Was Yuju doing okay alone? 

That was the only thought in Yewon's head the entire school day. She had barely heard anything her professors had said, the image of the puppy hybrid sadly whining and clinging to her before she left in the morning playing over and over again in her head. It had only been less than a day, technically, since the human version of Yuju had appeared so suddenly. It was still such a shock but Yewon had come to terms with it while she had held the sleeping Yuju in her arms last night. The girl had slept so peacefully and so had Yewon. Usually, the younger girl would hug one of her pillows to her chest to sleep but having someone curled into her chest was even better. Yuju had woken up once during the night, whining softly for Yewon to wake up and hold her closer before falling back asleep just as quickly as she had before. The puppy hybrid was still so doglike now, even without actually being a puppy fully. It was strange but also adorable at the same time.   

"Yewon?"

A hand waving in front of her face brought Yewon out of her memory of last night. Eunbi was still standing in front of her with Sojung next to her, both girls examining Yewon's expression curiously. Crap. That's right. They were talking about their weekend plans together, weren't they? 

"Are you okay?" Sojung raised an eyebrow. "You were zoning out."

"Was I? I didn't realise. I'm really sorry." Yewon apologized, Eunbi patting the younger girl's shoulder gently in response. 

"Don't worry about it. It's been a long week, huh?" Eunbi smiled back. "I can text you the details about our group hangout tonight. I need to text Yerin and SinB about it anyways."

"I can't believe tomorrow is Friday already." Sojung said, shifting her backpack to her other shoulder. "I'm really looking forward to hanging out with everyone again."

"Me too!" Eunbi exclaimed, jumping up and down eagerly. The sight was adorable, Yewon managing to let out a small laugh while Sojung ruffled the shorter girl's bobbed hair affectionately.

"Well, we better get going. We don't wanna keep you too long. Make sure to get plenty of rest tonight." Sojung said, smiling softly at Yewon before taking Eunbi's hand and intertwining their fingers together. 

"We'll see you tomorrow!" Eunbi beamed, waving along with Sojung as the duo started to make their way back to their apartment. Yewon nodded and waved back, smiling until the two were out of view. The second both Sojung and Eunbi were unable to see her, Yewon practically started to run back towards her apartment. Yuju's sad eyes from earlier that morning replayed in Yewon's head again, causing her chest to ache. Wait. Had Sojung and Eunbi said anything important about tomorrow? It didn't matter. Eunbi said she would send a text. She would look at it later. 

Yewon reached her apartment door in record time, fumbling with her key. Once she had successfully unlocked the door and started to turn the doorknob, Yewon was surprised to hear familiar barking. Yuju was in front of the door already, barely allowing Yewon to close it behind her as she jumped into her arms with one last bark exiting . Yewon let out a soft grunt as she was practically tackled, keeping herself upright as best as she could while making sure to place her backpack next to the couch before locking the door securely behind her. Yuju's tail was wagging happily, the half puppy letting out small, desperate whines as Yewon tried to move her over to the couch.

"I'm here." Yewon said, sighing in relief as she managed to sit down on her couch. Yuju was on her lap within moments, her tail still wagging furiously. Yewon ran a hand through Yuju's hair before settling on petting the dog ears poking out of fluffy long hair on the top of the girl's head.

"I missed you." Yuju whined, her head tucking into Yewon's neck. "I missed you, Yewon. Don't go again."

"I don't have a choice, Yuju." Yewon chuckled. 

"Yes you do." Yuju interjected with a huff. "You don't have to go. Stay here with me from now on."

"I wish I could. I really do. If I could, I would do it in a heartbeat." Yewon said softly, moving her hand away from Yuju's dog ears to comb through the girl's long black hair, untangling a few strands in the process. Yuju whined again, her hands clutching at Yewon's sweatshirt firmly. 

"Hey. It's alright. I'm home now, aren't I?" Yewon said, ruffling Yuju's hair just like how Sojung had done to Eunbi's earlier. Yuju only responded with another small whine and a huff, clearly frustrated and upset at the thought of the other girl having to leave again. Yewon let out a laugh at that, reaching down and picking up her backpack off of the ground. Yuju leaned back and tilted her head curiously, her wagging tail slowing down to a stop.

"I got you something." Yewon said, pulling a duck stuffed animal out of her backpack, the plush resembling the plastic dog toy that she had bought the eager puppy before she had shifted to her human form. She had snuck away during lunch break earlier that afternoon to buy it for Yuju, keeping it hidden among her books and papers in her bag. Yuju's tail immediately started to wag again at the sight of the plush, a large happy smile appearing on the girl's features. 

"Don't chew on it, okay?" Yewon instructed, handing it over to her. Yuju obeyed but the puppy hybrid clearly looked like she was struggling to resist the urge to bite it, settling on hugging it close instead. 

"Good girl." Yewon said softly, reaching up and tucking some of Yuju's hair behind her ear. Yuju only smiled wider before nuzzling against Yewon's chest, her plush duck secure in her arms. The two stayed like that for several long moments, Yewon absentmindedly Yuju's hair again while the other girl snuggled in her arms contently.

"Are you hungry?" Yewon finally asked, breaking the brief silence. Yuju nodded against her but started to protest once Yewon attempted to move away. The half puppy dropped her new duck plush on the floor and whined loudly, refusing to get off of Yewon's lap or release her hold that she had on her body.

"I can't get you food if you don't let me get up." Yewon sighed, unable to keep from smiling. Yuju was just too cute, wasn't she?

"I don't want you to leave again." Yuju whimpered. 

"I wont leave. I can order you something on my phone or warm up some leftovers." Yewon replied, helping Yuju up to her feet slowly. Yuju was trembling again and Yewon couldn't help but feel immensely worried. The puppy hybrid always seemed to panic whenever she left or went somewhere in the apartment by herself, even if it was for a brief moment.

 Yewon could mostly understand why, considering the state the former puppy had been in when she had found her, but the trembling in Yuju's body that always seemed to follow those emotions was concerning. Maybe she should take Yuju to a doctor. But that could be a problem considering the dog ears and tail clearly visible on the girl's body. It wasn't like she could hide those away easily. And then there was the way the girl behaved. It seemed like Yuju was constantly switching back and forth between her normal human behavior and puppy-like urges. That wasn't as much of a problem though. If anything, it was endearing.  

"You know, I didn't really get to finish cleaning you up yesterday." Yewon mused, humming as her hand ran through a few more tangles in Yuju's long dark hair. "That can wait till after dinner though."

Yuju started to smile at the affection, her arms wrapped tightly around Yewon's body as the two remained standing in the living room. Yuju's body was still shaking but her tail was slowly wagging again, bringing some relief to Yewon's slightly distressed mind. The pair remained like that for a few minutes, Yewon rocking Yuju back and forth gently in her arms to try and sooth her down more. 

"I want pizza." Yuju's voice finally broke the silence.

"Of course." Yewon chuckled. "I can order you that. It's not a problem. I've been wanting some myself recently."

That really caused Yuju's face to light up, her tail wagging even faster in excitement. Yewon started to laugh until Yuju pulled back out of her grip and kissed her cheek firmly. That had been unexpected. Immediately, Yewon's face was tinted with a slight red hue. Yuju didn't notice and continuing her mission of kissing Yewon's other cheek. At least she wasn't her. 

"Alright, alright." Yewon cleared , attempting to hide her embarrassment with a smile. "Let me order the pizza, okay? It wont take long. I promise."

"No leaving." Yuju said firmly, watching as Yewon pulled her phone out of her pocket and showed her what she was doing. Yuju seemed satisfied with that, going back to hugging Yewon while the girl opened up her food delivery app. Yewon made sure to order a pizza that was slightly larger than she was used to. After all, Yuju might end up waking her up later tonight begging for more food. It was good to be prepared