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“There’s a new cat in town,” Minho says early one morning as Seungmin is eyeing a squirrel with great focus. It’s high up on a linden tree, on a branch that’s not on his side of the garden yet, but if he blinks or looks away for a second, that could quickly change. The squirrel doesn’t know better, but it will learn; territories must be respected. “Hey, dumbass,” Minho tries again, “did you hear what I said?”
“What?” Seungmin asks, his focus on the squirrel unwavering. He doesn’t really care what the cat says. Minho talks a lot sometimes and is completely silent other times. He lies for fun, but does it in a way that’s not cute or funny; unlike when Seungmin does it.
“I said,” the cat attempts to pull him into the conversation again, but does so with sharp and pointy nails that dig through the fabric of his baggy shirt and right into Seungmin’s shoulder, “that there is a new cat in town. Jeongin said your neighbours got a kitten.” That does finally get Seungmin to turn away and face Minho’s sharp, self satisfied grin.
The neighbours in question are the same neighbours that are feeding the stupid squirrel that always skirts the edges of his territory. They’re fine enough, Seungmin thinks. Whenever they visit, they bring treats for Seungmin, which is nice. But Chan always tries to engage him and play fetch, while Changbin loves to bother him, so Seungmin doesn’t like it when they stay too long. Chan seems to really love dogs, though, and Changbin seems quite rough, which is why it’s surprising that they’re getting a kitten.
“You’re lying,” Seungmin therefore concludes and watches the grin on Minho’s face grow. His arm is still firmly around Seungmin’s shoulders, heavy and digging into his flesh, but pulling away means showing weakness so Seungmin remains steadfast. He won’t lose to the cat. Not again.
“Maybe I am. Or maybe there will be another cat on your turf. One that you don’t know, leaving its cat scent all over your things,” he whispers conspicuously. “You know how kittens are, they get away with everything.”
Seungmin does know. He remembers when he was a puppy who would always get scolded for inconsequential things like breaking dishes because he played ball inside or hiding Jisung’s shoes so he couldn’t leave for work. Meanwhile, when Minho was a kitten that was just short of pissing on Jeongin’s head, he never even heard as much as a harsh word. Hyunjin also insisted that they put him through endlessly long weeks at a harrowing place called ‘puppy school’, while Minho got to nap the whole day away at home. The world is cruel and unfair towards dog hybrids, that much Seungmin learnt very early on.
“If a strange cat so much as steps foot onto my territory, I will rip it to shreds,” he announces with unfounded confidence, his pointy ears pressed flat against his head. Doberman dogs are very territorial and protective creatures, everyone should know that. And while Seungmin has never bitten anyone, he’s no stranger to growling in order to chase unwilling guests off. That’s usually more than enough. Minho scoffs and rolls his eyes like he doesn’t believe a single word coming out of Seungmin’s mouth, then pulls away.
“Let’s see about that,” Minho shrugs. He leaves it at that too, clearly bored with the conversation or maybe with Seungmin not paying attention to him. The cat turns to walk back towards the wall that separates his and Minho’s house then jumps across with ease and finally leaves Seungmin to stare at the squirrel in undisturbed peace.
Seungmin doesn’t worry too much about what Minho is saying. This is undoubtedly another attempt at lying to keep him on his toes. Jisung said Seungmin shouldn’t take it personally and that cats just are like that sometimes. He called it playful. Seungmin is grown now, he’s no longer so easily shaken and manipulated by a cat’s whims, which is also why he remains calm. His humans haven’t said anything and Seungmin’s nose hasn’t picked up any new scents or sounds coming from his neighbours’ home.
No, the only thing Seungmin has to worry about is that stupid squirrel.
•·················•·················•
Seungmin has a lot more to worry about than the stupid squirrel.
Not even a whole day later, Jisung and Hyunjin have sat him down in their living room and explained that Changbin and Chan would come to visit and that they’re bringing a new friend. A Birman kitten called Felix.
“No,” is Seungmin’s immediate response.
Hyunjin sighs, “Come on, Minnie. You love Minho, you’ll become friends with Felix, too.”
“First of all I do not love Minho, I tolerate him because he’s always been there,” Seungmin insists.
“You growl at everyone that looks at him for longer than a few seconds,” Jisung counters, voice monotone and annoying. Like he’s arguing something he thinks is obvious and Seungmin is just trying to be difficult for the sake of it, which really isn’t the case this time.
“That’s because he’s mine, not because I love him. Those two things are not the same,” Seungmin explains with an eyeroll. This isn’t even the first time they had this exact conversation, but the intricacies and complexities of a dog hybrid's emotional life seem lost on his two stupid humans.
“Right, okay.” It’s Jisung’s turn to sigh now and he does that in an annoying way as well, then gives Hyunjin a look Seungmin can’t interpret. He’s growing impatient now and starts bouncing his leg, ears flat. This conversation has basically stopped being fun as soon as it started and Seungmin wishes he were outside, throwing his baseball against the wall or even watching a game. But Jisung isn’t done yet, he turns back to Seungmin with a compassionate smile and adds, “Maybe Felix can be yours too then, at some point?”
Seungmin should probably feel bad for them, for just not getting it. He knows that his humans are not the brightest, that much is clear from Seungmin having to explain very basic concepts like these to them over and over again. That’s why they don’t get that a kitten can’t just become his, just like that. He’s not part of Seungmin’s pack and he also can’t be added because with exactly four people the pack is at a perfectly even number and therefore full. It also already has a cat, more than that would just be unparalleled levels of greed. Besides, having the pack be two cats, one dog and two humans would just bring chaos and entropy into the existing and perfectly balanced dynamic.
So, Seungmin says nothing in response to his humans, hoping to stare them down instead. Hyunjin cracks first. Not how Seungmin expected him to, though. Hyunjin coos out a ‘oh, my sweet puppy’ and comes to sit next to him on the couch. He ignores the clear sign of his pressed ears because Seungmin has never bitten him and he never would, and goes to pet him behind his right ear. A spot Hyunjin knows he likes best. It’s unfair because Hyunjin’s hands are large and bony, nails always kept longer so he can put little art pieces on them and they perfectly scratch through Seungmin’s short hair and against his skull. Sadly, the tension melts off him, just a little.
“Seungminnie, I know you’re a good boy,” Hyunjin starts. Seungmin is, in fact, the best boy, but he won’t be a stickler for details during this moment, instead waiting to see if more compliments would follow. “I’m sure you can find it in the kindness of your heart to not be mean to the new kitten, right? He’s just a kitten. And from what Changbin and Chan are saying he’s very sweet. At least try to get used to his scent so you can tolerate him being around, okay? You don’t need to become best friends immediately.” Hyunjin stops scratching when Seungmin’s ears perk up fully, but remains seated next to him and keeps a hand on his nape. Predictably enough, Seungmin’s tail also stops obeying to his lingering annoyance and starts thumping against the couch cushion. A sad side effect of his endless love for his stupid favourite human.
He hasn’t forgiven them for the betrayal of involving him in this whole kitten issue, but he’s starting to realise that his fate is sealed and meeting the thing is inescapable. Even so, he meets Hyunjin’s sweet smile with an unimpressed glare, then, when all Hyunjin does is continue to stare — hopeful and kind and smelling like home — he tries to meet Jisung who’s still standing with his arms crossed, with the same look.
Jisung, realising he’ll have to bargain, bends and breaks almost immediately. “We’ll get you a new baseball glove,” he says.
“Okay, deal.”
•·················•·················•
Felix, the Birman kitten, is a very small thing. Somehow his face is mostly eyes, large and very round. A bit like two big baseballs, Seungmin thinks. If baseballs were amber instead of white and sparkled. His fur is pure white with pastel pink coloured tips and — unlike Minho’s black, sleek coat — very, very fuzzy. Seungmin watches from the kitchen as he remains hidden behind Chan’s broad frame for all but two minutes before he’s sniffing around curiously, then climbing half over Jisung’s lap. To his shock, he actually sits on his human and starts nuzzling against his chest, his purring so loud Seungmin swears even Minho has to be able to hear it.
Instead of warning him about not being allowed to claim any human he likes, Jisung seems elated about the affectionate kitten, cooing and awing and petting him like an absolute idiot. Hyunjin, who usually has all of Seungmin’s trust, is faring no batter. His hands are trembling where he’s pointing his phone camera at the display of affection, dead set on filming the whole interaction and Seungmin isn’t sure but he swears there are tears in his eyes as he whispers about how that’s the single cutest thing he has ever seen. Like Seungmin as a puppy never existed. Immediately, he’s bitter and even more reluctant to leave his hiding spot.
He can’t fully blame his humans though, it’s instead all that manipulative kitten’s fault. Seungmin remembers how it took them both months before they were allowed to so much as touch Minho without getting bitten or scratched and how cuddling is still out of the question. As it should be, in Seungmin’s opinion. Cats are supposed to be fierce and great at survival and at most allow only one special, chosen person to get close to them. For Minho that isn’t even his human, seeing how Jeongin still walks around with plenty of bite and scratch marks on his arms. Even Seungmin, who is said special, chosen person, can’t just touch Minho when he wants, but has to wait for the cat to come to him first. Usually he curls up on top of Seungmin when he wants affection, then bites him and slinks off again when it gets too much for him. Cats are supposed to be weird like that.
Felix doesn’t seem to have the same reservations as Minho though, settling comfortably between Seungmin’s humans — that very clearly smell like him — and yawning, comfortable, his eyes already drooping. A few seconds later he’s napping, legs curled in and belly exposed.
Seungmin immediately realises that the kitten stands no chance of survival in the wide wild world.
“Hyung, he’s so fucking cute,” Jisung whispers, gently petting the fluffy rose-gold top of Felix’s head, as the stupid thing continues purring, all while blissfully asleep. Uncaring. Unprotected.
Seungmin feels sick.
“He still needs a lot of sleep for now and a lot of affection, too. Birman cats are apparently a little dog-like in behaviour,” Chan explains. Seungmin takes great offense to this because he surely never acted like that, not even when he was a puppy. Yes, he was often sandwiched between Hyunjin and Jisung and yes, he wouldn’t even let them sleep alone the first few months or so, but that was because he had to guard them, not because he was pathetically craving affection.
When the kitten remains napping, Seungmin finally leaves his hiding spot and is immediately pulled between their neighbours, silently enduring the cuddle session they like to do as a greeting. Chan always gets sad when Seungmin doesn’t sit next to him and lets him cling and as already established Seungmin is the best boy. He can’t have humans being sad because of his rejection. His own humans, meanwhile, remain completely oblivious to Seungmin’s plight and the icy looks he’s sending the stinky little kitten, too busy cooing and awing at every single shift in expression. The thing hasn’t even moved in over ten minutes, but Hyunjin still keeps pulling his phone out to snap pictures, like anything has changed. And the worst part? While Seungmin is stuck between Chan and Changbin, the soft scent of kitten has been wafting in his nose, obtrusive notes of warm milk with hints of vanilla that cling to the neighbours and now also their couch and Seungmin’s humans and no doubt Seungmin himself. Hell, it’s probably spread all over his house by now.
“Seungmin-ah,” Changbin suddenly starts. He throws a thick arm around Seungmin’s neck and tugs, effectively pulling him out of Chan’s hold and also choking him. Seungmin hates when he does that, but he also doesn’t want to snap or growl at him. Hyunjin had scolded him before when he tried to snap at him, so Seungmin has been practicing self restraint whenever the human gets overly touchy and loud.
“What?” he glowers in Changbin’s direction, ears swiveling.
“We were hoping that you could look after Felix a little while we’re at work and—”
“No,” Seungmin immediately says, only to receive a sharp glare from Hyunjin of all people. The betrayal runs deep.
“Minnie, we talked about this.” They did not talk about this. They talked about Seungmin getting used to his scent, not about him babysitting the kitten. Why did Changbin and Chan even get a cat if they don’t have time for one?
Seungmin wiggles out of Changbin’s grip, a growl just forming at the base of his sternum. “Why aren’t you asking Minho? He’s a cat, that thing’s a kitten, they’ll get along great.”
He hears Jisung scolding him in a whispery, low pitched voice, saying something about ‘Seungmin-ah, don’t call him that thing’ but ignores it in favour of turning towards Chan who, with the patience of a kindergarten teacher, and with his hands raised tries to soothe and explain. “You know how Minho is, Seungmin-ah,” he starts and immediately goes to backtrack when the growl finally does escape Seungmin. “He’s very nice, yes. He’s not bad, not at all, but he’s also not the most cuddly cat and also a little, well, he scratches and bites a lot, as you know. Not that that’s bad, but a kitten needs more gentle handling. And you are very sweet and gentle, right Seungminnie? So we were hoping you could help out.” Appealing to Seungmin's well mannered, protective and disciplined nature is a dirty tactic. Even worse is that it works every time. He tries not to let it show, tries to maintain the tension in his body and the scowl on his face, when from his other side Changbin tacks on, “I also got tickets for the next Lotte Giants game.” And the fight is lost.
Chan and Changbin leave soon after with Chan carrying the sleeping kitten on his back as Seungmin sits on the couch and continues to sulk. He feels annoyed and bamboozled. His humans clearly knew what this meeting was about and didn’t tell him, choosing instead to let the neighbours rope him into their evil, babysitting schemes. Not to mention how half the house now smells like vanilla and warm milk, instead of like Seungmin.
He manages to hover around until dinner and then leaves to sit in a corner in the backyard, nestled between the linden tree and some hedges. The best spot to hide and also to stare up at the stars and the moon on a clear night.
Minho finds him there after the sun has already set and the cicadas have started buzzing. Seungmin smells him first — sage and mint and sea breeze, a sharp and clean scent — before he feels the weight of his warm body settle close against his side. Seungmin lets him curl beneath his arm, feels small hands along the bare skin of his back and a strong thigh curl around his knees. Minho is sadly a little cute when he’s like this, so Seungmin could never push him away. Not when he nuzzles into his collarbones and starts purring, all soft and warm. He really doesn’t love Minho, Seungmin thinks. Calling it love would never capture the complexity or depth of his affection or attachment. What he feels for his cat goes far and beyond that, not that that’s something his humans could ever imagine. It’s something that comes naturally too. Maybe not quite like breathing, but certainly like his desire to bury every toy he’s ever favoured in the backyard. And even after being married for so many years, Seungmin is convinced that his attachment to Minho is stronger than the feelings between Hyunjin and Jisung. Also because he sometimes thinks that Hyunjin loves him more than he does his husband.
“You smell nice,” Minho says eventually, breaking the silence. It’s an odd comment, seeing how he usually tells Seungmin that he stinks like dog. A very mean thing to say, when Seungmin washes himself every day and Hyunjin insists his hair smells like cocoa. Before he can tell Minho that, a sharp nose brushes his shoulder as the cat sniffs at his shirt, then at his neck and Seungmin realises he’s sniffing the spots where Changbin touched him. “You smell sweet,” he murmurs next and seeing how his own scent was the exact same one not too long ago, recognition comes rather quickly in the form of Minho sitting up and pinning Seungmin beneath him with his claws out, knees on each side of his thighs and a sharp stare. “You met the kitten.”
“You literally told me about it before I even found out from Hyunjin and Jisung, why are you acting surprised now?” Seungmin drawls out, rolling his eyes. He doesn’t try to push Minho off, though, not when his pupils are huge and his claws are out and the threat of being bitten hovers over his shoulder.
“Because,” Minho starts and then his nails grow sharper, piercing fabric and the skin beneath, “I haven’t met the kitten yet and you smell like him.” There’s a tense second where Seungmin thinks he’s for sure getting bitten, before Minho’s body grows soft once more, sinking down on top of him like a weightened blanket. His sleek black ears brush Seungmin’s chin and jaw and throat, leaving him ticklish and squirmy where he’s trapped beneath Minho’s stubbornly unmoving body. The next moment he’s being scented and Seungmin can’t help it, he feels his face grow embarrassingly warm at the understanding that Minho is feeling the same type of possessiveness he’s usually struggling with. A second later he realises that this is the perfect moment to rope Minho into the babysitting business.
“I’m supposed to keep an eye on him while he’s a kitten. Since Chan and Changbin are busy during the day and that thing’s too needy to be left alone, apparently. If you wanna meet him, he’ll be here tomorrow,” Seungmin mumbles into Minho’s twitching ear and finally curls his arms around Minho’s back. When the cat doesn’t bite him or make a move to escape, he nuzzles the top of his head affectionately. Minho, in a moment of absolute cuteness, simply purrs in response.
“Let’s see,” he replies and Seungmin knows he’ll be there.
The next morning when Seungmin drags his body out of his room and into the bright living room, Felix is there, curled up next to Hyunjin who’s clearly too distracted by his sweet little face to work from home. As soon as Hyunjin spots Seungmin he waves him over, wishing him a good morning. The stinky kitten stares at first, wide eyed and shy, but then Hyunjin nudges Felix from the couch and towards Seungmin, mumbling something encouraging about how he should introduce himself to his new friend.
They were in the same space the day before, but so far, they haven’t yet interacted. Seungmin had remained hidden and while he knows that the kitten has smelt him before, he hasn’t seen any sight of Seungmin. Which was more than fine by Seungmin, since he could keep a safe distance. Only there’s no such thing as a safe distance now; Felix eyes are on him, curious and round and a pretty amber. After another soft nudge he’s on his feet, his fluffy tail up, ears pointed at Seungmin. He’s sort of clumsy as he takes the first few indecisive steps, clearly unsure whether he should rush in or not, only to throw thin arms around Seungmin’s body as soon as he’s within reach. Hyunjin makes an awed sound and then there’s the shutter of a camera going off as the kitten rubs up against him, spreading his scent into the skin of his collarbones. Seungmin remains stiff, hands curled into fists against his sides. The growl that started automatically is easily swallowed in favour of shifting his head away to avoid inhaling more of his scent.
“Seungmin-hyung,” the kitten speaks into his shoulder. His voice is deeper than Seungmin expected, considering his pretty and delicate everything. “It’s so nice to meet you. Hyunjin-hyung said you’ll be my best friend from now on.” Felix pulls back and looks up at him and he’s smiling, blinding and pure and overly bright. His fur is fluffy and looks so soft, a little like a cloud where the ends float and tickle Seungmin’s nose. Any denial at the statement that Seungmin thinks he could have mustered up, dies in the exact moment where Felix starts purring, a soft and low sound. It’s annoying how cute he’s trying to be. Even more annoying because it really would be cute if Seungmin didn’t already have a cat and a pack and therefore no more space for a kitten of all things.
He takes a hold of Felix’s shoulders and gently pries him off. The kitten allows it with a moment of delayed and barely there resistance. He’s about the same height as Minho, but his bones feel small and fragile beneath his hands and Seungmin immediately wonders if he’ll ever grow sturdy and firm like his cat or if he’ll remain a petite thing forever.
“Yeah, uh, nice to meet you, Felix.” Seungmin glances at Hyunjin who smiles and gives him two thumbs up. Seungmin hates it. He hates this situation and he hates that Hyunjin sees nothing wrong with it and even encourages the manipulative kitten behaviour. He’s about to pull away from Felix completely, but the thing quickly attaches himself to one of his arms, clinging and curling around it, his fluffy tail brushing Seungmin’s as he rests his cheek against his shoulder. Seungmin considers pushing him back again, but another glance at Hyunjin who’s now started taking pictures of them ends with Seungmin heaving another defeated sigh. This might be one of the most grating days of his life. Felix is still purring and his kitten scent is wafting all around, covering every single nook and cranny in it. Seungmin doesn’t want to think about how much hard work he’ll need to put in in order to get his house smelling like him again. And even then, it probably wouldn’t last long.
With another encouragement from Hyunjin about Seungmin showing him their backyard and playing for a bit while he works, he’s finally guiding Felix out the balcony door. Hungry, mind you. Hyunjin was so busy with the stupid kitten he didn’t even make Seungmin breakfast and now he’s standing in the garden in the early morning sun and thinking about how he will entertain Felix for the next few hours until lunch is ready.
Minho and him used to play-fight a lot when they were younger. Those fights could turn rough and serious quickly, but Seungmin feels like that type of play isn’t right for a small kitten. Even if a slightly mean part of Seungmin wishes he could pin him to the ground and press his face into the grass. The thought lingers only until Felix makes eye contact again and he looks so trusting and soft, Seungmin doesn’t think he could do it, even if the kitten is annoying and stinking up the whole place.
Therefore, he tries to teach him how to throw a baseball, instead. It should be easy enough, considering how quickly Seungmin has learned it and how quickly he taught Hyunjin to play with him. It turns out to be challenging in ways Seungmin never expected, though, because getting Felix to let go of Seungmin for long enough for him to show him anything proves to be extremely difficult. There’s a tail around his leg, brushing his arm, and soft little hands constantly reaching for him, followed by Felix attaching himself against Seungmin’s side like a barnacle. It seems that, unlike Minho, Felix is a kitten that needs constant touch, or he’ll perish. At least that’s the way he acts.
“Felix,” Seungmin finally says, after he’s had to pull his arm free of Felix’s grasp for the fifth time.
“Yes, hyung?” the kitten asks sweetly, ears pointed towards him and with a silly, little smile on his face. Seungmin feels like a monster, but that just means that he’s the strongest person on earth for not falling for this act.
“I can’t move freely when you stick so close to me,” he still tries to explain gently.
“Oh.” Despite the soft tone Seungmin used, he still watches Felix’s fluffy, soft ears pull back, the dejection very clear on his face. This type of rejection would never fly with Minho and would earn him a painful bite, but Felix doesn’t seem like he uses his teeth or his claws, instead utilising sad, big eyes to manipulate Seungmin into giving him what he wants. It’s equally, if not even more evil than what Minho does and, sadly, works just as well.
“Actually, nevermind,” Seungmin sighs for the nth time and reaches out to softly pet between Felix’s ears. His hair is wispy soft, light like a cloud and smooth like the softest angora yarn. Felix also leans into the touch immediately, purring and pushing against his hand, his body once again moving closer to lean into Seungmin’s space. It’s kind of cute. Sadly, Seungmin thinks, it truly is adorable. He feels the smile tug at his mouth and can do nothing to stop it as he adds, “You’re so clingy, you’re like a baby.”
“What are you doing?” Minho’s amused voice directly behind him startles Seungmin bad enough for him to almost ram his elbow into Felix’s chin with how quickly he’s trying to pull away. His face is burning and he feels oddly nervous when he mumbles out a quiet ‘nothing’ and steps away to not stand between his cat and the kitten. If Minho’s behaviour yesterday is any indication then making it seem like he prefers any cat over Minho is a grave mistake. And also untrue. Stepping back and allowing them to get to know each other without his involvement seems like the best route to take. Sure, he promised he’ll spend time with Felix, but if Minho chose to bite and scratch then he shouldn’t get in the way. They’re cats after all, Seungmin reckons, that might just be how they act. It probably builds character.
Felix’s hands surprisingly for once don’t immediately go to chase him, instead he stands and stares with his huge eyes at Minho, his little round nose twitching as he picks up on his scent. Much more interesting than Felix’s awestruck reaction is how the stern neutrality that Minho usually spots around strangers seems to melt away in the face of the small kitten, turning instead into a small and warm smile. “Aigoo, you’re a pretty little one,” his cat coos and immediately steps closer, hands reaching up to scratch behind Felix’s fluffy ears.
Seungmin watches, mildly confused at the unexpected display of friendliness, as Felix immediately leans into Minho’s space, without getting bitten. And not only that, but the kitten leans in to rub his jaw against the side of Minho’s face as Minho continues to pet him and smile, even going as far as to start a low, rumbling purr. It’s pure insanity. Seungmin can’t believe that Minho has fallen for the sweet kitten act, though maybe he should have feared that this would happen. Maybe something in Minho is making it impossible to hate a kitten.
The display of affection between them is so awkwardly tender that Seungmin finds himself glancing over his shoulder and contemplating just turning away fully, maybe even walking back to the house and leaving them to their feline business. He can’t, though. He needs to keep an eye on Felix and more importantly needs to keep an eye on their interactions and make sure Minho fares well against the little monster.
When he asked Minho to meet them, he half expected his cat to be a little mean to the kitten, maybe teach him more about how to be a better cat, at best. Like how to bite and scratch and not show your belly to every human around. Maybe also how to stick to your own humans and not scent others. Never would he have expected for them to immediately get along. Part of him feels unsettled about this; Seungmin has known Minho longer than anyone else. They have been together since they were strays and Minho has been the only constant in his life. And even after all this time of being together and going through things, Seungmin saw and experienced a lot of Minho’s edges, so a part of him can’t help feeling wronged, seeing how easily he turns soft and loving towards Felix. A tiny voice at the back of his pointed ear starts whispering about how Minho could easily replace him now that he has another feline friend. And one that he grows so quickly attached to.
Turning his body away fully, he looks around for his baseball, just to keep himself busy and avoid looking at what Minho and Felix are doing. When his eyes move past the windows of the house, he spots Hyunjin at the kitchen window, where he’s doing a horrible job pretending like he’s just washing dishes and not poking his nose into hybrid business. This just adds to Seungmin’s irritation, now also feeling like his ability to keep a single kitten safe is being doubted. With a scowl on his face, Seungmin turns back around and finds Felix curled under Minho’s arm, clinging to his waist and with his fluffy tail intertwined with Minho’s. His eye twitches.
“Seungmin-ah, why didn’t you tell me the kitten is this cute?” Minho asks, like Seungmin complaining about having to babysit yesterday instead of waxing poetics about Felix is a personal failing on Seungmin’s part.
“It must have escaped me,” he mumbles somewhat sullenly, crossing his arms.
If someone were to ask, Seungmin would insist that he’s not sulking, but watching Minho coo and awe at the kitten similarly to how Jisung and Hyunjin do, does make something in his chest twinge anxiously. The worst part is that he can’t even direct any surfacing annoyance at Felix, who outwardly really seems to just be made of sunshine and rainbows and love. He’s affectionate with Minho as he chases him around the backyard and comes running over to where Seungmin is frowning and pushing his baseball back and forth, trying to get him to join them. Seungmin insists that he doesn’t feel like it even as Felix tugs on him and tries to curl around him, smelling sweet and with a hint of familiarity that comes from Minho’s scent clinging to his wispy, fluffy hair.
“Lix-ah, come to hyung. Let the dog be.” Minho calls him back every time and with another smile and a squeeze of his small fingers around Seungmin’s much larger hand, he bounds off again. It’s fine, Seungmin thinks, left to his own, moping devices.
When Changbin picks Felix up after work, Seungmin is very glad to watch him go. Felix gives Minho a hug first, then Seungmin and Hyunjin as well before walking off with Changbin and clinging to his arm instead, chatting about all the things that he experienced before they even went through the gate.
“He’s so cute, Seungmin-ah, I didn’t think he’d be so cute,” Minho sighs, pressed against Seungmin’s side and leaning his cheek against Seungmin’s shoulder, while smelling decidedly not like Seungmin.
“He’s alright, I guess,” Seungmin replies, feeling a little despondent.
And so, after only one meeting, and with his big eyes full of manipulation and evil intentions, Felix has gotten Minho on his side. Seungmin feels bitter about it and swears to himself then and there that he won’t get him, too. No matter how cute, no matter how pretty and how sweet, Seungmin refuses to budge. Felix will not become a part of his pack.
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Eight months later and the kitten has now turned into a fully fledged cat with his own scent of sweet peaches and morning dew. Not that there have been many changes, aside from the shift in scent. Felix still acts like a kitten, still curls up on top of everyone, asking for cuddles with doe eyes and pursed lips. He’s also still a tiny thing, slinky and delicate, where Minho is sturdy and strong. He still trusts immediately, is friendly towards any and all strangers. Minho says it’s because Felix was never a stray and comes with a pedigree and a loving family home that raised him well. Seungmin wonders how he’s able to not feel any bitterness towards Felix at all.
Worst of all, though, is that Felix has gotten the whole entire neighbourhood wrapped around his tiny, little finger. Minho fell immediately and it’s of no surprise that Seungmin’s humans folded. Another big hit was, however, when Jeongin — Minho’s human — immediately took a liking to the fluffy kitten as well. All of them completely whipped and enamoured with everything he does and obedient to his every whim. Which leaves Seungmin standing all alone, the last battalion against the menacing cat invasion.
“Seungmin-hyung.”
And he promises not to fall.
“Hey, Seungmin-hyung.”
No matter how hard it gets.
“Seungminnie-hyung,” Felix sings right into his ear then settles warm and light right across his back, with his arms wrapped around Seungmin’s neck and his ears tickling his cheek and temple. “You said we would take a trip to the park and get some of the blue ice cream today,” he reminds him, as Seungmin bends under his weight in the hopes of escaping. Felix holds steady, of course, and Seungmin remains trapped between his bird-boned body and his own knees, his fingers still fiddling with his shoelaces.
The problem is that Seungmin did promise that, courtesy to those big, evil, persuasive and pretty eyes. It’s really quite unfair because Felix's constant state of helplessly bumbling through the world with the naivete of a newborn fawn is appealing to Seungmin’s guard dog instincts, which is also why he thinks that Felix is doing it on purpose. In turn, Seungmin finds himself unable to say no to a single request that Felix makes. He wants to drag Seungmin to the pool? He will go. Felix wants to do karaoke? Seungmin is joining him. Felix crawls through his window at 2am because he can’t sleep because he wants to eat strawberries and Seungmin has to accompany him to the grocery store that’s half across town because that’s the only one that’s open? He drags himself out of bed for it with only a sigh and then even pays for whatever Felix wants to buy.
He goes along and says yes and then finds himself feeling rather warm and fuzzy whenever Felix gives him one of those quiet smiles, the one that is more eyes than mouth, turns the tip of his nose all wrinkly and cute. Or when he slips his small hand into Seungmin’s without making a fuss, just holding onto his thumb or two of his fingers. Felix is cute in those quiet moments when the buzzing of cicadas fills Seungmin’s head, loud enough to drown out everything else. And then daylight comes and Felix is curled around Minho instead and Seungmin watches them rub their noses together, purring and sweet and warm and he thinks about how right it looks. The thought shocks him every time because he’s not supposed to have it and more often than not he finds himself turning away, pretending he’s not there.
“Hyung,” Felix tries again, right next to his ear. The next moment he’s pressing his lips against Seungmin’s cheek, soft and shy, gone within the blink of an eye. Seungmin turns around so quickly his nose almost bumps into Felix’s chin, but the cat has pulled back and released his hold and Seungmin gets up so quickly from where he has been sitting on the porch that it makes him feel dizzy.
What are you doing, he wants to ask, but the words die on his tongue because Hyunjin’s moving about in the kitchen, making noise, and Felix is giving him a secret little grin and Minho is no doubt about to be here any moment now. As always, Seungmin remains stuck instead; stuck between the inherent need to keep a distance because Felix isn’t his and the much stronger, but unreasonable yearning to reach out and touch and hold him close.
He stands there for a moment, flushed and frozen and confused. Embarrassment hits him strong, creating discomfort he doesn’t really want to deal with. Especially not when Felix takes his hand, gently, carefully. His cheeks are pink and he looks so shy, not at all evil, when he gives him a tug and very quietly urges, “Let’s go.” The sun reached its peak some hours ago, leaving the backyard awash in gold now. Seungmin follows as Felix steps into it, watches the way the colour bounces off his fur and catches his eyes like shiny coins. If Felix is the cutest late at night in the quietness of a heavy, velvet blanket, then he’s definitely the most beautiful catching the rays of the sun like he’s never belonged anywhere else.
“Yah, Kim Seungmin, get going,” Minho’s voice interrupts his moment of weakness, perched where he sits on the wall between their homes. As always he’s light on his feet when he jumps down, moving closer with grace to allow Felix to take a hold of his hand. They greet each other affectionately, as always, and then Felix starts telling Minho the same story he told Seungmin before, about how Changbin washed Chan’s pants too hot and they ripped when they went out for dinner. Minho’s laugh is easy and open mouthed, his eyes twinkling like stars as he looks at Felix in a way that had previously only been reserved for Seungmin.
It’s strange to walk with the both of them like this; with Felix between them and Minho so content, so happy. The two of them couldn’t be more different and Seungmin can’t help the obvious comparison of night and day. But instead of this creating any friction or misunderstandings, the two cats took to each other immediately and fiercely.
Seungmin wonders where that leaves him. He falls quiet. Naturally, Minho notices and with the finesse of someone who doesn’t have any, asks what has got him sulking today.
“I’m not sulking,” Seungmin insists quietly. He’s watching Felix walk towards the ice cream vendor, catching the attention of multiple hybrids and humans as he goes. He’s exceptionally gorgeous and people notice. It makes Seungmin nervous to not be next to him, even when he’s still in his line of vision. Next to him, Minho mumbles under his breath about how he doesn’t believe him, then sinks further into the bench. His tail brushes Seungmin’s lower back, then settles around it. Familiar.
After a moment he adds, “Why are you quiet, then, if you’re not sulking?”
There are many ways Seungmin could answer that question. He’s been trying to word it for months now, whenever Hyunjin would scratch behind his ear late at night when he makes space between his two humans for himself, like he hasn’t done since he was much younger. Jisung doesn’t try to question it, but Hyunjin has. Softly, of course, without any judgment. Seungmin had just shrugged, linked his fingers with Hyunjin’s and burrowed his nose against his shoulder, too busy struggling to swallow the lump in his throat to answer. He was a stray once, as was Minho. His humans love him dearly, Seungmin knows this, but doubt and fear can’t be reasoned with. There are also enough cases where hybrids get adopted and then kicked out again, if they end up becoming too much work or end up not being what their humans imagine them to be. Seungmin knows that his humans are far too attached to him to ever abandon him — Hyunjin once described the thought alone as similar to cutting off a limb — but he still feels anxious. So he ends up not telling them anything.
The situation is not any different with Minho. He’s known the cat hybrid almost his whole life, so it should probably be easier to talk about it, but Seungmin lets the silence fester and grow between them, despite the warmth next to him, despite the weight of Minho’s tail and the small hand that curls around his wrist.
“Seungmin?” Minho questions again when all he does is stare at the tops of his knees, his voice more serious and more quiet.
“Do you still need me?” The words come out softly. Seungmin is aware of how lame he sounds, but the heaviness in his chest has been weighing down on him for too long. If he felt annoyance or anger instead, it would be easier, but he understands why everyone adores Felix, he understands why Minho is so attached to him. Hell, if he were more honest with himself, he’d probably admit that he too has grown attached to their little sunshine.
“What?” He hears Minho ask, and then there’s warm fingers on his cheek, turning his face so he’ll finally stop avoiding Minho’s eyes. They’re always warm; golden and bright and always filled with warmth, no matter how strong he bites or how hard he scratches or how many people he hisses at. Because at the core of his being, Minho is loving and kind. Just like Felix. “Why would you ask me that, Kim Seungmin?”
It’s hard to hold his gaze, but Seungmin knows that Minho won’t allow him to hide. His fingers are soft now, but his claws are quick to enter the picture and the worried frown on his face is making Seungmin regret speaking up. But now that he has started he can’t really stop. He shrugs, quick and stiff, then, “You have Lix and Jeongin and we’ve grown long past the stage where you needed me to protect you. You’re more than fine without me and I’m not the only person you’re close to anymore.” Much softer still, Seungmin adds, “What am I even here for?”
“Do you really think I only keep you around because you’re useful to me?” Minho questions and the softness of his face turns to cutting ice. Seungmin being met with the sharpness that he’s always used as a defence mechanism to hide his hurt feels like a slap to the face at that moment. “You can’t tell that I’m fully devoted to you?”
Seungmin opens his mouth to answer, something scathing about how he seems instead hopelessly devoted to Felix on the tip of his tongue, when he hears the other cat ask, “What are you talking about?”
Minho and him both turn to Felix who’s standing there, looking just as worried as Minho had before and holding a huge scoop of blue ice cream that’s already running down his small fingers. Seungmin mutters ‘nothing’ as he’s reaching out with a tissue to start wiping at Felix’s hands. He reminds him to eat it quickly before it melts even more as Minho remains silent. The silence also lasts long enough that Seungmin assumes they simply won’t talk about it anymore. He thought wrong.
“Your Seungminnie-hyung was telling me about how he thinks he’s not needed anymore,” Minho says and Seungmin can hear the sarcastic grin without turning to check if it’s there. He keeps his eyes on where Felix’s fingers curl around his and then he’s moving in and clambering onto Seungmin’s lap. Suddenly there’s hair in his mouth and Seungmin swears he can feel ice cream drip down the back of his shirt and maybe also his shoulder because Felix is hugging him.
“Hyung, why would you think that?” he asks with genuine upset in his voice. From the corner of his eye he sees Minho reach behind him and take the ice cream cone out of Felix’s once again sticky fingers. This only really leads to said fingers now gripping Seungmin’s shirt instead. “No one could ever replace you, Seungmin-hyung.” Seungmin stutters out a ‘yeah, yeah’ and pats along Felix’s back with the hand that isn’t holding the sticky tissue, but the Birman cat isn’t finished yet. He pulls back to look at Seungmin with imploring, sparkly eyes and his lips are pursed into a signature pout, like he does when he thinks someone is trying to take something from him. “You don’t want to leave us, right? You’re ours, aren’t you?”
“He’s an idiot, that’s what he is. Dog hybrids are so dense, I swear,” Minho answers instead. To Seungmin he says, “I haven’t kept you around because I needed you since about two weeks after we met, dumbass. I didn’t need you all this time, I just always wanted to have you around.”
Felix, rushing to reassure Seungmin and soothe any upset, insists, “I still need you, hyung. I also want to have you around, but I also do need you. It’s scary to walk around alone at night.” And he says it in such a sincere way, having picked up some of Minho’s directness in the last few months, that it renders Seungmin silent. He wants to say something, explain his worries and fears more eloquently, but quickly realises that it doesn’t really matter where the source of his anxieties lies because the outcome is the same. They’re not trying to replace him or leave him out. It makes his eyes grow misty and before Seungmin knows it a pathetic little whimper is leaving him and then Felix is hugging him again and Minho’s face has softened with a sigh and all of a sudden two cats are clinging to him.
It’s the middle of the day and the way people are passing by and giving them questioning looks would probably have made him feel more embarrassed, if Seungmin wasn’t feeling the overwhelming relief that comes with the confirmation that he’s still wanted, that Minho is still part of his pack and the reluctant admission that he has actually added a second cat to it. And it did cause chaos and mayhem, just as he suspected it would.
Minho pulls away first, leaving Felix to still cling to him, nuzzling his pointy little nose against Seungmin’s throat. “Have you been worrying about this all this time? You thought Felix would replace you?” he asks. The directness does make Seungmin blush and he presses his lips into a thin line and shrugs, stubbornly not saying anything. Minho just rolls his eyes. “I’m shocked your idiot ass still hasn’t realised the reason that your neighbours adopted a kitten and your own humans pushed you into babysitting him is because I told them you probably needed something to take care of. Admittedly, I was thinking more of a pet fish, but this worked out well, too.”
“You did what?” Seungmin asks just as Felix pulls back from his hiding spot and cups Seungmin’s cheeks with his, regrettably, still sticky fingers.
“Does that mean I can kiss you now?”
“What?” He asks again, this time his voice is higher, flustered.
“Don’t put your pretty mouth on that, Lix-ah, it’s dirty,” Minho teases, his smile all teeth that he’s threateningly flashing Seungmin’s way. He reaches for Felix instead and the Birman hybrid goes, all boney knees and still clumsy limbs as he shifts to sit between them. The ice cream is back in his hand, even more sticky now and even more melted and he’s telling them about the latest incident that occurred in the Bang home as Minho quickly leans in behind him and presses a kiss on Seungmin’s cheek. Ironically enough, the opposite one to the cheek that Felix had kissed before. He mouths the word ‘idiot’ against Seungmin’s burning skin just before he pulls back and as they sit and listen to Felix chat on, all he can feel is affection.
When Seungmin gets back home in the evening, feeling more light and at ease than he’s been in a long time, he once again sneaks his way between where Hyunjin and Jisung are cuddled up on the couch. Neither of them says anything; Hyunjin makes sure Seungmin’s legs are covered with a blanket and Jisung silently holds out a bowl of popcorn to him. They’re watching some cringey romantic movie Seungmin doesn’t care about as he, for once, indulges in cuddling against Jisung’s side. There are fingers in his hair, scratching behind his ear. It’s nice and Seungmin feels comfortable and sleepy. He knows he could doze off like this.
“You seem happy, Seungminnie,” Hyunjin whispers. “Did something good happen?” he asks and Seungmin can detect the edge of teasing in his voice, but swears not to pay it any mind. Mostly because his mood is too good, but also because indulging Hyunjin’s nosy tendencies doesn’t help anyone.
“Nothing much,” he answers and stifles a yawn against Jisung’s shoulder and allows his eyes to close, “just spent the day with Minho and Felix.” He can feel the smile grow on his lips and tries to hide that, too, in the fabric of Jisung’s sweater, as he tacks on, “As usual.”