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He really shouldn’t have done it. Mark could barely afford to feed himself, could hardly take care of a fish and have it live longer than a week, and he risk being fined or kicked out of his apartment if he was caught.
But Mark cared too much, or maybe he was just a total sucker for cute things like babies and animals. Either way, it was 2AM and Mark was sitting on the bathroom floor while Jackson, a puppy hybrid, splashed around in the tub and wouldn’t stop asking Mark all these inane questions. He was filthy from hanging around the railroad tracks and alleyways. Mark shouldn’t have taken Jackson in. He couldn’t take care of a hybrid and his apartment discriminated against pets that weren’t tiny betta fishes.
Except Mark wasn’t heartless like that, and he had a long history of taking in abandoned pets dating back to his childhood. He couldn’t leave Jackson out there in the cold, not after his sunny smile and “I hope you have a good day!” and Mark couldn’t ignored how beat up Jackson looked.
When Jackson had stepped into Mark’s apartment, he clasped his hands and said, “This means we’re friends, right?”
Now here they were, Mark trying to clean Jackson without flooding the bathroom. It would’ve been easier to give him a shower, but Jackson insisted on a bubble bath because they were more fun and he missed them.
Too much time later, Mark had Jackson clad in the biggest sweater he owned and a pair of sweatpants that were a little too snug for Jackson’s thighs. Jackson shook his hair, fluffing it out more and spraying water droplets onto Mark’s face. “Is it time for bed?” Jackson asked, tugging at his sleeves as he looked around Mark’s place. He already looked much better from when Mark found him. Given a few weeks, Mark’s food would restore the pinkness to Jackson’s cheeks and the chub on his bones.
“I don’t have a spare bed,” Mark said, pulling out extra blankets from his closet, “but you can sleep on my bed and I’ll–” Mark nearly tumbled over himself as Jackson yanked him onto the bed and tucked the blankets around them.
When Jackson smiled, something cheesy happened where Mark’s heart fluttered weirdly and his face was as hot as the bathwater Jackson insisted on. “Or we can just sleep together.” Jackson burrowed under the blankets, eyes roaming over everywhere as he comprehended how surreal everything was. Apprehension bubbled up inside Mark, and he was ready to comfort the hybrid before Jackson could ask the question.
“This is your new home if you wanna stay. I’d like you to,” Mark said, and when Jackson hugged him–ears shoved in Mark’s face and his tail thumping under the blankets–it felt like they had known each other for years. It wasn’t just a hasty decision made or a rushed meeting.
It was still too early to truly say if Mark had made the right decision or not, but something stirring in him said he had.
He reached over to turn off his lamp, shrouding the room in darkness. With Jackson’s head on his chest, he petted his ears and wondered how Jackson could be so trusting. If maybe Jackson hadn’t been abandoned long enough to feel angry and bitter. There were many questions that would have to wait to be asked.
As Mark’s eyes drooped shut, the smell of the shampoo from Jackson’s hair filling his nose, and dreams creeping into his mind, he heard a soft voice speak.
“Thank you, Mark.”