In Jordan’s humble opinion, she was doing good: Chen was asleep upstairs, she’d trolled the researchers in what little way she could, and her hygiene was at the best it had been for months. But, by the time noon rolled around, she was suddenly confronted by the grumbling in her stomach, and the realization that for once, she needed to cook for herself. She hadn’t even opened a refrigerator in over two years, let alone cooked something on a stove.

    Digging around, Jordan found spaghetti sauce in the fridge and pasta in the pantry. She thought that it would be the easiest to make for a beginner. She thought that she did an okay job. Okay, so maybe she hadn’t quite stirred the pasta enough, so it had congealed together into a chewy patty, and maybe the pasta sauce had splattered all over the counter because she’d put the heat too high, but as far as cooking went, she thought she was successful. Her stomach was full, at the very least.

    After she finished, Jordan waddled around the house with a rare food baby and inspected the details of the house. She glimpsed some green beyond the windows and realized that she hadn’t bothered looking outside or finding out where she was since she’d arrived. Tentatively, Jordan unlocked the front door and poked her head outside. There was a small porch, upon which sat a small table and two lawn chairs. Further on, there was a sizeable front yard bordered by patches of now-dead flowers. In the distance were mountains. Jordan couldn't help but wonder if those were the mountains that she and Chen had stayed in for three months. They were far less intimidating from this far away, slightly shrouded by clouds and dusted with snow.

    Exploration into the wild didn’t last long, however, as Jordan soon felt the effects of the cold. She retracted her neck and quickly closed the door. She turned to walk back into the foyer, and nearly jumped out of her skin.

    “Holy shit!” Jordan bent over at her waist and clutched at her heart. “Chen, don’t scare me like that.”

    Chen, at some point, had wandered downstairs while Jordan had her head outside, snuck up behind her, and stuck his head out over hers. Jordan had turned to see nothing but a bare chest and a figure caging her in. To her chagrin, Chen didn’t seem the slightest bit apologetic at the sight of Jordan half-collapsed on the hardwood floor. In fact, the right side of his mouth had quirked ever-so-slightly upwards in a small smirk.

    Jordan stomped away, muttered choice swear words under her breath. Snatching her cell phone up from the living room coffee table, she collapsed on the couch, pointedly ignoring the werewolf who was now wandering through the room. She looked up their location on the phone.

They lived at the very edge of a large college town that sat at the base of a mountain range. Jordan questioned the location. Yes, it seemed that this particular neighborhood seemed relatively isolated, but the distance could be a potential issue if Chen were to rampage. She glanced up at said werewolf, to see him sniffing around the appliances, still clad in nothing but his boxers.

    If he was going to adapt into human society, he was going to have to wear clothes. Jordan had her work cut out for her. Jordan abruptly stood from her seat, gripped his arm, and frog-marched him up the stairs. She pointedly ignored the confused looks Chen shot over his shoulder. She sat him down on the bed while she rummaged through his chest of drawers, settling on a pair of sweatpants and a longsleeve.

    Jordan tossed the clothes at him. He leaped a meter into the air when the clothes landed in his lap, almost as if they burned him. Jordan rolled her eyes, picked up the garments again, and held them out to him. Chen froze. His eyes flicked to the clothing, a look of revulsion crossing his face. He shook his head, glancing at Jordan again, before bolting from the room.

    “Hey!” Jordan bellowed, chasing him down the stairs. Why did he have to be so infuriating? She was perfectly aware she had no chance of catching him. “You have to put these on! Chen!” He leaped from the last three steps, sprinting into the living room, putting the sofa between them. She dodged around, only to find that Chen had sprinted into the kitchen. The two continued their wild goose chase, through the foyer, up and down the stairs, through the garage, into the living room, and then repeated the process. It must have been an amusing sight: the werewolf quite easily darting through the rooms, occasionally looking over his shoulder at the girl who was huffing and puffing to stay on his tail. After three rounds of chasing him through the house, Jordan finally gave up while Chen retreated back into his room, a spring in his step.

    Jordan, panting, collapsed onto the living room floor and chucked the wrinkled clothing into the corner. What did she expect, really? Chen possessed superhuman speed and undefeatable endurance, what could she, a mere human do to catch him? She let a frustrated shout leave her chest before closing her eyes and melting into a sweaty puddle of exhaustion.

    After a few minutes, the sweat on her skin dried, the heaving of her chest stopped, and Jordan was about to savor the feeling of rest when she felt a tapping on her forehead. She opened her eyes to glare at Chen, who responded only by prodding his own stomach. Jordan rolled her eyes.

    He was hungry. And he was useless here.

    Jordan sat up, grumbling to herself. It was bad enough that she was stuck in a house with a werewolf that refused to wear clothes - though she was still debating with herself whether that was a good or bad thing - and now she had to cook and clean up after him too. She felt less like an experimental subject and more like a glorified babysitter. She busied herself over the stove again, using the rest of the bag of spaghetti and the sauce.

Jordan stood over the sauce pan, idly waiting for the pot of water to boil, and for the sauce to begin to bubble. She tried to calm the simmering feeling of annoyance in her chest. But she couldn’t be irritated. She was just as useless, if not more, while she was in the forest. Chen hadn’t complained once, at least not externally, and hadn’t hesitated once to take care of her. She needed to pay him that same courtesy. She could sacrifice that extra effort.

This time, she didn’t mess it up, and scooped the small mountain of spaghetti into a salad bowl and placed it on the kitchen table.

“Chen?” Jordan called. She glanced around, peeking into the living room and the foyer. He wasn’t there. “Chen?” Jordan felt a prickle along the back of her neck. Rolling her eyes, she rotated, fully expecting to see Chen behind her.

He was behind her. Right behind her. Barely two inches behind her.

“Holy !” Jordan clutched again at her tortured heart. “Stop doing that! Make some noise when you walk around.” She pushed Chen towards the bowl with an exasperated sigh.

He sat down and ate without complaint.

When he finished, he set the bowl down, looked at Jordan expectantly, and prodded at his stomach again.

So naturally, Jordan made another bowl, using an entire box of pasta.

Except that still wasn’t enough. Jordan watched with wide eyes as he wolfed down the bowl in minutes, at the corners of his mouth to gather any lingering sauce. He set down the bowl and gazed expectantly at her. Jordan slammed her forehead against the kitchen table.

Only after another box of pasta and an entire bag of microwaveable dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets later, did Chen settle back in the chair with a satisfied sigh. He had seemed particularly fond of the dinosaurs, playing with them like a child.

Jordan almost cracked a smile.

Almost. She was ready to murder after he got up and left after he finished, leaving behind a dirty bowl and a slew of dirty pots.

“He doesn’t know to help me with dishes. It’s a human thing. I’ll teach him later.” She chanted to herself as she brought his dishes to the sink. She took a few breaths, attempting to calm herself down. She glanced over her shoulder, wondering where he was.

He seemed to finally have taken in the newness of his situation, and was sniffing around at everything. Jordan watched in amusement as he picked up the different remotes on the coffee table. He pushed a button, startling as the fan above him began to move. He prodded at another button on another remote, peering up at the fan, only to be sent sprawling into the couch in terror as the television with a blast of sound.

Jordan chuckled to herself as she prepared the sink of sudsy water. Soon enough, the sound of the television and clinking dishes was enough background noise for Jordan to lose herself in her thoughts. She didn’t mind the chore as much as she thought she would. It reminded her of washing dishes with her Dad. Her mom would be sitting on the couch, rifling through the television channels. She and her Dad would always complain about the sheer number of pots and pans, only to shrivel down with her mother’s debilitating glare. They bonded over washing dishes, she and her Dad. It was his time to ask her about school, and her time to ask him about his students.

She was pulled out of her thoughts when the last pot was washed and placed in the drying rack. Jordan unplugged the sink with a sigh. While the water drained away, she looked over at Chen again.

The television was the new subject of Chen’s fascination. Chen stared at the people moving around on the screen, then stalked to the television and lunged behind it. Jordan burst out laughing at his look of confusion when he couldn't find anything. He glanced forward at the screen again, making sure that the people were there, and searched behind the television again. His head was cocked to the right, clearly confused about where the people went. He scratched his scalp, and peeled himself reluctantly from in front of the screen.

He paced back and forth around the house, sniffing around at the furniture and appliances. Jordan didn’t miss the wistful glances that he cast out the window, or the pointed stare that he directed towards the front door. She almost expected him to just leave.

But he didn’t.

In fact, he gave the doors and windows a wide berth. He didn’t seem to want to venture outside at all. But the house was not enough to contain his energy. Jordan sat on the couch, fiddling with the laptop to the background noise of Chen pacing through the house. He was never still. On occasion, he’d sit on the other end of the couch, only to stand and began pacing again after a minute.

Jordan was casually filing through YG’s private servers when she paused. She glanced up at Chen again, who was pacing the length of the kitchen. The scene was reminiscent of another day, so many months ago, when Chen paced the length of an experiment room. Chen turned towards the window, and Jordan saw it.

His eyes flared blue.

Aquamarine’s parting words echoed in her mind.

Quick heads up, The full moon is coming up.

“.” Jordan breathed out. She quickly opened another tab and searched for full moon cycles. She squinted at the screen to find the nearest full moon, which was...in two days. “!” Jordan scrambled to her feet.

She didn't know where to begin. She couldn't keep Chen in the house, that's for sure. He would tear everything apart. Jordan opened a door she had yet to look through. She peeked into the garage and found a white SUV. It was old, but it would function. Jordan was no more relieved, because the last time she had driven a car was nearly two and a half years ago. She was going to have to practice, something she was not looking forward to. She did not want to have to deal with the consequences of her unavoidable future driving accidents.

Dashing back over to her laptop, Jordan searched for any neighboring forests or national parks. There was one, luckily, an hour and a half away. Jordan would have to find an area that was remote enough for a werewolf to run rampant and not get caught.

That left another question. This full moon was slated to last approximately two and a half days. She didn't want to go home and just leave a werewolf to go wild in the woods. That meant that she would have to stay in the national park, which meant sleeping in the car and bringing enough food for that.

For the next hour or so, Chen watched from his spot in the kitchen, a bemused expression on his face, as Jordan shuffled from room to room, sometimes carrying food, another time a sleeping bag, and finally clothes. Suddenly, Jordan stopped short.

“Wait,” her eyes widened in horror, “do I even have a driver’s license?” She bolted upstairs. “That’s really important!”

The minute Jordan disappeared, Chen’s form of entertainment was gone. His curiosity perked when the laptop lit up, a notification lighting up across the screen. Chen pushed at stuff: the screen, the keyboard, the mouse pad. The keys were rather clicky, he discovered, after pressing down on a few of the buttons. He quite liked the sounds that they produced. He swiped his hands across the keyboard, eyebrows perking up at the sounds that the device produced. He splayed his hands out on the keys to see exactly how many he could push at one time. The unhappy whining of the laptop, in his mind, was completely irrelevant.

Upstairs, Jordan remembered seeing a small pile of items on the bedside table, a pile that she hadn’t bothered looking through. A cork coaster, a couple of “critically acclaimed” novels, and at last a small cloth wallet. Jordan flipped it open and examined its contents. She sighed in relief when she found a driver’s license. She couldn’t help but wonder if it was obtained using legal means. She highly doubted it, especially since her I.D. picture looked suspiciously identical to her mug shot.

The wallet was otherwise empty save for a health insurance card and a small wad of cash.

Jordan’s head jerked up at the sound of a doorbell. A thousand thoughts flew through her head. Was it the guards again? The research team? What did they want now? Jordan moved towards the stairs. She was nearly run over by Chen in his mad dash away from the noise. She saw him dive down behind her bed, completely out of sight save for a tuft of hair visible just above her comforter.

She tiptoed down the stairs, trying to peek through the windows at the front of the house to see who it was. She couldn’t see anybody, which only heightened her stress. Fingers trembling, she reached for the lock, slowly turning it until it unlocked with a click. She gently pulled the door open a crack, trying to sneak a look at the unexpected visitor.

“Hi! I’m Sylvia Jung, your next door neighbor! I brought cookies!”

Jordan blinked.

She wasn’t sure quite what she was expecting: Carrothead, a host of armored guards, police officers ready to take away the werewolf, anything along those lines would have fit the scenarios in her imagination.

What she wasn’t expecting was an old lady two-thirds her size wielding a party platter piled high with baked goods.

“Um,” Jordan stuttered eloquently. “Hello?” She couldn’t sense any impending threat, so she opened the door wider. What was she supposed to say? Well, she was the neighbor, she probably wants to know something. Like what? Jordan rifled through social norms in her head. Introductions. That’s what usually started the average conversation. “I’m Jordan Chang. It’s nice to meet you.” She forced out, bowing. The old woman immediately started fussing.

“Oh goodness, you don’t need to bow to an old woman like me. Call me Sylvia. I’m sorry if I’m disturbing you, it’s just that no one has lived in this house for more than a decade! There’ve been so many trucks and so much construction recently that I naturally got curious, and wanted to meet you when you moved in!” She gestured at the massive plate, “I brought cookies! I wasn’t sure what type you would like, so I made a few flavors. Let’s see, I have regular sugar cookies, macadamia nut and white chocolate - those were my husband’s favorite - chocolate chip, peanut butter, nutella - my grandkids love those. Anyways, I’m rambling. Would it be terribly rude of me to see what you’ve done with the place? The last person that lived here was terrible at interior decorating.” Sylvia gazed hopefully at Jordan.

“Um, sure..” Jordan reeled at the onslaught of words. Somehow she found herself opening the door wider and gesturing for the old woman to totter in. A surge of panic rose in her chest when she remembered that Chen was still in the house. She was an idiot, how could she let a stranger in? She didn’t want a murder on her hands. What was the most subtle way for her to get the old lady out of the door?

“Who’s that handsome stranger?” Sylvia chimed, pointing to the top of the stairs. Jordan look up in a panic to see Chen peeking over the railing, looking about two milliseconds away from bolting. He didn’t seem hostile in any way. In fact, he seemed curious and ever the slightest bit terrified. She was distracted as Sylvia tugged lightly on her sleeve. “Your boyfriend?” Chen emerged slightly from his hiding place, his full body coming full into view. Sylvia’s eyes widened at his mostly- form, mouth tugging upwards in an ill-concealed grin. “Oh my, I’m sorry did I interrupt you two in the middle of something? I can come back later-”

    “No, of course not!” Jordan spluttered, warmth heating her cheeks. “Here, I can take you to the kitchen.” She glared at Chen as she guided Sylvia through the house.

    “Sure, honey.” The old woman replied with a wink, but willingly followed Jordan anyways. She examined the furnishings and walls as she went, making noises of approval. “This is so much better than before, I love what you’ve done with the place. Wow!” She gaped at the stainless-steel appliances in the kitchen. “These are new!”

    Jordan scratched at the back of her head as the old woman hustled and bustled around the kitchen. What was she supposed to do? She wasn’t exactly responsible for the renovations or the furnishings, she had no idea what she could possibly talk about. Was small talk still a thing? Should she talk?

    Her inner ramblings were suddenly cut short when a plate of cookies was shoved at her face. Jordan gasped in shock and grabbed the plate. Sylvia, seemingly satisfied, moved to sit down at the kitchen table.

    “I keep on rambling. My husband always did say I could talk anybody’s ear off.” She slowly sat down on the chair with a sigh. “I’m glad I made so many cookies, look at you! You’re a stick! Have you not eaten in months? Kids these days...” Jordan looked away. After all, it wasn’t exactly like that statement wasn’t true. “Try one! The peanut butter is a new recipe.” She pointed at the right side of the mound of cookies. Jordan gingerly grabbed one and took a small bite. Immediately her tastebuds were flooded with buttery sweetness. It was the best thing she had ever tasted.

    Jordan didn’t know what did it. Maybe it was the old woman’s hopeful expression when watching her. Maybe it was the care that had obviously been put into every single perfectly circular cookie. But it brought memories of sitting on a stool next to the stove, eating bites of dinner while her mom made it. Her dad, having her taste every new recipe that he wanted to make for her mom. And memories from months later, long after her parents had gone, of Seokjin clad in his bright pink apron with Jimin, Jungkook and Taehyung scrambling and whining around him to get the first bite.

    Jordan didn’t know what caused it, but she couldn’t stop the welling of emotion in her chest, nor the tears that suddenly painted her corneas red. Jordan quickly turned away, bringing a hand up to cover the sob that threatened to escape. Sylvia bolted up.

    “Oh no, is it that bad? I knew that that peanut butter might have sat in the pantry for too long. I shouldn’t have taken a chance with it.” She heaved herself up and snatched a napkin. “Here, spit it out-” Jordan waved her hand away.

    “No, no, it’s not that.” Jordan sniffled. “It’s delicious, really.” Jordan swallowed, the lump in making it difficult. She took another bite, chewed, and swallowed. She wanted that sweetness to linger, and ate the rest. Sylvia kept gazing at her, concern in her eyes. Jordan looked back at her. “It’s just that-” Jordan reached for another cookie. A few tears escaped from her eyes. “It’s been so long since-” she hiccuped. “Since anyone has made something for me. I’d forgotten what-” Jordan couldn’t speak.

    What could she say? She’d forgotten what it was like to be cared for? To have someone genuinely want her opinion? To have someone go out of their way to do something so nice and completely unnecessary for her?

    Sylvia, somehow, seemed to understand, and reached out to rub away Jordan’s tears.

    “Oh, honey.” She said softly. “It’s okay! Come have dinner with me! My house is open anytime. My kids are away anyways with their own children to take care of. My house gets kind of lonely anyways with just me all by my lonesome. I’d love to have you and your boyfriend over.” She gently patted Jordan’s cheeks again. “How does that sound?” Jordan hiccuped again and nodded, more tears flowing down her cheeks. Sylvia wiped them away again before grabbing another cookie. “Now, now. Have a nutella one. They make my grandkids bounce off of the walls, and I dare say you probably want some cheering up.” Jordan couldn’t help but chuckle, and accepted the cookie gratefully.

    Sylvia began talking again, and Jordan let herself get swept up in stories of the adventures of her three children and twelve grandchildren. She relished in the tellings of a world that was kind, that was unselfish, that was so much better than the world that she seemed to be stuck in.

    Around the corner, hidden from view, Chen peeked over at the duo at the kitchen table. He watched the old woman, who was telling stories he couldn't’ understand with dramatic swooping hand gestures and hideous faces. He gazed at Jordan as she doubled over in laughter, her face lighting up in a way he had never seen before.

    The tugging in his chest stirred the slightest bit at the sight.

    His gaze flickered between the old woman and Jordan, lingering on the latter. He stayed for a moment, watching the emotions play out on her face, before disappearing back upstairs.

***

Beta'd by Musicology321. Thank you so much, my dear. What would my life be without you?

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