He heard Jonghyun grunt behind him as the man tried to get the fabric of his scarf out of the wheel chair. “When will you learn to not get your scarf caught in your wheel?”

"When It stops being cold." Minho replied as he tapped his phone against his thigh.

"But it’s 70 degrees outside, "Jonghyun muttered as he straightened and threw the fabric around the man’s neck. "Honestly I don’t know what you would do without me, or why I’m friends with such a -"

"Shhh! He’s coming this way." Minho hissed.

"Who’s coming over where?" Jonghyun said rather loudly as he looked around. When he spotted the man in question he asked obnoxiously, "Is that the man you always make googly eyes at?"

Minho blushed and tried to hide his face from the pair of eyes he knew was watching him. Lee Jinki, the senior art major that currently held Minho’s affections, was looking at them with an amused expression, before ducking his head and turning the corner. After he was out of sight Jonghyun received a very hard slap to the thigh. “You just have to embarrass me don’t you?”

Jonghyun just blinked innocently at the man. “I don’t know what you mean. Are you going to ask your crush out or not?”

Minho’s eyes widen. “Who says I have a crush on him, or that I want to ask him out?”

Jonghyun snorted. “If you don’t have a crush on him I’m taller than you.”

"You kind of are."

The man sighed dramatically. “You are 6 feet tall. Chiiillllllllllll with the me being taller than you now thing. Besides, my sore thigh and your blushing face tell me that you like him. If you head off now you can probably catch him.”

"Nonononono." Jonghyun didn’t know how many nos the man said, but it was a million too many to prove the man’s point. " I haven’t even talked to him."

"You never will if you sit here and be a blushing idiot for the rest of your college career."

Minho just shook his head and pushed his palms against his wheels to get him going. Jonghyun sighed and followed after him, close enough to hear the quiet muttering. “It doesn’t matter. He’d never go for someone like me.”

                                                       xoxox

The next morning Minho was by himself, because well, Jonghyun was too busy attempting to swoon the new dancer Taemin, and he didn’t want to intrude on his best friend’s love life. It didn’t matter to him though, because he loved days like this. The sun was bright, the breeze warm, and the square wasn’t as packed as usual because most people had classes right now.

Minho would come here during lunch, to sit next to the fountain and either read a book or toss coins into the fountain. Which was what he was doing. The change from his lunch was laid on his his flat palm as he pushed them around to find the right one to flip in. One by one he did, until he noticed he only had one left. He sighed and tossed it, only to frown when the coin his the stone and fell to the bottom tier of the fountain.

But then a coin was pressed into his palm, and slightly calloused warm fingers grazed his hand as a man spoke. “Here. If you try it with a small coin, you probably have a better chance at making it.” Minho knew that voice, had memorized it and thought about it for months now. He looked up to see Jinki standing there smiling at him. “Go on. Let’s see.”

Minho his lips, because them along with his entire mouth suddenly lacked any type of moisture, and tossed the coin. Even though his eyes were on the coin flying through the air, his thoughts were going a million times a minute because of the warm hand that was gently placed on his shoulder. The coin landed with a soft plop, and when he looked up Jinki was smiling widely. Minho blushed slightly and said. “Uh, thanks. For the coin I mean.”  He cursed himself for being such a nitwit, and fumbling over his words, but then Jinki was chuckling beautifully and Minho could only think about that.

"You sure are cute when you blush."

Before he could say anything the man was already walking away, his bag over his shoulder. And if Minho wasn’t already a blubbering mess around the older male, well he sure was now.

                                                        xoxox

"So why are you smiling like you are high on some type of drug?"

Minho snapped out of his daze with a soft very intelligent ” Huh?”

Jonghyun just scowled slightly as he attempted to twirl the noodles around his chopsticks, before giving up with a huff and looking up at him. “You’ve been smiling like that since you came and met me at the library this afternoon. Mind telling me why?”

"He thinks I’m cute." Minho said with a giggle and soft blush.

"Who.. oh OH." Jonghyun scooted closer to him with a sly smile on his face. "What did you say to him?"

"Thanks for the coin."

Jonghyun snorted. “Nice going Romeo.”

Minho pouted. “He was gone before I could say anything else!”

"Mhmm sure. And what would you have said if he had stayed around?" The man in the wheelchair was muttering something to himself, as Jonghyun continued. "Would you have asked him out?"

"No."

"Well if you don’t I will. He’s cute."

"Jonghyun!" Minho whined.

The older man just smirked. “Just saying. He thinks you’re cute. You better act quickly.”

Minho just shook his head and placed his carton of food on the table. “Whoever is with me can’t do certain things, and Jinki deserves everything. It would be wrong of me to ask him to give up all that.”

"Minho.."

Minho laughed softly, a little haha, before shaking his head. “Don’t worry about it okay? I’m fine.”

But when he turned and made it to his bedroom and the door was slammed behind him, Jonghyun knew he wasn’t fine. He never was.

He had been there before the accident, and after. He had been there through his recovery, and he knew how much losing his ability to walk affected him. Minho was like a brother to him, even more than that, and Jonghyun hated seeing that sad self disappointing look on his face.

                                                        xoxox

It was Jonghyun’s next off day when he was off with Taemin that Minho really wished he wasn’t. Usually he didn’t care, because the man had his life and he had his own, but it was times like this that he wished he had the older man to protect him.

"You ran over my shoe. Did ya know that?" The tall man sneered as he leaned in closer.

"I said I was sorry. I didn’t mean to." Minho said softly, looking at his hands and trying to shrink into himself.

"Sorry isn’t going to cut it. I have a scuff on my 150 dollar pair of shoes because of your stupid wheelchair." He felt the man grab his collar, "What are you? Too lazy to stand, or are you too much of a failure in life to be able to?" He then was tossed hard onto the floor, his chair kicked against the wall.

He just laid on the ground, in a breath and trying very hard not to cry, and then he heard him. “Hey! Stop it!”  He glanced up to see Jinki running over to him, dropping his bags on the way to get there faster. “What do you think you’re doing?”

Jinki watched the tall man shrug before jogging away. He growled and tossed the closest thing after the man, which was a rock, only to have it miss hitting him by a foot or two. He then pulled the wheelchair up right, and stepped over the man on the floor. “You don’t have to help me.” He heard Minho mutter, and he frowned.

"I want to." He whispered into his ear as he wrapped his arms around the man and lifted him upright into the chair. Once he was sitting comfortably, he moved to the front to kneel with his hands on the man’s knees. He frowned deeply when he saw the tears traveling down the man’s cheeks, and he gently reached up to wipe them away with his sleeve. "Are you okay Minho?"

"I’m fine." He mumbled, before his eyes went wide. "You.. you know my name?"

Jinki smiled then, reaching out to wipe the dirt that was still on the man’s cheek. “Of course I do. Why wouldn’t I know your name Cutie?”

He blushed and was proud of himself when he made a complete coherent sentence. “I’m not worth the attention.”

Jinki frowned, and hmphed as he stood up.”One moment.” He then ran to get his bags and returned a moment later. His drawings and paintings that were in the huge portfolio were slightly hanging out of it as he worked to get them in he muttered. “Stupid zipper wouldn’t stay closed.”

But then Minho noticed one of the sketchs. He reached for it, gently pulling it out, and his eyes widened when he saw it. “Is.. is that me?”

For once Jinki blushed, and ran his fingers through his hair. “Uh yea.”

"But… it’s so beautiful. It can’t be me."

Jinki leaned in and gently kissed his cheek. “You are beautiful, I’ve thought so ever since I saw you in that coffee shop 4 months ago. I’ve just been too much of a coward to come speak to you.”

"I..what?" His mind was still dazed from the kiss on the cheek.

Jinki chuckled at that, and knelt before him. He took his hands, and smiled nervously. “I know right now probably isn’t the best, because of what happened, but if I don’t do this now I will probably never live the embarrassment of using you as a muse down… ” The man took a breath, before asking. “Will you go out with me Minho?”

"Like.. on a date?"

"Yea.. exactly like on a date." Jinki said unsure. "I was on my way to go to get something, if you want to join me."

"Whoa whoa wait. I’m still trying to get over the fact you’ve drawn me."

JInki blushed. “A couple times actually… more like for the last 4 months but uh, about that date?”

Minho looked at the man. For a long time he thought if he ever liked someone he would never get the chance to be with them, because people judged and no one wanted to be with a cripple. But then Jinki showed up tonight and helped him, even when it would have just been easier to continue walking and mind his own business.

Minho realized he had nothing to be nervous about, and he should have asked the man out weeks ago. He smiled, and nodded. “I’d like that a lot Jinki.”

The man beamed, and let out a harsh breath. “For a moment there I thought you were going to say no to me.”

"Why would that be a bad thing?" Minho asked as he watched the man zip the portfolio up.

"Because you’re prefect, and I would hate it if I wasn’t good enough for you."

So that night, when Jinki walked him to his dorm with Jonghyun, he allowed the man to lean down and gently kiss him on the lips. He found himself not minding how the man used his chair to brace himself, and how he loved how his slightly calloused fingers, probably from all his art projects, felt against his cheek as he pulled away.

"Goodnight Minho." He whispered as his eyes flicked up to meet the other man’s. He then walked away, with a promise for another night, and Minho entered his dorm with a dazed expression. Jonghyun had just laughed, asking him what he was on, but then he noticed the slight pink on the man’s upper lip, and he knew. The man had been kissed.

"So.. who kissed you and left their cherry chapstick on your lip?"

Minho giggled then, hiding behind his hand. “Jinki.”

He didn’t tell him of the incident, or any of the bad stuff, because he honestly didn’t remember any of it. Because it was filled with Jinki. That sweet smile, and laughter. That caring gaze.

Jinki did deserve everything, but as days turned to weeks, and when months turned to years, Minho came to learn that he was everything the man needed. Just like Jinki was to him.