Chapter 5
Teresa's wedding was drawing every closer and Thomas still didn't have a date. This wasn't exactly a problem, but he didn't much like going to these sorts of things alone. He mentioned this to his sister and immediately regretted it.
"Why don't you just take your hot, Chinese neighbor?" She said.
"He's Korean, and we're just friends." Thomas said.
"In other words, you thought about asking him then chickened out." She replied with a raised eyebrow.
"Who asked you?" he grumbled.
"Literally you did." Teresa said in exasperation. "I think you should ask him out. He's cute, he's funny, he's smart, he's artistic, and for some reason, he likes your dumb ass."
"We're friends, T." he said. "Just drop it."
"Fine." Teresa held up her hands in surrender and going back to her food. They ate in silence for several minutes. Finally Thomas sighed.
"Okay, fine." He said. "I will invite Minho to the wedding as my friend if you will shut up."
"I wasn't saying anything!" she said defensively but she was grinning from ear to ear.
…
"Hey, Minho?" he asked while cooking dinner that evening.
"Yeah?" Minho replied.
"Do you…Do you want to come to my sister's wedding with me?" he slowly looked up at the other man to gauge his reaction.
Minho's eyes widened slightly and Thomas felt a bit sick.
"You don't have to. I mean I just don't like going to those things by myself and I thought maybe you could keep me company…if you want to." He finished lamely.
"Yes." Minho said simply.
"Really?" Thomas asked. That was not his best sales pitch.
"Yeah." Minho was a bit pink about the ears but he was smiling. "It sounds like fun."
"Okay, cool." Thomas said and went back to stirring the stew he was making.
"Will I need a tux?" Minho asked a few minutes later.
"Um, yeah." Thomas said without looking up. He wished this whole business didn't make him so uncomfortable.
They ate mostly in companionable silence and Thomas found himself looking forward to this wedding business a lot more than he had before.
…
They got ready together in Minho's apartment. All this close proximity got Thomas thinking about how soft Minho's lips looked. He shook himself out of these thoughts as they headed downstairs together and to the church.
The ceremony was short and sweet. Thomas and Minho sat with their legs pressed together the whole time. When everyone filed out for the reception, they walked close to each other.
Soon enough it was time for Thomas to give his toast. He stood and cleared his throat and the room fell quiet. "I just wanted to say a few words." He began. "Twenty- five years ago, I held a squirming, purple baby in my rather unsure arms. And today, my baby sister is all grown up and getting married. If anyone could love her as much as I do it's you, Aris." He said, raising his glass to his sister and her new husband. "Take care of each other." he said and took a sip of champagne.
He sat back down next to Minho and looked over at him smiling. The other man looked rather distressed and Thomas's smile faded with concern. "You okay?" he asked softly.
Minho shook his head. "I need some air," he said. "I'll be back." And with that he took off.
When his friend didn't return after ten minutes he began to get worried and decided to go look for him, searching every room. He finally found Minho sitting in a small private prayer room.
"Minho?" he said softly. He got no response so he tried again. "Minho?"
Finally the other man looked up. He looked like he had been crying and Thomas's heart ached for him. He moved to sit next to him on a small bench at the front of the room. "What's wrong?" he asked.
"I…um." Minho began but stopped himself. "I had a sister." He said the last so softly, Thomas almost didn't hear it.
"You did?" Thomas asked.
"Yes. She would be a little younger than Teresa now, but…she died. Leukemia." Minho winced. "She's why I started illustrating, actually. She was always making up stories and making me draw the pictures to go with them. She lived a lot longer than anyone thought she would but…she finally lost the battle…it will be four years ago tomorrow."
"Oh, god. Minho, I'm so sorry." Thomas said, running a hand up and down his back. "I wish you'd told me, I wouldn't have—"
"Wouldn't have what?" Minho interrupted. "Wouldn't have blatantly loved your sister at her wedding? I don't think you can keep from that. I wouldn't have gone with you today if I expected any less."
"Why did you come?" Thomas asked. "I was pleasantly surprised before, but knowing what you were going though…"
"You seemed like you needed the support." Minho said, realizing that he was now leaning into Thomas's side. "Besides, I wasn't going to miss the sight of you in a tux."
Thomas leaned back to look at him. "I hope I didn't disappoint." He said with a smile, hoping he wasn't making the wrong move, trying to lighten the mood.
He was rewarded with a smile from Minho. "You exceeded expectations." He said.
They stared at each other for a beat before Minho's eyes dropped to Thomas's lips. Less than a second later they were kissing, neither one of them sure who had initiated it. Minho found he didn't care. He pressed closer to Thomas, licking his way into the other man's mouth.
Thomas groaned when their tongues met and pulled back. "Are you sure about this?" he asked breathlessly.
"Thomas, I have wanted to do this since we met so I've had plenty of time to think about it. Are you sure?" Minho asked.
Rather than answer, Thomas kissed him. This was more desperate than the first, and when Minho sighed, Thomas seized the opportunity to plunder his mouth with his tongue. Minho groaned and wrapped his arms around Thomas until he had pulled him into his lap.
Thomas came willingly, shifting his attention from Minho's lips to his neck. He left a trail of kisses as far down as his clothes would allow then worked his way back up to his lips.
"We've been gone a long time." Minho said without completely breaking the kiss.
"Mmhm." Thomas replied absently.
"We should probably go back before someone comes looking for us." He tried again.
"In a minute." Thomas mumbled.
"Okay. In a minute." Minho agreed.
They eventually returned to the reception and Thomas found his sister sitting along the edges of the dance floor, whispering something to Aris. He went up to her and grabbed her hand.
"Dance with me." He said and hauled her to her feet. She went without comment until they began to sway together in the middle of the dance floor.
"You were gone an awfully long time." She murmured,
"Well, it turns out you were right for once." He said and dipped her suddenly, making her shriek. "He does like my dumb ass."
