Taemin stared at the ceiling as he laid back and gently swung his feet back and forth off the side of the bed.

Closing his eyes, he sighed as he attempted to sort his scrambled thoughts.

‘I should do it.’ Taemin thought confidently, ‘I should be brave and finally tell him how I feel. No more shy love struck Taemin. He deserves to kno-’

Taemin felt his foot kick something and his eyes immediately flew open.

“Are you feeling alright, Tae?”

Suddenly, all confidence left him and his heart fluttered faintly as he recognized the deep velvet voice that filled the room. Taemin felt the bed dip as the cause of his troubles lied down next to him.

“Yeah, I’m okay...” Taemin mumbled meekly, keeping his eyes glued to the ceiling.

Minho frowned and his side to face the maknae, “…Are you mad at me? Did I do something wrong?”

“No! Of course not! I could never be mad at you, hyung!” Taemin quickly sputtered, sitting up immediately with big doe eyes.

Minho chuckled and rolled onto his back, crossing his arms under his head.

“That’s good. You wouldn’t look at me and I was worried that I made you angry or sad in some way.”

Blushing slightly, Taemin slowly crossed his legs pretzel-style and stared at his hands.

“Never…” he whispered softly.

A smile tugged at Minho’s lips as he noticed the serious look on Taemin’s face and his heart fluttered a bit. Nothing made Minho feel this way except one person. This person. Fans could say the same things about him and he wouldn’t feel a thing. But…this gorgeous, sweet, bouncy, adorable boy could make even the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end and his face blush like a smitten schoolgirl.

Minho longed to know what those soft pink lips tasted like… what it felt like to have that boy fall asleep in his arms… what it sounded like to hear him say his name as a lover… if only he had the courage to speak up and tell him these things. The curiosity slowly ate away at Minho all the time, like how vines slowly kill a small sapling as it cuts off all access to energy

Taemin’s sad brown eyes glanced up toward Minho and he ruffled his hair awkwardly, trying to think of something to say.

“So…what are you doing all here by yourself? The pizza should be ready soon, was Onew really all that bad of company?” he laughed quietly.

Taemin chuckled softly and smiled as he kept his gaze on his hands.

“No, hyung was good company… I was just… sorting my thoughts, I guess.”

“Ah, I see.” Minho lied back again, looking at the ceiling. ‘He probably doesn’t want to talk about it, so I guess I shouldn’t press him about it…’ he thought.

“Well, take a break, Tae. It looks like it’s really racking your brain.”

“I can’t.”

Minho lifted his head slightly, curious at the younger’s response.

“Why?”

Taemin frowned and scratched his head uncomfortably with a sigh. “Umm... well, I’ve tried. Not thinking about it, I mean. But… no matter what I do, it just takes over my thoughts and I can’t think about anything else. It’s gotten worse these days… I know I should get it taken care of but… it’s not as easy as just… doing it. You know?” Taemin looks up at Minho, his chest tight and his stomach churning mercilessly.

Sitting up against the wall, Minho bites his lip thoughtfully. “Hm. If you don’t mind me asking… What is it that’s bothering you?”

As his heart suddenly running at a fatally fast pace, Taemin’s eyes became wide and a slight blush appeared on his face.

‘He’s so cute when he’s flustered…’ Minho struggled to keep a smile from spreading across his face, “God damn it. Focus, Minho.’

Taemin swallowed nervously and tried his best to hide anxiety. “I…I…umm…I-”

“Hey… Tae, you don’t have to force yourself. If…you don’t want me to know, that’s perfectly fine. I’ll be here to talk whenever you want. You don’t have to tell me anything, okay?” Minho gave a reassuring smile.

“It’s just… I want to tell you! I want to spill everything! I…I just…” Taemin sighed frustrated his eyes glossy, “I want to-”

Taemin choked on his words as Minho inched his way across the bed and pulled him into his arms, hugging him gently.

“Shh… Just stop talking for a bit. Just… take a break, okay? Whatever it is, it can wait. It’s not worth getting you upset, Tae.” Minho said quietly, running his fingers through the younger’s hair.

The blonde sniffled a bit and buried his face into Minho’s chest, wrapping his arms around the rapper. His hyung always knew what to say, how to say it, and when to say it. Minho always made him happy and a better person. He could make Taemin smile when he doesn’t want to, make his heart run circles with his laugh, and wipe away his tears as easy as breathing.

‘But hyung, you’re worth every tear..’

--

*Beep beep beep beep*

Onew quickly rose from the couch and hurried over to noisy oven to turn off the timer, leaving his book to fall on the floor. He flinched away and squinted his eyes as hot air blew in his face when he opened the door to take the pizza out. Placing it on the counter, he looked over at the noisy couple on the couch.

Laying on his back, Jonghyun was talking and poking at Key who laid comfortably on the elder’s chest, laughing and swatting the elder’s hand away. Onew smiled and gazed at his friends, sighing with content.

“Good job, self. You did good.”

Key picked up his head and gave Onew a snarky look. “What was that, hyung?” he drawled.

Onew smirked and gestured toward the counter mischievously. “The pizza. I did good.”

“Sure you did.” Key rolled his eyes with a sigh.

“Pizza’s done? Woop woop! I’m hungry!” Jonghyun quickly pushed himself up and off the couch towards the kitchen causing Key to abruptly plummet to the floor.

As Key’s slowly rose to his feet, Onew bit back a laugh and gave Jonghyun a sympathetic look.

“Choosing pizza over your boyfriend? It looks like you’re not even getting the doghouse tonight, Jonghyun.”

“Whad ad bo?” Jonghyun asked as he munched with a face full of pepperoni.

Key rolled his eyes dramatically and huffed as his headed to the idol’s shared bedroom. “Whatever. I’ll go get Taemin and the frog for supper.”

Onew’s face dropped and quickly grabbed Key’s arm, pulling him back to the table.

“Youuuu… should stay and eat some pizza! Eat your fill! You know how much of a food Minho is,” he nodded energetically handing the diva a plate full of pizza.

Key raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms, giving his hyung the diva look. “What did you do?

Jonghyun swallowed his pizza and headed toward the fridge for some milk, “Knowing him, he probably meddled,” he commented as he dug through the fridge. “Are we out of milk?”

Onew laughed heartily and poked the rapper’s nose playfully, “Me? Meddle? Never~”

Sighing, Key stood up and stalked toward the door. “He’d better not be my baby… Minho! Taemin! Supper’s ready!”

Peeking open the door, Key’s eyes widened at the sight of Taemin limply dozing in Minho’s lap, his head resting on the elder’s shoulder. Minho was gently rubbing circles into the boy’s back and looked up at Key with a sigh.

“What happened?” Key mouthed silently.

“Phone. Go look at it.” Minho mouthed back. Key slowly backed out of the room quietly but stopped when he heard his fellow rapper whisper-yell “Wait!”

Peeking his head back into the room, Key gave him an annoyed expression, with wide eyes that basically screamed “What?!”

Minho grinned and opened his mouth widely, clacking his teeth twice. Rolling his eyes, Key quietly headed back to the kitchen, leaving the door open. Jonghyun opened his mouth to say something but Key raised a finger to his lips, shushing his boyfriend before grabbing a plate of pizza and going back to the bedroom. Placing the plate on the bed next to the idols, Minho grinned cheekily while the diva stuck out his tongue in annoyance as he shut the door.

As Key headed back to the kitchen, he pulled out his phone to find a text message from the frog. He sat down at the table and grabbed a piece of pizza and slowly munched on it as he read.

“Why did you shush me?” Jonghyun pouted with his cheeks full of pizza. “And why did you take most of the pizza? I’m still hungry…..”

“Taemin fell asleep and Minho was hungry.” Key stated simply as he shut his phone and slipped it into his pocket.

“Why couldn’t Minho get his own pizza?” Jonghyun asked as he reached for the last piece of pizza. Onew quickly slapped his hand and took a huge bite of it with a grin.

“Hey, mutt, that’s mine.”

Key rolled his eyes at the two elders and sighed. “Because Taemin was upset over something and Minho’s plan to calm him down ended up with Tae falling asleep in his lap. And don’t get your in a bunch, I’ll make some more pizza.” He stood up and walked over to the freezer, pulling out the drawer causing cold air to blow in his face.

Onew frowned and plopped down in a chair. “Well. That didn’t work out as planned.”

Stopping suddenly, Key shut the freezer door violently and stood up. Even though his hair was covering most of his facial expressions, Jonghyun very well knew what was about to go down.

‘Five…Four…Three…Two… One…’ Jonghyun braced himself for the worst.

“What the did you do to make him cry?!” Key yelled angrily. Onew held up his hands in defense and flinched as the younger flamed into diva mode.

“I didn’t do anything! He seemed sad so I asked him what was up and he said you two being together and happy made him want to confess to Minho!” he spoke loudly and covered his face with his plate, “Don’t hurt me!”

Key’s face slowly went from a distorted expression of anger to and blank stare of confusion.

“Wait. So he actually… likes the frog?” Key asked breathlessly.

“Yes,” Onew squeaked as he retreated to behind the couch.

A huge grin appeared on Jonghyun’s face and he punched the air in victory, dancing around.

“Ha! Haaaa! I knew it! Eli owes me $50! Bahaha! Now if they actually get together, he owes me another $30! Yes!” Jonghyun danced with glee.

“Shhhhh!!” Onew warned from the couch, “Minho might hear you guys! Remember, Taemin wants to confess on his own. Don’t ruin it for him.”

“Says the idiot that just yelled out Taemin’s confession a few seconds ago,” Key scoffed.

“Oh…,” Onew muttered.

The room went silent for a few seconds, the idols scared that a certain frog heard them amidst the yelling.

“Hee hee hee I’m gonna get money,” Jonghyun chuckled happily.

“I hope you know that money is going toward my IOU,” Key stated.

“…Keeeeeyyy….”

“I love you too.”

--

“Hey.. Taemin...”

Taemin’s eyes fluttered but they felt too heavy to open.

“Tae… Are you hungry?”

Rubbing his eyes, Taemin tried again to open his eyes. Why are his eyes wet?

He felt another hand brush his hair away from his face and rub his shoulder.

“Tae? Hey… wake up.”

That voice… Oh no he didn’t.Taemin fluttered his eyes open to find himself sitting in the arms of no one other that Minho himself.

“Hm?” the younger yawned and looked up at Minho, keeping his head propped up against his shoulder.

“Are you hungry? Key brought pizza in. Here.” Handing over the plate of pizza, the elder offered what was left of supper.

“Thanks..” Taemin sat up and took a piece of pizza, eating it drowsily.

“…Do you feel better now?” Minho asked warily, the last thing he wanted was the younger to burst into tears again.

“Yeah…” The dancer mumbled as he munched his eyes drooped, half lidded.

‘Is he still sleeping?’ Minho chuckled at the half asleep teen on his lap, quietly eating his pizza.

“Hey, Tae. Are you even awake?”

“Yeah…”

Minho smirked mischievously.

“Hey, Tae. We’re moving to Singapore. That’s okay with you, right?

“Yeah…”

“For our next comeback, coori-noona wanted to dye your hair like Luhan’s. Is that okay?”

“Yeah…”

“Oh yeah, and you have to put on your ‘My First Kiss’ clothes for our next fan signing, do you approve?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s what I thought.” Minho chuckled and ran his fingers through Taemin’s blond hair. “What am I going to do with you…?”

Taemin leaned back on Minho’s shoulder and closed his eyes sleepily.

“Goodnight, Minho hyung…”

Minho laughed, “No no no, it’s not even 8:30 yet! You had your nap, stay up with me. Please?”

Taemin grumbled, “But I’m tired.”

“Oh, so you’re awake now?” Minho chuckled and poked the younger’s nose.

“Kinda,” Taemin smiled tiredly.

“Do…you feel any better?” Minho scratched his head awkwardly. ‘I wish I knew what was bothering him so I could help…’

The younger paused for a second and sadly smiled. “A little. Thanks, hyung.”

Minho smiled and squeezed his shoulder in encouragement, “Whenever you need to talk, I’m here, okay?”

Taemin forced a smile and nodded, “Of course, hyung. Thank you.”

“So… Are you still hungry? Do want more pizza?” Minho asked, trying to lighten the mood.

“Sure, hyung. Is there anymore left…?” Taemin bit his lip. Minho scooted Taemin off of his lap and made his way to the door, “Let me go check! Be right back.”

“Hey, Key! Is there anymore pizza? Taemin’s still hung-”

“Jonghyun! Stop being a pig! You ate half of the first pizza, leave some of the second one for the rest of us!” Key protested, climbing on the chair as he reached over the counter.

“I’m a growing man, so let the man eat his cheesy goodness!” Jonghyun retorted, another piece of pizza in hand, trapped between the cupboard and an angry Key.

“If the growing man wants to keep his fingers, he’d better put it back before I bite them off!”

Onew laughed and turned toward the rapper, “Hey, Taemin’s awake I’m guessing? Here, take my piece. I don’t think you’ll be getting one from these two idiots,” he chuckled.

“I don’t even want to know,” Minho grinned, taking the piece of cheese pizza from the elder, “Thanks hyung. And… good luck with that.”

Turning back to the room, Minho saw through the crack in the door that Taemin never moved from his spot on the bed. He seemed to be talking to himself…

Getting closer to the door, the rapper peeked through the door, opening it a little more so he could hear over the yelling in the kitchen.

Taemin’s eyes looked sad and lost. He was playing with his hands and pulling at his shirt.

‘He looks really nervous… I wonder if this has got something to do with what happened before…’ he thought.

Taemin wiped his eyes and sniffed a bit, looking for the right words to say.

“I should have told you, because you have the right to know.. But I’m scared to. I know that you wouldn't ever hurt me and that I shouldn’t be worrying about this… but.. I am. So.. Minho hyung…is it okay…” the younger whispered,

“Is it okay if I love you?”

---

Okay guys. Today one year ago, I posted this story and started the love adventure with the SHINee boys. 19 chapters later and I'm still writing, and it's all thanks to you guys. Without you all, I wouldn't have the inspiration to write and keep this fic going, I love each and every one of you. Please keep supporting me in the future ♥

I also edited the poster for this story, do you like it? It's not all that different but I looks a lot cleaner :) Also, a nine page update! That's for you guys waiting for me since March to update... I'm so sorry T^T But this fic is almost over, and hopefully I'll finish it up in the next couple of chapters and get them posted before the end of summer. Thank you guys so much for being in my AFF family. I love you sweeties! ♥♥♥