Thank you to Alexa for betaing every last moment. I'm surprised this story was well received amongst krisho fans. Thank you for all feedback you guys have given.

There's a heavy stench in the air when Minseok enters the basement. He momentarily asks himself if he should hold his breath, but the usual time to pacify a domestic abuse victim indicates that it'd be a long night. He forgoes the idea, and stares ahead at the dimly lit room. His team came in moments ago to clear the basement, making sure there was no other threat besides the disgusting man upstairs. Luckily, they only found one more inhabitant, a terrified rabbit hybrid in the corner.

As Minseok approaches it, he can see the trembles in the hybrid’s skin and the random splotches of bruises in the arms. Most of all, he can see how malnourished and sick the hybrid has become. It sickens him that some owners have the guts to do this to an innocent thing.

The rabbit hybrid isn't tall like the dog hybrid that Minseok owns. It's still tiny, probably just barely an adult rabbit, and maybe as tall as his chest, but it looks so precious to him.

He swallows a heavy sigh and begins to do what he does best, coaxing frightened hybrids out of the corner. It's a challenging task, but Minseok has done this many times already.

“Hello,” Minseok greets softly.

It's the first thing he learned — always approach with caution and a calming sound.

The rabbit refuses to look back at him and shivers at the cold.

“My name is Minseok, and I'm a Hybrid Rescuer. I work with my team to save hybrids that are suffering, whether it's from violence or emotional abuse. We just want to give hybrids a better future,” Minseok begins to explain. “You’re safe now. He will never hurt you again. I know that this will sound like a fantasy, but I swear I wouldn't lie about this.”

The hybrid’s ears seem to perk a little at the words, but he remains frozen in the corner.

“I know that this room has been your home for months, but there's a nicer home waiting for you outside. So, what do you say if we get out of here?”

The rabbit starts whimpering at that thought. Minseok is worried that the rabbit may have associated this room as a safe place.

“It's okay,” he says softly. “We don't have to leave now. We can stay a bit longer.”

There's agitation in the bunny’s movement and Minseok can't help but feel guilty for causing it.

The rabbit’s ears starts to bend and the furry tail is puffed out. Minseok is prepared to step away in case the rabbit attacks him. Hybrids are known to resort back to primal behaviours if faced under stress.

He's about to take a step back and give the rabbit some space, but then he notices that the rabbit’s nose starts to twitch. He wonders what the rabbit is noticing, since he doesn't smell anything else besides the horrible stench. It's not long before he feels someone's presence behind him and Minseok looks behind slowly, hand inching towards the gun on his belt.

The sight of a grinning Jongdae isn't what he expects. He almost flails in his stance and glares strongly at the younger.

“Hey~” Jongdae greets them, way too loudly for everyone's taste.

Despite that, Minseok notices that the rabbit doesn't flinch at Jongdae’s voice. He’s a little sad that the rabbit might like Jongdae more than him already.

“How is he holding up? Can he come with us yet?” Jongdae asks before leaning forward to pet the rabbit.

Minseok doesn't get a chance to reply, too busy trying to keep Jongdae’s hand away from the rabbit, since it might bite. Fortunately, the rabbit seems to be okay with it as he sniffs Jongdae's hand with precaution. It gives Jongdae a chance to softly rub the head and coo at the cute rabbit, despite his dirty fur.

“Aw, you're such a cutie,” Jongdae compliments.

It's then that the rabbit notices that his defense is down, so he hops backward, frowning at its momentary weakness.

“Aw, it's okay. I won't hurt you. I'm a very nice owner. You can ask my hybrid. You're exactly like him, you know. He's a rabbit hybrid too.”

“Oh,” Minseok softly comments. “That's right. Yixing is a rabbit hybrid too. No wonder this little guy doesn't mind you. He must have smelled Yixing’s scent on you.”

The rabbit glares at Minseok, as if offended by the words Little guy. Jongdae takes notice of it and tuts at him.

“Hey, rabbits are not little. They're as ferocious and tall as any other,” Jongdae informs him with strong feeling. He turns back to the hybrid and says, “Ignore this idiot. He's just jealous.”

Minseok huffs at the words, but can't seem to find the right words to deny it.

“You want to meet my rabbit? You'll get along with him! He's very friendly and he likes to teach others new things,” Jongdae starts to ramble, ignoring the rabbit’s wide eyed expression. “Oh! And he made carrot stew yesterday, it was so good. Baekhyun and I would have finished it, but he smacked our hands away.”

The younger finishes the story with a big pout.

“Carrot?” The rabbit whispers to himself.

The sound is barely recognizable, but Jongdae’s hearing has always been perfect.

“You want some? We can get you some!” Jongdae tells him excitedly.

The rabbit looks unsure before Jongdae notices a little nod.

“Let's go then!”

Minseok doesn't get a chance to prevent Jongdae before the younger hoists the rabbit into his arms, bridal style. There's a frightened look in the rabbit's face as he holds onto Jongdae's shirt.

“Jongdae! You're scaring him — look!”

Jongdae stares back at the rabbit’s wide eyes, and feels guilty enough to lower him down. Except, the rabbit refuses to let go of him, whimpering when Jongdae tries to pull away.

“Well, too late now. He's attached to you.”

Even though Minseok looks unhappy, Jongdae knows he's secretly glad that the rabbit is finally out of his corner.

Another whisper of Carrot interrupts their bickering, and Jongdae obediently takes the rabbit out of the house.

***

3 months later

The rumors have spread faster than a fire in dry wilderness. There have been whispers of who would take over WuBrid, and most have placed their bets on Yifan Wu, the grandson of the founder. Luckily for them, they gambled on the right person as the CEO announced his replacement soon after.

Though the change should take effect next year, some speculate that Yifan has to fulfill a requirement before it happens. Only a few know what it is, and amongst them is Kyungsoo.

Normally hybrids aren't hired into a multinational company. In fact, society deems them acceptable as waitresses or even sales clerks, but Kyungsoo is an exception. He's the cat hybrid of the founder, so therefore he was allowed to join the company.

However, it was through his hard work, not through begging, that he was able to climb up the company's ladder. From a mere copy boy, he became an executive under ten years. He takes each day as a challenge and he prides himself for achieving his dreams.

But even as executive, he's still the hybrid of his master. So when his master orders him to find a hybrid for his grandson, he takes the challenge seriously, unlike the grandson.

“You're a pain in my , Wu,” Kyungsoo snarls at him for the fifth time today.

They've been arguing about Yifan’s decision on not wanting to adopt a hybrid. Yifan doesn't want to take care of another being, let alone a dependent hybrid.

“Why, thank you. I'd love to live in your ,” he replies.

“You don't even have to take care of the hybrid. Just give him toys, tell him he looks pretty every few days, and then get him into some hybrid support group. It's as simple as that!”

“That sounds eerily similar to what you're doing to Jongin,” Yifan frowns at that.

“And look at how happy he is.”

“Just because Jongin is easily pleased, doesn't mean my hybrid will be.”

“That's why you should pick a hybrid that's submissive — like a rabbit hybrid!”

Yifan scrunches his nose at that. He doesn't want a rabbit hybrid, he'd rather own a dragon hybrid. Now that would be awesome.

“There’s no such thing as a dragon hybrid, and even if there was, it'd be outlawed because fire-breathing pets aren't allowed,” Kyungsoo reminds him, as if he can read his mind.

Yifan scoffs at him. “It only takes one shareholder to change everyone's mind.”

Kyungsoo sighs heavily, as if Yifan is actually a stubborn child and Kyungsoo is the only rational mind in this company.

Oh wait, that sounds about right — Kyungsoo reminds himself grudgingly.

“Anyway, this is not something you can avoid. As the successor, you're obligated to own a hybrid so people know that you also care about their well-beings and not just profit.”

“So you want me to lie to them while at same time neglect my hybrid?”

“Whatever it takes to get you to adopt one,” Kyungsoo tells him in frustration.

There's a frown in Yifan’s lips as he thinks about his situation. Luckily, Kyungsoo leaves him alone so he's able to get some peace of mind before his next meeting.

***

After a few more threats and a bruised arm, Yifan relents to Kyungsoo’s idea of searching for the right hybrid. He grudgingly went to every store with a frown and a dark glare, but Kyungsoo’s unhappy expression rivaled his. The store owners were always nervous around both of them.

There were a few moments where Yifan would smile at a hybrid, mostly due to its cute nature. But still, most of them were not Yifan’s type, or his style, as he adamantly said so.

After the fifth try, Kyungsoo is ready to push him against the tall, wide window, with hopes that it would crack and Yifan would fall to his death. Of course, all of his murder plans are only reenacted in his head, but he'd be happy if one of those plans came true.

Luckily, for Yifan, Jongin is also known as Kyungsoo's kryptonite and he's always ready to soothe down Kyungsoo's evil tendencies.

“Baby~” Jongin greets Kyungsoo when they finally arrive home.

Jongin is a dog hybrid, and belongs to the founder also. Him and Kyungsoo have lived together for years, which resulted in them falling in love and the random mating during heats. However, Kyungsoo tends to label his affection as a multiple personality disorder. He claims that his alternate personality, D.O., is the one interacting with Jongin. Kyungsoo will never show affection for anyone.

Of course, Jongin plays along and so does Yifan for the sake of his own life.

Jongin usually comes rushing towards Kyungsoo with a huge smile and an affectionate hug. Kyungsoo likes to say this is when D.O. came out of his shell as he returns the hug with the same amount of feeling.

“I missed you, did you miss me?”

“Of course,” Kyungsoo D.O. tells him.

“I had so much fun in support group today. We did finger painting and I used too much paint that my hand was all blue. But it's okay! Most of it came out, except the ones around near my nails.”

“Oh, well we can get rid of that with alcohol,” D.O. reassures him.

Jongin flashes him a big smile before he looks over towards Yifan.

“How was your day? Did you have fun?”

Yifan grunts and shrugs before heading towards the couch.

“Oh, bad day?” Jongin asks in a sad tone.

“We're just tired, baby,” D.O. reassures him.

“Oh, okay. So, what happened?”

“We're trying to find him a hybrid before he takes over the CEO’s position. Except, we're not having much luck.”

“Oh,” Jongin replies in a sad tone. “Maybe I can help find one for you! There's a hybrid in my support group that wants an owner too!”

“Oh, don't worry about these things,” Kyungsoo replies. “I'll find someone.”

Jongin frowns at his mate’s immediate rejection, while Yifan tuts in disagreement with Kyungsoo’s words.

“Let him try once. It's not like you're doing any better,” Yifan scolded.

“Fine,” Kyungsoo scowls in reply.

Jongin seems to be the only one happy with the outcome.

***

After Joonmyeon, the victimized rabbit, was rescued, he was put in a rehabilitation center along with other hybrids who were also abused. Luckily, he made friends with Yixing, Jongdae’s hybrid, who often comes by since he hates being alone at home. They formed a strong bond once they found out they were somewhat related. It turns out they were created from the same rabbit gene.

Despite that, Joonmyeon remains cautious whenever he interacts with humans, even with the doctors that help him. He doesn't let them touch him unless necessary, and he doesn't let anyone pet him — except Jongdae, the first human he got along with, and Baekhyun, Yixing’s second owner.

He doesn't really understand how it works, for Yixing to have two owners. Apparently, Jongdae and Baekhyun started off as roommates who adopted Yixing on a whim and now they're all in some type of relationship. The only issue is that Jongdae and Baekhyun refuse to acknowledge each other as boyfriends, so Joonmyeon is confused if they are boyfriends, but he gives up on figuring it out, knowing that Yixing is happy with them.

Which brings him to his current dilemma: since the rehabilitation center is always full of abused hybrids, they can't keep old hybrids forever. So, there's a rule that after 3 months, hybrids can be put up for adoption again, or they can go into hybrid shelters. Joonmyeon seems ready to accept his fate, moving into a hybrid shelter since he refuses to have a new owner, but Yixing tells him that shelters are worse than bad owners.

It’s turns out that Yixing has been through many shelters before Jongdae saved him from their evil clutches.

So Joonmyeon has been very nervous about his fate.

“If only you can stay with me,” Yixing pouts into Joonmyeon’s shoulder. “We'd have so much fun and you can even help me make carrot stew every day.”

Joonmyeon nods sadly before curling into Yixing’s arms.

“You'll visit me in the shelter too, right?” he whispers.

“Every day! I'll even force myself in if the witch refuses my entrance.”

They like to call the evil humans who run the shelters witches and wizards.

“Yixing!” Their somber atmosphere is interrupted by Jongin, who wags his tail excitedly at every familiar person.

Yixing waves back with the same amount of enthusiasm, while Joonmyeon stares back cautiously.

“Hi, Jongin! What are you doing here? Are you staying for the event?”

There's currently a treasure hunt event where hybrids search for hidden eggs. Usually it’s popular amongst the dog hybrids, but there are some rabbit hybrids who come because eggs are super cool.

“Yes! But I'm also here to show my mate this place!” Jongin waves at his mate, who's standing all the way in the back.

“Oh, Kyungsoo is here?” Yixing looks excited about the information. He hasn't seen Kyungsoo since forever.

“Yeah! And I also brought Yifan, you remember him right?!”

“Oh, the guy who smells like honey? I like him,” Yixing says happily.

Joonmyeon tugs on Yixing’s sleeve, causing the younger to remember his friend.

“Oh, this is Joonmyeon! He's my brother!”

Jongin gasps dramatically, as if having siblings is uncommon in the hybrid world.

“No! I'm not really his brother,” Joonmyeon stutters.

“Really? But you two look so much alike!”

Yixing seems to be the only one who likes the compliment. Meanwhile, Joonmyeon doesn't feel that way. He thinks he’s not worthy enough to be Yixing’s real brother.

“Jongdae found him three months ago and saved him from his owner. His owner was a wizard,” Yixing whispers the last word as if it's taboo to say it outloud.

Jongin gasps dramatically while Joonmyeon doesn't understand the gravity of the story.

“Wow. I'm so glad you're safe now. I hate those wizards. I hope the nice judge will sentence him to his death,” Jongin indignantly says.

Joonmyeon gapes at the words, as if he’s still unsure if his previous owner deserves to die.

“But isn’t that mean?” he meekly asks.

“No~ Don’t feel guilty for him,” Yixing reassures him. “Do you want him to get out and adopt you again?”

Joonmyeon immediately shakes his head.

“Then don’t feel guilty. He’s a wizard and they shouldn’t be allowed to live,” Yixing reminds adamantly.

Jongin nods along to Yixing’s words, causing Joonmyeon to agree as he curls closer to Yixing’s heat.

Luckily, Kyungsoo interrupts their moment when he stands besides his mate.

“Hi, Yixing,” he greets the young rabbit.

“Hi!” Yixing practically shouts, before he untangles himself from Joonmyeon’s embrace, causing the small rabbit to fall to the floor. He gives Kyungsoo a warm embrace before letting go. “It’s been so long!”

Kyungsoo chuckles at his reaction and nods, his tail swinging excitedly at the affection. Jongin seems to be a little jealous as he pulls Kyungsoo back towards his side.

“You’re always too busy with work,” Yixing pouts as he scolds the elder.

None of them notice Joonmyeon, sitting on the floor while looking extremely small.

“I’m sorry,” Kyungsoo says sincerely. “I’ll come to your party to make it up to you.”

Yixing grins excitedly, always happy to have more guests at his home.

“Are you okay there?” A sudden voice interrupts them and they look backward to see Yifan trying to approach Joonmyeon.

The small rabbit jumps into his feet, suddenly aware of a wizard’s presence and runs towards Yixing, his safety net.

“I leave you alone for two minutes, and you scare another hybrid,” Kyungsoo scolds the tall giant before trying to approach the scared rabbit.

Joonmyeon doesn’t like new hybrids, especially ones that can get Yixing away from him, so he whimpers away and hugs Yixing to his front tightly, causing Yixing to start giggling at the ticklish sensation.

“Ah, I’m sorry,” Kyungsoo tells Joonmyeon in regret. He bows quickly before giving the rabbits some space.

Yifan scoffs back at Kyungsoo, seeing how the younger made the same mistake.

“I’m sorry. He’s still not used to new people yet,” Yixing explains. “But he warmed up to Jongin rather well.”

“That’s because I found out that he really likes carrots,” Jongin tells them proudly.

Joonmyeon seems to perk up at the word Carrot and looks towards Jongin to see if he has some. Kyungsoo finds it adorable, if he were to like adorable things, which he doesn’t!

“I don’t have some, sorry,” Jongin tells Joonmyeon regrettably.

“That’s okay. They have some in the food table,” Yixing tells them. “Want to get some?” He asks the rabbit behind him.

Joonmyeon nods and allows Yixing to drag them to the food table. Jongin follows them in case there is more chicken to eat.

“So, are there any hybrids that attract you?” Kyungsoo asks once they left.

Yifan simply shrugs, because his attention is distracted by something else. Kyungsoo rolls his eyes at his friend’s obvious stare towards a cute guy in brown khakis.

“Stop staring at him,” Kyungsoo scolds at him.

“What?” Yifan stutters. “I wasn’t!”

“Just get his number and it out of your system already. We’ll meet tomorrow to search again,” Kyungsoo tells him in a defeated tone.

“Who?” Yifan looks at him in a confused gaze.

“The guy with the shaved sides? You were eyeing him a few minutes ago.”

“Right,” Yifan says to himself.

Kyungsoo rolls his eyes before leaving his stupid friend by himself. He reminds himself that patience is a virtue, and that killing his master’s grandson is only allowed in his mind, not in public.

***

Joonmyeon finds himself stuck in a dilemma days after that meeting. He’s been told that the center has found him a good shelter, but he doubts that the shelter is as great as they’ve said. In fact, he’s worried that the moment they leave him in the shelter, the owner, who's probably a wizard, will most likely chop him into pieces so he can create a rabbit stew, or even worse, rabbit pie. He will never know his fate once his head is chopped off and his fur is sold off to the nearest black market.

Then again, Jongdae did say he’s been watching too many violent films, and suggested him to relax more.

Except, he can’t! Not when there’s a possibility that he won’t be alive by the end of next week!

Not to mention that there have been gifts, the kinds that he’d normally like, but he’s too scared to touch them. He doesn’t know who left them, since most come without a name. The only clue he has is the jokes that comes with them. Like Why is a carrot orange and pointy? Because if it was green and round, it’d want to pea!

He tries not to laugh at them, but some are too good to not laugh at. His personal favorite is What did the rabbit say to the carrot? It’s been nice gnawing you.

Unfortunately, Yixing doesn’t share the same kind of sense of humor as he does. He thinks the jokes are weird, so Joonmyeon doesn’t share the jokes with him anymore. Now, they simply discuss on who could it be.

They share the secret with Jongin, who immediately blabs to Kyungsoo. It seems that the dog hybrid likes to share everything with Kyungsoo, even the stupid stories,so Kyungsoo is already bored of this secret by the fifth time they speculate on who it could be.

“Oh, what if it’s that tall hybrid who keeps staring at him during lunch? He’s really cute too.”

Kyungsoo likes to scoff whenever Jongin claims that someone else is cute.

“Doubt it. That hybrid can pick anyone who's as tall as him.”

“But some dogs like cute, tiny hybrids,” Jongin reminds him.

Kyungsoo glares at him, wanting to smack that silly smile. Except the D.O. part of him wants to coddle him and call him a good boy.

“You’re just lucky I’m too tired to punish you,” Kyungsoo ends up telling him.

Jongin grins in victory as he tangles his arm into Kyungsoo’s waist.

“What are you talking about?” Yifan asks curiously. Neither noticed his presence in the room.

“Oh! Yifan, I didn’t know you were here.”

“He was my grandfather before he became your master,” Yifan likes to reminds them of his status.

“And yet, he still loves us more,” Kyungsoo retorts.

Yifan gladly gives him the finger, and Kyungsoo returns the same sentiment.

“There’s this hybrid in the center who keeps getting gifts from someone. We’re trying to figure out on who it is!”

“Oh?” Yifan comments, interested on the story.

“I still think it’s that tall hybrid,” Jongin sighs wistfully. Only Yifan notices the frown on Kyungsoo’s lips.

“What does your hybrid friend thinks?” Yifan asks.

“He hopes that it’s not an evil wizard or witch,” Jongin recalls the story. “Oh, and that he really likes the jokes that the gifter sent. I don’t know why though, the jokes are so lame.”

“Hey! If you can’t appreciate good jokes, don’t mock others who do,” Yifan defends this mysterious gifter.

Jongin pouts at the scolding, but nods at his words.

“Anyway, whoever it is, he should make a move already, before Joonmyeon leaves the center.”

“Oh, he’s leaving?” this time Kyungsoo asks.

“Yeah, they have to send him to a hybrid shelter because it’s been three months since he's lived in the center. He’s already so nervous about it. He thinks the shelter owner will be a wizard,” Jongin explains, while whispering the last word.

“Wizard?” Yifan asks confusedly.

“It’s like how humans sometimes call hybrids freaks. They use ‘wizards’ for evil men and ‘witches’ for evil women.”

“Okay,” Yifan notes in confusion.

“Anyway, if only he can find a new owner instead. The center always make sure that owners are decent people, but they don’t have time to do the same process with shelters. I hope he’ll be okay,” Jongin pouts and leans towards Kyungsoo for a hug.

“I’m sure he’ll be okay. If anything bad happens, we’ll get him out of the shelter,” Kyungsoo reassures his mate. He ruffles Jongin’s fur and scratched the one sensitive spot he has memorized. Jongin’s tail whacks against the wall, a sure sign that he loves the petting.

Yifan seems to be in deep concentration as he assesses the information. Luckily, Kyungsoo is too preoccupied to notice the look.

***

“What are we doing here?” Kyungsoo asks Yifan when he finally notices where they are.

He's been preoccupied with answering emails that he doesn't notice where Yifan has brought them. It's the rehabilitation center that they visited a few weeks ago.

“I was curious about the company and found out they do a lot of good works. So I thought it'd be nice to donate some money so they stay successful,” he explains easily, without looking at Kyungsoo's eyes. He's afraid the younger will notice the lies, or even worse, a hidden motive.

“Don't we have people who takes care of these things?” Kyungsoo asks suspiciously.

“Yes! But you've always said that I need to show that I care about hybrids. What kind of message am I sending if I just send some intern to give the donation on my behalf?”

Yifan doesn't give him a chance to reply. He exits the car quickly and walks towards the center without looking back. Kyungsoo is too tired to fight back, so he's just following his friend.

As they enter the center, they notice that hybrids are gathering in the wide ballroom for movie time, and some look towards them, wondering what these guests wanted. Some even look hopeful as if Yifan would suddenly adopt a hybrid.

“Let's not stare at them too long. They'll think you're here to adopt one,” Kyungsoo whispers.

Yifan nods obediently and heads towards the administration office.

“Hey, there! Welcome to HRC! How can I help you?” a peppy dog hybrid greets them.

“Yeah, we're here to give donation,” Kyungsoo tells him.

“And to adopt a hybrid,” Yifan adds.

Kyungsoo’s head whips to the side so fast that Yifan worries that his neck will snap.

“What?!” Kyungsoo asks threateningly.

“You heard me,” Yifan tells him bravely, without looking back at him.

“Excuse us for a moment,” Kyungsoo tells the dog hybrid before punching his friend strongly in the arm. “What the hell was that?”

“You told me to pick one!” He defends himself, glaring back at his friend.

“Yes, and then I'd expect you to come to me so I’d make sure you're picking the right hybrid.”

“Well, I don't want the right hybrid. I want the one I've picked.”

“And who'd that be?”

Yifan looks away, reluctant to admit which hybrid has caught his eye.

Kyungsoo sighs heavily before trying to get his friend to admit.

“Look, I just don't want you to regret it later on and drop that hybrid back to some shelter.”

“I won't!” Yifan immediately denies. “I just think that this hybrid is a better choice than all the other ones we've seen.”

There's a long silence as both stare each other challengingly. Unfortunately, the peppy dog hybrid doesn't understand the concept of tense moments, so he interrupts their intense staring and asks if they're ready yet.

By the time they've filled out the donation form and adoption form, Yifan is told to wait a few days for the center to process his application. Kyungsoo still doesn't know who the hybrid will be, but he's adamant to join him on the next visit.

***

Joonmyeon stares at the packed boxes in his room, and wonders if he has made the wrong decision. Yixing has managed to convince him a few days ago that having Yifan as his owner would be better than living in a shelter. He reluctantly agreed after hearing that he'll have his own room and that he would be able to visit Yixing any time. The lingering feeling of fear is still in his mind, but he's getting better at ignoring it.

Yixing smiles supportively at him before engulfing him in a big hug.

“I'll see you tomorrow! We'll unpack your boxes and make your room as cool as mine,” the elder rabbit promises.

“With carrot drawings too?” Joonmyeon asks, a little excitement in his tone.

“Yeah! I'll ask my owners to bring the stencils.”

Joonmyeon smiles at him, and Yixing is glad that he's always able to put a smile on his friend's face.

It's not long before Yixing accompanies him to Yifan’s house, possibly the only excited one. The other passengers are either looking out through the windows while the driver is nervously making his way the destination.

Yifan and Kyungsoo carry the boxes inside while Yixing enthusiastically shows Joonmyeon around the house. By the time they're done touring, Yixing leads him to the kitchen, telling Joonmyeon that Yifan has chefs! People who are willing to cook anything for him, including carrot stew!

Unfortunately, Joonmyeon still loves his carrots fresh so he asks for those.

“Baby carrots?” the chef, Jung, asks them.

“No! Like big carrots. The ones that horses usually eat,” Yixing clarifies.

“Oh, we don't have those,” Jung tells them in a sad tone.

Yifan seems to notice the dejected expression on Joonmyeon's face when he overhears the conversation.

“Pass by to the market and get some fresh ones,” he commands to his chef. “Get Hyuk to drive you.”

“What about dinner?” Jung asks reluctantly.

“I can wait. Go!”

Jung obeys immediately and looks for Hyuk.

Yixing excitedly claps, knowing that he'll get carrots too.

“Would like to join us for dinner, Yixing?” Yifan asks him.

“Oh, I really want to, but my owners are completely hopeless without me cooking for them.”

“They can stay for dinner too.”

“Really?! Can I ask them?” Yixing leans forward enthusiastically.

Yifan passes his phone and watches amusedly as Yixing hops to the next room. Meanwhile, Joonmyeon stares cautiously at Yifan, still suspicious of his motives behind adopting him.

“So, um, do you like your room?” Yifan asks awkwardly.

Joonmyeon fidgets in his chair before looking down at the marble table.

“Oh, if you don't like it, you can change to another room — or even my room!”

Joonmyeon glances up in fear, before running away, almost tripping on a nearby chair.

Yifan stands rooted in the kitchen, unsure of what he said wrong. He doesn't need to know it was a grave mistake, even Yixing’s exaggerated gasp can be heard from the living room.

***

“Not even an hour and you already traumatized him,” Kyungsoo notes while tutting.

“ off,” Yifan groans in frustration.

The rabbit hybrids are now in another room, wary of Yifan's motives. For Yifan's sake, Jongdae called moments ago to explain why Joonmyeon acted that way. After the gruesome details of how abusive Joonmyeon’s past owner was, Yifan feels guilty enough for choosing the wrong words.

“How am I supposed to get him to like me if his first impression of me is luring him to my bedroom?” Yifan asks almost rhetorically.

“I'd tell you to use my method, but you refuse to do so.”

Yifan shakes his head in disgust, while wondering why Jongin was able to fall in love with an insensitive hybrid.

Their strained conversation is saved once Jongdae and Baekhyun arrive in their large truck.

“Hey,” Jongdae greets Yifan in a rush when the elder opens the door. “Where are they?”

Yifan points to a secluded study room, and Jongdae immediately heads there. Baekhyun appears right after, but makes no intention on calming down the hybrids.

“You're not joining them?” Yifan asks.

“Ah, nah. I'm more of the chill parent and Jongdae is the overprotective one. I don't do consoling unless it's in the bedroom,” Baekhyun wiggles his eyebrows in effect.

Kyungsoo gives him a disgusted look while Yifan can't help but feel bad for Yixing.

“Anyway, I'm Baekhyun, and that was Jongdae. Nice to meet you both,” Baekhyun says with a wide smile.

Kyungsoo doesn't bother giving him his hand while Yifan nods.

“Any tips for this idiot? You seem to have gone through every bad decision,” Kyungsoo notes.

“Ah, that I did, but to be honest, Yixing has always loved us. He even let us pet him from the start.”

“Huh, and here I thought he'd bite your hand once. Shame.”

“He did that once when I finished all his carrot stew. Lesson learned,” Baekhyun makes a gesture of wiping his forehead.

“But any advice at all?” Yifan practically begs.

“Well, Yixing was also wary to trust us in the beginning, so we let him decide on how much he'll let us in. In the beginning, he didn't let us see his room, always locking it or keeping it closed. Jongdae and I made a promise to never look, and it took him almost a year to let us see it.”

“So you think I should get him one of those locks with a key?” Yifan’s eyebrows furrow.

“Um,” Baekhyun comments, almost speechless.

“Idiot, right?” Kyungsoo says tiredly.

“No, he's not,” Baekhyun finally replies. “You're just new at this, and please don't give him a lock. You'll scar him even more.”

“Oh.”

“Just give him some space, but keep trying to initiate conversations. He may ignore or reject you, but he'll feel more unloved if you stop trying.”

Yifan nods at the words, trying to absorb all the pieces of advice he has gotten.

Luckily, Jongdae arrives with the hybrids behind him, giving Yifan a reprieve from his misery.

As Yixing runs to Baekhyun, to greet his owner with a kiss, Joonmyeon follows to their side.

Yifan watches their interaction as Joonmyeon leans closer to Baekhyun’s rub, the hybrid having a dazed expression on his face. He doesn't know when he'll be able to do that with Joonmyeon, but he won't give up. As long as Joonmyeon is willing to stay here, he knows he has a chance to earn the hybrid’s trust.

***

The first week is predictably tough. Joonmyeon refuses to be in the same room as Yifan, and always runs off when he sees the evil, tall wizard. Yes, Joonmyeon now refers to Yifan as the 'tall wizard’. Despite the elder’s attempts on fixing the situation, he only made it worse when he commented on how soft Joonmyeon’s tail is. Apparently, the previous owner liked to threaten to chop off the rabbit’s tail when he misbehaved, so Joonmyeon thought Yifan would do the same.

It doesn't help that the rabbit is also scared of angering Yifan. Like when he accidentally dropped a teacup or the mess he created in the bathroom because bubble baths are so fun. Joonmyeon doesn't understand why Yifan hasn't yelled at him yet, or even thrown him out. He at least expected the latter, remembering how the previous owner would make him sleep in the cold den.

So after two weeks of confusions and misinterpreted compliments, Joonmyeon thought this next accident would be the final straw.

Yifan sometimes invites his co-workers to the house whenever he needs to finish a certain deadline. He always feels that finishing it in his home was more comfortable than the stiff chairs in the office. As usual, he'll tell Joonmyeon first and see if the rabbit has any issues, which Joonmyeon replies with a blank stare. So he assumes it'd be okay, and tells his co-workers to come by 7.

The noises are loud to Joonmyeon’s ears, so the rabbit is curious enough to see what's going on. He stares from the adjoining room, blending with the dark, and analyzes what the wizards and witches are doing. He thinks it's weird that humans like to drink smelly red liquid or that they touch each other so much as they talk. Despite that, he still wants to know what they're eating. The small pieces of food look delicious and it smells delicious too. His stomach grumbles in hunger as he longingly wants to take some, but he knows he shouldn't!

He watches the evil humans walk away, probably back to slaving after that tall wizard. The smell of the food taunts his empty stomach, and he resists the urge to disappoint the tall wizard again. Unfortunately, his feet disagree with him, and he's already halfway towards the food table before he notices what he's doing.

There's a moment of reluctant before Joonmyeon abandons his common sense. He hops closer to the table, looks to the side before he takes one piece. The food practically melts in his mouth and he almost moans at the taste. He grabs another piece, and before he knows it, he has eaten more than ten pieces.

The gasp behind him startles him, and causes Joonmyeon to look back. He's frozen in his spot as the witch stares back at him.

“Hi,” the witch coos. “Aren't you the cutest thing?”

Joonmyeon’s foot starts to tap incessantly, anxious that Yifan will find out. Unluckily, that's the moment Yifan shows up, wondering what's going on.

“Joonmyeon?” Yifan asks in confusion.

The rabbit jumps in surprise before running off to his room. He makes sure to lock the door and hides under his bed cover. After all, if Yifan can't find him, then the wizard can't punish him. His stomach growls in his defiant, reminding him that he still hasn't finished dinner.

***

The next morning, Yifan paces outside the door, unsure if he should knock or let Joonmyeon sleep in. Chef Jung made a comment that Joonmyeon skipped dinner and Yifan starts to worry when the rabbit is also skipping breakfast. It's almost noon and he hasn't heard a sound from the rabbit.

“Joonmyeon? Are you awake?” he tries calling out instead.

No replies are heard when he presses his ear against the door.

“I'm not mad about last night,” Yifan explains. “I know you don't believe me, but I wouldn't be angry about that. So, please come out?”

The elder bits his lip nervously at the lack of sound.

“I’ll stay in my room so you don't have to worry about seeing me. Just, please come out and eat something,” he begs before walking away.

Meanwhile, Joonmyeon isn't necessarily ignoring Yifan. He's still in bed, blanket wrapped around his body, but his stomach hurts, a lot. He doesn't understand why, it's the first time that it has hurt this much. He groans and wiggles his stomach deeper into the warmth of his bed. Unfortunately, it's not easing the pain. There are tears in the corner of his eyes, and now he's clenching the sheets in his bed.

He gives up on ignoring the pain and decides to get help. Even if the tall wizard ends up creating rabbit stew out of him, at least his death will be painless. Right now he'll take anything over this pain.

He rolls off the bed, with his favorite blanket on his back and crawls to the door. He barely has the door open when his stomach pain acts up again, and he lays down on the floor, whimpering for help.

He thinks death may be near and he didn't even get to try the moist carrot cake that Jung has made. Life is too cruel on him.

There's an angel hovering in his vision. He looks eerily similar to Yifan, but the glowing outline and the wide wings indicate that it must be an angel. He lets the angel pick him up and lull him into a deep sleep.

***

Yifan doesn't know which person he should be mad at. Himself for ignoring Joonmyeon’s well-being last night, the jerks that he thought were his friends until they told him they made a bet on how long before Joonmyeon ends up in hospital, or Yixing, who kicked him out of Joonmyeon’s room the moment he arrived.

Still, he's mostly mad at himself for being a crappy owner, and most of all stupid enough not to unlock Joonmyeon's door with the spare key.

The doctor says it's merely a case of wrong consumption of foods. Joonmyeon is known to have a sensitive stomach and it can't process meat as well as humans. Yifan assumes that it happened last night when he saw Joonmyeon near the food tables. He should have warned Joonmyeon ahead, or at least given him the ones that he could have eaten.

Kyungsoo tries to tell him that it's a beginner mistake. Even Jongin had stomach ache when he was a puppy, but Yifan refuses to listen. He already feels like a complete failure.

Joonmyeon wakes up hours later, feeling a lot better, and he smiles at Yixing’s presence. He nods at Yixing's endless worried questions before he remembers about the angelic figure that hovers on top before he fainted. He grabs Yixing's wrist as if to interrupt his rambling.

“Who found me?” he whispers.

“Oh, I thought you remembered. Yifan did,” his friend replies, although scrunching his nose in annoyance. “I still can't believe he got you sick.”

Joonmyeon blushes at the thought of the tall wizard seeing him in a vulnerable position, but he also feels the need to clarify that it wasn't the wizard's fault.

“Don't blame him,” Joonmyeon mutters. “I just wanted to try the food. They taste really good.”

“Oh,” Yixing comments. “Is it better than carrot stew?”

“Yes!” Joonmyeon says excitedly. “But now, I can't even try it anymore.”

“Don't worry about it. Jung can make the same thing, but without meat!”

“Will it tastes as good?”

“Of course!”

Joonmyeon nods his head in excitement. Neither notices how Yifan subtly enters the room.

“Um, hi,” Yifan greets them.

Yixing gives him a glare in return, but Joonmyeon shyly looks away, still embarrassed that he was being overly dramatic.

“I'm glad you're okay now. I was worried that it was something worse.”

“Why?” Joonmyeon whispers, still gazing at his blanket.

“Why what?” The elder is confused.

The rabbit shakes his head, reminding himself that he shouldn't question his master. He still doesn't know if the tall wizard will punish him later on for the trouble he caused.

“No, tell me,” the wizard insists. “I know I'm still a wizard to both of you, but I swear I'm just trying my best to be a good owner.” The tall wizard sighs in frustration as he combs his hair backward.

Neither of the hybrids reply to him, so Yifan’s shoulders slum down and he pouts as he takes out the package he brought from home.

“Anyway, while you were asleep, you kept mumbling carrot cake... so I brought you some,” Yifan says half dejectedly. “I’ve tried it. It's really good, and it’s not poisonous like last night’s food.”

This time Yixing looks up, his eyes wide at Yifan's words.

“I mean -- “ Yifan stutters and stumbles on the next word, but can't seem to say it. In the end, he growls in frustration before shouting “I give up!”

Needless to say, both rabbits watch him storm off and Joonmyeon is just confused on what happened.

Jongdae ends up tasting the carrot cake before Yixing allows Joonmyeon to have some. After giving them the okay, both rabbits are immediately in love with the cake.

“Jung made this,” Joonmyeon tells them pridefully. He seems to love the chef more than his new owner.

“So lucky,” Yixing whines. “I want carrot cake every day.”

“But then you'd get sick,” Jongdae tells him, as he ruffles Yixing’s furry hair.

“But you'd be there to take care of me,” Yixing flutters his eyes and Jongdae laughs at the silliness before kissing his nose.

Despite not wanting a new owner, Joonmyeon still feels bouts of jealousy whenever he watches Yixing interact with his owners. There is always an abundance of love between them, and Joonmyeon wishes that he wasn't afraid to open his heart again. For now, it seems only pain reside in his mind, and he can't move on from it. He only hopes that one day he can let go of the past.

***

Joonmyeon is discharged the day after and Hyuk is the one that picks him up because Yifan has to go back to work. He soon finds out that Yifan took the day off yesterday and now he has to catch up with the workload. Joonmyeon, despite still labeling the tall man as wizard, feels guilty for causing more issues.

Jung greets him when he enters the house and he's begging for Joonmyeon’s forgiveness when he realized that he caused Joonmyeon's illness. Of course, Joonmyeon feels that it should be his fault, not others, but Jung insists that he should accept the apology.

But the biggest surprise is the gift that sits waiting in the living room. Jung said that it came yesterday and even Yifan didn't know who it was from.

Joonmyeon tears off the piece of label attached to it, and gasping once he sees the words of a joke. It's exactly formatted like the previous labels. The joke is also as funny as the ones he has gotten.

This paper feels thicker than the usual ones he has gotten. He follows the edges and sees that it has been folded, purposely hiding another message inside. He's able to open the layer and reads it.

I heard you got a new owner, but that's okay… you already own my heart.

The statement got his long ears red and his cheeks blushing. Jung asks if he's okay, and he wrinkles the paper into his fist, shaking his head in embarrassment. Despite the sudden confession, he's been wondering who the admirer could be.

As the weeks pass by, Joonmyeon feels more at home as he gets into a daily routine. There's the 10 AM sun bathing time in the foyer, and then play time in the afternoon with Yixing or Jongin. Most of all, he loves dinner time because he gets to help Jung prepare food, and he gets to decide which carrot dish he wants to try next.

Not to mention that the gifts keep coming, even during weekends when the post office is supposedly closed. He looks forward to opening them, even if some gifts are repetitive.

Furthermore, there's a new routine that develops between him and Yifan. It started off with one sided conversations where Yifan asked and Joonmyeon answered with a nod, but now the rabbit is starting to use his voice, even if he stands ten feet away, and Yifan is surprisingly okay with that. Joonmyeon is still cautious on why Yifan is never angry, but he allows his defense to go down as he gets used to his life in this big manor.

He barely notices how he's getting comfortable around Yifan’s presence despite the lack of conversations they have.

Their relationship starts to evolve a few weeks later. Joonmyeon recently wakes up from his afternoon nap, and he’s becoming bored with his regular toys. So he likes to explore the manor, and find a new thing to play with. As he passes by some room, he notices a familiar figure sitting by the large window, along with a large canvas in front of him.

Joonmyeon approaches Yifan cautiously, since he can't be sure if the elder will like his snooping. He tries to peek on what he's doing, but he can't tell from far away. So he walks sideway against the wall, hoping Yifan won't notice him if he blends against the walls.

As he comes closer, he finally sees that Yifan is drawing something, but he can't tell if it's an object or a person. He's too preoccupied with his thoughts that he doesn't notice Yifan staring back at him.

“Would you like to come closer?”

Joonmyeon jumps backward and clutches a random table.

“Sorry,” Yifan says sheepishly. “I just thought you wanted to see me draw.”

Joonmyeon stares back momentarily, unsure if he should or not, but then he decides he's too curious to not know. So he nods and takes a step forward to him.

“What is that?” Joonmyeon whispers.

“Oh, I thought it's obvious,” Yifan tells him with a frown. “It's a horse.”

“It doesn't look like a horse.”

“What? But it even has the tail,” he points to the scribbly mess. “And the big nose.”

“Oh,” Joonmyeon replies. “It looks like an ugly dog.”

Yifan makes a weird noise from his throat and his face pinches as he feels disappointed that Joonmyeon couldn't figure it out. The rabbit seems to notice as he immediately apologizes, and practically flinches when Yifan moves his hand to scratch his hair.

“Don't be,” Yifan insists. “I love to draw, but people have said that I can't draw well. I wish I could though. Anyway, would you like to try drawing?”

Joonmyeon takes his time to answer before mumbling a response.

“Will it hurt?” the rabbit’s eyes zooms into the pointy end of the pencil.

“Of course not,” Yifan says reassuringly.

It takes a while to set up Joonmyeon’s  canvas, but once it's ready, Joonmyeon takes a pencil and warily presses it against the canvas. He looks at Yifan for guidance and the elder moves his pencil, showing how to use it.

Yifan suggests to the rabbit to make something easy, like a circle, but Joonmyeon wants to try a horse instead. Not wanting to upset his rabbit, and ruin their first real interaction, Yifan shows the horse image that he was drawing from.

Yifan thinks Joonmyeon will be struggling and crying by the end of the day. He was unfortunately wrong in so many ways. Not only is Joonmyeon better in drawing, he's also beating Yifan at his own 'Who can draw the fastest?’ game. Needless to say, Yifan gives up and Joonmyeon giggles at the sight of a beaten Yifan.

From then on, Joonmyeon starts to take up art as a hobby, and Yifan allows a hybrid teacher to come by and teach the rabbit a few things. Yifan doesn't expect Joonmyeon to immediately like him, but he does appreciate the times when Joonmyeon forgets about his fear, and leans closer to Yifan for his warmth.

Joonmyeon is too preoccupied with his new hobby these days. He doesn't even wonder on how his admirer knew about his new hobby. Instead, he immediately falls in love with the brand new paint and brushes that was given. Even Yifan’s pout at seeing the gift doesn't ruin his happiness.

***

Yixing visits him a few days later with his own surprise. He brings the different kind of stencils that he owns, including the carrot one since they plan on coloring the walls. Of course, Yifan never agreed on making his living room’s walls look like a toddler’s play room, but he allowed it for the sake of keeping Joonmyeon happy. Jongdae tells the elder that is so whipped, that he's becoming more like doormat. Yifan shrugs it off, keeping his shoulders straight as if it's the last dignity he has.

No one thought it’d happen, but it's on this same day that Joonmyeon is forced to learn about heats. Not necessarily his heat, but how rabbits will go into heat.

Yixing was acting normal at one point, before he starts to scratch his body and takes off his shirt due to his fever. Joonmyeon doesn't understand what's happening to his friend, especially when Yixing starts to whimper in pain and lies down on the cold floor. Luckily, Jongdae and Baekhyun are still around and they immediately drag the rabbit to their car. Needless to say, Jongdae apologizes to Yifan, and promises to call once Yixing is no longer in heat.

It leaves Yifan in an awkward situation when Joonmyeon immediately asks if his friend is okay, and if he should go to Yixing’s house to take care of him.

Yifan ends up calling Kyungsoo and Jongin for their help.

With everyone in the same room, they begin to painfully explain what happens during heat and how to end one.

“Does that mean Jongdae and Baekhyun will take care of my heat?”

“No!” Yifan says loudly, causing everyone to stare at him weirdly. “I mean... they're Yixing’s owners, so Yixing wouldn't like that.”

“Oh,” Joonmyeon says before he concentrates really hard again. “Kyungsoo then?”

“Nope,” Kyungsoo immediately denies. “Jongin and I take care of each other’s heat, but no one else.”

“Oh,” there's confusion laced in Joonmyeon’s tone.

“You can go through a heat alone. You don't have to ask someone to help you,” Jongin tries to help.

“But I want somebody too,” Joonmyeon pouts.

“You can always ask Yifan,” Kyungsoo unhelpfully comments.

Yifan would have killed his friend if Joonmyeon actually understood what that meant. Luckily, Joonmyeon is too confused to understand the situation

“It doesn't matter anyway,” Yifan tells him in the end. “Your heat won't come until you turn 2. Isn't that still a long time?”

“But I turn 2 this year!” Joonmyeon tells them excitedly and Yifan swears that the gods are testing him.

“Oh, I know! How about you ask your secret admirer?!” Jongin tells him. “I bet he wouldn't mind being your somebody.”

Yifan wonders if he can kill both of his friends. But then again, he thought, who else would hear his drunk ramblings at 3 in the morning?

“You think he would?” Joonmyeon asks curiously. “But then, how do I reach him?”

Jongin hums as he thinks and finally he finds the perfect solution.

“Leave a message in the center! Your admirer probably had to ask permission from the administration to mail the items, so they should know who it is.”

Joonmyeon nods excitedly at Jongin, and it's only Kyungsoo that notices the frown on Yifan's lips.

***

Luckily, Joonmyeon's birthday is still another month, so Yifan has time to start precautions. One of those precautions is making sure that the admirer never shows his ugly face in this house. He's also thinking of creating a panic room, where he can live there for a week and not worry about hearing Joonmyeon's moans echoing in the hallways. Unfortunately, Kyungsoo burned that plan and told him to man up already.

“It was cute at first, like when Jongin used to chase his own tail. But now you sound very pathetic and whiny. So either tell him your feelings or get over it,” Kyungsoo rants angrily at him.

Yifan wanted to deny any claims of pathetic behaviours, but then he realizes that the main issue wasn't about that. So he sighs and wonders on how he should explain to Joonmyeon that he doesn't want other beings to touch his rabbit.

He's too preoccupied with his troubles that he doesn't notice when Joonmyeon starts to slowly crowd into his personal space.

It starts small when they're both eating dinner, and Joonmyeon is curious on the types of food that Jung serves for Yifan. Yifan carefully makes sure that Joonmyeon won't eat any meat, and allows the rabbit to finish his vegetables portion.

“I like this one the most,” Joonmyeon admits to Yifan. He shows a piece of fruit pepper to him.

“Ah, I like that too.”

“Oh,” Joonmyeon says disappointedly before giving back his vegetables.

“No~ You should finish it. I prefer my meat.”

Joonmyeon wrinkles his nose in disgust and Yifan can't help but laugh at that.

From then on, Joonmyeon sits beside him, stealing a random vegetable or commenting on how Yifan is basically a cannibal. Yifan doesn't know how to react to the latter comment, but he gets distracted with Joonmyeon's happy expression.

There was also that time when Yifan dropped off Joonmyeon at Yixing’s place, and he ended up staying throughout playtime.

“You're leaving?” Joonmyeon asks with a sad expression, the one Yifan memorized whenever Yixing left after their playdate.

“No?” Yifan says unsurely. His fingers twitch as he feels awkward standing in the doorway.

“Don't you want to play with Yixing?” Baekhyun asks amusedly to Joonmyeon.

Joonmyeon looks torn between saying 'Yes’ and 'No’ until he finally decides that he doesn't want to stay in Yixing’s place alone.

“But you have me and Yixing here,” Baekhyun says confusedly.

Joonmyeon immediately shakes his head and reaches for Yifan’s arm. He latches on the coat’s sleeve and refuses to leave the taller’s side. Yixing gasps at him from the side.

The hurt look on Yixing’s face reminded Yifan of the thousand times Joonmyeon has rejected him. He has been on the other side before, so he knows that this must hurt a lot for Yixing.

“It's okay, I'll stay for a while,” Yifan ends up telling them.

“Are you going to leave me when I'm distracted?” Joonmyeon asks in a quiet voice.

“No,” Yifan reassures him. “I'll stay the whole time.”

Yifan smiles awkwardly at Joonmyeon and the hybrid seems to like this answer.

“Okay,” Joonmyeon smiles happily before running towards Yixing and the two hybrids run off to Yixing’s room.

“I feel like I dreamt that scene,” Yifan mutters to himself.

Baekhyun laughs at him and pats his shoulder.

“It's a precursor to his heat. Yixing was clingy, too, when he was going to his first heat. How many more weeks again? Two, right?”

Yifan doesn't answer, he's too busy panicking that it's two more weeks.

Of course, nothing compares to when Joonmyeon stole all of the house's pillows, including the ones Yifan used, and made a pillow fort in the living room. He was also using Yifan's pillow to sleep with in that fort. So when Yifan requested to take a pillow back to his room, Joonmyeon gave him a dirty glare, as if the question was a betrayal, and hid inside the fort for the rest of the day. Yifan ended up buying a blow up pillow, and chanted, ‘One more week,’ inside his head.

Presently, they're down to three more days and Yifan is itching to have his living room go back to normal again.

Today, he's trying to learn how to create the head of a bear with this step-by-step instruction. However, Joonmyeon insists on sitting next to him, or rather, half on him, because he thinks this position is more comfortable than sitting alone.

Joonmyeon has been judging his drawing for a while, and Yifan seems to shrug off every negative comment. The elder is too preoccupied on enjoying the warmth that radiates between them. It helps that the weather has been fluctuating lately, so there's always an excuse for Yifan to ask the hybrid to sit close.

There's also a good chance of sniffing the vanilla scent on Joonmyeon’s hair, without his friends giving him the judgment stare from afar. It's not his fault that vanilla has such an enticing smell. Luckily, Kyungsoo wasn't there to ridicule him when the former admitted this to Baekhyun and Jongdae.

Nevertheless, Yifan’s sensory is attuned to Joonmyeon's behaviours and scent, so he notices rather quickly when Joonmyeon is behaving differently. So when Joonmyeon starts to nuzzle against his neck and paws at his shirt, Yifan knows that this is merely heat behavior. It doesn't help that Yifan finds himself aroused when it happens and the half attempt to shield his hard on from Joonmyeon.

The elder chuckles at the ticklish sensation from the hybrid’s fur and almost pushes Joonmyeon off when the younger squirms too much.

It isn't until Joonmyeon pushes the drawing and Yifan away that the elder starts to worry. He catches sight of Joonmyeon running into the living room, probably to hide inside the intricate pillow fort.

“Are you feeling okay?” Yifan asks cautiously when he hears nothing from inside the fort.

That question begins the catalyst of Joonmyeon's heat. Yifan’s ears perk up as he hears rustles and a distinctive moan. He doesn't need to see Joonmyeon to know that his clothes are being taken off.

He's frozen in his spot, until he hears his hybrid calling out his name, and the whimpering that follows.

He panics and leaves the room, walking fast towards the front door. From there, he can see Jung in the doorway, putting his shoes on. Yifan is immediately annoyed that his chef is trying to leave so soon.

“What are you doing?! You're supposed to stay here until his heat is done,” Yifan demands in a cracked tone.

“So you want me to watch you two?” Jung takes the opportunity to smirk.

“No! I mean, go help him!”

“With my hands? Or is it my -- “

“ no,” this time the elder growls. “I just mean -- “

Jung raises an eyebrow as if he finds this more amusing than confusing.

“Why can't you stay so I know what not to do,” the elder ends up mumbling.

“Don't you have hybrid friends or that weird couple that can show you?”

“But they don't understand my predicament. They think it's okay to touch him as if Joonmyeon needs that,” Yifan rants unhappily.

“But he kind of does? Isn't the whole point of heat is to mate with another hybrid or someone? Are you going to let him suffer then?”

“No, but he's barely an adult. I mean, what kind of person would I be if I mated with a hybrid that's two years old?!”

“Well, technically a pure rabbit at 2 years old is about 28 years old for human age. So I'd imagine for hybrid, Joonmyeon is probably around 20’s, but if the age difference freaks you out, I know someone who owns a young hybrid but the owner is like 40.”

Yifan stares at his chef speechless, his brain is still processing that Joonmyeon may actually be 'near’ his age.

“Oh, um, are you sure?” He finally asks hesitantly.

“Yep,” Jung nods. “Anyway, I have to meet my girl, who may be extremely pissed because I'm late. So, good luck, and don't stain the cushions,” he pats his boss in the shoulder before slamming the door closed.

Yifan stands rooted in the entrance, too much thoughts in his mind. After a while, he hears something loud falling in the living room, and he shakes his head out of the trance. With his decision set, he goes to the living room, more prepared than before.

***

Handling a rabbit in heat seems more complicated than convincing people that hybrids are friends for life. He doesn't know how Joonmyeon manages to get him into the pillow fort, without making things tumble, but they're inside now. It's cozy and surprisingly wider than he imagined. The best part is seeing Joonmyeon’s body in the dimmed light, as if the setting gives off a romantic vibe.

Joonmyeon doesn't quite understand on what his body wants, always whimpering when a sudden wave of heat overcomes his nerves. Yifan ends up reassuring him by cautiously touching him in certain parts, but of course, Joonmyeon is the one that demands to touch more.

It was much harder to get Joonmyeon to feel his first . Every time he feels close, he begins to whimper in fear, as if the sensation will traumatized him. It takes some convincing from Yifan’s side before Joonmyeon finally ed. Despite the loud huffs and red cheeks, Yifan thinks his hybrid look so beautiful and he only wishes that he took a photo of that expression.

The heat lasts less than five days, but with the amount of times Yifan has gone down on Joonmyeon or even jacked him off, he's feeling way too exhausted. He wonders if he'll be more or the same exhausted if he had allowed penetration. It was his decision to not go further, knowing that it should be Joonmyeon’s decision when he's completely sane.

Despite avoiding that one act, Joonmyeon doesn't stop from wanting to cuddle with Yifan after his heat, and the occasional kisses to his cheeks. And sometimes, when the day is tiring, there are lazy kisses in the couch or as they cuddle in bed.

***

6 Months Later

After the recent announcement of WuBrid’s new CEO and the hectic schedule that followed, Joonmyeon finds himself missing his owner’s presence as he stares out of the small window from Yifan’s door office. Despite Yifan’s efforts of keeping Joonmyeon happy, there are days when he can't avoid it and he's forced to neglect his hybrid until his schedule gets better. Joonmyeon is starting to recognize the stalling methods that they'd use when the rabbit asks for Yifan, so he's unhappy when they won't give him a straight answer.

Which is why Joonmyeon is currently in Yifan’s office instead of their house. He insisted to Hyuk to drive him here, and now, he's waiting for Yifan to return to his office. Though the creepy glare he's sending through the office door isn't helping the workers’ lives. It seems the employees are more scared of Joonmyeon's glare than their supervisor’s anger.

“I am so proud of you,” Kyungsoo commented a few hours ago. “I can't believe you have what it takes to send fear into their weak souls.”

Of course, Joonmyeon doesn't understand what Kyungsoo means, but if it meant that his glare would make Yifan work less, then he shall glare at everyone.

Unfortunately, he didn't expect Yifan to react strongly to his glare. The surprised expression and the dropped coffee cup is a testament of how scared Yifan was.

“I'm sorry,” Joonmyeon shouts from the office before struggling to open the door. He's still not very good at doors that require turning the knob, rather than pushing a handle down.

Yifan is kind enough to open it for him, and makes a mental note that the doorknob needs to be changed.

The warm hug he receives almost makes up for the rough morning he had. He leans in to smell the scent of vanilla and feel the ticklish sensation on his chin, as Joonmyeon's fur rubs against him.

“Let's go home!” Joonmyeon tells him. There's a small pout on his lip, and the unmistakable thumping of his foot, a sign that the rabbit is restless.

“I can't, I still have meetings.”

“Skip them,” Joonmyeon insists.

“Baby, remember when we talked about how I'll be busy during the day, but I'm yours every night.”

“That's not fair,” Joonmyeon whines. “These wizards get to have you longer.”

“They’re not wizards,” Yifan tells him exasperatedly.

“One of them said I have a cute tail,” his rabbit says with a sad tone. “And he was holding a large scissor. I think if Kyungsoo wasn't around, he would’ve snip my tail and my blood would be all over your carpet.”

Yifan looks amusedly at him before bending down and hooking his arms around Joonmyeon's legs. He lifts up the small rabbit and carries him to the next destination.

“Are we going home?” Joonmyeon asks excitedly.

“No, you can come with me to my next meeting.”

“But meetings are boring,” the younger whines again.

“Don't you want to meet the person who saved you?”

Joonmyeon's ears perk up at that mention.

“Jongdae is here?”

“Well, yes and others,” Yifan reminds him.

Joonmyeon seems excited at the news as he wiggles in Yifan’s hold.

When they arrive in the conference room, Joonmyeon immediately asked to be let down. He runs and enters the room once he immediately notices Jongdae amongst them.

“Jongdae!”

The rabbit immediately jumps into his lap and Jongdae laughs excitedly as he manages to hold him.

Yifan tells himself that old Yifan would have been jealous, but new Yifan is happy to share Joonmyeon with everyone. Somewhere in the background, Kyungsoo scoffs at that notion.

Oh pfft, yeah, who was Yifan fooling? He immediately pulls Joonmyeon off Jongdae’s lap and carries him to his chair. He nuzzles to the rabbit’s hair, as if he can mark his scent on Joonmyeon, too.

“Anyway,” Yifan says once he notices everyone's judgmental stares, “you already know Jongdae, but the others were also there when they saved you from the wizard.”

“But one of them looks like he's a wizard,” Joonmyeon whispers loudly.

“I'm sure he's innocent,” Yifan insists.

“But I remember him asking me if I wanted to go to his house, and if Jongdae wasn't there, he'd have locked me up in another basement.”

“What! I wouldn't have!” protests  the man, who turns out to be Minseok. He looks nervous at Joonmyeon's words.

Only his teammates are laughing at his expressions.

“I swear I'm a good owner. I even have my own hybrid now. He's a dog hybrid. You'd like him.”

Joonmyeon gasps scandalously before latching on tighter to Yifan’s chest.

“He wants to feed me to his hybrid,” the rabbit wails and panics.

“No! That's not what I meant!”

“Geez, it hasn’t even been five minutes since you’ve met him again and you’ve managed to traumatize him for a second time,” Jongdae scolds.

“Yeah, whatever happened to saying the right words?” another teammate snickers to  him.

Minseok groans in defeat before slumping his head over the table.

“Anyway,” Yifan says amusedly as he rubs Joonmyeon's back. “They're here to check if you're doing well and if you're happier than before.”

It's also closure for the team’s side. They need reminders that the work they do is awesome.

“So, are you happier?” Jongdae asks teasingly.

Joonmyeon nods with a big smile, finally sitting normally again once he understands the situation better.

“Are you sure? Because if this man is a wizard too, we'd save you right now.”

“No~ He's really good to me, and he never punishes me. He lets me do anything and he never gets mad when I destroy things,” Joonmyeon confirms.

“Sounds like he's completely whipped,” someone comments and Yifan doesn't even care that it's 100% true.

“And he also helped me with my heat last time, and it was so good. We didn't have , but that's okay. He promised me next time,” the rabbit informs in a happy tone.

It's only Yifan that blushes red from the recent fact, while the rest of the people in the room laughed or awkwardly looked away.

“Oh, really? How did he help you during heat then?”

“Well, he put his mouth -- “

“They don't need to know that!” Yifan practically shouts and covers Joonmyeon's mouth.

His rabbit looks upset, but Yifan knows how to distract him well.

“Why don't we eat now? Jung made carrot dishes for us.”

“Even carrot cake?!” Joonmyeon asks excitedly.

“Yes.”

Joonmyeon runs ahead to the food room without waiting for the others. The team can only laugh at his thrilled expression.

As they walk out one by one, Jongdae walks up to him with a sly smirk.

“You know, if you ever need pointers on how to satisfy -- “

“ you.”

Yifan walks quickly ahead.

“I'm just saying, you need to be careful with the tail!!”

As much as Yifan knows it's a trick, he really doesn't know anything about treating Joonmyeon's tail. He figures he'll end up caving in to Jongdae's pieces of advice, but for now, he can just focus on Joonmyeon's happy smiles.

Off Screen Moment

There's a new gift from his admirer a few weeks after his heat, and Joonmyeon is curious to see what it is. Inside the box was a very cute bear with a 'Beary Happy’ label on his stomach. He thinks how a few months ago, he would’ve made this bear his new favorite toy, but now he just sees it as another cute toy.

Along with the bear comes another note, but this time it's not a joke. It simply says 'I’d be beary happy if you'd meet me at the HRC Summer Event’.

Joonmyeon doesn't know if he wants to meet his admirer. At one point, he's very curious, but he doesn't feel comfortable meeting his admirer anymore. In fact, he thinks he'd be okay with never meeting his admirer. After all, he already has Yifan, and his owner is better than anything combined... Except carrots — nothing beats those.

Even then, Yifan finds out about the gifts and he starts asking Joonmyeon about the hybrid’s feelings.

“Are you sure? It's okay if you want to meet him,” Yifan tells him as he combs the tangles out of Joonmyeon's fur. The rabbit had been spending the day rough housing with a few other hybrids.

“No, I want to spend the day painting,” Joonmyeon says as he sighs happily. He leans closer to Yifan’s touches.

“That's a better idea,” the elder agrees. “My bedroom's walls are still white. We should redecorate it.”

“Yeah!” the rabbit agrees immediately.

They fall into a comfortable silence before Yifan asks him another question.

“What if I asked you to not keep the present?” he says teasingly even though he just wants to see what Joonmyeon would do.

“I can't keep Beary? Why?”

“Because I don't want you accepting presents from other people anymore. It'd be like if I accepted presents from other hybrids.”

Joonmyeon freezes at his words.

“You have other hybrids?” he asks in a small tone.

“No, of course not, but that's how I feel when you accept his presents.”

“Oh,” Joonmyeon says sadly, before hugging his owner tightly to repent for his mistakes. “I'm sorry.”

“It's okay baby, I know you didn't mean to in the past.”

“But you shouldn't feel sad! I like you more than anything else.”

“Yeah? More than your admirer?”

“Mhm, I don't want him. I only want my FanFan,” Joonmyeon declares strongly.

Yifan blushes deeply at the words, and smiles shyly.

“Well, I only want my Joon bunny too.”

Joonmyeon hugs him tighter and Yifan barely hears the next words uttered by his hybrid.

“I love you,” he mumbles against Yifan's neck.

It's the first confession of deep feelings for either of them, so Yifan can feel the soaring in his heart, and a full warmth sensation in his stomach. He burrows his face into Joonmyeon's hair, enjoying this amazing moment.

“You don't love me?” Joonmyeon mumbles sadly, almost heartbroken by the silence.

“Of course I do,” Yifan argues. He's just not very good at saying it. He's better at showing his love, which is why he's kissing Joonmyeon's forehead softly. Then he trails soft kisses to his eyebrows, cheeks, nose and a gentle one on his lips.

“More than meat?” Joonmyeon asks randomly with a smile.

“Well, do you love me more than vegetables?”

“Yes!” The rabbit replies without hesitation.

“What about carrots?”

That question has him stumped, so Yifan stares at his rabbit amusedly as Joonmyeon’s expression turned serious.

By the end of night, Yifan happily smiles as Joonmyeon throws Beary over a tall balcony. They'll eventually throw out the other gifts, mostly jokes and random toys. Though, Yifan thinks he'll let Joonmyeon keep the brushes and stencils, after all, those were expensive. He would know, he was the one behind the gifts.