Fix You

Ten.

For it being the beginning of January, the park was surprisingly packed. You had been going a little stir crazy, between the weather of late-December, your job, and everything you were trying to do to get things ready for the lawyer. You needed some fresh air and a few minutes of peace, so despite the cold, you decided to go for a walk in the park.

Begrudgingly, Yoongi joined you. He hated the cold, which was clear from how he was dressed. While you were in a simple wool peacoat, a knit hat, and scarf--one of the first ones he had knitted--he wore a hoodie under his thick ski coat, a beanie to cover his sensitive ears, and a scarf so large it was wrapped around his neck several times.

He was telling you about the latest book he was reading as you walked. He was thoroughly enthralled with the book about a boy who longed to travel. In fact, he read voraciously. He was almost done with all the books in your own personal library, and he was slowly starting to gather a collection of his own.

His gloved hand clutched yours, swinging it slightly between your bodies every once in a while. He spoke jovially, pausing briefly at times to inspect some foliage or watch a squirrel, his tail twitching with interest behind him. You paid rapt attention to him. You loved to listen to him talk, especially now that he was growing more confident. Despite the nightmares, he was making significant progress in therapy, and you could tell just from a short conversation with him.

"Can we sit for a while?" Yoongi asked as you got to the pond, his attention on a group of birds poking around the city-sponsored bird feeders that hung in some nearby trees.

You smiled, gesturing to one of the benches. "Of course."

Your apartment had plenty of windows, but unfortunately, none of them were good for bird watching, and he still had the instincts of a cat. The benches near the pond had great views of the park, which seemed like its own little world, separate from the city. In the summer, the dark waters of the natural spring that fed the pond would bubble and gurgle and drown out some of the more mundane noises to really close off the park from the rest of the world.

But now, in the winter, the pond was frozen over, and the spring hardly made a sound.

Yoongi was pointing out a particularly fat chickadee to you when you noticed the couple sitting on a bench a little further down the walking path. They were cuddled together, laughing as the woman handed the man her paper cup. He took a sip and made a face, and you noticed the orange ears on the top of his head briefly turn down in disgust before swiveling right back to attention. The woman laughed, and the man--a fox hybrid, you guessed, based on the tail--pulled her into a tight hug. Not wanting to stare, you turned your attention back to the fat bird Yoongi was obsessing over.

Beside you, Yoongi leaned back against the bench, his tail bumping against you gently as it swished behind him. A squirrel bounded through the flock, startling the birds into the air. Yoongi grabbed your hand as they flew away, his eyes tracking the birds into a nearby tree. He made a small noise as his attention turned to the squirrel and you chuckled, reaching up to adjust his beanie, as it had started to fall off with his ear movements.

Out of the corner of your eye, you caught the fox hybrid and the woman moving. When you glanced at them, they were walking in your direction, giving you a polite nod as they passed. The way the fox hybrid was tucked into her side, his tail wrapped around her, reminded you of Yoongi. You had never realized how intimate it looked from the outside.

The squirrel soon bounded away, and after a moment, Yoongi stood and stretched. Something popped and he made a face, rubbing at his left shoulder slightly, his fingers tracing along the slight scars left from when he was attacked by Rick's dog. He reached for your hand and pulled you up. As you started walking again, he sighed and pulled your hand into his coat pocket. You rolled your eyes, but let him do it.