A wolf plushie.

Huh. Did he think she was some kid, to be pacified by a toy like that?

And yet… she found it cute. It was like he was giving her a very tame version of himself…

Or he was telling her that she could beat the stuffing out of the plushie and imagine it was him.

Either way worked, really.

Su Ji had settled on smacking it's face, but stopped when she realized that the plushie's face looked exactly like wolf Yoongi's – they both had deep mournful eyes, and a mouth that curved downwards.

“Sorry,” she had whispered to it, her fingers removing the small note from it.

She had quickly put it away in her room and then raced back down in order not to be late for Namjoon – he was an absolute demon if she wasn't waiting for him right on time.

Now, Su Ji lay with her head on the desk, looking at the empty spot beside her. It was so weird… that spot was empty oftener than it was filled, but every time he wasn't there, she kept staring at it, wishing to see a dark head resting on the desk.

This mate-connection thing .

Worse, she could see Namjoon glancing her way every now and then, and smirk. He knew exactly why she kept staring there.

“Miss your wolf, huh,” he whispered.

“Hey!” she hissed, shocked. Had he really just whispered during class? What was wrong with him?
Namjoon just shrugged and then went back to writing notes, as though he had not suddenly acted out of character.

Now that she came to think about it, Su Ji noticed that he sat less straight than when she had first known him. He no longer wrote notes with a ferocious energy.

Also, when was the last time she had heard him criticize someone with that malicious glee? Not since… a long time, in fact. Ever since Yoongi had bitten her, Namjoon's behavior had changed. It was like… he was learning how to relax a bit.

But he was still uptight and very disciplined, and could be so bossy you wanted to throw him in a trashcan.

Yet there was still a small change, which had slowly come about as they grew closer.

****

Su Ji held the wolf plushie at eye-level. “Where were you, huh?” she muttered. “You stupid wolf, you never come anymore and… and I keep looking at your desk. Just come and put your fat head there and sleep so I can concentrate on class! You stupid wolf!”

Right then, there was a small yap just below her window. She stuck her head out and looked down to find a very hesitant white wolf, pacing up and down anxiously. When he saw her, his tail wagged once, hopefully.

Did he want her to come down?

No way… she didn't need to talk to him.

All right no, she actually did. They had a lot to talk about.

And she had missed him.
She wanted to be near him.

“I'll be right down!” she cried, shutting the window and running down the stairs. She grabbed a packet of crackers on the table, just in case she got hungry – or if he got hungry.

The wolf was waiting for her in front of the porch steps, tail wagging and ears pricked up.

Was he… happy to see her?
Su Ji couldn't help but smile widely when he started jumping up and down, tail wagging in excitement.

“What's up with you?” she asked.

He barked sharply and jerked his head to the direction of the road.

“You want to go for a walk?” she said slowly. Was this a good idea? What if something happened… like, what if he hurt her again? Looking into his deep eyes, Su Ji was suddenly sure that he would never do that again. The last time… it had been an accident, and she knew that she was partly responsible.

“All right,” she said. “Let's go for a walk.”
The wolf bounded out of the yard, then waited for her to come. He kept a respectful distance from her, but still kept very close.

Su Ji decided they should cut through the forest, because what if someone saw them?
The wolf cocked his head to the side when she pointed this out, as though asking, You really want to go there again? With me?

She nodded. “Yeah, I do. Why not?”
The wolf got even more excited then, jumping up and down and running ahead and barking like an overgrown puppy.

Su Ji laughed, watching him frolic ahead, jumping around with his tail wagging firmly.

This was really like taking your giant puppy out for a walk.

The wolf got impatient with her pace, she was so slow! He ran back to her and crouched low several feet in front of her, tail wagging and eyes shining. Betcha can't catch me!

Su Ji lunged at him, and he immediately danced away, tongue hanging out, before crouching down again, daring her to catch him.

Su Ji broke into a run, chasing after the wolf, who slowed down until she almost touched him, only to leap away again. The more they ran, the more hyper they became. The wolf was all over the place, barking and coming teasingly close, and Su Ji was panting and giggling and yelling at him at the same time.

“You get over here right now!” she yelled. “Or else!”

The wolf didn't even bat an eye.

She pulled out the packet of crackers from her pocket. “Look at this!” she cried. “Don't you want any?”

The wolf decided it was time to change the game; he ran to her heels and stared at the crackers.

“You want this, don't you?” she said, waving it under his nose. The wolf tried to get it but she held it above her head. “No way!”
The wolf jumped up, trying to get the crackers, and Su Ji always snatched it just out of his reach.

Finally, Yoongi cheated. He made his eyes go wide, and his ears droop. He put his paws up and sat back on his hind legs, and let out a little whine.

He was doing one of those tricks – he was begging.

A very twisted version though, because he was almost as tall as Su Ji when he was on his hind legs. How could something that giant look so puppy-like?

“All right, all right,” she said, laughing. “You can stop that.”
The wolf rolled onto his back and stuck his legs in the air, making her laugh as she opened the plastic covering.

“It's open, you idiot,” she said.

The wolf got on all four feet again, sniffing the packet in her hands and trying to get the whole thing in his mouth.

“Yah, get away!” she cried. “We're sharing these!”

She took one cracker and was about to drop it on the ground, but the wolf snatched it up first. He ate right out of her hand, his warm tongue barely brushing just the tip of her finger.

Well. That was another way to feed him.

The wolf swallowed the cracker in one bite, and then stared at the packet, asking for more.

“You pig,” said Su Ji. “You didn't even taste it!”

She held out another one, this time knowing he would eat from her hand. He did, and this time, she could feel his velvety damp nose press very briefly against her palm.

He didn't feel weird. He felt… warm. Su Ji fed him the whole packet of crackers, liking the way he ate it out of her hand and the brief contact they shared.

When the packet was empty and the wolf was swallowing the last one, Su Ji very hesitantly put her hand out. She wanted to pet him.

The wolf looked up at her in surprise, and she withdrew her hand. He took a step closer to her.

Su Ji's heart began to beat fast, but she didn't take a step back. Slowly, the wolf slipped his head under her hand