Like Cats On Hot Bricks; Minho/Key
Meeting Mrs Kim Part II
“Mum…” Kibum began after swallowing a mouthful of bulgogi and was now holding his metal chopsticks tightly in his hands. “Stop looking at Minho like that… and stop smiling too. It’s scary…”
Minho, who had his eyes glued onto his bowl of rice, instantly looked up to see that Key’s mum was indeed grinning directly at him, her eyes obviously taking in his features almost admiringly. With Key’s mum sitting opposite them, Minho fidgeted nervously in his chair, not knowing what was appropriate to do in this situation. He took a peek at Key and it was then he realised his boyfriend had stopped eating entirely as his chopsticks were now resting on the bowl. Minho suddenly decided he had no appetite to continue eating either… since eating on a nervous stomach wasn’t helping his digestion at all.
“Kibum ah, why did you have to say that out loud? You see how you’ve made things so uncomfortable now…” Key’s mother shook her head and shot a reproachful look at her son.
“Please mum, it was awkward to begin with…” Key muttered under his breath, recalling how things went once his mother had set foot into their apartment.
As soon as the door opened, his mother had basically smothered not only him but Minho with hugs before any official introductions could be made. This was immediately followed with his mother taking a quick tour of their apartment, commenting on just about everything like how the bed sheets were a good choice and how the windows needed to be fully open to let fresh air in, before settling down in the kitchen with strict orders that none of them bother her while she cooked a nice dinner for them. Key and Minho could only blink at each other as they were forced to wait quietly at the dining table. It only took Key’s mum under an hour to whip up a meal consisting of three dishes and a soup but during the entire hour or so, Minho and Key had been wordlessly exchanging messages with their eyes, trying their best to communicate without letting Key’s mother in on their conversation (which basically consisted of them panicking and figuring out what they should do). Evidently, their “discussion” had been fruitless since here they were now almost done with dinner yet still doing nothing to make the atmosphere any less awkward.
Of course, Key’s mother wasn’t oblivious to the uncomfortable atmosphere. It didn’t take much intelligence to know how nervous the two boys in front of her were and she was doing all she could to make the situation comfortable for everyone. After all, she had been in this situation before when she met her husband’s parents for the first time. And if she was honest, her husband’s parents weren’t the friendliest people one could meet. She definitely didn’t want Minho to remember her this way, which explained why she kept smiling at him. Maybe the next step to making everyone feel comfortable was to act more like a friend, less like a mother. and be completely honest with the tensed up kids sitting in front of her...
“Minho, if it helps, I am nervous as well.” Key’s mother chuckled shyly as she admitted her feelings.
“Mum?!”
“Eomonim…”
Both Key and Minho spoke at the same time and then glanced at each other with puzzled expressions.
“It’s my first time doing this as well!” Mrs Kim explained. “Kibum’s my only son and you’re the first person he’s letting me meet… I just want to get to know you, Minho, and how things are going between the two of you. Kibum?”
“Well mum…” Key smiled, grateful that his mother was putting in the effort to ease the tension in the apartment. “There’s nothing much to know about Minho because he’s actually really boring. He didn’t have a life before I came into the picture.”
“Kibum…” Minho groaned. “Do you have to put it that way?”
“What? It’s the truth, isn’t it?” Key smirked.
“I'm involved in sports…” Minho argued.
“Ah! So I was right about you being athletic.” Interrupting her son from speaking, Key’s mother praised herself out loud, very much pleased with her accurate observation skills. “What sports do you play, Minho?”
“Soccer, Eomonim, that’s the main sport I’m dedicated to.” Minho smiled and rubbed his neck shyly. “I’m actually the captain of the university’s soccer team.”
“Wow, you must have your fair share of popularity in school then.” Mrs Kim nodded approvingly. “Is that how Kibum knows you? Are you guys in the same university?”
Key scrunched up his face in a frown because the dreaded question had finally been asked. He wasn’t exactly keen on recounting his and Minho’s love story to his mother… not that he and Minho had a love story to tell anyway.
“Yes Eomonim, we’re in the same university… and I guess that’s basically how we know each other.” Minho replied accordingly.
“But it seems like you and Kibum don’t have anything in common… for one, my son hates sports!”
While Minho hid a laugh behind his hand, Key groaned. “Mum, why do I get this feeling that you think I’m the one who came on to Minho?”
“Because I know you, darling... you’re hard to approach.” Mrs Kim stated matter of factly.
“Thanks Mum.” Key replied as sarcastically as he could, only to get ignored by his mother.
“So Minho, how long have you and Kibum been together?”
“We’re coming to our 4th year together…” Minho answered slowly as he turned to look at Key confused and trying to understand why his boyfriend was squeezing his thigh so hard while keeping a straight face. Yet, in the next second, he immediately understood why after answering Mrs Kim’s question, Key was suddenly looking like he was doomed.
“4th year?” Mrs Kim had calmly repeated before taking in a breath and exclaiming, eyes fixed on her own son, “4 years?!”
“Mum, I can explain-“
“Kim Kibum.” Mrs Kim didn’t raise her voice but her tone was scary enough to make both Key and Minho hold each other’s hand under the table and pray they will get through this safely. “4 years and I’m only getting to know Minho tonight? Do you still remember that I am your mother? I should have never let you leave Daegu for Seoul if I knew you were-”
“Mum, I didn’t know if you were ready for something like this.” Key attempted to pacify his mother but when she only narrowed her eyes at him, he knew he should have thought of something smarter to say.
“Kibum, honey, even though I might not be ready to meet your boyfriend, do you think your mum doesn’t know how to Google for advice?”
Mrs Kim’s unexpected confession certainly caught both Key and Minho off guard. They even had to take a minute to digest her words. And if they interpreted her question correctly, did that mean Key’s mum actually googled to prepare herself for her meeting with them tonight? Key and Minho shared a look with each other, expressions filled with a little more amusement than disbelief.
“It doesn’t matter if I’m ready or not… because no matter what, Kibum, you’re my son and I want to know what’s happening in your life and not be kept in the dark for 4 years.” Mrs Kim sighed, unaware that the kids in front of her were still stuck in the previous moment in time. “I’ve accepted you for who you are… and I’ll accept Minho too, as long as he treats you well.”
Upon hearing his name, Minho quickly nodded at Key’s mother with a fiercely determined expression that was enough to convince Mrs Kim she could trust Key with him even if he didn’t make the following promise.
“Eomonim, I know you haven’t got the chance to know me as well as you should but please believe me, I’ll never give you any reason to make you lose your trust in me when it comes to Kibum. I love him more than you can imagine and I always-“
“Okay, baby, enough, thank you.” Key swiftly covered Minho’s mouth before any more of his goosebump-raising honeyed words could escape his lips. “I think my mum’s fairly convinced.”
With a loving smile, Key’s mother looked adoringly at the couple for a moment or two, simply taking in how both her son and Minho were so natural, so at home, so happy with each other. What more could she ask for knowing her son was happier than he had ever been when she watched him grow up?
Mrs Kim let out a satisfied sigh and stood up from the chair. “Alright boys, finish up your dinner! I’ll go cut some fruits for us and we can talk more when I come back.”
Both boys nodded obediently and when Key’s mother finally disappeared into the kitchen, Key released his hand over Minho’s mouth only to end up using it to punch his boyfriend on the shoulder.
“You didn’t have to confess your undying love for me in front of my mum!” Key hissed at a volume loud enough for only Minho to hear.
With a satisfied smile, Minho chose to remain silent, only shrugging his shoulders with an air of nonchalance while he picked up his chopsticks to finish up the remaining food on the table. At the same time, he signalled for Key to continue eating as well.
Key shook his head and let out a breath. “I can’t eat… I’m still shocked from the fact that my mother used Google to prepare for tonight. What do you think she googled? How should I meet my son’s boyfriend? Are there even search results for that?”
Knowing that Key was waiting for his answer, Minho gave a verbal reply this time round. “We could try googling it later…”
“Minho, I can tell you’re only replying me for the sake of replying...”
“Sorry baby, it’s just that now that all my nerves are gone, I’m feeling really hungry and I just want to finish up dinner and-“
“You and your bottomless pit… I can already imagine me poking your belly one day.” Key’s eyes travelled from the food that was going into Minho’s mouth to where it’ll eventually end up at his stomach and sighed, picturing a bleak future where he would be hugging a rather chubby Minho with a beer belly.
“No worries, I’ll make sure my abs will always be around for you to admire.” Minho winked. “I know how much you love touching them.”
“Choi Minho! My mother is here.” Key widened his eyes in alarm and quickly looked towards the kitchen to check if his mum’s attention were on them. “She does not need to know that we have touched each other at body parts which aren’t hands!”
“Oops?” This was accompanied with the most innocent expression Minho could muster.
Key rubbed his temples in exasperation and then pointed a finger directly at Minho’s face. “You. Please. Watch your words. Better still, speak only when necessary. You hear me?”
“Kibummie…”
“Or at least just make my mum believe we are an innocent couple who does only PG rated stuff.”
“She knows we’ve been together for almost 4 years, Kibum… your mum isn’t stupid.”
Key groaned. “Maybe we should have been as smart as my mum and googled what we should do when meeting the parents…”
Minho chuckled and pulled Key towards him, unable to resist the urge of giving his boyfriend a quick kiss. Knowing that Key would kick up a fuss because of his actions, he immediately placed a finger on the blonde’s lips and smiled reassuringly.
“We’re doing fine, baby. Don’t start to panic again.”
“You’ll be the death of me…” Key muttered, unable to argue anymore since his mother was now walking back towards them with a plate of freshly cut fruits.
“Kibum, you look ugly when you have that grumpy face on.”
Key shot a stare at a beaming Minho and mumbled, “I hate you, Minho.”
Mrs Kim frowned. “Honey, I don’t remember teaching you to lie.”
Key could only blink incredulously as his boyfriend and his mother of all people shared a knowing laugh with each other.
If the two most important people in his life were going to gang up against him for the rest of the night, Key had only one wish… that his mother wouldn’t stay for long. He just couldn't deal with so much in one night.
*
There was a time when Key imagined what it would be like if he brought Minho home to meet his parents. And when he did, different scenarios had popped up in his mind. Take for example, how he pictured his parents making things difficult for Minho, bombarding him with questions that had politically correct answers they expected Minho to give but didn’t get and they ended up having the most disastrous meeting ever. Or scenario number two, where Key imagined that the atmosphere was perpetually awkward the entire time because Minho was after all a guy and his parents made it strikingly obvious they were still uncomfortable with the fact that their son was gay. Key could just visualise the stiff and fake welcoming smiles on his parents’ faces while they asked the necessary questions just to keep a conversation going. Of course, this scenario didn’t seem as bad as the first but the result was still disastrous. Key also tried to look at the bright side of life and this is when he imagined his mother, at least, trying her best to get to know Minho and understand their relationship. Whether or not his parents gave their blessings in the end, it didn’t matter because at the bare minimum, they would have made the effort to get to know Minho, the guy who he had been with for four years and counting, the constant in his life. And that was all Key could ask for.
Out of all the scenarios he had thought of, Key thanked his lucky stars that the last and most positive scenario eventually happened at the dinner he had with his mum and Minho. Still, nothing would have prepared him for the questions that his mother had asked when she came back with fruits. He should have been happy that dinner went well, and indeed he was, but Key couldn’t enjoy that moment of happiness when he was now troubled by the thoughts on his mind… thoughts that he knew he had to figure out now that the questions were brought up. And it wasn’t only about Key figuring things out because if that was the case, Key wouldn’t be troubled at all. It was the reality that he had to discuss these questions with Minho which was worrying Key…
Upon hearing the sound of a door opening, Key’s eyes followed the man in question who was now stepping out of their bathroom clad only in a towel that hung low on his hips, and walking towards their wardrobe to grab his sleepwear which normally only consisted of a pair of boxers. Minho could clearly feel his boyfriend’s intense gaze on him and he had half the mind to drop his towel just for the sake of teasing him but after almost four years together, Minho had mastered the art of understanding Kim Kibum. Now was definitely not the time to be funny.
“Should I put on a shirt?” Minho asked, just to confirm that his intuition was right.
“What?” Key tilted his head and raised an eyebrow at Minho.
“Don’t you have something you want to talk to me about?” Minho decided to save time and just get straight to the point.
“Yes… but-“
“Alright then.” Minho nodded and pulled out a plain black wifebeater along with a pair of boxers.
Before Key knew it, Minho was dressed and sitting across him on the bed, all prepared to listen to what he had to say. Truth is, since he was an expert when it came to Kim Kibum, Minho already had an inkling to what his boyfriend wanted to discuss with him…
“Kibum?”
“Yeah…” Key swallowed nervously. “I want to talk to you about what my mum asked us earlier.”
“Our future?”
Future. That was it. That was exactly what had been occupying Key’s mind. Thinking about the future was something Key knew was inevitable but rather not confront until it was absolutely necessary. And now that his mother had brought the topic up, Key knew there was no way he could avoid the topic anymore. How it rolled off Minho’s tongue so easily like the future was nothing to be afraid of was something Key wished he could do. Because to him, no matter how confident he was about where he stood with Minho, their future was still uncertain. It was unpredictable and anything could happen even if promises were made now.
“About that… Minho, what exactly are your plans for the future?” Key was curious because they never did discuss this before.
“Didn’t you tell your mum just now that we should focus on the present?” Minho retorted with an amused look on his face.
“I only said that because I didn’t have an answer for her.”
Minho stilled, no longer looking amused, instead becoming too serious for Key’s liking. “So you’re telling me, that after four years together Kibum, you don’t know where we’re heading?”
“Do you know where we’re heading?” Key threw the question back to Minho.
To answer Key, Minho placed his hands firmly on Key’s shoulders and looked straight into his eyes. “Yes.”
“What did you have in mind?” Key chewed on his bottom lip, nervous and anticipating what Minho had to say.
“For one, I still see us together and well, I know how much you always wanted a kid like yourself… you wanted a little Kibum right?” When Key nodded, Minho continued. “Yeah, so I thought it’ll be nice if we build a family together when we’re both ready and earning stable incomes.”
“Minho… I can never have a kid like myself unless I get a woman pregnant… but we both know the probability of that is almost close to zero.” Key laughed bitterly.
“We can always-“
“No, over my dead body will I let you get a woman pregnant because I do not trust you and any females, let alone surrogate mums, together.”
“Adopt, Kibum, I’m thinking about adoption.” Minho finished his sentence and let out a low chuckle.
“Oh.” Key gave it a quick thought and ended up shaking his head. “The process is too long, too tedious…”
“Why do I feel like you’re shooting down whatever I say?” Minho questioned.
Key’s silence only had Minho questioning more.
“Baby, why are you so pessimistic about the future?”
“I just… don’t want to get our hopes so high…”
“Let me ask you something…” Minho waited for Key to give the green light, which he did with a nod, before continuing. “Do you believe that we’ll still be together after we graduate, say 5 years down the road?”
Key hesitated and that was more than enough for Minho to quickly step in and share his inner thoughts.
“You know, Kibum, I never told you this because you always don’t seem to believe me when I say what you term as cheesy stuff to you but if I’m going to be honest with you like how I am going to be now, I want to grow old with you.”
Key’s lips parted but no sound came out. He also couldn’t seem to look away from Minho, trapped in his boyfriend’s bambi eyes as Minho continued to pour his heart out to him.
“4 years, baby, we’ve been together and if that doesn’t say enough about how much I love you, I’ll use the coming years to prove to you that you’ll be the only one I want to come home to… the only one whose hands I’ll hold, whose lips I’ll kiss, whose body I’ll touch and it’ll all feel like home.”
Key wouldn’t admit that Minho’s words had touched his heart but the water in his eyes gave him away. He didn’t let the tears fall. His eyes crinkled in a smile instead as he reached out to hold Minho’s face, squeezing it as he did.
“You’re really stupid, you know that?” Key leaned forward to press a kiss on Minho’s pouted lips. “I know you think I hesitated because I was unsure of our future together but I’m not, silly. Minho, just so you know, I hate that I love you so much more than how much I think is rational to love somebody. I was just unsure of how you felt but you obviously made that crystal clear now…”
Key laughed as a dark blush crept up Minho’s cheeks while his hands moved to lock themselves behind Minho’s neck. “But I’m glad we’re clear about this now… and I’ll forgive you for being so cheesy this time round.”
“I’m not being cheesy, I’m-“
“I wanna grow old with you too.”
“Oh.”
Minho smiled. Key did too. And for a moment in time, both of them enjoyed the circle of bliss that surrounded them… until Minho destroyed it.
“Wow, that seriously is very cheesy.”
Key rolled his eyes. “Good that you know.”
Minho chuckled as he wrapped his hands around Key’s waist, pulling his boyfriend down to lie on top of him while he lay down in bed.
“Can I interest you in taking my clothes off now that we’re done with the serious talking?”
“Minho, you’ve already bathed.”
“But you haven’t.”
“So?”
“I can shower with you. Again.”
“And let out water bill shoot up again like how it did when we first moved in together?” Knowing exactly what would happen if they showered together, Key frowned and shook his head. “No thank you.”
Minho sighed, pushing Key off him just a little, enough for him to have the space to take his wifebeater off himself and throw it somewhere on the floor.
“How about now?” Minho smirked as he pulled Key’s hands to his abs. He knew Key loved feeling his toned stomach and tracing the defined muscles.
Key resisted the urge to move his hands as he stared into Minho’s eyes. “There’s something I don’t understand…”
“Hmm?”
“You always never ask… why ask tonight?”
“Communication is key.”
“What bullshit.”
“So you rather me just take without asking?”
“That’s not my point.”
“What is your point exactly?”
“I think we should just shut up and kiss.”
“That’s exactly what I wanted to do right from the beginning.”
“No Minho, you wanted more.”
“And you think we can stop at kissing?”
“Is that a challenge?”
“Why are you always arguing with me?”
“I like it when you’re all irritated.”
“Does that turn you on?”
Key closed his eyes in resignation and decided that they would be better off kissing. And so, he finally allowed his hands to trace the abs he had a weakness for while working his lips against that of Minho’s.
It had been a long night, what with his mother visiting and all, and he really didn’t need to hear any more of the idiotic things that could come out of Minho’s mouth. Besides, he had a lifetime for that, didn’t he?
Key couldn’t help but groan when that thought came into his head.
All of a sudden, Minho pulled away, looking at Key with a shocked expression. “I… haven’t even done anything yet.”
Key squeezed Minho on his sides. “I didn’t moan, you idiot! I was groaning.”
“Oh.” Minho laughed awkwardly. “Why? Did I do something wrong?”
“Yeah.”
“What is it this time?”
Key rolled his eyes. “You made me fall in love with you.”
“Why is that wrong?” Minho creased his eyebrows. “If you ask me, that’s the best choice you’ll ever make in your life.”
“You know, I’ve always wondered, do you hear yourself when you talk?”
“Yes, I make perfect sense.”
And this is when Key remembered they will always be better off kissing than arguing. And so, his lips went back to work, his hands this time round moving slowly to push Minho’s boxers down, just because Key knew this would finally shut Minho up.
“Fuck… Kibum…”
Or maybe not.
“Mum…” Kibum began after swallowing a mouthful of bulgogi and was now holding his metal chopsticks tightly in his hands. “Stop looking at Minho like that… and stop smiling too. It’s scary…”
Minho, who had his eyes glued onto his bowl of rice, instantly looked up to see that Key’s mum was indeed grinning directly at him, her eyes obviously taking in his features almost admiringly. With Key’s mum sitting opposite them, Minho fidgeted nervously in his chair, not knowing what was appropriate to do in this situation. He took a peek at Key and it was then he realised his boyfriend had stopped eating entirely as his chopsticks were now resting on the bowl. Minho suddenly decided he had no appetite to continue eating either… since eating on a nervous stomach wasn’t helping his digestion at all.
“Kibum ah, why did you have to say that out loud? You see how you’ve made things so uncomfortable now…” Key’s mother shook her head and shot a reproachful look at her son.
“Please mum, it was awkward to begin with…” Key muttered under his breath, recalling how things went once his mother had set foot into their apartment.
As soon as the door opened, his mother had basically smothered not only him but Minho with hugs before any official introductions could be made. This was immediately followed with his mother taking a quick tour of their apartment, commenting on just about everything like how the bed sheets were a good choice and how the windows needed to be fully open to let fresh air in, before settling down in the kitchen with strict orders that none of them bother her while she cooked a nice dinner for them. Key and Minho could only blink at each other as they were forced to wait quietly at the dining table. It only took Key’s mum under an hour to whip up a meal consisting of three dishes and a soup but during the entire hour or so, Minho and Key had been wordlessly exchanging messages with their eyes, trying their best to communicate without letting Key’s mother in on their conversation (which basically consisted of them panicking and figuring out what they should do). Evidently, their “discussion” had been fruitless since here they were now almost done with dinner yet still doing nothing to make the atmosphere any less awkward.
Of course, Key’s mother wasn’t oblivious to the uncomfortable atmosphere. It didn’t take much intelligence to know how nervous the two boys in front of her were and she was doing all she could to make the situation comfortable for everyone. After all, she had been in this situation before when she met her husband’s parents for the first time. And if she was honest, her husband’s parents weren’t the friendliest people one could meet. She definitely didn’t want Minho to remember her this way, which explained why she kept smiling at him. Maybe the next step to making everyone feel comfortable was to act more like a friend, less like a mother. and be completely honest with the tensed up kids sitting in front of her...
“Minho, if it helps, I am nervous as well.” Key’s mother chuckled shyly as she admitted her feelings.
“Mum?!”
“Eomonim…”
Both Key and Minho spoke at the same time and then glanced at each other with puzzled expressions.
“It’s my first time doing this as well!” Mrs Kim explained. “Kibum’s my only son and you’re the first person he’s letting me meet… I just want to get to know you, Minho, and how things are going between the two of you. Kibum?”
“Well mum…” Key smiled, grateful that his mother was putting in the effort to ease the tension in the apartment. “There’s nothing much to know about Minho because he’s actually really boring. He didn’t have a life before I came into the picture.”
“Kibum…” Minho groaned. “Do you have to put it that way?”
“What? It’s the truth, isn’t it?” Key smirked.
“I'm involved in sports…” Minho argued.
“Ah! So I was right about you being athletic.” Interrupting her son from speaking, Key’s mother praised herself out loud, very much pleased with her accurate observation skills. “What sports do you play, Minho?”
“Soccer, Eomonim, that’s the main sport I’m dedicated to.” Minho smiled and rubbed his neck shyly. “I’m actually the captain of the university’s soccer team.”
“Wow, you must have your fair share of popularity in school then.” Mrs Kim nodded approvingly. “Is that how Kibum knows you? Are you guys in the same university?”
Key scrunched up his face in a frown because the dreaded question had finally been asked. He wasn’t exactly keen on recounting his and Minho’s love story to his mother… not that he and Minho had a love story to tell anyway.
“Yes Eomonim, we’re in the same university… and I guess that’s basically how we know each other.” Minho replied accordingly.
“But it seems like you and Kibum don’t have anything in common… for one, my son hates sports!”
While Minho hid a laugh behind his hand, Key groaned. “Mum, why do I get this feeling that you think I’m the one who came on to Minho?”
“Because I know you, darling... you’re hard to approach.” Mrs Kim stated matter of factly.
“Thanks Mum.” Key replied as sarcastically as he could, only to get ignored by his mother.
“So Minho, how long have you and Kibum been together?”
“We’re coming to our 4th year together…” Minho answered slowly as he turned to look at Key confused and trying to understand why his boyfriend was squeezing his thigh so hard while keeping a straight face. Yet, in the next second, he immediately understood why after answering Mrs Kim’s question, Key was suddenly looking like he was doomed.
“4th year?” Mrs Kim had calmly repeated before taking in a breath and exclaiming, eyes fixed on her own son, “4 years?!”
“Mum, I can explain-“
“Kim Kibum.” Mrs Kim didn’t raise her voice but her tone was scary enough to make both Key and Minho hold each other’s hand under the table and pray they will get through this safely. “4 years and I’m only getting to know Minho tonight? Do you still remember that I am your mother? I should have never let you leave Daegu for Seoul if I knew you were-”
“Mum, I didn’t know if you were ready for something like this.” Key attempted to pacify his mother but when she only narrowed her eyes at him, he knew he should have thought of something smarter to say.
“Kibum, honey, even though I might not be ready to meet your boyfriend, do you think your mum doesn’t know how to Google for advice?”
Mrs Kim’s unexpected confession certainly caught both Key and Minho off guard. They even had to take a minute to digest her words. And if they interpreted her question correctly, did that mean Key’s mum actually googled to prepare herself for her meeting with them tonight? Key and Minho shared a look with each other, expressions filled with a little more amusement than disbelief.
“It doesn’t matter if I’m ready or not… because no matter what, Kibum, you’re my son and I want to know what’s happening in your life and not be kept in the dark for 4 years.” Mrs Kim sighed, unaware that the kids in front of her were still stuck in the previous moment in time. “I’ve accepted you for who you are… and I’ll accept Minho too, as long as he treats you well.”
Upon hearing his name, Minho quickly nodded at Key’s mother with a fiercely determined expression that was enough to convince Mrs Kim she could trust Key with him even if he didn’t make the following promise.
“Eomonim, I know you haven’t got the chance to know me as well as you should but please believe me, I’ll never give you any reason to make you lose your trust in me when it comes to Kibum. I love him more than you can imagine and I always-“
“Okay, baby, enough, thank you.” Key swiftly covered Minho’s mouth before any more of his goosebump-raising honeyed words could escape his lips. “I think my mum’s fairly convinced.”
With a loving smile, Key’s mother looked adoringly at the couple for a moment or two, simply taking in how both her son and Minho were so natural, so at home, so happy with each other. What more could she ask for knowing her son was happier than he had ever been when she watched him grow up?
Mrs Kim let out a satisfied sigh and stood up from the chair. “Alright boys, finish up your dinner! I’ll go cut some fruits for us and we can talk more when I come back.”
Both boys nodded obediently and when Key’s mother finally disappeared into the kitchen, Key released his hand over Minho’s mouth only to end up using it to punch his boyfriend on the shoulder.
“You didn’t have to confess your undying love for me in front of my mum!” Key hissed at a volume loud enough for only Minho to hear.
With a satisfied smile, Minho chose to remain silent, only shrugging his shoulders with an air of nonchalance while he picked up his chopsticks to finish up the remaining food on the table. At the same time, he signalled for Key to continue eating as well.
Key shook his head and let out a breath. “I can’t eat… I’m still shocked from the fact that my mother used Google to prepare for tonight. What do you think she googled? How should I meet my son’s boyfriend? Are there even search results for that?”
Knowing that Key was waiting for his answer, Minho gave a verbal reply this time round. “We could try googling it later…”
“Minho, I can tell you’re only replying me for the sake of replying...”
“Sorry baby, it’s just that now that all my nerves are gone, I’m feeling really hungry and I just want to finish up dinner and-“
“You and your bottomless pit… I can already imagine me poking your belly one day.” Key’s eyes travelled from the food that was going into Minho’s mouth to where it’ll eventually end up at his stomach and sighed, picturing a bleak future where he would be hugging a rather chubby Minho with a beer belly.
“No worries, I’ll make sure my abs will always be around for you to admire.” Minho winked. “I know how much you love touching them.”
“Choi Minho! My mother is here.” Key widened his eyes in alarm and quickly looked towards the kitchen to check if his mum’s attention were on them. “She does not need to know that we have touched each other at body parts which aren’t hands!”
“Oops?” This was accompanied with the most innocent expression Minho could muster.
Key rubbed his temples in exasperation and then pointed a finger directly at Minho’s face. “You. Please. Watch your words. Better still, speak only when necessary. You hear me?”
“Kibummie…”
“Or at least just make my mum believe we are an innocent couple who does only PG rated stuff.”
“She knows we’ve been together for almost 4 years, Kibum… your mum isn’t stupid.”
Key groaned. “Maybe we should have been as smart as my mum and googled what we should do when meeting the parents…”
Minho chuckled and pulled Key towards him, unable to resist the urge of giving his boyfriend a quick kiss. Knowing that Key would kick up a fuss because of his actions, he immediately placed a finger on the blonde’s lips and smiled reassuringly.
“We’re doing fine, baby. Don’t start to panic again.”
“You’ll be the death of me…” Key muttered, unable to argue anymore since his mother was now walking back towards them with a plate of freshly cut fruits.
“Kibum, you look ugly when you have that grumpy face on.”
Key shot a stare at a beaming Minho and mumbled, “I hate you, Minho.”
Mrs Kim frowned. “Honey, I don’t remember teaching you to lie.”
Key could only blink incredulously as his boyfriend and his mother of all people shared a knowing laugh with each other.
If the two most important people in his life were going to gang up against him for the rest of the night, Key had only one wish… that his mother wouldn’t stay for long. He just couldn't deal with so much in one night.
*
There was a time when Key imagined what it would be like if he brought Minho home to meet his parents. And when he did, different scenarios had popped up in his mind. Take for example, how he pictured his parents making things difficult for Minho, bombarding him with questions that had politically correct answers they expected Minho to give but didn’t get and they ended up having the most disastrous meeting ever. Or scenario number two, where Key imagined that the atmosphere was perpetually awkward the entire time because Minho was after all a guy and his parents made it strikingly obvious they were still uncomfortable with the fact that their son was gay. Key could just visualise the stiff and fake welcoming smiles on his parents’ faces while they asked the necessary questions just to keep a conversation going. Of course, this scenario didn’t seem as bad as the first but the result was still disastrous. Key also tried to look at the bright side of life and this is when he imagined his mother, at least, trying her best to get to know Minho and understand their relationship. Whether or not his parents gave their blessings in the end, it didn’t matter because at the bare minimum, they would have made the effort to get to know Minho, the guy who he had been with for four years and counting, the constant in his life. And that was all Key could ask for.
Out of all the scenarios he had thought of, Key thanked his lucky stars that the last and most positive scenario eventually happened at the dinner he had with his mum and Minho. Still, nothing would have prepared him for the questions that his mother had asked when she came back with fruits. He should have been happy that dinner went well, and indeed he was, but Key couldn’t enjoy that moment of happiness when he was now troubled by the thoughts on his mind… thoughts that he knew he had to figure out now that the questions were brought up. And it wasn’t only about Key figuring things out because if that was the case, Key wouldn’t be troubled at all. It was the reality that he had to discuss these questions with Minho which was worrying Key…
Upon hearing the sound of a door opening, Key’s eyes followed the man in question who was now stepping out of their bathroom clad only in a towel that hung low on his hips, and walking towards their wardrobe to grab his sleepwear which normally only consisted of a pair of boxers. Minho could clearly feel his boyfriend’s intense gaze on him and he had half the mind to drop his towel just for the sake of teasing him but after almost four years together, Minho had mastered the art of understanding Kim Kibum. Now was definitely not the time to be funny.
“Should I put on a shirt?” Minho asked, just to confirm that his intuition was right.
“What?” Key tilted his head and raised an eyebrow at Minho.
“Don’t you have something you want to talk to me about?” Minho decided to save time and just get straight to the point.
“Yes… but-“
“Alright then.” Minho nodded and pulled out a plain black wifebeater along with a pair of boxers.
Before Key knew it, Minho was dressed and sitting across him on the bed, all prepared to listen to what he had to say. Truth is, since he was an expert when it came to Kim Kibum, Minho already had an inkling to what his boyfriend wanted to discuss with him…
“Kibum?”
“Yeah…” Key swallowed nervously. “I want to talk to you about what my mum asked us earlier.”
“Our future?”
Future. That was it. That was exactly what had been occupying Key’s mind. Thinking about the future was something Key knew was inevitable but rather not confront until it was absolutely necessary. And now that his mother had brought the topic up, Key knew there was no way he could avoid the topic anymore. How it rolled off Minho’s tongue so easily like the future was nothing to be afraid of was something Key wished he could do. Because to him, no matter how confident he was about where he stood with Minho, their future was still uncertain. It was unpredictable and anything could happen even if promises were made now.
“About that… Minho, what exactly are your plans for the future?” Key was curious because they never did discuss this before.
“Didn’t you tell your mum just now that we should focus on the present?” Minho retorted with an amused look on his face.
“I only said that because I didn’t have an answer for her.”
Minho stilled, no longer looking amused, instead becoming too serious for Key’s liking. “So you’re telling me, that after four years together Kibum, you don’t know where we’re heading?”
“Do you know where we’re heading?” Key threw the question back to Minho.
To answer Key, Minho placed his hands firmly on Key’s shoulders and looked straight into his eyes. “Yes.”
“What did you have in mind?” Key chewed on his bottom lip, nervous and anticipating what Minho had to say.
“For one, I still see us together and well, I know how much you always wanted a kid like yourself… you wanted a little Kibum right?” When Key nodded, Minho continued. “Yeah, so I thought it’ll be nice if we build a family together when we’re both ready and earning stable incomes.”
“Minho… I can never have a kid like myself unless I get a woman pregnant… but we both know the probability of that is almost close to zero.” Key laughed bitterly.
“We can always-“
“No, over my dead body will I let you get a woman pregnant because I do not trust you and any females, let alone surrogate mums, together.”
“Adopt, Kibum, I’m thinking about adoption.” Minho finished his sentence and let out a low chuckle.
“Oh.” Key gave it a quick thought and ended up shaking his head. “The process is too long, too tedious…”
“Why do I feel like you’re shooting down whatever I say?” Minho questioned.
Key’s silence only had Minho questioning more.
“Baby, why are you so pessimistic about the future?”
“I just… don’t want to get our hopes so high…”
“Let me ask you something…” Minho waited for Key to give the green light, which he did with a nod, before continuing. “Do you believe that we’ll still be together after we graduate, say 5 years down the road?”
Key hesitated and that was more than enough for Minho to quickly step in and share his inner thoughts.
“You know, Kibum, I never told you this because you always don’t seem to believe me when I say what you term as cheesy stuff to you but if I’m going to be honest with you like how I am going to be now, I want to grow old with you.”
Key’s lips parted but no sound came out. He also couldn’t seem to look away from Minho, trapped in his boyfriend’s bambi eyes as Minho continued to pour his heart out to him.
“4 years, baby, we’ve been together and if that doesn’t say enough about how much I love you, I’ll use the coming years to prove to you that you’ll be the only one I want to come home to… the only one whose hands I’ll hold, whose lips I’ll kiss, whose body I’ll touch and it’ll all feel like home.”
Key wouldn’t admit that Minho’s words had touched his heart but the water in his eyes gave him away. He didn’t let the tears fall. His eyes crinkled in a smile instead as he reached out to hold Minho’s face, squeezing it as he did.
“You’re really stupid, you know that?” Key leaned forward to press a kiss on Minho’s pouted lips. “I know you think I hesitated because I was unsure of our future together but I’m not, silly. Minho, just so you know, I hate that I love you so much more than how much I think is rational to love somebody. I was just unsure of how you felt but you obviously made that crystal clear now…”
Key laughed as a dark blush crept up Minho’s cheeks while his hands moved to lock themselves behind Minho’s neck. “But I’m glad we’re clear about this now… and I’ll forgive you for being so cheesy this time round.”
“I’m not being cheesy, I’m-“
“I wanna grow old with you too.”
“Oh.”
Minho smiled. Key did too. And for a moment in time, both of them enjoyed the circle of bliss that surrounded them… until Minho destroyed it.
“Wow, that seriously is very cheesy.”
Key rolled his eyes. “Good that you know.”
Minho chuckled as he wrapped his hands around Key’s waist, pulling his boyfriend down to lie on top of him while he lay down in bed.
“Can I interest you in taking my clothes off now that we’re done with the serious talking?”
“Minho, you’ve already bathed.”
“But you haven’t.”
“So?”
“I can shower with you. Again.”
“And let out water bill shoot up again like how it did when we first moved in together?” Knowing exactly what would happen if they showered together, Key frowned and shook his head. “No thank you.”
Minho sighed, pushing Key off him just a little, enough for him to have the space to take his wifebeater off himself and throw it somewhere on the floor.
“How about now?” Minho smirked as he pulled Key’s hands to his abs. He knew Key loved feeling his toned stomach and tracing the defined muscles.
Key resisted the urge to move his hands as he stared into Minho’s eyes. “There’s something I don’t understand…”
“Hmm?”
“You always never ask… why ask tonight?”
“Communication is key.”
“What bullshit.”
“So you rather me just take without asking?”
“That’s not my point.”
“What is your point exactly?”
“I think we should just shut up and kiss.”
“That’s exactly what I wanted to do right from the beginning.”
“No Minho, you wanted more.”
“And you think we can stop at kissing?”
“Is that a challenge?”
“Why are you always arguing with me?”
“I like it when you’re all irritated.”
“Does that turn you on?”
Key closed his eyes in resignation and decided that they would be better off kissing. And so, he finally allowed his hands to trace the abs he had a weakness for while working his lips against that of Minho’s.
It had been a long night, what with his mother visiting and all, and he really didn’t need to hear any more of the idiotic things that could come out of Minho’s mouth. Besides, he had a lifetime for that, didn’t he?
Key couldn’t help but groan when that thought came into his head.
All of a sudden, Minho pulled away, looking at Key with a shocked expression. “I… haven’t even done anything yet.”
Key squeezed Minho on his sides. “I didn’t moan, you idiot! I was groaning.”
“Oh.” Minho laughed awkwardly. “Why? Did I do something wrong?”
“Yeah.”
“What is it this time?”
Key rolled his eyes. “You made me fall in love with you.”
“Why is that wrong?” Minho creased his eyebrows. “If you ask me, that’s the best choice you’ll ever make in your life.”
“You know, I’ve always wondered, do you hear yourself when you talk?”
“Yes, I make perfect sense.”
And this is when Key remembered they will always be better off kissing than arguing. And so, his lips went back to work, his hands this time round moving slowly to push Minho’s boxers down, just because Key knew this would finally shut Minho up.
“Fuck… Kibum…”
Or maybe not.