After Yi Jeong had calmed down a little, the three of them decided to take a walk through the park.
Now, that he was finally allowed to, without getting arrested for stalking, Yi Yeon couldn't stop looking at his little brother.
Yi Jeong wasn't just his reincarnation, he was like the version of Rang he always wished for.
Not that he didn't love his brother the way he was, he had just wished for him to be like this.
Happy and able to allow someone else to love him and not being so deeply traumatized, that he became such a mess.
The way he moved, the way he talked, it was him, just with a happier face.
And Woo Bin.... He loved him so much, Yi Yeon could see it in his eyes, every time he looked at Yi Jeong, who was now walking between them, munching a fish cake on a stick.
Yi Yeon wanted to buy him one, but he had to fight with Woo Bin and after 5 minutes, he gave up.
He wasn't mad, though. They were men after all and men always needed to mark their territory.
It was also important to him, that Woo Bin wouldn't get the feeling, that he would try to take something from him or get between them.
"Who was the guy who attacked us?" Woo Bin asked and Yi Yeon shrugged.
"Don't worry about it anymore, I handled it." he said and Woo Bin frowned. He didn't like the answer but decided to get back to it another time.
"Have I been in trouble or pissed someone off in my past life?" Yi Jeong asked innocently and looked at his brother. He was still chewing and looked like a child, asking about the world and Yeon wasn't sure anymore if he should really tell him details about his troubled past.
"A little..." he finally said.
"I could try to make up for it. I just need a list of people. I really don't want trouble with anyone..."
Yi Yeon was silent for a moment, not really knowing how to explain and just went with: "Uhm..", as a start, but he just couldn't find the right words and remained silent.
Yi Jeong stopped walking. "Wait... What did I do? I said I was twisted on the video.. What does that mean?"
He looked at his brother, who walked up to him and ruffled through his hair. "Don't worry about what Rang did.. Just because you are his reincarnation doesn't mean you have to take responsibility for what he did. He messed up a lot.. but his heart was in the right place after all. I can show you your past life but you have to understand first, that it's not what you did. It's not what you experienced and it's not what you have to keep suffering for. First I want you to find your balance with this new side of you, then we can talk about past you."
"But.. no, I don't want to know this much but not all of it. That's torture!" Yi Jeong started complaining and Woo Bin pulled him aside.
"Babe, I think you should trust his judgment in this case. Don't do this to yourself. You're confused now because your life merges with his life now and you feel like you're him, but you didn't make his mistakes, whatever that means. He got a second chance with you not carrying his load on your shoulders."
The memory alone of Yi Jeong breaking under the weight of Yi Rang's emotions made Woo Bin feel sick. He didn't deserve this and he just hoped that he kept being able to protect his friend from all of that.
Yi Jeong looked into his boyfriend's pleading eyes. He fought a short, silent battle with him, but gave in eventually and sighed with a nod. "Okay.. For now." he whispered and a little smile flashed over Woo Bin's lips.
He gave Yi Jeong a kiss on the cheek and Yi Jeong nudged his face with the tip of his nose in return.
Yi Yeon watched them and was almost moved to tears. Yi Jeong and Woo Bin had a strong bond and stable relationship and that was good. There was a lot to come and having a strong partner by his side would help him handle everything better.
Though he just met them, he already felt a familiar, impulsive and mindless behavior from his little brother and Woo Bin functioned as the one who kept a clear head for him. They had to trust each other, that they only wanted the best for Yi Jeong and so far, it seemed to work quite well.
The group kept walking and Yi Jeong thought about his most important question, but he was a bit scared to hear the answer.
"Hyung..." he started and Yeon's heart almost exploded of happiness, hearing that word come from Yi Jeong so easily.
"I want to ask...." he took a deep breath, "The first time, I changed so suddenly.. I had no control over myself... Is it possible, that I could suddenly change at home and hurt Woo Bin?"
"You didn't hurt him the last time, right?" Yi Yeon asked.
"No. He was the fluffiest, cutest thing ever!" Woo Bin assured.
"But I still think it's a risk! I would never forgive myself if I would hurt him."
"Woo Bin is your mate. We stay with the one we chose for the rest of our lives, so I think even if you change and have no control, you would recognize him and not mistake him for prey. By the way, is red your natural hair color?" Yi Yeon asked casually and peered at his brother's boyfriend.
"It's mahogany, but yes." Woo Bin said dryly and already sensed what Yi Yeon was trying to ask again and rolled his eyes, starting to feel uncomfortable.
"You are Korean, aren't you?"
"As if that's what you're actually asking.." Woo Bin shook his head and Yi Jeong looked from Yi Yeon to Woo Bin and back with a puzzled expression.
"Why? What is he asking?" he wanted to know and Woo Bin sighed.
"Woo Bin told me how you guys met and I was wondering, if he was a Gumiho, too. That's all."
Yi Jeong looked at Woo Bin with wide, shiny eyes and he immediately felt the pressure again to be no disappointment.
"Awesome. Keep giving him ideas I can't live up to." Woo Bin mumbled and Yi Jeong took his hand.
"Hey, you don't think I need you to be anything but yourself, right? I mean.. it would be fun because I love to share everything with you, but... You remember what we talked about before, right? We are what we are."
"Sure.." Woo Bin said with a soft smile and Yi Jeong laced their fingers together when they kept walking. All the time, he was so focused on himself, he never even considered Woo Bin could start to have doubts not because of him being some other species, but for Woo Bin still just being human.
Yi Yeon felt bad for having brought up a topic again that he now understood was really upsetting for Woo Bin. He was wondering if Yi Jeong was already aware, that even as half Gumiho, he would live much longer than his partner. While he would stay like this, Woo Bin would grow older too fast and one day, he had to be without him with no guarantee, that they would find each other again. Yi Yeon himself had to wait 600 years to be with Ji Ah again and he wasn't sure if Yi Jeong was the patient type.
"I don't think you'll ever be able to accidentally hurt your partner. Also it isn't hard to control yourself. As soon as you know, it's just like deciding to lift an arm. You don't think to lift an arm, you just do it. And now, if you think to change into a Gumiho you will change and soon you even don't have to..."
"Yi Jeong?" Woo Bin asked, because his hand was suddenly gone and turned around. There was a pile of clothes on the ground and he looked at Yi Yeon.
"What happened now?" he exclaimed and Yi Yeon looked around, checking if someone saw something. "Grab the clothes and pray no one saw this!" he ordered and followed Yi Jeong's scent to a clump of shrubs.
"Rang-Ah?" he asked and heard a growl.
Woo Bin pushed Yi Yeon out of the way and tried to see something through the leaves.
"Babe?? Are you okay??" he asked a bit out of breath and got down on his knees to follow Yi Jeong into his hideaway. He accepted a few scratches, while crawling through the thicket, only thinking of his boyfriend.
"Yi Jeong?" he whispered and saw a yellow eye, glowing under a shrub. "Hey... It's okay.. no one saw you."
It took a moment until Yi Jeong came out, now seeking shelter in Woo Bin's arms.
"Hey, baby.." Woo Bin smiled and ruffled through his fur. "It's all good. See! You probably thought to transform and you did! Now think... transform back! I brought your clothes. I know you can do it. Otherwise, I will have a nice walk through the park with my rare breed dog. We bundle your tails and.."
Before Woo Bin was able to finish the sentence, Yi Jeong was back, fully human, but with some extras.
"Damn I never thought this would make you look so adorable.." Woo Bin grinned and scratched Yi Jeong behind the fox ears on his head. "Are you okay?"
"Are there still ears on my head?" Yi Jeong asked and looked a bit helpless and out of breath.
"Yep."
"And now?"
"Still.."
"And now?"
"Yep."
"Woo Bin!!" he whined and Woo Bin laughed.
"What? Come on, get dressed and ask your brother." he handed over the clothes and Yi Jeong started to put his clothes back on.
"Give me your hoodie. I can't go out like this, I'll look like some weird dude with a furry fetish.." Yi Jeong mumbled and Woo Bin chuckled. "Mind if this is gonna be my new fetish, because your ear just twitched and I can't handle."
Now Yi Jeong had to laugh a little, too.
"What's going on in here? Don't leave me out." Yi Yeon's head popped up between the leaves and he tried to hide that he was about to laugh at his brother's helpless expression combined with the fox ears, naturally sticking out through his hair. They were black at the bottom, a bit more mixed with different brown and red tones up to the top and the tips were black again. He reached out and wanted to pet his head but, Yi Jeong shot him a look.
"Don't."
"Oh come on.."
"Tell me how to get rid of it!"
"If you couldn't make them go away by now, maybe you secretly don't want to." Yi Yeon shrugged.
"I don't want to look like a jerk." Yi Jeong said and switched sweaters with Woo Bin.
"Yeah, you better hide that extra cuteness because there's no way you can run around more adorable than you are anyway and other people beside me see that." Woo Bin said and Yi Yeon grinned.
"I bet you actually enjoy how he loves your new look and that's why you can't get rid of the ears."
"Can you shut up? I can't stay away from work much longer. I can't show up like this."
"Sure you can. The kids will love it!" Woo Bin assured and Yi Jeong looked at him. "And what if they want to try on my ears? It's just too risky. What if I think fox and transform in front of them?"
"Hey, you thought fox and didn't transform. That's an improvement. Maybe we should change location and practice a bit where no one can see us. I could bring you to our old home, what do you think? Woo Bin can come too." Yi Yeon suggested.
"First, I'm all in for changing to a location that is not this bush, but you guys should do that without me. I have to work anyway. Take some time for yourself and practice without pressure, hm?" Woo Bin smiled, but Yi Jeong didn't look so happy.
"Hey..." he playfully flicked the tip of his fluffy ear and it twitched again, making Woo Bin smile. "You can take me with you next time!" he added and gave Yi Jeong a sweet kiss. "Go, get to know your brother and your new self. I'm not going anywhere and I won't feel left out, I promise."
Yi Jeong sighed. "Okay.." he gave in eventually and kissed Woo Bin again. Suddenly, one kiss wasn't enough anymore and Yeon cleared his throat, causing the two lovebirds to part.
"Sorry.." Yi Jeong mumbled with a tiny smirk, while blushing a little. Woo Bin bit his lower lip to keep himself from being too happy and exchanged a flirty look with his boyfriend.
Yi Yeon followed their looks like a ping-pong match and nodded after a while.
"Yeah, I think it's a good idea if we go alone. Not that I don't want you to come, I just think you are too distracting." he said and Woo Bin shrugged with a smug smile.
Yi Yeon was the first who crawled out backwards. He was the only one who was only half in anyway and Woo Bin followed the same way. He brushed off some dirt and helped Yi Jeong out, who was last and still a bit wobbly on his legs. When the boys looked around, there was a little group of people, watching them, obviously confused if they should call for help or the police.
Yi Jeong hastily pulled the hood over his head, but one ear was still sticking out.
Yi Yeon made a gesture, that everything was okay and the crowd parted slowly, each member going their own way again, still whispering to each other and throwing odd looks at them.
When he looked back at Yi Jeong and Woo Bin, his brother's better half was busy with trying to get his stray ear under the hood.
"You have to flatten it a bit, and stop twitching the other, it looks like you have a hamster on your head or something." Woo Bin whispered.
"Flatten? How am I supposed to flatten my ear? Do I look like a scottish fold to you?" Yi Jeong hissed back, slapping Woo Bin's hands away every time he tried to fumble the hood back over his ears.
"Can you just let me help you for a second? Just twitch it back and stay that way."
"If I had control over my fox parts, they wouldn't be on my human head, don't you think?"
"But you will learn how to do that on purpose and do it for me again, right?" Woo Bin asked with a sweet pout. Yi Jeong dropped his gaze and lost the fight against the little smile, flashing over his lips. "Yes.." he gave in and finally held still, so a happy Woo Bin could push his ear back once more, to make it fit under the hood.
"Try to hold it like this, okay?" he said caringly and kissed Yi Jeong's forehead.
"I'll try my best.."
"Fighting!!" Woo Bin cheered, but Yi Jeong just looked at him with a fake smile and imitated his pose halfheartedly.
"Hey... don't be like that..." Woo Bin mumbled and poked Yi Jeong's belly. Their eyes found each other and Yi Jeong's features softened. "I just want you to come with me, that's all.."
"Next time. I'm already behind my schedule, if I don't send over the next three chapters soon, my publisher is going to kill me. Also.. I already know, I can't hold your pace."
"I'm not even sure if I remember how to be that fast."
"You could try to catch me. But you won't. Ever." Yi Yeon said with a challenging spark in his eyes and Yi Jeong looked up. "What did you say?"
Yi Yeon had an annoyingly superior smile on his face and just vanished.
„Go, get him, babe!" Woo Bin said and got one last kiss, then Yi Jeong was gone, too.
He took a shaky breath and when he realized that tears were running down his cheeks, he hastily dried them with his sleeve and looked around, if anyone saw him.
Woo Bin knew, that Yi Jeong had to do this alone and basically, he knew that their love was strong enough to survive being not the same species, but suddenly, he was scared.
„I'm his mate." he mumbled to convince himself, „He's stuck with me, because he chose me. Oh no.. He's stuck with me.. and I will never be able to hold his pace.. ever.." Woo Bin slapped his own cheek and shook his head to chase away the bad thoughts.
Yi Jeong would be so mad at him, if he just thought in that direction. He rubbed over his nose and dug it into the fabric of Yi Jeong's sweater for a moment to breathe in his scent. It calmed him, but he still needed to distract himself and decided to go back to the shopping mall. The new sweater he got for Yi Jeong was completely ruined and he wanted to look if he would find the same again.
While he was walking through the mall, he didn't notice that someone started to follow him, until that something started tucking on his jeans and he turned around, but no one was there.
„Uncle Woo Bin?"
Woo Bin looked down, right into the glistening eyes of a tiny, familiar face.
„Ohh!" he knelt down to be on the same eye level. „Yong Gi, isn't it?" he smile at the boy with the pink, chubby cheeks. Right, he was there while Woo Bin was working in Yi Jeong's classroom. Yi Yeon's son knew who he was.
He looked around, but the boy seemed to be alone.
„You remember me?" he asked happily and Woo Bin laughed. „Of course I remember you! You made the amazing Gumiho, right?" he asked and Yong Gi giggled.
„Hey, let's go see if we find your mom, hm? Do you want to sit on my shoulders?"
„Yeaah!!"
„Okaaay!" he lifted the boy up on his shoulders and got up, looking around if he saw the mother somewhere. Since Yi Yeon was playing tag with his boyfriend, it just could be her.
She was probably already looking for him, so he looked for a panicking woman and spotted her pretty fast, rushing through stores with a distressed look on her face.
„Nam Ji Ah!" he called and she stopped immediately, looking from where that came, then she saw Woo Bin and immediately relaxed, seeing her son waving happily from his shoulders.
„Woo Bin-Nim!" she greeted and needed a moment to catch a breath.
"I guess this is yours?" he asked and Yong Gi laughed, really enjoying his ride.
„Why did you run away?" she asked her son in a kind tone and Woo Bin lifted the boy over his shoulders, back into her arms. „I followed Uncle Woo Bin!"
She laughed a little nervously and apologized for her son's behavior, but Woo Bin shook his head with a smile. „It's okay. We're basically family now, right?"
Now her features softened and she returned the smile. „Right.
„Well, I have to go find a sweater, so. See you, I guess."
He was about to turn around and already waved good bye, still smiling, but she held him back.
„Would you like to have a coffee? I would really like to thank you for looking after this little devil."
Woo Bin looked at Ji Ah. She had a beautiful face and a soft, welcoming aura. Still, he tended to be rather anti-social, so he wasn't really sure what to do. He didn't even get used to Yi Yeon, yet.
Ji Ah noticed his struggle and nodded.
„I understand. It's a lot, right? Well, if you ever feel like talking about it to another human.."
Glad that he wasn't forced into an uncomfortable situation, Woo Bin considered the offer for a moment, then he nodded. „Thank you. I think.. I would like that."
„Here's my number. But you can also come over. You know where we live, right?" She handed over a card and Woo Bin took it with an awkward smile. „Yes.. sorry for that. And thank you."
„No, I'm sorry. For us bringing you two in this weird situation without knowing our motives. You're going to get used to him being a Gumiho, it's not that bad. It actually comes with some benefits and at least yours already comes with a human skill-set." she smiled, slapped his shoulder and decided to not bother Woo Bin any longer for now.
"Yong Gi. Say good bye to uncle Woo Bin. We meet him again another time!" she said and whispered: „He loved your story."
Woo Bin laughed. „I'm sure I can read it to him again some time." he winked at Yong Gi, who grinned from one ear to the other.
„Bye Uncle!" he said and waved.
„See you around, buddy." Woo Bin waved and looked after them, until they vanished in the crowd.