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Taehyung had never wanted a hybrid.
In a way, hybrids were seen as a status symbol. Certain breeds are more high class, but in general, hybrids were expensive to care for, thus making them more a symbol of wealth.
But in Taehyung’s eyes, it was inhumane. Owning another being that was practically a human just felt so wrong.
And yet Taehyung who never had wished to own a hybrid, who was a broke college student and who believed owning hybrids was immoral, was sitting in a cafe with a hybrid across from him. His hybrid, though he didn’t like to use that phrasing.
On paper, he owned Jungkook, but in no way did he treat him like he did, even if it meant getting nasty looks from those around him.
In front of him, Jungkook was tearing into the sandwich in his hands, ripping at it with his teeth with a big smile on his lips. And Taehyung mirrored that expression, pure, unadulterated affection filling his gaze.
“Excuse me, sir,” a soft voice came from next to him, timid and almost fearful. A barista from the cafe stood next to him, her feet shifting nervously on the hardwood floor. Taehyung knew what she was going to say before the words even left her lips. “We’ll need you to leash your hybrid to have him in here. Some of the other patrons feel unsafe.”
Jungkook’s happy grunts stopped, his large, doe eyes lifting away from the sandwich he’d been enjoying. His tail was completely still against the chair, no more soft thumps as it wagged.
Fear filled his eyes.
And without a second thought, Taehyung stood up, giving the girl a small smile as he took his bag and coffee.
“We will be on our way, then,” his voice was polite, though a sharp stab of annoyance laced into every word. “Come on, Jungkook. You can finish that on our way home, okay?”
Jungkook’s eyes dropped as he stood from the chair, following Taehyung from the establishment, their hands slipping together.
Though Jungkook was a rare breed, a wolf hybrid, he was far from dangerous. He was shy, timid, scared of many humans. He had eyes that sparkled like the night sky and despite his sharp canines, he had a smile that resembled that of a bunny. He was sweet, and loved to hold hands. He couldn’t sleep alone and was scared wearing collars and thunderstorms.
Jungkook was not dangerous, but due to his breed, he was labeled as such.
It pained Taehyung to hear the rude remarks of people passing them on the street, telling him to put Jungkook down, that he was a danger to society, that he shouldn’t be among humans.
And if it pained Taehyung, he couldn’t imagine what it felt like for Jungkook to hear those words.
“I’m sorry.” The words left Jungkook’s lips the moment they stepped into Taehyung’s apartment. His head was hung low and his tail rested against his thighs.
Quickly, Taehyung shushed him, leading him over to the beat up couch in the living room. He gets Jungkook settled on the cushion before he kneels in front of him, holding the hybrid’s hands in his own.
“Listen to me, Jungkook. It’s not your fault, you have no reason to be sorry,” he murmured, though he knew his words were doing little to calm Jungkook. “Do you remember what I told you?”
Slowly, Jungkook nodded, his glassy eyes staring into Taehyung’s.
“I’m not a pet,” Jungkook whispered, his lip wobbling the moment the words left his lips.
“Exactly. You aren’t a pet, you aren’t a monster, you’re nothing they say you are.” Taehyung shifted to pull Jungkook into a tight hug, fingers curling into the loose sweater. “You don’t have to apologize for being you.”
Jungkook was silent in his arms, holding tightly onto Taehyung’s waist and soon, quiet whimpers mixed with sobs began to leave his lips.
It was a lot for Jungkook to take in, the sudden shift in how he was treated. Every time Taehyung would reaffirm that Jungkook was not dangerous, the hybrid would very quickly get emotional.
Taehyung was sure that was something Jungkook had never heard before.
You are not dangerous.
As time passed and minutes ticked by, Taehyung didn’t move. Even when his knees began to hurt and Jungkook’s sobs died down, he stayed put, holding the hybrid tight.
How strange it was that in only a couple weeks, he’d grown so fond, so attached to Jungkook. Hell, even after the first day of having Jungkook, he’d build up a strong attachment to him.
Jungkook was the first to pull away, sniffling quietly as he looked at Taehyung, his yellow eyes sparkling with tears. His fluffy ears were laid back against his head and Taehyung was quick to smooth his fingers over them, trying to prompt the hybrid to lift them again.
“Why don’t we go lay down? I’ll clean up your neck and then you can get some sleep, okay?” Quietly, Jungkook nodded, following Taehyung over to the bedroom.
He waited patiently on the bed as Taehyung grabbed the first aid kit from the bathroom, humming quietly to himself. When he stepped back into the bedroom, Jungkook’s ears were once agin perked up and his tail waved lazily behind him. He was much more relaxed and comfortable in their bed.
Jungkook’s previous owners hadn’t given him a proper bed. They’d given him a “hybrid bed”, which was basically just a dog bed. When Taehyung had heard that, he’d been horrified, his stomach twisting at just the thought of Jungkook curled uncomfortably on the floor without a blanket or even a pillow. How people could treat hybrids like animals was disgusting.
Keeping his touch light, Taehyung gently removed the gauze from around Jungkook’s neck, picking up the damp cloth he’d set on the bedside table. Discomfort twisted across Jungkook’s face as Taehyung dabbed at the healing puncture wounds on his neck.
“They’re healing really well,” he murmured, brushing some of Jungkook’s hair away from his neck to dab at the side of his neck. “We might be able to leave it unwrapped.”
“Really?” A pretty smile spread over Jungkook’s lips as he looked at Taehyung, eyes sparkling. The hybrid had voiced how tired he was of the bandages, so it was no surprise how excited he was at the idea of not wearing them.
So, seeing the excitement, Taehyung decided to leave the bandages off for the night, Jungkook’s tail thumping against the bed as he laid down, stretching his neck to feel the pillows against his skin.
“Hey, hey, hey, be careful.” Taehyung couldn’t keep the soft laugh from his words as he carded his fingers through Jungkook’s hair, stopping his movements. “We don’t need you opening them again.”
Looking up at Taehyung with a wide smile, Jungkook nodded, settling his head into the pillow comfortably. His ears twitched and his eyes were soon sliding closed. He always fell asleep so easily, Taehyung was a bit envious.
When Jungkook’s breathing began to even out, Taehyung shut off the lights, but instead of laying down next to Jungkook, he sat at the edge of the bed, staring out the window. The sky was grey and gloomy, just like it had been since the morning. Rain threatened to fall and Taehyung was glad they’d made it back before it started.
As he watched droplets slowly begin to form on the window, Taehyung was reminded of the day he’d found Jungkook, only a couple weeks earlier.
The sound of rain hammering against the windows echoed through the apartment, heavy gusts of wind throwing more water against the side of the building. Taehyung worried the windows would give out from the pressure.
Thunder sounded and lightning flashed across the sky. It was loud and it left Taehyung’s ears ringing, but it still did nothing to drown out the howl that pierced the air outside of the apartment. It sounded pained, distressed, scared.
It had Taehyung’s heart racing, panic rising in his chest.
And against his better judgement, Taehyung grabbed an umbrella, tugged on his shoes and sprinted from the apartment. He had no idea what the source of the sound was, but with how bad the weather was, he didn’t want to take the chance and leave any animals out in the cold.
Despite the umbrella above his head, Taehyung was quickly soaked, the wind whipping the rain into his face, blurring his vision. It was almost hard to walk with how hard the wind blew, his feet soaked from the puddles forming on the sidewalk. He should go back.
But another loud howl echoed through the air, followed by another flash of lightning. The call dissolved into a sharp cry. There was no way he could leave.
He followed the sound, whistled every so often to see if he could prompt a response, and soon, he could hear quiet whimpers nearby.
What he’d been expecting to find was an animal, a dog, but instead he found a hybrid. Some sort of dog hybrid, but a hybrid nonetheless. He was curled next to the fence around a nearby park wearing nothing but a thin t-shirt and sweatpands, a rope tied between his collar and the chain link fence. Taehyung wondered why he hadn’t removed the collar to free himself, but the closer he got, he could see blood mixing with the rain water on the hybrid’s skin, the sharp prongs of his collar puncturing his neck, digging into his skin.
Every movement, every breath, everything pressed them tighter into his neck, the sight making Taehyung sick to his stomach.
Rushing over to the fence, his approach caught the hybrid’s attention and he quickly curled in on himself, his wide eyes watching Taehyung in fear.
“Hey, don’t worry. I’m gonna help you,” he assured quickly, dropping his umbrella to the ground as he knelt down, his cold, shaking hands trying to undo the rope tied to the collar without pulling too much. Whines slipped from the hybrid’s lips when Taehyung’s hands tugged a bit too much at the collar and he quickly apologized.
It took a moment, but soon, the rope was falling free and the collar loosened, the sharp prongs slipping from the wounds, only making more blood trail down his neck.
With a sharp curse, Taehyung helped lift the collar from the hybrid’s neck, trying to be careful not to scratch him with the prongs. It clattered in Taehyung’s hands as he pulled it free and tossed it to the wet sidewalk.
“Come on. You can stay with me for the night.”
Keeping Jungkook only for the night had been the original plan. Taehyung was going to bring him to the shelter the next day, but something about the big doe eyes and the soft voice as the hybrid thanked him over and over had Taehyung’s heart melting.
Jungkook had been abandoned by his old owners in the cruelest way possible. They’d grown tired of him, especially when he grew up to be a large wolf hybrid, not a small and dainty dog like they’d wanted. And soon, they’d labelled him like many others had. Dangerous.
They’d most likely left him tied to the fence in a prong collar hoping that he would die before anyone found him.
It was chance that Taehyung had followed the source of the cries that night, and chance that he’d found Jungkook.
As Taehyung looked at Jungkook curled on the bed, sleeping soundly with a pillow hugged to his chest, he knew there had been no way he could have gotten rid of Jungkook. The moment he’d brought Jungkook into his home, he’d already fallen for the hybrid.
Jungkook was shy, timid and scared of many humans. He had eyes that sparkled like the night sky and despite his sharp canines, he had a smile that resembled that of a bunny. He was sweet, and loved to hold hands. He couldn’t sleep alone and was scared of wearing collars and thunderstorms.
Jungkook was not dangerous.