Minho first meets Kibum at a well-known pet store along Chungmuro Pet Street.

He doesn’t own a pet but his roommate, Jonghyun, does. So when Jonghyun is in desperate need of help to buy food for his dog, Roo, Minho is nice enough to do him a favour. It can’t be that difficult anyway. However, as he walks down the dog food aisle, Minho starts to regret his decision. How on earth are there so many different types of dog food? And that’s not all. Even if he knows which type to get, there are still too many brands to choose from. Stay calm, Minho thinks, there's nothing a phone call won't solve. But there’s one thing he has overlooked. It takes Minho 10 minutes on his phone to realise that a phone call will only work if it’s answered. Because yes, his idiot of a roommate is not answering any of his calls and messages after happily forgetting to mention the type of food Roo specifically enjoys.

Minho is ready to give up when he feels something brush against his ankle. He instantly looks down and finds a black toy poodle at his feet, walking around him and sniffing him. Minho smiles and is just about to bend down and it when a voice stops him.

“Garçons!”

Both Minho and the toy poodle turn towards the direction of the voice, which Minho realises belongs to a young, good-looking guy dressed casually but fashionably. Minho guesses he has to be the owner of the poodle. True enough, the toy poodle scurries towards him in the next second and obediently returns to his side.

Meeting Minho’s eyes briefly, the owner bows and apologises in a mumble, “Sorry about that.”

“It’s alright.” Minho smiles but notices it’s useless since the owner isn’t looking at him anymore.

His eyes are on the shelves of dog food in front of him and that reminds Minho of the problem he is in. He decides to try calling Jonghyun again one last time and if he doesn’t answer, he’ll return to their apartment empty-handed. While the call gets connected, Minho waits and lets the ringing tone go on and on. It doesn’t come as a surprise that his call eventually gets directed to voicemail again but what surprises him is that Garçons is back at his side, wagging its tail and looking up at him with the most adorable eyes.

It turns out the toy poodle has decided to approach him again while its owner is distracted with finding the right food it likes. Chuckling, Minho puts his phone away and can’t resist bending down to play with the toy poodle.

“Garçons, is it?” Minho asks as he scratches its neck gently, “Do you like me?”

“Seems like he does.” The owner replies as he comes to stand next to Minho, “He’s usually not like this though… I’m sorry if he’s-”

“He’s not.” Standing back up, Minho smiles, this time sure that the owner has received it, “I don’t mind at all so don’t worry about it. He’s really cute by the way.”

Garçons’ owner returns a smile, a pretty one that reaches his eyes and makes him look so stunning that Minho can’t help but introduce himself to the owner in hopes of getting his name.

“I’m Minho.”

Minho finds himself holding his breath as the owner stares at him like he’s the weirdest person on earth. The look on the guy’s face convinces him that he is indeed weird for introducing himself, especially when it obviously means he wants something out of it. As the seconds tick by, Minho is slowly losing his confidence and desperately trying to think of something else to say to save himself. Thankfully though, he doesn’t have to because the guy with the prettiest smile saves Minho from the awkwardness.

“Kibum.” The owner introduces himself before he looks down and sighs, “And I think Garçons has ruined your shoelace.”

One ruined shoelace and two months later, Minho is thankful that Garçons has scored him a number of enjoyable dates with Kibum. The more he gets to know Kibum, the more Minho falls in love with him. And considering how Kibum seems to love spending time with him too, Minho is confident that there’s so much more to come in their relationship together. He thinks he can call Kibum his boyfriend because he knows they’re only seeing each other but he’s still left a little unsure because Kibum hasn’t once told him directly how he feels.

Minho can’t put his finger on it but sometimes, he feels that Kibum is guarding himself against him. It’s like he’s dating him with the mindset that it’ll end sooner or later. Needless to say, Minho doesn’t like feeling this way, not when he sees Kibum as someone he wants to spend the rest of his life with. And so, he decides it’s best for them to talk about it rather than continue to play the guessing game. Worst comes to worst, Kibum may try to end things between them, and even then, Minho won’t go down without a fight.

It’s easier said than done though. Minho has been meaning to start the conversation since he offered to send Kibum back home but they’re already standing at his doorstep and he still hasn’t asked anything yet. With the way Kibum doesn’t let go of his hand and is looking at him expectantly, Minho knows he’s being obvious that he has something to say. Kibum is giving him the opportunity to talk and yet Minho can’t do it. Truth is, he doesn’t even know how to bring up a subject like this. Deciding to try again the next date, Minho eventually gives up and chooses to say goodnight to Kibum.

“I’ll call you.” Minho says as he steps closer to Kibum and gives him a hug, “Good night.”

“Night…” Kibum says with a note of confusion in his voice.

Minho gives him a reassuring smile and kisses him goodbye on the cheek before he leaves Kibum and heads towards the lift. The moment he turns around though, Minho’s smile disappears and he curses at himself in his mind, frustrated that he isn’t able to do what he has set out to do. Sleep will definitely not come easy tonight.

Minho has taken about six steps away from Kibum when he suddenly hears Kibum’s voice travel down the quiet hallway.

“Minho!”

That alone gives Minho enough determination to be honest with Kibum. Not wanting to let this second chance go to waste, he turns around and quickly walks back to him.

After taking in a deep breath, Minho clears his throat nervously and begins, “Look, I just-”

“Wanna come in?” Kibum asks, looking as nervous as him and a little afraid too.

Minho swallows his words and nods with an uneasy smile, “Yeah, sure.”

After opening the door for them, Kibum switches on the lights to his studio apartment and leads Minho in. It’s small with just a kitchenette, a dining table for two and the bed area but it’s cosy and well-designed with a modern décor. At the far corner of the room, there is a simple dog bed for Garçons to sleep in as well as his toys lying around but Minho realises the toy poodle isn’t there.

“Where’s Garçons?” Curious, Minho asks.

“I didn’t know how long I’d be out so I left him with a friend for the night.” Kibum replies as he places his wallet and phone on the dining table before he takes Minho’s hand, “Hey, come here...”

Since there isn’t much space in the apartment, they end up sitting on the edge of Kibum’s bed with some distance kept between each other, both feeling awkward and slightly fidgety. It’s the first time Minho has ever stepped into Kibum’s home but the only reason why he’s nervous is because of the things he wants to talk to Kibum about.

“So…” Minho his lips nervously, “I, umm-”

Kibum meets Minho’s eyes, “Yeah?”

“I like you, Kibum.” Minho confesses, “Like, a lot… more than you think I do, but…”

“But?”

Minho doesn’t notice it because he’s too occupied trying to find the right words but Kibum is terrified to hear what Minho has to say next.

“I don’t know if you feel the same way?” With a deep breath, Minho finally gets his thoughts across, “Sometimes, you seem quite unsure about our relationship and I-”

“You’re right.” Kibum admits as he interrupts Minho and opens his heart to him, “I don’t think I’m good enough for you.”

Minho is honestly surprised by Kibum’s words and his expression shows it all.

“You’re perfect, Minho… and I’m…” Broken, Kibum wants to say but he doesn’t let it escape his lips for fear of scaring Minho away and looks down instead as he continues, “I’m just not the one for you.”

“I may like you a lot, Kibum, but that doesn’t mean you can make decisions for me.” Minho frowns, not liking the way the conversation is going, “At least not now. I just want to know one thing… do you want us to stop dating?”

Kibum hesitates for a long moment before he answers, “No… but I just-”

Minho hates the sound of ‘but’ and cuts Kibum off, “I’ve never been so sure about being with someone until I met you, Kibum.”

Kibum shakes his head, “You don’t know enough about me to say that.”

“Let me learn more about you then?” Minho asks and then adds, “I doubt that’ll change my mind though.”

That’s when Kibum loses his temper.

“Why are you so stubborn?!”

And Minho loses it too.

“Because I know how I feel about you!”

“You don’t!” Kibum raises his voice and starts to confess, “Not after you find out that I still have to see my therapist once a month! Not after I tell you that I’ve suffered from bulimia before. Not after… not after you realise that I have to work almost every day to prevent a relapse and pretend that I’m normal… that I’m okay.”

By the end of his sentence, Kibum is shaking, almost breathless, and his voice is reduced to a mumble that Minho wouldn’t be able to make out if not for their close proximity. But he hears every single word, and with each secret that Kibum has shared with him, Minho only finds himself wanting to love Kibum more and more.

“So?” Minho ends up saying even though he knows there are better things to say, “Am I supposed to run away now that I know these things about you?”

“You don’t get it, do you?” Kibum stares at him like he’s stupid.

But Minho thinks Kibum’s the one being stupid.

“Yeah, I don’t get why you think that will make any difference to how I feel about you.” Minho says and doesn’t give Kibum the chance to reply as he goes on to ask, “Do you know why I asked for your name even though I rarely initiate conversations with strangers?”

Kibum just looks at him but Minho doesn’t need him to say or do anything for him to continue talking.

“Because I think you look beautiful, especially when you smiled at me for the very first time.” Minho answers before he asks his next question, “Then do you know why I continued to ask you out, date after date, and came up with all sorts of excuses just so I could spend more time with you?”

Kibum remains silent and simply continues staring at Minho.

“Because I realised you’re beautiful inside too. If only… if only you can see how perfect you are to me...” Minho smiles defeatedly as he cups Kibum’s face, thumbs caressing his cheeks for a moment, before he slowly leans in, “I’m going to kiss you now… if that’s okay?”

When Kibum doesn’t move away, Minho takes it as a yes and kisses him on his lips lightly.

“You won’t be alone anymore.” Minho simply says as he leans his forehead against Kibum and promises, “I’ll be with you, every step of the way, so let me love you alright?”

By then, Kibum’s eyes are filled with tears. Just as he blinks and the tears roll down his face, Kibum wraps his arms around Minho’s hips and hugs him. He’s hiding his face from Minho, clearly not wanting him to see how fragile he is, but Minho can still feel a definite nod against his head and shoulders. That’s all he needs from Kibum for now, Minho thinks as he pulls Kibum closer and hugs him tightly, this is enough.

Even if Kibum hasn’t realised it yet, Minho will give him all of his love and let his boyfriend know that he’s perfect in his eyes.