Chapter Text
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The community board located in the center of the quad stands tall and foreboding.
Print outs in varying fonts, colors, and a variety of pictures promote everything from tutoring services to lost pets, their paper wrinkled by careless hands and drizzled rain flapping gently in the breeze. A young witch draped in black stands before the board, sleeves of his sweater tugged over his palms and arms wrapped around himself to defend against the crispness of the late October air. Two black, triangular ears twitch atop his head of long, dark hair, a matching tail curled around his own waist. Teeth worry his bottom lip as bambi eyes roam the board, blinking frequently to prevent further tears from trailing over freckled cheeks flushed rosy-pink from the chill.
Nothing.
Not one single ad for rooms to rent. It's no real surprise this far into the semester, but Felix had still hoped there would be something.
What is he going to do now?
Feeling overwhelmed, Felix sucks in a shaky inhale, bottom lip wobbling and tears blurring his vision despite himself.
“Hey.”
Jolting, Felix swivels on his feet, ears airplaning and tail puffing from the surprisingly close voice. A witch with blonde hair and porcelain skin he vaguely recognizes from his Ethics of Necromancy lecture raises his hands in a placating gesture, almond eyes wide as if Felix’s reaction startled him, too.
“Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you.”
Sniffling, Felix quickly scrubs his sweater paws over his flushed cheeks, ears perking and tail smoothing as it relaxes into a gentle S.
“It's okay.” His voice comes out scratchy and hoarse, so Felix clears his throat, blinking back the rest of his tears. “Am I in your way?”
“Ah, no...” The stranger’s sharp eyes sweep over Felix in a brief assessment. “Just- you've been standing here for a while, and you're, you know-” His gaze cuts to the suitcase parked on the ground next to Felix, softening when he meets eyes with the petite black cat perched atop. “I wanted to check on you.”
“Oh-” Felix feels his throat tighten again, a fresh set of tears flooding his eyes at this stranger's kindness. “I, um- it's just-” Gnawing his lower lip, Felix averts his eyes in an attempt to reign in his emotions.
“Hey…” The stranger reaches out a gentle hand to Felix’s shoulder, giving a soft pull. “Let's sit down and you can tell me about it, okay?”
All Felix can do is nod and follow the fellow witch to a nearby bench, cat in his arms and suitcase rolling behind him.
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Felix didn't intend to talk so much, but the stranger, Minho, had been so kind, his energy so calm and comforting, that Felix had word vomited it all — from the stifling over-protectiveness of his parents back home to the sudden move to Seoul for university to the hostile, hybrid-hating roommate to the lack of friends or coven to turn to now that he's been kicked out.
Before Felix knows it, dusk has turned the sky periwinkle, the chill of autumn raising gooseflesh along his skin.
“I just… I don't know what to do now,” Felix whispers, voice tight with tears. “I have no home, no coven, no money. Student housing is full, and I've been checking for rental postings all week but there's nothing. I don't have anywhere to go, and staying in the motel has used up all of my savings.”
Beside him, Minho releases a heavy exhale, idly petting Cotton Candy, the black cat curled up in his lap.
“I… might have an idea.”
“Really?” Felix asks, doe eyes wide and glistening, not daring to hope.
“Look, Yongbok-ah… I don't normally do things like this, okay? But I may or may not have a soft spot for cats.”
Giggling, Felix nods.
“There’s a small space above the shop I work at. It's not much, it's barely an apartment, really, and no one has lived there in a long time. It's empty, we've only been using it for storage, so there's no real furniture. But, if you can work at the shop, even just part time, I'm sure the owner would let you rent it for cheap.”
“Really? You mean it?” Felix asks, the excitement and hope bleeding into in his tone.
“Yeah,” Minho replies, grin tugging at his lips as he reaches up to ruffle Felix’s hair. “The owner is out of the country right now, but I'm sure he won't mind. How about you crash at my place tonight, and then come with me to my shift tomorrow? I'll show you the shop and help you clear the apartment space out.”
“Can you do that? Like, just hire me like this? I've never had a job before… Are you sure the owner won't mind?”
At that, Minho’s grin twists into a little smirk that sends Felix’s heart palpitating.
“Yeah, I'm sure. I run the place when he's not around. I have authority to make staff changes.”
“Oh, Minho-hyung, thank you!” Felix exclaims, throwing his arms around the fellow witch in a hug. For a moment, Minho freezes, and Felix worries he's done something wrong. But then he wraps an arm around the hybrid, gently patting him on the back.
“Don’t thank me yet. You haven't seen the place.”
True to his word, Minho takes Felix to his own apartment that night, introducing him to his boyfriend, a werewolf named Jisung who Felix instantly adores. The next day, Felix meets Minho after class, and the pair travel the short distance to the shop by broom, landing in a small, secluded street packed with cozy little brick stores. As they stroll up the cobbled path, Felix gazes around in wonder at the soft golden glow of storefront windows, the trees lining the street gently swaying in the breeze, sending a gentle sprinkling of warm-toned leaves to the ground.
“Here we are!”
Blinking back to attention, Felix turns to Minho, smile already on his lips-
And freezes.
Instantly, heat floods his face, all the way from his across his cheeks and down beneath his collar. His mouth hangs open, yet no sound escapes, throat tight and tongue refusing to cooperate.
At his silence, Minho glances over, blinking rapidly at Felix’s stone-still shock.
“What?”
“I- you- this-” Felix flounders. Closing his eyes, he swallows the lump in his throat and inhales a calming breath, mustering the bravest facade he can before regarding Minho. “A s-sex shop?”
Recognition flares in Minho’s expression, eyes widening and mouth forming a small ‘o.’
“Ah. Right. Did I not mention that?”
“No,” Felix squeaks out, then clears his throat. “No, you, um, you didn't.”
“Oh.” Minho has the decency to look a bit sheepish. “Is that… okay? If it makes you uncomfortable, I'm sure we can figure something else out-“
“No! No, it's- it's fine. I'm fine. Just… caught me off guard.”
“Well, then, Yongbok-ah…” Minho smiles at him before opening the door, gesturing Felix forward with a sweep of his arm. “Welcome to Unhinged Decadence.”
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After Minho gives him a quick walk through of the upstairs living quarters (a simple studio apartment covered in dust and a few boxes), they venture downstairs for the store tour. Hardwood flooring is covered by dark red oriental rugs, the walls painted a deep maroon and lined in shelves which house a variety of objects which Felix never knew existed. Minho walks him through row after row, rambling on about the various types of product as Felix finds himself questioning if he's really up for this after all. By the end of it, his face is flushed as red as a sunburned ogre.
But then.
Then, Minho introduces Felix to his new coworker and fellow student.
Hwang Hyunjin.
And, fuck. If Felix thought he was in over his head before… now, he knows for a fact that there's no way he'll survive working in a sex shop of all places alongside Hwang Hyunjin.
Long, shaggy dark hair. Flawless, porcelain pale skin. Dark crimson eyes so deep, Felix nearly gets lost from the first moment they make eye contact. Regal bone structure with gorgeous features perfectly blended; from the set of his brows to his sharp eyes, the curve of his nose to the perfect plush of his rosy lips, his defined jawline down to his perfect neck, all of which sit upon broad shoulders on a tall frame. Lithe yet muscular, with visible veins webbing along his forearms where his black sweater sleeves are pushed up.
And he's a vampire. Of course.
Hyunjin is so devastatingly Felix’s type that it's almost comical.
Or, rather, he would be… if only Hyunjin wasn't the poster-child for the brooding, moody vampire cliché.
After nervously reporting to Hyunjin for training at the beginning of his first shift, Felix is thrown in the deep end, instructed to greet customers while Hyunjin is busy ringing another out. It goes less than smoothly, to say the least, with the customer tossing question after question at a stunned, clueless Felix who has no idea how to handle his lack of knowledge on the specifics of gargoyle physiology and the lube best suited for the species, floundering under the pressure until Hyunjin steps in to take over.
“What the hell was that?” Hyunjin demands after the customer walks away, rounding on Felix with annoyance painted across his beautiful face. “Have you never worked a job before?”
“Um…” Felix glances down, wilting under the vampire’s piercing gaze. “No. This is my first job.”
“Of course it is…” Hyunjin mutters to himself, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Would've been nice if Minho-hyung mentioned that.”
Exhaling a frustrated sigh, he runs a hand back through silky black hair, eyeing Felix as the hybrid stares at the ground, tail drooping and lips curled into a pout. The tinkling of the bell above the door signals the arrival of a new customer, and Felix feels a pit of dread weigh down his stomach.
“Come on, kitty.” Hyunjin nods towards the customer with a roll of his eyes. “And pay attention, I don't want to have to repeat myself.”
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By the end of his first shift, Felix is more than overwhelmed. He can tell Hyunjin is at least trying to be patient with him, but as each new mistake piles on top of the last, Felix grows more flustered and self-conscious, while Hyunjin grows increasingly irritable and broody.
Felix's second shift doesn't fare much better.
After a long day of classes, Felix returns to the shop, anxiously approaching a bored Hyunjin. The vampire is leaning casually against the counter, idly flipping through a catalog with little enchanted photos of sex toys. Felix tries his best not to blush at the colorful dildos based on various creatures — water dragon, shifted werewolf, minotaur, and is that a unicorn? — dancing across the pages. When Hyunjin finally glances up, he does a double-take, dark eyes going wide as they pan Felix from head to toe.
“You-” Hyunjin stops himself short, restarting. “Did you have a spell go wrong or something?”
Flushing as Hyunjin tries, and fails, to keep his eyes from dropping to where the black fabric of Felix's dress is stretched tight across his chest — much more substantial and curvier today than the day previous — the hybrid crosses his arms self consciously, unaware of the way it only pushes his soft breasts up further, creating more dramatic cleavage for Hyunjin to ogle.
“Ah… no. My body changes gender to match how I feel each day.”
“...huh. Is that a hybrid thing?”
“Um, not exactly.” Felix shifts his weight, nervously fiddling with the silver chain of his necklace. “More of a half-breed thing…”
“Oh.” Finally managing to tear his gaze from Felix’s much curvier body, Hyunjin clears his throat. “Do you use different pronouns other than masculine on these kinds of days, or..?”
A warm, squishy feeling settles inside Felix’s rib cage at the question.
“I- sometimes? Is it okay if I just let you know?” Felix asks, preparing himself for judgement, for Hyunjin to scoff and call him a freak.
What he doesn't expect, however, is for the vampire to simply nod, humming in agreement as those pretty, plush lips quirk up in the ghost of a grin.
“Sure, kitty.” With little warning, Hyunjin reaches out and pats Felix on the head, fingers trailing behind one of his ears in a quick little scratch. “Whatever you need, yeah?”
And, oh.
Hyunjin's touch is nice.
Dumbstruck, Felix can only nod in return, lashes fluttering, desperately trying to ease the pounding of his heartbeat. Because at the rate its thundering in his chest, there's no way the vampire won't hear it. As if reading his mind, deep red eyes drop to Felix’s neck, zeroing in on his pulse point, and the once soft grin turns knowing, gaze sharpening in a way that does little to calm his racing heart. Long fingers shift from a fuzzy black ear to delve into Felix’s hair, combing down through the silky length, then trail feather-light over the freckled skin of his neck. Breath hitching, Felix is frozen, a strange sensation settling in the pit of his stomach as Hyunjin’s palm cups the back of his neck, thumb smoothing over his pulse. The touch is gentle yet steady, and that, plus the weight of Hyunjin’s attention, how those dark eyes are focused to intently — so intensely — churns up an array of emotions and sensations Felix isn't sure how to navigate.
Hyunjin’s thumb stills, resting over Felix’s carotid artery. Deep red eyes flit up to meet black, pinning the hybrid in place. Plush lips curl up further, revealing sharp canines.
“What’s got your little heart beating so fast, kitten?”
Kitten.
A fierce flush heats Felix’s cheeks, blooming all the way up to his ears. Before he can get his brain moving to think of a response, the bell above the door chimes. Startled, Felix jumps, tail puffed and eyes wide as saucers as he whirls around to greet the customer. Hyunjin half-sighs, half-groans running his large palm over Felix’s back for a brief moment in a calm, soothing gesture that leaves him pleasantly tingly.
“Time to see if any of yesterday’s lessons stuck, hm?”
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After an especially embarrassing incident involving a customer asking questions about a product Felix has no idea how to even begin to answer, Hyunjin turns to the now red-faced hybrid, an unimpressed expression on his gorgeous face.
“Alright. Do you not know anything about vibrators?”
“Um. Not really.”
“Aish…” Hyunjin gripes, crossing his arms. “Okay. Tell me what you do know.”
“...huh?”
“About sex toys. Which ones you've used, seen porn of, whatever.”
“I- uh… I don't- I mean-” Face flaring bright hot, Felix stumbles over a reply, only growing more flustered as Hyunjin raises an expectant brow, corners of his mouth quirking up in a hint of amusement. “I- I haven't.”
“What, haven't watched any porn with sex toys? That’s… boring.” Hyunjin shrugs. “But, hey, whatever floats your boat, kitty. Altho-”
“No! No, I mean- I haven't seen any porn. Like, at all,” Felix corrects, anxiously fiddling with his necklace as he gnaws at his bottom lip.
“...you can't be serious.” Hyunjin deadpans. “Have you been living under a rock?”
“No, I just-” Swallowing down his embarrassment, Felix looks at the floor, unable to keep his gaze on Hyunjin’s beautiful face. “My parents were… overbearing. I never had a chance to.”
“Oh.”
It's quiet for a moment, only the sounds of Felix’s awkward shuffling and the soft hum of the shop’s background music.
“And, um… I’ve never…” Felix drops his voice, mumbling the rest of the words, “...never used any toys, either.”
“Huh? You've never used a toy?” Hyunjin asks, voice incredulous. When Felix glances up, he finds that the vampire's eyes have gone round and cute in shock. “Dildo? Plug? Nipple clamps?” As Felix shakes his head to each toy the vampire lists off, Hyunjin’s expression grows more surprised, brows lifting and voice raising pitch in his confused disbelief. “Not even a vibrator?”
“No…” Felix confirms, wilting, hugging himself tighter as his ears flatten, tail wrapping around his torso in an attempt to self-soothe. “Never.”
“Then why the hell are you working in a sex shop as your first job?” Hyunjin asks, eyes narrowed as he sweeps his gaze over Felix, trying to piece together what he's missing.
“I needed money…” Felix attempts to explain, the backs of his eyes burning with oncoming tears. “And- and a place to live. I…” Try as he might, Felix can't stop his voice from wavering, can feel the way his nose is flushing, vision blurring as tears flood his lash line. “I'm s-sorry. I know I'm being a burden to you-" At his words, Hyunjin's frown deepens, concern blooming in his chest as Felix's body language grows more nervous, his words more self-depreciating. "I don't mean to be, I promise. I just- I didn't have anywhere else to go-” Felix cuts off, choking on a quiet sob, quickly swiping at his cheeks to harshly scrub away the few tears that have broken free. “I’m really sorry, Hyunjin-hyung. T-thank you for helping me.”
Another quiet pause drags on as Hyunjin allows Felix a few moments to collect himself. Then, the vampire releases a deep sigh, and Felix feels a large hand gently smooth over his ears and hair. Shocked by the touch, Felix looks up, eyes wide and red-ringed as he meets Hyunjin’s gaze.
“Hey, hey... come on. Don't cry, pretty kitty.”
Breath catching at the pet name, at the sudden shift in the brooding vampire’s demeanor, Felix blinks up at Hyunjin as a fresh flush burns over freckled cheeks.
“You didn't do anything wrong, alright? You're not the first person to walk in here with no experience. Usually, though, those are customers...” Hyunjin says as he absentmindedly scratches behind one of Felix’s ears. And the hybrid visibly melts, muscles relaxing and eyes shifting from shocked awe to something almost pleading as he leans into Hyunjin's hand. Plush lips curl into a ghost of a smirk, sharp eyes glinting with something Felix can't place. “I just need to devote more time to training you, hm?”
Training.
Oh.
Something about that word feels so right.
A little dazed, Felix nods, teeth sinking into his bottom lip. Hyunjin's eyes follow the movement, head gently tilting in a way that has no right to be as alluring as it is.
The soothing touch leaves his ear, and Felix aches at the loss.
“Come on, kitty.” Hyunjin grins, a crooked little upturn of those pretty lips that causes Felix’s heart to stutter. “Let’s pick out your first toy.”
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