Chapter Text
But nothing good can. Nam-gyu blinked awake to sterile light beaming down on him. Despite the dried drool and clumped fur stuck to his face, he felt the most well rested he's ever been in his life. Dae-ho still had him in a hug, and when Nam-gyu readjusted his grip on Dae-ho's chest and shoulders, he found their legs entangled. He had slipped out from under Dae-ho in his sleep, and Nam-gyu could see the impression his face left behind on Dae-ho's fur.
The poor blanket had been pushed to the edge of the bunk, but Nam-gyu didn't feel chilly. Maybe enough complaints about the AC were made and they gave in. When he looked out to the center, the guards were in the middle of dragging out metal carts, an indication that dinner was soon. A couple hours must have passed in the meantime.
Nam-gyu considered pretending like he'd never woken up. Dae-ho made such a good cuddle buddy, it felt unfair to stop. What exactly wasn't fair, Nam-gyu wasn't sure about. The bottom line was that he was going to make their time last as long as he could.
Before he could commit to his plan, Dae-ho’s eyes fluttered open. His smile was half asleep.
“G’morning,” he murmured, his voice still crusted with sleep.
“Don't think it's morning.”
“Oh. I can never tell the time in this place.”
“I think it's nighttime.” Nam-gyu laid back down on him and hoped Dae-ho would go back to sleep.
“I think they're bringing out dinner,” Dae-ho craned his neck to see the clearing. “Ooh, they are. I hope it's something other than frozen rabbit, 'cus I'm really sick of it.”
“I think you're hoping for too much. This place doesn't look like they care about our comfort.”
“Probably,” Dae-ho licked his jaws anyway, his stomach growling. Unfortunately, he began pulling away, so Nam-gyu's hopes of extending their time was pretty much dashed. When Nam-gyu tried to stretch, his muscles screamed in a way that made him shrink in on himself.
“Owww,” Nam-gyu groaned. He immediately gave up and collapsed back onto the pillow. Maybe Dae-ho was right about the whole I-might-hurt-you-if-I-put-all-my-weight-on-you thing.
“Are you okay?” Dae-ho asked, coming to hover over him with a worried face.
“Fine. I’m just a little sore.”
“Don't stress your body out. Let yourself rest for a little bit.” Without having any other option, Nam-gyu complied with a grumble and flopped onto Dae-ho's lap. From this angle, a ghost of a smile flickered on Dae-ho's face—something Nam-gyu was getting more and more familiar with.
“What’s up with that look, by the way?” Nam-gyu prodded.
“What look?” Dae-ho batted his eyes like he wasn't a full grown adult. This guy… Nam-gyu pushed away the traitorous thought that he found it cute.
“You know the look. Looking at me like you're hiding something.”
“I don't follow.”
“The smugs. The sly glances. Don't tell me you don't know what I'm talking about.” He would have punctuated his demand by crossing his arms, but an intimidating snort would have to do for now.
“Oh.” Dae-ho had the audacity to look embarrassed.
“Nothing important.”
“Tell me.” Nam-gyu nudged him with a paw. After he had enough of Dae-ho squirming and shaking his head, he unsheathed a claw and poked his knee. “Ow. Okay, fine, jeez, I'll tell you.” Dae-ho hissed. He cleared his throat with a cough that wasn't really there and began. “I like hanging out with you. I wish I could see you more, but it sucks because our social circles don't overlap. I noticed that usually, you look kinda… scary? Brooding?” Dae-ho drew his knees away before Nam-gyu could stab him again. “I’m not done. When we were cuddling earlier, you looked… so peaceful. I've never seen you like that. It looked like you needed it, so that's why I felt proud of myself. I guess it feels good to know I have an effect on others. To have good qualities or whatever,” he paused. “Especially because you're such a hard-head.”
“That last part was not necessary,” Nam-gyu huffed. “You calling me stubborn?”
“Yes,” Dae-ho said without hesitation. He leaned down and gave Nam-gyu a gentle pat to his head. “I was surprised. I didn't know someone so stubborn could get needy so quick—” Nam-gyu gripped the pillow and smacked it over his face. Hard. “Ow, hey!”
The pillow bounced off and tumbled off the side. Ignoring his screaming quads, Nam-gyu resorted to weakly kicking Dae-ho in anywhere he could score a hit, but his embarrassment wouldn't dissipate. For once, he was too damn hot. Dae-ho needed to come with a warning label for adverse effects or something.
Dae-ho was not phased. He fended off the kicking with relative ease, and when Nam-gyu's sore muscles slowed him down enough, Dae-ho ceased the opportunity to snatch his legs and push them to the side. Nam-gyu refused to lose, hissing and swiping at his ears, sore muscles be damned. For a couple swats, he let Nam-gyu have his way. A serval was no match for a tiger, though. As soon as Nam-gyu won his legs back, Dae-ho lunged, making the bed dip under Nam-gyu's head. Immediately, he remembered just how powerful a tiger could be. A bolt of fear sparked through him until he remembered this was Kang Dae-ho.
Pushing his lips back in a snarl, Nam-gyu shoved Dae-ho's grinning face away and kicked at his gut, but he was a statue. Nam-gyu flopped back down after it started feeling pointless. “Ugh, you're such a tryhard,” he grumbled.
Dae-ho’s eyebrows pushed up in a cocky flair. “I’m not the one who has to try hard.” Nam-gyu’s jaw dropped. Dae-ho snorted, trying and failing to stifle his giggle, in the process sounding like a drowning pig. He had to turn away for a second and cough out the laugh stuck in his throat.
“Didn't know you had that kind of attitude on you.”
“Sorry, sorry. I saw the opportunity and I just had to take it.” Dae-ho leaned down and breathed in shaky breaths. A hiccup slipped past the paw covering his mouth.
“Uh-huh.” Nam-gyu sounded incredulous, but he kind of liked this side of Dae-ho. The cocky, prideful one that made an elusive appearance every now and then. It was almost endearing.
“We should probably go get dinner,” Nam-gyu murmured.
“Yeah.” But Dae-ho didn't try to get up and Nam-gyu didn't try to push him off. Dark eyes met darker ones. He bit the inside of his lip, studying the soft curves of the tiger’s features. Maybe it was the crinkles beside his eyes or the delight in his voice, but he wasn't ready to leave this moment behind. Feeling brave, he reached for Dae-ho's face. He leaned into it like metal to a magnet, making Nam-gyu's arm wobble with the weight.
The sight made his heart soar high above the clouds. Something about Dae-ho’s energy spread to Nam-gyu like there were little Dae-ho-spores in the air and made Nam-gyu all cheery like him, if only a little. Yeah. He was rolling with this metaphor now. Nam-gyu caught the Dae-ho infection and he was fucking ill.
“God, you make me ridiculous,” Nam-gyu murmured, rubbing his eyes in an attempt to scrub off the corniness. When he opened them, an angel looked down.
“I like you that way. It makes you act funny,” Dae-ho assured with a chuff. When his paw found Nam-gyu's hip, an older voice called, paired with the clink of unfamiliar claws against a metal ladder.
“Dae-ho, you still up there?” Nam-gyu jumped out his hide, making Dae-ho lose his balance and nearly squish him flat. “Why are we hearing so much noise from all the way down here?” They exchanged a look of terror before Dae-ho released him as if he were made of magma. Heart pounding, Nam-gyu scrambled to put appropriate distance between them.
“J-Jung-bae. Hey,” Dae-ho’s voice had the connotation of a malfunctioning robot. The manul from earlier looked from Nam-gyu to Dae-ho, the cogs probably turning in his head. Oh, god.
“Hey, Dae-ho. And boy from earlier." Jung-bae squinted at Nam-gyu.
“Jung-bae, this is Nam-gyu. He's my…” Dae-ho trailed off, and Nam-gyu couldn't blame him. To say they were friends felt like a lie (it better be, Nam-gyu would be pissed if Dae-ho thought they were just friends) but anything more felt too much too fast. Nam-gyu gave a tiny shrug. “...he's a serval.”
“Oh, I see. Nice to meet you, Nam-gyu."
“It's nice to meet you too.” It wasn’t nice to meet at all, actually, evident by Nam-gyu's sweating pits. Nevertheless, he gave a polite bow.
Jung-bae hoisted up a beat-up pillow. “Is this yours?” Immediately recognizing it, Nam-gyu was set on ripping that traitorous thing to shreds. Well, until he remembered that he was the one that hurled it away in the first place. “It kind of smells like you, but I wasn't really sure.” He pushed it into Dae-ho's paws and slid a quick glance toward Nam-gyu.
“No, I’m good, I don't need to smell it. Ah, okay, fine….” Through Dae-ho’s visible reluctance, he accepted it and took a sniff. “Yeah, that's mine.”
“I thought so,” Jung-bae puffed out his chest proudly, as if having a sense of smell was an accomplishment for him. Seeing the greying hairs on his face, it probably was. “Found it on the floor.”
“Must have slipped out, I guess!” Dae-ho laughed nervously. He held the pillow like it was radioactive.
“Alright, well. The team will be eating, so come join us before they pack dinner away.” Jung-bae began climbing back down again. “Oh, and your boyfriend can join us if he wants.”
“He's not my boyfriend!” Dae-ho exclaimed, flustered.
“It's okay, Dae-ho, I’m very progressive. You don't have to pretend with me,” Jung-bae reassured. He put a paw to his heart. “Be who you are, for your pride.”
“We are not…we’re not what you think we are,” Nam-gyu hissed. His face burned and his tail twitched in agitation. This manul needed to shut his mouth before Nam-gyu got violent.
“Seriously,” Dae-ho added on. Jeong-bae blinked, finally seeming to understand he didn't know everything about them from a pillow on the floor. His ears folded back in apology. “Ah, sorry. I misunderstood. Still welcome to join us if you want, of course.”
Jung-bae gave Dae-ho a grin before leaving. When he was sure he left, Nam-gyu sucked in a sigh and ran a paw over his face. “Well…that was embarrassing. Do you think he'll tell the others?” Those older cats would probably cherish the rumor of a boy in Dae-ho's bed. It got pretty boring in here.
“I don't think so. I'll ask him not to tell anyone else, if that would make you more comfortable.” Dae-ho offered, scooting himself closer.
“Uh…nah, it's fine. Just keep it on the down low. I'm going to have to explain to my team why I was gone for half the day anyway,” Nam-gyu reasoned. Before he fully realized what he was doing, he leaned back and rested his head on Dae-ho's chest. A heartbeat replied in his ear.
“Okay. I get that. Uhm. About what Jeong-bae said. Are we something now?” Dae-ho asked.
“Hm,” Nam-gyu sniffed. “I don't know.”
“Do you want to be?”
“Maybe. Don't know”
“Okay. Let's just see where this goes, then,” Dae-ho offered, and Nam-gyu nodded in agreement. He curled his tail over Dae-ho's. If it wasn't for the embarrassment from earlier, he would have fallen asleep right then and there.
“I should probably go see my team, so I'm going now. But I'll see you later?” Nam-gyu asked. They looked at each other at the same time, so they were nose to nose. “Yeah.” “Okay,” Nam-gyu purred, giving his nose an affectionate rub with his own.
“Yay!” Dae-ho blurted out, then visually cringed like he'd eaten something sour.
“No, don't look at me like that. I like your enthusiasm. Yay.” Nam-gyu mimicked. He flashed his teeth for emphasis.
“Bye, tiger.”
“Bye. Tomorrow?”
“Sure. Tomrrow.” They held eye contact, smiling, as Nam-gyu climbed down the ladder. He had to leave for now, but that wouldn't be the end of their meetings, and that brought a kind of joy new to Nam-gyu.
“Where were you, Ears?” Thanos asked when Nam-gyu eventually returned to his team.
“Having the best nap of my life.” Nam-gyu smiled, suddenly feeling the urge to brag. He leaned back on the bars of the bedframe. “With Dae-ho. The tiger.”
“Who?” Thanos sniffed. He glanced behind Nam-gyu, making him turn around to follow his gaze. Dae-ho sat with his team from across the room. When he glanced up from a conversation with Jung-bae and player 456, he gave an eager wave. Nam-gyu returned a more timid wave back.
“Looks like you two are sappy. You actually like that?” Thanos asked. Disbelief tainted his voice.
“Yeah, I mean, I guess. Don't act like you're not sappy too, with Min-su,” Nam-gyu spat out the kodkod’s name, but a loopy smile appeared on Thanos’s dumb face at the mention.
“Yeah, but he likes how I touch him, like we're in some kind of romance movie. He's sentimental like that.” He pulled his tail close to his chest. “He left when the room got warm enough, but I’m hoping he lets me hold him again. I wanna touch him some more.”
“Ew, Thanos, I don't wanna hear that,” Nam-gyu hissed, leaning away.
In turn, Thanos leaned closer, babbling. “IwantMinsusomuchhe'ssocutehe'smyboyIneedtoprotecthimIwanthimsobad—” Nam-gyu pushed him in the chest, making Thanos yelp and nearly fall off the bed. A few bunks away, Gyeong-su turned to look at them, his furry eyebrows scrunched together in concern.
“If you keep yapping about him I'm running away to Dae-ho again,” Nam-gyu threatened in a lower tone.
“Jerk,” Thanos huffed. “What's so great about him anyway for you to try to leave Thanos World?”
“Well, it’s hard to say exactly.” Nam-gyu's gaze drifted over to Dae-ho, and he found himself hoping to get noticed again. Dae-ho was loud, cliche, emotional, and completely different from Nam-gyu. But that was also what made him so lovable. “I don't know, but… I think something about him completes a part of me that's been left empty for a long time.”