Jonghyun had been expecting Minho's favorite restaurant to be a relatively high-class, with sleek, polished tables, and modern decorations that were not unlike those in his own home.  

He was quite surprised, indeed, when they pulled up in front of a simple, old, but well-maintained "Korean home-cooking" restaurant. It was no ''à la carte" eatery; and Jonghyun was glad. He was sure that he would have embarrassed himself at a place where etiquette and fine, almost aristocratic conduct were expected.

"Minho-ssi!" An older woman immediately greeted Minho, as soon as the two boys entered the restaurant.

Jonghyun was quite taken aback when Minho and the woman shared a hug, seeming to know each other by name.

How often did Minho come here?

"I see you brought a friend!" She smiled warmly, upon seeing Jonghyun.

Jonghyun found himself somewhat awkwardly blushing, and bowing, only to be pulled into a hug by the woman. It was a kind and comfortable hug, the kind that made a person feel that they were welcome, at any time, and Jonghyun gladly returned it.

The woman seemed like the type of person who had grown up without much, as a child, and continued to be somewhat disadvantaged in adulthood, as well, but who appreciated everything they had and more so, every other person in their lives.

Jonghyun noticed that the majority of the customers seemed to be of the "blue-collar class"- people who were certainly not making enough money to purchase a home like Minho's- and not unlike, Jonghyun mused, himself. But the staff of the restaurant, and the customers in it created a relaxed atmosphere of the kind that could only be achieved after a long day of hard, but honest work.

When the woman left, to give them time to decide on their orders, Jonghyun thought to ask Minho how it was that he had discovered the restaurant, and for how long he had been an apparently regular customer. But it seemed that Minho had guessed into his thoughts, as he began to explain.

"I used to come here all the time, when I was a kid, with halmeoni," Minho said, with a fond smile. "Now, I usually come by myself; it just seems like to small of a place to bring the team," he elaborated.

 Jonghyun smiled, knowing that he was blushing, again. He felt honoured and very special to have been brought to a place that was obviously very personal to Minho.

They selected some grilled meats (bulgogi, of course) and vegetables, all of which came with a pot of fresh, steamed rice. While waiting for their orders to be brought out, they engaged in light, pleasant conversation, not about anything of importance, only to be interrupted by the eventual arrival of their meal.

While they ate, conversation continued, and Jonghyun was no longer blushing or feeling self-conscious. It was just like a meal between two friends and he found no problem in exchanging quite in depth information with Minho.

Since Minho was already aware that Jonghyun wasn't well-off, financially, Jonghyun wound up telling him all about his situation- having been poor for his entire life, having been made fun of for it and...he even admitted that he had lied to Minho about having a cell phone. Jonghyun was blushing profusely when he spilled out his secrets to Minho, but to his surprise, the other wasn't offended at having been lied to and , even better, he wasn't showing any sort of false pity- something that Jonghyun hated to receive.

For the first time, someone really did know every thing about him, and it felt wonderful to be so closely connected with someone.

Jonghyun did protest a little, when, at the end of the meal, Minho insisted on paying. But he didn't protest nearly as much as he normally would have, and resigned himself to accept Minho's justification of "I invite, I pay".

"Thank you," Jonghyun said, when they returned to the apartment.

"You're welcome," Minho smiled. "And thank you for accepting my invitation."

Jonghyun smiled back, and they simply stood, in the hallway, for a brief period of time. He felt his heart begin to race, however, as Minho seemed to be drawing nearer and nearer in proximity to him. There was a sparkle of something...something Jonghyun couldn't place in Minho's eyes, but it didn't make him feel uncomfortable.

Jonghyun's eyes widened as Minho became so close that, if Jonghyun were only to raise himself on his toes, slightly, and if Minho were to bend down only a little, they would be kissing. Jonghyun flushed at the thought, feeling his heart pound as he struggled to stay completely still.

After a brief moment, however, Minho seemed to realize the slight intimacy that their positions had taken on, and he hurriedly moved back a little, restoring the friendly space that had once been between them.

"Well...umm...I'll call the guys tomorrow, then, and you can invite Jinki, Kibum and Taemin... and we can do something with them?" Minho said, almost a little awkwardly.

Jonghyun could only nod, hardly even registering what Minho had said.

-----

The events of the evening left both Jonghyun and Minho with much on their minds, preventing them from falling asleep.

Minho lay awake in his bed, lying on top of his bedsheets with his hands behind his head, as he stared up at the ceiling in thought. Only less than an hour ago, he had felt such a strong urge to kiss Jonghyun- one that he had only just managed to keep under control. He cared about the older man, deeply, but... did his feelings run so deep that he was in love with Jonghyun?

Jonghyun, meanwhile, was certain that he loved Minho; not just because he had been the first to really reach out to him, but because he was Minho.

Jonghyun loved everything about Minho, from his physical appearance to his personality. The only thing troubling him, now, was doubt if Minho returned his feelings.

For a moment, Jonghyun had really thought that Minho intended to kiss him, but what if that was simply his imagination? What if they really were nothing more than just friends?

Jonghyun sighed a little. Being on semester break meant that he no longer had his studies to keep him occupied and he was pretty sure that Minho would be the only person on his mind for quite some time.

Note:

Hey every one! :)

So now, Jonghyun doesn't know how Minho feels about him, but we all know that Minho loves him! ^^ What will happen?...

I just want to make a quick notice-

There won't be a new update tomorrow ( in HK, Thursday August 4, Western time- Wednesday August 3) because I've got some volunteer work to do that will likely take up most of the day. By the time I get home, I'll probably be too tired to write a quality chapter, and I don't want to post anything that is less than what you deserve ^^  Please be patient- I'll have the new chapters up as soon as I can :)

Thanks for reading! ^_^

x Angela