Canines; Jeongchan

Trois

Ms. Wang tries to keep me away from the mess, but I insist I have time and can lend a hand, cleaning glass shards as she talks about the poor raccoon.

When she spots the blood, she frowns, but doesn't ask questions, instead just grabbing a bottle and spraying some of the contents on it. Within just about one and a half hours, the apartment is clean. It leaves just enough time for me to possibly get ready and to text Hyunjin about my book bag.

Chan shows up as soon as Ms. Wang has finished. He thanks her and guides her out the door.

"A rabid raccoon, huh?", he asks after closing it.

"It's not like you didn't act like one.   And the reality sounds much more outlandish and far fetched. I can't just say: Mr. Bang transformed into a wolf and destroyed the living room."

Chan smirks and hands me a toothbrush. He points me in the direction of the bathroom. I grab my phone and text Hyunjin to bring my book bag to class.

He responds with a sure, why? followed by a peach and an eggplant emoji as well as a question mark.

I ignore those texts and finish up, then walk with Chan through the woods to campus.

We split, agreeing it would be weird to walk in together, and Chan goes in first. He walks up to a short man nearby. I walk in after another minute and run up to Hyunjin.

"My favorite hoe! Where were you last night? That's not your hoodie."

I glance up at Chan and see him staring at the tall boy. He bares his teeth in a wolffish manner.

"Study session with Chan. We fell asleep."

"Sure, sure. Study session, huh? How many rounds of study did you do?", Hyunjin laughs, and slaps my ass.

"How much does it hu-"

He can't finish the question.

Chan suddenly tackles him, a snarl on his features. Hyunjin lands on the floor with Chan holding his collar, a motion that reminds me of my own experiences with his wolfy side.

"Chan?", I whisper under my breath.

Somehow, he's heard me, and looks at me.

His eyes are cold and dark.

Animalistic.

"Chan, get off of Hyunjin", I whisper.

He stares at me a moment longer, then his eyes soften almost imperceptibly and he gets off of my best friend's chest.

I look around, and realize I need an excuse to please the crowd.

"Congratulations hyung", I say loudly into the silence,"I do believe you've won the bet."

The tension diffuses, and the hallway explodes with talk and laughter.

Chan continues glaring at Hyunjin, but nobody is paying attention to him anymore.

I step in between them, and hold my hand out to Hyunjin.

Chan snarls softly behind me when he takes it.

"Sorry, that was payback for the time you  didn't let me into the apartment because you were to busy shagging your boyfriend."

My roommate laughs, and I can tell he buys it.

"Now if you'll excuse me, as the loser of the bet, I need to divulge some private information."

I take my bag and grab Chan's hand, pulling him through the thick crowd of students.