Jihoon stopped what he was doing, dried his hands on a tea towel and crouched down to sit on his knees in front of his hybrid. “What did you say?”

Coups lowered his head so much his face wasn’t visible, obviously expecting a reprimand. “…I was scared you wouldn’t come back.”

“Why wouldn’t I come back, hm? It’s my house, after all. And now it’s your house too.” Jihoon gently raised a hand to muss Coups’ hair softly. “…don’t worry about me not coming back. I’ll always come back.”

“…I don’t like being alone.”

“I’m sorry. I should have stayed with you.” He continued to pet Coups’ head gently. “But you know, sometimes I will have to leave, and you can’t come with me. That’s just how it is. And you’ll have to get used to that. But… for now, I’ll stay with you as much as I can. Alright?”

Coups nodded his head, almost all the way down to the ground now.

“Good. Do you want to pick your head up now?”

He shook his head.

“…what’s wrong?”

“…aren’t you angry with me?”

Jihoon smiled. “…no. Not really. It was a misunderstanding, right?”

Coups looked up suddenly with wide eyes. He nodded a tiny bit.

“Then there’s nothing to be angry over.”

“…really?”

“Really.”

“…master!” Coups rushed for his owner suddenly, bowling him over: the hybrid’s long, strong arms folded around Jihoon’s torso and he nuzzled his face into his stomach happily. “Thank you!”

Jihoon chuckled a little, lying on the kitchen floor. He petted his hybrid’s shoulder twice, a little awkward. “Come on, get up.”

Coups retreated quickly, sitting up. The jeans had long been discarded and his tail wagged about freely.

“You want to tell me your name now?”

The tail stopped for a moment, then started again. “…Seungcheol.”

“Seungcheol, hm? It suits you. What a handsome name.”

The tail just kept wagging happily.

“Are you going to grow anymore?”

The hybrid shook his head.

“Okay… do you ever stand and walk on two feet?”

He deliberated this for a while, whining, looking at himself and mumbling before looking up. “…I used to. I don’t know, now.”

“Do you want to try?”

“It’s really high up there.”

Jihoon broke into a broad smile for a second. The hybrid’s charms were difficult to resist. “I guess it is. If you want to try, I’ll help you.”

“Master is so kind.”

“Hey.” Jihoon petted his head again when he nuzzled up. “How about you try calling me Jihoon?”

The look on his face was quizzical. As if a huge question mark was stamped on his face.

“Well, calling me master all the time is a bit… different. After all, you are part human, right? So how about you just call me Jihoon?”

“Ji…hoon?”

The man nodded.

“Jihoon!” The tail began to wag again, thumping against the floor.

“God, you’re adorable.” The words were almost contemptuous: the hybrid was so endearing that it made Jihoon a little jealous. “Look at you. You’re so cute.”

“I-is that bad?” Seungcheol’s ears twitched to and fro as he looked down, tail slowing.

“No, it’s not bad. But I totally understand why Jun came over to us today.”

“That was the man with the dark hair, right?”

“That’s right.”

“I like him. He’s nice. He smells trustworthy.”

“I’m sure he is. I like him too.”

“Who is the sheep?”

Jihoon chuckled, standing to finish the vegetables again. “Minghao is part ram.”

“…he’s cute.”

“He is. Big wide eyes.”

Seungcheol’s hands grabbed Jihoon’s trousers. “…not cuter than me.”

“Is that what you’re worried about?”

Seungcheol nodded.

“…you’ve seen some very unhappy things, haven’t you?”

He didn’t answer that in any way. Not even with a twitch of his ears.

“Listen, Seungch