It's finally over you guys.

Brace yourselves.

Or you know, don't. 

It's whatever.

While it only took a few days for the physical evidence to disappear, the embarrassment and taunting took weeks before Onew’s friends found the topic of his hickey boring enough to drop.  While Minho tried to be understanding and supporting of his rather bashful boyfriend, even he had a laugh or two at Onew’s expense over the issue.  Onew personally didn’t understand how Minho could be so completely nonchalant about the whole ordeal.  He would simply smile stupidly or chuckle along with them whenever Taemin or Kibum made an unsavory joke at the couples’ expense.  Onew however, still found it utterly mortifying.  The extent of their relationship should be a private matter just between the two of them.  His rationale was completely shot by the fact that he told them and Jonghyun every detail of the date the day after, but that was irrelevant.  It still made him uncomfortable to think that everyone he was close to knew exactly how far he and Minho had gone.  What would happen if they actually had for the first time?  What then?  He at least wanted to tell them on his terms, rather than them finding out in some other way.

Eventually the teasing died down because Onew’s pouting face really was too much to handle and life went back to normal.  Onew became a pro at applying concealer because the red marks would barely start to fade before he would find himself sprawled out on couch after practice with a very affectionate Minho in his lap.  So after a rather embarrassing, albeit informative tutorial, with his mother of all people; Onew learned how to hide the markings, much to Minho’s disappointment.  Still, it took a while before Onew could really look his friends in the eye without wanting to melt into the floorboards from embarrassment.

~~~

Onew was buzzing with nervous excitement as he walked with Minho to a quaint little restaurant where they had made plans to meet up with the others.  Jonghyun had been complaining for ages about formally meeting Minho and even his boyfriend seemed generally curious to meet Onew’s so-called best friend.  The younger had only ever heard stories about Jonghyun and had voiced how interesting he thought it was that Onew and Jonghyun were friends since they seemed so incredibly different.  They had decided to make an event of it and had invited Key and Taemin along as well.  While Onew was anxious about Jonghyun meeting Minho for the first time, he was really excited too.  He could see Jonghyun and Minho really hitting it off well.  They surprisingly had a lot in common and since he was the connecting link between them he really hoped they would both try.  They were two of the most important people to him and it would mean a lot to Onew if they got along well.  He had high hopes for the evening.  Jonghyun knew how much Minho meant to him and he trusted his best friend not to do anything too stupid and likewise Minho knew how important Jonghyun was to Onew and would do anything in his power to see that the two of them hit it off. 

When they arrived Onew was happy to see Key and Taemin already seated at a table and chatting happily as they waited for the others. 

“Hey guys!” Onew greeted them both with excitement. 

“Hey Onew hyung,” Taemin called happily.

“Hey what about me?” Minho asked, spending a playful glare at his younger brother.

“I saw you like an hour ago Minho hyung,” Taemin replied with an eye roll.

“Still,” Minho muttered. 

“I’m going to go to the bathroom.  If your friend gets here before I get back just order me my usual,” Taemin said to Onew, giving him a friendly pat on the back as he walked away. 

“How do you know what his usual is?” Minho asked; his eyebrow rose in question.

“We used to come here after tutoring sometimes,” Onew replied lightly, gesturing for Minho to sit next to Key before settling in the seat next to his boyfriend.  He knew Jonghyun probably wouldn’t notice or care but he still wanted to leave the seat next to himself open for said best friend since Jonghyun didn’t know anyone here, well, besides Key.  But they were hardly friendly with one another and Onew didn’t want to have to worry about them trying to stab each other with their forks or something. 

He didn’t have much time to worry about it though as Jonghyun strolled into the restaurant merely minutes after themselves.

“You’re late,” Key said, glaring at him in annoyance. 

“By like four minutes.  Calm down,” Jonghyun replied, not missing a beat. 

Key opened his mouth, all ready with a biting retort but Onew interjected quickly with a sharp, “Guys,” half in annoyance and half a warning to both of them.  It was his day and he wasn’t about to let either of them ruin it by starting a bickering match over absolutely nothing. 

“Hey hyung!  And this is obviously Minho.  Nice to meet you,” Jonghyun said happily, ignoring Key entirely. 

“Likewise,” Minho said rather stiffly.

“Hyung, I’m disappointed in you.  Really.  You two have been official for what?  A month now?  And I am just now meeting your little stud muffin?” Jonghyun said casually, smirking slightly as he settled down in his chair.

“God Jong, just— shut up,” Onew groaned, ears tipped pink at Jonghyun’s oh-so eloquent nickname for Minho.  Was Jonghyun really going to do this to him?  He knew Jonghyun lived to annoy him but this might be pushing the bounds of their friendship.   

Kibum snickered on the sidelines and even Minho bit back a smile at Onew’s embarrassment.  He really was too easy to get upset. 

“So Jonghyun, Onew tells me you are quite popular in the music department?” Minho said politely.

“Oh, I see what you did there.  Subject change.  Okay then.  Yeah, I guess you can say that.  Your boyfriend has quite a set of pipes himself though.  Have you ever heard him sing?  Probably not, he is a bit shy about his voice.  He used to play the saxophone too!  He was really good.  But I’m sure he has already shown you just how good he is at circular breathing—“ Jonghyun’s sentence cut off by a punch to the arm by he best friend.

“Kim Jonghyun I will kill everything that you love,” Onew hissed as venomously as possible, his eyes narrowed into angry slits.  He didn’t even have a chance to get fully embarrassed because he was so annoyed.  How could Jonghyun say something like that?  He knew how important this dinner was to Onew and yet he was still doing everything in his power to ruin it; they hadn’t even ordered drinks yet and he was already making ual related jokes.

“Should I know what he is talking about?” Minho whispered to Onew, his eyes filled with confusion.

“Don’t listen to anything he says.  He’s an ,” Onew replied, sending a pointed glare at the seat next to him.  Minho still seemed at bit confused by the tangible hostility going on between the two but said nothing more, merely wrapping an arm loosely around Onew’s waist, thumbing at the older boy’s hipbone through the thick fabric of his hoodie. 

“Aww hyung, you know I’m just joking!” Jonghyun said, his bottom lip jutting out in an exaggerated pout.

“Just— stop.  I hate you so much right now,” Onew shot back; visibly anxious.  Why couldn’t Jonghyun understand how important this all was to him?  For one day, just one, he wanted everything to go well.  That meant no references from Jonghyun.  Why was that so difficult?

“What did I miss?”

All eyes shot up as Taemin approached the table, effectively breaking the tense silence that had enveloped the three.

“Oh Jinki hyung and his friend were just fighting.  Sit down, I’m sure they will start round two here in a few minutes,” Kibum said casually. 

Taemin looked around, a bit confused by Kibum’s words but he settled down in the only empty seat between Kibum and Jonghyun. 

“So you must be Jonghyun.  It’s really nice to finally meet you; Jinki hyung has told us so much about you already,” Taemin explained warmly, offering Jonghyun an inviting smile.  However, the older boy said nothing in response, simply staring rather stupidly at the youngest of the group. 

“Ummm Jong?” Onew asked, prodding the younger with a finger to the chest; his annoyance falling away slowly as a spark of worry bubbled up inside of him.  What was wrong with Jonghyun?  He was actually turning a bit pale and looked like he might pass out any second.   

Onew gripped his shoulder, giving Jonghyun a good solid shake, effectively jolting the younger out of his catatonic state, a rather unbecoming garble of what Onew assumed were meant to be words spewing from his mouth too fast for anyone to understand.  It could only be assumed that his ‘words’ were directed at Taemin since he had yet to tear his eyes away from the younger.

Kibum let out a bark of laughter, obviously enjoying the secondhand embarrassment a little too much while Minho simply stared in confusion.  Clearly, Jonghyun was not making a good first impression on his boyfriend. 

“I’m sorry but, what?” Taemin asked, obviously fighting back a smile at the absolute spectacle Jonghyun was making of himself. 

“I said, you’re so beautiful,” Jonghyun repeating, actually having the decency to look somewhat embarrassed.  Or maybe he was trying to look alluring, Onew could never quite tell. 

“Oh.  Umm, thank you?” Taemin responded, shooting a confused look in Onew’s direction. 

“Will you go out with me?” Jonghyun pressed, flashing a bright smile as he leaned forward, completely invading Taemin’s personal space.

“Jong, what are you doing?” Onew hissed, unsure what his supposed-best friend was thinking because this, this was new. 

“Shut up hyung, I’m kind of busy,” Jonghyun muttered in his direction, his eyes never leaving Taemin.

“Jong this is Taemin.  Tae-min.  Minho’s little brother.  I have told you about him before.  Little. Brother,” Onew infomed him quickly.

“I’m not deaf hyung,” Jonghyun replied, tearing his eyes away long enough to send a reproachful look at Onew before immediately turning back to Taemin.  “So, Taemin, about that date…”

“Umm Jonghyun hyung, I am umm, flattered and all, but I actually like girls.  So… sorry?” Taemin seemed to be fighting back laughter at this point. 

“What a coincidence!  I do too!  See we already have something in common!” Jonghyun responded excitedly. 

“Oh dear god,” Onew muttered, his voice drowned out by Key’s obnoxious laughter at this point.  He chanced a glance in his boyfriend’s direction, gulping nervously at Minho’s stony expression.  Onew reached his hand out slowly as if he were approaching a skittish animal, his fingers lightly trailing along Minho’s arm, taking note of the obvious rigidity of his stature. 

He could hear Taemin trying to explain to Jonghyun why he wasn’t interested in dating another male but Onew was more focused on Minho, and the overflow of emotion he was obviously trying to keep hidden. 

“Minho?  Baby?” Onew called softly, feeling rather anxious about the whole situation now. 

“Hyung,” Minho’s voice was tight, as if it took all his mental strength to keep his tone level.  “How much do you like Jonghyun?”

“Umm today or in general?” Onew asked with a nervous laugh.

Minho’s glare told him that this wasn’t something to be joked about just yet.

“Very much.  I would be really put out if you hurt him,” Onew responded, faking a smile to try to cool off Minho’s tempter a bit.

“Then I think we should leave,” Minho replied simply, shooting a glare at Jonghyun once again.

“Minho—“

“You should get him out of here hyung,” Key remarked, still chuckling a bit but much more in control of himself now.

“But dinner—“

“Seriously, just go.  I’ll deal with lover boy over here so don’t worry,” Key replied, directing his words more towards Minho than Onew this time.   

Minho seemed to accept this because before Onew could object again he found himself being pulled towards the door, waving a bit helplessly towards the others on the way out.

Onew trailed after an obviously fuming Minho, a little bit at a loss as to what to do.  He had never seen Minho so livid before.  At his worst was when he was yelling at the television during a sports event.  So this, this was different.  Onew rather meekly reached for Minho’s hand, breathing a sigh of relief when he wasn’t rejected but instead Minho clasped onto his, squeezing his fingers a bit harder than necessary but Onew didn’t mention it. 

“Sorry hyung,” Minho muttered.

“It’s okay.  I’m sorry too,” Onew said softly.

“I know how important today was to you.  I know you really wanted Jonghyun and I to get along or whatever but—“

“It’s okay Minho.  I didn’t really expect that either,” Onew interjected, shaking his head lighting in confusion at Jonghyun’s actions. 

“I just— you know how I get about Taemin,” Minho said, turning to look at Onew for the first time.

“I know.  Jonghyun isn’t normally like that.  He really does like girls so I have no idea what he is thinking.  He might just be out to ruin my life actually.  That is really all I can think of.  But regardless, I really don’t know what came over him but I’m sure he will snap out—”

“Hyung just stop.  I don’t want to talk about this right now.  I just had to watch your supposed straight best friend make a pass at my baby brother and I just really don’t want to deal with that right now,” Minho said, jaw clinched tightly in anger still.
 

“Minho-ah, thanks for not hitting him,” Onew added with a soft smile, pressing himself closer to the younger, wrapping his arms loosely around his neck.

“It’s only because it’s you,” Minho conceded, arms winding comfortably around Onew’s middle.

“Well still, thank you.  He would have deserved it but I think I am supposed to care about him or something,” Onew responded.

“Do I get a reward for being so good?” Minho joked, the tension slowly leaving him as they talked.

“Hmmm maybe,” Onew said thoughtfully, rolling his weight up onto his toes to give Minho a quick peck on the lips.

“That’s all I get?” the younger fake-pouted.

Onew chuckled, letting his fingers tangle in Minho’s thick tresses as he leaned in again, taking his time.

So maybe Minho and Jonghyun were never going to get along.  Not after that little stunt.  But he still had his best friend and his boyfriend and that would just have to be enough.  Well, his best friend was now a term that might be up in the air because even Jonghyun knew better than to act like that.  But at the same time he knew there would be a text message waiting for him on his phone, Jonghyun somehow finding just the right words to make everything better. 

Regardless, he knew he had people who cared about him.  And really, he figured it was more than enough as Minho pulled him close, his arms wrapped lovingly and protectively around his waist.  He would deal with the mess Jonghyun had decided to make later.  For now, he was content being in the arms of the boy that he was a little bit in love with.  Because really, what else mattered?

And that my dears is why there was no Jongkey.  Because Jongtae with a side of over-protective older brother Minho was far too perfect to pass up.  And Jonghyun's 'what a coinscidence, I like girls too' comment is my favorite.  Well, that and the circular breathing thing.  Laughed about that one for days when I was writing but whatever. 

I feel like the a/n should be better simply because it is the end and stuff.

But then again we still have the chapter.

So I guess we will wait until then for a semi official wrap up.

Well anyway... if you don't like that I guess this is goodbye and thanks for reading.

<3

New beta <3