The twinkle of the bell on the door to indicate a customer had come in prompted the attendant to automatically say his greeting of, “Hi! And welcome to Shih Tzu Happens. How can I…” He paused and stared at the people who walked in, particularly the girl who had a grin on her face.

He widened his eyes and shook his head. “Oh, no, no, no, no, no,” he said, so rapidly that the “no’s” were blurred into one word. “No,” he empathized loudly for good measure.

He pointed at the door. “Get out, you… you… hoodlum.”

Kyungjin grinned and sauntered over to the counter where the boy was now leaning on one palm that was on the counter and still pointing at the door, shooting daggers with his eyes at the girl.

“Oh, Kyungsoo. Don’t be like that,” she said as calmly as possible as she struggled to keep in her laughter.

The boy, on the other hand, did not find it as hilarious as she did. “Did you not hear me? I said get out,” he murmured threateningly, his dark eyes narrowing in anger.

Kyungjin laughed briefly. “Aw, are you still holding a grudge? It wasn’t that bad.”

“Wasn’t that bad. Wasn’t that bad?!” he shrilled, his voice increasing in volume with every word. “Thanks to you and that best friend of yours, I had to close the shop for almost two days straight. My parents were furious. Tell me again how that’s ‘not bad’?”

Minseok, who stood put once they entered, had finally approached them while glancing at Kyungjin and the boy.

“What did you do?” he asked, slightly curious.

The boy in front of them twisted in mouth at the memory. “Horrible, horrible things,” he murmured.

Minseok paused and raised an eyebrow at Kyungjin. “You let all the animals loose?”

Kyungjin, who was now used to and accepted Minseok’s eerie way of knowing things without being told, was not at least bothered by his remark and started to laugh hysterically while nodding her head.

And Kyungsoo, who should have felt that it was odd that Minseok knew despite just asking what she did mere seconds before, was too infuriated by the thought of Kyungjin’s prank to even comprehend the underlying secret of how Minseok knew.

Instead he grew redder thinking about it once more and shouted at Kyungjin, “You should not be laughing! You’re the cause of all my worries and stress!”

“But Kyungsoo, we’re friends. Friends do these sorts of things to their friends,” she argued while smiling.

“We are not friends,” he dead-panned. “Far from it. You’re an annoyance, like an itch that won’t go away.”

Minseok looked at the pet store which was stocked with pet supplies and large cages holding animals. There was also a small pen where small puppies were sleeping and beside it a cat tower where a white fluffy cat was lazing on top of it. He could hear the occasional bark from a dog from where he assumed was a backroom.

“You own this place?” he asked Kyungsoo.

Kyungsoo blinked at him, seemingly only realizing that Kyungjin had brought an extra along. “Who are you? Are you with Kyungjin? Are you here to make my life miserable too?”

Minseok returned his accusing gaze with a slight crinkle of an eye. “No, I don’t believe so. Truthfully, I have the same sentiments as you. This girl can be quite the irritation.”

Kyungjin jabbed him with her elbow roughly, showing her thoughts on what he said.

Kyungsoo, on the other hand, narrowed his eyes at the boy before slowly nodding his head. His face relaxed into a relived expression, glad to find someone else to know he felt. He leaned forward and grasped his shoulders as an act of camaraderie.

Minseok was startled by the sudden contact, as he moved back quickly before Kyungsoo could do anything, resulting in Kyungsoo’s hands slipping off and his upper body almost toppling over.

Kyungjin, who was watching from the side, pursed her lips in concentration and couldn’t hold her laughter in anymore, causing her to bend over in laughter.

Kyungsoo looked a little peeved, while Minseok stared oddly at the other. “Sorry. I’m not used to people touching me.”

Kyungsoo waved his hand. “It’s fine. I got a little too excited there as well.” He walked from behind the counter and gestured to the store with a wave of his hand. “And to answer your question, my parents own this store. But it’s my duty to help them from time to time.”

He stopped in front of them. “So what are you doing here? You can’t be here for a pet. The last time I remember, you didn’t have any pets. Or more like you couldn’t. How do you manage to kill a fish in five hours flat?”

Kyungjin pouted. “Five and a half, excuse me very much. And I suppose I simply don’t have an affinity with animals. Though they’re so cute and fluffy.” She glanced at the lizards and snakes in the tanks with heat lamps. “Well, most of them.”

Kyungsoo then turned his attention to Minseok. “Then your friend?”

Minseok shook his head. “Too much trouble,” he explained.

Kyungsoo frowned. “Then why are you here?”

Kyungjin smirked, casually placing an arm around Kyungsoo’s shoulders who immediately tensed and robotically turned his head to look at her in aghast.

He threw his hands up yelling loudly, causing Kyungjin to quickly remove her arm in surrender.

Kyungsoo roughly brushed his shoulders where Kyungjin touched, muttering “I’m infected. Oh my god, I hope stupidity isn’t contagious.”

Kyungjin glared at him and scoffed. She shook her head vigorously. “No, no, no! Praise me, dear Kyungsoo, for I am here to help,” she exclaimed, pointing at herself with her thumb and winking.

Kyungsoo and Minseok stared vacantly at her. Kyungsoo turned around, heading back toward the counter and muttering something along the lines of, “God, she’s gotten even crazier.”

Minseok turned towards the door and was about to walk out before Kyungjin grabbed the back of his collar. “We,” she emphasized loudly, knowing the reason why he attempted to leave. “We’re going to help.”

Minseok briefly glanced at her from the side of his eye and stopped moving. She released the fabric of his shirt while he turned to face her.

She gestured for him to come closer which he did after staring at her for a few seconds.

“Look, I told you that this is part of list,” she whispered.

Minseok side-glanced at her and then at Kyungsoo who was staring at them suspiciously.

Minseok shrugged and replied, “Okay.”

She rolled her eyes. “Why do I keep forgetting your apathetic nature?”

He didn’t respond, only facing his attention towards Kyungsoo.

She groaned and leaned back, turning her head to Kyungsoo. “We’re helping you, whether you like it or not.”

“I don’t like it,” Kyungsoo replied without a minute of hesitation. “Plus, I don’t need…” He stopped when the puppies from the play-pen started to bark. He glanced at the puppies, then at the clock, and finally at the duo in front of him. He seemed troubled on what to do before sighing. He pulled out two black aprons under the counter and threw it at them.

“Wear these, and go grab the dog food from behind. Make sure it’s the dark green large bag and not the light green one. And try and not make a mess. Got it?” he ordered with a slightly threatening voice as he walked toward the side of the store to grab a different type of dog food.

“Got it, Boss!” Kyungjin shouted, immediately bringing her feet together, straightening her posture, and putting her hand in a salute.

Minseok calmly pulled the apron over his head and walked to the back of the store with Kyungjin skipping behind him.

When they entered the stockroom, the shelves were filled with different types and brands of pet food. There were also several cages, tanks, and other pet necessities.

“Wow,” Kyungjin whistled, admiring the amounts of supplies in the room. She ran into Minseok who stood in front of the dog food section.

“Ow,” she mumbled, wincing as she rubbed her nose. Minseok didn’t even spare her a glance as he continued to observe the bags of food.

She stood next to him and cocked her head. “The green one, right?” she asked as she skimmed through the bags using her finger. “The dark green one…” She paused as she poked the dark green bag with dark blue accents and then at the dark green bag with red accents.

She turned to Minseok with a vexed face. “Which one is it?” she exclaimed anxiously.

He continued to stare at the bags and slowly brought the one with blue accents down.

She blinked at him. “Are you sure that’s the right one?”

He nodded. “Pretty sure.” And he walked out of the room.

Kyungjin cocked her head at him again as she watched him leave before running after him.

Minseok set the bag on the counter as Kyungsoo rushed past him holding several cans. He screeched to a halt and looked at the bag. He nodded. “Good, you got the right one. I was about to tell you that there were two dark green bags, but you got the correct one. Open it up and put some in the red and orange bowls behind you halfway. Then for the purple and white bowls, fill it all the way.”

He then rushed past him, busying himself with whatever needed to be done.

Kyungjin lazily approached Minseok where she stood next to him and propped her elbow on the counter and leaned against the fist of her hand. “Well, isn’t this nice?” she grinned.

Minseok looked down at her grinning and pushed the bag towards her.

She stared down at it and back up at Minseok. “What?”

He then grabbed the red bowl and orange bowl and set them both down next to the bag. “Fill it both halfway.”

“Wha?” she asked with her face scrunched up in confusion.

Minseok blinked once at her. “You said you were going to help; so do it.”

She mimicked his stoic face, but failed when she couldn’t help but to laugh. “All right, all right. No need to be a grumpy old grandpa.” She giggled. “Ha, grandpa.”

“Grandpa. Really? That’s the best you could come up with?” Minseok stated as he took the purple bowl and orange bowl from behind him and set them on the counter while Kyungjin had already opened the bag and was already pouring the food in.

“Jongdae gets pissed off when I tell him he’s an old fart,” she giggled, the image of Jongdae pouting furiously making her laugh. “Ha, old fart. God, I’m hilarious.”

Minseok stopped moving and glanced at her. He shook his head. “You’re serious,” he muttered.

She stopped pouring to give him a displeased look. “Of course, I’m being serious. I’m hilarious. Didn’t you know? Or maybe you’re too emotionless to understand what the definition of funny is,” she teased.

Minseok stared at her momentarily and then turned back to the bag she had finished pouring with. He picked it up and poured the food into the two bowls in front of him.

Seeing how he didn’t respond to her little jab, she frowned. “You…” she began. “Oh, never mind.” She scuffed the floor with her shoes, fidgeting restlessly.

Minseok set the bag down carefully onto the table and folded the top over. “It’s just how I am,” he suddenly said.

She looked up at him in surprise, opening and closing , looking like a gaping goldfish. She might have noticed Minseok’s odd ability to know what people were thinking, but that didn’t mean she still wasn’t surprised when it happened.

Kyungsoo abruptly appeared at the front of the counter and stared at Kyungjin whose mouth was still agape. “Stop that,” he told her, “With that ugly mug of yours, you’ll scare the animals.”

She immediately closed and glared at him.

Kyungsoo inspected each bowl carefully and pointed at the red and orange bowls. “Kyungjin poured these, didn’t she?”

Minseok nodded once.

Kyungsoo rolled his eyes. “Knew it. That’s not even filled halfway; it’s filled three-fourths of the bowl.”

“Are you serious? That is definitely halfway,” she argued.

 He scoffed, “You need to get your eyes checked or maybe brush up on your math.” He shook his head as he picked up all four bowls and balanced them on his arms. He walked away muttering, “I knew I shouldn’t have let you help.”

She let out a gasp of disbelief. “I’ve forgotten how Kyungsoo can get so technical on certain things. He was so much nicer when he visited last time,” she mumbled to herself.

“Last time?” Minseok asked.

She widened her eyes and shook her head frantically. “Ah, nothing.”

Minseok winced a little when the thoughts he could usually hear turned into high pitched static. He knew that only happened when the person was desperately trying to shut out their own thoughts. And it appeared that Kyungjin was doing that.

He had the urge to ask her about it, but stopped. It wasn’t something he should get involved with.

Kyungsoo came back looking satisfied and holding several pairs of leashes. “If you guys are still keen on helping, I’ve something for you guys to do.”

Minseok looked around. “You finished feeding all the animals while we were putting food in the bowls? In that short amount of time?”

Kyungsoo looked smug as he answered, “I’ve been doing this since I was little. It’s expected that I finish quickly.”

Kyungjin looked at the leashes. “Are those for the dogs?”

Kyungsoo looked at Kyungjin and grinned evilly. “Why yes, Kyungjin. Yes, they are.”

“Someone help!” she sobbed as the overexcited dogs pulled her roughly along the path.

Kyungsoo laughed at her helpless self as he enjoyed seeing her suffering.

Minseok watched as Kyunjin was pulled by two small hyper Chihuahuas, whom both wouldn’t stop moving, excited to be out. He then looked Kyungsoo. “Aren’t you going to help her?”

Kyungsoo scowled. “Yeah, yeah. In a minute. Just let me enjoy this for a while. It’s not every day I get to see Kyungjin pulled around like a ragdoll.” He looked at the black and white border collie who was calmly lying at Minseok’s feet.

“I’m surprised she warmed up to you so quickly,” Kyungsoo remarked. “She hardly lets strangers near her.”

Minseok crouched down and petted the dog who leaned into his touch. Minseok thought it was fascinating that he couldn’t hear the animal’s thoughts. He had never actively tired it before, so he was intrigued in the discovery. But he liked it; there was no excessive noise for him to hear.

“Kyungsoo! Help!” Kyungjin cried out desperately.

Kyungsoo looked over to her and smirked. “Only if you say, ‘Please help me, Oh Wonderful and Knowledgeable Kyungsoo’.”

“Just help me, god damn it!” she squealed.

Kyungsoo gave her a cocky look and didn’t move.

“Please help me, Oh Wonderful and Knowledgeable Kyungsoo!” she finally said.

He grinned and whistled while he walked closer, clicking his tongue. “Come here!” he shouted.

The two Chihuahuas stopped running, turned to Kyungsoo’s voice, and then started running towards him with Kyungjin in tow.

He took the two leashes from Kyungjin and smiled angelically. “Now, wasn’t that fun?”

 “I really dislike you, right now,” she faked-sobbed. “Is this revenge for what I did?”

“Yes,” he tartly replied.

She put her hands out and bowed dramatically. “Please, I’m so sorry for I did. Never again.”

He snorted and kicked her lightly. “Stop that. It was amusing enough to see you like that.”

She pouted with exaggeration. “Didn’t you know that the doctor told me not to overexert myself?”

Kyungsoo rolled his eyes. “Then you should have stayed in the hospital instead of coming and bothering me.”

She gasped loudly, bringing her hand to as if she was shocked. “But then you wouldn’t be able to see my lovely face.”

Kyungsoo arched an eyebrow. “What part of your face is lovely?”

She tsked and lightly hit him in the arm.

Minseok watched them with a slight tilt of his head. He knew that these two were good friends despite Kyungsoo’s callous attitude to Kyungjin. He felt it before, but meeting another person who had a good friendly relationship with Kyungjin made him feel more like he didn’t fit in than before. He wasn’t bothered by it, but he couldn’t help but to think that.

In those few moments where he allowed himself to think about himself and others, he always realized a few things.

He was new. He was different. He would never belong in that bright world of theirs.

The border collie stood up and nuzzled her face into Minseok’s hand as if she was trying to comfort him. He looked down and smiled slightly, petting the dog.

Kyungsoo and Kyungjin were about to approach Minseok when they saw him smile. They both stopped and stared in shock.

“Did your friend just smile?” Kyungsoo whispered with astonishment.

“I…I think so? I think it was an illusion though,” she whispered back.

“The whole time he was with us, I never saw him smile once.”

“I know,” Kyungjin replied. “Heck, I never seen him smile like that since I’ve been with him.” She looked at the dog. “And to think a dog could elicit such a thing from him.”

She giggled lightly. “And I can’t believe I’m slightly jealous of a dog.”

Kyungsoo frowned and turned to look at her. “You’re jealous? Why? Do you like him?”

Kyungjin rolled her eyes. “Why is it that people assume there’s some kind of romantic relations between Minseok and me?”

“Well?” Kyungsoo probed again.

She sighed. “I don’t know.”

“How can you not know?” he said. “You either like him or you don’t.”

“I don’t know because I don’t know him that well. I’m interested in him as a person, but that doesn’t mean that I like him.”

Kyungsoo shrugged, not really caring either way. “Whatever. At least he’s better than that best friend of yours. God, I hated him.”

“You hate everybody, Kyungsoo.”

Kyungsoo only glared at her in response.

Minseok looked up when he heard them approach, silently giving the leash to Kyungsoo.

“Thanks,” Kyungsoo said as he held onto all three leashes tightly. “For helping with the shop.”

“You’re welcome,” Kyungjin chirped from the side.

“Like you did anything,” he mumbled.

Kyungjin gave Kyungsoo a dark glare.

“I’m headed back, but thanks again.”

Minseok nodded and along with Kyungjin, watched Kyungsoo calmly walk the dogs back.

Kyungjin opened up the shoulder purse she was carrying the whole time, her eyes gleaming with subdued excitement.

She pulled her notebook, the one Minseok had realized she carried everywhere.

She opened it carefully and neatly crossed out one line.

Help Kyungsoo at his pet store, Shih Tzu Happens, for one day.

Minseok had already seen it before when Kyungjin had told him right when they left the hospital where they were going.

And he happened to glance at the few after it.

“I know why your tasks are all in this town, but I still wonder why your list is full of mundane tasks,” Minseok murmured. “I expected more exciting things.”

Kyungjin looked up from her notebook and closed it.

She smiled mysteriously, “Maybe. But there’s always a reason for everything.”

Minseok was about to respond, but decided not to.

Kyungjin, on the other hand, looked disappointed. “Aren’t you going to tell me the reason why?”

Minseok looked confused. “Why would I? I don’t know. And it’s your reason, not mine.”

She nodded. “Right, but aren’t you the one who knows what I’m really thinking?”

Minseok blinked. “What are you trying to say?”

She sighed exasperatedly. “Well, that you can read minds.”

And with those words, it was the first time that Minseok had been so shocked in his life.

A/N: Well, I wasn’t going to put that last part and leave it as a cute little chapter, but yeah. Well, things don't always go as planned.

But look! I finished earlier than I thought.

P.S. I was going through the Xiumin tag, looking for some more stories to read, when I realized that the MV he starred in resulted in a lot of fanfics titled "Gone". I don't know why I found that so funny. Maybe it was for the fact that almost the whole page was titled that. Nevertheless, it looks like I'll be reading some more Xiumin fics.