"Soo. Soo. Soo."

Poke. Poke. Poke.

Baekhyun laid his head down on the library table, staring up at the studying cat hybrid. "You have officially been ignoring me for seventeen minutes and eight seconds."

Kyungsoo turned a page in his notebook and continued his note-writing.

Baekhyun sighed and pulled out yet another chocolate bar from his backpack, then passed a Twix over to Xiumin, sitting in the chair beside him. The arctic wolf hybrid scratched something onto a Post-It in his textbook and shook his head. "Got Snickers?"

"Nah, man, I ate them all already."

"Go f yourself."

"Gladly."

Kyungsoo curled his upper lip into a grimace.

"Eighteen minutes and forty-six seconds."

Finally, Kyungsoo threw down his highlighter. "What," he huffed, putting his head in his hands. "Do you fing want?"

Baekhyun frowned. "G-d. Pissy, aren't we?"

"Why am I even friends with you?"

Xiumin looked over Kyungsoo's shoulder. "Lulu!" His stoic face split into a bright smile, and both Baekhyun and Kyungsoo stopped in their angry eye contact exchange. 

The deer slid into the chair next to Kyungsoo, knocking the cat hybrid in the back of the head and reaching over to grab his wolf boyfriend's hand. "Hello, Soo, Bacon."

Baekhyun stuck his tongue out. 

Kyungsoo tried for a smile. "Hey, Luhan. Didn't know you came to the library on weekends."

"Any of you want chocolate?" He reached into his sweatshirt pocket and pulled out a drawstring bag of Hershey Kisses. "Got them from Kris, who got it from...uh, a bunch of freshman girls."

Xiumin snorted. "I thought he didn't like freshmen."

"He doesn't, but it's not like he can turn down chocolate, right?"

"Kris would," Baekhyun said.

Luhan shrugged.

Kyungsoo unwrapped on Hershey Kiss slowly, then put it on his tongue, letting it melt. "Why'd he get chocolate?" he asked.

All three of the other people looked over at him, eyes wide. Kyungsoo slowly slid to the edge of his chair. "What?"

"Honey," Baekhyun said slowly. "It's Valentine's Day."

Kyungsoo blinked, then relaxed. "Oh." Suddenly, something flashed across his mind. "Oh! S!" He threw his things together into his bag, ignoring the pencil that flew across the table and whacked Baekhyun on the forehead. "Gotta go." 

The cat hybrid slipped by the librarian coming to scold them, pushing through the double doors and dashing as fast as he could to Feathers and Fur Café.

Meanwhile, Jongin sat at his desk, cursing at a tube of paint.

"Why is this--so--gunky--" He wrestled with the red, trying to squeeze it out onto a paper plate.

Chanyeol watched, amused. "So this is why you didn't do art."

"That's fing right, Hello Kitty. But it's not like you can either."

Chanyeol raised an eyebrow, then dropped the subject. "Not arguing." He observed Jongin's futile battle with the old red paint for a few more minutes before speaking again. "What's this even for?"

"Valentine's present for Soo." Jongin threw the paint down and leaned back in his chair.

"Why couldn't you just buy something for him?"

"That's impersonal."

"It's also practical."

Jongin sighed. "Yeah, but...it's more special if I do something myself, you know?"

Chanyeol shrugged. "Sure. But if the paint's not working, I'm not sure how far this is going to get you."

"Dammit." Jongin pushed aside the piece of paper and paint. "So now what?"

"Does Soo like shopping?"

"A little."

"Okay. Any favorite restaurants?"

"Feathers and Fur, but we have a discount already for being regulars."

"Uh, favorite...food?"

"He's got a fridge full of stuff already, dammit. He doesn't have any more space."

Chanyeol groaned. "Your boyfriend is hard to get stuff for. Baek told me he just wants dinner out, so that's it."

"Kyungsoo said he doesn't want anything, so now I'm left on my own."

"Something'll come. I'm sure."

Hye-mi was standing in front of the café, visibly uncomfortable.

"I've been here for twenty minutes, Soo," she said, laughing and unwrapping her fluffy scarf from around her neck.

Kyungsoo stopped, panting and surprised. "Hye-mi--your--your hair--"

Hye-mi's blonde hair had been re-dyed into a light pink, braided and tied with a black satin ribbon that matched her dress and shoes. "Yeah, I just did it yesterday," she said, smiling self-consciously. "Is it okay?"

"It looks fantastic," Kyungsoo said, completely honest and secretly wishing he could pull it off himself.

Hye-mi pretended to bow, then hooked her arm through Kyungsoo's. "Well, sir, take me off to my waiting prince."

Chen was waiting by the entrance to the dorms, hands shoved deep into the pockets of his peacoat. He looked up when Kyungsoo and Hye-mi came up to the parking lot in front of the dorm, and pink immediately crept into his cheeks.

"Wow," was all he could say when Hye-mi came closer.

Kyungsoo let the barista's arm go, and she moved to give Chen a hug. He took it happily, and Kyungsoo couldn't help but feel a little flutter in his chest at the sight.

"Soo came late to pick me up," Hye-mi said, turning to look at the cat hybrid. 

Chen pretended to be offended. "Excuse me, but you dare to be late to pick up my darling?"

Kyungsoo put his hands up. "I forgot it was Valentine's Day!"

Hye-mi and Chen both laughed. "How do you forget that it's a holiday?" Hye-mi asked.

"Well, this is the first year that I actually had something to celebrate..."

"Did you even get anything for Kai?" Chen shook his head and held Hye-mi's waist, drawing her closer.

Kyungsoo nodded, then shook his head. "I didn't, actually. I'm going to figure that out right now."

Chen sighed. "Well, you better get the done, right?"

"Yes, sir." 

Jongin couldn't tell if the looks on Lay's, Sehun's, and Suho's faces were good or bad.

They stood before the floral decorations on Kyungsoo's bed, studying the petals that spelled out hello and the collection of candies at the foot. Jongin waited silently for the judgement.

Finally, Lay piped up. "If I were him, I'd be pretty happy."

Sehun gave the Dragon the stink eye. "This is pathetic. It's so...cliché, and impractical, and...there's a whole lot of not okay going on here, Kai."

The werewolf sat down at Kyungsoo's desk. "So what do you suggest?"

"Feed him some chocolates and get dirty."

"When will you--I swear to G-d. Suho, why do you even put up with him?"

The collie hybrid smiled sheepishly. "I...I just do?"

Sehun put his arm around the shorter boy's shoulders and squeezed. "Okay, that was a bad idea too. But you need a more substantial present than this."

"Like?"

Suho clapped his hands. "Maybe you could go to a restaurant in town. Sehun and I are doing that."

Lay chimed in. "Everyone's doing that. I'm sure there won't be any tables open."

There was a moment of silence.

"He's right," Jongin said.

"What about a stuffed animal?"

"Stuffed animals are useless," Lay interjected.

"Chocolate?"

"He has a ton already."

"A cat?"

"Don't be stupid."

Sehun sighed and tapped his forehead. "Well, then I can't help you. Look online or something." After a moment's pause, he glared at the flowers on the bed. "But get rid of this s."

Kyungsoo ran into Tao and Kris in a candy store.

Kris was holding a massive swirly lollipop, watching his boyfriend flutter from one display to the next, cooing over sugar-spun animals and colorful candies in jars. The tall tundra wolf hybrid was unusually cheery, eyes soft as they followed Tao and lips curved into a gentle smile. In a word, his expression was tender.

Tao looked up when Kyungsoo walked through the door and the bell jingled, freezing in one place as though he had been caught doing something bad. Kris moved almost instinctively, arm going around the Doberman and hugging him close.

"Oh." Kyungsoo stopped in the doorway, prepared to back out. "Sorry."

Tao relaxed. "Sorry. Didn't know who it was."

Kris dropped his arm and scratched his head sheepishly, looking down at the lollipop in his hand.

Kyungsoo stepped aside to let someone out. "I'm looking for a last-minute gift for Kai. I...kinda forgot that today was Valentine's Day."

Kris laughed to himself, and Tao looked horrified. 

"I need some help, too," Kyungsoo continued.

Tao and Kris exchanged a look, then both glanced over at a glass case in the corner. Kyungsoo followed their gazes.

On the second row of the case were candies shaped and decorated like meals. One was sushi; another was curry; and yet another was...dog food.

"Those are nice," Tao said.

Kyungsoo waved down a passing sales associate. 

At eight o'clock, Kyungsoo plodded up the stairs to the dorm, legs sore from running around town with the stoic Kris and overly—to the point of being concerning--excited Tao. In his right hand was a plastic bag with a can of candy dog food. Strawberry flavored.

He stopped in front of Jongin’s door, knocking lightly.

“Kai,” he said. “You in there?”

Inside, Jongin froze in the midst of wrapping a large box. It was, even to his untrained artistic eye, hideous, and to show it to Kyungsoo at that point would be a slap in the face, even though it was filled to breaking point with small stuffed animals, candy, a composition book, and calligraphy pens. That was how nasty it looked.

Kyungsoo knocked again. “Kai?”

Jongin searched about for somewhere to hide the glue-splattered cardboard box.

Kyungsoo paused, then snickered. “Kim Jongin, I know you’re there. I can smell the chicken.”

Dammit.

Jongin sighed, Febrezed the chicken bones sitting in the trash, and opened the door.

Kyungsoo was prepared to scold his boyfriend, but the words halted in his mouth at the sight of him.

Jongin had on what looked like a brand new red cardigan over a plaid button-down shirt and skinny jeans. Had Kyungsoo not known any better, he would have been convinced that Jongin was a model, straight off the runway.

The stunner, however, were the three sticks of Pepero stuck into Jongin’s mouth.

Kyungsoo pointed at the sticks, and before he could ask, Jongin took them out and smacked his lips.

“You were supposed to take them,” he said.

“Oh.” Kyungsoo plucked a Pepero stick from Jongin’s hand and ate it. “Better?” He put it in his mouth, prepared to finish it off.

Suddenly, Jongin wrapped his arm around Kyungsoo’s waist and swept him into the dorm, shutting the door smoothly behind him. Tantalizingly slowly, he bit down on the other end of the Pepero stick in Kyungsoo’s mouth, keeping eye contact the whole time as he closed the distance between their faces.

When there was just an inch left between them, Jongin stopped and winked.

“You fing tease!” Kyungsoo pulled away and punched his boyfriend lightly in the stomach. Jongin laughed and finished off the Pepero.

“That’s how you like me,” he quipped.

Kyungsoo frowned and sat down on Jongin’s bed, pretending to fume. Jongin kneeled down in front of him, staring up into the cat hybrid’s face.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Soo.” He poked Kyungsoo’s cheek, smiling at the twitch in his face.

“And I had a present for you, too,” Kyungsoo said, rustling the plastic bag pointedly. He pulled out the can and held it out to Jongin.

“…dog food?”

“Read the label more carefully, you dingus.”

“Oh, it’s candy!” Jongin popped the top off of the can, then plucked out a clump of pink gummy. “Strawberry. Yum.”

Kyungsoo raised an eyebrow. “Don’t I get a present too?”

Jongin froze mid-chew. “Uh…yes, but…”

Kyungsoo folded his arms. “But?”

“It’s…really, really ugly…”

“Show me. Where is it?”

Ignoring Jongin’s protests, Kyungsoo clambered to the foot of the bed, peering out over Jongin’s desk. “Is…what is that?” He pointed at the cardboard box sitting in the middle of the desk, covered in half-dried glue and torn wrapping paper.

“That’s, uh, your present.”

Kyungsoo tugged the newspaper the box sat on towards himself. “It’s -ugly, that’s for sure.”

Jongin hid his face in his hands.

The sound of tearing paper filled the dorm room, following by something spilling and soft swearing. Then Kyungsoo squealed, and Jongin dared to peek.

“This is so cute!” Kyungsoo hugged the three stuffed animals close, two cats and a grey wolf-like dog. He buried his nose into the fur of the dog toy, and his golden eyes shut halfway, contented.

Jongin looked up more. “Do you like it?”

Kyungsoo nodded and flopped backward onto his back.

“There’s a notebook, too, and those pens you said were nice online.”

Kyungsoo dragged the box closer and sifted through the contents, the pitch of his cries rising with every discovery. “There’s a composition book, with stickers, and the pens! You got them! And J-sus Chr-st, that’s a lot of candy…” He gave Jongin a sad face. “I only got you that…”

Jongin sat on the bed next to Kyungsoo’s head and scratched behind his ear, where he liked it. “That’s fine, Soo. You’re enough.”

Kyungsoo rolled over and wrapped his arms around Jongin’s waist, pinioning him with the stuffed animals. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be.”