DEH Oneshots/drabbles/shitposts

Sox (Conman)

Sox was a four year old Australian Shepherd, and though he acted like a puppy, Connor Murphy could argue that his boyfriend, Jared Kleinman, loved the dog more than he loved him.

Now that the two lives together, it was obvious the dog was Jared's second love, and the thing was, it didn't bother Connor one bit; not even when Sox got to sleep on the bed with them, or when Jared gave the dog 'designated Sox times,' simply because he wanted to spend time with his dog. Jared was in love with both of the boys equally, and he knew Connor loved the dog as well.

"Wait, you got him, how?"

The two were safely tucked away under their shared comforter, their chests touching, their smiles matching each other's. Somehow, unsurprisingly, the conversation had migrated to the puppy laying at the edge of the bed, beneath their feet. Sox had been there since before Connor even met Jared, and he never bothered to ask how his presence became known.

"So I was at the flea market," Jared began to explain. "And there was this lady there, and she was selling puppies, and he was the runt." He looked down at the dog. "He was the last one she had left to sell, and she didn't even know if he would make it through the night, so I decided to take him off her hands and give him a fighting chance." Jared let a small smile creep onto his lips as he explained the last part. "I nursed him back to health, and then some. He's my baby, pretty much literally and figuratively."

"So what does that make me?" Connor inquired, gently wrapping his arm around Jared's waist.

"Jealous," Jared replied with a smile. He pulled him into a soft, gentle kiss. "And you're my honey, and I need you to make my tea sweet."

"You drink coffee."

"And you just disregarded my pun," Jared pouted. He squeezed Connor's hand. "It's getting late," he remarked. "I think we should get some sleep."

Connor rolled over and gently kissed his forehead. "Okay," he nodded. "Yeah, goodnight, Jare," he whispered softly. "Have sweet dreams."

"I already have two," Jared chuckled, warning a groan from the boy laying next to him. "Goodnight, babe."

The two turned off their respective bedside lamps and fell into a soft sleep, almost in unison. That was how close they were. That was how connected they seemed to be with each other. Even Sox, at the end of the bed, began to snore within fifteen minutes of the lights being off.

Until a couple hours passed, and the dog seemed to awaken out of the blue.

Sox hopped down off the bed, and crept downstairs, where there were a few suspicious noises that the dog heard. He looked around, spotting a man in the kitchen, attempting to rob the humans that were asleep just upstairs. He let out a bark, which awakened Connor with a jolt.

Sox never liked to bark, or wreak havoc on his owners or neighbors, so when the dog barked, Connor knew something was up. He gently shook Jared awake, trying his best to get the boy up. "Jare," he whispered. "Sox is barking."

"He what?" Jared asked him, tearing off his sleep mask.

"I said, Sox is barking." Connor swung his legs over the side of the bed. He slipped on his slippers and tied his hair back. "I'm gonna go see what he's on about."

"Be careful, babe," Jared warned. "Call if you need any help, okay?"

"Don't worry, I will."

Connor slowly crept down the stairs, seeing the dog glaring at something that he couldn't quite see. He squinted, heading down the stairs even quicker until he saw the figure that the dog was making so much noise about. "Who are you?"

The man was too busy trying to get Sox to shut up to even realize Connor was there, until he spoke up. His head shot up, and he grabbed his bag, his hand reaching into his pocket to pull out a black, matte gun. He pointed it at Connor, then at Sox, then back at Connor. "Go back upstairs," he threatened.

"Who are you?" Connor repeated, throwing his hands up in nervous defense.

The man shook his head, the gun shaking in his trembling hands. He shook his head. "You don't need to know," he insisted, narrowing his eyes. "Go back upstairs."

"What's in the bag?" Connor asked him, staring at the black sack in the man's other hand. "Because it looks like you're trying to rob us."

"Go back upstairs... take your dog, and no one gets hurt," he hissed, his grip tightening on the bag.

Connor narrowed his eyes, and took a step towards the dog, only to be cut off by a loud bang, followed by the sound of footsteps.

In a desperate attempt to free himself, the man mistook Connor's step for an approach, and pulled the trigger, firing a shot right into his rib cage.

Connor was sent into a laying position against the stairs, the panicked footsteps of his boyfriend seeming to get louder as more time elapsed.

Jared couldn't believe what he was seeing upon heading downstairs to investigate.

Sox was next to Connor, licking his face, while Connor laid there, barely breathing in a growing pool of blood.

"Oh my god."

Jared sprinted to aid his boyfriend, immediately pulling out his phone and calling the authorities. "Connor?" He whispered, "Hey, Hey, stay with me, Con. Talk to me."

"Jare?" Connor whimpered, his head spinning. He looked over to the fuzzy-looking boy, a small cough escaping his parted lips. "Jared," he sniffled. "He robbed us... I think he got—"

"Baby, don't talk," Jared insisted. "Please, I'm begging you. Just... I don't care what he got. I care that you're okay. I need you to be okay. Just... just think, Con, Okay?" Jared tote off his sweater and pressed it against the wound. "Help is on the way, Okay?"

"Think?" He sniffled, feeling Sox lay his head on his abdomen. Connor weakly per the dog. "Think about what?"

"Think about..." Jared tried to breathe. "Think about us... how happy we are... Think about our life, our future together," he sniffled. "Don't give up on me."

Connor gave a small chuckle. "I may spend the rest of my life thinking about us," he whispered. "However long it may be."

Jared shook his head. "Think about Sox," he insisted. "He just stopped that guy from taking any more of our stuff. Think about how I got him... how they didn't think he was gonna make it... but I saved him. I nursed him back to health, just like I'm gonna nurse you, Okay?" He squeezed his hand. "Just... think about Sox," he insisted.

Connor looked over at the dog with a small smile. "He's a good thing to think about," he admitted, petting the dog more and more. It was therapeutic, no matter how much pain he was in.

"I love you guys, Con."

Connor mustered a weak smile. "We love you too."