The Long and Winding Road || A Vhope FF ||✔️

Chapter 6

Before Hoseok could respond to this, Yeontan turned around in Hoseok’s lap, as if wanting to join into the conversation too. “What do you think, Tannie?” Hoseok cooed, scratching behind Yeontan’s ears. “Hmm? What do you think?”

Yeontan didn’t do anything, just continued gazing at Hoseok, and Hoseok rubbed a hand down his back.

“Do you have a dog of your own?” Taehyung asked. “You’re really good with Yeontan.”

“I have a dog, yeah, but he lives with my parents. I travel too much for work to let him live with me. His name is Mickey and he’s a shih tzu, and the cutest dog on the planet. Other than Yeontan, of course.”

Taehyung grinned. “Of course. That’s sad, though, that he can’t live with you. I think I’d be extra lonely without Yeontan around, now.”

“How did you get Yeontan anyway? Did you buy him?” Pomeranians weren’t given away for free, that much Hoseok knew. Heeyeon had one, and she’d talked before about how expensive they were.

Besides that, Taehyung really seemed like a big dog kind of person. He definitely wouldn’t have pictured him with a tiny fluffball, if he hadn’t already seen Taehyung and Yeontan in action.

“Ah, no. He was abandoned as a puppy, actually. His old owners, they moved from the neighboring farm. Apparently country life was too much for them? They had a dog breeding farm, though, and they somehow left Yeontan. I was walking around the field this summer when I found him, tiny and hungry and sick, and well. He’s mine now.”

“So you raised him all by yourself.”

“I guess so,” Taehyung said, and took a moment to take his hand off the wheel to give Yeontan a pat. “It’s just me and Tannie, now.”

“That’s really sweet. Though it’s sad, how his family left him.”

Taehyung shrugged. “He wasn’t sick for too long, and honestly, I’m grateful that they were so negligent now. I wouldn’t have gotten Tannie without that. Sometimes bad things happen for good things to come together, you know?”

“Yeah,” Hoseok said, giving Yeontan another stroke, “I know.”

By the time they finished all of the egg deliveries, it was late afternoon, and they had a huge bowl of dakjjim in the backseat.

The ajumma that they had given eggs in return for the stew had been tiny and wrinkled, and she’d patted Hoseok’s cheek and called him a “dear boy” for being friends with “sweet Taehyungie.”

“He’s definitely sweet,” Hoseok had told her, and laughed at the way Taehyung had raised his eyebrows behind Mrs. Ha’s back.

“You’re a natural with the ajummas,” Taehyung said on the way home.

“I do my best,” Hoseok responded.

“You’d fit in here,” Taehyung observed. “Well, from what I’ve seen of you anyway. I know it’s only been two days, but I feel like. You’re like.” Taehyung bit his lip, as if trying to find the words. “There’s something about you that’s special, I guess.”

“I can say the same for you, sweet Taehyungie,” Hoseok said back, trying to hide how touched he was.

It was rare that new people were kind to him for simply the sake of being kind. Hoseok had learned that everything had a price tag attached, but Taehyung...he never acted like that, simply just giving things away for free.

“Is this what your life is like all the time?” Hoseok asked instead of focusing on this. It’s only been two days, Hoseok reminded himself. Calm down.