Taemin stood frozen in shock.  He wasn’t expecting that!  His eyes widened as Minho’s question sank in, and he was screaming on the inside.  He asked me out!  Minho asked me out!  He likes me!  No…no, it’s Taeyeon he likes, he corrected himself.  I’m not Taeyeon, I’m Taemin.  Taeyeon doesn’t exist.  He wouldn’t like me if he knew that, right?

“Um…I-I…”  His face was bright red.  He was very thankful that the bell chose to ring at that moment.  “Can I answer you later?  We’re late to class.”  He turned around and hurried to class, trying to hide his blushing face with his hands.

Minho stood there feeling a bit discouraged.  It wasn’t a yes, but it wasn’t a no either, right?  So he wouldn’t give up hope just yet.  He would wait for Taeyeon’s answer.

After school Taemin managed to continue avoiding Minho.  He hadn’t had enough time to think it over yet, so he wanted to put off having to answer for just a bit longer.  “I’m going somewhere with Onew-oppa and I’m in a hurry.  See you tomorrow!”  He waved and ran out of the school, only slowing down when he passed through the gate and out of sight.

You’re running away, he told himself.  He felt ashamed, but he really did need to think this over a lot more before he could answer.

When Taemin got home, he fell onto his bed and stared up at the ceiling.  He was really in a predicament now.  He felt the guilt eating at him inside.  Why did he have to go through with this stupid idea?  He felt so guilty for tricking Minho into thinking he was a girl.  Now Minho had fallen for the girl, and was asking her out.  The only problem was that the girl was really a guy, and now it was confirmed that Minho really was straight.

Wasn’t this what Taemin always wanted, to be asked out by the guy he liked?  Of course it was!  But I still haven’t been.  He’s asking Taeyeon out, not Taemin.  He sighed.  Should I reveal myself?  He felt tears gathering in his eyes.  He’d be disgusted by me, wouldn’t he?  He’d definitely take back that question if he knew I was a guy.

Taemin flipped over onto his stomach and stuffed his face in his pillow to muffle the sobs.  It hurts.  It hurts so much…  He’d dug a hole for himself and then jumped right into it.  Now he was realizing just how deep that hole had become.  He felt that there was no way he could climb out of that hole without ruining his closeness with Minho, his friendship he had worked so hard to build.

Taemin didn’t know how long he cried, but it felt like years.  When his tears finally dried he sat up in his bed, ignoring the headache caused by the tears, and he took a deep breath to calm himself down.  “I’ll just have to keep up the act a bit longer,” he decided.  He went into the bathroom and washed his face.  As he stared at the mirror, water dripping from the tip of his nose, he thought the reflection staring back at him looked pitiful.  He dried his face and glared back at it, determination now in his eyes.

“This is the only chance I have to stay close to Minho,” he told himself.  The only chance to possibly get a kiss, too!  I know it’s terrible to lie to him like this.  I hate it.  He frowned.  But this is the only chance I’ve got, and I’m not gonna screw it up.

He assured himself that he would tell Minho the truth someday.  He would have to.  Besides, he would find out someday anyway, and it would be better if he heard it from Taemin rather than discovering it himself.  I’ll tell him someday.  Just not yet.

The next day, Taemin didn’t see Minho until lunch, at which point he was anxiously awaiting ‘her’ answer.  He took a deep breath to prepare himself, then nervously approached Minho, his cheeks tinged lightly with pink.  “Minho, about yesterday…”  He looked into the older boy’s eyes and his heart skipped a beat.  He looks so hopeful.  I definitely can’t reject him now.  “Yes.  I will…g-go out with you,” he stammered, embarrassed.

Minho grinned and his eyes sparkled with joy.  “Really?”  He looked like he might start spinning around in circles and laughing hysterically.  Does he really like Taeyeon that much?  Taemin felt the guilt returning, but it was immediately wiped away when Minho grabbed his face and planted his lips on Taemin’s, kissing him for the first time.

Taemin’s eyes widened.  Uwaaah…he’s kissing me!  He practically melted.  This was what he had been dreaming of for so long!  He was in heaven.  My first kiss.  I’ve always wanted Minho to have it.  He was screaming happily on the inside, and he felt like he was floating on clouds.

Both of them had apparently forgotten Jonghyun and Key standing right there next to them.  Key cleared his throat loudly.  Minho broke the kiss and avoided Key’s gaze, embarrassed.  Key grinned.  “Congratulations.”  He hugged Taemin with one arm.  Minho glared at him and he backed off.  Omo, was he jealous?

Minho grabbed Taemin’s hand and walked to their usual lunch table, pulling his new ‘girlfriend’ with him.  Both of their faces were bright red, and because Minho held Taemin’s hand all through lunch, the redness didn’t fade until they separated again for their next class.

After that day, Taemin and Minho spent even more time together.  They spent every possible hour of every day together.  They were always seen together at lunch and after school, and on weekends they were inseparable.  Even Onew, Jonghyun, and Key couldn’t separate them.  They gave up trying to go anywhere with just one of the pair.  Wherever one went, the other insisted on tagging along.

Taemin was the happiest he had ever been in his life, but the relationship soon turned bittersweet.  He was ashamed of himself for lying to his boyfriend for so long.  The guilt was eating away at his heart.  It occurred to him that if Minho really fell for Taeyeon, then when he revealed himself as Taemin, it would really hurt the older boy.  That realization made Taemin feel sick.  The last thing he wanted to do was hurt Minho.  He couldn’t bear that thought.

He confided in Key one day, about a month into his and Minho’s relationship.  He told him what was bothering him, and why he was so worried and upset.  “It’s okay,” Key comforted him, pulling him into a hug.  “It’ll be alright.”

“How do you know?” Taemin asked, biting back tears, refusing to let them fall.

“I’m the almighty Key, I just know things.”  This answer made the younger boy giggle, proving Key’s plan successful.

Minho chose a bad moment to approach them, and he paused when he saw Key hugging his ‘girlfriend’.  Jealousy boiled up inside him.  Why couldn’t Tae confide in him?  He was her boyfriend, right?  Couldn’t he comfort her?  He clenched his fists.  Did she not love him back like he’d grown to love – yes, LOVE – her?  He stormed over to them and yanked Taemin out of Key’s embrace, pulling ‘her’ into a tight hug.  He glared at Key over Taemin’s shoulder.  “This is my girlfriend,” he growled at his friend.  ”Why don’t you go hug your own boyfriend instead, Key?”

Taemin blinked in surprise.  Was Minho jealous?  His heart felt like it was full of tiny butterflies fluttering around in his chest.  Did he like ‘her’ that much?  It made him feel a bit guiltier, yet happy at the same time.