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"Hob, may I ask you something?"
They were in the living room, as they almost always were in the evening, in their favorite position. Dream was lying on the sofa, his head resting on Hob's lap while Hob read aloud.
Hob replied softly, running a hand through his lover's disheveled hair, "I'm listening."
Dream said softly, "I'm surprised you don't have a pet as you strike me as a dog person. Haven't you ever wanted one?"
He felt Hob freeze for a moment, his fingers twitching slightly in his hair, but Hob didn't answer.
"Hob?" Dream called softly as he rolled over onto his back to look at his lover's face, where he was surprised to see a sad expression.
Concerned, he raised his hand and placed it on Hob's cheek, asking softly, "What's wrong?"
Hob, visibly overcome with emotion, replied, "Well, when you live as long as I do, you experience more separation, more loss than any other normal person. It's the same with pets. After my fourth dog died, I was so heartbroken that I didn't have the strength to bond with another one.
He shrugged, but Dream didn't fall for it, and he slid his hand over Hob's neck and straightened up to sit beside him. Then he wrapped his arms around Hob and held him tight, saying softly against his hair, "Oh Hob, my love, I'm so sorry. I was so tactless. I should have known."
Hob shook his head and replied in a muffled voice, "Don't apologize, you can't help it. It's my life and I chose it with full awareness of all of this."
Once again Dream wondered how many times Hob had robbed himself of a human or canine or other bond just because being alone was more bearable than having his heart broken at every parting.
But now that he was with him, Dream could change that, so he loosened his embrace, pulled Hob away a little, and asked gently, "If you had the chance to have a dog that would never die like you, would you want one?"
Although Hob looked like he was thinking about it, he couldn't hide the spark of excitement in his eyes at the idea, and Dream added with a slight smile on his lips, "If you're up for it, there's only one condition."
Hob frowned and asked, confused, "Which one?"
Dream brought his face close to Hob's and murmured, a mischievous gleam in his eyes, "I still want to be the one who gets petted the most."
Hob chuckled against his lips, "Idiot," before kissing him gently, and when he pulled away, he added, "Condition accepted. I don't want my kitten to get jealous."
Dream looked offended, "Your kitten? A little respect, please. I'm not a kitten, I'm-"
"Dream."
"What?"
"Shut up and kiss me."
Dream obeyed immediately, pressing his lips to those of Hob, who knew exactly how to tame his wildcat.