black cat | woosan ✔

9

The park was quiet, the crisp autumn air carrying the faint scent of fallen leaves and damp earth. Vibrant shades of red, orange, and yellow decorated the trees, with golden leaves scattered across the ground. A chill nipped at the air, but it wasn't enough to deter Wooyoung as he made his way toward the park bench where the cat usually hung out.

And sure enough, there it was—the black cat curled into a small, lazy ball, its tail flicking every now and then. Wooyoung's lips curled into a soft grin as he approached.

"There you are, you little troublemaker," he whispered, crouching beside the bench to scratch under the cat's chin. Its emerald eyes flicked open, and it let out a slow, satisfied purr.

"Why am I not surprised to see you here?"

Wooyoung flinched at the familiar voice and whipped his head around. Of course. San was standing a few feet away, hands stuffed into the pockets of his leather jacket, dark eyes narrowing at Wooyoung.

Wooyoung groaned, rolling his eyes. "Oh, great. What do you want now?"

San stepped closer, his boots crunching against the fallen leaves. "The same thing as you. The cat."

Wooyoung stood up, brushing off his hands. "Well, I found it first. So maybe you should just head back home, pretty boy."

San crossed his arms, arching a brow. "I was here yesterday. If anyone should adopt it, it's me."

"Yeah? And what did you do yesterday? Stare at it with that creepy, smug face of yours?" Wooyoung shot back, irritation bubbling in his chest.

San scoffed. "Better than you slapping a random collar on it like it's already yours."

Wooyoung bristled at the mention of the collar. "That wasn't just any collar! It was a gift for the cat."

"Uh-huh. You don't even know what it likes yet."

"Oh, like you do?" Wooyoung retorted, stepping closer until he and San were standing toe to toe, eyes locked in a silent, heated battle.

For a moment, the only sound between them was the rustling of leaves and the occasional chirp of a bird. The cat meowed lazily from the bench, tail swishing as it watched the two humans argue.

San was the first to break the silence, pinching the bridge of his nose. "This is getting ridiculous. We both know it likes both of us."

Wooyoung blinked, taken aback by the sudden shift in San's tone. "Wait...are you suggesting—"

San nodded, exhaling sharply. "Yeah. We'll both...you know, take care of it. See which one it likes better."

Wooyoung crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. "How do you plan on doing that, genius?"

San shrugged as if it were obvious. "Simple. We take turns feeding it. Morning, noon, night. Play with it whenever we can. We let the cat decide who it likes more."

Wooyoung tapped his foot, chewing on his bottom lip as he mulled it over. It wasn't a terrible idea...and at least it gave him a reason to see the cat more often.

"And you're not going to pull any weird tricks, right?" Wooyoung asked cautiously.

San gave him a flat look. "Do I look like I have the time to trick a cat?"

Wooyoung huffed but eventually nodded. "Fine. We'll do it your way."

San smirked. "Glad to see you're finally using your brain."

"Don't push it."

The cat stretched on the bench, its paws flexing before it curled back into a ball, seemingly content with its two new caretakers.

Wooyoung glanced at the cat, then back at San. "So, uh...what if it likes both of us equally?"

San shrugged again. "Then we leave it. Easy."

Wooyoung muttered under his breath, "Nothing's ever easy with you."

But as much as he hated to admit it, the arrangement wasn't all that bad. And for now, at least, they had a truce.