(for everyone) unexpected expectancies (2/2)
For: everyone
By: Anonymous until reveals
Title: Unexpected Expectancies (2/2)
Their routine goes back to normal after that and it’s almost like there was never a period of solitude or separation. Almost because Jongin still remembers the ache he had felt when there was no one sitting across form him at the table, when there was no one to come up from behind him and casually take his hand as he was walking down the hallway, when there was no one that he would share smiles with over something stupid he said.
Jongin is really, really happy that that period of time is over.
One day, though, something is off. Jongin wakes up one morning in the middle of March, his bed much warmer than he remembers it ever being. Jongin checks the windows, only to find that they’re closed. He knows that it doesn’t get this hot in his room, nor is the heat normally prominent right next to him on the bed and nowhere else regardless of the amount of air circulation, though. It also smells like pears, which is a scent that he has never used. Jongin briefly wonders if the maids are using a new type of detergent.
Jongin ends up laying in bed for a few more minutes, hazy mind slowly, but surely, waking up, still trying to process what he had woken up to. It takes four more minutes before he’s flinging the covers off, tummy impatiently demanding that it needs food soon or it’s going to revolt.
He’s blearily stumbling down the hallway when someone puts their hands on his shoulders and there’s a face right rubbing right against the side of his face. Jongin can’t help the scream he lets out, hunching in on himself before relaxing when Yixing pops in front of him.
There’s a sheepish smile on his face as he stands there. “Sorry, I keep forgetting you...jump a lot.”
“It’s fine,” Jongin says quickly. The last thing he wants to do is make sad Yixing again. “Although I’m starting to think you’re more of a cat hybrid than a bunny hybrid.”
Yixing looks adorably confused when he asks, “Why?”
“Well, from what I know, cats are usually the ones that rub their faces against other things or other faces. At least I think that’s right.” Jongin scratches the back of his neck, head tilting in question.
Smiling, Yixing nods, ears bouncing slightly at the movement. “That’s right. I guess I never thought about it.” Suddenly, he’s squinting at Jongin. “You better not be thinking about getting a cat.”
“No!” Jongin waves his arms around frantically. “I don’t need another person inhabiting my space.” You’re enough is left unsaid.
“Good to know,” Yixing sniffs dramatically before turning shining eyes on Jongin. “Ready for lunch?”
“What happened to breakfast?” Jongin could’ve sworn that he just woke up and that usually entails breakfast as a meal.
“It’s almost noon,” Yixing tells him in amusement, Jongin’s eyes nearly popping out of his head like a cartoon character.
“Seriously?”
“Yup.”
Jongin groans. “Well at least that explains why I’m so tired. This is why I shouldn’t be allowed to sleep in.”
“Do better next time, then,” Yixing teases, dancing away with tinkling laughter when Jongin lunges at him.
“It’s too early for this,” Jongin says, mostly as an excuse for his slow reaction time, but still being honest.
“It’s not early, you’re just lazy.”
This time when Jongin lunges, he gets an armful of Yixing, the hybrid jumping as if he’d been shocked with electricity. And then he pouts up at Jongin. It’s a little unfair how such a simple act can turn Jongin into a puddle of emotions as quickly as it does, but as it stands, the brunette is incredibly affected and he’s about one hundred percent positive that Yixing can feel his heart trying to beat out of his chest.
Grumbling about how unfair life is, Jongin lets go of Yixing, the latter beaming at him before lacing their fingers together and skipping down the hallway. Jongin ends up jogging to keep up, refusing to skip even when Yixing turns his sad eyes on him again. Fluttering heart and weak knees or not, there’s no way anyone will get him to skip.
Lunch is a simple affair, their feet tangled together, their faces smiling, their hearts light as air like usual.
“Hey, did you go into my room this morning?” Jongin absentmindedly wonders.
“No, why?”
“It’s just...it was a little warmer than usual. I thought maybe...never mind, that doesn’t make any sense.” Jongin waves it away.
Yixing doesn’t look convinced, but he continues the conversation easily enough, excitedly telling Jongin about the song he played on the piano the other day.
They’re just about to part ways, Jongin to the library and Yixing to do something else (Jongin never asks what Yixing does, just lets him do it and get dragged along every once in a while) when Yixing stops. His lack of motion causes Jongin to pause as well, body already angled and halfway through the threshold.
“Can I join you?” the hybrid wonders tentatively, as if asking such a thing isn’t allowed.
“Of course!” Jongin is quick to say, holding the door open wider so he can slip through.
This is how they end up cuddled together on the couch, Jongin leaning against he arm rest while Yixing lays against him. It had been a little jarring at first, having Yixing constantly pressed against him on one entire side of his body instead of fleeting touches or just hand holding, but Jongin had eventually gotten too lost in his book to notice it much (it’s not to say he ignores it completely because he doesn’t if the tingling feeling skittering up and down his body is anything to do by).
They spend hours in there, page after page being turned, word after word being absorbed. After taking a dinner break, they end up back in the library, a request from Yixing.
“I wanted to finish the book I was reading,” Yixing had said with soft shades of scarlet staining his cheeks.
Jongin is halfway through his second book for the day when he notices how late it’s actually gotten.
“Yi-“ he starts only to fall silent when he notices that Yixing has fallen asleep, book discarded on his stomach, hands still positioned as if they were holding something. Chuckling softly, he maneuvers them around so that the books are placed to the side and Yixing is in his arms. Jongin walks lightly, careful not to wake the hybrid. It’s difficult, but he makes it without incident, even if opening the door had been slightly challenging.
It’s the first time Jongin has been inside Yixing’s room. The colors are light, an off-white, almost cream, tint on the walls with little splashes of color thrown in, the baby pink peony in a vase on his bedside table, the dark red shirt haphazardly thrown on the floor, the tan guitar stored in the corner. It doesn’t seem like much, but it’s so incredibly Yixing that it’s not lacking in the slightest. Jongin hopes that Yixing will add more the longer he stays (and he wants to be one of the people that helps Yixing do just that).
Yixing shuffles around when Jongin places him under the covers, the latter freezing in place, wide eyes trained on the hybrid. He lets out a breath when Yixing just turns on his side, burrowing under the linens even further.
The last thing that sears itself into Jongin’s mind before he turns and walks away is the contrast of Yixing’s obsidian ears against the soft white of the sheets.
That’s also the last thing he thinks of before succumbing to the sandman working his magic and lowering Jongin’s eyelids.
~-~
“Yixing?”
“Yeah?”
Jongin hesitates enough that Yixing shifts, no longer curled against Jongin’s chest, but sitting up and looking Jongin right in the eye.
“Jongin?”
Pulling his bottom lip between his teeth, Jongin thinks. He thinks about the past eight months, all of the fluttering his heart has been doing, all of the times that he and Yixing have intertwined themselves together, all of the times that Jongin has wanted to see if Yixing’s lips are just as soft as they look. He thinks and he thinks and he comes to the conclusion that he needs to say this.
“Remember the first day you were here? When I asked you to take your collar off?” It feels like there’s a plug in his airways, the thought that this moment, this moment right here, could either break his heart or cause it to take flight.
The television is soft as it plays in the background as Yixing nods, one ear bent at the tip like it usually is when he’s confused.
“I...did you ever wonder why?” He may have a burning desire to let Yixing know, but he also needs more time to get himself together so that it can come out exactly the way he wants it to.
“Other than thinking you were going to take me back, no,” Yixing answers truthfully.
Taking one last deep breath, Jongin says, “I didn’t like to think of myself as your owner, and I still don’t. It’s not what I am. I’m a person and so are you, regardless of the fact that you have bunny ears and a tail.”
After a few seconds of staring at the fabric of the couch, Jongin hears nothing except for the commercial currently playing. When he looks up, he finds that Yixing is also looking at the couch, and Jongin isn’t sure, but he thinks he sees Yixing’s shoulders rising and falling and is that a sniffle? It has to be his imagination because Jongin is about ninety-six percent positive that he didn’t say anything offensive.
“Thank you.” It’s barely a whisper, bordering on not being said at all, but Jongin still hears it, barely holding in the sigh of relief that wants to let out.
“You’re welcome.” It comes out as more of a question than a statement since Jongin doesn’t really know what he said to make Yixing thankful.
“No one has ever said that to me before,” Yixing says, lifting his head to look at Jongin. The brunette barely refrains himself from pulling the hybrid in for a hug and petting his ears. He’s not sure if he’s allowed to, doesn’t know if he has enough of Yixing’s trust yet to do something so intimate, so he refrains.
“It’s really not that big of a deal,” is what he ends up saying.
“But it is to me,” Yixing states. He looks like he’s struggling with himself, torn between wanting to say something and keeping it to himself and while all Jongin wants to do is hold him in his arms while Yixing talks about his past, he’s not one to demand things, especially personal stories, from other people. Sometimes, there are certain things that people don’t want to share, and if this is Yixing’s, then Jongin isn’t going to be that asshole that demands to know because of some stupid “I’m your owner, I deserve to know everything because I have more power than you” mentality.
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” Jongin says, noticing that Yixing is still having a mental battle with himself.
Yixing looks right into his eyes, fire clear in his irises, as he says, “I want to.”
“Are you sure? There’s a difference between wanting to and feeling like you have to.” The last thing Jongin wants is for Yixing to feel forced to do something.
Yixing is still determined, however, so Jongin just lets him talk. He talks about the place he used to live in, about the nice people that work there, about the wonderful friends he made and how sad he was when he had to leave them behind, but also about the fear of not getting adopted. Most people don’t want older hybrids, much in the same way that people prefer kittens and puppies over older cats and dogs because they’re cuter, they’ll live longer, they’ll grow up together. He talks about the nights where he had laid awake, wondering if he was ever going to find a real home (not that the shelter had been a bad place, something that Yixing is quick to point out) and about the fear that someone might try to take advantage of him one day, perceived as weak just because he has two ears and a tail. He talks about the subjects they taught him and he talks about the things he had liked to do there, from sitting under the trees, to playing with friends, to helping the little ones with whatever they needed, to doing absolutely nothing.
Jongin listens, but more than that, he watches. He sees the way Yixing’s eyes light up at the mention of his friends, and conversely sees the fire dying out when he talks about his hardships and his worries. It’s beautiful, the way the emotions flicker across his face so easily, so smoothly, so openly.
Yixing talks about a few more things before stopping, inch by inch curling in on himself. “Sorry,” he says meekly.
“No, no, it’s completely fine. I was the one that told you you didn’t have to tell me if you didn’t want to, remember?” Yixing had looked so free just then, and now he looks blocked off, scared that he had said too much.
“That was a lot, though, and I’m sorry you had to sit through it. I’m sure that’s not what you were expecting when I told you I wanted to tell you something, but it’s just...I haven’t been able to talk to anyone since I got here, not that I had really talked to my friends about it either, as we were more focused on the positive side of things more often than not, and I guess that it kind of all just got bottled up an-”
“Yixing,” Jongin cuts in gently.
“Yes?”
“You’re rambling. That’s my job and you can’t have it.”
Yixing bursts out into a short peal of laughter at that, shoulders slumping. “Okay. Sorry again.”
Jongin makes a pained noise. “You don’t have to keep apologizing. It’s okay, I promise. If I didn’t want to listen, then I would have left.”
“Okay,” the other breathes out.
“Come here,” Jongin calls gently, opening his arms wide. Seconds later, there’s a warm body pressed against his and arms wrapping around his neck, his own arms wrapping around Yixing’s waist. It’s not the ideal position, with Yixing kneeling and awkwardly bending down, Jongin straining up a little more than what’s comfortable, but it works and it’s nice.
“Thank you for sharing. I’m honored to be the person to hear it,” Jongin whispers.
“If anyone should be thankful, it’s me.” Yixing pulls away, leaning back on his feet. “You listened, but more than that, you gave me a home. You gave me a reason to smile and be happy and be free, and it’s more than I could’ve asked for.”
And sitting here like this, just looking into the swirling pools of chocolate of Yixing’s eyes, Jongin sees how beautiful Yixing truly is, both inside and outside. And despite the fact that all he wants to do it bring Yixing in for a kiss and then cuddle until the sun comes up, Jongin knows that it’s not the right time. He just says, “Anytime. If you ever need me, I’ll be there for you.”
The smile that brings the corners of Yixing’s lips up is the brightest one Jongin has seen yet.
~-~
“Jongin?” a small voice calls out hesitantly.
“Hmmm?” Jongin hums out, shifting around to peek over his covers to see who it is.
Yixing looks incredibly small as he stands near the door, one hand clutching the side of it as if it’s the only thing keeping him afloat. “Can...can I sleep in here tonight?”
Mind still foggy from being taken just from the precipice of sleep, it takes a while for Jongin to process the request, but when he does, he simply pulls the covers back, the of course rolling off his tongue easily.
Quick as lightning, Yixing is across the room and scrambling under the covers, pressing himself near, but not too near. With a little chuckle, Jongin drags the hybrid in closer with a hand around his slim waist, Yixing squeaking in surprise.
“Go to sleep,” Jongin mumbles, already halfway back in dreamland. Something soft brushes against his cheek, but he doesn’t have time to wonder what it is as he’s gently lulled to sleep.
The bed is slightly warm when Jongin wakes up, the brunette flopping back against the mattress with a sigh. There’s still an indent where a body had been previously, but Jongin feels more cold than anything despite the layer of blankets he’s under and the lingering body heat of someone that’s no longer there.
This happens again next week, Yixing timidly standing by the door as Jongin is just finishing his nightly routine.
“Would it be okay to sleep in here again? I’m not used to being alone,” Yixing mutters, eyes downcast. Something squeezes at Jongin’s heart, knowing that Yixing has been sleeping by himself for months now.
The third time it happens, Jongin makes sure to wake up early enough that Yixing is still there. When the hybrid makes a move to slip out of the bed, Jongin tightens his grip, Yixing going shock still in his hold.
“You don’t have to leave, you know. In fact, you can...sleep in here if you want.” It’s all Jongin has been thinking about the past few weeks, how lonely and scared Yixing must have felt all this time. He feels terrible for never thinking about it, guilty that he’s had a perfect night’s sleep while Yixing could probably count that number on one hand. More than that, though, he feels comfortable with Yixing and wants him to feel the same way. He never thought that he would be the cuddling type, but Yixing has proved otherwise, Jongin completely content with Yixing in his arms or being in Yixing’s arms. It’s a nice feeling, being loved and in love, a thought that simultaneously terrifies and excites Jongin.
“Are you sure?” Yixing’s voice is tiny, apprehensive.
Tightening his grip, Jongin sleepily places a kiss to Yixing’s shoulder blade (he will deny that he ever did it and blame it on sleepiness later when Minseok and Yixing tease him about it). “Yes, so go back to sleep.”
Yixing is still stiff for a few seconds, but he gradually relaxes, shoulders dropping, one of his arms coming to rest atop the arm around his waist. “Thank you.”
“Nothing to thank me for,” Jongin grumbles groggily, settling in with a happy sigh seconds after.
~-~
Jongin doesn’t know what they really are when he wakes up for the second time, Yixing still cradled in his arms. What he does know, however, is that Yixing is really warm and that he smells like pears...oh. With a fond shake of his head and a small smile on his lips, Jongin shifts into a more comfortable position and waits for Yixing to wake up so they can go eat like they usually do.
Something has changed, Jongin can feel it, but yet nothing seems different except for the little half-asleep smile Yixing gives him first thing when he wakes up accompanied by the cutest yawn Jongin has ever seen, Yixing’s ears twitching, fists coming up to rub at his eyes. The walk down the hallways is the same, though, and so is the way Yixing holds his hand, the way he tangles their feet under the table, the way they have a conversation as easily as breathing.
If there’s something drastically different, it’s the way Yixing gets quiet as they’re walking towards the library, having decided that they would try to make that a routine as well, immersed in books and each other.
“Is something bothering you?” Jongin asks, squeezing Yixing’s hand in concern.
Yixing bites his lip, Jongin’s heart giving a strong thumpat the action. And all of a sudden, Yixing’s face is right in front of Jongin’s and there are lips, soft, soft lips pressing against his before they’re gone as quick as they had come. Yixing tries to flee, and while Jongin’s brain had just stopped functioning, he has enough sense to hold on tighter, thread their fingers together more to prevent Yixing from running.
“I’m sorry, I don’t kn-”
Jongin tugs Yixing closer, putting his unoccupied hand around Yixing’s neck before leaning down. And before he loses confidence or thinks about what he’s doing, he kisses Yixing. It’s just a tentative press of the lips, but it’s sweet, so sweet and Jongin feels like he’s in heaven.
Jongin pulls back, but doesn’t go far, pressing his forehead against Yixing’s. “I told you,” he breathes. “You don’t have to say sorry, especially for things that are as nice as this.”
Yixing’s only answer is tilting his head up to close the distance between their lips. Jongin can feel the smile through the kiss and it only causes him to smile himself when they break apart again. Yixing’s eyes are a swirling mix of burnt sienna and hazel perfection when Jongin looks into them. He doesn’t want to, but Jongin steps away before things get carried away and they go faster than the two of them want.
“Library?” Jongin asks, still slightly woozy.
Yixing looks just as dazed, Jongin’s heart beating quickly at the sight in front of him, of Yixing’s soft cheeks with their flushed tint, of his lips with their plump shape. “Library,” he gets out.
The two of them share smiles before they head down the hall, ready to waste the day away if only because they’re with each other.
~-~
“Oh, look what the cat dragged in,” Jongin says in amusement. “I was starting to think that you forgot about me.”
Minseok scoffs. “Please. It’s almost impossible to forget about someone with your level of stupidity.”
“Hey!” Jongin makes to get up, but Yixing holds him down, cuddling closer from his position practically on Jongin’s lap.
With a snicker, Minseok says, “See, even Yixing is on my side.”
The protest on the tip of his tongue dies when Minseok walks into the room, and it’s not that Jongin is stunned by Minseok’s beauty or anything, but it’s because he’s not alone. It gets chilly all of a sudden, Jongin barely registering that there’s not longer a hybrid in his lap, Yixing gripping onto whoever just walked in the room in a hug that looks less pleasant and more oxygen-depriving than anything.
“Yixing?” Jongin calls out, setting his book aside to stand up.
The hybrid pulls back then, but he’s still clutching onto the other hybrid’s hand. The ears on top of the new hybrid’s head are white with a line of black running the length of the very tips. His tail is partially hidden, but Jongin manages to get a glimpse of white with dark grey spots before his attention is pulled back towards Yixing. “This is Luhan. He was one of my best friends back at the shelter.”
“I think you mean the best and only best friend,” Luhan quips back. Jongin thinks he’s perfect for Minseok already.
Yixing rolls his eyes, but it’s evident that he’s extremely elated to be with his friend again. The two of them start chattering away while Minseok makes his way over to Jongin.
“This is the first time I’ve been alone in five days,” is the first thing that Minseok says.
“Well hello to you, too,” Jongin responds sarcastically.
Minseok just waves him away. “You were the one that started it when I walked through the door. Anyways,” Minseok makes sure that Luhan is far enough away before conspiratorially whispering, “Luhan is the clingiest person I’ve ever met in my life. There isn’t a second that goes by without him attaching himself to me in some way.”
Jongin can’t help the loud burst of laughter that leaves his lips. It’s so loud that the pair of hybrids look over from where they’re tangled up in each other on the floor, heads pressed together tightly from where they had been talking to each other. Minseok smiles and tells them that everything is fine, Jongin still laughing.
“Stop it,” Minseok hisses.
Jongin’s laughter subsides, chuckling one more time before telling Minseok, “You, my friend, are in for a wonderful, cuddle-filled life.” The answering groan he gets causes him to laugh again.
“What have I gotten myself into?” the older male moans.
“Happiness,” Jongin promptly answers. “I haven’t seen the two of you interact at all, but it’s very obvious that you care about him and he cares about you.” Minseok looks confused. “If you two think you’re being subtle with the glances you’re sending each other, you’re wrong.” Jongin grins at the blush that quickly rises on Minseok’s cheeks, happy to finally be on the other side of the teasing for once.
“He’s cute, okay,” Minseok mutters lowly, almost so low that Jongin doesn’t hear it. “Even if he does like getting up close and personal a large majority of the time.”
“Minseok,” Luhan calls.
“His voice is nice,” Jongin notes.
“You’ve only heard him say one thing,” Minseok snaps. “How can you know?”
“Because you’re a sucker for nice voices and someone signing to you.” There’s a wicked grin on Jongin’s face as he says this.
“Minseok,” Luhan calls again, more drawn-out than last time.
“Yes?”
“Hi!” Luhan chirps, tail swishing happily.
“Hi,” Minseok replies in amusement.
“You’re so screwed,” Jongin comments easily, waving at Yixing once he catches the other’s gaze. Yixing waves back happily, the smile on his face causing a smile to appear on Jongin’s as well.
“Shut up,” Minseok growls.
“Wow, I never thought that I would see the day where you ran out of snippy comebacks. You must be really affected by Luhan.”
When Minseok doesn’t say anything for a few seconds, Jongin turns to look to make sure he’s still breathing and alive and well. He is, but he also looks like there’s a huge burden dragging his shoulders down, lip almost turning completely white with how hard his teeth are latched on.
“I’m going to tell you what you told me all of those months ago because if you hadn’t said them, I wouldn’t be as happy as I am now,” Jongin says suddenly, only continuing once he has Minseok’s undivided attention. “Do what your heart tells you to do. Don’t let your brain get in the way this one time.”
The older male doesn’t look as conflicted after that, his eyebrows just a little pinched together, but the tension drained out from the rest of his body.
The four of them eventually settle around on the floor to talk, Yixing curled against Jongin while Luhan practically glues half of his body to Minseok. Jongin finds that Luhan is a firecracker with more wit than he can ever hope to have, rapidly dishing it out just as easily as he takes it. The only saving grace is that Luhan is much nicer to him than Minseok is - there’s no way he would be able to survive their tag-teaming, no matter how many little kisses Yixing would pepper on his face.
Before they know it, it’s seven in the evening and Jongin’s stomach is growling.
Minseok arches an eyebrow at Jongin. “Wow, talk about being a nice host. I can practically feel your stomach roaring at us to leave.”
“Now, now,” Luhan says, “I think it’s more of a softer whine than a strike of thunder.”
Jongin’s whine is loud when he realizes that Luhan isn’t on his side this time.
“Actually,” Yixing pipes up, “my stomach has been growling for a while, too. And it’s getting dark, so it would probably be best that you two leave to minimize your chances of getting into an accident.”
“Take notes, Jongin. This is how you treat your guests properly,” Minseok claims.
“You didn’t even give me a chance to respond!” the brunette cries.
“We did, you just didn’t notice it,” Luhan chimes in.
“That doesn’t even make sense!”
“Well, a lot of things you say don’t make sense, so there’s nothing new there,” Minseok says, hand finding Luhan’s to tangle their fingers together.
Jongin lets out a pained whine. “Why do I even bother?”
“Because you like us,” Luhan chirps.
Jongin narrows his eyes in the hybrid’s direction. “I’ve only known you for a few hours.”
“But you haven’t kicked us out or told me you hated me, and Minseok has been your friend for years, so I think it is safe to say that you like us.”
Jongin groans, giving up completely. Yixing pecks him on the cheek, softly tickling the skin with his ear in the way that he knows calms Jongin down. It reminds Jongin of the first time that he had touched Yixing’s ears, of how they had just been laying on the bed, the hybrid entangled and content in his arms. It had been a casual brush right against his cheek, Jongin freezing when it happened. Yixing had ended up explaining, with a blush staining his cheeks, that while it was an accident, he didn’t really mind.
“It’s only because you’re you that I’m okay with it,” Yixing had said.
He gives the hybrid a quick kiss in thanks, happy that at least someone is on his side.
The other two in the room end up fake-retching, coupling it with other exaggerated motions to express their displeasure.
Yixing rolls his eyes. “Please, I doubt that the two of you haven’t thought about kissing each other in the time that you’ve spent together. Get a room and go get it over with before you make fun of us.”
That shuts the other two up, Jongin practically looking on with hearts in his eyes because Yixing is so, so perfect.
It’s only when Minseok and Luhan leave that Jongin tells Yixing this, whispers it into his skin so that he knows just how much he means to Jongin. Yixing responds with a kiss, something short, but still managing to portray the fire that he feels flowing through his veins, the gooey feeling that’s in his heart. They walk to the dining room hand-in-hand, smiling and laughing, and Jongin’s never felt so happy.
Jongin’s not a people-person; never was and never will be, yet he’s not going to say he’s a hybrid person, either. It’s discriminatory and makes Yixing less of the person he truly is, so Jongin is just going to say that he’s a Yixing person and leave it at that.
By: Anonymous until reveals
Title: Unexpected Expectancies (2/2)
Their routine goes back to normal after that and it’s almost like there was never a period of solitude or separation. Almost because Jongin still remembers the ache he had felt when there was no one sitting across form him at the table, when there was no one to come up from behind him and casually take his hand as he was walking down the hallway, when there was no one that he would share smiles with over something stupid he said.
Jongin is really, really happy that that period of time is over.
One day, though, something is off. Jongin wakes up one morning in the middle of March, his bed much warmer than he remembers it ever being. Jongin checks the windows, only to find that they’re closed. He knows that it doesn’t get this hot in his room, nor is the heat normally prominent right next to him on the bed and nowhere else regardless of the amount of air circulation, though. It also smells like pears, which is a scent that he has never used. Jongin briefly wonders if the maids are using a new type of detergent.
Jongin ends up laying in bed for a few more minutes, hazy mind slowly, but surely, waking up, still trying to process what he had woken up to. It takes four more minutes before he’s flinging the covers off, tummy impatiently demanding that it needs food soon or it’s going to revolt.
He’s blearily stumbling down the hallway when someone puts their hands on his shoulders and there’s a face right rubbing right against the side of his face. Jongin can’t help the scream he lets out, hunching in on himself before relaxing when Yixing pops in front of him.
There’s a sheepish smile on his face as he stands there. “Sorry, I keep forgetting you...jump a lot.”
“It’s fine,” Jongin says quickly. The last thing he wants to do is make sad Yixing again. “Although I’m starting to think you’re more of a cat hybrid than a bunny hybrid.”
Yixing looks adorably confused when he asks, “Why?”
“Well, from what I know, cats are usually the ones that rub their faces against other things or other faces. At least I think that’s right.” Jongin scratches the back of his neck, head tilting in question.
Smiling, Yixing nods, ears bouncing slightly at the movement. “That’s right. I guess I never thought about it.” Suddenly, he’s squinting at Jongin. “You better not be thinking about getting a cat.”
“No!” Jongin waves his arms around frantically. “I don’t need another person inhabiting my space.” You’re enough is left unsaid.
“Good to know,” Yixing sniffs dramatically before turning shining eyes on Jongin. “Ready for lunch?”
“What happened to breakfast?” Jongin could’ve sworn that he just woke up and that usually entails breakfast as a meal.
“It’s almost noon,” Yixing tells him in amusement, Jongin’s eyes nearly popping out of his head like a cartoon character.
“Seriously?”
“Yup.”
Jongin groans. “Well at least that explains why I’m so tired. This is why I shouldn’t be allowed to sleep in.”
“Do better next time, then,” Yixing teases, dancing away with tinkling laughter when Jongin lunges at him.
“It’s too early for this,” Jongin says, mostly as an excuse for his slow reaction time, but still being honest.
“It’s not early, you’re just lazy.”
This time when Jongin lunges, he gets an armful of Yixing, the hybrid jumping as if he’d been shocked with electricity. And then he pouts up at Jongin. It’s a little unfair how such a simple act can turn Jongin into a puddle of emotions as quickly as it does, but as it stands, the brunette is incredibly affected and he’s about one hundred percent positive that Yixing can feel his heart trying to beat out of his chest.
Grumbling about how unfair life is, Jongin lets go of Yixing, the latter beaming at him before lacing their fingers together and skipping down the hallway. Jongin ends up jogging to keep up, refusing to skip even when Yixing turns his sad eyes on him again. Fluttering heart and weak knees or not, there’s no way anyone will get him to skip.
Lunch is a simple affair, their feet tangled together, their faces smiling, their hearts light as air like usual.
“Hey, did you go into my room this morning?” Jongin absentmindedly wonders.
“No, why?”
“It’s just...it was a little warmer than usual. I thought maybe...never mind, that doesn’t make any sense.” Jongin waves it away.
Yixing doesn’t look convinced, but he continues the conversation easily enough, excitedly telling Jongin about the song he played on the piano the other day.
They’re just about to part ways, Jongin to the library and Yixing to do something else (Jongin never asks what Yixing does, just lets him do it and get dragged along every once in a while) when Yixing stops. His lack of motion causes Jongin to pause as well, body already angled and halfway through the threshold.
“Can I join you?” the hybrid wonders tentatively, as if asking such a thing isn’t allowed.
“Of course!” Jongin is quick to say, holding the door open wider so he can slip through.
This is how they end up cuddled together on the couch, Jongin leaning against he arm rest while Yixing lays against him. It had been a little jarring at first, having Yixing constantly pressed against him on one entire side of his body instead of fleeting touches or just hand holding, but Jongin had eventually gotten too lost in his book to notice it much (it’s not to say he ignores it completely because he doesn’t if the tingling feeling skittering up and down his body is anything to do by).
They spend hours in there, page after page being turned, word after word being absorbed. After taking a dinner break, they end up back in the library, a request from Yixing.
“I wanted to finish the book I was reading,” Yixing had said with soft shades of scarlet staining his cheeks.
Jongin is halfway through his second book for the day when he notices how late it’s actually gotten.
“Yi-“ he starts only to fall silent when he notices that Yixing has fallen asleep, book discarded on his stomach, hands still positioned as if they were holding something. Chuckling softly, he maneuvers them around so that the books are placed to the side and Yixing is in his arms. Jongin walks lightly, careful not to wake the hybrid. It’s difficult, but he makes it without incident, even if opening the door had been slightly challenging.
It’s the first time Jongin has been inside Yixing’s room. The colors are light, an off-white, almost cream, tint on the walls with little splashes of color thrown in, the baby pink peony in a vase on his bedside table, the dark red shirt haphazardly thrown on the floor, the tan guitar stored in the corner. It doesn’t seem like much, but it’s so incredibly Yixing that it’s not lacking in the slightest. Jongin hopes that Yixing will add more the longer he stays (and he wants to be one of the people that helps Yixing do just that).
Yixing shuffles around when Jongin places him under the covers, the latter freezing in place, wide eyes trained on the hybrid. He lets out a breath when Yixing just turns on his side, burrowing under the linens even further.
The last thing that sears itself into Jongin’s mind before he turns and walks away is the contrast of Yixing’s obsidian ears against the soft white of the sheets.
That’s also the last thing he thinks of before succumbing to the sandman working his magic and lowering Jongin’s eyelids.
~-~
“Yixing?”
“Yeah?”
Jongin hesitates enough that Yixing shifts, no longer curled against Jongin’s chest, but sitting up and looking Jongin right in the eye.
“Jongin?”
Pulling his bottom lip between his teeth, Jongin thinks. He thinks about the past eight months, all of the fluttering his heart has been doing, all of the times that he and Yixing have intertwined themselves together, all of the times that Jongin has wanted to see if Yixing’s lips are just as soft as they look. He thinks and he thinks and he comes to the conclusion that he needs to say this.
“Remember the first day you were here? When I asked you to take your collar off?” It feels like there’s a plug in his airways, the thought that this moment, this moment right here, could either break his heart or cause it to take flight.
The television is soft as it plays in the background as Yixing nods, one ear bent at the tip like it usually is when he’s confused.
“I...did you ever wonder why?” He may have a burning desire to let Yixing know, but he also needs more time to get himself together so that it can come out exactly the way he wants it to.
“Other than thinking you were going to take me back, no,” Yixing answers truthfully.
Taking one last deep breath, Jongin says, “I didn’t like to think of myself as your owner, and I still don’t. It’s not what I am. I’m a person and so are you, regardless of the fact that you have bunny ears and a tail.”
After a few seconds of staring at the fabric of the couch, Jongin hears nothing except for the commercial currently playing. When he looks up, he finds that Yixing is also looking at the couch, and Jongin isn’t sure, but he thinks he sees Yixing’s shoulders rising and falling and is that a sniffle? It has to be his imagination because Jongin is about ninety-six percent positive that he didn’t say anything offensive.
“Thank you.” It’s barely a whisper, bordering on not being said at all, but Jongin still hears it, barely holding in the sigh of relief that wants to let out.
“You’re welcome.” It comes out as more of a question than a statement since Jongin doesn’t really know what he said to make Yixing thankful.
“No one has ever said that to me before,” Yixing says, lifting his head to look at Jongin. The brunette barely refrains himself from pulling the hybrid in for a hug and petting his ears. He’s not sure if he’s allowed to, doesn’t know if he has enough of Yixing’s trust yet to do something so intimate, so he refrains.
“It’s really not that big of a deal,” is what he ends up saying.
“But it is to me,” Yixing states. He looks like he’s struggling with himself, torn between wanting to say something and keeping it to himself and while all Jongin wants to do is hold him in his arms while Yixing talks about his past, he’s not one to demand things, especially personal stories, from other people. Sometimes, there are certain things that people don’t want to share, and if this is Yixing’s, then Jongin isn’t going to be that asshole that demands to know because of some stupid “I’m your owner, I deserve to know everything because I have more power than you” mentality.
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” Jongin says, noticing that Yixing is still having a mental battle with himself.
Yixing looks right into his eyes, fire clear in his irises, as he says, “I want to.”
“Are you sure? There’s a difference between wanting to and feeling like you have to.” The last thing Jongin wants is for Yixing to feel forced to do something.
Yixing is still determined, however, so Jongin just lets him talk. He talks about the place he used to live in, about the nice people that work there, about the wonderful friends he made and how sad he was when he had to leave them behind, but also about the fear of not getting adopted. Most people don’t want older hybrids, much in the same way that people prefer kittens and puppies over older cats and dogs because they’re cuter, they’ll live longer, they’ll grow up together. He talks about the nights where he had laid awake, wondering if he was ever going to find a real home (not that the shelter had been a bad place, something that Yixing is quick to point out) and about the fear that someone might try to take advantage of him one day, perceived as weak just because he has two ears and a tail. He talks about the subjects they taught him and he talks about the things he had liked to do there, from sitting under the trees, to playing with friends, to helping the little ones with whatever they needed, to doing absolutely nothing.
Jongin listens, but more than that, he watches. He sees the way Yixing’s eyes light up at the mention of his friends, and conversely sees the fire dying out when he talks about his hardships and his worries. It’s beautiful, the way the emotions flicker across his face so easily, so smoothly, so openly.
Yixing talks about a few more things before stopping, inch by inch curling in on himself. “Sorry,” he says meekly.
“No, no, it’s completely fine. I was the one that told you you didn’t have to tell me if you didn’t want to, remember?” Yixing had looked so free just then, and now he looks blocked off, scared that he had said too much.
“That was a lot, though, and I’m sorry you had to sit through it. I’m sure that’s not what you were expecting when I told you I wanted to tell you something, but it’s just...I haven’t been able to talk to anyone since I got here, not that I had really talked to my friends about it either, as we were more focused on the positive side of things more often than not, and I guess that it kind of all just got bottled up an-”
“Yixing,” Jongin cuts in gently.
“Yes?”
“You’re rambling. That’s my job and you can’t have it.”
Yixing bursts out into a short peal of laughter at that, shoulders slumping. “Okay. Sorry again.”
Jongin makes a pained noise. “You don’t have to keep apologizing. It’s okay, I promise. If I didn’t want to listen, then I would have left.”
“Okay,” the other breathes out.
“Come here,” Jongin calls gently, opening his arms wide. Seconds later, there’s a warm body pressed against his and arms wrapping around his neck, his own arms wrapping around Yixing’s waist. It’s not the ideal position, with Yixing kneeling and awkwardly bending down, Jongin straining up a little more than what’s comfortable, but it works and it’s nice.
“Thank you for sharing. I’m honored to be the person to hear it,” Jongin whispers.
“If anyone should be thankful, it’s me.” Yixing pulls away, leaning back on his feet. “You listened, but more than that, you gave me a home. You gave me a reason to smile and be happy and be free, and it’s more than I could’ve asked for.”
And sitting here like this, just looking into the swirling pools of chocolate of Yixing’s eyes, Jongin sees how beautiful Yixing truly is, both inside and outside. And despite the fact that all he wants to do it bring Yixing in for a kiss and then cuddle until the sun comes up, Jongin knows that it’s not the right time. He just says, “Anytime. If you ever need me, I’ll be there for you.”
The smile that brings the corners of Yixing’s lips up is the brightest one Jongin has seen yet.
~-~
“Jongin?” a small voice calls out hesitantly.
“Hmmm?” Jongin hums out, shifting around to peek over his covers to see who it is.
Yixing looks incredibly small as he stands near the door, one hand clutching the side of it as if it’s the only thing keeping him afloat. “Can...can I sleep in here tonight?”
Mind still foggy from being taken just from the precipice of sleep, it takes a while for Jongin to process the request, but when he does, he simply pulls the covers back, the of course rolling off his tongue easily.
Quick as lightning, Yixing is across the room and scrambling under the covers, pressing himself near, but not too near. With a little chuckle, Jongin drags the hybrid in closer with a hand around his slim waist, Yixing squeaking in surprise.
“Go to sleep,” Jongin mumbles, already halfway back in dreamland. Something soft brushes against his cheek, but he doesn’t have time to wonder what it is as he’s gently lulled to sleep.
The bed is slightly warm when Jongin wakes up, the brunette flopping back against the mattress with a sigh. There’s still an indent where a body had been previously, but Jongin feels more cold than anything despite the layer of blankets he’s under and the lingering body heat of someone that’s no longer there.
This happens again next week, Yixing timidly standing by the door as Jongin is just finishing his nightly routine.
“Would it be okay to sleep in here again? I’m not used to being alone,” Yixing mutters, eyes downcast. Something squeezes at Jongin’s heart, knowing that Yixing has been sleeping by himself for months now.
The third time it happens, Jongin makes sure to wake up early enough that Yixing is still there. When the hybrid makes a move to slip out of the bed, Jongin tightens his grip, Yixing going shock still in his hold.
“You don’t have to leave, you know. In fact, you can...sleep in here if you want.” It’s all Jongin has been thinking about the past few weeks, how lonely and scared Yixing must have felt all this time. He feels terrible for never thinking about it, guilty that he’s had a perfect night’s sleep while Yixing could probably count that number on one hand. More than that, though, he feels comfortable with Yixing and wants him to feel the same way. He never thought that he would be the cuddling type, but Yixing has proved otherwise, Jongin completely content with Yixing in his arms or being in Yixing’s arms. It’s a nice feeling, being loved and in love, a thought that simultaneously terrifies and excites Jongin.
“Are you sure?” Yixing’s voice is tiny, apprehensive.
Tightening his grip, Jongin sleepily places a kiss to Yixing’s shoulder blade (he will deny that he ever did it and blame it on sleepiness later when Minseok and Yixing tease him about it). “Yes, so go back to sleep.”
Yixing is still stiff for a few seconds, but he gradually relaxes, shoulders dropping, one of his arms coming to rest atop the arm around his waist. “Thank you.”
“Nothing to thank me for,” Jongin grumbles groggily, settling in with a happy sigh seconds after.
~-~
Jongin doesn’t know what they really are when he wakes up for the second time, Yixing still cradled in his arms. What he does know, however, is that Yixing is really warm and that he smells like pears...oh. With a fond shake of his head and a small smile on his lips, Jongin shifts into a more comfortable position and waits for Yixing to wake up so they can go eat like they usually do.
Something has changed, Jongin can feel it, but yet nothing seems different except for the little half-asleep smile Yixing gives him first thing when he wakes up accompanied by the cutest yawn Jongin has ever seen, Yixing’s ears twitching, fists coming up to rub at his eyes. The walk down the hallways is the same, though, and so is the way Yixing holds his hand, the way he tangles their feet under the table, the way they have a conversation as easily as breathing.
If there’s something drastically different, it’s the way Yixing gets quiet as they’re walking towards the library, having decided that they would try to make that a routine as well, immersed in books and each other.
“Is something bothering you?” Jongin asks, squeezing Yixing’s hand in concern.
Yixing bites his lip, Jongin’s heart giving a strong thumpat the action. And all of a sudden, Yixing’s face is right in front of Jongin’s and there are lips, soft, soft lips pressing against his before they’re gone as quick as they had come. Yixing tries to flee, and while Jongin’s brain had just stopped functioning, he has enough sense to hold on tighter, thread their fingers together more to prevent Yixing from running.
“I’m sorry, I don’t kn-”
Jongin tugs Yixing closer, putting his unoccupied hand around Yixing’s neck before leaning down. And before he loses confidence or thinks about what he’s doing, he kisses Yixing. It’s just a tentative press of the lips, but it’s sweet, so sweet and Jongin feels like he’s in heaven.
Jongin pulls back, but doesn’t go far, pressing his forehead against Yixing’s. “I told you,” he breathes. “You don’t have to say sorry, especially for things that are as nice as this.”
Yixing’s only answer is tilting his head up to close the distance between their lips. Jongin can feel the smile through the kiss and it only causes him to smile himself when they break apart again. Yixing’s eyes are a swirling mix of burnt sienna and hazel perfection when Jongin looks into them. He doesn’t want to, but Jongin steps away before things get carried away and they go faster than the two of them want.
“Library?” Jongin asks, still slightly woozy.
Yixing looks just as dazed, Jongin’s heart beating quickly at the sight in front of him, of Yixing’s soft cheeks with their flushed tint, of his lips with their plump shape. “Library,” he gets out.
The two of them share smiles before they head down the hall, ready to waste the day away if only because they’re with each other.
~-~
“Oh, look what the cat dragged in,” Jongin says in amusement. “I was starting to think that you forgot about me.”
Minseok scoffs. “Please. It’s almost impossible to forget about someone with your level of stupidity.”
“Hey!” Jongin makes to get up, but Yixing holds him down, cuddling closer from his position practically on Jongin’s lap.
With a snicker, Minseok says, “See, even Yixing is on my side.”
The protest on the tip of his tongue dies when Minseok walks into the room, and it’s not that Jongin is stunned by Minseok’s beauty or anything, but it’s because he’s not alone. It gets chilly all of a sudden, Jongin barely registering that there’s not longer a hybrid in his lap, Yixing gripping onto whoever just walked in the room in a hug that looks less pleasant and more oxygen-depriving than anything.
“Yixing?” Jongin calls out, setting his book aside to stand up.
The hybrid pulls back then, but he’s still clutching onto the other hybrid’s hand. The ears on top of the new hybrid’s head are white with a line of black running the length of the very tips. His tail is partially hidden, but Jongin manages to get a glimpse of white with dark grey spots before his attention is pulled back towards Yixing. “This is Luhan. He was one of my best friends back at the shelter.”
“I think you mean the best and only best friend,” Luhan quips back. Jongin thinks he’s perfect for Minseok already.
Yixing rolls his eyes, but it’s evident that he’s extremely elated to be with his friend again. The two of them start chattering away while Minseok makes his way over to Jongin.
“This is the first time I’ve been alone in five days,” is the first thing that Minseok says.
“Well hello to you, too,” Jongin responds sarcastically.
Minseok just waves him away. “You were the one that started it when I walked through the door. Anyways,” Minseok makes sure that Luhan is far enough away before conspiratorially whispering, “Luhan is the clingiest person I’ve ever met in my life. There isn’t a second that goes by without him attaching himself to me in some way.”
Jongin can’t help the loud burst of laughter that leaves his lips. It’s so loud that the pair of hybrids look over from where they’re tangled up in each other on the floor, heads pressed together tightly from where they had been talking to each other. Minseok smiles and tells them that everything is fine, Jongin still laughing.
“Stop it,” Minseok hisses.
Jongin’s laughter subsides, chuckling one more time before telling Minseok, “You, my friend, are in for a wonderful, cuddle-filled life.” The answering groan he gets causes him to laugh again.
“What have I gotten myself into?” the older male moans.
“Happiness,” Jongin promptly answers. “I haven’t seen the two of you interact at all, but it’s very obvious that you care about him and he cares about you.” Minseok looks confused. “If you two think you’re being subtle with the glances you’re sending each other, you’re wrong.” Jongin grins at the blush that quickly rises on Minseok’s cheeks, happy to finally be on the other side of the teasing for once.
“He’s cute, okay,” Minseok mutters lowly, almost so low that Jongin doesn’t hear it. “Even if he does like getting up close and personal a large majority of the time.”
“Minseok,” Luhan calls.
“His voice is nice,” Jongin notes.
“You’ve only heard him say one thing,” Minseok snaps. “How can you know?”
“Because you’re a sucker for nice voices and someone signing to you.” There’s a wicked grin on Jongin’s face as he says this.
“Minseok,” Luhan calls again, more drawn-out than last time.
“Yes?”
“Hi!” Luhan chirps, tail swishing happily.
“Hi,” Minseok replies in amusement.
“You’re so screwed,” Jongin comments easily, waving at Yixing once he catches the other’s gaze. Yixing waves back happily, the smile on his face causing a smile to appear on Jongin’s as well.
“Shut up,” Minseok growls.
“Wow, I never thought that I would see the day where you ran out of snippy comebacks. You must be really affected by Luhan.”
When Minseok doesn’t say anything for a few seconds, Jongin turns to look to make sure he’s still breathing and alive and well. He is, but he also looks like there’s a huge burden dragging his shoulders down, lip almost turning completely white with how hard his teeth are latched on.
“I’m going to tell you what you told me all of those months ago because if you hadn’t said them, I wouldn’t be as happy as I am now,” Jongin says suddenly, only continuing once he has Minseok’s undivided attention. “Do what your heart tells you to do. Don’t let your brain get in the way this one time.”
The older male doesn’t look as conflicted after that, his eyebrows just a little pinched together, but the tension drained out from the rest of his body.
The four of them eventually settle around on the floor to talk, Yixing curled against Jongin while Luhan practically glues half of his body to Minseok. Jongin finds that Luhan is a firecracker with more wit than he can ever hope to have, rapidly dishing it out just as easily as he takes it. The only saving grace is that Luhan is much nicer to him than Minseok is - there’s no way he would be able to survive their tag-teaming, no matter how many little kisses Yixing would pepper on his face.
Before they know it, it’s seven in the evening and Jongin’s stomach is growling.
Minseok arches an eyebrow at Jongin. “Wow, talk about being a nice host. I can practically feel your stomach roaring at us to leave.”
“Now, now,” Luhan says, “I think it’s more of a softer whine than a strike of thunder.”
Jongin’s whine is loud when he realizes that Luhan isn’t on his side this time.
“Actually,” Yixing pipes up, “my stomach has been growling for a while, too. And it’s getting dark, so it would probably be best that you two leave to minimize your chances of getting into an accident.”
“Take notes, Jongin. This is how you treat your guests properly,” Minseok claims.
“You didn’t even give me a chance to respond!” the brunette cries.
“We did, you just didn’t notice it,” Luhan chimes in.
“That doesn’t even make sense!”
“Well, a lot of things you say don’t make sense, so there’s nothing new there,” Minseok says, hand finding Luhan’s to tangle their fingers together.
Jongin lets out a pained whine. “Why do I even bother?”
“Because you like us,” Luhan chirps.
Jongin narrows his eyes in the hybrid’s direction. “I’ve only known you for a few hours.”
“But you haven’t kicked us out or told me you hated me, and Minseok has been your friend for years, so I think it is safe to say that you like us.”
Jongin groans, giving up completely. Yixing pecks him on the cheek, softly tickling the skin with his ear in the way that he knows calms Jongin down. It reminds Jongin of the first time that he had touched Yixing’s ears, of how they had just been laying on the bed, the hybrid entangled and content in his arms. It had been a casual brush right against his cheek, Jongin freezing when it happened. Yixing had ended up explaining, with a blush staining his cheeks, that while it was an accident, he didn’t really mind.
“It’s only because you’re you that I’m okay with it,” Yixing had said.
He gives the hybrid a quick kiss in thanks, happy that at least someone is on his side.
The other two in the room end up fake-retching, coupling it with other exaggerated motions to express their displeasure.
Yixing rolls his eyes. “Please, I doubt that the two of you haven’t thought about kissing each other in the time that you’ve spent together. Get a room and go get it over with before you make fun of us.”
That shuts the other two up, Jongin practically looking on with hearts in his eyes because Yixing is so, so perfect.
It’s only when Minseok and Luhan leave that Jongin tells Yixing this, whispers it into his skin so that he knows just how much he means to Jongin. Yixing responds with a kiss, something short, but still managing to portray the fire that he feels flowing through his veins, the gooey feeling that’s in his heart. They walk to the dining room hand-in-hand, smiling and laughing, and Jongin’s never felt so happy.
Jongin’s not a people-person; never was and never will be, yet he’s not going to say he’s a hybrid person, either. It’s discriminatory and makes Yixing less of the person he truly is, so Jongin is just going to say that he’s a Yixing person and leave it at that.