[fic] Taemin/Key - SHINee - Another Kind of Prince Charming - Version 2
Another Kind of Prince Charming
slightly altered edition
It’s the cliché of all clichés, Taemin thinks as he steps out of the car and takes in the house he’ll be living in for the next year, maybe more. His life is officially a teen movie, the one with a rich boy from the capital thrown into a small town at seventeen to struggle with reforming his ways. Not that he did anything specifically reckless to be sent here, probably his parents getting a divorce isn’t anything extraordinarily grand.
Nevertheless, he’s here, and he’s going to live with the family of his father’s brother for an unannounced period of time. And even if right now his life seems to be a teen movie, he’s not going to let it get that bad. He is determined to prove all those teenage clichés wrong.
The sun is shining blindingly, a gentle summer breeze pushing the long strands of hair on his face. Impatiently he brushes them out of his eyes, huffing lightly. He’s surprisingly calm but he supposes it’s because he already had time to process this and get used to the thought. There’s nothing he can do to it, anyway, except come out of it with his dignity intact.
“Taemin!”
The mention of his name startles Taemin from his thoughts and instinctively he smiles as he spots his cousin hurrying towards him, practically beaming. Jinki is four years older than him but they’ve always gotten along really well, which is one reason Taemin doesn’t hate this whole move as much as he might otherwise. It doesn’t matter that Taemin is in his last year of high school and Jinki is already a senior in college, Jinki never treated him any different than his other friends.
“Did your mom bring you?” Jinki asks as he reaches out to grab the only suitcase Taemin is holding. Most of his belongings were already sent here beforehand, so he only has the last necessities with him. “Does she want coffee?”
“No,” Taemin shakes his head. “She’s busy, she had the chauffeur bring me. He could use something to drink, though, I’m sure.” He offers quickly as he sees how Jinki’s expression falls at that.
Immediately Jinki’s face brightens and he nods. “Let’s get your stuff into your room, okay? I already put up your posters, I hope that you like how I arranged them! If you don’t we can always take them back down, you know, and redo everything. I just figured you’d feel more at home!”
Taemin smiles as he follows his cousin inside. Maybe this won’t be that hard, after all.
The following Tuesday Taemin decides that this sucks. He’s been torn from the confines of his very comfortable and lovely bed at such an early hour he feels no one should be out walking around yet. Another reason is that he isn’t even fully awake yet but he’s being introduced to Jinki’s friend, Jonghyun, who keeps talking and talking until Taemin feels his ears might just fall off.
Taemin is grateful he’s making friends, he truly is. But he would really appreciate it if Jonghyun managed to tone it down a bit until he felt a little less like a walking zombie.
No such luck: turns out that they’re headed to a meeting of their theatre club. Now that everyone is on holiday, they spend three days a week practicing performances for their upcoming show. Apparently they’re quite popular, both among the students and the older people, even the children. “It earns quite a bit of money, in the end!” Jonghyun states proudly.
“Of course,” Jinki says. “Most of it goes to the production of the next play we’re doing but it’s fun! Sometimes we have movie nights or go out to eat together and pay from the theatre fund.”
“This time, we’re doing a mashup of old fairy tales! It’s like all the classics put into a blender and voila, we have an amazing show!” Jonghyun sounds more than a little enthusiastic. He even goes as far as to hook his arm with Taemin’s, pulling him forward a little faster. “I’m usually playing the weird roles. Like, dwarves and whatever. But I’m damn good at it!”
“I’m the director,” Jinki smiles. “I try to make sure the boys don’t get distracted and keep their shit together.”
“Boys?” Taemin asks, for the first time finding his interest piqued. “You mean you don’t have any girls in the group?”
“We’re a small group,” Jinki says. He sounds somewhat apologetic. “We have girls sometimes! But this year we’ve got only one. Our core group is just guys. It’s like… a project of a bunch of friends, you know? It started off as a tiny idea and then expanded from there. It’s the four of us, plus some people who stay for one or two plays, maybe more.”
“The theatre group is Kibum’s baby.” There’s pride in Jonghyun’s voice. “He put so much effort to it in the beginning and was such a drill sergeant.”
“Kibum is Jonghyun’s younger brother,” Jinki explains helpfully. He’s taken it upon himself to introduce Taemin to everyone around here, and keeps on dropping helpful remarks in between any discussion to make sure his cousin understands what’s going on. “He’s still older than you so don’t get too enthusiastic.”
Taemin chuckles. This seems to be quite an interesting bunch.
Although to Taemin it feels they got up at the crack of dawn, they’re actually the last ones to arrive at the drama club rehearsal. Others are already in full costumes, and the amount of colour and glitter makes Taemin’s head ache a little. Everyone seems to be wearing makeup and either wigs or otherwise elaborate hairdos. Some part of Taemin is secretly getting enthusiastic, sucked into the atmosphere.
Then, he sees the prettiest girl in the whole world. She has a princess dress on and it’s sparkling in the light, the cut of it emphasizing her perfect curves. A waterfall of brown curls cascades on her shoulders and down her back, and Taemin simply can’t tear his eyes off her side-profile. She has the most inviting lips he has ever seen, he could swear that much.
Taemin thinks he’s a little in love.
Jonghyun follows his line of vision and instantly waves his hand to beckon the girl to approach the three of them. “Hey, Key, come here!”
The girl smiles, and Taemin thinks a little sullenly that it must be Jonghyun’s girlfriend or something, judging by the way he instantly reaches out to smooth his fingers through the brown curls. She slaps his hand away and jabs him in the ribs though, ignoring Jonghyun’s theatrical wailing as she steps closer and gives a hand for Taemin to shake.
“Hi, you must be Jinki’s cousin!”
At that dreadful moment Taemin realizes his error. It’s not a girl. That deep voice can not belong to a girl, unless she’s on steroids. The thought makes Taemin freeze and he doesn’t even remember to grab the offered hand.
“You’re supposed to shake it.” She - he says and waves his hand around a little. “I’m Kibum.”
“T-taemin,” Taemin manages. He finally snaps back to reality, but he still feels a little bewildered. It’s not like he’s forever traumatized, he knows how theatre works and if this group only has one girl they obviously need to have some way to take care of the female roles. Still, it’s kind of a surprise to see your future wife - yes his imagination is fast and over-active - and then suddenly learn that it’s a guy.
“So, Taemin,” Kibum goes on nonchalantly, sneaking an arm around Taemin’s waist. “Let me introduce you to everyone!” At first Taemin feels kind of short but then he realizes Kibum is also wearing heels. He never knew he had a thing for that but he can’t deny that the thought of it is kind of hot. In its own way, at least.
Apparently the shock didn’t make the attraction fade. Not that Taemin even expected it.
Four hours into the practice Taemin has learned several things.
1. He wants to join the club and try out acting, something he never thought he’d like. Now the urge is inexplicably strong.
2. Jinki, despite his goofiness and gentle nature, is actually a somewhat strict (and really good) director.
3. Whenever Jinki’s sternness fails, Kibum easily steps in and orders people around. Everyone seems to obey him without a second thought and Taemin suspects it’s because they know the consequences.
4. He has a thing for bossy people. Or Kibum’s voice. Or Kibum being bossy. Anyway.
But most importantly:
5. He wants to punch Minho, the guy playing the role of the prince, out of sheer jealousy.
6. He still has a headache.
There is something so effortless and familiar to the way Minho and Kibum interact and it makes him wish he could be let in on that. It’s like the two of them understand each other from half a word, their collaboration seamless.
It also drives Taemin insane. Trust his luck to play this kind of mean tricks on him. Just when he moves into a new town and is instantly attracted to someone, that certain someone has to be in a relationship already. Why else would Minho always place his palm on Kibum’s waist to guide him to position for the next scene, or slap his bottom to make him hurry, or reach out to tuck a strand of (wig) hair behind Kibum’s ear.
Or why else would Kibum look at Minho like he’s something amazing, calm down the second the other boy rests a hand on his shoulder, and trust him infinitely when it comes to all those dangerous looking spins and twirls that the choreography includes.
Yes Taemin is jealous, that much has been established already. It also shows since Jonghyun suddenly appears next to him (dressed as a lobster, what is this production?) and gives him a shit-eating grin. “What got your panties in a bunch? You still mad at Jinki and me for dragging you up too early?”
“No,” Taemin shrugs. He’s not mad about that. This whole theatre thing looks like fun and he doesn’t mind coming here, at all. He watches Minho be a true gentleman and help Kibum up from the ground where he just fell with a small yelp, tripping over some of the props. “I’m just. Hungry.” He says the first thing that comes into mind. It’s not a bad excuse, he tells himself.
Jonghyun seems to buy it. “Oh, we’re going to get something for lunch in a while! Once we get this scene under wraps.” He nods several times, his head bopping in a way that should be idiotic but is kind of cute instead. Something that defines most of the things Jonghyun does, actually. Taemin doesn’t manage to answer much anything, not before he frowns again and Jonghyun follows the line of his vision.
“You’re mad at Kibum?” He throws in a quick guess. “Why do you keep frowning at him?”
“I’m not frowning at him!” Taemin exclaims a bit too fast.
“You’re frowning at someone,” Jonghyun says. “Minho? What did he ever do to you?”
“I’m not frowning at anyone,” Taemin says. And frowns. The next moment he’s completely stunned by the happenings on stage, his eyes glued on Kibum as he breaks into a random song in the middle of a conversation with the prince and the bad guy. Only vaguely Taemin registers that Jonghyun is saying something, and doesn’t pay any attention, until-
- “Oh my god Taemin you have the hots for my baby brother!”
Instantly Taemin’s eyes snap wide and he claps a hand over Jonghyun’s big mouth to shut him up. “Shht!” He hisses and gives Jonghyun the most warning look he can manage. Which isn’t much, considering the way Jonghyun is simply grinning underneath his hand and doesn’t even try to break free. “Keep it quiet.”
When he’s being released from the grasp, Jonghyun laughs heartily. “C’mon don’t make such a big deal out of it! You’re not the first guy to drool after him and you won’t be the last. Your luck he actually does swing that way. Leaves all the more girls for me!” He announces, apparently quite happy about that.
Taemin grimaces. “Are you sure you two are related? You look nothing alike.”
“Yes,” Jonghyun says, solemnly. “I’m sorry I got all the good looks in the family. The poor boy has to get by with so little. It does help he has a fantastic ass, though!”
Taemin sputters and automatically slaps Jonghyun’s shoulder, only making him laugh even harder. Then again, there’s truth in those last words, Taemin can not deny.
For the next couple of weeks Taemin’s little crush gets absolutely nowhere. He does make a whole bunch of new friends, though. He likes the whole theatre group, sans the only girl and that’s not because she’s a girl, per se. It’s because she’s simply never there and ditches most of the practice for ‘personal reasons’. Otherwise Taemin finds himself surrounded by nice people, and ends up helping them almost every time they have practice. It’s somewhat of a routine by now.
“Could you pass me the salt,” Jinki prods Taemin with his elbow and Taemin automatically complies. The five of them are crammed in a booth in the small diner they frequent, and they wolf down their foods like they’ve never seen anything edible in their lives.
Taemin watches, to his dismay, as Kibum naturally moves certain vegetables on Minho’s plate like he always does, and Minho doesn’t even bat an eyelash as he gobbles them up. At least Taemin has learned not to frown whenever he’s getting jealous. Otherwise this would turn out to be a problem, a big problem.
“Hey, Taemin!” Kibum speaks up suddenly, his eyes sparkling as he leans over the table to look at Taemin straight. He props his chin on his palm, creating a lot more adorable picture than he probably even realizes. “You promised to tell me about that pirate restaurant you had next to your old school!”
“Right,” Taemin nods. He had truthfully forgotten all about that, but it’s not like he minds. It’s actually really nice that Kibum is so enthusiastic about everything he can tell about the big city, of his old life and the little nuances to it. He has already babbled about so many things, and Kibum always comes up with a charming smile and a bunch of other questions.
Jonghyun sighs and steals a French fry from his brother’s plate. “Why don’t you leave the poor boy be for once?” He says and yelps as it earns him a kick under the table. “C’mon! You keep asking him things and flirting him up and I’m getting tired of watching this show.”
F-flirting? Taemin almost chokes on his Fanta and ends up coughing half of it up on the tablecloth. Jinki frowns at him disapprovingly but doesn’t say anything and instead begins to mop up the mess. Jonghyun yelps again and Taemin suspects it’s because of Kibum’s foot making contact with his kneecap, but he doesn’t really bother to find out.
“Sorry guys, I really gotta run. See you tomorrow!” Taemin aims for a sweet smile, before he practically climbs over Jinki to get out of the booth.
Smooth, Taemin, he congratulates himself. This has got to be number two on the list of most embarrassing moments of his life. Nothing can beat the Laundromat incident.
The thing is, Taemin isn’t really particularly shy or easily embarrassed. He prefers to be soft spoken and doesn’t necessarily jump to be in the centre of attention, but he can do it too if needed.
And it is true that Kibum has been flashing smiles at him, asking questions and drinking in every word he says, touching his shoulder or knee or just leaning in close - all things that could classify as flirting.
Still, the way Kibum and Minho seem to be damn near symbiotic makes Taemin try to hold back. He didn’t just make a bunch of friends to end up as a home wrecker and hated by them all. He tries to tell himself he’s reading too much into things and that it’s not flirting, it’s just friendly affection.
He has always been good at deceiving himself.
Taemin would like to say he has no idea how he ends up wearing a fluffy dress, along with a wig and tons of makeup.
Truthfully, he knows the reason to this very well, and the reason is standing right next to him wearing a similar dress - only Aurora’s instead of Cinderella’s - and at least equally much makeup, beaming at him.
“You make such a pretty girl, Taemin!” Kibum rejoices, reaching out to fix the wig. He tugs a few blond strands behind Taemin’s ear and Taemin has half a mind to slap his hands away. He doesn’t, though, since it does feel kind of nice.
He has long since given up trying to deny that he has the biggest crush ever on his new friend. It doesn’t mean he’s particularly enthusiastic about wearing a dress but ever since the only girl in their group decided to ditch it completely, they were an actor - or an actress - short and someone had to fill in.
Needless to say all it took was one word from Kibum and Taemin went running. The worst thing is that Taemin doesn’t even really mind. If wearing a dress is what gets Kibum pay him more attention and help him do his hair and makeup, he is more than willing. Still, he finds himself complaining as the stockings simply won’t stay up. “How the hell do girls wear these things!?” He says and squirms, wondering why he has to wear the socks under his long skirt when no one can fucking see them.
Kibum only laughs at his misery, shaking his head disbelievingly. “Easily! Just ignore them and you’ll forget they’re even there. Oh.” Suddenly Kibum reaches out and practically sticks his hand down Taemin’s dress to adjust his bra and fake-boobies. “You need to take better care of your tits, Taemin. If the bra twists to the side, it looks totally awkward.”
“Gee,” Taemin sighs. “Thanks.”
It takes a few more practices still, a few more meals together with the bunch and a few more evenings spent playing random video games or watching movies, but finally Taemin thinks this is it. His instant crush on Kibum hasn’t been fading, not in the slightest, and he could swear that Kibum is flirting with him on purpose. What he can’t fathom is that Minho doesn’t seem to have a problem with that at all. If his boyfriend was throwing suggestive glances and jokes at one of their friends, Taemin would definitely bring it to a halt. At least hypothetically.
That is why Taemin decides he needs to actually talk to Kibum, and a perfect opportunity presents itself sooner than he’d expected. They’re all spending time at Jinki’s parents’ house - technically the one Taemin lives in for now too, obviously - and when Kibum announces he’ll use the commercial break to get them more popcorn, Taemin volunteers to help. Not that there’s any need for help when all they have to do is watch the bag spin around and around in the microwave oven.
“That shirt looks really nice on you, Taemin,” Kibum comments with a soft smile as they wait, Kibum leaning against the counter and Taemin standing a few steps away from him.
Self-consciously Taemin’s hand finds its way to the hem of his shirt, and he smiles automatically. Then, he remembers what he’s actually set out to do, and instead of a thank you he blurts out “Why do you keep flirting with me?”
Kibum’s eyes fly wide. “What? Why? Do I make you uncomfortable?”
“Yes, I mean, no!” Taemin tries and mixes up his words in his haste. “I mean, not the flirting itself, but doesn’t it make Minho really jealous?”
“Min - ho?” Kibum looks even more bewildered, and the pause he makes between the syllables of Minho’s name is kind of ridiculous. “Why would it make Minho jealous?”
Taemin sighs in exasperation. “Because you’re flirting with someone right in front of his face! I wouldn’t want to watch my boyfriend do something like that! It’s not fair towards an-”
That is when Taemin’s little rant ends as Kibum bursts out laughing. He laughs so hard he doubles over and eventually falls on his knees on the floor, the guffaws unashamedly loud. Now it’s Taemin’s turn to be confused. “What?”
“You think that Minho is my boyfriend?” Kibum howls, his laughter even intensifying. “What are you, high?”
Taemin frowns. “Look, even if he’s not, I have a perfectly valid point right here and-”
“Look, Taeminnie,” Kibum chuckles as he steps up finally and reaches out to pat his friend’s shoulder consolingly. “I’m sorry to burst your bubble but there’s really nothing going on between Minho and me. Except for him being the best friend I could ever hope for. Besides, he’s not into guys. At all. He’s straighter than Jonghyun.”
Well that clears some things up alright. Taemin still looks a little dumbstruck, and while a part of him is kind of jealous of the way Kibum praises Minho, a far bigger part is just relieved that he has been wrong all along.
In the end, Taemin manages only a highly intelligent “Oh.”
Kibum laughs at him and shoves the bowl of freshly made popcorn in his hands. “Here. Take this to the living room.”
When Taemin turns, Kibum stops him. “Tae?”
“Yeah?”
“Your shirt does look good on you,” Kibum says and winks.
For their second last rehearsal before the big show, Minho falls sick. He’s down with fever so high he’s confined to bedrest, and when Kibum calls him he can barely get two words out due to the sore throat. The rehearsal is two hours late after Kibum insists to go check on Minho in person, and the rest of the group just ends up idling until he’s back with Jinki, the one who got ordered to drive him.
It leaves them without their Prince Charming, which they somehow realize only when they’re standing on stage in full makeup and costumes. “Uhm,” Jinki hesitates, trying to figure out a solution like the good director he is. “We could put in a tennis ball? You know, like in the movies! They use tennis balls.”
“Jinki,” Kibum sighs. “We are not using a tennis ball.”
For a second Jinki looks like he might sulk but then he shrugs and spins around to face his loyal actors in their outfits. “So it means one of you has to be the prince! Minho knows his stuff anyway so we don’t need to worry about him. But who knows his lines enough to fill in? Anyone?”
There’s a brief silence before Taemin clears his throat. “Well,” he begins slowly. “I know all of his lines.” It’s kind of embarrassing, actually, how he’d been imagining himself in Minho’s place since it would get him the princess he wanted, even if on stage. Turns out, all those evenings practicing the lines didn’t end up wasted, after all.
Taemin expects teasing and mocking and even laughter but instead Jinki’s expression brightens up and he practically beams. “Good! You change out of the Cinderella dress and into the prince costume, okay. I think we’ve got the Cinderella part down pretty good and if you try to be the prince in the skirt it’ll be a disaster. Now go, go!”
Taemin tries not to show how he’s actually kind of giddy about this.
The rehearsal goes straight to hell. There are not only critical wardrobe malfunctions but also more than a few slip-ups and errors that are big enough to get Jinki desperate. No one wants to see him get a nervous breakdown but at some points it seems inevitable. It isn’t until there are the scenes with Kibum and Taemin that he calms down since he notices Taemin knows his lines. Or, Minho’s lines, that are now temporarily his.
The rehearsals are always fun, if one asks Taemin, as much as they’re hard work and push them to their limits. But he has never ever enjoyed a rehearsal as much as he enjoys this one. He knows it’s stupid and he feels like a kindergartner more than once, but having all this time together on stage with Kibum is like a dream come true. Even if Kibum is wearing a ridiculous wig and high heels and the frilly dress that he seems to be drowning in.
Kibum has mastered the heels long ago and there are barely any accidents even when he has to run and dance on stage in them. Even that doesn’t help him when somehow his left shoe gets stuck in the tulle netting of his skirt and he trips over, screaming as he plummets towards the floor.
Taemin acts completely on instinct as he reaches out and grabs Kibum to stop him from falling flat on his ass. Somehow his arms end up around Kibum and he has the older boy pretty much pressed flush against himself, their faces only inches apart. Distantly Taemin realizes how hilarious this must look: him dressed in a full prince outfit, holding Kibum in all of his glittery glory. His imagination doesn’t get any further -
- since that is when he forgets to breathe.
Kibum is wearing ridiculous amounts of makeup and it makes him look like one of those heads little girls can practice their skills on. His thick fake eyelashes curve up in a way that is kind of enticing in its awfulness and Taemin finds himself actually liking the way the pink gloss makes Kibum’s lips glimmer invitingly. The long, brown strands from the wig are more of a mess than they should be, and Taemin wants to bury his fingers into it to tear it away altogether.
In the end, the thought that drowns out everything else, the thought that really makes Taemin stop, is that Kibum is beautiful. Not in the girly girl way, not in the perfectly polished and made up way, not in the unearthly fairy tale way. Instead, it’s something that makes him the person he is, the person Taemin desperately wants to get to know better.
So Taemin kisses him.
For a second it’s perfect. Kibum freezes and forgets to struggle, going completely slack in Taemin’s embrace and it gives him the chance to steal a deeper kiss than he even thought was possible right now. Then Kibum seems to snap back to reality though and uses the grip he has of Taemin’s shoulders to hastily push him away.
Taemin is prepared for confusion and questions but he’s not prepared for the way Kibum suddenly punches him. It’s not particularly hard and he has a feeling Kibum could’ve put so much more effort into it, but it still stings and Taemin yelps as his hand flies to his jaw to hold the sore spot.
“Guys, what are you doing?” Jinki sounds mildly horrified, stepping in to stand between his cousin and his friend. “That is not in the script! You can’t just make things up as we go along, the prince is only supposed to sing at the princess now and not start molesting her! And what the hell, Kibum, princesses didn’t throw punches like that the last time I checked and- hey! Kibum! Where are you going!?”
The only answer he gains is the loud slamming of the door as Kibum storms off without a word. Jinki looks even more clueless, his eyes wide and mouth slightly open. He’s not the only one though, half of their group is staring after Kibum completely stunned. “I…” Jinki hesitates. “Does this mean the practice is cancelled?”
Jonghyun groans. “Just take the choir part or the Little Red Riding Hood. I’m gonna go talk to Key and see what got him in one of his bitchfits this time.”
“Actually,” Taemin interjects quickly. “Let me go talk to him. I was the one who pissed him off.” He doesn’t need to try do any more convincing. The whole group seems to be quite relieved that the situation is unfolding and there’s no need for anyone to try sort it out.
”Fine,” Jonghyun nods towards the door. “But hurry up before he manages to work himself into a rage. Trust me, you do not want to see that. I learned that the hard way.” Everyone knows this involves a long and elaborate story about how Jonghyun got acquainted with his brother’s moodiness, beginning from a broken toy car and ending in the birthday disaster that nearly burned their house down.
Taemin isn’t interested in hearing it again now, though, and instead flashes a grateful smile before quickly heading off.
As expected, Taemin finds Kibum in the cramped dressing room, sitting in front of a mirror and dabbing his makeup off furiously. He’s still wearing the fake lashes but the wig is thrown to the side and most of the makeup is already staining the cotton pads thrown haphazardly on the table. Everything in Kibum’s posture speaks of anger but Taemin has never been one to back down. As nice and mellow as he might seem at times, he has enough stubbornness to last a lifetime.
“Hey, could we talk?” Taemin asks and steps closer. He only gains a grunt as an answer, but it doesn’t faze him in the slightest. “Look, I’m sorry for what happened there. I didn’t want to freak you out.” He ventures forward, while grabbing the closest chair to pull it right next to Kibum’s. He sits down facing the backrest and folds his arms over it, his gaze fixed on the other boy.
“You didn’t freak me out.” Kibum makes sure to emphasize the words and even makes quotations in the air with his fingers, before returning to cleansing his skin. Defiantly he keeps his eyes on the mirror, as if Taemin wasn’t sitting there in the first place. “You acted like a complete douche, that’s what you did.”
“C’mon,” Taemin says. “It was just one kiss. What’s so bad about it?”
There is no answer. Kibum’s efforts at makeup removal seem to double in intensity, though, and he nearly ends up ripping his own eyelashes off as he yanks the false set off his right eye. Taemin frowns. “I said I was sorry. It’s not my fault you made me want to kiss you.”
That seems to do the trick and Kibum snaps around, glaring at Taemin furiously. “That is the entire point!” He hisses through clenched teeth. “I keep trying to flirt you up and drop hints and I act like a fucking idiot to make you notice me. Nothing! And then I wear some stupid fake lashes-” He pauses to rip the second set off as well, wincing as it stings. “I wear a dress and makeup and then suddenly you’re interested.”
It only begins to dawn on Taemin and he doesn’t manage to get a single word in between. Kibum, on the other hand, seems to be on a roll and rips the pins from his hair to throw them into the small bowl in front of the mirror. “Guess what, I am not! I’m not going to wear a fucking dress each time I want your attention and I am not going to be your little experiment in any fucking way, I’m-”
“I didn’t kiss you because of the makeup,” Taemin blurts out and successfully cuts off the ranting. He looks straight at Kibum’s eyes, still sparkling with anger, and hopes he can convey his sincerity through his own. “Or the dress. I didn’t do it because you’re acting a girl. It just. Seemed like a good moment?”
Kibum huffs. Quickly Taemin goes on, not to waste his chance. “I really like you, Kibum. And I’d love to take you out sometime. You know,” he says and finally lets the smile break free. “In regular, normal clothes. I promise, no headbands and glittery veils.”
For once, Kibum seems to be completely speechless and just stares at Taemin for a good while. Then the stubborn grin finally appears on his lips and he laughs, shaking his head. “This is such a high school chick flick! When did my life become this…”
Taemin beams at him disarmingly. “But we are in high school.”
“You are in high school!” Kibum corrects. He stands up and ruffles the fluffy skirt, making sure that all the layers are set just right. It looks kind of amusing with all his makeup gone, his short hair sticking to every possible direction, and still dressed in that glittery dream. So amusing in fact that Taemin can’t help but burst out laughing.
It doesn’t take too long for Kibum to join in.
This indeed is a high school chick flick, Taemin thinks as there’s a whole bunch of butterflies in his stomach. He’s standing at Kibum’s doorstep and it makes him kind of uncomfortable how the other students of the dorm are eyeing him. Self-consciously he tugs on his collar, taking a deep breath, two, three.
Then, he knocks.
The door flings open to reveal Kibum’s smiling face and if Taemin isn’t mistaken there’s a hint of nervousness somewhere in there as well. It kind of makes him feel better about himself and he manages not to stutter as he speaks up. “Hi! You ready to go?”
There is no answer though and the silence stretches on. Unable to stop it, Taemin fidgets, and finally can’t stay silent anymore. “What’s wrong?,” he blurts out.
“You’re wearing a suit?” Kibum asks, grinning as he arches an eyebrow.
Taemin flushes. “Shut up. Will you let me in?” It has no effect, though, and finally he sighs. “Alright! Jinki-hyung talked me into it, he said it’s the best option for the first date and I kind of really wanted to impress you and will you just stop staring at me!?”
That makes Kibum laugh. He finally opens the door wider, retreating into the room. “I’m sorry. You just looked so adorable, blushing and stuttering.” He says it like it’s a compliment and maybe that’s what keeps Taemin from snapping a nasty reply.
Taemin follows Kibum inside and gingerly takes a seat on the edge of his bed. The second bed, Minho’s, is messily made and scattered in clothes, and there’s no sign of the boy anywhere. Kibum stops in front of the mirror to muss his hair perfectly, humming and even swaying his hips slightly to nonexistent music. It draws Taemin’s attention lower and when he realizes he’s staring at the curve of Kibum’s bottom he blinks, quickly averting his eyes.
“Hey, Taemin,” Kibum speaks without even looking away from his reflection.
“Yeah?” Taemin looks up, eager.
“You can stare all you want.” Kibum swirls around, his lips curved in an amused smirk.
The utterly cocky expression makes Taemin snort and he rolls his eyes. “Oh, please.” His nervousness is dissipating rapidly though and he finds his spirits lifted instantly. Maybe this will turn out to be the best evening of his life after all.
Or maybe not. Five minutes into their walk downtown and Taemin notices he sweats like a pig. He takes off his suit jacket the first chance he gets, but he’s still wearing a long-sleeved dress shirt and it’s not as suitable for the weather as Kibum’s graphic tee. This proves to be Taemin’s mistake number one. “Oh god I’m never wearing a suit again!”
“You should know not to trust Jinki,” Kibum sing-songs. “He’s not exactly the type you go to with dating advice, now is he?”
“Who would I have asked?” Taemin snorts. “Jonghyun?”
Their gazes meet and as if on command, they both burst out into raucous gigglesnorts. No, definitely not Jonghyun.
As they walk further Kibum casually hooks his arm with Taemin’s. Suddenly there’s a bounce in Taemin’s steps, the set of his shoulders a little bit straighter, and the grin on his lips that much sunnier.
The rest of the evening doesn’t exactly go by without hitches. They arrive at the restaurant Taemin picked only to find out that it’s absolutely packed full and there’s no way they’ll get a seat anytime soon. In the next option, Taemin ends up somehow running into another guest and spilling a full portion of something very expensive looking on the floor. It ends up in them being thrown out into a pouring rain.
Eventually they find themselves sitting in a park under a large tree that mostly keeps them dry in the slow rain, eating the burgers they grabbed from the nearby street vendor. Taemin is embarrassed first, scolding himself for screwing everything up. How is it possible he brings out all his clumsy tendencies at a moment like this? It’s not like he’s never been on a date before. Granted, not in a suit and not this set on impressing someone, but still.
Kibum is grinning though as he takes a huge bite of his burger, and it makes Taemin think this isn’t so bad, maybe he didn’t yet screw up all his chances.
Especially when it’s Kibum who knocks over his soda, all over their pants.
At least Taemin insists on being a gentleman and walks Kibum back to his dorm. There’s a brief, awkward pause at the door, but then Kibum laughs and grabs Taemin’s wrist to pull him inside. “C’mon, it’s not like we’re strangers! Minho is away the whole weekend on some soccer camp or whatever, I don’t know, I’m not even really interested to be honest, I just know he’s not here and he won’t be here anytime soon. So,” he drawls and turns to beam at Taemin. “You want something to drink? Another soda? I promise I won’t spill that one on your pants.”
Taemin chuckles and tugs on his pants. He fakes a sad frown. “I think these are ruined anyway. After all I tried for you…”
“Nonsense!” Kibum swirls around and gets at the mini-fridge, bending down to retrieve two cans from the bottom shelf. He wishes he could offer something stronger but then again, the dorm regulations are strict enough for him to hold back from stacking stronger stuff into their room. “You just dry-clean them and it’s all good.”
“Yeah I guess,” Taemin smiles as he accepts the offered drink. “It was a mistake to wear this anyway…” He averts his gaze down at his hands, and is just about to pop the can open when fingers grab his wrists to stop him. When he looks up Kibum is smiling at him.
“No.” Easily Kibum plucks the can out of Taemin’s grasp and throws it into the general direction of the bed. Taemin doesn’t really know what to do with his free hands now, but when Kibum steps closer he settles for his hips. It seems to be a good thing, judging by the way Kibum’s voice drops into a content purr. “You look good in it. Really smart.”
There’s this certain warmth that spreads through Taemin at that, and boldly he slips his arms around Kibum’s waist to pull him in.
This time, when he kisses Kibum, it doesn’t end in a punch and an argument. Instead, Kibum kisses right back. Taemin thinks it’s kind of addictive.
Eventually one kiss leads to another and when Kibum pushes his long fingers underneath the waistband of Taemin’s pants, they both know this is about to get out of hands. In the good kind of way, that is. Kibum throws in some joke about waiting until the third date but his breathy laughter is silenced by Taemin’s eager mouth rather sooner than later.
It’s easy to get rid of Kibum’s t-shirt, it only has to be pulled over his head and discarded on the floor. In the process it tousles up his hair so invitingly Taemin can’t resist: he twines his thin fingers into the longer strands and uses the grip to pull Kibum’s face closer to his own. The kiss that follows is sloppy, enough to make Kibum chuckle in the back of his throat - the kind of disbelieving laughter reserved for the moments when you can’t fully believe you got lucky - and it does nothing but urge Taemin on.
The problems start when they have to get rid of Taemin’s shirt. The buttons seem all too small and slippery for them right now, when they can hardly focus on the basic mechanism of unbuttoning. After the first three unsuccessful attempts - interrupted by kisses more often than not - Kibum groans and pushes Taemin’s chest slightly. “Can I just take scissors to this, please?” He groans through clenched teeth, but there’s still an amused glimmer in his eyes when he looks up. “I wish I could just tear them off. You know, all macho.”
“Are you sure I’d like you if you were all macho?” Taemin asks with a smirk that seems much more confident than he’s actually feeling right now. Still, he decides getting rid of the shirt isn’t all that necessary, not when there are more pressing matters at hand. Like somehow managing to slip Kibum out of his pants, that seems to be a good option. If not the best.
Kibum doesn’t resist, only keeps grinning up at Taemin, who is already a step ahead of himself and trying his luck with the button of the jeans instead. At least there’s only one of them to take care of, and it’s easier than the ones of the shirt, if anything can be said by the way it pops open in no time. “Who knows,” Kibum answers a little belatedly, once they’ve already managed to peel the denim off his legs. “Would you?”
There are a million answers Taemin could give from the flirtatious ones to the plain cheesy ones, but his mind is far enough gone for him to blurt out the honest one. “I’d like you-” He tries to be cool as he opens his own pants but unfortunately he again has slight coordination problems and he ends up fumbling.
All is well a moment later, though, when he leans closer and breathes hotly right against Kibum’s lips. “-but I wouldn’t want to fuck you.”
Kibum shivers. “Point taken.”
Eventually Taemin decides it doesn’t really matter that he’s wearing his dress shirt. It feels kind of annoying glued to his skin with how sweaty it is, but it’s not like he’s focusing on that anyway, not when he still has two fingers knuckle deep inside a very naked Kibum, who is sprawled underneath him, flushed and dishevelled, looking like a present ready to be unwrapped.
And all for him. That makes Taemin feel almost gleeful, like he wants to go around telling everyone he’s the one who got that for himself, yes, are you all envious. Kibum seems to notice his reaction since there’s an amused smirk dancing on his lips as he takes a good hold of Taemin’s hair and yanks him closer. “Stop looking so smug,” Kibum practically purrs, and although he’s obviously aiming to sound mocking his voice is way too hoarse, too shaky for making it believable.
It’s not like Taemin is much better off. Kibum has been teasing him for the longest now, stroking him slowly like he has all the time in the world, only to then suddenly flick his wrist just right or apply pressure where it feels the best. Taemin could swear he’s never in his life gotten a handjob so good, and it makes him want to pay back as well as he can.
So when Kibum spreads his legs invitingly, Taemin doesn’t even hesitate as he curls his fingers just right, enough to draw a shudder and a moan from Kibum’s kiss bruised lips. Inwardly Taemin curses at how it shreds even the last bits of his self-control into pieces, but he manages to put up a cool front, at least for now. “Like that?” He asks with a grin, unable to resist the temptation to go on. “You like that?”
The words make Kibum huff, before a rough bark of laughter bursts out of him uncontrollably. “You sound like a porn movie!” He points out, but his voice is a notch deeper than usual, breathy and laced with need, so it doesn’t exactly sound like an insult. Even if it probably is.
Taemin can’t help but agree, chuckling lowly as he leans in to press his lips on Kibum’s, in a kiss way more chaste than the latter would prefer. “But at least I’m your own personal porn star,” he tries, laughing as Kibum makes an impatient noise and kicks his ass - literally, with his heel - to try make him stop stalling and give him more.
“Oh god Taemin shut up,” Kibum pleads, chuckling. That’s as far as he gets before he’s shut up, and for once he doesn’t mind. This time he doesn’t even need to do any urging and Taemin seems to get what he’s after, or seems to finally be willing to give it to him. Taemin shifts closer until he can align his cock with Kibum’s and instantly Kibum retaliates by wrapping his fingers around them both.
It’s good, so good, the feeling of sweat-slicked skin on skin, and Taemin can’t help but keep moving his hips forward, keep rubbing against Kibum in the most delicious of ways, all the while never ceasing the steady slide of his fingers. As the kiss breaks he’s panting into Kibum’s neck as he tries to focus, tries not to come embarrassingly fast. It’s hard, with the way he simply wants, so much, more than he’s ever wanted anything - or anyone - before.
It’s still somewhat tentative and careful, both of them too unfamiliar with each other’s bodies, with each other’s likes, and determined not to mess up. So they tread on the safe waters, stick to what they know the best. They don’t need any higher acrobatics to make it good.
Not when they’re into it together.
After, they finally get rid of Taemin’s dirtied shirt and instantly Taemin drapes himself over Kibum, rests his head on his chest. He thinks this is really nice, just staying there and listening to Kibum’s heartbeat, while Kibum keeps idly playing with the soft strands of his hair. It’s more than nice, actually. It’s something he could get used to.
At first Taemin feels like his emotions are bubbling over, like he needs to talk about this immediately not to burst. Then, he changes his mind and just snuggles into the shared warmth, running his fingers down Kibum’s side. It earns him a sleepy chuckle, along with a hand trying to slap him and missing.
His life might be straight out of a high school movie but truth to be told, Taemin doesn’t give a damn. Especially not when he looks up at Kibum and kisses him, playfully tugs on his lower lip with his teeth.
“How about round two?”
---
(7884 words)
Version I
@DW.
slightly altered edition
It’s the cliché of all clichés, Taemin thinks as he steps out of the car and takes in the house he’ll be living in for the next year, maybe more. His life is officially a teen movie, the one with a rich boy from the capital thrown into a small town at seventeen to struggle with reforming his ways. Not that he did anything specifically reckless to be sent here, probably his parents getting a divorce isn’t anything extraordinarily grand.
Nevertheless, he’s here, and he’s going to live with the family of his father’s brother for an unannounced period of time. And even if right now his life seems to be a teen movie, he’s not going to let it get that bad. He is determined to prove all those teenage clichés wrong.
The sun is shining blindingly, a gentle summer breeze pushing the long strands of hair on his face. Impatiently he brushes them out of his eyes, huffing lightly. He’s surprisingly calm but he supposes it’s because he already had time to process this and get used to the thought. There’s nothing he can do to it, anyway, except come out of it with his dignity intact.
“Taemin!”
The mention of his name startles Taemin from his thoughts and instinctively he smiles as he spots his cousin hurrying towards him, practically beaming. Jinki is four years older than him but they’ve always gotten along really well, which is one reason Taemin doesn’t hate this whole move as much as he might otherwise. It doesn’t matter that Taemin is in his last year of high school and Jinki is already a senior in college, Jinki never treated him any different than his other friends.
“Did your mom bring you?” Jinki asks as he reaches out to grab the only suitcase Taemin is holding. Most of his belongings were already sent here beforehand, so he only has the last necessities with him. “Does she want coffee?”
“No,” Taemin shakes his head. “She’s busy, she had the chauffeur bring me. He could use something to drink, though, I’m sure.” He offers quickly as he sees how Jinki’s expression falls at that.
Immediately Jinki’s face brightens and he nods. “Let’s get your stuff into your room, okay? I already put up your posters, I hope that you like how I arranged them! If you don’t we can always take them back down, you know, and redo everything. I just figured you’d feel more at home!”
Taemin smiles as he follows his cousin inside. Maybe this won’t be that hard, after all.
The following Tuesday Taemin decides that this sucks. He’s been torn from the confines of his very comfortable and lovely bed at such an early hour he feels no one should be out walking around yet. Another reason is that he isn’t even fully awake yet but he’s being introduced to Jinki’s friend, Jonghyun, who keeps talking and talking until Taemin feels his ears might just fall off.
Taemin is grateful he’s making friends, he truly is. But he would really appreciate it if Jonghyun managed to tone it down a bit until he felt a little less like a walking zombie.
No such luck: turns out that they’re headed to a meeting of their theatre club. Now that everyone is on holiday, they spend three days a week practicing performances for their upcoming show. Apparently they’re quite popular, both among the students and the older people, even the children. “It earns quite a bit of money, in the end!” Jonghyun states proudly.
“Of course,” Jinki says. “Most of it goes to the production of the next play we’re doing but it’s fun! Sometimes we have movie nights or go out to eat together and pay from the theatre fund.”
“This time, we’re doing a mashup of old fairy tales! It’s like all the classics put into a blender and voila, we have an amazing show!” Jonghyun sounds more than a little enthusiastic. He even goes as far as to hook his arm with Taemin’s, pulling him forward a little faster. “I’m usually playing the weird roles. Like, dwarves and whatever. But I’m damn good at it!”
“I’m the director,” Jinki smiles. “I try to make sure the boys don’t get distracted and keep their shit together.”
“Boys?” Taemin asks, for the first time finding his interest piqued. “You mean you don’t have any girls in the group?”
“We’re a small group,” Jinki says. He sounds somewhat apologetic. “We have girls sometimes! But this year we’ve got only one. Our core group is just guys. It’s like… a project of a bunch of friends, you know? It started off as a tiny idea and then expanded from there. It’s the four of us, plus some people who stay for one or two plays, maybe more.”
“The theatre group is Kibum’s baby.” There’s pride in Jonghyun’s voice. “He put so much effort to it in the beginning and was such a drill sergeant.”
“Kibum is Jonghyun’s younger brother,” Jinki explains helpfully. He’s taken it upon himself to introduce Taemin to everyone around here, and keeps on dropping helpful remarks in between any discussion to make sure his cousin understands what’s going on. “He’s still older than you so don’t get too enthusiastic.”
Taemin chuckles. This seems to be quite an interesting bunch.
Although to Taemin it feels they got up at the crack of dawn, they’re actually the last ones to arrive at the drama club rehearsal. Others are already in full costumes, and the amount of colour and glitter makes Taemin’s head ache a little. Everyone seems to be wearing makeup and either wigs or otherwise elaborate hairdos. Some part of Taemin is secretly getting enthusiastic, sucked into the atmosphere.
Then, he sees the prettiest girl in the whole world. She has a princess dress on and it’s sparkling in the light, the cut of it emphasizing her perfect curves. A waterfall of brown curls cascades on her shoulders and down her back, and Taemin simply can’t tear his eyes off her side-profile. She has the most inviting lips he has ever seen, he could swear that much.
Taemin thinks he’s a little in love.
Jonghyun follows his line of vision and instantly waves his hand to beckon the girl to approach the three of them. “Hey, Key, come here!”
The girl smiles, and Taemin thinks a little sullenly that it must be Jonghyun’s girlfriend or something, judging by the way he instantly reaches out to smooth his fingers through the brown curls. She slaps his hand away and jabs him in the ribs though, ignoring Jonghyun’s theatrical wailing as she steps closer and gives a hand for Taemin to shake.
“Hi, you must be Jinki’s cousin!”
At that dreadful moment Taemin realizes his error. It’s not a girl. That deep voice can not belong to a girl, unless she’s on steroids. The thought makes Taemin freeze and he doesn’t even remember to grab the offered hand.
“You’re supposed to shake it.” She - he says and waves his hand around a little. “I’m Kibum.”
“T-taemin,” Taemin manages. He finally snaps back to reality, but he still feels a little bewildered. It’s not like he’s forever traumatized, he knows how theatre works and if this group only has one girl they obviously need to have some way to take care of the female roles. Still, it’s kind of a surprise to see your future wife - yes his imagination is fast and over-active - and then suddenly learn that it’s a guy.
“So, Taemin,” Kibum goes on nonchalantly, sneaking an arm around Taemin’s waist. “Let me introduce you to everyone!” At first Taemin feels kind of short but then he realizes Kibum is also wearing heels. He never knew he had a thing for that but he can’t deny that the thought of it is kind of hot. In its own way, at least.
Apparently the shock didn’t make the attraction fade. Not that Taemin even expected it.
Four hours into the practice Taemin has learned several things.
1. He wants to join the club and try out acting, something he never thought he’d like. Now the urge is inexplicably strong.
2. Jinki, despite his goofiness and gentle nature, is actually a somewhat strict (and really good) director.
3. Whenever Jinki’s sternness fails, Kibum easily steps in and orders people around. Everyone seems to obey him without a second thought and Taemin suspects it’s because they know the consequences.
4. He has a thing for bossy people. Or Kibum’s voice. Or Kibum being bossy. Anyway.
But most importantly:
5. He wants to punch Minho, the guy playing the role of the prince, out of sheer jealousy.
6. He still has a headache.
There is something so effortless and familiar to the way Minho and Kibum interact and it makes him wish he could be let in on that. It’s like the two of them understand each other from half a word, their collaboration seamless.
It also drives Taemin insane. Trust his luck to play this kind of mean tricks on him. Just when he moves into a new town and is instantly attracted to someone, that certain someone has to be in a relationship already. Why else would Minho always place his palm on Kibum’s waist to guide him to position for the next scene, or slap his bottom to make him hurry, or reach out to tuck a strand of (wig) hair behind Kibum’s ear.
Or why else would Kibum look at Minho like he’s something amazing, calm down the second the other boy rests a hand on his shoulder, and trust him infinitely when it comes to all those dangerous looking spins and twirls that the choreography includes.
Yes Taemin is jealous, that much has been established already. It also shows since Jonghyun suddenly appears next to him (dressed as a lobster, what is this production?) and gives him a shit-eating grin. “What got your panties in a bunch? You still mad at Jinki and me for dragging you up too early?”
“No,” Taemin shrugs. He’s not mad about that. This whole theatre thing looks like fun and he doesn’t mind coming here, at all. He watches Minho be a true gentleman and help Kibum up from the ground where he just fell with a small yelp, tripping over some of the props. “I’m just. Hungry.” He says the first thing that comes into mind. It’s not a bad excuse, he tells himself.
Jonghyun seems to buy it. “Oh, we’re going to get something for lunch in a while! Once we get this scene under wraps.” He nods several times, his head bopping in a way that should be idiotic but is kind of cute instead. Something that defines most of the things Jonghyun does, actually. Taemin doesn’t manage to answer much anything, not before he frowns again and Jonghyun follows the line of his vision.
“You’re mad at Kibum?” He throws in a quick guess. “Why do you keep frowning at him?”
“I’m not frowning at him!” Taemin exclaims a bit too fast.
“You’re frowning at someone,” Jonghyun says. “Minho? What did he ever do to you?”
“I’m not frowning at anyone,” Taemin says. And frowns. The next moment he’s completely stunned by the happenings on stage, his eyes glued on Kibum as he breaks into a random song in the middle of a conversation with the prince and the bad guy. Only vaguely Taemin registers that Jonghyun is saying something, and doesn’t pay any attention, until-
- “Oh my god Taemin you have the hots for my baby brother!”
Instantly Taemin’s eyes snap wide and he claps a hand over Jonghyun’s big mouth to shut him up. “Shht!” He hisses and gives Jonghyun the most warning look he can manage. Which isn’t much, considering the way Jonghyun is simply grinning underneath his hand and doesn’t even try to break free. “Keep it quiet.”
When he’s being released from the grasp, Jonghyun laughs heartily. “C’mon don’t make such a big deal out of it! You’re not the first guy to drool after him and you won’t be the last. Your luck he actually does swing that way. Leaves all the more girls for me!” He announces, apparently quite happy about that.
Taemin grimaces. “Are you sure you two are related? You look nothing alike.”
“Yes,” Jonghyun says, solemnly. “I’m sorry I got all the good looks in the family. The poor boy has to get by with so little. It does help he has a fantastic ass, though!”
Taemin sputters and automatically slaps Jonghyun’s shoulder, only making him laugh even harder. Then again, there’s truth in those last words, Taemin can not deny.
For the next couple of weeks Taemin’s little crush gets absolutely nowhere. He does make a whole bunch of new friends, though. He likes the whole theatre group, sans the only girl and that’s not because she’s a girl, per se. It’s because she’s simply never there and ditches most of the practice for ‘personal reasons’. Otherwise Taemin finds himself surrounded by nice people, and ends up helping them almost every time they have practice. It’s somewhat of a routine by now.
“Could you pass me the salt,” Jinki prods Taemin with his elbow and Taemin automatically complies. The five of them are crammed in a booth in the small diner they frequent, and they wolf down their foods like they’ve never seen anything edible in their lives.
Taemin watches, to his dismay, as Kibum naturally moves certain vegetables on Minho’s plate like he always does, and Minho doesn’t even bat an eyelash as he gobbles them up. At least Taemin has learned not to frown whenever he’s getting jealous. Otherwise this would turn out to be a problem, a big problem.
“Hey, Taemin!” Kibum speaks up suddenly, his eyes sparkling as he leans over the table to look at Taemin straight. He props his chin on his palm, creating a lot more adorable picture than he probably even realizes. “You promised to tell me about that pirate restaurant you had next to your old school!”
“Right,” Taemin nods. He had truthfully forgotten all about that, but it’s not like he minds. It’s actually really nice that Kibum is so enthusiastic about everything he can tell about the big city, of his old life and the little nuances to it. He has already babbled about so many things, and Kibum always comes up with a charming smile and a bunch of other questions.
Jonghyun sighs and steals a French fry from his brother’s plate. “Why don’t you leave the poor boy be for once?” He says and yelps as it earns him a kick under the table. “C’mon! You keep asking him things and flirting him up and I’m getting tired of watching this show.”
F-flirting? Taemin almost chokes on his Fanta and ends up coughing half of it up on the tablecloth. Jinki frowns at him disapprovingly but doesn’t say anything and instead begins to mop up the mess. Jonghyun yelps again and Taemin suspects it’s because of Kibum’s foot making contact with his kneecap, but he doesn’t really bother to find out.
“Sorry guys, I really gotta run. See you tomorrow!” Taemin aims for a sweet smile, before he practically climbs over Jinki to get out of the booth.
Smooth, Taemin, he congratulates himself. This has got to be number two on the list of most embarrassing moments of his life. Nothing can beat the Laundromat incident.
The thing is, Taemin isn’t really particularly shy or easily embarrassed. He prefers to be soft spoken and doesn’t necessarily jump to be in the centre of attention, but he can do it too if needed.
And it is true that Kibum has been flashing smiles at him, asking questions and drinking in every word he says, touching his shoulder or knee or just leaning in close - all things that could classify as flirting.
Still, the way Kibum and Minho seem to be damn near symbiotic makes Taemin try to hold back. He didn’t just make a bunch of friends to end up as a home wrecker and hated by them all. He tries to tell himself he’s reading too much into things and that it’s not flirting, it’s just friendly affection.
He has always been good at deceiving himself.
Taemin would like to say he has no idea how he ends up wearing a fluffy dress, along with a wig and tons of makeup.
Truthfully, he knows the reason to this very well, and the reason is standing right next to him wearing a similar dress - only Aurora’s instead of Cinderella’s - and at least equally much makeup, beaming at him.
“You make such a pretty girl, Taemin!” Kibum rejoices, reaching out to fix the wig. He tugs a few blond strands behind Taemin’s ear and Taemin has half a mind to slap his hands away. He doesn’t, though, since it does feel kind of nice.
He has long since given up trying to deny that he has the biggest crush ever on his new friend. It doesn’t mean he’s particularly enthusiastic about wearing a dress but ever since the only girl in their group decided to ditch it completely, they were an actor - or an actress - short and someone had to fill in.
Needless to say all it took was one word from Kibum and Taemin went running. The worst thing is that Taemin doesn’t even really mind. If wearing a dress is what gets Kibum pay him more attention and help him do his hair and makeup, he is more than willing. Still, he finds himself complaining as the stockings simply won’t stay up. “How the hell do girls wear these things!?” He says and squirms, wondering why he has to wear the socks under his long skirt when no one can fucking see them.
Kibum only laughs at his misery, shaking his head disbelievingly. “Easily! Just ignore them and you’ll forget they’re even there. Oh.” Suddenly Kibum reaches out and practically sticks his hand down Taemin’s dress to adjust his bra and fake-boobies. “You need to take better care of your tits, Taemin. If the bra twists to the side, it looks totally awkward.”
“Gee,” Taemin sighs. “Thanks.”
It takes a few more practices still, a few more meals together with the bunch and a few more evenings spent playing random video games or watching movies, but finally Taemin thinks this is it. His instant crush on Kibum hasn’t been fading, not in the slightest, and he could swear that Kibum is flirting with him on purpose. What he can’t fathom is that Minho doesn’t seem to have a problem with that at all. If his boyfriend was throwing suggestive glances and jokes at one of their friends, Taemin would definitely bring it to a halt. At least hypothetically.
That is why Taemin decides he needs to actually talk to Kibum, and a perfect opportunity presents itself sooner than he’d expected. They’re all spending time at Jinki’s parents’ house - technically the one Taemin lives in for now too, obviously - and when Kibum announces he’ll use the commercial break to get them more popcorn, Taemin volunteers to help. Not that there’s any need for help when all they have to do is watch the bag spin around and around in the microwave oven.
“That shirt looks really nice on you, Taemin,” Kibum comments with a soft smile as they wait, Kibum leaning against the counter and Taemin standing a few steps away from him.
Self-consciously Taemin’s hand finds its way to the hem of his shirt, and he smiles automatically. Then, he remembers what he’s actually set out to do, and instead of a thank you he blurts out “Why do you keep flirting with me?”
Kibum’s eyes fly wide. “What? Why? Do I make you uncomfortable?”
“Yes, I mean, no!” Taemin tries and mixes up his words in his haste. “I mean, not the flirting itself, but doesn’t it make Minho really jealous?”
“Min - ho?” Kibum looks even more bewildered, and the pause he makes between the syllables of Minho’s name is kind of ridiculous. “Why would it make Minho jealous?”
Taemin sighs in exasperation. “Because you’re flirting with someone right in front of his face! I wouldn’t want to watch my boyfriend do something like that! It’s not fair towards an-”
That is when Taemin’s little rant ends as Kibum bursts out laughing. He laughs so hard he doubles over and eventually falls on his knees on the floor, the guffaws unashamedly loud. Now it’s Taemin’s turn to be confused. “What?”
“You think that Minho is my boyfriend?” Kibum howls, his laughter even intensifying. “What are you, high?”
Taemin frowns. “Look, even if he’s not, I have a perfectly valid point right here and-”
“Look, Taeminnie,” Kibum chuckles as he steps up finally and reaches out to pat his friend’s shoulder consolingly. “I’m sorry to burst your bubble but there’s really nothing going on between Minho and me. Except for him being the best friend I could ever hope for. Besides, he’s not into guys. At all. He’s straighter than Jonghyun.”
Well that clears some things up alright. Taemin still looks a little dumbstruck, and while a part of him is kind of jealous of the way Kibum praises Minho, a far bigger part is just relieved that he has been wrong all along.
In the end, Taemin manages only a highly intelligent “Oh.”
Kibum laughs at him and shoves the bowl of freshly made popcorn in his hands. “Here. Take this to the living room.”
When Taemin turns, Kibum stops him. “Tae?”
“Yeah?”
“Your shirt does look good on you,” Kibum says and winks.
For their second last rehearsal before the big show, Minho falls sick. He’s down with fever so high he’s confined to bedrest, and when Kibum calls him he can barely get two words out due to the sore throat. The rehearsal is two hours late after Kibum insists to go check on Minho in person, and the rest of the group just ends up idling until he’s back with Jinki, the one who got ordered to drive him.
It leaves them without their Prince Charming, which they somehow realize only when they’re standing on stage in full makeup and costumes. “Uhm,” Jinki hesitates, trying to figure out a solution like the good director he is. “We could put in a tennis ball? You know, like in the movies! They use tennis balls.”
“Jinki,” Kibum sighs. “We are not using a tennis ball.”
For a second Jinki looks like he might sulk but then he shrugs and spins around to face his loyal actors in their outfits. “So it means one of you has to be the prince! Minho knows his stuff anyway so we don’t need to worry about him. But who knows his lines enough to fill in? Anyone?”
There’s a brief silence before Taemin clears his throat. “Well,” he begins slowly. “I know all of his lines.” It’s kind of embarrassing, actually, how he’d been imagining himself in Minho’s place since it would get him the princess he wanted, even if on stage. Turns out, all those evenings practicing the lines didn’t end up wasted, after all.
Taemin expects teasing and mocking and even laughter but instead Jinki’s expression brightens up and he practically beams. “Good! You change out of the Cinderella dress and into the prince costume, okay. I think we’ve got the Cinderella part down pretty good and if you try to be the prince in the skirt it’ll be a disaster. Now go, go!”
Taemin tries not to show how he’s actually kind of giddy about this.
The rehearsal goes straight to hell. There are not only critical wardrobe malfunctions but also more than a few slip-ups and errors that are big enough to get Jinki desperate. No one wants to see him get a nervous breakdown but at some points it seems inevitable. It isn’t until there are the scenes with Kibum and Taemin that he calms down since he notices Taemin knows his lines. Or, Minho’s lines, that are now temporarily his.
The rehearsals are always fun, if one asks Taemin, as much as they’re hard work and push them to their limits. But he has never ever enjoyed a rehearsal as much as he enjoys this one. He knows it’s stupid and he feels like a kindergartner more than once, but having all this time together on stage with Kibum is like a dream come true. Even if Kibum is wearing a ridiculous wig and high heels and the frilly dress that he seems to be drowning in.
Kibum has mastered the heels long ago and there are barely any accidents even when he has to run and dance on stage in them. Even that doesn’t help him when somehow his left shoe gets stuck in the tulle netting of his skirt and he trips over, screaming as he plummets towards the floor.
Taemin acts completely on instinct as he reaches out and grabs Kibum to stop him from falling flat on his ass. Somehow his arms end up around Kibum and he has the older boy pretty much pressed flush against himself, their faces only inches apart. Distantly Taemin realizes how hilarious this must look: him dressed in a full prince outfit, holding Kibum in all of his glittery glory. His imagination doesn’t get any further -
- since that is when he forgets to breathe.
Kibum is wearing ridiculous amounts of makeup and it makes him look like one of those heads little girls can practice their skills on. His thick fake eyelashes curve up in a way that is kind of enticing in its awfulness and Taemin finds himself actually liking the way the pink gloss makes Kibum’s lips glimmer invitingly. The long, brown strands from the wig are more of a mess than they should be, and Taemin wants to bury his fingers into it to tear it away altogether.
In the end, the thought that drowns out everything else, the thought that really makes Taemin stop, is that Kibum is beautiful. Not in the girly girl way, not in the perfectly polished and made up way, not in the unearthly fairy tale way. Instead, it’s something that makes him the person he is, the person Taemin desperately wants to get to know better.
So Taemin kisses him.
For a second it’s perfect. Kibum freezes and forgets to struggle, going completely slack in Taemin’s embrace and it gives him the chance to steal a deeper kiss than he even thought was possible right now. Then Kibum seems to snap back to reality though and uses the grip he has of Taemin’s shoulders to hastily push him away.
Taemin is prepared for confusion and questions but he’s not prepared for the way Kibum suddenly punches him. It’s not particularly hard and he has a feeling Kibum could’ve put so much more effort into it, but it still stings and Taemin yelps as his hand flies to his jaw to hold the sore spot.
“Guys, what are you doing?” Jinki sounds mildly horrified, stepping in to stand between his cousin and his friend. “That is not in the script! You can’t just make things up as we go along, the prince is only supposed to sing at the princess now and not start molesting her! And what the hell, Kibum, princesses didn’t throw punches like that the last time I checked and- hey! Kibum! Where are you going!?”
The only answer he gains is the loud slamming of the door as Kibum storms off without a word. Jinki looks even more clueless, his eyes wide and mouth slightly open. He’s not the only one though, half of their group is staring after Kibum completely stunned. “I…” Jinki hesitates. “Does this mean the practice is cancelled?”
Jonghyun groans. “Just take the choir part or the Little Red Riding Hood. I’m gonna go talk to Key and see what got him in one of his bitchfits this time.”
“Actually,” Taemin interjects quickly. “Let me go talk to him. I was the one who pissed him off.” He doesn’t need to try do any more convincing. The whole group seems to be quite relieved that the situation is unfolding and there’s no need for anyone to try sort it out.
”Fine,” Jonghyun nods towards the door. “But hurry up before he manages to work himself into a rage. Trust me, you do not want to see that. I learned that the hard way.” Everyone knows this involves a long and elaborate story about how Jonghyun got acquainted with his brother’s moodiness, beginning from a broken toy car and ending in the birthday disaster that nearly burned their house down.
Taemin isn’t interested in hearing it again now, though, and instead flashes a grateful smile before quickly heading off.
As expected, Taemin finds Kibum in the cramped dressing room, sitting in front of a mirror and dabbing his makeup off furiously. He’s still wearing the fake lashes but the wig is thrown to the side and most of the makeup is already staining the cotton pads thrown haphazardly on the table. Everything in Kibum’s posture speaks of anger but Taemin has never been one to back down. As nice and mellow as he might seem at times, he has enough stubbornness to last a lifetime.
“Hey, could we talk?” Taemin asks and steps closer. He only gains a grunt as an answer, but it doesn’t faze him in the slightest. “Look, I’m sorry for what happened there. I didn’t want to freak you out.” He ventures forward, while grabbing the closest chair to pull it right next to Kibum’s. He sits down facing the backrest and folds his arms over it, his gaze fixed on the other boy.
“You didn’t freak me out.” Kibum makes sure to emphasize the words and even makes quotations in the air with his fingers, before returning to cleansing his skin. Defiantly he keeps his eyes on the mirror, as if Taemin wasn’t sitting there in the first place. “You acted like a complete douche, that’s what you did.”
“C’mon,” Taemin says. “It was just one kiss. What’s so bad about it?”
There is no answer. Kibum’s efforts at makeup removal seem to double in intensity, though, and he nearly ends up ripping his own eyelashes off as he yanks the false set off his right eye. Taemin frowns. “I said I was sorry. It’s not my fault you made me want to kiss you.”
That seems to do the trick and Kibum snaps around, glaring at Taemin furiously. “That is the entire point!” He hisses through clenched teeth. “I keep trying to flirt you up and drop hints and I act like a fucking idiot to make you notice me. Nothing! And then I wear some stupid fake lashes-” He pauses to rip the second set off as well, wincing as it stings. “I wear a dress and makeup and then suddenly you’re interested.”
It only begins to dawn on Taemin and he doesn’t manage to get a single word in between. Kibum, on the other hand, seems to be on a roll and rips the pins from his hair to throw them into the small bowl in front of the mirror. “Guess what, I am not! I’m not going to wear a fucking dress each time I want your attention and I am not going to be your little experiment in any fucking way, I’m-”
“I didn’t kiss you because of the makeup,” Taemin blurts out and successfully cuts off the ranting. He looks straight at Kibum’s eyes, still sparkling with anger, and hopes he can convey his sincerity through his own. “Or the dress. I didn’t do it because you’re acting a girl. It just. Seemed like a good moment?”
Kibum huffs. Quickly Taemin goes on, not to waste his chance. “I really like you, Kibum. And I’d love to take you out sometime. You know,” he says and finally lets the smile break free. “In regular, normal clothes. I promise, no headbands and glittery veils.”
For once, Kibum seems to be completely speechless and just stares at Taemin for a good while. Then the stubborn grin finally appears on his lips and he laughs, shaking his head. “This is such a high school chick flick! When did my life become this…”
Taemin beams at him disarmingly. “But we are in high school.”
“You are in high school!” Kibum corrects. He stands up and ruffles the fluffy skirt, making sure that all the layers are set just right. It looks kind of amusing with all his makeup gone, his short hair sticking to every possible direction, and still dressed in that glittery dream. So amusing in fact that Taemin can’t help but burst out laughing.
It doesn’t take too long for Kibum to join in.
This indeed is a high school chick flick, Taemin thinks as there’s a whole bunch of butterflies in his stomach. He’s standing at Kibum’s doorstep and it makes him kind of uncomfortable how the other students of the dorm are eyeing him. Self-consciously he tugs on his collar, taking a deep breath, two, three.
Then, he knocks.
The door flings open to reveal Kibum’s smiling face and if Taemin isn’t mistaken there’s a hint of nervousness somewhere in there as well. It kind of makes him feel better about himself and he manages not to stutter as he speaks up. “Hi! You ready to go?”
There is no answer though and the silence stretches on. Unable to stop it, Taemin fidgets, and finally can’t stay silent anymore. “What’s wrong?,” he blurts out.
“You’re wearing a suit?” Kibum asks, grinning as he arches an eyebrow.
Taemin flushes. “Shut up. Will you let me in?” It has no effect, though, and finally he sighs. “Alright! Jinki-hyung talked me into it, he said it’s the best option for the first date and I kind of really wanted to impress you and will you just stop staring at me!?”
That makes Kibum laugh. He finally opens the door wider, retreating into the room. “I’m sorry. You just looked so adorable, blushing and stuttering.” He says it like it’s a compliment and maybe that’s what keeps Taemin from snapping a nasty reply.
Taemin follows Kibum inside and gingerly takes a seat on the edge of his bed. The second bed, Minho’s, is messily made and scattered in clothes, and there’s no sign of the boy anywhere. Kibum stops in front of the mirror to muss his hair perfectly, humming and even swaying his hips slightly to nonexistent music. It draws Taemin’s attention lower and when he realizes he’s staring at the curve of Kibum’s bottom he blinks, quickly averting his eyes.
“Hey, Taemin,” Kibum speaks without even looking away from his reflection.
“Yeah?” Taemin looks up, eager.
“You can stare all you want.” Kibum swirls around, his lips curved in an amused smirk.
The utterly cocky expression makes Taemin snort and he rolls his eyes. “Oh, please.” His nervousness is dissipating rapidly though and he finds his spirits lifted instantly. Maybe this will turn out to be the best evening of his life after all.
Or maybe not. Five minutes into their walk downtown and Taemin notices he sweats like a pig. He takes off his suit jacket the first chance he gets, but he’s still wearing a long-sleeved dress shirt and it’s not as suitable for the weather as Kibum’s graphic tee. This proves to be Taemin’s mistake number one. “Oh god I’m never wearing a suit again!”
“You should know not to trust Jinki,” Kibum sing-songs. “He’s not exactly the type you go to with dating advice, now is he?”
“Who would I have asked?” Taemin snorts. “Jonghyun?”
Their gazes meet and as if on command, they both burst out into raucous gigglesnorts. No, definitely not Jonghyun.
As they walk further Kibum casually hooks his arm with Taemin’s. Suddenly there’s a bounce in Taemin’s steps, the set of his shoulders a little bit straighter, and the grin on his lips that much sunnier.
The rest of the evening doesn’t exactly go by without hitches. They arrive at the restaurant Taemin picked only to find out that it’s absolutely packed full and there’s no way they’ll get a seat anytime soon. In the next option, Taemin ends up somehow running into another guest and spilling a full portion of something very expensive looking on the floor. It ends up in them being thrown out into a pouring rain.
Eventually they find themselves sitting in a park under a large tree that mostly keeps them dry in the slow rain, eating the burgers they grabbed from the nearby street vendor. Taemin is embarrassed first, scolding himself for screwing everything up. How is it possible he brings out all his clumsy tendencies at a moment like this? It’s not like he’s never been on a date before. Granted, not in a suit and not this set on impressing someone, but still.
Kibum is grinning though as he takes a huge bite of his burger, and it makes Taemin think this isn’t so bad, maybe he didn’t yet screw up all his chances.
Especially when it’s Kibum who knocks over his soda, all over their pants.
At least Taemin insists on being a gentleman and walks Kibum back to his dorm. There’s a brief, awkward pause at the door, but then Kibum laughs and grabs Taemin’s wrist to pull him inside. “C’mon, it’s not like we’re strangers! Minho is away the whole weekend on some soccer camp or whatever, I don’t know, I’m not even really interested to be honest, I just know he’s not here and he won’t be here anytime soon. So,” he drawls and turns to beam at Taemin. “You want something to drink? Another soda? I promise I won’t spill that one on your pants.”
Taemin chuckles and tugs on his pants. He fakes a sad frown. “I think these are ruined anyway. After all I tried for you…”
“Nonsense!” Kibum swirls around and gets at the mini-fridge, bending down to retrieve two cans from the bottom shelf. He wishes he could offer something stronger but then again, the dorm regulations are strict enough for him to hold back from stacking stronger stuff into their room. “You just dry-clean them and it’s all good.”
“Yeah I guess,” Taemin smiles as he accepts the offered drink. “It was a mistake to wear this anyway…” He averts his gaze down at his hands, and is just about to pop the can open when fingers grab his wrists to stop him. When he looks up Kibum is smiling at him.
“No.” Easily Kibum plucks the can out of Taemin’s grasp and throws it into the general direction of the bed. Taemin doesn’t really know what to do with his free hands now, but when Kibum steps closer he settles for his hips. It seems to be a good thing, judging by the way Kibum’s voice drops into a content purr. “You look good in it. Really smart.”
There’s this certain warmth that spreads through Taemin at that, and boldly he slips his arms around Kibum’s waist to pull him in.
This time, when he kisses Kibum, it doesn’t end in a punch and an argument. Instead, Kibum kisses right back. Taemin thinks it’s kind of addictive.
Eventually one kiss leads to another and when Kibum pushes his long fingers underneath the waistband of Taemin’s pants, they both know this is about to get out of hands. In the good kind of way, that is. Kibum throws in some joke about waiting until the third date but his breathy laughter is silenced by Taemin’s eager mouth rather sooner than later.
It’s easy to get rid of Kibum’s t-shirt, it only has to be pulled over his head and discarded on the floor. In the process it tousles up his hair so invitingly Taemin can’t resist: he twines his thin fingers into the longer strands and uses the grip to pull Kibum’s face closer to his own. The kiss that follows is sloppy, enough to make Kibum chuckle in the back of his throat - the kind of disbelieving laughter reserved for the moments when you can’t fully believe you got lucky - and it does nothing but urge Taemin on.
The problems start when they have to get rid of Taemin’s shirt. The buttons seem all too small and slippery for them right now, when they can hardly focus on the basic mechanism of unbuttoning. After the first three unsuccessful attempts - interrupted by kisses more often than not - Kibum groans and pushes Taemin’s chest slightly. “Can I just take scissors to this, please?” He groans through clenched teeth, but there’s still an amused glimmer in his eyes when he looks up. “I wish I could just tear them off. You know, all macho.”
“Are you sure I’d like you if you were all macho?” Taemin asks with a smirk that seems much more confident than he’s actually feeling right now. Still, he decides getting rid of the shirt isn’t all that necessary, not when there are more pressing matters at hand. Like somehow managing to slip Kibum out of his pants, that seems to be a good option. If not the best.
Kibum doesn’t resist, only keeps grinning up at Taemin, who is already a step ahead of himself and trying his luck with the button of the jeans instead. At least there’s only one of them to take care of, and it’s easier than the ones of the shirt, if anything can be said by the way it pops open in no time. “Who knows,” Kibum answers a little belatedly, once they’ve already managed to peel the denim off his legs. “Would you?”
There are a million answers Taemin could give from the flirtatious ones to the plain cheesy ones, but his mind is far enough gone for him to blurt out the honest one. “I’d like you-” He tries to be cool as he opens his own pants but unfortunately he again has slight coordination problems and he ends up fumbling.
All is well a moment later, though, when he leans closer and breathes hotly right against Kibum’s lips. “-but I wouldn’t want to fuck you.”
Kibum shivers. “Point taken.”
Eventually Taemin decides it doesn’t really matter that he’s wearing his dress shirt. It feels kind of annoying glued to his skin with how sweaty it is, but it’s not like he’s focusing on that anyway, not when he still has two fingers knuckle deep inside a very naked Kibum, who is sprawled underneath him, flushed and dishevelled, looking like a present ready to be unwrapped.
And all for him. That makes Taemin feel almost gleeful, like he wants to go around telling everyone he’s the one who got that for himself, yes, are you all envious. Kibum seems to notice his reaction since there’s an amused smirk dancing on his lips as he takes a good hold of Taemin’s hair and yanks him closer. “Stop looking so smug,” Kibum practically purrs, and although he’s obviously aiming to sound mocking his voice is way too hoarse, too shaky for making it believable.
It’s not like Taemin is much better off. Kibum has been teasing him for the longest now, stroking him slowly like he has all the time in the world, only to then suddenly flick his wrist just right or apply pressure where it feels the best. Taemin could swear he’s never in his life gotten a handjob so good, and it makes him want to pay back as well as he can.
So when Kibum spreads his legs invitingly, Taemin doesn’t even hesitate as he curls his fingers just right, enough to draw a shudder and a moan from Kibum’s kiss bruised lips. Inwardly Taemin curses at how it shreds even the last bits of his self-control into pieces, but he manages to put up a cool front, at least for now. “Like that?” He asks with a grin, unable to resist the temptation to go on. “You like that?”
The words make Kibum huff, before a rough bark of laughter bursts out of him uncontrollably. “You sound like a porn movie!” He points out, but his voice is a notch deeper than usual, breathy and laced with need, so it doesn’t exactly sound like an insult. Even if it probably is.
Taemin can’t help but agree, chuckling lowly as he leans in to press his lips on Kibum’s, in a kiss way more chaste than the latter would prefer. “But at least I’m your own personal porn star,” he tries, laughing as Kibum makes an impatient noise and kicks his ass - literally, with his heel - to try make him stop stalling and give him more.
“Oh god Taemin shut up,” Kibum pleads, chuckling. That’s as far as he gets before he’s shut up, and for once he doesn’t mind. This time he doesn’t even need to do any urging and Taemin seems to get what he’s after, or seems to finally be willing to give it to him. Taemin shifts closer until he can align his cock with Kibum’s and instantly Kibum retaliates by wrapping his fingers around them both.
It’s good, so good, the feeling of sweat-slicked skin on skin, and Taemin can’t help but keep moving his hips forward, keep rubbing against Kibum in the most delicious of ways, all the while never ceasing the steady slide of his fingers. As the kiss breaks he’s panting into Kibum’s neck as he tries to focus, tries not to come embarrassingly fast. It’s hard, with the way he simply wants, so much, more than he’s ever wanted anything - or anyone - before.
It’s still somewhat tentative and careful, both of them too unfamiliar with each other’s bodies, with each other’s likes, and determined not to mess up. So they tread on the safe waters, stick to what they know the best. They don’t need any higher acrobatics to make it good.
Not when they’re into it together.
After, they finally get rid of Taemin’s dirtied shirt and instantly Taemin drapes himself over Kibum, rests his head on his chest. He thinks this is really nice, just staying there and listening to Kibum’s heartbeat, while Kibum keeps idly playing with the soft strands of his hair. It’s more than nice, actually. It’s something he could get used to.
At first Taemin feels like his emotions are bubbling over, like he needs to talk about this immediately not to burst. Then, he changes his mind and just snuggles into the shared warmth, running his fingers down Kibum’s side. It earns him a sleepy chuckle, along with a hand trying to slap him and missing.
His life might be straight out of a high school movie but truth to be told, Taemin doesn’t give a damn. Especially not when he looks up at Kibum and kisses him, playfully tugs on his lower lip with his teeth.
“How about round two?”
---
(7884 words)
Version I
@DW.