jaemin huffed, letting himself fall on his back on the sofa of mark's and donghyuck's living room, by the cat hybrid's side who seemed to be as tired as jaemin was. not that mark was as tired as jaemin who had been emotionally exhausted these past days, but the older hybrid always seemed to be needing a nap – surely one of his cat attributes.
"hey, minnie?" the cat hybrid called as he sniffed the air for a while.
"yeah?" jaemin answered, turning his head to look at his friend.
"is it me or... there's an unfamiliar smell lingering in the air."
the rabbit hybrid didn't answer immediately, not daring to take a sniff of air and realise that in fact, there was another smell that donghyuck's, mark's and his lingering in the air.
to be fully honest, he had come to the realisation that there was an unfamiliar scent in the air the day before, after donghyuck had brought mark and him back from taeyong and doyoung's.
"d-do... do you think donghyuck could be... c-cheating on me?" mark asked, his voice trembling and low.
"what?" jaemin exclaimed. "no, certainly not." he shook his head. "donghyuck would never cheat on you. and you know it."
"but this scent..." mark sighed, sniffing the air again and clearly smelling an odour that was not familiar. and he didn't recall donghyuck claiming that someone had been over while they were away.
"it's not someone with whom donghyuck would cheat on you." jaemin assured in a low voice.
how could he be so sure about it? because jaemin did have a better smell that humans and he had clearly identified who it belonged to; he hadn't needed long to recognise jeno's scent when he had entered the house the night before, lingering everywhere around the living room. he would recognise it among millions; and it was the same for renjun's. those scents that drove jaemin mad and made his heartbeat become uncontrollable. those same scents which now hurt so bad...
at first, jaemin hadn't wanted to ask donghyuck about it – if jeno's scent was there, it was necessarily that jeno had come to donghyuck and mark's house. but the hybrid knew that asking this question would lead to an answer that could hurt him bad. what if jeno had come? what if he had told donghyuck that he never wanted to see jaemin again? or worse, what if he hadn't even come here, and that this scent lingering in the air was jaemin's fucked up brain who couldn't seem to lose feelings for two boys who would never return them?
all of these possible answers to an oh-so-tempting question were what had made jaemin decide to keep his thoughts to himself. but that was until mark voiced out his own concerns about this mysterious scent. if he had smelt it too, then it had to be real, then it had to mean that jeno was there.
but did he really want to know why?
"w-what if... what if i'm not enough for him? what if he gets bored of me? t-this can happen..." mark spoke, his voice getting shakier the longer he was talking.
"mark, stop spitting nonsense, donghyuck loves you." jaemin patted the boy's shoulder. "even a blind mole could realise that."
"b-but what if- "
"stop with your what ifs, mark." jaemin stated, placing his hand over mark's mouth. "donghyuck. loves. you. and he'll never break up with you." he continued, making sure he articulated every word so that mark couldn't pretend he hadn't understood one part. "you are his everything, he always repeats it. that and the fact he would be so lost without you. there is no way you guys are going to break up or anything. you are meant for each other and make the perfect couple, never doubt it."
"the same way renjun and jeno were the perfect couple?"
jaemin stayed silent at mark's statement, his words resonating in his head as he felt like everything around him was collapsing. it hurt. very bad. this innocent sentence had caused a whole mental breakdown within jaemin's body, the hybrid suddenly remembering how alone he was, and how bad everything was too because of him.
facing him, mark had both of his hands slammed over his mouth, realising the mistake he had made. this sentence wasn't supposed to be an attack, actually, he had just let it out mindlessly, remembering the countless times jaemin had told them about renjun and jeno, and how much of a perfect couple they were. but this was before everything went bad. this was before jaemin's feelings got in the mix and caused everything to turn in the perhaps worst way possible. and by speaking so carelessly, mark had just thrown all of these traumatic events back at jaemin, his friend who deserved nothing but happiness.
"t-t-that's n-not w-what i- "
"it's fine." jaemin cut mark's words, not letting him finish his apologies as he swallowed the lump that seemed to be endlessly forming in his throat when he thought about these unfortunate events.
everything was so messy, and it seemed like his thoughts couldn't deal with it anymore.
it had been what, two weeks? maybe three? and jaemin still hadn't moved on from what had happened, still hoping that one day or another renjun and jeno would magically appear in front of him and tell him that they both liked him the way he liked them.
how stupid and childish could he be? he wasn't even sure if such a thing could happen in a fairy-tale. yeah, it was way too far-fetched for that.
there was no hope, and jaemin needed to acknowledge it. some stories didn't have a happy ending despite having a perfect progress. and it seemed like his story was part of those.
"but..."
"mark, love?" donghyuck's voice prevented mark to speak further, making the boy's pointy black ears rise up on his head and look at his boyfriend.
"yes?" he asked, tilting his head to the side in a way that would always make donghyuck's heart melt.
"would you mind coming with me for a second?"
jaemin ignored the boys' conversation, staying in his lying position on the sofa, looking at the ceiling as his heart painfully tried to get back as one only piece held together by the last little bits of sanity jaemin could find in him.
but once again, it was hard, and it seemed almost impossible. mostly when his mind kept playing tricks on him. even though he was trying hard to do so, he couldn't seem to forget about the two charming males he had developed feelings for – feelings that he needed to get rid of quickly – and the fact that his stupid brain kept making him believe that he could feel their scents in the air certainly didn't help.
"jaemin...?"
and he was even hearing their voices calling him now. could his brean be even more useless and bothering? jaemin definitely didn't need to find himself depressed because of thinking about the two males he had lost forever.
the hybrid sighed rubbing is eyes harshly before sitting up on the sofa and leaning his head back on the back rest. his eyes fluttered open, the male still seeing a blurry mess of stars and people for a while – he may have rubbed his eyes a bit too hard – but his vision soon became clear again making him let out a loud groan.
first, the sense of smell, with their scents that seemed to be lingering in the air everywhere jaemin was.
then, hearing, with their voices that couldn't stop resonating across his brain.
and now, view, with his mind creating mirages and making him believe that jeno and renjun were standing side by side in donghyuck's living room?
sure, and what were the next steps?
touch, with jeno and renjun taking him in their arms?
or perhaps taste, as the boys would kiss jaemin like he had always wanted to be kissed?
"jaemin?"
the bunny hybrid jumped as he felt a hand resting over his shoulder, causing him to jump to his feet immediately and to turn around. he couldn't hide the wave of shock that hit him as he found himself standing in front of renjun and jeno – or perhaps, people that hid mind refused to acknowledge as themselves but instead identified as the two boys that had been running through his mind all day and night long since they had had their argument.
jaemin shook his head, rubbing his eyes one more time before looking back at the two figures, hoping that their features would soon morph into donghyuck and mark's as he came back to his senses, but they didn't, and jaemin was still standing in front of jeno and renjun.
"j-jaemin... we'd like to talk with you..."
and that's only as those words left jeno's mouth that jaemin realised the situation he was really in; no, his mind wasn't playing tricks on him.
he had really smelled jeno and renjun's scents.
he had really heard them calling his name.
and he had really seen them with his own eyes.
because jeno and renjun were really in front of jaemin, standing in the middle of donghyuck and mark's living room, here to have a talk with him.
jaemin let out a strangled yelp as he was hit by realisation, suddenly panicking and having no idea what he could do. and so, what better than to run away in those kinds of situations?
in a snap of fingers, jaemin transformed into his animal form, bouncing away from the two humans whose eyes widened in surprise.
"wait! jaemin!"
renjun and jeno started running after him across the living room, trying to have him stop bouncing around so that they could have a talk.
unfortunately for jaemin, the windows and doors were all closed, and he didn't have enough time to get back into his human form to open them before going out. however, the white bunny was quick to notice the gap between the piece of furniture the tv was placed on and the floor.
seeing this as his only escape, the hybrid slid under the piece of furniture, catching his breath while he made sure the two males didn't try to pull him away from there.
"jaemin, don't hide, please." renjun said, dropping to his knees on the floor and bending until the side of his face was pressed to the floor so that he could see the rabbit.
"w-we just want to have a talk with you." jeno added, in the same position as renjun.
jaemin shook his head as he looked at the two boys, too scared of which subjects could be spoken about to get out from where he was.
"please, jaemin. it's important." jeno pleaded.
"i think... i think this conversation could make you happy." renjun added, glancing at jeno before finishing his sentence.
"you don't have to be in your human form if you don't want." jeno continued speaking. "but come out at least so that we can see you clearly when talking to you."
the hybrid hesitated for a few seconds before shaking his head no again, making the two males sigh.
"you must feel pressured, i guess." renjun stated. "we'll just go sit on the sofa, on the other end of the room. you can come to us on the sofa if you want to. we'll leave in five minutes if you still didn't get out, and that way, we'll know that you want nothing to do with us anymore."
"please, consider it, nana." jeno added as renjun had already stood up, his voice obviously pained by what could happened if this conversation didn't happen. "we really want to arrange things between us."
"come, jeno." renjun patted jeno's shoulder as the younger male stood up as well for them to go sit on the couch as promised.
jaemin stayed under the piece of furniture, not intending to move for the next five minutes so that they could leave him forever, and so that they could solve things between them and live their own happy ever after.
he was too scared to be brought back in this mess, and completely frightened of the consequences this conversation could have. he was already broken, and he couldn't afford getting broken even more if jeno and renjun were here to tell him how they planned on leaving him behind.
and as much as jaemin's mind and reason held him under this piece of furniture, his heart wanted nothing more than to morph into his human form and pull the both males in a bear hug. but he couldn't do that either, could he?
it was a battle between jaemin's heart and his mind, the former screaming at him to enjoy their presence while it lasted, and the latter forcing him to stay away from the not to end up hurt in the end. but couldn't there be even the slightest chance that he could end up not hurt?
the two males looked really desperate to have a talk with jaemin, and they had come together. plus, they seemed to be okay with each other, which could be a good sign. maybe they had found an arrangement and they were here to share it with jaemin. jeno had mentioned that they wanted to arrange things between them. but was it between jeno and renjun? or did they include jaemin too?
jaemin's messed up thoughts were cut short by the sound of a door slamming shut. with wide eyes, the bunny rushed out of his shelter, his whole world stopping to turn as he realised that the room was empty, and that jeno and jaemin weren't here anymore.
had he really unintentionally spent five minutes debating whether or not to go to them?
but then, if things had happened this way, maybe it was fate, and maybe it was a sign that jaemin should be listening to his reason rather than his heart.
but it hurt like a bitch nevertheless.
the sound of the door slamming open again made a spark of hope ignite in jaemin again, his lips curving upwards as he hopped to the door, only to be met with a mad looking donghyuck.
"na jaemin, what the hell?!" the human exclaimed, looking down at the animal with his arms crossed over his chest.
the hybrid looked down, his ears resting on the sides of his head in shame.
"do you have any idea what you are passing next to by avoiding this conversation?" donghyuck raised a brow. "i think you don't even have the slightest idea what could happen if you really listened to your heart. i love you, jaemin, i really do. but you're doing something stupid that will both hurt you and them."
the bunny hybrid morphed into his human form, looking at donghyuck with his ears still flapping down.
"d-do you think i should...?"
"jaemin." donghyuck stated, grabbing jaemin's both shoulders. "i know you should. trust me on that one."
and these words were enough to convince jaemin who had been torn between his mind and his heart for the past minutes.
but if donghyuck was claiming that he would miss something, if donghyuck claimed that he should follow his heart, maybe it was an even bigger sign from fate warning him and it was now or never, and that opportunities like those wouldn't appear twice in his life.
and so, jaemin ran out of the house he had been living in for the past weeks, not caring about the fact that he was in the street without a beanie and that his long white furry ears were flying behind him as he ran the fastest he could to reach the two males he loved so much.
"r-renjun!" the boy called as the two boys came into view, walking away. "j-jen..." jaemin stopped himself in the middle of his yelling as he noticed that not only were the two boys walking side by side in the same direction, but also that they had their hands intertwined, the same way they used to have them when they were together and decided to adopt nana.
this little detail broke something in jaemin, and the hybrid regrated having called for the names once he had noticed it.
so, they were back together, and they were really here to tell jaemin that they wanted to move forward, without him.
oh god, how stupid did jaemin feel... of course... they wanted everything to be back to when jaemin didn't exist and when they were the cutest couple to exist. they wanted their love back, their intimacy back. and jaemin wouldn't be part of it. of course not, since he had appeared in their lives he had only been able to mess things up between the three of them. of course, they didn't want him to be part of them anymore.
"jaemin?"
"jaemin! you're out without a beanie!"
the hybrid wanted to disappear on the spot. he regretted everything. he regretted going out of under his piece of furniture after seeing the door opening, he regretted having this quick conversation with donghyuck, he regretted following his heart and god, he regretted calling their names before realsing that they were holding hands.
jaemin believed that he couldn't get more hurt by them after what had happened, but actually, imagining the two boys happy again and knowing that this would happen without him in the picture somehow hurt more than he had imagined it would.
"come on, hide your ears." jeno said, rushing to jaemin's side and taking his jacket off to place it over jaemin's head and hide his hybrid attributes.
"so, you are together again...?"
jaemin's tone was flat, monotonous and emotionless. his body wasn't moving much, and he didn't even care about people around seeing his ears or his pompom tail. yeah, he couldn't care less about being rejected by people whom he didn't give a shit to when he knew that he would end up heartbroken by two of the only people that mattered to him – again.
"together?" renjun frowned before understanding that jaemin must have seen their hands. "oh, together. well, no." the chinese male shook his head. "we wanted to have a conversation with you first."
"t-there is no need for a conversation." jaemin said not-so-simply. "i-i'm glad that you guys could make up. w-wish you the best."
slowly, jaemin pushed away jeno's hands which were still holding onto his jacket over jaemin's ears.
"p-please take care of yourselves." jaemin continued, tears forming in his eyes as all of the stitches he had sewn to fix the broken pieces of his heart back together threatened to burst.
"take care? no, jaemin, we need to tell you something first and- "
"i-i know." jaemin cut jeno. "y-you guys are b-back together... a-and... a-and you'd like t-to keep going... w-without me in t-the picture..." the hybrid continued, stoping from time to time to breathe and not start crying in front of the two males. "a-and i d-do understand... s-so... t-this is why i'm s-saying g-goodbye... s-so that y-you- "
"no, jaemin it's not what you think! we..."
and before jeno could complete his sentence fully, renjun decided that actions spoke better than actual words. the chinese male didn't hesitate to wrap his hands around jaemin's neck and to pull the boy down to plant his lips on jaemin's under jeno's eyes.
jaemin didn't have the time to understand what was happening. one second he was wondering how he was going to glue back the pieces of his heart together again after this nth heartbreak, and the next second, he realised he had found the best glue ever for his problem; a kiss, a magic kiss, just like those in fairy-tales which warmed up the coldest atmospheres and healed the worst injuries.
the hybrid stayed static for a few seconds, not knowing how to act, but this was soon solved as renjun took the lead and started gently moulding his lips against jaemin's, making the hybrid follow his pace.
both could agree that – despite being one of the best feelings in the world – this kiss felt weird.
to renjun, it was the fact that he was kissing someone other than jeno, whose lips he had gotten so used to after these years. and to jaemin, it had to be the fact that this was his first time ever kissing someone. but as weird as this kiss was for both of them, they couldn't help but enjoy the electrifying current that crossed their bodies from the tip of their toes to the top of their heads.
after realising that they still had a conversation to share, renjun slowly pulled away, keeping his hands around jaemin's neck so that the hybrid couldn't run away again.
"can you listen to us, now?" renjun whispered, his lips brushing against jaemin's as he spoke the words.
jaemin kept his mouth shut and his eyes wide as he slowly nodded, making renjun smile fondly and pull away to include jeno in the conversation. speaking of which, the korean male has his eyes as wide as jaemin, and his cheeks bright red after witnessing the interaction between the two boys which had made him feel nothing but envy and love.
"so, what we have been trying to tell you, jaemin, is that yes, jeno and i sorted things out between the two of us..." renjun started, glancing at jeno and linking their hands. "...but we aren't back together yet. and this for a very simple reason."
jaemin listened carefully to their words, mentally prepared to hear something he wouldn't like, but completely confused because of what had just happened.
why had renjun kissed him like that, right in front of jeno? and why hadn't jeno protested or anything?
"w-we... w-we have f-feelings for you, jaemin." jeno spoke, looking successively at the two boys for whom his heart beat to loud. "both of us." he stated, now looking into jaemin's eyes. "and... and we'd like you to join us, in our loving relationship."
as these words left jeno's mouth, jaemin's jaw dropped to the floor, and his eyes widened even more if possible. the hybrid even wondered if he was not lost in one of his helpless dream, because the proposition that they had just made was what he had been dreaming of for the past months.
but after pinching himself and rubbing his eyes, he realised that no, it was not a dream, it was reality, and jeno and renjun were both standing there, looking at him expectantly why waiting for his reply.
"i-i..." jaemin stuttered, his eyes darting between the two males.
"we don't want to force you. i... i don't know to which extent you have feelings for us, and we don't even know if you want to be in a relationship but... yeah..." renjun spoke, giving a loving look to jeno before concentrating back on jaemin. "we are willing to wait for you. if you need more time, or anything."
"we'll always be there for you." jeno nodded. "whenever you're ready..."
"yes."
jeno and renjun blinked a few times raised a brow simultaneously as they looked at the hybrid curiously. "yes?"
"y-yes." jaemin repeated, the smile on his face widening more and more with each second passing. "i-i'm ready."
jeno and renjun were delighted to hear those words slipping past jaemin's lips.
they both were aware that jaemin used to have feelings for renjun, and they were pretty much sure that he had feelings for jeno too, but they still feared rejection from the boy as they asked him if he wanted to be part of them.
"are you sure?" renjun asked.
"we can wait if you don't feel like it." jeno assured.
"i-i'm sure." jaemin nodded energetically. "i-i've never wanted something more than that. i-i... i-i love you two so much..."
a quick glance was exchanged between jeno and renjun as they smiled at each other, their hearts finally beating in unison for the same people.
jeno then approached jaemin, tilting his head to the side as he flashed him a smile. "can i?"
jaemin had no idea what jeno meant by that, but he trusted him with all of his soul – he had always trusted him – and he was too ecstatic to say no anyway.
"yes..." jaemin murmured as jeno leant forwards, his arms finding a perfect place around jaemin's waist so that he could pull the boy closer.
and for the second time in a matter of minutes, jaemin's lips were engulfed by another pair of lips, causing his insides to transform in a zoo of butterflies as he melted into the amazing kiss he was sharing with the boy he had developed feelings for since so long.
and the same way renjun had taken his time to make jaemin at ease, jeno's hands caressed jaemin's sides slowly as he started moving his lips against jaemin's eyes closed and heart thumping hard.
and when they parted away to breathe, the two males kept their eyes locked, silly smiles dancing on their faces as they realised how amazing was this feeling that both had been longing for for so long.
"so..." renjun broke their trance, taking a step forward and letting his hands reach for jaemin and jeno's own hands. "does that mean that we can finally be together? all three of us?"
"i-i think it does." jaemin nodded dreamily, his mind still in a bliss because of the kiss.
"get ready then." jeno warned, smiling sweetly at the younger male. "because we won't let you go anytime soon."