It was one voice that silenced all the others, bringing temporary order.

                “It was me!” Someone yelled.

                Through his blurry eyes, Taemin looked up, trying to find the source. His glance landed on Jongin as the boy came closer, kneeling down beside him. “It was me. I was the person you saw Mrs. Choi.”

                Closing his eyes, the younger boy leaned in, stealing a slow kiss. Pulling back, he dried Taemin’s cheeks with his sleeve because seeing the boy cry was too much. Looking back to the shocked adults, he clarified for the final time, “It was me. I’m dating Taemin.”

                “I knew it couldn’t have been my son…” Minho’s mother whispered under her breath.

                “That’s not true!” Another voice yelled, stomping over to join the two younger boys. “That doesn’t prove anything!“ Minho was outraged with how his mother was acting, judging his fiancé, the person he was going to spend the rest of his life with. “It was me! It wasn’t Jongin!”

                He took Taemin by the arm and lifted him to his level, forcing him to stand up.

                “Well it couldn’t have been both of you! Just admit it! Who was with Taemin?!”

                “Aunty, Uncle,” Jongin began, facing Taemin’s parents, “I’m sorry, but I’ve been in love with your son since the first time you had to leave the countryside to go back to Seoul. And I’m sorry mom and dad, I’ll never bring a girl home and you won’t have any biological grandchildren, but… I don’t know, I’m happy being with him.”

                “What is this? You’re not the one dating him, Jongin! Stop playing hero!” Minho yelled.

                Now a whole new argument sprouted between Jongin and Minho as the two battled over who owned Taemin’s heart. The blonde kept quiet not wanting to get anyone in trouble.

                Upset, Minho ran and got his phone, bringing it back with a picture of him and Taemin kissing on the screen. “This! Look! I’m in a relationship with Taemin! I have been for a year!”

                Copying him, Jongin also showed a photo, one from a few days ago when they were in bed together, cuddling due to the cold.

                “Are you sleeping with both of them?!” Minho’s mother screamed in tears.

                Although she was furious beyond belief, the other mothers seemed to be trying to understand the situation, the fathers’ thoughts completely tangled and undecided.

                Taemin’s mother shooed his father as well as the other men out of the room, taking Taemin into her arms. This was a huge life changing event for both of them, but she still wanted to protect him from the cruel world.

                Finally daring to look into someone’s eyes, Taemin felt completely broken. “Mom… I’m so sorry…” He cried into her shoulder, holding onto her tightly. “I didn’t want you to find out like this…”

                “It’s okay sweetheart, it’s okay. Listen, don’t cry. You don’t need to cry, it’s okay…”

                “But mom… you’re crying too…”

                “They’re tears of love.”

Meanwhile, Jongin’s mom also approached him, staring directly into his eyes. “Is what you said true, Jongin? Are you in love with Taemin-ah?”

                Jongin nodded sadly, hands straight at his sides.

                “Well then… I guess I have no choice but to accept it, now do I?”

                She offered him a warm smile which he accepted and returned, squeezing her palm in his.

                Although Mrs. Choi was nowhere near settled, they managed to get everyone together at the table where the boy’s promised to properly explain themselves and get everything out.

                Each boy sat beside his parents, as scared as they could ever remember being.

                “So where do we start?” Taemin’s mother asked, trying to lighten the mood with her gentle tone.

                “I’ll go… I guess I started all of this…” The blonde offered.

                “Of course you did…” Minho’s mother grumbled, receiving a sad warning from her son.

                “Alright… so I met Minho over a year ago and I didn’t know I was gay… but I guess I am because I… I fell in love with him and on Christmas… um…” Stumbling, Taemin wondered what to say in order to not rile up the already upset audience..

                “I kissed him on Christmas on our back porch, mom. I kissed him and told him I wanted to be with him.” Minho finished, “We’ve been dating since then and I’ve never been happier.”

                “Jongin…” His father spoke up, “I still don’t understand how you fit into this.”

                “A-ah… right… well the last time Taemin came to visit with Minho, I told him I liked him and really… that was the reason I wanted to come live here… Although me and him aren’t together, I’ve also never been happier. I think that… when Taemin is in someone’s life… it always changes for the better. I won’t stop fighting for his heart though. I won’t be content until he looks at me… the same way he looks at Minho.”

                There was a silence before Taemin added “That’s all there is to it.”

                Everyone thought although they didn’t know what to think about.

                “Are you happy?”

                “Who?”

                “All three of you, are you happy?” The blonde’s mother asked.

                “It’s bittersweet for me…” Jongin honestly answered.

                Taemin’s and Minho’s eyes met and the elder’s hand slid across the table to hold the blonde’s, their fingers interlocking. “I’m happy.” He stated.

                “I’m happy too.” Taemin agreed.

                “Kitten?”

                “Yes?”

                “You wanted to tell them, right? So let’s tell them now.”

                “Everything?”

                “Yes, there’s no point in hiding this if we’re explaining ourselves. Do you mind if I say it?”

                Hesitant, Taemin nodded. “Go ahead…”

                “Mom, dad,” Minho began, looking towards his parents and then to Taemin’s, “Taemin and I are getting married. I proposed yesterday and he said yes.”

                Somehow, the most unexpected reaction didn’t come from one of the adults, but rather one of the boys when Jongin stared at them dumbfounded. “What? Taemin… what?

                “Jongin… we’re getting married… We weren’t hiding it, I promise, this just happened yesterday!”

                “What the hell?! Why?! I can’t believe you!”

                He shot up, his chair falling over as he ran out of the house.

                “Jongin!” Taemin yelled after him, trying to get up only to be stopped by Minho.

                “Don’t. He’ll come back.”

                “I don’t want a repeat of last time! I want him to come home! This is where he belongs!” The blonde yelled, charging out.

                Minho didn’t try to stop him a second time.

                Unlike Jongin, Taemin managed to grab his coat along with the younger boy’s before leaving.

                Drastically searching for him, he found Jongin no further than outside the lobby, dashing down an alley.

                “Jongin, wait!”

                Jongin suddenly spun around, grabbing Taemin by the cheeks and taking the roughest kiss Taemin had every experienced from the boy’s lips.

                “No! You wait! Stop… stop moving on in life without me!”

                “Jongin, I don’t understand what you want from me! I just want to be happy! Like, I’m sorry I love Minho! I’m sorry I want to spend forever with him, but I can’t change that!”

                Taemin was pushed against the wall, the coats falling out of his hands.

                “You know how long I’ve been wishing that one of you screws up in your relationship? I don’t care who it is! I pray every day that you can break up, even if it’s only for a few days, so I can be your boyfriend! You think I don’t want to marry you?! You think you’re not the one that I want to spend the rest of my life with?! Couldn’t you at least have given me… I don’t know, some kind of warning?”

                “Don’t be selfish, Jongin! I won’t leave Minho! I’ve never been this happy! Why do you want to take that away from me?!”

                “Anyone would…” Jongin answered in a much calmer tone, “Have you ever seen yourself?” Taemin swallowed, watching as the younger boy’s thumb neared his cheek. “I wish I never met you, Hyung. You’re the worst thing that’s ever happened to me.”

                That hurt. That really hurt.

                “Jongin-”

                “I hate you, but I love you. I still want to kiss you and hold you and give you all my firsts… You have my first best friend, first crush, first kiss… but my first time, my first boyfriend, my first and only husband… I still want you to have those too, despite everything, I still do. But you don’t want them… It hits even harder when I look at your face, you know? I don’t love you as a person, I love you in the bits and pieces that make you up. I love your eyes, nose, lips, chin, hands, fingertips, your nails, your eyelashes. I love the way your chest gets bigger when you breath and the way your fingers wrap around a fork while you eat. I love your voice and how it sounds in the morning compared to how it sounds before you go to bed. I love your hair and how fluffy it is. I love how it bounces when you walk and sticks to your face when you come out of a shower. I love the spaces between your fingers and how I can perfectly fill them.”

                At this point, Taemin’s heart was pounding against his chest and his face was redder than a tomato. “Jongin…”

                “Taemin, I don’t want to see you ever again… I know I’ll have to at one point or another, though, but I’ll hold off on that for as long as I can. I’ll go back with my parents tomorrow and-”

                “No you can’t!” The blonde yelled, grabbing Jongin’s arms. “Why would you do that?! We moved here for all three of us! If you leave… Look, I can’t break up with Minho, but I don’t want to end our friendship either!”

                “Taemin, you can’t have both of us!”

                “Why not?!”

                “Because that’s not how it works! If I’m going to stay then… I need you as more than a friend, Hyung! There’s no other way for me to stay…”

                “Let’s talk about this at home, o-okay… ? I’m sure we can make this work somehow. We can talk about this with Minho and I’m sure we can come to some kind agreement, something that’ll make you stay…” Taemin tried, taking the younger boy’s hand and squeezing it as he began leading him back towards the lobby.

                “I don’t want to talk about it.”

                “Please, just… Jongin, you’re my best friend! Why are you doing this? You were my only friend growing up and now you’re going to let this get between us?! Do you understand how important you are to me?! Do you get how much I care?! This isn’t a joke! Why… why are you even considering this?! That’s so stupid!” Now growing upset as well, the older boy raised his fist, hitting Jongin in his chest.

                “Hyung, that hurts…”

                Regardless, Taemin kept hitting him, hoping the boy would bruise deep inside. After a few well aimed punches, Jongin placed his hand on Taemin’s head, holding the boy away at an arm’s length where he could not reach him.

                “Why are you so… so… God, Jongin! You’re nothing but trouble!”

                “Then change that!”

                “How?!”

                “Kiss me! Just kiss me, damn it!”

                A pair of hands landed on the blonde’s hips, lifting him, his back shoved against the bricks that made up the building while the younger boy’s waist found its way between his legs. Grabbing Jongin’s hair, Taemin searched for balance, feeling himself being thrown around too easily. As their eyes met in the darkness of the night, there was some unspoken conversation that went along the lines of ‘I’ll make you mine’ and ‘I dare you’.

                When Jongin swooped in for a heated kiss, his excitement got ahead of him, their foreheads smacking flat up against each other. Both of them pulled away completely, holding onto the throbbing areas as they groaned.

                “Ow!” Taemin pouted, crouching on the floor.

                “You got the better half of it!” Jongin stated, palm rubbing the growing lump, tears in his eyes.

                They shared a glare as each one tried to express their displeasure, but that soon, in that dark alley that separated two skyscrapers, turned into chuckling. “Jongin… you’re so dumb…”

                Smiling, Jongin took the elder’s hand, helping him back onto his feet. “You know this is going to be a huge bump, right? What are you going to do about that?”

                Rolling his eyes, Taemin brushed the black hair off the younger boy’s forehead, kissing it.

                “Can we go back now?” He asked, hoping the answer resembled a ‘yes’.

                “We can, Hyung. I’m sorry for… all this.”

                “I forgive you.”

                Interlocking fingers, the two made their way back home.

                “I’m sorry for causing a scene!” Jongin apologized, bowing his head deeply. “I was not informed of their engagement and it shocked me.” He then went up to Minho, taking the elder by surprise as he shook his hand firmly. “Congratulations. Unlike me, you managed to do everything right and get the person you love to love you back. I’ll try to support you two as much as I can, but I can’t promise that that’s a lot.”

                Taemin’s mother walked over, staring at him seriously. “Taemin, are you sure about getting married? I’m not saying this because it’s with another man or because of the troubles that’ll come with it. I’m saying this because you’re still so young! You’re only seventeen. Marriage is supposed to be for life and you don’t have any experience yet, you’re honestly still a little kid.”

                “Mom, I’ve never been so sure about anything else. My life was so bad-” Remembering that only a few people knew about him being bullied, he refrained from bringing that up. That’s one thing he’d never want his parents to find out. “Mom, you don’t understand how much happier I’ve been with him in my life! I just… I look at him, and it’s like every answer I’ve ever looked for is standing right in front of me…”

                “How nostalgic,” She smiled, “That exactly when I said when I introduced your father to my parents.”

                Once Minho overheard their conversation, he stepped away from his extremely disappointed parents, leaving them in tears. “I’m sorry Taemin, they’re not too happy…” He whispered in his lover’s ear. Turning to Taemin’s mom, he bowed respectfully before speaking. “I know we’ve only met a few days ago Mrs. Lee, and I know you may not believe in me, but I am confident that your son is the person I want to spend the rest of my life with. He’s everything I’ve looked for and everything I never knew I needed. If you give me the chance, I swear I will show you that I can take care of him. I’m almost done with university and I’ll be able to get a job then, I can find a way to pay for his schooling if he needs that, I can put more into the rent too! It’s just… I’m willing to do anything for him and I will never leave his side when he needs me. I’m not immature and I realise that although we both strongly disagree, this may not work out, but even then, Taemin is just too important for me to lose and I will always come back to his side as a friend.”

                “What will you do if Taemin gets drastically sick and we can’t come? What will you do if he ends up in the hospital or if he is put in danger? What happens if you two end up broke and on the street?”

                Minho had no answer. What could he give Taemin if he didn’t have anything to give?

                “W-well I mean, I have a lot of connections and I’m good at working off debts so I’d definitely get us into a comfortable place until we could find our own and-”

                “But what if you’re connections run out?”

                It was frustrating how the questions she gave him had no proper answer.

                “I’m sorry, but I love your son so much I wouldn’t let it get there. If I knew I was anything but good to and for him, I would leave and make sure he gets someone much better. I’m not superman, but I’ll use all the power I have to make sure he has a good life.”

                “And the judgemental looks you’ll get on the street? The unnecessary gossip?”

                “Ma’am, I will only go as far as Taemin wants to. If he chooses not to hold hands in public, then we won’t, if he doesn’t want me to have my arm around him, I won’t do that either. Please… you have to understand how important our relationship is to me!”

                “I perfectly understand.” She warmly replied. “Alright, as long as this doesn’t cause much trouble, I’ll allow it.” Lowering her voice to a whisper, she leaned in. “How about your parents? How are they attempting to go at this?”

                The older boy’s head dropped, Taemin’s hand instinctively reaching for his shoulder. “They hate everything about it and they won’t hear me out. My mother told me not to speak to her or bother coming home until this ‘joke’ is over. My dad said they’re leaving the moment the sun is up. My parents… they aren’t hate consumed people. They’re great… it’s just… this is something they have a strong opinion on…” He added once his crying mother ran upstairs to pack her bags. “I’m sorry Taemin, I swear I’ll talk to them about it. You’re not in the wrong.”

                Trying to change the topic, Taemin’s mother took both of their left hands, placing one on top of the other so that their rings touched. “So my baby is really getting married, huh? I’m happy. I don’t think your father feels the same but… I’ll talk to him. At least Jongin’s parents don’t seem too fazed. As for you Minho, I’m truly sorry for the situation. If it’s any better, I feel safe knowing that Taemin is in your hands.”

                “Thank you.”

                Everyone finished that night on different terms. While Jongin had both his mother and father still by his side, Taemin only had his mom, and Minho was left with no one at all.

                Although Jongin fell asleep with Taemin in his arms, the blonde later rolled over, finding his spot with Minho. It wouldn’t be long until the sun came up and the air remained still. When Taemin opened his eyes, all he could see was Minho crying. He’d never thought that seeing something could pain his so much.

                Lacing his arms around Minho’s head, he pulled the boy’s face against his chest, offering his shirt as a tissue. “Hey, let’s just say this was all a joke, Hyung. I’m sure Jongin wouldn’t mind saying it was actually him that was with me. Your mother would calm down then and everything would be better.”

                “No… I don’t want to do that… It’s just… Oh God, we both worked so hard at this… my mom loved you and she praised you… now she’s acting like this, I can’t believe her…”

                “Shh, hyung… it’s alright, I’m not upset.”

                “It’s not alright! She was so nice to you yesterday and now… she’s like this? It’s stupid, I hate it. I don’t care what she says though, because I love you and I’m going to marry you anyways. You’re going to be the most beautiful, amazing, loving husband ever, and when she sees past everything and realizes how amazing you are, she’ll regret everything she’s done tonight…”

                Taemin rolled them over, sitting on top of the older boy as he wiped his tears. “Minho, you shouldn’t have a falling out with your parents because of this. The only reason they’re being this way is because they care about you and they don’t think this is what’s best. They love you so much and that’s all that matters. I don’t care if they don’t love me. Well, I do, but the point here is, I’m not their son, and you’ll only have one mom and dad. It’s not like with me, where if it doesn’t work out, you can just get someone new. They will always be your one and only parents.”

                Minho reached up and pinched Taemin’s chin between his thumb and index finger, pulling the boy in for a kiss. “I wanted them to be your parents too…”

                “Situations like this… can be difficult… That’s why I’m saying that we can go tell them it’s a huge joke and that I’m actually dating Jongin. You shouldn’t end Christmas this way and you definitely shouldn’t start the New Year like this.”

                The elder nodded, pulling Taemin down for a kiss.

                “Thank you, Kitten.”

                All parents decided it was best to leave, but Minho’s were the first to go. Without saying a single word, they headed out the door. The other two pairs stayed for breakfast, hoping to not leave such a stressful situation behind.

                “Here you go.” Taemin said, placing Jongin’s breakfast down in front of him. He fixed the boy’s knotted hair with his fingers shortly before patting his shoulder and taking a spot nearby.

                “Thank you, Hyung.” The younger boy smiled, locking eyes with the blonde.

                “No problem. Is there anything I can get anyone else?”

                “Taemin, you’ve had a rough night, please don’t worry about serving us.” Jongin’s father commented, urging the boy to stay put.

                “No, you’re guests, it wouldn’t be right, Uncle!”

                “Please just have a seat. And Taemin?”

                “Yes, Uncle?”

                “Congratulations on your engagement. I’m sorry you have to juggle your own life as well as our hopeless son’s. “

                Taemin laughed, looking over at Jongin. “He’s my best friend. I’d be very sad without him here. And really, he’s no trouble at all. Sometimes, he’s actually the one taking care of me.” The boy admitted.

                “Well then I’m glad. What are you three planning for New Years? What about Jongin’s birthday?”

                “We actually haven’t talked about that yet. We might get a few friends together and celebrate that way.” Minho interjected. “As for Jongin’s birthday, well that’s up to him.”

                “Unfortunately we can’t take any more days off and have to leave today, but you guys go out and have as much fun as you can!” Taemin’s mom added. “Oh, but don’t get too wild. At least this way I don’t have to worry about you getting drunk and getting some poor girl pregnant.” She suddenly had a question which she felt she couldn’t voice, staring at Taemin. With the ual context of her previous sentence, he had an idea of what she had on her mind and if they were alone, she would flat out ask ‘who is on top’.

                “Mom…”

                “Oh come on!”

                Everyone felt left out of the exchange, the two only understanding because of their relationship.

                “W-well… what does it look like? I mean, it obviously can’t be me…”

                “I suppose I did raise a pretty son, didn’t I? How does it feel?”

                “Mom!”

                “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m just curious!” She tried to defend, to which point Minho caught on.

                “It’s amazing…” The elder muttered under his breath, his lips in a smirk.

                “Oh really? Is he loud?”

                Minho’s face began to glow, not at the topic, but simply because of the closeness with a parental figure that he was currently lacking.

“Mom, stop it!” Taemin demanded, blushing.

“Well you need to give me the juicy details another time!” She told Minho in a smug way. “Anyways, no one pay us any mind!”

While Taemin’s parents and Jongin’s parents gave their goodbyes, they split up. Minho accompanied Taemin and his parents to the airport while Jongin accompanied his to the station.

The blonde’s father began to lighten up although not completely. Taemin figured he’d get used to the idea eventually.

Standing at the exit, his mother wiped her tears, dabbing her eyes with a tissue. “It’s been a while and it’s going to be another long while, isn’t it?”

“It is mom…” Taemin agreed, his lip quivering. “It’s fine though, we always talk on the phone.”

“Of course. Minho, please take care of him while we’re gone. You know what, let me take a photo of you two so that whenever I get sad I can look at this.”

She pulled up her phone, the two boys awkwardly shuffling towards each other.

“Oh please, that’s not natural at all! Get closer!”

Taking a deep breath, Minho placed his hand on the side of Taemin’s head, resting it against his chest before sliding his fingers down onto the blonde’s shoulder.

“That’s much better! Now smile!”

So they did and tried hard not to cringe once the flash came on.

“Well it’s true that you guys look very good together! Your faces match very well. I’d love to hear from both of you about how everything’s going!” Checking her watch, she nodded towards her husband. “We have to go, come give you mother one last hug and kiss.”

Nodding, Taemin stepped forward and gave her a final embrace. They both stood their confused as her anticipating eyes fell onto Minho.

“What are you waiting for? I said ‘mother’ didn’t I? Since you’re marrying my son, I will be your mother too.” Pointing to her cheek, she earned a laugh and a kiss from the older boy. “And don’t hesitate to call me mom now! Anyways, text me when you plan on getting married, okay? I need to plan that vacation ahead of time. Oh, also I might call tomorrow. But really, we’re going to miss out flight if we keep chatting like this! We’re leaving now! Bye, bye!”

“Bye mom!” They both said before turning and giving Taemin’s father a shake. Although Taemin’s was light, but Minho’s was a lot firmer. He was worried and it took a lot of courage for him to meet the man’s stern face. Soon enough though, a barely visible smile appeared, seconds before he left.

“God, I thought I was going to pass out…” Minho admitted, pulling Taemin into his arms as the two disappeared down towards their gate. “I was so worried he’d punch me or something… I was sure he hated me…”

“I was sure he hated me too…” Taemin sighed, relieved.

“I’m really happy, Kitten.”

“Me too. It looks like my parents and Jongin’s are fine but… you really need to talk to yours. Please call them and sort things out. Minho, I know that’s not what you want to hear right now, but this isn’t something you can ignore.”

“I know… I’ll call them tomorrow. Maybe we could, I don’t know, go visit them together or something. Try to get on better terms.”

“Okay.”

“Okay?”

“Okay. I love you.”

“I love you more than every star in every galaxy, Kitten.”

“I think we can work this out, Hyung. If we try hard enough… I think this can work. Please just have faith… If it doesn’t, we can just tell them we broke up or… I mean, if it’s that important we can, uh, call our relationship off.”

“Never. If you leave me, I will hunt you down and kidnap you.”

Laughing, Taemin wrapped his arms around Minho’s waist, leading him towards the exit.

“We should go home. Jongin’s probably there already.”

“Okay. Hey Taemin?”

“Yes?”

“Sleep in my room tonight, okay?”

“I will.”

A/N: Okay so I always look at the previous chapter's comments the day I upload the new one and omg you guys made me laugh pretty hard. You're all so cute when you're frustrate~ *U* Let me adopt all of you!