Chapter Text
Jin groaned as he stretched his tired muscles. He opened his locker, pulled out his coat, and put it on before picking up a bag full of left over food from the kitchen and walking out of the small restaurant building through the back door.
He was standing in the middle of the dark alley way when he took out his phone and checked the time, 8:30 pm.
He let out an exhausted breath, it had been a long shift. He scrolled through his phone for a minute to check his notifications and saw that he had a few messages from his friends, he decided to ignore them until he got home so he put his phone back in his pocket and began walking towards the parking lot across the street.
He had only taken four steps when a loud noise startled him
BANG!
He whipped around fast, looking around alarmed.
“Hello? Is anyone there?”
Jin got no answer, but he continued to look around. When he saw that the alley was completely empty he released a panic breath and turned around. However, as soon as he took a step forward he heard rustling coming from the dumpster.
Although, every bone in his body was telling him to run, Jin pulled out his phone and turned on his flashlight as he slowly approached the oversized trash can.
“Hello?” Said Jin again, his voice caused the noise in the dumpster to stop.
“Hello?” Called Jin a little louder as he stood on his tippy toes and pointed the flash light inside the garbage holder.
He gasped loudly when he poked his head over the edge and looked inside.
“Hi there.” He whispered gently when he saw a pair of dark brown eyes staring straight at him. The creature had pitch black ears pressed into his head in fear, and a black tail firmly tucked between his legs. Jin could easily tell he was a cat hybrid.
“Hi buddy, what are you doing in there?” He cooed.
The cat hybrid was crouched into the corner of the dumpster with his knees pressed into his chest. He cautiously looked at Jin with wide fearful eyes.
“Come out of there, do you know how dirty that is? Come here.” Jin reached out a hand and held it in the air as an invitation for the kitten to grab it, but the movement only scared the cat and he pushed himself further into the grimy walls.
“Shhhh, sweetheart. It’s okay.” Jin retracted his hand and took a step back from the dumpster.
“Where’s your owner? Why are you out here all alone?” He asked curiously. The hybrid stared up at him, but didn’t answer the question.
“Do you live around here?” The cat remained silent and stayed as still as a statue. Jin frowned at the hybrid.
“Do you need me to call someone, do you know your owner’s number?” Jin still didn’t get an answer.
He sighed in frustrated as he ran a hand through his hair. Jin wanted to help the hybrid so he could get home or at least somewhere safe, but he couldn't help the kitten if the kitten didn’t help him first.
The cat-hybrid began shaking violently and for the first time Jin noticed the clothes that he was wearing. He had a torn up and very dirty grey short-sleeve shirt, with ripped up filthy faded jeans and he was completely bare foot. Jin’s eyes went wide in shock, that was definitely not appropriate attire for someone to wear in the middle of winter.
Jin gaped at the poor kitten as he scanned his eyes over the cat’s body to give a quick examination.
His feet were torn up with cuts, scratches, blisters, and infected wounds that were oozing green puss. Some of the cuts were still bleeding and his feet were covered in dirt and mud. His arms and hands had a few scabs and bruises that were still healing, but they looked fine compared to his feet.
Through the huge rip in his shirt, Jin could see the cat’s ribs painfully poking out of his skin, they looked like they were going to break through the skin at any second.
And his hair was very unkept, it was matted and had dried mud all over it.
“Do you have an owner?” Worryingly asked Jin.
The cat slowly shook his head ‘no’ while still keeping his eyes on Jin. Jin frowned sadly and realized this was not going to be as simple as he thought it would be.
He could just walk away and leave the hybrid alone, after all he was not Jin’s responsibility. But there was something in the cats eyes that made Jin want to cry. The poor kitten looked so lost, scared, and alone. And there was no way Jin would be able to walk away knowing the cat was hurt and hungry.
“Can you come out here?” Asked Jin as he motioned the cat over. The hybrid narrowed his eyes and shook his head ‘no.’
Jin gave a small pout as he thought of how to gain the hybrid’s trust. He tapped his finger on his chin then looked down at his hand. He gave a small gasp and looked back at the hybrid.
“Are you hungry?”
The black eared cat began to frown sadly, but didn’t say anything. He was hungry, but he was scared to admit it. If the human found out, then he could use it against him and try to bribe him in to doing things that he didn’t want to do.
The cat watched as the human’s head disappeared out of sight, he stretched his head out curiously wondering if the human had left. But then he hear a crinkling sound before the Human’s head popped back up.
“Here.” He said cheerfully. The man’s smile helped relax some of cat’s nervousness, but he still didn’t trust him.
Jin watched the hybrid stretch his neck forward as he sniffed the air, trying to identify the object being held in front of him.
“It’s gamjajeon, it taste really good.”
The cat eyed Jin skeptically before slowly rising and taking a hesitant step forward.
“That’s it. Take it, it’s yours.” Encouraged Jin when the cat stopped moving and stayed out of reach.
The hybrid reached his hand out and held it an inch away from Jin’s. His eyes kept flicking between Jin’s hand and Jin’s face, trying to read his mind to make sure Jin wouldn’t tackle him all of the a sudden.
Jin kept his hand very still so he wouldn’t startle the kitten, he smiled at him warmly and waited for the cat to grab the gamjajeon.
After a few more seconds the cat’s hand shot out and grabbed the potato pancake, snatching it out of Jin’s hold and running back to the corner of the dumpster.
Jin flinch at the sudden movement, but he relaxed when he saw the hybrid shove the whole pancake in his mouth after taking a test bite first.
“See, I told you it was good.” Snickered Jin. “Do you want another one?”
The hybrid gave Jin a pleading look before nodding his head shyly.
“Let’s make a deal. How about I let you have all of this food,” Jin held up the plastic bag that was holding two carry out boxes of food. “And all you have to do is get out of the dumpster, how does that sound?”
The hybrid pouted at Jin and sunk further into the corner.
“I’ll just wait over here.” Jin backed away and sat down on the dirty alley floor while resting his back against the wall of the restaurant. “I’ll sit here for 30 minutes and if you don’t come out after 30 minutes, I’ll leave and never bother you again.”
Jin began pulling out the boxes of food to set them down next to him. He opened the boxes and began eating some of the food.
“Mmmm, this taste so good.” He said loudly. He made sure to take extra small bites so he could give the majority of it to the hybrid if he chose to come out.
“I wished there was someone I could share this with, so they could also enjoy this amazing food.” Jin smiled when he heard small noises coming from the dumpster.
“Wow, this sweet and sour pork is so crispy. There’s no way I can finish all of it on my own.” Announced Jin. More noises came from the trash can and soon two pointy ears and two dark eyes poked above the edge.
Jin looked down and pretended not to see him, instead he made a show of exaggeratingly dipping the pork into the sauce.
“Mmmmmm.” He hummed as he took a bite. “Delicious.”
The hybrid slowly crawled out of the dumpster and jump over the edge, he landed with a soft thump and sat down right where he landed.
He was sitting in front of Jin, but there was about 10ft between them. Jin slowly picked up the container of jajangmyeon and placed it in the center of the alley before going back to sit against the wall.
The hybrid kept his eyes on Jin as he reached forward and pulled the container into his lap. When Jin didn’t make a move to attack him, he relaxed and started shoving food into his mouth using his fingers.
“Sweetheart that’s not sanitary, here use these.” Jin picked up a pair of disposable chopsticks and got up to take them to the cat. However, he only made it two steps before the cat dropped the container and violently hissed at Jin, showing all his teeth.
Jin backed away quickly and pressed himself against the wall. His eyes were wide with fear and he started to doubt his decision.
*I’m so stupid, what am I doing? What if he has rabies? I don’t know anything about him. What if he’s aggressive, what if attacks me? His teeth definitely look sharp enough to rip my throat out.*
Jin’s thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of small sniffles and whimpers. He blinked his eyes to get rid of his thoughts and looked up at the hybrid. He realized the cat-hybrid had rolled himself into a ball and was crying with his knees pressed into his chest. Jin’s heart ached and all his doubt instantly vanished as he yearned to hug him close to his chest.
He took three steps forward and crouched down, making sure to stay out of the cat’s personal space.
“What’s wrong kitten?” He asked softly.
“I’m s-s-sorry, I d-didn’t mean to hiss at you.” Cried the poor hybrid.
“No no no no no, its okay. It was my fault, I shouldn’t have approached you.”
The cat was trembling violently and Jin couldn’t tell if it was from being cold or from being scared.
“C-can I hug you? Is it okay if I give you a hug?” Jin nervously looked at the quivering ball on the gross concrete floor, but got no answer.
After hesitating for thirty seconds Jin took a careful step forward and then another until he was standing right next to the cat. He sat on his knees and very carefully placed a shaky hand on the hybrid’s boney shoulder. The cat instantly stiffed, tensing all his muscles and started crying harder.
“P-please don’t h-hurt me, I’m s-sorry.”
Jin’s heart dropped to the pit of his stomach, “No kitten. Shhh, I won’t hurt you. Shhhh, you’re safe, I promise.” Jin moved his hand up and down the hybrids spine feeling every little vertebrae that stuck out. He decided now wasn’t the best time to hug the cat, since it might make him feel trapped and cause him more distress. Instead, Jin continued to gently rub his back until the tension slowly began to leave his muscles.
Once the cat understood that the man wasn’t going to beat him or kick him, he slowly uncurled himself and sat up. He stared at Jin unsure if he wanted to run or stay. There was something in the man’s eyes that brought him comfort, it reminded him of his mother’s eyes.
Jin took off his coat and slowly draped it over the cats shoulder. The cat pulled the coat tightly around himself to soak in all the warmth, Jin’s body heat had already warmed up the fabric so the hybrid had instant comfort on contact.
“Are you okay?” Question Jin. The hybrid gave a small nod and snuggled the coat tighter around himself.
“You know.... it would be warmer if we go to my apartment.” Jin looked at the cat hopefully. “I have many blankets and pillows.... I can even warm up the food so you can eat it while it’s hot.” Jin looked over at the abandoned noodles that were getting colder by the second.
The cat made a displeased noise and pushed himself away from the man. Jin deflated a little, but tried again.
“You can come over just to eat. Once you’re done eating, you can leave and I won’t stop you, I promise.”
The hybrid ran the thought through his head as he considered it. He was starving.
Three days ago he got lucky and found a half eaten loaf of bread in the trash can behind a supermarket, but he hasn’t eaten anything else since.
He would usually wait until midnight before going into the city to look for food, since at that time people were already home and wouldn’t see him. But he was too hungry to wait today. After the sun had set he decided to risk it all and went to find food.
The man didn’t look threatening and the whole purpose of him coming here was to find food. So maybe it wasn’t a bad idea to let the man feed him. There was always the possibility that he could try and kill him, but he was going to starve to death either way.
*If he tries to kill me, I’ll ask him to make it quick.* Concluded the cat in his head. The hybrid looked up at the man and gave a small sigh.
“Do we have a deal?” Jin looked at the hybrid eagerly. The cat looked down before nodding reluctantly. A wide smile grew on Jin’s face as he picked up the containers of food and put them back in the plastic bag.
“Okay great, come on.” Jin held his hand out to the cat who was still sitting on the floor. The hybrid hesitated for a moment before placing his hand in Jin’s.
Jin happily led them across the street and to the parking garage.
“This is my car.” Announced Jin as he pulled out his keys from his jean pocket and unlocked the doors.
He pulled open the passenger side and motioned for the hybrid to get in. The cat cautiously sniffed the air in car before climbing in and sitting. Jin smiled at him before pulling the seat belt across the cat and clicking it in place. The hybrid panicked a little and began pulling on the belt, but Jin quickly calmed him down.
“It’s okay it’s okay, it’s there to keep you safe.... And if you don’t wear it, the cops will give me a ticket, but the important part is that it keeps you safe.”
The hybrid looked down at the weird material, how was this supposed to keep him safe?
He watched as the man walked around the car and slid into the driver’s seat. The hybrid relaxed when he saw him put on his own seatbelt.
*okay, I don’t think he’s trying to chain me up. Unless he’s also chaining himself, but why would he do that?*
The cat tensed back up when the engine purred to life and caused the car to vibrate. He looked around frantically, regretting his decision of getting in.
Jin noticed his anxiety and began talking to the cat-hybrid to distract him from his nerves.
“I don’t live too far. Sometimes I walk to work or take the bus, but that’s mostly in the summer. It’s only a ten minute drive, so we should get there quick.”
And just like promised, they did arrive quickly.
The hybrid had easily calmed down with Jin’s constant talking and the soft rocking of the car that he didn’t even notice the car being parked. His eyes were slowly slipping shut, but he was startled awake by his car door opening.
“We’re here.” Cheered Jin as he reached to undo the hybrids belt. Jin held out his hand again, and this time the hybrid grabbed it more confidently.
They walked through the parking garage until they were in front of some doors, Jin opened the doors and walked to the end on the hallway were the elevator was.
The hybrid groaned as he walked into the elevator and began nervously shifting around, he couldn’t help but feel like he was walking to his own grave. The small enclosed room made him feel claustrophobic, but then Jin began singing out loud so he focused on that instead.
The elevator doors finally opened on the fifth floor and Jin excitedly walked out, still holding the cats hand. “This is my apartment!” He proudly notified as he pointed to the last door at the end of the hallway. He pulled out his keys and unlocked the door. They walked inside and stopped at the entrance. Jin shut the door, then toed off his shoes. He took his coat off the hybrid and put it on a hook by the door.
“The floor might be cold so wear these.” Jin bent down to pick up his house slippers and put them on the cats feet. He cringed at the sight of the painful looking wounds.
*I’ll ask him if I can treat his wounds after he's finish eating.*
“Come on, the kitchen is this way.” Jin began walking forward while the cat followed behind.
The hybrid was curiously looking around at the new sights and smells. The apartment wasn’t huge, but it was a decent size for someone to live comfortably. The kitchen, on the other hand, was pretty big and it had an island in the middle of the room.
“You can take a seat, while I warm up the food.” Call Jin as he pulled out a plate from one of the cupboards. He dump the container of noodles on the plate and place it in the microwave.
He turned around to check on the cat-hybrid and was left dumbfounded when he saw the hybrid sitting on the floor.
“Kitten, what are you doing on the floor?”
The cat looked at him confused, as if it was a ridiculous question. “I’m sitting,” he stated seriously. “Like you told me to.”
Jin walked over to the hybrid and crouched in front of him, “I meant in a chair silly.” He stood back up and walked to the island. Jin looked at the hybrid as he pulled out a chair, he patted the seat signaling the cat to sit.
The hybrid looked at him in shock and Jin instantly worried that he might have offended him somehow.
“What’s wrong?” He asked
“Animals aren’t allowed on furniture.” Responded the hybrid with a little gasp. It was Jin’s turn to be shocked.
“What? Who told you that?”
“Master Williams.” Shrugged the cat. Jin’s mouth hung open as he looked at the hybrid, he couldn’t believe his ears.
“Sweetheart, you’re not an animal, you’re a hybrid.” He explained gently.
The cat’s eyebrows twitched in confusion. “Isn’t that the same thing.”
“Not entirely. And even if you were an animal, this is my home and in my home you’re completely welcomed on any of the future. Come here, love.” Jin beckoned the hybrid over.
The cat stood up and walked over to the man. Jin gently guided his body over the chair and helped him sit in to it before pushing the chair in so the cat could comfortably lean on the table.
He was about to question the the cat about ‘Master Williams’ but the microwave began to beep.
*I’ll ask him later.*
Jin pulled the food out and gave it a quick stir to make sure it was evenly warmed before placing it in front of the cat with a pair of chopsticks. The human sat in the chair next to the hybrid and watched as the cat desperately shoveled scoops of food into his mouth.
“Do you have a name kitten?” Wondered Jin. The hybrid nodded his head as he swallowed a mouthful full of food.
“It’s Yoongi.”