Another Tale Of A Nine Tailed

Chapter 5: About foxes and other monsters

„So. What's new? You gained a little weight." she noticed and nudged her son's cheek, who flinched.

„I quit smoking.. It's normal to gain a little weight but I'm healthier now so deal with it." he said and Woo Bin nudged him with his elbow. „I love when your cheeks get a little chubby."

„Shut up." Yi Jeong mumbled, obviously embarrassed by both of them and Woo Bin grinned. „Just a little." he assured and gave him a peck on the cheek.

„It's good news that you quit. I was just teasing you, you look adorable!" Chi Un added and Yi Jeong suddenly felt like he wasn't able to breathe. He jumped up and hurried into the kitchen.
Woo Bin and Chi Un exchanged a concerned look, then he said: „You should go. You said it first."

Yi Jeong was standing by the open window, when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

„Sweetheart.. Are you okay? Usually, you're immune to my teasing..."

The soft, caring voice of his mom made him tear up. He really didn't want her to worry, but the comfort she gave him caused his wall to crumble. He turned around and hugged her so tight, it made her worry even more.

„Yi Jeong.."

„It's not your teasing, mom.." he mumbled into her hair, „I'm just glad to be here.."

„You tｗo are not having trouble, have you?" she kept asking carefully but now Yi Jeong laughed.

„No, absolutely not. There's no way I could be any happier than with him." He loosened his grip and smiled at his mom. „I promise. I just... didn't sleep well recently." Yi Jeong wiped over his eyes.
„Can I ask you something?" he sniffed and she nodded. „Anything."

„In the past... When I was little.. Did anything ever happen, where I was scared by a fire? Something I can't remember?"

Yi Jeong wasn't looking at his mom. He was nervous and felt embarrassed to ask such a thing.

Chi Un took some time to think back to anything that could fit with what her son was asking, but there was nothing.
„No, nothing I know about. Why?"

„I have those weird nightmares recently.. I'm in the woods, fire everywhere.. The ground is so hot that it burns my feet.. I try to escape, then I wake up. Since then, I can't stand heat or smoke or fire anymore.. I hoped there might be an explanation for it.. some suppressed trauma.. I don't know.."

„Sweetie, I promise you, I've never left you alone in any woods and at least on my watch, you've never been trapped by a fire."

Yi Jeong sighed and nodded. „Okay. Guess I have to start digging into dream interpretation then." he said and his mom shoved him back into the living room. „Come on. You have to eat and..." They both stopped when they saw Woo Bin just finishing the last of his favorite pancakes.
Not just from his plate but from everyone else's as well.

„You ate mine too?" Yo Jeong called out and Woo Bin looked at him like a puppy in the middle of a chaos he knew very well was his fault, but pleaded for forgiveness anyway.

„You are a monster.." he mumbled, while he let himself drop on the ground next to him and Chi Un laughed. „That's why I didn't let him into the kitchen! I made more!" She vanished and Yi Jeong peered hard at his boyfriend, who tried a cute pout. „I was lonely.." Woo Bin mumbled and it worked.
Yi Jeong couldn't fight back a little smile and leaned in for a kiss. „You can have mine from the kitchen too, if you want." he whispered and Woo Bin smiled. „I love you." he whispered back and Yi Jeong laughed.

After Yi Jeong's literally burning question was out of the way, the rest of the evening went by with light conversation, laughter, and everyone eating way too much. Chi Un offered them to stay the night, so both were able to enjoy Soju after they finished eating and they almost forgot the trouble they had to fight recently.
When it was time to call it a night, Chi Un sent her boys into Yi Jeong's room, assuring to leave the kitchen to her. Usually, they would help her, but she insisted.

Yi Jeong's room was a bit cold, so he turned up the heater just a little.
Woo Bin switched on the little lamp on the desk. Though no one lived here anymore, it was mostly dust free, probably thanks to Chi Un, unnecessarily cleaning a room no one lived in.
It mostly still looked like a decent late teenager's room, with a poster of Yi Jeong's favorite soccer team, books about stuff he was interested in for a short period of time and then never again, a shelf with a bunch of CD's, because he always preferred something physical over a digital download and loved the smell of a print-fresh booklet and looking at the pictures.

Woo Bin and Yi Jeong had a lot of shared memories in this room, but one thing in particular caught Woo Bin's attention, when he was looking around.
He picked up the well loved, often washed and mildly damaged plush fox, the only stuffed animal on Yi Jeong's bed, and let his fingers run through the raddled fur.
His mind started wandering back to that one day in his childhood, when his mom had sent him to the toy store, because she was too busy to take care of him again.
She couldn't send him to play with other kids, because he had no friends and her feeling guilty, gave him the freedom to buy himself whatever he wanted, that day.
Nine and a half year old Woo Bin saw this one plush toy he wanted to have, but the moment he grabbed it, another kid had grabbed it, too.

„I saw it first! Let go and pick something else!" he heard himself yell at the other kid, while tearing up because he was so angry and frustrated and he didn't want someone else to have the one thing he liked.

„It's okay, you can have it. But don't be sad, okay?" the other boy smiled, then his mother found him and dragged him away, because she seemed to be in a hurry.
Woo Bin had felt stupid about yelling, because the boy's reaction was so kind and though he kept the fox, it somehow never felt right to have it, but he treasured it.

It was about half a year later, when Woo Bin had to transfer to another school, because he just couldn't get along with anyone. He picked up fights, but also had to suffer from bullying, because he was an outcast.
He didn't want to go to a new school, he never wanted to go to school again, because no one was like him, but when he entered that new classroom, holding his mom's hand, his other arm wrapped around his plush fox, holding it tight for comfort, someone called him and he looked to where the voice came from.
It was the boy from the toy store, jumping up from his chair, waving with the brightest smile on his face.
There was a free spot next to him at his table and Woo Bin didn't know why, but he let go of his mom's hand and followed the kindhearted invitation.

He would never forget his face and how he was just happy to see him. He wasn't holding a grudge because Woo Bin had yelled at him in the toy store, he just offered his free spot and greeted the fox, asking it, if it took good care of him.
Woo Bin replied, that he was the one taking care of the fox until they met again and he could give it back to him. For some reason, he knew, that he didn't need it anymore, because he finally found a friend. From that day on, Yi Jeong was by his side and he never let him go again.

Woo Bin felt two strong arms wrap around him and he leaned back with a smile.
Yi Jeong didn't need to say anything, he knew exactly what was going on in Woo Bin's head.

„Thank you for saving me.." Woo Bin mumbled and Yi Jeong smiled. „Anytime."

When he was a child, Yi Jeong didn't have any friends either, but he hadn't been a sad child.
He had his mom and he was fine on his own. He never experienced bullying and got along with his class mates, he just never felt the need to make a close friend before he met Woo Bin.
He wasn't able to explain why, but it also never mattered.