Taekook One Shots

17.

Nothing too special. Just something short for now until I can figure out a good concept.

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"Come on Tae, at least try to socialize with some of them. I'm sure you'll make some amazing friends," one of the assistants urges the unusually shy tiger hybrid to break out of his shell. Taehyung simply shakes his head furiously, holding his tail against him and ears drooped in fear.

Hybrids may be human but they're half animal after all so a lot of their characteristics are more primal. However, Taehyung is different. Despite being a tiger, a predator. His characteristics are that of an animal of prey. He is too scared to interact with other hybrids and usually sits in a corner by himself. He usually only associates with some of the hybrid caretakers but never with the other hybrids.

Sighing in defeat, the caretaker decides to leave him be, knowing it'll cause the tiger more stress if he's forced into a situation he doesn't want to be in. Walking away, he leaves Taehyung curled in his usual corner, on his favourite large purple beanbag , by himself. The tiger's shoulders sag in relief once he's left alone.

Grabbing his food that was temporarily forgotten, he happily munches on his BBQ steak club sandwiches, stiffening every once in a while when one of the other hybrids get too close however, they all glide past him as if he were invisible. Many have tried to build a friendship with Taehyung but the introverted tiger was always uncooperative so naturally after a while, no one attempted to approach him.

A few minutes later, with his belly full, he lazily relaxes and allows himself to sink into the softness of the beanbag. He curls up into a ball, holding onto his dragon plushie that he takes everywhere with him, and peacefully drifts off to sleep.

For some unknown reason, Taehyung awakens from his slumber not too long after having just fallen asleep. He keeps his eyes closed as to not completely disrupt his sleepy state. Groaning in irritability at himself for waking up even though he's still tired, he tightens his grip around his plushie, smooshing his face into it before relaxing once again and attempts to drift off to sleep.

The softest sound of movement sounds to his right and Taehyung almost ignores it because the thought of chasing away his sleepiness over an unknown sound is just not worth it. It wasn't until his brain registered how close the sound was to him did Taehyung shoot up.

The sight of Jeongguk, the bunny hybrid, startles him.

He yelps and topples backwards off the beanbag. The bunny was sitting right next to the beanbag, seemingly observing the tiger as he slept. He had been watching Taehyung for a few weeks now and finally decided that the tiger wasn't as happy with his loneliness as he was letting on.

Taehyung tries to conceal himself behind the large purple beanbag, hoping Jeongguk would take the hint and go away if he remained there long enough.

Chancing a peak over the barrier between them, he yelps once more and ducks back into his hiding spot upon seeing Jeongguk sitting up and looking over to his side with an unwavering gaze. His eyes twinkling with fascination.

Once again, Taehyung waits, hoping he would leave. He lifts his head, about to peak back over to where the bunny sat. He yells out in surprise when he sees Jeongguk no longer on the other end of the beanbag. He had somehow silently crept over to Taehyung's side.

Pressing himself against the wall, trying to put as much distance between the two of them as possible.

"You're different," Jeongguk leans forward as he speaks. His brown ears twitch slightly from his excitement.

"U-u-urm," unable to get any words out, he simply looks away from the eager looking bunny.

"Wanna be friends?" he asks with no hesitation despite Taehyung's unwelcoming body language.

"I don't think-"

"Come on. No need to be scared. That's why you don't make friends right? You're scared of being treated badly and all that right?" Jeongguk interrupts him. His words ring with clarity. It's like he sees through him.

The tiger doesn't respond, only confirming the bunny's theory. Taehyung wanted friends at first. But he witnessed his mother go through several betrayals and grew up building a wall around himself. Now Tae doesn't mind being alone, but he has successfully hindered his ability to interact with others. He knows it's a problem but can never bring himself to fix it.

"Don't worry. I'll be your friend. And I promise, I'll protect you no matter what," Jeongguk smiles as he settles next to the agitated tiger.

So it went like this, day after day for months. Jeongguk would find Taehyung, approach him despite the tiger constantly giving him a cold shoulder in order to push him away, but that didn't deter the other. He would sit with him, talking about anything and everything and on a good day, Taehyung would sometimes give him a reply and even prolong the conversation.

Soon enough, the tiger grew attached to the cute muscle bunny.

Six months later, they are joined at the hip and even frequently cuddle with each other. The caretakers were happy that Taehyung had finally let someone in. Taehyung smiles more, laughs more and even learnt to speak to others, even though he's not as open with them as he is with Jeongguk.

Taehyung is glad he opened up to Jeongguk. Now he can't imagine life without him. Jeongguk was a form of support. And now he is finally beginning to embrace the hybrid he always wanted to be.

Now, Taehyung lies across the large purple beanbag, the beanbag that used to be his own island of solitude. Now, it's no longer a lonely place. The bunny hybrid rests next to him, curled up close and holding onto him even in his sleep. A soft smile makes its way onto Taehyung's face, he silently thanks the universe for bringing Jeongguk into his life. 

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Bleh, I really don't like this one. This one is really not my favourite.