.

He had deliberately kept this from Kyungsoo. Kyungsoo was so busy with the restaurant, and he had already turned everything upside down to be able to make it home in time to read for him before sleep, which he did without fail, every single night. And more importantly, the performance started at 8 PM, prime dinner time, so there was no way Kyungsoo could make it, and Jongin couldn't bear getting the rejection. So instead, he just didn't tell him about it. Avoidance, always the best coping mechanism.

The crowd erupted into cheers and applause. Jongin and Taemin secretly glanced at each other, still frozen in their final positions, waiting for the curtain to go down. To the eye, their expressions didn't change at all, but Jongin could read Taemin's face like the cover of a book. They had done it. The show was successful. They had actually pulled it off. It was a really nice feeling, but inside the warm bubble that filled his chest, there was a little shadow, hiding.

Both Suho and Minho were waiting anxiously backstage, greeting them as they exited the stage. Minho had the biggest flower bouquet for Taemin. It was so big that Taemin disappeared completely behind it. He beamed at Taemin for a short moment, and then he just lunged forward and kissed him, not caring that everyone in their class could see. Taemin hit him in the chest, but it didn't have much force to it. Taemin was fighting a loosing battle, or Jongin was pretty sure it was already lost, a long time ago. Jongin had never in his life met a more determined person than Minho. Despite Taemin's endless rejections, he never gave up in his quest to make Taemin his. And even though Taemin didn't realize it, he was falling, hard. But it was okay, because Minho was there, ready to catch him the moment Taemin came to his senses.

Jongin watched them flirting with each other, his mind drifting towards Kyungsoo, wishing he was here. The loneliness within him started coloring everything in a somber blue.

Sehun jumped into Suho's arms without reservation, wrapping his legs around Suho's waist, clinging to him like an overgrown baby monkey, not caring about silly things like physics and gravity, ignoring completely that he was twice Suho's size. Suho was actually stronger than he looked, magically withstanding the attack of King Kong's son, who was in the middle of complaining that Suho hadn't brought him anything.

Jongin's blue heart started turning green. He wanted a boyfriend too. It had to be nice, to have someone waiting for you. Someone who was there because he wanted to, not because he was being forced to.

With a pout that no one saw, Jongin headed to the changing rooms. But something in the shadows made him stop in his tracks. He looked up and peered his eyes. There was someone there, standing to the side, away from everybody.

Jongin blinked, hoping he wasn't hallucinating. It couldn't be. He took a step closer to get a better look at that petite creature of darkness.

It coughed awkwardly and stuck out its hand, holding a single red carnation. What an odd choice of flower. With trembling fingers, Jongin accepted the flower, not quite believing his eyes.

“But.. the restaurant?” he blinked, stupefied.

“Closed it for tonight.” Kyungsoo shrugged shyly.

“Just to see me dance?” Jongin's heart stopped.

“Of course, I'm your biggest fan.” Kyungsoo blurted out, and immediately turned redder than the flower he had just given him.

Jongin didn't know what to do, so he just smelled the flower, pretending he wasn't swooning so hard he was barely managing to stand upright.

“The flower shop assistant said it signified pride and admiration.” Kyungsoo pointed out like he was telling him a random fact, like how many inhabitants the capital of Kazakhstan had. But it didn't matter how he said it, it was what the words themselves meant. Those words knocked the breath right out of Jongin. Was he really saying he was proud of him? Was he finally getting the acknowledgment from Kyungsoo he had so yearned for?

But.. didn't roses signify love? So Kyungsoo had deliberately chosen a flower that meant pride and not love?

“Let's have an afterparty! Our place!” Sehun interrupted their little moment, snapping them right back to reality before Jongin had a chance to convey just how moved he was by Kyungsoo's unexpected attendance and sweet gesture.

Oh well.

“No!! No way! The place is already a complete mess thanks to you.” Suho growled.

“If it's already a mess, then it shouldn't matter if it got just a little bit messier.” Sehun grinned teasingly.

“Uhm... we could... maybe have it at our house?” Jongin glanced at Kyungsoo with hopeful eyes. Kyungsoo simply shrugged. Silence was the same as yes?

“Ah, unfortunately we've got plans. Next time.” Minho smiled his killer smile and started pulling Taemin away.

“Can't we just postpone whatever you've got planned, and go with them. An afterparty sounds fun!” Taemin giggled.

“No.” Minho put his foot down in a way that made even Taemin get the hint that now was not the time to rock the boat. And so he simply waved them goodbye and allowed himself to be whisked away to whatever romantic adventure Minho had planned for them.

“See, this is what I was talking about. Now they both have seen the code, so it's a security risk. We have to change it!” Jongin had entered the numbers extra slowly and obviously, on purpose, because he wanted to appeal to Kyungsoo by using the lack of security as an excuse to change that stupid passcode to their apartment. Jongin wanted to use something catchy and easy to remember, since half the time he was locked out of their house because he forgot the combination. They had been fighting about it for weeks, but Kyungsoo just wouldn't budge.

“He unilaterally chose the numbers and refuses to change them.” Jongin complained to Sehun and Suho.

“Hmm... 1217... 17^th of December? ..wait, the date of the charity ball? Why??” Suho looked at Kyungsoo, whose expression hardened. He had turned into a cold piece of rock that was stuck on the bottom of the ocean, and would remain there for centuries to come without yielding as much as a centimeter.

“What? The charity ball?!? Are you kidding me?? Here I thought it was some super precious date, that meant something really special to you and so I've been trying to be considerate to your feelings up until now.” Jongin's mouth hung open in disbelief. They had been fighting over some insignificant event on the elite social calendar. He hated that charity ball and everyone who attended it. So stuffy and pretentious. It was his least favorite day of the year. There was no way he was going to let this slide.

“You've gotta help me, you've got to take him! He's squatting at my house. I can't get rid of him no matter how hard I try!” Suho whispered, pulling both Jongin and Kyungsoo to the furthest corner of the living room after Sehun had happily bounced to the bathroom.

“Why don't you just send him home?” Kyungsoo asked, not really seeing the problem.

“Because he doesn't have a home!! Remember that night, the practice dinner for your restaurant? Well, he kind of stayed over at mine since he missed the last train, and the morning after, he cancelled his dorm room lease with the school and just moved in without even asking!!” Suho explained in a desperate voice.

“And now he wants to get a dog!!” he added with an exasperated expression, his voice cracking as his eyes watered with despair.

“Ssshht!” he stopped them before they could say anything, pointing at Sehun, who twirled back out of the bathroom, without a worry in the world.

The expression on Suho's face as he watched Sehun when he thought no one was looking was the opposite of desperate. He was totally smitten.

“Hang on. Hang on. You cooked? You? Cooked? Here? In Kyungsoo's kitchen?!” Suho gaped at Jongin as Kyungsoo carried a couple of empty bottles of red wine to the kitchen, going to fetch another one.

“In our kitchen, yes. I cooked. What's so shocking about that? I mean, sure I'm not like... a genius in the kitchen, I admit that... but one genius per household is more than enough, so I'll leave that to Kyungsoo.” Jongin chuckled.

“You cooked for Kyungsoo? And... he ate it?” Suho was simply not getting it. Jongin didn't really see what was so hard to understand. They lived together. It wasn't that unusual a situation to cook in your own house.

“Yeah... but I mean, it wasn't like he was loving it or anything, he just ate it.” Jongin admitted, embarrassed.

“Shut. Up. !” Suho exclaimed, clearly very tipsy. “He ate home cooked food by an amateur that wasn't even good?!” he gasped.

“Aha. Why?” Jongin didn't understand Suho's dramatic reaction. It was one thing to be brought up rich, it was another to never have eaten food that wasn't perfect. Not everyone was gifted at cooking. And wasn't edible good enough? As long as nobody got sick afterwards, that was a win, right?

Suho cleared his throat as Kyungsoo returned. “Ehemm... no, no... nothing.” he shook his head, still startled. He looked at Kyungsoo with a peculiar expression on his face.

Kyungsoo topped off everyone's glasses except Sehun's, since Sehun was already halfway to the dreamland, resting his head on Suho's shoulder, cuddling up to him like a gigantic puppy. They looked kind of cute together, Sehun all hunched over since he was way too tall to fit comfortably on Suho's shoulder.

“So what's the deal with you guys.” Jongin borrowed courage from the alcohol and asked Suho what he had been curious about from the start, his eyes shifting to Kyungsoo.

“No deal.” Kyungsoo shrugged, his cheeks rosy from all the wine he had consumed. Agh, that cutie.

“We've been friends since childhood, our families used to vacation together at a resort that is owned by my family.” Suho started explaining, getting what Jongin was hinting at. Then he leaned in closer to Jongin, ignoring Kyungsoo's silent warning.

“This one here was madly in love with me for the longest time.” Suho giggled, nodding teasingly at Kyungsoo, who growled at him. Jongin's heart did a double take. It wasn't like he hadn't expected it, on some level. At least he hadn't been jealous for no reason. But it was still quite the shock. And that meant.. Kyungsoo was gay for sure. Just when he had convinced himself he was not. He had kept going back and forth, between believing he was straight or gay, but now it was confirmed. Kyungsoo was into guys. Just.. not him.

“And... and... you're... not?” Jongin asked in a near whisper, failing miserably at playing it cool. Fear spread slowly through his body. What if Suho had feelings too? Where did that leave him? And poor Sehun!

“Oh, I've had a steady boyfriend ever since I was a teenager.” Suho's expression changed, a subtle shadow taking over his face. “I really thought we'd be together forever.” he added with pain in his eyes.

“I'm recently single, you see.” Suho chewed on his lower lip. “I'm still struggling with getting the hang of it.” he glanced at Sehun who was sleeping on his shoulder.

That didn't really answer Jongin's question, it only made the answer more important than ever. But Jongin couldn't help but feel for Suho, it seemed like he was still grieving for the life he thought he was going to have. Kyungsoo reached out his hand and it looked like he was going to pat Suho on the back, but he just gently grabbed his shirt. For anyone else, that would have meant nothing, but for Kyungsoo that meant the world. It was his way of showing sympathy. He was definitely not over him. If Suho liked him back, there was nothing standing in their way. Jongin had to find out.

“Huh. So... why aren't you guys together now?” he asked anxiously.

“Me and Kyungsoo?” Suho snorted, looking like he was amused. “I was too late. Kyungsoo had already fallen in love with someone else.” he shrugged in a 'watcha gonna do' kind of way.

Kyungsoo was in love with someone else?

Jongin felt like Suho had just slapped him in the face with a cold, dirty rag. He could hear his own heart breaking. Why did Kyungsoo marry him, if he was already in love with someone else?!

Suho wasn't his nemesis after all, there was another one, somewhere out there. And it could be anyone. He could bump into him on the street and not even know. It made Jongin wish it had been Suho all along, and not this mystery man he knew nothing about.

Jongin's chest felt like it was on fire. He was so jealous he couldn't see straight. He was only now realizing how deep his feelings for Kyungsoo ran. He was completely and utterly in love with him, and he wasn't ready to give up. He was going to fight for him!

No matter who that guy was, even if he had superpowers, he was still going to fight for Kyungsoo. And Jongin had a secret weapon. He was already Kyungsoo's husband. Now for the more difficult task of winning over his heart.

“So am I your second?” Sehun suddenly came to life, looking dreamily into Suho's surprised eyes.

“What?” Suho just stared at him, mortified.

“You said you were in a relationship since you were a teenager, he was your first then, right?”.

“You... heard that? You weren't sleeping?” Suho coughed.

“So unless you went on a crazy boy-bender, making up for lost time... which I don't think you did... that would make me your second.” Sehun grinned widely, beaming at Suho who by this point had turned purple and was having trouble breathing from the embarrassment.

“I think it's time to go home.” Suho awkwardly cleared his throat and ran for the hills.

Jongin heard the digital lock on the front door deny someone access. He smirked evilly. He had changed the code without letting Kyungsoo know. He was not going to let Kyungsoo keep reminiscing about that wonderful time he had with the mystery guy at the charity ball. No way. That was basically like cheating, every single time when he came home. It almost made Jongin wish he wouldn't come home. So he had changed the code, to Taemin's birthday. Kyungsoo was never going to guess it.

Jongin got up slowly, taking as long as he could to walk over to the front door. When he opened it, Kyungsoo's eyes burned two narrow holes right through Jongin's head.

“What's the code?” Kyungsoo growled.

“Not telling. If I tell you, you'll just change it back to your crappy 1217, when you met your precious crush at the charity ball, falling head over heals.” Jongin stuck his tongue out at him, fully in angry toddler mode.

“Who told you that?” Kyungsoo snorted, his rage subsiding.

“Suho. Or he told me you were in love with someone, and the charity ball is on the 17^th of December, so I just put two and two together.” he frowned.

Kyungsoo chuckled heartily.

“Well... you aren't exactly wrong.” he kept giggling. It annoyed Jongin. Had it been such an amazing night that he couldn't help but giggle in his face, his husband's face, over another guy?!

“So it was a special night with that guy!” Jongin crossed his arms, pouting.

“Mhm.” Kyungsoo nodded, confirming Jongin's worst nightmare.

“I'm never EVER telling you the code!!!” he yelled at him angrily and stormed away, fumes coming out of his ears.