2. everything inside outside again
hi few lovely lj-friends. lurky-girl here. currently working on this typical doom!fic AU ontae with uhm well yeah, violence and humvees and uhh....
until then, have som unfinished unbetaed mingkey stuff.
a little sweat ain't never hurt nobody, 1039 w. [DROPPED]
it's halfway through their array of replay performances when it starts to itch at the corner of minho's left eye. instead of continuing his quest of devouring kimbap, he halts to a stop, mouth hanging open as he witnesses how kibum, for the fifth time just today, whips out a pre-moistened napkin out of thin air and starts polishing his white high tops.
evidently, they're not white enough according to kibum standards as he goes about the shoe shining in a despite thourough, quite elegant manner. minho eyes his own pair of, identical white high tops and he can't for the world of him figure out what deal with kibum and his footwear is.
''hyung, there's a frown on your face.'' taemin states rather than inquiring, giving him this glare that says more than any fourteen year old should know. the frown automatically turns deeper and minho begrudgingly returns to his plate of now, pretty soggy and pathetic looking kimbap rolls.
at this point, the only thing minho really knows, except the intriculate footwork for replay, is that kibum and his shoes irks him to no end.
it starts as a pet peeve and minho tries his best not to let it get to him. it's all pretty stupid anyway. if kibum wanted to be anal about his shoes, so be it. it was none of minho's business and quite frankly, after knowing kibum for these few last years, this is exactly what he should have been expecting from the other boy.
if anyone would be overly concious of looking anything at all near scruffy, it would be kim kibum.
though it really doesn't explain why minho just can't rip his eyes off the other boy, every time he hunches over and swipes the rag meticulously back and forth. it doesn't explain at all why minho feels restless all of the sudden or why this recurring episode makes his mind fog up and fingers itch.
on the sidelines, the other members witnesses how minho practically burns holes into kibum's back. jonghyun figures minho ain't flaming charisma for nothing.
a few months later, when they've grown another couple inches into the roles of idol pop stars, kibum's birthday rolls around. huddled around the computer sans kibum himself, minho tries to nonchanlantly suggest they get him a pair of limited edition jeremy scott sneakers and while minho himself believes he's a pretty decent actor, even jinki raises an eyebrow.
''you think he'll like those?'' taemin mutters as he eyes a pair of golden winged high tops.
''i uh well, thought he really likes jeremy scott and i think he was looking at something similar last time we went shopping.'' minho tries, only seconds from breaking out in nervous sweat, the lack of air in the small computer room not helping.
''yeah i guess, he likes anything designer brand either way.'' taemin offers him.
a nod from the leader and an approving look from jonghyun later, taemin promptly presses add to cart.
later that night, minho feels something stirring inside, like a tiny animal curled up inside his chest, tossing and turning in its sleep, dreaming of frolicking the fields in spring. it makes his heart race, like when he's been running too fast for too long or the moment just before they enter the stage but it feels better than that. safe and warm. he watches kibum snore away and without knowing it, he falls asleep with a smug smile on his face.
''do you like them?'' taemin presses his nose into kibum's shoulder, mouth blabbering into the fabric.
''he hasn't even opened the box yet, taemin-ah.'' jinki says from behind taemin, peering over the top of the magnae's head as they watch kibum lift the top off. with nimble fingers he removes the wrapping paper and then there's a quiet gasp.
''ohh my holy friggin god, these are jeremy scotts!'' kibum wheezes, a huge grin plastered over his face as he picks up the golden pair. ''i've wanted these for the longest time, how did you guys even---'' kibum spins to his left ''i bet it was jonghyun-hyung!''
flustered, jonghyun shakes his head and holds up his hands as if surrendering.
''well, actually, it was minho's idea.''
and then there is a painful moment of silence as kibum turns around to face minho, who's fully focused on his toes and he doesn't dare to look up because he can tell that kibum is literally shell-shocked. was it really that weird for minho to care for his bandmates?
''really? minho, was this your idea?''
minho finally looks up and yup, there it is. kibum with the face that really does not believe. minho can feel his heart sink. this was not how it was supposed to be, all awkward and sorta misunderstood and---
he nods.
''oh.'' is what kibum has to offer. ''well, this is great, thank you minho.'' he smiles gratefully and with that, minho is back to square one.
''it's from all of us, no need to thank me.'' he says, giving kibum his best smile.
he wanted it to be more. he had thought about it, hundreds of times by now, how kibum would light up just so with eyes crinkling and the dimpels at the corner of his mouth protuding. that's what he had been hoping for but later that night when he crawls into his bed, he makes sure not one inch of him is visible, wrapping his blanket tightly around himself, carefully folding the corners beneath him. because tonight, minho decides he feels bad for himself and when kibum flicks the light switch with a soft goodnight, he swears he'll never ever put himself out there again like he did today.
because it hurts, a lot and he's not quite sure why.
it should be easy to distance oneself, minho thinks as he throw his arm around kibum's shoulder and pose for the camera, the heat radiating from the other boy and he can feel the flush creeping up his neck.
it should be easy to play it off, these moments he has with kibum. it should be easy to stop fantasizing about hands and tongues and kisses in dark corners, but it's not.
amen fashion, 296 w. [DROPPED]
''this'', minho sludders and swipes his thumb across kibum's eyelid, the liner blurring at the edges with the press of his skin. ''is stupid.'' he wipes off the black smudges on the front of his alexander mcqueen shirt and if they weren't in this compromising position kibum would have barked at him.
not all twenty-something gets to wear sponsored couture after all.
that choi minho is a walking fashion terror is well-known to mankind and this irks not only the stylists, but kibum as well. with those legs and his posture it's fucking debauchery not to dress oneself better. the airport cap and the sunglasses that do nothing to hide his persona nor fashion sense are since long ago on the top of kibum's list of things that should burn in hell.
but those are nothing compared to the frayed jeans, the ones that he remembers his father wearing during the late 90's and minho's stupid attempt at accessorizing-scarf tied around his neck.
it makes him look like a female flight attendant and as much as kibum finds uniform play quite fun, this isn't really it.
unlike the other members, minho doesn't care for shopping. if he ever tags along it's to buy another pair of football shoes and kibum once found him eyeing a pair of david beckham boxers at H&M but that's about it.
when he stands back and watches how minho pays for their groceries at the local mart, hair unstyled and ruffled and cap pulled down low on his face, he wonders if this is anything at all like what he imagined love to look like a few years ago.
he figures, no. but then again he once thought taemin was an innocent angel, which he by all means is not, so.