Chapter Text
The hallway of their apartment building had never been particularly exciting. White walls, flickering fluorescent lights, and the faint smell of Mrs. Kim's cooking from 3B, that was the usual ambiance of the place.
So when Jake stepped out of the elevator on Thursday evening, arms loaded with grocery bags and his mind occupied with whether he'd remembered to buy the right brand of coffee Sunoo liked, the last thing he expected to see was a tiny, dirty puppy sitting right outside their door.
Jake freezes, arms still clutching an egg tray while his forearms clenched eco bags full of fruits and whatnot.
"Well, you’re not my landlord." Jake said intelligently, looking down.
The puppy looked up at him with enormous brown eyes that seemed to take up half its face. Its fur—at least what wasn’t covered with mud—appeared to be some shade of golden brown, and its ears flopped adorably to the sides. One paw was lifted slightly off the ground, as if it had been caught mid-step on some important puppy mission.
"Don’t," Jake whispered, his heart immediately doing something complicated in his chest. "Oh no, no, no."
The puppy tilted its head.
Jake's resolve, which had never been particularly strong when it came to cute things, crumbled like a sandcastle after a high tide. He glanced down the empty hallway, scanning for anyone that could be near. He looked back at the puppy, which had now started wagging its tail so hard its entire back was shaking.
"Where did you come from?" Jake asked softly, setting down his grocery before crouching to the puppy’s level. The puppy immediately stumbled forward on unsteady legs, leaving tiny muddy paw prints on the cracking tiles. When it reached Jake, it pressed its small body against his knee and looked up at him with such pure, uncomplicated curiosity that it made Jake’s chest ache physically.
Crap. He couldn’t possibly, right?
"Okay, okay," Jake murmured, gently running his fingers over the puppy's head. It was so small it fit in one of his hands. "Let's get you cleaned up, yeah? Just for a minute. Just until I figure out where you belong."
Even as he said it, Jake knew he was lying to himself.
The puppy licked his thumb and Jake's heart almost exploded into seven thousand pieces.
With the kind of stealth he usually reserved for midnight snacks at the dead of night, Jake scooped up the puppy carefully, and steadily tucked it against his chest with one arm. He grabbed his grocery bags with the other hand, fumbled for his keys, and managed to unlock the door while performing what could only be said as an elaborate circus act.
Okay Jake, you got this. Be calm.
The door clicked open, and Jake slipped inside as quietly as possible. The puppy, apparently deciding this was the perfect moment to announce its presence, let out a sharp bark.
Jake nearly dropped it in panic. "Shh! Shh, no, we don't bark! We're a silent puppy! A mime puppy!"
The puppy, unimpressed by this logic, barked again.
"Oh my god, please," Jake whispered desperately, gently gripping the small animal.
The puppy squirmed against his chest, and Jake quickly set down the grocery bags and cupped his other hand around the small body. "Shh, shh," he whispered urgently. "I will give you literally anything you want if you just shut up for five minutes."
The puppy sneezed, its whole body recoiling from the intensity.
Jake's entire body tensed, but no sound came from Sunoo's room except the faint audio of what sounded like a movie or his playlist. Jake exhaled slowly and looked down at the puppy, which was now trying to chew on his finger.
"Bathroom," Jake decided immediately. "We need to get you cleaned up before—"
"Hyung?"
Jake jumped so violently he nearly dropped the puppy. Sunoo had emerged from his room, looking disheveled in a hoodie and sweatpants , his hair slightly mussed in a way that suggested he'd been lying down. His fox-like eyes were curious as they landed on Jake, who was standing frozen in the entryway like a deer caught in headlights.
"Are you okay?" Sunoo asked, padding closer. "You look weird."
"Weird?" Jake's voice came out higher than intended. "I don't look weird, I look normal. You’re offending me, Sunoo” he said, attempting to maintain his tone uninhibited.
Sunoo's eyebrows rose slightly, and a small smile played at the corners of his mouth. "Your 'normal face' is usually less... panicked. And why are you standing like that?"
Jake realized he was indeed standing very strangely, with his arms crossed over his chest in a way that probably looked like he was either cold or hiding something. Which he was, but Sunoo didn’t need to know that now, or ever actually. Well, maybe he was a little cold as well, but that wasn't the point.
"I'm not standing like anything," Jake said, a remarkably poor defense. Truth be told, Jake had never been one to lie, so he found no need to be skilled at it. But god, would it really help right now. "I'm just... standing."
The puppy chose that exact moment to make a small whimpering sound.
Jake coughed audibly. Possibly too audible, because Sunoo actually took a step back, his expression shifting to concern.
"Are you sick?" Sunoo moved closer again, and Jake's brain short-circuited because Sunoo was reaching up to press the back of his hand against Jake's forehead, and they were suddenly very close, and Sunoo smelled like laundry detergent, and the puppy was squirming, and—
"Not sick!" Jake practically yelped, jerking backward. "Super healthy, I just had something in my throat! Probably dust! You know this building has so much dust? We should really talk to the landlord about that! Anyway, I need to use the bathroom!"
He spun on his heel and speed-walked toward the bathroom, leaving a very confused Sunoo standing in the entryway.
"...Okay," Sunoo said slowly. "Do you want help putting the groceries away?"
"No!" Jake shouted from the bathroom doorway. Then, realizing how impolite that sounded, he added in a slightly calmer voice, "I mean, no thank you! I'll do it later! After I... use the bathroom!”
He ducked into the bathroom and closed the door, leaning against it and letting out a long breath. The puppy wiggled in his arms, and Jake looked down at it.
"You," he whispered, "are going to get me in so much trouble."
The puppy wagged its tail, undeveloped canines showing.
Jake palms his face in defeat.
⋆˚🐾˖°
Twenty minutes later, Jake had managed to give the puppy a bath in the sink. A process, he soon discovered, involved a lot of splashing, some mild panic when the dinky puppy tried to drink the soapy water, and Jake getting almost completely wet. But now the puppy was squeaky clean, revealing fur that was indeed a soft golden color with a light patch on its chest and paws. It was possibly the most precious thing Jake had ever seen in his entire life.
Okay, so it was really cute. Unfairly cute. The kind of cuteness that only Dumbo should have. Big brown eyes, oversized ears, and fur like a baby’s bum.
"Okay," Jake said, sitting on the closed toilet lid with the puppy wrapped in his shower towel. "Here's the plan. I'm going to... figure out where you came from. Put up some signs or something. And in the meantime, you're going to stay very, very quiet, to keep you hidden from Sunoo and definitely from Mr. Choi. Got it, baby?"
Mr. Choi was their landlord, a strict man in his sixties who had made his feelings about pets very clear when Jake and Sunoo had signed the lease six months ago. "No pets," he'd said, his expression suggesting that pets were somewhere between gun powder and unseasoned food on his list of acceptable things. "Not even fish. Especially not dogs. Dogs are loud and messy and they damage property." he had said.
Jake had nodded along at the time, not thinking it would ever be an issue. He'd never had a pet before. His family had moved around too much when he was growing up, and his parents had always said it wouldn't be fair to an animal. But now, looking down at this tiny, light creature that had somehow ended up at his door…
"I just couldn’t leave you out there," Jake murmured, gently rubbing the towel over the puppy's damp fur. "What if something happened to you? What if you got hurt, or scared, or..."
A knock on the bathroom door made him jump.
"Jake-hyung?" Sunoo's voice was muffled through the wood. "Are you sure you're okay? You've been in there for a while."
"Fine!" Jake called back, his voice cracking again. He really needed to get that under control. "Totally fine! Just... taking my time! You know how it is!"
There was a pause. "Do I?"
"Yeah, man! Nothing out of the ordinary… yeah." Jake shouts back.
Another pause, longer this time. Jake held his breath, keeping one hand gently over the puppy's muzzle just in case it decided to make noise.
"Okay," Sunoo finally said, and Jake could hear the amusement in his voice. "Well, I'm making dinner. Do you want some?"
"Sure!" Jake said, relief flooding through him. "I'll be out in a minute!"
The puppy rolls around, almost falling back into the bathroom drain. “Or two, actually.” Jake sighs out.
He waited until he heard Sunoo's footsteps retreat before letting out another long breath. The puppy squirmed in the towel, and Jake carefully unwrapped it, setting the small creature on the bath mat. It immediately started exploring, sniffing at the corner where the mat met the wall, its tiny tail wagging.
"Okay, new plan," Jake said, watching the puppy investigate a dust bunny with intense focus. "I need to get you into my room without Sunoo seeing. Then I need to find you some food and water. And a place to sleep. And probably some toys so you don't get bored. And—"
The puppy squatted, positioning its butt on the mat.
"No, no, no!" Jake lunged forward, scooping up the puppy just in time. "Not on the bath mat! That's... okay, I need to figure out how to do your potty.”
He could pull this off. Definitely.
Jake cracked open the bathroom door and peered out. The coast was clear, and he could hear Sunoo in the kitchen, the sound of a knife on a cutting board creating a thudding backdrop.
Moving as quietly as possible, Jake slipped out of the bathroom with the puppy tucked beneath his shirt and against his stomach and tiptoed toward his bedroom.
"Hyung?"
Jake froze mid-step, one foot in the air like some kind of deranged bird. He slowly turned to find Sunoo standing in the kitchen doorway, a wooden spoon in one hand and an expression of deep confusion on his face.
"Why are you walking like that?" Sunoo asked.
"Like what?" Jake's foot was still in the air. He slowly lowered it, trying to make the movement seem natural and definitely not like he'd been caught sneaking.
"Like you're trying not to wake someone up. Or like you're in a cartoon." Sunoo tilted his head, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Are you hiding something?"
"What? No! Why would I be hiding something? I'm not hiding anything!" Jake was aware that he was protesting too much, but he couldn't seem to stop. "I'm just... walking! To my room! Like a normal person! Who walks normally!" he said, carefully clutching his ‘round’ stomach.
The puppy shifted against his belly, whining against his skin, and Jake quickly coughed again to cover any potential sound.
Sunoo's eyes dropped to Jake's tummy, directly looking at the strange bump under it, then back up to his face. For a moment, Jake was certain he'd been caught. Sunoo was observant—it was one of the things Jake both found impressive and terrifying about him. Nothing got past Sunoo. He noticed when Jake was tired, when he was stressed, when he'd skipped lunch. He noticed everything.
But then Sunoo just smiled, soft and a little amused, and said, "Okay, hyung. Dinner will be ready in twenty minutes. Try to finish your... business... by then."
"Will do!" Jake said brightly, and then practically sprinted the remaining distance to his room, closing the door perhaps a bit too firmly behind him.
He leaned against it, his heart pounding, and looked down at the puppy.
"That was too close," he whispered.
The puppy yawned, showing a tiny pink tongue and even tinier teeth.
Jake set the puppy down on his bed and watched as it immediately started exploring, sniffing at his pillow and pawing at his blanket. His room wasn't exactly large. Just big enough for a bed, a desk, a small dresser, and a bookshelf, but the puppy seemed fascinated by every inch of it.
"Okay," Jake said, pulling out his phone. "Let's see what puppies eat."
A quick internet search informed him that puppies needed special puppy food, which he definitely didn't have. But they could also eat certain human foods in a pinch—plain chicken, rice, certain vegetables. Jake thought about what Sunoo was making for dinner and winced. Knowing Sunoo, it was probably something delicious but also probably something with spices and seasonings that weren't puppy diet approved.
He'd have to figure something out, discreetly that is.
For now, he found a small bowl in his room, dumped its contents into a drawer, and filled the bowl with water from his water bottle. The puppy lapped at it eagerly, getting water all over its face and the floor.
"You're a messy little thing, aren't you?" Jake said fondly, using a tissue to wipe up the spills.
His phone buzzed and came alight.
Sunoo: Dinner's almost ready! Come eat before it gets cold
Okay, that was fine. He'll go out and act as he usually does. Yeah, easy.
"Stay here," Jake told the puppy, who was now attempting to climb onto his pillow. "Be very, very quiet. I'll bring you back some food, okay?"
The puppy looked at him with those big brown eyes, and Jake felt his resolve strengthen. He could do this. He could keep this puppy safe and hidden until he figured out a permanent solution. How hard could it be?
⋆˚🐾˖°
The answer, Jake discovered over the scary course of dinner, was— very hard.
Sunoo had made kimchi fried rice with a fried egg on top, and it was delicious, but Jake could barely savor it. He was too busy straining his ears for any sound from his room, too busy worrying about what the puppy might be doing unsupervised, too busy trying not to look suspicious.
"You're being weird again," Sunoo observed, watching Jake over the rim of his glass.
"I'm not being weird," Jake said automatically.
"You've been staring at the hallway door for the past five minutes."
"I have not."
"Jake, you literally haven't looked at me once since you sat down."
Jake forced himself to meet Sunoo's eyes, which was a mistake because Sunoo was looking at him with that signature, concerned expression that made Jake want to throw up. The guilt was eating him from inside out, Sunoo would be furious at Jake if he knew, at the puppy, and the trouble Jake caused. And he couldn't deal with that.
"Sorry," Jake mumbled, looking down at his rice. "I'm just... tired. Long day."
"You went grocery shopping," Sunoo pointed out gently. "And you seemed to have a lot of energy when you came back."
Energy? More like crippling anxiety. The thought of the wild puppy wreaking havoc on his room was enough to churn Jake's stomach.
"Right, I think I’m just out of it."
Sunoo hummed, a sound that suggested he didn't quite believe Jake but was willing to let it go. "Well, after dinner, you should rest. Maybe take a shower? You still seem kind of damp."
Jake looked down at himself. His shirt was indeed still slightly wet from the puppy bath incident. "Yeah, good idea. I'll do that."
They ate in silence for a few minutes, and Jake was just starting to relax when he heard it—a faint scratching sound from his room.
His eyes widened. Sunoo's head tilted slightly, like he was trying to identify the sound.
"Did you hear that?" Sunoo asked.
"Hear what?" Jake said too quickly.
"That scratching sound. It sounded like it came from your room."
"Oh, that!" Jake let out a laugh that sounded forced even to his own ears. "That's just... my computer. The fan. It makes weird noises sometimes. I really need to get it checked out. Technology, you know? So unreliable. Anyway, this rice is amazing, did you use a different recipe?"
Sunoo blinked at the rapid subject change but smiled. "Same recipe. I just added a little more spice this time."
"It's perfect," Jake said, shoveling rice into his mouth to avoid further conversation.
The scratching sound came again, louder this time.
"Your computer fan is very persistent," Sunoo said, his tone dry.
"It's a very persistent fan," Jake agreed miserably, chewing his food more quickly now.
Sunoo stood up, and Jake's heart stopped.
"Where are you going?" Jake asked, trying not to sound panicked.
"To get more water. Do you want some?"
"Yeah! I'll get it!" Jake jumped up so fast he nearly knocked over his chair. "You sit! Relax! You cooked, so I'll get the water!"
Sunoo raised an eyebrow but sat back down. "Right..."
Jake grabbed both their glasses and practically ran to the kitchen, his mind racing. He needed to check on the puppy, but he couldn't do it with Sunoo right there. Maybe he could fake a phone call? Or say he needed to grab something from his room? Or—
A bark. A tiny, high-pitched bark that was unmistakably canine.
Jake dropped one of the glasses. It didn't break, thank the god for cheap plastic cups but it clattered loudly against the counter.
"What was that?" Sunoo was standing now, looking toward Jake's room with wide eyes.
"What was what?" Jake said desperately.
"Hyung, that sounded like a dog."
"A dog? In our apartment? That's insane! We don't have a dog! Dogs aren't allowed! Mr. Choi would kill us! It was probably... the TV! From next door! You know how thin these walls are!" Jake drifted.
Another bark, followed by a scratching sound.
"That's definitely coming from your room," Sunoo said, starting to move toward the hallway.
"No!" Jake abandoned the glasses and intercepted Sunoo, physically stepping in front of him. They were suddenly very close, close enough that Jake could see the flecks of gold in Sunoo's brown eyes, close enough to count his eyelashes. "You can't go in there!"
Sunoo looks down at him, despite only having an inch over Jake. His face showed an expression that was part confusion, part amusement, and part something else that Jake couldn't quite identify.
"Why not?" Sunoo asked softly.
"Because..." Jake's mind went blank. Completely, utterly blank. "Because it's messy?"
Sunoo sets down his food, attention now fixed on Jake. "Since when do you care if I see your room messy?"
"Because... there's a surprise in there?"
"A surprise?" Sunoo tilts his head, unconvinced.
"Yes! A surprise! For you! That I'm not ready to show you yet!"
This was the worst lie Jake had ever told, and he'd once tried to convince his brother that their dog had eaten his homework (they didn’t even have one).
Sunoo's expression softened into something fond and exasperated. "Jake-hyung, you don't need to get me."
"But I want to!" Jake said, committing to the lie now. "So you can't go in there! Not until... not until I'm ready!"
Another bark, more insistent this time.
"That's a very vocal surprise," Sunoo said, his lips twitching.
"It's... a speaker! A bluetooth speaker! That I'm testing! And it has dog sounds! For some reason! It's a weird speaker!" Jake rambled, words trembling as he went on.
Sunoo stared at him for a long moment, and Jake was certain he'd been caught. But then Sunoo just sighed, a small smile on his face, and stepped back.
"Okay," he said. "I won't go in your room."
"Really?" Jake couldn't keep the surprise out of his voice.
"Really. But Jake-hyung?" Sunoo reached down and gently tugged on the hem of Jake's damp shirt, his fingers barely brushing against Jake's stomach. Jake held his breath, lungs collapsing on himself. "Whatever you're hiding, you know you can tell me, right? I'm not going to be mad."
Jake swallowed hard. "I know."
"Good." Sunoo's hand dropped, and he stepped back. "I'm going to watch some TV. Goodluck with... whatever it is you’re doing."
He walked away, leaving Jake standing in the hallway feeling like he'd just run a marathon.
Jake waited until he heard the TV turn on before slipping into his room.
The puppy had apparently been very busy in his absence. His pillow was on the floor, his blanket was bunched up in a corner, and there were tiny teeth marks on the corner of his laptop charger.
"Oh no," Jake groaned, picking up the charger to inspect the damage. It wasn't too bad—the plastic was dented but not broken through. "You can't chew on wires, buddy. That's dangerous."
The puppy wagged its tail, completely unaware.
Jake scooped it up and sat on his bed, letting the puppy settle in his lap. "You're going to blow our cover if you keep barking," he whispered. "Sunoo's already suspicious. We need to be more careful."
The puppy licked his hand.
"Yeah, yeah, you're cute. That's not going to work on me."
Who was he kidding? It was absolutely working on him.
Jake exhales, heart still pounding from earlier. "We need rules. No barking. No chewing important things. And definitely no escaping from this room when Sunoo's around."
The puppy yawned, flopping its stomach on Jake’s thigh.
Jake sighs, contemplating his words. "Are you even listening to me?"
The puppy curled up in his lap, breathing still and quiet.
Jake looked down at the tiny creature, at the way its chest rose and fell with each breath, at the way its paws twitched slightly, and he felt an unsaid certain obligation towards the animal.
"I'm going to keep you safe," he promised quietly. "I don't know how yet, but I will. Even if it means hiding you from Sunoo, and lying to the landlord, and probably having a nervous breakdown in the process. You're worth it."
The puppy sighed contentedly, paws scratching Jake’s clothes.
Jake carefully moved the puppy to the ground, letting it prance around the room with its small feet, and then grabbed his phone. He took a photo, for documentation purposes, of course, definitely not because the puppy was adorable. Then, he opened a new note.
Operation: Puppy Go Lucky
Step 1: Keep puppy quiet (Successful… mostly)
Step 2: Find puppy food
Step 3: Puppy-proof room
Step 4: Avoid Sunoo's suspicion (Failed!!)
Step 5: Figure out long-term plan (If even possible)
He stared at the list, feeling overwhelmed. This was a terrible idea. He should probably just tell Sunoo the truth, or take the puppy to a shelter, or—
The puppy made a small howl while chewing his laundry, and Jake's resolve formed.
No. He was keeping this puppy. He'd figure it out somehow.
He just needed to be more careful.
⋆˚🐾˖°
Being more careful, Jake discovered, was easier said than done.
He excused himself to "freshen up," which gave him an excuse to stay in his room. He'd utilized the time to organize as best he could, moving anything chewable out of reach, blocking off the space under his bed where the puppy might get stuck, and creating a makeshift bathroom area using a cardboard box and some old magazines in his desk drawer.
The puppy had watched these preparations with interest, occasionally trying to help by attacking the magazines.
"You're not helping," Jake informed it, gently moving it away from the box for the third time.
The puppy responded by sitting on his foot, pleading brown eyes fixed on the human’s. Jake grabs his pillow, burying his face in it to stifle a small scream.
Around 10 PM, he ventured out to the kitchen to find food for the puppy. Sunoo was on the couch, watching some variety show and laughing at something on screen. The sight would’ve been normal any other day, but now, he felt as if he was trying to avoid a horror game jumpscare. He shook his head and focused on the task at hand.
Food.
For the puppy.
He found some plain chicken breast in the fridge, probably leftovers from something Sunoo had made earlier in the weekend and some rice. He put a small amount of each in a bowl and was about to retreat to his room when Sunoo called out.
"Jake-hyung? What are you doing?"
Jake turned, hiding the bowl behind his back. "Nothing! Just getting a snack!"
Sunoo looked at him over the back of the couch, his expression amused. "At 10 PM? You usually don't eat this late."
"What can I say? I’m extra hungry tonight. Growing boy and all that!" Jake chuckled, a nervous sound, as he awkwardly tried to hide the bowl of food behind him.
Sunoo squinted, a perplexed expression clouding his eyes. "You're 21."
"Still growing! Probably! In some ways!” Jake declares, a little obnoxiously, he notes.
Sunoo laughed, the sound making Jake's head throb. "Whatever. Enjoy your ‘snack’."
“Uh huh…!” Jake escaped back to his room, his heart pounding. This was getting ridiculous. He couldn't keep acting this suspicious, or Sunoo was going to figure out something was up.
The puppy, at least, was thrilled with the food. Assuming the pup hadn’t eaten in days. It ate eagerly, getting rice all over its face and the floor, and then looked up at Jake as if expecting more.
"That's all for now," Jake said, wiping the puppy's face with a tissue. "We'll get you proper puppy food tomorrow. I'll have to go to the pet store, which means leaving you alone, which is terrifying, but we'll figure it out."
The puppy tilted its head, and Jake could swear it understood him.
"You need a name," Jake realized suddenly. "I can't keep calling you 'puppy' or 'buddy.' You need a proper name."
He thought about it, watching the puppy explore his room again, sniffing at everything with intense curiosity.
"How about... Lucky?" Jake suggested. "Since we met by a stroke of luck! Cheesy, I know but it’s cute!"
The puppy looked at him and wagged its tail, drool slipping through its mouth.
"Lucky it is," Jake decided, feeling a surge of affection. "Welcome to your new home, Lucky. It's not much, and you have to stay hidden all the time, and I'm probably going to have to hang on wires trying to keep you a secret, but... I'm really glad you're here."
Lucky responded by trying to climb into his lap, which was difficult given that he was still learning how his legs worked. Jake helped it up, and he immediately curled into a ball against his stomach.
Jake leaned back against his headboard, gently petting Lucky's soft fur, and felt a sense of contentment wash over him despite the chaos of the evening.
This was going to be complicated. Hiding Lucky from Sunoo, from the landlord, from anyone who might visit—it was going to require constant vigilance and probably a lot of luck. But looking down at the tiny creature sleeping trustingly in his lap, Jake knew he'd made the right choice.
He just hoped he could pull it off.
A soft knock on his door made him jump. "Jake-hyung?" Sunoo's voice was muffled through the wood. "I'm going to bed. Just wanted to say goodnight."
"Goodnight!" Jake called back, keeping his voice steady and definitely not panicked.
"Are you sure you're okay? You've been acting strange all evening."
"I'm fine! Just tired! Long day! Like I said!"
There was a pause, and Jake held his breath, one hand gently covering Lucky's muzzle just in case.
"Okay," Sunoo said finally. "Sleep well, Jake."
"You too!"
Jake waited until he heard Sunoo's door close before letting out a long breath. Lucky stirred in his lap, opening one eye to look at him before closing it again.
He places the— finally, calm pup down at his absurd excuse of a dog bed, while finally collapsing into his own.
It was past midnight, he had class at nine, and he was harboring an illegal puppy in his room.
This was fine. Everything was fine.
The puppy whimpered from its box, heading poking towards Jake.
"No," Jake said to the ceiling. "We're not doing this. You have a perfectly good bed."
Another whimper, more pitiful this time.
"I'm not falling for it."
A tiny, heartbreaking whine.
"Oh, for the love of—fine. Fine!”
Jake got up, grabbed the puppy and its blanket, and brought them both into bed with him. The puppy immediately curled up against his chest, let out a contented sigh, and fell asleep.
"Day one," Jake whispered. "We survived day one."
He had a feeling the next few days were going to be even more challenging.
But as Lucky snuggled closer, making a small contented sound, Jake smiled.
This was totally worth it.
⋆˚🐾˖°
The events of last night came flooding back. The puppy. The bath. His complete abandonment of common sense.
"Okay, buddy, we need to—" Jake paused, listening. He could hear movement in the kitchen. Sunoo was awake. "We need to be very, very quiet." he whispers, as if the pup could understand him.
He scooped up the puppy and looked around his room frantically. Where could he hide a puppy? His closet? No, too obvious. Under the bed? The puppy would definitely bark. His desk? Not enough space.
The puppy squirmed in his arms, letting out a soft yip.
"No! No barking! No making any sounds!" Jake reminded urgently. "Sunoo cannot, in any circumstance, know you're here!"
As if summoned by his name, there was a knock on Jake's door.
"Hyung? You awake?" Sunoo's voice called out. "I made coffee!"
Jake's eyes went wide. He looked at the puppy. The puppy looked back, tail still wagging.
In a moment of pure panic, Jake did the 'only' rational thing he could think of, he shoved the puppy under his shirt, a sudden habit which he hoped would no longer recur.
"Uh, yeah! Just a second!" he called out, trying to sound normal while a puppy squirmed against his stomach.
"Can I come in? I want to ask you about—"
"No!" Jake practically shouted. "I mean, nu uh, I'm not decent!"
There was a pause. "Hyung, we've been roommates for half a year. I've seen you naked like a hundred times."
“What?!” Jake's eyes widened, a confused 'huh' escaping his lips. “When??”
“That doesn’t matter.” Sunoo laughs, unaware of the ticking dog bomb under Jaeyun’s shirt.
"Well, today's different! I'm… uh had someone over…?"
What the fuck, Jake? Why would you say it like that?
Another pause. Jake could practically hear Sunoo's bewilderment through his door.
“I mean I– uh… I had sleep paralysis!” Jake coughs, practically choking on his words. “That’s who I had over…?”
"Um…alright. Just come out when you're ready. Coffee's getting cold."
Jake could hear the amusement in Sunoo’s words, and all he could do was hold his breath.
He inhales and responds. "Thanks, Sunoo! You're the best! Bye!"
Jake waited until he heard Sunoo's footsteps retreat before pulling the puppy out from under his shirt. It looked rumpled and confused but thankfully hadn't barked.
"Okay, new plan," Jake muttered, looking around his room again. "You stay here. I'll go have coffee with Sunoo, and then I'll figure out what to do with you."
He set the puppy down in the cardboard box, gave it a stern look that he hoped conveyed "stay quiet or we're both doomed," and headed out to face Sunoo.
Sunoo was sitting at their small kitchen table, scrolling through his phone with a cup of coffee in hand. He looked up when Jake entered, his expression brightening.
"Morning! Feeling better?"
"What?" Jake said, voice cracking at the question before answering. "Oh! I'm fine! Mhm..."
Sunoo raised an eyebrow. "You don't sound very fine"
"I'm not lying."
"I didn't say you were..."
"Right. Yes. Of course." Jake grabbed a cup of coffee and took a large gulp, burning his tongue in the process. "Ow, this coffee is hot."
"Are you okay?"
"Perfect! Never better! Why do you ask?"
Before Sunoo could respond with what was surely going to be a very reasonable concern about Jake's mental state, a bark echoed from Jake's room.
Both of them froze.
"Was that..." Sunoo started.
"A dog! On TV! In my room! I fell asleep with YouTube on!" Jake said rapidly. "You know how it is, autoplay, algorithm, suddenly you're watching dog videos at 3 AM!"
Sunoo looked skeptical, raising his eyebrow. "Your TV isn't on."
"It's on my phone! Which is in my room! Which I should go check on! Right now!" Jake declares, setting his mug down before briskly turning his foot down the hall.
Jake practically sprinted back to his room, closing the door firmly behind him. The puppy was standing in its box, tail wagging, looking incredibly proud of itself for making noise.
"We talked about this," Jake hissed. "No barking!"
The puppy barked again.
"That's the opposite of what I just said!"
There was another knock on his door. "Jake-hyung, seriously, what's going on?"
"Nothing! Everything's fine! Just... talking to myself! Which is a totally normal thing that people do!"
"You're being really weird.” Sunoo sighs, worry evident in his tone.
"Uh…it’s…my charm?" Jake says tentatively, he braces himself, hoping Sunoo won’t come banging his door down.
It’s not like Sunoo would, but he wouldn’t put it past him. The younger had a knack for doing the unexpected.
He could hear Sunoo sigh through the door. "Okay, well, I'm leaving for class in twenty minutes. Try not to have a complete breakdown before then?"
"No promises!" Jake hollers back.
Jake waited until he heard Sunoo's footsteps retreat again before slumping against the door. This was a disaster. He'd had the puppy for less than twelve hours and had already almost been caught twice.
His phone buzzed. A text from Jay.
Jay: class is in 10, where r u???
Right. Class. He had to go to class. Which meant leaving the puppy alone in his room for several hours.
"Okay, buddy," Jake said, kneeling down next to the box. "I have class for a while. You need to be good. No barking, no destroying things, no escaping. Can you do that for me?"
The puppy tilted its head, then tried to eat Jake's shoe sole.
Jake groans before lifting the puppy in airjail. "I'll take that as a maybe."
Jake quickly changed into more proper clothes, filled the water bowl, and—after a moment of internal debate—grabbed a carrot from the kitchen and mashed it up in a bowl for the puppy. It wasn’t ideal, but he knew dogs could eat them anyway, and it was better than nothing. He would just stop by a pet store on the way home.
"Be good," he told the puppy one more time, giving it a gentle pat on the head. "I'll be back soon."
The puppy licked his hand.
Jake's heart melted a little bit more, but maybe it was actually his gut slowly liquefying.
Either way, he was screwed.
⋆˚🐾˖°
The apartment was quiet when Jake burst through the door, which was either a very good sign or a very bad sign.
"Puppy?" he called out softly, heading toward his room. "You still alive in there?"
He opened his door and stopped dead.
His room looked like a tornado had hit it. His blankets were pulled off the bed, his closet door was open with clothes scattered everywhere, and his favorite pair of slippers—had been thoroughly chewed.
And in the middle of the chaos, looking incredibly pleased with itself, was the puppy.
"Oh my god," Jake breathed. "What did you do?"
The puppy wagged its tail and trotted over to him, dropping a sock at his feet like a prize.
"That's my sock! I need that sock! I need both socks, because that's how socks work!"
The puppy barked happily, waggling the white sock in its mouth like a prize.
Jake ran a hand through his hair, looking around at the destruction. This was fine. This was totally fine. He could clean this up. Sunoo wouldn't notice. Everything was under control.
His phone buzzed. A text from just the very person he wanted to hear from.
Sunoo: coming home early, class got cancelled. be there in 10!!
Jake: ok see u
Crap. This is great, amazing actually.
Jake looked at his destroyed room. He looked at the puppy. He looked at his destroyed room again.
"We have ten minutes to make this look like a puppy didn't just redecorate," he told the dog. "Think we can do it?"
The puppy grabbed another sock and ran under the bed with it.
"That's a no, then."
Jake sprang into action. He shoved clothes back into the closet, threw blankets back on the bed, and kicked the chewed slippers under his desk where hopefully Sunoo wouldn't see them. The puppy, thinking this was a wonderful game, kept pulling things back out.
"You're not helping!" Jake scolded, grabbing a shirt from the puppy's mouth. "You're the opposite of helping!"
Five minutes later, the room looked... better. Not good, but better. Jake scooped up the puppy and looked around for a hiding place.
The closet? No, he'd already tried that and the puppy had destroyed it. Under the bed? Too obvious. His desk? Not enough space.
He heard the front door open.
"Jake-hyung? You home?" Sunoo called out.
In a moment of pure desperation, Jake did the only thing he could think of—he grabbed his backpack, dumped out the contents, and shoved the puppy inside, leaving the top unzipped for air.
"Yeah! In my room! Just... organizing!"
"Suddenly?"
"Yep! Just decided on it…” Jake explains, his trembling hands clasped desperately at the bag.
Sunoo appeared in his doorway, looking amused. "And they say I’m eccentric”
"Very funny," Jake said, clutching his backpack to his chest. The puppy squirmed inside, tail thumping against the fabric. "How was class?"
"Cancelled. Professor Kim is sick." Sunoo's eyes narrowed. "Why are you holding your backpack like that?"
"Like what?"
"Like it contains your firstborn."
Jake wants to laugh and tell Sunoo he’s not wrong. "I just... really like this backpack. It's a good backpack. Very sturdy. Great zippers."
The puppy chose that moment to let out a muffled yip from inside the bag.
Sunoo's eyes widened. "Did your backpack just make a sound?"
"What? No! That was... my stomach! I'm hungry! Haven't eaten all day!"
Sunoo gives him a deadpan look. "Your stomach barked?"
"It's a medical condition, very…rare! I should probably go eat something, right now! In the kitchen! Away from you!" Jake said, bobbing his head while clutching the bag.
Jake tried to edge past Sunoo, suddenly, his roommate had blocked the doorway by stepping between Jake and the threshold.
Jake stops dead in his tracks and bites his lip. Shit.
First of all, he was so fucked. Sunoo is going to see Lucky, and he’s probably going to be animalistic himself. He might just kick Jake out along with the puppy across their building curb.
Second, was Sunoo always this tall? Jake can’t see past the younger’s head, which contributes nothing to calm the gnawing tornado in his stomach. He wasn’t that short! He was pretty tall…Sort of. But god, Sunoo looked horrifying just staring him down.
If Sunoo doesn't speak up now, then, Sim Jaeyun might faint on the cold hard floor and slip into a coma in a matter of seconds.
"Sim Jaeyun, what 's in the backpack?"
Jake looks past Sunoo, his eyes wandering to anywhere that isn’t Sunoo’s "Nothing!"
"Show me." Sunoo said sternly, eyes directly at Jake’s face.
Jake quivers, legs close to shackling down. "I can't!"
"Why not?"
“Just because, man!”
“Jake-hyung, are you doing drugs!?”
Jake slaps the younger’s arm. “What the…no! What the fuck?”
Sunoo clenches his teeth, all the while rubbing his arm. “Then, what??”
"Because... because..." Jake's mind raced. "Because it's the surprise I was talking about! It barks…! Because it's... a barking gift?"
Sunoo stared at him. "A barking gift."
"Yes!" Jake nods, nodding fast enough it’s sure to give him vertigo.
"For me." Sunoo clears out.
Jake snaps his fingers. "Exactly!"
"Hyung, it's not my birthday." the younger one reminds him.
Jake gulps, hands tightening against the backpack strap. "Early birthday present?"
The puppy barked again, louder this time, and started squirming more vigorously. Jake's grip on the backpack slipped, and before he could catch it, the puppy's head popped out of the top, tongue lolling happily.
Sunoo's jaw dropped, expression gaping at the slobbery golden retriever in Jake’s bag.
Jake closed his eyes. "I can explain."
"You have a dog."
"Technically, it's a puppy."
Sunoo widens his eyes, shaking his head. "You have a puppy. In your backpack?!”
"When you say it like that, it sounds bad." Jake bites his lower lip, hands fisted at the hem of his shirt.
"Because it is!" Sunoo retorts, arms in the air. “Jake-hyung—”
The puppy, apparently deciding it had been in the backpack long enough, wriggled free and jumped out, immediately running over to Sunoo and sitting at his feet, tail wagging.
Sunoo looked down at the puppy. The puppy looked up at Sunoo with big, adoring eyes.
"Absolutely not," Sunoo said. "Oh no, don't look at me like that."
The puppy tilted its head, eyes glistening behind its lids.
"I'm serious. I'm not falling for that," Sunoo declares, until his shoulders slump forward. “But you’re so cute.” he sighs.
"I found it in the hallway last night," Jake said quickly. "It was muddy and cold and I couldn't just leave it there. I was going to find its owner, I swear, but—"
"But you got attached."
"A little…" Jake sugarcoats, looking at Lucky’s excited face. “Okay, a lot.”
Sunoo pinched the bridge of his nose. "Mr. Choi is going to kill us. Actually, fucking kill us. We'll be homeless!"
Jake whines, shaking his head side to side. "He won't find out!"
"Hyung, it's a puppy. Puppies bark! They shit and piss everywhere, they need to go outside!"
"I'll be careful! I'll take it out at weird hours when no one's around! I'll train it to be quiet!"
"You can't even train yourself to follow our apartment lease!"
"Hey!" Jake stammers, even though he knows he’s at fault.
The puppy, apparently bored with their conversation, wandered over to Sunoo's feet and started chewing on his shoelace.
"Stop that," Sunoo said, but his voice had lost some of its edge. "... they’re not edible."
The puppy looked up at him and wagged its tail harder.
Jake seizes his opportunity to butter Sunoo up. "Look how much he likes you already."
"That's not fair."
"It's totally fair. Look at that face. How can you say no to that face?" Jake points his hands at the tiny puppy.
"Easy. Watch,” Sunoo takes that as a challenge, and sets his sight directly on the small dog. “No. See? I said no."
The puppy let out a tiny whimper, raising its paw against Sunoo’s pant leg.
"Oh, come on," Sunoo groaned, scratching his head. "That’s cheating."
"I didn't tell it to do that!" Jake said triumphantly, a proud grin on his face.
Sunoo crouched down, and the puppy immediately climbed into his lap, licking his chin. Jake watched as his roommate's resolve visibly crumbled like a cookie.
"This is a terrible idea," Sunoo said, but he was petting the puppy now, scratching behind its ears.
"The worst idea," Jake agreed, sitting down directly across from Sunoo.
Sunoo's head drooped. "We're going to get evicted."
"Probably," the older one agrees, before adding. “Not. If we don’t get caught.”
"Mr. Choi is going to murder us."
“Eh,” Jake genuinely contemplates, tilting his hand. “Not really.”
Sunoo looked up at him, the puppy now contentedly curled in his arms. "Does it have a name?"
Jake grinned. "Lucky. Because he’s lucky I found him." he said brazenly, clearly pleased with himself.
"I hate you."
"No, you don't."
"Well, I should start today." Sunoo clicks with the roof of his tongue.
“Don’t be mean.” Jake stuck out his tongue, prompting an irked sigh from Sunoo.
The puppy yawned, showing its tiny pink tongue, and Sunoo's expression softened even more.
"Okay," he finally said. "Okay! But we need rules. Seriously. And if we get caught, this was entirely your idea."
"Deal!" Jake accepts victoriously.
"I'm serious, hyung. We have to be careful. No one can know about this."
"I know, I know." Jake raises his arms, accepting Sunoo’s proposition.
"What did you feed it?” Sunoo looked down at the puppy, then back at Jake. “Do you even have dog food?"
"I... gave it baby carrots this morning?"
Sunoo flicks his hyung’s forehead. "You gave it carrots?!"
“Ow!” Jake reacts, rubbing his head. “It’s safe, and nutritious!!”
"Oh my god, you’re going to kill this puppy because you didn’t think this through."
"I’m not going to kill it! I’ll go to the pet store right now and get everything he needs. Food, toys, a proper bed—"
"How are you going to afford all that?"
Jake hadn't thought about that. "I’ll... figure it out. I'll pick up extra shifts at the convenience store."
“...I'll see if I can get more tutoring students." Sunoo sighed, still petting the puppy.
“Actually?” Jake’s face beams at the younger’s words. "Oh my god, thank you Sunoo." he sighs in relief.
"Don't thank me yet. Thank me if we actually manage to pull this off." Sunoo stood up, still holding the puppy. "Come on. Let's go to the pet store before I change my mind."
"Wait, really? Right now?"
"Yes, right now. This puppy needs actual food, not carrots." Sunoo paused at the door. "And Jake-hyung?"
"Yeah?"
"I could kill you right now."
Jake couldn't help but smile. "Liar."