The Halfling - Part 14
Title: The Halfling
Pairing(s): Onkey, side 2min
Rating: PG-13 (overall)
Genre: Romance, sci-fi (?)
Disclaimer: I don't own SHINee, I don't own any of the members. Their souls and bodies belong to SM, I am only a lowly, foreign fanfic writer.
Key sat on the window seat in his room, watching quietly as labor Halflings below him worked. He hadn’t seen much of them in the winter months with the exception of the odd one here or there shoveling snow or exercising the horses. Key had wondered at the usefulness of the horses once, as he’d never once seen them used for riding or work. Onew had explained to him that his father had bought them for nothing more than show. Key realized quickly that many of the things the Duke did and owned were just for show.
The blonde sighed and shifted on his perch. His master had been acting strangely for the past few weeks, noticeably less interactive with the feline and seemingly preoccupied. It bothered Key, and he tried to not let it, but it did.
Key leant his head on his knees and continued to stare out the window. Onew probably thought he was in the studio, but he had been coming to this window quite often to think. It had probably been the most he’d ever spent time in this room since he arrived at the Lee Estate, but being in the other’s company without any interaction made Key feel uncomfortable.
A small frown settled across Key’s lips. Had he done something to upset his master?
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Onew collapsed onto his bed with a loud sigh.
He’d had an extremely trying week, and it was only his third week back, but he was happy to finally be relaxed and to know that for the next two days he did not have to go into the capitol or see anyone he didn’t want to.
Onew had forgotten how tedious it was to work at the Capitol Compound; taking orders from his father, attending insufferable parliamentary meetings, watching his father and those under him deal with the media and knowing that one day he would be the one in front of the cameras. It was a job Onew disliked to begin with and the fact that Choi Dongwan had decided to visit him a minimum of once a day hadn’t made it any easier.
At first Dongwan had at least used the pretense of dropping off papers at the Right Hand’s office for his visits - a thinly veiled lie considering there must have been plenty employees lower on the totem pole to do that for him - but by the end Dongwan pretended no longer. He began to stop by simply to torment Onew. It was always the same routine: ask about Key, offer to trade Halflings for a night, bring up whatever incorrect story the gossip magazines had written about him most recently. And even though every day it was the same, Onew found his reactions never lessoned. In addition to Dongwan the office had also started getting daily calls from the gossip magazines and newspapers asking Onew about his Halfling, asking why he was still single, why hadn’t he brought his Halfling out yet, why was he never in the capitol city for leisure, was he a recluse, what had caused his long absence from the city? It seemed to be never ending. Every day was a new story, a new article, a new rumor. Eunmi did what she could to stop the calls from going through to Onew or, worse, the Duke, but there was nothing she could do when one or two reporters at a press conference decided to turn their attention from the Duke to his son. Needless to say, it annoyed all the politicians and nobles involved who were hoping to have press conferences on actual topics and not Onew’s personal life. The Duke in particular made Onew shrink away from the questions in silence.
At the end of every day he felt drained from having to control his emotions and his actions, having to put on a mask when others were nearby so as not to raise questions. All he could muster by the time everyone left to go home was a soft and tired goodbye to Eunmi, the poor secretary always looking at a loss for how to make him feel better.
And then there was Key. The last person Onew wanted to worry was the blonde so he made an extra effort to hide his emotions around him. He spoke less so as not to accidentally snap at him in his anger, he avoided eye contact so Key couldn’t see the stress lining his face.
Onew knew it was taking a toll on their relationship. Key was mirroring the distance in his own ways; spending hours alone in the studio and purposefully falling asleep on the other side of the bed. Onew supposed he deserved it, but he didn’t know how to be normal around Key anymore. If he wasn’t trying to hide his stress from the other he was trying to hide his ever-growing affections.
Did it ever get easier?
--------------------------------
Key sat on the white sofa, thumbing through a book about the history of Hangaeng. In truth he wasn’t paying much attention to it, but it seemed he could rarely dedicate attention to anything lately. He unknowingly let out a sigh before shifting his position.
“Would you like to speak about it?” came a soft but deep voice from across the room. Key looked up to see Minho sprawled across Taemin’s bed, reading a book of his own. The prince had been out for a majority of the day attending to his royal duties so it had only been the two Halflings together.
“Speak about what?”
“Whatever makes you sigh.”
Key contemplated large brown eyes for a moment before snapping his book shut and sitting up straighter. “It is my master.”
“Oh?” Minho raised his eyebrows and sat up straight on the bed, putting his own book aside altogether.
“He is acting strange recently,” the blonde responded softly. “He does not speak with me as often and sometimes does not even look at me. I think…” Key trailed off here and looked intently at the fabric of his jeans, “I think I displease my master.”
Key said it with such pure sadness that the bull Halfling’s lips pulled down in the corners and his eyebrows furrowed. It was the first time in their months of knowing one another that he had seen the feline boy upset.
“Kibum, I do not think that is true,” Minho said softly, his thick accent cutting up some of his words.
A moment later the door to the room swung open and the prince entered followed by a servant.
“What isn’t true?” Taemin asked interestedly, removed his thin gold crown and handing it to the servant for safe keeping in their accessories vault, a large room filled with every piece of jewelry and crown that had been passed down from royal to royal. The room was kept locked and under guard twenty-four hours a day. The servant bowed and left the room.
Key stared at Minho intently, hoping that his eyes would somehow be able to convey the message that he did not at all want Taemin involved in this situation. Either it didn’t work, or Minho didn’t care.
“Kibum believes that Lord Onew no longer enjoys him,” he stated simply, his round eyes still filled with sadness at the simple thought. Taemin smiled softly for a moment, seemingly finding Minho’s shaky grasp on Korean adorable.
“Why would you ever think that, Kibum?” the Prince asked, partially curious and partially shocked because, obviously, the blonde had simply not paid attention to the look in the heir’s eyes when he stared at the young Halfling. Taemin leant patiently on one of the posters of his bed while Key gathered his words.
“He just seems very… far away, your Grace. We do not spend time together and when we do, he does not speak with me.”
Taemin seemed to stand in deep thought for a moment, kicking his leather shoes off at the same time. Suddenly, the Prince held a finger in the air as if he came to an epiphany and strode toward his desk, leaving his shoes lying haphazardly on the floor. Minho let out a small huff and immediately got off the bed in order to gather the younger’s discarded possessions and bring them to a closet. His thin brown tail flicked irritated behind him as he went, muttering the whole time about how everything has a place.
“I probably shouldn’t show you this, Onew hyung wouldn’t like it,” Taemin informed the blonde. “But I know my cousin well and I think I know why he’s acting this way,” the brunette continued and produced his tablet from one of his drawers. He fiddled around with it for a few moments before walking over and presenting it to Key who accepted after a moment of hesitation.
Looking down, he found an electronic article about Onew entitled, “The Royal Recluse Back in the Capitol - And Still Single!” He raised an eyebrow. Why did these people even care about his master’s private life?
“Swipe your finger to the left,” Taemin offered after a moment.
Key did just that and he found article after article about not only Onew, but ones also speculating about himself. Some questioned if the heir was too busy “playing with his new toy” to be a part of society, others wondered when the first pictures of Onew’s elusive Halfling would surface. There were even a few photos of Onew leaving and entering buildings, obviously taken from a distance.
“Why do these people want to see a photograph of me?” Key asked softly.
Taemin took his tablet back, handing it over to Minho, and gave a sigh. “The public is fascinated with royals. We are like celebrities to them and they want to know everything about us, all of the time. Hyung is very private and he isn’t often caught out around the city, so people are especially interested in him. And now, he’s being so secretive about you so it’s only getting worse.” Taemin took a seat on the coffee table in front of the couch so that he could look directly into Key’s eyes. “Onew hyung isn’t good with his emotions. I think he’s trying to protect you from the public and it’s stressing him out so much that he’s shutting down around you. He doesn’t want to worry you, Kibum. He cares about you very much,” the prince smiled softly.
“Really, your Grace?” a small blush began to color Key’s cheeks just at the thought.
“You two are so frustrating,” Taemin sighed in response.
Key’s eyebrows furrowed confusedly; what did that mean? But before he could ask Minho interrupted them.
“My Prince,” he called, wide eyes still trained on the tablet.
“Yes?”
“This will not be liked by Lord Onew,” Minho responded and handed the tablet over.
“Oh, no,” Taemin groaned. “This is bad.”
“What? What is it?” Key asked, almost dreading the answer.
Taemin handed the tablet over and Key looked down to the glowing screen in his hands. There was a large picture on top, grainy and obviously taken from a distance, but even so the features of Key’s face were clear as day. It must have been taken that very morning outside the Lee Estate as he got into the car. Below the picture was an entire profile of him including his Korean name, estimated height and weight, eye color and so on.
“How…?” Key began but trailed off.
“Onew hyung might be extra difficult today,” Taemin advised with a grimace.
----------------------
“My lord, perhaps you should sit down,” Eunmi advised timidly from behind her desk. Onew’s head snapped to her so quickly that she jumped and bit her lip in order to remain quiet.
“Are you sure you haven’t spoken to anyone?” he asked insistently for probably the millionth time since the secretary had shown him the article.
“No, my lord, I swear. I didn’t even know any details about your Halfling. All I knew was his name and that’s only because Lord Dongwan always comes in and asks about him-“
“That’s it!” Onew exclaimed, causing Eunmi to let out a squeak of surprise. “Dongwan must have been the one.”
“Are you sure? Why would he bother?”
“Because he’s a terrible person, Eunmi-ssi! He enjoys bothering me, especially because I won’t let him have Kibum,” the heir seethed, more to himself than the young secretary present.
“My lord, if I may…” the short woman rounded her desk and approached him. She brushed back her bobbed hair nervously before soldiering on. “It’s only a photo and some facts. Perhaps it isn’t such a big deal?” she offered gently and just the smallest hint of hopeful.
“Eunmi-ssi, you don’t understand. These people are vultures,” Onew frowned. And then, almost to himself, he added, “and I’ve been trying so hard to keep it all private.”
As if on cue the phone on Eunmi’s desk began ringing. She glanced at the caramel haired man before going back around her desk and picking up the receiver.
“Duke Lee Jinsu of Gwangjoo’s office, how may I help you?” the small secretary said into the phone. “No, I’m sorry we have no comment on the matter. The Duke’s son isn’t in the office right now so we can’t help you, I’m sorry,” Eunmi spoke into the receiver, her voice rising through the interaction almost as if she were speaking over someone else. She hung up abruptly and turned to Onew with wide eyes. He returned the look with one of his own which clearly said ‘I told you so.’ Eunmi opened her mouth to say something but was cut off when the phone rang again. She let out a soft groan and answered the call.
Onew ran a hand through his hair, now much too long. He couldn’t stop thinking about Key. He had been trying so hard to keep the Halfling out of the public eye, to give him some time to adjust and become comfortable without having the media and other nobles falling over themselves to get a glimpse of him. Onew had been able to stave off most of the nobles - the people who had never truly been his friends but who had wanted to be near him for his proximity to the crown. He couldn’t stand them.
But now that the public had gotten a peek at the blonde he knew it would be of no use. Key was too beautiful and desirable and too shrouded in mystery now. People would be coming out of the woodwork to get near him, or worse to try and loan him for a night. Onew would never allow it.
He wandered over to the window in hopes that something outside would catch his attention and distract him. However, what he found was of no help. Below him, crowded around the steps to the building were throngs of reporters and curious bystanders. There were Royal Guards trying to keep them off the steps but Onew could hear them yelling out questions about where he was, when he would come out, had Kibum been to the building? As if the guards knew anything at all. One reporter looked up and must have caught sight of Onew standing there because he immediately yelled something and raised his camera up to take a picture of the window. Onew sighed and stepped back from the window. The phone began ringing again. Eunmi had barely answered it before the other line began blinking as well on her switchboard.
It would be a long day.
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Onew was half an hour late picking up Key from the Royal Palace.
Key had been instructed to leave out the back entrance, which he had never before used. He was confused, but did as he was told and found the car he usually rode in sitting just outside the door waiting for him. Key climbed in without question. Onew was sitting in his seat, staring out the window. He didn’t even turn to face the other when he slid into his seat.
“Hello, my lord,” Key tried softly.
“Hello,” Onew responded but still didn’t turn his face from the glass. He seemed terribly distracted and Key sighed, Taemin had certainly been right. The car began to move forward, heading toward the back gates of the palace usually used by delivery trucks. Key cleared his throat and played with the tip of his tail nervously.
“How was your day?”
Just as Key finished his sentenced the car rounded the corner so the iron gates were in view. He froze in shock for a moment, taking in a mob of people on the other side. Some had cameras flashing, obviously reporters of some sort, others seemed to be just regular citizens with their phones in the air presumably recording video or taking pictures. And there was so much screaming. So much screaming. Onew let out a sigh, the kind that comes from someone who is too tired, too drained to do much anything else.
He muttered something under his breath that sounded almost like “even here”. Royal guards rushed out to try and separate the sea of people so the car could pass through but even then they had to drive very slowly. Key jumped as people began hitting the glass and shouting things, cupping their hands around their eyes in an attempt to see through the tinted glass. It took a couple minutes but soon enough they made it through the crowd and began driving normally. Key sat in a slightly scared state of shock, unable to pull his wide eyes away from the window even though there was nothing there to see anymore.
“Long,” Onew finally said. “My day was very long.”
They sat in silence for the rest of the car ride.
-----------------------
Onew continued to sulk for the rest of the evening.
Instead of disappearing to the studio or his own room, Key stayed in Onew’s sitting room, trying his best to pretend he was reading a book instead of simply glaring at the pages. Onew was in the middle of a phone call, asking about removing an article from the internet. Even Key, a Halfling who had known of Earth’s technologies and luxuries for only a few years, knew that once something was on the internet it was there forever. He’d learned that when Taemin told him an embarrassing story of his sister Princess Taejin posting a picture of him in the bath as a baby. His cheeks had turned pink even just relaying the tale.
“Well thank you anyway,” Onew spoke into the phone before hanging up and practically throwing the item at his desk. He fell into his chair, grumbling under his breath something about no good law enforcement feeding into the gossip mill.
Key shut his book with a resounding snap and stood from the leather armchair, tossing the leather-bound novel back on the seat. Onew looked up at the sudden sound, clear surprise in his almond eyes.
“We must speak, my lord,” the feline boy said, determination on his set face and black eyes staring at his master.
“What about?” Onew questioned trying his best to be nonchalant and failing.
“This, my lord. How we are acting now,” Key said with a certain insistence to his voice. There was a pause in which Key stared at Onew in hopes the other would give him a quick response but the caramel haired boy only stared back in confusion. “Is it me?”
“Wha-?”
“Did I do something wrong? I know I should not cut off my master but I must know,” the blonde was mortified at his misstep as a Halfling. He knew better than that. He especially knew better than to antagonize a master who already seemed unhappy with him. “Do I displease you, my lord? Do you wish to sell me back to the Keeper’s? Do you wish to sell me to Lord Dongwan?”
Onew stood from his chair in clear astonishment. Sell Key? To Choi Dongwan?
“I will respect my lord’s wishes if that-“
“Key,” the heir interrupted evenly and loudly. “I would throw myself through the window at the top of a skyscraper in the middle of the capitol city before I let Dongwan anywhere near you. I am not at all exaggerating.”
“To another noble then? You will choose a suitable master I am sure-“
“Why would you ever think I wanted to get rid of you?” Onew asked, almost softly. He had a look on his face that spoke clearly of a mixture between hurt and bewilderment.
“You have been acting so different. We do not talk anymore or do anything. It is like you are ignoring me, my lord.”
“Key, no,” the elder sighed. “I’ve just been really stressed and upset lately.”
“Is it because of the picture on the interwebs-?”
“Internet. And how did you-?”
“-Is it because I was not careful and someone took a photogram-“
“Photograph.”
“-of me? I am so sorry, my lord.” Key looked like he wanted to cry and it broke Onew’s heart. He can’t remember the last time he’d seen tears in the other’s eyes.
“Key, calm down,” Onew said softly. “You mess up your words when you get upset.”
“Am I not smart enough?”
“Key, please, stop. I don’t want to get rid of you. I would never do that you’re-“ everything “my friend. Honestly. I just… I hate the media and I like privacy. And I wanted to protect you from all of those nasty people, Key,” Onew walked out from behind his desk, approaching the younger slowly. The blonde still looked like he wanted to cry but his eyebrows furrowed in concentration. He wouldn’t cry. He would not. “I had to protect you. I wanted you to be happy and not have to worry about things like this. After all you’ve been through, it isn’t fair that this should be another problem added to your life. I tried so hard to hide all of this from you because I was stressed and… and so angry! I feel so drained at the end of every day because of those stupid magazines and newspapers and those terrible people. Sometimes I feel like I just want to hide from it all,” was he even making sense anymore? Onew could feel himself losing control over his words. He had kept it all bottled up for so long and now that it was coming out there was no stopping it. “And I don’t deal with my emotions well and, God, Key, I can barely look at you anymore because I can’t stop when I start and I was so afraid that you would realize that I love you-“
It was like a bomb had gone off just beside him. Time froze and there was a ringing in Onew’s ears. No, surely he hadn’t said that out loud. There was no way that something he had kept inside him so carefully, for so long could just pop out like that. But judging from the wide black eyes staring back at him above lips slightly parted in shock, he had. He had admitted feelings he swore to never acknowledge. He could never take them back.
“Key,” Onew whispered at a loss. “I’m so sorry. I wasn’t- I didn’t…. Key, I should never have said that.”
“M-my lord,” Key tried but his voice cracked.
The Halfling walked forward and closed the three feet separating the two so he stood just before his master. He studied the elder’s face carefully, as if looking for his true intentions.
“Please don’t hate me now,” Onew begged. “I know you don’t feel the same way and that’s okay, because you’re one of my closest friends now and I respect-“
“My lord,” Key cut him off solidly and placed three fingers to the other’s lips in order to silence him.
Onew’s eyes widened at the touch but he couldn’t help how warm it made him feel inside. When was the last time they touched each other aside from accidental embraces in their sleep? Key’s fingers below his nose smelt of the pastels he used to draw and Onew loved that - he loved that so much. Key was actually crying now, tears running down his face and his nose turning pink while his brown tipped ears drooped into blonde hair. Onew couldn’t help but stare at Key’s other hand as it laid across the Halfling’s chest as if in an effort to calm his own heart. His fingers, though long and thin as they always had been, were also roughened from Key’s years of living in the wilderness, hunting his own food and building his own home. How had Onew never noticed it before? These hands weren’t fragile; they were strong. And Key was strong. Onew could see it now, in the way that the blonde’s eyes seemed to steel themselves suddenly. He looked like he was scared, but that he would not let that fear control him.
“Please forgive me for what I am about to do, my lord.”
Without further ado, Key’s fingers were gone from Onew’s mouth and were replaced with his own bow shaped lips. Onew hadn’t kissed anyone in over two years but he couldn’t remember lips ever having felt that perfect against his own. His hand moved up unconsciously to thread into the hairs at the base of Key’s head. He felt the Halfling’s own hands come up to grip onto his biceps. Onew pulled away after only a few moments, afraid that allowing himself to indulge too thoroughly in the kiss would scare the other.
When they pulled away they simply stared at each other in mutually shocked silence, both afraid to break whatever trance they were in. Key’s eyes darted back and forth hurriedly as if trying to take in any clues that would give away Onew’s emotions.
“Please forgive me,” he repeated softly.
“Key, answer me honestly,” Onew responded. “Did you truly want to kiss me right then?”
“More than anything in the world, my lord.”
“Then please don’t apologize,” he smiled.
“I have been waiting so long to know your feelings,” Key began crying again.
“I can’t believe I’ve been so stupid,” Onew brushed away the tears softly with his thumbs. “I was so scared that you would hate me for the way I felt.”
“And I was scared I was not allowed to feel these things for you.”
“Key, I told you once to never hide your reactions or how you are feeling from me,” the elder chastised lightly, half jokingly.
“I promise to never do it again, my lord. But you must promise me something as well.”
“What is it?”
“Please never hide anything from me again. Never get so far away from me. It was so scary,” Key pouted softly, but his ears now stood up at attention, no longer drooping in fear or sadness. Onew grinned softly and nodded his head.
“Deal.”
Onew leant down and reconnected their lips in another soft kiss. He pulled away only a second later, however, with a scowl on his face.
“What is it?” Key whispered.
“Jonghyun was right about us. I hate when he’s right.”
Key snorted and gripped the elder’s chin between his thumb and forefinger. “Shut up, my lord.”
Key leaned in and kissed the other firmly but he couldn’t suppress his smile.
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Omg hi. so my life got a little crazy for a bit. i went through a whole interview process with a company and ended up getting the job but with a horrible salary that i literally couldnt live off of so i turned it down but then i got accepted to columbia university for a program so i am going through a whole loan finding process and oyyy. ANYWAY so i wrote this like literal behemoth of a chapter i think its 10 pages long. i didn't mean for it to be this long but these things happen. hope you liked it?? please let me know what you think ?? <33 thanks so much for reading! :)
next
Pairing(s): Onkey, side 2min
Rating: PG-13 (overall)
Genre: Romance, sci-fi (?)
Disclaimer: I don't own SHINee, I don't own any of the members. Their souls and bodies belong to SM, I am only a lowly, foreign fanfic writer.
Key sat on the window seat in his room, watching quietly as labor Halflings below him worked. He hadn’t seen much of them in the winter months with the exception of the odd one here or there shoveling snow or exercising the horses. Key had wondered at the usefulness of the horses once, as he’d never once seen them used for riding or work. Onew had explained to him that his father had bought them for nothing more than show. Key realized quickly that many of the things the Duke did and owned were just for show.
The blonde sighed and shifted on his perch. His master had been acting strangely for the past few weeks, noticeably less interactive with the feline and seemingly preoccupied. It bothered Key, and he tried to not let it, but it did.
Key leant his head on his knees and continued to stare out the window. Onew probably thought he was in the studio, but he had been coming to this window quite often to think. It had probably been the most he’d ever spent time in this room since he arrived at the Lee Estate, but being in the other’s company without any interaction made Key feel uncomfortable.
A small frown settled across Key’s lips. Had he done something to upset his master?
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Onew collapsed onto his bed with a loud sigh.
He’d had an extremely trying week, and it was only his third week back, but he was happy to finally be relaxed and to know that for the next two days he did not have to go into the capitol or see anyone he didn’t want to.
Onew had forgotten how tedious it was to work at the Capitol Compound; taking orders from his father, attending insufferable parliamentary meetings, watching his father and those under him deal with the media and knowing that one day he would be the one in front of the cameras. It was a job Onew disliked to begin with and the fact that Choi Dongwan had decided to visit him a minimum of once a day hadn’t made it any easier.
At first Dongwan had at least used the pretense of dropping off papers at the Right Hand’s office for his visits - a thinly veiled lie considering there must have been plenty employees lower on the totem pole to do that for him - but by the end Dongwan pretended no longer. He began to stop by simply to torment Onew. It was always the same routine: ask about Key, offer to trade Halflings for a night, bring up whatever incorrect story the gossip magazines had written about him most recently. And even though every day it was the same, Onew found his reactions never lessoned. In addition to Dongwan the office had also started getting daily calls from the gossip magazines and newspapers asking Onew about his Halfling, asking why he was still single, why hadn’t he brought his Halfling out yet, why was he never in the capitol city for leisure, was he a recluse, what had caused his long absence from the city? It seemed to be never ending. Every day was a new story, a new article, a new rumor. Eunmi did what she could to stop the calls from going through to Onew or, worse, the Duke, but there was nothing she could do when one or two reporters at a press conference decided to turn their attention from the Duke to his son. Needless to say, it annoyed all the politicians and nobles involved who were hoping to have press conferences on actual topics and not Onew’s personal life. The Duke in particular made Onew shrink away from the questions in silence.
At the end of every day he felt drained from having to control his emotions and his actions, having to put on a mask when others were nearby so as not to raise questions. All he could muster by the time everyone left to go home was a soft and tired goodbye to Eunmi, the poor secretary always looking at a loss for how to make him feel better.
And then there was Key. The last person Onew wanted to worry was the blonde so he made an extra effort to hide his emotions around him. He spoke less so as not to accidentally snap at him in his anger, he avoided eye contact so Key couldn’t see the stress lining his face.
Onew knew it was taking a toll on their relationship. Key was mirroring the distance in his own ways; spending hours alone in the studio and purposefully falling asleep on the other side of the bed. Onew supposed he deserved it, but he didn’t know how to be normal around Key anymore. If he wasn’t trying to hide his stress from the other he was trying to hide his ever-growing affections.
Did it ever get easier?
--------------------------------
Key sat on the white sofa, thumbing through a book about the history of Hangaeng. In truth he wasn’t paying much attention to it, but it seemed he could rarely dedicate attention to anything lately. He unknowingly let out a sigh before shifting his position.
“Would you like to speak about it?” came a soft but deep voice from across the room. Key looked up to see Minho sprawled across Taemin’s bed, reading a book of his own. The prince had been out for a majority of the day attending to his royal duties so it had only been the two Halflings together.
“Speak about what?”
“Whatever makes you sigh.”
Key contemplated large brown eyes for a moment before snapping his book shut and sitting up straighter. “It is my master.”
“Oh?” Minho raised his eyebrows and sat up straight on the bed, putting his own book aside altogether.
“He is acting strange recently,” the blonde responded softly. “He does not speak with me as often and sometimes does not even look at me. I think…” Key trailed off here and looked intently at the fabric of his jeans, “I think I displease my master.”
Key said it with such pure sadness that the bull Halfling’s lips pulled down in the corners and his eyebrows furrowed. It was the first time in their months of knowing one another that he had seen the feline boy upset.
“Kibum, I do not think that is true,” Minho said softly, his thick accent cutting up some of his words.
A moment later the door to the room swung open and the prince entered followed by a servant.
“What isn’t true?” Taemin asked interestedly, removed his thin gold crown and handing it to the servant for safe keeping in their accessories vault, a large room filled with every piece of jewelry and crown that had been passed down from royal to royal. The room was kept locked and under guard twenty-four hours a day. The servant bowed and left the room.
Key stared at Minho intently, hoping that his eyes would somehow be able to convey the message that he did not at all want Taemin involved in this situation. Either it didn’t work, or Minho didn’t care.
“Kibum believes that Lord Onew no longer enjoys him,” he stated simply, his round eyes still filled with sadness at the simple thought. Taemin smiled softly for a moment, seemingly finding Minho’s shaky grasp on Korean adorable.
“Why would you ever think that, Kibum?” the Prince asked, partially curious and partially shocked because, obviously, the blonde had simply not paid attention to the look in the heir’s eyes when he stared at the young Halfling. Taemin leant patiently on one of the posters of his bed while Key gathered his words.
“He just seems very… far away, your Grace. We do not spend time together and when we do, he does not speak with me.”
Taemin seemed to stand in deep thought for a moment, kicking his leather shoes off at the same time. Suddenly, the Prince held a finger in the air as if he came to an epiphany and strode toward his desk, leaving his shoes lying haphazardly on the floor. Minho let out a small huff and immediately got off the bed in order to gather the younger’s discarded possessions and bring them to a closet. His thin brown tail flicked irritated behind him as he went, muttering the whole time about how everything has a place.
“I probably shouldn’t show you this, Onew hyung wouldn’t like it,” Taemin informed the blonde. “But I know my cousin well and I think I know why he’s acting this way,” the brunette continued and produced his tablet from one of his drawers. He fiddled around with it for a few moments before walking over and presenting it to Key who accepted after a moment of hesitation.
Looking down, he found an electronic article about Onew entitled, “The Royal Recluse Back in the Capitol - And Still Single!” He raised an eyebrow. Why did these people even care about his master’s private life?
“Swipe your finger to the left,” Taemin offered after a moment.
Key did just that and he found article after article about not only Onew, but ones also speculating about himself. Some questioned if the heir was too busy “playing with his new toy” to be a part of society, others wondered when the first pictures of Onew’s elusive Halfling would surface. There were even a few photos of Onew leaving and entering buildings, obviously taken from a distance.
“Why do these people want to see a photograph of me?” Key asked softly.
Taemin took his tablet back, handing it over to Minho, and gave a sigh. “The public is fascinated with royals. We are like celebrities to them and they want to know everything about us, all of the time. Hyung is very private and he isn’t often caught out around the city, so people are especially interested in him. And now, he’s being so secretive about you so it’s only getting worse.” Taemin took a seat on the coffee table in front of the couch so that he could look directly into Key’s eyes. “Onew hyung isn’t good with his emotions. I think he’s trying to protect you from the public and it’s stressing him out so much that he’s shutting down around you. He doesn’t want to worry you, Kibum. He cares about you very much,” the prince smiled softly.
“Really, your Grace?” a small blush began to color Key’s cheeks just at the thought.
“You two are so frustrating,” Taemin sighed in response.
Key’s eyebrows furrowed confusedly; what did that mean? But before he could ask Minho interrupted them.
“My Prince,” he called, wide eyes still trained on the tablet.
“Yes?”
“This will not be liked by Lord Onew,” Minho responded and handed the tablet over.
“Oh, no,” Taemin groaned. “This is bad.”
“What? What is it?” Key asked, almost dreading the answer.
Taemin handed the tablet over and Key looked down to the glowing screen in his hands. There was a large picture on top, grainy and obviously taken from a distance, but even so the features of Key’s face were clear as day. It must have been taken that very morning outside the Lee Estate as he got into the car. Below the picture was an entire profile of him including his Korean name, estimated height and weight, eye color and so on.
“How…?” Key began but trailed off.
“Onew hyung might be extra difficult today,” Taemin advised with a grimace.
----------------------
“My lord, perhaps you should sit down,” Eunmi advised timidly from behind her desk. Onew’s head snapped to her so quickly that she jumped and bit her lip in order to remain quiet.
“Are you sure you haven’t spoken to anyone?” he asked insistently for probably the millionth time since the secretary had shown him the article.
“No, my lord, I swear. I didn’t even know any details about your Halfling. All I knew was his name and that’s only because Lord Dongwan always comes in and asks about him-“
“That’s it!” Onew exclaimed, causing Eunmi to let out a squeak of surprise. “Dongwan must have been the one.”
“Are you sure? Why would he bother?”
“Because he’s a terrible person, Eunmi-ssi! He enjoys bothering me, especially because I won’t let him have Kibum,” the heir seethed, more to himself than the young secretary present.
“My lord, if I may…” the short woman rounded her desk and approached him. She brushed back her bobbed hair nervously before soldiering on. “It’s only a photo and some facts. Perhaps it isn’t such a big deal?” she offered gently and just the smallest hint of hopeful.
“Eunmi-ssi, you don’t understand. These people are vultures,” Onew frowned. And then, almost to himself, he added, “and I’ve been trying so hard to keep it all private.”
As if on cue the phone on Eunmi’s desk began ringing. She glanced at the caramel haired man before going back around her desk and picking up the receiver.
“Duke Lee Jinsu of Gwangjoo’s office, how may I help you?” the small secretary said into the phone. “No, I’m sorry we have no comment on the matter. The Duke’s son isn’t in the office right now so we can’t help you, I’m sorry,” Eunmi spoke into the receiver, her voice rising through the interaction almost as if she were speaking over someone else. She hung up abruptly and turned to Onew with wide eyes. He returned the look with one of his own which clearly said ‘I told you so.’ Eunmi opened her mouth to say something but was cut off when the phone rang again. She let out a soft groan and answered the call.
Onew ran a hand through his hair, now much too long. He couldn’t stop thinking about Key. He had been trying so hard to keep the Halfling out of the public eye, to give him some time to adjust and become comfortable without having the media and other nobles falling over themselves to get a glimpse of him. Onew had been able to stave off most of the nobles - the people who had never truly been his friends but who had wanted to be near him for his proximity to the crown. He couldn’t stand them.
But now that the public had gotten a peek at the blonde he knew it would be of no use. Key was too beautiful and desirable and too shrouded in mystery now. People would be coming out of the woodwork to get near him, or worse to try and loan him for a night. Onew would never allow it.
He wandered over to the window in hopes that something outside would catch his attention and distract him. However, what he found was of no help. Below him, crowded around the steps to the building were throngs of reporters and curious bystanders. There were Royal Guards trying to keep them off the steps but Onew could hear them yelling out questions about where he was, when he would come out, had Kibum been to the building? As if the guards knew anything at all. One reporter looked up and must have caught sight of Onew standing there because he immediately yelled something and raised his camera up to take a picture of the window. Onew sighed and stepped back from the window. The phone began ringing again. Eunmi had barely answered it before the other line began blinking as well on her switchboard.
It would be a long day.
--------------------------------------
Onew was half an hour late picking up Key from the Royal Palace.
Key had been instructed to leave out the back entrance, which he had never before used. He was confused, but did as he was told and found the car he usually rode in sitting just outside the door waiting for him. Key climbed in without question. Onew was sitting in his seat, staring out the window. He didn’t even turn to face the other when he slid into his seat.
“Hello, my lord,” Key tried softly.
“Hello,” Onew responded but still didn’t turn his face from the glass. He seemed terribly distracted and Key sighed, Taemin had certainly been right. The car began to move forward, heading toward the back gates of the palace usually used by delivery trucks. Key cleared his throat and played with the tip of his tail nervously.
“How was your day?”
Just as Key finished his sentenced the car rounded the corner so the iron gates were in view. He froze in shock for a moment, taking in a mob of people on the other side. Some had cameras flashing, obviously reporters of some sort, others seemed to be just regular citizens with their phones in the air presumably recording video or taking pictures. And there was so much screaming. So much screaming. Onew let out a sigh, the kind that comes from someone who is too tired, too drained to do much anything else.
He muttered something under his breath that sounded almost like “even here”. Royal guards rushed out to try and separate the sea of people so the car could pass through but even then they had to drive very slowly. Key jumped as people began hitting the glass and shouting things, cupping their hands around their eyes in an attempt to see through the tinted glass. It took a couple minutes but soon enough they made it through the crowd and began driving normally. Key sat in a slightly scared state of shock, unable to pull his wide eyes away from the window even though there was nothing there to see anymore.
“Long,” Onew finally said. “My day was very long.”
They sat in silence for the rest of the car ride.
-----------------------
Onew continued to sulk for the rest of the evening.
Instead of disappearing to the studio or his own room, Key stayed in Onew’s sitting room, trying his best to pretend he was reading a book instead of simply glaring at the pages. Onew was in the middle of a phone call, asking about removing an article from the internet. Even Key, a Halfling who had known of Earth’s technologies and luxuries for only a few years, knew that once something was on the internet it was there forever. He’d learned that when Taemin told him an embarrassing story of his sister Princess Taejin posting a picture of him in the bath as a baby. His cheeks had turned pink even just relaying the tale.
“Well thank you anyway,” Onew spoke into the phone before hanging up and practically throwing the item at his desk. He fell into his chair, grumbling under his breath something about no good law enforcement feeding into the gossip mill.
Key shut his book with a resounding snap and stood from the leather armchair, tossing the leather-bound novel back on the seat. Onew looked up at the sudden sound, clear surprise in his almond eyes.
“We must speak, my lord,” the feline boy said, determination on his set face and black eyes staring at his master.
“What about?” Onew questioned trying his best to be nonchalant and failing.
“This, my lord. How we are acting now,” Key said with a certain insistence to his voice. There was a pause in which Key stared at Onew in hopes the other would give him a quick response but the caramel haired boy only stared back in confusion. “Is it me?”
“Wha-?”
“Did I do something wrong? I know I should not cut off my master but I must know,” the blonde was mortified at his misstep as a Halfling. He knew better than that. He especially knew better than to antagonize a master who already seemed unhappy with him. “Do I displease you, my lord? Do you wish to sell me back to the Keeper’s? Do you wish to sell me to Lord Dongwan?”
Onew stood from his chair in clear astonishment. Sell Key? To Choi Dongwan?
“I will respect my lord’s wishes if that-“
“Key,” the heir interrupted evenly and loudly. “I would throw myself through the window at the top of a skyscraper in the middle of the capitol city before I let Dongwan anywhere near you. I am not at all exaggerating.”
“To another noble then? You will choose a suitable master I am sure-“
“Why would you ever think I wanted to get rid of you?” Onew asked, almost softly. He had a look on his face that spoke clearly of a mixture between hurt and bewilderment.
“You have been acting so different. We do not talk anymore or do anything. It is like you are ignoring me, my lord.”
“Key, no,” the elder sighed. “I’ve just been really stressed and upset lately.”
“Is it because of the picture on the interwebs-?”
“Internet. And how did you-?”
“-Is it because I was not careful and someone took a photogram-“
“Photograph.”
“-of me? I am so sorry, my lord.” Key looked like he wanted to cry and it broke Onew’s heart. He can’t remember the last time he’d seen tears in the other’s eyes.
“Key, calm down,” Onew said softly. “You mess up your words when you get upset.”
“Am I not smart enough?”
“Key, please, stop. I don’t want to get rid of you. I would never do that you’re-“ everything “my friend. Honestly. I just… I hate the media and I like privacy. And I wanted to protect you from all of those nasty people, Key,” Onew walked out from behind his desk, approaching the younger slowly. The blonde still looked like he wanted to cry but his eyebrows furrowed in concentration. He wouldn’t cry. He would not. “I had to protect you. I wanted you to be happy and not have to worry about things like this. After all you’ve been through, it isn’t fair that this should be another problem added to your life. I tried so hard to hide all of this from you because I was stressed and… and so angry! I feel so drained at the end of every day because of those stupid magazines and newspapers and those terrible people. Sometimes I feel like I just want to hide from it all,” was he even making sense anymore? Onew could feel himself losing control over his words. He had kept it all bottled up for so long and now that it was coming out there was no stopping it. “And I don’t deal with my emotions well and, God, Key, I can barely look at you anymore because I can’t stop when I start and I was so afraid that you would realize that I love you-“
It was like a bomb had gone off just beside him. Time froze and there was a ringing in Onew’s ears. No, surely he hadn’t said that out loud. There was no way that something he had kept inside him so carefully, for so long could just pop out like that. But judging from the wide black eyes staring back at him above lips slightly parted in shock, he had. He had admitted feelings he swore to never acknowledge. He could never take them back.
“Key,” Onew whispered at a loss. “I’m so sorry. I wasn’t- I didn’t…. Key, I should never have said that.”
“M-my lord,” Key tried but his voice cracked.
The Halfling walked forward and closed the three feet separating the two so he stood just before his master. He studied the elder’s face carefully, as if looking for his true intentions.
“Please don’t hate me now,” Onew begged. “I know you don’t feel the same way and that’s okay, because you’re one of my closest friends now and I respect-“
“My lord,” Key cut him off solidly and placed three fingers to the other’s lips in order to silence him.
Onew’s eyes widened at the touch but he couldn’t help how warm it made him feel inside. When was the last time they touched each other aside from accidental embraces in their sleep? Key’s fingers below his nose smelt of the pastels he used to draw and Onew loved that - he loved that so much. Key was actually crying now, tears running down his face and his nose turning pink while his brown tipped ears drooped into blonde hair. Onew couldn’t help but stare at Key’s other hand as it laid across the Halfling’s chest as if in an effort to calm his own heart. His fingers, though long and thin as they always had been, were also roughened from Key’s years of living in the wilderness, hunting his own food and building his own home. How had Onew never noticed it before? These hands weren’t fragile; they were strong. And Key was strong. Onew could see it now, in the way that the blonde’s eyes seemed to steel themselves suddenly. He looked like he was scared, but that he would not let that fear control him.
“Please forgive me for what I am about to do, my lord.”
Without further ado, Key’s fingers were gone from Onew’s mouth and were replaced with his own bow shaped lips. Onew hadn’t kissed anyone in over two years but he couldn’t remember lips ever having felt that perfect against his own. His hand moved up unconsciously to thread into the hairs at the base of Key’s head. He felt the Halfling’s own hands come up to grip onto his biceps. Onew pulled away after only a few moments, afraid that allowing himself to indulge too thoroughly in the kiss would scare the other.
When they pulled away they simply stared at each other in mutually shocked silence, both afraid to break whatever trance they were in. Key’s eyes darted back and forth hurriedly as if trying to take in any clues that would give away Onew’s emotions.
“Please forgive me,” he repeated softly.
“Key, answer me honestly,” Onew responded. “Did you truly want to kiss me right then?”
“More than anything in the world, my lord.”
“Then please don’t apologize,” he smiled.
“I have been waiting so long to know your feelings,” Key began crying again.
“I can’t believe I’ve been so stupid,” Onew brushed away the tears softly with his thumbs. “I was so scared that you would hate me for the way I felt.”
“And I was scared I was not allowed to feel these things for you.”
“Key, I told you once to never hide your reactions or how you are feeling from me,” the elder chastised lightly, half jokingly.
“I promise to never do it again, my lord. But you must promise me something as well.”
“What is it?”
“Please never hide anything from me again. Never get so far away from me. It was so scary,” Key pouted softly, but his ears now stood up at attention, no longer drooping in fear or sadness. Onew grinned softly and nodded his head.
“Deal.”
Onew leant down and reconnected their lips in another soft kiss. He pulled away only a second later, however, with a scowl on his face.
“What is it?” Key whispered.
“Jonghyun was right about us. I hate when he’s right.”
Key snorted and gripped the elder’s chin between his thumb and forefinger. “Shut up, my lord.”
Key leaned in and kissed the other firmly but he couldn’t suppress his smile.
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Omg hi. so my life got a little crazy for a bit. i went through a whole interview process with a company and ended up getting the job but with a horrible salary that i literally couldnt live off of so i turned it down but then i got accepted to columbia university for a program so i am going through a whole loan finding process and oyyy. ANYWAY so i wrote this like literal behemoth of a chapter i think its 10 pages long. i didn't mean for it to be this long but these things happen. hope you liked it?? please let me know what you think ?? <33 thanks so much for reading! :)
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