01: Rouge

"Hi there, doggie! Here, I have some food with me. I don't really like the sandwiches that my momma makes. You can have them! You look hungry."

The wolf stared at the little boy crouched in front of him, his arms and the pocket of his red hoodie loaded with sandwiches still wrapped in paper. He seemed to be around four or five years old, his speech still baby-ish with his letter 'r's and 'l's sounding like 'w's. The little boy stared back curiously, and proceeded to laugh afterwards. The sound alarmed the wolf, but not in a bad way. It sounded like tinkling bells in his ear, a pleasant and entirely welcome sound.

"Right, sorry. You probably can't unwrap these. I'll do it for you, and leave it here, okay? I hope you'll like them, doggie."

The boy proceeded to kneel down on the ground, ignoring the dirt and leaves clinging onto his white jeans. The wolf stayed under the safety of the bushes, eyes trained on the little boy's stubby fingers as they clumsily fumbled and tore through the wrapper. He neatly placed the sandwiches in a pile on the ground, grinning at the wolf afterwards.

"Enjoy these, okay? I need to go now. My momma's probably looking for me. Bye, doggie!"

The wolf watched as the boy ran off, giggling as he ran into his mother's waiting arms. He waited until the coast was clear before coming out, sniffing the sandwiches and taking a bite out of them. It was the first full meal he'd had in days.

"Oh, niiiice. Where's the buffet?"

The wolf looked up from his food and turned up his nose in some sort of annoyed expression at the newcomer sitting behind him comfortably. Pale blonde locks topped his young face. When he smiled, the edges of his eyes wrinkled, depicting a certain age to his image. He laughed airily at the wolf's reaction before sitting down beside him and petting his hide.

"Nice kid, that one. It's not every day that a human doesn't cower in front of you...or hunt you." He shrugged, and the wolf leaned into his touch in some sort of response before digging into the food pile again.

The blonde man watched him in mild adoration, petting his hide and scratching him behind the ears. As the wolf finished his food, he his lips and curled up beside the man contentedly.

"...he's nice, that boy." He added noncommittally, and the wolf barked softly, agreeing.

The man looked at the wolf seriously, before sighing. He ran his fingers along his fur, and smiled.

"He's different from the other humans. I could sense that, and I know you did, too...that's why you adore him. I know, little guy. I know that you've been watching over that kid for a while now."

The wolf stood up on all fours and stretched. He turned up his nose to the man before turning around and walking off. The man stood up and ran after him, walking beside him and matching his pace.

"You know...you can be human, too."

The wolf stopped in his tracks and looked up at the man. Suddenly, the man looked a little guilty, and he looked away.

"But then again, maybe you shouldn't. This pattern, it's happened way too many times in the past. I know for a fact that this has a huge possibility of not ending well, little guy."

The wolf snarled up at him, and the man held up both hands.

"Okay, fine. Don't blame me. It's a long process, and you'll have to be away from the little kid for a while, but...maybe it'll all be worth it. Who knows."

The wolf continued staring, his dark brown orbs boring into the man's light brown ones. The man shrugged, crouching down and cupping the wolf's face and scratching him.

"You really want to do this?"

The wolf jumped a little, and the man laughed softly.

"I understand. Go and change the ending, will you?"

"Baekhyun-ah, Prez is dumping the new students on us."

Lu Han dropped a paperback book on top of Baekhyun's head. The latter jolted awake, holding his head and scowling at his senior, who also happened to be his best friend. Rubbing the offended spot, he picked up the book and grimaced at the book's state.

"Lu Han, you can't just go around dropping books on people's heads, more so when the book's tattered and worn out already." He waved the book around and Lu Han shrugged, snatching the book away and adding it onto the pile in his arms.

"Then don't sleep on the job. We're in a library. You're not even supposed to sleep here." Lu Han shot back, kicking the foot of Baekhyun's chair and earning another scowl from the male.

"Okay, okay. Stop abusing the library's goods." Baekhyun stood up from his seat and went to the books scattered on the table.

"Put those books in the new shelf over at the corner. And did you hear what I said earlier?" Lu Han carefully stacked the books side by side on a shelf.

"After you so rudely dropped The Little Red Riding Hood on me? Yeah. Something about new students and dumping and...I don't know, I was in dreamland." Baekhyun gritted his teeth in annoyance as he made multiple mistakes in arranging the books alphabetically.

Lu Han watched him struggle for a while before he sighed in defeat, coming over to him and nudging him out of the way with his hips, taking over the job. Baekhyun pouted but gladly gave up, leaning on the table behind them and watching Lu Han do a neat job with the books.

"The new students. The transferees. Prez is dumping them on us." Lu Han started, and Baekhyun let out a frustrated groan.

"Prez is always giving us the annoying jobs."

"It's not annoying, Baekhyun. We're just going to show the fresh meat around the campus. It's our job as members of the Student Council."

"Fresh meat. Seriously, Lu." Baekhyun laughed, and Lu Han turned to him to kick him on the foot.

"Whatever. So, as I was saying, he's dumping them on us. I think there are like, ten transferees this semester. You get five, I get five. Clear?"

Baekhyun pouted but agreed nonetheless. He sat back down on his seat and picked up the nearest book to him. The Little Red Riding Hood. He flipped the pages and stopped at a roughly sketched image of the wolf in the story. He hummed, before flipping to the next. Lu Han just watched him curiously.

He got off the bus and cursed under his breath as a couple of elementary and high school kids bumped and pushed past him. He almost slipped on the icy pavement and cracked his head had it not been for the shorter guy who grabbed his arm from behind. Turning around, his eyes widened at the familiar image.

The bright red colour of his jacket stood out against the drab, monotone white of the snowy environment, and his legs clad in a white pair of skin tight jeans almost blended in with the background had he not been wiggling them around to keep warm. In his arms were a bunch of paperback and hardbound books, some of which have fallen down on the snowy pavement as the boy had gotten out of his way to stop him from falling.

"Woah, there. Are you okay?" The boy asked, concern evident in his face.

He nodded, and the boy with the red jacket smiled at him.

"That's good! Sorry about that. Those little devils are always up to no good. Well, I'll be on my way now. Take care not to slip!"

The boy in the red jacket grinned at him again before crouching down to pick up the books that had fallen. He had a little difficulty, but before the other could help him, he was already done. The boy shifted the books in one arm and shrugged on his hood. Waving at the taller male, he ran off, leaving him alone.

"Looking good, little guy. Well, not so little anymore, I guess."

He abruptly turned around and a smile found its way onto his lips. The blonde man, his only friend from his past, was standing before him, grinning. The blonde man stepped closer and patted him on the shoulder.

"I see you met the little kid."

"...that was him?" He asked, making sure.

"Woah. That is some nice baritone voice you got there. Anyway, yeah, that was him. Didn't you feel it?" The blonde man cocked an eyebrow, and the other smiled softly.

"...I did."

"Good. Now, you go on your way, and I'll be on mine. That kid's going to get into an accident if he keeps on running like that. We'll see you soon!"

He watched as the blonde man waved his hand and ran off, going after the boy in the red jacket. The blonde man called out to the boy, and the latter his heel, almost slipping on the floor. They both laughed in the distance, and they crossed the street together.

Believing his friend's words of a promised reunion, he walked off in the opposite direction, taking out a letter from his coat pocket. Unfolding it, he read over the first few lines.

Congratulations on getting admitted into Rouge University, Mr. Park Chanyeol. Big opportunities await you in the walls of our home. We hope to see you soon!

^{A/N: It's so boring and-- ugh, it'll get interesting later on...maybe. Iunno. UGH I AM  SO UNINSPIRED BECAUSE OF MY CRAPPY INTERNET CONNECTION. I think it was pretty obvious who the blonde dude was in the first part, right? =))}