The crunch of footsteps in the snow that didn't belonged to her made her pause and turn around.

There was Chanyeol, in those colorful mittens and wolf-eared hat again, despite his claim that he doesn't get cold. He was also holding two mugs of steaming something in his hands. Eunji's interest was perked. She could already smell the spicy scent of cinnamon from afar.

“Is that for me?” She joked, abandoning her shovel and receiving the mug with a grateful sigh.

“No, it's for Baekhyun,” he smiled lightly, enjoying the surprised look on her face.

“How do you know his name?”

“I heard you talking to him. To them,” he answered honestly, “You really love them a lot don't you?”

Eunji looked at him suspiciously. She was a bit put off that a werewolf had been stalking her without her knowing. To his question, she shrugged.

“They're family. Along with my brother, they're all I have left.” There was no sadness in her voice, only a calm acceptance. Chanyeol found that the fact bothered him more for some reason.

“You planned to live here forever? On your own?”

“I'm not on my own.”

“You know what I mean,” he rolled his eyes. “Living here alone... without other people. You're okay with that?”

The idea of being a lone wolf, separated and lost without a pack was something that Chanyeol had never dared to fanthom... until it actually happened. It was as miserable and lonely as he had imagined it to be, and he doesn't understand anyone's willingness to go through that when they have the freedom to make a different choice.

“Does it matter? And besides, I'm not so alone anymore now that you're here.”

Her tone when she said it was even, her voice so casual that it probably wasn't suppose to mean anything.

Her words still did something funny in his chest though.

Chanyeol buried whatever odd thing he was feeling and changed the subject. “Let's head inside. Lunch is ready.”

“Let's have lunch at the barn.” Eunji said randomly. She grinned at his confusion.

“I always eat lunch at the barn,” she explained, “I don't like to eat alone.”

Chanyeol bit his lip before he could say something like, but you don't have to anymore now that I'm here.

A second passed. He jammed a hand into his pocket and followed Eunji inside in silence.

.

Eunji, he finally realized, was really really chatty. To an animal, no less.

Although he had to admit, the horse was starting to grow on him.

“He likes you,” Eunji said with a certain amount of awe in her voice. “Sehun never likes anyone. Not Minki, or my parents, or the electrician and the telemarketer that drops by every six months.”

“That's not exactly true,” Chanyeol said as he ran the brush down Sehun's silvery long mane. “He likes you. And the pony. He likes her, too.”

“Hayoung? How do you know it's a her?” Eunji scrunched up her eyebrows, taking a glance at the skittish pony hiding in her stall. There was a wolf in the barn; she had every right to be wary.

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