Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Run. Sprint. Evade.

Voices get closer.

Rain falls heavier.

Mud appears.

Feet slip.

Eyes close.

Blood flows. 

Crawl. Hide. Escape.

And then?

Darkness.

The rain falls against the coffee shop windows in a steady rhythm, blending in with the soft indie music filtering through the small business. 

Junseo's finally closing for the night.

Joined by a half-asleep Leo, clad in a beanie and oversized hoodie, and his hard-working, studious boyfriend Jiahao, Junseo flips the sign to "closed" and shuts the blinds. The droopy, dim streets are sheltered from their view as the dark blinds drop to the ground, making the sleepy atmosphere of the coffee shop even more noticeable than before. 

Arms slide around Junseo's waist, engulfing him in warmth and care before he can blink. 

"I already took care of the dishes earlier. And no, I won't stop doing that, because it barely takes any time, and you need to get some rest," Jiahao hums, pressing his forehead into the wide berth between Junseo's shoulder blades. 

A muffled gag enters the space, sounded off by Leo, who stands from his spot at the now-closed window and crosses over to the kitchenette behind the bar. "The day that you two finally get a room will be the day that pigs finally, finally fly."

He leaves Junseo and Jiahao to their own devices. He doesn't know what they end up doing as he takes the trash and goes to the back exit to throw it away, but he's sure they're either slow dancing like an old married couple or running to their upstairs apartment to fuck like bunnies. 

Leo has a deep appreciation for his roommates, he really does, but third wheeling for years has started affecting him. 

Tossing the trash in the bin under the veranda, he takes a moment to look out at the rain and exhale a shaky breath into the wind. 

It's been three years since Junseo found him.

Three years since he was at the lowest of lows, barely a person, merely a puppet with blood in his veins and a brain on autopilot.


He remembers the first time he stepped into the coffee shop.

It's been in Junseo's family for generations, updated with the passage of time and the transferal of owners. The first time that Leo had truly smelled coffee was when he walked in, covered with the blood and dirt that followed him from the place of his captivity.


It was in the shop that Leo re-learned how to think. It was in the shop that he started listening to music, feeling the worn keys of the old piano in the corner beneath his calloused fingertips.


A chill wracks his body from the shrill winter climate. Even with a beanie and warm clothes, the cold bites his bones. 

With a silent reverence, he makes his daily promise to himself not to take any of this for granted, and to continue working towards paying Junseo back. (He'll never let him, but Leo doesn't care about the fine print of their arrangement.)

He turns to leave, satisfied with the completion of his task and the moment of reminiscence, but a sound captures his attention.


Small, quiet, but inexplicably hurt.


Leo turns to the direction of the source. He doesn't see anything upon first glance, but as he examines the spot next to the dumpster, he sees the beginning of pale legs and dirty feet.

On edge, he rounds the corner to the bin and squints, eyes gifted with night-sight from the moment he was born into this world. It's usually a curse, but right now, it's a blessing.


A person is lying beneath the dumpster.


It's a small crack, barely room to fit, but the figure has managed to curl up and submerge themselves beneath the hulking mass.

"Um...are you alive?" Leo calls out slowly, crouching down beside the structure. He can't get a look at the person's face, nor anything past their legs, but they look small and skinny and bloody and dirty and fuck, if he's come across a dead body out here, how's he gonna tell Junseo?

Miraculously, signs of life emit from the pale figure.

The right leg jerks wildly, as if trying to kick him, but it repeats the action multiple times before going completely limp.

"...go. I'm...not here."


Quiet, delicate, but explicitly masculine.


Leo hums thoughtfully, sitting on his ass on top of the wet ground, uncaring of the mud soaking into his freshly washed joggers. He cares more about this random guy, stuck under a dumpster, than his pants, which is saying a lot for his character development in the past three years. 

“Right. That’s why you’re talking. And trying to kick me. Which, like, not cool, dude.”

Sniffles ring from below the dumpster, followed by a harsh cough. “I wasn’t trying to. It just-- just happens…….who are you?”

“I feel like I’m the one who should be asking you that,” Leo snorts, rubbing his forehead exasperatedly. “Okay. I’m Leo. Lee Leo. I’m twenty-three, my ass is coated in mud, and I’m trying to get you out from under a dumpster.”

Silence follows.

He thinks he hears the guy sniffling more, and his leg does the odd kicking motion again.

“...the men. Are they gone? You don’t smell like them.”


Dots connect. At least, Leo thinks they’re starting to.


The guy is almost definitely a hybrid; from the way he’s sniffing their surroundings to the thump of his leg. It’s also a good sign that he’s not just a weird drunk dude that had too many and decided to reverse dumpster dive.

“I’m the only one out here. My roommate owns this shop. Can you get out? I’ll let you inside for a bit.” It’s a last ditch attempt at getting him to come willingly.

Leo has all the strength he needs to make lifting the dumpster an easy task and just hauling him inside, but he can tell he’s shaken and tired and hurt.

A leg moves. Instead of kicking, though, it embeds a knee into the mud.

The other knee follows suit, and slowly but surely, the man starts to crawl out from the dumpster. It’s a shaky attempt-- feeble, with gasps of exhaustion leaving his mouth from below the surface.

Finally, the man emerges.


The first thing Leo notices is the smell of blood and the crude way it cakes the sides of dirty blonde bunny ears.

They’re droopy, hanging on both sides of the man’s head with matted fur.

He’s caked in dirt and blood from the tips of his toes to the top of his head, drenched from the rain, and dressed in nothing but a tattered black shirt and shorts.

Another thought, foreign and new, unwanted, creeps into Leo’s brain.


Beautiful.


He’s beautiful.


Even with grime and muck covering his entire being, with exhaustion hanging off his shoulders-- he’s breathtaking.


Leo’s chest hurts. His eyes water.


He swallows down an emotion he can’t place, can’t name, and gets closer to the rabbit hybrid. Big, sad, painfully empty brown doe eyes follow his every movement, no matter how small or insignificant they might be.

“I’m…gonna pick you up, okay? I don’t think you should walk.” The guy could barely crawl out, and distantly, Leo wonders what it took for him to crawl under it in the first place.

The man doesn’t respond verbally, only offering him a shaky nod of his head and the slow wrapping of his arms around his body.

Leo scoops him up. He’s impossibly tiny.



He fears he could snap his bones with one grip. He fears he could tear him to shreds with his incisors.

However, he holds him gently, delicately, like he’s something precious.

Leo has a feeling, deep in the pit of his stomach, that he is.

Sangwon has no idea how he wound up in this situation. 

Well…there's a rough scenario in his brain, but it's covered in fog and fever. 

His limbs shake in Leo's arms, making the trek up the stairs more arduous than it was going to be. 

Leo doesn't say anything about it. If anything, he tightens his grip and the parts of their skin that touch set Sangwon on fire. 

He's not sure why he's trusting Leo, especially after his narrow escape from death earlier. There's just…something different about him. 

Sangwon doesn't trust humans. He can't stand them. 

Leo, though? Leo approached him in a different way than most humans did. He didn't stare lustfully at his body, nor make jokes about his ears or his status. He just…helped. 

They enter a bright hallway before Sangwon realizes, so bright that he turns his head and hides his face in the fabric of Leo's hoodie. 

“Sorry. Thought they'd be asleep by now,” Leo mumbles from above, toeing off his shoes at the entryway of the apartment and bringing Sangwon inside. Sangwon can feel the bass from his voice deep in his chest, rattling his bones.

“...they?” He questions, peeking out from Leo's chest with furrowed brows and fever-pinkened cheeks. Leo starts to answer, but another scent enters the space and Sangwon looks over to see another human, clad in a soft black robe and a green sheet mask.

His brain, fuzzy and full of static, reminds him of the fact that Leo’s roommate owns this place. It makes sense for the man to be in his home, indulging in the comforts of leisure after a long workday.

Sangwon doesn’t know leisure. He doesn’t know the softness of a black robe or the cooling effects of a wet sheet mask.


He curls closer to Leo, wishing the world would swallow him whole.


-----


Leo stares at Junseo.

Junseo stares at Leo.


It’s a battle of “who’s gonna let the cat out of the bag first?” and the cat, unfortunately, is the bunny hybrid laid across Leo’s arms.


Leo breaks the silence first, clearing his throat awkwardly. “...hey.”

“Hey,” Junseo responds, rather lamely, as he bridges the gap between them and takes a closer look at their visitor. “Did you make a friend on your trash run?”

An indignant snort makes way out of Leo’s nose, “Yeah, actually. Can he use the bath? And…preferably stay the night?” He knows Junseo will say yes, but asking for more favors sends nerves sprinting down his spine.

Junseo’s eyes soften, and even if he looks utterly ridiculous in his leisurewear, his expression reminds Leo of the fact that he’s his savior.

“Mm. I’ll go find some spare clothes that’ll fit. I think Hao’s might be our best option. Also, we ordered in tonight and coincidentally bought way too much,” the older man smiles, starting to walk down the hallway. He looks back at them, at the rabbit hybrid in particular, and smiles wider when their eyes meet. “Make yourself at home. We can talk about specifics later, but let Leo help you get cleaned up and warm. He doesn’t bite.”

Leo feels his cheeks heat up, and the rabbit hybrid makes a confused noise in the back of his throat at Junseo’s last comment. “Ignore him. He’s the most unserious person I’ve ever met. When you get to know him, you’ll understand.”

The bathroom greets them soon after. Leo settles the man on the sink and bends down to start the bath water.

Silence floods the room, only muted by the influx of water entering the porcelain tub.

Belatedly, he realizes he doesn’t know the guy’s name. He doesn’t know what he’s used to, where he’s been, or the circumstances of his sudden arrival.


Hybrids aren’t recognized as independent people in their society. They always have to be registered to an “owner”, a human of substantial financial status and capable of handling the responsibility of caring for another person.

There are some owners that treat hybrids better than others do.

Leo thinks the system is complete bullshit. Collaring a person with thoughts, feelings, and capabilities beyond a mere human…it all seems like a waste. It’s wrong, unethical, but society hasn’t caught up to rational thought.


Looking at the bunny hybrid, shaking and cold and feverish, bloody and scarred and empty, reminds Leo of a hybrid’s place in the world.

-----


“Name?” Leo asks as he approaches Sangwon again, the tub filled about halfway with water by now.

Sangwon shifts uncomfortably on the sink’s countertop, pulling his shirt over his head and dropping it on the ground next to him.

He hopes the dirt and blood doesn’t stain the clean, white tile.

He’s had limited social interaction outside of his owner and the other hybrids in his previous home. It’s hard to do something as simple as introducing himself, but Leo is looking at him with patience and genuine curiosity, so the words come easier than they usually would.

“Sangwon…and I can go after the bath, you really don’t need t-” Leo cuts him off almost instantly with a soft ruffle to the top of his head. “You’re staying the night and getting some food. It’s late and the rain’s just gonna get worse,” Leo answers, a comforting smile decorating his lips.

He knows better than to reject rare kindness, so he gives a nod and looks down at his lap, tears bubbling in his eyes before he knows it. They threaten to spill, but he wills them away.


Crying doesn’t do any good. He’s learned that by now.


“I’ll leave you some clothes outside the door. Take as much time as you need, okay?” Leo ruffles his hair again, uncaring of the muck coating it, and leaves the bathroom with the quiet click of the door shutting behind him.

Sangwon manages to make it off of the bathroom counter and sheds his shorts onto the ground alongside his shirt. The bath looks inviting and warm, which makes it an easy decision to sink into the water and close his eyes to relish in the heat.

The cold in his bones eases up, unfreezing and turning him to mush.

He doesn’t know how long he spends just laying there, but he eventually gains the strength to scrub the dirt and blood off of his body. The water turns to a murky brown by the end of it and the sight makes him grimace.

Mourning the loss of the nice bath, he drains the water and rinses off in the shower, mindful around his ears. He watches fresh blood drip from his forehead and onto the white tub below him, registering the pain blooming at the top of his head.


Sangwon isn’t surprised that he didn’t escape his sprint unscathed.

His owner’s guards were fast and abrasive, uncaring of how they got their product back as long as he wasn’t dead. He’s glad he isn’t dead.

He thinks that if they’d succeeded and he was returned to his owner, he wouldn’t be walking the earth anymore. The thought makes anxiety crawl back in, right as he turns off the water and steps out of the tub into a warm towel.

After tomorrow, he won’t be sheltered behind the safety of this carefully curated home.

The pressing unknown causes him to shake.

Leo paces the kitchen as Sangwon bathes, two plates of warm takeout resting on the counter in front of him, alongside a first-aid kit and a blanket.

He’s changed into a clean hoodie and fresh joggers, clean from mud and rain from his earlier stint outside.

Junseo told him they’d talk in the morning, introduce Sangwon to Jiahao, and decide their plan of action. He hopes their plan of action includes keeping their new addition safe and away from whatever it is that he’s running from.


Soft steps pad into the kitchen and Leo turns, finding Sangwon standing uncomfortably in the doorway.


He’s smaller than Leo expected, now that he’s standing and more visible than before. He doesn’t know if it’s because Sangwon tries to fold into himself, to hide, but the difference in their size isn’t lost on him.

Making friends with a rabbit hybrid isn’t smart, he tries to rationalize. He could very easily snap his bones, draw blood with the drag of his teeth across Sangwon’s skin.

Leo knows what he is. He knows what Sangwon is. He knows they shouldn’t cross paths more than they need to, but at this moment, logic doesn’t matter.

Jiahao’s clothes dangle from his lithe form and his ears drip water onto the ground. He’s tinted pink and his hair looks fluffy and soft, free of the matted tufts that plagued it, and his skin is smooth and delicate, evident from the absence of dirt and blood.

Leo notices a few odd bruises here and there, but a nasty one makes itself known from the left side of Sangwon’s hairline, trailing down the side of his face.


He bites down a growl that threatens to boom from his chest.


Instead, he plasters on another smile and pats on a barstool, “C’mon, eat.”

Sangwon hesitates for a brief moment, chewing on his bottom lip like he’s refraining from saying something in refusal, but he ends up sitting on the soft cushion and picking up the chopsticks adjacent to him.

Leo sits next to the rabbit hybrid, opening the kit and looking at the canvas of bruises on pale skin. Aside from stray scratches and cuts, there doesn’t appear to be anything too severe, but then he spots a red patch next to one of Sangwon’s blonde ears.

“Did you fall? Or did something-- someone hit you? On the head?” He asks, interrupting Sangwon mid-bite. Sangwon turns to him with wide eyes and a hesitant nod, swallowing the small bite of food.

“...with a rod. Before I ran.”


A rod.


Leo remembers the pain of metal crashing against his skull, fists punching against his skin, and the aftermath of the sting.


“Can I see?” He asks, voice soft, hands shaking as they approach Sangwon’s hair. The other man watches him, brown doe eyes following his hands, and he nods again.

With permission, Leo parts the blonde strands, looking at the damage.

A blossoming bruise, a cut, with blood slowly moving from the injury. He disinfects it, causing a wince from below him, and does the best that he can with limited materials. He hopes it doesn’t need stitches.

He could do them, but it wouldn’t be pretty and Sangwon would most definitely not enjoy the experience.

“...let me keep an eye on it and tell me if it starts feeling worse. We might need to go to a hospital.”


Sangwon’s eyes widen with a new emotion, fear swimming in brown orbs, and he shakes his head with too much ferocity. It makes him sway on the barstool, Leo reaching out to hold his arms and steady him.


“No. No, because they’ll send me back, and I can’t go back. I can’t…” Sangwon’s words come out fast and panicked, his right leg mimicking the kicking gesture from earlier.

Leo knows he needs to settle the situation before it dissolves into full-blown panic. He’s been in Sangwon’s spot before, Junseo in his own, holding Leo and murmuring assurances that he wouldn’t have to step foot in the ring ever, ever again.

He tries to calm the rabbit hybrid. He holds him in an embrace, humming into his hair and rocking them back and forth, but nothing eases the shakes or the pleas of “no, not again, no”.


So, in that moment, Leo pulls back. He looks down at Sangwon, tilts his chin up, and locks them into a trance of eye contact.

His free hand reaches up in a quick motion, and Leo tugs the black beanie off of his head.


Brown wolf ears spring out.


The left one is missing a portion of the tip, and they shake themselves out of the confines of the fabric in a breath of relief.

Sangwon’s jaw drops. Leo stares, puts his hands square on Sangwon’s shoulders, and promises.

“I won’t let anything happen to you. You have my word. You’re safe.”

He watches as Sangwon’s eyes dart around his body. How they linger on his neck, free of a collar, and how they peer at the missing chunk of his ear.

Within the space of a breath, Sangwon crumbles.

Tears stream down his cheeks and arms spring up, wrapping themselves around Leo’s neck, and he all but melts into him. He cries into his chest, face pressing against the cotton of his hoodie, and allows himself to break.


Leo holds him.


He makes sure he doesn’t fall apart.

They stay like that until Sangwon’s breathing slows and he becomes dead-weight in Leo’s arms.

The wolf hybrid peeks down at his chest, seeing Sangwon’s closed eyes and parted lips, and sighs a breath of relief.

It’s easy to gather the man into his arms again, lifting him up from the barstool and toting him to his own room.


His room is decently sized, full of things that were once a luxury to him. Sometimes, it still feels like they are.

A warm bed, full of blankets and pillows. A lamp with a soft orange lightbulb settled inside, sat next to an air humidifier on the nightstand. A phone, charging and lit up on his desk, alongside a laptop that still has his latest midi file pulled up.

Usually, his room is only occupied by one person: himself.

Junseo never breaches the doorway, allowing Leo the space that he’s carefully curated for himself. He comes in when invited, when Leo deems it safe that another person enters his sanctuary, his first ever space to call his own.


As he lays Sangwon on his bed and pulls the blankets over him, he finds that he doesn’t mind another person inhabiting it.

Leo brushes stray blonde strands out of Sangwon’s sleeping face, watching the steady rise and fall of his chest.


A knock sounds at the door, rousing Leo from his careful watch on the rabbit hybrid.

He walks over, careful to not wake the sleeping man, and opens the door to Junseo’s sheetmask-free face.

Leo steps into the hall, cracking the door, and leans against the wall. Junseo stands next to him, glancing at the sleeping hybrid in Leo’s bed, before looking back at the wolf and giving him a knowing glance.

He goes to speak, but Leo beats him to it, with pleading eyes and rushed syllables.

“He can’t go back.”

Junseo looks like he expected this. He rests a hand on Leo’s shoulder, a comforting weight amidst anxiety and longing. “I know.”

“I don’t know where he came from, or what he’s running from, or why I feel some sort of…attachment to him, but I do. He’s terrified. I think he has a fucking concussion. He might need stitches. I don’t…I don’t know what to do, hyung,” Leo’s voice shakes and so do his hands, the gravity of the situation settling in the hallway for the first time since Sangwon’s arrival.

The older man nods, as if he understands, because he does.

“When I found you, I felt the same way, you know?” Junseo muses, rubbing his thumb along Leo’s shoulder blade. “You were black and blue, you kept trying to bite me, but you looked lost. Scared. I knew from the moment I met you, I would never leave you. Not unless you wanted me to. I’m really glad you didn’t want me to, by the way, because you’re my best friend.”

Leo laughs, fragile in nature but genuine, and the tension eases from his shoulders.

Junseo smiles, reaching up to ruffle his hair before pulling away. “He has a home here if he wants it. We’ll figure out the technicalities later. Just help him acclimate, for now. I’ll call up Geonwoo and see if he can swing by tomorrow and look at his injuries.”


He loves Junseo. He would do anything for this guy. Literally anything.


“Thank you, hyung.”


He means it with every bone in his body.


-----


With a parting goodnight to Junseo, Leo closes his door and looks back at the bed.

Sangwon’s eyes are open, blinking at him in the dim light, and Leo frowns.

“Did we wake you up? I’m sorry,” he mumbles, walking over to the bed. He goes to sit down on the floor beside it, but Sangwon’s hand shoots out and grabs onto Leo’s hoodie with surprising strength.


“Stay.”


It’s not a question. It’s not a request.

It’s a demand.


“...are you sure?” Leo asks, blinking in disbelief, and Sangwon gives him the most affirmative nod he’s ever seen. He looks half asleep, yet so sure in his demands, and it leaves no room for Leo to argue.

He slides into the bed, pulling up the blankets over himself, and he looks down at Sangwon.

The rabbit hybrid looks satisfied with himself. He latches onto Leo without second thought, wrapping his arms around his waist and looking up at him.


“Thank you, Leo,” he murmurs, soft and groggy, and Leo’s lips quirk up into a shaky smile.


He shakes his head, smoothing out Sangwon’s hair with his hand. “You don’t need to thank me. Just sleep. We can talk in the morning, okay?”

Silence. Leo waits for a response, but it won’t come, because Sangwon’s already asleep again, hands curled into the fabric around Leo’s waist.

Leo doesn’t sleep for a long time. When he does, the sun has begun appearing behind his bedroom curtains.


They curl into each other in the throes of their unconsciousness, bodies facilitating warmth and security.

Predator and prey lay together in the dawn, their future unknown as the sun rises.

Chapter Text

Sangwon wakes up to something tickling his waist.

It’s soft, fuzzy, and has somehow wrapped around his entire midsection.

He blinks sleep out of his eyes, hazy in the dimmed lighting of the room he finds himself in. Distantly, he remembers it to be Leo’s, as well as the circumstances that led to sleeping in the other hybrid’s bed.

Finally, Sangwon looks down. Leo is curled around him like a protective barrier, and around his middle, lies Leo’s tail. It’s long, with wild tufts of fur popping out in different directions. He wonders how Leo had hidden it the day before.

The other man groans, shifting in the midst of his sleep. His arms encapsulate Sangwon in warmth.

Instead of feeling fear at the unfamiliar feeling, it makes his chest swell and his eyes water.

He’s never felt more protected in his life.

It’s odd, feeling protected by a predator hybrid, especially after being taught to avoid and defend against them.

Anxin would probably be proclaiming his insanity if he saw the display.

Thinking of Anxin hurts his heart, knives stabbing into the organ, so he abandons that train of thought in favor of hiding his face in Leo’s chest and letting the scent of pine trees invade his senses.

Maybe it’s because Leo was disguised as a human when they met. A small part of Sangwon envies him: it’s not easy for a rabbit hybrid to disguise themselves, especially with his long ears and small stature.

If he wasn’t a hybrid, the men wouldn’t have come.

If he wasn’t a hybrid, he’d feel more like a person and less like a machine.

There are multiple hypotheticals that he can think of, but none solve the obvious issue. He is a hybrid, and no beanie or heel inserts would change that.

He wouldn’t want them to. Even after all of the trouble, the fists, the demeaning communications directed towards him-- he knows he’s a hybrid, and it’s a fact that he swallows and accepts because there’s no way around it. 

Sangwon doesn’t realize he’s shaking, and when he does, it’s due to Leo looking down at him with sleepy eyes and resting a large, warm hand on his right thigh. His leg must’ve been kicking again, a nervous tick he’s had since birth.

Another thing wrong with him. Another thing that holds him back. Another thing that causes the men to laugh.

Leo doesn’t laugh.

He rubs his thumb on the soft fabric of Sangwon’s borrowed sweatpants, a soft rumble in his chest soothing the nerves out of the rabbit hybrid’s limbs.

When he stops shaking, Leo cracks a small smile and sits up, stretching his arms over his head. “Morning. Or afternoon. Is it?” The wolf hybrid squints at his alarm clock, and sure enough, it’s near three in the afternoon. They’d had a rough night, so he doesn’t see any issue with it. Junseo must have not either, because he hadn’t tried to wake them up or pry them off of each other.

“Does your head hurt? I’ll go ask if they managed to get ahold of Geonwoo, but he’s usually super busy. Not a lot of rogue hybrid doctors in this day and age, y’know.”

Leo starts to move, unwrapping himself from Sangwon, which is something that he severely dislikes. A pale, small hand reaches out and grasps onto Leo’s shirt in a death grip, going white at the knuckles. “Take me with you,” he sputters, desperate in an attempt to stay close to his savior.

Without Leo, the men would have found him.

Without Leo, he would’ve died under a dumpster.

The other man seems to sense his hesitation and offers a nod, detaching Sangwon’s hand from his shirt in order to help him out of bed. The rabbit hybrid sways just a bit, feet touching the cold floor and sending a jolt of sudden awareness through his body.

Aside from the dull throbbing in his temple and a tinge of nausea, he feels relatively fine. The warm bath from the night before undoubtedly staved off sickness from the cold and rain, as well as the soft clothes he was given. He doesn’t remember the last time he wore something other than his owner’s uniform black shorts and shirt.

All the house hybrids were given them to wear. Two pairs each. Sangwon remembers the first time his owner dressed him in pretty clothes, and after that, he never wished to wear such frilled garments ever again.

Leo reaches out and pats him tentatively on the shoulder.

Their height difference stands out to Sangwon more in the light of day, especially as he cranes his neck to look at him. He’s sure they’re a sight to see: a 5’5” bunny hybrid compared to a wolf hybrid that easily hits 6 feet (and likely surpasses that).

“Ready?” Leo asks, patient as he steers them to the door.

Sangwon nods. He’s tired of remembering the past in the comfort of Leo’s bedroom, eager to move on with the future five minutes, more than the past five years.

Leo can already sense three people when he exits the room with Sangwon in tow.

Junseo is easy to pick out, a steady heartbeat and calm breathing. Jiahao must be right next to him, because when he is, they almost blend into one. He can tell that Jiahao’s there, though, due to the small erraticness of his leg bouncing on the wood flooring. He hasn’t seen them yet, but he’s sure that Junseo is patting his knee.

They complement each other like that. They always have.

The third presence is Geonwoo. He has a different aura than the other two, more brashness in his breathing patterns and his voice carrying loudly throughout the living room.

With a quick glance at Sangwon, it’s obvious that the rabbit hybrid doesn’t notice the guest just yet.

Leo’s always had sharper senses, blessed (or cursed) with the traits of his wolf genetics. They’re helpful on some occasions, others not so much.

They helped in the ring. He supposes that’s one thing he should be grateful for.

He clears his throat, trying to alert the three men in the living room of their presence. Sangwon’s hand has found its way back into the fabric of his shirt and he can’t help but find it insanely endearing.

“The three of them are out there. Junseo, Jiahao, and Geonwoo. I’ll introduce you, so no need to freak out,” Leo looks down at him, trying to convey a semblance of comfort, but Geonwoo typically makes him nervous as well.

It’s not that Geonwoo’s a bad guy. In fact, it’s the polar opposite.

It was Geonwoo that patched him up after Junseo found him. It was Geonwoo that ran around the entirety of Seoul to aid runaway hybrids.

Leo hates feeling indebted to people. He feels indebted to Junseo, but at least the older offers him a chance to work in the coffee shop. With Geonwoo, there’s no way to pay him back yet. Geonwoo doesn’t want him nor need him to, but Leo’s been trained to wait for the other foot to drop.

It just hasn’t yet.

He decides to stop delaying the inevitable and walks into the living room, bunny hybrid trailing behind him like a shadow. He makes a show of his appearance, yawning loud and stretching his arms above his head. His ears twitch as if they’re trying to stretch, too.

Junseo cracks a laugh of disbelief, leaning against the back of the couch with his arm slung around Jiahao’s shoulders. “Finally. I think that’s the longest you’ve ever slept, and that’s saying something, considering you’re never up before ten,” Junseo hums, pointing to the spare space on the loveseat adjacent to the couch.

Leo walks over and takes a spot easily, crashing into the cushions with reckless abandon, “Yeah, because you always play disgustingly loud EDM music to wake me up through the door. You don’t even like EDM.”

They carry on with their banter, typical of them each day, until Leo notices that Sangwon is hanging anxiously around the loveseat’s edge. He hasn’t sat down yet, rather focused on eyeing the two unknown humans in the room.

Cursing himself internally for getting distracted, he pats the spot next to him. “Sangwon?” He calls out, the bunny hybrid whipping his head over right away. The action causes an involuntary wince to escape his pink lips, a hand coming up to rub at a bruised forehead.

Geonwoo, who has been quietly observing on the sidelines, steps over. “Aaand this is where I come in. I’m Geonwoo, completely and legitimately certified to examine your cranium, Sangwon,” the taller man smiles, eyes curling up into cat-like crescents as he does so.

His smile seems to ease the tension from Sangwon’s shoulders. Leo can only think about how brave the other hybrid is, allowing strangers and attention like this into his life after the night he’s just had.

Leo knows there’s more to what happened, bubbling under the surface and waiting to fester. He’s not sure he’s ready to learn about it yet.

Sangwon finally sits in the spot next to him, pulling his knees to his chest and sinking into himself. It makes him look smaller, and Leo knows that this is a behavior he’s practiced like clockwork, just from watching him automatically default to it. He shifts closer to Sangwon, eyeing Geonwoo as he approaches them.

There’s something vicious in his brain as he watches Geonwoo, ready to separate them the second he notices something’s off.

Junseo seems to pick up on his behavior, particularly of the red glint in Leo’s eyes and the slight snarl that his lips have unconsciously started to form. He stands from the couch, motioning for Jiahao to follow, and starts to head towards the separated kitchen.

“Leo? Come help us with something real quick. They’ll be fine.”

Geonwoo and Sangwon both turn to look at him, something shifting in Sangwon’s brown doe eyes. He uncurls himself a bit, squares his shoulders, and Leo can tell he’s trying to feign confidence. “I’ll be fine. Um, you should go. You won’t be that far away,” The bunny hybrid mumbles, Geonwoo humming in approval.

“Just checking on him. The basics. Just like when I come check on you, okay?” Geonwoo reassures, moving to get his tools out of his bag.

Everything in Leo wants to stay. He feels a need to watch Sangwon, to make sure that no hair on his head is touched, yet he forces himself off the couch. “Right. Yeah. Okay. Mhm. Off I go. Yep.” The words come out in ushered syllables, like he’s trying to convince himself, and he stalks off to the kitchen with a knot in the bottom of his stomach.

Leo leaves the room and with him, he takes every shred of confidence in Sangwon’s body.

His shoulders slump the second that the other hybrid is out of sight. He curls back in on himself, a practiced effort to hide, to take up as little space as possible.

Geonwoo doesn’t comment on the silent retreat. Instead, he fishes out a thermometer and a flashlight. “You ever been to the doctor?” He asks, tilting his head as he does so. He doesn’t move to examine him just yet, taking his time and allowing Sangwon to acclimate.

He shakes his head. Any illness was taken care of by himself and the other hybrids, a working conglomerate of people just trying to keep each other alive. His owner didn’t believe in sparing the expense for a high-priced hybrid doctor, especially when there were so many of them.

His mind flashes back to Anxin again, an unwilling thought in an unwanted body.

Geonwoo nods and moves a bit closer, holding up the thermometer. “I’ll just take your temperature first. Hyung said you’d been in the rain, so it’s better to be safe than sorry. I just have to tap it on your forehead.”

He waits until Sangwon nods in affirmation and does the action exactly as explained, quick and easy, over in a flash. The small device beeps with an answer, Geonwoo putting it back and picking up the flashlight next.

“Small fever, nothing to worry about though. You’re lucky. Just rest up and don’t overexert yourself, okay? One time I worked too hard when I had a fever and I totally threw up on Junseo hyung’s shoes, and then I had to buy him new ones. I’m broke and he has very specific shoe needs, so the lesson was definitely learned,” Geonwoo laughs, trying to ease the nerves floating in the room.

It works: Sangwon can’t hold back the small chuckle at the image of a green Geonwoo and an upset Junseo. His reaction causes Geonwoo to smile and turn on the flashlight, reaching out to tilt Sangwon’s chin up. “Okay. Follow the light with your eyes-- checking to see if you have a concussion. You got a nasty head bang, didn’t you?” He asks as he moves the flashlight.

Sangwon follows to the best of his ability. It’s bright, causing his eyes to water just a bit and the headache to subtly pulse in the back of his brain. As Geonwoo puts the flashlight down, Sangwon remembers the way the metal rod cracked into his skull.

It was fast, abrupt, and bonechilling.

He doesn’t know how he ran afterwards: sheer adrenaline, the fear of death, or the fear of something worse than that. 

Either way, he’d escaped, though Geonwoo’s quick to tell him that he’s not unscathed. “You have a concussion. Not severe, from what I can tell. Some rest and limited screen time is gonna do you wonders. I can give you some meds, too.”

Anxin would probably laugh at him for being dumb enough to get a concussion. Then, he would probably cry and profusely apologize for laughing. He’d say he wished it was him instead, that he was the one cracked with the rod, that he was the one that had to run from the men.

He wonders if they went back for Anxin. He wonders if Anxin thinks he’s dead. He wonders if Anxin is dead.

Geonwoo waves a hand in front of his face, a concerned frown etched on his lips. “You with me?”

The rabbit hybrid nods, averting his eyes and nervously bouncing his right leg. Geonwoo jots a few things down on a notepad and then hands him a small bottle of pills, “Give these to any of the hyungs and they’ll help you remember to take them, okay? Just one a day. Should last you the week.”

He rolls the bottle in his palm, staring at the small capsules. He’s never taken medication before and in his concussed haze, he wonders if they taste like candy.

Geonwoo must know he’s thinking of it, bizarre as the thought is, “No, they don’t taste like candy. I can confirm this, unfortunately.”

Or, he accidentally said it out loud.

His cheeks flush a pretty pink and he scratches the back of one of his ears, leg thumping from something of embarrassment, “I knew that.” He huffs, indignant, and Geonwoo lets out a hearty laugh.

“Can I check the wound on your head? After that, we can be all done.”

Sangwon, feeling the rapport growing between them, has an easier time nodding now. He thinks Geonwoo might be another person that he can trust, someone with good intentions.

It’s a nice feeling, having people he’s starting to rely on. He wonders when it will change, when they’ll leave, but for now, he closes his eyes and allows Geonwoo to carefully card his fingers through blonde locks of hair.

The atmosphere in the kitchen is stale, stagnant, and Leo’s tail sways behind him in poorly restrained agitation.

“Help” includes watching Jiahao and Junseo make googly-eyes at each other, whilst Leo scrambles the largest heap of eggs he’s seen in his life.

Junseo sits at the bar, turning his attention from Hao to Leo. “You looked like you were going to bite his head off. I doubt Geonwoo tastes good, so I figured giving you a task would make you less likely to commit murder.”

The wolf hybrid scoffs, turning the stove off and setting the spatula on the counter next to it. “I wasn’t gonna murder him, just…lightly graze his flesh. Like a butter knife. And stuff,” he realizes, after he says this, that he’s not really helping himself.

Jiahao rounds the counter and reaches up to smooth some of Leo’s hair out of his eyes, a calm but calculated glint in his eyes.

“I drew up the papers.”

Leo blinks, looking down at him with wide eyes, “That was fast…”

The other man smirks, crossing his arms and leaning against the kitchen counter. “Yeah, well, you’ve known him for less than twenty-four hours and you’re interacting with him in ways I’ve never seen you interact,” Jiahao speaks matter-of-factly. Junseo stifles a chuckle across the room.

Leo feels unbelievably seen.

“...I dunno. There’s something about him, I guess. I don’t even know what it is,” Leo confesses. His eyebrows furrow and he glares holes into the kitchen tile beneath his feet, as if it personally affronted him.

He must truly look conflicted, because Jiahao lets up on the teasing and points towards the papers sitting next to Junseo at the bar. “If he wants to stay, everything’s mapped out. New surname, forged documents, new owner-on-paper.” Jiahao says the last part quieter, like he doesn’t want to say it but he has to.

See, Jiahao has document forgery down to a science.

Whilst Junseo takes care of relocating runaways and sheltering as needed, Jiahao works on documentation to ensure a hybrid can live as normal of a life as possible. With the aid of Geonwoo, who works around the clock to give medical attention when needed, the trio have perfected the art of what the coffee shop really is: a hybrid relocation center.

In regards to paperwork, Jiahao simply bestows a new surname to the hybrid, forges government ownership documentation, and even goes as far as birth records and past history. It’s grueling work, something that has taken years to perfect, but he’s the most reputable yet undercover hybrid document technician in Seoul. 

Junseo typically finds the owner-on-paper, usually a hybrid rights activist that is open to housing a roommate. They don’t find replacement owners, fostering a belief of hybrid independence and freedom, to the extent of what they can do whilst skirting around the law.

Leo wonders what would’ve happened if Junseo hadn’t found him, half-dead in the ring and fervently feral. He’s glad he won’t find out, that he’s here, safe and sound and his own individual person.

“Thank you.”

He might sound like a broken record at this point, stuck on apologizing or thanking the two on a near-hourly basis, but he means it with his entire chest.

Jiahao just reaches over and gives him a side-hug, patting him on the back and going to reach for a plate. “Don’t mention it. I’ll take the eggs as payment for my services,” he grins, scooping a hefty portion onto the porcelain dish.

Leo looks over at Junseo, sending a playfully scathing look, to which the eldest responds by giving him a thumbs up.

He loves them, so much.

After eggs are eaten and dishes swim in the sink, their meal ends with the footsteps of two people entering the kitchen. Sangwon makes a beeline towards Leo, not holding onto his clothing anymore but lingering in his space. Leo acclimates easily, leaning closer but keeping his hands to himself.

The bunny hybrid looks calmer, though he still sends nervous glances towards Jiahao and Junseo. Leo’s almost forgotten that they haven’t shared many words between each other, though that’s going to change rather quickly.

Geonwoo raises a hand into a quick wave, smile set naturally on his features. “I’m out. He’s got meds and knows how to not throw up on Junseo hyung’s shoes,” he says triumphantly, causing a groan from Junseo. “Please do not remind me. I still see that happening in my nightmares…” Junseo sighs, running a hand over his face.

Leo really wishes he could have seen it happen. All he was able to witness was the aftermath, which included soiled sneakers and an angry Junseo. He’d never seen Junseo angry, and hasn’t seen him angry since, so the shoe incident must’ve really messed with him.

They say their goodbyes, even Sangwon, and Geonwoo leaves them to the second part of their day: presenting the possible future.


-----------

Now, Sangwon’s faced with Leo’s roommates and an intimidating stack of papers. One is the man from yesterday, the owner of the coffee shop and the wearer of the green sheet mask and black robe. The other man is intimidatingly handsome. His eyes are windows that feel all-knowing, all-seeing, and cause a shiver to run down Sangwon’s spine.

The unknown, handsome man goes first. “I’m Jiahao, nice to meet you~ I was busy when you came in last night, but it’s really great to see you today.”

His voice is soft, delicate, gentle. It’s a shift from his outward appearance, lightening Sangwon’s expression of him, and he tries to stop staring at him...to no avail. He’s someone that Sangwon thinks fills the room without trying to. There’s a grace hanging over his shoulders.

Just like that, he’s less intimidating and more captivating.

The coffee shop owner, Junseo, speaks up next. “...and I’m Junseo. We met yesterday, but I neglected to properly introduce myself. How old are you, Sangwon?” Junseo breaks the silence left by Geonwoo’s absence, looking over at the rabbit hybrid.

Sangwon, sitting on a stool next to Leo, gnaws on the inside of his lip in trepidation. He has a feeling that the next bit of their conversation is important.


Will they ask him to leave? Will they contact his owner?

Will they ask him about the men and the rod and the night and the past?


Right. Back on topic. His age-- that one’s easy. Ish. “...mm, twenty-two? I don’t know the exact day…just the year.”

Leo stares at him as though he can peer into his soul. His tail, long and as disheveled as earlier, taps absentmindedly on the back of his stool.

His eyes make Sangwon feel exposed, open, dissected, yet he doesn’t dislike the feeling of being seen by him.

“That makes you our maknae, then,” Junseo hums, and the wording isn’t lost on Sangwon. “...our?” Sangwon questions, eyebrows furrowing. His confusion is evident, even more so when Jiahao pushes the papers towards him.

“If you want that,” Jiahao speaks softly, a quiet promise floating through the air and to Sangwon’s long, blonde ears. “We operate as a covert hybrid relocation service. Those papers are forged documents: a fake past, new surname, and a new way of life. That is, assuming you don’t…want to go back?”


Go back.

Going back.


Sangwon shakes his head, eyes darkening, and he feels his hands start to shake. “No. I can’t, I can’t…” His voice is already quiet, but it dissolves into a whisper, and all he can think about is the rod and the men, the hands and his owner and Anxin.

Leo’s scent wafts over him, pine trees in a sea of anxiety, and his hands cover Sangwon’s trembling ones.

Warmth. Pine. Calm.

He takes a deep breath, trying to steady himself, while Leo bends down and looks him in the eyes. “You don’t have to. You don’t have to tell us why, you don’t have to worry about it anymore. I promise,” he murmurs, words just for him and not the other two in the room. It feels like a shared moment, secluded from prying eyes.

JIahao and Junseo are silent for a few moments, allowing them the space to breath and communicate in their own way. Once Sangwon calms and the storm passes, he looks back over at the duo.

“Can I stay?” He asks hesitantly, squeezing Leo’s hands, which now rest in his lap.

Junseo rounds the counter and reaches out, patting the top of Sangwon’s hair in a gentle, supportive manner.

“It’s official.”

Sangwon joins their family on a winter afternoon, fresh with a concussion and a low-grade fever.

Leo is reminded of when he accepted Junseo’s proposal three years prior, saved from death and nearly non-verbal.

The similarities and differences are striking, pulsing through his heart and brain like a sword. He sees himself in the way Sangwon hesitantly signs his name on the dotted lines of paperwork, of the document that declares Junseo as his legal owner. He sees himself in the way Sangwon bows his head in appreciation and how he carries himself to give Junseo a tentative, barely-there hug.

He feels the need to protect deep down to his core.

After the papers are signed, Jiahao takes his leave to deliver them to the Seoul Hybrid Association, a kiss shared with Junseo before he steps out the door.

It’s always nerve-wracking when Jiahao leaves to drop off documents. Their line of service is dangerous, law-breaking, and scary. No matter how many times they repeat the process of relocation, it never gets easier.

Leo doesn’t believe in God, but he prays that Jiahao comes back each time he leaves.

Junseo crosses the room and shakes out his shoulders, trying to ease the nerves from sending his boyfriend off to the danger zone again. “Now that that’s settled, we can talk shop. Coffee shop.”

They move to the living room, lo-fi music playing quietly on the television and all of them curled up on the couch. Sangwon finds comfort in the corner of the cushions, squeezed next to Leo. The wolf hybrid has to hold himself back from touching him, the need for contact whirling in his brain. He settles for draping a blanket over the younger’s lap, which elicits a soft “thanks” from his pretty pink lips.

Leo would die for him, and he met him yesterday.

“You probably noticed, but Leo goes undercover outside,” Junseo starts, looking over at both of them. “He’s human for all intents and purposes outside of this house, but that’s his prerogative. What do you want, Sangwon? Is that something you’re ready to decide?”

Leo can see the gears turning in Sangwon’s brain. His leg starts bouncing and his eyes avert from Junseo’s down to the blanket in his lap, nimble fingers picking at the threads. “It’s…I can’t hide it very well. I can’t put my ears up for too long and my, uh…mannerisms, they’re not really…human,” Sangwon mumbles.

Then, he lifts his face and looks over at Junseo, bottom lip worried between his teeth. “I know it’ll make life harder if I am, but…I don’t want to act like a human. I want to be me.”

Sangwon speaks non-negotiably, showing a side that Leo hasn’t seen from him yet.

He wants to see it more.

Admiration blooms alongside the need to protect in his lungs, one in the right and one in the left. It doesn’t take a mind reader to know that Sangwon has probably been through some of the worst things imaginable, as most hybrids have been, and yet he owns his identity in ways that Leo wishes he, himself could.

Junseo nods, accepting the proclamation with a smile and a supportive squeeze of Sangwon’s knee. “We can work with that. Anything you want.”


-----------


The rest of the day is spent outlining the near future.

Sangwon agrees to work in the coffee shop easily. He mentions that he has experience cooking and cleaning, speaking in a way which alludes to a past that Leo wants to ask about but doesn’t.

Jiahao makes it back, safe and sound, entering Junseo’s awaiting arms. Leo doesn’t roll his eyes at the display of affection this time, merely observing as they embrace like they’re being reunited after a decade of separation.

When all is said and done, dinner ate and a comfortable silence following, the matter of Sangwon’s room comes into play.

“We have a spare room that we use for relocation. It could be yours, if you want,” Junseo offers, Jiahao hanging sleepily off of his shoulder. Leo rubs the back of his neck, standing next to Sangwon as he turns off the last light in the living room.

His brain then supplies the incessant need to protect, consuming and all-too present.

“Or he could just share with me,” he says casually, putting his hands in his pockets like it’s no big deal. Sangwon looks up at him with parted lips, almost in awe, and then glances at Junseo. “...yes. That’s fine, um, sharing with Leo…hyung,” He tests the name on his tongue, a shy, small smile morphing on his face after he speaks.


Leo’s heart literally combusts. Into pieces. Smithereens. He’s melting. All over the hardwood floor.


Junseo seems like he expected this, a knowing color lighting his eyes. His lips twitch into a smirk and he shoots a look at Leo. The wolf hybrid swears that there’s a tease of a wink in his eye, but it’s over before he can say anything.

“Alright, then. We’ll see you two tomorrow. Get some rest, you earned it.” With that, Junseo steers Jiahao into their own room, leaving Sangwon and Leo in the dim hallway.

Silence follows.

Leo chances a glance down at the bunny hybrid, who stares at his socked feet as though they’re the most interesting things in the world. He feels his lips turning into a smile and rests a hand delicately on the small of Sangwon’s back. “C’mon. You’re concussed and I’m just perpetually ready to sleep at any given moment.”

Sangwon follows him without question.

His room is just as they left it that afternoon, bedsheets ruffled from prior sleep. Leo plops down unceremoniously with a loud “oof”, patting the spot next to him.

Oh.

Is he just assuming that Sangwon will want to sleep with him again? Not…not with him, but well, next to him. He sits up, looking the other hybrid up and down. “Uh. We could totally get you a bed and squeeze it somewhere in here. Maybe bunk beds. Bunk beds are cool. So, so cool, actually,” Leo hurries to rectify the assumption, but Sangwon silences him with a simple shake of the head.

The younger crawls into the bed and curls up right next to him, pressing Leo down onto the sheets and nosing into the crook of the wolf hybrid’s neck.

“This is…nice. You’re nice. I wanna stay here.”

And what kind of demon would Leo be to say no to that?

He’s restless again.

Sangwon sleeps comfortably, hand curled into his shirt and his limbs entangled with Leo’s own. Leo, on the other hand, stares down at the man in a trance.

He doesn’t know how the magnetic pull materialized. He doesn’t know where the red string of fate starts or where it ends.

Leo does know that he’ll put his life on the line for him, though.

He wants to know more about what led Sangwon to him the night prior.

His hunger for knowledge on all things Sangwon is insatiable, his canines throbbing with the desire to claim.



And there, in the dead of night, Lee Leo realizes he’s imprinted on Lee Sangwon.

Chapter Text

Sangwon fits into the coffee shop as if he’s always been there. 

He wasn’t lying when he said he had experience cooking and cleaning. Almost all of their baked goods are made by the hybrid, handled and packaged with care, or plated with an elegant grace that Leo severely lacks. 

The shop itself is spotless, orderly, and organized. Sangwon whirls around the dining space quickly and efficiently, practiced movements showing through as if they were taught by a drill sergeant. 

Leo worries that the comparison is scarily accurate, and wonders who the sergeant was and how detrimental his lessons were.

Sangwon doesn’t talk much. He doesn’t interact with customers and sticks to corners and behind the bar as much as possible. He hides behind Leo’s back, makes himself small if someone tries to compliment one of his pastries, and it’s obvious that his social battery drains at a rapid rate. 

By the end of the work day, the bunny hybrid usually eats a quick meal and then excuses himself to his and Leo’s shared bed, sinking into the sheets and allowing sleep to kidnap him in its greedy grasp. Leo doesn’t know how to breach deeper conversation with their new housemate, even if they spend every night tangled with each other. 

He doesn’t know how to deal with the imprinting thing. He doesn’t know if he wants to. 

There’s a vile, constant thrumming in his veins when he thinks about Sangwon.

He feels the urge to protect grow with each passing day, with each hint of a bunny-toothed smile, with each whisper of a quiet giggle from the back of a pretty, slim throat. 

It’s both suffocating and enthralling.

A week passes with their new addition. The routine of work and home has gradually settled in, all up until Sangwon makes a startling discovery. 

He wakes at six in the morning, his internal clock still ticking from years of conditioning, and gently untangles himself from Leo’s embrace. His morning includes a quick shower and the tugging on of Jiahao’s borrowed clothes. 

Junseo has offered to take him shopping multiple times, but going out terrifies him.

The thought of running into the men with the rods or his previous owner’s acquaintances fills him with existential dread. It rots his bones and bullies his brain, sending shrieks of fear from the top of his head to the tips of his toes. 

Therefore, wearing Jiahao’s hand-me-downs has been the standard for the past week. Sangwon knows he’ll have to go out eventually, but for now, he rolls up the soft pantlegs of Jiahao’s joggers and the gentle sleeves of his sweater. The clothes are warm and comfortable, a feeling he hasn’t gotten from clothing in a long time. 

The next part of his routine includes the buckling of a dark red collar around his throat. 

It’s a reminder of his place in the world. 

Junseo had been apologetic when he’d presented the hybrid with it, but Sangwon understood. It’s illegal for a hybrid to be out without one, and doing so could result in his removal from the shop or a penalty for Junseo. 

The collar is the price he pays for deciding to remain himself. 

His eyes linger on his neck in the bathroom mirror for a moment too long. He focuses on brushing his hair and smoothing out the fur on his ears, instead. They hang limply on each side of his head, smooth and soft to the touch. He couldn’t fit them into a beanie if he wanted to, something he feels unwanted jealously for towards Leo. 

Distantly, he wonders why Leo has to hide. He wonders why Leo doesn’t want to be himself. 

Sangwon shakes his head, exiting the bathroom. It’s time to get downstairs, not time to debate philosophical musings of the older wolf hybrid. 

When he enters the kitchen, Junseo is already awake, though he’s not dressed for the day. He wears the same black robe as when they’d first met, though he lacks the green sheet mask. He’s nursing a mug of coffee, leaning against the counter with peace coating his features. 

Junseo also looks incredibly confused as Sangwon comes into view. 

“Good morning. I figured you would sleep in a little today,” he comments, turning around and crafting another mug for the younger man. 

Sangwon raises an eyebrow. Why isn’t Junseo dressed? Why is he not heading downstairs? Why is the house so quiet? “...um. Don’t we need to be opening right now?” Sangwon questions, taking a tentative seat on a barstool in front of the coffee shop owner. 

Junseo shakes his head, sliding the newly acquired mug towards Sangwon. “We’re closed on Sundays. Everyone needs a break now and then, y’know?” He smiles, leaning forward to ruffle Sangwon’s soft blonde hair. 

“Oh…” He stares down at the swirling liquid in his mug, steam rising off the top, and feels his right leg start to thump nervously. A day off isn’t a luxury that Sangwon has been gifted in years, always present and always moving throughout the day. Routine keeps him sane, whole, useful. He doesn’t know what to do with the newfound freedom, or the release from structure. 

Luckily, Junseo picks up on the inner turmoil rather quickly. 

“I was thinking that we could go find you some clothes today,” Junseo suggests calmly, knowing that the topic of going outside is still harrowing to Sangwon. “And I really need to get groceries. Like, desperately. We’re about to start eating coffee beans for dinner.” To prove his point, Junseo opens the refrigerator. 

It looks…completely empty, save for a droopy-looking tomato. 

Sangwon can’t help the small laugh of disbelief that leaves his chest, “...that does look pretty dire.” 

Even with the anxiety settling at the bottom of his stomach, he knows that the outside world is inevitable. 

The outside world visits their safe haven every day. They drink coffee and eat pastries, while others contact Junseo and Jiahao in search of freedom from captivity and malicious hands. 

So, Sangwon nods, and he agrees to venture out. Vague, foggy images of a dumpster and a metal rod filter through his brain, but he shuts them out in favor of sipping the hot coffee in front of him. 

-----------

Leo wakes last, to no one’s surprise. 

His tail sways languidly behind him as he saunters into the living space, scratching at his stomach and leaving his mouth open in a lazy yawn. Junseo is combing through his hair in the mirror next to the entryway, freshly applied cologne wafting around the living room. Leo’s eyes naturally search for a certain rabbit hybrid, nose trying to filter through the room for cotton and strawberry. 

He finds Sangwon curled up on the couch, a blanket covering his lap and a book nestled in his hands. He looks invested, mouth twitching with reactions to whatever text he’s reading, but he seems to notice Leo’s presence instantly. The younger man stands up, blanket falling on the floor beside him, and he walks with a quick stride towards Leo. 

Arms circle around his waist, thin and warm, and Sangwon’s face buries itself in his chest. 

Leo’s heart pounds with unsaid emotion.

His gums sweat with shielded desire. 

“Good morning to you, too,” he mumbles to Sangwon, returning the hug and rubbing the hybrid’s upper back. He tries to ignore how much his hand covers the space, how easy it is to dwarf him in his grasp. 

Junseo looks back at them, a knowing smile gracing his features, but he doesn’t comment on the display in front of him. “Leo, get dressed. We’re going out today.” 

Leo raises an eyebrow, pointing down at Sangwon. “All of us?” He questions, acknowledgement of Sangwon’s distrust of the outside not lost on him. Junseo nods, not verbally answering, so Leo knows not to comment more on the development. “Okay. I’ll be out quick.” He tacks on the last part to placate the bunny clinging to him, who rouses with a noise of dissatisfaction. 

It takes a second to pry Sangwon off of him, but he makes fast work of wrapping his tail around his torso and stuffing his ears into a black beanie. When he’s done changing, Sangwon, Jiahao, and Junseo are already lingering by the door, the smaller of the three nervously shifting his weight between each foot. 

He takes Sangwon’s hand as he approaches, squeezing it in his own and spreading his scent subtly over the younger’s shoulders. It seems to help his anxiety, even if just slightly. “We’ll make it a short trip. Hao even made a list,” Junseo hums as he opens the front door, Jiahao following behind closely. He holds up a legitimate notepad, penned with pretty mandarin. 

And thus, they begin their mission.

The clothing store is the first hurdle. 

They go to a smaller location, outfitted with basic necessities and less crowds. Sangwon sticks to Leo like glue, knuckles white from the sheer strength in his grip on the wolf hybrid’s hand. Leo doesn’t mind, squeezing back just as tight, an anchor in a sea of the unknown. 

Surprisingly, the environment isn’t the most trying task of the trip.

It’s getting Sangwon to actually choose what he wants to wear. 

Junseo tries multiple different styles, holding them up to Sangwon’s torso and having him feel the fabrics. They receive rehearsed responses of “that’s fine” and “anything works,” but neither answer makes them feel great. Eventually, Junseo and Jiahao leave them to browse for themselves. 

In reality, it’s to give them space. It’s to give Leo an opportunity to break open one of the several walls that Sangwon keeps carefully in front of him. 

As they linger near a rack of sweaters, Leo thumbs over a baby blue turtleneck absentmindedly. Then, casually, “Have you ever bought your own clothes?” He asks, looking down at Sangwon with knowing eyes. 

He knows the answer is no. Sangwon’s unaffirmative head shake confirms such. 

“...he only had us wear the same clothes. The ones from the night we met. All of us had two pairs. No more, no less,” Sangwon mumbles, eyes wandering to the sweater that Leo’s free hand presses upon. “If we wore something else, it was for the men, and I didn’t like seeing the men.” 

Leo feels sick. 

He swallows thickly, trying to school his expression. “You’ll never have to be near…the men, ever again, Sangwon,” he promises, squeezing his hand for the umpteenth time. Sangwon nods, worrying his lower lip between his teeth. 

“Can you try to pick something out? Something that looks nice to you? Or comfortable. I know you like Jiahao’s clothes, so something flowy and light?” He starts looking through the racks, though it’s clear that he’s out of his depth. Leo likes street fashion, baggy hoodies, slacks or joggers, and absolutely nothing near what Jiahao usually dresses in. 

Still, he tries. 

Sangwon must be able to tell that clothes and Leo don’t really get along, because he eventually ends up scanning the racks himself, which is a large improvement from when they’d first entered the store. 

“...um. What about…this?” Leo looks down in response to Sangwon’s voice. The rabbit hybrid is holding up a flowy dress shirt, peachy tan with flowers on the fabric. It’s a bit sheer, a button-up, and Leo can envision Sangwon wearing it. 

The mental image is stunning. He can only imagine what it’ll look like in person. 

He smiles with a sharp nod, eyes crinkling. “I think that suits you, Wonnie.” The nickname slips out without warning, causing pink to coat Sangwon’s cheeks, and he hugs the shirt to his chest. 

Shopping eases into a steady rhythm after that. 

Sangwon chooses with less intervention from Leo, and eventually, he’s able to approach Junseo with a decent amount of clothing to get by with. 

Leo doesn’t think Junseo’s ever looked this proud in the three years that he’s known him.

Jiahao compliments the array of clothing and contributes to an already-bashful Sangwon, brimming with a pink flush and a shy smile that make the butterflies in Leo’s stomach swarm. 

Once they’ve checked out, the trip to the actual grocery store isn’t as daunting as it seemed before. 

Their hands are still attached, but the grip is comfortable and not piercing. Jiahao leads the group, his notepad guiding their search, all with Junseo’s hand guiding his lower back while Leo moves the shopping cart with his free hand. 

They feel like a unit of four, chatting whilst among the aisles of various foods and beverages. Sangwon looks around with those big, brown doe eyes of his, noticeably out of his element but soaking in their surroundings. He asks Leo what some of the packaging is, as well as the more exotic fruits or vegetables they come across. 

Leo can tell he’s thinking of new pastry recipes, and in turn, thinking about his future in their lives and the coffee shop. 

It reminds him of his first grocery trip, of when he followed behind Junseo with an iron grip on the back of his shirt and a fierce glare settled in his eyes aimed at passerby. 

He’d been a picky eater at the start, untrusting of any food that was packaged and not prepared by his hyung. The ring liked to play with their food, dousing it in strange substances to heighten their strength. It was either that, or prohibiting them from consumption until they won a match. 

As they stand in front of the chip aisle, Junseo and Jiahao in a heated discussion about which brand of popcorn to splurge on, Sangwon’s hand waves in his field of view. 

Dazed, Leo looks down at him, surveying the worried expression on the bunny’s face. “You left us for a little bit. Are you okay?” Sangwon asks, concern laced in his delicate, quiet syllables. Leo nods, reaching out to smooth some of the younger man’s blonde hair out of his eyes.

“I’m fine. Just…reminiscing.”

He knows the statement is vague, but Sangwon accepts it with a nod and leans his head against Leo’s upper arm, a silent attempt at comfort. 

Leo clears his throat, plastering on a smile. “Anyways, now I get to show you the literal best cheesecake selection in the entire world. Like, ridiculous stuff. C’mon,” He hums, tugging on Sangwon’s hand. Sangwon follows without second thought, a shy smile appearing on his own lips. 

-----------

So far, Sangwon doesn’t hate how the day is shaping out. 

He’s seeing new things, experiencing them all with his new family, and learning the intricacies of shopping. He also gets to spend time with Leo, which is slowly becoming his favorite thing to do. 

There’s still much about the other hybrid that intrigues him and leaves him puzzled, such as the moments when Leo disappears and his eyes go dark, when he’s too quiet, and when he’s right beside him but seemingly unreachable. He knows it’s Leo’s own brand of trauma, of what happened before he entered Junseo’s shop, and hopes to uncover what lies below the surface within time. Right now, though, he focuses on the feeling of Leo’s large, warm hand engulfing his own and the background music of the grocery store. 

The lines are relatively short, though they do end up waiting for a few moments for the next cashier. As they’re waiting, Leo is in the midst of telling him an animated story about an encounter with an outlandish customer from a few days prior. 

He’s listening, he swears he is, but his attention is completely drawn away by the flickering of black fox ears from a few aisles away. 

Black fox ears, white on the tips, aimed downwards at the harsh words of the human standing next to them. 

“Anxin.” 

The name leaves his lips without preamble. Leo looks down at him, eyebrow raised, and Jiahao whips his head around. Sangwon doesn’t see them, though. He doesn’t hear them, he doesn’t feel Leo’s hand in his, and his feet move before his mind does. 

“Anxin. Anxin.” He takes off in a sprint down the aisle, leaving his three housemates with open mouths and shocked expressions. His feet are quick, his eyes wide and panicked, and he chants Anxin’s name like a prayer off his lips. 

Sangwon rounds the corner, the black fox ears coming closer in view, and he grabs the fox hybrid’s shoulder and pulls. 

When the hybrid turns around, hope dies in Sangwon’s chest. 

A man, not Anxin, looks down at him with shock. His eyes are the wrong color, his lips the wrong shade of red, and freckles dot his face where they shouldn’t. He has a dark collar wrapped around his throat and his presumed owner stands next to him, an angry, short man with thick eyebrows. 

“What the hell do you think you’re doing!?” The human yells, shoving Sangwon off of his hybrid and onto the white tiled floor of the grocery store. He hits the tile with a soft wince, brown eyes tracing the black fox even still. 

He’s not Anxin. Is Anxin dead? Is Anxin still with the men?


Thoughts flood his brain, evil and vicious in the death of hope and longing. 

Footsteps round the corner. 

Junseo stands behind him, chest heaving and eyes wild at the display before him. He extends a hand towards Sangwon, but the rabbit hybrid doesn’t move. His eyes are locked on the fox, at everything wrong with him, and the short man fumes. 

“Is this your hybrid? You need to keep that bitch on a leash. Is it in heat or something, coming at my Sooyoung like that?” The man pulls the fox, Sooyoung, towards him with an iron grip. Junseo’s eyes darken and he drags Sangwon off the ground with the gentlest touch he can muster, holding the younger one on his feet. 

Sangwon knows Sooyoung isn’t Anxin.

Still, he wishes his face would morph. He wishes he would assume a different identity, that he would smile with a crooked tooth and shining eyes. 

“I should report you for putting your hands on him,” Junseo warns, the man scoffing and rolling his eyes. “Whatever. Your precious little slut can do no wrong, can he? Pathetic. Sooyoung, come,” He barks, the fox hybrid casting another glance at Sangwon before turning and following his owner out of the aisle. 

It’s quiet for the next few moments. Junseo puts an arm around him, smooths his hair out, and guides him towards the doors. “...I had the others check out. They’re waiting in the car. Let’s go home, okay?” Junseo speaks gently, softly, and Sangwon can't even muster the energy to nod. 

It’s a miracle that his legs work after that. 

He follows Junseo to the awaiting car, Jiahao sitting in the driver’s seat with a tight, bruising grip on the steering wheel. Leo sits, waiting for him in the backseat, and Sangwon all but collapses into him. 

His instincts scream safe, secure, sound, all as he wraps his arms around Leo’s torso and hides in the fabric of his hoodie. The older doesn’t say anything and just buries his nose in Sangwon’s hair, scenting him unabashedly. 

The ride home is silent.

Bags are carried inside, settled on the countertop and belongings awaiting their place in the kitchen. 

Sangwon is the first one to break the silence, picking at his nails and nervously bouncing his right leg on the wood floor. “I’m sorry,” he mumbles, voice cracking at the edges. 

Junseo goes to respond, but he’s cut off by Jiahao, who has been noticeably tense since the incident at the store. 

“Who is Anxin?”

His voice is harsher than anticipated, accusatory and laced with suspicion. Leo glares at him, an arm wrapped around Sangwon’s shoulders, and the bunny hybrid shivers. 

“...he’s…my friend,” Sangwon whispers, making himself smaller. “I just. I thought it was him. His ears…” His voice cracks again and he shatters, little by little, with each word. 

Jiahao slams his hand onto the counter, eyes brimming with unshed tears. “Specifics, Sangwon. A hybrid? From where you’re from? A black fox hybrid? Answer me.” 

Junseo puts a placating hand on Jiahao’s shoulder, but he shoves his boyfriend off with a velocity unlike himself. Leo’s arm tightens around Sangwon, but it’s all for naught, because the younger man crumbles. 

Sangwon sinks to the floor, on his knees, and he breaks. 

“I wanted it to be him. I wanted to see him. Anxin…” He cries, hiding his face in his hands, and Jiahao seems to come back into himself. He takes a deep breath, grounding himself, and crouches beside Sangwon. A hand comes up to rest on his back, gentle, and Jiahao speaks. 

“...Zhou Anxin? That’s your Anxin, right?”

Sangwon nods. Jiahao breathes a sigh mixed with relief and dread, shaky in nature and unsure with time. “Okay. I’m sorry. I’m sorry for scaring you, I just…” He shakes his head, eyes wet, and stands. “I’m…going to my office,” Jiahao mumbles, sending an apologetic glance to Junseo, before brushing past them and disappearing into the hallway. 

He leaves an unreadable Junseo and wholeheartedly confused Leo in his wake. 

Leo kneels down and collects Sangwon into his arms, tugging him into his lap and carding his fingers through messy blonde strands of hair. All he can think is protect, protect, protect, and he does this while Junseo wordlessly puts away their groceries. 

By the time Sangwon has calmed, Junseo has found a seat across from Leo and the rabbit hybrid on the floor, cross-legged and pensive. 

“Leo? Remember Hao’s brother?” The shop owner speaks, Leo looking over at him with a brief glimmer of recognition. 

The dots connect without warning.

Oh.

Leo’s eyes widen, “Oh, shit.” Junseo nods in response, rubbing his forehead. “It looks like that brother is Anxin. Sangwon’s Anxin.” 

Sangwon sits up, scrubbing at swollen eyes and looking at Junseo. “Hao hyung is…Anxin’s brother…that…” It makes sense. Anxin always spoke about a brother, about a hyung that he used to do everything with. 

All up until the men came. 

“Yes. That’s why he reacted like that: I’m sure it’s a shock. The whole reason why Jiahao even does our relocation work is largely due to Anxin. He wanted to find him…or avenge him. I think the knowledge that he could be alive, well…” Junseo trails off, standing and dusting off his pant legs. “There’s a lot to think about. A lot to discuss and discover, but I think we should table it for later. Today was…hectic.” 

Hectic was definitely an understatement. 

Shifting in Leo’s lap, Sangwon looks down at his knees, a frown unmoving from his features. “I’m sorry,” he apologizes again. 

He’s sorry for disturbing the peace. He’s sorry for running off. 

He’s sorry for unearthing something astronomical. 

Junseo’s gaze is soft. He shakes his head, bending down to be eye-level with Sangwon and Leo. “Don’t apologize. I’m sorry. I should’ve let you come to me when you were ready to go out. Maybe we pushed it a little far today, but let’s get some rest and revisit everything tomorrow with a clear head, okay?” He runs his hand through Sangwon’s hair, scratching a bit at the top of his ears. “I love you both. Leo, make sure he gets some rest. You, too.” With that, he takes his leave, following the ghost of Jiahao’s earlier departure. 

Sangwon sits up and pulls himself into a standing position before Leo can blink. “I’m going to sit outside for a few minutes. I just…need to think,” He mumbles, pointing over to the balcony door that overlooks their street. 

Leo doesn’t want him to leave. In fact, he wants nothing more than to wrap the younger in his arms and never let go, to cover him in his scent and to mark his neck with his incisors. 

Instead, he nods, lips upturning into a tentative smile. “Okay. Take your time.”

He knows what it’s like to need space, to need room to breathe and time to think. Sangwon looks grateful, shuffling outside and closing the doors gently behind him. 

Leo watches his silhouette from the windows, mapping out each curve and crevice of his shadow.

-----------


Night settles. The air turns cold and Sangwon can see his breath flying through the air in white clouds of smoke, though he remains leaning against the railing of the balcony, eyes turned up to the sky. 

The stars have appeared with the moon, reminding him of skies past. 

He rests his chin on his arms, lost in the black and navy blues above him. A warm weight brings him back to earth in the form of a large blanket, Leo stepping into view beside him.  The blanket rests over his shoulders, a comfortable shield in the midst of the stars and the thoughts swimming in his head. 

"I used to sneak out with Anxin to see the sky."

His own voice takes him by surprise. Leo looks down at him, eyes open, inviting him to speak. 

Sangwon hugs the blanket closer to himself, brown irises wistful in the face of reminiscence. "The mansion had a secret roof access point. It was forbidden, but no one ever came up there. Anxin found it one night, and after that, we snuck out after lights out to watch the stars. He was always skirting around the rules, finding loopholes and misbehaving." 

His lips curl into a smile. 

"I used to think he was the biggest idiot to exist. All the reprimands, all the punishments...he just took them and went on with trying to express freedom in his own way. Before Anxin, I didn't know what freedom was. I didn't know what it meant. I didn't think it was...attainable," he takes a shaky breath, reaching out to hold Leo's hand and squeeze it in his own. 

"When...when the men came to get me, he told me to run. He gave me his route. His route that he'd mapped out, planned for himself, just in case the men came to take him. He gave me my freedom."

Sangwon looks into Leo's eyes, fragile and bare, emotions on full display and walls crumbled. "I feel guilty. I feel like I stole his freedom. I can't get his face out of my mind, no matter how hard I try to forget. I can't forget his smile, or the way he looked at me when he pushed me out of the mansion. I can't forget the mix of sadness and relief that he must've felt..." 



Words pour out alongside his bleeding heart, spilling onto the street below them, and Leo brings him into a hug. 



"Sangwon..." Leo clears his throat, biting back emotion. "He chose to do that for you. In that moment, you mattered most to him. I don't know him, I've only heard glimpses from you and Hao, but I know that he would be so, so happy to see you as you are now."

He pulls away and looks down at Sangwon, expression firm and attentive. "I don't know what you've been through or what you've had to see, but I want to know more. I want to understand you. I want to help you find Anxin, I want to help you breathe easier, I want to see you smile more," he leans down, their noses brushing, and he cradles Sangwon's cheek in his palm. 


"You don't know what you do to me."


The air is still, quiet, only filled with the sound of their breathing and the whirl of the wind surrounding them. 

Sangwon's eyes explore Leo's face, from his thick eyebrows to the light scarring around his temple and the dark past buried beneath his amber irises. His lips, full and pink, parted with the ghost of a breath, so close to his own that he can almost taste Leo. 

Slowly, he feels himself lean closer, hands coming up to curl into Leo's shirt, and the distance closes as if it was never there in the first place.

They stare, entranced, navigating their way to each other, until a car horn blares in the neighboring street beside them. 

Leo jumps back, keenly aware of what he would've done had they not been interrupted, and whirls around to the balcony door. "C-come on, it's cold. You're gonna freeze to death before we even start looking for him," he mutters, flustered, escaping to the warmth of the upstairs apartment. 





Sangwon stares after him, eyes glossy and filled with a want that he has never experienced in his life.