Discovery (1/1)

I don’t need a map my heart points me to you,

Even if the road ahead is rough

I can’t do this where I stand,There wasn’t a moment we were apart

or when I forgot about you

If only I can see you at the end of the horizon. – EXO; Black Pearl (Korean version)J O N G H Y U NJonghyun was horribly confused.  For the past week and a half, Key had been either avoiding him or completely ignoring him, only giving him half-responses that were so low they were practically inaudible whenever he did bother responding.  He was abnormally quiet around everyone – something Jonghyun never in a million years would have thought possible.  He was strangely submissive, eyes downcast and head often down as well.  His skin had taken on a much more pale ivory than usual; and his eyes, those super feline eyes with their typical bright sparkle of sarcasm and mirth, were just as often outlined with a bit of charcoal to try and conceal the bags under them as they were lacking their casual mischief.  Key was not himself.  Definitely not himself.  And Jonghyun, to say the least, was just as disturbed as he was disheartened by it.He thought everything had been going so well for the past couple of months.  He could earnestly say that Key was one of his closest friends – just as close, if not closer than, Jinki himself.  And that was saying something considering how long he and Jinki had been friends.  There was just something about Key that, despite his cutting sarcasm and diva-like attitude, made him so likeable.  Or maybe it was the sarcasm and diva-like attitude that made him so fun to be around.  Whatever.  Jonghyun wasn’t sure and at this point he did not care.  He just wanted Key to be himself again.The problem with that wish, on the other hand, was that he wasn’t sure what it was that was making Key so unlike himself.  He knew that the blond’s behavior had something to do with him by the way the latter had been avoiding him and barely responding to him when just before he’d been loud and friendly and uncaring of the looks he got because of it.  He just didn’t know what he could have possibly done to make Key avoid him as he’d been doing so much.  He was sure that the most that he did was say he couldn’t hang out with the latter during the last few days of break – and it was justified.  Wednesday he had to meet up with Sekyung and he had to make sure he was prepared for it (he wasn’t sure if it was a date exactly beforehand so he wanted to be ready just in case – and he was very glad he was because in reality it definitely had been something like a date, even if deep down, for reasons he wasn’t exactly sure about and he felt were dangerous to name anyway, it felt as if he were betraying Key the entire time) and then every day up until Sunday evening he was stuck doing the homework he’d neglected for the last week and a half.  Really, he couldn’t think of anything he could’ve done that would’ve made Key upset.Either way he intended to find out so that he could put an end to it because, in all honesty, he really missed having diva-key around.  As a result, Jonghyun found himself anxious for after-school rehearsal to be over so that he could pull Key aside and ask him what was going on.  He figured that would be the best time to do it considering the fact that they were already awkward enough as it was and, if the conversation went awry, they’d only get more awkward – something that the rest of the school’s elites definitely did not need to see.  Nonetheless Jonghyun found himself getting more and more impatient the longer time seemed to drag on.  They were only about halfway done with rehearsal and it was honestly killing him.It didn’t help that whenever he went around to check on the elite groups that they didn’t seem to need any advice on certain areas in their performances like ad-libs or background vocals so Jonghyun couldn’t even keep himself busy with helping them work out what to do.  It was actually really frustrating because it made time seem to go by even slower.  To top it all off, every time he looked around to see what Taemin, Minho, or Key were doing, the blond would be staring at him with something in his eyes that Jonghyun couldn’t quite find words for, and then they’d make eye contact and Key would hurriedly shift his gaze downward, avoiding any form of interaction with him.  And if Jonghyun was around Sekyung, that downcast gaze seemed to get a bit sadder, a bit lonelier, and it only served to fuel the burning curiosity and whirling thoughts inside of him because before the break whenever Key saw him around Sekyung the latter would just roll his eyes or have some half-snarky smile on his face.Maybe he’s still feeling weird over the thing that happened at the mall?  Hey, maybe that’s why he’s being all weird!  Maybe he thinks I’m upset at him for that talk we had and the fact that he just got up and left.  Jonghyun mulled the possibility over in his head, mentally tasting it and, after a moment, decidedly settling on it as the most likely cause for the sudden lull in their friendship.  If that was really what was bothering Key, he’d be able to fix it with a few words of reassurance (although in the back of his mind there lingered the thought that the awkward talk they had at the mall wasn’t really the issue because really why would Key spend an entire two weeks being awkward about it?).Regardless, he found himself mentally rehearsing the things he could say to Key to fix their friendship, consequently doing his job absentmindedly for a good twenty minutes at a time until someone snapped him out of it – typically Minho – and told him that his assistance was actually required somewhere (it was usually just an opinion on the background vocals of a song or for how many beats a high note should be held, and since it was also a group of elites asking him each time, there was virtually nothing for him to correct even if they asked him to).On the bright side, though, it seemed that once he’d finally found something to keep himself focused, the second half of rehearsal flew by and it was time to confront Key before he knew it.  He wouldn’t really admit it to himself, but a part of him was actually nervous to speak to Key privately.  It had been two weeks since they’d had a proper conversation, after all, and Jonghyun missed those comfortable conversations more than he really let on. Thus, when the four leaders finally did grab their stuff and Taemin and Minho took off, chatting happily together as if in some sort of bubble where the rest of the world did not exist – and with a sort of shyness showing in both of them that had Jonghyun wondering why they were acting so bashful around each other (although he was starting to think he had an idea) – and thus completely ignoring him and Key, the brunette took advantage of the lack of attention to finally, finally, ask the blond for a moment of his time.“Key, can I talk to you for a second?”  He didn’t miss the way Key’s eyes widened marginally for a fraction of a second before the latter, almost reluctantly, nodded and grabbed onto the strap of his satchel rather tightly.  Jonghyun tried not to let the other’s obvious discomfort bother him; after all, he was confronting him so that they could fix the speed bump in their friendship.  Taking a deep breath, Jonghyun allowed himself to frown concernedly and meet the blond’s feline-eyed gaze.“What’s wrong, Key,” he questioned after half a moment of silence.  The blond seemed taken aback by the question, and then immediately after seemed scared to answer, and that led Jonghyun to believe that something was way wrong; way worse than he’d previously thought.  He edged forward a step and reached out to place a hand on the blond's shoulder, the same question on the tip of his tongue again, although it immediately died in his throat when Key took a step away from him in response and cringed.Jonghyun dropped his hand, dumbfounded because Key may have been avoiding him but Key never actually cringed or shied away from him whenever Jonghyun asked him a question and yeah sure maybe the question was a lot more personal than the random, rehearsal-related things he’d asked Key in the past few days but still; Key was cringing and shying away from him.  That meant that Key was uncomfortable around him.  The realization had something like lead landing in his gut. He knew Key was avoiding him but he figured it was because the blond was still feeling awkward from the way he’d left Jonghyun at the mall. Awkward was uncomfortable but a different kind of uncomfortable.  With the way Key was acting, it was almost as if he was scared of Jonghyun, maybe even disgusted, like if he didn’t want to be around him because he threatened the blond’s presence in some way. And that confused the brunette because he had no clue what he’d done.The question went from, “What’s wrong, Key?” to “Key, what did I do?” and the shift only seemed to scare Key more.  The blond’s eyes widened considerably this time and he took yet another step back, rapidly shaking his head.  It scared Jonghyun to no end because he’d thought this was just a slight bump in the road; no it seemed to be much, much worse.  He tried to meet Key’s eyes but the latter anxiously avoided his gaze.“Key?”  He didn’t mean to press the blond but really now he was burning to know what he’d done; he didn’t want Key to avoid him. God, that was the last thing he wanted. Not when they’d already become so close; not when Key was constantly on his mind; not when –“I’m sorry, I just –“ the blond paused and heaved a sigh, and it had Jonghyun frowning harder because really what was he going to say that made him stop and sigh like that?  The blond averted his gaze, running a hand through his perfect blond hair.  Jonghyun’s brow furrowed in confusion.  “What?”Key sighed again, this time the sigh seeming much heavier than the last, and then, without looking back at the brunette, the blond said, “You haven’t done anything.  It’s not you, it’s me.  I’m the one that’s done something wrong.”That made Jonghyun’s frown deepen, each passing second making him more confused.  He reached out his hand again reflexively, letting it fall on Key’s shoulder.  To say it was the wrong move was probably the understatement of the century, because Key’s head snapped back over to look at him, eyes wide, and some vague emotion in them staining the blond’s cheeks pink, and then Key was gasping and moving away from his hand and tightening his grip on the strap of his satchel with both hands.  “I’m sorry, Jonghyun, I can’t.  I just can’t.”That was all the blond said before he skirted around the brunette and took off out of the auditorium, not bothering to look back.  Jonghyun was left there flabbergasted for about a good thirty seconds, and then he realized that Key was running away from him after giving him some vague answer, their friendship almost happily tip-toeing along the edge of a cliff.  Needless to say that when it hit him, it hit him hard.He found himself almost sprinting out of the auditorium after Key, taking off in the direction of the nearest exit and praying beyond hope that that was the path that the blond had decided to take.  It brought some almost indescribable relief when he caught sight of Key standing right across the street at the bus stop, and so he slowed to a walk, because Key was waiting for the bus nearby not walking home like he usually did; he had time to catch his breath and get to the blond so he wouldn’t look all scary and menacing.But then the bus showed up and Key got on, and Jonghyun admittedly let out a small scream that wasn’t exactly the manliest (not that he’d ever tell anyone about it).  He heaved in a gulp of air and began sprinting after the bus despite the fact that it was obvious he wasn’t going to reach it in time.  He still had to clear more than half the hallway and cross the street to the other end of the road, and although he was in pretty decent shape he was by no means an athlete or in as good shape as someone who danced as much as Taemin.As a result it was no surprise when the bus pulled away before he could even make it to the crosswalk.  Still, he let out a string of curses that he probably shouldn’t have and ran a hand through his hair roughly.  He was torn between following after the bus – and, by extension, Key, because he didn’t know where Key lived – and giving Key some time before trying to call him later on and it wasn’t like he had much time to think about it.Upon thinking for about another second or two, though, he came to the conclusion that Key probably wouldn’t bother picking up the phone.  If he was upset enough to run away from Jonghyun when the brunette tried to talk to him, he was more than upset enough to ignore his calls and text messages.So in that split second, he decided what he was going to do.  Taking in a breath that would hopefully last him longer than the last one, he took off in the direction of the bus, thanking the heavens that it was still in sight (and at a red light; maybe he’d be able to catch it at the next stop if he was lucky).The bus took off, however, just a few moments later, and he was left cursing under his breath as he sped up to try to keep up with it.  He did fairly well, except that unfortunately he didn’t catch it at the next bus stop, and he chose to blame the weight of his school bag rather than how out of shape he rapidly realized he was.  He didn’t catch it at the next stop either, or the following stop either.  He didn’t catch it at any of the stops, always far enough behind that whenever the bus stopped, he could only close the distance so much before it took off again.  At this point he was starting to believe that either no one saw him or that everyone believed he was rushing somewhere else (although he was always running after the bus, so he couldn’t quite follow the logic behind that).Regardless, he ended up running after the bus all the way to the corner of a little neighborhood of quaint, cozy apartment complexes some mile and a half away from the school.  Nevermind that it was probably more running in the last fifteen minutes than he’d probably done in the last two weeks; once he saw Key get off the bus and head toward one of the buildings, he heaved a huge sigh of relief (and then another one, and another one, and another one, and another because sheesh he was exhausted from all that running and the book bag certainly wasn’t helping) and slowed to a stop.  From where he was standing, a bit down the road, he could see Key crossing the street and heading into one of the apartment buildings in the neighborhood.  So this was where Key lived?  Jonghyun may or may not have noted it down for future reference (just in case of anything, because that was exactly what could happen with Key, he was finding out).He watched, silently catching his breath, as Key almost boredly made his way up three flights of stairs, turned onto one of the balconies, jabbed a key into the lock of one of the doors – Jonghyun swore it was right in the middle – and stepped into the apartment.That was all he needed to know.  Once he was able to regain his breath and cool down enough (the latter being relatively easy considering the fact that it was the middle of January and freezing outside), he ran his cold fingers through his hair and then made his way over to Key’s apartment building.  He took the stairs at a leisurely pace only because he was tired from all of the running, all of his adrenaline having worn off once he’d finally seen Key get off the bus.  Otherwise he was sure he’d be taking them two or even three at a time just to get to the blond’s front door faster.He mentally prepared himself for anything when he got to that door – for Key to come out and hit him over the head with a frying pan, for Key to come out looking surprised and then terrified, for Key to look through the peephole and just not bother opening the door.  The one thing he did not prepare for was, after knocking, having an elderly woman pull open the door and give him a questioning look.“Hello,” she said, and her voice was sweet, something he certainly wasn’t expecting.  For the longest moment Jonghyun firmly believed he’d knocked on the wrong door, but then he noticed a bit of a twinkle in the woman’s eye that reminded him of Key and he realized that this was probably his grandmother.“Hello, um,” he took a moment to collect himself, trying to figure out what to say without sounding rude.  “Sorry to disturb you,” he continued after a moment, “but does Kim Kibum live here?”“You mean Key,” she questioned, quirking an eyebrow in a manner that was startlingly similar to the way the blond raised his own, and if Jonghyun had any doubts before about whether this woman was related to Key, he definitely had none now.  Swallowing almost nervously, he nodded and said, “Yes, Key.  Is he here?”  Just a casual formality to cover up for the fact that he knew perfectly well that Key was there; after all how awkward would it have been for him to knock on the door and say, “Hello, I know Key’s here and this shouldn’t take more than ten or fifteen minutes so can I go talk to him?” Definitely not something he was planning on trying.He was almost relieved when the woman gave him a warm smile – kind of like the ones Key had been giving him whenever he genuinely smiled up until recently.  “Yes, you’re lucky.  He just got back a few minutes ago.  Why?  Are you a friend here to see him?”Jonghyun tried not to nod so quickly but he ended up doing it anyway.  Still, if it triggered anything within the blond’s relative, she didn’t say anything.  Instead, she stepped away from the door, gestured toward a cozy-looking living room and inquired, “Would you like to come inside to speak with him then?”  And again, he tried not to nod so quickly but really he desperately needed to get to Key so he could sit down and talk with the other about this situation.Without a word, he bowed his head as a sign of thanks and stepped into the apartment, carefully removing his shoes and placing them neatly in a corner because if this woman was anything more like Kibum he’d probably get his head torn off for leaving his shoes lying all haphazardly (plus he wasn’t exactly the must unorganized guy out there; he could be neat when need be).  Then, almost unsurely, he made his way into the living room and stood by the arm of one of the navy blue couches, taking in his surroundings.  Key’s apartment was nice, but then again that was probably because Key had an eye for color (even if a great portion of the time those colors were bright and loud and so unquestionably Key).The walls were the typical beige-with-white-trim of every leased apartment, but the couches were dark enough to contrast well with it.  There was a light, wooden coffee table resting on top of a white rug in the space between the couches and the television, which was hung up on the wall itself.  On the wall next to where the television was hung up were two white-paned windows with white curtains pulled aside to let the last few minutes of natural light in, the ceiling light already turned on to compensate for the rapidly decreasing sunlight.  The floor itself was hardwood, and while not exactly the newest it looked well-kept enough.  It was strangely simple considering the fact that it was the place Key lived and Key probably picked out the colors himself, although to Jonghyun it was also no less aesthetically appealing than Key himself – er, Key’s fashion sense and art, that is.Brushing off his weird thoughts, Jonghyun turned to face Key’s grandmother again and gave her a questioning look, silently asking where the blond was.  The woman held up a finger and said, “Just give me a second, I’ll go get him.”  Then she headed down a hallway off to the right of where the entrance area met the living room, shuffling down to the door at the end of the hall (Figures, Jonghyun thought, that Key would be at the end of the hallway so he can’t be disturbed) and knocking on it with a lot more force than Jonghyun would have deemed her capable of.  “Kibummie,” he heard her call, and it kind of hurt him to hear her call him that because Key hadn’t responded to him in the last week and a half whenever he’d tried to call him that.  He’d just frozen up and pretended that he hadn’t heard the brunette, not responding until Jonghyun called him by his nickname.He heard Key’s voice from the other side of the door, albeit muffled and thus rendering his words indiscernible.  Then he heard the blond’s grandmother cheerfully say, “There’s someone here to see you.  You shouldn’t keep him waiting, Kibummie,” and then, as if Jonghyun wasn’t even there, she broke into a broad grin and called, “He’s really handsome.  Short, but handsome.”  Immediately after she turned and winked in Jonghyun’s direction, and Jonghyun felt himself turning about a million shades of red.  If he was expecting anything from Key’s grandmother, it definitely was not that.Still he nodded in her direction and muttered a small, “Thank you,” when she said to him, “He’ll be out in a moment.”Almost as if on cue, Key stepped out into the hallway, turned to look into the living room, caught sight of Jonghyun, and froze on the spot, face turning almost as red as Jonghyun’s was moments ago, although the brunette was sure it was for different reasons.  (On the bright side, Jonghyun could probably say they were twinning at the moment, something really close friends did a lot, right?)  He almost expected Key to turn right back around, dart into his room, and slam the door behind him without a word, and then to be kicked out of the apartment by the other’s relative but, to his surprise, none of that happened.Instead, Key seemed to swallow heavily and then walk over to the living room, although he admittedly did avoid Jonghyun’s gaze.  “Hey, hyung,” he said, and it was clear how his voice shook on the formality, because Key hadn’t actually addressed him by a name, much less a title, in a while – probably since the last time they were speaking comfortably to each other.  It was enough to send something like a chill down Jonghyun’s back.  Nonetheless he nodded at Key and tried to meet his gaze, “Hey Key.  Can we talk?”It was obvious that Key was expecting to hear those words from the way his face had twisted into one of almost horror when he’d stepped out of his room, but still he looked over at his grandmother as if to see whether she’d heard them or not.  Jonghyun turned to look as well, and just in time to catch the wink that she gave the blond before him.  If possible, he only blushed harder, because the way that Key’s grandmother was acting was making it seem as if he and the blond were two teenagers dancing around their feelings for each other, even though he knew that wasn’t the case (even if he did maybe feel guilty now for hanging out with Sekyung instead of Key, because Key had been acting like a kicked puppy since they’d gotten back from break and it really did bother him in the sense that because Key wasn’t acting like himself, he felt as though a part of his routine – some part of him – was missing).  He figured that the blush on Key’s face that matched his own was just a result of his grandmother embarrassing him in front of company.Bright red from his cheeks up to the tips of his ears, Key turned back to look at Jonghyun, avoiding his gaze now more than ever it seemed, and said, “Let’s go to my room, okay?”  At this Jonghyun nodded and silently shuffled behind him, trying his best to not get too close or make the blond uncomfortable.  It was lucky enough that Key had agreed to talk, in his room no less, after running away just half an hour ago.  He didn’t need to ruin it now.Jonghyun wasn’t exactly sure what to expect when he went into Kibum’s room – odd colors everywhere maybe or half-made clothes strewn along the floor or even a desk full of unfinished sketches with a wastebasket full of crumpled up pieces of paper.  He certainly wasn’t expecting a platform bed with black (or maybe they were navy blue? Jonghyun wasn’t quite sure) covers, thousands of pillows, a desk with a sketchpad neatly settled on top, and a huge painting hanging on the teal wall behind Key’s bed but that was exactly what he got when he stepped inside.  It was all at once vibrant and a bit calming; modern and relaxed but not depressing, really surprisingly modest and it kind of shocked him because he figured that Key’s room would be as flamboyant as his wardrobe.Nonetheless a few seconds later Key turned to face him and, still avoiding his gaze, asked, “So what did you want to talk about Jjong-hyung?”  Jonghyun could tell from the look on Key’s face that the blond knew exactly what he wanted to talk about and that he was hoping beyond hope that Jonghyun wouldn’t ask.  He almost felt bad, but the thought of being this awkward with Key for the rest of forever made him feel even worse, and so without much thought he decided he would cut to the chase.“Key you’ve been acting strange since we got back from vacation.  I can tell you’re not okay.  You can’t even look me in the eye right now.  Can you just please tell me what’s wrong?”  He didn’t mean for the last sentence to come out sounding so desperate but he couldn’t deny the fact that that was exactly what he was at this point; really kind of desperate.  He’d been trying to keep down the almost hurt-like feeling inside of him but it was starting to surface because Key couldn’t even meet his damn eyes.  Something must have really upset the blond for him to not be able to look him in the eyes and respond to him.He was preparing himself to argue, to disarm, to come up with some argument that would get Key to spill what was wrong because he knew the other was going to refuse to talk to him so easily.  Key could be really stubborn when he wanted to be (which was often).  So he found it almost shocking when Key looked up at his face, bit his lip, let out a sigh, and said, “I’m so sorry, Jjong-hyung.”The nickname hit him hard somewhere, because it wasn’t said the way Key usually said it.  Rather than the usual cheerful, teasing way Key used the nickname, the tone used was apologetic, sad, in its own way really disquieting.  Forget tugging on his heartstrings, it practically ripped them out, especially when Key’s eyes started watering because no, Key did not cry easily.  At least that was what Jonghyun knew of him from those past two months; Key was not a crier, he was a person who bit back.The brunette instantly fell into panic mode at the sight.  He could handle sarcastic Key, he could handle diva-Key, he could pretty much even handle viscous Key at this point but he absolutely could not handle crying, sad Key.  It terrified him.  His mouth flopped open, and he pretty much floundered for words to say before letting out in a rush, “Wait, shit, Key don’t cry,” and pulling the other into a hug so tight he could feel the blond’s chin pressing into his shoulder.  And then Key gasped right next to his ear and began to struggle against his hold, and he wasn’t sure why but he didn’t exactly feel like letting Key go.“Jonghyun, let me go.  Don’t hug me, let me go.”  At first the cries were strong but they trailed off mere seconds later, weakening until they didn’t exist anymore, and Key just kind of slumped against him and started crying, arms limp by his sides.  Jonghyun wasn’t sure whether he was doing something right or something completely wrong but he was too frozen in his place to try to figure it out.  So he stood there and let Key cry in his arms for a few minutes until the other was calm enough to talk.The blond’s words were a sort of blubbering mess initially, but then he realized that he was blubbering it seemed and forced himself to enunciate his words and Jonghyun ended up kind of wishing that he didn’t because all he got was more apologies and rushed out, “I can’t do this to you, this is so terrible, I’m such a terrible friend, I’m such a terrible person”s followed by more apologies and a bit more crying.  It was so confusing and frustrating all at once because he had no idea what was going through Key’s mind but Key was talking to him as if he knew everything.He pushed the blond away from him gently, and then held him away at arm’s length so that he’d be able to look the other directly in the face.  “Key,” he said, effectively putting an end to the other’s senseless babble.  The blond just blinked back at him, looking terrified, as if he knew exactly what Jonghyun was going to ask.  “What in the hell are you talking about?  You haven’t done anything wrong,” the elder of the two inquired, and Key took in a shaky breath before responding, in a voice so low it was almost a whisper, “I’m a terrible person.”Jonghyun was beginning to lose his patience now because yes, yes, Key had said that already.  But why?  “I got that part,” he said, “but I’m missing the other ninety-eight percent of the story so can you please fill me in?”Hesitance was the one clear emotion on Key’s face, because everything else seemed to become a mess behind it.  The blond’s mouth hung open just a bit, those pink lips (Jonghyun absentmindedly pondered why they were so pink and pretty in the first place briefly) forming a small ‘o’ before the dam between Key’s mouth and mind seemed to fall and out came the words Jonghyun presumed he’d been keeping from him for the past week and a half.“I saw you on your date with Sekyung the day I invited you out.”Jonghyun was taken aback by that – not quite in a horrified way, more in a “wow that was really abrupt” kind of way.  He was sure he would have announced that too if it weren’t for the fact that Key cut him off before he could even open his mouth to speak, the blond’s words seeming to come out more than a mile a minute.“See at first when you said that you couldn’t hang that day, I thought you had some really important stuff to do that day but when I read the rest of the text you sent and saw that you said you wouldn’t see me until Monday I figured that you were upset with me because I up and left you at the mall and I felt really bad.  I thought you hated me for that.  But no, that wasn’t what you were doing.  I ended up hanging out with Taemin to get my mind off you for once in my life but no you were there too, across the street, grinning like a lovesick dinosaur when Sekyung gave you that kiss on the cheek.”  He stopped for a breath so quick Jonghyun was barely able to open his mouth to slip in a word or two before continuing.  Key saw him on his date with Sekyung.  Okay.  He got that part.  What did that have to do with any of this?  Key wasn’t making sense and it was really starting to frustrate him.“And it hurt to see you guys like that, you stupid dinosaur, because all that time I thought you were avoiding me because you had something relevant to do or because you were just still upset with me but no it was because that whole time you were just choosing to go out with Sekyung like if you didn’t get enough of her before the break with all of the nonsensical flirting you guys did!”  This time he let out his breath in a huff, and it was enough time for Jonghyun to finally get some say in what was happening at the moment.“Wait a minute, Key, you’re being unfair!  You yourself told me to get with Sekyung so that’s what I was doing!  You were the one that pointed out that she has interest in me.  You were the one that convinced me to stop being such a punk and go after her.  You were the one that encouraged all of this so when I finally go on an actual date with her you get upset over it?  Do you realize how little sense that makes?”  He found himself breathing just a bit harder at the end of his outburst and realized that he may have accidentally raised his voice, and while some part of him that was polite and nice regretted it, a much larger part of him burned with confusion-induced frustration.  Key was making no sense!The blond was quick to retort however, his voice coming out probably louder than Jonghyun’s own.  “Well that was before I realized how stupid an idea it was!  Right after I said it and the flirting started I regretted it because it hurt to see you guys like that, you idiot!  That’s why I avoided you whenever she was around!  I can’t, I don’t like it.  I never liked it.  It was a terrible, terrible idea except that it wasn’t, it’s what friends do for each other and I’m a really horrible person for thinking the way I do!”That admittedly caught Jonghyun off guard and eased his frustration enough for him to actually speak calmly, almost as if dumbfounded, because Key had just gone from offensive to self-deprecating.  “But what are you thinking that makes you think that you’re a horrible person?”  It was soft and tentative, as if Jonghyun was scared to ask.  Some deeper part of him realized that he was because he didn’t really want Key to burst on him – especially not with his grandmother just down the hall, probably waiting intently for something good to happen (she seemed like the type, after all).  Still, he waited almost anxiously for Key’s response, because something shifted in the air; he could feel it.Key’s face fell from its scowl to completely terrified, mouth hanging open once again, those pretty lips stretched into a little ‘o’ for the second time in roughly five minutes.  His feline gaze met Jonghyun’s, the eyeliner smudged from his earlier tears, and there was something in those shimmering brown eyes that made absolutely no sense to the brunette: fear.  What was he so scared of?“I – “ the blond paused, closed his mouth, swallowed rather dryly from what Jonghyun could tell, opened his mouth to continue but couldn’t seem to find the words, whatever he was going to say dying in his throat and tying his tongue in on itself. And then it hit Jonghyun.  It hit Jonghyun like a brick and god he felt so utterly stupid because it was so obvious the whole time.  Key regretted telling him to go after Sekyung, didn’t like witnessing their date and the kiss that Sekyung gave him on the cheek a couple of a weeks ago, didn’t like seeing them flirt.  Avoided his gaze whenever he was around because he felt guilty for thinking the way he did; avoided his gaze when his grandmother winked in their direction and blushed six thousand shades of red at the action as well.  Blushed when he stepped out of his room to find that the “short but handsome” guy was him.  It was suddenly so apparent that Jonghyun almost felt like banging his head through a wall, nevermind against it.  Key liked him.And with the stunning realization of the way Key felt came the explanation for why he himself had been so stuck on the blond for the last couple of weeks; so stuck on the blond ever since he’d started getting to know and flirting with Sekyung.  He felt guilty and thought of Key whenever he was around Sekyung because it wasn't Sakyung that he'd liked; his feelings for her were misplaced attraction.  Yes, Sekyung was pretty – hell she was gorgeous, there was no arguing that, but Jonghyun didn’t like her.  Not really.  He was merely stunned by her appearance.  Yet whenever he was with her, it was always Key on his mind, and he’d tried to push the thoughts out of his head but that clearly hadn’t worked.  The fact of the matter was that there was a reason Jonghyun was thinking that Key’s lips were pretty just a few moments earlier.And it hit him then, too, that there was fear in Key’s eyes because Key was scared of the rejection that he believed was going to come.  He still stood there with his brow furrowed, tears once again glimmering in his eyes and threatening to re-smudge his already smudged eyeliner, those pink lips tantalizing and pretty and so perfectly ‘o’-shaped.  He couldn’t bring himself to say it but it was obvious in his eyes that he knew Jonghyun knew in that moment.  A tear fell from those beautifully accented eyes and Jonghyun used a finger to brush the useless drop of water away before he cupped Key’s pale face in his hands and pressed their lips together. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA YOU GUYS MUST HATE ME RIGHT NOW RIGHT? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA BEHOLD! THE CHAPTER ALL OF THE HARDCORE JONGKEY SHIPPERS READING THIS HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR! Woo I had fun with this one even though it took a while. I knew how I wanted it to end and I know how I wanted it to begin and I had an idea of how I wanted the middle to go but sheesh putting it down was such hard work. It took me a while to get this one right (at least I hope it's okay ??).

Anywho, yes. This is it guys. KISSKISSKISS asdfjkl; and then CUT. Hahaha I am a terrible person. On the bright side I got to introduce Key's grandma, that sassy woman! Woo! I'm looking forward to working with her character.

On another note, I know my descriptions of the apartment weren't the greatest (.__. ) so I was wondering if you guys would like a picture to refer to? I could easily come up with a layout of the whole apartment and post them somewhere (probably tumblr) and link you guys to those if you so please. Just let me know if you need it ^^ I'd be happy to do it (Sims time wut ??).

I'm really looking forward to your reactions for this one! Haha please do comment and let me know what you think, okay? ^^ Your comments bring me joy.

All for now Lovelies! Thank you so much for reading and subscribing and upvoting and asdfjkl; <3333

Love, K (12.28.13)

P.S. Sidenote: I wrote a JongKey oneshot the other day. It's an angst fic and seriously, TRIGGER WARNING because there are mentions of depression and anxiety and the like. But if you're interested in reading it you can find it here C: Once again, thank you Lovelies!

(Okay, now I'm REALLY done!)