One Track Mind
Title: One Track Mind
Pairing: Minho/Key
Rating: PG
Summary: Minho wants to show Key that he’s not really that concerned about his image.
Notes: Happy birthday, Key!
--
“Guys, guys!”
Whenever Minho came bursting in after recording Dream Team, he was always noisy. He was either angrily throwing his shit around and stomping like a child, or he was talking on the phone loudly with a hyung that had the unfortunate timing to pick up when Minho decided to call and gloat. Surprisingly, neither was happening now, but Minho was still being uncharacteristically loud, as he threw all of his stuff down in the entry way and flew into the dorm.
“I hope you’re going to turn around and pick that up,” Key drolled from his spot, curled up on the recliner with the latest issue of the American Elle.
Minho turned on his heel and gathered all of his stuff, dumping it into his and Jonghyun’s shared room, his spirits not dampened one bit. Jonghyun yelled and came out, picking a dirty sock off of his shoulder, and Jinki and Taemin looked up from the table, where they were both eating supper.
“Hyung~” Taemin greeted Minho, shifting in his chair to look at Minho, who was still beaming. “Did you win something cool?”
“I won a car!”
There might have been a more eloquent way of saying it - fuck, he probably could have acted more cool about it. But he was absolutely ready to explode with excitement, and Taemin stood up eagerly, tugging on Minho’s sleeve.
“Where is it, where is it?”
“Well-,” Minho rubbed the back of his neck, deflating. “I uh… you know, don’t have my license.”
Key snorted and turned the page of his magazine.
Jinki smiled, “So someone else drove it home?”
Minho nodded and sat down at the table, “Yeah…” he trailed off, taking a bite of Taemin’s rice.
Everyone noticed when he didn’t keep speaking, and everyone noticed when his excitement died down a bit.
“Go take some fucking Ritalin,” Jonghyun griped, throwing the dirty sock at Minho’s head.
“I gave it to my brother,” Minho wadded the sock up and threw it at Jonghyun’s back, obviously trying to sound nonchalant but sounding as though he had just witnessed someone drown his favorite puppy.
Jinki frowned and tilted his head, “The car or the Ritalin?”
Key snorted even louder - he had to wipe his nose with his sleeve to make sure nothing came out.
“Hyung, you’ll get your license and then get it back, right?” Taemin asked, sitting down.
“That’s the plan,” Minho sighed and leaned back. “It’s such a cool car, too…” he said dreamily, staring up at the ceiling.
Key stood up from his position and rolled up his magazine, smacking Minho upside the head with it as he walked by on his way to the fridge, “Idiot, you should have just left it in your parent’s care.”
Minho was nonplussed by the violence, “My brother needed a car. Besides it’s not like I’m gonna go get my license tomorrow.”
Jinki hummed and nodded. Key wanted to strangle the leader. Taemin finished his food and stood up, leaving his empty plate on the table as he retreated to the living room to watch tv, and Key would have scolded Taemin for leaving his dishes if Minho hadn’t gathered them and brought them over to the sink.
“Why don’t you go get your license tomorrow?” Key asked, taking the plate from Minho and rinsing it off.
Minho smiled and shrugged, “Why should I drive separate from you guys? There’s no point if we’re all going to the same place.”
“Hyung should be our chauffer~” Taemin said distractedly, flipping channels.
Laughing, Minho shook his head. “Besides, Jinki hyung bought a car and gave it to his parents. Wouldn’t it look selfish if I got a car and kept it for myself?”
“Is that all you’re worried about?” Key’s nose wrinkled slightly. “Your image?”
Minho fell silent.
“Ugh.” Key dropped the dishes as rudely as he could without breaking them (they were from his favorite set). “You’re such an idiot, I can’t.” He waved his soapy hands, flinging water everywhere, before he left the kitchen to go into the bedroom, slamming the door behind him.
“Does this mean I don’t get to ride in your new car, Minho hyung?”
--
“You better have a good fucking reason for waking me up on a morning that we don’t have any schedules,” Key grumbled, coming out of the bathroom freshly groomed, ruffling his dried hair with his fingers, tousling the blond strands with the gatsby gel that was on his fingertips.
Minho smiled and nodded, “I need your help with something.”
“You better need help finding the fucking Holy Grail…”
Dressed casually and not to attract attention, the two young men left their dorm, jogging down the steps and inhaling the crisp Autumn morning air. Key didn’t fancy mornings - well, he didn’t fancy cold mornings. Warm mornings where the sun has been up for a few hours and is already high in the sky by the time people start there day… those are his kind of mornings. Autumn and Winter mornings were not his thing. He hated them. And the fact that Minho made him come out on one… this had better be good.
They met the company shuttle and boarded, Key immediately hunkering down in his seat to try and hoard his own warmth, his shoulder and thigh pressed against Minho to try and steal some of his heat as well. Minho didn’t seem to mind, so Key didn’t mind, and the ride wasn’t that long since the traffic wasn’t horrible and Key vaguely recognized the neighborhood as they got off of the shuttle.
“This is your house, isn’t it?” Key asked, trailing behind Minho.
“Yeah,” Minho flashed a smile to Key over his shoulder. “I want to show you something.”
“I don’t want to see your stupid car,” the smaller man grumbled, putting his gloved hands in his pockets. He was over-dressed, really, completely exaggerating the cold because frankly it wasn’t Winter and he was dressed almost like an Eskimo, and Minho was just wearing a jacket and a scarf.
“Just come on.”
Minho knocked on the door and Minseok answered - Key immediately bowed, knowing that Minseok was older than them, and because he had never met Minho’s brother before. He was tall, like Minho, and handsome as well. It must be a genetic thing.
People that were naturally this good looking were just irritating.
“Hey,” Minseok greeted warmly.
“Hi,” Minho shook his brother’s hand and gave him a one-armed hug, completely friendly with him. Key was envious - he had always wanted a sibling. “Sorry it’s so early.”
“It’s fine.” Minseok let them in, and addressed Key. “It’s nice to meet you, Kibum.”
Key gave a slightly tense smile - Minseok’s eyes were like Minho’s, deep and intense, weighing, like they knew all of Key’s secrets without even asking. “Pleasure.”
“Come here,” Minho grabbed Key’s hand, leading him away.
“Yah, I know how to walk,” Key snapped, but made no move to pull his hand away. He heard Minseok chuckling as he followed the pair, and when Minho led him out of the back door, he finally saw the new car Minho had won.
It was a nice car, no doubt; definitely one of those new, luxury cars. It wasn’t exactly Minho’s style - Key always pictured Minho in a sports car, speeding down the highway with the top down and some stupid music playing or something. So in that respect, he could see why he gave it away to his brother; it suited him much better, as an adult with a career that wasn’t in the public eye.
Minho moved down the steps, pulling a set of keys out of his pocket, tossing them past Key towards Minseok. “Will you drive us to the store?”
Key arched a brow, “What do you need at the store?”
Minho smiled lightly, “You can decorate it.”
“…” Key gave Minho a blank stare, and then looked the car over. It needed some personal touches, but why would Minho let Key do it? It wasn’t even close to being his car, he wouldn’t be in it ever again after today, so why wouldn’t Minho let Minseok decorate it?
“You think I’m worried about my image.” Minho shrugged, opening the back door, waiting for Minseok to get into the driver’s seat. “The only image I’ve got in my head is you.”
“Oh God,” Key guffawed, hopping down the steps and punching Minho in the shoulder. “Will you get in the fucking car, you’re so embarrassing.”
Minho laughed, getting into the backseat, and Key followed in after him, shutting the door and strapping his seat belt. The taller boy put his arm around the blond’s shoulders as Minseok pulled out of the driveway, and Key hummed softly. If Minho was letting Key decorate his car, it meant a multitude of things; it boiled down to the fact that even when Key wasn’t around, Minho wanted to be reminded of him. And this wasn’t subtle - he asked Key to decorate his car. Key didn’t barge in and do this on his own accord. It was a big step for Minho, he wasn’t good with his words and he certainly wasn’t good with his emotions; Key put his hand on Minho’s thigh gently, feeling a warmth spread throughout his chest and tummy.
“So you’re not worried about your image?” Key asked.
Minho shrugged and shook his head, “Nah.” He grinned up at his brother. “Us Choi’s have more important things to worry about.”
“Oh?” Key arched a brow, smirking a bit and tapping Minho’s knee. “I think pink leopard print might cramp your style.”
Minseok hastily changed their course of direction towards a low-key car detailer where the worst damage Key could do came in the form of a pink air freshener and a Hello Kitty steering wheel cover.
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