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As soon as Jeongguk enters the bathroom, he places the bag on the floor and locks the door, making sure no one is to enter while he gets changed. "Okay buddy, you can come out for a short while." He opens the zip to let Min free. A small red face appears from the bag, checking the surroundings. When Min sees it is safe, he steps out of the bag and has a small shake of his fur. Joengguk imagines it isn't nice being inside the bag when he has no room to move around and preen his fur.

Jeongguk's outfit consists of some black and blue striped sweater with holes in it and some black pants. Pretty much basic, but it fits with the vibe of their song. He looks at the items of clothes in front of him, assessing which is going to be easiest to put on first. Sweater. He double-checks that the door is 100% locked before stripping himself of his jacket and t-shirt. He then looks in the mirror and tenses his arms. His muscles bulge beautifully at his biceps and triceps. His right arm is covered in tattoos. He picks up the sweater and lifts it over his head, displaying his lightly defined sixpack, before the sweater drops gracefully over his body.

Next, he unbuckles his belt and removes it with ease. Jeongguk makes quick work of opening his button and pulling down the zipper, without a moment's hesitation, he removes his trousers in one smooth motion. He folds them and places them on the side before picking up the other pair. Inserting his feet in the holes, he pulls the skinny jeans up and over his thick thighs and fastens the button, zip and finally the black leather belt. Even Jeongguk thinks his thighs look good in this pair of trousers.

Unbeknown to him, he has a very small audience watching his every move. Min is sitting on top of his bag that is still on the floor. His head is tilted to the side; his fluffy ears are pointed while his small mouth is slightly open, watching Jeongguk get changed. He's unaware of how much Min is stearing until a small purr leaves his mouth. Jeongguk's head snaps toward Min, seeing his head moving. Min has been caught at the last second.

"Oh Min! I'm sorry, I should have told you to turn around while I get dressed." What Jeongguk says is silly, he knows. Isn't it normal for others when their pets watch them? Jeongguk has never had a cat or a dog and hasn't had much interaction with them. "Actually, that's really silly of me to say that, it's not like you can fully understand me."

Jeongguk looks back into the mirror and makes sure that the outfit fits. He grabs his phone from his bomber jacket and turns on the phone screen. Unlocking the lock screen, Jeongguk is greeted by a dark background picture taken in the city and his thumb hovers over the screen, having forgotten why he pulled out the phone in the first place. That's when he gets an idea.

"Min?" he calls out and squats in front of the red panda, phone in his hands and aimed at Min. "Look at me."

Right then, Min yawns and Jeongguk snaps a photo. He smiles as he looks at the photo in the photo gallery. Min appears a bit cheeky and rebellious. Jeongguk snaps another photo of Min rubbing his paw against his muzzle and closing his eyes. "Are you doing it on purpose? If you are trying to ruin the photo, then let me tell you that it's not working. I'll treasure them all the more since they don't look like ordinary pics."

Jeongguk chooses the last photo he saved as his new background picture and puts his phone back in his jacket pocket before he pulls up the edges of the bag to let Min know they need to go back out. "I'll look around the set to see if there might be a quiet corner where I can keep you safe. For now, though, you need to stay in the makeup room. It will take them a while to finish the makeup. So please try to stay quiet."

He bites his lower lip nervously, hard, feeling as if he is under electric tension as he tugs Min into his bag, grabs his clothes and enters the makeup room. As predicted, the makeup artists are already there and Youngjin sits in the chair. Minsu is nowhere to be seen, which is why he assumes he's still changing. Jeongguk takes a seat on the chair next to Youngjin and places the bag near his feet. Sensing a pair of eyes on him, Jeongguk turns his face only to see Youngjin's eyes flash with concern. He brushes him off as the female makeup artist steps behind his chair and gets things ready for the makeup.

He leans back in his chair and pulls out his phone, busying himself with checking some messages and news while they do their makeup and hair. To Jeongguk's relief, Min remains silent the entire time, and he's unsure if this is because Min is intimidated or for another reason. In the mirror in front of him, the hairstylist switches places with the makeup artist, takes a straightening iron into her hands and then sets about styling his hair. His eye bags are gone now that he has makeup on, and he appears more refreshed. Jeongguk's lips look more pink and shiny, as if he just had something to drink or licked over his lip.

The door suddenly bursts open, letting in a gust of wind. The hairstylist isn't impressed at all, given by her facial reaction in the mirror. She has nearly completed the given look when it's ruined. She makes quick work to restyle Jeongguks hair.

While he's casually looking in the mirror, he notices that Minsu gives Youngjin a gaze, makeup already done. He isn't entirely sure if it means to show a playful gaze or one that's filled with possible hurt or sourness. "Have you guys had a heated discussion about something or have you actually got changed in front of each other?"

"Oh, wouldn't you have loved to be a fly on the wall, ay Jeongguk." That's all that's said before the door opens again. "Okay, we're ready on set for you. Please be as quick as you can to finish." Youngjin's eyes move back on to his friend as he wiggles his eyebrows playfully. "Looks like this conversation will have to wait until later on."

Jeongguk shakes his head, not even willing to ask what's going on. As soon as the hairstylist is done and moves away from Jeongguk, he leans forward and grabs the fabric handles of his bag. He places the bag somewhere where he thinks it's safe enough and gives Min one more peck on his head, telling him he'd be back soon. With a heavy heart, he leaves the room with the other bandmates and they start shooting the MV.

Time flies quickly, and soon they have a little break, which Jeongguk takes to drink and talk, but above all he doesn't forget Min, who has already been waiting for him expectantly and jumps into his arms with joy. Fortunately, no one was in the makeup room at the time. He just murmured, chuckling something along the lines of 'We're doing a pretty good job of hiding and sneaking around, don't you think?'.

Jeongguk is actually happy with the outcome of the first shoot they have just completed.

For that, the trio of friends were in a mock living room on set. It was very minimalistic. The room had a light grey 3 seater sofa with beautiful scatter cushions, some were all light grey , and others had a coloured zig-zag type of design.

A solid rectangular oak and gray-washed coffee table was placed in front of the sofa. All that was decorated on the table was a bowl that had some multicoloured, transparent glass pebbles with three tea lights to finish off the look. On the wall in front was a black 50" TV. Dotted on the walls of the room were a few photos. Some boys had taken part in previous concepts for their videos to show the longstanding, unbreakable friendship they had over the years. Other photos showed Minsu with his lover, showing the happiness they once shared before the break-up.

The purpose of this scene in the MV was to express happiness to someone. The trio sat on the sofa watching a film, armed with popcorn, sweets and drinks. Within the time they were watching the film, a popcorn fight erupted. Food was being thrown around the room the boys were ducking and diving to avoid being hit. It took a slight turn when Youngjin picked up a small pillow and threw it at Minsu playfully. All three of them were in shock at first, but then they carried on after a few giggles that came from the pits of their tummies. The joy on all 3 of the boys' faces really shone through as even though it was a music video, they generally had fun filming this scene.

"Annnd, CUT! Wow, you three really do know how to have fun." The director of the music video starts with a massive grin on his face. It's almost like he can reach out and feel the happiness they wanted to capture.

"Can we have a look at the take, please? Even though it was fun, I want to make sure it didn't look like I was being mean by throwing the pillow at Minsu."

Jeongguk frowns. 'There is something going on between them two. I'm sure of it.'

The shoot goes by without a hitch, and they manage to film enough that they can soon go home. They've refilmed a few scenes, shot some solo scenes and collected some behind-the-scenes material to post over which the fans would surely go crazy over.

Just as they are about to shoot the next scene and move the camera to a different angle, a commotion occurs near the makeup room. A sudden scream emits from one of the female employees. The noise captures everyone's attention and has everyone stop their work. Everyone appears to be either frowning or holding their breath and anticipating what will happen next. Jeongguk now looks up, surprised, until the door of the makeup room suddenly opens a little and not an employee, but Min emerges. Jeongguk's muscles go rigid, shock and panic set in. It's obvious to Jeongguk how panicked Min is, his eyes show fear and his appearance is hurried. He is unsteady on his paws and curls up as he looks around with fear.

Jeongguk, who had been sitting at a table and was waiting for his cue in the next scene, gets up and bites the inside of his cheek, not quite knowing what to do or how to react. There is an urgent need to calm Min down and check on him. All of the surrounding staff have already become aware. His gaze flits around the room before settling on Youngjin, who has been shooting his scene, now getting up too. He looks at Jeongguk and their eyes meet, his bandmate tilts his head as if he was asking 'why are you standing there?'. And it causes Jeongguk to realise he's still standing instead of calming Min. But before Jeongguk can intervene, Min backs away in quick jerky steps towards the bathroom.

Jeongguk wastes no time and hurries after him. He must have lost sight of Min for a moment because he no longer sees him. Puzzled for a moment as to where he disappeared, Jeongguk looks around and finds the door of the bathroom standing open. He hurries along behind, anxiously striding into the room. Various things run through his mind about how to reassure Min. But the words die on the tip of his tongue. The panic he just felt is replaced with horror and uncertainty.

Jeongguk's mouth opens and closes, his heart beating wildly in his chest as he takes a step towards the man sitting across from him and leaning against the cold tile wall, frightened and naked. His hair is oddly enough peach-coloured and a contrast to his milky skin. The red fluffy ears on top of his head make his heart beat faster. Jeongguk notices that his face is round and soft, teeth gnawing at his pink bottom lip. He feels like invading someone's privacy, however, the man in front of him begins to shiver and places his hands around his knees, obviously trying to cover himself. That's when he sees a beautiful red tail, hiding between his stomach and legs. Jeongguk's mouth goes dry when their eyes meet, brown eyes glazed with tears, staring right back at him and reminding him how similar they look to Min's.

Too similar, actually. The ears and tail only confirm it.

Cautiously, Jeongguk steps forward, voice unsure. "Min?"

The answer he thought would be "yes" or "no" surprises him. It makes his heart drop.

"Home?" His voice is shaky and unstable and his eyes remind Jeongguk of a puppy that's abandoned. Fluffy ears which have been moving before, are now attentively perked up. He can tell that the human in front of him is in a vulnerable state, just from his body language and posture. But it's undoubtedly Min, who's sitting in front of him. So many questions and feelings are coming up, but Jeongguk is willing to push them aside for now. Min's well-being is more important. A sadness now fills eyes and his heart, looking at the scene in front of him. Almost like how the MV concept should be filmed. Raw and painful emotions are portrayed from the start.

"Let me just grab my jacket."

Jeongguk then leaves the room and returns a minute later, holding his bomber jacket and something red in his hand. It appears that the uneasy feeling he had early in the morning appears to have come true. It amazes Jeongguk how easily he seems to trust him as Min leans forward so Jeongguk can put his jacket on him. He reminds himself that this is Min, someone with whom he has already built up trust.

Jeongguk holds up the other thing he brought and puts it over Min's head. "Good thing one of the other boys had a beanie with them."

It's funny actually that he trusts the man based on his eyes and feels a sense of warmth as he looks at him. Jeongguk does his best not to let his gaze wander anywhere lower than the stomach region while crouching down. He focuses instead on taking Min's arm and wrapping himself around his shoulder to help him up. The plan fails as Min's legs start to feel like pudding. That's why Jeongguk puts an arm under Min's legs and lifts him in bridal style out of the room, missing how Min's cheeks tint pink while he hides his face in his neck. He's careful to hide the tail for no one else to see.

Min's legs are exposed to every single person on the team who is on set as he walks past them with Min in his arms, his warm breath tickling along his neck. His hold on him automatically tightens as he walks towards the exit. Jeongguk doubts they have continued working since they saw a red panda on set, probably wondering where the red panda is and why there's a man in his arms they've never seen before. Believe him, even if he seems to be behaving calmly, it looks different inside him, and he is on the verge of freaking out but willing to remain calm as long as they are here. There are so many things he doesn't understand.

He hates that it's not an ideal situation they are in, and it's not how Jeongguk planned his day to go. Yet, he can't just leave Min here. The best is to get him home. Maybe he can come back and shoot the rest of his parts in the early afternoon when his bandmates are done with their parts. He'll have to explain it to his manager and he'll surely not be delighted about it.

He approaches his car, opens the rear car door and places Min on the seat. The latter is still breathing irregularly and sniffs now and then. Jeongguk wishes he had a blanket at hand to cover him properly, but his jacket will have to do until they are back home. Jeongguk closes the door and is about to retreat to get his bag from the studio when a voice sounds behind him and makes him flinch. "Jeongguk, where are you going?"

He closes the car door, and shoots his driver a message before he fully turns around, facing none other than his manager. His face contorts into a serious expression, clearly not delighted by what Jeongguk's doing.

"Look, I can come back in an hour or two, but I have to get him home first. That is all I can say, I don't even understand what's going on but I know I have to get him somewhere safe first. It looked like he was close to having a panic attack."

Desperation flashes in his eyes, the urge to have his manager believe him and let him go forms in the pit of his stomach. His manager looks at him hesitantly, which he cannot blame him for. Jeongguk would probably feel the same if he were in his position. "Please-"

"Okay," Hwan eventually says and nods, "but really be back in about an hour so we can still film your scene."

"Thank you, sorry to keep you waiting. I'll try to hurry."

"It's...whatever. I'm sure we will fill the hour with a few scenes with Youngjin and Minsu. Just be there in an hour, that's all I ask for."

"I will, thank you."

Jeongguk grabs his bag from the studio while avoiding the prying eyes of the hired staff. It's nothing unusual. He is used to people looking at him for different reasons. The driver is already inside the vehicle when he returns and enters from the opposite side. Min holds the seam of his jacket tightly in his hands, his knuckles turning white, and he appears a little overwhelmed by the situation as his eyes are glued to the floor. So the first thing that comes to Jeongguk's mind after he buckles himself and Min in and puts his t-shirt over his lap is to take one of his hands off the jacket and take it in his.

Jeongguk has never been really a fan of skin ships and yet something warm settles around his heart as their hands touch.

"You don't have to hold my hand."

It comes out as a whisper, but Jeongguk could not smile more gently, seeing that it helps Min to become calmer.

"I want to."

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Comments and votes are appreciated ✨️🥺

A/N: surpriseee :) a big thanks to Amy who helped me with the chapter 🫶🏻💜

I'm free rn and always love to help, if there's anyone who has started writing a story and is not a native English speaker and would actually need some help with someone reading over it and suggesting some things (beta reader), dm me please. I will not beta read: mcd, r*pe, su*cide or anything toxic. (I'm not a native speaker, remember!) 🫶🏻💜 pls don't be too shy to dm. I won't bite!