A week later Jinyoung showed up at the animal shelter again to pick up his dog. While waiting for this day, Jinyoung felt strangely nervous. He never wanted to have a dog, but knowing that he will take care of a fluffy 2-year-old dog with sweet and sad eyes made him somewhat excited. He couldn't wait for that day to come. Maybe he felt like this, because a dog will make Sooyoung happy? Throughout the week Jinyoung tried not to blurt out anything about the gift which he's preparing for Sooyoung. He liked to surprise her, and this one surely will surpass all the gifts he had ever given to her. He had good feelings about this. Dubu will improve their relationship and everything will be alright again.

    "Hello, I'm supposed to pick up Dubu today" Jinyoung said, approaching the small reception desk. The young woman sitting behind it stood up instantly from her seat, smiling at him widely.

    "Oh! A vet is preparing him now in veterinary office just around the corner." Jinyoung bowed politely and walked off towards his destination. After knocking at the office's door and walking into the room, his eyes fell on the animals that lay in small cages with bandaged limbs and drips hanging from above their heads. There were a variety of cat and dog breeds, lying with their eyes closed. A few rabbits and ferrets were there too. Jinyoung felt strange seeing them in such a condition and suddenly wanted to hug them all and make their suffering stop. His feelings confirmed him in the conviction that he may not be so insensitive to the suffering of animals as he thought he was.

    "Can I help you?" A man in a white coat - probably his age - approached him and eyed him from head to toe with a stern look on his face. Is Jinyoung allowed to be here in the first place?

    "I came to pick up my dog, Dubu." Jinyoung said uncertainly, it still felt weird saying 'my dog' to him. 

    "Ah! I see." The facial expression of the vet suddenly brightened up and the man smiled at him pleasantly, making Jinyoung felt much better in this situation. "He's waiting for you. He's a strong, healthy dog and he has been vaccinated." The vet gave him a small health certificate with dog's metric. Jinyoung couldn't help but gulped because it's happening. He will have a dog. Jinyoung was taking the certificate from the vets hands, while the doors of another office opened, revealing Mark with a black dog on the leash.

    "Jaebum, I'm done with the last injection" Jinyoung stood straight, alarmed, when he saw Mark coming out of the room and his heart speeded up instantly. "Jinyoung-sshi?" Jinyoung felt a flutter of electricity running through his body hearing his name coming from Mark's mouth. He remembered his name. The man whose smile melted his heart a week ago, now was wearing a white coat along with the white latex gloves on his hands and with a stethoscope draped over his neck. Jinyoung was shocked that he's a vet, because he had thought Mark was another volunteer in the shelter judging by what he saw he had been doing the last time they meet. He was wearing a casual clothes back then and was washing and grooming the dogs. What vet does that? He had to truly love animals, Jinyoung thought. Before he regained his voice and could greet Mark properly, the man spoke again. "Dubu is ready to go with you. Although I'm very attached to him, I'm hoping to never see him again here." Mark smiled charmingly showing his canine teeth while handing the leash to Jinyiung, who couldn't take his eyes off the man. The voice of the other vet brought him back to his senses. 

    "Hyung, don't cry!" The man teased, for what he got a slight hit on the shoulder from red faced Mark. The vet pouted and went back to his paperwork, sitting on the chair by the table beside them. Mark crouched down to pet the dog's head affectionately and Jinyoung felt warm seeing their interaction. Mark was a pretty cute guy, he suddenly thought. By the whole week waiting for picking up Dubu, he hasn't thought about Mark even once. He suppressed this weird feeling, because he knew that he won't meet him again anyway. Now, standing before him, trying so hard to tear his eyes from his body, his face, his nose, his eyes, his lips...  Seeing him again, he felt a weird combination of giddiness, nervousness and it exhausted him so much emotionally. He got more interested in Mark. Why? He didn't know. Jinyoung decided to crouch beside him to pet Dubu too. He reached out his hand toward him slowly and hesitantly, what made the dog anxious immediately. The dog watched him with ears lowered and head slightly cocked. Jinyoung felt embarrassed instantly, his own dog is scared of him. Or more like he was scared of his own dog.

    "Don't worry, he's just shy." Mark suddenly said, and Jinyoung raised his head, realizing that their faces were close to each other and between their bodies was only a scared dog. Jinyoung stood up instantly while coughing nervously. "You have to play with him a lot and not let him be alone too much for now." Mark instructed, standing up on his feet, having a charming smile on his face. Jinyoung's heart skipped a beat every time Mark smiled at him. "Are you living alone?" Oh, Sooyoung.

    "No, my girlfriend lives with me" he suddenly felt bad for feeling this weird feeling towards the man, remembering his loving girlfriend. Mark smile fell and his eyes were suddenly turned to the floor.

    "Girlfriend?" He asked quietly, as the other vet sends him a weird look. Jinyoung noticed that and didn't understand what does that mean. Mark smiled, crouching in front of the black dog again,caressing his head and ears slowly. "That's good then."
 
    "Okay." The other vet stood up from the chair suddenly, breaking the awkward atmosphere and handed him the rest of the documents. "Please come with Dubu to us in 3 months from now on to get another vaccination." He said, while Mark took his place at the desk, busying himself with some files and papers, organizing them and piling on the shelf. Mark's aura suddenly became cold and unapproachable. Jinyoung nodded and bowed slightly to them, sending glances at Mark who seemed to ignore him. Jinyoung wanted to see his smile one last time so bad. He looked at the dog whose eyes were hopeful and ears pricked, waiting for the sign from his new owner. Jinyoung smiled at him awkwardly and said "let's go, Dubu".

    Jinyoung didn't know what to do. The dog was trembling all the way to the apartment on the back seat and even though the ride last only for about 5 minutes, he was terrified. The dog didn't like him yet and he couldn't bring himself to say anything to the dog to make him feel better and calm him down a bit. He won't understand anyway. All the way he was thinking about Mark and why did he behaved like he was angry at him or something. Jinyoung wanted to get closer to him for some reason. He wasn't in love with him or anything, but he admired him for his dedication and his selfless care for animals, not denying that the man had a charming smile at the same time. That's all.
 
    Entering the apartment as quietly as he could with a frightened dog walking obediently by his leg, he was trying to surprise his girlfriend with his gift. He heard her talking with someone on the phone with a whispering voice, when he loosened his grip on the dog's leash. She was bewildered, seeing him entering the living room and immediately shoved her phone into her hoodie pocket. 

    "You scared me, oppa!" Sooyoung shouted and Jinyoung chuckled, approaching her with Dubu in his arms and the bright expression on his face lighed up the whole room "A dog? How did you get it?" She asked recultantly and it wasn't the exact reaction what Jinyoung expected. Sooyoung approached him and patted the dog's head "Why-"

    "It's for you." Jinyoung cut her sentence in the middle. "Isn't he cute? He was sitting alone in the cage and I decided to take him." The man said proudly, wanting to get a loving hug from his girlfriend and her greatful smile.

    "What? What do you mean it's for me?" the girl looked at Jinyoung with widened eyes and a hand on her cheek. She seemed to be worried or even frightened - definitely not an reaction Jinyoung wanted.

    "You wanted a dog, didn't you?" Jinyoung asked uncertainly, because at this point he knew he made a mistake of taking Dubu with him. She wasn't happy, she didn't smile even once. 

    "I did, but I wanted a puppy! A small dog!" Sooyoung answered in disbelief, while Jinyoung put the scared dog on the floor gently, patting his fluffy head. "Besides... I've thought about it for some time and…" the girl looked at the floor nervously "I want to break up." Silence.

    "You what?"

    "I'm sorry, but our relationship is lacking something... I'm not happy, oppa" Sooyoung said, and Jinyoung couldn't believe it. Did he heard her right?  

    "What are you talking about? It was lacking because of your work! But it's not a problem if we love each other!" Jinyoung's voice got slightly louder, he was nervous and didn't know what to do with himself. Truthfully, Jinyoung wasn't happy in this relationship either, but he believed that there's hope for them and that they can save their relationship. 

    "I liked you in the beginning, oppa was so nice to me but.. Now..." She started to pace around the coffee table trying to find good words to explain herself. Dubu was sitting on the end of the room, beside doors, wanting to run away from the apartment anytime. "I was worried that you will feel alone when I leave but... I guess it's not an issue anymore, since you have a dog..."

    "Sooyoung are you kidding me? How can you talk like this? I don't want to break up with you!" Jinyoung was furious. It was his first serious relationship and he didn't feel like he did anything wrong to make her want to break up with him. 

    "I'm sorry, oppa... I have someone I like. I have a new boyfriend." The girl said, her eyes piercing Jinyoung's fiercely. Jinyoung was disappointed.

    "So you were cheating on me all this time?"  

    "No, I wasn't! Just… I was meeting with a friend and I developed feelings for him..." Sooyoung said, still looking at him, but her gaze softened "I'm sorry."

    "So you did cheat on me" Jinyoung laughed bitterly, while curling and uncurling his fists  "Why didn't you break with me earlier?! Was it because you weren't sure about this guy?! You still wanted to have a backup plan?!" His voice was wavering, but he had no intention of crying. He felt betrayed and it made him crazy.   

    "I'm sorry, oppa." Sooyoung said as her eyes started to water and Jinyoung hated the sight. It angered him to no end, he didn't believe that her apologies are honest. And her tears aren't too.

    "You can go now. I don't what to see your face anymore." He growled, refusing to look at her troubled expression. He didn't care about her tears. He didn't care about her at all anymore.

    "Oppa-"

    "Don't call me oppa anymore. We're done." Jinyoung exhaled harshly, while turning around and going to the kitchen, seeing Dubu sitting beside the doors with eyes opened wide and ears flat. Right, the dog. Even though he looked scared, Jinyoung was too angry to care about him now.   

    "I'm sorry. I'll come tomorrow for my stuff." Sooyoung said, before walking out of the apartment.

    When he heard the sound of closing doors, he grabbed the first thing he got into his hands, which was a rubber dog toy in the shape of a bone and threw it firmly on the wall, frightening the dog again by this action. The sight of it angered him more because why does he even brought the dog here?!

    After a second he composed himself and approached the dog slowly, trying to be as gentle as he could in this situation, and patted his head, feeling the soft fur under his fingerprints. The dog was still scared, but his eyes were glowing with hope now, what made Jinyoung feel the warm and fuzzy feeling in his stomach. He sighed. He kind of expected this day would come because Sooyoung wasn't the one who felt like their relationship wasn't good. She was pretty and funny and he really thought about forming a family with her in the future, but the fact that they hadn't talked too much for the past month or so, made him realize that their ship was sinking. He understood this only now. He also understood just now, that wanting to save his relationship with Soooyoung by giving her a dog was a stupid idea. He's now left with a dog he has to take care of alone. The dog was scared of him and didn't like him a bit. And vice versa. He thought Dubu was cute and fluffy at first, but now when he looks at him he thinks of Sooyoung. He should give it back to the shelter. The dog wasn't attached to him yet, so it was okay to give him back, right?

    It was late afternoon, when he was standing in front of the gates of the animal shelter along with Dubu. The sun was setting and the warm summer wind ruffled his hair. He wasn't sure of what he wanted, deep inside, he knew he shouldn't give him back. He had Mark's voice in his head, telling him how many bad things Dubu experienced in his life. Jinyoung tried to justify himself thinking about Sooyoung, thinking that he alone won't be able to take care of him. Either way, he felt a little bad for bringing him back the day he took him, but the earlier the better. He looked at the dog who sat next to his leg, waiting for his next move, when he saw a group of people playing with a few dogs on the lawn. His eyes recognized Mark immediately in the crowd, making him forget about the breakup and why did he even come here. Hearing the happy woofing sounds of a dogs playing and laughs of the people, he felt a pang in his heart. Mark probably will hate him knowing that Jinyoung was one of the people who treat Dubu badly and giving him back to the shelter. Mark was reluctant to give him the dog in the first place and when he finally believed that Jinyoung will be a good owner, Jinyoung will turn out to be a scammer. The vet seemed very happy for Dubu to have a loving family. Jinyoung felt the annoying feeling of guilt accumulating in his stomach, making him dizzy suddenly. Why did he care what Mark will think of him anyway? He wasn't sure.

    "Hello, again" Jinyoung's got scared and his breath hitched, when he heard a familiar voice. He turned around, seeing the vet from earlier, who's name he didn't remember. "Is there something wrong with Dubu?" the man asked, looking at him suspiciously. Jinyoung felt his palms sweating, fidgeting with the leash.

    "Um… it's just-"

    "Don't say you want to give him back" The vet laughed nervously, not believing in what he said. But it was the truth. Jinyoung didn't want to say that he wants to give him back to the shelter because his girlfriend broke up with him. 

    "Actually-"

    "Can we talk?" The vet asked and Jinyoung nodded, agreeing to the proposition. They sat on the nearest bench, while Dubu sat on the ground beside the bench.

    "Did something happen that you can't take care of Dubu or something?" Jinyoung didn't know what to say because when he came here and saw Mark with the other people laughing and playing with the dogs made him feel stupid. What a shallow thought about giving back the dog, just because a girl broke up with him. He seemed to not be bothered about this anymore in the moment he got here because of the warm feeling which spread across his chest when he saw Mark. 

    "You know... You can be scared at bit at first. Dogs cause problems. The dog doesn't know that peeing in the house, barking at night or biting the furniture is bad. They pull on the leash, don't like other dogs, howl in the absence of the owners, get to our beds, chasing cats, refusing to climb stairs... " The Veterinarian listed disadvantages of having a dog and Jinyoung wondered if he was just convincing Jinyoung to leave Dubu in the shelter? The man continued: "The good news is that the vast majority of these problems can be worked and repaired, you know? And most people don't understand it and leaving the dogs. The whole process requires of us the consequences, patience and understanding." Jinyoung listened and it made sense to him. He felt really stupid for coming here already. For the whole week when he waited for Dubu, he was excited to bring a dog to Sooyoung and every time he passed a pet shop, he thought about what toys, bowls or other things he should buy for him. He hid all the wires and contacts, to prevent the dog get hurt when he will live with them. He realized that maybe the dog wasn't exactly for Sooyoung, but maybe he was the one who, deep inside, really wanted a dog? He looked at Dubu who was now lying peacefully on the grass beside the bench they were sitting on. After listening to what the vet had to say, he decided he'll go home before Mark could see him and realize what a Jinyoung is.

    "Thanks. I guess I needed this. Dubu wasn't rebellious yet, but I guess... I panicked. This whole situation is new to me, so..."

    "I understand. A lot of people feel like this after taking a dog under their roof" The man chucked "Before making a decision about getting a dog, we should assume that it will be a monster, it will be easier then." The man stood up from the bench, smiling at Dubu and patting his head playfully, before turning to Jinyoung again. "You won't regret it. Dogs are always there to give us love and trust us no matter what and that's what is the cutest about them. I'm more a cat person, but trust me, dogs are the most affectionate creatures in the world." Jinyoung didn't have a chance to say anything, because the vet spoke again, after looking at his watch on his left wrist "I must go now. You'll do what you think is the best, but it would be nice if you could give him a chance." Jinyoung stayed quiet for a second, letting the vet's words sink into his heart. He looked at Dubu with a warm smile, making the best decision he could, hopefully.

    "Thanks. I'm coming back home. With my dog." Jinyoung chuckled for the first time today, looking at his dog who had no idea what was happening. Maybe it was for the better, because he wouldn't forgive him if he knew that he wanted to leave him here again.

    "I'm glad" the vet laughed, disappearing behind the gate's of the animal shelter and joining the other people who were now training the dogs. Jinyoung heard Mark's laugh and he smiled unknowingly. He'll come here someday to meet him again. With his dog beside him.

Sorry it took me so long to write this chapter, but I was very busy the entire week :(
I wanted to write a longer chapters but I don't have time lately to do so... sorry, and I'm sorry for my English. I feel like it's even worse than before, lol

I hope you'll like it! Give me some feedback, pleaseeee~