More Minwoo this time. :P Buuuut...yeah...

Enjoy!!

Chapter 5:

“Minwoo ya,” Dongwan said smiling.

“What?”

“How much do you like me?”

“What?”

“How much do you like me?” Dongwan repeated slowly.

“I like you enough.” Minwoo replied, not looking at the pouting witty guy.

“Is that a lot?” Younger man questioned.

Minwoo shrugged.

“Is it more like love?” Dongwan tried again.

Minwoo stopped moving for a while and he could feel his cheeks getting a bit redder than they already were. Dongwan stared at him with wide eyes, not even blinking, as his breathing got heavier and hotter.

“Or is it more like normal?” He asked again.

Minwoo gulped. “How do you define ‘normal’?” the man interrogated.

“Heart never goes ‘deugun, deugun’ when you’re with me.” 20 year-old Dongwan explained, hitting his chest softly.

Older man swallowed the lump in his throat and was surprised by how freaking dry it was. When he felt his brain saying that he should turn to look at the man, Minwoo sighed and finally did. Dongwan looked cute. Really cute. He was so pure and young that it hurt Minwoo who bowed his head, released a breath and fondled the edge of the bench they sat on while his heart was exactly saying ‘deugun, deugun’ pretty rapidly.

“Wan ah,” he murmured.

“What?” The young man asked.

“It’s normal…I feel normal when I’m with you.” Minwoo spoke.

Dongwan flashed a grin and tapped the man’s shoulder. Minwoo had never told such a despicable lie…

Never.

Minwoo opened his eyes hastily, feeling his whole body aching and eyes teary as hell, when he stared at the roof, building a frown between his eyebrows. What the hell was that? He pondered shocked. He had totally forgotten that moment. Well, he had forced himself to forget everything he could from his shameful past. Yes, Minwoo indeed thought ‘shameful’.

But…

He hadn’t recalled that.

Not at all.

He hadn’t recalled Dongwan’s cute pouts, or his cute way of speaking then. He hadn’t recalled those twinkling eyes or those slowly forming wrinkles that were surrounding his eyes. He hadn’t remembered that intrigued voice calling him or that Dongwan always asked him when he was confused. Minwoo hadn’t looked back how his heart had beat that day and he hadn’t reminisced how he had lied.

He had told his first lie years ago on that bench.

On that memorable bench.

On that damn bench.

…

Dongwan entered the practice room where Hyesung and Eric already were. Surprisingly early. From the bathroom emerged Andy and from the changing room, came out Junjin who was smiling from ear to ear. Then arrived Minwoo who had black bags under his eyes.

“You didn’t sleep well?” Junjin asked.

“I slept fine.” Minwoo obviously lied.

“Yeah, right. And I am H.O.T.” the other maknae mumbled amused. “Seriously, your eyebags are not a joke, hyung.”

When Junjin lifted his finger onto his hyung’s cheek, older man shoved it away and glared at him, scaring the crap out of Junjin.

“I slept well…I mean it.”

Feeling defeated, Junjin nodded and joined Hyesung who hugged him and mumbled that ‘I agree with you.’ At least the mommy bird understood. When Minwoo walked between the other short members, he couldn’t ignore the intense stare from Dongwan. Slightly moving his head, Minwoo gazed at him unnoticeably. Dongwan seemed focusing onto something else.

“Okay,” Minwoo yelled. “I and Junjin show ‘Perfect Man’ once more and then you’ll follow us.” He pulled the other dancer next to him and they showed the dance.

Minwoo kept eyeing Dongwan who messed up in steps, in lyrics, in rhythm and all he could do was smile. He had missed clumsy Dongwan. When the witty guy fell after getting messed up with Hyesung, Minwoo moved next to him and grabbed his thigh.

“This foot goes here and the other one goes there.” He whispered. “And when it’s there, you move your arms…like this.” Minwoo maneuvered himself behind Dongwan, who was now blushing so fiercely that he was hot, and moved his hands and arms like they do in ‘Perfect Man’. “Do you think you can do this?” Minwoo asked then.

Dongwan shook his head.

Minwoo inhaled deeply, which was the biggest mistake of his life, since he smelled Dongwan’s natural smell that had combined with sweat that had formed onto the man’s forehead maybe because of the dancing or because of the closeness. Who knew? But when that smell entered Minwoo’s nostrils, his brain function broke out and he just stared at the neck that was surprisingly tense and cleared his throat when the silence from him had gotten a bit too awkward.

“You just have to follow what I do,” Minwoo explained with a smile. “I think you’re great, Dongwan.”

The mentioned man tensed even more as he remembered the memory he had had couple days ago and formed a really weird and awkward smile onto his lips as he bowed his head and felt how happy his heart was. Maybe even too happy.

…

“We should go on a trip, what do you think oppa?” Amy asked on the other side of the phone.

“Sounds good.” Minwoo smiled. “Maybe after we’ve finished the new album making.” He added.

Amy laughed cutely into the phone. “Oppa,” she sang. “Then we could sleep next to each other and just…you know…cuddle all night.” She continued.

“Sounds good,” Minwoo grinned.

“Then I could play my guitar and sing something to you.” She said and in that moment Minwoo felt how his whole body tensed and he recalled something that happened years ago.

Flashback:

Dongwan was playing his guitar when Minwoo entered the yard. The younger man didn’t even notice as the man sat down next to him and adored Dongwan’s calm yet concentrating face and listened to how the strings kept beautiful noise every time his fingers came in contact with them. Minwoo was fascinated as the frown between Dongwan’s eyebrows deepened. He wasn’t satisfied by the noise.

“Not content?” Minwoo interrogated totally startling Dongwan. “Sorry,” he added apologetically.

“Ah, no,” Dongwan replied, seeming upset. “Something’s wrong with this guitar. I don’t know why I can’t attune this properly.”

Minwoo furrowed his forehead. “Is it broken?”

“That’s the thing I don’t know. I try to turn these keys but nothing happens.” Dongwan whined in a panicky state. “Minwoo ya, I’m scared!”

“Why?”

“W-w-what if this is broken? What do I do then?” Minwoo saw that the man was about to cry and that was something he rarely saw.

“Wan ah,”

Dongwan sobbed as he quitted attuning the guitar and put it neatly into its case.

“You give up?” Minwoo questioned.

“I…I…I guess I just did.” Dongwan mumbled. “Don’t worry Minwoo ya,” he flashed an obvious fake smile onto his lips. “I can get over it. It wasn’t like that guitar was that important. I’ll just…quit playing.”

Minwoo felt throb inside his chest as he looked at Dongwan’s face. He knew the man was lying. He knew what that guitar meant for him. It was like a baby to the man. Minwoo couldn’t stand that. No! He didn’t want to hear that Dongwan decided to stop playing after some very sentimental valued guitar wasn’t attuning. No way! If Dongwan didn’t get to do what he wanted, Minwoo got angry.

“Don’t give up Dongwan ah,” he murmured calmly.

“No, Minwoo ya,” other one whispered. “It’s time for me to get over it.”

“Why don’t you just buy another guitar?”

“Haven’t you seen how expensive they are?” Dongwan almost hissed, but Minwoo didn’t care because it was the sadness that spoke. He then nodded.

Dongwan sighed as he got up from the bench and squatted down to close the lid of the case. Minwoo glared at him, as he grabbed the handle and lifted the case next to his thigh, before he heaved another sigh and walked back inside the house.

Minwoo bit his lip, trying to prevent any tears to run down as he hit the vacant seat next to him.

Dongwan never gave up.

Minwoo had to do something.

End of the flashback

“Oppa?” Amy asked.

Minwoo blinked his eyes in confusion as he realized that he had drained into his thoughts and apparently forgotten to answer. He opened his mouth but nothing came out.

“Oppa? Are you still there?”

Minwoo nodded furiously but of course Amy couldn’t see that.

“Dongwan,”

“WHAT!?”

Minwoo startled. Had he just said it out loud? Oh, .

“No, I mean…umm…Dongwan…is calling…I gotta go! Bye!”

Hastily clicking any button in his phone, Minwoo tried to end the conversation and when, finally, Amy’s picture disappeared from the screen, he exhaled relieved.

As he was back to his normal self, Minwoo stared at the wall (still covered with Dongwan’s photos) and pondered that he hadn’t remembered that memory either.

Why now?

…

Dongwan was kneeled down to the floor as he was digging something under the bed. When he got the hold of it, he pulled out a case of something that looked like a guitar, and slowly and carefully, he placed it onto his bed, kindly opening the locks with his tender fingers. When the lid was open and a pretty nice guitar emerged, Dongwan smiled like he had met a friend who he hadn’t seen in years and took it out like it was an ornament or something.

“Long time no see.” He murmured.

He the surface of the guitar and touched the strings when the door got opened and Hyesung entered the room, asking him to come have a dinner. Dongwan replied with a grin, put the guitar down and exited the room with Hyesung, switching off the lights before he closed the door after him.

The guitar stayed where it was, waiting for Dongwan.

A small, yet noticeable, engraving above the lowest string was neatly written as the fade light from the window hit it and the text appeared clearer.

‘To DW from MW, so you wouldn’t give in something you love. Saranghae~’