Summary: HongBin saw a dancer once and wondered if someday he would be able to live as freely.

HongBin wasn't born a hybrid but he was a very healthy baby in the middle of an average family, two older sisters who adored him and a pair of loving parents. He didn't know what a good life he had until it was gone (not that he remembers much of it before the accident).

He was only five when his family went on a vacation trip to Jeju Island, the whole time there was great, he had a lot of fun with his sisters and even enjoyed the stormy weather on the last day, it was in the moment on the drive back home that it all ended with hard turn of the wheel, a screeching sound and his mother's voice calling their names. Everything turned pitch black, so deep and quiet, he even became used to it when he woke up to two strange voices speaking so low he was sure he shouldn't be able to hear them yet he could understand them perfectly.

"He was just a boy," one said, clear anger dripping from it, "this is against all regulations, you know it."

"His whole family is gone, his body was wrecked, we fixed him," the second one defended itself, what? What was going on?, "he can have a new life now."

"A new life? You turned him into a ing animal," it was so depictive, like the word was filthy, "What's he going to do now? Go around like an astray cat? That's your idea of "new life", huh?"

"No, I will adopt him."

Adopt? HongBin couldn't take it anymore and sat up on the bed, or what he thought was a bed turned to be a surgery table, his senses were so sensitive to every detail around him it almost hurt yet he looked at the two men by the door of the operation room, "Where am I?"

"Don't you worry, little one, you're safe," the man of the second voice said while the other just crossed his arms, eyes fixed on something on top of his head.

"Where are my sisters? My parents?" he growled, feeling something pricking the tip of his fingers, he didn't dare to see them.

"They're gone, I'm sorry..." HongBin frantically shook his head, his fingers dug into his palms, the tears pooling in the corners of his eyes, "I'm here, I can take care of you, don't worry."

"You won't, you're going to sell this catboy. Right. Now. No one can know how you got the subject for your experiment," the other man left no place for any kind of option, it was an order.

Lee HongBin who used to be a normal child woke up as a half cat boy over night. He cried every time he stared at himself in the mirror; a pair of ears on top of his head, claws which he still didn't know how to control, his overstimulated senses which he couldn't shut off along with the changes inside his body that still went on after months, it was a nightmare. He wished he was still asleep on the ride back home.

He learned then that life wasn't fair, no matter how much he begged to just be set free, he was given to a rich man who wanted company in his mansion (and was able to afford him legally because he owned half of the laboratory). HongBin turned in an accessory. Left aside after his "master" (they told him that's how he should refer to the person who "owned" him) was done showing him off to his friends, he couldn't speak, eat or do anything until he was allowed to go to sleep. The man, his owner, sometimes took him out to walk around, (he was a cat, not a dog) to the places nearby to just let others know how wealthy he was.

One day, his enslaver took him to a dance festival during the blossom season, everything was pink, orange and blue, it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen or so he thought until his eyes landed on the lead dancer of the group. He was older, not much older than him, and very talented, each movement was filled with freedom and passion, his expression immersed in the feeling of sheer joy in the form of a blinding smile.

He tried to take a step forward when the man pulled him away by the neck, keeping him close. He wanted to fight back, to break free of his grasp and ask the dancer to teach him how to be as free as he was.

HongBin soon forgot about that incident, the months after that day turning darker, the man started trying to touch him because of the changes on his body, make him do disgusting things, then ended up beating him every night when he refused.

“You’re nothing but an animal companion, a living decoration.”

He escaped from that mansion, wandered the streets of Seoul at night, without an idea of where to go or even if there was anything left of the glimpses of his memories that remained in him. He was not an animal; he was a human, a person. He spent months as a stray cat, people stared at him with pity (some even wanted to adopt him but he managed to scare them away), he even entered the underground catfights, losing more than winning, he made some money to not die of starvation. One night while running away from a gang (to whom he owed money) after losing a fight, he ran into a young man closing down a café.

“Hey, you ok?” the stranger asked him after he raised his head, shocked to see the dark bruises on several parts of his exposed skin. He opened his mouth, finding the man oddly familiar, to answer but was quick to close it when he heard several and heavy steps just around the corner, “Inside, now,” he was pushed into the warm place in a blink of an eye.

As soon as he heard the other sigh, he felt the ache in his limbs, “Argh…” he mumbled under his breath, finally turning around to face him only to stop his next sentence because he noticed their height difference, “thank you.”

“It’s ok, you sure you want to go out again with those around?” his ears flatted to his head, he had no other choice anyway, no matter how nice the man seemed, he couldn’t trust anyone, “I’m HakYeon, do you have a name?” the tone he used, the words as if he couldn’t understand, as if he was a retarded animal, he hissed unintentionally.

“Yes, I do have a name, it’s HongBin, Lee HongBin,” he practically growled at the person who had just saved him, “I can understand you, I’m not a ing animal,” his hands clenched into fists.

Although he probably looked more like a serial killer than a hybrid, HakYeon only smiled warmly at him, “I’m sorry if I offended you, it’s my first time talking to someone like you,” his voice kept a kind touch attached to it, making HongBin unable to stay aggressive.

“It’s ok, I sometimes forget my…effect on others,” HakYeon nodded before he slowly walked behind the counter, “I think I should leave now.”

“Don’t you want to drink and eat something, HongBin-sshi?” HongBin covered his stomach as it growled at the mention of food, “I’ll take that as a yes, sit down.”

An  hour or so later, he knew a few things about HakYeon aside from his job at the coffee shop, the man couldn’t shut up for more than five minutes but, somehow it felt nice to be treated as a normal person, it didn’t bother him at all. HongBin’s inner struggles with his animal traits also seemed to be appeased near HakYeon, the man gave off this soothing aura so different from everyone. His plan was to just finish and leave, never to return, because he knew he wouldn’t be able to stay away from a person like HakYeon if he ever gave him the chance to be close yet it was too late when the man offered him to spend the night at his place (no weird nor bad intentions, promised).

HakYeon lived in a single story apartment almost in the poorer areas of Seoul, which was everything he could afford with his paychecks with the university and all the expenses from his trainee life. HongBin was surprised when HakYeon gave up the only futon to him and decided to sleep on the tiny sofa sitting down, “Good night, HongBin-sshi,” he faintly heard as he fell into a deep slumber, the last real rest he had was the one before he woke up as a cat hybrid.

The next morning, he woke up to find HakYeon gone and a note attached to a bowl with some kimchi and a glass of water which let him know that the older had classes and would be back after his shift at the café ended. HongBin stared at the bowl for a few seconds before he finished it in record time since he knew he had to get out of that place as soon as he could or else he would be stuck in there forever as a housecat.

Two weeks later, he was running away from the same gang on the same street, except it was in the middle of the day and he didn’t notice the expression on HakYeon’s face when he crossed the glass windows in front of the café. He found himself in a dead end on an alley when he came face to face with a brick wall, he turned to the three huge bear-like hybrids as he closed his eyes, accepting the consequences when a loud voice called out, “Hey!”

“What?” one of the three gang members yelled at HakYeon, “go away, human.”

“Leave him alone,” HongBin hissed at the man, “what is it that you want? Money?”

The hybrids raised an eyebrow before they laughed, “Are you his owner or something? So cute,” HakYeon threw a package of money at one of them and hit them straight in the face, the amount of coins and papers in were enough to draw blood from their nose, “!”

“Now, take it and go!” the other two looked at each other before they started taking steps towards HakYeon. HongBin rushed to help him when he was tripped and held on the ground by the one with the damaged nose, he struggled all he could because he knew what was awaiting the stupid human for helping him. He kicked and yelled, caring little about the blows he was receiving, as he watched the two men beating the older against the wall until he couldn’t stand, HongBin saw the faint smile he gave him once the three gang members took the money and left them there, “I’m glad you’re fine...”

HongBin stood up and ran to HakYeon’s side, “Idiot! You’re an idiot, how much did you give them?” he helped the older on his feet, “Why would you do such thing?”

“Because you looked lonely back then…” HakYeon smiled and it was disgusting, bloody teeth and swollen lips, but HongBin found it completely endearing, “oh…could you help me back home?”

“What about the café?”

“I asked for the day off.”

Note: Hey! I'm finally back and it's only with part one of HongBin's past because this thing it's really long...srsly long so I decided to divide it into two, I should have part two soon (hopefully). I just finished high school so...my mind it's all over the place lately because of the university stuff and other things going on in my life but I'll try to be around and not disappear like I did. Hope you enjoy this chapter and pls, do not ask me how it was possible for HongBin to be turned into a catboy (I'm sure there's ugly ways) because not even I'm sure. Lots of kisses, my darlings, and thanks as always for all the comments!