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The sheer silence that pervades Jeongguk's penthouse could be considered deafening and even a little creepy. However, that is not the only thing that makes the atmosphere so tense. Jeongguk has been pacing back and forth in his living room that one could think he would soon wear holes in his socks. Since they have been within his four walls, reality has caught up with him and overtaken him like a cold wave of disbelief, spreading through his body like a storm surge. After putting one of his tops on Jimin, which reaches to his mid-thighs, he has had to deal with the urge of freaking out.

Rocking on his feet, he stands and looks out the window, staring into the distance before closing his eyes and exhaling. His narrowed eyes are then directed to his feet as he keeps up a rigid posture with his hands behind his back. As he turns back around his gaze shifts to Jimin sitting on the sofa with his body drowning in one of Jeongguk's t-shirts, body posture somewhat timid while his fluffy ears hang low.

"I'm so confused," Jeongguk finally says. He is still trying to find a plausible solution to what happened earlier. He has so many questions, internally he wills himself to ask the most important one first, because when his gaze falls on Min, he looks anything but confident. "There are a lot of things that I don't understand. Can you explain what happened earlier?"

"Ehm- well...." Min's ears perk up before they drop again, and he focuses solely on his fingers, now resting in his lap. He is clearly feeling uneasy and cannot look Jeongguk in the eye. "As I'm sure you know, you put the bag to the side and then one of the makeup artists tripped over it and I panicked. Next thing I knew was, I went somewhere I thought was safe and then shifted."

"So you're..."

"...I'm a hybrid," Min whispers, almost as if he were afraid to say it out loud and confirms Jeongguk's assumption.

Jeongguk swallows dryly and nods, exhaling. It does make sense. "A hybrid, right... I basically know nothing about your kind, which explains a lot why you always understood me. I can't say I've ever interacted with a hybrid, I grew up with humans, so forgive me if I say or do something wrong."

Still trying to wrap his head around the situation and not burst, Jeongguk decides to take a seat on the other end of the sofa, on which Jimin is sitting. The atmosphere grows from tense to awkward as neither loses a word in the next minute. Eventually, Jeongguk dares to peer at Min again, eyes wandering over his figure, analysing his behaviour. He looks at his fingers once more and gathers all his courage and turns his body towards Min. The fact that he seems a little intimidated keeps Jeongguk on earth and doesn't make him freak out. He wants to reach out and hold his hand again, hoping it would make him less tense.

"I need answers. What's your real name? Do you... have one?"

This seems to put a small smile to Min's lips and lift the cloud of awkwardness a little. He nods tentatively as their eyes meet. "Jimin."

"Oh? Then I wasn't too wrong with Min..." Jeongguk grins softly and bites his lip. Okay, there's a hybrid sitting on his couch, a very cute-looking hybrid, by the way, smiling shyly at him. Jeongguk thinks this is anything but fair. "Is that why you reacted like that when I suggested the name?"

"Yes."

His reaction was adorable. Jeongguk remembers as if it were only yesterday. How Min-Jimin looked at him with sparkling eyes and snuggled up to him on the rooftop. He wonders if Jimin is like that as a person. Is he as bright, happy and cuddly as he is as a red panda? Is Jimin just as curious?

Jeongguk then remarks that he wants to find out exactly that. He's intrigued by Jimin but above all, one thing is clear to him, he will have to learn a lot and get used to living with a human from now on.

That is, if he doesn't have a home already.

"Okay, can you be honest with me on this? Do you have a home?"

Sadness begins to swim in Jimin's eyes, his gaze becomes distant and Jungkook wonders if he has asked the wrong question.

"Isn't this my home? Are you kicking me out?" The way Jeongguk's heart squeezes as Jimin whimpers sadly and pulls his knees to his body makes his stomach churn. The distance he has seen in his eyes only seems to increase now, and it causes Jeongguk to tighten his grip around his fingers, panicking. Jimin looks like a kicked puppy, avoiding his gaze and it bothers Jeongguk. He wants to do everything he can to make that sad expression disappear from his face.

"I'd be an asshole if I'd do that," Jeongguk says, shaking his head. There's no way Jeongguk will kick him out and let history repeat itself. He could not bring himself to say the same words a second time. "I trust you. I'm sure if you had bad intentions, you could have just shifted the entire time you lived here. At the end of the say, you didn't."

"Do you hate me for lying to you?"

Jeongguk laughs. Was he shocked? Yes. Does he hate him? He could never. "Does it make me look weird if I say I don't? I was shocked when I found you and I still have to wrap my head around everything, but I'm slowly coming to terms with it. There's no reason to hate you. The days you were at my side as a red panda, I didn't feel lonely, and I guess it must have been the same with you, the way you reacted. I assume now won't be any different unless you are completely different in human form or decide against living here, which would be fi-"

"No!" Jimin exclaims and looks at him, determined, only to turn beet red a few seconds later. "I- I mean... you were so kind to me and I felt safe with you. Living on the street was hard for me, dogs chased me everywhere I went, and I had to hide pretty much every so often. And then there's you whom I found and have been feeling safe with."

Unbeknownst to Jeongguk a smile plays over his lips. Happiness and pride blossoms in his chest, hearing Jimin feels safe with him. Somehow he always had this suspicion but hearing it from himself in words has a different effect on him. It brings him assurance and comfort. He wants to keep making Jimin feel safe.

"Talking about finding me... how did you get in my bag?"

"I remember being chased by dogs and ended up in an alley. I saw the name of the club shining in a bright neon colour above the door and there was someone at the door, smoking. He went in, and before the door closed I made it into the venue. I sneaked around and eventually people came back, and your bag was the only space where I could hide."

"Have you- Have you lived on the street before? Is that why you said you don't have a home?" Jeongguk swallows nervously around the forming lump in his throat. Was the question insensitive? Maybe Jimin isn't ready to talk about it. The few things he's heard about hybrids over his lifetime haven't given him enough information to make up his own mind, and he has to admit that he's never been interested in learning more about hybrids before. With Jimin, however, it makes him change his mind.

"People captured me while I was outside as a red panda, probably thinking I was a wild animal that needed to be rescued since I fell from a tree and was injured. They brought me to what I think was a zoo, but I escaped recently."

"And that was the evening you were chased by dogs." Jeongguk concludes, nods and gets up from the sofa, receiving a look of confusion from the other man at the sudden movement. "Do you want something to drink? I will have to leave soon to go back to the shoot, it isn't a problem for you to stay here in the meantime, right? We can talk some more when I'm back."

Jeongguk can't deny the sparking interest he feels, wanting to get to know Jimin better. The more he knows about him the more he finds the other intriguing and admirable, he noticed. Maybe a wonderful friendship can blossom between them? He knows he surely wouldn't be against it.

Jeongguk shakes his head. Although he doesn't get why he acts so quickly when it comes to Jimin, but he should take things slower. They're in a getting-to-know phase and yet he can't help but agree with his inner voice to a certain extent 'you know him already, he's not a stranger'.

In the end, he guesses only time can tell.

Grabbing a glass from the cupboard in the kitchen, Jeongguk fills it with some water and places it on the kitchen island, seeing how Jimin has followed him and is leaning against the door frame, hesitant. Jeongguk throws him a smile and leans back while he puts his hands next to his body on the sink.

"How old are you Jimin?"

Jimin looks young and beautiful, overall, that's what makes it difficult for Jeongguk to tell his age.

"23, you?"

Oh.

"25."

"So you're older than me." Jimin chuckles, cheeks flushing. Jeongguk raises an eyebrow and wonders to himself, while he's chuckling, but decides to leave it and puts his focus instead on getting this kind of reaction again. He watches as Jimin slowly steps into the kitchen, his t-shirt hanging down from his shoulders. Slowly, Jimin reaches for the cup of water and drinks from it.

Meanwhile, Jeongguk walks just like on autopilot to the fridge, pulling the fruit compartment open and eyeing the orange round fruit for a moment. His tongue licks over his lip and he takes it out of the fridge, a smirk then playing across his lips.

"Do you want a tangerine?"... my little—

Jeongguk's eyes widen, disbelief flashing in his eyes at what he was about to say. He got so used to calling Min like his favourite fruit, it would have almost slipped from his tongue if he didn't stop himself. Why does it not feel wrong to call him that in his mind? It doesn't make him feel uncomfortable.

"Anyway, I'll just leave the tangerine here for you, in case you want to eat it." Jeongguk smiles and sets the tangerine down on the kitchen island in front of Jimin. "I bought more the other day and before they go bad... I imagine just because you're in human form now, it's still your favourite fruit, right?"

Jimin nods shyly and looks at him with bright eyes. "You're right."

"Very well. Then let's talk some more later when I come back, hm? I'm afraid I have to go now." Jeongguk can't stop himself and runs his fingers Jimin through his peach-coloured hair. He then walks past him to the penthouse door, where he slips back into his black boots and checks that he has his phone in his back pocket.

Jeongguk is about to open the flat door and let it slam shut behind him when Jimin's bare footsteps on the floor dissuade him from closing the door completely. He casts a slightly confused glance backwards and looks into an indecisive expression on his face before Jimin comes closer and takes his jacket off his shoulders. That's right, Jimin was still wearing his jacket. He had completely forgotten about it.

"Don't forget your jacket." He hands Jeongguk his jacket and takes another step back. "Thank you for trusting me enough to let me stay here. I won't let you down, I promise."

Jeongguk's heart stops at the other's smile, brimming with confidence just as the door closes behind him with a thud. A sudden and unfamiliar emotion that overtakes him causes him to blink, and he needs a moment before he eventually walks to the elevator.

𓆩♡𓆪

The MV shooting was scheduled for another hour once Jeongguk would be back and everything was going according to plan until Jeongguk started to get scatterbrained and could concentrate less on his work. It started with just tripping over the carpet on set and ended with being distracted and not hearing the film director count down 3...2...1.

Now he's sitting on one of the makeup chairs in the makeup room with his eyes closed and his head in his neck as the film crew has called for a short break. He's incredibly sorry for being so distracted ever since he came back to set. He knows it would make everyone stay even longer than planned, and he honestly does try his best, although his mind keeps wondering what Jimin might be doing in his penthouse. If he's alright staying there alone in this big place.

"Jeongguk!"

The sudden sound of Minsu's voice rings through the room and makes Jeongguk look up at the door, which is wide open with Minsu standing agitated in the door frame. He notices Youngjin, whose blond hair is still styled, is now peering over his shoulder not far behind him.

"Oh? You're still here?"

"Of course!" Minsu replies, eventually stepping into the room with Youngjin  following close and then closing the door behind them. Worry flashes in both their eyes, making Jeongguk sigh and play with the abandoned makeup brush in front of him. "We wanted to know what happened earlier, but even now you seem very distracted."

"You noticed?" Jeongguk asks, a little unsure. It must have been really obvious if they not only called for a break because of him but everyone else in the crew caught on too.

"It wasn't hard to miss. So... what was that earlier and who was the person in your arms? I couldn't make out the face, unfortunately..." Youngjin admits and looks at him with narrowed eyebrows, knitting together when Jeongguk doesn't answer immediately. He knew that he would be confronted with this at some point and should tell them the truth. But how? That's actually Min, who is actually a hybrid. Would they react negatively? Do they know about hybrids?

"You see, uhm- I didn't know about this or that this would eventually happen, so as you probably saw Min panicked on set earlier. So I went after him, and it turns out he's a... hybrid."

"Why do you say it like that?" Minsu asks, confused.

"Like what?"

Youngjin crosses his arms over his chest and observes Jeongguk momentarily. "Like you're not happy about it."

“That’s not it. I’m not sure what you guys think about this, and I also have to get used to it that Min- Jimin is not only the red panda I got to know. You have to understand, I never had contact with hybrids before and really, I don’t mind him being a hybrid. It actually explains a few things that made me think I’m crazy.”

"So, Jimin, right?" Youngjin chuckles as he focuses on the content smile which spreads on Jeongguk's face. Seeing that Jimin can bring such a smile to Jeongguk's face, makes him wonder what he's like in person. He wouldn't mind seeing Jimin again. "Do you mind introducing us to him again?"

"You...You don't mind that he's a hybrid?"

Jeongguk's gaze wanders from Minsu to the blond-haired bandmate, certainly surprised by his reaction.

"Not at all. I just want to see if he's just as cute as he's as a red panda, right Minsu?" Youngjin nudges his bandmate with his elbow, who only nods eagerly.

Something about the way he said that doesn't sit well with Jeongguk, and so he bites the inside of his cheek, uneasily. A pinched expression crosses his face. "I can assure you that he certainly isn't very different!"

"Jeonggukie, no need to get all territorial." Youngjin teases and puts a hand on his shoulder. "I promise, we only want to see what his personality is like and what it is about him that makes our Jeonggukie so happy."

"Fine," Jeongguk grumbles and adds, "If you promise not to tell a soul about it."

"Promise, on one condition. You focus on the last few scenes, so everyone can go home. On a serious note though, we have nothing against hybrids. In fact, my childhood friend was funnily enough a hybrid, and he was no different from other children. Yes, hybrids are less common in our world, and truthfully that doesn't mean they are all that different from us. Whereas, there may be one or two qwerks, in the scheme of things, you'll figure that out over time." Youngjin shakes his head, trying to stick to the essential of what he wants to bring across.

"They deserve love, just like we do and if you decide to take a step further in your relationship, know we are here and will support you, of course not before we get to know Jimin." He winks and continues with a calm and honest voice. "We are your friends, and we'll be here for you. We'll listen to you, support you and share our thoughts with you, whatever it is, okay?"

Jeongguk nods, relieved. “Thank you, guys.”

"Not for that," Minsu shrugs his shoulders with a small laugh. "What are friends for? See? You have nothing to worry about when you're with us. Now let's go back to the set. They are probably already waiting."

"Sure."