The first thing Jungkook smelled when Namjoon and Jin arrived back at home after their shopping trip was not meat, as he was expecting (and anticipating rather impatiently). Instead, Jungkook smelled another person.

His ears perked and his lifted his head up; the tinkling of his collar alerted Yoongi, who was still working on his laptop. He turned around to see Jungkook's confused expression. "What's up?"

Instead of answering, Jungkook hopped up from the bed and made his way to the hallway where he saw Jin closing the front door and Namjoon carrying a huge heap of.... hybrid dog. Jungkook grimaced. "What the hell?" he exclaimed loudly. 

"Jeon Jungkook!" Jin chastised.

Jungkook only scoffed. There was no way in hell they needed another dog in this apartment- Taehyung was more than enough (if even a bit too much). Besides, this one was absolutely dripping wet and covered in dirt. Why bring something so dirty into their own home?

Yoongi stepped out of his room a bit slower--not knowing exaclty why Jungkook's attitute suddenly changed--when he also caught sight of Namjoon and his new... friend.

"Um... Namjoon... Care to explain?"

"Not right now," he sighed, sounding exhausted. "Please, can you just help Jin start dinner?"

Yoongi knew better than to press Namjoon on matters that made him stressed out, so he simply nodded and made his way warily around him to get to the kitchen where Jin was placing the grocery bags on the counter.

Namjoon made his way past Jungkook to his own bedroom so he could assess what he would be handling. Meanwhile, Yoongi kept shooting Jin questioning glances as the two began chopping up the vegetables. Eventually, Jungkook made his way into the kitchen as well. He was hoping to make his displeasure known to the older cat hybrid, who had Namjoon wrapped around his finger. He figured that if anyone could make it go away, it was Jin.

Just when Jin thought he couldn't take any more of the curious and judgemental stares from Yoongi and Jungkook respectively, Taehyung came bounding into the room. 

"Is there a dog??" His fluffy tail was wagging playfully.

Seokjin set aside his knife and the onion he had just been cutting and took a deep breath. "I found a stray hybrid in an alleyway," he explained. "He was hurt so I had Namjoon bring him home to check up on him. That's all."

"Is he staying? What's his name? Favourite colour? Can we play-"

"I don't know, Tae, okay? I don't know anything- just that he needed help."

"Oh," Taehyung replied. He didn't sound phased enough to lower his excitement, seeing as he followed that up by running back to his room shouting "Hoseokkie, guess what?!"

It was quiet for a moment, and Jin resumed chopping the onion. Yoongi chose not to comment, and Jin was almost thankful for that. Jungkook, however-

"What if he kills us all in our sleep?"

Jin sighed heavily. "Jungkook, he can't even stand up on his own right now, would you calm down with the insensitivity?"

Jungkook's ears fell slightly--not liking when Jin got mad at him--but before he could reply, they heard a pretty loud thud coming from down the hallway. Jin was quick on his feet as he ordered Yoongi to continue cooking and Jungkook to stay put before rushing down to his and Namjoon's room. Flinging the door open, he saw Namjoon on the ground and the hybrid working hard on opening the window seemingly in the midst of a quick escape--or, as quick as he could be while still hardly being able to move his body.

"Namjoon!" Jin cried worriedly. He instantly rushed to his owner's side and helped him up. As soon as the other was on his feet again, he rushed over to the window just in time for the boy's grip to slip which caused him to fall to the floor. Jin helped break the impact and was glad that he was unable to get the window open. "What are you doing? We're on the 8th floor, you would have died!"

The hybrid whimpered and flinched at the tone Jin was using.

"I was trying to check his wounds, but he pushed me away and ran for it," Namjoon relayed with a grimace as he began dusting off the elbow of his jacket. Jin turned back to the boy he was trying to hold in his arms to see him crying. Shocked by the tears, Jin found that he couldn't speak.

"I can't, don't make me," the hybrid was croaking out. Jin realized that this was the first time he heard the other's voice. "Please, no more. I'm done, they said so. I'm out of service. Please take me back, I'm supposed to be.. to be dying..."

Namjoon approached again and slowly crouched behind Jin to peek at the young hybrid over his own's shoulder. "What are you talking about? You don't need to die, you'll be okay," Jin tried assuring the creature.

"I don't want it," the hybrid continued to beg while breathing heavily from the effort of his attempted escape. "I won't do you any good, I won't make you any money, just let me go please, let me die. I'm a failure now, you don't want me anyway, I promise."

Jin was stunned silent by the way he was trying so hard to convince him and Namjoon that he was useless to them. The poor kid was frantic; his voice was scratchy and even cracking in his distress. "Hey, hey, calm down, we're not going to make you do anything. We just want to fix you up, okay?" Jin spoke in the most soothing voice he could muster.

The young hybrid's eyes were flicking around nervously and he was his lips as if debating whether or not to say what was on his mind. "And... And you have no intentions of.. using me once I'm better?" he whispered warily after quite some time to think.

Namjoon furrowed his eyebrows. "Using? What would we use you for?"

"For... F-for.. You know..."

"Like a pet? Are you asking if we plan to adopt you?" Namjoon asked for clarification. 

The kid's large ears flattened against his head as he shied away from the two and began glancing between them rapidly as his confusion with the situation seemed to grow. Jin could sense the fear once again, and turned his head to look at Namjoon worriedly. "He's getting scared again," he whispered to his owner.

"Are you going to make me go back?" his voice came out quieter this time.

Namjoon shook his head. "I don't know what's going to happen, kid. But we won't send you back. We can help you find a nice home or something, but you don't have to go back out there. No matter what happens from now on, you're safe, okay?" Namjoon didn't exactly know the hybrid's situation, but he assumed it had something to do with a neglectful owner that made him hesitant to be adopted again. "Let me just fix you up and you can get some food and sleep, alright?"

Though the boy still looked cautious and had not stopped trembling since they'd first seen him, he nodded slowly.

"Great," Namjoon said calmly and slowly moved over so he could pull the kid out of Jin's arms. He shifted them over to the bed, and Jin stood to remove the blankets so that he would only dirty the washable sheets.

"I know you got scared last time, but I need you to let me take your shirt off. You're bleeding, and... you know..."

"Mm.." he hummed in reply, laying limply