Minho stood in front of the drawer, looking through his ties.

                Picking out a few, he glanced over his shoulder at the light coming from underneath the bathroom door. Taemin was inside, doing his hair and makeup. Deciding he’d compare the ties in front of the mirror, he knocked on the door, not waiting for a response before coming in.

                “Did I say you could come in?” Taemin asked, pouting as their eyes met through the mirror.

                “I didn’t expect it to be a problem, Kitten.”

                “I wanted you to see me when I was done getting ready…”

                “I’m sorry, baby. It was my fault. You know I think you look gorgeous whenever I see you.”

                Blushing, Taemin accepted Minho’s kiss, locking his arms around the elder’s neck to keep him close. “Even right when I wake up?”

                “Even when you’re snoring and drooling in the middle of the night.”

                “Ah, you made me not want to kiss you anymore.” Taemin said, pulling away and going back to doing his makeup. Walking over behind him, Minho hugged his lover from behind, burying his chin into Taemin’s shoulder. Laying the ties out nearby, he took each one and held it up to the younger boy’s neck, having him model them. “Which one?” He asked.

                “For me?”

                “No, for me. Pick one for me.”

                “Then black. It makes you look classy.”

                “But what about the other patterned ones or the red one?”

                “I was going to ask to borrow the red one.” Taemin admitted, taking Minho’s hand and lifting it to his lips.

                “Okay, fine. I’ll take the black one then. Are you wearing the black pants and dress shirt?”

                “Yup. All black except for the red tie.”

                “Oh, how y.”

                His eyes followed Taemin’s actions as the younger boy took something gritty from a hand decorated jar and rubbed it on his lips.

                “What’s that?” Minho asked him, leaning closer to see if it has a scent.

                “Lip scrub, Honey. It’s what makes my lips feel soft when you kiss me.”

                The elder nodded along, watching Taemin get ready.

                With each product of makeup that came out, the less Minho realised he understood what was going on. “Kitten, you put so much effort into looking good. You know you look beautiful without anything on, right?” Minho said, ruffling the boy’s already styled, freshly cut and dyed hair. “Whatever you put into your hair also smells great. It’s been a while since you were blonde. I’ll have to readjust. You look great either way.”

                “Thank you. I missed my blonde hair a bit.”

                “You know, seeing you get ready like this… makes me want to take you to bed.” The elder whispered before tilting the younger boy’s head, stealing a deep kiss.

                Taemin watched their intimate exchange through the reflection, feeling himself harden between his legs. “You’re messing up my makeup…” He managed, finding a chance to pull back, even if only a few centimeters.

                “I’m sorry. I know we’re not allowed to get it on before we leave somewhere but I couldn’t help it.”

                “It’s… a date though. A double date. I think since it’s a special occasion like this, we can squeeze something in.”

                “Something… like what?”

                They locked eyes and the look Taemin gave him turned him on completely. Without gazes travelling, the blonde’s hands landed on Minho’s belt, confidently unbuckling it. Something about them getting physical moments before leaving humoured them and they both broke out into a quiet laugh, never once looking away from each other, at least until Minho’s lips were in the process of claiming Taemin’s while the blonde made the elder’s pants drop to the ground. “I promise there won’t be any mess to clean, Honey.” He cooed.

                Dazed and in love, Minho followed Taemin towards the door, smiling childishly the whole way.

                “Kitten, you’re right, your lips really are soft.” He hummed.

                “Were you even able to feel that against all the friction?”

                “You’d be surprised.”

                They shared a peck on the lips before putting their shoes on, Taemin yelling for Jongin.

                “Jongin! Are you ready?”

                “Yes! I’m coming!”

                Moments later, they heard thumps coming down the stairs and the younger boy came into view.

                Taemin noticed Jongin’s eyes look him up and down and enjoyed the attention. As he walked by, his hand landed on the elder’s back, sliding along it as he stopped beside him and slid his feet into his shoes.

                “Wrong partner.” Minho told him, peeling his hand off of Taemin’s back and replacing it with his own.

                “It’s just a friendly gesture.”

                “Right, well tonight you can be friendly with Ruki instead.”

                Sighing, he followed the couple down into the garage and got into the car. They drove to pick Ruki up right after.

                “Hello!” The boy chirped as he joined the three in the car. Adding to the act, he leaned in and kissed Jongin on the cheek, taking his hand.

                It felt strange and unpleasant and Jongin didn’t understand why he didn’t like it even half as much as he did when Taemin looked at him. Either way, he’d play along.

                “Hey Ruki.” He smiled, wrapping his arm around the older boy’s shoulder.

                “Tae-chan, you’re blonde again! When did you do your hair?” He asked, reaching into the front seat to ruffle his hair.

                “I did it yesterday. Do you like it?” Taemin asked, looking back.

                “Yeah…” Seeing his hair and makeup done like this, his heart raced and he felt the urge to kiss him, but then he remembered that those were the feeling he was supposed to be having for Minho and that Taemin was not his date tonight. Shoving aside his sudden attraction to boy, he looked at the driver, feeling just as flustered.

                “Minho, you look great too.”

                “Thanks Ruki.”

                Taemin still hadn’t turned around but he didn’t notice himself glaring at Jongin until the younger boy sent a cocky smirk his way which seemed to irritate him all the more.

                Still, as much as Jongin enjoyed making Taemin jealous, he couldn’t deny that Taemin was the more gorgeous person he had seen in his all life and that because so much more evident tonight.

                They arrived at the restaurant and walked in, Minho taking care of their reservations.

                Being seated at a table for four in a private booth, each person took their place beside their date.

                “Kitten, what would you like?” Minho asked.

                “Pork! Anything with pork in it! Pulled pork!”

                Minho laughed, Taemin’s hair as he tried not to kiss him. Although Taemin was upset with the situation for reasons he didn’t necessarily understand, Minho loved it. He loved that Jongin would have someone else. He loved that Jongin and Ruki, that two people who laid their hands on his fiancé the most, would stop doing just exactly that. It was like killing two birds with one stone and he wouldn’t have to worry anymore.

                “Why don’t we get something with pork and share it then?”

                “Okay. Thank you.”

                “Oh, Ruki, are you planning on going back to Japan within the next year?”

                Ruki was surprised by the question, shrugging. “I’m in no rush. I might go back for the holidays though. Why?”

                “Well Taemin and I have decided on our wedding day recently and it’s next summer. Of course both of us want you to come. If you can’t make it though… well I mean, personal life gets in the way, so if you can’t, I guess it’s understandable.”

                “Wedding…” The word ruined his mood a bit, but he ignored it. After all, he was basically pushing himself into someone else’s marriage today. “Yeah. Even if I do end up going back to Japan, I’ll fly over here for the wedding.”

                “That’s great.” Minho smiled.

                “Yeah. You definitely, have to come, okay Ruki?” Taemin said, reaching over to squeeze the boy’s hand.

                Moments later, the waiter came and took their orders. “You should have everything in about twenty minutes.”

                “Thank you.” Taemin spoke.

                Once they were alone, he leaned against Minho’s side.

                “So how did you end up together? Who asked?” The elder made conversation, resting his hand on Taemin’s shoulder.

                “I asked.” Jongin confidently said.

                “That’s a surprise.” The elder snorted, “Why’d you say yes?” He asked Ruki, confused. “I mean, he’s a great guy and all, but he’s twelve years younger than you.”

                “Well I was head over heels for Taemin when I met him and he’s eleven years younger than me. Even you’re nine years younger. I hang out with a younger crowd so I guess it can’t be helped.”

                “How old was your previous boyfriend?” Minho added.

                “Oh, he was five years older than me. He’s already in his thirties, so he’s an old man now! He’s a grandpa!”

                “You’re one year off from thirty.” He laughed, interrupted by the waiter bringing their food.

                “But I seem much younger, don’t I? I even look younger! I could be Tae-chan’s age, don’t you think?”

                As they began eating, Ruki and Minho continued talking. They got on so well that Taemin worried a little bit, wondering if Minho needed someone older to talk to and feeling bad that he couldn’t offer that type of conversation.

                Feeling all the cups of water he drank adding up, Taemin got out of his seat. “I’m going to go to the bathroom.” He said, being stopped by Minho, who asked for a kiss. Giving him one, he whispered, “I’ll be right back.”

                Jongin decided that with Ruki and Minho getting along so well, Minho wouldn’t see it as suspicious if he slipped out as well.

                “Actually, I’m going to go check out the desert table ahead of time. I’ll come back in a few minutes.”

                With that, he stepped out of the booth.

                Taemin entered the bathroom, getting in to one of the stalls and taking care of his business.

                As he went to wash his hand, Jongin came in.

                He just smiled, seeing as another man was in the room, but the second he left, he got uncomfortably close. “Hey hyung.”

                “Hey. How’s your date going so far?”

                “Good. I am a bit disappointed though. You don’t seem too jealous anymore.”

                Taemin laughed, getting some soap for his hands. “I think the idea of you being closer with someone than you are with me made me jealous but seeing you beside Ruki… well, I guess I accepted defeat. Besides, I trust him, so I shouldn’t be acting this way.”

                “So you don’t mind if I kiss him? Or if I go to his place after the date and stay the night?”

                “Well… no… I guess not.”

                “What if I said that you look amazing tonight and that you’re the one I’ve wanted to take to bed since I saw you?”

                “I’d tell you that you’re stupid and are looking at the wrong person.” Taemin simply answered, moving to the hand drier.

                “What if I kissed you right now?”

                Pulling away, Taemin reached for the door. “I’ll slap you if you try anything.”

                “Woah, woah, woah, hey! Let’s stay here a bit and talk. You know, it’s my first date with someone other than you so I’m kind of nervous and just wanted to talk for a little so calm down.” The younger boy interrupted him, pulling Taemin back to where he originally stood.

                “Fair enough. We can talk for a few minutes.”

                Taemin leaned against the counter and Jongin joined him, placing his hand on the other side of Taemin’s waist.

                “Am I allowed to compliment you?”

                Quietly laughing to himself, Taemin nodded. “You can give me a few, but save the best ones for your date.”

                “Well you look… amazing tonight. Everything about you is just so… wow. I can’t believe I’m privileged enough to be able to spend time with someone like you. N-no, stop laughing!” Jongin scolded him. “You may think I’m joking but I’m serious! I’m telling the truth!”

                “What’s so great about me? I’m going to be a married man soon. I won’t even be one of those hip and cool ones. I’ll be the one that stays at home, knitting and drinking tea and telling kids to get off my lawn while I shake my-”

                “Cane?” Jongin chuckled, “So what, you’ll get married and age 80 years?”

                “Yeah, that’s usually how it works.”

                “Wow, then it’s going to be really weird having a crush on someone who could be my great grandfather.”

                “I guess it happens sometimes. Hey, tell me what you like about Ruki. I mean, I agree with Minho, you two kind of are… a little bit of a strange pairing.”

                Jongin looked down at his feet, shrugging. If he ever were to like Ruki, he could only think of very specific reason. Resting his head on Taemin’s shoulder, he stared at the wall across from them.

                “There’s only one thing that seems really appealing.”

                “What’s that?”

                “The fact that I actually have a chance with him.”

                Taemin felt bad hearing that, patting Jongin’s back. “You know, it’s not true that you don’t have a chance with me. It’s just… currently, I’m… you know…”

                “I know. I just… it hurts watching you with him like that while I’m here wishing it was me. I looked at you and I realised that even a kiss from you would make me so happy that I could die.”

                “Ah, then I shouldn’t kiss you because I don’t want you to die.” Taemin calculatingly replied, smiling as innocently as he could manage.

                “Shut up, you know that’s not what I meant.”

                “But it’s how I interpreted it and that’s what matters, right?”

                Looking for a reason or a way to get closer without alarming the elder or causing him to step away, he found a few, and acted upon them.

                Walking around to the front of him, Jongin squeezed his arms and pulled him in, burying his face in the blonde’s neck. He felt Taemin try to move, but not much more than a few centimeters.

                “You know, Hyung… this may sound bratty, but I wish you could take care of me and spoil me forever.”

                “I will take care of you and spoil you forever if you let me.”

                Smirking, Jongin lifted his head slightly, aligning their lips. “You know, that’s a high maintenance task.”

                “Why do you always end up so close to me?”

                “I think it’s fate.” His thumb soon joined the moment, caressing the blonde’s lower lip. “Hyung… don’t think that just because I’ll go on a date with someone else… don’t think that I’ll ever stop loving you the most because you’re really all I’ll ever have and need. I’ll throw everything away if you ask me to.”

                With Jongin’s eyes closing, Taemin felt his were soon growing naturally heavy and so he weakly fought them, knowing what would come of it if he didn’t.

                “My band and I… we’re not really close to our current photographer, so how about every time we make a new album, we fly over here or fly you to Japan and you can photograph us? We’ll pay well!” Ruki smiled.

                “Sure, as long as it doesn’t interfere with my school work, I’ll do it.” Minho chuckled, downing the last few drops of his drink.

                While he was doing that, Ruki felt his phone vibrate and looked down at it, noticing that he got a message from Jongin. ‘It’s now or never’ it said.

                So if he was going to say anything , it had to be now? He didn’t know if he was ready, in fact, he didn’t even know what to say. But if he had to make a move, he wanted to do it privately.

                He panicked a little. Their conversation was going so well and he felt like the clicked so much that he forgot why he was here tonight. It wasn’t that he expected to win Minho over, or that he wanted to steal him from Taemin, he just wanted to confess and get it off of his chest.

                Swallowing, he balled his hands into fists. “Minho, I forgot something in the car. Can you come with me to get it?”

                Wiping his mouth, Minho dug through his pockets. “I can just give you the keys.”

                “N-no! I don’t really know the car well enough to find it yet and- y-yeah, can you just come?”

                “But Kitte- Taemin and Jongin aren’t back yet. They’ll think we left without paying or something and give our table away.”

                That was true. Trying to get around that problem, he looked outside their booth and made eye contact with a waiter, waving him over.

                “Um, excuse me, two of our friends are in the bathroom right now but we have to go get something from the car. Can you just make sure our table isn’t given away and tell our friends we’ve gone once they’ve come back?”

                “Yes, of course. Just leave your coats here along with theirs and we’ll know that the booth is still occupied.”

                “Okay, thank you.” Once he walked away, Ruki turned back towards Minho. “See, it’s all fine, so let’s go.”

                “Let’s just wait for them to come back so I can tell Taemin-”

                “It’ll only take thirty seconds! We’ll be back before they are!”

                Minho seemed to be going through a tedious thought process before finally nodding, wiping his hands on a cloth. “Okay, let’s go.”

                The time seemed to be both speeding up and slowing down. His thoughts were racing just as much as his heart and he didn’t know what to do besides look at Minho and realize he had gotten everything he could have hoped for tonight.

                The dark hair, the lean figure, the suit.

                Everything about Minho was perfect.

                He felt horrible that he was doing this not only to the boy in front of him, but also his best friend.

                He felt horrible, but he was going to take this chance, even if it only was to profess his feelings.

                Tonight he’d get that burden off his chest and not expect anything more.