~Fluffy’s Refuge~

Chenguang’s POV-

It’s around seven in the morning, my hair is sticking up in many directions and I probably look like a descendent of Vegeta in his super saiyan form right now. My eyes are still puffy from sleep and by the lack of taste in my mouth, I probably had some rank morning breath. Lu Chenguang in the morning, everyone! That’s me.

I’m currently sitting up straight with my eyes as wide as they can go after a good sleep and my phone is held up to my ear as I try my utmost best to grasp what has just happened. Or more like what the man on the other side of the phone just said.

“You got the job!”

Yes, that’s what he said. I, Lu Chenguang, a freeloader who might as well be leeching off her brother just got a job.

“Hello?”

You know what, it’s around seven in the morning. I just woke up a few minutes ago, I’m either dreaming or I’m 40.3% here right now. Maybe I really was dreaming.

Clutching my phone, I bonked it against my head and let out a raspy shriek that sounded like a baby dinosaur with a hiccup.

Nope, not a dream.

This was real. This was as real as the red mark slowly forming on my forehead.

“…Ma’am?” The man’s hesitant and unsure voice rang out again and I quickly brought my surprisingly still functioning Nokia back to my ear.

I cleared my throat to sound less scratchy and hoarse, time to sound professional. “Yes, I’m still here. Thank you so much for this opportunity and considering me for this job.”

Nailed it.

“It was a tough decision but we didn’t have that many applicants in the first place. As for why you were picked, you seemed very passionate about animals in your job application. You seemed like the perfect candidate. Would you be able to start as soon as tomorrow?”

Let me give you some background info. I’m originally from China, however, it felt like life over there was the same routine each day. I longed for a change of scenery so I boarded a plane and made my way here where I now live with my older brother, Han, on the condition that I continue studying further. I’ve already applied and am waiting for a response as I’ve only been here for about a month. He made me learn Korean with him when I was younger so that he’d use me to practice it on, who would have thought that would come in handy besides being able to speak to each other in a language our parents didn’t understand? That’s my version of it, anyway.

“I’ll be there, sir. What time?”

“At seven. The shop opens bright and early.”

So he said but there’s no one here.

Like he said, I arrived here as close as I could to the 7 AM mark sipping on some hot cocoa from the café I passed on my way here. The hot cocoa was so good. I made a mental note to remember the café’s name, Owl something. That was good enough. The store was quite a relatively small one, but that gave it a sort of cute charm. There was a sign in the shape of a bone with the word ‘OPEN’ written ever so largely on it. This store sure opened early. I decided to enter the store with a jump in my step, I’m so excited for this!

I have this thing for animals that are small and fluffy and even big ones that are just so adorable. I can’t explain it, if I could live in a zoo, I would. I’m not kidding.

Looking around, I saw no one. No customers, no employees, no nothing except me and the few animals that were in their cage thingies either asleep or looking at me curiously.

“Hello? Is anybody here?” I called out.

Aaaaand…no reply.

Placing my hands over my mouth as if it was a microphone, I yelled. “IS ANYBODY HERE…Here…here….What am I doing?” I don’t know myself, Chenguang.

Deciding to wait, I finished my hot cocoa and threw it in a nearby trashcan and started looking at the animals around the store. One particular kitten caught my eye. The kitten was a shade of ginger with darker stripes running through its fur with a white belly. The hair around its face was bushy and fluffy too. Unlike the rest of its brothers and sisters who slept amongst each other near their mother, this ginger stayed in the opposite corner of the cage. The mother as well as the rest of the kittens were a similar shade in colour from grey to black, but Ginger here was the odd one out.

I was so caught up staring at them, I didn’t notice someone enter the store from the back.

“The trouble with a kitten is that it eventually becomes a cat.”

I’d make a horrible ninja.

The shriek that came out of my mouth probably scared him more than he scared me in that moment. My hands even flailed around, I tried to compose myself and cleared my throat out of embarrassment. After turning around to see who the owner of the voice was, I knew that I was most definitely not prepared for what I just saw.

He was tall, had decently cut hair and bore a look of what most people would describe as boredom. He was dressed in crisp black shirt with the sleeves rolled up, a dark blue jeans and a nametag with his name neatly written on it. His sharp eyes had an intense gaze that was making my stomach tingle. All of this fits him just well.

It took me a while but I eventually found my voice. “W-Who are you?”

He said nothing this time and simply pointed at his nametag on his shirt as if it was the most obvious thing ever.

Sehun.

What a nice name for a nice face.

“I’m Chenguang. I got accepted for the job position yesterday and was told I could start working today.”

He let out an ‘ah’ with a steady nod. “So, you’re the one Suho was talking about yesterday.”

Sure, what you said.

“Suho’s the owner of the store. He’s not here yet but in the meantime, make yourself useful and start by sweeping around the place. I’ve got a few things I need to do before customers start piling in.” He finished and then threw a broom at me that I barely managed to catch. I never made it on the netball team for a reason.

I was a bit baffled at how frank and blunt this guy was but at least this was giving me something to do but if sweeping was going to be my job then this is not what I signed up for. For someone who works here, he sure seems like the owner rather than the employee.

….

It’s too quiet.

The only sound you could hear was me sweeping and Sehun fumbling around the cash register with occasional sounds from the animals.

Awkward…

The bells of the store chimed as someone walked in and I couldn’t help but feel relieved.

“Oh, Sehun, you’re here already. Has the new girl arrived yet?” The new voice inquired, no doubt a male.

“Hello.” I greeted him with a small smile and a wave, my goodness, he was handsome as well.

The man smiled at me. “Hi there, I’m Suho, the owner of this store. You must be Chenguang.” He shook my hand and laughed when he saw the broom in my clutches. “Sehun, you know it’s Tao’s job to sweep in the mornings. This girl applied as an assistant, not a cleaner.”

Tell him, Suho-senpai, tell him!

Sehun barely acknowledged what Suho said and simply shrugged as he went on fiddling with the register. “As you can see, this is a relatively small shop. It’s just myself, Sehun, Yixing, Tao and now, you. I’ll be honest here, this place doesn’t make that much money but it’s enough to get by and as long as you enjoy what you do, that should be enough. When Tao arrives, he’ll show you the ropes, okay?” Suho smiled and patted my head as if talking to a five year old. I nodded and returned his smile with one of my own. Sehun could learn happy skills from Suho, he looks like the world did him wrong from what I’ve seen in this short time I’ve been here.

“Tao missed the bus this morning, he texted me saying he’ll be late.” Sehun said, not looking up from counting the money.

Suho sighed and looked at me as if wondering what use I could be now. It’s okay, I’m wondering the same thing. “Well then, I’ll be in my office. Just wait for Tao, he should be here soon, don’t be scared to ask for help. Sehun may look unapproachable sometimes-“

He is unapproachable….

“-but he’s a nice guy. Zitao may look a bit scary sometimes but you two will probably get along just fine. Yixing, well, if you find yourself scared of Yixing of all people then you’re a very special girl. Work hard!” And with that, Suho disappeared into the back of the store leaving just Sehun and myself in awkward silence once more.

“So…looks like we’ll be working together now, huh?” I nervously chuckled and spun the broom around in my hands.

“Looks like it.” He dully responded.

Well that didn’t work, I’ll try again.

“So, how long have you been working here?”

“…”

I’m worried, does he know how to converse? Does he know how conversations work?

“What would you like to be one day? I want to be a veterinarian and came here to study further. I actually applied at a university and boy, am I nervous. I wonder if I got accepted…Do you think I’ll make it? I may not look it but I’m crazy smart!”

If anyone saw us right now, they’d think I was having a conversation with either myself or with the broom. As if the broom would respond ‘I want to become a duster one day!’

Psh.

Why won’t he respond?

“Hey, do you-“

Sehun cut me off and looked my straight in the eye with a slightly annoyed look. “Do you believe in dislike at first sight or would you like me to walk pass you again?”

Rude!

That sarcastic comeback seems too advanced he must have got that from the internet or something but that doesn’t change the fact I still felt offended.

That was beyond rude! I practically just met the guy and you know what they say, first impressions are lasting impressions. I was not going to just stand there and take it, oh no. Not me, not this girl. You hear me!? Not Lu Chenguang!

Before I could even say anything to Puss-in-converse over here the bells chimed again and in walked what looked to be someone from an underground gang – just kidding. If I thought Sehun was tall then this guy proved me wrong. He was practically clad in black clothing from head to toe but quite stylishly if I do say so myself. He had sharp eyes that seemed to piercing. Talk about intimidating.

Sehun briefly looked up and then nudged his head in my direction. “Tao, that’s Chenguang. You’re her babysitter.”

Tao turned slightly and took a glance at me and then I noticed those darkish tints beneath his eyes that didn’t help the fact that I was already regretting taking this job if it meant I had to work under him. He looked like he ate girls like me for second breakfast.

I realized then that I should probably introduced myself formally to him as best as I possibly could under his tight scrutiny. “I’m…I…Chenguang.”

What was that!?

Sehun, I can hear you snickering! You could have at least been discreet about it. It’s clear my pain is probably his gain.

“Zitao, nice to meet you. We start immediately.”

Zitao, or as he prefers to be called 'Tao', wasn't actually that bad but is still sort of the scary person of Fluffy's Refuge. He showed me which animals get fed certain foods and which animals I was to be cautious of.

Finally we stopped at the cage the mother cat and her litter along with Ginger resided in.

"These kittens are practically newborns. Lay helped the mother give birth. Should anyone want to adopt them, they'll have to wait a few weeks. The kittens should be around their mother for a while first. Until they know their way around." Despite what Tao said, I was once again infatuated by Ginger.

"That kitten doesn't really bother with the rest of the litter much. He's sort of like the outcast. Keeps to himself, that little one." Tao explained as he noticed me staring at the lone kitten on the opposite side of the cage. Awww, he looks like a lion.

"He catches my attention for some reason. You've been an independent little kitty, right, Mufasa?" I cooed at the kitten while attempting to the tuft of fur on its head only to have him shrink away and claw at my finger.

"Mufasa?" Tao all of a sudden started laughing. "You named him?"

"What? Look at him! He's ginger and the fur around his head looks like a lion's mane! Mufasa's perfect!" I said while crossing my arms and staring at Tao who continued to laugh.

"What about the sick animals though? Do we tend to them too?" I asked.

"Not really, that's mainly Lay's job but I help him when he needs it. He's only one guy and all."

"I know a thing or two about animal health. I want to be a Veterinarian one day so I'm here for the experience." I said while looking at Mufasa who stared at me with a skeptical look in his eyes.

"Is that so? Well, Lay will surely not turn down your help."

As Tao helped me and instructed me on how to care for the animals, a few people came in and browsed through the store. If only I had a camera for every time Sehun greets them with "Welcome to Fluffy's Refuge, I'm Sehun how may I assist you?" I found it so funny because he had to smile while doing this and it looked so forced.

The bell chimed once more and I was actually getting irritated by it already.

"Sorry I'm late! I was at the store for breakfast but then the lady forgot my order and then she felt so sorry she gave it to me for free and- OH YEAH! LOOK WHAT I FOUND! TADAAA!" What kind of person has this much energy on a Monday at...hold on let me check my watch...9:13 in the morning!? When I turned to look at him, my jaw dropped to a length I never knew it was capable of.

Another hottie McHot was here! His hair was a nice shade of chocolate brown and he had the cutest dimple ever! Oh my, he has a name tag!

HE WORKS HERE!

 I am so lucky. I'm working with males who look like they should be at some modelling agency! He probably got his breakfast for free because of his good looks!

"Poor thing looks hungry too, can we feed him some puppy kibbles please?" Dimples asked while holding what appears to be a Golden Retriever pup.

How can a man look so attractive holding a puppy? Oh, I know, like this.

Tao shook his head and lightly nudged me, “Go with him. I have to prepare a suitable bed for our new resident.”

Doing as Tao said I slowly followed Lay to what seemed like a Pet Care room. I could faintly hear Sehun scolding Yixing about bringing in new pets even though they barely had space for more. Yixing simply laughed it off and gestured for me to follow him into the room. There was a metal table in the middle and the shelves were stocked with medicines and syringes and all sorts of medical equipment.

"Please put some kibbles in this bowl, not too much we don't want him puking now do we?" No, we don't cause then I will follow after just looking at the mess. Plus that would be a bad first impression of myself while in front of you, Dimples. After doing as he instructed, Dimples placed the puppy near the food as he sniffed it before deeming it safe to eat.

"There we go. I found him under a bridge. No idea how he survived this long on his own. Good thing I found him too, he wouldn't last much longer if I hadn't."

"There's a small bucket over there fill it with lukewarm water but not too warm. We're gonna get this little guy cleaned up. I'm Zhang Yixing by the way. Though my friends call me Lay, nice to meet you."

No, you're Dimples.

"Nice meeting you too. I'm Chenguang but you probably already know that."

So I'll just remind you so you won't forget.

After bathing the puppy, Lay placed him on the blankets Tao had prepared for him. Lay said that he still needed to check the puppy for injuries or illnesses but it's best if he rests for now.

I could converse with Lay and Tao easily. I didn't see much of Suho because he was huddled up in his office doing his work. Sehun and I never really spoke after earlier, I learned more about Lay and Tao after speaking to them more.

Lay was a university student who used his free time to work here at Fluffy's Refuge. Tao worked here because he loves it here. Sehun works here to pay for his studies and likes animals as well so it's a win-win for him. At least there's something admirable about him besides his looks.

The day came to an end quickly. Despite Sehun being like the Grinch Who Stole Christmas, I enjoyed myself. Tao's not all that bad, he's actually very nice. Lay is just too sweet he might give me cavities.

 Permission to take Lay home?

Please?

I walked home anticipating the next day at work. Tomorrow's going to be so awesome.

"HELP!"

Or not...

"MY FRIEND'S DOG STARTED DOING HIS BUSINESS BUT IT’S ALL WATERY AFTER I FED HIM SOME LEFT OVER CHICKEN! AND GET THIS...THEY WERE ALIVE!!! ALIVE, I SAY!"

ALIVE HE SAYS!

"Welcome to Fluffy's Refuge, I'm Sehun how may I assist you?"

Really Sehun?

"Um...Hi, I'm Jonghyun and I live down the street from her-"

"Jonghyun they don't care where you live! Just give Gherkins to the angry looking guy behind the counter!" A boy around my age screamed while gesturing towards the black French poodle.

"The dog's name is Garcons, Taemin! Please, just do something quick! I don't wanna be a murderer!" The boy who goes by the name of Jonghyun exclaimed while placing Garcons on the counter.

"What's wrong with the dog?" Tao, who just finished feeding the reptiles came to view the situation at hand.

"Diarrhea with a chance of worms." I replied, still awed by the sudden intrusion of these two young men.

Just then, Garcons decided to let it all out all over the counter where Sehun stood.

............

"Well, he wasn't kidding about the worms." Sehun regretfully sighed as he looked at the counter with a crestfallen look.

“I am not cleaning that.” Tao said with a flat tone.

"LAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!"

Fluffy's Refuge's chapters have been combined to reduce the original amount of chapters and typos have been found and corrected, if there are any remaining typos do let me know but for now, here you go!