Another restless night with too little sleep came and passed, leaving Ryeowook still out of balance and with too many questions left unanswered, too many things to think about.

Just like every morning by that point, Ryeowook eventually got up and got ready in the bathroom, then he grabbed his phone and went downstairs to figure out what he could make for breakfast when Kyuhyun got up as well. It had started to become some kind of routine and he was wondering what would change during the next week.

Once he had settled on something simple to make, he his phone and checked it, smiling when he found a text message from Hangeng apologizing for not having been available the evening before but that all of the information had gotten through to him via Heechul and that he wished him a nice day. Ryeowook quickly typed a response and, hearing Kyuhyun get up in the room above him, he turned the oven on to let it preheat while he got buns from one of the closets.

When Kyuhyun came downstairs, Ryeowook just got a pan out so he could make eggs as well, figuring scrambled ones would be nice that morning though he’d nevertheless leave the final decision up to Kyuhyun.

“Good morning.”

The cat hybrid turned around and responded to the other’s warm yet still tired smile with a shy one. “Good morning. Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, I did. You’re always up so early…”

“I’m sorry… Is that a bad thing?”

“No, no, it’s not! I guess I’m just surprised.” Kyuhyun sat down by the table and yawned.

Ryeowook turned back to his pans. “How would you like your eggs?”

“What kinds of eggs are you planning to make?”

“That’s up to you.”

“Then… scrambled?”

“Alright.” Ryeowook got a couple of eggs from the fridge, but he left them on the counter for the time being since the pan wasn’t ready yet.

“You know you’re spoiling me, though, don’t you?”

The slightly older man turned around at those words, a little surprised. “Eh?”

“I mean, you’re always making such a great breakfast for me. But starting tomorrow I’ll have to get up earlier than this, so I’ll have to make breakfast on my own again…”

“It’s fine, I can just get up with you,” Ryeowook offered without having to think twice about it.

Kyuhyun shook his head, though. “You really don’t need to. I’m a grown-up, too, you know? I made breakfast on my own already. I’m just saying that yours is much better.”

“I’m serious, it won’t be a problem for me if I get up with you. Maybe… you know… if what your sister mentioned yesterday works out, I may even have to get up at that kind of time soon anyway…”

“Ah, right! So you’d like to go to work?” Kyuhyun asked and the cat hybrid could hear curiosity in the other’s voice.

“I’m not sure yet… But Heechul-hyung also made some good points about that last night, so I think I’d like to try it… If you don’t mind, of course!”

“Why should I mind? It might be the best solution anyway since I won’t be home all the time for you. That way you can make some more friends, you get to go out, hopefully do something you like, you’ll have a purpose to get up in the mornings… You know, when I hadn’t been working and there was a longer period where there was nothing really left to do, I sometimes asked myself why I should get up at all. Going to work now helps a lot. Plus, I can call it a day when I get home and I can say I’ve been productive that day.”

When Ryeowook glanced at the other, he saw him grin. “I wouldn’t know where to search or what exactly to look for, though.”

“If you’d like, we can work on that together later.”

“Are you sure?”

“Of course I am!” Kyuhyun replied enthusiastically. “Now how much longer is breakfast gonna take?”

“Not too much longer,” Ryeowook replied and, upon checking the time on the alarm clock once again, he turned the pan on to start heating up.

After another moment, the young man behind him got up. Ryeowook thought about protesting when he noticed the other get plates and silverware, but in the end he didn’t because it was too late already anyway.

When the buns were done, he took them out with a towel one by one, cut them in half, and put them into a basket. Realizing his timing hadn’t been as perfect as he had hoped it would be, he stirred the eggs once more, waiting for them to be done as well. He put the basket with buns on the dining table and then had to wait another bit longer until he was satisfied with the state of his scrambled eggs, then he turned the stove off and also carried the pan to the table.

“Let’s eat well~” Kyuhyun said with a warm smile and grabbed the first bun to put butter and eggs on it.

Ryeowook nodded in agreement and went for the same combination as Kyuhyun had as he realized a moment later in slight embarrassment.

“Do you want to leave right after breakfast?” Kyuhyun asked and looked at the cat hybrid in front of him. “In case this helps: this early in the morning, there usually aren’t many people at the mall yet.”

Catching on to what the other was talking about, Ryeowook nodded softly. “Then yes—if that’s fine by you.”

“I wouldn’t have suggested it otherwise,” the slightly younger man replied and when Ryeowook glanced up, he could see the other was still smiling. “I really hope the others are right and that a stuffed animal helps you feel more comfortable here and sleep better.”

Ryeowook hummed softly, hoping they were right as well—otherwise he knew he’d feel like a failure once again because something that seemed to work for everyone didn’t work for him.

“Don’t worry, alright? Even if this idea should not work for you, we’ll find a way to make you feel better eventually,” Kyuhyun assured him as if he had read the hybrid’s mind and his bright smile was too honest for the fact that Ryeowook knew the other couldn’t promise they would find something.

He nodded nevertheless. “Okay.”

“Great~”

They didn’t talk much for the rest of breakfast, and even though Ryeowook felt a little awkward once again, he figured it was better like this than if he were forced to make small talk. Afterwards, he hurried to clean the kitchen while Kyuhyun got ready in the bathroom. He himself had nothing else he would have needed to do or grab except for putting on his shoes in order to be ready to go outside. He added a few last touches to clean the kitchen until he heard the other come downstairs. They met by the front door, Kyuhyun now properly dressed.

“Are you ready?”

“Yes.” Ryeowook looked down as he nodded.

“Great, then let’s get going~” the slightly younger man replied and went ahead to put on his shoes.

The cat hybrid hurried to do the same so Kyuhyun wouldn’t have to wait for him, then they left the apartment. When Kyuhyun grabbed his keys, though, he seemed to notice something. “Right, do you have something like a key ring?” he asked while locking the door.

“No, I don’t,” Ryeowook replied hesitantly.

“We should get you one. I had someone make another copy of my apartment key so you’ll have one, too, which will be especially good when you start to work. So let’s get you a key ring as well today, alright?”

“Okay. Thank you very much.”

The other laughed softly. “No problem! After all, I don’t want you to feel caged in.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

Kyuhyun shook his head lightly, then he put his keys into the pocket of his pants. “Let’s get going~” he replied and started to walk towards the elevator. Ryeowook simply followed him on their way back to the car. “Ah, we should also get you a card to use public transport!”

“We should?”

The younger nodded. “Yes, of course! We don’t know where exactly you’ll find a job and it’ll be easier for you to go to places. I usually don’t even use my car this much, but I always forgot to get a card for you. Let’s try and remember to do it when we’re at the mall anyway, alright?”

“I’ll try.”

“Great~”

When they left the parking area, Kyuhyun turned the radio on again and Ryeowook leaned back in his seat, feeling more comfortable when the soft tunes playing filled the silence. It was one of many love songs playing on the radio, so he wasn’t sure whether he had heard it already or not. Most of them sounded the same to him until he had heard them a couple of times and found certain passages which he either liked or disliked.

Unlike the past few times, they got into a traffic jam on this ride. Even Ryeowook knew this was a lot more normal for Seoul’s streets than the other times when they had gotten through traffic with barely any troubles. Glancing to his side, he could see Kyuhyun was annoyed by the traffic, but he nevertheless drove calmly, making the cat hybrid feel secure and safe.

When they arrived eventually, they got out of the vehicle, but Kyuhyun motioned into the direction away from the mall. “Let’s go get your card first, alright? Then I can’t forget that one anymore.” The grin on his lips seemed more relieved than amused and Ryeowook figured the other was grateful to not be driving anymore.

He nodded in agreement. “Okay.”

They went to a nearby subway station, but unlike the past times when Ryeowook had been in one and he had been led to one of the ticket machines, they went to one of the many doors, the one that didn’t lead to a store of any kind but instead to what almost seemed to be a small office. They entered and got in line. Many of the people around them were talking. The cat hybrid couldn’t help but listen when he picked up phrases of traveling across the country all the way to the South or to another city of which he had never heard the name before. Everyone around him seemed to have an exciting life filled with friends and family they could meet up with, filled with journeys to explore the country. But he also noticed another thing—there was only one other hybrid around.

When it was finally their turn, Kyuhyun dealt with the lady behind the shelter, giving her all of the information she needed. Ryeowook only understood about half of the things they were talking about until it came to another question, “Is there a special kind of card you’d like?”

The cat hybrid looked up at Kyuhyun, seeking for help, so the other turned towards the employee. “Could you show us a few sample designs?”

The woman nodded and retrieved something from her side of the counter, then she held a page up for them to see that had various designs printed on it. After looking at them for a couple of seconds, Ryeowook said insecurely, “The blue one?”

The employee nodded and then she and Kyuhyun talked about a few more things, then she handed them a card with the exact same design Ryeowook had just seen. “Here you go. Have a nice day.”

“Thank you. You too, ma’am,” Kyuhyun replied and Ryeowook only managed to bow briefly when the former man already guided him back outside. Once they had found a calm spot, Kyuhyun came to a stand. “Alright. Do you have a wallet?”

“I have one at your apartment.”

“Good. I want you to always bring it from now on. And always keep this card in it, alright?” Ryeowook nodded at the instructions. “Good. I suppose you haven’t used this system before?”

“No, I haven’t.”

Kyuhyun nodded and then explained to him how he was supposed to use it, pointing towards the sensors and making him watch when other people used their cards, then he went on to explain that Ryeowook could also use that card when he was on the bus but that he should never forget to use it twice—for the first time when he entered the subway or the bus and for the second time when he left it again. “You can also use these when you take the taxi, but I don’t think that will be important for you for the time being. Now to the next important part.” He motioned for Ryeowook to follow him, then they went to one of the ticket vending machines. They had to wait in line for a moment before they could go up to it. There, Kyuhyun walked him through the paying process step by step to put money on the card. “Okay, did you understand all of this?”

“Yes.”

“Do you think you’ll be able to remember it?”

“I hope so.”

Kyuhyun nodded and motioned for Ryeowook to follow him once again, then he started walking back to the exit. The cat hybrid made sure to stay by the younger man’s side while he watched the other put the card into his wallet. “From now on when you notice there’s not much money left on your card, tell me, alright? When we get home, I’ll try to remember to give you some cash right away so you won’t get stuck anywhere, unable to return.”

“How will I know when my card is running out of money?”

“Usually when you check in or out with your card, a green light will appear which means you have been registered, and the amount left on the card will appear on the display. When there’s too little money left on it for you to go on another ride, the light will flash in red instead when you check in, then you just need to go to the ticket machine and recharge your card, okay?”

“Okay.”

“Do you want to go get the key ring next? We could also get a key chain for you so we’ll know which key belongs to whom easily.”

“If you’d like?” Ryeowook replied and nodded softly, ready to do whatever Kyuhyun wanted to do next.

“Alright, let’s do that next then!” The younger man led the way once again, seemingly knowing exactly where he needed to go. That impression faded once they arrived in the mall, though, when they walked into several stores before finding one that actually sold key chains. Once they were there, Kyuhyun looked around in another isle, giving Ryeowook the chance to look through the key chains on his own. Since the bowl with the small chains wasn’t really big, Ryeowook was quick to find one he liked. Taking it out, it took him a moment to fully understand why it was that one out of all possible ones that caught his interest.

“A globe?”

The cat hybrid jumped when he heard Kyuhyun’s voice behind him and he quickly closed his hand around the small object, then he turned around. Looking down, he nodded. “Yes.”

“Interesting choice. I honestly don’t think I would’ve expected that,” the other man commented, giving the older one the feeling that he needed to explain himself.

“It’s just… there are… so many things I don’t know yet. You said you’d show me everything. And that you’d travel with me,” he mumbled out the words he had found to be the reason why that particular key chain was the only one that caught his eye. When Kyuhyun didn’t answer, he glanced up to see the other respond to his gaze in surprise. “I-I’m sorry… I won’t take it if—“

“No, no. Please. Do take it. I just didn’t think you’d answer like that,” the younger man quickly interrupted him and his voice sounded warm, so Ryeowook figured the other truly meant his words.

“Okay,” he mumbled.

“Let’s go pay for it then. Or is there anything else you’d like to get? Ah, I didn’t even give you the chance to look around…”

“It’s fine. Let’s go and check out.”

Kyuhyun laughed softly. “Alright, let’s go,” he agreed and went to the checkout, Ryeowook following behind him. He handed the key chain to the shop employee and waited until the younger man had paid for it, then he took it back and put it into the pocket of his pants, too embarrassed to make a further fuzz about it. Once that was done, they left the store to go to a toy store. This time, Kyuhyun seemed to know better where to find it.

Many young adults could be found in this store, most of them also accompanied by children claiming they wanted to have pretty much everything they could see. Ryeowook looked around slightly uncomfortably, grateful the store itself wasn’t as full as the rest of the mall had been once again, but still feeling out of place and unsure where to go. Kyuhyun gently nudged his shoulder, making him look up. “This way,” he said softly and nodded ahead, only walking again when he could be sure Ryeowook followed. They walked towards the back area of the store that was almost desolated. A young couple stood in front of the shelves a bit further away, the woman was obviously pregnant, and Ryeowook could easily pick up their soft conversation about the baby they would soon have and which stuffed animal to get for the child.

The cat hybrid turned his attention to the seemingly endless rows of stuffed animals. The biggest ones were displayed on the sides, almost as tall as he himself was, while the tiniest ones were spread out with the medium sized ones in the shelves in front of him. There were a lot of teddy bears, but somehow he had never understood people’s fascination with those. Glancing to the side, he could see Kyuhyun picking up one of the stuffed animals just to put it back a few seconds later.

“Are you looking for anything as well?”

The younger man looked up in slight surprise and then nodded. “Yes. I mean, it’s probably useless… But my parents are hoping for my sister to find a husband soon. And when she does and when she gets pregnant, I want to give her something for the child… I don’t know yet what to give her, though…”

“So you thought a stuffed animal would be good?”

Kyuhyun nodded. “Of course! I bet she’ll also get the child one, but I don’t think children can ever have enough of them. At least they shouldn’t.”

“I didn’t see any in your room.”

The other bowed his head at that comment, smiling like he had been found out and blushing a little. “I know. I don’t have most of them anymore. I think my parents got rid of them at some point or donated them for charity. But I still have one hidden in my room.” He winked at the hybrid and the latter could tell Kyuhyun didn’t want to talk about it any further.

“Okay,” he replied and turned back to the shelves again. The couple on his other side seemed to have found something because they left, leaving just the two of them at that shelf. “It’s strange… It’s so quiet back here.”

“I know, right? Somehow not many people know about the treasures they can find back here.”

Ryeowook hummed and walked a little further, unsure what to do with all of the things he could see since none of them truly caught his eye. He came to the end of the aisle and looked back at Kyuhyun again who was still at the beginning of the shelves. They made eye contact for a moment, then Ryeowook went around the corner. A child almost ran into him as he did so, but apparently the boy hadn’t even seen him because he kept on running along one of the shelves, then he was around the next corner. A moment later, the footsteps came to a sudden halt and instead a woman half-yelled at probably the same child for having run off just like that.

The cat hybrid shook his head and eventually focused on the rows of stuffed animals in front of him. Just when he thought he’d never find anything, something brighter caught his eye. He curiously went closer to it to see there were more of those yellow spots in the middle of that row. A moment later, he stood in front of a row with giraffes in different sizes and forms. Some looked very flexible, others rather stiff, some were colored more brightly than others. After what felt like minutes of just staring at them and trying to figure out which one he might like the most, he hesitantly picked one that was almost as long as his torso. He held it in his hands for a couple of seconds and, after making sure no one was around to see it, he hugged it shyly, then he quickly loosened his embrace to hold it loosely again. But yes, this was a good size… And it felt comfortable…

“Ah, did you find something?”

Ryeowook jumped and looked up in surprise when he was talked to and found Kyuhyun walking up to him with a light colored teddy bear in his hand. The cat hybrid nodded hesitantly. “If this is not too much or anything?”

Kyuhyun shook his head. “It’ll be fine,” he argued. “Is there anything else you’d like to look for?”

“No, thank you.”

“Alright, then let’s go and check out~” Ryeowook once again let Kyuhyun go first as they walked back towards the front of the store where they got in line to pay for the stuffed animals.

The young boy in front of them turned around and eyed them curiously for a moment, then he turned to his mother again and pulled on the woman’s sleeve. “Mommy, mommy, I also want a giraffe!”

The woman turned around as well as if to see where her child got that idea from and Ryeowook quickly looked down, not daring to meet her eyes in any way, but when she spoke up, her voice sounded tired and exhausted, “Honey, you can’t have one. We already got you a lot of other things.”

“But I want a giraffe!”

“You picked this lion instead. You had the choice.”

“But now I want a giraffe! I want a giraffe and a lion!”

Next to Ryeowook, Kyuhyun crouched down to be on eye level with the boy, at the same time giving Ryeowook the chance to watch. “But if you want a giraffe, you can’t have the lion. Don’t you know it? Lions eat giraffes, so you can’t have both of them.”

The boy’s eyes widened in shock. “But the lion won’t eat me, will he? Or my teddy bear?”

Kyuhyun laughed softly and shook his head. “No, he doesn’t eat teddy bears or people.”

The boy looked down, seeming to seriously contemplate his options. “But… does that mean the lion is stronger?”

The older one nodded. “Yes. He’s actually said to be the king of all animals.”

“He is?” The child lit up at that information. “Then it’s okay that I can’t have the giraffe,” he decided and turned back to the front again happily.

Kyuhyun stood up again and Ryeowook picked up a soft ‘thank you’ from the child’s mother, then they continued to move. The cat hybrid looked at the young man next to him doubtfully. “But stuffed animals can’t eat anything…” he said quietly.

The slightly younger one raised one finger to his lips. “He doesn’t know,” he replied and nodded towards the child.

Ryeowook looked at the kid again and figured Kyuhyun had really just told that lie to help the mother convince her child that one stuffed animal was enough – at least for the time being.

They checked out without further trouble and then left the store again. Ryeowook kept his head down as they walked, only making sure to neither run into anyone nor to lose Kyuhyun, so he was taken by surprise when the other suddenly came to a stand. Looking up, he realized they were in front of a small café that that Kyuhyun was now looking at curiously.

“Ryeowook? Do you like sweet things?”

“Sweet things like… cakes?” The younger man nodded and Ryeowook peeked into the café as well. “I do…”

“But?”

“Aren’t those usually to celebrate something?”

Kyuhyun shrugged and then grinned. “But we do have something to celebrate!”

The cat hybrid tilted his head a little. “What is that?”

“Exactly one week ago, you came to live with me. Why don’t we put these things into my car and then come back here?”

“But it’s still morning…”

“So what? I at least don’t plan to return in the afternoon, so why not do it?”

Ryeowook opened his mouth to protest any further, but he had a feeling Kyuhyun would still find arguments to convince him. Not wanting to start an argument or disagree any further, he nodded. “If that’s what you want, then we can do it.”

Kyuhyun shook his head, seemingly unhappy with the answer he got. “We don’t have to if you don’t want to. We could also simply get something and then take it home if you’ll feel better about that,” he suggested.

The cat hybrid hesitated, but then he nodded softly. “I think I’d prefer that… If it’s okay for you.”

“Of course it is! Then let’s go in and pick something.” He opened the door to the small café and went in, holding it open a little longer so Ryeowook could follow after him. They went past the line and towards the front, staying far enough away from the counter so they could see but people wouldn’t complain that they were skipping the line. Ryeowook could feel the others staring at them, but he tried his best to keep his eyes on the many small things presented in front of him that he could choose from – and that seemed way too expensive. They stood there in silence for a while, the hybrid being unable to decide what he should take since he felt like Kyuhyun would expect him to choose something.

“Did you settle on anything yet?” the younger man indeed asked eventually and turned around to look at him curiously.

Ryeowook shook his head. “I’m not sure yet,” he mumbled, then he quickly added, “What did you pick?” to figure out what would be okay for him to take.

“I really like the cheesecake they have here, so I’ll take a slice of that one. But my sister keeps on insisting that their fruit cakes are also really good. Eunhyuk on the other hand claims the chocolate cake and the strawberry cake are the best,” he replied with more detail than Ryeowook would have expected, but he realized he was glad for that.

He nodded softly and looked at the prices of each one of the mentioned cakes. When he shyly looked up at Kyuhyun a couple of seconds later, he could see the other had turned to the front again as well but now quickly looked back at him. “Can I have a piece of their chocolate cake, please?”

The younger one nodded with a grin. “Hyukkie will love you for this reply! Unless you don’t like it… Though then he’ll probably just announce it’s good like this because there will be more chocolate cake for him~” he replied and winked at him. They got in line and Ryeowook kept his eyes cast downwards again to avoid catching any curious or judging gazes that he wasn’t supposed to meet in the first place. When it was their turn, Kyuhyun ordered for them and paid while Ryeowook took the cake, holding it carefully.

They walked back to the car in silence, but Ryeowook could sense it was not an uncomfortable silence, at least not to Kyuhyun, which made the slightly older man glad because it meant there was no pressure to start a conversation.

When they were in the car, the radio started playing again, but this time Kyuhyun did something on his phone while the car was still parked – and then he pressed a button called ‘media’. “If you don’t like a song now, you can simply take my phone and skip the song,” he explained and quickly showed Ryeowook what he meant, then he put the phone into the cup holders between them and started to drive. The cat hybrid had to admit he was amazed a phone could even play music in the car – then again, it seemed like everything was possible, no matter how absurd it seemed to him at first.

The ride back to the apartment was filled with little conversation but a lot of music. Ryeowook curiously listened to the songs, a few of which he had already heard before, trying to find out more about Kyuhyun’s taste of music and whether he liked it or not. There at least weren’t any songs he came to dislike.

Luckily, the traffic wasn’t as bad as it had been on the ride to the mall so they were back at the apartment complex comparably quickly. They got out again and rode the elevator upstairs. Once they were back in the familiar halls of Kyuhyun’s apartment, the younger man turned to the hybrid again. “Will we have the cake now?”

“Shouldn’t I make lunch first?”

“We’ll simply heat up some leftovers anyway, won’t we?” Ryeowook nodded hesitantly at Kyuhyun’s question. Of course he would have preferred to make something better than leftovers, but there was just no use in doing so when he was still struggling to figure out how to make a perfect amount for only two people. “Then we can also do that later, I think. Let’s have the cake now and eat lunch later~”

The cat hybrid hesitated for another moment, not used to eating something sweet before lunch, but eventually he nodded. “Okay.”

Kyuhyun grinned at him and went into the kitchen, followed by the slightly older man who left the other bags in the hallway. The latter set down the cake on the table, then he got small plates while the other got small forks and a cake server, then he put the slices of cake on the plates, carefully pushing them off with their forks.

“Do you like cheesecake?”

“I’ve never been able to try any,” the cat hybrid admitted as he put the paper into the trash can and sat down afterwards. He jumped, though, when Kyuhyun suddenly held out his fork with a piece of his cheesecake.

“Go ahead, try it.” Ryeowook just stared at the fork. It wasn’t like Heechul hadn’t sometimes offered him something like this, but seeing this gesture from Kyuhyun was extremely strange to him. “Come on, it’s not like I’ve had the chance to poison it~ You can have it.”

“D-do you want my fork then?” The cat hybrid asked eventually, unsure what else to say.

Kyuhyun shrugged. “If you feel more comfortable then?”

Ryeowook nodded and took the fork he was offered, but then he stared at the fork on his plate that already had small pieces of the chocolate cake on it. In the end, he awkwardly let the piece of cheesecake fall onto his plate and handed the fork back with a bright blush that didn’t get any better when Kyuhyun chuckled. “You know, you could’ve simply taken the piece from the fork. I don’t mind. You also could’ve given me your fork, I don’t care that there are pieces of chocolate cake on it. But now don’t think about it and enjoy your cake instead, alright? Believe me, it’s really good.”

“You’ve already tried it?”

“I have. Hyuk made me at some point, so I know.”

“Ah, I forgot to ask! Do you want to have some of this cake in return?” Ryeowook raised his gaze again to look at Kyuhyun insecurely.

The other simply shook his head, though. “No, thank you. I prefer this cheesecake.”

“O-okay…”

Ryeowook simply stared at his plate for a moment and only slowly moved to pick up the small piece of cheesecake when he heard Kyuhyun start to eat. He carefully tried it, thinking about the taste for a while. He had to admit he had expected something else especially since it was a cake…

“What are you thinking?”

“I don’t know… I thought it would taste more like cheese… or sweeter…”

“You don’t like it?”

The cat hybrid quickly shook his head. “That’s not it! It’s just… unfamiliar.”

“Then I’ll let you try it more often so the taste can become more familiar to you~” Kyuhyun replied with a warm smile and their eyes met for a moment. Ryeowook felt something warm inside him for just a split second, but when he tried to think further about it, he wasn’t sure if maybe he had just imagined it.

Pushing those thoughts away, he nodded gratefully. “Thank you very much,” he replied and took a piece of his chocolate cake to try that one as well. The taste was indeed as good as Kyuhyun had said it would be! It was sweet and creamy and even the dough had been made perfectly fluffy.

“You seem to like that one more,” the younger man commented after a couple of seconds.

Ryeowook blushed but nodded. “I actually do. Thank you for getting this for me.”

“No need to thank me. It’s a thank you towards you.” Ryeowook had just started to raise his second fork with chocolate cake to his mouth when he stopped in his tracks, those words taking him off guard. “Thank you for staying with me. And in a way: happy one week anniversary, Ryeowook.”

The cat hybrid blushed but was quick to nod in response, casting his eyes to his plate instead. “You’re welcome. Happy one week anniversary,” he replied quietly. That warm feeling that eased his insecurities a little and told him everything would be fine was back again. Kyuhyun was taking care of him now. Kyuhyun was happy to have him there even though he still didn’t think the other had really made the right decision by choosing him. But maybe, just maybe, not living in Hangeng’s shelter anymore eventually wouldn’t turn out as bad as he had imagined it to be, he thought and realized the excitement about finding a home that he had felt when he had been a child was slowly returning. Maybe he had found a home. Maybe things would work out. Maybe Kyuhyun would indeed be the third person after Heechul and Hangeng to fight for his happiness and to make him feel like he had a place he belonged to.