Sit! Stay! Can I have your number?
Title: Sit! Stay! Can I Have Your Number?
Pairing: Tao / Sehun
Rating: PG-13
Length: 5,293 words
Summary: Tao is the proud owner of an adorable (and spoiled) pup, Sehun is a dog trainer with his work cut out for him.
Originally written for taobeis round 2015.
Tao didn’t like pet stores, not after reading articles about how they bought dogs from puppy mills - shopping at one would be akin to propagating such a hideous practice.
“Look at a shelter then,” Luhan suggested, rolling his eyes at how whiney his roommate was being during his dog search. Tao didn’t appreciate Luhan’s attitude, not one bit. Luhan clearly did not understand how important finding a new friend was, how much research went into it, how not just any dog would do.
“It is a DOG, Tao, not a spouse or a kid. You are looking for a DOG.” Luhan had blown up one afternoon after Tao had talked nonstop for over an hour about the merits of a small dog versus a large dog versus a hyper dog versus a dog that could be trained well versus a dog that required a lot of attention and oh, what if he had kids someday, he would need to think about if the dog was good with kids too.
“I am not asking for you opinion anymore.” Tao huffed, retreating to his bedroom for another exhaustive internet search on just the right breed for his lifestyle and maybe his future lifestyle and perhaps a lifestyle he could lead if certain things changed and…
A knock sounded on Tao’s bedroom door. He knew it was Luhan, probably coming to tell him to stop searching and just go get a dog already. Tao stood up, flailing his arms at his sides in annoyance as he walked to the door. He turned the doorknob, pouting.
“How about this one?”
Tao blinked, once then twice. A cell phone was being thrust in his face, a picture of a small white dog on the screen.
“She is at a rescue. 12 weeks old.” Luhan explained, waving the phone around, Tao’s eyes never left the image of the fluffy little dog. “Well?”
“I think I am in LOVE!” Tao gasped, clutching his hands together. “She is so adorable!”
“Good, now go get her so I can stop having to listen to you whine about dog breeds for half the freaking day.” Luhan quickly texted Tao the link to the rescue’s website.
The next day, after a reference check, Tao brought his new dog home. He named her Candy.
“Why Candy?” Luhan asked, eying up the small pooch.
“Because she is sweet,” Tao answered, cuddling the small dog to his chest.
“I think I am going to be sick.” Luhan made gagging noises.
Tao had planned on enrolling Candy in a training academy. He had totally planned it. One hundred percent planned to. In no way was his sudden trip to Kim Pawsitive Academy spurred by Luhan threatening to put Candy up for sale online. In no way did the trip have to do with Luhan threatening Tao he was going to move out after Candy peed on his favorite pair of shoes, chewed up his cell phone charger, and ate part of his game controller. In no way did Luhan have anything to do with Candy’s enrollment. Nope.
Tao liked the looks of the Kim Pawsitive Academy. The business was in a small building that used to be a hair salon. Sitting on a road at the edge of town, the academy had a large lot that offered plenty of room for outdoor training. A chain-link fence closed off a good portion of the well mowed lawn. Tao could spot what looked like an obstacle course set up behind the fence - the same type he had seen on television when he was bored and the only thing worth watching were border collies darting around cones.
The door to the academy had a string of paw shaped bells hanging on the inside, a cute touch that made Tao feel a bit better about embarking on the unfamiliar world of dog training.
“Can I help you?”
He also found the service impressive. There was someone at the counter as soon as he was in the door, Candy’s hot pink carrier in hand.
“Yes. My name is Huang Tao, I have an appointment for my dog Candy.” Tao walked to the counter, whispering calming words to his dog as he approached. Candy had started to whine and the sound ripped Tao’s heart out.
“Ah. Tao and Candy. Here you are.” The man typed something in the computer before grabbing a clipboard. “My name is Oh Sehun, I will be completing the initial evaluation with you.”
Tao finally bothered to look up from Candy’s cage, largely so he could say hello and not seem like a jerk who only cared about his dog. As he greeted the man, Oh Sehun, he found that there was another benefit to bringing Candy to Pawsitive Academy and that was the fact they had really attractive dog trainers.
Sehun had watched the man from the moment he had gotten out of his car in the parking lot. Sehun craned his neck to get a better look, already impressed that someone who drove such a smart looking car also had a dog in need of training. And then the man with the nice car walked in the front door and well…Sehun was pretty sure he found a new goal in life.
Jongin would tell him it was because he hadn’t had a date in over a year. Kyungsoo would call him a horn dog and tell him to stop hitting on the customers. Sehun, well - he was pretty sure that Tao had a nice ass. And he wanted to touch it.
Sehun fiddled around and found his clipboard, trying not to stare and make a fool out of himself. Sehun felt only minor confidence that he didn’t come off like a total weirdo when he kept mistyping Tao’s name in the computer.
Be cool Sehun, be cool he repeated in his mind over and over again as he led Tao to the large training pen in the back.
“What do we do this first appointment? You said an assessment, right?” Tao asked.
“I will assess Candy’s ability to follow commands, her general ability to grasp new training situations, that sort of thing. I also like to take time to get to know the dog since we will be spending time together in the coming weeks.” Sehun internally breathed a sigh of relief. He was pretty sure he had just sounded professional and had not accidentally commented on how nice Tao’s ass was.
The training pen was large, usually reserved for training classes that involved a dozen or so dogs and their owners. Since this was Candy’s first appointment she would be assessed alone and then moved to a class if Sehun judged that she would fit well into one.
Sehun excelled at first day assessments. An amazing feat considering he had only worked as a dog trainer for the last few months, walking into the job completely unaware of how the profession worked. He had taken the position after a long and sad job hunt post-college, where he had majored in film studies. Apparently he had never bothered to realize film studies wasn’t really a major that had high employment numbers in his area. It was a good thing he had always been so good with dogs, he was a natural at training them.
“You can open her carrier now.” Sehun put his clipboard on the floor, sitting down he waited for his new customer to make an appearance. Tao sat down, unhooking the door to the pink carrier. Sehun found himself staring at Tao’s ass. He looked away quickly. Focus, Sehun, focus, he repeated.
A tiny, fluffy white dog emerged from the carrier, cautiously looking around.
“What a beautiful Maltese.” Sehun smiled. Maltese could be problematic to train. They were prone to independent streaks which were usually exacerbated by a life of being pampered by their owners. Sehun had always been fond of how Maltese looked, so adorable, though he was never a huge fan of how they acted.
“Thank you.” Tao smiled proudly, picking up the fluffy animal and holding her close. “She gets a bit timid when she is in a new situation.”
“Well, we can work on that. Hi Candy, you cutie.” Sehun reached forward, hoping Candy would at least smell his hand and gain some familiarity with him. That didn’t happen.
The small dog lunged forward, snapping her jaws at Sehun’s hand. Sehun pulled his hand back quickly, shocked. He had never had a dog try to bite him. Dogs loved him, had always loved him ever since he was a kid.
“Candy! That isn’t very nice.” Tao scolded the puppy, all the while still cuddling her tightly.
“It’s okay. Why don’t you try setting her down?” Sehun suggest gently, watching as Tao hesitated for a brief moment before putting Candy on the floor. The Maltese stayed by her owner’s side, not moving.
“Candy, would you like a treat?” Sehun fished a treat from the pocket of his shirt, pulling it out and offering it to the dog. He needed Candy to feel comfortable with him, food usually did the trick.
Candy eyed the treat, holding her nose up she sniffed.
“Go get the treat Candy.” Tao cooed, pointing at Sehun’s hand. Candy apprehensively moved forward, stretching her head out so she could snatch the treat without walking very far away from her current position. Sehun caught on, moving his hand back, coaxing the dog forward. Candy relented, finally walking over to Sehun and taking the treat.
“Good girl.” Sehun smiled, patting the top of Candy’s head as she chewed. Thankfully the dog didn’t try to bite him again. “Now we will try some basic commands. Have you taught her anything?”
Tao looked flustered. “No, not really. You see I am pretty busy with work and-“
“What do you do for work?” Sehun wanted to slap himself after he asked the question. It was none of his business what Tao did for work. It was also none of his business how nice Tao’s ass was but that hadn’t stopped him from staring, now had it?
“I am a waiter.”
“Oh, I bet you are good at that.”
Tao smirked. “I would like to think so. The restaurant has been really busy lately and I have been picking up extra shifts so my roommate has been spending a lot of time with Candy.” Tao sighed. “Honestly, I really need your help. My roommate is threatening to either move out or sell my dog if Candy doesn’t learn some manners.”
“I am sure I can teach Candy a thing or two,” Sehun boasted, secretly hoping he could indeed teach Candy a thing or two because the thought of a grateful Tao was too enticing to pass up.
“Great. I would be so thankful if you would.” Tao reinforced Sehun’s vision of an eternally grateful guy with a great ass and a well behaved Maltese. Sehun was pleased.
The rest of the assessment period involved Sehun running through the easiest of commands, like ‘sit’ and ‘stay’. Candy performed abysmally, and she also displayed the fact that she wasn’t yet fully house broken, evidenced by the way she squatted and peed within a few inches of Sehun’s leg.
At the end of the assessment Sehun suggested that Candy receive one-on-one training for the time being, which was only marginally related to the fact Sehun wanted to see Tao one-on-one too. Though mostly the decision had to do with the small dog’s stubborn and nasty attitude. Tao agreed to drop Candy off in a few days for some more training, leaving the academy with a goody bag that included treats and a booklet on commands Tao could work on at home.
As the string of bells on the door jingled, Tao leaving, Kyungsoo walked in from the back.
“How did the assessment go?” Kyungsoo asked, walking over to the computer and typing in notes on the outdoor training class he had just completed.
“Huh?” Sehun hadn’t really heard his fellow dog trainer. He was busy watching Tao bend over to slip the dog carrier into the passenger seat of his car.
“Earth to Sehun.” Kyungsoo waved a hand in front of Sehun’s face, then followed where the man had been glancing. “Don’t tell me you were hitting on one of our clients.”
“No.” Sehun huffed, crossing his arms, resolute that he would soon whip Candy into shape.
Tao brought Candy to the academy around noon a few days later, Sehun meeting them at the door with a big smile on his face. “Hello. How has the home training been going?”
“Well, about that…” Tao scratched the back of his neck, “I worked double shifts the last two days so I haven’t had time to really work with her.”
“No problem. If you leave her here for an hour or so I can work on some commands. I am sure you will see some improvement in even that short time.” Sehun didn’t like bragging, didn’t mean to brag, but he was; because Tao was wearing really tight pants and well…
Tao gave Candy a kiss through the bars on the carrier door before handing the pink cage over to Sehun. “Take good care of my baby.”
“I will, nothing to worry about.” Sehun waved as Tao walked out the door. Fifteen minutes later he was eating his words. There was a lot to worry about.
Candy lunged at Sehun once. After her snarling died down, thanks to a few treats, Sehun attempted to teach her how to sit. When that failed he decided to work on her behavior while she was on a leash, teaching her not to pull. Candy didn’t like to walk, when Sehun urged her forward she dug her heels in, not ready to cooperate. Sehun was at his wits’ end when he finally decided to put a treat across the room and see if Candy responded. She did, though she pulled hard on her leash, hacking as she tugged.
Sehun struggled to teach Candy not to pull, using hand gestures and words to deter her from the incorrect behavior. Finally, as the hour was about to end, Candy walked perfectly on the leash. Sehun had never felt as accomplished in his short time as a dog trainer. He couldn’t wait to show Tao the progress they had made.
Tao came into the backroom, cooing at his dog as he caught sight of her. “Was she a good girl?”
“Yes. She has made amazing progress.” Sehun puffed his chest out a bit as he shared his accomplishments. “She can walk on a leash really well now.”
“Really?! That is great!” Tao stood ready to be amazed. Sehun went through the same actions that Candy had responded to, hoping that he would earn a large smile and gratitude once Tao realized how capable Sehun was.
Candy froze. She yapped. Then she pulled forward on the leash, acting like Sehun hadn’t trained her at all.
“Candy, as you learned!” Sehun pleaded, hoping the little dog would listen. She didn’t, in fact she walked over to him and peed. “Really, she was doing amazing! I walked her and she listened.” Sehun was flustered.
“Maybe she doesn’t want to behave around me? Could that be it?” Tao looked worried.
“No, that can’t be it.” A man walked up to the training pen, “If training is completed properly it should not matter who is in the vicinity of the dog.”
Sehun flinched. Of course Jongin would show up at a moment like this.
“I wonder why she suddenly changed her behavior then.” Tao mused.
“That is a great question. Candy, why won’t you show your Daddy how good you are?” Jongin leaned over the pen, cooing at the small Maltese. Sehun watched in horror as Candy wagged her tail and ran to Jongin, letting the man pet her. “What a good dog you are.”
“She likes you.” Tao remarked, smiling at the sight of Jongin and Candy.
“Tao, can you bring her back tomorrow? I would like to work with her a bit more and I think that we need to reinforce her training without large gaps in between.” Sehun put on his professional demeanor, trying to seem competent and interesting and completely dateable not like Jongin and his amazing relationship with every dog ever.
“Sure. Tomorrow.” Tao agreed.
“Candy, we are going to learn the importance of walking on a leash. Can you do that for me?” Sehun stared at the little dog, hoping the desperation in his eyes was evident. Hoping that Candy would show him some mercy.
She did, just as she had the day before. She walked well, Sehun satisfied with her progress. Next Sehun worked on the sit command, and again Candy responded. “You must have just been having a bad day,” Sehun reasoned, elated for the moment when Tao arrived and he could show him Candy’s progress.
After an hour Tao walked in and Sehun smirked, certain today would be the day that Tao would thank him.
Today was not that day.
Candy wouldn’t cooperate and unlearned everything Sehun had taught her. Sehun decided the dog hated him and didn’t want him to be happy - ever. He decided he would try harder. He would win, oh yes, he would win. Tao agreed to drop Candy off the next day, and Sehun would have a game plan.
Tao must like tight jeans. Sehun had decided this must be a universal truth. He wouldn’t mind if he had any hope of scoring a date with the man, but he was pretty sure Tao was not about to agree to go have dinner with the failure of a dog trainer who couldn’t do anything right.
“I have to work later so my roommate is going to pick Candy up,” Tao explained.
“How is work going?” Sehun asked, knowing he was treading on precarious ground. Being too personal with customers was not always a good thing.
“Busy. We are short a cook and a waitress so things are so hectic.” Tao didn’t seem to mind the intrusion into his personal life.
“How long have you worked there?” Sehun asked as he coaxed Candy over to him with a treat.
“Two years. Two years too many.” Tao sighed, “I should really go back to college.”
“What did you go to school for?” Sehun fed Candy the treat, patting her head cautiously.
“Film.” Tao laughed, “I supposed I was one of those foolish people who thought you could do something with a film degree. Thankfully I dropped out before I spent a small fortune on such a useless degree.”
Sehun stiffened. His major had been film studies.
To continue Sehun’s worse nightmare Jongin chose that moment to walk into the back room, his three dogs trailing behind him.
“Are those poodles?” Tao asked with interest, pointing at the dogs that sat in a perfect line as Jongin stopped in front of the training pen.
“Yes. These are my dogs. Say hello, kids.” Jongin pointed at the first dog. “This is Monggu.” The dog barked as Jongin said his name. Tao clapped his hands, exclaiming how cool it was that Jongin had trained them to say greetings. “This is Jjang Ah.” Another bark. “And this is Jjang Gu.” The last bark.
“I am impressed with their trick.” Tao bent down and started petting Monggu. “How long did it take you to teach them that?”
“A week maybe.” Jongin looked thoughtful. “Perhaps Sehun could train your dog to greet people vocally.”
“Could you?” Tao turned his attentions to Sehun, his eyes wide and hopeful. Sehun really wanted to slap Jongin, but he couldn’t. No, Jongin was the son of the owners - a dog trainer extraordinaire- and Sehun’s biggest threat.
“I will try.” Sehun feigned a smile. “Though we need to start small and work up to something of that difficulty.”
“Tao, right?” Jongin turned Tao’s attention away from Sehun. “You know Luhan, right? I thought I remember him mentioning your name on his Facebook once.”
“Yes! He is my roommate,” Tao exclaimed. “You know him?!”
“Yes. We used to play soccer together. Tell him I said hello.”
“Actually he will be here later to pick Candy up.”
“I will have to say hi to him then. You must be the cute roommate he was whining about.” Jongin winked, Sehun wanted to throw up. Tao laughed. Or did he giggle? Sehun thought maybe he giggled. He had to put an end to this.
“Candy! Tell your Daddy bye.” Sehun spoke a bit loudly, it was really more of a shout than the bright and cheery words he was attempting to distract Tao with. However, it worked and that was the important thing. Tao said goodbye to Candy and waved as he walked towards the front of the building, Jongin taking his small army of poodles outside without another word to Sehun.
For the next hour Sehun once again practiced walking Candy on a leash, the sit command, and the stay command. Candy did wonderfully. When Tao’s roommate, Luhan arrived to pick Candy up Sehun decided to show him the dog’s progress.
“Have your really been able to do something with that brat?” Luhan questioned. “She is too cute for her own good and she behaves like a monster.”
“If you have a moment I can show you the commands she has learned.” Sehun walked Candy through the sit and stay commands and surprisingly she cooperated.
“Wow. I am impressed.” Luhan sighed. “Now Tao just has to work to reinforce what you have taught her.”
“He said he has been so busy lately,” Sehun remarked, helping to lure Candy back into her carrier.
“Yes. He has been, which leaves me to take care of the monster. I can say sit and stay all day long but she probably won’t listen to me.” Luhan sighed. “Candy does whatever she wants whenever she wants.”
“She does have a very strong personality,” Sehun agreed.
“Luhan!” Jongin must have seen the man enter the building, he walked in from outside, a big grin on his face. “It has been forever.”
“Jongin! I didn’t know you worked here.” Luhan looked surprised to see him. “The last I heard you were considering a soccer scholarship.”
Jongin laughed. “My parents own the place, I only work here during the summers. How are you? You look good. I met your roommate earlier. He is…”
Sehun shouldn’t have been eavesdropping but it was rather difficult not to when the two men were conversing right in front of him. He started picking up the training pen slowly as he listened to their conversation.
“Cute? Yeah.” Luhan threw his hands up. “But it isn’t what you think! Seriously, we aren’t dating or anything.”
“So he has a boyfriend…” Jongin said playfully.
“No! I mean, he is single but we aren’t like that. Why do you always assume I date any cute guy around me?”
“Because you usually do. Or did. So you are single?” Jongin asked. Sehun had never seen this side of Jongin, this flirtatious side. It was almost as annoying as his over achieving dog training side.
“Yes,” Luhan answered quietly, quickly clearing his throat. “Candy, should we go?”
Candy didn’t respond. Luhan was undeterred, scooping up the carrying cage. “It was good to see you Jongin. Call me sometime.”
“I will.” Jongin stood and watched Luhan go. Sehun found the entire exchange disgustingly sweet. Though it did have an upside. Now he knew Tao was single.
Luhan dropped Candy off the next afternoon, and he talked to Jongin for almost ten minutes. Sehun couldn’t hear their conversation and quite frankly he didn’t care. He was too busy moping over the fact Tao hadn’t been the one to drop Candy off. Luhan said that Tao would pick her up though, so that was something.
Sehun reinforced the commands he had taught Candy, quickly moving through the commands and adding ‘lay’ and ‘drop’ to her repertoire. Candy, as was expected now that Sehun had worked with her for a few days, learned the commands quickly. She wasn’t a stupid dog, far from it. She was just stubborn and temperamental.
Tao was almost a half an hour late, hurrying into the back room with some muttered apologies before exclaiming, “I can’t wait to see her sit!” Tao clapped his hands together and rubbed them, staring at the training pen. “Luhan said she did a great job yesterday.”
Sehun blushed slightly. “Well, she is doing wonderfully.”
Sehun pulled out the treats he used for training and urged Candy to sit. She stared at him. Then she walked over and defecated near his foot. Sehun couldn’t believe this was happening.
“I - she was doing so well!” Sehun probably sounded half insane, he thought later on, trying to convince Tao his dog was making progress. “I swear she sat and can stay and lie down. I even taught her drop today!”
“I wonder why she won’t show me.” Tao sighed.
“She was great! She was behaving so well!” Sehun wanted to burst into tears. Well, if he was the crying sort. He wasn’t.
“Same time tomorrow?” Tao asked as he placed Candy in her carrier.
“Yes.” Sehun said, feeling acutely frustrated.
The first week of training bled into the second week which bled into the third week. A pattern had been established. Candy would learn a command but refuse to show Tao her capabilities. Sehun was beginning to think the small Maltese would be the end of him. Sehun started taking pictures with his cellphone to prove Candy’s performance, however, the dog seemed wise to his tricks. If she saw his cellphone she would stop behaving.
Sehun was at wits’ end. The only thing keeping him sane was the fact that training Candy meant seeing Tao. Tao, the man with the tight jeans and nice car. Tao, who had begun to make small talk with Sehun every time he walked into the academy.
Sehun learned Tao was from China (which explained his faint accent). He learned that Tao hated bugs and really wanted to go to school for fashion photography, a much more viable career than film. Sehun shared things about himself too, and after the third week Sehun began to think of Tao as a friend.
The first day of the fourth week of training Tao asked Sehun if he could stay during the training session. “They finally hired a few more waiters so I have the day off.”
“Great. Yes, stay, that would be great.” Sehun was thrilled at the prospect of spending an hour with Tao.
Tao watched with great interest as Sehun put a leash on Candy and attempted to lead her around. Candy tugged until she was hacking. Sehun attempted to have Candy sit; she laid down instead. After ten minutes of utter failure Sehun couldn’t hold back. “Seriously, she can do these things! Really. You must think I am insane. You must think I am lying. I am not. Really!”
Tao threw his head back and laughed. Sehun bristled. “You think it is funny?”
Tao was laughing so hard it seemed that he was crying. He wiped at his eyes. “Sorry, I am sorry.”
Sehun had to bite his tongue lest he let out a string of swear words.
“Luhan saw what you could do, Sehun. I know it is only Candy being a brat.” Tao smirked. “Sorry I didn’t tell you I already knew.”
Sehun’s mouth made a perfect O. So Tao had realized that Candy wasn’t cooperating? That Candy was able to complete the commands but refused to do so in front of Tao?! He was certain his frown was so deep it reached his chin.
“I am sorry. Really. Please don’t make that face.” Tao looked panicked. “I said I was sorry. Please don’t be mad.”
Sehun turned his head, looking away. “You liked seeing Candy make a fool of me?”
“NO! That isn’t it. Well, I mean…” Tao walked across the training pen. He reached his hands out, placing them on Sehun’s arms. “Can you look at me?”
Sehun turned his head to look at Tao, swallowing. Tao was standing so close, Sehun’s mind went blank.
“I, well. I kind of thought you might like me and honestly I have been debating if I could ask you out.” Tao looked embarrassed. “Luhan finally told me that Jongin said you were single and into guys so I um, well, Sehun would you like to go to dinner with me sometime?”
Sehun nodded dumbly. Tao laughed again.
“You like me?” Sehun regained his ability to speak.
“Have you seen yourself? You are hot.” Tao smiled, disarming any lingering anger Sehun might have felt.
“Your ass is amazing,” Sehun blurted out, gasping at what he had just said.
“I know. We would make a really hot couple.” Tao wasn’t the least bit offended by Sehun’s ass comment, and Sehun was more than happy to agree that indeed they would make a wonderful couple.
Seven months later .
Sehun looked around the apartment, admiring his handiwork. It turned out his belongings and Tao’s belongings fit perfectly together, and they liked the same style of interior décor. If someone walked into their apartment they would never have guessed that the vases, lamps, and framed prints were purchased by two different people at different times.
Moving in with Tao was an easy decision. They were inseparable ever since their first date. The only reservation Sehun had was Candy and her still spotty house breaking habits. Though of course, as a dog trainer, he was happy he would be able to work with her even more intensely since they would be living together.
“How do you think Kyungsoo is doing with Candy?”
Sehun felt arms snake around his waist. He leaned back, relishing in the feeling of being held by Tao. “I guess we will see if Jongin owes me fifty dollars or not.”
It was a stupid bet, but Jongin wouldn’t let it go. Jongin had helped move Luhan out of Tao’s apartment and into his own, and during that time he had loudly declared, “Candy’s personality would probably respond well to Kyungsoo’s training technique.”
Sehun was not happy with the idea that Kyungsoo could break the dog that couldn’t be broken and protested the suggestion. Jongin had put fifty dollars on the line and the bet was on. Candy had spent half the day with Kyungsoo while Sehun and Tao arranged their place.
“Should we go see our baby?” Tao asked, planting a kiss on Sehun’s neck.
“Sure.” Sehun couldn’t wait to rub it in Jongin’s face, the fact that he had been wrong.
“I can’t believe it.” Sehun was dumbfounded. He was surprised he could even form words at the moment.
“She is such a good little fluff ball - aren’t you Candy.” Kyungsoo grabbed the white dog, picking her up he cuddled her and planted a kiss on her head. Candy licked his face in turn.
Sehun and Tao had watched, shocked, as Kyungsoo walked Candy through almost a dozen commands that she had never learned in all the time Sehun had been training her. Candy was happy to comply with Kyungsoo’s demands, so much so it seemed to be a miracle as she completed one complex task after another.
“I guess we owe Jongin fifty bucks,” Tao murmured.
“I guess so.” Sehun stared at the small Maltese, completely convinced that Candy must be the reincarnation of an enemy he had in a past life. The little devil. At least she had done one thing right, and that was leading Sehun straight to the nicest ass he ever had the pleasure of dating.
Pairing: Tao / Sehun
Rating: PG-13
Length: 5,293 words
Summary: Tao is the proud owner of an adorable (and spoiled) pup, Sehun is a dog trainer with his work cut out for him.
Originally written for taobeis round 2015.
Tao didn’t like pet stores, not after reading articles about how they bought dogs from puppy mills - shopping at one would be akin to propagating such a hideous practice.
“Look at a shelter then,” Luhan suggested, rolling his eyes at how whiney his roommate was being during his dog search. Tao didn’t appreciate Luhan’s attitude, not one bit. Luhan clearly did not understand how important finding a new friend was, how much research went into it, how not just any dog would do.
“It is a DOG, Tao, not a spouse or a kid. You are looking for a DOG.” Luhan had blown up one afternoon after Tao had talked nonstop for over an hour about the merits of a small dog versus a large dog versus a hyper dog versus a dog that could be trained well versus a dog that required a lot of attention and oh, what if he had kids someday, he would need to think about if the dog was good with kids too.
“I am not asking for you opinion anymore.” Tao huffed, retreating to his bedroom for another exhaustive internet search on just the right breed for his lifestyle and maybe his future lifestyle and perhaps a lifestyle he could lead if certain things changed and…
A knock sounded on Tao’s bedroom door. He knew it was Luhan, probably coming to tell him to stop searching and just go get a dog already. Tao stood up, flailing his arms at his sides in annoyance as he walked to the door. He turned the doorknob, pouting.
“How about this one?”
Tao blinked, once then twice. A cell phone was being thrust in his face, a picture of a small white dog on the screen.
“She is at a rescue. 12 weeks old.” Luhan explained, waving the phone around, Tao’s eyes never left the image of the fluffy little dog. “Well?”
“I think I am in LOVE!” Tao gasped, clutching his hands together. “She is so adorable!”
“Good, now go get her so I can stop having to listen to you whine about dog breeds for half the freaking day.” Luhan quickly texted Tao the link to the rescue’s website.
The next day, after a reference check, Tao brought his new dog home. He named her Candy.
“Why Candy?” Luhan asked, eying up the small pooch.
“Because she is sweet,” Tao answered, cuddling the small dog to his chest.
“I think I am going to be sick.” Luhan made gagging noises.
Tao had planned on enrolling Candy in a training academy. He had totally planned it. One hundred percent planned to. In no way was his sudden trip to Kim Pawsitive Academy spurred by Luhan threatening to put Candy up for sale online. In no way did the trip have to do with Luhan threatening Tao he was going to move out after Candy peed on his favorite pair of shoes, chewed up his cell phone charger, and ate part of his game controller. In no way did Luhan have anything to do with Candy’s enrollment. Nope.
Tao liked the looks of the Kim Pawsitive Academy. The business was in a small building that used to be a hair salon. Sitting on a road at the edge of town, the academy had a large lot that offered plenty of room for outdoor training. A chain-link fence closed off a good portion of the well mowed lawn. Tao could spot what looked like an obstacle course set up behind the fence - the same type he had seen on television when he was bored and the only thing worth watching were border collies darting around cones.
The door to the academy had a string of paw shaped bells hanging on the inside, a cute touch that made Tao feel a bit better about embarking on the unfamiliar world of dog training.
“Can I help you?”
He also found the service impressive. There was someone at the counter as soon as he was in the door, Candy’s hot pink carrier in hand.
“Yes. My name is Huang Tao, I have an appointment for my dog Candy.” Tao walked to the counter, whispering calming words to his dog as he approached. Candy had started to whine and the sound ripped Tao’s heart out.
“Ah. Tao and Candy. Here you are.” The man typed something in the computer before grabbing a clipboard. “My name is Oh Sehun, I will be completing the initial evaluation with you.”
Tao finally bothered to look up from Candy’s cage, largely so he could say hello and not seem like a jerk who only cared about his dog. As he greeted the man, Oh Sehun, he found that there was another benefit to bringing Candy to Pawsitive Academy and that was the fact they had really attractive dog trainers.
Sehun had watched the man from the moment he had gotten out of his car in the parking lot. Sehun craned his neck to get a better look, already impressed that someone who drove such a smart looking car also had a dog in need of training. And then the man with the nice car walked in the front door and well…Sehun was pretty sure he found a new goal in life.
Jongin would tell him it was because he hadn’t had a date in over a year. Kyungsoo would call him a horn dog and tell him to stop hitting on the customers. Sehun, well - he was pretty sure that Tao had a nice ass. And he wanted to touch it.
Sehun fiddled around and found his clipboard, trying not to stare and make a fool out of himself. Sehun felt only minor confidence that he didn’t come off like a total weirdo when he kept mistyping Tao’s name in the computer.
Be cool Sehun, be cool he repeated in his mind over and over again as he led Tao to the large training pen in the back.
“What do we do this first appointment? You said an assessment, right?” Tao asked.
“I will assess Candy’s ability to follow commands, her general ability to grasp new training situations, that sort of thing. I also like to take time to get to know the dog since we will be spending time together in the coming weeks.” Sehun internally breathed a sigh of relief. He was pretty sure he had just sounded professional and had not accidentally commented on how nice Tao’s ass was.
The training pen was large, usually reserved for training classes that involved a dozen or so dogs and their owners. Since this was Candy’s first appointment she would be assessed alone and then moved to a class if Sehun judged that she would fit well into one.
Sehun excelled at first day assessments. An amazing feat considering he had only worked as a dog trainer for the last few months, walking into the job completely unaware of how the profession worked. He had taken the position after a long and sad job hunt post-college, where he had majored in film studies. Apparently he had never bothered to realize film studies wasn’t really a major that had high employment numbers in his area. It was a good thing he had always been so good with dogs, he was a natural at training them.
“You can open her carrier now.” Sehun put his clipboard on the floor, sitting down he waited for his new customer to make an appearance. Tao sat down, unhooking the door to the pink carrier. Sehun found himself staring at Tao’s ass. He looked away quickly. Focus, Sehun, focus, he repeated.
A tiny, fluffy white dog emerged from the carrier, cautiously looking around.
“What a beautiful Maltese.” Sehun smiled. Maltese could be problematic to train. They were prone to independent streaks which were usually exacerbated by a life of being pampered by their owners. Sehun had always been fond of how Maltese looked, so adorable, though he was never a huge fan of how they acted.
“Thank you.” Tao smiled proudly, picking up the fluffy animal and holding her close. “She gets a bit timid when she is in a new situation.”
“Well, we can work on that. Hi Candy, you cutie.” Sehun reached forward, hoping Candy would at least smell his hand and gain some familiarity with him. That didn’t happen.
The small dog lunged forward, snapping her jaws at Sehun’s hand. Sehun pulled his hand back quickly, shocked. He had never had a dog try to bite him. Dogs loved him, had always loved him ever since he was a kid.
“Candy! That isn’t very nice.” Tao scolded the puppy, all the while still cuddling her tightly.
“It’s okay. Why don’t you try setting her down?” Sehun suggest gently, watching as Tao hesitated for a brief moment before putting Candy on the floor. The Maltese stayed by her owner’s side, not moving.
“Candy, would you like a treat?” Sehun fished a treat from the pocket of his shirt, pulling it out and offering it to the dog. He needed Candy to feel comfortable with him, food usually did the trick.
Candy eyed the treat, holding her nose up she sniffed.
“Go get the treat Candy.” Tao cooed, pointing at Sehun’s hand. Candy apprehensively moved forward, stretching her head out so she could snatch the treat without walking very far away from her current position. Sehun caught on, moving his hand back, coaxing the dog forward. Candy relented, finally walking over to Sehun and taking the treat.
“Good girl.” Sehun smiled, patting the top of Candy’s head as she chewed. Thankfully the dog didn’t try to bite him again. “Now we will try some basic commands. Have you taught her anything?”
Tao looked flustered. “No, not really. You see I am pretty busy with work and-“
“What do you do for work?” Sehun wanted to slap himself after he asked the question. It was none of his business what Tao did for work. It was also none of his business how nice Tao’s ass was but that hadn’t stopped him from staring, now had it?
“I am a waiter.”
“Oh, I bet you are good at that.”
Tao smirked. “I would like to think so. The restaurant has been really busy lately and I have been picking up extra shifts so my roommate has been spending a lot of time with Candy.” Tao sighed. “Honestly, I really need your help. My roommate is threatening to either move out or sell my dog if Candy doesn’t learn some manners.”
“I am sure I can teach Candy a thing or two,” Sehun boasted, secretly hoping he could indeed teach Candy a thing or two because the thought of a grateful Tao was too enticing to pass up.
“Great. I would be so thankful if you would.” Tao reinforced Sehun’s vision of an eternally grateful guy with a great ass and a well behaved Maltese. Sehun was pleased.
The rest of the assessment period involved Sehun running through the easiest of commands, like ‘sit’ and ‘stay’. Candy performed abysmally, and she also displayed the fact that she wasn’t yet fully house broken, evidenced by the way she squatted and peed within a few inches of Sehun’s leg.
At the end of the assessment Sehun suggested that Candy receive one-on-one training for the time being, which was only marginally related to the fact Sehun wanted to see Tao one-on-one too. Though mostly the decision had to do with the small dog’s stubborn and nasty attitude. Tao agreed to drop Candy off in a few days for some more training, leaving the academy with a goody bag that included treats and a booklet on commands Tao could work on at home.
As the string of bells on the door jingled, Tao leaving, Kyungsoo walked in from the back.
“How did the assessment go?” Kyungsoo asked, walking over to the computer and typing in notes on the outdoor training class he had just completed.
“Huh?” Sehun hadn’t really heard his fellow dog trainer. He was busy watching Tao bend over to slip the dog carrier into the passenger seat of his car.
“Earth to Sehun.” Kyungsoo waved a hand in front of Sehun’s face, then followed where the man had been glancing. “Don’t tell me you were hitting on one of our clients.”
“No.” Sehun huffed, crossing his arms, resolute that he would soon whip Candy into shape.
Tao brought Candy to the academy around noon a few days later, Sehun meeting them at the door with a big smile on his face. “Hello. How has the home training been going?”
“Well, about that…” Tao scratched the back of his neck, “I worked double shifts the last two days so I haven’t had time to really work with her.”
“No problem. If you leave her here for an hour or so I can work on some commands. I am sure you will see some improvement in even that short time.” Sehun didn’t like bragging, didn’t mean to brag, but he was; because Tao was wearing really tight pants and well…
Tao gave Candy a kiss through the bars on the carrier door before handing the pink cage over to Sehun. “Take good care of my baby.”
“I will, nothing to worry about.” Sehun waved as Tao walked out the door. Fifteen minutes later he was eating his words. There was a lot to worry about.
Candy lunged at Sehun once. After her snarling died down, thanks to a few treats, Sehun attempted to teach her how to sit. When that failed he decided to work on her behavior while she was on a leash, teaching her not to pull. Candy didn’t like to walk, when Sehun urged her forward she dug her heels in, not ready to cooperate. Sehun was at his wits’ end when he finally decided to put a treat across the room and see if Candy responded. She did, though she pulled hard on her leash, hacking as she tugged.
Sehun struggled to teach Candy not to pull, using hand gestures and words to deter her from the incorrect behavior. Finally, as the hour was about to end, Candy walked perfectly on the leash. Sehun had never felt as accomplished in his short time as a dog trainer. He couldn’t wait to show Tao the progress they had made.
Tao came into the backroom, cooing at his dog as he caught sight of her. “Was she a good girl?”
“Yes. She has made amazing progress.” Sehun puffed his chest out a bit as he shared his accomplishments. “She can walk on a leash really well now.”
“Really?! That is great!” Tao stood ready to be amazed. Sehun went through the same actions that Candy had responded to, hoping that he would earn a large smile and gratitude once Tao realized how capable Sehun was.
Candy froze. She yapped. Then she pulled forward on the leash, acting like Sehun hadn’t trained her at all.
“Candy, as you learned!” Sehun pleaded, hoping the little dog would listen. She didn’t, in fact she walked over to him and peed. “Really, she was doing amazing! I walked her and she listened.” Sehun was flustered.
“Maybe she doesn’t want to behave around me? Could that be it?” Tao looked worried.
“No, that can’t be it.” A man walked up to the training pen, “If training is completed properly it should not matter who is in the vicinity of the dog.”
Sehun flinched. Of course Jongin would show up at a moment like this.
“I wonder why she suddenly changed her behavior then.” Tao mused.
“That is a great question. Candy, why won’t you show your Daddy how good you are?” Jongin leaned over the pen, cooing at the small Maltese. Sehun watched in horror as Candy wagged her tail and ran to Jongin, letting the man pet her. “What a good dog you are.”
“She likes you.” Tao remarked, smiling at the sight of Jongin and Candy.
“Tao, can you bring her back tomorrow? I would like to work with her a bit more and I think that we need to reinforce her training without large gaps in between.” Sehun put on his professional demeanor, trying to seem competent and interesting and completely dateable not like Jongin and his amazing relationship with every dog ever.
“Sure. Tomorrow.” Tao agreed.
“Candy, we are going to learn the importance of walking on a leash. Can you do that for me?” Sehun stared at the little dog, hoping the desperation in his eyes was evident. Hoping that Candy would show him some mercy.
She did, just as she had the day before. She walked well, Sehun satisfied with her progress. Next Sehun worked on the sit command, and again Candy responded. “You must have just been having a bad day,” Sehun reasoned, elated for the moment when Tao arrived and he could show him Candy’s progress.
After an hour Tao walked in and Sehun smirked, certain today would be the day that Tao would thank him.
Today was not that day.
Candy wouldn’t cooperate and unlearned everything Sehun had taught her. Sehun decided the dog hated him and didn’t want him to be happy - ever. He decided he would try harder. He would win, oh yes, he would win. Tao agreed to drop Candy off the next day, and Sehun would have a game plan.
Tao must like tight jeans. Sehun had decided this must be a universal truth. He wouldn’t mind if he had any hope of scoring a date with the man, but he was pretty sure Tao was not about to agree to go have dinner with the failure of a dog trainer who couldn’t do anything right.
“I have to work later so my roommate is going to pick Candy up,” Tao explained.
“How is work going?” Sehun asked, knowing he was treading on precarious ground. Being too personal with customers was not always a good thing.
“Busy. We are short a cook and a waitress so things are so hectic.” Tao didn’t seem to mind the intrusion into his personal life.
“How long have you worked there?” Sehun asked as he coaxed Candy over to him with a treat.
“Two years. Two years too many.” Tao sighed, “I should really go back to college.”
“What did you go to school for?” Sehun fed Candy the treat, patting her head cautiously.
“Film.” Tao laughed, “I supposed I was one of those foolish people who thought you could do something with a film degree. Thankfully I dropped out before I spent a small fortune on such a useless degree.”
Sehun stiffened. His major had been film studies.
To continue Sehun’s worse nightmare Jongin chose that moment to walk into the back room, his three dogs trailing behind him.
“Are those poodles?” Tao asked with interest, pointing at the dogs that sat in a perfect line as Jongin stopped in front of the training pen.
“Yes. These are my dogs. Say hello, kids.” Jongin pointed at the first dog. “This is Monggu.” The dog barked as Jongin said his name. Tao clapped his hands, exclaiming how cool it was that Jongin had trained them to say greetings. “This is Jjang Ah.” Another bark. “And this is Jjang Gu.” The last bark.
“I am impressed with their trick.” Tao bent down and started petting Monggu. “How long did it take you to teach them that?”
“A week maybe.” Jongin looked thoughtful. “Perhaps Sehun could train your dog to greet people vocally.”
“Could you?” Tao turned his attentions to Sehun, his eyes wide and hopeful. Sehun really wanted to slap Jongin, but he couldn’t. No, Jongin was the son of the owners - a dog trainer extraordinaire- and Sehun’s biggest threat.
“I will try.” Sehun feigned a smile. “Though we need to start small and work up to something of that difficulty.”
“Tao, right?” Jongin turned Tao’s attention away from Sehun. “You know Luhan, right? I thought I remember him mentioning your name on his Facebook once.”
“Yes! He is my roommate,” Tao exclaimed. “You know him?!”
“Yes. We used to play soccer together. Tell him I said hello.”
“Actually he will be here later to pick Candy up.”
“I will have to say hi to him then. You must be the cute roommate he was whining about.” Jongin winked, Sehun wanted to throw up. Tao laughed. Or did he giggle? Sehun thought maybe he giggled. He had to put an end to this.
“Candy! Tell your Daddy bye.” Sehun spoke a bit loudly, it was really more of a shout than the bright and cheery words he was attempting to distract Tao with. However, it worked and that was the important thing. Tao said goodbye to Candy and waved as he walked towards the front of the building, Jongin taking his small army of poodles outside without another word to Sehun.
For the next hour Sehun once again practiced walking Candy on a leash, the sit command, and the stay command. Candy did wonderfully. When Tao’s roommate, Luhan arrived to pick Candy up Sehun decided to show him the dog’s progress.
“Have your really been able to do something with that brat?” Luhan questioned. “She is too cute for her own good and she behaves like a monster.”
“If you have a moment I can show you the commands she has learned.” Sehun walked Candy through the sit and stay commands and surprisingly she cooperated.
“Wow. I am impressed.” Luhan sighed. “Now Tao just has to work to reinforce what you have taught her.”
“He said he has been so busy lately,” Sehun remarked, helping to lure Candy back into her carrier.
“Yes. He has been, which leaves me to take care of the monster. I can say sit and stay all day long but she probably won’t listen to me.” Luhan sighed. “Candy does whatever she wants whenever she wants.”
“She does have a very strong personality,” Sehun agreed.
“Luhan!” Jongin must have seen the man enter the building, he walked in from outside, a big grin on his face. “It has been forever.”
“Jongin! I didn’t know you worked here.” Luhan looked surprised to see him. “The last I heard you were considering a soccer scholarship.”
Jongin laughed. “My parents own the place, I only work here during the summers. How are you? You look good. I met your roommate earlier. He is…”
Sehun shouldn’t have been eavesdropping but it was rather difficult not to when the two men were conversing right in front of him. He started picking up the training pen slowly as he listened to their conversation.
“Cute? Yeah.” Luhan threw his hands up. “But it isn’t what you think! Seriously, we aren’t dating or anything.”
“So he has a boyfriend…” Jongin said playfully.
“No! I mean, he is single but we aren’t like that. Why do you always assume I date any cute guy around me?”
“Because you usually do. Or did. So you are single?” Jongin asked. Sehun had never seen this side of Jongin, this flirtatious side. It was almost as annoying as his over achieving dog training side.
“Yes,” Luhan answered quietly, quickly clearing his throat. “Candy, should we go?”
Candy didn’t respond. Luhan was undeterred, scooping up the carrying cage. “It was good to see you Jongin. Call me sometime.”
“I will.” Jongin stood and watched Luhan go. Sehun found the entire exchange disgustingly sweet. Though it did have an upside. Now he knew Tao was single.
Luhan dropped Candy off the next afternoon, and he talked to Jongin for almost ten minutes. Sehun couldn’t hear their conversation and quite frankly he didn’t care. He was too busy moping over the fact Tao hadn’t been the one to drop Candy off. Luhan said that Tao would pick her up though, so that was something.
Sehun reinforced the commands he had taught Candy, quickly moving through the commands and adding ‘lay’ and ‘drop’ to her repertoire. Candy, as was expected now that Sehun had worked with her for a few days, learned the commands quickly. She wasn’t a stupid dog, far from it. She was just stubborn and temperamental.
Tao was almost a half an hour late, hurrying into the back room with some muttered apologies before exclaiming, “I can’t wait to see her sit!” Tao clapped his hands together and rubbed them, staring at the training pen. “Luhan said she did a great job yesterday.”
Sehun blushed slightly. “Well, she is doing wonderfully.”
Sehun pulled out the treats he used for training and urged Candy to sit. She stared at him. Then she walked over and defecated near his foot. Sehun couldn’t believe this was happening.
“I - she was doing so well!” Sehun probably sounded half insane, he thought later on, trying to convince Tao his dog was making progress. “I swear she sat and can stay and lie down. I even taught her drop today!”
“I wonder why she won’t show me.” Tao sighed.
“She was great! She was behaving so well!” Sehun wanted to burst into tears. Well, if he was the crying sort. He wasn’t.
“Same time tomorrow?” Tao asked as he placed Candy in her carrier.
“Yes.” Sehun said, feeling acutely frustrated.
The first week of training bled into the second week which bled into the third week. A pattern had been established. Candy would learn a command but refuse to show Tao her capabilities. Sehun was beginning to think the small Maltese would be the end of him. Sehun started taking pictures with his cellphone to prove Candy’s performance, however, the dog seemed wise to his tricks. If she saw his cellphone she would stop behaving.
Sehun was at wits’ end. The only thing keeping him sane was the fact that training Candy meant seeing Tao. Tao, the man with the tight jeans and nice car. Tao, who had begun to make small talk with Sehun every time he walked into the academy.
Sehun learned Tao was from China (which explained his faint accent). He learned that Tao hated bugs and really wanted to go to school for fashion photography, a much more viable career than film. Sehun shared things about himself too, and after the third week Sehun began to think of Tao as a friend.
The first day of the fourth week of training Tao asked Sehun if he could stay during the training session. “They finally hired a few more waiters so I have the day off.”
“Great. Yes, stay, that would be great.” Sehun was thrilled at the prospect of spending an hour with Tao.
Tao watched with great interest as Sehun put a leash on Candy and attempted to lead her around. Candy tugged until she was hacking. Sehun attempted to have Candy sit; she laid down instead. After ten minutes of utter failure Sehun couldn’t hold back. “Seriously, she can do these things! Really. You must think I am insane. You must think I am lying. I am not. Really!”
Tao threw his head back and laughed. Sehun bristled. “You think it is funny?”
Tao was laughing so hard it seemed that he was crying. He wiped at his eyes. “Sorry, I am sorry.”
Sehun had to bite his tongue lest he let out a string of swear words.
“Luhan saw what you could do, Sehun. I know it is only Candy being a brat.” Tao smirked. “Sorry I didn’t tell you I already knew.”
Sehun’s mouth made a perfect O. So Tao had realized that Candy wasn’t cooperating? That Candy was able to complete the commands but refused to do so in front of Tao?! He was certain his frown was so deep it reached his chin.
“I am sorry. Really. Please don’t make that face.” Tao looked panicked. “I said I was sorry. Please don’t be mad.”
Sehun turned his head, looking away. “You liked seeing Candy make a fool of me?”
“NO! That isn’t it. Well, I mean…” Tao walked across the training pen. He reached his hands out, placing them on Sehun’s arms. “Can you look at me?”
Sehun turned his head to look at Tao, swallowing. Tao was standing so close, Sehun’s mind went blank.
“I, well. I kind of thought you might like me and honestly I have been debating if I could ask you out.” Tao looked embarrassed. “Luhan finally told me that Jongin said you were single and into guys so I um, well, Sehun would you like to go to dinner with me sometime?”
Sehun nodded dumbly. Tao laughed again.
“You like me?” Sehun regained his ability to speak.
“Have you seen yourself? You are hot.” Tao smiled, disarming any lingering anger Sehun might have felt.
“Your ass is amazing,” Sehun blurted out, gasping at what he had just said.
“I know. We would make a really hot couple.” Tao wasn’t the least bit offended by Sehun’s ass comment, and Sehun was more than happy to agree that indeed they would make a wonderful couple.
Seven months later .
Sehun looked around the apartment, admiring his handiwork. It turned out his belongings and Tao’s belongings fit perfectly together, and they liked the same style of interior décor. If someone walked into their apartment they would never have guessed that the vases, lamps, and framed prints were purchased by two different people at different times.
Moving in with Tao was an easy decision. They were inseparable ever since their first date. The only reservation Sehun had was Candy and her still spotty house breaking habits. Though of course, as a dog trainer, he was happy he would be able to work with her even more intensely since they would be living together.
“How do you think Kyungsoo is doing with Candy?”
Sehun felt arms snake around his waist. He leaned back, relishing in the feeling of being held by Tao. “I guess we will see if Jongin owes me fifty dollars or not.”
It was a stupid bet, but Jongin wouldn’t let it go. Jongin had helped move Luhan out of Tao’s apartment and into his own, and during that time he had loudly declared, “Candy’s personality would probably respond well to Kyungsoo’s training technique.”
Sehun was not happy with the idea that Kyungsoo could break the dog that couldn’t be broken and protested the suggestion. Jongin had put fifty dollars on the line and the bet was on. Candy had spent half the day with Kyungsoo while Sehun and Tao arranged their place.
“Should we go see our baby?” Tao asked, planting a kiss on Sehun’s neck.
“Sure.” Sehun couldn’t wait to rub it in Jongin’s face, the fact that he had been wrong.
“I can’t believe it.” Sehun was dumbfounded. He was surprised he could even form words at the moment.
“She is such a good little fluff ball - aren’t you Candy.” Kyungsoo grabbed the white dog, picking her up he cuddled her and planted a kiss on her head. Candy licked his face in turn.
Sehun and Tao had watched, shocked, as Kyungsoo walked Candy through almost a dozen commands that she had never learned in all the time Sehun had been training her. Candy was happy to comply with Kyungsoo’s demands, so much so it seemed to be a miracle as she completed one complex task after another.
“I guess we owe Jongin fifty bucks,” Tao murmured.
“I guess so.” Sehun stared at the small Maltese, completely convinced that Candy must be the reincarnation of an enemy he had in a past life. The little devil. At least she had done one thing right, and that was leading Sehun straight to the nicest ass he ever had the pleasure of dating.