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The kitchen smelled good.
That was probably the first problem, and truthfully the start of all of this. Even though every time Josh cooked the kitchen smelled good. So it’s not like it was a new discovery, or something particularly interesting.
Tyler had been perfectly content sitting on the couch ten minutes ago, half watching whatever Josh had put on the television and half scrolling through his phone. It was some weird cartoon show that had been in that first row of new arrivals on one of their many streaming apps.
It wasn’t very interesting, that's for sure. Honestly though he was content doing anything that kept him busy. Like multitasking. Tyler being reminiscent of an Ipad Kid made Josh’s soul hurt on the inside; but if Tyler was happy then it didn’t really matter much, especially if he wasn’t in the room while it was happening. So Tyler hadn't even been particularly interested in dinner.
Then the smell started drifting through the house.
When it had wafted its way into the living room, his nose immediately caught on. Phone forgotten at the moment, youtube video still playing.
The couch shifted as he tilted his head up sniffing the air. Something warm and savory. Herbs, maybe. Butter. Whatever Josh was making, it smelled good enough that Tyler's stomach gave an embarrassing growl.
Now that it was on his mind, he was pretty hungry. Typically if Josh didn’t remind him and he was in his own world, Tyler would forget to eat until he was starving hours later.
He glanced toward the kitchen. Turning around and putting his arms on the back of the couch.
Josh was standing at the stove with his back to him, moving between the counter and the pan in front of him. His sleeves were pushed up to his elbows, and one of his ears was covered by the cord of his headphones as he listened to something through them.
It was pretty attractive, a thought flashed in Tyler’s mind and his face flushed a little pink. Tail wagging against the couch cushions. The thought was pushed to the back of his mind when his stomach growled again.
Tyler's ears perked up, he was thinking.
He'd been told to stay out of the kitchen. Many, MANY times. Specifically, he'd been told to stay out of the kitchen when Josh was cooking. Now that he was thinking about it, Josh tells him almost every time.
Usually he was pretty good at listening, or at least that’s what he thought.
But that was different. It was so he wouldn’t get into things before they were ready, or before they were fully cooked. Tyler remembered Josh telling him that once after he’d eaten raw cookie dough and ended up getting sick.
He wasn't hungry enough to actually eat anything. He just mostly wanted to know what Josh was making. Sometimes he’d tell him and other times it would be a complete surprise. Tonight was a night of surprises, and that, made it interesting.
His tail gave another small, involuntary wag, beating against the couch cushion. The entertainment had become Josh. Even with both his phone and the tv playing, Tyler couldn’t help his curiosity.
It was one of those things that came with being a puppy hybrid. The probability of getting into trouble raised significantly whenever he was curious.
He watched for a while. Josh stirred something in the pan, added some seasonings, checked the recipe book, grabbed something out of the fridge. It was mesmerizing, watching him cook. That was why Tyler loved it so much.
He leaned foward against the couch. Then back. Then forward again. Making an excited rocking motion.
Looking wouldn't hurt.
He slid off the couch. Feet touched carpet and he curled his toes against the feeling, it was soft. Just the way he liked it. Tyler shuffled through the living room. Bare feet turning almost silent against the tile floor as he wandered toward the kitchen.
He made it about three steps in before Josh glanced over his shoulder.
Tyler stopped, standing still in his tracks. He’d just made it to the edge of the island counter. Still a good distance away from the stove, oven, or anything that Josh deemed as dangerous.
Josh stared at him.
Tyler stared back for a second and a nervous smile crossed his face. One of his ears slowly folded backward.
"Tyler.”
He blinked innocently. Shuffling his feet together and now looking anywhere but at Josh.
"I didn't do anything."
"You didn't have to. I know you.”
Tyler glanced toward the stove. Josh followed his gaze and looked right back at him.
"Tyler."
"What?"
"You know the rule.”
Tyler huffed a little and stepped backwards a few spaces so he was further away from the kitchen. Standing beside the dining room table now.
“Well..I'm just looking." He craned his head and leaned sideways to try to see past Josh. Who was blocking any view of what was happening over there.
Josh turned back towards the stove after giving him a pointed look. Tyler’s ears flattened.
"Go sit down."
"But—"
"Ty.”
There was no anger in Josh's voice, but there was enough firmness in it that Tyler knew arguing wasn't going to get him anywhere. He always used that voice when he needed Tyler to listen. Or when he was being serious.
Tyler sighed dramatically. He didn’t like being serious. It wasn’t any fun. Knowing he wasn’t going to win, he gave up and started walking back to his spot on the couch.
"Fine."
Tyler made it halfway back to the couch before glancing over his shoulder. He thought that he’d be safe from the watchful eye but found out pretty quickly that the answer to that was no. He was not safe.
Josh was watching him. Tyler whipped around to face forward again. He heard Josh laugh under his breath.
"Good boy.”
Tyler dropped onto the couch with a huff. It didn’t feel as good when Josh didn’t let him do what he wanted. With not much else to do, he decided to go back to his phone, this time watching a new YouTube video. The other one had gotten boring really fast.
There was a little hope that this one would last longer…
It lasted a rough three minutes.
Nothing was working to distract him. The television wasn't interesting anymore. His phone wasn't interesting anymore. The only thing he wanted to do was to know what Josh was cooking.
Tyler kicked his feet against the couch, played with his tail a little, chewed on his, really Josh’s, hoodie string.
Still, his ears twitched at every sound coming from the kitchen.
The scrape of a wooden spoon against the pan, a soft clink of a utensil against the counter, something sizzling as it was sautéed. It was driving him crazy.
He tried to ignore it.
He really did.
But then he heard the refrigerator open. His head peaked up from the back of the couch.
Josh's voice carried from the kitchen. "Ty, don’t”
Tyler froze. He must’ve heard him moving.
"Don't what?"
"I know you're thinking about it."
"I'm literally sitting down."
"For now."
Tyler rolled his eyes. Phone forgotten again, as he kept his focus on what he could see of Josh. The house was shaped just right so if he leaned back, and tilted his head, he could glance into the kitchen to see Josh at the stove.
He disappeared around the corner for a moment. Then he came back into view, wiping his hands on a kitchen towel. Josh looked over at Tyler.
"I'm going to run to the bathroom real quick. Stay out of the kitchen until I get back, okay?"
Tyler nodded. This would be the perfect chance.
"Okay."
"And don't touch the stove."
Somehow Josh always knew. Maybe he had some sort of magic superpower, that told him when Tyler was going to do something he wasn’t supposed to. At least, that was his best guess.
"I won't." He straightened out his tail so it would stop wagging, he had to be at least a little believable.
"Promise?"
Tyler's ears twitched.
"I promise."
Josh narrowed his eyes at him for another second, clearly debating whether he believed him or not. He may not always listen, but recently Tyler had been on somewhat of a good streak. His behavior certainly came in handy when Josh turned around and walked away. Apparently, he did believe him.
“Good”
Tyler watched as he disappeared down the hallway. He waited, letting the seconds tick by. One, Two… Five. He looked toward the hallway. Still nothing.
Then his stomach growled again. Okay maybe he was a little hungry. So what if he went to look and also tasted it a little?
Tyler frowned at it. "Traitor."
He stood up. Immediately he thought about sitting back down as Josh’s voice echoed in his head. Stay out of the kitchen, don’t touch anything.
He shook his head to clear his thoughts and reassured himself. He wasn’t completely disobeying Josh, he wasn't going to touch or eat anything. He was just going to look.
That was all.
Tyler padded quietly into the kitchen. His tail swished behind him and his ears, normally floppy, stood high on his head. He’d be quick, in and out.
Then his brain would be satisfied and he could go back to whatever he was doing before.
The pan was still sitting on the stove, and the smell was even stronger up close. Leaning slightly over the counter, trying to see what Josh had been making, Tyler almost drooled. It looked good.
Really good.
It was some sort of creamy chicken pasta. Looked like it wasn’t ready yet. If he remembered correctly those were Josh’s favorite to cook. He said once that he appreciated the way all the different ingredients came together and made one amazing dish.
Tyler glanced down toward the hallway again. Josh hadn’t come back yet and his attention returned to what was in front of him.
There was another pot sitting just on the other side of the stove. On the back burner. The lid was covered with steam so he couldn’t see clearly. Maybe it was some sort of side?
He wanted to open the top and peak inside, because you can’t know one secret without knowing the other. Tyler reached for it without thinking, stretching across the stove to grab it.
He set his hand against the stovetop to steady himself as reached. White hot pain shot through his hand instantly. Singeing his palm and fingers.
Tyler jerked back immediately.
"Ow—fuck!"
His ears flattened hard against his head. Cradling his burnt hand against his chest, he stared at the quickly reddening skin in disbelief.
For a second, he just stood there. Taking a moment to breathe. Then he heard footsteps. Tyler's stomach dropped.
"Tyler?"
Josh's voice came from the hallway.
Tyler tucked his injured hand behind his back, he hoped Josh hadn’t heard him. If he didn’t know then there was nothing for him to be mad about.
"Yeah?” His voice came out tense, mentally he cursed at himself.
There was a pause before Josh appeared in the doorway. His eyes immediately went to Tyler's face, his expression was tight and tears were just starting to pool in his eyes. He looked up to the ears that were pinned flat against his head.
If that wasn’t the biggest sign something had happened it was the way he was awkwardly standing. It was obvious that Tyler was trying to hide something.
Josh's expression changed, quickly morphing from one emotion to the other.
"What happened?"
"Nothing." Tyler spoke quietly, looking down at the floor.
Throbbing tendrils of pain were sneaking their way through his hand as he held it there, hidden behind his back. He had pulled his hand into a fist as if it would make the injury non existent.
"Ty." Josh pushed a little more, worry seeping into his voice.
"N-nothing happened." He wanted to curl up, and pretend he didn’t exist.
Josh looked past him toward the stove. Then back at Tyler. He opened his mouth to speak but Tyler beat him to it.
“I-I was a bad dog. I went into the kitchen after you told me not to, and I touched the stove.” His voice wavered as he spoke and a tear fell down his cheek.
A little spot bloomed on his grey t-shirt, the tear soaking into the fabric.
Josh sighed as he stepped closer. He wanted to be angry at him, to scold him. Tell him off for not listening, because he knew this was going to happen. But he just couldn’t.
The tears rolling down Tyler’s face, combined with calling himself a bad dog, had the anger that wanted to bubble up dissipate quicker than he even had a chance to think about it.
He pulled Tyler into a hug, wrapping his arms around him.
“Hey there, shh, shh.” Josh rubbed his hand up and down his back, trying to comfort him.
Tyler buried his face into Josh’s chest. Not able to hold it in anymore and let out a sad sob, shaking against him.
If he had just listened to Josh then he wouldn’t have gotten hurt, he wouldn’t feel guilty, wouldn’t be crying. He’d be a good dog.
After a while, he’d calmed down enough to finally breathe and think again. He could hear Josh speaking to him, and feel his comforting touch.
Sniffling, he finally pulled away. Only to find a series of wet spots on Josh’s shirt, suspiciously shaped like Tyler’s face.
“Sorry..”
Josh looked down and shrugged it off. There had been worse things on him before than some snot and tears.
“It’s okay. I’m not worried about that.”
He glanced down towards Tyler’s hand. “I’m more concerned about your hand. Why don’t we sit down so I can check it out?”
Tyler hesitated. But followed Josh’s guidance and sat down on one of the bar stools next to the island counter.
The pain was worse now, a hot, throbbing ache spreading through his fingers. His instincts told him to pull away, hide it, make himself smaller. Instead, he slowly brought his hand out from behind his back.
Tyler's fingers trembled as he held them out, and his ears remained pressed flat against his head. His tail, which had been tucked tightly against the back of his legs, gave a small, nervous twitch.
Josh noticed his nervousness and decided to wait before he reached out. His eyes carefully moved over the hand without touching it. The skin across Tyler's palm and fingers had already turned an angry red.
A few areas looked worse than others, where they’d stayed on the burner a few seconds longer than the rest.
Tyler watched Josh's expression instead of looking at his own hand. Although, it didn’t make him feel any better. His eyebrows were drawn together, mouth pulled into a thin line. It wasn't anger. Tyler knew that.
All the guilt he felt earlier came rushing back and he wanted to hide. Before he could think about it, he started pulling his hand back toward his chest. He didn’t want Josh looking at it anymore, didn’t want to see him concerned.
Their eyes met, pulling Tyler out of his thoughts.
“You’re okay,” Josh said softly.
Tyler blinked, realizing Josh was waiting for him. He hadn't moved any closer or tried to take his hand. He was just there, patiently giving Tyler the choice.
He swallowed hard. His fingers curled instinctively toward his palm before he forced them to relax. After another hesitant moment, he slowly brought his hand back out, letting it rest between them.
Josh reached for his wrist this time, touching him carefully with his fingertips. Tyler couldn’t help the flinch that jerked through him. It was barely noticeable, but Josh felt it.
His hand stopped.
“Easy,” Josh murmured.
He waited until Tyler's shoulders loosened again before continuing. His fingers settled gently around Tyler's wrist, being careful to not touch the burn. Turning the hand slightly, he inspected it from different angles.
Tyler's breathing had gone shallow. Logically, he knew that Josh wouldn’t ever hurt him. Had never done anything to hurt him. But his instincts had more control over him than his logic did.
Every time Josh's fingers moved, Tyler watched them like a hawk. His body stayed tense, ready to jerk away at the moment anything went wrong.
Josh could feel the tremor running through him. He hated seeing him like this.
“Breathe bud.... We need to get some cool water on that before it gets worse.”
Tyler's eyes flicked up to his, and Josh gave his wrist a small, reassuring squeeze before letting go. He nodded toward the sink, keeping his movements slow and deliberate so he wouldn't startle him.
Tyler swallowed, glancing between Josh and the sink. He knew he was right, but that didn't make the idea of putting his hand under the water any less frightening. His ears remained pinned back as he followed him. When they reached it, Tyler stopped.
Josh didn't push him forward. He simply stood beside him, waiting. He knew how fearful Tyler tended to get if he was forced to do something when his mind was already overwhelmed. Something to do with his instincts and his past.
So Josh adapted to it. It wasn't like it was something he could control, and Tyler usually listened well enough that it rarely popped up.
Tyler stared at the stream of water for several seconds, his injured hand held tightly against his chest. Fingers trembling, he slowly loosened them, fighting the want to keep the hurt part of himself protected. Finally, he extended his hand toward the sink, inch by inch, until his fingertips touched the cool water.
The reaction was immediate.
He jerked back with a sharp breath, his hand instinctively trying to retreat from the stinging sensation. Josh caught him gently by the wrist before he could pull it completely away, careful not to grip hard enough to hurt him.
“I know it hurts. It'll go away,” Josh spoke from beside him, trying to calm him down.
Tyler's forehead dropped against Josh's shoulder.
His ears were flattened tightly against the sides of his head, and his breathing came in quick, uneven breaths. Every muscle in his body was fighting against his mind screaming to yank his hand away. Josh let go of his wrist and brought his hand to his back, slowly rubbing up and down while the cool water continued to run over his palm.
There was no rushing him, no sudden movements, nothing that might make Tyler feel more stressed than he already was.
For a while, that was all Josh did.
He stood beside him with one arm around his shoulders, letting Tyler lean as much of his weight against him as he needed. Every now and then, Tyler's fingers twitched beneath the water, and his body would tense again, but Josh's hand continued its slow movement along his back until the tension gradually faded.
After about 10-15 minutes Josh glanced down at him, noticing that his ears had relaxed just slightly. They weren't perked up like they normally would be, but they weren't pressed completely flat anymore either.
“Feeling a little better?”
Tyler nodded against his shoulder.
“Good.”
Josh waited another few minutes before deciding his hand had been under the water long enough. He reached over and carefully turned the faucet off, then grabbed a clean towel from beside the sink. He patted Tyler's hand dry, taking extra care around his pink palm.
Tyler watched him quietly. The pain was still there, but it had dulled from the sharp, overwhelming sting it had been before.
“Come on,” Josh said softly. “Let's get you comfortable.”
He guided Tyler toward one of the bar stools at the kitchen island before disappearing down the hallway.
Tyler stayed where he'd been put, sitting down at the bar and resting his hand on the counter. He looked down at his hand, tracing the lines in his pink palm with his eyes.
A moment later, Josh returned with the first-aid kit. He set it on the counter and opened it, pulling out some of the contents before sitting beside Tyler. More specifically, a couple pads of gauze, some type of bandage wrap, and a tube of burn cream.
He watched closely as Josh applied the burn cream to his hand, gently, carefully, as if Tyler was fragile. Butterflies fluttered in his stomach.
The touch made Tyler flinch once, but he didn't want to pull away this time.
Josh noticed and smiled to himself, before wrapping the bandage and gauze carefully around his hand, making sure it was secure without being so tight it cut off his circulation.
“There.” He patted him on the knee and stood up off the stool, stretching his arms up above his head.
Tyler turned his hand, examining Josh’s work. His tail and ears perked up as he flexed his fingers slightly “It doesn't hurt that bad anymore”
“Then that means we did a good job. “ He wanted Tyler to feel proud about how calm he was for the end of it.
Josh closed the first-aid kit after putting away what was left, and set it aside.
For a moment, neither of them spoke. Then he looked at Tyler, better to get it over with now than later.
“You know why I told you to stay out of the kitchen, right?” Tyler's expression dropped again, guilt overrunning his features.
“Because you were cooking.” It was barely heard, mumbled under his breath.
“Partly, yes.”
Josh leaned against the counter. “The stove stays hot for a while, even after I turn it off. The pans get hot. There's knives, boiling water, all kinds of stuff you can get hurt on. I can't watch you every second I'm cooking, or like today when I had to step away.”
Tyler looked down at his bandaged hand. His lips had turned from neutral into a sad pout. “I know.”
“I know you know, I just need you to understand.”
Tyler's ears flicked as he looked up again, their eyes meeting briefly.
Josh sighed, his expression softening. “I'm not mad at you, Ty. I just don't want you getting hurt because you thought you could sneak in for a look.”
“I wasn't sneaking.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“So going into the kitchen, only after I had left, and doing what I warned you not to isn’t sneaking?” The question had a joking undertone to it.
Tyler's ears flattened, and he looked away. “Okay. Maybe I was.”
That earned a quiet laugh from Josh.
“You know. Next time, you can just ask me.”
“I will.” Tyler blushed, feeling a little embarrassed.
He Realized it would’ve been a lot easier if he’d had just asked Josh in the first place what he was cooking for dinner.
Josh leaned closer and gently scratched behind one of Tyler's ears. Tyler immediately leaned into his hand, eyes falling shut for a second. He could never help it when Josh found his spot, it always felt so good.
“There’s my good boy.” Tyler's tail started wagging behind the stool.
He stopped for a second, and got a glare in return. He hadn’t scratched for long enough.
“Stay right here.” Josh moved away and opened the freezer, pulling out a popsicle. He could tell what color it was, even through the opaque white packaging.
Moving back towards the counter he stood on the other side and held it out.
Tyler took it with his uninjured hand, looking down at it with a grin. He really liked the cherry ones.
“Thanks.”
“It's medicinal, just so you know.”
Tyler gave him a skeptical look “Very scientific.”
He pulled it out of the wrapper, one side was already opened to make it a little easier for him. Tyler took a small chomp off the end, and Josh leaned over the counter to press a quick kiss against his cheek.
“Feeling better?”
“Definitely.”
He turned back to the stove. “You eat that and I’ll finish this up, so we can have more than just popsicles.
Tyler watched as he moved around the kitchen, putting everything back where it belonged. Josh checked the pan, adjusted a few things, and finally reached over to turn the burner back on.
The familiar sizzling noise soon filled the kitchen again. But this time, Tyler stayed exactly where he was.
He sat quietly in his chair, his bandaged hand resting carefully on the counter while he worked his way through the popsicle.
Every so often, his eyes looked up and focused on Josh as he moved around the kitchen.
His hand still stung a little, and he could feel the exhaustion start to settle behind his eyes. But he was okay, Josh fixed him up, and he wasn’t mad like Tyler thought he would be. He would try to listen a little better next time.
For Josh.
Tyler’s stomach gave a growl, he still hadn’t eaten and this popsicle wasn’t a meal.
Okay and for you too I guess.