Happy Birthday [1]

[little_passions]

Title: Happy Birthday
Beta: muramatsu_aoi
Pairing: Yunho/Jaejoong
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance, Humor, Fluff, Fantasy
Summary: No one celebrates birthdays like Jung Yunho.



Sixteen

“I didn’t know people started their birthdays like this,” Yunho muttered as he twirled the keys on his way to the butcher shop. He looked out at the street to make sure there were no suspicious characters lurking around before he went inside. To be honest, he didn’t feel any older. While some of his other classmates had made a big deal about it, he couldn’t feel any difference from when he was fifteen.

Yunho zipped up his jacket a little higher and paused just as he was about to insert the key into the door. He stared at the open door and took a step back, wary of the fact that the door was ajar. His brain was telling him to call the cops, but before he could even try to run away, a hand reached out and pulled him in.

He let out a loud scream that was cut off by the force of his body being slammed against the door.

Amber eyes stared at him, and Yunho couldn’t even attempt to scream. His eyes took in the sight of the intruder - the fox ears, the amber eyes, the nine tails, but before he could even process his observations, the intruder spoke.

“Why shouldn’t I eat you?”

Yunho opened his mouth to speak, but he ended up just mouthing nothing. The creature’s lips formed a smirk of amusement, and he loosened his grip slightly on Yunho’s shirt.

“Because…” Yunho stuttered, “Are you…are you -“

The creature rolled his eyes, and it was at that moment Yunho realized that there was blood at the corner of the intruder’s lips. He swallowed hard, and when he raised his eyes back up, the creature was looking at him in an annoyed fashion.

“Yes it’s blood, real blood, and it’ll be your blood if you don’t answer me human.”

“So you’re -“

The intruder huffed, “Are kids these days so unaware of -“

“Gumiho.”

The annoyance was quickly replaced by a look of surprise, and the gumiho smiled widely, his canine teeth flashing at Yunho. Instead of Yunho feeling calmer, his anxiety only increased by the second as the wide smile refused to go away.

“So you’re not as stupid as I thought.”

“…I guess so -“

The gumiho sighed and shook his head, “I’m afraid I’m still going to have to eat you though.” He leaned in, and Yunho’s heart pounded in his chest as soon as he felt the sharp teeth grazing against his exposed collarbone. He shut his eyes in fear, resigned to his fate because he couldn’t struggle out of the other’s grasp.

Teeth sank into his skin, and Yunho screamed. In one last attempt to escape, he mustered all his energy into shoving the gumiho away. He pushed at the other’s head, and although he managed to place some distance between them, the gumiho quickly reached out and shoved Yunho down onto the floor with him.

Yunho was quickly pinned onto the butcher shop’s tiled floor, and he could feel the blood trickling out of the bite wound.

The gumiho scowled, “Stop it. I don’t like it when my food tries to run away -“

“I don’t want to die!” Yunho shouted, “Isn’t there some kind of deal we can make? Come on, I’m only sixteen!” He scrambled away from the gumiho and stumbled clumsily as he tried to place distance between them.

The mythical creature shot Yunho a disinterested look, “Yeah, okay, and what?” He slowly began to walk up to Yunho, “I don’t really care about how old you are.” The gumiho sighed, “You do realize you’re bleeding, right?”

Yunho pressed his hand against the bite mark on his neck, and his hand came away damp with the stickiness of his blood. He glanced at his hand worriedly and when he looked up, the gumiho was standing right in front of him. His heart pounded wildly in his chest, and in a few seconds, he was backed up against the wall.

“I’m really sorry this had to happen on your birthday,” the gumiho said softly, although his tone indicated that he wasn’t quite apologetic at all. He gripped Yunho’s shoulder tightly, “But this is how things have to go once you’ve seen me -“

“Please!” Yunho begged as he squirmed underneath the creature’s strong grip. He tried pushing him away, “I’ll do anything! I promise! I won’t tell anyone -“

“You’re not trustworthy -“

“Please! Don’t you want to be human?” Yunho shouted, desperate to save his life. He didn’t even know what he was saying anymore, but he was hoping that he could find some way to save himself. He knew he was probably just spewing bullshit because in fact, he barely even knew anything about gumihos. Everything he knew about them were probably just information he’d found from Wikipedia once upon a time.

The gumiho’s nine tails stopped moving, and amber eyes narrowed. “What the hell are you talking about? Why would I want to be like you?” His hand tightened its grip on Yunho, and he bared his fangs, “Now stop being difficult -“

“Isn’t, isn’t there some way you can let me live?” Yunho cried, his desperation reaching new heights. “Or, or, some way I could - please! Don’t eat me! Maybe, maybe I can help you being human again or -“

The gumiho shoved Yunho against the wall roughly, “You don’t know what you’re talking about.” He growled, “I tried being nice, but you’re being difficult, and I don’t like that.”

“But! But, there must be some way right? I’m sure you don’t want to be in that form forever! Please, let me help you! I don’t want to die, and I’m sure you…” Yunho faltered. “It’s nice…being human -“

“If you’re human, you’re stupid and you die -“

“Uhm, you don’t have tails when you’re human -“

“I like my tails very much thank you,” the gumiho said with a snort. He shook his head irritably and gripped Yunho’s shirt tightly, “Anyway, we’ve delayed this long enough -“

“If you’re human you won’t have to hide anymore! Don’t you want to go out freely? It’s nice to be…be free. You won’t have to eat people, or, or rob people, and you’d be able to go anywhere and be with anyone! Please, it’s - it’s nice being free, and -”

The gumiho pressed Yunho up against the wall, shutting him up effectively. The gumiho’s tails twitched slightly although his face was expressionless, and Yunho’s heart was threatening to burst out of his chest in anxiety. He let go of Yunho’s shirt, and he studied the sixteen year old carefully. Yunho breathed out heavily, and just as he was about to touch the bite wound, the gumiho pushed his hand away.

“…you’re nothing but a stupid human,” the gumiho muttered. “I can’t believe...” He looked away from Yunho for a few seconds before he turned his amber eyes back to the teenager. He opened his mouth to speak, and Yunho waited anxiously.

He hoped to God that the gumiho had changed his mind.

“If you keep my secret for ten years, I’ll become human,” the gumiho said slowly. He studied Yunho for a long time before he spoke again. “…I can’t believe I’m actually considering this.” He sighed loudly and narrowed his eyes.

“I’ll be able to find out if you tell someone, and if you will…I’ll eat you…slowly.”

“Okay -“

“Remember,” the gumiho growled, his tone low and dangerous, “If you tell anyone, I’ll eat you. No delays, no more pleading, and no mercy. This deal will last ten years, and if you want to live, you’ll have to keep your silence.”

“Deal.”

Before Yunho could even scream again, he was knocked out with a swift punch to his face.
o-o-o
When Yunho woke up, everything was a blur of white. He blinked for a few seconds and tried to get a grasp of his surroundings. As soon as he was fully conscious, he realized where he was.

He was in a hospital. Yunho could still remember amber eyes and the…gumiho? His face contorted in thought, and he tried to remember all the details. Unsurprisingly, he still had a vivid of everything that had passed.

So did that mean it wasn’t a dream? Was he really in the hospital because he’d gotten attacked by some mythical creature?

“Yunho!”

He turned his head, and his mother came into the room with a worried look on her face. She immediately sat down beside him and took one of his hands into hers.

“What -“

“I can’t believe this happened to you on your birthday,” his mother muttered as she stroked his hand absentmindedly. “I had no idea that such…despicable creatures were even lurking in our neighborhood! My poor baby, I -“

“What -“

“You were attacked!” his mother cried out, a look of distress on her face. She looked like she was on the verge of tears, and Yunho’s eyes widened in surprise. “It took you so long to come back from the shop, so your dad went to look for you, and then we found you bleeding on the floor!”

“Who -“

His mother broke out into tears, and he listened to her explanation that was muffled between her cries of him being attacked by some Korean Hannibal Lecter inspired psycho and his rabid demonic dog. He patted her back comfortingly, but his heart was still pounding in his chest.

After a few more minutes of his mother’s tears, his father came in. They exchanged a few words, and Yunho was slightly glad when his father took his mother out of the room. He didn’t know what to think, and most of all, he didn’t even know what he would do. Would the gumiho come back?

So much for a sweet sixteenth birthday, it seemed like his birthday was more similar to some horror movie.

“Are all mothers as overbearing as yours?”

Yunho’s head turned sharply, and his eyes widened when he saw the gumiho leaning against the doorframe. His tails and ears were gone, but his eyes were still that familiar and unsettling shade of amber. He swallowed hard and sat up, flinching slightly when he felt the pain from the bite on his neck.

The gumiho sauntered up to him and crossed his arms, “I take it that you haven’t told anyone yet, right?”

“No - no, I haven’t,” Yunho stuttered nervously.

“Good.”

They stared at each other for a few seconds before the gumiho reached out hesitantly. He placed his fingers near to where he’d bitten Yunho and frowned slightly, “How did they explain the bite then?”

“My mother said…whoever broke into the shop had some rabid dog…and that’s the only theory they could think of.”

The gumiho laughed and shook his head in amusement before he withdrew his hand. “Humans, always so ridiculous -“

“Yet you still want to be one -”

“Shut up.”

The gumiho adjusted his bangs and shrugged, “Well, you’ll survive. You’re not going to turn into a werewolf, and you’re not going to have rabies, so just calm your little heart down. I should leave now. I can smell your parents, and they’re on their way here. I’ll see you in a year.”

Yunho watched as the gumiho turned to leave, but before the other man left the room, he shouted out.

“How will you find me?”

The gumiho turned his head and smirked. He tapped his nose, “Don’t worry about it. I’ll find you…and if you tell anyone about my secret, don’t even think of trying to hide.” With a teasing wink, the gumiho turned away and left.

Yunho groaned and lied back down onto bed.

He was pretty sure that other sixteen year olds got presents on their birthdays - not death threats.

Seventeen

Sometimes, he could pretend like what had happened on his sixteenth birthday had never really happened. He woke up without a memory of his promise and of the secret he was keeping, but something would always end up reminding him of it all. Whether it was a dog in the neighborhood barking at nothing, or a piece of meat his father butchered in the shop - he always got some reminder.

It wasn’t that hard to keep a secret. After all, he didn’t even know the gumiho’s real name, and it wasn’t like his friends talked about gumihos or mythical creatures on a regular basis anyway. Of course, the police had never caught the person who assaulted him and had never gotten that far on his case. As a result of that, his nervous and overbearing mother continued to worry over him on a habitual basis even though it was almost a year after the incident.

Yunho massaged his forehead and stared down at his Physics homework. He pushed them off to the side and just as he was about to consider going to bed early, he screamed at the sight of someone on the fire escape. In a comical fashion, Yunho fell out of his swivel chair and hit the carpeted floor hard.

The person on his fire escape scowled, and it was at that moment that Yunho recognized who it was.

It was the gumiho.

The gumiho rapped on the window pane, but before Yunho could scream, the gumiho raised a finger to his lips and motioned for him to be quiet. His amber eyes narrowed angrily at Yunho, and the teenager anxiously moved over to open the window, afraid of what the mythical creature could do to him. He unfastened the locks and pushed the windows opening, allowing for there to be ample enough space for someone to come in. He nervously took a few steps back, effectively tripping on a pair of socks and fell back onto the floor. The gumiho barely even spared a glance at him and sat down on his bed.

Yunho watched as the gumiho’s tails and ears made a sudden and mystical appearance. His mouth fell open at the sight of the transformation, and after a few seconds, he realized that something was amiss. He wanted to ask question, but he was much too nervous to ask it.

“I’m not going to eat you. What are you staring at?” the gumiho huffed and fixed his bangs idly, “Well…I guess I am going to eat you if you tell anyone my secret, but not if you ask me something.”

Unsure of whether or not the gumiho was kidding, Yunho didn’t say anything. After all, it wasn’t like he had much experience dealing with mythical creatures in the first place. In fact, he wasn’t even that social too, so he hardly had any experience in social interaction to -

“Stop staring at me like that! What are you looking at?

“Why do you only have eight tails?” Yunho blurted out before he could stop himself.

The gumiho flicked his tails, one swatting Yunho in the mouth and fixed his bangs. He shrugged before he cleared his throat, “Well, one year has passed, so I lost one of my tails because you kept my secret.”

“Oh…did it hurt?”

The mythical creature wrinkled his nose, as if wondering whether or not Yunho was asking his question seriously. After a few seconds, the internal debate was over and he replied, “No, not at all. It just disappeared. I noticed a few minutes before I got here.”

“Oh.” Yunho stood up and brushed the dust off his pants slowly. As soon as he’d straightened himself out, he asked another question. Seeing as the gumiho had answered his question in a non-threatening manner, he was a bit more comfortable around the snarky and ill mannered creature he was dealing with.“Will you lose everything eventually?”

“Yes. I’ll lose the tails and ears in time, one of my gumiho features for each year that passes by.” The gumiho turned back and touched one of his tails. His amber eyes stared at it with a look of concentration before he turned his eyes away and looked at Yunho, “Or at least, that’s what I heard.”

“From whom?”

“Does it matter who?”

Yunho bit his lip and backed down immediately. He’d never been good at defending himself or standing up for himself.

“I guess not.”

The gumiho rolled his eyes impatiently, “I thought so.”

“Well…what now?” He fidgeted nervously under the sharp gaze of the gumiho, “You’re obviously okay, and I obviously haven’t told anyone, so…”

“…I don’t know, I figured I should check up on you and see if you had any questions.” the gumiho grumbled. He huffed and stood up, “I guess this visit is over. I’ll be back next year just to make sure our bargain is still on good terms and that you’re not going to be an idiot anytime soon.”

Yunho frowned slightly but didn’t voice his complaint. He followed the gumiho out to the window and watched as the creature lithely made his way out. As soon as the gumiho was out on the fire escape, he turned back around to look at Yunho.

“You’re doing…” the gumiho seemed to struggle selecting the next few words to complete his thought, and Yunho could only stare at him expectantly. After a few seconds had passed, the creature huffed. “Nevermind.”

“Okay.” Yunho said slowly as he tried to alleviate the awkwardness that had come between them. He slowly played through the past few minutes in his mind, and it was only then that he realized he didn’t know something important.

“What’s your name?”

The gumiho wrinkled his nose, “No names. If I tell you my name, it’ll just make it easier for you to rat me out if ever you change your mind. Besides, I already know yours Jung Yunho.”

“What?”

He tapped his ears, “I have good hearing. I was lurking around the hospital the day you got confined. I heard your mother whining to some doctor about the sick bastard who got you hospitalized.”

“Oh.”

Yunho stood still, unsure of what to say next.

“Anyway, I’ll be going now.”

“…okay.” Yunho mumbled hesitantly. It wasn’t like he had anything good to say. Besides, he figured that the sooner he had the bossy mythical creature out of his room, the better. He shrugged, and the creature took that as a sign that he could leave.

However, just as the gumiho was about to go down, he turned around again.

“Yunho?”

“Yeah?”

“Happy birthday,” the gumiho said with a small and awkwardly forced smile before he turned away and made his way down the fire escape so silently it was like he’d simply disappeared into the night. Yunho could feel a slight heat rise to his cheeks, and he quickly patted them down in irritation.

There was a knock on the door, and Yunho turned around sharply. Before he could even say anything, his mother opened the door. She stared at him oddly for a few seconds before she spoke.

“Why are you still up?”

Yunho cleared his throat and pointed at his Physics homework, “I was just finishing up my homework.”

“Oh,” his mother frowned slightly, “Well, don’t stay up too late.” Her eyes moved away from him, and when she looked at his bed, Yunho felt his stomach knot in trepidation. He glanced at his bed, and it was only then that he noticed the furs on his mattress.

“...is that cat hair? What did I tell you about not feeding stray animals? I told you, I don’t like pets in the house and then you go ahead and invite some stray inside the house? Yunho, I thought you were more responsible than that! How could you let it on your bed? Do you know what kind of germs those kinds of animals have? I am not washing that!”

Yunho sighed and let his mother rant.

It was better for her to think he’d let a cat into his room rather than share the truth and tell her that he’d actually let a gumiho into his room.

Eighteen

“Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit,” Yunho muttered as he tried to look for his keys. He stared at the door of the apartment helplessly before he quickly made his way back down the corridor. He made his way down and out of the apartment building, hoping he could somehow find his copy of the house keys.

He was greeted by the cold wind, and his teeth chattered. It was only then that Yunho realized he’d also forgotten his hoodie at Yoochun’s house.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck. Happy eighteenth fucking birthday Jung Yunho, you’re a fucking idiot,” he hissed. Yunho scanned the pavement in the hopes of finding his keys, but he couldn’t find anything. He sighed and gave up, deciding to rest his forehead against the brick wall of a different apartment building.

The least he could hope for was that some psycho hadn’t decided to pick up his keys and had found out where he lived. Yunho sighed loudly for the nth time that night and pushed off the wall. He could practically hear his mother’s rant already. No doubt she would complain about Yoochun - “He’s a bad influence Yunho!” and his new lifestyle that would end with him spiraling into a life of drugs, alcoholism, and meaningless sex.

Yunho huffed - yeah right. He couldn’t even speak to girls properly yet. How did his mother even think that he’d somehow start becoming some sort of -

“You dropped your keys.”

Yunho yelped in fright and stumbled back. He clutched his heart in fear, and his eyes widened when he recognized who was in front of him. The gumiho twirled his keys on one of his fingers, a disinterested look on his face.

“You’re such a coward,” the gumiho muttered as he extended the keys forward. “But anyway, here you go.”

Yunho took his keys back hesitantly and looked at the gumiho. He was noticeably thinner than he was the year before, and Yunho could see the faint lines of his cheekbones. They both stood still, staring at each other, until Yunho finally decided to speak first.

“…hi.”

As usual, a trademark scowl appeared on the other’s face. “Hi.” The gumiho looked around before he wrinkled his nose and turned back to look at Yunho properly, “You’ve grown.”

“Thanks?”

Yunho rubbed his arm awkwardly and wondered what to do next. Although the awkward boy of sixteen and seventeen suddenly was no longer around - mostly due to Yoochun’s presence - he still wasn’t the most skillful conversationalist. As he studied the fox-man creature in front of him, Yunho could feel himself become all the more confused. Although most of his fear had dissipated as a result of the realization that the gumiho needed him to be alive so that he could become human, Yunho still felt that slight fear in his bones.

“Do you always stare at people?” The gumiho muttered, obviously uncomfortable with the way Yunho had been looking at him. He tucked back a strand of his hair and rubbed his own arm in anxiety, “I’m not a zoo animal.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Okay.”

The customary awkwardness fell between them once more, and Yunho sighed loudly. Some things never changed. Although he had supposedly matured, it didn’t seem like any of it would be of use to him now. His stomach rumbled, and it was because of that one action that an idea came to Yunho’s mind.

“Are you hungry?”

“…what?”

“You look so hungry I’m starting to think you’re going to pounce on me,” Yunho said slowly, and honestly, he was a bit surprised by how easily the sentence had come out of his mouth after his temporary mental block.

He waited for the gumiho to reply, and it was only then that he realized how good looking the other was. For the past two years, his fear had clouded his judgment of the other, but now that it was mostly gone, he could objectively see the other’s attractiveness. And despite the fact the gumiho constantly threatened him, Yunho couldn’t deny that he was extremely good looking.

The gumiho’s eyes were wide, and he stared at Yunho in shock.

“…is that no?” Yunho prodded nervously, his bravado slipping away by the second. He shuffled nervously underneath the penetrating gaze of the mythical creature, “Well, it is an odd hour for eating, so -“

“Can you afford steak?”

Yunho’s eyes widened, “Of course not!”

“Then nevermind,” the gumiho said with a huff. He turned his head away and straightened the way his bangs fell upon his brow, “I’m not interested in eating whatever you humans attempt to pass off as meat -“

“Well I’m hungry, so I’m going to eat,” Yunho snapped, his ego bruised. Honestly, he had no idea a mythical creature could be so pushy and so spoiled. He began to march off in the direction of the closest fast food restaurant, but he turned when he heard footsteps following after him.

He didn’t turn his head and kept walking. At the sight of the McDonald’s branch, he made his way inside and as he headed to the counter, he felt a body brush against his. He rolled his eyes and approached the girl at the counter without a single word to the gumiho. Yunho rattled off his order and took his wallet to pay for the food.

The gumiho stood wordlessly at his side, and Yunho kept his silence after he took his tray and went to some distant corner of the restaurant. He sat down, and he narrowed his eyes when the gumiho sat down across him.

“Why are you still here?” he questioned as he ripped open a ketchup packet.

“Can you really finish two burgers and all those fries by yourself?” the gumiho questioned with a judging look on his face. He scrunched up his nose, and if Yunho wasn’t so irritated, he might’ve found the action cute. “You might gain weight.”

Yunho picked up the extra Big Mac and set it down in front of the gumiho, “I bought one for you.”

The gumiho blinked at the burger, “…oh.”

“A thank you would be nice,” Yunho grumbled as he unwrapped his burger. He huffed loudly and raised his eyes when he noticed that the gumiho had picked out the vegetables and set aside the buns, and was just munching on the meat patty.

“Do you know how much that cost?!”

The gumiho shrugged and swallowed down the rest of the burger patty, “Not as much as steak, that’s for sure.”
o-o-o
“Why are you still here?” Yunho questioned finally after he’d finished most of his food. After the gumiho’s comment, he’d fallen into a brooding silence. He eyed the wasted food on the gumiho’s burger wrapper and sighed.

The gumiho wrinkled his nose again, “I’m here to greet you happy birthday of course.”

Yunho rolled his eyes, “You could’ve done that when we first met tonight. What do you really want from me?”

“….I got into a fight…and since you’re the only human I kind of know properly, I figured you could be of some help to me this time around.”

“I’m already helping you! In fact, I’ve been helping you out already for these past two years.” Yunho grumbled as he drummed his fingers on the table. He lifted his eyes and looked up at the gumiho, “In fact, I don’t think I’m getting any sort of benefit from this relationship. I demand monetary compensation -“

The gumiho scowled, “I didn’t think you would grow up into such a selfish boy.”

“Well, you don’t…know anything,” Yunho finished lamely. He licked his lips and dusted his hands, “I’m a different person now -“

“I can tell.”

The teenager blinked, “You can?”

“It’s been a year, of course I can tell. I am highly observant after all.” The gumiho folded up his burger wrapper as he spoke, “It’s natural that you should change. After all, a year is more than enough time for something big to happen, isn’t it?”

Surprised by the sudden wisdom that was coming out of the other’s mouth, it took a few seconds before Yunho replied. “Yeah…I guess.”

“In all the years I’ve been alive, I can understand that humans seem to regard things differently from how I do. It’s…it’s interesting to see how all of you react to events and change with time.”

“You don’t seem to act that differently from other people,” Yunho commented. He leaned back into his seat, feeling more comfortable around the other, and continued to speak. “If anything, you remind me of some people I know from school -“

The gumiho wrinkled his nose, “Why do I have a feeling that you don’t like those people?”

Yunho laughed, “Kind of.”

“I’m not here to be liked anyway,” the creature grumbled. “I just need you to help me become human, and then that’s it for us. I don’t expect to see you again after the ten years are up.”

“If I liked you though, that’d make me more inclined to -“

“If you want to live, keep the secret.”

Yunho scowled, “Threats, again? I thought we moved on from that.” He resisted the urge to toss a french fry on the table at the gumiho's head, “Why can’t we be…friends? Or no, not friends exactly, but…colleagues…kind of. After all, like the saying goes, you attract more bees with honey than vinegar.”

“That’s a very old saying…but I guess it’s true.” With a sigh, the gumiho bowed slightly, “I am sorry for threatening you all the time. Please be loyal to me and continue to help me so that I may become human.”

The whole unusual situation made Yunho burst out into laughter, and the gumiho scowled at him. “I was being serious!”

Yunho clutched his stomach tightly and continued to laugh, “You could’ve just said sorry for being mean!” he shook his head and chuckled again, “I swear, now that I’m older…you’re kind of like, not as scary anymore…even though you could eat me now if you wanted to.”

“Can we just go back to talking about my problem?” the gumiho asked, ignoring Yunho’s comment. “Although it is quite nice that you do not seem to be afraid of me, we have more important matters at hand.”

“…and they would be what?”

“I told you earlier, I got into a fight.”

“What kind of a fight? A physical one?” Yunho said as he rested his chin against his palm. He’d gotten into a few fights himself - with Yoochun most of the time - and while he was by no means an expert fighter, he knew they could get out of hand.

The gumiho shifted in his seat and kept his eyes low.

“I honestly don’t know why I should tell a human like you. Nevermind, this was a huge mistake. What would you know about -“

Yunho rolled his eyes, “You started the conversation.”

“Fine - now that I think about it, you would be the perfect person to ask for advice on this issue.” The gumiho huffed, “Well…I got into a fight with my mother -“

“She’s still alive?” Yunho asked, his eyes widening in surprise. He narrowed his eyes in thought and leaned back so that he could count on his hands, “But…aren’t you like really old? Shouldn’t you be at least -“

“For your information, I am not really old.” The mythical creature scowled, “I’ve probably been in this form for fifty years or so...I can’t remember much of anything before I turned…so, I don’t know how I got into this form.”

“Fifty is still -“

“Shut up.”

Yunho laughed, “You’re an old man.” He ignored the sharp glare the gumiho sent in his direction and waved his hand as a sign for his companion to continue. “Anyway, you got into a fight with your…mom?”

“She’s not really my mother,” The gumiho mumbled, “She was just the first person who found me after I had changed, so she adopted me and became my sort of mother. I live with her and her husband.”

“…is she a gumiho too?”

“Not anymore. She became human when I was around twenty years old. It is because of her that I know that having someone keep a gumiho’s secret actually works at breaking the curse.”

Yunho leaned forward, “So her husband was the one who kept her secret?”

“Yeah, but anyway - the point is that I fought with her, and now I can’t face her.” The gumiho sighed and leaned back in his seat, a pout on his face. “I’m sure you can relate. I often hear your mother shouting at you.”

Yunho’s eyes widened, “How do you know?”

The gumiho straightened abruptly, and his face reddened. “I…”

“Have you been stalking me?”

“No!” The gumiho cried in outrage. He scowled, “I have to make sure you’re not telling my secret to anyone! Of course I have to check up on you once in a while. I do not think that counts as something like stalking! I am not a stalker -“

“Fine…I won’t think of it as stalking if you do one thing for me.” Yunho smiled brightly and leaned forward, his face inching closer to the gumiho’s. The gumiho stiffened and leaned back in his seat.

“What do you want?”

“Your name,” Yunho answered simply. “Isn’t it weird? We’ve known each other for two years, and I still don’t know your name. Come on, even if I know your name, I’m sure there are other people who have your name -“

“Jaejoong.”

The teenager’s grin brightened, and he held out his hand, “I always wanted to know the name of the person who attacked me on my sixteenth birthday. It’ll come handy when I report you to the police -“

“Hey!”

Yunho laughed, “I was just kidding -“

“You’re not funny. No wonder you don’t have a girlfriend,” the gumiho grumbled. Jaejoong eyed Yunho irritably, “Your haircut’s lame too. You should get it changed. Don’t you know what’s in style nowadays?”

“…should I care about -“

“If you want a girlfriend, you should,” Jaejoong remarked. “Ditch the awful haircut and make your hair grow out a bit. Buy better fitting clothes and -“

Yunho rolled his eyes, “I don’t really care about girls -“

“Guys then?”

The teenager scowled, “What I meant was that I don’t need a girlfriend right now. I’m happy being single and -“

“Alone?”

“I am not alone,” Yunho said through gritted teeth. “There’s nothing wrong with being single. Okay? I’m eighteen, and it’s not like you have a lot of friends, right? I mean, it’s not easy to talk to girls or -“

The gumiho tilted his head, “You don’t seem to have that hard of a time talking to me, and I’m practically a stranger.”

Yunho blushed, “You’re different!”

“In what way?” Jaejoong questioned, a curious look on his face. “Aren’t those girls you meet at parties or whatever strangers too? I don’t see how I’d be any different from them…well, aside from the obvious -“

“It just is different, okay? I don’t need to explain anything to you -“

“Why are you blushing?”

“I’m not blushing -“ Yunho gave up on defending himself and covered his face with his hand, “First I can’t win any arguments with my mother, and now I can’t win any with you. When will I ever win?”

“Never?” Jaejoong offered, “Your mom seems kind of scary.”

Yunho sighed, “She is.”

The gumiho drummed his fingers on the table restlessly before he looked up at Yunho thoughtfully, “Well, I’m sure she loves you in that sort of motherly way that all scary mothers do. From what I’ve seen, it’s normal for -“

“When did you suddenly turn into my guidance counselor?”

Jaejoong scowled, “I was just trying to be helpful.”

Yunho laughed, “Yeah, well, in any case, I do appreciate it.”

“You should,” Jaejoong mumbled, “This sort of advice doesn’t come cheap. If I were you, I’d stop being so stupid and rebellious and listen to what smarter people told me to do.”

Yunho rolled his eyes and checked his watch, “Speaking of my mother, I should go home or else she’s going to kill me.” He got up from the table, and as he began to make his way home, he felt Jaejoong brush against him. He turned his head and frowned at the gumiho, who was looking at him intently.

“What now?”

“Nothing,” the gumiho said with a shrug.

Yunho scowled, “What is it?”

“I told you, nothing.”

“It seriously can’t just be nothing -“

Before Yunho could say anything, Jaejoong patted his shoulder and smiled, “It’s nothing, I promise. Anyway, I have to go now. I can smell your mother from here.”

“What -“

Jaejoong quickly made his way across the street, and left Yunho behind to stare at him in confusion. However, his confusion was short-lived. The sound of his mother shouting his name from a couple of meters away was enough to pull him back into reality.

Yunho sighed and dragged his feet; his mother’s yelling barely registering in his ears. He already knew what was coming.

He was going to be grounded - again.

Nineteen

“Karam likes you.”

Yunho bit his lip and glanced at Yoochun, “…and?” He looked away and focused his attention to where Karam was with his friends. He saw Karam smile shyly at him, and Yunho smiled back kindly before he turned his eyes back to Yoochun.

“Are you serious?” Yoochun shook his head disapprovingly and pushed Yunho’s beer closer, “Come on, drink more. If you’re nervous or -“

Yunho rolled his eyes, “I’m not nervous.” He reached forward and took a sip of the beer before he set it back down onto the table. “I’m just not interested.” Yunho looked around the bar, “You know I don’t like him that way -“

“You don’t need to like someone to sleep with him or her,” Yoochun said with a shrug as he downed a shot. He winked at some girl that passed by and patted Yunho’s shoulder encouragingly. “Come on, you can’t honestly tell me that you’ve had feelings for every guy you’ve slept with?”

The birthday celebrant glowered, “I’m not a slut, and it’s not like -”

“I never called you one! Look, I’m just saying, why are you suddenly being so uptight? I know you’ve gone out with a couple of people, so I’m just wondering why you’ve suddenly put on a chastity belt.”

Yunho groaned, “Why are we friends again?”

“Because your mom doesn’t like me, and you like pissing her off?” Yoochun offered with a shrug. “Anyway, I’m just saying, it’s your birthday and you’re busy hanging out with me. I mean, I know I’m great and all…but still, you should be off with someone. Are you sure you don’t like Karam? I mean, I’m absolutely sure he’s into you. I’m pretty sure he’s your type too, the delicate ones that need protecting -“

“Hello.”

Both teenagers turned their heads, and when Yunho recognized who it was, his mouth nearly fell open. A confident smirk made its way across the gumiho’s lips, and Jaejoong ruffled his dark mane of hair.

“Long time no see,” Jaejoong drawled, his voice husky and alluring. “Still remember me?” he asked, his smirk growing wider by the second.

Yunho could hardly stammer out a reply, his mind still too busy drinking in the sight of Jaejoong. His eyes wanted to drift lower so that he could take in all of the man’s presence, but his eyes were fixated upon the other’s red lips. He felt Yoochun jab him sharply with his elbow, but to no avail.

He was transfixed.

It was rather surreal to have Jaejoong in front of him again. After getting past his stage as a rebellious eighteen year old, he couldn’t help but be reminded every once in a while of that unusual night he’d spent with the other. The memory tended to come to mind at the most random of times, so to have Jaejoong finally standing in front of him - real, live, and present, reminded him of those idle moments spent daydreaming.

Jaejoong reached out and pulled Yunho by the wrist, leading the latter mutely. He smiled mysteriously at Yoochun, “If you don’t mind, I’ll just borrow him for a few minutes.”

“I - I, yeah…go ahead,” Yoochun stammered, just as equally lost to Jaejong’s charms as Yunho was.

Yunho blushed furiously, and Jaejoong gripped his wrist tightly. He smiled back warmly at Yoochun and raised his eyes to glare at Yunho.

“Are you drunk?” he hissed.

“No,” Yunho replied, finally snapping out of his daze. He stared down at Jaejoong and then stared at the hand that gripped his wrist, “Why are you holding me so roughly? What’s up?”

“Like I told your friend,” Jaejoong growled irritably as he began to drag Yunho out of the bar, “We need to talk.”
o-o-o
As soon as they were out on the street, Jaejoong let go of Yunho’s wrist. Yunho rubbed his wrist and held it up so he could examine it under the streetlight. When he was done making sure that he wouldn’t get bruises in the morning, he noticed that Jaejoong was scowling at the pavement.

“Did I do something wrong?”

Jaejoong turned his head up sharply. He crossed his arms, “Are you dating someone?”

Yunho’s eyes widened, “What?” he felt a blush rise to his cheeks once more. He narrowed his eyes and tried to play it off cool, “I don’t see how that has got to do with anything -“

“You’re not allowed to date anyone.”

“Hey, what?” Yunho frowned, “Why not?”

The gumiho scowled, and oddly enough, Yunho hated how he found that annoying look attractive. He rolled his eyes in the usual manner that expressed how stupid he found Yunho to be.

“Because, if you date someone, you might end up telling -“

“I haven’t told anyone and it’s been three years, I really don’t think I’d tell my boyfriend something like, hey, did you know, I’ve been keeping a gumiho’s secret for the past couple of year -“

“So…you like guys?”

Yunho’s eyes narrowed, “What? Is that a problem? Don’t tell me you’re old-fashioned and homophobic? Are you being serious right now? I thought you were stalking me in your free time -“

“I don’t stalk you!” Jaejoong cried, “Or at least, I’ve been busy lately okay! I have a lot to do and…it’s not like your life’s that interesting anyway! Besides, I don’t hate gay people!”

Yunho began to laugh, and it wasn’t long before he was doubled over completely. His boisterous laughter bounce off the walls of the alleyway, and despite Jaejoong’s obvious shouts for him to shut up, he couldn’t stop. The whole hilarity of the situation - of a gumiho proclaiming his support for homosexuals - it was just too much for him to take at that moment. Before he could straighten up, Jaejoong had pushed him against the wall in irritation. His back hit the wall with a thud, and Yunho’s eyes widened.

Jaejoong looked slightly lost as he stared back at Yunho, his amber eyes bright with confusion, and Yunho couldn’t help but think he probably looked the same. He could feel Jaejoong’s breath ghosting against his skin, and before he knew what was happening, his eyes lowered to focus on Jaejoong’s lips. Seconds later, the spell was over and he raised his eyes as warmth spread across his body.

They stood in that position for what felt like an eternity, Jaejoong’s hands on his chest and their faces just inches apart. A tension composed of a multitude of unvoiced and repressed feelings hung in the air. It enveloped them and cut them off from the rest of society, leaving just both of them to bask in the moment. Yet just as Yunho instinctively leaned his head downwards, his lips only centimeters away, Jaejoong quickly pushed him back against the wall and stumbled back.

Shit.

“I’m sorry Jaejoong,” Yunho stuttered, blaming his actions on the alcohol in his system immediately. “I didn’t, I didn’t -“

It was only then that he noticed the dark blush that covered Jaejoong’s usually fair cheeks. Although it was barely noticeable in the dim lighting that was available in the alleyway, he could see it clearly enough. He took one bold step closer, and Jaejoong immediately took another step back.

Oddly enough, despite the fact Jaejoong was supposed to the predator, the way he was shying away from Yunho spoke otherwise.

Something had changed in one year’s time.

Yunho stared at Jaejoong, hoping that Jaejoong would not skitter off like some nervous creature, and thought carefully. Perhaps he wasn’t the only one that had spent a good part of the past year thinking about the other? Would it take another year before they saw each other once again?

“Hey, are you trying to leave?” Yunho asked as he took a careful step back in order to not scare Jaejoong away. He put his hands into the pockets of his jeans and tilted his head, “It’s still early. We could…talk, for a bit longer, right? You did say you wanted to talk to me after all.”

Jaejoong hesitated, but Yunho was glad when Jaejoong’s face eased into a more calm and unguarded expression. The gumiho nodded, “Yeah, okay. It’s been awhile…hasn’t it?”

“Do you want to stay out here?” Yunho asked, “Or would you like to go back in? We could just sit together at a table for a bit. I’ll order you a drink or two if you want as well.”

“You won’t mind people -“

The college student laughed and shook his head, “No, why would I? Besides, they’ve already seen you with me anyway, I’m sure. It’s not going to be anything weird. Come on, let’s go back inside.”

Yunho’s eyes dropped down to Jaejoong’s hand, but despite his urge to reach forward and take it in his own, he held back. It was too soon for something like that. So, instead of following his gut, he turned around and headed back into the club, Jaejoong following behind him quietly.
o-o-o
They slid into a small booth, and Yunho could feel Yoochun’s eyes on him as he ordered drinks for him and Jaejoong. He glared at his friend from across the room and made a swatting motion, well aware of what his best friend was probably thinking. When he turned his attention back to the gumiho, the other was looking at him with an amused expression.

Jaejoong chuckled and drummed his fingers onto the table, “Is this what you do for fun? Party and get drunk?”

“Not really,” Yunho replied with a laugh as he leaned back. He fixed his bangs to the side and widened his smile, “What about you?”

“What about me?”

The teenager laughed and leaned forward, “What do you do when you’re not with me or stalking me?”

“Hey…” The gumiho frowned, “I told you, I don’t stalk you.”

“Fine, what do you do in your free time then?”

“…I help around with my mother’s shop,” Jaejoong replied as he fiddled with his hands. He kept his eyes down onto the table, “She runs a bakery now, so I help her bake and stuff, then go home to my apartment. I don’t go out much.”

“So her children…”

“They know about my secret, but they can’t help me become human…we tried a couple of years ago, when we didn’t live here yet…I guess it’s because they’re not fully human in a sense.” Jaejoong answered. He looked up at Yunho, “I can’t stay in one place for too long you know, or else people will notice that I’m not aging. It’s important that I remain inconspicuous.”

“Is that why I only see you at night?”

“Yeah,” Jaejoong said softly, “I’m only free to go around when there aren’t that many people out.” He stared down at his hands, “I don’t really…”

Their drinks came, and Yunho mourned the fact that Jaejoong seemed to have closed himself off the moment the interruption had occurred. The gumiho took hold of his drink and sipped quietly, and Yunho didn’t know how to lure the other back into speaking about himself again. He watched as Jaejoong seemed to look at anywhere else but him and sighed. If he wanted things to go anywhere further, it seemed like he would have to do something.

“Why don’t you visit me then?”

Jaejoong glanced at him in confusion. “What?”

“If you don’t have anyone to visit…you should visit me then, or you could call me. Isn’t it lonely to be by yourself most of the time? I don’t mind keeping you company. You can use a phone, right? Just call me.”

Yunho was persistent, and despite Jaejoong’s protests, he left the table to find a pen somewhere. He borrowed one from a bartender, and as he wrote his phone number onto a napkin, he felt Yoochun sidle up next to him.

“So, who’s that?” Yoochun questioned as he nursed his beer, “As your best friend, I think I deserve to know.”

“He’s a friend,” Yunho said as he tried to get the pen to write properly. He retraced the lines on the numbers and snorted in irritation when the pen’s ink hardly made a mark on the paper.

“Do you typically have such hot friends?”

“Of course, aren’t you one of them?” Yunho shot back sarcastically as he struggled with the pen. It finally began to write properly, and Yunho glanced at Yoochun, “I haven’t seen him in a while.”

“And why is that?”

“He…he’s not from here,” Yunho muttered before he turned back to focus on the task at hand. As soon as he was done writing his number onto the napkin, he handed the pen back to the bartender and faced Yoochun. “He’s just a friend, alright?”

Yoochun studied Yunho carefully and tilted his head, “Are you attracted to him though? He seems like -“

Yunho could see Jaejoong watching them from the table where he was seated, and his ears fell deaf to Yoochun’s questioning when he realized that Jaejoong could probably hear their entire conversation. He swallowed hard, and when he turned his eyes back to Yoochun, his best friend was frowning.

“Were you even listening to me?”

“I’ll be back,” Yunho mumbled before he pushed past Yoochun and made his way to Jaejoong. He once again resisted the urge to hold out his hand and spoke, “Do you want to go back outside? It’s a little…crowded in here.”

“…I think I should just go,” Jaejoong mumbled, his eyes looking elsewhere. He stood up and began to walk away, but before he could escape, Yunho reached out and held his wrist gently. The gumiho didn’t turn to look back at him, and Yunho swallowed hard, anxiety knotting in his stomach.

Yunho pulled Jaejoong closer and put the napkin into his hand, “I told you, you should…call me, whenever you feel like talking to someone.”

Jaejoong turned around and shot him a nervous smile, “I’ll see.”

They stared at each other for a few more seconds before Jaejoong jerked his wrist out of Yunho’s grip. He held it close to his chest, “I should really go. It’s getting late.” He smiled politely at Yunho, “I’ll see you again next time, okay?”

He began to make his way for the exit, but once again, Yunho quickly caught up with the gumiho. Yunho was fuelled by youthful spontaneity and his budding attraction to Jaejoong - he was tired of being left behind. If there was one thing he’d learned in his nineteen years of living so far, it was best to take hold of every opportunity presented to him.

Jaejoong turned around, and Yunho felt his breath catch in his throat.

“You forgot something,” he whispered as he tightened his grip on Jaejoong’s wrist slightly.

Jaejoong turned around, and Yunho felt his breath catch in his throat. There was something about the surprising look of vulnerability and delicacy in Jaejoong’s features that caught him in a spell. Amber eyes searched his face hesitantly, and Yunho couldn’t breathe.

“Happy birthday Yunho,” Jaejoong uttered softly before he pulled his wrist out of Yunho’s grip and began to walk away.

Yunho stood alone in the alleyway for a long time, too caught up in his feelings to return to the party. He couldn’t go back - to Karam, to Yoochun, to anyone - not when all he wanted at that moment was to be with Jaejoong again.

Twenty

He was a little more than tipsy this time around, and it was all Yoochun’s fault…again. It was a good thing that they’d decided to celebrate his birthday in Yoochun’s dorm, because he didn’t want his own tiny room to be a wreck. Yunho carefully maneuvered his way through the messy apartment and cursed loudly when he tripped over one of Yoochun’s piano books.

“Fuck,” Yunho groaned. He slowly pushed himself up and began to make his way out. It took him around two minutes to successfully open the door, and as soon as he was out in the corridor, he stumbled on the corridor’s carpeting and fell down. It was a slow and dizzying process, but after ten minutes, he finally managed to get inside his dorm.

Yunho sighed loudly and pressed his back against the door. He shut his eyes and slowly slid down onto the ground, glad that for a few seconds, he could finally get the room to stop spinning.

“Are you allowed to drink in dorms?”

The voice was familiar, and Yunho merely opened his eyes tiredly. He could see Jaejoong leaning next to an open window, and a small flitted across his lips at the sight of the gumiho.

“Cat burglar.”

Jaejoong slowly came out of the darkness, and he walked over to squat down in front of Yunho, all the while maintaining a wary distance between them. He looked at Yunho disapprovingly and the corners of his lips quirked downwards, “Foxes aren’t cats. I just thought you should know.”

“I know,” Yunho said breathily as he tried to resist the urge to reach forward and bury his fingers in Jaejoong’s hair. However, instead of reaching for Jaejoong, he held his hands out.

“Help me up?”

Jaejoong straightened up and pulled Yunho off the ground. As soon as Yunho was on his feet, Jaejoong walked away. Yunho carefully walked away to shut the window that Jaejoong had so easily broken into, and he shook his head at the sight of his fire escape before he shut it.

He slowly began to make his way to wherever Jaejoong was, and it didn’t take long for him to find the gumiho. The gumiho was seated upon his bed, his dark brown tails fanned out behind him. Jaejoong’s amber eyes lifted off the floor, and when he saw Yunho, he quirked his head to the side.

“I like this place.”

“Maybe you should’ve come over when I invited you all those times,” Yunho said slowly as he leaned against the doorframe. “You rejected me each and every time I asked you over the phone.”

The gumiho wrinkled his nose, “I told you, I don’t like going out anywhere without any reason.”

“So why are you here tonight then?”

“Because it’s your birthday, I always visit you on your birthday.”

Maybe it was the moon, maybe it was something else, but Yunho just couldn’t take it any longer. He didn’t want to keep restraining the feelings he knew he had. In just a few long strides, he reached Jaejoong swiftly. Before he could second guess his actions or think of some other plan, he was already partially on the bed, and his fingers had already buried themselves in Jaejoong’s dark hair.

Fuelled by alcohol and his emotions, Yunho closed the distance between their lips before Jaejoong could utter a single word. Time stopped for a few seconds, and Yunho’s heart pounded so loudly in his ears that he suddenly feared Jaejoong would hear it. Shyness and fear quickly replaced his bravado, and Yunho slowly began to move away.

But before he could, he felt a slight reciprocating pressure against his lips.

As the seconds slowly rolled past, he felt Jaejoong’s mouth open willingly for his, so Yunho pressed forward and eventually gently pushed Jaejoong against his bed. A soft whimper escaped Jaejoong’s lips, and Yunho hungrily kissed the other’s lips, desperate for more. No longer an awkward teenager and driven by lust, pent up feelings, and alcohol, he casually slipped his hands underneath Jaejoong’s shirt. The gumiho whined as he tweaked a hardened nipple, and Yunho felt a chill run up his spine when he saw one of Jaejoong’s tails sweep across his bed.

Yunho groaned loudly when Jaejoong’s hips bucked upwards, and the quiet mewls that escaped from the gumiho’s lips sent blood rushing downwards. Never in his twenty years of living had he ever felt so much pleasure, whether in dreams or in reality. Jaejoong’s lithe body pressed up against his, and when he felt sharp teeth nip at his neck, he hissed.

It was like some sort of hunger had taken over him, and the only way he could satisfy it was to just keep kissing the gumiho senseless - it all felt too good to be real. He was so tempted to push things further, to indulge in the fantasies that had plagued his mind for years, but despite his feelings, he held himself back. Almost as if Jaejoong could sense his hesitancy, the gumiho whispered into his ear.

“Don’t hold back too much - it’s your birthday after all. Don’t you deserve a small gift?”

Yunho prayed desperately that this was not an alcohol induced hallucination.


art made by chottoipuku

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Author’s Note: So many nice stories were updated today! I hope you all enjoy this, and many thanks to everyone who will read & comment and of course, to lovely Min for drawing the art for me. ♥