SBB 2014 Entry #2: Dog Days (1/3)
Title: Dog Days (1/3)
Pairing:Jonghyun/Minho
Rating:R
Warnings:None
Final Word Count: 19,945
The shelter that Jonghyun worked at was only a twenty minute walk from his apartment which, on most days, was a blessing because it meant he saved a fortune on gas money. But with the skies in the middle of a raging and horrendous apocalypse, Jonghyun's relatively short commute on foot turned into a mad dash to make it home before he somehow got impossibly more wet. Within minutes of setting foot out from beneath the protective awning the young man had become soaked from head to toe and his shoes squished uncomfortably as he raced back to his apartment. And to think, the forecast had predicted sunny skies for the whole week.
Of all the days to leave my umbrella at home, Jonghyun cursed as he futilely covered his head at a stop light.
When the light turned, he jumped over a large puddle pooling at the base of the curb and darted across the street. He wasn't that far from his apartment but the wind started to pick up, battering even more rain into his already drenched frame. Jonghyun bit the inside of his cheek as cold water seeped into his jeans, slowly climbing higher up his legs.
At the first rumble of thunder, Jonghyun jerked and picked up his pace. He was about to turn onto the block his apartment building was on when he caught sight of a huddled mass amidst a pile of large cardboard boxes. He paused, the dog had its head ducked in between its front paws and its ears were plastered against its head. Jonghyun was caught between wanting to find something to cover the dog with and wanting to get himself to somewhere dry but then there was a crack of thunder and Jonghyun's attention was stolen by a frightened, pained yelp.
Unable to fight his curiosity, Jonghyun crept closer and studied the dog. It barely raised its eyes to him but its tail thumped back and forth weakly. Amidst the black and tan fur, Jonghyun saw red mixed into the dog's coat and when a streak of lightning lit up the sky once more, he saw a series of large, shallow gashes running across the animal's side. The dog lifted its head and whimpered quietly again.
Shit, he thought, staring at its pathetic face. Now you've got me.
At once, Jonghyun made his decision and slowly, so as to not startle the poor thing, reached his hand out to the dog. It sniffed his hand for only a second before a tongue came out to lick across the pads of his fingers. Jonghyun ran his hand over the dog's head before he carefully reached his arms out to wrap around the dog's middle to pick it up. He had expected the dog to growl at him or maybe to have to pull back so that he wouldn't get bit, but the dog came into his arms without a fuss and Jonghyun carefully cradled the dog against his chest as he stood up.
The dog wasn't exactly small, a medium sized breed that hung its head over his shoulder and took up all the space his arms had to offer. He moved away from the boxes it had been hiding amongst and hefted it higher in his arms so that he could hold it more securely, careful not to jostle it too much. He had the dog's good side pressed against his chest and he made sure to keep his hands away from the scratches as he took a deep breath and set off down the street.
The rain hadn't lessened any and the dog was certainly no chihuahua. If Jonghyun could wish himself to his apartment he'd do it in a heartbeat, because running through the rain with a large dog wasn't quite his idea of a good time but what could he do? He had always been weak to puppy eyes. Luckily, he hadn't been that far away and reached his door in a matter of minutes, more winded than he'd like to admit. (He went to the gym regularly but he wasn't in the habit of running with a full-sized dog in his arms and the animal must have weighed at least 30 pounds.)
Getting his key into the lock had been a bit of a challenge but after nudging the door open, Jonghyun was able to slip his wet, disgusting shoes off before he tracked water all over his carpet, for all the good it did him. The first thing he did was make his way to the bathroom and turn the tub on, letting the water run until it became warm. He set the dog down on the floor, petting its head soothingly for a minute.
"Don't worry buddy, we'll get you nice and clean," he said.
As he waited for the water to warm up, he peeled off his shirt and jeans, chucking his wet clothing into the bathroom sink to deal with later. He rubbed a towel over his hair to stop it from dripping all over the place, draping it across his shoulders when it became time to wash the dog. Washing the dog was a surprisingly uncomplicated process; it seemed to be tired and it was quite content to let Jonghyun pour warm water over it. The floor of the tub quickly became muddied and it wasn't until the water finally ran clear that Jonghyun turned off the tap.
When the dog listlessly shook the water from its fur, Jonghyun became covered in water in a strange case of deja vu. He grabbed a towel and even when Jonghyun patted the animal down, it didn't snap at him or shy away. In fact, it seemed to understand everything that Jonghyun was doing. It laid quietly on its side as Jonghyun treated the scratches that were no longer scabbed in blood. But when he was finished and the dog rolled over to follow Jonghyun to the living room, he realized he had another problem to treat.
The dog was limping, its front right paw curled up off the ground. Jonghyun hadn't noticed it when he was washing it earlier because the dog had been turned away from him but here, it was obvious.
"Oh, what happened to you?" Jonghyun wondered sadly as he reached toward the dog's paw. Before he could touch it, it let out a frightened yelp and its paw curled further into its body.
Jonghyun made soothing shushing noises at it, cooing softly as he stroked the dog's back. "It's okay, buddy. I'm just gonna take a look at it." When he reached for the dog's paw again it didn't retreat, instead allowing Jonghyun to carefully feel around the wrist.
Looks like a sprain, Jonghyun thought worriedly. He went to the kitchen to get an ice pack and a dish towel and placed them on the coffee table. Then he went back to the dog and picked him up with a quiet, come on buddy, and brought him over to the couch. Jonghyun settled himself down first and then pulled the dog up on the couch with him, letting the animal get comfortable before he wrapped the towel around the ice pack and gently pressed it to the dog's wrist. The dog whimpered a little but when it settled its head on Jonghyun's knee, Jonghyun gave it a reassuring pat on the head.
He sat for a minute, brushing his hand across the dog's back, and ran through all the things he'd have to do for the dog in the coming days. He had a good dog bed from all the times he'd fostered some dogs here and there but he'd need to go get food in the morning and, after talking with Jinki the next day, he'd have to think about putting up flyers about a lost dog. But in the mean time...
"What should I call you, huh?" The dog snuffled against his pajama pants, head shifting to rest across Jonghyun's thigh.
"What about 'Haengun'?" Jonghyun smiled, "because you're lucky I found you." He scratched behind the dog's ears and laughed when it tried to lick his hand. "Haengun it is then."
It was nice, sitting on the couch with Haengun and being able to pet him. He hadn't had a dog in his apartment in a while and even though he saw dog after dog every day at the shelter, it just didn't compare to having an animal right there beside him in his downtime. He hadn't had a pet at home since Roo in high school and it made him feel a little nostalgic and maybe more than a touch lonely. Haengun seemed to pick up on his mood and bumped his nose against Jonghyun's stomach.
When he'd iced the dog's wrist for long enough, he set the ice pack aside and brought out the dog bed and a couple of blankets. After he'd set everything up, he carried Haengun over to the bed and loosely tucked him in, scratching behind the dog's ears once more.
"Tomorrow morning we'll get you properly settled in, okay?" he said with a small smile. Haengun licked his wrist and Jonghyun went off to get into bed himself.
-
One minute Jonghyun was asleep and the next he was awake and decidedly colder than he had been before. He sat up lazily, already wide awake, and saw that his blanket had suddenly disappeared. The culprit was at the side of his bed, curled tail wagging back and forth excitedly, with Jonghyun's blanket in his mouth. Haengun dropped the blanket and barked happily, his tail wagging more happily now that Jonghyun was truly up. He was up on his hind legs, front paws braced against the side of the bed and Jonghyun couldn't help himself. He rolled over, holding the dog's face in his hands and Haengun immediately started trying to lick his face. Jonghyun let him, scratching Haengun's neck and carefully checking the cuts on his side before he got up.
Haengun followed him out to the kitchen, still limping a little but looking much better than before. The scratches on his side seemed to have healed well over night but maybe they just weren't as bad as Jonghyun had thought at the time. Still, he'd have to ice Haengun's wrist again, especially since he was walking around on it already. Jonghyun pulled out the ice pack again, wrapping it up and sat down at the table. As if understanding what Jonghyun was doing, Haengun came over before Jonghyun even had to call him and laid his head down on Jonghyun's leg. He slowly brought his wounded leg up to rest against Jonghyun's leg and, after quickly ruffling the dog's fur as reward for his good behavior, Jonghyun set the ice pack against Haengun's wrist.
"We're going to have to get you something to eat," Jonghyun said, looking down at Haengun. "You hungry, boy?"
Haengun's tail bounced happily in reply and once he'd finished icing Haengun's leg, he took a quick shower and was ready to head out to the pet shop.
"Sit tight, Haengunnie," Jonghyun called on his way out of the door. "I'll be back with food in a bit." Haengun barked in response and Jonghyun was off.
The local specialty dog store, Bone Appetit, was located halfway between Jonghyun's apartment and the rescue shelter he worked at. He'd often stopped there on his way home when he needed to get something for any of the dogs he'd fostered and they were more than familiar with him there. A chime went off when he opened the door and he saw the little heads of Kibum's dogs Comme des and Garcons pop up from behind the counter. Kibum himself was seated next to their bed, a tablet on in front of him. Kibum glanced up at him and offered a lazy greeting before staring back at the screen.
"Whatcha looking at?" Jonghyun asked leaning against the counter, craning his head to get a look at the device.
"Carrie Munden has a new line out," Kibum muttered, eyes fixed row after row of photos of clothes.
Jonghyun made a noise and pushed away, looking around for what he needed. The walls were lined with collars, beds, and even clothes for dogs and there were displays of all different kinds of toys scattered about the store's floor. At the front was a display case of elaborate, dog-friendly desserts and in the back corner was - ah, that's what he was looking for. Jonghyun stared at the stacks of numerous types of bagged dog food and wondered what would be best for Haengun. When he made his choice, he picked up one of the smaller bags and hefted it onto the counter.
"Fostering again?" Kibum asked as he finally tore his eyes away from his tablet. He began ringing Jonghyun up as his dogs hopped up onto the counter to greet the man.
"Nope. Rescued a wounded dog last night," Jonghyun replied. Comme des' nails clicked excitedly against the countertop. "I figure I'll only have him for a little while though."
"Yeah? How is he?"
"Doing pretty good actually." Jonghyun picked up Comme des, bouncing him as he thought about Haengun. "He looked pretty miserable last night but this morning he was really...lively," his voice was colored with surprise and confusion. Haengun hadn't been able to put any weight on his paw last night but he seemed almost miraculously better after only one night.
"Oh," Jonghyun said as he put Comme des back on the counter. The little dog jumped right into its bed right next to Garcons. "Let me have one of these too." Jonghyun figured that to heal well meant to be happy, and that meant dessert was definitely in order. Haengun was going to be spoiled as long as he hung around with Jonghyun.
He paid for Haengun's things and left, bidding Kibum goodbye, and began his walk back. And though the forecast still boasted a sunny and clear sky, Jonghyun nearly got caught in another downpour on his way back to his apartment. By the time he rounded the corner onto his block the sky had darkened considerably and a foreboding roll of thunder sounded in the distance. No sooner than he had toed the door shut behind him had a considerably heavy rain started to fall. Needless to say, Jonghyun decided to take his bike to work after that.
-
"And he doesn't have any tags or anything?"
"Nope," Jonghyun leaned back in his chair. "No tags, no collar." His brow creased in thought. "But he has to be someone's pet because he's way too friendly and trusting for a stray."
"Unless he's a stray that's used to being around people," Jinki pointed out.
"Yeah, I guess so. But I think I should probably put up fliers just in case."
"Just be careful. We don't know h- ow!" The shelter's resident hellcat, Taemin, had just nipped Jinki's finger. Taemin settled down comfortably in Jinki's lap, claws nestled in the hem of Jinki's shirt. "We don't know how he got hurt," Jinki sighed.
Jonghyun frowned. "I hadn't thought of that."
He watched as Jinki stroked the cat's ginger fur lovingly. They'd gotten Taemin a couple years back when he was just a kitten; someone had had a litter that they couldn't keep and they'd dumped them all off at the rescue shelter. All of the rest of the litter had gone off to happy homes but after Taemin had been returned twice, Jinki had suggested that they just keep Taemin there for themselves instead of keeping him up for adoption. Jinki might as well have taken Taemin home with him for all that he was really Jinki's cat now but Taemin preferred to roam the shelter of his own free will. He was a bit of a brat but Jonghyun knew Jinki really cared for him and Jonghyun might have a soft spot for the little devil on his better days. (Or - at least he liked the little guy when Taemin wasn't scratching up his calves that was.)
"What kind of dog is it, by the way?" Jinki asked and Jonghyun looked up at him.
"Oh. Um. I don't actually know. Here," Jonghyun rifled through his pockets for his phone. "I took a picture of him this morning, before I left. I was hoping you could tell me actually."
Jinki took the phone and studied it for a minute. "He looks...like a Kai Ken." Jinki turned to stare at him and his expression was bewildered. "They're really rare, Jonghyun."
"Oh, wow." Jonghyun took his phone back and his expression became thunderous as he slipped his phone back in his pocket. "He better not have had a dangerous owner."
"That's why you should be careful. Are you prepared to take care of him?"
Taemin jumped from Jinki's lap then, startling both of them.
"Sure? I mean, I can keep him at my apartment until he's better and then - well, either keep him or bring him here."
"As long as you're prepared, I guess."
And Jonghyun thought he was. He'd fostered dogs before, had a dog growing up - he knew dogs. But Haengun was an anomaly all himself because when Jonghyun walked in the door, Haengun was sitting there waiting, tail flicking back and forth and mouth split in a doggy grin. Jonghyun reached down to scratch Haengun's head, wondering where this dog came from. He was too friendly to be a stray but with no tags it would be hard for Jonghyun to find the owner, if there was one. He set about making dinner, pausing only to guide Haengun to his bed when the dog kept limping after him.
But the dog couldn't have been doing too bad because after he'd finished eating, Jonghyun retired to the couch and Haengun shakily hopped up beside him. He laid down like he had the night before, with his head on Jonghyun's leg and Jonghyun had the sense the this could be very dangerous; he easily got attached to things and with a dog as loveable as this, Jonghyun was sure to fall hard when the time came where he'd have to give him up. But in the meantime, he turned on the television and finally landed on some conspiracy theory program.
Jonghyun had a bit of a weakness for conspiracy theories. Things like aliens and super powers were the stuff of his favorite books growing up and it was a hobby that had never quite left him as he slipped into adulthood. The narrator of the show was talking about how there were "creatures thought only to be myth, but they are in fact...real" and Jonghyun was hooked. He sat back comfortably, hand on Haengun's back and watched with interest as the narrator introduced shapeshifters.
There was a loud swell of music from the show and Haengun whined lowly. Jonghyun pulled the dog a little closer to himself and spent the remainder of the half hour program with his eyes glued to the television. He could never really say if he believed in any of the things people said about extra terrestrials or mythical creatures but he certainly loved thinking about it.
"Well that was cool," Jonghyun said as he stretched his arms over his head. Haengun let out a yawn, tongue lolling out of his mouth for a moment.
"Hey Haengunnie," Jonghyun lightly cradled Haengun's head between his hands. "Do you want a treat?" Haengun's ears perked at this. Must be a pet then, Jonghyun thought. "You want a treat?" He asked again, voice treading suspiciously close into baby talk territory. Haengun's doggy grin reappeared and Jonghyun slapped his thigh as he got up. "Okay, let's get you that treat."
-
Over the next few days, Jonghyun's daily routine hardly varied from the way it was before he'd picked up Haengun - except for when he got home he had a dog waiting for him by the door and a buddy to keep him company until he went to bed. Haengun was healing remarkably well, the wounds on his side barely even visible. Jonghyun started to wonder if he'd misjudged Haengun's leg too because four days after finding him, Haengun was walking normally and had even started to prance up and down excitedly whenever Jonghyun was going to feed him.
The little rascal had even started jumping on Jonghyun's bed and licking his face to wake him up in the morning. Jonghyun had put up fliers the day after he'd talked to Jinki about it and he was prepared to be very conscientious about anyone claiming to be Haengun's owners but he needn't have worried. No one had contacted him about Haengun yet.
Jonghyun didn't know whether to be worried or delighted because there was a good chance that Haengun was going to end up being his dog. And at this point, if someone didn't step up as Haengun's owner, Jonghyun was more than a little too ready to take up the position himself. Haengun had almost effortlessly fit into Jonghyun's life in a matter of only a few days and Jonghyun wasn't sure he was able to give the dog up anymore.
When Jonghyun went to work that morning (with the weather finally living up to the flawless forecast the weatherman had been predicting all week) he expected the day to go as every other day had gone. He took for granted the simplicity of his routine and expected to leave work, go home, and find Haengun there waiting for him at the door. He expected to make dinner and then watch television with Haengun on the couch and then maybe read a little before bed. He expected that the day would be just like all the others had been because he had no reason to believe it wouldn't be.
But when he opened the door the routine was already broken because Haengun was not waiting there like he normally was. And as Jonghyun looked around the room curiously, Haengun still didn't come out to greet him.
"Haengun?" Jonghyun called out hesitantly. The door had been locked, there was no way Haengun could have gotten out. Did his injuries suddenly get worse while Jonghyun was at work? "Haengun?" He called again, a touch more frantically.
He toed off his shoes quickly, door slamming behind him in his haste to get inside to look for his dog. Hundreds of awful scenarios were running through his brain but everything stopped when Jonghyun reached his room. After the first night, Jonghyun had pulled Haengun's bed into his room under the flimsy excuse of being able to watch him easier, ignoring the fact that it was really just because he had already grown really attached to the dog. And Jonghyun found something in his room but it wasn't Haengun.
There in Haengun's bed was a forlorn looking man in a very worn looking shirt and pair of jeans. But it wasn't his clothing that Jonghyun was concerned with, or even the fact that the man was sitting in his dog's bed. What Jonghyun was concerned with was that there was a strange, unknown man in his apartment and Jonghyun had no idea how he'd gotten there. Acting on instinct, Jonghyun yelled and leaped back, eyes searching for the nearest object that he could use as a weapon.
"Who the hell are you?" he yelled. "How the fuck did you get in my apartment?" His hands found his guitar, propped up against the wall in the living room and he brandished it in front of himself threateningly.
The man in the dog bed looked ashamed and maybe a little hurt and for an irrational second Jonghyun wondered why before he snapped back to himself and realized again that there was some random guy sitting in his apartment, in his dog's bed and he had no idea why.
"Jonghyun, please." His voice was low and scratchy and Jonghyun readied his guitar again as the man stood up. He was almost overwhelmingly tall, at least a head taller than Jonghyun and Jonghyun's instincts went right back into high alert.
"How do you know my name?" Jonghyun tried to sound fearsome but his voice cracked and he was honestly just scared out of his mind.
The guys' eyes were large and round and he looked so worried and he broke into Jonghyun's house, why did he look like a kicked puppy. Wait -
“What the hell did you do with my dog, asshole?"
"Wait, Jonghyun," the man pleaded and he raised his hands in placation when Jonghyun shook the guitar in front of him. "I can explain, just don't hit me."
Jonghyun paused at that. He had never heard of someone bargaining in this sort of situation. Still, he kept his guitar out in front of him but raised an eyebrow at the man.
"Okay. Explain."
The man let out a heavy sigh. "You know the program we watched the other day?"
Jonghyun made a face at that. We? Seeing Jonghyun's face, the man blanched and backtracked.
"You and...Haengun watched a program the other day. About shapeshifters. Do you remember?"
Jonghyun scoffed. "Yeah, but what does that have to - " He looked at the man's earnest face. "Oh, don't tell me you think you're a shapeshifter." Jonghyun moved to the side and gestured at the door with the guitar. "Go on. I don't need any crazy guys in my house."
"Wait! Please," he took a step closer and when Jonghyun took a step back and raised his guitar again, the man jerked back.
He looked so shaken that despite everything in his head telling him not to, Jonghyun started to get concerned.
"You work at the shelter a couple blocks away with a man named Jinki. You talk about him a lot and the cat that bites him all the time. You used to have a dog named Roo."
Jonghyun took a step back. "Have you been stalking me?" His eyes were wide and scared now.
"No!" The man nearly shouted. He took a deep breath and then started talking again, faster this time. "You bought me a cake. You - you bought Haengun a cake. And the second night, after we watched that show together you gave me some." The man looked like he was starting to get choked up.
"You picked me up that night when it was raining and you brought me here. You iced my wrist. You fed me. It's because of you that...that I'm even alive right now."
The man was staring at the floor and he looked so sincere and hurt that Jonghyun decided, against his better judgment, to give him a chance.
"Prove it."
The man's head jerked up. "What?"
"Prove it," Jonghyun repeated defiantly. "If you're really Haengun then show me."
The man's face brightened for a second before his expression fell. "I...I can't change right now. I don't have the energy."
Jonghyun raised his guitar again, mouth already open to get the man out of his house but the man looked at him hesitantly.
"I...still have those scratches on my side. If you want to see them..." He trailed off, looking unsure.
Jonghyun sized him up again. He was taller than Jonghyun was but Jonghyun thought he had more muscle than the other guy. If it came to it, Jonghyun probably wouldn't be able to outrun him but he'd likely be able to overpower the man.
"Okay," Jonghyun said. "Show me."
The man paused for a second before he lifted up his shirt. For a split second Jonghyun couldn't see anything and he was convinced that there was something wrong with the guy's head. But then the man turned his side a little more toward Jonghyun and he saw them - several thin, scabbed over cuts running the length of his side. In a stupid move fueled by curiosity, Jonghyun crept closer to the man to inspect the scratches. He'd spent a lot of time caring for Haengun and he could easily conjure up the image of Haengun's cuts the night Jonghyun found him. Looking at the ones on the man's side, they seemed to match up to where Haengun's wounds were and, without thinking, Jonghyun reached out to touch them.
The man jerked back and, startled from the movement, Jonghyun's hand shot out to stop him. His hand closed around the man's right wrist and the man hissed as Jonghyun tugged.
"Careful," he said through gritted teeth. "It's still a little sore."
Sore? Oh -
Jonghyun loosened his grip but didn't let go. He turned the man's wrist around in his hand gently. He wasn't familiar with human injuries in quite the way he was with animal ones but he lightly prodded around the man's wrist, ceasing when the man's hand twitched in his grip.
"Let me see your other hand," he said in a much gentler tone than he'd used with the man before.
The man held up his other hand slowly and Jonghyun took it, comparing the man's wrists. Sure enough, his right wrist was a little more swollen than his left and Jonghyun could see faded bruising around the bone. He dropped both of the man's hands and stepped back.
"Why were you a dog when I found you?"
The man's face transformed into something of quiet relief before he schooled his features back into a calmer expression. He shrugged a shoulder and replied, "people are more likely to help a wounded dog than a dirty, homeless guy."
"So why aren't you still a dog then? You'd have to know that whoever took you in would flip out if they saw some stranger in their house."
"You didn't really flip out," the man started to say but Jonghyun lifted the hand with the guitar in it and raised an eyebrow. "Okay, yeah, you kind of did. But...I can't really stay in dog form for too long. It takes up too much energy."
Jonghyun's face screwed up in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"Well, being in human form only takes up a normal amount of energy," the man started slowly. "Whatever energy it takes you to do something, it takes the same amount for me. But as a dog, it takes the amount of energy to say, run around the room, but also an extra amount of energy in order to maintain the form."
Jonghyun made a little noise and crossed his arms. "So you can't change right now because you stayed a dog for too many days and it drained your energy?" He wasn't sure he bought this but the other man didn't really seem dangerous. In fact, now that Jonghyun had calmed down a little, he could see that the man looked exhausted. He didn't seem to pose as much of a threat as he had before.
"Right."
"Wait - you were a dog the whole time right?" He suddenly had a terrifying thought. "What the hell were you doing the whole time I was at work? Oh god - I changed in front of you."
The man looked away, cheeks tinged pink. "I looked away," he mumbled.
Jonghyun released a nervous breath. The man could be lying but, if he thought about it, Jonghyun couldn't remember any strange behavior from Haengun: just an uncanny intelligence and sense of awareness when Jonghyun talked to him. That made more sense now, actually.
"I've been in dog form since the night you found me. I mostly just slept while you were gone." He finally looked back up and Jonghyun was shocked by the honesty he saw in the other man's eyes. He wasn't sure he had any idea what the hell was going on but somehow he believed that this man was telling the truth about everything.
"So what happens next then?" Jonghyun asked. Because now he was just trying to navigate this system as best as he could but what exactly was he supposed to do in this sort of situation?
"Now...I leave, I guess." The man wasn't meeting Jonghyun's eyes anymore.
"That's it? I rescue a hurt dog - you - and you laze around in my house until you get better and now you're just going to leave? What was the point of all," he flailingly gestured at the man. "This?" Jonghyun was raising his voice but he honestly didn't care at this point. All of his previous fear was now coming out in frustration.
"I wanted...to thank you. For saving me." The man locked eyes with Jonghyun and there was all of his sincerity again, hitting Jonghyun full force. It was staggering. "So, thank you."
"Well where are you going to go?" Jonghyun blurted out, exasperated. He considered himself to be a pretty easy-going kind of guy but it seemed a lot more inviting to let a wounded stray stick around your apartment than a stranger with dirty clothes. But he also had nowhere else to go and Jonghyun was an idiot. He had too big of a heart for his own good and he was leading this stranger right into it with an open door and welcome arms. (He may or may not also still have that weak spot for puppy eyes and, man, this guy had some serious puppy eyes.)
The man suddenly looked self-conscious, even more than he had when Jonghyun found him sitting in Haengun's - his - bed. He nervously scratched his arm and looked away. "I don't know. Somewhere."
Jonghyun closed his eyes and took a deep breath. What he was about to do was potentially the stupidest, most reckless decision he'd ever made in his life (and, admittedly, he'd made a lot of really stupid, reckless decisions) but his mind was made and his resolved was steeled.
"Do you want to stay here?"
The man's eyes grew almost impossibly larger. "Jonghyun, no, I couldn't. You've already done so much for me already, I couldn't stay here."
He was babbling and waving his hands at Jonghyun and it looked strange coming from such a tall, imposing-looking guy.
"Do you want to stay here?" Jonghyun asked again.
The man stopped. "...yes. I do."
Jonghyun rubbed a hand over his face. "Then you can stay."
The man let out a rush of air and for a second Jonghyun thought the guy was going to run over and hug him. But instead his face lit up with a wide smile and Jonghyun carefully pushed away the thought that maybe he'd done a good thing.
"What's your name?" he asked finally. "It's - it's not actually Haengun is it?"
The man stared at him solemnly and Jonghyun started, apologies pouring from his mouth, "oh god, I'm so sorry. If I'd known that I would have given you a better name. I -"
But then the man's lips quirked up and Jonghyun quieted as he barked out a loud, rich laugh.
"No," he said, smile wide on his face. "No, my name's Minho."
-
Despite Jonghyun offering his home to Minho, they still lived very mindfully of each other and, in the occasions that they would meet in Jonghyun's small apartment, they moved very awkwardly around each other. Minho was still essentially a complete stranger and Jonghyun was now trying to adjust the way he lived to accommodate an extra person. Jonghyun felt like he was hyper aware of everything that Minho did, where he was, the small accumulation of his dishes that piled up next to Jonghyun's own in the sink. Minho lived very discreetly in Jonghyun's apartment, imposing himself and his presence as little as possible. They tip toed around each other in a way that Jonghyun was not used to doing with anyone else. For the first two days after Minho began living with him as a human, Jonghyun would have forgotten that there was anyone else there were it not for the soft turn of a page of a book or the tinny clink of a spoon against a bowl. He was so quiet.
It wasn't until nearly a week after Minho had "moved in" that Jonghyun worked up the strength to ask him about himself.
They were in the kitchen together and Jonghyun was making dinner, Minho hovering around the counter in a way that was reminiscent of how, as a dog, he would sit at Jonghyun's feet and stare up at Jonghyun cooking. The feeling created a pang of sadness in Jonghyun, which was silly because Haengun was technically still right there but Jonghyun had to admit that he really missed having Haengun around. With he and Minho being so careful around each other, it made it hard to feel like he'd made the right decision to let him stay.
"So how did you get hurt?" Jonghyun asked out of nowhere. From the corner of his eye he could see Minho jump at his sudden question. Jonghyun could feel the other man staring at him but he didn't look up from the cutting board.
"I was," Minho hesitated but Jonghyun pretended to stay focused on his task. "I was trying to get something to eat."
But that threw him off and Jonghyun looked up, perplexed. "All of that from getting food?" he asked, gesturing wildly at Minho.
"I might have been trying to steal it," Minho mumbled as he looked away.
"Oh," Jonghyun replied dumbly. There were a couple of beats of silence before he asked, "why did you need to steal food?"
Minho sighed and Jonghyun was about to retract his question but Minho had already started talking.
"I used to live with an old woman. I don't know how she found me but she raised me from when I was really young. A couple of years ago, she died and I was left on my own. Her family took everything she'd owned and I was tossed out on the street."
Jonghyun, realizing that this was going to be a more complicated answer than he'd expected, tossed everything into a pan and turned the stove on. He took a seat at the table to listen properly but Minho kept his place at the counter.
"I went to school when I was younger but granny didn't have a lot of money so I never went to college and the rest of the world isn't really okay with that. I've never been able to find any sort of job that paid well enough for me to be able to eat regularly. When that happened, I usually just became a dog and tried to get food that way."
Minho's mouth quirked into a wry smile. "People tend to be more inclined to help dogs than people."
For some reason, Jonghyun felt really embarrassed. But Minho kept talking, so Jonghyun listened.
"Before you found me, it had been a while since I'd eaten. I've been sort of wandering since granny died so I'm not actually familiar with this town. But I found a gas station and there was a display case outside. There was an older couple inside running the place but I thought that from behind the register they wouldn't be able to see me. I tried to slip some food but they caught me."
Minho leaned back against the counter and looked off to the side, staring out the window with crossed arms as he spoke. "The woman came out with a broom of all things and slammed it down hard on my wrist," Minho brought his wrist up and experimentally twirled it. The bruising had faded a while ago but he still seemed to have trouble using it.
"Then the man took the broom from her and chased me down the street. I fell pretty hard when I ran away and I think he might have kicked me but I don't really remember."
Minho shook his head. "I just wanted to get away."
Jonghyun looked at him in confusion. "Then what did you turn into a dog for?"
Minho didn't answer right away and Jonghyun was afraid that he'd asked something wrong. He sat there as the silence stretched on for a while longer before Minho began again, his voice sounding like he was somewhere far away in his head.
"I'm faster as dog - it was easier to run and hide. And since I was hurt, I was more likely to get someone to help me as a dog instead of as a human. I heal faster that way too."
Minho looked at him and, still sounding far away, he said, "thank you again for taking me in."
"Well, how was I just supposed to leave an injured dog in the rain?" Jonghyun said stubbornly.
"Really." Minho's eyes were shining fiercely again, just like they had the night that he had revealed himself to Jonghyun. "Thank you for everything. Let me know whatever I can help you with. I'll repay you for everything you've given me. I'll try and find a job and pay you back."
Jonghyun couldn't take it anymore.
"This is your home now! Just live normally." It was like the cap he had on his bottle of emotions had finally been wrenched off. He was sick of the way they were acting around each other, like frightened deer, spooked at any instance of interaction with the other. "You don't have to be so careful. Don't be afraid to speak up or ask for things or -" Jonghyun ran a hand through his hair. "I'm trying to help you out here but you gotta meet me half way."
"I'm sorry," Minho said quietly.
"Don't be sorry just help me out. I'm a little new to this whole thing, you know."
Minho looked down with a small smile quirking at the corners of his lips. "I know."
"So. Do we both agree to properly communicate from now on so that things stop being so weird between us?"
Minho's smile was growing and he looked a little bashful. "Yeah, I think I can do that."
"I know we don't know each other well but I think we could get along pretty damn good if we tried," Jonghyun said seriously.
"I think so too," Minho said, finally looking at Jonghyun again.
"Good. Now that that's settled, what say you we have some dinner?"
(Their dinner was slightly burnt that night but, in light of the progress they'd made and the air that was finally cleared, Jonghyun rather felt it was worth it.)
next
Pairing:Jonghyun/Minho
Rating:R
Warnings:None
Final Word Count: 19,945
The shelter that Jonghyun worked at was only a twenty minute walk from his apartment which, on most days, was a blessing because it meant he saved a fortune on gas money. But with the skies in the middle of a raging and horrendous apocalypse, Jonghyun's relatively short commute on foot turned into a mad dash to make it home before he somehow got impossibly more wet. Within minutes of setting foot out from beneath the protective awning the young man had become soaked from head to toe and his shoes squished uncomfortably as he raced back to his apartment. And to think, the forecast had predicted sunny skies for the whole week.
Of all the days to leave my umbrella at home, Jonghyun cursed as he futilely covered his head at a stop light.
When the light turned, he jumped over a large puddle pooling at the base of the curb and darted across the street. He wasn't that far from his apartment but the wind started to pick up, battering even more rain into his already drenched frame. Jonghyun bit the inside of his cheek as cold water seeped into his jeans, slowly climbing higher up his legs.
At the first rumble of thunder, Jonghyun jerked and picked up his pace. He was about to turn onto the block his apartment building was on when he caught sight of a huddled mass amidst a pile of large cardboard boxes. He paused, the dog had its head ducked in between its front paws and its ears were plastered against its head. Jonghyun was caught between wanting to find something to cover the dog with and wanting to get himself to somewhere dry but then there was a crack of thunder and Jonghyun's attention was stolen by a frightened, pained yelp.
Unable to fight his curiosity, Jonghyun crept closer and studied the dog. It barely raised its eyes to him but its tail thumped back and forth weakly. Amidst the black and tan fur, Jonghyun saw red mixed into the dog's coat and when a streak of lightning lit up the sky once more, he saw a series of large, shallow gashes running across the animal's side. The dog lifted its head and whimpered quietly again.
Shit, he thought, staring at its pathetic face. Now you've got me.
At once, Jonghyun made his decision and slowly, so as to not startle the poor thing, reached his hand out to the dog. It sniffed his hand for only a second before a tongue came out to lick across the pads of his fingers. Jonghyun ran his hand over the dog's head before he carefully reached his arms out to wrap around the dog's middle to pick it up. He had expected the dog to growl at him or maybe to have to pull back so that he wouldn't get bit, but the dog came into his arms without a fuss and Jonghyun carefully cradled the dog against his chest as he stood up.
The dog wasn't exactly small, a medium sized breed that hung its head over his shoulder and took up all the space his arms had to offer. He moved away from the boxes it had been hiding amongst and hefted it higher in his arms so that he could hold it more securely, careful not to jostle it too much. He had the dog's good side pressed against his chest and he made sure to keep his hands away from the scratches as he took a deep breath and set off down the street.
The rain hadn't lessened any and the dog was certainly no chihuahua. If Jonghyun could wish himself to his apartment he'd do it in a heartbeat, because running through the rain with a large dog wasn't quite his idea of a good time but what could he do? He had always been weak to puppy eyes. Luckily, he hadn't been that far away and reached his door in a matter of minutes, more winded than he'd like to admit. (He went to the gym regularly but he wasn't in the habit of running with a full-sized dog in his arms and the animal must have weighed at least 30 pounds.)
Getting his key into the lock had been a bit of a challenge but after nudging the door open, Jonghyun was able to slip his wet, disgusting shoes off before he tracked water all over his carpet, for all the good it did him. The first thing he did was make his way to the bathroom and turn the tub on, letting the water run until it became warm. He set the dog down on the floor, petting its head soothingly for a minute.
"Don't worry buddy, we'll get you nice and clean," he said.
As he waited for the water to warm up, he peeled off his shirt and jeans, chucking his wet clothing into the bathroom sink to deal with later. He rubbed a towel over his hair to stop it from dripping all over the place, draping it across his shoulders when it became time to wash the dog. Washing the dog was a surprisingly uncomplicated process; it seemed to be tired and it was quite content to let Jonghyun pour warm water over it. The floor of the tub quickly became muddied and it wasn't until the water finally ran clear that Jonghyun turned off the tap.
When the dog listlessly shook the water from its fur, Jonghyun became covered in water in a strange case of deja vu. He grabbed a towel and even when Jonghyun patted the animal down, it didn't snap at him or shy away. In fact, it seemed to understand everything that Jonghyun was doing. It laid quietly on its side as Jonghyun treated the scratches that were no longer scabbed in blood. But when he was finished and the dog rolled over to follow Jonghyun to the living room, he realized he had another problem to treat.
The dog was limping, its front right paw curled up off the ground. Jonghyun hadn't noticed it when he was washing it earlier because the dog had been turned away from him but here, it was obvious.
"Oh, what happened to you?" Jonghyun wondered sadly as he reached toward the dog's paw. Before he could touch it, it let out a frightened yelp and its paw curled further into its body.
Jonghyun made soothing shushing noises at it, cooing softly as he stroked the dog's back. "It's okay, buddy. I'm just gonna take a look at it." When he reached for the dog's paw again it didn't retreat, instead allowing Jonghyun to carefully feel around the wrist.
Looks like a sprain, Jonghyun thought worriedly. He went to the kitchen to get an ice pack and a dish towel and placed them on the coffee table. Then he went back to the dog and picked him up with a quiet, come on buddy, and brought him over to the couch. Jonghyun settled himself down first and then pulled the dog up on the couch with him, letting the animal get comfortable before he wrapped the towel around the ice pack and gently pressed it to the dog's wrist. The dog whimpered a little but when it settled its head on Jonghyun's knee, Jonghyun gave it a reassuring pat on the head.
He sat for a minute, brushing his hand across the dog's back, and ran through all the things he'd have to do for the dog in the coming days. He had a good dog bed from all the times he'd fostered some dogs here and there but he'd need to go get food in the morning and, after talking with Jinki the next day, he'd have to think about putting up flyers about a lost dog. But in the mean time...
"What should I call you, huh?" The dog snuffled against his pajama pants, head shifting to rest across Jonghyun's thigh.
"What about 'Haengun'?" Jonghyun smiled, "because you're lucky I found you." He scratched behind the dog's ears and laughed when it tried to lick his hand. "Haengun it is then."
It was nice, sitting on the couch with Haengun and being able to pet him. He hadn't had a dog in his apartment in a while and even though he saw dog after dog every day at the shelter, it just didn't compare to having an animal right there beside him in his downtime. He hadn't had a pet at home since Roo in high school and it made him feel a little nostalgic and maybe more than a touch lonely. Haengun seemed to pick up on his mood and bumped his nose against Jonghyun's stomach.
When he'd iced the dog's wrist for long enough, he set the ice pack aside and brought out the dog bed and a couple of blankets. After he'd set everything up, he carried Haengun over to the bed and loosely tucked him in, scratching behind the dog's ears once more.
"Tomorrow morning we'll get you properly settled in, okay?" he said with a small smile. Haengun licked his wrist and Jonghyun went off to get into bed himself.
-
One minute Jonghyun was asleep and the next he was awake and decidedly colder than he had been before. He sat up lazily, already wide awake, and saw that his blanket had suddenly disappeared. The culprit was at the side of his bed, curled tail wagging back and forth excitedly, with Jonghyun's blanket in his mouth. Haengun dropped the blanket and barked happily, his tail wagging more happily now that Jonghyun was truly up. He was up on his hind legs, front paws braced against the side of the bed and Jonghyun couldn't help himself. He rolled over, holding the dog's face in his hands and Haengun immediately started trying to lick his face. Jonghyun let him, scratching Haengun's neck and carefully checking the cuts on his side before he got up.
Haengun followed him out to the kitchen, still limping a little but looking much better than before. The scratches on his side seemed to have healed well over night but maybe they just weren't as bad as Jonghyun had thought at the time. Still, he'd have to ice Haengun's wrist again, especially since he was walking around on it already. Jonghyun pulled out the ice pack again, wrapping it up and sat down at the table. As if understanding what Jonghyun was doing, Haengun came over before Jonghyun even had to call him and laid his head down on Jonghyun's leg. He slowly brought his wounded leg up to rest against Jonghyun's leg and, after quickly ruffling the dog's fur as reward for his good behavior, Jonghyun set the ice pack against Haengun's wrist.
"We're going to have to get you something to eat," Jonghyun said, looking down at Haengun. "You hungry, boy?"
Haengun's tail bounced happily in reply and once he'd finished icing Haengun's leg, he took a quick shower and was ready to head out to the pet shop.
"Sit tight, Haengunnie," Jonghyun called on his way out of the door. "I'll be back with food in a bit." Haengun barked in response and Jonghyun was off.
The local specialty dog store, Bone Appetit, was located halfway between Jonghyun's apartment and the rescue shelter he worked at. He'd often stopped there on his way home when he needed to get something for any of the dogs he'd fostered and they were more than familiar with him there. A chime went off when he opened the door and he saw the little heads of Kibum's dogs Comme des and Garcons pop up from behind the counter. Kibum himself was seated next to their bed, a tablet on in front of him. Kibum glanced up at him and offered a lazy greeting before staring back at the screen.
"Whatcha looking at?" Jonghyun asked leaning against the counter, craning his head to get a look at the device.
"Carrie Munden has a new line out," Kibum muttered, eyes fixed row after row of photos of clothes.
Jonghyun made a noise and pushed away, looking around for what he needed. The walls were lined with collars, beds, and even clothes for dogs and there were displays of all different kinds of toys scattered about the store's floor. At the front was a display case of elaborate, dog-friendly desserts and in the back corner was - ah, that's what he was looking for. Jonghyun stared at the stacks of numerous types of bagged dog food and wondered what would be best for Haengun. When he made his choice, he picked up one of the smaller bags and hefted it onto the counter.
"Fostering again?" Kibum asked as he finally tore his eyes away from his tablet. He began ringing Jonghyun up as his dogs hopped up onto the counter to greet the man.
"Nope. Rescued a wounded dog last night," Jonghyun replied. Comme des' nails clicked excitedly against the countertop. "I figure I'll only have him for a little while though."
"Yeah? How is he?"
"Doing pretty good actually." Jonghyun picked up Comme des, bouncing him as he thought about Haengun. "He looked pretty miserable last night but this morning he was really...lively," his voice was colored with surprise and confusion. Haengun hadn't been able to put any weight on his paw last night but he seemed almost miraculously better after only one night.
"Oh," Jonghyun said as he put Comme des back on the counter. The little dog jumped right into its bed right next to Garcons. "Let me have one of these too." Jonghyun figured that to heal well meant to be happy, and that meant dessert was definitely in order. Haengun was going to be spoiled as long as he hung around with Jonghyun.
He paid for Haengun's things and left, bidding Kibum goodbye, and began his walk back. And though the forecast still boasted a sunny and clear sky, Jonghyun nearly got caught in another downpour on his way back to his apartment. By the time he rounded the corner onto his block the sky had darkened considerably and a foreboding roll of thunder sounded in the distance. No sooner than he had toed the door shut behind him had a considerably heavy rain started to fall. Needless to say, Jonghyun decided to take his bike to work after that.
-
"And he doesn't have any tags or anything?"
"Nope," Jonghyun leaned back in his chair. "No tags, no collar." His brow creased in thought. "But he has to be someone's pet because he's way too friendly and trusting for a stray."
"Unless he's a stray that's used to being around people," Jinki pointed out.
"Yeah, I guess so. But I think I should probably put up fliers just in case."
"Just be careful. We don't know h- ow!" The shelter's resident hellcat, Taemin, had just nipped Jinki's finger. Taemin settled down comfortably in Jinki's lap, claws nestled in the hem of Jinki's shirt. "We don't know how he got hurt," Jinki sighed.
Jonghyun frowned. "I hadn't thought of that."
He watched as Jinki stroked the cat's ginger fur lovingly. They'd gotten Taemin a couple years back when he was just a kitten; someone had had a litter that they couldn't keep and they'd dumped them all off at the rescue shelter. All of the rest of the litter had gone off to happy homes but after Taemin had been returned twice, Jinki had suggested that they just keep Taemin there for themselves instead of keeping him up for adoption. Jinki might as well have taken Taemin home with him for all that he was really Jinki's cat now but Taemin preferred to roam the shelter of his own free will. He was a bit of a brat but Jonghyun knew Jinki really cared for him and Jonghyun might have a soft spot for the little devil on his better days. (Or - at least he liked the little guy when Taemin wasn't scratching up his calves that was.)
"What kind of dog is it, by the way?" Jinki asked and Jonghyun looked up at him.
"Oh. Um. I don't actually know. Here," Jonghyun rifled through his pockets for his phone. "I took a picture of him this morning, before I left. I was hoping you could tell me actually."
Jinki took the phone and studied it for a minute. "He looks...like a Kai Ken." Jinki turned to stare at him and his expression was bewildered. "They're really rare, Jonghyun."
"Oh, wow." Jonghyun took his phone back and his expression became thunderous as he slipped his phone back in his pocket. "He better not have had a dangerous owner."
"That's why you should be careful. Are you prepared to take care of him?"
Taemin jumped from Jinki's lap then, startling both of them.
"Sure? I mean, I can keep him at my apartment until he's better and then - well, either keep him or bring him here."
"As long as you're prepared, I guess."
And Jonghyun thought he was. He'd fostered dogs before, had a dog growing up - he knew dogs. But Haengun was an anomaly all himself because when Jonghyun walked in the door, Haengun was sitting there waiting, tail flicking back and forth and mouth split in a doggy grin. Jonghyun reached down to scratch Haengun's head, wondering where this dog came from. He was too friendly to be a stray but with no tags it would be hard for Jonghyun to find the owner, if there was one. He set about making dinner, pausing only to guide Haengun to his bed when the dog kept limping after him.
But the dog couldn't have been doing too bad because after he'd finished eating, Jonghyun retired to the couch and Haengun shakily hopped up beside him. He laid down like he had the night before, with his head on Jonghyun's leg and Jonghyun had the sense the this could be very dangerous; he easily got attached to things and with a dog as loveable as this, Jonghyun was sure to fall hard when the time came where he'd have to give him up. But in the meantime, he turned on the television and finally landed on some conspiracy theory program.
Jonghyun had a bit of a weakness for conspiracy theories. Things like aliens and super powers were the stuff of his favorite books growing up and it was a hobby that had never quite left him as he slipped into adulthood. The narrator of the show was talking about how there were "creatures thought only to be myth, but they are in fact...real" and Jonghyun was hooked. He sat back comfortably, hand on Haengun's back and watched with interest as the narrator introduced shapeshifters.
There was a loud swell of music from the show and Haengun whined lowly. Jonghyun pulled the dog a little closer to himself and spent the remainder of the half hour program with his eyes glued to the television. He could never really say if he believed in any of the things people said about extra terrestrials or mythical creatures but he certainly loved thinking about it.
"Well that was cool," Jonghyun said as he stretched his arms over his head. Haengun let out a yawn, tongue lolling out of his mouth for a moment.
"Hey Haengunnie," Jonghyun lightly cradled Haengun's head between his hands. "Do you want a treat?" Haengun's ears perked at this. Must be a pet then, Jonghyun thought. "You want a treat?" He asked again, voice treading suspiciously close into baby talk territory. Haengun's doggy grin reappeared and Jonghyun slapped his thigh as he got up. "Okay, let's get you that treat."
-
Over the next few days, Jonghyun's daily routine hardly varied from the way it was before he'd picked up Haengun - except for when he got home he had a dog waiting for him by the door and a buddy to keep him company until he went to bed. Haengun was healing remarkably well, the wounds on his side barely even visible. Jonghyun started to wonder if he'd misjudged Haengun's leg too because four days after finding him, Haengun was walking normally and had even started to prance up and down excitedly whenever Jonghyun was going to feed him.
The little rascal had even started jumping on Jonghyun's bed and licking his face to wake him up in the morning. Jonghyun had put up fliers the day after he'd talked to Jinki about it and he was prepared to be very conscientious about anyone claiming to be Haengun's owners but he needn't have worried. No one had contacted him about Haengun yet.
Jonghyun didn't know whether to be worried or delighted because there was a good chance that Haengun was going to end up being his dog. And at this point, if someone didn't step up as Haengun's owner, Jonghyun was more than a little too ready to take up the position himself. Haengun had almost effortlessly fit into Jonghyun's life in a matter of only a few days and Jonghyun wasn't sure he was able to give the dog up anymore.
When Jonghyun went to work that morning (with the weather finally living up to the flawless forecast the weatherman had been predicting all week) he expected the day to go as every other day had gone. He took for granted the simplicity of his routine and expected to leave work, go home, and find Haengun there waiting for him at the door. He expected to make dinner and then watch television with Haengun on the couch and then maybe read a little before bed. He expected that the day would be just like all the others had been because he had no reason to believe it wouldn't be.
But when he opened the door the routine was already broken because Haengun was not waiting there like he normally was. And as Jonghyun looked around the room curiously, Haengun still didn't come out to greet him.
"Haengun?" Jonghyun called out hesitantly. The door had been locked, there was no way Haengun could have gotten out. Did his injuries suddenly get worse while Jonghyun was at work? "Haengun?" He called again, a touch more frantically.
He toed off his shoes quickly, door slamming behind him in his haste to get inside to look for his dog. Hundreds of awful scenarios were running through his brain but everything stopped when Jonghyun reached his room. After the first night, Jonghyun had pulled Haengun's bed into his room under the flimsy excuse of being able to watch him easier, ignoring the fact that it was really just because he had already grown really attached to the dog. And Jonghyun found something in his room but it wasn't Haengun.
There in Haengun's bed was a forlorn looking man in a very worn looking shirt and pair of jeans. But it wasn't his clothing that Jonghyun was concerned with, or even the fact that the man was sitting in his dog's bed. What Jonghyun was concerned with was that there was a strange, unknown man in his apartment and Jonghyun had no idea how he'd gotten there. Acting on instinct, Jonghyun yelled and leaped back, eyes searching for the nearest object that he could use as a weapon.
"Who the hell are you?" he yelled. "How the fuck did you get in my apartment?" His hands found his guitar, propped up against the wall in the living room and he brandished it in front of himself threateningly.
The man in the dog bed looked ashamed and maybe a little hurt and for an irrational second Jonghyun wondered why before he snapped back to himself and realized again that there was some random guy sitting in his apartment, in his dog's bed and he had no idea why.
"Jonghyun, please." His voice was low and scratchy and Jonghyun readied his guitar again as the man stood up. He was almost overwhelmingly tall, at least a head taller than Jonghyun and Jonghyun's instincts went right back into high alert.
"How do you know my name?" Jonghyun tried to sound fearsome but his voice cracked and he was honestly just scared out of his mind.
The guys' eyes were large and round and he looked so worried and he broke into Jonghyun's house, why did he look like a kicked puppy. Wait -
“What the hell did you do with my dog, asshole?"
"Wait, Jonghyun," the man pleaded and he raised his hands in placation when Jonghyun shook the guitar in front of him. "I can explain, just don't hit me."
Jonghyun paused at that. He had never heard of someone bargaining in this sort of situation. Still, he kept his guitar out in front of him but raised an eyebrow at the man.
"Okay. Explain."
The man let out a heavy sigh. "You know the program we watched the other day?"
Jonghyun made a face at that. We? Seeing Jonghyun's face, the man blanched and backtracked.
"You and...Haengun watched a program the other day. About shapeshifters. Do you remember?"
Jonghyun scoffed. "Yeah, but what does that have to - " He looked at the man's earnest face. "Oh, don't tell me you think you're a shapeshifter." Jonghyun moved to the side and gestured at the door with the guitar. "Go on. I don't need any crazy guys in my house."
"Wait! Please," he took a step closer and when Jonghyun took a step back and raised his guitar again, the man jerked back.
He looked so shaken that despite everything in his head telling him not to, Jonghyun started to get concerned.
"You work at the shelter a couple blocks away with a man named Jinki. You talk about him a lot and the cat that bites him all the time. You used to have a dog named Roo."
Jonghyun took a step back. "Have you been stalking me?" His eyes were wide and scared now.
"No!" The man nearly shouted. He took a deep breath and then started talking again, faster this time. "You bought me a cake. You - you bought Haengun a cake. And the second night, after we watched that show together you gave me some." The man looked like he was starting to get choked up.
"You picked me up that night when it was raining and you brought me here. You iced my wrist. You fed me. It's because of you that...that I'm even alive right now."
The man was staring at the floor and he looked so sincere and hurt that Jonghyun decided, against his better judgment, to give him a chance.
"Prove it."
The man's head jerked up. "What?"
"Prove it," Jonghyun repeated defiantly. "If you're really Haengun then show me."
The man's face brightened for a second before his expression fell. "I...I can't change right now. I don't have the energy."
Jonghyun raised his guitar again, mouth already open to get the man out of his house but the man looked at him hesitantly.
"I...still have those scratches on my side. If you want to see them..." He trailed off, looking unsure.
Jonghyun sized him up again. He was taller than Jonghyun was but Jonghyun thought he had more muscle than the other guy. If it came to it, Jonghyun probably wouldn't be able to outrun him but he'd likely be able to overpower the man.
"Okay," Jonghyun said. "Show me."
The man paused for a second before he lifted up his shirt. For a split second Jonghyun couldn't see anything and he was convinced that there was something wrong with the guy's head. But then the man turned his side a little more toward Jonghyun and he saw them - several thin, scabbed over cuts running the length of his side. In a stupid move fueled by curiosity, Jonghyun crept closer to the man to inspect the scratches. He'd spent a lot of time caring for Haengun and he could easily conjure up the image of Haengun's cuts the night Jonghyun found him. Looking at the ones on the man's side, they seemed to match up to where Haengun's wounds were and, without thinking, Jonghyun reached out to touch them.
The man jerked back and, startled from the movement, Jonghyun's hand shot out to stop him. His hand closed around the man's right wrist and the man hissed as Jonghyun tugged.
"Careful," he said through gritted teeth. "It's still a little sore."
Sore? Oh -
Jonghyun loosened his grip but didn't let go. He turned the man's wrist around in his hand gently. He wasn't familiar with human injuries in quite the way he was with animal ones but he lightly prodded around the man's wrist, ceasing when the man's hand twitched in his grip.
"Let me see your other hand," he said in a much gentler tone than he'd used with the man before.
The man held up his other hand slowly and Jonghyun took it, comparing the man's wrists. Sure enough, his right wrist was a little more swollen than his left and Jonghyun could see faded bruising around the bone. He dropped both of the man's hands and stepped back.
"Why were you a dog when I found you?"
The man's face transformed into something of quiet relief before he schooled his features back into a calmer expression. He shrugged a shoulder and replied, "people are more likely to help a wounded dog than a dirty, homeless guy."
"So why aren't you still a dog then? You'd have to know that whoever took you in would flip out if they saw some stranger in their house."
"You didn't really flip out," the man started to say but Jonghyun lifted the hand with the guitar in it and raised an eyebrow. "Okay, yeah, you kind of did. But...I can't really stay in dog form for too long. It takes up too much energy."
Jonghyun's face screwed up in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"Well, being in human form only takes up a normal amount of energy," the man started slowly. "Whatever energy it takes you to do something, it takes the same amount for me. But as a dog, it takes the amount of energy to say, run around the room, but also an extra amount of energy in order to maintain the form."
Jonghyun made a little noise and crossed his arms. "So you can't change right now because you stayed a dog for too many days and it drained your energy?" He wasn't sure he bought this but the other man didn't really seem dangerous. In fact, now that Jonghyun had calmed down a little, he could see that the man looked exhausted. He didn't seem to pose as much of a threat as he had before.
"Right."
"Wait - you were a dog the whole time right?" He suddenly had a terrifying thought. "What the hell were you doing the whole time I was at work? Oh god - I changed in front of you."
The man looked away, cheeks tinged pink. "I looked away," he mumbled.
Jonghyun released a nervous breath. The man could be lying but, if he thought about it, Jonghyun couldn't remember any strange behavior from Haengun: just an uncanny intelligence and sense of awareness when Jonghyun talked to him. That made more sense now, actually.
"I've been in dog form since the night you found me. I mostly just slept while you were gone." He finally looked back up and Jonghyun was shocked by the honesty he saw in the other man's eyes. He wasn't sure he had any idea what the hell was going on but somehow he believed that this man was telling the truth about everything.
"So what happens next then?" Jonghyun asked. Because now he was just trying to navigate this system as best as he could but what exactly was he supposed to do in this sort of situation?
"Now...I leave, I guess." The man wasn't meeting Jonghyun's eyes anymore.
"That's it? I rescue a hurt dog - you - and you laze around in my house until you get better and now you're just going to leave? What was the point of all," he flailingly gestured at the man. "This?" Jonghyun was raising his voice but he honestly didn't care at this point. All of his previous fear was now coming out in frustration.
"I wanted...to thank you. For saving me." The man locked eyes with Jonghyun and there was all of his sincerity again, hitting Jonghyun full force. It was staggering. "So, thank you."
"Well where are you going to go?" Jonghyun blurted out, exasperated. He considered himself to be a pretty easy-going kind of guy but it seemed a lot more inviting to let a wounded stray stick around your apartment than a stranger with dirty clothes. But he also had nowhere else to go and Jonghyun was an idiot. He had too big of a heart for his own good and he was leading this stranger right into it with an open door and welcome arms. (He may or may not also still have that weak spot for puppy eyes and, man, this guy had some serious puppy eyes.)
The man suddenly looked self-conscious, even more than he had when Jonghyun found him sitting in Haengun's - his - bed. He nervously scratched his arm and looked away. "I don't know. Somewhere."
Jonghyun closed his eyes and took a deep breath. What he was about to do was potentially the stupidest, most reckless decision he'd ever made in his life (and, admittedly, he'd made a lot of really stupid, reckless decisions) but his mind was made and his resolved was steeled.
"Do you want to stay here?"
The man's eyes grew almost impossibly larger. "Jonghyun, no, I couldn't. You've already done so much for me already, I couldn't stay here."
He was babbling and waving his hands at Jonghyun and it looked strange coming from such a tall, imposing-looking guy.
"Do you want to stay here?" Jonghyun asked again.
The man stopped. "...yes. I do."
Jonghyun rubbed a hand over his face. "Then you can stay."
The man let out a rush of air and for a second Jonghyun thought the guy was going to run over and hug him. But instead his face lit up with a wide smile and Jonghyun carefully pushed away the thought that maybe he'd done a good thing.
"What's your name?" he asked finally. "It's - it's not actually Haengun is it?"
The man stared at him solemnly and Jonghyun started, apologies pouring from his mouth, "oh god, I'm so sorry. If I'd known that I would have given you a better name. I -"
But then the man's lips quirked up and Jonghyun quieted as he barked out a loud, rich laugh.
"No," he said, smile wide on his face. "No, my name's Minho."
-
Despite Jonghyun offering his home to Minho, they still lived very mindfully of each other and, in the occasions that they would meet in Jonghyun's small apartment, they moved very awkwardly around each other. Minho was still essentially a complete stranger and Jonghyun was now trying to adjust the way he lived to accommodate an extra person. Jonghyun felt like he was hyper aware of everything that Minho did, where he was, the small accumulation of his dishes that piled up next to Jonghyun's own in the sink. Minho lived very discreetly in Jonghyun's apartment, imposing himself and his presence as little as possible. They tip toed around each other in a way that Jonghyun was not used to doing with anyone else. For the first two days after Minho began living with him as a human, Jonghyun would have forgotten that there was anyone else there were it not for the soft turn of a page of a book or the tinny clink of a spoon against a bowl. He was so quiet.
It wasn't until nearly a week after Minho had "moved in" that Jonghyun worked up the strength to ask him about himself.
They were in the kitchen together and Jonghyun was making dinner, Minho hovering around the counter in a way that was reminiscent of how, as a dog, he would sit at Jonghyun's feet and stare up at Jonghyun cooking. The feeling created a pang of sadness in Jonghyun, which was silly because Haengun was technically still right there but Jonghyun had to admit that he really missed having Haengun around. With he and Minho being so careful around each other, it made it hard to feel like he'd made the right decision to let him stay.
"So how did you get hurt?" Jonghyun asked out of nowhere. From the corner of his eye he could see Minho jump at his sudden question. Jonghyun could feel the other man staring at him but he didn't look up from the cutting board.
"I was," Minho hesitated but Jonghyun pretended to stay focused on his task. "I was trying to get something to eat."
But that threw him off and Jonghyun looked up, perplexed. "All of that from getting food?" he asked, gesturing wildly at Minho.
"I might have been trying to steal it," Minho mumbled as he looked away.
"Oh," Jonghyun replied dumbly. There were a couple of beats of silence before he asked, "why did you need to steal food?"
Minho sighed and Jonghyun was about to retract his question but Minho had already started talking.
"I used to live with an old woman. I don't know how she found me but she raised me from when I was really young. A couple of years ago, she died and I was left on my own. Her family took everything she'd owned and I was tossed out on the street."
Jonghyun, realizing that this was going to be a more complicated answer than he'd expected, tossed everything into a pan and turned the stove on. He took a seat at the table to listen properly but Minho kept his place at the counter.
"I went to school when I was younger but granny didn't have a lot of money so I never went to college and the rest of the world isn't really okay with that. I've never been able to find any sort of job that paid well enough for me to be able to eat regularly. When that happened, I usually just became a dog and tried to get food that way."
Minho's mouth quirked into a wry smile. "People tend to be more inclined to help dogs than people."
For some reason, Jonghyun felt really embarrassed. But Minho kept talking, so Jonghyun listened.
"Before you found me, it had been a while since I'd eaten. I've been sort of wandering since granny died so I'm not actually familiar with this town. But I found a gas station and there was a display case outside. There was an older couple inside running the place but I thought that from behind the register they wouldn't be able to see me. I tried to slip some food but they caught me."
Minho leaned back against the counter and looked off to the side, staring out the window with crossed arms as he spoke. "The woman came out with a broom of all things and slammed it down hard on my wrist," Minho brought his wrist up and experimentally twirled it. The bruising had faded a while ago but he still seemed to have trouble using it.
"Then the man took the broom from her and chased me down the street. I fell pretty hard when I ran away and I think he might have kicked me but I don't really remember."
Minho shook his head. "I just wanted to get away."
Jonghyun looked at him in confusion. "Then what did you turn into a dog for?"
Minho didn't answer right away and Jonghyun was afraid that he'd asked something wrong. He sat there as the silence stretched on for a while longer before Minho began again, his voice sounding like he was somewhere far away in his head.
"I'm faster as dog - it was easier to run and hide. And since I was hurt, I was more likely to get someone to help me as a dog instead of as a human. I heal faster that way too."
Minho looked at him and, still sounding far away, he said, "thank you again for taking me in."
"Well, how was I just supposed to leave an injured dog in the rain?" Jonghyun said stubbornly.
"Really." Minho's eyes were shining fiercely again, just like they had the night that he had revealed himself to Jonghyun. "Thank you for everything. Let me know whatever I can help you with. I'll repay you for everything you've given me. I'll try and find a job and pay you back."
Jonghyun couldn't take it anymore.
"This is your home now! Just live normally." It was like the cap he had on his bottle of emotions had finally been wrenched off. He was sick of the way they were acting around each other, like frightened deer, spooked at any instance of interaction with the other. "You don't have to be so careful. Don't be afraid to speak up or ask for things or -" Jonghyun ran a hand through his hair. "I'm trying to help you out here but you gotta meet me half way."
"I'm sorry," Minho said quietly.
"Don't be sorry just help me out. I'm a little new to this whole thing, you know."
Minho looked down with a small smile quirking at the corners of his lips. "I know."
"So. Do we both agree to properly communicate from now on so that things stop being so weird between us?"
Minho's smile was growing and he looked a little bashful. "Yeah, I think I can do that."
"I know we don't know each other well but I think we could get along pretty damn good if we tried," Jonghyun said seriously.
"I think so too," Minho said, finally looking at Jonghyun again.
"Good. Now that that's settled, what say you we have some dinner?"
(Their dinner was slightly burnt that night but, in light of the progress they'd made and the air that was finally cleared, Jonghyun rather felt it was worth it.)
next