lost and found
Title: lost and found
Author: fiche
Pairing: Jongin/Taemin
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Jongin brings home an unlikely new family member. Taemin didn't ask for this. Alternately, Jongin doesn't know what to do, an angel came. [Miracles in December/catboy au] ~4168 words
lost and found
On his way to Jongin's workplace, Taemin checks his reflection on a windowpane, tugging on his cat ears self-consciously. For once, he had groomed his tail too; it curls glossily under the cut of his coat. He picks up the pace.
Normally he wouldn’t bother with more than a couple well-worn throw-ons, but Jongin’s office is situated in a more uppity side of the city, where being well groomed has its perks. People are less inclined to heckle an expensive-looking hybrid than a common working one or worse, a stray.
Taemin finds Jongin propped motionless against the concrete barrier of the parking complex. If he hadn’t seen clouds of steam puffing out of the opening in Jongin’s fur-lined hood, Taemin would have taken him for a frozen corpse. Bounding over, Taemin sticks his face into the hood, grinning when he feels a nip on his nose.
“Take off your hood already,” Taemin laughs, “I’m not kissing a black hole.”
The fur hood huffs and parts open to reveal Jongin’s face, just as the steam clears away from his mouth to reveal his smile.
“Out of hibernation?” Taemin teases.
“Hey,” Jongin says in mock annoyance, “I thought there would be kisses.”
Taemin rolls his eyes but tilts his chin up all the same. Cold noses bump and brush aside for warm lips to meet instead. Taemin can feel Jongin’s heartbeat through the down jacket: a steady cadence that quickens when Taemin presses closer-quick enough that Taemin thinks Jongin might need immediate medical attention, actually. Taemin jerks away, frowning. Jongin stares at him, an unspoken question hanging in the air. Then the front of his coat gives a mighty wriggle.
“What the-”
Taemin jumps back so violently that his tail pops out from under his coat. Then he catches a whiff of some foreign odor on Jongin, and hisses.
Laughing, Jongin reaches into his coat and pulls out a ball of curly dark fur, beribboned and quivering. Taemin stares as the furball shakes itself out with a sneeze, sprouting stubby legs and floppy ears and a squirming tail.
When the creature lets out a small yip, Taemin hisses again, tail bristling. Jongin grabs Taemin’s elbow.
“It’s okay, Taemin,” Jongin says reassuringly. “It’s just a dog.”
“What’s it doing inside your coat?” Taemin demands.
“It’s warmer inside my coat,” Jongin says, purposely obtuse. Taemin purses his lips until Jongin confesses: “I found her abandoned in a box someone left out on the street. There was no one else around so I was wondering if we could-”
“Put it back where it came from.”
“No!” Jongin looks horrified. “It’s below zero, she could die.”
“It probably has fleas,” Taemin argues, eyeing the dog’s caramel coat shrewdly.
“So did you at first,” Jongin points out. Taemin’s ears droop in spite of himself. Jongin takes one look at his expression and sighs.
“Taemin, I know you don’t get along with dogs, but we can’t just leave a puppy out here to die. Can’t she stay with us for now? Just until we find her a permanent home.” Taemin really can’t turn down two pairs of sad puppy eyes, no matter how creepy one set of them is.
“Fine,” Taemin grouses, ears flattening against his head again.
“That’s a good kitty,” Jongin beams, tousling Taemin’s hair. By now the dog has noticed Taemin’s cat ears and tail and has started growling at him. Taemin keeps a generous distance away from it as he’s walking. Jongin trails behind him, cooing at his new pet. “Hear that, baby girl? You’re coming home with daddy. What should I do? An angel just came.”
Taemin gags.
“Jongin, that dog freaks me out,” Taemin whispers, “I swear she’s the Lucifer.”
“How?” Jongin asks in his child-humoring voice.
“She just stares at me with those soulless eyes. And she like never leaves your side. It’s like she’s trying to possess you.”
“I like having her near me though,” Jongin frowns.
Taemin regards him sadly. “She’s already gotten to you.”
“She’ll get used to you once you get used to her,” Jongin says soothingly. “Please get down from that cupboard now.”
Taemin sighs and slips a toe gingerly from his foothold. Angel immediately begins barking at him. Taemin bristles.
It wouldn’t be this bad if Angel hadn’t imprinted on Jongin like a baby duck to its mother. It wouldn’t be this bad if Angel hadn’t marked Taemin out as her love rival and eternal enemy. Although, Taemin supposes he is partially to blame for that.
Still, he can’t help but feel annoyed seeing Jongin cater to every whim and whine of that tiny canine scrap. Jongin hardly pays attention to him now, and Taemin is dying to have his ears scratched. Too bad he can’t get near Jongin when the latter has dog scent all over him.
“Aw, Angel, it’s okay,” Jongin clucks, swooping the puppy up in his arms. Taemin makes a noise of disgust. “Daddy likes it better when you’re not angry.” Then Jongin proceeds to pepper Angel with kisses while she wriggles happily.
Taemin knows they’re going to remain like this for hours. He slinks down from the cupboard and into the bedroom, where he digs out a knapsack and begins stuffing clothes in it.
Normally when Taemin’s feeling stuffy or stressed, he goes on solitary walks outside. As long as Taemin texts him regularly, Jongin lets him stay out for hours, even days on end without protest. This time, Taemin’s not taking any chances. He leaves at dawn.
When Taemin tiptoes out into the hall in a dark coat and a surgical mask, he’s stopped at the door by Cerberus herself. Taemin puts a finger to his lips, hoping she gets the hint. Instead, Angel opens her tiny mouth and begins yapping shrilly.
Before Taemin can get the little demon to shut up, Jongin appears in the hallway, rubbing his eyes.
“Where’re you going?” Jongin asks, still squinting.
“Uh, out,” Taemin says, leaning casually against the door. He shifts his knapsack behind him as un-shiftily as possible. Jongin tracks the movement with his eyes, which are now definitely squinting suspiciously rather than sleepily.
“How long will you be out?”
“A couple of days, maybe a week?” Taemin tries for a winsome smile this time.
Jongin groans. “No, I need you here to help out around the house. Don’t even think about running away.”
Taemin’s hands inch toward the doorknob, but Jongin shuffles forward and wraps his arms around Taemin’s waist, dropping his head onto Taemin’s shoulder.
“Come back to bed,” Jongin mumbles into Taemin’s shoulder, and his resolve collapses bit by bit until finally Taemin caves and drops his bag on the floor.
It’s been a month since Jongin found Angel, and by now Taemin is sure the dog has completed her full-scale takeover of their house. The entire flat is littered with squeaky balls and plastic bones and curly dog hair. Their cupboards are stuffed with sacks of kibble. There isn’t any spot Angel hasn’t conquered, including that special place in Jongin’s heart. Jongin is completely, irrevocably smitten with Angel, and vice versa. The two are inseparable.
It’s as if Taemin isn’t there.
“I’m going to get some groceries,” Taemin announces to no one. No one responds. Taemin sighs and walks to the mini-mart alone. He dumps his purchases on the counter, feeling vaguely mutinous when the cashier remains MIA for a solid five minutes.
Finally, someone shouts in the back, “Hurry the fuck up, you lazy mutt!”
“This mutt would run around a lot faster if you didn’t drive him like a slave, Kibum. Ugh,” a corgi-eared male hybrid drags himself forward, rolling his muscular arm to get the kinks out of his back.
“Welcome to Jinki’s Market-whoa,” the hybrid’s eyes pop a little, “now there’s a face you don’t see everyday.”
Taemin flushes, fiddling with his cuffs as the hybrid looks him up and down.
“You’re definitely not a working class breed.” The hybrid leans heavily against the counter. Taemin spots his nametag: Kim Jonghyun. “Companion, right? I thought companion owners were too precious about their pets to let them run errands.”
“Jongin’s not my owner,” Taemin says defensively, “and I’m not a pet.”
“Sure,” Jonghyun replies, not unsympathetically, “but that doesn’t stop most people from seeing us that way.”
Taemin must look pretty down, because the cashier says quickly, “Sorry, kid, forget I said anything. Here, I’ll swipe these for you. Can I see your ID?”
“Taemin, huh?” Jonghyun smirks. It’s not a bad look on him. “That’s a cute name. I’m Jonghyun. Will I see you again? Or will this Jongin mind if you’re wandering around by yourself?”
“He doesn’t even notice when I go out,” Taemin says gloomily.
“His loss,” Jonghyun winks. “They work me all day everyday here, but my shift ends at seven if you-”
“Jonghyun, I swear if I catch you flirting with our customers instead of working-”
Bye, Jonghyun mouths to Taemin, gesturing for him to leave quickly.
Taemin hurries out of the mart giggling. However dodgy or doggy Jonghyun might have been, he was also…charming. Endearing, even, in a deliberately cheesy way. It’s been a long time since Taemin has felt so flattered.
Then he remembers Jongin, who’s almost certainly worried about why Taemin had been gone for so long, and feels a pang of guilt.
He rushes home and practically bursts through the front door.
“I’m home!”
“Oh,” Jongin grunts. He’s splayed across the couch, sleepily but steadily stroking Angel’s back. Taemin slumps. Of course.
“I met a guy at the mart,” Taemin says in a half-hearted attempt to draw Jongin’s attention.
“Oh?”
“Yeah, a working hybrid. He was kind of cute.”
“Huh.” Jongin still hasn’t budged an inch.
Defeated, Taemin dumps the groceries on the counter and retreats into the bedroom.
“Quick,” Taemin pants. It’s a Friday night. As soon as Jongin got home, he had pushed Taemin into their bedroom and locked the door. They haven’t done this in a long time.
“There’s no need to rush,” Jongin murmurs against Taemin’s jaw, where he plants a kiss. His laughter trickles down Taemin’s neck, making him squirm.
Taemin leans back on his elbows, canting head and hips upward to urge Jongin to pick up the pace.
Scrtch scritch
Taemin twists fingers in Jongin’s hair, pulling him closer as he works a hickey into the hollow at the base of Taemin’s throat.
Scrtch scritch scratch
The persistent pawing at the door pauses, only to be replaced by piteous whimpering. Jongin’s lips falter at Taemin’s collarbone. Unperturbed, Taemin cranes down to press openmouthed kisses along Jongin’s jawline, guiding Jongin’s hand below the waistband of his sweats. Jongin’s free hand sneaks up from behind to rub at the base of Taemin’s right ear, coaxing a guttural groan, almost a purr, from Taemin’s throat.
Just then, the whimpering outside breaks out into a full-blown howl.
Taemin doesn’t let up, keeping Jongin locked in his embrace.
“I should go get that,” Jongin says, pulling away slowly.
“Leave it,” Taemin hisses, attempting to reel Jongin back in.
“She’s lonely,” Jongin argues, disentangling himself from Taemin’s arms. “She needs someone to put her to bed.”
“Can’t it wait?”
“The neighbors will complain. It’ll take just a minute.”
Recognizing defeat, Taemin slumps back against the sheets, letting his limbs fall limp beside him. Jongin wiggles away, already fastening his trousers.
“Sorry,” Jongin says, “I’ll be right back.”
Before Taemin can protest, Jongin has crossed the room and opened the door to the sound of joyous barking. Through the slice of light from the doorway, Taemin watches as Jongin crouches down and scratches the dog’s belly, a soppy expression stretched over his face.
Suddenly feeling ill, Taemin rolls over so that his back is facing the door. Even with the blankets swaddled around his head, Taemin’s ears can’t help but pick up the sounds from the hallway: the scuttling of Angel’s feet across the linoleum, the slower padding of Jongin’s, the groaning of the couch under their combined weights. And above it all, Jongin’s laugh, ringing unbridled throughout the apartment. Taemin can’t remember the last time he made Jongin laugh like that.
When Jongin finally returns and pulls the covers back, Taemin lies still, feigning sleep until Jongin gives up and settles beside him with a sigh.
The next day Taemin barges into Jinki’s Market and asks Jonghyun to go clubbing with him, to the latter’s tail-wagging excitement.
They end up stumbling to the flat at some ungodly hour, Taemin too smashed to walk on his own, Jonghyun too gallant to let him try.
Light-headed as he is, Taemin at least has the mind to warn Jonghyun once they’re in the vestibule. “Jongin’s usually asleep around this time. He hates being woken up.”
“I promise I won’t howl then,” Jonghyun drawls. The fuzziness in Taemin’s head trickles down into his throat, and he doubles over under the weight of his own laughter. Taemin drags a hand against the wall in an attempt to stay upright. Taemin dimly registers Jonghyun behind him, a hand on either side of his waist steadying him.
“What’s going on here?”
Suddenly, Taemin feels Jonghyun’s warm hands torn from his sides. The axis of his vision tips upward and pans toward a tense, square jaw. A hand comes up toward his face, seemingly out of void, and Taemin flinches away, batting at it weakly. The hand retracts before approaching again, more cautiously this time, pulling at one eyelid. “Shit,” Jongin’s voice echoes from above. “What did you give him?”
“Just some catnip,” Jonghyun replies, more bite than whine to his voice now. Meanwhile, Angel-just when did she get here? -sniffs at Jonghyun’s pant leg curiously.
“Never show your face around here again,” Jongin growls, slamming the door in Jonghyun’s face.
Jongin half-drags, half-carries Taemin across the threshold of the hallway, and settles him on the couch. Angel weaves around his ankles in tight, anxious little knots, but Taemin is too dazed to respond.
“You shouldn’t have been so rude to Jonghyun-hyung,” Taemin slurs. “He’s really nice to me.”
“I don’t know if getting you high on catnip is being ‘nice’ to you,” Jongin scowls. “Why are you hanging out with that bastard, anyway?”
“Hey, he’s older than you,” Taemin frowns, “you should call him hyung.”
“I’m not calling the mutt who had his paws all over you hyung,” Jongin snaps.
Taemin levels an icy glare at him. “Just because he’s not full human doesn’t mean you get to treat him like he’s not a person.”
“It’s not about that. What’s gotten into you lately? You’re never at home. When you are, you’re always moody.”
“And whose fault is that?” Taemin retorts.
“What are you talking about?”
“Ever since you brought that dog home, that’s all you’ve been focusing on. I literally have to compete with a dog in order to get your attention. All this time I thought you’d rescued me and kept me because I was special to you somehow. But now I’m starting to think maybe you’re just some weirdo who gets off on collecting strays,” Taemin twists his words a lot cruelly than he meant to, but it’s too late now to take them back.
Jongin sits back on his heels, stunned into silence. Taemin makes his escape, staggering around him and into the bedroom, just barely collapsing on the bed. He doesn’t hear Jongin come in after him, and for once is glad for the lack of attention.
For the following week, Taemin avoids the flat as much as he can. He spends the days and most of the nights prowling side streets and old haunts. Once or twice he sneaks back into the flat during the daytime while Jongin is at work to get some shut-eye, tossing Angel leftover chicken bones as bribes to keep quiet.
In the middle of the week he video calls Jonghyun and gives him the blow-by-blow while Jonghyun clucks and nods and graciously offers to stay the hell out of it.
“Just remember to feed yourself, alright?” Jonghyun’s wide eyes bob in and out of the screen. “If you want a free meal just call.”
“Thanks hyung,” Taemin says, smiling tightly. He hangs up and buys himself a box lunch set from the convenience store across the street.
Between bites Taemin checks his phone for messages, missed calls, voicemails, and finds nothing-only stone-cold silence from Jongin’s end. He’s known Jongin to sulk for days on end, but Taemin’s determined to outlast him this time. He’s not going to let Jongin off so easily for replacing him with another stray. The fact that it’s a prissy toy poodle just adds insult to injury.
During lunch on Friday Taemin finally receives a text from Jongin:
working overtime tonite
can u look after angel?
Taemin puts down his Big Mac, feeling fed up.
Ok, he replies begrudgingly.
When Taemin opens the door to the flat, he’s greeted by a volley of loud barking.
“Glad to see you too,” Taemin grumbles.
Angel stops barking once she sees it’s Taemin. With a disappointed whine, she sits down next to the door. In the meantime, Taemin kicks off his shoes and crosses over to the kitchen to pour some dog chow in Angel’s food dish.
“Hey,” Taemin calls down the hallway. “Dinner is served.” No response. Taemin rattles the dog food dish enticingly, but Angel remains planted at the doorway, head turned toward the closed door like a sunflower toward the unrisen sun. Taemin sighs, lowering the bowl.
“Jongin’s working overtime tonight. He’s not going to be back for hours, you know.”
The dog just responds with a low whine.
“You’ll starve yourself, mutt.”
At last, Taemin kneels down next to Angel, setting the food dish between them: a peace offering.
“I guess we’re in the same boat,” Taemin admits, running a hand through his hair. “I’m waiting for Jongin too.”
Angel sits still, as though considering. Then she dips her head into her bowl and begins to eat. Taemin wrinkles his nose but smiles nevertheless. For what might be the first time, Taemin reaches out and skims his fingers through Angel’s thick fur. It’s soft; Taemin can see why Jongin pets it so much. When she finishes her meal, Angel looks up at Taemin with surprisingly lucid eyes.
“Hey,” Taemin says suddenly. Angel perks up, for once at attention and at ease around Taemin. He grins.
“How would you like to visit Daddy at work?”
As much as Jongin had groomed and coddled her, one thing he seemed to have neglected was to install breaks on this little devil. The dog charges forward at breakneck speed, threatening to pop Taemin’s arm out of its socket which each yank on the leash. A particularly herculean effort sends the leash flying out of Taemin’s grip, and Angel streaks off like a ghost into the night.
“Bad dog! Stop!”
To Taemin’s surprise, Angel complies, grinding to a halt right in the middle of the road. Taemin huffs and puffs toward her, stopping on the sidewalk to catch his breath.
Then he sees it: a two-ton four-seater car barreling down the street, directly toward the tiny toy poodle sitting in its path.
While Angel is a nuisance, she’s by no means a menace. And Taemin is petulant, not inhumane.
Before his mind can catch up, Taemin has already jumped into the road, herding Angel toward the safety of the opposite curb. Angel yelps and dashes across the road and onto the other side. Taemin slows down, letting out a deep breath.
The relief is almost enough to cushion the sudden, surging pain.
Taemin drifts in and out of half-boy, half-kitten dreams: chasing sparrows, jumping across rooftops, hiding under bridges. Taemin dreams of the bridge where he first met Jongin back when he was a stray and Jongin was a schoolboy. It was raining that day. Taemin had taken refuge under a bridge when a boy in a damp uniform carrying a polka-dotted umbrella rounded the corner.
Taemin had known most boys to be cruel; they’d toss sharp stones and hurl sharper catcalls, sometimes following him for blocks until he outran them. Taemin didn’t think he could outrun this boy, not when his bones and stomach felt hollowed out by rain and hunger, and his chest rattled with every breath he took. He had curled his tail around his ankles, ready to wait out whatever this boy had in store for him.
Instead, the boy had covered him with his uniform jacket and carried him on his back down three whole blocks to his house. Taemin doesn’t remember much about the trip, only that there had been a warm, steady vibration against his chest. Whether it was Jongin talking or his own purring, Taemin doesn’t think there’s a difference anymore.
Taemin stirs awake, pulled onto the shore of consciousness by the sound of sniffling on his right side. His eyelids are weighed down with exhaustion, but Taemin can feel crinkly sheets underneath him and smell stale sterilizing spray in the air. Those in addition to the muted ache in his chest and back inform him that he’s been hospitalized. The sniffling stops with a wet whimper, reminding Taemin that he isn’t alone.
“Angel?”
Taemin stretches his hand over the edge of the bed, but instead of grasping soft, curly fur, he grazes the back of a longer, warmer hand. Even without sight, Taemin has felt these hands on his ears and against his skin often enough to match them to a name. Taemin threads his fingers between Jongin’s, knitting them together. When Jongin drags Taemin’s knuckles across his cheek, they come away wet.
Taemin shifts his head a bit and Jongin’s face finally swims into view, looking wet and worn.
“Taemin,” Jongin rasps, “how could you scare me like that?”
“Wasn’t trying to,” Taemin says, voice equally coarse.
“Then can you explain to me why you decided to jump in front of a speeding car on New Year’s Eve?”
“It was going to hit Angel,” Taemin says, “I couldn’t let that happen.”
“You idiot,” Jongin barks, making Taemin flinch; Jongin rarely raises his voice at him. “Do you have any idea what could have happened? Why would you risk your life for a dog?” Taemin tries to tug his hand away, but Jongin has it in a death grip. He turns his head instead, so that Jongin doesn’t see his eyes growing moist.
“Because that dog is important to you,” Taemin manages to get out.
“Damn it, Taemin, you’re important to me,” Jongin’s voice breaks and somehow Taemin feels even worse. “Never pull something like that again.”
“I-we were going to visit you at work,” Taemin tries to explain, “to surprise you.” He chances a glance up at Jongin’s face. It looks guilty.
“I wasn’t at work,” Jongin says slowly, “I was driving home to pick you up for our date.”
“Our what?”
Jongin has the decency to look sheepish. “Yeah, I didn’t actually have to work overtime today. I made a reservation at that steak restaurant you like-I wanted to make up for this past week. But when I got home, you weren’t there. I figured you had gone out again, so I just waited. Then I got the call-” he covers his face with his hands “-in the waiting room I kept thinking, what if the car hadn’t stopped and no one found you in time-”
“Good thing I have nine lives then,” Taemin cracks a weak smile.
“Yeah,” Jongin squeezes his hand. “But I don’t want you to lose a single one of them while I’m here.”
“I thought you didn’t care if I was around anymore,” Taemin blurts out.
“Why would you think something like that?”
Taemin shrugs. “Because you found a new pet that you liked better than me.”
Jongin shakes his head. “Taemin, you’re not my pet. You’re the most important person in my life. I’m sorry if I was ignoring you.” Jongin kisses Taemin’s hand. “I missed you.”
“Me too,” mumbles Taemin.
Jongin strokes Taemin’s hair. “You don’t have to worry about Angel anymore. She’s staying with my noona for a while.”
“What-why?” Taemin pitches forward, flinching at the protesting muscles in his back. “It’s okay, you don’t have to do that. It wasn’t her fault. You’re right, I was being an idiot-”
“No,” Jongin gently presses Taemin back down on the cot. “I’m doing this because I want to spend more time with you. After you get discharged, I’m going to take a week off from work to stay at home with you.” He has that rapt, limpid-eyed look again. “Just the two of us.”
“I’d like that.” Taemin really can’t put up a fight against those puppy-dog eyes. Jongin’s hands are on his ears again, and for the first time in ages, Taemin feels warm and safe and loved enough to purr.
---
author's notes:
-this is trash and i blame achtling
-the amount of "dog daddy jongin" jokes that came out of writing this fic, you wouldn't believe
-happy new year, everyone!
Author: fiche
Pairing: Jongin/Taemin
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Jongin brings home an unlikely new family member. Taemin didn't ask for this. Alternately, Jongin doesn't know what to do, an angel came. [Miracles in December/catboy au] ~4168 words
lost and found
On his way to Jongin's workplace, Taemin checks his reflection on a windowpane, tugging on his cat ears self-consciously. For once, he had groomed his tail too; it curls glossily under the cut of his coat. He picks up the pace.
Normally he wouldn’t bother with more than a couple well-worn throw-ons, but Jongin’s office is situated in a more uppity side of the city, where being well groomed has its perks. People are less inclined to heckle an expensive-looking hybrid than a common working one or worse, a stray.
Taemin finds Jongin propped motionless against the concrete barrier of the parking complex. If he hadn’t seen clouds of steam puffing out of the opening in Jongin’s fur-lined hood, Taemin would have taken him for a frozen corpse. Bounding over, Taemin sticks his face into the hood, grinning when he feels a nip on his nose.
“Take off your hood already,” Taemin laughs, “I’m not kissing a black hole.”
The fur hood huffs and parts open to reveal Jongin’s face, just as the steam clears away from his mouth to reveal his smile.
“Out of hibernation?” Taemin teases.
“Hey,” Jongin says in mock annoyance, “I thought there would be kisses.”
Taemin rolls his eyes but tilts his chin up all the same. Cold noses bump and brush aside for warm lips to meet instead. Taemin can feel Jongin’s heartbeat through the down jacket: a steady cadence that quickens when Taemin presses closer-quick enough that Taemin thinks Jongin might need immediate medical attention, actually. Taemin jerks away, frowning. Jongin stares at him, an unspoken question hanging in the air. Then the front of his coat gives a mighty wriggle.
“What the-”
Taemin jumps back so violently that his tail pops out from under his coat. Then he catches a whiff of some foreign odor on Jongin, and hisses.
Laughing, Jongin reaches into his coat and pulls out a ball of curly dark fur, beribboned and quivering. Taemin stares as the furball shakes itself out with a sneeze, sprouting stubby legs and floppy ears and a squirming tail.
When the creature lets out a small yip, Taemin hisses again, tail bristling. Jongin grabs Taemin’s elbow.
“It’s okay, Taemin,” Jongin says reassuringly. “It’s just a dog.”
“What’s it doing inside your coat?” Taemin demands.
“It’s warmer inside my coat,” Jongin says, purposely obtuse. Taemin purses his lips until Jongin confesses: “I found her abandoned in a box someone left out on the street. There was no one else around so I was wondering if we could-”
“Put it back where it came from.”
“No!” Jongin looks horrified. “It’s below zero, she could die.”
“It probably has fleas,” Taemin argues, eyeing the dog’s caramel coat shrewdly.
“So did you at first,” Jongin points out. Taemin’s ears droop in spite of himself. Jongin takes one look at his expression and sighs.
“Taemin, I know you don’t get along with dogs, but we can’t just leave a puppy out here to die. Can’t she stay with us for now? Just until we find her a permanent home.” Taemin really can’t turn down two pairs of sad puppy eyes, no matter how creepy one set of them is.
“Fine,” Taemin grouses, ears flattening against his head again.
“That’s a good kitty,” Jongin beams, tousling Taemin’s hair. By now the dog has noticed Taemin’s cat ears and tail and has started growling at him. Taemin keeps a generous distance away from it as he’s walking. Jongin trails behind him, cooing at his new pet. “Hear that, baby girl? You’re coming home with daddy. What should I do? An angel just came.”
Taemin gags.
“Jongin, that dog freaks me out,” Taemin whispers, “I swear she’s the Lucifer.”
“How?” Jongin asks in his child-humoring voice.
“She just stares at me with those soulless eyes. And she like never leaves your side. It’s like she’s trying to possess you.”
“I like having her near me though,” Jongin frowns.
Taemin regards him sadly. “She’s already gotten to you.”
“She’ll get used to you once you get used to her,” Jongin says soothingly. “Please get down from that cupboard now.”
Taemin sighs and slips a toe gingerly from his foothold. Angel immediately begins barking at him. Taemin bristles.
It wouldn’t be this bad if Angel hadn’t imprinted on Jongin like a baby duck to its mother. It wouldn’t be this bad if Angel hadn’t marked Taemin out as her love rival and eternal enemy. Although, Taemin supposes he is partially to blame for that.
Still, he can’t help but feel annoyed seeing Jongin cater to every whim and whine of that tiny canine scrap. Jongin hardly pays attention to him now, and Taemin is dying to have his ears scratched. Too bad he can’t get near Jongin when the latter has dog scent all over him.
“Aw, Angel, it’s okay,” Jongin clucks, swooping the puppy up in his arms. Taemin makes a noise of disgust. “Daddy likes it better when you’re not angry.” Then Jongin proceeds to pepper Angel with kisses while she wriggles happily.
Taemin knows they’re going to remain like this for hours. He slinks down from the cupboard and into the bedroom, where he digs out a knapsack and begins stuffing clothes in it.
Normally when Taemin’s feeling stuffy or stressed, he goes on solitary walks outside. As long as Taemin texts him regularly, Jongin lets him stay out for hours, even days on end without protest. This time, Taemin’s not taking any chances. He leaves at dawn.
When Taemin tiptoes out into the hall in a dark coat and a surgical mask, he’s stopped at the door by Cerberus herself. Taemin puts a finger to his lips, hoping she gets the hint. Instead, Angel opens her tiny mouth and begins yapping shrilly.
Before Taemin can get the little demon to shut up, Jongin appears in the hallway, rubbing his eyes.
“Where’re you going?” Jongin asks, still squinting.
“Uh, out,” Taemin says, leaning casually against the door. He shifts his knapsack behind him as un-shiftily as possible. Jongin tracks the movement with his eyes, which are now definitely squinting suspiciously rather than sleepily.
“How long will you be out?”
“A couple of days, maybe a week?” Taemin tries for a winsome smile this time.
Jongin groans. “No, I need you here to help out around the house. Don’t even think about running away.”
Taemin’s hands inch toward the doorknob, but Jongin shuffles forward and wraps his arms around Taemin’s waist, dropping his head onto Taemin’s shoulder.
“Come back to bed,” Jongin mumbles into Taemin’s shoulder, and his resolve collapses bit by bit until finally Taemin caves and drops his bag on the floor.
It’s been a month since Jongin found Angel, and by now Taemin is sure the dog has completed her full-scale takeover of their house. The entire flat is littered with squeaky balls and plastic bones and curly dog hair. Their cupboards are stuffed with sacks of kibble. There isn’t any spot Angel hasn’t conquered, including that special place in Jongin’s heart. Jongin is completely, irrevocably smitten with Angel, and vice versa. The two are inseparable.
It’s as if Taemin isn’t there.
“I’m going to get some groceries,” Taemin announces to no one. No one responds. Taemin sighs and walks to the mini-mart alone. He dumps his purchases on the counter, feeling vaguely mutinous when the cashier remains MIA for a solid five minutes.
Finally, someone shouts in the back, “Hurry the fuck up, you lazy mutt!”
“This mutt would run around a lot faster if you didn’t drive him like a slave, Kibum. Ugh,” a corgi-eared male hybrid drags himself forward, rolling his muscular arm to get the kinks out of his back.
“Welcome to Jinki’s Market-whoa,” the hybrid’s eyes pop a little, “now there’s a face you don’t see everyday.”
Taemin flushes, fiddling with his cuffs as the hybrid looks him up and down.
“You’re definitely not a working class breed.” The hybrid leans heavily against the counter. Taemin spots his nametag: Kim Jonghyun. “Companion, right? I thought companion owners were too precious about their pets to let them run errands.”
“Jongin’s not my owner,” Taemin says defensively, “and I’m not a pet.”
“Sure,” Jonghyun replies, not unsympathetically, “but that doesn’t stop most people from seeing us that way.”
Taemin must look pretty down, because the cashier says quickly, “Sorry, kid, forget I said anything. Here, I’ll swipe these for you. Can I see your ID?”
“Taemin, huh?” Jonghyun smirks. It’s not a bad look on him. “That’s a cute name. I’m Jonghyun. Will I see you again? Or will this Jongin mind if you’re wandering around by yourself?”
“He doesn’t even notice when I go out,” Taemin says gloomily.
“His loss,” Jonghyun winks. “They work me all day everyday here, but my shift ends at seven if you-”
“Jonghyun, I swear if I catch you flirting with our customers instead of working-”
Bye, Jonghyun mouths to Taemin, gesturing for him to leave quickly.
Taemin hurries out of the mart giggling. However dodgy or doggy Jonghyun might have been, he was also…charming. Endearing, even, in a deliberately cheesy way. It’s been a long time since Taemin has felt so flattered.
Then he remembers Jongin, who’s almost certainly worried about why Taemin had been gone for so long, and feels a pang of guilt.
He rushes home and practically bursts through the front door.
“I’m home!”
“Oh,” Jongin grunts. He’s splayed across the couch, sleepily but steadily stroking Angel’s back. Taemin slumps. Of course.
“I met a guy at the mart,” Taemin says in a half-hearted attempt to draw Jongin’s attention.
“Oh?”
“Yeah, a working hybrid. He was kind of cute.”
“Huh.” Jongin still hasn’t budged an inch.
Defeated, Taemin dumps the groceries on the counter and retreats into the bedroom.
“Quick,” Taemin pants. It’s a Friday night. As soon as Jongin got home, he had pushed Taemin into their bedroom and locked the door. They haven’t done this in a long time.
“There’s no need to rush,” Jongin murmurs against Taemin’s jaw, where he plants a kiss. His laughter trickles down Taemin’s neck, making him squirm.
Taemin leans back on his elbows, canting head and hips upward to urge Jongin to pick up the pace.
Scrtch scritch
Taemin twists fingers in Jongin’s hair, pulling him closer as he works a hickey into the hollow at the base of Taemin’s throat.
Scrtch scritch scratch
The persistent pawing at the door pauses, only to be replaced by piteous whimpering. Jongin’s lips falter at Taemin’s collarbone. Unperturbed, Taemin cranes down to press openmouthed kisses along Jongin’s jawline, guiding Jongin’s hand below the waistband of his sweats. Jongin’s free hand sneaks up from behind to rub at the base of Taemin’s right ear, coaxing a guttural groan, almost a purr, from Taemin’s throat.
Just then, the whimpering outside breaks out into a full-blown howl.
Taemin doesn’t let up, keeping Jongin locked in his embrace.
“I should go get that,” Jongin says, pulling away slowly.
“Leave it,” Taemin hisses, attempting to reel Jongin back in.
“She’s lonely,” Jongin argues, disentangling himself from Taemin’s arms. “She needs someone to put her to bed.”
“Can’t it wait?”
“The neighbors will complain. It’ll take just a minute.”
Recognizing defeat, Taemin slumps back against the sheets, letting his limbs fall limp beside him. Jongin wiggles away, already fastening his trousers.
“Sorry,” Jongin says, “I’ll be right back.”
Before Taemin can protest, Jongin has crossed the room and opened the door to the sound of joyous barking. Through the slice of light from the doorway, Taemin watches as Jongin crouches down and scratches the dog’s belly, a soppy expression stretched over his face.
Suddenly feeling ill, Taemin rolls over so that his back is facing the door. Even with the blankets swaddled around his head, Taemin’s ears can’t help but pick up the sounds from the hallway: the scuttling of Angel’s feet across the linoleum, the slower padding of Jongin’s, the groaning of the couch under their combined weights. And above it all, Jongin’s laugh, ringing unbridled throughout the apartment. Taemin can’t remember the last time he made Jongin laugh like that.
When Jongin finally returns and pulls the covers back, Taemin lies still, feigning sleep until Jongin gives up and settles beside him with a sigh.
The next day Taemin barges into Jinki’s Market and asks Jonghyun to go clubbing with him, to the latter’s tail-wagging excitement.
They end up stumbling to the flat at some ungodly hour, Taemin too smashed to walk on his own, Jonghyun too gallant to let him try.
Light-headed as he is, Taemin at least has the mind to warn Jonghyun once they’re in the vestibule. “Jongin’s usually asleep around this time. He hates being woken up.”
“I promise I won’t howl then,” Jonghyun drawls. The fuzziness in Taemin’s head trickles down into his throat, and he doubles over under the weight of his own laughter. Taemin drags a hand against the wall in an attempt to stay upright. Taemin dimly registers Jonghyun behind him, a hand on either side of his waist steadying him.
“What’s going on here?”
Suddenly, Taemin feels Jonghyun’s warm hands torn from his sides. The axis of his vision tips upward and pans toward a tense, square jaw. A hand comes up toward his face, seemingly out of void, and Taemin flinches away, batting at it weakly. The hand retracts before approaching again, more cautiously this time, pulling at one eyelid. “Shit,” Jongin’s voice echoes from above. “What did you give him?”
“Just some catnip,” Jonghyun replies, more bite than whine to his voice now. Meanwhile, Angel-just when did she get here? -sniffs at Jonghyun’s pant leg curiously.
“Never show your face around here again,” Jongin growls, slamming the door in Jonghyun’s face.
Jongin half-drags, half-carries Taemin across the threshold of the hallway, and settles him on the couch. Angel weaves around his ankles in tight, anxious little knots, but Taemin is too dazed to respond.
“You shouldn’t have been so rude to Jonghyun-hyung,” Taemin slurs. “He’s really nice to me.”
“I don’t know if getting you high on catnip is being ‘nice’ to you,” Jongin scowls. “Why are you hanging out with that bastard, anyway?”
“Hey, he’s older than you,” Taemin frowns, “you should call him hyung.”
“I’m not calling the mutt who had his paws all over you hyung,” Jongin snaps.
Taemin levels an icy glare at him. “Just because he’s not full human doesn’t mean you get to treat him like he’s not a person.”
“It’s not about that. What’s gotten into you lately? You’re never at home. When you are, you’re always moody.”
“And whose fault is that?” Taemin retorts.
“What are you talking about?”
“Ever since you brought that dog home, that’s all you’ve been focusing on. I literally have to compete with a dog in order to get your attention. All this time I thought you’d rescued me and kept me because I was special to you somehow. But now I’m starting to think maybe you’re just some weirdo who gets off on collecting strays,” Taemin twists his words a lot cruelly than he meant to, but it’s too late now to take them back.
Jongin sits back on his heels, stunned into silence. Taemin makes his escape, staggering around him and into the bedroom, just barely collapsing on the bed. He doesn’t hear Jongin come in after him, and for once is glad for the lack of attention.
For the following week, Taemin avoids the flat as much as he can. He spends the days and most of the nights prowling side streets and old haunts. Once or twice he sneaks back into the flat during the daytime while Jongin is at work to get some shut-eye, tossing Angel leftover chicken bones as bribes to keep quiet.
In the middle of the week he video calls Jonghyun and gives him the blow-by-blow while Jonghyun clucks and nods and graciously offers to stay the hell out of it.
“Just remember to feed yourself, alright?” Jonghyun’s wide eyes bob in and out of the screen. “If you want a free meal just call.”
“Thanks hyung,” Taemin says, smiling tightly. He hangs up and buys himself a box lunch set from the convenience store across the street.
Between bites Taemin checks his phone for messages, missed calls, voicemails, and finds nothing-only stone-cold silence from Jongin’s end. He’s known Jongin to sulk for days on end, but Taemin’s determined to outlast him this time. He’s not going to let Jongin off so easily for replacing him with another stray. The fact that it’s a prissy toy poodle just adds insult to injury.
During lunch on Friday Taemin finally receives a text from Jongin:
working overtime tonite
can u look after angel?
Taemin puts down his Big Mac, feeling fed up.
Ok, he replies begrudgingly.
When Taemin opens the door to the flat, he’s greeted by a volley of loud barking.
“Glad to see you too,” Taemin grumbles.
Angel stops barking once she sees it’s Taemin. With a disappointed whine, she sits down next to the door. In the meantime, Taemin kicks off his shoes and crosses over to the kitchen to pour some dog chow in Angel’s food dish.
“Hey,” Taemin calls down the hallway. “Dinner is served.” No response. Taemin rattles the dog food dish enticingly, but Angel remains planted at the doorway, head turned toward the closed door like a sunflower toward the unrisen sun. Taemin sighs, lowering the bowl.
“Jongin’s working overtime tonight. He’s not going to be back for hours, you know.”
The dog just responds with a low whine.
“You’ll starve yourself, mutt.”
At last, Taemin kneels down next to Angel, setting the food dish between them: a peace offering.
“I guess we’re in the same boat,” Taemin admits, running a hand through his hair. “I’m waiting for Jongin too.”
Angel sits still, as though considering. Then she dips her head into her bowl and begins to eat. Taemin wrinkles his nose but smiles nevertheless. For what might be the first time, Taemin reaches out and skims his fingers through Angel’s thick fur. It’s soft; Taemin can see why Jongin pets it so much. When she finishes her meal, Angel looks up at Taemin with surprisingly lucid eyes.
“Hey,” Taemin says suddenly. Angel perks up, for once at attention and at ease around Taemin. He grins.
“How would you like to visit Daddy at work?”
As much as Jongin had groomed and coddled her, one thing he seemed to have neglected was to install breaks on this little devil. The dog charges forward at breakneck speed, threatening to pop Taemin’s arm out of its socket which each yank on the leash. A particularly herculean effort sends the leash flying out of Taemin’s grip, and Angel streaks off like a ghost into the night.
“Bad dog! Stop!”
To Taemin’s surprise, Angel complies, grinding to a halt right in the middle of the road. Taemin huffs and puffs toward her, stopping on the sidewalk to catch his breath.
Then he sees it: a two-ton four-seater car barreling down the street, directly toward the tiny toy poodle sitting in its path.
While Angel is a nuisance, she’s by no means a menace. And Taemin is petulant, not inhumane.
Before his mind can catch up, Taemin has already jumped into the road, herding Angel toward the safety of the opposite curb. Angel yelps and dashes across the road and onto the other side. Taemin slows down, letting out a deep breath.
The relief is almost enough to cushion the sudden, surging pain.
Taemin drifts in and out of half-boy, half-kitten dreams: chasing sparrows, jumping across rooftops, hiding under bridges. Taemin dreams of the bridge where he first met Jongin back when he was a stray and Jongin was a schoolboy. It was raining that day. Taemin had taken refuge under a bridge when a boy in a damp uniform carrying a polka-dotted umbrella rounded the corner.
Taemin had known most boys to be cruel; they’d toss sharp stones and hurl sharper catcalls, sometimes following him for blocks until he outran them. Taemin didn’t think he could outrun this boy, not when his bones and stomach felt hollowed out by rain and hunger, and his chest rattled with every breath he took. He had curled his tail around his ankles, ready to wait out whatever this boy had in store for him.
Instead, the boy had covered him with his uniform jacket and carried him on his back down three whole blocks to his house. Taemin doesn’t remember much about the trip, only that there had been a warm, steady vibration against his chest. Whether it was Jongin talking or his own purring, Taemin doesn’t think there’s a difference anymore.
Taemin stirs awake, pulled onto the shore of consciousness by the sound of sniffling on his right side. His eyelids are weighed down with exhaustion, but Taemin can feel crinkly sheets underneath him and smell stale sterilizing spray in the air. Those in addition to the muted ache in his chest and back inform him that he’s been hospitalized. The sniffling stops with a wet whimper, reminding Taemin that he isn’t alone.
“Angel?”
Taemin stretches his hand over the edge of the bed, but instead of grasping soft, curly fur, he grazes the back of a longer, warmer hand. Even without sight, Taemin has felt these hands on his ears and against his skin often enough to match them to a name. Taemin threads his fingers between Jongin’s, knitting them together. When Jongin drags Taemin’s knuckles across his cheek, they come away wet.
Taemin shifts his head a bit and Jongin’s face finally swims into view, looking wet and worn.
“Taemin,” Jongin rasps, “how could you scare me like that?”
“Wasn’t trying to,” Taemin says, voice equally coarse.
“Then can you explain to me why you decided to jump in front of a speeding car on New Year’s Eve?”
“It was going to hit Angel,” Taemin says, “I couldn’t let that happen.”
“You idiot,” Jongin barks, making Taemin flinch; Jongin rarely raises his voice at him. “Do you have any idea what could have happened? Why would you risk your life for a dog?” Taemin tries to tug his hand away, but Jongin has it in a death grip. He turns his head instead, so that Jongin doesn’t see his eyes growing moist.
“Because that dog is important to you,” Taemin manages to get out.
“Damn it, Taemin, you’re important to me,” Jongin’s voice breaks and somehow Taemin feels even worse. “Never pull something like that again.”
“I-we were going to visit you at work,” Taemin tries to explain, “to surprise you.” He chances a glance up at Jongin’s face. It looks guilty.
“I wasn’t at work,” Jongin says slowly, “I was driving home to pick you up for our date.”
“Our what?”
Jongin has the decency to look sheepish. “Yeah, I didn’t actually have to work overtime today. I made a reservation at that steak restaurant you like-I wanted to make up for this past week. But when I got home, you weren’t there. I figured you had gone out again, so I just waited. Then I got the call-” he covers his face with his hands “-in the waiting room I kept thinking, what if the car hadn’t stopped and no one found you in time-”
“Good thing I have nine lives then,” Taemin cracks a weak smile.
“Yeah,” Jongin squeezes his hand. “But I don’t want you to lose a single one of them while I’m here.”
“I thought you didn’t care if I was around anymore,” Taemin blurts out.
“Why would you think something like that?”
Taemin shrugs. “Because you found a new pet that you liked better than me.”
Jongin shakes his head. “Taemin, you’re not my pet. You’re the most important person in my life. I’m sorry if I was ignoring you.” Jongin kisses Taemin’s hand. “I missed you.”
“Me too,” mumbles Taemin.
Jongin strokes Taemin’s hair. “You don’t have to worry about Angel anymore. She’s staying with my noona for a while.”
“What-why?” Taemin pitches forward, flinching at the protesting muscles in his back. “It’s okay, you don’t have to do that. It wasn’t her fault. You’re right, I was being an idiot-”
“No,” Jongin gently presses Taemin back down on the cot. “I’m doing this because I want to spend more time with you. After you get discharged, I’m going to take a week off from work to stay at home with you.” He has that rapt, limpid-eyed look again. “Just the two of us.”
“I’d like that.” Taemin really can’t put up a fight against those puppy-dog eyes. Jongin’s hands are on his ears again, and for the first time in ages, Taemin feels warm and safe and loved enough to purr.
---
author's notes:
-this is trash and i blame achtling
-the amount of "dog daddy jongin" jokes that came out of writing this fic, you wouldn't believe
-happy new year, everyone!