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Myung is the first to wake up between him and Jimin. His furry ears twitch in his half-sleep and he gets fully woken up by all sorts of sounds coming from the kitchen. It takes him a moment to comprehend what's happening. In the end, curiosity gets the best of him, so he carefully pushes the blanket aside and gets up from the sofa where he has been cuddling with Jimin. Myung tiptoes up to the kitchen, barely making a sound on the wooden tiles beneath his small feet. He leans against the door frame and peeks into the kitchen, interested in finding out what's the cause of the sounds.

Jeongguk, who's standing next to the kitchen sink must have noticed movement in his line of vision, triggering him to freeze in the process of his cooking, holding the knife in a tight grip. Noticing with a side glance it's no one but Myung, he's reminded that he's not alone in the forest hut. For a moment he totally forgot about it, having been completely focused on cooking.

Jeongguk puts the knife on the cutting board and turns around with a gentle smile. "Morning, Myung. Do you want to help me cook pumpkin soup?"

Myung nods. Although words don't follow, Jeongguk can see how happy the little boy is about Jeongguk asking if he wanted to help. Sparks of interest ignite in his brown eyes. The smaller one moves eagerly closer, watching Jeongguk pull a step stool next to the kitchen sink for Myung to step onto. He then steps behind Myung, arms loosely winding around him to the cut board. He makes sure not to step too close considering Myung is not his child and someone he had known for barely twenty-four hours.

It's not every day Jeongguk has a child around him. For that reason, it's difficult to come up with topics he can talk about or questions he can ask. He tries to imagine what the small boy likes, what he's interested in. Considering he has barely exchanged a few words with the other makes him struggle. He glances at Myung's side profile while he lets the cut pumpkin pieces fall into a pot, observing how his adorable cheeks puff in a way Jeongguk wants to squish them.

"Do you like Halloween?"

Myung nods and subconsciously leans against Jeongguk's broad chest as they start to mash the pumpkin in the pan. Pride glimmers in Jeongguk's chest at the thought that Myung seems very comfortable with him despite them having not talked much.

"If you want we can make funny faces in the pumpkins later."

Jeongguk barely gets a yes before Myung's answer is interrupted by a loud shout from the living room, the distress clearly audible.

"Myung?"

Jimin must have woken up in surprise when he didn't see his son lying next to him and Jeongguk doesn't blame him. He can understand it and hears from his voice that there must be more to it. Jeongguk wonders if they ever lost sight of each other, that his voice holds so much distress.

"He's here in the kitchen with me!"

Only a few seconds later, a sleepy Jimin enters the kitchen. His brown hair is a little dishevelled and a sleepy expression is written all over his face. As he leans against the doorframe with one hand, Jeongguk only remembers then that Jimin is wearing one of his t-shirts, flattering him. His thighs are half covered with the fabric, and Jeongguk resists the urge to cast his gaze lower, aware of the consequences. Just because there is something captivating about this man in his clothes standing just a few metres away from him. It may be his enticing eyes, his fluffy moving as Jeongguk speaks, or the way Jimin draws Jeongguk in, making him want to learn more about him.

"Oh, you guys are cooking." Jimin says relieved, shoulders slumping and lips parting as if he's about to say something, yet no words come from his mouth. Jimin takes in the scene with lines forming between his eyebrows and head turning, possibly looking for answers. Jeongguk swallows dryly. This may be the moment when Jimin tells him not to get so close to Myung-that the trust needed is not yet there.

But this request never comes.

Jimin steps closer, arms crossed over his chest, which gives him a stern impression. Jeongguk would go as far as to say that he was about to come up with the right words to scold or warn him. However, Jimin does nothing of the sort. The line between his eyebrows disappears as he slowly leans over the pot and lets a slight, delighted smile play across his lips. Automatically, it makes Jeongguk smile.

Jimin hums in agreement and closes his eyes for a moment, eyelashes brushing against his cheekbones. "You're making pumpkin soup? I haven't eaten it in a while."

"Then I'm glad I managed to surprise you and make you happy-" Jeongguk's eyes widen, noticing how that might have sounded. His eyes immediately shift to meet Jimin's gaze. He focuses instead on the food, stirring and not stuttering as he does so. "I mean... It gives me joy that my guests like the food."

To Jeongguk's astonishment, Jimin places a hand on his arm. He is about to ask why he places it there when the other starts laughing and throws his head back. Jeongguk admires how Jimin's eyes form into crescents, hiding his broad smile with his-remarkably-smaller hand.

The happy atmosphere comes to an abrupt end, the second Jimin pulls his face into a brief pain-distorted expression. However, it is gone again as quickly as it came. You'd think Jeongguk had imagined it. He realises something is wrong and looks at Jimin with a piercing gaze.

In an attempt to distract from this, Jimin broaches another subject, only to give himself away. "We need bowls right?" Jimin walks towards the kitchen cupboard where he assumes there are bowls and plates, then bends down with a hoist as he stretches his arm forward. Momentarily he closes his eyes, inwardly hoping Jeongguk hasn't heard.

"Does it hurt?"

"Yes," Jimin replies stiffly, "but I can manage."

"How about I take a look at it and change your bandage?"

Jimin shakes his head. "It's fine."

"Please let me take a look to make sure it didn't get worse over the night. It's even a wonder that you are up on your feet." Jeongguk insists on taking a look, he'd feel awful if he'd just let it be. It could be that Jimin might just be someone who can hide the truth of pain well without Jeongguk knowing.

"Fine..." Jimin sighs and then turns to Myung, giving him something small to do while Jeongguk turns off the cooker. They then both head to the bathroom where Jimin sits down on the toilet lid, cheeks flushing when Jeongguk asks for permission to lift his t-shirt.

Jimin nods and Jeongguk lifts his t-shirt, tugging it over his shoulder. "Why didn't you tell me that it still hurts a lot?"

"I didn't want to bother you... besides you had fun cooking with Myung." Goosebumps rise on Jimin's skin, the feeling of warmth from Jeongguk's warmth breath tickling along his now exposed back. It makes Jimin nervous that Jeongguk can just rake his eyes over him, not in an uncomfortable way, but because it's the first time in years that Jimin shows a part of his vulnerable side. Sparks travel down his spine and he finds himself unable to sit still, fidgeting with the hem of his t-shirt upon feeling Jeongguk's warm calluses tap along his back.

"I'll always be willing to help. I want to."

Jimin's giggles makes Jeongguk's heart flutter. "That's so cheesy."

"Of course," Jeongguk snickers, "I'm a writer, so of course I convey some cheesy words in my vocabulary."

"You're a writer?" Jeongguk appears to have caught Jimin's full attention, his widened sparkling eyes flickering at him like a puppy waiting for you to take them on a walk. It's obvious that Jimin didn't expect him to be a writer. A few years ago he wouldn't have dreamt of writing words on an empty worksheet. It just happened one day, his imagination was running free and capturing the attention of readers on the internet. Today he wouldn't have it any other way.

"Hm, I am," he replies gently, continuing to gaze into Jimin's almond brown eyes that would glow when a ray of sunlight falls on them. Illuminating all the different shades in his iris that had Jeongguk under a spell from the first moment. Jeongguk gets the impression that they want to convey their own story, while hiding behind a veil, making it difficult for him to understand what exactly is going on in Jimin's mind. But perhaps they aren't there yet. Maybe this is how it's supposed to be. Perhaps fate has other plans, no matter how great the desire to offer them to stay longer is.

You can't know everything about someone within twenty-four hours and expect them to trust you fully immediately. Trust takes its time, such as building a friendship.

He snaps out of his thoughts, dipping a small cloth into alcohol to sterilise the wound. "Hold still. This might sting a little."

Dabbing on the wound made Jimin hiss and Jeongguk blurts out a gentle apology.

"That's nothing like what the graze wound feels like." Jimin snorts, dryly chuckling when a sequence from the incident flashes through his mind. He is unaware of the lines forming between Jeongguk's eyebrows, dark eyes look for a moment at the wound and then at the back of Jimin's head, not believing how Jimin can just joke about this.

"Sorry..." Apparently, the hybrid must have noticed that it was uncalled for.

"I can't understand how you can talk about it like that. Under different circumstances, you might have died and left Myung alone. Imagine if the bullet had hit you somewhere else or I had never found you- Actually, nevermind...the idea is too cruel to imagine what would have happened then." Jeongguk shakes his head and they fall into silence, neither of them knowing how to break it. For this reason, Jeongguk simply finishes wrapping his wound and holds back from letting his eyes stray further than where the wound is. No matter how soft the milchy skin under his fingertips is.

"My t-shirt looks good on you, you know-"

Shit. There's no way that he said it out loud.

"Y-you think so?"

That's it. This will be the moment Jeongguk will dig a hole and bury himself because there's no way that Jimin responded with a stutter, looking at him through his long lashes with a blush on his cheeks. Jeongguk will be damned if he doesn't get his hormones under control. He can't be smitten with him, can he?

Later that evening, Myung just came out of the bath ready for bedtime. All the bubbles are still popping as the water drains down the plug. Grabbing a warm, fluffy towel from the hot radiator, Jimin proceeds to wrap it around Myung to keep him warm. Both proceed to the bedroom to finish getting ready for bedtime. "Can I have a story papa?" Myung asks even though he is ever so sleepy.

The day was filled with fun and laughter. Jeongguk made faces in the pumpkins with Myung and played a few games of tag. Jimin and Jeongguk even had a proper conversation, which allowed them to find things they have in common or consisted of making Jimin giggle. It has been nearly too long for Jimin to know what it feels like to talk with people his age. He missed having someone to talk to about more serious topics and share his thoughts with.

Jimin can't deny that he felt a bit fuzzy earlier when Jeongguk made him laugh. His first guess was that it was because it felt like an eternity since he last spoke to someone longer than a few minutes. But he's not sure. They haven't known each for more than a day and yet Jimin feels safe in his presence. Jeongguk is kind and his chocolate brown eyes have radiated this warmth from the moment he picked him up in his arms, letting Jimin feel like he can trust him. Also, he can't turn a blind eye to how handsome the other man looks with his lips that would curl into a bunny smile so often and his caring nature.

Jimin shakes his head. He shouldn't think further than Jeongguk being kind enough to patch him up and letting them live in his home for a few days. After all, they're supposed to be leaving once Jimin's wound has healed and he's sure Jeongguk is just being nice.

"Of course, baby. Let's see...hm... once upon a time there was this girl who grew up in a loving household with her mum and dad. Being kind to everyone was one of her traits she was known for. She grew older and her mum got sick, so sick that she wasn't there one day. Her dad decided to marry another woman and..." Jimin continues to tell the story he used to listen to when he was a child. Telling this tale always reminds him of his parents and him in his childhood before they disappeared one day. Until today, Jimin doesn't know where they are. One day...Just one day, he hopes to find them.

Jimin glimpses at Myung in his arms and smiles, seeing his son has fallen asleep. His free hand comes up to Myung's face, running his hand through his soft brown hair and eventually tugging the individual strands out of his face. Moving out of the bedroom, Jimin is lost in thoughts and doesn't notice Jeongguk coming into the living room until the said man calmly pulls a chair from the table and places his laptop on the surface. Jeongguk sits down and throws Jimin a polite smile when his head snaps up. Jimin is initially perplexed about what he's doing with the laptop but then recalls what Jeongguk told him about him writing books.

"What are your books about Jeongguk?"

The question burning on his tongue is finally out. Earlier Jimin's mind was too occupied and he was too shy to ask him. When he lifts his head to face Jeongguk from the sofa, a slight pink blush appears on his bunny-looking cheeks that go perfectly along with his smile and the black-thin framed glasses he put on. Jimin scrunches his nose as he must admit how good they fit him.

"Well, you see, it's u-uhm-" Jeongguk stutters and clears his throat, becoming all flustered that Jimin has asked about his books. Which might be stupid, considering he told him he writes books and normally the other person would respond with 'What are they about?'.

"I just write about anything that comes into my mind and I try to make a good story from it. But they are mainly about... how do I say this? A human falling in love with another person."

Yeah, another person. Correct. He scoffs innerly.

The only reason why Jeongguk doesn't tell Jimin that the person is a hybrid, is because he doesn't know how Jimin will react to this topic. It's not like hybrids are looked down on in their society. Hybrids can work in companies just like every other person out there. It's just that hybrids rather like to hide that they are hybrids. For that reason, Jeongguk doesn't know if he has ever met a hybrid in person.

"Tell me about one of the stories, if you're comfortable with it of course."

And so Jeongguk tells him about how one of them is a college student and the other is actually a car racer and they met by coincidence outside a mechanics garage. The car racer got into a heated argument with some person and so the college student stepped in, not even really knowing what the argument was about or who he was defending. They soon met again when the college student a day before started a traineeship at the car racer's agency. While Jeongguk tells him the story, he leaves out the detail that the college student in his book is actually a hybrid.

"So I take it you like romance a lot?" Jimin says it like it's the most casual thing to ask, while taking a peek at his sleeping son who has his head placed in his neck and an arm slung around him. He suppresses the urge to cooe. Jimin is uncertain what made him act so bold in that moment to ask him this question, but catching sight of Jeongguk lowering his gaze in a moment of weakness, let's Jimin know that the other is affected by his question when Jeongguk's cheeks tinting red in the cool temperature of the room.

Jeongguk shrugs his shoulders, doing his best to make it seem like it's no big deal when he has indeed a particular liking of romance. The inner romantic is somewhere inside him, just waiting for the right person to enter into his life. "Maybe. Would you like a cup of tea?"

"Sure."