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It was a slow day for the both of them, schedule syncing up letting them eat lunch together at the cafeteria.
Seeun drops his fork at Minjae's words. "Come again?"
"Aish, you heard me." Minjae says, a bit annoyed. "And don't you dare say it's because of the height difference!"
"But, hyung-" He bites his lip. Being a Giraffe hybrid and talking to a Chihuahua hybrid, one would assume their words wouldn't reach each other well. "Right in front of my salad?"
"It's an honest query!" Minjae throws his hands up in the air. "What, don't tell me you hadn't thought about this?"
"I had not!" Seeun replies immediately. "Because I'm not so much of a horndog like you- pun intended."
"Is that so..." Minjae looks down on his plate, fork rolling around the lettuce Seeun had traded for a taste of his cherry tomato. "You don't love me then?"
There it was.
Seeun sighs. "Hyung..."
The little demon looks up at him with, bright, shining eyes, a common trick he often uses to get his way- most effective against his boyfriend.
"All I wanted was to spend some time together." Minjae sniffles, laying it on thick for Seeun. "I'll be absorbed with my music theory project for the next month-"
"Okay, fine!" Seeun raises his hands up in defeat. "You win. Your dorm or mine?"
"There's more room in yours." Minjae beckons him to come lower, giving him a peck and a lick on the cheek as the younger groans at the affectionate display. "See you on Saturday."
Seeun watches Minjae walk away, tail wagging behind him as he takes the piece of lettuce from his hyung's plate, not wanting to waste any food.
"Tsk, this is why you aren't growing taller." Seeun mumbles as he takes a bite of the vegetable.
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Seeun will always remember the first time he met Minjae.
"You're gonna like him, I swear!" His friend, Yujun, pulls at his arm as they enter campus. "Oh, maybe he'll play us the songs he's been working on!"
Seeun let's himself be pulled by his friend, glad to know there are seniors they'll be acquainted with in college.
A fox hybrid with short hair answers the door when they knock.
"Oh, Yujunie right?" The man clicks his tongue. "Minjae! Your little bro is here."
Then appeared the most beautiful man Seeun has ever seen.
"There you are!" Minjae opens his arms wide, allowing Yujun to run up to him and get caught in a hug, making Minjae whine when he's easily lifted up. "Oy! I told you not to do that."
"Didn't you want to see how strong I've become!" Yujun only laughs, even doing squats and making the room laugh alongside him as he embarasses Minjae. "Oh! I forgot to introduce you to my friend- this is Seeunie!"
"Sup?" Minjae throws him a wink, trying to regain whatever cool persona he must have once Yujun puts him down. "I'm the eldest here, so you'll call me hyung."
"You can just call me Hyunwoo, by the way." He points finger guns at the two freshmen. "None of that hyung stuff."
They address him with the honorific regardless.
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Back to the present, Seeun paces back and forth as the clock ticks closer to 2PM.
"Hey man, you're gonna dent the floor if you keep worrying like that." Sumin finally takes his headphones off. "Go in a circle so we can install a pool!"
"You're not helping!" Seeun yells, shocked at his tone. The hamster hybrid only raises an eyebrow at him. "Sorry- I'm just nervous."
"Minjae's not gonna eat you." Sumin jokes, eyes widening once the words leave his mouth. "Actually, he might."
"Stop it!" Seeun couldn't stop the way his skin crawls at that. Although he doesn't want to believe it, one could never be too careful with carnivores. "But we've kissed before..."
"Giving head might be different." Sumin teases, laughing when Seeun visible turns red. "Wait, you guys actually haven't?-"
A knock cuts Sumin off.
"He's here!" Seeun begins to pace even faster. "You said you'd be gone before he comes!"
"Relax, it's not like we don't know each other." Sumin finally stands up, tossing on an oversized t-shirt as he opens the door. "Hey man."
"Yo!" Minjae greets Sumin with a high five. "Is Seeun here?"
"Yeah, I was just about to leave." He puts his headphones around his neck. "Have fun you two."
Once Sumin leaves, Minjae closes the door behind him.
"Hi." He starts, making Seeun slow down to a standstill. "No pressure, right?"
Sumin's words stick to Seeun's mind. It was already taboo for two men to be together, but to be in a carnivore-herbivore relationship?
Lots of devouring cases start there.
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Seeun feels the world spinning around him.
"Isn't this fun?" Yujun says, spilling the drink in his hand as he swayed to the music.
"Yeah." Seeun responds, finishing the rest of his cup as he dances even harder in an attempt to quell the pounding in his head.
They were invited into a welcoming party for freshmen, thrown by some dude named Jackson Wang.
The pain in his head becomes too much, resting a hand on Yujun's shoulder to stabilize himself. "Maybe we should slow down a little."
"Huh?" Yujun stills, watching as Seeun massages his temple. "Aha! I didn't know you were a lightweight!"
"You're one to talk." A voice says behind them.
"Minjae-hyung!" Yujun calls, going to hug him and ending up fully leaning his weight onto him. "Please don't tell Hongjoong I'm drunk~"
"Yah, dad won't like you calling him by his first name." Minjae shrugs Yujun off, yet keeps a hand around his waist so he doesn't topple over. "Come you two, I know where you guys can rest up."
They get shuffled into one of the rooms upstairs, with Minjae laying Yujun down who instantly knocks out once his head hit the pillow.
"And he calls me a lightweight." Seeun chuckles, watching his friend snore immediately.
"He likes to talk a lot, but he's still such a baby." Minjae says, fondness in his tone. "So, how are you liking college so far?"
"It's alright." Seeun even dared to say it was fun, but seeing the other students living off of coffee and ramen tells him it's all just new to him for now. "I'm still finding nice things to say about the experience."
That draws a laugh out of Minjae. Seeun decides he likes the sound of that.
"You're quite the charmer, aren't you?" Minjae says, leaning onto the bedframe. He pats the space beside him, urging Seeun to sit on the floor as well. "Come closer then, cool guy."
Seeun doesn't know if its the alcohol, but he feels his face heat up and knees turn jelly when Minjae calls him that, following the command with ease.
"So," Minjae grabs a bottle of water from the cooler beside him easily, opening the cap with his teeth. "Have a girlfriend yet?"
"I-I don't like, girls." Seeun admits. This might be the liquid courage people talk about, since it isn't' usually this easy for him to tell people he's gay.
"That's alright." Minjae nods. "I'm bisexual myself."
"Oh." Well, Yujun did say that, but it was different hearing it from the horse's- or chihuahua's rather, mouth. "Cool."
Silence stretches between them for a few minutes after that, with Minjae keeping him company as Yujun's snoring and the low rumble of the music below them morphs into comfortable, white noise.
"So," Minjae starts again, a pout on his lips as he places his chin on his knees. "What kind of boys do you like?"
Seeun gulps at that. Boys like you, his mind supplies.
Minjae turns to him with wide eyes. Fuck, did he say that out loud?
"Really..." Minjae's lips easily turn into a smirk, "what do, 'boys like me' actually entail?"
Usually, being confronted would have had him panicking, but he only finds his heart at ease as he considers properly answering Minjae.
"A bit older." Seeun's never had a boyfriend before, so he would prefer his partner to guide him through it. "They have to be as pretty as me."
"Do I fit the standard?" Minjae seems to have scooted closer, shrinking the gap between them. "Am I pretty enough?"
"You're very pretty." Brain-to-mouth filter seems to fail when one consumes alcohol, not that Seeun cares. "A nice body would be a bonus."
"I do have abs." Minjae ponders, absentmindedly stroking at his stomach. "They're not here now since I just had a big meal."
That piques Seeun's interest, moving closer as well as he turns towards Minjae. "Can I see?"
Minjae must have been out of his mind too. This close, Seeun could smell the same fruityness of the punch they were handed when the chihuahua hybrid takes off his shirt, proving to the younger that he indeed did have some definition on his stomach. "Is it to your liking?"
"Very." Seeun admits, licking his lips at the sight. Minjae's nipples are rock solid, somehow. "Can I touch?"
Minjae only leans back, hands resting behind his head as his eyes dart from Seeun's hand and back to his own chest. Beckoning him.
Memories begin to blur for Seeun once he's felt the warmth of another person- much different than the comfort of a friend hugging you. No, this heat was all-consuming, clinging to him like taffy as his body aches with desire, Minjae's own hands burning his shoulders despite his shirt still intact.
But what he does remember clearly, is Yujun waking up.
"Oh, did you finally confess your crush to hyung?" Yujun asks casually, rubbing at his eyes with zero concern seeing his friend and his brother making out. "I knew he'd like you too."
It took a month of Seeun avoiding the both of them until Minjae had gotten to corner him for a proper conversation, amicably ending with them deciding to be in a relationship together, despite the odd circumstances of it's origins.
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"Come on, you've been psyching yourself up for hours now!" Minjae whines after he pulls away. "It's not even supposed to be sexy!"
"Yeah, but kissing you always calms me down!" Seeun argues, pushing Minjae off of him as he avoids bumping his head from the upper bunk. "Yet today might be different-"
"Hey, I did say no pressure, right?" Minjae gives him a smile. "It's just... It's been a year since we've become official."
"I understand hyung, but-" It's not like they're completely clueless about this. Despite the education system's heavy emphasis on same species coupling, they were still taught about the reproduction of other hybrids. "Argh! Why is this so complicated!?"
"It do be like that." Minjae jokes, but it's clear that it doesn't ease their nerves. "Look, if you really don't want to, we could just watch a movie and cuddle or, something."
Seeun takes a deep breath. It hurts him seeing Minjae so shaky and unsure, even if the shaking was a common thing for chihuahuas. "No, I'll do it."
Before he could untie the drawstrings of his sweats, Minjae takes a hold of his hand, surprisingly sweaty and cold. "It really means a lot. That you'd do this for me."
Seeun nods. He knows that Minjae is just as burdened by what their relationship entails, especially in a society where interspecies couples are demonized, whether they be straight or homosexual. He reminds himself that this is Minjae's first time as well in regards to being with a man. "I need both hands to untie my pants."
"Of course." Minjae says, meekly letting go of Seeun. In any other setting, Seeun would coo at him, which would in turn anger Minjae, feeling belittled even as a joke, which led to them being known as Tom & Jerry within their friend group. "Should I cover my eyes or-"
"Well you did want to see it, so..." Seeun mutters, though his own eyes turn away from what he's doing, lowering both sweats and underpants just enough so that he could fulfill Minjae's request. "There you go."
A few beats of silence pass by, only the thumping of Minjae's tail onto the bed alerts him of any reaction from the elder.
"Wow." Minjae says, genuinely astonished at the sight. "I thought it'd be bigger."
"I-it will be when it gets hard!" Seeun feels himself blushing, hands going to shield his crotch. "And I thought you wouldn't be judgmental."
"I'm not!" Minjae jumps, accidentally bumping his head onto the upper bunk. "Ouch- it's just that, you know, horses are kind of. Big?"
"Well, horses and giraffes aren't related, breaking news!" Seeun says sarcastically. "Now what?"
"C-could I-" Minjae is stuttering. And it's freaking adorable! "Could I see it um. Hard?"
How could Seeun even say no to that face?
"Sure." Seeun tries to sound nonchalant, despite his heart beating in a frenzy. Geez, what situation did he get himself into? "Do you want to help?"
"What, like jerk you off-"
"No!" Seeun feels like he had just hit the brakes on a car before he could ram himself into a building. "Not directly- some eye candy would help a lot though."
Minjae seems to catch on, grabbing the hem of his shirt and taking it off, dropping it to the floor.
It never fails to take his breath away whenever he sees Minjae in any state of undress, eyes immediately following the light trail of fur that matches the color on his head decorate the path from his belly button going downwards.
Shit, Seeun could already feel some of his blood flowing south.
"Look away." Seeun says, becoming interested with the plain white of the wall beside them. "Please."
Minjae doesn't question the request, following suit as Seeun takes a more, hands-on approach to arouse himself, working through the dryness as he feels it beginning to chub up.
A few more seconds pass until Seeun is at full mast. "Okay, now you can look."
This time, he meets Minjae's eyes when they both land on his crotch, watching it sparkle with wonder.
That slightly confuses Seeun however. He is a narcissist to some degree, but was his dick truly that marvelous to warrant such a reaction?
"Okay. You can put it back now, thanks." Minjae closes his eyes and sighs in relief. "Wah, I'm glad it's not so different."
"What do you mean?" Seeun asks, after tucking himself back in.
"It'd be easier to show you right?" Minjae says, picking his shirt back from the floor. "Only if you want to, of course."
In for a penny, in for a dollar as they say.
"Why not." Seeun shrugs. "Looks like 'Minjae's biology class for interspecies hybrid couples' is in session anyways!"
Minjae chuckles as he undoes the belt of his jeans. "That'd be a great title for some sort of silly fanfic."
"I'll say." Seeun snickers. "Something a loser might come up with-"
The author of this work will remember the slander, ala The Walking Dead game published by Telltale.
"Why did you stop?" Seeun asks.
Minjae shrugs. "Dunno."
The elder is much more confident in showing the goods, already half-hard when he pulls both his pants and underwear down to his knees.
"Oh." It's a lot bigger than Seeun anticipated, but he knows better than to mention anything size related to his hyung. "Why's it thick at the base?"
"That's the knot." Minjae says, holding himself like he's presenting something for show and tell. "It's for um, locking in during sex."
"Ah, I've heard about that." His friend Hunter used to have trouble with that, said it was an Alpha thing Seeun wouldn't get. Exclusive to the canine species apparently. "Does it hurt?"
"A bit." Minjae says, his cock swelling up. "It's just- kind of needy you know? Won't deflate until you rub one out."
Seeun could only nod as he watches Minjae become fully erect, despite the barest of touches he had laid upon himself. "You mean it won't go down by itself?"
"It'll take a long time- like hours." Minjae bites his lip. "Shit, I didn't mean to get completely hard-"
Seeun sputters at that, watching it go from a darker shade of Minjae's skin to completely flushed red. "Then why did you!?"
"I couldn't help it-" Minjae's cheeks burn bright as he pulls the hem of his shirt down to hide it, which is pointless as a dark patch of wetness fails at any subtlety. "Not when you're just as hard!"
Seeun does the same when he realizes that his sweats sported the same wet spot. "Oh my God- so what, should we just-"
"No." Minjae says. "I'm- honestly, not ready to go that far with you yet." The admission shocks Seeun. "As I promised, my request to see it was purely innocent, despite what my body says now."
A mixture of relief and disappointment washes over Seeun. Watching Minjae get hard, knowing it was from watching him. Seeun thought his afternoon was going to get a lot hotter and stickier. "Even if I said I want to do it?"
Minjae nods, pulling his pants back up with a groan, completely in discomfort due to the swelling of his knot. " If I did it with you now- I'd be no different from those who devour."
The weight of those words slam into Seeun's chest. He had only been considering his side of things as an herbivore, those known to be prey to the carnivores. To think Minjae would even fathom that-
"Next time." Minjae promises as he stands up from the bed. "When we've properly talked this through- I won't jump into to the heat of things again."
The callback to when they were both drunk at the party makes Seeun's heart ache.
"I love you, hyung." Seeun says, trying not to tear up. Knowing how much Minjae beat himself up over that, despite the numerous times Seeun had reassured him. "You're the most considerate, and the sweetest, you know that right?"
"I do." Minjae nods. "I'm still a carnivore though, so I have to be weary." The elder hisses when he moves. "I'm sorry, but can I use the bathroom?"
Seeun nods. He swears he could taste blood as he bites at his tongue, stopping himself from saying he wants to join Minjae, to feel, and watch each other's burning desires once again. Much more now than that night they first kissed.
Before he goes, Minjae walks up to give the lightest smooch to Seeun's hair, "I love you too." He declares as he slams the bathroom door behind him.
He hopes Sumin would forgive him as Seeun takes his roommates box of napkins. Tears were also going to come out of him as he pulls his sweats down once more.
Seeun hopes his cries for Minjae's names didn't sound like the wailing of prey being bitten into, once again attributing another first experience to his boyfriend as a mixture of sadness and arousal consumed him that day, wishing Minjae's climax weren't as pitiful in the cold, tiled walls of the bathroom.
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Unlike their drunken stupor however, it only takes an hour of honest talk and an online order of junk food for Seeun and Minjae to become okay again, spending the rest of the day in each other's arms as they binged a season of Netflix anime.
Sumin returns around nighttime, grocery bags in hand. "So, how did the penis thing go-"
The couple lay fast asleep on the floor, sharing a blanket as Minjae leaned upon Seeun's shoulder, unaware that his drool directly cascaded down the side of his boyfriend's face.
The television, in a rare occurrence, doesn't ask if the people at home were still watching as the tune of the show's opening continued to play.
"Could you pray for me my friend?" The singer beckoned as a wolf and rabbit face each other. "It's starting over time~"
Sumin smiles, taking the remote off of Minjae's hands and hitting the power button. Fondness washing over him. "They don't need my prayers, they're doing well in their own terms."
Seeun and Minjae smile at that through their sleep.
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