Disaster

Chapter IV

Turns out, Sunwoo wasn't having as much 'Youngjae Time' as Juyeon initially thought. He had found that out in probably the most humiliating conversation he's ever had with the college student.

It all started when Juyeon was frowning as he stared down at his shoes. His hands were on his hips and he was waiting for Sunwoo to finish getting his things. "Are you sure you want me to come along?" He called back into the rest of the apartment, hoping the boy would hear. Lately, Sunwoo had been doing his errands alone or with Youngjae, as the boy was much more extroverted than Juyeon was, which certainly made him better company– at least that's what he assumed.

A response came from somewhere down the hall, likely in the bedroom, "Of course I'm sure! I want you with me for this!" Sunwoo came jogging out of his bedroom with his car keys in hand, stopping in front of Juyeon with a bright smile. "I need you with me, really. It's important."

Juyeon wasn't sure if the underlying "you're important" was real or just his imagination. The latter option seemed the most likely, considering that after he said that, Sunwoo exited the apartment with his usual energy and flourish. Juyeon was this close to scoffing.

The car ride wasn't too long, and Sunwoo was being cryptic the entire time. When Juyeon had asked where they were going, the boy had responded with "A place" and a wink. The vampire wanted to strangle him right then and there.

Soon enough, they were pulling into a semi-empty parking lot that was to the side of a strangely imposing brick building.

"Seriously, Sun, where are we?" Juyeon turned his head against the car seat to look at him.

Sunwoo just gave him an irking smile and got out of the car. "I'm sure you can read the building sign," he said, not even trying to hide his laughter when Juyeon cursed him out.

They walked into the Four Paws, as it was called, and Sunwoo waltzed right up to the front desk and began speaking to the receptionist behind it. Juyeon looked around while he waited. He could hear an occasional strange noise coming from different hallways, and there was a constant hum of children laughing, which was even weirder. It wasn't until a woman dressed in some lax form of nurse scrubs moved to lead him and Sunwoo down one of the hallways that he fully realized what was going on.

"Are you getting a pet?" Juyeon whispered as they walked past different rooms with windows looking into them. Most had families or couples in them with a dog, cat, or sometimes a rodent moving about.

Sunwoo turned his head to look at Juyeon behind him and gave a soft smile. "We're getting a pet. I've had one picked out for weeks. I think you'll love her."

Juyeon stopped walking. "Wait– weeks?"

Sunwoo, who was already in the room that the nurse-lady had shown them to, turned around. "Yeah. Here, come in. She can't bring it in until we're both here." He moved to grab Juyeon's wrist and dragged him into the room.

"I'll bring her to you in a moment, so please just sit patiently. I'll be right back," the woman said, closing the door behind her. There were two couches lining opposite walls and a cat tree and various animal toys placed in the middle on a colorful circle rug. Sunwoo beelined for one of the couches, while Juyeon opted to poke around the cat tree with interest.

"Is this where you've been going all this time? You always said you were with Youngjae," he asked, squatting down on the ground to pick up a few toys.

Sunwoo smiled humorously. "Youngjae is great, don't get me wrong. But he's way too extroverted for me. Like, I need a break from the guy, y'know? Plus, I felt bad leaving you alone every day; I figured a cat might be some good company."