“Slow down, Hotdog!” Wonsik breathed as he almost barrel rolled down the street, dog leash in hand, dog running ahead in some sort of frenzy only dogs seem to experience. Hotdog was Wonsik’s Jack Russell, though Wonsik was pretty sure he had some Dachshund in him because he had all the right Russell colors but a strangely sausage-y body. Wonsik adopted him about a year ago from a shelter, being only a puppy then, and also named Victor, so Wonsik saw it as his civil duty to rescue the poor pup from his depressing confinement and just as depressing name. And thus he named him Hotdog because he thought it was clever, failing to consider how awkward the following visits to the vet would be, which was exactly where they were now headed. To get Hotdog neutered.

Wonsik was currently living on tutoring money, a poor financial decision when you’re a music major, but the mere thought of washing someone else’s dishes at a restaurant, or folding sweat-stained, make-up smeared T-shirts back in their place at a department store made him sick to his stomach (mainly due to trial and error). So he got a dog instead, which made just as much sense because looking after a slobbering, defecating, money wasting little pup was apparently just another poor decision on Wonsik’s behalf.

But he loved Hotdog to death, because even his own mother would disapprove of him if she knew that he ate Cap’n Crunch for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and sang some obscenely explicit songs in the shower, but Hotdog would never pass on an opportunity thoroughly to his owner’s face with the most slaphappy expression (though Wonsik sometimes suspected that it was because he could always smell the peanut butter in his breath), regardless of the times he saw Wonsik .

He tried to put off the neutering as much as he could because the parents of one of his students were going through a divorce and thus suspended the tutoring lessons until further notice, leaving him with only five students to pay his bills. So now more than ever Wonsik wished for true love to win because Hotdog was out of control and only money could fix him. Literally.

From the moment Hotdog was old enough he began humping every single thing in sight, including Wonsik’s laptop, pillow, sometimes even short bushes and shrubbery, but most importantly dogs of all kinds and sizes… and es. Wonsik still remembered the first time Hotdog mounted a male Golden Retriever thrice his size during one of their walks. He was used to the mortified expressions on the owners’ faces as Hotdog went to town on their pets, but this time the shock was tripled, and Wonsik didn’t realize why at first. He apologized profusely as he always did while pulling Hotdog away as best as he could without him choking on his leash, but only when the owner and his dog walked away (both a bit shakily), did it dawn on him what had happened, because the Golden Retriever then went on to raise his leg and urinate on the fence.

A biual mutt, who would have known! Wonsik obviously didn’t love him any less for that (if anything, they had one more thing in common now), but he would have appreciated it if his queer pup didn’t treat every moment outside as a tinder date.

So Wonsik decided it was best to mask this vet appointment as a mere walk through the park, because if Hotdog was going to get his balls chopped off, he at least deserved to enjoy his last day as a producing mammal.

It was a sunny day for a change, having arrived after a hell of a rainy month, and Wonsik relished on the thin rays of sunshine warming his face through the leafy canopy above him. The park was only a block away from Wonsik’s apartment, with the vet’s office on the other side, so he was literally walking Hotdog to his doom, but the pooch didn’t seem to notice. He was too busy sniffing every nook and cranny, familiarizing himself with the new sights and smells, panting happily as he scampered on.

All it took was a moment of misfortune for it all to go to . Hotdog’s ears suddenly perked up as a crunch was heard from somewhere further down the trail. He straightened up and sniffed the air more purposefully before jolting into a sprint sooner than Wonsik could ask “What is it, boy?”. Wonsik was much less coordinated on the bumpy ground of the park, and not far into his attempt to restrain his dog he tripped, and the leash went flying from his hand only to trail along the runaway as he made his escape.

“,” Wonsik swore as he regained balance and took off after Hotdog. If that dog gets lost, He thought, I might as well walk straight into traffic. Luckily he didn’t need to plan his own untimely demise much longer because he then heard a yell that could only be attributed to one thing.

“What the ? Hey, get off!”

And as Wonsik swerved at the corner he could see what he already clearly pictured. Hotdog was attached to the behind of a very cooperative Doberman, whose owner wasn’t nearly as so.

“Is this your ing dog?!” The Dober-owner called as Wonsik came running, too out of breath to respond with “literally”. He went on to grab Hotdog’s leash as the other owner tugged on his own, both working together to separate the star struck lovers consummating their godly right of procreation. But it was too late, because Hotdog eventually slid off on his own, looking as smug as one would look after passionate love making, and pranced back to Wonsik, oblivious to his owner’s blatant disapproval.

“What the , man?!” The Dober-owner exclaimed again, and Wonsik noted his third F-bomb in a row. “Is he neutered?!”

“Uh, no,” Wonsik admitted. “Is… she spayed?” He asked after bending down to determine the of the Doberman.

“No!” The owner yelled back. “Oh my god, this is a disaster,” He went on to slide his hands over his face dramatically and then waved an angry finger at his panting Doberman. “Bad, Daisy! Bad girl!”

“Hey, it’s not her fault—“, Wonsik came to the rescue. He felt bad for poor Daisy, looking up at her owner with sad reprimanded eyes as he scolded her for something out of her control.

“Well, obviously!” Her owner interrupted, contradicting himself all of a sudden. “It’s not her fault this little… hotdog here—“, He said gesturing to Hotdog, who responded to his name with an excited tail wag. “—decided to make today Hump Day!”

“What are you so happy about?” He went on to mock Hotdog, but the latter responded by sticking out his tongue in a goofy grin.

“That’s his name.” Wonsik mumbled.

“What?” The other owner asked, as if he forgot that Wonsik was standing there.

“Hotdog, his name is Hotdog.” He repeated.

The Dober-owner just stared, nostrils flaring and mouth hanging open in dismissal as his eyes shifted from Hotdog to Wonsik with what seemed to be murderous intent.

“I don’t ing care!” He threw his hands up in frustration. “Is ing Hotdog here going to take care of his eight ing puppies?! Is he going to pay ing child support?! I’m a ing photography student, I don’t have money for this !”

“Can you please not use that language?” Wonsik replied, almost too nonchalantly while subconsciously tightening his grip on Hotdog’s leash. “I think you’re scaring your dog.”

The Dober-owner went immediately from fire breathing rage to concerned father figure as he looked down and spotted his suddenly timid . “Oh Daisy,” He sighed and reached out to scratch her lowered ears. “You know I love you, even when you pull stupid like this.”

He then stood up looking more resigned, a mere grimace taking the place of his previous slack mouthed snarl.

“You know what,” He said, fishing his phone out of the back pocket of his jeans. “Give me your phone.”

“What? Why?” Wonsik asked defensively, but the Dober-owner just rolled his eyes.

“When you get into a car accident you exchange details. This is a type of an accident.” He responded, sarcasm lacing his newfound calmness.

Wonsik dug into his own jean pocket and retrieved his smartphone, hesitantly handing it to the apparent victim of the accident. The owner went on to type a number into his contact list, saving it as “Hongbin”, before calling the number and seeing it flash on his own device.

“Okay,” He handed Wonsik his mobile back. “Now we have each other’s numbers. I am not doing this by myself so you can expect to be getting some calls from me.”

Wonsik couldn’t imagine what kind of calls Hongbin would be making him, but he assumed it was better to nod than question Hongbin’s logic. He didn’t like him when he’s angry.

“So, uh,” Hongbin suddenly muttered, staring awkwardly at the number on his phone screen. “What’s your name?”

 

Two weeks later Wonsik was sitting in an excruciating morning class of music production (regretting yet another one of his poor choices) when his phone flashed, alerting him of an incoming text message.

daisy’s pregnant, Was all it said.

For a moment Wonsik was confused. He didn’t know anyone named Daisy. But then he looked up at the name of the sender and remembered the unfortunate event that took place two weeks prior.

r u sure? Wonsik texted back under his desk.

yea, Came the response, followed by a blurry photo that made Wonsik do a double take, mistaking it for something . her s are different

i can see that

There was a long silence after that, allowing Wonsik to refocus on the lecture, but about ten minutes later his phone flashed again.

hey i’m sorry for going off at u like that at the park
i thought it was better to wait it out to see if it was a false alarm
didn’t want to schedule a pointless vet appointment
everywhere i checked it said that her getting pregnant so fast was highly unlikely
but i guess the odds were against us…
i needed to get daisy spayed for a while but i didn’t have the money for it
so i guess i’m the here  

It all sounded way too familiar to Wonsik.

we all up, don’t worry about it
i’m in college too so i know what u mean
u can spay her once the litter is born

yea i think i will
thanks

 

From then on Wonsik began to receive occasional texts from Hongbin, mostly related to Daisy and her ongoing pregnancy. Wonsik wasn’t a dog expert per se, but it seemed that Hongbin wasn’t one either, and that made them the two most clueless grandparents to be. And Wonsik figured that when Hongbin wasn’t frying him with his laser vision, he was quite pleasant to converse with. Even when the concerning matter was a pregnant Doberman and her deadbeat donor.

But Hotdog was eventually neutered, quite hastily so (Wonsik did take on somewhat of a power walk to the vet’s office after the incident in the park), and was currently moping around the house with the cone of shame obstructing his accessibility to his nonexistent . Wonsik found that the surgery made his previously hyperactive dog somewhat more relaxed. He didn’t seem depressed, because he was eating and cuddling and being his regular Jack Russell self, but Wonsik couldn’t remember the last time Hotdog humped… anything, really, which was a good sign- Casanova was finally settling down! No more one night stands with night stands! This father to be is cleaning up his act.

 Wonsik shook his head at himself. Ridiculous. He was trying extra hard to procrastinate on his homework this time, but luckily he didn’t have to try any harder because he then received another text from Hongbin.

hey do u know if daisy should suffer from morning sickness or w/e?

um i don’t think so but i do know she could experience mood swings

oh so that’s why she’s so cuddly

aww that’s cute!

And Wonsik immediately froze on his couch, phone in hand and dread creeping up his spine. Why did I say that?

He and Hongbin weren’t friends or anything; this was their third or fourth time ever talking, except for the one sided fire throwing at the park all that time ago. This definitely came out weird. Wonsik decided it was best to throw his phone aside because maybe if he ignored it, it would be like the exchange never happened.

But a few minutes later his phone buzzed again. Wonsik noted that it took Hongbin quite a while to respond so he must have felt awkward too.

He reluctantly reached for his phone from the other end of the couch, unlocking it to reveal that Hongbin sent him a photo. Wonsik didn’t have his glasses on but he didn’t need to see clearly to understand what was going on in the picture and break into a smile.

Hongbin seemed to be lying on the floor holding out his phone in front of him, beside him the adorable muzzle of his Doberman, Daisy, his cheek affectionately. This was the first time Wonsik saw Hongbin smile, and he was surprised to notice the deep dimples creasing both of his cheeks. It was a lovely smile, too toothy perhaps, but it was a genuine one. Wonsik grinned dumbly at his phone screen for a while, before calling Hotdog over to the couch.

Hotdog came running from his bowl in the kitchen, somewhat clumsily since he was still recovering from his surgery, and hopped onto the couch and into Wonsik’s lap. Wonsik went on to position his phone in front of them both, and snapped a picture.

 

The next time Wonsik received a text from Hongbin it was 4 am and he had another unfortunate morning class the next day. He forgot to put his phone on vibrate, so he was woken against his will by a deafening ping! accompanied by the inevitable radiation one gets when sleeping with the phone next to their pillow.

An unknown force caused Wonsik to unlock his phone and squint at the unbearable brightness to see who’s harassing him at this ungodly hour.

were gonn a  have rthe ugilest puppiesss ))):

It took Wonsik’s groggy brain a while to decipher the hidden meaning behind all those typos.

hongbin r u drunk

like wat if the yhave dasys head but hot dogs body
how wierdd would that be

Wonsik didn’t even know what to say to that.

don’t worry the puppies will look great

can u imagine daizy brastfeding these tiny litt le dogs with hugeass heads

she’ll be a champ

do u really tjhink so

definitely

thx man u always knw the right thing to say
i love u

Wonsik must have fallen asleep because the next time he woke up it was his alarm telling him to get to class. He turned it off with a grunt and was surprised to find out that he had six new unread messages.

hey um sorry for last night
we went out drinking to celebrate the last day before we cram for finals
i hope i didn’t freak u out
also i don’t really think the puppies would be ugly
we have some good looking dogs
so sorry again

Wonsik chuckled to himself as he rose out of bed, reminding himself to respond later, but Hotdog was scratching at his bedroom door and by the time they returned from their walk, he’d already forgotten.

 

Wonsik began asking around if anyone would be willing to adopt at least one of the puppies. He has gotten a few maybe-s and was on his way of convincing his parents to take in one or two of them since “all their birds had flown out of the nest” and they obviously needed something to look after. He figured that maybe Hongbin had been luckier.

hey what r we going to do with those 5 puppies once they’re born?

Hongbin had briefed Wonsik about Daisy’s last doctor’s appointment, in which she’d been given an ultrasound to determine the size of the litter. Both expecting grandparents were somewhat relieved- at least it was five and not nine. The response came about half an hour later.

just got off the phone with a friend
she said she might adopt 1
my roommates also said they’d help take care of the pups if we choose to keep any

Wonsik suddenly wished he had roommates to share his tiny closet of an apartment too, if that meant they could help him with Hotdog and his descendants (and with the rent), but he was lucky enough to have a very considerate landowner to allow him one pet, not to mention two. So it was basically either or, and dogs are always better company than humans.

yeah I got some people saying that too
the question is whether or not they’ll keep their word

idk i wouldn’t want to give them up to a shelter

me either

 

Hongbin called Wonsik two weeks later while Wonsik was in the shower. He exited his tiny washroom while towel drying his hair, but immediately halted once his eyes spotted the “4 missed calls” notification on his phone. It’s happening, was his automatic thought. It’s happening, it’s happening, it’s happening.

He redialed Hongbin with shaking hands, knowing that he’s probably becoming a grandpa at this very moment

“Wonsik!” Hongbin’s voice emerged from the other side after one dial tone, both frantic and relieved. “It’s happening!”

“Oh my god. Oh my god!” Wonsik yelled into his phone, holding it between his shoulder and ear while attempting to put pants on at the same time. “What’s your address?!”

Hongbin bellowed his home address into the phone and they both hung up after sounding some more distress signals in the form of creative curse words. Wonsik got dressed in a hurry, alarming Hotdog who began to bark his concern right back at Wonsik, which coincidentally only made Wonsik even more stressed. He went on to grab the squirming canine under his arm, forgetting his leash, and ran out the door (nearly falling down the stairs), and into his car.

Only when he was finally speeding down the highway did Wonsik realize that this was the first time he’d heard Hongbin say his name.

 

Wonsik expected to arrive to an apartment complex like his own, but instead he found himself driving up to a small ground level house, paired up with a back yard and surrounded by similar small looking homes. This is much more luxurious than a college student should be able to afford, Wonsik mused, roommates or not.

He double checked his GPS system, making sure that he indeed arrived at the right location, ignoring the restless Hotdog scratching at the backseat door. Upon finalizing that the location was indeed a match to the address Hongbin had given him, he parked the car and took off into a hurried walk up to the front door, Hotdog tucked snugly under his arm again.

“Oh, hi, you must be Wonsik,” An unfamiliar face greeted him after a few knocks on the door. “And you must be Hotdog!” He said, breaking into a knowing smile as Hotdog tried to squirm out of Wonsik’s hold and sniff the stranger. “I’m Jaewhan, one of the roommates.” He added and moved aside to let Wonsik in.

“Daisy has already made her little nest outside in her kennel and Hongbin’s already camped out beside it as far as he’s concerned.” He chuckled, leading Wonsik through the humble yet nicely decorated living room where Hongbin was practically hiding behind a curtain, looking straight ahead at something hidden from Wonisk’s field of vision.

“Hey,” Wonsik greeted, still slightly overwhelmed by the bizarreness of the entire ordeal.

“Oh, hey,” Hongbin turned around to smile sheepishly at Wonsik. “I—uh, Sorry for the hysteria, apparently labor could take a few hours so… it might be a while ‘till we see some puppies.”

“Oh.” Wonsik replied, giving himself a mental slap on the forehead. Of course labor takes more than a fifteen minute car ride, what was he thinking?

“Here,” Hongbin moved aside, allowing Wonsik to move closer to the glass coming between him and the backyard. “The kennel is over there beneath that tree,” He pointed to a shaded spot on his right. “She settled there about an hour ago. No one knew where she is and then suddenly we see her lounging there in the middle of the day. I’ve already put some newspapers and a warm bottle there so now we wait. It’s called ‘building a nest’, apparantly. ”

“Yes, Hongbinnie uses the internet well.” Jaehwan teased from his spot near the curtain.

“Oh shut up, as if you know anything about canine birth.”

“I do know that creeping behind that curtain all day wouldn’t speed up the process.” Jaewhan colncluded, folding his arms over his chest with a smirk.

“Are they born yet?!” Wonsik turned to see another roommate rushing out of the corridor, looking significantly younger than the lot in the living room. He remembered Hongbin telling him about his flat mates, so if the older one was Jaehwan, this one must have been Hyuk.

Hongbin finally looked away from the backyard with a disgruntled sigh. “Let’s get some coffee.”

 

Wonsik was sitting at the residential kitchen table, nursing a freshly made cup of coffee, which he desperately needed once his adrenaline faded. The two roommates had meanwhile gone back into their rooms, telling Hongbin to call them once the whelping begins.

Wonsik had finally put Hotdog down and he scampered around the new environment curiously, sniffing the couches and carpets, looking for the source of the other canine smell he’d picked up in the vicinity. He lingered on one of Daisy’s toys and chewed on it vigorously before looking over to the back yard. His ears perked up immediately and he let a single surprised bark upon noticing Daisy in her kennel and promptly glued himself to the glass, staring.

“I think he spotted his baby mama,” Wonsik joked before burning his tongue on the bitter concoction in his mug. It needed more sugar but he was too shy to ask for some.

“Such a diligent father.” Hongbin sat down beside him with a steaming cup of his own.

 It was then quiet for a while as both men studied each other conspicuously, meeting for the first time since the conception of the puppies.

“So,” Wonsik interrupted the uncomfortable silence. “That’s a nice place you got.”

“Oh it’s Jaehwan’s,” Hongbin explained. “Both his parents are lawyers, income accordingly.” He laughed.

“ They bought the place for him so we’re just paying for electricity and water and stuff… and Daisy. Being childhood friends with that fart has its perks.”

Wonsik nodded appreciatively, he wished he had Hongbin’s kind of friends.

“Hyuk is a spoiled little brat too... Don’t get me wrong, though!” Hongbin added hurriedly. “I’m still broke as hell.”

“Cheers to that.” Wonsik held out his mug and Hongbin clinked it with his own with a grin. They were silent again, sipping slowly from their coffee, but it wasn’t awkward as it was contemplative. Wonsik turned his head to look at Hotdog who was still monitoring the straining Doberman in the backyard and he could feel Hongbin’s eyes on him. It made his skin warmer for some reason, but maybe it was just the coffee.

 “Hey, I almost forgot,” Hongbin suddenly stood up and disappeared into the corridor. Wonsik could hear some rustling and opening of drawers, and Hongbin soon reappeared with a card in his hand. “Our class is holding a small showcase of our photos from this year in two weeks, I’d be glad if you could make it.” He held out the card for Wonsik to take, and he did.

The card itself was an intricate piece of work- rich handwritten calligraphy, blue ink on a cream colored surface.

“I mean, if you want to, of course,” He stuttered. “I just figured that since we’ll be a family soon, I mean—!”

“Thanks,” Wonsik chuckled. “I’ll definitely come.” Hongbin cradled his own cheek with embarrassment as Wonsik tucked the invite into the pocket of his sweatshirt.

Wonsik was about to say something to reduce the blush on Hongbin’s cheeks, but Hotdog suddenly barked again and rose on his hind feet to paw at the glass excitedly. Hongbin and Wonsik exchanged a look and rushed to the window sill, craning their heads to see the source of the commotion. Hongbin then gasped, eyes going wide.

“There she goes!”

 

Daisy gave birth to four puppies by nightfall, and until the first two weren’t born Hongbin made sure to keep close and watch for any trouble, since this was Daisy’s first whelp (“I’ve read about this”). Luckily everything went smoothly, the pups emerged without complications and Daisy went on to nibble on their sacks and them out of their gooey confinement. The newborns popped out in intervals of half an hour or so, and the spectacle was actually quite fascinating to witness. Jaehwan and Hyuk joined in at first but became squeamish pretty early into the labor, leaving Wonsik and Hongbin to monitor Daisy’s progress.

Hotdog camped out by the curtain right along his owner and owner in law after they’d set him up with some food and water by the courtesy of Daisy and her favorite kibble. But eventually it had gotten late and Wonsik had to head home (another goddamn morning class) but he promised to stop by tomorrow as well. Hongbin welcomed him at any time, and they parted on that note.

Hotdog fell asleep in the back seat quite rapidly, and Wonsik was left to navigate the dark road on his own, radio playing softly in the background as he replayed the events of this strange eventful day.

Wonsik arrived at his apartment twenty minutes later and cradled Hotdog in his arms so he could sleep some more (and also because watching Daisy give birth made him oddly sentimental about his own pup). He was walking up the stairs when his phone buzzed in his back pocket. He fished it out with one hand as best as he could without stirring Hotdog and saw a chain of new texts from Hongbin.

5 pups delivered safely
3 boys 2 girls
congratulate hotdog for me, and congrats to you too grandpa

Wonsik broke into a breathy laugh and stuck the phone into the pocket of his sweatshirt where the keys to his apartment were as well. He chanted a silent reminder to text Hongbin back as he felt for his keys, but his fingers then bumped into the folded invitation Hongbin had given him earlier, and he suddenly found that he grew warm all over for the second time that day. He attributed it to the exhaustion.

 

Wonsik texted Hongbin the moment he got out of class.

hey r u home? could i stop by?

yea sure (:

Wonsik made sure to visit a pet store before heading over to Jaewhan’s, but he wasn’t sure what to buy. He felt like he was going to a baby shower, and frankly he didn’t have the slightest clue about babies, or new mothers for that matter. He settled on a soft plushy, deciding that it could be a chew toy for Daisy or a pillow for the puppies, whichever works.

This time it was Hongbin who answered the door.

“Happy birthday?” Wonsik dangled the gift bag awkwardly in his hand, but Hongbin just smiled.

“Yeah, you could say that.” He flashed his set of identical dimples. “Come in, I think the puppies are nursing now.”

Wonsik followed Hongbin into the house, which was empty at this time of day since the roommates had just left for their afternoon classes. Daisy was nestled in her kernel outside, lying laxly as five pink hairless critters led on her teat.

“Hey there mama,” Wonsik cooed, making sure not to get too close in case Daisy was hostile. “You did a good job.” He reached a hesitant hand towards her head, and upon receiving no negative reaction went on to her shiny coat. He then took out the plushy from his gift bag and set it behind daisy, so that she was half leaning on it. She simply eyed the new addition to her nest but didn’t seem opposed to it, which Wonsik regarded as a success.

He turned to his side, where Hongbin was crouching next to him, and suddenly realized that Hongbin was pointing a giant camera at him.

“Um—“ Wonsik started, suddenly taken aback. He usually didn’t mind having his picture taken, but he was used to looking into the lens and saying cheese. He wasn’t much of a spontaneous capture kind of guy, but then again he’d never known an aspiring photographer.

“Oh, sorry, I couldn’t help it.” Hongbin’s sheepish smile emerged behind the lens, creasing his eyes apologetically. “This was too cute for me to not capture. Here, see?”

He then turned the camera around, showing Wonsik the photos he apparently snapped without him noticing. In one photo Wonsik could be seen placing the plushy in the kernel, smiling warmly at Daisy and the pups, and in the second one patting her head as she leaned into his touch.

“Now let me take one of you,” Wonsik suggested, gesturing for Hongbin to go crouch near the kernel. Hongbin eyed him as he mulled the thought over, then obliged, placing the camera gingerly in Wonsik’s palms.

“Be careful though!” He urged as he assumed his position near Daisy, turning to her to her back.

Wonsik looked through the viewfinder, framing the scene in front of him, and his eyes involuntarily went to linger on the curve of Hongbin’s back, focusing on the way his muscles moved in unison as he moved his arm tenderly across Daisy’s hide.

“Are you waiting for me to say cheese?” Hongbin half turned towards Wonsik, smiling at him expectantly, and Wonsik came to with a jolt. The photo came out a bit blurry, but Hongbin’s smile was definitely the focus of the capture, bright and infectious. Hongbin was hands down the better spontaneous model between the two.

“Well, it isn’t bad.” Hongbin critiqued, earning a scoff and an eye roll from the latter.

“Sorry I’m no…” Wonsik began sarcastically, raking his mind after a name of a famous photographer.

“Yes?” Hongbin urged, his smile taking a haughty edge.

“Oh, shut up.” Wonsik elbowed Hongbin playfully, sending him tumbling to the side and laughing heartily as he regained his balance.

“Hey, are you hungry?”

 

Hongbin and Wonsik ended up ordering pizza and lounging on the couch in Hongbin’s living room. Wonsik listened as Hongbin explained in high detail how he’d like the toppings to be distributed, hoping the poor cashier on the other side of the line was able to keep up.

“Jaehwan likes olives and corn on his pizza,” He said as he joined  Wonsik on the couch. “And Hyuk likes pineapple and jalapenos for some godforsaken reason.”

 “And what to do you like?”

“Whatever’s left.” He broke into a dimpled grin, and Wonsik couldn’t help but mirror him.

“So should we name the puppies now that they’re born?” Wonsik then asked, glancing over to Daisy in the yard. “I mean, once they grow and look like puppies and not mole rats.”

“I don’t know,” Hongbin leaned back into the cushion. “We’ll be giving them away, right? So maybe we shouldn’t get too attached to them.”

“Yeah I guess so.”He frowned. Hongbin was right of course, but for some reason that thought made Wonsik sad. Owning a Doberman-Jack Russell mutt could have been fun.

 

Wonsik got a text from Hongbin a few days later.

my friend came over today to see the puppies
she said she’ll definitely adopt!

that’s great! Wonsik exclaimed.
i still need to talk to my parents again but i’m pretty sure they’re in too

awesome so just 2 puppies left

yeah (:

The next message arrived five minutes later.

hey you haven’t forgotten about the showcase right?

no way, i’m polishing my monocle as we speak

haha you

 

Little did Hongbin know that Wonsik really was low key stressing out about the exhibition, he didn’t have anything even remotely formal to wear, and Hongbin didn’t update him about an official dress code.

He settled for a black blazer over a light blue T-shirt and dark jeans. He thought he looked presentable enough.

Hotdog fell asleep on the couch meanwhile, and Wonsik made sure to refill his water and food bowls before leaving for the night.

He arrived to the exhibition fifteen minutes after it started, just in time for the professor to say some opening words. He welcomed the guests to the showcase and spoke about how hard working his students were throughout the entirety of the school year and wished everyone an enjoyable night (while also encouraging the wealthier of the guests to go on and sponsor some young aspiring photographers).

Wonsik found Hongbin pouring himself a glass of champagne at the self serve bar and noticed that he was dressed much nicer than him. He was wearing about the same kind of ensemble as Wonsik was, but the shirt under his jacket was a white, collared one, and his slacks looked fancy, not like Wonsik’s worn out jeans. Hongbin looked like a dashing young entrepreneur whereas Wonsik felt like a freshman at his first college party. He suddenly found himself feeling self conscious.

“Wonsik, hey!” Hongbin grinned at him as Wonsik approached, offering him the champagne in his hand. “Thanks for coming!”

“Thanks for inviting me,” Wonsik replied, somewhat shy as he accepted the glass with clammy hands.

Hongbin then took a moment to size Wonsik up, his grin softening into a subtle lip curl. Wonsik did everything but break into a full on sweat.

“Where’s your monocle?” He concluded before fixing himself another drink.

Wonsik’s tension evaporated immediately. Jokes were definitely his comfort zone. “Right where your sense of humor is.”

“Nice.” Hongbin chuckled, taking a swig from the bubbly liquid. “Have you taken a look around yet?”

“I was just about to,” He began, but was interrupted when someone came up to Hongbin from the back and slapped him heartily on the shoulder.

“Bongo!” He exclaimed.

“Hey, you head.” Hongbin retorted, wrestling the stranger’s hand away but smiling fondly.

“There’s some old rich looking ladies staring at one of your photographs, better go yourself out.” The man pointed behind him, where there really were two overdressed women looking contemplatively at a photo of a skyline.

“Catch you later?” Hongbin placed his hand on Wonsik’s bicep, looking apologetic.

“Go get yourself a sugar mama.” Wonsik teased and Hongbin walked away, his laugh echoing behind him.

Wonsik then went ahead to look through the photos in the gallery. He didn’t know much about photography but it was interesting how every piece was different from its former, how every photographer had their own style and vision. And though the exhibition wasn’t themed, the variety of unique artwork created a recurring motif on its own.

Wonsik had spotted three photos by Hongbin so far- the skyline one, in front of which Hongbin was still standing, attempting to impress the ladies into buy his piece. A monochromatic one of a child walking down the street with a balloon, the balloon being the only color in the composition- a striking light blue in a sea of grey. And this one.

Wonsik was no less than surprised when he stumbled upon a very familiar side profile. The third photo was the one Hongbin took of Wonsik when he came to visit Daisy and the puppies!

The photo was much more impressive in full size. Hongbin must have edited it well because the soft colors and fuzzy outlining made the scene seem… serene, dreamlike even. Wonsik never thought he’d ever see himself in that kind of light, but Hongbin managed to make him look as warm as he was currently feeling, staring up at Hongbin’s artwork. He was definitely going to beat him up for this later.

“Oh, isn’t that you in that photo?” A young woman suddenly chimed in beside him.

“Ah, yes, I guess so.” He mused, still trying to calm the raging butterflies in his gut.

“Are those your puppies?” She asked, turning to look affectionately at the nursing litter in the photo. “Are they for sale?”

“I, uh—“ Wonsik stuttered, he didn’t know how to answer her questions. He settled for a hesitant “Yes”.

“But you should talk to him over there,” He pointed at the direction of Hongbin and the grannies. “He’s the original photographer, and the official owner of the puppies. So he’ll fill you in on any detail you’re curious about.”

“Thanks!” She said. “I’ve been looking to adopt a puppy for a while now.”

 

Wonsik made a few more laps around the gallery, coming back to the photos he particularly liked (purposefully avoiding the one he’s in), until the crowd began to disperse and he figured he should join the departing guests on their way out.

He wanted to catch Hongbin again and thank him for inviting him and also punch him in the face for showcasing that photo, but he seemed to still be occupying some leftover guests so Wonsik figured he shouldn’t bother him.

He placed his nearly full glass back on the bar and began to head out, but was stopped by Hongbin calling his name.

He turned back to see Hongbin excusing himself from the small group he was entertaining and caught up to Wonsik with a light jog.

“Leaving already?” He asked. His hair looked slightly moist as it stuck to his forehead, and accompanied by his fallen face made him look like a wet puppy. It was too much to handle.

“Wait, don’t tell me,” He added, his pout replaced by half a smirk. “Morning class?”

“You guessed it.” Wonsik admitted and slouched his shoulders exaggeratedly. He didn’t know how many more morning classes he could bear before he starts taking twelve hour naps.

“Let me at least walk you to your car.” He offered.

“Sure, it’s a bit of a walk though.”

They exited the gallery and turned into the dark parking lot, the only audible sound being their steps echoing through the empty vicinity.

“How did you like it?” Hongbin broke the silence.

“Hmm…” Wonsik pretended to muse. “There was one photo that really stood out.”

“Oh really?” Hongbin played along. “Which one would that be?”

“It was one with a very handsome young man in it, oh, and a dog and some puppies.” He added with an uninterested hand wave.

“Ah, that’s the best one!” Hongbin chuckled, taking on an accent he probably thought sounded fancy, and Wonsik laughed right along.

“No, but really,” Wonsik then said, more earnestly now. “It was great, thank you so much for inviting me.”

“It’s my pleasure!” He beamed. “Just my way of saying thanks… for everything, I guess.”

Wonsik could now see his car, at the very end of the lot where he parked it earlier, unbeknownst of how far it actually was from the exhibition at the time.

“I saw you send that girl over to me earlier, the one that wanted to adopt one of the puppies. And that totally just solved our entire problem! Now we have one pup left, which… I think I’ll keep. Hyuk and Jaehwan agreed to help me raise it and all, it’ll be a fun little group project.”

“That’s great, Hongbin!” Wonsik exclaimed. “I’m really glad this worked out.”

“Yeah, and uh…” He paused. “Thanks for being so patient with me during the entire Daisy ordeal, I really appreciate that.” He continued. “I thought this was going to be much harder than it really was, but it’s all thanks to you, honestly. I’m too much of a worrywart to have survived this alone.”

Wonsik rubbed his neck awkwardly; he was never very good at accepting compliments.

 “And I really did enjoy spending time with you during these few months… drunk texting and all.” He continued, concluding by shaking his head in spite of himself.

Wonsik’s cheeks were growing warm, but he allowed himself to laugh along.

“Oh, and Wonsik?” They were now at his car, Wonsik digging into his pocket after his keys. He paused to turn and look at Hongbin, who in turn wrapped his fingers gently around Wonsik’s shoulder and leaned in to press their lips together.

It was short and sweet, Hongbin tasting like champagne and something else just as pleasant. He broke away a moment later, soft smile visible even in the darkness surrounding them with fingers still gingerly enveloping Wonsik’s shoulder.

“Will you come over to play with the puppies tomorrow?” He then asked, lower lip disappearing into his mouth in somewhat of a shy gesture.

“Definitely.” Wonsik managed to utter. He realized that he was feeling dazed all of a sudden, despite having had only one sip from the champagne.

“Well, I’ll see you tomorrow then.” Only then had Hongbin let go of his shoulder, and Wonsik immediately felt the absence of his slender fingers upon his clavicle.

It was hard for Wonsik to turn around and enter his car, wanting to remain and chat (and kiss), but he forced himself to buckle up and crack his window open to let in some fresh air into his buzzing brain.

Hongbin watched him drive away, waving to him before he disappeared out of sight, and Wonsik made his way home with a goofy grin on his face, reminding himself to thank Hotdog with some high quality dog treats when he returns.