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06

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The doctors were reluctant to let you leave without a cast, but they gave Sungjong a fresh roll of bandages to change the dressing on the bite Howon gave you. Sungjong was still fuming days later.

“I’m not going to turn into a werewolf now, am I?” you asked, frowning at the bandages on your arm. All of Sungjong’s seriousness disappeared in an instant.

“No, you’re not. It’s just a myth,” Sungjong said, shaking his head with a smile on his face. “Werewolves are born, not made.”

The townspeople were glad to see you out of the clinic, and the kids told you they went to make the trail super safe so it was impossible for anyone to hurt themselves on it. You smiled at their thoughtfulness, thinking of places to put their pinecones.

You frowned at the sling. This meant you wouldn’t be able to do anything to help. You weren’t allowed to shift, and the doctors said to rest your arm until you could get a cast. “Well, I can do dishes…”

“No,” Sungjong said turning around and giving you a stern look. “You’re not doing anything besides sitting on the couch and working on your knitting. That’s it. Nothing until your arm heals.”

You blinked at Sungjong, and when he saw you start to dismay, he shook his head. “We got along fine without you before. We can manage while you heal.”

--

The first person to break down was Woohyun. He came by, two days later, begging you to help him cook. The dinner table was quiet and boring without you. There were no content groans, happy conversations, or even fights about who was stuck doing the dishes.

You thought it would be better if you stopped visiting the house for a bit, so Woohyun came down to learn from you, and it was the only thing that saved you from hours of knitting.

You found Woohyun’s problem to be he put too much of everything into everything. His eyes were bigger than his stomach, and you had a hard time getting him to back off on the spices.

The kids came by every now and then to check up on your arm, hoping that it would magically heal overnight so they could drag you out to go play in the forest.

Sungjong sighed in frustration more often. He was making progress with you, getting you to open up again. You were speaking more, smiling and laughing, and now, you were almost back to square one, barely speaking more than a few words at once.

Whenever you went out for fresh air, you would always catch Howon staring at you from wherever he was, but he stared with a different emotion this time. There was no murderous intent, no disapproval, or glare. Once, you dared to look back and caught a flash of regret before he disappeared.

Eventually, Sungjong went back to his normal self after taking you to get a cast for your arm. The doctors asked if you had a favorite color, but you didn’t so they settled for leaving it white.

“You really don’t have a favorite color?” Sungjong asked as you were leaving the clinic.

“No. Well… I like yellow, like the sun,” you said quietly, turning your face towards the sun.

“Well, since spring is coming soon, do you have a favorite flower?”

You pursed your lips as you thought. A favorite flower? You thought back to the gardens back when you stayed with your first owner and smiled. “Daffodils. Definitely daffodils,” you said, smil