Archive of Our Own ^beta

“Excuse me, could you help me find the volunteer check-in area?” 

Gunwook had thought this was a good idea when his academic advisor had brought it up.

An hour every Saturday in the summer, helping out at the local library, and reading to the various children that came for the library’s summer day program. With a few other community service programs mixed in, he’d have no time knocking out his twenty required hours of community service before the next term began. 

At least, that had been the plan when Gunwook shot an email off to the librarian in charge of the volunteer program and had been met with an enthusiastic yes, even after mentioning that he was a hybrid, and that he was going to be needing to earn community service hours for his university in exchange for being a part of the reading program. 

He’s not so sure that it was his best idea now that he’s met with the eyes of a very frightened human librarian, very different from the exuberance he’d received through the email he’d been sent. 

Not that a frightened expression was anything too new… 

The librarian in front of him has wide eyes behind his rimmed glasses as the book he had been putting away falls to the floor with a deafening loud noise that echoes through the whole library due to his surprise. 

Gunwook frowns, his ears pressing flat down against his head in embarrassment, “Sorry, sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.” 

“No, no, it’s fine,” the librarian says, hurrying at once to grab the book he had been holding from the ground. “What was it you needed?”

“Volunteer check-in,” Gunwook says, though he’s less sure that this is a good idea now. Maybe he could just turn and go. Twenty hours of picking up litter around Seoul would surely be better than frightening the poor library patrons. Still, he’s here. He might as well not let the money he spent on the bus fare over here go to waste and at least get one hour of his community service checked off. 

“Oh! Oh, you need Matthew!” 

Yes, that’s right, that had been the name of the librarian that had emailed him back.

Which was very clearly not the librarian that he had frightened, whose name tag cutely reads out ‘ I’m Zhang Hao! Ask me about my favorite book! ’

Zhang Hao does a full turn, spinning around dramatically on the spot to point in the direction of a much more colorful section of the library. Now that Gunwook is looking at it, it seems obvious that the section Zhang Hao is pointing to is clearly the children’s section. A logical place for a ‘reading to children’ event to occur within. 

“Matthew,” Zhang Hao shouts. “Matthew! You have a new volunteer!”

Gunwook’s pretty sure you’re not supposed to yell in the library, but he’s not the librarian here, Zhang Hao is. And as soon as Zhang Hao shouts out across the library, a new face appears, popping up from behind the circulation desk in the children’s section of the library. 

The first thing he notices is that the other librarian is cute, decked out in bright colors that remind Gunwook of the emails with far too many exclamation points and emoticons inside it to be considered professional. 

The second thing he notices is a pair of orange ears atop the librarian’s head. A fox hybrid clearly, from his coloring. No wonder Matthew hadn’t even been phased by Gunwook mentioning that he was a hybrid in his email to ask if he could volunteer, seeing as the children’s librarian was one himself. 

Gunwook relaxes a little as the other hybrid approaches them, Matthew greeting him with a smile, “You must be our newest volunteer, Park Gunwook, right?” 

He nods, “That’s me.” 

“Perfect, perfect, come this way, let me introduce you to the kids,” Matthew says, guiding Gunwook away from Zhang Hao and over in the direction of the children’s section of the library instead. 

There’s a good handful of children gathered around the space, about twenty or so, of various ages, coloring pictures at a small table or lingering near their parents. Along with a few other hybrids and non-hybrids mingling about that seem not to have any children of their own.  

It’s easy to tell who the volunteers are due to the name tag stickers on their shirts labeling them with their names and the word ‘volunteer.’ Two of the other volunteers are hybrids, a cat and a bunny hybrid respectively, while the rest are all non-hybrids. 

Matthew takes a similar name tag from his desk, peeling it off its sticky backing before attaching it to Gunwook’s shirt, and starts explaining the setup to him. “Arts and craft time is about to end, and then you just have to find a spot to sit and some of the kids will come up and ask you to read them a book for story time. Most of them have favorite volunteers, but they always get amazed when a new face shows up, so I’m sure you’ll have far too many of them asking you to read to them today. Don’t feel that you have to read every book that they give you, some of them try to bring a whole stack, it can be a bit overwhelming.”

Gunwook nods along as Matthew speaks.

A lot of this, Matthew had already explained to him via email, so he was prepared for this. An hour of reading picture books to children shouldn’t be that hard.

Hopefully. 

The only thing Gunwook was really worried about was - “They won’t be too scared of me, will they?” 

“Why would they?” 

There’s genuine surprise in the other hybrid’s voice, as if he really couldn’t think of any reason why people might be scared of Gunwook. 

Gunwook was well aware of the picture that he made to people that didn’t know him. 

He’d seen people in grocery stores steering their children in other directions instead of going down the aisle that he was in, or people hurrying faster down the streets at night to get away from where he was walking. Part of it surely had something to do with the sheer size of him, Gunwook had always been a big boy even when he was younger. Something that had been a benefit to him while playing sports when he was younger had quickly turned into something that could be classified as ‘intimidating’ once he’d gotten older and kept growing. 

And that wasn’t even counting his hybrid genes. While canine types of hybrids were fairly common, there was a big difference between a poodle hybrid or a pug hybrid and a wolf hybrid. 

Even though he and Matthew were technically both canine hybrids, there were very clear differences in their builds, probably a side effect of their animal genes. 

Matthew was much smaller than him, just like a fox was much smaller than a wolf, with sharp eyes looking over Gunwook now, “You’d be surprised, but prejudices are learned behavior, most children couldn’t care less if the person reading to them is a hybrid or not. They’re just happy to have you there, and even if they do care, you’ll do fine! Everyone loves a cute little puppy!” 

Gunwook wants to protest that he’s neither cute, nor little, nor technically a puppy.

But Matthew doesn’t give him time to protest, he just pushes Gunwook in the direction of the children.

“Friends! We have a new reader,” Matthew says, introducing him to the children. “This is Gunwook-ssi, and he’s going to be helping us out during story time today! Let’s start cleaning up arts and crafts so story time can begin, okay?”

There’s a flurry of movement, all at once the children stand up, racing to hand off their art projects to parents waiting around the library, or tuck them into backpacks before they start racing around the stacks in search of books to read. 

Matthew gives him, one last, “Good luck,” and a pat on the back before escaping to the safety of his desk, leaving Gunwook in the midst of the children. 

On second thought, maybe this was a terrible idea.

Suddenly, a few days of hard labor picking up litter in the sun for his community service doesn’t sound nearly as bad as being lost to the chaos that was twenty children under the age of six racing around with books in their hands. 

Before Gunwook can turn tail and run, one of the kids comes up to him, tugging on the bottom of his shirt to get his attention, “Gunwook-hyung, will you read to us?” 

Two more boys materialize beside the first boy’s side in seconds, one of them with a stack of books in his hands, “Please, please, Gunwook-hyung.” 

Maybe he could make it through at least one day of this. 

Just maybe. 

“Yeah, I think I can do that.” 

“This way, Gunwook-hyung,” one of the other boys grabs his hands, tugging him in the direction of some bean bags to sit on, “We gotta get the good spot before Yujin-hyung’s team gets it!” 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🦊୧┈• ｡ﾟ

“Ah, Seokmae-yah! So predictable! So obvious when there’s someone you find attractive around,” Hanbin teases, resting his arms on the circulation desk and blocking off Matthew’s view of the library’s newest volunteer.

A volunteer that Matthew had definitely been keeping an eye on only because the other hybrid looked so nervous to be here, and not because of any other reason, despite what the wiggling of Hanbins’ eyebrows seems to suggest. 

Matthew fake gags, as Hanbin flutters his eyelashes at him. “Don’t worry, I got over my crush on you the second you opened your mouth.” 

“Not me,” Hanbin replies, just shaking his head, “The boy you’ve been staring at for the last hour.” 

Matthew does his best to feign complete innocence looking at Hanbin, with what he hopes is a pleasantly perplexed expression as he tells him, “I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about.” 

Hanbin just laughs and asks, “What’s his name?” 

The appropriate answer of someone completely innocent would probably be ‘Whose name. ’ Matthew, however, is not such a quick thinker and reflexively replies, “Gunwook,” before he can remember to defend himself from Hanbin’s suspicious eyebrows. 

Matthew ignores the looks of success at having gotten the answer he wanted on the other hybrid’s face, and scrambles to tell Hanbin in a hurried whisper, “But I wasn’t staring at him for that reason. I’m just keeping an eye on him, because he seemed nervous! The poor little puppy! I swear those kids were going to eat him alive, hyung, you saw it! I was making sure he didn’t need to be rescued!” 

“Mhmm… Sure, excuses excuses,” the cat hybrid replies with a swish of his tail and a far less quiet tone. “Whatever helps you sleep at night, Seokmae-yah!”

As if Hanbin’s any better. 

Matthew is well aware of why Hanbin decided to volunteer at the library for the summer reading program, despite the fact that he was a kindergarten teacher and saw more than enough children during the school year (enough that he should be taking the summer off).

“Oh go away, hyung,” Matthew says, shooing at Hanbin. Though Hanbin hardly budges at all, just continues to laugh at him from his position at the edge of the circulation desk. “You don’t even work here! You’re just here to flirt with my coworkers!”

“Not coworkers, just one coworker,” Hanbin corrects.

Matthew flicks a paperclip at him for his sass, which the cat hybrid dodges all too easily. 

“And I’m not just here to flirt with Zhang Hao,” Hanbin replies, not even bothering to pretend that isn’t most of the reason why he’s here, “I’m also here to see you, my best friend, who I miss so much when you’re away.” 

“We live together,” Matthew reminds him. “You see enough of me, and-” 

“Matthew-ssi, sorry to interrupt,” a familiar voice says, interrupting Matthew’s attempts to shame Hanbin for his own obvious flirting attempts. Matthew looks around Hanbin’s shoulder to where Gunwook stands, he’d let Hanbin distract him enough that he’d lost sight of their newest volunteer reader. 

Gunwook still seems nervous, despite the fact that Matthew had watched him carefully over the last hour or so, and had seen the children taken to Gunwook at once, eager to have the puppy read to them. Gunwook, for his part, had been incredibly gentle with the children, and careful around them. Almost as if he was frightened of getting into trouble or scaring them. 

“All finished, Gunwook-ah?”

Gunwook nods his head, holding a crisp piece of paper out in his hand for Matthew to sign. Matthew’s signed plenty of community service forms for high school students and college students before, so he knows what to do, taking the paper and writing down how long Gunwook volunteered with them before signing it with a flourish. 

He can’t help but skim a look over the paper as he does so.

There were two reasons people came in to volunteer at the library. Well, three types if one counted Hanbin and his purely flirtatious motivations, but Hanbin was an outlier and should not be counted.

The usual sort were either overachievers who were looking to pad up applications for university or graduate school with hours helping out in the community to prove that they were the compassionate and generous sort, exactly who you would want filling the ranks at the school.

Matthew had assumed from his first impression of Gunwook that the other hybrid would be that sort of person.

However, the form in front of Matthew is one he’s seen far too often. One in which community service hours had been mandated, after committing some sort of infraction at one’s school. Community service in this case was a punishment, rather than a choice. 

But Gunwook hadn’t seemed like the delinquent type. Sure, he was a big hybrid, but dog hybrids often tended to be on the larger side, depending on their breed. And while he had frightened Hao, a strong wind could frighten Hao, so that wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. 

He wants to ask about how Gunwook ended up in this situation, but it hardly seems his place to ask when they’ve only just met, and Hanbin is still leaning against the side of the circulation desk eyeing the two of them with a vaguely suspicious look. 

So instead, Matthew just hands the form back to Gunwook and says, “Hopefully the kids didn’t scare you away. It would be nice to have you back next weekend if you’re available to come read again?”

Gunwook still seems uncomfortable though, his ears drooping down as he tucks his form away in his backpack, “Yeah I… I think I’ll be back, Matthew-ssi.” 

“Perfect,” Matthew replies, “And feel free to come back to the library any time, even when you’re not volunteering, the library is always open to new patrons!” 

“I’ll keep that in mind, Matthew-ssi,” he replies, though he still seems nervous. 

Matthew smiles at him with a reassuring smile, before saying, “Matthew-hyung.”

“Ah,” Gunwook says, his cheeks turning just a little bit pink as he says, “Thank you, Matthew-hyung.” 

At least Hanbin has the decency to wait until Gunwook has given them both another quick farewell and headed out the door of the library to catch his bus back to wherever he lives before he starts up again - “So what was that you were saying about just watching to make sure the kids didn’t scare him?” 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🐺୧┈• ｡ﾟ

He tells himself that it’s only because he really does have nothing better to do this summer that he ends up at the library again, sooner rather than later. 

Without any summer classes on his roster and no job, Gunwook had been spending most of the summer wasting away in his apartment or at the gym. The gym is preferable to his apartment for many reasons, including, but not limited to, the fact that unlike his apartment, the air conditioning in the gym actually worked. However, the library also has air conditioning. 

Along with a few other benefits. 

“Gunwook-ah! You came back!” 

He blames the fact that he gets a little shy suddenly at Matthew’s excited tone that, other than the receptionist at the gym he goes to, Gunwook hasn’t really talked to anyone else since last Saturday.

He’d moved off campus to an apartment of his own for the summer and next school year, which meant no roommates, something that was both a plus side and a down side at the same time. 

He was a little lonely. 

Though he’d be hard pressed to admit it outloud, and the librarian had told him just a few days ago that he could come back to the library any time that he wanted. Though judging from the surprised and slightly confused expression on Matthew’s face, that offer may just have been kind words and not a genuine one. 

That familiar nervousness clamors up inside of Gunwook as he watches the fox hybrid’s ears twitch as he asks Gunwook, “You do know it’s not Saturday, right?” 

Gunwook nods a little, though his voice lilts up at the end with a questioning tone as he reminds Mattthew, “You said I could come any time, not just on Saturdays…?” 

“That I did!” Matthew says, nodding quickly and smiling at him, “I was just making sure! When I was a student I used to lose track of the days whenever I was on break, and then I’d end up missing things, or showing up early for things, or on the wrong day all together. Actually, my roommate Hanbin eventually bought a calendar just to hang up right next to our door and forced me to get into the habit of crossing the days off before I went to bed. That way I always knew what day came next and - oh! Sorry! I’m rambling at you, oh no!”

“It’s alright, Matthew-hyung,” Gunwook tells him. “I don’t mind!”

Matthew had been speaking almost too fast to comprehend, his accent making it even harder for Gunwook to keep up with what he was saying, but Matthew had been smiling at him and seemed happy to talk, so Gunwook couldn’t help himself from nodding along, even if he only caught half of what Matthew was saying. 

“Sorry, sorry, you probably came here for a reason! What can I help you with today, Gunwook-ah,” Matthew asks him, suddenly sitting up straight at his desk and doing his best to appear professional. 

The problem was that Gunwook hadn’t really thought of a reason why he was coming here.

Saying the free air conditioning didn’t really feel appropriate, nor did admitting that he's mostly wanted to come and see Matthew again. 

Gunwook scrambles his brain to try and think of why people normally go to the library. He’d gone to his university library during the school year a few times to study, but he had no classes, so no reason to be studying now.

Which means the only proper reason to go to the library now was to find a book to read, but to do that he would need - “A library card.” 

“Oh! Did you lose yours last time you were here,” Matthew asks. “We have a lost and found box! I’m not sure if anyone turned one in, but you can go check, it’s over at the main circulation desk, just ask Hao-hyung to get it for you!”

To be fair, that probably would’ve been the appropriate place to go and get a library card, rather than the circulation desk of the childrens’ section, seeing as he was very much not a child. But the librarian that he accidentally frightened last time had been working behind that counter, and Gunwook wasn’t here to see him.

He was here to see Matthew. 

“I didn’t lose mine,” Gunwook explains. “I don’t have one.”

Matthew’s pointed fox ears pique up in surprise at that, before settling a little as he says, “Silly Gunwookie, you don’t have to have a card for just this library! All the libraries in the city use the same card! Whichever card you use for the library near your home will work here!” 

Gunwook did not know that, though it hardly matters because - “Ah… I, actually, don’t normally go to the library. So, I don’t have one at all.” 

Matthew gasps, clearly horrified by the fact that Gunwook is not a regular visitor of any library, “How do you even live without a library card!?” 

He’d had one before, admittedly, in the small town he’d grown up in before moving to the city, but that one wouldn’t work here, and it hadn’t even been much for an official card anyways. Just a laminated piece of paper with a photo of him from middle school and his name written on it, that the old woman that ran the small library in his town would use to copy his name into her notebook of who had a book checked out. 

Though as he’d gotten older, he’d had less and less time to read for fun in high school and then at university… Everything had become such a mess so quickly that he’d never at any point during his first year had thought to sit down and open a book. 

He’s pretty sure the university library only has non-fiction books anyways, not that he’s really delved through the shelves to be sure though. 

Gunwook shrugs, aiming for casualness as he explains, “I’ve been too busy studying, that’s all, Matthew-hyung. I just haven’t had time to read, but it’s summer break now, so I thought checking out a book might be nice.” 

“Yes! Excellent plan!”

He watches as Matthew carefully flips through the various files and folders on his desk before finally pulling out an application for a library card and placing it on the desk between them. 

“Now! You fill this out, while I go pick out some books for you to read,” Matthew says, pushing the application across the desk to Gunwook and handing him a pen to fill it out with. Once he’s done so, he quickly grabs a sign that says he will return soon and places it at the edge of the circulation desk. “I’ll be right back!”

“Matthew-hyung, you don’t have to do that. I’m sure I can find something to read myself,” Gunwook says.

Though even as he says the words, he glances out towards the rest of the library, already beginning to feel a little overwhelmed by the sheer size of all the shelves upon shelves of books filling the space around them.

Thankfully, Matthew seems to ignore his insistence that he’ll be fine. 

Just giving Gunwook a smile and saying, “Let hyung, help you, it’s my job, after all.” 

He can’t help it, the way his heart suddenly seems to beat faster in his chest, when Matthew turns that bright smile his way. There’s something about the other hybrid that just draws him in and makes him feel more comfortable.

It probably has something to do with the fact that they’re both types of canine hybrids, and that despite growing up in a small town full of hybrids, he hadn’t managed to make any other hybrid friends (or friends at all, to be fair) since coming to the city. 

Matthew’s not even really his friend. 

Just a kind stranger. 

But it’s been so long since someone treated Gunwook with kindness that he can’t help but feel a bit more at ease with how brightly Matthew beams at him and how Matthew so clearly wants to help him (even if it is just because it’s his job). 

“Okay, Matthew-hyung, if you insist.” 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🦊୧┈• ｡ﾟ

“Oh I almost forgot to tell you, I read the book you recommended, Matthew-hyung,” Gunwook tells him, the next time he comes by to volunteer at the library.  “It was really good.” 

Matthew beams at him. “I’m glad.” 

He’d been hoping that he’d gotten Gunwook’s taste right when he’d picked out some books for him to read. Part of the job of being a good librarian was being able to find the right book for each and every person that came into the door.

Matthew would say that he got it right about ninety percent of the time, with a small margin for error. 

But he had really hoped that Gunwook would be one of the ones he did get right, partly because it was the first book Gunwook had ever checked out of the library, but mostly because he liked Gunwook. 

The other hybrid was sweet, in a puppy like way, despite clearly not being a puppy anymore.The kindness he’d shown with the kids on both days that he’d come to volunteer had been proof of that much. 

Gunwook hadn’t even seemed phased when one of the kids today had clambered up on top of him while he was reading to try and tug at his wolf ears. Something which Matthew knew from experience hurt quite a bit. He’d just gently redirected the child to playing with a fidget toy instead of his ears before continuing the story unbothered. 

“Are you checking out the next one in the series?” 

Gunwook nods, holding the book up, along with his volunteer form. “I’ve got it right here.” 

Matthew takes the book and form, signing the form as usual, before moving to check out the next book in the series for Gunwook to read.

“You’ll have to tell me what you think of it next week,” Matthew tells him. “Or… actually here,” Matthew says, holding out his hand, “Give me your phone, I’ll put in my number.” 

It may have been too forward of a move, especially given the fact that he’d really only talked to Gunwook a few times before this. 

But despite that, Gunwook offers up phone at once, following Matthew’s directions without any hesitation, like an obedient puppy. Quickly Matthew saves his number in Gunwook’s phone, adding a cute fox emoticon next to his name for good measure before handing the phone back over to Gunwook. 

“Now this way you can text me what you think once you finish without having to wait until next weekend!” 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🐺୧┈• ｡ﾟ

Gunwook spends the next evening curled up in his apartment so that he can delve into the book that Matthew had recommended to him.

It’s not that he had any other plans admittedly, but he has to admit it is sort of nice to just sit and relax in the evening. He’d made himself some snacks, bought a soda from the convenience store down the street, and then hunkered down in his apartment. 

Normally on nights like this, he’d go head to the gym for a late night session, or maybe to a pc cafe to play games, or watch some anime that he’d been meaning to catch up on. A book isn’t usually Gunwook’s idea of a relaxing evening in. Since coming to university, all that he’s had time to read are academic books or papers, though now without classes for the summer, at least he didn’t have any of that sort of reading to do. 

Now though, he has free time and a book in his hands. 

The cool evening air coming in his open window, with a fan helping to circulate it around the room, makes the heat not too unbearable. A perfect setting to finally try reading the next book in the series. He’d liked the first one Matthew had recommended a lot, and he supposes if anyone would have good judgment when it came to books, then it would probably be a librarian. 

Two hours later of doing nothing but reading the book, he finds himself agreeing with that assessment. 

The book is so good and specific to his tastes that he swears it’s as if Matthew had been able to see inside of his mind to pick out the perfect book just for him. The struggles the hybrid protagonist of the stories goes through are familiar enough to hit home even if the main character is a regular dog hybrid rather than a wolf hybrid. Admittedly, it is a young adult book, Matthew having confessed that his experience as a children’s librarian extends purely to the course of books intended for children, but despite the fact that the book is aimed for an audience a bit younger than Gunwook himself, the story is good. 

He’ll have to tell Matthew how much he enjoys the story next time he sees him, or… Well… Matthew had given Gunwook his number with the express purpose of Gunwook texting him his thoughts on the book when he finished, and while he wasn’t quite finished yet, he’s sure Matthew wouldn’t mind him telling him his thoughts midway through. 

Gunwook grabs his phone off where he’d set it aside to charge and scrolls through his contacts to try and find where Matthew had saved himself in his phone earlier. 

The contact Matthew made for himself is cute, the contact name as a cute fox emoticon next to Matthew’s name, and the profile picture a selfie that Matthew must have taken while he was making the contact, because it’s the exact outfit he was wearing at the library yesterday. 

Gunwook’s heart flutters a little in his chest.

He’s thought that Matthew was cute from the first second he met him, and more time chatting with and getting to know the older hybrid has only made him realize that Matthew was even cuter than he first realized. His fox ears are cute, his sense of style is cute, the sweet way he smiles is cute. All of it an altogether deadly combination. 

Gunwook has always had a weakness for cute things, and Matthew is no exception. 

Which is dangerous, considering he’s sure Matthew doesn’t see him as more than just one of the many volunteers at the library.

But at the same time… Matthew had given Gunwook his phone number. 

How many other volunteers were on such a friendly basis with Matthew?

Surely, not that many.

Gunwook clicks on Matthew’s contact to start a conversation with him, his first message to Matthew a quick flurry of words about how much he’s enjoying the book that he’s been reading, and how he’s convinced that Matthew is reading his mind.

It’s only after he’s sent the message that he realizes he never gave Matthew his number, and that the fox hybrid probably has no clue who is texting him. 

He flushes in embarrassment at not having introduced himself first, even though there is nobody around to actually see him as he types out a quick follow up message, ‘this is gunwook btw’ and then another panicked ‘i hope its really okay that im texting you hyung!! sorry if im bothering you!!’ when a reply from Matthew doesn’t come in right away. 

Gunwook can’t even bring himself to pick up the book and start reading again, too anxious now as he waits for Matthew’s reply to his messages. Mentally kicking himself for sending three messages instead of one well composed one. 

Though he need not have worried, because five minutes later the phone screen lights up with an incoming message that’s mostly a series of heart emoticons and ‘ of course you can message me any time!’ His phone buzzes again with another message from Matthew, a second later, ‘sorry i took so long tho! was in the shower! Im free now tho!!!” 

This time when he flushes, it’s from something that’s very much not embarrassment. Gunwook tries his best not to think about Matthew in the shower (it’s hardly appropriate to think about it while he’s actively texting the other), as he closes his book and focuses instead on messaging Matthew. 

‘Its okay hyung if you’re too busy we can talk later, ’ Gunwook messages him. 

‘Nonesene!! ’ Matthew’s reply comes quicker this time, ‘ hyungs never too busy for my favorite puppy!’ 

His cheeks burn even more at Matthew’s words. 

Eyes fixating on two words ‘favorite puppy.’ 

Surely, Matthew didn’t call everyone he met his favorite puppy.

Surely, that had to mean something . 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🦊୧┈• ｡ﾟ

“Now, now, let’s see, who could you be texting so much?”

“Hey, give that back!” 

Matthew’s reflexes are quick, but not nearly as quick as the cat hybrid that had slipped Matthew’s phone right out of his fingers without any trouble at all. Hanbin just gives him a smug little smile as he curls himself up in one of their armchairs, scrolling through Matthew’s phone like it’s the morning paper and not Matthew’s own private messages. 

“Ah, ah, ah, as expected,” Hanbin laughs a little to himself, “Sweet little Gunwookie again.” 

There’s nothing particularly incriminating in there. 

All the incriminating things are thoughts kept locked up away in the back of Matthew’s mind, never to spill out where anybody can see them. 

Though what there is on his phone is a three days of near constant messaging back and forth with his new favorite library patron. 

He’d given Gunwook his number for purely innocent purposes, wanting to help guide the younger on his literary journey and give him someone to talk about the book he was reading with, since Matthew knows first hand how much more enjoyable a story can be when you have someone to talk about it with. 

It’s just that things had spiraled from there to talking about things unrelated to books.

Still all completely innocent, like what Gunwook was studying at university (Economics! Wow!) , to what Gunwook’s favorite fruit (Grapefruit! Yum!) to Gunwook’s favorite color (Red! Cool!) and more like that. 

But then one question had led to another and another, and suddenly Gunwook had been explaining his workout routine to Matthew, and Matthew in turn replying with his own, and then maybe he’d taken a few photos at the gym to show off a little, but that was purely from an innocent standpoint of their mutual love for working out. 

Nothing more than that.

Certainly not a - “Seok Matthew! Is this a nude photo!? Are you sending nudes on the internet!”

“It’s not a nude,” Matthew protests, scrambling up to finally grab his phone back from Hanbin. “It’s just a photo from the gym. You were there when I took it!” 

“I didn’t know you were taking it for your puppy though,” Hanbin counters, making another grab for Matthew’s phone. This time, the fox hybrid knows what’s coming, and keeps his phone far away from Hanbin’s grabby hands. 

“We’re just comparing our gym routines, that’s all,” Matthew insists. 

Hanbin hums like he doesn’t really believe him, “Did he send you a nude photo back, too?”

“It’s none of your business if he did,” Matthew counters. Which in hindsight is basically giving Hanbin the answer he was looking for. Matthew ignores the pleased smirk on the cat hybrid’s face. “And like I said, it’s not a nude, it’s a tasteful gym photo shared between two guys with mutual love for their workout routines.” 

“Oh, is that what the kids are calling it these days?” 

“You do the same thing with Hao-hyung,” he counters. “Sort of.” 

Technically, Hanbin doesn’t directly send Hao a photo every time he goes to the gym, but he does post gym selfies to his Instagram story every time he goes and takes one that he likes, and then obsessively checks his notifications until he can confirm that Hao has watched his story. 

In comparison, Matthew’s situation actually looks a lot more classy. 

“Yes, but see the difference here Seokmae-yah is that unlike you, I am willing to admit that I want Zhang Hao to fuck me.” 

“I don’t want Gunwook to fuck me!” 

“Really? You want it the other way around? You know, I always thought you were more of a receiver than a giver, but I guess you learn something new every day!”

“Hyung! That’s not what I meant!” 

“Sure, it’s not, Seokmae-yah, sure it’s not!”

｡ﾟ•┈୨🐺୧┈• ｡ﾟ

He should have known that good things couldn’t last forever. 

For him they so rarely did, but things had been going so well for the last four weeks that he’d been volunteering at the library, and so well with texting Matthew, and so well with Gunwook occasionally stopping by the library to chat every once in a while that foolishly, Gunwook had let his guard down. 

“What are you waiting on?” 

Gunwook turns in the direction of the person who had spoken. 

They’d talked a few times while waiting for the bus after volunteering. The bunny hybrid was still in high school, and had explained that he was volunteering on the weekends to pad up his applications for university. Gunwook had pointedly avoided mentioning why he had to do community service hours to the little bunny, not wanting to scare him off when he’d greeted Gunwook kindly every time they’d had to wait for their respective buses home to show up. 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Gunwook explains to Yujin. “You can go on without me. I need to wait for Matthew-hyung to sign my form.” 

“If Matthew-hyung is busy, you could just go ask Hao-hyung to sign your paper. He signed mine,” Yujin tells him, pointing him in the direction of the main circulation desk, where the familiar form of librarian Zhang Hao is working to rearrange the trinkets on his desk and very much not occupied. 

Despite their only real encounter so far having been the one where Gunwook startled the non-hybrid, he’s sure that if he walked over there and asked, Zhang Hao would sign his form without any hesitation or issue. 

But he doesn’t want Zhang Hao to do it. 

He wants Matthew to sign his form, and then he wants Matthew to smile at him with that beaming smile, and ask him what his thoughts were on whatever book he’d been reading lately. 

Texting Matthew about the books has been great and all, but he can’t help himself from still wanting more of Matthew’s attention. 

He can wait until Matthew’s done talking with the other library patrons, even if that means missing the next bus. 

“Actually, I think I’m going to go find a book to check out,” Gunwook tells Yujin, “I’ll see you next week?” 

The bunny hybrid gives him a mildly suspicious look, but eventually he just says, “Okay, if you say so,” and heads off to leave the library, leaving Gunwook alone. 

Despite his words really just being an excuse to have Yujin leave without him, Gunwook finds himself wandering towards the stack anyways. It’s probably a better look for him to be searching for a book to read, rather than lingering around the children’s section of the library until Matthew is free. 

That way, it’ll be less obvious that he’s waiting for Matthew’s attention, specifically. 

More just a coincidence, like he accidentally forgot to get his form signed, when he comes back around later to get his book checked out by Matthew. 

With that in mind, he moves along the stacks with a purpose. 

Every other time he’d wanted to read something before, Matthew had been the one to pick a book out for him. Now faced with the random stack that he had ducked into, Gunwook finds the task of choosing what to read a lot harder. 

Gunwook pulls a few out with interesting sounding titles, skimming the summaries on the back, before eventually putting them back in place, for a few minutes before finally finding one that sounds interesting enough that he should be able to force himself to finish it for the sake of the plot, even if the writing isn’t all that engaging. 

He moves backwards without thinking to check if anyone has come up behind him now that he’s secured a decent enough sounding book, a purely innocent move, but one that’s clearly not perceived as such by the woman that had been standing behind him, looking at books on the opposite shelf, when he inadvertently knocks her over while stepping backwards. 

“Sorry, sorry,” Gunwook says quickly, hurrying quickly to reach down to help her up, “I didn’t see you there!”  

However, before he can take her hand and help her up, the woman reaches up to slap his hand away, “Don’t you dare touch me, you monster!” 

Gunwook pulls his stinging hand back towards himself, his wolf ears and tail dropping down into a submissive position at once. This isn’t the first time he’s heard words like that since moving to the city. 

Despite the fact that hybrids and non-hybrids had been integrated together in cities for longer than Gunwook had been alive, there were always some people that still held onto backwards stereotypes and beliefs. Saying that hybrid’s were unnatural, or were dangerous to be around. 

Especially hybrids of predator species like Gunwook.

“I’m sorry,” he tells her again, trying to make his sincerity clear. “It was an accident, I swear.” 

“Oh sure it was,” the woman sneers, before wobbling up to stand on her feet. Gunwook watches with a feeling of ever increasing horror as the woman stomps away from him in the direction of the circulation desk that Zhang Hao works at, her voice rising loudly as she speaks, “Excuse me! There’s an incredibly aggressive hybrid over there that needs to be removed from this library at once! He came up to me and shoved me out of nowhere!”

“No, that’s not what happened at all,” Gunwook tries to defend himself, but his voice comes out quietly. Far too quiet for any of the people that have now turned to look at him with frightful looks to hear. “It was an accident. I…” he trails off.

It’s just like before.

Everyone looking at him.

Everyone afraid of him.

Everyone thinking that he hurt someone. 

That he might hurt them, and that he - “Gunwook-ah, come with me.” 

He’s shaking now and clearly making a scene, terror flooding him at Zhang Hao’s words. 

Zhang Hao is going to kick him out of the library,

And then he’s never going to be allowed in here again. 

And then he’s never going to finish his community service hours.

And then his academic career is over.

But worst of all - 

Far worse than any of that, is that if he’s kicked out now, he’ll never get to see Matthew again. 

He should’ve just had Zhang Hao sign his form earlier, and then he could have been on his bus home already, and none of this would’ve happened, and - “Gunwookie, I’m here, breathe with me.” 

It’s Matthew that’s beside him now, materializing seemingly out of nowhere, and placing a hand gently onto Gunwook’s back, guiding him away from the prying eyes of everyone else. 

Gunwook’s heart stutters in his chest in panic. He’s not sure he’d be able to handle it if Matthew, who has always been so kind and welcoming to him, ends up being the one to banish him from ever stepping in the library again. 

“Please, don’t kick me out, it was an accident, hyung, I swear,” Gunwook whispers to him, not wanting to be heard by anyone else. 

Matthew doesn’t reply to him, instead he addresses the woman at the desk with Zhang Hao to say, “I’m going to take him to the back for questioning. Don’t worry, ma’am, we’ll handle all of this.” 

Gunwook whimpers, ducking his head down, his tail hanging down low in shame as he follows where Matthew guides him into one of the library’s backrooms.

That’s it, then.

He’s doomed. 

Matthew’s going to probably shred his library card and ban him from ever returning. 

He’s never even really cared about going to the library until this last month, but now the thought of being permanently banned forever over such a simple misunderstanding makes his stomach hurt with anxiety. 

“Please, hyung, don’t do this,” Gunwook begs, the second they’re alone, “I swear, I wouldn’t hurt anyone. You know me, right, hyung? I didn’t push her, I didn’t notice she was there, and I stepped backwards and…” Gunwook trails off. 

Because even as he says the words, he knows all too well how bad the situation looks. 

Everyone always took the side of the non-hybrid over the hybrid in cases like this, especially hybrids with the DNA of what society labeled ‘aggressive’ predator species running through their veins. He was damned from the moment he was born. 

And Matthew has no reason to believe him, even if he is a hybrid too, especially considering that he knows Matthew has to be at least vaguely aware of why Gunwook needed to do community service hours in the first place.

“It was an accident, hyung, I promise,” Gunwook says. 

Hoping against every sign of how badly this could go that Matthew believes him. 

That the last few weeks of their tentative friendship could have, at least, earned him a little bit of understanding from the other hybrid. 

He braces himself for the worst, when Matthew starts to speak, which is why he’s completely surprised when Matthew says - “I’m not kicking you out of the library, Gunwookie.” 

“You’re not?” 

“No,” Matthew says, shaking his head. “I know it was an accident. I didn’t see the whole thing, but you’ve never even hurt a fly, I can’t imagine you hurting another person without good reason.” 

It should feel like a relief to hear Matthew say that he believes him, but Gunwook’s brain can’t help but fixate on his last few words. ‘Without good reason’ is what Matthew had said.

So he was aware of the fact that Gunwook had to do his community service hours as a penance this summer, rather than just because he liked the idea of volunteering. 

“Let me make us some tea,” Matthew stands after speaking, clearly not bothered by the fact that Gunwook hadn’t yet said anything in response. “You just take a deep breath and relax back here, and once Hao sends her off on her way, we can sneak you back out of here.” 

“I’ll still be able to come back next weekend, right,” Gunwook asks, still nervous. “I really need these community service hours.” 

It’s an excuse, partly.

He does need the hours, but there are plenty of other ways that he could earn them. Including picking up litter around the city, not his ideal way to spend his summer, but a doable option that would knock out his hours a lot faster than spending an hour every Saturday reading books to children. 

But as ‘nice’ as it would be to knock all of his hours for the summer out with a day or so of sun and trash collection, that option didn’t involve the fox hybrid in front of him. 

“Of course, I told you before, you’re always welcome at the library,” Matthew tells him, as he finishes setting the electric kettle up to boil the water. After he does so, he sits down at the small table in the room and gestures for Gunwook to sit with him. 

Hesitantly, he takes the seat next to Matthew.

“I’m sorry,” he tells Matthew, feeling compelled to apologize for all of this mess. 

“For what?” 

“For bumping into that woman and causing a whole scene.” 

“Don’t apologize,” Matthew reassures him, adding, “Honestly, Gunwook-ah, I could care less what some random library patron thinks about us. I am far more worried about you.” 

He ducks his head in shame at having worried Matthew. Honestly, he still felt a strong wind away from losing himself to panic again. Though he doesn't want Matthew to worry about him. 

“I’m fine, hyung,” Gunwook tells him. 

Matthew just frowns at him, clearly not believing his words. 

“Do you want to tell me what you were thinking?” 

“I didn’t see her, hyung, really that’s it-” 

“No, not what happened, Gunwook-ah,” Matthew says before Gunwook can repeat his apologies again. “What was going through your head that made you so scared like that?” 

“I… I thought you wouldn’t believe me,” he admits. “And that you’d ban me from the library forever.” 

“Why wouldn’t I believe you?”

Gunwook finds himself unable to answer Matthew. 

For a moment silence falls between them, before Matthew sighs softly and stands up. Gunwook tenses on instinct, but Matthew just moves to attend to the kettle, pouring them both a mug full of tea before moving to sit back down beside him. 

Matthew doesn’t look upset with him at all. Though there’s worry clear in his expression as he says, “Gunwook-ah, I haven’t wanted to ask, and really I don’t think it’s my place to ask, but the form you have me sign at the end of your sessions… I’ve seen a few of those before, and typically they’re when community service has been given out as a punishment, rather than when volunteering like this is a choice.” 

Gunwook nods just a little. 

He had a feeling Matthew would’ve known. 

“I understand if you don’t want me to come back here again, hyung, I really do,” Gunwook tells him. 

Even though truthfully, the thought of never getting to see Matthew, one of the few friends he’s made since moving to the city a year ago, had been more of what made him panic than anything else. If Matthew wanted him gone, then he would leave. 

“No, no, I’m not saying that,” Matthew insists. “I’m just curious if maybe the reason why you panicked today is because what happened today reminded you of something that happened before?” 

He’d been afraid to bring it up before, afraid if Matthew knew the reason why he had to come and volunteer, that he might not be as friendly with Gunwook anymore. That he might look at him with a more judgemental look.

But… They were both hybrids.

And predator hybrids at that.

Foxes and wolves are not so dissimilar, perhaps Matthew would understand. 

“When I started at university last year, the university assigned everyone rooms at random, using some automated system, and occasionally it matched hybrids and non-hybrids together,” Gunwook explains. “My roommate hadn't been happy about the situation when I’d shown up for the move-in day. He’d insisted to the university that he couldn't room with a hybrid, especially not a wolf hybrid, but our university wouldn’t switch him no matter how many times he emailed them.” 

At the time, Gunwook hadn’t realized how the situation would fully unfold.

He’d been naive in a way, coming from a small town full of other wolf hybrids that mingled with the local non-hybrid population without issue. His parents had warned him that there would be challenges moving to a city, but Gunwook had been so convinced that he would be fine that he ignored their warnings when he was accepted into one of the top universities in the city. 

He’d always done great academically, and well rounded when it came to extracurriculars. Everyone had always called him an overachiever, so he’d been so sure that university would go well. 

And his classes did go fine. 

It was everything else that fell apart.  

“First, he tried asking calmly,” Gunwook explains to Matthew, “And then when that didn’t work, he started coming up with new excuses about why he needed to be moved. He lied, saying that as a hybrid, I made his allergies act up, and then that I was staying up to weird hours that made it impossible for him to study, and then… Something happened at some party he went to one night. Some other hybrid must have hurt him, or maybe even a non-hybrid, but it doesn’t matter, because he reported to the university that I was the one to do it.” 

Nobody believed Gunwook when he’d insisted that it wasn’t him.

Not when they had previous reports about Gunwook being a ‘bad roommate’ on record. Even if they were all lies, without any proof to back them up. The university had sided with his roommate, not believing a single thing that Gunwook had said. 

The black eye that the other boy had shown up with was all the proof they needed. 

His official academic record, forever marred with a claim that he was an aggressive hybrid. 

“That’s not fair,” Matthew says, angry on his behalf. 

Gunwook shrugs. He’d quickly learned that life was not fair when nobody had believed him, and while he’d been horribly upset at the time, almost giving it up and going back home, he’d decided to try and push on with his university plans, despite this setback. 

“Thankfully, one of the hybrid activist groups on campus had come to my defense,” Gunwook tells Matthew. “They’d been able to lessen my punishment and not have me completely kicked out of the university. I’m just not  allowed to live on campus anymore, and in order to return in the fall semester, I had to complete online classes on ‘anger management’ and ‘instinct control,’ and now if I complete my community service hours, then I’ll be able to put this whole mess behind me once the next semester starts. Hopefully.” 

Maybe the next semester will be different.

It would be harder to make new friends now that he’d been kicked out of the dorm, certainly, but he’d manage. 

Somehow.

He had to.

“I’m so sorry that happened to you, Gunwook-ah,” Matthew says. “You’re such a sweet puppy. I knew from the second I saw your form that something wasn’t right, that it didn’t make sense given your demeanor at all, but… I had no idea the situation was this bad.” 

“It’s fine, really, hyung, I’m over it now,” Gunwook tries to tell him, but his voice cracks a little over the words.

This whole situation today is far too similar to the one before to stop his emotions from coming up. He’s not a crier, not really, and he certainly doesn’t want to cry in front of Matthew, but when the older hybrid moves to pull Gunwook into a hug, it becomes considerably harder to hold his tears off. 

“It’s okay to be sad, Gunwook-ah,” Matthew tells him, rubbing a comforting hand on Gunwook’s back. “You’ve been through a lot, and I understand how upsetting today must have been, especially with your academic career riding on you being able to volunteer here.” 

He should probably pull back from the hug and give Matthew some space, but Gunwook can’t bring himself to pull away from the comforting touch of the other. Especially after so long without anyone being kind to him. Gunwook hadn’t even been able to bring himself to go home since the situation at his university happened, too ashamed that if his family knew the full extent of it, they might insist upon him not returning to university in the fall. 

Gunwook had only known Matthew for the last few weeks, but he’s already grown so attached to the older hybrid and their friendship. 

“I wasn’t worried because of that, Matthew-hyung. I could volunteer somewhere if I needed to,” Gunwook mumbles into the fox hybrid’s shoulders. “I was worried because I thought I’d never get to see you again if I was kicked out.” 

As soon as he says the words, Matthew’s hold on him loosens, and for a second Gunwook panics, scared now that he’s said too much and made Matthew uncomfortable, and that now the other hybrid will ask him to leave. 

But Matthew just smiles at him kindly, “Gunwook-ah, even if you never wanted to come volunteer here again, I’d still want to be your friend. Nothing’s going to change that.” 

“ Oh .” 

“I have an idea. How about we do something fun together tomorrow when I’m not working,” Matthew asks. “Something to cheer you up?” 

Matthew’s offer is given so easily that Gunwook feels nervous to accept it. 

The idea of seeing Matthew somewhere other than the library is both exciting and a little terrifying at the same time. 

“Unless you’re busy with friends or have plans or something,” Matthew says, when Gunwook doesn’t immediately answer him. 

“I don’t really have any friends,” Gunwook replies. “Other than you, that is.” 

For a second Matthew’s expression flickers with something sad, before he says, “Well, good thing I have plenty of friends to go around! Why don’t you come out with us tomorrow, and we can see about making you some more friends than just me.” 

He doesn’t need anyone else.

Matthew is enough.

But Gunwook’s sure if he said that now, that the fox hybrid would disagree. 

So he just nods his head in agreement with Matthew’s plan, before adding, “But only if it’s really alright with all of them that I tag along.” 

“It will be,” Matthew reassures him. “My friends will love you. Plus, you already know two of them!” 

“I do?” 

“Yeah, Hao-hyung and Hanbin-hyung!”

Gunwook is pretty sure Hanbin was one of the other volunteers that came in every Saturday, a cat hybrid that he’d talked to only once briefly, who Gunwook had heard normally worked as a school teacher. Matthew had also informed him before that he and Hanbin were roommates, so Gunwook supposes he should’ve expected that.

Though Zhang Hao also being there makes Gunwook a bit more worried. His only two encounters with the non-hybrid so far had been the mess that today was, and weeks ago when he accidentally startled him. 

“Oh, great…?” 

“It’ll be fun, I promise! I’ll message you the details this evening!” 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🦊୧┈• ｡ﾟ

“So remember that cute little wolf boy that’s been volunteering at the library on Saturdays?” 

“You mean the one you’ve been texting every day non-stop.” 

“Haha, very funny, well-” 

“Wait, he’s a wolf, I thought you said he was a puppy before.” 

“Baby wolves are puppies too,” Matthew says. 

Though, to be fair, Hanbin wasn’t wrong. 

Up until a few hours ago, Matthew had thought Gunwook was a dog hybrid, he’d been leaning towards husky for breed, but wolves and huskies were basically the same thing. 

Sort of. 

“Anyways! He’s sad and lonely and needs friends, and we have friends, so one plus one equals two. I need to invite him to hang out with us this weekend while the whole group meets up, and then he’ll have tons of new friends!”

It’s a perfect plan. 

Matthew knows all of their friends will adore Gunwook as much as he does.

He’s sure of it. 

The only problem is - “Wait, what’s going on tomorrow? I didn’t know we had plans.” 

“Oh, we don’t,” Matthew confirms. “Well, we didn’t, but now we do! And you need to help me come up with something and convince everyone to go with us, and then I can invite Gunwookie, and he can meet all of them and everyone lives happily ever after. The end!” 

Hanbin blinks at him with those wide and slightly startled cat eyes of his, before he says, “Hold on, did you invite him to hang out with us without actually making plans first?” 

“Yes, kinda, sort of,” Matthew admits, before turning his own pitiful ‘help me’ eyes on Hanbin. “Hyung, you know I’m terrible at making plans, you have to help me. It’s for the greater good! You don’t want Gunwookie to be sad forever.” 

However, the other hybrid seems less sure. 

“Please, please, help me plan something good, and I’ll owe you, big time,” Matthew says in response to Hanbin’s silence. 

“Big enough to be on dish duty for the next two weeks?” 

Ah, so that’s what Hanbin was after. 

He should have known that this would be Hanbin’s scheme, the cat hybrid would do anything he could to avoid a task involving water.

“Hyung,” Matthew whines, “Two weeks is so long!” 

“Take it or leave it!” 

He pouts.

Hoping the power of his pout will win Hanbin over to helping him.

But after years of living together, Hanbin seems immune to his pouts. 

“Fine,” Matthew sighs. “But these better be really good plans.” 

“We have a deal?”

“Yeah, yeah, we have a deal.” 

“Great,” Hanbin says, his demeanor changing at once, a bright smile on his face as he reaches out to grab his phone. “Hao-hyung and I were wanting to go check out the farmer’s market this weekend, and Jiwoong-hyung already agreed to go with us, so we might as well invite everyone else.” 

“You cheated! You already had an idea! No fair!”

“A deal is a deal, Seokmae-yah, no take backsies!” 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🐺୧┈• ｡ﾟ

True to his word, Matthew had messaged Gunwook late yesterday evening with the details of the plans Matthew’s friends had made for Sunday. It wasn’t anything too complicated, just a trip to the local farmer’s market, and then hanging out at the park nearby afterwards. 

Matthew had reassured Gunwook repeatedly via his messages that everything would go well, and that Gunwook would have a great time out with them at the farmer’s market, and that all of his friends were very excited to properly meet Gunwook, since Matthew apparently talked about him a lot. 

Something that was both sweet to hear, and a little terrifying.

Still, despite texting Matthew once again only ten minutes before to confirm that they were still on for today, Gunwook can’t help but feel uncertain as he stands at the entrance to the farmer’s market looking for any signs of the familiar fox hybrid, or even Zhang Hao or Hanbin, who were apparently coming as well. However, despite the crowd of people at the farmer’s market, he recognizes absolutely none of them. 

Gunwook still lingers though, and sends another message off to Matthew, letting the older hybrid know that he is at the farmer’s market now, hoping that in a second, Matthew will materialize by his side. 

He’s nearly convinced himself that this is all some elaborate joke and that nobody will show up at all, when suddenly he feels a tap on his shoulder. 

“Matthew-hyung,” he says reflexively, turning to greet the hybrid behind him, but rather than Matthew’s familiar face and orange fox ears, a set of black cat ears greet him and a slightly less familiar face. “Oh, sorry, Hanbin-ssi, I thought you’d be Matthew-hyung.”

“Hanbin-hyung,” the cat corrects. “If Matthew gets to be a hyung, I want to be one too.” 

Gunwook nods along quickly. 

Not wanting to say anything that might make the cat hybrid dislike him. Wanting desperately to make sure his first out of the library encounter with Matthew and his friends goes well. Especially considering Matthew and Hanbin are roommates, and Matthew probably values Hanbin’s opinion. 

“Matthew-ah is busy haggling down the price of some honey he wants to buy, he sent me to fetch you,” Hanbin explains, lacing his arm through Gunwook’s and leading him through the crowd. 

As they go, Hanbin chatters away, the presence of another hybrid doing a little bit to calm Gunwook down, even if they are essentially from opposite species of hybrids. Cats and dogs don’t normally get along well, but if Matthew has managed to be such good friends with Hanbin, then surely Gunwook can get along with him too. They move through the crowd, with Hanbin pointing out a few different stalls that they’ve apparently already visited before Gunwook got here, before finally arriving at where a small group is gathered near a stall that sells honey. 

Matthew proudly holds up a paper bag in his hand that surely indicates his haggling was successful. 

“Delivery,” Hanbin calls out as they join the group, “One lost puppy for a Seokmae-yah!” 

Gunwook’s cheeks heat as suddenly, everyone’s attention is turned to him. He recognizes Zhang Hao, of course, along with one of the other volunteers he’s talked to a few times, Yujin. He supposes that makes sense, as Yujin did seem to be on a familiar basis with Zhang Hao. There’s three other non-hybrids in the group that are quickly introduced to him. 

Jiwoong and Taerae are both apparently friend’s of Zhang Hao, who had been wanting to check out the farmer’s market for a while. 

Gyuvin is introduced as Yujin’s older brother, though Gunwook’s not exactly sure how that works, considering one of them is a hybrid, and the other is not. 

Apparently they’re still waiting on the arrival of a fourth friend, another cat hybrid named Ricky, though Gyuvin explains in a hurry that Ricky had decided to take a ‘short cat nap’ before coming to join them, which either meant he’d be a few minutes late or a few hours late, depending on what his definition of short was at the moment. It varies from day to day, Gyuvin had explained. 

Though as nice as they all seem to be, the only person that Gunwook really came to see is Matthew. 

He’s used to seeing Matthew in his cute little librarian outfits, the khaki pants, button down shirt, and oversized sweaters seemed to be not exactly an official uniform of the job, but somehow the only thing Gunwook had ever seen the other in. 

Not counting the few gym selfies Matthew had sent him a week ago, when they’d been discussing their gym routines. 

Until now… 

Now, he tries not to make it obvious as his gaze sweeps over Matthew, dressed down casually for once. The contrast between Matthew’s usual reserved appearance, and this new more casual look was striking. Gunwook couldn’t help but notice the way the black tank top that Matthew was wearing accentuated Matthew’s broad shoulders and toned arms.  

Tries, being the keyword. 

As he tears his gaze away from Matthew’s arms, after admiring the tattoo there, to look up at Matthew’s face, the fox hybrid gives him a slightly quizzical look. 

Quickly, Gunwook hurries to say something before Matthew can ask him any question that he may end up too embarrassed to answer - “Hanbin-hyung said you were haggling for some honey?” 

“People always try to give Matthew-hyung bad prices,” Yujin jumps in to explain, “Because he’s Canadian.” 

“They think I don’t know their tricks,” Matthew tells him, with a wink. “But I happen to be very tricky myself!” 

“So what did you get? 

“Oh here,” Matthew says, “You can have some.” 

Matthew reaches into his bag to pull out some tubes of flavored honey, cracking the top one of them open before handing it over to Gunwook to taste. Under Matthew’s watchful gaze, he brings the small tube of honey to his lips to taste it. 

“Do you like it,” Matthew asks. 

Gunwook nods.

The honey was sweet, the flavoring of it delectable and just to his taste. 

“When I saw they had grapefruit flavored I knew I had to get it for you,” Matthew explains. “A little treat to make your weekend a little sweeter.” 

“Thank you, Matthew-hyung,” Gunwook replies, determined to savor the sweet treat, now that he knows Matthew had gone through all the work of haggling with one of the vendors specifically to get the honey for him. 

“Come on, let’s go check out the rest of the stalls,” Matthew says. 

The fox hybrid reaches out to take Gunwook’s hand. He doesn’t lace their fingers together, just grabs Gunwook’s hand to tug him along in the direction of the next stall that Matthew wants to go to, but Gunwook’s heart seems to beat extra loud in his chest, even though the gesture was a purely innocent one. 

As they move through the different stalls, Gunwook does his best to focus on what is in front of him, and the chatter of Matthew's friends around them, but it’s hard to focus when his brain seems to be hyper aware, and reminds him every few seconds that Matthew is still holding his hand. 

That the fox hybrid in fact even hands off one of the bags in his other hand to one of the other members of his friend group, so that he can properly inspect a basket full of strawberries without letting go of Gunwook. 

He’s sure it doesn’t mean anything.

That Matthew’s just doing this to keep better track of him in the crowded farmer’s market. 

And yet… 

The little crush he’d been developing on the fox hybrid surges up once more, making his cheeks heat up whenever Matthew turns his attention towards Gunwook to ask him a question, or smiles at him with that sweet smile. 

Matthew only ends up letting go of his hand nearly half an hour later, when he’s once again in the middle of haggling someone down. 

This time, it’s a chicken hybrid running an egg stall, and Gunwook really hopes the eggs that Matthew is so intent on buying a dozen of for a good price came from an animal chicken, and not a chicken hybrid. 

The signage around the stall isn’t quite clear on where the eggs come from, and Gunwook’s head hurts a little thinking about it.

Enough so that he takes advantage of his newfound freedom from Matthew’s hand holding to wander to the next stall over, in hopes of distracting himself from his growing question about where the eggs Matthew is buying originally came from. 

The stall he ends up at is one of the few that aren’t selling something edible, instead they’re selling small, handmade wooden trinkets. There’s a mix of things, expertly carved wooden keychains, wooden cooking utensils, and even thin wooden bookmarks with intricate designs. 

Such a pretty bookmark would make a good thank you gift for a certain librarian that he knows. 

But then again… Matthew probably had a plethora of bookmarks due to his job as a librarian. 

So perhaps not. 

He glances around at what else the stall has to offer before his eyes settle on a set of small animals carved out of wood, clearly meant as nothing more than a little decoration. The animals are all well carved and beautifully detailed. 

There’s a large variety of them, a menagerie of wooden animals. Pandas and elephants and lions and turtles, and nearly every animal imaginable. There’s even a few little wolves among the mix, along with various other kinds of canines. 

Though no matter how much he searches, there’s one that he just can’t find. 

“Do you have any foxes,” he asks the stall keeper, after his search for the animal has come up empty. 

“Afraid not,” the stall keeper says. 

When Gunwook looks away from the animals, he realizes that he’d failed to notice that not only was the owner of this stall another hybrid, but there’s a pair of gray ears on top of the other hybrid’s head, and his fluffy gray tail reminds Gunwook of his own. 

It’s been so long since he’d seen another wolf hybrid that he can’t help his tail from instinctively wagging at the sight of someone that reminds him a bit of home, even if he doesn’t know the hybrid in front of him. Quickly Gunwook reaches around to grab his tail, holding it in his hand so that he doesn’t accidentally knock any part of the stall’s displays over. 

The man is old enough to be Gunwook’s grandfather and smiles at Gunwook’s actions with a small, fond smile that reminds Gunwook even more of his family. 

“If you want to come back next week, I could have one made for you though,” the other wolf hybrid offers.

Gunwook hesitates, as nice as the offer is, he’d wanted to get Matthew a thank you gift today. He glances over at the egg stall where Matthew still is distracted by his ongoing debate with the chicken hybrid over the price of eggs. 

Perhaps one of those bookmarks would be better after all, that way he could make sure to secure Matthew’s gift while the fox hybrid was distracted. 

“I see now,” the stall keeper says, humming a little to himself, having followed Gunwook’s gaze. “You know, pup, if you’re intending to give this as a courting gift, one you made yourself would be a far grander gesture than one you’ve bought.” 

Ah, was he really that obvious. 

To be fair, his intention had been more of a thank you gift, but now that the thought is in his head, he finds himself cautiously wanting to try out the idea of giving Matthew a courting gift. The first gift that a wolf hybrid gave to someone they were interested in was meant to be important, proof that he could provide for his future ‘mate.’ 

Back in his grandparents’ days, that would have been proving their strength as a hunter or a craftsman, nowadays it usually was more about buying someone you wanted to date an expensive gift to prove that you had enough money to provide for him. 

Something that Gunwook very much did not have, as a struggling student who was still mostly relying on small gig work and money sent from his parents to make it through university. 

He’d had enough extra to buy a small trinket here for Matthew, but anything more lavish than that would certainly be out of Gunwook’s price range.

However, the idea of making something for Matthew wasn’t an all together terrible one, there was only just one flaw - “I don’t know how to make one?” 

The older wolf hybrid just hums again, moving back behind the counter of his stall to gather up a few different things and place them into a paper bag for Gunwook to take. “Here is a gift from one old wolf to another. You look like a smart pup, you’ll figure it out, and your mate will appreciate a gift made by you, even if it’s a bit crudely done, a lot more than a gift from a stranger.” 

“Thank you, but he’s not my mate,” Gunwook says, though he accepts the gift of the small wooden blocks and the carving tools from the other wolf hybrid nevertheless. 

“Not yet,” he replies, winking at Gunwook, and sending Gunwook on his way out of the stall, before Gunwook can try to protest and offer to pay for the gift of the carving tools. 

He’s still not exactly sure how he’s going to use them, but he’s got plenty of free time this summer to figure it out, and surely there has to be tutorials online or something. The challenge of learning a new skill will be good to keep him busy, and he finds that he does quite like the idea of making a gift himself for Matthew.

Especially one that he could use as a chance to ask the fox hybrid out, assuming he hasn’t been reading the signals that Matthew has been putting out completely wrong. 

“What did you buy,” Matthew asks, reappearing by his side.

“Nothing important,” Gunwook says quickly, not having realized that Matthew had already finished up his haggling game with the egg stall. 

Though now he notices another bag in Matthew’s possession, this one clearly with four egg cartons inside. 

Speaking of which - “Those are chicken-chicken eggs, not hybrid chicken eggs, right?”

Matthew just gives him a mischievous smile, “Don’t knock it until you try them! I swear they’re better than any other eggs in existence.” 

Ah, so the answer was hybrid .

Gunwook eyes the bag of eggs that Matthew is holding warily, “Yeah, no thanks, hyung, I think I’m good with never trying those.” 

“Suit yourself, Gunwookie!” 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🦊୧┈• ｡ﾟ

The trip to the farmer’s market over the weekend had gone as well as Matthew had hoped that it would. 

As expected, Gunwook had fit into the friend group that Matthew had been adopted into upon moving to the city with ease. He’d noticed by the end of it that Gunwook had even ended up swapping numbers with Gyuvin, after realizing the two of them both attended the same university. A happy coincidence that he hoped would make it so that Gunwook would be less worried about how returning to school in the fall would go for him. 

Since his near panic attack in the library on Saturday, Gunwook had started to become more open with Matthew when they were messaging. Suddenly those easy surface level conversations about what their favorite things were or what their gym routines were turned into much deeper ones. Gunwook confesses to him through a screen that he had been having a rough time since moving to the city for university, but had been unwilling to let anyone back home know, lest they force him to go back to his small town and give up on his academic dreams. 

Something that Matthew could relate to, having traveled half-way across the world for university himself, then choosing to stay over here once he had finished his schooling, despite the fact that returning back to Canada where people were a lot less prejudiced against hybrids would probably make his life a lot easier.  

His heart ached though, hearing what a rough time Gunwook had been having, wishing that they were having the conversation in person rather through the phone, so that he could give Gunwook a hug and reassure him. 

His desire to see Gunwook following their conversation had been what inspired Matthew to ask if Gunwook wanted to accompany him to the gym the next morning. 

Normally, he would drag Hanbin with him to the gym in the mornings, but the cat hybrid had been more than happy to sleep in when Matthew had informed him that he’d made other plans. Though not without making a comment about passing on his well wishes to Gunwook, despite Matthew pointedly not mentioning who was coming to the gym with him instead.

Though he supposes, Hanbin wasn’t entirely wrong. 

Matthew adjusts the weights on the barbell, glancing over at where Gunwook is setting up the squat rack for his own work out. The gym may have been bustling with activity, plenty of other people enjoying a morning workout, but normally, that never would distract Matthew from his own workout.

Today, however, Matthew couldn’t help but neglect his own workout plans to watch as Gunwook started his set. A slight blush creeping up Matthew’s neck as he admires the way Gunwook’s muscles flexed and moved as he worked out.  He finds himself mesmerized by the way Gunwook's body moves, the sheer power and control evident in every move he makes. There’s something about the contrast between Gunwook's shy demeanor and his physical strength that catches Matthew off guard. 

He’d known that Gunwook had worked out even before the other hybrid had brought it up, it was obvious from the way he was built, but knowing and seeing him in action were very different. 

Matthew waits until Gunwook finishes his set and steps back, breathing heavily, before he walks over to offer him a towel. 

"Nice form," he says, trying to keep his voice casual.

"Thanks," Gunwook replies, taking the towel with a grateful smile, that sets off the smallest pitter patter of butterflies in Matthew’s stomach. A new reaction to the younger one that catches Matthew a little off guard. "I still can’t believe we’ve both been going to the same gym this whole time and never even knew it.” 

"Yeah, I’m surprised, I mean, I come here pretty often," Matthew said, leaning against the rack. 

“Me too,” Gunwook replies, glancing around their gym, “Usually at night though, it’s a lot busier in the mornings.” . 

It strikes him suddenly as Gunwook pulls the bottom of his shirt up to wipe away his sweat, revealing his abs, that he’d never before properly considered how attractive the other was. Despite his friends insisting that the reason Matthew paid extra special attention to their new volunteer was because he was just Matthew’s type.

And sure, he is Matthew’s type. 

Certainly, objectively speaking, Matthew had been aware that Gunwook was good looking since the moment he’d met the younger. Matthew does have eyes, after all.  

However, he’d always thought of him as cute and puppy-like, with his pink cheeks and the way he’d duck his head shyly whenever Matthew complimented him. A beloved dongsaeng for Matthew to dote on in the same way others had doted on him in the past, when he’d first moved to the city. 

Purely innocent. 

Except at some point, it had become far more than that. 

Matthew can’t help the warm feeling that surges up inside of him as he shamelessly looks Gunwook over while the other is distracted, committing the image to memory. Gunwook’s so much bigger than him, with a body built in the way that Matthew is still trying to get his own smaller frame to bulk up like. 

He’d probably be strong enough to pick Matthew up and - “Matthew-hyung, is everything alright? You look distracted?” 

“Fine! I’m fine,” Matthew says, speaking far too quickly and loudly, quickly jerking his head to look away from Gunwook and look around the rest of the gym instead. To focus on anything other than the sight in front of him. “Everything is fine!” 

“Are you sure,” Gunwook asks, voice soft with concern.

Matthew does his best to squash down all thoughts of how attractive Gunwook is. 

Reminding himself that Gunwook has been nothing but sweet and kind to him.

Never anything more than friendly. 

Never once, not at all showing the type of behavior that would warrant anything like the thoughts that had flashed in Matthew’s head, the second Gunwook had lifted his shirt up. 

It would be wrong of Matthew to think those sorts of thoughts about him. 

Especially when Gunwook had let slip before that Matthew was practically his only friend in the city. Friends don’t think dirty thoughts about each other! So Matthew tells himself that he’ll just have to lock those thoughts of how attractive Gunwook is in a box in the back of his mind and never think about them again. 

And if he is still thinking about how hot Gunwook looked hours later, well, that’s between Matthew, his right hand, and the Jung Jaehyun shower curtain that Hanbin hung up in their bathroom. 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🐺୧┈• ｡ﾟ

It’s not exactly a courting gift, but it’s also not not a courting gift. 

So it doesn’t have to be perfect, and yet…

Gunwook’s hands are careful as he moves the tools the other wolf hybrid has given him at the market over the small block of wood. He’d found tutorials online and spent hours pouring over them in his free time in his apartment before he finally felt confident enough to attempt to carve a little fox of his own.

He’d even gone so far as to go and buy paints at a craft store, planning that once he finished carving it, he could paint the little wooden toy in the same hues of orange and red that he sees in the fur of Matthew’s hybrid ears and tail. 

A proper thank you gift for everything that Matthew had done for him over the last month or so.

And perhaps, just maybe, if Matthew was interested in a start to something new to come. 

Courting gifts are important for wolves and most other canine hybrids as well. It’s a sign of what the wolf can provide, and admittedly… Gunwook can’t provide that much, not yet, not while he was still in university, which is why he’d told himself when he first came to the city a year ago, that he would focus on his education and once he finished, he could focus on finding a mate.

But Matthew… He’d never accounted for the fox entering his life, and the thought of letting him slip by, when all of the signs that Matthew was interested in him were there, was something that Gunwook didn’t want to consider. 

They talk on the phone constantly, recently even progressing from texting to calling each other, purely so that he could talk to Matthew while his hands were busy working on the very gift that he was crafting for the other. 

Matthew had invited Gunwook out to meet his friends at the farmer’s market, friends that he’d said were basically considered his family, since his own family were half a world away. The whole time he’d been with Matthew’s friends, the fox hybrid had stuck close to him, and when they went to a nearby park to eat some of the fruit they’d bought, Matthew had ended up laying down with his head resting in Gunwook’s lap the whole time. 

And then, at the gym the other day, he’d noticed Matthew’s eyes on him nearly the whole time they were working out. 

Surely he’s not misreading the signs.

Gunwook puts his carving tools down and looks at the little fox carving. It isn’t the neatest of work, some of the parts a bit choppy and needing to be smoothed down still, but it’s his very first one, and he wants to give Matthew his first carving. 

Nervous butterflies start up in his stomach at the idea of giving the gift to Matthew, but he has to do it now to know for sure. He’ll offer it to Matthew, and if Matthew accepts the gift, then he’ll offer plans for a proper first date. 

And if Matthew rejects him… He’ll just call it a thank you gift, and try his best to move on from his feelings for the fox. 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🦊୧┈• ｡ﾟ

“I wanted to thank you for inviting me to come along last weekend, and to the gym this week, too.” 

“You don’t have to thank me for hanging out with you,” Matthew tells him. “That’s what friends are for.” 

Honestly, while he had been relieved how well Gunwook had gotten on with everyone when they hung out, he had been more relieved that Gunwook didn’t seem to be so upset anymore. A part of him had worried when this Saturday rolled around, after how badly last weekend had gone for Gunwook, that the younger hybrid might not show up to volunteer this weekend, out of fear of another bad encounter like last time happening. 

But not only had Gunwook shown up earlier today to volunteer, but he had seemed to be in much better spirits over the last week than he had been in any of the weekends prior to this one.

Clearly, getting to hang out together outside of the library this past week had done Gunwook a lot of good. 

Though now, for the first time all day, as Matthew signs Gunwook’s form for today's community service hours, the wolf hybrid looks nervous once more. 

Matthew’s fox ears twitch in concern, and he’s about to ask Gunwook what’s wrong, but Gunwook speaks - “Do you remember last weekend when you asked me what I bought while you were buying those… eggs .” 

He can’t help but laugh a little at how Gunwook still seems put off by Matthew’s purchase. He’d offered to make Gunwook an egg salad sandwich to convince him that these eggs were truly better than any other, but Gunwook had quickly rejected the offer. 

Matthew had noticed though, while he was haggling that old hen down, that Gunwook had been talking to another wolf hybrid at the stall next to them. When he’d seen them talking, Matthew had purposely lingered back from interrupting them, until Gunwook had made his purchase, not wanting to interrupt him, when he had been able to see how happy Gunwook had been to talk to another wolf hybrid. 

He’d noticed a difference in how at ease Gunwook was around himself, and even other hybrids like Hanbin or Yujin, compared to the non-hybrids that Matthew had introduced him to. But the instant ease that Gunwook had seemed to feel around another wolf had made Matthew a bit irrationally jealous. 

In the end, when he’d asked Gunwook what he had purchased at the stall, Gunwook hadn’t wanted to tell him, no matter how much Matthew had curiously pestered him for an answer.

It seems now though, he’d finally be getting one. 

“Yes, I remember. Are you finally going to tell me what you bought?” 

Gunwook nods and explains, “I was given a kit to learn how to make wood carvings. Really just the beginner tools and some blocks of wood, but the stall keeper suggested it might be a good hobby for someone like me, and I’ve been working on learning how to carve things all this week.” 

“That’s so neat, Gunwook-ah.” 

“Yes, well, I made something, and I,” Gunwook fumbles to grab his bag, the wolf hybrid still clearly nervous about something, as he reaches to grab a small something wrapped up in a bundle of newspaper and tape from his bag, “I wanted you to have it. My very first wood carving.” 

“ Oh .” 

Suddenly Matthew is the one feeling nervous, his fox tail swishing with uncertainty behind him, as he takes the small wrapped up object that Gunwook is holding out for him. He certainly never expected to receive a gift from Gunwook, and certainly not one that Gunwook had made himself. 

“I didn’t have any wrapping paper,” Gunwook explains, assuming Matthew’s hesitance is based on how his gift is wrapped, “I’m sorry.” 

“No, Gunwook-ah, don’t apologize,” Matthew reassures him. “This is very sweet, thank you. I’m so honored that you would give your first carving to me.” 

“It’s partly a thank you for inviting me out with your friends last weekend,” Gunwook says. “And partly a…” Gunwook shuffles a little nervously, “You know…” 

“Thank you,” Matthew tells him, smiling at Gunwook. 

Gunwook tentatively smiles back, as he asks, “So you accepted my gift?” 

“Yes, of course.” 

It seems he’s answered correctly, because a second later Gunwook’s nervousness seems to melt away, the wolf hybrid suddenly beaming at him with a smile that makes butterflies flutter in his stomach. 

Butterflies that Matthew does his best to push down, reminding himself just like he had the other day at the gym, that he shouldn’t let himself think too much into the kind and innocent gestures the puppy makes. 

Gunwook is just giving him a thank you gift for having been so kind to him last weekend.

Nothing to get all flustered over. 

“You can open it, if you’d like,” Gunwook tells him. 

Matthew does just that, carefully unpeeling the tape and unwrapping the newspaper that had been hiding Gunwook’s handiwork away. Matthew hadn’t been sure what to expect, and truthfully, he cares about Gunwook enough that even if Gunwook had handed him nothing more than a jagged hunk of wood, completely indiscernible of what it’s meant to be, Matthew would have completely played along. 

But the gift he reveals is far more than that.

Despite having apparently only just picked up the hobby this week, the small wooden toy is clearly well carved. Gunwook must have spent a good deal of time on this, taking care to make sure it looked just right, and then going so far as to even paint the small trinket in familiar colors. 

“It’s a fox,” Matthew says, looking up at Gunwook. 

Gunwook nods again, “Do you like it?” 

“I love it,” Matthew tells him, setting the small toy down on his desk so that he can get up and move out from behind the circulation desk and hug Gunwook properly. 

Gunwook really is the perfect height for hugging. Matthew can easily tuck himself right against the wolf hybrid’s firm chest, and Gunwook always hugs back with just the right tightness. His arms are strong around Matthew, and Matthew’s traitorous brain can’t help but think how Gunwook’s nice strong arms would feel around him in a very different context than the innocent hug they’re currently sharing. 

This time, when Gunwook runs his hand down over Matthew’s back as he hugs him, even with the layers of his shirt and cardigan between them, Matthew can’t help but shiver. 

“The fox is so beautiful, Gunwookie,” he says to Gunwook as he hugs him. “You did so well. You must have worked so hard on it.” 

“I wanted to make it good for you, hyung, that’s why.” 

“I’ll keep it on my desk so everyone can see your hard work,” Matthew says. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, hyung.” 

He pulls back from their hug a bit reluctantly, as much as he would like to stay snuggled up against the wolf hybrid for longer, he knows this is hardly the place for it, seeing as he is at his place of employment. 

And it wouldn’t be fair to Gunwook, not when the thoughts swirling through Matthew’s head when they hug are probably very different from what Gunwook is thinking of. 

“If you’re not too busy this week, I was thinking maybe we could go out and get dinner one night,” Gunwook says, once they’ve stepped apart from each other. “My treat?” 

Matthew can’t help himself from smiling at the suggestion. He’s so glad that Gunwook’s become more comfortable with him, and going out to dinner together would be a fun new experience. Gunwook had mentioned wanting to check out some restaurants in the area around here before, but having been a bit nervous to go alone, for fear of being turned away due to being a wolf hybrid. 

The fact that he was now asking Matthew to go with him, rather than just choosing to have the places he wanted to try delivered to him, was clearly proof that hanging out together over the last week was already helping Gunwook to feel more confident in himself. 

“I’d be happy to go with you,” Matthew tells him, though he’s definitely not going to let the unemployed university student be the one paying for their meal, even if Matthew has to secretly hand his own card to the servers while Gunwook is distracted. 

“Thursday then?” 

“Thursday works for me!” 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🐺୧┈• ｡ﾟ

He’s been trying not to panic.

Trying, and mostly succeeding. 

A part of him had regretted making his first date plans with Matthew so far out in advance. While it had given him more time to prepare the most perfect first date possible, it had also given Gunwook more time to stress about all the ways their date could go horribly wrong. 

He’d made four different plans, scrapping each of them time after time, before finally settling on something that felt right. 

Dinner at one of the restaurants that Gunwook had mentioned wanting to try to Matthew before and that the fox hybrid had seemed equally interested in checking out, then a trip to the arcade, as Matthew had mentioned in passing how much he enjoyed a good claw game (and hopefully the night ends in Gunwook winning a nice prize for Matthew to take home, a second courting gift), and if things were going well, they could end with a walk along the river which should be beautiful at night. 

And after that… Well, he’d fantasized about a few ways the night could end enough times that he’d even gone so far as to clean his apartment in a panic yesterday, on the off chance Matthew did want to come back to Gunwook’s place. 

Though he was sure the odds of that happening on the first date were slim.

No matter how many nights he’d thought about Matthew that way, he was willing to wait as long as it took for the fox to be comfortable with that sort of thing before pushing it. He was willing to take things at whatever speed Matthew wanted. 

And who knew, maybe a long, drawn out courting could be fun! 

It could build up the anticipation! 

All in all, he’d planned and prepared and cleaned everything up the best he could. It would all just need to fall into place now. 

Gunwook had planned to get to the library about an hour or so before closing, that way they’d be ready to go right after Matthew finishes work. He’d figured he could hang out at Matthew’s desk and chat with him if he wasn’t too busy, and if he was, then he could find a book to flip through and wait in the sitting area until he was done. 

It was mostly just an excuse to see the fox hybrid a little bit sooner than planned. 

He’d wanted to do this courting right, which was why despite the tempting offer of changing his usual gym routine to the mornings on the off chance of running into Matthew, Gunwook had kept his distance from the fox hybrid over the last few days to build up the anticipation for their first date, and leave them with a whole week's worth of things to talk about over dinner. 

Still… He’d missed Matthew. 

Enough that he’d spent half the day today just staring at the clock, waiting for it to be close enough to closing time for him to appear at the library without being too obvious that he’d spent the whole week waiting for this moment. 

The library is mostly empty this late in the evening, only a few patrons stopping in for last minute books, and the children’s section completely empty. 

Except for Matthew himself, and Hanbin, who Gunwook had quickly noticed, spent an absurdly large amount of time at the library, despite not working here himself. 

Gunwook heads in their direction to let Matthew know that he’s here, smiling a little to himself as he notices the fox carving he gave Matthew is still there on his desk, in a place of honor, just like Matthew had said it would be. He grins a little at that, imagining that people might have asked Matthew about his courting gift, and how the fox would’ve had to explain that it was a gift from Gunwook, showing off Gunwook’s claim on him inadvertently. 

He opens his mouth about to say something in greeting to Matthew and Hanbin, but stops suddenly when he hears what Hanbin is saying. The cat hybrid never really managed to speak quietly in this library. 

“So should I expect you home after your date tonight, or are you two planning on taking things back to Gunwookie’s apartment,” Hanbin says, with a teasing tone to his voice. 

Gunwook stills. 

He can’t interrupt them now, not when they’re actively talking about him.

He should turn around and come back in a minute and act like he never heard anything Hanbin said. That would be the polite thing to do rather than eavesdropping, but Gunwook can’t help but be curious about Matthew’s answer to the cat’s question, so against his better judgment, Gunwook ducks between the stacks of books just behind Matthew’s desk, so he’s out of Matthew and Hanbin’s eyesight, but can still hear what they’re talking about. 

“Stop that, Hanbin-hyung, he’s going to be here any minute now! He texted me when he got on the bus! What if he heard you,” Matthew says, voice rising to a bit high and frantic pitch himself.  

Ironic, considering Gunwook actually can hear them.

Hanbin must shrug or make some sort of lewd gesture, because Matthew lets out a hiss before insisting, “You know it’s not like that, don’t be mean, Hanbin hyung.” 

So probably a lewd gesture then. 

Maybe Matthew had thought that Gunwook was the one that would want to take things slowly in regards to sex. Sure, he may not be the most experienced, but he and his right hand had plenty of experience when it comes to watching and learning from porn videos, so he’s sure he could figure out how to fuck Matthew well. 

Everyone always told Gunwook that he was a fast learner.

And if he’d wanted things the other way around, well, maybe they couldn't do that tonight, but Gunwook was sure he could figure that out too. 

He’s pretty sure he will be into anything as long as Matthew is involved. Even if Matthew was into some weirdly kinky shit, he’d figure it out. 

He expects Hanbin to tease Matthew again, maybe reveal what secret kink of the other’s that he had been alluding to, but Hanbin’s next words only leave Gunwook feeling confused. 

“Seokmae-yah, he made you a courting gift, what do you mean not like that !?” 

“It’s a thank you gift and you know it,” Matthew replies to Hanbin. 

“Right, and if I left a dead bird on Hao’s desk, that would also be a thank you gift too, wouldn’t it?” 

“Do not leave a dead bird on his desk! Oh my god!”

“And now,” Hanbin continues, unbothered by Matthew’s objections to his dead bird plan, “Here he’s taking you out and offering to be the one to pay, proving that he can provide for you. That’s the whole point of a courting gift.” 

“How is making a wooden toy proving that he can provide for me?” 

That hurts like a knife through Gunwook’s chest.

He’d known it wasn’t the most modern of courting gifts, but when the other wolf hybrid at the marketplace had suggested that Matthew might appreciate a gift Gunwook had made himself, he was sure that he had been right. 

That as kind as Matthew was, that the fox would be able to see the sincerity of the gift, that he’d be able to show that he was a hard worker, and willing to learn new things for Matthew, and maybe even notice his attention to detail. Matthew had complimented the gift and acted so honored to receive it that Gunwook had really believed he’d done that much right. 

Apparently he’d been mistaken.

Matthew probably thought his crude attempts at making the little fox was pathetic, and only kept it around still and didn’t say so as not to offend Gunwook by completely rejecting his gift.

What a fool he’d been to think Matthew had been sincere. 

Gunwook’s eyes water with embarrassed and hurt tears that he hurriedly tries to scrub away. 

“He’s not courting me, and even if he was,” Matthew falls quiet for a second, before finishing, “Gunwook’s just a puppy. I can’t date a puppy.” 

“You are aware that we graduated last year, you’re not that much older than him,” Hanbin counters.

But Gunwook doesn’t stick around to hear whatever Matthew’s reply to him would be. 

He’s heard all that he needs to hear. 

That Matthew had only pretended to like the gift that Gunwook had made for him, and that Matthew never for a second even considered it a courting gift, because all he saw Gunwook as was a puppy to look after. 

He’d clearly only ever been kind to Gunwook for that reason, and it had been Gunwook’s fault for reading everything wrong. 

Matthew was just being nice.

He’d always been nice. 

He should have known that Matthew would be too nice to outright reject him to his face, but hearing him talk about how he had no interest in Gunwook at all to someone else hurt more than Gunwook could handle. 

Gunwook hurries out of the library, careful to make sure that Matthew doesn’t see him, and starts walking back to the bus stop.

This was a mistake.

All of this.

His hands tremble as he waits for the bus to come and take him back home, picking up his phone to send a message off to Matthew as an excuse for why he had to cancel for the night. He couldn’t bring himself to tell Matthew the truth, that he’d misunderstood things completely, and that he was sorry if he’d made Matthew uncomfortable with his pathetic little gift, and his failed attempt at asking him out.

His eyes burn, blurring the screen as a reply from Matthew comes back in a second later, ‘ sorry youre feeling sick gunwookie! we can 100% reschedule once youre feelign better!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️’

｡ﾟ•┈୨🦊୧┈• ｡ﾟ

Something’s wrong.

Matthew knows it.

Call it a fox instinct, but…He knows that something is wrong.

The problem is figuring out what it is. 

He’d been a bit disappointed when Gunwook had canceled on him two days ago for their dinner plans, especially when the wolf hybrid had claimed that he’d suddenly fallen sick despite only twenty minutes before having excitedly messaged Matthew that he was on his way. 

And now, the Saturday reading session had come and gone without Gunwook showing up or even texting Matthew to say that he wasn’t coming. 

He would’ve expected this last weekend, after how disastrous the weekend before that had gone, but Gunwook suddenly bailing on him now after things had been going so well made no sense. 

Matthew had texted him once their usual time had gone and past letting him know that all the kids missed him and hoping he was feeling better, but no reply had come in from Gunwook yet, and that was hours ago.

“What if something happened to him,” Matthew asks, from his spot curled up on their couch. 

Hanbin had put on some variety show that his favorite boy group had been on to watch and distract Matthew from his worries over the wolf hybrid, but Matthew couldn’t focus on anything on the screen. Not when his mind kept going through worst case scenarios. 

“He’s probably just sick,” Hanbin shrugs. 

“Since Thursday?”

“Colds can last multiple days, Seokmae-yah, or he could have the flu.”

Matthew frowns.

He’s still not so sure that ‘sick’ really isn’t just an excuse. 

What if something had happened? 

Gunwook had always seemed worried that he’d been treated harshly due to what type of hybrid he is, and given his experiences at university and the other week at the library Matthew had realized that the wolf hybrid’s worries weren’t completely irrational. 

What if some anti-hybrid humans had decided to jump him or something and Gunwook was injured? 

Or what if he’d gotten into more trouble with his university? 

But why then wouldn’t Gunwook have let him know any of that?

They were usually texting constantly but Gunwook hadn’t sent him anything since his last message on Thursday when he’d said he was sick and Matthew couldn’t help but worry. 

“I’m going to call him,” Matthew tells Hanbin, muting Hanbin’s show and doing exactly that before the cat hybrid can protest to Matthew interrupting his show.

He puts his phone on speaker phone as he waits for it to ring. 

The phone rings three times before Gunwook answers, long enough that Matthew had been sure he was going to get sent to voicemail, but then finally for the first time in a week he hears Gunwook’s voice, “Matthew-hyung?” 

“Gunwook-ah! I just wanted to check in on you, since you didn’t reply to my message. How are you feeling?” 

There’s a long pause on the other end. 

Gunwook breathing comes a little shaky through the line, the sound carrying over the line enough so that even Hanbin gives a worried look in the direction of Matthew’s phone. Despite the fact that Hanbin had spent the last two weeks teasing Matthew about his attraction to Gunwook, it was clear that Hanbin had also grown a bit fond of the wolf hybrid and did care about him too. 

“Sorry, hyung, I meant to reply to you, I really did,” Gunwook says. “I just got distracted.” 

Matthew’s brow furrows, Gunwook’s voice does sound a little scratchy, maybe he really is sick. 

“Are you still sick?”

“Yeah…” 

Huh.

It looks like Hanbin had been right.

Gunwook certainly doesn't sound like his usual self, so he must be really sick. 

“Have you gone to the doctor,” Matthew asks. 

“Not yet…”

“If you’re still sick by tomorrow, you really should go,” Matthew tells him. “And if you’re too sick to take the bus, Hanbin has a car, he could come with me over to pick you up and we could drive you there.” 

“That’s okay, hyung… I’ll be fine.” 

“Gunwook-ah, I-”

“I’ll be fine,” Gunwook says, cutting him off. 

He doesn’t sound fine.

His breath still sounds rattly over the phone line. 

“At least, let me make some soup to bring to you,” Matthew says. “Let, hyung, come take care of you, okay?” 

“I don’t want to get you sick, Matthew-hyung.” 

He wants to see Gunwook. To confirm that the wolf hybrid is okay with his own eyes.

But if that was impossible, then he still wanted to do whatever he could to take care of him. 

That’s what friends were for. 

And Gunwook needed Matthew to be a friend more than anything else right now. 

“I’ll just leave it outside your door then!” 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🐺୧┈• ｡ﾟ

The plus side of having previously arranged all of his library visits around when he knew that Matthew would be working so that he could see him, is that now Gunwook knows the perfect time to end up at the library when Matthew won’t be working. 

Tuesday mornings, for example, he knows Matthew takes a dance class with Hanbin at their gym. 

Which means when Gunwook takes the bus over to the library this time, there’s no lively greeting the second he walks in the door. In fact, nobody even seems to notice him at all. Everyone caught up in their own books or whatever they’re working on and nobody paying even the slightest attention to the hybrid as he slides the book that he had been reading into the return slot.

What he should do is leave now, before any of Matthew’s coworkers notice him and mention that Gunwook stopped by later, especially given that Gunwook had responded to Matthew’s messages this morning by insisting that he was still feeling sick. 

Gunwook’s not sure what his excuse was going to be this Saturday when he didn’t show up again to volunteer, but he’d figure that out by time Saturday rolled around.

For now, Gunwook was just going to pick out the next book in the series, use the self checkout counter to check the book out and then disappear before anyone even notices he was here at all. 

It’s a good plan.

A solid plan. 

One that falls apart the second he hears Zhang Hao’s voice - “Matthew’s not going to be here until after lunch today.” 

Gunwook freezes, tightening his grip on the book that he’d been holding, cheeks burning in embarrassment at not only having been caught, but apparently being so obvious in his affection towards the fox hybrid that the other librarian had picked up on it. 

Gunwook’s stomach sinks at the realization. 

Had everyone known and thought it was pathetic that he was just some puppy with a crush? 

He turns and gives Zhang Hao what he hopes is a completely normal expression, and definitely not the face of someone caught sneaking around the library when he should be in bed ‘sick’. 

“Oh, right,” Gunwooks says, scrambling for an excuse. “I have uh… a thing later today and I wanted the next book so I just…” Gunwook holds up the book as his defense. “This is a library so, I, book, yeah?” 

So much for not looking suspicious. 

Zhang Hao eyes him with a highly skeptical look before he asks point-blank, “You’re avoiding Matthew, aren’t you?” 

Gunwook deflates just a little, hunching in on himself in an attempt to make himself seem smaller and less easy to see through, “Yeah…” 

Zhang Hao presses his lips together in clear disapproval, before he says, “You know, Matthew has been worried sick about you. He worked himself into a whole fuss yesterday when you wouldn’t let him bring you any soup to help you feel better and yet,” he looks Gunwook over, “You don’t seem sick now. Gunwook-ah, were you even sick at all?” 

“No,” he admits quietly. 

Gunwook can’t help but feel guilty at the fact that Matthew was worrying over him. 

He’d felt bad enough when Matthew had insisted on leaving a carton of homemade soup at his door for Gunwook to eat while he was feeling unwell. Not knowing that the sickness he suffered from was one caused by a broken heart rather than any virus. 

Gunwook cried while eating the soup that Matthew had left him. Even if it hadn’t been that good, it had been a gift from Matthew, and he’d been able to taste the fox hybrid’s sincere concern in the food. 

Completely misplaced concern in the end, because Matthew had thought the puppy that he’d appointed himself to look after was sick, meanwhile Gunwook had never been sick at all, just avoiding him. 

Matthew really is so sweet, a good friend, it’s Gunwook’s fault that he thought that they could ever be more than that. He shouldn’t punish Matthew for not returning his feelings, but at the same time, the thought of being around him after Matthew had clearly rejected him (even if it wasn’t to Gunwook’s face) was simply too much to handle. 

He’s sure that with time he’ll be able to eventually get over the painful crush he has on the older hybrid. In the meantime, he just will have to come up with a better excuse the next time Matthew messages him, and explain that he won’t be volunteering at the library anymore. 

At least, the book in his hand is the last in the series Matthew recommended to him so once he finishes he can just drop it in the drop box outside and never have to accidentally run into Matthew or any of his coworkers ever again. 

“If Matthew said something to offend you, he probably didn’t mean it,” Zhang Hao says after a moment. “He talks a lot and sometimes he doesn’t think before he talks. I’m sure if you told him whatever he said to upset you he would spend an hour apologizing and you both could move on and go back to being friends and then you wouldn’t have to sneak around the library when you know he’s not here, Gunwook-ah.”

If only it were that easy. 

“It’s not that simple, Zhang Hao-ssi.” 

“Why not?” 

“Matthew-hyung, didn’t say or do anything to offend me,” Gunwook tells him. “So he has nothing to apologize for.” 

Zhang Hao crosses his arms over his chest, “Then why are you pretending to be seriously ill just to avoid talking to him?”

“I… Well…”

There’s absolutely no reason that he should be telling Zhang Hao any of this, but there’s something about his demeanor that makes Gunwook want to spill his guts to him. Maybe it’s a librarian thing, he’d felt similarly around Matthew at times.  

Gunwook sighs, before explaining, “I made Matthew a gift, a little wooden fox that I carved for him and for certain types of hybrids gifts like that, they mean something more than just friendship.” 

Zhang Hao lets out a small noise of understanding. “So Hanbin was right, that was a courting gift.” 

He grimaces at the reminder that Matthew’s roommate had been able to figure it out, he’d known from overhearing the conversation between Hanbin and Matthew last week that Hanbin had, at least, understood his intentions, and even seemed to like Gunwook a little. Not that it mattered in the end as Matthew had just rejected him. 

Gunwook nods just a little, unable to bring himself to answer him. 

“But Matthew accepted your gift,” Zhang Hao points out. “I’m pretty sure it’s on his desk right now.” 

“Because he didn’t know it was a courting gift,” Gunwook explains. He can’t blame Matthew for unknowingly accepting it when Gunwook hadn’t fully explained the situation. He thought as they were both canine types of hybrids that his intentions might have been clear without him needing to say all of it out loud. But either foxes had very different courting customs than wolves did, or Matthew just hadn’t been aware of what Gunwook’s intentions were. “I overheard him and Hanbin-hyung talking the other day and… Matthew-hyung made it clear that he doesn’t return my feelings in any way.” 

Zhang Hao furrows his brow, “Matthew rejected you when you asked him to go out with you?” 

“Well,” Gunwook fidgets a little in place. “No, he’d agreed to going out with me but he didn’t think it was a date and when I over hear Hanbin-hyung pointing out that it was a date he-“ 

“But he didn’t reject you, because you never asked,” Zhang Hao cuts him off,“He accepted your counting gift and didn’t turn you down. And now you’re sneaking around so he doesn’t see you, while Matthew has been worried sick about you and not knowing what he did wrong.” 

Gunwook grimaces.

Way to lay the guilt on. 

“That’s because, he told Hanbin-hyung that only views me as some cute puppy to look after,” Gunwook protests. “He calls me puppy all the time and-”

“Some people are into puppy play! We don’t kinkshame at the library!” 

Zhang Hao’s words are way too loud, echoing around the usually very quiet library, and Gunwook flushes even further in embarrassment hunkering in on himself as to not make any further of a scene than they already have. 

“That doesn’t mean that Matthew-hyung-”

“No, no, stop that, listen here Gunwook-ah,” Zhang Hao says, “I happen to know a good deal about who Matthew does and does not like! And I know for a fact that Matthew likes you more than just a ‘cute little puppy to look after’. I’m sure he would have been more than happy to accept your courting gift had you told him that’s what it was.” 

Zhang Hao seems so sure of what he’s saying that Gunwook really wants to believe him, but he still can’t help but feel unsure. 

Matthew had only ever treated him like a friend, despite Gunwook’s apparently very obvious crush on him. And even if he hadn’t technically rejected Gunwook’s courting gift, as Zhang Hao had pointed out, Matthew still hadn’t realized it was a courting gift at all. Probably because Mattthew did just view him as a puppy to look after. 

But still… Zhang Hao’s insisting that Gunwook is wrong makes him suddenly unsure about the situation. 

“Can I give you some advice, Gunwook-ah?”

“Your advice is going to be to stop avoiding Matthew-hyung and tell him, right?” 

It’s not a terrible plan.

Matthew probably still will reject him, but at least then it’ll be to Gunwook’s face and he won’t have to come up with an excuse for why he doesn’t want to come around anymore, because Matthew will know the truth. 

“No,” Zhang Hao says. 

Gunwook doesn’t bother to hide his surprise, as he says, “Wait, then what’s your advice?” 

“Let me handle this,” he tells Gunwook. “Zhang Hao’s 100% Fool Proof Love Matchmaking Program is about to begin! I’ve got this!” 

Why does talking things out with Matthew suddenly seem like the less frightening plan? 

“I’m a little scared of your plan…” 

Zhanhg Hao just smiles at him, “Correct.” 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🦊୧┈• ｡ﾟ

“I know something you don’t know~!” 

“Are you going to tell me the thing you know that I don’t know or,” Matthew asks.

Hao just smirks at him, looking far too smug as leans over the circulation desk, “You’ll never guess who came in to check out a book this morning while you were busy?” 

Matthew gives him a quizzical look, “Who?”

There were a few patrons that he and Hao had accidentally gotten far too invested in their ongoing lives. Some of them were sociable, and liked to chat up the librarians when they had spare time. 

One of their usuals was going through a messy divorce that he had spilled way too much about to Matthew and Hao over the last few months. 

There was another older cat hybrid that came in from time to time that always over shared about the ongoing drama in her family in regards to who she was going to leave her inheritance to. 

And that’s not counting the high schoolers that came in and would rant about their ongoing struggles with school or dating disasters to anyone that would listen. 

There was something about being a librarian that made people more willing to talk to them about their lives. 

And well, Matthew was nosy, and so was Hao so it worked out. 

Matthew expects Hao to impart on him some new gossip from one of their regulars, which is why he can’t even try to hide his surprise when Hao says, “Your favorite puppy came by earlier.”

“Wait, what? Gunwook?”

“Do you have another puppy that you’ve been chasing after without me knowing about it, Matthew?” 

“No, no, just Gunwook, but he… He’s sick?” 

“No,” Hao replies, with a smirk.

“What do you mean no ?”

“He’s not sick, he never was.”

“But he told me-”

“Maybe he’s sick from a broken heart,” Hao muses, cutting him off, and adopting a dramatic flair as he speaks, “He told me the most sad story today, about how there’s this certain fox hybrid that he’d fallen for and even gone so far as to make him a courting gift and ask him out on a date, which he’d thought had been accepted. But then - ah, so la tragedie - when he came to pick his fox up for their first date, he’d happened to overheard a certain fox and cat talking about him by mistake and heard that the fox he was so fond of had no feelings for him at all. Poor thing, cried for days from what I heard, his eyes were still red days later. Poor little puppy, unloved, rejected by the one he desired.” 

“Wait, but that’s…” Matthew trails off. 

He wants to believe that Hao is just messing with him, but while that may be silly at times, he isn’t the type to lie outright about something like this and play with Matthew’s feelings. Especially since Hao is, at least, partly aware of the fact that Matthew really liked Gunwook but had decided never to act on those feelings for the sake of their friendship. 

“Did he really say that?” 

Hao nods. 

“Then, why wouldn’t he tell me that? Why pretend to be sick instead?” 

“Matthew-ah, imagine if the situation was the other way around, if you’d thought that you’d been rejected because you overheard the person that you liked talking bad about you behind your back would you go and tell him.” 

Admittedly, no he probably would not have. 

But… 

He’s not sure exactly what Gunwook had overheard, but nowhere had Matthew been rejecting him. 

He tries to think back to last Thursday. Hanbin had been bugging him at the time about Gunwook, but Matthew had been mostly been trying to get Hanbin to leave him alone before Gunwook got there and overheard Hanbin’s detailed teasing about Matthew's sexual fantasies when it came to the wolf hybrid. 

Because Matthew had thought that Gunwook didn’t feel the same way as he did and didn’t want Gunwook to overheard Hanbin’s teasing and feel uncomfortable with the knowledge that Matthew was attracted to him since he thought Gunwook only saw them as friends. 

Apparently, he’d misread the situation completely.

And in the process managed to upset Gunwook without realizing it. 

Matthew’s chest aches with a feeling of regret, he needs to fix this, right now - “Hao-hyung, can you cover for me? I’m going to go over to Gunwook’s house and explain everything and-”

“No.”

“What, hyung, why ,” Matthew whines.

Why would Hao tell him this and then not let him go fix things. 

“Oh don’t you frown at me,” Hao says, snapping his fingers at Matthew. “I’ve already solved the whole thing, except he doesn’t know I’ve told you any of this. Now you just need to follow along with the rest of my foolproof plan and not say anything stupid to mess this up and that boy will be yours by this time next week.” 

“I don’t know if I’m going to like your plan…” 

“The words you’re looking for are ‘ Thank you Zhang Hao-hyung, you’re so smart what would I ever do without you’.” 

Matthew sighs. 

“Thank you, Zhang Hao-hyung, you’re so smart, what would I ever do without you?” 

“Great question! Good thing you’ll never have to find out!” 

｡ﾟ•┈୨🐺୧┈• ｡ﾟ

It wasn’t that Gunwook didn’t trust Zhang Hao.

He didn’t, not really.

But he didn’t think that Zhang Hao would be the type of person to set Gunwook up for failure just to laugh at him, even if he wasn’t a hybrid and had been frightened of Gunwook when they first met, Zhang Hao surely wasn’t that cruel. 

Zhang Hao had planned everything, a late afternoon hike, a week from when their original first date had been planned for. Apparently the library was closing early for the day due to some filming that was taking place nearby which meant that Matthew would have the evening free.

As would Zhang Hao, giving the perfect excuse for a ‘group outing’ for the two librarians, Hanbin, and Gunwook to all go on a hike together. 

Sort of like a double date, because Zhang Hao had informed Gunwook via text messages over the last two days that Gunwook wasn’t the only one trying to ‘seduce’ someone who was too oblivious to realize what was going on. 

If all went well maybe they’d both have boyfriends by the end of the day. 

And if not, at least, he wouldn’t be alone there. 

Gunwook arrives at the start of their hiking trail earlier than their planned time having taken the bus over and then walked to where the start of the trail was from the bus stop. About five minutes after their planned time a familiar blue car appears, revealing Hanbin driving along with Zhang Hao and Matthew as his passengers. 

It’s been nearly two weeks, and one (mistaken? maybe?) rejection, since he last saw Matthew but his tail still starts wagging in excitement at seeing the fox hybrid there. 

He really does like Matthew so much.

He hopes that Zhang Hao was right and that this was all just a misunderstanding. 

But while Matthew’s always greeted him with bright smiles before whenever he’d seen Gunwook, the fox hybrid stays back a bit this time, and Gunwook tries not to let it bother him when Zhang Hao and Hanbin greet Gunwook with far more excitement than Matthew does. 

His wolf features betray him though, his ears dropping in disappointment, even as Zhang Hao hugs him in greeting. The non-hybrid is now the one most comfortable around Gunwook, whispering so that only Gunwook can hear him, Zhang Hao says, “Just trust me. You’ve got this.” 

He’s not so sure that’s true.  

Not even as their hike starts, Matthew hurries to the front of the group determined to lead them because as a fox hybrid he’s naturally the best adapted to lead a hike through a wooded trail letting his insistics guide them. 

Gunwook moves himself to the back of the group for a not so dissimilar reason, taking up the rear and the role as protector in the group is something that feels natural for his wolf instincts. 

Which coincidentally puts him in the perfect spot to watch as Zhang Hao suddenly pretends to twist his ankle falling to the forest floor in a dramatic flop. One that’s not believable from back where Gunwook’s position is, but is clearly very believable to the two hybrids that had been walking in front of him. 

Ah, he supposes he should’ve expected this to be part of Zhang Hao’s plan.

He had been suspicious when the person who detested exercise had insisted upon taking a hike. 

Now as he watches Hanbin insist on turning around to help Zhang Hao back to the car and look after him while Matthew and Gunwook continue on ahead without him it all makes sense. 

It’s awkward, at first, being alone with Matthew now, in a way that none of their previous encounters had even been. Silence stretches long between them as they continue their hike now without anyone else around.

In a way, the silence is sort of nice and peaceful, only the sounds of nature around them keeping them company as they move through the forest. He lets his inner wolf side take charge, enjoying the freedom of being back in nature for the first time since moving to the city. 

He hadn’t even known that hiking trails like these existed within the city. 

His hometown had been surrounded by woods, a fitting for the place many wolf hybrid families had decided to settle down, and in a way this reminds him of home.

Maybe one day, if this goes well, he’ll be able to take Matthew back to his home town with him, and show him the woods that Gunwook used to play in as a child. He thinks that his family would like Matthew a lot, even if foxes and wolves aren’t exactly the same. Though, to be fair, he’s sure his family would be happy with anyone he brought home, as long as they were someone that made Gunwook happy and… Despite the miscommunication disaster of the past week, Matthew does make him happy. 

The fox made him feel comfortable in the city for the first time since he’s moved here, and he regrets now how willing he had been to give up on it all. 

Especially if Zhang Hao was right and this had all just been a misunderstanding.

He knows he needs to say something to Matthew, the whole point of this double date was for Gunwook to talk to him.

And yet, it’s Matthew that breaks the silence half way through their hikes.

“Let's take a break up by those rocks, Gunwook-ah,” Matthew suggests pointing to some decent sized boulders that had clearly been worn down by other hikers having sat on them over the years. 

Gunwook nods in agreement, feeling that nervous feeling in his stomach return as he follows Matthew to sit down. 

“I missed you this last week,” Matthew says, once they’ve sat down. “I’m glad you’re feeling better now though.”

Gunwook frowns a little. He’d known that Matthew had missed him and had been worried about him being sick, but hearing the other say it out loud makes it that much worse. 

“I’m sorry, hyung,” he needs to tell Matthew the truth, it’s only “I… I lied to you, I wasn’t actually sick.” 

Matthew hums a little, “I know.” 

Right, Zhanh Hao probably told him that.

No wonder Matthew now felt so uncomfortable around him. 

“Did Zhang Hao-ssi tell you the rest of it too.” 

Matthew’s voice is soft when he replies, “He did.” 

Gunwook should have expected this to be part of Zhang Hao’s plan. At least, now Gunwook didn’t have to be the one to do it. Matthew knows his feelings now, so now he can reject him properly and they can both move on and be friends again. 

He’d rather be friends with Matthew than lose him completely.

How miserable he’d felt this last week had been proof of that. 

“It was wrong of me to assume you felt the same way, Matthew-hyung, I’m sorry,” Gunwook tells him. “I should have made it more clear what I was trying to do when I gave you that gift, and you don’t have to return it to me, you can keep it as a thank you present or throw it away if you hate it. I don’t care.” 

That was a lie.

He did care.

He’d probably feel miserably sad if Matthew gave it back to him in a clear rejection or if the trinket suddenly disappeared into a garbage bin, but he doesn’t want to force his feelings onto Matthew any more than he already has. 

“Can we just go back to being friends, hyung, I’ve missed you,” Gunwook asks. “I’ll try to suppress my feelings for you so that you don’t have to feel uncomfortable anymore?” 

“Gunwook, I don’t want to be your friend anymore.” 

He gasps. 

It hurts.

Rejection stings brutally. 

He should have known from how uncomfortable Matthew had seemed to be around him that this was coming. He’d been foolish to let Zhang Hao’s reassurances get his hopes up, but even so he’d hoped that while Matthew may never view him in a romantic light that Matthew would at least still want to keep Gunwook in his life as a friend. 

But he should have seen this coming.

Should have known how easy to throw aside he would be. 

“Oh… Okay… I understand, I - I’m sorry, Matthew-hyung, I mean, Matthew-sii, I- I’ll go - I’m sorry - I - ” he’s fumbling over his words now, starting and stopping and it’s all coming out wrong. 

His heart aches and his eyes burn with tears and - 

Matthew moves suddenly, wrapping his arms around Gunwook to hug him.

It makes no sense.

Why is Matthew hugging him after saying that he doesn’t want to be his friend anymore?

Still despite all of that, he finds himself clinging to the older hybrid, wanting to savor this hug, if it’ll be their last one. Ever a masochist, hurting himself, by getting attached to someone who is actively rejecting him. 

“No, no, Gunwookie, wait, I’m doing this all wrong,” Matthew says. 

“I don’t understand?” 

“Gunwook, I don’t want to just be your friend anymore,” Matthew says. “I want to be something more than that.” 

Gunwook pulls back, because he needs to see Matthew’s face, he needs to confirm that this is real. “What are you saying?” 

Matthew reaches up to brush the tears away from Gunwook’s cheeks. 

“I’m sorry I misunderstood your courting gift, Gunwook, had I known what it was I would’ve accepted it properly,” Matthew says. “I just didn’t think it was possible that you would feel the same way about me that I felt about you.” 

That he would feel the same way Matthew felt about him . 

Then - “What are you saying? You mean that you…”

“I’m accepting your gift, properly this time, and in return,” Matthew reaches for the small backpack that he’d brought with him on the hiking trip, pulling out a small package that clearly can only be a book wrapped in red tissue paper. “A gift for you from me. If you’d be willing to accept it.” 

Carefully Gunwook unwraps the book. 

He knows this book. 

It’s the first one in the series that Matthew had recommended to him all those weeks ago, but not the copy from the library. Instead, it seems to be a special edition of the book, the cover a more intricate design than the library’s copy and the edges of the book’s pages gilded with a brilliant gold color. 

“I wrote a little something on the inside,” Matthew tells him. “If you want to read it before you give me your answer.”

Gunwook flips open the cover of the book to check. 

Matthew’s neat handwriting is there, his message short and sweet:

‘To my favorite puppy, Gunwook,

From the moment I saw you looking lost among the aisles of the library, I knew you were special. Recommending this book to you was the beginning of something wonderful, and I fear I’ll never be able to look at this book again without thinking of you. 

Your kindness, strength, and the way you light up every room you enter has captivated me in ways I never expected. You’re so much stronger than you give yourself credit for, and kind beyond your years and I’m honored that you would ever consider wanting to keep me as a part of your life. I hope we can create more memories together, both inside and outside the library.

Let us turn the page to a new chapter together?

Yours, Matthew’

Gunwook looks up at Matthew after finishing reading the message that he’d written in the book. 

“So, Gunwook, do you accept my courting gift?” 

He feels a little bit like crying again, but this time for a very different reason, this time it’s from happiness, because he hadn't been reading the signs wrong this whole time after all.

They’d just both thought the other didn’t feel the same, but now he knows the truth and now - “Can I kiss you, hyung?” 

Matthew nods, and Gunwook surges to bridge the space between them. 

He’d imagined what kissing Matthew would be like, but finally getting to actually put those thoughts into action feels like a dream come true. Matthew’s lips are soft against his own and the fox hybrid nips playfully at his lips before letting Gunwook take control and deepen the kiss, making the sweetest sounds as Gunwook pulls him closer so that he can kiss him more. 

“So I take it that’s a yes, ” Matthew says, when they pull apart for air. “You accept my gift?”

“Yes, hyung, I accept.”  

｡ﾟ•┈୨🦊୧┈• ｡ﾟ

Weeks ago, when he first saw Gunwook come into the library, he’d never thought that they’d end up here, making out in the library stack’s while Matthew was on his ‘lunch break’.

But he can’t say that he minds how things ended up progressing. 

Not when he’s got a cute puppy, who showers him in little homemade gifts and constantly tells him how cute  and texts him at all hours of the night so Matthew barely gets any sleep, courting him.  

He likes Gunwook so much that he’s probably going to slip up and accidentally use a different L word far too soon, but he doesn't think that Gunwook will mind. 

There’s only one step they’ve got left to take, but had been willing to wait until Gunwook brought him up. Or, at least, he intended too. It’s hard to think straight when he’s half hard in the backroom of his work because his wolf hybrid boyfriend has been grinding against him while kissing him between the stacks

“You know, Gunwookie, I was thinking after I finish tonight, I could go over to your apartment and we-” A scream from out in the library interrupts him, before he can fully make his proposition to the puppy. 

“What was that,” Gunwook asks, looking in the direction of the scream. 

Matthew knows that scream, it’s Zhang Hao’s voice, which either means he’s seen a bug or someone’s accidentally snuck up on him and startled him - “Sung Hanbin! Why is there a dead bird on my desk!?” 

Well, that answers that.

“Where were we?”

“Right here, hyung,” Gunwook says, before kissing him again.

Ah yes, so they were.