starshine
starshine
slight jonghyun/onew, key/minho
2131 words
Jonghyun thinks that he wouldn't have his life any other way (except possibly forming a five-member band with Jinki, Kibum, Minho and Taemin called SHINee.)
starshine
i've been watching but the stars refuse to shine
i've been searching but i just don't see the signs
- way back into love (hugh grant & drew barrymore)
It is six thirty-seven in the morning. Jonghyun tugs at the strangling tie around his neck, then sighs. Work starts in approximately twenty-three - no, wait, twenty-two - minutes, and all he wants to do right now is call in sick, then walk right back home and collapse back on his messy, unkempt bed and sleep the morning away.
Coffee, Jonghyun thinks, then glances up and spots a light flickering on. A café. Thank God. He makes his way carefully past a dirty-looking puddle, then speed-walks to the café and bursts in, the cheery bell jingling as the door swings open.
"Coffee, please," Jonghyun calls to the stunned-looking waiter holding a broom. "And fast." He settles into the nearest booth, resting his hands on the table and resists the urge to twiddle his thumbs as he watches the waiter wearing a striped apron busy himself behind the counter.
It takes two minutes before Jonghyun gets his coffee, and then he has to spend another five minutes in the bathroom washing off the coffee that the waiter spilled on his clothes while serving him. And after that he spends another ten minutes reassuring the clumsy waiter who is close to tears that everything is fine, perfectly okay, that Jonghyun's nipples aren't about to drop off from being burned. That Jinki - that's the waiter's name, Jonghyun learns - doesn't have to worry, Jonghyun is sure the stains will go off.
"I'm so sorry," Jinki cries for the sixtieth time, and Jonghyun shakes his head and offers a comforting smile.
And then it is five minutes to eight and Jonghyun has to grab his briefcase and run out of the café, but not before his gaze flickers up to take note of the café's name (The SHINee World). for some reason, Jonghyun makes a mental note to come back.
"I swear," Jonghyun insists, leading Kibum past the dingy alleyway and hops over the familiar oily puddle. "The coffee is great."
Kibum shoots him a look. "I thought the coffee got spilled," Kibum says suspiciously. "Then how would you know if it was great or not?"
Jonghyun blanches. "Um," he says. "It smelled great, anyway."
Kibum rolls his eyes, whacks Jonghyun on the side with his heavy leather briefcase. "You're just dragging me along so you won't have to face what's-his-name all on your own."
"Jinki," Jonghyun says automatically, then turns around to make a face at Kibum. "And why would I be scared of facing him?"
Kibum grins, and a mischievous spark lights his eyes. he taps his chin, clearly amused, then turns to Jonghyun and says, "Oh, i don't know, maybe because you have a crush on him?"
"What!" Jonghyun cries, at the same time as the café's doors are flung open and Jinki tumbles out, flushed and apologetic, as he repeats sorry Jonghyun-sshi are you okay yet again.
"This must be Jinki-sshi," Kibum says, beaming at Jinki and shaking his hand enthusiastically. "I've heard so much about you!"
Jonghyun shuts his eyes for a moment, thinking about all the ways he can murder Kim Kibum, then opens them again and smiles brightly at Jinki. "Hey," he says. "I came back for coffee."
Kibum stares at him incredulously, and Jonghyun stammers, "You know, because i never got to try it. Your coffee."
Jinki smiles for the first time. "Sure," he says, laughing a little. "I'll make sure not to spill it again." He turns to push the door, which doesn't budge. All three men's gazes drift down to the sign on the glass door which says pull.
"Oh," says Jinki, flushing. He pulls the door open and promptly smacks Kibum across the forehead, who yelps and crouches down on the floor, flinging his briefcase onto Jonghyun's toe. Jonghyun winces, then reaches out a hand to help his best friend up as Jinki starts on his apology spree all over again.
And then someone is standing on the other side of that door wearing a knowing look and a handsome smile. The door opens. The stranger, who is wearing an apron that has the same pattern as Jinki's, shakes his head at Jinki and says, "Not again, Jinki-hyung."
"Minho-yah!" Jinki cries, grabbing his arm and tugging him towards Kibum, who is rubbing his forehead and making pained faces. "You're studying to be a doctor, right? Save him!"
"I'm fine," Kibum begins, waving an arm to ward minho off while his other hand is still pressed against his forehead, but Minho strides briskly towards Kibum and gently removes his hand from his forehead.
"I'll just take a look," Minho says kindly, and Jonghyun resists the urge to shake his head as he watches Kibum positively melt in Minho's charismatic gaze.
Meanwhile, Jinki is wringing his hands all self-pityingly, and Jonghyun pats his shoulder. "It was an accident," Jonghyun says. "Don't blame yourself."
Jinki makes a sad face, and Jonghyun instinctively reaches down to curl fingers around Jinki's wrist. "How about you make me some coffee?" Jonghyun suggests, helpfully pulling the door open for Jinki. A smile blooms across Jinki's face, bright as the jingle of the bells hanging on the door.
"Okay!" Jinki says, sufficiently cheered up, and disappears back into the café, the bells jingling merrily in his wake. Jonghyun turns back, ready to take on Kibum's wrath now that he'd gotten rid of Jinki. Instead, he sees Kibum hanging onto Minho's every word with a slightly dazed expression, and Jonghyun laughs, then pulls open the door and follows Jinki inside.
It's been three months after the first time they'd met, and Jonghyun has been coming to the café whenever he has free time. Jinki makes great coffee, but the little voice in Jonghyun's head thinks that the reason why Jonghyun drops by The SHINee World so often is to visit a certain someone. Who makes great coffee.
"So," Jonghyun says casually as he watches Jinki make a cup of coffee for him. "Why'd you decide to name this place The SHINee World, anyway?"
Jinki is the owner of this café, and not just a waiter, as Jonghyun had first thought. Jinki is a few months older than Jonghyun but still not ready to be confined within the cells of a desk job. Instead, Jinki likes to make coffee, and Jinki likes people to like his coffee.
Jinki shrugs, the corners of his mouth lifting up slightly as he sets the cup in front of Jonghyun. He slithers into the seat opposite Jonghyun. "I don't know," Jinki says. "It came from a dream."
"A dream," Jonghyun repeats, raising an eyebrow.
Jinki flushes. "Yeah," he says. "I had this really weird dream that I was in a group with four other guys and we were called SHINee. And our fanclub was called SHINee World."
"Interesting."
Jinki shrugs, embarrassed. "It was a cool dream, anyway," he says. "I don't know. I have this feeling that you were in the dream, too."
"Me?" Jonghyun asks, surprised. He points a finger towards himself, curious. "What was I?"
Jinki scratches his head. "The lead vocal," he says, smiling a little. "You sang really well."
Jonghyun picks up the cup of coffee, then drains it. After he sets it back down on the table, he shifts in his seat and admits, "I've always wanted to be a singer."
"Seriously?" Jinki asks, brightening. "Me, too!"
Jonghyun pulls off his tie, dumping it into the confines of his briefcase. "Kibum, too," he tells Jinki earnestly. "But our parents didn't let us."
"Ah," Jinki says, shredding a paper napkin into bits and pieces. "You guys are close?"
Jonghyun nods, hiding a smile behind his hand. "He's my best friend," he says. "Ever since high school. We got into trouble together all the time."
Jinki squints, trying to imagine the two of them dressed in matching school uniforms with a spark of innocence in their eyes. He laughs. "What!" Jonghyun says defensively, and Jinki just laughs even harder.
"I think he was in the dream too," Jinki says after a while. He looks down at the shredded bits of paper swirling around the table, and reaches out to gather them into a pile. Jonghyun watches as Jinki groups the pieces together, and as they form a pile, they stop trying to fly away. "Kibum. You. Even Minho."
Jonghyun narrows his eyes. "Wow," he says. "So there's one more guy you haven't met?"
Jinki glances up, mildly surprised. "You don't think I'm crazy?" Jinki asks, staring at Jonghyun.
Jonghyun laughs and shrugs. "Not really," he says. "I think it's nice. The dream."
Jinki smiles. "Yeah," he agrees. "It was."
Christmas is usually a busy day for The SHINee World, but Kibum insists that Jinki has to close shop for a day so they can go to the amusement park. Jonghyun shakes his head at how stubborn Kibum is, but Jinki agrees readily.
"Are you sure about this?" Jonghyun whispers. "You're going to make a loss, you know."
Jinki shrugs, smiling. "It's fine," he says. "I'm going to be having fun, anyway."
Kibum slants a suspicious glare at Jonghyun, letting go of Minho's arm to fling his hands around his best friend's shoulders. "Don't go putting thoughts in Jinki's head," he says. "It's going to be a nice, fun, bright day, so stop worrying, Jonghyun."
Minho looks up at the overcast sky, then back at Kibum, a tiny smile tugging at his lips. "I wouldn't say bright," he corrects. "But definitely nice and fun."
Kibum huffs. "Nonsense," he says, a hand pressed onto his chest. "The world is brighter because of me."
Jinki is the only one who laughs.
Jinki (unsurprisingly) has a low tolerance for rollercoasters and such, so after an hour he is pale and drenched in cold sweat. He trips towards an empty bench, then collapses on it, giving Jonghyun a weak wave. "You go play with Kibum and Minho," he says. "I'll just stay here."
Jonghyun sits down beside him. "Kibum would kill me for disrupting their alone time," he says. "Besides, if you were left alone, you'd probably get kidnapped or break your nose or something."
Jinki doesn't disagree, just smiles at Jonghyun, his eyes all crinkly. Jonghyun stares for a little too long, then coughs slightly and glances over at the drink stall. "Do you want me to get you a drink?" He asks. "You look like you're about to keel over and die any moment."
Jinki says he wants a coke, and Jonghyun raises an eyebrow. "I'll get you water," he says, and gives Jinki a brief smile before disappearing off to get drinks.
When he comes back, there is someone else sitting on the bench with Jinki. He is skinny and pale, his features unbelievably pretty. "This is Taemin," Jinki says, patting the stranger's back with a grin. "Taemin, meet Jonghyun."
Taemin flashes a bright smile that nearly blinds Jonghyun, who blinks and stutters out a hello. Before Taemin, he'd thought Jinki had the brightest smile he'd ever seen, but well, Taemin changes things quite a bit.
Jonghyun clears his throat, handing Jinki a bottle of water. "Drink," he orders, and Jinki nods and accepts it meekly. Taemin's lips are still curved up in a smile as he perches on the edge of the bench.
"Jinki!" Kibum says disapprovingly, suddenly appearing behind them, Minho in tow. His eyes are flashing and his arms are stuck onto his hips as he glares down at Jinki. "Why are you not playing? The whole point is to go and have fun!"
"He's not feeling well, Kibum, drop it," Jonghyun answers, and Jinki shoots him a grateful smile, clearly terrified of Kibum's wrath.
Kibum huffs and turns, staring down at Taemin. He blinks as Taemin offers him the same megawatt smile. "Who is this?" Kibum cries, grabbing at Taemin's arm and beaming lovingly at him.
"I'm Taemin," Taemin says, eyes sparkling.
It takes a second for Kibum to be won over, and he starts fussing over Taemin's hair ("really, that bowlcut is adorable!") and tugging at his clothes ("these jeans look really great on you, by the way.") and Minho has to cough and drag Kibum's arm away subtly before Kibum stops molesting Taemin.
Taemin becomes the latest addition to their group, mostly because Kibum managed to get his phone number and calls him once every week to whine, "Taemin-ah, it's been ages since I last saw you."
So Taemin drops by The SHINee World every Thursday, whereas Kibum and Jonghyun have now taken to going over every lunch break. Jinki gives them coffee (free-of-charge, thanks to Kibum's constant whining) with a sunshine-bright smile on the side, and Minho is just there - not speaking much, but irreplaceable nonetheless.
Jonghyun thinks that he wouldn't have his life any other way (except possibly forming a five-member band with Jinki, Kibum, Minho and Taemin called SHINee).
slight jonghyun/onew, key/minho
2131 words
Jonghyun thinks that he wouldn't have his life any other way (except possibly forming a five-member band with Jinki, Kibum, Minho and Taemin called SHINee.)
starshine
i've been watching but the stars refuse to shine
i've been searching but i just don't see the signs
- way back into love (hugh grant & drew barrymore)
It is six thirty-seven in the morning. Jonghyun tugs at the strangling tie around his neck, then sighs. Work starts in approximately twenty-three - no, wait, twenty-two - minutes, and all he wants to do right now is call in sick, then walk right back home and collapse back on his messy, unkempt bed and sleep the morning away.
Coffee, Jonghyun thinks, then glances up and spots a light flickering on. A café. Thank God. He makes his way carefully past a dirty-looking puddle, then speed-walks to the café and bursts in, the cheery bell jingling as the door swings open.
"Coffee, please," Jonghyun calls to the stunned-looking waiter holding a broom. "And fast." He settles into the nearest booth, resting his hands on the table and resists the urge to twiddle his thumbs as he watches the waiter wearing a striped apron busy himself behind the counter.
It takes two minutes before Jonghyun gets his coffee, and then he has to spend another five minutes in the bathroom washing off the coffee that the waiter spilled on his clothes while serving him. And after that he spends another ten minutes reassuring the clumsy waiter who is close to tears that everything is fine, perfectly okay, that Jonghyun's nipples aren't about to drop off from being burned. That Jinki - that's the waiter's name, Jonghyun learns - doesn't have to worry, Jonghyun is sure the stains will go off.
"I'm so sorry," Jinki cries for the sixtieth time, and Jonghyun shakes his head and offers a comforting smile.
And then it is five minutes to eight and Jonghyun has to grab his briefcase and run out of the café, but not before his gaze flickers up to take note of the café's name (The SHINee World). for some reason, Jonghyun makes a mental note to come back.
"I swear," Jonghyun insists, leading Kibum past the dingy alleyway and hops over the familiar oily puddle. "The coffee is great."
Kibum shoots him a look. "I thought the coffee got spilled," Kibum says suspiciously. "Then how would you know if it was great or not?"
Jonghyun blanches. "Um," he says. "It smelled great, anyway."
Kibum rolls his eyes, whacks Jonghyun on the side with his heavy leather briefcase. "You're just dragging me along so you won't have to face what's-his-name all on your own."
"Jinki," Jonghyun says automatically, then turns around to make a face at Kibum. "And why would I be scared of facing him?"
Kibum grins, and a mischievous spark lights his eyes. he taps his chin, clearly amused, then turns to Jonghyun and says, "Oh, i don't know, maybe because you have a crush on him?"
"What!" Jonghyun cries, at the same time as the café's doors are flung open and Jinki tumbles out, flushed and apologetic, as he repeats sorry Jonghyun-sshi are you okay yet again.
"This must be Jinki-sshi," Kibum says, beaming at Jinki and shaking his hand enthusiastically. "I've heard so much about you!"
Jonghyun shuts his eyes for a moment, thinking about all the ways he can murder Kim Kibum, then opens them again and smiles brightly at Jinki. "Hey," he says. "I came back for coffee."
Kibum stares at him incredulously, and Jonghyun stammers, "You know, because i never got to try it. Your coffee."
Jinki smiles for the first time. "Sure," he says, laughing a little. "I'll make sure not to spill it again." He turns to push the door, which doesn't budge. All three men's gazes drift down to the sign on the glass door which says pull.
"Oh," says Jinki, flushing. He pulls the door open and promptly smacks Kibum across the forehead, who yelps and crouches down on the floor, flinging his briefcase onto Jonghyun's toe. Jonghyun winces, then reaches out a hand to help his best friend up as Jinki starts on his apology spree all over again.
And then someone is standing on the other side of that door wearing a knowing look and a handsome smile. The door opens. The stranger, who is wearing an apron that has the same pattern as Jinki's, shakes his head at Jinki and says, "Not again, Jinki-hyung."
"Minho-yah!" Jinki cries, grabbing his arm and tugging him towards Kibum, who is rubbing his forehead and making pained faces. "You're studying to be a doctor, right? Save him!"
"I'm fine," Kibum begins, waving an arm to ward minho off while his other hand is still pressed against his forehead, but Minho strides briskly towards Kibum and gently removes his hand from his forehead.
"I'll just take a look," Minho says kindly, and Jonghyun resists the urge to shake his head as he watches Kibum positively melt in Minho's charismatic gaze.
Meanwhile, Jinki is wringing his hands all self-pityingly, and Jonghyun pats his shoulder. "It was an accident," Jonghyun says. "Don't blame yourself."
Jinki makes a sad face, and Jonghyun instinctively reaches down to curl fingers around Jinki's wrist. "How about you make me some coffee?" Jonghyun suggests, helpfully pulling the door open for Jinki. A smile blooms across Jinki's face, bright as the jingle of the bells hanging on the door.
"Okay!" Jinki says, sufficiently cheered up, and disappears back into the café, the bells jingling merrily in his wake. Jonghyun turns back, ready to take on Kibum's wrath now that he'd gotten rid of Jinki. Instead, he sees Kibum hanging onto Minho's every word with a slightly dazed expression, and Jonghyun laughs, then pulls open the door and follows Jinki inside.
It's been three months after the first time they'd met, and Jonghyun has been coming to the café whenever he has free time. Jinki makes great coffee, but the little voice in Jonghyun's head thinks that the reason why Jonghyun drops by The SHINee World so often is to visit a certain someone. Who makes great coffee.
"So," Jonghyun says casually as he watches Jinki make a cup of coffee for him. "Why'd you decide to name this place The SHINee World, anyway?"
Jinki is the owner of this café, and not just a waiter, as Jonghyun had first thought. Jinki is a few months older than Jonghyun but still not ready to be confined within the cells of a desk job. Instead, Jinki likes to make coffee, and Jinki likes people to like his coffee.
Jinki shrugs, the corners of his mouth lifting up slightly as he sets the cup in front of Jonghyun. He slithers into the seat opposite Jonghyun. "I don't know," Jinki says. "It came from a dream."
"A dream," Jonghyun repeats, raising an eyebrow.
Jinki flushes. "Yeah," he says. "I had this really weird dream that I was in a group with four other guys and we were called SHINee. And our fanclub was called SHINee World."
"Interesting."
Jinki shrugs, embarrassed. "It was a cool dream, anyway," he says. "I don't know. I have this feeling that you were in the dream, too."
"Me?" Jonghyun asks, surprised. He points a finger towards himself, curious. "What was I?"
Jinki scratches his head. "The lead vocal," he says, smiling a little. "You sang really well."
Jonghyun picks up the cup of coffee, then drains it. After he sets it back down on the table, he shifts in his seat and admits, "I've always wanted to be a singer."
"Seriously?" Jinki asks, brightening. "Me, too!"
Jonghyun pulls off his tie, dumping it into the confines of his briefcase. "Kibum, too," he tells Jinki earnestly. "But our parents didn't let us."
"Ah," Jinki says, shredding a paper napkin into bits and pieces. "You guys are close?"
Jonghyun nods, hiding a smile behind his hand. "He's my best friend," he says. "Ever since high school. We got into trouble together all the time."
Jinki squints, trying to imagine the two of them dressed in matching school uniforms with a spark of innocence in their eyes. He laughs. "What!" Jonghyun says defensively, and Jinki just laughs even harder.
"I think he was in the dream too," Jinki says after a while. He looks down at the shredded bits of paper swirling around the table, and reaches out to gather them into a pile. Jonghyun watches as Jinki groups the pieces together, and as they form a pile, they stop trying to fly away. "Kibum. You. Even Minho."
Jonghyun narrows his eyes. "Wow," he says. "So there's one more guy you haven't met?"
Jinki glances up, mildly surprised. "You don't think I'm crazy?" Jinki asks, staring at Jonghyun.
Jonghyun laughs and shrugs. "Not really," he says. "I think it's nice. The dream."
Jinki smiles. "Yeah," he agrees. "It was."
Christmas is usually a busy day for The SHINee World, but Kibum insists that Jinki has to close shop for a day so they can go to the amusement park. Jonghyun shakes his head at how stubborn Kibum is, but Jinki agrees readily.
"Are you sure about this?" Jonghyun whispers. "You're going to make a loss, you know."
Jinki shrugs, smiling. "It's fine," he says. "I'm going to be having fun, anyway."
Kibum slants a suspicious glare at Jonghyun, letting go of Minho's arm to fling his hands around his best friend's shoulders. "Don't go putting thoughts in Jinki's head," he says. "It's going to be a nice, fun, bright day, so stop worrying, Jonghyun."
Minho looks up at the overcast sky, then back at Kibum, a tiny smile tugging at his lips. "I wouldn't say bright," he corrects. "But definitely nice and fun."
Kibum huffs. "Nonsense," he says, a hand pressed onto his chest. "The world is brighter because of me."
Jinki is the only one who laughs.
Jinki (unsurprisingly) has a low tolerance for rollercoasters and such, so after an hour he is pale and drenched in cold sweat. He trips towards an empty bench, then collapses on it, giving Jonghyun a weak wave. "You go play with Kibum and Minho," he says. "I'll just stay here."
Jonghyun sits down beside him. "Kibum would kill me for disrupting their alone time," he says. "Besides, if you were left alone, you'd probably get kidnapped or break your nose or something."
Jinki doesn't disagree, just smiles at Jonghyun, his eyes all crinkly. Jonghyun stares for a little too long, then coughs slightly and glances over at the drink stall. "Do you want me to get you a drink?" He asks. "You look like you're about to keel over and die any moment."
Jinki says he wants a coke, and Jonghyun raises an eyebrow. "I'll get you water," he says, and gives Jinki a brief smile before disappearing off to get drinks.
When he comes back, there is someone else sitting on the bench with Jinki. He is skinny and pale, his features unbelievably pretty. "This is Taemin," Jinki says, patting the stranger's back with a grin. "Taemin, meet Jonghyun."
Taemin flashes a bright smile that nearly blinds Jonghyun, who blinks and stutters out a hello. Before Taemin, he'd thought Jinki had the brightest smile he'd ever seen, but well, Taemin changes things quite a bit.
Jonghyun clears his throat, handing Jinki a bottle of water. "Drink," he orders, and Jinki nods and accepts it meekly. Taemin's lips are still curved up in a smile as he perches on the edge of the bench.
"Jinki!" Kibum says disapprovingly, suddenly appearing behind them, Minho in tow. His eyes are flashing and his arms are stuck onto his hips as he glares down at Jinki. "Why are you not playing? The whole point is to go and have fun!"
"He's not feeling well, Kibum, drop it," Jonghyun answers, and Jinki shoots him a grateful smile, clearly terrified of Kibum's wrath.
Kibum huffs and turns, staring down at Taemin. He blinks as Taemin offers him the same megawatt smile. "Who is this?" Kibum cries, grabbing at Taemin's arm and beaming lovingly at him.
"I'm Taemin," Taemin says, eyes sparkling.
It takes a second for Kibum to be won over, and he starts fussing over Taemin's hair ("really, that bowlcut is adorable!") and tugging at his clothes ("these jeans look really great on you, by the way.") and Minho has to cough and drag Kibum's arm away subtly before Kibum stops molesting Taemin.
Taemin becomes the latest addition to their group, mostly because Kibum managed to get his phone number and calls him once every week to whine, "Taemin-ah, it's been ages since I last saw you."
So Taemin drops by The SHINee World every Thursday, whereas Kibum and Jonghyun have now taken to going over every lunch break. Jinki gives them coffee (free-of-charge, thanks to Kibum's constant whining) with a sunshine-bright smile on the side, and Minho is just there - not speaking much, but irreplaceable nonetheless.
Jonghyun thinks that he wouldn't have his life any other way (except possibly forming a five-member band with Jinki, Kibum, Minho and Taemin called SHINee).